Looking around at my little house, I am feeling nostalgic and blessed. I have heard from several thousand (OK at least several) people that we need a bigger house. Six people in 1086 sq feet and one bathroom is just plain ridiculous. That our house is too cramped, that we are all on top of one another. I just smile and explain that I could shove at least another three kids in here.
It's not just a catty remark. Compared to most of the world, we are incredibly blessed. My little house is well insulated, cool in the summer, warm in the winter. I have lived in a house without air conditioning and insulation before, and I thank God almost every night for my central heat and air. We have indoor plumbing, something else I have lived without (though it was when I was a baby, so I don't remember). We can easily make our mortgage payments. It is our house.
Yes, I am nostalgic about this house. Not only is this the first house I have ever owned, this is the only home my two youngest children have ever known. We bought this house 2 kids ago! It is also the house I have lived in for the longest time IN MY LIFE. I have never spent four years in the same place since birth. It feels like home.
In less than a week we ARE moving to a bigger house. We don't NEED a bigger house, but it will be nicer to have more space, especially if God grants us with more children. But more than the size, it is the location. I love my little house, but I realize I am the anti-city girl. The teeny tiny suburb I live in is far too large. I'm not fond of neighbors (even though I have great neighbors mostly) or of their dogs barking at night, or their trucks driving by, or solicitors!!! The house we are moving to is literally parked in the middle of cotton country, with no houses even visible! Even better, instead of being 20 miles from my church, we are 4 miles!
That being said about size, I will reemphasize my love of 2 bathrooms! (Oh, and boys being able to pee outside if necessary. Can't do that in the city with chain link fences,) Usually when I need to use the bathroom, so does a kid. I don't know how many time I have joked (sort of)that we should just put in an outhouse.
The day this house sales will be a very exciting and sad day. It will be a closed door, but a step ahead (ha ha mixed metaphors). So today I pray. I pray for the person/family that will buy this house. I pray they will love it as much as I do. I pray that we will love our future home as much. I pray that, if it be God's will, we will settle down in a future home for the rest of my life. I pray that everyone can take a moment and realize how blessed they are. And mostly, I pray for those who have no creature comforts, like toilets and air conditioning.
Friday, July 25, 2014
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
A little of this, a little of that...
Hey world. I have been busy busy busy as usual, with all kinds of exciting things in the works! Can't tell you everything yet, but definitely some big things coming!
What can I tell you? For starters, my craftiness has been in overdrive. When I am stressed, I make things. The first thing is a beautiful Cathedral Rose Window afghan that I am making in hopes of being ready for our local church's festival in October. The church always auctions off many beautiful things, and the baby layette set I did last year went quite well. The only catch is that this design is SOOO pretty, and rather intricate, so I told Mr. S. he has to buy it back. He told me I have to make it first. HAHA
I have also finished the top to my first scrap quilt. I hope to finish actually quilting it next weekend, but it is #2's birthday, so we will see. It is a very bright, happy little nine patch quilt, and there is a lot of sentimental value to it. Old curtains, scraps from the first quilt I ever did, and even the salvageable pieces to a back of a baby quilt of Mr. S's I had to fix are in there. As I was looking for this keyboard to type (on a tablet remember?) I found even MORE squares. Because 2500 little 2 inch squares weren't enough?????
The biggest thing I am excited about right at this moment is.....we are MOVING!!!! No, we haven't bought a house, but we found a rental out in the middle of nowhere that we love. It is TWICE as big as our current house and even has two (TWO) bathrooms! I am doing the happy dance, imagining not having to do bathroom triage on a regular basis anymore. We are moving in next week, and needless to say, I expect my Internet and things of that nature to be a little glitchy...
So I am definitely asking for prayers now. Prayers the move goes well, and prayers our house sells quickly. Also, if it isn't too much to ask, prayers that we found the house God intends for us to buy. And yes, I have full plans to buy a St. Joseph's statue (I was going to anyway). I can't wait to tell you more news, but I will say nothing until it is set in stone. Until then, God Bless!
What can I tell you? For starters, my craftiness has been in overdrive. When I am stressed, I make things. The first thing is a beautiful Cathedral Rose Window afghan that I am making in hopes of being ready for our local church's festival in October. The church always auctions off many beautiful things, and the baby layette set I did last year went quite well. The only catch is that this design is SOOO pretty, and rather intricate, so I told Mr. S. he has to buy it back. He told me I have to make it first. HAHA
I have also finished the top to my first scrap quilt. I hope to finish actually quilting it next weekend, but it is #2's birthday, so we will see. It is a very bright, happy little nine patch quilt, and there is a lot of sentimental value to it. Old curtains, scraps from the first quilt I ever did, and even the salvageable pieces to a back of a baby quilt of Mr. S's I had to fix are in there. As I was looking for this keyboard to type (on a tablet remember?) I found even MORE squares. Because 2500 little 2 inch squares weren't enough?????
The biggest thing I am excited about right at this moment is.....we are MOVING!!!! No, we haven't bought a house, but we found a rental out in the middle of nowhere that we love. It is TWICE as big as our current house and even has two (TWO) bathrooms! I am doing the happy dance, imagining not having to do bathroom triage on a regular basis anymore. We are moving in next week, and needless to say, I expect my Internet and things of that nature to be a little glitchy...
So I am definitely asking for prayers now. Prayers the move goes well, and prayers our house sells quickly. Also, if it isn't too much to ask, prayers that we found the house God intends for us to buy. And yes, I have full plans to buy a St. Joseph's statue (I was going to anyway). I can't wait to tell you more news, but I will say nothing until it is set in stone. Until then, God Bless!
Friday, July 11, 2014
a tale of two baby showers
Whew! I made it through Birthday Week alive and well. I am still happily munching on homemade carrot cake and cream cheese icing (sadly I had to share this year because Mr. S. actually liked it!). There was, in fact, steak, and the great amusement of watching #4 choose steak over french fries.
This week has been a breather for us, because next week we start off with a bang with a baby shower for a wonderful woman who could not be a better mother. I am making her a diaper cake, which is actually coming out great since I learned to make baby sock roses to top it with. Yep, I go hardcore crafty at times. I am so excited to make this for her, because she was there when I needed her.
See, I wasn't always a Catholic. And I am not always a good Catholic, though I try to be. Once upon a time, I was a non practicing Episcopalian. I was 18, wildly in love, and had just moved 8 hours to be with my boyfriend, the amazing Mr. S. Unsurprisingly (except for back then when the possibility was the furthest from my mind) I ended up pregnant. Unwed. 18. With no family anywhere close. Heck, I even found out at planned parenthood. At that moment, I thought I had never could have faced a worse scenario. But then the PP lady said she could "take care of it". My baby. I can't describe the revulsion at the thought of killing my baby, the protective mama grizzly that came out, but in rather unkind words I informed her that was not an option.
My future in-laws were very supportive when we broke the news. There was no angry words, just the obvious shock and the "OK then, we are going to be grandparents." they accepted me as part of their family, and helped us so much in those ridiculously poor, working-cruddy-jobs-to-get-Mr. S.-through-the-rest-of-college-days.
In fact, my MIL threw us a baby shower, on Christmas eve, with very short notice. And this still amazes me. She had two very good friends step up as hostesses and buy the pack n play that was our baby's bed for us. Tons of people showed up, and I only knew one of them. These women showered me in love, acceptance, and honest excitement for my baby, something that is hard to come by in unplanned teen pregnancy. These women showed me truly what God calls Christians to be. I was awestruck that all these women were there. It was such a testament as well to how great my MIL is, to have so many friends so willing to help.
And among those women were the Mommy in question and her own mother and grandmother. They have since become family to us, and I treasure them so much. It was a long road for this Mommy to get here, with so much heartache. I am so excited to be able to share this moment with her. I hope to be an example one day to someone like she has been to me. M, I love you!f
This week has been a breather for us, because next week we start off with a bang with a baby shower for a wonderful woman who could not be a better mother. I am making her a diaper cake, which is actually coming out great since I learned to make baby sock roses to top it with. Yep, I go hardcore crafty at times. I am so excited to make this for her, because she was there when I needed her.
See, I wasn't always a Catholic. And I am not always a good Catholic, though I try to be. Once upon a time, I was a non practicing Episcopalian. I was 18, wildly in love, and had just moved 8 hours to be with my boyfriend, the amazing Mr. S. Unsurprisingly (except for back then when the possibility was the furthest from my mind) I ended up pregnant. Unwed. 18. With no family anywhere close. Heck, I even found out at planned parenthood. At that moment, I thought I had never could have faced a worse scenario. But then the PP lady said she could "take care of it". My baby. I can't describe the revulsion at the thought of killing my baby, the protective mama grizzly that came out, but in rather unkind words I informed her that was not an option.
My future in-laws were very supportive when we broke the news. There was no angry words, just the obvious shock and the "OK then, we are going to be grandparents." they accepted me as part of their family, and helped us so much in those ridiculously poor, working-cruddy-jobs-to-get-Mr. S.-through-the-rest-of-college-days.
In fact, my MIL threw us a baby shower, on Christmas eve, with very short notice. And this still amazes me. She had two very good friends step up as hostesses and buy the pack n play that was our baby's bed for us. Tons of people showed up, and I only knew one of them. These women showered me in love, acceptance, and honest excitement for my baby, something that is hard to come by in unplanned teen pregnancy. These women showed me truly what God calls Christians to be. I was awestruck that all these women were there. It was such a testament as well to how great my MIL is, to have so many friends so willing to help.
And among those women were the Mommy in question and her own mother and grandmother. They have since become family to us, and I treasure them so much. It was a long road for this Mommy to get here, with so much heartache. I am so excited to be able to share this moment with her. I hope to be an example one day to someone like she has been to me. M, I love you!f
Thursday, July 3, 2014
Still alive
Yep, I'm still here. I'm just caught in the late June/entire July whirlwind of birthdays that belong to this family. From the end of June to the end of July, my immediate family celebrates 4 of our 6 birthdays, and then add in the 3 other July birthdays that belong to my mom, sister, and niece. Also, we have the anniversary of Will's passing. So yeah, I have little time to breathe and an ever expanding waistline due to all the yummy cake!
It's always a lot of fun planning these days. First, is there anything sweeter than a first birthday? #4 made it to mid-cake before grabbing her bottle and attempting to put herself to sleep in her high chair. #3 was a superhero ALL day in cape and mask and even went swimming (though he did ditch the cape for it because of the water drag). Next up, my mom is the big (um, lets see, what is the youngest she could have feasibly been? Oh yeah, 47) 47 this year! And despite her herculean efforts, my birthday is a mere two days after. I'm not sure what our plans are, but there will be cake and ice cream cake, and fireworks, and steak, and antiques and RPGs........
So, I'll update more next week when most of the crazy is gone (Mom warned she will be back though.)Meanwhile, enjoy your holiday, and remember our freedom is never free, but comes at a great price.
It's always a lot of fun planning these days. First, is there anything sweeter than a first birthday? #4 made it to mid-cake before grabbing her bottle and attempting to put herself to sleep in her high chair. #3 was a superhero ALL day in cape and mask and even went swimming (though he did ditch the cape for it because of the water drag). Next up, my mom is the big (um, lets see, what is the youngest she could have feasibly been? Oh yeah, 47) 47 this year! And despite her herculean efforts, my birthday is a mere two days after. I'm not sure what our plans are, but there will be cake and ice cream cake, and fireworks, and steak, and antiques and RPGs........
So, I'll update more next week when most of the crazy is gone (Mom warned she will be back though.)Meanwhile, enjoy your holiday, and remember our freedom is never free, but comes at a great price.
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