Me and My Hubby

Charles and I felt like we had a mini vacation over the weekend. It was wonderful! We just spent time together being "friends". Really just talking about serious but not negative issues. Just our thoughts on life. It never ceases to amaze me how much we think alike. It was a 5 day weekend and we spent it all together as a family. We worked out, dined together, shopped together. I lost 5 lbs! Yay! Not nearly enough but it's a start! I have a little more to go to be where I was before I had kids. I would like to get there. Although I don't have stretch marks, I'm not quite the tight tummy anymore! LOL! Anyhow, I know looks aren't everything, but it does help and it helps you to be more confident when you feel good about yourself. I remember growing up in church watching couples. I watched so intently and I noticed that once marriage began, after about year, the nice and polished looks went. They just didn't think it was necessary anymore. I was always bothered by that and my best friend Jessica and I made a pact together that we would not let that happen. It must be hard for a man to go into the work place being around polished women all day and then come home to a frumpy housewife! ARggh! If I were a guy, that would be frustrating! I know some might disagree, but that's okay. Thoughts are always welcome here. :)

Me and hubby pics.

Brandon's Game

Tuesday night, the kids and I headed to Brandon's game at the park. Randy, Machelle, Kathy, her son, and Amy were all there to watch. His team won and Brandon had a double play. Congrats! We're proud of you Brandon.

A Great Memorial Day

We were gonna go to my Mother-in-law's house to swim but plans changed so Charles and I headed off to the mall. As I headed off to the salon, Charles took the kids places in the mall. When we met back up, we bought shoes together and I bought sunglasses. Charles is so sweet. As we were walking through JCPenney's, he picked up a few shirts and capris for me, and cute shorts. We ate at Top Shelf, had some yummy mexican food. Then we headed to Borders and Charles took the kids to the reading area while I had coffee and read a magazine. I bought a Jessica Simpson cd and a couple of Nick Lachey cd's. We didn't leave till 11pm! We ended up having a great day! I have the most thoughtful, awesomest husband alive! He's incredible. If anything were to happen to us, it would be because of my own selfishness. Sometimes I feel I don't deserve him. No other person has ever made me feel so good about myself. Beyond, just looks (I'm no longer a size 3) but he points out inner beauty that I didn't think existed. When a man can make a woman feel beautiful, even after marriage, after babies, that man is truly a diamond.

Joined the YMCA

I finally joined the YMCA again! We haven't gone since I had Ivy. I just never got around to renewing it. But since we are waiting for the house to get done, the boys are so bored not having a back yard. Thus, this is where we will be going Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. That was a normal routine before and they loved it so I'm gonna take them now. There were so excited when I told them we were going back the the Y. They jumped up and down. Usually when I go, I workout, swim, shower, then sit and read a little. I feel incredibly blessed because it's a little break for me as well. In August I will have two in school so things we be a little easier also. I think Ryan is going to enjoy school so much. I know that Chaz needs a little routine for him so I told he's knows he can expect going to the Y 3 days a week through the summer. He's happy about that. He keeps track of the days so he knows.

Trip to the Zoo

Click here to view Zoo photos

*Note* You do not have to sign in to view photos. Just click on link and then click on picture.


We made another trip to the zoo yesterday and made a little photo album. Since we'd gone so many times before, I didn't really get pictures of animals! LOL! It was a little warm so at one point we ended up having a water fight. They do have a little water fun area that we played in first. We love their treehouse they have there for kids and the stream they can play in. So we only went to the treehouse, petting zoo, water area, and monkey village. We forgot to stop and see the new baby gorilla. She looks so cute in the paper! I Love family get togethers like this because there are no games around, TV's, or other distraction that makes it hard to visit together. I might wait a little while till it cools off though. Whew! I was constantly putting sunblock on everyone so no one got burned even a little bit. Sometimes it's nice to tan but I don't want to look old fast if I can help it! :)

Interesting Comments

I got a few "interesting" comments on my website. I'll leave it at that because they didn't make any sense nor were they biblical. I didn't post the comments because I don't like to post things that aren't biblical on my blogsite. I learned by reading my bible, that even the Pharisees in the bible constantly tried to pick on little things that didn't matter in the light of eternity. They did not care about souls. I'm showing you this cartoon because it kind of reflects my thoughts on the comments those people made. Two kids praying that God would make their side win. The prayer that would have been better to say would have been "God, please give me the strength I need so I can play to the best of my abilities." Somethings just aren't worth picking on. My husband put it best when he said, "Notice that a lot of people who are for saving the whales, don't care much about the babies being killed everyday in abortion. Sometimes our vision can be so distorded that we don't stop and think about what really matters most.

Tammy's Party

Saturday we celebrated Tammy's 29th birthday. I'm gonna throw her a big one next year for her 30th! Hee, hee.... My birthday is next month. I can't believe I'll be 27. Wow! I couldn't fathom ever turning 18 and now in 3 years I'll be 30! I made a promise to a friend when I was 16 that I would never turn into the frumpy housewife. That I would do whatever it took to stay looking nice. I've really tried to live by that. :) Anyhow, Tammy's friend Lola was there and Tammy's husband Geoff. Plus her kids and my family and my parents. We put out a slip and slide and the kids played out there most of the time. We love parties! Who doesn't? If Tammy doesn't like this pic, we can't help it. She'll never pose for one so this is the best we could get.

Charles' Band

This is a couple of pics of the band my husband plays drums in. It is a Christian band of course. Charles has been playing drums since he was a kid! He plays drums during the church also but he really enjoys playing in his band because he can play all kinds of fun stuff! :) The church just got an electronic drum set and I love it because I can hear all the detail in his drum playing. I didn't realize he could do all that. I love it!

My Thoughts

Charles is so good to me because whenever I want to get out, he always supports me and is willing to stay with the kids so I can have fun. He rarely gives me a hard time about. I don't really care about getting a break from the kids. That's not it actually. I just can't bring kids to some places I go to. The last couple of days have been busy. Friday night I spent the night at my mom's house so I could wake up early and do a yard sale. I got up around 6am and set it up. Stopped at 10am because it was getting too hot. Then had a birthday party for my sister. Then we attended The Extreme at my church so I could see my husband play drums in his band. Last night I attended a real beautiful bridal shower. Lots of fun! I also had to get a playpen for Ivy because she is crawling now and is going all over the place. So now she is in one right now playing with her little doll house. I'm trying to read up here and there about Aspergers so I can understand it for Chaz. It's not like he's extreme Aspergers, thank goodness, but it's good to have knowledge in what he does deal with. I don't have a lot of time though between taking care of the kids, making food, cleaning, doing ministries, attending special events, and being a good wife in these different times. Nowadays, people believe in both people working, kids in daycare, and husband and wife splitting the chores. It takes a lot more to live a Godly life than it does to follow the world's ways. But, God strengthens us and helps us everyday. Thank God for the Bible that gives us instructions on living. Otherwise, I would fall in those traps also. I've learned that it is better to live with less, than live with more and not be home to enjoy it with my children. Plus I did not want others putting their "moral values" in my kids heads. I wanted to be the one to raise them. You will always receive opposition from people so don't be discouraged. That means you are doing something right. ;)

Swimming at Tammy's

Tuesday night my kids and I went swimming at Tammy's place. It was so hot the whole day! My kids and I headed to Target to buy some floaties and when I got there, they didn't have any! They had every other swimming thing you could possible buy, but no floaties. Weird. So I loaded them back up in the van and headed to Fry's and found some there. It was still clear skies and in the 100's. So when I finally got back to Tammy's house, and we got in the pool, dark skies came in. It was windy, dark, but we kept swimming anyway. After a couple of hours I headed back home and Charles so kindly offered to put them to bed so I could go back and hang out with Tammy myself. It was great! With my boys, I always put on a lifeguard certified vest and floaties so I don't have to be so nervous. It's great to have those kinds of vests because it's the only kind allowed in the big water parks or at the YMCA.

Helpful Articles

I was reading about Autism and ADHD and I ran across a great article about how to handle discipling an ADHD child. It was very helpful and I agree with most of the views. I was surprised to come across a site that agreed with spanking. Very rare indeed.

Click here to to read article.

Here is another great article I ran into that explains the difference between high functioning Autism and Asperger's Syndrome. Chaz has Asperger's Syndrome. Since I'm new to it, this helps me explain it a little better.

The difference between high funtioning Autism and Asperger's Syndrome

Trip to the Circus

Click here to view Circus photos

*Note* You do not have to sign in to view photos. Just click on picture.



Last night we headed to the circus and had a wonderful night. When we first got there, there was a little carnival in the front so we let the kids pick one ride they wanted. Ryan wanted to ride the ponies and Chaz and Kyle wanted to jump on the bouncy thing. We went to the little petting zoo area and Kyle was scared of the goats...

Well, Ivy started getting upset because she was in her stroller and she wanted to pet them. So I let her out and at one point the goat tried to eat her clothes. Ivy kept grabbing their noses and laughing. Then we checked out the elephants close up before coming inside. Once inside, I was worried that Ivy would get scared of all the loud noises but she was the one laughing the loudest! She started shaking with excitement and squealing when she saw the ponies running around. We could barely hold on to her. She had so much fun and the boys loved it too. I was so nervous most of the time because they had no safety nets until the very end on one trick. We had a blast and so did the kids. It was great! I created a picture album but I'm sorry I couldn't get much pictures inside the circus. They don't allow it so I only sneaked a couple with no flash. I wouldn't want to be responsible for someone falling and dying because I put a flash in their eyes as soon as they're doing a stunt. :P Charles and I were on edge watching all the crazy stunts. I don't know what I'd do if that was one of my kids. When Chaz was heading home he said to us, "When I get home, just watch, I'm gonna do something cool on the bed"! Charles and I said, "No Chaz! They are professionals"! Yikes!

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was wonderful! I woke up with Ivy wanting a bottle. I didn't know that Charles had already gotten up to get her one so I could rest. So, I got up to prop it back up for her and I was so tired, I headed back to bed. Charles followed me out and told me to turn around. So I did and I saw the big flowers on the table and chocolate. I couldn't believe I had walked right past it. They were beautiful!!...

Then we headed to church and heard an excellent sermon dedicated to mothers. Afterwards I went up and told him about something I had read in the paper. Only 10% of women in America have 4 or more children! That's down from 37% in 1974! I couldn't believe it! I felt pretty proud to be in that 10%....

After church we headed to a restaurant and then to visit with Charles' family. We had a great time and then did the best thing we could've done on Mothers day. Headed back to church for the evening service! Charles really made my day special, going out of his way to take care of things even more. He always helps me out but he went the extra mile for me. It was a great Mother's Day. Thank you Charles.

"I Don't Want to Go to School!"

Chaz and Ryan (You can tell which one is sick here).

I was eating with Ryan at the dinner table and we were talking about his upcoming school year. I was telling him all the exciting things about Kindergarten. He looked kind of down about it and I was surprised. I said, "Don't you want to learn your ABC's?" He said, "No". I was surprised. He said, "That's okay, I just want to stay with Chaz." I told him that was so sweet. I told him that Chaz is going to go to school also and that he'll be learning too. He said, "Oh Okay, I just want to be with him. I love Chaz." I've tried to tell Ryan that Chaz will be going to a different school. I wish I could just drive them both to the same school everyday, but the school advised against it. Plus, I'm not even in district so only Chaz can go there because there are only two schools that offers the class he needs. Chaz will get a bus that comes right to my front door. If I ever am not there when the bus shows up, then they automatically call CPS! I can't believe that! I've never missed my son from picking him up at the bus stop but I guess it's even stricter on a special needs bus. Charles' little cousin that has Epilepsy/ADHD had that happen to his mom. Kim wasn't there on time and they called CPS. I'm going to have to get a cell phone so that if any of the schools call me, they can get in touch with me. I can't believe I'm only gonna have two kids at home! It'll be such a breeze with the younger two, I'll get so much stuff done. I'll still miss my boys though. I want to be there for every event, every field trip, every baseball game, every band concert, every PTA meeting. I don't want to miss one minute of my boys' life. I hardly want to blink because before I know it, they'll be 18.

Happy Birthday, Tammy!

Happy Birthday to my older sister Tammy! Her birthday was on Mother's Day! I am the youngest of 3 and she is only 2 years older than me. I can't wait to celebrate your birthday with you next week!

Happy Mother's Day to All Mothers

Virginia's mom holding newborn Ivy, other pic Charles' mom holding 8 month old Ivy.

So much goes into being a mother, mother's are definitely special. Being a mom is such a sacrifice as many times they will set aside their own wants in order to meet the needs of their children. Though at times it can also be heartbreaking, in my eyes, there is nothing more satisfying than this. No amount of money could replace that because "Motherhood" is priceless. I thank God everyday that He allowed me the gift of being a mother. Happy Mother's day on Sunday!

This is for the mothers who have sat up all night with
sick toddlers in their arms, wiping up barf laced with
Oscar Mayer wieners and cherry Kool-Aid saying, "It's
okay honey, Mommy's here."

Who have sat in rocking chairs for hours on end
soothing crying babies who can't be comforted.

This is for all the mothers who show up at work with
spit-up in their hair and milk stains on their blouses
and diapers in their purse.
For all the mothers who run carpools and make cookies
and sew Halloween costumes. And all the mothers who
DON'T.

This is for the mothers who gave birth to babies
they'll never see. And the mothers who took those
babies and gave them homes.

This is for the mothers whose priceless art
collections are hanging on their refrigerator doors.
And for all the mothers who froze their buns on metal
bleachers at football or soccer games instead of
watching from the warmth of their cars, so that when
their kids asked, "Did you see me, Mom?" they could
say, "Of course, I wouldn't have missed it for the
world," and mean it.

This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in
the grocery store and swat them in despair when they
stomp their feet and scream for ice cream before
dinner. And for all the mothers who count to ten
instead, but realize how child abuse happens.

This is for all the mothers who sat down with their
children and explained all about making babies. And
for all the mothers who wanted to, but just
couldn't find the words.

This is for all the mothers who go hungry, so their
children can eat. For all the mothers who read
"Goodnight, Moon" twice a night for a year. And then
read it again. "Just one more time."

This is for all the mothers who taught their children
to tie their shoelaces before they started school.
And for all the mothers who opted for Velcro instead.

This is for all the mothers who teach their sons to
cook and their daughters to sink a jump shot.

This is for every mother whose head turns
automatically when a little voice calls "Mom?" in a
crowd, even though they know their own offspring are
at home -- or even away at college.

This is for all the mothers who sent their kids to
school with stomach aches assuring them they'd be just
FINE once they got there, only to get calls from the
school nurse an hour later asking them to please pick
them up. Right away.

This is for mothers whose children have gone astray,
who can't find the words to reach them.

This is for all the step-mothers who raised another
woman's child or children, and gave their time,
attention, and love... sometimes totally
unappreciated!

For all the mothers who bite their lips until they
bleed when their 14-year-olds dye their hair green.

For all the mothers of the victims of recent school
shootings, and the mothers of those who did the
shooting.

For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who
sat in front of their TVs in horror, hugging their
child who just came home from school, safely.

This is for all the mothers who taught their children
to be peaceful, and now pray they come home safely
from a war.

What makes a good Mother anyway? Is it patience?
Compassion? Broad hips?
The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and sew a
button on a shirt, all at the same time? Or is it in
her heart? Is it the ache you feel when you watch your
son or daughter disappear down the street, walking to
school alone for the very first time? The jolt that
takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib at 2
A.M. to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby?
The panic, years later, that comes again at 2 A.M.
when you just want to hear their key in the door and
know they are safe again in your home? Or the need to
flee from wherever you are and hug your child when you
hear news of a fire, a car accident, a child dying?

The emotions of motherhood are universal and so our
thoughts are for young mothers stumbling through
diaper changes and sleep deprivation...
And mature mothers learning to let go.

For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers.

Single mothers and married mothers.

Mothers with money, mothers without.

This is for you all.
For all of us.
Hang in there.

In the end we can only do the best we can.
Tell them every day that we love them.
And pray faithfully for them.

Ivy Joy

This is such a cute pic I had to post it. I bought some hairbands for Ivy so I can TRY to do her hair. She doesn't have much and she only has enough to barely do pigtails. She doesn't have enough for a ponytail. I think she's starting to like getting pictures now. She's getting used to it! LOL!

Aunt Melanie's Old Dollhouse

Aunt Melanie, it's time for you to buy Ivy some little dolls to go with the playhouse you passed down! I knew it was time to get her some when she was using her brother's cars to play in it. Hee, hee....

24 hour bug

Yesterday Chaz had a fever around 102 for most of the day. I was worried being that he didn't have any other symptoms. Most the day he was just lying around and falling asleep a lot. That is so not like Chaz! Finally around the evening I gave him a tepid bath, and even that to him was so cold since he was so hot. Finally around 11pm he threw up. So, I knew he would be okay the next day and probably just had the 24 hour bug. Sure enough when he woke up in the morning, he said he was hungry and was excited being that today is Friday. That means it's game day on the X-box. This is a sweet pic because Ryan always cares for people when they are sad or not feeling good. He reached over and put his arms around Chaz to comfort him.

Three Generation

I love this picture! I don't have many of me with my dad. Ivy gets lots of pics! I had forgotten we got this one together. Three generation picture. My dad's mother was named Ivy. She died when she was 22 so he really wanted a granddaughter with that name so hence you have Ivy Joy.

School Playground

This is a Chaz's school. I came here a lot for the testings for Chaz. So the kids played a lot on the playgrounds. Ryan and Kyle loved coming. Yesterday Charles and I got to go into a classroom to see some of the kid's science fair. It was so cute!!! It reminded me of being in school and being so proud of my project. It brought back a lot of memories. They all wanted to talk about their projects and we would congratulate them on a job well done. They would beam they were so proud. How cute!

Bird Prank

Ivy loves Hank. She is so sweet with him and loves to play with him. I wish that I could have a dog but I can't right now. I'm thinking of buying some parakeets that Chaz could feed. I miss the sounds of Parakeets in my house. I used to always have some. One time Charles woke me up because he thought there was a burgler in the house. We kept hearing the tall blinds being moved back and forth. I was so confused from being woke from a very deep sleep. I couldn't disconnect the computer from the phone line and then I could hardly dial 911. I was so tired I couldn't think straight. Charles was standing at the bedroom door with a bat since at the time we didn't have a gun. About 5 cops came and we all saw where the noise was coming from. The bird had escaped and was running through the blinds back and forth. LOL! The police guys tried not to laugh and took off. It was a funny experience.

Finally Moving Forward (for Chaz)

Well, we had the final meeting with everyone for Chaz. They confirmed Chaz's Aspergers syndrome and explained why he struggles so badly in a regular classroom setting. He will be attending at a certain school that is a ways from me but will have transportation right to my door. Ryan will be attending the school close by. So, for at least a little while they will be in different schools until we move. They told me that at home I have to create a "visual" schedule for Chaz because he has a hard time with transition. This will help him to prepare with what comes next. That'll take me a little bit to work on since I'm not much of a schedule person. I love to be spontaneous and have always detested schedules but I have to do it for Chaz! That'll be interesting. That also means that I can't always be running errands and such because you have to drop everything and just pick up and leave. I'm used to doing it but it can be exhausting because they are all still so little. Even when I come back from my Homemakers Club, I usually have to take a nap when I get back home. Yesterday, Charles took part of the day off because we had to go to that meeting for Chaz. Chaz will be on an IEP Plan. (Individualized Education Plan). He will be in a certain classroom that will work with Chaz's needs. There will be about 6 adults in each room that could focus on a smaller classroom. Chaz will repeat Kindergarten because he hasn't learned anything the entire year. Basically, the same problems would repeat next year if I just put him into a regular classroom. When Chaz did the testing with all the people individually, they said he worked really well. We knew it was because he didn't have all the stimulation going on around him. He had personal attention and not all the distractions. He will also have speech therapy. I am glad that I've finally worked this out. It's been a lot of testing and hard work and appointments. But it is worth it. Now he can finally learn and go forward.

Friend's Vacation

My best friend Brianne is on vacation this week in Mexico by the beach. She's staying in a cabin that's right by the shoreline. Very beautiful place. She meant to take me along but there wasn't enough room in her trunk.

Happy Birthday, Melanie!

My sister, Melanie
Through good times and rough
We will come through
Situations have been tough
You know I love you
I am always here
I just wanted the best
To my heart you're near
In my eyes
No one is worth
Winning your heart
On this entire earth
Please just know
We'll always love you
And just wanted to say
Happy Birthday...to you.


Love,
your sister-in-law
Virginia

Once Upon a Time...

Isn't this picture so cute? Charles and I had it made when we were newly married before we had any children. I will have to scan more stuff from our newly wed year. In the one year before I got pregnant, we had hiked the Grand canyon, swam in the Havasupai Falls (spelling?), taken a helicopter out of the canyon, went to Las Vegas (gamble free), went to Utah and flew down zip lines, rode horses, 4 wheelin, went shooting, Rock climbed, and cliff repelled. We also went to Disneyland and Universal Studios. We did all kinds of stuff. So, we haven't gone on a vacation for 5 years. So, instead we took a break while bringing 4 children in the world within 5 years. Now, we're ready to make vacation plans again. Such a fun and exciting life. What's more exciting than bring little blessings from God into the world? Certainly no money could replace that satisfaction.

Chaz's Update

Yesterday Chaz had his final test with the school to see where he is at. Tomorrow we meet with all the people that gave the test. The teacher, the psychiatrist, social worker, speech therapist, and academics. The test he had yesterday was with the speech therapist. He failed in the social arena. She said he does everything that is very typical of an Asperger kid. That was reassuring to get a second opinion. She's not the only one. I've had others.

The first diagnosis came from a psychologist. (Different from a psychiatrist). Basically, Aspergers is "Autistic like qualities but with developed speech". It's basically all in the social arena. He doesn't survive in a normal classroom setting. It's so much harder for Chaz to be put in there and he basically will withdraw himself mentally. This is why he's been to 3 schools in one Kindergarten year. All 3 couldn't teach him because regular classrooms are not equipped for that. There is only 1 teacher to a large size group. So, I am finding out that though I have fought to keep him out of a special needs classroom, he has needed teachers that can work with him. This is not such a bad thing as I thought. I guess times have changed. Now, they try to graduate you out of a special needs classroom into a regular classroom. Once you do successfully, they drop the special needs off of your school record. As if it was never there.

Chaz will have to take Kindergarten again next year but I was planning on doing that anyway because of Dr. Dobson's suggestion about boys. (Bringing Up Boys by James Dobson). He also has a video of it too. It's a great video our pastor showed in church. When I spoke of my concerns to one of the workers about Chaz being put in a special needs class. The guy said, "Who cares? Who cares what people say. Chaz needs help to learn and be successful. You have to do what is best for him". In fact, if I put Chaz in another regular classroom next year, he would be in the same boat. So, I pray that tomorrow at the meeting, all the kinks will be worked out. That good decisions will be made and we can move forward. If anyone knows of a good school I can place Chaz in around the Tempe/Phoenix area, I would love to get the name of it. Once our house is done being built, I will need a school out there. Take care and God bless! :)

The Duggar Family

Click here to view The Duggar Family Photo Gallery

Charles and I absolutely admire the Duggar Family who have 16 children. Obviously you can see it on my links to their website. The link I gave you of the photo gallery shows them in the old house but actually they just moved into the 7000 sq foot house that they just built. Absolutely beautiful.

View video of Duggar family in new house

This family is inspiring to me and I like to get ideas from them on raising children because obviously they are successful. I've learned to take advice from people who have good results and ignore those who have none or just have a baby and haven't been there yet. This is a great family who set a wonderful example of families from the bible.

Revival in the Nursery

This week was conference week at our church and all the pastor's of our baby churches came out. So, we had revival in the nursery! When I had nursery Wednesday night, 80% of the babies were crying because it was a new place for them. By Friday, when I had nursery, they had considerably calmed down since they were getting used to the place. I was expecting it to be a lot harder because of what people told me. But it must be hard for people that are not used to dealing with little ones all day. Maybe I should just stay in the baby mode and not wait forever to have another one. It seems to me that after too long, people get adjusted to their lives and then they end up not wanting anymore. The interesting part of it is that God designed us without the birth control pill in our hand, but since the world considers kids to be an inconvenience, they had to make one. I trust God more than man. By far. I used to think Catholics were wrong about their ban on the birth control pill but once I researched the pill and found out it was another form of abortion, I instantly cut it off. Man, I ruined it! Once I knew the truth, I could not with a clear conscience take it. Therefore, if you like the pill, don't read what it really does. I won't even talk about the IUD because that is even sicker. I shutter to think what it does. I can't believe that is even legal. But if abortion is then I'm not surprised. But as Christians, God holds us to a higher standard. If you would like to know more about what birth control really does,

Contraceptive Pills Abortifacient

will give you more information. Beware. Don't read unless you want to know the truth. Don't let anyone make you feel ashamed for having children. My pastor once told me that if you really get down to the root of it, the number one reason is because of money. The love of money. Then I realized, as an American, I am truly spoiled and have an abundance compared to so many in other nations. I have found that God takes care of His people. God has always blessed my family and met the need. With each child we had, our finances grew. The bible still holds it's promises even today.

"Your wife shall be like a fruiful vine in the very heart of your house, your children like olive plants all around your table." Psalm 128:3

"For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows ver well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth" Psalm 139:13-16

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward." Psalm 127:3

"Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate." Psalm 127:4-5

Helpful Quote

I got this quote out of my bible. I was reading today and noticed that I had marked next to the note in my Bible how much it had helped me in 2002.

"People before things,
people before projects;
family before friends;
husband before children;
husband before parents;
tithe before wants;
Bible before opinions;
Jesus before all."

-Jo Ann Leavell

I went to a seminar once where they talked about priorities. It helped me tremendously and I still live by them today.

1. God
2. Husband
3. Children
4. House
5. Entertainment

That means that if I have not lived that day according to those priorities, in that order, entertainment should come dead last. God does not promise us entertainment. Nor does He promise to meet our wants. He said that He promises to meet our needs. This list of priorities is so easy to remember, yet has brought me through a lot of days when I was feeling self pity. But remember, God blesses those who are faithful and will give us joy even in our daily tasks. Life is so rewarding when we put God first in our lives.

Read Proverbs 31 on what the Bible calls a Godly women. It would blow our minds in this day and age! Even if the world doesn't appreciate a Godly women, our crown is in Heaven.

Tragedies of Sin

Those in my area know about a police officer recently killed by a drunk driver. The sad thing was, he had devoted his life to taking the drunks of the street and yet he was killed by one. His new wife, Brigitte, is devastated. I didn't know that she is my friend's sister-in-law. So my friend Tricia wasn't there at my homemakers group today. It was sad seeing the police officers at Scottsdale Bible today. What's sad is that Brigitte waited for a good man to marry and had prayed about it for a long time. She just married Rob a few months ago and they were just talking about starting a family. Brigitte was babysitting my friend Tricia's son when it happened and she is so devastated. Brigitte is sad because she didn't get to say goodbye on the morning he went to work and he died the next morning in surgery. Poor Brigitte. It breaks my heart. It's so sad to see the tragedies of sin. God brings this on no one. This is the effects of sin. If only people could see that God only wants to spare us from the consequences of sin. Instead, people only see a bunch of "rules". Because of sin, you see the effects of it all around the world. Thank God Rob is where there is no more tears and no more pain. He had given his life to Jesus Christ. I thank God I was delivered from drinking when I prayed 10 years ago. My life was headed down a dark path before I gave my life to Christ. I know that when I die someday, I will spend eternity in Heaven. I can sleep with a clean conscience.

"Where'd They Go?" Video

Here is a funny video I have of Ivy on the American Baby website. You can just view it or vote for it if you like. I just put it on there so I could show you guys and it was a cute video. In the short clip, Ivy can't figure out why she can't see the bunny ears I put on her head. It's funny to watch.

Click here to view "Where'd They Go?" video

"Definition of Evangelism"

"He said to them, Go into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature". Mark 16:15

"My main business is the saving of souls. This one thing I do."
-Charles Spurgeon

Just to make sure no one thinks I'm a harsh girl. ;) I just want to clarify something. I am not against church programs or softball teams and all. Although Starbucks in a foyer is going too far! I mean that when our focus is on these things and we ignore what evangelism truly is. The truth is, if someone didn't follow God's commandment of evangelism, I would not be married to Charles. My brother-in-law (who is now pastoring in South Africa) was going on one of his many outreaches, outside the church of course, and was telling people about Jesus. He knocked on Charles' door and Charles came to church to hear more. He accepted Jesus into his heart. Now, if we think programs is what's going to draw people into church, that would've never attracted Charles. In fact, he didn't care about programs! If Dan had not gone door to door and shared the gospel, Charles would've never came into church to hear and then accept Jesus Christ into his heart. Charles is so thankful that someone had the guts to go outside of the 4 walls of the church to share Jesus to someone that would've never come otherwise. That's the definition of Evangelism. As Christians, we are to be Jesus' disciples. Jesus' commandment was "Go into ALL THE WORLD and preach the gospel to every creature". He wasn't talking about programs. He was talking about going outside the 4 walls and sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. The more money we spend on programs, the less money spent on world evangelism. Let's not forget what evangelism truly is. I am so grateful that someone had the guts to witness to my dad and show him the destruction of sin, so that my dad was delivered from drugs and drinking. If it weren't for those people, he nor I, would be here today.

101 Church Programs

This week is conference week at our church and something the pastor said shocked me. He said that studies show that on average, most churches only use 2% of money given to them towards world evangelism. Basically, anything that goes past the 4 walls of their church. Most of the money goes into programs, maintenance of the beautiful church, and landscaping, and some even into having baseball diamonds and basketball courts. My gosh!!! Whatever happened to Jesus' commandment of "Going into all the world and preaching the gospel to every creature"? How can that happen when only 2% of the money goes into something outside the 4 walls of the church? What happened to saving of souls? Most places have program after program after program. Instead of people witnessing, they tell others how many programs their church has. Could you imagine if we were standing before God and God asks, "Did you tell others the gospel of Jesus Christ and how he died on the cross to save their soul from hell"? Then you say, "No, but I sure excited them about our cross-stitching group!" Sometimes I see these mega churches and they've only sent out one church. Why is is that our church only holds 200 something people and couples are sent out to start churches (whether in states or overseas) every year? Amazing! If we want to see souls saved, it cannot be achieved through inviting people to our scrapbooking group, but by going into all the world and preaching the gospel to every creature.

Walk Out

Early protesters in the bible. Israelites with bottled water complaining to Moses.


I sure wasn't affected by the walk out and it turns out that it didn't impact much of a lot of places. Only in certain areas. Why would kids walk out of school? The only thing they achieved that day was getting behind in their school work. What amazes me even more is that they don't understand where we're coming from. No one ever said that we don't welcome anyone from other countries that want to live here. We simply ask that you do it legally. So, why the walkout? What was accomplished? Nothing. It is such a simple issue turned into demonstrations that only make their case look worse. When it is done legally, I am happy to say, "Welcome to America".