Swinging is always a favorite!
...and playing catch
No, I did not let this one drive yet, although he did try it with a real car once! (No joke!)
The trailer looked bigger than that!

Not sure who is driving now!
I don't think they will ever get tired of riding!
Aren't I cute!
The hunters return to end the day~shot a fox but could not track it, hopefully next time!

Easy Pizza Casserole

This is one of my families favorite casseroles and mine to because it litterally takes minutes to prepare:



Place 15 oz bag of UNCOOKED noodles in 9x13 pan

Cut up pepperoni and add

1lb 10oz jar of speghetti sauce ( you can also use 2 of the Hunt's sauce, very reasonably priced!)

1 lb hamburger or sausage ( I have pre-cooked hamburger in freezer so it saves lots of time!)Add 1 1/2 cups water

Stir together and sprinkle with 2 Cups Mozzerella cheese and 1 T. of italian seasoning



*Cover (Essential so nooldes can cook) and bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes or until noodles are tender



*I like to add onions, peppers or different healthy things



ENJOY!

A day in the life with 10arrows, and mom!

I saw this idea to give others a glimpse of a day in our life. It varies somewhat, but for the most part, this is our life:

5:15 am- feed the baby and put him back to bed

5:30am- My time with God (essential if I am to function the rest of the day!)

6:45am- I attempt to get in the shower before little yawns and footsteps can be heard (this morning I made it, some mornings I have little ones waiting in the bathroom for me when I open the shower curtain!

7:00am- downstairs to start my day as a mommy and wife and asked by 2 or 3 little boys to get their clothes ( I guess they are ready to start their day whether I am ready or not!)

7:30am- baby wakes up and needs to cuddle~So at this point I am on the couch with at least 4 other children who are asking me to get them dressed, eat and go outside! (I don't think the world is quite ready for them yet, I tell them!)

8:00am- The long awaited breakfast is here! We have eggs, bagels, and pineapple this morning. Depending on the day, breakfast changes. My favorite day is Tuesday, that is cereal day! Okay, I admit, it's my lazy meal. Internally, I feel better when I make a good, healthy breakfast, but sometimes my flesh enjoys the simple route.

8:15am- feed baby his cereal while other kids enjoy thier food

8:30am- we do morning charts and prepare for bible time

9:00am- pick up daughter from orchestra

9:30am- get home and oldest son has little ones wound up higher than a kite. Have to coral them all and prepare for bible time

9:45am- still trying to prepare for bible time which is usually at 9:00 but I'm losing ground quickly. Baby is supposed to be down for morning nap, he is crying at my feet, 2 year old needs diaper change and 3 year old needs wiped, I guess bible time will be at 10:00, I think!

10:00am- I finally put baby down a half hour late, and tell the kids to sit at the table for bible time so when I come downstairs they will be ready 10:05am- Hey, they are all sitting at the table! Okay, so we are an hour and 5 minutes off schedule.

10:30am- Kids begin their assignments, little ones begin playing, and throwing things, and need my assistance, so I get out puzzles for them to do

11:00am- well, puzzles lasted for awhile, now playdough is in order then I call a couple of the older ones to read to the younger ones for reading time

12:00pm- buddies prepare lunch (we have a buddy system in order so older kids can help with younger kids) Baby wakes up from nap

12:30pm- charts get done, and I feed the baby

1:00pm- naps for youngest 6, usually time for me to run errands while the oldest babysits, but today, I cleaned an edlerly ladies home

3:00pm- I get home and 2 kids are up, 4 still sleeping, I begin dinner preparations while the 2 that are up help me mix and stir

4:00pm- everyone is up and we prepare the house for dad to come home and I look over school work that is completed

5:00pm- we try to keep the sanity and quietness by reading books until dad walks in the door

5:30pm- we eat dinner, this meal was very crazy and hectic, maybe it's the weather! Lots of noise and chatter. I remember someday I will miss all these little faces and voices in my dining room

5:45pm- dinner clean-up and baths for little ones and feed baby

6:30pm- dad's playtime with the kids or should I say wrestle time with the kids

7:00pm- the two little ones go to bed

7:30pm- story time with dad

8:00pm- bedtime for the rest of the kids, older ones can read in their room, for some reason having a hard time getting the little boys to settle down. This is NOT an option in our home! Dad uses his sleeping in the playroom by yourself threat, and for the most, it part seems to work.

8:30pm- all is quiet and time for my husband and I to chat and go over our day

9:30pm- preparation for the next day and bed time for me! *For the most part, this is our daily schedule. Whew, I'm tired reading about it!

Friends

Today, I am reminded to thank God for my friends. Friends who have been there through all the fun stuff and the not so fun stuff!
A true friend is so hard to find. A friend who is still your friend even though you have not seen them face to face for literally months or years! (A phone is a wonderful invention!) In the business of motherhood, there is little time to maybe spend the time with them that you would like, but for all things there is a season and for a friend to understand that and continue with the friendship is a beautiful thing! I believe through all the seasons of my life, God has hand-picked all my friends. (And by His grace, He allowed some of the ones I would have chosen as friends growing up, to go our seperate ways!) I still have contact with those who are really near to my heart. (You know who you are!) I am a person who always has just a small handful of close friends. Those who I can bear my soul to, lifting me up in prayer and think of me often. For those of you who are reading this and consider yourself my friend, thank you! This is for you! To my mother, this is for you also! You have known me since the beginning and choose to love me anyway! :) I thank God for all of you! I thank God for all the seasons in my life that you have helped me and the blessing you have been to me! What a gift! Hug or call someone today thanking them for their friendship. It will bless them!

Pumpkin Cupcakes

3 Cups flour
1 T. Pumpkin Pie spice
2 1/2 t. baking soda
1 1/2 C. sugar
3/4 C. vegetable oil
1/2 C. buttermilk (if none on hand, add 1/2 t. of vinegar or lemon juice to 1/2 cup of milk)
1 1/4 C. of pumpkin puree (or 15 oz can of pumpkin)
4 eggs

Frosting:
8 oz cream cheese softened
3/4 C. butter softened
2 C. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
2 T. milk, maybe more if needed
orange food coloring, red and yellow if no orange on hand!
orange decorating sugar (optional)
pretzel sticks

Mix first 8 ingredients together in order given, and pour into cupcake tin. Bake, cool and add frosting and decorating sugar and pretzel stick.

*For a table-piece, use 9 inch circular pan and also use mini-muffin tins to make bigger and smaller pumpkins.

Putting on the armor

When talking to children about God and the bible, it is good to have a visual. So as goofy as it may seem, here is the visual's we used when talking about the armor of God. We may not quite have the "look" God was talking about in Ephesians, but none the less, the point was made to my children about the helmet of salvation, sword of the spirit, feet trod with the spirit of peace, shield of faith, breastplate of righteousness, and belt of truth! Put them on today! God has given all of us a way to fight the enemy and win! We have not because we ask not! So ask today for the armor!

Ephesians 6:10-18~Finally my breathren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth having put on the breastplate of righteousness and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perserverance and supplication for all the saints

I'm back! It has been awhile since I have written. We have had a terrible flu and computer time was just not a priority! I thought we were done but another child got sick last night. So now who knows what my week will hold! But I know who holds my week in His hands! As a friend reminded me, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!" (That even means cleaning up after sick kids!) Everyone was well this weekend until last night so we did have a busy but fun weekend. There is a new huge park in Ottumwa so we graced the park with our presence 2 times! Really what I mean is we broke in the new equipment! I can't believe all the things they can add to play equipment! I used to have a slide and a swing to play when I was a child. Maybe a jungle gym if we were really lucky! There are 6 slides, rock climbing walls, a maze, and many other things they enjoyed so much! I had the fun task of switching out clothes. From summer to winter. I have tried to find a good way to this and there just is not! The easiest way for me is to get out all the "new clothes" and fold them neatly, put all the "old clothes" in the empty rubbermaids and then put all the folded clothes back where the old clothes were. It is soooooo time consuming! The older kids do there own however they want and that does help, but I still have 7 kids clothes to keep up with! I have to do it on the weekends because we always have over 20 rubbermaids of clothes that need carried up and down out of storage! The key to that is to keep organized! We number our storage rubbermaids so I know where everything is. Our attic holds the ones we will need soon and we put the others in the basement storage. And don't ever go shopping BEFORE the process begins! I have been known to go buy a few things thinking they need something like jeans only to find out I forgot about all the hand-me-downs I got the year before! I am soooo thankful for hand-me downs! There are very few times I have ever needed to buy clothes. What a blessing! As I was in the process of all this, I began to think about my heart and has God seen me change with the changes that have come into my life? Do I prepare for the cold and snow more for my physical body or do I make sure I take time daily to be with Him so when the "storms" come into my life I am ready? I know I will go through many things that will be hard and I will struggle, but if I am keeping in tune with my heavenly Father, He will always take care of me. Just like I have bought clothes before I have checked what I have in storage, I must not get ahead of God with my trials and try to figure out MY way, when He has a plan waiting for me that will be far better than anything I could come up with! So when you are doing the lovely job of going from one season to next with your clothes, check and make sure your faith in God does not change with the seasons of life! Continue to spend time with Him and allow His plan to unfold in your life! He is all you need!