snowy beautiful saturday

The snow is clinging to the tree branches. I love living out here in the country where looking out the window is so relaxing. A silo across the street, nothing but hills and trees out back....

Well, we sucessfully avoided Wal-mart yesterday. Real Deals ( a dollar store) is wonderful, they often have snacks/food worth much more than a dollar, like 6 packs of Nature Valley granola bars, or 24 count packs of Pillsbury ready to bake choc. chip cookies....Then we went next door to Big Lots. I especially like the 1/2 price bin. We eat it so fast, it doesn't matter if the expiration date is looming. I mean Chocolate Lucky Charms for $1.00? Eight boxes. Then we went to the Chinese restaurant for lunch. It was Emily and I, with Sonja, Jon, Charlotte Claire, and Camille. The kids really enjoyed it. They love having the "hot tea".....I was a good girl, I didn't over eat. Then we went to B.J.'s. It is a huge warehouse club. You have to know your prices, because some things are actually quite expensive. They always have coupons that make things not only reasonable, but bargains. They have a really cool teeter-totter airplane thing that holds up to 7 kids...it looks so fun!

Today is my little Molly Rose's birthday. 14 years ago today, I went in to be induced because I was a week overdue. All day long, the contractions came but didn't hurt and didn't dilate the cervix. I remember talking to my sister on the phone around 4:15 in the afternoon, and telling her nothing was happening, and I might go home. Then, things moved. (did she pray for me?) I went from 4 centimeters to birth at 5:10.....She was born effortlessly, although I did yell loudly for God to help me before I pushed her out (that part of birth is wicked painful for me, when the baby is all the way down). As she was being born, the doctor, who was Indian, exclaimed, "God wants you to have babies, Della!" So, when I tell Molly her birth story, I remind her that the first word she ever heard was God. The next day, when she was one day old, was our 10th wedding anniversary. We were married 10 years and had 7 children. The hospital used to have a special dinner for new parents, roast beef and lobster tail. So, we got to go out to dinner on our anniversary in the hospital. The nurses babysat!

My arms are full of baby in the evenings, so I have gotten in the habit of going online in the morning. I really have to get up and get moving. All the work that was done yesterday has to be done again today.....but, it's Saturday, and the kids are home, and I love them. I'm sure I'll be tempted to anger and irritation, but by the grace of God I'll be good, gentle and kind.