Runny Nose Central

I am surrounded by coughing, and runny noses. Literally from every angle! I guess I wasn't vigil enough at the onslaught of the sickness, because really my kids aren't usually sick for more than 12 hours. I just let their bodies kick in and fight the sickness and it always is gone in less than a day. So much so that I didn't even have Tylenol in the house when the fevers came.

What is this stuff? My poor Eli (3) started this whole mess, and he is still sick 3 days later. My youngest three seem to have it the worse and the older three are just coughing and sneezing a bunch. I'm guessing its just a simple cold bug. I am still fine! I was thinking yesterday these guys better get past this before Ava gets here!

So I am being scrupulous at making them drink their Vitamin C water and resting. I don't have any CLO but plan on getting some more as soon as I can make it to the store. I may even order it online today. The funny thing is I didn't even mention it to the boys, when I sat them all down at the table to drink their Vit C water and my oldest said "this is really bitter, but at least its not that fish oil stuff" LOL , can you tell they cant stand that stuff! I have to admit it gives me horrible indigestion as well. But the benefits out way the yuckie-ness.

Please keep us in your prayers the next few days!

A Great Surprise

I had some unexpected guests last night....My good friend Ann and her Husband Kevin and their son came by to say hello! I have not seen them in over a year, sense they moved from here to Georgia. Needless to say I was more than excited to see them. They had been in San Antonio visiting relatives and were on their way to Texarkana.

It is so nice to see folks that you miss dearly! I am sure that Ann would not mind me asking you guys to pray for her and her family. They desire another child greatly and have been waiting patiently for over 4 years now for The Lord to bless them. May His blessing flow into their lives!

The Home Stretch

I just saw that my baby ticker is on its last square! Only 31 days to go! I have never gone past my due date infact I am usually a few days before. I have been feeling this one moving into position ;-) the last few days. My Braxton Hicks have been very strong this past week. I would be really surprised if I make it another 3 weeks. We have tickets to the Mav's game on the 27th and I am due the 28th. My friend and I were kidding around that this one should come in true Stucker fashion "at the Mav's game" but I really would rather not LOL! Needless to say we are Mavericks Fans all the way. I did have the idea of painting a basketball on my belly for the game....ROTFL...I'm only kidding! I'm pretty sure I wont be making it and instead will be cuddling my new baby girl.

It is finally hitting me that I am about to have another baby here real soon. Isnt it funny (or maybe its just me) but after number 4, being pregnant isnt really a big event, its just part of the job. A good part none the less! So I am feeling its time to pull some things together. This month will be a bit busy as we try and finish up some things. I need to get the boys school year scheduled, we school year round with the first of the year being our "new" year, instead of August. I want to get the kids in a position to follow out their daily schedules even if I am not available to help them. It seems that when I stop they stop. I want to get the house ship shape from top to bottom ;-) I need to finish painting the laundry room. It looks 200% better than it did when we started, I'll post before and after pictures when we are done. Ah, what else...I know there is more.

The boys seem to coming down with colds, which means they will be taking it easy today. Not me though I need to get busy. Everyone have a blessed day!

Grand Opening!

Finally Finished and open for business!!

Please visit my new, hand made, custom, apparel store.

Sewing the Seams of Love!
http://www.sewingtheseamsoflove.com/

There are many styles of clothing to choose from and many fabrics available. I have tried to keep the pricing as low as possible and THE SHIPPING IS FREE!!

You will find a few ready made dresses, I am adding more as time allows. The beauty of custom ordering is that you get exactly what you want. So visit the styles & fabrics pages and choose your favorites!

Please "pass" me along to your friends and family! For all those who refer me to a purchasing customer you will receive a dollar off of your next order, up to 3 dollars!

If you are a member of the "MOMYS Group" you will receive 5% off of every order you place!

Thanks So much!
Blessings
Audrey Stucker

The Word Became flesh

That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
John 1:9-14

FreeFoto.com

Christmas

This is a wonderful article, that is factual yet loving and non judgmental. I say that if I had to put how I feel about Christmas into words this is exactly what I would say!

http://www.jcstudie s.com/assets/ pdf/COMChristmas Message.pdf

Barnacles!

This morning my wonderful 9.5 son came down at about 7:00 while I was making bisquits and gravy. He asked if I wanted to play the Sponge Bob Square Pants Monopoly game he received a few days ago from his grandpa. I agreed and figured it would be good one on one quality time, as well as a bit of counting practice for him. When we stopped playing (does one ever really finish an entire game of monopoly?) I thought maybe it was 9ish or so....nope, 10:15!! I cant believe I played that game for three hours this morning.

On another not, do any of you other mothers of boys have to "re-visit" the correct way to use a toilet? Ughh! You would think its like riding a bike, once you know you know. Well apparently not around here. For the past month it has been a thorn in my side. So, it is me and five boys (yes they are ALL potty trained now, way to go Elijah!) standing around the toilet. I explain to them the mechanics of the lid "this is up, and this way is down" "This is the floor, we dont tinkle here" "This is the wall, yep try and stear clear of that as well"

Then I explain to them the pure, unadulterated joy that they would bestow upon me, if I did not have to wipe off the seat, just a few of the more than 15 times I visit the restroom in a day. I then of course threaten them with promises of the great outdoors. Cold, middle of the night trips to the back yard to releave themselves, if the wet seat bandit does not change his(their) ways!
They all agree to do better in the future, or I suspect at least until it warms up outside ;-) LOL

Sweet Sleep

I did not get around to taking a nap yesterday. Instead I had this crazy notion to clean the upstairs rooms. This included the boys rooms and that took two hours of us all working on it. I have this weird habit of getting the most work done when I am exhausted and plan to rest. Then when I am well rested and have a list of stuff to accomplish I dont get it all done. I never claimed to be normal. LOL

So by the time I hit the bed last night I was beyond exhausted. I slept like a rock! I woke at 3:00 to visit the restroom and realized I had not turned, nor moved at all from where I started out. Which is a huge change from turning every 20 minutes all night long. ;-) Then I went back to sleep and slept until 8:00 this morning. Luckily all the kids slept in as well, which isnt the norm around here either.

So I'm feeling a bit better today. I still have laundry to catch up on sense I washed 6 sets of sheets and comforters yesterday. The boys and I are reading Charlottes web this week, So we need to read a few chapters of that. We are taking a break from "regular" school work until the first of the year. Where we will kick it back into high gear.

Then I have some sewing to do. I want to sew some new comforters for the boys using their designated colors. I cant decide if I want to make then out of Fleece or Cotton. My problem with fleece is that everything sticks to it. My oldest son will not give up his very first comforter from when he was two. It is a fraction of its former self, but he loves it. Silly boy.

Store is moving along

Please stop by and check it out. There has been a fabrics page added as well as a styles selection page. I still have a bit more to do, but it is almost complete! Tell me what you think, what you might add, change, throw out LOL

I still have to expain in detail on the home page how the site works and the ordering procedures, as it is not a merchant site and orders will need to be sent in to me then filled. I wish I could afford a click and purchase site, but thats a bit pricey right now.

Thanks for any input!

Well, Shreveport was nice as always. Seeing my dad and grandma and uncles and cousins is always enjoyable. We usually only see them once a year and its so wild to watch our children grow up year by year. As I was walking up my uncle Ricky says "You look the same every year" LOL, he's of course talking about me being pregnant. I rubbed his belly and told him he did to.


My dad lavished the children with presents. Which I know he enjoyed doing. I received the neatest gift this year. My Memaw (my dads mom) put together a family history of her side of the family The Daniels and Smiths. I learned something I never knew. Something no one ever mentioned which I find worthy of praise and admiration. My Great Great Grandma had 20 children. Who knew? She was married at the age of 16 and 14 months later at 17 had her first child, Noah Frank. She then just about every year after that had another child. Her 11th child died at birth. Then in the year 1924 she had 4 children, 2 sets of twins!! The first set #'s 13,14 died at birth and the second set #'s 15, 16 were fine. Guess what #'s 19 & 20 were twins as well. 3 sets of twins, 20 children and she only lost 3 at birth. What a neat thing to learn about! She lived to be 66 years old until she and her husband were killed in the 1950 tornado that came through Caster LA. along with their 19th child.


The details of our family have been hard to come by. My moms family, I will never know anything about and the Adams (my dads dad) side seems to be hard to come by as well. There is just something about learning your heritage.


***************************************
I visited the midwife last Friday, everything looks great. I am measuring 35 weeks and we think the little stinker might be breech. Which makes sense because the last week I haven't felt real well. No big deal though, delivering breech is not all that different than a head first delivery. Although I do hope she turns! Sleeping is becoming harder these days. I got up this morning and felt like I was ready to go to bed LOL. Here is a picture of me at 34 weeks (this morning) ignore the hair, I hadn't put it up yet. ;-)

Well, I'm off to get started with the day. I need to get some things done so that I might be able to lay down with Eve later for a much needed nap!

So close!

Only 44 (give or take) days to go! My dad was right when he said the older you get the quicker time goes by. I never believed him, because as a child, a day seems like an eternity. LOL Now though, it seems that years run into years and months into months, and before you know it so much time has passed by.

As has been this pregnancy, very quick! I have not pulled anything out yet or even begun getting things ready for her. Although its all at my fingertips and could pulled together in a few hours. I am still wanting to purchase the birthing tub and deliver in water this time, but part of me thinks it might be just to much work. I labor for only about 3 hours and may not be able to get it up and ready in time. Then there is the cold factor...if it were summer I would be convinced, but its winter and cold and I dont like being cold. ;-)

My good friend is brining me Indian food today. I LOVE Indian food! If you have not tried it you should. I have been craving it lately, so she is bringing it as a late B-day present. I cant wait!

I will be heading to Shreveport Saturday for our Adams Annual Christmas Gathering at my grandmas house. This is the one time a year that I get to see everyone. My dad will be there this year. Now that he has moved to Mississippi from CO he is closer and we can visit more. ;-) I havent seen him in about 10 months, so that will be nice.

I have alot to do today, its deep clean Friday! I need to finish the laundry, give haircuts and much more. So I guess I need to get moving. The kids are way ahead of me with their zones, now I just need to get mine done LOL

Have a Blessed Weekend!

Clearing the muddy waters

A comment was posted:
Anonymous said...
ok, please prove to me that Jesus was born on Christmas, bc sweetie I can prove to you that he wasn't

My reply:
Audrey said...
I never said he was born on Christmas, infact I said that he was born in Late September around the 28th, 29th during the feast of tabernacles. The article said only that someone had heard that perhaps Jesus was concieved on Dec 25th. That was something I had not heard before, hence thought it fitting to pass along. If you do the math and also believe that He was born around Sept. 28th, then the conception date could very well have been Dec 25th. (did we read the same post :-?)

My intention has been to stear clear of any "side" that I take on this blog as we all will do what we see fit during this season. My take on Christmas and other holidays are not the norm of most Western Christian believers, and I do not want to be a stumbling block to anyone who may not see things the way I do. If anyone does want to know what I believe then ask me privately and I will tell you. Otherwise may everyone enjoy their holiday season as they see fit, for it is not my place to judge.

My girls!

I don't usually post pictures like this, but thought it was just too cute and knew you moms would see the beauty in it. Eve has a belly button fascination. She is always rubbing her belly button, she cant go to sleep without it. LOL

So needless to say she likes to examine other belly buttons as well. She was sitting in my lap on the couch, we were having our afternoon girl time. She decided she wanted to check out my belly button and talk to her sister Ava. I had Jordan bring me the camera and snapped this photo.

Prairie Dress

This is the dress that is under the Penafore. Very flowing. This dress is one that you can spin around in a circle and make a big "poof", definately a dress suitable for any princess! It is a bit big on my petite little girl. I took the dress from a size 2 down to about a size 18 months and she still has plenty of room to grow, not to mention that I can let the bottom out a good three inches as she gets taller, (if she ever gets taller LOL)

So what do you think? I love it, and will be placing it in the store as a custom order only, as it takes much time and material to complete.

*********************************************************************
Tiany, to answer your question, yes my boys tend to tease each other quite a bit. As they get older it even increases because they begin to add in practical jokes and pranks. I was just talking to Rob last night saying that the oldest two really are becoming emotional about things. When they are younger they cry for a few minutes and then its done. When they start hitting puberty (oh, I cant believe I am saying that) their emotions seem to be hightened and the teasing seems to be effecting them more, as if they take it more to heart than when they were little (so keep that in mind, now would be the time to make changes if you think you need to)

Do I think it is normal for boys to tease? To a degree! Rob and I tease each other all the time, but we know its done in jest. We NEVER do it to hurt one another, but unfortunately with kids its an easy "getting back at you" tacktic, when they are mad at each other. So having said all that we have rules about teasing and ruff housing, because around here thats a huge part of being a boy as well.

Heres what we do, with teasing one another it is unexceptable when someones feelings could be hurt, or do get hurt. Then it is stopped and followed by an appology (I am seeing though that the older ones when their feelings have been hurt, tend to hold on to the anger a bit longer, and an appology does not always resolve the hurt)

No teasing in the form of harmful name calling, this one is tricky because its fun to call each other silly names, I do it with the kids all the time (example: silly pickle, goof ball, ect) they know I'm kidding, but there again they may use it to get back at each other when upset.

With ruff housing, no punching, kicking or biting ect, just simple wrestling, and if it gets heated it is stopped.

As I read over what I have written, I think to myself surly it would just be easier and make more sense to stop all the teasing and ruff housing all together, and perhaps that is the case in some homes. In ours though I think there are life lessons (social lessons) to be learned within the safety of our own home and family.............................

.....................I wish you could have been a fly on the wall for the past 15 minutes, I decided to call my oldest two (9.5, 11) down to ask them about teasing and brotherdom and their take on it all. I wish I had a way to tape it and put it on here for you but lets just say they were very candid. It boils down to that its fun when its fun and is vengful when it is useful. I asked them if it would be possible to stop it all together in a family, my oldest said "ya, if you are an only child" LOL, the conversation ended with them wrestling on the couch and Devon pushing Jordans head into the couch saying "smell Franky" (Franky is an odiferous dog and thats the couch he sleeps on ;-)

I laughed as I saw them loving each other in their boyish physical way. Totaly enjoying each other as they wrestled around. You know I have to say that if they are being raised in a home with loving parents who teach them right from wrong and love them, they will be fine. Keep it safe and address it when its out of hand. They will be great young men!

And when you just have heard enough send them out to do something physical, jump on the trampoline, run relay races ect. Hope that helps some.

Boys are so awesome!!!

Santa/ Saint Nich

I thought I would share one more post from the HOW message board. Once again I make no claims as to the accurateness of her statement, but it also is one I have not heard before in regards to the true identity or even existance of Saint Nich. She does not name the book she took the quote from, but if any are interested I could ask her for the title.

"An interesting quote from a book that I picked up in G'Burg regarding santa and trees:"The Catholic Saint Nicholas also had a confusing past. He was a compilation of two separate saints (one from Myra in Asia Minor and the other from Pinora), both of whom were as the Church nowadays admits-northing more than christianized water deites-possibly related to the Greco-roman god Poseidon/neptune. ) In the 1970's Vatican Council II formally stated that no Roman catholic bishop by the name of Nicholas had ever existed, and that the legends attributed to this saint had no christian origin and probably came from pagan traditions.. ......By adsorbing such pagan feasts and traditions, the Christian church could subtly bring in its own theology: in this case, establishing the good st nich, bringer oflove and gifts, while grudgingly allowing the presence of the olde religion's herne/pan, but only as a slave to st nich. Thus, in parts of Europe, the church turned herne into st nich's captive , chained dark helper; none other than satan, the dark one, symbolic of all evil.....This book is very detailed and well documented. What I am amazed at (or probably shouldnt' be) is that as much documentation as we have available about this winter holiday, the christian community adamantly clings to and defends this tradition, changing the story as they see fit, to make it seem that the messiah is somehow connected.. End post"

Just more food for thought, or to toss away if you wish ;-)

Goings on around here have been peaceful and quite. Our gas stove arrived yesterday, although the high yesterday was 68 LOL and today will be 70's. So needless to say it hasnt been used yet, but will be well broken in by the end of winter...I'm sure!

Due to the weather being so pleasent today we are going on an outing to the park!!! These boys need fresh air and so does mom! One thing about Texas, it doesnt get 'really' cold and stay that way, until late January and then it goes away at the beginning of March.

I am almost done with the Prairie Dress (I'm not sure what to name it yet, there might be a contest in the works;-) I have been working on. It is one of my favorite dresses so far. But a lot of work and material goes into this one. I will be finished with it this afternoon and will post a picture of it then. I wanted to have a few extra things added to the store this past weekend but my "website helper" didnt show up, hence nothing was updated.

I am out of time right now, but will be answering Sunflowers question about filling our childrens time so that they stay busy and out of trouble on the weekends, and other idle times.

The Birth of Christ

I read this today on the HOW (Heart of Wisdom) discussion board. It is very thought provoking. I am not saying that I agree with her oppinions entirely, but the dates and insight are interesting. I have thought due to scripture that Jesus was born in late Sept, during The Feast of tabernacles, but have never heard the claim of his conception being Dec. 25th.

I am still in much prayer and seeking wisdom over Christmas and Easter. As I have stated before I am an all or nothing kinda gal, who hates compromise. I do believe in absolute truth and I pray that The Father reveals His truth and His desires for my family in these areas.


Lisa Wrote:
Regarding the Christmas holiday, I found out that the conception date of Jesus is actually Dec. 25th and is very clearly documented in Scripture. When you read of the Course of Abia it becomes very evident that Christ was born Sept. 29th. Luke 1:5 shows that Zacharias was a full blood Levite and therefore so was Elizabeth (from the lineage of Aaron). Each course was served for one week and Zacharias served the eighth course, which happened June 13- June 19. He departed on June 20th and being an aged man, it took him 2 or 3days to get home to Elizabeth (the day following the end of the course of Abia was a Sabbath and so Zacharias could not leave Jerusalem before the 20th). Luke 1:6 says that both Zacharias and Elizabeth met the legal requirements to serve on the alter and burn the incense. Mary was a cousin to Elizabeth and therefore her mother had to have been a full blood Levite. Keep in mind that the genealogy listed in Math. ch. 1 is Joseph's and NOT Mary's.> In Luke 3: 23 (KJV) it states Jesus was the son of Joseph (as was supposed)--meaning by law. Christ came through Nathan (son of David) Luke 3:31. Christ was born Sept. 29th, 4 BC. This was also the 1st day of the Feast of Tabernacles and he was circumcised the 8th day. I just think Dec. 25th is a very special and beautiful date to remember in that the Word became flesh on this date, and 9 months later, Jesus tabernacled with humankind. As for the Christmas tree, I understand that some don't feel it is right. Personally, I see the evergreen as symbolic of eternal life and God even compares Himself to an evergreen tree in Hosea chapter 14 verse 8! The scripture most people use to say that Christmas trees are bad is the one in Jeremiah ch. 10 verse 5 where it is talking about idols. I have never worshiped a tree and believe Scripture to be true where it says these trees can neither do evil, nor good. I agree on the fact that materialism is too important to people> and replaces the true meaning of Christmas but I don't any longer feel that December 25th is just a date picked out by heathen nations and stuck into Christianity by man. Does anyone have the Companion Bible KJV ? It very clearly explains the fact that Christ was indeed conceived Dec. 25 when John the Baptist was 6 months in the womb and he lept for joy upon Mary's arrival at Elizabeth's home.

Edited later: The conception date could very well be Dec 25th, Mary would have had to have been about 10 days late in delivering baby Jesus, which is normal especially for first time moms.

Such poetic words

I read this today here and thought I would share it:

As we explain the pains and discomforts that Karen is experiencing I hope that you are all putting these things into context in at least two ways. The first is that it is important to see these things in contrast to what Christ had to suffer. What he suffered he did so willingly as a righteous man., What we suffer we do so as guilty men who in our hearts beat our chests and ask “why?!” deceiving ourselves that we deserve better than what we’re getting.

Secondly, we must appreciate that this pain and suffering is part of the great story of history that God is breathing out over time. All of its comedy as well as its tragedy are perfectly placed. He is the master author and we are the characters that he loves. That he loves his people means that the tragedy is not capricious, mean or pointless. That we are characters means that we are his creation and we are not privy to know all the reasons why he has written our particular parts the way he has. We can be confident, however, that for those who love him, when we are finally able to look back at the whole story we’ll see that each part of the plot was necessary to make it truly beautiful.

Pray For Karen!!

BRRRRR

No posting for the next few days. Our stove is not to arrive until the 13th and a cold front has come through. It is 40 degrees and dropping in the library and my fingers are going numb.

Have a great weekend!

Success

Well.....Elijah went all day AND all night with no accidents. I presume the time was right. He began telling me later in the day that he needed to go potty and made it every single time!

I put pull-ups on him to go to bed and he still was able to make it through the night and went potty this morning. I am wondering if he is holding the "big business" though because he hasn't done that yet.

We are going to get groceries today and that will be the big test, can he make it through the errands without any accidents? I'm pretty sure he will do great.

On another note, today is Thursday and the day I told the owners of the land that we could complete the transaction for the property. Part of me is wondering if they will even show back up. But I am fine with it either way. They will be back someday, if not today.

I heard the neatest thing the other day! My SIL said that my MIL was telling her that she is going to give her doll collection to me for my "girls" ROTFL!!!

I never thought I would ever hear that I had a girl, but GIRLS! How exciting! Only a mom who has had many sons before having a daughter (or is still waiting) knows what I am talking about. For ten years I was a mom to boys! that was my calling, my job, my lot in life. And it was fabulous! I am so glad that I had 5 boys before I had my girls! But I am soooo glad that I have been given these girls. I could just eat Eve up! I cant wait to meet this next little one. I wonder what she will look like, I'm almost positive she will have brown eyes (4 of my 6 do) Will she have blond hair like Rob or Black hair like me? Will she have Robs long fingers or my short stubbies? LOL

I cant wait to meet her!! Not long now!

A Glorious Day!

The angels are singing praises in heaven today! I have only had to potty train one of my children, the oldest. He was a bit difficult, and with me being a new mom I was a bit pushy. Then as the rest of the boys came along they just watched the oldest and trained themselves at an acceptable age.

My fifth son is much like my 1st son in many many ways, one of them being difficult to potty train. They are both very bright children, so perhaps they just see the easyness in not using the potty. Eli will be 4 in April (WOW, that just hit me) so I have been asking him and have introduced him to the potty several times with NO cooperation or interest from him. So as not to push him I just have watched for signs of interest.

He made the move into pull-ups about a 3 months back. My hopes where that he would feel like a big boy and get used to underware in a sense. Well, the funny thing about that, is that he would just wait until they were full and change his own pull-up (I of course still handled the poopies) He changed himself in the morning and throughout the day. I know you are laughing outloud, its OK, I realize how rediculous that is!

So with needing to tighten the budget I figured it was time to potty train, ready or not. Today I put him in underware and told him that was it, no more Bugs Bunnies (pull-ups) I sat him on the potty and committed to taking him back every 45min. Well the first 4 times were nonproductive. Then he walks into the kitchen and I realize he needs to go potty, so we run upstairs and for the first time in his entire life HE TINKLES IN THE POTTY!!!!!

I'm sure he thought I had finally lost my marbles as I was dancing around the bathroom and singing his praises! I was sure that Eve would potty train before him, but I was wrong. Now I know what you are saying "sweet dear, he used the toilet once, you have a long road to travel" This I know, but at least there is light in the tunnel now!

Our second habit to break this week is Seths thumb sucking. He is 7 now and his dady told him last night he was through, no more, thats it! So he has been waring a glove over his hand today and has to ware it for a few days straight, until he is free from the habit.

Progress!!

Its warm enough today.....

....to sit in here and blog a bit. It is very warm in the living, dinning and kitchen area of the house. We shut the doors to that side and the stoves keep it quite toasty. It is also warm in the kids rooms as they have small stoves in there, but the rest of the house is a cool 48 degrees. "Ya, right" you say, "surly you are exagerating" here is the thermometer I put in the hallway yesterday

Yep pretty cold, so hence the reason why I have not been blogging the past few days. All of that will change in a few days as our new stove arives on the UPS truck. I ordered it Sunday and am counting down till its arrival. It will go into the library (where my computer is) and also will heat up the sewing room and entryway as well as the upstairs (from heat rising) Each one of these stoves heats 1000 sq feet and we have three total, with 4000 sq feet to heat, so we are getting there slowly. Can you believe that the first winter we lived here we had NO stoves for heat and NO AC units for coolness in the summer. I look back now and think how did we do it?

This weekend I finished two Pinafores. I now need to get going on the dress that goes on the inside. They will be beige with long sleeves adorned with lace along the arms and bottom as well as round collars. I am so happy with how they turned out. I have decided that this will be one of the "special order" dresses in the store. They are great for cooler weather because they are essentially two seperate dresses. They have little tucks on the bodice and buttons that go down the front. I will post a much better picture when I have a completed set.

Lastly we had unexpected visitors yesterday. We have lived here going on 4 years. We bought this house because we loved the size, price and potential, as well as the fact that we had 4 empty lots that encircled our home which we were hoping to purchase. We have successfully bought the three behind us but the folks that owned the large lot right beside our home made it clear they did not intend on selling. So we fenced the areas we bought and were happy with that.

As a preface to the story we had offered as much as 2500 for the lot a few months back when we had the money, and never heard anything back. So yesterday they come to our door and asked if we were still wanting to buy the land. Umm YAAA! So we chat for a moment and I find out that the owner is in a nursing home and the gal who is to inherit it is in need of some fast money. I ask them what they want for it and they say $800.00 I try to hold back my amazement and stay calm. I said let me talk to my husband, call me back later.

Long story short, you bet we will buy it. Problem is Dec and Jan where going to be very tight months as I have to pay the midwife and take 5 kids into the dentist, which I know a few have cavities that need to be dealt with. So how are we going to pull this off. Rob and I dont deal in credit, it ruined us once and well, we learn from our mistakes. LOL

Does anyone have any tips on feeding a family of 8 for 50 a week? I figure this is the Lords doing and He will make it happen how He has it planned out. I am just excited to see what happens. In a weird sort of way, I enjoy "tight" months every once in a while. As it really helps you to focus on only the essentials, and your eyes are opened to how truly blessed you really are.

So please say a prayer for us that this transaction happens and that we have money left to eat these next two months. I know we will, The lord is always faithful!

Homeschool & Scriptures

Here is the post I wrote in August about what we use for our schooling.

I also feel like something has really been on my heart alot lately. I could explain it in my falty human words, but I figured we could just read it from the source.

“Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken thou me in thy way” (Ps. 119:37)

“Rid me and deliver me from the hand of strange children, whose mouth speaketh vanity and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood: That our sons may be as plants grown up in their youth; that our daughters may be as corner stones, polished after the similitude of a palace.” (Ps. 144:11,12)

“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” (Ps. 1:1-3)

“I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple concerning evil.” (Rom. 16:19)

“I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word.” (Ps. 119.101)

“Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house, lest thou be a cursed thing like it: but thou shalt utterly detest it, and thou shalt utterly abhor it; for it is a cursed thing.” (Deut. 7:26)

“Abstain from all appearance of evil.” (I Thes. 5:22)

“Keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called: Which some professing have erred concerning the faith.” (I Tim. 6:20,21)

“But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. And their word will eat as doth a canker.” (II Tim. 2:16,17)

“If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed.” (II Jn. 1:10,11)

“I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.” (Ps 101:3)

“One sinner destroyeth much good.” (Eccl. 9:18b)

“For, lo, the wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart. If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Ps. 11:2,3)

“They did not destroy the nations, concerning whom the LORD commanded them: But were mingled among the heathen, and learned their works. And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them” (Ps. 106: 34-36)

“The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness. Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness. If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.” (Luke 11:34-36)

“Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.” (I Cor. 15:33)

“Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us.” (I Cor. 5:6,7)

“Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.” (Gal. 5:7-9)

“Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.” (Rom. 1:33)

“Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” (James 4:4)

“The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness” (Matt. 6:22,23)

“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Gal. 6:7,8)

Rob stayed home yesterday so that he could reskirt the bottom of the house before the winter storm rolled in. We had ripped all the old off during the summer so that we could level the house. He completed one side and now we have the other side to finish. Then it will get painted and look great!

The weather was 80 again yesterday and will be 27 as the high today. BRRRRR!!

I finished the bloomers yesterday. They were rather big on Eve, she is so tiny. So after these pictures I took them back to the machine and took them in and up another 2 inches. I like the longer size though especially for winter.

A bit of this and some of that

It has been a nice, long weekend. Lots of food was involved and I am stuffed. Yesterday I turned 31, I guess its not so bad! By the grace of God I made it through the first 18 years of my life and the last 13 years have been such a blessing! I have a wonderful husband a housefull of awesome children and we all have our health and a bit of sanity. Its a great life!

I sewed my first sleeved dress this weekend. This week I will attempt to sew this dress. The long sleeved one. I just love dresses like that. I am also going to sew some bloomers. I had a great time at Joanns on Friday. Browsing all the fabrics and patterns, it is so much fun. I have to really push myself through the learning curve though, as I can get discouraged that things are not turning out as perfect as I want them to.

Here is my sewing corner in the spare craft room, hopefully some day soon this will be a fully functioning sewing/craft room. As you can see we havent done anything to this room yet. It still has the unfinished wood floors and the 60 year old wallpaper. Ughh!

My birthday present is on the left of the table ;-) and the dress is hanging on the wall.

Super Grover was attacked last night by the 4 legged beast that roams the house in the late hours of the night searching for lonely stuffed animals and de-stuffing them. His insides are laying next to him. Devon said he's in the emergency room awaiting surgery. LOL

Here's Hog Dog enjoying the beautiful 80 degree weather and Devons freshly raked pile of leaves. He's such a sweet dog! And to clear his name he is not the de-stuffer of all things stuffed.

Household tip:

One last thing before I forget. I bought some OUT Pet Stain and odor remover from the pet section of the grocery store. It is supposed to be good for fabrics and such to get the "dog" smell out, naturally.

When this morning as I was cleaning the bathroom it struck me, its great on urine smells. So I sprayed it around and on the toilet as well as the floor and surrounding walls, let it set for about two minutes and wiped it clean. It works great! For those homes with little boys who sometimes just seem to miss the potty, this is a great solution.

Noticed the new ticker???

Yep, its a GIRL! Only one and she is perfect. I was measuring big because I am 2 weeks farther along than I guestemated. Her due date is Jan 28th. I guess the Good Lord decided I had put in my "boy time" and is now filling our home with dresses and bows! YAY!

*********Cant wait to meet Miss Ava Rose**********

Happy Thanksgiving!!

We have been enjoying a most gorgeous day today with highs in the 70's!
I am not a cold weather fan, so these warm days are fabulous to me.

We ate until we could eat no more, then we took long naps, needless to say it was such a restfull, peaceful day!

I will be hitting the bed early tonight sense I am getting up and out the door by 5:30am to head to Joanns and get my birthday present! Yes, I'm crazy like that!

I pray you all had a blessed and lovely day!

The store has a few dresses in it

I am trying to find the best way to present the dresses on the website, in section 1,2,3,4. I am not completely happy with the layout. Have any suggestions? Should the pictures be larger, smaller, are they clear enough that you can see the material, do you like the smaller pictures that are a bit closer, or is that just in the way? As a customer what would you like to see?

I have been thinking about it and I believe I will have a small amount of dresses ready made, but put a bit more time into creating a section that gives the customer a place to make custom orders, with designs and fabric to choose from. What do you think? Thanks for all your suggestions! And yes, Tiany if you could tell me how to create a button (or could do it for me;-) that would be fantastic! www.sewingtheseamsoflove.com

Does this only happen to me?

So far there have been two times in the past 6 months that while walking through the parking lot of the grocery store, I and my children have almost been plowed over by someone backing out of their spot and not looking behind them.

It happened around 6 months ago, I had a basket with the two little ones in it, and the rest of the kids walk very close around me....yet an elderly woman put it in gear and started to backout before I even could yell at the children to get out of the way. Luckily a lady that was walking behind me started screaming as loud as she could (I think she was petrified at what she was about to see) and the lady driving the car heard her. She came within 5 inches of the basket I was pushing.

I have always been very vigilant at watching tail lights in parking lots as well as listening for cars starting or already running. Yet it happened again today. I was once again pushing a cart with the children all in their places, this lady puts the car in gear and begins to back out, I yell to the kids to move grab Seth by the shirt because he's my straggler and try and pull him while pushing the cart and babies out of the way. I guess I yelled for her to stop or maybe she heard me shout at the kids to move. But she slams on her brakes and opens her door, I was still walking fast to try and get out of the way, so I just say to her "watch what you are doing." She proceeds to get out of the car like she is about to come after me and then yells at me that she saw me and that I walked right in front of her. Ya, last time I checked pedestrians had the right of way in a parking lot, and if she saw me then why did she continue backing out. Anyway, I think it just scared her and she was shooting off at the mouth.

Does anyone else have this problem? Perhaps I need a bull horn to blow as I am walking through the parking lot "COMING THROUGH!!!"

Isaiah

I am halfway through the book of Isaiah. I started about 5 months ago reading the Bible all the way through from start to finish. My favorite book of the OT is Deuteronomy. Not sure why I just love it. My favorite books of the NT are Ephesians and James.

I came across a verse today though that I want to share. I have a yearning in my spirit for Peace, it is something I am drawn to. The mear thought of complete peace gives me such Joy.

"The fruit of righteousness will be peace: the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisterbed places of rest. Though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely, how blessed you will be, sowing your seed by every stream, and letting your cattle and donkeys range free. " Isaiah 32:17-20

Just because its cute!

This is one of the things she likes to do. Silly girl! She also has learned to smile and say CHEESE!

The Sewing Corner

Here are a few dresses almost ready for the store. I am excited! I am finding that I can comfortably sew about 4 in one week, working about 2 hours a day.


If you have any fabric or accessories suggestions let me know. Next year I hope to be more on top of the seasons with dresses made from appropriate colors for each season. I am working on sewing pantaloons or bloomers as we call them here, to match the outfits.

I am hoping to get a new sewing machine for my birthday ;-) And eventually a serger so that the clothes will look more professional!

Some exciting possibilities!!

I have found a wonderful midwife in my area, who will be as hands off as I want her to be, but still be there to support us through the delivery of our baby. I went to see her last night for an "lets check you out visit"

Everything looks great! She measured my belly, which measured 32 weeks (um wait a minute I should be right at 28 weeks) but, no big deal really, a mom who has had as many kids as I have can begin to measure larger.

So then we listen to that wonderful, glorious heartbeat....that says I'm OK in here! We find a heart beat on the far right side of my tummy where the body of the baby seems to be. We listen and all is great. Then she jokingly says "so when are you going to have twins and moves the heart beat monitor over to the far left of my stomach and there was another heartbeat. I laughed and said you are probably just hearing it through the other side of my stomach, although this one was much clearer. She moves it back to the other side where we heard the first heart and we listen then quickly move it back to the other side...gasp....they have different rhythms, they sound like two different heart beats. Could it be TWINS?!?

So, I am not getting my hopes up but I told her I would go ahead and get a sonogram so that we can be prepared in case there are two little angels in there. She said she will still assist us but would like to bring in a second midwife to assist if infact we are having twins.

So today I will call the sono place and make an appointment. We will soon know what we are in store for. YES, twins scares me...it would be fun, but I am good at one, not sure if I would be good at two. ;-)

I'll keep you posted!

Edited later: I have the sonogram scheduled for Nov 25th, the day before my birthday LOL
That would be a great b-day present!

My thoughts.....

.....so far on Chapter 1 are many. But I will try and keep it lite. There were some things that disturbed me as to my own walk with The Lord, which is truly lacking! but I will start with the obvious message of the chapter.

" What is happening is justification in Christ is preached alone, at the expense of holy living; and the hearers of this one-sided gospel are left in the dark as to Gods requirement of the necessity of a holy life, Gods grace has been turned into lasciviousness; the attitude of most has been: "A little sin wont hurt-I'm just a 'carnal Christan' you know."

The false teaching of carnal Christianity has so permeated our churches that no one ever questions his interest in Christ, no matter how he lives. People are told that if they have believed, that is all that is necessary, and therefor all is well with their souls, but the Holy Word of God declares no such teaching, but in fact declares just the opposite! Hebrews 12:14 "Follow peace with all men, and holliness, without which no man shall see God"

Christs life is now his life, this saved soul now desires to put to death the things of the flesh, that he might sow to the spirit and walk after the spirit.

This was the passage that I loved reading...."a gospel that gives no new heart or new nature, a gospel that does not break the power of sin, but allows one to live on in it, a gospel that knows nothing about holiness of thought and action , a gospel that will let you indulge the flesh, and put no restraint upon your passion, pride and evil heart!"

I feel like this is what the majority of Christians think. They do not hold themselves responsible for their actions. "Its a fallen world you know" they say. Have they forgotten that we are called to live in this world but not be "OF" this world. I have many christian friends who party, drink, go out act like fools, I know christian folk who are living an "alternative" lifestyle. I know christain woman who ware things that make my husbands head turn, as well as make me feel like maybe I should look sexy too, just so that I can keep my dh's stares my way. I know christians that speak to others as if they are dirt, with no respect of themselves or anyone around them.

It almost makes you ashamed to say you are a christian...when that is what you are up against.
( I am not ashamed!)

In my experience as I have tried to set myself apart from this world in dress and certain family decisions I am mocked, made fun of and tolerated, even by those who I trust the most. Does this hurt me, yep....does it make you want to just blend in and be like everyone else....almost!

I guess that I am saddened the most, to think that "the above" is what our Saviour died for. He gets no more than that from most. Where is the respect, where is the awe and reverence and wonder? Where is the gratitude and life change? Where is the holliness...?

I am not perfect!! I have slid so far backwards from where I once was in Christ. I am not the person that I want to be. As much as I know it is all my doing...I can honestly say that it also has alot to do with those around me. I do not want to be an outcast...who wants to be the crazy "religious lady?" who doesn't know what birth control is and dresses like a Volkswagen. It is truly hard to be different, holy, like Christ, in this world of Christians...because many believe a false gospel.

OK my rant is over....can you tell these are fresh wounds and real heart ache! I am an all or nothing kinda gal. I want to do something all the way or not at all. I want to be that peculiar person that the word says I am supposed to be. I want to hear "well done...my precious daughter (good and faithful servant) you have made me proud, you have lived a life worth my sacrifice. "

Quadruple decker sandwiches

This is what my 9 year old son made himself for lunch yesterday

No, this is not the first time or even uncommon around here, and yes he ate it all in about 3 minutes. Feeding these boys is like walking up an icy hill....you will never get to the top....they will never be full.

Thank you Lord for my healthy, hungry boys! And girl!

Cuty Pie!

I know 3 posts in one day.....Audrey, are you ignoring your duties? ;-)

I had to share this: My 7 year old walks in and says "mom I want a concusion" I said " do you know what a concusion is?" He says "yes, its were you get knocked out" I say "Um, OK, why do you want to be knowcked out?" and he sweetly says " because I want to wipe my memory, so that I can stop sucking my thumb"

I wish I knew how to help this little sweety. He wants to stop so bad, but just cant in his own will.

O.K. I will get back to work now. I have sewing to do and reading to finish with a few more boys and it looks like lunch is around the bin.

Thanks Kyle!

Grab a box of tiisue and watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azgBhZfcqaQ
I have never been a big carseat person, my 3 and 1 year old are the only ones that are in car seats. The rest just use regualer seat belts. I have to say this has changed my mind.

Wednesday Studies

I am starting a study on the book below. The book is published free online here

I am going to dive into one chapter a week. I thought maybe you would be interested in it as well. So, each Wednesday I will post a new chapter until we are finished!

So far I am really enjoying what I am reading and this is a much needed teaching among Christians. I personally have many friends and family who live, in hopes, that His grace will cover their blatant sin, with no repentance.

I am not blameless by any means, and want to grow in The ways of the Father and turn away from this world. Many think that there is nothing wrong with this world and that we should just do the best we can in it, for those people I quote this:

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (I John 2:15).

Thats pretty clear, if you love the world you cannot love the Father!

So copy and paist the chapter below into word, print it off. You will be glad you did!

The True Gospel of Christ vs. The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity
by L. R. Shelton, Jr.
Chapter 1
The False Gospel of Carnal Christianity
“Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” - Galatians 6:7

A False Gospel
There is rampant in this age a false gospel of carnal Christianity which has deceived many souls. The vast majority of Christendom today have not bowed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. These are on sinking sand and are an easy prey to such a teaching which has permeated our land and our pulpits. So our purpose is to bring out the true gospel and the false, showing clearly the warnings from God’s Word that we should not sow to the flesh, but rather to the Spirit. May you have an open heart and an open Bible, as we pray that God will deal with us all by His Spirit.
We are warned concerning this false gospel of carnal Christianity in Galatians 6:7,8: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” This to me is a most solemn warning to all of our hearts, and especially in this day of free-believism and carnal Christianity which is preached on such a large scale. You see, the vast majority of Christendom today is deceived as to the state of their never-dying souls before God. What is happening is justification in Christ is preached alone, at the expense of holy living; and the hearers of this one-sided gospel are left in the dark as to God’s requirement of the necessity of a holy life. God’s grace has been turned into lasciviousness; the attitude of most has been: “A little sin won’t hurt-I’m just a `carnal Christian’ you know, and besides, doesn’t grace cover it all?”

Holiness Required by God
But my prayer is that God would so work by His Spirit as to make blind eyes to see the exceeding sinfulness of sin, that there would be a mourning over it, for this is our only hope. Oh, how our hearts should cry to the Lord for the truth of His Word that appeals not to our fleshly desires or to our fleshly emotions, but to that which cuts off our flesh and lays us bare before God in confession and repentance! We should cry to Him to so work in our hearts by His Spirit, that holiness of thought, word and action would characterize our hearts and lives.
This false teaching of carnal Christianity has so permeated our churches that no one ever questions his interest in Christ, no matter how he lives. People are told that if they have believed, that is all that is necessary, and therefore all is well with their souls. But the Holy Word of God declares no such teaching, but in fact declares just the opposite! For we read in Hebrews 12:14, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.” Yes, holiness must characterize our lives, “for God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness” (I Thess 4:7). “He hath chosen us in him [Christ] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love” (Eph 1:4). Again, He “hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling” (II Tim 1:9). This is the same One Who says to be “obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: but as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, be ye holy; for I am holy” (I Peter 1:14-16).
Our warning text from Galatians 6 declares the same thing. God would have us to understand and not to be deceived about this false teaching, that no matter what false preachers and teachers say about it: “Whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” My friend, if you sow to your flesh, you shall of your flesh reap corruption. I don’t care how many professions you have made or whose church you may belong to; you cannot mock God! He is no respecter of persons. Each and every one who sows to his flesh shall of his flesh reap corruption.

Repentance Is Given
A man who sows to his flesh continually has never been saved; he’s never been born again. Why? Because under Holy Spirit conviction we are given the grace to repent, and in repentance we learn to hate sin, to abhor it, to loathe ourselves, and to flee by faith to Christ for deliverance from sin. We know that sin has not been eradicated, for it is still the plague of our hearts; but sin is no longer the practice and rule of our lives. It cannot be, for the soul whom God saves has had a new nature and a new heart put within; and he now desires holy things and walks in the way of righteousness. He knows in himself that this is true, because the Holy Spirit has worked in him the things found in God’s Word. He reads in Ezekiel 36:26 about the new heart that God has given him; and in II Peter 1:4 about the new nature he has been given. He finds in I John 3:9 that he has been born of God, and that he who is born of God does not make sin the practice and rule of his life.
Why? Because His seed (the seed of God) remaineth in him, and he cannot make sin the practice and rule of his life anymore. He hears the Word say, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (I John 2:15). Having been taught by the work of the Holy Spirit that he is a lost, hell-deserving sinner, having laid at the feet of God in repentance, having looked by faith to Christ as his Lord and Savior, having seen that his sin put Christ to death, then he wants no part of the world. The love of God has been shed abroad in his heart by the Holy Spirit’s work in him.
He learns well that “all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh [the desire to indulge]...is not of the Father,” so he hates it and cries out against it because it put Christ to death. Again, he learns, “all that is in the world, the lust of the eyes [the desire to possess]...is not of the Father,” so he hates it and cries out against it because it put Christ to death. He learns that “the pride of life [the desire to attract to oneself]...is not of the Father, but is of the world”-the Satanic world system of sin -so he hates it and cries out against it because it put Christ to death on the cross. He also learns that “the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (vv. 16,17), so he desires by grace to do the will of God, which is to walk in “righteousness and true holiness” (Eph 4:24).

A New Nature
Therefore, since God gives every sinner whom He saves a new heart and a new nature, and puts His Holy Spirit within him to guide him into all truth, that saved sinner now searches the Word of God, not to find things that will justify him in his sins, but to find that Word which warns him against sin and tells him how to flee to Christ from sin. He reads Romans 8:6: “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace”; so he begins to cry to the indwelling Holy Spirit to deliver him daily from a fleshly, carnal mind, and to give him that spiritual mind of life and peace in Christ. No, he is not seeing how close he can walk to the world and sin, but how he can walk close to God in Christ by His Spirit. He is not searching the Word of God to find out the sins of others recorded there so he might use them as a means of justifying his walking in sin, but he reads these things as warnings to him not to walk where others have walked and failed.
You see, the man or woman, boy or girl, whom God saves, and unto whom He gives eternal life in Christ, hears these words from Colossians 3:2-5: “Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. Mortify [put to death, reckon as dead] therefore your members which are upon the earth.” How then could any soul justify living a life to the flesh? No, for because of what Christ has done for him and because Christ’s life is now his life, this saved soul now desires to put to death the things of the flesh, that he might sow to the Spirit and walk after the Spirit. Beloved, this is the way God deals with our souls-I know first hand: I know what the difference is between carnal Christianity and the life which is lived by faith in and upon the living God by the Holy Spirit, for I have lived them both. The only difference between me and the carnal Christian is the grace of God, and I praise Him for it!
Therefore, when the saved soul hears God’s Word: “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth: fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry”; and “put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another”-now he desires to mortify them, and why? Because he has “put off the old man with his deeds” and “put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him” (Col 3:5,8-10). So his desire is for Christ and His life, to walk in a way pleasing to God and not after sin, because he has been born of the Spirit of God and has a new heart.
Also in Colossians 3:6 the Holy Spirit gives us another reason for walking in the Spirit and not after the flesh. He says we are not to walk in these sins, “for which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience.” Yes, those who walk in such a way of disobedience to God’s revealed will, shall find themselves under His curse and wrath.

A Holy Life Follows Salvation
My friend, I would not have you deceived! A holy life, a sowing to the Spirit, must follow the salvation that God gives in Christ, or it is not God’s salvation; for Christ came to save His people from their sins, and not in their sins (Matt 1:21). A holy life, a sowing to the Spirit, must follow the salvation that God gives us in Christ or God’s purpose in saving us would be defeated, and this cannot be. Did we not read that God has chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world “that we should be holy and without blame before him in love” (Eph 1:4). We cannot thwart the purpose of God toward His people. Listen again to this definite and positive statement-”For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness” (I Thess 4:7). Yes, a holy life must follow the salvation that God gives in Christ, or God’s will would be turned aside, and this cannot be-”For this is the will of God, even your sanctification” (4:3). Sanctification is your being set apart from sin by the progressive work of God’s Spirit in your heart and life.
Again, a holy life, a sowing to the Spirit, must follow the salvation that God gives in Christ, or the grace of God would not reign in the believer’s life; and this cannot be, for we read in Titus 2:11,12: “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.” I want you to pay particular attention to these verses and pray that the Holy Spirit will write them upon your heart. When the grace of God that brings salvation appears to all, it teaches them the same thing. And what does God’s grace teach us?-that we will be self-denying ones. In what way?-saying no to the world and denying ourselves ungodliness and worldly lusts, because we hate sin, self, Satan and the world of ungodliness. “All” learn this lesson, not just some of God’s children. “All” of them are taught by the Holy Spirit to hate sin and deny self. If this self denial and hatred of sin is absent from the life, then God’s salvation is absent (John 16:13,15; Isa 54:13).
But this Scripture does not end only in giving us the negative; the Holy Spirit shows the grace of God that brings salvation will teach us something positive as well-how to live soberly, righteously and godly. Where? in heaven? No, in this present evil world, right at home, on the job, or wherever we walk! For by His grace and blood He has delivered us from “this present evil world” (Gal 1:4).
Remember this: the same Holy Spirit teaches all of God’s children the same lessons. What are they? He trains us to reject and renounce all ungodliness, and worldly, passionate desires; and He also trains us to live sober, temperate, self-controlled lives in an upright, devout manner (Titus 2:12). In other words, He teaches us to live spiritually-whole lives controlled by Him, here in this present evil world.

The False Gospel - no power over sin
What a far cry this is from the present-day gospel that is preached-a gospel that gives no new heart or new nature, a gospel that does not break the power of sin, but allows one to live on in it, a gospel that gives only an insurance policy against hell and knows nothing about holiness of thought and action, a gospel that will let you indulge the flesh, and puts no restraint upon your passion, pride and evil heart! Oh, this is not a gospel, but a false thing! I say false because it says that all one has to do is say “yes” to the four spiritual laws and believe in a historical Jesus; and after he “believes” he is saved and saved for ever, no matter what he does.
Did you know that the average individual tells you that he made a profession when he was 6, 8, 12, or 15 years of age; but he drifted off into sin, and after 10 years or so he came back and rededicated his life and now gives himself to religious service? It is from this group that the majority of our missionaries, teachers and preachers come, and they know nothing of heart-felt repentance or standing before God as a guilty, lost sinner! If you are in this group, I tell you in love, you have mistaken the call to salvation -to come to Christ as a guilty, needy, lost sinner-as the call to service; and therefore you have become two-fold more the child of hell than you were before, unless the Holy Spirit by His Word and grace gives you a heart to see your desperate need of Christ. You see, you have mistaken the call to a broken heart and a contrite spirit, to repentance and faith-the call to break with sin and to walk in holiness of life in conversion-as a call to the ministry! I know this does happen, for I have heard so many testimonies given along this line. It even happened to me! I mistook the call to salvation as the call to the ministry, and only by the grace of God was I awakened to see that I had missed true repentance and faith, and was still in the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity.
Therefore, let me proclaim today that I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ: for that Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth (Rom 1:16). This salvation is the deliverance from the power of sin, which I have experienced by the grace of God in Christ; and beloved, I praise the Lord that Romans 6:18 is true: “Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness,” servants of Him Who has delivered us from the law of sin and death! (Rom 8:2).

C. H. Spurgeon has said it so well:
Each creature brings forth after its own kind: the old nature being radically evil continues to produce and to send forth swarms of sins; it is not reconciled to God, neither indeed can be, and therefore its thoughts and acts are those of rebellion and hatred toward God. On the other hand, the new nature “cannot sin because it is born of God”; it must have its fruit unto holiness, for it is holiness itself. Out of a dove’s nest we expect only doves to fly. The heavenly life breeds birds of paradise, such as holy thoughts, desires, and acts; and it cannot bring forth such unclean birds as lust, and envy, and malice. The life of God infused in regeneration is as pure as the Lord by whom it was begotten, and can never be otherwise. Blessed is the man who has this heavenly principle within, for it must appear in his life and cause him to abound in holiness, to the glory of God. Reader, have you this divine seed within you, or do you remain under the dominion of a corrupt nature? This question deserves a present and thoughtful reply.

A Sneak Peek!

I have been working on something. It is in the beginning stages but I want to share it with you. I am looking for comments and any ideas that you might have to make it better. I still have alot to add, such as pages for pricing and sizes and a fabric page, but the framing is up!

Tell me what you think! www.sewingtheseamsoflove.com

Saturday Sunshine

I thought it would be fun to post on Saturday, pictures of the things that fill my life with joy and light!

Comfy Couches

For some reason we stayed up kinda late last night, including the boys. They normally have a prompt 9:00 bed time, but something about last night we just were hanging out and enjoying each others company. So by about 10:00 this is what we had laying around.

This is our library/second living area. Seth had come in here while I was on the computer and fell asleep. We cant leave out Franklin or "Hog Dog" as I lovingly reffer to him. ;-) He is the size of that love seat Seth is asleep on.

Then there is the dazzling duo asleep in the main living room. Arent they adorable!! I also woke up this morning to these two in Robs spot in the bed. When he leaves for work in the morning I usually get a visitor or two.

My finished drapes

I finally took pictures of the drapes I sewed last weekend. I made matching ones for both the living and dinning rooms. My goal here is to have the two rooms somewhat blend together as you walk through from one to the other.

Living room

Dinning Room

I still need to sew a center section in the dinning room, a piece that will only come down about 2 feet. They were out of my material, so I have to wait until they get more in.

I also have my wall of babies put back up. The wall color was supposed to be a bit more orangish but it turned out a little pinker than I had anticipated. ;-)

It is coming together nicely!

Giving up control

There is a great entry over at The Maxwells Family Blog that talks about the blessings they received after having had there vasectomy reversed. It is a real testimony to how we block the blessings of The Lord. Let me make it clear that we never block His will....He will just give those blessings that could have been ours to another family to raise for His Glory!

We have a similar testimony, yet we never went through with the surgery. After our 3rd child was born we believed what everyone had to say and that was that we had a big enough family and should "do the right thing" by calling it quits. Rob agreed and I went along with his decision. After Rob realized that I wasn't completely convinced he backed out of the surgery. (I have always wanted a big family, that was not a dream of Robs) doesn't the Lord have a great sense of humor! So we had 3 more children after that with the sixth being a girl. So what most thought was that we finally had our girl and surly we were done. I think even Rob felt that way!

I still was not convinced, but told Rob to do what he had to do. Once again he went to the DR for the initial visit only to not go through with it. As you know I am now about 2 months away from having our 7th child. :-) I am not sure what the future holds. I know in my heart that we should allow the Lord to control this area of our lives and that he will end it when he sees fit. I will be honest and say that my flesh gets ahold of me from time to time as I think about the fact that I could have another 7-11 children if I continued on my every other year delivery schedule ;-)

All I know is this...there is nothing in this world that could have replaced the joy that my last 3 almost 4 children have brought me. I cant imagine life without them....some might say I never would have known what I was missing....but a mother always knows. There is a longing there for a reason. Will a day ever come that I am free from that longing? I don't know. I have been telling myself that if this is a girl, perhaps I will be content and our family will be complete. I look forward to seeing what the Lord has in store.

"Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate" (Psalms 127:3-5).

Have you ever picked this verse apart and "really" read it? Here is the verse with the Strongs concordanc reference numbers. Look it up, it is eye opening to say the least. If you dont have a Strongs concordance one of my favorite bible tools is E-Sword.

Psa 127:3 Lo,2009 children1121 are a heritage5159 of the LORD:3068 and the fruit6529 of the womb990 is his reward.7939
Psa 127:4 As arrows2671 are in the hand3027 of a mighty1368 man; so3651 are children1121 of the youth.5271
Psa 127:5 Happy835 is the man1397 that834 hath (853) his quiver827 full4390 of4480 them: they shall not3808 be ashamed,954 but3588 they shall speak1696 with854 the enemies341 in the gate.8179

It is finished!

Well, it came to a head today and it is now finished. The ties are severed. Yes, I am sad that things are the way they are and not the way I wish they were. She will tell all I'm sure, that I am a horrible person who tried little. But I know the truth! I gave all that I could give and even some that I couldnt emotionaly afford to give, yet it would have never been enough. Then as my children were drug into this, the camels back was broken and all had to end.

I am sure that I will not see her again in this life...this breaks my heart, but the refief my spirit feels now that she is gone is tremendous.

Ladies if you have a mother who truly loves you, hold it dear.....count it as a precious gift.

The word on the street is......

I was throwing together a quick batch of sugar cookies this morning. My 6 year old came in and asked what I was doing, I told him "making cookies"

So he runs off and yells to everyone that I was making cookies. Then my 11 year old comes in the kitchen and says "so, the word on the hallways is that you are making cookies."

Where do they come up with this stuff? Needless to say I was laughing outloud at that one.

Kids are a BLAST!

Tools for school

Someone asked that I tell about our school bins, so I thought I would do a quick post on the tools we use to make things a bit more organized.

These bins have made life SOOO much easier, they have been the best investment so far in my arsenal of organizational purchases!



I purchased them at Lakeshore Learning Materials . They are built to last and come with plastic file folders that have also revolutionized school around here. As the boys were young I always pulled everything out for them in the morning and told them what they needed to get done that day, as they have gotten older this was becoming time consuming and I wanted a way for them to be more "in charge" of their work. So now we have this:

Every Sunday I get all there work together and print out there lesson plan sheet for the week and stick it all in their ToDo folder. They are in charge of pulling it out of their bin by 9:00am and getting started. Then when the work is completed it goes into the completed file and is put back in their bin. On Sunday while I'm preparring for school I empty out their completed file and place it in their three ring binder:

Some other benefits of the bins is that it is all there for them, no more searching through the school shelf to find so and so's math workbook, while trying to keep the other books from toppling over ;-)

They each have their own color which I will need to improvise on as other children are added to the mix!

One other thing I will throw in there (not school related) but at Lakeshore Learning they have a wonderful bathroom product for those of us with many children! Check it out HERE They also have one for 12 children. I LOVE this! Its a bit pricy but their products are made to last! Not to mention all the other things they have that "I" would love to have!

Alright back to sewing my drapes for the living and dinning rooms.

Have a BLESSED day!

Another B-day passed

We have had a fun two days. We had family night on the 31st where we went and ate dinner at CiCi's. It was kids eat free night!! Where else can you feed a family of 8 for 12.00. I love that part! Then we stopped at Blockbuster on the way home and picked up Over The Hedge to watch later in the evening. All in all it was a good night.

Then yesterday (Nov 1st) Devon turned 11. We always make birthdays a big deal around here. Lots of presents and decorations. I let Devon put up streamer paper all around the house early in the day and we decorated the house with banners and balloons. Then He opened two of his toys...because its a long time to wait until 7 in the evening to get presents and cake.

When dad got home from work we had cake and opened presents and had a great time! I cant believe my baby is getting so old. He is a great kiddo!

Happy Birthday Devon!!

Mind Numbing Work

I am finding that I cant be in all the places I need to be in order to protect my children in their own home. Last night I was not feeling well so I was on the couch with my feet up, but trying to keep an ear open to everything that was being said by Margaret (my mother) to the kids.

Apparently I was not doing a good enough job, because my just turned 7 year old came up to me and started asking me about the devil. Of course I knew exactly what had happened. I asked him a few starting questions like well what did she tell you. He proceeded to tell me what she told him, which some of it was disturbingly not true. Apparently they were talking about his school and how much he liked it and when she thought that the cost was clear...she asked "so do you know who the devil is?"

I asked him if she mentioned Jesus, he said no, just the devil. Am I the only one who finds this a bit odd? She did this before with Devon and scared the life out of him telling him that the devil can enter into people and possess them. I think she has an unhealthy obsession with Mr Lucifer and that she is trying to plant that in the kids when ever she sees I'm not listening.

I am not opposed to talking about the devil, but the context was weird and out of place. Her relegious beliefs do not line up with Rob and I's beliefs. Yet I cant seem to get her to stop talking to them about this stuff. Perhaps I just need to sit down with her this evening and let her know that if this doesnt stop she will have to leave before the two weeks is up.

Sigh

On another note is it just me or is Halloween completely flooding the airwaves and shopping arenas this year. For those of you who celebrate...I have no qwams (eat some candy for me) but for those of us who do not...you cant get away from it this year. Even my kids are so excited that today is Halloween...even though they know nothing comes of it for them....isnt that odd. They were walking around yesterday saying trick or treat to each other.

The Father has shown me over the past few days that we must buckle down and do more to protect our childrens minds and hearts and eyes and souls. TV needs to be a thing of the past, but in a house full of 6 fellas thats no mole hill.

Oh, Amish country.....please hold a spot for me!

Eve is going to start school without me so I guess I had better get moving LOL