No, really it has been wonderful!

Listening to girls play paperdolls, I overhear:

“Oh, what a glorious day!” Please insert a British accent with a touch of southern twang.

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A son doing a picture study and writing a description. He duly noted what he felt was inappropriate dress in his writing. Good work, young man.

***

I walk into the living room and find that two loads of clothes have been put away by my sweet Mary. I recommend everyone have a Mary.

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And Bekah turned 13 on Tuesday the 31st. (More to come on that!) A friend blessed her with a huge chocolate bar yesterday. (Now that is one sweet friend!) Bekah brought the last piece to me. Just because I’m her mom. I didn’t even know she had the chocolate bar so I had not begged or anything. Giggle.  And she is all mine. A girl who shares chocolate is a life long resident in my home. The end.

We are just hitting lunch time. I can’t wait to see how amazing the rest of my day is!!

As I was requesting books for our history readings, I remembered a book that I enjoyed as a young child. I recalled memories of reading it to my two oldest children. Had I ever shared this literary treasure with my current little ones? I didn’t think so. This situation had to be remedied!

The Monster at the End of This Book…ok, so it isn’t exactly a literary masterpiece and some would consider it pure twaddle. However, I can’t read it without smiling and laughing. It must be read with much emotion and drama. I love this book!

And guess what? By page 2, everyone around the dinner table was loving this book. It is just a cute, fun read that makes you smile. I loved after dinner listening to my 6 year old read it with great dramatic flair.

Variety is a good thing so from twaddle to reality we go…

What had everyone gather around (and on) the table?

What the World Eats takes you on a tour of what different families around the world eat. From California to Africa to Asia….from middle class families to refugee camps…pictures, graphs and more about what people eat and how it compares in cost in American dollars.

(I almost caught her!)

The children learned so much about how blessed with are with the food we have available to us. To see the family at the refugee camp with so little….we truly are so blessed! They also decided that they didn’t really want to visit the area that had cow stomachs or roasted guinea pigs.

I was pleased to see them searching for the areas that had lots of fruits and vegetables. I will admit that we would get a bit excited to recognize a Snickers bar in a foreign language! We were also shocked at how much packaged food one country had. From the 2 year old and up, someone is constantly flipping through this book. I didn’t think it would be that big of a hit!

Despite getting off track with Bootcamp, training the younger crowd is always in progress. My big kiddos are great about letting the young crowd help out. Sarah and Sam both love to help unload the dryer. I was doing some work on the computer and heard Mary calling me to come see Sam.

Sam carried the basket of towels down the whole way, across the living room and managed to get the basket on the couch all by himself. He had to stop a couple of times to get a better hold on the basket and only lost one washcloth along the way. We cheered him on!

As you go about your day with little ones, never underestimate their ability and desire to help! What you do with them today prepares them for years down the road. Sam is only 2 and a little guy. That doesn’t stop him from helping with laundry, throwing out trash and putting toys away. He knows where the silverware and kitchen towels go and where the snacks are kept. He is happy to reward himself for a job well done.

Mary could have taken the basket of towels and moved a lot faster. But look at that face! He is so proud of doing a job. It can be hard at times to let little ones help. We can do it faster and better. If we wait until they are older to teach and train them to work, they will no longer have that desire.  So the four year old is a little messy when she prepares her own pb&j and yes, she spills the water when fixing the drinks at lunch; no worries. She knows where the towels are and can clean up the spill.

(This is Sam showing us how strong he is.) Tomorrow, I will attempt to get us back on track with Bootcamp and let my “In Training Crew” be a valuable part of the process.

Bonus pic of Miss Martha. She is working hard at being precious.

Smiles and Laughter

Let’s do some math. Oh, you don’t like math? I think you will love this math equation. If you are  a mom, I bet you have it already figured out. Or not.  School break + a couple of holidays + new baby = Wonderfully beautiful chaos!

Super Sam!

See. You are nodding your head, aren’t you? That chaos rings a bell, yes?  Well, it is time for chaos to leave my home and time for order and productivity to return. Ok. Who am I kidding? 8 kiddos? Yep, there will always be a bit of chaos but it will be an orderly chaos, thankyouverymuch!

Super Sam flies upside down! (He is laughing, btw.)

After praying, pondering and brainstorming, I decided that it was time for bootcamp again. Bootcamp for me. A friend of mine wrote a book called Bootcamp for Lousy Housekeepers. Yep, that’s me:lousy housekeeper. I was able to be a tester when she was in the beginning stages of writing BFLH. While I followed this plan, my home was clean and organized.

Sweet.ness.

Don’t misunderstand me. My home is not the  pit of despair. There is, however, room for improvement. I see no need to waste anymore time so tomorrow is the Tribal Cleaning Bootcamp Kickoff! Shhhh….I haven’t told my kiddos yet. It is a Monday Morning Surprise. Trust me, they will be so excited!

Hey, Gooseberry

Want to know what we will be doing tomorrow?

Monday = Laundry Day! We will be washing and washing and washing! Sheets, towels, blankets, clothes and I’m sure a lego or ten.

Biggest Sis....Littlest Sis

If you want to learn more about the Bootcamp for Lousy Housekeepers, swing by and check it out! I’ll keep you posted on how things go with out first week of Bootcamp. On the edge of your seat for that, aren’t you?

**This was not a review post. Just my rambling thoughts on the state of my house and a plan that I know works.

Hello, Goose.

Thankfully, I do have time to enjoy the moments. The good and the bad.

Bad hair day?

I’ll take the bad moments because they teach me to appreciate the good. We learn from the bad; they can provide teachable moments.

Cherished

I love all the moments I catch through out the day.  Hannah, 6, reading to the little ones to keep them quiet. Caleb letting Sam sleep in his bed when Sam is having a hard time sleeping. Sam’s completely happiness every time he sees Martha.

Adorable

Mary getting Sam ready for bed. Bekah making tea. Lydia’s singing. Giggles….hugs…..laughter….

Silly

And I’ll take the arguing over who should walk the dog, the whining when our nap was cut short, the tears over a cut and the wet clothes when someone doesn’t quite make it to the potty.

Beautiful

Maybe tomorrow I’ll write that life changing blog post. Or not. I will try to make the most of my moments.

Sisters

Newly Born

After 42 weeks and 3 days, Martha Ann decided to join us and we are so thankful! She was born Monday, December 12th at 6:41am. She was 8lb 12oz and 21 inches long. We were blessed to have her at home and everyone is already devoted to Martha.

2 days old

Thank you, Lord for blessing our home and family with Martha.

Someone was very happy that mommy let him play with the water paint. I’m not sure which he enjoyed the most…the water or the paint.

And Sarah was intense about her painting. Very focused. It is nice to know that a simple container of paint and water will calm the Volcano, lol.

Mary is a great manager. She invited Sarah and Sam to do math with her. Sarah and Mary were having a contest to see who finished Mary’s math first. Sarah finished first but I wasn’t up to counting all the tally marks she made. Mary took the blue ribbon for math this time.

Dark is coming early and they have enjoyed running around while it is still warm out. Mary took this picture of the moon. It was such a beautiful, bright full moon!

I almost go her. She caught me. Bummer. I’m going to have to get firm with that girl and get a good picture!

And Mr. Cuteness likes to cuddle. He has learned to just grab his pillow and blanket and sneak into bed with big brother in the middle of the night. Precious!

The goofiness just overflows in some of the children. Hannah’s goofy level is at an all time high.

November is birthday season for us. The two boys have already celebrated their birthdays and Hannah and Sarah are this week. Birthday post coming soon!!!!!

So often throughout my day, my children bring me to laughter. Maybe they did something silly or goofy. It is possible they did something cute and they don’t even realize it. Today was one of those days full of such encounters. I decided to post a few here since my memory can’t be trusted to last until tomorrow.

November birthday season is upon us and I had no idea what Hannah would like. Today I decided that I really  needed to figure out a plan for her. Please note that Hannah has had a stuffy nose for the past few days. Not even a full cold; just a stuffy/runny nose. It is driving her crazy!!

The Runny Nose Princess

She would like me to make her a small pillow. I asked a few questions to make sure I understood her. She wants a small pillow “like Bekah’s purple one with flowers”.  Hmmm, interesting. Why exactly would she want a small pillow? Her response, “Well, once both sides of my big pillow is covered in snot, I can use the little pillow.” Gotcha. A back up pillow for when the snot content is high.

I decided to be brave and ask one more question. What color would you like your pillow to be? “Hmmm, I think I will have to look through your fabric.” Well, alrighty then.

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In an effort to fit us all around the dinner table, some of the large, heavy wooden chairs have been replaced with folding chairs. It allows for a bit of elbow room for everyone. Hannah sits in one of the folding chairs and has an issue with squatting in her chair instead of sitting. She needs a bit more height on her I think.

Tonight, she was squatting again and Eddie wanted to remind her to sit like a lady and eat her dinner. He asked her, “Hannah, do you need a booster seat?” I think he thought she would say no and sit down. However, she said, “Yes, yes I would like a booster seat.” Completely serious and without a moment’s hesitation.

Never mind we have two in booster seats, I just happened to have a third one in my closet. We bring the booster seat our for Hannah. Suddenly, Miss Sarah decided to join in the conversation.

Miss Contentment

“I don’t like my seat. I want one like Hannah’s”

I tell Sarah that she needs to learn to be content in all things.

Miss Almost 4 year old says, “I like my big bear. I like my bed. I like my bag. But I don’t really like my little bear.” All said with a sweet smile and thoughtful expression.

Well, it looks like she is trying to be content in all things. Needs a little work on desiring others seating.

Reasons for many giggles, smiles and laughter

NaNa was coming for a visit today. Some people in the house were very excited and could not wait to see her. They diligently kept watch out the front window.

When her car was spotted in the driveway there was a stampede to the door. NaNa, NaNa, NaNa………  or Nannie. Shh, she doesn’t like that name. Why didn’t I think to take a picture of them with NaNa? Shame on me!

Little boy in denim overalls...be still my heart....

We began our Saturday with a lovely to do list and everyone was working diligently on their assigned tasks. The littles ones helped when they were able and made messes the rest of the time. I had just sat down to take a “chocolate break” when Sam joined me.

Hello, Mr. Cuteness

He very politely and gently tapped me on my arm while calling my name in his sweet little voice, “Mommy, mommy.” I look down to see he had found a wooden spoon. He showed it to me and then pointed to another one lying close by. Hmmm, whatever could he be trying to tell me?

Sam gave a little grunt as he backed away. Ahhhhhh, I knew what that meant. I asked him, “Do you want to fight? ” He quickly threw on a smile and prepared for battle….

My name is Mr. Cuteness... prepare to give me my every wish...

I fought the good fight, but in the end the victory was Sam’s. While always the gentleman, he is a challenging adversary.  Consider yourself warned…if Sam ever taps you on the arm he may want a cuddle or he may want to fight.