week in review

Monday while Isaiah was in art up at the school I was able to help Mrs. Steenhoek by working in the new book room. What an amazing resource this room will be when the project is complete. It was fun for me to be able to help her out even for just an hour.
Dominique finished his last final exam at Grand View this afternoon. He is happy and relieved to get a break for a while. The hunt for a job is heating up now!
Tuesday we had our ice storm and were iced/snowed in. It was a bummer Scott had to go in to work and fight the weather to get home. But he made it through and all of us were amazed to see the ice covered trees and hear the crashing of limbs falling from our trees. Bummer no.2 Dominique lost out on an interview with UPS because he couldn't drive to the interview in the ice. They would not reschedule. :(
Wednesday brought our weekly trip into town to see Sara. This week was supposed to be Isaiah's turn because Madison took his turn last week, but Madison has had a rather difficult time lately so he was kind enough to give up his place. He made Sara a lovely Christmas card with a sweet message inside. He and Dominique had a Star Wars marathon all day. That was fun for them. I love it when my kids choose to bond...
Wednesday evening we had church and about 15 minutes before church was to let out for the night, we lost all power. Oh my goodness! That place sure does get dark! We have a lot of great people who work with our youth and kids. I think out of all the people who were in church that night we only had a couple kids in tears and they were quickly consoled. (One of those was my Elijah) :( he hates the dark! We were able to return all the children safely to their parents and actually got home earlier than we usually do. Now that was nice!
Thursday, Isaiah had guidance at the school and again I was able to help out in the book room. I really have enjoyed the time I have had to give to the teachers. Elijah really likes me helping out in his class. Amaris would rather hug me quick and push me out the door. Aren't kids funny? So different!
Thursday night brought PTA. I really like our new Principal. He is a very nice guy and seems to stay on the ball and is always right on top of everything!We have a lot of things coming up in the next couple months that will be a ton of fun to participate in. The bummer for me is that a lot of the activities outside of regular school hours are not activities that Isaiah can do. Then we have to decide do we take everyone and make him watch, do we all stay home and not let anyone go and have fun or do we split up and some go and some do something else? I don't really know. Scott never likes to split up, he just isn't one of those guys that will just take off and do things on his own.
Monday I will be up at the school helping out with Santa's workshop. A little store where the kids can buy a gift for someone. PTA is providing every kid in the school with 2$ to spend at the shop. FUN!
Today has been a very sad day for me. There has been a lot going on around here. I have been stressed out and I guess today was just one of those days that pushed me a little closer to the edge. Pray for me.
Elijah is very excited he gets to go to his buddy Christian's house over night tonight. He loves going over there. They are very good buddies and have tons of fun together. I love to see him excited about things like that.
Madison and Scott went shopping, not my favorite activity. Dominique of course is at Alex's house because DUH! it IS Friday and he never stays home on Friday's! He has been a great help this week for me While I have helped at school and run around town.
Sam, Amaris, Isaiah and I are home where it is warm and I was hoping for a fun Christmas show to come on TV. No such luck. Bummer!
That is about all for now.
Hope you all had a great week and will have a warm and cozy weekend.

Another Ice Storm

These are some pictures Scott took of our yard after our storm.
Our pine trees and power lines coated in ice.
A small bush in our back yard that still had berries on it.
These huge branches fell in the middle of our yard, Dominique thought it was thunder when he heard it fall.

Another large branch hanging from the tree.

Droopy sad looking pine tree.
This was one of the ice covered sticks from our yard. We had some that were even thicker than this!

The ice covered bushes and trees are so beautiful, the kids got a lazy snow day, but Dominique's car has turned into a little ice cube. Really it took us over an hour to just get the doors open this morning. Thank goodness he is done with this semester of classes. So he had no where he had to be. I like it when my family is safe at home when these storms come.

Cookies and a visit with Santa and Mrs. Clause

Friday we took the kids down to the Runnells Community Center to make cookies and visit with Mr. and Mrs. Clause...It was really great because THIS Santa told the kids he was not the reason for the season and he proceeded to tell the Christmas story. Finishing up with the fact that Jesus came for them, They are the reason Jesus came as a baby! I love it when they hear the truth in unexpected places.
Elijah and his cookie
Amaris....she ate her cookie before I could get a picture of it!
Isaiah wrapped his cookie to put under the tree on Christmas Eve.
Sam made a green cookie and ate the whole thing!
Dominique was at Alex's house again and missed all the fun. Madison went with but grudgingly and refused to be photographed. Sorry.
We all had a great time, saw lots of friends new ones and old ones too. well, all of us except Madison. ;0(

Oh Sam!

This story happened about a week and half ago but I just have to share.
Sam still has not earned his toys back in his room. He will do good and earn one or two back then within a couple hours, and lets be honest, sometimes a couple minutes, POOF gone again!
So, one morning he was having a particularly difficult time obeying and staying out of trouble. He was on his last chance before he would be carted off to the corner. When he threw himself in the middle of the floor and started sobbing. He threw his head back and his hands up in the air high above his head he cries out. "Why don't you just make me behave???" Sob...sniff...Sob
I must admit this made me giggle a little. But I did a great job hiding my amusement. I told him "I am doing everything I can think of to help you behave buddy."
According to Uncle Cowboy, I must have interrupted a conversation between Sam and God and he was actually pleading with God and NOT me. Because nothing has changed. I must have interfered before the divine intervention could happen. I am not sure who he was talking to that morning, but, I do know that there are many times during the course of the day that I feel like doing the exact same thing....SOB SNIFF SNOB....."Why don't you just do something???"

How did that happen?

Funny story about Isaiah....
So, as he was stepping out of the shower the other morning he caught a glimpse of himself in the bathroom mirror. He then yelled "Oh my goodness!" I, thinking something had happened, ran in to see if he was okay. "What happened?" I asked Out of breath from running. He looked at me as serious as can be, holds his hands up and waves at his body and exclaims, "How did this happen??" Trying to hide my amusement I say, "How did what happen?" Pointing again he says, "THIS!" (his chubby spots) I said "Honey that is what Mommy says every morning when I look in the mirror too!"
Poor guy, he can't do much as far as activity goes and has become a little chubby. I guess he never noticed before. He does walk on the treadmill everyday, but even that has to be monitored. I love him chub and all!

I love this...

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded. "

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

What a thought to ponder...

Winter is here!

Snow, Snow, Snow.
We had somewhere between 3-4 inches of beautiful snow fall yesterday. Although it made the afternoon and evening difficult for travel. It was really pretty to watch the flakes fall gracefully from the sky. We shoveled and had hot cocoa. Ate a late dinner and tried to relax and enjoy the unexpected evening in.
Tonight we will be going to the community center here in town to make cookies and say hi to Santa. That should be fun for the children. I will try really hard to remember the camera this time.
Saturday, Madison's other mother is coming for her visit, and then in the afternoon we are going to go to church and decorate children's sanctuary for Christmas, that should be fun!!
Although.....we are supposed to be getting more snow and maybe sleet and freezing rain and ice....ack!
Sunday of course will be church.
Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend making memories with your families. Cherish the moments you have and stay safe.

Good Job Amaris!

Amaris took her first spelling test ever last week. We studied everyday, she worked very hard and .....dun-dun-ta-da! drum roll please...

SHE GOT 100%

Yeah Amaris! I am so very proud of you and all your hard work.

Slippin' and slidin'

We woke up this morning to ice and freezing rain instead of snow. The IA State Patrol is recommending no travel all day. Which on any other Saturday would be a blessing to me not to have to run off and be gone all day. BUT today was supposed to be Isaiah's Christmas party. Every year the local Shrine Temple throws a nice Christmas party for all the "hospital kids" and their families. Isaiah loves this time he starts talking about it as soon as the invitation comes in the mail and doesn't stop for at least week After. We play games, get to play with and talk to all the clowns, Santa and Mrs. Clause come to visit and they always serve lunch. All the hospital kids get a special gift, but the siblings also get prizes and usually a stuffed animal too. Sadly the party was cancelled. And they wont be rescheduling it this year. When we told Isaiah, he cried...sorry son I know how disappointed you are.
Today was also the day I was supposed to go shopping with the girls from GNO. We were going to meet at 3 and shop until dinner and shop some more. I always look forward to this GNO. The company and conversation is always nice and the best part is it is just us girls. No kids, not even husbands are allowed. Sometimes us girls just need girl time and good conversation, right?
So, we are stuck indoors all day. We have taken advantage of the time and played games with the kids, I baked lots of goodies (in my mind) because I was not as smart as Tammy, she bought all her ingredients so she had a back-up plan. Dominique is stuck in town at Alex's house, I am sure he does not feel stuck but he is.
Hopefully the ice will melt away and not damage our power lines. Everyone stay safe, warm and cozy out there!

Who puts plastic zippers in kids winter coats???

So a couple weeks ago the weather around here turned cold, I dragged out all the winter coats, snow pants, boots, etc. Handed down the ones that could be handed down and took inventory of what needed to be purchased for those with out. I was blessed to find a great winter coat for Sam at Abby's Attic, my friends consignment shop. Then off we went to Target to look for one for Isaiah. Scott told me I could spend no more than $20. We found one that was really warm and even reversible. I had to call and ask permission to spend $29.00 he said yes and off we went. Now you must understand, I am frugal with my purchases and checked this coat over and over to be sure it was a great buy, especially when I was going over budget.
FAST FORWARD:
we had the first snow of the season just before Thanksgiving and the kids could not wait to play outdoors. They had a blast, snow angels, snowmen, even a fort were built in our yard. The kids came in as human ice cycles. We had hot chocolate with marshmallows. I threw all the snow clothes in the dryer. Isn't that what everyone does? Ever since Dominique was old enough to play in the snow I have always thrown their snow clothes in the dryer.
The next day when we were getting ready to leave to go somewhere, Isaiah could not get his zipper to work, upon further investigating I discovered the stinking zipper was PLASTIC! So, it melted in the dryer. ARGH!! Who does that? My brother jokingly asked if the coat was made in China, guess what? It was. Not that that really has anything to do with the fact that it was a dumb idea.
My poor mother spent close to 8 hours trying to fix the coat because buying another new one is not in our budget. After making a run into the sewing store, then breaking the machine and running into the Singer store, and breaking another needle. She told us she was sorry she couldn't fix it. As we were heading into town last night to take advantage of a 60%off sale. She called and said she finally fixed it. YEAH MOM! And Thank you so much!
But I still want to know....WHO PUTS PLASTIC ZIPPERS IN A KIDS WINTER COAT??

Too sad for words..........

Do you ever have moments in life when it reduces you to a sadness so deep you have no ability to form word or thought?
The last 24 hours have produced this in me. I was up all night trying to process through all the events that lead up to this point. Trying to form reasonable thoughts and maybe even words to explain to my heart how we got here. Still after hours of tossing and turning, reading my bible with a flash light and praying until I cried...nothing. What I have come up with is that there is no reasonable thought, explanation or words to define the season we have entered. I don't have the answers, so, I must wait on God to show the way. Which brings me to another question, does anyone else out there ever wonder when the answers will come and why do we have to wait so long to get them?? I completely understand the answers may not always be what we are looking for. But at least they would be answers non-the-less.
I wonder what happened to the days of my childhood when families spent time together, loved each other unconditionally and showed support no matter what. Was I raised in a land far far away? Did that kind of thing only happen in my youth and childhood? I am not saying at that I lived a 'charmed' childhood. We had our faults and bouts with tragedy. But, we always knew no matter what ever happened FAMILY would always be there. For the most part that remains true today.
BUT....then there are some people in our lives who for whatever their reasons are not there.
I just want to clear some things up for those of you who may be unclear.
God chose my family. He planned my life, He planned Scott's life. God hand picked EVERY Single child we have and placed them in our lives. AND He did it on purpose!
God knew I would have Dominique, and what a gift Dominique was, the timing of his arrival was perfect. My dad got to know his first grandchild before he passed away. The relationship between the 2 of them was nothing short of amazing!
God knew Scott would marry and have Madison, God also knew Scott would raise Madison. He also knew I would have no 'birth-duaghter' and brought Madison into my life to fill that place. God Brought the 4 of us together. And gave us a fighting spirit. The kind I was raised knowing.
Then surprise, God blessed us with Isaiah, even when we were trying to not have a child for the first year. He came 6 days before our first wedding anniversary. pretty close huh? Our doctor who is a Great Christian man told us God gave us Isaiah as the glue to hold our new family together because he was the common link between all of us.
God had big plans for Elijah too. We tried for a year before we finally were blessed with the news. He was so many things for us. To Isaiah he was a shark not a baby. ( that is a different story for another time). Early in our pregnancy we were told he had multiple deformities and we should consider terminating the pregnancy, if he did live he would not live more than a few days at the long shot maybe a year. We prayed and God told us everything would be fine. LOOK at him now!
I always knew in my heart from when I was a small girl I would adopt when I was grown. When we got married Scott was not fond of the idea. A wise woman from church told me, give it to God, leave it there. He knows your heart and if it is God's will he will change Scott's heart, that matters of the heart are for God to deal with not you. Sure enough one day about 5 years ago Scott came to me and told me he had seen a commercial for foster parents and thinks we should look into it.
Here we are....God brought Sam and Amaris into our lives, we loved them like our own even when we were told not to get attached. We prayed over them, cried over them and even almost let them go. God allowed them to stay. We are blessed today because of them. I do not know if God is done with my family yet. These are His plans for our lives. He trusted us enough to give us these 6 beautifully different and equally wonderful children to love and raise and let go eventually.
Anyone who can't see God as the head of our family must not be able to see. Anyone who cannot see the love we have for EACH ONE of our blessings, because that is how I see it. They must be blind.
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11
This verse is not only true for my family but also for EVERYONE who believes!

front fender damage and a broken I-Pod

Poor Dominique.....Monday night on the way home from the game he tried to swerve to avoid hitting a deer.....and instead hit a road work sign. Peeled the entire front passenger fender back to the door, took off the side mirror and broke the headlight. He was NOT hurt but shook up a bit! We spent all day trying to locate parts from junk yards. THANKS to my brother Philip who found all the parts at one place! Scott stopped to pick them up on his way home from work and was told he had to pay first and come back Wednesday to pick them all up. So......needless to say Dominique missed band practice Tuesday night because of lack of transportation. And we all missed church because it took all night to fix the car. But thankfully Philip was able to fix everything. YEH! We did notice the windshield is broken down in the bottom corner so we are praying that will last a while as we absolutely cannot afford a new windshield right now!
Then as if that wasn't enough for my 17 year old boy.....his I-pod quit working after nearly an hour and a half with technical support both on the phone and computer. It cannot be fixed. For those of you who know my boy.....you know that is probably the absolute worst thing that could happen to him. He lives and breathes music. For him to be without music.....I shudder to think the moods that will follow him around until he has enough money to replace it.
He has been looking for a job for a couple months now, put in several applications and has had no calls yet, he is getting discouraged.
WHEW! what a week he has had. Pray for him!

Iowa Energy

Scott works at BCBS and the company gave all employees who wanted them free tickets to the Iowa Energy Basketball game Monday night. I must admit I was less than excited about going to the game with all the kids. Dominique got 4 ticket so he brought 3 friends with him. We picked up our nephew on the way to the game. I don't think anyone in the stadium enjoyed the game more than Elijah! When Scott suggested at 9:30 that we leave. Elijah was horrified!

Daddy Look at the score! (95 to 95) we can't leave NOW! I am glad we stayed for the rest of the game the last 8 minutes were pretty intense! Everyone had a blast. Thanks BCBS for a fun family night!

I found a new template for Christmas. It is tree full of lights and it is PURPLE! Can't get much better than that! The only bummer is that when you make a new one you lose all the pictures from the side bar. Right now I don't feel like putting them back. Maybe later. I hope you all like the new look! It will be here until January!
Saturday while shopping we stopped at a cell phone accesories kiosk in the mall and Scott bought us new covers for our phones. I have been wanting a cover since we got the new phones in September. Of course Scott bought a New York Yankees cover. I found a purple cover that has Eeore on it. I love it! I tried to copy the picture from the web and both are copy-righted pictures, what a bummer.

Joy came home!!!

Joy was home for Thanksgiving. So, of course she babysat for us so we could go out. Scott and I left at 9 Saturday morning and returned shortly after 9 Saturday night. We are almost completely done Christmas shopping!! Yeah! We had a great time with each other without any kids. Although the kids called us 9 million times we still had a blast! There are a few lessons I learned though.

• Never, never and I mean NEVER take Daddy shopping for clothing for your teenaged daughter!!!!!!!!
• Never go shopping the Saturday after Thanksgiving without Advil or someother kind of headache relieving medication.
• Never complain about your husband becoming grumpy, because he will then become MORE grumpy ;0) (he quickly recovered)
• Always go with a master plan and a map.
• Always be thoughtful and polite to people who cross your path. You never know whom you may run into, more than that, you may change someones bad attitude into a good one. There is a reason Bees like honey so much!
• When looking for a hiding place for the treasures you purchased, stash them in someone elses house! Hee Hee, that will make your kids crazy!!

We had a nice day, I over-did it of course. My neck is giving me fits, I think the recovery thing is going to drag out a while longer. It is hard because I have so many things I have to do, Laundry, cooking, cleaning, blah~blah~blah. You know, all the same things every other mom has to do, it just seems a whole lot harder when you are in pain. Now I have been getting these monster headaches in the late evening, I think it is because I do too much throughout the day. Anyway.....we did have an enjoyable time shopping together. We don't have many opportunities to do anything without kids so I wasn't going to give up a minute of it!

Thankfull hearts all around

My heart is full. I love this time of year. I try to teach my children to always be thankful for what we have all year through. But, there is something about this time of year that makes me more aware of the things for which I am thankful.

• That I have a Savior who loves me even when I have a hard time loving myself!
• For 6 wonderfully different children, who at times may make me a little crazy, but I would never want to spend a day without any of them!
• For a brother who lives right down the street and loves to spend time with us and is always willing to help out with anything we need.
• For my mother moving back to Iowa to be close to her grandchildren.
• For friends who pray for us daily.
• For Gramma who inspires me to be a more Godly woman everyday!
• For Isaiah's gift of time.....to wait before we have to have surgery. Everyday without surgery is a gift I cherish.
• For health and God's Hands of Protection over all of us everyday!

I love Thanksgiving, sitting around the table as a family and listening to what each one is thankful for. My heart swelled as I listened to each one list their 'thankfuls' as Elijah calls them. Not one of them said they were thankful for things. What a wonderful time we had enjoying each others company.

Smells that take you back in time.

There are some things that take you back in time to years gone by, maybe childhood, or teenage years or some other time in your life. sometimes it is a song playing on the radio or the way the sun filters gently through a partially drawn shade at just the right time of the afternoon. For me this week it was all about smell and a little about taste. It amazed me at how quickly I was a child again in my mind.
My brother has been trying for years to bake the bread our dad always baked when we were growing up. Saturday mornings of our childhood always smelled of freshly baking bread. mmmmmmmmmmm
So, anyway after Dad died I got some of his recipes and one of them was the bread recipe. So as we were discussing our Thanksgiving feast Philip requested Dad's bread. I told him if he bought the ingredients and came up on his day off we would make it together. So he arrived at 7:45 Monday morning ready to bake! We had so much fun, mixing, kneading, laughing, and baking. Isaiah got the best job he got to punch down the dough after the first rising! Man did my house smell yummy!
The next memory transport occurred when we took the first bite at dinner, I think Philip even looked like he was 10 years old again! Wish I would have had the camera handy to capture the look on his face when he ate that bread. Not much better than happy childhood memories and the smell of fresh baked bread!

new van and PT

Well, we finally were able to find a new/old van that both Scott and I think will work with our family. Although I am disappointed we couldn't find an 8 passenger we did the best we could, and since Dominique drives it wasn't as urgent this time around to get 8 pass. We bought a blue/gray/saphire/who really knows what color it is. Dodge Grand Caravan. I'm happy with our choice. Many thanks go out to all those who helped us try to find one, prayed for us, and my brother for checking it out so I was at ease with our choice.
I went back to the doctor today, and guess what I get to do????? Physical therapy. At least I get to pick where I go, so I chose the place where we took Isaiah. I love the people who work there and am very comfortable with all of them. So, it wont be that bad, besides, I have to talk to them again and make sure they are lined up and ready for Isaiah to come back when he needs to. PT begins next week.

Secret Project

the finished project.

Uncle Cowboy and Isaiah worked very hard to build a table and chair set for Sam and Amaris. They spent 3 weeks hiding out in Uncle's garage building to their hearts content.
Measurements have to be just right.
looking good.
Almost done!
They had such a great time. Uncle Cowboy is such a patient teacher, they had so much fun!

Week in review

I know it is only Thursday, BUT this week has been LONG!
Tuesday:
Scott took me back to the doctor for a check on my neck...did not go so great. X-Rays were perfect but the problems are muscular, ligament and tendon issues. Which means a slower recovery, GREAT! I love that! She also said I can't drive, I have to come back in a week to see her, if I am not 40-50% better by then she will send me to physical thereapy. Ok, stop the train I am getting off! I don't have time, money or patience for PT! Is anyone listening to me?? So then she drops the bomb....I get to have 2 shots. WHOO HOO!! It just keeps getting better right? So, I get a shot of prednisone in one cheeck and toradol in the other. One stop at the pharmacy $90 later I am set for another week of recovery. Oh and keep up the heat, it should help. Somehow I managed to prepare dinner, but by 6:00 I was so sick, one of those shots made me sick. All night I was up sick. That did not help my neck feel any better let me tell you!
Wednesday:
Since I still can't drive and still have no vehicle to drive even if I could....I had to ask my mom to take us to Isaiah's appointment in West Des Moines. I do appreciate her willingness to help but feel bad to ask for the help. What an imposition. It was a very cold and windy day. We got home just as the bus was dropping off Elijah and Amaris. Perfect timing. I was feeling pretty awful by then so tried to rest. Scott got home and I asked him if we could go to Applebees for dinner, we never eat out, but the selling point was kids eat for 99 cents on Wednesdays for us that is about the same as Mcdonalds. Being the wonderful guy he is, he said yes. After dinner, off to church, by that time I was feeling really bad but it was Pastor Greg's last night at our church and I had to help serve cake at the reception after church. When we got home I had a monster headache You would not believe the size of that headache. I think this crazy medicine they have me taking is doing odd things to my body. I hardly slept at all last night.
Thursday:
I couldn't take Isaiah to school for guidance today. Bummer!
Later in the morning my mom picked me up to take me to run errands and stop at Share What you Wear at Gramma's church. I dropped off several bags of donations and was very disappointed to see that when we got into the church all the size tables I was looking for were empty. Hopefully our donation will help someone.
Errands done, we returned home and I was actually hungry for the first time in 3 days. I had a little lunch and took more meds. Then I helped Dominique make brownies. He and Sierra are going to a concert this evening and he wanted to take brownies with him.
We heard from insurance, they decided not to total the van even though the repairs are almost as much money as the blue book value. We decided not to fix the van, so sent back the check and asked for a new one. Signed the title over to the owner of the auto shop. Now we wait for the check so we can begin looking for a new/old van. we are praying we will be able to find a really great deal!
Isaiah has been having less pain this week but more numbness and tingling in his legs. Not sure what that is all about. We will keep charting and waiting. He has been the best little helper man in the world since I got hurt! He vaccuums for me, takes care of Sam, fixes lunch. Prays for me and heats up my neck wrap whenever it gets cold. He is so sweet!
Elijah's foot is healing nicely, the bruise on his chin has faded into this weird shade of brown and purple mixed all together.
Amaris has been having asthma issues all week. We should have thought before we had the kids rake all the leaves and then jump into them. But what would fall be like with out leaf jumping??
I think I am going to try to cook dinner tonight, I chose stir fry, that should be easy enough.

here's what's happening....

I have many thanks to send out....first and most of all to all who have prayed for us. My neck is beginning to feel a bit better, I quit taking the meds because honestly they just didn't work. I have to return to see the doc this afternoon.
Scott's mom and sister brought us KFC for dinner on Thursday, Bill and Donna brought lasagna Friday night, The Beery's brought dinner Saturday. Boy, let me tell you how much that helped. You see, I have a husband who can not cook! Usually, when I anticipate things I cook ahead and freeze dinners so we don't get into a jam. Who could have seen this coming?? To be honest with you, I was not up to cooking last night either, but I was really trying to get it done when my brother arrived and took over, he made spaghetti and garlic bread. Thanks to everyone! Now if I can find some relief in my neck long enough to catch up on laundry and cook dinner today we will be good. Seriously, I had to lie down last night after dinner, and I wasn't sure I'd be getting up again. This is crazy!
Then, Saturday Elijah was goofing around on the treadmill and got his foot stuck, cutting every single toe on the right foot. He is lucky he still has toes! Since we are down to Scott's car and Dominique's. We had to have Dominique drive 2 of the kids to church on Sunday, yes I went and yes it was a mistake. But that is beside the point. Anyway, When they were leaving church Elijah was running up the stairs and slipped and hit his chin on the steps. He has a monster bruise that covers his entire chin. It is kind of the color of grape jelly, I tasted it and it is definately not jelly.
Then, yesterday we thought Dominique might have mono or something, so we took him ion to the clinic, saw a doc, had blood work done, probably viral. You know I think that is what they say when they have no idea what else to say. Rest rest rest. That is all.
We waiting for our check from the insurance company then we can start looking for a new/old vehicle. My brother found one on Ebay for me. He knows I really want a suburban, But I know that is never gonna happen. Anyway, he read it to me and I got all excited. $3000, 40,ooo miles, excellant condition, new tires, brakes etc.....pictures were great. So, I asked what year and where was it located so we could maybe look at it. Well........we would have to take a road trip to see it, because it is in Texas. It was also a 1984 Suburban! can you even imagine a car that old having only 40,000 miles??? Thanks for the laugh bro! I think we'll keep looking.

Oh Deer!

We were on our way to church last night and from out of nowhere came a deer. And yes, we hit it. Pretty sure the van is a total loss. A friend from church is writing an estimate and submitting it to our insurance company so we will have to wait and see what happens. God was definitely with us in the van, Isaiah and all the other kids are fine. We have to keep an eye on Isaiah for the first 48 hours after the accident, but so far he is fine, so I don't expect anything to change. I on the other hand.....instinct kicked in and when I realized we were going to hit the deer, I turned around to make sure the kids were OK and so when we hit.....yeah....I have been in a lot of pain since impact. Scott took me to the walk in clinic and the doc gave me all kinds of meds to help and told me I have to take it easy....ha ha....she has no idea how many children I have! The kids are trying to be helpful...Whip lash is a real thing and quite painful for those of you out there who had no idea....WOW! I can't get comfortable no matter how hard I try.
So many bummers from this.....no van, how am I going to get around with all the kids to all the appointments we have??? How are we ever going to find a new/old van to replace it without having to start driving 2 vehicles every where we go? Can you say HEADACHE??? I have a monster one of those! We had to miss church last night....I had the best lesson planned out for the class I was supposed to sub in, I was bummed! I am going to have to miss PTA tonight, I told Scott if he didn't want me to go to PTA there are much nicer ways to keep me home.
The best thing is.....all my kids are safe, and my husband is safe too. Thank you God for taking care of them for me!!! Seat belts are a good thing!

No music today.

What a bummer! Isaiah was supposed to begin music at the school today. But with a cold and very high level of pain we had to convince him to take the meds. So, now he is a bit loopey and can't go up to school.
I am decorating 2 cakes for my mother's church auction tonight. One idea I got from Pastor Lori's blog, it turned out WAY better than I thought it would, a popcorn bucket. The other one will be a Veggie Tales cake. I hope they go over well for the auction, it was fun making them!
Madison is going to a slumber party tonight and so I am making the home made oreo cookies, I got that recipe off of Erica's blog. YUM! The first time I made them they went over so well everyone who ate one keeps asking me to make more!
Dominique is going to his friend Kyle's house tonight and he wants to take brownies. I think I may be in the kitchen all day!
The rest of us, if Isaiah is feeling better will go to the chili supper and auction at mom's church. That should be a ton of fun!
Saturday is our Missions Banquet at church, Scott and I always help with the childrens banquet, this time I helped to plan the activities so I am excited to see how much fun we will all have learning about missionaries and their missions!
Happy Friday everyone!
I finally got the pix posted!!

A road trip and some Legos

Thanks to the wonderful staff at Runnells, Isaiah had a new Lego set to build on the ride up to the hospital Oct. 14.
Oh, it is so nice to travel with a son who is old enough to drive, likes to drive and is a safe driver. Because otherwise I'd have been in the looney bin by the time we arrived.
Silly Isaiah, found this basket decoration in the apartment and thought it would make a better hat!
Dominique took over the living room area. There was a nice pull out bed and all he needed was a frozen pizza and he was all set.
Isaiah took the spare bedroom for his lego building.

Apples

YUM! There is nothing like a nice crisp apple plucked from a tree!

Stretch!

Three little monkeys sitting in a tree....

Apples and Trees

Pumpkins

These are some pix from when we went to the pumpkin part of the farm. It was a beautiful day! It even got hot during the early afternoon.

We missed Dominique!!!

I can't believe its Thursday again!

We have had a very busy week again! Dentist appointments for the other half of the children Monday. Good news for all. Madison is still lobbying for braces, even though she doesn't NEED them. For some crazy reason she thinks she has to have them. I am sorry but, some things are necessary and some are not. Those that are not go to the bottom of the list! Dominique will have his wisdom tooth pulled sometime in December.
Yesterday while cooking the family dinner I noticed the water pressure in the kitchen sink was low we ran around the house checking the other faucets and they were all fine. At this point you would think I would be smart enough to investigate further...nope! I figured well, that's weird, and continued on with my task of preparing dinner and cleaning up the dishes so we could go to church. After dinner my brother made a comment about the pressure, again I passed it off as just being odd. Then I reached under the sink into the cabinet and water poured out everywhere....GREAT! Now we had to go to Menards before church so he could fix it after church. Good news, the hose thing that broke was under warranty so we got a FREE replacement and were on our way. HAPPY!
Not for long.....
upon arriving home at 9:10pm and trying to hussle the kiddies through snack and off to bed while Philip was fixing the sink. We all hear this frantic MOM coming from Dominique's room.
WHY WHY WHY did I not think about his room being directly under the kitchen you ask?????? I don't know. BUY the kitchen must have been leaking all day because it flooded his bedroom, his bed is a total loss! So, now at 9:30pm we are washing bedding and pillows, and hauling a perfectly good but ruined mattress outside. Then we had to set fans up to dry out his floor. Now he has to sleep on the floor until we can buy him a new mattress.
So there you have it. I win the contest for the least observant and quite possibly the dumbest person of the week.
Pray for Isaiah, his pain is consistently rating around a seven on the 10 scale, although he rarely ever complains and most often refuses meds we are having more difficulty keeping him comfortable.
That is about all for now. I am going to update some photos now....

pancakes and pumpkins

Tonight we had "Chris Cakes" come to our school for a fundraiser. We had a ton of fun watching them fling those pancakes through the air. Some people caught them and some didn't. One kid got it right between the eyes. OH MAN!

I helped run the tables and Scott ran our kids. (grin) The community library had a pumpkin carving contest during the same time so, after pancakes Scott took the kids over to the gym to carve their pumpkins. I forgot the camera, of course. We had a bunch of fun tonight and I got the night off from cooking. Which, usually is not a big deal but after the last 2 weeks we have had....was kind of nice!

updates on all the goings on around here...

Dominique is studying for mid-terms at GVC, and the ACT he will be taking on Saturday.
Madison is fully recovered from the most recent round of cysts. Doc referred us to a specialist who might be able to help us manage these things better. Hopefully that will mean our ER trips will come to an end! I feel faint just thinking about our medical bills!
Isaiah has had some elevated pain this week. Today seems to be the best day he has had so far this week. It is a daily struggle. He amazes me with his positive attitude. That boy completely enjoys life! I mean, I have never met anyone who is genuinely happy 99% of the time. He is an inspiration to me!
Elijah has had a great week, he has brought his reading scores up and is making progress in the other areas we were concerned about as well. Yeah Elijah!! He loves school and Loves Loves Loves his teacher! Now, if we can get him over the fact that he never wants me to be out of his sight-we'll be doing good.
Amaris, hmhmhm, I hate saying not-so-great things about my kids but if anyone has any pointers for us, please let us know! Amaris is incredibly competitive against Elijah. To the point where she almost bullies him. I don't klnow what to do. We have tried over praising her for the things she is good at, we've tried ignoring the behavior, we've tried taking away priveleges....ARGH! Nothing seems to work. Elijah is not a competetive person so that makes it even more difficult. On the other hand.....a positive note, she is amazing at memorizing her verses for Prims at church on Wednesday nights. Good job Amaris!
Samuel has a new thing that I HATE!!! When things don't go exactly his way he gets really grouchy, when asked what is wrong, he growls "nothing!!!" When pushed for a real answer his relply is, "I am trying to decide if I am going to be a good boy or NOT!" Oh really!!?? Well, little man let me help you out. Choose yes-you get to have fun, choose no and you get to stay in your room or the time out corner....guess what? at least 50% of the time he chooses to stay in his room, he even took himself straight to the corner today when we got home from school. I asked him what he was doing. He told me "I decided I am not going to be a very good boy today so I will stay here."
What do you say to that? Ok buddy you go ahead and let me know when you change your mind...whew! Some days I think I should just stay in bed...LOL

another doctor

I got a call from the high school nurse. Madison was in the office with more abdominal pain. So, I picked her up and took her to the walk in clinic we know it is not the appendix. That is about all we know right now. We will be following up in the morning with her regular doc. The frustrating thing is that now, she seems to be fine...ARGH!

What am I doing anyway??

sometimes it is very difficult being the mom.
How do you deal with a moody teenager who half the time wants to be your friend and the other half wants to pretend you don't exist.
How do you deal with a step-daughter whom you have always thought of as your own but when hard times roll, she wants nothing to do with you.
How do you deal with a child who has a serious medical problem. The resolution to the problem depends almost completely on your ability to really KNOW how he is feeling every moment of every day, but even on the worst days of all he says he is good.
How do you deal with your sweet 7 year old boy whose heart is so tender that the littlest thing reduces him to tears and he never wants you to leave his sight.
How do you deal with a 7 year old girl who insists on competing relentlessly with a brother who is not competitive in the least.
How do you deal with a 5 year old who clearly has problems no one understands, and the last thing you want to do is use medication but that is exactly what you must do just to get some peace.
How do you deal with all that and a whole lot more?????
Prayer? I know, I do....seems like more of my day is spent on my knees even if that occurs in my head while doing the mundane daily chores of taking care of a family this size. It seems as though I am constantly in conversation with God. You know what I really wish? I wish I could actually hear God answer me back. I read these books, the author makes her stories so real in these stories, God "whispers across the heart" of the characters just when they need to hear. I want that. I am not losing faith, don't misunderstand. I see answers in the little things, sometimes. Then there are days when I have to be honest, its all a bit overwhelming. I am not complaining, this is exactly the life I dreamed of. A home with a husband and lots of children....I just have these moments when I wonder....What am I doing anyway???
Does anyone else out there ever feel like that???

wacky weekend and a trip to the ER

Well, we had a great fun filled weekend planned. Friday we were going to have family night, which we did...sort of....Scott decided he wanted to go out to eat since 3 of our 6 kids devloped plans away from home for the night. Our dinner bill was literally half of a normal out to eat bill. Food was awful! But anyway, it was different havin only 3 kids with us. Then we went window shopping at the mall. First off, I am not much of a shopper, I have to be in the mood to go, and secondly I really don't like shopping with kids. The time was not too bad actually. Isaiah kept us all laughing the entire time. I have no idea what got into him but he was a hoot!
Saturday we were supposed to go to our friend Paula's Fall party, then our niece's first birthday party, then our friend Pastor Lori had a huge fall party for her church. We did not make it out to Paula's because there would not have been enough time to get to Kennadee's party. We were late for the birthday because we were waiting for Elijah to get home. Dominique actually came to the party too. He usually does not go to those kinds of things. I was very happy to have him with us. After the party, we came home to wait for Madison to return from her friends house so we could got o Pastor Lori's party....well, when she got home she was having severe abdominal pain. I had my mom, the nurse, come up and check her out to see what we should do. After little debate, a call to Michelle, a call to Dominique to come home so he could watch kids for us, and we were off to the ER.
The nurses thought for sure we would be having her appendix out....the doctors decided to do an ultra sound of her abdomen. She had another ovarian cyst rupture AGAIN! Ok ladies out there...please pray for her this is a very painful thing to have happen. And it looks like something she may have to deal with on a fairly regular basis. I am calling her doctor today to see if there is anything we can do....daddy is not supportive of putting her on a low dose birth control pill, maybe we can change his mind. Obviously this is a unique situation and not the reason most teenaged girls take it. So please pray for Madison.

Help I'm having fits with the template!

I have been doing this blog thing for a few months now. I enjoy wandering around the blog-o-sphere checking out other people's places. I have seen some very creative things out there. I really want to change my template to this one I found on pyzam.com I love this template but can not for the life of me figure out how to change it. Any ideas or pointers from fellow bloggers out there would be appreciated!

seniors, college tours, tears and um a panic attack or 2

As you all know the college thing has been sort of a battle. I really want my children to get an education to support their future. I have no regret of my decision to quit college to care for my father who was dying....however, I do wish with everything in me that I had the opportunity to finish my degree. I don't want my children to have those feelings later on in life. Convincing a 17 year old of those thoughts is not an easy feat to accomplish. Turns out I didn't have to....I love moments like this when God clearly orchestrates life moments to add up to on event.
I dragged Dominique to that college fair. where out of 250 colleges he found ONE he liked. It so happens that one college is in St. Paul near one of Isaiah's hospitals. Coincidence? I don't think so. God has planned out every moment of our lives, we just can't always see through our own plans. I said all of this to say. The amazing moment at the school when I saw, I mean visibly saw "the light come on" for Dominique was incredible! That one look and all those that followed told me that he found the place where he belongs. My dreams for him and his dreams for himself can all be achieved in this place. So begins our process of applying, auditioning and financing. And if anyone has any good tips on how to handle these crazy panic attacks that hit me from out of nowhere. Please share.
This will truly be the test. How good a job have I done in preparing him for life in the world without becoming part of the world??? God please keep your hands of protection on my boy as he travels this road to becoming a man. I pray that his heart would always follow God. And he would never forget where home is...now the tears! I am so proud of him!
http://www.mcnallysmith.edu/

gathering my thoughts together...

Well, we arrived home late Tuesday night. After an almost 2 hour meeting with Dr. Dunn, (she is so very patient with me and my serious need for understanding) we have agreed to wait. I know, I am not a fan of the waiting game. As Pastor Weets told us last night, it gives God more time for that miracle. Anyway, what we learned is that the fluid is still able to pass by the cyst and go where it is supposed to go. Although I am not comfortable with the neurological changes I see on a day to day basis, she is still comfortable with waiting. She assured me that she will not allow him to get into an emergency situation. We will communicate on a regular basis and if things get to the point where she feels we need to go back then we will. Otherwise we wait until January. Seeing the whole thing on the CD really brought it to life and reality for me. Making it all the more difficult to wait. I am so very thankful for the care we recieve from the team in MN. Dr. Dunn listens and takes her time explaining so that she knows I understand but more important than that, she makes sure Isaiah understands. I love her and would never take him anywhere else!
Thanks to every one for all the prayers throughout this rollercoaster we life we live. we have a long road to travel and could never keep on going with out the love and support of all our friends and family.

sedation...tears...and a chocolate donut....

Isaiah had a rough day....he is having issues with his veins lately, when they poke him the veins disappear...poor guy, they did get an IV going after a bit of trying. I hate what the sedation does to him, it seems that each time his reaction is worse. I have never seen anything like today when he came into recovery he was screaming and violently thrashing around. Totally incoherent and inconsolable. It took him a long time to come out of it too. He was weak and sick feeling all day. AND to top it off is a bit on the grouchy side too.
After lots of tears and craziness we finally were on our way to a quaint little bakery slash cyber cafe to meet Dr. Heather for a donut. It was so good to see her she looks great and is nearing the end of her residency. what a busy but exciting life she has. I could have sat and chatted all night long. Dr. Heather so sweet. Our visit ended so the boys could get off to the MOA. We promised to keep in touch and visit on our next trip. I told her the Des Moines area could always use great pediatricians....I could give her a little business....LOL
We walked in the MOA for a while, mostly browsing...Isaiah spent the last of his money on (I know this will shock you all) a Limited Edition Lego Star Wars ship. He is building as I write...we didn't stay long as his legs were weak and he just doesn't feel very good.
We came back to the apartment and made some dinner. time to relax and gather my thoughts and prayers for tomorrows appointments. I am not really sure if very many people read this, if you have spent time visiting, thank you for your prayers. More tomorrow...
Oh! By the way, Elijah is doing GREAT!!!! He is enjoying his time with his daddy!

oops I forgot...

Thank goodness Leslie is here! I took directions down to her office and showed her how map quest wants us to go to the hospital and tha would take twice as long, so she called the hospital for me and got directions from them! I think a nice thank you note is in store....
Dominique is in the shower and then we are off and running.
I forgot to mention last night that we had a huge scare yesterday while traveling. We stopped at a rest area so we could stretch and umum use the facilities. So, Dominique took Isaiah into the restroom, it was raining outside and the floors were wet....needless to say there was an accident Dominique said it happened so fast he tried to catch him but he was down before Dominiue could get there. Isaiah is a little sore and has a nice bruise but so far seems to be ok. Good thing today is the check up day. Docs always tell us swelling can occur for upto 24 hours after a fall. I have kept a closer eye on him than ususal.
I talked to Scott this morning, Elijah is doing great! YEAH LIJ!!! Sam is being a bit of a stinker, but then again, Sam is always a bit of a stinker...the girls did great this morning too, of course they were, they only give me a hard time in the mornings. Dad gets the break, no fair!
Ok, so we are off and running. Will update later.

miles behinde and miles ahead...

We made it safely to the apartment before the office closed. yeah! Dominique did a great job helping me drive. He and "Carmin the Garmin" have officially become friends, hee hee. Leslie helped us out so much with directions and suggestions. We were able to walk in a local mall to stretch and then we went to Cub Foods to pick up a few groceries. Dominique wanted White Castle for his dinner, I have decided...I do not like their burgers at all! I made Isaiah shells and cheese when we got back. He is very happy to have a kitchen at his mom's finger tips. I must say it is nice! The lego ship took longer than the trip to build so the building project went into the evening, but he finished and when I get back home I will post new pix. Obviously since I am writing now, Dominique found a way for us to use the lap top. Good thing he is with me, because I would not have been able to figure that out! This time has been good for Dominique and Isaiah, they have laughed a lot. Laughter is always good to hear. I have checked in with the home front a couple times. Scott is feeling better and reports all is going well. YAH! I knew he would be fine, but since he has been sick I was a bit worried. Elijah made it until bed time then got sad. Once he falls asleep he will be fine. And Daddy is going to spend time in his class at school tomorrow. That will be fun!
We have a big day tomorrow.
Many more miles to go....Good night...

strep throat and a little stress...

We have been preparing for our trip to the Hospital. I have been trying to get things here at home set up so Scott wont have too much trouble while I am gone. Elijah seems to be struggling a bit more than usual with the idea of me taking off without him. I have made a few special bags of goodies for him to open when he is feeling blue. Dominique has picked out one of his favorite shirts for Elijah to wear in case he needs it. I think he will be ok. I just hate that he gets so sad. Please pray for him...
Of course things had to get a bit rough. Scott wasn't feeling very well yesterday so after dinner I made him go in to the walk in clinic and he has strep! I put him under quarentine...We cannot have Isaiah get sick!
I cannot mention enough how wonderfully supportive and loving people are towards Isaiah. Our guidance counselor from school came by Friday with a special goodie bag for Isaiah. He was so excited about all the cool things inside, but of course the very best was the new lego star wars ship! He is very excited to begin the build! Thank You Ms. Glaesner!! And everyone who helped fill the bag. He has been very generous and is sharing some of the goodies with the rest of us.
I am very excited, my brother works for an apartment company here in the Des Moines area. He called the owner of the company and told him about our situation and the high cost of hotels. We are so blessed! The company is giving us a corporate apartment (fully furnished and functioning) for the entire time we will be up there. At NO CHARGE! What a blessing this is in so many different ways...obviously, free is a huge blessing, but the safety and comforts of being in a home setting, wow! also having a fully functioning kitchen, oh my goodness! Any one who knos me knows how important THAT is!
Many blessing surround this trip. Whether that means we will get good news this time or it just means we are blessed...I don't know, but either way...I am thankful!
So, Monday morning we check into Children's hospital and have all his testing done. Then we will be meeting one of the neatest doctors in the entire world for a donut! Dr. Heather is a whole other story....she is great and we get to see her! YEAH!
Tuesday, we will meet with the team of docs and learn what comes next...We still have time for a healing miracle, so if you think of it while already on your knees...:)
Tuesday afternoon, we are going to do a campus visit with Dominique to a school he is considering. Whew! Then depending on what we learn in our team meeting, we should be headed home Tuesday afternoon with a plan.
I will have Philip's lap top with me, however, I don't know if I will actually be able to use it at the apartment. We will see. Many thank you go out to everyone for all the prayers, love and support. Please keep checking in to see what we know. Until then....I pray blessings your way too!

more virtues....today is FAITH

I came across this today,
"Without faith, we are as stained glass in the dark." anonymous.
Faith shines through us to show others how amazing God is. If we lose our faith then no one will see the light. I have had MANY opportunities in my life to choose to live by faith or choose to live by myself. I have not always made the right choice but I can tell you this. I'd far rather be a stained glass with sunbeams streaming through my many colors than to be in the dark. It is not always easy to live by faith. If our faith was never tested how would we know we had any? when things in our lives go wrong and in the midst of the chaos we can still say, "I believe in God and HE LOVES me no matter what happens," that is when we show others our faith is real. Faith thrives when we stay focused on God rather than on ourselves. Sometimes in the midst of turmoil it is easy to focus selfishly on us and what is happening 'to' us rather than focusing on God and what He is doing 'through' us. Our lives can be an example to those around us even when we don't feel like being an example.
I am going to give you a few of my favorite faith quotes and scripture, as many of you know, I have just a few reasons to cling to these...
1 Peter 6-7 from The Message
I know how great this makes you feel, even though you have to put up with every kind of aggravation in the meantime. Pure gold put in the fire comes out of it proved pure; genuine faith put through this suffering comes out proved genuine. When Jesus wraps this all up, it's your faith, not your gold, that God will have on display as evidence of his victory
Abraham Lincoln wrote..."I've been driven many times to my knees by the overwheliming conviction that I have no where else to go."
Hebrews 11:1 NIV
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
anonymous:
Faith is knowing without seeing, believing without fully understanding, trusting without touching the ONE who is ever FAITHFUL.

Faith is more than believing in who God is. It's believing that He will keep His promises.

Romans 15:1 The Message
Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us.

Psalm 57:10
For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

I just want to be encouraging to all you who need encouraged. I know more than you could ever imagine that there are times when it is extremely difficult to live by faith. God our Father created each and every one of us for a special purpose. It is important to remember that during the trials of life. Some of us have more than one trial going on at the same time. Some of us are fighting battles that at times seem nearly impossible to win. I promise you God is faithful to those who love Him. He takes care of us from our tiny little desires to our huge battles. We may not understand His purpose in the midst of things, but I know as sure as I know my name that He is watching over us and taking care of all the details of our lives. Faith will carry us through!

Where to start....

It has been a very busy couple weeks. We made it through the missionette sleep over with a princess theme that was fun! We made it through conference week with not much trouble. So here's the update...
Scott is doing great. His hours will be changing at work in a couple weeks. He and Philip took Isaiah golfing they say all 3 did awful but had a ton of fun!
Me? I am doing well also, I had my last Quilt making class last night. When I got home I stayed up until nearly midnight and finished the quilt!!! I am so excited, I can't believe I made my first quilt...AND I have all the squares cut for #2! I enjoyed cooking for the teachers at school last week for conferences.
Dominique...He has been busy as usual. Trying to find a part time job. Studying fot the ACT at the end of October. He is doing very well in his classes at Grandview College. AND.....da da da.....he found a college he is VERY interested in while at the college fair. In fact, next week when Isaiah is in Minnesota for his appointments, we are going to do a campus visit. Please keep praying. I think he has his heart set on this ONE college or none...I am still praying for a mentor to walk into his life. Teenagers need someone to be there no matter what. Not a peer and not always a parent...I love my son and we have a great relationship but there are times when he needs someone else, you know what I mean??
Madison loves school. She is definately a social person and thrives on social action and chaos all around! We still have some concerns around our decision to send her back to school this year, however, she has a great team of teachers working with her!
Isaiah has been woking on a secret project with uncle Cowboy, it is finished and waiting for me to have time to help him paint it. We are very excited to show every one what they created together. He is doing very well in his school stuff! We are gearing up for the next trip to the hospital we leave on Sunday morning and will return late Tuesday. Please pray for good news.
Elijah loves school and his teacher is amazing! He has made a really good friend this year. I love to see the growth in him. He is our little clown and keeps us all laughing! Which is a very good thing!
Amaris had good conferences this time. She has become a very competetive lttle turd. We have had to work really hard with her on competeing in good ways as compared to not so good. She can't wait for us to go on our trip, the little turkey keeps asking me when I am leaving...
Samuel I think we are slowly making progress with him. I am still not so sure medication is the answer but we are trying it for a while. He has been working hard on his preschool stuff, I have some curriculum I used for all the others and am trying it with Sam this year. He loves to visit Mrs. K's class when we are at the school on Modays and Thursdays for Isaiah.

Other random things....
Our children's pastor has resigned his position effective Nov. 14. Please pray for our children's ministry change is sometimes necessary but never easy.
My little friend Gabe is in Florida with his family this week. He is still feeling pretty good. The little man has a long rough road ahead of him unless God chooses to heal him. Pray for his family too!
Our other friend Noah is still in the midst of his battle against cancer. He is doing great right now. But still needs tons of prayer he too has a long road to haul! Both boys are courageous and I am honored to know them!
Pray for Gramma. She has moved from her home into a retirement apartment setting and as I said before change is never easy.
Well, we are off to the dentist this morning. UGH!

No time now...later for sure!

Just wanted to check in and let everyone know that we, at Albers and Company, are still here. We have had a VERY busy week and I can hardly believe it is already Friday again! I am taking Madison for a girls night out tonight. So, I must get dinner on the table so we can scoot out the door. I will up date on everything soon!!!

Keep on praying

All your prayer are starting to work! I was so excited, yesterday Dominique asked me to get information on a couple colleges for him! YEAH!!! AND I am taking him to a college fair on Sunday afternoon downtown. There are supposed to be around 150 to 200 colleges set up. I knew God would work on his heart, the work is just beginning, so please keep praying and also pray that God would bring a special mentor into his life who he looks up to and can learn from. All teenagers need a mentor. I am praying for Dominique's to come soon!