Bane of existance

Socks are the bane of my existence.  Honey agrees completely.  With 4 kids and Honey and I, that is 6 different sizes and then all the colors and types.  I can't say how much I truly hate socks and how glad I am every summer to put my children in sandals. I did finally realize that it is worth it to buy only one brand of socks.  They mark their name in different colors based on the size.  Thank goodness! That was my great discovery.  Truly this  is what the socks companies should be advertising!  So for now, I am busy sorting and looking forward to sandals.

When last I left you, Keener was naked dancing on the table.  This is not the whole story.  I am having constant clothing battles with my almost 3 year old.  She hates dresses unless she is wearing pants under them and has gone so far as to undress in the middle of Mass. Luckily it was not as far as letting God and everyone else see her birthday suit.   She wears about 10 outfits a day.  She is constantly changing because one outfit is "dirdy".  She is one STRONG WILLED child.  If it wasn't so funny it would be a lot more exhausting.  So how am I handling this?  I am letting her express herself with her clothing most of the time.  At Mass, Mommy wins, always.  But, most of the time I let her win because a strong will is not a bad thing in life.  Neither is the ability to express yourself and feel comfortable about how you look.  I allow her to have a bin of "dirdy" clothes and that is the pile that she changes into and out of all day long.  I also have put a lock on her closet.  There are only so many times that you can force a child to clean up the big mess before you have to be smart and save yourself.  It's not like it's fun to monitor a child when they are cleaning.  I feel like I'd rather not make clothing a big issue now, I know it will be a big issue with teenagers, so I'm saving my energy for the real battle.

Dancing for Depends.

After dinner tonight, I turn to check that all was cleared from our dining room table.  What do I see but my almost 3 year old up on the table dancing NAKED.  What can you do when something like this happens?  Nothing but laugh, and hope you have some Depends.

#5 is alive.

With great joy and a new begining, I get to announce another gift to my life.  This one is currently turning me into a zombie, but this should pass soon and the double-wide me will begin.  The other children are all so happy.  It makes me proud that they find joy and not jealousy.  Before having kids, I always wondered how children could feel the love of their parents if they have to split it with more people.  What I am finding out, is that each child has more people to love them than the child before.  Each child gives so much pure love to their new sibling, that it would be impossible not to feel loved.  A mother of course always has enough room in her heart to love one more little one, but the brothers and sisters are who make such a big difference.

Where is this going to lead.

I have had a very hard time trying to decide how to handle my blog and what to do with it once Honey got home. Should I stop writing? Should I change my focus? What is my goal?

I love having all the memories of my little ones as they are growing up. I love sharing my thoughts of the day and all the crazy things that seem to happen to me. I love that family and friends from far away can see updated pictures of the kids. So after months of not much writing, but a lot of reflection, I have decided to continue, but I want to add a little more focus on two things: my faith and my history. Both are an integral part of who I am. I think without the background, it is hard to really know me.

So we are going out with the old adventures and on with the new.

OLD

Family, Homeschooling, and life in general. Where am I going and where do I want to be?

Trying to keep Honey up to date on the kids while he defends the country. He has his adventure & I have mine.

NEW

"Family, Faith, Homeschooling and this crazy thing called life. Don't let it pass you by! Enjoy every day for what it gives and takes."

I try to live my life with no regrets. It is hard, but I try to remember that even if it is a bad experience, you learn something. I had to choose to be positive and strong while Honey was away. I could have wallowed in despair, self pity, & worry. But I had to give my worries over to God, and choose to take what fate had in store for me. It is not always easy, but you can choose to grow stronger. It is all about the choice. Choose to be strong. Choose to learn. Choose to grow. Choose to Live.

Kicked in the right direction.

I met up with one of my dear friends today.  She is very good at helping me to focus on the important things in life and clear away the distractions.  I think we all needs friends like this.  She makes me realize the wonderful things about myself.  I mean this in the most humble way possible.  Often we only focus on our problems, fears and shortcomings.  How many times have you thought today, "I am so wonderful! I am so beautiful! I am so smart!  I am such a great mother!  I got everything done today!"??    More often it is the opposite.  Trust me, I am no Positive Polly.  I have faults, my biggest by far is the ability to stay on target.  I am great at the starting gate and great at the finish line, but the middle of the race is my biggest weakness.  Why else would it take me months to start blogging again?  It is actually one reason that I took my kids cross country in the middle of Honey's deployment.  We all needed something to look forward to and something to get us over the hill, so we could see the end of our journey without Honey.  Sometimes (like with the deployment), you know that you will hit that roadblock and will need a kick to restart you in the right direction.  Other times you just can't anticipate what will come.  This is when good friends come in handy.  They are not afraid to tell you the truth.  I am so thankful for my friends who help me over that block in the road, without them I would be still staring at this computer screen wondering what to type.