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!!!