Easter - The Long Weekend

I love Easter!  Actually I love any excuse to celebrate with family and friends. There just isn't enough excuses to celebrate in my opinion.  Easter though, is up there with one of my most favourite time of the year.  It holds such scared meaning for us as a family, meaning that goes far beyond the humble Easter Egg.
The old 'EB' doesn't get much on a look in around here, yes the kids still get Easter eggs and greedily eat most of their eggs before the weekend is out. I mean come on that is what I would do! (I mean do - shhhh)

Easter weekend is filled with traditions both old and new, ones that even if we wanted too the kids don't let us forget them.  Again I love traditions, they are so important in a family, they are what holds us to each other, what gives us a sense of belonging to something much bigger than ourselves. In saying that there were a couple of traditions that we missed this year!

The wind and the rain threaten to dampen our Easter spirit this year and it nearly did a good job of it too. Our power went out at lunch time on Thursday and when our power is out we have no water.  Of course when we have no water everyone is extra thirsty aren't they!  We hold a family life group at our house every second week and at the last minute had to change locations for the occasion.  You just cannot have people at your house when you are flushing the toilets with buckets of water out of the pool!!  Family night went off without a hitch and saw the kids hunting around the house for various symbols pertaining to the Easter Story. The great big world of blogging is a treasury of good creative ideas for just about anything!
Check it out here!

Easter Friday - still no power! Groan.  I can cope without the power but no water......not my favourite! So after a quick clean up around the house we packed ourselves off for a Easter visit to Grandmas house armed with HOT CROSS BUNS of course (oh and a basket piled high with a few days worth of washing - Grandmas are good like that aren't they)  After a lovely morning of visiting and indulging on Easter treats we returned to our power back on!! Um Yay!!!  I have to admit I was getting a little grumpy about the whole no water thing.  Here is what our afternoon looked like.

Yip clean up duty!!  Not so sadly we lost an ugly old orange tree in the storm!  

Saturday we braved the town to do some last minute Egg shopping (stupid of us really) and to get a few bits and pieces for a shared lunch on Sunday.  Seriously everyone should stay away from town on a day stuck between two public holidays. Its just crazy dangerous!

Easter Sunday - the highlight of the weekend!  Even when I woke this morning and sat reading my bible, the day felt holy and sacred. I often get overwhelmed while thinking about what Jesus did for me, me who is so undeserving.  Brings tears to my eyes just typing this.

But while it was a super special day it certainly wasn't immuned to 'pre-church-I-just-want-to-get-out-the-door-with-the-house-tidy-and-no-one wearing-their-breakfast-on-their-face-and-still-in-their-pyjamas' stress and other everyday battles incidences.  

After all we are all human aren't we and I certainly don't want to pretend otherwise. 

Church was pretty special this morning.  I think everyone comes with an expectant heart and ready to worship and to thank and praise our Father. I love that.

This morning I had goosebumps.

Maybe I am a little bias but Jamie preached an awesome Easter message (his first one ever!) and together the whole congregation shared not only in the taking of communion together but a celebratory morning tea!  What a blessed morning!

Do I dare say that I do find it a little sad when chunks of the congregation are missing due to it being the long weekend and people take the opportunity to go away.  I get the spending time with family and making the most of the long weekend, we have done that in the past plenty of times but they really did miss out on something special today.

We were blessed this afternoon. Blessed with the company of good friends, AMAZING food and by golly a large quantity of laughter.  And the chocolate oh the chocolate! Eggs upon eggs upon eggs and then we can't forget the chocolate game!

Can one ever have enough chocolate?  Today I am thinking maybe.  

(But ask me tomorrow, my answer no doubt will be different.)

We thought that we could put off the traditional Easter Egg hunt until tomorrow. We tried to sell it to the kids by stating it would draw out the Easter fun even further. But alas it was not to be.

The weather wasn't our friend so we had to hide ALL 72 eggs inside! I hear you gasp!  No worries 66 of them were teeny tiny ones and 6 were big ones AND there are 6 kiddies!!!

It is actually quite hard to think of hiding spots for that many eggs when you are confined to two rooms!

Here in New Zealand where get an added bonus day off tomorrow being Monday, which makes the total weekend a glorious four day weekend!

 Ahhh I wonder who will get to sleep in tomorrow morning? I wonder if it will be me.

(please pick me please pick me pick me please)

Tomorrow will see us (weather permitting) doing another post-storm clean up of a tree down at church but other than that who knows. Its so nice having some free days with no plans.

 They can be very rare at times.

What Easter traditions do you have? 

Working on...me.

So as you may of noticed that I haven't been around a while.  I have missed you.  But it seems as though every time I sit down to write I end up hitting the delete button either that or I write in my head and there they stay or I talk about them and that's that, they remain as conversations.   Anyway I am in the midst of a piece that is yet to be decided if it ever makes in on here - my confidence I think has taken a hammering again! Geez what is with that!  But for now I have one that is a little more hmmmm lighter, so to speak.

Baby Jesse is nearly FIVE months old now!  Yes I know. Time has gone so fast.

By golly he is cute! (just a tad bias I know)

He is very nearly sitting, which actually doesn't surprise me as he gets great encouragement from his brothers and sisters. I mean who wouldn't want to reach milestones when you have your very own cheer-leading squad.
I don't know how most of you (ladies) feel after a baby but my post-baby body leaves a lot to be desired.  Yes I know, I know I know - Jamie always tells me "well (he) took nine months to grow you should really give yourself nine months to get back to the start". Bless him. But nine months honey is just too damn long for me and this time I wasn't waiting that long.  After having Jesse and all his huge-ness and being backwards and all, really did leave me with NO strength in my core muscles (stomach muscles, back muscles, inner muscles, inner inner muscles and leg muscles etc) which isn't good or conducive to getting up off the floor or bending over to clean the bath, plus I had flab where flab certainly wasn't welcome. My super inspirational sister 'n law set me on a path that enabled me to begin to reclaimed my pre-baby body.   (Just so you know - you ARE NOT getting a "Post-Baby-Body-Pre-Workout-Programme" photo either.)

So with the help of Joy over at Massive Motivation an online/virtual personal trainer if you please, I started my programme.  Day one very nearly killed me!  BUT nearly 12 weeks on and I can say I am very happy with the outcome.  I am pretty sure that Joy thought I was such a baby at times, especially when I threw a tantrum about having to do Burpees and told her I didn't think I would be able to walk for the next few days after doing an intense leg work out.  Actually I did have trouble walking for about three days after that.  Joy gives you a Five-Day workout for you to follow (Mon to Fri) (Yah -weekend off) all you have to do is......actually DO IT!  She makes you sign a contract with yourself which sites words like 'character' 'commit' and 'cheating yourself'.  So all the times I though that it wouldn't matter if I only did 5 burpees instead of 10 thoughts went back to that darn contract!  And I also knew that I would have to tell her at the end of the day how I went and I couldn't very well lie to her could I.   I stayed under Joys tutelage for 8 weeks and then decided to try and go it alone and I have to say that I think that I have done pretty well not being accountable to anyone.  I think that's why it worked so well is that I had to tell her everyday how I went. If I was left to my own devices I would of putter out, I just know it.  So 12weeks on - I can jump now!  I know sounds pretty bad but I really did have trouble even jumping off the ground now I can jump up my steps AND at last count I ran 4.4kms in 30 mins! Wahoo! Now that makes me excited!!  Although I am far from one of those ladies who glide down the road!  Exercise has become a habit for me now, a good habit.  I understand a little now when people say that they are addicted to exercise because I too get hankering to do something active in the weekend when those days are suppose to be rest days.

So two days out from 12 weeks I have only missed one day of workout and that was yesterday, I was just too tired and had a crappy attitude.  I have lost 12cm off my waist and nearly 8kg AND I have muscles where muscles have been dormant for years and years!  So you could say that I am pretty proud of myself. I am back to pre-baby weight/size and this is the fastest I have been out of pregnancy clothing.  I still haven't finished yet.  For me, this hasn't been entirely about how I look but a big part has been about how I feel in myself.  At the beginning Joy asked me what were my goals and my reason/s for starting this.  I told her....
1. Even though I had 6 kids I didn't actually want to look and feel (physically) like I had had 6 kids.
2. I wanted to feel strong again, none of this weakling who gets puffed walking up the driveway business
3. Secret squirrel here.....I have this dress that my younger sister gave me.  I really like it and even though I have no idea where on earth I would wear it. My outings consist of church, soccer, supermarket and the occasional visit with friends - and it really isn't a dress I would wear to any of those places.  BUT if I ever did have the opportunity to dine with the Queen and/or attend a Cocktail party then I would like to have the option of wearing this dress. Here is said dress...

Photo doesn't really do it justice!

I think I have about another 5cm to go before I can successfully pull it off.

 



 

If I do get to the point where I fit it I will show you the before and after shots!

Gulp

So if there is anyone else out there that is wanting to get into shape and wants something more than just a diet, then I REALLY recommend Joy. She will design you a programme especially for you and your needs and provide you with super encouraging (not in a telling off way) feedback.  I certainly couldn't have done all this work without the help and encouragement from super husband - Jamie, or my super children (who all joined in at some stage with me - ask the girls about Pilates they will give you a demo) and Tash, my super sister 'n law, who by the way looks totally amazing too after all her hard work she has put in. 

 

Go on, you will feel so much better for it!

 

See you soon, promise!

Friendship

Ok so you all know that I have learnt a lot over the past 16months or so. A lot about myself, about my family and friends and about my God.  This journey that we are on still continues to surprise me, stretch me and shove me rudely out of my comfort zone.  I am learning to be ever so flexible and that's cool.  No longer do I have a 'tidy' life (ha did I ever), no my life is ever-changing and highly unpredictable and you know what I am beginning to like it.

 

Slowly slowly I am beginning to find my groove, my place, my role in all this changing. I know I need to go easy on myself and recognise the fact that what we are doing is mostly seen by 'the untrained eye' as something impossible.  You know just living on a Student Allowance with six kids and home schooling, you know that kind of stuff.  We have very little idea about what next week will bring, but that's OK. Its all part of the adventure.  However just so you know, it still freaks me out from time to time when I see a need and have no idea how we are going to meet it. It scares me silly.  I am getting good at faking it, you know where you put on a fake happy face and say all is well.  There is a time for that.  Like when you have two girls whose birthdays are coming up and seemingly no way to buy presents for those special little people in your life.  But birthdays they did have, with presents, cake and a celebratory afternoon tea even!  AND we are no worse for wear because of it and my children are none the wiser.   We do share some things with them but I don't think it would be wise to share all our struggles.





One thing that I have learnt during this time is the power of friendship, REAL friendship, REAL relationships.  Oh they are just so important and powerful.  Throughout my life I have struggled with friendships especially when I was school age. I don' t know why I just did. I would have friends one day and then the next day they wouldn't like me anymore. I think this left scars on my heart more than I would care to admit until recently.  I know I guarded my heart for a long long time much to the detriment of myself.  I found myself sharing my life only 'oh so much' and then bang up went a wall, no one would get any further.  Fortunately over recent years that has changed and I have come to realise that there are women out there that genuinely care and love me.  Those women are my closest friends and I love them dearly.  Those are the women that I can share my heart, ALL of my heart and know there will be no judgment or no jealousy - (both very ugly traits in women).  Those are the women that I call on to 'download' to, share my fears and my joys with, and would be here in a moment if I needed them to be.  Friendships cannot thrive on competition, superficial-ness, judgement and jealousy. But on love, honesty, encouragement, loyalty and kindness. Thank God that I am free now to be able to enjoy such friendships.  The beginning of last year I miscarried a wee baby (bitter sweet now of course - because we have been blessed with wee Jesse). During that time my heart physically hurt though I got through that time due to my faith in God, sharing my heart with a couple of close friends helped in ways that I never thought possible.  They cried with me, held me and listened through all my raw and powerful emotions - really enough to scare anyone away, far far away.  

 

Real friends are super encouraging and genuinely pleased for you when some thing good and exciting happens for you.  Real friends don't care if you have crumbs on your bench tops and dead flies on the windowsills (a reality in my world). Real friends won't ask if you need help, they just help un-asked and won't take no for an answer when you protest. Real friends don't freak out when you cry the 'ugly cry' (you know the one where you are sobbing so hard you can't talk, have snot pouring out your nose and your mascara is dripping down your face). Real friends will have your back in the midst of adversity, not run a mile because it gets too hard for a while. Real friends will make you feel invigorated and alive after spending time with them, they will change your outlook, give you energy and inspire you. Real friends just know when and how to listen. Real friends are like putting on comfy PJs and bed socks after being in tight jeans and high heels for a whole day - familiar, welcoming and easy. Most importantly they will be happy that you are you, and want to see you live your best life!

(I don't actually wear tight jeans and high heels but I know you catch my drift)

Photo by Kaysha Leigh Budd

 

It such a cliché but life is too short to waste on pursuing unhealthy friendships.  Not only are they a hindrance to you living your best life but they really do suck the life out of you and leave you feeling frustrated, flat, negative and apathetic. 

 

Kelle Hampton of 'Enjoying the Small Things' fame and author of the book

Bloom

 (a must read if you ever get the chance)

talks about her 'net', that is a net of real friends that catch you when you need it and prop you up and continue to do so until you can stand by yourself again.  My so called 'net' isn't big and certainly not as big as hers but its my 'net' of friends who truly have my heart and I love them for it. 
I don't even need to tell these people who they are, they already know.
I am blessed, truly blessed.

 



Time for Me!

I remember reading something not so long ago that went something like this...

"Give your child a gift....Take better care of you"

I love this. I need this.

Historically I am not good at this at all. For some reason I (and probably a lot of other Mamas out there) have this perception that we aren't being a good parent if we don't continally put our children and their needs before ourselves, consquently neglecting our needs. 

 Our need to rest, replenish, rejuvenate and refresh.

Why do we do that?

 

So.....

After self-imposed isolation for weeks on end due to Whooping Cough and Jamie going away (and due to go away again soon) I felt that it was high-time for a me break - well me and Jesse.  Breast-feeding babes go everywhere their Mamas go.

 

I didn't need to wonder where I would go, I already knew.  I needed some girl time with my bestest friend (and sister-n-law) Tash.  I really struck it lucky when I married into this family. (in more ways than one)  Often one hears of horror sister in laws but not me - no way.

My adventure starts with a trip on the bus and I must say that its no easy task that.  One pushchair/carseat, two bags and one baby all in tow.  Fortunately for me the bus driver in our wee town is super friendly.  She actually remembered me from last time I came and I was a heck of a lot bigger (pregnant).  The people on the bus are super friendly too. From the elderly lady behind me who thought I had beautiful kids and congratulated me on 'getting away' to the gentleman across the aisle from me who 'oohhhed and ahhhed' over Jesse and ended up showing me pictures on his phone of his sisters identical triplets!! 

This bus driver let the kids hop on and investigate while we were waiting to go.

 

Jesse slept all the way to the city - so kind.

Once in the city I had the difficult mission of transferring buses but fortunately for me I nice young man (gee I sound like I am 70) offered to help me with my bags. Bless him!

If you haven't been on a bus lately I suggest you try it. They are quite nice these days and the view is great!

 

So after I reached my destination, my sister-n-law picked me up for my well deserved break away!



Yes I didn't go to some retreat or the like but the very fact I didn't have to tidy mess, do any chores, had dinner cooked for me, didn't have to constantly answer question (although I did talk a lot) and was spoilt with time of friendship, walks, talks, good food and a change of scenery.

Bliss!

 

One thing that I am aware of is that I don't have a lot of photos of me and the kids, the reason being is that..

 1. I am always the one taking the photos.

2. I don't particularly like having my photo taken so I avoid it. 

So I am trying to make an effort to have more photos taken of me but usually someone needs to remind me and I may reluctantly agree.

 

Fortunately children are either too small to know or care about having their photo taken OR absolutely love it and jump at every chance to have one taken OR even steal your camera when you aren't looking and take 'many' themselves!

 



Jesse having some Aunty Tash time - doesn't he look like he is having fun!

 If you are anything like me, you don't have a lot of chances to browse around town or peruse through shops in a mall.

But first things first...

... coffee and cake!

 (make that good coffee and very yummy cake)

Love the view overlooking the city.

"Milk and Honey Cafe".

Ahhhhh...!

 

 

This was the lift going down from the cafe, the one that we had to lift the pushchair down the stairs to get too and the one that we got momentarily stuck in!

Wasn't quite sure how long you wait before you push the emergency button and we were just beginning to argue about who was going to push it (neither of us wanted to). Tash decided perhaps she should ring the cafe and tell them we were stuck when someone from down the bottom push the button and the lift started to go down.

Phew!!

But what an adventure!

A dressing room, isn't it cool!

 

Lunch

We found this dinky little cafe at the back of the Anna Stretton concept store.

It was decked out in all things retro. Very very styley!

 



I grew up with a table and chairs very similar to this!  Who knew that they would be so trendy in years to come.

Day Three we walked along the river which is smack bang in the middle of the city!  Who knew ah?

Such serenity and peace!

 

My time away was so what I needed but I missed my husband and my kids. My kids I think missed Jesse more than me as they showered him with kisses and hugs as soon as they saw him, but I'll take a close second!

 

I can only hope that every women can take the time to just be or to spend some time with your closest friend who you can just be fully yourself. Half an hour, a lunch, a day, three days...etc. Its worth it.

Just so you can be your best!

 

In my life this month...

In my life this month...
 

We have flies!  We have had flies since the beginning of summer and I can say most definitely that I am soooo over them.  We don’t just have one or two flies.  We don’t just have those crazy flies that fly in a group of three or four in the middle of room in a seemingly pointless circular pattern.  We have FLIES!!  It gets to me after a while (can you tell). At present there is one crawling over the computer screen as I write, no make that two.  Aahhhhh!  Late afternoon in our house see families of flies having a reunion at the tops of our windows, on the floor, in the bathroom and on our benches.  As much as I HATE fly spray, it is unleashed at this time of day by one brassed off Mama who has had enough of swishing flies off her sleeping baby.  Just moments later the insane sound of buzzing and fizzing of dying flies – what a sweet sound it is and it makes me happy.  Only now I have to vacuum. Dumb.  I must be the only person in the world that vacuums her bench of dead flies.  Now just in case you are thinking that I must be the dirtiest person in the world, I’m not.  We live on a farm, a farm with cows! I shouldn’t have to say anymore.  It’s one of the very few downfalls of living here.  Fortunately they only last for three months of the year. Thankfully. And no I am not going to post a photo of flies, they don't deserve that.

Ok so now I have that off my chest I can carry on.

In our home 'school' this month...

We are looking at the moon and all its glory!  Its a very interesting topic once you start delving into it.  We have been hindered by a terrible sickness though and there are some days that school gets push to the side in order just to survive.  I am waiting for the next full moon to haul out my Dads old telescope so we can get a closer look at it.  Kaitlyn is very interested in doing workbooks as is Sophie (3) who is itching for me to teach her letters. She will do school at any time of the day and will shove the workbook in my face whenever she can. Long may that continue!

 

Helpful Home school advice or tips...

Be organised. School doesn't just happen around here. As much as I love the idea of unschooling I have to be purposeful and intentional to some degree and that requires organisation on my part.  I suggestion here, an idea there and a request along the way.  If I didn't do this then I am pretty sure the boys would play Monopoly and Cricket all day everyday.

Jaydens Home-made Cricket Bat - lasted two deliveries but still good effort!

 

 I am inspired by...

 

My Children's Creativity

 

"Enjoying the Small Things" a blog by Kelle Hampton, Good Friends and Good Conversations

Places we are going and people we are seeing...

We have been in self-imposed isolation for three weeks now, due to a hideous and contagious bug. Jamie however has been away for three nights (lucky him) as part of his training.  So my darling friend came to stay with me as did my lovely brother-in-law while Jamie was away. Oh and we have seen the doctor too!

My favourite thing this month....

My wrap, a life saver for me, in a busy home. I can wear Jesse on me and he sleeps for longer than he would in bed.  He also sleeps better during the day in the lounge in amongst the noise and goings on that is everyday life.  Every now and I might pop him into bed but its always ours, obviously so much snugglier than his!

 

What is working for us...

Our prayer bowl - names of our entire family, extended family and close friends are put into a bowl and once (sometimes twice) a day everyone pulls a name out and they pray for that person. The kids love this and it encourages them to pray for other people and not just themselves.

The construction of the family "Prayer Bowl"

Our job bowl - every job that I can think of is in this bowl (I take out what isn't required at the time) and we all pull a job until they are all gone.  Today I had five jobs, clean 1 toilet, clean 1 basin, vacuum the lounge, tidy the front door area and dry the dishes. The boys had four jobs each, Kaitlyn had two and Sophie who desperately wanted to help was given the job of assisting me. Jamie was the over-seer. Result all housework done in three quarters of an hour!  YES!

 

The girls made a train whilst I was washing the floor.

Can you see the 'Stella' cat got to play too?

 

...not working for us...

Night-time!  No one is getting much sleep and that's not fun. Being housebound!  Just a little over it.

Questions/thought I have...

I am thinking about...

What to learn about after the "Moon",  Ideas for the ladies ministry for this year, A communion message,  Writing for Blogs - I have so many in my head and on the computer, but often wonder is it too much of me out there, too much to be judged, abused and misunderstood but then again why write in the first place if no one is going to read it, be inspired by it, be encouraged, entertained or challenged by.

Things I am working on....

Being Organised!  I am wanting this so much that I am frustrated at my lack of it.  I am learning!   Also getting this "post baby body" back into "pre baby shape". That too is a work in progress.                                                                                                                                                   

I'm reading...

'Galatians', Home Birth Bound (again), Books about the Moon, Alaskan Brides (yes I know - laugh if you must) and The Remarkable Women of the Bible (again)

I'm cooking...

Apart from the copious amount of baking I do, I cook.  Favs at the moment are Risotto, Pizza and Spaghetti and Meatballs! Nothing special there.

I'm grateful for...

My husband, who is willing to forgo his bed and take up a mattress on the floor next to Sophie and help her during the night while she is so sick. The Lords continual provision of our wants and needs during this journey we find ourselves on. Friends that I can share my heart with. Our country where we still have the choice as to where and how we birth, where and how we educate and where and how we live our lives. Being able to have my family around me almost all of the time and watching my children interact with each other

I am praying for...

Healing for our children. 

Gods continual guidance and provision.

"Moments of  Everyday Life " Photos

Our carrots weren't the bumper crop we were hoping for but still 'Thor' the resident rabbit got his fill!

A lesson in 'Fractions' if you will
(oh and subtraction of course)

 

Cows!
One reason for our fly problem! No make that 550 reasons!

 

 

This is Sophie watching a movie. 

Don't ask me why!

 

 

 So tell me...................

Whats happening in your life this month?

Tears for Time

For those who know me, you know that there are a number of things that can reduce me to tears.  Sad stories, Happy stories, Christmas parades (parades of any sort actually) Bag pipes, Medal Ceremonies, New Zealand Post Ads, Happy endings, other peoples tears....my list could go on and on!  Some are rather embarrassing and I would rather not mention them.  Some tears are on public display but some are private and only share with a few.  And at the moment tears come easily, especially when you are an over-reflector/thinker like me.  Oh I am so an over-thinker.  Normal people, think, feel and then move on. But not me. I think, think, reflect, analyse, analyse some more, feel, feel and them FEEL some more. Sometimes I write this process down, sometimes I pray and sometimes I just need to talk.  Thank you to the person that listens.

Time is really getting to me.  We don't have much and it goes far too quickly.  I mean my little man is TEN days already!! Where did the time go?  Casey is 11 now and I know that it is such a cliche but where has the time gone?  I may have only 7 years left of him being at home.  SEVEN short years - that's not long enough!

Time is relative to whats going on in ones life.  Time in the past has gone quickly. But if you are a kid, this time of year will be going at a snails pace.  The end of pregnancy can go slowly. A deadline can loom up at an impressive speed.

We all have the exact amount of time in the day and some people can pack a lot into their day, others plod through it.

The speed of which time is going, makes me very aware of how I spend it. Am I doing the things that really matter, things that are of lasting value?  Or am I just going through the motions just doing the things that steal moments or memory-making opportunities.  I am really trying hard to be better organised. I wouldn't say I was dis-organised I just feel I could be better at it.  Being disorganised is a time stealer.  I am making an effort to fold my washing AND put it away on the same day ( this is such a biggy because I REALLY hate folding washing).  In the past washing would pile up for a few days until I would reluctantly fold it!!  I am getting better.  So if you come to my house and fold some washing - I'll love you forever!



 

I am making an effort to have my bench clear by the end of the evening - I don't know why but my bench is a dumping ground for poor homeless objects! I am determine to win the war on bench-dumping practice!

I want to soak up the moments and time spent with my husband, my children, my family and friends!  Time with good friends is absolutely  priceless and I can't get enough of it.  It leaves me refreshed and uplifted.

 

Birthday picnicing in park with special friends!

 



 At the moment I am basking in the precious moments I have with Jesse, nourishing and nurturing him.  Especially at night where I can have him all to myself (during the day I have to share him with 6 other people - and just sometimes I don't want to share).  He oozes snuggly-ness and by golly I love it when I can lie in bed at night and envelope him into me and he suckles away and then drifts back off to sleep making all those delicious noises that only wee babies make.  Only God himself can make moments like that so delightfully precious!

 

 

 



Very VERY proud big sisters!

(although I have heard Kaitlyn pray on a number of occasions for a baby girl!)

 

 We have a poor wee sick Sophie at the moment who hasn't left the couch since yesterday morning.

As sick as she is, she loved having her toes painted bright pink!

 

 

 



We can only make a conscious effort to spend our time wisely, on people we love and things that matter!  To live intentionally!  To do away with time and moment stealers.  To be more organised!

Now I am off to get the washing in and FOLD it! 

 

But I might just have a cuddle with this wee little man first!

Isn't he delicious!