sick...

Ever been so sick you just wanna' cry... but you can't cry 'cause you know you'll start coughing... again... and you'll wake up your husband who has to work through the night the following day... and that would be bad, because you worry enough about him and all the driving he does as it is... So you just sit at your desk... 'cause lying down isn't really an option... for the same reason that you can't cry... and you read a BUNCH of blogs... and you change your blog around 50 million times... and post a lot... about nothing in particular... because you know you're never gonna fall asleep anyway... because you're so sick that you just wanna' cry.
Really?... Never?... Well, me either...

Two Things...

First:

I love this time of year! Spring is coming! March is almost here! There are so many things to look forward to... flowers, gardens, leaves on the trees, baby animals, chickens laying again!

Even though the kids have been pretty sick, they are all enjoying the sudden rise in temperatures outside. Keep in mind that they are out with their rabbits and mini horse everyday, rain or shine. It's so nice that they don't have to get all bundled up just to go out to do their chores. I've even caught them sneaking outside, math books in hand, to sit out on the trampoline and soak up the sun while they do their home work!

I am looking forward to our move too! That was supposed to happen this week, but a bout with pneumonia has kept me in bed this week, hence all the recent posts and blog changes I am sooo looking forward to getting our pasture up and getting our horses on our property!

I have finally reached the point to where I feel comfortable posting pictures of the house. I figure you all know it's a work in progress and I hope you won't judge me to harshly on the house. We bought it for it's potential, not for it's current state.

At the risk of sounding like a sappy movie, I am... blissful. I am happy and content. Okay, so I'm not really content because I am so full of anticipation for what this new season has in store for my family that I can hardly sit still.

Second:

With Every Drop of Blood

James and Christopher Collier

We just finished a fantastic historical novel about the Civil War era. It tells a story from from the perspective of a 14-yr-old southern boy, right at the end of the war. He is helping to haul supplies to the Confederate Army when he is capture by a black Yankee Private. There was enough action to keep all of my children drawn in, but it was still mild enough that I didn't feel like I was corrupting young minds. I read it out loud to all of my school aged children; 7-12 yrs old

*NOTE*
Some of the language made me quite uncomfortable because I not only had to say the "N" word out loud but had to explain to my children what it meant (racism is beyond their comprehension). There is a very well worded forward about the history of that word and why the author, though uncomfortable with it, chose to include it in the reading.

Sarah

My Sunny Funny Sarah... always smiling, always happy. She is butterflies and rainbows, fairytales and pixie dust. You will never meet such a sweet spirit, even if you live 1000 life times. Never will you see a child try as hard to succeed as she does, and never will you see one so desperate to please adults. Her entire being revolves around love; giving and receiving. She craves affection, and passes it out willingly to anyone in need.

Sarah lives by the mantra JOY: Jesus first, Others second, Yourself last!

She is always willing to serve others and constantly asks if I need her to do anything to help.

She is the 2nd oldest of my children and Rose's twin sister. Her compassion is at a level that even I have a difficult time comprehending sometimes. She took it upon herself to pardon our Thanksgiving turkey this year. "Dinner" is now happily living out the rest of his years on another farm.


She is extremely talented in art. Her specialty is anime and she has recently discovered that she is quite good with charcoal pencil as well. When I say talented, I don't just mean the "that's a pretty picture I'll hang it on my fridge" talented. She really is "you should do that for a living when you grow up" talented!

Aside from her passion for drawing there is only one other thing that Sarah lives for... animals. Sarah puts any other child that I have ever met to shame with the love and devotions she shows to ANY animal.She prefers the small ones like chinchillas and rabbits and cats. But she has run the gamut on pets and will take in ANY sick or injured animal that she can get her hands on!

She currently owns several Mini-Lop Rabits and breeds them for 4-H. She also cares for her 5 chinchillas and hopes to breed them soon.

Anyone who has the pleasure to meet this sweet girl is truly blessed. She is an inspiration to me. I have watched her fight for her life, and struggle with basic daily activities, always with a positive attitude. Her determination wins anyone's heart who takes the time to get to know her. I am honored that she is my daughter and hope that one day she grows to be the wife and mother she wants to be!

Sarah's Blog

Sarah's blog is now open to the public! sleschorn.blogspot.com
It's entitled "Butterflies and Rainbows". I giggle when ever I think of that title because it is SOOOO Sarah! Feel Free to visit. She wants followers too!

Rose's Blog

Just so you know, I have changed the permissions on Rose's blog from private to public. She is currently working on a new post. Her posts are usually short but always come from the heart. Take the time to look it over.

Where'd my picture go?

Okay so I took down the latest picture of my kiddos on accident while I was playing around with that Paint.net stuff. I kinda like how my new header turned out though. So, I'm just gonna leave it like this for a little while. I'll get a new picture up as soon as I can but for now, you get this.
Also, I'm still trying to make my labels list look prettier and smaller... If anyone knows how feel free to let me know!

So a little story about this weekend...

Most of you know that the previous owners of our house left quite a bit of junk behind. Along with their toys, clothes, furniture and trash they also left behind clues of their many... extra circular activities. Back in December, I found several issues of a very well known magazine. I know they only collected them for the articles! While I am sure that the reading is very intellectual, I chose to file these particular magazines in the circular filing cabinet. Then I took the trash out myself, in order to avoid any chance of young minds being scarred.

Since then, we have set the children to working on the demo of the upstairs. Originally I looked at this as a way to get them out of our hair while we did actual work on the main floor. Surprisingly enough, the kids have taken on this task with great enthusiasm! They have most of the walls upstairs completely demolished and have been very good about bagging up their mess.

Fast forward to this past Saturday...

John and I left all of the kids at Shannon's in order to get some things moved into the house. While we were at the house John was upstairs and he notice a stack of these same magazines in a contractor trash bag... Uh OH!

He says, "Honey, I thought you threw away all the naughty magazines."

I say, "Yeah... weeks ago...Why?"

He says, "Well there are a bunch more upstairs in the trash."

Needless to say someone found more. So much for protecting innocent minds... (sigh)

Later, when we got home we asked out oldest girls if they had been the ones to find them. Secretly I was hoping it was them. Why? Because they are 12 and they know about the birds and the bees. .. and I trust their discernment. Anyway, it wasn't them.

So john asks the boys... They looked at him with blank faces. Not lying faces. Just "I have no idea what you're talking about" faces. Malachi did say that Hannah had found some magazines but he didn't see them.

Being that is was night time and Hannah was already asleep we closed the conversation for the night. Of course I couldn't sleep, not knowing that my baby girl had seen such horrible stuff. I sat awake wondering how her little mind had processed those images.

Keep in mind, this is my little girl that likes to pull her night gown off of her shoulder so that she can be "pretty". She is also the one that loves that show "Toddler's in Tiaras" and wants to be on a runway when she grows up. So no, I didn't sleep most of the night. When I did, my dreams were whacked out and crazy dreams of my daughter becoming a "bunny" in her young adult years.

So Sunday morning John asks Hannah about the situation.

"Hannah, did you find some magazines upstairs in the new house?"

"Yes"

"Were there pictures of ladies in them."

"YES!... and they were NOT being MODEST... and I didn't want the BOYS to see THEM so I just THREW THEM IN THE TRASH!"

I was so happy I wanted to cry. Instead of all the horrible fears I had conjured up in my head about my daughter being sucked into a life of vanity and lust, she showed me that she has the fortitude to withstand such temptations. She was so repulsed that her face was all crinkled up for the rest of the conversation.

The moral here? Even if your child is only 5, they are capable of taking a stand against immorality. You don't have to have had the "sex talk" yet. If you teach your children about right and wrong, when they are faced with something unexpected they will know to listen to that still small voice. Hannah had no idea what she was looking at. I had never talked to her about pornography but she had the wherewithal to know that it was something she should not look at, and to protect her brothers from it.

Why I love my husband...

I love my husband... It's not because he sends me flowers for Valentines Day.
It's because he teaches my boys that they must always treat girls as though they are princesses. It's because of his smile, and that dimple that I adore so much. It's because he is my teddy bear that lets me put my freezing cold feet on him at night when I am cold. It's because he works hard every day and struggles to provide what his family not only needs, but what we want as well.

It's because he's been there for the labor and delivery of all 8 of our children. It's because of how much he adores our children.

I love my husband because he sits through "chick-flicks" with me, and hugs me when I 'm sad. It's because he prays with us at the table every time we sit down to eat, or because of his desire to always do right. It's certainly not because he's perfect. It's because he suffers through books with me like "Twilight" and "Little House", and because he makes breakfast (and most other meals) on the weekends. He helps with laundry and housework when ever he is home.

I love my husband because he is my best friend. He gets angry when I am wronged and encourages me when I am down. He supports, comforts me, prays with me, and listens to me.

An inconvenience

Here's a tip...
If you are having a challenge with getting your child to do tasks that you ask them to do, when you ask them to do them, inconvenience them!
For instance, when your daughter is supposed to scoop the litter and "forgets", wake her up at 11:30 pm when she is sound asleep. Tell her that she forgot that she promised she would have it done by the end of the day, and she only has 30 minutes left to get it done.
Or, if your son leaves the leftovers on the table and forgets to take them out to the chicken after you have asked him to three times, don't yell or spank. Wait until his FAVORITE tv show is on. You know, the one he's been waiting all week to watch? Tell him right in the middle of the "good part" that he needs to do it right then... and MAKE him.
I promise you that the next day, they will be much more willing to do what they are asked when they are just working on homework.
:)