Wordful Wednesday full of Duct Tape

Oh you say your homemade bread is sliced thick and will not fit into a sandwich bag. Okay, then just use duct tape to close that bag. Isn't that what all normal people do? Pamela

The Day I Left My Boy

I left this boy with dad long enough to run out and buy chicken. I received a SOS. I do not think he cared that we needed chicken. I told him I would not leave him for a long time. 

Pamela

Feeling Beachie

The statements: 1. I don’t remember the last time I truly did _nothing and let my body just relax. ___ 2. Sometimes I wish video games____ were _not___ invented. I dislike how they consume my children’s brains. 3. I love when someone __helps___ you, especially when you do not ask but should have. 4. If I could I would do __reading therapy with my daughter______ all day, she is growing and thriving more than I can imagine. I just wish I could work with her for hours every day. Pamela

Baked potatoes

I love Pinterest, I don't know how to link from my phone but wanted to share this recipe. 

 Melt butter in the bottom of a pan, sprinkle generously with Parmesan cheese, then cut potatoes in half and lay in pan. 

Bake at 400 for 45 minutes

Potty Training with a New Baby

I was once told not to make any changes when a new baby comes. That was thrown out the window when Jacob was born. You see our life is crazy busy. We have no less 6 appointments a week. So potty training has been on the back burner. My husband took time off when Jacob was born. He decided it was a great time to potty train and guess what HE WAS RIGHT! Yes, I just admitted my husband was right about something. I think James enjoys the special attention he is getting. I am enjoying that there will soon be less diapers to change. My budget is grateful for fewer diapers. On the negative note it is 3:30AM and I am awake. James did not make it to the bathroom and woke up. Poor thing, I don’t mind at all but feel bad that it woke him up. Have you done anything crazy like potty train a toddler while caring for a newborn? It can be done. Pamela

No Guilt When Parenting

I know I should be making packing list, I should be cleaning out closets, I should be sleeping more. Laundry is not getting put away every day, floors are not getting mopped. Bed time is not happening right at 8pm. I am not putting on makeup daily, heck I often do not even make it out of my nursing tank top when I am home. But it is okay because I am snuggling this growing baby. I am nursing this snuggling baby. I am taking time to snuggle other growing blessings. This time is flying by, the kids are growing fast. I look at my 16 year old who will be turning 17 year old soon and cannot believe he is taller than me now. So for today I will take time each day to love on this baby before he gets too big to want to snuggle with me. When I am over whelmed with life I will remember that it will pass. Sometimes I have to just stop in the middle of a math lesson and pray with my kids for strength and energy to make it through the day. Sometimes I even have to drink caffeine to help not fall asleep during reading. Sometimes I have to nap, stop what I am doing and just rest. And you know what that is okay. If I do not take care of myself then I cannot take care of my blessings. I have to be honest and say I am writing this at 3:30 in the morning. The baby is asleep in the swing, the house is quiet. I should be sleeping. I am exhausted but right now I just needed a few minutes to play on the computer. I wish I could tell all new moms to take a breath and take care of themselves. I wish I could take time to snuggle and blog and eat a cookie without guilt. I wish I could ask for help, accept help when it is offered. But I am human and often feel like I have to do it all myself. Pamela

Just Roll With It

Just roll with it! My goal for this blog is to be honest with my blog. Honestly, I have so much I want to write about but then life gets busy and then I worry about my spelling and grammar. I do not want to go back and read everything again. Which is comical because this is what I fuss about on a daily basis to my teen. I have talked about life with a son who has asbergers before. Some of the social skills issues he has. I have to be honest the thought of moving is made harder by the fact that he has to meet new people. First impressions are not always great with him. But once you know him for a couple of minutes you will love him. He is the most giving, helpful child you will meet. He is great with little kids , patient beyond what seems possible and has a love for any child with special needs. This will all make sense in a few minutes. I have posted hundreds of pictures of my newest blessing Jacob. He is so precious and so snuggly and content to just set in my arms and look at the walls. I constantly get comments about how bright his eyes are and they have been since birth, how he looks around constantly. All of this is true. But I have noticed something recently he looks around all the time but not at one thing and not at anyone. He does not follow objects or even look at the ceiling fan. I think what startles me most is that you can literally touch his eye lashes before he will blink. At first I reminded myself he is a infant. Stop reading the what to expect app because he is not doing what it says. Then I noticed something else. He does not smile. Sure when he is nursing he smiles and a couple of times he has smiled at someone. They ooh and ahh about a cute little chubby smile. In my heart I knew it was just a coincidence. I kept telling myself that he is only 5 weeks, then 6, then 7 and finally 8 weeks. I did decide I should have his eyes examined. I have eye issues and my husband had eye issues. So I made a apointment. Remember we are moving in 3 weeks. Well this week we had Jacobs two month appointment. He weighed 11.12 pounds which means he has gained 3 pounds since birth. He has also grown 3 inches. He looked great. He is super strong and has had great head control since birth. She asked if I had any concerns. I told her about him not looking at me or smiling. Honestly, I just knew she would say give it time. So she examines him and looks at his eyes for several minutes before saying “I need to talk to someone” and then walks out of the room. Talk about scary. She comes back and says she agrees he needs to see the eye doctor ASAP. Then says she is putting in a referral for early intervention. That shocked me. I asked why and she said the words that made me want to cry and laugh out loud at the same time. She said “because he has no social skills”. No social skills, that is funny. I know all about lack of social skills. We see the eye doctor next Thursday. She is pretty sure Early Intervention will get me in before the move. If not she will type something out before we move to take with us. So now back to the title. I took my daughter to reading therapy yesterday and at the end I was talking to her therapist about Jacob. Really laughing about the social skills statement because she has heard some of the craziness. Her comment to me made me smile and think. She said well if there is ever a parent to have a child with special needs it is you. She said some parents hear there child is delayed and they can think of nothing else. That I hear it and think okay what do we do to help them. Please know I am not saying Jacob has anything wrong. Heck, he could start smiling and cooing today. He could just be lazy and enjoying his time and be on his own schedule. But I do think the correct thing is to watch him closely and make sure we are staying on top of it. I ask you to pray with us. Pray that Early Intervention can get us in quickly and give us some idea about what is going on before we move. Pray for our appointment with the eye doctor on Thursday. I ask you to pray for our family as we move and find new therapist for my other two and find new doctors. Pray as we find a church and meet new people. Pamela

Feeling Beachie

The statements: 1. _Moving_____ make me _say things that make no sense and babble like a baby_____ because_I am juggling ten different things at one time.___ 2. Whenever someone _tells me ____ that _i have my hands full____ I get very _annoyed because I really want them to understand I do not have my hands full but my heart is full. ____ 3. I know I should never __yell at my kids or husband___ but sometimes I can’t help it 4. I have fond memories of having a big sister through big brothers/big sisters____ from childhood Pamela

I Miss Daddy

I recently received a book to review. When I first heard about the book I knew I would enjoy it. Any book that helps my children deal with deployment is a great book. We have gone through 8 deployments and let me tell you they never get easier. This book dealt with something that no other book I have read dealt with. I Miss Daddy , deals with how kids behave and feel while dad is deployed. In “I Miss Daddy” Jana acts out. She acts out because her routine is not the same and dad is not there. I have experienced this several times. It is so hard to understand what our children are feeling. Acacia Slaton Beumer is a amazing author and really touched me. She really understands what being a military wife feels like. I would love for you to read this amazing book. You can find this book on Amazon.I think it would make a great gift for anyone who is new to the military. Or for a special child whose father or mother is deployed or about to deploy. I love that this book has discussion questions in the back. Something I do not see in very many books. Thank you Acacia Beumer for allowing me to review your book. Pamela

Do I Eat or Hold a Baby

Dad, give me the baby. See dad this is how you hold him if you want him to stop crying. I love how she is willing to help. She actually gets offended if I do not let her help. She has learned if she asks to hold the baby during meals I will let her. It is an amazing treat to be able to eat a meal without rushing or spilling it on Jacob’s head. Pamela

Thirty Day Notice

We are less than 30 days out from the big move. There is now a for rent sign in our yard.

  We have also signed a contract on a new house. I am hoping the inspections are done this week. Please pray with us that this process is smooth and quick. I really do not want to live in a hotel for very long.

  I am going to update as we go through the next month. Today I straightened all the book shelves and organized school materials. 

   This weekend I cleaned out the boys closet and dresser. Hoping to work in the kitchen tomorrow. 

   I also scheduled someone to come in and do some of the cleaning after the movers leave. This is the house that we have a contract on.

Pamela

5 Weeks in a World of Camo

5 weeks old. I am really behind in posting pictures of this blessing. If you follow me on Instagram you are constantly seeing him but my poor boy has not even been given a spot on the blogs side bar. I have tried but cannot get it to work, HELP! I remember when I had my first son I would not allow any camo. Now I love Army haircuts and camo on my baby boy. He is getting so big. I have asked him to stop growing but he just will not listen. I know it would stress me if he was not growing (been there done that). Jacob loves to be held and snuggled. Okay, that is not totally true; he loves to be snuggled if it leads to nursing. He loves to nurse. He loves to eat. Pamela

Grace is 8, How did this Happen

We are in birthday mode here. We have four birthdays in a month. Grace had a great birthday. She decided to take a few friends for manicures and pedicures. It had to be the cutest thing ever. They all chose their colors and enjoyed being pampered. Every year I give my kids the choice: we can buy their birthday cake or I can make it or they can make it. They always choose to make it and decorate it themselves. I know it does not make for perfect cakes or beautiful pictures. But I do not mind. It lets them be creative. It gives them something special to do on their special day. Grace is our miracle (I know they are all miracles), my water broke at 26 weeks and I delivered her at 31 weeks weighing 2.12 pounds. She is a healthy beautiful baby girl. You heard that right, she may be 8 but she is my baby girl. She loves to snuggle and begs to sleep with us. She takes pride in taking care of the little ones. She will be the first to bring you a cold drink. She lives for dressing up. I have loved watching her grow and change. It has not always been easy but God has shown us that he is there. Grace is my sensitive child. One minute she is outgoing and talks your ear off. The next minute she is shy and clinging to mom. She loves to learn and keeps me on my toes to keep up with her. Pamela

Birthday Cake

Hope's eleventh birthday cake. It was so much fun to make. I am so grateful I have kids who want me to make there cake. This has to be the easiest cake to make. I will definitely make it again. It was fun because there is no guilt about eating oreos and m&m's on the same day you eat birthday cake. Pamela

Jacob is NOT Two Monts Old

I love this child. He keeps me going every day. I am constantly reminding myself to set and enjoy the snuggles with him. Enjoy the slobbery kisses. Enjoy that he goes every where with me. Even to Starbucks. Jacob is now 8 weeks old. I cannot bring myself to say 2 months until the 12th. I wan him to stay little as long as I can. He sleeps for about 2 hours at a time at night. He loves to be snuggled and held. Pamela

Feeling Beachie

This week’s statements: 1) I can’t believe that __in one month we will be leaving what we know and moving to a new place. ___ 2) To celebrate _my birthday___ I __will be scrubbing floors and cleaning walls._____ 3) The meaning of life is _relax and enjoy the ride, enjoy each minute because you are not guaranteed tomorrow. ____ 4) I can’t stand _when people put toilet paper all over the seat and then leave it for someone else to clean up. I do not want to have to put my hands where you refused to put your butt. ____ name="code-source"> border="0" src="http:// s1106.photobucket.com/albums/h363/feelingbeachie/?action=view¤t=followfriday_edited-2-1.jpg" target="_blank">

OCD and Baby Clothes

I am OCD, okay I admit it. I am better than I use to be. Today I am happy to report that the baby has worn every outfit he owns at least once. I made a point of putting each outfit in a different spot so only clothes he has not worn are chosen. It drives me batty when you are packing up clothes the baby has out grown and find things they never worn. Pamela

A Birthday Girl

I should be sleeping. I need to be sleeping. But I miss this blog. I cannot believe we have this new baby and I am rarely blogging. I cannot believe how fast time is going. This week Hope celebrated her 11th birthday. Her party is not until this weekend. She is having a skating party. This girl is the light of my life. She keeps me on my toes. One day she is digging in the dirt and asking to be called Bob. The next day I come home and she is wearing mascara and asking to wear my heels. I have to tell you a funny story. This morning as we were heading to reading therapy Faith asked me if they were allowed to watch the Cosby Show. I said “The Cosby Show”. She said yes. I almost laughed and said yes. She said okay because Hope watched it. Then she said and mom, last night she tried to sneak the blanket off my bed. Hope told me she learned it from watching the Cosby Show. I had to giggle that this worried her. Hope has really grown up recently. Right before my eyes she is turning into a young lady. She wants more responsibility. She begs to hold the baby. At first it only lasted a few minutes and she was screaming that he was slobbering on her or wiggling. Now she has realized if she walks him up and down the hallway he will stop crying. It really boosts her self esteem to tell me she is bringing me a baby who is not crying. I love this child. She has red hair and freckles like me, and is sensitive and who struggles with reading, has a lot of sensory issues. Hope is the laundry queen. She is responsible for washing and drying the family laundry. She is taking a interest in cooking recently. I cannot wait to share how her party goes. She has requested a cake decorated with candy. Wish me luck. Pamela

The Great Move

So it is official we are MOVING! Yes, I am screaming. My insides are screaming. My brain is screaming, which is probably why I am typing this at 2am instead of sleeping. We will be in a new house or in a hotel before Christmas. That thought seems crazy. I knew it was coming up but without orders I did not let my brain go there. We have moved before and survived. We have never moved with 7 kids, a large dog, a cat and a guinea pig. How do you move with a guinea pig. I called the Vet and she said ask a pet store. We have looked at houses and looked at houses. I am eve sending my husband to look at houses without me. Not the best decision but no way I want to take all the kids on a across country drive (okay maybe not across country but it feels that way)for a couple of days. So I will be helping him choose over the phone. We decided renting is probably not a great idea considering the size of the family. We are moving to Rock Island, Illinois. I had never heard of it. I have been told be prepared for cold and snow. My only question is does the Army move me? I do not like cold and I do not like snow. I seriously think I will be hibernating during the winter. The kids are excited and sad at the same time. So help me, tell me we will survive a move. Honestly, I love staying in a hotel. I know it sounds crazy but I love being close to one another and spending constant time together. I do not know how this will work with a large dog and a newborn with the light sleepers in the house but we will make it happen. I have decided that I will carry our crock pot and griddle with us so we are not constantly eating out. I am thinking we need a camera crew following us around as the movers try to pack up this house and we travel with this crew. I am sure it will be full of laughs and tears and stories to tell. Pamela

Feeling Beachie

The statements are: I eat a lot of _snacks__ in the _middle of the night, I need to stop but I wake up after feeding the baby and I am starving.___ Mornings are _busy and like a hurricane__ in my house even though I plan out what we need to do before everyone wakes up. _____ I would love to learn about playing the flute___ but do not want to have to __learn to read music. I played for 2 years in school but never learned to read music._ I would be willing to give up __satellite TV____ to save money but would never compromise _internet. I tell myself we need it for school but really I need it for my sanity. __