YAY!!

While I am a long way from finishing, I just wanted to say I got "A" in my first class. A 99%.

I love presents

Especially when they help my entire day run so fantastically. I got this very special little gift from my friend, Stephanie, who obviously knows the importance of caffeine and its effects on a body. So, hey, thanks Friend.
I admit I was a little overly attached to my last coffee maker. I didn't realize it though until I actually almost teared up when it broke. It has been laid to rest, but I haven't had the heart to throw out the pods. Sigh. I think it is time. ::sniff:: beeeee strong.

Prayer

I was reading about Solomon tonight. Not so much Moses and Noe(dot dot)l's kid as the king from the biblio. (for all of you who don't know EL NINO is Spanish for THE NINO!!)
Anyhoo, I was reading and was struck by what a great example of prayer he gives us. When Solomon has his dream and God is telling him to ask for whatever Solomon wishes, he replies with "discernment." I love it. And God was faithful right away. When the two women come in with the fued over the baby. God gave him great wisdom. I want wisdom. I want to settle squabbles between my kids in a way they learn a profound message everytime. Not just so they will call me pretty, but that they will grow up and think of their mom when they are teaching their own kids.

::singing:: my brothers and meeeee

You know that tune I am thinking of? The "My Buddy" song. Anyway, this is at my Grandpa's house the day after the funeral. My big brothers. Aren't they cute?

OMAHA ROCKS

Hello, from Omaha. Scary I know, but we made it through, the funeral, the viewing, and the ultimate family feud without a scratch. Family is funny, even more so when someone close to them dies. I don't mean your usual fighting over things left behind, or funny as in "I don't know why she isn't crying." NO, NO. This kind of funny comes when you get together with family you grew up with and don't have the chance to see very often. This time around it is my brothers. Three of them. All older and equally as funny as each other. On more than one occasion this weekend, I woke up the baby I was wearing due to the convulsion I couldn't control in my shoulders. Seriously, do you know people like that? That just make you laugh so hard you almost wish it would stop? I do. Their names are George, Kristopher, and Shane.
We traveled the old neighborhood, checked out Mosquito hill, and stopped by Nani's (my incredibly short Italian grandmother) for pie and coffee. Everything made us nostalgic. Every corner stirred a reminiscing story. Orsi's bread shop was the first stop. We ate a whole loaf in the car as we drove around comparing stories and rewriting our memories to fit each others'.
My youngest of brothers proves to be the butt of many jokes. While visiting Old Town Omaha, we came across a "pull my finger, finger." It was too great for my brother to pass up buying, he just wasn't sure who the lucky recipient should be. Remembering we had yet to buy Shane a birthday present, it was settled; He would get the honor of such a strange treat. And use it well, he did. While waiting in line at the airport for about the one hundredth time he whipped out the finger. When you pull it, it makes a super great farting noise, different almost everytime. The woman in front of us couldn't have musterd (SP?)a more rotten look if we had paid her millions. It was just too much. I was rolling. My oldest brother had to turn his back to everyone because he couldn't control his laughter, the middle brother had to hide behind my very tall father. It was just too much. But there stood the prankster. Straight faced and actually looking relieved to be rid of such gaseousness.
Speaking of fingers, at the funeral viewing, my oldest brother, George, would make a cracking sound whenever someone approached the casket, as if they were accidentally breaking off my grandfather's finger. I am still giggly thinking about it.
A constant source of laughter also came from one of my favorite past times. Saying "is that a euphemism" after anyone says anything. Seriously, try it. Like everything, it works best really late at night after delirium has set in.
"Are you hungry? Do you guys want to go grab some tacos?" Takes on a much different meaning when you know, "is that a euphemism?" is going to follow! This in a nut shell was my weekend. A seemingly sad event cheered up fantastically by my big brothers. :) I hope that never changes.

nice timing

So after we paid almost $1000 for a plane ticket so I can be an athletic supporter for my dad at my grandfather's funeral, some schmoes decide to attempt to sneak a liquid bomb onto an airplane (or something like this), just to make my travels extra dependent on God. Thanks for the faith exercise people.
And the rest of you, please pray for Sam I Am and I as we fly out this morning. And here is to Southwest and United and their ability to spot a terrorist. cheers

WHO PUT THE "P" IN POOL

YAH!! I think it is safe to say that it was HER. We got a pool for my kids a few weeks ago. Nothing too fancy. It is thirty inches deep, just deep enough to be relaxing for us and fun for the kids. I counted on these things; I didn't know how many other lessons we would learn. Elijah has learned that diving in, even from a standing position in the center of the pool will cause a head injury. Layla has learned that she isn't as scared of dead bugs as she is alive bugs. And Isabelle has learned that she is juuuust a little too tall for flips and tricks for this depth. And of course, we have discovered that when Addison pees it is usually followed by a scrunched face and a matter of fact "yuck." Anyone up for a swim?

worn right out

Okay so this was my first taste at true chaos. Wife, homeschooling, five kids, and new student. I am a proud attendee of the University of Pheonix (puh-hoe-nix for all you fed-ex commercial fans.) I just completed the rest of my homework assignments. yikes. My brain hurts. Anyone willing to donate some cells to keep me going? How about some arms?
Have you ever looked back at your life and thought "what in the world did I do with my time before...?" you fill in the blank. I used to think two kids and a part time job, full time husband kept me running. Now, I have actually added running and a Monday night pilates class to my schedule. I think I am losing it. But this one is all for me. "THIS ONE. THIS ONE RIGHT HERE. THIS WAS MY WISH. MY DREAM. AND IT DIDN'T COME TRUE. SO, I AM TAKING IT BACK! I AM TAKING THEM ALL BACK!"
What am I, crazy?! yes. good night.

for the nerds in my life

okay this was sent to me by a friend. cracked my up. but will probably mean more to you nerderies out there. ::shout out to rick baldwin:: nerd it up and check out my link. apparently you can just clink on the title. fancy ooh...and make sure the kiddies are out of earshot.

shontell

This was posted on a friend's blog. feel free to steal it and make it your own. I would love to read what you have to say.
I AM: a woman, a child, a wife, a lover, a daughter, a mother, in love
I WANT: a big big big van-80r 10 passenger
I WILL: be on the wheel of fortune sometime in the next 12 months YAY!!
I HAVE: great hair.
I WISH: my son would take naps instead of power sleeping and then eating for 8 hours straight. I HATE: words like crusty, schmear, clump, and discharge
I MISS: my sister in law-auntie mel
I HEAR: only 70% in one ear and 30% in the other. so don't be mad if i ignore you :/
I WONDER: if i will have wings when i get to heaven. i would look good in wings
I AM NOT: an optimist
I ALWAYS: wash my hands after using the potty..and notice if you don't. ew
I SING: always, anything, everything to everyone.
I LAUGH: out loud. it isn't good to keep it in.
I CRY: at war movies and anytime the pastor cries, even if I don't know him. When boys cry it is serious.
I MAKE WITH MY HANDS: scrapbooks. a little piece of me to pass on to my kids and them to theirs.
I WRITE: daily, in my journal, on napkins, scratch paper..whatever. I am working on a book currently. wish me luck.
I REGRET: rushing through the kidless days with my husband.
I NEED: a nanny, or at least some good baby sitters.... anyone? anyone?
I SHOULD: be watching Addison. she is walking around here with a Sharpie
I MUST: have had too many beans earlier.. i am gaseous. ooh excuse me. and so is Sam I Am. ooh excuse you.
I DON'T: want to forget what my kids were like as children.

why i like mike #10

Because he took me out on a date....his idea, he picked the place, and he paid ;) and then said, "You know, I know it is going to be hard in the beginning, but can you just imagine how great it is going to be when our kids are all grown and they all come home for christmas?!"
I can. And it makes me love him just a little bit more for being able to as well.

Fancy

okay, so it took me a while, but I finally got a real friend to show me how to put pictures on my blog. So here you all go. mista Sam I Am. and now I must go shower*








*this post is dedicated to Denae for her genius blogging skills and to Adelle for babysitting so I can shower.

I hate it when I am lame

But i like it when God helps me to realize it oh so gently. I am in the beginnings of a Bible study called Becoming the Woman You Want to Be. Great stuff. it focuses on your body through healthy eating and exercise (which I am happily exempt from still he he), your spirit through Bible study and scripture memorization, and soul through daily actions to take toward becoming that person God has intended me to be. Today I read this-

"Discipline is the human effort to create the space in which God can be generous and give you what you need." Henri Nouwen

I love that quote.

Then I read-

"God will not love you any more if you assert your will, make the decisions, and put forth the effort to create a prayer oasis. God will not love you more if you wake up thirty minutes earlier each day to devote to prayer and reflection. These actions do not benefit God."

I know that I don't pray and live for God for his benefit. But, on too many days I have an attitude of "let me do you this favor and read my Bible this morning."

Lord, forgive me for being so full of myself. I haven't left you nearly enough room. I choose to remove me and fill up with you. Make me aware when I choose to do other things when I should be spending my mornings with you. You promise to lead me like your flock. Please help me to be a good follower, not just a dumb sheep. amen

Catastrophe

How can they just no longer make Peach flavored Jolly Ranchers. Is this even legal!!? I did a search on eBay for crying out loud, and only got one response. And it was for Peach scented Jolly Rancher oils. What? What is happening? I need peach Jolly Ranchers. They are just no where to be found. Catastrophe.

ten ways to get that baby out!

So the other night I was feeling overwhelmingly pregnant and frustrated that my little son has taken so long to get the heck out already and a friend came over to give me a massage and try to induce my labor. As we were heading into the room toward that fantastic table and loverly smelling oils my kids and nephews kept stopping me asking if she was going my water...or as Layla Grace put it "pop your tummy." i assured them no and i was just getting a massage. my nephew, Tristan, then said " it's okay if your water breaks. You can just put it in my fish tank." ew

ACK!

sooo i am picking up my mother in an hour from the airport. then i think i will have a baby. that is weird. i wrote it on my list of things to do today

edit UOP scholarship essay
email essay to Roni
dishes
shower/brush everything/eat
breathe (I like to include things like this on my listst in case i don't get to anything else; I can at least cross that off)
make bed and straighten room
make grocery list
drink water
drink water
drink water
midwife appt. 5pm
pick up mom 3:10pm
grocery store
make dinner (spaghetti, salad, french bread)
have baby
get some rest.

we will see. :)

taking votes

so noel votes for the 27th for baby day. i say the 28th. but it makes me a little nervous to be right cause it is a church day. and frankly my dreams of going in to labor at church have been waaay too many and none of them were good. i am always seeming to leave a puddle behind me. and pastor never breaks into "let the river flow" like i want him to. lol.
if you are going to choose a departure song, that seems as good as any. although... i suppose for some people "deep and wide" may be appropriate. but not for me.

thats strange

so my daughter came running into the house hollaring that my son was throwing up in the garage. my first thought "ugh..the flu." it wasnt until he started screaming "IT BURNS IT BURNS! IT IS BURNING MY THROAT" and i noticed that just washed fresh scent that i realized he had indeed swallowed some sort of household cleaner. :/ sigh ELI. when will he learn? please no one answer that. i am not prepared for "never."
so 911, fire department, paramedics, and the sherrif's dept (to make sure i wasnt trying to kill my son... @@) then the ER. great. we are home now. he is fine now. his punishment. apologizing to everyone in the family for scaring them and for disobeying mom and dad by being in the garage. and he had to start our nightly prayers by asking God to forgive him. sigh. i figure the burning vomit was enough punishment. maybe not. but surely the fact that he thought the doctors were going to cut him open and he was probably going to die at the hospital was punishment enough. i cant cause that sort of fear. poor baby.

and the count down is on

well, after a fantastic scare of baby samuel arriving last thursday night (almost three hours of contractions at 5 minutes apart) we are to the real countdown. two weeks
it was inevitable that i would experience some sort of labor scare though. with my mother and sister n law attending their annual women's retreat in temecula and my husband a good six hours away fishing in Ely..of course. why is this a rule?
if you dont want something to happen just yet, you plan something really great to do instead and then it happens. liiiike if you arent supposed to start your period for three weeks so you think it is safe to wear those white pants..well it isnt, cause viola, you will start. ask any girl.

hey stupid people..go away

obviously getting antsy and irritable. today God is working on my mercy and patience. why do these seem to go hand in hand. i want nothing to do with either of them unless they are being bestowed upon me when i am being someone else's dumb person. sigh. this is the noise i made most today, which is saying something considering i have to make a noise everytime i move or bend, or sit or stand, or wiggle or breathe. i allow people to affect my mood easily when i am pregnant. this is difficult to deal with or rather easy to blame on pregnancy. i have less tolerance for people. like the lady today that insisted on turning left when it was clearly marked as a no left turn area. causing me to miss my light, causing me to growl, causing my attitude to slide greatly down on the mercy scale. got the kids delivered and to my next destination and another friend misunderstood my meaning when i said i had another appt at 11 to mean i needed to leave at that time. sigh. twenty minutes late. which made me 20 minutes late getting back into town to pick up my kids. a trend was starting, not with being late, but with my sighing and irritability. the true greatness of all of this attitude is that i have been doing a study heavily focusing on how not to allow other people's actions/reactions to cause you to sin or become angry/irritable, etc. i am about three weeks into the study. maybe i need to start over. :/ The upside is that i have been praying for God to point out times when my thoughts are not what they should be (edifying, uplifting, etc.). my prayer specifically has been to stop the thoughts as soon as they creep in and replace them with prayer. back to the down swing...i had to do this about 200 times today. do you think that is a bad average? Lord, thank you for making your mercies new every morning. work on this black heart. and remind me not to growl. :/