2 Steps to the Right

Sleepy

2011-12-01T07:24:00.000-08:00

I am sleepy. Beyond sleepy. Exhausted. Last night Hailey stayed up with Audreyanna until about 1:30 so that I could get some sleep so today I can actually put words together to form a sentence.I have had lots of babies, some great sleepers and some not so great sleepers. But my days are so full of the needs and activities of the rest of the family that they would exhaust me even with a good nights sleep, and when sleep comes in fits and spurts it doesn't take long to slip below the waves.

Cry it out is not my thing, I just don't have the stomach for it. So I got this book from the library to see what I could see. I was so giddy when I picked it up that I thought if it worked I would kiss it and hug it and dance it around the room. I might even buy my own copy and build a little shadow box to display it over the fireplace!

So, the book basically advocates gradually changing your babies habits and routines. Up until the last couple of babies, my kids were always on somewhat of a schedule. Not full blown bedtime routines, but the pretty much had a bedtime, and a naptime and they happened at pretty much the same time every day. Through the fog of my rose colored glasses it seemed like they were better sleepers. My last 3 have NOT been good sleepers. And they have not really had sleep time schedules. Hmmm. I know it sounds obvious, but you have to coming at it hiking uphill through a jungle of exhaustion where people keep grabbing your legs. It's harder to see.

So, Pantley says her suggestions could take some time to really see results. I really want to put her to be tonight and wake up in the morning shocked that she's still sleeping, but we're going to give it a go. I had already been trying to teach her that she doesn't actually have to have my breast in her mouth all night long to sleep. But I need to be more consistent. I have got her to the point where I can sometimes exract myself from her mouth and she will complain a little and go back to sleep. But only as long as I stay on my side facing her. If I try to move to my back or put my back toward her, her super spidey senses kick in and she is awake and crying.

So, we are going to work on real nap times. In her own bed. Hopefully working up to 2 naps about 1.5 - 2 hours each, in her bed. Rather than 3 - 4 naps of 15 - 20 min each in our arms. And I hope to get my response time during the night to times when she is actually hungry and she will learn to just fall back to sleep when she wakes as a regular part of the infant sleep cycle.

We'll see. Right now she is up every hour to hour and a half and she wants attention and comfort nursing. I would also like her to start the night in her co-sleeper at least until the first nursing. Which will hopefully be after several hours of sleep.

I'm going to use the heat pad to warm her bed before putting her in it. The book is really a lot of common sense solutions, but it was helpful to read it. I think I got a little lazy with my little ones. I just sort of fit them around everything that was going on with the biggers, instead of really working to develop the habits that would help the whole family function better.

So, here we go!

Comfort Food

2011-11-28T12:48:00.000-08:00

Do you see that stock? Look how thick with gelatin it is. My new goal is to ensure we all get some mineral rich, homemade stock at least 3 times a week. Daily would be best, but I might have to work up to that, it's about habit building. Baby steps you know.

There are so many good things about this homemade beef stock. It is rich in calcium, phosphorus, magnesium and other trace minerals. It is a very cheap source of good nutrition and the minerals are much more bio-available than if we were getting them in a pill or supplement. And all that gelatin will help our hair and nails grow longer and stronger, not to mention keep our joints healthier. Glucosamine and chondroiton? It's there in the broth, tasty and easily absorbed. I am hoping that regular, frequent servings of broth will help alleviate the heel and joint pain that Mike and Sierra suffer from. Another reason to work up to daily doses.

I like to keep my stock fairly neutral in taste and then season according to its use. I always cook it with onion and garlic, and usually celery and carrots, but not much else. Then I can make a quick soup, gravy, or sauce. I can use it as the cooking liquid for my rice, or just pour a cupful. I've been busy dehydrating all the bits and pieces of produce that don't get used up, and I look forward to throwing a handful of dehydrated veggies and seasonings in a cup of hot broth - cup a soup! Healthy and quick. You can bag the the veggies you like in your soup together in individual or family size portions. You can even run them through the blender or food processor and turn it into a powder if you don't like chunks. Some good ones are carrots, tomatoes, celery, onions, garlic, greens, and herbs of various sorts.

I make about 3 gallons at a time and keep some in the freezer and some in the fridge, where it will last a couple of weeks.

Enjoy!

15? Are You Sure??

2011-11-27T14:36:00.000-08:00

It was my turn to spend the day with Hailey in honor of her birthday. 15! How well I remember rocking her to sleep singing 70's music. I painted her nursery 2 shades of purple with a Precious Moments border. I remember balling up newspaper and making it crinkle loudly to try to convince her to crawl across the floor. Tiny little girl toddling across the floor with her wispy blonde hair and pretty yellow dress. Walking at 9 months!

I thought we would never make it through her 2's. And her 3's. And her 4's. :-) Filling her baby sisters mouth with change. Painting the walls I had painstakingly stenciled, along with the clothes she pulled out of her dresser. And the carpet. Finding her on top of the fridge. More than once :-)

She has always had her own ideas. Always been a bit fearless. And now she is my right arm. She has the magic touch with the babies, she can calm them when no one else can. She loves music, the piano, her siblings, and God. She is sarcastic and funny, a singer, an artist, a great letter writer, and a fabulous baker. It is such a joy to see her growing in knowledge and righteousness. To see her grow in her faith and develop her own convictions. I am so blessed to be her mother.

Nana and Papa, along with Aunt Alice and Angie were able to join us for dinner, so that was a special treat. Sierra made her that hat, and Nana made the afgan. Love it! The scarf from Aunt Alice went perfectly with the hat :-)

And this is Sophia. Isn't she beautiful. Last time we saw her she had just broken 5 pounds. :-)

Boys

2011-11-27T12:12:00.000-08:00

Ethan's big brother gifted him with some face paint, so now he fiercely blends into his surroundings. He shared his gift with his other brothers and they all had a grand time looking like warriors.

I wouldn't want to meet them in the woods, would you? :-)

Beachy Birthdays

2011-11-26T21:43:00.000-08:00

So, it's only been a month since my last post. Hailey says I need to post more. She says I should post about all the things I'm always telling them, things I read, learn, and think. It just takes time to formulate all that into an intelligible post. And the time that I would be able to do that is at night. Which is when the baby is usually screaming. Or I am about to drop from exhaustion. Or both. So....it's been a month since my last post.

So, what's been going on? Well, Ethan had a birthday. So did Hailey. Heck, so did I :-) We went to Point Mugu for a few days in honor of Ethans and my birthdays. (Wow, that was an awkward sentence!) But we did, and we had a lovely time. Even if it was kind of cold and windy. I guess that's the price for a beautiful beach all to yourselves. If so, I'll gladly pay it. We intended to camp in the rv, but the day before we left we discovered that the fuel pump had quit pumpin. Bummer. We were able to salvage the trip with a couple of motel rooms on base, and we still had a grand time. I'd really like to go back in the rv though.

We got to see a whale right off shore, and a lot of seals. Which solidified Hailey's determination to never swim in the ocean, but was really cool to see.

We ate a lot, built sand castles, drew in our nature journals, climbed rocks, had races, and just generally enjoyed each other. On the last day we went in to Ventura and had an amaaazing lunch in a micro brewery. Really yummy!

Down South

2011-10-17T14:24:00.000-07:00

At the end of September we went down to San Juan Capistrano to visit Lisa and Angie and meet tiny Sophia. She's beautiful, and I took one picture on my phone. Yes, I am ashamed. I hoped to take a few before we left, but we left pretty early and her momma wasn't into it. She had just hit 5 pounds.

Just as we pulled off the freeway in San Juan I got a text saying Tehachapi was on fire. Our town was threatened by several fires that were begun by lightening strikes. So, the whole first night was a game of "should I stay or should I go." There was a lot of conflicting information, and we just weren't sure what to do. But we stayed, and all was well. No homes were lost :-)

We did get to go to the beach in San Clemente while we were there. It was a lovely day, and we ladies sat with the baby under the boardwalk while the kids played in the water under daddy's supervision.

Except Hailey. She didn't even bring a suit because she's not going in the ocean. Ever. There's fish in there. And sharks. Lots and lots of sharks.

So, she did this.
Listened to music while walking in circles under the boardwalk. Sometimes with Audreyanna, sometimes without.

Annaleise could not believe the bounty, rocks EVERYWHERE!! Pockets full of them!

But eventually she suited up and headed to the water with everyone else. It didn't last long though. Ty headed out a little too deep and a wave crashed over him and swept him out. Daddy had Annaleise in his arms and plopped her down to chase after Ty. Where another wave came and swept her out too. After getting the both safely on shore daddy decided two littles was a bit too much for him, and Annaleise was over it anyway. So, she came back to the boardwalk and played with rocks.
Everyone else had a grand time playing in the water though. Worked up quite and appetite for the great cheeseburgers we had later. And the ice cream...

The next day we headed out and stopped at the L.A. Zoo. But it was really hot and we didn't stay too long. Season tickets make that alright :-)

Don't they look hot? We left and went to Ruby's, where we had REALLY amazing cheeseburgers, lol.

Visiting

2011-10-17T13:07:00.000-07:00

We all enjoyed having Chance here for his entirely too short visit. We miss him so, and little snatches of time are all we get, but we sure love it when he comes! The kids all counted down the time until he arrived and we all headed to the airport to get him. Hailey thought she would miss it because she has a regular baby-sitting job that night, but that family had strep so she got to come along.

We had an amazing Italian dinner in Bakersfield before we headed home. He was pretty busy the first day and we all waited impatiently for him to be free. But it was nice just to see him sitting at the table. I so wish we were all still together.

On Saturday we went to Victorville to see Kirstyn and Cadence and get a tour of their new house. It's so nice to have all the kids together.

Chance got to meet the neighbors because they kept kicking Cadence's ball over the fence. Which he broke. The fence that is. On one of his trips over he took the top cap with him, and left a generous portion of flesh behind in return.

Cadence thinks I'm the crazy lady with a camera who's always chasing her around. She keeps her distance until the camera goes away :-) She is loving preschool and was happy to show us all the things she has made. She's almost 3, can you believe it?!

Audreyanna enjoyed rolling around on the floor, and the littles did their best to keep her entertained. Don't you just want to scoop her up and kiss her?!

And finally, we needed a group shot. We tried to build a poor mans tripod out of drinking glasses and boxes, but decided their wasn't enough room for my lens to get everyone in, so we headed outside and propped the camera on a ladder. We're all in though!

And in the morning, he was gone! Can't wait to see you again, Chance :-)

What's Goin On

2011-07-27T09:28:00.000-07:00

We've been busy around here between school, baby. and trying to get a bit healthier in the kitchen. Last Saturday, before leaving for my in-laws 50th anniversary party, Sierra and I made 2 gallons of lacto-fermented pickles. The old fashioned kind, preserved with whey instead of vinegar and heat. It's a process that makes food even more nourishing and digestible.

See those little valves on 2 of the jars? This is the first time I have used them, but they seem pretty cool. The let the fermenting air out while keeping out the bacteria. I forgot to fill them with water the first couple of days, so I got a little mold. But you can just scrape it off, because it's totally harmless.

I also made a really yummy no-grain breakfast cereal. It's

2/3c buckwheat groats
1/3c hempseed
1/2c chia
1c dehydrated peaches
1c chopped pecans
1tsp salt
4TBS sucanat
1TBS cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla powder
You can use any kind of dried fruit and any kind of nuts. Vanilla powder is optional.

I put 4 TBS in a bowl with some milk and I really enjoy it.

I have sourdough starter fermenting on my counter and I'm also trying a method where you keep a large amount of starter in the fridge and pull chunks off to bake with. I have a loaf of bread baking in the oven right now using that method. We'll see how it turns out.

On Monday I made sourdough english muffins and they were great. Even the kids thought so.

The bread is out of the oven and the kids cut it up before I could take a picture :-) The verdict: It's amazing? Hailey says it's the best bread ever and Sierra wants it for her birthday. And it was sooo fast and easy.

I have peaches coming this weekend and lots of plans for those, and more cucumbers too, because I'd like to try a few different recipes. I'm anxious to see if these are crispy, I put oak leaves from our very sad oak trees in the jars. That's supposed to be the trick. I'll let you know.

Updated to add: Mom, Hailey says the bread is only slightly better than the lemon cake :-)

Just a Quick Update

2011-07-07T10:32:00.000-07:00

Well, summer finally arrived and now we can't remember ever having been cold. Because we're fickle like that.

So, what have we been doing? Well, we finally got a bit of a garden in. Yep, after years of intentions (you know where those lead) we finally put something in the ground. Or, the box rather. We made a raised square foot bed where we planted tomatoes, bell peppers, watermelon, cucumbers and bush beans. 16 in all, and they seem to be doing wonderfully so far. Which means that the birds and bugs will likely enjoy a lovely feast the day before we intend to pick them. Hailey and I trellised the tall things a couple of days ago. Note to self: do it a lot earlier next year. But this is our LEARNING GARDEN, as we keep reminding ourselves. We didn't plant much and we are trying to keep it alive. We netted the berries to keep birds out, since they ate ALL the berries last year. Hopefully we get a few this year. Oh yeah, we have 2 strawberry plants too. After a dismal start they are looking good. We also have a few raspberry and blackberry vines. The peaches and plums bloomed too early and that June snow killed the buds, so they won't fruit this year.

Learning to make compost too. Seems like it should be so easy. I think I'm thinking about it too much. I think...

The big girls worked a vendor booth during the 3 day Independence Day celebration as a fund raiser for Bible Bee. Good reports on their work ethic and skill, so that's encouraging. They had a good time, but it was HOT.

Audreyanna is growing like a weed, time to pack up those 0-3 months clothes and buy some more 3-6, because she's about 14 pounds now.

We're mostly just hanging out, enjoying each other and laughing at the littles. School is in session after a break for baby and that takes a fair amount of time. Planning for next year, ordering books, marveling at how fast the money goes and how big the kids are all getting. You know, the regular stuff.

I think my adrenals are getting serious about their warning signals and we are trying to get back into fermenting veggies and such. Going to teach Sierra to make yogurt this afternoon, and ordering another kombucha mushroom tomorrow. I really want to try coconut keifer, but I had such horrible luck with dairy keifer and I love coconut water so much that I am having a hard time convincing myself to do it. Wish I could try it first.

You??

Annaleise as Art

2011-07-07T10:23:00.000-07:00

Birthdays!

2011-05-23T15:11:00.000-07:00

9 and 2, I can hardly believe it! How can the years go so quickly?

Eli has really found a love for reading this year, surpassed only by his love of audiobooks. He will often ask to go to be early to listen to a book on the ipod, or he can be found hiding on the side of the couch reading. He's got that goofy boy humor that brings me right back to 9 year-old Chance. I am so blessed to be his mom, and can't wait to see what God does in his life.

Banonna is our sweet cuddlebug. She is way to cute for her own good, and if we're not careful we'll ruin her completely! She is never happier than when she is snuggled into a lap with her thumb in her mouth and your hair in her hand. She is so gentle and sweet with Audreyanna, and loves her own babies as well. We love you Annaleise, you bring such joy to our lives!

We celebrated the birthdays of Eli and Annaleise with the standard Mimi's breakfast. But this time was likely the last, as one horrible experience is usually all my husband will tolerate. The meal was free, so there is that. The gas wasn't, so there is that. The day was pretty low-key because Mike was coming off the flu and I'm not really running at full speed yet. Tin Tin and the T-Rex kite were big hits with Eli, and I think Annaleise loves her doll buggy. She'll love it more if we can make the handle stay on :-)

She couldn't quite figure out the whole blowing thing, we eventually got them out though.

Introducing...

2011-05-11T11:45:00.000-07:00

Audreyanna Brielle Elliott
Born May 11, 2011
12:34 am
10lbs 8 oz
22in long
15" head (I KNOW!)

2011-04-27T11:23:00.000-07:00

Me? I'm fine, still gestating. Last week I measured 44 weeks, and my midwife estimated the baby to be about 10 pounds. So, clearly she needs every moment of this pack-on-the-fat period. I measured my waist yesterday, 51.5 inches. Seriously.

But I'm not here to talk about me :-) I thought I'd post a few pictures. No, they're not of Easter. Maybe I'll get those up later today. Just some random kidishness.

Tick Tock

2011-04-05T22:46:00.000-07:00

So the baby ticker tells me that we will be meeting our sweet babe in something like 4 weeks. As always, that is a bit amazing to me. Physically, ugh, being not pregnant sounds very appealing. It's been a good pregnancy; no bed rest early on, no significant pain until pretty late in the pregnancy this time, pretty good energy (thank you Hemaplex!). The fall a few weeks back is when my hips and pubic symphysis pretty much decided to throw in the towel, but I made it a lot farther than last time. And for that I am exceedingly grateful. So, knowing that the birth of our baby will bring these physical discomforts to a close is encouraging. However...

One would think that after so many deliveries labor would hold no fear. I KNOW that my body can birth babies. I've had no significant problems. And I know that the only way through it is, well... through it. But I haven't been quite able to get my head in the right place. I have been spending a lot of time in prayer, but I just don't have peace yet. The thought of labor still makes me want to cry. Or throw up. As I think back over my last few pregnancies I know that this is standard drama for me as I near the end. I know that some measure of peace will come and that I will be okay. But now, tonight, the valley is dark.

Last night I dreamed that it was time to push. That is the moment I hate the most. I have never experienced the relief that I have heard others talk about when they "finally get to do something." I HAVE been doing something. I've been getting on the other side of every contraction leading to this moment, and now I am lost. It is too overwhelming, too primal, too...much. So that was my dream. That is was time to push, I awoke to that sensation. Scared.

I prayed until I fell back asleep. Because I know HE is there. He is with me, it is His strength that will take me across the valley when I come to the end of my own. I don't feel it now, but I know it. And I know I will feel it when I need it. And from the knowing will come the peace.

Scary

2011-03-29T10:05:00.000-07:00

This is Bill Ayers and his wife Bernadine Dohrn speaking in Lebanon. Bill has an interesting idea, why not let every country with a U.S. military base vote for the U.S. President? Wow, what a great idea!

These people truly hate the very foundations of our country. Remember, Bill is a professor at the University of Illinois and has written textbooks currently in use at over 1500 public schools. He claims to have penned the Obama biography Dreams From My Father, and has a long-standing relationship with Obama. They are coming out of the shadows because after years of indoctrinating our youth the finally have a large support base and one of their own in the White House.

These people are crazy, but they aren't harmless.

Excitement

2011-03-28T18:32:00.001-07:00

Hailey and Eli had to walk their dogs today, and Sierra decided to go along. They took my phone with them to keep track of the time and in case I needed to get a hold of them - or vice versa. It seemed they were gone a long time, but I was busy and didn't call. I hadn't told them when to be back...

Finally, the three of them tromped in. COVERED in mud. I mean faces, hair, arms, legs, ALL of their clothing. Covered. In. Mud.

Turns out Mara got away from Hailey, and in an effort to keep their guardian angels from getting bored, the kids decided to give chase. Now, to fully appreciate this story you should know that at the end of our road (the part that is paved), there is a metal guard rail and a beautiful view. Which is to say that it drops off into a steep valley rumored to hold all manner of wildlife.

Back to the kids... They come tromping in talking over each other about how Mara got away and she wouldn't come back, and they went after her, and Eli was stuck, and they fell, and, and, and... Then Sierra starts bawling. Just sobbing about how scary it was. I guess they were on a ledge and it gave way and they all tumbled into the valley. Eli ended up stuck in mud up to his waist, screaming that his bones were breaking. They couldn't pull him out for quite a while, and were slipping further down and getting themselves stuck in the process. Sierra had my phone in her jacket pocket, which was tied around her waist and fell off as she started to fall. So it was at the top of the ravine. The finally extricate him and begin attempting to climb out. Which I gather was also quite a process as they kept slipping back down.

But they are home, and safe, and showered, and warm. Their clothes may never recover though. And they have strict instructions NEVER to chase that stupid dog.

I Used to Read

2011-01-28T17:41:00.000-08:00

I used to read, a lot. But now, looking back over my 2010 book list, I find that I just don't read much anymore. I suppose it's not surprising, what with 7 kids at home. But it is disturbing. I find that when I pick up a "difficult" book, one that makes you think, it isn't as easy for me to read as it once was. I don't like that. At. All. In 2011 I intend to begin to remedy the situation. I Intend to read more. One the one hand it will be unavoidable, because I am reading the majority of Hailey's school books in order to keep the discussions meaningful. It is shocking how few of them I have read. So, we will broaden our horizons together this year. But I also want to get to some of the things that I have been wanting to read. For me. I have many on my shelves, and I check books out from the library regularly. Only to return them 6 weeks later with the covers barely cracked. But I AM going to do that less often this year. Really. I am. Stop laughing.

These are the books I read last year. They are shockingly few, and the majority were read-alouds to the kids. Do those count? I sure hope so, because otherwise I was almost a non-reader last year.

Nick of Time - RA
Cowboy and Wills - Me

Hatchet - RA
Guts - Audio for all
Rats of Nimh - RA
Maggie - Me
Wrapped in Rain - Me
The Dead Don't Dance - Me
Time Pirate - RA
Swiss Family Robinson - RA
When the Tripods Came - RA
The White Mountains - RA
The City of Gold and Lead - RA
Pool of Fire - RA
Atlas Shrugged - Me

What is that, 15? Not much weight there either. Maggie, Wrapped in Rain, and The Dead Don't Dance are all novels by Charles Martin. Entertaining, but not too deep :-) The kids loved Nick of Time, a time-travel tale full of sea battles, chivalry, and love of country. Its sequel, Time Pirate was enjoyed as well.

When the Tripods Came through Pool of Fire was an interesting series. Sci-Fi I guess it was. About a group of people fighting to remain free men after an alien invasion that takes over the minds of people, causing them to become complacent and servile. Lots of good conversation about what it means to be free, and what is worth dying for. We enjoyed it.

Right now we are reading Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper, which is the first of the 5 book The Dark is Rising series. It was slow to start, but yesterday they begged me to keep reading for 3 1/2 hours straight. It seems it got exciting :-) I'm still undecided about whether we will read the whole series, but this book has been great if you like King Arthur legends and are comfortable with myths and and such. It is about the battle between good and evil featuring children as the main characters. It isn't a book I would hand them to read alone, but it has fostered a lot of great discussions. I'm interested to see how they develop it though.

I'm also reading The Woman in White to the girls, which is one of the first mystery novels ever written.

I am also reading Birth of Britian and How To Read a Book (very slowly) with Hailey. And we are reading (each of us separately) and discussing:

Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People
The Life of King Alfred - selected passages
The Brendan VoyageThe Once and Future King
Ivanhoe
The History of English Literature
The Lay of the Land
Watership Down
More Than a Carpenter

Well this post got a lot more full of things no one cares about, but see I AM reading more this year!

Dr. Gosnell's House of Horrors

2011-01-26T08:02:00.000-08:00

As always, great coverage of an important topic. Dr. Gosnell is a monster who operated right under the noses of the authorities charged with monitoring him. But shutting down an abortionist doesn't fit the pro-death agenda, so he operated with impunity, a blind eye turned to his many horrific violations. In the name of "protecting women" he maimed and murdered. The Common Room has lot's more to say. Read it.

Christmas 2010

2011-01-08T08:15:00.000-08:00

Another year has come and gone and we're a week into the new one. We are back in the thick of things here, working from dark to dark. There is much to do in order to be able to take a break when the baby comes.

Christmas was very nice, we had all the kids together for a moment. It doesn't happen nearly often enough now that we are spread out and they are busy with their own lives. Chance did his best to win over the little girls, garnering a bit more success with Cadence than Annaleise. Anna is a tough sell. But the other kids were all thrilled to have a few brief days with him.

Cadence doesn't really like to smile for me, my camera annoys her. Or maybe it's my incessant attempts to get her to look at me.

The big ones. I'm about done with that brown wall...

Time with big brother always includes lots of wrestling. The bigger boys loved being tossed around like this, Ty - not so much. He was not amused and told Chance never to do that again :-)

Army clothes that fit, JOY!

It's Begining to Look a Lot Like Christmas...

2010-12-13T15:15:00.000-08:00

We finally got the tree up and decorated and the house looking a little more festive. The kids did most of the heavy lifting while I took pictures and picked out background music. Which was nice, because while I love looking at the decorated tree, the actual decorating...not so much.

Tree selection took all of 3 minutes. We all loved the first tree and we promptly brought it home. I love it when that happens.

Christmas is less than 2 weeks away. Every year I'm surprised at how fast it got here. Chance is coming home. He'll be here for far too short a time, as always, but we can't wait to see him. It just doesn't seem right to be the people in his life that see the least of him. I hate that.

We get Kirstyn and her family on Christmas Eve. Yay! So the delimma is whether to do the full blown Christmas thing on the Eve, or just do presents with Kirstyn and Zac and wait another day for the rest. Hailey votes for Eve, but just because she can't wait. I'm leaning toward Christmas Day. I'm a purist :-)

A Little Bit of This

2010-12-13T14:44:00.000-08:00

Yes, I know I'm writing strictly to myself at this point. People can only be expected to stick around for so long with nothing to read. I just haven't felt very inspired. Perhaps I have too high a view of myself, feeling like I need to have something interesting to say. Most of what I say is probably only interesting to me anyway... And lately I barely seem to have time to put together one coherent sentence, much less a whole blog post. The thought of adding another tiny baby into the mix a frankly a bit overwhelming. Of course, I felt that way when I was pregnant with Annaleise too. Sure that I was going to sink under the weight of all that would be on my plate. And, I was right. But God knows. And when I can keep my priorities straight and my knees bent, I can feel Him standing in the gap.

Having a large family has definitely been an act of faith. There is a big difference between the mindset of, "We are ready for another one. Let's try now." and "God has chosen to bless us with another child. I will trust him to provide for the finances, the patience, the needs of the other children..." It has been a humbling journey.

I am half-way through my pregnancy now. And I am so looking forward to meeting this little person. I am so grateful that God given me this privilege, this gift that I would not have chosen on my own. The pregnancy has been amazingly easy thus far. A true gift from the Lord that reminds me of his mercy toward me, reminds me not to be afraid. He is good, all the time.

We tried another new church yesterday, one I've resisted for a long time. I don't know that we will end up there, but the sermon was a blessing. Have a conviction, know where you stand and be fully convinced that you stand with God. But diversity in the gray areas. Know that your convictions on the things the Bible does not explicitly speak to will not necessarily be the convictions of others. God calls us all to different paths. Walk your path, don't worry about theirs. But know what the Bible says, because we must agree on the black and whites. A good reminder.

So, I'm walking my path. Trying to keep my eyes on Him, that I may one day cast glorious crowns at His feet.

Summer Time Recap

2010-09-28T14:36:00.000-07:00

Ah, so summer has come and gone and it doesn't seem I have shared any of it here. The kids had campouts on the trampoline

The upper 4 competed in the Bible Bee, with the girls tying for third in our local competition We celebrated the birthdays of Ezra and Titus by renting the Tehachapi pool for a joint party.

I spent a lovely birthday with Ezra, breakfasting together, seeing a movie and playing in the river. In which I utterly forgot the presence of my camera.
Ty and I spent an equally lovely day doing many of the same things, minus the movie.

We watched Foyles War and the European Faith and Freedom Tour.

We finally finished our school year, swam as much as we could, spent time with friends and family, looked for a church, and got Ty potty trained.

We were blessed with another child in the womb.

There, I think you're all caught up. See, it's like I was never gone at all.

June lake

2010-08-16T18:51:00.000-07:00

We all had a lot of fun boating out in June lake. By Sierra

This Is The Saddest Story

2010-07-25T23:36:00.000-07:00

This family is sharing the short life of their precious son, who was killed by an adverse vaccine reaction. It is heartbreaking what this baby endured.

Summer Vacation

2010-07-24T10:55:00.000-07:00

We finally dusted off the motor home and took a trip to June Lake to spend a week camping with friends. Sort of a private family camp since we are churchless :)

The trip started with a few bad omens. Hailey had been having pain in her side for a few days before we left, but I sort of ignored it... Within a few days she couldn't sleep and woke writhing in pain and crying. Sooo, a trip to the ER for a pleursy diagnosis. Basically, a virus had settled in the outer lining of her lung and it was inflamed, causing pain. Here are some pain killers, it will run its course and get better in a few more days. And it did. $300 peace of mind.

Isn't it beautiful?!?

It was probably the same virus that settled in the digestive tracks of the two bigger boys, causing...distress. And Pain. But no ER visit :)

We still managed to have a really nice time though. Mostly sitting by the water watching the kids play and getting sunburned. Plus, without that trip we wouldn't know all the things we need to fix on the motorhome :) That's a plus, right??
On the way home we stopped at a cool little park in some small town. It might have been
Lone Pine. Or Big Pine. Or Independence...

But it was a nice park, with a stream running through it. It was a refreshing break, but the two littles had just fallen asleep when we stopped and when we got back in the RV they screamed most of the way home :-(

Allergy Free Cookies

2010-06-23T11:35:00.001-07:00

The Common Room always has lots of frugal recipes (and great commentary), but this cookie recipe is really a home run for us.

Cookies that contain no eggs, wheat, or corn are expensive and I have to go to the "big city" to get them. This recipe is quick, cheap, easy, and uses things I most always have on hand. AND, he really likes them. They're also healthy enough that I can just hand him a few for a quick breakfast or snack on the run. I think we'll be making lots of these.

Super-Simple Banana Cookies

3 mashed bananas
2 cups oats
1 cup chopped dates
1/3 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350*. Mix ingredients well, and drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

This made 18 cookies for us, and I tend to make cookies a little on the large side. Your mileage may vary.

Make sure you click through to the link to see what other things she has tried. Besides, it's rude to steal a recipe and not click through :-) Here is the home page, the link above will take you straight to the recipe.

Field Trip!

2010-06-06T09:00:00.000-07:00

We took the kids to the CA Science Center for a "field trip" this week. There were two Imax movies I was really hoping to see, but the undersea one sold out before we got there. I was pretty bummed, but we did see one about surfing the big waves in Tahiti. It was in 3D and the kids thought it was amazing. The littles kept trying to reach out and touch everything :)

As soon as we arrived Ethan ran over and climbed this rope right to the top. He couldn't duplicate it, but it was pretty impressive.

Blue Boys. I'm still trying to figure out how to make my camera do everything I want it to :)

Game of telephone anyone?Sierra, traveling through Egypt on a camel.

In the desert ecosystem there was a flash flood exhibit that the kids really wanted to see. They stood in the "splash zone" and waited for the flood to come. It thundered, and lighteninged, and rained. The water ran out of the hills and then turned to a trickle. Just when they thought it was done...flash flood!
Ty didn't really like the splash zone.

We were there all day and still didn't do it all. There are 3 other museums on the campus too.

Annaleise...You're 1!!

2010-06-05T19:28:00.001-07:00

My baby girl is 1. We've all had such a good time watching her grow, she's starting to take steps now; and she is sooo proud of herself. She wasn't walking for her birthday, but she's going to be soon.

We decided on cupcakes for the birthday party, and I assigned the girls the job of decorating. I LOVE have girls big enough and skilled enough to be able to assign jobs like that :)

I stayed up late the night before making the cupcakes. I could have assigned that job too, but I decided to cut the some slack. Besides, it was sort of fun. We have two types of allergen-full cupcakes, some flourless chocolate, and some vegan vanilla ones. Ahhh, I remember when everyone ate the same thing...

Sierra's happy to be decorating cupcakes :) The toothpick means it's gluten-free.

I asked Hailey to make one where the rose covered the whole cupcake. I decided that one would be Annaleises. Unfortunately I asked for it after the chocolate ones were already decorated, so she didn't get as messy as she could have.

Didn't the rose come out great?? The first one came out great too, but I dropped it on it's top and smashed the rose so she had to do it again...

Annaleise thought it was pretty good though :)

We waited for the party for Eli to open his presents, even though we did the traditional birthday stuff on his real birthday, so that more family could be there.

Miss Cadence :)

The balloons were a big hit. Gotta love the dollar store!

Happy Birthday baby girl! We are so grateful God brought you to us.

Happy Birthday Eli!!

2010-05-30T19:47:00.000-07:00

Eli has completed his 8th rotation around the sun. Even after 8 rotations, he isn't tired of it :-)

We woke up to freezing temps and snow, and decided it was a bad day for me to take him to the Cat Preserve. So, we did the traditional breakfast at Mimi's and then he and I took off.

We ended up shopping for shoes (because the dog ate his), and then we headed to a movie. I gave him a choice between miniature golf and seeing a movie and he chose the movie. Cuz movies are a Very Rare Treat. How To Tame Your Dragon was playing and I had read reviews that left me feeling like I wouldn't be kicking myself for the next 3 months if I took the boy to see it.

The movie had some good points and I actually didn't hate it. There were a few things to discuss when it was over, but it was really a lot of fun.

Earlier in the morning, his friend Everett had given him a knife with a 3in blade. Everett bought it with his own money and presented it to Eli at church. Eli is beyond thrilled with the knife (yes, this is relevant!), and after the movie we stopped in this little candy shop where Eli picked out Spree in a little plastic bottle. We were going to sit at a table outside, and before I even had my chair pulled out I see Eli wiping blood on his pants and trying to look nonchalant.
He had whipped out his knife to open the bottle and sliced into his finger. You should have seen the eyes on that guy behind the counter in the candy store. Eli had just been telling him that he was turning 8 today, and now I'm back in asking for napkins because he cut himself with his knife. "His knife!," he sputters, all bug-eyed. It made me wonder what he would have said if I told him about buying bullets for a friends son on his 8th birthday. Or was he 7?

3 minutes later the guy is at our table with a big first-aid kit to bandage Eli's finger, while customers wait in the store. He was very concerned. I know he wanted to report me to the Hover Parent Police.

Home to a delicious dinner of burgers grilled on our new bar-b-que, and root beer floats for dessert.

Happy Birthday Eli! We love you so.

This Is Why We Can't Find A Church :-)

2010-05-30T11:29:00.000-07:00

"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.

Nashville

2010-05-07T10:02:00.000-07:00

Did you realize the extent of the flooding? Do you remember how we couldn't turn on a television or radio without hearing about Katrina? Where is the coverage?

Spring Has Sprung

2010-05-06T11:00:00.000-07:00

And around here that apparently means we need lot's of baby animals. There are chicks in the basement, puppies everywhere, and Knightly. Sierra's new kitty. He's supposed to be an outside cat but he's so stinkin small he hasn't made it out there yet. And Bingley is uninterested at best. Sierra sleeps with him at night, I'm afraid that moving to the yard is going to be a rude awakening for this little boy.

But Eli is swollen and snotty, and going through an entire roll of toilet paper in one day just blowing his nose. So Knightley's days are indeed numbered. Perhaps some sweet momma cat will come and take him under he wing...

Archery Practice

2010-05-06T09:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the first archery lesson for the upper four. Everyone really enjoyed it, and most everyone hit the bulls-eye at least once.

The younger three had to content themselves with watching the fun and playing in the grass. Some of these were more content doing this than others.

Nothing made Annaleise happy until I put her in the Ergo and she fell asleep on my back.

Ty was initially happy playing in the grass and "fighting" with Ezra. But before long I was we were all paying the price of missing nap-time.

Ezra had a great time watching and looking forward to when he will be old enough to shoot arrows.

I'm so glad it's finally getting warm enough to be outside more. 6 weeks from now I'll probably be begging for mercy from the heat, this will be our first summer off the mountain with no a/c. But for now, I'm really thankful for the sunshine!

Meet Gloria; She's the Hole in Our Head

2010-04-17T17:33:00.001-07:00

All Eli wanted for his birthday was a puppy. And even though his birthday is over a month away his daddy is a softie and here she is. So, we're back up to 3 dogs. And 2! of them are puppies. AND, I still don't have my farmcollie!?!?

She's very sweet. They draw you in that way, all puppy smelling and lap sleeping, and pretty soon their eating your shoes and busting through your screen door.

Eli decided instantly that her name was Gloria. He said, "Chloe is my best, then Mara. I thought about Chloia, but naww. Her name is Gloria, I'm sure of it!"

Oh yea, she's 1/2 border collie, 1/4 Bichon Frise, and 1/4 Pug. Yea, I know. But isn't she cute??

Home Health Care

2010-04-17T17:12:00.000-07:00

I'm a little late to the party since flu season is virtually over, but illness seems to have come to roost at our house and I decided it was finally time to put that freezer full of herbs to good use and make a bit of medicine. I bought a bag of elderberries in preparation for the upcoming flu season back in August or so, but I was initially a bit intimidated by making tinctures and then I just plain forgot.

But the other night the time was right. I watched a youtube video on making elderberry syrup (expensive at the health food store), and got to work. It was remarkably quick and easy, and a whole lot cheaper. Then I whipped up an elderberry glycerite. An alcohol tincture lasts longer, but I wanted to use glycerine for the kiddos. I used alcohol for the Double E Immune Booster from the Bulk Herb Store.

Tinctures are really pricey at the store and they are sooo easy to do at home. I just wish I had done it sooner. Basically, you fill a mason jar 1/3-1/2 full with herbs of choice, fill the rest of the jar with either vodka or a glycerine/water mix. Label your jar and put it in a cool, dark place for 3-6 weeks. Shake it up once or twice a day. Then strain it and your good to go.

Remember when you are using herbs it is key to start early and frequently. If you start a remedy when your symptoms are just beginning and take it every 20 min for the first hour and then every 2 hours, it usually knocks it out pretty quickly.

Ty went from really sick and miserable to perky with just a little runny nose in about 7 hours yesterday with Trilight's Viramune.

I can't wait until I start growing and harvesting my own herbs!

Ta-Da!

2010-04-17T12:57:00.001-07:00

The table is done!

Mike modified these plans to fit our large family and built the table in a weekend. I painted the skirt and legs a creamy white and stained the top with both a regular stain and a gel stain. But first I beat it up a little. My goal was for the top to look a little old and worn, not too perfect. I didn't want the finish to be too uniform. I LOVE how it came out :) I put 3 coats of poly on the top to seal it, but truth be told it probably needs another coat or two.

Ignore the plastic chairs :) Benches are coming soon that will seat 4 on each side, and I picked up these chairs from a friend for $15 ea that will work great on the ends. All told it will seat 12, easy.

I'm going to try a dark brown milk paint on the chairs and benches. Then I'm going to rub some Danish Oil on them to add some depth. I can't wait to have it all done. It's so cool to have such a handy hubby :)

I think he's earned his man hammer!

PS. I got the man hammer at a really cool blog I can't find right now-hope to add a link later :)

A True Patriot

2010-04-17T09:41:00.000-07:00

Joe Morecraft speaking at Carroll County TEA Party from Aubrey Boles on Vimeo.

And They Say We're Dangerous

2010-04-17T08:45:00.000-07:00

Technology is just being developed that can tell us some of the dangers in these vaccines they want to give to our children. Even vaccines tested and deemed "safe" could contain dangerous contaminates that we just don't have the ability to identify. Look at all the commercials by lawyers looking to profit from people damaged by prescription medication.

But those of us who opt out of most prescriptions and vaccines are the dangerous and irresponsible ones.

It's worth doing a search for parts 2-6 of this video.

Breakfast of Champions??

2010-03-29T09:07:00.000-07:00

Is it wrong to give your kids hot chocolate for breakfast? I mean, just hot chocolate??

Because it is quickly becoming their favorite breakfast.

What if you make it with raw milk, non-alkalized cocoa, sucanat, and raw, unsweetened whipped cream? And only use half the sucanat.

I know, better to start the day with NO sugary stuff. But it's soooo good :)

A Belated Birthday Post

2010-03-29T07:22:00.000-07:00

In the hubbub of life Sierra's birthday flew by without garnering a post. It is finally time to remedy that and give sweet Sierra the shout-out she deserves :)

Sierra is 11 now, and just like when each of my children completes another trip around the sun, I can hardly believe it has gone so fast.

Sierra blesses us in so many ways. She loves the Lord and seeks to do His will. She loves her siblings and is always ready to read them a story or chase them around the backyard. She is happy to help wherever she is needed, and she is sensitive, thoughtful, and smart. She's a booklover like her mother and is always on the lookout for the next thing to read.

Isn't she pretty? We all spent the day in Bako. Went to breakfast and later had ice cream at Dewars. They make their own ice cream, but still only had 1 flavor that Ty could eat, strawberry. The strawberry at Coldstone is the only flavor without cornsyrup too. Hmmm.

Then that night she and I went back to Bako for a dinner theater show of The Sound of Music. We had a really fun time and Annaleise didn't give them too much trouble at home even though the show went a lot later than we thought it would.

Yep, she got pickles for her birthday. But not just any pickles, these pickles are amazing and much prized. They are called Fickle Pickles because they literally change flavors as you chew them.

Daddy, praying God blessings on our dear daughter.

And just to make you smile, here's Ty. Being Ty. :)
We love you Sierra and so thankful that God brought you to us!

Let Them Eat Cake

2010-03-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

The girls have been taking a cake decorating class. It's been a lot of fun and they are learning a lot.

This is the first class. I can never seem to remember my camera amidst the diaper bag, spit-up rag, cakes, frosting, baby, etc. So I have relied on the forethought of others to get a few shots.

You can buy gluten free cake mixes now, which has been a real blessing for Sierra. We are nowhere near ready to make our own gf cake, we're still trying to master biscuits :)

The second class was cupcakes, but I didn't get any pictures. They were lovely though :)

These are the cakes from the third class. We are having trouble with our frosting. We use non-hydrogenated shortening, so it is a little soft. But ours has been really soft. We're trying a new recipe next time. It's sad for them to see their hard work turning to mush before we even get home.

This one is Sierra's. Her cake cracked and she and Hailey put tons of frosting on it to fix it. See how it melted down the sides? That's after I pulled about 1/2c off of where it ran down the sides.

They choose the design themselves and I love seeing how creative they can be. I love how she added the grapes.
This one is Hailey's. Isn't it pretty? She's getting really good at the flowers. It looks like she has spring on her mind :)

Louis Armstrong Sings Go Down Moses

2010-03-27T22:01:00.000-07:00

Birthday! Birthday!

2010-03-27T21:56:00.000-07:00

We got to take a little family trip for Mike's birthday this year. We went down to LA and spent the night in Burbank. The kids saw Hollywood for the first time, it's like Halloween 365 days a year. The real highlight was the Griffith Observatory.

We watched a great show about water and the solar system.

Weighed ourselves as if we were on each different planet in the solar system (I'm moving to Mars), jumped together really hard to make an earthquake on the seismograph, and touched the moon rocks.

A good day. Happy Birthday hunny, I love u so.

Hi All

2010-03-26T23:50:00.000-07:00

I've been so bad about posting it's going to take several posts just to update you all on what we've been doing around here. I ordered some fruit trees and Mike gamely put them in the ground for me. Someday we may have apples, peaches, plums, and pluots. 10 trees in all.

We also planted blackberry, raspberry and boysenberry canes. But after a hard rain we realized that our ground prep wasn't extensive enough and we had big pools of standing water where the canes were planted.

So, we had to dig most of them out. And I mean WE in the congressional sense, which is to say, Not ME. My dear husband came home in the rain and dug up those plants. Now they are sitting in pots waiting for the grading guy to come level the plot. Their survival is tenuous I would imagine.

We got to have Cadence for a visit. So much fun to get her all to ourselves for a few days :)

And Annaleise gets bigger every day :)

Book Review: Nick of Time

2010-03-26T22:37:00.000-07:00

Nick of Time by Ted Bell was one of those books that the kids begged for more of. You've got to check your reality meter at the door, but then you're in for a rip-roaring adventure tale wrapped up in a little bit of history. It's got time travel, pirates, battles, and heroism.

Initially set just before WWII, Nick McIver is living on a quiet little island where he doesn't think anything ever happens. Then he finds out his father is a spy for Winston Churchill and his ancestor sends him a time machine and asks for Nick to come to the past and help him. Intrigue and excitement follow for Nick and his sister, and for everyone reading along.

One of the things really enjoyed about the book was the relationship between Nick and his sister. Absent was the sarcasm, sibling rivalry, and me-first attitudes so prevalent in current novels featuring siblings. Nick is protective, chivalrous, and gentle with Kate. So, while the topic stretched the imagination, it also spoke to my kids about loyalty, bravery, true heroism, and caring for those who are weaker than you are.

Goodbye Freedom...I mean Healthcare

2010-03-22T14:57:00.000-07:00

How will the Dems get a single payer system? It's easy, and was their clear and obvious intent from the start. This article is critical reading from someone who actually read the bill. Several states plan to challenge the Obamacare in court, but regardless of outcome, by the time it winds it's way through the system the private health insurance companies will likely be bankrupt. Then hmmm, what are we to do? Guess we need a...single payer system!

If you don't understand why there will be NO private insurance companies, you really need to read the article.

Buckwheat for Breakfast

2010-03-11T10:02:00.000-08:00

Breakfast is the most difficult meal of the day for me. I need something quick, or something that at least requires little actual time in the kitchen. Something nourishing, filling, hearty enough that everyone isn't asking for snacks by 9:30, not too expensive, and it can't contain wheat, corn, or eggs.

Oatmeal is an obvious choice, but certified gluten free oats are hard to find in my neck of the woods (read: I haven't found any), and, well, I really hate oatmeal. Unless of course it comes in those little packages with lots of sugar and pieces of what claims to be fruit. And I guess I like it okay when I make the little packages myself. But I don't bother very often.

To that end, this morning we had buckwheat groats for breakfast. It was super easy, and fit all of the above criteria. Everyone liked it except Ethan, who threw it up. He's a texture guy, things without crunch make him puke :) I should have added some nuts for him to chew on. Next time I think I will add crispy walnuts, a 'la Nourishing Traditions. I think I'll also try sprouting and drying the buckwheat for Kasha. That might be crunchier.

But this morning most of us have been warmed and filled and I thought I'd share.

3c buckwheat groats
9c water
a bit of salt

I toasted the buckwheat in the pot until it was golden and aromatic. Dump out the buckwheat and bring the water and salt to a boil. Add buckwheat and simmer until all the water is absorbed, about 15 min. That's it!

We topped ours with maple syrup, raw milk, sliced banana, and butter. But I think it would taste even better with some nuts, and dried fruit would work well also.

Oh, and I'm going to include our breakfast in the Pennywise Platter, so go check out the other links :)

Recital Time

2010-02-14T18:03:00.000-08:00

Time to show off all that practice. They were really looking forward to their recital and they all did great.

Another Project!

2010-02-14T17:37:00.001-08:00

My commitment to school projects quickly fell by the wayside with the baby, and the move, and sickness, and....well, my aversion to school projects. But as part of our astronomy course (yes, we're still working through it) we were supposed to build a model of Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in our solar system. Which happens to be on the planet Mars.

I had everything I needed in the cupboard so I assigned a big to a little and let them go for it. Hailey and Ethan made one, and Sierra and Eli made the other. I encouraged, and took pictures :)

They built salt dough volcanos and let them dry overnight. Then a little baking soda, vinegar, and food coloring created our explosion. A great time was had by all. They worked really well as teams, and the girls were good at letting the boys share fully in the fun. I really should do this more often, I remind myself. Again.

Book Review: Cowboy & Wills

2010-02-14T17:28:00.000-08:00

Cowboy and Wills is the story of a boy and his dog. It is the story of a mothers fierce love for her son, the power of love, and the indomitable, fragile, amazing human spirit. It broke my heart and lifted my soul. With wit and grace, Monica Holloway brings you right into her life; in all its messy, wonderful, devastating, uplifting glory. I laughed, and cried, and grew in compassion and understanding. You really can't ask for more than that.

I wouldn't give it to my 13yo to read because there is a slight bit of adult content and a few colorful words. But I might read it aloud to her with some editing.

I haven't made the time for reading nearly as much as I would like to, and this book was great to help me get back into the swing of things. I didn't want to put it down.

More Christmas in AZ (original title, No?)

2010-01-15T15:49:00.000-08:00

Christmas in AZ

2010-01-15T15:33:00.000-08:00

Spinach Breakfast Casserole

2010-01-15T15:27:00.000-08:00

I made this for breakfast this morning and since it was delicious I thought I would share. I got to use my cute little Christmas ramekins too :)

Saute a leek and a few crushed cloves of garlic in a few generous tablespoons of butter. The real stuff, not oil. I sliced some really yummy thick sliced turkey lunchmeat from Costco and threw it in too. It would be good with crumbled bacon, or Italian sausage too. Add about 4c of spinach, I shredded it, and cook it until it's wilted. About 5 min. Put everything into 5 greased 1c ramekins and crack an egg on the top of each one. Place them all in a 325 degree oven for about 15 min. Then remove and sprinkle with a little parmesan. So good!

I was supposed to leave the egg off of Ty's, but I forgot. So he had a banana and a smoothie :)

I also made yogurt in the dehydrator last night and it came out great. I made it the night before but it was still much like milk when I took it out, although the flavor was good. I think I just didn't leave it in quite long enough. But this morning the yogurt was thick and creamy, very much like store-bought. Yay!

Puppy...

2010-01-15T14:41:00.000-08:00

This is Mara. We are having a grand time taking care of her while Hailey is gone.

This is the pencil sharpener. The cord is in 4 pieces.

I didn't take a picture of the speaker wire. Or the snow boot. Or the pee.

Monday can't come quick enough :)

In Which I Whine. And Demand.

2010-01-12T15:10:00.000-08:00

I need a web master. My blog is a mess. Video spilling over into the sidebar, sidebar stuff climbing into the middle. I never did figure out how to add my Delicious links. Ugh. But alas, no money to hire a web master, no time to become one. So, a messy blog it is. At least for now. If anyone has webmaster advice for dummies, I am all ears. And thumbs.

And while you're looking at the mess, sign up for Swagbucks. It's the giant square spilling over from the sidebar. I love it so, and if I had a bigger readership I'd love it even more. You earn "bucks" just for doing searches you would normally do, and you can redeem those bucks for prizes. My favorite are the Amazon gift cards. It really works, I've been collecting gift cards :) So, sign up already!

ObamaCare-A Done Deal??

2010-01-12T14:59:00.000-08:00

Who the heck is Scott Brown? That's the question Kathleen Parker answers in her Washington Post article. What he is, is a true threat to the blue state status quo and ObamaCare. He actually seems to have a fighting chance of winning Ted Kennedy's vacated seat in Mass. If he wins, he should be seated before congress votes on a unified bill, and the Dems won't have the votes to push it through. What an amazing irony that would be! Imagine Ted Kennedy's old seat costing the Dems Obamacare!! Perhaps that would finally get through to Obama and congress that the people Do Not Want this bill. Or....not.

"Paul Kirk, currently serving as interim Senator in Massachusetts, has declared that Brown, if he should be elected, will be delayed from any voting in Washington for as long as possible. Masssachusett’s Soros-funded Secretary of State, the corrupt William Galvin, has promised to do everything he can to stall the certification of Republican Brown “so that Democrats can pass the healthcare bill”.

If there was any question that congress has no interest in the will of the people (there was no question, right??), this seals it. They plan to get their way through any means necessary. Like good little Alinsky followers, they believe the ends justify the means. The only question to ask is, will it work. That alone is the basis for action. The....Audacity.

This One's For You, Chance

2010-01-11T19:40:00.000-08:00

Toxins, Toxins, Everywhere!

2009-12-29T22:47:00.000-08:00

Cancer From the Kitchen. We all know by now that non-stick is bad, right?? But how about your food containers. Are you still using plastic? I have transitioned to mostly glass for anything hot. I store items like cookies or cold things in plastic, but anything warm goes in glass. Click through and read the article, it's worth it.

Here's To a Healthier New Year

2009-12-29T21:56:00.000-08:00

I thought I would pass on what I read in one of Dr. Mercola's email alerts today, mostly for the benefit of my family who won't click through to a link. You know who you are :) Also because I want to keep it where I know where it is. It assumes you realize that doughnuts, chips, and fries are on the "No" list :) They are talking about real foods that we may not consider to be health risks. It is taken from an article on Yahoo Shine and it's worth clicking through to read the whole thing. It's titled:

Avoid These 7 Foods and You're Off To a Healthier New Year

Canned Tomatoes. Whoda thunk!! Item number one prompted this post. I would not have dreamed that a top food to avoid would be canned tomatoes. Apparently "the resin linings of tin cans contain bisphenol-A, a synthetic estrogen that has been linked to ailments ranging from reproductive problems to heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Acidity -- a prominent characteristic of tomatoes -- causes BPA to leach into your food."
Corn-Fed Beef. No surprise here. We have been eating grass-fed beef for a while now but our proclivity for eating in restaurants is like shooting ourselves in the foot. The article says, "A recent comprehensive study found that compared with corn-fed beef, grass-fed beef is higher in beta-carotene, vitamin E, omega-3s, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), calcium, magnesium, and potassium."
Microwave Popcorn. Yep, knew this one too. It's the stuff that lines the bag the gets ya. It's linked to infertility, as well as liver, testicular and pancreatic cancer. It vaporizes with the heat and leaks into your popcorn.
Non-Organic Potatoes. "Root vegetables absorb herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides that wind up in soil. In the case of potatoes they're treated with fungicides during the growing season, then sprayed with herbicides to kill off the fibrous vines before harvesting. After they're dug up, the potatoes are treated yet again to prevent them from sprouting." I was struck by this comment in the article, "I've talked with potatoe growers who say point-blank that they would never eat the potatoes they sell. They have separate plots where they grow potatoes for themselves without all the chemicals.
Farmed Salmon. "Farmed salmon is lower in vitamin D and higher in contaminants, including carcinogens, PCBs, brominated flame retardants, and pesticides such as dioxin and DDT."
Milk Produced With Artificial Hormones. "rBGH or rBST increases udder infections and even pus in the milk. It also leads to higher levels of a hormone called insulin-like growth factor in milk. In people, high levels of IGF-1 may contribute to breast, prostate, and colon cancers." I would go further and say that only organic raw milk should be consumed. Cheese is another issue, you need to search out cheeses that use clean milk. I think Tillamook is still good.
Conventional Apples. "If fall fruits held a "most doused in pesticides contest," apples would win."

Mercola then adds his additional input. I knew canned foods were the least healthy choice when compared to fresh or frozen, but I didn't realize that one can of some items contains more than the current US guidelines for "safe" levels of BPA. Look for glass jars! He includes the following facts:

Non-organic meats have up to five times more pesticides than non-organic vegetables.

Non-organic butter can have up to 20 times as many pesticides as non-organic vegetables.

So when prioritizing your purchases, look for organic meats, eggs and dairy products before anything else.

And he adds that we should never consume unfermented soy. Soybean oil...Bad. Strongly linked to thyroid issues and various cancers.

We should make our own choices about what we eat and feed our families. I just think we should have the facts about what is being done to our food. I don't know why it has to be so hard to get through the grocery store!

Randomness

2009-12-01T15:36:00.001-08:00

My internet connector thingy mabob died. Again. At our last house we couldn't get dsl and opted for one of those wireless cards that lets you connect anywhere. Sort of. Unless it's cloudy, or raining, or Tuesday, or a full moon. You get the picture... It's been really frustrating. And my laptop is pretty new and I always wondered if it was really that slow or if it was just the connection. Because it would take me 30 minutes to load a 3 minute U Tube video, if I could download it at all.

But yesterday the little connector card died and I am without access until I figure something else out. But I needed to balance the bank account and pay a few bills so I headed to Starbucks. I'm not really supposed to be blogging. The baby is at home. But I just had to share...IT'S NOT MY LAPTOP!! Web pages are flying open, there is no waiting. I bet I would watch a whole concert on U Tube. Anyway, I'm pretty excited. Just wanted to share :)

Oh, also found about $500 of charges from someone who is not me. Looks like my information has bee stolen, so I'm off to the bank :(

Food, Sort Of

2009-11-21T22:28:00.000-08:00

So we watched Food, Inc. the other night. Not news exactly, but disturbing none the less. I can't believe how difficult it has become to get truly nutritious food. Actually, given what Obama and company are doing to our country I can believe just about anything, but I'll spare you my conspiracy theory diatribe. (Is it still a conspiracy theory if it's true??)

Anywaaay. We are two steps forward, one step back in the healthy eating department. But we are on a forward trajectory right now and trying to get back into the swing of things :) I really want to avoid high fructose corn syrup as much as possible. This requires pretty diligent lable reading and just skipping a lot of things because it is in EVERYTHING! Pickles - check, ketchup - check, bread - check... But it's important, so we're working on it.

If you want to read a little about why it's so awful for you, and especially for your kids, you can start here.

One line in Food, Inc. really stuck out to me. There was a poor, hispanic family being interviewed. They worked long hours, on the go a lot, usually resorting to fast food in the car. The husband had deveolped diabetes and the wife said, "Before he got diabetes we never thought about whether something was healthy. We thought all food was healthy." Now they struggle to decide whether to spend their money on presciptions or vegetables. So sad.

Ojai

2009-11-20T22:41:00.000-08:00

Hailey and I took an overnight trip to Ojai for some good food, good conversation, and good memories. We had a great time and had the opportunity to talk of the weightier things that require the kind of time and environment that has been hard to come by lately :)

I also made her smile for the camera:)

This is the old Ojai jail. When it was built the railroad tracks ran between it and the park, it was built on "the other side of the tracks." It was used into the 1970's! We read that a few men actually spent upwards of a year here.

In Which Bingley Has a Very Bad Day

2009-10-24T22:00:00.001-07:00

*Disclaimer* It's Yucky

Sunday afternoon we all piled in the van and as Mike started it there was this big thud. He turned it off as quick as he could and we looked at each other. It was NOT a good sound. He got out and started looking under the hood and under the van. He kept looking, and looking at me, but he didn't say anything. I finally got out and saw something dripping under the van. I thought it was coolant. But in a moment I realized it was blood splashing onto the pavement. The blades of the engine fan were lying broken next to the pool. We couldn't see anything under the hood, but we could hear raspy, labored breathing through the grill. A quick look around revealed two kitties, Janey Cat and Darcy. No Bingley. UGH

I was totally beside myself. I didn't know what to do. Soon Darcy was sitting under the van yowling. Not long after, Jane joined him. It was...awful. We were certain there was nothing we could do, he had been sucked about a foot back and couldn't be seen. We knew he was dying, kids were crying, I was crying, we couldn't just sit there so we piled into the other cars and left.

At dinner Eli reassured us all that it wasn't Bingley. He says he saw Bingley with Darcy. "No, Eli. That was Jane, we couldn't find Bingley. Bingley is his cat and as that sunk in his eyes welled with tears. Then he shook it off and declared that he was sure he was around somewhere.

We were gone a few hours and when we got home it was dark and Mike decided to handle "the matter" then while everyone was safely inside.

About 20 min later, I hear a frantic "Michele!" Ohhh, "he's not dead" I thought. And I rushed outside to find a bloody and battered little kitten in a plastic tub. He looked a mess, but he was clearly alive. And we had left him there for hours. I was just sick. We quickly decided we had to take him to the emergency vet in Bakersfield to have him euthanized. So all the kids were ushered out for final goodbyes and we left.

They immediately take Bingley back and we settle in for the wait. After waiting an eternity to be called back into the little room we are ushered in for the vet. And she cheerfully tells us that he's the best looking engine cat she's ever seen and she thinks he'll be just fine. And it's not even going to be expensive, only about $600 We just couldn't say, oh no we just came for the shot! So we signed on the dotted line and I scaled back my home improvement wish list :)

One testical had been ripped out, so the neutering was completed. He had quite a bit of head trauma, but all he really needed was time, rest, and pain meds. He is feeling quite chipper now, and he even looks mostly normal :)

And that is that story of Bingleys very bad day, and ours too for that matter :)

What Happens When

2009-10-24T17:04:00.000-07:00

You get smacked in the face with a 2x4 that has a big ole rusty nail sticking out of it :(

Baby Time

2009-10-04T23:51:00.000-07:00

On Saturday Mike took the kids to Whitney Portals for a fun day of fishing and hiking, and Annaleise and I got to spend a quiet day together. Because my husband is just that cool. It was lovely.

We spent a little time at a park taking a few pictures when I wasn't trying to keep other peoples kids from jumping on her, over her, and around her, and taking her attention off of me :)

She was a little tired and not entirely in to the picture thing, she mostly wanted to suck her thumb, eat her blanket, and watch the other kids. But I got a few shots that made it all worthwhile.

Here are two of them.

Which one do you like better?

I played with the color a little on the second shot, the first one is SOOC (straight out of the camera). I don't know much about doctoring my pictures. I think I actually prefer the un-touched one. I'd really like to learn how to make the eyes pop a little more. So much to learn, so little time :)

I also forgot to button the back of her outfit, so it is a little floppy at the neck. It's really apparent in some of them.

Seriously though, don't you just want to eat her up!?

Obama - Change You Can Believe In

2009-09-06T21:32:00.000-07:00

There are so many reasons to object to Obama's upcoming speech to schoolchildren, and many people in the blogsphere are talking about it. This is the best article I have read, and at the Common Room she has some great ideas for our own kids :)

The Hand That Rocks the Cradle Rules the World

2009-09-01T20:57:00.000-07:00

Michelle Duggar is pregnant again. This will make an amazing 19 children! They are certainly not your average family, and I am sure that when she and Jim Bob married they had no idea what God had in store for them. I'm certain that if you had asked either of them if they thought they could "handle" 19 children they would have thought you were mad. But God doesn't give you the grace to walk through something until you are walking through it. It's a day by day, moment by moment kind of thing. I surely never thought I would have 9.

What I thought was really interesting is the article I linked to. I've talked to so many people anxious to "do something for God." They want to delay marriage and child-bearing in order to do "Gods work". Or they limit their children in order to be better able to minister. I've talked to women with several children who wonder what their calling is... But Alex Leo gets it. He seems to be writing from a secular perspective, but he sees the power in what the Duggars are doing. Can we really say Michelle hasn't done anything but have babies??

It's so easy to forget. It's so easy to think that because we are at home, wiping noses, rocking babies, making meals, and doing laundry, that we aren't involved in ministry. That we aren't doing anything to advance the kingdom of God.

But in wiping noses, rocking babies, making meals, and doing laundry, we are worshiping our God. As we lay down our lives we take up the cross. And what we're really doing with those children entrusted to us is discipling them. As we live our lives in faith, we teach them to do the same. They are arrows to be sent out as weapons for Christ! If all we do is welcome all of the children the Lord has for us, whether it be one or twenty-one, raise them in faith, and send them out, and if all they do is the same, in just a couple of generations we will once more live in a christian nation! Raising children in the fear of the Lord is powerful. It is humbling and awe-inspiring. It is hard, and nothing will have you on your knees more often.

It's encouraging I think, that the Duggar's oldest son was eager to have children upon marrying. Being the oldest in a home with so many children would mean a lot of responsiblity would fall on him. He has spent his life helping to care for children, and yet he is eager to care for his own. This is a family that has passed on their vision. And their faith. That is my prayer.

It's Our Anniversary

2009-08-27T14:30:00.000-07:00

12 years, a lifetime and a moment :) When I look at how much has changed during our life together it seems it's been much longer than twelve years, but it seems like only yesterday we were planning our wedding. Well...maybe a month ago :)

I am so blessed to have this man as my husband.

As time has gone by our love has deepened and matured and I can honestly say things are better all the time :)

We went to dinner together a few days before our anniversary to my very favorite place. And on the special day we loaded up all the kids and headed to Lake Isabella. Mike's recent trip there with Ezra reminded us of what fun it would be with all the kids there. And it was! Warm and lovely, utterly relaxing, a Very Good Day.

The girls thought it was even better than swimming in a 8 foot pool :)

Party Time

2009-08-24T14:49:00.000-07:00

We had a little family party to celebrate the boys birthdays. I was too busy visiting to take many pictures, but I did get a few of the gift opening and cake. It was a very nice day, we don't get together often enough. The presence of those who couldn't make it was missed, but those who came were appreciated :)

Ty wasn't much into presents in the beginning
But things improved once he got the hang of it. Ezra didn't let Ty bring him down though :)

Whew! What a day.

Ty Courage is 2!!

2009-08-24T14:22:00.000-07:00

Titus culminated our big birthday month by turning 2 on the 18th. Sometimes he is still the adorable, melt-your-heart, sweet boy that he was a few months ago. And other times he is all willpower with no restraint. In other words, he is OFFICIALLY two :)

Daddy and Ty went to the park, then got ice cream and took a little walk around town. They had A Very Good Day together.

Ezra Turns 6

2009-08-24T13:41:00.000-07:00

Ezra celebrated his 6th revolution around the sun this month. It's so hard to believe he is 6 already. Time goes by so quickly.

In honor if his special day daddy took him to Lake Isabella. They had a lovely cove all to themselves and had a grand time. The kids all enjoy this special time out so much. And the rest of us look forward to going out to breakfast before they leave :)

Let Them Eat Cake

2009-08-20T07:53:00.000-07:00

August is a big birthday month in our house. Chance turned 23, Kirstyn turned 19, Ezra turned 6, and Titus turned 2! Time it marches on, doesn't it! Last year Hailey made a Candyland cake for Eli as her present to him, and this year she decided to do a dragon cake for Ezra and Ty.

She made the whole thing from scratch. Well, not the decorations, but the cake and the frosting. She is getting to be quite good in the kitchen :)

After spending a large part of the day in Bakersfield, we got a pretty late start on the cake, which had her decorating at 9 0'clock :) She made an extra layer because she wasn't sure there would be enough cake otherwise, which was nice because then Sierra got to decorate too. She tried her hand at lettering for the first time, and decided it wasn't quite as easy as it seemed!

The finished products came out terrific though, and they tasted great too!

Cutting out the parts

The layer broke, but Sierra camoflagued it with frosting :)
Making the back scales
Ahh, now he's coming together
Lookin like a dragon!

Ready for decorating
Great Job Sierra!
All done, isn't he fabulous!?!

So Big

2009-08-20T07:41:00.000-07:00

She weighs 13.4 pounds now. I know this because my very generous sister sent me a really cool baby sacle. For which she has still not been properly thanked :0

PS Doesn't she look just like Sierra in that picture!?

Thought for the Day

2009-08-16T10:01:00.000-07:00

All You Have...

2009-08-15T09:48:00.000-07:00

Kitten Fun!

2009-08-12T12:33:00.000-07:00

Because we are bad cat owners who thought that crossing our fingers would prevent loose morals in Miss Jane, we are now the proud?? owners of 5 little kittens. The children were thrilled to learn that kittens ought to stay with mum for 12 weeks, to prevent neurosis. You know, to prevent them from turning into the type of grown cat that is forever kneading your belly, sucking on your shirt, and generally showing signs of missing it's mommy. So, they figure they have 3 full months in which to convince their father that all of the cats should remain.

He's not having any of it.

But for now at least, we have kittens! They were nearly birthed in Reeces' alfalfa, but Mike discovered her just in time to get her into a box in the garage. Actually, a series of boxes as we kept deciding the current one was too small and interrupting her labor to move her to new digs. They are about 3 weeks now and have just begun venturing out of the garage where Janey will let us play with them without too much stress.

And so, we introduce....

Mrs. Bennet

WickhamBingley
Darcy, looking ferocious

The other one is Mr. Collins, poor thing. But I couldn't get a good picture of him.

Transformation

2009-08-11T19:19:00.000-07:00

Don't you love it? I think she looks lovely, but her little-girl looks are on the beauty shop floor. Even she was surprised to see how she looked. She's happy though :)

Beautiful Girl

2009-08-11T19:16:00.000-07:00

Typical

2009-08-10T23:01:00.000-07:00

I just love little baby feet. Love em. So, a few weeks back (or was it a month??) I got little Annaleise to sleep and lay her in her little bed. I made sure I had a little white blanket under her, because nothing says newborn baby sweetness like white. I laid her on her tummy, which she doesn't like, but I think it makes for a cuter baby feet picture. I carefully drew her tiny feet together so that they looked just like the image of sweet baby feet I had in my head and I began snapping pictures.

I was using my new lens, which I actually purchased while thinking of baby feet. I had fantasies of crisp pictures of sweet feet with beautiful bokeh (that's blurred background to all you novices ;) ). The nap was cut really short cuz I kept messing with her feet, but it didn't matter. I got some great shots.

But things are pretty busy around here and it took a while to finally load the images on to my computer, so that I could see them in all their glory. And when I did, they were as sweet as I thought. (Did I mention I think baby feet are sweet? I think I need a thesaurus) And then, wait....what's that? There's something yellow on her heel... A big smudge of poo on the bottom of her right foot!??! Noooo! I should have saved them so that you could witness my defeat (no pun intended) but alas, I deleted the evidence :)

So that's how things are going around here, how about you?

4th of July Fun

2009-07-07T22:36:00.000-07:00

We went to a 4th of July celebration in our little town that was basically a collection of booths with things to buy that left us wondering why we were back. (We did this last year :)) They do have a cool Civil War canon (Civil War??) and some fun things to look at though. Snow cones all around helped beat the heat and we headed out when all the kids started looking like this...

This was the object of their fascination

And for the next 20 minutes or so everyone looked like this

Well, except for her

After some lunch we headed over to the park for some monkey time

Except for her. And her. A sunburn on the back of her legs sidelined the big one and the little one was too busy being irresistable :)Home for naps and we finished the day by making s'mores and watching the fireworks from our front yard. A really nice day, hope yours was too!

A Good Day

2009-06-29T09:11:00.000-07:00

What We're Doing Around Here

2009-06-17T14:33:00.000-07:00

Cowboy Ty

2009-06-15T07:04:00.000-07:00

A Visit With Family

2009-06-13T13:41:00.000-07:00

Grandma, Aunt Lyn, Kirstyn and Cadence came to visit the other day and along with some sweet time together we got some nice family shots.

Pretty Girl

2009-06-13T11:00:00.000-07:00

The Rest of the Story

2009-06-04T19:51:00.000-07:00

Lets see, where was I? The second hospital gave a diagnosis of meconium aspiration, and that is where we started at Valley Childrens. Our beautiful baby was hooked up to tubes and monitors, lying in an oxygen hood. But she was doing well, and because she seemed to be responding quickly to the antibiotics it was decided that amniotic aspiration was a more likely diagnosis, it takes longer to recover from meconium.

The second day at Childrens her second RSV test came back negative and we were able to move out of isolation that night. We were moved to a room with several other babies and then a couple of hours later a room-in room opened and we moved there. We had to give up our room at Ronald McDonald in order to room-in with Annaleise at the hospital so Mike went to deal with that. While he was gone they brought his "cot." It was just that, a cot. They said cot, and we pictured a thin mattress on a metal frame. Close - minus the mattress. It was think fabric stretched over a metal frame, and the fabric was torn and frayed at the center bar so that it layed on the metal even before there was any weight put on it. Sleep, of which there had been very little, was looking ever more unlikely.

We pointed out the frayed fabric to the nurse, who went in search of another cot and found instead another chair that converted to a "bed." So we each got one of those. I'm sure they were better than the cot, but the idea that they were designed for sleeping is a bit far-fetched. Not that it mattered because every 4 minutes one of the monitors would beep loudly. I don't mean to sound unappreciative. We were utterly exhausted both physically and emotionally, but very grateful to be able to stay with Annaleise. We were able to perform a lot of her care which was a blessing. One of the things that had to be done was keeping track of how much she ate. This was accomplished by weighing her before and after eating. The difference is presumed to be what she consumed.

There were several things that they were looking for in order to let Annaleise go home. My milk had to be in, she had to be feeding well, her CRP needed to be below 1, her chest x-ray needed to show improvement, her blood culture needed to not grow anything, she needed to do well without oxygen and needed to be able to maintain her body temp.

Sunday she looked good and we were hopeful that we would be leaving that night. We expected to see the Dr. that Am., but she was tied up with 2 really sick babies for about 10 hours and we didn't see her until that night. In the meantime the nurse took her off oxygen and out from under the heat lamp, she continued to hold her own. But when the Doc came she said the CRP (something that measures inflamation in the body) was still 1.8 and the chest x-ray showed a lot of particulate remaining in the lung. She really wanted us to stay 2 more days. After a lengthy discussion and agreements to see a pediatrician within 2 days of getting home she decided to release us. We were told that she may end up crashing and then she would need 7-10 days in the NICU.

The only thing left to do was remove the IV. Which brought our final hurdle of the night. When they took out the IV, it was discovered that it had perforated the vein and infiltrated her foot. Her entire little foot was swollen and red, with a fairly large weeping cut, a blister and some bruising. The neonatologist thought there was a spot that looked like it was begining to necrotize and she didn't think she could release us. But the PA thought it looked superficial and would heal okay. It was finally decided that the hospital would make an appointment with the plastics team for us and if is didn't heal by the time the appointment came up we would come back up to have her evaulated for possible skin grafting. By this time it was 10:30 pm and we decided to get a room in the area and head home in the morning.

Okay, babies call. More later.

Pictures and the Story :)

2009-06-01T20:04:00.000-07:00

Introducing...

Annaleise Geneva Elliott
Born 5-28-09
4:58 am
9 pounds 12 1/2 ounces
22 inches

For 6 nights in a row I was woken at 1am with contractions that lasted 6-8 hours and stopped. I was dilated to 5cm, the contractions were definitely strong and painful, but the timing wasn't regular and they just weren't long enough.

On Wednesday I had contractions on and off all day and as night came they continued. I wasn't able to go to bed at all, but I couldn't decide if it was labor that wouldn't stop. They were very hard, and they were lasting a minute or so, but the timing was all over the place. Finally, at about 3:30 am I had Mike get up and begin getting things ready. I called my midwife about 4, and after that call it seemed the contractions just never stopped.

When my midwife arrived I was dilated to 8cm and got into the pool. 26 minutes after the midwife arrived, Annaleise was born. The cord was wrapped once around her neck, and maybe around her body as well. She had some bruising, a little bit of fluid, and was, of course, beautiful :)

Things seemed to be going fine until about 5pm. Hailey changed her diaper and brought her to me to nurse. I looked at her and she was just blue. Her whole body. And she was blowing mucousy little bubbles and flaring her nostrils a lot when she tried to breathe. Her little chest was sucking in too. She slowly started to pink up, but it took several minutes. I offered to nurse her, but she was working too hard breathing to nurse. A quick call to the midwife and we were off to the ER.

Someone came out to see us right away and checked her 02 levels. Her saturation was 92 when we got to the ER and they took us right back. After establishing that she was born at home on purpose, and that I had received prenatal care at home, they began the battery of tests. Chest xray, blood work, lumbar puncture, catheter, antibiotic injections. Her chest xray showed something in her left lung, but it wasn't clear what it was. But while we were waiting they had a monitor on her to keep track of her oxygen levels and she crashed. Her saturation level dropped to 60 and they started albuterol treatments and deep suctioned her. Soon we were transfered by ambulance to another hospital and admitted into the pediatric unit.

It was about 1am by the time we got there and after getting settled in for the night Mike headed home for a little rest and to gather the things we would need to stay a little while. Grandma was with the kids, which was a huge blessing. In the night her levels dropped again and the put her on blow-by oxygen, but she seemed to be doing better. She nursed a little, screamed for a couple of hours and slept. In the morning they took her to a treatment room to start an IV. The first hospital stuck her 5x and kept blowing the vein, so the nurse promised that it would only take a minute and if they couldn't find a vein quickly they would skip the IV and just give her the antibiotics through injections.

An hour later they still had her and I could hear her screaming over and over. I finally went to the nurses station and told them to bring back my baby, that they didn't get to stick her anymore and I wanted to talk to the doctor. But when we went into the treatment room to get her it turned out that she had crashed again and stopped breathing, they had called RT for a breathing treatment and decided that an IV could not be avoided. After that she was on a nasal canula for oxygen.

Once the pediatrician came to see her arrangements began being made to transfer her to the NICU. Then her RSV test came back positive and she couldn't move to the NICU because they didn't have an isolation room. The doc believed it was a false positive and was going to test again, but ultimately he decided that she needed a higher level of care than they could provide and he wanted to transfer her to Valley Children's Hospital about 3 hours from home. A helicopter was coming to get her.

About an hour later we heard that the helicopter had a mechanical issue and an ambulance would be coming instead. The hospital social worker got us a room at Ronald McDonald House and Mike went to grab more stuff.

She was put in an isolation room at Children's Hospital and we had to wear gloves, gowns and a mask to be in the room with her. She wasn't allowed to feed because she was working too hard to breathe. The initial diagnosis was meconium aspiration.

There's more of course, but I am really tired now and Annaleise wants to nurse. I will try to finish the update tomorrow. For now, enjoy the pictures, pray as you feel led, and join us in praising the Lord for the precious blessing he has entrusted to us.

We're Home

2009-06-01T12:18:00.000-07:00

Annaleise was released from the Nicu about 10:30 last night. We stayed in a hotel in Fresno last night and made it home this morning. We are so grateful to be home and praise God that she is doing well. The Dr. said that if she were going to crash it would likely be in about 3 days and then she would be in the NICU 7-10 days. So we continue to pray that she will recover completely and will not have to be rehospitalized.

Specifically our prayer is that her left lung would heal and her body would be able to eliminate the residual infection and particulate. We are also praying for healing for her left foot. When they removed her iv they found that it had perforated the vein and her foot is very swollen and blistered. There is an area where the skin is broken and sloughing off. There is one spot that the neo-natologist is concerned has signs of necrotization. Her limbs in general are full of needle sticks and bruises of course, but the foot is an area of concern.

For those who haven't heard:

Annaleise Geneva Elliott
Born May 28, 2009
4:56 am.
9' 12 1/2"
22 inches long

Pictures and the birth story are coming soon. Hopefully this evening.

It's Done!

2009-05-08T14:16:00.000-07:00

The much anticipated bookcase is finally completed. Mike did his part a long time ago, the actual building of said bookcase. It was a definite learning experience and he did a great job. But the artsy sides happened in late-pregnancy time. Which is to say, ridiculously slowly.

For the painting of the bookcase he indulged my desire for bright colors and whimsical design. In fact, if I hadn't been there to run interference it would have been even brighter. I know, right!

My favorite side is definitely the green diamonds with the hearts. Those are the kids hand-prints inside the diamonds. Love it!

I wasn't sure what to do on the other side, but I finally decided on stars. There are maybe a few more stars than necessary and the choice of stars might be a bit more whimsical than I was going for... The painting was a learning experience as well, it's no secret that I'm no artist. One word of warning, paint does NOT cover marker. So, if you outline, say, stars for example, in marker, specifically washable marker, it will bleed through and mix with your paint. Ask me how I know. But all in all, Love IT!

2009-05-02T10:48:00.000-07:00

Make a pregnancy ticker

Air, I Have Air!

2009-04-25T11:52:00.000-07:00

The baby dropped on Wednesday. I was sitting in the movie theater and suddenly I could fill my lungs with air! No gasping, no feeling like I just couldn't quite breathe. And instantly the incessant heartburn disappeared. It was miraculous. Then, 10 minutes later, she came up again. Goodbye oxygen, hello heartburn.

But Friday morning when I woke up she had moved down again. And so far she's staying there. When I went to the chiropractor Friday a.m. he said my pelvic area felt much different and that the baby was a lot lower and my pelvis a lot more open. She's been sunny side up to and I am hopeful that is changing as well. I felt what seemed like a spin on Thursday, and I seem to be feeling less movement right in the front. So maybe she's looking at my spine instead of my navel. That would be good. I see the midwife on Friday and she should be able to tell.

Another month or so and my sleepless nights will have some company :)

Nature Journaling

2009-04-21T19:24:00.000-07:00

Nature study is an area that is sadly lacking in our homeschool. Our good intentions just don't seem to pan out that often. It must go back to my aversion to projects :) But I do consider it an important part of a well-rounded, liberal education and I want my children to love nature and enjoy chronicling what they see. God is manifest all around us!

So, the other day as I was sick in bed I recalled the flowers that were blooming on the hill down the road. In a nature study cheat I sent the kids down the road to look at the flowers and take some pictures we could use to try to identify them and draw from. Not exactly the nature walk CM recommends, but certainly better than nothing.

They loved their little field trip and today we attempted to identify the flowers and recreate them in our nature journals. It was a good time and the results aren't half-bad. Ezra elected to do only one picture, he wanted someone else to draw the second one. He didn't quite grasp the concept :)

I think what I enjoy the most is how all the pictures are so different, yet they all represent what we were trying to re-create. We are experimenting with different mediums and don't always know what we are going to get!

I think the blue flowers are Baby Blue-Eyes, but I couldn't find anything on e-nature that looked like the yellow ones. Any ideas??

This is what we were trying to draw:

And these are our efforts:

Sierra
Hailey
Ezra

Eli

Ethan

Mom

Thanks for looking!

A Visit With the Grandbaby

2009-04-17T16:40:00.000-07:00

We got to visit with the Kirstyn & Zac and see the beautiful grandbaby yesterday. She's growing so fast! She is scooting and squealing now. She does this high-pitched, excited squeal that she clearly inherited from our side of the family. It has entertained generations of us now :)

Happy Spring

2009-04-15T10:13:00.000-07:00

I miss Texas :)

He Is Risen!

2009-04-14T10:48:00.000-07:00

We had a very nice Resurrection Sunday, full of family, good conversation, and too much food. I didn't know how mobile I would be able to be so I kept the menu pretty simple, but quantity was another story. I think we'll be eating roast for a week :)

Redneck Easter Baskets

Grandma brought plastic eggs to hide, 165 of them!

It took Ty a little while to get the hang of it, but now he's hunting with the big kids! This is just before he hung himself on the ropes.

Looking for the $10 egg
Counting up eggs. We're still looking for the last 5.

Boy Stuff

2009-04-14T10:27:00.000-07:00

Eli came running in the house yesterday holding a string tied to a stick. "Look! I made a toy for Janey Cat!" Sure enough, it was a cat toy. Of sorts. It seems Chloe was getting a lizard and Eli wrestled it away before she was able to kill it. He tied it to a string and tied the string to a stick. The lizard soon died but Janey still enjoyed chasing it as Eli drug it across the patio.

Unfortunately, when Eli came in for lunch Janey ate the lizard and that was the end of the cat toy.

See How My Grandbaby Grows

2009-04-03T12:47:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago we girls were able to go down and visit with Kirstyn, Zac, and baby Cadence. It was a FREEZING cold, windy day but we decided to do some miniature golfing after lunch.

Great Grandma Suzanne was able to join us and we had a very nice, if very cold, day.

The cars were the highlight for the girls. They thought it was pretty cool getting to drive them themselves.

It was hard to get a good shot of Cadence because, as I mentioned, it was really cold. I didn't want to unbundle her. You can still tell she's beautiful though :)
We were not very talented golfers. By then end some of us were just throwing the balls. And I think we skipped the last few holes altogether. Did I mention it was cold??

All in all, a very nice day together.

He's A Big Boy Now

2009-03-31T16:48:00.000-07:00

The time had come. I really couldn't postpone it any longer. Titus needed a haircut. It was long, out of control. It covered his ears. So, Eli, Titus, and I trekked down to the local barbershop. Eli went first and Ty oooed and ahhhed, laughed and pointed, giggled and stared. Then it was his turn and as I lifted him into the chair he started wailing. Inconsolable, broken-hearted cries. But, the barber had a secret weapon...CANDY. I started feeding him bits of candy and he started smiling. Not really holding still, but smiling as he drooled giant puddles of pink slobber onto the cape.

15 minutes later he had aged two years and another milestone was achieved. I think he looks pretty handsome. Don't you?

This is before

Are You Ready?

2009-03-30T08:06:00.000-07:00

Many people are already experiencing bad times. Job loss, homelessness, despair. But I believe it's going to get worse, much worse. I just don't see any way to avoid it at this point. Everywhere I go I seem to be running into people who feel like they should be preparing. It's like this little niggle in the back of their minds telling them that this is different, that life might really be about to change. And not in a good way. But a lot of them are talking themselves out of it. This is America after all, not some 3rd World country. Surely things will be okay. Where would they store extra food anyway?

I believe this depression will be much worse than the previous one. We have gangs the likes of which were unimaginable in the 1930's. Violence, drug addiction, and the welfare mentality are epidemic in this country. We have huge numbers of people far more inclined to take what they want than save, prepare, economize, innovate, walk miles for work, and band together in cooperative communities. That means that this depression will be far more violent and dangerous.

We also have a lack of skills. In the 30's we had many more people that gardened, kept some chickens, cooked from scratch. We were less dependent on conveniences. We knew our neighbors. We saved a larger portion of our income, and if we had debt it was likely only a mortgage.

In short, it's a whole different world. And the coming days are not going to be pretty.

But this is not a post on ways we could be preparing. I am still working on that one. The main purpose of this post is to share a couple of blog posts/articles that I think may be helpful. The first one is here. Read it. Then spend some time reading the rest of the blog. Another one is here. It's quite long, but there are a lot of ideas in it. It was written by a man who lived through the economic collapse in Argentina and there may be many lessons for us in his experience.

We are not to have a spirit of fear. Difficult times are coming. And also, I believe, exciting times for the body of Christ. The church has lost her way, but I believe revival and regeneration will come as well. So pray, be wise, seek to understand the times, redeem the time. And rest in Him.