When Mom Needs Grace

A year ago we had a family event that drastic and suddenly changed life. I had checked out a bunch of library books. Today was the first time in over a year that we went to the library. I had late fees. Staggering late fees.


WE got there 5 minutes before the library closed. I had promised the kids if they had good behavior I would get them each  their own library card.  (yes, we are geeks)


I knew we only had 5 minutes. The lady behind the desk sharply reminded me of this the moment we walked in. I asked the kids to quickly pick two books while I request forms for their cards. She gave me the forms and made it clear that she would NOT be bothered to get us cards today.

I then went straight into paying my fine. It had been lowered because we had eventually returned some books. But was still very high. She informed me that I had to pay cash or no books. The computers were all shut down already.

I had promised my kids cards and books... I couldn't just make them walk out of there without any books.

So I dug in my bag and pulled out all my cash and carefully counted it, I was $10 short. I hesitated, looked at her grumpy face then to my excited kids. Yes I know what kind of irresponsible mom has such huge fines.. I know I know.. lol But her attitude was annoying...

I asked if they could let me borrow books, if I paid with what I had. She started to respond sharply, when from around the corner,our favorite librarian popped up with "oh, let me adjust that. We want you to be able to use the library" and then she deleted the extra ten dollars!!!". I thanked her over and over while Miss Grumpy librarian checked out the books the kids had chosen.

Made my day...

Friday Encouragement

This is one of our favorite songs right now. My kids love singing this song...

They sing: I shook my fist at Heaven and said, God why don't you do something?!
I sing: and God said I did, I created you...

We don't need to rich or famous or even popular. We don't have to have a big house or a nice care. We don't have to be patient and saintly. We only need to have faith and a relationship with Jesus in order to DO SOMETHING!

We don't need to go to Uganda and Haiti. We don't need to adopt. We don't need to do inner city minister. We simply have to DO SOMETHING!

God calls us each to our own journey. He calls some to adopt, some to foster, some to ministry, some to serving Him in their work environment, JUST DO SOMETHING!

God will take what little you have to offer and multiple it. Many times. Over and over. But first we must trust him. over and over...

Memorial Day Fun

We had planned a relaxing fun weekend. It was a last minute decision my sister and her hubby made to come visit us. So we were excited! We had also planned another get together on Saturday however that was canceled due to both the cold weather and my friend getting a newborn baby!

Saturday morning is always pancakes... sometimes it's plain old pancakes, sometimes it's mickey mouse pancakes! 

My sister went off to meet some old friends. Her poor hubby was left behind with us. After sleeping in for awhile, he offered to do some "fixing" for me! My camper needed a new canopy and the fan needed some repairs. 

I have stared at this fan just like this, more times then I can count! I changed fuses, fussed with electrical stuff etc.. nothing. Within 15 mins and totally disassembling this fan my Bro in law was able to tell me that the motor was jammed. Now we know what is wrong with our fan and hopefully in the next couple weeks I can replace it! 

We had late night snacks... 

The weekend was absolutely beautiful! The kids had so much fun playing! 

This girlie has the most beautiful blond curlies... 

Elizabeth was quite proud of her lion! David made a man! 

This was the beginning of the lion, many accessories were added along the way! 

Sunday morning was relaxing. We skipped church and hung out in the backyard. The kiddoes played in the pool and hit golf balls. 

Neighbor kids who skipped church joined us, mostly because my boys were tired of "all those girls". lol 

Little Missy helped me make breakfast. She was quite the little helper! Very much like her momma and her aunt. This child, along with her very opinionated older sister will do big things in life! 

We had a fun weekend and totally enjoyed having family here. My kids miss out on so many cousin activities and family moments because we live so far from family. Fun weekends like this are savored... 

When cousins come to play...

My sister and her little family came to visit us! Yes, we could pass for twins, (except for the fact that she is pregnant and I am not! lol )even our kids get confused occasionally.



They came to hang out for the weekend. The kids were so excited. They love hanging with their cousins, even if it doesn't happen much these days!

We had a fun relaxing Saturday, swimming, hanging out etc... We took the kids bowling before dinner. The kids had a total blast! 

                                  

sometimes losing to your brothers is just painful... 

                                   
                                              

The little ones were barely bigger then their balls. But they tried and they had fun! 

There may have been tired little girls... 

Deeply thinking about  how to beat those boys... 

These two had a blast together all weekend! 

 Bowling is one of our favorite activitites as a family. It was extra fun to have cousins along! After bowling we headed back home for dinner and more fun! 

ahh Summer

I am so looking forward to summer. Lazy days spend with my kids. This year we have a pool. So thankful for that.

The benefit of a big family? You always have someone to play with, especially when everyone is close to the same age! You don't need friends for entertainment. (altho for some reason the neighbor kids always end up here) .

We don't do a lot of summer camps or sports. We are working on connecting and bonding as a family. My kids are all at a fun age and they truly enjoy each other. I have to let go of the mom guilt that comes with not signing them up for all these fun things all their friends get to do. It is a choice I make. A choice to keep them home with me, making fun memories that will be woven into their very identities for life and for future generations. It can be a hard but it is a good thing.

I also find that having them work for about 2 hours in the morning gives them just enough structure to really keep them out of trouble and keeps our household flowing smoothly..

My kids learn about compromises and working together. They are learning how to make relationships work, even with siblings who get on their very last nerve. They are learning the joy of just "being", of enjoying each other's presence and all the other fun stuff that goes along with sibling relationships. 

  

We have to confront and deal with "problems" because we are together every day. We have to make a choice to have fun  or pay the price for ruining the fun. It is important to create calm, healing moments for kids who come from hard places. Sitting in the sun, eating popsicles with your siblings does more then any therapy, especially if you had a hard day and these siblings saw you at your worst and still love you. 

The Creation Musuem

Last week we visited The Creation Museum. I had heard great things about the museum but was not sure what to expect. I had asked around on facebook and off facebook. I got lots of great tips! 

Right now Creation has free kids tickets and the adult tickets are ok for 2 days admission. Everyone had suggested we take advantage of both days. 

Entrance to the museum. 

Some historical artifacts and little snippets of info, that a momma with 5 kiddoes did not read, but a happy son absorbed.

Entrance to the History Section

We arrived very travel weary on Friday and did a short walk through, got some brochures and an idea of what we wanted to do. There were quite a few buses there, but we must have hit it just right because we did not encounter crowds as we walked through the main museum. 

We started out by watching the show "Men in White" which was a humorous show giving a glimpse into the debate between evolution and creation that many kids encounter in the "real world". 

The kids were fascinated by these skeletons...

After the "Men in White" show, we headed to the Planeturium. We had purchased tickets on our way in. It was worth the extra money spend! We sat in these cool reclining seats and watched the show overhead. Now if you must know, I find this type of science, INCREDIBLY boring. My children however were mesmerized. All I remember is how comfortable those reclining seats were! If I can convince Lee to type something up for me, I will have him share all the fun things he learned! 

This was a lifesized dinosaur dig. 

Meet Adam... 

Creation Scientists... 

They had these listed throughout the history walk. One side says "man's word" the other side says "God's Word"  and then it goes on to show what man teaches vs what the Bible says. 

Who is Lucy? Tell me in the comment's section. 

Sin entered the world through Adam and Eve. 

This was really cool... The garden of Eden was beautiful! 

The Tree of life... 

We were able to walk through this long curving "hallway" that started with Creation, then the Garden of Eden, followed by the conversation with Eve and the Serpent, portraying when Sin came into the world. 

The kids did not like this part. The beautiful garden, then the ugly darkness of sin, death and hard work. 

This for some reason is one of their favorite stories... The story of Cain and Able.

Noah's Ark. It was very real and very cool. It showed how Noah and His family entered the boat, some ideas on what it must have been like, what they ate, what they did etc... 

The  boys were fascinated by this. The people all drowning and the last few hanging on for dear life.

Then we continued on to the idols of Babylon... 

The older 2 and I spend a good bit of time in this area, discussing God's thoughts on slavery, why slavery exists, why people treat each other the way they do.. 

We ended that section of the musuem with a short video of "The last Adam". It was an amazing video portraying the life and death of Adam. Which would have been very interesting, had I not needed to keep my attention on squirmy children! 

After "The Last Adam" show we meandered into the Insect. The kids loved the little talk the guy did. I was fascinated by all the bugs! 

Next we headed upstairs to see the Dinosaurs.  This part of the musuem was no handicapped accessible. We decided that a small boy could probably fit into this guy's mouth. 

The kids were getting tired and were getting pretty tired. This part of the museum was much less packed and it was much easier to explore at our own pace. 

We finished up our inside tour of the Museum and headed out to tour the gardens and the petting zoo. 

The kids asked me to take this picture of them in the pavilion. 

Lee took a picture of the dinosaur topiary. 

The camel ride.. the ridicoulous $5  a person ride... I remember riding an elephant as a child. I simply had to let them ride. 

They loved it! 

We headed to the petting zoo where we got to see the zorse and the other strange animal, whose name escapes me at the moment! 

Good by Creation Museum.
We learned so much on our trip. I believe this will be a place my children will never forget. It has changed the way I look at a lot of things. It was very educational for me, as well as the kids. We have had many interesting discussions since the trip and I feel much better equipped to answer questions.

Have you been to the museum? What tips would you offer others who are planning on visiting?