My brothers are my Guys...

I just had to share this story with you all.

The other day, Alyssa saw a picture of Gideon when he was in the hospital.

(not this particular picture but one similar of baby Gideon.)She pointed and said "Baby." I took the picture down so that we could get a closer look and I explained to her... "This is Gideon, he is Jericho's brother." Her response was "Baby Coco"(her name for Jericho right now.)

(Alyssa gives "Baby Coco" Kisses)

I told her "No, this is Jericho's brother, Gideon." She said "Baby in ba'tub?" I told her that "Baby Gideon" was not in the bathtub and that he is "Baby Jericho's brother." After repeating a few more times that "Baby Gideon is Baby Jericho's brother," She looked up at me and said "Baby Coco Guys?" I laughed a little and then said "Yes, Gideon is Baby Jericoh's Guys."(For those of you that don't know, Alyssa calls her own brothers "Guy" -Karston, and "Guys"- Josiah.)

I thought it was so great that she is putting the connection together that Brother means Guys and this little Guy belongs to Jericho.

Her cousin Mason is also a "Guy" to his sisters Shelby and Greta Grace.

Alyssa loves Mason

A sister's love - Shelby and Gigi

She has two other little baby boy cousins "eel-ya"(Eli)

and "Jew" (Jude due to arrive in November.) Both of them will be the oldest of their future siblings. One day they too will be a Guy.

Last April Jericho and her mom and dad were here and we all walked together in the March of Dimes - March for Babies walk (see my Sister-in-laws post). We all wore T-shirts with Gideons picture on them. Alyssa wanted to wear hers the other day, and kept pointing and telling everyone (Baby Giddy, Guy of Baby Coco.) It was really cute and I wish my camera were working so that I could get it on video.

"I did It"

I was able to get some of the pictures that I took on the first day of school because they were taken with the memory card. There may be more but they would be on the camera's hard drive and my camera is still not talking to me. So here are some that I did get and then some of a lesser quality that I took with an old camera.

It was a very early morning, but this would have been the one morning she would have slept until 8 or 9 am.

This was the first picture to embarrass Karston. Apparently some of his friends (girls) were standing around close by.

These were taken at the classroom and yes, there are more of Josiah than there are Karston.

But, remember Karston was too embarrassed to have his mommy hanging around much less taking picture after picture.

You can tell by the look on his face he wasn't at all happy with me.

This one is a smile but, it is a "Alright one picture and then you leave," smile.

This is the new climbing wall at their school! PLEASE excuse the quality of the pictures, I tried to clean them up, it just didn't work.

This is how we wait for the bus in the mornings together...

And this is how Alyssa waits for "Guys" to come home in the afternoon. Last year she was always asleep when they came home, but she is now taking shorter naps and getting up just in time to go outside to wait for her brothers.

...And then when they finally do get dropped off right in front of our house, Alyssa runs to meet them and say "Hi Guys!"

So that was the first week of school. The boys are bummed that they do not have school again until Tuesday. We'll just have to see how long that enthusiasm last. I give it until the first night of homework.

First week back at school....

Disclaimer- there will be no pictures in this post due to camera malfunction. Yep, right after taking several great pictures of my boys on the first day of school, my camera decided it had had enough and did not want to work any longer. Uhg!! I will be doing all that I can to get my camera working and my pictures downloaded this weekend.


So, Yesterday was the boys First day of school for the 2008-2009 school year. I can't believe that they are already in first and third grades this year. When did they get so big? Josiah is now a big 6 year old and no longer a little child. I started to cry as we walked into the school this year. Don't ask me why, I don't know. It's not like they have never been to school before or like it was the first day of Kindergarten. Josiah will be experiencing a few new things this year such as...
1.) staying all day. Bus pick up at 7:30am - Bus drop off at home at 2:55pm
2.) eating lunch at school
3.) having his own desk as opposed to a big table with several seats around it.
4.) having his own locker in the classroom instead of a cubby.
5.) and HOMEWORK!

The first day of school was just a half day, they stayed until 11:00am. When they got home Josiah immediatley went down stairs and started a movie but quickly fell asleep. He is not used to having to wake up so early and was exhausted. He is so excited to be taking money to school and buying his own lunch at school. Having his own desk and his own locker is just extra fun. The biggest change will be the Homework. This is the year that they enjoy homework, next year is when it starts to become a dreaded event.

Karston has grown up in many different ways this year.1.) Apparently it is no longer cool for your mom to treat you like her little man. First I was taking pictures in front of the school and he informed me that I was "Embarrassing him." When we entered the school we went towards the first grade hall and Karston turned to go to the third grade hall. He turned and waved as if to say, "I got it. NO need for parents." We made him go to Josiah's class with us anyway. (It is a good thing we did because Karston had to help Josiah find his way to class the morning of the second day.) Then as we left Josiah's classroom to go to Karston's classroom I hugged and kissed Josiah on the cheek. Karston then told me that he bet Josiah was "So Embarrassed." When we got to Karston's class we met his teacher and then found his desk. He sat down and then informed us that we could go now. Heath gave him a manly high-five and then I leaned down to hug and kiss him. Karston immediatley gave me a hard shove away from him and told me "No." I obliged and left the room with my head hung low. I asked him later if ever felt bad about doing that in front of his friends and he said "NO."
2.) His teacher had looked at everyone's picture from last year so that she would know the kids as they walked into the room. When Karston walked in she asked him his name and he told her. She said "Oh Karston, I didn't recognize you with short hair, it was long in your picture from last year." She then told him that she really liked it short. He grinned really big. He is really liking his teacher so we will see how long her influence on his hair decisions will last.
3.) Karston is one of the MOST unorganized people in the universe. Last year he had so many overdue library books because they got lost in his desk at school. Everytime we would go into meet with his teacher last year, I would try and clean out his desk. It was a bigger project than just one visit could do. This year Karston's teacher is super organized and is trying to teach them to be super organized. On the second day of school he brought home a three ringed binder that has a money envelope, student day planner, folder for homework with pockets for to be done/done, a folder for communication from teacher to parent or parent to teacher, a clear pocket for his vocabulary words, a clear pocket for the school newsletter, and a clear pocket for the monthly lunch menu. I am so excited to see if maybe this organizational skill will rub off on Karston and change his messy ways.
4.) Karston's maturity and attitude have changed over the summer too. He is such big kid now. No longer a baby, no longer a child, no longer just a kid, but he is really one of the big kids now. He has a large amount of other students that know him by name and call him friend. He has always been social, but is now becoming someone that Everyone in the whole school knows. He is totally cool.

So yes, I cried. It was the beginning of watching my boys become men. It was saying goodbye to being called mommy and loving on them in public. It was the end of having a time in the day when I could bond one on one with one of my sons. They would now leave for school together and come home together. While it is sad to say goodbye to the little boys I have smothered. It is so good to welcome the next year and the next phase of their big boy lives. Life moves on and we have to go with it.

Things I learned during Summer Break of 2008 [Part I]

1. Never Discredit those that have gone before you- even your in-laws.
I apologize to Heath’s parents for all the times you tried to tell us that having three kids is hard, and we dismissed your wise comments. Don’t get me wrong, I love all three of my kids more than anything in this world and I would never, ever in a million years regret having them in my life. What I do regret is not listening to the people that tried to prepare me for a life constantly feeling as though there is not enough of me to go around. I thought before that I was no longer able to have time to myself when I had one child and then even more so with my second, but having three children has taken me to a whole new level of sacrifice than I ever expected it would.

With that said let me be the first to tell you that being a mom, and yes even a mom of 3 is the most rewarding, and satisfying and loving thing that I could have done in my life.
To all of the women out there with three or more children, let’s find a way to reach out and help each other through the hard times, celebrate with each other during the best of times and relax with each other during the times that we feel our husbands need some one on three (or more) daddy time.

To all of the women out there with less than three kids and are looking forward to the day of having more… find the women that have gone before you and glean from their wisdom and experiences (provided they are being honest with you.) While none of us can ever be fully prepared for having children (much less a house full) if we surround ourselves with women that have been where we are, then we will always have the encouragement and support that we need to keep us going.

A special thanks goes out to my mother in-law, Dallise and my sister Angie for all the times you have rescued my kids from their overtired, overstressed, and over stimulated parents. I will never be able to justly repay you.

Suprise Thursdays!!!!!!!!!!!

Late in the summer another mom gave me the idea of implementing Suprise (a day of the week.) We chose to do Thursdays and it worked wonderfully.

The first time we went up to Wisconsin to the Jelly Belly Factory. We rode on a trolley through the factory. The kids sampled some different kinds of candy made at the factory and we all got a small sample pack of Jelly Bellys for the ride home.

The second time we rode our bikes over to the Grayslake Beach for a couple of hours. Alyssa stayed in the shallow end and loved playing in the "Wattee." The boys spent most of their time in the sand creating sand castles and sand rivers. Karston did venture out to the deeper end and tried to coax Josiah to join him, but it was a no go. We enjoyed the beach and the bike ride to and from.

The third week we again rode our bikes, but this time to the Spray park in town. This is when I found out that the boys ride their bikes alot better when they know where we are going. Once we got to the spray park they all had a blast. The boys loved the buckets that would fill with water and then dump over on their heads. Just outside the gate of the spray park is a really great dry playground. All three of the kids enjoyed some time there too. The bike ride home was much more fun. It also helped that we took a shortcut.

The fourth week we stayed at home, but had a big craft day. It started outside, with all of the crafts stuff spread out and snacks as well. I then had all the kids come out to the backyard and I explained what we were there to do. The kids loved it! They used spray paint, stencils, glue and glitter and more. It wasn't very long before we all felt the heat was more than we could handle and Alyssa had a full blown meltdown. While I put Alyssa down for a nap the boys brought all of the craft supplies back inside. We used all of the craft supplies to make each of them a spaceship with boxes. Then they spent the rest of the day playing in them.

The fifth week we went to Independence Grove. It is a County park and it is beautiful. There is a large lake there with a nice walking path that goes all the way around it. It has a nice beach, a convention center/resteraunt, several garden like areas with water features, small boat/kyack rentals, large picnic areas and the biggest nicest playground we have ever seen. We stayed at the playground for this Surprise Thursday and all of the kids had so much fun.

The 6th and final week we went to the Forest Preserve. We went to Pavilion E where we could have a picnic and be close to the good playground. We also played some sports together. We played volleyball with a very large wobbly inflatable ball. Karston and I were on one team and Josiah and Aunt Angie were on another team. Alyssa floated back and forth and played her own ball game. We found the ball was very difficult to hit back and forth over the net so we settled with catching the ball and throwing it over. Karston and I started with a good point lead over Angie and Josiah, but all of a sudden they made a Walsh/May comeback. Karston and I stepped it up a knotch and ended up winning by one point. We decided that we were hardcore when a heavy rain started coming down and we played through it. We also played soccer and Karston and Aunt Angie did some pitching and batting practice together.

We quickly found that Alyssa was the most hardcore of all of us. She first fell on the concrete on her knees and skinned them up bad enough to bleed. She made a little fuss about her ball getting away and rubbed her knees. She then ran off to find her ball and was fine. Later she noticed that her knee was bleeding, but it didn't seem to phase her one bit. Then she later fell again on the concrete and this time was a faceplant. She got a big red dot on her forehead (hmmm that sounds familiar, don't you think so Heath?) but she just kept playing. The rest of the day she kept going and going and nothing could slow her down. We spent 5 hours at this park and we had a great time!

So to sum it up, Surprise Thursday was a huge hit. The kids looked forward to it every week, especially Alyssa. Next Summer we will start it earlier in the season and we will find some more great places to go.

YARD SALE!!!!!!

Two weekends ago we had a huge Yard Sale at our house. Sometimes it is convenient to live on a very busy street. This yard sale was comprised of 4 families; Heath and I, my sister Angie, Heath's parents, and our church pastor Eric. We had some really small trinkets and some big pieces of furniture. The reason for the yard sale was to get extra money to pay off some debt by selling things in our house that are nice to have but are not necessarily necessary.

Heath and Angie and I and even our Pastor Eric have been going through a 13 week course called Financial Peace University, taught by Dave Ramsey. What we have learned from Dave is how to "Live Like No One Else, So That Later We Can Live Like No One Else." The first part of that statement is the most crucial and the most difficult thing we have ever done in our 11years of marriage. We have always lived paycheck to paycheck. Since Heath has become a financial advisor at the bank we have learned many important principals to teach our children about the right way to be financially free, but we had never known exactly how to put those principals into practice and be the example for our children. So instead we got further an further into debt. We have made progress in that we are not getting further into debt anymore. The next part of the process is now to pay off the debts that we owe. This is the kicker. Heath and I are both looking into extra jobs to help pay it all off. We hope that in one year we will not only have 1.) A thousand dollars in a savings account for true emergencies, but we will also have 2.) Paid off all debt except for our mortgage and 3.) we will be working towards saving up 3-6 months of our salary pay. After this things will get a little easier and will be able to start the process of ensuring that "...One Day We Will Live Like No One Else." We are excited about the possibilities for the future, but we know that we will have to work hard to get to that point.

Anyway, this blog is about the Yard Sale. It turned out to be very successful! Also we got to meet many people that we might not have otherwise been able to meet. One lady had just moved to town hours before dropping by and had no furniture for her new house. She had just been through a divorce a year ago and has four boys, one of which has autism and one of which is starting to show signs of autism. We connected and exchanged information and she has an interest in attending our church this week. We also met a man that is an Orthotist. Bet you don't know what that is do you? He makes orthotics to go in shoes. Well, he talked to Heath and gave him a consultation right in our driveway. Turns out Heath's ankles and knees are worse than we had thought. It seemed to be one divine appointment after another. So even if we had not made the money that we needed (which we did) We still would have called this Yard Sale a Success!

What to do but make the best of it.

We are now down to one vehicle. So many of our days have turned out to be very long waiting on Heath to come home so that we can get out only to find that all Heath wants to do is relax at home. So one Saturday when Heath was going to be working most of the day we decided to try and be close and spend time with him on the drive there and back. So while Heath went to work in Carrie, IL we found a fantastic playground that the kids could play at. Alyssa loved the big swings and the boys loved climbing on all of the equipment.

Then we took Heath to work in Crystal Lake, IL (the next village over) and we went to the McDonalds across from the bank that just happen to have an incredible playplace. We stayed there for over an hour before we went to find the State Park that we had originally intended to play at while Heath was working. We found it and followed a trail to a beautiful Lake. The kids loved exploring the trails and I loved getting great pictures of the kids in such a beautiful place. We finally got back to the bank to pick Heath up and then spent the rest of the day as a whole family having fun! It was a great memory for our Summer Journal.

The Ride for Kids...

Heath and I attended the annual charity motorcycle ride benefitting the Pediatric Brain Tumor foundation for the second time. We went last year for the first time just because we wanted to be a part of a big motorcycle ride. But this year we went back because we were so moved by the kids that we were riding for. Last year there were several thousand bikes at the ride. This year there was a threat of rain overhead and the ride was moved a little further SouthWest, so not as many people showed up, but it was still a big ride. We meet very early in the morning at our local Kawasaki shop and have breakfast and prayers before heading over to the big ride. We then meet up with several other organizations and local groups to ride together on a preplanned route. The route is well advertised in the area, so many people show up to the side of the road to watch the parade of bikes that come through. We then all come together under a large tent and they tell us how much money was raised, they talk to several of the kids that benefit from the ride, and we hear about many inspiring stories. The one that I remember most is a little girl the same age as my Alyssa. Last year her dad got up and spoke about how his baby girl was in the hospital because they had just discovered the brain tumor. This year they had her with them and told us how she had undergone 6 surgeries in the last year and that she had to relearn alot of things she had already learned as a baby. While it was a story that made me cry, I was moved at what a miracle this baby was to all of us, but especially her parents.

Heath and I talked this year about wanting to find a charity motorcycle ride that benefits a Spina Bifida foundation since that is something we live with in our household everyday. We looked at several different options but most were not local. The March of Dimes supports Spina Bifida patients amont other pediatric foundations, but they mostly do walks and not motorcycle rides. We then talked about starting one of our own and how we could go about doing that. Earlier this month, we very sadly had to let go of the motorcycle for financial reasons. So while it looks like we won't be starting our own bike ride anytime soon. We are hoping that by the time this "Ride for Kids" comes around next year, we will be able to find a way to be a part of it. Even if it means sitting in chairs along the parade route to wave as all the bikes come through.

slideshows and more slideshows

This is a trip that the men's group at our last church do every year. This is the second year that Heath has taken the boys on this rafting trip in Wisconsin. This year they invited Papa to come along with them. There are some really big rapids and some big waterfall drops. The boys did really well until the last and biggest drop. Josiah insisted upon getting out of the boat and waiting for them. They also camped out in tents and they all had a great time hanging out with friends and making new friends. I'm sure that when Heath has time he will blog all about it. It was one of those 2rules/150years things.

July 4th weekend was a blast! We had some experiences that we would rather not have again, but for the most part it was really fun. Some of our friends from the Alabama/Tennessee area came to town and had dinner at our house. We sat around and shared old stories and laughed. It was great to see the Rickmans again. When is your family going to come to Chicago? Let us know, we love filling our backyard with good friends and good food.

Catching up on Summer Fun

This is just a few things that we did this Summer. Enjoy

It has taken a long time to set up all of the slideshows from our Summer Events, so while it is too late for me to stay up and post blog after blog, I will do my best to get the others posted sometime tomorrow.

As promised...

Here is a slideshow of the pictures from my getaway with my friends back in June.

Now that we are back online I am working on more slideshows to help update you on all that we have been through in the last few months. Please check back often because in an effort to catch up quickly I will be posting often.

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you

To everyone for your well wishes and most of all for your thoughtful prayers for our family. We have had some really hard times hit us. Our finances, our emotions, and our possesions have felt the brunt of some awful furry. The details are not important, I just want you all to know that without your prayers and support we would not have been able to make it through. I am still not sure that we are on the other side of the fence, so to speak, but we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. How's that for a mouthful of metaphors?

Heath has been unable to get a second job. No one is hiring for the hours that he is not already working his prominent job. After some long hours of heartfelt prayers and asking God to prosper Heath's current job, we decided to just wait on HIM. This month Heath has done more business at the bank and is meeting his goals. On occasion he has even done beyond his daily/weekly goals. This means that we will see profits in late September.

I will not be able to attend college this fall as I had planned, but I am not giving up and I will continue to pursue my options with every new semester. Please continue to pray that I will be able to find the study time to place into the required classes. This has not been an easy decision but I feel that it is best for our family for now.

Our boys will be starting the 1st and 3rd grades this fall and are both excited about the upcoming school year. Please pray for our finances as we pay for public school, school clothes, and school supplies this month. Prayers would also be good for them to have the best teachers and for them to continue making close friendships.

Alyssa is now going through the terrible twos. While there are many times that she is an absolute Angel and we love being around her, there are other times when she gets stubborn and determined to have things her way or no way. Several days in a row last week tested my patience. I love her more than I could ever love any little girl in the whole world and I am doing everything I know to do to help her through this phase in her life. Please pray that it will pass quickly and that we will both be able to grow and mature.

My sister Angie has now moved to our house. We have given her the second floor of our house. The adjustment is going well so far. We told the children (although I don't think Alyssa understands) that upstairs is now "Angie's house." We told them that they have to knock if they would like to visit her and made it a really big deal the first night that she was in our house. I wasn't sure how well it had sunk in until the next morning. Josiah came upstairs from the basement and told me "Mom, the basement is now mine and Karston's house. If you want to come visit you have to knock on the door." I indulged and agreed to knock. So now I have to knock and wait for permission to do go downstairs to do the laundry. That's ok. I don't really like doing the laundry anyway (ha ha.)

I have found time at night to come to this Caribou Coffee shop with Heath or with my Sissy and get to some free Wi Fi, so I will now be occasionally able to check back here. We ae also wworking on getting reconnected soon and then I will be back to the daily routine. Again thanks to everyone for your prayers, support and emails. When everything around us crumbles to the ground we are grateful to still have each other and it is so helpful to know that our friends and family will be beside us with arms open wide.