I actually have a bit of time to blog!

Matt and I are currently watching the documentary "God Grew Tired of Us". It's about the "lost boys" of Sudan. It's very interesting... once we finish it I'll let you know if it's worth the rent, but so far it is very eye opening.

This weekend we helped some friends move and it just mixed so many different emotions in me. Amazement at how much stuff can be accumulated. What is considered "valuable" and needed and just how messy things are. It made me want to come home and simplify and condense my own life more. It made me so thankful for all that God has given me and how much he knows me. He knows me so intimately, and he knows my needs and desires more then anybody else. He gave me the perfect husband, for me, and three incredible boys. I love these times of recognition of blessings. It just affirms God's love for me. Also i am incredibly thankful that these friends are moving SO close to where we live right now (only 5 miles away).

I've been on this kick lately of wanting to learn how to make more things from scratch. I think it has to do with us trying to become more self sufficient. Everything we have we want to have a purpose.

I've been trying to spend less time online so posts may be few and far between. I think it's a good thing for me because the Internet can be addicting and there is always something that you can do on it. So I'm giving myself 1 hour a day on the computer. Hopefully i will be able to stick with it well!

I'm at a point right now where i feel like I'm exactly where God wants me to be, raising my boys and loving my husband. Not a lot of people can see that as a ministry but really... it is a HUGE ministry! Who raised men like Billy Graham and John Wesley? One day my hope and prayer is that my boys will grow up to do great things for the Lord. My place right now is to love them and teach them the love of the Lord through my actions and words. Also to show them what a servant of the Lord is. In serving my husband and loving my boys i am doing so much more for God then i could be doing elsewhere at this point in life. I get overwhelmed sometimes with the needs i see around me and people suffering and needing Jesus. But i know that in this season i am called home and that in that, i can also be a light for others. In doing all i can for my husband and enabling him to pursue what he feels God is calling him to (developing his business and what not), i am in turn serving the lord.

"Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men."-Ephesians 6:7

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." -Colosians 3:23-24

hmm well that's it for now.. I'm going to enjoy the quiet of my children napping and do some reading! :)

one of my favorite lines and openings to a book....

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighborhood, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered as the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters" -Jane Austin from Pride and Prejudice

and our new garden in process...

and it begins... Joshua has been improving in leaps and bounds with the social/emotional aspect of his development. He has been interacting with peers and trying to initiate conversations. Today I had a close friend over who has 4 small children very close in age to my 3. She has two girls and two boys. Her girls are 4 and 2 and her boys are 3 and 7 months. She just brought her girls over to play today and Joshua did very good playing and sharing his newly coveted pirate ship. When it was time for the girls to go he gave Tabitha (the 2 year old) a hug. They sat there for about 4 seconds hugging and then Joshua pulled back a bit and gave her a big smack on the lips. After, he proceeded to hug her more. I just about died. I thought it was all together cute, sweet and funny. Well her big sister wanted to get in on the loving to and gave Joshua a nice big hug too. She skipped out on the kiss part! :) I wish i would have had my camera and i am going to keep it nearby for the next time they come over because i really want to capture it! SO CUTE. Maybe they will get married some day... i wouldn't mind that! :)

I've really been enjoying my boys lately. They have brought much joy and I'm excited for the warmer weather so we can do more exploring!

Today was parent teacher conferences with Joshua's teachers. As one of his teachers was leaving she thanked me for working with him at home. I was kinda taken back because i wasn't sure if i should take that as a compliment or an insult. shouldn't every mom strive to raise and teach their child things? The only reason that i have him in this special program is because it helps his social development to be around peers (he does get that at home but this setting is really great) and he gets the special one on one with a speech therapist 3 times a week that i can't afford out of pocket. But if he was a "typically" developed child he would be at home with me and his little brothers. It's not that he is in school for a very long time... the longest weeks of school he has is 15 hours... but i consider the vast majority of that therapy time, because it is. Anyway sorry for the rant. I'm pretty sensitive when it comes to my parenting and schooling options and choices. I know it is only going to get harder from here.

Anyway it's late and i need some sleep. I've been reading lately, that is why i have been so absent. Currently it is pride and prejudice, next Northhanger Abby, and then Robinson Crusoe.

Goodnight for now... i shall get around to writing a deep and indepth post some time! :)

New food Friday... a little late and some elijah pics

My new cook top stove... as requested by maria...



A handsome, growing larger everyday, boy!



sleeping in the jumper....




My Little bear...

Where daily naps take place

So for new food friday i made cheesy beef spirals. It was alright and i would make it again, but it wasn't a favorite. So if you want the recipe let me know and I'll give it to you! I'm gonna save myself the typing for it right now because it wasn't as good as i was hoping.

For the past couple of days i had been talking to a dog rescue organization looking for a dog for my dad. well i called him up because i found a great one for him and low and behold today he went to the humane society and picked one up! All that work! well i hope he's happy and I'm glad that he now has a friend.

That's all i have for now.. brain is fried and I'm sleepy.. i know there is more i would like share.. maybe tomorrow when i have more inspiration

A post that i found in my draft box form a while back.. pictures!!! :)

Getting big!

Playing so hard!

My little bear

Nap time

Random

I'm addicted to Carmel corn. It is my best friend and worst enemy. I'm sending the rest to work with Matt tomorrow to chunk up the ladies there!

Matt put in a new (to us) cooktop yesterday!!!! It is wonderful and fantastic and all 4 burners work! That is so nice when i regularly make 2 different meals at a time because of allergies/food preferences.

Today was my "class" day at Joshua's school. So while i go to "class" Joshua and Daniel hang out with some teachers. They were using the PECS system with the kids like they always do and i guess that Daniel was very interested in using it also... So I'm thinking of starting it up with him. If you are interested in what the PECS system is go here.... http://www.pecs.com/WhatsPECS.htm

okay update over, i need some major sleep!

I need to take up reading again... so these are the two books on my list

Raising sons and loving it! Helping your boys become godly men. - Gary and Carrie Oliver

Pride and Prejudice -Jane Austen

The first i started last year but never had the time to finish and the second is a fun book. One of my favorites that i like to read every now and then.

I'll let you know how the boy book turns out and if it's worth the reading!

ta ta for now!

New Food Fridays

I have decided to try a new meal every Friday night and then share it with you! YUM YUM... So tonight we had Cornmeal Oven-Fried Chicken. It was tasty and i HIGHLY recommend trying this recipe.

Cornmeal oven-fried chicken

1/2 cup dry bread crumbs

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup minced fresh parsley or 4 tsp. dried parsley flakes

3/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp. onion powder

1/2 cup butter milk

3 to 4 pound chicken breast cut up (with NO skin)

1 TBSP. melted butter

IN large resealable plastic bag, combine the first nine ingredients. Place the butter milk in a shallow bowl. Dip chicken in butter milk, then add to bag, a few pieces at a time and shake to coat.

Place in a 13X9 in. baking pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes: drizzle with butter. Bake for 30-40 minutes longer or until juices run clear.

I served this with Asparagus and mashed potatoes. besides the asparagus Matt loved it! And i thought it was pretty good too!

Next week... Curried Apple Chicken... hmmmmm

well it's late so goodbye for now and see you soon!

p.s. pictures of Joshua with our Pregnant kitty...

He really loves her... it will be interesting to see how he will be with the babies

Today was a good day. It was one of those "I feel like an accomplished mother" days. Yes, my children where happy and well rested and the day was smooth. The video taping for Joshua's class went very well and they were greatly impressed with my communicating skills when it comes to my child. To check out the program the school is doing go here.... http://www.hanen.org/web/Home/HanenPrograms/MoreThanWords/tabid/78/Default.aspx
It's a very good resource for working with children on the spectrum, or any child for that matter. very good... highly recommend it.

Lately I've been really wanting citrusy things like oranges and lemons and I've been wanting to brush my teeth a lot.... hmmmmmm.... i hope this doesn't mean what it did last time. Because that would be a miracle from God (seriously... because permanent things have been done) and I'm not sure if I'm ready for one of those! Anything can happen because our God is a big God... but yeah...

Today when we walked the lake we did an extra loop... it was fabulous... I LOVE FEELING HEALTHY! WHOO HOOOO

I think our kitty is pregnant... by my calculations i am thinking we will have kittens sometime in the middle of April. I'm kind of excited!!!!

That's it for me! I've been staying up WAY to late in these past weeks so I'm going to try to get some sleep!

About 2 and a half years ago a dear friend threw me a baby shower for my second son, Daniel. At this shower she read the following story...

my five year old warrior

I watch my five year old warrior lower himself into the steaming tub where mr.bubble ministers to the wounds my son has suffered in battle today. His arms bear the scratches from the apple tree he scaled, and both knees are streaked with bloody reminders of his encounter with the sidewalk while charging on his trusty bike. Gently i towel down his bruised thighs, dotted with bites from relentless mosquitoes. With vigor I rough up his sun bleached hair and shoo him into his room where he dresses himself for bed. A story, a prayer, a hug and a kiss. My brave warrior closes his eyes, and i stand back, marveling that this long, sturdy body, lying lumpy beneath the covers, once fit in my arms and nursed at my breast. Many summer nights, just like this one, I rocked him. For hours I rocked and i sang and I prayed. Oh, how i prayed! I close his door softly. My soldier needs sleep. Tomorrow great battles will be fought... in the sandbox, on his skateboard, with the neighborhood kids. He will return to me, bloodied and bruised, and there will be so little I can do. I have no power over scraped knees and stubbed toes. But the real battle- the one not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers of the air- has already begun in his young life. And in that battle, i am the warrior. I pray. Oh, how i pray! that God will have the ultimate victory. - Robin jones Gunn

So now you know where i get my little warriors from...
I just pray that until they can wage the real battles for themselves that God will uphold them and protect them. I know he's got HUGE plans for my boys and i am so excited to see what he does through them. For now i can just pray and wait!

So tomorrow Joshua's teachers are going to come over and video tape me playing with him. It's for this new program that they are running for parents of children with special needs. It's a pretty good program and it has given me some great pointers on how to work well with Daniel... He's got a bit of a speech delay so i am using some of the tips from the program for him. There are some good pointers for Joshua but I'm actually getting way more out of it for Daniel.

Tonight i went to the fabric store, picked out some fabulous material and made a dress! I'm pretty excited to make it.. i think it will look very cute, modest, and fun! I would love to make more clothing someday when i have time! (who knows when that will be)

So were planning out garden and i am SO excited! Potatoes, radishes, green beans, pumpkins, cucumbers, zucchini... yum yum! Can't wait! We will probably start planting in a couple of weeks since spring starts a little earlier here.

I've been trying to walk "the lake" every day and it's been going well. I am determined to get healthy!!!!

That's about it for the day! Have a great night!

p.s. I LOVE THE SPELL CHECK ON THIS!

Here we go. It was one of those days where i felt like my children were escorting me right into the crazy house. Not that they were doing anything specific... i was just feeling overwhelmed with the days tasks. I try to be so strong and so tough but in reality i am weak and fragile and easily broken. I don't deserve to be their mother, but they still love me anyway. Elijah was just crying and crying because he was so tired. I was tired of holding him so i put him down for a couple of minutes to regain my self control and every time i would walk by him he would stop crying and just look at me with sad eyes. When i would walk away from him he would start crying again. I was so grumpy... it just amazed me that he wanted to be held despite my grumpiness. Joshua took my grumpiness like a champ. I suppose he is use to it by now and knows that the best way to handle mom needing a break is to give her a break. I know this is a short season... i try to remind myself to enjoy them while they are young.

I'm going to be transferring my blogging life over unto this sight and from xanga. So I'll post a link on xanga and you xanga people can keep up with me here. It's time... I've been putting it off until now because i just didn't want to navigate a new blog site.