Our Summer Wrap-up!

     *Cough, cough.  That's me-blowing the dust off the blog site to update ya'll about what's happening around here.  Remember the last post...the one where I said that I would probably be able to post more often in the summer, because we wouldn't be as busy?   Well, obviously I was a little too optimistic!  And since we start school in a week (!!), I figured I'd better write something...  Hmmm...I wonder if Blogspot kicks you off for lack of posting...

     Anyway, like I said, we have had a busy summer.  Still working at school, (those projects that never seemed to get wrapped up), tackling house chores that had been neglected, and family "together-times" kept us moving all the time. 

     We were able to sneak in a weekend trip to the beach! Daddy had promised the boys a trip to the beach, and we are blessed to have family that lives in Pensacola, so it was fun to visit with them and fulfill our "obligation" to visit the ocean.  Although, I have to say, the beach gets less and less fun with lots of littles in tow!  And a thunderstorm doesn't help matters any!  But the kiddos had fun, and got to spend some "boy" time with their cousin who has 5 sisters, and was glad to go with us to the beach!  Here are a couple of pics from the trip:

Love the wind! 

Finally at the beach!

     We also had our annual Fourth of July family reunion.  This is a great time of fun and fellowship with my extended family on my mom's side.  We were missing a few people this year.  As we grow up and get busier lives, it gets much harder to get everyone together in one place!  But we always enjoy getting together, and one of our favorite things to do is watch the fireworks at the end of the day.

Mommy and Baby Girl getting ready to watch fireworks--she loved them!

One of our favorite parts of the reunion is the singing time!

Baby Girl and her great-grandma, Nana!

Middle Biscuit & Stitch challenging a big cousin to a game of checkers!

       The boys have had a lot of time this summer to work on various Lego projects.  We have seen a myriad of different landscapes, vehicles, and buildings pass through the household.  Here are just a couple that we've seen:

Front and back view of a six story hospital, complete with helicopter landing pad and ambulance bay on the bottom floor.  (A very eclectic clientele: green army man and LGM from Toy Story, a very ill Captain America, and several people who seem to be suffering from "block-head-itis.")




Middle Biscuit's really big mini-figure.  He made three of these, one representing himself and both brothers.



















   Baby Girl turned six months old a few days ago, so I thought I'd wrap this post up with a few of the pictures from her 6-month, "Pretty in Pink" impromptu photo shoot.  Hope they make you smile, and I hope to share with you again soon! :) 

Such a big girl!

Blue jeans and bare toes!

Sweet lady!

Happy girl!  (Mommy's favorite!)

Hey, Remember Me? :)

     It has been so long since I've blogged that I thought some of you would think I had given it up entirely!  Let's just say that this morning was the first morning in some time that I stood in my clean kitchen, realized that the boys were playing happily, Baby Girl was napping, and there were no chores screaming for my attention.  (The chores always yell, but you can ignore them sometimes, haha!)  So, here I am, sneaking a few minutes to update you on our crazy life, and maybe give some words of encouragement for yours!

     School ended with a bang!  We had a great awards night, giving encouragement and recognition to all the students for their hard work.  First-Born managed to squeak out taking home the award for Highest PACE average, but he was given a run for his money by another student and Middle Biscuit.  They were all within a very small percentage of difference between them, and it was down to the last few grades to see who would come out on top.  We told him he would have to work extra-hard next year if he wants to hold onto the title!  Both the older boys played their recital pieces in front of their biggest audience yet (probably over 70 people were there that night!) and did really well.  Middle Biscuit was a true performer, playing his piece with a hastily bandaged finger from a paper cut he received right before he was supposed to go on stage!  A little trooper!

     Since school let out, we have been trying to prioritize "family recovery time."  Many things got put on the back burner in the last few weeks of end-of-year chaos.  So, we have been spending time working as a family, having fun together, and re-visiting some training issues that had been let slide in the busy schedule.  We had been seeing some behavior issues cropping up, and we knew it was simply because the consistency of training was lacking due to Mom and Dad's busy-ness.  The home has been recovering as we spend time nipping negative things in the bud, rather than letting them flower into full-grown "weeds."

     I have been enjoying spending lots of one-on-one time with Baby Girl.  I had tons of mom-guilt about having to head right back to work as soon as I was able to.  This was the only baby that I haven't been able to be at home full-time with, and it was tough, let me tell you!  She seems to have done fine though, and we are making up for it now!  :)

     One sad note this summer is that due to the recent decision made by BSA, our family will no longer be participating in Cub Scouting.  We came to this hard decision after much time spent praying and discussing the ramifications of this decision.  I know it will be hard for some to understand, but sometimes the right choice for your family is not always the easy choice.  We will miss our Scouting adventures, and we plan to keep in contact with our new friends made through our local Scouting chapter.

     This leads me into a topic Hubby and I have spent much time discussing this summer.  It came up partially due to the decision concerning Scouting we had to make, but also it's been something we have been dealing with in other areas of our life as well.  It is the idea of the importance of making hedges around your family.  Not walls, because as Christians, we are called to minister to the world around us.  It is difficult to see and minister to the needs of others from a fortress!  Hedges give protection, but still allow others to see your testimony, and allow you to minister as you are called.  But the hedges have to be maintained, which is the difficult part.  With walls, you can just build them up, and then stay behind them.  Hedges require a balance of "pruning" and allowance for growth.  Cut them all back, and you are left unprotected from the elements of the world.  Grow them too high, and they become isolating from the people you are called to minister to.  Striking this balance is a daily challenge for us.  Not only as a family, but also as a Believer.  So, I encourage you to give some thought to the idea of "hedges" in your life.  Are yours too low, allowing too many negative things to enter and cause problems in your family?  Are they too high, keeping you from sharing Christ's love with those around you?  Are they thick enough to act as a filter through which you can catch problems as they creep in?  Give your "landscaping" a check...prune or fertilize as needed!


     Well, this post is getting long enough, so I will wrap it up for now.  Hope everyone is enjoying their summer.  Hope to write more frequently, but we all know about "best laid plans" don't we?  :)

Messy Cribs and Little Oxen

     It's been over a month since I last blogged...and I can tell you exactly where the time went!  It went to the busy-ness that is our lives...school, home, boys, and baby!  I literally have had no time to sit down and write a blog post, but I have been working on one in my head off and on for about a month.  I ran across a verse that came at a good time for me.  (Isn't it "strange" how God sends us what we need exactly when we need it?) :)

     Anyway, the verse is found in Proverbs.  (An excellent place to find pick-me-ups, and great advice!)  Proverbs 14:4--"Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox."  Now, you may be wondering, "How can a verse about, umm, cows be encouraging to me?"  Well, I was feeling slightly overwhelmed in my life.  I had just started back to school, I was still getting up with the newbie during the night, and the household chores were falling behind because I was too tired when I came home from working all day to try and tackle them.  It was all I could do to get supper on the table and collapse into bed to get up and do it all again the next day.

     I was sitting in the nursery at church, feeding the baby, and I was reading from Proverbs on my phone.  (See, technology can be a good thing!)  I get to verse four, and I guess I had a small epiphany. As I was thinking about all the things at home, undone, and all the things I had to do in the upcoming week (not exactly a spiritual mindset for worship...) I realized something.  Why were there loads of laundry sitting around?  Why had the bathrooms not seen a sponge or cleaner in over a week?  Because I have a family, that's why.

     A family given to me by a loving Heavenly Father Who knew exactly what I needed and also what I could handle.  Yes, my house could be spotless.  Yes, I could have non-sticky placemats on the table and neatly folded towels in all the bathrooms.  But what would I have to give up to have that?  My "crib" would be clean, but I would have no "oxen."

     Now, don't get all upset that I'm comparing my little people to cows.  (Although, there are days....)  But in those times, cows were a blessing from the Lord and they came with certain responsibilities--and mess.  My family is also a gift from the Lord--one that comes with responsibilities and messes!  You can't have one without the other.  The verse goes on to say "...but much increase is by the strength of the ox."  This part can apply as well.  The little "calves" God gives us will be big "oxen" one day.  It is part of our job as "wrangler" to not only keep them fed and safe, but to train them to be strong in the Lord.  Their spiritual strength will be to our increase in eternity.  God will look at what we have done with the "calves" He has given us and He will reward us accordingly. 

     So, it's okay if the "crib" is messy.  (A struggle for my OCD soul...)  Because it's messy because God has blessed us with little hands to hold, little heads to fill with a knowledge of Him, and little hearts to guide into an understanding of His Word and will.  And what are a few loads of laundry, sticky walls, and toy-strewn floors compared with that? 

    I hope this reminder about the important things helps you face your challenges this week.  It has helped me to be more willing to focus on the important rather than the urgent. Love your messy "crib"--it's there because of the blessings God has given you!  :)