Where do I draw my strength from?

Today has been a day that I would rather be in bed. I'm achy (fibromyalgia flare caused by the cold air) and I'm fighting a headache. The headache makes me want to crawl in bed & just stay there. But, I can't. Hubby works noon to 10pm today. So I've had to be alert & focused on the kids. So, how do I do it?

It's hard, but my strength comes from the Lord. "I love You Lord, my strength!"(Psalm 18:1) "But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble." (Psalm 59:16)

I cry out to God during these times of pain & misery. He has never failed me yet! Some days, He eases the pain. Some days He just gives me extra-ordinary strength to prevail over the pain. Other days, He just holds me as I walk through the pain. But God is always faithful to give me a way through it.

So today I will cling to my Savior & He will be my strength! He is all I need. He is all you need! "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19)

Where have I been?

So, I stink at keeping this thing updated. I really need to stay on top of it, but I just can't seem to do it reliably. This week, I'll blame it on my hubby's schedule. He's working crazy hours so my schedule & the kids' schedules are all thrown off. It's a good thing our school year is officially over. We still have a few days worth of work to finish off our books for this year, but we have our 180 days in already.

We grilled out this afternoon & enjoyed the beautiful weather. The kids' had a blast playing on the playground. Then we did a little schoolwork with Princess while Little Princes & D-Dog picked up toys. Then we ate supper. Then Miss Elaine came over. She & I watched a movie while the kids played Legos upstairs. They played together so well today.

Little Princess sat on the potty today - 3 times. This is a big success as previously she would just walk into the bathroom & look at the potty chair & scream. I got her a seat that goes on the big toilet & she cried a little when I put her on it, but quickly calmed down so I could read to her. She got a sticker each time she sat on the potty. We put a yellow (her favorite color) piece of paper on the wall by the bathroom door so she could put her stickers on it. This is a start! Hopefully she will catch on & start asking to "go potty".

The kids are all in bed now & Hubby won't be home for another hour. So I am going to go relax & watch a little tv. Have a wonderful night!

The Party's Over

All is quiet! The party is over, the guests have all left & the kids are all in bed. Ahhhh!

It's been a busy day! I got up a little after 7am & worked on the kids' cake. I think it turned out pretty good!

Princess & D-Dog got a lot of presents from Grandma, Grandpa & Uncle Neal; Mamaw & Papaw and Uncle Bob & Aunt Wendy, and Elaine & Us.

Well, the day is over & I am headed for some snuggle time with DH before bed. Tomorrow is a busy day - church!!

Birthday Madness

April is crazy! D-dog & Princess both have birthdays in April. D-dog is now 5 & Princess will be 8 on Tuesday. So, tomorrow is their combined birthday party. Fortunately this year, Easter was early so it a little less hectic! Tomorrow or Sunday I will update with photos of the party.

The last few days have been crazy. DH is working afternoon/evenings so that throws our schedule off. Then the weather has been so nice the kids don't want to do school work! Plus I'm in the mist of cleaning for the party. It's not like it's a big party. It's just my parents, my in-laws, my bro & sil & then my friend Elaine. Still, my kitchen is a mess. It's amazing how much stuff just gets brought home & left on the island, table & deep freeze. It doesn't help much that DH & I are pack rats. It is amazing how much stuff we have stuck in boxes around the house that we haven't touched in years! Plus we have all our homeschool stuff. It is amazing how much stuff we do have. So many wonderful friends have given us stuff to use in the future for school.

You know, I'm sitting her posting when I should be putting laundry away or cleaning the kitchen or running to the store to get cake supplies! I need to back the kids' cake this afternoon so I can decorate it either this evening or in the morning. I am actually enjoying sitting here. Princess is downstairs doing math with DH, D-Dog is in our room playing Lego Star Wars & Little Princess is downstairs watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Since everyone is occupied with something, that means this is a perfect opportunity for me to run to the store. So off I go & you all have a wonderful day!

Bird in the house!

Last night, our friend Elaine was over. She is getting ready to leave & as we open the front door, a bird flies in the house. The 3 of us (Elaine, Hubby & I) proceed to try & get this bird out of the house. She is scared & flying in all directions. Every time she flies toward one of us, we jump. (Note that during all this commotion, our youngest is sound asleep on the couch & the older 2 are upstairs absorbed in Lego StarWars on the GameCube!) She flies into the kitchen & we follow her. Now we can't see her. Then we spot her on my fake plant on top of the upper cabinets. Hubby throws a towel at the plant & she flies up & over toward the open back door & then back to the counter top. Every time she flies toward the living room, I wave a Purdue blanket to encourage her toward the back door. After about 10 minutes of this, we finally get her out the back door. If I had been thinking, I would have grabbed the video camera. It would have made a great entry for America's Funniest Videos!

After we all calm down & Elaine decides to leave again, we cautiously open the front door. That's when I realize my real wreath from Christmas is still on the door. So I pull it off & throw it in my flower bed. This morning I realized the bird had had a nest on top of the wreath. No wonder she flew into the house, we had startled her from her home!

Lesson learned, unless you want a bird flying into your house from her nest on the door, take your wreath down before spring arrives!!

Do you ever have days where you'd rather just stay in bed? Today is one of those. I have fibromyalgia & it's been raining & storming so I'm really achy and fighting a headache. But, I am up & moving because I have 3 little ones to watch. Well not really little...

JE is sitting at the school table doing her grammar & critical thinking worksheets. She'd rather be playing with the younger two. JR has climbed up on her sister's top bunk & is yelling for help to get down. She is now down thanks to me :-) D is constantly bugging his sisters.

It is almost 11:30 & we still have to do Science. It seems like we can not get on track this week with school work. Everyone is getting spring fever!

We have a busy afternoon. We need to finish our school work, get toys picked up, & work on laundry before Dad gets home. Then we have to go pick up our new van from the dealer. Then Miss E might come over & watch TV tonight with us.

Well, JE is done with her worksheets so we are headed downstairs to eat lunch. Catch up with you all later!

So it Begins...

So, this is my attempt to actually start blogging. Not sure if anyone except me will find my life fascinating :-). Life at our house is interesting. I am married to a wonderful hubby & we have 3 children. Our oldest girl is going to be 8 in a few weeks (how did that happen so quick!). Our son will be 5 in one week. Our youngest girl is 2 1/2.

A lot of our time is spent at our church, Grace Evangelical. Between Sunday services, Women's Bible study, Word of Life & One49 dance it seems like we are always at church :-).

The rest of our time is spent doing school work (we homeschool) & spending time together as a family. Well, I am off to teach Science to the kids...See ya again soon!