"Not Me" Monday!

I follow a blog of a lady whom I have quite a bit in common with.And she started this idea of being brutally honest,about what she did,while claiming she did not,and I happen to love it!This is officially my first not me monday post,but I'm sure it wont be the last!

This week has been hot,yet that is no excuse to not play outside according to my small children.While playing outside we turned on the sprinkler...my children were not so thrilled with that,they had fun,but did not like getting sprayed in the face.I most certainly did not unhook the sprinkler,and use the hose to let them play in the mud,and upon Elliott's diaper getting full did not let him run around naked,being that we live on a very busy street,I would never let my children run naked.Not me!

Last week was Vacation Bible School,every morning,and I most certainly did not let my two oldest wear their special shirts that were a tad damp because I did not put them in the drier before going to bed the night before.Who would make their children wear damp clothes to VBS? Not Me!

Riley has had issues with runny diapers as of late,and after changing all of his bedding for the third time,I did not put him to sleep on the mattress with no sheets for his nap.How uncomfortable,I mean really.Not Me!

I would never tell my daughter,when company was coming over,to take all of her toys in her room and put them in her "secret hiding place",so her room would "look" clean.Who would encourage their children to be pack rats?!Not me!

And lastly,I did not take a nap for two hours yesterday afternoon,even though there was water in our basement (again) and it needed to be cleaned.Who would leave standing water in their basement,to take a nap,how selfish!?Not Me!

May The Words Of My Mouth...

This Song has become one of my new favorites.I want this song to be my hearts song.It's so easy for me to get focused on the little things in my life. I tend to get wrapped up in the daily tasks I have,and forget the big picture.You know,I get on "a kick",I think" have to finish the laundry",but,then my neighbor comes over, who is a single mom,and needs some help with her daughter.In my head I'm thinking "I can't,I have to finish laundry",but in my heart God whispers "You,can,I have to reach her heart". There are SO many more times that I need to stop,and care for people like our Lord cares for them.I want the words of my mouth,and the meditations of my heart,to speak Speak Of My Lord.And,I want to be Glad to be serving him,and be joyfilled.This song is my reminder to do just that.We have been singing it at church quite a bit too.Don't you just love when that happens? You have a song that you have been singing in your heart,and then you go to church and they sing it!? Oh,I just love that!

So here is the link.And below,are the lyrics.Be Blessed!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3slST5bM0Y

May The Words Of My Mouth- Tim Hughes

May The Words Of My Mouth And the thoughts of my heart.

Bless your name,Bless your name Jesus.

And the deeds of the day,and the truth in my ways

Speak of You,Speak of You,Jesus

For the is what I am glad to do,it's time to live a life of love that pleases you.and I will give my all to you. Surrender everything I have and follow you...I'll follow you.

Lord Will You be my vision,Lord will You be my guide

Be my Hope,Be my light,Be the Way

And I'll look not for riches,nor praises on Earth

Only You will be the first of My heart.

For this is what,I am glad to do,it's time to live a life of Love that pleases you.and I will give my all to you. Surrender everything I have and follow you...I'll follow you!I will take up my cross Lord,You be my vision,You be my guide,and I will follow you...

Showin our love for Daddy...

Happy Fathers Day Daddy!
Yesterday we made cinnamon rolls for Daddy,and served them to him in bed.Jackson was not too happy to be up so early in the morning,as we had to do this before church.(see Picture below)Then Riley woke up screaming,and felt warm.He had a low fever,and had been up most of the night before.(Mommy did night duty,so mommy was worn out too).We are pretty sure he is teething,and cutting his last few molars.Poor baby was not very happy yesterday.Hence why we don't have many pictures of him.We gave Daddy a pair of crocs to wear around the house,our Daddy likes to be outside,and the kids thought he needed some crocs like theirs.Elliott and Clara took Daddy his breakfast of Cinnamon rolls,bacon,and fruit salad.Daddy was SO excited!Clara made some beautiful cards for Daddy,and the boys signed them.(Jackson let Clara make the cards cause he said "she makes better hearts and flowers than I do"!haha) We ended up not going to church,because Riley was pretty much in-consolible.I just did not have the heart to leave him in the church nursery.He ended up falling asleep as we drove to my inlaws for lunch.I have an adorable picture of him with his arms behind his head (it's known that all the men on my side of the family sleep this way,Riley is carrying on the family tradition) I had to run by the store on the way to our family lunch,I was bringing dessert,and the kids decided they wanted to make ice-cream Sundays!My mother in law put on a wonderful lunch,and we had a ton of food to choose from.After we ate,it became apparent that we needed to go home and put the little boys down for naps.So we did just that.And,my sweet wonderful husband,told me to go lay down too,and he entertained Jackson and Clara.Did I mention how much I love my husband?!
I am SO thankful for my husband,my children's Daddy.I grow to love him more daily.I don't want to come across as everything being so perfect,because,it's not.Because,niether my husband,nor I are perfect.But,My husband is perfect for me,and us. He is a hard worker,and provides for his family.He loves his children,and takes time out to show the Love of God to them too.He desires to train them to love God with All their Hearts,to be radical Christians,on fire for God.I love him for that.I love that we believe and have the same values,and want to instill those in our children.I love that he encourages me,and the our Children,in even the little things.I love that he takes time on his days off to play outside with the kids,and take them out,so I can get things done.I love that he loves his family more than anything,and would do anything for them.
So,honey,on behalf of our children,thank you,for being the best Daddy for our Children.And for pointing them to their Heavenly Daddy.We LOVE YOU!

This last picture was taken by Jackson,he had the camera in his back pack,and I did not know it! He took this picture,and I love it for so many different reasons.Yes,my son took it,but I think it's a wonderful example of how our children are always watching.And that we are the leaders in their lives,Directing them in the Path of Rightousness for His Names Sake.Okay,so maybe thats getting a lot out of a blurry picture,taken from the back of our mini van,in front of wal-mart.What can I say,I like to look for God,and things he is trying to teach me, in the little things! Blessings to you all sweet friends!

Take Me Out To The Ball Game...

Silverhawks Game!:

A few weeks ago,my mom got free tickets to the silverhawks game.Since we never pass up something to take the kids to,for free,we loaded everyone up and headed out to the field.The kids were not into it so much.But,Daddy was! The kids liked watching the funny competitions between bats,the game pictured below,was people dressed up in hamburger bun costumes,and they had to collect the lettuce,tomatoe,onion,and burger,around the plates,then pile them onto the bun below(also a person)and jump on top.The kids were laughing and cheering them on.And still talk about the hamburger baseball game! (ha) It was very hot though,and we were sitting right in the sun. We ate supper,consisting of hot dogs,and pop-corn. I did pack water,and healthy snacks,to even it all out! As you can see below,Elliott wanted to climb the stands,Clara wanted to take a nap.Jackson drew pictures the entire time,and Riley liked all the music and was whipping out his special dance moves.(All caught on tape below)If you want a fun family night,head out to a silverhawks game,that is if you live the SouthBend,Indiana area!

Sleeping Riley...

Sleeping Baby...

The other night,I got Riley ready for bed,then I put him down.The older kids were in their beds,and I went to the basement to fold laundry.I kept hearing Riley playing,but thought he was just was entertiaining himself.Well,after being down stairs for about three hours.I come up to go to bed.And find this.His light was on,and there were toys everywhere.Aparently,Clara heard him playing too.And thought she would come and give him some company.She went back to her room after he fell asleep,and left this behind.I could not stop laughing! Riley also has a new trick,he can take his pants off,and then proceeds to take his diaper off.Thankfully,this time,he only took his pants off!We have only been putting footed p.j.s on him for that reason! Oh,and yes,there were toys all over his bed too,don't worry we did not leave his bed filled with toys!

Carosel Fun!

Shipshewanna...Amish Country...

My Grandmother was here visiting for about a month.We had a wonderful time visiting with her.One day we all went out to Shipshewanna.My Dad graciously offered to watch Riley,since he is very dependant upon getting a nap! Whenever we get out of the car I always say find a hand.They know to not even think about not holding someones hand!I realized that I have never gotten a picture of that,because I am usually holding Riley! The kids had so much fun riding the carousel! Jackson wanted to get on a medium size one,that went up and down.Clara wanted a stationery animal to sit on.Elliott wanted to ride the biggest animal,that went the highest! There is a fun toy store in Shipshe and christian bookstore the kids love to visit as well! It was a fun day for all!

Sweet Memories...

Tunnels of Fun!

Jackson and Clara were playing last week with the tunnels that Elliott's therapist left.Elliott and Riley were taking naps,and Jackson snapped some pictures.It was great to have new toys to play with,esp since we had some very rainy days last week!I love the first pictures of Clara with the umbrella,and ski cap on! SO cute! I love these relaxed fun days at home,making tunnel forts,collecting all the pillows in the house,and blankets and having fun!

Daddy+Dirt=Delighted Children

A Day Outside With Daddy...

Daddy had a day off,on wednesday.The weather was great,and we worked outside all day.I planted flowers,weeded,put multch down,etc.While Daddy trimmed bushes,cleaned up the yard,changed the oil in the van,mowed the grass etc.The kids had so much fun getting dirty,playing and spending the entire day outside!

Daddy was helping teach the boys to play Golf.They Loved it! Don't mind the boys being shirt-less,we hosed the dirt off their hands,and their shirts got wet,so,they took their shirts off,and thought that was GREAT!
Miss Clara Climbing a Tree,I think this maybe one of few pictures with out a bow in her hair!Daddy was in charge,and Daddy does not "do" bows! :)

Elliott hitting the ball...scroll down for a video of him hitting the ball.He would get SO excited and squeal "I did it!" and then do a little dance that involved spinning around,he would get dizzy and fall over.He did this for about an hour!

This is what our pic-nic table looked like...WHAT A MESS! The kids had a great time with worms they dug up,and the dirt.See the worm on the table?!

Daddy dug a deep hole to bury stuff (burned down trash) in.I know that sounds like we live in the sticks.(ha)

It's Friday!

Show Us Where You Live...

Kelly over at Kelly's Korner Blog,is hosting her weekly tour of homes.Today is bathrooms,and we have one! lol! So here is our little bathroom in all it's glory.This bathroom was wallpapered too.We took that down,used a bunch of kills because there was mold behind the wall paper,and then I found this cute border at a wallpaper store,it was on clearance for two dollars a roll!There are new curtains in here now,these pictures are from last year.And,if any of you follow my blog,you will know that I missed the last few weeks of the tour.So,I'm catching up,you will also see pictures of our living room,dining room,and kids rooms!

We recently got new furniture,perks of having a hubby that sells furniture! The dining room below is going to be re-painted one of these days.I want to go darker,to match the couches.I made all the curtains for a grand total of fifteen dollars for all of them.

Riley's Room...

This is his diaper bag.It's a Kalencom.And I pretty much love it.Yes,we only have one diaper bag.I used to switch out all the time when I just had one,or even two children,but now with four,it's easier to just have one! It's stocked and ready to go all the time.

Riley's room was floor to celing wall paper that we (well my mom and dad and aunt and I)painted over.This is my favorite room.The crib was mine when I was a baby,I just painted it white.The changing table my mother in law baught for us at a re-sale shop.The glider was a gift from my Grandmother.I also love the built in dresser in his room,SO HANDY!I made the curtains out of a dust ruffle I got at goodwill for a few dollars.The letters above his bed are from hobby lobby,paid 7.50 for all of them.The toile prints I got at hobby lobby too,for 4.00 each.the white shelves I also got from goodwill. A dollar each.

The hooks above the changing table are also from goodwill,got all three for a dollar.One is a boat,truck,and airplane,all green and blue.You can see my trusty sling hanging on his changing table,we use that,a.lot.!

The little rocking horse my grandmother got for Riley from land of nod.I love that catalog!

Jackson and Elliott's Room...aka Mickey Mouse Cowboy Room...

Anyone who knows me,knows I don't "do" characters.At.All.So,the fact that I let my son pick the theme of his room,and then agreed to it,is pretty amazing.He wanted Cowboy Mickey Mouse.So,my original idea was to just go western,with a few older mickey mouse toys here and there.Then I searched online,and found a line made a few years ago by disney co. and it's the old Mickey Mouse,dressed as a cowboy...I could not resist.And,paid a whole eight dollars,for the curtains,border,sheets,and pillow cases(love ebay!).Seriously,if I decide to change it in a year,it's not like it broke the bank.Plus,goodwill has been a great sourse for all kinds of Mickey Mouse stuffed animals,and those make great decorating "accents" (lol).No the boys do not have formal bedding.I have not had the money to invest in it.Mostly I am waiting,I know Mickey won't be around for forever! Below is Elliott's toddler bed,a friend of mine is letting us borrow.The old suitcases I got at goodwill for five dollars !I want to get letters for each of their names and paint them red,and hang them over their beds,just have not had that in the budget to do yet.

Clara's Corner...

I made her bedding,curtains,and window seat cover,

gotta love wal-mart's dollar fabric section,got 20 yards for 20 bucks!Still have to finish up her bed-skirt,and throw pillows. I am also needing to cover her headboard.I want to put her monogram on a fabric cover for that.

Don't mind the air conditioner,it gets warm up stairs,because the attic is on either side of their rooms.And our children are naturally warm blooded!

Those little doors open to a crawl space,that is finished with her baby dolls and such,thats her "secret hiding space" ;)

ZOO!

GOING TO THE ZOO!

This picture is for my mom,Flamingos!

Riley was so attentive and excited about all of the animals,perhaps he will work at a zoo,he already lives in one! (haha,kidding)

Feeding the super huge aggresive fish!

Jackson,looking off to see the other animals,posing for mom is not nearly as much fun as looking at wild animals!

pointing to everything!

Clara loves Aunt Kaity,walking hand in hand...so sweet!

Adam pushing Riley

"What dat?! Aunt Kiki?" -Elliott

"That's a yak,Elliott"-Kaity

"A WHA?"-Elliott

Clara looking at the tiger,Elliott ready to move on to the next thing...

"Oh,look a tiger"

We also went to the Zoo.Kaity (Brandon's newly married sister) was in town and so we decided to spend the day together at the zoo,my mother in law,and Adam tagged along too!We had fun,and it was a perfect day weather wise to go stroll around the zoo.Thanks for going with us everyone!!Oh,and this was Riley's first visit to the zoo!Well,he went last year,but slept the entire time! :)