Someone Else "Gets" Me

God always knows when I've been feeling down...misunderstood...alone. (Yes, with 9 kids, you CAN still FEEL "alone.")

He knows when I've been running around constantly...always more to do...feeling like I'm drowning...no time to stop.

He knows when I'm longing for adult conversation, mom-to-mom...longing to connect with someone who "gets" my crazy life...longing to laugh...longing to rest.

Today a friend came to visit.  She has 5 children of her own, she gets a very rare day alone, and she CHOOSES to drive 2 hours to visit with ME.

Yes...I am absolutely humbled...and beyond grateful!  God knew I needed to see her.  I think God knew she needed to see me, too.

In 18 years, we have been able to visit with each other only 3 other times.  And, today, we picked up our conversation as if we have always been together.

There was nothing extraordinary about our visit.  Chatting, walking around the yard, lunch, swinging on the front porch...a beautiful, perfect Spring day.

We walked through old memories and laughed about new ones.

We spoke of our husbands' strengths and God's perfect provisions in our lives.

My older children took care of my younger children and basically kept to themselves most of the afternoon.  I really think they sensed how much I needed this day.  The kids actually commented that I "looked like a kid in a candy store" when my friend arrived.  Was my excitement THAT obvious!?!?!  What a blessing their obedience and helpfulness was to me today!!

I didn't do laundry, or cook lunch, or sweep the floor, or pour a drink, or even change a diaper while she was here.  I just visited!  

...

I hated to see her leave.

And, after she left, I thought of a dozen things I wanted to ask about her life...and so many things I wanted to share with her about mine.  I'm hoping we can arrange another visit in the next few months.

But, I'm thanking God this evening for a special day today.

I'm thanking Him for working out all the crazy details of putting two very busy moms together for a day - with very few interruptions.

I'm thanking Him for using my friend to remind me that He is with me and He understands my desires and needs, even when I may not feel like it...

I'm thanking God for using Marcy to remind me that, although my life isn't "normal", SOMEONE ELSE ACTUALLY "GETS" ME.

Our Home Was "EGGED"!

Yesterday morning we awoke to a note taped to our front door...

What a unique reminder of our Savior and His empty tomb!

(Special Note:  Our yard didn't contain the usual 12 eggs...instead we had 3 dozen!  Guess this group of "outlaws" knew a single dozen wouldn't be enough for our 9 kiddos!)

It was a lot of fun...and we were able to talk to the littlest ones about the significance of an empty egg representing the empty tomb of Jesus.

Easter is right around the corner. It has nothing to do with bunnies...or eggs...or pink straw...or chocolate - although those things can be fun.

Easter is a celebration of our Risen Savior.

We can never be perfect on our own...but, with Jesus' death and His resurrection, we can be made perfect!

A very special thank you to our friends, who found the time to sneak around our home late one night. (Glad we didn't hear you and try to shoot you!  Lol!)

Thank you for your effort to bring joy - and a gentle reminder of God's never-ending love to our family this celebration season.

Our home was EGGED!...and we might just have to pass it on...

Our Birthday Tradition

Birthdays are special at our house.

Each year, the birthday boy/girl gets to choose a place to eat out, and since we don't eat out as often as many families, it makes for a special treat for all of us.

Tonight, we visited a local restaurant in celebration of Gregg's birthday.  His birthday was two days ago, but tonight was the best time for all of us to go out together.

While the kids and I tend to choose more familiar places to eat, Gregg is notorious for scouting out some place to "widen our horizons."  He's always trying to choose somewhere we have never been.

Sometimes that works out well.

Sometimes, not so much.

(Like the year we visited the Indian Cuisine Restaurant with 5 little ones in tow. We walked into a place with candlelight, cloth napkins, and waiters in tuxedos.  I wanted to leave, but Gregg said it would be fun!  We learned that the service was awesome. We also got lots of compliments from other customers saying how nice it was to see parents bringing their children to a nice place to show them how to display proper manners.   I was just praying my boys wouldn't belch or pass gas loudly!  Or pick their nose or spill their drink!  We learned that we didn't care for the high amounts of curry used in the Indian traditional dishes, so it's a running joke in the family that they have really good bread, b/c that was our family's favorite part of the meal!  I have to admit it was a fun memory.  Gregg was right.)

So...this year, Gregg took us to George's Italian and Lebanese Restaurant.  None of us had ever been.  Somewhere new...a little culture learning and adventure with our 9 children.

3 brick-oven-baked pizzas...

 2 baked lasagnas...

1 philly cheese steak calzone...

1 George's trio (lasagna, manicotti, ravioli)

3 appetizers (chicken fingers, cheese pies, and some kind of other little pastries we can't remember the name of)

1 Tawook chicken...

10 waters...

And everyone was full!

The service was kind and helpful.  The atmosphere was nice.  The food was good.

$138.00 + $20 tip = $158.00 family birthday meal

This is what a birthday meal looks like for our family of 11.  It seems crazy to me that we would spend so much on a meal when I could literally have bought 2 weeks of groceries with that amount!

But, this is something special we enjoy doing as a family.

It's something our kids look forward to experiencing.

And, it's something for which we plan and budget.

It's Our Birthday Tradition.
 

Room By Room...Here I Go!

"The wise woman builds her home, 

but the foolish tears it down with her own hands."  

Proverbs 14:1

It's after 11pm, and I've been organizing and muddling through mounds of clothes for my two oldest sons.

For the past 6 HOURS. (minus a little time to eat dinner)

They are 15 and 16 years old, and for the past couple of years, I have let them sort through their own things to "weed out" what didn't fit and "get rid of" unwanted clothing items.

BIG MISTAKE.

It became apparent to me, recently, that I was going to have to get in there and help do some of the purging and organizing.

Teenage boys DO NOT have good judgement about what ACTUALLY FITS. (Caleb insisted that he needed to keep his size 14 boys camo shorts. He wears men's clothing!  Nathan tried on a long sleeved shirt that was at least 3 inches above his wrists and INSISTED it was fine b/c he LOVES the color yellow!)

Compound that small fact with the mentality of my oldest to keep EVERY article of clothing because it has some special meaning to him...

And compound it with the incessant NEED of my 2nd oldest to keep EVERY t-shirt he has ever owned (especially all the orange ones).

Don't get me wrong...my boys are not filthy.  The floor of their room is never covered in items.  There isn't trash strewn everywhere.

They just tend to stuff their drawers and closet with everything.  They don't seem to know what they have, and so they wear the same 5 items that get washed all the time.

Have you ever seen a drawer full of worn-out boys' underwear buried under stained and stretched socks?  

Trust me, it's not pretty!

No more.  We must clean out.  We must simplify.  

Slowly, but surely, I will make our home a haven of peace and rest.  It need not be a place of stress due to STUFF.  

I'm ashamed of the way I've neglected our home.  

I'm ashamed at how much we possess, when there are so many who have so little.

Lord, help me.  Give me discernment in what to keep and what to give away or throw out.  Help me hold lightly to physical possessions; I tend to be so sentimental!  Help me not to hesitate getting rid of something for fear I may need it in the future.  Lord, you have always provided abundantly when we needed it!!

Lord, show me how to organize a home for 11 people in such a way that it can be a BLESSING.  

Room by room...here I go!

Happy Birthday To My Man...

Yes, he's real...and he's mine. ;)

Love of my life.

Best friend.

Irresistible lover.

Crazy.

Funny.

Loyal husband.

Endlessly energetic daddy.

Devoted follower of Christ.

Bread winner.

Security provider.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY MAN!

(for more on what I love about Gregg, check out this blog I wrote a couple years ago...)

"Curls are for girls!"

Daddy says, "Curls are for girls."

Mommy says, "Curls are cute, cute, cute!"

But, admittedly, John's "curls" were cutest right after bathtime...otherwise, they were sort of limp and long strands.

So, John had his first haircut last night - at 1 year and 2 weeks old.

He loved it!

I took photos while Daddy performed the hair cutting.

Silas, the very responsible big brother, held the keepsake strands until they could be placed in a tiny bag for safekeeping.  Eva labeled the bag of curls.

It was a family event - sort of.

In any case, it gave me a chance to get back to this blogging thing.  ;)

Funny how these little milestones are making me sad these days...I'm pretty sure I'm getting old. ;)

And, just for the record, curls are NOT just for girls! ;)

 

It's No Accident

Lunar Eclipse Observation 101 - Oct. 8, 2014

Kids awake by 4:15am... (No, I am not a morning person...and, yes, I got called "grumpy" by my 11 yr old. She was right, and I am not proud of this...but I did straighten out my act after being called on it. Go, Mom!)

Much excitement...(just picture a 3 yr old little girl running through the house in pink fleece footie pj's at 4am)

At one point, the "moon gazing" evolved into "star gazing", b/c the clouds kept covering the eclipse...

Part of my moon-gazing, star-gazing crew...
The outside light was on only briefly,
b/c I couldn't get my camera to take a pic in the darkness.
And, the Ritz cracker box -
this was a homemade pinhole box we made several weeks ago
to view a SOLAR eclipse.
Samuel grabbed it with excitement and thought we could view the moon with it.
Nope, little man, sorry.  You can see the moon much better with your own eyes.

So Gregg showed them Jupiter (and 1 of its moons) through the telescope.

At the time of total eclipse there was complete cloud cover, and we were very disappointed.

"We waited 2 hours for THIS?"

"Ummm...this is interesting...but highly overrated."

"Well, at least I TRIED to make school fun.  Do you understand what a big deal this is?  Even when an eclipse occurs, it's rare to be able to see it in YOUR town.  And, even then, the weather conditions have to be just right.  At least we were able to see part of it, right?" (I did well keeping my grumpiness at bay...Go, Mom!  I'm not sure they were convinced it was worth it, though.)

But...then the clouds parted for about 30 seconds! (Thank you, Lord, for answering my spoken prayer from just minutes before!)

We were able to behold the "blood moon" just after 6:30am.

Honestly, I think the kids were tired by then and less enthusiastic than I had hoped.  (and naptime will not come soon enough!)

But, we managed to grab a few photos, and we discussed the physical logistics of how an eclipse occurs.

We talked about how God does, indeed, have an order to our universe, and He gives us glimpses of this every day in "ordinary ways" and sometimes in some "not so ordinary ways."

The heavens truly behold His glory...it's no accident.

"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."

                                    Genesis 1:1