Multitude Monday 171-200

171. curriculum being delivered for next school year

172. a friend to can with

173. cheap pizzas at Little Ceasars

174. willing helpers for snapping green beans

175. free squash

176. poison ivy that could be finally trying to clear up some (I am not sure yet)

177. tomatoes from a Mennonite farm

178. 3 little piggies in their new home

179. finding the poison ivy in the back yard and Super Hubby valiantly trying to eradicate it

180. rain for the garden

181. giving up weed eating (its how I got the poison ivy)

182. vacation time next week with Greg

183. my little "homestead" in the suburbs

184. the birthday of my nephew, Ben (yikes, he is 12)

185. sweet tea and a club sandwich at McAllisters Deli

186. magazines in the mail

187. a successful, fun, safe weekend for our youth group

188. upcoming ice cream party at our house for youth

189. dinner in the crockpot

190. tomato plants (finally planted, really thankful for the rain now!)

191. talking to sons that are no longer living at home

192. delivery of Katie's College Plus materials to get started with

193. homemade pound cake

194. hugs from Max (they are few and far between, but much appreciated)

195. friends who "dream" with us about providing for our families (i.e. chickens & pigs, canning vegies)

196. sandals in the summertime

197. a glorious, fun weekend with my husband while kids were at camp

198. dinner and a movie (last Friday night)

199. fresh green beans for dinner

200. a good nights sleep

Wonderful Promise from the Bible

Isaiah 43: 1-3

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you, I have summoned you by name; you are mine. when you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior."

How great to know whatever our trials, tribulations, and conflicts, God is ALWAYS with us. He knows us by name and is concerned and involved in our lives.

I Didn't want to do any of it.....

On Wed. of last week, I started breaking out with Poison Ivy. Now, to you folks out there who just itch a little, have a few spots and then it goes away, I envy you. I know that envy is wrong, but I just don't get away with a little itch. I get a major breakout, intense itching, redness, etc (I feel like I should walk around like the lepers in the Old Testament yelling "Unclean, unclean") By Thursday, it was very noticeable and I went to the dr. Now, the weird part about this is, it started and is most "violent" on my face. I got the dreaded steriod shot (those things burn, I don't how athletes pump themselves up in this way, ouch). By Sunday morning, the entire right side of my face was swelling...into my neck and up to my eye. Greg texted our Dr. and he replied back, tell her to take Benadryl. Greg's return text was, she took 2 last night, its worse and the reply was, I will be there in a minute. (He lives up the street from us). So my dear dr. made a house call. Turns out I am having a hyper-allergic reaction and now have a secondary infection, what a blessing. Out comes the prescription pad and I get antibiotics and pres. allergy pills. Within several days, the swelling was mostly gone and the itching was somewhat under control if I remember every 6 hours to take the little pill. Now, it has spread..hands, legs, arms, back of neck etc. Another call to the dr. and viola, a pres. for 7 days of steriods. So, I couldn't pass a drug test now, if my life depended on it. (Not that I have ever had to worry about that)

This brings us to the title of this entry...I Didn't Want To Do Any Of It...

We had a full week planned.

Tuesday night: Greg, Will and I were shopping for our church's Haiti fundraiser Spaghetti Dinner
Since the girls were at a party, we went out to eat at O'Charleys, to do something special with will. The lighting is not quite dark enough in there to cover the rash on my face, but hey I gotta eat. Next was a trip into the well lit, Sams Club. Now, when folks ask if there is anything else they can do for me (in a store), I ask if they have a cure for poison ivy. Remember...unclean, unclean.

Wed. was the Keepers meeting at our house. So more folks were blessed with my "look". They were sweet and all are praying for a fast recovery. Wed. night was bible study at church and inspecting the kitchen for stuff we would need to the dinner. Again, lots of prayers and sympathy for my condition.

Thursday am...prep salad, brown gr. meat and make spaghetti sauce. Praise the Lord for willing helpers and prayers. I didn't touch anything with my bare hands, I wore a pair of food safety plastic gloves and Greg's cooking gloves with grippers (I think they are fish cleaning gloves)

Thursday pm...back to the church to finish preps and start serving. From 5-7 we served about 200 dinners through our "drive-thru" pickup. The cars pulled up to the door, someone got the number they needed from their pre-sold tickets and we got the dinners out the door. Gordon Ramey from "Not Heavens Kitchen" would have been proud, we completed our dinner service!
We had lots of help and lots of fun. Greg and Pastor Jeff cooked the noodles, all 30 pounds of them, in shrimp boiler pots outside. Then the food hit the assembly line and all was taken care of. Here are some pictures

So, had I stuck with my original "I didn't want to do any of it", I would have missed a tremendous blessing. The whole week was fun and I had a great time. We got to work with, visit, and serve with other families in our new church, in a way thats hard to fathom if you don't volunteer. "I can do ALL things through Christ"...now please Lord, erase the poison ivy from my body and if you have time, a total eradication of the plant from this planet would be greatly appreciated!

This weekend Greg and I will be ALONE. And that doesn't happen very often. K,W, &A are going to a weekend Youth camp with our church. They will have lots of great times with their friends and we will have peace & quiet.

Now, onto Kroger...unclean, unclean! But, since I haven't been in almost 2 weeks, I need to go.

Keepers At Home

Some of our plans for Keepers at Home meetings are wonderful, fun and calm. This meeting was wonderful, fun and hectic. When Jennifer found the plans for the "Little Dresses for Africa" and emailed the group, I thought it was a wonderful idea and wanted us to do them. But, I didn't thoroughly think through the logistics involved. So many girls haven't sewn before (or the mamas), so it was a little tricky. 6 sewing machines and 2 ironing boards take up a lot of room. Plus all the little dresses in different stages of completion. 2 1/2 hours later, we had some completed dresses and mom/girl teams happy with their results. In the picture above is my little friend Kaytee Beth in the pillowcase dress I made for her. Its all girly and frilly just like she is. I have enough fabric to make one for her older sister, so they will match.

Angela, Vida Jo and Kaytee Beth with Vida Jo's dress.

Emmalynn with her dress.

Jennifer and LoraBeth with her flowered dress.

Emily and Sandra. You can't tell in the picture but the little dress has tiny green palm trees.

Betsey and Emma, I love the lavendar!

Amy and her dress. Katies will be made another day...she was holding babies!

What I do in my "Spare" Time

Quilt top made from the Log Cabin Pattern

Flag Wall Hanging

These are the Little Dresses for Africa I have made so far..have bunches more cut out.

Our blueberry harvest so far...don't laugh at the small harvest, this is about 35 times larger than last years. There are still berries ripening on the bushes.

My beautiful peaches were harvested by some sneaky, conniving, thievin' squirrels. And then the rodent/s left the peach pits and partially eaten peaches sitting on the fence posts to mock me. We have bought a TRAP!

Multitude Monday 150-170

150. Spending Fathers Day with the Daddy of my children

151. finding a D.A.D.D. t-shirt for my husband (Dads Against Daughters Dating)

152. Steaks on the Meat Managers Special at the grocery store

153. a 16 year old son who loves to spend time with Dad

154. Amy's chocolate pie with whipped cream

155. Katie "devouring" books

156. a finished quilt top

157. shopping for fabric

158. the promise through a shot, antibiotics, & allergy pills of poison ivy clearing up (Please Lord)

159. a dr. who made a house call this weekend

160. choosing curriculum for next school year

161. Sun Crystals in my sweet tea

162. a pile of fabric slowly becoming Christmas gifts

163. book sales that yeild treasures for homeschooling

164. a clean sewing table (this doesn't happen often!)

165. helping the Haiti team get ready for their trip

166. hearts with a commitment for Missions

167. our marriage bible study

168. seeing my youngest children grow and mature as Christians

169. my 17 year old daughters willingness to jump in and help in the kitchen when needed

170. being the oldest parents with the oldest kids at "Toy Story 3" on Friday

Happy Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day...to the man of my Dreams!

I love you!

Thanks for all you do for our family!

Keeping It Real

Yesterday I talked about my "ideals" for my children. And I talked about the flaming arrows that society sends our way to thwart our efforts (cool, I used thwart in a sentence!) But sometimes in spite of our best efforts, our diligent prayers, our teaching, lecturing, guiding, etc. Your children can go ways contrary to everything we dreamed of...

All 7 of my children were brought up going to church...regularly. Some now have fallen out of the habit. There are all kinds of excuses, working, late night on Saturday, didn't want to go alone, etc. I know...I've been there. But they are just excuses. Also, give back to the Lord a portion of what he has given to you.

They are all expected to work and contribute to their own upkeep. In other words, if you live on your own, pay your bills. Get a job, work, keep the job, budget your time and money. Some struggle with this. The 3 still at home have chores they are expected to do every single day. We've got 3 dogs and 4 chickens...they depend on us for survival. We've got garden/yard work, pool cleaning, laundry, kitchen chores, garbage etc. (And if anyone objects to the kids doing chores and being held accountable...we are trying to raise a bunch of kids who can take care of themselves and be a blessing to others.)

They know what we expect from them morally. No living with a person of the opposite sex. Guard your eyes, ears, etc. Don't bring your bad language, lazy habits, or whatever into our home. They have all been brought up in Christian homes, act like it.

If you are in college...GO. Keep up your grades, make this most of this opportunity. Many don't have this and desperately want it. Don't throw it away. I've told them, If Greg can work full time, be responsible for a large family, volunteer at church, work at home, take Master's Classes and make A's...then whats the excuse if you "only" go to college.

I have 1 son who has in the past totally and completely broken my heart and my trust in him. He allowed a perversion to enter his life and he has paid for it. (So have the rest of us) When your babies are little and you dedicate them to the Lord, your intentions are great and honorable. But you can't run their lives. You can love them, cry for them, pray for them, and be embarrassed for the circumstances and situations they find themselves in. But the bottom line is...he is my son, I love him dearly, I pray for him daily. Thats all we can do.

I've been Pondering...then and now.....

Definitions taken from "Noah Webster 1828 Dictionary"

DATING- expressing the time of writing or of executing a paper or instrument; noting the time; noting the time of happening or originating.

COURTSHIP- The act of soliciting favor. the act of wooing love; solicitation of a woman to marriage

SOLICITATION- Earnest request; a seeking to obtain something from another with some degree of zeal and earnestness. (just in case you were confused about the meaning)

PURE- Free from moral defilement; without spot; not sullied or tarnished; incorrupt; genuine; real; true, unadulterated; free from guilt, innocent

PROTECTED- covered or defended from injury; preserved in safety

MODEST- properly restrained by a sense of propriety; not forward or bold; not presumptuous or arrogant; not boastful; not loose; not lewd

PARENT- A father or mother; he or she that produces young. The duties of parents to their children are to maintain, protect and educate them.

I do not know what is so wrong with PARENTS wanting to keep their children pure, protected, and modest. Todays society mocks parents and other adults for wanting to protect and shield children from bad influences, situations, and circumstances. We parents are accountable to each other and to the Lord for raising our children. We are not accountable to other family members, neighbors, friends ect.

My job as a parent is to nurture, protect, correct, encourage, educate, love, and diligently pray for each of my children. I also hold them accountable, expect them to be honest, share mistakes from my past in hopes it would help them, teach them diligence and how to stick to a job & complete it. I also pray for their future spouses and my future grandchildren. I would love for our 7 children to marry godly spouses, live Christian lives (regularly attend church, tithe, bring up their own children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord), and have a career they like & that supports their family. I would love my daughters/daughters in law to be able to stay home and "keep house", encourage & bless their husbands, and love & play with their babies.

Yes, I am old fashioned in my attitudes and not ashamed of it. If more parents were old fashioned and expected their offspring to behave, toe the line, get the job done, tell the truth, and be diligent, the world would be a better place. Too many kids run wild, wear immodest clothing, lie to get out of trouble, blame someone or something else for their shortcomings, and quit when the going gets tough, all because thats what everyone else is doing. They flit through life expecting someone else to take up their slack, they don't like consequences, or being held accountable. "Everyone else" (whoever that is) are stupid, have no self control, are spoiled and always want their own way & they want the folks around them to act just like they do.

Just because the year is 2010 doesn't mean the current way of life is better than 50, 100, 150, or more years ago. Way back then...children were busy with life, they helped support the family, they were working with Dad or Mom at age 11 or 12, they helped put food on the table and then clean it up afterwards. Families worshiped, worked, ate, played and loved. There weren't any "teenagers" leaving for many hours of the day to pursue their own interests and expecting their parents to be at their beck & call for money, rides, indulgences, etc.

I like the "way back then" way of life. It was simpler, quieter, less busy, and more productive.

You know you have a Friend when...

You know you have found a true friend when.....

You can tell her anything (& she is not shocked)

You can both discuss your kids (& know what the other is talking about)

She understands "where" you are coming from (because she is there too)

You have interests in common (gardens, canning, chickens & now pigs, and kids)

You can talk about mistakes you have both made in the past (& there is no judging)

You can talk about what you want for your kids in the future (our goals are the same)

Your husbands both have the same first name (Greg & Gregg)

You can understand what her 3 year old is saying (in all his giggly enthusiasm about going swimming)

Together you can sweat picking loads of green beans (& then she cans them for you)

You can pick up conversations where you left off a week or a month ago (sorry, some things are private)

Greg and I prayed a long time for me to find a friend in Miss. I found one!

Thanks for visiting and coming to swim today 'Rie. Hope next time the weather cooperates better!

Multitude Monday 120-149

121. doing crafts at Vacation Bible School at our church

122. fellowship time setting up and breaking down VBS

123. a quiet house

124. a backyard pool

125. anticipating next school year

126. deals at CVS

127. fresh, summertime tomatoes

128. squash casserole made with squash from our garden

129. watermelon

130. sewing time

131. a husband who listens

132. finding something we thought was lost for good

133. new cookbooks (I love to read cookbooks)

134. time to finish quilting projects without starting anything new

135. a clean kitchen

136. watching old movies with Greg and the kids (Music Man)

137. signing up for dance classes next year

138. sweet hugs from children in VBS

139. hot weather (might as well be thankful for it because its here)

140. eating dinner together as a family

141. no more homeschool group obligations

142. dreaming about a "family business" with my husband

143. my tile kitchen floor (this one doesn't hurt my feet! Thanks Greg)

144. buttons (I really like cutesy buttons and like to shop for them for dresses I am smocking)

145. looking at fabric

146. completing projects that have been pushed aside

147. homemade vanilla ice cream

148. company for dinner and swimming

149. memories of my sweet Daddy...16 years after he died

They Amaze Me

Pictured above are "Cleo and the Patrets" LR - Amy, Emmalynn, Morgan (Cleo), Leigh Catherine and Katie

It all started with Morgan helping with music for Vacation Bible School. A, E, L, & K sat on the back row and did all the motions (very exaggerated) to tease Morgan. Ryan, our music minister, watched them and recruited them to sing on Sunday Morning for church. So these darling, Christian, goofy girls all got up on stage this morning in their Egyptian makeup, clothing and accessories and "performed" behind the VBS kids in the morning worship service.

It was fun to watch them and laugh with them. I am very thankful that Katie and Amy have these Christian friends to have fun with. These girls have made their transition into the church very pleasant and welcoming!

Wednesday night they will all be at our house for a "youth" cookout and swim party.

Introducing.....

Here are HP (Henny Penny), CL (Chicken Little), Beatrice, and Beulah.

Amy and I are excited about the Peaches. Isn't it gorgeous? It will be made into Peach Jam.

I don't want to get too confident, but we may get the blueberries this year instead of the birds. The girls and I covered old tomato cages with tulle and put them around the bushes. We can see the blueberries ripening. Yummy for muffins. I've got a new bush to plant also, so that will make 5 bushes. All the fruit trees are planted and most are staked up and mulched. We've eaten green beans twice from the garden and gotten 4 yellow squash. There are some tiny cucumbers on the plants. Greg and Will built the cucumber support the other day, so now they have a nice place to grow up instead of out.

Its been a tremendously busy week so far and its going to get busier. I've been sewing some sashes for bible school which starts on Friday. The girls have made Egyptian Collars for the kids to decorate out of colored fun foam. Now we are coming up with a pattern for the adult collars out of glittery foam sheets. We've also got to cut straws to use for bracelets. It'll be a busy and fun weekend.

Next week the kids are helping 'Rie at her VBS.

Ballet

They practiced for months...they ordered the costumes...they played the music all the time...they were beautiful... We are praising the Lord for a Christian Ballet teacher who loves the girls and always has creative, worshipful recitals!

If you would like your daughter to be part of this ministry you can contact Abigail Patterson on Facebook: CTM School of Dance or email crosstiedministries@hotmail.com. Please tell her I sent you! The prices are reasonable and the fellowship is great!

Multitude Monday 86-120

86. cousins swimming in the pool

87. a beautiful ballet recital

88. little chicks getting used to their home

89. visits from Mom to Miss.

90. days spend with my husband

91. using my new camera to take recital pictures (bought since last recital)

92. the gift of "gleaning" in someones garden

93. Bible study on Marriage we started last night

94. Netflix...we are catching up on seasons of "24" we have not seen

95. Homestead Blessings DVD's

96. books to read and re-read

97. involvement and church & feeling like my input is respected

98. a wonderful friend who canned my 19 quarts of green beans last week

99. fresh, frozen vegies from the truck at the co-op on Sat.

100. Turkey dinner in June

101. cucumber plants that are taking off

102. huge thriving squash plants

103. staked up, mulched fruit trees

104. a small church youth group with involved parents

105. Breyer's new Chocolate Popsicles, wow, they are yummy

106. 2 weeks with no caffeine

107. gallons of tea sweetened with Sun Crystals

108. lazy nights at home

109. enrolling Katie in College Plus this week

110. a Son who has gone back to college

111. a girlfriend who is encouraging the college attendance

112. a full dinner table

113. the first ribs Greg grilled this year...Awesome!

114. cross stitch pictures

115. nasty kisses from my niece and nephew

116. lots of hugs and thank you's from my niece and nephew

117. strawberries waiting to be turned into jelly

118. a friend who likes the same stuff I do

119. Brach's Jelly Beans (I buy many bags after Easter and make them last...I hide them!)

120. Bible School this weekend at church

The Pool Hall

5 years ago, when Greg bought this house, he also bought a pool table. Since there is no room inside, the "Pool Hall" is our double garage. Its got a piece of carpet on the floor and a fancy light over the table. Here are the pool sharks in action last week!





Thats Will and my nephew Ben. They spent lots of time last week playing pool, swimming and playing the Wii. We had a great visit!

Ben thanked me many times for inviting him to visit! He was really sweet and I really enjoyed him and Bethany coming to Miss. with Granny.

Tomorrow...dance recital pictures! It was AWESOME!

Its been Busy

Last week was a pretty calm week. We got stuff done, had lots of down time, relaxed a little, etc. This week is a whole different chapter in that book of our lives.

*After picking up the girls from dance on Tuesday, we were in a bad rainstorm. I stopped at a traffic light. The lady behind me couldn't stop in time, she rear ended us. Sitting in a braked car and getting hit from behind makes your back and neck sore. Thank heavens no one was seriously injured in either car. and Praise the Lord, she had insurance.

*About an hour later, Mom, Ben and Bethany got to our house. Its really lively when they are here. It takes a while for Bethany and Hershey to get used to each other. But this visit, it happened pretty quickly.

*Wed. morning I went with Greg to the dr. to check out some concerns we both had about his health and the advisibility of him going to Haiti. We stayed there for a couple of hours and then they sent him to another dr. I couldn't go the 2nd time because of Katie's grad. party that afternoon. In the middle of this BJ calls and asks if we are ready to pick beans in his garden, ummm, no too busy today, maybe tomorrow.

*Katie's pool party started at 1. I prayed for sun from 1-3. The Lord sent us a thunderstorm about 1:45 and it lasted till 2:15 or so. Plan B was quickly thought up and put into action. After the girls consummed unreal amounts of ice cream, sprinkles, syrups, whipped cream, candy/cookies, and of course a cherry on top, we played the game Apples to Apples. They all had a blast and then got to swim again after the rain.

*We ate leftovers for dinner and then all headed to church for bible study. Then I took one of the muscle relaxers the dr. gave me for my back pain from the wreck. It relaxed every single, solitary muscle in my body including my eyelids. I had a great nights sleep.

*We got up and picked loads of green beans. It took 9 of us 1 1/2 hours to pick the 2 rows. Mom, the kids and I got busy at home snapping. My buddy is going to can them for me and I am going to sew a quilt top for her. I want to learn to pressure can, but this is not a great week for that.

*Then it was orthodontist time. One of Amy's bands broke on Sunday night and this was the first appt. we could get (their office is moving). Unfortunately, the space closed up and they couldn't get the new band on, so they put spacers back in. Then to dance for several hours, a trip to Target, dance again, then Chick Fil A for dinner.

*Tomorrow is the dress rehearsal for dance.
*Sat. Greg is cooking ribs and then we have the recital.
*Sunday will bring a full day of church with services, visiting, parent meeting, and new marriage Bible Study.

Multi- Tasking

Some days I am a great multi-tasker. I can do several things at once and get them done correctly. But today was not one of those days...

Here's what happened

Wash laundry
Hang it up
Start another load
grind wheat
mix & bake muffins
clean pan
hang up another load
mix up cookie dough
bake 2 pans of cookies
run outside because its starting to rain on the clean clothes
put more cookie dough in the oven
do another load of laundry
get something out of the attic
read email
listen to tremendous thunder storm
look at dance schedule

Did you notice anything unusual in that list? I forgot the last 2 trays of cookies were in the oven...big, stinky, blackened OOPS!!!

Some days multi-tasking just doesn't work!

Then I read my buddies blog and am trying to figure out what she means? She has a special talent for typing in riddles that my mind can't fathom. But, she is still my friend and she makes some great homemade icecream!

Praying the rain leaves this area before K's party tomorrow.

Daybook 6-1-2010

Outside My Window... It is sunny, warm, and beautiful. Temps will be in the mid 90's again today and for the rest of the week.

I am thinking... of all the things we are doing on this week

I am thankful for... Our Military: past, present & future. They protect and defend our great country and some make the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms.

From the learning rooms... No bookwork. We are reading, watching old movies, & having fun playing with & watching our baby chicks

From the kitchen... we will be making peanut butter cookies, rice krispie treats and chocolate chip muffins. We've got company coming for the week and we need snacks to keep these children happy.

I am wearing... denim skort, flowered t-shirt, blue tennies

I am creating... working on my "His Name is Jesus" cross stitch.

I am going... to be driving to ballet 4 days this week. Its recital week and the girls will be busy!

I am reading... Just finished the Gilbert Morris series (it was good) last night, so I need to find something else to read

I am praying... that we make Godly financial decisions in every area of our lives

I am hearing... Talk Radio. They are discussing a new curriculum for public schools about Civil Rights. But, it is written by a "self-Proclaimed" communist, it is very biased and is full of Hate-speech. Praise the Lord for Homeschooling!

Around the house... Cleaning, finishing laundry, baking, changing bed sheets

One of my favorite things... visits from Mom

A few things for the rest of the week... Katie's graduation party, lots of ballet rehearsals & recital, fun in the sun

A picture to share...

See the little orangey peaches on the tree? We had to commit "peach a side" again and thin the fruit on the top of the tree. It was so heavy, it was bending over and touching the ground.

Please visit Peggy at http://thesimplewomansdaybook.blogspot.com to visit with more women!

I hope you have a blessed and wonderful day!