Who Ever Knew

Talk about a blast from the past.

19 years ago.....

I was at the hospital, induced and waiting for labor to kick in.

Today..... I am waiting for labor to kick in, just not in the hospital.

What are the chances of having 2 New Year's babies out of 11?

For the Record

Joshua-I was induced 1 week early because of high blood pressure. He was born 6 days before his due date. Jennifer-2 1/2 weeks overdue. I still think the dates were calculated wrong as she was one of our smallest. Megan- 3 days overdue Kerri- right on the due date Caleb- right on the due date Zachary- 2 days early Jesse- 2 days overdue I still get confused today over Zach and Jesse's birthdays because Zach was due Oct. 18 and born on the 16th. Jesse was due on the 16th and born on the 18th! Nathan- 5 days overdue Brooke- 1 day overdue Mikaya- 9 days overdue (again, my cycle was not yet regular, I don't think due date was very accurate. So there you have it. My record of early/on-time/overdue. I'm still waiting........And I'm okay with it......Really :) I have learned that God's timing is absolutely perfect!

Memories Monday

Since we are thinking of babies thought I would post some pictures of when Caleb was born. It was one of our most pleasant hospital birth in a small Manitoba hospital. We had a pallitive care room which was more like a little hotel room. Small kitchen, couch (which Mark was grateful for), and lots of space for the family when they came to visit.

Our Growing Family

Mark's Parents Visiting

My Grama, Mom, Sister Amanda and Brother Travis Visiting

And just to update you all on the baby status :)

It's not born yet!

It seems now that everyone is pretty much over the flue,

so now I feel comfortable bringing a baby home.

We were actually hoping that it wouldn't be born before tomorrow because of different circumstances. Only one more day! Just watch, now I will be way overdue!!!

Keep checking in, the girls will post as soon a baby arrives!

How Hungry Am I?

The latest book I have been reading is called 'Expecting Miracles' by Rolland and Heidi Baker. It has really been challenging me in my walk with God and very timely for what I have been dealing with in my heart. This Christmas was so different for me. Usually I am right in there with all the shoppers. But this year because we really had virtually no Christmas shopping to do I observed. And in observing I was quite appalled at how commercialized Christmas has become. I know some of you are thinking BAH HUMBUG. But that isn't what I was feeling. It was a deeper heart thing. Almost like an awakening in my spirit. I didn't see shoppers who were cheerful givers, but rather I saw frazzled, overwhelmed and greedy shoppers. I saw shoppers who pushed and shoved to get that 'perfect' item on their list. But reading this book written by missionaries in Mozambique it has really challenged me on where my hunger really is. Is it in the material things of this world. Is this what really makes me happy. Of course the 'Christian' part of me would argue that Jesus is my all in all. That all I need is Him to be fulfilled. But how would I feel if I, like the people in Mozambique, had nothing, really nothing. We pray for them that they have more, but more of what. When I read what God is doing, and I see their spiritual hunger, that is what I long for. I should be praying for what they have, a deep spiritual hunger for the things of God.

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness:

for they shall be filled. Matthew 5:6

Here are a couple of excerpts from their book, Page 27-28 Our teacher spoke this afternoon about hungering after righteousness, the Kingdom of God. She commented on how differently these Mozambican pastors look at the Scriptures, because the word hunger has a whole other meaning to them. They know that hunger unfulifilled leads to death. These pastors have experienced that hunger. They have a desperation for this righteousness with the same yearning that they have for food. These men and women view the whole Gospel in a different light than we do in the West-the words of Jesus take on a different meaning and depth in the eyes of the poor. Page 31 More than the food and drink we need to live, we need fresh bread from heaven. We need the bread of life that only Jesus can provide-His glorious presence. Those who are spiritually hungry will be satisfied as they eat and drink of Jesus. My prayer is constantly that God would give us such a hunger for Him, and that He would pour out the healing oil of His Holy Spirit on all who are desperate for Him. We need to welcome such hunger. We need to be like helpless little children before our Savior, giving HIm full and absolute control of every area of our lives. Then we will know that, truly, Jesus is more than enough.

Are We Done Yet?

Well Christmas has come and gone.

This year was a very different Christmas for us. Most of my family was in Alberta so it was much quieter :) !!!

But mostly it was quiet because we are still recovering from this nasty flue bug.

It ended up hitting everyone except Mark and I (besides the occasional stomach ache).

So the food went almost untouched and the mood was "I just want to lay around."

Except for Mikaya. She was ready to eat all the candies in sight.

We did have enough energy to play a little hockey. Thanks to Grama and Grampa Pauls we got to try out our new hockey nets. They seemed to work just fine :)

Of course our cows decided that it would be a good idea to knock down a gate on Christmas Day, so a bit of chasing also had to be done.

And then some just lazed around while other worked on a 3000 piece puzzle.

I think everyone is over the worst of the flue though, so that I am thankful for. It was a weird one, just when it seemed it was over, it came back full force. Lots of bathroom runs (no pun intended), lots of pails and lots of sleeping. Brooke and Nathan had it the worst and longest.

So today I am trying to enjoy the noise that comes with extra energy because this means they are starting to feel better :)

Baby is still tucked inside, enjoying it's cozy home for now. I am feeling the time is definitely getting closer. Mark's mom's birthday is on the 31st and Joshua's is on Jan. 1st. Maybe we will hit one of those days or........maybe not! If it were up to the majority of our voters, Dec. 31 st will be the day with 8 votes out of 31. I closed the vote today so now time will tell.

And while we are all waiting :) we have another poll for you.

At the lunch table today we were discussing what color of hair this baby would have. We haven't had a red-head in over 8 years. What do you think? Put in your vote!

By the way, I don't think we have ever introduced the newest member to our farm. This is Buck, Buckley, Buckles.....or whatever you would like to call him that resembles these names. He is a BIG, loving, clumsy, slobbery, gentle, hungry, oaf. We like him :) And of course we had to dress him up for Christmas just to make him look a little more festive.

Rejoice Always!!

Well, once again I get to put into practice the Bible verse, "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4 We are still on our little holiday. A couple of days into it Nathan started with the stomach flue. I immediately fought the urge to go home right then and there in case it spread. But I have learned not to live my life under the assumption of 'just in cases'. Instead I reminded myself that God had a purpose and things were under His control. A little while later, Mikaya caught the bug. Again, rejoice, rejoice, rejoice ALWAYS. But please God, don't let it spread. Trust...... Well today Zachary and Jesse have both come down with the dreaded. And Nathan and Mikaya are still fighting it. We have even had a couple of throwing up duets :) Are you asking me if I am still rejoicing? I am trying. We are due to go home tomorrow morning, so we decided to stick it out. What's the difference of laying around here or at home? As long as everyone has a bucket, we are A-OKAY! But if you think of us, we would appreciate your prayers for health and the strength to rejoice. So what about you? Is there something that you are struggling to rejoice about? Maybe we can pray for each other :)

Fighting For My Rights

God has been speaking to me lately about giving up my rights.

The right to be appreciated, the right to be right, the right to have my life be perfect.

I have been reading Nancy Leigh Demoss' book, "Lies Women Believe and the Truth That Sets Them Free" . The morning that we went to get our Christmas pictures printed out I read chapter 3 where she talked about the lie, "I have my rights." God really spoke to me (again) about how many times I get uptight and upset because I think that it is 'my right' to do so. I find myself daily fighting this lie.

And this particular day was no exception. After we picked up our Christmas family photo prints, I was disappointed when I looked at them and saw the color was so horrible that almost everyone in our family looked like they had red hair. Immediately my fight for my rights flared up. I had paid for these, my little home printer did better, I should bring them back....... And then I remembered the life lesson that God has been teaching me, the lie that I HAVE MY RIGHTS. I then told Mark that it was a good thing that I had read what I had this morning because now I could put it into practice. So we just left it and started sending out the cards. Later I had talked to a friend who had also had similar problems with her pictures in a different store. We came to the conclusion that it is only a picture, and that they will probably end up being thrown out anyway after awhile.

But I find that so many things that I 'fight' for are so meaningless in the end. In eternity they are not really going to matter. Even though I can justify it in my mind, I need to ask myself the question more often, "Am I reflecting Christ in my attitude and my actions?" I am sorry to say that many times the answer is no. With my family, friends, acquaintances and even perfect strangers I fail. But I am thankful that God's mercies are new every morning and that when we come humbly to Him He offers us another chance. And I hope that one day I learn to stop and think before I demand 'my rights.

Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit,

but in lowliness of mind

let each esteem others better than himself.

Let each of you look out not only for his own interests,

but also for the interests of others.

Philippians 2:1-4

A Quick Holiday

We have been wanting to take some holidays since field work was completed, but there were so many projects that we had to get done first that we kept postponing it. But finally last week we figured that is was time. So we are off for a few days. Nothing spectacular, but a holiday all the same. So we are at a hotel right now and plan to stay for a few days. We did some swimming this evening. The kids had a blast. Brooke loved the water slide. The weather is still very cold so we don't plan to go out much. Just hang out and swim and pretend it is warm! We went shopping a little today and the malls were crazy. As I looked at people's perplexed and frantic faces as they picked out gifts, I was thankful that we didn't have much to buy this year. This is really quite odd for me as I love to give gifts, but this year it just isn't a priority. We did get the younger ones a couple of little toys to play with while in the hotel, but that is about it. I was waiting to put up Christmas decorations when our walls were all painted. That is done now, just the base boards to put up, but we are gone now so I guess there won't be a lot of decorating. Oh well, less to take down:) One thing you might not know about me is I love little/miniature things. Today I found the cutest little oranges. You may have seen them, but I hadn't. They are mini honey mandarins. And as a bonus they are even yummy. This pregnancy I have lost all my chocolate cravings but I could eat fruit all day! So these little oranges are hitting the spot. You can pretty much eat them in one bite! So cute:) Talking about little, it won't be long now until our little blessing will show his/her face. I really am having a hard time believing that my due date is less than 2 weeks away. And honestly, I a don't have everything ready. I took out some newborn clothes, but they still need to be washed. We still have some switching of clothes (transferring to different shelves) to do and some switching of bunk beds. So it will have to wait until we get back. I just feel a little unprepared. Not like me, usually I have things done way too far ahead! But baby will come when God says its time, no matter how prepared I am! And there are many arms ready to hold him/her! No worries there :) By the way, the vote is still running. It looks right now like December 31st is the day in your opinion! If you haven't voted yet, throw in your 2 cents! And if you have voted and would like to be in the running for the book I want to give you, make sure you leave a comment telling me which day you voted!

Needs Some Work?

Here are the boys attempting some Christmas carols. I think they need a little work on learning the words!?! You can hear Caleb right at the end. He is a very good singer but too shy to be on camera :)

EVER WONDER?

Rebecca sent this email to me. Thought it was too funny not to share :)

ONLY IN AMERICA......

• Do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front
• Do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries and a diet coke.
• Do banks leave both doors open and then chain the pens to the counters.
• Do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage.
• Do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering.

EVER WONDER.......

• Why the sun lightens our hair, but darkens our skin?
• Why women can't put on mascara with their mouth closed?
• Why you don't ever see the headline "Psychic Wins Lottery"?
• Why "abbreviated" is such a long word?
• Why it is that doctors call what they do "practice"?
• Why lemon juice is made with artificial flavor, and dishwashing liquid made with real lemons?
• Why the man who invests your money is called a broker?
• Why the time of day with the slowest traffic is called rush hour?
• Why there isn't mouse-flavored cat food?
• You know that indestructible black box thats used on airplanes? Why don't they make the whole plane out of that stuff?!
• Why don't sheep shrink when it rains?
• Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together? >
• If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport the terminal?

Guess Who's Idea This Was?

CanYou Say COLD?

The excitement is building around here.

The weather has dipped to frigid temperatures.

-26 C with windchill this morning. (that's -14.8 for all our Fahrenheit friends:)

There's nothing quite like stepping outside and as you take a breath of fresh air..... your nose hairs stick together! Refreshing!

You can find a positive in everything if you look hard enough right?

Well around here the positive of the cold weather is that we have been able to do lots of flooding on our rink and..... it is almost done! Hockey, here we come!

So put on your woolies and shout a HOORAY for cold weather :) Really, I'm sure you can find a positive in it too! To all of you who live in a winterwonderland, what's your favorite thing about winter?

By the way, don't forget to vote on the birthdate of our baby. And if you read our blog and have never introduced yourself, we'd love to meet you as you put in your vote!

Put In Your Vote

Well, the gender of the baby has been decided by all of my blog readers. If only it were that easy :) The final tally was Boy 47: Girl: 35. Thanks for your vote! Soon we will find out if you were right. So it's time for a new vote. This one should be easy. What day do you think our baby will be born? Go ahead and vote (on the sidebar) and if you would like, add a comment to this post and tell me what date you choose. Your name will go in the jar of that date, and once this baby is born, we will pick a name out of the jar of the actual date. If your name is picked then I will send you a copy of one of my favorite books on the subject of being a housewife and mother "Passionate Housewives Deperate for God". Remember, in order to be eligible to get the book, you need to leave a comment saying which date you chose. And then we'll see if your right:)

Showers

Wednesday Rebecca had her first wedding shower.

It was a Tupperware one.

Esther (Rebecca's mom) and I put on a homeschoolers shower

(some others came as well) for her.

We planned it as a suprise, and it was successful.

We asked Joshua to call her and keep her on the phone until

everyone was there and we were ready for her.

Then her sister called her up to make cookies.

We were all waiting at the top of the stairs for her.

Here was her first response.

We played a game with 8 baking ingredients that were all white.

You could smell them but you could not touch them or taste them.

It was harder than I thought!

Guess Who?

Finally a picture of the photographer herself!

Jennifer and Raechelle (Rebecca's sister)

My mom shopping hard.

Today we are off to Winnipeg with Henry and Esther (Rebecca's dad and mom), and Joshua and Rebecca to do some shopping and then go to the Living Christmas Tree at Grant Memorial Baptist Church. Should be a good day :)

WHAT!?!?

This joke has been going around our little ones for a few weeks. Hey ______. What. Made you say what! Well since everyone is catching on to this they are starting to refuse to say 'what'. So here is the conversation between Brooke and Nathan at supper tonight.

Brooke: Nathan

Nathan: (knows better than to say anything)

Brooke: Nathan

Nathan: (still keeping silent)

Brooke: Nathan, say what!

Nathan: No!

Brooke: (giggling) Made you say 'NO"!

How Much Wood?

One by one our projects are getting crossed off the list. Yesterday was wood cutting day.

This year we had 2 chain saws going so that made things go a lot faster.

Of course with 2 chain saws going, the carriers had to work twice as hard. Trudging through snow made things a little more challenging. You always need someone to stack those logs so that you can get the biggest load in.

And sometimes you just need someone to smile :)

Always time to pose for a picture. How is it Rebecca that you always show up on the days that hard manual labor is involved? We sure appreciate all your help.

And of course there's always the disappearing act. Jesse, where did you go?

There is a beautiful red fox hanging around our area. When Mark and Joshua were bringing bales home the other day, he was busy pouncing on the mice hiding under the bales. Just like our dog would do. Our family named him "Cheeko". I just hope he doesn't find our chickens next spring :)

Hopefully we got enough wood to last us until spring. And for now we will enjoy cozying up to the wood stove. Another job completed by the Pauls' family team.