Matthew is 4!

Today is Matthew's 4th birthday! He is such a sweet little boy. He loves to make people laugh and he is your typical busy, curious child. I love that he loves to cuddle and almost every morning comes and crawls in bed with us as soon as he wakes up. He was my first successful home birth and I love being his Mom! I consider myself to be the lucky one that gets to be a big part of this precious child's life. Happy Birthday, Matthew! I love you.

This and That

Sorry I didn't get a post out yesterday. I spent the morning canning tomatoes, Josiah got stung by a wasp and then yesterday afternoon our precious bunny, Lenoir, died. I had matters of the heart to take care of after that for everyone was pretty upset at Lenoir's passing.

Not a lot going on here. I've been spending a lot of time resting because I'm still tired all the time. I will be glad when this stage of pregnancy is over. I'm looking forward to having more energy.

We are enjoying our garden harvest. I love tomato sandwiches and have had one everyday for lunch since they became ripe (Yum)! I never grow tired of tomato sandwiches.

The kids are doing great with their chore packs. Especially the little guys, they are so cute and feel so grown up having their own responsibilities. The stress of me having to tell them to do their chores and reminding them to do them once they've been told is gone. I love it.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. Blessings.

Works for Me Wednesday

Chore Packs

I have just recently finished reading Managers of Their Chores by Steve and Teri Maxwell. It helps you to organize your children's chores into a clip on clear plastic carrier. This way your children have their list of chores in the order they need to be done and they can't use the excuse that they forgot anymore. They even have pre-reader cards with pictures for your little ones that can't read yet.

Having chore packs take the stress off of me to keep asking if my child has done a certain chore only to hear, "Oh, I forgot." Everyone knows what to do, and when to do it and I don't have to remember each and every persons responsibilities because it's all laid out for them and me. It is a little work to get it set up in the beginning, but so worth it if you ask me.

Having chore packs for the kids and less stress...Works for Me :)

For more Works For Me Wednesday ideas visit We Are THAT Family.

Critters

At any time of the year, but more in the summer, my kids often come into the house saying "Hey Mom, look at this!" I never know what to expect, but I love that my children are fascinated by God's creation. I love the wonder that fills my little guys eyes as they explore the bug, toad, moth, butterfly or frog, etc. that they bring in. I'm glad they find excitement in the world around them and don't take it for granted.

So many times we pass things and take no notice of them. The wonder of a flower and every amazing petal. The color of the underside of a frog and the intricate detail in it. The pictures in the clouds and the beams of sunlight and how they glorify everything they touch. May we remember to see the world as a child and find the awesome glory in it.

Cute little frog

Josiah having fun with it

Joshua getting a close up look at it

Under side of frog

Pics From Our Weekend

Rockin The Docks, Lenoir City

When we first arrived there were a few boats already on the water

Joshua

Josiah working on his star

Micah working on a word search

Jonathan

Jonathan and Matthew waving their flags

Veteran Honor Guard

Me

Kaitlyn working on a word search

Matthew, Micah and Jonathan playing with

Play-Doh while waiting for the fireworks.

Christiana and Kaitlyn

Many more boats showed up for the fireworks

Joshua and I enjoying the great fireworks

Fireworks!

Happy 4th of July

Here's wishing everyone out there a safe and happy 4th of July. Be patriotic and have fun. If you're like us you will find a parade, watch some fireworks and have a cookout and homemade ice cream. Whatever you do, remember how blessed we are to live in this wonderful country and the men and women who have fought to make this the best country to live in. Happy 4th everyone from our family to yours.

Zach Wamp

I haven't been one to talk about political issues here on my blog, but I couldn't resist this one. For all of you living here in Tennessee who haven't heard of Zach Wamp, I wanted to introduce you to him. This particular video is geared more toward homeschoolers but you can go to youtube or his website www.zachwamp.com to see where he stands on other issues. He is backed by Dave Ramsey and I support him as well. I'm not trying to tell you how to vote, I just want you to know this candidate. So, check him out.