Full of Blessings

Did I mention that I LOVE homeschooling. I am so honored to be able to teach my children about the Lord "when I sit in my house, when I walk along the way, when I lie down and when I rise up". Right now we know that this is what we are called to do. God is so good to bless me along the way. I am beginning to see fruit in Ellis and Anna Hartsel....I mean heart changes. I am thankful that I am here to see this. I have to keep this in perspective when I am cleaning the toilets at church....my second job. Yes, I have a Master's Degree and I am cleaning toilets, but I get to teach my children about the meaning of life...serving Christ! What a blessing. "Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised!"

Walking everywhere!

I forgot to update everyone on Andrew's walking condition....two days after his check-up, you guessed it...EVERYWHERE! He is everywhere. Needless to say we did not do physical therapy. What a blessing! This picture was taken at Dr. Diegmann's house picking satsumas. Just one of our traditions. Off to work on my Christmas card list. That is next on the "to do" list....it is the 16th, Sarah:)

Full of Thanksgiving

Ahhh....the sound of fresh coffee brewing, the roar of a fire in the fireplace, peace and quiet... wait I live in a house with four lively children who were up at the crack of dawn, three of which have no clue it is a holiday (not to mention it is 70 degrees in Fairhope...no fire here). I do love my life. I am so thankful for the pitter patter of their feet and their question after question about everyday things. To be honest, I will miss it when they are older. The Lord will prepare me for that I am sure. But for now, I am going to go enjoy them...Happy Thanksgiving! I am so thankful for friends and family...love to all.

Full of Physical Therapy

He climbs up the high chair, he empties baskets and sits on the edge of them(that is what he was doing in this picture),he climbs up the ladder onto the trampoline, he climbs up the steps to the tree house,he climbs....notice I don't say he walks! He is literally a monkey. So we go for his 15 month check up yesterday and he is weighing in at 18 pounds and 12 ounces. (Yes, I must get the ounces in, makes a big difference in my punkin'.)The doctor said, "I know he can walk, he just needs a little help". I say, "we have ride on toys that he pushes, we hold his hands as he walks, etc." "No Sarah....I mean REAL help" the doctor concludes. Physical therapy is in the future for my little monkey. Have to say, I was a little shocked. I know all will be well...just another opportunity for others to get joy from our sweet buddy! Oh by the way, last night he took four steps on his own! We will keep everyone posted...

Full of Fall!

Autumn is definately my favorite time of year. Crisp mornings,warm days, and being able to wear my favorite outfit of all...blue jeans and a t-shirt everyday! Life can't get any better. We got back from John's 20 year high school reunion last weekend and had a great time. There is just something about highschool. You just learn about life with those friends. You go back in time and are accepted no matter what. (At least this is the way we felt). We were relaxed and really enjoyed ourselves. Thanks "Aunt Kimberly" and "Uncle Raymond" for adding to our fun. The kids had a blast!

Full of Grace...

OK, so one of my fears came to life Friday night. I was in a car accident with all four kids in the car. We are all fine, however the story goes on. I am always wanting the kids to be exposed to different people...you know, not like us of our friends. So here goes. The man in the other car, very nice actually (ended up being an aquaintance of Johns)..no tag on his vehicle, says he has insurance (but no proof)has had two DUI's and just got out of a years time of jail. We all have thoughts about people like this. Be honest. I have friends who will NEVER incounter, much less be friends with any one who has been in jail. My children now personally know two and I think they are better for it. As I am thinking in my head of how I am going to explain this ...sweet Hartsel leans over and asks me, "Mommy, does he know the One True God?" Oh the faith of a child! As the story goes, he met the One True God in prision and truly loves Him and serves Him now. I'm out of a car this week, it is very nice to be still. "Every good and perfect gift is from above.." Meeting this man, truly a gift.

Full of Life!

OK, so this picture was taken on August 30 (my birthday) and I am just now posting and it is October! Where has the time gone. My parents tell me it goes by fast, and it does. School with Ellis is a challenge to say the least, Anna Hartsel hates to color....what four year old girl hates to color? That would be mine! Elizabeth fell in the bathtub the other night...a trip to the ER? No, we decided to "watch" the gooshy knot on the back of her head. An hour after the incident, she was jumping on her bed. Amazing! Andrew, sweet Andrew, let's learn how to walk my son. Such a cutie, but fusy because his brain can't quite tell his feet what to do and he is frustrated. Not trying to be negative, just bein' real my friends. Then the Lord reminds me, so sweetly that "blessed are the man whose quiver is full of them". Oh God, how faithful and gracious you are. "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, 'The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him'" Amen! Have a great day!

Full of Fun!

I now have two little soccer players! Ellis was joined by Hartsel for the annual soccer clinic this year. They had a great time and it is such fun to see them play together and rely on each other in a group setting. Ellis is a great big brother and Harstel...well she doesn't like the heat so much, but she did a great job!
School has started and we are getting into the swing of things. I now know why Ellen just giggled when I said I was going to start blogging. Until next time....

A Year of Grace

Hard to believe that our sweet Andrew is one! This time last year we were praying for his lungs and now I can hardly keep up with the fella'. We see God's hand and grace in our daily lives, especially this year. If we don't know that God is in control of the little things, what will happen when the big things hit. As we are teaching in Sunday School...everything is God's hand. It's called His sovereignty. Andrew's early birth, Ellis' being homeschooled, Elizabeth's trips to the ER this past year, Anna Hartsel's accident, John's house selling, even Alaina's death...all in God's hand. Those are the big things. What about a parking space up front when I have all the kids by myself or John's safety to and from work on a daily basis.....all in God's hand. Praise the Lord for another year of life with our loved ones. But I can't help but long for something more when I read, "Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you"

It's all about Expectations

We just got back from 8 days at the beach and had a BLAST! Last year...not so much. Last year I was very pregnant with Andrew (he was born the next week) and we had very high expectations for a 5,3 and 1 year old. This year....very low expectations indeed! We also took a babysitter for half of the week. I think the combination of the two made life so much more enjoyable.

Highlights

• Ellis' new buddy Dillan. Dillan is from the New Orleans area and he and his family were victims of Katrina. He was very sweet and appreciative of things.


• Anna Hartsel learned to love the beach and learned how to swim at the pool!


• Elizabeth threw a water bottle off of the balcony and security visited. (Did I mention that she also pooped in the pool! Oh yes, clear the pool Elizabeth Hope is here.)


• Andrew learned that eating sand is worth it....he would not stop eating the sand!


• Our 10th anniversary....spent with the Gulf Shores Fire Department. We locked ourselves out of the room with Elizabeth and Andrew inside by themselves! Praise the Lord the Foley Police Chief was with us.....Connections!

Would we go again...Absolutely! Thank you, Lord for no jellyfish stings, no bad weather and safety all the way around!

Sometimes I see the fruit

After yesterday, I wasn't sure what today would bring. Ellis came home from art camp throwing up and then Elizabeth threw up last night. John had just called and said he was going to run get a bite to eat (he was working on his paper in Mobile) and his phone was not working. Andrew was crawling around...literally in vomit (GROSS!) as I was trying to get all of it up. Anna Hartsel was being her normal "motherly" self and on her own accord getting wash cloths for the sick ones.

After a night like that you wonder what you will wake up to. I prayed "Be merciful to me O God" this morning as I thought about the day. I do not do vomit well. Anyway, everyone kept breakfast down and played nicely this morning. We even gathered fruit from the garden. Elizabeth sure did enjoy the watermelon. (Thank you, Lord for days like today. You have blessed me and prepared my heart once again!) He reminds me in John 15, "you did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide." Sometimes seeing fruit as moms is literal like watching my children enjoy the food from the garden and not throw up!

Another trip to the ER!

Some of you know by now that we have appropriately named Elizabeth Rose (initials ER). We have taken her to the Emergency Room at least 4 times in her 2 years of life. She is accident prone and is always trying to be like her 6 year old brother. Anna Hartsel on the other hand is a different story. She is very...what's the word...dainty. She does not like to be dirty, always likes to wear dresses and loves all the girly things. She is also petite for her age so delicacy is natural. She has never seriously been hurt....until Monday night. We were playing at a dear friend's house and she walked out in front of a "swinger". I was standing right there and saw the whole thing. She "caught wind" and landed hard on her head. Of course I ran right over and picked her little 30 lb. body up only to find her stiffen. I then looked at her face...tongue out, eyes briskly moving and she tee-teed all over me. The doctor's said it was basically like a boxing match...she got knocked out and seized. You can not imagine the thoughts that went through my head. After an exciting ride in an ambulance, lots of love from the doctors and nurses, we went home. My heart bleeds for Hope as I type this. God is in control, even when we think we are. What a hard concept to grasp.
Our dear Elizabeth, on the other hand, has yet another black eye. How she got it....I have not a clue!

What is life about anyway?

I have been asking myself this question a lot lately. Why this question?....is it because I have four small children who trust me for everything right now? or is it because yet another summer is almost over? or maybe just because I am a "deep thinker"? No, these are not the reasons I am asking this question. One of my dear friends lost her little four year old precious girl to menengitis on July 2. She was here one day and gone the next...Hope just thought it was the normal stomach bug that kids get. Little Alaina's days were numbered by God, we just didn't know the number..."in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me." Life is not ours. We are here to glorify God. My dear sweet Hope, I love you and I pray for you and Billy constantly.

With their lives and many other friends' lives on my mind, I will begin to blog and share my life. I want to be real....What is life about anyway.....It's all about You, Jesus!