Baby Robertson #5 is a....

Well, we had our ultrasound for our newest addition…and guess what? Baby #5 is a….baby!  We chose not to find out so, we’ll discover sometime in August what God has given us. It was a hard decision, as part of me wanted to know and part of me didn’t. But in the end, we decided not to find out, and I’m fine with that too. Baby is growing well, the ultrasound showed no abnormalities or concerns, so we are thankful for that. We realize that each child is a gift from God, and we are blessed to once again be welcoming a child into our family. The boys are praying for a “girl” baby, but I’ve been trying to gently tell them that God might give us another boy. Garett wants to know why God would do that…”We already have enough of those, mom!” Well….I’m just trying to prepare you! 

I’ve been staying active with this pregnancy, in part, simply because I have four other children to take care of also!  I’ve really been trying to exercise and eat right but the scale still seems to be winning at a horrific rate!  I need to just come to the conclusion that I need to do my best to eat right and exercise, and I’ll ask God to help me get the weight back off when the time comes! I’ve been having a lot of back pain with this pregnancy, but that could be due to the fact that I have other children that want mommy to pick them up and cuddle them! 

Spring has been slow in coming this year. This week was full of rain, snow, sleet, and moments of “cabin fever”! I ran out of creative ideas, and today I was tired of the increasing questions to “Can I go outside?” So, the boys went out! We went through multiple pairs of went socks, pants, and gloves, but they had a great time! The laundry is never ending anyways, so I might as well let them add to it! We built forts, made craft projects, played in the basement, and even took an excursion to the McDonald's playland! BUT...I'm ready for some sunshine!!

Last Saturday, I was able to go grocery shopping and run some errands without all the boys. I just took Chandler, and we had a “date”. I truly enjoy spending time with them in this way as when I have all four of them along, it's a tad overwhelming for all of us! It's amazing how much talking he likes to do and how fast he's growing when I have those one-on-one moments. I loved it! Tomorrow is Garett's turn and he is VERY excited about his “date”! I treasure the time I'll get to spend with him, and am thankful for an amazing husband who cheerfully and willing watches the other boys, so that I can enjoy these moments. I am blessed!

I realize that every family has different struggles at different times, but as spring-time approaches, I've been discovering that our boys have a struggle of learning stewardship. I don't want the boys to think that life is about “stuff”, or keeping the house picked up, or not tracking in mud; however, I want them to realize that we are to be wise stewards of what God has blessed us with. This seems to be difficult to teach! I feel like I am constantly reminding them to put things away, or to go back and hang up your coat, put your boots away, etc. It gets tiring for all of us, but lately I've just been setting the timer for them to pick up. I look at the mess and estimate how long I think it should take them to pick up. Whatever isn't picked up, becomes mine for however long I feel necessary. The older two lost their bike privileges (but this week they couldn't ride them anyways!). I feel overwhelmed with all that goes into teaching responsible stewardship. Did you take it out to the car?...you bring it in! Did you wear it? ….hang it up! Did you play with it?...put it back! Part of the problem, is that with four close in age, you often feel like you repeat yourself constantly...and I do...but usually it's to a different child! So, on we plug with trying to be consistent, setting a good example, trying to maintain patience and grace when I'd rather just do it myself because it's faster and easier! So, in keeping it real...that's been our struggle of late!

April has also given me the urge to do some spring-cleaning. I've been moving furniture, emptying out closets, throwing away junk so much that when I asked one of the kids to bring me a garbage sack earlier this week, he asked what I was going to put in it very suspiciously! I managed to get one rather large piece of furniture stuck on the stairs to the basement so badly that Roger had to finish moving it when he came home from work. He says he doesn't like coming home in the dark for fear he won't be able to find his bed because the furniture is moved around! :) Pictures of our progress will be coming in a later post!

Blessings on you all,

Sarah

Busy Moments!

Is it really possible that two weeks have passed since I last wrote on the blog?! Honestly, it does not feel that way! Life has a way of passing right by me if I’m not careful, and I have to snatch the moments that I can!

It would probably be easier just to post pictures of all that’s been happening, but I didn’t do very good about taking pictures either! L Let’s see…we hosted a formal dinner for a few good friends and couples from church, helped our kids work on Pine Wood Derby cars and went to the race day, took a meal to a friend, shared our Alaskan ministry trip with another church, hosted an open house for our Alaskan trip, helped out in a college age activity, worked in Children’s church, homeschooled, ran errands, chauffeured children, went to dentist appointments, shoveled snow, celebrated Roger’s 32^nd birthday, built a room in the basement. and numerous other activities!

We’ve had a few warm days…above 32 degrees, but spring has not been anxious to arrive here in Wisconsin. My children are still happy to be playing in the snow, but have been asking when the grass will come back! J I’m looking forward to spring as well, however, the mud?...not so much! J I’ve made up the rule at my house that you must first ask Mom’s permission to play in the mud as sometimes Mom just doesn’t have time to do laundry! (As a general rule, mud doesn’t bother me, provided we don’t have to get in the vehicle to go somewhere next!) So, usually, I’ll say yes…I know, I’m crazy like that! J

Formal Dinner

Dear sweet friend, Jenna, who is also prego!

Two weeks ago, on Friday night, my friend, Rebekah Longsine and myself hosted a formal dinner for a few close friends from church. We borrowed fine china from a good friend (since the Robertsons are lacking in that department!), set up the living room as a formal dining room and cooked up a storm! We had twelve people for dinner, and it was a lot of fun! We had assorted breads, spinach dip, bacon wrapped shrimp, soup and salad, glazed carrots, roasted potatoes, sautéed green beans, herb roasted turkey, and steaks! For dessert, we enjoyed cheesecake, chocolate decadence, and a chocolate fondue with assorted fruit! AMAZING! It was difficult to decide who to invite, and we would have loved to invite more friends, but we only have so much space and food! L So, we picked a few friends that had been friends with the Longsines for a long time, and I got to come since I hosted the event at my house! J  It was really a lot of fun, but I’m thankful that I don’t have to set my table with multiple forks and spoons on a daily basis! J (I was also very thankful to see the china go back home with my friend…I was so nervous that something would break!) All in all, it was a good time, and I’m hoping to do it again sometime. (Maybe next time, I’ll sell tickets!) J

Following that we had the Pine Wood Derby race. The boys did all the work on their own cars and I’m so proud of them. They may not have been the fastest cars or the best designed, but they did every part of the work themselves. Roger and I have committed since early on in events like that, that the boys need to do their own work. We’ll offer advice or mentorship, but if you don’t work on it…we won’t either! J Chandler actually did place third with his car in his age division, which was exciting, but all the boys were thrilled to participate in the Pine Wood Derby Race. Fun for all!

Pinewood Derby Cars

This past Sunday, we went over to my parent’s church and showed our slides from Alaska. We enjoyed a dinner with the folks there, Roger preached and we answered questions after the pictures. It was a wonderful time to again share our experiences from Alaska.

Happy Birthday!

On Friday, we hosted an open house and shared pictures and experiences with friends and family. We enjoyed having people over to our home and sharing more in depth about the adventures and experiences of our trip. It was fun to share those memories, and I sure do miss the pace of life there! J  It was also Roger’s 32^nd birthday, so the boys decorated a cake for him! J They enjoyed it immensely, and my biggest concern was that someone was going to fall in the cake because they were so excited about decorating it! J

Thankfully, on Saturday, we enjoyed a day at home with our family. We didn’t have any places we had to be, but some friends came over about supper time. We had a great time visiting with them and the boys were delighted because they have children! J Jenn and Arien have become very dear friends to us, and it was nice to have a family stop by and enjoy an informal visit…and we had plenty of leftovers from the open house! J

So, that sums up the last few weeks of family, ministry, and activities!

We’ve been busy, but God has been faithful to sustain us, help us create memories, spend time with our family, and enjoy the journey of life! We are blessed!

Life in the Mommy Stage

GRACE

Do you ever experience a moment where you think you might have a break through with a child? Maybe it’s something you’ve been trying to teach them or something they’ve been trying to do, and suddenly it seems like the lights turn on and everything clicks! Most of the time, I feel like I’m still waiting for those moments J but everyone once in a while it happens.

Actually, this time I’m not talking about my children as much as I’m talking about myself. Before children, I loved to read and spent hours reading books; however, having four children in four years put a serious damper on reading! But the kids are a little older now, and I realized that while I read my Bible and devotional book regularly, it would be beneficial to start reading other books. I recently finished a book called, “Loving the Little Years” and enjoyed it so much that I bought an additional book by the same author called “Fit to Burst”. I feel like this author, Rachel Jankovic, is really down to earth and has practical advice for moms. Through it all, I’ve been challenged in so many areas. I often tend to holler when I should stop and pray, to punish when I should have listened, and to respond with a harsh tone when I should reply with patience. I’m not going to lie…parenting is the hardest thing I’ve ever done! (And sometimes the rewards seem far behind) But, I’ve been challenged to stick with it, to pray with my kids more often, to listen to them when they talk, and to work to respond with grace. After all, my Heavenly Father never responds harshly to me, He always deals lovingly with wrong-doing, and chastises me with a loving approach, which is exactly how I want to deal with my children. Prayers are always appreciated, and as always when you start to really work on an area, God gives you examples to practice! J

Brothers..."boating" together

            We really had an overly full week last week between dentist’s visits for two children, a doctor’s appointment for me, mid-week prayer service at church, a Homebuilder’s activity at church, worker’s training at church on Saturday morning, and a benefit for a friend Saturday night, and taught Children’s church on Sunday morning. (Yeah, it was too much!) Anyways, by Saturday night, everyone was tired so all the kids were in bed by 7:30pm. It was about 15 minutes after we put them to bed, that I realized that it was “spring forward” night so really they were in bed at 8:30pm! It was a very depressing moment for me! J However, the busy weekend gave me many opportunities to practice what I’ve been learning! As in having patience with slow moving children, having a little extra grace on the child who is falling apart because his hat fell off, listening in the car to yet another story that I don’t really want to listen to. But it’s important to the child. So, I’m thankful for GRACE!

            God gives us grace as we need it, not extra to store up, not beforehand, but as we need it! A perfect example…read on: J

Wyatt-not feeling well

The kids slept in this morning until 7am. Woo Hoo! However, I was in bed listening to them stir (I haven’t been feeling that great), when Chandler came into our room. “Mom, there’s a puddle of pee on the floor in our room and it stinks!”    Well, awesome! (NOT!) But, it did motivate me to quickly get out of bed! J Upon arrival in the boys room, I discovered that there was indeed a puddle and a child that was naked from the waist down, except for socks, sitting there quietly reading a book! While cleaning up that mess, the child on the top bunk, Wyatt, started crying. To put it nicely, he was a mess. Apparently, he had an accident during the night and it wasn’t a pee accident! L The bed, himself, and Buzz (the stuffed Toy Story Buzz) all had remnants of a very nasty experience. And God gave GRACE! I managed to clean up the entire mess, bathe two children, and disinfect before I felt that feeling when my stomach started yelling -  STOP! J So, we survived and the laundry is started again and life is moving forward.  I love how God teaches me things as I need to learn them, He doesn’t give me more than I can handle (although at times it feels that way), He gives mercy and patience as I cry out to Him, and I am blessed!

We all face challenges, struggles, trials and hard moments, but this week has been a reminder of how much God loves me, protects me, strengthens me, and encourages me…WHAT AN AWESOME GOD!

Why, yes, it's definitely essential to wear swimming goggles when going outside in the snow!

Because Kids are Kids!

Life with four boys close in age is anything but boring or dull! At times, I'd love to pack them all off to somewhere...anywhere...and have a little peace and quiet, but I do enjoy them immensely. God is good all the time, and I am blessed!

However, at times things occur in my life that are too funny not to write down or repeat for others to laugh with us. For example:

1) On Monday of this week, Chandler had to go to the dentist. If you remember from previous posts, Chandler had been having troubles with this tooth ever since we left for Alaska. We had been praying that we would make it back to Wisconsin before it became an emergency. God answered that prayer, and we made it back.

However, the tooth needed to be pulled this week. Chandler was at 4K on Monday morning, and I mentioned to Garett that Chandler was going to the dentist. "What for?" he asked. I told him and he replied, "That really hurt when I got mine pulled!". I said to please not tell Chandler that he was going to the dentist to get it pulled and he agreed. Chandler arrives home, and Garett promptly tells him, "You're going to the dentist, and it's really going to hurt, but I can't tell you what they are going to do!" WHAT!!! Garett said, "But I didn't tell him what was going to happen!" While I wanted to be grumpy, all I could do was chuckle.

2) Another incident that was humorous happened while Chandler and I were driving in the car together. Chandler was talking about the baby, and he wanted to know how the baby got in my belly! Well, I wasn't about to go into details on that with my five year old son, so I just replied that God had given us another baby and put the baby in my belly. That seemed to satisfy his curiosity for a moment, but then he immediately went on to ask how the baby got out...well... I just replied that Mom went to the hospital and the doctor helped the baby come out. I said that the baby was weighed and given a bath.
 Chandler promptly replied, "OH, to wash of the color."
 I was curious about that reply, so I asked, "What color?"
Chandler replied, "Oh, you know, Mom, the pink color if it's a girl and the blue color if it's a boy!"

How his mind works, I'll probably never know, but it sure brings LOTS of laughter to our home!

3) Maybe this is wrong, but I always enjoy peoples expressions when I tell them about our kids. Today, I was running some errands by myself and at the Dollar Tree, the lady in the checkout line asked if I had children. I replied, yes and that I have four boys. Generally, the reply is something along the lines of "Wow! Four boys, and how old are they?" This is the point where I kinda smirk and say, "Oh, six, five, three and two." Then I just observe the expressions and almost always leave the store with a smile on my face and a spring in my step. I've been told several times, "Oh, I feel sorry for you." That honestly, is probably one of the more hurtful comments, but I've learned to not let it bother me. I DON'T feel sorry for me, because I KNOW I'm blessed! Most people are polite and just say something along the lines of how I must never be bored, or how that's a lot of boys, or about how they would never have that many boys (Really, are you going to send the baby back??), but I've learned to just laugh and move on. God is good, and we are blessed.

So, I have nothing that is really exciting to write about, but maybe the post will make your day a little brighter.
God bless,
Sarah

Life as "Normal"?!

This week has been busy with adjusting to life routines after being gone from Wisconsin for ten weeks plus having a week in the Bahamas! I will admit I miss the slower pace of life in Manley, Alaska, as it often seems like we don't take the time to visit with friends and make memories with our children like we did there. But, this is where God has us to be and may we be faithful until He moves us elsewhere.

Roger is back to work full-time. Praise the Lord! We are rejoicing that God provided a job through a friend, and Roger is driving a milk/dairy route for Morning Glory company. He drives to different restaurants, co-ops, gas stations, and homes delivering milk, sour cream, cheese, ice cream, and other assorted dairy products. He enjoys it, and we are thankful for a new job! (We've also received the benefits of such a job like chocolate milk, cheese, etc.!) He starts early in the morning, so we've had to adjust our evening routines a bit, so that he can get up in the morning. Roger does fine getting up about 4:30am., but I have yet to drag myself out of bed to make him coffee and breakfast. (I know...I'm working on it!) Honestly, if I had the job, they'd probably fire me on account of being too grouchy in the morning! I am definitely one of those people that needs my sleep (why do you think my kids have nap time every day?). I'm thankful for a husband that is willing to rise up early and go to work for our family. I am blessed!

Garett has been doing a little better at school, and I'm beginning to think we might survive Kindergarten! Hooray! We still have a long ways to go but every day brings us closer. I'm not sure how next year will go with having a 1st grader, a Kindergartner, two pre-schoolers, and an infant, but I know that God will give grace for every moment.

Fun for all, all for Fun

We also enjoyed another downfall of snow this week. My kids love snow, and we all spent time outside with snowmobiling, sleds, shoveling, and other fun this week. We also spent some time at the hockey rink last Saturday with some friends from church. Then everyone came over to our house for chili, snacks, and fellowship. I'm thankful for friends (Sara Scherzer) who are willing to make chili and get ready to have people over at our house, so that I could go have fun! I did ice skate (very carefully!), and the boys are much improved on their skate from last year. Travis didn't put on his skates, but he did teeter carefully around the ice on his boots.

Ice Hockey

Our good friends, the Longsines, are preparing to move to Oak Creek, WI, where God has called them to serve at a Baptist church there. We are definitely going to miss them, and I've been trying to squeeze in lots of visits before they have to leave. Beka has become a very dear friend and since they have four young children also, we have a lot in common. I brought lunch over to their house on Thursday simply so we could visit. They only live about 10 minutes from us, and Beka has rescued me on many a lonely, over-whelming day with good coffee and great company. While we will miss Jared and Beka, we are so excited about the opportunity that God has in store for them.

Also, in Robertson family news this week, we hosted a college/career activity at our house on Saturday night. I made a spaghetti supper, and then the group went snow tubing at a near by tubing hill. Although the group was small, everyone seemed to have a good time (and we'll be eating lots of spaghetti leftovers this week!).

So, in a nutshell, that condenses our week to a few short paragraphs. Hope you all had a wonderful week treasuring your families and loving the Lord.
Blessings,
 Sarah


Outdoor Fun!



Our old, but running snowmobile!

Never a Dull Moment!

The love of my life!

Bahamas, Beaches and my Babies

Roger and I enjoyed a four-night cruise to the Bahamas this past week with another couple from our church. It was great to get away without the kids, and I’m so thankful that my parents are willing to watch them for us. The weather was beautiful and warm. The average temperature was between 70-80 degrees! J The beaches were beautiful and we enjoyed a boat ride, and banana boat tour and a snorkeling trip (on which we didn’t see any fish!). I have to admit I had a really bad headache most of the week, and I was cold a lot of the time. That might have had to do with a rather abrupt transition from Alaska to the Bahamas! J

Friends

It’s always nice to see the Lord at work, and we definitely saw His hand upon our cruise. First of all, when we came back from Alaska and saw where our room was located on the boat, we noticed that the room description said that the room could not be converted to a king bed! L After multiple phone calls and e-mails, it was confirmed that the ship was full and that we were stuck with the room that did not convert! I was very disappointed as I didn’t want to spend the week with a room like “I Love Lucy” (you know, the twin beds). We called the cruise line the night before we sailed, and the customer service representative said that we could upgrade as a room had opened up. The only problem with this plan was it was an extra $175.00 that we hadn’t budgeted for our cruise. After talking it over, we decided not to do it, and we would just live with the twin beds. When we boarded the ship, the lady mentioned that we could talk to guest services aboard the ship and see what could be done. So, Roger walks over to the desk and talks to the man in charge. He calls up housekeeping and they said, “Oh sure, it’s no problem to convert the beds!” WHAT!!! Apparently, if all else fails, talk to housekeeping! J So, the beds were converted to a king…happy wife, happy life! J (Just Kidding!)

The second area that we saw God’s hand was the blessing of the cruise. I’m thankful that we weren’t aboard the ship that was stranded at sea, and our cruise had a Southern Gospel Music Tour group aboard! None of the groups were on a pro-professional level, but more like church groups that had made cds and traveled in their surrounding areas. While I didn’t like every group that sang, I was delighted with many of the old Southern Gospel songs, and my heart was blessed and refreshed. It was just another reminder that God loves me!

We also met two older couples on board that ship that became good friends with us. We exchanged e-mail addresses and hope to stay in touch. It’s good to be around sweet older couples that still love their spouses and know how to have a good time. It was an encouragement to our hearts.

The Lord blessed and refreshed us with the company of our friends, Corey and Hannah. We enjoyed meals, spending time with them, and lots of laughter and memories. It was the first time we had traveled with another couple on vacation, and we would definitely do it again.

Thirteen weeks!

After a wonderful week away from the children, it was great to come home to them. I feel refreshed and renewed energy to take on the task of raising our children for the Lord. We also are announcing our newest addition to our family coming up in August! J The Lord has blessed us with another child, and I am 13 weeks along. We are excited about this addition and the boys have all declared that we have enough boys; they’d like a girl baby! J Well, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what God has in store. We’d appreciate your prayers as we continue to seek God’s will for our future and our family.

Our love to you,

Sarah

Saving pennies + deals = FUN!

Friends, Fun and Snow

Home...it's a wonderful place to be! The week has been busy with getting back into the routine of schooling, grocery shopping, laundry, and emptying out the pig pen truck. I've had to remind the boys numerous times to "Please, flush the toilet! The ones in our house flush!" The boys have enjoyed being at home, but they are definitely more tired than normal as I think they have "truck lag" (kinda like "jet-lag")!

We have quite a bit of snow on the ground here, so the children have been enjoying being outside. I do miss the cold of Alaska, which makes the snow fluffy versus wet! \We enjoyed a nice visit with my friend, Beka, and her children this morning. Roger got out the old Elan snowmobile and dragged the kids around the yard on the sled, so they had a great time!

Roger and I are planning a vacation. About a year ago, there was a good deal on a cruise through http://eversave.com/share/RnyZ  . At the time, we had no idea that God was going to let Roger get laid off, and allow us to go to Alaska for eight weeks. We purchased a cruise package deal for a four night cruise with a hotel stay included on each end of the cruise with the money we had saved up. We are very excited about going with our friends from church, Corey and Hannah, and we are thankful that my parents are willing to watch four boys for a week!

We also would like each of you that gave financially to our missions trip to rest at ease. Each penny given for the missions trip was put towards our missions trip NOT towards our vacation. We kept a detailed expense account of our trip to Alaska, and we were very cautious about using money given to us. We tried our best to spend it wisely. All that said, I am very excited about leaving for our cruise on Saturday!

We are flying out of Milwaukee and will be taking a four night cruise to the Bahamas! We are looking forward to spending time together and with other adult company, although we will miss our children.

Fun in the snow

We put most of our coins in a jar for a little over a year. This is our extra "fun" money for the cruise. We actually accumulated over $175.00 just in coins! I know that many people think that they can't afford to take a cruise and that may be true, but I'd encourage you to start saving a little bit every day. It will all add up, and while we absolutely would not recommend going into debt for vacation, I do think it strengthens your marriage to get away together, so start saving!