Goin' Tubing!

The boys have found something new to occupy and entertain.

"in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content..."

I am content. I had been stuggling with a few things, but I realized the other day that I'm right where I should be and I wouldn't want to be anywhere else. God will provide the means when His time comes. I haven't felt this content in a long time and it is such a blessing!!! I am focusing on what I have to do here daily instead of on what I want to be doing. It doesn't mean that I don't want to go see my family, but I know that when the time is right, the financial means and the time will be there to do so! But, for right now, my job is to be the best wife and mother that I possibly can, and I can't do that when I'm wishing for something that can't be at the time.

On another note, Kimberly seems to be doing a lot better today. She was up 3 times through the night, but she woke up a lot more like herself. Here's to hoping nobody else gets what she had!

Now though, it's time to start some work. We have a furnace guy coming this afternoon to fix our new furnace... Not too impressed that it didn't last a month, but the work should be covered by the warranty. So, I'm off for now! I hope you all have a blessed day!

Not enough sleep....

Yesterday went really well! We were all able to go to chuch and the boys were all good!!! Maybe they're finally getting it! I sure hope so. Kimberly was so cute last night. When the minister said Amen for the benediction, so did she! She's talking more and more, and I think she's going to be a miss chatterbox from the start. She love talking and she knows more words everytime too. She has been saying nigh-nigh when she gets tired, and of course Amen, mama, dada, and a couple others too, on top of her signing! What a smarty pants! Maybe she'll help Lucas learn to talk better. He is getting better slowly, but there's still a lot that we can't understand yet, and he's almost 3!!

What a long night! Kimberly was really unhappy when we got home from church, and I attributed it to possibly teeth and over-tiredness. So, doing what I could, I gave her a little orajel and tylenol, nursed her and put her to bed. Two hours later she was awake, crying so, I cuddled her until she settled down, and laid her back down. That was hourly until midnight when I decided that maybe she was hungry. She hadn't wanted to eat much through out the day, so I gave her a jar of fruit and she seemed satisfied with that. She slept for 2 hours and then woke up screaming again. When I went in to get her, she threw up all over me, herself and any blanket that I had taken out of her bed with her. Poor girl started screaming more, and the more she screamed, the more she puked. Not a fun thing at 2:30 AM when you have had 20 minutes total of sleep. I got her cleaned up, settled down again and sleeping. That lasted another hour and she was up again, this time, waking up Lucas. Grrr... I know, when she doesn't feel good, not a lot can be done, but I put her in our room and then she slept for 4 hours. Peter was up at 5, and I really didn't sleep after that. Not a good night for me, so I think bed time is going to be early tonight!

Today, I'm not expecting to get a whole lot done, as Kimberly seems to need extra mommy time and cuddles. The weather is supposed to get nasty this afternoon, so I'm hoping the boys can play nicely together inside, preferably downstairs. We'll see, maybe I can get a couple to sleep for a couple hours! That would be nice!

Anywho, Kimberly is crying again. Time for more cuddles!

Butterflies!! Lots of pics!

We went to see the butterflies at Fredrick Meijer Gardens today and the kids LOVED it!! I think we're going to have to make another trip there this summer. I also had Dakota so Pam can rest up as she was feeling quite sick. Liz was also with. I didn't get ANY pics of me though... Oops! Maybe next time! :)

We ate lunch at Liz's while we were waiting for her to get home from work. It was a gorgeous day to eat outside!

Dakota

These 2 butterflies were really cool. The one kept fluttering above the other one.

Getting Sleepy!

YAY WATER!!!

All the kids!

Lucas dishin' out the lovin' <3

Hammin' it up! Totally Pam's kid! :)

That's better! Sweetie!

Mama! You took my milk!!!

Voila! And here you have it! :)

I got Pam's diaper bag finished last night, and even got a matching change pad made! I love how it turned out, and I'm thinking that if they didn't take so much time, I'd start selling them! Hmm... time to stockpile and sell them anyway? I'll think on it.

Diaper bag and change pad combo

Back of change pad

Front of change pad

Front of Bag

Back of bag

Inside of bag

There is more than enough room for anything you might need for a day trip! Pam's only requests were lots of pockets and more room than the free bag from the hospital. Well, this bag certainly delivered! Enjoy it Pam!

Finished!!!

Last night I finally finished the blanket for Mike and Tammy's baby Taylor. Yes, I know she's 3 months old already, but I got it done (without a pattern to follow, might I add...). I love how it turned out!

Close up view of the pattern and edge.

Total blanket view.

If any of you reading this has gotten a blanket from me, could you please send me the pics? Dummy me didn't think of taking pics of my projects from the start, but I'd love to have a "portfolio" of them! Thanks in advance!

Crazy Day!

What a crazy day yesterday!!! I left an hour later to get groceries in the morning and I was behind all day! I was getting ready to leave and was about to get Lucas in his carseat and realized he needed a clean pull-up on. Fine, just change it quick and be on our way, right? Wrong. Daniel had locked the door and Kimberly was still in the house along with my purse and keys. I was able to open the slider and get in, but it took a little while as it sticks. When we Finally got on our way, it was all good. We got to Meijer about 10:00 and it took AN HOUR AND A HALF to get through just the groceries!!!! I was not too happy, but we had to bring 3 very large bags of pop bottles away first and then everytime the cart stopped, Daniel and Lucas would jump off, so that took extra time. Thankfully it went a whole lot better at Costco. I just told Daniel that if he left the cart, I was leaving without him... he didn't let go of the cart the whole time! :)

After eating lunch, Kimberly and Lucas went down for the afternoon and I was busy cleaning up all afternoon. I guess I misjudged how long it'd take, because I had to skip supper to get done. I had 4 people come and 2 bookings off my party. I was happy with that, but not so happy with the boys' behavior. It was complete chaos with them running around all night. I was SOOO ready for them to go to bed, but that doesn't happen when there's people here.

I also got a call from the sleep center yesterday afternoon. They want me to see the dr to get my study results. I was under the impression that I'd get the results over the phone, so I'm a little nervous about what they found out. Hopefully it's nothing too serious, but I have to wait until May 7 to find out now. Pray for patience and peace.

Today is a stay-at-home-out-of-the-rain day... the boys have a fort all made and I really have to get some crocheting and sewing done. Oh, and that lovely chore called laundry. Gotta love it! I cant believe how much faster it gets done when I hang it outside... no waiting for the dryer! But it'd help to have enough clothes pins. I think i'll run to the dollar store when Peter is home for lunch to get some.

But now it's time to get crackin' on the work around here. Lucas' room is trashed (Daniel's dresser got emptied yesterday when it tipped over) and I have a lot of catching up to do from yesterday.

Missing the sunshine already!!!

Yesterday was such a gorgeous day! The sun was shining, the birds singing and the kids played nicely, what more could I ask for? My sweet friend Brenda came for a while in the afternoon to bring some sleepers she found for Kimberly and to keep me company as Peter was working on wood again. We visited on the deck and I burned the tops of my legs, my arms and face. Getting an earlier start this year, I guess. :) I also had clothes hanging outside, and realized that I seriously need to get some more clothes pins! I couldn't hang everything I had in the washer because I ran out and if I'd tried to do the whites load I'd been out of luck after about 10 socks. lol

Today we were not able to go to church all together. Daniel, Lucas and Kimberly all had booger noses and when Lucas sneezed, they hung down almost to his belly button. (Gross, I know, but it was funny too.) Daniel decided that he was going to vacuum and ended up getting Caleb all freakin' out because he sucked up Lucas' sock. lol Don't worry, the sock was rescued and will be reunited with its partner after a good washing. :)

I have to get some groceries first thing tomorrow... Have to make 3 stops to get what I need with 3 kids.... should be interesting to say the least. (Peter is probably taking one boy with him in the morning to help me out a bit.) I'll be praying for patience and short lines. lol I am almost ready for my jewelry party tomorrow night. I'm really looking forward to sometime to spend with friends. It's always a good time. Just hope that Lucas goes to bed good... the older boys can hang out with dad for the night, and Kimberly is a toss-up as to whether she's going to go to sleep or play around and keep Lucas up. She can be such a stinker sometimes!

But now that you're all updated, time for bed. I have a super busy day tomorrow, and I'm going to need all the sleep I can get... which isn't saying a whole lot most nights... I hope I get my study results this week. Pray that all is well, and I just need less caffine or something. lol

I Love Cragslist!!!

We have had a couple busy days again... but I guess I'd be surprised to not have a busy day. lol I have been looking on craigslist for a few items (like a swing set and a deep freezer and a second refrigerator) and found a freezer 2 days ago that was close to home and not too expensive!!! YAY!!! Our old big one's lid is completely shot with the seal all over the place, the insulation coming out and the inside of the lid not attached to the top at all... Peter kept saying he'd figure out a way to fix it, but after 2 years I was doubtful. :) He has Caleb with him right now picking it up and hopefully we'll get it downstairs tomorrow. :)

I also hung clothes outside for the first time today!!! I don't think we'll see anymore winter until after September. The boys were outside for a good share of the day again, so they were happy and I got my laundry worked on, so I am happy. :) Kimberly is getting increasingly fussier and her second tooth is feelable. (I don't think that's a real word, but whatever. :p)

Funny story,
The other day Caleb and Daniel were playing by the fireplace with various toys. I don't remember what exactly, but all of a sudden Caleb tells Daniel, "You're such a genius, Daniel" to which Daniel replied, "no, I don't think so" and Caleb kept on insisting that he was and Daniel kept denying it. I finally asked Caleb what genius means and he said "well, when you're really good at something, and Daniel's really good at putting things together, mom, so he's a genius." I was pretty surprised at his definition and how close it is. I got a good chuckle out of that exchange though. I can't believe how fast they're growing up.

Kimberly is going to be 10 months old next week already and I'm so not ready for that! Where has my baby gone??? I am glad that we have more pics this time around. Poor Lucas had so few pics taken... Not anymore though!! He's always trying to sneak in pics either with the boys or Kimberly, so I guess he's making up for lost time. lol

Spring has sprung... for now

Today is a good day!! The weather is really nice- warm and sunny!! The boys have been outside almost all afternoon and Peter was home this morning so I was able to get a lot done then too! I got all the bedrooms cleaned up and vacuumed and started on the kitchen. I have a minimal headache today, so that really helps too. :) I think this nice weather is supposed to stick around for a few days, so I should be able to get my house in ship shape! I have a premier jewelry party on Monday so the more I can get done this week, the better! Then all I have to really worry about on Monday is the food and finishing touches (like getting my sewing stuff put away).

Not too much else going on today... just the same old, same old... ;)

We're waiting for spring to stay!

We're having some really dreary weather today. Yesterday was overcast all day, but no rain, and today it's raining. I hope that today goes better than yesterday. Lucas cried and whined all day for dad, who was gone working all day, and the other boys would not stop sitting on each other! I was so thankful that Kimberly still slept well with all the noise and Lucas did take a nap for a little bit, but he was still sooo cranky when he woke up. I kicked Caleb and Daniel out for a while just to get my bearings back. I was quite frazzled by the time I had to start supper.

Kimberly started creeping on her tummy (doin' the army crawl) on Sunday. I think hanging out with Dakota on Saturday for a little while help her get the motivation to move. lol The boys think it's great that she's getting around more now. They are so cute with her. Lucas especially wants to hold her a lot and he's always getting her to laugh. And he doesn't care what he has to do to achieve the desired results. Sometimes he's doing some really silly stuff.

Sunday went ok. I went to church in the morning with just Caleb and Daniel as Peter had a nasty cough, and we sat by my in-laws and they were pretty well behaved. At night we all went, but Kimberly is not quiet enough to sit in church so I sat in the back with her and Lucas. Lucas kept crying for dad though, so it was still busy for me. We went to Ray and Evie's after church for supper and that went really well. We got home around 10 and the kids went right to sleep. No fighting to keep anyone in bed, so that was nice. :)

I better get some baking done today. I have bananas that are past their prime and I really hate throwing fruit away. Time for some banana bread or muffins. Oh, and I have to re-do all the laundry that Lucas unfolded for me... grrr...

Sleep? What is that?

Well I survived the sleep study. They attached about 20 electrodes to my head, legs and wrapped a strap around my chest and stomach and I had things up my nose. I don't know how some people can sleep like that, but I sure couldn't! I think I was awake more than sleeping and apparently I had my heaviest sleep right when they came in to wake me up... Hope I don't have to do that again, but with as much as I was awake, I'd be surprised if I didn't.

When that was all over, I had to get ready for the shower at 10:30. I got home with plenty of time to find just Caleb awake. So, I talked to Caleb for a minute before waking Peter. By then Kimberly was awake, and Lucas had joined her in her crib. After breakfast, I dressed Kimberly and Lucas, got Caleb and Daniel ready for the day and finished an apron. (that I needed for the shower gift) and got to the church an hour later than planned to help get things ready. (Peter was on a service call and I had to wait for him to get back before I could leave.) The shower went really well, but there was WAY too much food!!! So now we're going to help eat it all tomorrow night after church at Ray and Evie's. :) The aprons I made were a huge hit and I was glad I had made the effort to do them. (the bride to be has a little girl so I made matching aprons for them.)

After getting home, Kimberly was really cranky, as her second tooth is fighting it's way into her mouth. It hurts for her to eat crackers of any type, but she has been eating her other foods and nursing well still thankfully. I feel so bad when the little one's mouth hurts so bad!

Here's a couple pics of the aprons I made.

What a morning!

What a busy morning it has been!! I had an appointment at 9:30 for Lucas' last Dtap shot, and Peter wasn't going to be home, so I was planning to take all the kids with me. As I was getting a shower, Peter's dad called and said they'd be over at 9 to get Caleb and Daniel to take them to Wayland with him and Grandma. That was a relief. I was not looking forward to taking all the kids along! Then, as Lucas, Kimberly and I were getting ready to head out the door, Lucas banged his face by his eye quite hard. He doesn't usually cry much when he hurts himself, but he did this time, so I had the dr look at it while we were there. I'm going to have to remember to take pics of his shiner. I picked up the boys on the way home and visited with Pa and Ma for a few minutes.

Now we've been home for almost 2 hours and the boys have hardly been in the house. I don't know what I'm doing on here, with all the work I have... lol

I am not expecting to have time tomorrow or Saturday to get a post up here, so maybe Sunday?

SURPRISE!!!

YES! Kimberly has finally cut her first tooth!! She was insanely happier yesterday afternoon, so I checked, and sure enough, the left bottom tooth is through!!! We're still waiting for her other bottom one, but she's not so cranky today either. :)

Also, Lucas figured out how to join Kimberly in her bed. He also figured out that being in her bed gave him access to what ever is on top of the dresser. Peter walked in there this morning to find Kimberly covered with Desitin. What a mess! There was desitin all over the rails of her bed, all over the dresser and anything on it, and anywhere else he touched. I guess it coulda been worse (ie. having poop everywhere like that) but it was still a mess.

I think Lucas is giving the terrible two's one last hurrah. He is into EVERYTHING all the time! I can't leave him alone for a minute or he's making yet another mess. The most frustrating part is that he knows better! He has also started to talk back, and has been coming out of bed a lot too, so that's been another fight with him. He was doing so good about going to bed. We'd put him in bed and he wouldn't come out until morning... now it's midnight, 2AM and other odd times. Usually it's just for a sip of water, but he leaves all the lights on when he goes back to bed.

Anyway, we'll see what today and tomorrow bring. Friday is going to be just crazy as is Saturday, so I have to make sure to get all my work done today and tomorrow. I'll probably end up staying up late to get everything done, but then I don't have to worry about it after I get home Saturday afternoon. I'm hoping (probably unrealistically) for complete cooperation from the boys today. Haha. I'll probably kick them outside today as the sun is shining and it's supposed to start warming up again.

C'mon Spring!

We had a taste of spring 2 weeks ago and now it's cold and windy. The boys were outside all day when the weather was nice, so for them to stay in, or be cold when they do go out is not fun for anyone. It's supposed to warm up later this week, so I'm glad for that, but meanwhile, I guess I'm just gonna have to clean up mess after mess all day long.

Yesterday was a tough day. The boys were sick of being inside, Kimberly was cranky, Peter was gone and I had a headache. The boys were downstairs for a good part of the day, but they moved all my laundry from one end of the basement (where it was all sorted and ready to go) to the other in a big pile. Not impressive. Daniel also got his mouth hurt when he had a stick of something in his mouth and it got banged and he scraped the top of his mouth pretty bad. He also had a bloody nose yesterday... I was SOOO happy when the kids were in bed for the night! I got to welcome my sanity back! lol Sad thing is, today doesn't look much better than yesterday...

If only sleep wasn't such a needed thing... then I'd have all kinds of time to get extra cleaning and sewing done... But, my body does not function well with little sleep, and with no sleep, it's even worse. I have pulled a couple all-nighters but the only one I didn't end up with a 4 day migraine was when I was in labor with Lucas. lol

Kimberly calleth me yet again... Those teeth are so close, but so stubborn! Poor girl's gums are white and so tender! Should be a fun day anyway...

Not enough hours in the day...

Yesterday went really well. We were able to make it to church both times with all of us!!! There were not snot noses or migraines to combat and the kids were decent in chuch too. :) They even went to bed really good last night! I can hardly remember a night that we weren't fighting kids to stay in bed on a Sunday night! So, YAY! they're learning!

This week looks to be quite busy, especially close to the end of the week. Friday morning I have to do some shower food and decoration shopping with Evie, then in the afternoon, we're going to be getting a lot of the setting up done and that night I have my sleep study. I'm a little nervous about it, but looking forward to learning the results too, although they could take 2 weeks to get. :S

Saturday I got a lot of stuff done. I worked on Pam's bag for a couple hours in the morning between interruptions and in the afternoon, I got quite a bit of paper peeled off the walls. The entry way, doorway by the stairs, and everything on the outside of my kitchen above the cupboards is done! Daniel helped me for a while in the entry area. It was so cute the way he'd spray his water, scrape it with his scraper and then peel it off. He did a really good job too! :) It was a good afternoon with him. Caleb spent the day up at Grandma's with her and Liz and Peter was gone all day at an auction. Thankfully Lucas and Kimberly cooperated and took long naps!

Today is just a catch-up day from yesterday. I still have not figured out how it happens to get so messy in the house on Sunday. We're either not home or the kids are sleeping all day! Hmmmm... if anyone has the answer for me, let me know, k?

Love is in the air...

My sister in law just left here after we got the details for a bridal shower down. I think it's going to be a fun time for all! Now to get the shopping done and the food ready. But that's for next week. The difficult part will be having my sleep study the night before the shower... Not the greatest timing, but I'll be glad to get it out of the way and over with. Who knows, maybe I can sneak a nap in on Saturday... That'd be nice. :)

i just have 3 kids home this afternoon. Peter took Daniel up to Grandpa and Grandma's with him. It is nice ans quiet here now. The boys would not stop whining and fighting this morning! I don't know what the deal was, but it was a stressful, noisy morning. I think it had something to do with the dreary. wet weather.

Tonight should be a quiet one. Lucas didn't get a nap, and Daniel is always tuckered out after being at Grandpa and Grandma's for the afternoon. Early to bed! :) I'm looking forward to spending some quality time with my sewing machine. It's been a couple days again, and I need some creative time. :)

Right now though, I have to start some supper to feed the hungry boys and hubby... Thankfully they're not too picky of eaters, sure makes things a lot easier.

Ahhh heat...

Yes! We have heat again!! The installers were here at about 9AM and finished about 3PM, so not too bad. We are letting the fireplace go out now and are putting up with the new furnace smell. The first time they let it run, the smoke detector went off, but that's normal apparently. There's no more smoke, and we have tested our smoke alarms for the spring! lol

I made the boys some play dough to play with upstairs this morning so the guys can get the furnace installed without the boys getting in the way. If I'd had known how well the kids would be entertained, I woulda made some a long time ago! The trick now is to keep Lucas from eating it and Caleb and Daniel to keep it in the kitchen. I do not need the extra mess in the carpet, thank-you very much!

Lucas got to go with Peter this morning and he was so excited about that. He was wearing underwear, so we were a little nervous about it, but thankfully, we'd been thinking and had extra pants and undies along... he needed them at Grandma's. The potty training thing is not going as well as I had hoped. I thought that since he's a little older, it'd be a little easier... not so. I'm not to concerned about it, just a little frustrated. But as long as he's trained by his 4th birthday, I'm not going to sweat it too much.

Kimberly is still toothless. Poor girl was in so much pain this morning. Once the tylenol kicks in, she's happy again, but you can tell she's not feeling quite right.

It's now time to start supper, so I can hopefully be outa here on time for once. It's sister night, and we both need it!