The "birds and bees" at the Hardware Store?

This is a story that will make you smile. Oh, the joys of growing up.

Jason was working on getting our pool pump up and running at the beginning of this summer and was needing some PVC pipe fittings. He and Papa were going to the hardware store down the road and so my 10 year old eldest decided to ask if he could tag along. Sure, why not? Hop on in. Poor Joe had no idea what he was about to walk into.

At the hardware store, Jason's and Papa's home-away-from-home, Jason was wandering down the PVC fittings aisle mumbling under his breath about "a female" this and "a few male" thats and needing "a nipple" for this. Joe was staring at the fittings with a look of confusion. Bless his heart, he decided to ask what in the world his dad was talking about! Jason and Papa looked at one another and smiled.

As Jason began to stumble for words to explain the wonders of pipe fittings, Papa interrupted with a grin and stated, "If you don't mind, I'd love to take this one!"

Jason said, "By all means, Dad!"

So Papa began to explain to Joe how the male and female parts "fit" together. Somewhere in the middle of this, a light bulb went on in Joe's mind and he understood it. Simultaneously, the light bulb went on in a different part of Joe's mind and, suddenly, my baby was growing up.

All he said to his Nana when he came home was, "Well, that was an educational trip!"

Who needs birds and bees when you have the Hardware Store?

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

A nice calm day

So not a whole lot to say about today. I'm actually very happy about that. *big grin*

School went very well. Jason accomplished everything on his list. The boys had a good day. My father-in-law did fine with his radiation treatment. Oh...and my bruise is getting better!

Just seems like a GOOD DAY.

Thank you, Lord, for bringing quiet and very "normal" days. They nurture my soul.


Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Trying not to look back

I am a bloggy failure, but I am going to try again. I am going to make a fresh start and not try to "play catchup" here. I've gotten sucked into FaceBook and keeping up with old and new friends, church stuff, and playing FarmTown and Fish Wrangler. Sad...but true!

So here is where I am now...today...this moment!

• Four out of five Jordons are recuperating from a nasty case of strep throat. Praise the Lord for antibiotics.
  
• We are about 1 week away from finishing 4th grade and 1st grade. God is so AWESOME! We will still be counting some hours into July to complete our logbook, but things are looking great. I am pleased with how all 3 of our boys have done this year.
  
• T minus 10 days and counting until our camping trip! We are extremely excited about taking out our "new to us" tent camper. Next week, we will clean and stock it and get our fishing licenses. Missouri State Parks, here we come! :o)

Today...this moment...now...I am so grateful for the many blessings that the Lord has given our family. Don't get me wrong, things are not always a bed of roses here, but my heart is truly full of joy and I know that no matter what we will face tomorrow, that God is God and I am not; and that gives me peace that I cannot even explain.

“But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children- with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.” Psalm 103:17-18

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

How does life get so crazy, so fast?

The past 3 weeks have been an absolute blur! I think I have just kicked into survival mode and am glad to be on the other side. I will try to hit the highlights here:

• We celebrated International Night with our homeschool group. That was a lot of fun! We chose to represent South Korea so we made Yaki Mandu, a Korean-style fried wonton stuffed with hamburger, bean sprouts, soy sauce, and garlic (yummy!), Korean spinich, kimchi, and oi (oh-ee) kimchi. Joey made a powerpoint presentation on Korean culture, Jacob shared that the capital of South Korea is Soeal, and Jesse pointed to South Korea on the map. We also visited France, Greece, Germany, Japan, Canada, Spain, and Russia and had our passports stamped. It was a great night!
  
  
• Dare 2 Share Student Conference in St. Louis was the last weekend in March. We had an awesome time with our 22 teens! Lives were changed, decisions were made to follow Christ, teens boldly shared their faith and I was blown away by how awesome every one of these teens were! I know the Lord will use each one of them in a mighty way.
  
  
• My father-in-law had surgery for cancer on April 2. The surgeon felt he got excellent margins and that the cancer has been completely removed. Thank you, Lord! He has since had a few setbacks and had a second hospital stay which was longer than the original stay, but he came home today, and there is no sign of infection. Again, praise the Lord!
  
  
• Joseph turned 10(!!!) on April 10. I cannot believe that my son is in double digits! He had a friend spend the night and we had a nice family party since Papa was back in the hospital and things were a little crazy.
  
  
• Easter Sunday was wonderful! I am so thankful for the gift of redemption from my heavenly Father! What a special day to celebrate as His child. It is always very humbling to think about the unbelievable sacrifce He made for me and you. Glory be to God. May my life truly show the grace I have been given.

Somewhere in there, I turned another year older! :o) Life just keeps moving on. I feel so blessed. Through everything that has happened, Jason and I have stayed connected as a team and we know that the Lord has brought us even closer as a couple. Intimacy is such a beautiful and miraculous gift from the Lord.

So even when I have felt that I cannot go on one more day, the Lord has strengthened me and has made me soar as an eagle! (Isaiah 40:28-31) He has been here every step of the way and I cannot imagine my life without Him. I love You, Lord!!!

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Check it out!

I sent in a story about Jesse to the Hearts at Home Real Moms, Real Jesus Contest and it is being featured today on the Hearts at Home homepage. Check it out! The title is "Lead Me Not Into Temptation" and it is guaranteed to made you smile.

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Real Moms...Real Jesus

Today I am a part of a blog tour that I hope encourages and inspires you as a mother. I have personally heard Jill Savage speak, have chatted with her through e-mails, and have even had a a story published in a book she was the general editor of called I'm Glad I'm a Mom. If this post encourages you in any way, please check out Hearts at Home. They have so much to offer! Also, please post a reply so I know you dropped by. You can make a comment anonymously if you'd like.

Today I’d like to welcome author and speaker, Jill Savage. Jill’s recent book Real Moms…Real Jesus, just released, and I wanted to ask her about her real mom moments..

Jill, tell us a little bit about yourself and your family.
Mark and I have been married 25 years and we have five children. Anne is 24 and married to our wonderful son-in-love, Matt. Evan is 21 and married to our beautiful daughter-in-love, Julie. Erica is 18 and a college student at Heartland Community College. Kolya is 15 and in the 8th grade. We adopted Kolya at the age of 9 from Russia---the God story about his adoption is included in the Real Moms…Real Jesus book. And Austin is 12 and in the 7th grade.

Tell us about your newest book Real Moms...Real Jesus?
Real Moms…Real Jesus is a book designed to help moms understand that when Jesus lived on this earth he was fully God, yet fully man. We don’t often think about the fact that he was a human being and he lived the full human experience: pain, hunger, fatigue, frustration, betrayal, disappointment. He experienced it all!

There’s one verse in the Bible about Jesus that simply says “large crowds followed him everywhere he went.” Well, isn’t that the life of a mom? Large crowds follow her to the bathroom. They follow her to the kitchen. To the grocery store. She’s in high demand! And when Jesus lived on this earth, He was in high demand, too.

Why did you want to write this book?
Most of us long for a friend who understands. Yes, we need girlfriends who understand what our life is like. But we also need to understand that we have a friend who understands in Jesus. Too many of us think of God as being distant and unable to relate to our daily struggles. But nothing could be further from the truth! He understands and he wants us to build our friendship with Him. He wants to not only be our Savior, but also our Friend.

What do you hope your readers will gain from this book?
I hope that readers will gain a new perspective about their relationship with Jesus. I also hope to weave God’s truth into the daily life of a mom.

What unique elements will the reader find in Real Moms…Real Jesus?
Each chapter looks at some character trait in Jesus’ life that can help us in our life as a mom. In between the chapters are interactive vignettes that provide brief, refreshing glimpses into our real, messy, busy lives.

There are also questions at the end of the chapter for further consideration and suggested Bible reading in the book of Matthew. If the reader chooses to pursue the suggested reading, she will have read the book of Matthew completely by the end of the book!

There is also a leader’s guide in the back of the book so it can be used in a group setting.

This is a Hearts at Home book. What is Hearts at Home?
Hearts at Home is an organization that encourages, educates, and equips women in the profession of motherhood. Hearts at Home encourages moms through annual conferences, our extensive website (www.hearts-at-home.org), a free bi-weekly electronic newsletter, a radio program, and an entire line of books designed to meet the needs of moms all over the world!


Any closing thoughts?
I am very excited about this book! I believe that if a mom can strengthen her relationship with Jesus Christ, she will feel more equipped to be the mom she wants to be. I’m also offering an online book discussion on my blog beginning Tuesday, April 7. If you’d like to join us, you can subscribe to my blog at www.jillsavage.org.

I’d love to hear a reader’s thoughts after they read the book, too! You can connect to me through my blog at www.jillsavage.org.

Thanks, Jill, for taking time out of your busy schedule to share your real mom, real Jesus moments with us.

You can purchase your own copy of Real Moms…Real Jesus by clicking here.

And be sure to check out Hearts at Home, their conferences for moms, and all their online resources here.


Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

The challenge of scripture memory

I have been attending our Monday night ladies Bible study and we have one week left of our Beth Moore Esther: It's Tough Being a Woman study. I have been very encouraged and convicted every week through this study and I am going to really miss it when it is over. *sniff*

At the end of February, I was perusing Beth's site Living Proof Ministries and navigated over to Beth's blog and began reading current and past blog entries. What encouraging words! I was challenged by an entry about Bible verse memory. So I decided right then to join her Bible verse memory challenge and I just wanted to share my verse for March 15-31. We are to choose a verse that the Lord has laid on our hearts. Well, Monday was not a bad day, but as I was preparing to leave for Bible study, Jason asked me to do something and all of a sudden I got defensive and angry because of the way he asked. I attacked him verbally. So after I did what he asked, I was in the bathroom straightening my hair when the words "be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry" ran through my mind. Ugh! I knew at that moment that James 1:19, 20 were the verses for me this session.

"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires."

*sigh* Nothing like a 2x4 from God, huh? So that is what I am memorizing and I know that I desperately need the Word of God in my life! I am excited by this challenge.

Wanna join me? Click here!

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Blog significance

It has been a couple weeks since I have made a blog entry. I have wandered over to my dashboard and stared at the page for a while trying to come up with something significant to blog about. Each time I would get a nagging feeling that I didn't have anything important enough to blog about. So I would move on and blog nothing.

So today I decided to ignore the nagging feeling and just BLOG! Who cares if it's not as cool as other blogs out there. Who am I competing with? I really only do this to keep family and friends informed of what is going on in our lives and if I don't blog, then how will they know that kind of stuff? So here I am choosing to blog about WHATEVER without the promise of a significant point to all my jabbering. Enjoy...or not.

Jesse's cast is off, and physical therapy has begun. He is doing really great and we are really proud of him! He is now at a 60 degree open bend so he is cruising right along.

Jake will turn 7 next Saturday. Wow! Hard to believe for sure. He is all about drawing books (still learning to write lots of words!) and he has BIG PLANS for his future which include making movies. What an imagination he has! He draws picture constantly and I have seen such amazing perspective through his drawings. It is wild because I am so not artistic and his thinking is already beyond me! We are considering buying him a case of paper for his birthday.

Seriously though...how do you encourage this artistic side, yet temper this with his tendency to waste paper without concern for the many trees he is exploiting?

Joe continues to g...r...O...W! He will be passing me up very soon. Ack! He is definitely becoming a young man and I am excited but also a bit sad about it. My first baby. It sure made my day when we finished reading his history today that he came up and voluntarily gave me a hug and said, "Thanks for being my mom and for teaching me." *sniff* Those tender moments are so very precious as you watch them grow up.

I guess that is about it for now. And now that I look back over all of it, it IS significant. Every moment of it is significant.

Thank You, Lord, for giving my life significance.

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

18 weeks down....18 weeks to go

So here we are in mid-February and we will be finishing up week 18 of school this week. *deep breath* Seems like it's been a long school year already, but I am so thankful that we have made it to the half-way point. God has certainly been faithful. At this rate, we will finish up before the end of June and I am really pleased with that. Considering all the things that have surprised us this school year, I think we are doing great!

And just like the past 4 years, I am getting the new curriculum itch. So I wandered over to the Sonlight website to do a little "window shopping" and drooling over our new core for next year. Very exciting! We will be doing our 2nd year of American history and I know Joe and I will really have a good time with it. We have been really enjoying the Revolutionary War and both of us loved Johnny Tremain.

This week Joseph has been writing the rough draft for his report on Koalas. I think he's doing a very good job.

Jacob is spelling very well and continues to work hard on his reading.

Jesse is...well...Jesse is just Jesse these days. He was watching a video this morning while Jacob and I were reading in his Bible storybook about Elijah and King Ahab. We discussed the famine that was occurring and I asked Jacob if he could imagine what it would be like without rain for 3 years! Imagine turning on the faucet and not getting any water? Where would you get water? ***building to a dramatic climax*** Jesse promptly hollered from the living room, "From the well! Get water from the well!"

Ha! And I thought he wasn't listening at all. I just had to smile. Just one of those homeschooling moments.

We are heading to Children's Mercy Hospital on Thursday to see Jesse's surgeon and have his cast removed. We are praying that everything is looking good and that he will be able to go into a brace and begin some physical therapy. Since this was a first for them as well as us, I understand that we are all taking it one step at a time and one day at a time. Needless to say, we have been so pleased and so thankful for everyone at Children's Mercy. What a wonderful blessing they all have been. Thank you, Jesus!

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Plugging along

We are doing well. We finished week 16 this week. I feel so far behind, but I know that we are moving at a good pace considering some of our interruptions this school year. I am so proud of both Joe and Jake for working so hard. So we go until the end of June...we're homeschooled! We can do that if we want to. Praise the Lord!

Joe and I will finish Johnny Tremain this next week. I will be so sad when it is over. We have truly enjoyed this read-aloud together. Everyday as I get to the end of our assigned reading, Joe always says, "More...don't stop, Mom!" Makes my heart happy. I know I will be glad to go back through this one again with Jake and Jesse.

Jake is doing so well with his reading! It is definitely a challenge for him, but I am proud of how he has stepped up to the challenge and worked hard to sound out each of the harder words. He gets big hugs for his reading!

Jesse moves all over the house now with his walker...often times without his walker! He does not let his cast slow him down at all. The heel pain had subsided for a time, but it appears to be back again this week. It has woken him up about four mornings this week. Poor baby! I know it is just a charlie horse type cramp, but I can imagine that it is very painful. The ibuprofen seems to be helping. I think I will try to increase his calcium and potassium intake this week (think bananas and yogurt) and see if that helps. I think we are down to "20 more sleeps" before he gets his cast off. And the ITCHINESS has begun!!! Tonight before bed, he was sitting in the living room with a long knitting needle down his cast scratching the back of his leg. It's so pathetic to watch. He wiggles and whines and shakes that cast everywhere! We gave him a dose of benedryl syrup tonight to help him sleep. We are certainly are counting down the days!

So that is our update for now. I can't believe that January is over. There it went. Here comes February.

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

I broke down and joined!

Yep, Jason and I now have Facebook accounts! Yikes! It has been an absolute blast finding friends from my old junior high/high school youth group and friends from my homeschool group. Wild. It's amazing to me that they have actually gotten older too! The pictures in my mind were still the ones of many, many years ago. It has been fun to catch up. I even found my 6th grade private school teacher! It felt wrong to actually address her by her first name. :o)

Well, I'm off!

***humming "It's a Small World After All"***

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

The new normal

Well, it's been a little while since I updated. Things have been going well. Jesse is doing fantastic and Jason and I are amazed at how quickly he is adapting. He is off all his pain meds and is having no pain, praise the Lord! God has been so good and we are so thankful. We are giving Him all the praise for giving the surgeons wisdom and guidance and for healing Jesse's body.

So the new normal has been interesting to say the least. Jesse sure is keeping up with his brothers, though, and there have even been a couple of laughable stories. One of them happened the other morning.

Jacob had officially saved enough money for him to go buy a Nintendo DS. He has been saving for almost a full year! We were so proud of him! So after school on Monday, Jason took Jacob down to get it. I told him it was ok if he waited until Tuesday to let his brothers play and that's exactly what he did. Jesse whined about not getting to play the DS, but I told him to be patient...which is NOT what a five year old wants to hear! So apparently, early Tuesday morning, Jesse awoke and decided it was his turn to play the DS. Jacob awoke later and found Jesse in a chair in the living room happily playing and that got Jacob pretty frosted. Jason got up and was trying to put out the fire. He saw that Jesse's walker was still by his bed and asked him how he got to the living room. Jesse said he scooted on his bottom. When Jason asked why he scooted and did not use his walker, Jesse informed him, "You can hear my walker, but you can't hear my bottom!" Huh??? If there was any doubt about this young man having a sneaky streak, there is no doubt now!

It's just amazing how we can adapt, huh?

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Post-Op

Thank you all for your prayers and special thoughts for Jesse this week! We are "home" at Jason's sister's home and we will probably head home Saturday morning.

Jesse is an incredible little man! We are so proud of how he has handled the past few weeks. It is very clear how grown-up he is becoming.

First things first. We were up and out the door by 6:30am yesterday (Wed.) and with little traffic, we arrived at the hospital 30 minutes before we needed to! We checked in and were called back by our pre-op nurse. She was really wonderful and she made Jesse (and momma and daddy) feel very comfortable. Jesse decided that he wanted bubblegum flavored "sleepy air" and that he wanted apple juice when he was waking up.

The surgeon, Dr. L, met with us and explained how all 8 of the orthopedic surgeons had met on Monday and that there was "much debate" about how to handle this injury. He did tell us that his plan would be to begin with the arthroscopy to see exactly what they were dealing with, then he would scrub out and meet with us to explain how he would proceed. If things looked like they were healing pretty well, he would probably just let it go from there and close up and brace it. If he needed to repair, then he would attempt this with the arthroscope and only open him up if necessary.

Into surgery he went at 9:00am and Dr. L came out anf told us that Jesse would need repair but that he would try to attempt it with the scope. But, that can be like trying to build a ship in a bottle. So he showed us pictures, which were cool, and then he headed back in there. Jason went and made calls and to grab some breakfast and Robin, Jason's sister, and I sat and chatted. When he returned, we went to eat.

Dr. L finally came out at about 12:30pm and told us that Jesse did great and that he was had been in recovery for about 20 minutes. Everything went well, he was able to do it with the scope, but that he had to make a small incision to anchor the sutures that were attached to the avulsed pieces. He was in a big red cast and doing wonderfully and they would be out shortly.

In a little while, he emerged and we all headed up to his room. He looked really good. We were so proud of him. We got settled in our room and by 5:00pm, they already had PT up there to help him learn to use his walker. He was a natural!

We survived the night and his nerve block wearing off and this morning, he was doing awesome! So Dr. L's nurse practicioner came by and discharged us. So here we sit at Aunt Robin's and we will head home Saturday.

Thank you for all your prayers! We appreciate them immensely. He will be in his cast for 6-8wks so this will pose a few challenges, but we are up for it.

Here are a few pics:


Jesse with his walker.

The new red cast.

On my way home!!!

Blessings!
~ Marcia ~

A Family Day

We decided to have a family day today (as if everyday around here isn't a family day!). As Jason, Jesse, and I get ready to head back to K.C., Jason and I thought it would be fun for us all to do something special together as a family. We thought about bowling, but I don't think that is really good for Jesse's knee right now. So we are all going to go to the movies and see The Tale of Despereaux. Plugged In Online gave it a good family review, and I think the boys will enjoy it. Even Nana and Papa are coming along!

At church yesterday, our wonderful church family gathered around us and we prayed for Jesse. It was a very special time knowing that he will be covered in prayer as we begin this journey. He continues to be okay with the whole thing. We looked at the online picture book about "My Surgery" at the hospital website and showed Nana the video tour. He is very excited about sleeping on a bed that goes up and down with the push of a button. *smile* He asked to see a picture of a walker so Jason looked online and showed him some pictures of pediatric walkers and he thought they were very cool. He talked about the cocoon that will be on his knee - he was referring to his knee brace! I am so proud of him! He is certainly handling it like a big boy. After his initial tears he has just moved on very matter of factly about it all and I am very proud of him.

Tomorrow we are off on this new adventure! Please keep Jesse in your prayers.

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

We are home...for now

We arrived home from Kansas City this evening. It's great to be with family, but there is nothing like the comfort of your own bed and your own "stuff!" (Thanks Bob and Robin for being such great hosts!) Well, I certainly have plenty of "stuff."

So we will be here for 4 nights before Jason, Jesse, and I head back to K.C. for Jesse's surgery on Wednesday. I am hoping we can do something fun as a family on Monday. All the boys got movie gift cards from some family friends so maybe we will go see The Tale of Despereaux together.

I think that school will have to be postponed another week. *GASP* The boys will be happy with this. And I am so thankful for the flexibility of homeschool, but part of me is a little agitated that my schedule is getting thrown off. That is the controlling and perfectionist little smidgen that I have within me, I suppose. Hmmm, Lord what are you trying to teach me in all of this? I guess I will just take a deep breath and place it all back into His hands. I'm so glad that His hands are big enough to hold all of my "stuff."

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Welcome to 2009!

It's been a quiet day and to pass the time I've been visiting a few different blogs today. One of my favorites was Karen Ehman's blog. And I think that I am going to "adopt" her new year's resolution. Karen shared that she would like to worry less and pray more and my heart truly resonated with that.

As we start out 2009 with surgery for our youngest son, I feel like it would be easy for me to slip into the habit of worrying about what will happen next week and in the weeks to come, but with the Lord's help, I am resisting falling into that temptation.

And as far as praying more, I am going to using my journal as a prayer journal this year. I am praying that the Lord will grow the desire in my heart to talk to Him. I also made a prayer scrapbook for my husband for Christmas and he is really using it and I am thinking about making one for myself. So we'll see.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. -Philippians 4:6

So how is Jesus speaking to your heart today? I'd love to hear what you desire in your relationship with the Lord for this year.

Blessings in 2009!
~ Marcia ~

Two Holiday Miracles!

Thank you, Jesus, for taking care of by baby! What more can I say? I love you with all of my heart, JesusI know, I know... it has been for-ev-er since I made a blog entry. Yes, we have been VERY busy, but to be completely and painfully honest, I have been having a lot of fun on the WEBKINZ website. Yes, I enjoy playing in the arcade and earning kinzcash and sending gifts and sweet messages to my boys. So there...the truth comes out.

But there has been other things going on. Like "Miracle #1"! My parents called back in October to ask if it would be okay if they came out and spent Thanksgiving with us.

*Marcia spits coffee* ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? OF COURSE IT'S OKAY!!!

So with about 4 weeks notice, we began preparing my folks' visit. It was absolutely wonderful! It felt like we had never even been apart for a year. Mom and I just sat and talked and enjoyed our time together. My dad had a lot of fun visiting some local historical sites with his TomTom. We all went and had delicious Korean food. Yummy! And we just kept hugging and saying how good it is to see each other. What a wonderful blessing! Thank you, Daddy!

While mom and dad were here, we experienced "Miracle #2". Last Saturday evening, the boys were restless and since it was too cold to go play outside, they were running off their energy up and down the stairs. Well, when that got old, they began running back and forth in the kitchen from the fridge to the pantry closet door while grandma counted how many times they had gone back and forth. *FUN* Well, as they were banging into things over and over, I glanced and saw, out of the corner of my eye, that the hutch on my china cabinet was falling. I screamed as I saw Jesse start running back across the kitchen, right in front of the china cabinet. Even though everything went in slow motion, I can't remember exactly what happened! All I know is Jesse was knocked back onto his bottom and as I got to him and I immediately grabbed him and plulled him to me. He was crying hard. The china hutch crashed to the floor, landing completely upside down, and glass and china went EVERYWHERE. Only by the grace of God, Jesse was not crushed by the hutch!

Jesse's knee was badly bruised and he could not walk so Jason and I took him into the ER. After x-rays of his knee and skull (since he also had a small goose-egg on his forhead), the ER doctor thought he had escaped major injury. There was one small line on the knee x-ray which the radiologist thought *might* indicate a fracture, but as the doctor felt his knee, there was no tenderness in that area, so he felt he was most likely ok. We left with instructions for ice, ibuprofen, and rest. He was unable to bear weight on that knee until Monday. He has steadily improved over the week so we have been pleased. We were not told to follow up with our pediatrician unless things got worse. I think we may call early next week though because he is still limping a bit and I think I would feel better knowing it's really okay. In any case, he is a walking miracle...literally! I am so thankful that the Lord was with him. Even as I type this entry, I feel overcome with emotion and gratefullness. God is so good...all the time!

If it were know obvious before, it is certainly obvious now! Each of our boys have been given special miracles. Joseph's birth itself was a miracle. Jacob's near drowning was a miracle. Jesse's china cabinet incident is a miracle. I can only imagine how many more miracles I have NOT seen, but I'm okay with that for now. I'm not sure how many more I can emotionally handle!

Thank you, Jesus, for keeping Jesse safe. Thank you for all of the miracles that I do not see. I love you, Lord!


Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

The Energizer Mommy

...she keeps going and going and going.

So our anniversary arrived, then we had our church's 3rd annual Family Camp, then a very busy day at church Sunday, then Jason and I were FINALLY able to getaway for a few days (more on this later), and then we arrived home and picked up running where we left off. Back to school this week for the boys and I. Jason is busy preparing for our church to make the move from the country dance hall that we have been meeting in to a local high school while we await the acquisition or our property and the construction of our new building. *deep breath* And this momma just keeps going and going and going....

How do we do it, Moms? How do we stay energized and fresh?

Well, I wanted to share with you one of the ways I stay fresh.




I have personally experienced Hearts at Home and I want you to know that there is nothing like it. A Hearts at Home conference is like going to “mommy school.” You’ll laugh, you’ll learn, and you’ll be inspired to be the best mom you can be. Additionally Hearts at Home offers books, an online mothering community, a bi-monthly magazine, and a free E-Newsletter. I strongly urge you to grab some girlfriends and attend one of their upcoming conferences:

October 3-4, 2008 Grand Rapids, Michigan
November 7-8, 2008 Rochester, Minnesota
March 13-14, 2009 Bloomington, Illinois

If you don’t live close enough to drive to a conference, and hopping on a plane isn’t an option, you can also order a Home Conference Packet which gives you the conference via CD.

Check out the Hearts at Home website today to find out all that Hearts at Home has to offer you!

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Is this the last time?

I was visiting Karen Ehman's blog and she had blogged about her "baby" starting 5th grade. Her thoughts about blinking and her children growing up really hit me hard. It's been a challenging week, but a good week, praise the Lord!

Many times I find myself wondering if they will ever grow up but then I realized I am already past the pregnancies, the nursing, the binkies, and even the potty-training! (I never thought that would ever happen!) And with the start of school this fall, I am officially no longer a mother of a preschooler since Jesse has begun kindergarten. Woah. *deep breath* After being exhorted to "drink in every moment" on Karen's blog, I've been trying to be very intentional about these precious moments and treasure every one.

So when Jacob asked me to rub his back and sing "the sunshine song" (You Are My Sunshine) the other night, even with every ounce of my exhausted being crying out for a few moments of peace and quiet, I knelt down beside him and did it with joy in my heart. How do I know that THIS is not the last time he will ask?

It's like the process of following your weaning baby's cues. Two of my nursinglings weaned on their own at about a year and as they began cutting out nursing sessions, I began to wonder, "Is this is it? Is this the last time? Is it really over?" Eventually it was. But you never know that until AFTER the moment is gone. Then as time goes by and they never ask to nurse again, then you know...and then you cry (or jump for joy!). For me it was very bittersweet.

So I sang and after the moment had passed, and I was sitting on the couch in the quiet house with Jason away at a meeting, I knew I had made the right choice. I rubbed his back and sang with all my heart instead of saying "Momma is too tired tonight, Hon." So if that was the last time he ever asks, I know I have no regrets.

"There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance" - Ecclesiastes 3:1,4

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~

Do YOU know what "nupid" means?

Apparently, I have a very bright 4 year old. Brighter than me, I suppose.

Last week, after we finished up opening our boxes of books (see BOX DAY!) something made Joseph upset and he said something to the effect of, "That is so stupid!" Jesse, our resident tattletale, immediately said, "Joe, you can't say that! That's a nobody word! But...you can say nupid. That's ok! Nupid means the same thing." He said it so matter-of-factly that I was stunned. Nana, Papa, Jason and I all heard it and started laughing, but I stifled my giggles as I explained to him that "nupid" is not ok to say because in your heart you mean the same as stupid. Somehow I think that rhyming words will come very easy to this little guy.

Out of the mouths of babes...

Blessings,
~ Marcia ~