Update on Move

This is Lori's husband, Dean, and I wanted to give everyone an update on the move. We were able to get most of the work done on Saturday, with a few things left over for Sunday. We had 6 guys agree to help on short notice (I thank God everyone of them).

I still have not got the computer hooked up yet, but can connect at work (Colonial Woods). Hopefully, I can get it done this week. Til then, God Bless!

Dean
www.anchorchildrensministry.blogspot.com
www.fjif.blogspot.com

MOVING!

Yup, today's the day. My computer will be torn down and who really knows when it will all get back together again.

So fare thee well, my readers~~

*Michigan Momma*

p.s. Holly, how was the bologna??

*some* answers

God answers prayers.........He just does it in *His* own timing, not ours.

When we first REALLy decided we wanted to move closer to the church, plus wanting to decrease our monthly rent, we talked about a certain neighborhood. It was just a block from the church, close to the youth pastor and his family and a nice family-friendly neighborhood. There was a duplex across the street from this YP's home, it was for rent, but it was probably the *least* nice house on the block, it just didn't look good for us (and I think it ended up being a 2 bedroom, which we figured wasn't large enough).

Well, in the past few months, we have looked EVERYWHERE. In that particular neighborhood, MILES away for there, ANYWHERE! There was *nothing* that was appropriate. It was either too expensive, too small, too scary or in a scary neighborhood. I am now APPALLED at what landlords call *nice* and where some families actually live. Saddened, really, that some people feel there is no other choice then put up with these creepy landlords and landlords who just don't care.

Then, just a few days ago, we saw a For Rent sign across the street from the YP's home ~ right next to the yellow, not-so-nice home. This was also for a duplex. We called right away, and got in to look at it. Technically, it's too small, as we will have to find storage for some of our things, but it was nice. Clean. Cute. And Cheap!! Praise the Lord!

See, we have had some mishaps that I won't get into over the last few months, trying to find a rental. We even thought we had found a place, gave our 30 days notice at our current home, only to have it fall through a few days ago. So here we were, without a home to move to, yet we HAD to be out by Aug. 1st. Kinda worrisome.

And I *did* worry, but MUCH less than I would have in the past. I just had this *feeling* ~ I KNEW the Lord had us in the palm of His hand. I knew we had a good church, and no one was going to let us live on the streets. Now, we hunted every. single. day. looking for a home ~ we didn't just sit back and say "oh, the Lord will take care of it". We searched and searched and searched ~ knowing the Lord *was* taking care of us.

So YES, we are moving to the small duplex. We have spoken with the really WONDERFUL Jr. High Pastor who is allowing us to store some stuff in his garage (he lives in the other side of the duplex that also houses the YP and his family). We may invest in a shed for the backyard for some more storage. Things may be tight. But it is CHEAP! It is only for a year or so. It will be fine.

And this will simply "encourage" me to work even more diligently at cutting back, scaling down, getting rid of the "stuff". We are not pack-rats by *any* means, but we are Americans ~ thus we have too much stuff (generalization, I know). The only thing I need now is to invest in some storage bins, organizational shelves or drawers, and keep up my energy.


So now I need to go pack........
~ACK~
*Michigan Momma*

What do you think?

Will we move or will we stay?

Will we move this month or next month?

Will we move into the small duplex or the small house?

Will we need to pay for extra storage or will we find some on our own?

Will we save $150 a month or $225 a month on rent?

Will we rent for 6 months, 1 year or more?


**If you know the answers to any of these questions, could you *please* clue me in!!

We are right in that frustrating waiting period of a day or two. In a day or two, many of these questions will be answered. I would really like for them to all be answered today - patience is not my thing - but I know it will most likely not work out that way. I will have to wait.

Wait.

Sometimes it honestly feels like I am on permant "waiting" status. Yet I do know the Lord is growing me through all this. I know He is. I am learning that I really do trust the Lord, I really do trust my dh to take care of us. I am used to just taking care of things myself. Yet I feel a bit helpless in this situation - nothing is working out as I would have planned. Nothing. Yet, amazingly, I feel at peace.

I look around my current home, see the half packed boxes *everywhere* ~ and I feel peace.

I look at my almost empty freezer, watching our supply of freezer meals slip away ~ yet I feel peace.

I think ahead to the many things that will need to be done in the next few weeks, the packing, the unpacking, the organizing, the traveling, the no-nap days, the lack-of-schedule weeks ~ and I honestly do feel peace.


I know we will get through this ~ and we will prosper. We will grow. We will be molded more like Him. Amazing.

So I wait...
*Michigan Momma*

p.s. Okay, I stress sometimes, but in the grand scheme of things, I stress *way* less than I used to ~ so I AM growing and learning and stretching. God *does* have me right in the palm of His hand!! ~MM~

Are you a Lurker??

Ok, I am *totally* stealing from Cassandra, over at It's a Wonderful Life (yet again) ~ but she has just been having some really great ideas! I think my brain is on hold until we get this latest move done and over with ~ so until that time, I'm going to have to rely on Cassandra (among others) to help me with creative/fun/necessary ideas and projects.

Soooooo....today's project is simple. Leave me a coment. Even if it's just a 'hey, I visit here occasionally', or 'it's ME', or whatever. If you're a lurker, time to let me know you're here! To someone who blogs, it's just nice to get a feel for who is actually out there reading.

And like Cassandra said, maybe there aren't any lurkers out there. That's fine ~ I don't have a problem with a small audience, these are just the thoughts of ONE woman, in ONE situation. But still, it's nice to know, ya know??

Anyone can comment, not just blogger people, no account necessary. Let me know who you are, or where you are, or what you do, or how you found me, or why you read. Let me know what you'd like me to blog about, or what you'd like to hear more of. I'm even up for some (loving) criticism....I think.

So come on, go click on Comments. Go on, you can do it. There ya go...
*Michigan Momma*



p.s. the one good thing about moving again: decluttering. I am getting rid of absolutely everything that I don't *love*. Things that I've just hung onto..because...well....I don't know.....HISTORY! I always feel more calm in my spirit with less *stuff*. We'll talk more later....

Music: Religious: Jewish

It was through these sub-headings that I found the current song on my blog.

I *love* it ~ it totally makes me smile when I open up the page. I love listening to the tone and depth of the clarinet. I love the groove. It just makes me smile.

And I'm beginning to think I need to do more around here to make me smile. Little things that I *love* around the house - afterall, this *is* my domain. It should make me smile whenever I walk through the door. Things don't have to be perfect or expensive ~ they just have to be unique little diddies that make me smile.

A crocheted blankie in someone's favorite colors, a funky skirt I pulled together out of extra fabric in my stash, a chipped yet wonderful BIG coffee cup I *love* to use, my children's pictures as our "artwork" on the walls.

Things WE love. You don't have to, it's not your house nor your life. No one really has to love it but me and my dh (and our babies can pick things they love too). I never really thought I cared all that much what other people thought...

Yet being a PW, I think it has negatively affected me in this way. I started caring (maybe just too much) what other people think. I mean, yes, I realize people in the church (and some outside the church) will look more critically at us. Comes with the territory, I guess. But the thing is, this is our beautiful life - one the Lord has given to us, and I believe He wants us to love it, to enjoy it, to smile at it. My smiles have been absent as of late. I spent too much time thinking about whether "other" people thought. *sigh* I honestly don't think the Lord would have that for my life.

So I'm starting here at my blog. No, it's not the latest pop Christian song. No, it's not the most critically acclaimed jazzy-fusion funk number. It's just something I heard that I really like. It something that makes me smile.

cool.

*Michigan Momma*

That storm I mentioned...

Right after I posted about my clarinet, we got hit by a storm ~ just a bit of lightning and thunder, but TONS of rain. Btw, we don't *normally* have ponds in our yard. Check it out....

We sent it to the local news station, so we'll see if they use it (that means I'll actually have to *watch* the news - usually it just depresses me).

In other news, I have decided not to use contacts right now - glasses are just easier. No solution, no worrying about tearing them while cleaning, no dry eyes, etc. I'm just gonna go get some funky glasses, yeah! I love funky glasses!!

.

Speaking of eyes, part of my decision against contacts is the trial period of wearing contacts I just went through. I kept getting things in my eyes, or they were dry, or whatever. They just bugged me, both trial pairs I tried. I even got some gunky infection or something. My eye was puffed up beyond belief for about 2-3 days. We were headed to a wedding the following day, so I asked my dh how noticable the swelling still was. He studied my eyes for a moment, then honestly told me he did think it was that noticable at all. I was still in a bit of pain/annoyance from it - basically I didn't believe him.

.

I took a pic of myself, just to confirm. Hmmm....what do you think???

.

.

Nooooooooo Lori, you can hardly tell......

.

*sigh* He's usually such an observant man.....

.

~looking forward to new glasses~
*Michigan Momma*

My *other* baby

My *other* baby has been in the shop. Well, she's been in the shop just for the last few days ~ before that, she was on a shelf. I put her up there l o n g ago when I had my first baby. Every now and then I would think about her, I might even pull her down, dust her off for a bit ~ but due to time restraints, back on the shelf she went.

*sigh*

I miss her.

So when I was asked to play at our denomination's camp meeting thingy (descriptive, eh?), I jumped at the chance. It isn't a solo (the Lord had His hand in THAT one - my chops are gone!!), just playing with the band. I'm excited!

Just being in that music store brought it all back. I really do enjoy playing clarinet. And I'm good at it. Well, I *used* to be good at it. It's not something I'm willing to give up quite yet.

It's gonna take some figurin' out ~ how to fit her in my days. My four REAL babies come first, but my *other* baby, she's a part of me too. I would *love* for my real babies to someday pick up an instrument. I would love for them to see me practicing, really enjoying it.

Ok, enough, storm's about to hit ~yikes!!
*Michigan Momma*

The Boat Race

Here's what has our attention this week...BOAT WEEK!

Now, neither one of us has been sailing (well, unless you count those dinky little sail boats at camp when I was in elementary school ~ I always preferred the canoes anyway) so why does this capture our attention??

Mainly, because it is *huge* around here and we like to see what our community has to offer. We really enjoy finding the "local" spots and activities ~ all those obscure festivals and parades.

So tonight we're watching a parade, tomorrow is some sort of "family night" downtown, Friday night....well, we've been warned it's just a bunch of drunk folk downtown, then the boat launch Sat. morning. The boats don't actually "launch" until they are about a mile out from shore and a mile out from the river ~ so we're trying a new spot (new beach) to see if we can get a good vantage point. We'll see...

So BECKY, be jealous!! (btw, we stopped by The Courts while in Valpo looking for you, but you had already left ~ sorry we missed you)

~learning more each day about this Michigan life of mine~
*Michigan Momma*

Notebooking

WOW~ I just spent our entire "quiet time" researching this Notebooking idea for homeschooling. I really like it. Really. Really, really!

Here's a great site to see what I'm talking about (and to get TONS of free template pages):

NotebookingPages.com

The last thing I looked at (before being FORCED off the computer because I needed to pee!) was some of their Christmas templates. *big sigh* I *love* winter. I *love* fall. I *love* the holidays. I *love* all the warm, cozy, family stuff of those times.

It's hot here.....ick.

*HUGE SIGH*


Anwyays....cool notebooking stuff ~ let me know if you use notebooking and how it has worked for you in your hs'ing journey.

~dreaming of fall~
*Michigan Momma*

such beautiful blessings

When I take the time to really STOP and love on my babies....well, it makes my day. Really. You'd think that I simply don't have the time to STOP. And if you were to look at my schedule on paper - well, I don't. There's too much to do. Surely they *know* I love them, right? Surely they understand as I give them a bath, as I fix them lunch, as I wash the sheets, as I vacuum the floor, as I pack up the boxes to move.....



But what they want is hugs. What they want is me dancing in the living room with them. Tali wants me to help her put on her ballerina shoes. Selah wants me to give her "raspberry kisses". Isaac wants me to watch him write his name. Elijah just wants me to look at him and smile.



Not to mention my poor dh ~ he really wants my time too. He wants more of me than frustration, whining, anger or crying. He deserves more. But goodness.... All of these demands on me ~ how is a gal supposed to balance all this??


Well, I just think you can't. (I know, not very encouraging, huh?)


Right now, in this season, I can't get it all done. My babies are all fairly young (5 and under) so while yes, I am *training* them to help me - it's still mostly ME doing it all. I've been listening to women tell me to let the housework go for YEARS - telling me to simply give it up (for now) and love on my babies. Well, finally, I'm ready to admit they're right (for now).



So today I danced with my daughters on my yucky floor that desperately needs vacuuming. Today, I laughed with my baby on the couch that desperately needs wiped down (from all his droolin', no less). Today, I watched my son work on his letter sound recognition - all the while ignoring the urge to tell him to pick up his room.

No, I haven't given up completely on the house. I'm about to get up and pack a few boxes, then vacuum the floors. I'll start the laundry (with the help of my babies), and TRY to keep up with it today (I'm making no promises). But I'm also making it a priority to read some stories before quiet time. I'm MAKING the time to laugh with my son during his bathtime, instead of rushing him through it.



What a balancing act mothering is! One I feel I fail at regularly ~ but perhaps, with lots of prayer, I can remember what is most important. Perhaps I can manage to find time for what is necessary and what is needed.

I still feel overwhelmed ~ but now I'm beginning to accept it and I'm not trying to fight it as much. Maybe that's it. I've put so much energy into fighting it, into trying to make things "better". Perhaps if I can continue to just let go, here and there, the Lord will be able to really balance out my life much better than I EVER could.

~lots of rambling here today, folks, so thanks for hangin' in there~
*Michigan Momma*

p.s. my babies ROCK!!

p.p.s. Well, I got distracted...came back to the computer HOURS later and I'm happy to announce that I played, did laundry, sang a few songs (w/ some raspberries thrown in), SERIOUSLY vacuumed the floors (and rearranged the furniture), moved the laundry around, took apart some more stuff for packing, and let Isaac take a relaxing, fun bath for over an hour!! Is everything getting done?? No way ~ but I'm okay with that (for now). ~MM~

...and lest anyone think things are perfect here.....we had our fair share of discipline as well.....in love.....tucked in here and there as needed....but overall, it has been a day of work, and play, and love.....praise our risen LORD!!

What is my blog rated?

Pretty cool - just go there, enter in your website, and it will give you a rating. Plus tell you why (I had used the word PUNCH 2x's and the word MURDER 1x). Is it accurate? No idea...but fun!

Enjoy~
*Michigan Momma*

Sweet, huh? I truly hope someday I can meet Cassandra IRL ~ we just have so much in common and I think we would really hit it off. Just start talking as though we had known each other for years.......anyways.....

Rules of participating:

1. Copy this post.

2. Replace [my bloggers with yours] & Reflect on five bloggers and write a least a paragraph about each one.

3. Make sure you link this post so others can read it and the rules.

4. Go leave your chosen bloggers a comment and let them know they've been given the award.

5. Put the award icon on your site

So my awards go to:

Jewels, at Eyes of Wonder. This is a new blog for me and I just *love* it. It calms my spirit just to read about her life. I desire this sweet, gentle spirit and view of life. I desire this for the future, a future of little ones, older ones and in-between ones - who all life and love together. Just gorgeous - go check it out!

Amanda, aka: Soule Mama. What a beautiful blog, with pictures to match. Her sewing creativity is an inspiration! Even though there are days I hardly can find the time to shower - when I visit her blog, I always want to go dig through my sewing supplies and make lovely, homemade items for my home. Always! And now she's got a book! Whoo-hoo!!

Lastly (I know, supposed to be five, but I'm crunched for time too!), I give this to Jen, from Jenerally Speaking. FUNNY!! She cracks me up - the kind of humor where you go to her site and pee your pants. What? You don't pee your pants when you laugh really hard?? Ok, so that's just me.....sorry.....but really, she reminds me to not take myself, my daily activities, my kids nor my life too seriously. Everybody needs that reminder now and again. I need it everyday, hence my frequent visits to her blog.

Ok, I need to go....do something productive! We are DEFINITELY moving (there were questions yesterday that I don't the time to go into) so I need to go pack some more boxes (and hopefully declutter/toss/give away lots of items as well).

~blessings to you and yours~

*Michigan Momma*

p.s. I miss my Selah-belle.............*snif, snif*..........she comes back home this Saturday. I can't WAIT!!

differences in children

They are *so* different!

For example, the other day, after losing power during a storm, daddy arrives home and decides we all need to go out for pizza. While there, darling Tali (2yo) spills her water. She looks at her daddy, who had let out a frustrated mini-sigh, and says "it awwight" [translated: it's alright]. I wish you could just hear her sweet little voice...."it awwight" she says so calmly and in such a mature way. No problem, Daddy, don't stress, it's alright.

One minute later, our breadsticks, yummy, garlic-y, melted-buttery, breadsticks arrive. Tali dives right in with her hands. Isaac (my oldest - 5yo) looks at his plate. Then he looks at me. "Momma?", "yes dear", "How am I supposed to eat this?" confusion - on my side. "well, hon, you just pick it up with your fingers and eat it" I say as I demonstrate heartily.

Again, Isaac looks at his plate. I can see him contemplating just picking up the drippy breadstick and taking a big ol' bite. Understanding is dawning on me. He looks up at me with a smile,

"Noooooooo" he smiles, "my fingers will get all yucky".

"yes, son, but then you'll just wipe them off with your napkin"

"Noooooooo" he still smiles at me - he wiggles his pristine fingers my direction.

"alright, son, well, we could cut up your breadstick and you could eat it with your fork??!"

"YEAH! That's a *GREAT* idea Momma! Let's do that!"

So I cut up his breadstick (and two more after that), smiling at the drastic differences in my children. I also tell his father, in no uncertain terms...

"This boy is learning how to cut his own food when he turns 6!"

*Michigan Momma*

sit~n~spin

My kids have this toy. I got it from another mom, whose kids had outgrown it. Everyone has tried one of these, right?! You sit down, pull with all your might and spin yourself around and around and around....

This is my life.

No seriously, that's what I feel like lately. I'm pulling and pulling and pulling....yet when I look around, I haven't gotten ANYWHERE! I'm still sitting in the same spot ~ and to top it off, now I'm sweating!

I know, I know, haven't we been here before? Recently? Michigan Momma, haven't you told us before about your need for structure, for a plan, for something besides spinning??

Yes, and yes, and yes!!

I keep thinking, 'well, as soon as we get past such-and-such' or 'as soon as we start school' or 'as soon as we move (again)' or whatever......what I'm beginning to realize (finally) is that THIS is my life! THIS is my family's life. I keep waiting for *normal* to happen - but I think this *IS* normal.

[please ignore the frantic screaming....I'm still adjusting to this fact]

So today - NOW - I begin in prayer. Then ACTION. What good are words (typed or spoken) without action? I can't just wander around day to day, waiting for my "normal" life to begin. This is it.

And lest anyone be confused - my life is good. Very good! I honestly think I was confused. Confused about what needed to happen for life to be NORMAL. I mean, come on, no one (well, hardly anyone, right Cassandra?) has this many little ones - all at once. Heck, *this* is normal. I'm going to start lovin' it!! instead of trying to look beyond it....

~in love~
*Michigan Momma*

p.s. if you don't understand this post, that's okay. I guess it's mostly for me, anyway. Someone recently told me I blog for my own sake, to reflect, introspection into my own life. So if you don't *quite* get it...that's okay. Just smile and nod, "okay, Lori, whatever". ~MM~

What is normal anyway?

We are back from our trip to NW Indiana. I think we're all allergic! Four out of the six of us got all sinus-y icky issues while there. Yuck! Ok, well, my parents will just have to move here!

We had a great time ~ but we also learned just how difficult some day trips can be with four little ones. Even with three adults!! Everything is just more complicated with nursings, diaper changes, messy eaters, car seats, no naps, etc.etc.etc. I'll post various pics just to give you a general idea of our fun!

In other news, we found a place to rent!! Whoo-hoo!! It will save us $150 per month AND it's not nasty! It's actuallty quite nice. We took a few pics so here are some of those. I especially like the bathroom tile. We are still trying to figure out where to place the larger furniture. As soon as we sign the contract, we will start slowly moving things over to the new place (about a 15 min drive). Dh is getting me some boxes to get started!! I enjoy moving - if only for the decluttering and cleaning aspects. I love figuring out how to 'make things work' in a new place. Although some day, we'll build our own place and we *really* settle down. Someday....

Ok, time to go get to the mountain of laundry from our trip. And getting things packed up to move. Yeah!!

God Bless & I'll blog as I have time~

*Michigan Momma*

p.s. Here's a pic of my girls: The Babushka SuperHeros. We read a story about a Babushka (grandma), but they also wanted to be superheros. Hence the headcoverings & capes ~ fun!

just a quickie...

Let's see...we are leaving soon for a trip to see my folks and then a grad party on Dean's side of the family. Before then, I have a mountain of laundry to do, some basic housecleaning, a skirt or two to whip up (thanks Kim for the fabric!) - at least one of which will be THIS pattern. Except shorter, maybe just below the knee. It's just more flattering on me than below my calf.

Our garage sale went well. We didn't make a large amount of money, but that wasn't really the goal. We got a $75 tank of gas, dh picked up some used clubs (the staff goes golfing here and there and now he can join them), we went out to Olive Garden as a family and still have some in the bank for the trip. Yippee!! Now I just need to pack up the leftovers and find a drop-off place for Goodwill or Salvation Army around here.

The "diet" is going well, although I'm about 5 lbs behind my "mini-goals" for the summer. I'm trying not to stress about it though....as long as the numbers keep going down, I refuse to be depressed. I'm just pleased as punch that...

WAIT

Guys, go away.

Seriously, you don't want to read this.



No, seriously, go away...



Any men left? Okay, don't say you weren't warned...


I'm just pleased as punch that I had to return TWO of my three recently purchased bras because they were TOO BIG! Whoo-hoo!! I don't think I've EVER had a bra be too big - how exciting?!! Now for all you small-chested women - I'm sure you don't understand. But for the rest of us well-endowed women, you know exactly what I'm talking about and how great this feels. I'm due to get the new, smaller bras any day now. Again, WHOO-HOO!!

Well, nothing else is new around here. No new house to rent yet, although we are still looking. Dean is busy with summer seminary classes - two classes to keep him on track for graduating next spring. He is *so* ready to be done. He is basically just tired of having no time for his family, no time for anything fun, etc. I must admit, I too am ready for him to be done.

Ok, time to go do the laundry (as usual) and start packing for our trip. We are working on LOVE this week with the kiddos (actually, all month as part of our kid's summer programs at church) and we just started a "Love Chain" (I'll post pics later). I'm reading The Invisible Woman (forgot the author just now) which really helps me with my own attitude and heart. I'll talk more on that later too. God bless!

Luv to all~
*Michigan Momma*