Hodgepodge

Tonight I think hodgepodge is a good word for the way I feel. My dear friend Barb left today. She was with us for 12 days and my mother-in-law was here the week before that. It's been such a blessing to have an extra person here with me. I miss my friend already. And then I look at my countdown and see that my best friend will be with me again in just 35 days! That is so exciting for me. March had better go by quickly!
It's crazy but even with another person in the house it has still been difficult with the kiddos lately. I think in my own head everything seems bigger than it is and so I don't think I handle the little issues the way I might have a year ago. Some moments I feel like the end of a piece of yarn that is all frayed and pulled apart and other times my heart is filled with joy and I feel like it's going to be okay.
In fact, even though my friend left today it was a wonderful day. Mr. Mike from church came and picked up Joshua after school and took him on a mountain top adventure. Joshua couldn't stop talking about all their adventures tonight and I know this will be a day he will remember. I held back the tears when Joshua said, "Mr. Mike loves me." And the best part about it is that throughout their adventure they were talking about God. I can't express how thankful I am for people like Mr. Mike who are willing to invest in my son's heritage.
On top of that two other friends came over this evening with all their bike tools and fixed 6 flat bike tires that we acquired recently. It seems like not a big deal...but it's huge to me! It would have taken me hours to change all those tires, not to mention all the frustration I would have felt trying to get the wheels off, trying to keep the kiddos corralled. It would have been seriously not fun for me. I am surrounded by people who show their love for my family through service.
In short: I'm sad but I'm happy and I'm so very thankful. Thankful that God has protected my husband for all these months, thankful that God has provided me with a church family that has taken such good care of me and the kiddos, and thankful that it's almost over.

Tent Rocks

Yesterday the big kids didn't have school so we decided to do something special, we went to Tent Rocks. It's these rocks that have been carved out of the mountains that are in the shape of tee pees. The drive was a little longer than we expected due to faulty directions on the internet. But we finally made it. We decided to do the longer hike to the top instead of the 1 mile loop...maybe we should have done the loop. It was rough on Josiah because he thought he could do it but there were many parts that I had to carry him, especially on the way down. This was no easy task. Carrying a 35 lb boy while trying to go down some steep areas was a challenge. But we made it and it was fun. Everyone loved the view at the top! It was quite breathtaking. I was very glad that I decided to invest in one of those kiddie harnesses (basically a leash) for Josiah because he was a little too eager to look down into the ravine from the top! I know guard rails would probably ruin the view but they would make this momma feel a little more safe up there. Regardless, we will definitely be taking Bob there when he gets home.

My friend Barb is visiting now and it's been great to have her here. The kiddos are having fun playing with her and I'm thankful for the extra set of hands and the company after the kiddos go to bed at night. After she leaves next week we only have 36 more days until Bob comes home...they can't go by quickly enough!!!

I know, I know...

It's been over a week since I posted. Sorry. It's been a weird week I guess. Now I can't really think of why but anyway I guess I just didn't feel like doing it. It's funny because there are usually several times during any given day that I think..."oh this would be a funny thing to blog about." But in the end most of those things slip my mind by 7:30 pm when the kiddos are finally asleep and I'm working on laundry or just trying to unwind. I think it was last Saturday that I was ready to put the kids to bed and it was only 4:30 in the afternoon. It was just one of those rough days that you just wish would come to an end.
I'm thankful though because Bob's mom is here this week and my friend Barb is coming on Friday and staying almost 2 weeks, so I'll have a buddy around for the rest of the month. It's good to have a fresh body in the house...someone who is excited about being with the kids and eager to play with them. I find that I get so caught up in everything that needs to get done that I don't have much time left for fun. And sometimes I'm just drained and it's just not fun. So it's good, good that we will have help for the next few weeks and then only a few weeks left to go!

Well, I hear little whispers, which means that there's a little mouse sneaking around the house who is supposed to be in bed. Gotta go!

Lispy

Well it finally happened...the last front tooth which has been hanging by a thread for weeks finally came out. We've all been trying to coax Abigail to let us wiggle it and she just screams. She wouldn't let anyone else try to get it out. When I picked her up from school on Thursday she had twisted it so it was hanging backwards and kind of sideways. It looked really weird and I wanted to take a picture of that but of course she played with it in the car and it came out before we got home. Now she's got that cute little lisp that comes when you have no front teeth. And as Joshua has pointed out, she can stick a straw through there and she doesn't even have to open her mouth. How FABULOUS! Now everyone's checking for loose teeth, even Josiah. Abigail is such a trend setter. :)

Not wanting to be outdone, Joshua shows off his special smile.