Cleaning Out the Jungle

The other day while K and I were cleaning out the "jungle" between the house and the garage we came across a few surprises.

As I was shoveling the weeds and grass out and throwing the big chunks of grass to the "trash" pile, K found a surprise. As I cleared out the grass, he tells me, "Look mom, a snake." Of course, as I turned around to see what he was talking about, I quickly noticed that he was holding a snake in his hands. My immediate response was one of panic because it wasn't a green or black garden snake. I'm typically not scared of snakes, but when I saw my 4 yo holding what could be a poisonous snake with his bare hands, I kind of panicked and yelled at him to drop it. Drop it, he did. It was when he dropped it that I realized it was a copperhead. Much to my delight it was already did.

As K continued to carry the dead snake around and I continued cleaning out the garden, I came across an egg. I immediately thought it was a snake egg and was excited about "hatching" it or dissecting it if it were already dead. As I slowly set the egg on the ground, the animal inside came out so quickly that I couldn't figure out what it was. Well, it wasn't a snake, but one of the smallest lizards I have ever seen. Luckily it stayed on the gardening tool long enough for me to take pics of it. The lizard on the handle and the broken egg is under the tool on the left.

Look mom! No Hands!

This is why we're putting him in gymnastics, which starts on August 4. He's done a back flip before, but I can't get him to do it again.

I DID IT!

Look at her laughing. Once she realized she could get on the table, she was excited. She was so cute. Getting down was another story. That, she had trouble with.

Playing in the Rain

This girl LOVES the water and he just loves playing in the rain.

A Day Worth Sharing

Although today didn't start off too good, it started early and had some great highlights I wanted to share. I refuse to take my children anywhere when they are being disobedient and disrespectful at home, no matter how inconvenient it is (at the moment), therefore we finally went to the grocery store 2 hours after I decided to go.

K did pretty good while we were in the store. He was very respectful and obedient once I made him eat some egg whites and chicken nuggets. Gotta have that protein!

After we left the store, we went home and found M still sleeping. He's been working 16 hour days and doesn't get home until a.m. hours. So, when he wakes up at noon, it's not because he's lazy, but b/c he's been working hard. Shortly after we got home, he woke up and we were able to hang out as a family for a little bit. It was nice.

About an hour or so later, he left and the rest of us watched a movie in the home theater. Well, L and I mostly hung out in the living room until her nap, but K and Victoria watched a movie.

A few hours later, we got ready and ran some errands before going to a birthday party. I have to say it was one of the best birthday parties I've been to. Thanks Antoinette! As soon as we got there K asked to change into his swimsuit, put his life jacket and goggles on, and jumped in. NO hesitation! That is huge, especially since he did it without me having to get in the pool with him. L was just as excited. I ended up chasing her around the pool almost the whole night. That girl loves water. She would hang on to the side and let her bottom and legs get wet, and then when she realized she couldn't touch, she would crawl back out. AMAZING! I was hoping she would let go at least once so she would get a little fear of the water, but that didn't happen. The only time she really went under was when she was playing on the steps. I reacted too fast though. As soon as she went under, I grabbed her and stood her up. She got out of the pool, but got right back in. They had a GREAT time!

The best part of the party wasn't watching my two little ones grow up a little more and become a little more independent. As proud as that made me, it was the new friend that Victoria made that made my heart smile the biggest. She was a little reluctant to talk to her at first. I think I did most of the talking, but when I had to chase after L, luckily Vanessa, a fellow homeschooler, started doing the talking. Victoria was very reserved at first and Vanessa actually walked away at one point thinking Victoria wasn't really interested in talking to her. Lucky for Victoria, Vanessa has a very smart mom that encouraged her to try again. Vanessa tried again and the two were together for the next 2.5 hours. On the way home, Victoria told me that she had shared some very personal things with Vanessa and that Vanessa prayed for her. When I asked her how it made her feel, she said, "Good." Finally, a friend that Victoria has outside of my friends' kids that she has something in common with and will be a good example.

K's New Swing

M made K a tree swing the other day and K loves it. His daddy can swing him "super high." The pleasures of being a kid again. Trust me when I say... I did get my turn! ;-)

L's New Dress

My wonderful mother-in-law asked to keep the younger two kiddos for a few days. At first it was awkwardly quiet at home because M was working nights, but I was able to get SO much done. I do have to say, it's a lot different being home without the kiddos than it is being on vacation without the kids. I missed them terribly and as MandyMom put it, I heard "phantom giggles and cries" in the background all night long.
While my kidd were at my mother-in-law's she made the time to finish this dress fro L. Isn't it precious?

Fig Tree

When we moved into the house last year, we had no idea how fruitful it would be.... Last summer K found out he liked figs and ate them right off the fig tree and he ate the only 3 satsumas that we had. This year, although the satsuma tree didn't produce anything, we found blueberry trees, blackberry bushes, picked more figs than I've ever seen in my life, and started a garden. Not only did K eat a lot of figs, but we made a few new friends that drove over an hour to our house to pick some, and we gave over seven gallon bags full of figs to friends. Next year, I'll learn how to preserve them and actually make something with them.

4th of July

We (except M b/c had to work) spent 4th of July with some friends of ours from church that live less than a mile away. They had invited some other neighbors over and was a little worried we might not know anyone... that didn't prove to be the case. M and I had met one couple the night before at the movies, another couple is actually L's Sunday school teachers from church, and strange enough, I had met the husband from the other couple over 5 years ago when I worked at the local gym. So, instead of knowing no one except the host family, I knew everyone. They are all wonderful couples and all of our kids are close in age. We had a good time and the kids had a blast.
she didn't like riding as much, I think she felt confined - Miss Independent for ya!

Raise a Child In the Way He Should Go

The Bible is very clear about how to raise a child.

It tell us in Deuteronomy 6:5-7 that we should "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your heart. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." It does not say we are to love our children with all our heart, soul, and strength, but to love God. Yes, we are to love our children, but we are instructed to love God and to teach our children His commands, not ours.

It's the Lord's commands that should be upon our hearts because the "...things that come out of the mouth come from the heart..." Matthew 15:18

We are supposed to "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." Proverbs 22:6

"Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish him with the rod, he will not die. Punish him with the rod and save his soul from death." Proverbs 23:13-14


So, what happens when you, as a parent, don't love the Lord, your God, with all your heart and all your soul, and all your strength? What happens when you don't impress His commandments on your heart and teach them to you children every opportunity you get? What happens when you don't train a child in the way he should go, but let them decide which way they should go? What happens if you withhold discipline (with a rod) from a child?

The Bible and life tells us and shows us very clearly what will happen. It says in Matthew that you will teach what's in your heart. If you have hate, bitterness, and anger in your heart, your child will have the same things impressed upon his heart. He will have hate, bitterness, and anger to you, the parent, and to anyone that has authority. If you as the parent do not have a Heavenly authority, why does your child need an earthly authority? Why does your child need someone to give them guidance if you're not seeking it from the correct source?

He will seek love from alternative sources; friends, smoking, drinking, sex... He will seek out anyone or anything that will provide temporary "feel goods", love that is not real, sex that can and might lead to being a single young parent, or pornography.

In the book of Proverbs, it tells us that when he becomes an adult, he will return to the way he was trained as a child. Do you want your child to be bitter and angry? Do you want your child to think that extramarital affairs or O.K.? Do you want your child to be an alcoholic and to not care about anyone but themselves or do you want your child to know love? I'm not talking about the kind of love you have for your cat or dog or what you might think you have for your spouse. I'm talking about unconditional love. The kind of love that is patient and kind. The love that does not envy, or boast and is not proud. The kind of love that is not rude or self-seeking. The kind of love that is not easily angered or keeps no records of wrong. Do you want your child or would you like to honestly know and have the kind of love that does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth and ALWAYS protects, trusts, hopes, and perseveres? The kind of love that NEVER fails.

No matter how hard we try to teach our children this kind of love, the only way they are going to learn it is if we have it. The ONLY way someone can have and experience the unconditional love they are looking for in their friends, in the chatrooms that should be sensored for adult eyes only, or in the pornographic pictures they post on the internet or give to their friends is by knowing and truly trusting that Jesus, son of God, died on a cross for all of our sins. It is only through knowing Jesus and accepting Him in our lives that we can truly know and have the unconditional love that we all desire. He is the only way we can give that love to our children.

There was a time where we could pray in school. Now, kids can text nude pictures in schools. There was a time we could talk about God in school. Now, kids talk about having sex and wanting to get or being pregnant. If you're not teaching your children about the Heavenly God, the world will teach them about it's gods.

Sugar Shock!

I do have to say that controlling the diet has been a little hard. I like my candy and sweets and I know K does too. He especially like popsicle on a hot summer day. Unfortunately, he's no longer able to have them until after 6 p.m., when he is least effected by all the sugar.

For breakfast, they have boiled egg whites or scrambled eggs or oatmeal and boiled egg whites, or whole wheat pancakes. I try not to give them pancakes too much because of the sugar in the syrup (I haven't bought sugar-free syrup yet). For snacks, they get frozen or fresh fruit, Chex mix, Triscuits, or wheat pretzel sticks. They get to snack almost all day so he's blood sugar won't drop too much. For dinner, they have what we have and then he has to eat again before he goes to bed. It's very time consuming and it seems that all he does is eat, but it make such a difference in his attitude.

For more information about blood sugar and mood swings caused by sugar, read Sugar Shock!. It's a great book that my husband, M, has read and I just started reading that puts a lot of things into perspective and has taught me a lot already.

Beauty of God's

K is such a blessing, just as all children all, but as of lately, we've been having a difficult time with him. I've heard from several people that 3s are harder than 2s, but something happens at 4 and they usually become a kinder, gentler child. Well, that wasn't the case for us. 4s were about to drive me nuts, almost to the point of tears. There was one day that I called M crying b/c I had no idea how to handle him or what to do. He was having a fit of rage with the whole pinching, scratching, screaming, yelling, "I don't like you", and "You're Mean" comments. I was beside myself. After weeks of praying and talking to M, I decided to try to cut sugar and sweets from his diet and MAKE SURE he was always well fed. Guess what??? I realized K might be hypoglycemic and he might not be able to control the anger fits, but that I could. Now, the only time he has fits or really gets angry is when he hasn't eaten a good meal or he has too much sugar and not enough protein. Being patient and waiting for the answer is so rewarding. There's nothing like having my sweet and thoughtful son back. It's days like the one below, where he comes inside to give me a "surprise", a flower, another beauty of God's given to me from a gift from God.

I love my family and the daily surprises and reminders of love they give.

Bathroom Remodel

While the girls are away on their vacations, we (M) is remodeling their bathroom. I'm helping in the sense that I'm tearing down the wallpaper and keeping the younger two occupied. Here's what he's done so far....

Yes, we got rid of the pink bathtub and toilet.. it's just not our style