Do you ever get a phone call from a charity asking if you have donations?  I get them from time to time.  Sometimes I tell them that I will have a donation and sometimes I tell them I won’t.  I got a call from a nice lady from a local charity a few weeks ago asking for donations.  I told her I would have something because I knew I needed to go through my two oldest daughter’s clothing.  They would be stopping by on a Monday and that was fine.  The weekend before the pick up was very busy.  On Saturday there was a Daddy Daughter Dance to get ready for and attend, plus my son was scheduled to serve Mass followed by a family get together.  Then on Sunday we had a very sick child.  Since I had so much to take care of, I didn’t get to cleaning out the girl’s dresser.

So today was the day for the scheduled pick up and I totally forgot and I did not put anything out for the charity.  About 10:00 at night my husband and I were talking about the day and how it went and so forth.  He looked out our front window, then at me, chuckled and asked….HOLD ON

Let me clue you in on something.  We have some very good friends who live in the northern part of lower Michigan and they have a farm.  We visit their farm three or four times a year and the rule is that the kids have to wear their tennis shoes, no sandals, because they have a few cows up there and they make a lot of cow pies, not to mention my city kids are really good at stepping in those cow pies.  Since our last visit we have had a collection of poopy tennis shoes on our porch in a bag for longer then I care to admit (I’m not a big fan of cleaning them so they sit in that bag much longer than they should).

So my husband asked , ”you don’t think that charity picked up our bag of the kid’s tennis shoes from the porch do you?”

I laughed and said, “no, they wouldn’t have done that, the bag wasn’t labeled.”

Guess what?  You got it.  That bag of my children’s gross, poopy covered tennis shoes were picked up this morning by the charity.  I laughed, and couldn’t stop laughing, but at the same time I felt so embarrassed.  I never would have done that on purpose.  So gross.  I feel so bad for the person that opens that bag.

So now, all my children get a new pair of tennis shoes because I accidentally donated them to a charity.

I have been remiss in keeping my blog updated. After a few kind requests and a little begging from a good friend, here I am giving this another try..

This week I am hosting a good friend’s children. I have 6 blessings of my own and my friend’s blessings make it a total of 11. This morning my husband and I took them to Mass. We filled up our two minivans and were on our way. One might think that attending Mass with 11 children in tow would be difficult or impossible. In reality, Mass was a piece of cake! I actually found it to be quite enjoyable.

I am one of those moms who has 6 children and wants 10. I am so thrilled to be with these blessings everyday. Not every day is easy of course, there are always challenges but patience and lots of prayer gets me through.

So often, when I meet someone and they find out how many children I have, the statement often made is, “oh you must be so organized”.  I think about that statement and while I usually tell them I’m not really that organized, I see now I am much more organized than I think I am. The organization and scheduling are what keep me sane.

I know that if I sleep any later than 7 a.m. (Monday through Friday), breakfast will not be eaten until 9:30 or 10 and that throws off any hope of following our homeschool schedule. I know that getting up early (between 5:30 and 6:30a.m.) is essential to a smooth and peaceful day with the children. When I get up at 5:30 it gives me time to get myself completely ready. That includes a shower, dressing, doing hair and make-up. I used to be the frumpy, filthy, frustrated mother and housewife, (but that is a story for another post). Once I am ready for the day it gives me a chance to spend a little time with my husband before the house awakens, pray or read my devotions and Bible. Cook myself some breakfast, tidy my bedroom, tidy the bathrooms, gather laundry, wash some laundry, bake/cook breakfast for the children and prepare the schoolroom for our homeschool.

All this gives me a quiet beginning to my day.  As the children emerge from their rooms I can greet each one individually, hug them, cuddle them awake, inquire about their dreams, and joyfully welcome them to enjoy the new day.

When I am pregnant I gain 35 pounds. I can eat carrot sticks for 9 months and gain 35 pounds. I can eat Taco Bell for 9 months and gain 35 pounds. Apparently my body needs to gain 35 pounds to have a baby. So each time I am post partum I lose about 20 to 25 pounds in the first 6 weeks, and the rest hangs on until I take drastic measures. By drastic measures I do not mean starvation or something crazy like that. I mean, admitting that I feel awful and that dropping the remaining weight by myself is not working. I really try too, I eat better, I exercise (sporadically at best. It’s hard finding time with 6 little ones and being really sleep deprived). Once I see my efforts are not working, its time to call Weight Watchers. So here I am, doing Weight Watchers for the third time. Why 3 times you may ask? Its because it works for me, and i like it.

I am in my 4th week and doing well. Six pounds gone. Hooray!!!!

Today is a monumental day, Anna Maria is 9 months old. She is crawling, babbling, she cut two teeth last week, and is a bundle of fun. The other kids adore her. I see such a maternal instinct in both Evelyn and Mya. They really look out for her as well as their other little sisters. Peter is a proud big brother. He gets super grossed out over spit up, which is very funny, and poopy diapers are something he can do without. He does love to hold her, rock her, and he will feed her if he is asked to. The other very nice change in our lives is, I have gotten a full nights sleep for almost three days. It is finally happening, Anna Maria is really sleeping through the night. I have never had a baby that woke during the night for as long as she has. I could get all frustrated over this, but instead i see it a little differently. Anna Maria is probably my last baby, and they are babies for such a short time. Instead of being annoyed I am choosing to cherish every minute.

Wow, 9 months old, where did the time go?

Anna Maria was born today at 12:12 pm. She weighs 6lbs 15oz, and is 19.5″ long.

Mother and baby are both doing fine.

Heather is doing exceptionally well, thanks to the fact that she opted to do without the duramorph in the spinal. The pain is there, of course, but she’s handling it well with just Motrin (toridol?whatever the hospital-grade liquid Motrin is called.)

Peter was working on an illustration for a paragraph he wrote for English class. The paragraph was about what he thought heaven would be like. He had been diligently coloring a picture for sometime and I had been sitting next to him preparing for our next subject. Peter, not taking his eyes off his picture, asked me a question,
“Mom how does Jesus pick out who will get the stigmata?”
I blinked a few times, thought quickly, and said, “Well honey I don’t really know. I guess Jesus picks out some very holy and special people. You know receiving the stigmata is a gift, it isn’t bad.”
Peter looked up at me, and said, “I know that. Does it hurt?”
I told him, “I’ve read that having the stigmata was very painful but that it smelled beautiful. It smelled like beautiful perfumed oil.”
I asked him, “do you remember talking about Padre Pio? He was blessed with the stigmata.”
Peter said, “I remember that about him.” Peter stopped talking and went back to his picture.
I looked at him and asked, “do you want to receive the stigmata?”
Peter said, “I’m not sure yet.”

This was one of those rare days when Peter floors me with deep religious questions. After I do my best to answer him I just shake my head and wonder what is in his future.

I am happy to say that Matt has had a job interview! Unfortunately they liked him but didn’t see him as a good fit for the position thus not offering him a job. We tried to not get our hopes up too high, but in reality we got our hopes up too high. I was very upset, I cried, a lot. I know this will not last forever, it just feels like it will.

On the up side of this whole situation, Matt now has two freshly dry cleaned suits and a new pair of shoes all ready for the next interview. Even though I am sad over this, I can still find the positive. Thank you God for making me see the positive.

Are you aware of the EXTREMELY DANGEROUS legislation that is currently being passed in our congress? If you are not, you need to pay attention. My children and yours are in more danger now than they were 10 days ago, while this has not passed in the Senate, yet, it most likely will because we conservatives have no power right now. The congress is an automatic green light for every piece of INSANE LEFT WING legislation introduced.

A Hate Crimes Bill, S909 if you want to check it out, has been introduced and has already been passed in House and is being sent to the Senate for approval. This bill protects people from hate crimes based on sexual orientation, and sexual orientation is not defined, so we can conclude that ANY SEXUAL ORIENTATION is covered so it offers protection to the more “abnormal” types of sexual deviancy such as bestiality, necrophilia, and pedophilia. Did you read that right? The pedophiles are being protected, my children can be preyed upon, raped, molested, and heaven knows what else and if I try to protect my child I AM THE BAD GUY. Thats right the sexual predator may get charged with a sex crime which is a felony, but I as the mother speaking out or physically trying to PROTECT MY CHILD gets slapped with a FEDERAL CRIME. This is complete insanity. This is not really a hate crime legislation, it is thought police, it is terrifying.

Some people may think I am raising my children in a bubble, and I admit it, I am and I’m proud to do it. We, on the conservative side of things are being turned into criminals because of our belief system, our morals, our values. As of a few weeks ago the Department of Homeland Security sent out a document alerting law enforcement officials to be looking for RIGHT WING EXTREMISTS. You know who you are, pro-life, pro-traditional marriage, pro-family values, Christians. We are being stripped of our first amendment rights, we Christian Conservatives have no rights anymore because we cannot speak out against what is morally wrong with our society, lest we get charged with a federal crime.

I am angry, I am scared, I am feeling helpless. I know God is in charge.

So, today is Matt’s first full day as an unemployed Michigander. You’ll never guess where he is today? At work. Working. Fixing things. Keeping things up and running. Not getting paid. No kidding!!

So most people know Matt is losing his job. He was supposed to be fired on Friday April 17th, but as that day loomed near he got word that the bank had approved funding for his position until the end of the month. WONDERFUL!! What a blessing.

Our health insurance is going to end as of April 25th. I do not want to go on Medicaid, it is not a “pride issue” it is an “I want to avoid the government as much as possible issue”. I have had to work with them when Lily was born and while it all worked out, it was not a pleasant experience. So as the loss of insurance quickly approaches, God has opened a window and has put new and affordable insurance options in our path. Another blessing.

Now as April draws to a close and EAS, the company Matt works for, is closing its doors, next Thursday, Matt comes home and tells me that one of the “higher ups” at one of the sister plants talked to him and asked Matt to contact him once all the EAS business wraps up. Matt told the “higher up” that they don’t need full time IT support, only about two days a week. If Matt could get hired or contracted in at a reasonable rate, for those two days, he will be bringing in only $1000 less/month than he makes now. Yet another blessing.

In January 2008 Matt and I prayed for financial wisdom and to become good stewards with the money God has given us. God has done just that. More blessings.

So here we are on the brink of unemployment, another baby on the way, and five other little mouths to feed. Am I scared? No not really. Due to answered prayers, Matt and I will be able to LIVE on unemployment, not lavishly, but we never lived lavishly before. We will be able to LIVE on 1/4 of his previous income, and be able to put some money in the bank for a rainy day.

What an amazing blessing!!