Some things NEVER change~ some things do

Being a mother of 11 beautiful children, 8 of them boys, I am amazed at the repeated behavior I show and sometimes JUST as amazed at new things I find myself doing!  I have been jotting down somethings that I have found my self doing for years and other things that I am doing for the first time even after 11 children:

~ I have been changing diapers for 18 years continuously WITHOUT any break!  (I was a nanny right before I became a mom)  Sometimes having up to 3 in diapers at one time!
~ I used to use disposable diapers and wipes, it is a first for me to use washable with my 11th!  I sure wish I would have realized just how easy it is!  I would have saved thousands of dollars!

~ potty training was essential by the time they were 2!
~ now, I realize they will not be willing to wear a diaper on thier wedding day!  ( However, I might be by the time my last child walks down the isle!)  :)

~ preparing meals is a 3 times a day activity!  Just after I complete one meal, the next is on my mind!
~ I now have 4 other people to help me!  That is so nice!

~ teaching 7 and soon to be 8, how to read!  That is such a reward and blessing of homeschooling!
~ I now realize that just giving them an intersest in reading by encouragement is a lot less stressful than hours of sitting and batteling them!  It also gives them more of a love for reading if they are not forced into it!

~ I have always been a taxi, BUT...
~ it used to be I would go where I needed to go, now it has changed to asking where everybody else needs to go and I just fit my errands in between!

~ I take a shower daily and cannot start my day without one!  (Sometimes end my day with one also!)
~ I am also responsible for making sure many others clean themselves daily!  (Believe me, getting 8 boys to shower, change their underwear and socks daily is not an easy thing to keep up on!)

~ been searching for matching socks
~ I am catching on that buying the same kind of socks for each child and marking them with a permanent marker makes matching a snap! They can do it themselves that way!

~ raising boys and raising girls are TOTALLY different!  One IS NOT easier than another, just different!
~ I am now raising 3 teenagers and will have 6 teenage boys in the house at one time in a few years!  (Thank goodness I love the teenage years!)

~ I have found that boys eat A LOT and seems they are NEVER full!
~ but I have learned that they don't need as much as THEY think they do!

~ Girls do not wear out their clothes as quickly as boys
~ I never threw out girls clothes because they were too worn, I have had to throw out bags of clothes that were even to worn for play clothes!

~ I never realized how fun string, dirt, clothespins, and rubberbands could be! 
~ I don't spend much money on toys anymore!  They don't play with them anyway!

~ vacuuming a car used to take minutes!
~ cleaning a mini-bus is lots more time consuming! :)

~ in earlier years, I cleaned my house every other day
~ these days, I clean it hourly!

~ bars of soap used to take my husband and I a month or more to use up
~ we are either a really clean family or a really dirty one!  A new bar is out every couple of days it seems!

~ I am on my knees daily, sometimes hourly!  I realize that is where I need to be if I am to do this job of motherhood His way!
~ That is NEVER going to change!

Convicted to tell...

My hubby took a long 4 day weekend!  We really had nothing planned but yet did so much and yet seemed like nothing got done that we had planned!  :)  Except, family, family and more family!  Everyone from cousins to grandparents!  I LOVE family!  But I have many who do not know Jesus!

My aunt died last week.  She lived many, many miles away so we did not get to see her often.  She was very loved by family but that peace of me knowing that she loved Jesus is just not there!  Last October she came to visit and we visited but nothing to in depth.  I had no idea that it would be the last time we would meet face to face!  I am busy you know!  With kids, appointments, and life! HA!  I even had the thought that she might need to hear about the freedom Jesus brings but hoped deep inside she would just know that we were different and someday she would ask why.  That would be less abrasive!  Maybe pride on my part, although I really never have been that way.  I love to tell others about Him!  I really think I was just to hurried to worry about it!  And that bothers me!  Let me rephrase that: it sickens me deep in my heart!  Too busy to ask her, "Do you love Jesus with all of your heart?  Do you know there is a heaven and a hell and if you do not choose THIS day whom you will serve, it may be to late!" 

Too busy?!! *tears*

So now, I sit here with regret but there is nothing I can do but learn from it!  Did it cost a person there soul?  Is that why God had me spend time with her 7 months ago?  Was I supposed to tell her of His love but was too busy to hear the voice of my shepherd? 

I have had my heart pricked and softened!  I have woke up to the lost in this world and even just the lost in my family!  There is no better time than now!  I always teach my children 2 questions to ask themselves when making  a decision:
1.   Will I regret it if I do it?
2 .  Will I regret it if I don't?

I really am saddened that I did not stop to think of those 2 questions the last time I saw my sweet aunts face!  I thought I would see her again!  Would I regret it if I WOULD have asked her if she loved Jesus with all of her heart?  NO!  Do I regret it that I did not?  DEFINATELY!   It NEVER entered my mind that in the coming months, she would get cancer and die and there would not be another chance to tell her of God's forgiving love!  We NEVER know the time when we look at somebody's face for the last time!  Remember that as I know I will!  Whether it be your beautiful child, husband or best friend!

Do I feel guilty?  No.  Convicted?  Absolutely!  

Better late than never~Foto Friday!

We are in the process of taking care of a baby duckling.
Not sure about the chance of survival!
14 year old is getting up every 4 hours to feed it
The little ones are so enjoying it!
We will see how long it will be part of the family!

I'm back with avengence!

Why would a mother allow her 2 year old to eat a SUCKER WITH his dinner, you might ask?




How would you handle it if your baby needed stitches?
Could you take candy from a baby?

I could not!!

 

I will be back!

We have no internet right now, so I am impatiently patiently waiting to get it back so I can blog again!
Until then, Enjoy the joys of Christ and I WILL be back!

Rainy day idea's~

Okay, it's MAY and all we have had is cold, wet, messy days the past week!  Cabin fever has set it AGAIN!  My little boys have forced me to reach in my bag of tricks to find some things to do inside! 

1. 
   
   Buy some rice and beans and put them in a big, flat rubbermaid with measuring cups and sand toys and let them play ( I put a sheet under it for easy clean up)
2. 
   
   Get some post it notes and write letters on them and have them stick them on the things that start with that letter~ex- 't' for table  'r' for refridgerator, etc.
3. 
   
   Have a "country" of the day and have everything for that day focus around that specific country~ ex.-Mexico= learn a couple easy spanish words and use them all day, have a mexican meal, make placemats for that country, dress up with homemade outfits, find a missionary from that country and pray for them, etc.
4. 
   
   Make homemade playdough- the edible kind is really fun!  Recipes here
5. 
   
   Make door hangers and cookies for a nursing homes and deliver them (you will need to call ahead to get some names from the nursing home.  I always try to get names of people who don't get visitors often)
6. 
   
   Do the same for the pediatric floor at the nearest hospital 
7. 
   
   Make a fort and have lunch in it WITH the kids
8. 
   
   Give kids a bath with all kinds of kitchen bowls and spoons
9. 
   
   Watch home movies and pop some popcorn, make the room really dark , and then get blankets and pillows out and relax! (just eat the popcorn BEFORE they lay down so they don't choke! :)
10. 
    
    Make a home video and send it to grandparents via e-mail or snail mail!  Sing songs together or come up with a drama for the kids to act out
11. 
    
    Seriously, my kids have fun doing this!  Put on some happy music, REALLY loud, and have everyone work together cleaning up the house starting with one room at a time!  Give each child a specific cleaning chore and have a small reward to give them after the job has been accomplished! 

I would love any other idea's you have!  It's always great to share creative idea's!

What I'm thinking...

I have lots of thought in my head this week!  Nothing earth shattering, just things bouncing around in my head!  It is great to write them down and share:

• I'm ready for the weather to stay warm
• healthy kids are a blessing
• a Godly husband is too!
• I am 38 years old and still miss my mom!
• being a mom that practices what she preaches is really hard sometimes!
• 2 year olds are VERY opinionated
• 16 year olds are also!
• I love cloudy days
• I miss the child I never got to hold in my arms
• I am hoping for another child I will get to hold in my arms REALLY soon! (well, more than 9 months from now!)
• I treasure my 10 month old's "babiness" so much more
• siblings are VERY good at pointing out each others faults! :)
• adults are good at that too! :(
• flowers always cheer me up
• I wish supper was made already
• I really am thinking that having it made for the week would be great!
• Mother's Day should be celebrated by MOTHER'S not those being "mothered" because WE are the ones who are blessed!
• I am hoping to sell our house this summer
• I am worried that we might!
• Where would we live!  UGH!

Reflections of a Mother~

A letter to my children:

I gave you life, but cannot live it for you.

I can teach you things, but I cannot make you learn

I can give you directions, but I cannot be there to lead you

I can allow you freedom, but I cannot account for it

I can take you to church, but I cannot make you believe

I can teach you right from wrong, but I cannot always decide for you

I can buy you beautiful clothes, but I cannot make you beautiful inside

I can offer you advice, but I cannot accept it for you

I can give you love, but I cannot force it upon you

I can teach you to share, but I cannot make you unselfish

I can teach you respect, but I cannot force you to show honor

I can advise you about friends, but cannot choose them for you

I can advise you about sex, but I cannot keep you pure

I can tell you the facts of life, but I can't build your reputation

I can tell you about drink, but I can't say "no" for you

I can warn you about drugs, but I can't prevent you from using them

I can tell you about lofty goals, but I can't achieve them for you

I can teach you about kindness, but I can't force you to be gracious

 I can warn you about sins, but I cannot make you moral

I can pray for you, but i cannot make you walk with God

I can tell you how to live, but I cannot give you eternal life

I can love you with unconditional love ALL my life...

and I will!

God, on Mother's Day, I thank you for the privilege of being a mother!  There is nothing greater in life, than giving all that I have to the beautiful gifts you have given ME, my children!  May they see you in me and may you be pleased as you watch me raise them for you!  I thank you for allowing me to be a mother!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!