Our "Mat Man"

For homeschooling today we continued our focus on anatomy. We've been randomly talking about body features (rated G) throughout our routine. Cat anatomy is fun as we catch a run-by "volunteer" (who forgives easily with a few treats).

After completing our lessons on M (we took Friday off), we jumped into our "Mat Man" activity. Now I totally robbed this idea from Handwriting Without Tears so don't give me any of the credit for the idea. I didn't think they'd mind since I already bought something from them and they post their lessons online for the taking. But instead of buying their "Mat Man" parts and books, I used two bottle caps (different sizes for distinguishing two different parts), cut outs of Rachael's hands and feet (better than this, especially since they don't include feet and we had fun tracing), and "hair" made from the scraps of cloth diaper fleece - Holler! It took me about 5 minutes on the sewing machine to make up my "hair" so that it'll survive at least two more kids and now belong in the "Mat Man" bag of body parts. hehe. I also used my own $.29 (from Hobby Lobby) rubber foam rectangle (better than this price) for the body and used my previously cut out letter pieces for the outlines.  I also made eyes from leftover pieces of poster board foam after making the traced and cut out letter pieces that we use in our introduction to letters. (A cheaper version of this while still purchasing this from the company.)

Here's our "Mat Man":

I first started out by putting him together myself, as Rachael and I referenced to features that belong on a body. Then we took our magnifying glass and used it as a pointer/inspector of specific body parts, labeling them on ourselves as we labeled them on "Mat Man".

 "the nose"

"the neck"

We also labeled them on Abi of course! And did you catch that from the above picture that Abi took the initiative of labeling herself amidst our lesson [byproduct of an engaged listener =) ].


Then I took "Matt Man" apart and had Rachael rebuild him, identifying all of his parts.

She had also traced/cut out her own hands and Abi's feet (hard to keep your own feet flat while tracing, plus we like to include Abi wherever we can) on black paper and used them on her version of "Mat Man" before we pasted them to a paper and decorated them with leftover Easter stickers. =)

Abi made herself ready to join Rachael "at" school this morning. -->

 

Tongue helps for concentration. ;)

I chose, for the sake of Rachael's previous anatomy knowledge, to divide the arm into two sections, highlighting the elbow (an open space on "Mat Man") in between and showing how our arms could bend either direction due to the elbow. I did likewise with the legs and then had Rachael identify upper and lower arms and legs. She was just a bit ready for a slightly more detailed look at anatomy than a single representation of the arm or leg as one piece. To expand upon this lesson in the future, we will bring "Mat Man" back out and enjoy positioning "Mat Man" in various positions due to his elbows and knees providing motion. This way we can also talk about needing energy for motion (beginning science) and how food processed through the digestive track allows for the making of energy - thus enabling us to run and jump and move, etc. We've just barely introduced this topic at current, only emphasizing that many things inside help us to sleep, eat, drink, breathe and move.

Rachael has also begun to have casual conversation identifying what things are and are not "alive" and why/how we know that. We have identified eating, breathing, drinking, and sleeping as indicators of life at this point (we're not into photosynthesis or bacterial life yet - wink,wink). It has been a fun game which also spurred on the unexpected thought from the three year old that "sometimes I pretend my dolls are alive, but they're not really," and how drawn objects and created things, like "Mat Man" are a symbol of being alive, but are not actually alive. She really kinda floored me with that line of analytical thought. So "Mat Man" has also been tied to using our imaginations and the distinction between real and pretend.

Rachael was very proud of her ability to create "Mat Man" (hense the initiative to "ta da!" in the picture) and clearly the wheels are turning about "alive" and "not alive" and how that relates to our daily life.

- Fun lesson indeed!

Bargains Arise!

I went to a local kid sale today at a nearby church. I had been thinking over our baby stash, cloth diaper stash and what things we truly wanted to get prior to Hannah's arrival. (Hannah - so nice to name her kicks and soon-to-be snuggles.) Having two girls 17 months apart can put some serious wear and tear on your baby items and has left some birth to potty training items in need of replacing.

I have found the easiest "large sale" shopping to be done for a newbie who has yet arrived due to every size being a viable option. This allows for me to pass over items that are "too high" in my personal price without the pushing need to go home with something for the child to wear/use "today."

So I have acquired the following things for a total of $28.

[Vibrating bouncer ($8 and CUTE), toddler shirt-bib, plastic toddler bib, plastic paint-smock bib, 2 receiving blankets (I see cloth wipes in the future), plastic-backed spit-up rag, 1 large namebrand cloth prefold diaper cover (Abi can wear now) [got it for $1 - resale price = $9], 1 medium cloth prefold diaper cover (got it for $1), 3 small namebrand cloth prefold diaper covers (visions of newborn to 4 month old Hannah in cloth) [avg. resale price per cover = $5-9. I got each one for $1-1.50], 5 plastic-backed bibs, 9 newborn-3 month bibs, 3 changing pad cloths (easy blow-out clean-up), and two 2T cloth pull-ups (for when Abi's ready to start learning).]


All for TWENTY-EIGHT DOLLARS, people. And this wipes out half of our "we'd like to get before we bring Hannah home" list.

- Enough to bring a smile to anyone's face on a rainy-thunderstorm day. =D

Teaching Responsibility

We had a great time time last Thursday having a little practical lesson on responsibility. After the girls woke up from their naps, we took advantage of that fresh recharging of energy to work on a house chore together. This is one house chore that usually gets overlooked because, quite honestly, I just don't think actively about it.

So since utter delight can be found in nearly every activity when you are 3 and nearly 2 years old, we all dropped to our knees and enjoyed us some wonderful kitchen floor ice skating.

The girls primarily just played, slopping suds about. But they did have some very nice scrubbing moments  as well while I washed up the floor. They enjoyed the opportunity to "help Mommy" and take responsibility for caring for the house with me. We talked about how everyone uses the kitchen and enjoys eating the food that is in the kitchen, therefore it's nice for everyone to help in keeping it clean. Such joy and delight came from the accomplishment of the shining floor with a united cheer and we all had a very fun time with some water/bubble play. Rachael provided a soundtrack to our cleaning (she's quite the songwriter) and Abi even took on the liberty of washing her legs, my little over-achiever. ;)

So with a shine, thus ends another fun lesson in responsibility and being family helpers.

The Verdict Is In....

Thank you, first and foremost for those of you who enjoyed playing the baby gender guessing game. It was fun and I really appreciate all your excitement about baby.

Well after our ultrasound the verdict is in...


We will be welcoming to our household,

making our duo a trio:

HANNAH JOY!!!

=D

And we couldn't be more thrilled.

So for those of you keeping tabs: Matt was right! And the joke lives on that "he only makes girls."


Hannah is healthy, strong little girl measuring at 21 weeks. She has a wonderfully steady heartbeat at 153 beats per minute and is quite the mover (she's kicking as I type this)- making our ultrasound pictures a bit on the blurry side. I was sure not to eat this time so as to give her any extra jitters, but she is just a busy little girl. =) Which is a WONDERFUL thing for us all to experience! And everything in there looks great and on track and healthy. Thank You, Lord, for the blessing!

For those of you who remember, Rachael wanted a boy. And while she repeated her requests a few times at the Dr. office, once she realized that we can't dress a boy in pink, she was 100% in favor of having a Hannah added to our family. She is now naming her dolls Hannah, with an occasional Elijah Joel in there, despite the focus being on Hannah.



We're looking forward to our little ladies trio maker coming to theaters in early September 2012.


I really can't stop smiling and I don't plan to. =D

Anatomy

We took the opportunity to have some fun with our anatomy lesson yesterday. I got a few basic anatomy kid-friendly books from the library (one is a baby book identifying baby parts, but functional and the other two are more advanced anatomy). Not expecting Rachael to grasp the full knowledge of the respiratory and circulatory system, despite the nice pictures =), I just wanted her to be introduced to the fact that a bunch of different stuff inside of us helps us to move and function. I think she might have walked away from the lesson with that - and a billion questions. hehe.

So then I came up with the fun idea of cutting body parts out of a magazine to make our own people (not as gruesome as it just sounded in that sentence). It was a fun project to prepare, wondering what creations would come out of the pieces. We worked together scaling through features of the face or body and talking about where they were placed (me primarily helping with spacial positioning to allow for additional features on the page since Rachael doesn't really have any spacial concept yet). And this is what we created:

Since we picked each feature independent of the others I found the varying leg sizes fun as well as the large mismatched ears and small hair. =)

 Rachael identified the child on the left to be a "boy face" (actually a girl's) and "girlie short hair" (actually a boy's) which I found quite entertaining between the boy shirt and big girlie skirt. =)

We had a heck of a lot of fun. =)

Wordless Wednesday: Our Commute

 

- So Rachael. -

P.S. Shoes and helmet required for non-front-walkway play. ;)

For Newbee

I made two newborn prefold diapers today thanks to some old towel pieces and flannel sheets (thanks again, Rachel). It's nice to use things here, donating about an hour to figuring out what I was doing (woot!) and about a half hour to forty minutes (if I had to change to bobbin) a piece to each diaper following. Planning on just adding about 6-12 newbee diapers to the stash with maybe only the cost of thread (if I run out). From what I've researched it's helpful to have a few tiny diapers for the freshie stage up until about 2-3 months when they can go into more "normal" sizes. Abi was gracious to play nicely on the floor to the hum of the sewing machine (after waking up early from nap). 

 One is layered 2x4x2 (I) and the other is 4x6x4 (II). 

My old doll from childhood modeling. 

With the assistance of Abi. =) 

I'll probably make more of the 4x6x4 or a 2x6x2 combo since the middle thickness is the real hero in the pottying story.

 

- Kind of exciting to slowly start the "get ready for baby" preparations. 

 - If we find out on Friday that we're having a boy, he'll be relieving himself in flower-print prefolds. hehe. I don't think he'll care and it's what I have to work with. Eh! Baby'll just be sleeping through newbee life anyway. And we could find some cute neutral covers to help him out if he's a he. ;)

39 Months

We took an opportunity to do homeschooling today. We don't usually do it on a Saturday, but the Littlest was sick Monday and we were all seeking a day of rest. Since I like to try to do three days of homeschooling per week, we did not do homeschooling on Friday, and Daddy is away on a youth trip this weekend, I figured Saturday was as good as any.

We took the opportunity to do some review. We have been going through an alphabet series of one letter, upper and lower case, per week. Since Rachael is 39 months, I am not expecting her to be able to freehand lower case letters yet (that is a more advanced skill since a lot of those letters have less defined lines [approximately Kindergarten aged]). But in our series (that I'm making up with the help for a few preschool/pre-Kindergarten workbooks I got at the dollar store and a teacher supply store [whoppin' dollar fifty] and the rest I improv based on state standards for what a child should know to enter Kindergarten), she is expected to trace and attempt to freehand all the capital letters in the alphabet, as well as identify the lower case letters. We have gone from A to L thus far and are in week eleven of the series. I anticipate another 12 weeks of letter introductions to occur (we'll combine some familiar letters in one week) and then have a review week or two before starting our "formal" Pre-K curriculum. I have been using the resources through the Answers In Genesis curriculum packet to introduce various topics to Rachael so the curriculum will not be completely foreign when we start doing a more structured preschooling. And the alphabet flashcards and 8'11" display resources along with tracing marks have proven helpful for the past series.

I've also been using what we refer to as "word pieces" to introduce the letters to Rachael as she has developed her fine motor skills in tracing and, ultimately, writing. These "word pieces" help to introduce the letters in segments, or strokes, and better help her organize the concept of writing the letter. She has really enjoyed the puzzle-like quality and handful of activities on the backs of the mats to aid in the letter's introduction. While I did not pay for the wooden pieces (they were a bit pricey), but simply traced my sister in law's pieces and cut them out of foam board, I did purchase the laminated alphabet pages and have used them for an introduction and reintroduction (should it be needed) of the letters at the start of each week.  I just couldn't justify spending $53+ for an introduction material, even if I am planning on using it for all the kids in our household. The upfront cost when on a budget was a bit extreme. But not wanting to break copyright codes, I planned on just purchasing the sheets and then measuring the size of the "wood pieces" until my sister in law decided to purchase the wooden pieces and therefore I could measure the size from the wooden pieces themselves. So between the two of us, she really helped me out to make that product fit our budget and homeschooling needs. We're just careful not to beat up our "word pieces" as we should be respectful and kind to all our supplies. I may very well actually buy the wood pieces here down the line, but not this year with our tight budget.

I have also used various storybooks, Rachael's tag (not tag Jr.) reader system (A Christmas gift secondhand for $8.50 plus two books and then added other books via Christmas wish lists and sales racks), library books, and written sentences/words for the purpose of letter identification to begin to introduce the concept of decoding words. I've checked out "Teach Your Child to Read in 110 Easy Lessons" from the library and am hoping to start that with Rachael as well when we begin her "formal" pre-K curriculum. Since I have modeled my created lesson plans from the curriculum we are going to use for Rachael's "formal" pre-K, it should be a more natural transition into increased listening/interaction time. We have been averaging an hour to an hour and a half of preschool three times a week. The curriculum we will begin is a 1.5 to 2 hour 4-5 day a week curriculum that is more holistic in skill and themed. Since Rachael has been exposed to many of the resources, saving the more advanced ones of course to use in the actual curriculum, the compilation of the resources should not overwhelm her. The curriculum in itself is for 180 days and since we are schooling year-round (at least for now) we are in no rush to take any quick pace. Rachael will begin her pre-K curriculum at the ripe age of 3.5. And if you've met her or held a conversation with her, I think you'll understand why so "soon."

So back to my original point of this post (though the previous explanations are quite beneficial in understanding how we came about this fruit). I had Rachael do some review today and I wanted to share her work with you all. Much of this work she completed independently while I fixed lunch, did house chores and put Abi down for a nap. I popped in for occasional instruction and to see how she was fairing. But without further delay, I give you Rachael's A-L work.

 [My writing: circle of third C and notation where Rachael corrected her own form. Penned third D during explanation to Rachael of the side that the curved part of the D was supposed to be on - she wrote it backward (not a big deal, but still wanting her to see the difference).]

 [My writing: Rachael's self-correction of the second F after drawing the first circled line, she explained that she adjusted the line over to fit the F better.]

I'd say it's going well.

I'm VERY proud of her. She really worked HARD on this review and applied herself with great concentration, asking questions about letter formation where she had forgotten.


Once again, the child is only 39 months. =)

- Go Rachael!!!

Nap Ringlets

Just had some fun and applied some slight gel to nap ringlets.

Apparently I wasn't the only one having fun. =)

It Overflows.

I sat in the quiet, drinking in the rest. Overhearing the nursery fan on the baby monitor which blended in well with the ceiling fan's rotation behind me. The quiet hum of the dryer, spinning my latest load of diapers. The sight of the other diapers dancing on the clothes line in the backyard sun through my peripherals. Silence filling the house. Rest.

I prayed throughout my project. Painting rubber cement on a blank index. Thank You, Lord for this rest. Bonding a blank index to the former. Thank You, Lord, for Esther's heart. Squaring the corners. In stepping up with Your passion inside her to share the Word. Picking up a magnet and painting on rubber cement. Thank you for the hearts of Will and Theresa. Strokes of the brush. How they are giving it all daily for Your Kingdom. Pressing the magnet to the cards. Please breathe into them rest... peace. 

A smile crept on my lips at the thoughts and prayers for Emmanuel - his growing heart in the Lord. And Ayuba's willingness to serve. Those beautiful faces. Beautiful people. Almost as a lullaby did my soul sing it's thankfulness. King of kings.... Lord of lords... I remembered the Psalm I read just this morning.

Spinning of the fans. The persistently light humming of the dryer. Thank You, Lord for this rest. 


My cup is full...

Instant thought of the list of names to be written on these new magnets. Those dedicating themselves unto the Lord and those that have yet to meet Him. Those I have the privilege to pray for.

In utero dancing.

it overflows...

Wordless Wednesday: Helping

Rachael and Abi got Abi dressed last Friday.

 [Shirt says: "Beary Cute"]

Then Mommy helped.

The Cute Newbee

I'm posting this for my friend, Jess. ... Because I know that it will give her a delight in cloth diapering cuteness.

This is our cute newbee to the stash.

For a whoppin' $5 (and free shipping) from Alvababy.

To get my stash to about 30 (maybe a few less) in prep for the new baby, I am just adding in one of these per month (or every other) from my allowance money til I hit "about" 30. I like the "snapping over" feature for itty bitty and the versatility of the one-sized, pocket diaper. And the print..... =D


- Thanks for sharing this moment with me. =)

A Favorite

As a mom of two book-lovers, I am often brought a stack of books and asked to "read the book, please?" And for those of you who have read books for a while to your kids there are the favorites and the ones you wish they didn't like so much. =)

This one I love so and am always happy to see amongst the stack. So I thought I'd share it with you all, so you could share in the joy of the "Wrapping Paper Romp." We gave this one to Abi at her first Christmas when she was prime-subject to her own Wrapping Paper Romp.

So without further delay, I give you a favorite of ours - or at least mine.

 "Wrapping Paper Romp by Patricia Hubbell. Pictures by Jennifer Plecas.

 Baby's got a present, a present in a box. It's time to do the wrapping paper, wrapping paper romp.

 Crinkle it, Wrinkle it. Wear it for a crown. Listen to the paper snap. Flap it up and down.

 Lift the lid up off the box. What is that inside? Tissue paper, tissue paper, hold it up and hide. 

 Play a little peek-a-boo. Tear. Tear. Tear. Hear the paper rustle. Pat it on your hair. 

 What's beneath the tissue paper? What does Baby see? A family of teddy bears- One, two... THREE!

 Fling the teddies on the floor. What has Baby found? Another piece of tissue paper! Wave it all around.

 Look at all the paper. Look who's in the box. It's fun to do the wrapping paper, wrapping paper romp!

"The End."

- Hope you enjoyed. =)

Pushing Myself and Rising to the Challenge

Well, as I posted on facebook earlier this morning, I came across a family blog, Raising Olives, which talks, among other things, about homeschooling. I love the way the family uses the Word as a basis and a foundation of homeschooling, so of course my ears were perked at the posts. In reading the argument and finding a few new ideas, I have been doing some research over the past few days and putting some serious thought into homeschooling.

But no, worries, people this post will not be all about homeschooling. ;) Don't abandon me now, just hang with me a second.

It was from scrolling through the site a bit that I began to wonder the very question most homeschoolers of more than one child wonder - how the heck am I to balance it all and really teach each of my kids without neglecting the other.

While some curriculum is written as a wholistic study for the whole family- LOVE- there are the nitty gritty's of individual grade requirements that still do not vanish. While we all could be participating in the history lesson, for example, a five year old processes the lesson on a much different level than a 3 year old and therefore has a different outcome expectation.

This is true with all life, but I'm not going to go there.

I started thinking about the dishes stacking up, the laundry taking over and the other repercussions of a full day of homeschooling and being 110% for each kid on our house and schedules. Then I came across the post on putting your family on a schedule. Does this sound so Type A Personality? So of course it perked my ears. ;)

The concept was to think about the things each family member (women, don't schedule your husbands - not a good relationship helper) needs to get done during the day and would like to get done during the day. Then allot a time period for each thing, realistically, and think through the schedule requirements (ex. nap time, family time, breakfast time, dinner time). Hmmm. This sounded interesting.

So I started with me and made a list of the things I want/need to get done during the day. I came up with about 5 hours worth of stuff to get done between 6:30a and 4pm (when Matt gets home). That's 5 hours worth of stuff to do in 9.5 hours of time. And why am I falling behind sometimes? Intentionality. So this week I've stopped making excuses and been intentional about my time. I've found that some days tasks take longer (reflects on Abi's needy day and it's repercussions on my workload) but most days I find I have less to do when I have done the workload from yesterday. And I've also come across this weird thing called.... clustered free time. What is that to a Mother, you ask? Freedom! I find if I work hard in the mornings that I feel accomplished and like a contribution to my family - let alone coming across this free time stuff. Huh! Who would have thought actually applying Proverbs 31 would get you such nice results? (Hits head).

Through this intentionality I realized I have strayed away from our adventure missions reading routine. When Abi was littler, I used to rock her to sleep in the rocking chair before Rachael and Abi's nap times, thus allowing a good half hour of reading to the girls daily. As Abi has grown out of the rocking phase I struggled to find a good time to read to the girls beyond picture books. Missing my adventure mission novels, I struggled to put them in during random outside sandbox play and various other times, going for weeks without picking up the book and finding the need to keep renewing the book from the library. Well, sitting down and thinking about it earlier this week, I came up with this idea: post-lunch quiet table play = adventure missions reading audience.

Abi had made it a habit to play in her crib for at least 40 minutes post lunch after I put her to bed, thus keeping up Rachael as well. After 40 minutes, Abi would process lunch, need a diaper change and then go to bed. So, since we were all going to be up anyway, I came up with the idea of table play coupled with missions reading. And I am happy to report IT WORKS!!!

So each day after lunch the girls play quietly (as quietly as a three year old - you'd be impressed- and a 21 month old can play) while listening to me read two chapters. I've been impressed at the training opportunity to play quietly and contently by themselves for a half hour. The first day was a bit rough; puzzle pieces hitting the ground, Abi's constant talking and constant reminders of the need for quiet (not silent) play, my peripheral vision becoming quite distracting while trying to keep solo play going. But the next day got better. And then better. And here we are on Friday, with minimal distractions and the majority of the 30 minutes of quiet play being just that.... quiet. I really am impressed with the girls!

It was about a year ago that I first heard of this idea from a homeschooling, missions-minded Mom of like a bajillion kids (8) who made a missions presentation at the Orphan Seminar that Matt and I attended. We were fresh into the "looking into adoption" group and thought a conference with Sara Groves (come on people) would be a nice "weekend away" for Matt and I to pray and think and pray about the whole prospect. While in the breakout session, the Mom handed practical ideas on how to incorporate missions into your family's everyday life, many of which we have enjoyed catering to our family's heart for missions. She mentioned while homeschooling her children (aged tiny to teenager) she had a specific reading time established daily in which everyone gathered in the living room and listened to her read various mission accounts for TWO HOURS!!! I was utterly shocked that her smallest of small kids would sit there and play quietly for such time (though she never once alluded to not having to stop for a break or two so I'm not sure if the two hours was in rapid succession or two or three chunks of time throughout the day). But still, I was impressed. And slightly bewildered.

"It takes training," was my next thought.

Now while I feel in no way a need to compete or model our family missions love after the exact model of her household, clear expectation and realistic quiet play for busy hands has been such a blessing in my personal reading life, as I have mentioned above. And while at almost 2 and 3 years old they are only retaining handfuls of information (if anything at all some days), it is all in training for the priority, self-discipline and gradual worldview of God's heart for the lost and dying world.


So as we continue to tweak parts of our schedule and I continue to evaluate and pray through my own contribution and service of my family through my daily schedule (which is subject to flexibility as always), we have seemed to find a good spot for adventure missions readings to be incorporated back into our daily lives. And for that alone in this revamping, I am VERY grateful. =)

***For those of you interested, we are currently reading Amy Carmichael in the Christian Heroes: Then and Now series written by husband and wife team Geoff and Janet Benge. We get borrow them for free from our local library and have enjoyed this husband/wife team's creativity in taking the biographies of "the big missionaries" in the faith and writing them into a 6th grade friendly adventure novel charting that missionary's life and work. I have learned so much and look forward to continuing to incorporate these 22 out of 38 novels available free form the library into our lives in the present and future. We've already read five of these novels and found great joy in their pages. I am seeing visions of book reports in my children's future. They also have unit study books available for these novels.  ;)

April 13th

Alivia,

Today would have been your birthday. Funny how Goga and I laughed about the fact that it was a Friday the 13th. I'm not superstitious. It was just another day.

Though we never got to hold you in our arms, I will never forget this day.

Alivia, I wish I could have seen your face, smiled at your little grunts... your soft skin... your beautiful eyes.
I wish I could have delighted in your tiny fingers... swaddled tightly your fragile arms until you felt safe and secure enough to drift off to sleep.

I still don't know fully why we didn't get to keep you. I know sin in our world finds it's playground. I just wish it hadn't brought about death. But you have met the Creator of Life, in one lost heartbeat you appeared at His throne. Fragile and naive of deep hurts, you found yourself with Jesus. He will care for you far better than we could.

Eleven weeks and three days in utero. We were going to announce you to all our friends, family, and the church at 12 weeks. You only had eleven weeks and three days in utero. The world may not count you as a baby, but there was no doubt in my mind. I saw your little hands. Those little feet. Your little heartbeat. Your closed eyes. Nothing can convince me that you were just some glob of tissue. No, my baby, you were so alive.

God can and has worked all things for the good of those who love Him. He has and will continue to use this for His glory, my dear Alivia. For your life pointed and continues to point directly to Jesus. Hope is found in His eyes. How amazing to think that one so small - only an inch or so big, could so clearly point to the Ruler of the World, without ever speaking a word or taking a breath.

Alivia, I missed you when my friend announced her pregnancy. I felt a little pinch of hurt. I missed you when I held my friend's newest bundle of joy. I miss you when I look into your big sister Rachael and Abi's eyes sometimes, catching that glimpse of utter joy I hoped to see in your eyes.

I miss that I will never get to hold you in my arms, or watch your character grow... your personality form... and discovery and mastery and accomplishment light your eyes. I miss that I will not get the privilege to call you mine and announce, "That's my girl!" I miss that I will never get to delight in how you play with your sisters, running through the house with glee.

Alivia, Daddy and I used to joke that you had to have been a girl because "he only makes girls." We laughed that he defied the "Stauffer" odds of having boys by having two girls in a row. We don't even know for sure if you were a girl, but what we do know is that you had as good of a chance as any.

It took me a month before I spoke your name. The shock of it all is still so real sometimes. Daddy agreed shortly thereafter that it just fit right... Alivia. And of course Mommy had to spell it "a little funny" to fit in with the rest of the kids. Alivia. My precious.

We miss you. We love you. And you are not forgotten.

Some day we hope to see you, if we get the privilege. And if we don't get the privilege, sweet girl, just know that there was a family down here that was just thrilled at the chance to love you and hold you, but Jesus made the best of the situation... as I am sure you are well aware. And we too hope to feel Him and know Him fully to be our faith's sight someday.

Praise Him all the more up there, sweet Alivia.

He deserves it all.

- Your Mommy.


*** Written October 2011.

Survivor: Toddler Style

It started out as a great little adventure. The children had visited the playground, saw the farm animals and were beginning to settle in after their lunch. We were out with the cousins at a local park when we decided, "Sure, let's walk a short trail before we head on home."

The trail was littered with a few old carnival items, remnants of bliss hundreds of years ago. So with our plotted map of distractions, we set out.

I'd like to take a moment to list the items we left for our walk with because they will matter as the story goes on.

First of all, there were 7.5 of us going out on this adventure. Five children were age almost 5 down to Abi, 21 months. Then there was pregnant me, bell pepper baby and my sister in law, Ellen. Ellen and I have laughed about "mating season" because out of her three children, my two nephews are each 3 weeks older than Rachael and Abi. So that put pregnant me, bell pepper baby, Ellen, five years old, two three year olds and two a-few-month-shy-of-two one year olds. Ellen brought a single umbrella stroller for Josiah (her youngest) and two water bottles. I brought the diaper bag, two sippies and a water bottle, and our single running stroller (which I now love even more than the first day we were so graciously given it).

The walk began with a small melt-down via Rachael about her desire to hold the nap and the fact that we were getting close to nap time (sigh). But since the map's course was only a little over a half hour, I still decided that an adventure rubbing up against nap time would be okay for today. Rachael came around in two minutes of boundary confirmation and we were good again.

They all started off with a bounce in their steps, excluding Abi and Josiah who rode contently in their strollers.

Shortly into the trip we noticed that the path colors and indicators were not quite matching up with where the map said we were. But the colors still matched where the map said we were headed, so we went on cheerfully.

We found our first wreckage find, the base frame of two old cable cars. Great excitement erupted form the group of "pretty easy to entertain" kids. And with a few cute pictures of smiling faces we marched on to our next discovery.

 A little ways up the road split with pink and orange branching off and purple and orange going on ahead. We stopped to check the posted map provided by the park at the fork. The sun had faded that map into uselessness. So out came Rachael's map again and we came to the realization that we had been on the very part of the trail we were hoping to avoid. We then plotted "the best way back" route while still seeing a few more remnants along the way. Feeling confident in our ability to entertain and have a realistic walking distance for three small and seatless preschoolers, we went on to the orange and purple pathway.

Then a hill came - taking a lot of the wind from the children's sails. We struggled to find a nearby stream, some purple flowers and a big hollow tree to distract them into their second wind.

We found the remnant of a push car at the top of our shaded forest trek in just the nick of time as the children were quickly losing the joy of the walk. Feet were getting heavy, nap time was upon us and the walk was turning into a bit more than desired or planned. Rachael asked to ride in the stroller, so I set her in the jogging stroller straddling the front fixed wheel, thankful for the wheel shield providing the security away from the entrapment of the rotating wheel. Abi was unfazed. But Ellen was in a different predicament, poor thing, with only one seat in the umbrella stroller and three kids wanting to ride. She did what any resourceful Mom does and stacked two in the seat while one walked.

We then hit a second fork in the road, at this point our adult joy was beginning to reach it's peak. The path again split, this time both paths were labeled with the same colors. Back to the map - only this time it was a guessing game. Should we go left straight up the crazy big hill and risk taking an extra detour? Should we go right over the pretty-straight path and hope it was not a facade for the longer path. I chose right. My back and shoulders liked the idea of the non-hilled version. And I hoped I was right.

Shortly after we were faced with a second fork in the road with both paths marked with the same colors. This time the choice was made for us - one of the paths had a log across it and non of us desired to lift 5 kids, two strollers and ourselves over that log, no matter how do-able it could be. I was grateful later to have avoided the straight up-hill path and the log path because we later found out that they were connected to a loop and were the same path. Thanks, Lord, for sparing us.

At this point we looked at the map again and took a stab that going back would actually be further than going forward, though at this point forward appeared to be a bit more unknown.

We continued on.

Then the path started getting rocky with dried clumps of dirt that proved hard for an umbrella stroller loaded down with "completely done" kids. Rachael and Abi had abandoned their socks by then and resided to riding/balancing (dear Rachael) in the stroller for the rest of the trip. Abi started to get fussy since at this time it was PAST nap time (sweet), so I busted an extra park guide from the stroller tote and introduced it to her as a book. Her spirits instantly changed and she began reading the book aloud to us.

As time and heat and spirits decreased from the overall group, I started walking ahead of the group with my girls in hopes to shout back good news as we came across new signs. Hard thing was... we weren't coming across new signs. We were just lost. On a trail. In the woods. With a map. And five nap-time kids. And draining water rations. .... hmmm.

There came a point in which we just had to suck it up - I mean what really are you going to do? We certainly weren't camping there and stopping wasn't helping. Ellen, poor thing, alternated from carrying Josiah on her hip and the two older kids riding in the stroller to all of them walking while she trudged over a rocky spot to two walking and one riding to two riding and one walking. You do what you can to keep the "obviously so done" herd moving.

There was hope when we hit the road and the map FINALLY lined up with the trail markers. Pep returned to our steps a bit when we saw the "small" stretch before us to the parking lot and our "so glad to see you" cars. Small felt long at times, with fatigue starting to set in for the whole group, but my girls began singing songs to their maps/park guides and I tried to stay ahead to call back signs of hope. Alas we hit the parking lot's edge.... 45 minutes later than desired. That made the total trek to be an hour and a half.

I don't even think we made it out of the parking lot before Abi was out cold - such hard work riding in a stroller. And the girls slept long and hard in their beds when we got home. Ellen's kids perked up with a packet of crackers rationed out in the car. And our adventure ended with a hug and a "never again" smile.

I called Matt on our way ojt of the park and announced in my most desperately wild voice possible, "We were lost in the woods, baby.... LOST! (dramatic pause) but we found our way out... and no one needed a tourniquet.... or medical attention.... (dramatic labored breathing)." To which came the reply, "Ok, good, honey.. I'm glad to hear that... would you mind sharing more when I get home, I'm in staff meeting." I snapped back, "Oh yeah, sure. No prob. Sorry to bug ya, babe." "It's okay. See ya in a few hours. Love you." hehehe. My bad. =)

Honestly, despite getting lost in the woods... and the hills.... and the tired kids... and the shortage of water... I really enjoyed the afternoon. The walk was nice in many spots. And I'm proud of my girls for holding it together when we all knew there was nothing we could do to change the circumstances.

And I'd probably do the walk again... just not before nap... and not with limited water rations... and not without a double jogging stroller.... and a strong husband to trade off on pushing. ;)

Actually, I think our 2 mile walks recently have conditioned us all to enjoy the outdoors more, even if we have to exercise. They proved good training for today's episode of survivor!

- I'll sleep well tonight.

Wordless Wednesday: Remembering Summer

It's cold so today I'm remembering summer heat and fun. On Wordless Wednesdays for now on words will be less, but not completely cut out and pictures will be the primary blog entry. I thought this a fun way to share some of our pictures on a pretty regular basis - even if (in today's post) they are from the mission trip LAST summer. [This is the most typing you will see ever in Wordless Wednesday posts, most will just be a word or two below a picture.]

"Mine." 

("Don't mess")

 Joys of a playful grandma.

Daddy. 

(Enough said.)

Independent adventure bliss.

Sunshine.

(Post ice cream.)

Diamonds

So I had a friend email me asking the average cost of a child per month in her and her husband's attempts to have her stay home for at least the first year of her daughter's life.

It got me thinking about budgeting and things small tips I would include in a "ways to stay home and stay on budget to best benefit your family," guide.

Since Matt and I have been perfecting this skill for over two years now, feel free to laugh at my newbee-ness to this whole concept. But there are certainly some seriously wonderful diamonds in the rough that I have found along the way.


Babies:

1. Cloth diapering verses disposable diapering budgets
2. Basic essentials - though I'd add a good baby carrier to the list, you know one of those ones that straps baby onto you so you can carry on with life and supply their need to be snuggled. And i never had a Bumbo seat, despite the hype, and my kids don't have flat heads nor were they socially deprived. ;)
3. Hit up those $15 for all-you-can-fit-in-a-bag sales that come in the Spring and Fall at Once Upon a Child. We fit almost $250 of clothes into a bag for $15 (onesies can roll up to smalled than a toothbrush size).
4. Check out Kidz Again if there's one in your area. They have clothes for kids up to 12 years old for cheaper than Once Upon a Child and even match together outfits for your "the baby is screaming and we have to leave the store right now" moments for as cheap as $2. Their toy selection is also wonderful (we found a $40 reading system and 2 $10 books for $8.50 all together).
5. Check out the Thrift Stores (like Valley Thrift or Goodwill) and you'll be surprised how "my kids don't look like we shopped at the Thrift store" your kids will look wearing their second-hand name brand clothes. 
6. Check out freebies for new moms and new-again moms offered through Similac (for those of you that are going formula for feeding) and other companies. Many of the companies will mail you a "sample" of their formula which is a regular sized container in hopes to hook you on their brand.
7. Breastfeeding is free-er than formula (just saying) so give it a good shot if you can. =)
8. Second-hand is a WONDERFUL addition to any child's wardrobe, especially for play clothes.  

Budgets:

1. Don't be afraid to set up a budget of what you need, be serious, and then add on a little "play money". 
2. We have "allowance money" each month to spend on whatever we'd like and it makes budgeting our other funds realistic.
3. Always include a date night fund - unless you ABSOLUTELY cannot. Even i it's $5 for a movie once/month and then you have free date nights in between. But by setting aside a date night fund you are placing it as a priority to invest in your spouse. Free date nights can include walking around the mall, going to a local park, walking the neighborhood, a movie night in, etc. Be creative and just try to be "just us" to keep things sane. =)

Food:

1. Happy Homemaker Cindy does the couponing and store ads work for you (compiling multiple sites and researching all the large grocery store chains weekly). She even has a section on her site with bulk cooking recipes and meal plans to help drive the cost of each meal down. She has practical and useful tips as well in grocery store management and budgeting well in the food category. (You will need access to a printer and paper to print specific coupons so count that and time into the cost of couponing.)
2. Make a list - and force yourself to only buy what's on the list (And don't bring a pen in to write more things on the list while shopping - that's cheating).
3. Don't grocery shop hungry or with a cranky baby if it can be avoided. Take the time needed to really weight the cost and do the math.
4. If your name brand picky know what areas matter and what areas don't. Ex. Toothpaste may be a "hill to die on" but applesauce may not matter. And some things really are better name branded because they last longer and are the one with the versatile features you really want.
5. Set up a monthly meal plan and then only buy accordingly instead of buying weekly and having to run out and buy the extra sides you forgot. 
6. Planning is most of the battle.
7. Think about bulk cooking - it can save time on weeknights that you would otherwise be spending in a drive through line, wasting your money on overly-priced-but-nutritious foods, or cheap-in-nutrition-and-price foods.

Children:

1. Seriously consider child labor - just kidding! Only testing to see if you're still paying attention. 
2. They don't know the difference between name brand and non-name brand until they are exposed to the need for name branded toys and characters (usually television over other kids). If you promote a one-character only toy explosion you will find yourself replacing more toys when the fad is over and the child has moved on to something else. We have found great joy in our "built to last" generic toys while finding the balance of adding on a few specific characters only as the phase continues. For example, buying a child's clothing line in Dora wear is only as helpful and frugal (if the character print shirt was indeed cheaper) as the phase is long.
3. Some toy name brands are indeed better and worth looking for - but don't settle for one store's price. Look for the item on sale or better yet - at a garage sale or craigslist. Being willing to wait for the quality item to be in your price range will save hundreds over last minute "we have to have this tomorrow" buys. 
4. Again, planning is most of the battle.

General Expenses:

1. Creativity and resourcefulness are very helpful in keeping your cost of living down. Check out "how to" videos on youtube or google search to see if there are ways you can make or practically substitute household tasks/organization/products. I'm not talking about using tree bark only in substitution for soap, but I am saying there are many practical and cheap methods to fixing problems verses buying an expensive organizer or product. Ex. Concentrated lemon juice ($0.89 a bottle) and sunning on the laundry line helps get those "impossible to get out" stains from clothes instead of buying a new shirt or buying an expensive stain remover product. 
2. Where there is a will, there's a way. And there's also a whole lot of people out there with good ideas on how to "cut the corners" of "must have" expenses without cutting on quality and end-product. 
3. There are also a lot of really bad and "much more expensive" ideas out there too, so be sure to check out how other people are rating the idea before putting all your eggs in one basket. 
4. The local library - a HUGE resource bank and financial friend with movies (not just the old or dumb ones), CD's, audiotapes, and of course books. 
5. Redbox your movies over expensive rentals. 
6. Netflix is quite nice allowing an $8 a month subscription with many local kids show episodes (excluding Disney for the bottom line subscription), great documentaries, and all kinds of movies. Plus, no commercials means the kids are less encouraged to be "I need that" oriented.
7. Bunny Ears (Rabbit Ears) on a TV allow for basic channels without paying to watch TV.
8. Less TV = more activity and free outdoor play. (I've found monitoring TV also cuts down on whining and neediness due to encouraging creativity and self-entertainment, let alone the family perks of doing fun things together).
9. Check out a local site for free/cheap entertainment. In our area, activedayton is a great site to research local events with price listings and kid-friendly vs. non-kid friendly listings.

Again, where there is a will there's a way.

Seek budget-friendly advice, cheap and fun entertainment, and look at value of experiences and products for duration and durability and lasting memories. When you start weighing the value in things, it allows you to invest in those things with the most lasting joy for all family members.

It's about being intentional with your budget to serve your family the best you can with thankfulness for all you have been given.

- Hope this was helpful in some way to you.

And please, please, do share your tid-bits of wisdom with me in the comments section. I always love learning new tricks of the trade. ;)

A Dream

I had a dream last night, really it was this morning. And it left me woken earlier than usual. Many times pregnancy dreams are so crazy and so random. But this one stayed on the emotional side and less on the "Alice in Wonderland" type weirdness.

This one was about me returning to a high school reunion. Ironically those who returned were signing up for a weekend camp-like experience where we were to "get in touch with each other and ourselves." This concept entertains me when taken into a secular cause like it was in my dream as if "getting to know ourselves better" (much selfishness) should be the focus of our world. It's helpful to know those areas that you are prone to weakness for sure, but not that you would correct them or be able to make your own status strong, but that when you surrender yourself to Jesus you would especially rely on Him to guide you through those areas.

So in my dream we all sat in an old library. I looked around and saw a mixture of faces that I honestly haven't thought about or remembered since high school and some that I have recently heard about via facebook. It was funny to feel the dynamics of high school again - the "who's popular" and the "who's labeled what in what crowds". Petty... unrealistic... and surreal look at how society works in "the real world." And it was funny, much how you slip into fulfilling a role in your family when you all get together, I felt myself feeling once again like a stranger in my own "hometown" like I did in high school.

I think, ironically, many of us felt like strangers and aliens and wallflowers in that awkward phase of adolescence. We could have played the "to be liked" card or the "fake confidence in myself" card or the "mostly assured in myself" card. But it's funny to look back on how much of me grew so much deeper and more assured in my faith post high school. So much so that as I stood up to introduce myself, after all the popular people were asked first (recess team picking in more advanced terms), in my dream, I hardly knew where to start.

In our introductions we were asked to say a few things about ourselves and then pick a theme song for our lives. Only the popular people in the room were told in advance how the schedule would go so they were prepared. The first song that popped into my head was "In Christ Alone"

the lyrics

It was the only song that made most sense to me then and now at how to describe the overall theme of my life. Glad my subconscious didn't pick some crazy disco tune or something. hehe. You never know what happens in dreams sometimes.


Then after announcing my theme song I was overwhelmed with how I could possibly explain who I was. A pastor's wife... a lover of my Matt - my best friend... a Mom of two wonderful children, Rachael and Abi, and one on the way... blessed beyond measure... striving after Christ to apply the Word and live it daily (sometimes better than other times due to still needing much work, but pushing forward toward His prize).... a homeschooling Mom who believes education begins with Jesus... a cloth diapering fool because I will go to no limits in serving my family the best I can give - even when it's hard work sometimes... a boaster in Jesus... a broken vessel poured out on the mission field, whether it's in my backyard or across the oceans... lost and found in Jesus....

How can I possibly summarize who I am and how I have changed from the self-centered, immature but well-meaning Christianity I displayed to you all in high school? It's like the blinders have come off... the scales have fallen from my eyes and my heart has broken so in the compassion of our Father for the truly lost, dying and piteous world that so desperately needs laborers for the harvest.

And it's my hearts cry, whether it be here or there or anywhere, to yell from the pit of my toes, laying it all out, "Here am I!!!! Pick me, Lord!!!" as He rallies His troops to send them in Christ's Name. Oh that He counts me worthy... me?!... is beyond anything I can possibly express to you all...

And then I woke up.


- Grateful for the reminder.