Gratitude

Here are some things I am thankful for:
1. The Plan of Salvation and its completeness.
2. The Savior. Boy am I ever grateful he did his part.
3. My husband. He loves the Lord, our family and I love to hear him share the things he learns!
4. Our children. They are great kids, the big ones and the little ones that have come later. Seriously all good examples to one another.
5. Friends. I have some friends I wouldn't trade for any others.
6. Our families health.
7. The scriptures. Each time I read them I learn a new lesson. They are like my personal liahona, it is amazing.
8. Modern day medicine. With this last pregnancy I have been grateful to know that we have these things to help us out.
9. The priesthood. There are so many blessing to list under this one. I am glad i have three men at beck and call when one of the little ones are not so well.
10. The different seasons life presents to us for growth. Especially how Heavenly Father helps us adjust and learn, patiently at our side.

Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving! It was fun getting to know my future daughter-in-law a little better. Our young man has found himself quite the gem. We mostly hung out around the house, had a lot of good grub and visits.

The whole week has been a fun one, on Monday I took my little lady on a field trip with her class. They went grocery shopping for the feast they were holding for their families the following day. The children put the whole menu together them selves, and it was impressive. While at the store they were all well behaved and willing to help at every opportunity given to them. My group happened to be the rowdy one, but they were a blast all the same.

Tuesday was the big feast, Dad, I and the little man were able to attend. The feast began with the children performing some fun songs they had learned the past month. My little gal kept her eye on me the whole time and sang with all of the gusto she could muster. It was fun, then they had all of the family members in attendance gather in a circle and do the turkey poky, how fun is that? When we had worked up our appetites with the song and dance it was time for the feast.

The children had put a lot of thought into their menu. I believe all food groups were covered. We had hot dogs, chicken nuggets, black olives, cantaloupe, mandarin oranges, pork and beans, chocolate chip cookies and ice cream. It was a meal divine. We were able to eat together and meet some of the little lady's new found friends. It was a great time.

Wednesday a friend of mine came over for a play date. Our children are mostly the same age and get along pretty well. We had a nice visit and she helped me get some things ready for the up coming year. I felt bad, she had brought something to work on as well, but it didn't go as planned. It was nice to be able to visit and get something done at the same time though. I am glad she was able to come over.

In the evening the hubby and I worked on pies and watched Bewitched.

Thursday we finished the feast and enjoyed the fruits of our labors.

Yesterday a friend of mine called me and included me in a random act of kindness. I had a blast, I was able to do some things I have been unable to do just because of the season of life I am in. As a stay at home mom I have been enjoying watching my children grow. it seems like you get caught up in it and forget that there are other things out there we can do. It was fun getting together with a couple of sisters and using some rusty skills, brushing them off and seeing they aren't so rusty after all.

So we have had a great week. I hope you have also had a great week!

Ultra Sound

This past week I have been trying to convince my husband that the image in my last ultrasound is our child. A humanoid. He first claimed it looked like a lamb. Tonight as I was pointing out the little ones features he said: "Let me show you what I see." He then goes to point out the features that sound like that of a K-9. What!?

With today's technology I just don't get how he can't see it. It is comparable to an old black and white picture from the 1800's, only better. This is the first one I have had that seems so clear. The little on shares his sisters mouth and one of his brothers nose. It surprised me how clearly it all showed up!

As he finished showing me his interpreting of the picture I assured him that it was his child. As I walked away I pondered whether I should be insulted, or if he had insulted himself...lol! One of the older girls says if it is a dog we should name ot Spots.

The past couple of days have been worrisome to me. My little man has been burning up and just not himself at all. He seemed to be achy all over, he complained everything hurt. He just wanted me to hold him all afternoon. Thursday is when it started and by bed time he seemed to be a little better, but yesterday he was worse. He wouldn't let me get a good temperature reading, nor was he accommodating at taking some Tylenol.

By the afternoon we decided it to be a good idea to take him in to the Dr. They ran all sorts of tests on him. they did a strep test, that wasn't the problem. They did a blood test, it showed a low white blood cell count but it didn't show anything unusual. The stuck a tube down his nose to collect mucus samples, and that test came up negative also. After poking and probing my poor little guy for 1 and 1/2 hours we were sent home not knowing any more that we went with. The Dr. Said she had seen a couple other cases like this and it lasted 2-3 days, "Just make sure he gets salt in his diet and drinks plenty of liquids."

We came home and he slept off and on the remainder of the evening.

This morning he woke up back to his old self. He came and cuddled with me for a moment and then was off tormenting his sister and brother, and letting them torment him. It s good to have him back to normal.

Some Random Thoughts

My mind has been every where these past few days! When I say everywhere, there is absolutely no exaggeration, here I will share some of the where abouts with you. Hang on! Are your seats buckled? Fasten them, we are off!

The baby will be here in a couple of months. Shortly after his arrival I will be losing two of my older boys, one to a mission and one to college out of state. My daughter has been loving preschool. The thing is my little man. I am trying to decide whether or not to pull my little gal from preschool so my little man won't feel abandoned when I have to direct more of my attention to his new little sibling. In the past I have had my children in late spring and I have the older siblings around to help with the adjusting, and my husband out of class for a month or so. However, with this little one on the way I will have my two oldest boys gone, the younger of the older boys will be in school and my husband will be back into teaching, and if I keep her in school my daughter will be back to school. So there is one direction of thought.

Earlier this fall I found some fun fabric to make a quilt for the little one who is about to join us. Whenever I think of working on it something comes up. My day is kind of ruled by others lately, I enjoy them, just wish I had some time to do the things on my mind. Then when I had some time this morning, I am unable to find where I strategically placed the fabric...I'm still looking for it in fact.

A friend of mine has opened a gift shop and invited me to contribute whatever my little heart desires. When I heard of this I had so many plans, many more ideas and a plethora of overloaded brain. So here I am sitting here a month later with very little done or contributed.

On to the next direction. I haven't been sleeping well lately, partly because of all of these thoughts and partly because when I am pregnant I get claustrophobia. At night when my husband turns over I wake up cause I am afraid he is invading my space (Poor guy). Every time I wake up I feel like I have to use the bathroom, and it seems to be on the hour every hour. Last night I may have found a cure for this imparticular item of business, I used ear plugs and was able to sleep through the night.

My eldest sons fiancee is coming out this weekend and staying for a week. While I am excited, I am also worried. Our son works 2nd shift, so what am I going to do to entertain her in the afternoons and evenings? I am sure she has things she will want to do. I am just not sure what my role will be, and to be honest with you, being a stay at home mom has taken some of my social skills to a different level. If you want to discuss children, cooking, crafts, etc I can chat. But I am out of the loop right now with a lot of other things. I might be able to fake it. We shall see.

Last concern, or thing running circles around my mind. Two years ago I had a falling out with one of our older girls before the holidays. For Christmas that year I received the game Family Feud. I still don't find this humorous. I thought amends had been made and we had moved on. Apparently not the case.This year the same child and I have again had a falling out. I didn't initiate it this time, but I didn't hold anything back either. She received my feelings in the raw. I have tried to make amends, and they seem to have been received. However I would just like to have Christmas to be pleasant for everyone and I am just forgotten for Christmas this year, I don't want a sarcastic gift again, I would rather receive nothing. So while I look forward to the Holidays I am also dreading it.

There are some of the places my mind continues to go when on its rounds. I wish I could just be on top of my game and feel a bit more settled is all. And there you have it, thank you for joining this ride. Vomit bags are to the left as you step off, I hope you had a nice ride. Please come again.

Dr Appointment

Well this appointment went better than the last. It looks as if my placenta is moving, so there is hope! I am not completely out of the red persei, but its moving. The little one was shy, he kept covering his face, and kicking the machine. I think he was wanting to rest. That is the update.

Baby Names

This morning I was having a moment with my little man. A bonding moment. We were talking about how he is going to be a big brother like his big brothers. He has a little brother waiting to come out and play with him. I told him what we were thinking of calling the baby. He disagreed with the name. I ran a couple more names past him and he disliked them all.

Finally I asked him what he thought we should name the baby. His reply was great! "Name it Robot Egg, den nobody wiew eat it again Mommy."

So, does he think that I have already eaten the baby and that is why it is in my stomach? It is intriguing to me to see how the minds of little ones work. I enjoy the laugh that comes with the intrigue.

My little man has been on one all day today! This morning his big brother came up and said good morning to him. My little man hit him, he was hit back and so he kicked him. He has been mean to sister all day. I had some family friends come over and the first thing he does is tells them he doesn't like them, and then is mean to them. This is how it has been all day....off and on all the past week too.

I have tried to do the time-out thing, I have tried to swat him, but then he thinks it is a game, ugh! This afternoon I was fed up with it so I called him a little imp of misery. His reply was classic however: "I not my sistua!"

I have a feeling some of this is just trying to deal with the idea of having a new sibling in the near future. I will tell you we are having some moments. I am hoping it will pass soon.

He is usually the cutest little guy and can win over any ones heart. However the past week or so there has been a lot of hitting, kicking, pulling sisters hair and all of the things you would not see a cute little guy doing. It is almost like I bragged about them being best friends too soon. I hope that isn't the case. I hope this is just a late intro to terrible two's, or will pass with the coming and settling of a little sibling.

Fall

It is finally beginning to feel like fall out here in the mid-west! My husband brought in the last of the garden the other day and we are beginning to think in the direction of Christmas. I am trying to not get to far ahead of myself, but usually we have began our shopping by this time of year. This year we have been looking forward to having our future daughter-in-law out for Thanksgiving, and that is about where the mind has been.

I took my little gal out Christmas shopping this afternoon and I have to say, she is quite creative in her choices. I think some of her older siblings are going to have a good time when they open their gifts this year. She thought seriously about each of them and came up with some fun things. Oh to be young again.

This year has been great! I have been able to watch the leaves change. It seems in the past fall didn't reach the beautiful rich colors of reds and oranges due to the freezes we would have. So I have been in awe this year to watch the colors change and the leaves fall. Each season of the year is enjoyable, but I especially love the colors of autumn!

Well, we had a fun Halloween! We took the children trunk or treating at our church. There were a lot of games and activities for the children. It was fun seeing all of the costumes this year! But everyones favorite part is the trunk or treating. My hubby took the little ones around from car to car while I maned our trunk this year. When all was finished there had been cauldron set up in the middle of the parking lot with a huge fire burning in it. Everyone gathered there to check out their plunder and chat about the nights activities.

When all was done with the trunks, my little man raced over to the group around the cauldron and continued searching for treasure. He hit up several other kids for their candy before I was able to catch up with him. One of the other children was generous and parted with unwanted candy willingly. I had a hard time keeping a serious face while explaining the night was done and it was just time to play.

We had a great Halloween. I hope everyone else did as well.