It's Been Awhile

 It's almost Christmas, boy how time flies! My children are entertaining themselves, well no the TV is doing that job and the house is somewhat quiet so I decided to stop write up a quick post. I obviously am not great at consistency, but blogging has not been a priority. Lets see Nate aka Curly recently  lost his first official tooth! He had his front two top teeth pulled over a year ago, so I'm not counting those. So now he has 3 holes in his smile =)! Nate will be turning 6 next week! I can't believe it! Baby Boy aka Joshua will be 3 next month, he is VERY talkative, very sweet and quite a handful or two. Madeline & PJ are loving their school and PJ has even been talking on the phone with his friends. Now Nate's complaining he's bored and only wants to do something fun, so I better run. More later, whenever that might be =).

Broken Arms & Happy Faces

Well to tell the truth I probably didn't need to use plurals, particularly not twice, as there is only one broken arm around here for the moment!

 No need to worry, he's as happy as can be, except for the part where he can't run, jump, climb or ride his scooter!

 

And ocassionaly he gets a crazy itch that he freaks out about (I know I would too!) Luckily that orange thing is waterproof so if he gets and itch he sprays water down it and that usually does the trick!

If your wondering how the damage was done well he fell off a...............bed! I wasn't home, but rumor has Baby Boy fell on top of him to, then one story said that PJ pushed him and well somehow it got broken! So don't do tricks off your bed!

Then Sings My Soul Saturdays

Needtobreathe singing Signature of Divine ~ one of my favorite bands (just ask my kids) singing about our Glorious God ~Yahweh 
Turn it Up =)
Click on the link up there to go visit Amy for some more great songs this Saturday!  And come back tomorrow to find out which one my kids broke their arm.



Cathedrals have tried in vain


To show the image of your face.

But we are, by your design,

The signature of divine.



We'll always sing your name.

Forever and today.



Yahweh, Yahweh...

Great is your glory when you go before me

Oh, we sing...

Holy, Holy...

Your ways are lovely. So high above me.

Yahweh



The fortunes of kings and queens

Are wasted chasing what we've seen.

Cause we are, by your reprieve,

The beauty framed by your suffering.



We'll always sing your name.

Forever and today.



Yahweh, Yahweh...

Great is your glory when you go before me

Oh, we sing...

Holy, Holy...

Your ways are lovely. So high above me.

Yahweh



Take me, and pull me through.

Cause I can't move without you.

I won't leave you alone, you say.

It will be okay.



Yahweh, Yahweh...

Great is your glory when you go before me

Oh, we sing...

Holy, Holy...

Your ways are lovely. So high above me.

Yahweh.

Yahweh, Yahweh...

Great is your glory when you go before me

Oh, we sing...

Holy, Holy...

Your ways are lovely. So high above me.

Yahweh



Ancient of Days...

Yahweh!

Sharing Time

So I'm feeling really happy that I've been taking more pictures lately. Unfortunately I'm having a tough time sharing them. I went to upload a bunch the other day and all but one dissappeared. I used to use Windows Live Writer, but I'm using hubby's computer and he doesn't want me downloading anything else, evidently I already gave him a virus, that sounds awful, LOL!
So I'm going to see if I can find a few choice pics to share with you =)
By the way I can't stand having the date on the bottom of the pics, but my hubby thinks it's wonderful. I doubt you see it in many future pics ;)

My Curly Nay Nay with a gun!

BabyBoy driving the neighbors dead Barbie Jeep (with another neighbor inside),
 he wouldn't get out!

Baby Boy's drawing on the sidewalk of his potty seat, I thought that was hilarious!

Sid the Science Kid

My Baby Boy loves Sid the Science Kids and so does Curly!  Two of A Kind is having a giveaway to win a Sid the Science Kid by Playskool! Today is the last day to enter! Good Luck!

Meringue Cookies and More

I'm tired, well no wonder it's midnight on a Friday night I suppose I should be sleeping. I just made the most perfect meringue cookies using a modified version of t recipe. I didn't use candy canes as I had none and I added a touch of orange extract. I think I should of cooked them a bit longer though as the middles are a bit chewy. For me an  hour and half was long enough to wait. The last time I tried meringue cookies I never got my 'batter' stiff enough, so I was pleased these turned out. I hour and half was long enough to wait. The last time I tried meringue cookies I never got my 'batter' stiff enough, so I was pleased these turned out. I just let my whisk attachment go for about 15 minutes (or maybe more I was multi-tasking) and wha-lah beautiful stiff meringue goo! his
Speaking of goo PJ got some super nifty goo at cubscouts tonight called Area 51 Ooze, it is a really cool slime that is way above par in the slime ooey, gooey, slime world! It glows in the dark and isn't sticky!

So we had a great Labor Day weekend and I'll be sharing pics as soon as I find what my sweet hubby did with the camera cord! That's what I get it for leaving it on his desk!

Well since all the kiddos are sleepin I guess I should too, tata for now!

School, Rain, & Giveaways

Oh my goodness, the rain here is unrelenting lately! My shirt is still wet from an encounter with it this morning. I took Curly to school! Wish I knew how to share my pictures off my phone, but I don't. I took a picture of him with wet hair and the rain pouring in the background! It was his first day of Kindergarten, he did go to preschool last year for 3 hours a day, but this is full days at a different school. He wanted me to walk him  in and of course I did, despite the downpour! I only have a small umbrella and I was trying to keep it over me and Curly, so poor Baby Boy was drenched by the time we made it in. Did I mention their were huge lines of people just waiting to park? The sky looked light night and the only good thing I can think about the rain is there was no lightning! Curly seemed fine with the whole school thing, perhaps not real comfortable, but okay, unfortunately he didn't know anybody, but he will soon!
Sissy and PJ had their first day yesterday, Sissy seemed downright terrified to go to her new school. They are at the same charter school together, he's in 4th and she's in 6th. So after her being a nervous wreck the night before and morning of, she was fine by the time school got out. I think her first comment was 'it was boring'. But she made a new friend and found some fun things to tell me about. She is switching classes like regular middle school, but only 4 times and  her whole class stays together. PJ is still in the elementary part so he doesn't switch classes, he is in a big room that has two classes it in a 3rd/4th and a 4th/5th, which is technically his class. He said there was only boys at his table and he made friends with all of them (which probably means he talked to them).  I'll post an update on school in a week or two or maybe sooner!

Don't forget to read my review and enter my giveaway for The Heart Mender! Also I just entered a giveaway over at Two of  Kind, Working on a Full House for a Flip SlideHD Video Camera! Click on the words and you can enter too, if you want to go buy one you can visit here! Also her post today has a whole list of giveaways you can enter!

The Heart Mender (A Story of Second Chances) by Andy Andrews + Giveaway

Update: The winner of The Heart Mender by Andy Andrews is Melissa M. Congratulations Melissa you should have an email!

The Heart Mender (A Story of Second Chances)
by Andy Andrews

This book is an endearing tell based on real events, what you would call historical fiction. A German sailor from 1942  finds himself washed up on the Florida coast. What follows is a beautiful but short story of who finds him and how relationships can cross all sorts of barriers, plus a bit of adventure thrown in. Surrounding this tale is a separate one, which tells of the finding of  relics and uncovering of bits of the truth, that help tell the historical parts.
While not extremely deep or developed I still highly enjoyed the story. I was also able to share it with my eleven year old daughter who liked it as well. I would recommend this book as a quick read to anyone looking for some enjoyment that is fairly wholesome and uplifting.

Thomas Nelson provided me with a complimentary copy of this book, plus one to give away to one of my readers! Just leave any comment on this post and I will pick a winner randomly after I close comments on August 31st. For an extra entry blog about this giveaway and link back to me, leave a link to your post in your second comment.

Lies and Poop

So I lied...... Evidently I've not been here for quite some time. So am I back? Well that remains to be seen, but at least I'm here temporarily.

Let me tell you about life!

I've still got 4 kids and 1 husband and a dog and 2 guinea pigs. 

It's summer (see that nice summer scene at top) and there is no oil on our beaches that we can see at least. 

We've spent a ton of time in the pool this summer and I've got water in my ear to prove it. PJ is swimming without floaties this summer and is a regular old swimmer now. Nate desperately wants to learn and can swim under water, but can't keep himself up very good without floaties. Joshy swims quite well with his floaties (and usually an extra flotation vest) and I've got no intentions of trying to teach this summer, though I am working on getting him to go under water. He always says "dat cared me" when I take him under real quick. 

And on that note I've got to say how cute my little stinker is and yes he is a stinker! He had fun with a permanent marker on the wall  today. He has no problem admitting what he does wrong. 'Did you bite your brother?' yeah he says back or nods his head (of course at that point I would discipline him). His speech is so cute right now and I know before long he will be talking fully. Right now some of the things he says that are so cute is his 'yeah' he says all the time. It sounds just like that too. I'll see if I can get some video to put on here. I also love the way he says 'ti-ckle me'  he says the word tickle like it's two words. Baby Boy is not potty trained my any means. I've really got to work on that, he doesn't have much bladder control that I can tell, but if I'd tried more I'm sure I could have him pooping on the potty (aren't you glad I shared that?) as he has a few times! So let's see he is a pretty good eater, though I'm wondering if I'm already messing that up as I've not been introducing enough new foods on a regular basis and now when I offered a plum today (which we don't usually get) he wanted nothing to do with it.  

And let's see Curly is doing good, as noted above about swimming, he eats okay, better than his older brother anyway. Yet he is still my tiny Nater tot, I'm curious to see how he compares to his class mates this fall, he will be staring kindergarten, can you believe that? Nope me neither. He has the hardest time recognizing numbers. So I've been drilling him on that. He only gets in my bed early in the morning most nights (as opposed to sooner). I think we'll probably cut his hair short before school starts. 

PJ is growing up slowly. Really can't believe he's 9 sometimes! He is as picky as ever! But still manages to be a healthy weight. He still gets in our bed at night almost every night, but he is able to go to sleep on his own (he had some issues with this last fall). He is really so sweet to his littlest brother, it's so cute, oh Baby Boy says PJ like AJ. Baby Boy loves him back and is always demanding his attention. PJ still plays his games, we just downloaded Chess on the Wii today and he beat me already. 

Sissy is getting too old to be called Sissy, she had a birthday this month and is now 11! She's starting to get to the "I'm old enough to do that" age. And it's hard because she is our only girl and the oldest so she gets more responsibility, but also more privilege, but I've had to watch that I don't give her too much. She is still really helpful, but can also be quite sassy. She has recently started shaving (shh don't tell her I told you) and hasn't yet cut herself. I guess razors and cream are better than when I started. In fact I'm not sure we used shaving cream, I really can't remember. 

So that's enough for now I promise I'll TRY to come back soon! 

Hope everyone else is having a great summer!!!

Still Around

I'm still around a little bit. For awhile, before we moved, I had my internet 'plugged in' so it worked better and I could visit blogs w/out having to reset my modem multiple times. But the location of my desk versus the router doesn't much allow for that now, so I'm back to having most blogs time out my connection. Anyways, I've been working and I'm unaccustomed to what that means for my life. The work in itself is not hard or stressful, it's just managing the time I'm not working and having any energy left at the end of the day. Also it means I'm barely seeing my hubby at all. Anyways, I'll be back sometime this week to post a few more posts, that might be a bit more interesting than this rambling. TaTa for now!

No Time

Well I've got so much to say & so little time write, Okay I guess I just don't make the time. But anyways, I'm going to work tomorrow morning for the first time in a LONG time outside of the house. I'm sure it will be fine & dandy, I'm not too worried, it's only temporary work for a few months. So just pray the day goes well and that hubby does fine with the kiddos ALL day, as that's long for him! Hope everyone has a wonderful Mother's day! I already got some great gifts from my kiddos! Flowers and sculptures and cards and CDs, OH MY! Nigh Nigh!

Rub a Dub-Dub….

Three boys in a tub!

and one on the potty!

He’s clapping for himself and that’s marker on his arm! He is not potty trained by a long shot, but we are slowly working on it. He won’t use the little frog potty we have, only the big potty! Curly told me he had to go potty yesterday and Baby Boy said “No, me potty” and ran and sat down and immediately pooped on the potty! He’s pooped twice on the potty in the past couple of days and once on the carpet! However the pee thing is just a little everywhere! A little in the potty, a little on the rug and well  plenty in a diaper or pull up! I tried buying the pull ups  where he liked the design and they say ‘cool when wet’, but he does not care about that. Any ideas? I know I probably just need to let him stay naked for awhile, but……. well I’m sure he’ll get trained sooner or later!

Masquerade

Well my not so little girl is getting older everyday! She went to the Daddy & Me dance this weekend for Girl Scouts, she wore her new tennis shoes  with an old dress. The theme was Masquerade, hence the mask!  She is letting her hair get really long and does NOT want to cut it! Isn’t she beautiful?

What's He Really Thinking? by Paula Rinehart

Well I guess Paula's been busy, I know I needed to come write my review of this book I read a little while ago, and then I was looking at Bloom Book Club and their new book for spring, well it's by Paula Rinehart and I was thinking I heard that name before and then five minutes later I decided to get this review written and I realize she wrote this book!
What's He Really Thinking?: 
How to Be a Relational Genius with the Man in Your Life
by Paula Rinehart


I thought this book was very insightful into the minds of men in general, sometimes I feel like my man is a special case and all the rules don't apply to him (does everyone think this?) There were lots of wonderful insights, things that were easy to relate to and plenty to make me smile. I love how she talked about our influence on men, and she gave many useful examples of how to talk with the men in our lives, while I mainly thought about my hubby while reading this, you could take much of this and apply it to a son, dad, brother or any other man. If you are having trouble understanding your man or just want to get a bit more insight on them then it might be worth it for you to check it out! This book won't solve all your problems but it is nonetheless interesting and helpful!I would give it 4 out of 5 stars.
This book was given to me to review by BookSneeze! Check them out!

Friday Fragments

- I got a night off from all 4 of my kids this week - thank you mom & dad

-I desperately need a bathing suit so I can swim w/my kids (not in my clothes)

- I stopped drinking soda 2 weeks ago now- hooray for me!

- Spring break is almost over & I'm not ready for that, where did the time go??

- I started working out again yesterday, does that count ? We've moved closer to the Y that my kids love the play area, the one by my old house Baby Boy would just scream when I left him, this one he runs to go play!

-I bought some cool wall stick ons at the dollar tree yesterday, if I had my camera handy I'd show you a picture!

Finally

It's finally spring break! I'm so happy to have the kids out of school for the week & not have to worry about all the back & forth and just try & settle into this apartment. The weather has been great lately so we expect to be able to swim & maybe head to the beach one day! Hopefully I'll get some pictures this week! Tata for now!

Good Friday

And it's a good Friday indeed! My hubby was telling Sissy before school today all about the story of Jesus being sent to the cross and why it happened. He is a much better story teller than I. I was so proud of him for his sincerity and taking the time out in the morning to do this and I was proud of my daughter who had tears in her eyes.

It's Been Awhile...

I'm still alive, we are in the middle of moving & many exciting milestones and changes in our lives.
Baby Boy is getting talkative & loves to scribble and draw pictures of "mamadaddy" he also has graduated to a toddler bed after he started 'hopping' in and out his crib like he was the Easter bunny!


That's it for now, leaving you w/a shot of my 3 Boys and I'm off to go pack some more!

Two Years Old

My Baby Boy is hardly a baby anymore! He turned two years old last week! I can’t believe how time flies. He is such a little pistol, literally runs around and shoots you with his hands and waits for you to play dead. I guess that’s what happens when you have two older brothers! He is trying to talk and says quite a bit that I understand. Tonight he came over to me after having some graham crackers and said something like ewhme, which  after the second time I realized meant Juice Me, which of course means he wanted some juice. I then tell him to say please may I have some juice whereupon he  rubs his chest furiously and smiles while running towards the kitchen!  He uses the         me form for many things, potty me (no he’s not potty trained), milk me, eat me, out me, daddy me, Elmo me, that is his preferred manner of talking.  And he loves his Elmo and friends, though he does enjoy some other characters and toys to!  He like Thomas the Train somewhat so I dragged out Thomas toys for him.  He will see a Thomas DVD (PJ was a big Thomas fan) and ask me to put it on, then quickly turns around and wants Elmo on.

Anyways here are a few shots on his birthday, we didn’t have a party, just some cupcakes =)!

Yes, I should have fixed the red eyes but I didn’t, wanted to show you how much he enjoyed those cupcakes despite his initial grumpiness.

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did not just copy that coded intro, no way, not me! Surely if I did it would be because I do NMM every week and can’t come with something original, not because I’ve not blogged in so long I forgot how!

I didn’t already publish a post for tomorrow, because if I had that would seem like a miracle or something.

I’m not going to leave you now with some pictures of Baby Boy’s not so dramatic haircut for which he ACTUALLY behaved quite well!

Before

After ~ he wasn’t cooperating ~

Here you can see his eyes and I’m sure he’s happy he can see!

The Love Dare

I started the Love Dare today, my husband doesn't know, but I'm also not trying to keep it from him. Pray for us, I feel the enemy is trying to make this hard.

Philippians 2:9-11

⁹Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,

¹⁰that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
¹¹and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

Breakfast

The most important meal of the day I’m sure you’ve heard, but is it true?  Well I know that cereal is a great, healthy and easy way to enjoy your breakfast! And if you know me you know I like that easy part! I feel good feeding my kids a bowl of Cheerios in the morning! I was given several coupons for free cereal from General Mills of my choice.  I tried to make the most of those and got several boxes of my kids favorite Honey Nut Cheerios! They love them and they are good for them! For those of us with more grown up tastes I got the Total Pomegranate & Blueberry Cereal (I love cereal that has some sort of fruity stuff in it) and it did not disappoint. The only downside about this one was the box wasn’t bigger! My hubby likes to eat his cereal in a mixing bowl!

Did you know that General Mills is committed to lowering the sugar in their cereal that is advertised to kids under 12 to single digit grams of sugar per serving?

Here is some more info you might be interested to know:

Ready-to-eat cereal eaters consume less fat, less cholesterol and more fiber than non-cereal eaters? Cereals also deliver important vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients, making cereal a top source of key nutrients in children’s diets.
Other cereal benefits:

• Ready-to-eat cereals, including presweetened cereals, account for only 5% of sugar in children’s diets.
• Ready-to-eat cereal is the No. 1 source of whole grains in a child’s diet today.
• More frequent cereal eaters tend to have healthier body weights and lower Body Mass Index measures.

Studies also demonstrate the benefits of eating breakfast. A 1998 study showed that children who eat breakfast tend to perform better at school. Compared to children who skip breakfast, children who eat breakfast score higher on tests, are less likely to miss class or be tardy, have fewer reported discipline problems, and make fewer trips to the office.

So before you grab that donut and that soda think about a bowl of cereal ;)!

Click here for an instant coupon for $1 off of selected General Mills Cereal!

 

Information and free cereal coupons were all provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark!

Laundry, Laundry

Laundry, Laundry why don't you stop,
Dishes, Dishes piled to the top,
Children, Children why don't you clean?
Evidently I need to be more mean!


Just joking of course, sort of ;) Just lots to do and never enough time or energy to do it all! At least it's warming up a bit so I'm not walking around frozen! Sorry for all of those up north who are still frozen!

And I can't get around to other blogs because my wireless just doesn't work well enough, thinking of moving my desk so I can 'plug in', I've got the space, but it might look odd!
Anyways, I'll be back when the laundry and dishes are finished and the toilets are scrubbed and well that's it!

Freezing, Tired & Content

Well I realize those of you up north think our freezing weather is mild, but it’s been unbelievably cold here in central Florida lately. I can’t remember a cold spell like we’ve had the past few weeks. While we occasionally get freezing weather, it’s usually only for a night or two at most. Typically the cold doesn’t bother me, but I’m sure not used to it!

I mean I’ve never felt the need to put on multiple layers and shoes just to take the trash out 20 feet! Not to mention having to actually dress and shoe (I realize this is probably not a proper use of the word shoe) all the children before they can walk outside! Of course the kids and perhaps the adults too have enjoyed watching the weather on TV and seeing what the latest low temp is around here! We hoped for snow on Saturday, but missed seeing any, though there were scattered reports of snow in nearby counties. And we finally had our first fire in our fireplace since moving here a year and half ago!

I am praying for the farmers and their crops as we have a few more freezing nights on hand. We will be back up to 70 or so by the end of the week (which is just perfect)!

So it’s just been a long week and I’m tired and still have plenty yet to do, but it will keep to morning. I’m content with things here and am going to lay down and get my rest now! Hope everyone out there is staying toasty and snug in their beds tonight!

Different Huh?

Well I'm not sure if I'm leaving it like this or not and I still need to make a few changes even if I do, but for now.......... and if you are reading this in a reader.....sorry to confuse you ;)

I just looked at this again and decided it looks like I should be writing a romance blog, perhaps all about how God romances us.

Okay I'm updating this again, I changed the header only and am going to leave it till I get some good pictures of my kids. I just need to work on getting pictures as I don't have any I Love of all of them that are current (or 4 individuals), ya know what I mean!