Recently

This is what Reece did the other day. Cracked me up. He insisted upon pulling the stroller in from the garage and sitting with this lamb and "watching" t.v. The funny thing is that he only sat for about 30 seconds at a time. He was so busy climbing in and out of the stroller that he didn't see much of the show. How can kids be so different? Avery would watch t.v. all day long and Reece barely notices it.



These sunflowers were in my last produce basket and I couldn't resist taking a picture when I saw the sunlight coming through the window.

What have I been doing?NOT the Laundry!

I took the Longaberger picnic basket my aunt gave me for my wedding and turned it into an embroidery/smocking organizer.

Here is the tablecloth that Meemaw gave me one year for Christmas and at the time I had no idea what to do with it. My mom showed me this summer and this is what I have finished.

I'm thinking I will get the tablecloth done in about 8 years.

The next pictures are the tote bags we made for MOPS. I am the creative arts person and had to come up with a new spin for an old idea. Hence, iron-on transfers and some embroidery stitches. If anyone else from MOPS wants the stitching done let me know.

On the back side I just put the kids handprints because there cannot be empty space! he he he!

First day of Preschool

She was so excited for her first day of school. She sat down and started playing right away.

All set with her backpack and lunch box from Mimi and the dress my mom helped me make her.

She was so cute standing there letting me take pictures. She can normally be shy for things like this, but this day was just awesome.

And here is my little man all by himself in the minivan! We went to Barnes and Noble across the street and sat for awhile, just because I wasn't too sure about driving away from my little girl. He's getting lots of one on one time now and it's so fun to shop with just one. I am getting to know this little flirt better too.

Reece is finally verbal!

An older, tired-looking dog wandered into my yard. I could tell from his collar and well-fed belly that he had a home and was well taken care of. He calmly came over to me, I gave him a few pats on his head. He then followed me into my house, slowly walked down the hall, curled up in the corner and fell asleep. An hour later, he went to the door, and I let him out. The next day he was back, greeted me in my yard, walked inside and resumed his spot in the hall and again slept for about an hour. This continued off and on for several weeks. Curious I pinned a note to his collar: 'I would like to find out who the owner of this wonderful sweet dog is and ask if you are aware that almost every afternoon your dog comes to my house for a nap.' The next day he arrived for his nap, with a different note pinned to his collar: 'He lives in a home with 6 children, 2 under the age of 3 - he's trying to catch up on his sleep. Can I come with him tomorrow?'

It's OFFICIAL!

The ten day waiting period is over for Shawn and Dave. Alex is theirs. Many of you have asked for pics. I've also included the link to their blog below.

www.davidandshawn.blogspot.com

Security

I just wanted to let you all know that I am going to block my blog to all uninvited guests tomorrow. After putting a tracker on my blog last week, I have found some questionable hits and watching part of Oprah yesterday about sent me over the edge. I'll disclose more later. If you visit this blog and I don't have your email address please list it in the comments so that I can add it to invited guest lists. Also, when writing your email address you should write out the word "dot" com.

Preschool Open House

I read this on another blog and had to share it.

1 in 4 boys develop autism. ONE IN FOUR! "THEY" don't know what is causing it, but I'm not giving Reece anything that COULD trigger it. I'm not totally against vaccines. I am against the time period they are given, how many, and some of the ingredients. Kate and I talked to our friend Shawn about vaccines and how we feel about it. We, personally, have decided to delay them, and not give certain ones. That's our choice. But to not even read the material that is out there is crazy. I have read plenty on both sides of the spectrum. I was all for them when Avery was born, but I have to decide what is best for my child and so does each one of you. Just be informed and then decide.

Here's what Homeschool Mommy posted...

Did you see the most recent pro-vaccine article? Go HERE to read it.As you know I LOVE a good debate, so here are a few thoughts to ponder...Ingredients in vaccines:(If you don't believe me, go check out the CDC's website yourself.)AntifreezePhenol (used as a disinfectant)Formaldehyde (cancer causing and used to embalm)Aluminum (associated with Alzheimer’s disease and seizures)Glycerin (toxic to the kidney, liver, can cause lung damage, gastrointestinal damage and death)LeadCadmiumSulfatesYeast proteinsAntibioticsAcetone (used in nail polish remover)Neomycin and streptomycinThimerosol (more toxic than mercury, can cause severe neurological damage as well as other life threatening autoimmune disease)For you animal rights activists, vaccines also contain:Monkey tissueDog kidney tissueChick embryoCalf serumPig bloodHorse bloodRabbit brainHere's for all of you PRO-Lifers out there:Human diploid cells (the dissected organs of aborted fetuses)Pro-Vaccine researchers and doctors, as well as the government, will tell you that the death rate from disease has dramatically decreased SINCE vaccines were introduced. In fact, medical school textbooks only show the graph from the time vaccines were introduced. Below, you can see the WHOLE chart. Isn't it interesting that the diseases were ALREADY being eradicated BEFORE vaccines came into play?


Did you know that, unlike drugs, vaccines have NEVER had to be tested!!! After telling that to a friend of mine, she asked her pediatrician about it. Pediatrician's response? "Would you sign your child up for a clinical trial of vaccines?"I LAUGHED. If they've never been through a clinical trial and we inject our children, we ARE the clinical trial!!!Did you know that parents and daycare providers have been convicted of SHAKEN BABY SYNDROME, when, in medical researchers' opinions, it was the vaccine that caused the brain damage?Did you know that during the 18-year period of the 1970's and 1980's, well-vaccinated communities within the U.S. experienced regular 2-3 year measles epidemics? BUT, during that same time period, the Amish (who do not vaccinate due to religious reasons) did not report even ONE case of measles? That's just one of many examples showing that disease and epidemics are not caused by unvaccinated children...rather, they are still a mystery to the entire medical community.Did you know that medical researchers have said for decades that having certain diseases prevents contracting others? Example: Having mumps prevents ovarian cancer. Example: Having measles prevents asthma, certain cancers, and other degenerative diseases. Don't believe these were published? Check out medical journals yourself! Start where I found these...Lancet 1966 and 1985.What about the individual vaccines? Did you know that vaccines are only good for up to seven years? Hence, the need for booster shots. So, why then are we vaccinating our babies (before leaving the hospital after birth) with the Hep B vaccine? And, then injecting them again at 2 and 4 months old. Because they're at high risk of contracting Hep B at such a young age? Nope! The high risk is not until young adulthood (unless the mother giving birth has Hep B, of course.)Chicken Pox. If you're reading this blog, you probably had Chicken Pox as a child. Did you survive okay? I did. YES! Chicken Pox virus stays in your body once you've had the disease...and it can cause other things later in life. BUT, I would rather have something itchy and painful that goes away after a few weeks than having a degenerative disease that lasts forever.I have HOURS and HOURS I could say on the matter, but I just don't have time. And, just so you know Addyson received vaccinations...our future children will receive some vaccinations...and we are all being vaccinated soon to go overseas. I definitely think there's a time and a place for vaccinations. Unfortunately, there has not been enough testing and precaution for me to feel safe about injecting that poison into my children's veins on a regular basis.
Posted by HomeSchool Mommy at 1:12 PM 3 comments

The Ultimate Gift

Today an 18 year old girl gave the ultimate gift. Because she chose to carry the baby inside of her, another girl -29 years old became a mother. What an amazing gift. What a heart-wrenching decision. To carry a life you created inside of you. To feel it move, hiccup, kick. To hold him in your arms moments after he's born, to spend quiet moments alone with him when no one else is there. Only to turn him over to another woman, a woman that desperately wants this tiny little being, who has fallen in love with him without ever feeling him kick.
To Kelly- who will probably never see this, thank you isn't enough. But know that there have been so many women praying for you. So many women who are feeling your agony. So many women who aren't sure they would be as strong as you. To choose to carry a life, knowing life is precious, only to give him up after holding him a few short hours in your arms. We will keep praying for you for we cannot understand even a fraction of what you are going through. May God show his face to you, may he comfort you and give you peace. May he bless you for choosing the harder way.

You see that 29 year old girl is my best friend Shawn. Tonight she holds her baby in her arms. She won't sleep very much because she will be staring at him and watching his every move. She'll be tired tomorrow because of feedings all night long. She'll realize that this new life will cause her more tears and joys than one could imagine. She will hold him close when he's teething and no one else can comfort him. She'll be there to pick him up when he falls down for the first time. She'll be there, holding his hand, as he steps into his first day of kindergarten. She became a mother because you chose life. There could be no greater gift.

Sometimes I forget just how great a gift God gave us when he sent Christ to this earth. To watch your son beaten and dying on the cross, knowing that he could have stopped it in an instant. But he chose the harder way too. He chose the path that meant life. Eternal life. Life that means someday we will all be back in his presence, no longer in a world where some women can't have babies and some women have to give them up. No more agony, no more tears. An amazing love.

Adoption is an amazing thing. Two families forever forged together. One mom that is desperate to give him the best life and one mom who will raise him up in this world.

Thank you Kelly. Thank you for giving the ultimate gift. For making Shawn and Dave parents. For carrying Alex inside of you those long months that now must seem like they passed too quickly. You have been a reminder to so many of us of our adoption in Christ. And may you too be adopted into his kingdom for all eternity.

Thursday Thirteen

13 Things I want to do this fall and winter...

1. Organize the basement so that the kids can play down there and get rid of some of their energy when we are cooped up during yucky weather.

2. Knit Avery and Reece sweaters before they outgrow them or it gets too warm to wear them!

3. Paint the entire first floor. Now if I could only decide on a color.

4. Take a fun mommy and me class with Reece.

5. Stay on top of the "business" type stuff I hate doing.

6. Read Northhanger Abbey by Jane Austen, the only one I've never read from her.

7. Finish a pair of knitted socks for myself.

8. Get my carpets scrubbed since we didn't get the hardwood floors put in this summer.

9. Drink lots of hot chocolate in my hot chocolate maker from Williams and Sonoma. SO YUMMY!

10. Sew Avery and Reece matching outfits for the holidays. I might be calling and emailing you lots Les to help me with this smocking thing! :)

11. Get my master closet organized. Everything is always falling over and I can't even walk in it.

12. Order prints and fill up all the empty frames I have hanging all over the house. This includes getting the next set of portraits done for the kids. They are growing so fast!

13. I'd like to say that I want to keep up with laundry, but I think that is a hopeless cause. So I am just going to say that I want to get out and walk more (by myself with the IPOD) and get some exercise.

Deeper

Since "retiring" from teaching, I have had to get creative to feed that intellectual stimulation that I crave. I'm not really that smart, but I do crave getting smarter. Anyway, I ordered a couple of books from amazon and they came today. I'm pretty excited. I have been wanting to read, no I should say I have been craving, deeper reading. Something that would take me to a new intellectual level with my relationship with God. I feel like my heart's in the right place, I just want to KNOW more. So I started looking at historical writings. Like Thomas Aquinas, Brother Lawrence, Martin Luther. Just to read something that isn't 8 pages long and rhymes with Poppy the pig ( a good book, but not quite deep).

So my goal this winter is to read some of this stuff and at least satisfy that weird longing to read something that someone wrote hundreds of years ago, in a language barely resembling English. I'll let you know how my intellectual journey goes. It must occur between taking Avery to and from Mops, temper tantrums, and an occasional (but important) trip to Starbucks (shame on you Amy for supporting my habit, but I also desperately thank you for the gift card!) and whatever else I just happen to be doing that day. We'll see if I can stay awake for longer than 3 pages.

All kidding aside though, I think as moms it's so important to keep feeding our creative outlets, whatever that happens to be. I've sewn some dresses, have learned to knit socks, but still craved something a little more challenging mentally.

I apologize ahead of time for deep theological issues and questions and ponderings I may have in the future over this, but bear with me and keep your comments coming.

This entry isn't quite as elegant as I was hoping as Reece is sitting on my lap rearranging my pen drawer (which stresses me out and will now spend half an hour fixing instead of folding laundry). But that pretty much sums up life right now. :)

Wordless Wednesday