Thanksgiving Week

Yep, that's ALL of them...cleaning up was fun!!!

From building every puzzle in the house, to building gingerbread houses...from the Science Center to hosting 30 people in our house on Thursday...we sure did pack a lot of fun into one week!  Our former neighbors stopped by for a visit on Tuesday, which we all LOVED.  Then Nani and Pop Pop and Auntie V and Uncle Mark all arrived.












We made a fun trip to the Science Center on Wednesday and the kids got to play in the Blue Room again as well as construct a tower that survived a mock earthquake, see the robot room, and play with floating planets.

Special visit with special friends

Thursday was a fun convergence of members from both sides of the family...30 people in all.  I feel so blessed to have so many family members who all enjoy spending time together.  Boy did we have a LOT of food!!

Friday was the construction of the annual Gingerbread House, only this year it was a Gingerbread Manor...2 stories tall!  The icing was unfortunately not strong enough to hold it together, so I did "cheat" a little and used the hot glue gun to keep it from caving in.  It turned out great thanks to Uncle Mark and Auntie V's creative decorating skills!

Yesterday when I was telling Carter that Uncle Mark and Auntie V had to get home to work again, and told him that they were both teachers.  "Oh," he said, "I didn't know that they were teachers."  "Yes" I told him, "What did you think they did for their jobs?"  "I thought they played soccer."  Hmmm, guess we hyped up the idea of playing soccer together when they came so much he thought they were both professional soccer players.  :)


Carter's Sunday School teacher met us in the hall after church this morning and said they were talking about the Thanksgiving Holiday and what the kids liked about it.  She said Carter had answered, "What I don't like is the dinner."  When she asked him why, he told her because he had to eat it again and again and again and that he didn't like leftovers.  Ugh, guess that means I have to cook dinner tonight!!

Earthquake-proof tower

Lawson with his Aunties

The Hellers + Mom singing "Simple Gifts"

The Gingerbread Manor!!

It's that easy...

I think one of the things that may get under my skin more than anything lately is how difficult it has become to do even the most simple things.  Folding laundry, keeping the floor clean (aka: Not looking like someone dumped all the crumbs from the bottom of a bag of chips on it), getting a shower, using the bathroom without someone else sitting in there with me, taking the kids to the playground...

A trip to the park is no longer a simple affair.  We took the kids to the park on Sunday and they started packing their belongings an hour in advance.  We arrived with a van full of their survival gear.  There were books, there were stuffed animals, there were baby dolls, a snack bag in which Carter included 3 bananas, 6 clementines, 4 apples and 3 candy canes(!?!)  As the kids spilled out of the car and started to run around on a soccer field, Reese dumped out her bag of goodies and I began to question the need for bringing a book and a doll to the park?  I never did get an answer because she moved right on to riding her scooter next and left her goodies behind in a sad little heap.

We ventured out to another playground yesterday because it was such a warm day, and again it felt like we packed half the house.  We even made it to the library to get some new books afterwards and Lawson didn't have a complete meltdown, in spite of being out for three whole hours.  When we got back to the van, I was counting my blessings that the rain had held off since the side door was sitting wide open!!  Perhaps I was slightly preoccupied??

At the library there is a HUGE, probably 7 ft tall, stuffed toy soldier that is sitting down in one corner.  Sienna took it upon herself to grab him by the next and knock the whole thing over on his face.  I was nervously racing over to right the guy, all the while looking over my shoulder to see if the "mean" librarian had seen her offense.  She must not have, or at least she didn't say anything, but as I walked by her desk she did give me a funny look.  When I asked Sienna why she had pushed him over, she said, "I wanted to see his butt."  Oh dear...

We got home and the family room that I had somehow managed to keep clutter free all day was suddenly strewn with the 50 new library books, coats, shoes and in-progress snacks the kids dragged in from the car.  The baby was screaming in hunger, Sienna was screaming from exhaustion, Carter and Reese were asking to watch a new movie.

BUT...I knew there were still plenty of hours in the day to get a few things ready for my family arriving for Thanksgiving.  Carter had his first basketball practice last night and I figured I would have a good two or three house at home with a couple less kids (Reese wanted to go), to get things ready.  But at 4:15, the extreme wind that had been plaguing us all day finally knocked out the power. (Which apparently was out for at least three hours)  So instead, we all went out to basketball, and a couple other errands afterwards.  I was sitting in the van with all 4 kids while Derrick tried to make a quick run through Costco for last-minute supplies.  We were trying to eat a then-very-late dinner of Burger King.  Both little ones needed diaper changes and Lawson was screaming almost the entire time, and I thought to myself, "No, it really never is easy."

Keep Calm...

Remain Calm.

Breath Deeply.

Don't let it get to you.

Keep Calm and Carry On...

Yea, right!!!  No matter the mantra, I just don't know sometimes how any parent can stay calm when their kids are zipping around the house wreaking havoc for 12-14 hours a day.

I was trying to be calm this morning when Sienna again woke up at the crack of dawn...again

I was trying to be calm when she demanded her usual 10 different items for breakfast, and then didn't eat anything I got for her....nothing new

I was trying to be calm when the kids were, yet again, complaining about doing their school work.

I was trying to be calm when the baby spit up all over himself and down my back and leg...twice...

And I really had to swallow a scream when my lovely daughter said to me, as we were cleaning up the dinner table tonight and asked her to help,  "But your are interrupting me from playing!"

Uncommon Grace...

Ah......"The Holidays"...that time of year when everything is Merry and Bright, when no one frowns and everything is about jingling bells and tinsel and sugar and spice and everything nice.  Hahaha.  I'm totally not trying to be a Grinch, but sometimes I do get a little overwhelmed by it all.  I mean, if you spend too much time on Pinterest at this time of the year, you can so easily depress yourself with all the things you should be doing for the holidays.  Decorating your kids cheese sticks to look like snowmen???  Making reindeer tracks through the backyard???  "Real" letters from Santa addressed to your kids that come in the mail???

Ah, and the presents...oh the presents.  Every store sends you a catalog the size of a dictionary.  If your kids happen to see one of these catalogs, God forbid, they will spend hours looking through it and telling you everything they want for Christmas. (As mine did)  To which you will sigh and say, "well, that's nice but all those things will cost me more than a year of your college tuition."

We put so much emphasis on the holidays and so much pressure on ourselves to make them perfect and magical and to outdo ourselves from the year before.  We have to have that perfect family photo to go on the Christmas card.  We have to have a perfect assortment of Christmas cookies baked and ready to whip out if anyone comes to visit.

But sometimes, I am just tempted to throw my hands up in the air and give up trying to keep up with it all.  Sometimes I just want to tell my kids that gifts are great, but the real meaning of Christmas is more about giving than getting.  It's more about celebrating the birth of a Savior, and the sacrifices He made for us.

I got a magazine in the mail yesterday called "Uncommon Goods."  There were some really cool gifts in it...but it's marketed as a catalog that sells unusual gifts for people who have everything.  I don't know why but something about that just rubbed me the wrong way.  We emphasize the materialism of Christmas so much these days...with holiday items showing up in the stores in late August, and months of commercials touting layaway and sales beyond your imagination...

We can't wait for Christmas to come, but as soon as it's over, what are we left with?  I remember as a kid always feeling a little down when Christmas was over.  It didn't take long to feel a little empty again as those new gifts started to lose their shine.

This year I want to try and focus more on the real gift of Christmas, God's Uncommon Grace.  It is a grace that extends far beyond what we can ever imagine.  It is a grace that covers all our mistakes and sins.  It is a grace He freely gives to us with no expectation of anything in return.  Now that is a gift we can really celebrate...

2 Months and counting...

 2 Months Old already....where does the time go???  Oh I think I can probably come up with a few things that have taken up my time over the past two months...four of them to be exact!  I do love this little guy though, in spite of his tendancies to be awake for half the night and to spit all over me whenever he gets a chance.  He has really started to make cooing noises and to smile at us now, which I absolutely LOVE.  It makes all the crying a tad bit more bearable.

Ever seeing but never perceiving...

At Bible Study this week we were reading the parable of the Sower and Seeds.  We discussed what it means to be hardened to the truth...

Mark 4:11-12

   11 He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables 12 so that,

“‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,

and ever hearing but never understanding;

otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’”

Sienna really wanted to have some candy this morning. (nothing new there!) She got her candy bin out and brought it over to me, asking, "Can I have some candy?"  I told her promptly, "No." (it was only 9 AM!)  She asked again, and again I said no, but this time told her, "It's not good for your tummy."  She asked again, and I told her she needed to wait until later.  She asked again, and I tried to go into the digestive complications that could result if you have a diet mainly consisting of candy...well, not actually, but I was tempted to!...but AGAIN, she immediately said, "Can I have some candy?"  Clearly, no matter what I told her, she was absolutely, positively NOT going to listen to anything I said that didn't result in her getting the candy.  Clearly she knew I was saying "No" to her every time and was blatantly refusing to accept that for an answer.  Clearly she understood the reality, but refused to accept it.

As she was "helping" me clean the bathroom a little later, which for her means sitting on the counter and smearing water all over the mirror, I was thinking about her stubborn persistence with a little smile on my face.  No matter what I said to her or how I explained it she just wasn't having my answer about the candy this morning.

Something clicked for me then because suddenly the concept of a hardened heart made a lot more sense.  God gives clear guidelines and truths for us, and we also are given the free will to either accept those or reject them.  He knows our hearts and He isn't interested in persuading us by all means to accept his Word.  He gives us the Truth, and it's up to us to accept or reject it.  But Truth is still Truth.  It seems obvious that you shouldn't have a steady diet of candy, and that no matter how much you want it, it's not a good idea.  In the same way, we try to bargain with God all the time for things we think we want or that we think are good for us, when in reality they really aren't . We try to justify behavior based on what is best for us, not necessarily what is right or true.  The truth is staring us in the face, but we harden our hearts to it and try to work around it any way that we can.

When I am caught up in the vortex of mothering young children it is often tempting to use my busy schedule or my fatigue as excuses from listening to and obeying God.  I may be tempted to think, "I just don't have anything left to give, God!!"  This too can be a form of hardening your heart if you let it.

When God gives clear commands to "love your enemies", "bless those who curse you," "give to those in need", "let your light shine before men," "Do unto others," forgive, serve, share, sacrifice, encourage, pray....He doesn't have a footnote with a list of exemptions...

Something Old...Something New

I wore earrings today...


I know, right!?  Stop the bus right there!  What was the occasion you might ask? Nope, it wasn't that I got a good night's rest.  Even though Lawson slept an amazing 6 hour stretch last night, Reese was up coughing throughout the night...doh!!!  No, the reason was that I took two hours to run some errands and there was only 1 kid with me.  Derrick even NOTICED that I was wearing them.  I was actually worried my piercings might have healed over it's been so long since I last wore a pair of earrings.

So there I was, decked out in my stud earrings and my "new" thrift store shirt I just got for $3, and a new pair of jeans.  I felt like a million bucks.  It's the small things that make the difference these days, what can I say...

My mom wanted to talk to Sienna on the phone today and after their brief conversation, she told Sienna she was blowing her a kiss over the phone.  She asked Sienna to send her one back and Sienna promptly put the earpiece up to her mouth, licked it, and then kissed it.  Ewwwwwww!  Thank goodness for Clorox wipes!!!  Remember that when you are visiting my house and need to make a phone call.

Wisdom of the Ages

Lawson had the amazing opportunity today to be held by a woman almost 100 years older than him.  I am so blessed to have Miss Sally in my Bible Study group this year.  To see her and talk to her you would never guess she was a month away from her 100th birthday.  Hearing her talk each week brings me back to the days I would sit and talk about the Bible with my Grandmom.  And having her hold Lawson today...well it felt a little like Grandmom was the one sitting there holding him for the first time.  I so wish at times she could still be here to see him and give me a few more parenting pointers.

You never truly realize how much wisdom there is to be learned from the older generations.  I think having kids is what truly opens your eyes to it for the first time.

As Miss Sally sat with Lawson in her arms for 5 minutes, she blocked out all other people and conversations and just talked to him.  She told him she hoped that lots of people were talking to him every day and she said to him, "You can be anything you want if you just work hard!"  It was the sweetest thing ever.

Many people today think they can find all the answers by posting a question on Facebook or doing a search on their smartphones.  I think we all need a Miss Sally in our lives to remind us what true wisdom really is.

The Self-(un)cleaning House...

Once upon a time there was a boy and a girl.  They met, they married, and they built a lovely house. The girl would clean the house, and when the day was over, it was still clean.

Three Years Later...
The girl came home from the hospital with a baby.  Even though the baby could not move, speak, eat or play, the house suddenly looked like a Babies 'r Us store was turned upside down in it...everywhere a person looked there were baby clothes, burp cloths, diapers and other various baby gear.  The girl would try to clean the house, but somehow it never seemed like she could stay ahead of the mess.

Another 4 Years Later...
Now the girl has three more kids in addition to that first one.  For some reason, those early years seem like such a breeze compared to life in the present.  Messes seem to spontaneously erupt in nearly every corner of the house all throughout the day.  Messes seem to self-generate when everyone is asleep at night.

The girl has been desperately searching for the "self-clean" button for years now....but to no avail.  The harder she tries to stay ahead, the harder it is to walk across a room that is cluttered with toys, clothing and bits of food from dinner three nights ago.  For some reason, her hair is going gray, her face has more wrinkled, and she doesn't flinch when she sees the pile of crumbs under the table and fingerprint smears on every window in the house anymore.  She has grown numb to the mess, she has embraced the mess, she is one with the mess...

If the house were ever to be truly, 100%, completely clean again, it would somehow not seem like home anymore.  The crayon marks on the table, the nicks in the walls, the mud tracked across the floor...all daily reminders that here, life is being lived, and kids are being loved.

The YOLO Factor

I was reading a magazine the other night while working out on my elliptical and the article was about people who were participating in extreme sports and the YOLO factor.  You Only Live Once is an interesting concept to live by and it can be interpreted and lived out in many very different ways.  As I was lying in bed last night, a favorite verse came to mind,  Proverbs 11:25, which says, "A generous man will prosper.  He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed."  What if I were to take the YOLO principle and apply it to my life using this verse?  What if I were to be generous to the point I was extending myself outside my comfort level?  What if I made it my daily goal to "refresh" and encourage others and make this a priority, even over my own comfort?  What if I could keep this "all or nothing...one life to live" mentality always at the forefront of my thoughts at let it guide me in the way I live out each day?

I feel like the very reason I write this blog, the reason I love on my kids, the reason I want to get up every morning and do the same mundane parenting things over and over and over again for and with my kids...it's all part of YOLO.  When the days get tough and the nights are tougher, when there seems to be no reward for all the work you do, when life gets you down and then kicks you in the gut, you have to keep pressing on.  For me, YOLO is a turning away from yourself and looking out for the interests of others.  Any time I have an opportunity to do something for someone else, I feel so much more rewarded than the times I spend doing things only for myself.

Today I was able to show my son I love him by celebrating his 7th birthday.  It was a day filled with many smiles and happy kiddos...a day I was dwelling on the fact that 7 years have passed by in the blink of an eye, and the next 7 will probably pass even faster.  For me there is always that twinge of sadness when I see how fast my babies grow up.  Though the first few years are so difficult, once you get through them you suddenly realize that your kids are growing more and more independent every day, and needing you less and less.

Perhaps as my kids grow closer to adulthood, I can impress on them the YOLO mentality of living life.  I hope to help them realize that we do indeed have just one life to live and help them to prioritize in a way that puts God first and that puts others before themselves.

Because I only get one shot at this, I want to go all-out, full throttle, pedal to the metal, every day.

I think Paul knew all about the YOLO factor way before it became popular.  In 1 Timothy he writes in Chapter 4:

7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; 8in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.

The Laundry Conondrum

I need HELP!  No not that kind of help...although my brain seems less and less connected to the rest of my body these days.  No, the help I need is with Laundry.  I need a system...a plan of attack....an industrial sized washer and dryer.  (What I really need is a maid or laundry service, but that ain't happening anytime soon!!)  Does anyone have a solution to the never-ending cycles of laundry?  I mean, besides wearing the same outfit for two or three days in a row, (EW!!) I can't think of too many ways to make things easier.  I came up with just a few ideas...

Each person in the family could be assigned one color.  From then on, all of their clothing, including socks and underwear must be that color, and that color only.  This would greatly aid in the sorting and restocking of laundry.  Another stipulation is that it be a DARK color to minimize the stains that seem to plague my childrens' clothes after just a couple of wears.  Then, when the kids want to go out and jump in the muddy sandbox, my blood pressure wouldn't go through the roof.  I'd be cool as a cucumber as I said, "Sure Reese and Sienna, dig away in that muddy sand to your little hearts content!"  (You see, I am the one assigning the colors, and I'd give Reese dark gray and Sienna brown.)

Another idea I had was to connect clothes together with a cord to prevent items from being lost.  You know how toddler coats sometimes have the mittens sewn onto the sleeves?  Well, it would be something like that only I would attach whole outfits together.  There would be no arguing about what you want to wear, no mismatched socks, no trying to pair a red and black dress with Halloween orange tights, and pink sparkly boots for church (like Reese did two weeks ago)!!

Now that we have a fourth kid in the house it seems like we do at least one or two loads of laundry a day.  Just as I am daring to feel a tinge of satisfaction that I've put away all the clothes, I notice that the pile of dirty laundry has somehow spontaneously, exponentially increased in size in the blink of an eye. I can't get no sat-is-fac-tion...no no no...

Fall back

The Minion Trio

I've got to vent for just a minute here...this whole "Fall back" thing has got me a little riled up.  I mean, what kind of cruel joke is it to tired parents to hear everyone talking about this mythical hour of extra sleep???  Really...I think it ended up being about two hours less sleep for me since the kids were up late last night and then Sienna was up at 6:30 this morning...plus then all three of them were extra crabby since she woke everyone up earlier than usual. The only plus was that we were on time for church today, whereas every other week we are running at least 5 or 10 minutes late.  Now all the kids are ready for bed at 7:30 tonight, which sounds great except that they will all be up at 5 tomorrow...oh and Lawson totally missed that memo because he is still awake and will probably be up till his usual 12 or 1 AM bedtime.

We were at the thrift store on Friday and I almost left with one less pair of shoes.  We stopped by the shoe section because Reese needs dress shoes, and while I was looking at not paying attention, Sienna ripped off her sneakers and neatly lined them  up on the shelf and replaced them with a pair of monster slippers.  I looked down and she had these 5 sizes too large pink fuzzy monsters on her feet...ugh! Good thing I realized it before we left!

I caught Sienna two times yesterday in the bathroom trying to "brush" her teeth.  She squeezes the toothpaste onto her brush and sucks it right off immediately.  I guess this is her way of compensating for my not letting her eat candy for breakfast.  Fortunately it's just the training toothpaste so she won't give herself fluoride poisoning.