A quick tip

Just like I loooove my clearance bread at Ralphs and Sprouts, I also love to find a good deal on canned items. I always peruse the clearance rack for dented cans that the store has marked down. These are my favorite. Especially because canned items are typical ingredients in casseroles and quick dishes. These can get pricey so when I find them reduced because of a dent or two then I stock up. Now, a dent or two is just fine. But, if you come across a bulging can, steer clear. No botulism please!

Another great thing about these clearance finds is if you are lucky enough to find name brands you can also use coupons to get these at even greater deals!

Technical difficulties

We are having some problems with Sydney's little website. For some reason now that the name has changed it's content can't be located. We are going to enjoy our beautiful Spring Saturday with a birthday party to attend in the afternoon. Hopefully early next week I will have everything figured out! Happy weekend!

A Few Quotations From Charlotte Mason

"The question is not, how much does the youth know? When he has finished his education -- but how much does he care? And about how many orders of things does he care? In fact, how large is the room in which he finds his feet set? And, therefore, how full is the life he has set before him?"

"Thought breeds thought; children familiar with great thoughts take as naturally to thinking for themselves as the well-nourished body takes to growing; and we must bear in mind that growth, physical, intellectual, moral, spiritual, is the sole end of education."

"Nobody knows how much is possible to any one person. Many persons go through life without recognizing this. They have no notion of how much they can do and feel, know and be; and so their lives turn out poor, narrow and disappointing."

Something to chew on for a bit...

Sydney's Idea

Yesterday, Sydney got an idea and ran with it. This morning she began brainstorming and came up with quite the plan. If you're curious about what it is, check out it's beginnings at her new blog here called Recycling For Change. This is just the beginning but I see good things in her future...

My Man

*OLD POST I HAD TO RE-POST*

Steven has been taking on quite a bit around here as I turn into a  different person at the end of my pregnancies. I am completely incapable of doing much or caring for any one how I normally do. It puts a huge strain on our family and especially on him. But he is keeping things together. We have also received some help from friends and family for which we are very thankful! His positive attitude lately, despite the chaos, has made these last couple weeks easier to bare. I never look through the archives of our blog. I did tonight...it was so fun! Anyway, I came across this post about my dear husband and I thought it was the perfect time to re-post it. So here it goes!

I love you so much Steven! Thank you for always striving to serve your family! The bigger your family gets the more amazing you become! God has done a good thing in you! 

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

I like to document what is going on around here. It's fun and it makes me glad that I can look back on these times and remember. I realized the other day that I don't have as many photos of Steven as I do my kids. Understandable though, seeing as how I stay home to care for the kids not Steven but anyway it got me thinking a lot about him.  I decided it was a good time to find some pictures of him and reflect on his wonderfulness! :)

I thought it was pretty cute that most of his pictures are silly or sleeping. Hmmm, that leads me to some thoughts about why I appreciate my husband. He is silly. Often. I like that. He knows how to make me laugh, smile, lift my spirits, redirect my negativity. He balances me out.

He also does enjoy sleeping. Some may not appreciate that but what I have found is that his ability to stop and rest reminds me of my inability to do just that, stop and rest. I have a hard time stopping. I go constantly and often forget to relax. Not a good thing. So again, he balances me. 

He ADORES our kids. He is so good at finding special things about them and focussing on their strengths. He loves to teach them new things. I enjoy sitting back and watching him with the kids. He approaches the discipleship  of our children in a way that is God honoring. His heart is in it. Could I ask for anything more?

Steven is not a fan of the beach. We all know I am. Despite his hatred of wet sand that sticks, he endures for my sake. Not only does he endure, he digs giant holes in the wet, sticky sand. He gets  in and builds castles. He walks the beach and looks for sand crabs with the kids. He braves the tide pools, high or low tide, in search for sea creatures to observe. He makes time to do something he dislikes to see the joy streaked across the faces of the ones he loves most.

He likes snuggling with newborns.

He is a great leader.

He is a loyal friend and one of the "best men" I have ever met.

He is playful and attentive. He is also a fish. The water is his second home. I wish he could enjoy it more often.

Again, he is a napper.

A wonderful father.

He works hard and provides well for us.

He loves to play. I am so thankful he is the kind of Dad who gets on the playground and plays with the kids. He does not sit on the bench consumed with other things or glued to his cell phone. He interacts and devotes himself to them. I LOVE that!

He lovingly works at pleasing me with the small stuff, that at times can actually be very big, literally. Like the enormous Christmas tree I had to have. He hauled it home, set it up, and even set it up again, and again when we realized the stand we had was not built for it's enormity! He kindly made that tree work instead of getting angry about my silly need for a giant Christmas Tree.

What a gift it is to have a husband who simply wants to love and serve his family. He has a kind heart and it is a joy to be his wife. There is no perfect home or marriage or life here. But there is appreciation, understanding and forgiveness. All these things are only possible because we have first experienced the perfect, selfless kind of love that God graciously pours into our lives through the death of His son on the Cross. Without experiencing God's mercy and grace we would end up like the unfortunately large percentage of people who are discontent, unsatisfied and lost. All I can do is say thank you.

Too cute!

The Little Things

It seems that "the little things" are what count, make things better, make a difference, lead the way toward whatever were after. I forget so easily about the little things and am constantly focussed on the big ones. When I set out to clean my house I quickly devise a detailed plan in my head as to how I will successfully and completely clean, organize and de-clutter my house all within a matter of  a couple of hours. Ridiculous. I don't know why I work that way. If I would just take one little step at a time I would then see a big difference made. I do the same with EVERYTHING. Reading, writing, teaching my children, playing, exercising, paying bills, etc., all of these and more fall into this category.
My children somehow always remind me of the little things. Their little, it's an easy connection, right? No seriously though, they take their time and pay attention to little things that I would normally want to rush through and hurry to the next step. They slow me down. Sometimes I am very selfishly irritated by the pause.   It is exactly then that I usually stop and see my disregard for the little things and the huge red blinking sign that is screaming "You are setting a bad example! MOM!"  I am actively slowing my pace down, taking a deep breath and seeing what is going on around me. I do not want to be a whirlwind, whizzing past my family. I want to observe and deeply take in all the little things and little people that are around me. It's good to be present.
One of my littlest littles LOVES to tell me she loves me. Her newest way of saying it is, "Mom, I love you too much!" Stopping often to bend down and listen my two year old speak from her little heart goes deep within me, and is too precious to ignore. Thank you God for all the little things that so tenderly remind me of the preciousness of Your love.