Happy New Year Friends

Our New Years Traditions:
Yummy dinner, a little more than usual,
Hor'dourves,
Movies, movies, movies,
Home made treats,
New Years hats,
Banging pans
Blowing the shofar,
Kissing and hugs,
and best of all...
Banana floats with ALL the fixings!

Hope that all our friends and family have a great new year filled with many of God's blessings!

One of the kidos Broke an Ankle

Did I tell you one of my babies broke her ankle? And that I didn't take her in to the doctor for a week cuz I thought it was just a sprain? Or that she has to have a cast for three weeks minimum? Or that I have much mom guilt for not taking her in sooner? Good thing she is such a trooper.

It has been very educational for her. She isn't allowed to put any weight on her foot. This means crutches and not a lot of moving around for her. It also means no chores. And as good as that sounds, that means she has to ask her sibs to help her out. And she has to be nice about it or they say no. She has had to learn to be patient. Not everyone can jump when she wants something. She has to go slow or her momentum makes her fall forward. She has to pay attention where she is going or she can slip on things that have been left on the floor. She has to sit in the car while we run errands cuz she can't stay on the crutches for too long. Or get the cast wet which isn't easy in our wet PNW. Yesterday, while one of my other girls was getting her hair cut, our awesome stylist let me use her sink to do her hair since she can't shower. That was a great blessing.

Today we went to our favorite resale store to get some pants and shirts to go with the skirts I whipped up for her to go over her cast. Two pants and ten shirts plus a pair of boots, fabric and scarf and a shell all for $26.99. What a deal. The St. Vincet de Pauls near my house can't be praised enough for their great prices and friendly, happy staff. She is so happy to be wearing pants. Apparently skirts and crutches and casts aren't as perfect a match as I thought. She says they are very constricting. So for home, these legging kinda pants will be fine.

She has had it changed once already because her leg has shrunk so much. It started off white, so all her friends could sign it. Now it is hot pink, just because. We sure are praying it heals quick.

Hannukkah

Chanukah was a blast this year. I must say, it wasn't the best we ever had, but it was fun.

We only had one entry into this years pageant. We usually have 3 or 4. And the girlies that did perform did it all on their own with no prompting or input from mom. It was sort of sad because my kids really like performing. I think they realized how much work I put into their performances in the past though. A lot goes into making this crew of mine's talent shine. I didn't have time to work my mojo this year so nothing got done. But they are all looking forward to doing something for Purim.

On the home front, we did have a nice little party this year. It is always fun to spend time with friends noshing and laughing. We played a game called This or That and had a lot of fun. You learn a lot about people playing that game. Even the teens who were with us had fun. There was lots of good food and drink to be had and I am glad to say, most of the unhealthy stuff was gone so no temptations for me ^.^. It is always fun lighting candles with friends.

The decorations have stayed up way past the last night, I just don't want to take them down yet. It just looks so festive in here with all the new hanukiah I have collected over the past year. The sparklies help brighten up the dreary weather feeling. They also help me remember that most of the rest of the world is still celebrating.

A new tradition we started this year involves chocolates. We got a Whitmans sampler on sale and every night we lit at home, we would each pick a chocolate from the box. Now of course the night of the party, we forgot to bring out the new big box we got just for the occasion, but rest assured, it didn't go to waste. It was fun watching everyone try and figure out which to pick. Since we didn't do as many gifts this year, is was a fun way to get a treat every night.

The schul also has a homemade channukia and homemade dreidle contest every year. Usually we spend a couple of hours at Joannes looking for just the right materials for our entries. This year, because of time constraints, everything had to come from what we already had at home. We had some very interesting things done with painters tape and clay. Now we have the challenge we have every year. What do we do with them now? They are to clever to just throw away, but not quite worthy of going in the Hanukkah box and displaying next year. What to do, what to do.

God said that we are to be a light in the world and not to conform to the world. Although this particular holiday isn't a biblical holiday, I am glad we celebrate it. It helps us remember as a family that we are dedicated to being God's children. It helps us to remember that being different from the rest of the world isn't bad. It makes us focus on God's shamish, Yeshua, or Jesus and what He did and does for us. It allows for light in this dark season of our year. It reminds us that God's miracles are always just in time.

What I've Been Doing the Last Week or So

I can see the end from here. Mostly. I hope that's what it is anyway. ^.^

My sweetheart says I take on too many things. I thought I was being good and not taking on too much. I have told everyone that I can't be in charge of anything, but apparently that isn't good enough cuz I always end up doing more than I planned.

Speech classes for my kidos for instance. I said right off that this was an easy one, all I had to do was drop off. Ummm, no. There are these things called competitions. And often they are far, far away and I have to drive them there. And once there, I have to judge others so that my kidos can compete. They had their first competition last weekend and had a lot more fun than they thought they would. They both placed second in the individual speeches and found out they had a lot more work to do on their duo. I learned that judging is not my thing. I don't like being critical of other peoples children. Mine on the other hand, not a problem. I was totally amazed by the speaking ability and composure of these kids. There were a few that blew me away and I wonder how on earth do you choose who comes first and second when there are three really good choices? At the end of the very long day, (350 miles and 18 hours later) I am wondering what was I thinking?

Then there is this little thing called Hanukah, (one of the many spellings, I just make 'em up as I go now) that we are in the middle of. I try to make each year memorable, with old traditions and new activities all rolled into one. We had bought a ton of decorations years ago to festivize our home for this holiday, but many things have gone away. It is starting to look a little sparse and so of course this meant shopping and frustration cuz I live in the PNW not the east coast and apparently not a lot of Judaica finds its way over the Rockies except some cutesy stuff at Target that I was still grateful for. Oh well, we are staying understated this year. Then I just had to have some friends over. It is a party festival after all. And it went from latkes and donuts to vegi tray, hot wings and cookies and oh yeah, hot chocolate and don't we have some olives somewhere. Yeah, I have a tendency to have to make too much food. But it sure was good! We had a ton of fun and laughed and giggled til the kidos started to fade. And the truth about how my house looked so nice came out. Yes, someone opened the bedroom door and now the secret is out. At least it didn't fall out in an avalanche onto his poor head. I think I need to put a sign on the bathroom door. ^.^ And this year, we skipped the present every night thing cuz.....

We are starting a mini remodel thing. Yup, I'm crazy. But these girls are making me crazy! I have one neat person in my whole house. She just happens to share a room with the messiest of the messiest. It is a never ending battle that ends up being a fight every night. So... we are taking our office, storage, class room, computer room space and dividing it in half and making another bedroom. So we have to take about 300 square feet of unorganized everything and fit it into 150 square feet of already filled space. The shredder and I have been busy and the St. Vinnies knows us by name. So the kids are all getting a new bedrooms and more space soon. This has cost a few pennies, so we said at the start that this would mean few gifts this year. And you know, they haven't complained at all. Well, except when I tell them to do some cleaning up of the moving around mess, but that doesn't last long.

And then we are back at P.E. at the YMCA again. That has been really good for my social kidos who thrive in large groups, but it sure adds to the running time. We run to get there and once we leave, we have to hurry out. Let me tell you, it was super hard for me not to jump in and volunteer to help with swimming, they could really use some more parent teachers, but I am being so good! It is also cutting in to my cleaning my house time. I didn't think I would miss that so much, but with all the activities going on, I really need the clutter to be at a minimum for peace of spirit. Couple of more years, and maybe I'll feel okay just dropping them off, but not yet.

And then there is my mom in law. Just a great big THANK YOU to God for helping her along. She is finally coming to terms with her new lifestyle and becoming so much easier to deal with. Her blood chemicals are stabilizing as is her fluid level and it has made such a difference. She is taking responsibility for her diet and medications. The last week, she has actually been pleasant. But it is still ten hours away from the house that I really miss. I keep wondering if there is a part time job I could do while I was there so I could at least make some money while I am there. Not going to take that on though, my sweetheart would kill me ^.^! It will be interesting how things go when they move from the hospital she is going to, to the community dialysis place in a month or so. But we will just wait for that to happen.

Then there is that little boo boo my car has. Well, it was a bit more than the tow truck guy thought it was. The mechanic told us I did some frame damage, but nothing dangerous. He is a great guy and a friend so I can trust him. That's always a good feeling when dealing with a mechanic. The blessing from it all, he discovered that I had NO back brakes left and needed to get them changed asap. But they weren't a contributing factor in my little escapade in case you were wondering.

Another blessing is that our home based business is starting to take off. Nothing like a hard work and family situation to motivate you to get more money coming in. And with the wacky economy and tax laws changing, it is just in time. But that too adds a little more drain on the clock. Let's just say, when I get to sleep, it is very soundly ^.^ Life is very exciting.

So the end I see is not really the end, just a break in the craziness as the rest of the world slows down and stops to celebrate Christmas, it gives me a break and time to catch up. Just a little secret, don't tell my sweetheart, I would rather be super busy than have nothing to do.

The dining room table

Three years ago around Passover time we had a table. It had been part of the family for about 15 years. Not bad for a cheep piece of furniture. The chairs had all died years ago, but the table was still with us. It only sat six, and tight at that. And if you had six, you couldn't put any food on the table. Once a month we had to go underneath and tighten all the screw so it wouldn't wobble and squeak. But it did its job. Til one day, after being a support for Cirque de My Kidos, it broke. Two legs just plain cracked off. Splinters of wood went everywhere.
Now what made that so tragic is that I had invited two other families over for a Passover Seder. As it was, seating was going to be interesting, but now I had a dilemma. I had wanted a new table for years, but couldn't find exactly what I was looking for. I didn't want to spend the money on anything but the perfect table. So I went shopping, hitting every furniture store in the area. Nothing was priced right or was sturdy enough for my family. Just as I was ready to go get a bunch of Costco folding tables, I found it. As I was pumping gas, I saw a store I had never noticed before and there in the window, on sale yet, was the perfect table. It sits ten comfortably. There is plenty of room for food on the table. The only bad thing is the chairs seats are fabric and with my crew, didn't take long to get dirty.
It has been a great blessing. Now that we have a table that fits us all, we all eat meals together a lot more often. There are lots of studies saying how good this is for kids and families. I know for us, it is a great time to be together. We get to entertain a bit more. This Thanksgiving was a perfect example.
My oldest came with mom in law and announced once he was here (a half hour before dinner) that his brother was going to be joining us. Mike had spent a lot of time with us when he was younger and is a part of our family too. All I did was add another setting to the table, there was plenty of room. There is always plenty of food around here, so that wasn't a problem either. It was wonderful having all of my little family here. Watching them laugh and share and eat around my table is a total blessing. Thank You God for an awesome family, a holiday to come together and bless You, joy and happiness, a full heart, and a table big enough for us all.

My Car Accident

There I was, no lie, one wheel dangling over the edge and the back tire not able to get any traction. No matter how much I rocked the car I couldn't get down. I even put it in 4L and still we were stuck. Yes, I had all five in the car with me at the time. How I got up there, I have no idea. I still can't figure out how it happened, and no, I wasn't on my phone, it was tucked in my purse safe and sound.

It was apparently a pretty good shake up, cuz later I found all the things in my center counsel spilled all over the floor and the kids yelled a bit. I kept thinking to myself, what in the world happened, how come I can't go.

Well, I had to get out and see what was going on. Yup, I was stuck. A nice man came and he tried everything I did to get it out. Another nice guy with a forklift came and pulled some of the rocks out, but I was still stuck up in the air. I had all the kids climb out and go sit in a safe warm building while I stood in the rain with my cute but not so warm coat and called the insurance people. They would have a tow truck out in 20 min.

In the mean time all the guys keeping telling me I'm not the first one to do this. All the people driving by are gawking and wondering how in the world did she do that? Yup pretty embarrassing.

The tow truck guy shows up and says "Wow, but don't worry I can get it down." After four calls to his boss and me signing a note saying that they weren't responsible to any damage caused by them pushing against my front bumper, the forklift guy comes out again. "If you can get it higher in the air, I can pull out the last of the rocks and she should be fine." So up in the air the truck went and out came the rocks and down came the truck no damage!! God is so good to me. The tow truck guy pulled the truck the rest of the way, commenting on how good my torque was (that made my sweetheart proud) and off I went.

The truck drives mostly fine. The alignment is off and there is a rumbling that I need my mechanic to check out. The kids are all bragging on how they all survived my accident. My neck and back are pretty stiff and I had a huge adrenalin drop once I got home. But all in all, we are good.

Sounds pretty dramatic and would have been a better call to my sweetheart if it hadn't been in the parking lot of a warehouse. The median had a huge pile of rocks in it and there I was, dangling a foot and a half in the air. How embarrassing.

Joy in the Moment

Finding joy in the moment.

With my life full of upheaval, I am working hard to find joy in the moment.

Walking into the house after being out on the road in the dark and the rain to hear my girl yelling spicy eyes, spicy eyes was funny. She was chopping onions.

Listening to my daughter scream and giggle while reuniting with a friend after two weeks apart was a sweet joyful moment.

Big sloppy hugs from my 13 year old son was refreshing.

The gleam in my sweethearts eyes even when I look like a wet cat makes me smile.

The soldier sitting in the waiting room who smiled and said thanks for talking with me, filled my heart.

The smile of the lady across the way who was genuinely happy to see me was touching.

The smell of the pumpkin bread that my daughter made all by herself and that was just as tasty as it smelled was a huge blessing.

Hugging my mommy as we cried over the loss of a dear family member was bitter sweet.

Seeing the sun rise over the mountian on dialysis mornings is amazing.

The realization that God is with me all the time...again...and that only through Him will I find peace is satisfying.

adventures in lawn mowing

We had a beautiful day today in the PNW. I had the kids go out and do some yard work in the sunshine. The girls raked the pine needles and leaves as Josh mowed. I was sitting by the front door in the house resting after being with mom in law all day.

I was watching Josh and then I heard the sound of the lawnmower eating something. The girls were all in the back yard so I knew it wasn't them. But I also knew it was something because of the sounds and face he was making. I thought a squirrel or cat or maybe a frog. It took a couple of seconds for him to let go of the mower and he was making these big gaspy sounds. He came in and leaned his head on the door frame...gaspy, gaspy...head on door...gaspy, gaspy...head on back of sofa...gaspy, gaspy.

Sarah pops in "What happened?"

"Is there blood all over the front lawn?" asks Mom.

"No," answers Sarah.

"Gaspy, gaspy! " says Josh.

"What did he hit?" asks Mom.

"He made metal!" says Sarah.

"Joshua, god of aluminum!" cheers Emily.

So here's what happened. He was trying to use the mower like a weed eater and hit the stone under the drain pipe and created sparks. It also left a mark on the stone. His father had told him to be careful not to hit rocks with the mower because it could start a fire. We had just watched a video on the race to space and all the blowing up rockets. Josh saw his life flash before his eyes.

We thought it was pretty funny. He does now.

Rollercoaster

I'm starting to think there is no such thing as normal anymore. I'm thinking we are just going to have to live on a rollercoaster. Thing is rollercoasters can be really fun. There are the long anticipating parts that are just all work and waiting and then there are the steep turns and loopdy doops that go fast but have you screaming with joy! Well here we go on the long anticipating part.

We have had some little up and downy parts that make life interesting. Like, Mom's sugar and blood pressure are under control and she is doing well with dialysis, but now she has gout. Which hurts a lot and makes her grumpy. But incase you were wondering, she is doing much better and starting to get back to her old self. Please keep praying for her, that her kidney functions continue to improve and that her spirits stay up. It can be depressing to go from totally independent to mostly dependent.

My kids are AMAZING!!! Have I said that before? They are doing so well, schooling themselves and helping their sibs out. The house is always mostly clean or real close to it. They are so dang funny, they make me smile everday. It is fun having mature humor, not "mommy why do ducks quack?>>>Because the orange is moldy.....hahahahahah" Yeah, don't miss the weird joke phase.

I see them becoming more independent, and I'm happy for that, yet a little sad too. But mostly happy.

And other decisions and commitments have been made that are going to be exciting, more on that later. Just know that having sick family without financial freedom sucks! We can moan or we can do something about it. After being smacked in the head by God and a dear friend, we are doing something about it. This feels like the first part of the downy part of a rollercoaster, where your stomach first comes up in your throat and you know it is going to be fun, and your mouth is open to scream but the sound hasn't quite made its way out yet, but your arms are up in the air ready for the ride of your life. Yeah, that's where I am.

Good Weekend

The last week was as busy as I thought it was going to be. Getting up at 5:30 am is not my idea of fun. I sure am praying that those kidneys kick in. I've never been so excited to hear about a grown woman peeing ^.^. But it is back to dialysis in the morning.

I did get the weekend off. It allowed me to spend some special time with a dear friend. I helped, with a myriad of her friends from all walks of her life, to honor her mother at a memorial service. It is easy to see where she got her kindness and sense of duty. It sounds like she is the spitting image of her mom who will be missed by many.

It made me think a bit too. Not only about how much I love my own mommy and dread the day that the Lord takes her, may it be years and years from now, but also what kind of legacy will I be leaving for my children. With my mom in law I have learned that I need to get rid of a bunch of my junk and be more organized. Trying to find things isn't always easy. She is a pack rat. So am I. Different stuff, but still a pack rat. I hope that I am teaching my children to be strong and compassionate and to do what is pleasing to the Lord.

I also got the chance to do some sewing. I bought a second sewing machine last weekend. On sale of course. It sews like a dream. I was able to finish the girls layered skirts by zig zagging all the layers and making another skirt from a pair of old jeans. It came out pretty cute too, even if it isn't what I envisioned when I started. I've seen a lot of things on different blogs that I want to sew. I have found it very satisfying to sew lately. I think it is because I can see a finished product. With all that is in flux around here, it is good to see something done.

Cleaning the Toilet

Self image is a funny thing. It is influenced by so many things and people. I know in many ways, mine is better than it was growing up. I had always felt and was told how fat I was and that I should only wear my hair a certain way or wear certain styles of clothes. I have always been a little clumsy, okay, a lot clumsy and laughed at a lot and so I didn't do a lot of things because of that. As I have gotten older, I don't have as many influences on my self image. My sweetheart loves me so thoroughly that I actually have more confidence than ever before. As I have become closer to God, I see myself more clearly. My latest challenge though has to do with serving dear mom in law. I am doing it. But I don't like it. At all. I whine about it all the time. I am being told how awesome I am by my supporters and I don't feel like I am. It is a job. Like cleaning the toilet. I don't do it to bless anyone or because I do it as unto the Lord or I am called to it or anything noble like that. I'm doing it cuz the toilet is dirty and needs to be done. It is my job. If someone else would do my job, I would let them gladly! But just like the toilet, the only other one to do it is my sweetheart, and he just isn't always available. And just like the toilet, I am training my kidos to do it, but they just don't always get it right. And unlike the toilet, I can't just ignore it til company comes. So, I know what I'm doing is a good thing, and I am working on my attitude about it, but I sure don't feel awesome.

Tired

I have 4 kids that were under the age of 5 at one time. I took them to doctor appointments, bathed them, fed them, played with them, put them to sleep, dressed them, did their teeth, did lots and lots of hair and still don't remember being as tired as I am now just taking care of one little old lady part time. Maybe the key phrase is don't remember. Maybe it is because I am no spring chicken. Maybe it is because I'm still taking care of those kids, a young woman and a husband on top of the little old lady. But I am tired today. My mind is still seeing all the things that need to be done, but I'll be darned if I can get this old body of mine to get up and go.

I am continually awed and amazed by my children who have taken over so many of my duties here at the house. The middle stays pretty clean, the edges are starting to creep in though and I may need to do some deep cleaning here so that it doesn't get too out of hand. I'll look into that tomorrow^.^

I am also grateful for an awesome sweetheart who forces me to take naps and to just say no sometimes and who doesn't care about the edges.

Mom in law is continuing to get better every day. She is still convinced she just has asthma. Some times it just isn't worth the fight. I would guess that congestive heart failure does feel a bit like asthma. As long as she keeps taking her meds, I'll be happy. So far she has only balked at that once and I was able to talk her into taking them. I think as her confidence gets better, she will be okay. I watched her carry her walker through the kitchen because the sound of it dragging was irritating her. That is a pretty good sign to me. I don't think it will be long til she is out running the streets again.

She is Home

WOW! A month. That is how long we spent in the hospital. Actually, it was a couple more days than a month. In the whole scheme of life, it was a brief time, but in the living, it was forever. We rode a train of craziness for couple of weeks there. Mom in law ended up in the ICU and it was pretty scary for a while. We also had to get a little tough and sometimes ugly to get all that she needed done, done. That is not where I like to live, but sometimes, they really got my momma bear going. Now she is home and talking to her today, she doesn't remember a bunch of it. That is a blessing. I remember every minute of the roller coaster ride. Even today as we were trying to get her out, we had to push and push just to get the discharge papers signed. But she is home.

The ride isn't quite over yet. She will have some major life changes to make. One thing is dialysis three times a week until her kidneys kick back in. That can take up to a month. We are still praying that they will and soon. She will have to get used to take a bunch of new meds on a pretty regular schedule. Her diet is going to be totally regulated and changed. That could be tough. But she is home.

We had to rearrange her house and get her some medical equipment. I am hoping that now that she is home she will want to get stronger faster. Nothing like being in your own kitchen and bathroom to make you want to take care of your own self. I don't think it will be long until we have to move it all back and get rid of all that equipment and deal with the arguing as to why we lost or stole or broke or messed up all her stuff. Eighty one years of stuff. But she is home.

My phone will still be my constant companion as she figures out her new life. I will still have to spend a lot of time taking care of her. In some ways even more. I am praying that again, it will only be for a short time.

Only for a short time more

Well, we are still here. This short time is getting to be a little longer than I thought it would be.

Everyone has moments, including myself.

The children are turning out to be my strength. They all need a little extra attention, but it's usually just a hug or a quick ride to the store for one on one time that works. They have figured out how to keep the house from blowing up. My big girl has become quite creative with her cooking and figuring out what to fix for each meal for our allergy ridden family. I am so proud of her! The bickering is high, but that really isn't new. It just seems like more because the referee is gone. They have been making more cookies. I like cookies.

Mom in law is getting better. I know she is because she is getting darn mean. No one can do anything right. The last two weeks have been pretty scary. She swelled up so big and didn't care what happened to her. She was nice. That was way weird. She got worse and worse and taking more and more pills. We finally had the head doctor take her off of everything so that her kidneys could start to heal. Whenever they work on her pressure or her edema, she gets worse. So it is a waiting game. She is finally starting to get some of the swelling down. Her arms and feet are starting to look normal again. Her face is starting to look more normal. She started getting really bad tremors from being so off balance in her blood chemicals and all the meds and the all the swelling. Today tremors are almost gone.

Mentally, she doesn't see or feel the changes. So she is complaining more. That there is proof she is doing better. She no longer wants any visitors. Yup, that sounds more like her. Everyone is stealing her stuff. Mmhmm, that's normal. Like any one would really want her used saline bottle. Oh well. She is complaining about the nasty food and refusing to eat. That is more like the real her.

For me it is hard to see her in the extremes. When she was so passive, it broke my heart. That was not the woman I have known for 27 years. Watching the nurses and doctors harming her is hard. But that is post all in itself. Watching her age before my eyes is hard. To see her go from a very vigorous woman that we could never track down because she was out running the streets, to someone who can barely stand to get to the commode is tough. Listening to her talk in her sleep is pretty funny though.

I'll let my sweetheart talk about his travels on this path. It is complicated.

Our grown son is having to actually grow up. Until now, he has been able to do whatever he feels like for the most part. He is having to take care of things around the house more and will be more responsible for maintaining things. We are all going to have to learn how to cook different now. She has been put on a renal diet which is sort of the opposite of her diabetic diet. This should be interesting. I will be pre-making all her meals and color coding meals. I'm trying to figure out how to make it all part of our homeschooling. I see math, science, reading, research, and home economics. All the food she loves is pretty much off limits now. My son says "Are you ready for a fight?" Yeah, I'm ready, bring it on!!

Only for a short time

Summer has come to an end here at our house. Not because school has started or the weather has changed or anything good like that. My mom-in-law had to go into the hospital because of some crazy high blood pressure. Because my sweetheart is an only child, and he works hard so that I can stay home and be a full time stay at home mommy and teacher, I've been the one who is able to go and be with her at the hospital. I never knew how tiring sitting all day can be. I never realized how much moving around I did, even when staying home all day, I'm getting stiff from just sitting.
My mom-in-law is 82, almost 83 and has up until now been pretty self sufficient. She still drives well and keeps her house and goes and takes care of her friends. She is honery as all get out and can be a bit of a challenge to those around her when she makes up her mind. I told one of her friends of over 50 years that she was in the hospital and she did a spot on impression of mom in law saying, "don't tell me what to do, I know what I'm doing!" It was pretty funny. Now she gets tired out walking to the bathroom. We walked down the hospital hall twice yesterday and both times required an hour recovery and a nap. It isn't easy for her. She gets very frustrated not being able to do the things she wants and to eat the things she wants. The diet is very restrictive and dry for her tastes.
I do have to say she is being very gracious to the medical staff. Although I sometimes wish she would show her true self, because maybe they may work a little faster on getting her out. We seem to do a lot of waiting. She is in a teaching hospital which means lots and lots of interns and we don't often see the same doc twice. The nursing staff is on twelves so we have one at night and one during the day. But, that also means that we get a new nurse every three days. So just as she gets used to one nurse and is more open with what is ailing her and they are seeing her daily changes, we get a new nurse and have to start the whole trust thing all over again. Ugggh! Then silly things like letting her have tea for breakfast the day she is supposed to have stress test because they were unaware of the appointment, happen. So now we get to stay one more day. One more day of not knowing what is causing the issue. But God is good and maybe this happened so that the medical staff noticed how much her blood chemistry levels are levels are dropping and that wouldn't have been as noticeable if we went home sooner. Who knows, only the Creator.
My kids are starting to show some signs of stress and that makes me sad. My youngest climbed into my bed and said "Mom, I miss you!" Well, who can kick her out after that? So I now have a kid back in my bed. My pre-teen broke down and admitted that she was sad that Gma might die. We had the same talk with the new teen three days ago. One keeps making notes and letters to take to her. My new adult says being a grown up isn't fun. She has had to take over refereeing the hoard and isn't handling it so well. Their daily behaviour is the same but she doesn't like being the boss. They don't like her being the boss either. I told them it is only for a short time. I really pray that it is only for a short time.
Sweetheart is doing surprising well with all this. Don't take me wrong, there is plenty of stress do to this and all the stuff at home and the stuff at work. But he is so kind to the medical staff that is taking care of his mom. It is hard when you are an awesome nurse and you watch others who aren't taking care of your loved ones. He hasn't once jumped in, he just waits til they're gone to "fix" things. And even though he isn't getting the answers he wants and feels like no one is really looking at the whole picture, or moving fast enough, he hasn't put a boot in any ones butt. ^.^ I really am proud of him. He is a really good son.
And now my house is falling apart around the edges. Mentally, emotionally and well physically now too. The main living spaces are clean, mostly. I have been very diligent in teaching my children how to clean the house and giving them chores and responsibilities. I didn't think I really did that much myself anymore. But I guess I do cuz things are getting a little crazy. It is a good thing there are lots of doors in our house to close things behind.^.^ Only for a short time.
Well the hoard is stirring and I don't want to take any more time from them, so if you could pray for us all during this trying time I would appreciate it.

Ft.Vancouver

Finally, we were able to go on an adventure with our favorite Jedi. Those two ladies are popular let me tell you, they're always running around ^.^ We went to Fort Vancouver down in southern WA. We took a two mile-ish historic walk around town. This time it wasn't my fault the camera didn't come. I actually put someone else in charge and they forgot it. Thank goodness my sweet girl remembered her camera and we did get some pictures. Here is Ft. Vancouver through the eyes of an eleven year old.

Don't die without having a dock.

I have a good friend who always says, don't die without having a dock. Never having a dock in my whole life, or being on one, I just didn't understand this. After this weekend, I totally get this. The whole family went down to visit my mom who was visiting at my brothers house. Once we got there, we went down to a reservoir and went out on my dad and brother's boats. My kids got to go innertubing for the first time ever.

Now that was an adventure in itself. When we got there, my kids went down to the launch and I said I would be there in a second, I needed to hit the potty first. When I got back, they had already taken off with my brother. AAAAHHHH!!! So I went into my dad's boat and we met them out there. First adventure: me, all of me, climbing from one boat to another. Not a pretty sight, but I did it. The kids were already on the innertube which is a three seater deal with handles. My thrill seeker and my boy were on with their cousin who is a veteran tuber and as soon as I was on, we took off. Once we got the hand signals figured out they did pretty good. When it was time to trade place, we pulled them in and the boy looked a little green. Lets just say, it wasn't his cup of tea. So then a little bit of sibling rivalry kicked in and my cautious child got on. Now I thought for sure she wouldn't go on after her roller coaster experience. But on she went. My brother took it pretty easy and she kept asking for more speed. Soon she was bouncing around, no problem. I was shocked and pleasantly amazed. Then my new adult got on and if she smiled any bigger, her face would have broke. My husband can't swim. Not that he doesn't want to or hasn't tried for his whole life, but something about his physiology just won't let this poor man stay on top of the water. But he is the best father in the whole wide world. When baby girl said she wanted to try, he put on a life vest and on he climbed. My heart was so full watching them out on that thing. Both of them really enjoyed themselves. After their turn we went back in for lunch.

Here is where I had my second adventure. Instead of going back to the launch, they moored next to the picnic sight. Where there is no dock. Where you have to climb out of the boat and walk in the water. For those of you who don't know, I have this thing about lake water. I don't do lake water. It is just gross. So yeah, not my idea of cool. Well the other thing was, how was I going to get my big self out of the boat with any kind of dignity. Let's just say, it didn't happen. My dear sweet husband tried to help. That didn't really happen either. I got one foot on the ground and it was all slimy and slippery down there. As I tried to lift my other foot out of the boat, my sweetheart was pulling me out. My already out foot was sliding down the cement ground below and the inside foot was refusing to leave. Well, lets just say there was a really big splash and somewhere on the bottom of the reservoir is my favorite pair of sunglasses. To paraphrase Monk "Lake in my shoes!" I was so grossed out! And would you believe no showers anywhere in that park! I had to just sit there and let lake water dry on me. So sad.

After lunch, we went back out and I had to get back in the water again. Getting in was a bit easier, no plunging. The kids did some solo riding. When the Bear was out, she wanted faster and bumpier. Her sister was doing flag duty and turned to me and said "she has some serious thrill issues dude." Yup. Her cheeks were so sore that night. Then all three of my little girls got on together. I wish I had the camera, but I didn't want to drop it in the water in case I fell in again so my new adult had it on the other boat. They are hooked for sure. Guess who wants a boat and intertube.

Which brings me back the what my friend said. Don't die without a dock. My brother and I got a chance to talk while the kids were whipping around. He said that the reason he got the boat instead of quads is because it was something they could do as a family and talk and visit and enjoy together not just next to each other. And that is the experience we had. We visited with each other. We played with each other. We learned about each other. We became a little bit closer. When we visited our friend on the lake with the dock, we experienced peace and happiness and joy. When we played on the toys off the dock with my family this week, we experienced joy and excitement and bonding.

Not that he has ever been wrong the whole time I've known him, but Brad is right. Don't die with out a dock. I can't wait to have our own.

Peaches

The local fruit stand is selling 26 lbs of fresh peaches from Yakima for $18. This is where I got my peaches last year that died in the great canning debacle. So I got 2 cases. We ate a bunch. Then my 2 oldest daughters and I did some canning.

The cans waiting in the oven.
The peaches in hot water then cold so the skin comes off.

Then cut into chunks and put in jars with a simple syrup and then they look so pretty.

Then we made some jam. It was a little more messy.

Here is what we got when we were all done.

The Big Bully

Went to the park that has a cool water feature with the kids and some friends this week. We heard the famous sonic boom of the President's protectors. Very exciting. It was a great time had by all. Wish I hadn't forgot my camera. AGAIN.

At one point my son and I were sitting next to a daycare group getting ready to leave. One little girl about nine comes running up in tears.

"AWWBDSFEXVSVAETF ... and he was very strong (making muscles with her little arms which is the only reason anyone knew what she was saying);A;SDFJE FF; DFKFJAW;OIEFJA!!!!!!!"

All her little friends come running up and start asking who was it.

"Was it that kid in the green shorts with no shirt on? That one right over there?"

"YYYYYEEEESSSSSS!!!!!!!" sob, sob, sob!!!

"OH, he is really mean, he was calling us cabbage heads!" The teacher looks at me and tries and succeeds at holding back a smile.

"Yeah, he's a big bully!"

My son whispers under his breath to me, "Get the pitchforks!"

Man, oh man I was holding back a big guffaw. I gave myself the hiccups!

On and on they went about this really mean kid who calls people cabbage heads.

Meanwhile, the kid is backing away slowly and has a stick in his hand. He looks terrified.

My son whispers under his breath to me,"They're after blood, he better run!"

Now that just wasn't fair. If I had water in my mouth, it would have sprayed. Praise God, I didn't and all that came out was a Ha!

Soon, the daycare kids loaded up in the cars and off they went.

I wonder what story her parents heard that night.

I made this!

I've been felling pretty homemaker lately. Too much time on creative peoples blogs ^.^ If the house would clean itself and someone would just volunteer to do those things which I don't like doing, I would be so creative!

We have a little friend who is 5 that has an amazing tiered skirt. All of us LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. But I didn't know how to do the whole gather thing so we just admired from afar, and well quite frankly from up close too.
So we were at this resale store and we found this awesome skirt.
Well really in our minds it was part of a skirt because who really in their right mind would ever wear this as a skirt. (That is the prude in me that I am very proud of by the way.) We bought it hoping someone we know would be able to turn it into what we were thinking

Then I found out the secret to machine gathering. Very loose tension and biggest stitch. WOW!

Off to Joann's and we got some cool fabric in the remnant section...
and after hitting a bunch of places online, found a formula for the tiered part and wHallA!

I made this!

In the quiet of the morning, before the hoard arises, I praise God for this week that has passed all to quickly. I thank Him for the growth in my children, physical, mental and spiritual. I thank Him for an easy fix on my sweethearts eye and praise Him for the quick healing He is going to make of the wound. I praise Him for knowing what type of weather I needed, cool and sunshine. I praise Him for safety as we traveled on the busy roads. For being able to spend one on one time with each of the kidos this week without it costing an arm and a leg, I praise God. For the Sabbath that forces me to stop, I am eternally grateful.

Sunnyside

We finally got a sunny day were in the great PNW. To be honest, I was kinda okay with the yucky weather cuz I was a little on the not well side. Being stuck inside when it is nice makes being sick even worse. So today, I am feeling so much better and the sun is out. We haven't done nearly enough adventuring this summer. Everyone wanted to go somewhere, but we have time constraints so we just went to a local beach on the sound.

It is very pretty there, lots of green grass and clean toilets and places to play. Since the tide was out a bit, lots of beach too. There was some kind of hawk that came by three times and grabbed a fish and then flew around the peninsula with it in its claws. I was amazed by how far it flew with it. But my children were oblivious to the whole thing as they splashed around in the water.

They are all so different and yet so predictable. Baby girl took no time to make new friends and leave the group. The cautious one who only goes as far as I told her, only daring after everyone else, keeps coming back to check in and show me her treasures. The next one is bold, the only one to come with a swimsuit, out in the water, pushing the limits. And the boy finding stuff, mostly seaweed, and creating props for the game he just created for them to play. The artsy one is drawing in the sand, putting shells and rocks in beautiful shapes and patterns.

There were lots of others at the beach. As I watched them, I wondered what my children will be like all grown up. Will they be hanging out with all their friends at the beach being silly and somewhat obnoxious? Will they be good mommies and daddies playing with their little ones in the water? Will they tell their kids to go ask Grandma? Or will they be sitting up on the grass in the shade, reading a book. Will they always find joy being together as a family? I wonder where their predictable personalities will take them in this world.

I have been blessed to enjoy every stage of childhood that my children have gone through. I don't long for those past. I am glad to be through with those stages of my life. Maybe that is because I am so looking forward to seeing what comes next.

I'm hungry

I have another of those strange things that I really like. Hold down the moanings. It isn't as bad as you might think. It is that skinless hot dog also known as Spam. Yes, it's true, I really like Spam. Soon after becoming a kosher household, we discovered Turkey Spam. Yup, it is yummy. We eat it instead of breakfast sausages and in stir fry and in sandwiches and omelets and just plain, although I have to eat it cooked. My kids will eat it raw...I can't eat a raw hot dog either. So there you have it. Spray pancakes, Jello and Spam....but not together.^.^

Carrot Tops

"Mom, are carrot tops edible" 7yrold

"I don't know" sleepy mom

"Well could you look it up" persistent 7yrold

"Where?" trying to put off persistent 7yrold mom

"Right there type 'are carrot tops edible'" way too smart 7yrold

"Okay" must be a good homeschooler mom

"Which one?" to tired to pick mom

"Wiki is always good" smart 7yrold

"You read" good homeschool mom

"Yup, they are.....HEY GUYS THEY ARE!" the child the rest of them sent in to find out the answer from the tired mom

Skating

Do you remember going skating back in the day? We played limbo and red light, green light, and had one leg more sore than the other from going one way all night long. And there was always that one kid that went super duper fast and the other guy who would go forward and switch backward and forward all smooth like. Well I am here to tell you, the tradition lives on. Even the old guy who was way too cool.

Tonight we took the kidos to the skating rink to celebrate this months birthdays. Oh what fun they had! There was a nice turn out of friends from the ages of 4 to 20ish. There were first timers and old pros. There were tons and tons laughing and giggling. And surprisingly, very few falls! Thanks to everyone who came and made this a night to remember for my team.

Ethnic Fest

We went to the Ethnic Festival in town yesterday. Started out okay, we were there when it started. We walked around the the circle of booths and weren't to surprised to see all the liberal booths, Democrat booth, Planned Parenthood, and the like. It was held down town. There were the same ol' booths with all the hippie clothes and food booths with "ethnic" fast food. There were a few good presentations. We liked the Kabuki dancers and the Taiko drums. But the rest seemed pretty average. My super conservative son turned 5 shades of purple when the bellydancers came out and insisted we go and get food instead of watching. It was funny. The fact that most of the women dancing were shaped like me...that was funny too. Nothing against them, I think it was kinda cool, but when I think of belly dancers, I usually have images from the old black and white movies.

It all was ruined when a man came out and did a poem, rap thing that blamed the old white people for "pushing us out of our neighborhood" that "we run back to" "where our mom's and grandma's cried at". Please. I really do have an issue with victim mentality. The reasons they were "pushed out" was because they let the neighborhood fall apart. Men dropped babies like Johnny Appleseed and left them for those women. Crime was rampant. The houses and yards weren't taken care of. No wonder the landlords got rid of the properties as fast as they could in that last housing boom. Now it is becoming a beautiful neighborhood again. In no time, I bet it will rival its old time grandeur when it was the heart of the city.

This mentality was what ruined this festival for me. Yes, we are all created equal in God's eyes. That I believe. What you do with your potential is what separates you from others. You don't deserve what others have unless you do what they did. You are not entitled to a lifestyle that someone else earned. In this great country, there is still prejudice. Coming from and being a multi-racial family, I recognize and acknowledge and have experienced that. But nowhere else in the world are you more able to overcome that than in the U.S.A. Stand up, be strong, believe in God's word and push. During the speeches in between some of the acts, what we heard was that it is all someone elses fault and that the government is going to change all that.

Oh well, at least the corn was good. And the weather was great.

Whovians

My house is full of Whovians. What is that, you might ask. A Whovian is someone who loves the Doctor Who television series from the BBC. Some of mine have knowledge of all things Who and some mainly have knowledge of the new current Doctors. I heard someone say that the first Doctor you watch is "your" Doctor. That would make mine Tom Baker who played Doctor Who in the seventies. I must admit that I wasn't a die hard fan (don't tell my kids). I watched occasionally when they were on late night PBS when I was babysitting. Campy, cheap special effects, but for me they weren't as predictable as all the half hour sitcoms that were on tv at the time.

My oldest introduced my family to the new Doctor. The BBC brought the show back five years ago. He had been watching at his mom's on the Sci-fi channel. We found it at the library and my children fell in love. This was a smart, exciting show when everything that we had seen on tv was "reality" tv based. There were no sex scenes, no half naked women, no swearing, no gore, just fun. And the plots were interesting. The stories were compelling. No wonder they enjoyed it. It has been the fodder of many of the kido's imaginary games. In fact all of them prefer to use their Doctor Who game names..

Now we get all the Doctor Who stuff we can at the library. My son likes to watch the "making of" parts of the dvds. As a would be movie maker, he enjoys seeing how to make effects on low budget and how they used lighting and sound and camera angles to create mood and atmosphere. We are currently waiting for the latest season to come out on dvd. This season the introduces a new Doctor and the children are skeptical. I guess, like for me, the will judge all other Doctor's against their own Doctor.

Little Bits Birthday

My daughter is having a birthday today and I was thinking about her birth story. Of all the birth stories, hers is the least eventful. Since I was having a vbac again, we scheduled her birth. We picked the day and showed up and did the whole inducing thing. When she came out, I remember saying that she looked just like my mother. She still does. She came home in a day and the screaming began. She didn't have colic, she just screamed all the time. I was the only one she would have anything to do with. From the get go she only wanted me. This was hard with a three and just turned two year old, let alone the 2 older kids. Not even her big brother could handle her and he was a great babysitter. For the next four years all she did was scream. She wasn't spoiled, she was anxious. There was always a hint of fear in her eyes when she wasn't in my arms. She screamed so much that she scarred her vocal chords and sounded like an old man who smoke cigars for too long. She sorta out grew the screaming, but not the anxiety. She was so brave. For years she tried to overcome her fears. It broke my heart to watch her struggle.

One day when she was 6, I read a post from a friend who took her child off of wheat because of similar issues. And it worked. So I thought, what can it hurt? So I took her and one of her sisters off of all wheat products. That is not as easy as it sounds. It is amazing the places you find wheat products. I kept her off for three weeks and the change was amazing. Her hand tremors went away, the ones the doctor said not to worry about, it was just immature nervous system. The dark circles under her eyes went away. She always had them, it never occurred to me that they weren't supposed to be there. We had dealt with constipation problems since toddler hood. Haven't had them since.

It made no difference in her sister, but it changed my little bit's life. so much so that she won't knowingly have anything with wheat in it. We tried doing just a little, but she noticed the anxiety level right away. It makes her act little manic. It takes three days for just a bite of wheat to get out of her system. It makes life a little more complicated, but we have gotten pretty good at sniffing out the hidden wheat products like malt coloring which pretty much rules out all cereal. Her brother is off of wheat now too. He has different symptoms, but the difference is just as dramatic. He has a harder time saying no to wheat and actually gets sad about not having it, but not my daughter. For her it is just not worth it.

I am Blessed

Sweet flowers from my sweet little cousin

Today we got to go see a ROTC graduation. These young soldiers who completed the Warrior's Forge were definitely awe inspiring. It sure seems a long time ago that I was that young and idealistic. It made me feel proud to be surrounded not only by our soldiers, but by their families that also give up so much. It felt comfortable in many ways to be on post again. The buildings were all so familiar. But as proud as I felt about the military tradition, I'm not always as optimistic about the political agendas that these brave men and women are directed by. This young man we were there to see, my sweetheart has known since he was two. Now he stands almost a foot and a half taller than him. I pray that God keeps him safe as he serves to keep me safe.
When I graduated from high school I finally got to spend time with my family down in CA. These are my dad's people and I fell in love with them. I was able to live with and among them for about 3 years. It was during that time that I came to be a person on my own, deciding who I wanted to be. Then I moved and finished school and then got married and started my own family. Thanks to Facebook, I have been able to reconnect with my cousins and feel close to them even though they are far from me. It is fun to see them interacting with their own families now that we are all grown.
This week, one of these cousins came up with her family and I really enjoyed having them visit. Our kids hit it off almost from the get go and I felt so comfortable with my cousin. I will admit that I was a bit nervous. It has been years since I visited with her. And because we as a family find ourselves so different from most, I wasn't sure what to expect. But it was fantastic. We had so much in common and even our sweethearts were best buds. I sometimes wish I was a little closer so I could develop relationships more. But I'm also glad that I don't have to deal with the drama and obligations that come with being so near.
During our conversations, I also was reminded how grateful I am to have a congregation that is a community. How wonderful it is to have a group of people who support us and help us to keep Torah and challenge us to keep studying God's word and always seek His will. Sometimes when we get to mired down by the relationship stuff, I forget that.
As I look back at this past week, I am blessed.

summer so far

So summer has been kinda slow lately. No super big adventure days, but there are some in the works. Like I really, really want to go to the Boehms Candy factory. A LOT. And I found a state park that looks like fun. And we are almost out of Emu oil which could mean a trip to Almost Canandaland to see friends and visit another little shop that looks like fun in Everett.
We attempted the solar oven thing again on that super hot day. Still no luck. I think we will try again with something other than bread. The pan was too hot to hold without a pot holder so it works to some extent. But not with bread.











The garden is a bust this year. It started out so promising with all our little starters growing so strong. All that is left is peas and carrots and one zucchini plant that still looks like a dwarf. Our tomatoes drowned and some had that cut worm thing chomp the main stem. So it looks like we will be buying whatever we need. Bummer. But here is a little fun with peas we got out of our garden.




















We also found a good deal on grapes and froze about 10lbs of those.

I got a case of tomatoes. I made goulash from them and so the empty shelves don't look so bare. I'm still waiting for my little stand to get in more than cherries. We froze some of those for snacking too, though.
Took the fam to the Tumwater park and had some fun there.

We drove around Olympia and found some more houses with views that are amazing.