Some pictures of Sophia...

She's a WIDE awake baby!

So did you all hear that scream of frustration from Florida? That was me.lol I took a nap and woke to the Little Green Machine. Now, that's not something that usually worries me because we use it often around here but when it kept running and running and, well, RUNNING!! I started to worry. Evidently, no one was watching Isaac and he found my gallon of imported olive oil and dumped it onto my carpet. ARGH!!! It's looking as though the carpet may not come clean, we're working on it now with the big carpet cleaner but it was a GALLON of oil and it's not looking good. I don't know what I'm going to do. I was hoping to keep the carpet for at least another year before replacing it but it's right in front of the kitchen and I'm afraid someone is going to crack their head on the floor from slipping. Have I already said ARGH? Well, I'm saying it over and over right now. No more naps for me. I can't afford them.lol

Blessings,

Lisa

Not the best picture of Sophia but this was taken last night right after her bath. She is the most wide awake baby I think I've ever had.lol

Pictures of Allison and Jon...they both got new haircuts this past weekend.

Blessings,

Lisa

Here's some pictures of Isaac and Genevieve taken today...

Blessings,

Lisa

I spent all day yesterday cleaning. What a mess my house has gotten into! I worked on my neglected closet, putting away all my maternity clothes and putting things on the top shelf that I couldn't reach the last few months of pregnancy. I can finally walk into my walk-in closet again! I also did the laundry. Now that I've used my washer for 3 wash sessions I can finally say that I like it.LOL It has cut my laundry in half because I can shove so much into the new washer. I also like how clean everything is. The wash times are longer but I'm only doing about 5 loads a day so it isn't too bad. The dryer is drying things MUCH faster also.

I decluttered the dining room today. That's our school room right now and it really needs cleaned at least once a week but I just didn't have the energy so it was pretty cluttered. We are moving the school stuff upstairs to Jon's room in a few weeks so my dining room should be easier to keep up after that. Speaking of Jon's room...ugh! I went up there for the first time in MONTHS and was horrified!!! I just couldn't climb those stairs during the last half of my pregnancy and Jon knew it and pretty much destroyed his room. We are taking everything except his dresser and bed away from him and will use the extra space as a class room for the older kids so that they will have a quiet place to study. Seriously, he destroyed the room. We are going to spend the next 2 weeks cleaning out the room, repainting it, and cleaning the carpet. We are also going to need to re-caulk the bathroom. It'll make a nice classroom though. We are going to purchase three small desks and a new computer for upstairs. That way the kids can do their work up there uninterrupted by little ones. Allison, especially, has had a hard time concentrating with the little ones around and I think this may be the best thing to do.

Basically, my plan is to concentrate on different parts of the house until everything is back in order. Then I'll start our school back up and concentrate on just spending time with my little ones. Eric is going to be waking the older kids up at 6am and they will begin their school work by 7 and hopefully finish by 12. I'm hoping that this will give us plenty of time in the afternoon for extra curricular activities. Allison wants to continue everything that she's currently doing and I'd like to get Jon involved in SOMETHING in the next few weeks. I'm thinking Tae Kwon Do. He's getting to the age where he really needs physical activity daily. Of course the next 2 weeks he'll be cleaning and redoing his room...ugh.

Well, got to go. Sophia is calling for me.LOL

Blessings,

Lisa

My Menu for this week...


Dinner

Fried Chicken, mashed potatoes, and salad
Pea Soup w/french bread and salad
Hamburgers and Hotdogs on the grill w/french fries and salad
Homemade Pizza w/salad
Oriental Pepper Steak w/rice and salad
Taco Stuff


Today was "Doctor Day." Can I just say that I hate doctor's offices?!?! It is probably the only place on earth where they can keep you waiting forever and you can't just walk out and leave. My appt took an hour and the little ones appt took TWO HOURS!!! Who keeps a newborn waiting that long? I definitely feel like they just don't respect our time. Rant over.LOL

Blessings,

Lisa

Here are the latest pictures of Sophia. She sure does keep us busy!

I'm having a hard time blogging. This little girl is a BIG eater. She eats every 2 hours non-stop 'round the clock.LOL Her favorite awake times are first thing in the morning and around 4am. So far, she's been up since 8am and it's 11am right now. I took these pictures while Allison was trying unsuccessfully to put her to sleep.LOL She looks really tired doesn't she? I know that I AM.lol

So far this week has been going pretty well. We haven't forgotten to take the kids to the various different activities yet and we even remembered to pick them up and didn't fall asleep and leave them at church last night which was a BIG fear of mine.lol

Today the kids will be skating and if my mom is up to it, she'll have the two little ones. I am hoping to go out to Target today and get a new diaper pail. I forgot exactly how many diapers tiny babies go through and have been putting them in the trash. I don't recommend it.LOL She may look sweet but those diapers sure don't smell sweet.lol I also want to find a nice shirt for church tomorrow. I don't seem to fit into my old clothes very well yet. I'm hoping that it's temporary.lol

Well, I guess that's it for now. Nothing too exciting.lol

Blessings,

Lisa

What a contented little lady! Sophia is soooo sweet.

This week is going by pretty fast. I guess when you are constantly doing something you don't have time to be bored.lol Yesterday I got my new washer and I've been trying it out. I definitely like how much it holds and it really cleans things well. I'm not sure that it's saving me any time though. I didn't get it until almost 2pm and I was able to do 4 loads yesterday. Normally what I did would have been 5-6 loads and the dryer would have had a hard time drying the loads but yesterday the dryer was able to dry each load in one dry time. I am definitely saving on electricity since the washer really gets the clothes wrung out. Anyway, I think I'll save the official review for next week when I've used the washer a couple more times.

Starting tomorrow, we're going to be pretty busy. Allison loves the dance classes so much that she's asked to stay for the next class after hers. She'll be there for 2 hours from now on. This Friday is confirmation class and it starts at 6pm and doesn't end until 11pm. Allison has been working on her final term paper that's due then. Each of the confirmands got a commandment that they had to explain in their paper and they will read these papers in front of the church sometime in the next 2 months. Afterwards they will be tested and then confirmed on May 20th.

Saturday is skating for the big kids and play day for the littles with my parents. Afterwards we'll be lucky to get Allison fed before she needs to be at the Jam session at the church. I just wish I could find more for Jon to do. He'll be at the confirmation class but has no interest in dance or music. Too bad the church isn't offering a ballistics course.lol

Sunday will be our first day at church with EVERYONE.lol We'll see how that goes. I am sooo glad to have a pastor who loves the challenge of talking over the little ones. Eric said that there were quite a few babies in the service last week so Sophia should fit right in.lol What a blessing this whole church is! I'm hoping to get more involved now that Sophia's here.

Monday is my dr's appt and we also have appts for Sophia and Isaac. Isaac will be having his next surgery on the 20th so we have to have a well child check up before then. I sure wish these surgeries would work faster. It seems like such a long road ahead of us.

Allison's birthday is on the 24th! I can't believe that she's going to be 15!!! I have no idea what we're going to do. Jon's birthday is April 10th and that's just around the corner also. He'll be the big 13! I'll have TWO young adults in the house. What a scary/amazing time.

Well, that's it. I'm looking forward to the weekend and getting busier. I'm still going to take it easy but just getting out occasionally would be nice.lol

Blessings,

Lisa

My Menu for the week

Lunch

pulled pork sandwiches
various different sandwiches
mac and cheese

Dinner

Minestra Soup, salad, and bread
Baked chicken, mashed taters, and salad
Hamburgers, french fries, and salad or fruit
Roast w/potatoes and carrots and salad
Soup (either beef veggie or chicken noodle)
Pizza


Enjoy!

Lisa

Here is a picture of Evie and Sophia taken yesterday.

I can't believe that it's been a whole week already since Sophia was born! It seemed as though the weeks before her birth went so slow and now life is rushing along. My dh has been off all this week and it's been really nice having the extra help and him to have some time to get to know our new baby. Monday starts my new life with 5 kids. I'm guessing that it's going to be tough to juggle everyone at first. I'm hoping that the little ones will give me a little grace as I figure out how to meet everyone's needs. Sophia is a wonderful little girl! She's a good eater and a great sleeper. I'm getting more rest now then I was before she was born. Isaac was upset at me when we first all got home. It has taken all week for him to forgive me for leaving like that.lol Just last night was the first time that he would let me love on him. I'm thankful that he's o.k. now. He really doesn't think too much about Sophia, I think he's just young and as long as she's not taking his toys, he's fine with her.lol Evie loves HER new baby, as she calls her.lol She's wonderfully gentle and just loves to hold her. She loves to tell visitors not to touch Sophia's head, as "it's still squishy."LOL Isaac loves to rub his nose on her head. He says her head tickles him.lol Allison loves to hold the baby and is a wonderful help. Eric was not feeling well for a few days and Allison just took right over. Poor Jon has been sick since I was in the hospital and is staying with my parents. We're hoping he'll feel well enough to come home today. I'm sure he's dying to spend some time with the new baby.

I've been feeling great! It's really hard to take it easy when I feel good.lol I did over do it once and realized that even though I feel good, it doesn't mean that I'm all healed up. I've been taking it easy ever since, even though the house is a mess and I really want to clean it.lol

We finally decided on a washing machine.lol I hate buying appliances. It seems like a process more geared toward my dh's disposition. He loves to research and hunt out the best machine whereas I just want one that works. I really didn't want a front loader because they take forever and I have so much to wash that I was looking for capacity and speed but Eric found that the newest front washers can fit twice as much in them as my old washer and the one we bought has the lowest wash time for front loaders. We ended up with the high priced LG model. It is supposed to save us a lot of money in water and electricity. We'll see. My biggest issue is; will it make my life easier? If so, then it's worth it.lol We get it on Tuesday, so I'll let you all know how I like it.

Well, I'll post our menu later today once Allison has had a chance to make it. I need to help get everything ready for church now. I wish I was going but I've committed to staying home until next weekend. I think it's best anyway since it's cold today and I don't want the baby out in it. I'm really trying not to overdo it.lolol I've never felt this good after having a baby and it sure is hard to sit around.lol

Blessings,

Lisa

Sophia Marie!

We think she's going to be a blondie! She's so sweet and always sleeping...what a blessing she is!

Lisa

Isaac happy to be home!



Allison happy to be holding her sister.

My three girls. What a blessing they are!

Baby Day!

Hi. This is dh. Here are some pics of new Baby Sophia!

I'm off to the hospital in an hour! We are very excited to finally meet this little girl. I'll have my dh upload photos as he is able.

Blessings,

Lisa

No baby today.lol At least I have an end date. No later than Monday and I get to meet this reluctant little girl. The hospital moved the time up to 7:30am, so I'm pretty sure I'll meet her soon after.

Today Eric and I spent the day getting the baby things out and ready. We moved the bassinet beside my side of the bed and moved the changing table to our bedroom in the corner. We decided that for the first month or two it would be better to have it available. I also sterilized my new bre*stpump, some new binkies, and a few baby bottle nipples just in case my milk comes in a little late.

The kids spent the day with my parents. The older kids went skating with my dad and the littles ran around with my mom.lol They had a good time and got home just in time to have some leftovers before Allison had to go to our Church's Jam session that they hold each Sat. She really looks forward to this time with other musicians.

Well, I guess that's it. I've been trying to update my blog everyday so that you all don't think I've actually HAD this baby.LOL It's getting harder though, since I lead a very boring life.lol

Blessings,

Lisa

Well, I'm still pregnant. I've been getting a lot of calls and emails today so I figured I'd let you all know that NOTHING has happened.lol

I started today by going shopping at Kohl's this morning with Allison and Isaac. It's my mom's birthday today and we went in search for the perfect gift. We found a few things that we thought she'd like and I also remembered to buy Jon new underwear.LOL I don't know what it is with boys and underwear but it seems like his just "disappear" and before you know it he's wearing pairs that fit him 3 years ago but you KNOW that there is no possible way that he could have worn them but there they are dirty.LOLOL I think that they enter some sort of time/space thing and when they get back they are 3 years older.lolol

After Kohl's I called Mom and invited her to lunch, her pick. She decided on O'Charleys and it was really good! I've never been there before but everyone ate great and to me that's a sign of a good restaurant.lol Mom and I had fried shrimp, fries, and potato soup. Evie had shrimp, Jon had a Salmon sandwich, Allison had steak, and Isaac had Mac and Cheese. We even had dessert (huge pieces of triple chocolate cake) and I ate way too much. I was pretty miserable afterwards.lol While at the restaurant, we gave mom her gifts and she really liked them! We picked out a really nice table cloth, a few shirts, a photo album, and one of those photo boards.

Well, that's about it. After lunch we went to mom's house and then came home since I was not feeling that great.lol That'll teach me to eat that much.

Blessings,

Lisa

Today's been a nice day. My mom called me early this morning and wanted to "do something" so off we went. We visited Walmart first and replenished our supply of undies and socks. We also bought a new outfit for the baby and a couple of odds and ends. After Walmart we were hungry and decided on Larry's Giant Subs. I really like that the kids eat so well there. It's hard to find a place where EVERYONE will eat.lol We went to Tuesday Morning afterwards and it was the first time I've gone there and not found anything. I was happy since I had spent so much at Walmart.lol We hung out at Mom's house until she had to leave for an appt and then headed home. I had the older kids help me clean the house up and I got some laundry started while the littles decompressed from being out all day. Then the older kids offered to take the littles outside where they've been ever since. It is an amazingly beautiful day and I'm glad that they are taking advantage of it. Who knows how long it'll last and I want them soaking up the sun as much as possible before we're stuck in the house again.

I want to thank everyone for praying for Evie. She was quite sick yesterday and last night but woke up feeling all better! She had a high fever and sore throat but this morning the fever was completely gone and she said she felt good. What a blessing! Now if only Eric could start feeling better. He was miserable last night.

Tomorrow is my due date and I'm hoping for a baby in the morning.LOL

Allison has another ballroom dance lesson tonight and she's really excited. She's always been my dancer so I'm glad that we've found something that she loves. Now if I could only find something for Jon. He's much harder to pin down.

That's it for now. Have a great day!

Lisa

Here's Jon. He was working on the bug house for Evie.


Here's Evie and her new bug house.
Here's Isaac still enjoying the trampoline.

Here are some photos that I've taken this week...

This one is Isaac learning about chocolate pudding for the first time. He was SURE that it was fingerpaint.lol

Here is Isaac early this morning making a collage out of copious amounts of glue and a little bit of paper.
Here is Allison and Isaac on the trampoline enjoying the beautiful day we are having today.

Yesterday was such a beautiful day that I went nuts and took all the kids to Walmart to get some play sand. $88.00 later, the kids ended up spending the whole day outside.lol I have absolutely no will power when it comes to summer stuff. We got 3 bags of sand, a package of bubble wands, 2 bags of those ball pit balls for the trampoline (we have a net that keeps everyone and everything ON the trampoline), 2 plastic golf club sets (for the littles to beat each other with...lol) and of course a brand new selection of sand toys. I basically had to drag everyone inside when it started getting dark.lol

This morning I went to my dr's appt and before I even left they were asking if they could go outside as soon as they were all dressed.lol Today also was a beautiful day! Out they went for most of the morning. My appt didn't go as I had hoped but I now have an end date for this pregnancy. Evidently, the baby is head down but NOT engaged and the dr is concerned. He has decided to induce me if I don't have this baby by Monday. So at the latest, this baby will be born on Monday! I'm excited but a little nervous. I would be extremely grateful for prayers for the baby's safety and that she decides to show up before Monday.

Well, after the appt, I decided to take everyone to the park. My mom and brother came by while we were there and stayed with us. The littles had SUCH a great time! They are both pretty tired out and I'm hoping they'll sleep well tonight.

Unfortunately, once we got home, Evie started acting funny. I thought it was just the fresh air and sun but no, she's come down with the cold that Jon had. If you all could pray for healing for the whole family, I'd be grateful. Eric is sick, now Evie, and I'm getting the sore throat. UGH! Not good. I had really hoped that we would skip this illness but I also knew that we haven't skipped any illnesses this whole pregnancy so I guess we'll just have to live...lolol I just can't imagine going into labor with a sore throat. That does not sound like fun.

Well, that's our day. I really enjoyed getting out and I know that the kids did too. After all that excitement, I took a nap.lolol Here's praying that this baby's here tomorrow.

Blessings,

Lisa

Three more days until I go into "overtime." Do I get paid extra for that?

I had really hoped I'd be done by now but God's plan is always better than mine anyway.lol I've been having much more contractions and they are harder than what they used to be and I've lost my plug so I'm guessing it won't be too much longer.

I want to THANK all of you for your continued prayers and support! I feel so much more calm about having this baby knowing that I'm covered in prayer. What a blessing you all are!

I've been working on next years curriculum for the older kids. I'm thinking about gearing it more towards their gifts and interests. We'll see.

I had the day off yesterday! My mil took the kids to Chuck E. Cheese and then to her house to play. They all had a good time and went to bed easy last night.LOL I read a book and spent quite a lot of time on the computer trying to figure out what curriculum to use next year.

Today is supposed to warm up and if it does, we'll be heading outside. These little ones are going nuts in this cold weather! They can't seem to stay out long enough to wear themselves out when it's cold so hopefully the warmer weather will help.lol Tomorrow is supposed to be even warmer and if it is, I'll see if mom wants to join me at the park. I don't feel comfortable being at the park alone but with company it should be fine.lol

Well, Jon is finally getting over his cold. He's still got the cough but I can tell he's feeling better. Unfortunately, my dh was not feeling well last night. I think that he's catching the illness but I'm praying that he'll get over it quickly and that I'll be spared this close to delivery. We just can't seem to stay well this year.

I guess that's it for now. I've been a little nervous about running around, so I haven't been up to much. I'm just completely bored!lolol

Blessings,

Lisa

So much for this weekend being "the time."LOL Here it is Sunday and I'm still here, pregnant and horribly uncomfortable. We've been keeping fairly busy so I guess I'm o.k. with another couple of days.lol

I've been observing my dh's diet lately and I noticed something that I can't believe that I was missing. He's been doing the same thing that De'Etta was doing. He's been restricting his food intake but then, unlike De'Etta, he's been gorging himself on bad things at night. So I've put him on the 12 servings of fruits and veggies diet. Yesterday was his first day and he said that he couldn't even think of snacking last night.lolol I'm going shopping today and will replenish our fruits and veggies and hopefully he'll keep it up. I'm guessing he'll start losing some weight and he'll start feeling better in a week or two. We are going to purchase The Magic Bullet today sometime to make it easier for him to make smoothies in the morning.

Well, here's my menu for the week and I sincerely hope this is the very last menu that I'll have to prepare on my own and then shop for, for the next month or so.LOLOL

Blessings,

Lisa


My Menu for this week...


Lunch

Lunchables
Sandwiches


Dinner

grilled chicken, rice, and veggies
hamburgers, french fries, and salad
salmon, rice, and veggies
spaghetti, garlic toast, and salad
heavenly chicken
leftovers


Enjoy!

How exciting! I'm at the one week mark for my due date! I've noticed that my body seems to be getting ready so I don't think I have much longer to wait. I don't think I got very nervous with my other children but I REMEMBER what it was like to have my last two and it's not helping me to look forward to the process.LOL Everyone thinks that this one will come quickly because it'll be my third in a row and I'm praying that they are right.lol If you all feel led, I would be grateful for prayers of safety for both me and my little one as we labor together. I would also like to ask you to pray that I can labor naturally again since I really seem to bounce back a whole lot easier, although if I'm meant for an epidural I'll take it.LOL

I finished my breakfast/freezer cooking yesterday! I now have around a month's worth of breakfasts in the freezer! Whoohoo!

We went to my mom's for dinner last night and I was thankful. I've been running low on energy the last few days and it was nice not to have to cook.

Allison had her second lesson in ballroom dancing last night and was paired with the instructors teenaged son. She said that she still had a good time.lol She said he's in her bible study class and that he was as inexperienced as she was so it worked out well.

Today we spent the morning cleaning Isaac and Evie's rooms. Eric and Allison have been trying to keep up with the mess for me but things had taken a turn for the worse.LOL Isaac's room looks great now and Evie's room can at least be walked into without breaking something now.lol I'm thinking I need to go through all her stuff sometime a make a trip to Goodwill but I think it'll have to wait until after the baby gets here.

Saturday our church is going to be hosting a Jam Session for all musicians of all ages and Allison is very excited to go! I'm hoping that we'll get her there no matter if the baby comes. She is quite good on her guitar and I'm sure she'd love to play with other muscians. They will be having these sessions every Saturday night from now on and I'm hoping it'll give her experience playing with others. Pretty cool! Really, this church has been an enormous blessing to all of us! It seems like we've finally found a good home.

Well, I guess that's it! I'm hoping that my next post will be photos of our new little one.

Blessings,

Lisa

Happy Valentines Day!!!


I started the day just like any hopeless romantic would, by going to an early Dr's appt.LOL Good news, I am beginning to dialate and the dr said he'd be surprised if I lasted through the weekend! I like to hear good news but I'm tempering what he said with reality, because I never go early. I do like to hear the word, "progress" though.lol

The littles are with my mom today. Isaac especially was very excited to spend some time out and about with my mom. Genevieve was in a stinky mood and I offered to keep her but mom didn't care about the current state of Evie's mind and took her anyway.LOL I'm sure they are having fun.

We all went to lunch and after Allison and I got home, we cleaned the torn apart house up and are now enjoying some time to ourselves. I may even nap.lol

I received my shipment of Sing, Spell, Read, and Write in the mail yesterday and it looks good. I think Evie will enjoy all the activities and games that this phonics program offers. I noticed that she was getting a little bored of the preschool stuff we had been doing and realized that she was ready for the next step. www.starfall.com is definitely what I need to thank the most for her steady progress. She loves that web-site and will play around with it most mornings. It has cemented the letters and even some of the sounds in the past few months and I was going to try my old standby 100 Easy Lessons but she is much more of a bells and whistles kind of child so I decided to try SSRW instead.

I was going to work on the remaining breakfast items today but I think I'm going to take the day off. I can always work on it tomorrow.lol

I can't wait to give the kids their valentines stuff! We are waiting for Daddy to be home first but it's killing me.LOLOL Eric and I tried hard to get the kids things that they would really appreciate instead of just the usual box of chocolates. For one, I didn't want Evie to have a bunch of unFeingold food and for another, the kids will like what we got so much better. I think I may even make a "from scratch" cake to celebrate.

Well, that's it. It's pretty quiet here right now and I'm going to take advantage of it.LOL

Blessings,

Lisa

Today's been a pretty good day. I ran to the store early this morning because we are supposed to be getting some really yucky storms this afternoon and I didn't want to get caught in it. I forgot to adjust the amount of milk we would be using this week since I'm cooking breakfast for the freezer and Jon is ill and doesn't drink very good unless it's flavored drinks. I don't usually buy juice and such but since he's sick I'll make an exception.LOL I know how awful water can taste when you're not feeling well.

The littles have been eating extremely well today! They must be growing.LOL So far, they've eaten 2 freezer pancakes, yogurt, a turkey sandwich, 2 clementines, 2 biscuits, and Isaac has had in addition to that above, a banana, and a piece of bacon and Evie has had an apple.LOL I didn't think they could hold that much!

Today I decided to get some protein in the freezer. I was going to do waffles but decided to work on the egg biscuits instead. I used 12 eggs, 3/4 cup whole milk, 1 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, and one slice of crisp bacon. I baked this contraption until set in a 9x13 glass pan, cut it into 15 squares and let cool. I then made 20 biscuits using a biscuit mix from LLL and used 4 1/2 cups mix to 1 1/3 cup whole milk. That gave me 15 egg biscuits for the freezer and 5 biscuits for the kids to enjoy. I now have 3 freezer bags of pancakes, 1 of french toast and 2 of egg biscuits. Tomorrow I'll work on the waffles and leftover french toast. I'm hoping that this will last me around a month. We'll see.LOL I'm noticing that they are eating much better with so much in the freezer. I'm not sure if it's because of the novelty or if they are just growing.

I never got the laundry done yesterday so I've been chipping away at it all day today. I think that I'll probably do a load everyday from now on until the baby comes. I'd hate for someone to run out of undies while I'm in the hospital.lol The kids will be staying with my parents while I'm there and knowing the kids, if it's not in their drawers they won't remember to bring it. lolol

I have my next dr's appointment tomorrow and I'm hoping for some better news.LOL I'll let you know how it goes.

Blessings,

Lisa

First of all can I just say, why is it that I can't go into Target without spending an arm and a leg?!!? Eric and I started our weekend by going to Target "just for some valentines" and left with a whole van full of different things that we "needed."LOL I think it's some sort of vortex that sucks you in and doesn't let you leave until you've spent at least $100.


Today has been a very productive day so far. Especially since I only got around 4 hours of sleep last night.lol So far, I've made 3 gallon freezer bags full of plain and chocolate chip pancakes and 1 bag full of french toast. I also made probably a whole freezer bag worth of pancakes that the kids inhaled for breakfast while I was cooking.lol Tomorrow, I'll work on the waffles and one more bag of french toast. I just couldn't do anymore today. I also managed to pour milk on Isaac's head and all over the floor. Don't ask.lolol I did get them both cleaned up though, so that should count for something.lol

It's now noon and I'm just about to start the wash but I wanted to post my recipe for Beef Noodle Soup so that I can remember how I make it since it seems to be the littles favorite soup right now.

Beef Noodle Soup
by ME!

1/2 pound or so of leftover beef (can be roast, steak, whatever)
4 cups or so of beef stock (can be leftover from potroast or canned)
2 cups frozen veggies (we like corn, peas, greenbeans, carrots, lima beans)
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
2 cups water
1 cup canned tomato, chopped(1/2 the can)
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp dried dill
1 tsp salt
a generous helping of pepper

Cook all this for about an 1/2 hour on med heat. Add a grain. I used egg noodles but I think leftover rice would be good too. Even leftover whole grain rice would be good in this. I also think barley or potatoes would be good. Cook until noodles or whatever are done. Serve with a nice crusty bread and a nice green salad.

Blessings,

Lisa in Jax

First of all, Allison loved the ballroom dance lesson. She said there were only two men in the whole class so all the ladies were paired together and she felt much better.lol I wouldn't have minded joining the class if I weren't about ready to pop. lol She's planning on going next week if this baby isn't here.

Tonight is confirmation class for the older kids so I'm getting dinner ready early in hopes that the evening chaos that we usually have won't be too much for me to handle by myself.

Here is our menu for this week:

Breakfast

I am doubling each of these and freezing them for while I'm not able to make breakfast.

Waffles
pancakes
french toast
eggs and biscuits (I plan on making sandwiches and wrapping them in plastic wrap)

these are on the menu but won't be doubled for obvious reasons

oatmeal
cheerios

Lunch

sandwiches
chili dogs and mac and cheese
tuna noodle cassarole
PBJ

Dinner

beef noodle veggie soup, bread, salad (the beef is leftover from last week's roast)
Spaghetti, salad
split pea soup, bread
roast chicken, rice, steamed veggies
beef stroganoff, salad
pork chops, rice, salad
chicken soup (made from the leftover roast chicken)


We got our shopping done earlier this morning, glad to have that over.lol We've also spent a large portion of our day outside. It's been so beautiful the past 4 days and I've wanted to take advantage of it before it's gone again. Tomorrow the cold front comes in so I'm glad I didn't waste these days!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Lisa

Today was a good day! It was so nice out that we spent most of the time outside. I think we all needed the fresh air and sunshine. I even took a walk!!! Although I couldn't feel my leg for a good hour afterwards.lol I think my days of walking around like that are numbered until this baby gets here.

I had my dr's appt this morning and yep, I'm still pregnant.LOL The dr says the baby's head-down and engaged but I'm not even remotely showing signs of eminent labor. He said he'd see me next week. Bummer.LOL (Couldn't I have been just a little bit dialated? Is that too much to ask?LOL)

I am just today starting to feel better from whatever hit me this weekend. I am so thankful that I'm on the mend. Tummy troubles are not good when you barely have a tummy left.LOL I'm so thankful for everyone's prayers.

We've been having "issues" with Evie and scissors.LOL My mom has had to fix her hair because of the chunks missing. All I can say is that she's a lot harder to convince not to do this than the first two were.LOL I'm guessing she may be bald sometime soon.LOL

Isaac will now go potty on demand!!! I just wish that he would notice when he actually NEEDS to go. I keep forgetting.lol I've never had one so young be this far along before, maybe in a month or two he'll notice when he needs to go and that will be the end of diapers for him. What a blessing!

Allison begins Ballroom dance lessons tomorrow evening. They are having this at our new church and she's been dying to take lessons for a long time but I couldn't find a studio anywhere near us so this is such a blessing! These lessons really showed Allison that this church is where God wants us and that he's meeting all our needs through this wonderful fellowship.

Well, since we lead such an exciting life, this is all I could come up with to write about.lol I know that the exciting part is coming up so I'm more than happy to take things easy for now.

Blessings,

Lisa

Here are some photos that Jon took yesterday. We gave him my old camera for Christmas and he really treasures it.

Isaac in his car being cool.LOL I just have to talk about this car. Eric and I bought this car when Allison, my 14yo was about to turn 2. We got it at a garage sale from a lady who said her dd had loved it but finally outgrown it. We used it while our first two kids were little, basically until Jon turned 4, then we gave it to my parents to use when my sister's dd came to visit. Well, the car was really forgotten about. It sat in my parents backyard for YEARS, in wind and rain and sun. When I got pregnant with Evie my parents came to visit and sure enough, they brought the car. It's a little faded but still going strong after spending 12 years with us and who knows how long with the first owner.LOL What a deal!!! I wish they made things that well these days...

Can Evie be any sweeter than in this picture? She sure is going to knock the guys out as she gets older.LOL

My Menu for this week...

Dinner

Heavenly Chicken w/fruit and salad
Potato Bar w/salad
Tuna Noodle Cassarole w/salad
Black Beans and Rice
Grilled Chicken w/rice and steamed veggies
Roast w/potatoes, carrots, and onions
Salsbury Steak w/mashed potatoes and asparagus


Today I'm not feeling that great so I stayed home from church while Eric took all the kids. I'm grateful for the quiet and I'm hoping I'll feel better soon. I have a lot of food sensitivities and I'm afraid that I ate something that was a no-no without realizing it.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday!

Take care,

Lisa

Here's one of my favorite photos of Isaac with dh, Eric in the background.
Here he is today. The little rascal.lol

Alright, you ladies wanted scary. This is me right before Isaac was born. I have never weighed this much in my whole life.LOL


And here's me being handed the little beast after 5 hours of natural labor. That's my dh and boy was he proud of this guy.lol He had the biggest head I've ever seen and that's exactly what I said after he was born. Instead of some endearing loving statement, I said He's huge!!!!lolol

This is totally NOT helping me.lolol

Lisa

O.k. here's a photo taken of me today. I don't know why it's blurry, maybe because of my enormity.LOL Normally, I pretend that these kids just show up and that this never happened so having a photo is not helping my mental state right now.

Blessings,

Lisa

Today has been the nicest day we've had in a long time. It just beautiful outside! We are having a very short warm up and the kids have been outside for most of the day. I would take them to the park but everything is wet and we've found the park not to work well for the littles when it's like that. The ground there is made of wood chips and last time they both had sore ankles afterwards. I am sooo thankful for this warm up even though it'll be gone by tomorrow. This is the coldest winter we've experienced in many years!

I've been doing some reading lately. I love to read but usually don't have the time but since my body is wearing down from this pregancy it is opening up some time for laying around with a good book.LOL I just finished Roald Dahl's autobiography called "Going Solo" and it was quite absorbing. It details his life right before and during WWII. He became a RAF pilot and it was pretty exciting. I would recommend this book to anyone over the age of 8-10.

The second book I've just started is Bruchko. It details Bruce Olson's call to help the Motilone Indians in South America. What an amazing life he's led and what a testament to God's protection and faithfulness to those who serve Him. I'm really enjoying this book and will probably finish it tonight even though I started it yesterday.LOL I would recommend this book to teens and up. There is quite a lot of violence and suffering. Nothing too graphic but I like to keep my youngers away from this until at least the teen years.

Well, I guess that's everything for today. I spend most of my time trying not to do too much but balancing that with keeping up with those things that HAVE to be done.LOL

Blessings,

Lisa

Today is my birthday! I am now officially past prime maternal age.LOLOL I can feel my insides shriveling up as I type this. Good thing I got this last baby in before today.LOL I'm having a pretty good day so far. After my morning shower, I found my birthday card from my DH in my underwear drawer and a box of my favorite chocolates that we all thought they quit making but somehow Eric found them. The card was extra mushy and made me all teary eyed but the chocolate made up for it.LOL While in my shower, the kids cleaned the whole house for me, including vacuuming and even dressing the littles. Now that was a nice surprise! Now if you all could pray that we don't get the vomiting virus that my mom caught this past weekend, I'll have all my birthday wishes come true.LOL

Blessings,

Lisa

My Menu...

Dinner

Baked Chicken, rice, veggies
Taco Stuff
Porkchops, noodles, and veggies
Spaghetti, salad
Steak, baked potatoes, and salad
Soup
Hot dogs, hamburgers, french fries, and salad


Since I went shopping early, we had more dinner meals to plan. We've already had the spaghetti and steak. This weekend really showed me how much this list helps me each week to stay in a budget. With the new store, I could have easily spent twice my normal amount! So much great stuff to try, and I will try it, but by not buying it all at once, I can now plan meals around all the fabulous new items one at a time without killing our budget. I thwarted temptation!

Blessings,

Lisa

Saturday was THE DAY...lol, our new Publix opened up! Boy was it packed! I guess it was the most exciting thing that has happened here for a while.lol It's an awesome store and has an amazing selection of organics. I was actually able to buy gallon sized organic milk for the first time ever.lol It sure saves space in the fridge. They also had a whole 4 rows devoted to organics with those open bins of things like nuts and granola. I noticed that they had many regular brands in organic mixed in with the regular stuff too. I bought Organic Oreos.lol I also noticed quite a few organic brands of regular cereal even though I didn't buy any. I ended up spending a little less than I normally do even with all the selection. I am soooo glad I had a list! If I hadn't had a list, I know I would've spent at least a hundred more.lol They are also offering a $25 gift card for each prescription that you transfer to them and that's pretty cool since we have 4 daily maintenance drugs that we can switch. That'll be great for our budget!

Today's been good also. We made it to church and then Larry's afterwards. We went through the drive thru at Starbucks for Allison and since the littles wouldn't leave her Vanilla Bean Frappicino alone we went through McDonalds and got them each an ice cream cone only filled to the top of the cone.lol Jon missed all the fun since he's still sick from this last illness. I know he's starting to get cabin fever but activity has a tendency to make him worse when ill. Maybe he'll be better by Tuesday or Wednesday.

Wednesday marks THE day that I can go into labor and the Dr. won't stop me.lol It sure would be nice to have an early one, although, it'd be nice if she waited until February. I'm just looking forward to meeting her! We have a bit of controversy over her name. The kids aren't overly fond of the name we like, not sure what we're going to do. Probably name her it anyway.lol I guess we'll see if she fits the name or not when she's born. We do have some runners up.lol

Tuesday is my birthday. We are having a cake tonight and I'll probably go out to lunch with my mom on Wednesday after my Dr's appt.

My menu is done for this week and I'll post it next.

I guess that's it for now. Pretty laid back but I'm really running low on energy and am starting to feel all this extra weight I've been carrying around.lol Hopefully, only three more weeks!

Blessings,

Lisa

I'm exhausted! We all worked hard today so that the house would be clean for the weekend. I also finished all the laundry. We made bread and homemade pizza for dinner, regular pizza for the kids and alfredo pizza for Eric and I. Over all, it was a very productive day!

Now to eat the pizza...lol

Blessings,

Lisa

The finished product! We've already eaten one of these loaves.lol I also made 2 loaves so we have 4, well, 3 now.YUM!!

The inside.

Flour coated littles.


Jon working on step 2, Kneading the bread.

Bread baking 101. Jon has made our regular bread many times so I let him take the reins and make a more complicated recipe today, Cinnamon Swirl Egg Bread.



Allison goofing off.lol

Never did get that bread made.lol My mom called and invited us to Kohls and off we went. I had been planning on getting Allison a new pair of shoes so this was as good a time as any.lol She got a cute pair of tennies that are brown, light blue, and biege. Very stylish. I also bought Jon more socks. Someday, we'll find out where he's hiding them all and I'm sure it'll be deemed some sort of ecological disaster.lol

My mom took all the kids except Jon to her house yesterday and even fed them dinner. It was really nice to have some time off and I did absolutely nothing, except make a pot of soup for the three of us. We ended up having beef, veggie, and noodle soup. It was REALLY good and I'll definitely make it again. We got some tired little ones back home around 7 and they were asleep as soon as they finished their bath.

Today my mom invited us to lunch. We went to my now favorite Mexican restaurant La Nopalena (I'm sure I'm destroying the name...) and it was really good! Allison and I shared the Chimichurra and the littles shared the kids plate. It was the perfect amount! Last time, I had way too much left over and I never can figure out how to reheat something with sour cream on top and lettuce. It's just never quite as good.

I have to admit I really haven't done too much today. I woke up this morning with pain in my leg and have just been sitting around resting. Well, I did pick the house up real quick and I'm working on laundry yet again. It's been nice catching up on everyone's blogs though.lol

I will make that bread tomorrow and I'll even take a photo so you'll see.lol

Blessings,

lisa

Here are some photos of the kids playing a music freeze game. Isaac was in charge of starting and stopping the music and Evie and Allison were doing the dancing and freezing.lol They were laughing so hard and I wish that the camera could capture the fun better.lol




Evie dancing...I didn't want to post photos of Allison without her permission and she's not here right now.lol
Future film maker...we finally got out our old video camera so we could get better pictures but then Isaac wouldn't leave it alone.lol

Blessings,

Lisa

This week has been extremely boring.LOL Nothing has happened. We just did the basics this week, cleaning, cooking, laundry, school work, and etc... I feel like I'm in a holding pattern waiting for this baby to arrive. Only 4 more weeks!

I don't know if it's the cold weather or what, but everyone under the age of 15 has been on an eating binge. You'd think I never fed them. This is not unusual for my older kids who could eat me out of house and home any day of the week but for my littles, I have to say I'm shocked.lol If I had to say what could be contributing to this, I would say locking up all the sweets may have been the main reason for them eating so well. I guess I never realized how much junk they got away with eating during the day, but now it's been reduced to NONE and they have found their long lost appetite. lol

Went to my dr's today. Everything is going well. Nothing exciting there other than that was the first time I've left the house since Sunday.lol

Jon has caught a cold and I've quarantined him to his room. I had really hoped that the new medicine that he's on would be helping, but he's still catching everything and 10x worse than anyone else. It's so discouraging since there is so much we'd like to be doing with him and knowing that anything we did wouldn't last more than a couple of weeks before he'd be too ill to continue. I guess for now, we'll continue to pursue different medicines until we find something that works.

I'm going to make bread today, just to warm up the house.lol I'm sooooo cold up here. I'm trying not to set the heater up to 80 just so I can de-thaw and I'm hoping the hot oven will make a dent in my frozen hands and feet.lol It SO doesn't help that it's still 80 down in Miami right now.lolol

I bought Homeschool Tracker on a whim and I'm horribly overwhelmed. I think it'd take me months to add in all the info that it's asking for. I'm sure that I don't need to add in everything but it just seems so confusing.lol I'm thinking that I may just hire Lee from SHS to do it all for me. Really, I prefer teaching over the whole recordkeeping business. It's just that my traditional paper and pencil way of doing things just won't cut it for high school transcripts.lol

I found out the kids have earned at least 1/2 a credit in Culinary Arts or Home Ec so far this year for their high school records. If they keep up the work, they'll have a whole credit. Pretty cool!

Well, I guess I'd better get to work. My hands are freezing!lol

Blessings,

Lisa

My menu...

Dinner

Roast-we never had it last week, with potatoes, carrots and onions
Oven bbq chicken, noodles, steamed veggies, and salad
Hamburgers, french fries, salad
Mexican Skillet chicken
Soup(haven't decided what kind yet, it'll depend on leftovers.)


I'm also going to bake bread again this week. I've had quite a few requests for the cinnamon swirl bread.lol

Blessings,

Lisa

This weekend went by fast!!! Saturday we went to Mom's early so that we could all get haircuts. We sure needed them.LOL I got the long layers that I was thinking about and I like it. If I get brave, I'll post a photo of me with my new do. Of course I'm gigantic right now.lol After the haircuts, Eric, the littles, me and my mom went to a new mexican restaurant for lunch. It was probably the best food I've had in a while. VERY authentic and the lunch specials were extremely large portions and the bill was small. I got the beef chimachurra and it came with beans and rice on the side with lettuce, cheese sauce, sour cream, the ripest tomato slice I've seen in a while and guacamole piled on top. Whew! I had so much left over, it didn't look like I'd eaten any.LOL The children's plate was huge also and the littles couldn't even make a dent. Next time we'll order a lot less food.LOL We stopped by Kohl's after lunch and I got some great deals on jeans for Jon. They were on clearance and cost only 8.50! They also had shirts for 6.oo so I bought him a few. He is so rough on his clothes! I also bought Evie some shorts sets for 2/12.00 and Isaac a cute froggy shirt. My mom bought me a new pair of tennis shoes for my upcoming birthday so even I got something this time.LOL Evie was so bad while we were there that we decided to drop mom off and go home. Isaac fell asleep on the way and slept until 6:30pm. Not good.lol He doesn't usually nap but was pretty worn out by then. We had fend for yourself for dinner that night once everyone got home and everyone except Eric, Isaac, and me went to bed early.LOL

Sunday made Saturday look slow. I woke running and that's pretty hard when you're this fat.lol I needed to get everyone ready for church and of course nothing was ready. Allison was out of pants, so she ended up wearing really nice clothing. Eric got both older kids out the door in time for Sunday School and while he was gone I ironed clothes, got both littles dressed, prepared bottles, got the diaper bag filled with things to keep them busy and showered.lol Once Eric got back, I realized that we had some paperwork to fill out, two checks to write, and one poopy diaper to change that ended up needing new bottoms also. (So much for being ready...lol) We had hoped to get to church a little early because we were becoming members but if I'm honest, we got there just by the skin of our teeth.lol The service was wonderful. It was a youth led service and was devoted to the topic of cherishing children, born and unborn. What an appropriate service for us to be welcomed into membership. We're probably the largest family in the whole congregation.lol When it was the children's sermon, Allison took Evie up to hear it and Isaac got upset so I waddled on down with him so he wasn't left out. Well, I ended up being an object lesson.lolol The girl leading the sermon asked if the little ones had ever seen a mommy with a big tummy before and sure enough they all looked at me....lol Have I said that I love this church? Well, I do. We just fit in so well and even Allison, who was a little skeptical at first told us today that she really likes our new church. What a blessing!

After church, we went to Larry's to eat and the littles were so good. Mom and Dad were there and invited Evie to go home with them and we were happy to let her.LOL We went to Staples to make more copies of her preschool curriculum and then went home so that the older kids could get changed. They were invited to go to the movies with my MIL and so Eric dropped them off while I did some laundry. O.k. a lot of laundry! Evidently, the older kids didn't bring their laundry down the last two times that I did the wash and Allison ran out of clothing. I don't think I've ever done 3 loads of dark clothes before.lol I'm hoping that she's learned her lesson. Nothing worse than running out of clothes and since I'm too fat to climb the stairs it's up to them.lol After I got the laundry started, I decided it was time to clean the refridgerator. There was this smell that we just couldn't get rid of and I clean it out each week before groceries so it had to be hiding somewhere.lol Well, I found it. It was some cocktail shrimp from a month ago that had been put into a baggie and dropped down behind the drawers. Yuck! I scrubbed the whole fridge and it looks great though.lol Once I got the fridge clean, I made my menu for the week and then the shopping list. I really had a hard time this week. I guess I got used to Allison making the menu for me and I was clueless on what to eat.lol Finally, with that done, we went shopping. We decided to go to a different Publix this week since I forgot a lot when we tried Food Lion. It was really nice and now I'm very excited about the new Publix opening up! It opens next weekend. Isaac slept through the whole trip and finally woke as we were leaving the store. He was one confused little boy.lol On our way home, my mom called and invited us to dinner and I jumped on that without even consulting Eric.lolol I was tired and anyone offering to cook for me was going to get a yes. As soon as I got off the phone, Allison called and said they were on their way home so I told them about dinner and also to help with the groceries when they arrived. We got those groceries put away pretty quick, then I made more bottles and we set off. Dinner was great! Mom made a gigantic ham with cooked cabbage, baked potatoes and carrots, steamed broccoli, canned peas, and salad. She also had blueberry pie and red velvet cake and ice cream for dessert! YUM! I ate so much that I was afraid that it wasn't going to stay down.lolol It did, but right after dinner we decided to go home. I was exhausted! We went home and everyone went to bed pretty quick.

It was a nice weekend and I'm happy that we had so much to do, so that I didn't spend the whole time thinking about the baby.lol Now I'm two days closer to the big day, whenever that is.lol

blessings,

Lisa

Here are the bread recipes that were requested...

This first one is from www.thefamilyhomestead.com and is called

Delicious Whole Wheat Bread
by Crystal Miller

*I use King Arthur Unbleached White Flour instead of WW because I can't digest it but I've made it both ways and it tastes great either way...

2 cups warm water
1/3 cup honey (I use sucanat)
1 T yeast
1/3 cup olive oil
2 t. salt
1/3 cup gluten flour (I skip this)
5-7 cups whole wheat flour (I use unbleached white)

Combine water, honey, and yeast. Let it proof. Add salt, oil, gluten flour and 3-4 cups ww flour. Continue to add flour until it doesn't feel sticky to the touch. Knead for 10 minutes.

Let rise until double. Punch down and divide it into 2 for loaves or about 18 pieces for rolls. Let it rise in a slightly warm oven for about 15-25 minutes. Turn oven on to 350 and bake for 30 minutes for bread and 15-20 for rolls or until golden brown.


The Egg Bread recipe comes from Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book

4 3/4-5 1/4 cup flour
1 package yeast or 1 T yeast
1 1/3 cups milk
3 T sugar
3 T margarine or butter
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs

Combine 2 cups flour with yeast. In a saucepan heat and stir milk, sugar, butter, and salt till warm and butter almost melts. Add to flour mixture and then add eggs. Beat with an electric mixer on low for 30 seconds and high for 3 minutes. Stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can. Turn out on a lightly floured surface and knead in any remaining flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic about 6-8 min. Place in a greased bowl and let rise until double.

Punch dough down and divide in half. Now if you're making the cinnamon swirl bread let the bread rest for 10 min and then roll into a 7x12 in rectangle and then brush lightly with water and sprinkle 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon mixed together for each loaf on the bread dough. Roll either short side up or long side up. I did long side up and pinch the seams down and fold under the ends. Bake for 25-30 min at 375. Enjoy!

If not making cinnamon swirl, just put each loaf into a bread pan and bake the same amount of time.

HTH!

Lisa

Some pictures from today...


Isaac and one of his many boppies. He has 3 pink, 2 blue, and 2 green.LOL Most of them were Allisons but he just goes through the house collecting them whenever she decides to take some back.
Genevieve in her pj's. I would like to say that this was taken this morning but alas, she prefers the pj's over regular clothing and if we aren't going anywhere, I relent.lol
Isaac with my messy desk as background. No matter how often I clean it, it always reverts back to this state. Oh, and Evie trying to be the center of attention.lol
Here is the photo I took after she tried jumping into Isaac's picture. She's come a long way in this past year and I no longer wistfully scroll through boarding school websites.lol
Allison who actually wanted her photo taken. She's growing up more and more each day.

*There were no photos taken of Jon today because he's in desperate need of a hair cut and looks somewhat like a porcupine right now. We will be fixing this tomorrow, as I've already made an appointment with my mom for all of us to get a trim. I'm thinking of getting long layers since my hair has started resembling the shape of a triangle, which may look good on some people but not me.lol

Today was good. I wasn't in pain today, which I hadn't noticed I've been in for at least a week. I think it crept up on me and it wasn't until I was acting like a rabid animal that I realized how much I was hurting.lol I think the baby has turned and maybe even dropped some which has taken a lot of pressure off of my ribcage and lungs. I was able to take a small nap today and I even slept last night, only waking 27 times for potty breaks as opposed to the 300 of the night before.lol I am so thankful that I'm in the home stretch! Five more weeks and I'll be holding this little one in my arms. What a blessing!

We just cleaned up the house for the weekend and it's so nice! I love a clean home.lol I never thought I'd feel that way but I really do. It's so nice to wake up and start fresh!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Lisa

The second half of yesterday went quite well! The kids finished their school work. I was able to make 2 loaves of egg bread, one cinnamon swirl and one regular and Jon made our usual bread and rolls. We now have enough bread to last the rest of the week.LOL Of course, today IS Friday...lol The cinnamon swirl loaf didn't even last an hour. Next time I'll double the recipe and make 4 loaves of this and freeze it. It was really good!

Isaac ended up taking a nap after his bath yesterday. He was so tired that he fell asleep in Allison's arms while she dressed him.LOL He missed all the bread baking fun but it sure did make things a bit easier.

It's been really cold here so we've been staying home. I'm beginning to dislike winter.lol I saw on the news that it's still 80 in Miami and I remember me complaining last year since I had the air on all year.lol Never again will I complain about warm weather. At least you can still go outside. I still haven't found a good time of the year for our big break and it's been a year now. I'm guessing we'll just have to take smaller breaks throughout the year this next school year. Going year round is not my favorite thought but I'm thinking that we could then take advantage of the different climates that we could travel to.lol Allison really wants to visit Washington DC after this school year and we'd really like to visit Miami sometime also. We could do DC in spring and Miami in the winter next year. That should take us there during the best times. We could also make sure that school is in session so that it won't be as crowded. Now, I just need to pray that this little one doesn't get car sick like Evie used to. That would not be fun.LOL

Blessings,

Lisa

Today has been one of those days.lol I spent all night last night trying to decide if my contractions were strong enough to wake the dh but they never really became regular or horribly strong, just strong enough to make it impossible to sleep.lol I think I broke the record for "times that someone gets up to pee in a single night" and am awaiting my trophy to come in the mail. I'm sure the trophy will be worth the sleepless night.lol After I finally fell asleep, Isaac woke up and was ready for the day. UGH! I was so tired and sore that I didn't think I was going to survive.lol Shortly after, Evie joined us and I was definitely sure that I wasn't going to survive. Finally, after 3 hours I sent the littles to Allison and told them to wake her up. They promptly left my room and did everything BUT wake Allison and I fell asleep 3 seconds after they left my room. NOT my best moment.lol Allison woke an hour later realizing that she slept in and that she could hear littles. She knew that I never let them sleep in on a weekday and that realization got her quickly to her feet.lol The littles had destroyed the house like a hurricane and a train wreck all at once.lol Allison is going to make a great mom someday. She got those littles under control, fed, and into play clothes while I slept. Now the only way that this particular day could get any worse would be for someone to drop by unexpectedly. Yes, folks, while I was sleeping and the house was destroyed, my mil decided to stop by. When I woke up, there she was, on the couch. Oh well, I guess you need to get caught at your worst every once in a while just to prove that you're not perfect. I'm completely horrified, but I guess I'll survive.lolol

So far, I've gotten the house back under control and the older kids are working on their school work. At least I can salvage the rest of the day.lol I do feel better after my nap of 3 hours and really, I don't think that I could have done anything differently.

The rest of the day will be a baking day. I made some dinner rolls on Tuesday and they are all gone, so now I'll work on some different kinds of breads. The kids really want a cinnamon-raisin bread and I'll make a couple of regular sandwich loaves also. The littles will have a blast and if the olders get their work done, they'll get to help also. I guess that's it. I stumbled, picked myself up, dusted myself off, and am ready to try again.lolol

Blessings,

Lisa

Yesterday we woke up to an Evie who had eaten 20 pieces of chocolate while we slept. Let's just say it was a long day, where she ended up in bed early for not listening.LOL

I spent yesterday collecting every piece of chocolate and candy that I could find and locking it in a cabinet with these horribly difficult child locks that no one can undo. I'm guessing we're on a diet.lol It's worth it though. I'm hopeful that I'll never wake to Evie being a raving monster ever again.lolol

Today has been much better. I had my doctor's appt this morning and everything went well. It looks like this little one is head up right now, so prayers that she turns soon would be appreciated. I got home to kids who were cleaning up the great room for me. How nice is that? I was also told by my dr. to pack my bag soon. I was reminded that I probably wouldn't want my dh packing it for me.LOL So true. It was fun packing the bag and getting to look through all the baby stuff and decide what to bring her home in. It's a little nerve-racking knowing that this baby could come any time between now and 5 weeks. (or if like Evie, 2 weeks after that.LOL) Where did all the time go? I'm just glad to be almost done.lol

I think this weekend I'm going to try to get some meals put in the freezer like Kathy. I'm not too worried about it since both of my older kids cook and my parents will probably be sending us some meals but I would like some easy to prepare dinners for when it's my job again. I have to say that when it comes to meal prep, I like the kids to have to do it all.lol Not for torture, but for the learning. I even have Allison preparing the menus for the week lately, so I'm sure they'll be just fine. This is the first baby that I don't feel worried about leaving the other kids. They've grown so much these past 2 years since the last baby, that the only thing I need to concentrate on is actually having this baby and then recovering.lol

Well, I guess that's it. I've been pretty low energy lately so I'm trying to save what I have for the things that have to be done. Take care,

Lisa