Sorry for the delay...

I know I haven't posted in a while - just been busy and not a whole lot going on. Natalie started playing soccer last Saturday - Upward with a local church. She has the same coach as last year and is enjoying it. She isn't much of a natural athlete, but it is good exercise for her. She is really blossoming into a young lady and I am trying to guide her in the right directions. This summer we are going to go through Girl Talk by Carolyn Mahaney. Also, next weekend we are having a girls weekend while the guys go to Fayetteville. Tim is taking Nathan to Fayetteville for RazorFest and the Red/White football game on Saturday night. They are staying both nights and Nathan is very excited to be going. We all went last year, but Natalie and I were really not into it all. So, this year I thought it best for just the guys to go. Nathan of course is keeping us on our toes as always. He isn't playing any sports right now, but really loves basketball. So he and Tim play a lot of the Playstation. He is still excelling in math and we have met with the school administration to hopefully have a game plan for next year. He will begin next year changing classes and because of this, he will a teacher who only teaches 4th grade math. I am hoping with her help and some computer software, we can continue to challenge him. Homeschooling is always in the back of my mind and wondering if we should just talke the plunge and go for it. However, because we need the little income I make, I am not sure when that will happen. My heart's desire is to begin when Natalie goes into 7th grade. The thought of her being on that campus scares me - just the influence of older students is frightening.

I am getting ready to take a part-time job at The Container Store. We are going to give this a trial run for the summer. I am not sure I can do this when school starts back up or not. But we are going to try. It really is a great store - you should go to www.containerstore.com and look at all the great stuff they have.

I'll try and write more soon and maybe include some pics.

Pageant pictures

Here are some pictures of Natalie at her first pageant.

Natalie turns 11!

On March 11, 1997 after being labor for about 15 hours, Tim and I welcomed our new baby girl into the world at 10:45 p.m. At that time it seemed like the sleepless nights would never end, that she would never talk, or be potty trained. On March 11, 2008 this little baby turned 11 years old! WOW! Now we are on to bigger issues - will she ever stay in the same mood longer than day, we always say 'who should wake her'. All in all though, she is a sweet and beautiful girl that I would give my life for. We now do things together and I really enjoy being with her. We go shopping, talk with one another and laugh together. Some of her best qualities are:

1. She is so nurturing with smaller children. She really sits down to play with them. I think she will be babysitting soon and probably will be great at it.
2. She is a good helper around the house - likes to cook, doesn't so much like to clean.
3. She is a good friend to others.
4. She has a beautiful smile and gives the best hugs.

Yes we struggle at times - but I am so thankful to have her in my life. She is a blessing!

Making our homes a haven

I recently read a blog, Passionate Homemaking and saw a post on making your home a haven. The challenge was to make our homes a blessing to our families and guests. There were 5 steps to help you purposeful plan your day and be prepared.

1. Morning devotions - this should the first thing we do each morning to get us in the right mindset.
2. Make myself look presentable for the day - if for nothing else, to look nice for our husbands before they leave for the day, also you can be ready before your children rise.
3. Prepare Breakfast - think the night ahead and prepare (put out bowls, spoons, cereal, etc.)
4. Quick house pick up - definitely not in-depth housecleaning, just picking up, cleaning up dishes, throw in a load of laundry, etc.
5. Make dinner preparations - Lay out from the freezer what you plan to cook, get all ingredients ready, etc.

Just some words of encouragement. Please visit this blog - Passionate Homemaking - it is neat.

Never Too Young? Misleading our Girls about Beauty

I recently listened to a show on Albert Mohler's website. It was about misleading our girls about beauty - getting the younger generation to buy into the whole beauty thing. If you have any girls, please listen to this program. Go to http://almohler.com/radio_list.php and select the Never Too Young? show and listen.

Busy few weeks...

I am so grateful to be on the downswing of a busy couple of weeks. It all started when Tim got sick on Feb. 22nd and probably had the flu. It was pretty much out of it that weekend and had no energy the next week. He managed to work, but that was it. Then on Tuesday Feb. 26th, I got a call from the school that Natalie had gotten sick - so I picked her up and came home. On this day, I had only been at work for about an hour. Thankfully, she was better by the evening and went to school on Wednesday. All was good, until I receive a call from the school nurse at 12:15 saying that Nathan had fallen in the cafeteria and busted his chin and was going to need stitches. I picked him up and rushed to the pediatrician's office for him to receive 4 stitches. So, on Thursday everyone got up and went to school and work. About 12:00 I get a call from the school saying Natalie had a 103 fever. I left work again, brought her home. By Friday, she only had a low grade temp, but no fever over the weekend. She did have some fever and congestion, but nothing major I thought. On Monday morning, Natalie woke up not feeling great and didn't look well. I took her to the doctor and there we discovered her platelet count was very low - 37,000. That started the journey to being admitted to Children's Hospital. We spent one night there and thankfully her platelets were up to 49,000 on Tuesday morning. We went back this morning, March 5th, and her platelets were at 55,000. Yeah! So her neurologist wrote a prescription for a different seizure med that we will soon start. Also, this same doctor will follow her hopefuly until the end of the year. This November will be 2 years seizure free - that is our goal and then we will start weaning her off the medication. Everyone at Children's was so helpful and attentive to Natalie. What a blessing! We will go to the pediatrician's office next Monday for a recheck on her platelets and see the neurologist in 2 weeks. Please pray that her platelets continue to rise and she does well on the new medication.

Oh, Tim is feeling better as well. He went to the doctor the same day Natalie was admitted and found out he had a respiratory infection. And today, Nathan had his stitches from his chin removed.

Hospital Stay...

On Monday, March 3, I took Natalie to see our pediatrician. She had been sick over the weekend with coughing and congestion. Because she looked so pale, the doctor ordered a CBC. her platelet count was very low - 34,000. It should be 130,000 or higher. This is primarily due to her seizure med and possibly due to her being sick. So today her platelets are up to 49,000 - which is a praise. We should be discharged today and will come back tomorrow to have her platelets check again. There is a possibility that our hospital/ER costs could be covered under the study. That would be wonderful! Please pray for her complete healing. Even though we didn't want this, the Lord has been so good to provide her with wonderful care.