For moms of boys

Barbara Curtis had a great post not long ago on Raising Boys. Since she's raised several of them, I thought she might be a good person to ask for book recommendations. I've been looking for books we could read aloud to Levi that would encourage the character traits we're trying to instill in him - things like bravery, chivalry, morality. These things seem to be somewhat out of fashion with children's authors these days. But Barbara did me one better and went straight to a real live boy (well, he used to be a boy!), her son Zach. His list of recommendations is really good and there are lots more in the comments section, so be sure to check that out too.

Raising boys is especially on my mind lately since we just discovered we'll soon have three to raise! I'm in awe of the trust God's placed in us, but also so humbled at just how impossible it would be without Him.

My BRAIN is lost!

After looking for three days, I finally thought to ask Casey if he had seen my steno book which I affectionately refer to as "my brain." I have a Homemaking Binder that stay at home, but my little steno book houses my (ever-growing) Master List - everything I need to remember to do. It's also where I keep shopping lists, books to check out of the library, notes form the books I'm reading....you get the idea. Casey asked when I had it last - at Walmart on Saturday - then he got that AHA! look followed immediately by the UH-OH! look. "I laid it on top of the car when we were buckling car seats. I must have left it up there." So my brain is somewhere between Walmart and home. Having done a lot (and I mean A LOT) of things like this in my life, I didn't give him a hard time. It won't be long before I lose or mess up something of his so hopefully I bought myself some brownie points:) I'm pretty sure I can recreate what I lost, but I am concerned about what kind of info might have been in that notebook. There weren't any last names or addresses or account numbers, but much of what I had written down was not intended for public consumption. There were several pages of notes on a book written for postpartum women, for example. Imagine the notes on leakage, engorgement and getting back into the *swing* of things. Someone out there (oh, Dear Lord, let it be someone I don't know!) is getting a good laugh.

What a rough week

I'm finally at the halfway mark! This pregnancy has certainly had some ups and downs so far. I had a reprieve from the usual non-stop nausea for the first two months, but it's been steadily getting worse - last week was the worst yet! But I am finally keeping most fluids down (as long as it's not tea) and some food so that's really helping. The Braxton Hicks contractions, which started at week 15, have been quite painful and frequent. I wound up at the doctor's office yesterday just to make sure they were, in fact, Braxton Hick contractions and nothing else. I was so thankful for a perscription that I can take at home to stop them. I was really worried that a hospital stay would be in my immediate future. But, good news, the baby is just fine and dandy in there:) I have a sonogram scheduled for Friday and we're really hoping to be able to tell if we're expecting a girl or a boy. I will be thrilled either way, but I can't wait to know!

Also this week, my brother got some worrisome news. It's not something I'm able to talk about, but I would really appreciate your prayers for him. And for me - I'm having a very hard time not worrying about him.

We're having some issues at church, too. I'm not even sure how to explain it. I love this church and the people are very much family for us. But there seems to be a cloud hanging over us - that loving feeling is gone (almost). Part of me feels like this is similar to a marriage that is going through a rough patch and that we should hang in there and work it out. But part of me wants to call it quits!

All in all not my best week. This one has got to get better right? RIGHT?!

Time for some spring cleaning in the parenting department...

It's time for hubby and I to have to figure out a new plan for Levi. Boy, the oldest child really is kind of a guinea pig, huh? We've been cooped up all week since he and Jack are sick and between him feeling bad and cabin fever, I've had a chance to see a lot of behaviour "issues" that just have to go. I've been out of sorts this pregnancy and not sticking to our usual schedule. Plus there's been a considerable amount of...crankiness, let's call it...going around our house. So I know he's reacting to all that, but I'm at the end of my rope. It's time for a new plan!

Woman, why do you weep?

But Mary stood outside of the tomb, weeping. And as she wept, she stooped down into the tomb.
And she saw two angels in white sitting there, the one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
And they said to her, Woman, why do you weep? She said to them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.
And when she had said this, she turned backward and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her, Woman, why do you weep? Whom do you seek? Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, Sir, if you have carried Him away from here, tell me where you have laid Him and I will take Him away.
Jesus said to her, Mary! She turned herself and said to Him, Rabboni! (which is to say, Master!) (John 20:11-16)


We have had the most wonderful Easter season. The Easter tree, passover communion at church, watching a passion play at a local church...our attention has been so focused on Christ this year and I am so grateful! So grateful that I am not even moping over the fact that the kiddies were to sick to go to church this morning! Even with having to miss church, this Easter has been so incredibly much better than last year!

The passion play we went to Friday night was truly wonderful. I did forget my tissues, though, when in actuality I needed a roll of paper towels! We also watched The Passion of the Christ on Saturday. I try to watch it every year -it's such an incredible reminder of all He suffered for me. But this year both the play and the movie left me with a slightly unfinished feeling until I realized what was missing - the most important part! The true Easter story is the story of the empty tomb! I don't mean that the road to the cross isn't important, it certainly is! But the heart of the story is that He arose! Can we imagine the grief Mary must have felt at the tomb - her teacher, her Savior, not only dead but tortured and hung on a cross? And now to find His body gone? But then to see for herself that HE AROSE! That He WAS and IS CHRIST the KING, SON of GOD! That's joy we should know well! I hope you're all having an incredible Easter and basking in His love!

What kind of example am I setting here....

Note the baby face down on the kitchen floor! Sheesh!

At my house last week....

The morning sickness continues. I spent a lot of time on the couch as the piles of stuff (laundry, dishes, toys, books, etc) grew taller and taller. I did get a few bursts of energy so I was able to keep things...well, not exactly under control, but good enough so the health department isn't stopping by.
We're really enjoying our Easter tree ornaments, which wound up having to be hung on my artificial ficus since the pollen has been so horrible that I didn't dare bring flowering branches inside like I originally planned. I love the way it makes us stop to focus on HIM. We've never really celebrated the Easter season before - it's always just been a long weekend of Easter traditions. I really like spending more time to focus on it.
We had a surprise birthday party for my Granny this week - she turned 70! It was a huge success because a) everyone had a ball and b) my kids behaved. Brenna did have a few rough minutes at the beginning - she has some shyness issues that we're working on - but she was cheerful and friendly for the rest of the evening. Also, someone brought the best potato salad I have ever tasted. I was so glad to be able to eat!
Teeball season is off to quite a start. Levi is on a team with five and six year olds so he's one of the youngest and he's having a great time. Me, not so much. The coach is pretty strict about his schedule and the rules (practice three times a week, ya'll! And two of those practices are two hours each!) which I am trying to appreciate. I actually want Levi to have some structure and get used to an authority besides mom and dad. That being said...I'm having a hard time biting my tongue about a couple of things - certain kids are getting away with really bad behavior and poor sportsmanship and there is a lot of focus on how *skilled* the kids are (or aren't), which I think is ridiculous for 5 & 6 year olds. The mother bear in me is definitely growling a little:) But Casey is helping out at every practice and game and Levi is really enjoying himself, so... I guess I'll take a wait and see approach for now.
I did a good bit of clothes shopping for the kids at the Kid's Karosel sale. Since we don't have a used clothing store in town anymore (we do have the Salvation Army, but that's it), a woman in town has started a nice business for herself holding two big kid's clothing sales a year. It works great, you drop off anything you want to sell, set your own prices and get 70% of what it sells for. The last day of the sale is half price on (almost) everything. And there is a big pre-sale for all the consignors. This year I went to the pre-sale and made out like a bandit. I had always waited for the half-priced day, but at the pre-sale I realized that all of the best priced stuff goes first so I actually did better shopping then. Of course I still went back on the last day - who can resist half off? Levi has tons of clothes from all his older cousins and Jack has all of Levi's hand-me-downs, but not all of them are the right size for the season. So I filled in Jack's spring and summer wardrobe and essentially bought all of Brenna's. Levi did get a few brand new polo style shirts for church for $1 each! Brenna got lots of dresses, one with hand smocking across the front. All in all I spent less than $40 for all three kids and I made $48 on the stuff I sold:)
Now, to jump into this week. Only I don't feel like jumping. Maybe I'll ease a toe into this week and see how it goes:)

I sure don't post much, do I?

I have lots of very good excuses like nausea, exhaustion, lots of busy littles...things like that:) But I'm definitely not ready to give up blogging. It's just too wonderful to have somewhere to share my (oh so brilliant!) thoughts. You know, when I'm alert enough to think anything beyond what I can feed the kids that won't make me throw up. Lovely, huh?

Speaking of nauseous...I read an article this morning that literally made me sick. One of the things I enjoy about reading my news instead of listening to it is that I can censor what I read. Ordinarily, I like to be well informed, even about bad news. But when my hormones are out of control, it doesn't take much at all to get me upset... a missing child can keep me up nights for a week. But this morning I read this article anyway. I'm so angry that I'm going to have trouble putting words together. At least twenty-three babies have died so far THIS YEAR in Germany and the only solution anyone is putting forth is to create more "drop off" locations so that mothers can legally abandon their babies. If a woman values her baby so little that she's willing to throw it out a ten story window do policy makers really think she's going to go through the trouble of taking it to a hospital and risk being caught? And make no mistake, these women don't value these babies. Why is that? Why are there mothers who think their own babies are mere trash to be thrown out? Because that's what society thinks. Because that's what abortion IS - tiny babies thrown out like trash. If it's all right to abort a baby, why wouldn't it be all right to wait a few months and do it yourself? We're teaching women and men that children are worthless unless they're wanted so why are we surprised when we find women who take this idea to it's natural conclusion. And what happens when a wanted baby is no longer wanted? When that adorable newborn turns into a six month old that won't let you put her down, a toddler that gets into everything, a teenager who talks back and stays out too late? Will we be surprised when mothers kill their older children because they've become too much trouble, because they want to pursue a career without being held back by motherhood, because their new boyfriend doesn't like kids? We like to think that women kill their children because of depression or mental illness, and that is the case sometimes, but society has to take our share of the blame here too. We encourage men and women to put their own desires first, to avoid having babies until they want them and even then not to let children get in the way of doing what we want. Germany's population (and the populations of every industrialized nation) is decreasing rapidly "because we value prosperity more than we value children" (that's a quote from this great sermon by Voddie Baucham). Society doesn't value children, why do we expect that individuals still will?
I'm *just* a stay at home mom without a fancy title or degree. But I can tell you what it's going to take to save these babies, to save Germany, to save every nation that's on the same path (including our own!). We will all have to believe what God says in His Word about children - that they are blessings directly from His hand. We will have to value being a wife and mother. We will have to teach our children (and ourselves) that there is honor in serving others, in laying down our own desires for the good of someone else. No other band aid solutions are going to work as long as continue to want our own way above all else.

Beginning our Easter Celebration

This is what we've been up to this morning - making ornaments for our Easter tree. I first read about an Easter tree in the book No Ordinary Home which is wonderful, btw. We are doing a simplified version this year (this isn't quite all of the ornaments - I was interrupted before I could finish the empty tomb and the marriage supper) and I hope to add in new stories every year until we're eventually doing a story a day all through Lent.
God has really blessed me this year as I've searched for ways to really teach my kids about Him. I've found wonderful ideas everywhere for traditions that really point us towards God - now it's just a matter of taking a few of them and making them personal for us. I'm so so SO excited about Easter this year - I hope y'all are, too!

Update on 101 in 1001

I finally got around to updating my list today. I was astonished at the number of things I've completed that need to be done again...the emergency diaper bag needs repacking, the kid's toys need thinning out again, etc. But it is a very good feeling to see things crossed off!
Red things are completed (for now anyway!)

Apr 17, 2003 - Jan 13, 2009
Homeschool
1. Pray about our home school goals
2. have a homeschool planning time
3. Get rid of unwanted hs materials
4. attend hs convention
5. join hslda
6. teach Levi to read (working on this!)
7. start having a regular school time
8. have a big “starting homeschool” day this fall
Health & Safety
9. buy and take a quality vitamin everyday
10. put together an emergency/disaster kit
11. put together a first aid kit
12. serve a raw vegetable or fruit with every meal
13. get a fire ladder and have a fire drill
14. do a detox after weaning Jack (ed. Do this after weaning baby #4)
15. drink only water for a week and see if I feel better
16. buy and try stevia instead of sugar
17. take Levi to the dentist
18. exercise 3x a week
19. use only nontoxic cleansers in the house
20. Lose 60 lbs ( I can’t believe I wrote down the number!)
21. go to bed and get up earlier
Homemaking
22. Hold a garage sale
23. Make a family tree and hang it up in the house
24. Decorate the playroom
25. Decorate Mbed and Bath – make it a retreat
26. Get rid of unwanted toys (ed. Did this before Christmas, but it needs doing again!)
27. Decorate the kids’ rooms
28. Fence in the yard
29. clean out my closet and get rid of all the clothes I don’t wear
30. get a new kitchen table and chairs
31. paint scripture on walls
32. complete my black and white picture frame of all our family
33. decorate patio
34. invite people over for supper at least 1x every other month
35. organize storage room to hold outgrown kids’ clothing
36. learn how to make really good biscuits
37. learn how to make a great 14 layer cake
38. have Christmas presents made or bought and wrapped before Dec 1st
39. learn to cook cabbage the way Casey likes
40. put together a list of a months worth of well-liked meals
41. create and follow a workable cleaning schedule
42. make silhouettes of each of the kids to hang up
43. establish a chore chart for kids and use it
44. keep meals in the freezer to take to people in need
45. pack an emergency diaper bag for the trunk
46. read or get rid of all unread books
47. Reorganize all my books
48. make a price book for groceries & household stuff
49. grow an herb garden
50. try once a month cooking
51. Pay off all debt except house
Family
52. sign Levi up for scouts
53. make Easter more meaningful – establish more traditions
54. take the kids to the zoo in Atlanta
55. take the kids to the aquarium in Atlanta
56. swim w/ kids
57. Start Brenna’s pearl necklace
58. Take the kids to the beach
59. Verbally praise more than verbally correct
60. teach kids good manners
61. Have a pajama ice cream run
62. Invite Bet to stay with us over the summer
63. be at Bethany’s high school graduation
64. plan fun things with nieces and nephews
65. start a playgroup in our neighborhood
66. get a playhouse for Brenna
67. have a traditional picnic with Casey and kids
Church Family
68. Encourage someone at church every week
69. Weekly praise a child that’s not my own
70. start a church library
71. go to ladies retreat at least once
72. have a cookie decorating party for the kids at church
Personal
73. build a basic wardrobe
74. take better care of my skin
75. get teeth whitened
76. buy and wear really good makeup
77. get a cool shorter hairstyle
78. Take care of my nails
Spiritual
79. Memorize 3 scriptures per week for a month
80. Pray faithfully for family, church family and friends
81. Finish reading through the Bible
82. establish a daily Bible and prayer time and keep it consistently
Casey
83. pray with Casey every day
84. Pray for Casey daily (use POAPW)
85. plan an overnight getaway for me and Casey
Service
86. be an active prayer partner for a volunteer at the pregnancy center
87. find a way to volunteer at the pregnancy center
88. make shoeboxes at Christmas for the Christmas Child Project
89. sponsor a child
90. grow my hair to donate to Locks of Love
Misc.
91. invite another woman over once every other month
92. get to know some neighbors
93. make a will and have it notorized (or whatever to make it official)
94. get a bigger vehicle
95. finish “baby” quilts for all three kids
96. learn more about the Old testament laws/ traditions
97. write something and submit it to be published
98. Write a letter explaining our “quiverfull” philosophy
99. write 1 letter a month to friends or family
100. Don’t check email on weekends
101. Catch up on scrapbooks

Just two years left to finish this! :-)

When you ask God to send you some wisdom...

you better be prepared to do some reading:) I've had quite a rough few weeks what with the hormones and all, but after I spent some serious time praying (uh, begging) for some answers over the weekend guess what I woke up to find today! Three wonderful women writing just what I needed to hear! I'm going to link specific posts at Dawn's, Amy's and Holly's but be sure to look all around because there is A LOT of GREAT stuff!

an update

Levi, Brenna, and Jack are tickled to announce that the
will be visiting us this fall!

I haven't had much time to post these days

but I am still around:) I want you to head over to Dawn's as soon as you can. She is really speaking to all of us swamped mommies and you'll be sooooo glad you grabbed a cup of coffee (or coke!) and listened in for a bit!

Fall Reading List

Anyone remember this post from way back in ...October? I thought I'd finally get around to a little update. Finally.
1.. Seeking Him: Experiencing the Joy of Personal Revival
Our ladies group is still going to read this one but probably not until February. We started a new study at church that has a pretty good amount of daily reading and so the pastor suggested putting this study off to give our full attention to the one the whole church is doing. I'm just not a read one book at a time kind of girl, though, so I'm still glancing ahead in this one. It just looks too good to keep putting off:)
2. Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling
I had this one read already when I posted last time, but I'm still going to talk about it a little bit. I think it's the best commentary on the public school system that I've ever read. It really addresses the basics that we're teaching our kids in school - not neccessarily the planned curriculumm, but what they're really learning. It really is well worth the time to read.
3. Teaching the trivium: Christian homeschooling in a classical style
I've got to admit that I wasn't so crazy about this book for me right now. It was just a little too much. It's laid out like a here's how (and why) to homeschool your kids for at least the next twelve years. And while that might be really helpful for some people, it's just not me to let someone else make all the plans:) Now I would like to have it on the shelf as a reference I think. And the author's probably didn't intend for it to be followed to the letter, but my brain just wasn't able to wrap around all that information right now - and yes that does say more about me than the book:)
4. Making Brothers and Sisters Best Friends
I still haven't gotten to read this one, even though it's probably the one I was most looking forward to. This is one of my main areas of concern right now so I really have to get this ordered. My three actually get along pretty well except for Brenna squealing every. single. time Jack crawls over to her dollhouse, but since we aren't shipping anyone off for a couple of hours a day it is pretty important to me that everyone plays nice.
5. Crunchy Cons: How Birkenstocked Burkeans, gun-loving organic gardeners, evangelical free-range farmers, hip homeschooling mamas, right-wing nature lovers,
I mentioned before that I really liked this one. I've found myself thinking and talking a lot about this book since I read it. I really feel like God's changing my view point about a lot of things that I never would've thought about before. Especially things like what we spend money on and the way I tend to hoard things. "Well, we might need it one day" is turning into "God blessed us with this, let's see who He'd like us to bless" and " He provided this one, if we need another, He'll provide it too." A very good book.
6. How to Be a Budget Fashionista: The Ultimate Guide to Looking Fabulous for Less
I got this one for Christmas and still haven't had time to crack it open:) But I do want to look fabulous, so it's going next to my reading chair.
7. The Fat Flush Plan
I really liked this book. The diet deals with a lot of the specific problems I have losing weight and I definitly think I could stick with it, but for now I'm just going to be incorporating a lot of very healthy eating into my life. I am keeping up with a few of the suggestions like adding flax oil, lemon juice in water, etc Those were things I had already started that seem to be making a big difference.
8. Small Beginnings
I love this book! I love Barbara Curtis! This book is chock-full of great ideas for toddlers and preschoolers. And she really has a very unique (in this day and age, anyway) view of kids, encouraging moms not to get frustrated with their littles but see things from their point of view instead. She also talks about taking advantage of "sensitive periods" in a little child's life to teach them things (or set them up for things) like independance, order, kindness. It's a great book.
9.Girl Talk Mother-Daughter Conversations on Biblical Womanhood
I'm just about half way through this one and so far it's really good. More on it when I'm finished, but it looks like a great book for a mother-daughter Bible study.
Well, that's the fall books...now that it's January. I really enjoyed making a goal instead of just randomly picking books off the shelf, so I think I'll do this again for winter or spring. I'd love to hear what y'all are reading - I'm always up for suggestions!

Jack's 1st Birthday!

Jack had a busy day full of ups and downs. Presents, he liked....

Taking his birthday picture on the front steps....not so much.

A bad day that could've been so much worse

I got some bad news at the doctor today about Jack. He is developing fine as far as milestones and motor skills, but he is too, too small. Not quite 15 lbs at a year. With all of his relux and allergies, he just has not been able to gain weight. SO his doctor and I talked and talked about various ways to plump him up and, while she's very nice, I left feeling guilty and scared and like the world's worst mother.
But that was actually not even the worst thing to happen to me today, because Jack can be helped. With meds and a very determined mommy, he will gain some weight! No the worst thing that happened to me today didn't really happen to me at all. I was a witness to a horrible wreck. Sitting at a red-light, just me and Jack in the car, I watched and did nothing as several people were severely, if not fatally, injured. I watched as an expedition flipped over and landed ON the car next to me. Many people were on hand to help and I stayed until I filled out a report and was sure there was nothing I could do to help. I prayed. I don't know if I've ever felt as helpless as I did today.
And yet I have so much to thank God for tonight. I'm thankful that I could pray for the people in those cars. I'm thankful that the ambulance and police were there almost instantly. I'm thankful that we were not hurt, that Levi and Brenna weren't with me to witness the accident. I'm thankful that Jack has a doctor to go to and that we can buy medicine to help him. Lord, I am so grateful that it wasn't us in that wreck and I pray that you will be with those who were.

Here are some pictures from our Chritsmas. This is the wonderful chaos at my Grandma's on Christmas Eve. The kids were all much too busy opening all. those. presents. to turn around and face the camera:)
Brenna got a princess chest full of dress up clothes from her Granny. Here they are taking off her boring old tennis shoes to put on "sparky shoes."

Here is Levi with his new guitar - that's right a real guitar just like Daddy's (only smaller, of course!). This was his first lesson, but doesn't he look like he's been playing forever:)

This is Jack with my great-neice (hard to believe I'm old enough to have a great-neice!), Raeley. Isn't she precious? She's three months old and nearly as big as Jack already!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and are getting started on a great new year. I'm almost out from under the pile of toys!

Our Christmas Letter

Merry Christmas! I hope this finds you all having a wonderful and peace-filled holiday! We have had quite a year and can’t wait to spend a few weeks reflecting on it and enjoying all our blessings.

Jack started our year off with a bang by making his grand entrance into the world three and a half weeks early and catching his mommy quite unprepared. I guess I’ve just gotten so used to being late with everything:) He’s such a sweetheart, though, that we just can’t imagined how we ever got by without him.

Brenna is our little princess. I am loving all the hair bows, playing dress up, and baby dolls that go along with having a little girl who is two and a half. She is such a little doll herself, although being a princess does come with a certain amount of attitude. We’re working on that!

Levi turns five this month. One day this fall he reached up in church and put his hand on my shoulder - he’s really turning into quite a little man. He played weeball this year and had such a great time. Actually we all had a great time. It must be the Warnock in us!

We started home(pre)schooling this fall. Lots of field trips like this one to the pumpkin patch. So far we’re having a great time and learning a lot! I can’t tell y’all how much I have loved being at home this year!

Casey is still working hard, but he always makes time to hang out with us and he’s teaching a Sunday School class that he really enjoys. He and the kids especially love wrestling before bedtime!

I hope you’re all enjoying the holidays with your family and counting all your blessings! Merry Christmas!

Focusing Christmas

The kids and I are having a great time using our Adornaments this Christmas. They were a Christmas gift last year from my Uncle Curtis - and an answer to prayer. We all know how crazy Christmas can get and last year I was desperate for a way to stop all that. I wanted to teach my kids what Christmas (and Easter!) is really about and I had no idea how to do that. But my Father has spent all year answering that prayer and, though I imagine this is a lesson I'll be learning for a long time, this Christmas is already so much more meaningful than last year.
One thing I'm doing with the kids is hanging one adornament each day and reading the story that goes along with it. These are little cardboard "book" ornaments that each tell one of the Names of Christ. The kids love them and I love that we have a time everyday to stop and focus on Christ at Christmas. These are really pretty and come in a boardbook that looks very nice out on a table next to the tree displaying the ornaments to come and storing them neatly(big-time important at my house!) :) And Amazon has a new set for around $10 including shipping. A great deal if you ask me!

My boy is FIVE!

He's grown so much from just a year ago!


How can he be five already? It's going by to fast:(