A year ago.

A year sure can blow by in a hurry.
Looking back at past photos, I realized I took these pictures exactly a year ago.
My babies are growing too fast.



Such sweet memories I have being able to spend so much time with my children.
While there are days I seriously want to break out the duct tape,
most of the time, I cherish the time spent with the kids.





I hope they grow up seeing the value of being there for one another...
even when times are a challenge and frustrations peak.
We are tightly knit.
In years to come, I hope our children see their siblings as a precious resource.
That they will be able to lean on one another for support and enjoy each others
company in friendship.





I hope someday, they look back and smile at the memories we made together.

Six

How is it possible my baby is 6? I still have a hard time believing it, and it's almost been a week since her birthday.

Yes, I'm sure my disbelief will be a common theme with all my kids' birthday posts. It just goes by so fast!



For me, age 6 is sort of a "coming of age" year... I remember a lot from when I was six.

As a parent, I am realizing how Lauralyn is a person, with her own thoughts and ideas, tastes and preferences, traits and quirks. This sounds silly, but with younger kids you forget that some day (soon) they will be adults and have their own life. I am so much a part of their life when they are little, it's hard to separate them from myself... I see them as extensions of me, rather than their own being. Does this make any sense at all to you other moms?

And with Lauralyn, she looks so similar to my childhood pictures, I must remember she is not at all a mini-me. She is totally different, and thank God for that! Her uniqueness is a gift and I look forward to see how God uses her specific traits and talents.



Currently, Lauralyn LOVES the Littlest Pet Shop toys... which I would have probably loved too if they were around when I was a kid. She jumps at any opportunity to make a craft, and has been making love notes for Noah and I, and placing them on our pillows. One set of love notes even had a few coins taped on the inside... maybe a tip for our services as parents. :-)



Lauralyn is the big sister of the family, and she is well suited for this role. She cares for Daniel so well, that he actually prefers Lauralyn to get him in pajamas at night. When I am busy around the house, or leave the kids with a sitter, I simply tell Daniel to go sit in his big sissy's lap. She hold him tight, and is the perfect little assistant mama.

I love taking Lauralyn to the store with me. She is a great shopping partner. The other day while in Walmart, we were discussing how we both wish we had an itty bitty baby to love on... she said, "I want a baby girl, though, not a boy." When I asked her why, she said, "Because a baby girl won't pee in my face." HA! That wasn't answer I was anticipating, but a logical answer none the less.



We are trying to scale down birthday celebrations to make them more about building relationships than inviting the masses. Lauralyn wanted to do a "craft party" this year, so thanks to the clearance aisle, I bought canvas shoes and visors, and broke out the good ol' puffy paint. It was a little messy, but I think the girls had fun.

I went old school with the treat bags, too, and had them decorate a brown paper bag. Classic.



Since there were only 6 little girls total, I went to the Fancy Pastry that morning and bought a half dozen of their beautiful rose cupcakes. That way each girl got their own flower. ;-)



Six little girls for the afternoon is a breeze! They play so nicely I didn't hardly have to do anything except serve the cupcakes and help with the puffy paint. Such a fun, sweet time.

Happy 6th Birthday, Lauralyn! I hope this year is filled with making sweet memories!

Introducing: "Racketsaurus"

She is big. She is beautiful. She is an incredible, unexpected, undeserved blessing.

And she has been dubbed, "Racketsaurus" courtesy of Kristin. It is a fitting name considering all the racket that will be taking place within the interior.



God has blessed us with a new-to-us passenger van (and honestly, it has so few miles it is like new).

A gift that has left us speechless. Flabbergasted. Awestruck.

------------------------

Thank you Dad, for this amazing gift. Your support in our endeavors is truly heartfelt, and it means the world to us. All the time, energy and money that went into providing this amazing van... honestly, it has simply left us dumbfounded. We are so excited to no longer be limited by the size of our vehicle, and expect many years of use from the awesome "Racketsaurus."

Bathing Beauties

I was mad.

Pee on the floor (and not from the 2 year old).

Something else made me madder (I can't remember what).

So I grabbed my camera, and forced myself to smile.

I mean, with these bathing beauties cheesing it up for me... how could I stay mad?

Mama's Hands

Mama's hands are not graceful or beautiful.

They do not have long nails adorned with a fresh coat of polish.

Mama's hands are cracked, and bleeding. Tired and sore.

Rough, dry, weathered... with tattered cuticles and trimmed short nails.

Thick skinned and worn.

Scarred.

However, they teach, correct, wash, clean, scrub, steer, cook, tickle, type and best of all, hold tight the ones I love.

One phone call.

One phone call, and a response of, "yes."

That's all it took for my life to change two months ago.

Now I look at my desk, littered with a Guardian ad Litem business card, social worker phone numbers scribbled on a paper, a less than satisfactory Weekly Progress Report (which reminds me to set up a face to face with a teacher), and a barely read school library copy of a Goosebumps book (which I confiscated based on lack of educational or reading value...total drivel). And a charming boy who smiles and laughs, and I can't help but smile too.


Across town, a sweet friend, who has waited and waited and WAITED to hold a new born baby again... holds TWO tiny baby boys.

All it took was a phone call, and the response, "yes!" And in this case, months of waiting and patience, and God's gracious timing.

My dear sister-in-law and her husband sit and wait. Wait for that special phone call... the call that tells them a child is in need. The call that will fill their arms with wiggles and giggles and love.

The phone will ring, and they will say, "yes."

And their lives will forever be changed.

Dear Husband,

There are days, I admit, that I feel quite alone in my efforts of keeping house and child rearing/educating (note: just because I FEEL that way doesn't make it true). And I apologize for my pity party attitude that flares up on occasion. I suppose being stuck at home due to snow and ice make the 10-11 hours you are gone feel much longer. And the 2 hours you help in the evenings simply don't feel like much.

However, the fact that you are persistent and dedicated to provide for us, and the fact that you do indeed help me when you come home from a long day at work-- doing dishes, disciplining children, cleaning ... this is a gift many women do not know.

And I confess, I may have rolled my eyes at the thought of 5 children stressing you out... mostly because the 5 children are primarily under my care. However, I do not face the stress of the work place, office politics, software updates that cause problems, important deadlines, a boss to please, employees to manage, or the desire to have additional responsibility in order to provide even more for your family. You have taken on the sole responsibility to meet our needs, and I do not give you enough credit or thanks for this challenging task.

I am realizing that my strong faith in God's provision for all our needs is a direct reflection of how well you have provided for our family. I understand ultimately God is our provider, but He has used you as an instrument to provide for me and the children.

HE gives us strength for tomorrow, and for all the days to come. Even when we both are so tired we fall asleep in random places at 8:00 in the evening. I wouldn't trade our "crazy" lives for anything... yearly vacations to St. John, new cars, horses... but with our life, even though the chaos is certain, the blessings are also assured and abundant. As Pastor Chris spoke of, His grace is never ending. We are merely a conduit... the flow will never end.

So, I suppose we are overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with the endless grace and mercy, overwhelmed by God's goodness, and on occasion, overwhelmed by the noise and chaos 5 children bring.

Thank you for your provision. Thank you for your work ethic. And thank you for your efforts to care for and love your family.

With love and gratitude,
Your Wife

Monday Morning Funny

I haven't written down the funny things my kids say (which is frequent) and I need to get back into recording these gems of comic genius.

This morning, Daniel, upon flushing the toilet after using it:

{waving to the swirling contents} "Bye, bye poopy! I love you!"

Oh, my.

What really had me laughing is that he turned to me and said giggling, "That's funny."

I have a feeling we have a comedian on our hands.

Holiday Highlight Reel.

Thanksgiving: lovely meal, family, dog sat Sammy, a friend's boxer...



















Christmas: 2 lovely meals, presents galore, and more time with family. Oh, and SNOW.















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Boots

Is there anything cuter than a 2 1/2 year old boy in his first pair of real cowboy boots?
Cowboy boots that he happens to love... mostly because now he can be like his big brother?



Hands down, it is the cutest thing I've seen all day.

And Kristin is once again being challenged in the "Cutest Kid" catagory...