Just a Peek ....

...into our lives.

We finished up school, all 168 days of it, and I breathed a deep sigh of relief and gratitude and even a bit of I-almost-can't-believe-it's-been-seven-years-of-educating-our-children-at-home....all kinds of feelings going on here. 

We wrapped up school with a wild and crazy morning, walked out the door, and didn't look back for a week. I cautiously entered the room a week later, and cleaned, and sorted, and organized, then ordered all my curriculum for next year, and now we have a quiet school room, which appears to be the most peaceful room in the house. Don't be fooled! This little room, painted aqua, to encourage peaceful learning, has housed most every kind of emotion out there. We've laughed a lot, cried at times, and increased our academic abilities too. We've learned kindness and perseverance along the way, and talked about real and messy and Jesus and forgiveness. It is a hallowed spot at times, and total chaos at other times. 

But I love my job of being a home-school-stay-at-home mom and I wouldn't trade it for anything.

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We had such lovely weather the week we finished up school, and the garden was begging to be planted, so we all headed out there and got that project taken care of. It is such therapy for me to work in the soil on lovely spring days!

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The girls have been working so hard preparing for their home school choir's production of Rats! and we enjoyed their performance so much!

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We are also in the throes of preparing for our youth group mission trip to Nicaragua in June, so one weekend in April found us grilling 1000 lbs. of chicken and selling meals on a donation basis.

Last weekend we put on a volleyball fundraiser and hosted 16 teams for a tournament. Have I ever told you how much I detest fundraising? I'll keep that to myself. 

However, God has done some amazing things for us in the area of finances and it's not a coincidence to have your plane tickets drop $80 a ticket or have anonymous gifts of $1000 towards the trip.

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Immediately after school was out, the boys went on a 24 hour 'survival' camp-out with their friend Lucas. They took bare necessities with them and no food. Leon put a rooster in a cage and replicated a pheasant nest with 2 dozen real eggs in it, and they had to find the food and prepare it. This included butchering the chicken. Leon snuck back during the night and left MRE's (military meals) for them also. It was an experience they won't ever forget and I was quite proud of them! 

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The girls enjoyed a picnic in the dandelions while the boys were camping.

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On May the 5th, we recognized the 30th anniversary of my dad's death. It is surreal to think that it has actually been that long. We made a little time to go to the graveyard and remember the grandpa that my children never got to meet.

***************************************************** We had plans for lunch on Mother's Day, but in the evening we enjoyed supper out and a lovely walk downtown. I was just made to realize once again how blessed I am, that I get the privilege of being a Mom. 

Life is heavy at times with questions and disappointments and broken dreams. I believe that God wants to prosper us and pour out His blessings on our lives. I've come to discover that it's ok to ask God "Why?". But at the end of the day, it's about trust. Trust, no matter what. Today, I choose {once again} to trust. Even when it doesn't make sense. And I am filled with peace.

"Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."   Phil. 4:4-7

From the Archives...

I was reading through my old blog posts today and found one I thought I'd re-post. Here we are....6 years later. Life is still interesting around here, but in a different way. :)

Mother of Boys - Wednesday April 1, 2009

You know your a mother of boys if: your grocery bags disappear, and later reappear as parachutes your son helps you clear the table and throws the bag of baby carrots in the fridge drawer from way across the room (Yeah! Made a basket!) your dirty laundry goes flying through the air on its way to the pile in the laundry room the laundry basket sounds like a car with its muffler missing the bath tub is a good place for experiments, like how far does the water go if I land like this... your kitchen scissors is always missing your scotch tape is always empty every drawer in the kitchen is open while the dishwasher is being emptied, so that when the job is done, all the drawers can be slammed shut at once you go to bed at night and find a small grain elevator in the making on your bedroom floor soggy washrags litter the bathroom counter because who ever heard of squeezing all the water out and laying it neatly across the sink you've said hang up your coat, or close the door, or put your shoes away, at least 20 times by the end of the day one hour after a meal you can expect to hear, "Is there ANYTHING to eat?" you see cartwheels, jumps, and somersaults on a typical walk through the house tackle football is as common in your living room as reading a book your living room window gets broken because someone was trying to get the kitty cat's attention water is not a necessity; first it is for fun, then to drink if we get thirsty, and last of all, for cleaning purposes you've heard the phrase, "But I'm not dirty, why do I need to take a bath?" you've received the biggest hugs, sweetest cards, and greatest compliments from, none other, than, your boys You know the difference between a backhoe, excavator, bulldozer, skidloader, wheel loader and what each one does (this is also partly due to the 'boy' I married) your stainless steel popcorn bowl has a ding in the side from the BB gun (please don't ask about this one) you've learned how to breathe through the feelings of panic that arise from your offspring attempting daring feats you don't know what caused that awful looking bruise on your son's leg, and he doesn't either you pray for them, and dream of them becoming godly men someday, who will have all their energy guided in the right direction you get excited about dead birds, squirrels, rabbits, and mice

Just Another Day In The Life.....

...of the ordinary homemaker. :)

Recently, the girls got the brilliant idea to make and serve supper to the rest of us. They have limited abilities in the kitchen, but I did help them prepare a Hamburger Helper meal, broccoli, and cheese biscuits. They set the table in the living room and thus began the very special opportunity of serving us. They were so excited!!

We started off the meal by looking under our chairs for a treat. I was the lucky winner of ......... a rubber ducky!

They brought our meals in to us and then they ate their meal in the kitchen. We heard much giggling and chatter from that direction. 

At the end of the meal, we each received a very tiny, tightly wrapped and taped, present. Inside one of the 4 was a dime. Jamison was the lucky winner.

They also serenaded us with after-dinner music.

After clearing the table, they were shocked and thrilled to find that their Dad had tipped them each a dollar!!!

We have been LOVING the beautiful spring days. Like usual, we have several gorgeous days, then a blast of cold, only to repeat this cycle until, oh, maybe June. (jk)

Annika learned to drive the 4-wheeler recently. 

And Brooklyn {finally} learned to ride her bike without training wheels. I wonder how many times her siblings removed her training wheels in the past 1 1/2 years, only to have her plead for them to put them on again. But she finally did master the art!

I love to herd the children outside on these nice days and watch their creativity take over!

Brooklyn lost her first tooth!!!!!!!!!!!

 The tooth fairy {aka her sister} left her a whole dollar under her pillow!! 

I forced everyone to pose on Easter Sunday. Let's just say that some people enjoy dressing up more than others.......And nobody complains about photo's if they can include their pet on the picture. I pick my battles carefully.

So now you had another peek into ordinary life here on the farm. And may Spring come quickly to stay!

Winter Daze

Honestly, it's starting to feel like the winter is just never going to end, and one very cold day fades right into the next. But.it.can't.be.much.longer. It's almost March and March means SPRING....or not. This is Iowa after all.

I used to take a lot of pictures of my children when they were all little bitty things running around here and doing their cute stuff. Alas, I often forget to take pictures of their half grown cute selves these days, but don't worry, the camera is still well-loved. They are the ones behind the camera now instead of me. And I delete many pictures and deal with dead batteries all the time. The latest rage is video clips, and lots of them. Sometimes I just can't believe what I find on my camera that was 'photo worthy'!

Brooklyn is reading and reading and reading these days!

We celebrated our 100th day of school with a family picnic on the living room floor. It was a wild day in which Leon and I dashed off for a tax appointment soon after this photo was taken. Several years ago, we surprised the children with a night out at a hotel with a water slide for our 100th day of school and let's just say, every year since, they are a wee bit disappointed when that special day doesn't bring with it an extravagant celebration.

For Christmas, we gave the boys a model of an engine. Leon had almost more fun than the boys did, putting this thing together and explaining all the parts to them, one cold, snowy evening.

Jamison and Annika are digging behind the dryer for 'lost' items. Every item they retrieve has a cash prize of 10 cents so it's pretty exciting for them.

The girls and their pets......

We got 10 baby lambs for the children to bottle feed. They have a love/hate relationship with these little guys. But everyone agrees that they are soooo cute!

Leon installed my microwave over the stove this week!!!! This has been on my 'honey-do' list for awhile, so I am thrilled to have it done.

We went to see the newest little family member last weekend. Oh my! What a beautiful little girl and just the perfect size! We didn't want to leave her!

I found this sign on the girl's bedroom door.

Since becoming chicken farmers, we now have lots and lots of eggs to pack each day. Annika took a  photo of the eggs on the conveyor belt.

And last but not least, today we are celebrating Logan's birthday! We are now officially parent's of a teenager! He's been a bit under the weather and so we are holding off on his steak dinner until tomorrow, in hopes that his appetite will be back to normal.

21 more days till Spring starts! Hang in there!

Just One

I'm just one of many, but I like to think that my story is unique.

I was about 14 weeks 'along'  when the doctor told my mommy that I wasn't healthy. I was going to be a Downs Syndrome baby and would possibly be deformed. (Whatever that means....who looks 'normal' around here anyway?)

The doctor said that the kindest, most loving thing my Mom could do for me was to abort me. To end my life.

My Mom wrestled with this. She was older, a single mom, and considered high-risk. She really felt like abortion was wrong. But everyone said it was the best thing for me.

The best gift for me was to end my life?!

The abortion appointment was made. Then Mom met a lady at work who was a Christian. Mom told the kind lady about her plans for me. The lady asked if she could please meet Mom for lunch.

They met and talked. The kind lady told my Mom that she herself was supposed to be an abnormal baby and her parents chose life for her. She told my Mom that every life is precious. She encouraged my Mom to find someone who could care for me and adopt me as their own child. I liked that idea.

When the lunch ended, my Mom had a phone number to call, and my future was looking much brighter. I was so thankful to the kind lady for talking to my Mom. Mom told the lady she would cancel the abortion appointment.

The kind lady texted a bunch of her friends. People were praying for me. Lots of people. People my Mom didn't know.

God was busy. He was laying the burden of me on people's hearts. There were some family's who were willing to adopt me. God even revealed special things about me to one of them.

My Mom called the clinic to make an appointment to talk about options. Options like adoption.

But then Mom changed her mind.

And it was all over. My chance at life. My opportunity to impact the world. Just like that, it was all over. I know I'm just one of many. But I'm just one who could have made a difference in my world, if given the chance.

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(This is a true story about a little girl that was aborted this past week. Oh, how our hearts broke as we heard the news of her abortion!)

Rest safe in Jesus' arms, little Hope.

Trust {no matter what}

Somehow, when I was in my early twenties, and living my life, I looked loftily upon the almost 40 year olds around me, and thought that when I get to be their age, I would certainly have life figured out. I mean, I already knew a lot, and give me another 15-20 years, and I'd pretty much have a handle on knowledge.

Call me arrogant, or naive, (I'll own up to both) but I really did think that way down deep.

Well, hello. Here I am. Staring 40 in the face and feeling like there are so many, many things I don't know. So many things I don't have figured out. Somehow that doesn't start a panic attack like I thought it might. Because I think I've figured out some basic truths, and I'm learning more and more about God's Father-heart towards His children, and somehow, that is enough.

The last several years have been rich. Rich in learning, learning so much more about Jesus than I ever knew before. And with that learning comes the realization that, the more I learn, the more I have to learn and how little I actually know.

These years have been rich in relationships. Not with the kind of friends that know every detail of your physical life, like how many quarts of green beans you canned, or how your child lost his new shoes, but the kind of relationships that care for your heart. I am so blessed to have friends who pray for me, who ask me how I'm doing, for real, and who share words of encouragement with me.

The past several years have also been filled with pain. Deep, aching in my heart. Strained relationships, disappointments, longing for other's to experience freedom and unconditional love.

Recently, I was in a discussion with someone and the subject of breaking habits and living victoriously came up. I was asked for ways to do this. I sat and thought. My mind flashed back to years ago when I would've had a formula figured out at the snap of my fingers. It was different this time. I sat and waited and I heard God say to me, "It's not so much about the Doing, as it is about the Knowing." The words I said to my friend were not my own. I shared the deep unconditional love of Jesus. I encouraged this person to fall in love with Jesus. That in itself would change his appetite. I also spoke of Grace, and not trying to earn our way into a close relationship with Jesus. I don't know if my friend 'got it'. But I do know that as long as I have breath, I will share about these two truths to everyone I can.

And now, somehow this is all supposed to have what?! to do with my title.....

pardon the bunny trail..... :)

my words for 2015 are Trust, No Matter What.

In the midst of one of the most difficult situations I have found myself in yet, I know that God is clearly saying to me to Trust Him, no matter how I feel, no matter what the future holds, no matter if everything comes crashing down around me, Trust. That's all.

....there is a plan and there is a purpose

and there is a God in Heaven who didn't

just ink you onto the palm of His hands

but etched your name right

into Himself with nails and

He hasn't just got your number,

He's got your heart.

He sees you, hidden in Him,

and you aren't ever forgotten

because God can't forget those right in Him.

because God's writing your story and

He never leaves you alone in your story, and

His perfect love absorbs all your fear

and His perfect grace carries

all your burdens.

and your story is a happily ever after

because Christ bought your happily ever after

so you always know how this story ends.

You're going to be okay.

                       -Ann Voskamp