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9/25/12
9/17/12
Large Family Ramblings
Hey, guess what? We have a large family. There is even one website that defines us a a "Mega-family"! Isn't that a hoot!?
I guess when our last two kids joined our family and we had to sell my beloved Toyota Sienna and buy the big, ugly van (aka Monstro), I figured we had crossed over. But. like anything, you get used to it and it becomes normal. The only time we feel large is when we are all traipsing through the supermarket or Walmart. People do tend to stare.
People are fascinated, and will often ask how we do things. We do have to do things a little differently than smaller families. For example, counting is a huge part of my parenting day. I never, ever, ever start the car until I've counted heads. I'm totally paranoid of leaving someone behind! When we're out at a park, I count constantly 1 - 7 (or 1 - 8 if my grand daughter is with us).
Spontaneity doesn't really happen anymore. It takes too much preparation! Seriously - "Hey mom! Lets have lunch at the park" is followed by roughly an hour of making and packing lunch for 9 or 10 people plus water and wipes.
Extracurricular activities are on a rotation basis. Right now we have 2 in baseball. Three more are in a running club. This is the first time we've done more than one sport at a time. We'll see how it works out.
Screen time is severely limited. Each child gets 30 minutes of video game time. Siblings are not allowed to watch each other. I've been accused of being a control freak over this. But when you stop to think that if each watches the other play games, that's 3 1/2 hours of staring at a computer/tv screen each day. Then, they want to watch a movie on top of that.
We've actually been asked by El Pollo Loco to call ahead with our order. Ha! We now go to KFC instead.
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Laundry must be done every day. Usually 2 loads. Unless there are towels and bedding. Then there are more.
I insist the kids pick up after themselves. If each person left one toy on the floor, I would be tripping over them constantly. Legos really hurt too!
Only one cup per person, per day. As it is, we wash one load in the dishwasher every day. Sometimes it's more depending on what we've been cooking.
Organization is key though. Some of my friends laugh and call me OCD because of the way we live. But without the schedules and routines, chaos would reign in my home. Okay, it still does. But to a lesser extent.
Sometimes I look at friends who have fewer kids and I wonder if my kids are missing out. My friends can easily go on trips or buy cool things for their kids. My kids do look with longing on those things that their friends have.
But in the end, the stuff will end up broken and discarded or at a yard sale. The really valuable things are the relationships they have with each other. One day the kids will realize that too. We are richer by far than almost anyone else I know!
I guess when our last two kids joined our family and we had to sell my beloved Toyota Sienna and buy the big, ugly van (aka Monstro), I figured we had crossed over. But. like anything, you get used to it and it becomes normal. The only time we feel large is when we are all traipsing through the supermarket or Walmart. People do tend to stare.
People are fascinated, and will often ask how we do things. We do have to do things a little differently than smaller families. For example, counting is a huge part of my parenting day. I never, ever, ever start the car until I've counted heads. I'm totally paranoid of leaving someone behind! When we're out at a park, I count constantly 1 - 7 (or 1 - 8 if my grand daughter is with us).
Spontaneity doesn't really happen anymore. It takes too much preparation! Seriously - "Hey mom! Lets have lunch at the park" is followed by roughly an hour of making and packing lunch for 9 or 10 people plus water and wipes.
Extracurricular activities are on a rotation basis. Right now we have 2 in baseball. Three more are in a running club. This is the first time we've done more than one sport at a time. We'll see how it works out.
Screen time is severely limited. Each child gets 30 minutes of video game time. Siblings are not allowed to watch each other. I've been accused of being a control freak over this. But when you stop to think that if each watches the other play games, that's 3 1/2 hours of staring at a computer/tv screen each day. Then, they want to watch a movie on top of that.
We've actually been asked by El Pollo Loco to call ahead with our order. Ha! We now go to KFC instead.
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Laundry must be done every day. Usually 2 loads. Unless there are towels and bedding. Then there are more.
I insist the kids pick up after themselves. If each person left one toy on the floor, I would be tripping over them constantly. Legos really hurt too!
Only one cup per person, per day. As it is, we wash one load in the dishwasher every day. Sometimes it's more depending on what we've been cooking.
Organization is key though. Some of my friends laugh and call me OCD because of the way we live. But without the schedules and routines, chaos would reign in my home. Okay, it still does. But to a lesser extent.
Sometimes I look at friends who have fewer kids and I wonder if my kids are missing out. My friends can easily go on trips or buy cool things for their kids. My kids do look with longing on those things that their friends have.
But in the end, the stuff will end up broken and discarded or at a yard sale. The really valuable things are the relationships they have with each other. One day the kids will realize that too. We are richer by far than almost anyone else I know!
9/3/12
Oregon Nature
Here are a few of the nature pictures that I took on our vacation.
Technically, these all weren't taken in Oregon. The clouds were taken on the drive. Somewhere in Utah probably.
The pink flower and the plums were taken at my parents house in Idaho. So many beautiful things!
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I cannot remember the name of this place. We hung out here while the boys (adults) went on a quad adventure. We hiked down a trail and couldn't find any place worth looking at so we went back to the car to wait. I wandered off and found this place. It was so much more beautiful than the pictures show.
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This little guy is a bat. We stopped at a convenience store on our way home and he was hanging out behind the garbage can right outside the main door! I wanted so much to take him home!
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One Thousand Gifts (111 - 120)
111. Ladybug, who jumped up from the show she was watching and ran over to give me a hug and kiss. :)
112. Coming out of a very long and very dry spiritual place. I feel alive again!
113. My son's birth mother. Her selfless act 10 years ago has brought so much joy to our lives.
114. Taking my kids out for ice cream.
115. My kids, who are so comfortable with each other.
116. My husband who treats me like a queen.
117. Books. I love to read.
118. Freshly mowed grass. It looks and smells so nice.
119. No school tomorrow!
120. Total silence.
8/19/12
One Thousand Gifts (91 - 110)
91. Seeing my mommy and daddy again!
92. My kids getting their first ride on a horse
93. They also got their first kiss - from a horse!
94. Seeing my sister again!
95. Being trusted enough to be invited into her struggles.
96. My husband having a wonderful adventure
97. My kids getting their first ride on a quad - loads of fun!
98. Deer grazing without a care, less than 30 feet away
99. Safety on our long trip
100. My parents finally getting to meet all their grandkids
101. Victory for D and more importantly for little E !!!!!!!!!!!!!
102. Connecting with my great nephew (he's really cute!)
103. The kids finding love with feathers and fur
104. Sitting with my sister on the porch sipping coffee
105. Building a miniature fort with my dad
106. Cows. Yes, really. They make me smile
107. The most beautiful night sky I have seen in years
108. Being able to sleep safely with doors and windows open
109. Chai tea latte
110. Hearing the voices of my children raised in worship
8/10/12
One Thousand Gifts (81 - 90)
81. Family coming to visit.
82. Unconditional acceptance of our unique family.
83. We get to go see my parents and sister soon! It's been 2 years. So excited!
84. Fourteen years of marriage!
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85. My husband, who knows me better each year and yet still loves me!
86. My kids, who began school all on their own today!
87. B made lunch today! Hotdogs and applesauce.
88. Water parks on hot days.
89. Starbucks!
90. Swiss cheese and veggie burgers. Yum!
8/8/12
2012 - 2013 School Year
School started 4 weeks ago. We started early in order to keep them from forgetting everything from last year. I also wanted to be able to take more time off during the year.
We joined a new home school group this year and I'm excited for some of the activities the kids will get to do this year.
I'm also going to enroll 3 older girls in a running group. Not only do they teach fitness, but they will also teach character, values and a proper self image. I think they will get a lot out of it.
Boo is not technically kindergarten age, but has shown a desire to learn to read. She's doing well. I won't push her but as long as she's having fun, we'll play school.
Bear is 1st grade. She's my most strong willed child. Teaching her is most certainly teaching me patience! But she is so smart. She loves to learn, just as long as its on her own terms. My main focus with her will be on character rather than academics.
N is 2nd grade. She's still struggling with reading but making progress. She really loves writing class and is quite good at remembering the details of the stories to narrate back. Phonics will be our focus.
S and T are both 3rd grade. S is just breezing through school. He will occasionally hit a bump in the road but overall, it comes easy for him. T's strengths are history and science, particularly any kind of zoology. He loves animals! S will work on reading comprehension and T will work on attention to detail.
Ladybug is 4th grade. Math is her weakest subject. But through that, her strength of character shines! While frustration over math occasionally brings her to tears, she never gives up. I really admire her ability to gain control over those emotions and get the work done with a good attitude. She will continue to make math and logic her priority
B is in 5th grade. I have seen a lot of growth in him since we started back this year. He exercises much better self control. If I were to ask him, he would say math is his weakest subject. But he really is quite smart and usually sails through his day. B will keep working on his new found self control. I would also like to see him make that "leap" to a higher level of thinking that usually happens around this age. I do see signs of it!
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