Study Day #9

CARDINALS WON LAST NIGHT!!! HAHAHAHAHAHA! It was an awesome game. It was raining too. I hope they won't have to play IN New York because that will be hard for them. They are not used to that type of weather. Oh man. We'll see what happens. Being that I'm still in the study, we were all sitting in row of sofa chairs to watch the game.

Last night I called my husband around 7pm or so to see how he was doing. I can't remember the time exactly. He didn't answer. I thought, Okay, maybe he went somewhere. Then I called every hour after that. Finally it was 11pm and I started to panic. Before I had called him around 7pm, I had just spoken with him and he didn't say he was heading anywhere at all. So I was totally panicking and was sick to my stomach. Maybe one of the kids broke their arm? Got really hurt? BADLY? ((Shudder)) My thoughts when WILD. I called my parents, my friends, his friends. No one heard from him. Mandatory bedtime is at 11pm for me so I just sat up in bed with wide eyes for an hour and a half. I couldn't sleep. Finally I snuck out of my dorm and went to the phone. I called at 12:30am and Charles picked up. I had woken him up. I said, "Are you guys okay?!" He said right after I last talked to him his mom called and said they could come and visit her. I never thought to call his mom because he rarely goes over there. Plus he never stays out late with five kids. Oh man, it took awhile for my heart to stop beating so fast and relax. I just took a deep breath and exhaled. I was able to go right to bed and fall asleep peacefully. Man, oh, man. Talk about being a worry wart.

Tomorrow is my last full day!! The next morning, on Tuesday, my hubby can pick me up. Whoo-hoo! What am I gonna do? I'm gonna go pull the boys out of school, take them to the zoo, go to Chuck-E-Cheese and just celebrate!! I missed them all! :D Today is an easy day so the only thing required out of me is to make it to Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack time. (Man, I feel like I'm in daycare. LOL) The hard days can be very exhausting, you even get woken up in the middle of the night. So on the off days, I sleep while I can. After breakfast this morning I went straight back to bed for 3 long hours. Dreamt that Charles forgot to feed and give my chickens water so they were all dead. I think I woke up crying. Embarrassing. After that I took an hour long shower again and just relished it. :) Today is a good day.

Study Day #8

I'm almost there, I'm almost there, I'm almost there....!

That's what I keep telling myself. Two more days left. This is another tough day. There is no time in between to nap or do much so I got in trouble earlier when I fell asleep in my bed for a quick nap and didn't hear them calling for me. To top it off, my husband tried to get a hold of me so I got reprimanded for that. You are allowed to call out but you are not allowed to receive calls because it would bog down the phone system. I've been trying to hide away a little bit since the "mean lady" is on duty tonight. I talked with one of the head nurses about her and she wanted me to report it. She gave me a piece of paper and asked me to write out a report of everything. The other night when "mean lady" gave me a hard time, I went away crying quietly without her knowing. I then called my husband and told him everything. He talked to me for over an hour just making me feel better. I didn't know that the "mean lady" has been reported other times for her nasty attitude towards people. Why is she still supervisor if she has gotten in so much trouble for it? Are they short of workers? I did notice they are training a lot of people. Anyway, she is on duty again tonight so I'll be keeping my distance. The Cardinals are playing soon so I'll be changing into my jersey to root for them. Plus the guys here are rooting for the other team so it's fun to put on the jersey for kicks. Hee hee... Yeah, I'm bored. I've been losing my appetite and not eating all my food. Good thing, maybe? I don't know. You know, I don't care what diet I might ever get on, you will never get me to eat Fat Free Ranch with my salad. That is just NASTY. Ugh. I told Charles that when I get out of here Tuesday morning, I want to just get outdoors and be together all day long. Like maybe go to the zoo or something. I just can't wait to see the blue sky. :D But hey, no matter what things I go through here, this was a blessing. As the father in the comic of "Calvin and Hobbes" would say "It builds character".

Study Day #7

Okay, boredom is really starting to set in. There are only two computers, two phones, one TV, and one TV for movies. Everything is always on the spanish station or a Spanish movie and usually the same two people are always on the internet. They are supposed to take turns sharing the different things but it's hard for me to speak up since I am only one fo two English speaking people here. So, it's really been tough at times to find anything to do. I found out they have better facilities right next door but when we are a smaller group like this, they keep us in here instead. In the other room they have two seperate large living rooms. One is for spanish and the other is for English. Plus they have way more computers. I've been losing a pound a day because of our healthy eating habits here. That is a plus! Ha ha. I found out the guys are going to be watching a Cardinals game tomorrow. Since they aren't rooting for the Cardinals, I'm purposefully going to wear my Cardinals jersey I brought with me just to tease them. Hee hee.... I love being a stinker. Seriously though, I don't care. But you know... I'm bored!

45 Life Lessons- I had to share! :D

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile. (Well said)
11 . Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness, except you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything. (I live by this. Life is just too short -Virginia)
29 What other people think of you is none of your business. (Good point)
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick Your friends will. Stay in touch.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of whom God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative--dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood. Make it memorable.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone Else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift

Study Day #6

Even though I'm studying something that prevents *headaches*, I have a headache. Probably because I need to be drinking more water with all those blood draws. I've lost 4 lbs with the healthy eating we have here so that is GREAT! Especially being that I'm used to doing Wii Fit everyday and I can't do it here. I can't even exercise. I've been going into my own corner a lot and working on stuff, such as making my girl's hair bows, or working on a puzzle. There is usually movies going on around me in different spots and I generally don't want to see them because a lot of movies are full of filth. It's easy to get away though, other corners to go to with things to do. This is one of the hard days so I'm pretty tired. I reported to them that on the dosing days, I'm pretty itchy. So they woke me up from a much needed nap to get more info from me. Ohhh, I was sleeping so deep and it was my only chance! ARgh. :P One of the workers who (who isn't here everyday) I generally don't like because she tends to talk down to people and when she draws blood, she looks around her and talks to people which makes the needle move while in you. I never like anyone that talk down to others. I don't know, maybe she doesn't know what it's like to be the subject of mocking. Like people who have always had money. They don't understand certain things about people who live paycheck to paycheck. They've just never been there.
I'M SO TIRED! Can't go to sleep till 11:30pm though so I just gotta stay awake. I long to be barefoot or in my socks again. When I go back home on the 13th, we are gonna take our kids out. All of us together and just be together. :D I can't wait.

Why Skipping a Nap Results in Meltdown

The Volcano Effect: Why Skipping a Nap Results in Meltdown
By Elizabeth Pantley, Author of The No-Cry Nap Solution

From the moment your child wakes in the morning he is slowly using up the benefits of the previous night’s sleep. He wakes up totally refreshed, but as the hours pass, little by little, the benefits of his sleep time are used up, and an urge to return to sleep begins to build. When we catch a child at in-between stages and provide naps, we build up his reservoir of sleep-related benefits, allowing him a “fresh start” after each sleep period.

As shown on the sleep chart below, as children age, the length of time that they can stay “happily awake” increases. A newborn can only be awake one or two hours before tiredness sets in, whereas a two year old can last five to seven hours before craving some down time for a nap. When children are pushed beyond their biological awake time span without a break that’s when they be com e fatigued, fussy and unhappy.

Age
“Happily Awake” span of time between naps

Newborn
1 – 2 hours

6 month old
2 – 3 hours

12 month old
3 – 4 hours

18 month old
4 – 6 hours

2 year old
5 – 7 hours

3 year old
6 – 8 hours

4 year old
6 – 12 hours

As the day progresses, and the sleep pressure builds, a child be com es fussier, whinier, and less flexible. He has more crying spells, more tantrums, and less patience. He loses concentration and the ability to learn and retain new information. The scientific term for this process is “homeostatic sleep pressure” or “homeostatic sleep drive” . . . I call it The Volcano Effect. We’ve all seen the effects of this on a baby or child, as it is often as clear as watching a volcano erupt; nearly everyone has observed a fussy child and thought or said, “Someone needs a nap!”

Study Day #5

I got to see my family today!!!!!!

SERIOUSLY! To TOP it off, I was talking to Charles on the phone, greatly missing him. I told him I wish I had bought some craft stuff to do while I was here. Like bows for my daughters. He said he would go to the ribbon store and pick up some for me. My HUSBAND....was willing to go into a fabric store, pick out different colors of ribbons. Yeah. Shocking. A guy. Plus he had my two little girls with him. While he was going back home to await my call, the leader of our study asked us if we all wanted to go outside for a bit. We all perked up and we were real excited. Another lady here was expecting her husband who was gonna drop off some movies for her and pass it to the security guard. Now she had a chance to see him and her twin boys. Just so happens, he showed up while we were outside. I saw Maria hugging and kissing her little boys. She had to do it through a barred area. We weren't just free to go into the parking lot. I was so excited that I might get to see my husband and kids also. So hoping. After awhile I called from a cell and he was at home. He said he was waiting for me to call him before he came by to drop off the stuff. I told him I missed the chance see him. I said we would only be outside for maybe another 10 minutes. Charles hung up the phone, grabbed the kids, and flew down here. The only thing is we had to go inside right after I hung up. My heart was broken. 10 minutes later, the leader, Pete, told me he would take me outside to see my family by myself. I hurried to the door but he led me to the front instead where I could actually be outside. Right then Charles pulled up with the kids. I ran to him and he picked me up. We just hugged and hugged. We were so happy. My kids ran up to me. I even woke Ashley up in her carseat, took her out, and hugged and kissed her over and over. We just all hugged. Oh man. I can't even began to explain the emotion. I've only been gone 4 days but it has felt like eternity. We only had about 10 minutes and then I had to leave because Pete wasn't supposed to let me out front like that and didn't want to get caught. Charles passed me the crafts and some pajamas. We hugged one last time and I went back inside. I waved and waved from behind the glass. Oh, my heart!!! I can't wait to hold them all again. Once I got inside, I went to a table and I opened up the bag of purchases. Oh man. Charles spoiled me. There was so much ribbon, little flowers, butterflies, clips. Everything to make totally beautiful hair bows. More than I asked for. I worked on making them for 3 hours straight I was so happy. Some girls came up and watched. They loved the bows and asked if they could buy them. I said no. :) These were for my little girls. I made about 14 of them and then put it all away. What a wonderful day today has been. So, so, so wonderful.

Study Day #4

Today has been a much better day. It's definitely a tougher day. Every other day is like that. But we're learning to just see the bright side. I got up at 5am, ate at 5:30am. I tried to doze in between when they call us back which is every hour. After four till midnight it's every half hour. So anything you do has to fit in between. It's hard to catch access to one of the two computers so you have to hop on it fast. :D It automatically logs you off every half other though so you lose whatever you're doing. So I type fast. The things going on around me are a Spanish TV station to my right. To my left is a group watching a Spanish movie in a different section. They seem fascinated by horror movies so I stay away from that area. LOL. Not really into that stuff. Weird. We just at a semi-delicious dinner of pork chops, potato, salad, roll, and ice cream. It's 5:30pm but it's our last meal till tomorrow at 8am. Today has been a pretty peaceful day. It's been great communicating with a couple of English speaking people. Earlier some people came in from another study. I found two girls who spoke English and we all had such a good time for a half hour talking. Once they left I went back to wondering around to find something to do. They have some 80's movies sitting around at a separate station. I'm leery of them because I know they have nudity in some of the 80's ones. Shockingly. I just try to read at times or sit quietly in my bunk area. :) I do wish my friend Angela had been accepted so I had someone to talk to at meal times and other times. I call Charles and my kids about 4 times a day just to spend some time talking with them. Right now I'm wearing my plush robe my husband got me for our 10 anniversary and it's so comfortable. I think I'm getting spoiled!

Through Her Eyes

Every time I go and visit Love for Nie, my heart cries to see what a happy healthy family they were. Well, they still are. But... since the accident, they are trying to pull through some serious things. Seeing her talk about her past summer (before air plane accident) in such a way that I never thought of. Her quote: "Dear Summer, We have really enjoyed you so far. My children play all day in your grace and Mr. Nicholas gets to lounge around naked. We practically live on the backyard porch swing, play with the hose, and eat your delicious bounty. Thank you." Some people can say things in such a way that you feel it. You see it through their eyes. I used to be such a writer but I withdrew after criticism from a few people. Afraid to really tell my thoughts, or really what I think at times. It's those select few critics that made me forget how to write so vividly. That's why I love you, Homeschool and Ect., because you write how I used to. :) Maybe someday I can come back to that. That's what makes a blog interesting. Funny. Intriguing.

Study Day #3

Today is a relax day. We do nothing other than wake up, eat 3 meals a day, and totally veg. It's like being in a resort. Tomorrow however will be totally different. I'll be up at 5am. It'll be another tough day like yesterday. Did I tell you I cried a lot yesterday? I missed my kids and my husband. Today I am feeling better. I just kept reminding myself that this is a total blessing. I'm being paid $200 today for doing basically nothing. I took two naps today. I took an hour long shower. Seriously, I didn't want to get out. The lights even went off because it had a sensor after so long and I had to keep throwing something towards it to turn it back on. The food isn't great here because it's in house. They don't cater at this one. I always eat my food though because by next feeding time, I'm so hungry. I never waste it. Today I got to tell someone about Jesus and talk to him for awhile. He really responded. I got to share Jesus with one of the doctors another day too. He really responded also and shared some things with me. It's such a refreshment to my heart because so many people tend to just shut you up right away. I've longed for this for awhile. A response, an open heart. I pretty much keep to myself since none of the other ladies speak English. I feel like a snob but I know they understand. They are all real nice, we just can't communicate. I found out that the reason they really go for these studies is because since they don't have papers, they can't hardly find work. So this is a way of making income for them. A lot of them have little children. I kept my mouth shut that I was one of the people that voted for stricter laws against illegals. Now, talking to them face to face, I hear a lot of their stories. My heart goes out to them. Although I believe in doing everything legal, the right way, I know why they want to come to America. We are such a blessed country. Americans tend to take it for granted, yet we have it so good here. Anyway, I'm on the bottom bunk in the dorms, thank goodness, because I'm afraid to fall off the top. LOL. Plus I have my laptop and I'd be afraid that would fall off. We've all created a way for some privacy by hanging up a blanket. We tuck the top of the blanket under the top bunk mattress and it hangs down covering our sleeping area. It's awesome! :D It's like my little hideout. How cool. Oh! I have to tell you that yesterday Charles brought me my own blanket and pillow from home. He brought me my fluffy winter boots and he left me a thank note for what I am doing. It made me so happy and warmed my heart. He is so thoughtful. I slept so much better once I had my own stuff from home. Plus he brought me better stuff to sleep in that was more comfortable. He wasn't allowed to see me so he had to pass it to the security to give me.

Study Day #2

It's Sunday Morning and I'm missing my kids. Especially my little Ashley Rose and her sweet little gimmicks. I miss you padding over to me in her jammies and motioning to me to hold her in my arms. I miss seeing her in the morning in her crib when she first wakes up smiling at me. So happy to see me. ...And it's only been one morning away. Sniff...

On the bright side! I have to find the positives here. :D I don't have to cook, clean, change diapers, and... I can take long showers. I have a schedule so I can sleep in between, curl my hair, play with my make-up. I can play on the internet, blog, catch up on my friend's blogs, email my friends. I won't be able to snack here so, maybe lose a pound or two. Yeehaw. I don't get to keep up on my daily exercising so I won't be able to do that. Maybe I can walk in circles. Ha ha... No, we are not allowed to exercise. Basically we have to veg. Okay, I can't tell you what I'm studying, but here's a hint. I'm sure I won't get a headache the whole week. It's nothing that's never been used before. On the market all over the world. Just not in U.S. but the U.S. just has to approve it. In fact, a lot of people here used this medicine all growing up. So, nothing dangerous. I would never do it otherwise. I do get a total of... are you sitting down?? I get a total of 103 blood withdraws within 10 days. I wake up at 5am every day and have breakfast at 5:30am. Lights out at 11am. But really, it's no prison here. We have all kinds of stuff to do. A guy next to me is typing on the internet. A guy on the other side of me if watching Sunday Sports. Another group is watching movies, a group of girls behind me are chatting in chairs, some others in their dorms. The problem is there is only one person who speaks English that is a study participant. He's a guy. Being that I'm married, I don't cozy up to other guys so my conversations with him are brief. These studies are much coveted and I beat 80 others to the position since they are only accepting 14 people. I was the 14th one accepted. God has totally cared for us in the last few months. Things have come through. Other studies I have done earning a good amount of money (though much easier than this one) so I can't complain. Just this study alone will pay 2 1/2 of my mortgages so I will actually be ahead. Not bad for my husband who is looking for work still. :D He is doing contract jobs here and there. They are few but we are doing well. God is taking care of us and I am amazed. Something always comes through.

So for breakfast (at 5:30am I should add) we ate eggs, toast, banana, cereal, and milk. Not bad. Some places actually have their food catered so I'm not sure if they do that here. Either way, I eat for free. I don't have to do the dishes. I do however call my husband often because I miss him greatly. He is my best friend and I feel like half of me is missing.

Just a half hour ago I took a loooooooong shower. It was weird. I kept wondering if a kid was gonna knock on the door. Or someone call for help. :) It's like being single again. But it's all the more reminding me that I love having a family and kids. I was very lonely as a single person living in my own apartment. I worked hard for the little money I made. I love having a live in best friend who loves me for who I am. My precious five kids are in my heart and the sparkle in my eye.

Study Day #1

I can't say what I'm studying but I will be here for ten days. It's something that's already on the market and is safe. This is my first night here. We have internet, games, bunks to sleep in. I can only eat what they give me and sleep when they tell me. LOL. I'll be away from my precious babies so that'll be the hardest. So I thought I would keep a log or a "Blog" of my ten days here. It pays $2,200 so it's definitely worth it. Especially with my hubby looking for work right now. The money is helpful. Another hard thing is that I'll be away from church. Away from my husband. :( I have my blogging and I'll have some time to actually read some blogs also and catch up. :) So, I'll blog here everyday so talk about how things are going. (It's like being in Jail but you have more privileges). LOL.

Chick-a-dee

Ohhh, these are my newest set of chicks. I've sold so many chickens the last week, I needed to replenish. This time I bought Black Sex Links and Ameraucanas. I was really excited about the Ameraucanas when they told me they low cholesterol eggs and people will buy the eggs alone from you. The chickens are much wanted and a popular buy. So I am now keeping those ones for myself for breeding and selling. People call their eggs "Easter eggs" because they lay blue or green eggs each time. Pretty cool! I've done so well selling chickens that it has made some nice side money and I'm probably going to expand it. :) I just bought 16 yesterday but I would rather be buying 50 at a time.

Playtime

These are the cutest pics I wanted to share with you. Ashley loves sitting on daddy's lap while he plays guitar and then Ashley with her brothers helmet and sword. So cute. Also one of her playing with a new toy she got for Christmas. :D

Christmas Day

We had our very first real Christmas morning at home where the kids

looked forward to waking up to a surprise in the morning. It was pretty awesome. They didn't even wake up till 8am! LOL. The picture you see of my feet on top of a box, is of Charles putting together the truck for them at 3am Christmas morning. It took us several hours. I'm showing you my view of sipping hot cocoa watching him do all the work. LOL! My sis, Jodee, sent some gifts down from South Africa and the kids loved that. Like the fridge magnets where you can dress the girl in different outfits on the fridge. That is really neat and

cute. Thanks Jodee! I also found out I finally get to be an aunt on my husband's side! I'm can't wait to hold the little one. I absolutely love all my niece and nephews and love being an auntie. :D I hope you had a great CHRISTmas! We got to celebrate Christmas Eve in God's house the night before. A great way to bring in Christmas.

Extreme MEAN Parenting

I was at an appointment today and as I was sitting in the waiting area, I unfortunately got to observe a grandma with her grandchild. This grandma was probably around 45-50 and had her grandson sitting with her while mom was taking care of something. I saw her son reach over to push my daughter's play stroller. He was probably 2 years old. The grandma snatched him up, spanked him, and started calling him a "faggot". All for pushing a stroller. Then he started to cry and she kept calling him a sissy over and over. Then she said she was going to tell daddy what a sissy and faggot he was. Good grief! She just kept yelling, "shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" I couldn't believe my eyes and ears. No one said anything. I think we were all just shocked and staring. I hope his mommy isn't like that with him. I really felt for the little boy.

Christmas Season

For Christmas my hubby got me a long awaited laptop. Since Ivy destroyed my laptop, have greatly missed it. However, I still do not want internet at home and I wait to go on the internet till I am somewhere where they have Wifi. I’d rather just keep it that way. That way I’m not tempted to write constantly because that is what I love to do. :D So I write stuff during the week on my laptop and then transfer it later with the pictures onto my blog when I can use Wifi. Works for me! So much is going on. Such a beautiful and wonderful season. I also just celebrated our 10 anniversary. We love how our anniversary is in December because it’s such a romantic season. I love how much more joyful people are in this season. I know there are the grouch’s out there but sometimes even the grouches lighten up! LOL. That’s the magic of Christmas.

Friend's Bday Party

Yesterday was Ivy’s best friend’s birthday so we headed to McDonald’s and had yummy cake and gave her the cutest little present. I loved collecting Cabbage Patches growing up. In fact, Charles’ mom passed down his to our kids from when Charles was little. J Let me say, those are durable dolls. LOL. Charles tells me stories of what he used to do to his little sister’s dolls. Thankfully my kids take really good care of their toys. I’m serious! They get really upset if something happens to them or if they accidentally break. They have toys that are several years old because they take such good care of them. That’s totally awesome. One time we had a huge collection of GI Joes till a boy came over and tore all the arms and legs off. We had about 30 of the little guys destroyed. Now they don’t make those anymore so I’m bummed we can’t buy them.

Quit Acting Like a Chicken!

Seriously. Well, just being punny. Almost every time I go to my garden, I found now about 6 chickens in it, eating the leaves off my vegetables. There is a gate in between the chicken pen and my garden. So, if I don’t feed them fast enough each day, they just fly over and help themselves to the garden. So, I said, “that’s it” and I went into the house to grab my scissors. Now catching chickens is another thing. They freak out and run. So I have to be slow and sneaky. I had 10 chickens to catch so I could cut their wings. I only cut one side, their flight feathers, so if they try to fly, they’ll go off balance. If I cut both sides, they could just flap their wings harder and sometimes still make it over the fence. So after I cut one side on a chicken, I would gently throw it out in front of me to see how it flew. Yup, they can’t fly. I have really enjoyed raising up chickens and I am thinking about making money from it. I have sold a few to friends. None of mine are mixed either. So, finally I found something that I really enjoy doing make some money from it.

Our Christmas Photo

To my blogging buddies.... I hope you have a Merry CHRISTmas!!!

Ivy Girl

Ivy grows fast! Wow! She is 3 1/2 now. My boys have been loving their new school and I have been really impressed. When Ivy turns five I think I'll start taking turns homeschooling the kids. Especially since I will want another child someday. Hopefully not for another year but I'll welcome any little ones God blesses me with. :) They are all so much fun and make life so much more adventurous. :D

Having Fun in Garden

Wow! My garden is doing well. I'm definitely going to expand it. It's way too small. The tomatoes are way overtaking everything. I use miracle grow on it every few days and I have like 20 tomatoes growing on it. My corn is doing well. Some stuff you can't see yet because I just planted. So I think I'm eventually going to take all that out and take another part of the yard and make a much larger space for a garden. You see my new duck? That's Daffy? The yellow one (turning white). :D Hee hee. Okay, so this week we've been doing a study that we'll get paid for. All we are doing is testing vapor rub for a week and we get almost $700. Awesome huh? Especially before Christmas. :)

Sweet Holy-days!

It has been such a neat month, a closeness together. Since ridding of the extras in our life. My days feel longer, more sweet things, things that matters most, cared for. :) I spend more time with my kids, in my garden, or being more involved in other things. It's been pretty cool. My hubby and I have never spent more time together. Now we really have no excuse to say we don't have enough time to read our bible and pray! LOL. I've been able to read more which has been great. I know I talk about this a lot, but it's meant so much to me that I don't know if I even want my internet back at home. I will be getting my laptop fixed so that when I take the kids to McDonald's once a week, I can hook up to their Wi-fi for an hour while watching them play. :) I just don't want it at home. I'm an information lover. I love to look up everything that I am wondering about. So, if I'm in my garden and I want to learn about something, I head for my computer. Or if I'm with my hens and I need to learn to clip their wings, I go straight for the computer. Or I'm cooking and I decide I'd like to try something new, I go straight for the computer. Argh! I love to learn about things all the time. However, it can get excessive. I'm sure lots of people aren't like that.... but I am. So, I decided to play it old fashion and stop being hooked up to everything. I haven't had a TV for years so that's not an issue. If I did, I'd want to watch information shows! Ha ha! (Like about the Duggar Family, John and Kate Plus 8, Baby Story, Trading Spaces, What not to wear, etc. Basically TLC.) Those shows are all ways of learning about things. So, it's good I don't have a TV at home! At first it was hard because I kept wanting to go look something up on the computer and I'd head for it. Now I just keep a list in my mind and the next time I go to the library, I remember to look it up. :D I hope all my blogging friends are doing awesome and I'm going to sit and look you guys all up soon. I miss you guys too! Merry CHRISTmas!

Library Haven

Getting rid of my internet has been wonderful. I love it! Let me count the ways:

-My house stays clean! (Huuuuge bonus right there)
-I get to visit the library once a week to use their computer. (Plus check out a good book)
-Did I mention that my library has a cafe where I can sip coffee and be on their computer?
-My husband and I play boardgames together now.
-I don't have to reply to emails everyday.
-I tend to look forward to phone calls now when before I felt "chased down".
-I look forward to being more involved in ministry now.
-I can read my bible and pray in the morning rather than feel that pull to check my email first.
-There is no "dangers" that my family could fall into while being on the internet. It's scary what my boys stumbled upon by accident one day while I was right there. By the time I could shut it off, it was too late, their little minds had been violated.

I could go on and on! I don't think I'm going back. "Killing my internet" has been the coolest decision we have made in quite some time.

I'm sitting at the library in their awesome Cafe using the free computer while sipping my morning coffee. My kids love it here because they have kid computers downstairs where they are monitored carefully and I can hang out close by in the toddler play area. My girls can play with toys while my husband checks out books. It's just a great place. :D

"Christmas"!

That's what Ivy said as soon as she saw the first Christmas lights go up. "Christmas"! We will definitely have a smaller Christmas this year but I am so incredibly grateful that we have each other and most importantly our hearts are right with God. Material things are not what matters most, but our Lord Jesus and each other. This year, I really feel the importance of putting souls first. Not "buying, buying, buying". I feel like I am waking up out of a deep slumber. Thinking only of myself and what I can buy next. I pray that my little ones can understand the importance of the real meaning of Christmas and what critical times we are in. There are "hallowed walls" being built made up of false promises, but Christians know better than to be seduced. Hopefully. I think slowly people are waking up to what really counts. Our hearts before God, and family. Careers, money, cars, fame, material things, they all are temporary and it is like feeling a bag with holes in it. It doesn't all really matter. When my kids shout "Christmas", I hope they know it's more than being about "Santa" and "toys". :D

My Internet

You know, I decided to shut off our internet since it seems to be on a lot. So, it has actually been very fun! My hubby and I play board games almost every night, if we are not at church or visiting friends. Yesterday we hung up Christmas lights, put up the tree and decorated the house. It's been great! So any blogging I do or emailing is done at the library. :D Since I love the library, it works out great. We don't have a TV either so we don't waste time on that. I love all the time we having together as a family. And...oh goodness! My house is always clean now! Ha ha! I will share some pictures soon of our fun decorating stuff.

Roomba Driver

Roomba Driver @ Yahoo! Video

How Obama Got Elected... Interviews With Obama Voters

This makes Democrats look really, really, really bad. Whether they admit it or not, they watch too much TV. It's crazy how they bought into all the stuff about Palin but knew nothing about their own candidate. Crazy, crazy.

Changing Schools...Again.

(I like this back shot of Ashley. It just reminds me how little she is.)

You know, there is this academically great schools that I drive my kids to everyday. The teachers are so awesome, as I said, academics are awesome. But... the kids there have a lot of behavior issues. During the time that I homeschooled my kids, my boys were doing chores, helping me cook, didn't have other negative behaviors influencing them. They really made a big turn around. Since I enrolled them back in the school, they went completely backward again. It wasn't right away, just slowly as the months went on. There is excessive bullying on the playground and my boys are getting punched almost daily. Enrolling my kid in another school around me has almost been impossible. I live in an area where the schools are mostly Hispanic. The teachers are really behind just trying to teach the kids the English language. I went looking in my area and happened to find 2 charter schools. I found a small one that's only been opened 1 year. It's brand new. It's small so there is no playground, but it is culturally diverse which is what I like. The other school I found was big and gorgeous. It looked immacullant and I had high reviews from one person. However, when I looked them up on www.greatschools.net, there were so many negative reviews that I had to give that one up. A big complaint was that there is a high turnover rate with the teachers and staff. That is a bad sign. Sigh. So this one school I'm considering is my last option and I'm gonna go look at it today. If it doesn't work out, I will be pulling my boys and homeschooling them again. I really do believe outrageous, bullying, and rebellious behavior that is not dealt with in a classroom or playground only rubs off on other kids. I DON'T like Chaz getting punched everyday and on the bus. I don't like how BADLY their behavior has turned since they attended the school. So something has to be done. I need my boys back. For the sake of me, and for the sake of their little souls. They are in a very moldable stage right now. I'm not gonna wait till their teens to start figuring it out.

Spirit of Antichrist

My dad went into Walgreens yesterday and saw a lady who was crying that was working there. In order to in some way comfort her he asked her if she was okay. He then shared the love of Christ with her. Just told her that Jesus loves her. The next day he had to visit Walgreens again, and happened to run into the same lady. He saw that she was smiling and happy again and talked to her a little as he checked out. He again told her that Jesus loved her and he walked out of the store. Away from the store and about to get in his car, he heard a lady calling after him. She was the manager. She said, "Sir, you are no longer welcome in this store for harassment". My dad said, "for telling her that Jesus loved her?" Angry and without answering she walked back into the store.

Is this what America is coming to? Doesn't it strike you odd that this country was founded upon Christian principles yet you cannot tell someone that Jesus loves them in a public setting? Doesn't it seem odd that you would not get kicked out of a store for dirty language or even from words of hatred spewed at someone? What is so great about America is that we have the freedom to not only express what religion we cherish, but also share it through our rights of Freedom of Speech. That's part of what makes America so beautiful. This is the spirit of the Antichrist. No joke. People who don't think times are changing either have their heads stuck in a TV or are so blinded by Obama's white tooth smile that they don't know up from down spiritually speaking. All they know is America is gonna "change". For the better? That's not what the bible says. We are truly in the last days.

Bows and More Bows!

So detail. I just finished a study group that we were doing for 3 weeks. I would go every Thursday and stay all day for 14 1/2 hours. Torture. That's when my new friend Cynthia and Amie saved the day. They brought their crafts. I have to admit. I've never been crafty. Only in the bad sort of way. Before I became a Christian. Ha ha. While Cynthia did her own crafts, Amie showed me how to make bows. I did a few at home after I went to the Ribbons and Lace shop. I was bummed that I didn't get a chance to visit the store again before going in to my last day of the study. 14 hours? Oh man. I had nothing to do. Once again, Amie saved the day. She brought in her box of ribbons and let me get to work. By the time I was finished, and several hours had passed, I had made quite a few bows. I have a total of

29 bows. I always make them in doubles so Ivy can have pig tails as an option. To top it off, I got the idea from another store to make the headbands for Ashley but leave out the bow. I just wrap a little bit of ribbon around the center and use it to stick one of Ivy's bows into. So they are all interchangeable. So I made a black, white, and pink one. So instead of making 20 headbands for Ashley, I just have 3 base colors. Then I click Ivy's bows on them according to what Ashley is wearing. Such a sweet, sweet idea! So the headbands you see in the picture of of Ivy's bows on them. Then I changed it out and put other bows on them. :D

14 Hours In The Pit

That's my version of my research study I am involved in right now. It's testing a vitamin pill. It's kind of heavy duty for how much we have to put into it. It runs for 3 weeks. I go every Thursday and stay all day for 14 1/2 hours. They basically observe us that day. We take a vitamin pill in the morning. Then I go back once in the morning on Friday and once at night. Repeat next week. So, I've done two weeks worth now and next week I'll be done. Then I get my $900. Yup. $900! Very helpful. I'm in a crowd of VERY diverse people. So lesson 1 was learned today. Don't talk politics. Someone brought it up. They found out I voted McCain and, I'm telling you, it got very heated in there. Most instantly became angry and freaked out seriously bad. It got crazy. I tried to calm them down. (I notice that party tends to be like that at protests and stuff. You ever notice that? The Republicans are politely protesting while the Democrats are screaming, fighting, and getting arrested? Interesting). So, in order to calm the room down, I said, "You know, whether we voted Republican or Democrat, we only know what we've been told about them. We don't know them personally, we haven't sat down and had coffee with them. We hear what media wants us to hear". It didn't help. They believed they knew everything there is ever to know about Obama AND McCain. It was pretty funny. So, thankfully they called us all to breakfast and it broke up the discussion before I got shot! Ha ha. So, my new found friends and I all spent time in a separate room away from the group just to get away but also to have something to do. So my friend was showing me how she makes bows for her daughter. So I made a cute headband for Ashley. We all arrive at 6am and leave a little past 8pm so we have a very, very, very, very, very looooooong day. There is really nothing else to do beside watch movies, read a book, or talk. So here is some pics on some projects us girls were doing. My friend made the cute bows and I made the baby headband. I'm gonna totally go out and buy the ribbon to make the bows for hair. So cute. :)

Fun At Home

I hope these baby chicks I'm raising up for a friend will love their kids! I mean, they have to!

Look at what they go through every day. Riding in a wheelbarrow. Sitting in her kitchen in the playhouse. Being pushed around in the stroller. So, she chicks should be set. I wanted to show you my fountain. I always love looking at it and seeing the little girl bend over to catch the water. So, so, so relaxing. The pic of the side yard with my garden is my favorite I go to several times a day. Do you like my nice weeds right in the center? Aren't they pretty?? Ha ha.. I'm gonna work on that today. They are not in my garden though. They is a gate separating the chickens because otherwise they would dig holes in the garden. Speaking of digging. In the cute pics of Ivy and Ashley, you can see shredded stuff everyone from my dog shredding up her bed like crazy. It's a really nice bed so come winter, if she keeps at it, she'll have no nice warm bed. Ivy is sharing her lollipop with Ashley in these pictures. Do you know why my kids always strip down to their underwear? Because we have so much dirt outside they get really filthy fast. So they figure it's just easier. LOL. As soon as we walked in the door when we arrive home, BAM, they all strip. If I don't want them to, I have to say it right when I get home in case we are going somewhere else. Sheesh!

BTW I'm Voting For Mccain / Palin

Halloween Fun!

Halloween was our usual tradition of taking our kids to Grandma and Granddads house for trick or treating in there area. It's a nice time for the kids to be with them and also a great area for going on such a mission. Getting candy. haha. I don't have the actual pictures of Halloween day because I did not have my camera with me that night. Chaz and Ryan were SWAT, Kyle a firefighter, Ivy a fairy princess, and Ashley a bunny. It was so cute. After that they headed to a party in the church annex for kids where they play lots of games and win prizes. It's always crazy, yet fun, and of course they brought home more Goldfish they won. (They are gonna end up in my friends fish tank since mine never leave past 3 days). In these pics, the kids were having fun all exchanges costumes so the girls look so cute in them.