A Time to Reveal the Gender

He has made everything beautiful in his time; also

he hath set the world in their hearts... ~Ecc. 3:11

Ben and I came to an arrangement on the name. We could not agree on the same name for either gender. I really had my heart set on Tess for a girl and he really wanted John for a boy. So I suggested that if it is a girl, I get to name her Tess and if it is a boy he would get to name him John and he agreed. 

So come on or around Oct. 24 this is what our family will look like:

If you can't read the cards well the name is Tess. We found out today that we are having a girl and while any healthy baby was a welcome addition to our family we couldn't be more thrilled that Jena is going to have a sister! We will name her Tess Lucille after my grandmother. It makes me so happy to have the chance to honor her this way. 

***A little background on these cards...I found them at a little shop on River St. in Savannah when I was just there. Usually I see stuff like this and barely even glance because they never have our kids names, not all of them anyway. When I happened upon "Jena" and it was spelled the same way we spell our Jena's name I knew it was worth the effort to try and find all our names. And I did. I just love these cards and plan to frame them and hang them up in our new living room once the addition is finished. 

A Time for a Vacation

Joyce & Dave's pool/pool house

At approximately 2:30am on Tuesday morning I will be leaving my home, heading to the bus station that will take me to Boston so I can catch my flight to Georgia at 7am. I am so excited! 


Ben offered to take a week off from work using some comp time he had earned from a trip he took earlier this winter so I could go visit my aunt & uncle. He is actually really looking forward to having this time to spend with the kids and I'm really looking forward to some time to just relax. And this is pool  is where I plan to spend a lot of my time! Believe me when I say this is not something I am taking for granted. I know exactly how lucky I am to have a husband who would take on something like this. A time of refreshing is so important for everyone but especially during the season of child rearing. These are some of the most exhausting and challenging years and I'm thankful to have a husband who understands that and is willing to allow me this time.


If you think of us in the next 8 days, say some prayers for Ben that things would go smoothly for him at home and this extra time he has with the kids would be a blessing and pray for me that my travel would go well. I've never flown alone so I'm really nervous about it. 

A Time for pregnancy and it's related issues

In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in

Christ Jesus concerning you. ~I Thess. 5:18

It's not always easy to be thankful for everything...even though it's what we are told to do. Even though I know that I need to just be thankful I'm pregnant and not complain about the not so fun parts because there are so many women out there unable to have children doesn't mean I'm not prone to dislike certain parts of pregnancy. 

Yesterday I took my glucose tolerance test and with not much hope in passing, was still praying for a miracle. I have had gestational diabetes with all 5 of my pregnancies and had no reason to think that this one would be any different...and rightly so since I just received the call informing me I failed it. Normally a woman would have to go back for a 3-hr. tolerance test but with my history, there's no need for that. So tomorrow I meet with a diabetes consultant who will review diets, carb counting, & meters, and test strips, etc. since the last time I was properly educated was when I was pregnant for Noah-8 years ago. I'm sure some things have changed.

If you've never been faced with G.D. or are not informed about it then you likely are thinking, what's the big deal. I know that's how I was with my first pregnancy. Please understand that I am in no way trying to say that having G.D is anything like being diagnosed with Type I or Type II diabetes. I understand the differences and am not trying to give the impression they are the same. I merely am speaking from the point of view of a pregnant woman who is hungry, has cravings, and unlike most other pregnant women, is not able to give into those urges and cravings...ever! It's also very difficult when you are already so busy with 5 kids to pay attention to the time when you eat then exactly one hour later have to draw your blood and write down your number...three times a day. No, this isn't hard, it isn't even that bad really it's just an inconvenience I would rather do without. 

My 1st pregnancy

With my first pregnancy because I was young and uninformed I was not doing a good job controlling my numbers with diet so I was on insulin. That meant injecting myself before each meal and once at bedtime to control my numbers when I ate breakfast. For the following 4 pregnancies I learned and was able to control my numbers with diet and exercise and have not had to take insulin since. I'm praying I can have the same discipline this time because I really hated having to deal with taking insulin. 

So while I am so disappointed with the test results I am trying to have a positive outlook and just take it one day at a time. If you have the kind of pregnancy where you are not having to think about each and every bite of food that enters your mouth then be thankful and don't take it for granted (and eat a donut or two for me since that is what I mostly crave EVERY pregnancy!). Having had to deal with gestational diabetes has given me so much more understanding and compassion of what those who are diagnosed with type I or type II go through. Of course the statistics are that if you develop G.D. then you have a 60% chance of developing adult onset diabetes but that percentage can be reduced with proper diet and exercise. So Lord willing, I will not be faced with it. 

Our next big pregnancy milestone will be our level II ultrasound in Portland to make sure the baby's heart is healthy and developing properly. I should also at that time find out the gender...I am SOOOOO anxious for this. Thankfully I'll have a week in the Georgia sun to distract me while I wait!

A Time for the 100th!

Through wisdom is a house builded; and by 

understanding it is established.  ~Prov. 24:3

I noticed recently that the next blog post I did would be the 100th one. That seemed like a lot of pressure, like the 100th one should be really great and exciting. So I've been putting it off because I've not felt inspired much lately and didn't have anything great and exciting to talk about. Then I thought about how my family is great and exciting to me and since I started this blog as a way to let family and friends stay current with us then updating you all on what has been going on was the most appropriate  "100th" post I could do! 

I receive a lot of the following questions: "what have you been up to lately?" or "what's new with you guys?". There is nothing wrong with these questions it's just most of the time I just say "nothing" because well it's a lot of the same old stuff. With 5 kids pretty much all your time is consumed with playing with them, training them, cleaning them, cleaning up after them, or pulling my hair out because well, let's face it...some days are rough! And there's very little time to be doing new and exciting things. But for the sake of this blog post and to fill you all in here's what's going on...

Noah is finishing up 2nd grade. He is 8 now and yes, it amazes me that I already have an 8-year old!   He is doing very well in school, enjoying reading & writing the most. He writes very detailed and creative stories, which impress his teacher. He can spend hours at the table just writing and drawing the pictures to go with the story. He currently has a love for dogs. He wants one so badly and I really think he would do great with a dog but selfishly the last thing I want is a dog. They are a huge responsibility and there is a great possibility that Noah is like most kids who, once the novelty of the dog wears off, will get tired and not want to take care of it anymore. When that happens, it will fall on me and the last thing I want is a dog to take care of on top of the many bodies I already have to take care of. So he gets his fill from other people's dogs and I let him have as many pictures of dogs as he wants in his room. I did make him one of those fleece blankets that you tie together using dog patterned fleece I found and this has made him very happy. I'm really proud of the boy Noah is turning out to be. He truly has a heart that loves God and wants to please Him. He has a desire for his friends to know about God and his teachers continue to tell us that he is a kind boy who is nice to all his classmates. This makes us really happy. 

Owen is 6 1/2 (the "half" is very important to mention!) and finishing up 1st grade. He has done very well in school. Owen's strengths are math and drawing, just like his dad. I had a concern that Owen's speech delay would affect his ability to read and write but that has not been the case and he really excels in both these areas. He continue's to receive speech therapy in the school twice a week and thankfully he doesn't miss any important classroom time to accomplish this. Both his classroom teacher and speech teacher have been excellent at making sure his therapy doesn't interfere with his academics. We are so blessed to be in the school system we're in. Owen's love currently is boats and ships and he has a particular interest in the Titanic right now. If my printer was working I'd scan a picture of one of his drawings of a ship because it's quite remarkable. Owen is on the shy side but once he warms up he's a fun kid, always joking around! His teacher told us at the last parent-teacher conference that she really appreciates Owen's humor! 

Gabe will be 5 in July and has so much personality it's hard to explain the extent of it through writing. You have to have met him to understand. While I love his personality and know that God has designed him just perfectly for how He intends to use him, Gabe also continues to be my biggest challenge. Ben tells me we are exactly alike, and I can't really argue and I know it's why I find him hard to parent. He challenges me on a daily basis in several ways. Gabe loves the world around him and everything in it. Everyday something new excites him. He is interested in learning more about anything he doesn't know enough about and honestly starts the day asking questions and ends the day asking questions. In between he is talking about anything and everything and to anyone who will take the time to listen...and if no one is listening he's talking anyway. I told Ben I need to keep a journal handy at all times because so many funny things come out of his mouth and by the time Ben comes home from work I can't remember them anymore! He loves to play games, especially the card game, war. I also recently taught him to play Po-Ke-No, which was one of my favorite games as a kid and he loves it! He has his kindergarten screening next week. I'm amazed it's already that time but I am truly anxious for him to start because I know how much he is going to thrive in that environment. He's really looking forward to starting school. The teachers are excited too because one of them commented how all three of the boys will be in the same school next year...and this is the only year that will happen so it will be fun to have them all there at the same time! 

    Will is 3 and just a real sweetheart of a boy. He is FINALLY potty trained! Not completely at night but fully during the day and I'll take it. This is the first time in 4 years we only have one in diapers...not for long but for a few months anyway! He is also in speech therapy and we really love his therapist. We had to say goodbye to Heather, who he liked so much and we all really miss her! But services change when the child turns 3 so we take him to his current therapist and Karen is also the one who was Owen's therapist. We are so happy with the fact that she is in our lives again because she was so great with Owen and we know Will is going to do just as well. He gets really excited on Monday's when it's time to go to speech and loves the fact that he has "homework" to do during the week. Being a big boy is really important to him because he see's his older brothers doing all kinds of things and he wants to be just like them. Will is pretty much into anything his brothers are into...it's cute to watch him want to be like them. And if they make a joke he laughs the hardest...he adores them.

Jena is 2 now and very busy. It's rare that you see her not moving around if she is not contained in her booster seat. She is curious about everything and quick to find herself into mischief. I have found it very difficult to get things done while she is awake. The only reason I am writing this blog right now is because I gave her a bowl of water and some dishes to pretend to wash. She loves to play with her brothers, especially outside. Currently she is into clothes and accessories. She likes to have A LOT of hair bows in her hair at one time, loves bags & purses, and changes her clothes at least 3 times a day. I will be making lunch and the next thing I know she has been in her room, gotten out a new outfit and changed herself! Yesterday I was putting away laundry and in the 10 minutes it took me to put away Noah and Owen's clothes she had gone into her room, found one of her nail polish bottles (which was on a high shelf but she dragged a chair over, climbed up and got it), gotten it open and had painted her legs and hands with it. Thankfully it didn't get on her clothes (she was kind enough to take those off before she started) or the carpet and came off her skin easily. So needless to say, she keeps herself occupied. 

        As for Ben and I, well we spend each day just trying to survive being outnumbered! No, God in His goodness gives us the grace and strength each day and honestly we couldn't imagine our life any differently. As hard as some days are and as tired as we get, the blessings of our family far outweigh the challenges. Ben has been doing great at work and thankfully is very busy. We're blessed with job security right now and that is something we don't take for granted. He also has been working on finishing the inside of our addition. All the drywall is up except for the garage ceiling, which he can't finish until he finishes the plumbing. This is the part he is up to now. He's never done plumbing before but is up for the challenge and I have no doubt he'll do a great job. He also keeps busy teaching Good News Club on Fridays in the kids school. Today wraps up our third year being a part of it. Ben has a gift for teaching kids and they really enjoy being taught by him. He is also a board member for CEF of Southern ME and he is thankful for this opportunity. It's a ministry he grew up with and loves so it's fun for him to be a part of it in this capacity. Then of course he plays piano at church. How he does everything he does and still manages to be a huge help and blessing at home amazes me. I don't think I need to tell you how I stay busy...if you've read this post, you know! I am finally over the morning/day sickness this pregnancy gave me. It was challenging to take care of everyone and the house and all our responsibilities while being sick but it's amazing how God sustains us through those difficult times. Now I feel great! We have a level II ultrasound scheduled for June 4th to look at the baby's heart. Since we had one child with a heart defect, they have checked all our babies since. I'm almost positive we'll learn the gender of the baby (Lord willing) at that time and I'm so anxious!! I also have my glucose tolerance test next week. My hopes are not high that I will pass...I've had gestational diabetes for all my pregnancies. One highlight and "new" thing for me coming up is my trip to Georgia to visit my aunt and uncle. Ben has traveled quite a bit for work over the past few years so now it's my turn to get away and have a break and I am so grateful. Ben offered to take a week off from work to watch the kids so I could go. I don't know too many men who would take care of 5 kids alone just to be a blessing to their wife...AMAZING. 

So hopefully this answers any questions you have about what's going on with us or what's new. For a lot of people this kind of life would not be considered exciting but when I look back at all God has done and what He will continue to do, I get excited! We are blessed beyond measure!

A Time to Give God Glory

But my God shall supply all your need according to his 

riches in glory by Christ Jesus. ~Phil 4:18-20

Last week God provided our family with a wonderful blessing, a new vehicle. All glory has to go to God for this gift, and the only reason we are sharing this story is so you can see how GOD CAN provide for all your needs if you wait patiently on Him.


We have been praying for a new family vehicle for a few years now. Since we have been married we have felt that the Lord's will for us is to not go into debt for a vehicle (among other things). And so far God has allowed that for us. Don't get me wrong, God is not a genie in a bottle waiting to grant us whatever our heart desires. But He does desire to meet our needs...and sometimes needs and wants are different. Our previous family vehicle was a suburban, a 1996 suburban that had NO AC and NO CD/TAPE player. It had no bells and whistles and no power anything. But we paid cash for it, and it served our family well for 6 years...and it's still running strong. The fact that it is old and will likely have major problems soon is what had led us to start praying about getting a new one. Because of the road we live on we have to have 4-wheel drive so vans were not an option. I had two requests: 1. AC 2.A CD player....3.and got a little greedy by suggesting a DVD player would be nice considering all the long drives our family takes. So Ben got looking...and looking....and looking. If you know my husband, you know he does not make decisions quickly or in haste.

Last week he found this vehicle on Craigslist. The description and photos seemed to us, to be too good to be true. I'll admit that after a few years of praying and searching I was starting to doubt that God would provide us a nice vehicle that we could pay cash for. I even doubted at times that He could, and that maybe we were just living in "lala" land thinking it was possible to pay cash for an 8-passenger SUV. But I have been rebuked and convicted and reminded that MY GOD can do anything and nothing is too hard for Him. What he provided for us was above and beyond what our expectations were, we were able to pay cash and I just cannot help myself from praising Him over and over again. I hate myself for having ever doubted Him and am stronger now than I ever was in our conviction that there is no need to go into debt for a vehicle but a GREAT need to learn patience. I have learned that God wants good for us and will always provide for our needs, I just need to wait on His timing. 

What am I MOST excited about? This vehicle has AC AND a CD/TAPE deck. Do you know how long 8-10 hour drives, with 5 kids are when you are hot and miserable and have nothing for them to listen to on the radio??? I am so looking forward to our next road trip!

What are the kids most excited about? A DVD player with screens in the head rests! This is one of those "wants" God provided. He is SO good that he thinks about our wants as well as our needs-I can't get over how much He must love us to give us such an amazing gift. 


So the next time you are doubting God, His goodness, and what HE can do, remember our family and what God has done for us. This is just one example of how He's provided for our needs, all while allowing us to remain  consumer debt-free. GOD IS GOOD!

A Time to be Built-Up in the Faith

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall 
search for me with all your heart. ~Jeremiah 29:11-13

One of our biggest prayers for our children is that they will do as this verse says and pray to God and seek Him with all their hearts. There are many things we can do to help our kids know God better and love him. Obviously we take them to church and read the Bible to them and try our best to teach by example but there are so many other resources out there you can use to teach your kids the ways of God. I thought I'd take some time and give you the ones we have used and like and that our kids have really enjoyed. If you are a parent seeking materials that will build up your kids in the faith then some of these are worth taking a look at. 
1. Read-Aloud Bible Stories by Ella K. Lindvall. My MIL bought this set of books for the kids a few years back. She used to read these stories to her kids and remembered how much they enjoyed the stories. They are geared toward young children and my kids have loved them. Even now that Noah and Owen are older they still enjoy them only now they enjoy reading them to their younger siblings.
2. Greatest Heroes and Legends of the Bible (dvd) These DVD stories are really well done and true to the Bible. Our kids have really loved them, and we have several. Plus they are inexpensive and make great gifts.
3. Gods Wisdom for Little Boys/Girls by Jim & Elizabeth George. These two books are excellent for teaching your young kids about the kind of character God wants them to have. Each page is dedicated to a different "virtue" that God wants a boy or girl to exhibit making it a great book to use for devotions. I have not done the girl book yet but have enjoyed using the one for boys with Gabe & Will. A friend of ours recently bought the kids these two books and I am so thankful because I'd been wanting them and they are a great resource to have.
4. Little Pilgrim's Progress by Helen Taylor. The author took John Bunyan's original story and simplified the vocabulary and concepts so younger children could understand it. This was a Christmas gift so I am only a little over halfway through the book reading it with Noah and Owen. They beg me not to stop, they are so into the story and at the same time are learning so much about what Gods word teaches. I find Gabe & Will too young still to really grasp the concepts so am waiting to share it with them. The time reading it with my two older boys has been precious and the questions they've had have really helped them grow in their faith and build their understanding.
5. Dinosaurs, Genesis & the Gospel (dvd) by Ken Ham & Buddy Davis. We recently purchased this DVD from the Answers in Genesis website and could not be more pleased with it. If you are a family who believes in creation, this DVD is a must have to help instill those truths while keeping it fun with silly songs about God's creation. It's definitely geared toward older children but your younger children will enjoy the songs.
6. Jonathan Park Audio CD's from the Answers in Genesis website. My kids have the Aquarium one, which teaches them about the sea creatures. They listen to these CD's at bedtime and really like them. We have a few different series of audio CD's for the kids like Patch the Pirate, etc. Our kids love falling asleep to audio CD's and lately they've really been enjoying their Jonathan Park ones. I want to get them the Amazon one next.
7. Fins, Feathers, and Faith by William L. Coleman. This is a great devotional book for kids using God's creation. We used this book with the kids for devotions before school last year and they really liked it. My older two boys especially love animals so it was really perfect for them. This too, was a gift from their aunt and uncle and one I recommend. 
As I write this list I have to take the time and reflect on how blessed my kids are to have so many people in their lives who care so much about their spiritual growth. Many of the resources we have come to value came to us as gifts from friends and family. So even if you don't have young kids of your own to purchase these items for, maybe you can be a blessing to a family you do know who has young kids by gifting them resources that will help them grow in the Lord!

A Time for a Blessing

Yesterday morning Gabe and Will decided that 5 am was a great time to be awake and playing at full force. I am normally up at 5 but mommy is the only one who is allowed up at 5 because that is my "alone" time and the time I use to mentally & spiritually prepare for my day. I got Gabe and put him in my bed so the two would be separated and have more chance of maybe going back to sleep. When it was time to start the day I went upstairs and could hear Will crying at his door-it really sounded like a dog whimpering. I went in and asked him what was wrong. He said between sobs that he missed Gabe and wanted him to come back. I said, "you miss Gabe?" and he says to me, "yeah, I miss Gabe, he's my best friend". It was the sweetest thing and it made me so happy to hear.

It has been very important to Ben and I that our kids understand that God gives us our brothers and sisters for a reason. We have tried to instill early on that their siblings are their friends that God has given them and while it's great to have friends, those friends should never come before their siblings. We have been so blessed to watch this very relationship build between Noah and Owen. Almost from day one the bond between the two was evident. Noah just loved Owen right away to the point that each morning he would climb into Owen's crib just to be near him. As soon as Owen was able to recognize Noah it was obvious how much he looked up to him. They really are each other's best friend and it is so fun to watch them just play and make each other laugh, hear them talking till late in the night (yes, they are night owls like their parents) and sharing inside jokes. It is such a blessing to my heart to see the bond they have. I've prayed that Gabe & Will could have this same kind of relationship and when I didn't see them bond quickly the way I did with the older two I started to get nervous they wouldn't be as close. But apparently it just took them longer because I am starting to see the bond form and see how they share jokes, and play and interact and it's so, so fun!

I was in Rite Aid the other day with the younger 3 and the lady working there started talking to me. They were 5 in her family and she told me how her mother's rule about having friends over was that it was fine as long as that friend wasn't causing strife between the siblings. If they could all play and get along the friend could stay but as soon as it seemed a sibling was treating another sibling badly and the friend was becoming more important, then it was time for the friend to leave. I love that. I love that she was a mom who saw the importance of her kids having friends but not at the expense of ruining a sibling relationship. Don't get me wrong, they still fight and have arguments, they are kids after all and we're all just a bunch of sinful people living in one house together. But the arguments are resolved quickly and they end in forgiveness and lots of hugs! 

I receive so many blessings from my kids but one that I enjoy the most is the bond of friendship I am seeing them develop. Our prayer is that they always remain close. And a little part of me is praying God provides Jena with her own little sibling friend in the form of a female! :)