The Pond....

It sure is hard in this world to find good, wholesome things for our children to watch or hear.  There are a few favorites in our household.  We enjoy the StoryKeepers series, Adventures in Odyssey both audio and video,  and a series called The Pond.  Each of these series teach good values and Godly character.  Recently I downloaded the newest episode from The Pond. It is called 19,000 Frogs and Counting.  Sound familiar.... well if you love the Duggars, it will.  We enjoy watching the Duggar family each week and seeing the way they share their faith.  This episode is very special because it has the voices of all the Duggar clan.  It is only $5.95 for the MP3.  You can download it right to your computer.  It is a 48 minute episode, and even the adults will enjoy listening to this :) 

Here is the link:

http://store01.prostores.com/servlet/lifeatthepon/StoreFront

Want to teach your little ones......

I found a great resource to teach the 10 Commandments and the Books of the Bible.  I wanted to share these links with moms and dads who would like a fun way to teach these very important things :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Kp8yXDpNaQ&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63UlqUyg8FI&NR=1

Our End of the Year Video

If you want to see some of what we have done this year please watch our video.  This isn't everything because the video was getting too long :)  We put in the main highlights.  Enjoy!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amtJD_89gqM

Some more Christmas crafts

Today we decided to make stockings from white cardboard and lots of glitter and glue :)  We had a lot of fun making a mess and coming out with beautiful craft.  We used foam letters to put their names on the top.  Here is how they turned out :)

Megan made a really cute sign for Christmas too :) 



Give this Christmas Away.....

Sorry I haven't been able to blog much this week, but I have been busy helping with the local toy drive.  I  felt honored to help in this cause this year.  In years past, I had always been too busy to be able to be a part of this, but this year our schedule opened up and my husband and I were able to help.  Our fire department hosts this toy drive every year.  The leaders of this are friends of ours.  We feel helping in this was a priveledge.  Yesterday, I had the opportunity to help pass out the toys to the families and it was just an awesome experience.  It was so great to see the smiles on those parents' faces.  They were all kind and warm and very grateful.  I praise God that our community gave this year, in order for these families to have gifts for their children under the tree this year.  I thought of a wonderful song that came out last year and wanted to share it with you all.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2ulYpoNXC0 

Have you thought about giving of yourself during this season?  There are many ways to give this year.  You can give money or food to a local food bank,  volunteer at a local shelter, or just make cookies for a neighbor who may be alone during this Christmas.  GIVE THIS CHRISTMAS AWAY!!!!! 

Character

The number one priority in our home is to teach our children Godly character.  After schoolwork is finished, we spend about an hour going over a couple of character traits that we want to establish in our lives.  We read many Bible verses on each trait, then we talk about how we can display each character quality in our lives on a day to day basis.  I found a wonderful chart on the Duggar's website.  It has 49 character qualities that we need to have as followers of Christ.  It lists qualities along with definitions and Bible verses.  Here is what it looks like: 

It is easy to download.  Go to this link: http://www.duggarfamily.com/characterqualities.html

Christmas Fun

On Sunday, 2 of my teens were in a play at church.  They started out the play talking about all the gifts we receive at Christmas time.  The play ended with the younger children telling about the free gift of salvation.  I wanted to share the video of Megan dancing and Robert being Elvis :)   We had a good time watching them, and hope you do too :)   Here is the you tube link:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDgs2i2NS0w

Christmas Story.....

It is very easy to lose sight of the real meaning of Christmas during all the hustle and bustle of the season.  I believe it is very important to keep our sights on Christ.  He is the reason for the season.  We need to keep our children's eyes upon Him too.  I found 2 very special dvds to help parents in this endeavor.  I wanted to share them with you all.  The first one is The Christmas Storykeepers.  It is a 70 minute long animated movie that shares the true story of Christmas. 

The second dvd is The Kingdom Under the Sea, The Gift.   It is a delightful little story about getting back to the real meaning of Christmas. 

I also encourage you to read the Christmas story in the books of Matthew and Luke.  Read it often over the next few weeks.  My kids love to act it out too.  Get them a nativity that they are allowed to play with.  Let them show you what happened that glorious night in Bethlehem.  

Christmas Traditions

In our home we have quite a few traditions.  Each year we make a chain (made from green and red construction paper) to count down the days until Christmas.  We usually put it up right after Thanksgiving.  The little kids love to wake up every morning and take one of the links off.  It is a great thing for me too, I don't have to keep telling them how many days are left, they can see for themselves :) 

This was taken right after we made it.

Another tradition is making ornaments for our tree.  Sometimes we make picture frames or foam ornaments, and one year we even used ornament kits.   They were a bit tedious, but the older kids enjoyed them.  This year we are making ornaments using pipe cleaners and beads.  It is a tradition we do the week right before Christmas.  Gives the kids something to do that week to make it go a little quicker :)

We also enjoy sitting down and watching our favorite Christmas movies.  We love "White Christmas",  "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Charlie Brown's Christmas Special".    Of course we enjoy watching some of the old animated shows as well.  I think "Frosty the Snowman" is our favorite.    We usually pop some popcorn and sit around cuddled under blankets when we watch these classics.  On really cold evenings we have hot chocolate and warmed cookies.  I love making these memories with our kids. 

Another tradition is making cookies with my kids.  We all huddle in the kitchen and make our favorite, yummy treats.  Cut-out sugar cookies, chocolate chip, and peanut butter blossoms are just a few we make.   This year we are going to add a few new treats to our list.  We are going to make red and green popcorn balls and rice crispy  treats cut into shapes and decorated.   It is great to get everyone involved.  Even the little ones can help measure and stir.... oh and they love to decorate their own cookies :)

My favorite tradition is what we do on Christmas day.  We wake up, open presents, then we read the Christmas story from Luke.  We sing Happy Birthday to Jesus and even bake a cake in His honor.  After all it is his birthday we are celebrating.   We have taught our children that He is the real meaning of the season.  We want them to know that Christmas is all about giving.  Giving of ourselves to help others throughout the year, not just during the holidays.  Jesus gave of himself everyday and He gave the ultimate gift when He died for us.

What are some traditions you share with your family?  Do you make special memories with them each year? 

Remembering.......

There was a time in my life when I didn't realize how precious my children were.  When I was younger, I didn't appreciate them the way I should.  As a parent, I use to get very aggravated with them running around screaming and hollering, or leaving toys all over the house,  but as I grew as a mom, I learned to enjoy everything about being a mama.  I think my attitude changed the most after we lost our son Caleb in 2006.   I began looking at the small things as a true blessing. Each time my kids hugged me I now cherished it so much more. Now their toys all over the house, was a reminder that they were alive and well and able to play, instead of being a nuisance.  We were blessed in 2007 with our precious Hope, and the fact that my baby could cry and wake me up in the middle of the night was now the sweetest sound I had ever heard, and I would just smile as I went to pick her up.  She could have kept me up 24 hours and I would still just be content with the fact she was in my arms. 

I am sharing this with you all, to remind you not to take anything for granted.  Enjoy the little things.  Learn to delight in the good and bad times of the day.  Rejoice in the fact that you are their parent and that they are your child.   Be glad that they are there with you, even when you have to discipline them.  Learn from them.  Let them teach you how to be a better parent.  Watch them as they play.  Enjoy every minute you have with them :)

Always learning

Recently I began reading a book by Tedd Tripp, it is called Shepherding a Child's Heart.  Rather you have small children or teenagers, I recommend reading this book.  I don't agree with everything he says, but there are a lot of insights into how to reach your children and teach them about God as they grow.  I am always open to new ideas on how to give my kids knowledge that will last a lifetime.  I am always looking for ways to become closer to my children,  ways to communicate and ways to teach them in a way that will give them a deeper understanding of things.  Tedd shows in this book that the things your child does and says flows from the heart.  He refers to Luke 6:45 that says "A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of."   It is important that we remember what goes in, will come out.  We have to think about what we let our children watch and hear.  Over the last year, my husband and I have cut back on the amount of television our family watches and electronics our children use, and when they are allowed to do these activities, we make sure it is wholesome shows or movies we watch and that the games or internet usage will not be a negative influence on them.  

One of our favorite movies is "Facing the Giants",  in that movie the coach makes a statement that now hangs on our wall.  He says "Your attitude is the aroma of your heart, if your attitude stinks, your heart is not right".   I believe this statement is 100% true.  It goes right along with the verse in Luke.  We must keep our hearts pure and clean in order to have a good attitude.  If you find yourself dealing with a lot of issues in your home, you probably have a heart issue.  It is important to get to the root of the issue.  If you want to see a change in your children, you must get to the heart of the matter.  You must see what the deeper problem is in order to solve the issue instead of just putting a bandaid on the surface problem.  Take it from a mom of 6 very different children, they each have issues we deal with everyday, but when we sit down and get to the root of what is going on, we see a long term change in them, not just a  short lived adjustment.  We keep a very open and honest relationship with our kids.  We allow them to talk to us without fear of being scolded or reprimanded.  We give them the chance to voice their feelings as long as they do it in a respectful way.  It is very important to let your children know their opinions and voice is important to you.  God has opened up many opportunities to teach our children during these conversations.   Always take every opportunity you are given to shepherd your child's heart!!!!

More ideas to share :)

We wanted to share some more ideas with  you all :)   During the day each of my kiddos have certain chores to complete.  In order to let them know what is expected of them, we have a chore chart.  They each have 2 card holders, one that says "Need to be done"  and the other that says finished. Each chore has a card to explain what the chore is and in what room.  Every morning their cards are placed in the need to be done holder, and then as they complete a chore, they move over the card that corresponds with that job.  It helps them to know and not forget what is their responsibilities for the day, and keeps me from having to remind them all the time.  It is important to be sure to go over each chore card with your child/teen,  and show him/her how you expect the chore to be done.   Even our little ones have a few chore cards.  We have read over them enough, that they are able to read them on their own :)  We believe it is very important for our children to have responsibilities.  It prepares them for having a job and home of their own one day.    Here are a few pictures of our Chore Chart :

This chore chart is very easy to put together, and it only costs $3. 

All you need is a poster board, card holders (that were purchased at the Dollar Tree, in the teachers section), index cards and some stick glue :)

Yesterday a very dear friend of mine shared a link to make a wonderful thing called Flubber.  It is great for preschool and elementary age children .....the teens probably will play with it as well :).  Here is the link for that recipe.  She said it is easy to make, easy to clean up,  and hours of fun!!!!!  We will be making some this week and will share with you how it goes :)     http://www.omsi.edu/flubber

Reminding our kids of the real Saint Nicholas

Tomorrow is St. Nick's Day.  I believe it is important for our children to know who he was and what he did.  Tomorrow we will do a few crafts, read a book about him and watch a video story about him.   Here are some of my recommendations:

Relationships

As my kids are growing into young adults, I have been praying about how to make that shift from being the parent of a child into the parent of an adult.  I have read many good books, from Christian authors who have grown children, in order to prepare for this transition.  God has shown me that I need to be letting go each day.  I need to give them more responsibility and I need to let them make their own decisions.  I would never over step my bounds with them.  I will not make them do things they don't want to do and I will not force them to be something that God has not called them to be.  If and only if they ask my opinion will I give it.  I have to trust that we have taught them to do what is right and that they will follow God's will for their lives.  One way to push your older children away is to nag them and force your will on to them.  You have to allow them to fly.  You have to let them make mistakes and learn from them.  You have to give them opportunities to grow.  You must let go.  You have to allow God to work in their hearts and lives.  You have given them the instructions, now let them go and be who God made them to be.

It's Snowing :)

We woke up today to a beautiful sight.  It is snowing outside.  What a way to welcome in December and the Christmas season.  The kids are just all giddy about it.  They love the snow so much!  Joshy went looking for his snow pants to get them ready.... you know... just in case it snows enough to go out and play :)   Snow makes it look so peaceful outside.  It puts me in the mood for Christmas :-)   I think we may take our Christmas picture for our Daley Christmas letter today. 

Coming closer to Christ

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, our family had a lot of time to pray and study God's Word together.  We picked out a few verses that will be our focus for the month of December and we picked out 4 Character Qualities that we would work on as well.  Our 4 character qualities are Truthfulness, Obedience, Attentiveness and Self-Control.  We feel those are very important qualities to have in order to follow what the Holy Spirit leads us to do and to have peace in our family.  

Here are our Bible verses for the month:

We also decided to make a cross and whenever we feel burdened or stressed out, we will write down what is bothering us and place it on the cross.  The Bible verse that goes with this is Psalms 55:22:
"Give your burdens to the Lord. He will not permit the Godly to slip nor fall."

God is changing us everyday and we are excited to see where He will lead us.   Our family has resolved to put God first in everything and the rest will just fall into place. 

So much to be Thankful for

As I got out of bed this morning, I began to think of all the things I am thankful for.  Heat, it is so cold outside, but we have a warm home.  A roof,  it is pouring outside, but we have a roof over our heads to keep us dry.  Hot and cold running water, we have the luxury of clean water to drink and wash in.  Clothes, even though I may not be in "fashion", we all have nice clothes to put on and keep us warm.  Food, as I planned out our breakfast, I saw all the food in our cupboards, we are so very blessed to have 3 nutritious meals everyday along with some snacks.  Health, we are all feeling well.  Love and family, we have people who love and care for us.  These are just a few of the things I am thankful for.  I have learned to look for the little things to be thankful for each day.  We need to praise God for what He has given us instead of complaining about things we don't have.  God is good and He meets all our needs!

Our Pre-Thanksgiving Meal

Tomorrow we will be heading out to spend time with family, so the kids begged me to have our own Thanksgiving here tonight :)  They ate so much, they will be sleeping good tonight.  My 5 year old ate 5 biscuits and 3 plates of noodles  :-)

He couldn't wait to sink his teeth into his turkey leg :)

Turkey leg wars :-0

So many talents God has given them

Each of my children have different talents.  My oldest son, Robert,  loves to work on computers.  He has actually built 3 desktop computers and he is able to upgrade any computer you put in his hands.  He is totally self taught :)   My oldest daughter Amanda is great at many things.  She can sing like an angel, crochet, knit, and bake any dessert she has a recipe for. Amanda is great with her little siblings also.  She tries to teach them whenever she gets the chance :)  Megan is really good with little kids.  She makes them laugh and she enjoys playing with them.  They love her!  She is also good at dancing and singing :) Ryan is our sweetie.  He is a great big and little brother.  He is always there when you need a hug.  He has a big heart and he loves to make others smile.  He is great at making you laugh no matter what mood you are in :)  Joshy is our little over achiever.  He wants to learn all the time.  Today he even asked his sister to teach him how to crochet.  He is constantly coming up with something new to do.  He craves knowledge :)  Hope is just our little princess.  She is very bright and is always surprising us with what she knows.  She has a wonderful smile and her little face can make the world melt away :) 

Amanda making her mama a scarf :)

Joshy learning how to crochet.  Big sis was teaching him :)

Isn't it gorgeous!!!

Every day I thank God for each of my kids.  I thank Him for their health.  I thank Him for who they are becoming.  Each of them love God and want His will for their lives.  That is what I am most thankful for.  I love each one of them more than life.   I am so proud of them and I give God all the glory for who they are today. 

My Turkeys:)

Today we decided to make turkeys from our handprints.  The kids had a blast cutting and gluing.  Ryan, Joshy and Hope all made their own turkeys, then they had big brother Robert use his handprint for their "big" turkey.  We had some craft feathers, cardboard and construction paper and it made for an hour of giggles.They loved it.  Before it was over we were all covered in feathers.  It was a lot of fun :)

Check it out :)

 Homeschooling 6 children, means mama has to be organized.  I love to have order!  I tend to probably go overboard when it comes to organization, but with 8 people living in one house, it is not a bad  thing.  From our school room to our laundry room there has to be some organization or there would be chaos.  I do make menus each week to plan out our meals.   I do a budget each month.  There is no way to follow a rigid schedule with life, but we do have a schedule of things we need to accomplish each day and  we do it in a orderly fashion.  Here is a picture of our household/school schedule:

 We use post-its so the schedule be easily changed :)

For chores we use Chore cards for the older ones.  Throughout the day they go to the chore card wall to see what they are suppose to do for their chores.  For the littler ones 11 and under, we have chore rings.  I put these together myself after reading a few articles on the internet.  They were inexpensive and the little ones love them.  Every morning they ask for their chores :)  It gives them some independence.  Here is what they look like :)

I have to get creative with my kids.  Each have a different personality and each respond to things differently.   It is important to remember that when you are raising kids.  What works for one, may not work for the other. 

One of the most important things we do in our home is memorize scripture.  The older ones see the need for learning God's Word which is awesome, but the younger ones who are still learning, love to be rewarded for learning their Bible verses.  We have a reward chart, hanging on the wall, for the 2 younger boys and Hope has a reward folder, she likes to carry around her stickers :)    Here is our chart :

When they get to 100 stickers they get a trip to Chuck E Cheese :)

Here was a just a few ideas from our household :)  Hope you enjoy looking at them and feel free to use them :)

God is with us

We had a pretty rough night.  My daughter, who is 15, is taking this very hard.  I keep telling her that God is our refuge and our strength.  He will put His arms around us and make us feel safe and secure.  He will wrap His arms around us and help us heal and forgive.  My oldest son asked us to pray for this man who harmed this family, during our devotions last night.  We did just that.  We prayed this man would come to Christ.  Even through the anger and pain we need to see this man is a human being.  We prayed for the families to heal and to be able to forgive.  We are working on forgiving this man.  We are praying that God will help us get through this and know He is still in control and will turn what Satan meant for evil into something good. 

Psalm 46:1-3
¹ God is our refuge and strength,
   an ever-present help in trouble.
² Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
   and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
³ though its waters roar and foam
   and the mountains quake with their surging.

A Sad Ending

Soon after I posted today, we found out the 3 missing people's bodies had been found.  What is really scary is they were found very close to our home.  When I heard the news, I felt so much sorrow for this family who lost their loved ones, then came the fear.  I realized how close he was to our home.  It scared me so much I began to shake.  I know bad things happen everywhere, but honestly something like this has never happened so close to home.  Tonight all I wanted to do was hold my kids and tell them how much I love them and how much they mean to me.  I want to take all the fear they are having away. It has hit our whole community hard.  We will make it though.  We will pull together and support these families and heal from this horrific act of violence against innocent people.  I think what hurt the most was the little boy.  He is the same age as my precious Ryan.  I can't imagine losing my baby that way.  I am going through many emotions right now.   A friend said, now it is time for healing... I agree.  We need to heal!!!!

What a week

Along with school, we have been very busy praying this week.  A family from our county has been missing for over a week.  We are hoping that they are found alive soon.  If you would like to pray for this family and receive updates on them please see this link.http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Pray-for-The-Maynard-Kids/174173612594279

Every time I get frustrated or tired, I think about how blessed I am to have the family I have.  They are healthy and happy children.  They are kind-hearted and loving.  They really care for others.  I thank God every day for them.  I pray they will continue to grow spiritually as well as physically. 

Each day has it's challenges and I won't say that I handle them all well, because well, I am human.  I fail just like anyone else, but one thing I do before I go to sleep at night is tell my kids that I love them and if needed, that I am sorry for anything that may have not went well during that day.   We have to remember that when we do get frustrated or upset, that we must repent and ask our children to forgive us.  I believe that renews their respect for us and gives them a good example to follow when they have issues.  We are responsible for our actions and our responses.  We need to show our children how to respond in different situations, not just tell them how they should act. 

I pray for families every day!  I pray that the parents are good examples to their children.  I pray that Daddy's see their role in the family and take it seriously.  Mama's need to love and nurture their children along with teaching them whenever they get the chance.  Please join me in prayer for families and marriages.  God has to be the firm foundation that we build our homes on in order for it to stand and weather any storms that may come upon it. 

Our Oldest Daughter is 15 Today

Amanda is our oldest daughter and 2nd child.  She has grown into a beautiful young woman not only on the outside, but on the inside as well.  She is truely a blessing to our familly and we love her very much.  I have started a new tradition today.  I will be making a video for each child's birthday during this year.  Amanda's will start this tradition :)

Veterans Day

Yesterday during school we talked about Veterans Day.  We did some coloring pages and we talked about how important it is to remember and support those who have fought and are fighting for our freedoms.  With each holiday, I take time to tell them what it is about and we do special studies or pages.  With homeschooling it is important to take every opportunity we can to teach little things.  I take my job teaching my children very seriously.  I want them to learn everything they need  to make it in the world.   Our most important study is the Word of God, then we study our other subjects.  Mike and I know it is important for our children to learn all they can now, so later they will be able to do whatever God calls them to do. It is important to be able to read, write, spell and do math.  Without those simple abilities, life would be hard to deal with. 

Here are a few photos of our Veterans Day coloring pages :)

Good Morning

We start our days pretty early around here.  Since my kids were little I have always sang them a little song in the morning just to get their day started right.  Our first activity of  the day is having devotions.  I believe we need to start our day out with prayer and a thankfulness in our hearts for having this day that God has given to us.  One of my favorite verses is Psalm 118:24: This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.   We need to be thankful that we are alive and able to get out of bed and do the things we do.  We need to make sure we see each day as a blessing and not take it for granted. 

One of my favorite things to do for my kids is make them a nice hot breakfast.  They love smiley face pancakes :)

We start each day a new.   Every day is a new begining for us.  We forget what lies behind and press on to what is ahead. 

Fridays are the busiest for us.  We have spelling tests and Bible verse quizzes.  We finish up our school week and go over what we learned from our Character Building lesssons.   To reward the kids for a hard week of work, we have family fun night on most Friday evenings.  We play a game and watch a good, clean, wholesome movie together.  It is important to just have fun and laugh together :)  

Soooo Much to Chose From.....

When we first started to homeschool, I got so overwhelmed with all the curriculum out there.  It was hard for me to chose what to use the first few years.  We knew we wanted it to be Bible based, so that did narrow it down a little.  The first year, we decided to go with Christian Liberty Press.  We used their whole curriculum set for Robert.  The books were wonderful, but we found it to be a little overwhelming for a Kindergartner.  Six large workbooks for a 5 year old was a little much.  As the years went by we found that hands on teaching along with a few workbooks during the first couple years of school worked much better for our kids.   They love learning through games and even craft projects much more than sitting with a bunch of books each day.  Our 5 year just officially started school and he is already reading at a 2nd grade level.  We never sat down to "teach" him how to read, he just caught on by us reading to him and playing phonics games with him. Each child has a way he or she learns best.  It is important to find that out early.  I remember spending tons of money on so many different books and never using them because they just didn't fit the child's learning style.   So now, when it is time to pick curriculum each year, we do it by what is best for the child.  I recommend reading the book "The Way They Learn" by Cynthia Ulrich Tobias.   It is a great tool for finding out your child's learning style.  Even if you do not homeschool, I believe it is important to know this in order to help your child through school.

We have learned over the years not to sweat the small stuff.  I use to worry if they were not right on  schedule with every subject, but soon learned that they will catch on when they are ready.   Each year when I have my children tested, they all score way above average on all their test scores, so I have learned that getting frustrated with the little things just isn't worth it.  They will learn what they need to learn, but sometimes it just takes a little time.

Some days just don't go as planned

One lesson I have learned over my 11 years of homeschooling is that you have to be flexible.  We try to stay on a schedule most days, but there are always those days where something happens or someone is sick, and we just have to go with the flow.  Our schedule is really just like school around here.  We start school at 9 and end around 3:00.   We take two fifteen minute breaks and a thirty minute lunch.  The younger ones do book work in the morning hours, then afternoons are for fun activities and crafts.  Each of the kids have weaknesses and strengths.  I encourage them to work on the things they have difficulties with first.  We try to have one big science class a week.  During that class we do experiments or we do activities together.   They all love hands on activities.  We also come together every afternoon, for an hour, to work on Character Building.   Right now we are using a Character Building worksheet I found on the Duggar Family Website.  We take one trait a day to focus on and discuss.  We look up Bible verses that correspond with the subject we are studying and we talk about how we can work on displaying that attribute more in our lives. 

I really enjoy teaching my children and watching them grow in many ways.  I pray that God will strengthen me each day to keep doing what I am doing.  I pray that each one of my children learn from each lesson we study. 

Why?

There are a few questions that many people ask me when they meet me and find out how many children I have.  Usually the first  is "Wow 6 kids, how do you manage?"  Then they ask "Do you ever have time for yourself?"  Then soon after they find out I homeschool those 6 kiddos, they ask " Isn't that a lot of work?"   Well I have created this blog to not only answer these questions, but many other ones that come up a long our journey of life.  I also want to share things we have learned over the 16 years of being parents. 

I will start out by introducing myself and my wonderful family.  I am Betty.  I am a wife, mother and friend.  I have been married for over 17 years to my incredible husband Mike.  He is a great husband and daddy.  He enjoys being with his family and even though he has 2 jobs (Firefighter & Mechanic), he finds time to be our spiritual leader and loving guide through this life.  We have 6 beautiful children ranging from 3 years old all the way to 16.   Our youngest is a little girl named Hope.  She is really a joy to have.  She is extremely smart and acts more like she is 10 not 3.   Joshy is our youngest boy.  He is 5 years old and already taking 2nd grade classes.  He loves to read and write.    The next in line is our precious son Ryan.  He is our sweet one.   He is 10 years old and has a heart of gold.  He is so kind and helpful.   Megan is our amazing 14 year old daughter.  She is very lively and likes to take care of her younger siblings.  She is great at keeping them busy while mom does her chores or works.  She has a sweet spirit.   Amanda is our very talented 15 year old.  She can do so many thing that range from singing to cutting hair.  She loves to crochet and draw.  She is great with kids and enjoys teaching them.   Robert is our oldest.  He is 16 and is just a great son.  He is a great counselor and friend to many.  He is always there when you need a shoulder to lean on.  He wants to be a pastor and we already see those qualities needed for that job coming out in him. 

Can you tell I love my family?   We are not perfect, but we strive to be what God wants us to be.  Mike and I try to teach our children what is important in life.  We hope to share some of these ideas with you through this blog.  We will share some of our journeys and even some of our mistakes.  May you be blessed by this.