Strike-a-thon for the American Cancer Society

My family and I will be participating in a strike-a-thon on Saturday, August 28.  We will be performing 1,000 strikes against cancer.  All donations will be going to support the American Cancer Society.  All those participating will be wearing the names of family and friends that have been affected by cancer.

If you would like to help us support the American Cancer Society please e-mail me at asmile76@gmail.com .  If you have a loved one that you would like us to honor by wearing their name please include their name in your e-mail.

I plan to bring my camera and have someone take a picture of us as we make our strikes against cancer.  I'll post a picture of my family wearing the bands with the names of those we are honoring through this.   

The man mentioned in the poster to the right is a friend of our Sensei.  Our family has several friends and family who have personally been affected by cancer.   We wish to honor them through this Strike-a-thon.

Even if you cannot make a donation toward the cause, please support us with prayers for the families who are still fighting the fight against cancer, and for those families who have lost a loved one to cancer.  Thank you.

All Work and No Play?

I'm letting the kids take a break today.  We went to the park this morning for a homeschool meeting.  When we got home I fed my children lunch and told them they could play in the water after they washed our van. 

The van is nice and clean and the kids are outside splashing around in a kiddy pool.  It was hard getting a good picture with them moving around so much. 

Elijah is growing.  My mom and I bought a play mat (pictured) for him about a month ago.  At that time he had a harder time reaching both the hanging toys and the kicking ball.  Now he is able to reach both at the same time..  He loves to play with this toy.  The only time he gets upset with it is when he wants to chew on the toys and they don't pull off.  But he has sweet siblings who will  help him out and give him toys to chew. 

Believe it or not, letting the kids take a break and play today has given me a little reprieve.  I decided to blog and then I hope to get my lesson plans organized for the month.  It's good to stop every once in a while and take a break.  Tomorrow we'll be getting back to work. 

Math Problems

IJoshua waiting to see if he got the answer correct.

Yesterday, I was grading Joshua's and Ruth's math work. I saw that despite all the drilling on division, Joshua was still not understanding long division.  I had given him many examples on the board.  I even began to wonder if someone else could explain it better than I can.  That is a dangerous worry that goes through many homeschooling moms' heads when faced with what feels like a road block in their child's education.

I always have to stop myself, and realize that if my child were in a classroom setting he would have the same difficulty.  I imagine the teacher would just give him homework and then either he would get behind and fail or bring the work home where I would have to teach it to him anyway.  So as all homeschooling Moms must do, I think of the best way to solve the problem. (Pun intended.)  

I knew that what Joshua needed was to do several problems himself.  I told him that division was a very systematic thing.  What you do to one number you do to the other numbers.   I had him go to the board and I gave him a problem to write down.  He wrote it on the board.  I then told him okay solve the problem.

He started tensing up and getting all worried about it.  I asked him what he was to do first.  He got that part right and then froze.  I asked him, "Okay, Now what do you do?"  

He then made a mistake and I very animatedly had the number he messed up complain, "No! Don't push that big number into me.  It won't fit!!!"  He at first wasn't sure if I was making fun of him or just making math fun.  I was helping him with the numbers talking, he started figuring out what he was doing wrong, and getting tickled at the animated numbers on the board.  At one point he accidently put a number that was suppose to go on top of the line under the numbers, that poor number hollered, "Aaahhh!!! I fell off the table!  Help!" 

Finally, after a few rounds of division he was making less mistakes and the numbers quit talking to him.  He started getting every problem right and he announced the very rewarding words, "Wow! Math is fun! Are there any more problems?"

Those words right there do a homeschooling mom's heart good.  I smiled and said, "See. I knew you could do it."

Roll Over

Elijah is now rolling over to his tummy.  One morning I went to get him out of his bed and he was on his tummy looking around his bed.  Later the same day after I changed his diaper he rolled over onto his tummy again.  That time he was on my bed.  It won't be long and he'll be crawling. 

Church camp was great.  We all discussed before bedtime prayers what our favorite parts of camp was.  The kids agreed that they enjoyed different sermons several of the pastors preached.  It's always a joy to hear your children retell sermons.  There were a few sermons I had to miss because I had to step outside with Elijah, but Friday evening my kids filled me in on all those sermons plus the sermons I didn't miss. 

Of course, the sermons weren't the only part of camp my children enjoyed.  Joshua also enjoyed buying lots of Sodas.  He brought his own money with him so instead of just having the drinks and snacks we bought him, he enjoyed the freedom of buying as much as he wanted.  Then he said he also enjoyed swimming. 

The girls enjoyed swimming also.  Hannah enjoyed having grandparents at camp.  Where her Daddy and I might not give her everything she wants, grandparents love to buy their grandchildren things.  The funny part is that even after camp was over she says now she wants a balloon from the gift shop.  All I can do is shake my head. 

It reminds me of a scene from Veggietales. Bob the Tomato asks Larry the Cucumber, "How much stuff do you need to be happy?" 

Larry replies, "I don't know. How much stuff is there?"

Hopefully she will figure that lesson out as she gets older and we continue to teach her.

Ruth enjoyed the swimming and enjoyed hearing people tell the story of when they were saved.  She also liked singing a special Friday morning before her daddy's devotional.  She sang a song she had written a few years ago entitled, "I Love You, Jesus."

Jonathan said that he enjoyed Wal-mart.  We can only assume he meant the gift shop.  I think favorite is a difficult concept for a two year old.  But I'm pretty sure he enjoyed all the time he got to spend with his Daddy this week.  Scott also mentioned that Jonathan enjoyed watching the boys that dived off the diving board durng swimming.  For Jonathan watching them splash was like getting to watch fireworks.

Scott enjoyed teaching the High School/ College class.  He also enjoyed spending a lot of time with Jonathan.

I enjoyed teaching the third grade class again this year.  I found I had quite a few of the same kids I had last year.  Several of the kids were 10 years old this year which is the age I was when I was saved.  I shared with them my testimony.  At the end of class on Wednesday, I told the students that if they wanted to talk to me they could stay after class was over.  One of the girls from my dorm stayed. I shared with her the same verses we talked about in class.  She then prayed her own prayer asking God to forgive her of her sins.  During testimony time that day, she gave her testimony and I believe from her testimony that she understood what I had shared with her. 

Over all we had a great camp.  The only problem I had at camp was getting stung by a bee.  I had stepped outside with Elijah during one of the services.  I went to sit down in a chair and my arm went down right on a bee.  I'm just glad it was me and not my baby that got stung.

God's Provisions

Scott made it home safe and sound.  The kids surprised me and were fairly easy to get up.  I however only got an hour of sleep that night.  But I managed to get up and get the kids out the door.  The kids were all pretty excited.  Hannah kept telling Scott about the bugs we bought for him to eat.  Of course, he didn't really understand what she was talking about until we got home and offered him some gummy bugs that they found at the store.  We didn't want him to miss Thailand too much. 

The picture above is Scott holding Elijah wrapped in a cloth Scott had given me.  When I nurse Elijah in public I needed a good breathable cloth to cover with.  Scott found a cloth for me.  The people there have multiple uses for it.  Elijah enjoyed being swaddled in it. 

The rest of the pictures are of Scott and the kids eating the gummy bugs we bought for him.   The kids are all gathered around on a blanket pretending to be in Thailand.  After seeing all the pictures of the people there sitting on mats on the ground they wanted to pretend to be there.  So they are coloring in the coloring books Scott bought them from Thailand and sitting on a makeshift mat.  They were using their new Thai pillows for desks. 

Scott said that these gummy bugs tasted much better than real bugs.  We all had fun watching his pictures and videos.  I'm glad that he went and that the team he went with were so good with the people there.  I hope that their will be much fruit for their labor there.  It was good to know that the missionaries there now have an open invitation to return. 

Scott is finally starting to get over his jet lag.  At noon he has been wanting to sleep and at midnight he wanted lunch.  But today he decided to go out and get some coffee at a local cafe.  He also drove to the post office to check our mail.  He returned late in the morning all hot and sweaty.  He had to walk home from the post office.  The ignition switch in our van wasn't working.   He first walked to the Dollar store to get some WD-40, but that didn't work so he walked home.  About halfway home someone that knew him offered him a ride.  He then did some calling around for the price of ignition switches.  He decided he would go try it again.  He went out to walk the 3 or 4 miles to the post office again.  Thankfully he was able to get it to crank and drove it home.  He thinks it will be okay for a while but he wants to get a new ignition switch soon.  I told Scott at least all the things we have to replace on our vehicles are still better than a car payment.  Let's see this month we've had to buy 3 windshield wipers, a new tire, a new brace for the back door of the van, and now we will be getting a new ignition switch.

Tomorrow we will be going to visit my sister and her husband.  We will be looking at buying a car to replace the one that had to be scrapped after an accident Scott had the week before he left.     We should be able to have the car paid for in full in just a few weeks.  We prefer to buy good running older cars for less and spend the money that would have been car payments on fixing them up.  It seems to work for us anyway and so far God has blessed us with being able to find good prices on parts most of the time. 

I know that is the question a lot of people have is how can we afford five kids.  It's only by God's grace that we do.  We depend on Him for our needs.  So far with each new addition we've made to our family God has provided in many ways that is hard to explain.  We try not to live over our means and find good prices whenever possible.  It's amazing how many times God has provided for our needs and even some of our wants.  He is truly awesome!

Php 4:19-20 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. (20) Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

 

Early In the Morning...

This is probably my favorite picture of Jonathan from our trip.  I took this picture of him at the Kalamazoo Air-zoo.  He loved being inside a real cockpit with real buttons and switches to push. 

Real early tomorrow morning we will picking Scott up from the airport.  I will have to awaken the kids and at lunch today, I described to them how I imagine tomorrow morning will be. 

Joshua, I'll only have to tell twice and he'll be up and at 'em.  He'll probably even help get the others up.

Ruth will be a challenge since she usually sleeps so soundly.  I anticipate having to tell her loudly severral times and then shake her shoulder, or threaten to tickle her feet to finally get her up and moving.

Hannah, I will come into the room and quietly and sweetly as possible tell her to wake up. There are two possible reactions I expect from her. She'll either grumble and turn over covering her head with her pillow and then cry as I insist she get up, or she'll jump out of bed and squeal excitedly because we're going to get Daddy. . 

Jonathan, I'll probably have to carry out after trying to wake him up enough to at least go potty first.

Then Elijah should be the simplest to just feed and put in his car seat.  But I wouldn't be surprised if he chose that time to have the dirtiest diaper of the week.  Watch them all surprise me and give totally different reactions than I am anticipating.  We shall see.  I'll try to post again tomorrow if I get a chance.

One funny thing that from my confusion of Scott's arrival was I had rescheduled Elijah's 4 month check-up for Wednesday, thinking that we might be too tired from picking Scott  up on Tuesday.  Oh well maybe I'll leave the kids at home to watch a movie or something while Scott rests.  It will be different taking only Elijah to the doctor. 

This eveniung, I took the kids with me to the store to get some much needed groceries.  I found Hebrew National Beef Hot Dogs on sale for 75 cents a package.  That was 6.5 cents per ounce!  It was just about cheaper than the cheap stuff.  I bought just about every package they had.   I told the cashier that with a family our size you don't pass up a good deal like that.

Now I need to wash some dishes and then get some sleep.  Scott's flight will take him about 2 and a half to 3 hours to get all the way from Los Angeles to Houston.  It will take me a little over half that just  to drive to the airport.  Kind of funny isn't it? 

I'll try to post an update sometime tomorrow about Scott's arrival.  Thanks for all your prayers.

"Can I Tell You Something?"

I've probably heard this question a billions of times (using another of Hannah's favorite phrases).  Everything seems to be a billion with that girl.   I don't know exactly how to break her of the habit of asking, "Can I tell you something?" before everything she wants to say.  And if anyone says, "No."  She'll stop and look at you like, "what do I do now?"  Usually the person that tells her no gives in and lets her tell them.

Here are some more pictures from our trip.  I wanted to post the pictures I have from our fishing trip. 

Jonathan caught his first fish with the help of Grandpa Art.  Jonathan was a little nervous of touching the fish, he wouldn't even hold the string the fish is on for the picture. But the position his hand was in makes it look like he was holding it.

Joshua caught two or three fish.  He was the official fish carrier.  He would carry the fish that were keepers to the bucket and release the ones that were too small back into the bucket.  After we got back Grandpa Art taught him how to clean the fish.

This is the only picture I could get of Hannah.  She was freaking out over the fish on her line and was demanding in a very shrieky voice that someone get that fish off her hook.  If you hadn't guessed already she is our drama queen.

Ruth was the last to start catching fish.   She was getting disturbed by the fact and I told her that the fish probably knew that she wasn't baiting her own hook.  She didn't like touching the worms so we kept having to put the worm on for her.  I was a little tired of having to stop what I was doing to put a worm on her hook, so I told her that the first step in catching fish was to put the worm on your own hook.  She then got her nerve up and started baiting her own hook and sure enough she started catching fish.  In fact she probably caught the most.

I don't know how well my fishing advice will go for anyone else but it seemed to work for her.  I think technically it was because she was able to get her hook in the water faster because she wasn't having to wait on someone else to bait it for her. 

I normally wouldn't put a picture of myself on my blog but Scott e'mailed me to tell me he was catching up on my blogs.  I know that he would want to see a picture of me too.  So this picture is more for him than anything.  But everyone else might like seeing Jonathan.  He was a bit nervous at first whenever Art would drive the boat around the lake.  So he wanted to be held the whole time.  He'll say, "Hold you!" I'm finally starting to get him to say, "Hold me please."  But it's still a work in progress.

Speaking of Scott, I realized today as I was looking at his e-ticket that I had the wrong day to pick him up.  I thought I was going to be picking him up tomorrow morning at 5:25 a.m.  but it turns out being Wednesday morning at that time.  I'm glad I looked.  It was disappointing to see that it was going to be a day later, but it would have been worse to find out at the airport that I had the wrong day. 

It won't be long and we'll all be together again.  I told the kids that it just gives us one more day to get the house in order before Daddy gets home. 

Ruth's Birthday

Today was Ruth's 10th Birthday.  She had asked me as we were driving back to Texas from Michigan that we not have to drive on her birthday.  I told her that it all depended on how many times they asked to stop.  I did have to tease her yesterday once we arrived that on her birthday after she opened her presents we could all get in the van again and ride around town just for fun. But she didn't seem to like that idea.

They were encouraged by me telling them how many hours were left along the way.  If we had driven straight through without any stops we could have made it to my parents house in 20 hours or so.  They were all excited that it could be that quick and all started agreeing that they would not ask to go to the restroom the whole trip.  I smiled and told them that we would see how long that lasted. 
 

 It didn't last super long but they did pretty well.  Hannah would say, "Mom, can I tell you something? I won't ask to stop anymore but I need to go to the bathroom just this once."   When we got back to the car I would check the GPS and tell them the new arrival time if we didn't stop.  They were pretty excited when we only had 4 hours to go.  If Scott had been here we probably would have opted to drive on through Thursday night while the kids were asleep.  But without the extra help driving I decided to stop Thursday night at a hotel. 

The worst part of the trip was probably trying to find a hotel when we arrived in Texarkana on Thursday night.  I could have stopped at a hotel on the Arkansas side but I had wanted to get on into Texas that night.   I didn't realize how bad the construction on the streets were there.  It was a mess and my GPS wasn't any help.   I hate driving in construction at night.  I had planned on driving into Texarkana at 9:30 p.m. finding a hotel and then ordering a Pizza to be delivered on our last night in a hotel.  But I couldn't find the hotel in my price range that I wanted.  It felt like I was driving in circles I was so turned around.  So after the headache of trying to figure out the mess I was in, I decided to drive out of town before finding a hotel.  Thankfully getting back on the main road wasn't too hard and we drove to New Boston.  We arrived at a hotel about 10:30 that night and after getting everything inside the hotel, I tried calling Pizza Hut only to find that they had already closed.  I then decided to load the kids back into the car and go see if we could find a restaurant open.  Everything but the gas stations were closed.  So I bought a box of doughnuts and some peanut butter crackers for Supper. 

I finally had the kids in bed by 12:30 a.m.  I was then able to check the internet and see if there was any news from Scott and took my shower and went to bed about 2:30 a.m.  I opted for sleeping late over free breakfast that morning.  We checked out of the hotel at 11 a.m. and only had 3 1/2 hours left to go.  Of course it turned into about 5 after stopping once or twice for restroom breaks and then stopping for feeding the baby and refueling the car.  We finally arrived safe and sound at my parents house. 

Tomorrow we will go to my parents Church and hear my Dad preach.  Then Sunday afternoon, we will be heading out to visit my sister and then visit their church to hear her husband preach Sunday night.  Then from there we will head home and hopefully get things unpacked on Monday and get ready for Scott's arrival early Tuesday morning. 

I'm so glad that it's that close to time for Scott to be back.  Three weeks is too long to be apart.  But I heard from him again today.  He called and said that they were dropping off two of the team members at the airport and then he would be heading back to visit the church in Chang Mai.  He told me that he wasn't feeling too good. He had eaten something that didn't set well with his stomache.   Please keep him in your prayers.  He told me that this was a really productive trip.  He was really impressed with the response of the people in the village they visited.  I'll post more pictures from our trips over the next few days. 

I want to post a couple of videos tonight in case I do not have a chance to blog tomorrow. After tomorrow I'll be back on dial-up and can only post pictures. The first video is of Scott's Aunt Shelby who was showing Jonathan how to blow bubbles at my Mother-in-law's house.   In the second video my Dad was playing with Elijah.   

Only two days and two nights left until I get to see Scott again!  Thanks for all your prayers.

On the Road Again

We arrived in Michigan Friday evening.  We had a good visit with the family.  There was a lot of Construction in Illinois and in Michigan.  We arrived and unpacked most of our things.  I had Jonathan and Elijah sleep in the room with me while Joshua, Ruth, and Hannah slept in the livingroom.  The older two slept on cots, and Hannah slept on the couch.

Saturday, we went fishing on a pontoon that belonged to Scott's, mother's, husband's, brother.  I guess that would be Scott's mother's brother-in-law.  Anyway, we went on the boat and everyone caught a fish.  Even Jonathan caught a fish. 

Saturday night, I asked Scott's mom, Judy,  if there was a church that she would like to visit.  Normally we always go to the church Scott was saved and grew up in.  This time we went to the church she went to when she was a girl.  It was a cute little church building in the country.  I was amazed at how many people went to that little church.  They had a lot of cute little children as well.  There were several people there that were friends with Judy's family.  Some she remembered from when she was a girl.  I even saw Scott's uncle Howard there.  He is very nice.  I found out that he has been helping the Amish in their part of Michigan.  I think that is pretty neat.

Monday, we went to a Museum called the Kalamazoo Air Zoo.  There were a lot of rides there.  One section had air planes and another building had an outerspace exhibit.  It was pretty neat and the kids were able to ride a lot of neat rides.  I'll have to post more about that when I have more time.

Then Tuesday we stayed at Judy's home and enjoyed visits from several of Scott's family.  His Aunt Vicky and Cousin Nancy came that morning and then around lunch time we enjoyed a visit from his Aunt Beverly and Aunt Shelby.  Joshua enjoyed playing with Aunt Shelby's grandson Joey.  

Then today, we loaded up the van and headed out around Noon.  If we were able to drive the whole way without any stops we could have been back by 5 a.m. or so.  The kids were real excited about that, and even said they wouldn't ask to go to the bathroom for the whole trip if we could get back to Texas in one day.  But I knew that wouldn't last long.  Right now we are in Illinois and will probably make it through to Arkansas tomorrow. 

Ruth's birthday is Saturday and she is really not wanting to be on the road on her birthday.  So I'm going to try to make good time tomorrow and hopefully stop around 9 p.m. tomorrow night.  I'm tired and will need to get some good sleep tonight. 

Scott called me today and he told me that this has been a really productive trip.  He is amazed at all the ministry he has been able to help with on this trip and the response of the people to their team.  I have not had internet the whole time I was in Michigan and had been wondering about how he was doing.  It was so good to hear his voice.

Friday, I am hoping to make it to my parents by Friday.  On Saturday, we will celebrate Ruth's birthday, and then Sunday I am looking forward to hearing my Dad preach again, and then Sunday or Monday I hope to head home and get the house in order for Scott's arrival on Tuesday. 

The above pictures were taken as we were headed toward Michigan.  The one of me was taken by Hannah.  The other two pictures were taken at Boomland which is one of our favorite stops on our way to Michigan.  We had stopped for a restroom break and I let Jonathan and Hannah ride one of the kiddy rides. 

I'm so glad to be able to be online again. Tomorrow, I will try to post some more pictures from our trip.

From a Hotel Again...Night 2

I am so tired right now but I wanted to blog that we made it to our hotel around 11:00 tonight.  It took an hour to get everything in and the kids to bed.  I should be in bed right now myself but really wanted to go online since there was free access and see how things were going for Scott.  I hadn't heard from him today but I saw some posts by others on the Mission team.  I also got to see some new pictures.  It sounds like everything is going well there.  I pray every night that God will help them as they awake.  And every morning I pray that they are able to sleep well. 

I decided to drive later tonight than I did last night.  We had stopped at Boomland in Missouri for a restroom break and to let the kids stretch their legs.  It was about 8 p.m. when we stopped there and I decided I was feeling pretty well, that I could drive a little further tonight while Elijah and Jonathan were asleep.  I figured that would leave us with only 6 hours to drive tomorrow.  Check out time is 11 a.m. tomorrow so I hope that we are able to make good time in the morning.  Even if we left at check out time, we could drive 3 hours and stop for a break or lunch and drive another 3 hours and make it to Michigan before it got dark.  That's if we can manage to keep our stops short.  We tend to take a long time getting back in the car after we stop.  Having to change two dirty diapers in one stop doesn't help any.  But I think we will be able to do it tomorrow.  Especially if I go to bed and get some sleep here in a minute. 

Last night we stopped at a hotel and the three older children wanted to sleep in one bed and I let Jonathan sleep in my bed.  It's amazing how much wriggling a two year old can do in his sleep.  I had fallen asleep or was about to and suddenly I was kicked hard in the back.  I turned around and found Jonathan was laying sideways in the bed.  So I repositioned him correctly on his pillow.  Then I tried to fall asleep again when suddenly I was hit in the face by his hand.  Then I was afraid he might fall out of the bed with all his moving around.  At one point he even put his head toward the foot of the bed trying to get comfortable.  It was crazy.  I moved him back the right direction again.  If he does it again tonight he might wind up sleeping on the floor.  But so far he seems to be staying still over there.  He must be too tired to care which position he falls asleep in.

I had a slight emotional moment while driving tonight.  My shoulder was sore from being too tense while driving.  I have a problem tensing my muscles when I drive at night.  I was all tense when I thought about how Scott would rub my shoulders.  It made me sad a little and in the dark I allowed a tear or two to fall.  I also thought about how I've never seen this much of the country before.  Usually Scott and I take turns driving and sometimes while he drives, I fall asleep.  This time I have been awake the whole trip.  I reckon that is a good thing.  But I miss him terribly. 

I'll end with a picture Hannah took today.  I was trying to get pictures of everyone in the van.  The only one I couldn't get a picture of from my driver's seat was Elijah so I gave the camera to Hannah.  Here is the picture she proudly took.  I have four copies of this picture in my camera.   It must have been the first picture I've ever let her take with my camera since she was so proud of it.  I did have Ruth take another picture and Ruth actually got his face in it. 

Well, I had better get some sleep now.  From some of the messages I've read on Facebook, I'm hearing that God is doing some amazing things in Thailand.  He's been taking care of them and He's been taking care of me and the kids as well.  

I'm looking forward to tomorrow.  I better get some sleep though.  I don't guess the Prov. 31 woman didn't let her candle go out by night because she was blogging. 

A Billion Eyes...

"Is God helping Daddy in Thailand?" Hannah asked me today as we were driving down the road.  I assured her that He was.  Then she asked, "Is God here with us too?"  Again I told her that He was.  I was afraid she was going to start asking me deeper and harder questions, but instead she exclaimed, "Wow! God must have a billion eyes!  He can see everybody everywhere!" 

We are staying in a hotel in Arkansas right now.  We didn't quite make it to Little Rock, but I hope that we will make a little better time tomorrow.  We left from my parents house later than I had wanted to, but we made pretty good time only stopping twice.  Once to feed everyone, including Elijah.  The second was to let everyone use the restroom.   It's now 11:40 p.m. and I have all the kids in bed listening to the Bible.  As soon as I'm done blogging I will be going to bed too. 

I did a first this evening.  This was my first time to get a hotel room all by myself.  I know that doesn't sound like much to the braver sort, but for me that was a pretty big deal.  I didn't even act like it was my first time.  I just went in asked how much the room would be.  He told me the price after asking how many children I had.  I decided the price was worth the free breakfast we would get in the morning.  So I gave him the informnation he needed and paid him.  Hopefully tomorrow will go just as easily. 

If the hotel we stop at tomorrow has free internet, I'll try to blog again about tomorrow's adventures. 

Two More Weeks

I love this picture of Scott in Thailand.  It was taken in Thailand and posted on the Mission's facebook page.  Scott is holding his e-reader and I'm sure he is showing the gentleman some of the pictures he has of our family. 

I received an e'mail from him and they are doing well.  They are in the village teaching about 600 children.  There is a computer lab in the school where he is able to send me brief e'mails as time permits.  It sounds like they have been keeping pretty busy. 

I let the kids play with water guns yesterday.  Ruth did not have a water gun so we let her use the water hose.  That did not seem fair to Joshua at first but after I explained it to him, he agreed and had a great time. 

This is a video of Elijah.  He is almost rolling over.  He can roll to his side but hasn't quite gotten all the way over to his stomache yet.  I try to let him have some floor time each day.  It's hard with the kids running by, but no one has gotten hurt yet.  You can see that he likes having a little freedom to stretch out and roll around.

I imagine by the time Scott gets back, Elijah will be rolling all the way over.  A baby can learn a lot in 3 weeks.    I was hoping to have him saying "Dada" by then but he's not acting too interested in repeating specific words.  He likes to make his own sounds.

Tomorrow the kids and I will be heading out toward Michigan.  We should be all packed tonight and have the windshield wipers replaced before we leave out tomorrow.  I don't know how far we will get the first day.  We will probably stop at a hotel along the route.  Stopping at a hotel to get a room will be a first for me.  Scott has always been the one to talk to the receptionists. 

I'm not sure whether I will be stopping at a hotel with internet access or not.  If I do I will try to post another blog then.  Thanks for all the prayers for both Scott and our family.  I am looking forward to two weeks from today when we shall be back together as a family again.

Independence Day

I took this picture of Elijah this afternoon. We had great services today at my parents church. I always enjoy hearing my Dad preach. He preached a really good Independence Day message. He preached on 1 Samuel 8:1-22. He talked about how people give up their God given freedoms so quickly. It was very good and very pertinent to our world today.

Friday night, I took this second picture of the older four children sleeping at Memaw and Daddy Jim's house. I had a hard time getting Jonathan to settle down, but when he did this is how they turned out.

We went to the Canton Trade Days on Saturday. There was a lady there that was a blessing to me. All five of my kids and I had gone a separate path from my parents. I was buying toys for the kids when Elijah started crying in his stroller. I knew he was hungry, and was trying to hurry the others along so that I could take care of him.

It was at this point that a lady in another booth came over and asked him what was wrong. I explained to her that he was hungry and I was about to feed him as soon as the kids were done. She left for a second and then asked me if I breastfeed. Then she offered a chair she had behind her booth where I could feed him beside a fan. I gave the kids each a dollar and she offered to take them over to a booth where they could buy themselves something to drink. When she came back she told me she had been one of five children herself and knew how nice it was to have someone offer help. I was very impressed and silently prayed that God would bless her.

"And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Matthew 25:40

Why?

Why did Scott agree to go to Thailand? And why am I driving 5 children to Michigan? These are two questions I will attempt to answer in this blog post. I am not only answering these questions for anyone who may express concern, I must answer them for myself as well.

If God ever did call our family to a foreign field in a long term capacity, we would have the same good questions to answer. How else would we know if it is God's will or not?

Thailand isn't a great vacation spot this time of year. It is hot and there won't be air conditioning in the village where he will be helping, and he may be served foods that we in America may not consider palatable. He may even wind up sleeping on a pallet on the ground. Why would he want to go? There was a need, and Scott was willing to help. God provided the money. Yes, it was our own personal money. We did not ask for financial help and no one sent any money to help him with this trip. I realize that we might could have used our money for a lot of other things. But we both felt that God wanted him to go help in Thailand. It is one thing to pray that someone else will go help when there is a need. And another to say, "Here am I, Lord, send me." We both knew it was God's will for him to go.

Our church where Scott is pastoring is small and there isn't anyone there that will mind us being gone a few weeks. They all know we will be back. The community we live in is so small that I doubt anyone will miss us much besides on Sunday. I've wondered in the past if the church members would have a problem with Scott being away 3 weeks this year. But since they do not have to pay him while he is gone, no one has voiced any opposition. In my mind this is one way our church is able to tithe to Missions, by allowing their pastor to go on a short term mission trip. He may not be preaching from a pulpit while there but he will be a witness to about 600 children and their teachers who may have never heard the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Wouldn't it be wonderful if even a few were saved?

I miss him when he is gone, but the joy we will have in hearing what God has done when he returns will make up for the loneliness now. I can't fully explain it. In my mind I have often wondered in our nearly 14 years of marriage, why God had never called him to a foreign mission field on a long term basis. We are both willing to go, but I leave it up to God to do the calling. I feel God must call my husband to a field first and then my children and I would follow. But since that has not happened yet and may never in the future, maybe it is God's plan that we just go and help others. Mostly it will be Scott going, and maybe occassionally I will go, and maybe even our children as they get old enough to serve.

While Scott is gone, I may seem crazy for taking the kids, (one of whom is being potty trained, and another who I must stop and feed every couple of hours) all the way to Michigan, without Scott here to help. I must admit I do have a little bit of nervous anticipation about it. I am going to be leaving my comfort zone behind, but I think this is for the good of Scott's family. I have several reasons to believe God would have me do this. I have always felt that Scott's mother needs us to visit at least once a year. There have been times that we have missed a year. But we try to see them each year when it is possible. And maybe my own spritual growth will benefit from my forcing myself to leave my comfort zone occassionally.

Some of my reasons for going are: (1.) Scott's mother has never met Elijah, (2.) I want Scott's family to see that even when Scott's away, I still see our relationship as important. (3.) I want them to see that our family is committed to each other even when he is away.

I would really like to be with him right now to help in Thailand, but I also realize that Scott needs me here to help take care of our family. I would really like to go on a Mission trip as a family, but that would cost a lot more for a family of 7 to go than for one or two to go.

I also realize that maybe what seems clear to us, may not seem clear to everyone else. I value the insights of others, both for and against what God may or may not be doing in our lives. But I also know that God would want us to do what He wants not necessarily what we want. It may not even be comfortable for us to do what God has in store for us, but sometimes He still wants us to leave those comfort zones and do what he wants us to do anyway. Even if we meet some opposition along the way. Ultimately He will bless our efforts if not in this world then in the next.

I pray for Scott every night as he is waking up that God will help him during his day. Then in the morning I pray that God helps him sleep in whatever hot and humid condition he may find himself. Then I pray that God will help the days go by quickly, when He will bring us all back together as a family once more.

Isaiah 55
1Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

2Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

3Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

4Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.

5Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

6Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:

7Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

8For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.

9For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

11So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

12For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

13Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

Growing up...

I got an e'mail from Scott saying that he arrived in Taipei, China. If I have the times figured that means he should be arriving in Bangkok right about the time I'm writing this. It would be really nice if he could e'mail me from there.

The kids and I finally arrived at my parents house this evening. It took us far longer than I had planned to get everything packed. I was hoping to get to visit my sister today but we left so late that I decided to go straight to my parents and visit my sister and her husband on another day.

Tomorrow we will be going to visit my grandparents in Henderson. I think we're planning to possibly visit Canton on Saturday on our way home from Henderson. I have never been to Canton for their trade days. I've always heard really neat things about it, and seen things people have bought from Canton but I've never experienced it personally. I'm looking forward to that. I think the kids will have fun with there as well.

Joshua's birthday was Sunday. Joshua wanted a chocolate cake with strawberry icing. But he didn't want it to look girly so I tried to decorate it so that it didn't look too pink. He was quite pleased with how it turned out. We had a party for him and another boy in our church whose birthday is 3 days after Joshua's. They both turned 12 this year.

After church Sunday we had hot dogs, chips, cake, and ice cream for anyone that would stay and celebrate the boys birthdays. They both had their own cake and candles. Then after eating we passed out water guns to all the children that came. There were 10 children present at church that day. A few of the children stayed and played with the water guns outside. He told us that evening that his birthday turned out a lot better than he thought it would. I'm glad he had fun. It's hard to believe he's already 12. It won't be long and he'll be driving.

Then to think that when Elijah turns 12, Joshua will be turning 24. I'm not even going to think about how old I'll be when Joshua turns 24.

I plan to cherish these years while my children are young. They grow up so fast.

"The Best Picture"

I printed this picture for Hannah this evening after we dropped Scott off at the airport. She had told me that she was worried about forgetting her Daddy's face. After I printed this picture for each of the children, Joshua announced that this was the best picture ever. I think because we all look like ourselves. I mean I just grabbed a cloth and through it over our bookshelf for a background, and then we set the camera on the desk. I was in a hurry for a picture that day and barely got everyone together I didn't even worry about what everyone was wearing or how our hair looked. So this is a picture of our family. The last professional picture we took did not have Elijah in it and Scott had a beard. This one has our complete family in it.

Scott will be flying for Thailand tonight. I miss him already. In fact as soon as I drove out of the airport I felt sad. I had hoped we would get to go inside with him but we wound up having to drop him off at the door. We let the kids out of the car to give him a hug before he went in. Then we went and parked in a free parking area at the airport. I had hoped Scott would be through all the lines by the time I was finished feeding Elijah but when I called him he was in a long line and had bad cell phone reception. I couldn't hear much of what he said but I knew he would call me if he had problems. I decided to go ahead and go. Scott did finally call me and told me that there were no problems. He made it through all the baggage checks and was sitting at his gate. It will be a long flight for him and I know he will be extremely tired from the jet lag.

So why is he going to Thailand? That is the question I know is on a lot of minds. In February or March I had seen that there was a team being formed of volunteers to go on a Short Term mission trip to Thailand to help the Missionaries there work in a village school teaching ESL and basketball. At the time I mentioned it to Scott but he had somehow dismissed it and wasn't considering going. I guess it was because he had just gotten back from a Mission trip to Paraguay and maybe he thought it was too soon for another trip. I'm not really sure.

Instead we planned to go to the ABA meeting which was held in West Virginia this summer and afterward we thought we would take the kids to see Washington D.C. and then take them to visit Scott's family in Michigan. Then in May the missionaries in Thailand sent out a plea for an Emergency back up team since the original team was considering backing out due to the political troubles in one of the major cities in Thailand. As soon as I saw the message about the need for another team, I felt like if I could go I would. I knew Scott was good at that kind of ministry and so as soon as I saw it, I approached Scott with the possibility of him going. He said he would have to pray about it. I think he was waiting to see if the other team really backed out or not. We thought he would have a week to decide. Then another plea came out after a few days telling that the team did back out and that this would be a major disappointment to the village. The missionary and his wife were still going to have something over there even if no one else came. I went to Scott and had him read the message. He wanted to go but couldn't see how we would have the money that soon.

We weren't expecting any money in until June and that would be too late. I asked Scott if he had checked the bank lately. He said he hadn't in a few days. I told him, "I'll call the bank and if the money is there maybe you are suppose to go." I called the bank and sure enough the money from our Tax refund had come in early. There was enough to pay for his airfare. I handed him the phone so he could hear the amount in the bank. He looked surprised and said, "Well, I guess I'm going to Thailand." I wasn't too surprised because God had done that kind of thing in our lives before. I remember early in our married life and in Scott's ministry we used to wish God would just show us a neon sign, when he wanted us to do something. But now I known he has always shown us His will. We just have to keep our eyes open to see it.

I'm glad that our church hasn't given Scott any problems with going on short term mission trips. I think it is good for him to go and use some of the talents he has for the Lord's work, that he is unable to use as much at home. Scott loves learning new languages. I have often wondered why he would want to learn a language that he may never use. He worked on Russian and Ukranian for our short term trip to Ukraine. He speaks Spanish well and was able to use it a lot in Paraguay. He has also been working on Chinese and Japanese lately. Then when he started preparing for going to Thailand, he started working on Thai as well. (He has admitted that Thai sometimes gave him a headache to learn.)

We went to some of the Asian markets in Houston where he got to practice a little of what he has learned. We've even eaten out at a couple of Thai restaraunts. He talked to several of the owners about his trip and asked them questions about which part they are from.

I have come to see that most people are proud to talk about their homeland and are excited to hear someone try to speak their native tongue. Scott isn't afraid to speak at all. I have more of a tendency to worry about what they might think if I mess up. Someday I'll try to work on a language but right now, I'm undecided which one I need to focus on. I'm not good at doing like he does and learning several languages at one time.

I definitely am missing him. This month I have quite a few plans for the kids and I while Scott is away. We will be visiting my family here in Texas for one week and Scott's family in Michigan for the next week. I know Scott will miss getting to see his family. But we would not have been able to go see them at any other time this year. So I decided that Scott's mother needed to see the kids. Especially since she has not yet met Elijah.

I will be continuing to blog as much as possible during the time we are traveling. I do not expect to hear very often from Scott, but as I find out how he is doing I will post that as well.

Please pray for Scott as he is helping out in Thailand. And pray for me as I travel across America with our 5 children. It's going to be hard to travel without Scott beside me to help me with decisions that I'm sure I will have to make. But I know God can help me make it through these next few weeks.

"I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day; Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears that I may be filled with joy, When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee..."

2 Timothy 1:4-5

Mastitis

I wasn't feeling well yesterday. I knew I should have stayed home, when my symptoms started getting worse. It hurt when I nursed Elijah on my left side, I had a headache most of the day, and by night I was running a fever of 101.7 degrees.

We were invited to a home of some homeschooling friends that have started attending our church. I knew I should have told Scott and gone on home but I suffered silently hoping it would just go away. It didn't and last night I had a splitting headache. Poor Scott tried to figure out why I was crying. I told him that I just wasn't feeling good. I think he thought I was upset with someone. I wasn't, I just had a headache my body ached and to have to admit I was sick was upsetting.

I'm feeling some better today. I don't feel feverish, and my headache went down to just a slight ache, and I started nursing Elijah every hour instead of 2 hours in order to keep from becoming engorged and to clear the infected milk duct. So I'm feeling quite a bit better. I just don't want to feel like I did yesterday again.

Today, Joshua was asking me what my favorite part of yesterday was. I explained that I wasn't feeling very well yesterday so there really wasn't a favorite part. He said, "Oh, I thought your favorite part was watching The Wiggles" I found that funny.

I told him, "If watching The Wiggles was my favorite part, that doesn't say much for the rest of the day." I think he must like them more than I do.

There was a panic this afternoon as I heard a loud crash in the kitchen. I had asked Joshua to take out the scraps. He was going to empty the crockpot and it slipped out of his hands and fell. I was on the phone with Scott (who had called to check on me) and I told Joshua it would be okay just make sure no one hurt themselves. Joshua was worried that he was going to have to pay for it. I told him that he wouldn't and that it was okay. Accidents happen. Scott thinks we should get a cast iron Crockpot. Is there such a thing? :)

Today I plan to take the kids to karate class as long as I'm continuing to feel better. This is Scott's last week to drive the school bus. The kids and I are looking forward to spending extra time with him this summer.

This is going to be a busy summer. Scott will be going to Thailand to help the missionaries there. While he is there I am planning to visit my parents and also take the kids to Michigan to visit Scott's family there. Then we'll only be back a week before Church camp begins.

I'll be posting more about our Summer activities as the time draws closer. The picture above is what might be going on while I'm blogging. Right now I'm blogging with Elijah sleeping in my arms. I've gotten pretty good at typing one handed.

Time Flies...

Time sure goes by fast. It either zooms past while you're on the computer. (You mean I've been looking at GPS's for over an hour?)

Days go by fast. (Didn't I just take the kids to Karate class?)

The weeks go by fast. (Yep it's been at least 2 weeks since I've blogged!!!)

Months go by fast. (Elijah is 2 1/2 months old already?)

And then the years go by fast. (Joshua is about to turn 12!)

It all happens so fast.

I remember when I was younger (that wasn't so long ago). I used to say, "Ah it's not going by that fast." Of course that was when Joshua was a baby and I thought the days were a lot longer. But now with 5 kids, the busier life has gotten and the faster the time seems to go.

Sometimes I look at the time going by so fast and think about all the things I have left to get done in the day or in the year. It can be overwhelming sometimes but that is when I have to prioritize and use my time as best I can. Getting organized with my office space helped a lot. I'm always surrounded by distractions but at least I can keep an eye on them all.

The picture is one I took a few months ago. Joshua and Jonathan are wearing some of their Daddy's clothes. It won't be long and they will be able to wear them by themselves.

I have to remember as I try to keep up with everything to cherish each of these moments. I even need to cherish potty training, even though I wondered about it this morning as I cleaned up yet another pair of dirty pants. But at least progress was made yesterday even though he seemed to forgotten it all today. Maybe we'll leap two steps forward tomorrow.

When I was a child my best friend and I would visit at each other's houses. One day her mother told us that my parents would be coming to pick me up in about 10 minutes. I remember we wanted to play but we knew the time would go by too fast when we are having fun. So instead we stared at the clock, to make time go by slower.

I could do that I guess. Not plan any fun activities just plan to stay home and do the same thing over and over in order to keep time from going by too fast. But I would rather enjoy life and the time God has given me hear on earth to do things for Him. I enjoy watching my children grow up and learn. Time may go by too fast but at least we are working for a purpose.

One day God will be calling me home and I will look back and say, "Wow! That was quick!" I don't want to look back over the years with any regrets when it's my time to go.

I need to cherish every moment God has given me and use them for His glory. Then when time flies by and I look back on my life I can say, "I've redeemed the time."

Ephesians 5:15-16 "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil."

Colosians 4:5 "Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time."

James 4:14 "Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth even for a little time, and then vanisheth away."

7 Hours, Potty time, You Name It...

I can't decide the best title for this blog since so much is going on. Elijah is now sleeping 7 hours straight at night. He has even slept 8 on a couple of nights. So I've been able to get a little caught up on sleep. I do have to make myself go to bed sometimes, instead of doing all the hundred odd jobs I can't do with a baby in tow. But I'm very happy that he is now sleeping at nights.

The second title I could give this blog was Potty Time. We have now officially started potty training Jonathan. I told the kids that we want to make going to the potty a positive experience. So we are not commanding him to go right now we make it exciting to get to go. We have started by setting the timer for every hour. When the bell rings we all excitedly exclaim, "It's Potty time!!!" Jonathan then gets all excited and runs to the bathroom and sits down on his potty. So far he has been keeping himself dry. I'm not sure yet what will happen when he needs to have a bowel movement. Yesterday he dirty himself during Karate class. I had the potty there and after I changed his dirty pull-up I had him use his potty in the bathroom. He did go and stayed dry the rest of the time. So I hope that it was a case of not getting him to the bathroom soon enough and that he will go in the potty when he needs to next time.

But we have only one pull up left. I decided to go ahead and save that one so we have put him in big kid undies as I call them. They are actually cloth training pants. I also have plastic training pants to put over them in case he has an "accident". I'm hoping that accidents will be few and far between. I would hope he would never have one but I don't want to get my hopes up to high.

So I have one child trained to sleep through the night and another in the process of learning to use the bathroom. My husband was teasing me when the bell went off and Jonathan hollered, "Potty Time" that he may one day be a heavy weight boxer or something and when the bell rings he suddenly has to use the bathroom. Oh well, at least he'll know that he's suppose to go in the potty. Right?

Well, it's only day 3 of potty training and I'm not going to vouch for this method just yet. I'll keep everyone posted as to how it goes. I will say that not every method works for every child. They all have their own individual personalities and what works for one may not work for another. So I guess that's my little caveat (I need to ask my brother if I spelled that right. He's probably looking at that word saying a what?!? Hmm.. Maybe I should have googled it.) Anyway, you know the small print at the end to keep you from getting in trouble.

Well, I have a new computer and so far it hasn't shut off completely in the middle of this blog. So that should mean I'll be able to blog more than I have been. My other laptop was having some real issues. The top didn't stay up and the battery wouldn't stay charged, then it would just shutdown for no reason in the middle of my working on something. I then went to using my husbands mini-laptop and I think he wanted it back. So he bought me a new one. So all that to say keep checking back I'll try to post more often now that I'm back in business.

Until next time... "Ding!" Was that the bell? "It's potty time!!!"

I love being a mom!

Too Long...

It's been too long since, I've blogged last. It's actually hard to believe that a whole month has passed. My mom has been checking my blog every day for a month to see if I've updated it. Has anyone else been wondering about me?

One of my problems in blogging lately was that our dial-up wasn't working. I finally called the tech support for our internet and they gave me three other access numbers for our area. They pretty much told me that if one didn't work try another one. I mentioned the fact that it was running a lot slower than normal and they told me that depended on my phone line and how good the connection was. So it's a good day when I get online at 48 kbps. It's a slow day on the internet if I get on at 28 kbps. And an impossible time on the internet when it connects at 8 kbps. I'm looking forward to Hi-speed internet getting to our area. I may have to wait awhile though.

A lot has actually been happening this month. Elijah is now a month and a half old. He has definitely grown a lot since he was born. He has just started sleeping longer through the nights. Two nights in a row he has gone 6 hours between feedings. I feed him around 9 p.m. and he doesn't wake up until 3 a.m. for his next feeding. I've been remembering to lay him down at nights instead of sleeping with him in my arms. I'm hoping to get a little better sleep. Now my only problem is getting myself not to do all the work I didn't get done while the kids were awake. One of those nights I stayed up two hours doing dishes and clothes. But the next night I was so tired I decided to go on to bed and skip the chores.

Another thing to add to my sleep deprivation was a house full of sick children. I felt like I was cleaning up after everyone while they were sick. Trying to find foods they could eat that wouldn't hurt their throat. Also fixing hot tea for them and making the older two who had soar throats gargle salt water. Even Scott went through a spell with it. We were afraid it was strep throat. We took the kids to the Doctor for a test and the results came out negative for strep. So she said they were going to be okay, and that since they were already feeling quite a bit better they wouldn't need any medication. They were especially glad that they wouldn't need shots.

This weekend Scott and Joshua are attending an "All the King's Men" retreat. It is a retreat that they try to attend each year. Scott was attending the annual retreat just himself and the past 3 or so years he has taken Joshua with him. They really have a good time of fellowship and encouragement during the two day retreat.

The rest of the kids and I decided we would go visit Memaw and Daddy Jim, where we would also see Papa and Nana. For those who don't know, Memaw and Daddy Jim are my Mother's parents and Papa and Nana are my parents.

So much more has happened this past month. I would try to blog about it all now but I guess I will save some for later. I will try to get my internet working quicker soon and hopefully I'll be able to post more pictures of the kids. I especially need to post some pictures of the kids at their karate class. Ruth just got her white with yellow stripe belt. Joshua will be testing for his in June. Hannah is even endeavoring to gain that belt instead of just going for the little kids stripes which is a different system from the big kids and adults.

Please don't give up on me with my blog. I am really hoping to get my computer cooperating for me and connecting faster to the internet. I'll try to post more pictures soon.