Flat Stanley visits the Jespersens

We were sent 4 "Flat Stanley's" this year. Three from Indonesia and one from a public school in Edmonton. There is a story (I've never read it though.) about a boy who gets squished and can send himself through the mail all over the world. A lot of public schools make flat paper "Stanleys" and send them all over the world and get messages back about what their little Stanley did while he was gone. This last project was by far our best Flat Stanley visit. We are sending him home with his journal today but i couldn't bear to part with it without taking pictures. He didn't go far from home but hopefully his journal will be interesting enough. :)

Sample of horse hair from a fiddle bow.

Grain sample and goat hair sample.

Horse hair and hoof trimming samples.

Cat paw prints.

Piglet paw prints and piglet snout print.

Oyster shells and turkey feathers.

Beaver fur (from a beaver Darren shot...but we didn't include that information) and a sample of the bark he chewed off. Plus pussy-willows from Sadie.

Quotes from the kids.

Everyone finished off the book with "flat" hand prints for the school kids to compare their hands to. Here is Sadie's.

Job description clarification and blessed release

Curt and I went to the homeschool convention this past weekend. Together. Just the two of us. In Red Deer. Alone. I can't remember the last time it was just the two of us alone together but now that it's over I'm thinking that we were maybe missing out a little by not sneaking away every now and then to just have some extended uninterrupted conversation. There are so many things I want to blog about especially considering that so much time has passed since my last entry, but this is *one* of them.
Ephesians 2:10 (New International Version) says:
10For we are God's workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus to do good works,
which God prepared in advance for us to do.
I was sitting in a "Part Two" session at the homeschool convention when that verse was brought up by the speaker. When she read the verse I automatically thought of *myself* (as we all do i suppose when we hear that verse). God is talking to *me* in that verse. "I am God's workmanship...". The speaker went on to use the word "masterpiece" in the place of workmanship... and it was then that i realized that she was talking about our children being the workmanship and masterpiece of the Lord. How many years have I been a mother...and all this time I've been reading the Bible as if it is directly speaking to me... but not letting it sink in that it is also speaking individually of each of my children? It was then that my faulty thinking hit me dead center. I somehow had the idea that as God formed me and worked in me and changed me... I would work in/with my children. So wrong. My children are God's masterpiece. Not mine. At that moment, a memory from the past week came flooding back. I was driving with the kids from the pool, Darren was in the front seat and the Christian radio station was on. The chorus of a popular song was repeating. It referred to Christians as being the body of Christ. :
"If we are the body
Why aren't His arms reaching
Why aren't His hands healing
Why aren't His words teaching
And if we are the body
Why aren't His feet going
Why is His love not showing them
there is a way Jesus is the way."
Darren had looked at me and said "Mom! This song is so powerful!" He went on to explain the lyrics to me and what they meant to him. I was impressed that he would be able to grasp the concept and articulate his emotions so well.
When that memory came back to me, i realized that God was revealing ways in which He was working in Darren. Although i will play a role in my children's Christian maturity, God is also at work in each one of them. There will be conversations of which I won't be a part. Those conversations will be between God and my child...alone. These children are not mine... they're God's. They need to follow Him. Gratitude, relief, sorrow, a lifting of a burden i wasn't supposed to be carrying in the first place. It is a blessed release when you know He will continue to carry the burden. May God give me the grace I need through these pre-teen/teen years to give each of my children a blessed release into the care and keeping of a Heavenly Father who cares enough to remind me that we are working *together*.

Sadie's perfect explanation of the early pregnancy body:

Big smile on her face:
"Mom, you are pregnant...
but your baby isn't going to come out right away.
You're just fat.
(look of sympathy and a smile)
Right?"

Family Bowling Date

The ice-cream after-party.

bathing suit pep talk from a seasoned husband...

We're planning a family holiday and I had to buy a bathing suit that's suitable for wearing in public. I had worn out the bottom in the last good suit i had. Plus, i needed one that will work for maternity that's fairly "decent". We hit the mall and I found a few suits in one of the shops and started trying them on. Curt kept giving the sales lady really weird "old lady" suits to pass on to me in the change room as a joke. (She thought he was serious.) I forced him to come in the change room with me to check out one of the suits. He took one look at the suit i had on. It fit strangely over my pregnanty belly and rapidly vanishing waist-line. At this stage of a pregnancy and after 6 pregnancies I "show" right away. But mostly that "show" is really my body knowing what to do hormonally and just going with the flow. It's not a tight little belly full of baby. It's a body that knows the routine. :) Anyways, Curt took one look at me and said something i didn't think i would ever hear my husband say: "Don't worry, it will look better when you get a little bigger."

The Musical

The only picture I have so far of the rehearsals... hopefully more to follow! This is the costume for "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy". See my "baby bump"? :) The belt gets shorter and the skirt tighter (unfortunately) the closer we get to performance dates.

The 3 little girls insisted on having a make-up/hair/dress-up day yesterday as i was doing the same getting ready to go to rehearsal. Wesley got the brunt of the lipstick abuse.

I've been involved in preparation for a musical dessert theatre production at our church for some months now and it's finally coming down to the wire! Three more weeks till opening night. The drama tells the story of a husband and wife who run a diner in Spruce Grove from the 40's till the present and how God uses their lives to affect the community around them even though they don't necessarily feel like they have "much to offer". I am part of a group of singers that herald each decade in with period music. It's going to be a blast.

Breakfast Baby Hide and Seek

Peek-a-Boo is so much more exciting when your brothers and sisters join in the fun. :)

Trusting Him

"We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us;

we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be. "

C.S. Lewis

Matthew 6:25-34 (New International Version)
25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

curt update

Just thought i would put this update here as a post instead of a response to the comments section as so many have been asking lately about Curt. Once again, we realize that sometimes the doctors' information can be confusing. Maybe they are learning/brushing up on information as they go, or the medical community's stand on things changes. Anyways, at first we were told he would be in surgery as soon as possible and it would be all over before mid Feb. We were told that Curt wouldn't want to be on blood thinners for too long. THEN, (probably after our GP talked to the vascular surgeon) he informed us that the specialists likes to keep a person with this kind of a blood clot on blood thinners for awhile first to see if it will clear on it's own. Curt's particular reason for getting the clot is a possible bone structure problem. So far they think that his collar bone and first rib are too close together and pinching off the thoracic veins. I hope this is the right lingo. IF it is a bone anomaly, he will need the surgery to remove both the clot and one of the ribs anyways! SO! Here we sit. His shoulder and arm feel a little freakish but his blood levels are good now so he does not need to go in for extra injections at the hospital anymore but will just be on the oral blood thinners until further notice. He gets his blood levels checked once a week as well. Other than all that, he's feeling great. Thanks for asking. :) -j

It's not about healing....

I've had this post simmering in my "drafts" box for awhile and I know it's not really ready to be posted. There is *always* more to say and to learn and some topics work better as an ongoing conversation than a one sided blog entry... but here goes:

The topic of healing has been a hot one in our home for about 5 years. When Darren was first diagnosed with epilepsy we sought out people to pray for him. People we trusted. Other people offered to pray as well and we let them. I think it was through this time that I really started to learn something about people...and about God. We have had incredible, consistent family support through prayer and that has meant so much to us but we were also blindsided by comments made by people along the way in regards to prayer and healing. Maybe because the problem was epilepsy. It was too tempting for people to not mention the possibility of "demon possession". After all... epilepsy has always been a mysterious illness and was thought to be related to demon possession throughout history right? That fact is just too tantalizing to let go of. We had one pastors wife say right in front of Darren. "Well, epilepsy is RIGHT UP THERE with demon possession." Right up WHERE?! I was horrified and immediately regretted having her and her husband pray for Darren. An older uncle of mine called just this morning to regale me with "hilarious" stories of all the "epileptics" he's come in contact over the years and how HE just commanded the demons to come out. He even proudly told me of how he sat on one man during his seizure (to control him) and then advised me that a person should not lay hands on the "epileptic" (reads "demon possessed" to him) because the demon just may enter the person praying. I informed him that Darren's problem was not demon possession but a physical problem that was pin-pointed by MRI as lesions on his brain but he just ignored me and went on to his next story of the other "epileptics" he had encountered (and most likely offended) over the years....and how He alone had dealt with it and commanded the demon out. (Of course while not touching the person.) I made the valid excuse of being in the middle of homeschooling and got off the phone. Other people have mentioned that perhaps illness has come because of some hidden sin. (If Darren wasn't healed after they had prayed then it must be our fault. Some claimed that now that they had prayed, that healing was surely on it's way. (More than one.)...hmmm pride? Some have tried to "speak for God". Some have said that we just have to "claim the healing". What is that supposed to mean? These are the same people that like to "claim" everything else good in life while denouncing everything hard. (Good comes from God and Bad comes from the Devil right?) It's just not true. God does not guarantee us a "free ride" of ease and relaxation through life. ACTUALLY, He promises that we will be mistreated, misunderstood and will face hard times. And what I've found to be true is that hard times have brought me closer to Jesus. It has been the hard things that have defined and solidified my faith and revealed faith I never knew i had.



"In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33



"We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." 2 Corinthians 4: 8+9



Another thing I've found to be true is that God has used the difficult things in life to reveal to me who He really is. Over the course of the years, the topic has gone from "healing" to "what really *is* the character of God"... and now to "what should my attitude/perspective be in the light of illness." I have often described to Curt how when life has gotten especially stressful that i get a picture in my mind of staring into the eyes of God in silence. It has been a recurring picture ever since Darren was diagnosed 5 years ago...and then through Sadie's ordeal...and every little thing that wants to set me off into a ball of worry. The feeling that permeates that picture is the one you would get from catching the eyes of the one you love across a crowded room. In the moment your eyes meet, you both know what the other is thinking without talking. God seems to have been "silent" through all our ordeals... except for this picture. But that one image has been the biggest source of comfort to me. He knows the thoughts i can't express in words.

I have also found comfort in ignoring the voices (so called prophecy) of the multitude of people that feel like they are "hearing from God". Ignoring books, sermons, comments of those around me and really focusing in on the Bible alone as my source, and His comfort which is new every morning. I *know* my God, I recognize His voice. His "silence" isn't that he isn't speaking. It's that He is working out something in me that isn't about the words He is saying...It's not about the show, or the emotion... It's deeply personal and peaceful and a re-working of my idea of who He really is. I'm hearing Him... just not in words. I see his face, His eyes....and they are on me...and they are on you. -j

The Great Outdoors

Maybe I haven't been outside for awhile. Yesterday, when I took Wesley outside for a romp in the snow the other kids spied me and started running at me and cheering. "MOM IS OUTSIIIIIDE!" They said it like it was some kind of impossible miracle and my mother-heart twinged with guilt (as it is prone to do). I used to *live* outside with the kids building forts, catching frogs, making bows and arrows. I would even take them skidooing. Over the years it seems like I've become a bigger and bigger wimp....and (shudder) indoorsy. In that moment of cheering and guilt, i decided that I was going tobogganing with them. "Let's go sledding guys!" They cheered....and I wondered if i would regret my bravado. I was wearing Darren's camouflage overalls and his extra pair of boots which were clunky and too big for me but I started inching my way down the icy hill to get the toboggan, Wesley balanced on my bulky hip. "Having fun" requires a lot more work than it used to. "Mom, we don't toboggan on this little hill. You gotta walk to the BIG hill with us. Dad scraped it out with the bobcat!" "Oh, okay." It was getting hot and i laid Wes on a sled and pulled him behind me. After a short walk to the back field filled with snow and horse manure, we found ourselves at the top of a HUGE hill. Curt had scraped away a sliding hill that was wide with ridges on either side and wild bumps to start it off. I got nervous. "It's okay mom. I'll give you a push to start you off." says Darren. I should have known better than to agree to a 12 year old boy "starting me off". Especially considering that I am pregnant and holding a one yr old on my lap. Darren obviously didn't think of those things. Wes and I got on. The sled threatened to slide out from beneath me and Darren firmly placed his hands on my back and RAN as fast as he could, pushing. I begged him to quit. "That's good enough DARREN!" He gave one last mighty heave and Wesley and I were racing and spinning on a blue plastic disk down the hill. I screamed. So did Wes. The kids cheered. It seemed like an absolute moment of insanity. Twirling Alberta skies and snow and mother and child hurtling through the wind. The ride went on for about a 1/4 mile before my dragging boots finally brought us to a stop. It was in that moment i decided "I've got to do this more often." My second run was solo and i went completely off course careening onto my back and soliciting howling encouragement from the kids. Sadie's contagious laugh is too good to miss. I've decided to get out more... even in this Alberta winter, even with little ones that need a 10 minute bundle job each. There is something like good medicine that can only be found in spending time in the great outdoors and I need me a little more of that.

Why it's easier to teach the 6th child to do chores...

Monkey See---Monkey wanna DO TOO!!!

What to Expect When You're Expecting After 35-part 2

Got my weekly update from BabyCenter.com. I usually really like their reminders and weekly updates: "You are 9 weeks pregnant today... click here for an update on your (baby's) growth." (They don't use the word "baby" though---delusional. :) ) I didn't have a "part 2" for my "What to Expect" entry when i wrote that it was "part one" but my sister told me to call it "part one" as there was so much more to say. There *is* a lot to say, and i realize that this is maybe a re-do of the last entry, but it was my second nudge from the "medical community" in my 9 weeks of pregnancy to "beware" and a veiled suggestion that I may want to re-think this pregnancy. This is what you should expect if you are 35 and pregnant: An e-mail that begins with:

"Your pregnancy calendar
1 January, 2010:

Older women are more likely to have babies with chromosomal disorders such as Down's syndrome. That's why, if you're over 35, you may be offered an amniocentesis to check you baby's genes."

The message went on to insist that I ask for the booking soon so that I didn't miss out on these important tests before it is too late....too late to kill my child? Hmmm, from what I've read, they will terminate right up to the end for mothers who are desperate for the "service". What has motherhood come to when "To kill or not to kill..." has become the question.

"Dangerous Place"
--by Julie Miller--
Little ones to him belong,
Little ones, where have you gone?
Was it a war that stilled your voice?
No, it was your mother's choice.
Where was the doctor's healing hand
when children died across the land?
Was it in search of saving life?
No, death came from his knife.
It's a dangerous, dangerous, dangerous place,
Dangerous, dangerous place to be these days.
Now five months early you survive,
but 'til you're born, well, you're not alive,
Convenience has a sacrifice,
and children are the price.
It's a dangerous, dangerous, dangerous place,
A mother's womb is a dangerous place to be these days.
Little ones to him belong,
You are weak,
and we were wrong,
Now we will never hear your voice,
and it was our own choice.
Jesus loves me,
this I know
for the Bible tells me so,
Little ones to him belong,
They are weak but He is strong.

Feeling like "Jack"

Curt had pain in his shoulder for a couple days over Christmas... and then his whole arm started to swell and the pain went up into his shoulder and neck. Last night he couldn't fill out a fax he was sending so i had to do the writing for him. I told him he'd better get in to the Dr. We went to the after hours walk-in clinic and wouldn't you know it, no one showed up to open the clinic! He debated going to emergency as i was worried, and although he wouldn't admit it, i think he was too. He waffled and wanted to go on a planned skidoo trip the next morning. I told him that he'd better cancel. He did. I called the Dr. this morning and got him in at my clinic right away. The Dr. took one look at his arm and knew what it was. "Venous Thoracic Outlet Syndrome". He has a blood clot because of his ribs pinching off a vein in his chest! I am so thankful that he cancelled that trip and got in to see the Dr. He was sent right away to the hospital to get a shot of anti-coagulant in his belly (he will have to go back every day for more shots) and a prescription of blood thinners. Ultrasound next week and it looks like surgery to remove the clot and possibly a rib! My goodness! Carrie was watching me as i was reading up on Curt's medication. "Mom! You're just like "Jack" in Robin Hood!" (She is Robin Hood's resident medic.) Yeah, I'm feeling it lately too!

What to Expect When You're Expecting After 35-part 1

While feeling woozy this morning i started leafing through my well worn copy of "What to Expect When You're Expecting" and came across the headline Having A Baby After 35. I lazily skipped over the words.
"Blah, Blah, Blah, statistics, whatever, i don't buy that... that's a bunch of crap."
Then these two statements stood out for me and have been niggling at me all morning now. (Yes, I'm 35 and yes, I took offense for the sake of my child.)

pg. 29 if you have a copy:
"Should an abnormality be discovered, the parents *must* then decide with input from genetic counselors, pediatricians, maternal fetal subspecialists , and other professionals, whether to terminate or continue the pregnancy."

And this one:
"...--today's older mothers have a lot going for them. Medical science, for example. Screening for birth defects can be done in utero through amniocentesis, chorionic villous sampling, ultrasound, and other newer procedures...and can potentially reduce the risk of bearing an infant with a severe birth defect to a level comparable to that of younger women."

Now, let me get this straight. The GOOD news for the older mother is that, should their baby have some sort of birth "defect", the medical community is ready and willing to councel her through her IMPORTANT decision to kill her child. The killing of these "defective" babies born to older mothers will therefore, lower their risk of ACTUALLY giving birth to a "defective" child, and makes their risk of delivering an "imperfect" child the same as a "young" mother? These same people are probably opposed to the death penalty, Hitler's regime of racial arian perfection, and genocide, maybe even abortion for sex selection... but killing a baby because you decided it just somehow doesn't fit into the family picture you always dreamed of?...no big deal. "Terminate and try again." Maybe next time you'll discover that you are carrying a life that's "worthy".

As long as...

A family friend recently asked Curt if he was looking forward to having a boy or a girl.
"Well, it doesn't really matter!"
She laughed and then said something that a person hears a lot when they are expecting:
"Yeah, i guess so. As long as the baby is healthy!" Curt, without thinking blurted out, "Actually, that doesn't really matter either." She looked a little taken aback and then Curt tried to explain why he had said that. "Well, i know what you mean but... We've had 6 children born to us. They were all "healthy" and "perfect". Seven years after Darren was born he was diagnosed with epilepsy. At three, our daughter Sadie was diagnosed with a rare hormonal deficiency called diabetes insipidus. There are no guarantees in life and although we don't want them to be in pain or suffer, we wouldn't trade them for any other two healthy children in the world." When he got home that night he brought up the conversation with me and how he had surprised himself with what he had blurted out. "But Jess, it's true." Yeah, it is.
"As long as they are healthy..." what?
-then i'll be happy?
-then i'll be thankful?
-then i'll know that the pregnancy was "worth it"?
-then i'll know that they will have an easy life and not worry?
not true.
Jesus,
My children are in your hands. I give them back to you. With their strengths, with their frailties...."as long as they belong to you...then I'll know that they have been *fully delivered*.

Midwife wait-list

As soon as we found out we were pregnant, i knew i wanted to talk to Curt *again* about using a midwife at our small town hospital. (Curt is not too warm to the idea.) After my last experience at the big city teaching hospital though, I have a stronger case. My stay included a room FULL of freshly delivered babies and moms. Most of them were c-sections. I know this because of the nurses that came in frequently to turn on the lights, wake everyone up and ask personal questions through the curtains. One woman had twins. Every other woman had visitors. The visitors stayed till 1 in the morning. At one point, deep in sleep, a dinner tray was pushed out of the way, (I'm guessing to make room for more company) through my curtain and right into my head as i lay sleeping with my new baby. The lady across the curtain from me also had her company lean against my bed as i tried to sleep, bonking and jostling the bed till the wee hours of the night talking about their baby's private parts and making jokes about their sex lives. When i tried to use the washroom i had to push through men and women who were crammed in the doorway to visit the woman with twins.... i held my frail nightie together at the back and shuffled my way to the washroom, hoping Wes would be okay for a minute alone behind our curtain. When i finally couldn't take the noise anymore, i gathered Wes and tried to make it to the nurses station to phone Curt. I opened my curtain and took a step. Just then a newly minted "Grandma" who was celebrating loudly with the rest of the extended family backed into me wildly while trying to get a picture. I clutched Wes tight and tried to get my balance. The nurse came in just then and scolded me for walking around with my baby. I put him in the bassinet and wheeled him to the front desk. By then i was so close to tears i had to whisper to the ladies behind the desk. "Could I use your phone for a minute?" I dialed Curt's cell and when he answered, i could hear my kids in the background. Hot tears streamed now.
"Can you come and get me? I gotta get out of here. I'm so tired. Please, come get me."
Curt was relaxed. "I thought you'd be sleeping. It's only 7:30. Can you wait a couple hours?"
"no...i can't"
"Well, i've got to run into work and then I'll come and get you." I hung up the phone and one of the nurses said "Sorry"... and meant it. Another more ignorant one said sarcastically, "You think it's more peaceful at home with your six kids than here?!" She had no idea how incredible my kids are. Home is my peaceful place. I have to admit... i let myself hate that nurse a little bit.
My heart sank and I pushed Wes back to my room. I could feel eyes on me as I came back into the room tears streaming down my cheeks. I crawled back into bed with Wes and had a good cry into his hot soft little neck behind my curtain. Finally Curt came. I have never been so happy to see him. I can't explain how angry i was then when we went to leave and the nurses tried to tell me that the baby wasn't fitted tight enough into the carseat so we "couldn't leave yet" The carseat was the kind that a person has to remove the child, flip the carseat over, remove metal posts from the back of, remove straps, replace straps, replace posts, flip carseat over, replace baby in order to "tighten". I couldn't look them in the eye as i performed this task and they argued that i "should" be able to just pull a strap to tighten. (I threw that carseat out as soon as Wes was done with it.) ......Needless to say, i am looking to find a more quiet and peaceful delivery and recovery option than I was offered this last time. The problem is, so are a lot of other women. Since the government started funding midwives this year, demand has gone through the roof. I am presently on 3 wait-lists... and I *just* found out I am pregnant. Some, when i called, told me that they were booked until the end of September! That would have been impossible because no one would have even known they were pregnant yet if their due dates were in September. Not sure how all of this works, but if you ask me.... pregnant women need more options than what is presently available when it comes to the safe, peaceful delivery of their babies. I know that some women get angry at the mention of a midwife. I'm not sure why. There have to be more options. A "birthing center" as well makes far more sense to me than sending a vulnerable mother and child into the vortex of H1N1 hospitals writhing with sick people. That doesn't add up for me either. I hope my children have better options when their time comes. In the meantime... I'm waiting for my "in demand" midwife and a small town hospital birth.

Sloan cousin Christmas--2009

Christmas 2009 was a great success. Grannie and Gramps came up early to help prepare and stayed late to help clean, Paige and Steph brought baking and casseroles, music and books to share. The kids tobboganed, hot tubbed, played fiddle, ate way too much chocolate, did crafts and played games. We stayed up too late talking. The men stayed up too late playing Risk. (Nothing says "peace on earth" like a good game featuring world domination.) :D At the end of the Turkey dinner we still had enough leftovers to make up 6 turkey casseroles. ( 2 for each family to take home) Here is our living nativity. (close-up of Mary, Joseph, and the only child willing to play baby Jesus. (Uly))

Jam session with Grannie and Grampsie and Steph.

Early morning snuggle with Grampsie. Gage figured there *must* be room for one more up there.

The Christmas story with Grampsie.

Santa arrived on a skidoo at top speed, interrupting the "Christmas Eve Variety Show", opened boxes of candycanes for the kids with his HUGE pocketknife and then shot off his loud gun a few times before making an exciting exit complete with a skidoo jump off the hill and lots of hooting.

The living nativity. Wesley the "goat" has removed his head part of his costume and is writhing out of the sheperd (Silas') hands. We have 4 wise men (as Gage would only agree to the shiniest of costumes) :) And you can't see how relaxed "Baby Jesus" looks in this one with his hands behind his head... but check out the little angel Mollen in the middle/top. She struck a pose that gave me such a smile.

Texting while Hunting and the Sausage Adventure

The beginning of the month Curt was out hunting quite a bit in the morning. I would be trying to homeschool and kept getting phone calls from him. He couldn't "talk on the phone" as he was sitting up in a deer stand, so he would text us and we would get a voice message from a robotic woman saying things like "I'm up in a tree stand. Saw a big one. Haven't shot anything yet." Carrie would dive for the phone every time to hear things like "I love you Carrie!" and "You're so much fun." Then she handed me the phone. "Ummmm, mom, i think this msg is for you." I took the phone and pressed the buttons to hear the msg again. The robotic woman pronounced "Jess, you are ONE HOT MAMA!" The kids burst out laughing. Finally we got the message the kids were all waiting for. Curt's voice: "Jess, i got a deer and i'm comming to pick you and the kids up. Be ready in 10 minutes." Curt arrived with his friend Scott and off we went to the west field. We brought the deer home and Darren skinned it and de-boned it. We froze the meat until Scott came over a couple weeks ago to make sausage. This was a first for us and a lot of fun for the kids. My good friend Andrea was there. Not so much her thing, but she didn't let it show as her enthusiastic 4 year old got right in on the action. :)

Everything I ever wanted

~Sunday was my big 35th birthday.
~In our house, tradition dictates that whoever wishes the birthday boy/girl "happy birthday" first is the winner. Every one else is the loser... unless you say it more frequently than the person who said it first.
~Carrie came in my room first thing this morning and presented me with a sinew necklace with a metal arrow-head on it that she had made... and a pack of gum with one piece still left in it. "Happy Birthday Mom"
(she won)
~I got lots of hugs and "happy birthdays" from the losers.
~My kids played violin in church and made me smile.
~Curt's mom threw me a birthday lunch.
~My faithful friend crashed the party with presents and WAY too much food.
~I ate too much.
~My niece gave me two bags of CHOCOLATE. I shared one. One bag.
~My good moccasins have been missing since the week i bought them for myself over a month ago. Tonight, Curt plopped them in my lap and announced "Happy Birthday, I got these for you." (nerd) haa haa!
~Ellie snuck out of bed long after tuck in and handed me a present: A sample perfume i gave her months ago and a tiny set of keys belonging to who knows what.
~I went around after everyone was sleeping and kissed each of them goodnight.
~I got everything I ever wanted.

How we decorate the Christmas tree

For those of you who have ever lived with toddlers 2 and under, you are going to totally understand why my Christmas tree is decorated as it is; decorations on the top, nothing on the bottom. For those of you totally confounded...I'll fill you in. Babies and toddlers love Christmas ornaments. They love to eat them, throw them, step on them, carry them to the far reaches of the universe, flush them down the toilet, slide them into the couch, DVD player, piano, and sometimes their diapers. I am not a fussy decorator. I LOVE beautiful decor... but i am not a big shopper, i hate dusting, and when it all comes down to it, having a display of perfection is not worth the money or agony when a little one decides to *FEEEEEEL* it all over with candy cane fingers or take it apart, or "make crafts" from it. My favourite kind of decorations are home-made ones you can throw out...or eat. Paper snowflakes, bakers dough ornaments, candy canes, and candy necklaces. We did, however start a tradition a few years ago that the kids love. They each buy one new ornament to put on the tree each year. My nature loving child found a ball covered in feathers. My fancy girl bought a pink sparkly sequined ball. My son... he just tries to find a bigger one than the year before. His is obvious in this picture:

How we do the Christmas shopping

My sister did a couple of posts explaining how she does certain activities with her family of 8 and I thought since it's Christmas, I would share how we do Christmas in the present department for the kids. We do get comments about how crazy it must be with 6 kids and buying presents for everyone, but in reality, it has been made fairly simple with a couple of traditions that have grown over the past few years. I hope the traditions will continue to improve and change over the years as the kids get older (maybe hand-made gifts) but at this stage and these ages, this is simple, peaceful and the most fun for everyone involved. Here it is: Curt and I buy one present for each child, and *sometimes* one for each other. When it gets close to Christmas, the kids and I pile into the vehicle and head to the local dollar store. They pair off and buy for each other. One item for each of their siblings from the dollar store. When they have their presents, they either buy it on their own, or if the store is full, they pile it in my cart under my coat so no one can see and I pay for it and they pay me back at home. (Somehow, it is more exciting for them when they can say they chose the present themselves and bought it out of their own money.) When we get home, each one comes to my room and tells me what they bought so i can get it from the bags for them. I give them a roll of paper, scissors and tape and they hide in their room wrapping and labelling all their gifts. the end. :) merry Christmas

"Oh Brother"

I don't know what it is about brothers, I never did have one, but while raising 4 girls and 2 boys I'm learning that boys love to BUG. At least mine do! Prime example this evening after dinner. I recently checked back on the initial bill for my washing machine to get fixed. It was dated September 14th. Before a month was up, it was leaking and now grinding and still not great. At least it didn't lock shut again with no one to come out for weeks. (P-U!!!) Then, just to make things interesting, my dryer decided to quit working. It has been almost 2 months of drying my clothes by laying them out on the couches in front of the fireplace. Stiff everything. Finally, this morning after hearing that the part for the dryer wouldn't be in for at the very least 3 more weeks, my husband went out and bought another dryer! *tears of joy!* After dinner, I gathered dried clothes into a huge pile and got the kids to help fold. Darren's load came out and I asked Robin to help fold the towels in his basket. She loves this job normally. Darren began to laugh and commented. "Hey Robin, I've rubbed those towels ALL over my body!" She gave him a wilted look as he tripped over himself laughing. I wonder if a boy would have lived very long in our family dominated with three girls...

Curt's surprise

Last night as Curt and I were laying in bed and i was nursing Wes, we were talking about the whirlwind of the past few days that we spent in Calgary with my sister Paige and the surprise of this pregnancy.

I looked up at Curt.

"I think it's a boy again."

He smiled and raised his eyebrows doubtfully.

"I bought something yesterday. Want to see it?!!"

He jumped out of bed without waiting for my answer like a 4 year old on Christmas morning, yanked a plastic yellow "Bass Pro Shops" bag off of the top shelf of his closet and pulled out a tiny camouflage dress with a lace collar. I burst out laughing at his goofy grin and the sweet little present. Such a proud Papa.

The Grapevine

I walked into church for music practice tonight just as my husband's friend was heading in the doors for a bible study.
He beams at me, "CONGRATULATIONS!!!"
I laughed.
"Hah! He told you already? He must be mighty proud of himself. We've known all of 2 days!"
"Yeah, i razzed him about that."
He held the door for me and I walked in carrying my bag and my mandolin. I got up on the stage. A friend looked at me.
"No baby Wesley tonight? I think this is the first time i've seen you at practice without a baby." I just smiled and thought *wrong*.
I'm pregnant. ;) shhh.

MRI results

Sadie's MRI results came in and they did not find a tumour! I'm overjoyed, and at the same time frustrated that I may not get *any* answers as to why her diabetes insipidus began in the first place. She has to go for two more sets of blood work to check her levels of blood osmolality and sodium to make sure her increased dose of dDavp is still good. They are also going to check her level of oxytocin this time which is new. The next step is genetic testing. Blood will need to be sent to Europe. Not sure when they will do that as her endocrinologist is pursuing a grant for that one.

Laundry-palooza

I'm on my 5th (maybe 6th?) straight week with a leaking washing machine and my 2nd week of a heatless dryer. Repairman was waiting for parts but is now scheduled to come Wednesday. Now that there is a distinctive "vegetative" smell emanating from my laundry room... and I haven't had the gumption to get myself to the laundrymat... i decided that it was perhaps time to just smarten up and "make-do" I am on my 4th load of the morning, the fireplace is on, the couches, chairs, tables are draped with laundry drying and hopefully by the end of the day my laundry room will smell less like dank mold and more like BLEACH. Such a bad home-maker! I'm the kind of woman that, if the house needs dusting, i make bread. If the toilets need scrubbing, i peel potatoes. If the laundry is backed up, i make cookies. I have a sister that does the opposite; cleans when she should bake... I need to get me some of that.

Ellie's Salon

Mom and Dad are visiting. After supper, during which Grannie wore a card-stock, home-made crown that someone lovingly placed on her head, Ellie crawled up behind her at the table and started to comb her hair. Grannie never flinches when the kids begin playing "beauty salon". I hope i can become as gracious as her someday. Anyways, as i was talking to Grannie, I noticed something.

"Umm, Ellie, Why are you combing Grannie's hair with a plastic fork?"

"I know! See, I made it into a brush!" She had bent back the tines so that it made for a "better brush". Then she placed the crown back on the top of her head. "There! Perfect!"

I think my mom must be the best sport in the world.

(pic of Ellie and Grannie during a beauty-fest last spring)

Club Memberships

My children have always had "Clubs". I think it is a genetic thing i passed on to them. My sister Paige and I always had "The Key-Thing Buddies". We were "Toque-lee ONE" and "Toque-lee TWO". We collected old keys, and spare change, converted the chicken coop into a club house complete with purple spray-painted walls. (pictures of "muchkins" which were a big thing in the '80's) Any time a good thing happened (going for slushies, fort building, baking) we would claim that it was happening because we were in the Key-Thing Buddies club and the club was open that day.

My kids, and my sisters' kids have initiated scads of clubs over the years. Some "cousin" clubs even earned club cards that their cousin Haven made up with 2 aliases for each person. (quite the job to find 2 aliases for 19 cousins). She laminated little cards with the club members pictures on it. Very Cute. The fad recently has reached it's zenith with Sadie....and for a freshly minted 4 year old, clubs can be used as a bribe, a threat or a claim to fame just as much as a friendship builder.

"You're in my club."

"You're not in my club."

"My club is the BEST club than YOURS!"

"If you do that, you can't be the president OR the tiger in my club."

"When you give me ice-cream, you can be the Queen in my club."

"My club is cancelled."

"If you come to Robin's party, you can be in my club."

Mostly the reaction she gets are giggles or feigned fear from older siblings who know how easy it is to get back IN the club. Today, for some un-beknownst reason, being in Sadie's club involved the measuring of my scull. I sat patiently as she slowly and solomnly raised the wooden ruler to my head. And then i did something that Curt does to me. When she got close enough and was seriously concentrating, i scared her....

"BOOO!"

"Mom! Don't DO that or you won't be in the club!" I laughed and apologized. The measuring resumed. She came close. I could smell her shampoo.

"BAHHH!!" She recoiled in shock. I laughed. No wonder Curt loves to do this.

"Mom! I said don't DO that! I need to measure you for the CLUB!"

"Fine, I'm sorry. Go ahead." I waited. It was too much fun.

"GAAA!!" Sadie swung the ruler to her side.

"MOM!! You are FIFTY and you're going to be an OOOOOOLLLLLDDDD lady!" Robin, listening to the whole ceremonial measuring episode, burst out laughing. That didn't help matters. I guess I'm out of the club. Maybe I'll get out a tub of ice cream and buy my way back in. (p.s.... I'm 34)

answers

I can hardly believe this is true, but it's been 9 months since Sadie started drinking up the world and we thought no one would believe us that something was wrong. It's been six months of waiting for the "follow-up" MRI. It feels like I've been holding my breath for all that time. Not having anything else to say because all i can think to say is..."We're still waiting..." Waiting to hear whether there is a visible *reason* for her problems. I'm torn. I want answers... but i don't want an answer that is given by an MRI of her brain. Test is on Friday.
Pray that if there is something to see, they won't miss it.
Pray that if they do see something, they will be SURE...no guessing.
Pray that Sadie will do okay with the anesthetic.
Pray for our faith to increase.

One Year ago

One year ago this month I was HUGE... I was SORE...I was limping...I was IMPATIENT... I was 9 months PREGNANT. One year ago this month I was huge, sore, impatient, pregnant and eating chocolate in the hospital bed excited as I felt the contractions coming on stronger and stronger. An hour after that, i was contorting into all kinds of pretzle-type shapes as the nurses and midwives and my own Dr. tried to figure out the best way to get Wesley out. He was facing the wrong way and mighty stuck. I was beet red, willing to try whatever idea was blurted out of whichever intern spoke first. Maybe this is why i haven't writen about his birth yet. I still can't get the shock out of my system. After he was born, everyone was saying "post your birth story!!" Hmmm. Do people want to hear that they wouldn't let me get into the position i felt i NEEDED to get into? That i shamelessly twisted my tortured body into all kinds of unlikely positions and did it with a "LET'S DOOOO THIS THING!!!"? (I always get embarassingly excited when i'm going to see my little one...even when i'm in horrendous pain.) Do I say that when Wesley was finally was born, he entered the world flanked by rows of nurses, doctors, interns and midwives like a football player entering the field flanked by cheerleaders....and they were all holding my legs down as i pushed against them? Curt didn't have the heart and kept getting in trouble from the doctor for not pushing against my "push". And i sobbed. I was too tired to care when pictures were taken of our new family. Me, the "center-piece" of the photo with disheveled hair, broken blood vessels on my chest from "pushing" and a sweaty, ruby face from my labours. One year ago this month another layer of my heart entered the world.

Learning (on the fly) to sketch with the kids

I have never taken art but have always wanted *deeply* to be able to "do" art. When we've done read aloud during the course of our home school i always got the kids to draw or do an art project while they listened. This year we got good sketch books and pencils from Staples and started watching YouTube videos to get some inspiration. Yesterday, during fiddle lessons, we drew from reference pictures i had printed off of the Internet. I am always shocked when something turns out better than i expected when it is something i have no training in doing or teaching. Anyways, here is my unfinished fish with the horrible tail and some of the kids' sketches. Carrie (10), Ellie (6) and I all did the baby face. Robin's is the birds from a folksy picture and Darren's is the eyes. Carrie did a foot that she is quite pleased with as well. I will have to take more pics as she did not think that the baby face was her best one.

The morning game show

Usually, in the mornings, i roll out of bed and start working in my pajamas. When I've had my breakfast and got all the machines running, i sneak off for my shower. This morning, bright and early, two children were crawling on the counter to devour the last of the brownies from last night's snack (directly out of the pan with spoons) two were helping unload the dishwasher and two were stalking Curt to make sure he wouldn't do chores without them. I was dumping clean dishes on the counter and filling the washer with a new load. (I'm never *done* doing dishes it seems.) We have a wall of cupboards and the kids always leave them all open after putting away the dishes. I walked over and shut them all one after the other. Curt walked into the kitchen and i comented "I always feel like vana white when i do that." He smiled. "Yeah, You LOOK like Vana White." I looked down at my disheveled droopiness; barefeet, hair askew, looking at him through my dirty glasses. "Thanks!" I laugh in my crazy woman voice. (someone is not going to win the bonus round)

Listen for the Harmony...

The kids were asked to play fiddles at a local church's hymn-sing tonight. Before they got up to play, the congregation sang a number of hymns. Curt's uncle Ronnie led the singing from the front and I couldn't help thinking of Sunday morning services 25 years ago with Ronnie leading. My mom, dad, my two sisters and I sitting together on the orange upholstered pews. I looked down my row, me and my 4 kids, hymnals on their laps. (Curt was in the foyer with Sadie and Wes.) "Hymn number 114!" The pianist started the introduction. Ellie scrambled up onto my lap. "Quick mom, I can't find it!" I flipped the hymnal open to the right page, pointed to the first verse and traced the words as I tucked my head down and sang the harmony part into her ear. Suddenly the memory of my own mother doing this came back to me. "Listen for the harmony Ellie."

Sadie's opinion on sleeping and "The Happy Guy Game"

Everyone has been taking turns being sick. Thankfully there has been no vomit or "other" but Darren's fevers caused a lot of dizziness and a couple seizures. Carrie is the one in bed today. I was feeling a little wiped yesterday too so decided to go to bed around 6 pm. I never do this but it was the best idea in the world. We've had Darren sleeping on the floor of our room for the past couple nights because of seizures and Sadie always seems to sneak in with us as well, so at one point in the night I woke up and heard the sound of my own tired sigh, Darren's sick sounding breathing, Sadie's soft yawn and Curt's deep snore. It was a symphony of blissful sleeping. Suddenly, in her sleep, Sadie started whining. "This is BOooooRING!" It struck me so funny. Needless to say, our days have been a little slower than usual. This morning, when i asked Sadie if she wanted to use the old egg carton to make a craft, Darren offered to help her make a game. A roll of the dice and the little drawn men move forward that many spaces in the egg carton. When your man reaches 30, you win. Sadie was thrilled. She named it "The Happy Guy Game".

Baby Board Books

I am a little bit of a sucker for baby board books and recently discovered a new favourite so I'm putting my plug out there. Every one of my kids are in love with this series by Leslie Patricelli. (Even the ones in grade 5 and 6) They are hilarious. Mostly because they are so true to life. They picture baby doing/eating/discovering various truths about life. "Burgers are Yummy...Boogers are yucky." We found ours at the local Walmart and now my eye will be peeled wherever I go. I noticed that there are more listed in the series. Anyways, these would make a great shower gift for a new mom...or for yourself if you have a thing for kids books like I do. :0)

The oldest student in my homeschool

This morning I did something that I am terrified of--city driving. :P Sadie had an appointment with her endocrinologist and I didn't really want to truck in there with 6 kids and my chauffeuring husband again. We take up all the waiting room not to mention the appointment room. Curt offered to stay home with the kids and run "school" while I drove in. The last time I thought i was going to have to drive in alone a friend suddenly offered to come along for the ride. (Thanks Laurianne!) Today I had to "grow up" and learn how to maneuver traffic circles and underground parking by myself. I am 34 after all and i guess it's about time. I printed off directions from Google maps and held my breath the whole way...except when i was praying that I wouldn't get lost. Halfway into the city i thought i had missed a turn and started to pray out loud. "Please Jesus, help me find my way there!" Around the next traffic circle i saw a building that i recognized and shouted out "Thank you Jesus!" Sadie, so excited in the back seat hoots "Did Jesus help us to not get lost!!???...YAY!!" After we waited in line for enough vehicles to exit the full underground parking lot, I thought we may have difficulty finding a parking space inside but a large truck pulled out of a slot after only one "circling" and Sadie announced "Jesus got us a parking spot too!" haa!! The appointment went well and we headed home. Curt had gotten everyone through math and science and the little ones through LA, and had cleaned our room to boot! (He should do this more often) I thought i would send the older kids off to practice fiddle, Wes for a nap and spend time with the little 3. We read 3 books about honey bees and then i decided we would make candles with the beeswax block i had been keeping in the freezer for a time such as this. Well, by the time the wax was melted, i had lost my audience and there I stood...alone... dipping candles. Sometimes I feel like the oldest student in my homeschool. I quit after 3 dips and decided to try again tomorrow now that the candles were all started. Someone is going to have fun whether they like it or not!!

Who wants to lick off the beaters?

While studying Australia, we found a dessert recipe called Lamingtons that we thought we would try out. It was an eggy white cake, cut up into tiny squares, drizzled with runny chocolate sauce and rolled in coconut. I'm sorry, but anything drizzled in chocolate and kissed with coconut makes me dizzy. YUMM. As we were drizzling chocolate on the forked squares, Sadie accidentally drizzled chocolate all over her dress and leg. She cheerfully yelled out, "Who wants to lick off my leeeegs!!!"

Nothing good happens after midnight.

o.k, o.k....i know it's midnight and I've learned over the years that my mother was right. "Nothing good happens after midnight." These are the hours that my worries drag me out of bed. Why did we have to watch that stupid episode of "Little House on the Prairies" on the way to x-country this afternoon? Curt and I sat in the front of the suburban and listened to the soundtrack of the episode the kids were watching in the back. The one where Mary is kicked by the horse, gets an infection and has to go to the big city hospital for surgery. I've seen it before...I know it ends in blindness. I crawled into bed tonight and layed on something soft. It was "Blaash", Sadie's plushy lamb her uncle Neil gave her when she was in the hospital. Whenever i bury my nose in it's softness, i smell my sweet Sadie. I keep trying to forget that she has to go back. I just want to believe that she's all better. We have a synthetic hormone that's working for her....
Can't we just leave things the way they are?
Do they really have to look for a tumor?
I'm afraid.
I'm learning that I'm not a good fighter... Maybe we all feel that way though sometimes?...I hope it's not just me.
"So much pain to avoid, so little time."
God, I need your strength, your wisdom, your heart for this leg of the journey. I need you.

The little white house

This is maybe a blog entry that Curt should be writing. The little white house, after all, was the one he was brought home from the hospital to. It was, in fact the first house his parents bought when they were married. When they moved in, the old man they bought it from, too old to look after himself or his farm anymore, cried when they pruned back the lilacs and begged them to let him live with them. It was an old lathe and plaster house with thin pine floors, a dirt cellar, an attic, and a bathroom that was tacked on as an afterthought. (The original outhouse stood broken down in the bush.) When Curt was 2, his parents built themselves a new home a few yards away from the little white house. It became a rental. Curt collected childhood memories surrounding the people and families that filled that place as the years passed. There was a young martial artist who would run the rough surrounding fields in bare-feet. Curt thought he was the coolest and toughest. Once he tied Curt and his sisters upside down in the barn and left them there. That maybe wasn't so cool...but it was tough. He had an orange truck that he abandoned when he moved out. Years later, when we saw him again, he gave the truck to Curt. There was a young couple that came from Newfoundland and started their family there. The husband, Charles was a quiet carpenter and a musician. He taught Curt how to make a small bench and a wood box when he was 8 and for those years the little white house was filled with music and little ones. I remember visiting and my dad playing east coast music with Charles. During the course of our married life, we lived there twice. When we were first married, we slept in a single bed on the main floor. Not long after, we decided to fix up the attic as our bedroom to make room for a nursery for our new baby Darren. The water pump made fantastically loud sounds all through the day and night and if i ran more than one appliance at a time, the power would go out. I would trudge out to the power pole and switch it back on again. Two weeks after Carrie was born, we moved away and the house was rented out again and again. One renter was busted for growing illegal plants in the attic and there was a gunned take-down through the fields after the man hopped out the window to escape. While we built our first home, we moved back into the little house. This time we filled it to the brim. We packed bunk beds in one room with a dresser which left a little alleyway for walking. The other room took the crib and dresser. We put another bed in the stairway to the attic. In the living room we crammed our king bed and one more child's bed. It was an interesting year of homeschooling and i don't think we missed any sleep-walkers/talkers or any seizures while we lived there that year! It felt like we were all sleeping in the same room! The reason this all comes to mind i guess is that tonight my kids sold 2 goats to the new renters of the little white house. They are a family from Malta. (Remember the Bible story of St. Paul being shipwrecked on Malta?...that's the one.) They were going to butcher some goats and rabbits tonight and the kids asked if they could go over and watch. Carrie would not go as it was hard enough for her to sell the goats in the first place. Darren stayed till the gory end and is still not home. The other girls came home telling me of how the Maltese prepare the tongue and the brains and were quite interested with those cultural facts. It fascinates me the idea that a house can stand and shelter a hundred years worth of people. How many stories and lives have shuffled through that little geographical place and called it home?

Sadie's new 'do

Despite having a recieving blanket tightly tied around her head as she helped paint the playhouse, Sadie still managed to get paint in her hair. She decided that instead of combing it out, i should just cut it. She had already given herself some bangs a couple months ago so I agreed to finish her job. :) I'm a big fan of the 3 year old "bob" haircut anyways. Less knots and...it's just plain cute.

The last few weeks at a glance... if i can remember it all!

When Robin was born 8 years ago, my cousin Autumn who was 13, came to live with us. She was planning on coming for a week and ended up staying a total of 5 weeks that summer and fall. :) She's only missed maybe one summer of visiting since then and the kids look forward to her coming with jumping, hyperventilating and high-pitched whining. We had a little over a week with her this summer so we took her raspberry picking and i forced her to help me frame the playhouse...even though neither one of us knew what we were doing.

-Curt took me and the kids to pick saskatoons. We picked 30 lbs in 45 mins!
We sold our dog to a breeder in Washington so needed to take a trip up to Blue River to make the trade off. During this time, we visited my sister Steph. Our families headed off to a deserted stretch of the Jasper National Park and let the kids run wild in the sand and icy water. It was peaceful and beautiful! She piled us all into bedrooms for a couple nights, and then kept 3 of the kids while we took the other three for an overnight just outside of Blue River. First time we haven't been turned away from a hotel in a long time! Usually they take one look at our 6 kids and tell us to get lost.

My sister Paige and I were talking on the phone about getting together and realized that our husbands were planning on being away the same week as VBS was happening at my church. We decided to join forces and make some memories. Paige, 16 weeks along in her pregnancy, drove all the way out and settled into the basement rooms with her 6 kids. We did a hike and picnic at a local wildlife park, a weiner roast, a quad ride to pick berries, garden raids, had an outdoor pizza pool party at my sister in law's place and had company drop in. I LOVED it. I find it hard when Curt goes away for any length of time. Having Paige come for a visit was just exactly what I needed. When he did get home on Thursday, he had time to take my niece Cairo riding which was a highlight for her. I did break my baby toe on the island the first morning and get stung by a bee on my eyelid but other than that, the week ran smoothly.



-As soon as her family left, Sadie and Robin got the barfs. *niiiiiiiice*.





The last week of August, we decided to take a couple nights a Meiette Hot Springs. The hot springs were incredible, the 2 hour walk through the mountains with the kids was fresh and beautiful but the 4 am wake-up time for Wes "tanked".

-I recieved 7 boxes of peaches from my inlaws. Carrie and I canned 25 litres and served up another 25 litres to cousins who dropped by.

-I got mastitis. *lovely*

-My niece Brianna came over and helped with the house while i nursed myself back to health and determined to get ready for homeschool to start.

-Carrie had 4 teeth pulled.

-Carrie got the flu.

-We finished the major part of the work on the playhouse, dragged it to the bush and had a painting day/weiner roast with the kids.

-Homeschool sort of started somewhere in here!

-We sold a Billy Goat.

-Our good hen hatched out 16 chicks!!!

-I got the flu.