Laying the Crib to Rest After 23 Years

It was kind of a sad day last month.  We took the crib down!  For the last 23 years, this precious white crib has been up in our house with one of my little ones sleeping soundly in it.  It was a bittersweet day.  We've moved a good bit, so my husband has taken it down and put it back up numerous times (and it's not one of those easy cribs to tear down and put back together) so I think he was kind of glad to take it down one final time.  I would love to know if any of you "moms of many" have had the same crib for 10 or more kids or had the same crib up for 23 or more years.  My in laws bought it for us when we were expecting our first.  Well, let me tell you, we definitely got our money's worth!  I'm sure it is not "code" anymore so my wonderful sister-in-law suggested that we make it into a bench.  My brother-in-law knows how to do this, so I think we'll enlist his wood working skills.  I think I would like to put my children's names and birthdays somewhere on the bench too since they all slept in it. We do have another Ikea crib that is a little smaller and easier to take apart and move. It's in better condition and "code." We will save that one for grand babies or who knows, wink wink.  
But it was time to move my two little guys into toddler beds.  We haven't been sleeping quite as well since we've moved them out of the cribs but it's getting better.  You know what they say, "the only thing you can count on in life is change."  That is so true, especially in this parenting journey.  And while I did shed a few tears when my husband took it down, I don't miss lifting my boys' heavy little bodies over that bed rail anymore. 
When I put this up on my facebook, here are some of the comments I received.........
Epic
Congratulations
No Way
For Real?
You'll probably be pregnant next month!
Oh, that is sad....
You husband looks happy!
It's not the end, but rather the end of the beginning.
One anointed crib.
OMG, you should bronze it!
Don't be too hasty, you never know : )

Changes and More Changes

We've had many happenings around here lately, which is one reason the blogging hasn't been happening as much.
First of all, my oldest graduated from college!  Yes, we are proud parents of a UNC tarheel graduate.  As you can tell from the below photo, he graduated on crutches.  With only a month left of college to go, Will tore his Achilles tendon playing basketball.  He had to undergo surgery a week later and then try to hobble to classes the following weeks.  He is still finishing up some classes this summer to graduate with a double major, but his plans to leave in June with a special branch of the military have been put on hold.  Not sure what is next for him, but we know God is in control.

Next my oldest daughter returned from college for 3 weeks, and is now in Colorado working at a Christian family dude ranch.  It is a beautiful place and we are so thankful that she got hired.  We visited the ranch as a family for a week 5 years ago.  It is such an awesome place and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for her, but she will be there all summer!  Yes, 10 weeks of her being gone!  I know she's been away at college all year, but that has only been a 1 hour drive from home and she visited every few weeks.  This is over half a continent away and needless to say, I had a very hard time saying good-bye.  We are over the shock and so happy for her, but summer will be vastly different with her gone. Here she is the airport leaving on her journey.......sniff, sniff.

And then my second son also came home from college for 2 weeks, and is now back in Tennessee doing an internship at a church. He will be back in a month or so and doesn't seem so far away.  We are so thankful he got this opportunity and know he will grow and learn much.  It was hard to say goodbye to him as well. You know even with 7 children still here, the house seems kind of quiet. Like I always tell y'all.....they grow-up in a blink of an eye, cherish the time they are home with you.

In pondering the choices we make as we raise our children, I'll leave you with some wise words from John Piper, "God will make it His rule to use our best efforts as wise, God-honoring choices to produce the most influential life. But not always. He can break that rule and make even a foolish decision fruitful.  He has His ways to keep us humble and fearful of pride.  He has His ways to keep us hopeful and protected from discouragement in view of our fallibility."  (from Life As A Vapor)

Some New Year's Resolutions

1.  Jump on the trampoline more....no seriously, play with my kids more.  Instead of always being involved in the one of the many tasks at hand, make time to be silly with them, play games with them, and yes, jump on the trampoline.


2.  Show more love and respect to my husband.  I know as I do this more, then my children will also do this more to him and to me.


3.  Eat more organic.  We've been eating just about all our produce organic for the past year and most of our meat and dairy, but this year I want to try to do just about all organic, but without upping my grocery budget.  Not sure how do to this yet, but if anyone has any ideas, let me know.


4.  Read through the Bible this year.  I haven't done this in awhile.  It takes reading 3 chapters a day, but I really want to do this again.  I'm looking for a good plan online.


5.  Start up "date night" with my kids again.  I mentioned this is my post last month on finding time to spend with each child.  We used to do this when we had 7-8 kids and really need to start this up again.  I think I'll put one night on the calendar for my husband to take one child out a month and then one night for me.  I need to get this organized and on the calendar soon!


Well, this is about all I can think of right now (at least all I can post publicly :)  Hope everyone had a great New Year's and is ready to jump into 2012!

A Myriad of Phases

When people see me with my younger ones and then find out I have sons in college, or they see me with older ones and find out that I still have babies at home, I usually get the same the response...."Wow, you have every phase going on at your house!"  I received this comment yet again today and started to think about all the "stages/phases" that I have going on in my family right now........here are some that quickly come to mind:


1.  The College is Fun Phase: why do I ever have to graduate and why do I have to get a marketable degree?  Study, or yeah, I guess I should do that sometimes.


2.  The I Love Being on My Own Phase: yes, I miss y'all at home, but life is great and I'm so popular!


3.  The Resist Culture/Why Go to College Phase:  can't I just go right to the mission field like 5000 miles away when I'm barely 18 with no skills?  


4.  The I'm a Young Teenager and So Cool Phase:  I've grown 5 inches in the past year and I'm great at just about everything and I have 6 younger siblings to boss around....I'm full of myself!


5.  The Read All the Time Phase and Picky Eater Phase:  why can't I just read on the couch all day?  Isn't that homeschooling?  And why can't I have waffles with tons of syrup every morning for breakfast and then not eat again until dessert after dinner?


6.  The I Take Myself Really Seriously Artist Phase:  Don't touch any of my art work!  Don't you know it will be worth millions one day?!


7.  The Hug Constantly Phase: Please let me hug you and touch you all the time.  And please, Mama, don't leave me for too long.  And if I can't hug you or Daddy right now, can I smoother the baby with kisses until he cries?


8.  The Look At Me Cause I'm So Funny Phase:  I can sing, dance, tell jokes and I'm only 5!  I'm so cute and everyone will look at me and laugh at me whenever I want them to!


9.  The Can't Be Out of Sight for A Minute or I Will Destroy the House or Myself:  Can't I eat my food on top of the table or island?  Can't I go outside whenever I want?  Can't I play in the toilet?


10. The I Have Power Phase:  I can make loud noises out of my mouth and people look at me.  I can move now on my hands and knees and get to just about anything I want! Plus I weigh about 10 pounds more than the average baby my age. I'm am totally in control!


Can you see human nature coming out in each phase/stage?


Well, can you guess the ages of the stages? : ) So what stages are going on at your house?

Actually the daughter above is in a different stage/phase everyday!

The Pain of the Launch

Ben Now~

No, it doesn't matter that I have 10 children.  No, it doesn't matter that this is my second to leave "the nest."  It's so hard and I'm sad.  What happened to my little boy?  Each child is so unique and so special and so very different.....it will be hard when all of them leave and I will grieve.  Yes, I'm so glad he is such a fine young, godly man.  I'm so glad that he chose to go to a small,Christian college and I'm so glad he wants to go to college but I will miss him terribly. The younger ones will miss him terribly and his sister who is less than 2 years younger than him, will probably miss him the most.  He's going off to Tennessee this week and while I'm happy it's not any further than that, it's still a day's drive away and it will really never be the same again.  Pray for me if you think about it, because I know all you other moms out there can sympathize.  Whether your little boy is 2 or 20, I know you understand.  They don't stay little long....but they will always be our little guys!

Ben just a few months ago, really!

Seasons

Spring Has Sprung!

If you look really close, you can see one of my little girls in each tree.  It's a perfect match for them on our property and they love climbing trees, just as I did as a girl : )

I've been thinking a lot about seasons in our lives as the beautiful spring weather has arrived and all the flowers are blooming.  I've just ended an amazing season of being pregnant and now I'm in the nursing season.  I've always loved the seasons in nature.  I love change, especially expected change.  Isn't that the best kind? : ) I think it's so wonderful that God didn't make the weather and plants always the same.  And in the same way, He has given us changing seasons in our bodies.  God didn't make us to always stay the same.  We are not to always be pregnant or always not pregnant.  We're not always nursing and we're not always fertile.  I think that we need to embrace the seasons in our bodies just as we do the seasons in nature.  Of course, there are some seasons we all like better and some that are harder than others.  But you know, that is really OK because they keep life interesting and we can learn different things and grow in different ways in each season.

I also like to think of our whole life in general as changing seasons.  Here is my take on it:

Birth-25......Spring
25-50..........Summer
50-75...........Autumn
75+.............Winter

Every season has it's beauty and it's positives.  No one is better than the other.

My wonderful daughtes by our tulips we planted in the dead of winter.  Isn't it amazing how those ugly brown bulbs turn into such beautiful flowers?  I know there is a lesson in that!

My darling husband and little girls enjoying the spring weather

It's How It Should Be

My Luke, #5, turned 10 yesterday!  How can it be?

I have a 20 year old boy, a 10 year old boy and expecting another little man any day now (with of course a bunch of kids in between) but how can it be?!

They grow-up and like my husband keeps telling me, "It's how it should be."  My husband is so much more level headed than me.  

Am I the only one that gets a little sad at the end of a pregnancy knowing the time of carrying this little one in my womb and having him all to myself, is drawing to a close?  It's probably a good thing that I start to get real uncomfortable the last few weeks, or I probably would choose to stay pregnant for awhile longer if I could.  My husband has to remind me that God made us to just be pregnant 9 months and "It's how it should be."

The summer before last when we moved our oldest into the dorm at UNC, he had to speak this to me a lot.  I had a hard time with him graduating high school and realizing that it will never really be same.  Time just goes so fast.  During the summer though, I did realize that he was a grown man of 18 (sure not completely mature : ) but did I really want him "hanging" around here until he's 30?  God made our children to grow-up, "It's how it should be."  Oh and I'm so glad that he's only 30 min. away so I can see him really whenever I want to.

My second son is graduating this May and again I have to tell myself that "It's how it should be."  He is 18 now as well and seems like a man, but he's still my little boy.  Graduation from high school is a fun wonderful time, but such an emotional time for us Mamas!  He may go off farther to school and I'll have to deal with that.

One day they will find their "special someone" walk down the aisle and again I will be told and I will know that, "It's how it should be."  But I'll deal with that then!