This week has been a whirlwind. I'll be brief.
We have had a plumbing issue this week. I found water in our house and with a number of people in and out of here (including one scam artist that God thankfully allowed us to stop before he ripped into our walls...), we have yet to find the problem. The leak detection unit comes out tomorrow. Whatever they find I pray it is easily fixable. So far the damage was not as extensive as it could have been and we are not out too much money. We will see after tomorrow if that still holds true.
The kids have been great through all of this. Everything is off (our schedule, our water, where we have been sleeping), but they have been troopers. I thank God for them. I am exhausted, but I can see His hand in this and I will continue to try to look up and see Him when my heart sinks. Some positive things that have come from this: 1. I am being forced not to sweat the small stuff as we being this holiday season. 2. Francis will never doubt my sense of smell again (it's super sensitive and I could smell the water before we found it) 3. I have an ever growing respect for those without running water. You are seriously amazing. I have been filling up pitchers each morning as we turn on water for showers and then turning it off for the day. That's challenging enough. 4. I am getting the opportunity to show my children grace under trials. I haven't been doing the best job all of the time, but with His help, I am able to come back from the edge of my sanity and show love. 5. I am seeing God's hand in a way I would not have otherwise.
That's all for now. This mess has seriously consumed the week and I have so much to catch up on!
Thursday, November 17, 2016
Thursday, November 10, 2016
November 10, 2016
It's been busy around here.
Friday was the last Junction (Parent's night out) of 2016. Francis and I miraculously made it to Dinner at Red Lobster and to see Dr. Strange in Theaters (even after the first place we went was sold out!) Were it not for the previews and us leaving without seeing the extra scenes, we would have missed the beginning of the movie and picked up our kids late. We literally had 2 minutes to spare for each. Good times. It was a blast though, and I enjoy adventures with Francis.
This weekend we attended a party for two of the kids' friends. It was carnival themed and oh so cute! Sunday we got back into our Church/short break/AWANAs routine. Time change seemed to have no effect in our house because the kids were up so late Friday that we just let them stay off. Usually it's the end of the world. It's the small things that make the most difference!
Monday we did the grocery store, Tuesday was CC. It has finally gotten cooler but the temperature drop has brought with it the rain. For the most part the rain hasn't messed up our schedule too much, but thankfully it seems to have let up today in favor of sunshine. Wednesday I told the boys the elections results as we had been talking about the election the night before, and William wanted to know who to add to his Presidents Song (he has the presidents memorized in order). William was happy that all the maps were so red (his favorite color). I gave him a lesson on the branches of government and what would happen in January. He was very interested. Also Wednesday the boys got haircuts and then we went to story time at the library. The Brazos Valley Bombers were there with their mascot Kaboom (a baseball). The kids had fun hugging and high fiving him after hearing some books. Today we went to Hobby Lobby, Toys R Us and our friend Jude's 3rd Birthday party. It was lunch at a local Mexican food restaurant, and the kids had fun on the playground both before and after food.
I've been trying to get as much stuff done as possible for Christmas before I leave for Thanksgiving week. Why? It makes me enjoy December instead of stressing. I say every year that gift giving is not my love language, but I do my best to make sure my love is shown through what I give. I'm hoping to be mostly done with gifts by December 1st so I can soak in this time of year and so my kids and I can spend time loving each other, learning about the true meaning of Christmas and serving our community. Hopefully. I'll let you know how well that goes.
Hannah had her 15 month check-up last Friday. She is still tall, lean and growing perfectly. She is talking more all the time and comes up with new words or phrases at least every couple of days. She asked, "Dada? Wha (where) dada?" on the way back to the house just now. I told her he was at work but would be home later. I think she understood, and it was super cute!
Robert and William are also well. Robert is doing better about lying (as far as I know). He still will tell me something that isn't true, but he will correct himself before I get onto him. Our fruit of the spirit this week is Patience. William is very good at reminding his siblings of this fact, but not as eager when it applies to him. Can't say I blame him.
I love these kids. They are not perfect (neither am I), but they are each a delight to my heart.
Friday was the last Junction (Parent's night out) of 2016. Francis and I miraculously made it to Dinner at Red Lobster and to see Dr. Strange in Theaters (even after the first place we went was sold out!) Were it not for the previews and us leaving without seeing the extra scenes, we would have missed the beginning of the movie and picked up our kids late. We literally had 2 minutes to spare for each. Good times. It was a blast though, and I enjoy adventures with Francis.
This weekend we attended a party for two of the kids' friends. It was carnival themed and oh so cute! Sunday we got back into our Church/short break/AWANAs routine. Time change seemed to have no effect in our house because the kids were up so late Friday that we just let them stay off. Usually it's the end of the world. It's the small things that make the most difference!
Monday we did the grocery store, Tuesday was CC. It has finally gotten cooler but the temperature drop has brought with it the rain. For the most part the rain hasn't messed up our schedule too much, but thankfully it seems to have let up today in favor of sunshine. Wednesday I told the boys the elections results as we had been talking about the election the night before, and William wanted to know who to add to his Presidents Song (he has the presidents memorized in order). William was happy that all the maps were so red (his favorite color). I gave him a lesson on the branches of government and what would happen in January. He was very interested. Also Wednesday the boys got haircuts and then we went to story time at the library. The Brazos Valley Bombers were there with their mascot Kaboom (a baseball). The kids had fun hugging and high fiving him after hearing some books. Today we went to Hobby Lobby, Toys R Us and our friend Jude's 3rd Birthday party. It was lunch at a local Mexican food restaurant, and the kids had fun on the playground both before and after food.
I've been trying to get as much stuff done as possible for Christmas before I leave for Thanksgiving week. Why? It makes me enjoy December instead of stressing. I say every year that gift giving is not my love language, but I do my best to make sure my love is shown through what I give. I'm hoping to be mostly done with gifts by December 1st so I can soak in this time of year and so my kids and I can spend time loving each other, learning about the true meaning of Christmas and serving our community. Hopefully. I'll let you know how well that goes.
Hannah had her 15 month check-up last Friday. She is still tall, lean and growing perfectly. She is talking more all the time and comes up with new words or phrases at least every couple of days. She asked, "Dada? Wha (where) dada?" on the way back to the house just now. I told her he was at work but would be home later. I think she understood, and it was super cute!
Robert and William are also well. Robert is doing better about lying (as far as I know). He still will tell me something that isn't true, but he will correct himself before I get onto him. Our fruit of the spirit this week is Patience. William is very good at reminding his siblings of this fact, but not as eager when it applies to him. Can't say I blame him.
I love these kids. They are not perfect (neither am I), but they are each a delight to my heart.
Thursday, November 3, 2016
November 3, 2016
November is my birthday month, and this month is shaping up to be a busy one! We didn't even do everything I had planned, and it was still pretty full.
Last Friday we went to the community trunk or treat in Wolf Pen Creek. The kids got candy from local businesses, did bounce houses and the petting zoo and rode a barrel train. It was fun but overwhelming as there were so many people! Hannah was Belle, William was "William the conqueror" and Robert was Batman. All were adorable!
Saturday Francis was able to enjoy his birthday present with his dad, Gershom and Dave: going to the A&M football game. My in-laws came in early and we had lunch with them and played with them in the afternoon. My mother-in-law and I made a trip to Toy R Us and managed to get some costumes on clearance. William was particularly excited about the Pikachu costume we found for him. It was missing the hat so we made one and he is getting a new hat in the mail. Robert got a transformer costume and Hannah got both Minnie mouse and Elsa costumes. Everyone was overjoyed and insisted on wearing their costumes that evening. when the men left for the game around 5, My mother-in-law and I took the kids to Chuck E Cheese (in costume) where we met up with Audrey (who is amazing and helped it be man to man coverage!). Turns out Chuck E cheese was giving away free tickets to kids in costume, which was an added bonus. Woot! We had pizza and played games until we were tired and all headed back to the house. After putting the kids to bed, the three of us ladies watched A Royal Night Out on Netflix. Super cute movie! And a great night!
Sunday we went to church, had a brief break and then headed back to church in costume (as pikachu, Optimus Prime and Belle) for Fall Fest. More bounce houses, games, candy, food and snow cones filled our night and fun was had by all. Francis and I had to split up and take turns with Hannah because she knew what she wanted to do (play games and eat candy) and the boys just want to do things like ride the mechanical bull. All in a great night!
Monday was Halloween/ Reformation day. We have recently studied the reformation in CC and were able to watch a cartoon about Martin Luther on Amazon Prime (called Torchlighter's Heroes of the Faith). It was informative and interesting, and possibly a little over the kids' heads. But they liked it and seemed to understand at least some of it. I learned a lot too! One of our neighbors rented a bounce house and had hot dogs for whoever wanted them, so we walked that evening (Pikachu, optimus prime and Minnie Mouse) to their house and bounced and played games in their front yard. We hadn't met them before, but it was fun to meet many of our neighbors! On our way back, our kids got candy from anyone sitting out in front of their house. Even with just those few houses, their buckets were full! And so many families were out. It was fun to greet and laugh with those around us. We got back to the house early enough I even passed out some candy too.
Tuesday was CC field trip day. We made the hour drive to Dewberry Farms. Almost all of William's class was there and many kids from the other classes both from our campus and the other 2 campuses in Bryan/ College Station. We rode the hay ride, did zip lines, rode race cars, played in the hay and playground, picked out pumpkins, and did so much more! It started to rain around lunch, so after eating in the covered pavillion we headed home. All three kids fell asleep on the way back. It was a CC miracle!
Yesterday we were going to go to the Renaissance Festival for their special school days, but plans fell through. We ended up going to Walmart and Story time at the Library which more than filled our morning. On the way home every car in front of me was turning into vote. I was so glad I already had last week! Today was MOMs day. We had a speaker on Random Acts of Kindness. Very inspiring.
School is still going well. William is reading at least one book at bedtime each night. We've been checking out the early readers from the library and he is only needing a little help here and there with them. Robert has just as much of a thirst for knowledge as William and will not let me skip his "school work". A more dedicated 3-year-old you are not likely to meet. His vocabulary is more expansive than many kids his age. Sometimes it takes me three or more tries to figure out what he's saying because he picks words that I didn't even know he knew. Hannah's personality comes out a little more every day. She got her first little pony tail this morning thanks to her teachers and she was strutting her stuff when I picked her up. She says "yeah" or "no" when you ask her is she wants something and yells "more more" from the back seat if she runs out of snack while I'm driving. I love her to pieces and it's fun to see her grow.
Aaand Hannah's up from nap. Until next time!
Last Friday we went to the community trunk or treat in Wolf Pen Creek. The kids got candy from local businesses, did bounce houses and the petting zoo and rode a barrel train. It was fun but overwhelming as there were so many people! Hannah was Belle, William was "William the conqueror" and Robert was Batman. All were adorable!
Saturday Francis was able to enjoy his birthday present with his dad, Gershom and Dave: going to the A&M football game. My in-laws came in early and we had lunch with them and played with them in the afternoon. My mother-in-law and I made a trip to Toy R Us and managed to get some costumes on clearance. William was particularly excited about the Pikachu costume we found for him. It was missing the hat so we made one and he is getting a new hat in the mail. Robert got a transformer costume and Hannah got both Minnie mouse and Elsa costumes. Everyone was overjoyed and insisted on wearing their costumes that evening. when the men left for the game around 5, My mother-in-law and I took the kids to Chuck E Cheese (in costume) where we met up with Audrey (who is amazing and helped it be man to man coverage!). Turns out Chuck E cheese was giving away free tickets to kids in costume, which was an added bonus. Woot! We had pizza and played games until we were tired and all headed back to the house. After putting the kids to bed, the three of us ladies watched A Royal Night Out on Netflix. Super cute movie! And a great night!
Sunday we went to church, had a brief break and then headed back to church in costume (as pikachu, Optimus Prime and Belle) for Fall Fest. More bounce houses, games, candy, food and snow cones filled our night and fun was had by all. Francis and I had to split up and take turns with Hannah because she knew what she wanted to do (play games and eat candy) and the boys just want to do things like ride the mechanical bull. All in a great night!
Monday was Halloween/ Reformation day. We have recently studied the reformation in CC and were able to watch a cartoon about Martin Luther on Amazon Prime (called Torchlighter's Heroes of the Faith). It was informative and interesting, and possibly a little over the kids' heads. But they liked it and seemed to understand at least some of it. I learned a lot too! One of our neighbors rented a bounce house and had hot dogs for whoever wanted them, so we walked that evening (Pikachu, optimus prime and Minnie Mouse) to their house and bounced and played games in their front yard. We hadn't met them before, but it was fun to meet many of our neighbors! On our way back, our kids got candy from anyone sitting out in front of their house. Even with just those few houses, their buckets were full! And so many families were out. It was fun to greet and laugh with those around us. We got back to the house early enough I even passed out some candy too.
Tuesday was CC field trip day. We made the hour drive to Dewberry Farms. Almost all of William's class was there and many kids from the other classes both from our campus and the other 2 campuses in Bryan/ College Station. We rode the hay ride, did zip lines, rode race cars, played in the hay and playground, picked out pumpkins, and did so much more! It started to rain around lunch, so after eating in the covered pavillion we headed home. All three kids fell asleep on the way back. It was a CC miracle!
Yesterday we were going to go to the Renaissance Festival for their special school days, but plans fell through. We ended up going to Walmart and Story time at the Library which more than filled our morning. On the way home every car in front of me was turning into vote. I was so glad I already had last week! Today was MOMs day. We had a speaker on Random Acts of Kindness. Very inspiring.
School is still going well. William is reading at least one book at bedtime each night. We've been checking out the early readers from the library and he is only needing a little help here and there with them. Robert has just as much of a thirst for knowledge as William and will not let me skip his "school work". A more dedicated 3-year-old you are not likely to meet. His vocabulary is more expansive than many kids his age. Sometimes it takes me three or more tries to figure out what he's saying because he picks words that I didn't even know he knew. Hannah's personality comes out a little more every day. She got her first little pony tail this morning thanks to her teachers and she was strutting her stuff when I picked her up. She says "yeah" or "no" when you ask her is she wants something and yells "more more" from the back seat if she runs out of snack while I'm driving. I love her to pieces and it's fun to see her grow.
Aaand Hannah's up from nap. Until next time!
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