Life's Interruptions

Some days I feel as if I really don't accomplish much. As I have been trying to school the kids at home for the last 2 weeks, it seems that, in spite of my good intentions, my lists, and my aim at being a woman of discipline, there is never quite enough completed at the end of the day. I have been thinking a lot about this and realizing and trying to accept that "life" happens in the midst of busy days. Then just yesterday, I was reading an article by Gloria Gaither that my mom had loaned me and it really spoke to me. She wrote on the subject of interruptions in our lives and what our perspectives should be. One of her statements is:

"I am coming to believe that God's will for my life is the interruptions".

Wow! That hit me hard...here I have been trying to avoid roadblocks to "progress". She went on to show that so many of Jesus' special moments and miracles here on earth were what we would consider interruptions:

• the water to wine
• the leper and blind men
• the man brought thru the roof by his friends
• the woman with the disease who touched Him
• the children who came to sit on His lap

Planning and visualizing and organizing is all well and good, but my earnest prayer is that I am never so busy that I miss the opportunities and adventures that will come when I am open to them. After all, what else am I really here for?

I would love to hear your thoughts on this and how you have learned to embrace with joy God's alternate plan.

By the way, this is a picture of our smallest "interruption". We are so thankful for him!

(And I do have pictures to post of our time in Montana and will do so soon. )

Montana Trip - Preview

Well, we have been home for almost a week, but have not had time to blog, due to an icky bug we brought home with us. We truly enjoyed our week there...some of the highlights of our time together were:

• nana and gramps, brothers and sisters, cousins, aunts and uncles


• babies!!!


• horses


• four-wheelers


• kids' camp


• smoky mountains due to fires ....and the days that were not so smoky


• late night visits


• a great game of dominoes (thanks, Tom, for the great music and entertainment!)


• enjoying old family pictures and movies


• great food


• a visit to the park with toddlers


• a candlelit 40th anniversary dinner


• 2 baby dedications


• a buddy for everyone to play with!


• Andy Griffith shows that the kids loved watching


• out-to-lunch and Candy Land game with Nana


• catching up and reconnecting

I have many pictures to choose from to put on our blog. We all thank God for a wonderful time together and new memories made. As Jayce put it, "Our family rocks!" :)

We can't wait until the next time together ( and we so hope to be able to see Krystal, Jeff and kiddos soon! We love you guys!) .

Days like this I want to remember...

Not all days as a mother are happy, peaceful days - many, but not all! There are some days that I am not satisfied with the way my children have interacted or the way that I have responded. There are some days when one or more children are sick and we have crying in the home. There are some days that I would like to forget ever happened and am so excited to start over the next day!
This wonderful day in McCall. Idaho was not one of them! Robb had a deck to look at and bid, and so we all piled into the car and rode with him. It was so enjoyable to get away, even for a day. We have been camping twice this year, but always with groups of people, so it was nice to just enjoy each other's company. The first part of the day was smoky due to many fires in Idaho and Drew's asthma was bothering him, but by the time we got to the lake with our buckets and shovels, the sky had cleared and it was beautiful!
We were able to rent a little canoe for a couple of hours and we all enjoyed it! Lauren was a bit nervous, even though she is a great swimmer and is in the water a lot. But when her and I got to go out for a while, she really loved it and has asked her dad to try to find one at the thrift store. :) The lake was pristine and so beautiful and peaceful.

The kids and Robb enjoyed building sand castles and Tuck spent a lot of time burying my feet in the sand!
There are no pictures of Preston as he was sleeping most of the time. He has turned into a very happy baby and we are loving having another baby around here!


I think God gives us these days as a time to reflect and appreciate all we have. I certainly did that today, and somehow I think I will remember this day for a very long time.

"Every good and perfect gift comes from above..." James 1:17

Drew-Boy

My oldest son turned seven this week. I can't seem to remember where the time as gone, but yet I feel as if I've always known him. I am so proud of the guy he is turning into and give much credit to his daddy for it. Here are just a few things that I love about my Drew: His "gusto' - everything he does is with his whole heart! Sometimes this can be cause for disaster, but I know it is a quality to treasure! His independent spirit - He has learned to master several things by this young age, and I know in part that this is due to his perseverance! You will not hear Drew say "I can't" very often! (This also causes us to watch him somewhat closely as his confidence can be very high!) His willingness to work - Drew is not afraid of work and knows the feeling of a job well-done. He is a delight to teach as he works diligently and faithfully. Robb and I have said on different occasions that if we want something done right, we just ask Drew! His easy and hearty laugh! Often he will laugh so hard, he will go into a slight asthma attack, but that doesn't stop him. We just better know where the inhaler is! His questioning spirit - Drew takes nothing sitting down! There have been many days when teaching him that I have despaired as he has argued with the curriculum over what a bunch of bananas would really weigh, how long a ladder would be, or an inconsistency in a phonics rule. I constantly pray that we can channel this properly and I know that if we can, this will be a very positive thing for all of his life and will allow him to be a life-long learner. (By the way...his dad thinks this quality is highly amusing!) His heart to serve God - Though we have had many hours of attempting to answer questions from the Bible that Drew (or we) don't understand, we have seen a very tender heart towards God and Drew has asked Jesus into his heart. His prayers are a delight to hear as he expresses himself to our Father.

We were camping on Drew's birthday and he was able to go fishing with just Robb for a few hours that day. We celebrated with homemade pizza, cake and a sleep-over when we got home. We count it a true privilege and honor to nurture this little man!

"Look Mom, it's on sale!!"

This was Drew's call to me a few minutes ago when he noticed the "For Sale" sign in our front yard. There are changes coming for us!

After prayer, Robb and I have decided to put our lovely home on the market. We feel a twinge of sadness, but mostly a peace about it. We have lived here for almost 6 years and have brought 3 little boys home from the hospital to live here with us. Our plans are a bit unknown, but we do know that we plan to use some of our equity and pay off hospital bills (our little Preston's NICU bill was $20,000!) and get a home where we can do some work and make money on it. Robb is very talented in invisioning improvements, as well as handy in doing them. And, most importantly, he likes to do that kind of thing! I will be along for the ride!!

In thinking about the home we will buy, my thoughts have been on what I want our home to be. I think it comes down to a place where my children and husband feel LOVED and can be nurtured spiritually, mentally, physically, and socially. I certainly do not need anything fancy to do that. We are praying for guidance and continued peace through the showings and then the changes coming our way. I did ask the realtor, a good friend of ours, if it is hard to sell a home with 5 kids! He said that it can be done! My challenge will be to not create a tense enviroment for the kids, but to have balance in all things.

This song has been running through my head often lately:

Be still my soul, thy God doth undertake

to guide the future as He has the past.

Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;

All now mysterious shall be bright at last.

Be still, my soul;

the waves and wind still know

His voice who ruled them while He dwelt below.

-K. Schlegel

Visiting the Oregon Trail

With Lauren preparing to take Idaho History this next year (4th grade), the kids and I (minus Tucker who stayed with Robb for the day) loaded up the Suburban and headed down the freeway 2 hours to the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center with a group from our school. The figures were very life-like and the kids commented on how DIRTY they looked. Here are some comments from the kids on what they enjoyed seeing the most: "Deciding what we could take on our wagon and trying to pack it in." (There was a miniature wagon there and the kids had to decide what were the most important things to take. Toys were left out!) "Learning how they crossed the rivers." "Getting to walk on the Oregon Trail." We read several diary entries and we were all struck by the death and pain they had to go through. Their perseverance and tenacity was amazing! I wondered what it would be like to try to create a "home" on the road for your children. My respect grew by leaps and bounds as I read from their own words the joy and sorrow they experienced. It sure makes my days as a mom of five look easy!!!

Aunts, Uncles, Cousins.......

Fun with cousins

The kids had a blast keeping cool in the pool!
Josiah, Kristen, and Lauren
Siblings and Friends

Tucker and Solomon
Kristen, Josiah, Lauren, Cassie and Drew
Mark and Esther
Debbie, PJ and Esther
The dads and the babies (2 months apart)

The Whelchel family
The Degelman family

All the cousins (PJ was in taking a nap): Josiah, Lauren, Preston, Kristen, Cassie, Drew, Laural Ann, Solomon, Silas, Jayce, and Tucker

The highlight of our summer so far was 4 fabulous days spent with 2 of Robb's sisters and their wonderful families! We were so excited to have Esther and Mark and kiddos come from Alaska, as well as Debbie, Scott and kids come from Colorado for our "reunion" (although we greatly missed Kathy and kids!!!). It had been at least four years for most of our family to see Esther's family, but all the cousins quickly got acquainted and loved being together. There were 18 in all....6 adults and 12 kids!!! But, everything went unbelievable smooth and everyone really helped out (thanks again, girls, for the delicious meals!!). Mark had never been to Idaho and was a bit apprehensive about the heat. We have been having record-breaking temperatures and most days it was over 100 degrees, but he was such a trooper and never complained! It was wonderful to get to know Esther's children better as they have grown into little adults. They were just delightful to be around and so very patient with the smaller children. We have so much to learn from Esther and Mark as parents. Scott and Debbie are also amazing parents to 4 little ones, ages 4 and under, and they do a terrific job of balancing everything and working together as a team. Debbie's energy seems endless!! We packed our days full to the brim and loved just being together and getting to know each other again. We are incredibly thankful for family who loves God and shares our faith. We know that this is a true blessing from God! How wonderful it will be in Heaven when we will all be together forever and we won't have to say goodbye!!! This was indeed a precious time of sharing memories, roots, and dreams.