H's 7th Birthday!!

7 Years ago my daughter H was born. Her birth was actually quite eventful and I thought I'd share it with you today! =)

I was almost 2 weeks overdue and was scheduled to be induced on Tuesday, Sept. 18th. On Monday my brother in law Dan and sister in law Kristen were staying with us. Monday was essentially Bob's last day of 'freedom' before the baby was to arrive so we encouraged all the guys to go golfing.

I had to go to the hospital for a non-stress test early in the morning. Kristen offered to come with me but I told her there was no reason for her to come and that I would be fine by myself. So I went.

When I got there and they hooked me up to the monitors they started to notice a problem. I was having very small contractions (which I didn't even know!) and each time I contracted the baby's heart rate would plummet. My two doctors were both in the hospital that morning and they both kept monitoring me very closely.

Within a half hour everyone around me was all in a buzz. The heart rate had stopped a couple times and they were worried that the baby couldn't make it if I went through real labor with big contractions. They decided that they needed to get the baby out NOW!

I remember feeling so scared and alone. I had no one there with me and when they asked me who they should call for me I couldn't even remember our cell phone number! Besides I figured that on the golf course they would have it turned off.

I finally told them to call my house and ask my sis in law to get the cell number and for her to call Bob. And I also blurted out my mother in law's work # because I knew she was closer to the hospital and could possibly get there sooner. I just wanted some one there with me!

There were nurses buzzing all around me, prepping me for surgery and they basically told me that they couldn't wait for anyone to arrive, they needed to do this now.

When they wheeled me into the O.R. I finally had the clarity of mind to just PRAY! I prayed for the baby and for myself. I knew that I was alone at the hospital but that we are never alone since we have Christ.

I remember the anestesiologist was so amazingly kind to me. He knew I was very afraid and alone. He held my hand as they began the surgery and tried to help keep me calm.

I heard them say that my hubby and mother in law had arrived. Shortly after they took the baby out and said "It's a girl!!" (we had not known the sex of the baby and that was the best news I'd heard all day!) about 30 seconds later Bob walked in the room. He couldn't believe all that had happened!

Apparantly he did have his cell phone turned on that day on the golf course. (Praise God!!) So my sis in law was able to contact him. He thought she was kidding at first when she said 'Kathy is going in to surgery to have the baby!' - his brother and friends even thought he was joking when he took off from the golf course. The golf course was a 40 min drive from the hospital yet somehow he was able to (speed!) and get there in less than a 1/2 hour.

Every time I think of H's birth day I can't help but see the hand of God. God protected me and comforted me when I was more scared and alone than I've ever been in my life. He had me go in the hospital that morning for my test so that the Dr's would see and know that our baby was in danger and needed to come out. He surrounded me with medical staff who knew what to do and who gave me comfort until my family arrived. God gave us our precious, beautiful little daughter! We thank God for her today and every day!

Phone call from a famous author ...

See H has this love of chapter books. Mostly Junie B. Jones books and Magic Tree House books. She's been zooming through book after book for several months now. She even knows the authors names and talks about the authors as if she knows them.

So the other day I got a new cell phone (yay me!), mine was ancient and it was time to update (yay me!). So I gave my old phone to the girls to play with, Bob had an old one too so they had two phones to play with. (They STILL managed to find a way to fight over them and today BOTH phones have been in 'toy time out' all day!!)

Anyway, the girls have been so funny lately, wandering around the house pretending to talk to this person or that person ... really acting as if they're having real conversations on these old cell phones (don't worry, they don't even have a battery in them!).

So this morning H comes rushing to find me with this HUGE smile of excitement on her face. "I just got off the phone with Mary Pope Osborne!!" she exclaims. (The author of the Magic Tree House books.)

"Wow H, what did she say?" I say.

"Oh she was telling me about some new books she's busy writing." H replies.

"Very cool H, I'm so glad you got to talk to her ... I hope you told her how much you enjoy her books." I said.

"Oh I did. And she told me that I should try to read the ones I've missed ... since I skipped a few titles I need to go back and read the ones I've missed." she replies.

I couldn't help but walk away with a smile. What a great imagination! For her to act like she had a real conversation and be so excited about it was so cute! And I love that she seemed to admire this wonderful author ... perhaps one day she'll be the author who's recieving (fake) phone calls from a little girl who's reading a book by her?? You never know ...

Lest we forget ...

If you'd like to read my thoughts on September 11th, where I was that day and how I feel about it ... I made a post about it last year and this is the link ...

I will Never Forget

Year after year this day in history shakes me up. It makes me fearful. It makes me worry. Year after year I wonder if we'll ever have another Sept. 11th and that thought has me paralyzed in fear. If it weren't for my faith in God I would probably never leave my house. I'd keep my children locked up behind the safety of our doors. I'd remain in that paralyzing fear all the time.

It is ONLY because of God that I have the strength and the power to walk out of my door every day. To know that no matter what happens in this life, no matter what evil enters our comfy little life, no matter who our enemies are -- I can draw strength and hope from the Lord!

"But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."
Isaiah 40:31

Blessed

Aww ... ya'll really do love me! Thanks so much for all the sweet comments after my desperate plea went out to all the lurkers on this blog! I'm so thankful for so many awesome friends and family who take real interest in our lives. {And I promise I will remember that I too need to stop lurking and start showing ya'll some blog love too!}

Anyway, I just wanted to share a couple little stories that have really helped me remember how truly blessed I am. For those that know me well, you know that I have the tendency to over think things (Lynn, stop laughing!) ... and that I always over analyze and often times even question my own decisions.

So homeschooling has been no exception. I've often thought that I'm not equipped to do this, or that the Lord made a mistake by calling me to this, or what if we made the wrong choice ...

But two little things that happened recently have helped encourage me on this journey.

First, as I've mentioned before I try to go outside on the deck each morning before the girls awake to have some quiet time with the Lord ... read my Bible, spend time praying, etc ...
Some days the girls will show up out there with me. It depends how early they wake up.
So one morning H came out. Then after saying good morning she said she'd be right back and came back out holding a book and her little devotional Bible. She then sat down and said that she too was going to read her Bible with me. WOW, I was so encouraged!
I thought back to past years when I've rushed through our morning, trying to get out the door on time and I've never given any time to the Lord. I thought about the fact that because we are homeschooling, and have more time in the morning to ease into our day, it gives us time to really make our quiet time a priority. And it really encouraged my heart to see H doing the same thing and learning through my example! Thank you Lord!

The next thing that happened was on Monday. Mondays are one of Bob's days off so we have decided that Mondays will be our family field trip day. Now since it's still been pretty warm here we decided to go to the beach this Monday. The weather was beautiful and there was hardly anyone there (mostly older people who stared at us like 'why aren't those kids in school?!').
Even the water and the waves were perfect. For a long time the girls played together in the water. For once they were really getting along well and were just laughing and splashing and having a wonderful time. I sat in my chair thinking that I really didn't want to go in the water. I didn't want to get my hair wet or get cold or do anything but sit and relax. But the more I watched the fun the girls were having the more I had the desire to join them.

Finally I got up and ventured into the water. Like I said, it was beautiful, clear, no seaweed, and no jellyfish -- it hadn't been that nice all summer! Needless to say I ended up spending the next hour playing and splashing with the girls in the water. We rode the waves, we swam, we got our swimsuits all full of sand ... it was the most fun I've had in awhile. I felt like a kid again! It was amazing. And to think ... if they had been in school all day I probably would have cleaned my house that day! Another memory made, another chance to thank the Lord for the relationship He is building between us and our children. Thank You Lord!

Now I know these two things are not major events in the grand scheme of life. I simply wanted to share the fact that we can and should take every chance we can to create memories with our kids. They are growing up at an alarming rate and all too soon they will no longer choose to sit in our laps or hold our hands to cross the street.

I'm choosing to be thankful for every day and to use the moments I'm given to enjoy my children. And I'm so thankful that the Lord chose me to be my children's 'teacher' ... I may not be perfect or always do it right, but I can ride the waves and read my Bible and try to teach them about life along the way.

Hello out there!!!???

Is anyone still reading my blog?

Anyone?

Beuller ... Beuller ... Beuller????

I know I'm just as guilty of not adding comments to my favorite blogs ... but ya know after say 3 or 4 blog posts with NO comments a girl starts to wonder if there's anyone out there who's still reading!

So stop by and say hi from time to time, let me feel the blog love!

{{Is it this background??? Is it difficult to view or slow to load?? I could go back to using a more simplified one if needed ... }}

Home School Snack Time

I am so very thankful that my children's Grandparents are so supportive of our homeschooling efforts. My Mom, and Bob's Mom and Dad are always here for us ... supporting us, praying for us, offering their help to us, etc...

My Mother in Law is a preschool director and my Father in law is an amazing artist ... so they always have so many great ideas to assist us in our homeschool journey.

My Mother in Law decided this year to support us by providing a structured, healthy snack for every school day. She and the girls worked together one day to come up with a calendar with all the snacks for the whole month written on it. Then, she went out and shopped for all the items we would need. She presented the calendar and a bag full of food to us at the beginning of the month.

I am so thankful for her help and support in this way! Having everything bought and planned has helped tremendously! First of all it means that the girls always know they have something to look forward to in the middle of their school morning. Second, it helps having it planned so they don't just go raid the pantry whenever they feel hungry. Third, all the snacks are healthy! This helps me know that I am doing something very good for my family.

Here is just a small idea of what we are doing for snacks this month:
whole wheat fig newtons
cheerios and raisins
peaches (canned) and popcorn
etc ...

And here is everything she bought for the month ...

Fresh from my garden

I admit it. I'm not much of a gardener. I rarely make the time to tend to the flowers that I plant and many times things die out before the summer is over. So this summer I planted some bulbs thinking they would be easy to grow. They were.

I planted gladiolis and dahlias. Here is a vase of the prettiest blooms I got. The picture doesn't do them justice ... the colors were so beautiful and vibrant!

Tubing

This summer Bob decided to buy a tube for pulling behind his Dad's boat. The girls finally got a chance to go out on it a couple weeks ago. They LOVED it! J was a little more timid, but H kept motioning her thumb up for FASTER, FASTER!!

Here is H:
And J:

We are really going to miss all this wonderful summer fun!

Like Dandelion Dust

oh. my. goodness.

Every time I read another Karen Kingsbury book I love her as an author even more! Remember how I said I was taking f o r e v e r to read through my book choices?? Well not this book! I have been so enthralled by it that I've been unable to put it down!

It has drama and adventure and kept me on the edge of my seat ... and of course it drew out tons of emotion at the end. {That is lots of tears from me, no surprise!}

I give it a big fat 5 STARS!

Library

September is National Library Card Sign up Month.

Do you have your own library card? If you don't, you should visit your local library as soon as possible to obtain one! Even children as young as five can obtain their very own library card. It is a wonderful experience for kids to have their own card, pick out their own books, and check them out at the desk all by themselves. What a lesson in responsibility!!

When my oldest was five we couldn't wait to rush out and get her a library card of her very own. Somehow when the youngest turned five that milestone seemed to slip through the cracks and we totally forgot! So tomorrow I plan to take both girls to our local library. J will get her first card and we all will enjoy choosing some books to read.

I am seriously giddy with excitement! I love books, I love to read, and I love that my girls love it too! This may sound funny but it always amazes me that the library is FREE!! Such a wonderful resource to enjoy at no cost!