Vacation Pictures...

Random vacation pictures... 

Sisterly love...

Mom, I am bored...

My handsome son at the Elk viewing area...

We watched lots of "man vs food"...so the kids asked if we could make some of the food they saw. We made pancakes with bacon IN them. Def not something we will do again! 

States Bingo was one of our favorite games for the week. 

Granola bars and milk were a yummy snack. 

We had some competitive Qwerkle games..

Manicures with my girls..

We had fun painting nails.

Nerds Nail Polish, who wouldn't enjoy this?!

Selfies with the girls..

Everything in life is a choice, a choice to see the good or the bad... 

a choice to focus on our blessings or the not so good things.

Living this and teaching this can be hard. This is hard as a parent. My kids learn more from watching me then from  anything I say to them.

We learn to rely on each other, to connect as a family or to wallow in what we want but can't have.

When I choose to focus on the moments of peace and joy instead of the frustrations and disappointments, my kids are watching and learning.  I must respond in a way that will teach them to respond to life's challenges...

Corn Day

Monday Morning, bright and early we picked up 300 ears of corn, husked and ready to go! I was really dreading this project, but the  kids love corn and I am trying to cook healthy food, year round. 

The kids were excited. I asked the boys to pose with the corn before we started.. They thought they looked homeless.

The boys cleaned off the first 100 ears for me..

We cooked the corn in these big pots. I am "storing" this giant stock pot for a friend and have been incredibly thankful for it more times then I can count! 

We had a second pot with cold water and a cooler with cold water sitting outside. When the water boiled in the big stock pot, we added the corn and allowed it to boil for 2 minutes. Then we took the corn out of the stock pots and dropped it in the cooler with cold water.



After cooling the corn for 5 minutes we cut it off the cob. We had a knife (for me) and a creamer (for the kids). We were able to get it all done much quicker then I ever anticipated. The kids worked well.

Each child had an assigned task. Sometimes they had down time... in which they ate corn. lol The boys and Journi each ate 6 ears of corn in the time we were doing corn. 

After cutting the corn off the cob, we scooped it into quart sized freezer containers. Which we then place in the freezer for eating this coming winter!! 

Corn is messy. Corn is hard work. Corn is yummy! ;)

New Facebook Page...

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Vacation attempt #2

This momma needed a break, a time of recharging and refreshing. So I decided to try vacation again. This time in an environment where the kids are comfortable and the area is relatively safe and requires less supervision then a place like the beach. 

This is the view from the back deck:

My father in law own a timeshare to a golf resort. This year they had an extra condo we could rent for a very reasonable price.

Another back deck view, this time from the second floor balcony. 

I connect with God and find peace in places just like this. There is something about just being here that is restful.

snack time...

We had worked hard to prepare for an easy week. Casseroles and easy meals were prepped and frozen. Mother's helper was hired, schedule laid out... I was looking forward to some serious down time.

Our breakfast view...

Unfortunately, my helper injured herself and was unable to come with us. So we did a quick revision of our week. But I was still looking forward to a week of recharging with just a little less relaxation.

Special treats like cranberry juice in wine goblets.

We arrive Saturday in high spirits. Unfortunately things did not go well the first two days, injured back, rattlesnakes, injured child, neighbors, angry child, rain and more rain...

Beach time...

But eventually with lots of prayer from many friends, we overcame the obstacles and still had fun. We had fun days at the beach on the lake, blowing bubbles, riding bikes and lots of fun games, USA bingo and qwerkle are our two favorites!

With a steady supply of coffee, lots of quality family down time, lots of tv time for kiddoes so momma could recharge, lots of sleeping in, eating breakfast in our pjs, snacks all day long, and lots of time on the back deck, just enjoying God's beautiful creation and this momma feels recharged and refreshed.

 Lazy summer days... I find that having a place for peaceful, quiet family interaction is so important. Moments that create happy, fuzzy feelings are so important for all kids, but even more so for thos who have experienced trauma. Trying to bring those moments into our every day chaos is not that difficult, if we are intentional.  

                                                  

Hugs from sweet Abi is a happy, fuzzy moment...

Special desserts cooked on the grill are a happy, fuzzy moment..

 One of MY favorite happy places is my deck. Dinner made on the grill and served on the picnic table is just a peaceful, happy moment. 

Everyone joins in the cooking, prepping fun...

Add some music and really good food and it becomes a fun family night with very little extra work! The kids love this as much as I do. We do it about once a week, during the summer. Simple yummy food on a beautiful summer evening...

Family: spending time together and building the bonds of attachment that will last a lifetime. We are raising the next generation. What we do today will affect not only our kids, but our grandkids and great grandkids. The moments of intentional peace, intentionally saying no to outside commitments, the moments of just "being" with our kids. It doesn't need to be great things, it doesn't need to be expensive or fancy. Just time and attention are important, relationship matters... 

The things kids say...

The things my kids say:
Me: we need to clean this pool out! It looks like a swamp!
Son: Mom, that is Cool! Can we let it go so we can pretend we are swimming in a pond.

Elizabeth cleaned out the cupboard. I come in to find all the contents on the floor in front of the cupboard and she is no where to be found.
When I call her, she pops out of the cupboard.... deep breath and make a choice. "Do I yell or laugh?"
Later when she is all done, I check her work. Complimenting her neat cupboard but questioning her method of organizing... her answer... I left room to hide when we play hide and go seek.

Later: 6 yr old friend stops by to play with the boys. Matia had just combed out her hair. It was in a big afro. Friend takes one look at her and says "Wow, you look scary!".
 (Thankfully it t was said in  way that she did not take offense)

Ten years ago... beauty from the ashes.

A long, long time ago in a not so far away land there lived a young woman who was loved by a handsome young man. They had come together from lands afar and fallen in love. He was her Prince Charming.  She, his beautiful lady (She was definitely not a princess). They had dreams... dreams of beautiful homes, vacations to far away lands...dreams of love and a life time.

Every August they made the journey to their favorite vacation spot in far away mountains, where he played golf and she spend her days by the pool. Her greatest worry was getting a nice tan, his to win at golf...

One beautiful evening they took a romantic walk around the golf course...

 They were happy to just be together, hand in hand...

Young love, full of promise...

He held her heart in his hands, she secure in his love...

They stopped by a pond, at dusk, a beautiful mist rising from the shimmery waters, breathing in the beauty of God's creation...

When suddenly he knelt before her, holding a ring in his hand:  Will you marry me?

She dropped to her knees. Yes, my love.

He presented her with the beautiful ring. A promise of his love forever...

A moment of reflection, a deep kiss...

They talked,  dreaming of a future together. forever. happily ever after.

She was marrying her Prince Charming...

Except real life never ends like the fairy tales...

3 years later, her Prince Charming became her Angel in Heaven. She was left with nothing but tears and heartache. All the dreams disappeared.

Now ten years later, she returns to the not so far away land for the annual vacation. She returns without him, as she has more times then she cares to count.

She reflects over what she has learned in 10 years, broken hearts, broken promises, tears, healing, grace, and beauty from the ashes.. When you chose to rise above the pain, to pray through the heartache, cry healing tears, then  can you make new dreams... Dreams that align with what the Heavenly Father has planned for you. 

In this journey, she become the treasured daughter of a King and the mother of 6 beautiful children. She was privileged to experience incredible miracles and be used to work for the King of Kings. Because He needs broken people for His kingdom.

God of The Impossible.

I love this song.. I love that I serve the God of the impossible. I love that God takes the incapable and makes them more then able. I love that God takes what little I have and multiplies it.

I love that God doesn't ask for great people, but great faith. 

First Day of School 2014

School is officially in session!
So I decided I wanted first day of school pictures, but because I am not  a fan of the boring, traditional pictures, I decided to do "in the moment pictures".



Lee, Grade 5  He likes his privacy... 

David Grade 4

He is  very social and moves from room to room. I allow him this freedom as long as his work gets done. It actually works better then expecting him to stay in one spot.   

Elizabeth Grade 4
She is an independent learner and works at her own pace, often working double the assignment. 

Fayth continuing Grade 2

She is easily distracted and works best if given strong boundaries and asked to stay sitting at the table or on her bed. 

I let the kids choose  2 subjects they wanted to start today.
Lee chose math (with great delight!) and reading. (he sat down and read half his textbook before I caught on to what he was doing)
David chose language arts and spelling.
Elizabeth chose the same.. but did 2 lessons on each one.
Fayth, is continuing with 2nd grade and trying hard to reach the end by the end of the year, so she worked a full load.

I love the excitement of new books. I love the new curriculum and I am glad that I seem to have overcome the dread I had at having to start school again!