Corduroy pants and Pistachio nuts

Here is an example of a conversation when Mommy (me) is only "half" listening. I was wrapping a present when George comes and begins a conversation...

I hear him say, "What kind of pants am I wearing?" He really said, "What kind of nuts are these?" while holding a can of nuts they received as part of a gift.

I answer, "Corduroy".

George says, "What do they look like?
I think to myself, "What do they look like? Are you suddenly blind?"  I don't answer.

George continues on, "I don't think I am going to like the taste of these corduroys"

?!?!? Okay, time for me to pay a little attention and see a can of nuts in his hand. Laughingly I say, "No, those are pistachio nuts, NOT corduroys, those are your pants".

Christmas Card

I hope that everyone had a wonderful CHRISTmas with your families!

Last year I blogged about wanting things "perfect" and getting just the right family picture for our Christmas card. This year, amazingly enough we came much closer to that goal. I do think it is easier to take a picture of just the children as I can set them up as I want and snap away but I set this one up and my father-in-law took it for me. Now to work it into a blog header.

Friday Fotos

This Christmas season has been so busy that I haven't had the time to blog as I would like to. We celebrated with my in-laws this past weekend as they came to visit and see the boys in our church Christmas Program. We had a good time together and look forward to another visit in a few weeks for three birthdays. I'll post our "perfect" Christmas picture in the next few days. Here are a few pictures to share from this past weekend.

The boys received Cars p.j.'s from Grandma and Grandpa.

Our smiley baby boy at 6 weeks. His smile lights up his face and makes us all smile. He gained 5 lbs. since he came home from the hospital and now weighs 12 lb. 13 oz.

We didn't get any really good shots at the Christmas Program as it was dark but this has all of the boys on in their suits. I hope to get another one when they are dressed up but it is like pulling teeth lately to get a decent picture of everyone together. (One boy in particular does not like his picture taken -- but I won't name names.)

Cooking Class

The three oldest boys were able to take a fun cooking class last week. It was organized for our homeschool group with "Chef Paul" at a really nice restaurant in the area. They were excited about it seeing as they all love to help me out in the kitchen and haven't had as much of a chance lately. It is a series of classes and this one was making cookies and candy -- a favorite thing for children to make! There were two sessions and so my boys were in the 6 - 9 year olds.

They had so much fun and I really enjoyed myself! The class was very well organized and there were tables set up for a group of 5 or 6 children with a Chef at each station. The parents sat on the side and watched and were served coffee or water if desired. Chef Gary was at the table with my boys and interacted so well with them. The children each received a chef hat and had fun pretending to be a chef. They made sugar cookie candy canes, chocolate covered candy using a plastic bottle to squirt the chocolate over oreos and pretzels, and sand-art brownies in a jar. After the class the boys were no longer hungry for lunch as they had munched quite a bit on their creations. We are looking forward to the next class in January, breakfast foods! George is thinking he may want to be a chef when he grows up. Sounds good to me!

Rolling out sugar cookie dough to make candy canes with Chef Gary

George working on his candy cane cookie.

Re-Pete covering pretzels and cookies with chocolate.

Pete with his sand art brownie mix.

Odds and Ends

Nothing much new here. A few sick children which is the norm at this time of year. A couple of colds but thankfully not enough to keep them down. Tank has pink eye which I am trying not to let spread to the rest of the children. (Re-Pete just woke and I see he now has it too!) We are hoping that the germs clear out before Christmas. I try to send the boys out to play as often as possible so they get fresh air. My Dad has said that they weren't sick much as children but they were outside every day in winter.  Amazingly children do not seem to mind the 20 degree temps as long as they can play in the snow! (I'd rather sit by the cozy fire!) Missy Blue doesn't seem to enjoy the snow as when I sent her out last week in her new stylish snowsuit she just stayed in the place we put her, never moving. George said, "She won't move!" so he pulled her on the sled a bit but she ended up coming in and was happy to watch from the window.

Missy Blue was "Miss Destruction" yesterday. Somehow she went to bed the night before with the "stocking" her Grandma had given her for St. Nick. Needless to say when George got her out of bed in the morning her face was covered with chocolate and it was on her sheets along with many empty candy wrappers. Later that day she colored all over her hands and shirt with markers followed by pulling the roll of toilet paper covering the floor in a pile and dragging it out into the kitchen. I am hoping that was a one time episode and does not become the norm. It is a little too reminiscent of my boys!

I finally was able to update my blog for Christmas. I took a short video of Missy Blue "singing" with her Grandpa on Sunday. She loves music and will dance around and make a lot of noise when she enjoys the tune. We were at my parent's house on Sunday, as we are each week, and my Mom was playing the piano. Missy Blue started doing her version of singing and hopped on my Dad's lap to join him as he sang "We Wish You A Merry Christmas". If you hear Christmas music playing when you load my blog scroll down on the sidebar and pause it so that you can hear them.

We began Advent on Sunday night lighting our advent wreath and reading from "Jotham's Journey". We have had that book for years but this is the first time I thought that the older boys would really enjoy it. Of course they do not want to wait until the next day to find out what happens to Jotham. Neither do I for that matter -- but I can read ahead :)

We made our first simple Christmas candy last night melting hershey kisses on pretzel snaps and topping with M&M's. A bit messy but fun!

It snowed more last night as it has almost every day this week. It is beautiful and I cannot remember a recent December with this much snow this soon in the month. The children love it! I am not sure that my husband is enjoying snowblowing so often though!

Friday Foto

George was holding Baby Boy and was so cozy that he said he could fall asleep right there.

Appointment Update

Baby Boy is 4 weeks old today and I wanted to update you in on his appointment at Children’s hospital. We were able to get him in on Monday afternoon and the appointment went well. The doctor put a scope down his nose and looked into his esophagus which we were able to watch on a TV screen. George thought it was pretty disgusting (okay I did too). It only took about 30 seconds so it wasn’t too bad, although Baby wasn’t happy as he couldn’t eat for two hours before the appointment and was hungry and screaming at that time.

Anyway, Baby does have Laryngomalacia (floppy esophagus) and also reflux which is all related. The doctor was able to see acid coming up from Baby’s stomach and also swelling in the esophagus from the reflux. The swelling makes the noise (stridor) worse. He has been very fussy lately and reminds us of how George was at this age with the large amounts of spit-up he brings up at times, sometimes being yellow from the stomach bile. The doctor put him on Zantac (which George was on for Colic) to treat the reflux which will treat the swelling and help Baby not to have to work as hard to breathe when he is nursing. He goes back in two months for a check-up. We are so thankful that his case is not severe and that nothing surgical needs to be done as he will outgrow this! God is Good!

Baby Boy at 4 weeks

I caught him with his eyes open which is not very frequent.

Fun with bandages!

I wanted to share a picture of my children while I was in the hospital. My mother-in-law is taking classes to become an EMT and my father-in-law already is one. While they took care of the children they decided to pass some time having a little fun bandaging. The kids enjoyed themselves and I got a kick out of the picture I found when I returned.

Doctor Appointments

I mentioned in another post that my incision was opening up a bit and I did end up going to the doctor as it had opened at both sides. As it turns out my body was rejecting the stitches and so he ended up snipping the knots that were trying to work their way out. I was very thankful that nothing was infected and now that the knots are gone the holes are healing up. I had been a little concerned after searching online and finding all sorts of things that could be wrong. Not to mention that having small holes in my incision was disgusting to me. George wondered if I could see all the way into my body. My doctor was very reassuring and told me to come in as often as I need to until things are healed up and he would clean up the wound and make sure it wasn't infected. Seeing as everything seems to be on the mend I haven't gone back.

Baby Boy also had a check-up this week. He is starting to fill out more and is now at 9# (he came home two weeks ago at 7# 10 oz.) Before our doctor came in I began nursing Baby seeing as he was quite hungry. He is extremely noisy and so when Dr. Renee came in she asked about that. I mentioned that I hadn't had one this noisy before and she said it was not normal. She had me continue to feed him as she watched and listened to his lungs. The noise is kind of a loud squeak. His breathing looked labored which I realize it always does when he eats and so she had us take him for chest x-rays right away. Thankfully his lungs were clear but she had a call into an Ear/Nose/Throat doctor.

They think Baby has something called Laryngomalacia which is an extra flap of skin in the trachea or something along those lines. This would cause him to struggle to breathe while eating and also why he falls asleep as soon as I nurse him on one side and am unable to wake him easily to nurse on the other side (even with a diaper change in-between). He is getting worn out from working so hard. So we will need to see a specialist at Children's hospital an hour away to find out how severe it is and if it needs to be fixed or if Baby will outgrow it. Thankfully he is growing so it isn't affecting him that way and he only has this problem when nursing. We will hopefully find out more in the next week or two!

Happy Birthday to my Love!

Today is my husband's birthday and I feel bad when it comes around at a time when I don't have the energy to do as many special things as I would like. We celebrated last night along with my Dad and brother-in-law who also have birthday's this week . However, it was difficult to do anything special today as it was my first Sunday morning back at church and needless to say I was running behind as usual. My husband is wonderful at helping out each Sunday and will get the children eating breakfast and get them all dressed. He does not like to be late anywhere which is a great quality and helps me to strive for that as well. Today though we had a new little one added to the mix but yet we were still early and sitting in our back row pew. (The children are all in the service with us and so we do not venture any farther forward).

My husband is such a great daddy and husband to me! I cannot say enough how much I appreciate his willingness to help me out around the house. At times I feel like I let too much fall on his shoulders but he continues to assure me that he does not mind helping out in any way that he can, even to the point of doing his own laundry so I have a little less. He has had added responsibilities with me being pregnant and now after my c-section but he never complains but presses on. The children adore him as do I and I love to watch them interact and see the smiles all around.

I could say so much more but just want to say how thankful I am for my husband! Happy Birthday my Love!

Daddy with his newest little boy.

Adjusting

Our Baby Boy is 2 weeks old and the dynamics around here again have changed. While I love to have a new little life in the house it is such an adjustment for everyone to make. Thankfully the other children have handled it well this time around. I wasn't so sure how Tank and Missy Blue would re-act but am so thankful for how loving and gentle they are with Baby. Both of them search out the baby first thing when they awake and periodically throughout the day. They love to watch him and rub their faces against the baby to feel his soft cheek against their own. It is quite sweet.


The older boys aren't phased much as they have been through this all before. Although, George forgot how much babies can cry. On the way to church the other night baby was crying quite a bit and George wondered if I couldn't give him something to suck on to stop the crying as it was too noisy! He is a good help though, especially since I am restricted from lifting over baby's weight for 6 weeks. I am thankful for my parents and sister who have taken turns helping me out every day for the past two weeks, even though it is hard at times to not have my house to myself.

I am recovering and wish my energy would return faster than it is. I must have overdone things a bit as my incision was irritated and opened a bit.  I guess that is my sign to just sit down despite the fact that things don't get done. Oh, how hard that is! Baby is sleeping well and wakes every 3 to 4 hours to eat. When I was still pregnant I would be unable to sleep for hours at a time but yet would feel good during the day. Now however, waking in the night to nurse a baby, I am easily exhausted during the day. I know I had surgery which doesn't help but how I long to have the energy to keep up with my family! It seems this is just one more thing to help develope patience in me.

Birth Story

Thanks again for all of the prayers for my c-section this past week! Friday morning I woke early and felt great and wasn't nervous in the least. We headed to the hospital around 10 a.m. and got checked in. In a way it felt like home away from home as I have gotten to know so many of the nurses over the past almost six years and I had been told that they had been anticipating my arrival. That is one nice thing about being in the hospital for at least four days each time. My Mom and George came to the hospital to wait with us and George wanted to see his new "sister" or so he thought right away.

Unfortunately the IV took awhile to start and one of my veins burst as I was dehydrated, go figure, after not being able to eat or drink for eight hours. I was moved to the holding area and they started an epidural for me there as the operating room was not ready yet. My past c-sections I have had a spinal but the anesthesiologist thought this would work better for me and hopefully prevent any nauseousness as I have had in the past. I was moved to the operating room and wondered about this epidural as I could still feel things. (With a spinal you are numb almost instantly). They continued to reassure me that indeed I would not feel anything but pressure, especially when they pulled the baby out.

My husband was brought in right after they began and I could see him shaking as soon as he walked through the door. I felt so bad for him and tried to reassure him that indeed I was feeling good. It didn't take long and our little boy was born and Daddy could go and be with his newest son. I admit I was a bit surprised to hear them say, "It's a boy!"

A nurse friend of mine who attends our church had arranged with the anesthesiologist in advance that I could bring my own music in for the surgery and so I had worked at downloading my favorite songs both instrumental and praise choruses/hymns and burned a cd for the occasion. It was such a comfort to be able to sing along to songs such as "Tis So Sweet To Trust in Jesus" and know that it was indeed Him who was giving me the peace that passes all understanding that morning. On my way out of surgery the anesthesiologist thanked me for bringing in music and how it was the most memorable c-section he had ever assisted in. Everyone agreed and said how it left such a pleasant "taste" in the air. Indeed it was my best c-section also.

I felt good in recovery also but as always was anxious to hold my baby. The nice thing about the epidural was that I didn't need to stay in recovery as long seeing as I had never lost feeling in my toes so was able to move them easily which is a requirement for going back to your room. I also never was nauseous. For that matter, I felt great all day because I numb for most of it.  Day two is when the pain hits. For me at least, I feel better with each c-section and am able to move around much faster.

While I was in surgery and recovery our little boy was having difficulty breathing and needed his lungs suctioned due to not being squeezed through the birth canal. He also ended up having low blood sugar and so they gave him a bit of formula to perk him up which it did. As soon as I returned he was hungry and ready to eat. This isn't usually the case with my c-section babies as they are typically tired out and not interested in food.

I had such a nice hospital stay as it was a "fluke" that I was the only patient in that weekend. The nice thing about that was that I had all of the nurses waiting on me. When I was walking around better I was even able to go to the nurses kitchen to help myself to snacks when I got hungry or they would bring whatever I was desiring. I got to visit with and get to know some new faces. Thankfully Monday rolled around and things were back to being busy where I didn't see a nurse for most of the day. That helped to make me desire for home a little more.

I am so thankful for our parents who took care of our children when needed and now my Mom worked out a schedule so that I always have someone with me for the next two weeks and hopefully I can get some rest. I sure can feel it when I overdue it!  We are starting to adjust to a new "normal".

Daddy and George in scrubs. George really enjoyed it when the nurses offered him scrubs also.

The gang's all here! Being introduced to the newest little brother.

Our precious little boy. He had acne on this picture that had scabbed over already and his chin and nose are a little red from rubbing against me while nursing. He reminds us a lot of what George looked like as a baby but then I can see glimpses of the other children at times also.

New Baby!

Our new baby BOY has arrived and was born Friday, November 2nd at 12:49 p.m. He weighed 8lbs. 2 oz. and was 21 inches long. I am sorry to keep you waiting! I had wanted my husband to quick blog but he didn't get a chance. The family picked me up from the hospital this afternoon and we are just relaxing. I'll blog more details in the next days along with pictures. Everything went really good. I am still in quite a bit of pain, especially if I don't keep up with my meds but I am enjoying another little baby.

I am going to write his real name here for a few days but will then take it off when I come up with a "blog name". We named him Seth Earl. The middle name is after my Dad and while it doesn't flow as well as others the first name has always been one of my favorites and we also wanted to honor my Dad. Any blog name suggestions are welcome.

Thanks for all of the prayers and comments last week! They are much appreciated. It is so good to go into surgery knowing that many people are lifting you up in prayer, even people you have never met. :)

I hope to post pictures soon so keep checking.

Is it in the water?

During my pregnancy there have been three other friends from church who were also pregnant. We were all due within 2 - 3 weeks of each other and it was fun to see all of the big bellies around. People would say "don't drink the water". Typically our church does have a continuing list of "expectant Moms" to pray for and it seems that as soon as one family announces a pregnancy, another is soon to follow.

At the beginning of October we took a picture of the four of us and as soon as we all have our babies we will do a follow-up. My friend K started things off having her ninth baby, a boy, 3 weeks early. Another friend, C, has complicated pregnancies related to RH with the baby having a couple blood transfusions in-utero and so was set to deliver this week at 35 weeks. She had a c-section on Monday and had a baby boy. (He will be in the NICU for at least a week). Now L, who was due before all of us was a week overdue but ended up delivering a baby boy on Monday night. With mine there will be three new babies this week! So, what do you think I might have??? I am starting to lean toward a BOY!  (Only 2 more days!!)

L, C, Me, and K the first week in October. An unseasonably warm day! We should have taken side-views. :) I was pregnant with L and K with Missy Blue also. C and I have had four pregnancies together.

Behold, children are a gift from the LORD; the fruit of the womb is a reward.
~Psalm 127:3~

Pregnancy Update

Yesterday I had my last Doctor appointment before my c-section. We had both been a little concerned as it seemed that I had "real" contractions early Tuesday morning. I was so uncomfortable in my back and legs and there was a pattern to them at 8 minutes apart that I got up to start packing my bag. Thankfully getting up and moving around helped, lengthening the time between contractions and I was able to go back to sleep. Nothing more happened this week other than my normal and fairly frequent "practice" contractions.

My main concern has been that I would go into labor and have to rush to the hospital for a c-section. I have never thought of it in past pregnancies so I am not sure why I worried this time. Anyway, I am only dilated a fingertip and my cervix is still far back. The baby's head is right there which is why I am so uncomfortable walking and have a lot of pressure. But the doctor is fairly confident that I will not go into labor before next Friday.

Unfortunately my c-section is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. which means I need to go the morning with no food in addition to the fact that I have plenty of time for my mind to start worrying.

The boys have been counting down the days all month and George announced this morning that we only have 7 more to go! So soon I will be holding my little one and we are very excited!

Me with my "pumpkin" last week at the pumpkin farm.

A sideview taken that evening after a dinner we attended. I was 37 weeks at that time.

Feeling Very Pampered

For my birthday a few months back my Mom suggested to my husband that they all chip in for a gift card to a high-end spa in the area for a prenatal massage. I was shocked when I opened the card and of course cried at the thought of being pampered so and at the thoughtfulness of the gift. My sister had been there before for a pedicure with a group of friends and suggested that we go together and relax in the spa first before having our individual treatments.

Although our time was short it was so nice! We wandered around this beautiful place a bit taking everything in since I had never been but then took a short dip in the pool complete with waterfall. We ordered smoothies and then headed to the rooftop deck complete with fireplace and a nice view and relaxed in the whirlpool. (It wasn't too hot but I did manage to kind of float with my belly out of the water to be safe.) It was a quiet evening and so we had the area to ourselves.

After about an hour we went our separate ways, my sister to her pedicure and me to my 50 minute massage. While it wasn't exactly relaxing trying to maneuver myself onto a special pillow, the massage was very nice and I could have stayed at the spa so much longer. What a fun time to spend with my sister! We have plans to go again in spring and take Mom with us.

Thank you Mom for the idea and to all of you who had a part in this special gift!

 

Here is the pool with waterfall at the end. They have relaxing chairs all throughout. There was also a small whirlpool in our locker room area.

Here we are in our robes out in the lobby area. We also had special sandals to wear.

Lessons learned

I am once in awhile amazed at the lessons I learn from my children. This week George reminded me of how we need to always speak with kindness.

In preparation for Missy Blue's birthday my Mom mentioned that she had bought a small doll for her to take along to church. The other day I was at the store along with my Mom and sister and two of my boys and saw the doll that she had bought there. I didn't think it was cute in anyway and so said, "Is this the doll you bought? It is so ugly!" My Mom didn't make anything of it and I didn't think more about it.

On the way home from the store George asked why I had told Grandma that the doll she bought was ugly. "Because it is", I said. He continued on, explaining to me that if Grandma took the time to buy something, I should not say it is ugly. He wanted to make sure that when Missy Blue opened that gift that I would not say another word about it. Needless to say, I knew he was right. While I know my Mom well and can say just about anything to her, it wasn't speaking with kindness nor was it a good example to the children. I did call my Mom to ask forgiveness for my rude comment and as I had known, it didn't bother her. But yet, it was a necessary call.

Thank You George for your gentle reminder!

Missy Blue Turns Two!

Happy Birthday to my little girl!

When I was first pregnant with Missy Blue we wondered if we would have a girl this time. An ultrasound indeed confirmed that our fifth child would be a girl. I was excited thinking about being able to dress her up, do her hair, and have tea parties together, all the things that most boys do not care for. (Although, my boys would probably enjoy a tea party with me.)

Missy Blue at 3 months

I have enjoyed these past two years and continue to be amazed at just how different girls can be. Missy is naturally very nurturing and will comfort anyone who is crying by rubbing their back or arm so gently. She enjoys carrying her dolls around the house and yesterday carried a diaper along with her with an attempt to change the doll. After watching four boys string dolls from their feet and whip them around or tackle them to the ground, I found this to be a refreshing change.  

We also see quite a different temperament which isn't always the most pleasant. Of course Missy turns that right around and will also be a little charmer, especially to her brothers. She will follow them around and is not content unless she is where they are. At times it is as if they are at her beck and call.

We are still waiting for Missy's vocabulary to develop but know that as soon as she really starts talking it will never stop. Her favorite word of course is "Daddy". "Where Daddy go? Gawh?" is the phrase we hear throughout the day.

What a joy and delight she brings to our family. I look forward to watching Missy grow and become a little lady.

Family Vacation/Reunion

The rest of the story...  The next portion of our trip we combined into a vacation along with a family reunion on my husband's side the weekend following the race. We haven't taken a "real" vacation in quite awhile so this was a treat and we were all really excited! My in-laws were with us and we all camped outside of St. Louis. If you haven't been there, St. Louis is a wonderful place to take a family as there are so many things to do and many are free which is the way we planned our days. Many of the trips were also educational. The weather was wonderful, in the 80's each day and not too humid either. There was time to just relax at the campground as well as evenings visiting family.

We were so thankful to visit with my husband's Aunt Pat! The weekend we were racing she was in a terrible accident that when looking at the pictures and hearing the accounts should have claimed her life. She was driving behind a log truck that turned over, spilling logs which piled on top of her car, crushing the car. Miraculously God spared her life and while she sustained broken ribs and vertebra she is only in a temporary brace and is getting around great!

Our children enjoyed getting to know this side of the family and wished that we all lived closer. Enjoy some pictures of our trip. I added some to the slide show also as I couldn't choose.

Building an arch at the Science Center. It was harder than it looked and it definitely helps to have a tall person to hold both sides and another to put the final blocks on.

We had a picnic lunch at Turtle Park which is a small park with large statues of turtles. The kids loved climbing around on them!

This was in Meramec Caverns. I wasn't sure if I would enjoy it being that I am somewhat claustrophobic but there was plenty of space in these caves and it was really beautiful in some areas.

This was taken at Grant's Farm which we really enjoyed. The name is taken from Ulysses S. Grant who farmed a portion of that land and his first home is there. It is home to over 1000 animals and it so family-oriented. The Budweiser Clydesdale Stables are also located here and we enjoyed seeing those amazing horses.

Taken at the St. Louis Zoo. The zoo is always a fun place and free! Our favorite exhibit was the penguin house which was also a refreshing (or rather cold) place to be on a hot day.

The Children's Garden inside the Botanical Gardens. We all LOVED it here! It is based on Lewis and Clark and Tom Sawyer and there is too much there to describe. My husband especially enjoyed playing with the "locks system" moving boats from one side of the stream to the other by navigating the locks.

Our family reunion. My husband's aunt that I mentioned is center in the white shirt. We had a great time and the boys continue to ask when we will see them again.

Last Race of the Season

We returned yesterday from a 10-day trip to Missouri. It was my husband's last race of the season combined with a family vacation and family reunion. We had a wonderful time! I am going to split this into two posts, first talking about the race (for those of you interested).

Flying through the air off a jump past the grandstand.

My husband's goal at the beginning of the season was obviously to come in 1st overall having been just 3 points shy of being class champion last season. That goal was soon deflated as things did not go as well as planned and he ran into numerous difficulties. At one point he was 12th in the points and reset the goal of coming in at least 5th overall in the end.

This weekend was what he was looking for. He finished both races in the top three. Saturday he had us (his Mom, me, and George) a little nervous when we saw smoke coming out the back of the car for the entire race. We held our breath thinking he may not finish but he surprised us with a 3rd place finish. It was an exciting weekend as we were at a first-rate facility and the Speed Channel was there interviewing each winning driver. George and Tank were able to go on stage with him but I couldn't get the other boys there in time. (I am moving a little slower these days). He fixed the smoking issue which was something to do with the power steering. The next day's race he finished in second and finished out the season in 4th place in the Super Buggy Class. We are very proud of him!!

Daddy being interviewed by an "ESPN Speed Freak" with Tank and George holding the check.

The drive down to Wheatland, Missouri was 13 hours overall and we broke it into a two-day trip. We are very thankful for the motorhome as the children are able to play, snack, take bathroom breaks, nap, as needed. It was nice for me to be able to get up and walk around or put my feet up for awhile as they were quite swollen by the end.

The weather was so hot and humid which while being normal for Missouri supposedly isn't typical weather for the end of September. Usually we camp out at the racetrack  meaning pit-toilets and no power for air-conditioning but this time there was a "campground" of sorts right off the track in a grassy area where we could have power and unlimited water. This was another thing to be thankful for as after a hot day of racing we were able to cool off in the motorhome and also take a nice shower. The children were a mess by the end of the weekend but that is nothing new. The boys seem to gravitate toward any dirt they can possibly find. Once in awhile they completely change color with the coating of dirt they form. While for the most part Missy Blue is very girly, I cannot even keep her from following those boys into the dirt.

Vacation portion of trip -- to be continued...

The older boys playing in Daddy's car.
The boys motorhome bedroom. Missy blue sleeps up front on a drop down table and Pete also sleeps up front on the fold down couch. Re-Pete is hiding on the bottom bunk as he doesn't always care to have his picture taken.
Daddy with Missy Blue after an exciting race weekend.

Baby Day Set!

Sorry, my posts have been so slow in coming! Life gets busy and blogging gets put on the back-burner. So I post two quick things today.

I had an appointment with the Doctor who does my c-section this past week and we set the date for Baby Day! It will be the first Friday in November and while that wasn't my ideal time (okay, I know most people don't get to choose) it will work out. There is so much to think about in planning child care for the rest of the gang. This is one advantage to a c-section. It makes me just a bit nervous as it is only 10 days before my due date where my past sections have been 2 weeks earlier. Insurance rules have changed that. If I would go into labor before the set date I need to get to the hospital pretty quickly and they will do a c-section at that time as the doctors do not want me getting into hard labor. I know that God is in control so I need to rest in Him.

I am getting excited as we enter the home stretch. I still stumble out of bed in the morning trying to regain my balance and think, "Am I dreaming or am I really having my sixth baby?" In addition to holding my precious gift I look forward to having a bit of energy back and not having a big watermelon sitting in my lap weighing me down so.

Family Olympics

I love family traditions and last month we had our annual Family Olympics. This tradition began when I was a little girl and from what my Grandpa said, it began with endurance and strength type activities but has become a mixture of also fun and crazy games as well. The games are divided into categories of men and women and the children are divided into age groups. It has always been something I really look forward to and now I enjoy watching my children doing some of the games that I used to play. One of my cousin's and I fondly remember how I dangled a donut dripping with chocolate syrup from a string over his head while he lay on the ground trying to eat it.  So many fun memories of time spent together as a family. This year similar to a game I played as a child, our children lapped up chocolate pudding to find the gummy worms. Yummy fun! I am so thankful for my family and for traditions that bring us together.

George & Pete finding the gummy worms

Re-Pete was the winner!

The men played a similar game but they cleaned their plates.

The women dressed a model using newspaper. My Mom is in the middle and looked like June Cleaver but my team won with the crazy outfit on the right, because of the shoes my sister designed. Do you see my scallop work on the hem? :)

Tank competing against my nephew. They were so cute!

Missy Blue with Mommy trying to find coins in the ring -- Grandpa's traditional game for the children.

School Days

We officially started school this week despite my desire to be completely organized. (I am not sure if it is possible for me to ever be organized!) I am taking it slow and working our way into a routine to see what works best. This is my first year of officially teaching three children and while I did work with Pete and Re-Pete a little last year I am beginning phonics and more math with them this year. My challenge at this point is our two little distractions. While Tank wants to do some things with us, Missy Blue just wants to be in the way, trying to get attention. I am trying to schedule our time so that one or two children are always playing with the little ones while I work with another child. Hopefully that will work out better as everyone gets adjusted to actually having a routine again. I also am going to try spending one-on-one time with Tank and Missy Blue right away in the morning to see if that helps them to not be so needy for attention. Despite the distractions I was thankful that George was excited to be doing school work again. He has dreaded it most of the summer but he told me yesterday that it actually was fun. Now, if only Mommy can keep the learning fun!

I am very thankful that we will be doing history in the evenings with Daddy. It is sure to be a good time as a family and we will be able to do more hands on projects which we all enjoy. We will begin that next week. For any of you using history timelines please let me know what works best for you. We will use Mystery of History but I am not sure I like the idea of a big timeline on a foldable sewing board.

Unfortunately I have no pictures for the moment. My camera battery is dead and of course the charger is in some location that I have not found as of yet. Things walk off so easily around here and I will find them in the most bizarre spots! I sure feel as if I am losing my mind at times!

The baby arrives in 8 weeks! All is well, although I am ready for the fall temperatures to arrive when I usually love the heat. I have braxton hicks aplenty and a very active baby who doesn't seem to be able to ever get in a comfortable position. Ouch! I can't even fathom how I did this when I had our twins.

Nesting and my Mr. Clean

In pregnancy we always hear about "nesting" that occurs closer to the end. While I have a touch of it at times, with each of my pregnancies my husband is the one to really get a major dose of nesting. He can so quickly produce results that would take me at least twice as long to accomplish that I often refer to him as Mr. Clean. I think he takes after his Mom in this area and while he may not have been clean when he lived at home, she did have an influence after-all!

I have 10 weeks to go until my c-section and this week I received an email from my husband with the subject "cleaning plan". I burst out laughing when I opened it up to see our weeknights scheduled with a different area of the house to clean. He also thought it would be best to rip out the carpeting in our bedroom to help with the allergies I have and make it cleaner for the baby. Seeing as we have hard wood floors underneath I thought that would be fine. Unfortunately we didn't stick entirely with his plan as other things came up so that we weren't home each night but we did get a major start on the front area of the house.

I began trying to clean up our bedroom this afternoon. It is mainly cluttered with baskets of clean clothes waiting for a home of either a plastic bin or a drawer. Sorting through clothes that no longer fits and trying to find a place for them is never a favorite job of mine, especially since we are a little short on space for the boys clothes. The four of them sleep in one room with a small closet and one dresser. Tank's clothes are still in the bedroom with Missy Blue but will need to come out to make room for baby clothes. Needless to say this produces baskets of clothes without a home and while they may be folded initially, they rarely stay that way. Hmmm, I wonder how that happens? Okay, so I moved the baskets out so I can thoroughly sort through them again and find them a permanent home.

My husband came home and was happy to see the floor again. I figured we would do more cleaning again but after starting a load of laundry came to find the boys with their Daddy ripping out the carpet. I guess that was the project for the evening. They did a great job and the floor looks so nice. Next on the agenda -- the boys room and ripping out their carpet which is so stained that shampooing does nothing for it anymore. I must say, it is a lot more fun when we all work and clean together to accomplish a goal.

The boys helping tear out the carpet.

The finished room!