Spring Cleaning My Blog

One reason (among many) why I love this time of year is spring cleaning!  There's something wonderful about sitting on the floor, with the windows open, in front of the contents from a messy drawer and sorting!  And I tend to find joy in things like removing any and every object on a given surface in order to spread the love of a Lysol wipe on it!

Cleaning, scrubbing, organizing, filing, sorting, and trashing just makes me giddy!  It puts a smile on my face and pep in my step!

I'm almost done with all my spring cleaning projects inside and so I thought I should spring clean my blog and let it reflect the joy of SPRING.  (And yes, I'm in complete denial that tomorrow we're supposed to get hit with a snow storm that will leave us with a 6-8 inches of cold, mushy snow...)

Because today it is a lovely 64* in South East Kansas! So as I sit on my porch waiting for my sleeping babes to wake, I'm gonna give my blog a facelift...

So hang in there while I experiment!  I'm gonna give myself a new "tag-line" too!

(It's the little things in life that excitement me!)  :)

When Our Routine Doesn't Work..."Today We Will..."

As a momma to 4 kiddos (1 school age, 1 wanting to be school age, 1 toddler, 1 baby) we try to stick to a daily routine.  Often, when I tell people we have a schedule, they tell me all the reasons I don't need to be structured since all my children are so young.  But honestly, everyone in this house functions better with some structure and knowing what to expect in a day!

I know, for me, once I set a schedule, I can easily feel frustrated and defeated the first time my schedule isn't followed.  And with 4 little ones, there is rarely a day where something crazy and unexpected doesn't happen, which throws everything off!

That's why the key for me is: ROUTINE.  I no longer try to keep a schedule that is planned out by minutes and hours.  I figured out pretty quickly that just doesn't work for us!

Instead, I just aim for routine...and there are days even that is thrown out the window and then I revert to my "Today We Will..."

My ideal routine (we end up following this 3 days out of 5):
--Wake up
--Eat breakfast
--Get dressed, Brush teeth
--Make beds
--Devotions (everyone sits on couch and "reads" their Bible)
--Prayer and memory verse (together on the couch)
--School--move into dining room/school room *more below*
(Liberty lays down for nap)
(Trusten is learning the calendar, the globe, doing Rod and Staff and Teach Your Child To Read in 100 Easy Lessons)
(Brahm is working on counting objectives, number recognition and Teach Your Child To Read in 100 Easy Lessons)
(Samuel is learning to sit quietly and play during school time!)
--Play time
--Lunch (and daddy's home to eat with us!)
--Group read aloud
--Naps/Rest time
--Play
--Pick up house
--Daddy home from work
--Dinner
--Family Worship

*School usually takes us about an hour--including and considering interupptions!
----We all start out talking about the calendar (day, month, year)
----Then we move onto the globe and just discuss it (they always have questions about "where is this?" "who lives here?" etc)
----Brahm and Samuel then start playing school (this means they cut paper and glue) while I start Trusten's R&S
----Then Trusten takes a break, while I work with Brahm on his objectives and TYCTR
----Brahm and Samuel are dismissed from table and Trusten works on TYCTR
----Very soon Liberty wakes up (note: because Brahm and Samuel are playing crazy!)

So then what about the other 2 out of 5 days when mommy is feeling lazy tired :) or Liberty isn't cooperating, etc?

Then we just focus on our "Today We Will..." list.
"Today We Will" is what we aim for on a crazy day.  (These things WILL get done, but in no particular order! )
**Have Breakfast
**Brush Teeth
**Quiet time with Jesus
**Trusten: Rod and Staff workbook
**Brahm: Counting and/or Letters
**Lunch
**Naps
**Pick up house
**Dinner
**Family Worship

On days, like these, we play LOTS of Legos!

(Notice we don't necessarily attempt to get dressed, make beds and do every school lesson on "those kinds of days")

And if I can accomplish my "Today We Will" things on "those kinds of days", I'm happy!

Do you homeschool?  What do you do day to day?  Join the discussion over at Amy's Blog (Raising Arrows)!

A Jelly and Honey Sandwich

I honestly thought this would end in an "I told you so".

I thought I'd give him his way and then follow up with a lesson on how "mommy knows best".

But it didn't go that way...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trusten wanted to make himself a jelly and honey sandwich for lunch.

Natural honey and sugar-free jelly on whole wheat bread.  Hmmm...

I told him I didn't think that was a good combo and I made some other suggestions.

He persisted, telling me it sounded "soooo good", so I decided to choose my battles and let this one go...and craftily make a lesson out of it, once it was all said and done.

So I reminded him he had to eat whatever he fixed...that we would not be wasteful.

He said, "I will mom.  This is the most beautiful of ideas I've ever had."

Then he got to work...

  

 I was thinking "You're not gonna like this!" as he kept pouring on the honey...

At last, he finished his masterpiece and confidently asked me if I wanted one too.

I said, "Uh, no!" and I must have made a face because he said he wanted to take a picture of my "gross-out" face which he said was "hilarious".

In the end, he loved his creation and asked for another one.

But we settled on applesauce instead. 

And I'm the one who learned the lesson today--sometimes my 5 year old really DOES know what he'll likes better than I do!

Big Family Comments and My Favorite Responses

People always have something to say and always have an opinion to share!

At first, when Ryan and I only had Trusten, I was constantly asked, "what do you do all day?"

Then people started telling me we needed to have another kid so that Trusten doesn't become spoiled, so he has a friend to play with, and on and on.

Even after Brahm people seemed so puzzled as to how I kept myself busy during the day "just staying at home all day".  Geesh!

Well, now that we're a family of six, we get lots of comments...but they are nothing like what we used to hear!

Even though, in our eyes, we're still a small family, we still get lots of comments about our "big" family. I suppose that's because we have so many little ones so close in age.

Whenever we go out to eat or to the store, we get *at least* one comment about our "big" family. Most of the time, we don't mind the comments at all, but sometimes it does get a little old. Especially when it's the same people saying the same thing over and over.

Or when people are being down-right rude in front the kids (once someone said, "Just looking at all your kids gives me a headache" (rudely) right in front of the boys.)  That was NOT okay with me and I let them know it.  I never want my kids to think that way about themselves.

Because of that, there are now certain Wal*Mart associates that we avoid because they seem to feel very negative and outspoken about our blessings!

But for the most part, the comments are pretty harmless...and sometimes amusing.  Instead of getting offended, we usually just tease back.

So here are a few of my favorite responses to some common comments.

"Your hands sure are full."

• "Yes they are!" because...well, they really are sometimes! or "Full of blessings!" especially if the boys are listening or "If you think my hands are full, you should see my heart!" which is corny, but old people like it! or "Not quite yet, I still have some fingers left" if I'm feeling ornery.

"Haven't you figured out how that happens?"

• We joke back, "Yes we have and apparently we're pretty good at it!" (if they say it in jest) or once I nicely replied, "They are children, not a disease" (because the person was being mean about it)

"Do you have your parade permit?"

• We've gotten this twice and both times I shot back, "We sure do! Do you want to join because you look like you'd make a perfect clown!" (Yes, I really said this but in a very loving way :) !)

"Someone needs to buy you and your husband a T.V."

• We've heard this a few times, but recently someone said it to my in-laws at an airport ("You need to buy them a T.V." was the comment) and my very sweet father-in-law just gave a courtesy laugh and said "Nah".  To which I added, "They want more grandkids!".  I mean, I don't think they have enough kids in their lap yet, do you???  :)

Okay, and just for kicks, here are just a few quotes I like...

"If evolution were true, mothers would have more than just two arms."

"The Bible calls children a blessing and debt a curse.  But in our society, we reject the blessing and apply for the curse.  Something is terribly wrong with this picture."


"'Be fruitful and multiply' means just that.  Multiply.  But you seem way too comfortable with simple addition!" 


and my personal favorite...

"Birth control is for sissies." (although I'll admit that even I am a sissy sometimes :)  !!!)

Pooping Is An Expensive Habit...

and since no one around here seems like their gonna stop this habit anytime soon..."We CD"! (cloth diaper, that is!)

I *LOVE* (yes, LOVE) cloth diapering!

I'll admit, I'm kinda addicted to it!  But still, we've only spent probably $200-$250 on cloth diapers & accessories (that is for all sizes/stages).  And they've already gone through two boys and now Liberty is using them! 

Plus, I just love seeing my kiddos in cloth diapers!  It's cute and it makes me feel frugal and old-fashioned--which, yes, I like feeling!)

When we were first looking into cloth diapers, about 2.5 years ago, I looked ENDLESSLY for the perfect fit (pun intended) for us.  There is SO much out there and the search was overwhelming!

I like anything that is practical, simple and cheap so that limited my search immediately!  There are lots of fancy choices out there, but I get so lost with all the mention of inserts, AIO's, pulling, etc.  And I'm not willing to pay a big upfront cost...

So after researching for about 3 months, we found the perfect thing for us.

We use Bummis Whisper Wraps that velcro on just like a disposable diaper and they need an old-fashioned 'prefold' in the middle. --->
For diaper changes, the prefolds can be switched out and the wrap can stay on (as long as there wasn't a leak!)


<---I also have Dappi Covers (these go on like pants) I use, but they are not as easy to change, since they go on like pants...but they work and they are cheap!  They also hold in moisture a little better for longer periods of time.  They are a soft plastic that go over a fastened prefold.  For fasteners, we use Snappi's which are super easy and pain free (unlike diaper pins)!  (Dappi's with Snappi's and prefolds are definitely the cheapest solution in CDing!)

When I'm using a prefold with a Snappi (and a Dappi cover), this is my favorite way to put it on...

So, once we decided on the cloth diaper that was best for us, we had to then choose which website to order from...that was JUST as exhausting!

I made an excel spread sheet of prices (I LOVE spread sheets!) to pick the best deal.  So, we now order all our cloth diapers from either Cotton Babies or Little Lions (*be sure to look at their clearance!)

Also, we keep an eye on Ebay for better deals on Snappi's!

Besides prefolds, Bummis Wraps, Dappis,and fasteners, I've collected a few fleece soakers from generous MOMYS that I'm starting to love using! 

They go on like pants too but are cute, soft and wonderful for heavy wetters!

(***Upcoming post: The Lies Women Believe about Cloth Diapering!)