Mama's Calling

Rejoice in the LORD always

2010-09-25T11:28:00.000-07:00

Rejoice in the LORD always and again I say REJOICE.

We have been singing this song today. Because if we are rejoicing in the LORD we will not be able to throw fits or whine or complain or be mean!!!

It have been sung a lot already!! It is only 2:00pm. It has stopped a few tantrums, but not all.

Pumpkin Pancakes

2010-09-20T16:30:00.000-07:00

Can you tell I really like Pumpkin? My kids love it too. They want me to buy a million cans of it so we can have pumpkin all of the time.

Pancakes
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup vanilla yogurt
1 cup pumpkin
2 eggs
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg

combine all ingredients. You may need to add extra orange juice. These tend to be pretty thick. Cook on medium hot griddle. Enjoy with real maple syrup.

Again, I forget to tell them they are healthy!!!

Pumpkin Muffins

2010-09-18T10:11:00.000-07:00

I made these delicious pumpkin muffins for breakfast. They did not last long. Should I tell them they are healthy? Probably not!!

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 cup pumpkin
2 TBSP coconut oil
3/4 cup honey
2/3 cup vanilla or plain yogurt
1 tsp vanilla if using plain yogurt
1 egg
1/2 cup craisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Mix wet ingredients together, Mix dry ingredients together. Combine just until mixed. Bake 375 for 20-25 min.

They are best after cooling completely.

The Joy of the LORD is my strength

2010-09-16T11:18:00.000-07:00

The joy of the Lord is my strength,

The joy of the Lord is my strength,

The joy of the Lord is my strength,

The joy of the Lord is my stength!

He gives me Living Waters and I thirst no more,

He gives me Living Waters and I thirst no more,

He gives me Living Waters and I thirst no more,

The Joy of the Lord is my strength.

It does not come from having a well mannered boy who loves to have fun and usually chooses to do the right things.

It doesn't come from an extremely talented girl who loves nothing more than to be swinging from a high bar trying the latest release moves.

It does not come from having a very outgoing boy who wants nothing more than to be the class clown.

It doesn't come from a beautiful girl who wants to give you just about anything as long as she does it her way.

It does not come from the greatest husband know to woman.

Or the big house with nice cars in the drive way.

It comes from the LORD. Serving Him alone. Not trying to have the family who people see as a "nice family", or having the nice things of this world

Choose for yourself this day whom you will serve. As for me in my house we will serve the LORD. Joshua 24:15

Well, It has been too long

2010-09-09T09:28:00.000-07:00

I just looked at this and decided, "If I am going to have a blog, I should be giving it my best." Well, I have not been doing that, and I am sorry. Will you please forgive me?

See you soon! Like tonight or in the morning. :)

Happy Birthday Grace!

2010-02-27T17:32:00.001-08:00

Eight years ago today, God blessed our family with Grace Margaret Shanahan. She has been an amazing gift!

Today, She got to pick all of the food and activities. She chose cinnamon rolls for breakfast, no lunch, and O'Charley's for dinner. The activity was ice skating! What fun that was. Grace discovered even though she can flip and twist, walk and flip on a balance beam, she is not the best ice skater. By the end of the trip she was ok.

Cameron did ok. He was able to stay up most of the time, but didn't like the way his ankle felt after 40 minutes!

Ellie stated, "I do not like ice skating!!!" after completing two laps attached to Mama!

Cail, he just might be the next Apolo Ohno!! He got on that ice and didn't look back! Started running and lapped us at least twice! He did not want to leave. Still keeps asking me if we can go back!

Mama is a lot like Cameron. I did ok. Well, since I was holding someone else up, I'd say I did well! I won't be a professional skater for sure!

Happy Birthday To Youoo! Happy Birthday To You!

And She Blew Them All Out!

I Just Can't Stay In Any Longer Mom!!

2010-02-25T17:30:00.000-08:00

I looked out the window this morning and what did I see??? Two little helmets and some bicycles staring up at me!!

I think they are tired of the snow. It was fun to watch them, oh it was. I wish I was young and crazy enough to play out in 23* weather!! Nope, I'd rather stay inside nice and toasty!!

The Glasses Are In

2010-02-23T17:28:00.000-08:00

Remember me telling you about Gracies Glasses?? Well, they came in today! She loves them. Even though she really only needs them while reading, she is wearing them all day long. We'll see how long that lasts :)

I wish they made those hot pink specs in my size!!!

Last Meet of the Season

2010-02-21T17:26:00.000-08:00

This morning, after a wonderful evening with friends. We were able to wake up with those friends, have breakfast, get ready and leave. One car off to church, the other off to the gymnastics meet. Level 6 today!! The girls have been working hard for this day. Their goal is to score a 31. This will allow them to move up to Level 7 in the fall. L7 is where the fun is. They get to make up the routines.

They did it!! A tie! Both girls scored 33.9! Not too bad for their first try. They tied for second place all around. It could not have come at a better time. Those two take turns winning 1st AA and 2nd AA. Today was a gift from God!! They shined bright and tied. Each girl strong in different ways. Not one better than the other today. Equal! I love it. Can't wait to see next year!!

Ellie watching patiently!

A proud Coach!

A little pre meet fun!

Saturday night fun!!

2010-02-20T23:04:00.000-08:00

My Friend Jessica lived across the street from me when we lived in Greenfield. I have missed her dearly since our move to New Palestine. I keep trying to get her to move here with me! We got to be good friends when our 8yr olds were just tiny babies! We walked every morning in the summer and spent most of our days together. Her husband works as a project manager for an environmental clean-up company. This really just means he is gone for 3 weeks at a time. Then home for a week. Well, her husband is gone, and so is mine!! We decided to have a sleep over! What fun it was. The kids played all afternoon long. Took some baths and went to bed! They really went to bed! No fussing or arguing! Can you believe it?

Tomorrow is a big day!

Yikes!! Where did the week go??

2010-02-19T22:51:00.000-08:00

Today is Friday! I worked all day long! No, really, I went to the hospital and put in my 12 hours then came home to a huge mess!!! MeMaw watched the kids for a couple hours after they came home from school. She brought fried chicken, pancakes, and purple slurp(aka grape soda)!!! Oh! Did I mention the pancakes were chocolate chip? I think the cocoa was the only fruit/vegetable they received tonight. But, they survived, and know they are loved by many!! I must now get some rest. I am pooped!!!

This is the Day!

2010-02-16T22:44:00.000-08:00

This is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it.

Today was like so many in the recent past. NO SCHOOL! Again. So, What will we do? Rejoice and be glad God has given us another day!!

We went to the gym again today. This time to play in the kids area. They had fun I'm sure. Then off to Sam's club. Apparently, the kids like to eat food, and they reminded me we had none at home. But, what a blessing that trip was. They eye doctor was not busy and I decided to act upon an idea God had given me.

You see Grace is having some difficulties with reading. She is improving everyday. One day while we were talking about her school work, we discussed what the words looked like to her while she was reading. "They kinda get jumbled around. I read the same words twice." I too remember having this difficulty. I didn't get glasses until I went to college. It was a whole new world!!! I suddenly enjoyed reading!

Well, I spoke with the doctor and asked her to check her again. This time too look for an astigmatism. Wouldn't you know it, she does have one popping up on us. With that, I decided it was worth the $50 and get the glasses, however slight it may be. I hope it helps.

We packed up and went to MeMaws for dinner. Pizza, Cail's favorite. We also played some board games and did a puzzle. It was fun.

Then off to MOPS. It was Coffee Shop Night. What fun. We listened to some music by Josh Meyer and Rob Doyle. Of course we talked and drank some yummy drinks and ate some nice pastries.

Home at last. Good thing we have a 2hour delay in the morning. It is almost 1000pm already!

Good Night my Love

Mama

Here's our day in a nutshell!

2010-02-15T16:47:00.000-08:00

It all started with a phone call at 0515am. "New Palestine Elementary classes have been canceled today due to weather." Mama slept in!! I was aroused by two children at 0715 who were worried about not getting up in time. Who knew they loved school so much. So instead of getting ready for school, we just took our time and relaxed.

We started to venture out to the Children's Museum. That was quickly rerouted to just lunch, bowling at Family Fun and Fitness and an early team practice for Grace.

After dropping her off, the boys went sledding, and played Wii with the neighbors.

Ellie took a long nap. Awakening just before our return trip to get Grace!

Grace is working on her Level 6 routine. She has only worked these routines for about 5 weeks. She is ready to compete on Sunday they tell me! Who would have known. She just has to score a 31 and she will move on to level 7 for next year.

She did not feel well toward the end of practice. But she still gave all she had! What a trooper!!

Can't wait to see what blessings tomorrow will bring!

Only 20 more days till we pick Glenn up after his trip around the world. Really, his flight pattern will take him 22000 miles around the world. I am so very jealous.

Mama

Why I Haven't Bought New Laundry Baskets

2010-01-21T07:41:00.000-08:00

Over the past 12 years of marriage I have gone through about 7 laundry baskets. Currently we are down to one! I have had this basket since college. It is a trooper! Hard plastic, stiff, ruff and tumble. Well built. Since technology has advanced, the structural durability has decreased. Yesterday, I broke down and bought three new ones. But, here is why I haven't bought them before!

100th Day of School

2010-01-20T19:21:00.000-08:00

Today was the 100th day of school. Can you believe the school year is more than half over? How quickly it goes. The kids have really grown this year. Grace has brought her reading level almost up to where it should be. Cameron is learning to take it slow and get it right the first time. Cail has learned his Kindercore words, now working on Snoopy 220! Ellie has improved her spelling, writing, and pretend play.

Cail Counted out 10 sets of 10 Cheerios and made a necklace to wear today. He promptly ate it upon returning home from school today!

My Little Homemaker

2010-01-19T20:28:00.000-08:00

This is Ellie. She is an amazing gift from God. She has her own style and definately her own way of doing things. She really likes domestic activities. She likes to cook, sew, and best of all scrub the sink and put the dishes away!! Can you believe it? But she sure is cute doing it!!

Watch out! That tower just might fall over!

Whatever!

Now, let's see who we can call!

She LOVES fried chicken too!

No School

2010-01-18T20:20:00.000-08:00

Here in New Palestine, IN we have no school today in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Who would have ever thought?? But we have had fun! Edin came to spend the day with us. She lives just across the street. With all of our running around, we don't get to hang out with the neighborhood kids a lot. This was a good treat!

We milled some flour for brownies. Yummy!! And practiced violin. Did some dancing, and just hung out!

Almost done!

2010-01-17T19:55:00.000-08:00

Glenn has been across the world on a business trip. We sure do miss him! But today is Sunday, and he will be home in 6 days. I can not wait.

The kids were able to spend the weekend with friends, because Grace and I had a gymnastics meet to participate in. It was exhausting for us. We were able to have some alone time though! It was worth it. Ellie spent two days with Mary Ella, what fun they had!

Cameron and Cail both spent the night with friends. There are no pictures to post of them...they probably just sat around all day and played video games!

But, now they are back in their beds. Safe and warm. Except Cameron. He is watching TV. Going to have some time with Mama!

So they are not really sleeping yet, but it will come soon. They are very tired!!

Catch up!!

2010-01-12T03:32:00.000-08:00

The first part of this year has been a whirlwind. Glenn has taken a new job which landed him in another hemisphere...literally! He will be gone for two weeks to Malaysia. I am so jealous! The upside to this is I get to spend time with the kids. He has to miss them. They have been doing great so far. We are three days into the
14. We have started marking the days off on the calender.

Our days will be busy though. We have a gymnastics meet this weekend, Boy Scout trip the next weekend...oh and that's the day we pick Daddy up! The time will fly by as usual. But I do miss him!

Just a few pics for fun!

She did not want to play outside. So she stayed in and made funny faces! And ate blueberries!!

Cousins!

2010-01-02T13:44:00.000-08:00

They are blessed to have each other!

Not to be left out!!

When we make choices, we must realize they not only affect us, but those around us as well. Please help me pray for the four cousins. That God will protect them and keep them safe. That He will make himself known to them.

Pray for us as we continue to support and love all involved.

The First Day of the Rest of Your Life!

2010-01-01T11:22:00.000-08:00

Today is the first day of a new year! A day to start a fresh! Here are my goals for this year. I try to stay away from resolutions, they are so easily broken. But goals, now that is something I can acheive.

1)Develop my relationship with Jesus.
2)Love my husband more.
3)Lose some of this 30 pounds!
4)Start a Bible study with the kids.
5)Make more bread!
6)Share Jesus' love

Have a great new year! I look forward to seeing what God has in store for the Shanahan's these next 12 months.

New Years Eve!!

2009-12-31T22:52:00.000-08:00

Can you believe the end of a year is here??? Where ever did it go? I suppose it is time to put 2009 to rest. Let's see what all happened...do you think I can remember?

January- pipes in master bedroom froze. Thank you Jesus! they did not burst!! It sure was cold!!

February- trip to Guatemala! Love going there. However, this year it was not so warm and sunny. Met a little baby who forever changed my heart! She was starving! Lots of prayer and some medicine...now she is doing much better...last I heard!

March- My first baby turned 10!! I AM NOT OLD ENOUGH TO HAVE A 10 YEAR OLD!!

April-Let Grace dye her hair for the first time! She is 7. She hated it and will problably wait a long time to try again!!

May- Ellie had a heart cath to fix her PDA...a duct we all have while in the womb, supposed to close within hours of birth. She was fixed with an Amplatzer PDA device. goole it, they are the coolest things I have seen in a long time.

June- This is a month where I could probably make something up...but, I won't. I can't remember anything exciting this month :(

July- took the kids to Kings Island for the first time!!! What a blast! They all really liked roller coasters and water rides.

August- Ellie broke her arm falling off the stairs. No, not down them-OFF them! Ask me about it sometime. I will tell you all the details!

September- The kids started at public school. They love it and are doing well!

October- My niece Maggie was born! Now I get to babysit her during the day.

November- Glenn took a new position with his company. Now he is the Worldwide Maintance Stardardization Manager. Fancy title!

December- Grace Margaret decided the only way to heaven was to have Jesus in your heart and asked him to come in!!! Best Christmas present ever!

No hot plans today. Cail is home sick!!

I'm Back!

2009-12-30T07:26:00.000-08:00

Well, as I see, it has been about 6 months since the last post. I'd like to say not much has happened in those six months. But, that would be a lie. So here is a little catch up.

It started in August when Ellie decided to fall from the second floor to the first floor breaking her arm coming as close to a compound fracture as she could without actually breaking the skin. After 6weeks in a cast and 2 in a splint she is good as new. Would never know she broke it!!

That leads me to my next big move. As most of you know, I home schooled the kids for about 2 years. It was a constant struggle for me. I called out to God and again he answered so faithfully. Was I not relying on God, or was I being stubborn and trying to do what I thought was a great thing. After all, a lot of my friends home schooled. But through my dear Husband, I got an answer. "Put the kids in school!" I realized God did not call me to home school, I was doing it because it looked good and godly. I was being prideful in my decisions. They now attend NPE and they all have great teachers. God has blessed this decision.

Christmas has just passed. It was wonderful! This was clearly the best Christmas we have had as a family. It was peaceful and reflective. I will just leave it at that.

May God bless you this New Year! I look forward to the many new adventures and treasured moments to come.

Calling out to the Mamas

2009-07-05T11:19:00.000-07:00

This week has rocked some worlds. No, these are not famous people. They are people who you probably won't have contact with ever. But, what they have to teach us will effect many of our lives. The details of the story are not important. You need to know this. God has called her name and she has heard. My Precious Friend was hit hard by an attack of satan. She fell right into the hands of God. Blessing will come from this, I know they will. But here are a few things I was reminded of as I walked through this with her is this:

1) Get the facts.
2) ONLY YOU are responsible for what you did, or will do.
3) not everyone who says they are your friend really is.
4) wanting something will not make it happen; we must do something!!
5) GOD IS LOVE, GOD IS LOVE.

My challenge for you this week is this:
Do something on purpose this week to make your world a little better.

Does the house need cleaned up? Does you husband need to know that you respect him as him as the man? Do you children need to know that you are crazy about them? How about that friend of yours, does she know how you really feel about her?

I would like to hear what you are going to do.

I am going to on purpose...tell my children something I really like about them.

Loving the Excitment!!!

2008-10-12T11:20:00.000-07:00

What a crazy weekend. I am so proud of my kids. It started Friday night. Cail the rock star tried to jump the ramp with his little sisters bike. I am sure he was trying to do some crazy stunts. The kid has no fear. Good thing we make him wear a helmet. He would probably still be in the hospital. So, he jumped, missed, landed on his face. Smashed his helmet and busted his chin wide open. Spent 4 hours in the emergency room getting it stiched. He only cried when they numbed him, and when I sat on him to keep him from kicking the Doctors.

Grace had a gymnastics meet. We traveled to Lafayette. Left late, got lost, but arrived in time. She rocked it though. She placed 3rd all around. Was thrilled to get two 9's. The best part for me was her attitude. Not once did she whine or complain. She did not pout, or say ugly words about anyone. This is a huge improvement for her.

Cameron won his first play off game with the NPYFL. He plays for the Longhorns. Cameron is easily the biggest team on the field. Now, one might say this is a good thing for a football player. It is; he can run over just about anyone. There is the problem. I am his mother. I hear the other moms say things like,"They put a big kid against my 75lb son. Then they put an even bigger kid on him." Yes, my son is the EVEN Bigger Kid. I feel bad my son is stomping on them, but I am glad he is not getting stomped on. Today he is playing the semi-finals game. GO LONGHORNS!!!

Ellie and her friend Blaklei caused trouble as we were leaving the gymnastics meet. The two of them decided it was time to leave, and they could leave on their own. I found them in the parking lot. These two are trouble when they are together. What one doesn't think of the other does. Neither of them are afraid to try it either. They will have many great years together as long as Blaklei's mom keeps coaching gymnastics!!

Freezer cooking

2008-10-02T10:29:00.000-07:00

I have had some interest in knowing what all goes on with Once A Month Cooking(OAMC). First, let me say, almost all of my meals come out of the freezer. With 4 very active kids, laundry, the dog, a Wonderful Husband, I don't have a lot of spare time to cook good meals. Pulling them out of the freezer is a great way to have good meals cooked at home with the convenience of fast food. I try to keep the meals interesting. Casseroles are the best way to get all of your food groups in one easy convenient meal. But, sometimes casseroles get boring. I try to spice it up a little sometimes. So far the complaints have been few. Here is how to get started.

1) Find a person to coordinate cooking day.
This person should be the one who decides the meals, does the shopping or designates the shopping to someone. She would also decide location and be responsible for clean up.

2)Find some friends who would love to participate.
These can be anyone. If your family has special dietary needs, find some moms who also have these needs. If you have 15 people you feed every night, finds some other super heroes to cook with.

3)Pick and day and time then stick with it

Once you have all of these, you are ready to start your OAMC.

Prep- decide on the menu. I like to cook between 10-15 meals including at least one breakfast item.
Email- send your recipes to your group. Include in this the Meat list Since meat is a tricky item to bulk buy, and some people are picky, I always have my group buy their meat and prepare it at home. If the recipe calls for browned beef, or cooked chicken, I have them do this at home. I also try to include any pans that might be needed. It is easier to place items in ziploc style bags, but occasionally, there are items that won't fit.

Also have your group RSVP. It is very important. You don't want to buy too much or to
little. If you say you are coming and don't you still owe me for the ingredients.

Shopping- once you have the count of your group you can go shopping. I buy all of the indigents except meat. I take the recipe and multiply by the number cooking. I keep the receipts divide the cost by the number cooking. This keeps the cost down. I have a stock of
ingredients that we frequently use, like spices, this keeps the cost down as well.

Cooking- have each person bring with them: cooler, bowls, measuring cups and spoons, knives
any other kitchen item you might not have enough of. It is also nice to have things like
a food processor, electric skillets, mixer, lots of dish towels. These items are nice but not necessary.

Pair up into teams of two if possible. Pick a recipe and make it for each person in the group. If you have 8 people and are making meatloaf, you and your partner would take each persons meat and prepare 8 meatloaves. If the recipe is Honey lime chicken then you would make 8 of these. Repeat process until all recipes are done. Try completing the more difficult recipes first. Like chicken nuggets. These need to be started early or you will be waiting on them when all else is done, because they need to be cooked in the oven for 10 min.

Clean up- clean up as you go, and make sure you mop the floor when you are done. It will be a
mess.

Take home- fill coolers and send them home. I split any left over ingredients that probably
won't be used soon, and send them home.

Collect- don't forget to collect the money from your group. I have a fund that is used for the
shopping. This way, I don't use my family food money to buy the groceries for cooking
club. It makes it easier to separate and keep the books balanced.

Enjoy- go home place food in freezer. Set out meal for tomorrow, take a break.

Any comments or questions?? Clear as mud right. Just let me know, I will try to answer any questions you might have.

This have really been a blessing in my life. I hope it can be in yours too.

Through God, you can

2008-09-25T12:06:00.001-07:00

Well, I Sunday, I called out to God and he answered. Today, I weighed in for Weight Watcher. I did the at work program. They would pay 100% if I lost 5% of my weight. So, when I said I would pay I really meant it. I needed to lose 8 pounds right. Well as of Monday, I needed to lose 3 more. But, Monday morning I ran two miles, walked another 3 miles throughout the day, and ate good stuff. Kept that up til this morning. I went into the meeting knowing I was now close, but not knowing if I was close enough. I stepped on the scale. What did I see? I lost 4.8 pounds since 9/15/08. Through Gods divine motivation, I was able to accomplish what I thought impossible. I will get my check back. What a relief.

Thanks for all those who cheered me on.

Calling out to God

2008-09-21T11:42:00.000-07:00

Today this mama called out to God. He answered so faithfully. It all started with the realization of not meeting a goal I set out to achieve 12 weeks ago. This goal for some would be totally reachable. For me however, I failed. I wanted to lose 8 pounds by Sept 22nd. I have lost 5. Unless God preforms a miracle, those other 3 pounds will still be there. I have contemplated just not eating between now and then, but have thought better of it.

From this realization, stemmed the overwhelming feeling of not being able to accomplish all I want to in my day. I home school 3 kids while the 4th tries her best to do every possible thing to interfere. Yes, I have given her things to work on, special work, toys, even a movie. It hasn't worked so far. I have a large house to keep clean. Six people create some serious laundry. Six people eat a lot of food as well. The cooking for them can be a chore. Then there is the daily trip to the gym for Grace's scholarship plan. She does competitive gymnastics. (She has God given talent. Saturday was her first meet of the season. She got 1 gold, 2 silver, and 1 bronze.) Then there is football for Cameron, violin for Cail, gym for Ellie, co op for school, MOPS, Board of Christian life, OMAC cooking, date night. Did I mention I work outside of the home 2 days a week. Oh, I also want to be a "nice" wife, mother, and friend. How does on person do all of this. Well, that was my complaint. I can't get it all done. I can not do it.

I had no energy for concentrating on the food and exercise. I put me last. And now I will pay for it.

So, here is what God said, I know this is the part you have been waiting for. "Tricia my dear, YOU CAN'T! But, THROUGH ME AND ONLY THROUGH ME YOU WILL." Only as I lay my life down at the foot of Jesus will I be able to accomplish anything. My verse for this week will be 1 Peter 3:8-11 here is what it says.

"Be self controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To HIM be the power for ever and ever, AMEN."

God will restore me, and make me strong. Get behind me satan, I have Jesus on my side!!

Are you calling out? Has He answered? I would like to hear.

Singing in the Rain

2008-09-13T18:42:00.000-07:00

Do you remember playing in the rain? I do. I can remember doing exactly what these two gifts are doing right here. Getting the water out of the downspout. It was such a beautiful day. The rain was warm and the sky bright. I can't believe we were the only kids out playing in the rain. But, boy did we have fun!!

OK, what you can't see in this picture is Cail about to drown his big brother with out Cameron knowing it. He is one sneaky little trickster. Better watch this one closely.

Just singing in the rain, Just singing in the rain. What a glorious feeling, just singing in the rain.

When was the last time you played in the rain???? Tomorrow is supposed to have some. Grab some buckets or what ever you can find that will hold water, get the kids, get the friends, and go out there. It will do your soul good.

Did you know that people did not know what rain was until God flooded the whole earth? What do you think that experience was like? How about the first time it snowed? Or hailed? What must have those early tribe thought? Are we going to experience anything totally new?

Lets enjoy the days God gives us. Don't clean to much, don't work to hard. Play with those gifts you have been given. Wiggle a little. You will love it, I promise.

Update, New Day

2008-09-01T11:28:00.001-07:00

Ok, so now it is September 1st, 2008. Who knew time would fly so quickly. Eleanor is just about 3. She is the baby. She is such a stinker. The smarter they are, the harder it is to reason with them. She thinks she is the boss. Little does she know. But, she is not only smart, she is beautiful too. Wouldn't you agree. Just say yes, so we can move on.

Wanted to fill you in on the running. I have not given up. I has all of my accountablity people bail. Is this a good excuse for not completeing the month as I would have like to? Probably not. I am really not sure what has happened to be since I have birthed 4 babies and turned 30 years ago. I have no motivation anymore. I don't really care what size my pants are. How sad. But, I will not be defeted!!! No, today is a new month. This new month can bring lots of new stuff. I want to be a good example for my kids.

A question for today. Why does it cost so much to eat health? Junk food is really cheap. And why do my kids want junk food all of the time? If you have any good answeres to these questions will you please tell me. I am still in the dark.

My Favorite Shoes

2008-08-05T18:27:00.000-07:00

They are discontinuing my favorite running shoe. I can not believe it. It has been the only shoe I have bought for the past 7 years. (I usually walk in them) I have heard rumors of them being discontinued, but now it is for real. If anyone sees an Addidas Boston in a size 10.5 buy them for me please.

These are my old shoes. They are now yard shoes. I think I have had these for over 15months. They are way beyond being decent walking or running shoes. I made them last as long as I could. When I could no longer stand them, I was talked into trying some Asics SuperNova's. I was told by that sales person they would be the most comfortable shoes ever. Well, they are not. They don't even look as cool.

They will work for now, but I don't think they are the most comfortable shoes ever. Do you think if I call Addidas, they will make them just for me?

I doubt it too. Well, I do know this, running is hard. Why didn't we decide to walk the Mini???

Silly us. I am going to do it though. I think I can run about .25miles now. YIPEE!!!! Ok so it may be a little more than that. Keep me going please.

RUNNING!!!!

2008-08-02T18:52:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this is what I am going to do. Run. Run 13.1 miles in April of 2009 to be exact. Perhaps 26.2 miles in October 2009. Right now. I can run to the end of the drive way. But, God willing, and a lot of hard work, I will be able to do it

My first run was Friday morning. I did a lot better than I thought I would. I am following the Hal Higdon's training guide. 10 min walk, 30 sec jog, 30 sec walk, (keep the 30/30 up for 15 min) then 5 min walk. I also had to push a stroller filled with 100 lbs of children, keep two other children from crashing into each other while riding their bikes ( I am sure they were hitting tires just to see how much I could talk and run, the lecture came inbetween huffs and puffs). This is a lot of work. But, I think I will make it. I did not run today, Saturday, because freezer cooking for the night gals was last night. They did not leave until 1115PM!!! And I had to be at work bright and early at 7am. I did not awaken at the planned 5am, but rather 615am. Had to leave the house by 630. So, needless to say, no running today. I will run tomorrow. I promise!! I need you help me out.

So, why am I running? First, I need to lose 20lbs. Second, I want to prove I still got it. If you know what I mean. After birthing 4 kids and years after turning 30, I need to do something that lets me know I am still a hottie. Third, my friend Amy asked me to do this with her. And the 5 other people I suckered into doing this will be watching to see if I actually do it. Fourth, and probably most important, God tells us to be a living sanctuary for Him. I need to take care of my body in order to use it for Him.

Wow, that was a lot of words!! Hope you did not get to board!! Stay tuned for more details. I promise, I will give the oldest two the camera and you can watch first hand the struggles of this Mama calling out to the Lord to give her wings.

Freezer Cooking

2008-07-27T18:55:00.001-07:00

Wow, what a weekend. It started Friday with another round of freezer cooking. If you are not familiar with this, let me explain. Once a month a group of ladies get together and make about 15 meals for the up coming month. Place them in the freezer, and Voila! dinner is ready. Just take out of the freezer, thaw and cook. It is a great help. We never need to stop at the fast food joint anymore. Dinner is a reheat away. And the food is good. We have only had one or two recipes we won't make again. The girls who came this month were Misty J, Adrienne J, Sandy W, and Me (cooking for Dawna). It was a great time of fellowship. Stephanie H is our trusty sitter while this is all going on.

Here is what we cooked:

Meatloaf x2

French toast casserole

Cranberry Chicken ( one of our favorites)

Citrus Fish marinade

Chicken Nuggets

Untidy Josephs (aka Sloppy Joes)

Taco rice -for taco salad or nachos

Chicken Tetrazzini

Chicken Enchilladas

Stuffed Pasta Shells

Herbed Chicken

Stomboli

It took about 3 1/2 hours to complete. Not bad for not having to cook at least 13 meals. The cost for all of this was around $60. It could have been less, but I opted for the more expensive organic ingredients wherever possible.

Here are some pictures of our fun

Sandy chopping

Mama Cooking

The finished cooler for Misty to take home.

I love cooking. And eating it to.

So, after all of this is done, I don't want to cook. What do we do? Go to The Breadladies of course. Where else do you go on a Friday night? They have great sandwiches and live music on Friday nights. Check them out http://www.thebreadladies.com/

Here are the kids dancing to some jazzy rock. Aren't they cute? Luke is the boy in the picture. He lives down the road. Grace and he play a lot.

So cute!!

Cameron (left) and his other brother Harrison

Working Moms

2008-07-21T05:04:00.000-07:00

So, I just spent the weekend working. I am an RN at The Indiana Heart Hospital in the Medical Intensive Care Unit. Sounds pretty impressive, ey? Well, it's not all that. I only work 1 may 2 days a week. I have been around long enough that I tell them when I will work. I love that about my job!!! What is my point here? Oh, yeah. I was thinking last night about how I have heard people say, "I am a better mom because I work full time." I totally don't feel this way. My kids miss me; as great as the man is about keeping the house tidy, it is just not the same; I miss those stinking kids; and to top it off, after working 12 hours with sometimes very difficult people, I don't want anyone to talk to me.

Only if our situation changed, would I be willing to work anymore than what I am doing right now. Are the moms who work full time feeling this way too, and just afraid to say it? I don't know. All I know is God created me to be a wife and a mommy full time, and allowed me to become a nurse so I can use those skills part time to make some extra cash for playing around. I am thankful I became a nurse. It allows me to be the Proverbs 31 woman without sacrificing the children arising and calling me blessed.

TIE DYE!!

2008-07-18T14:38:00.000-07:00

Ellie the 2year old made this one. I promise, she did all the work. I just tied it up for her. Georgous!!! Does anyone have theirs ready to share?

Today was our annual tie dye party. We always have so much fun. I am constantly amazed at the creative shirts that are a result of this day. It has taken me 5 years to perfect this project, but now, we have amazing shirts that I could sell for at least $10 each. And the kids made them. I love it. I hope all of the new gals with us today enjoyed the day and the results as much as I did. Here are some pics. Let me know if you want to buy them!!!

Cail made this shirt. He is 4. I think it would be at least $20!!

Champions of Whine

2008-07-15T04:11:00.000-07:00

So, this is what I am struggling with right now. Why do my two youngest gifts continue to cry and whine all the time??? I can not stand whining, and they are the champions of whine. I don't know how to make it stop. Does anyone have a suggestion?

I have discovered through this that my children are attached to nothing. They have no special toys or blankets, nothing they would be devastated without. Is this a good thing? Probably, they will be able to adapt to new situations easily. But, it causes me to be more creative than just finding what they hold valuable and removing it until the desired behavior is achieved. What do you do with that?

Wow!! I went to find a picture of these gifts whining at their best and I could not find one. I need to take more pictures.

"Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths, guide me in truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long." Psalm 25:4

One day at a time. The Lord will show me his ways.

Happy Anniversery

2008-06-06T19:06:00.000-07:00

Today is my 10 year anniversery. We've made it. We have 4 beautiful children, have lived in 5 differernt houses, had 3 different dogs, I am not sure how many different cars-at least 15. Life in these 10 years has been very busy. What do you think will happen in the next 10 years. We will have at least 1 kid will be heading to college, two will be driving, and all of them will be teenagers. Yikes!!! I am so proud of my family. Especially my husband. He is the man I dreamed about when I was young. I can't wait to see what God has planned for our family. I love them.

Did I just really set up a blog

2008-05-30T12:33:00.000-07:00

Wow!!! I am really old. Or out of touch. I really need to be more techno savy. My kids are probably better at this than me. Do you know my 9 year old taught me how to use my cell phone. Who knew all you had to do was say the number???? Apparently, he did. What else does he know that I don't. Funny thing, I homeschool him, so where did he learn this??? I did not teach that class!! I wonder what the baby knows. She has been seen carrying that thing around. Hmmmm?