New Toy

Wow, it's been awhile again! Life is just flying by here as busy season is upon us. We had a very early spring so we were done seeing in record time! We were so thankful for a dryer spring than last year. It was a bit of a strange spring, starting very early and melting all the snow. We didn't have much snow to begin with this winter so it melted fast. We had unusually warm temperatures in the middle of March and thought that summer had begun. But we all knew that it was too early. We were glad when things cooled off a bit because it was so dry that we were thinking we would have to seed very early, making for some hard farming decisions. But thankfully God saw fit to give us some more cooler weather to slow things down. We had a bit of a scare on Sunday night when the weather forecast said that the temps were going to go well below freezing. We have crops that are growing nicely and a frost could really damage them. We were so thankful to God when we woke up Monday morning to find the temperatures had been far from freezing!

 We were able to get the garden planted last week. Kerri took over the planning and had all the kiddos out there helping her plant. I enjoyed watching her as she was so patient with them and took time to let even the younger ones help. I could learn a lot from her. I am more of a "get it done quick" type person and I tend to be too much in a rush to involve those who may slow me down. I have slowed down a lot over the years, but still have much to learn! Today we worked on getting the bedding plants and flowers in. We have a few more to do, but we are seeing the end. We look forward to being able to enjoy the fruits of our labor in a few weeks. We also transplanted many, many strawberry plants and are hoping they do well enough so that we won't have to buy strawberries anymore. We like to make jam and put some in the freezer to have on our waffles, but it can get very expensive to put up enough for our family. Of course we won't get any strawberries this year as the plants need to establish themselves, but we look forward to some strawberry yumminess next year!

 Jennifer has been very busy the last couple of days getting all the summer clothes switched over. This spring has been a time of divide and conquer and I am so thankful that she took this over. It's a HUGE job and she did great!

All the kiddos are so happy to have new (to them) clothes on their shelves again. We are hatching a couple batches of eggs right now. One incubator has laying hens and the other has meat birds. I hope to hatch another 2-3 batches of meat birds to keep us supplied for the year. I like to have 50-75 chickens in the freezer for sure. The rest is bonus :)Tomorrow the first batch is due to hatch so this will be an excited household. Watching baby chicks hatch never seems to grow old!

 We have had some nasty viruses the past couple of months with the worst being the last 2 weeks. Brooke started things off with a mouth sore virus. It got so bad that she couldn't eat anything but yogurt, ice cream and fluids for a few days. She slept and slept and slept. And then just as she started to feel better Mikaya got it even worse. Today is the first day since she contacted this thing last week that she is finally starting to feel better. I am just praying this is it and no one else gets it!

 Elijah is getting so big and I can hardly believe that he will be 11 weeks on Thursday! He is smiling lots now and loves to "talk" to anyone who will stop by and listen! He is a big boy and likes to eat often. I am not nursing him anymore. I have always had problems nursing our babies and usually I will supplement and nurse as well. But once Elijah found out that the bottle was much easier and faster he said that was enough drinking from Mama. This is always a real hard transition for me but I know for reasons that I don't need to understand, this is the way God has designed me. Many times, baby after after baby I bought into the misconception that anyone can nurse if they just try hard enough and stick to it. It took many babies lose weight week after week for me to finally accept this as the way it is. Yet every baby I will still try to nurse, the difference is now I am quicker to see when it isn't going to work. It's never easy to start that first bottle, but once I see our baby gain weight and become more content it makes for a happy baby and mama! I am just so thankful that there is such aas pumps so that I am still able to give our babies my milk, it's just in a round about way!

 Many of you have asked how Megan is doing. Well she is madly in love with her husband and extremely happy! It is such a joy to see our children marry and become a family. As much as we miss Megan here at home we are excited to get to know them as a couple. Thankfully we still get to see them at least once a week. She has been able to continue her photography and busies herself with other projects in and around the house. Henry is a great guy and we are proud to call him our son-in-law. It is such a blessing to watch a godly man lead his family in a way that glorifies God.

 On that note it's been awhile since I have talked about our grandchildren! The novelty of being a grandparent has not worn off. It's as fun today as the day it all began. Andrew is getting to be such a big boy and is starting to communicate. He loves to be outside and often wanders over to say hi and play with the kids. I love to watch him and Jaden interact. It's almost like have twins! Makayla is growing so fast and is such a sweet little girl. It's fun to have a little girl in the family after a few years of boys! She is full of smiles and fun. It's so nice to have their family live so close. I love having Becca and the kids pop over often throughout the week.

 And as for the title of this post, my new toy is my mothers day gift. Our children all got together and pooled their money (some all of of their money) and gave it to me for Mothers day. They had a camera in mind but I asked if they would mind me getting an IPad. Of course they said it was my money to do with what I wished so this is what I chose. So far I am really liking it. It is more compact than a computer, yet has a lot of the conveniences of one. One of the main reasons I got it though was for school. I had a few apps on my phone that the kids used for school but it is pretty small and impractical. So I am looking forward to finding new apps and using them as in addition to our book work. So if you have an iPad and have any suggestions of apps that you enjoy (not just limited to educational ones), I would love to hear from you.

 I have many, many blog posts in my head, I just need to find the time to write them down, so until then, toodle do :)

How Many Times

It was over 22 yrs. ago that I first acquired the title MOM.
I never imagined then that 22 yrs. later I would have earned the title 14 more times (including the ones that married into our family).
I never imagined then what a wonderful journey I was in for.

I remember my first Mother's Day as a MOM going to a restaurant and receiving a rose....for me...just for being a MOM!!! I remember how honoured I felt. But I never imagined how many more times I would feel honoured to be in this posistion called MOM!

What a journey these last 22 yrs. have been. What a blessing!!!

I have often wondered what the numbers would be at if I had counted.....
How many times I have changed a diaper.
How many times I have been on the receiving end of a hug.
How many times I have wiped a snotty nose.
How many times I've smiled.
How many times I have had a sleepless night.
How many times I've heard."I love You".
How many times I have given a glass of water.
How many times I have kissed an "owie".
How many times I have said, "Be kind, Be gentle, Be loving".
How many times I have said, "Good job!"
How many clothes I have washed.
How many times I have listened to a child's exciting account.
How many times I have cried over a disobedient child.
How many times I have rejoiced over a child's spiritual growth.
How many pieces of artwork I have received.
How many times I have prayed for wisdom concerning a child.
How many times I have given a bath.
How many times I have disciplined.
How many times I have had a contraction.
How many times I have kissed sweet baby cheeks.
How many times I have made a bottle.
How many times I've soothed a distraught child.
How many times I've played peek-a-boo or pat-a-cake.
How many instructions I have given.
How many times I've cleaned up after a sick child.
How many times I have read a story to a child.
How many times I have taught school.
How many times I have said "Don't walk in the house with your shoes, Put a coat on, shut the door, clean your room, chew with your mouth closed, don't talk with your mouth full, say 'Yes Ma'am', say please, say thank-you......"
How many times I have cleaned up a spill.
How many times I have been given a dandelion by a sweet child.
How many timesI have tied a shoe...........
Wow...the list could go on and on!!!!

As many times as I have done all these things I can honestly say that I wouldn't trade them for anything, Anything, ANYTHING in the world!!!!! They have made me into the person I am today.

Is being a MOM hard work? You bet it is!!!! But is it worth it? You bet it is!!!!!

And the greatest thing is that I will always be a MOM!!! It's a title I have been entrusted  and I will wear it proudly! I am so thankful that God has allowed me to be a MOM to every one of our children!!!! What a blessing they are :)

Happy Mother's Day to all you MOMs out there. May your day be special and may you reflect on the goodness of the Lord.