crazy week gone by

Time is going by so fast since the kids have been in school.
I was so worried about being bored, but really, I have not had time to be bored.
I have been exercising and getting some things organized.
Taking care of mom, kids. You know, being the mom around here.

The girls start ballet next week~they are super excited!
Boys are going to play basketball and that doesn't start for a bit.

Tuesday I have some plans.
Wed I have some plans.
Seems strange that I can make plans and not worry about what to do with kids-they are all in school!!
I have to say, I have gotten used to it. I can get the house work done, groceries purchased, exercise, even hang with friends all while they are learning!

For tonight, I have to go and tuck the girls in for bed!

it was a good trip

8 bags of Totino's Pizza Rolls
4 cans of Progresso Soup
3 bags Nature Valley Nut Clusters
3 bags Chex Mix
...1 bag Bugles
2 bags Quaker Rice Snacks
2 bottles V8 Veggie joice
3 bottles Sunny D
3 boxes Fruit Gushers
2 boxes Fruit by the Foot
3 boxes Hamburger Helper
2 Old El Paso Enchilada Kit
2 Old El Paso Taco Kit
3 boxes Nature valley Granola Bars
3 boxes Nature Valley Granola Thins
2 boxes Chex Treat Bars
2 boxes Fiber One Bars
6 boxes Toaster Strudels
2 Tubs Kroger Ice Cream
2 Betty Crocker Warms Delights Minis
3 loaves bread*
family pack chicken thighs-mark down
family pack chicken legs-mark down
Pillsbury:
Ready to bake cookies-11 bags
8 Grands biscuits
2 French Loaves
8 Cinn rolls
2 Orange Rolls
6 Crescent Rolls
2 Bread Sticks
*no coupon-the only thing besides the chicken!!!
we spent $134.07
BUT we saved $185.97
WOO HOO!!!!!!

We used manufacture coupons on the items on sale, plus added the cellfire.com and Dillon's E-coupons...it was so fun watching the bill go down!!!

Piper picking out her adorable back pack~
Dawson when he got his new cell phone and he was SOOO excited!!!

Piper was being a gansta :o)

The kids lemonade stand...where they made like close to $10 in less than an hour!!!

sweet sleep

How we will miss you....I mean, we could go to bed earlier, like when we put the kids down, but really, how much fun is that?? NONE. So, today was the last day that the kids and I were able to sleep in. I woke, but just laid in bed listening to the girls(who had joined us in the night)deep breathing and Piper sucking those little fingers...the sweetness of the moment was not lost on me.

I was blessed so much with my 5 children. Did I deserve it? nope. Am I grateful? yep. I have been entrusted with their lives and could not be happier or more scared to have the privilege. I can remember when Daniel and I were told we would never have children in '97. That was heartbreaking. I had always wanted nothing more than to be a momma. I tried desperately to get pregnant in my first marriage and failed. I can remember when I was sick in Feb '98, Daniel told me to get a Dr appt that I was pregnant. I thought he was crazy. We went in and I will never forget the lab tech saying 'Congratulations'. I was STUNNED!! Daniel drove like a grandpa when we left!!! He knew every time I was pregnant before I even did a test. He just knew. We went on to have 6 pregnancies and 4 births and an adoption. God is so good.

I make daily mistakes as a parent-who doesn't. BUT, I apologize and they know I love them. I want them to know that even when they mess up, we love them-unconditionally. I am happy that I share parenting with Daniel, even when we disagree-often-on how to handle things. It is a learning process just like anything else.

It is almost lunch time and I am still sitting here in my jammies and my robe. Only a couple kids have gotten dressed....we have hair cuts at 2 and I WILL be taking pictures....girls are playing house, Dawson is on the computer and Logan is playing the Wii...might not last long....need to empty the dishwasher and change out the laundry. Yep, this parenting gig sure keeps me busy!!!!

the final days of summer

are coming to an end as school quickly approaches us.
They start school in 3 days, which means 2 days left with them.
ALL of them are going.
It will just be me and Mom here each day!
We will coupon, talk, watch tv.
She will sleep in her chair, I will make bows.

I quit my part time job, so with all of them in school, I will needing to make a little income, so I have decided with a closet full of bow making materials, that I need to resume making of the bow...maybe add in a few other things. We think we have a new name, but I am not ready to share it yet.

The girls had their final swim lesson today and they did great! Piper even put her face in the water with NO goggles on!! So proud of her. Gabi is like a little fish-she loves the water and just swimming and diving in general. Today, Daddy and the boys joined us after lessons and we swam and played. Daddy helped Gabi go to the very bottom of the deep end...she laughed in the water and bubbles just made their way to the top where I was watching. We laid on our lounge chairs and read while soaking up the sun. Then Daddy lit the grill and we cooked some hot dogs and had a late lunch...everyone sat and chatted and then, the kids jumped back in the pool and we blew up our rafts and floated and chatted about what the school year will hold. Dances, sports, ballet, homework, new friends, fun. It is sure to be a year of even more changes.

Changes have been many this summer for us. We have continued with our counseling as a couple and as individuals. It is so helpful to have someone listen and tell us we are not either 'wrong', but we just need to listen to each other, that we are heading toward the same goals, but we just think we should be getting there differently :o) Mom living with us has had it's ups and downs, but I know this is what God has for this season of our life. We go back to the pulm. specialist this week, so I hope we get a good report. Dawson got his phone-we told him when he was going into middle school, he would get it, so he has text non stop the past few days..BUT we take it at night and we can see everything he is doing online! Logan, Gabi and Piper will all be at the same school...that seems crazy! 12 years with little ones home and now they are all off to school. Bring on the kleenex....this momma might not do so well on Wed!

that is a wrap....for now.

what never was.

I want to apologize for any rude comments that anyone saw on my blog.
They have been deleted.
For what it is worth, I did not sleep with anyone's husband-period.
I made a stupid decision to talk to a man who was not my husband.
Poor choice-I know.
I am a grown Christian woman and I have apologized for my actions.
The ones I need forgiveness from have forgiven me-God and my husband.
I can't make anyone else let it go.
Here is the deal, I am human, I make mistakes and I learn from them.
for us, Life is moving forward, we make a choice not to hold onto the past, but to learn from it and be better people. I have been on the opposite side of this situation and I understand how bad it sucks. I had to let it go. It would have eaten me up.
I can say that my life is not terrible, I don't deserve a terrible life. I will keep on living life with my family and God at the center. We will strive to be better each day.
I hope you are all enjoying the rest of the time with your children before school starts!
I know we have had a fabulous summer and I think the kids are excited to get back into a routine of school!

busy June, but LOVING IT!!!

Wow, school ended and we got sooo very busy. We have had baseball 4 nights a week...we had the tournament one weekend, swimming and the zoo the next...just enjoying being a family.

I missed the kids so much during all my surgeries and recovery. I went to the Dr yesterday and was released!!! It was a long 9 weeks and we are still working out the hormone issues with medicine, but I feel so much better. I do get tired quickly, but I am happy to be able to take care of the family again. Funny that I was so very excited for the break, but wow, after a few weeks, I was so very ready to take it on and get back to the craziness of our family.

On a sad note, Izzy has decided to move out. She said, 'she didn't like the situation, here or school and she couldn't be herself here.'(her words, not mine) She said she had friends she could stay with and didn't want to end things with us. We were all blindsided. Or at least I was. We had told her at Easter if she moved again, she would not be able to come back. It is too hard on the other 4 children and we have to still look out for them, even when she doesn't want us to. They are hurting and it is sad that it has come to this. Izzy is blaming me for all of it, but I know my heart and so does God. I pray she will be safe and take care of herself. This isn't how Daniel and I pictured life after adoption, but this is where we are. I have a peace from God that we are doing the best thing for the rest of the family. Life goes on. She may have to fall really hard to learn a lesson. We did everything we could to give her a good loving family life. Did Daniel and I make mistakes along the way? you bet we did. Did we give it our very best? yes. Do we love her just as we love the other 4? yes. If it were one of the other 4 children doing the same thing, would we feel the same way? YES. I will not let someone disrespect us in our home.

This past year has been very hard for Daniel and I. We BOTH made mistakes that had the potential to destroy our marriage. We decided that would turn back to God and we will work toward a covenant marriage and not a contractual marriage. It would have been so much easier to do it the 'world's way' and get a divorce. Is it tough? oh yeah. Is it worth it? yes. Is our family worth it? yes. I love Daniel and I know he loves me. We lost track of that in the midst of raising 5 kids and just trying to survive some days. Are there days it is hard to like him/myself? oh yeah, but I know that I love him in a way that I have/will never love another. This is the man that God chose for me to share my forever with and I am excited that he wants to share his with me. I am thankful for a forgiving, merciful God who loves us regardless of the sin we are living in and helps us to get beyond it. We are going to counseling separately and as a couple. We are blessed to have found AMAZING Christian counselors. I know that God placed them in our life for a special reason. We will NOT be a statistic. We will celebrate our 12 year anniversary this year and I can't wait for the 50th!!!! easy-NO, worth it? OH YEAH.

Well, it is late, I need to get some rest...Dawson has an orthodontist appt on Friday and then we have a game on Friday night. Looking forward to the weekend with the family...it is sure to be busy, but fun!!

picture heavy...trying to catch up....

5th grade graduation



some fun on the sidewalk, made by 5th grade
field trip...park/mc d's...
mmm, hot fudge
4th grade trip to park/mc d's
sweet friends
my first outing...kindergarden trip to park/mc d's
ballet recital-flowers from brothers
Piper's class
Gabi's tap...showing some attitude!!
Daddy with his little girls....
day one of recital...how cute...
mothers day, breakfast in bed
Dawson baseball...

Logan baseball....
girls after Awana program....
so, that is some of it, I will make another post to catch up on the rest...