Wordless Wednesday

My Big Baby & My Little Baby

My Special Day

Well, yesterday was my b-day. Yeup, another year older & wiser...ech, ach, hack, hack.
Excuse me but I was choking on that last word.

Anyway, I am a year older!! Although, yesterday was technically my birthday my family celebrated with me this past Sunday. I had a great day!
Big Daddy made me a rib eye, yummmmm....and all the girlies made me cards. We topped off the night with my favorite cake, celebrating advent, & watching a movie I promptly fell asleep too. It was a nice night. The Hubby had a little bit of a hard time because I had no pretty packages to unwrap, moneys tight right now. But truly, I'm okay with that. Sure I'm like anyone else & can't help but get a wee bit gitty when opening up a present but this year I got something better. I got to look at my kiddos heartfelt art work.
All my girlies spent a lot of time making me sweet cards. I'm one of those people who keeps cards, every...single...card. I have a very hard time tossing em'.
Especially if they're uber special. Really, I have stacks of cards. I wonder if there's a twelve step recovery program for out of control card keepers??
Anyway, when my girlies made cards for me it touched my heart. They're adorable & Cow being the oldest didn't just make something sweet she challenged me! See, Cow & I have had a competition going since she could speak. It starts with three simple words..."I LOVE YOU"

Then it turns into this...

I Love You Cow, more than the rainbow :)

My Bear made a cute card that initially confused me because there was a tracing of her hand print & a frowny face. She explained that it was the saddened turkey contemplating his impending doom. I think that's hysterical!! My eight year old managed in her beautiful little card to remember her mamas sick sense of humor :D
And it really was beautiful!
Look at the sweet little garden she drew for me with a little bling of course =)

Then she wrote me this poem...

God is great

God is good

He gave me my Mommy

Then my Monkey Girl gave me a card with a gergillion purple hearts (my favorite color is purple) and she drew crowns for both of us & pics of us together. Just me & her, alone time :) I gotta say, I love her little drawings done in pencil. This is my stinker cutie who wiggled her way in my heart =)

And last but most certainly not least my Piglet Princess toddled over & gave me this!

Is this not the cutest thing you've ever seen!! I was so tickled!! Look at the wee little polished piggie toes!! Eeeeeeeeee :)
Yes, I just squealed!

Big Daddy gave me the most wonderful gift he could give me...the day off!!
I didn't have to lift a finger! No dishes, no getting the girlies ready for bed, no cooking dinner.
Nothing!
It was awesome!
I honestly had a wonderful day :)
So for my birthday, as in the day I was actually born I washed a load of towels, giving a math quiz, peeling & mashing up taters & looking forward to next years birthday with my family doing the exact same thing.
Keeping it simple with some homemade cards, a little bit of cake, a movie, & maybe splurging on my once a year steak!
I love you my babies & my handsome man!
My birthday is wonderful because of the blessing of all of you in my life :)

The Blessed Supermom

Finding Hope Through The Pain

So I'm in this real mushy state today. I think it's the holidays, they're always difficult. Don't get me wrong I'm thankful to God for all He's blessed me with. But days can turn melancholy fast. The hurt can overwhelm.
The funny thing is it's always the same thing to trigger the weary heart in me.
Christmas ornaments....
How can sweet little decorations tear me in two?? You would think I would prepare myself right? That every year I would tell myself before I walk in the store that it's gonna be okay. That the season is about life, it's about Jesus being born into this cold dark world & ultimately giving His life so we wouldn't know the taste of death.
But as wonderful & true as that is, the pain still comes.
Every year at this time I'm reminded of my Isaac & Hannah. I can't help but wonder what my babies look like now, what it would feel like to hold there little chunky hands. To deal with their tantrums & defiance, to kiss their owwies & roll my eyes at their foolishness. To pick up their little sweaty bodies in the night as we pray the fever away.
See, at this time of the year I'm reminded of all the little things.
The small things I've missed. Every year there are more moments missed.
As you can see, it's hard not to get weepy. It's hard not to wallow in the pain & anguish & just live here for a while.
Truth is I miss my little ones so hard & deep that I don't think I can truly put into words my ache for them.
In all this I can see Jesus face & feel Gods heart, if not just a little with my simple finite mind.
I only knew my Isaac for 5 months & my Hannah for 6 & the pain runs so deep. The loss of them pulses through my veins & it is part of my being. I've been told to "get over it" to "move on"
But how do you get over the loss of your child?
That's the little piece of Gods heart I think I feel. The pain of watching your child die, the pain of knowing this has to happen. Wanting to change this moment but it is already written & there's no running away from it.
I think of the pain of the moment I was told my children had died & how crushing that was. How those few seconds forever altered my life.
Now, how can I ever choose to feel that pain? To choose to give my child death?
That's what God did.
For me...for you.
He chose to send His one & only Son to die in this broken world so that we may live.
He rose again on the third day & overcame death & through that power & grace I have overcome death as well. I will walk with Him in Heaven one day.
What blows my mind about this amazing plan of His is that through that same power & grace my children also overcame death! My children live alongside Him in perfect peace.

Today, I have an ache in my heart for my Isaac & Hannah, but it's also filled with hope.
Hope for His promises & His future for me.

The Blessed Superomom

The Little Piggies Speach Evaluation

Well, my little punkin pie had her speech eval today. I was concerned after my friend Debbie asked if she spoke more at home then she did in our play group that she leads. Debbie is not just a sweetie of a person & a good mama but also a certified Baby TALK Practitioner/Parent Educator. She has several years experience working with parents and children, birth to three years old & is also a registered nurse. So I more then trust her judgement when it came into question whether baby girl was where she ought to be.
Debbie gave me a recommendation for Easter Seals who would send out a speech therapist as well as another therapist to evaluate her on all levels as well as speech.
Well, the wee piglet did great!
She is only 20% behind on her speech, she needs to be 30% behind for therapy. She's behind mostly because she is not imitating as much as she needs to be. The speech therapist (Lisa) gave me great ideas on how to help initiate imitation & both therapists believe as we work with her at home the Princess will have a "speech explosion" shortly.
As far as all the other evaluations such as comprehension, direction, physical, cognitive, social/emotional, & self help she is where she needs to be at 21 months or even higher!!
The therapist also said that the fact we homeschool is a definite factor in how well she's doing.
SCORE!!
So, to wrap this up I have to say a big fat huge thank you to Debbie Jackson, you are a wonderful friend & I'm so thankful for you!!
And more importantly I give all the praise & glory to God! I know some may not understand fully why I lay all the honor at His feet, but the LORD is sovereign over all. He created this sweet beautiful girl knowing full well she was going to keep her words to herself for a bit. I'm also
grateful to Him for bringing these caring individuals into my home who were genuinely concerned for my little girl. And I'm grateful for the mouthful of sweet words that are sure to come in God's perfect timing.
And even the not so sweet ones!

The Blessed Supermom

Wordless Wednesday

Nomi hugging Hannah :)

The Honor Of Being Called Mommy

Many years ago I had a vision. No, not chandeliers shaking as a slow fog filled the room. But a vision nonetheless.

If asked as a teenager what my family would look when I grew up I often said I would have seven children & would stay home taking care of them.
Most times I got a sort of an eyebrow raised, nose in the air, tight lipped look. And that was from my friends!!
Forget the older women I told this to! They would just laugh & tell me how naive I was & that once I had ONE baby I would change my mind real quick!!
Wow! What a discouragement!!
Here I am, this young girl with a beautiful God given vision & my friends with some family as well were trying to steal it.
Remember, satan comes to steal, kill, & destroy & he will use whatever means necessary to do just that. Including you're sweet little old neighbor down the street.
I see this happening with my daughter. She is around the corner from turning seventeen & she longs to have a large family & stay home with her babies. However, there is already so much opposition to that "lofty dream"
She has already been told it's impossible. That breaks my heart for her.
Often times she'd smile & says she wants twelve children, but lately she says "as many God wants to give me"
That statement makes me so proud of her because she's putting faith in God for an area that seems to be "off limits" to Him.
Now, will she follow through on this mindset? I like to think so but I can't control her life or her walk with God. All I can do is present to her His Word, pray for her, be an example to her, and trust God for the rest.

It is an honor to be called "Mommy" I'm so thankful my daughter sees that.



The Blessed Supermom

Taking The Morning Off

Today is one of those days. One of those days that I can't help but marvel at the fact that I'm a Mama. Not because I'm all warm & gushy, actually it's cuz I'm so goofy tired. Now please don't get me wrong, I love my babies & I'm not complaining. It's just some days are hard. I think every one of you Mamas can relate to being exhausted before you're feet hit the floor in the morning. It's a whole different kind of tired then when I was young & without babies yet.
Boy! That was a loooonnnng time ago...
Anyway,that kind of tired was easily remedied by taking a nap or sleeping in, two things that are almost impossible now. For example, I actually got out of bed this morning with The Piglet, a lot of times we hang out in bed for a bit. But this morning I got up with her & proceeded to immediately fall asleep on the sofa.
I woke up to Bear yelling at the Piggie. Bear doesn't yell at her, so why was she yelling this morning you ask?? Because she was crawling across the table.
Apparently she is trying to catch up with her sisters & get a few concussions in before years end.
I jumped off the sofa to save my baby, caught up my feet in the blanket, & fell flat on my face. She just looked at me like I was nuts...as she sat on the table. Of course I corrected her but I don't know how much got through her little noggin. It looked a whole lot like images of mommy flying across the room was on her mind.
Anyway, I've decided to take the morning off. We'll start school after lunch. I don't think I'm much good to them right now.
Gotta go, Piggie is getting angry because Mama is tired. Apparently she really dislikes when I sleep...

Two Of My Favorite Guys

These are two of my most favorite guys on the planet. Of course there's my awesome hubby who regularly puts up with me, I'm blessed that God gave this guy an extra dose of patience because truth is I can be a downright lunatic sometimes. He happens to be good looking & can play the drums like nobody's business & I love it. I'm a rocker chick at heart =)
Then there's this guy on the left.
I like him bunches too, in fact I love him.
He's my Pastor.
He is one of the most amazing guys on the planet, next to hubby of course. I'm gonna gush about him for a minute.
I first met Pastor in 2003, I was guarded because I didn't have any good experiences with "the church" & I wasn't real interested. I was one of those people who ran to Jesus when things were messed up but quickly forgot Him when I didn't think I needed Him. Hubby & I decided to go to church for the "structure" of it, we figured it would be good for the kids.
Pastor Al was interested in more then giving us structure, he was interested in our everlasting souls.
There's a whole big long testimony to my salvation story & I can write for a few days about it. But what I want to focus on is my pastor, he is an amazing man after God's heart. He is a man of integrity, honor, & nobility. He is an example to young men of the man they ought to strive to be & an example to women as to the type of characteristics to look for in a husband & father to their children. He has more than fulfilled his call to be a Shepard to the flock God has blessed him with.
He led me to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ & has continuously cared for my family.
Al...he's more than my Pastor.
He's my friend.
We love you...

The Blessed Supermom