April Showers

                                                               Art Lessons

Reading with Daddy

                                                              Muddy Fun!

Emma’s outfit choices continue to add humor to our day 

Welcome to day number ...oh, wait, I can’t remember! Oh well! I’m guessing that the majority of you are in the same boat!


We finished up our third week of  “at-home” schooling today, so that makes the week successful, right? I don’t consider it homeschooling simply because if I had chosen to homeschool all our children, I would have pick curriculum that would have been specific to teaching five kids at home. I will say that I think our school teachers have done amazingly well with trying to meet the needs of the students and not overwhelm the parents. It’s a difficult balance! Our kids spend a lot of time
outside every day, and today they cut down a brush pile. I am thankful that God saw fit to bless us with this house almost four years ago. The yard is a messy, muddy, sloppy place but it’s a space that represents freedom, creativity, imagination, and fun for five kids. I am thankful.

What else am I thankful for today? Well, it was windy and dreary, but it wasn’t raining. That’s a praise! Roger was called off of work today due to the windy weather conditions and visibility over the islands. It means that he will only get in two days of work this week, but in a small business we all must make sacrifices to help the business get through this. We are committed to helping and serving in whatever ways that we can. Roger has a great boss and wife, and we pray for them daily, as well as miss them dearly!

I”m pretty sure that Garett has continued to grow taller in the last few weeks! His pants are starting to get short again, and I’m guessing he’s getting close to six feet these days. Chandler continues to be wiry and muscular...and fast. We haven’t been able to do much running this week as I wasn’t feeling great at the beginning of the week, and the weather has been quite dreary the last few days. Wyatt and Travis continue to be able to wear the same size of clothes, and they are often mistaken for twins when I am out with all the kids (which we haven’t been for about three weeks now). Emma continues to grow as well, and she loves to wear my clothes! I know that she has worn my heels and dress shoes more than I have lately! All in all, I think our kids are weathering through this all quite well, and I trust the Lord to continue to protect and uphold them. We have our moments, don’t get me wrong, but God is faithful and provides grace for the moments.

Having Roger home is always nice for the kids, and today he was able to give Garett an art lesson. It was fun to see them sitting at the table together drawing and talking. I am thankful for all the time that Roger invests in our children. He’s a good, Godly example to them, and I am blessed.

We continue to put one foot in front of another, as do you. I had the opportunity to talk to several older people this week, and I am amazed at their spirits. They are happy and not worried at all. Granted these are our church folk, but I was certainly blessed by their spirit. We had an older lady in our church call to let us know that she was doing grocery shopping for some of the other folks in the church. She sweetly offered to get groceries for our family, and that was such a kind gesture. We have been getting by, and I’m sure I’ll be getting creative about using up our pantry stores and then making a trip (preferably in the morning) to our grocery store. When your family goes through four or five gallons of milk, 3 dozen eggs, several pounds of cheese and butter, yogurt, and lots of fruits and vegetables, you kinda have to grocery shop more often than others. We had thought about investing in an extra refrigerator, but now doesn’t seem to be the time to be finding one. God carries us through, and He continually provides.

What are your blessings from today?
* I took a nap this afternoon. I can’t remember the last time I took a nap, and it was wonderful.

* I’ve been able to do a lot more reading lately as Amazon has offered a kindle membership free for two months! It means that you can “borrow” books to read on your device, and you don’t have to pay for the books. I’ve enjoyed that a lot, and it’s been fun to do some reading for fun.

*Even though the weather was dreary, the kids played outside for several hours building and creating- and not squabbling!

* I am thankful for Godly friends who also encourage me, pray with me, and remind me that this is not forever.


God has not forsaken us. Pray fervently. Pray believing. Pray without ceasing, but let us be patient as we wait for God to do His work among us (I am speaking to myself! I am not the most patient person ever!). Rest in the Lord.


Song for today: