Vacation

This is my youngest son on the way home from vacation! I accidentally posted the pics backwards! oops!

This is "Miles the Monster"....he lives at the race track in Dover, De....known as the "Monster Mile". It is a mile long track, and they race at pretty high speeds. The race was so awesome! We were even on tv! The people and fans were so incredible...they were appropriate and considerate of our large family. LOTS of people were looking out for the kids and made kind comments. One lady even said she was sorry for swearing in front of the kids! Another lady came up and gave them all bags of chips cause they were being so good...and the man behind us told them all he couldn't believe how well behaved they were during the 5 hour race. The guy beside us was even hanging out with colton and was letting him lean on him during the race....great people. We had awesome weather...our guy stunk~ LOL

Ryan Newman's car on pit road....Go #39~~

We took them to the beach...it was chilly...but it was their first time....amazing!

And the campground where we stayed....Jellystone Park! So super cool and fun! Our cabin was right next to Yogi the Bear's cabin! How lucky for us!! We went on hayrides with Yogi, exercised with Yogi, played basketball with Yogi and much more! The kids had a blast at the park and made new friends! We did too! It was a great vacation! God protected us and provided for us....couldn't ask for more! I could go on and on with "funny stories" about silly stuff the kids did...but I would be here all day....we had that much fun!

Frugal & From the Heart

Mother's Day and Rob's birthday fall on the same day this year... :0) I have been really working hard at making things MUCH more simple and frugal around here, so I thought of some frugal gifts that come from the heart to give on these special days...

Rob's B-day:
* kids will write and sing him a song
* We will make him a chocolate mayo cake w/ peanut butter icing...his FAVORITE!
* kids will make him cards
* I will clean his car
* we will make a video having each person state reasons why we love and appreciate him...we will watch it on the computer together, saving the money on a dvd...
* we will have a cook out for mother's day and his b-day together!

Mother's Day for my mom & my MIL
* kids will make cards
* I am going to paint a small flower pot (we have it) and have kids put their fingerprints around the rim in bright colors...we will create a Mother's Day poem and put it in the pot.
* the kids will bake something
* I will take a picture of all the kids together and print, laminate and put a magnet on the back
* I am going to put scrapbook paper in a frame and print some scripture to add to it.

For my Mother's Day
( Yes, I am planing my own day as my husband has a lot on his plate right now...and it's not his "thing"...he would spend money, and I don't want anything...just my family...but the kids will want to do something...my oldest daughter will head all of this up)
*kids make cards
*clean my can
*go for a nice drive to look for deer
*make fuse-a-bead crafts
* and the cook-out

All of these things INVOLVE the kids DOING things...not just going to the store with money and picking something out. These gifts will cost us nothing...but love and thoughtfulness :0)
I am looking forward to gearing our lives toward a more simple way of living...not everything needs to come from a store to be special!

Don't Trust Them!

Rob and I were laying in our big King size bed after dinner with some of our littles, I think 5 of them were there...I had to run downstairs and do some things, but Rob stayed there. He was pretending to sleep...not a good idea! The kids look innocent and cute....but that's just a show...here's what happened to my poor husband...LOL....he was getting "tickled" by all sorts of little fingers...but it was really the equivalent of your skin getting torn off your face...lots of giggles and talk of "tickling Daddy's beard"...that should wake him up...nope. They move on to his feet...he just about tore his toe nail off, it's really sore...more giggles about how this would really work!....nope...he's a strong man....then "it" happened....the giggles got really loud, he was probly sweating bullets by now, wondering what they are gonna do next...Kyara (she's 6) says to Cyle (he's 5)..."go on Cyle, just put it right in his eye...that should do it!"....YIKES! They were right!! To save his eye, my loving man "woke up" and was the "tickle monster"! What fun!!

Proverbs 17:22

"A cheerful heart is good medicine,

but a crushed spirit dries up the bones "

I thank God for these fun and light moments, I NEED them...for my health. There are so many things right now that are heavy on my heart...we just figured out our oldest adopted daughter suffers from RAD (reactive attachment disorder), she's so hard to live with...I LOVE her SO much, but her little self is so broken...she needs God but HATES Him...that's enough for a broken mommy heart...I have been trying to get pregnant for a year with no succsess...ouch...especially after have a reversal done...lots and lots that I could let "get me down"...but my God is good...all the time! There is so much to be joyful about...and it's ALL from Him...what WE see as good and bad, it's ALL allowed by God..we just need to trust Him!

God's Deliverance!

The little man pictured in my last post is so sick...and God is so good and delivered my young son from death yesterday. Little man always gets respiratory problems when he gets sick...and we give him a few nebulaizor treatments and all is well. Yesterday was worse that it had ever been...his eyes were purple underneath and pouring water...he could barely breathe. I was doing his treatments and praying for healing over him...then he couldn't breathe...AT ALL! It was terrifying! I tried for over a minute to get my Little man to breath again...finally by taking him out in the cold air his airway opened enough for him to breath. Later I took him to the Dr. for further treatment. As soon as they saw him they were concerned...taking his pulse, it was RACING...he had a fever...and still could barely breath! Right away they gave him steroids and 2 heavy duty breathing treatments... The Dr. told me it was very serious and I should take him to the Er...then decided against it. They sent us home with 4 Rx's! The Dr. told me to stay awake all night and watch him, and to give him breathing treatments every 3 hours, as he could stop breathing. It was VERY scary until about 2 am....he would sit straight up in our bed and try to scream and grab at his throat because he couldn't breath well. At about 2 am his fever broke and he settled in...he seems ok toady. The Dr. called before 7:00 am this morning to make sure he was Ok....talk about a great Dr!! She told me to expect bad nights for a short while as she thinks his breathing will get worse at night. So we are going to continue to watch him VERY closely! It was the most scary mommy moment I have EVER had...when he couldn't breath..I was screaming out to God to spare my son...it's not like he was choking and we could dislodge something....his airway was shut...to see his little face looking at me with wild eyes....it seemed like it was FOREVER! It was a long time though...it was long enough for me to scream, cry, pound his back (pointless, I know, but it was a reaction) and get him outside and then it wasn't right away that he was breathing...in this time my daughter had enough time to call her dad at work! Talk about seeing God...He gives and He takes away. I really do see this for the truth that it is.. there was no rhyme or reason to why He spared my Little man's life...He could have brought him home...but He let him stay with my for who knows how long....I see now we have no time limit...or no unlimited time to spend...His sovereignty is amazing....He shows me little by little who He really is...and it makes me stand in awe! I thank God .

The Laundry Game!

We actually have fun folding laundry! Yep, you heard that right....fun! Here's how you play the "Laundry Game"....have all your kids sit in spots around the living room...turn on some fun music...and mommy stands by the "pile"....reach in, pull out a piece of wash and toss it to the person it belongs to :) They fold their own wash and put it away! It's great fun!! They LOVE to catch their wash as it flies through the air...giggles are abundant on laundry folding days! Give it a try...it's free....it's productive...teaches team work....and it's great family fun!

Meet Lucky

Today was T.H.E. day! Ty was able to finally get his dream pet...a hamster! He saved up the $15 for it...and $110 of my money later...we were home with Lucky! I am not thrilled about having a rodent in the house...but as long as it stays in it's cage all will be well in my world! The kids are having fun watching it climb all over. It's neat to see how much the kids love animals and take such good care of them :0) So, there you have it...Lucky is the newest member of our family :0)

Frugal Fun!

I have set Friday aside to think on frugal things....doing this will help me keep on track with trying to be frugal to get out of debt! A few frugal things this week were; grocery shopping... I went with CASH and a list... I kept track of what I was spending as I put things in the cart. I was shocked to see all that I got for $103! Another was fun....we have been feeling bad about not getting the kids "out" to have fun. They play outside daily....but it just seemed like we should take them "out". I threw that thought away and just plain old went outside WITH them...we had a ball! I do this very often...but this time I had it in mind that we were saving money by not thinking we needed to take them "out"...like to a movie, or McDonalds PlayPlace or something! I have stayed home all week...so no extra trips to the store...at all. That saved money as well :0) And we counted up all that we were able to put away (extra) to put towards debt and I think it was around $1,200! YEAH!!!

We Did It....we are ONE big, happy FAMILY!

It was an interesting time, to say the least! We were all SO excited on Friday!! We sent everyone off to be with kisses and giggles, practicing their new names :0) Then at 10:30 I got SICK!!! I mean REALLY SICK....I threw up until it was time to leave for the adoption, and that's not it...Ashley started throwing up at 2:00 am, and was sick even at the adoption (all over the hallway on the way to the restroom, poor kid!) and in the van Kyara got sick! But we weren't missing this day for the world...so we got dressed and went. What a fun day! There were 8 kids adopted that day. And it was nice, they had people speak...there was a commissioner, the Judge, and a few others. They had a man who had been adopted as a child speak. It was just a happy day! I have been to court many times to testify and fight for my two boys, so it was awesome to go and have it be such a happy day! I have never seen the judge so happy!! After all the adoptions we all went to a different room in the courthouse and they (the workers of the courthouse and the county) had a HUGE party set up for the kids with cupcakes and pizza!! The judge himself gave each adopted child a gift! What a special thing! It was unfortunate that I spent a great deal of time with my sick children in the van, outside, or in the bathroom. But, I had a lot of GREAT helpers! As you can see from the picture above with all the kids sitting in a row, we brought a lot of people with us! We had my sister's family, my husbands cousin's family, 2 sets of grandparents, and a friend and her kids! They all stepped in and helped Rob take care of all the kids when I couldn't be there to help. I pray someday the size of my own family will be the size of all those kids on the bench! We shall see what God does. Either way...I am one blessed momma!

Oh...we were all still sick yesterday....today..so far so good! We are going to head out for a trip to my SIL for Thanksgiving! God willing.

Faith...or the lack of faith

Well, yesterday was interesting....I was just going along with my day...teaching science...and the phone rings. I answer, and it is our lawyer for the adoptions....my heart sinks....what does he want?? He was calling to tell me that he couldn't get a hold of my case worker, he had been leaving voice mails, and that we are missing a paper that was necessary for the adoption of the two boys...they had everything for the three girls, but not the boys! I thought my heart was going to stop beating. I must have looked awful because my kids all stopped with their school work and just sat in silence....staring at me....all I could think about was not getting to adopt the boys on Saturday! So, I called the county office and left a hundred messages with people who may be able to help us. At this point, I was truly feeling like I was going to throw up, my chest was hurting, my stomach was in a tight knot of burning pain...I mean serious mental stuff going on....so, I called a few people to pray...I was still having all the physical side effects from this awful news when Rob gets home from work. He walked into the house and took one look at me and came rushing to my side wondering what was wrong... I told him and he just smiled and said "it's OK"... I was shocked by his comment, and upset that he was not joining me in my sinful pity party! I asked him how in the world he could say "it's OK"?? He just looked at me with those big brown eyes and said "They'll either figure it out or they won't, it's not the end of the world...the kids are all healthy, alive, and will eventually be adopted. God is with us, and knows what's best."....I was picking my jaw up off the floor...and the steam was blowing out of my ears...thinking ....what is wrong with this man! Then the big question came...he asked me..."where's your faith?"....I about fell over...but what I needed to do was fall to me knees and ask for forgiveness from my Father. Why do I always fall so short in trusting Him. I KNOW His ways are best...that He will work all out according to His good and perfect plan....but I also know that sometimes His plan does not meet up with MY plan! There, I said it....I am weak in my faith. I get things in my head, and make plans, and then get really pushy when they don't play out as I think they should. I KNOW this is wrong...I KNOW God is good...always...but I need to have faith in the fact that all that is true for ME...not just to say it...but to live it. So, as I am working and praying through all of this lack of faith in myself...the phone rings...the county took care of it...it will all be OK...and I got to grow! WOW...God is such an amazing teacher!

I'm going to be a GRANDMA!

One of our old foster children whom we raised up is pregnant! She just called with the news! We couldn't be happier! It's too exciting for words! YEAH!!!

Wait...does this make me OLD?? A grandma at 30....that's fine by me!! :0)

What's Large??

It was really funny....this weekend the three big kids all had plans, so Saturday morning I just had the four littles...I was planning on having a relaxing morning with my book and a cup of coffee...needless to say, that didn't really happened he way I had planned it in my head! LOL....We decided we were going to take the four littles to lunch ! It was fun...we had a nice time. The funny thing was people were amazed that we had FOUR kids....hehehe....when we politely told them there were 3 more, they were all floored! We are used to the comments (which mostly are nice, but not always) when we have all 7 out...but come on...only four kids! It brought me to think about...what is considered large these days?? Long ago people had large families and it was the norm. What happened?? LOL :0) And yes, in this picture my son is wearing pink shoes!

Photo Shoot #1

I only had a minute, but I wanted to share a few pics of my kiddos. I am not doing all 7 kids at once, because I only have a minute! LOL

Cool Food Finds!

I went to Walmart last night for a few things and come across some new items...well, new to me :0) I got marinated skinless boneless chicken breasts and they are only 2 points each! I never buy chicken breasts, so this is exciting! I will eat them for lunch! the other thing was snack size york peppermint patties, these are only one point each and are to DIE FOR right out of the freezer! I was really happy with these things :0)

As far as today goes...we are on our way with school, the kids are all on "schedule", so I am happy! We are having company for dinner tonight, so I have that to get ready for. I am really trying to go at this whole life thing in a more relaxed way, maybe that will help me get a cycle! Who knows. God would want me to be more relaxed anyways...right! I feel like I have PMS...but nothing happens. I guess I am recording all of this to keep track as there were times in our adoption journey that I thought things were never going to happen, or upset because we had to wait or there was a roadblock....but His timing is PERFECT...in the long run, all the struggles we went through came out to be that He was waiting until the prefect time where we could adopt ALL 5 KIDS at ONE time! that is beyond my wildest dreams! So, I'm sure this will all come out ok,and I am looking forward to seeing what we are waiting for! this is a record so when it all happens I can look back and see the progress and the "why's" will all be answered in His perfect timing! God is so good!

Just some fun!

We got the baby a baby pool, but all he wanted to do was stand in the bucket we got out so the kids could fill water guns! LOL

DD enjoying the pool :)

DS just lounging around!

DS just riding the waves! It took days just to get him to even get IN the pool! He will ONLY get in if he can ride in the "boat"...lol...kids! He sure does have fun though! Even DH and I got in the pool over the weekend :) Now it's raining..and cold...so these pictures are nice to see right now :)

WHAT...flowers & reptiles?!?!

I had a lovely Mother's Day! It started on Friday! DH got me flowers, then Sat. the kids gave me gifts, flowers & bird feeders...then on Mother's day we went to Reptile Land! I HATE snakes and lizzars...lol...but the kids LOVED it and had a GREAT time! I was very thankful to be a part of it :) We also ate lunch out and got ice cream later on. It could not have been better! I feel like God has blessed me much more than I deserve! Hope you all had a great Mother's Day weekend!

Kim

frugal day!

Today I took DD out for an afternoon of shopping as she had a lot of Birthday money to spend. While we were out I got 3 Christmas gifts for next year on clearance....I got 2 pairs of pants and an outfit for 90% off! And to top it all off we went to a new thrift store in town and I got 3 sweaters for 50% off!! I was pretty happy! DD got a few of her toys on clearance as well, she is learning to be a bargain shopper! YEAH!!
Not too much is new here...just trying to keep up! The weather has finally broken and we have been playing outside a lot. It is going to be time to collect sap soon and make syrup :) It is fun, but takes forever and we get just enough to last us the year! LOL. I am also working on lowering our grocery bill...I feel like I am spending too much and am working on that. We have been doing some Spring cleaning, but that is getting really boring, so I am going to take a break and sort through some kids clothes and get ready for Spring and summer, that will be a nice break :)
School has been going ok, but we are ready to start wrapping things up for the year. We are making sure we are getting in the things we really want and learning what we had planned....this school year has zipped past!!! Before we know it it will be time to plan for next year!
Foster child #2 is really going through some hard times, so that is going to be time consuming. And all 3 foster kids have court next month. We are hoping to be able to adopt two of them :) We are praying for God's will here.
Well, it's time to put the 3 little kids to bed...so that's it for now!

The heart of a Mother

Well, as many of you may know, DH and I are foster parents. We take our job (calling) very seriously and love each child that comes through our home. A few years ago (5) we met and took care of a young teenage girl. We loved her as our own...she lived with us for about 3 years, then she had some personal issues and it was not a good thing for my own kids to be around, so she moved out. We have always kept in close contact with her after she moved out....until the last few months. She had been living with her boyfriend and his parents, had finally graduated school, and had a good job at a Walmart...she was thinking of doing an online college too...since we didn't agree with her life choices and she would not stop lying and doing things that would endanger the welfare of my kids...we couldn't let her live here...tough love, they call it. Well, I'm not so sure that was right now. she took off a few months ago, and didn't tell us where she was going, or that she was going at all! She broke up with her longtime boyfriend and took and got married to some guy we have never met and moved to a different state! My heart is so broken...for me...for my husband...for my kids...but mostly for her...it is so sad that she didn't feel enough of a connection with us, as her "parents"...as she didn't have any of her own...to involve us. Did she think I would yell at her or disapprove? Or was she just being selfish and not caring about anyone else, her youth getting in her way...love blinding her? I am so saddened by my actions...I was not nearly as supportive as I should have been...I can see that God is teaching me through this to not give up on pepole...EVER...yes, I did pray for this girl...but did I DO anything? Not really. SHE needed ME and hubby to be her family...and we didn't do as we should have because it was "too hard"... I am being brutally honest with myself, I never saw it this way before. I honestly thought we did what was right in God's eyes...He just wasn't ready to show me how wrong I was until now. I am so thankful for God's rebuking and teaching. I know this is not easy, but I am really going to try to look past the hurt and anger about being left out of her life and persevere....I WILL be a mom to her... I will support her even when it's hard and try to guide and train her in the ways of the Lord. She claims to be saved, she got baptized and was in church 2c a week while she lived here...did she learn anything? Did she really accept the Lord? Only He knows. But I KNOW we are to spread the Good News...and I will. I will try to reach out to her and her new husband, and love her even when it's "too hard". What an excuse, right? I am so ashamed of myself...there are not even words to tell you how much.