yay, my new cord is here!!!

I don't have time to put any pictures up now though. It is getting to be that What-The-Heck-Is-For-Dinner-Time. One would think that by now, I would be a better planner. But I made a good dinner YESTERDAY!!!

Thanks to my dear daughter Abigail, I spent most of the day sorting laundry and washing clothes and organizing things. I could use another day to finish sorting and putting things away better, but it probably won't be tomorrow. Too many other things seem to slide when I do a big job like this. I did take a small break to sit in the sun for a little while.

Abigail is oiling her trumpet, I wonder how Rosie will like that. Kathryn is setting up dollhouse, Evelyn is playing Sims, Suzanne and Sonja are outside with Jonathan and Charlotte Claire and Camille. Benjamin is at the gym with Sam, they will pick up Mali from track when they're done. Sonja just came in to tell us that her shoe is on the roof (I didn't even ask), and Rosie escaped. Of course when she is called, she turns around and runs as fast as she can towards the neighbors. rrr. Mirielle and Margaret are around here somewhere, as is Joseph, and Aaron. And Emily is probably just waking up to go to work.

Jonathan's jeans are all muddy, he said he fell in the "snakefield". The snakefield is what they call our back-back yard. He came walking in here in his undies and shirt, but his sisters already told me he got all muddy. I asked him where his jeans were, and he looked like he was going to cry....."It was an accident!", he said. I asked him how he got muddy, and he asked incredulously, "How did you know?" They must've told him he was going to be in big trouble.

The little girls still have lots of candy left in their baskets. I have just let them have it when they want, and amazingly they have been very wise with it.

Now Jonathan is playing the trumpet, in his plaid undies with a striped shirt on. I don't know what's funnier, the audio or the visual.

Joseph rescued Rosie, and she smells like poop. She probably stepped in it, stupid dog. I do love her, but she cannot come in now until she gets a bath.....rrr. Why, oh why, did I want a dog?

Time flies when mommy is on the computer. Because Mommy doesn't just sit here and write, no sir. Mommy has to find out if Sonja really bit Evelyn's butt, or is Evelyn just kidding? Can someone please wash Camille's face, it is chocolate-y. Charlotte Claire had to tell me that tonight she is not going to cry at dinner time like she did last time. "I promise!", she said. Last night she cried and cried and cried because I had told her we were going to have a special dinner with candles, and when it was time to eat at 6:30, it wasn't dark out. She doesn't understand the time change, or the fact that summer is approaching and it stays light out longer. She did not want to have a special candle dinner when it was still light out. So, she cried. It didn't work, we didn't put the food away and wait. She finally came and joined us.....anyway, Suzanne showed me the bruise on her arm from the playground, and Jon stepped on Camille's toe. I don't seriously want everyone to leave me alone, but....jeepers. I just cannot concentrate right now, but that's okay. I need to talk to these guys anyway.

good morning!!!!

My new computer cord isn't here yet, so I am sitting at one of the family computers, which allows me to look out at the front yard. The big van and the pick-up are parked in the grass on either side of the driveway because Paul is such a nice daddy. Jonathan loves to ride his bike, and although we live on a country road, it is curvy and hilly and the speed limit is...- well, there is no speed limit posted. I can see the birds flitting about, and the newborn baby leaves gracing the trees, and the yellow flowers blooming on the bush that I cannot remember the name of.





One thing I have been thinking about lately is this: A good marriage is worth fighting for. If you have to ask why I say "fighting for", you probably...A. Aren't married. B. Have been married for a short time. C. Are very lucky. But in general, there is a fight that is necessary so that there is not only peace, but a pure love between husband and wife. First I have to have the mind to bless. Then I have to know full well it is true with me what is written in this verse, Romans 7 v. 21"So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me." There is a better translation that says, "I find the evil present IN me." So...when I acknowledge that YES, I have sin....then I am not surprised that even when my intention is to bless, I still have to sit in judgement about the way I am. It can be so painful to humble myself, but it is beautiful to God, and it brings peace. We have been married for 26 years, and it is better than ever for us. Not because of us, but because God has been so merciful. Salvation is not just a one-time thing, it is a continuous process. Phil. 2, v. 12 ..."continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling"....It is a GOOD fight, against our sin. It brings peace and blessing and oneness and goodness.

I am happy today. All of the kids went to school except for Kathryn and Margaret, who both went to Ottowa for the weekend, then both stayed up and watched Anne Frank, and now have stomach aches...hmm. There are only four days of school for the elementary school kids this week. Friday, they get to stay home because it is Grandparents' Day. It makes them too sad, and no school work gets done, so they get a day off. Spring Break is the following week, so I will have them for ten days!! Aaron will not be here, he is leaving for New Mexico on Wednesday. He is going to visit some of our good friends who moved down there a few years back. And when he gets back, he will start his new job at McDonalds. Poor kid. But he is thrilled to have gotten a job. He certainly can use the money.

I have big plans for vacation. There are a few parks I would like to take them to, and perhaps the Children's Museum again. They also love staying home and building forts in the woods and riding bikes and going in and out of the house, slamming the door. What??! The seem to LOVE doing that. Okay, okay, I am sure I will find plenty of irritation in myself, but by the grace of God, we will have a wonderful week.....

Mirielle is going back to college this week after a nice vacation. It was really good to have her around, poor girl. I mean, it isn't exactly Daytona Beach or Cancun here. But she got some sunshine over the weekend. And plenty of treasures in heaven, I'm sure.

Abigail is coming over today to help me with the kids. I am going to do some laundry sorting. I do this thing where I pick things out of the hampers to wash, and every few months I notice there are things in all the hampers that I haven't gotten to.....and also that the hampers get mixed up instead of being exclusively for darks or whites.....so I have to empty them out and sort and get things organized again. I don't mind doing it, especially when someone is watching the girls....I know, I am very lucky. I haven't forgotten yet what is like to try to get things accomplished with four or five little ones who don't go to school yet, but it is getting a little blurry. And I would choose that again in a minute if I could. In fact, one of my favorite daydreams is going in for an ultrasound for a surprise pregnancy and being told, "Mrs. Mommy, there are two,...no wait - Three! wait, I think there are FOUR in there!!" (if I am dreamin', may as well dream big...) Anyway, I am thankful to have help now when I can, it decreases the likelyhood of the girls using all the soap or painting their nails on the bedroom carpet or sneaking outside.

And, I love having Abigail over.

Kathryn is cuddled up to Charlotte Claire on the couch watching, "Totoro", breaking my NO Movies During The Day Rule, but rules were made to be broken, I guess.

And now my first load of clothes is dry....so off I go, to fight the fight of faith and have a good day.

sunday...a day of rest

We are watching "The Diary Of Anne Frank" on the public television station. It is hard to complain about how busy I have been today when this is on. These poor people were terrified, and of course we already know how it ended.

But it HAS been a busy day. We got up and went to church, then came home and had our grilled cheese and fruit on the deck, in the warm sunshine. The kids rode their bikes and played on the swings and went in and out of the house. I made dinner for only 8 of us. The youth age kids were at a picnic. I made Chinese food: sesame chicken and General Tsaos chicken, and rice and stir-fry vegetables. Suzanne and Sonja acted as if I was feeding them roasted ladybugs or something. Not the rice and chicken, no, the vegetables. Carrots, red peppers, green beans, snap peas....heavenly...but not to them. I got out some chocolate covered mint cookies, and sort of bribed them to at least try each thing...they ate most of them after all, with those cookies in sight. '

I did a few loads of laundry, the dishwasher, and some picking up. It IS Sunday, so I didn't get stressed out about getting all in order today. Tomorrow will be soon enough, although when I wake up and see the mess tomorrow morning I will probably wish I had done more today.

Well, my dear daughter Emily has stopped in...I REALLY can't concentrate now...

home, home again, I like to be here when I can....

(pink floyd)(yes, I used to listen to them, and still love their music) Anyway...we are back, the kids are fine, and the house didn't fall down. Mirielle is a saint, that's all there is to it.

I took some nice pictures but cannot put them on until my computer gets fixed. Paul has ordered a new cord, so it should be pretty soon. Here are the things I took pictures of:

1. The lake. The lake from our window, the lake from the pier, the lake from the beach, the lake from a different beach.

2. Paul. I took a picture of him in the warm and cozy and loud and delicious pub we went to for dinner. We had the fish fry, and it was good. (I had sweet potato fries, ooh.)

3. Amish people plowing the field with horses.

4. A bald eagle in a bald eagle's nest, on top of a huge electric post.

5. Our hotel from out on the pier.

Things I didn't get pictures of:

1. The laughably small pool in hotel. I was absolutely shocked about how tiny it was. It looked like a hot tub.

2. The albino deer we saw.

3. The fish swimming under the surface of the water, from our hotel window.

4. Paul relaxing and playing his guitar.

5. Our lunch date at the opposite end of the lake from our hotel. (we were going to split a sub, but it was Customer Appreciation Day at Subway, so the subs were buy one get one free. We still each ate half, but saved the other halves for dinner)

So life went on when we were gone, and Mirielle kept in touch with us, since we all have cell phones now. She texted and said things like, "Camille just fell and cut her lip and is bleeding alot but I think she's fine", and "can you bring home some tomatoes?"

Camille is still up since she had a nice nap today, and she is sitting with me waiting with a pile of books. She is a story-crazy girl. and she is getting impatient.

wow, here we are at the lake!

today is Paul's birthday, he is 22, ha, and we are celebrating here by the shore of one of the prettiest lakes in the state. Our room is on the fifth floor, overlooking the water, and it is just beautiful. The kids are not here, just Paul and I. They are home in good hands with lots of babysitters.

Just to relax and talk with no interruption is a beautiful thing. We are appreciating it. Out on the pier is a lady walking a puppy who is staying right with her without pulling and tugging. No fair. I do know there are no bad dogs, only bad masters.....I have been walking the terrible Miss Rosie every day, trying to train her to behave and one of these days possibly acknowledge that she is not the boss.

We watched part of the Duggar family's show and they are a lovely family. We agreed that Mr. JimBob seems pretty domineering, but that is just based on one episode. Their house is drooly-good. Spacious and clean and open and I WANT IT!!!!

We are going to check out where we should go for dinner....we don't have much to complain about here, do we?

my house....

This is the house that Paul built. Paul and three of my brothers. We were on a low budget, and wanted a functional house. It is on 2 and a half acres, in the country, and it is a "raised ranch", so the front downstairs is half-way in the ground, but it opens up totally in the back, with full sized windows downstairs. When I drew up our house plans (I drew a rectangle and filled it in), we were expecting our fifth child. He was a year old when we moved in (and I was newly pregnant for Aaron) We obviously didn't know we would end up with this many kids, but I am glad we can fit them in. A few of the rooms downstairs were playrooms when the older kids were little......

Anyways, our house: it is leaky. The plumbing in the main bath leaks sometimes into the bedroom beneath it. It has been fixed, but not fixed enough, apparently. Now a new trick is happening, when someone turns on the hose outside, it leaks into the downstairs. We did not know of this new trick when we let the kids play with the hose and fill the little pool last week. The downstairs carpeting is WET. Today we have lots of windows on and a fan running down there. It can and will be fixed, it is just part of being HAPPY HOMEOWNERS. Our windows need replacing. Over by our door there is a spot of bare floor where my dearly departed brother Billy neglected to finish the tile, covered by a few throw rugs, now starting to deteriorate. Not the rugs, the floor. So we cannot just slap a few more tiles, we have to replace the floor boards. And our screen door got broken or bent in all the snow, and doesn't close all the way anymore.

Is this a complain-y post? It isn't meant to be. I just want to be realistic. Paul isn't such a Mr. Fixit, but he is a great daddy and a wonderful husband. I do not mean to complain about him, either. We are just busy with a lot of things, and things here just don't get done. I did vacuum and mop today, I am not talking about those kinds of things. (If we lived in a great big spacious new house like the Duggars, I wouldn't have any trials at all. ha.)

Most of the time it doesn't bother me that there are so many things to fix up. But every once in a while, it really gets to me. But it takes time and money to do things, and.....

So why am I writing about this? I guess I want to be honest. We all have our trials in our life, and there are things we cannot control, and cannot automatically fix immediately, so what shall we do? We can plan and do our best, and be at rest about the rest. Ha, I poemed that....

Today my computer is at work with Paul, he is having a guy look at it for me. Yay. Because if he can fix it, I can put pictures up again, and sit in my nice comfy chair with it, instead of this awful chair at the computer table. And I am hogging this, there are at least three kids who want a turn. The kids are all home from school now, and they have things to talk to me about so ......(and I had SO many things to say!)

But one more thing: Joni, that "twilight baby" that you speak of is my secret hope. Paul said a while ago that if I get rid of all the baby stuff, I would surely have another one. So I got rid of most of it, like 90% of it. Wouldn't that be a double bonus, if I had another and had to get all new stuff too?

crazy in here...

I don't know why it is so crazy, there are only 14 people in this living room. The two little girls are tired, and Charlotte Claire has been on the Sit n Spin for so long she is dizzy. I am glad she is done, it is noisy. Some of the girls have two dollhouses set up, Sam is reading the weather out loud, Jon is telling me about his headache, about why he had to be picked up from school today. Camille wants me. My computer is broken. It will not turn on. Joseph thinks it is a virus, Paul thinks it is broken where the power cord goes in. I don't know, but it makes me a bit sad. I am writing this on Paul's laptop.

Today...wow. Going, going, going. From the bank to here to Target to Price-Chopper to Aldi to home, where I made pork chops and salad, and we had bread and butter and strawberries with angel food cake and Cool-Whip.

At the grocery store today, it was tear-water tea. The cashier found out that I have eleven daughters (because I was buying lots of headbands and hair elastics, on sale of course)....and she sadly told me that she is thirty two and has ZERO children. She said her dream daughter is named Emily Elizabeth. My Emily had taken Charlotte Claire and Camille outside, and came back in to see if I was finished yet. When the cashier heard me call my daughter "Emily", she said to me, "You have an Emily?" Like NO FAIR. I felt very lucky and undeserving. The cashier said she has three cats. I felt so bad for her. She obviously isn't playing with a full deck, and I say that in a purely observant way, no critiscism intended at all. In fact, I would like to adopt her and just be good to her and take her into my family. The world is too cruel for some people, and it is sad.

Now I have to put these kids to bed.