Family Study

A while ago, I found a really cool blog of a Christian mom who writes bible studies for her family and church. She has all sorts of really great studies for various ages and on many different topics. Best thing yet...they are FREE!! for private use only of course.

Now Tim and I have alwasy done devotionals with the kids, done one on one reading and studying with the kids and personal and family prayers with the kids. However we have yet to attempt a more formal Bible study with the kids...let alone the whole family.

I was really feeling like our family needed to "recenter" our lives and our priorities and what better way than to spend time in the Word? So I picked
This study

It is great so far...it has lessons for various ages..3-5, 7-9, 10-12 and teens/adults. It is very similar to the Love Dare but for families. I am very excited about watching God work through this study in all of our lives!

We also agreed as a family to try and do a service project each month...I came up with a list of ways for us to donate our time and we voted on Community Harvest Food Bank for our first project. It is a charity that I use quite often through my work and I know what a difference it makes in the lives of my clients and am excited to be part of it on the "other side"....

I feel that it is SO important for my kids to realize that there is a huge world outside their sheltered bubbles. Yes, I want them to stay safe, but I also need them to step outside their comfort zones, for them to minister to others, to realize that there is poverty, sadness, and dispair...and that we should try to help.

We will see how it goes....

Blessings
Amy

Semi Formal...

So yesterday was Taylors big day! Her very first semi formal in High School! Whew..it is amazing that I have a daughter who is that old already!

She went with friends and since she serves on Student Council, she had to stay late to tear down...but she had a wonderful time and looked absolutely stunning!

What a beautiful daughter I have, both inside and out!!







We had such a fun day preparing.... we were blessed that our normal hairdresser teaches at a high school beauty school on saturdays and she had us come to get Taylors hair done. After 2 hours and only 10 dollars...Taylors hair looked amazing! Her Nana treated her to a beautiful french manicure and I did her make up for her! What a fun time of pampering for her.

Blessings
Amy

Frugal dinners anyone??

As I was making my grocery lists for the week...and thinking about how to stretch our budget even further...I thought I would send a plea out to all of you frugal mamas out there. How to do dinner on the cheap feeding 6-7 people a night??? I am looking for any of your most favorite recipes that are easy on the budget...

I love my crockpot and use it regularly, we arent too picky (atleast the grownups arent) and I would love to have dinner (at least the main course) for under 5.00. Any ideas beyond the basic beans and rice? Or am I dreaming if I can get my main course under that?

Recipes, suggestions...ect...

Comment away!!!

Blessings
Amy

Last day of freedom :-)

Yup, thats right, tomorrow I return to the world of the gainfully employed! Partially sad, part excited about returning..it will be an adjustment for all of us I am sure. My fam has gotten used to Mama being there to do almost *all* the chores, cook all the meals and do all the errands. Hmmmmmm....thinking that is all about to change!

My work is super flexible so my schedule is going to start out as 4 half days and we will see how that works. I am blessed to have a flexible job and an understanding boss (who happens to have 4 kiddos herself!) Tim is doing the childcare on everyday but Wed when he will go to my friend Mandi's house to play with Mylee and Gabe and soon Drew!! Tim just has to stay awake until naptime!! We will see how it all works out in a week or 3. Sammy (and mommy too) are going to have a pretty hard adjustment with getting up and around for the day before 10 am!

One would have thought that I would have taken huge advantage of the absolutely gorgeous weekend we had to have some serious family time! I had it all planned out, some yard work then...hiking and canoeing...orphan sunday at church, orphan ministry, orphan celebration.... lots of stuff planned and the only thing I can say happened is that Tim and the kids went to orphan sunday at church. I was pretty much unaware of anything other than my bed and how close the toilet was in proximety! It was UGLY! Honestly I dont know anything that happened between when I went to bed at 8 on friday night and today at around 2. I consumed a 2 liter of gingerale and exactly 5 saltines in all those hours.

Luckily I came out of my sickness haze today after my poor toddler got stuck in front of endless Dora and Mickey Mouse episodes. I am pretty sure he isnt permanently traumatized and life is getting back to normal! Tim and the kids did a great job, the laundry isnt piled up, no one ended up bleeding or starving and he took care of all the little things that crop up all the time!

I did however totally enjoy the week before my horrid illness.....











We went to the park a few times, we went to playgroup, we went to the science museum, we went to a its playtime! We were BUSY!! everyday doing things that we wont get to do so much of as mommy returns to work.

Thank you all so much for your thoughts and prayers with Tims plant closing....we are praying for God to show us where He wants Tim and where He wants our family...out of our comfort zone or not...

Blessings
Amy

Trust and trials

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not upon your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths" Proverbs 3:5-6

Last night we were dealt a huge blow that left us both reeling. Tim was informed that the plant that he works at is closing. That means anytime after January he could no longer have a job. They are hopeful that the plant will stay open until middle of 2010 but there are no guarantees.

We are both obviously anxious over this turn of events. What now? what if he cant find a job? wow the dreams of me staying home full time just vanished! I may be going from part time employment to having to work full time and overtime if Tim cant find a job. Will we have to move? It is scary not knowing what the future holds.

Tim (wonderful guy that he is :-) reminded me last night that it's all good. God has provided for us continuously and we will have faith in that. This is something that He will use to change us, mold us, or move us out of our complacency. God has something big in store for us and we have to trust Him. So again we will be waiting on Him, waiting on His direction, provision and strength.

Blessings
Amy

Happy Halloween

We finally had everyone healthy (mostly) so we braved the chilly temps tonight to do some trick or treating! Sammy was excited to get more and more candy at each house! Our cousins came over to trick or treat with us and that made it lots more fun..



my cheesy cowboy...



Sammy and his cousin...he got really tired of the cowboy hat so he switched to the much loved Mickey hat..

The big girls...as boys

We did our neighborhood, then Em and Sammy came back home with me and my sis in law and all the other kids went to the next neighborhood since they surely needed more candy...

We ended up with 2 HUGE bowls of candy and now although I wont need to buy snacks for several weeks, I will no doubt spend twice as much money paying their dental bills hahaha

Hope you all had a safe halloween!!

Blessings
Amy

Sick...

There is no running in my house today...no giggling or laughter. There has been an extremely silent little boy on my lap today who only has said..."more Mickey, juice and nightnight" all day. Sammy has run a very high fever (103.9) all day and has felt so miserable. Poor baby! I have had difficulty getting it to stay down lower than 100. He is just so stoic. I am sad to think of what hapened when he was ill in the SWI. Did they just keep him secluded in his bed all day? Did anyone cater to him? Doubtful. Did he lay there in silence? He has not been "programmed" like my other children that being sick earns you exclusive rights to the couch, the tv, any snacks or drinks you feel up to and unlimited snuggle time.

He seemed not to know what to do...even snuggling was uncomfortable for him..his little body was just so hot! I finally get his temperature down long enough for him to eat something and play just a bit and up up up it goes again.

Today has been miserable for him, but atleast he is with his family. No suffering alone in a bed. He has been hugged, cuddled and loved upon by everyone. We have been waiting on him hand and foot and barely is there a time when someone is not sitting with him, cuddling with him or trying to make him smile.

We will keep praying for healing for our little one...and will keep praying that one day he wont feel that he has to be so stoic when he is ill....Goodness knows noone else here is :-)