We celebrated...

We had a wonderful day today. I was a fun family day and a day that was full of hope.

That's what I love about Easter.

All day long, in everything we did, I was reminded that He has made all things new. From the eggs to the flowers to the children, there were symbols of new life everywhere.

Today we celebrated a God who loves us so much that He died for us. He took our sin upon Himself, so that we would not have to die. So that we may live with Him for all eternity.

Today we celebrated that His death was not the end of the story. We celebrated a God who is very much alive. Who conquered death, rose from the grave and who came to offer us the same hope through His son.

Today we celebrated that gift. The gift of eternal life. The gift of abundant life. Not a life without pain, but a life with hope. Not a life without death, but the knowledge that death is not the end. We celebrated the One who has defeated; who loves us unconditionally and offers to walk this road with us.

This gift is offered to everyone. Today we celebrated that. All we have to do is believe Him. Trust Him and allow Him to take the reins on our life. Seek His forgiveness and His face. Today we celebrated His victory over evil and death. That we worship a living God. The only God.

Today was fun and full of life. And only because of the one who truly gives life. Thank you, Jesus, for that life. For your life. For dying, so I wouldn't have to. For rising again, so I can too. For living, so I don't have to walk through this life alone.

The story is true. Jesus really lives. So, today we celebrated.

need not apply

Over the past few weeks we have been daily scanning the Internet in search of a home.  Our move is coming up shortly and, all things being equal, we'd like to have a place to live.   We're high maintenance that way.

We've tossed around the pros and cons of renting versus buying too many times to count.  I think at this point we would be open to either, depending on what comes available.  However, considering we will probably only be at our next duty station for a relatively short time, renting does sound like a pretty appealing option.

But this is where it gets tricky.  There are quite a few rentals in the area, but understandably, having a larger family with young children rules out alot of them.  

However, I had no idea just how many of them it would rule out. 

 I've noticed as I've been calling around, the question of children comes up fairly often.  Several times I've been asked by property managers or landlords about the number and/or ages of my children.  Last week as I was talking with someone about a property for rent, I was having a really hard time getting straight answers from him.  Several times he brought the conversation back around to my kids. (Just for fun, I was intentionally not volunteering that information.)  After he brought it up a few times, I said that I did have several young children and asked him if that was a problem.

He quickly back-peddled and assured me that it was not a problem at all and that he wasn't even allowed to ask that question.  Funny.  He did ask that question, didn't he?  Anyway, I didn't really get anywhere with the rental info, so I just marked it off the list.

I've considered that maybe I'm being just a bit over sensitive to this.  Maybe they are just asking out of curiosity or from a desire to truly be helpful.  Maybe.   Until today.

Ken called a listing we found online for a large, 4 bedroom house that looked as though it would fit our needs nicely.  He left a message and the owner eagerly called us back 10 minutes later.

He told us what a great house it was, what a great area, etc.  Then Ken asked, just to be sure, that it was a 4 bedroom.  He said that it was, and then asked (of course) how many children we had.  I heard Ken tell him that we had 5 young children.

Before the man had a chance to respond to that, Ken asked him if  he would consider a 3 year lease, which is usually very popular with military family rentals.

His response?  And I quote, "Not with 5 children, I won't."  Though I couldn't hear the other side of the conversation, the look of Ken's face let me know that he was not pleased with how this was going.  The man, realizing I think that he may have sounded a bit discriminatory, began explaining that he was sure that this house just wasn't a good fit for us.  Too small, he said.  Which it wasn't.  And suddenly, he remembered that it was technically only a 3 bedroom, not 4.  Really?

I know that such ignorance really shouldn't bother me or surprise me.  But sometimes it does.  I can respect that people want to keep their homes in good condition and sometimes children can be messy.  But seriously, they're not animals, they're kids.  And by the way, all of these homes do allow pets, just not many small children.

I think what bothers me most is the undertone that children are a burden rather than a blessing.   That they are something to be merely tolerated rather than embraced.  

Yes, they make life messier.  And I suppose if our goal is to have the perfect home and the perfect car and the perfectly tidy life, that may be a problem.  

Fortunately, that's not our goal.  God has used our children to save us from that idea of perfection and show us a picture instead of His goal for our lives.   Our children add more richness into my life in one hour than the most beautiful home in the world would in a lifetime.

So, if you think that my kids don't fit into your world of perfection and the American dream?  You can keep your white picket fences.  I'll take my kids.  Any day.

this and that

After some beautiful weather here last week, we finished off with a weekend full of rain.  I guess it makes you appreciate the sun, right?  I had no idea it rained so much in the part of the country.  It's supposed to rain until Thursday, but then it's supposed to hit the 70s and sunshine this weekend.  Just in time for Easter.  I can't wait.

Ken went on house hunting leave last weekend and checked out the area where we'll be living.  We still don't have a house, but at least we do have a better feel for the area and kind of know what areas we'd like to live in.  We're checking daily online for new listings and hoping to find something soon.  Knowing you're moving soon but not knowing where you're going to live is not a huge deal.  But it is one of those things that sits in the back of your mind until it's settled.

  

We're also trying to figure out our school situation for next year.  School, homeschool, maybe a combination of the two?  Depending on the day you ask me, I will give you completely different thoughts on this.  Most days, I think homeschooling rocks.  Other days, I'm completely overwhelmed and think school sounds a heck of a lot easier.  So many questions, lots to pray about.

And then there's the day to day routine.  My house seems to be falling apart around me right now as I'm struggling to keep up with chores and laundry and school and laundry and dishes and did I mention laundry?  While I was belly aching about such matters, my mom likened it to running a business while being understaffed.  I think that's a great analogy.  There is just not enough of me to get done everything that I feel needs to get done.  

That, and the fact that I'm sometimes lazy and disorganized and undisciplined.  That may have something to do with it, too.  But mostly, there is just a lot more little people in this house than there are of me.  And boy, can they make a mess.  

Especially that little guy.  He's 13 months now.  His favorite hobby is to pull everything off of anything and throw it on the ground.  It's really amazing to watch him go through a room.  He honestly leaves a trail.

And speaking of Nathan, he now has a double ear infection.  Again.  He's the first of our children to ever have ear infections.  Let's just say, they stink.

But lest you think everything is gloomy here right now on this rainy day, here's a picture of some sunshine.

The kids tied strings to their stuffed animals and did  a puppet show for Nathan.  The ideas they come up with are truly amazing.  Their creativity is awesome.  I'm also loving seeing them playing together so well.  That's one part of homeschooling that is great.

Seeing my kids loving on each other, playing together and taking care of their brother.  A little bit of sunshine.

Jake

Today I took Jacob to a speech pathologist for an evaluation for a possible language delay.  I say possible because I think he has a delay of some sort, I just don't know if "language delay" is the right diagnosis, or if there even is a "diagnosis". 

We've known for a few months that he seems to be communicating at a level behind most other kids his age.  We've chalked it up to being a boy and/or having 3 chatty older sisters to talk for him.  I still think that this is a large part of it.  That maybe it's nothing more than being a "late talker".  But I also think that in order for him to continue to develop in this area, he may need a little help.

This little boy has my heart in every way.  He's a mama's boy and a charmer and he knows it. He's hilarious, makes up jokes and is the family clown.  He loves being the center of attention.

However, in a group of kids his age, he seems to pull away.  It seems it takes him longer to process, and he can't put the words together in the right way.

It's been confusing because he seems so "ahead" in so many other areas.  Counting to 200, no problem.  Reciting the alphabet, forwards and backward, got it.  He's even starting to get the idea of reading.  And yes,  I am bragging on him.  He's a smart kid.  

But none of this is helpful to him if he can't communicate.  And it really hurts my heart to see him unable to do that.  After having 3 verbose little girls, I haven't exactly known what to do or how to help him.

So, today's evaluation feels like such a blessing to me.  It is free, offered through the school system and available to every child age 1 and up.  He was evaluated by a professional, and I will meet with them after they determine the results of his testing and come up with an Individualized Education Plan just for him.

I am thankful that we're starting down a road that will hopefully give him the help he needs to get over the hump.  I seriously doubt he will ever talk as much as his sisters.  At least, I hope not.  But I do want him to be able to say whatever he wants to say. 

 I love his little voice and his little laugh and his little heart, and I am enjoying hearing him share them with me.  This little guy is such a blessing to us.  And I'm thankful.

(He did great on his "test",  by the way.  He totally charmed the lady giving it, and I'm half expecting them to come back and tell us he's just messin with us.  That would be sooo Jacob.)

silence

Silence is something we don't have alot of at our house. There are many small people in a muy small space, therefore, it is usually loud.

And when it gets too quiet, you worry. That usually means that something is wrong or someone is somewhere doing something they shouldn't be doing.

You know, things like eating dish soap or crawling on top of the piano. Or coloring the baby with a Sharpie. Things like playing in the trash can or throwing things in the toilet or emptying the fridge. And my personal favorite, playing in my make-up.

This is what that one looks like, by the way.


And in case you are wondering, those are all things that actually happened at my house this week. Along with, a trip to the doctor, 2 ear infections, a visit from my Mom (which was a great thing, by the way), one call to Poison Control, several computer repair attempts, and several other exciting things I'm too tired to remember.

So, silence? We haven't had much of that lately. And when we have, we've tried to end it quickly. However, when things are moving at this pace around here, my blog does go silent.

I've just been catching up on living life and writing about it will have to wait for a while. So I'm just taking a minute to say hello and let you know that I will be back when things slow down a bit.

Or at least when I have a few more moments of silence.

springing

Last week was 50 degrees and sunny. It was wonderful. I feel like spring is springing. I won't say spring has sprung, because that would guarantee a snowstorm next week. But I will say spring is springing. It's closer than it was, and we have almost made it through winter in New England.

As the last of the snow started melting a couple of weeks ago, we enjoyed some sledding with friends. The grass was starting to peek through the snow, but that didn't stop the fun.


The kids bundled and hit the hills.


Sledding two by two, one at the time, in trains.


Even one on top of the other.


I love seeing their rosy cheeks against the blue sky and the white snow.


The was the posse from our neighborhood. Always together. It was the 2 on the right who moved away last week. The rest of the gang is missing them, but really enjoyed their friendship while they were here.


Hopefully, this will be the last of the snow pictures for this year. Ken laughs at me when I say that. It's only March, after all. But I'm hopeful.

This week, we played outside and went to parks and had picnics and didn't wear coats.

Spring is springing.

submarines

This week blogging has once again become a casualty of our busyness. But, before I forget this, I have to write it down.

Tonight at bedtime, Claire (our ocean animal lover) pops her head up as I'm tucking her in.

She whispers, "Mom, when I grow up and I'm a Mommy, I want to be one of the guys that drives a submarine."

"Okay. That sounds great.", I whispered.

"Mom, will you go with me? We can drive it together and you can help me."

I assured her that I would be happy to and she snuggled down and went right to sleep with a smile on her face.

I can just see us cruising around the ocean together.

I would love to ride in a submarine with this sweet little girl. I hope she still wants me to when she's a "mommy".

tummy troubles

It's about 4 am, and I'm sitting on the couch watching cartoons.

Well, I'm not watching them, but I'm snuggling and blogging as a sweet little girl beside me watches them. She woke up in tears tonight with a terrible tummy ache. We tried everything and found that the best cure tonight was cartoons.

This tummy trouble was likely gas and who knows what else, but I think some of it was heart ache as well.

It's been a rough week for the kids. Their very best friends moved away yesterday and there have been lots of tears. We move so much that normally we are the ones to leave and not the ones to get left behind. But not this time. This time we had to say goodbye to friends we've come to love, knowing that we will likely never see them again, this side of Heaven. That's tough at any age, especially when your 6. Or 8. Or 5.

There are so many blessings that we have been given through our "Navy life", but this isn't one of them. I'm not loving having to watch my kids say goodbye to friends over and over.

I grew up in a very, very small town. I never really moved, and I graduated with the same people I started Kindergarten with. Alot of those people are still there. It's strange that my kids, at least so far, don't have a place that they are "from". When they are 19 and in college and someone asks them where they are from, there will be a long answer instead of a short one.

I know that God loves them and is using this all for their good as well, so I don't normally lose alot of sleep over this. But tonight, I am losing sleep. Because I'm watching Garfield with a little girl who woke up tonight and remembered that her friends moved away.

Right now she's smiling and eating cereal and we're talking about the giant cupcake that's chasing Odie down the street. Sometimes a little TLC is all you need to get over the hard parts in life, I guess.

It's been a rough week, but I think they're going to be okay.

dog drama

While I'm waiting for my computer to work again, I'll forgo the photos and tell the story I eluded to in my last blog. You can't just say things like "911 call" and not tell the rest of the story, right?

Sunday, Ken and Jake were out on a walk together by the beach. Ken said that he heard a woman calling for help. He looks up and seeing a lady walking two dogs and waving her arms around, her face covered in blood. Of course, he and Jake wen to check on her. Turns out she had gotten tangled in her dogs' leashes and fallen on her face on the concrete pathway. Apparently she had broken her nose and knocked out a couple of teeth and was generally in pretty bad shape. Ken called an ambulance for her and called her husband, and he and Jakey waited with her until help arrived. In the mean time, her 2 dogs (one of which was pregnant with 8 puppies) had gotten over the sea wall and couldn't get up out of the water, so Ken became the hero once again as he pulled the dog back up onto the pathway.

Ken said Jake was quite concerned about the lady and kept getting in her face and asking "Are you okay?" Once the ambulance came, Ken volunteered to dog-sit for her. He wrote down our # and address and brought home these 2 big, black, wet dogs.

We didn't want to keep them outside, since it was freezing and they were wet. So we barricaded the kitchen with baby gates and kept them there for about an hour until the lady's husband arrived. Of course the kids thought it was great having dogs. They even borrowed dog treats from the neighbors to feed their temporary pets.

So, that was our drama for the day that waylayed Nathan's party. But in the end, everyone was okay and Ken and Jakey got to be good Samaritans. All's well that ends well, right?

And, as Paul Harvey would say, that's the rest of the story.

Nathan's birthdays

Yesterday was the little man's 1st birthday. I think he makes an adorable one year old.



I would love to show some pics of his day, but our computer isn't cooperating right now. Hopefully it will be up and running again by tomorrow.

Unfortunately, his birthday wasn't quite as fun as I'd envisioned. It consisted of going to church (which means missing a nap, if you're a one year old), a 911 call and unexpected dog rescue (which I'll explain later), the Gold Medal hockey game (which is about as much fun is having a birthday on Christmas), and an ear infection (which is never fun).

We did manage the birthday breakfast, a few friends and cupcakes and presents, but it's just not the same. Even though he won't remember it, I wanted it to be his day. Because birthdays are a big deal.

So we had a do-over.

Today, I took Nathan to the doctor, started some meds and got his ear feeling a little better. After gymnastics class for the other kiddos and the busyness of the day, we all stopped and enjoyed another birthday dinner just for Nathan. We had pizza and cupcakes and sang and he was the smiling, glowing, happy little center of attention. Just the way it should be. He even got to blow out his one little candle. Again.

He is child number 5 and that will probably mean alot of hand-me-downs and left overs in his life. But he is special. And birthdays are special. And everyone needs to feel like a big deal on their birthday. And even if he doesn't remember it, I will. The year my sweet little man celebrated his first birthday. Twice.

I love you, Nathan. Happy Birthday, baby!