Where I've Been

Whoops! I kind of disappeared for a couple of weeks! It isn't that I don't have a million things that I want to write about...trust me...I do. But, I have been busy. Nothing specific, just lots of things. I will [hopefully] blog more about some of these things soon but for now, we've been...


Enjoying the nice days, doing dishes, homeschooling, being creative on the not so nice days, laundry, celebrating Easter, laundry, playing with friends, cleaning bathrooms, laundry, spending time as a family...oh...did I mention laundry? haha. Here are some pictures and hopefully I will update again more frequently....but know...that when you don't hear from me...I am just trying to be a mom :)

Survived my first BIG grocery shop ever with all four kids! And it went surprisingly well!!

Share |

From Laziness to Servanthood

Up until recently, I really did live my life to be lazy. Now, when I say that, you must let me explain before you judge me! haha.

Most mornings, I would wake up and work really hard all morning to get all of my "chores" done and even get dinner going. I would literally try to accomplish all necessary tasks before lunch so that after lunch, when the girls (at the time, I only had 2) would take their nap, I could do whatever I wanted and not feel guilty. Most of the time, this is when I would sit and work on a craft, read a book for pure enjoyment or even occasionally watch a TV show while perusing Facebook. It was MY time to do whatever I wanted and it kind of gave me a restart.

Well...that has all changed...especially this year...and I didn't see it coming! Over the last 2 years, I have obviously added 2 more children to the family, the two oldest no longer nap, I am homeschooling and I have more house to clean and more people to feed.

For a big part of this school year, I was still trying to [unsuccessfully] attain this goal each day. I was getting a bit frustrated as I had grown accustomed to having "me" time each day. Even when Keira and Libby stopped napping and I had Janessa, I still managed to squeak in minutes of relaxing down time because of my girls awesome ability to play quietly together and my great sleeper of a baby.

So this year, having the goal to really work on this blog in the afternoons during "my" time, I was really getting frustrated.

Photo Credit

And than it hit me. I am a servant. I am called to be a servant of God and He has given me 4 beautiful little kiddos that need me to serve them.

When I wake up the morning, my time is theirs. None of them are really old enough to be completely self-sufficient though I know that time is coming. They need me...

...and it's wonderful.

Often, we don't even get around to doing Kindergarten until my two little ones are napping and that's ok. Often, I can't even get dinner started before Tom walks in the door, because I need to feed Levi right at that time. I spend time in the morning, afternoon and evening doing LOTS of dishes only to do it all again tomorrow. I can clean the Kitchen, the dining room, the playroom and the living room only to have to immediately start over again because the mess has reappeared

This is my job and I love it. This is what God called me to. Now I am trying to wake up each morning to whatever faces me with a new understanding that I am called to something higher than having "me" time. I get to spend my day being a servant of God, shaping the lives of my four little blessings!

Share |

Modest Mommy

Photo Credit

In thinking so much lately about how to teach my girls modesty, it has also made me think about what that should mean as a mommy. 

We should be living by example for our daughters, right? Not just telling them why and how to dress but also dressing appropriately ourselves. 

There is also a balance between looking modest and looking nice for our husbands. While I don't feel that I have issues with dressing in an modest way, I think that my problem is my desire to live in pajama pants an a t-shirt. haha. It wouldn't kill me to look a little bit nicer sometimes and when I do, it usually makes me feel better!

However, recently, I overheard a conversation while sitting in a waiting room on this topic and it really made me think. 

The two women (neither of which I know) were talking about how women should dress "sexy" for their man. Although I would not completely disagree with them, I also believe that word can have many meanings. To me, when I hear that word, it means provocatively. While I believe that there are for sure times IN PRIVATE that this is not a bad thing for us to do, I think that women today, even Christian women, are crossing a line. 

There is not a need to be showing certain parts of your body in a public setting.  What are you trying to accomplish by doing so? I have noticed lately how many women walk around in public (grocery store, mall, restaurants...etc.) with super low cut shirts and/or a skirts or shorts that leave little to the imagination. 

You can argue that men should be able to control themselves and this is their issue, not ours, but I think that God has called women to something higher than that. 

Romans 14:13 "Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother." (The rest of this through verse 20 is also great on the topic)

Please, sister in Christ, do not think that I am passing judgement on you. Although modesty may not be my top issue (although I am sure there are times that I unknowingly wear something that maybe I shouldn't) I come with my own issues. We are all sinful or there would be no issues but we are to strive for perfection even though it is unattainable.

What I am asking is to think twice about what you are putting on. If your low cut top is your favorite, stick a cami underneath. Think about why you love it. Why does it make you feel beautiful? Are you looking for attention from your body?

Let's not cause our brothers in Christ to stumble and let us teach our daughters the same....or our friends daughters, or our nieces...you get the picture. Let's teach our sons  and nephews and so on to love a woman from the inside out rather than aiding this World with the perverse things that is already accepts. 

In the Culture we are exposed to on a daily basis, we have to work twice as hard to teach modesty because it is not being modeled almost anywhere else. 

Let's stick together and be a "Modest Mommy".

Share |

Out of Sync

Do you ever feel completely out of sync with normal life? That is me this week. Nothing bad, just different. With two sick little ones, I guess my normal routine just goes out the window. I am exhausted from lack of sleep. My two youngest are not feeling so great and the two older ones are feeling a bit shut in. 

This is also why there wasn't a "Worship Wednesday" post this week. I was getting pretty down on myself about it until I realized that it completely didn't matter. My number one is taking care of my kiddos and that is what I was doing. 

Our usual activities were cancelled this week due to it being a week off of school and I had already planned to take the week off from homeschooling (though I am rethinking that for future school breaks...we need the routine of it). We probably wouldn't have been able to attend anything with the babies being sick anyways so I guess it is for the best!

So...we have had a different from usual week but here is what it has looked like.

It was in the 40's yesterday which seemed like summer compared to this cold Winter so Keira and Libby went out to play in the driveway..one would have thought they went to Disney World!

Janessa has been resting...or crying...a lot of this week. She has bronchitis and is on the mend but definitely has needed some extra snuggles this week. I feel terrible for her but have also enjoyed the lack of destruction in our home the past couple of days. (though if you saw my house right now, you would think that we were hit by a tornado for sure!)

I simply cannot believe that Levi is 6 months old today...and had his first sick visit to the Doctor. He is wheezing a bit so we have to keep an eye on him and make sure it doesn't get worse. I always worry since Libby had RSV at 6 weeks old and was hospitalized for a week but I don't think he's on that path thankfully! (Click Here for a post about when Libby had RSV)

I rarely include anything that we do but Tom and I are both on praise team this week plus we had choir practice beforehand. We have an awesome sitter/friend who can actually handle our children, even at bedtime. It was like a little praise vacation. And Levi actually slept the whole time we were gone:) So even though I missed the Worship Wednesday post, Tom and I did go to Worship practice!

Being flexible is good...but I cannot wait until things are back to "normal".

Share |

Teaching little girls

Happy New Year all!

It's that time again. You know, that time when we all say that we are going to change something drastically in our lives, call it a new years resolution and by February, we don't even remember what it was! haha.

I am not doing that...I never really do, but I am determined to work on something this year. More of a focus than a resolution. I would like to choose something each year to just kind of work on and make more of a strong presence in our lives. This year, I really want to focus on teaching my girls about modesty. Obviously, this is something that can't be taught in one lesson and it will be something that continues for years to come...I get that!

1 Timothy 2:9-10
"I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God."

I feel very strongly that this is something that we need to teach our girls from a very young age or it will be super hard later on. Just like any other good habit, they should be in the habit of dressing appropriately.

When I look to the future, I think about how I want them to be perceived by young men and then by the man they will someday marry.

There is always that classic TV show where the teenage daughter comes downstairs dressed in something tight and revealing and the father says, "young lady, go upstairs and put on a different outfit...you are NOT leaving the house dressed like that". While that is all good and everything, I would LOVE to see my daughters choose the right outfit first. (And also...someone had to buy those inappropriate clothes?!?!?!?!?)

So, the question now is, how? How do I teach my girls that their body is a gift from God. How do I teach them in a loving way (and a way that is appropriate for a 5, 4 and 1 year old) that God made male's different than females and dressing inappropriately can cause their brother to stumble? How can I teach them that just because a certain shirt looks great on them, doesn't' mean that they should wear it?

I mean...aren't these lessons that most of us adults could stand to hear too?

When I walk into the store these days, I am shocked by the number of clothes in my daughters sizes that I would never allow them to wear. They are drawn to the sparkles, glitter, bows and fun things on the clothing but do not yet know the importance of how they should dress themselves.

I want them to understand that they can dress nicely, and even be in style, all while glorifying God.

So, anyways...this has been a lot of rambling but this will be my focus this year...so that it is a great habit to continue teaching in the years to come.

I would love to hear any comments below on how you walk this path with your own daughters!

Keeping it Real

In an effort to show the "real" side of us, here is a picture from yesterday.

My four cuties. (L to R we have Keira, Janessa, Levi and Libby)

This was not taken at 8am...but more like near lunch time....and yes...three out of four kids were still in their jammies and none of the girls hair had been brushed.

Sometimes...well... a lot of the time, I think we as mommies tend to compare ourselves too much to everyone else. I know that I am guilty of this. The reality is, we all have days like this. Days where things just don't get done that we think should.

So, here is my reality. Some days, we simply don't get dressed. And you know what, we all survive...with a little less laundry!

Please consider following my blog  in one form or another in the left hand column! I would really appreciate it :)

Shopping with 4 kids....yup.

So today I decided to venture to Aldi's to grab some food for the family. Those of you who know me know that I am an avid coupon girl and therefore I usually find myself at Tops, Wegmans or Wal-mart getting the latest freebies or good deals, however, I do generally take a once a month trip to Aldi for the essentials...and for snack foods. And Aldi has shorter hours that they are opened...and no playroom. (Ahhh...how I love Wkids at Wegmans...and I am not ashamed)

This, however, was the first time that I decided to venture there with all 4 kids by myself. I highly anticipated it being a disaster and making the decision to never do this again. but I was pleasantly surprised!

I found that I am actually learning how to function with a van full of kids 5 and under and I love it. I am not sure that people around me love it, but I don't really care. I learned a few very helpful tricks today and it really helped so I thought I'd share for any of you that might be looking to make your shopping trip just a little less crazy.

1. Get 2 carts. One for Janessa and Levi (in his car seat) and the other for food. Push the one with the kids and pull the one with the food.
2. Tell Libby and Keira a few items on my list (oh yeah..you need a list) so that they could have a job and be on the "lookout" (as if I don't have the aisles memorized). This kept them mostly occupied.
3. Hurry...like you are on a mission.
4. Make sure the kids have had a snack before you leave the house! (this I have found to be the most important)
5. Make sure everyone has gone potty before leaving the house and/or clean diapers.
6. Rather than bringing in bags and bagging your groceries in the store on the counter (where the children are running everywhere and climbing onto said counter), go out and buckle all of the kids into their seats, turn the van on  with their favorite kid tunes and quietly unload groceries into bags/boxes in the back of the van.

Now...would I like to be at the store alone....ABSOLUTELY! However, that is not really an option most of the time...so I am learning.

I would also like to say to all of the ladies who gave me dirty looks for having 4 small children or the ones that looked at me like they felt sorry for me...I GOT THIS! I don't need your pity or your dirty looks. Yes, my kids have bad moments...LOTS of them...but today they were well behaved. I can do this, I will do this, I have to do this and most of the time...I LOVE DOING THIS! This is my life, these are my little blessings from Jesus and I can only hope that in my bad moments, I don't traumatize them too much! haha.

Ok...this was a very random post but I will leave you with this verse that my daddy taught me when I was little and in his Sunday School class.

 Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Now I need to go to bed...because I took 4 kids to the store today and I didn't die.

The truth about Parenting

I have three words that describe to me the truth about parenting.

It is HARD!

My days have become non-stop. I realize that I have a newborn and this is normal but even that aside, it seems like when he does not need me, someone else does. 

I LOVE them so much more than I could have ever imagined being able to love and with each child, the love just continues to multiply. 

But some days, I want to give up. 

When people pull me aside and tell me that We are doing a great job with our kids, I want to laugh and cry all at the same time! Do I sound crazy?!?!?!

The thing is, I know that I am not alone. I know that MOST parents feel this way. 

Kids have definitely taught me that being sinful is not something that is taught but comes completely naturally to us. We spend our days teaching our children to do the right thing..hoping and praying that they will...and sometimes they do...and sometimes they don't. 

It never ceases to amaze me how many precious moments I can have with my children each day and yet in the same day how many moments I have that I just want to lock myself in the bathroom (only room with a lock in our house) and turn on the water so I can't hear them. 

I struggle with being "gentle" with my children. Now...please don't take that the wrong way, I don't beat them or anything, just mean having a gentle demeanor. I want my girls to grow up to be ladies. I want them to be treated like ladies and I want my son to know how to cherish and really care for his future wife. But lately, I have felt so out of control. 

I am completely and totally looking forward to going to see Lysa TerKeurst talk about her book "Unglued" in early November...because that is exactly how I feel right now on a daily basis. 

You might ask what my purpose in writing this post was...well...maybe it is for you, and maybe it is for someone else, but I just want the other mommies who are feeling crazy sometimes to know that they are not alone.  

Romans 8:28 

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Bottle Feeding vs. Breastfeeding

Is this really still a controversial topic? I am not sure exactly but still, I have thoughts that are on my heart and mind that I feel that some out there could certainly benefit from. 

Here I am 16 weeks pregnant with my 4th child. Most would not realize that I would have any parenting "issues" left that I wasn't sure about but they would be wrong. 

When I was pregnant with Keira (my oldest), I really took things for granted. I did all of the things that I was supposed to do. I took a breastfeeding class (because of course I would nurse my child), I did all of the childbirth classes. I got the great pump that would allow me to have a sitter sometimes and let daddy feed her. I was psyched. I never imagined that it just wouldn't work.

When Keira was born, there were a multitude of things that just work right. First of all, she had NO desire to latch on or be at the breast in ANY position. Second, my anatomy (I will not go into detail here) did not do what it was supposed to do and Third, I was barely producing anything. 

I tried. I cried. I met with 3 lactation consultants who couldn't help me. I met with someone from le leche league who couldn't help me. After 4 weeks the pediatrician said to me while I was bawling my eyes out, "Your baby needs to grow. She needs to eat and we have formula that will help her do that." He told me that  while of course most pediatricians recommend breastfeeding, his own wife could not nurse their first child. She could with their second. It was like a world of relief flooded over me. 

But...I never felt more judged by many people around me for the decision to feed my baby formula. You would have thought I was abusing her. 

What do we all want as parents? We want the best for our children. We want them to grow and thrive and be healthy. 

When I had Libby, we started down the same path as with Keira. After 2 weeks, we switched to formula...never looking back.

Then came Janessa. While I was pregnant with her, I did a TON of research. I found out that there were things I could do while I was pregnant that would really help when it came time to feed her. I did all that I could do. I prayed and I hoped that this third child would come out and be able to nurse (because come on people...formula is expensive!). 

Well...Janessa came out wanting to nurse. She was ready and so was my body. And one of the first things the nurse said was:

"She has a cleft palate so she can't nurse"

WHAT! 

Come on Lord, is this a joke?

NOPE.

So...here I am, pregnant with number 4. Hopeful that we won't be shelling out the bucks for formula next fall, I am praying and preparing myself to try once again. But...at this point, it is out of convenience more than anything else. I would love to not have to buy the formula or realize that the can is empty and run to the store at midnight or forget a bottle when I go somewhere. It would be nice to just have a supply of food on myself at all times. 

But if something happens and this baby cannot nurse....It'll be ok. We live in a time where we have another option. I don't need a wet nurse. My baby will live and thrive with or without breastmilk.

My plea for you all is to be sensitive about this subject. You do NOT know their story. You do NOT know how hard some of them tried. You do NOT know what their reason is. 

In no way does it mean any mother loves their child less. 

When you look at at class of Kindergartners or high school graduates, can you tell which ones were offered bottle or breast? No.

Let's stop judging each other and be parents together. Let's love and teach our kids about the things that matter in life and not worry about how we choose to feed our children or discipline them or whether or not we have our kids on a set schedule.....Let's just love each other in the way that God wants us to.