Our Crazy Lives...Hear Us ROAR!!!

The expected end of the year healthy post

2011-12-29T06:58:00.000-08:00

Doesn't everyone at this point in the year talk about eaing more fruit & veggies? Ok, maybe not this point, but next week we all will! So in that theme, I have to share my Secret Cupcake recipe! They actually turned out wayyy better than I thought they would.
When it comes to cooking and baking, I like to play it safe and keep the expectations LOW...that way I'm never disapointed. So I was surprised that these were so super yummy! They *look* yummy, but so many times I taste by beautiful creations and it would have better just to look at it.
So here's what I used...

You could try a differnt combo of fruits and veggies. I think spinach would have been a great addition! Next time.
First I juiced...and passed out the juice to any kid that would drink it! And I can always count on our youngest, he LOVES *Green Juice*!

YUMMMM...I kinda want that right now! So I get weird about it seperating so quickly, so I am all about mixing it up or even better, pull out my blender ( stink, I'm making more dirty dishes, oh well) add some ice and a spoonfull of Vanilla yogurt and make a smoothie!!! This is a great place to add a handful of frozen spinach too!
So here's the part that is PRECIOUS!!! DON'T THROW IT OUT!!!!! A juicer friend gave me a tip here...if you are wanting an easier clean up or you plan on freezing the pulp, put a gallon sized zip lock bag in the back and collect the pulp in there! EASY!!

Pulp is great for a smoothie. It depends on what kind of pulp you end up with. Some of it is just too much weird, so pick out what you think will not go over so well. But you will be surprised what WILL work in a smoothie!
But this pulp has a different fate...CUPCAKES!!!!!
Grab a cake mix of your choice...chocolate is a great one for sneaking in most fruits and veggies! And make it per box directions and add in as much pulp as you think will go over :) Blend away..

Pour the into cupcake papers and bake as directed. I wasn't sure if they would need to bake longer since they were going to be moister, I just kept checking with a toothpick at the end.
I made a cream cheese chocolate frosting ( no fruits and veggies here)

Oh my they turned out sooooo yummy! Of course the kid test is necessary and YEP, it passed big time! So funny...look closely at these cupcake papers...can you see?? My mom picked these up for me from Target after Halloween, she thought they were cute, some kind of Victorian theme. Um no, there are SKULLS on them! YIKES! Oh well, they were 75% off!!

Was it for her??

2011-12-26T08:20:00.000-08:00

If you haven't read the previous post, please do first before this one :)

In the middle of April, and smack in the middle of my pain, I got a text from a very sweet girl in Trinidad that God gave me the priviledge of sharing Christ with a few years ago. What an absolute sweetheart she is!

Over the past couple years of seeing her during our mission trip to T&T, she has avery couple months sent me a sweet little text. "How are you Auntie Amber? I miss you! Tell your family HI" And every single time I respond with a smile and tell her we are all doing well, we love you and miss you too!!
Isn't that what we do?? When someone says "hey, how are you?" We answer about EVERY SINGLE TIME "great, how are you?" No matter what is going on in our lives, we say "great". I'm not sure how I feel about this habit. I do it. You know you do it.
Sure I think we feel that we don't want others to have to hear what is really going on in our lives. It's complicated right?
We this day in April I received a text from her and again is read "Hello Auntie Amber, what's going on? How are you?"
This time, I stopped and thought *Ok God, I'm going to tell her the truth*
"Well sweetie, I'm actually not doing so well. I've been in alot of pain for months now and doctors don't know why. Will you pray with me that I will get answers and relief soon?"
SEND.
Her response ( which is still saved on my phone)
"I will be praying! Auntie Amber, Our God is a God of healing! We serve an awesome God!"
I cried.
From time to time I would pull up her response and read it over and over. YES our God HEALS and HE IS AWESOME!! What an encouragement this 11 year old was to ME!
So many of the kids in T&T are an encouragement to me! Some have FB accounts send little notes from time to time. I LOVE IT!!! I love hearing from them!

I am so thankful that several years ago we were introduced to the Singh family there and what a treasure their friendship is as well. I knew that they were also praying for me! What a blessing that people thousands of miles away were praying too!! Aloma is like a sister to me, what an encouragement!
FAST FORWARD through my visit with Mr.W in June to July.
This year, I went to T&T by myself, usually Nate and some of the kids are with me. I was with our team from church, but it's very different than it was in previous trips.
I had alot to time to pray and focus on what God had for me there.
Even in the airport as we waited for hours, I had time to share with others on our team what the last several months were all about and what God did!! I appreciated the time to share in person what HE did! I prayed that God would continue to use HIS story!
Here I was, on my trip PAIN FREE!!!!
This is something that was such a concern to me months earlier I thought how in the world am I going to do this in pain??!!
But I gave it to the Lord and trusted that even if I was still in pain, He would give me what I need to get through each day. My goodness, people serve Him ALL THE TIME in pain and agony!! Who am I to complain??
So my heart was overwhelmed with thankfulness that I was there PAIN FREE!!!
I would lay there in my bed at night and be in awe that I truly was with no pain. I was so overwhelmed!!
About two nights into out time there, I was getting really excited...the kids were coming the next day!!! It was the day our whole team gets excited about. It's all about the KIDS!!!

As I laid there that night before, it hit me....
I was going to SEE her!! I started to tear up. I get to tell her FACE TO FACE, that YES, our God HEALS! He HEALED me! And that her specific words were such an encourgagement to me! God used HER!
I started thinking back to when I first got to know her, fresh in her new faith and so eager to grow! Her family had a VERY different faith. I was concerned about that, but continued to pray for her.
Then it hit me.... Ok Lord,IF she needed something tangible to know YOU ARE GOD, if she needed something that built up her faith in You...if I needed to go through this pain, then in truth share it with her...You then choose to heal me, and now I get to tell her what You did!! Well if this is WHY...for HER, her faith...then it was ALL WORTH IT!!!
Ok, so now there were more then just tears in my eyes, I cried and cried. Praised God for His wisdom and goodness. I fell asleep dreaming of seeing her the next day!

Here they came...the kids were trickling into camp, one by one, group by group. We LOVE this day! Grabbing each one and giving big 'ol hugs. I was working in the kitchen, waiting for the word that she was here. I kept looking around the corner. My heart was sooooo excited!!
Here she is!!!!! I tried to keep my emotions together, goodness gracious!!!
She is such a peaceful thing, I didn't want to scare her to death by running her down :)
Our eyes met and she smiled. She walked over to me and I gave her A BIG 'OL HUG.
I put my hands around her sweet face and told her " I have been waiting to tell you this, so I could tell you face to face...God has healed me! I am no longer in any pain, it's gone, HE HEALED!! Thank you for telling me the TRUTH, that He is an awesome God! You were such an encouragement to me!!"
She smiled. So humble. She even said " well I didn't heal you, God did!" :)
We hugged and hugged.
God uses us big adults to encourage others. We often forget that God also uses CHILDREN to bring Him glory and build faith. I was challenged at this point to LOOK for how God uses children, I'm pretty sure we miss it wayyyy to often!

What a year!!

2011-12-24T18:52:00.001-08:00

So far, we are ending the year with ALOT of laughs!! God has done so many dramatic things in our fam in 2011...would love to share with you about the two big ones. Got a minute? Great...
In June of this year, I WAS HEALED. There is no other way to put it really, a true physical healing. Not by doctors visits, not by taking vitamins or the perfect cocktail of RX meds. God used a simple man, and over months and months of constant pain, God built my faith in Himself, His plan and His timing.
Rewind to December of 2010.
I knew one day that first week in December that I was about to get a cold or something. Just didn't feel good, and strangely something I had never noticed before, pain under my arms where my lymph nodes are, lead me to think I was fighting a virus that was coming on. So I geared up, eat well, rested and drank lots of water.
A couple days later I got a mild head cold, but the following day I broke out in hives. Something else that had never happend to me. They were huge welts around my waist and down my legs. Took meds for them and a few days later they left. HOWEVER....
Smack dab in the middle of this strange *cold* pain set in my arms and legs. Pain that was deep, burning, more than an ache. PAIN. But not my whole legs or arms, just the bottom half of both legs and arms. SO VERY STRANGE!

Over the next weeks and months ahead, I searched for answers...relief!! I kept thinking when I wake up tomorrow, it will be GONE. Ok, the next day. Ok then, the next day!! PLEASE GOD THE NEXT DAY!!??
Each doctor I saw had tests run, all but one came back normal. Just one lab out of all the x-rays, bone scan, nerve tests, bloodwork, came back abnormal. They only thing it *said* was something was going on with my immune system, but no one could say *what* was going on.
Many tears, many prayers. Nate and I would cry together and pray together for God to show us what He wanted us to do. I never stopped trusting HIM!
My life was purposely filled with one distraction after the other, month after month. As night time would come each day the distractions would settle and the pain would be at it's most intense. My sleep was minimal. I hated taking meds, hated it. I couldn't be a momma and work full time during the day with pain meds. So I just functioned somehow. At night, about every 3rd night, I would take something to help me go to sleep. Pain meds. Strange though, the pain never went away, I would just fall asleep.

I think this is the ONLY picture of me during those months. This night with my two closest friends from hign school, involved attending an African wedding and reception. What a wonderful distraction!!
So many of my talks with God involved asking Him to use me, to use this time in pain, always to bring Him glory. I prayed that it would END, that this wouldn't be my new life! I know so many dear ones where daily pain IS their life. I knew that if this is what He had planned for me, that He would give me what I need to get through each day. One at a time. Oh but I prayed for answers!!!
One of my wonderful daily distractons was that I work at a Christian school. Oh what a blessing!!! Some co-workers knew what I was in the middle of, and they joined me in prayer!
But then one day, a sweet co-worker shared with me the story of her journey...
With out going into details, she had been given a diagnosis that was unwelcomed. Life-changing! But some one shared with her about a dear old man in Indiana who just might be able to help her. So she went! In faith, that if this was legit, then it just might be worth it! She saw Mr. Solomon Wickey. And he gave her answers!!!! Life-changing for the good!

Dear Mr. Wickey...I would like to make an appointment to see you, Thank you.
It was that simple. That was my letter. This wasn't written the next day after she shared with me. I did as much research as I could. It was hard. Mr.W is an Amish man who has no website, ( unheard of right?!), you can't find a picture of him! If it wasn't her telling me her first hand experience with him, I would have doubted he was even real! What I did find is many others documented experiences of getting answers, relief and even some who had been healed!!
I started reading about how Christ healed in the Bible. Some were immediate, others had to *do* a little something before they were healed.
So after many nights praying and even talking with a couple of my docs about him, we were ALL in agreement that I needed to GO!
This was it. It was all I had left. Please Lord, what ever it is that you ask for me to do, let it lead to complete healing! It's ALL FROM YOU LORD!
I received a letter back a couple weeks later with a appointment date. It was about 6 weeks away!! In the meantime, story after story of others God placed in my path who had seen him and heard of his MINISTRY! That is truly what he has, a ministry!
During the waiting time, the Lord nudged me to share with a friend from high school whos dear wife had been struggling with severe health issues for years with NO relief. So I took a moment and sent a simple message letting them know this just might be what they are looking for as well. You can read their story here http://thadriley.blogspot.com See what the Lord did through Mr.W for his wife!!! AMAZING!!!
We even had appointments with Mr.W the same day!!!

A few friends came with me and our son that day. It was a beautiful sunny day. My pain was intense as I drove the 3 hrs to his place. We arrived and my heart was so excited and strangely at complete peace.
We let his wife know we were there and we sat in a very hot waiting area. Posters on the wall were of the line of Christ, and another was of foods we should avoid. They both made me smile. I sat and read a National Geographic from 1989. Somthing else that made me smile. But what made me smile the most was the people there in that room. All waiting to see Mr. W. I wondered why. Are they in pain? no answers anywhere else either? A perfectly quiet Amish family walked in with their children. None of them said a word. The children were shoeless and still. No fooling around in there. They were little, like my boys, but they stood next to their momma totally silent. I was taking notes!!! My son, and the two other teens that were with me that day, also sat in silence...but only because they all had earphones in, listening to music!! We have alot to learn from the Amish!!!
About one hour later, my name was called. This whole time, as silent as this room was, I NEVER heard Mr.W's voice. Was he even here?? People would be called back to see him, be in there a few minutes and leave with smiles but I never heard him talking.
So I wondered when I walked in, if he was even there!!
His quaint little office was simple and clean. A wall of apothocary items were to my right, perfectly labeled. I knew of many who has seen him that he would perscribe herbs for their healing process.

Oh, and then I looked down...there he was!!!! It was all I had not to just reach down and hug this white bearded man. I had been praying for HIM!!! I had! I had prayed that God would use him, that He would give him wisdom!! Please Lord give him wisdom this day!
"hi mr.wickey" ( my voice was little...nervous I guess).
He said hello, then "ok, what brings you here today; who is first?" I sat down and told him for many months I have had severe pain in the lower half of my legs and arms and no one knows why. I'm in ALOT of pain.
We sat knee to knee as he listened and that was all I said. I felt stragely simple.
I prayed as he looked at my face. He said "well, I can see by looking at your face that your spleen isn't working". OK. not sure how to take that. All I verbalized was *OK*.
He then uses a iridology magnifying glass and looked into my eyes. He practices iridology ( study of the map of the iris). He then said "wow, you have alot going on". Again all I could say was OK. My mind was going a mile a minute.
He quietly laid a couple bottles of herbs against my left knee as he asked me to hold up my right arm ( a muscle test). I kept praying and I could see he was too.
He said again." You HAD alot going on" He then told me FOUR other issues that explained my pain. Issues that involved my inability to filter toxins, which have now built up in my system causing the pain.
I noticed right away that the verb tense had changed. ( have to HAD). He said " I wouldn't have guessed all this was going on by looking at you" I told him God has given me what I need to try to keep a smile on my face. He smiled. Then he said something I honestly wasn't expecting...
"It's taken care of,it's been released."
"what? I'm sorry...what?" He patiently repeated himself in such a humble way.
I got quite emotional and told him "thank you for letting God use you".
That was ALL I SAID. Those of you that know me...heck, those of you that are still reading this know that I am NOT one of little words. Not at all!!!
But the Lord was in COMPLETE control of me and I felt Him say in my spirit. TRUST ME, IM IN THE PROCESS OF HEALING YOU!!!
On my drive home as I made phone call after phone call, my pain was at this point 50% GONE!!! I still have the text on my phone from my husband in which his response was "Praise God, I am in tears!"
Each day following my pain was less and less. I kept telling the Lord "You are in the process of healing me!!" I would walk down the halls at school and say it again and again!
I have a special story to share with you about our mission trip to Trinidad that we took just weeks late...all pain free!!!
This is alot to take in for now....I'll give you some time to take it all in.
God is good! He is the Healer. He HEALS. It's his name, Jehovah Rapha - THE GOD THAT HEALS!!!

What's in a box?

2011-12-02T07:09:00.000-08:00

Are you wondering what's in those beautiful boxes?? I know you probably filled your box with candy, toys, puzzles, new socks, hair bows, matchbox cars and school supplies...good job!! But our (MG and I)have found that many boxes DON'T have the typical items included. Oh just you wait...
But before I share with you what interesting items we have found during our inspections, let me tell you about what Operation Christmas Child is all about.

OCC is all about the children that will be receiving a box, and they don't look at these children as a large group, but as individuals. Each child has dreams and hopes and many have even prayed for a gift to come their way.
I can guess what they might have prayed for...a doll, school supplies, a new hat. But there just might be a child with a differnt prayer.
OCC stops several times through out the day as we process boxes and shares a story of a received box. Yesterday, they even brought up one of the young volunteers that we had seen working hard through out the day. Years earlier HE had received a shoebox when he lived overseas as a young child. HE had PRAYED for a new pair of DRESS shoes so he could go to school, his parents just couldn't afford them. Is it no surprise that the box that seemingly was RANDOMLY handed to him had a brand new pair of DRESS shoes JUST HIS SIZE!
OCC talked about *keeping the integrity of the box* We will find bozes marked BOYS that have bows and purses in them. But they know of storied where boys have been praying for a gift to give their Momma for Christmas, and their prayers are answered. So they encourage us to KEEP THE INTEGRITY if we can.
Yep, I thought it was strange yesterday when I opened a box full of random hand tools, including a crow bar! I even asked one of our team leaders if I should throw it out...( crow bars have a bad reputation ya know).
But as a started listening to the Lord speak to me...this older boy may now have what he needs and may even been praying for, to build and provide for his family!!! God lead that packer to PACK THOSE THINGS JUST FOR HIM! And HE will be the one to receive THAT BOX!! Our God does that!!!
I almost threw out a antique lead dog figurine, the paint was all chipped off, he was VERY OLD and on the bottom in was marked made in Germany. I knew it was actually worth money, a vintage collectable!! It was wrapped nicely in the middle of the box in a tissue...someone took the time to do that. I don't know why. Again, I asked our team OCC leader if it was ok. It was in such poor condition. She had this look on her face. I knew what she was thinking. Keep it in there. Then I heard the Lord again...someone is praying for a dog. He knows the child that will receive THIS box!
More stories to come.....I can't wait to tell you MY FAVORITE thing to do...

gettn' ready

2010-06-26T23:10:00.000-07:00

We are just days away from heading back down to Trinidad for the 3rd time!!! We are so excited!!! I've been getting myself mentally prepared for life there...the simple life...as it should be. I've had fun adding my craft to this adventure prep. I've made a few shirts showing how much we love Siparia, Trinidad & Tobago!

So what am I looking forward to??
1. the kids of course! so far we know that 20 boy scouts have registered for camp...that's just the scouts! Many of these boys we have been with both previous trips, some made personal decisions to follow Jesus last year. Can't wait to hear what He has been doing in their lives!

2. re-uniting with the Singh family - they run the camp, live there. I truly feel like they are family to us...my kids think they are related! I love that! I know they have changed in 10 months!
3. working side by side with Almoma (mom)- she's like a sister to me! I have so much to learn from her...I will be working in the kitchen with her, 3 meals a day all week of camp. So yummy! I wanna learn how to make this!!

4.Turtles! Hopefully our timing is good and we get to see her again!

5. Getting to know our new team! Tonight we had a prayer time with some of our team. It was MUCH needed! Lord help us to take our focus off ourselves and onto YOU and YOUR PLAN!!
Can't wait to share with you what HE did!!!

a morning of tears...the good kind

2010-05-07T14:12:00.000-07:00

I've had many Mother's Days...some sad( the many Mother's days where I wasn't yet a mom to a baby here on earth) and many happy ones ( ones where I celebrate being a Mom, and being thankful for the Mom I am blessed with).
Today was a celebration of Mother's Day in Logan's Kindergarten class at DC, I wasn't really expecting so many tears on a *happy* day. But sometimes they sneek up on you like that.
Lots of feelings today ( and it's not even Mother's Day yet!)...
Today was a 1st for me, funny that Logan is our 1st Kindergartener at DC when he has two older sisters. They were homeschooled. Girls ya kinda wanna keep home for as long as possible, boys you are ready to kick out the door as soon as they offer a class for them! Did I just write that?
Logan holds a special place in our hearts, as each one of our children do ( they have their own little corner).
Madelyn was our 1st miracle daughter after two losses, Emma was our 2nd miracle baby when we were preparing for another journey of losses. And Clayton was almost not to be. After Logan was preparing his own special way into this world, out of fear, i signed papers saying " Tie them, cut them! I can't do this again, no more babies coming so early, we are done!"
God quickly used my wise doc who showed me I was making this BIG decision out of fear, and seeing the truth in that, we ripped up those papers. Clayton surprised us almost exactly 2 years later!
And then there is Logan, our 1st boy. We tried extra long for Logan, lots of $ and tears went into bringing him into this world. We knew God had something extra special planned for him too! When you think he will never come, and then during that wait he decides he will come 10 weeks early, well it's got to be one of the most frightening things a mother can go through. Spending a month in the hosptital with your son is a time of bonding that I wasn't blessed with my other children.

I can't believe this was 6 years ago!!! Where does the time go?
Today in his class there was a feast prepared for the Moms. I peeked in the window from the hallway( way up on my tip-toes) to see them practicing their song. I couldn't wait to see what they would do.
The kids came out into the hall to welcome their moms into their classroom. I was escorted by a VERY handsome young man who walked over to his table and pulled out a chair for me to sit in. As I sat down with this young man in front of me, I felt the tears on their way. GEEZ!! I'm a sap!!
I have to say, and as I go own you will see, that Mrs.Ruth has got to be THE BEST TEACHER ever! I'm actually praying that by some miracle with in the DC school system's administration ( I think I have a good connection there), that she could go ahead and follow Logan along as his teacher through his senior year! PERFECT!!!
She opened up our time in prayer and welcomed in her sweet daughter who is a Jr. at DC who BEAUTIFULLY played the flute for us while we ate. Again, tears were held back.
I know it sounds silly, but even right down to the Vanilla flavored coffee available, well, it was a true blessing and act of love that was heard loud and clear.
After our yummy treats, Mrs.Ruth stood up to read a book to us...oh yes, I walked straight over to the tissue box..darn it all!! Let Me Hold You Longer by Karen Kingsbury...um yea, I could have just have had the TITLE read to me and that would have been plenty, oh no, somehow SHE made it though the entire book. And by that time, my eye makeup was GONE!
And here's the BEST PART.... the part that reminds me everyday, THIS is why we do what we do to have our children be blessed by DC....
Mrs Ruth closed the book and bowed her head in prayer, she purposefully walked around each table and laid her precious, hard working, loving hands on each shoulder of each Mom in the classroom. She prayed for each family, each home, each child, each Mom.
There wasn't a dry eye, well excpet for the kids...Logan leaned over and in a whisper as she said *Amen* he said "uh Mom, why is everyone crying?"....because we love you buddy! "why is Mrs.Ruth crying?"...because she loves you too.
And in case you are wondering...YES, I am crying again just writing this!
The kids then walked up to the front of class and they sang to us, the song they had been practicing..."you are the King of kings, Lord of lords, you are the Great I Am...."
It all made sense again...watching my miracle little buddy, singing to Jesus in his classroom!!!

There isn't anything better than seeing your child love Jesus!
It's yet again, another clear reminder...THIS is why we do what we do...THIS is why the teachers at DC do what they do...THIS is why we know it's OK that we can't do the big summer vacation thing, it's why it's OK that we sometimes have just pancakes for dinner, it's why it's OK that our van is living on a prayer (again)...it's all ok. Why? Because our children see Jesus with skin on EVERY DAY at DC. It's days like this that I KNOW it's all worth it.
Mrs. Ruth praying for Logan on his 6th Birthday!

Mrs.Ruth had the kids draw a picture of their Moms...Logan and his drawing of me :)

And this is Logan and I AFTER the Mother's Tea...minus all my eye make-up! :)

sometimes God throws Barbie clothes

2010-04-13T11:00:00.000-07:00

you are probably wondering what in the world...well here's the mini adventure that my boys, my niece and I had yesterday afternoon. It's been really nice here, the back door slidding screen has been open ( no bugs yet) and as many times as I have closed it behind the kids, I have found it open again. For a while I've been blaming them "SHUT THE DOOR"!! But I did witness the wind blow it open, so I'm not sure *who* left it open yesterday afternoon. But it became the invitation to a visitor into our home. At one point I walked into the kitchen, saw the door again was open and a little bird quickly flew out from the floor of the dining room. Just a couple minutes later I walked in to my bedroom, which is down the hall, and a bird took a dive bomb flight around my head!! So I did freak out a bit, but once I knew it was a bird, I was laughing ( ok after a small screem and a quick run OUTTA THERE!). I ran to find the kids, posted it on FB, and called Nate.
Poor Nate, I think he gets weekly calls about something he really doesn't want to deal with (i.e. there is water in the laundry room from a unknown source, there is water coming out from under the sink spilling onto the kitchen floor, the garage door won't shut, the Wii isn't working...THERE IS A BIRD IN THE HOUSE!) Each time he is so calm and patient with me, it's quite amazing actually. So the call yesterday consisted of my announcement, then his repsponse, "Im in Columbus, just open up a window".
At that point the bird flew into Emma's room and the 3 kids ran in after it...so did I. I thought we should try to keep it in there since her room has 2 windows. I shut all 4 of us in there, I know, I know BRILLIANT!
I opened up the windows and the screens and thought for sure immediately the bird would fly right out thanking me along the way...uhh...no...this required alot more time out of my day than I planned.
Logan became the cheif blind-holder-upper on one window, Clayton and Kate one and only job was to stay in one place, and NOT SCREAM ( that was enough responsibility for them). As I sat on the bed for a minute to come up with a *brilliant plan*, I noticed my niece Kate had yogurt smeared all over the crown of her head. "um, Kate, hunny why do you have yogurt in your hair?" She matter-of-factly said " well we were playing outside and I put the yogurt on my head to pretend it was my brains coming out" Yes, she is smack inbetween my boys and two big brothers. enough said, totally understandable.
I stationed myself at the other window, holding up the blinds. Ok, so NOW it will just fly right out. I mean you can feel the breeze coming in, hear the other birdie friends calling it out, and see the trees just inviting it to COME THIS WAY.
But no, it deciding time and time again to fly right into the mirror on the back of Emma's door. REALLY?? the mirror ( no it was not clean, there was no way it was looking like the outside, it was flying into FINGERPRINTS) was more appealing than TWO open windows??? BIRDS ARE DUMB, really dumb!!
After a couple more attempts at the mirror, it flew up onto my vintage baby clothing collection hanging on her wall. I was getting frustrated at this point, I don't have time for this. Oh at this point I remembered I had lunch inthe oven, and the timer had gone off some time ago....NICE! perfect.
In my position, I didn't have many options. But I did think I needed to get him to FLY. Cause he was pirched up there for what seemed like forever!!
Looking around I saw what might just work...Barbie clothes!!!!
I grabbed a purple satin evening gown and flung it towards Tweetie, hmmm not heavy enough to go the distance. So I grabbed Prince Charming's 3pc suit ( now realizing both Barbie and Ken are naked somewhere...hmmm..what are they up to?)
I didn't want to throw something that would hurt him, just get him to MOVE! It worked!!!
The adventure was over, he flew right out Logan's window.
So last night as I was getting into bed, I noticed that Tweetie did indeed leave a mark for us to remember him by. As I (oh, I mean Nate) cleaned up the mess it got me thinking.
Aren't we like that bird??? We get ourselves into a situation and God DOES provide a way or multiple ways out, and yet we see a mirror ( looks good) and bang our head into that over and over, get mad at the situation, hear our wise counsel encouraging us to make a good choice, and yet again we choose to fly into the mirror. Then our Father, who doesn't want to harm us, wants us to make good choices, He wants us to see that we can trust Him and what He has planned is PERFECT; safe. And when it's the right time He may just have to throw *Barbie clothes* at us. Something to MAKE us FLY!!! Is He throwing *Barbie clothes* at you?????

It's all new!

2010-03-30T12:55:00.000-07:00

So my good buddy Whit had me some time ago make a blanket for her mom out of her mom's old baby blanket and an old pink chenille oversized robe. It turned out so cute and I backed it with minkee, so it was even more suggley than the original.
Well Whit handed me her 70's baby blanket holes and all, and asked me to make it new again, by adding what ever I wanted to it. Ohhhh I love that freedom! So here's a *before pic*

I think you can read through it! It's got yellows, and teal-blue-greens in it, gotta love the 70's! Actually I found great fabric that went with it and I jumped right in!
I patched the holes with some shabby layed patches.

I kept adding the colors around the edges and backed it with cuddle fleece minkee...so yummy! Personally I don't think the pics do it justice :) I think she might cry, I hope she loves it!

Chirstmas decor...one thing at a time

2009-12-02T13:18:00.000-08:00

To be honest, I'm actually NOT looking forward to getting all the Christmas decor out and up. Our tree is mammoth and it takes ALL DAY to get that thing up and running. I'm overwhelmed just thinking about it. And yet, I LOVE Christmas decorations! We've been married almost 14 years ( anny is Dec 23rd!) and it's really about time to purchase some updated Christmas decorations for around the house. Not all at once, just a little at a time.
So far, for all around great deals I hit up the Flower Factory...love that crazy place! So thinking about this space in my dining room that is aching for some new decor...I love this vintage piece. We inherited this pie cabnet from Nate's Grandparent's best friends...if you are ever in my dining room...do NOT look inside, it's a scary scary place full off seasonal half used candles, old picture frames and stragely crafted table lines
ok...back to my shopping trip...I did something REALLY crazy and took the boys there with me. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME??? They are bulls in a china shop!!
They did ok with some bribing ( I know that's so bad). I had one minor behavioral issue when Logan stood next to our cart as I told him over and over "Please move around to the front buddy" as a fellow shopper was trying to get by with her cart. Which BTW...I think that ALL stored should be required to make isles wide enough for not only 2 carts side by side, BUT ALSO allow a fair amount of room to accomidate the children who ride on the sides of carts...isn't that where most kids ride??!!
Well anyway as I repeatedly asked Logan to move around, I got nothing. He just stared at me! I asked again and again, as clearly and nicely as I could, while this lady waited for her space. Hmmmm...I must have switched to my 2nd language, cause he just wasn't understanding me. Well the fellow shopper had waited long enough, she jetted down a side isle...I might have heard a *hummphhh* as she gave up on my deaf child. Anyway, he lost his priveledge to get a bribed treat...the loss of that was enough to get his attention at that point and for the rest trip he was fine. I guess that's not too bad really.
So here's what I ended up with...

a bag of small frosted pine cones $2
a bag of large frosted pine cones $3
3 silver dollar sprigs $5
2 teal sparkle sprigs $3
3 red large ornament balls $6
3 snow covered grape vine trees $6
1 bag of snow ( this was a *not really me* purchase $2
So if I did my math right, and for those of you that know me well, yes, I did use a calculator...I spent $27...not too bad, could have been much more for all this really.
And here's what I came up with...

I think now I'm ready to tackle the BIG TREE....Lord help me!!

today's craft copy

2009-12-02T12:55:00.000-08:00

I'll admit it right now, I am NOT creative! Seriously, I don't come up with stuff on my own, I totally copy other's ideas, and I'm not ashamed to admit it.
So at the mall retail store that I work at, we have recently started selling these great scarves. They are thin cotton with frayed edges.
So being the frugal gal that I am or at least try to be...I'm thinking I could totally make these myself. How hard can it be. Oh and BTW these scarves retail for $24.50! Cute scarves, but not $24.50 cute.
So off to the fabric store I went...found a ton of plaid cotton, lots to choose from. Kinda overwhelmed really. Anyway they were on sale too! So I choose two colors, and bought two yards of each ( $14 worth of fabric). Washed it and ironed it( was super wrinkled ughhh), then cut a 18 in wide strip ( 2 yrds long). Sewed around the edges w/ a decent seam allowance, then frayed the edges. Made a lovely pile of thread! So basically I have 4 scarves total when it's all said and done for $14!!! Here they are!!
I'm thinking these will make GREAT Christmas gifts for the kids teachers!!!

Thanksgiving ~ Rohrer style

2009-12-01T09:25:00.000-08:00

Well Smith style too :) So many have asked "ohh are you traveling for Thanksgiving?" Yep, a big trip south to Springboro ( 10 min) and the same day we head up North to Dayton(15 min)...phewwwww...so tiring! We are blessed to have both our families in town and although it's tough to have TWO BIG meals in one day, we will take it over traveling out of state etc.
It was tough though for Logan this year, his asthma was really giving him trouble, so he spent most of his days like this I pray this will be a thing of the past.
When Nate's brother and his family come for a visit, it's a MUST that we hike through the woods behind his parents house to the park. And even though that day was the coldest it had been this season, it didn't stop us...all of us! I wanted to get pics of each of the kids during the hike... Madelyn Emma
Logan
Clayton
All the cousins, well that is except for little Caraline, wanted to put on a play for us at the outdoor theater, it was precious and stinkn' cold!!!
The kids didn't seem to care much about the cold, and the fact that it started sleeting, they wanted to stay and play at the park.
That afternoon we headed up North to my parents and enjoyed the meal with The Smith side of the fam. The kids had fun and we did it again on Sat afternoon too! This is my fav pic of the weekend, I love how much fun Logan and my nephew Seth have together, they are best buds.

Logan ended up on Sat taking a trip to the ER for more meds, his just weren't helping and he was really having a rough time moving air...uh kinda a big deal.
So Nate and I took him in and missed alot of time with our family :(
The weekend flew by...and now it's time to convince scrooge, I mean Nate to get the house decorated for Christmas!!!

The dream of every young Buckeye

2009-11-24T10:40:00.000-08:00

Maybe it was because we were a military family, moving around from state to state. Maybe it was because of the many moves my heart was always connected to Ohio. My Dad is an OSU grad, and even as a toddler in South Dakota, I was truly a Buckeye. I remember growing up watching their games, and my sisters and I would pull out the mini-trampoline and make up cheers.
Dad loved it, I'm sure.
But the biggest game of all, every Fall was when the Buckeyes played Michigan. It IS THE BIG GAME. My Dad would get all worked up and stressed out, wondering if we could pull it off this year. It was a dream of mine to BE at THAT game someday...someday.
Nate and I *try* to get to a home game every year or so, by getting tickets off E*bay or buying tickets from outside of the stadium. Each game is very emotional for me, I LOVE being there!!!! I love the tradtion, I love all the memories it brings back to me.
Well this past week, Nate come home with a big smile on his face and said "If something good *might* happen, but I don't know yet if it will happen, would you want to know what it is now? HUHHHH????
Well then I needed to know the chance of it happening, give me a %...he said 50, so I said yet, tell me.
"well would you go to the Michigan/Ohio State game with me on Sat IF I got tickets?"
I think I about fell over, but I tried to keep myself composed, I'm the realistic one in the family...a glass is half empty.
A couple days later, Nate came home and asked me "would you go on a date with me to Ann Arbor?" AHHHHHHHH!!!!!! It happened!!! We are going!! I was so shocked and feeling so blessed! Our dear friends were so kind to let us have the tickets...I'm still overwhelmed. This was HUGE for me!
So off we went early Sat am...had to stop at Waffle House for a painful meal ( my stomach is always a wreck after I eat there, yet I still eat it. what is wrong with me?)

As we parked our car and walked toward the Big House, we saw scarlet everywhere!!! Comments were being made here and there as Blue fans walked with the crouds as well. As we walked in to the stadium...well it was CRAZY!!! I think we walked the opposite direction the whole way around to find our gate...did I saw it was nuts already...it was NUTS!!!
We found it and sat down inbetween 2 Mich fans...they didn't seem to be too excited to see us scarlet shirted fans sitting inbetween them. Although they were very nice. I tried to contain my excitement. I soaked it all in.
It was sureal that I was really THERE!

We had AMAZING Seats!!! Again, I was feeling overhwelmed with what a blessing this was, and to be there with Nate...mmmmm...LOVED IT!!!

By the 3rd quarter it was pretty clear we would win, the stands gave in to the reality and the around the stadium was a loud and clear "O!H!I!O!" The M fan behind us thought that was unsportsmanlike...sorry dude.
After the game, coach prayed with his team on the field, and lead them over to the corner where the band came and we all sang "Carmen Ohio"
Man this was good, good stuff!
As we left the stadium, holding Nate's hand I looked up to him and said " you know that this was a once - in - a - lifetime thing"...yep it was...

easy easy cuties!

2009-11-20T11:48:00.000-08:00

I keep seeing stinkn' cute organza hair accessories that I love and I've seem them all over etsy, some up to $12 each. Well I'm too cheep and somewhat crafty to not give it a try myself, so I did. I found an on-line tutorial and gave it a shot with my girls.
Here's what we started with
of course I couldn't choose just one color, so I purchased 3 colors of organza and a few other notions. Got the candle all ready to go ( and it gave me the aroma of sugar cookies, brilliant during my sugar hiatus...ughhh)
Well then I had a bit of a trial and error moment...yep, that would be typical of moi.
Then I added a few other layers and touches and here we go...

Soooooo ya want one???? I'd love to make one for ya, and it can be made to be a pin too!!

This Summer

2009-09-10T14:44:00.000-07:00

I know, I know...it's been quite a while since I have posted. Well life has been slightly crazy, actually mostly crazy.
Our trip to Trinidad and Tobago was AMAZING. God did some beautiful things in the lives our our daughters and the children there. He also impacted our lives, Nathan and I as we poured ourselves into the opportunities we had to serve there.

This is my buddy Navin...he was also at camp last year. Such a sweet sweet kid.

Here's our trip to Tobago, Nate and Vijay getting ready for our Glass Bottom Boat ride

Amazing to be in THIS water in the middle of the Carribean Sea!!!

So many stories from our trip and visit with the Singh family...we love them!!!
Now it's back to school and back to work and it's all be overwhelming to be honest. But God is good and He will provide ALL that we need to do His work. Today, I'm just patiently trying to wait on HIM

Our babies!

2009-06-18T08:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning Clayton and I went out on the front porch to talk with my neighbor Carole when I noticed after Clayton touched the banister he had some bugs get on his arms. As I was brushing them off, I noticed that they were also all over the banister. Kinda got grossed out at first. But then I noticed what they were...BABIES!!! They were baby Praying Mantis!!!

I called the other kids out to the porch, I'm sure by the sound of my voice they may have thought there was free ice cream somewhere.
The girls brought out their cameras ( my battery died after I took VBS pics the night before, and I can't find my charger ughhh), they had a little photo session with the couple dozen babies. I do have to say they are so cute!
In past years we have seen just a couple times an adult Praying Mantis hanging around our front porch. So I guess it's still around here somewhere. We found the pod where they hatched from under the rim of the banister, it looks just like this
, it's only like an inch or so long, amazing all those babies hatched from there!
We had our photo session and went inside. About an hour later Madelyn felt something on her arm, and there was a hitch-hiker! After that, every little ticking I felt on my body I thought for sure there was another one. Gave me the willies!

I remember from one of the girls school projects that they were not allowed to collect a Praying Mantis, because they were Indangered...hmmmm...so I thought I would find out some facts about these amazing creatures...I'm sure you are thrilled about the science lession...but it is pretty interesting stuff.

***praying mantises", because of the typical "prayer-like" stance, although the term is often mis-spelled as "preying mantis"

***The word mantis is Greek for "prophet" or "fortune teller".

***The articulation of the head is remarkably flexible, permitting nearly 300 degrees of movement in some species, allowing for a great range of vision (their compound eyes have a large binocular field of vision) without having to move the remainder of the body

***Sexual cannibalism is common among mantises in captivity, and under some circumstances may also be observed in the field. The female may start feeding by biting off the male’s head (as with any prey), and if mating had begun, the male’s movements may become even more vigorous in its delivery of sperms

***The male engages the female in courtship dance, to change her interest from feeding to mating.

***NOTE*** I found more intersting facts about the above process, however I would have to edit ALOT...so I will leave it as it is above and not go into that process any farther, quite interesting though.

***When flying at night, at least some mantises are able to detect the echolocation sounds produced by bats, and when the frequency begins to increase rapidly, indicating an approaching bat, they will stop flying horizontally and begin a descending spiral toward the safety of the ground, often preceded by an aerial loop or spin.

So...are they Endangered??? Here's what I found...
Only one Spanish species, Apteromantis aptera, is listed as Lower Risk/Near Threatened. North American mantises are not included among threatened or endangered species.
Back to our babies... by the time we left the house later that afternoon, they were all gone! I then realized that in a small window in time did we get the priveledge of seeing something very special...thanks God for sharing your creation with us!

Why I HATE mice...

2009-06-13T08:11:00.000-07:00

I think I may have jinxed myself with my last post title...why did I even mention mice?? I guess if they could all look like this guy, I would totally be ok, infact I would welcome him and his gang into my home! But who I saw today was NOT him!

My *relationship* with mice started about 11 years ago. And in using the term *relationship* I mean I HATE MICE!!!!
This month actually 11 years ago I was 7 months pregnant with Madelyn. My sister and I flew out the Washington State to visit my Uncle, Aunt and cousins. While we were there we came up with a brilliant idea to drive to Mt. Rainier and go camping...that's right while 7 months preggo, I went camping!

Our night in the camper started out just fine. All 7 of us got cozy in there, I found myself placed closest to the door...hmmm must have been the 7 months preggo part the bladder challenges that come with that.
Once all was still and quiet I had yet to fall asleep, when I heard *things* running across the top of the canvas camper. Back and forth, back and forth...right above my head! I laid there waiting for someone else to comment on the commotion, nope nothing, they were all sound asleep. My sister laid next to me and she was out, couldn't even get her to wake up to listen for it.
So I continued to listen, picturing in my mind that it was a cute family of squirrels having a late night party on the roof top of the Jayco. Well that vision came to a close in just moments.
Like I said, I was camped closest to the door of the camper and you can see here how the door is metal and the canvas is surrounding the door. The the left is where I was laying.
As the party on the roof got quiet, I began to hear scratching at the edge of the door and the canvas....yes, right next to my head. Seriously I'm sick just reliving this.
I then decided to create a sleeping bag caccoon, covering up EVERY inch of my body, NOTHING could break ( or eat) through this Fort Kn*x that I had created.
As the scratching at the door stopped, I then heard a faint pattering across the floor of the camper. At this point I was about to loose it. And still NO ONE else was awake, I quietly called for those around me and no one cared to wake up! I was being tortured ALONE!
After the journey across the floor, I could now hear noises at the foot of my bed where the sink and counter was. There was a bag of trail mix on the counter that was now being enjoyed by more than just us campers. Oh yes, there was no longer a roof top party, we apparently send the word out by the whiffs of trail mix, and they moved the party INSIDE!
After cheeks got stuffed, the scampering across the floor took place again, the scratching at the door continued and then I heard just a race across the canvas roon( as apposed to a party). This pattern continued for quite a while. And yes I laid there trying to breathe in my sleeping bag caccoon. This is quite fun...camping at Mt. Rainier. Kinda wish though that someone had the decentcy to just mention to me that there are times where the wildlife come IN to where we are and we share with them God's provisions. Just wish SOMEONE could have shared that with me before I got myself stuck in a sleeping bag caccoon. Geez!! Family!
Well, I was at my limit. I devised a plan, I could shimmy my way out of the caccoon and at just the right time ( which would be AFTER the door scratching and DURING the roof race...any other time might be really bad)I would make a bee-line for the family van. Surly that is a MICE-FREE enviroment!
Ok..I got the right time and I flew my 7 month pg body out of the caccoon and flung open the door. Oh but look, there was a little something there on the step.
A little brown mouse just stood there on his back two legs FROZEN. Oh darn, sure didn't mean to scare YOU! He looked up at me as if to say "oh wow thanks for opening up the door for us, this will make this process a whole lot easier".
I covered my scream up well and ran to the van. I laid in there waiting for my heart rate to head back down to a *normal camping* rate. Not sure what that was, sure hadn't arrived there yet.
I had no idea what time it was, 3am, 11pm, 1am??? No idea. And after I sat in there for some time I could no longer ignore the bladder issues a pg lady has. I HAD to go ( the stress wasn't helping) My sweet Uncle had mentioned before he dozed off into a camping coma, that if I needed to hike up to the bathrooms that he wanted me to wake him up and he would walk up there with me.
So wondering if I could really wake him up, earlier my panic whispering "MICE, MICE...anyone care?? WE HAVE MICE" I guess wasn't enough. But now I had to GO, so I went back towards the camper and there on the door frame ( as if it was Passover) was blood smeared down the side. The mice were *that* determined to get in and out that blood was shed. I have a feeling going in wasn't too bad, it was shimming back out with thier cheeks shoved full of trail mix, that wasn't fiting through so well against the metal side. Oh well, actually didn't really feel so bad for them.
My Uncle did wake up as I called his name and informed him of my need for a hike. I didn't say anything to him until half way up the hill he said "So how's your night been, are you sleeping alright?"
Honestly, I was tempted to not say what was going on in the camper, I kinda felt like this is what normally takes place on their camping trips. Maybe they work out some deal with Mickey and his friends and the trail mix really wasn't for us, it's all for them to partake in through the night. Maybe they are protecting us from a larger creature???
Anyway, I did quietly mention that I wasn't sleeping AT ALL. I actually left the camper and retreated into the van to get away from the mice situation.
He had NO IDEA what I was talking about. So as got back to the camper, I showed him the passover markings and explained to him their pattern, racing across the top, shimming through the canvas and door seam, scampering across the floor and then enjoying the trailmix on the counter. He was shocked, he had never had this happen before and at this point everyone in the camper was awake hearing the commotion.
Oh yeah, NOW they all wake up!
So my Uncle set up a trap over the sick with a dixie cup and trail mix, we laid in tourturous silence and we waited for the RETURN, and they did. My Uncle was in charge of the flash/spot light. As they got onto the counter, he caught them in the beam and we watched them fall to their peril.
I might have then slept for 45 min that night...it was now morning!
THAT was my experience where my HATE for mice started....
Fast forward to today...
Zumba was cancelled so I was doing my own in the basement, when in the middle of *Caliente'* I caught a glimpse of a little brown invation running arcoss the floor.
I'm afraid that I set a very poor example for my boys as I screamed and ran for the phone. Nate was at L*wes' and I thought he might be able to get SOMETHING to take care of this.
Of course, his phone went right to voice mail, at a time like this??!!! GEEZ!!
Logan came down the stairs with a broken peice of baby swiss cheese, he knew *THIS* would catch it. Clayton kept lifting up the toys to see if it was there. I kept yelling to STOP doing that, it might run towards me!!!
Nate then walked in the door, holding a rake...PERFECT!
He came down and as Clay moved a toy, there it went...running for it's life.
I was at this point on the back of the couch in fetal postion screaming.
Then Nate yells at me after I heard a large *smack* of the rake.
"Amber, I've got it, now come down here and grab it or it might get away!"
WHAT??????????????? Does he know who I am???????? THERE IS NO WAY I AM COMING DOWN, AND NO WAY WOULD I GRAB IT.
I heard the neighbor was out mowing the lawn, so I ran past Nate ( dangerously close to the trapped rodent), I could see it smashed there inbetween the rake and our lovely new carpet...perfect.
I was a sweaty mess and my heart rate was sky high, not so much due to the Zumba. I explained to my neighbor my husband's request of me that I just couldn't help him with and he came right over to the rescue.
I them proceeded into a whole differnt part of the house, as the kids came running to see the mouse now in a bag being taken outside.
Emma was yelling "please don't kill it Dad"...uhhhh he better kill it, don't you dare talk him into setting it free in the field...he'll be right back in here!!
Then graciously our neighbor mentions as he walks out "well usually where there's one, there's more"
Oh thanks...I'll rest easy now.
I HATE MICE!!!!!!! Great start to my day!

When the cat is away...

2009-06-10T11:59:00.000-07:00

the mice will have a breakdown...???
It's been a few weeks now, and I think I have come to a place where I can talk about this with out losing it. So I'm going to give this a shot, it NEEDS to be documented for sure!
For those of you that don't know, every year Nate leaves everything behind for about 9 days and heads up to the Boundry Waters in Nortern Minn and Canada on a fishing trip with his buddies. We have no contact with him while he is up there *surviving*. Unfortunately there is a *curse* that comes along with his fishing trip. For several years in a row, something terrible happens while he is gone. I wish I am making this up, but it's VERY TRUE!
I believe that the beginning of the *curse* was when his Grandma passed away while he was gone. I didn't have the heart to tell him on his drive back, I waited until he got home. It wasn't too much of a shock, but sad none the less. The following year, Uncle Charlie ( like a grandpa to us) and Grandpa both became VERY ill and were placed in the ICU. Nathan was unable to really share his trip with Grandpa that year like he usually does, we lost bost Charlie and Grandpa very soon after Nate returned home.
The following year, he got some new recruits to go on his trip with him. Not thinking about the curse too much was a mistake. It was Pete's first year, and while he was up there his wife's Grandma was tragically killed in a traffic accident. Last year amazingly no one was injured here at home while there were gone. HOWEVER Nate's buddy Monty nearly lost his life up in the BWCA. He was very close to death from hypothermia from falling in the frigid lake. It's a very scary story and yet clearly God had His angels protecting him!
Of course after all this, I was a bit nervous seeing him go again this year. But God does not give one a spirit of fear. I remind myself that quite often.
About halfway through his trip my Dad gives me a call and informs me that my 88yr old Grandma had fallen alone in her home and laid waiting for help for over 3 hours. She broke her hip and injured her collarbone as well. Oh I was praying that she could surive this! I was not shocked something like this happened while Nate was gone. I guess I was expecting it. She is currently SLOWLY recovering from her injuries and surgery.
So you may ask...WHY do you let him go??? Are you CRAZY??? Yep, I must be crazy, because I do *let* him go. And I pray for his safety and our safety while he is gone. It's a blessing that he is able to go and have this much needed and derserved adventure every year.
NOW...let me talk about MY adventure while he was gone this year...
Brilliant that I am, I thought I would be totally fine scheduling 4 dentists visits the week he was gone. The part of my brain that is used ( or not used) for making decisions like this is the same part that keeps taking my kids with me when I run multiple errands and trips to the store with ALL of them, time and time again after I clearly tell myself I should NOT continue to subject myself and others to the *experience* and I'll just leave it at that. These trips are probably worthy for a whole blog post of their own!
So all was well and I was bringing all 4 kids to a NEW dentist across town. I was actually really looking forward to this new office expereince. It's all geared towards kids, video games galore! The three older kids were being seen and they all seemed to be pretty care-free about it.
I have found that in parenting ( yes I have learned *something* over the past 10 years) your children play off of the atmosphere that you create. The vibes you send out can make or brake a new expereince. So I was totally into this new dentist and the kids seem to be to..ok, so all is well so far...great! I was even at this point patting my self on the back for taking on this *adventure* on my own...I SO don't *need* Nate for this!
oops.... not so fast...
As we pulled into the parking lot it was about 8:15 am, on a school day. The kids jumped out of the car and ran into the lobby. I started filling out paperwork. NOTE about Me: I LOVE to fill out paperwork...seriously, I do, especially times 4.
Emma came up to me and informed me that Madelyn was back in the van, just sitting there. Hmmmmm...
So I went out to see what she was getting. I thought she had a book out there or something. Well I was wrong about that idea.
While I was asking her what she was doing the floodgates opened. She kept saying over and over that she just wanted to get to school. Nothing really about the dentist, just that she wanted to get to school. I tried everything to get her to come out of the van and get back into the office. I spoke VERY calmly to her ( see paretning fact above) thinking this would calm her down as well. Uh no.
She didn't budge, she had tears and snot coming down her face, refusing to get out. I had now told her that she had lost all priveledges for a week( no tv, no Wii, no computer), this I thought would have some effect. Nope. She seemed to care less about the punishment. About 10 min had now gone by. I tried everything. And yes, I flat out told her to get back inside NOW.
So now it's TWO weeks with no priveledges. Again, no effect.
WOW, I'm at a loss here. I'm praying to God for wisdom and I've got nothing!
Finally she stared showing signs of a white flag, and she got out and headed towards the office door.
Remember the tears and snot? Well she now was asking if she could go to the bathroom and get tissues. I was right on her with this one, I had a feeling this was a ploy. So, I said No, I will get them for her.
Then she added on that she needed to USE the bathroom.
Here was my BIG mistake...I let her go in! *CLICK* I heard the door lock. And that was it.
At this point Emma and Logan had their names called and were joyfully headed back to their rooms. As Madelyn's name was now called, I wondered why she didn't seem to care as I told her it was HER turn...oh yes, now I remember, geez I almost forgot. MY TEN YEAR OLD DAUGHTER WAS HAVING A BREAKDOWN AND LOCKED HERSELF IN THE DENTIST OFFICE BATHROOM!!!!!
I was blindsided! At this point two of the ladies and the d.h was trying to get her to come out. Are you wondering where Clayton is during all this...oh he was around the corning somehow getting the high score on Donkey Kong!
The d.h was getting ticked. She became the one in charge here, I guess she thought I was not doing so well. She informed Madelyn that she was waisting everyone's time and she needed to act her age and come out immediately.
How did that work??? Not so well, still no surrender by her part at all.
At this point I think a white down broke through the roof the the dentist office and landed directly onto my shoulder. I had an out of body experience and SOMEHOW BY THE GRACE OF GOD didn't lose my mind.
One of the other ladies imformed Madelyn that they would have to pick the lock( again, didn't phase her one bit), so quickly she left and came back with a bobby pin.
The door was opened and the d.h asked me if she could talk with Madelyn privately. They walked into the entry and I could only watch the conversation. It was short. The d.h came over to me and said "well she just wants to go to school I guess".
O really, that's it?!! Well then I'll rush her over there, geez if I only would have known that this morning, I could have avoided this whole show!
I was getting ticked at her at this point.
I told her, "I know she wants to go to school, that way she wouldn't have to be here. She is going into that office even if it's for ONE minute. She WILL not win!"
"oh", she said, "so she's trying to manipulate you"
DING! DING! DING! We have a winner!
Madelyn then came up to me and said " ok, Mom, I'll go back, but I don't want you to come with me."
GREAT! Cause I really don't want to come back there with you!
She headed back and less than 5 minutes later she was back out and headed straight out the car.
The LOVELY d.h. came out and said, "well that's all we have time for, we got nothing done because she waisted her appointment slot in the bathroom. She'll have to come back for her cleaning and x-rays. (Later I found out they don't have any slots available until mid-July...nice! Oh yes, they did charge me too!)
and then she said " by the way, you better stick to those consequences you told her, cause if you don't, you will have a HORRIBLE teen!"
I was SOOOO DONE. I appologized to her about all of this and she continued with her unsolicited advice laced with a horrible bitter attitude. I tried to be kind over and over and she was less than kind even seeing my situation.
At this point, I was REALLY wanting to know that I could come home from a day like this and fall into Nate's arms and cry. I wanted so badly to tell him all about it. But it was days later before we could communicate.
So it was a reminder, that GOD DID supply all my needs, HE was there the whole time. I know that it was NOT natural for a parent to some how NOT loose thier mind through all that. There is no other way to explain it, it was by God's grace.
So next time you take your kids to the dentist...have a little laugh on me :) It's ok, I'm close to seeing the humor in it all...close. One day I know it will be funny, just not yet. Especially since she has yet to go back!
PLEASE PRAY FOR ME...oh wait...I'm making NATE take her next time!

bonfires!!

2009-05-27T09:49:00.000-07:00

It's usually the kind of thing I associate with Fall, but in our fam, it's an all year round kind of thing. The kids know the drill, when they get word that it's Bonfire Night they all run for the kitchen getting out everything we might need for the meal that usually goes along with the fire. So about that fire...many of you know that Nate is very much an Outdoors-man kinda guy, so you might think he's down on the ground next to the firepit with a stick and flint or somekind of earthy way of gettin our bonfires going. Sorry Nate it's time to get it all out...lets be honest...the man pours gasoline ALL OVER the wood and tells the kids to take cover as he throws a match in. You can feel the heat all the way to the front yard as the flames shoot up all at once, the kids LOVE it! Makes me so nervous that someone is going to come away from that with no eyebrows or worse. Oh well we've got fire and I guess that's all that matters.
So last night we planned for Pizza Firepies. For those of you that might not know what they are here's the deal...You need Firepie Irons ( can get them from W*l-Mart or any sporting goods store) spray them with cooking spray and place your bread down in them. Fill it up with whatever sounds good to you ( or your kids). Of course this one is all pizza fillings, but we have made them with ham and cheese, peanut butter, chocolate, bananas etc. Set them down into the fire...oh wait...

this might happen if you leave it for too long or it gets too hot too fast...oops, Nate ate this one.
So we move them back away from the hot coals and onto the hot stones, worked MUCH better this way...

Quickly after the Firepies are eaten Clayton is usually the one who busts out the marshmellows and graham crackers. The boy is in a state of pure joy at this point.

For some reason last night as Logan was going over with us the *recipe* for Smores, he was telling us it was *Graham CRAPPERS* that needed to go first, then the chocolate then the marshmellows. Crappers...hmmmmm...nice...

A little trick we like to do is place the graham CRACKERS and the chocolate on the stones next to the fire while the marshmellow is being cooked to your liking. This melts the chocolate a bit and also crisps the crackers...YUMMMM!

Now everyone has their favorite way of roasting their marshmellow, Madelyn freaked a bit when her's quickly caught fire and she was yelling at ME to blow it out. Later she remembered that she did in fact like hers on the burnt side. Logan is a more patient man, to the point that his first two were left to themselves and I watched them slowly melt right off the stick in the fire, small tagedy there for a moment, but the bag full of waiting marshmellows got him calmed down enough to head on to the next attempt.

Here's how I like them...melty, dark brown toasted marshmellows pressed between the warmed chocolate and crispy crakers...PURE BLISS!!!

Now here's the thing that might set our Bonfire Nights aside from your average bonfire...we basically have a dinner theater. The kids have been working all afternoon on their one of a kind performance. The rush through their meal and then JUMP ( bad combo for me)They manage to keep their food down somehow and press on through the show. Each kid has their own unique style, Emma a bit over the top, I know shocker to ya.

Madelyn was calculated down to each step across the trampoline ( again I'm sure your shocked at that too)and if we happened to have turned our heads even for a second the show was taken again from the top.
Somehow she managed not to break anything!

Logan was up next, again you might not be too surprised to hear that there wasn't so much the jumping with his performance as there was SPINNING and TWIRLING...at least he got his fishing hat involved.

So here's what we have discovered, one can really tell alot about themselves during a trampoline performance. If you'd like you can come over perform for yourself ( or who ever would like to watch) and discover your personality! Like for instance...Nate's last performance ended with a flip off the side and landing to where it was clear he was making sure we were not going to have any more children. My last performance it was clear that I indeed had FOUR children and after about three jumps I had to run inside and change my pants :)

LOVE antique shops!

2009-05-26T06:14:00.000-07:00

If I had a million dollars I have to admit that a good portion of it would be spent antique-ing. I love blending the old with the new, I love items that might tell you a story if they could talk. When we lost Nathan's grandparents we were blessed to be able to adopt many vintage items from their home. I love knowing where these items came from and how Grandma used them. When I purchase things from a vinatage or antique dealer I have no idea what the story is behind the items, but I wonder...
So this past Memorial Day weekend my sister and I jumped on the opportunity to hit the antique shops outside of Logan, Ohio. As we walked up to the front porch area, the feeling of pure bliss takes me over. I can't tell you how much I LOVE looking at vintage stuff. I guess to some it's stuff or even worse junk, but I look past the flaws and see it's potential! Jess and I saw ALL KINDS of things from a vintage framed Wedding document from the 1930's to a Original metal Star Wars lunch box which was priced correctly at over $40. Oh well.
I was on a mission though, had to stay focused. I was DESPERATE for something to keep my jewelry organized. I already have a great way to display and organize my necklaces. My dear friend Lori and I made these last year and they are PERFECTLY up and away from little hands

Now my earrings, bracelets and rings on the other hand were drowning in each other on my nightstand ( which is a vintage piece from Grandma...I think I might be refinishing it soon...more projects!) I had a draw full of craziness and it layed ALL OVER the top...it was MADNESS! What a shame, as my Grandma would say.
So back to my shopping...I needed something to help with this situation, and I was overwhelmed. I wanted something glass or ceramic and it needed to have some sort of dividing going on.
Well then came the vintage jewelry, it was calling to me! I found a FABULOUS etsy seller that takes vintage jewelry and recycles it into new pieces. LOVE this idea!
So I came across a brooch, some beads and later found a necklace...oh that have SO MUCH potential

You'll have to wait and see what becomes of this :) By the way...this was a grand total of $11...the best part! THEN this little $5 ring jumped on my hand and I couldn't let this one go...I stinkn' LOVE IT!!!

Geez, can you see how distracting this process is??? I came here to find something to PUT my jewelry IN, not buy MORE jewelry!! I found some small glass dishes, I wasn't in love yet, but on the right track. It was crunch time, we had gone through EVERY booth and I wasn't in love...I was discouraged until I saw this beauty...it was YELLOW! So happy! For $14 this was PERFECT...ok so nevermind that it's a deviled egg serving dish. It's got the little places for my earrings...perfect! I wonder what sweet little hostess displayed her family recipe deviled eggs on this dish?? Did she have a yellow kitchen? I wonder.... I found a yellow glass dish that fir PERFECTLY in the middle for my bracelets and another glass dish for my rings! I was in love for sure!!! So here's they are...in their new home with a whole new purpose. Now I just need to refinish the nightstand! Cause I need another project!

My new blanket...Think Big

2009-05-05T12:36:00.000-07:00

I've been crafting Chubby Baby Blankets for several years, my little guy still loves on his through out the day and has to go to bed with them both at night.

Here's Clayton and Nate sleeping in the airport in Miami last Summer on our way to Trinidad

They are backed with Minkee...soooo soft! Moms comment all the time that they would LOVE to have a big one for themselves. So a while back after recieving 2 baby blankets for his twins

a friend asked if I had ever made one for the mom. His wife LOVED their babies' blankets so much he knew she would love to have one for herself and asked if I could make one for her for Mother's day. I was very excited about this idea and totally went for it. Soooo......Here's the Momma's Blanket ( decided that using the word Chubby with this one may not go over so well with moms)

Wanna give it a try...It takes 1 yard of your middle fabric, 2 yards of the edge fabric and 2 yards of minkee for the back. Plan on using a TON of pins, you need to pin it every 2 inches so the minkee won't slide around. I am beyond excited about how the Momma's Blanket turned out. I think my friend will be thrilled. Now I want one for myself!

What they love and I can't stand...Forts!

2009-04-15T11:01:00.000-07:00

So it was the last day of Easter Break and it was a nasty day...of course it would be, we live in OHIO! I can't remember who came up with the idea first, but once the word leaked out, no matter how softly it was spoken, it was out...LETS BUILD A FORT!!
I know that this was something I totally loved to do as a kid. I remember lining up every chair we could find in the house into the dining room to make the fort as large as humanly possible. I remember going around to each room to gather up every blanket we could use to provide us with the *Best Fort Ever*. I know the joy this process brought me as a child.
So WHY is it that blah, blah years later, I find myself on the opposite spectrum of the love of forts.
Hmmm...Maybe it's because the timing for the fort building is ALWAYS poor. Let's do it when the house is all clean, beds are made and blankets are neatly folded in the hall closet. It's almost like a beacon goes out from with in the fibers of the blankets to the children...*must build forts NOW!!*
BTW...this is a VERY similar beacon to the one that goes out when mommy quietly sneaks off to use the bathroom. It's a beacon that adults do not have the ability to hear, but I know it's being rung through out the entire home and yard *Mom is in the bathroom...GO FIND HER, give her NO PEACE!* Oh yes, it's the same beacon. If only I could find where it's origin is, where is that thing located? No one seems to know and when I question the kids about it they are in complete denial! Is there somekind of oath that they have sworn to? What would happen if they told me? Anyway, moms get no peace when in the bathroom...EVER!
Back to the forts... so Monday one of the kids brought it up and I was WAY overpowered ... 4:1. So I caved and the process commenced. It's amazing the process of pulling, yanking and dragging such soft cozy blankets can be SO LOUD! They ran up and down the hall, coming up with amazing strength to pull heavy queen-sized blankets 12 times their size with such ease. It was strangly effortless and somehow when it's time to put them away the super-human strength shown here vanishes.
The girls quickly claimed the large dining room table as THEIRS and No Boy Was Allowed in. They added pillow after pillow and it was now a haven of comfort. They decided a friendly game of Monopoly was the BEST thing to do while *Forting*.
The boys were left to their own and with the lack of experience they were at a loss. I'm not sure how, again super-human strength took over and out of the garage appeared an old heavy square card table ( which belonged to sweet Grandma & Grandpa Gessaman- the table has got to be as old as I am, at least!) Their blankets were all over and around it as it became * Sooooo much better than the girls* and of course the appropriate game was chosen to be played under it *Battleship*...perfect!
The Forts lasted for hours...seemed like days for me. And as the evening approached the Big Mean Mommy commanded that they be DESTROYED. The crying and wailing was heard for miles and miles I'm sure. It was pain that seem to peirce their souls. It seemed like it must have been the equivalent of requesting them to murder a puppy.
At this point the process of puting the blankets away was a task that was seemingly unachievable to all involved.
Around this lengthy time of unresponsiveness I believe the words came out of my mouth * That's it!!! No more forts for FOUR months!!!*
You may laugh, I about did. Four months?? Four months. Where in the world did I get four months? Usually if one of our children loses a privilege for making a poor choice it's for a day, a week....but I've never even used a month. All of a suddden I somehow think *this* act of rebellion should result is a FOUR MONTH hiatus. Who knows what I was thinking. Regardless, it was a good motivation to move the cleaning up process along as badly as I may have felt about the severe time punishment.
This is where I was quite bewildered with the absence of the prevoiusly seen *Super-Human Blanket Pulling Strength*...it was GONE! Logan was bearly making it out of the Living Room dragging his comforter was apparently the hardest task this poor boy was EVER asked to do. The repeated falling onto the ground was becomming quite humorous, I caved and helped. The Mean Mommy DID have a heart and the joint folding ended the adventure. So in August, I'll be posting another Fort Story...but NOT before then!

I don't wanna go to heaven!!!

2009-04-01T10:47:00.000-07:00

About 5 years ago I heard this come out of a child's mouth for the 1st time...and it was my child!

I was in a panic. Who would say that?? I'm thinkin' what did we do wrong? We talk about God and Jesus all the time...good things. We talk to Him, tell Him we love Him.

So one day riding in the car ( that seems to be when all the good topics come up), Madelyn and I were talking about Great Grandma G, and that she will be in heaven because she loved Jesus. I kept going about the details of heaven from the discriptions in the Bible.

What a COOL place! Doesn't everyone wanna go?!

I kept looking back in the rear view mirror, excited to see the face of pure joy and bliss on my firstborn. As I kept talking about the people in the Bible that would be there too, I noticed there was NO sign of happiness at ALL. Strange, surely this is appealing to her.

Finally I asked her...Madelyn what do think? Would you like to have Jesus in your heart? He loves you and wants you to be with him someday.

Before I could go on she firmly and loudly said " I DON'T WANNA GO TO HEAVEN!!!"

I about drove off the side of the road! There isn't a manual for this.

"If child answers "no way, not interested" then proceed to section C for further guidence"

Nope, no handbook on this one.

I didn't know how to repsond. I could tell she was getting more upset, I needed to come up with a brilliant response quickly.

All kinds of thought were running through my head...MY child is REJECTING Jesus??? HELP!!

What in the world have we done???

So I asked her...."Madelyn, WHY don't you want to go to heaven???" Really not sure what the answer would be...

"Momma, I like it HERE"

*********FAST FORWARD to TODAY***********

Another interesting conversation in the car with Logan...with Easter right around the corner, we was showing me a craft from school about the empty tomb. So I asked him..."Where is Jesus, he's not in there?" Logan quickly said, "He's in heaven" This response had a little untertone of "DUHHH MOM" to it.

So I asked him" Is there anywhere else that He lives?" Very sweetly this time he says "In my heart Momma".

We talked about why He wants to be in your heart, why He loves you so much and why He wants to have you come into Heaven and be with Him forever when it is time.

I realized I needed to choose my words carefully. He confirmed that with "But I don't wanna go NOW!"

Ok, so my kids seem to be happy *here*....that's good :)

Logan ~ 5 years old

Madelyn when she was about 4 years old. I love her smile...her eyes dissappear :)

my $200 pedicure...oops

2009-03-25T06:20:00.000-07:00

As most things do, my impromtu pedicure with close friends started out so innocently. Can I just tell you that this is my SECOND pedicure of my life! How sad is that! Now I know why...

I can't say that I didn't enjoy it, in fact there were moments of pure bliss. The massage chair was amazing, the pounding, kneading and beating were heavenly; not so much the shaking (I'll tell ya why in a moment).

The sweet girls ( and one guy) who work there were smily and kind. Even though I'm convinced that they do talk to each other in their beautiful soft spoken language about how nasty this lady's feet are and how they wish they could wear a mask, but adding one on now might look suspicious. So they might be encouraging each other to press on as they shave away the dead skin, and just breath through your mouth. No really, my feet were *that* dry...but I do have to say they weren't stinky. I did make it a point to take a foot bath before I went. I had to shave my negleted hairy legs ( sorry Nate). I would hate for the sweet girl to have to deal with the jungle and have her hands overly exfoliated because I haven't shaved my legs for 3 days (okay, more like 6-ish). Seeing that this was only my 2nd pedi, I hadn't remembered that they do wear latex gloves. However if I would have forgo-ed (btw, why does Chris Harrison ALWAYS use that word on his note about the fantasy suite? always!) my weekly shave and left my legs as-is, I believe she would have had to upgrade to the garden gloves, maybe even the Roofing Glove.

Ok so onto the pedi it's self... it was 4 of us together, a GNO (as HM would sing/say). We each upgraded to the SIGNATURE PEDI...nice. Some of us also opted to add on a $3 fee to have them shave off the dead skin...SCARY! With this procedure there are extra tools invloved, some are a heavier version of an emery board and then there was what was used on Jan's feet. Basically it was a hand held cheese grader...any Fresh Parmesan Cheese with your Salad??? When the girl SHOWS you the skin that she has removed from your foot...you know it's a big deal.

I'm pretty sure there is a chart in the back room there, a dead skin chart. She was quite proud of herself, I belived the manager had to verify the official amount before it was charted, I think I saw him glance over for the acknowledgement nod.

During this procedure there is a level of torture that is going on as well. Lori was losing it as the ticklish spots were shown some attention. She had the one guy working there and he had us in stitches...so funny!!! When my girl got out the heavy duty emery board I know felt what Lori was feeling, it was about sending me out of my chair!!! Seriously, this was a form of torture...it was a combination of pain, pleasure and MORE PAIN!

Here's the thing, I have a *BAD* foot, ok, more like a *BAD SIDE OF MY BODY*...my left side. I have a missing sinus cavity on that side, I believe that ear is lower than the other, a closed fal.tube, minimal knee cartilage and then my thing of beauty...my BAD foot! My skin is HORID, cracked, broken open (now I'm being reminded of that detail) and my big toe is only connected at the base (it's been previously removed). So there ya go, fun facts about Amber you wish you didn't now know.

As she is getting herself stablized on her low rolling stool ( I think she had to lock in the wheels at this point) she dove into my DEATHLY DRY heel. She moved her way up to my big toe. At this point the flinching and the face squinching that I was trying to hide was noticed by Jan's girl. She asked me if it was hurting...with a smile on my face I tried to be brave but she quickly said something to my girl which made her stop and look up. I don't want to make her feel bad, I mean I had a feeling she had already been discouraged because she was now behind on the *Dead Skin Chart*...if only she had her own cheese grader!

Well it was too late, the pain was there, the skin was broken open and geez was it BURNING!!! I kept telling her it was ok, but really I was wondering if they offered an epidural at any time during this part. I guess not, so I jacked up the massage chair to distract me. Liz informed me that the chair might be too much , maybe I should just look up at the beautiful clouds that were painted on the ceiling and listen to the Karen Carpender song that was playing for us. I believe Lori's guy said he had requested it for us. DOES HE THINK WE ARE THAT OLD???!! So much for his tip!

Suckered into a another added on fee, I had my girl paint a little flower on my big toes. It's cute, a nice visual reminder of the pain I am STILL feeling as I have my left foot lathered in Neosporin and in a sock. It hurts to walk!!!

But here's the kicker of my SIGNATURE Pedicure adventure...just after I got settle into my stinkn' hot foot bath, figured out the remote for the massage chair ( do I want pounding, kneading, rolling, twisting or turning... on my legs, lumbar, middle back or shoulders...GEEZ TOO MANY OPTIONS HERE!) worked, I gently placed my cell phone in my lap.

Oh yea, you can figure this next part out. Since I choose the Medley Message, the pounding, kneading, rolling, twisting, turning and shaking and shimmy-ing came ALL AT ONCE. The girations send my phone into a nose dive for the scalding foot bath...KER-PLUNK!!!! I just starred at it as it hit the bottom. If I dove in after it, the skin of my hands might have melted off. It was a quick moment that seemed like minutes as my sweet girl took the risk to set her own life aside and go in after it. She had a moment with it, rubbing it, trying to stimulate life. But it was too late, the damage was done. It gave one last vibrate and gave up.

So there it was...that was the BEGINNING of my SIGNATURE Pedi, I should have known this wasn't going to be cheap. I'm off to the phone store with my $2.50 Old Navy flip flops on showing off my little flower, hopefully my left foot will stay in, all this Neosporin makes this quite slippery...I can see it now...my adventure to the phone store...

Who's idea was this anyway??? :)

Never a dull moment...

2009-03-20T10:17:00.000-07:00

***DISCAIMER...for those who haven't read my old posts...I don't care much about my spelling, I WILL have errors and large run-on sentences. So read on, and love me anyway***

God knew I needed girls before the boys came along...easing me into this parenting challenge, thank you Lord. When my girls were the boys' ages ( 5 & 3) life was simple, easy, loving. They loved being with each other played for hours on end with never a arguement. They would giggle in the other room, and I knew that there was nothing to worry about. They just didn't get into trouble. I think ONCE Madelyn may have unrolled the entire roll of t.p. That was the extent of her mischievous behavior. And she would never dream of trying it again, too risky.

Now jump forward 5 years ( wow alot has happened in 5 years), and here were are knee deep in TESTOSTERONE! Logan and Clayton can't keep their hands off of each other, and no it's not for hugs or tickling. They MUST wrestle, they MUST tag, they MUST push, they MUST grap each other's clothes as they run by each other and as one falls, they MUST laugh. You can see it in their eyes, it's in their blood, something deep with in them is driving this behavior.

So my full-time job is keeping them ALIVE. I have heard the screams from the other room, and there are some screams you just have to run to. Only to find Logan in a half-nelson ( my Dad used to coach wrestling) with Clayton's face smashed into the carpet and someone I believe gets close to losing conscienceness with most of the take-downs.

So here's the thing, I don't have brothers, this is not normal behavior to me. But there are times that something inside me says "just let them do it" WHAT??? let them do it? Is this right? Seriously, I want them to survive each other!

So here's what they have come up with lately ( again, things the girls would have never thought of or attempted)

**** Logan has been found to be standing up on a high stool that he has quietly carried in to the bathroom, PEEING !!!! (btw, the sound is quite loud from that distance which is why I thought I better go see what is going on in there)...sorry no pics of that one. You can visualize I'm sure.

**** Clayton recently was enjoying his fishy crackers and thought it would be fun to see if one could hang out of his nose...*look Momma*, and yes, I had to get a pic of it.

**** The mystery Coke Can issue is still under investigation...last week the kids' toilet was running, so I took the back tank lid off to act like I knew what to do. Low and behold...a Diet Lime Coke can was stuck in there blocking the thingy from closing down on the other thingy. Hmmm no one has yet to fess up on this one. Further interviewing is in process.

**** And here's another bathroon ordeal...why do boys have so many challenges revolving around the room itself, it's contents or what *should* be going ONLY in the bathroom. Anyway, my computer/craft room is located directly below their bathroom. The kids have discovered that when they are upstairs they can head into the bathroom and yell down into the vent when I am in my room working. It's the cheap-mans' version of the home intercom system. And yes, I yell back up to them, works pretty well actually. Well one day I was sewing and I could hear Clayton up in the bathroom in the sink *making soup* he calles it. This *cooking* CAN be harmless I'm sure for some, but most of the time when I yell up what are you doing and he responds *making soup!!!*, it's not ever a good thing. This particular time, he leaned down over the vent and I could hear that he took the vent off...then I heard him say * WANT SOME WATER MOMMA??!!!* , before I could answer back *no thanks* I heard the Niagra Falls coming my way. And so the Megga Slurpie Giant Gulp cup used in the bath was being poured down to me. My following response and bolt up the stairs really didn't do any good. It was done.

***Clayton today was doing something I felt was quite harmless in comparison. He found a little measuring cup for Logan's daily allergy meds. Clayton was licking all around the inside of it, I guess I feel like I need to pick my battles and I had to not make a big deal out of it *please go put that in the sink when your done *cleaning* that out for me Clayton*...*ok Momma*
We had a good 15-20 minutes of quiet time while he entertained himself with the medicine cup. I heard him slirping and sucking it in as the cup would *magically* stay on his mouth. Again, thinking this was cheap, harmless fun for him...quiet for me. Think again Amber...
So after lunch I was cleaning off his face, it just wasn't coming clean. As I looked closer at the purple lips he was sporting, I could see now that his entertainment had now providing a lasting memory. I giant self inflicted HICKEY all over his lips and mouth.
I quickly grabbed my camera, snapped a shot and sent it off to my sister who is a nurse. Just had to ask her if I should be concerned about this meaning he has a cardiac issue :) After hearing her gasp, I told her what he did...her response...* YOU CAN NOT TAKE HIM OUT IN PUBLIC LIKE THAT!!!
Oh but I will, and not only that, I'm documenting yet another adventure that my boys take me on...in a funny way, I'm loving this crazy ride, there is never a dull moment.

Here's Clayton displaying the results from his harmless afternoon entertainment, and of course the pic doesn't do it justice. It's SO BAD!
Logan has graced us with his presence at his fav place to eat pancakes ...Bob Bevins. Here's his creation ...a butter & syrup pancake sandwich. Super fun to clean up after!

Clayton showing us a fun place to put fishies...

Here are the girls...oh the drama they hold, I'll save their stories for another day....

Snow Day!!!

2009-01-28T09:42:00.000-08:00

Emma parked herself up against this tree after she crashed into it

Logan has issues keeping his hat straight, and he really doesn't care

So here we are...stuck at home. Not sure why I say *stuck*, cause really, it's my favorite place to be. The falling fresh snow can only call out the the kids "come play with me". And they can only give in. It takes a good 15-20 min to get them bundled and I burn massive calories working up a sweat getting them ready. I am worn out! We are down a pair of snow boots and since Clayton refuses to put his on, he and I stay safely inside. And honestly, I am totally ok with that. I think I'm suppose to feel guilty for not wanting to go sledding. It's just not fun at all for me to get all layered up and STILL be freezing. WHY would I want to do that and risk a fatal head injury as my flailing body gets hurled into the tree because I can't control the child size sled? Seriously, that is my luck! So I'm good to stay on the 2 inch ice covered porch and take pics of the kids having a ball.

2008...Kinda a Big Deal

2009-01-01T20:11:00.000-08:00

2008...

Guess I wanna make sure I don't forget all the things that have stuck out in my mind in the past year. So here's where it's all going...

TRINIDAD! A Big Deal!

I have yet to have taken the time to document about our Summer Mission Trip...it changed our lives!

The amazing adventure to Trinidad... It was a blessing to see EVERY cent of our needed funds come in from friends and family who have seen our hearts desire. That truly overwhelmed us. To go on Nate's 1st foreign mission trip with him was amazing. Clayton, our 2 yr old came along with us, what an adventure!!! We pray we can go back this year! We really want to be able to bring our daughters Madelyn & Emma with us, they are old enough to be campers and I know it will be an experience that they will never forget.

We fell in love this year with the Singh Family and the children of Trinidad. I can't explain how God shows us that brothers and sisters in Christ are truly related, but He did in a heartbeat.

Honestly, every day I think about them, every day I wonder how they are and what God is blessing them and their ministry with. I pray every day for the children we got to know and love. Sharing Christ's love with them was our truest desire, and they made it so easy!

the LITTLE EMME Big Deal

My other big deal this year, was to be witness to the adventures of our dear friends Paul & April as they patiently awaited the newest member of their family, Emme.

This poor little ( and I mean little) thing waited until the last moment for her mommy & daddy to come to China to save her, literally. God's perfect timing. She is SO loved!!!! It blessed my soul to be drawn into their adoption journey. A journey that maybe someday God will bless us with.

The Biggest Deal ~SPIRITUAL MILESTONES

Our daughters made an important decision this year, they wanted to be baptised! After seeing my 80 yr old Grandparents make the same step in faith, they were encouraged to also show others they are serious about their faith in Jesus! WOW! Were were blessed to be witnesses!

Nathan was privledged to lead our little guy Logan to accept Jesus into his heart just recently!

I can't say much else, it's quite emotional for me to take this all in. God is SO good. He loves His children, He wants to bless us. I am so humble...

Boys and Politics

2008-10-23T09:43:00.000-07:00

Entertained for hours by the mystery of the street drain. On many sunny days I will watch my boys take off down the street for the drain. What simple pleasures the sewage system can offer the minds of boys.

Logan asked me after hearing a rustling down there "uh Momma, what do skunks do to you?"

As I began to explain what other things are more likely down there, hoping to introduce a healthy respect of drain inhabiting creatures, he quickly replied "oh yeah, they spray you!"

Poor Logan, as you can see above, the has a crack problem. He's been struggling with this issue for quite a while now. Some day he'll be thrilled to see how many pics we have of him with his crack out for all to see. He could care less now.

So here's the boys simple politics..."cool sign momma!" For us, it's not so simple, it's complicated and frustrating to see Bible believing *Christians* supporting a canidate who has no backbone, he can't even make it a point to stand up for a baby who survived an abortion, he just couldn't bring himself to vote on that one...hmmmm...so scary that this man is being looked up to by so many who trust Jesus! I'm praying HARD every day that The Light will be shown and The Truth will be revealed.

2008-10-22T07:19:00.000-07:00

ok, so today is the day I am officially going to start truly blogging. Why not? I think it will be theraputic for me, it's expressive and I'm basically enjoying the freedom of speech.
So let me point out right away, and for those of you that know me well already have accpeted this about me, I CAN'T SPELL!!! Go ahead and make your judgements, I honestly don't care much about how the word looks as long as it's phonetically readable. That's how my brain works. Ok, enough about my horrible spelling skills.
I'm off to Zumba....be back later...just had to get this started and I feel better already :)

Adoption on my mind

2008-07-08T12:19:00.000-07:00

With my dear friends recieving travel information *soon* to go to China to get their precious baby girl Emme and Nate's boss and his wife getting their referral this week...well I just can't stop thinking about them!

I made Emme a few things that I hope she will soon make them her favorite little things...

Time on my hands?

2008-06-16T16:55:00.000-07:00

Like I have extra time...but now that I am free from my p/t job, I did find time to make this skirt...JUST FOR ME! I love the Amy Butler fabric, and I think it turned out pretty cute!

Now I'm ready to make more! A girl can't have too many skirts right?

So here it is....

New Chubbies!

2008-04-15T12:29:00.000-07:00

These have been selling like hotcakes...no complaints here! Just had so share my 2 new fav sets of Chubbies.

The girls set * Tweet Tweet Baby Girl* has fabric from designer Joel Dewberry, love his fabric!

The boys set is crafted from Windham Fabrics, I just love this colors. Perfect for the *Modern Little Man*

My fabric stash is now well originized thanks to my Mom & Grandma, I can now see that I have a serious problem (well I don't see it as a problem, others may). And yet, I'm ready for another trip back down to the Fabric Shack!!! New fabric to come!!!

It's SPRING for real!!

2008-04-15T12:23:00.000-07:00

Ohhh I am loving my new camera!!! Here I am enjoying for the 1st time since we have lived here, our 2 tulip trees (not really sure of the technical name). Last year a bad frost killed them all before they had a chance to bloom. But this year they are out and blooming beautifully. So I was up on a ladder to get these shots, partially raining at times, still cold, but look at these pics! Can't wait to get them enlarged!

It's SPRING!! Well in jewelry that is

2008-03-08T09:01:00.000-08:00

Just Jewelry has just launched our 2008 Spring line and I LOVE IT!!! It's crazy fun! These would have to be my top three favs, and of course they look a million times better in person!

FALL Headbands

2007-10-08T18:46:00.000-07:00

These were a long time coming!! I sure did need some browns and oranges for my yummy sweaters to go along with.

Ok who am I kidding...it's been stink'n 90 degrees and it's OCTOBER... haven't touched a sweater!

But that will soon change and we will be freezing our cute little buns off in a matter of days.

So in anticipation of the need for FALL accessories...here's just a couple of the many new fabric headbands that I have listed! SO FUN!

Our NEW FALL JEWELRY!!

2007-08-27T13:10:00.001-07:00

Oh WOW!!! I can't express enough how amazing the Just Jewelry new Fall line is!! This one is one of my favorites!
http://itsjustjewelry.com Here's where you can take a peek at the over 1000 items we have! I love this job!
AND....we now have a catalog! SOOOOO excited about this too! It's beautiful and so affordable!

Oh it's been too long

2007-08-09T09:14:00.001-07:00

I guess it's been a while since I posted last... SUMMER IS SO FUN & CRAZY!!!

We've been living at the pool and the kids look like little Indian children, well ok, really just Emma. The girls have been BUSY this Summer, they just started their OWN Esty shop

http://sassysisters.etsy.com/ SASSY SISTERS. They have been lovin' it! They have sold about 12 pairs of earrings already and they keep making more.

Here's a pair of my fav's

So you have to stop in to their cute littls shop and take a peek. They design them for girls their age who like them, have had difficult time finding earrings for the "tween" stage in life. Girly and fun at the same time. They also have little little girls in mind, and also us moms who are looking for something fun and pretty too!

They just added some *Buckeye* earrings and also earrings that show your School Spirit!!

You've got to see this Treasury!

2007-05-31T15:03:00.000-07:00

I LOVE rings and I found some great ones on Etsy! I snagged a Treasury and here's my favs...take a peek!
http://www.etsy.com/treasury.php?id=1180673587142U5072017

I've been tagged...thanks to my sis

2007-05-25T19:12:00.000-07:00

So I guess I need to share a handfull of things about myself...
1. I married my high school sweetheart :) We've been together since our Jr year of h.s, got married in his sr. year of college...here we are 11.5 years later! CRAZY!

2. I was a nanny after college for a family with triplets for 2 years

3. My Hubby & I went through several years of infertility before being able to carry successfully, and our 3rd baby was born 9 weeks early...My Chubby Baby. He's my wild 3 year old! We have 4 miracle children

4. I went on a mission trip to Mexico when I was in college and it lit a fire in my heart for foriegn missions. My youngest sister recently went to Africa on a medical trip, and someday I would LOVE to go with her when she goes back!

5. I work very part time at the GAP...boy does that get me in trouble. They might as well pay in in Gift Cards, because all the money I make and then some, goes right back to the store ;)

6. I teach our 2 year old Sunday School Class at our church. I LOVE IT!!!!

And there was much sewing

2007-05-23T21:02:00.000-07:00

Thanks to my sister and her mad stash of great fabric, I've added NEW headbands to my shop...take a look http://chubbybabydesigns.etsy.com

Here's a fun one for SUMMER....

Headbands EVERYWHERE!!

2007-04-26T09:18:00.000-07:00

oh my word!!! I've been busy...while watching Americal Idol Gives Back last night, I was sewing like crazy!

I've got a ton of NEW Fabric Headbands, you've got to stop by my shop!

Here's a fun one...

Yee-Haw!!!

2007-04-23T13:55:00.000-07:00

I just LOVE this new set of Chubbies!

Perfect for the little cowboy in your life.

This Moda Johnny & Buck Fabric has a vintage-

look to it, I love that. And just to make it

even more fun for babies to look at, I pulled the red

from the cowboys and matched it with Polka Dots!

Lovin' the Jewelry!

2007-04-23T08:26:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun this weekend doing a jewelry open house for a couple of my friends. In just a couple hours I took home $250 in profit! LOVE THAT! Here's a pic of one of our most popular Spring sets. The necklace is just $18...all of our necklaces are!!

You can see more on Just Jewelry's Website

I get so excited about how great this company is and how easy

it is to sell...just had to share! :)

Oh after being so frustrated with esty being down last night, I

started crafting.

I've got a new set of burp cloths *Chubbies* ready to list. I'll

show them SOON!

CRAZY weekend!

2007-04-20T09:19:00.001-07:00

Well as soon as I get my plastic headbands in the mail I will be crafting as many more as I can. I've run out of supplies!! I've got fabric in the waiting!
I've been having fun sharing these with friends, sold 2 yesterday to a friend, 2 more from my etsy shop YEAH!!! This is fun!
Tomorrow I've got a BIG jewelry Open House, I'm also a Consultant for Just Jewelry a WONDERFUL company based here in Ohio.
Feel free to take a peek at their catalog on-line here
Everything is SO affordable and I love the commission I make having fun!!
Hope you all have a great crafting weekend!

CRAZY weekend!

2007-04-20T09:19:00.000-07:00

Wahoooo!!!

2007-04-16T15:21:00.000-07:00

Oh Yeah!! My first headband is SOLD!!! Love this!
It's the one pictured below and it's VERY limited, Amy Butler Retired fabric.
I need to go see if I have enough fabric to make another one and I better think about ordering more plastic headbands!
WAHOOOO!!

Pick your fav!!

2007-04-15T14:06:00.000-07:00

So I've got a TON of headbands up and ready for a new home! See which one is your fav...

It's hard to pick just one favorite, but here is mine....

Yep, that's my little pistol of a model

Thanks little Miss Em

My first headband!!!

2007-04-14T13:50:00.000-07:00

Here it is!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My headband
Can't wait to make more, I have SO MUCH funky fabric to use...I better get back to sewing!

Head's Up!!!

2007-04-14T12:09:00.000-07:00

I'm really excited about the headbands that I will be adding to my shop!!!
I LOVE to wear them, they totally jazz up any outfit and they are so comfortable! My daughers ( 8 & 6 years) have been known to sneak off with them and they fit them too.
I've got so much fun fabric to use, they will be a great addition to my shop and so easy toss into your cart as I am keeping them affordable.
As soon as I have them up, I will letcha know!

Thanks Sis!!

2007-04-14T11:55:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to thank my little sis for encouraging me to get my butt in gear and have more fun with my etsy shop Chubby Baby Designs so here I am hosting my first blog EVER!!
Thanks Jes!