What We've Been Up To...

This summer is flying by. We stayed in a hotel over the July 4th weekend because of this...

Our bathroom floor has been sinking in since before we moved in. We had to have it replace before it got so bad we fell through. This meant we were going to be without a bathroom for the entire day maybe two. I used this as an excuse for a mini-vacation here in town. We stayed at the Comfort Inn and Suites that had an indoor pool. The kids spent a lot of time doing this....

Michael did enjoy the pool as long as you were holding him so that meant no good pictures of him.

and this...

Let's just say since we haven't had cable or commercial TV since the kids were born, going to hotel they spend a lot of time watching PBS Kids and Disney Channel. It always confirms to us why we don't have cable TV. When your kids have to leave the room just so you can surf to find something decent for them to watch, that's not something we want in our home. Although I have to admit, it is very tempting...I love the HGTV, old movies and stuff like that. But it's better for me since I'd spend more time watching than anything else.

We had a pretty good weekend. I'll post pictures after we get our bathroom painted.

I'm apologizing once again for the quality of pictures, hopefully I'm going to go get a new one soon that we'll take outdoor pictures.

Pics

Michael just turned 4 1/2 months old. He has been turning over on his stomach for a few weeks now. He can turn over front to back and back to front. He started eating rice cereal recently. Overall he is growing like a weed. We are able to go to the store now without him howling, but we usually have to carry him for most of the time.

I love my babies!

Life is what you make it!

My kids really amaze me sometimes. We've only been out of school since May 22, right after that we had company for 3 days and then Daniel came down with what we thought was allergies but probably was a cold. Tera has been under the weather since last night. Well, that is all besides the point. Usually when the kids have a day off like Saturday, they expect us to come up with something for them to do. JP has started telling them Mommy has the day off on Saturday, so come up with your own fun. I guess the lesson stuck.

This week the kids have been making their own fun. I found a book called ACT IT OUT which has a bunch of drama and puppet stuff in it. I directed them to an easy skit, they came up with their own costumes and are rehearsing (well they were a little more enthusiastic about the costumes than they were about rehearsing but it's a start). I told them if they practice this week they can work on props next week. They are so excited about putting it together.

Daniel decided to make a rod puppet, he found in the book. Tera followed suit. She is making a Robin Hood rod puppet and Daniel is making Maid Marian. (Tera had a tiny felt Robin Hood hat, already) They have finished the heads and faces and now just need to make the body and clothes.

Daniel has also been working on shadow puppets. We have a comedy video of a guy who tells stories with shadow puppets. That intrigued Daniel. He made a screen out of tinkertoys and typing paper. He got his flashlight and starting making shadow puppets.

This afternoon I found them trying to make spaceships out of a box and some kind of toy set Tera has that is like clickits. It really goes to show kids come up with more fun on their own sometimes. Maybe all this creativity will continue throughout the summer. Wouldn't that be awesome?

I'll post some pics later with the finished projects.

Sacrifice, Seasons, and Choices

These things have been going through my mind this morning. Sometimes being a one income family is very hard. Everytime my husband makes a late night run to Wal-mart to pick up essentials, I am reminded of this. Last night he actually asked to see the receipt before paying but it was all there correctly priced. We have one car with over 200,000 miles on it. My husband has been needed some new sandals this summer, but has put it off because he hasn't wanted to pay the extravagent prices for something that will last. Our kids aren't doing swim lessons, day camps or other costly activities this summer. My husband and I both have degrees and have lots of friends from college who make a lot of money. Sometimes I have to admit I get a little jealous. Maybe even covet a little. I'm always reminded though we aren't behind on our bills and our car is paid off. That is little consolation at times. It would be easier probably to send my kids to public school which would be free and Michael to a day care- there is one just up the street. I could get a job and help ease the burden. That is where the word sacrifice comes in. I heard sacrifice defined as "giving up something so that someone else's life is better". I know there are arguments about whether or not my kids would benefit by some of the extras I mentioned, but I believe that my staying at home truly outweighs any extra activities we could afford otherwise. We sacrifice so that in the long and short run our children's lives will be better.

I look across the road at our neighbor's house. They are both retired and spend an enormous amount of time on their meticulous lawn. It is beautiful-it is depressing. We are trying to have a small vegetable garden but everytime we go out Michael starts howling. You don't get much work done when you have to stop and feed a baby. I am reminded of seasons of life. We are in that season where our kids are the garden we are cultivating. They are the manicured lawn we are pruning and shaping. One day our physical lawn might be manicured, but just not right now. We have more important things to do.

This post is certainly not meant to put down 2 income families or people with manicured lawns, our lives are a matter of choices we make. The choices we have made for our family may seem odd to others but they are ours to make. Even though we believe strongly our lifestyle is what God has called us to, it is not always easy. I am thankful I have a wonderful spouse who believes the same things I do about family. I am reminded of our two moms who were single trying to raise kids on their own. I have a supporting spouse there to pick up the slack. Garrison Keillor says "Life is what you make it". I am being reminded everyday to live the life I've chosen without looking around at others for approval or acceptance. It's all about sacrifice, seasons and choices.

Happy Baby

It has been hard to get smiling pictures of Michael, but for all you grandparents out there- here you go. Isn't he so adorable? I'm trying to get him acquainted with the high chair because we start his first solid food in the next few weeks. Time is flying.

Cousins

We had a great weekend filled with kids. Uncle John, Aunt Christy, Nate and Vayda came to visit. Lots of eating, laughing and refereeing going on. It was fun to see how much all the kids are growing up. Nate and Vayda are Tera, Daniel and Michael's only first cousins so we're sure they are all going to be the best of pals.

Recent Pics of Michael

Michael turned 3 months old yesterday. He is not always so serious just when I take the pictures. He is beginning to laugh and coo a lot. He is such a wonderful baby who loves kisses.

End of School Pictures

We have taken a lot of pictures of Michael lately so today I took end of the school year pictures. I can't believe how these two have grown. Daniel is still a ham when it comes to taking a picture.

Woodworking Projects

We just finished up school yesterday, but last week the kids worked on a woodworking project from Home Depot that Aunt Christy's dad got for them. They made Sailboats/Catamarans. They did great with the hammer-I busted my thumb. As you can see by the pictures, we had a hard time getting genuine smiles. They are such hams. The picture on the left is the finished project.

hey, hey we're the Monkees

"Hey, Hey we're the Monkees and people say we monkey around...." That's our theme song right now.

We are winding down this school year and my brain is winding down with it. JP went to 5 days again (for now). We are battling ants along with the rest of East TN. Our baby is finally sleeping for 10 hours at a time at night- too bad we don't get to sleep during those same 10 hours. He konks out at 7:30, we don't get in bed until at least 11:30 but oh well. Tera and Daniel are down to the last 2 1/2 weeks of school and driving us crazy. We are trying to get our house ready for company. I am starting to prepare for next school year and for our Monday Fun classes. I am teaching 2 music classes this fall and 2 in the spring. It seems all we do is go to the grocery store and we are always running out of bread. Life is really getting back to normal but I'm realizing we're the ones that aren't normal. "Hey, Hey we're the Monkees..."

Pictures

Michael- getting bigger everyday

Michael's thinking Tera's holding him just a bit too tight.

Easter 2009

(I didn't count so JP and Tera weren't looking or smiling, sorry)

Easter 2009

A taste of spring.

These are flowers all from our yard. The lady who owned the house before has flower beds everywhere that we get to enjoy. They are in antique milk bottles found in the basement.

I went to the Doctor today for my final Post-Partum appointment. My blood pressure was 102/80 which is awesome. So I can stop taking my blood pressure medicine. I have to take my blood pressure next Monday and call them with it. If it stays low without the medicine, I'm done. My cholesterol was just a tad high, so I am having a recheck in 3 months. It was 212- the HDL was good but the LDL was too high. I have to watch my diet and exercise. My iron looked good, now I don't have to take those pills either. Thankful to be done with pills and doctor's visits for myself. Ready to hit the hiking trail.

Weekly Update- April 3

Michael- 6 weeks today

We still can't figure out how to get that hair to lay down.
5 weeks- Pooped out from all that eating and sleeping.
(sorry for the blurry pic)

This has been a week of ups and downs. The downers have been concerning my health. I have had a hard time getting back to normal this time around. The doctor put me on blood pressure medication Monday for a month to get my blood pressure back to normal. It has been consistently in the high 130s and 140s for about a month. Monday it was 156. I have had to go to the doctor every week which is never fun. The kids had to miss Monday Fun because my appointment took so long. This really bothered me, but I had no control over it. The really hard part is the lack of control. I like to be in control of situations but when it comes to health sometimes there is nothing you can do different. That's hard. I know what I am going through is very minor compared to a lot of people. Anyway, I am getting better and go back to the doctor next Wednesday.

Monday is the last day of Monday Fun for the kids. We don't stay every week for lunch but are planning on it this week since it's the last time until fall. Hopefully, we will be able to get together with some other families for play dates so the kids can make some new friends. We are going to a play tomorrow night...Treasure Island. Tera and Daniel are really looking forward to it.

Michael is doing great, he gained 2 lbs. when he went for his 1 month check-up. Last night, he woke up once after 4 hours and then slept for another 5 hours. JP gets up for the first feeding every night, so I was able to sleep for almost 9 hours. I wish I could say I feel like a new woman, but maybe after a week of 9 hour nights I'll be able to say that.

JP is working today which is great since he hasn't worked a Friday since the end of January. We are hoping this means we are close to an end of 4 day weeks. 3 day weekends are nice and we will miss them very much but full paychecks are even nicer. And yes we have missed those very much too. God has provided all our needs. This has been the first time we have had a baby without having multiple showers, but both sides of our families have stepped in over and beyond what we could have expected. They all have helped us so much and we cannot stop feeling blessed for having such wonderful families. We thank them all so much more than words could express.