Its Summer Schedule Time!!!

Its now time for me to come up with a workable schedule for summer. The 5 year old finished preschool this past Thursday, and its officially "summer"!! I have given a lot of consideration to what we would like to do and accomplish this summer. So with that in mind I have worked up this schedule to keep everybody in our house happy and active all summer long. The Schedule is as follows:

6:15-6:30 Mommy and Daddy get up, Daddy gets ready for work, Mommy does her devotions/ prayer time
7:00 Mommy get herself ready for the day
7:30-7:45 Daddy leaves for work, the boys get up, and get dressed
8:00 Breakfast
8:30 Brush teeth, comb hair and do morning chores
9:00 Morning activity/ Bible story time
9:45 Morning Snack
10:00 Boys play time
10:30 Structured Activity
11:30 Lunch
12:00- 2:30 2 year old's nap time
12:00-1:00 5 year old and mommy work on folder activities
1:00-2:00 Mommy Computer time/ 5 year old Movie time
2:00-2:30 5 year old reads books and coloring time
2:30-3:00 Afternoon snack
3:00 Afternoon activity---- Pool time, out side play, park, etc.
4:30 clean up and prepare for dinner
5:15 Daddy gets home from work, Mommy finishes up dinner
5:45 Dinner
6:15 Evening chores
6:45 Family Play time (either outside or inside)
7:30 Clean up the house time
7:45 Bath time for the boys, brush teeth, comb hair
8:15 Family book reading time/ Bible story/ prayers
8:45 Bed time for the boys
9:00-11:00 Mommy and daddy time
11:00 Bedtime for mommy and daddy

My hope with this schedule is that it will keep the boredom down and the fun times coming all summer long!!

Some ideas that I have for morning activities are: play dough, crafts, baking cookies, and painting, most of these can be done either inside or outside. I have also made some cool little buckets that I have placed these activities in on pieces of paper. So when it comes time to do these we can draw them out of the bucket and hopefully it will be even more fun for the 5 year old, knowing that he helped choose that activity.

My afternoon activities will consist of going to the pool, to the park, playing outside at our house, riding bikes, or going for a walk. I also have these, and a lot more, in another bucket to choose from.

During the school year, my 5 year old only attended preschool 3 days a week, but it was a 5 day program. So his teacher would send home the papers that he missed. Since I didn't get to most of them, I have saved them in hopes of "some day" completing them with him. This summer is the time that I am planning on doing that. I have compiled them into a folder and in the afternoons while the 2 year old is napping the five year old and I will be doing some of those papers. There are so many that it should keep us busy all summer!

Isaiah 26:4
Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.

What can I say....

This is turning out to be a very frustrating day. My two year old is really beginning to show his true colors! I tried taking them to the library today, since it was raining. That only lasted about 20 minutes because he was climbing on everything and being very loud. I always feel like a terrible mother when I can't control him, but he is a very stubborn little boy! So with him sleeping and the 5 year old watching a movie that we borrowed from the library, I am taking a few moments to get myself together before I go and tackle some cleaning.

With school almost out for the summer, I was trying to come up with some exciting new things for us to explore this summer. Being on such a tight budget, I was getting really frustrated at how expensive certain activities can be. For us to go swimming at our public pool it will cost $9 total each time. I would like to go swimming at least 3-4 times a week, if possible. For us to visit the local state park it would be $11 total each time. SO my solution is to get a membership which really is a great deal. For the pool we would have to go about 10 times to get our moneys worth, for the state park it would be about 3 or 4 times. I think these will be great things for my boys to do to keep them busy and allow them to get out some energy!

For the creative part of my "plan", the five year old and I decorated some containers and labeled them "Outside" and "Inside". I printed out all of the activities that I came up with for us to do this summer and we will place them inside. That way whenever we can't think of something to do we can draw from one of the containers. My list for "outside" activities includes things like, riding bikes, going to the park, playing in the sprinkler, chalk, Frisbee, soccer, baseball, etc. I made one for "inside" activities as well, since there is always the chance of rain. Some of those include, baking cookies, playing with playdough, painting, having a camp-out, doing a craft, making puppets, etc. I am hopeful that these activities will keep us busy and out of boredom!!

My husband and I have also been realizing the need for more responsibility for our 5 year old. So we did some reading and decided on a "Chore Chart". We went back and forth and read many different opinions on what should be a "chore" and what should be a "paid job". On one hand we feel that he needs to be helping out around the house with out the expectation of getting paid. BUT on the other hand we feel he needs to start saving his own money to buy toys or other things that he may want (hoping that he might appreciate the things he has a bit better). One opinion we read was that every one should get an allowance for just being in the family. It should be set aside in the family budget for them to get their weekly allowance, a perk for being in the family. His theory is, you as the parent, are going to spend money on that child anyway, so you should just give the money to the child. I might not have explained that the way he meant for it to be explained. He also said that if a child would like to earn extra money for special things then paid jobs can be set out for them to earn that extra money. So we came up with our own chart to follow. Some items being chores and some being paid. The paid ones also have different amounts. On the chore side we put, make bed, wipe off table after meals, load his own dishes in the dishwasher, vacuum his room, and pick up his toys. On the paid job side we put, unload silverware and plastics from dishwasher ($.50), pick up sticks in the yard ($1.00), vacuum other rooms ($.50), take out garbage (.$50), help wash cars ($1.00), and raking leaves/shovel snow ($1.00). We are hoping that this will help him learn the value of working to earn special things, instead of just having stuff handed to him. Not that he gets everything he wants, but pretty close!


My husband and I recently finished reading Have a New Kid by Friday by Dr. Kevin Leman. We have been implementing the strategies in that book and I have to say, they work!! We were dealing with lots of behavioral problems with the five year old and they seem to be getting resolved. Next we are going to begin reading Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp. I am looking forward to learning more about how I can meet my childrens spiritual needs as a parent.


Jeremiah 29:11
"For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope."

Mickey Mouse here we come....

We leave for Florida on Monday. We are all so excited!! We started saving for this trip 14 months ago, it seem like it was forever ago. We decided last year that we wanted to go visit my parents who are living in Florida right now. So we started to plan and realized that we could go to Disney while we were there and stay for free (my parents own a timeshare near Orlando). So we thought why not save our spare change in a jar and see how much we can save in a years time. We ended up with approximately $1,000!! I will say that the grandparents helped out by sending money about every week usually only a $1 or so per kid, and we had a garage sale which added about $200. So that $1,000 dollars covered our airfare and car rental!

So after we figured out how we were going to pay for this trip it was time to start planning how we were going to spend our time when we were there. First we decided that with our kids being so little (ages 5 and 2) we should only plan on going to two parks. We decided on Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. Next we had to decide when we were going to go to which park and for how long, since the 2 year old still takes naps and the 5 year old still need to rest. So we figured out that since Animal Kingdom is only open until 5 pm that we would go there the first day. We arrive late in the evening on Monday so we decided that being able to sleep in the next day and not rush to get to the park would be a good idea. So that left our second day in Florida to go to Magic Kingdom. That way we would have a good rest in us before tackling the "big" park.

Once we decided on which days to go where, I really wanted to plan a Character lunch. We have always done that when we go to Disney World and I know my kids will love to eat with and meet the characters. So I planned that and made the reservation before we left so that we wouldn't have to do that when we got there.

After going to the parks we decided that with the half a day we had before heading to see my parents we would hit Downtown Disney. Downtown Disney has a ton of specialty shops and things to do. We are most looking forward to the Lego Store, they have TONS of Legos out to play with and work on. My boys are going to go crazy!! They also have the Rainforest Cafe, which my husband and I are really looking forward to. We ate there 10 years ago on our Honeymoon, so this will be a nice reminiscent time for us. The boys have never eaten at a Rainforest Cafe, so I look forward to seeing their reaction to it! After Downtown Disney we plan to head to see my parents, they live further south in Florida. We are planning on going to the beach, which is something that the boys have never gotten to do. We just hope that the weather cooperates for us.

I know this will be a wonderful vacation for all of us. After 14 months of planning and preparing, I think we are ready! I never realized how much preparation went into planning such vacations. My mother would pack for 5, and plan all the stops on the way, plus the time that we were there. I give my mother a lot of credit because we were never bored or wondering what was going to happen next on our vacations, she always had it planned out. That is something that I am taking responsibility for in my own family. I love to plan and make sure that everything runs smoothly. My husband says that I have the gift of administration, but sometimes I think I am just too lazy to follow through!

I will report back, on the outcome of our Florida vacation! It should be a wonderful time for the whole family. At first I wondered if my 2 year old would be bored or not interested, but I have heard that they are so amazed at this age that they really enjoy it.

New things....

As I sit here we are about to leave to go and look at a new Christian School for our 5 year old. He will be starting Kindergarten in the fall. Even though we live in a great public school district, we feel strongly about a solid Biblical upbringing. This is a nerve wracking decision for me to have to make. We only have a week before the pre-registration has to be filled out and turned in at his present school. So the decision has to be made quickly. Its not that we put off making this decision we just didn't realize that it would have to made this soon!

Starting this year, my husband and I have decided to "live like our grandparents". Meaning that we will try to not be wasteful and make sure our things are taken care of and last us a long time. We have realized that this is a very wise thing that needs to be taught to our children.

After Christmas we piled the van high with donations for Goodwill. Most of which were toys out of the boys room. They received way more than they needed for Christmas, and we decided to make them decide which toys they wanted to give away to make room for their new ones. We also had a birthday in September, and one in January, so the last few months have been filled with new items. Reflecting back on the events of the past few weeks, like the earthquake in Haiti, it really makes me so thankful for the little things we have.

My personal goal for this year to live so that no one questions my beliefs! I want my children to know what I believed and to want to emulate my behavior in every way!

What Every Mom Needs, chapter 2

While reading this chapter it took me 2 days and many interruptions to finally get it finished. Chapter 2 is called "Growth"! That basically sums up the last few weeks of my life. I have been growing as a mother and a wife and a person. This chapter has taught me that mothering involves self sacrifice. This bothered me a little at first but once I thought further on the subject I realized that it meant putting the need of my children above my own. For example I really enjoy my afternoon naps, but my 4 year old does not take a nap anymore and wants to spend time with me playing or doing work book pages. So a self sacrificing act on my part is giving up that nap and spending time with him, I confess I do not always succeed in this. I do notice, though, that on the days that I take time to spend with him he is a little bit more calm and obedient.

A quote from Judith Couchman states "[Our family's] well being takes priority over most pursuits, and I believe God honors decisions that place people above accomplishments. On the other hand, it also takes balance not to worship at the shrine of family to the exclusion of other relationships and responsibilities. It its possible to isolate ourselves within the family structure, hiding from personal growth and spiritual calling." This quote struck home to me because my family does need to come first and not second to other activities at church or school. Sometimes I get so concerned with activity that my family and home suffer for it. At the same time I realize that we can't be hidden in our house and not interact with others. So in the middle of that we need to find balance! Balance is finding the ground of taking care of me while also taking care of my children and husband. I also need to realize that my example of mothering and being a wife is what my children are going to base their future relationships on. So I need to be careful what their little eyes and ears pick up on. Are they going to see a mom who loved and cared for them enough to spend time with them and talk and listen? Or a mom who was more concerned with Facebook and email? And when they go and look for a wife are they going to look for one that is submissive and honoring to them, because that is what they saw in me? My prayer is that I can exude Christ's love towards them and towards my husband so that they can have good examples to follow.

Another topic in this chapter is Dreams. Dreams as in where do I want to be in 5 years or 10 years. Do I want a business, or publish a children's book? We need to make sure that while our children are young we don't try to pursue these "dreams" to the point that the children suffer. Right now my only dream is to be home with my children and to focus on being a wife and mother. Some of you might wonder why. I worked outside the home for 8 years and for 3 of those we had a child. It was the most difficult thing for me to do. My heart was at home I did not like going to work. But my husbands job (and sometimes lack of a job) left us no choice financially. After my second child was born I went back to work for 4 months and after coming home crying everyday for about 2 weeks, we finally decided to lay our finances down at the feet of Jesus and rely on Him to care and provide for us. At this time my husband has a steady job that pays fairly well and I am so thankful for this time to spend with both of my boys at home. At the same time there is a ton of guilt that I did not get to bond with my older son as well as I have with the second. As much as I pray for relief from this guilt there are many days that it crops up and I have to again confess it before the Lord and move on. I can do nothing about the past. Having said all that I feel that I am living my dream right now! I also know that is not the case for everyone, so just remember to not let your family suffer just because you have a need to fulfill your dreams.

One reason I started this blog was to find a creative outlet for me. I enjoy writing but have not been able to keep up with it in the last five years. Journaling is a wonderful way to stay connected to who you are. The authors suggest to keep journaling so that we don't lose sight of who we are outside of mother and wife. So this blog is a wonderful way for me to get some self expression out there and if for no body else, for me!

What Every Mom Needs...

Lately we have been struggling with disciplining our four year old I have tried everything and come to the conclusion that nothing is going to work! BUT after a sleepless night last night (and keeping my husband up until 2 am) I think I have come to some conclusions as to how to handle this strong willed child. I have read Creative Correction by Lisa Welchel, she gave me a lot of ideas but I still was having no luck getting a response. I tried about 3 different approaches, one was a rewards jar that I filled with tokens as he did was he was told. Another approach was using a paper plate clock to show his bed time and when he is disciplined he has to go to bed 5 minutes sooner. The third approach that I used was making him learn verses that correlated to what his offense was, I think he was a little too young yet for that one.

So last night I began reading a book by Elisa Morgan and Carol Kuykendall called What Every Mom Needs. This book opened a whole new outlook into why he might be misbehaving. My conclusion was that I am LAZY! My parenting over the summer became lazy and I quit being on top of the discipline. I am now going to out line some points that helped me come to this conclusion.
1. Mom guilt... I was feeling guilty that I missed so much of his baby and toddler time because I was working. So I felt not as connected to him as I do his younger brother (who I have been able to stay home with since he was 4 months old).
2. Losing a sense of "myself"... Since quitting my job over a year ago its been really difficult for me to feel connected to other moms or other adults, at work I had adults to talk to all day long, but at home the 4 year old and toddler don't get my sense of humor! Along with feeling a loss of myself in this mother process these ladies point out some ways to help us mother (no matter where we are in the whole process) with out losing our self: "We need to know ourselves the way God knows us (Matthew 22:39 states that we are to love our neighbors as ourselves!). "We need to care for ourselves for the sake of our children." This one helped me realize I don't need to feel guilty about taking time to go to the gym or out for the evening to be by myself. "We need to accept ourselves for the sake of our children." This one was good for me because I can be too hard on myself and children pick up on these little things. So if I am talking negatively about myself then that is how my children are going to see me or themselves. "We need to accept ourselves for the sake of other around us." If we don't love ourselves we won't truly be able to love others.

To bring it all to an end I learned that taking time for myself to re energize is the best thing I can do for my children and my husband. I would like to encourage you to take some time for yourself at the end or beginning of your day and work out or read or do something that is just for you! I don't feel its a selfish act I think its the best thing you can do!

At the end of the chapter there were some questions that I would like to leave with you, I will also leave my answers to them:
1. If I could spend a day (eight hours), with or without my family, doing anything, what would I do? As I told my husband last night, I am feeling so overwhelmed right now that the thing I would most like to do is to take my book and check into a hotel and lock myself in that room and not leave for an entire day! Doesn't that sound wonderful!?
2. What are my talents? This is a hard one for me to answer because I never feel like I have any "talents", I can't sing, I am not a public speaker. SO what are my talents, I believe I am talented in behind the scenes work. I can sew, I can bake, and I can love my children and husband to no end!
3. What are my dreams? My biggest dream in life is to have my children come to love Jesus as I love him! I want them to be able to say that they saw Jesus in my life!
4. What stirs my passion? This question threw me for a loop because I am not generally a passionate person. SO for me to say what stirs my passions is hard. I love my children, I want to do whats best for them. BUT I also know that I am something other than a mother and wife. My passions in life have to do with having a home that is a sanctuary for my family. To have people walk into my house and know that its filled with love and passion and is comfortable.
5. What is my calling? I believe my calling in life is to serve Jesus with my whole heart, and to love Him! I believe I am called to children's ministry at our church.
6. Can I pursue this purpose now, even as I live as a mother to young children? How?
I most definitely can do this now! What better time is there?!
7. How can my mothering enhance my growth in fulfilling my purpose? I need to be fully focused on my children while I am with them and fully focused on "myself" when I am doing something for me! That may sound selfish and I don't mean it that way. I just mean that when I take time out for me that I am not worried or thinking about how to handle things with them. I need to be refreshed and renewed when I come back to them.

(These questions were taken from the book What Every Mom Needs, by Elisa Morgan and Carol Kuykendall, chapter one, pages 48-49)


Please pray this prayer of acceptance and let yourself be renewed as I was:

"Today, O Lord, I accept your acceptance of me.
I confess that you are always with me and always for me.
I receive into my spirit your grace, your mercy, your care.
I rest in your love, O Lord, I rest in your love. Amen.
(pg. 49)

As summer comes to an end...

It is now the middle of August and we are getting ready for preschool to start. I know some mothers would feel sad, but for me this is a wonderful time! I love having my 4 year old (almost 5 year old!) home but this has been a long summer. He is really ready for school to start. I can never seem to keep him interested in any project that we do or in any toys that we have. I sometimes wonder what to do just to keep him so he does not destroy the house or his little brother. The little brother is learning quickly how to defend himself and that has added a lot more stress to my day. The 19 month old has recently learned to hit and get a reaction so that is mostly what he does all day to his older brother. The 4 year old takes it pretty well and does not get upset but just comes and tells on him every time he gets hit.

I will admit that I have been really preoccupied lately. My parents are getting ready for an auction of most of their things. So being the wonderful good daughter that I am I have been helping my mom pack boxes. We also are going to be moving in the next few months (into their house!) so I also have to start packing my own house. I keep thinking about doing it but never seem to get around to it. We are gearing up for a garage sale next month so I have been clearing things out and getting that ready. I guess that is doing something.

We are also trying to get things fixed and ready at our house so we can put it on the market. While doing that we are getting things for the new house as we have the money. I think maybe we are trying to do too much at one time. BUT I want to be ready to move before spring time so we can be in the new house for summer!

We are praying for a nice transition to the new house and that ours would sell quickly. We are really torn as to when to place it on the market because we would like to be moved out before we try to sell it. BUT with the housing market the way it is, we might need to do that sooner. We just don't want to be sitting with an empty house that we are paying for. God's timing is always perfect and we know He will lead us!

Back to the school issue.... with the 4 year old (soon to be 5 year old!) I am wondering what to do with the toddler. Not that I don't know what to do but I would like to get him to some sort of music class or swimming or something along those lines. The 4 year old will be in school all day on Tuesday and Thursdays and half day Wednesdays. I will have Bible study on Tuesdays and so I think just one day a week for a class for the toddler would be perfect. Let me know if anyone has any ideas of something that a 19 month old would enjoy. I think a swimming class would be good for him because he hasn't been too fond of the water and this summer hasn't been too good for going swimming.

I would like to leave you with these verses from the Bible: Psalm 8:1-5,9
O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor...O Lord, our Lord how majestic is your name in all the earth!