Finally feeling it again!!!

[I'm back]
So I guess you could say I've been a bit delinquent in my blogging for the last 3 months or so. For some reason I felt like I needed to disconnect from a lot of the electronics I'd been engaged in, and refocus my energy a bit on some other things. (I'm starting to call it my 'Summer Season' I just enjoyed my kids, tried to read and study more, and spend more time thinking. I love how we all experience different 'seasons' in our lives!!! Figuring that one little concept out has really effected my outlook on life.)

However, now I'm finally feeling it again, and I'm getting organized, working hard planning and cleaning, and getting really excited to get my family back on our wonderful schedule!!! I'm also super excited to start sharing my thoughts, feelings, and okay just the plain reality of how my life is going these days...which to be quite honest is a bit CRAZY!!! It's not really all that crazy overall, but my two and three year old little adorable girls are just a totally different dynamic than I've ever experienced before. I think its probably almost what twins would be like. Some days I think I'm starting to figure it out, but then sometimes I feel totally like a clueless mother and just can't figure out how to make them stop screaming at each other. All that being said, I'm happy to have this extremely small challenge in my life, and I am learning SO MUCH!!! Being a mother is such a blessing and I'm grateful every day for my sweet little family.


[BIG NEWS]
So the latest news in our family is that Meg was baptized on the 10th, and it was amazing!! She is such a wonderful girl and I can't believe how smart, mature, and spiritual she is. Megan was so excited to make the commitment to be baptized and has talked and thought a lot about it for the last few weeks. Today was her first activity day for the 8 and 9 year olds at our church and she was in heaven to be able to go hang out with her friends and learn a little too!!

Thriller

So basically I'm a dork, because I thought it would be funny to do Thriller at our Ward's Christmas Party Talent Show. Somehow I convinced my husband who NEVER dances in public to join in the fun. So embarrassing...so fun?! What can I say, I enjoyed it...

The Annual Cousin Photo Shoot!!

My sister Darby is an AMAZING photographer...which is super handy when it comes time to take our family photos. Today my sister Allison was in town (which is a rare occurrence since she thinks she should live in Utah with her hubby...go figure. I keep hoping one of these days she'll get him to realized Arizona is where its at!!). Sorry for the rambling, the point of that was that all the grand kids were together at last, and so of course it was time to take yet another family photo shoot.

With 13 grand kids in all, things can get a bit CRAZY when we try to get them all to sit and smile at the exact same moment. I have to say, my super photographing sister did an awesome job. She even edited them, and handed them out to us before we left my mom's house...she is AMAZING!!

So, thanks to Darby's mad editing skills, I get to share my cute kiddos photos the same day they were taken. I don't think I'm being to prejudice, when I say my six little kiddos are pretty much the cutest kids on Earth!!! Here they are youngest to oldest...

[Rebecca::1 year old] Becca is just about the cutest little thing ever. She's walking everywhere, climbing on everything, and starting to say words like 'hi' and 'night night.' It was kind of rough having two little ones a year and 5 days apart from each other, but now that I'm out of the little baby stage I'm so glad that Brea and Becca are so close to each other. Its going to be loads of fun having two little Irish twins to finish up our family.



[Brea:: 2 years old] Brea is such a fun, spunky little 'girly' girl. I often find Brea in her room changing her clothes or in the shoe closet trying on everyone's shoes. She loves to look cute, and enjoys having her hair done. Brea always likes to have an accessory to give her look more of a flair, like a fun hand bag, necklace, or bracelet. She is a mother to all the 'little kids' and today we found her trying to change Jack's diaper (who is only a few months younger than her and probably a inch or so taller than she is). She is a total HOOT!!



[Hyrum:: 4 years old] Hyrum is my little Ohio baby, with the cutest almond eyes you've ever seen. He has a super funny personality, a quick wit, and loves playing any type of sport. I'm impressed with his imagination, and his ability entertain himself for long periods of time. Hyrum is super happy, and great at listening to me when I ask him to do something. I just had to post two pictures of Hyrum one with big eyes and one with little eyes.


[Cooper:: 5 years old] Cooper is so kind and has such a gentle heart. He is always looking out for the younger kids and wants to make sure everyone feels loved and happy. As Cooper has a sensitive yet hilarious personality. He is always making our family crack up. I've been so impressed with how well Cooper remembers what is expected of him. WOW!!! He's been doing things like go to be the first time he's asked and clear his plate after a meal like clockwork lately. What a champ. Cooper is my cuddle bug and my Bob books series partner. Having Cooper officially join our 'homeschool' this year has been a treat!!



[Megan:: 7 years old] I don't know when it happened, but as I was looking at Megan's pictures tonight I felt like I was looking at this grown up little girl. Where did my baby Megan go?! Seriously...I'm not ready to have such a beautiful young women in my home, that I just know I'm going to have to keep the boys away from. What a knock out. Megan, is my...book worm! She is always willing to learn anything and everything. She's also recently become Nancy Drew's #1 fan!! We use car time as 'reading aloud time' and Nancy Drew is our first choice right now for car reading. Megan is also a natural born cleaner, and has even been able to get her brothers to get involved more with the daily cleaning. She's also a fabulous baby helper!! I am so lucky to have such a pretty and wonderful girl in my home.



[Jarom:: 10 years old] Jarom is TEN!!! I can't believe I'm old enough to have a 10 year old. Jarom often gets the brunt of things since he's the oldest and quite a bit older than the rest of the crew. However, he bares the burden well and usually doesn't even complain that he seems to have twice as many responsibilities as the rest of the littler ones. Jarom is an amazing all around helper...with his household chores, animal chores, school work, and is always willing to do what ever I need him to help me with. Its hard to believe that in only two years he's going to be a priesthood holder. Okay...I'm kind of hyperventilating. What a blessing it is to have Jarom in our family.

IMAX

Our family is seriously in love with IMAX and educational films. A month or so ago on a very hot Saturday afternoon our kids did a fantastic job doing their chores...so as a reward we surprised the kiddos and took them to see the Underwater Sea IMAX film. What a FABULOUS day we had as a family just enjoying eachother and hanging out. The best things in life are the simple things...don't you think?

Here is our glamorous family picture sporting our awesome 3D glasses. What a styling family!!

Share the LOVE....

Over the last few weeks, my kids have really been getting a kick out of a program on my iMac called Photo Booth. The computer has a built in camera, and allows the kids to distort their faces and make silly little movies. Seriously, its provided hours of hilarious fun for the whole family. Tonight we were having FHE at my mom's, and my family was in charge. Our Schnepf family theme for the year is 'Don't wait to be GREAT...' Each month we choose a different area to focus on. Like I said, it was my family's job to be in charge, and we were struggling to know what we should focus on this month, until yesterday. In between conference sessions we were letting the kids play around, and make some videos. Then much to my dismay, a fight broke out during the creation of a video. We decided for the month of October our theme would be 'Don't wait to be GREAT at being more patient and loving, and less easily provoked to anger.' We had a great conversation about it with the family, and Scott shared some thought from President Monson's Priesthood session talk regarding anger. What a great evening.

My sister Stacy requested that the 'anger' video we described at FHE be posted on my blog. She really wanted to see it so she could laugh at my family. I was happy to oblige as my family has some laughable thing happen most every day. What can you expect with six kiddos 9 and under. I am LOVING life even when the kids record themselves fighting...I hope you all enjoy.

On the move again...

{from stuck to slowly moving}
I think that is a good way of describing my week. On Monday I was STUCK!! Thank goodness the week got better. One of my huge issues on Monday was how unorganized I was which was effecting my ability to function as a mom, homeschooling mentor, cook, nurturer, etc...

I've actually known I needed to fix my unorganized home for a few weeks now, and last Monday I even checked out a book recommended my good friend Verena called Organizing from the Inside Out. I was about 40 pages into the book on Monday during the 'break down.' By Tuesday I was emotionally with it enough to start reading the book again, and today I finished!! WOO-HOO, and tackled my first problem area. The 'Kitchen Desk.' It has been a magnet for clutter...paper, books, mail, keys, anything brought in from the car, gum, CDs, whatever. It drove me crazy, not to mention I was always loosing my important mail and papers within its messy realm. So today I tackled it with a new set of skills and objectives thanks to this awesome book. I was able to get it done in a few hours and I feel so much better. I still have a few more finishing touches to put on the space, like getting a filing system figured out and assigning a home to a few more drawers, but it looks and feels so much better.

[Before]

[After]
The book suggested making your 'Household Information Center' pretty. So I added a plant and a cute picture thingy (which we already had). I also moved my calendar from my laundry room, where we never used it to the 'info center' so we could remember birthdays and scheduled events. So fun, So visible, So MUCH BETTER!!

**I also made a home for my keys and purse. I had these hooks in our other house and I loved having a place to hang my purse and keys. It feels so great to have a hook they can call home again!! Its in my laundry room (which is right by the back door) so its out of the way, but where I can always find them.


{Motivation works}

Last week I came to a situation with my kids where I could choose one of two paths. My kids were getting a little out of hand and it was time for a behavioral change to take place. In a rare moment enlightenment I decided to choose the path of positive motivation vs. negative discipline. I told the kids to hold on I had a surprise for them. I rushed into my kitchen and started racking my brain to find/create something I could use as a reward system. This three tier holder thingy caught my attention and I figured I could put something in the bottom section and allow the kids to move them to the center section when they did something positive and the kids could earn a reward. I couldn't find anything to use as chips so I ran to where we store our games and found Rummy Cube. In a rush I dumped all the tiles out into the bottom section ran back to the kids and explained the 'new system.' They were thrilled. We decided once all tiles were in the middle section we'd go to Cold Stone as a family, and then they could work on moving all the tiles to the top section which would result in a family trip to the ZOO. It really turned the day around and I am proud to report that yesterday we went to Cold Stone, and today Megan said, "I can't wait until we get to go to the ZOO." Positive motivation does work...even if you use Rummy Cube tiles and a random kitchen thingy.

{Burn baby burn}


This is a totally random story that I want to document for posterity. Last weekend Scott went on a camp out with the scouts in our ward. On their drive back the bed of the truck he was traveling in started on fire thanks to them not putting their camp fire out enough. They thought they had really soaked the fire, and since it was a carry out policy had loaded the dead fire into the back of the truck. However, once they started gaining speed the coals must have started up again. Before they knew it 4 foot flames were leaping out of the truck bed. A lot of their stuff was burned up including Scott's sleeping bag, foam pad, and pillow. As they were trying to put out the flames the other guy who was driving grabbed a shovel that was in the bed of the truck to give to Scott so Scott could shovel dirt on the fire. The fiberglass handle had burned and when he grabbed it the fiberglass began to burn his hand so he threw the shovel instantly and it hit Scott in the ear. Isn't that strange?! The other two guys both burned themselves, but Scott got a random really strange cut inside his ear.

I am grateful for...

A while back Rachel (one of my best friends from HS) commented on her blog that too many of us only blog about the wonderful things that happen to us and omit all the challenges and struggles we go through. So in honor of Rachel I decided to be REAL and go ahead and post this one on my public blog. So here you go...the down and dirty good stuff. :)

{Go ahead and kick me why don't you...}
Yesterday was one of those down in the dumps, terrible, poor me days. Have you ever had one of those? I felt like I was buried under a huge pile of overwhelm and could only think of all the projects and to do's that I couldn't image I'd ever get to.

I'll admit it...my life is a bit unorganized right now which is totally unacceptable and makes life even harder. Especially because I am trying to do a million things including...trying to figure out where things go in the new house, struggling with getting everything organized, learning all about animal care (I am such a city girl and totally clueless), attempting to homeschool (I am loving this, but its always a struggle), worrying about the fact that I haven't started my garden, trying to slowly build my food supply up so I'm more prepared and following the prophet, stressed out because I decided to sign the kids up for infant survival swimming lessons every weekday for six weeks (which includes the rigors of no food 2 hours before swim lessons and its killing me...ahhh, but its worth it to have peace of mind), struggling to sprinkle in a bit of music and art each week, personally trying to read at least 2 books a month (I should probably be reading right now instead of typing this), trying to squeeze in personal prayer and scripture study every day, and the list goes on and on.

It only makes logical sense that after a while of thinking and worrying about all those things I'd end up a little freaked out...right? Oh and I forgot to mention that I'm also trying to figure out how to cook for 8, become an inspirational mom, and a hot mama for my husband (I've got to start working out and eating better). Shoot! I'm never going to get it all right.

So I am sure you can guess that yesterday wasn't all that of a productive day with those kind of thoughts flooding my brain. I tried to escape from my problems by staying busy and running around, but when I finally came home my little pile of issues was there waiting for me. Don't you just hate that!?

I went to bed early and prayed to have peace and understanding on how to manage my list of projects and to do's, and the Lord has blessed me. This morning I woke up refreshed, peaceful and with the ability to look at my huge (still overwhelming) list of things I need to accomplish with hope and faith. Somehow I feel that I'll be able to get them all done eventually...somehow. Even my kids have been well behaved and got along great all day so my home feels more calm and pleasant. I am so grateful for answered prayers. I still have a huge long list of stuff to get through, but now I actually feel like I might be able to tackle it.

{impossible...to possible}
After that long rant...please forgive me for doing that, but I just had to get it all out, and now I feel even better and more empowered to conquer the world. Yesterday I felt so inside myself and today I feel almost outside myself. That probably doesn't make sense. What I mean is I feel like I am able to look at my unorganized house, huge list of to do's, homeschooling issues, and everything else from an outsider's perspective. You know how its always easier to clean someone else's house...that's kind of how I felt today about my life. I was able to look at everything that yesterday felt impossible from a new perspective and now it feels possible...not easy but something I can do! WOO-HOO!!

{gratitude}
After my 'poor me' attitude yesterday I woke up this morning with the feeling that I needed to be grateful for my many many HUGE blessings!! Especially my family...all of whom I LOVE!!! So I am going to take a minute and talk about how grateful I am for each one of them.

(We took these pictures in January at our home with our Apple tree in the background. It felt like fall...this is as close as we get to seasons here is Arizona...notice the apple trees beautiful orange/yellow leaves. So cool! So NOT Arizona.)

{Brea}

Brea is a bubbly spunky ball of energy. Even as a small infant she could not hold still and that attribute has carried on as she's gotten a bit older. Sometimes I feel bad she wasn't able to be the baby for very long, but it doesn't seem to bother her a bit. She just loves on her little sister and keeps right now smiling. She's starting to really talk and its been so fun to see that part of her come alive. I love how girly she is always wanting to wear a necklace or bracelet if she spots one. She's a total Daddy's girl but also loves her Nana, Bompy, and Darby. One of my favorite things about Brea is how she loves to give goodnight kisses to everyone before she heads off to bed. LOVE you!!!

{Cooper}


Cooper was named by my dad. We couldn't decide on the right name for our second little boy and when my dad suggested Cooper (a family last name) we thought it fit perfectly to our new little guy. Going with the Grandpa theme we ended up giving him the middle name of Stanley (Scott's dad's name) so he's our grandpa boy. Cooper loves being outside with the animals and riding his bike. He is very independent and doesn't have to do what the other kids are doing just to fit in. He's perfectly fine doing his own thing if he'd rather do that. I'm hoping that means I have no worries about peer pressure. :) Cooper is a funny life of the party kind of guy. Always being silly and making jokes I think he's going to be quite the social butterfly when he gets a bit older. He's also so kind and loving and seems to be keenly aware of other people's feeling and emotions. He loves making other people happy and is willing to give up treats or comfort to make one of his siblings happy. What a sweet boy!!! I love my Cooper.

{Hyrum}

Hyrum's big smile and fun loving personality are always a hoot! I especially love his little freckles that appeared when he was only two. Hyrum's our most memorable birth story baby...unexpectedly arriving during a 3 night/3 day trip to Ohio. Its a long story...but the short version is he came almost 7 weeks early and Scott and I ended up hanging out in Ohio for almost 3 weeks waiting for him to be discharged from the NICU. CRAZY!! Every since then Hyrum's been full of surprises not to mention a stubborn side that matches his determination to come at the wrong time and wrong state. Hyrum loves his big brother Cooper and Jarom and is a mama's boy...I LOVE THAT!! He's amazingly athletic and super competitive especially with himself. He get really down on himself when he doesn't get something down right the first time. Love you Hyrum!!

{Jarom}

Being the eldest of 7 I can kind of relate to what its been like for Jarom to be the oldest in our family, and he is such a great sport and so helpful. I don't know what I'd do without him. He's awesome at entertaining the little ones, and often ends up giving up his treat or drink when one of his little brothers or sisters asks for it. He's recently discovered the wonderful world of skateboarding and is loving it, and also has really taken a liking to golf carts. He's so kind and responsible with all his chores around the house and incredibly knowledgeable about almost anything...but especially animals. His keen mind and thirst for knowledge constantly amaze me. I am grateful for all his help around the house, and for being my buddy!! Love you J-dog!!

{the oldest 4}

Normally we aren't allowed to jump on the couches, but the rules didn't seem to apply when they were out in the middle of the front yard!!! SO MUCH FUN! This is a good illustration of how life is in our home on a daily basis.

{the whole gang}

I love having my kids so close. Even though it gets a bit hectic sometimes...I am grateful for each and every one of them and the friendships they have with each other!!!

{Megan}

When I looked at these pictures I couldn't help but think what a big girl Megan is turning into!! She is so awesome and I LOVE HER to bits. I can still remember when she was born. Dark hair and a loud voice...boy nothings changed. Megan is awesome and so smart and so sweet especially to her two little sisters. She waited a long time to get sisters and she is SO HAPPY to have them finally. I am grateful for Megan and her love of learning. She is really turning into such a great reader which makes my job as a homeschooling mother a whole lot easier. Megan loves to look good and always has me help her pick out her outfit for the day. LOVE LOVE LOVE her!!

{Rebecca}
Our sweet little chunky baby is a DeLiGhT!!! She's been smiling since she was to little to smile...I swear. Even her first little noises sounded like laughing...it was a riot. I have to admit having her only a year and five days after Brea was a bit of a whirl-wind and honestly scared me to death. Most people start spreading their kids out by the time they hit number 5 and 6, but not us. We did the exact opposite, and you know what I wouldn't have it any other way!! I am loving my two little Irish twins and grateful for my girlies. Becca is starting to scoot...almost crawl, and today I caught her trying to pull herself up on one of the couches. Man I am not ready for all this progress because then I'm going to have two little mobile girls who I am sure will always be on the run and getting into trouble. I am loving my little angel baby and so grateful she's part of our family!!!

{the whole Schnepf clan}

My mom and dad's family is sure growing in numbers and I am so grateful for all of my siblings and their spouses and of course my parents. It was so fun to hang out over the Christmas holiday and spend time with all of them!!! I don't know what I'd do without all of their support and love!!!

{the hot couple}

I am so grateful for my amazing husband. He is everything to me and such a support in all I do. It will be 12 years this September and man has time flown. I think we're officially a big family now, and I can't figure out when that happened. It seems like yesterday it was just the two of us and now its the 8 of us. WEIRD!! I don't feel like a mom of 6 and it doesn't feel like its been 12 years. I think I'll be 20 something forever...or at least I am sure I will feel like I'm still 20ish.

Its such a wonderful time to be alive. I know times are tough and kind of dismal right now, but I view this crisis as an opportunity to re-evaluate what's really important in life and get back to the basics. Even though I want to be perfectly organized, always have a perfect house, and a clean kitchen I know that what's really important is my relationship with my family and my relationship with God. If those two relationships are strong and flourishing then everything else falls into place.

I am grateful for my life and I am grateful for the miracle of being able to have an amazing perspective of my life today. Now I know that I can accomplish what's really important even though it might not be on my time table or the way I thought it would be done. With God nothing is impossible.

All I need are the simple things...

{our baby goat...saved!}
A few days after our baby goat was born we noticed that he was all stuffed up. What I mean is that his poop had dried into a hard ball and was blocking any more poop from getting out. We could tell he was is a bit of distress and so even though it was a dirty job we felt like we needed to help the little guy out. I know it sounds...okay it was gross!!


First Scott and Jarom doused his back side with water to try to soften it up. It helped a little...I think. Then Scott held the little guy and went to work. It took a while, but eventually we got him all cleaned up. His mom was so worried about him the entire time we were working on him, and kept circling us in the garage. Mama goat is a bit of a nervous Nelly. Once we finished Scott put the little one down and mama and baby ran to their favorite spot behind the garage happy to be together again.



{Irrigation...oh what fun}
So we just got our first dose of irrigation and all I can say is we never need to go to Disneyland again!! Irrigation is just as fun, loads cheaper, and an entire day of entertainment. WE HAD A BLAST!!



The kids thought it would be awesome to bring out our three little ducks so they could swim around and enjoy the water, and boy did they love every second of it. It was hilarious to see them swimming and splashing around. I am sure bringing the ducks out for a swim will be part of our irrigation ritual from now on. They weren't the only ducks that enjoyed our irrigation...I think we counted six or seven other ducks swimming around the front yard at one time. Not to mention the other hundred or so birds. CRAZY!!!



{A Simple time}
I think what I've enjoyed the most about our new simple lifestyle is the increase in relaxed, simple, fun, quality time we've spent together as a family. We don't feel like we need to be running around the city to find things to do...we just look in our yard or home and create things to do here. Some of our favorite things lately have been kickball, Frisbee, bike riding, climbing trees, and just sitting on a blanket reading books. Family work projects have also been simple activities we've done more of like pulling weeds, cleaning the yard, organizing the house, doing the irrigation, harvesting the pecan trees, etc... Simple is the new complex!! :)



Right now I am reading the Little House on the Prairie to my kids, and before that we read Little House in the Big Woods. As I've read about their simple lives I often wish I could have lived in that type of uncomplicated world. What would it have been like to have my husband home every day working on our farm? AMAZING!!! I can't imagine how wonderful it was being as self sufficient as they were. The family work she describes them doing is fantastic! What a great time to live.



As their evenings are described I long to have every evening in my home spent like theirs...simple and with family. Their evenings are powerful time spent together as a family. She describes her family sitting around their one room cabin talking and just being together...her mother busy with a sewing or handicraft project, the girls busy with some useful project, and her father preparing for the next day (sometimes cleaning his gun or making bullets) as well as often telling a story, reading, or playing his music.


I am inspired and comforted as I read the description of life back then. Even though part of me wishes I could have lived then I am grateful for this day in age, and the many conveniences I enjoy. Even though this is a crazy busy world we live in I am in control of my life and I am capable of keeping my life simple and focused on what is really important in life...family and God.

Sewing....

{Project time}
My sister Allison was in town last week so we decided to do a few projects! One project was to finish sewing some aprons we started last time she was down around Christmas. When she was down at Christmas on a spontaneous whim we left the kiddos with my mom and ran over to JoAnn's and purchased 8 or 10 different some what coordinating fabrics that we planned on piecing together to make cute aprons out of. We didn't have a pattern or even a plan of how we were going to do this, and neither of us were that great at sewing. However, we had our mom who is a great seamstress who we knew would take pity on us and help. We had a ton of fun, and I'm almost done with the aprons...but I forgot to take pictures of the finished products. I'll have to do that and get those posted. I am in LOVE with them!!

{Project+Megan=Mission Accomplished}

Megan's one determined little girl! Once she puts her mind to something she follows through and sticks with it. That was totally the case with her apron project. She sewed and ironed every piece of fabric together on her apron. What a rock star! I love you Megan and admire your perseverance.

[concentration]
I love this picture of Megan. She was concentrating so hard to keep the edge of the fabric on the right line so the stitch stayed straight. I am still amazed that she sewed her own apron. WOW!!

[ironing]

Megan really got into ironing! She became a pro at the squirt bottle and loved making sure every seam was pressed open perfectly.

{Jarom}



Jarom's first project was his man apron, and with Nana's help they were done in no time. So Jarom moved on to making Happy Birthday cut out in fabric...really amazing! He did a really good job, and started sewing the words on another piece of fabric. Once he was done with that he moved on to creating a customized carrying case for his DS. Jarom is quite the creator/inventor type...I just love watching him problem solve something. He is so bright and creative!! Love you J!


{the little ones+anything=chaos}


During the first morning we were sewing we had 10 little ones running around the house and it was pretty exciting to say the least. Here's a little glimpse of the trouble they kept getting themselves into. Between feeding them and keeping them out of danger it was tricky to find time to sew!! LOL!! However what can you expect when you get together with other mothers who have lots of little kids? I've come to learn this is just the way it is, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I have to admit I was surprised at how much we accomplished despite the distractions!! It felt great.

Pneumonia

Scott had an over night work trip planned for Monday and Tuesday and he made arrangements so I could go with him and have a little respite. He's so awesome!! Emily his sister was going to watch the kids and he even had arranged for me to have a surprise massage Tuesday afternoon (found this out later). However none of this was meant to be...

Emily spent the night at our home on Sunday and was here Monday during the morning to help me get out the door. I was trying to do laundry, tidy up the kitchen, help Jarom finish his pinewood derby car (which had to be turned in to his troop on Tuesday), feed the kids, tell Emily all about our family routine and how best to handle naps, bedtime, meals, etc...when I noticed Becca was really looking congested and sick. I know even for me my six kids can sometimes be a challenge, especially with my Irish twin girls at the end. So I called my mom to see if she'd be willing to watch Becca while we were gone so Emily would not have to worry about a sick baby in addition to 5 energetic kids. My mom was totally willing and I was very relieved.

Everything seemed to be going great after that. Scott showed up with just enough time to load us up and head for the airport. I settled into the comfy seat in his truck and started thinking about my little vacation as we started to drive to my mom's to drop of Becca. We talked and I could feel a sense of relaxation taking over my body.

We were doing okay on time when we stopped at my mom's. Scott carried Becca in and set down her carrier on the kitchen table when we noticed that she wasn't looking good. She seemed to be having trouble breathing, her cough was worse, and her color looked terrible. However, when I saw her little chest retracting just to get a breath and noticed how fast she was breathing I knew something was wrong. I didn't think she had looked that bad when we left our house, but maybe I'd been so busy with other things I hadn't noticed. I wasn't sure...but I knew that I wasn't going to board any plane until I found out what was going on.

Scott and I decided to fly out later and headed to the Pediatric Urgent care by my mom's. After waiting for 40 minutes we finally got into triage. I was relieved to finally have someone look at her. Maybe we'd find something out now! I knew she looked bad, but when they put the pulse oximeter on her little toe (the machine that measures the oxygen your blood is carrying) flashed 90% I freaked out. That was bad! I wasn't surprised when we were taken straight to a room and not shuffled back into the waiting room which was the standard protocol.

It wasn't to long before the doctor came in and examined her. He ordered a chest X-Ray and within 15 minutes of getting to our room we found out our little girl had double ear infections...oh and yes she also had Pneumonia in her right lobe. I was in shock!!! Becca got a steroid shot, antibiotic shot, and a breathing treatment. Whoa!! Then it was time to check her pulse ox again. I knew if she hadn't made any improvement she'd be getting a one way ticket to the hospital. Thank goodness the pulse ox read 95% which meant we got to take her home! Of course she'd be on a heavy duty antibiotic and breathing treatments, but we got to take her home. WOO-HOO!!

So now we had to figure out what we were going to do. Scott still had to get to LA so he could attend his conference, and I needed to stay with Becca. I was an emotional wreck and since we had Emily already set to watch the kids I stayed at my mom's and just took care of my sick little girl. What a huge blessing it was for me to be able to focus just on Becca. Thanks Emily!!

By the time Scott got home on Tuesday Becca was doing better. She was still quite sick, but didn't require breathing treatments every four hours which was huge. I am so grateful for modern medicine and the ability it has to help us get over sickness. I thought of all those mothers in the past who had lost a baby to pneumonia because there wasn't the medicine or knowledge of what needed to be done to help. The thought of having to watch a little baby struggle to breath (like I watched Becca do for only a short time) until they couldn't breath any longer broke my heart. I am grateful for my blessings and for the gift of having Becca in my arms to enjoy for another day. I know the Lord knows who I am and loves me. I know he wants what is best for me and comforts me when I am in pain. I am so grateful for the knowledge and testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Results

This week has been great! We haven't followed my plan exactly, but we have definitely followed the 'spirit' of the plan for lack of a better way to describe it.

{Tuesday}

We had a great devotional during breakfast, and I asked the kids what they were interested in doing. So far so good. However by the time we got breakfast cleaned up and we got all of our morning chores done it was already 11:30...I still can't figure out where all the time went. We had a great time working on our Let's Play Music homework and spent 45 minutes signing, playing, and learning all about music. The kids always love to do their LPM homework...even my little Hyrum and Brea enjoy it! By the time we were done with that we had to eat lunch and head over to class. When we got back we did have a two hour 'quiet' study time which the kids did great with! So overall it was a success.

{Wednesday}

Yesterday was even better than Tuesday. I think the kids are really starting to get the hang of our new schedule. When we weren't reading or studying they played happily with each other most of the time. Its often hard for the kids to pick books off the bookshelf so what I've discovered works really well is that I'll pull 20 or so books off the book shelf and spread them all of the floor. Then its like bees to honey the kids can't help themselves. They go over to the books and start reading. LOVE IT!!! Even my little kids are really starting to look at books more. We probably read and played math games for 4 hours on Wednesday, and the funniest thing was when Jarom commented on how fast the time flew. Now that's a MAJOR break through.

{Thursday}

So far today is going great! I had to finish reading my book (I had 60 pages left when I woke up) for my 5P class tonight so I've just been letting the kids play most of the morning. But they have been the most pleasant enjoyable kids to watch play. All four of them (the two little ones went down for naps early today) have been playing together with Lego's for almost an hour. Before that we all played a few games of Go Fish. Oh and before that Jarom made pancakes for everyone for breakfast. WHAT A GREAT DAY!

Even though the kids haven't sat down with me and done math or science (that is they haven't yet...we are going to do our 2 hours of quiet study time after lunch) I really feel like they have showed me that they have started to master other life skills like compromise, kindness, love, compassion, imagination, cooperation, how to entertain themselves, and many more. A year ago my kids wouldn't have been able to play with only themselves without a fight, break down, or request for TV or Computer time for more than 30 minutes. Today we are going on 2 hours. I've been sitting on the couch in the same room as them reading and they haven't even bothered me once. Maybe its because I spent time playing with them first before I started reading and left them alone to play, or maybe they just are happier playing with each other these days, or maybe they have better imaginations than they did a year ago. I don't know for sure but its AWESOME!

{What I've learned}

1. If I make a point to spend one-on-one time with the kids doing something they really want to do and they can tell I am totally into them and not distracted by other things then we have a happier home, they play better alone when its time for that, and they learn more during school time.

2. When the computer doesn't get turned on until after 4pm (our after school hours start then) and I don't make exceptions or break that rule our home runs better and school time goes better.

3. Every day is so different that when I am stuck to a schedule that I think is the way the day has to go everything goes wrong. Instead if I know the over arching things I want to accomplish with my family, have a general plan but allow myself to go with the flow as needed miracles occur.

4. Learning always is better when its fun! I want to try and have as much fun learning with the kids as possible.

5. Teaching the kids to work and own their responsibilities is very important to them becoming responsible hard working students.

6. When I relax and allow my house to stay cluttered with books and other school things during the day more learning takes place and I am a happier mom.

7. Have an evening routine where we can relax as a family after dad comes home and spend time hanging out and playing with dad is so important to the flow and culture of our home.

8. Night time reading is a must!!!! Sometimes the lessons and discussions I have with my kids during our night time reading blow me away and when I am tired and want to skip or shorten night time reading I always regret it!

{Love my JOB}

I am so thankful for my Mom job. Sorry Scott I think I got the better end of the deal...my job is better than yours! :)

Learning sure looks a lot different these days...

{sparks burn me out!}
Today sparks were flying in our home...so many sparks were flying that I was literally burned out (lol) by the end of the day trying to keep up with my excited kids all day.

{horses}
This morning the kids had riding lessons. Which they are loving more and more each week. Today they begged to stay after 30 minutes to help feed, brush, and help with all the other horse care that was needed. I love it...my kids are begging to WORK! Now how do I get them to beg me to work at home? :)

{birds}
Once we got home Jarom came up with an idea to make a bird feeder to hold some of the bird seed he got last week with Scott. It was really quite clever and I was proud of him to create something all on his own. He also got his brothers and sister involved on the action. Then he decided that just in case the birds didn't see the bird feeder he should scatter lots of bird seed all around the backyard. He definitely got the bird's attention!


{bees}
After lunch Jarom's interests moved on to bees. I am not sure how this idea popped into his head, but without me really knowing (I was busy trying to balance my check book which I am totally lame at) he got our jar of honey and covered his hands in it. Then he went out to a small puddle of water in our back yard that bees had been drinking from and let the bees land on him and lick (do bees lick?) the honey off. Pretty soon all the kid's hands were smeared with honey and they were enjoying be 'Bee Whisperers' as Jarom described it. About the time there were 30 or so bees 'licking' honey off the kids hands Jarom came tearing into the house and told me what they were up to.


I have to admit I was a bit nervous about the idea of bees landing on my children and sucking the honey off, but I was excited about the adventure and discovery the children were having and so I didn't stop them. Instead I went out and took a few pictures and had to laugh at the whole situation. Learning sure looks a lot different than what I thought learning had to look like when I was growing up. :) Tomorrow Jarom plans on researching more about bees and bee keepers! How fun is that.

{the garden}
While Jarom waited for Megan to finish her riding lessons this morning he planned out his square foot garden. He was so excited to show Scott tonight. After dinner Jarom started to help Megan plan out hers...but pretty soon they decided to combine their two gardens into one. They were so cute working on it together. Tomorrow morning they are going on an early morning field trip to the Home Depot to get the supplies so they can start building their gardening boxes. LOVE IT!!!

{reading}
Reading time is improving! WOO-HOO! Today all I had to do was ask Jarom (after the bees swarmed the backyard and I was scared to let the kids out) once if he'd spend the next 30 minutes reading whatever he'd like and he did it!!! After about 40 minutes he came in and told me he'd gotten so into his book he had stopped counting down the time he had left, and had even gone over ten minutes. Now that's improvement!

{the power of writing}
My life is a bit crazy right now, and I haven't been taking the time to record what's been going on in our life. As a result I think I've been more frustrated with things because I find that if I don't write things down I tend to forget what I've done. So I've been feeling like the kids and I haven't been making the progress I've been wanting to make.

As I take time to write things down and record what is happening in life I begin to recognize all the amazing things that are happening to me and my family and forget all the negative thoughts and non-important things. My focus goes to looking at what I am learning instead of how I am failing. And I remember what is really important in life and believe that tomorrow is a new day...an opportunity to do better.

I am grateful for the gift of writing and the clarity it gives me!

WOW! A week goes by so fast...

{a whole week}
So I can't believe its been a whole week since I've put my thoughts down on paper. What's my problem? Well at least part of my lack of writing this week is the fact that my computer is currently sitting on the floor of our soon to be 'project' room. That is 100% my fault, since I couldn't decide on what color/stain I wanted the new furniture to be so for the last two months the furniture has just been sitting at the store waiting for me to figure that out. (I really need to work on my indecision.) Good news though I bit the bullet and made my decisions this week. So in a week or two my computer will be back on a desk and I'll be rocking and rolling again. I will be so thankful when I have an organized home school project room!!! WAY EXCITING!!

{brain dead mommy}
So its been a crazy week! I feel like I'm half brain dead to be honest. After going on vacation with Jarom and Megan for 10 days I came home with mommy amnesia. I had totally forgotten how to be a happy mom of 6. I kind of freaked out and am relearning how to be a joyful mother to six amazing kids. Its getting better everyday thank goodness, and I've learned a lot about myself and found lots of things I need to work on. I keep reminding myself it's the journey not the destination.

{self-education}
I'm almost done reading Jane Eyre and its been great. The book is AMAZING and so INSPIRING! However, just as powerful has been the journey of reading classics which started in September. If you'd have asked me a year or two ago if I was capable of committing and accomplishing something like 5 Pillars I probably would have laughed and thought you were crazy. I didn't think I was smart enough or capable of learning still. I knew I had a lot of holes in my education, but I thought it was to late to do anything about that. When I broke free of that mind set I remembered what I used to know as a child that its never to late to become who you are capable of becoming. That is an eternal truth...its never to late! Beginning the process of reading and becoming truly educated is amazing. I am still only a few steps from the starting line, but I am just grateful to have started the race. As I look forward to the journey that lays ahead for me its AMAZING!!!!. The possibilities are endless and my ability to live life to the fullest seem more possible than ever. I WANT TO BECOME EDUCATED and my life will change because of the education I choose to give myself.

{I blew the budget again...}
I have a problem sticking to our budget. Its not like I'm spending wads of cash, but I have trouble telling myself NO! So after much reflection I decided to publicly make myself accountable to stick to the budget for November!!!! I promise Scott.

Here are some of the things I am going to do to make sure I stick to our November 2008 budget:
1. NEVER use my debit card!
2. ONLY use cash for expenses (not including bills)
3. NEVER borrow cash from a future week to pay for 'wants' for the current week
4. SAVE SAVE SAVE!!!
5. Hold a weekly budget review meeting with Scott

Plan to teach the kids how to manage money:
1. During FC talk about our family budget.
2. Create a system for the kids to earn money so they can start budgeting and paying for some of their own things.

{my routine}
I've decided that its really important for me to be up and ready before the kids wake up. It is hard to do, but it helps me feel sane so its super important tome. This week has been okay, but I need to do even better. If I can just get myself up and moving before the kids my day goes so much better. Here's to trying to trying to wake up earlier!!

I am still struggling with getting our family routine developed too. I am trying to figure out what I am doing wrong and how I can get a better family routine established, because I know that its VERY VERY important. I feel like in order to get our family culture established it is essential to develop a consistent routine. I haven't figured out what is holding me back from really doing this, but I am going to keep trying to figure it out so I can get past my hold up and accomplish my goal!!

{grateful}
I am so grateful for my life and all the blessings the Lord has given me. I feel overwhelmed when I think of all I've been given in this life. I know that prayer works and that when we pray we can feel the Lord's love for us. I am nothing without God.

Trip Overview

For my own records (you are welcome to read along) I am going to cover the highlights from our trip that I haven't yet written about. I have a terrible memory so I've got to get my thoughts down on paper or I am going to forget them!

On October 12th we left Phoenix and flew over to Orlando to make a two day stop over at Disney World. We hadn't ever been before and since the plane fare was the same with a two day layover we thought what the heck. I found a cheap hotel, but couldn't find a deal on Disney World tickets. Ouch were they a bit pricey, but we had a blast.

The first day we were able to hit two parks. We started out at Disney's Animal Kingdom which I thought had some really great features. Our favorite rides were the Safari (way cool) and the Everest Expedition a super duper fast roller coaster. Megan LOVES roller coasters so it was a blast to take her on all the scary rides especially this one.



I have to admit I was surprised with how hot it was still in Florida and I shouldn't have worn a shirt that needed an undershirt. I didn't repeat this mistake on day two.

Monday evening we scooted on over to Magic Kingdom for an after hours 'No So Scary Halloween Party.'


This worked out great because we were able to do a TON in one day, and Magic Kingdom wasn't very busy from 7-12pm so we were easily able to hit all the rides we wanted to multiple times. (We hit Space Mountain 3 times and Buzz Lightyear 4 or 5 times.) We also got our faces painted for FREE...something Megan had been dying to do all day long and had been willing to pay $15. She was so glad she waited for the Halloween Party and got it for FREE.



After 14 hours at the park we were tired, but had been having the time of our life!

Day two at Disney World we went to Disney's Hollywood Studios. It is similar to California Adventures. We had a great time hit lots of ride, but we didn't take our camera. Day two was all about hitting the rides. Some of the highlights were Megan getting selected to do the Jedi training by Star Tours, going on Tower of Terror two times in a row, experiencing 0 to 60 in 2.something seconds on the Rocking Roller Coaster, and just hanging out all day together. I felt so footloose and fancy free with only the two older kids...so life at the park was relaxed, kicked back, and easy.

On Wednesday we were scheduled to fly out to Puerto Rico, and of course we had a scare with a hurricane coming right by PR. Luckily it didn't hit PR and we were able to get there no problem. Scott's parents however we visiting some islands in their mission and got stranded for an extra day trying to get a flight back to PR. We actually ended up beating them home and hung out with Tenery the first night. She is awesome!! Jarom of course didn't wast a moment, and started searching for bugs right away.

The first thing he caught was a millipede and he was delighted. He also caught his first Coqui Frog and was thrilled. After that Jarom showed off his lean mean machine body to us all, and followed that up by raiding a package filled with candy that Emily had sent the family. He made sure we all knew that he could use the extra fat and calories so there was no need to limit his candy intake. What a hoot! That boy is to smart for his own britches.




Thursday morning Susan and Stan arrived and we were SO EXCITED to see them! It didn't take long before Megan was at Grandma's side helping her with whatever task she was doing. Here Megan is helping Grandma sort some of the missionaries mail. That girl is such a helper!


Later on Thursday we went over to El Morro and took a little tour of the Spanish's strong fort built in the 1500's I think. It was very impressive!






Friday we hung out at the beach all day long. We went over by where all the fancy hotels are, and ended up on The Ritz Carlton's beach. It was great! We sat in their comfy beach lounge chairs, rented boogie boards and surf boards...flew a kite, and basically had a blast. Unfortunately we didn't use enough sunscreen and we all ended up getting a bit burned. I guess that is the price you pay for hanging out on the beach all day!

Saturday we headed over to El Yunki (the rain forest) and did a little exploring. We all loved it and wished we could have had more time to spend there.







After the rain forest we headed over to Fajardi for a kayak ride in the Bio Bay. It was simply amazing! We paddled over to a bay and were able to experience first hand some tiny little creatures that use a type of luminescence as a defense mechanism. When you put your hand in the water it would glow. The wake of the kayak would glow, fish swimming in the water glowed, everything glowed. WOW! I'll never forget that. It was really dark and Megan got a little spooked, but as a whole everyone had a blast seeing something so unique!

Sunday we went to church nearby with Grandma, Grandpa, and Tenery. The entire 3 hours were in Spanish and boy did I wish I could understand more of what they were saying. I am determined to learn how to speak Spanish!! I would love to go back and visit again before their mission is over, but this time I'd like to make more of an effort to learn Spanish before we got!!! Sunday was also Jarom's birthday which I have already written about.

Monday we did a ton of exploring and finished the off with a horse ride on the beach, but I've already written all about that day previously. So I won't go into more detail than that.

Tuesday was our only full day with the Blackhursts who had arrived Monday evening. We decided it would be the perfect day to take the ferry to another island of PR Culebra...and this island was amazing!

The ferry left at 9am and we had to be there at 8am and it took about an hour to get there from Grandma's house so we ended up getting up around 5:30 and getting out the door by 6:30ish. It was an early early morning!

After arriving at Culebra we hopped on a shuttle bus that took us over to two of the most amazing beaches ever. First though we stopped and got some Pinchos a popular PR treat. Basically its meat on a stick. It was pretty tasty. Here we are all holding up our Pinchos. Cheers!

After changing into our swimsuits we started off on a 20 minute hike (and it was a hike) over to an amazing snorkeling and exploring beach.


It was an adventure to be sure! We all had a great time, but I think the boys had the best time of all hunting for treasures along the beach. Jarom found a bunch of sea crabs, shells, coral, sponges, etc... He was in heaven.


Grandpa even joined in the fun! What a great sport!!!!

Megan spent most of her time looking for shells and playing with Eliza in the water. She also really enjoyed going out with Scott and snorkling.



Denny and Scott went snorkeling all over the bay we were in. There was a coral reef along the bay, and it provided some great snorkeling spots. I had a blast checking out all the fish!!


After we were done at the snorkling beach we headed over to the most AMAZING INCREDIBLE fairytale beach. There were hardly any waves, the sand was like find powder, the water was almost tourquoise not to mention the perfect temperature. Talk about unreal.


Before we were ready to leave it came time for the shuttle bus to pick us up so we could take the last ferry back to PR. I hesitantly left the beach of paradise and headed back to the ferry. But I'd love to go back there someday. It was perfect!!

On the way home Jarom and Brigham had a great time hanging out on the ferry. They were so hyped up from a day at the beach that they could hardly keep themselves still the whole hour and half it took us to get back to the main island. What great little buddies.


{hanging out at Grandma's house}


The kids loved hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa again. One morning they helped Grandma make pancakes and were so excited to be big helpers.


Grandma gave Megan a big coloring book to draw in. It had both Spanish and English words in it and Megan had fun working on coloring it just so.

Its no surprise that the backyard was Jarom's favorite place at Grandma and Grandpa's house. We all got a good laugh when he decided to climb the bamboo tree. I just love his energy and exploring nature.

{Back to Reality}
I think I've now covered most of the highlights of the trip which is a huge relief! I have to admit it was bitter sweet to leave Puerto Rico on Wednesday the 22nd. I loved the strength and inspiration I felt when I was around Scott's parents. They are such wonderful people who I love and admire so much. Its been strange having them gone for so long, and seeing them again was comforting and exciting. However since we didn't take our whole crew it was so great to get home and see all the little kiddos again. They are such amazing children, but I have to admit after only having two kids for the last 10 days I was in a bit of shock trying to get back into the mode of a mom of 6. I am sure by Saturday I'll be back in full swing and ready to conqure the world. As of right now I am in survival mode trying to recover from the trip and figure out how to be a happy inspiring mom to all my little ones. Today I did okay, but I could have done much better.

I am so blessed to have such amazing children, and hope I can live up to the enormous responsibility I have to raise them right.

Here's to reality and figuring out how to cope again!!