tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58875415585441725032024-03-05T19:30:37.481-08:00Desitin and DandelionsMoms...Lets lift each other instead of putting each other on pedestals.kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-29934985978422351412012-08-18T21:09:00.000-07:002013-01-06T22:24:18.905-08:00Fun? Umm, uhhh...So Friday night runs late you climb into bed dog tired and within two minutes you are dead to the world. You probably fed the baby a time or two during the night but you can't really remember. The next thing you know it's 6:30 AM and your sweet husband is saying, "Hey Honey, let's take the kids to the lake today! We could do some swimming and bike riding. It will be great!" In your delirium you say, "That'll be fun." <br />
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Within 3 or 4 seconds your brain has thought through everything it is going to take to get the gang up and out the door..."wake the kids, dress everyone, find all the shoes, are the swimming suits in the dirty laundry? nurse the baby, Saturday morning clean up, finish the flower beds before visitors come today, fix a bottle, pack a lunch for the picnic, load all the bikes, oh no, I'm out of peanut butter, flip flops or tennis shoes? fix breakfast, clean up breakfast, shower and possibly get to eat breakfast, and soooo much more." It could all be done by say, noon? </div>
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"Let's try to be gone by 7:30," he says. "Ummmmm," you are thinking, "Let's see, what can I cut out? I could skip showering and breakfast, grab take-out for lunch, let the kids go without shoes..." </div>
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Well, you pull it off. You, Hubby, 7 little kids, a packed suburban and loaded bike rack are out the driveway by 10:00--ish. The family has a great time swimming and eating and playing together! When the day is over and the car all unloaded your Honey turns to you and says, "Wasn't that fun?" It isn't until that moment that you ask yourself, "Was that fun?" </div>
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You, well, <u><i>I</i></u> have to answer honestly, "No, that wasn't actually fun. It was a lot of work, and a good experience, but fun? That hadn't necessarily come up." I jumped out of bed running and didn't stop to enjoy much of it at all. There were little snippets like little coos from the baby and watching the children play that warmed my heart, but the rest of the time I felt like a lifeguard, bus driver, cook, and chaperone. Lifeguards aren't at the beach to have fun. Bus drivers don't always share the same enthusiasm that the school children display. Does the cook savor the food, the chaperon enjoy the activity? I think they are more occupied with watching the clock or concerned that the event goes well, the food doesn't spoil, and the children don't drown. </div>
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<i>"Is Mom supposed to have <u>fun</u>?" </i></div>
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kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-15874455048761979872012-08-15T23:06:00.001-07:002012-08-15T23:06:08.513-07:00"Be of Good Cheer"I had the chance to visit with an "older" gentleman from our church today. I felt I was in the presence of an angel. He spoke with gentle love as he took me around his home showing me the artwork done by his sweetheart. "She doesn't like me to make much of a fuss about it, but I love her and what she has created." In the halls at church or sitting close to each other in Sunday School these two beautiful people radiate goodness and kindness to everyone around them. Standing in their home I could feel that love enveloping me. <br />
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We stepped into his office to see the computer my husband had been helping him with and I was surprised to see a huge screen TV right there on his desk. He explained that he is legally blind and even with this mammoth screen he still can not see what is on the computer well. I had no idea! I've known him for a year and never suspected that he was blind! But in the same breath he took to explain his eyes he said, "Life is good. We have each other--forever. What more could we want? We are enjoying life together." <br />
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I asked about his children and learned that 3 of their 4 adult children have already crossed to the eternities. How much they have been through and how bitter they could have chosen to become. I could have comfortably spent hours listening to his stories but he didn't want to bother me with the details. He pointed out that he doesn't like to dwell in pity parties. He is happy. <br />
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I left their home and slowly walked back to mine pondering on the beauty of life. "Be of good cheer"...it is a commandment I too frequently break.kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-4117789511052471762012-08-12T19:58:00.003-07:002012-08-12T20:48:29.906-07:00The Bedtime Battle...er, I mean Routine8:20...time for the bedtime battle. I go to call the kids in from playing in the backyard, meaning to say, "Come get on your jamas," but instead I yell out, "Yipers, clean up the yard." Around the swingset I see a cut up cardboard box, a mount of various leaves pulled from trees and flowers, church shoes, bathroom rugs, spoons, bowls, baby dolls, purses, a squirt bottle, brush, comb, etc, etc., etc. At least today there are no dirty diapers. 2-yr-old Sophia has entered the I-know-how-to-take-off-my-diaper phase...she's especially fond of performing her new trick when the diaper is fully loaded. <br />
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8:30...After assisting them in a quick run around clean up I go into the bathroom and find my hairspray bottle--empty. It was full this morning. Turns out Elisa couldn't find a water bottle so she emptied this one. She emptied the Windex bottle for the same reason earlier today. I probably shouldn't have gotten mad at her for that one...innocent mistake. <br />
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8:45...a few of the children have gotten in their jamas!! The others have decided it's time for a snack. Mom is busy on the computer so maybe she won't notice that we are all getting out graham crackers and milk. I'm thinking, "Should I push them in the get-ready-for-bed bit or should I join them...someone's crying, be right back...<br />
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8:48...back from a quick rescue. A picture frame bounced off Rebakah's head in it's attack of her milk cup. Nothing a kiss and a towel couldn't fix. <br />
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I like writing about these things. It helps me realize the humor behind them. Otherwise, I just get overwhelmed by the constant demands and just want to join in the screaming........sometimes I do. <br />
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9:00...Anna just reported that Sarah and Sophia (4 & 2) are eating ice cream in the living room...guess I better go.kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-81195986114216854362012-08-05T21:01:00.001-07:002012-08-05T21:06:33.589-07:00Nine-Year-Old CounselSo, my oldest daughter, 9-years-old, pulled me aside after bedtime tonight and said she needed to talk to me. "Mom," she says, "I don't think things got off to the right start tonight. I shouldn't have been building that stuff at bed time and you shouldn't have yelled at me." "I think," she tells my in a sweet, soft voice, "you need to be calmer. Maybe you could watch some other moms and see how they do it--like Nana or Grammie, or Grandma Price." At this point I'm thinking, "I am sure they weren't so calm either when they had a house full of kids that wouldn't go to bed." But I am also humbled that she is wise enough to talk to me after everything has calmed down in the house and try to make suggestions on how I can do better--while admitting that she was in the wrong as well. This girl is wise beyond her years :). She counseled me that when I get angry and the kids are not listening to "go in your room and pray. Ask Heavenly Father to help you be calm." She doesn't know that I have done that hundreds of times, but hearing her encouragement actually gave me hope that I could be calmer. Maybe I just felt more hopeful because the kids were are all asleep and I could actually hear what she was saying without having to put a pacifier in someone's mouth. <br />
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Today (and every day) there were moments when I was literally trying to do 5 or 6 things at once. At dinner for instance, I was trying to eat, figure out why #6 was screaming in her high chair, console 4-yr-old #5 who was sitting on my lap crying after a picture frame fell on her shoulder, clean up a spilled smoothie, stop #2 and #3 in their efforts to out-sing each other at the table and give my husband my undivided attention in our dinner conversation. This pace went on until approximately 2 minutes before dear daughter came to me with her advice for being calm. I know I'm superwoman, but even superwoman has her limits. </div>
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PS I was wrong about them all being asleep...off I go.</div>kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-87602186995588582652012-08-03T23:40:00.000-07:002012-08-06T06:07:57.083-07:00Volume 15One of my most precious possessions is one of my journals, Volume 15. That is the book that contains detailed accounts of meeting and marrying my husband. Yes, it was romantic, but it was also inspirational. It's a place I turn when I need to be reminded how to recognize God's hand in my life. When I read those pages I feel again the sweet whisperings of His Spirit guiding us to each other. I remember how it feels to sense His direction in my life. <br />
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Around January or February of most years I pull out Volume 15 and let myself trip down memory lane to the little road in Provo, Utah where we first met. Then I remember that God is still just as interested in me and my life today as He was then. He cares about the very details of my days and my actions. He is still watching over me today. I need Him. I need His strength. </div>
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If I hadn't already had the habit of keeping a journal I'm sure I wouldn't have picked that busy season of my life to start. I would have missed all those details and with my bad memory the sweetness of those experiences would be lost. </div>
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Note to self...get back into the habit. It is much harder to keep up with 7 little people demanding 25 hours worth of your time every day, but I have to do it. It is what keeps me sane a lot of times. It's where I spill my heart out and really get to think through issues and calm my mind enough to hear God's Spirit. </div>kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-56706868369098967892011-12-18T19:21:00.000-08:002011-12-18T19:21:18.609-08:00To laugh or cry...it's up to me.<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The flu bug exited the front door while a blustery head cold blew in the back. I have been down for a few days with it and could really feel sorry for myself but I couldn't stop thinking about my neighbor, Michelle, across the street with her respiratory and kidney infections...on top of having a newborn baby. While John and the kids were at church today I got up the energy to make some homemade bread. I snuck out of the house for a few minutes after dinner to take a loaf over to her. I enjoyed a little visit with Michelle and her husband, Tyson, about the joys and challenges of parenthood then headed home...to find the downstairs toilet overflowing into the hallway and downstairs kitchen. As I gagged my way through the unclogging and clean up I couldn't help but laugh at the irony of the conversation with my friends. Yes, parenthood, has it's ups and downs. All I can do is choose whether I will laugh or cry. I read once that I should not wonder "if" disaster would strike today in my house but "which" disaster would strike today. When I do that I am much more mentally prepared for whatever heads my way. </span>kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-5711370605001296712011-12-01T09:57:00.001-08:002011-12-01T10:10:55.693-08:00On the menu tonight: Sprite and SaltinesGuess what showed up at our house tonight. Yep, the good old fashioned stomach flu. Well, maybe I shouldn't call it old fashioned. This is the super-powered, amped up, Stomach Flu of the century. It didn't just creep into the house under a basement window. It marched right in through the front door and started rampaging through the house. The neighbors had warned us that it had been stalking the neighborhood while we were away for Thanksgiving. Parents and children alike were hugging toilets instead of downing turkey.<br />
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When Sarah crawled into our bed at 4:00 this morning (as she is known to do) she was feeling just fine. The next thing I heard from her was around 8:00 when she called out that she had thrown up on my sheets. I'd been meaning to change those sheets anyway. Here we go. I had a doctors appointment this morning so John stayed home with Sarah (I got to hear the baby's heartbeat and he/she is doing great). When I got back John reported that Sarah had emptied her stomach over and over and was too exhausted to get in the tub. I went into her room to find on the floor a pale, soiled, sleeping, little girl, sucking her finger and clinging to her toy clown. She slept most of the day and, with the help of Emetrol, didn't get sick much more.<br />
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The others didn't start into it until this evening. Soso was first, poor baby. Now, what I was really amazed by was not the power of the flu but the willingness of the healthy kids to help out. Rebekah, Elisa, Anna, and Josh ran around fetching towels and blankets, cleaning up the living room, doing the dishes, and anything else I asked. Within 30 mins Elisa started feeling sick. Anna ran to get her a pillow and blankets and made a comfy bed for her on the living room floor. When Soso soiled too many towels and we were almost running out. Josh and Anna changed the laundry and put in a batch of towels---the first time they'd done laundry on their own. Reah was cheerfully helping as well until her tummy started to rumble. She quickly turned from a helper to a couch warmer. Josh and Anna fought over who got to make up her bed. Because of those two I was able to sit and hold Sophia and make her comfortable. Our living room became a very busy sick ward.
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Around 10:00 I told the oldest 2 they needed to hit the sack. They cried that they wanted to keep helping. I was hesitant to send them to bed because they really were so much help. Josh was afraid to go to sleep, fearing that he would wake up sick. He did. John took the night shift and I headed to bed. At 1:00 AM Josh headed to the toilet.<br />
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It's 5:30 and I've been on duty since about 4:00. One child or another wakes up sick every 15 or 20 minutes. Anna is the sole evader so far. She is still in her bed, but the other children are all in the sick ward, sleeping off and on under the Christmas lights. After a long shift John is sleeping sound and healthy...so far.<br />
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My heart is full of gratitude, not for the children being sick, but for the chance to serve them. I am grateful for John jumping right in and letting my pregnant body sleep for a while. I think I am mostly grateful for the opportunity my children had to serve one other---they did it with such willing hearts, even knowing that they would probably be sick soon too. Interesting that when everyone is healthy I can go to bed exhausted from breaking up squabbles and playing referee all day. But a little stomach flu changed our house into a peaceful, happy, loving environment.<br />
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I guess I am understanding better why Heavenly Father allows us to suffer. Without suffering, we could not learn compassion. Our hearts would become prideful and He would have to play referee all the time. I am amazed at how happy the children were tonight as they bustled around taking care of the sick ones. I have not seen them that full of joy, even on Christmas morning. There's been no grumbling, no complaining that they aren't getting what they want, no selfishness at all---only thinking of the comfort and the needs of others.kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-76476080062495418992011-09-30T09:00:00.000-07:002012-08-03T23:59:01.152-07:00Laundry Answers:The Dot SystemWriting little essays is fun but I figure I should put something helpful on this blog. <br />
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Several months back I was--once again--trying to switch out winter clothes for summer clothes in all my children's drawers. I pulled out the buckets and buckets of hand-me-downs from the garage and started sorting through searching for what would fit which girl this season (we have 1 boy and 5 daughters). I was drowning in an ocean of pink clothes!!! In desperation I called my husband's aunt, Robyn. Thank goodness for amazing in-laws. Robyn has raised 7 daughters (and 2 sons) so I figured she would have some advice. She taught me The Dot System and it has been a life saver!<br />
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Here's the deal:<br />
Assign a number of dots to each child, in order. The oldest gets 1 dot, next kid gets 2, etc, etc. Then in every one of the oldest girls clothes I put one dot on the tag or inside of the collar, underwear, or whatever with a laundry marker. I got a set of baskets, one for each child, and put the same number of dots on the basket with the child's name in permanent marker. Now, when I do laundry I don't have to think, "Who does this belong to?" I just check the tag, see 3 dots, and know it goes in the 3rd girl's basket (the one with 3 dots on it). Anyone could come in my house and do my laundry and everything would go in the right baskets. I didn't assign my boy any dots. He is the oldest and the only one that wears all those basketball shorts and tshirts. <br />
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When girl #1 grows out of a shirt I just pop on one more dot in the collar and throw it in girl #2's basket. <br />
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Thank you, thank you, Aunt Robyn for this great tip! It has made life a lot easier and left me with a little more time to enjoy the kids...<br />
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Now, do not go thinking, "Oh man, she sits and plays with her kids. I don't do that enough." These are the times we whip out the camera...not when we are barking at them to stop playing and clean up the dad-gum house." We all have our good moments and our bad.</div>kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5887541558544172503.post-65603518002828740082011-09-29T22:41:00.000-07:002011-09-29T22:45:57.009-07:00Are You Supermom?<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>So, for the last few pregnancies we have been a bit hesitant to make too many announcements. Not because we aren't excited. On the contrary, we have been thrilled to invite each new person into our family. We are</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> hesitant to say much early on because of people's reactions. Of course, we have those who think we are nuts. I can handle that, we probably are. What I wasn't prepared for on our last pregnancy was how many people praised me and put themselves down. "Oh, you must have so much patience, I just don't have enough to handle that many kids." "You are amazing! I could never do that." "I would have had more if I was as good a mom as you are." </b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>It's just not true!!! I happen to have a pretty high tolerance for chaos and noise. Not everybody does. My own sisters visit, cheer me on and happily go home to much more serene settings. And honestly, for my own sanity, I sometimes slip away all by myself so I can enjoy their serenity with them :). </b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>A close friend of mine once commented that my house is controlled chaos. Well, it's controlled as much as one can with all these amazing little people running about :).</b></span>kchap143http://www.blogger.com/profile/09285362084465417382noreply@blogger.com5