In Process

I feel like right at this moment I have about a kajillion irons in the fire and a thousand projects started with nothing completed yet! I think that's the way summer often tends to go, but as we increase livestock (well, mini farm animals) and as gardens grow, I'm increasingly convinced that people who are "true" farmers and gardeners must stay home a lot more than we do! Or, at least, they maybe don't go away for huge chucks of time like we do. Just wondering. It feels like we are just barely treading water in trying to stay on top of these things! But, they're all fun, and they're ALL good. There are just so MANY! Whew.....

Anyway, here's a pictorial blog entry of all of the goings on here at the Booker household -In process projects galore!



This is my ginormous garden. I really have no idea how it got to be so big - I fully intended to take baby steps this first year as I don't have a clue what I'm doing. I blame my little old neighbor, Lou. He said: "You've got the space, you might as well stick some stuff in the ground!" So, that's what we did.....



These are my tomatoes alone - all 18 of them! Again - how did this happen??? I also have a row of green beans, and entire row of potatoes that Lou planted for me because, and I quote: "You have 4 boys. You need an entire row of potatoes." I have corn, carrots, swiss chard (which I've never eaten in my life, but Lou assures me I'll love it), radishes, yellow and green peppers (Lou says, "Horrors!" to the yellow peppers), two kinds of onions, cucumbers, yellow summer squash (Lou says that summer squash is: "Horrid!"...I don't think he likes yellow veggies....), two types of winter squash, pumpkins, and some melons....which I'm quite confident will bite the dust.

Right now, this is my main project that I am working on and racking my brain trying to figure out ideas of how to lay down cardboard, mulch, hay - you name it - WHATEVER to keep weeds at bay. Methinks it will probably be quite the jungle down there by summer's end. Ah well. It's a learning summer.

Here's project Number two:

Our chicken coop that was ORIGINALLY intended for three chickens, yet somehow it's needing to house 6 chickens, 1 turkey, and 2 ducks. Again......WHAT? I have a sickness, I think.
I can't stop.

It's functional, yet it still needs a ramp, a window, nesting boxes, and a run for my girls. It's divided into two compartments inside because the turkey and the chickens really shouldn't live together, but every single blessed night he jumps over and when I go out to them in the morning, all the chicks are nestled all around him. SO - he'll just stay over on the girl's side, and the other will be our duckies new digs. It's all good.

And another big, but really fun (I can say it's fun, because I did nothing to help put it together in the two ENTIRE days that it was worked on) project is this:



For the boys' birthdays this summer, rather than have all the uncles, grandparent's, and us buy gifts for the kids, we all pitched in to get this lovely swingset. It came with about a million pieces, but it's almost done, and the boys LOVE it! The fort on top still needs to be finished, and a little picnic table needs to be attached, but for all intents and purposes the kids can still play to their heart's content right now.



And SOMETIME in the near future, I hope to replace my fire-engine red shutters and doors with other more shall we say, "Amy-like" colors. But, that's for another day.

Right now, there's THIS little bit of deliciousness that is completely distracting me.....


Seriously.....that head....those ears....he has NOTHING to do with this post....but, oh my!

Ramblings

Did you know that Hitler once said: "Give me a child until he's seven, and he'll be mine forever?" Crazy.

Studies show that by the age of seven, our children have been molded into the people that they're - pretty much - going to be. Obviously there's some big time maturing and character development that will take place all throughout the years, but by this age - so say "the studies" - the major foundation of their entire lives has already been established.

Now, obviously these studies don't take into account the transformational power of Christ and the work that He does in individuals' lives to mold them into the people that HE wants them to become. But - all of that set aside - if these statistics have any merit or any weight AT ALL......MISTER MAN! That's absolutely nuts to think about.

A fellow teacher at my little school that I work at were talking about this stuff this morning. Her kids are about ready to graduate highschool, so she's viewing parenting and LIFE from the other end of the spectrum. I'm just barely starting out on this journey - Kaden is just NOW ready for school, and here she is wrapping up the school years. I'm finding that I'm constantly searching out mothers who are "on the other side" - trying to glean from them. Wanting to find out mistakes they've made, lessons they've learned, things they feel they've done well, things they wish they could do over, what they wish they could re-live, what they'll miss the most....

Because this season is FLEETING. It'll be gone in the blink of an eye. I always talk about savoring, because I know I need to do a better job at it. I'm so task oriented. I like to conquer my days. But, I so want to just SAVOR my kids. Heavens - Kaden is already six years old. When I look at Ransom, I can hardly even remember Kaden being that tiny!

Just thoughts rolling around in my noggin. One of MANY reasons why I'm so seriously contemplating homeschooling, I guess. In some ways, it cracks me up, because I never in a MILLION years would ever have dreamed about even CONSIDERING the idea. Yet, here I am. God knows what's best for my kids and for my family, so I rest and I trust.

Meanwhile, I process and I gather info, and I glean wisdom, and I stress a little, and I give it back to Him, and then I'll some days take it back FROM Him, and we continue to walk this journey of life together, He and I.

Tenting!

Sooo, the motto of this past weekend was: "It's no big deal!" And we repeated it over and over again! Like, on the day before we were to leave, my ducklings were ready to be brought home. Hmmm. Not the most ideal of times to introduce 2 babies to 6 larger chickies while I'm gone for four days. Well.... no big deal. We'll just bring them with us!



So, we scrounged up a couple of hot water bottles, some fuzzy blankets, and just brought them right along with the rest of the crew! No big deal.

It also forcasted rain for almost all of the weekend. With no opportunity to plan a rain date, it was kind of like "now or never," so we all decided a little (or, as it turned out a LOT) of rain was really not a big deal - we've done it before last year. So, we packed up. In the pouring rain. And set up in the drizzle. And camped all weekend (except for 1 day) in the rain. And unpacked again in torrents. No big deal.




The other "no big deal" we decided on was - who really needs to be able to see your kids on the drive? They can fend for themselves, right? I actually found it quite nice when Jesse sang at the top of his lungs for the entire drive and I could juuuuuust barely hear him past all of our junk-ola! Not a bad set up, me thinks! Ha!



Here's where we sat most of the weekend. More pics to come in later posts. Over all, it was nice being with grandparents and aunties and uncles for a long stretch of time. A highlight for all of us, too, was reconnecting with a kindred spirit from Bible school days who has three little girls of her own. The kids had a blast running wild - swimming, catching things, and playing with their "slug club," and she and I were able to sit around the fire drinking camp coffee. It doesn't get much better.

A good time was had by all!

Busy Bees

Holy Heavens!

It's been a busy Memorial Week-end....one normally spent canoeing the rapids with my family up in the County....but not this year. So much to do in so little time. Six years ago, on this very week-end - one of my most fave holidays, by the way - I was told that I would indeed NOT be canoeing with my oh so prego belly. I would, rather, be getting induced because my body was starting to freak out. I believe my words were: "Can't you do it on Monday? I am supposed to go on a canoe trip with my family today!" My doctor informed me that she had never heard anyone respond in such a way as this - especially with their first baby! I was not impressed with the whole induction idea, let me tell you.

But... my boy - was he ever worth it - induction and all. By far, my most horrid labor experience, but I would do it over a million times again for him. He rocks.

Anyway, I digress....

Busyness is what I'm supposed to be typing about! Two birthdays to organize, a 4 day camping trip to celebrate, a day of work thrown in there, a ginormous garden to plant, a SWINGSET/JUNGLE GYM birthday gift to set up, and a chicken coop to finish have been the doings here as of late.

With the help of my little old man neighbor, Lou, we spent 8 hours in the garden yesterday, putting the ENTIRE thing in! Amidst lots of mocking of my plant choices, lots of giggling -on his part - at the sad state of affairs of most of my seedlings, a broken back from wearing Ransom in the backpack, and lots of "help" from the boys - not to mention MANY a deep, cleansing breath on my part while they worked alongside me, we got 'er done! I may have gone a little crazy with my tomato plants - somehow there are 18 of them down there. But, I'm excited.

The chickies love their coop.
I have done nothing to prepare for camping.
The swingset is going on two days of assembling, but she's almost done.
Pictures will be coming forthwith.
Kaden is SIX! Jesse will be three on FRIDAY! HOLY HEAVENS!

It's a good life. We are blessed.

Ponderings.....

This family is seriously thinking and praying about starting a crazy new adventure come Fall. Here's a clue.....

Behold:

Happenings of Late

Oh my - the weather is glorious these days. We have practically been living outside. I love those kinds of days. Nothing major in the happenings going on as of late. Our chickies and Mr. Turk are growing like crazy - we're talking like every morning when we come out to say "hello," they are looking different! Crazy! Still very precious and sweet. I clean them out twice a day, so they're not stinky yet. But, they are getting too big for their box. Many attempts at escape have been made with our kitty, Risso, looking on licking her lips in anticipation. That would not be good.....

We had a ginormous yardsale yesterday. Boxes upon boxes of stuff gotten rid of - sold, given away, or taken to the dump. We came home with only six wee little boxes for a sale in the fall perhaps. We made a bunch of cash, the kids made some as well, and we even came home with a bed to boot for our guest room/nursery. Good times good times.

Daddy took the two big boys on an overnight tenting/fishing trip with a friend and his little boy this week. They has a blast, and Kaden even caught a huge trout all by himself. Ransom and I also enjoyed a blessed quiet couple of days with some uninterrupted Mommy time, as well. Very cozy and nice. And while they were away, a friend came over and we rearranged a room together - per our usual! Very fun.

My Marmie is coming over this afternoon to spend a few days with us. Looking forward to some nice walks, tea on the porch, quality time spent with her and the boys, and maybe even a free babysitter so Kevy and I can go on a date. Can't beat that with a stick!

This Saturday is my eldest's 6th birthday! Oh my word - how the time has flown. I can hardly wrap my brain around it. And Jesse's 3rd birthday is four days later. Nuts. We're going to go on a camping trip again to celebrate. But this year, instead of everyone getting them gifts, we are all chipping in together and are going with one big present - a super fun swingset for the backyard. Shhh. Don't tell.......

Enjoy the rest of your week-end friends!

Our New Additions....

Okay. Here are just a couple of pictures of our newest littles. This is their new pad that they'll have for a few weeks. Our turkey has to be separated because he eats different feed, and the chickens can carry a type of "disease" (for lack of a better word) that doesn't affect them but can be fatal for Mr. Turk.

Until they get super stinky, they'll hang out with us in the corner of the our kitchen. I want them to get used to our voices and the kids' handling them, because I want them to be super people friendly once they move outside.

This is Mr. Turk. He's the friendliest of all of them, and I must say that I am quite in love with him. He loves people and will cry to be held. As soon as he is picked up, he'll tuck himself right into our hands or arms and fall immediately asleep. I don't know how anyone could not love that.

I did a little research on keeping this particular brand of turkey for pets...ahem....but all that I've read says that he'll get to be so big that he could potentially have heart and leg problems - carrying around all of that excess weight. This breed is not intended to be for pets. So, we'll give him a rockin' life and then he won't know what hit him come Turkey Day.

That's the plan anyway....hmn.



And these are our baby chicks. The three black ones with white spots on their heads are Barred Rock. They'll be really big and hearty. They're gentle birds and get along well with other breeds. And the chipmunky striped ones are Americaunas, and they'll lay greenish blue eggs for us. Kinda' fun.

I love my new babies.......

Our Babies Have Arrived!

We have 7 absolutely adorable little bundles of fluff residing in our kitchen right now. Three baby Barred Rock chicks, three baby Americaunas (that will lay green eggs, by the way), and one little Baby Turkey that Blue Seal just gave to us because he was the only one left and they were anxious to get rid of him; and we were suckers for a little ball of fluff......that I know full well will soon become a stinky, ginorous gobbler.

Ah well, I couldn't help myself.

So for now, the plan will be for Mr. Turk to be our main course come Thanksgiving....but in my heart of hearts, I will be shocked if this plan actually comes to fruition with all of the tenderhearts that reside in this house. But maybe it will - if he gets really gross and poopy...or if he's mean to the girls.

We shall see.....

Pics will be coming forthwith. They're hanging out in our kitchen for the first week or so - until they start to stink up the place. Which won't be too long from now. But, I actually really want them to be handled a lot while they're young so that they become really kid friendly.

I don't think I could ever become a true farmer. We gave three babies to a friend yesterday, per a previous agreement. When she put them in with her ten layers, and the layers immediately began ganging up on them, I almost scooped them back up and brought them home. I know that there really is a true pecking order with chickens, but did it ever hurt my heart! I'm going to try to teach my girls some manners.

And the poor little turkey so wants to be with the others, but he has to have different feed. So, we put up a screen separater so that he can at least see them. And it's so sweet - they all lay against the screen together, so that he still is touching them. (And also, because the heat lamp is directly above them, right there. But, I still love that they are able to snuggle together).

Oh, I love it.

There were also baby goats at Blue Seal selling for the low low price of $100.00. Had they been $40 or less, I would have brought one of those home too and told Kev that's what I want for my birthday.

Best to start small, though, methinks. I'm still trying to fanagle a couple of ducks out of him, too. Anybody got cute chicken name ideas? So far we have a: Blacky - (Kaden's choice), a Spotty (Jesse's choice), and a Chloe (Mine). We need three more!

Why I Savor

"Empty Nest"
by My Mother - Lynda Quint

My house is growing emptier
As children leave the "nest"
The days are getting quieter
The nights seem long, to rest.

I lie awake in bed at night,
and wonder how they are --
Not long ago, they slept here too -
But now they're scattered far.

No "late night chats" - "no goodnight kiss"
Just quiet empty rooms
Bear witness to the changes here,
And add to "Mother's gloom."

How fast the years have hurried by
Since childhood days of play -
How is it that they've grown and gone
And brought me to this day?

Sometimes I'd like to turn the clock
Of time back just a bit -
To see their little faces smile
And hear their childish wit!

But I cannot - and life goes on
Though one day I shall see
Their image, in their children's eyes
Looking back at me.


The days may be long, but the years are fleeting............

The Difference Between Us

Well, since this post is about Kev and I, I shouldn't pretend there is only one difference between us....we're night and day in many ways....but today was about a biggy.

Of the two of us, I am much more the task oriented person. When people look at the two of us without really knowing us - because I am more publicly outgoing and crazy (he is just as much so behind closed doors, but few people get the rare glimpse) - I am often thought of as the more, oh shall we say, "spontaneous" and "fun" one.

So not true.

If it were not for Kev, I would be in perpetual "go" mode. I would be constantly working on some project or other, and my constant companian of an excuse would be, "It's only a season." To which Kev always replies: "There will ALWAYS be a season. We need to be intentional NOW."

If I had been the one in the grad program out at PBU - no lie - our marriage would have suffered. I'm a nerd. I want straight A's. And I will not take a break until all of my work is accomplished. It is VERY hard for me to sit still and just "be" when there are things to be done. There was many an afternoon that Kev came home early from doing homework - leaving some of it undone and willing to take a lower grade - so that he could take us to the park or out to icecream for a few hours before heading back to an evening class. He worked two jobs - leading worship and being a barista at Starbucks - and most semesters he took more than an average course load.

But we never once felt neglected. He always put us first. And they were three pretty amazing years. I'm sorry to say that I wonder if that would have been the case had I been in his shoes.

Today was kind of like that.

Aaron was here helping with the chicken coop. Huge progress was being made. And everything within me wanted to say - let's can our plans for Bar Harbor today and just stay home and get this thing done! Aaron is willing to stay longer, we have all of the supplies and his expertise, LET'S JUST DO IT!

But Kev said no.

And I'm so glad he did. There is something so very different and special about taking your whole family and just kicking it for the day. Getting away from life, the house's chores, phone calls and emails, and just "BEING." With each other. With no distractions. A family day FORCES us to relax with our kids and truly enjoy each other.

I highly recommend it.

It's good. So good. And necessary for us. It's a big part of the glue of this family. So thankful for this huge difference between us.

The State of Things.....

Uncle Aaron is here helping Daddy with our chicken coop. Kaden very seriously marches in stating: "I need my hammer. A real one. I'm going to do big boy things with the guys. Jesse can come too."



Well then. Have at it, my Loves!

Weekends!

Oh praise be! A weekend is upon us again! I so very dearly love these things called weekends. And even though all of my little hoodlums woke up for the day at 5:30 and ran around the house all morning in just their undies, it's turning out to be quite a lovely, lazy day.

My little bro Aaron has breezed through for a few hours. He is one of Kev's and my bestest friends, so it's just cozy having him here. We had lunch together, the kids showed him all of their bugs and tadpoles, and now he and Kevy are brainstorming together about how to make me a rockin' fine chicken coop for the girls who shall be arriving in a week or so.

Today will be a project, errand, laundry, get bills paid, and get on top of life kind of a day, and then tomorrow will be a "kick it to who knows where" kind of a day. I think the ocean is calling all of our names. I'm not sure. We'll see what tomorrow brings. I'm starting to get the yard sale itch - both the itch to have one of my own AND to go and conquer everyone else's. Oh man - I totally and completely hate shopping, but yard saling is another story. It's like Christmas - you never know what sorts of treasures you'll find!

In other news, Jesse had yet another cold - what is the story? Ransom is beginning to show signs of "strength," shall we say. And loudness. I was so hoping for a quiet and truly mellow one. I'm still holding my breath, though. And Kade-man is filling the kiddie pool with tadpoles and dragonfly larvae so that he can swim with them.

I am off! Have a glorious weekend, dear ones!

Isn't It Ironic?

I had a very interesting little conversation this week with one of my dear relatives concerning God, faith, weddings, and raising our kids to love Jesus! The entire discussion centered around what took place at our wedding eleven years ago. Before I walked down the aisle, I had pre-recorded a message to Kev that I played over the auditorium's loudspeaker. The basic jist of the whole message was that I was walking down the aisle toward the man I had prayed for and saved myself for ever since I was a little girl.

Apparantly, that little pre-recorded message was the topic of much discussion for many of my extended family members for many months to come! Who knew? I guess they all found it to be completely "inappropriate" because didn't I realize that there were young teenagers in my audience who heard this? Why yes, I was WELL aware of those teens....I believe I invited them to that blessed event seeing that it was my wedding and all.....

I guess the irony in the whole thing was that a comment from a twenty year old woman on her wedding day stating that she had "saved herself" for her husband who she planned to stay married to for life was completely inappropriate for a teen to hear; yet it was completely acceptable for those same teens to be taught in their schools that it's okay to have sex with whoever they want - whenever they want - just as long as they are responsible and keep it "safe."

Does anyone else not see the irony here????!!!!

Yes - I was WELL aware of the teenagers in my audience. Yes - I WANTED them to hear that waiting for sex is STILL taking place in today's culture by some. Yes - I wanted them to see that there IS another option out there. Yes - by God's grace, I am not ashamed to say out loud that I was a virgin on my wedding day. (Although, I was much more discreet than that, even. I stated, and I quote: "Ever since I was a little girl I have worn a special purity ring on my finger reminding me and those around me that I would wait for the man whose name I would one day share." I said the word "wait." I wasn't crass, and I wasn't being cocky).

And YES - a thousand times, yes - I will teach my boys that waiting for marriage is good and right. It's appropriate. It's because I love them. IT's because I want what's best for them. It's because I want to save them heartache and baggage. It's because that's God's perfect option. Might this not happen? Sure, and I will love them no less. But I want them to see what a great gift it is that they can give to their bride one day. I want them to be aware of the pitfalls they can avoid and the things that they can hold strong and fast to. I want them to view it as something to be guarded - something to be treasured. I want them to be men of integrity and purity that any young woman would be honored to marry.

And if it ruffles a few feathers along the way, that saddens me, but so be it.

The OTHER Men in My Life!

I'm from "The County."

Kev always mocks me when I say that, but it's true. Everyone from "up there" says it, and everyone from "around here" knows exactly where I mean when I say it. I'm not just being cocky - it's where I'm from. That's just the way it is.

But, I digress....

Anyway, it's a whole different world up there - a completely different culture. The pace of life is slower. The whole art of "dropping by for coffee" like people used to do in the olden days still takes place. And often, at my parent's house! Everybody knows each other. Granted, everybody knows each other's business, too, but people know when their neighbors are sick. They know when there's been a death in the family. And they know when a good old fashioned casserole would bless someone!

One of the things that I was most excited about in being a homeowner again, was the prospect of having neighbors and getting to know the people who live around us. So, in the past six months since we've been living here, the boys and I have sporatically taken cookies and soups or any little extras of anything that we've made to our neighbors on either side of us. We have sweet little widowed men on either side of us, so I often have them in mind whenever I'm baking and cooking.

At first, Kev was a little skeptical. I think in the beginning, he might have even said, "We don't really do that around here." But, I assured him, a little buttering up of the neighbors may come in handy some day if and when our children ever ran streaking through their yards, or something like that. With three boys, I can't even begin to dream what our lives may continue to look like through the years. So, getting on our neighbors good sides, first thing, is always a handy idea.

Anyway, I know for a fact that the previous owners who lived here were most assuredly not allowed to hunt on my neighbor's 75 acres of land behind us, because there were posted signs about five feet into our woods facing our house directly. Well, one fine day, Kev went over to introduce himself, and within five minutes, he not only had permission to hunt the land, he is also allowed to leave a deer stand up, AND we are allowed to play on his land AND in his pond! Nice.

That's what homemade cookies and cream of brocolli soup will do for ya!

Just this past week-end, I was once again reaffirmed in my strong belief that being neighborly always pays off. My good pal, little old man #1 named Lou popped over on Saturday wondering if we'd like our garden plot tilled. I joked that I was just getting ready to walk over there this week to see what it would take to butter him up for a few hours of borrowing his machine. He promptly walked back home, walked his tiller over, and tilled almost our entire garden all by himself!!! I'm making that man one fine meal next week. He was so sweet.

Well, he didn't quite do the whole garden because part of it was still a little wet, he thought. No big deal to us; this garden is ginormous, and we want to start out small anyway. So, I thanked him profusely, I think he called me "Doll," and he'll be getting a visit from me and the kids soon.

Not ten minutes passed before my other good pal, little old man #2 named Arlo knocked on my door saying that he noticed Lou had beat him to the job of getting our garden ready for us! I said, "Yeah, he just finished up a little bit ago," and Arlo decided he needed to go down and have a look-see. "Why didn't he do the whole thing?" he asked me. "Lou thinks it's a little wet along the edges," I responded. To which his prompt reply was, "I'm going home to get my tractor." Not two minutes later, Arlo is down there finishing the garden for us!


I think that man needs a loaf of my homemade bread and strawberry jam!

Seconds later, Lou is back checking out Arlo's work while I get a large kick out of the whole thing. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Kev is up on our roof fixing our gutters and looks down at me with a grin. "I think those men are trying to please you, Honey!"


I'm golden.

Weekending

OH, how I LOVE beautiful weekends.

The kiddie pool is set up, projects are being started, and the boys are in their element catching salamanders, tadpoles, leeches, bumble bees, butterflies, and bugs of all shapes and sizes.

Kevy and I are having fun too. It's been awhile since we've owned our own place, so projects that I'm quite sure will quickly become a pain, haven't lost their novelty with us yet. :0) Kev is putting up rain gutters to hopefully prevent another ocean in our basement when the next storm hits, I'm mulching and building rock walls and planting seedlings (even though I don't have a sweet clue what I'm doing), and as a family we are trying our hand at tackling a chicken coop for our new babies that are soon to arrive.

I love these kinds of days.

We live outside and come in only long enough to track up the floors, grab a bite to eat, and change a diaper or two.

Good times.

Yesterday, we all got in the car and kicked it south for the day. No real plans of where we were going or what we were going to do. We ended up at Old Orchard Beach - walked around, collected shells, and got thoroughly sandy and wet; and then we slowly made our way back home - hitting Cabelas and a coffee shop along the way. A family "play today."

Today we work. But, I can hardly call it that. It's been too long since we've had this. And it feels SO GOOD to get dirty! We are thankful, and we are blessed.

Taking Stock

Kevy & I are once again at the place of assessing and re-assessing where we are at in life. I don't know about everyone else, but it seems as though we are always doing this. On the other hand, it also seems as though we are the only ones I know who are somewhat nomadic and who do things that noone else fully understands. But that's okay. I'm at peace with my life.....

Anyway, my apologies to my peeps who have left me phone messages as of late asking if I am dead and "why am I not returning any calls?" I go in phases of being really great at communication and then being quite wretched. These past few days, I'll admit my horrid-ness at it all. Biggest "sorry" goes to Esther for not getting back to you about Moxie. Sorry, girl. Hope your doggy found a nice babysitter this past week-end....

So, here we are.

Last Sunday, Kev announced to the church that as of May, he will be stepping down from his position as worship leader. Kind of a bittersweet decision - bitter in that we really love it and will miss it tremendously; sweet in that our ministry is growing like crazy, and he was finding it increasingly difficult to juggle both - not to mention the fact that we need the freedom to be able to be in other churches on Sundays, if need be.

So, as of next month, thus will end an 11 year run of working in a church for pay. Kind of crazy. All three of my boys have literally been raised in church where we practically live there on Sundays! They've all learned to nap wherever Mama lays them, and to get quite comfortable with the fact that we are often one of the first to arrive and just about always the last to leave.

It'll be strange. But it's good and it's right.

So, that's kind of the biggy. And now we're trying to figure out what this NEXT chapter of our lives is going to look like. Always chapters, always seasons. We've got training in May that's pretty big, we've got the whole school decision to make for Kaden, and we are in our final stretch of support raising. All exciting stuff, and all a little scary.

Change is good. Change is our friend. Change is good. Change is our friend.

Barred Rock Beauties!

Meet the soon-to-be newest members of our family.


You're lookin' good, girls!

Well, actually, they'll come to us looking more like soft little black and grey preciousness.

I really have no idea what I'm doing, just so you know. I had chickens all growing up, but the only thing that I can remember is watching them fly around like a bunch of crazies after Dad chopped their heads off and then plucking them while discussing with my bros which one was "Fluffy," and which one was "Red."

Scarred for life.

To be honest, part of the draw in choosing this breed is that they are both egg layers and meat birds. Soooooo, should I discover that I have "bitten off more than I can chew" so to speak......we will have ourselves a couple of fat hens to chew on for our suppers this winter.

That might be too mean to the boys, though.

In all seriousness, I did a lot of research on all of the different chicken varieties, and although I do somewhat agree with the experts that "chickens are chickens" and "they'll be as friendly as the amount of time you spend with them," I also wanted a shall we say, "hearty" bird who could handle some serious "loving" from three crazies. Also, I have been told that they are, and I quote: "not discouraged by the cold." That's good, since Kev probably won't let them in the house this winter.

Sooo, sometime around the second week of May, we are going to have ourselves a few new little babies in the family. And possibly a wee little duckling or two, if I can convince Kevy. Still working on the baby lambs and goats that are at Blue Seal right now. Kev says he has to draw the line somewhere.......

Ransom

Tomorrow wee little Ransom turns 6 months old! I CANNOT even believe it! Unbelievable. In some ways I feel as though he's been with us forever, but in others, I can't believe he's almost done being a baby.

He is such a dream - so easy - the kind of baby I would wish for everyone to have for their first. I finally understand, third time around, what people mean when they say how much they love the baby stage and how much they "always loved having a baby in the house." Up until Ransom, Kev and I both were like: WHAT?!!! Us - not so much, thank you. We like them around the 15 month and up mark. From the time of this child's birth, I kept waiting for the ball to drop.....thinking, okay when is this child going to start screaming? When is he going to hit that point where I am the only person who will be able to console him? When is he going to enter freak out land?

And....it's never happened. He remains so mellow and chill, so sweet and contented, so easy to guide into a little schedule, a great napper, an amazing sleeper-through-the-nighter, and he's just totally up for whatever adventure we want to drag him along on. Perfectly suited for two older brothers. If I knew all of my babies would be like this, I would have at least two more. Seriously.

We think he's our favorite.

Large joke.

Kind of.

Anyway, Mr. Delicious had his six month well child check-up yesterday, with our MOST favorite osteopathic doctor, by the way. He is our first child who is a bit of a peanut! It kind of cracks me up after having a child who we were told was entering "infant obecity," and who "was not only off the charts - but was sky-rocketing off the charts!" Little Rancey Pants weighs 15lbs.7oz. and is only in the 25%! He is long, however, like my brothers - and is in the 60% for that, and (also, like my side of the family) has a jug head that puts him in the 75%! Good times.

So strange, how each baby can be so different, and you do the same exact thing with each one.......

We have three little gifts - all so differnt and unique. Different personalities, different needs, different ways they need to be trained, different ways they respond to our parenting. I am continuously awed and overwhelmed at the responsibility that God has given to us to "train up each child in the way that he should go."

What a gift. What a privilege. What a perfect way to keep me daily on my knees.....

An Update

No beds are made for the day, breakfast still sits on the table, my hair is up in a towel, and mountains of laundry await, but for now - Ransom naps and the boys are playing (somewhat) happily together, so I thought I'd catch up a bit over here.

We've had company with us this past week - the best kind of company - the kind that's family or "just like family" where you can be yourself and not worry about putting on any airs. The kind where you can just "be" together and enjoy each other. And the kind where you can burn many a meal because you're distracted (sorry, guys) and they will still compliment you on it, because they love you!

My little bro and his wife breezed through for a night at the beginning of the week. He is freshly home from Border Patrol training in Texas, and he will now courageously protect and defend our borders in Rangeley. Who knew there was even a border down there? Anyway, we Love Rangeley - it's where we spent part of our honeymoon, so we shall see them lots over the summer, hopefully. They have no kidlets yet, but didn't seem too overly taken aback by the loud, crazyness of our lives. In fact, I think they quite enjoyed themselves. I know for a fact my boys LOVED them. Kaden cried when they pulled out of the dooryard! Aaron is one of my dearest friends, and I am so thankful that he is back in Maine now.

And then, for the past four nights we have had some of our dearest friends that we made when we were in Pennsylvania stay with us with their two little girls. Her oldest is just 4 months older than Jesse - they are our PA "souvenires" - and her baby is just 5 days older than Ransom! It's been really fun walking through life together - doing very similar things like moving just days before giving birth etc. - even though we now live hours away from each other.

I always called Rachel my "sanity" while we lived out in PA. She was my kindred spirit out there when I was so sad about leaving home and family, we have the same loves and interests, she came and slept on my couch at 3:30 a.m. when I went into labor with Jesse - and made the day really fun for Kaden while I was in the hospital, and she went on many a walk with me during the early days when all Jesse did was scream. Our families always loved playing together, yard saling, and camping together. There were not too many other couples out there who found the same things to be fun that we did - LIKE camping in freezing weather etc.! She left a year before we did, and I was SO not impressed......

So, anyway, we haven't seen each other for about a year - we were both pregnant with our babes when she last made the drive. It was too short of a visit, and I fear we wore them out more than relaxed them, but it was lovely to have them here. We just did a whole lot of nothing really - wading in the stream, collecting bugs, frog's eggs and all sorts of "treasures" outside, antiqueing, playing outside as much as we could, having a fire at night, hunting for Easter eggs together with our kids, a trip to Campden, and a lot of catching up on each other's lives. Our kids played so well together and her little girl was just as psyched about catching frog's eggs and leeches as my boys were! I think Jesse may have a wee little crush - about five times a day each day that they were here he'd say: "Mommy, I love that girl!"

We were all kind of bummed to see them go. And we're trying our hardest to figure out a way to convince them to move to Maine.....

I love you, Rachey Rach. So thankful for your friendship......

For the Agents in My Life.....

My little bro Aaron is a Border Patrol agent for the Rangeley area here in Maine. My cousin Jodi is a Supervisor for the Border Patrol in the Houlton area; and my older brother, Clay, will also be an agent in Houlton in just a few months. This little ditty is for them. I almost peed my pants.

One of THOSE days....

Today has not gone as planned.

This was the big day that Jesse was going to get his super cool remote controlled car for being completely potty trained. It's been sitting up on the window sill in the bathroom for weeks, and he's been waiting.....

Well, today I had to go into work, and Kev is super busy, so I thought this would work out great. Whip out the prize before I leave and then the boys would be completely occupied for HOURS while Mommy was off to work, and then Daddy could get done what he needs to do, as well.

Hmn. Not so much.

Right before I leave, we discover that the car is a dud. Doesn't work at all, and Jesse is completely devastated. Awesome. Then, I get a call while I'm AT work and Kevy tells me that the boys were downstairs playing in the basement....you know, since the car wasn't working at all.....and they decided to give every single one of their stuffed animals "baths" in the basement where it has flooded. THEN, they proceeded to bring each and every soaking wet with muddy basement water stuffed animal up into my (freshly scrubbed because company is coming) living room to let them have their naps.

Awesome.

Good thing it's just my little bro coming to dinner.
Welcome to my life, Aaron......

A Child's Top Ten.....

I came across this article this morning. An interesting and encouraging read. It was written by Erin Kurt, who has her B.Ed and spent 16 years as a teacher and nanny around the world. Now, she applies her expertise as a parenting expert.

"What do you think matters most to your children? You driving them to lessons and practices, or is it the smile and hug you greet them with after school? If you guessed the latter, you are correct.

Sixteen years of teaching and giving the same assignment every Mother’s Day has led me to the exact same conclusion. You see, every Mother’s Day I would ask my students to give me advice on being a mother. They were to think about things their mother or guardian did for or with them that made them feel happy or loved.

Year after year, in every country I taught, and in every type of demographic, the students were saying the same things and had the same message: It’s the small things that their mothers did that meant the most and that they remembered.

Many moms today feel as if they are not good mothers unless they are racing around, shuttling their children from lessons, to practices and back to lessons again. I’ve had mothers tell me that they want to give their children every opportunity they did not have. While this thinking might bring the mother some comfort, it really does not do the same for their child who is potentially feeling overextended, stressed and tired.

After speaking endlessly about this topic with my students, it became clear to me that children today are involved in too many activities and are in turn becoming less in touch with themselves and their families. In addition, my students told me they really wished for more time to “just play”. Of course many of them enjoy their extra curricular activities, but it is not necessary they said to be allowed to do everything. What they enjoyed most, and what made their hearts happiest was when their mothers did simple things for or with them.

Here is a list of the top ten things students around the world said they remembered and loved most about their mothers.

1. Come into my bedroom at night, tuck me in and sing me a song. Also tell me stories about when you were little.
2. Give me hugs and kisses and sit and talk with me privately.
3. Spend quality time just with me, not with my brothers and sisters around.
4. Give me nutritious food so I can grow up healthy.
5. At dinner talk about what we could do together on the weekend.
6. At night talk to me about about anything; love, school, family etc.
7. Let me play outside a lot.
8. Cuddle under a blanket and watch our favorite TV show together.
9. Discipline me. It makes me feel like you care.
10. Leave special messages in my desk or lunch bag.

Children are incredibly wise and tend to see the world more simply than we do. Perhaps it is time we start taking their advice. Maybe we would all feel a little less stressed and be satisfied with the fact that doing little things really is… good enough."

I'm A Wanderer!

Well, I am home from my week-end away without my babes. It was quite glorious to be away for a week-end and equally glorious to be home again with my men. In true Kevy form, I came home to quite the spotless house because he knew that would mean far more to me than a dozen roses or other such fluff. My love language is hard core "Acts of Service," and hearing both the dishwasher and the washing machine whirring as I walked through the door screamed "LOVE" from the rooftop! I'm weird like that. And he knows it. That's why I love him so.....

I got 75 pages of scrapping accomplished - 55 completely finished, journaling and all - with 20 more done ALL but the journaling. That's my goal as soon as I get done here. We'll see how that goes. That was my goal during yesterday's nap, too, and I got about 3 sentences written before the hoodlums awoke from their slumberings. That's why I do this once a year. I usually don't touch an album from the time I leave one scrapbook retreat until the time I go to the next one. At least little Rancey Pants has 75 pages of love recorded for him. It may be ALL he gets. We shall see....

In other news - I am now breaking out in poison ivy here and there, and Jesse's continues to spread. His little face has cleared up, and he no longer looks like a monster, but he now has it on the palm of his hand, his legs, and even his little bum. Poor thing. I think we're cursed. Not sure how we're going to handle this issue, but everything I've read says that you are really only able to "manage" poison ivy - never fully eradicate it. That's awesome. But, I have heard of a shot that you can get every year to make you immune. I'm totally looking into that....and asking for a double dose.

It's a yucky rainy day in these here parts, today. I don't mind one every once in awhile - it's kind of cozy. And we have nowhere to be tonight, and nothing to do, so I think we shall all make cookies together! It's that kind of a day....

Tidbits....

WELL, I am kicking it for the weekend with a couple of friends to go scrap-a-di-doo-dah-ing SANS KIDLETS!!! Holy heavens - I am quite excited. I have never left one of my babies for this long at this age, but Ransom is in great hands with Daddy-O, and he takes a bottle just fine. I go once a year to one of these little retreats, and whatever scrapbooking gets done during those three days is what gets done in my year. I have not touched a picture since this time last year. So, I'm excited to put Ransom on the map! I have always said that I will do for all of my kids what I did for my first....each successive child will have just as many pages in his album as my first baby, so this weekend will be the attempt to keep my word to Rancey-Pants.

Although, I have ALL boys, and I'm quite sure that NONE of them will give a flying flip about scrapbooks that their Mommy made when they're older, but this at least appeases my conscience of any guilt.....in this area of their lives at least.

In other news, I am leaving Ransom with a horrible bum rash....not sure what's going on there, Jesse with poison ivy all over one side of his face....still not sure where he got it....we think it's maybe where we're building a tree fort. AWESOME. And Kaden with a bit of a cold. Good times. But Kevy is a rockin good sport about these things, so I am off like a flash!

One other really really cool thing that happened during the week - and this should really be a separate post of its own - is that Kaden accepted Christ as His Savior on Wednesday night. It was so special, and I want to remember the details forever.

We had been to some friends' house for supper and over the course of our dinner conversation my friend told us of a mutual acquaintance that we both knew who had suddenly passed away. Comments like: "He was so young," and "What a shock," and "We're so surprised," were thrown around while we were talking about him. Unbeknownst to us, Kaden was taking all of this in and processing it in his little mind. And after tucking him in for the night and praying with him, he came out of his room, tears streaming down his face, telling us that he's been thinking about when Mommy and Daddy are going to die.

In that moment, I knew that this was going to be the time that he accepted the Lord into his life. We talk about it all the time, he's memorized verses and told his AWANA leaders "how to get to Heaven," and it's been drilled into him each week in Sunday school, so we've known that he KNEW the truth. We have just never wanted to push the issue or force him to "pray the prayer" - we've wanted him to really understand and to maybe even initiate with us when he knew and when he was ready.

So, anyway...it was just a really sweet and tender time. Very special. In typical Kaden fashion, he was quiet and subdued, but we both feel that it was genuine and that he fully understood. It's been neat to see him continue to process through in conversations that have followed since then. And it's been so cool to see him starting to make his faith his own. What a privilege to guide these little hearts. What a responsibility!

May the Lord always find us faithful.......

Conversations

Overheard by the boys today:

Kaden: Jesse - where did you just wipe your nose?
Jesse: On the towel.
Kaden: But, WHERE did you wipe your nose?
Jesse: On the TOWEL!
Kaden: Jesse - WHERE did you wipe your nose?
Jesse: On the towel. That's the deal. I'm not using any more words!

Far Away......

Kev and I love this music video by Lecrae. We get teary every time we watch it. It's raw and it's real. So good.

Spring Approacheth

And this means:


Our first feeble attempt at gardening in which I have absolutely no doubt that we shall kill every thing we try to grow. But, I am determined to teach my city boys that plants do indeed come from the ground and not the store.....


Many a backyard tromp to try and find a few of last year's nests.....



Keens!!!! Oh how I love my keens...perfect for walking, puddle hopping, and chillaxing. Also great for funky tan lines and horribly smelly feet......


Oh SO many a backyard hotdog, pudgy pie, and marshmallow roast and fun little fires at ANY time of the day. ALL of my boys are pyros.....(is that how you spell that? You know what I mean - they like to play with fire...the kind that's hot.....)


Many, many, many fun swing rides on this old tree.....for all three of the boys actually, until we set up a tire for the big boys.....


And quite possibly...chicky-doos..... if I can convice hubby that this would be FUN!!! Don't you think? Another little adventure of sorts.....along with a little goat perhaps......

A Nine Day Drought......

My hubby is heading back home to his little family today after being gone for NINE DAYS. Whew! It's felt like a month in more ways than one. We are not overly fond of being away from each other or of splitting the family up too often, and other than taking our youth group kids to Africa almost five years ago, this is the longest that we have ever been apart.

Not a fan of it.

After having been on my own for these several days with three crazies and all of them sick at one time or another throughout this entire time, my respect level for single mothers has jumped to a new level. I have always had great respect for Moms who do this on their own - I have just never had to do it myself to be able to fully and wholly appreciate these amazing women. And for goodness sake, it wasn't even two full weeks, but I'm thinking of a handful of ladies right now who I am going to make something special for "just because" they are doing this on their own. Kudos to you girls. There's a special place reserved for you in Heaven! Whew!

Overall though, it's been a pretty good couple of weeks. I am quite positive that I would never have received the "Mother of the Year Award" during this time, but we've done some fun things, I've tried to keep sickness at bay, the boys haven't killed each other, they've still eaten somewhat nutritiously, and I've managed some decent quality time with each one.

We kicked it up to my parents house for half of the time, and this was my saving grace and sanity! Time up in the wide open spaces is so good for ALL of us. We went 4-wheeling as often as we could, I successfully flipped both boys off into a mud patch on our way to some snow!, we had hot dog roasts in Grampy's little cabin outside, we planted seedlings just for fun, Grampy had all kinds of projects to keep little hands busy, Grammy had special tea parties, and we got to see our favorite cousins. It was good.

And so today, we eagerly await the return of Daddy - the stability and heart of our home. We're going to make a welcome home banner, the kids are going to make him a bunny cake - "because Daddy loves bunnnies" - (who knew)?, and if life cooperates, I'm going to try and whip up a special supper.

I appreciate time apart because it makes me that much more thankful for all of the little and big things that Kev does for us - things that I don't ever worry about, like: building fires to keep us warm, keeping my car gassed up and tires blown up, tag teaming getting ready for the day, tag teaming sickness in the night, protection if someone tries to break in! - I received specific instructions on what to do should that have happened!, help with packing, loading, and unloading the car for trips, dealing with our current mouse problem, fixing things that break, and just the lightheartedness, stability, and fun that he brings to our home. Again - huge respect for all of the single moms....

Hurry home, my Love! Welcome to the funny farm!
We have missed you!!!!

In Other News.....

Somehow, we are once again infected with the plague over here. Well, really just another nasty, snotty, coughing, sneezing cold, but it feels like the plague when two of my three littles are under the weather. And it literally just came upon us in an instant. So quickly in fact, that Kev and I thought Jesse must have had an allergic reaction to something. We were driving home from Sunday morning church and one minute he was fine, and the next we wondered if he was hacking up a lung!

Last night was joyous - up multiple times to wipe noses, soothe tears, administer medicine, soothe the oldest who kept getting woke up by his brother's hacking, setting up the vaporizer, refilling it in the middle of the night, wiping more tears, wash, rinse, repeat.

I'm on my second pot of coffee and it's not even 8:00a.m. yet.

Methinks p.j.'s, Planet Earth, many stories, fresh squeezed orange juice, naps for ALL, and no other agenda for the day will get us through. I don't mind. It's nice to be able to check out of life for a bit, and not have to be anywhere or do anything except BE with the boys.

Here's to a third pot 'o joe.......

Feeling Thankful

We just got news today of a little two year old boy who fell down a flight of stairs and passed away. It totally blew me away when I heard this. My heart aches for the mother of that little boy. Falling down stairs is a very common occurance in our home - an often daily happening around here. It was probably a crazy, freak accident, but it just really reminded me of how much I take EVERYTHING for granted around here! We really have no idea when we will breathe our last breath. And I forget the fact that God tells us in His Word that He has His guardian angels watching over us. I wonder how often they have delivered my family from some sort of serious peril? It scares me to think about how often one of my kids could have gotten seriously hurt or injured in these past six years. And really, other than Jesse burning his hands as a baby, we have come out completely unscatched other than a handful of bumps and bruises. How thankful I am for the health and safety of my little family.

Psalm 91:11 ~ "For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways....."

Thank you, Jesus....

HOME

Well, we are back home again from our little rendezvous away as a family.

Can't say that it was the most restful time away with all FIVE of us sleeping in the same room. In fact, now that I think about it, I haven't slept that bad in a long time, but it was fun! At least we had our own bed. Kaden and Jesse shared one for the first time. Ransom actually did the best of all of the boys...I set his Moses basket inside the bathtub, brought a little C.D. player from home, and shut him in the bathroom for the night! Didn't hear a peep from him until morning. :0) Kaden, on the other hand, talked in his sleep - LOUDLY - for most of the night (poor Jesse, if this is what he has to try and sleep through most nights), and the Jester was the flip floppinest child I have ever seen in my life! He was all over the bed and practically on top of Kaden all night long (poor Kaden...good thing they have bunkbeds at home)! Plus, Jesse was stuffy and kind of congested, so he kept crying out in the night when he couldn't breathe through his nose.

It was really quite glorious.

And other than Jesse falling off the ladder into the pool (why am I not surprised?), and Kaden spilling orange juice and piping hot coffee all over me in bed this morning, we had tons of fun! And it was nice to just get away for a bit. It actually felt like a pretty long time because we left first thing Friday morning and didn't get home until late this evening. We spread it out pretty good. We ate at some fun places, swam in the pool three different times, snuggled in bed and watched some t.v., did a little shopping, and just enjoyed being together. Kev even snuck away and brought us back some icecream in the night while the boys were sleeping. We hid the evidence before they woke up!

Anyway, we are home. The kids were all down for the night by 6:00 - they were fried, Kev is currently crashed out on the couch, and I am waiting for my bread to finish cooking so that we can have something to eat in the morning....and then I am off to join them. We're all pooped.

Whew! Vacations are exhausting! :0)

Checking Out

After two weeks of REALLY busy days, we have spontaneously decided to check out for a few days. As soon as we wake up in the morning, we are all headed to Porland for a night. No big agenda other than:

* completely uninterrupted quality time with our boys
* lots of swimming in the pool
* ALL of us snuggling in bed, staying up late, and watching T.V.
* eating out with a lovely gift card that someone gave us for Christmas

....and coming back home a little more connected and a little more in love with each other.

This Month

Somehow, in these past few weeks, wee little Ransom turned four months old! Not sure how this happened, and not sure how much I like my little baby growing up right before my eyes, but it's happening. He's happily sleeping in his very own room these days, and most of the time he is able to sleep through his brothers' shenanigans. He is sleeping through the night - 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. consistently. One of his naps is really great during the day, and one is not so hot.....usually the one where his two big bros are sleeping. But, that's okay because it gives us a little bit of alone time where he is not being mauled by the Jester! He remains our happy, relaxed little guy for which I am so grateful and delighted! He is really just a joy, and it feels like he's always been with us. Can't imagine life without him.

Jesse has taken several rather large tumbles lately....ones where I had a brief moment of panic thinking: "Okay. This is it. Here's our first rush to the ER." But, each time he has come out surprisingly unscathed. He's nuts. Just in the past week, we have made some rather large strides potty wise. Still an occasional accident, but many more successes than not - with the #2 issue almost always going where it should....as opposed to on ME. This is very exciting.

We have had lots of ministry opportunities this month. It's been a REALLY busy month, but a very enjoyable one, as well. We are currently taking all of our deacons and their wives through Clarion, and we are really having fun with that. (Hopefully, they are too)! I had a chance to speak at a ladies Valentine's Brunch which was a little nerve-racking, but a good opportunity, as well. And just yesterday, Mom, a friend, and I gave a special, little tea party to the Junior High girls at my church and spoke on the topic of purity and saving themselves for their future husbands. That was SO much fun - and a really special experience to do it WITH my mother. We had a REALLY good time.

I also was able to have a lovely, long overdue, somewhat spontaneous visit with a dear friend one evening, Kev and I had a glorious Valentine's Day date, Mom and Dad came down to spend a night, had a lovely breakfast out with my sister cuz, and we have mice in our house. That about sums it up for this month.....

Happy Late Valentine's Day!

On Passion & Desire!!!

Ooooh la laaaaaa!

No, it's not really going to be THAT kind of a post. Sorry. :0)

A local church - Kev's church that he grew up in, actually - has asked me to be the speaker at their women's Valentine's Day brunch this Saturday. I was excited for the invite, because I have always loved this event; and even though we no longer attend there, I was going to happily invite myself along, so now I don't have to!

However, I'm feeling very nervous about what to share. I love people and I surely am not shy, but I have never loved speaking in front of others where everyone is just staring at me and waiting....for some tidbit of wisdom or knowledge....or something.......A majority of these women are older than I with far more life experience in EVERYTHING, and everyone else is in the same stage of life as me, so I'm a little stumped at what I am going to impart to these ladies.

So, I've been praying a lot about this and talking with Kev a lot about this, and I think I'm just going to share a little bit about why I love this crazy ministry that we're pursuing. We're all living in a story, and God has a unique part for all of us to play in this story of life. But, so often we get caught up in the mundane of all that needs to be done, that we forget....everything. We forget the big picture, we forget the part that we're supposed to be playing, we forget and lose our identity. We forget what God is calling us to do....

Or at least I do....

So, I'm going to talk a little bit about discovering and re-discovering our God given passions and desires and try to remember and relearn the value that God has placed on MY life. I want to talk a little bit about what God is calling each one of us to do and to be be. I think it's so easy for us as women - especially - to not be able to see this. One of my favorite verses from Psalms (I can't remember the reference) says something along the lines of: "You who seek the Lord, let your hearts REVIVE!" Satan comes hard after our desires to shut them down. To make us just want to "exist" and nothing more. But, God wants so much more for us!

It's all about the heart. If you shut down the heart, you shut down love. Then, you're not invested in relationships, you're not living in your calling, and you're not trusting in the Lord for each day and for the part He wants for us to play. When we are living in our calling - not our JOB - our job is just our assignment - but when we are doing what God has called us to do and to be, we bring that whereever we go....to our homes and our families, to our churches, to our jobs, etc.

I love this quote:
"Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes YOU come ALIVE. Then, go and do that. Because, what the world needs is people who are ALIVE!"

.....So yeah. Something along those lines, me thinks.......
But way less rambly. OR maybe not. I do tend to ramble......
Lord, give us all grace!!!!!

I Am Not Dead......

I'm here. Rotting at posting, as usual......

Life is getting a little ca-razy, but it's really the way we like it. Except for the wee, small fact that I have not seen a blessed friend in ages, and am feeling quite out of the loop on people's lives....

This must be remedied soon.

We just got back from being up in "The County" (Kev always mocks me when I call it that) for about 4 days. Kev spoke at my old home church both Sunday morning and evening, so we made a long week-end out of the trip. It was very nice. Always awesome to get home to see my family, my cousins, and re-connect with my home church family. And it's always awesome to get to share our ministry with people.

This week we're doing our very first kick-off with all of our deacons and wives, so that should be really cool. Our "boss" (and Kev's mentor) is coming up from Philly to help us with the first night and just to spend a little time with us up in God's Country, as well. Exciting times.

So, we'll see what comes of everything. We're so close to being able to run with everything - our leadership and team development training with churches and teams and missionaries and marriages and whoever! A few more intense months of support raising and hopefully we'll really be able to start doing what we've been chomping at the bit to do for about a year now. Scary and exciting.

For the past five years, I've never really known what my life is going to look like from one year to another. And this is no different. But, this journey of faith has made me grow and trust in ways that I have never had to do before, and I can even say that it's been fun!! I'm learning to hold things loosely, to listen to God's still small voice, to take risks and step out of my comfort zone, to be okay with the unknown, and to just walk one step at a time - trusting Him for guidance to see the next step. It's good.

Pray for us this week!

Right Now

It has been a cozy week-end in the Booker household.

As I type, ALL of the boys are downstairs sitting around the stove in their camp chairs cleaning their guns while Ransom looks on. The boys' guns are obviously toys, but Daddy is already teaching them how to clean, what not to shoot, that HIS is NOT a toy etc. etc. It's fun to watch.

Ransom slept for the very first night in his own crib in his own room last night. He has stayed in our room the longest of all of my boys. I mainly kept him up with us, because in this house he will be on a completely different floor than us which is not really my favorite; but even more than that, the big boys' room is right through a paper thin wall, and they wake up at the crack 'o dawn. So, realistically, now he will probably start waking up an hour earlier than he did upstairs, but then we'll all just adjust to the new rhythm and routine. He's on a pretty good schedule now and does fairly well even on the days that I work and Sundays, at church. He truly is our easiest and most mellow baby, hands DOWN.

In the competetive Booker household, our newest game of choice is this silly thing called "Bop It Extreme." It's a reaction game where you have to do what it says - either hit it, twist it, spin it, or flick it, and it's completely addictive. All of us love it - even Jesse. When we first got it, we were only able to get a high score of 10 or 15. Then one day, Kaden was on a roll and killed us all with a high score of 35! Then I got the high score of 62. And that's when the competition became fierce. Kev played until he walked away with 85....on the SAME DAY. He wouldn't even let me revel in my victory for ONE day. So, last night after supper, we had a Booker Bop It competition. And yours truly has walked away with the victory at a high score of 93. That's right.......

On a MUCH more important note, we are currently at 73% with our support raising. Pretty amazing. God is just really affirming to us that this is what we are supposed to be doing. Starting next week, we are taking our deacons and their wives through the training, so it will be a fairly intensive two weeks for us - but so much fun! And it will be cool to be working with so many teams - both the pastor and his deacons, and also each man and his wife.

Okay. I guess that's all for now. Ransom and I have a baby shower to throw for a friend at church, so we must be off. It's boy #2 for this lady, so I'm having a boy themed shower with older women in the church who have only boys sharing stories, a fun poopy diaper game - which I hope doesn't offend the more genteel of the ladies, a sentimental book to read, and some DELISH food to eat! Good times!

Happy week-end, All! Stay warm......

On Staying in Love.......

Hands down, my absolute MOST favorite blog that I read is found here. Every single time I read her, I am quieted, stilled, refocused, and more in love with my Savior, my life, and my family. She's good.

Here's a snippet of what she wrote about a few days ago:

Fall in Love in Four Minutes A Day

It only takes four minutes a day to move into a deeper heart place. It only takes four minutes a day to connect in soul intimacy; to breathe in oxygen for the other half of my heart. Don’t and I too begin to suffocate, the death heave. I wish someone had told me in the beginning.

Four Fixations

Four times a day think on love. When I leave the marriage bed, leave the front door, when I return to front door, return to marriage bed. These are the four critical archways of time in our day. Touch or whisper a sweet nothing when passing through these gate points, and we walk into hours of closeness. Forever love fixates like fresh love.

Four Embraces

Four times a day, wrap up in husband. Embrace fully and hold each other’s eyes. That’s all. Repeat four times daily. The one flesh breathes best when the skin pores are close; connected.

Four Affirmations

Four times during the day, thank him. For working faithfully to provide, for hanging up his towel, for putting gas in the van, for making this heart skip a wild beat. Look for the ways to thank him and watch how he moves closer.


So good. so SO good.

The Week-end is Upon Us!

It has been a lovely week-end, besides the fact that Jesse woke up with a yucky cold on Friday. Hence, he and I and the wee one are staying home from church this morning and chillaxing. Can't seem to win - Jesse was bummed he had to stay home with Mommy; he wanted Daddy, and Kaden was bummed that he had to go to church with Daddy; he wanted Mommy. Ah well.......

Other than the snotting and coughing, though, it's been my kind of a week-end. A good balance of play and getting stuff accomplished. Because Sunday is our biggest work day, Friday is our family day - our true day off, and Saturday is more like an errand/get things done day - with our family still together. Sunday, we run around like chickens with our heads cut off and are typically home for only about 3 hours the entire day......

On Friday, we decided to kick it to Portland for the day. Both Kev and I are able to "play" much better when we're AWAY. Not sure why that really is, except the we don't see all of the projects and work staring us in the face. It's been awhile since we did a full blown day trip, so this was really fun. We ate at the Macaroni Grill, the boys played at Cabella's, I checked out the Christmas Tree Shoppe, and we even walked the mall for a bit. We haven't been to the mall for ages. So, that was a really fun day. We had no agenda, we just did whatever we felt like doing.

And then yesterday, we stayed around the house and puttered. I was able to catch up on mountains of laundry, I moved all of Ransom's 0-3 month stuff downstairs and brought up all of his 3-6 month stuff; (Hard to believe he's already out of that age bracket of clothing. Kind of sad), and I was just able to check off a bunch of little things on my lists that I've been wanting to tackle.

Kev and the boys made a fire in the firepit outside and we had hotdogs and hamburgers over the open fire, the kids played outside for a long time, we watched some home videos, and we made smores in the toaster oven when we came inside! It was just a really nice day. And now today, it's kind of a surprise relaxing day for me. I'm bummed that Jesse's not on the top of his game, but it's been cozy with just me and the two littles this morning.

Here's to another week!
Have a wonderful remainder of your weekend, friends!

Ransom's Room

Well, except for a couple of pics that the boy's painted for their baby brother, Ransom's nursery is just about completed. Lest you forgot what his room looked like when we first moved in, here's a little reminder:



Mmmm. I'm really going to miss those colors. Not.
And here it is now.





Very simple.

Today is very overcast and snowy, and I by no means am a camera expert, so these pics don't show how bright and cozy this room normally is. It gets the most sun and has the best views of any room in the house. The walls are a really light lineny coffee color. Very soft and peaceful.

At some point, I may throw a little rug down on the floor and put a rocking chair in there for the two of us, but for now, it's simple and cozy.

Ransom approves.

And the Days Blend On.....

Man - I seem to be becoming a horrible blog updater. I used to do it every couple of days, but if I can get to the computer weekly, I'm doing good lately.

Lots of just normal life stuff going on around here these days. Nothing overly amazing or exciting, yet the days seem to blur by at lightning speed. The nursery is almost completed, so Ransom will probably be moving in sometime this week. That always makes me kind of sad - one more chapter complete - one more sign that he's already getting bigger and bigger. This baby is just a doll and a total delight. He is really quite easy, super happy, and very mellow. What a gift! We are all just savoring him; he is truly a well loved baby around here!

The other night, we went to see a brand new baby of a couple of "kids" who used to be in our youth group. That was kind of bizarre - to now be in the same stage of life as these guys! It still didn't make me feel all that old - it was just pretty surreal.

And Kevy and I got to go on a spontaneous date - just the two of us over the week-end, as well. The days have seemed crazy lately, and life has seemed a little weird, so it was just a really special and needed time for the two of us to just "be" and talk about our life and family. We are constantly assessing and reassessing where we are at, where we are going, what's happening with loved ones in our lives, how are we doing at this whole parenting of three thing, etc. etc. etc.

It's really been hitting me kind of hard lately that this could possibly be my last year in this specific chapter of life that we are in right now should we choose to go the Christian school route for Kaden next year. This could very well be my very last year to have ALL of my kids home with me. I don't really like change anyway, and I don't know if "greiving" is too strong of a word, but it has just been hitting me kind of hard lately.

In sharing with Kev on our date, we both got all choked up and teary just talking about it! We're still wrestling with and praying about what direction the Lord wants us to take with our kids. There seems to be so many pros and cons to any decision, really. And every family is so different - different values, different convictions, different goals for what they want their lives to look like - so we can talk to people and get wisdom and advice, but ultimately it'll be something that we'll need to decide between us and the Lord.

I still have several months to go, but it's just another reminder to savor these days and THESE moments that we are living in RIGHT NOW. The days may be long sometimes, but the years truly ARE fleeting......

Week-end Wonderings and Wanderings......

I woke up with a headcold today - right out of the blue, so this will be short (for me at least), and then I'm off to just "be" while my three boys are sleeping.

Haven't updated for awhile, but it's been a good couple of days. Although we have had a couple of setbacks around here. One of our little goldfishies bit the dust over the week-end. Kaden would have been devastated had it been his fish, but after making sure it was Jesse's, he just shrugged his shoulders and glanced over at his brother to make sure he was okay. I assured Jesse that we can get another sometime, and after a brief fishy funeral, all was well.

Three days ago, I would have said with confidence that Jesse was completely potty trained, but I think I put too much confidence in him too soon and (a). stopped reminding him to use the potty, and (b). went all over God's creation too soon without more regular consistency. So, after getting both peed and pooped on and feeling like I have a little puppy living here, we are back on track with keeping things consistent and simple for the child.

The horrid black and lime green nursery is now a soft lineny coffee color - with just a FEW traces of the previous colors. But five coats of paint later, I'm ready to call it a day in that room! Looking forward to getting it all set up now. Hopefully, Ransom will be in his own little room before the week's end.

We took the kids to Camden on Friday for our family day. Our most fave coffee shop is down there, along with this little hiking/skiing trail by Mt. Battie that we hike up until we "feel the burn" and then pop the kids onto a couple of sleds and wind 'er back down the hill! It's super fun. I drove the two older boys, and Kev plopped Ransom in his carseat right in front of him - as he is the MUCH better steerer than I - and away they went, as well. Ransom was napping on the walk up. However, he was VERY wide awake once they reached the bottom. All smiles, though! The last time we did that, I was very newly pregnant with him. This year, he got to play, too.

Okay. Well, that's all for now. My head feels about the size of China, and I hear Ransom stirring for his mid-afternoon snacky-doo....

Have I mentioned lately just how delicious this child is???

Three Things.....

My dear friend, Esther-la-Vista, just had a glorious idea for one of her posts that she gleaned from her super smart sister, so I am going to copy this idea, and anyone who reads either of our blogs - please do the same!

Share with the world three things that you are proud of that you accomplished in 2009, three things that you could have done better or maybe would change if you could, and three things that you hope to accomplish in 2010. Heavens, there are so many for me, I'm not sure where to begin. But, here they are in no particular order.

Three things that I am proud of:

(1). I LOVE being a wife and mother. I know that I'm not the best that there is out there, but I really do just love this stage of life that I am in right now. I'm proud of Kev's and my relationship - that we have stayed best friends, that we are continuing to grow in our love and friendship despite the crazyness of life, and that we are a team. I love being a Mommy to my three boys, and I am so thankful and feel so honored that God has entrusted each one to me.

(2). These past four years have really been a crazy journey of faith for our little family, and I am thankful than we obeyed and listened to the leading of the Lord in our lives. I think that a lot of people have probably thought that we were/are crazy, but I am proud to have a husband who cares more about what his Heavenly Father thinks than that of what others think and say. So, I am happy and content where we are at, and I have also learned - and am continuing to learn - to hold things loosely and really and truly be willing to go, and be, and do whatever God calls us to do.

(3). My two NEW gifts of "last" year - sweet Ransom Malachi and our new home. Two amazing gifts that are "above and beyond all that I could have ever hoped for or imagined." So so very thankful.....

Three things that I wish I had done better:
Oh Heavens....where to begin?

(1). I agree with Esther: Comparison destroys contentment. I worry far more about what others think than I should. Maybe it's just me - or maybe it's the plague of all women, but in many cases, I wish I had worried far less about other's opinions and ideas and cared only about the Lord's. Pride is an awful thing.

(2). I wish I had savored my kids more. I have a motto on my wall that is really more of a prayer: "Lord, help me to SLOW and see the sacred in the chaos." I have such a hard time being STILL and fully embracing life and just playing with my kids with no other agenda when there are things to be done. But the truth of the matter is that there will ALWAYS be things to be done, but I will not have my kids forever. This is a daily battle for me.

(3). I would have been more intentional in both my spiritual and physical health. Both tend to be sporatic for me - good spells and bad spells. But again - life will always be busy, and it will only get busier, so I need to be intentional about making time regardless.

Three things that I want to accomplish for this next year:

(1). I want to really savor my children and fully embrace all that comes with this season of life. I don't want to have any regrets. I want to learn each one of them as an individual better - what makes them tick, their love language, what makes them frustrated, etc. etc., and then, I want to be intentional about helping him grow and learn and love better. I want to be less mindful of all of the things that need to get done and more mindful of the things that are lasting and eternal.

(2). We need to make a decision about schooling for Kaden, so I want to really give homeschooling a serious shot and not be so concerned about failing, but really dive into it for at least a trial run and just focus on having fun with it.

(3). I want to be intentional about all areas of my health - physical, emotional, and spiritual - and use my free time wisely...consistent devos, exercise regime, and healthy meals and snacks.

(4). More random acts of kindness. I know - we were only supposed to do three, but this is my post! :0) I want to do more little things for people - like making random meals, giving random gifts, planning little teas for my young mommy friends, etc. etc. - making those that I love (and those that I even don't know, I guess) feel loved, appreciated, and special.

(5). Eternal things: Be still more, snuggle more, say "yes" more than I say "no" to my kids, not worry so much about my to-do lists, make memories, spend time with those I love, seek to be an encouragement to others, listen more than I speak.....

(6). And not-so-eternal things: paint and set-up the nursery, get Ransom's baby album started and brought up to date, grow a garden, have a compost pile, not get poison ivy this year, lose ten pounds, keep clutter at bay, run two miles a day, plan an anniversary party for my parents, go camping a lot, learn new things, be open to change and new ideas, make a difference............

whew. I'm exhausted.