I have been thinking alot lately about my one daughter.  I just don’t want to mess her up!  I have really tried to be a good example of a loving, doting, respectful wife, but I haven’t done a very good job of being a very patient mother….sigh.

With her sixth birthday coming up, I have really realized that my baby girl is growing up.  I really miss her little antics.  She is getting so tall and grown up.  I am trying to make the time to read girly books and have tea parties with her,   I really want to start cooking and baking with her, and would love to have some time to do some sewing, crafts, and handiwork with her.  Is she still too young yet for that?

Any advice out there would be very welcome!

I am thinking about a way to keep myself current with my blog.  I know there are several different ways that people do days, but I was thinking about doing a mixture of those and my own.  Here is what I am thinking:

Moody Monday – My emotional state of mind…that could be dangerous
"Tell It Like It Is" Tuesday – What my life is like.  There are so many aspects to this!
Whistful Wednesday – dreams and ideas
Thankful Thursday – I have so much to be thankful for!
Freebie or Frugal Friday – I have so much to give away.

Anyway, just a thought.  I guess I will start with "Tell It Like It Is" Tuesday, although it is already Wednesday for many of you!

I lived without a bathroom sink for 6 years!  When we moved into the house that we are building ourselves, I didn’t even have a kitchen sink.  That weekend, we put the kitchen counter and sink into the house.  I had lived with my in-laws for over a year, and was ready to have my own space, so while my dear husband was gone, I moved the kids and I in.  We used that two-bowl sink for everything: washing hands, brushing teeth, doing the dishes, drinks of water, watering plants, watering the dog, and even baths for the babies as we didn’t have a bathtub for 6 months either!  It really wasn’t a big deal to us, but it was to everyone else!  We got so many comments from people about why we should have a sink in the bathroom.  Hey, I had running water in the house, a flushing toilet, and one working sink!  What was the problem?

Well, this weekend, we were having a big bonfire party at our house and afterward one of the big families in our church was going to spend the night with us so they could go to church the next day as they live 2 hours away.  My dear sweet husband decided it was time for us to have a sink in the bathroom.  Down to Lowe’s we went, and picked out a vanity, sink, and even a matching medicine cabinet!  He spent the whole afternoon and into the evening getting it all put together and working without any leaks.

I have to admit that it looks so pretty in there!  AND, it is SO nice to take a shower, dry off, and BRUSH MY TEETH in the bathroom!  My dear hubbie can also now shower and shave in the same room!  I have to admit that it is pretty cool to have a bathroom sink, but don’t tell my critics.

Here is the latest picture of our darling baby boy! Isn’t he the cutest!?  He is such a little love bug.  He loves to smile and cuddle.  His brothers and sister give him plenty of opportunity to do so!  He is slightly built, but really long.  I think he is taking after my side of  the family.  He looks a lot like his Uncle Fred.

Ben and Aaron are both on the swim team, Ivan and Naomi are both doing gymnastics, and Micah is still our little tough guy!

We are living in the basement of the house now.  We have a lot of painting to do upstairs, and most of the patch work is done.  Paul (our carpenter/drywall man) still has to do the kitchen area, but he has to wait until we get the new kitchen window in, as we are making it smaller to allow for more cabinets.  The new windows upstairs are supposed to be put in on Tuesday next week, so we will see if dh is able to get the old window out and the framing all done this weekend.  Dh is  going to try to get all of the old windows out and put down Ice and Water shield before the new windows get installed to make it much better and more sealed.

Dh, Timmy and I, are going to Seattle this week as well!  Dh has to go for work, so  his ticket and hotel are all paid, and we had a companion ticket that was just about to expire, so I get to go along for practically nothing!  I told dh that I just want to sit in the hotel room and read and sleep!  I haven’t figured out what else to do, but I am sure I can pass the time while dh is working.  Then we will have the evenings to do things together. I am looking forward to four days away.  Three kids are going to a church friends house, and two are going to visit dh’s parents.

Tonight: I’m taking Naomi to a local scrapbooking store to make a cute little paper bag craft
Friday: Swimming for older boys, a suprise birthday party to attend in Anchorage
Saturday: Dh will work on windows, I will pack everyone, and we have an NRA dinner at 6pm.
Sunday: Family breakfast (we have church in the afternoon), church, take two kids to in-laws.
Monday: Take three kids to a friend’s and we leave for Seattle, Paul textures the upstairs
Tuesday: Upstairs windows get installed, tile in the bathrooms and panty gets laid (dh is going to do the wood flooring in the rest of the house, but figured we would leave the tiling to professionals.
Wednesday: 2nd day of tiling (it’s supposed to be finished today)
Thursday: We get home late, pick up three kids, go home.
Friday: Go to in-laws to pick up other two kids, swimming for older boys, Family Fun night with church families.

Now you know why I never have time to write on my blog!  HAHA!  I have missed writing though, and am hoping to get back into a regular habit of it.  My computer is still down, but I have plenty of access to the kids computer now.

God bless, and I have hearing from everyone!

Smilin' baby T!

I took this picture of my sweetie this afternoon on the couch.  He was so happy, I couldn't resist grabbing the camera.  Hope you all are having a great November! 

We are possibly moving back into the house on Thanksgiving weekend, provided my BIL can get the boiler running and the plumbing all hooked back up this weekend.  We plan to move into the upstairs while they finish up the entryway and downstairs, and then move downstairs so they can put the in-floor heating in upstairs.  Also, the windows are ordered and are supposed to be here in the middle of December.

I organized a big workparty for my husband for his birthday last weekend, and the people in the church, three of my brothers, and a BIL all got the whole basement, entryway, and shed insulated, put blocking up in the entryway, moved the front door into the new doorway, moved the final beam out of the basement and got steps on the front and down into the basement!

Several girls from the chuch, my mom, and my MIL all helped me clean up the upstairs, standing up bookcases and the school cabinet, putting books back on shelves, and generally making it mostly livable again.  There was only so much we could do without water and septic!   Oh, and we fed everyone chili burgers, chips, and cookies.  It was a long day, but VERY productive!

Well, a friend of mine had her baby this morning, we are back into the swing of swimming lessons again after a two week break, I was verbally assaulted in the laundry room here at the hotel in front of three of my children, and we are having a major wind storm right now.  Other than that, it is pretty much life as usual here.

We have been keeping ourselves busy while in town by spending every afternoon at the local swimming pool.  The four older children have been taking swimming lessons for the last month.  B, A, and N all have had their last classes, and I's last class is today.  B, A, and N all graduated from their classes, and will be moving on to the next level in November!  They have never had any swimming instruction apart from my husband and I, and I put B and A into a Level 3 class to start.  They passed with flying colors, and are moving onto Level 4 next month!  They both would like to join the swim team, which practices 2-3 times a week for an hour as well as participates in some competitions.

B, my oldest, also wants to learn how to become a lifeguard, and break all of the speed swimming records!  This is the first kind of physical activity that he has really shown an interest in, so it is pretty exciting.  Although I guess he did get excited about riding his bike a few years ago when his dad was following the Tour de France.  He had it in his head that he was going to be the next Lance Armstrong.  The boy sure dreams big!  There's nothing wrong with that, right?  Gee, I wonder where he gets that, dear?

Wanted to let those of you who are still checking up on us that we are still alive!  Between being a teacher to 4 grade levels, a mom, and a general contractor, I have been sitting at the local swimming pool every afternoon as the four older children have been taking swimming lessons, and of course their lessons couldn't possibly be on the same days!  I have three kids in lessons on M, T, and Th, and then one child in lessons on W and F, so we arre there 5 days a week!  They are all enjoying the lessons though, and learning a lot.

The house project is going pretty well.  We are still waiting for the final financing to go through though.  We are plenty qualified, it just seems like there is always “one more thing” that needs to be done.  The entry way is all built and the interior walls are framed in.  My sweet hubbie is meeting with the plumber and the siding man today, and I am having a final meeting (hopefully) with the kitchen designer this afternoon after swimming lessons.

Baby T is doing really well.  He is really begining to fill out.  He is so cute!  He is starting to smile every once in a while, when he feels like it.  Unlike many babies, he is so used to noise, that he sleeps better when the kids are around   which is a good thing in this little apartment.

My little girl is going to turn 5 in just over a week!  I can't believe it.  I guess I better get some presents ordered!  She is such a great big sister to T and loves to burp and hold him.

Some days I think I am going to go insane though.  The smallness of the apartment isn't the problem though.  It is the fact that the kids can't just go outside to play.  There is no where for them to play, besides the parking lot and the gravel area where people take their animals…yuck!  The pool helps, but evenings are pretty much taken up either by running out to the property (which means 40 minutes in the car that is now too small for us) or hanging out in the apartment.  There is nothing decent on the TV in the evenings, so trying to keep the kids busy without driving hubbie and I nuts is challenging.  We will be so glad this project is over in so many ways!

Better go…gotta get the kids to lessons….