For All Three Of You Who Read Our Blog.... An Update

Happy 11th Anniversary To Us!

I haven't posted since Christmas time! Yikes! I guess nothing exciting has been happening around here. Well, except Jimmy and I celebrated our anniversary today. No trip to Mexico this year. We hung out at Barnes & Noble in Denver (and I walked out the door empty-handed, which is a miracle in itself) and used our two free coupons to Sweet Tomatoes for a delicious dinner where we had uninterrupted conversation! It was quite a relaxing day.

We're still planning on moving to Louisiana once our house here in Colorado sells. We've had two couples that seemed very interested, but we haven't received any offers yet. In the meantime we're casually looking at acreages in the Baton Rouge area where we could have a small hobby farm. I know it will be a TON of work, but I'm so looking forward to getting all my beef, chicken, turkey, pork, milk, eggs, and vegetables from our own land!

Owen is thriving in the homeschool environment. The only difficulty we're having is I just can't keep up with him. Studies that I've scheduled to take the whole week, Owen is devouring in one day. He loves to learn. Surprisingly one of his favorite things to study is composers! He also loves history.

Eli is full of energy and fun and growing like a weed. He's almost as tall as Owen and very, very fast! I think he's going to be a track star someday. He loves playing Legos with Owen and is learning to build very complex things that he dowloads from the Lego site.

Scout is pure sugar. She is so affectionate and sweet and loves to make new friends. She adores our neighbor Mrs. Mobley and always gives her hugs and kisses after our visits to her home. She also loves to be read to for hours.

Riley is growing like a weed as well - everyone thinks she's six years old, and she's four. She also is very affectionate and loves to cuddle with Mommy and Daddy.

Luke is thriving on his new gluten-free diet. He's been a new child since converting and he's talking up a storm! He gives us lots of laughs with the things he comes up with.

Carson is doing great and loves to taunt Luke. Actually they like to taunt each other. They got in their first "argument" last week while riding in our truck. They were arguing about who was going to ride on Daddy's back when we got home and went hiking. It was quite hilarious.

Jimmy is keeping busy with work, which we're sooooo thankful for. We feel so blessed to have him working from home so much!

I guess that's the update for now. I'll try to post some recent pics of the kids soon!

The Day After....

We had a wonderful Christmas. Jimmy carries out most of our traditions, so all I have to do is buy the kids their presents. It was surprisingly easy this year - each child gets two presents, and I bought them all on the Internet. I try to avoid malls and useless "stuff" out there being pandered to my kids, so I was in heaven being able to do it all from home.

Jimmy read a book called Jotham's Journey every evening to the kids during Advent, and they all loved it. He also continued the yearly tradition of making Christmas tree ornaments with them (while I napped :), despite my telling him that we'll soon run out of room on the tree at this rate. I made homemade egg nog a few times, homemade cocoa, and let them watch a few of the old clay animation Christmas shows. Then, on Christmas Eve, we all watched The Nativity Story.

Christmas morning they got to open their stockings (which contained a box of cereal, a chocolate bar, two mini M&M packages, a little mint, and one small toy) and then I let them have cereal for breakfast (gluten-free of course!). Let me just say that their love for cereal outweighs anything short of a Lego product. Wow.

Giving Back

We struggle with the hyper-consumerism of Christmas and the problem that kids tend to see it as the "gimme" season. So, we try our best to think of ways to thwart it. World Vision puts out a great catalogue every year with things to buy for families in Africa. This year, we went over the options with the kids. They pooled their money together and picked out a goat and two chickens.

After they opened presents Christmas morning, we rushed out the door and drove to Denver. Another family we know has been visiting a..... shall I say very cheap motel in East Denver every year and they let us join in. We knocked on all the doors and invited everyone to a Christmas meal in the parking lot. We served up turkey, stuffing, gravy, bread, and sweets. We also got to hand out lots of presents to the kids there. I don't think any of the families at that motel were planning on celebrating Christmas, sadly.

It was such a blessing to be able to do this and the kids loved it. It is enlightening for them to be able to see families who are living on the edge of poverty. Finding these serving opportunities is important in teaching our children about real joy, being content with what they have, etc. Joy is not the next "gift," "thing," "toy" that we want - joy is inside- and once we accept Christ as our Savior, joy is a choice.

We try our best to not spoil our children, but we definitely fail in this area a lot. About a year ago I served the kids leftovers, and they said, "We had this last night!" I realized right then and there that from that day forward they would have leftovers as much as I could possibly help it. They also have approximately two million Legos in their room right now, and they still always seem to want more! But, we're a work in progress...

I asked the children what their favorite part of Christmas was this year, and they said serving the poor people Christmas morning and getting to have cereal for breakfast. :) (I rarely buy cereal, and if I do it's only for a snack)

That was our day in a nutshell. I hope y'all had a wonderful Christmas!

Happy 4th Birthday, Riley Alexandra!

What is it?!?

It's a Baby Alive Eli!!

No, it's a Baby Alive Leia!

And a coloring book from Riley's amazing birth mama!

And a card from her that Riley loved!

Happy Birthday, Sweet Girl. You are such a joy to our whole family!!!

Potty Training

I've been potty training for about a month now. I've never potty trained before. I tried for a day when Owen turned two and decided it wasn't for me. So my four oldest have all potty trained themselves, all at different times (Owen at age 3; Eli at age 28 months; Scout at age 26 months; Riley at 34 months). I intend to write a book someday called "How to Not Potty Train Your Child and Be a Happy, Care-Free Mama," or I could do "How to Potty Train Your Child in Four Weeks." I'm sure that will be a big seller.

Anyway, yesterday I put away the twins' little portable plastic toilets so I wouldn't have to dump their "stuff" anymore. Now they have to go in the regular toilet. Well, this morning Scout informed me that Carson went pee-pee in her doll's toilet. This toilet is four inches across and the hole is about one and a half inches across. I don't know how she managed to sit on it, but she definitely missed.

Have YOU Been Educated?

HAVE I BEEN EDUCATED?
by Carolyn Caines

If I learn my ABCs, can read 600 words per minute, and can write with perfect penmanship, but have not been shown how to communicate with the Designer of all language .... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I can deliver an eloquent speech and persuade you with my stunning logic, but have not been instructed in God's wisdom.... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I read Shakespeare and John Locke and can discuss their writings with keen insight, but have not read the greatest of all books -- the Bible -- and have no knowledge of its personal importance... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I have memorized addition facts, multiplication tables, and chemical formulas, but have never been disciplined to hide God's Word in my heart .... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I can explain the law of gravity and Einstein's theory of relativity, but have never been instructed in the unchangeable laws of the One Who orders our universe .... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I can classify animals by their family, genus and species, and can write a lengthy scientific paper that wins an award, but have not been introduced to the Maker's purpose for all creation, .... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I can recite the Gettyburg Address and the Preamble to the Constitution, but have not been informed of the hand of God in the history of our country .... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I can play the piano, the violin, six other instruments, and can write music that moves men to tears, but have not been taught to listen to the Director of the universe and worship Him, ... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I can run cross-country races, star in basketball and do 100 push-ups without stopping, but have never been shown how to bend my spirit to do God's will, .... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I can identify a Picasso, describe the style of da Vinci, and even paint a portrait that earns an A+, but have not learned that all harmony and beauty comes from a relationship with God, .... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I were to graduate with a perfect 4.0 and am accepted at the best university with a full scholarship, but have not been guided into a career of God's choosing for me, .... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

If I become a good citizen, voting at each election and fighting for what is moral and right, but have not been told of (or believe) the sinfulness of man and his hopelessness without Christ,... I HAVE NOT BEEN EDUCATED.

However, if one day I see the world as God sees it, and come to know Him, Whom to know is life eternal, and glorify God by fulfilling His purpose for me, THEN I HAVE BEEN EDUCATED!

Homemade Stuff

I've started making homemade soap, and I love it! This morning I took some older spearmint soap I made a few months ago and shredded it, and then I melted it in boiling distilled water to make liquid hand soap for our family. I hate all the junk they put in liquid soaps these days. Scout and I then made whipped body butter, with raw unrefined shea butter, jojobo oil, avocado oil, and orange essential oil. Our skin gets so dry up here, and it's much cheaper to buy in bulk and make it yourself. Next up on my list is a shampoo bar.

Happy 6th Birthday, Scouter!

I can't believe Scout is already six years old! It's amazing how fast the children are growing. Scout has been such a joy to our family. She is kind, sweet, and generous, and her greatest quality is how much of a nurturer she is. It warms my heart to see how well she takes care of Luke and Carson. She's a huge help to me in taking care of our family.

We made gluten-free ice cream cupcakes and a regular gluten-free cake. The kids couldn't tell the difference from regular cake.

Riley likes to take big bites!

We bought Scout a Baby Alive that poops and pees. I had one when I was little that went pee-pee. She loved it. She's been doing most of the potty-training with the twins, so she's already a pro at it. This Baby Alive (she named her Ruby) will be trained by one of the best!