Disney Vacations with KIDS!

We are Disney fans. I really can't remember how many times I've been to Disney World - whether with my family, high school chorus, college friends for a bowl game, my hubby or now my kids! We just took our second trip with the kids. My parents have blessed us with tickets and condo using their timeshare - so without them, neither trip would have taken place. I thought I'd share my thoughts on Disney with kids.

Our first trip was with a 2.5 year old Will and 9 month old Adeline. We went the week after Christmas and spent four days - one in each park at Disney World. (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios - formerly MGM and Animal Kingdom)

This trip, Will was 4 and Adeline was 2. We spent 3 days in the parks - skipping Epcot.

There are lots of guidebooks with tips for Disney and I've read a few of them. Honestly, you can find all of the info you need at MouseSavers.com or AllEars.net. I used Mouse Savers a LOT before this trip and highly recommend it. So, feel free to stop reading now and head over there. :)

Here are a few of the specific things I'll be remembering for future trips:

1. When to go?

NOT the week after Christmas. I've never seen Disney World so crowded as it was the week after Christmas. The weather was great - we even had to go buy a few short sleeve shirts for my kids because I did not anticipate it to be so warm.

This trip at the end of June was much better as far as crowds. The longest line we waited in was about 30 minutes and that was because the ride got shut down for a bit. Otherwise, we rarely waited for very long (with some planning of course!). However, the heat was a bit of a downer. We made do with fans, cool treats and lots of water.

MouseSavers has some thoughts on the best time of year, but my opinion is October! Jacob and I went in October for our first anniversary and it was the best I've ever seen. Warm enough that we could swim in the pool, but hardly sweat at the parks. The crowds were so little we were able to visit all FOUR parks in TWO days. (Of course, we stayed from open to close....but you can do that when you don't have kids! :)

2. Cheapest Tickets?

Disney recently redid the way tickets are sold. You now have base tickets and you add options such as "park hopper" (visit more than one park per day) or "no expiration" (meaning unused days never expire). You can also buy tickets at a SLIGHT discount from AAA offices. MouseSavers has more info here. The bottom line is that the more ticket you buys - the cheaper it is per day visited. I would recommend saving up and buying a 8-10 day ticket to use over multiple trips.

3. Naps and a schedule?

The last trip (with a 2.5yo and 9mo) was a little different than this one in that we came back everyday for lunch and naps. We would be at the parks from open until about 12. Then return from about 4-7. One night we stayed late for a night parade and fireworks.

This time our kids were a little older and we tested the waters the first day. We stayed from park opening until about 3pm. Adeline napped in the stroller and Will did fine. That was our plan for the rest of the park days. However, this schedule did not allow us to keep the kids up late for fireworks in a park any night though.

4. Food?

Disney recently began allowing you to bring soft coolers in to the parks. You still cannot bring hard coolers, but I did see many soft coolers while we were there. This is a HUGE help because park food is pretty expensive - although not as much as you would think. We simply planned ahead the days we would eat out or bring our food. Having a plan is half the battle so you aren't caught with hungry, grumpy children (and parents)!

We usually purchased either lunch or dinner in the park and ate the other back at the condo. We spent about $30-40 per meal in the parks. I was pleasantly surprised to see the (relatively) healthy options on many of the menus. The kids' meals came with fruit or veggie sides and milk.

MouseSavers.com has coupons for dining in the Orlando area. We were able to find coupons for the Rainforest Cafe (in downtown Disney AND Animal Kingdom) to made kid's meals .99! That saved us $10 on that meal!

In addition, you can visit Restaurant.com to find other Orlando area restaurants. I found a Disney Character Dining restaurant there and bought a $25 gift certificate for $2! We ended up not doing the character dining because all of the character dining is done on a buffet/flat rate cost (no a la carte dining). It would have cost us almost $60 after the gift certificate to dine with Pluto and someone else we'd already met (can't remember who).

5. Where to stay?

This one is a little more tricky for me. My parents have a timeshare and we have stayed in a condo through the timeshare almost every time we've gone. I've stayed on Disney property twice (only a total of 3 nights!) and do see the value in doing that. There are certain deals that Disney offers twice a year (October and February, I think) where you can get free dining plans by staying on Disney property. There are "value" resorts (basically hotel rooms) that are still very nice and well themed. Staying on Disney property allows you to use Disney transportation (nice if you fly instead of drive!), get free parking at the parks (saves $14 per day!) and allows you extra hours in the parks on some days - called "Extra Magic Hours."

This past trip we spent two nights camping at the Disney Campground, Fort Wilderness. We loved it! The best part was that it only cost us $60 per night! I wrote about our camping experience here. The only downside to Disney property that I've found is the horribly high priced dining options. This is why the "free dining" with a stay on Disney property would be a HUGE plus! But once we got over the shock and made a new plan, we were set!

6. Other Kid-specific Tips

Strollers - We obviously knew we needed a stroller for our first trip. I actually bought a used one on Craigslist to use just for our trip. (The only double we had at the time was a double jogger and I knew it would have been horrible in the crowds!) When we returned home, I sold it for the same price! Much cheaper than renting one and I didn't worry when it got rained on or lost. Renting one costs about $15 per day and usually involves extra lines. Plus your stroller now looks just like everyone elses!

This trip, we were unsure about having a stroller for 4 year old Will who almost never uses one at home. We finally decided to bring our double jogger and I'm SO GLAD that we did. Will absolutely needed to ride at least 75% of the time and would have been so much more tired if he'd walked.

Waits - We brought a few small items in our bag for the kids to have during waits. Usually there was plenty to keep them entertained, but a few times we needed to get out the pens and paper. I also had some stickers and a few small toys.

Fast Passes and Baby Swap - If you don't know about the Fast Pass system at the parks - it is the only way you can do the majority of large attractions in one day. Basically, its a ticketing system where you use your park ticket to obtain a ticket with a specific return time for that ride. When you return - you enter the "fast pass" line that is very short. The trick that we recently learned (on our first with kids trip) is that the fast pass is actually good for the rest of the day! Even though it has an hour block of time to return, its good for the rest of the day.

Each day when we'd enter the park, the FIRST thing we did is send Jacob to a big ride for the fast pass. He would then meet me and the kids at the line for another big attraction so we could get right in line first thing when the waits are still very short (or non-existent!) When you look at your map, it will show you which rides have fast passes and those are the ones you might want to hit first. We usually would do at least 2 BIG attractions within the first 30 minutes of entering the park.

In addition, Disney will issue "baby swap" passes (essentially fast passes) good for up to three members of your party in situations where kids in your group cannot ride the ride. Basically, Will and Jacob would ride while I waited with Adeline. We're given a "baby swap"/fast pass when they get off so that I can enter the fast pass line while Jacob waits with Adeline. This prevents you from waiting in line twice and allows the entire party to enjoy the ride.

Souvenirs - I purchased a few small souvenirs ahead of time to give to our kids at Disney. (You can do this at a Disney Store or online!) This wasn't a big deal the first trip because Will was much younger. This time around, I knew he'd understand how much "stuff" he'd continually see that he wanted to buy. So in addition to the little fun things I purchased ahead of time, we told him we'd go to the big Disney Store (at Downtown Disney) and pick out one special treat. We did and he got a Bullseye (from Toy Story) to go with Woody and Buzz. He was thrilled and really didn't bug us anymore.

One thing I'd like to add about this is to be sure to purchase your souvenirs early in your trip. We had several toys (Adeline's Aurora doll that she picked and Jessie/Bullseye set my Mom got her) that broke while we were there. Disney was great about exchanging, but had we waited until the end of the trip that wouldn't have been possible! Plus, it gave the kids something new and fun to play with while at the condo.

Young Nurslings - If you have a nursing baby or even a diapered toddler, be sure to find and use the Baby Care Stations. When Adeline was 9 months, I nursed and fed her baby food in those at each park. They were super great (and air conditioned!) with microwaves, nursing areas, changing tables and entertainment for older siblings. There is only one per park.

That is all I can think of for now - but be sure to MouseSavers for LOTS more info! Especially for dining coupons like I mentioned! Please leave a comment with any tips or questions you have. (Leah P. is a Disney EXPERT and she may even chime in to answer them! :)

Provision, Protection and Peace

As I start to write this post, I have no name for it. Maybe by the time I'm done, I will.

When I originally planned my week on POH, one of my ideas centered around a surgery I was scheduled to have.That surgery happened just over a week ago. I had a cyst removed from my ovary because it grew too large (6cm) and was "complex" in appearance. I wanted to write my story after I was having trouble finding anyone that I knew who'd ever had a cyst removed before. My hope was that I could encourage someone else who was in the same position. I had no idea what to expect about the surgery.

The focus of my post has now shifted from the surgery itself to the diagnosis we received after the surgery. Cancer. Something I never imagined I'd hear!

The past week has been a whirlwind and difficult in many ways. There are still lots of questions to be answered. But we are so thankful for all the ways we see the hand of the Lord protecting us. We have a peace that we know comes from Him. I am a worrier by nature, yet I have worried more about my daughter's ear infection than I have this new diagnosis. To God by the glory for that!

Here's my story:

Back in March, I found myself in the ER for possible complications of Crohn's disease (similar to Leah's Colitis). At the ER, they did a CT scan of my abdomen looking for this complication. Thankfully, the CT for my GI tract was fine. But they did note a 3cm cyst on my left ovary. They discharged me with instructions to follow up with my OB.

At the time of that ER visit, we were literally one week away from getting new health insurance. Our new health insurance is phenomenal and would have covered 100% of the ER visit. I grumbled about having to go to the ER and owe money only a week before we would have owed nothing. Our bill for that visit is $1400. I'm not complaining about it anymore.

My OB reasurred me over the phone that the cyst was probably a "functional cyst" (normally forming with the cycle and will go away on its own) but that he'd see me in 8 weeks just to be sure. I hardly thought about it, other than the fact that we were waiting until that appointment to start trying for a third baby. Just to be sure...

At that visit, the OB immediately saw the cyst on the screen and determined that it had doubled in size from 3.3cm to 6.6cm. In addition to its new larger size, it was "complex" which meant it had multiple parts. He immediately started talking surgery to remove it. I left the appointment disappointed only because this meant we wouldn't be getting pregnant for a while. After a while, I was totally ok with the surgery as I began to realize symptoms I had that were likely due to the cyst. (Although, they hadn't occured to me prior to the appointment.)

The weekend before the surgery, my husband and I attended a conference (related to our future overseas move) and I had to bring "business casual" clothes. I realized that despite the numbers on the scale holding steady (and down at least 16 pounds from last summer - woohoo!)...many pants I owned were simply too tight around the waist. In addition to my middle getting larger, other symptoms included some pain (especially when the doc pushed on my ovary for the ultrasound! Ouch!), lots of peeing, pressure and heavy periods.

The surgery happened on a Monday morning and was to be a laproscopic cystectomy (cyst removal) and explorative (looking for endometriosis and I know now, cancer signs). Estimated time was less than 2 hours, yet it took three and a half! I've never had anesthesia that long and my recovery was rough because of it. It was 3.5 more hours in recovery before my husband could see me! He waited SEVEN hours in the waiting room.

When my OB got in there, he discovered that the cyst was really more tumor like. (A cyst is fluid filled and a tumor is more solid.) When he started removing the tumor, he realized that what was left of my ovary was not normal looking. It was biopsied immediately and determined to be "precancerous" which is what we were told in the hospital.

I am so thankful for a humble doctor that sought additional help when he felt it was necessary. At that point, he phoned a specialist (called a gynecologist oncologist) who advised him to remove the entire ovary and fallopian tube. In addition, he took 8 other biopsies around the abdomen. Even one of those biopsies he wasn't comfortable doing himself and called another surgeon in to help.

We waited all week to get the results of those biopsies (and further biopsy of the cyst and ovary). Finally, my doctor called on Friday. He said its good news, bad news. The bad news is that the ovary and cyst were both cancerous. The good news is that as far as ovarian cancer goes, its best case scenario. It was caught very early and the additional biopsies showed that it had not spread. Praise the Lord!

I've since talked to my doctor again (once the shock wore off) and learned more about it. What I've learned is that this type of tumor is sort of a gray area for doctors. The prognosis is very good, but doctors are unsure of the type of treatment or follow up that is needed. My doctor will be consulting with the same specialist again and I'll get more info at my appointment next week. We're praying for wisdom to know the right questions to ask and whether or not we should see a specialist.

Thanks for reading my story and my hope is that it might encourage someone in some way! We praise God for His provision, protection and peace throughout the last week! And there it is...my title!! :)

"And the peace of God, which passes all understanding,

will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Philippians 4:7

My (random) week on POH

It's my week on our POH summer rotation! I won't have anything nearly as cohesive and well written as Leah did last week, but I do have several posts planned.

While I get my posts together (and written!)...here is a quick collection of links to items I've bookmarked lately. Maybe you might be interested in one of these great ideas?

An adorable dinosaur play mat!

Monogrammed Wall Art for a kids room.

A great printable Weekly To-do list!

Preschool Letter, Number, Shape and Color Reviews that we're doing this summer.

Free Summer Movies at Regal Theaters (there are more states, I have NC selected. :)

(Note about the movies - while Will and Adeline won't be seeing the Mall Cop movie anytime soon, we do plan to go see the Veggie Tales movie next week! :)

Adding Texture to Photos using Photoshop (I've recently gotten Elements and I'm looking for all the help I can get!)

MouseSavers.com!! We were at Disney World three weeks ago and this site was a huge help to me! I plan on doing a travel tips post specific to Disney World this week. (Mostly so I can remember all that I learned on this trip.)

My new favorite source for BOWS for Adeline. Love the quality, love the price, love the service!

Any fun (not related to anything at all) links you'd like to share with me??

The Benefits of Being a SAHM

Here is a list of things that I'm thankful I get to experience as a SAHM. I often take these for granted, but wanted to reflect here about how great they truly are.

1. Snuggling in the mornings b/c we're not in a rush to get out the door.
2. Getting to laugh all day long at the silly things my boys say.
3. Picking how much/little my boys watch TV.
4. Going on outings to the library, the zoo, the farm.
5. Hanging out with friends for playdates.
6. Going to MOMs group.
7. Reading to my kids throughout the day and watching their vocabulary blossom because of it.
8. Going to the grocery during the day when it isn't as busy.
9. Talking to my kids throughout the day about God and His Creation.
10. Listening to our VBS songs in the van and hearing the boys start to sing along.
11. Getting stuff done during the day/week so that our weekends can be clear to do fun things.
12. Playing with my kids.
13. Getting to go visit my out-of-town parents for a week at a time without having to take vacation days.
14. Having opportunities all day long to teach my children good manners.
15. Being there to answer their questions.
16. Knowing what they've done all day long and helping them tell their dad all about it.
17. Saving money on things I can do around the house since I'm home.
18. Being able to go to BSF, and to take my kids there too for their awesome children's program.
19. Being the one my children spend the most time with.
20. Getting to hug and kiss my boys all day long.

What about you? Do you have any favorites that you'd like to add?

My Weaknesses as a SAHM

There are a few things that really stick out to me when I consider the sins I constantly face as a SAHM. These probably apply to other women as well, but sometimes spending so much time at home seems to really bring these out.

1. Ignoring my kids. Since I spend all my time at home, I feel like there is a big blur between mommy time and me time. Life is just not comparmentalized. Your home is where you work and where you are supposed to retreat. For me, this translates into me being pulled to me time when I should be focusing on mommy time. I think I can just pop on the computer for a bit while the kids are playing. Or I see the newspaper and think it would be so great to sit down and read it for awhile. But then the kitchen sits messy or the bathroom doesn't get cleaned. In the end, I think it's my kids that suffer. I put myself before them and don't get down on the floor and play with them.

2. Comparing myself with other moms. As I said, I spend a lot of time with other moms. This gives me plenty of time to fret about what ways they are better than me and what ways I'm better than them. I wish I was as skinny as Erica. I wish I was as pretty as Keyna. I wish I was as fit as Kristin. It goes on. But it also goes the other way. I find myself criticizing (in my head) the way that different moms parent their kids. I climb right up on my high horse the minute I walk into the library and see a mom letting her kid crawl all over the furniture and throw toys. I pat myself on the back when Samuel & Joel say please and thank you while the other kids grab. I think about how I would organize the house differently if I lived at that mom's house. I am being really honest here because I want to expose my pride for what it is - ugly, ugly sin! I hate it when I catch myself being this way. And I feel like there is so much competition as a SAHM. Do I do preschool with my kids? What kind of schedule do I keep? How clean is my house? Am I going to homeschool? It gets so exhausting and before I tsk my tongue and think it's just something that happens to me, I have to admit that it's something I inflict on others as well.

3. Resenting my husband. The first would be that my husband gets to go to work every day and get a break from the house and chaos. I think a lot of SAHMs struggle with this one. I don't know if our schedule makes this more or less pronounced than others. Ed works from 3pm-12pm Monday through Friday. That means that he usually sleeps until 8:30 or 9am. We get up at 7 or 7:30. I find myself getting so upset when I have to get up with the kids every day while Ed "sleeps in". I wish I could just sleep until I was ready to get up. And then he gets to come downstairs and have breakfast (which I've fixed for him) and then I clean it up. Same with lunch - he waits for me to lay out lunch and then he sits down to eat it. And I clean up. Dinner? Same drill - I cook and clean. Can you see my bad attitude dripping through here? Ed goes to work at 3, comes home for dinner between 6 and 7, and then heads back to work for the rest of the night. That leaves me to do bedtime every night. When I talk about our schedule to others, I always talk about how great it is to have Ed home during the day. But as I go through my day, I find myself getting so upset all the time and resenting him. It is NOT him - it is DEFINITELY me and a sinful tendency to make everything me vs. him. He is a GREAT dad and he really does help out so much during the day. And he cleans the kitchen floor for me! The problem isn't anything he does or doesn't do. It's me building up resentment towards him. I always seem to concentrate on the negative instead of the positive. And this tends to cause strain on our marriage. I find it so hard to put away the resentment.

4. Finding my job mundane. Ugh. This is the worst for me. I focus too closely on the day to day things I'm doing as my job instead of stepping back to see the bigger picture of what I'm actually accomplishing here. I see my job as a SAHM as a combination house cleaner, cook, babysitter, grocery shopper, laundrymat, etc. And I get so bored. But is that why Ed and I decided it would be a priority for me to stay home once we had kids? Absolutely not. I became a SAHM so that I could be the one to fix my kids meals, talk to them about their day, teach them things along the way, teach them about the Lord and how much He loves them, put them to bed at night, be a living example to them. I should clean my house because I love my husband. I should cook the meals because I care about my family's health. I should never view spending time with my kids as just 'babysitting'. I should do a good job shopping because I want to be a good steward with my money (okay, for everyone that knows me, you know that I actually enjoy this part!). Sure, a lot of what I do is mundane. I get it. But there are things that need to be done one way or another. I can either hire someone else to do it, not do it at all, or do my job with joy because I am doing it for the Lord. If I step back and think about it, life isn't necessarily meant to be fun or easy. I think about all that women have had to do for centuries past, as well as what other women around the world do today and I realize I actually do have it pretty good. It just takes that stepping outside of myself to get a little perspective.

I realize this was a really negative post as far as sharing all the downsides I find in being a SAHM. But I am thinking that some of you out there might feel the same way at one time or another. Tomorrow I'll touch on how I try to turn these things around as well as things that I think I would miss if I weren't a SAHM.

Making Friends as a SAHM

The comic strip I shared at the beginning of the week ended by saying "You have time to make friends." Do you feel like this is true for you?

I would say that I have 3 very good local friends. I say 'local' because I would count a handful of others as 'good friends', but I don't live in the same state/country as them and keep in touch by e-mail.

[This is me in the hospital with Erica, Keyna, our moms group leader Ellen, and Amy]

All three of my good friends (Erica, Keyna & Amy) are from my church and mothers of small children. I met all three of them when I started attending a moms group at their church (we were going somewhere else at the time). The moms group would meet every other Tuesday morning. But then one of the moms had the idea to get together at the church gym with our kids on the off-Tuesdays (the kids rode their bikes around the gym and the moms could chat). I got to know these women and other moms in the group over the course of 6 months or so. When our family moved to our new house, the commute to our church got to be too long and we decided to start attending the same church where I was attending the moms group.

I became good friends with these three women because I spent a lot of time with them. I really think that is the key to making friends when you are a SAHM. I know one of you mentioned to me that when you worked your co-workers were your friends. You got to see them every day and you became friends. Think about how much time you spent with those people - probably about 40 hours a week! Do you have someone now that you spend even a fraction of that time with? You'd never get anything done around the house! :) BUT, I think it's very important to spend that quantity time with others to build a friendship. Think about the friends you made when you were growing up. You spent 8 hours a day with them at school and then hung out after school and on the weekends. You became good friends because you spent a lot of time together.

Here's how much time I probably spend with my friend Erica in one week:
Sunday - 3 hours at church (service, coffee time, Sunday School class)
Tuesday - 3 hours (moms group or play time and lunch)
Another weekday - 3 hours (get together at her house or mine)
Now, that's not 40 hours, but it is something like 9.

Consider how often I see my friend Keyna: Sunday for church and date night, Tuesday for moms group, Wednesday for AWANA, Thursday for Bible Study Fellowship, and sometimes again on the weekend. We see each other A LOT, even if it's for short little conversations here or there.

Amy is a working mom (she works MWF), so I don't get to see her as much during the week. But we still make it work. We see each other on Sundays and Tuesdays and Wednesday nights and sometimes our families will do stuff together on the weekends.

Here are the things that I think have helped me become good friends with these women:
1. Time. Not just quantity, like I mentioned above, but making it a priority to spend time with them.
2. Similar aged children. Keyna's kids and Amy's kids are the same age as mine. Erica's youngest is a little younger than Samuel and then her other two are 5 and 6.
3. Giving it time to happen. I met these women 1.5 years ago. It's probably just in the past 6 months that I could say they were good friends.
4. Planning things to do together. We are always coming up with places to go together. It's fun to have a buddy to go on an adventure with and the kids love getting out of the house with friends.

Leah F. commented earlier that it seems like just as you're getting close to someone, something happens, including them moving away. I can relate to this. We spent 3 years in Wake Forest, and then 6 months in San Francisco, and then moved here to Chicago. But even then we moved churches a few times as we moved houses. I was lucky to make friends in Wake Forest who were either new like us and therefore going to be around awhile or others who were planted in the Wake Forest area. (BTW, did you all know that that's how most of us POH authors know each other? We were friends while in Wake Forest and have since dispersed around the globe) Now that we're here in Chicago, I feel like the friends I've made probably won't be moving anytime soon, or us either. I think living in a transient community can be a real hinderance to building quality friendships, but it's still possible.

I want to end by saying that having good friends is a real blessing to me and helps me to enjoy my job as a SAHM. I like the give and take of a close friendship. I really love and respect the women God has put in my life. Having close friends is especially important to me because I don't live near family. I don't have my mom to hang out with or to watch my kids for me when I need a break. These friends provide a little bit of that for me, and I can provide it for them.

What about you? Do you feel like you have a good friend? Are you investing the time needed to cultivate that relationship? Do you think it's worth it?

My Goals as a SAHM

I wanted to share with you the first entry in my mommy journal. BTW, my mommy journal is a journal my cousin bought for me and then made an adorable quilted cover for. Each page has a passage of Scripture and a little anecdote with probing thoughts about being a mom. I try to read a page of it every once and awhile and record my current thoughts/feelings about being a mom. To start off my thoughts in this journal, I recorded a few bits of Scripture that really speak to me as a wife/mom and speak to the ideals I'd like to keep. Here's the entry:

Titus 2:4-5 And so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind and submissive to their own husbands, that the Word of God may not be maligned.

Luke 2:19 But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.

Proverbs 31:11-12 The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.

Proverbs 31:26-27 She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Proverbs 31:30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Who do I want to be? 1) Loving. 2)Self-controlled. 3)Pure. 4)Hardworking at home. 5)Kind. 6)Submissive. 7)Treasurer. 8)Ponderer. 9)Trustworthy. 10)Do-gooder. 11)Speaking wisdom. 12)Teaching kindness. 13)Caretaker of my household. 14)Not lazy. 15)Fearing the Lord.

What does Ed want of me/need me to be? 1)A lover. 2)Speaking words of affirmation. 3)Caretaker of my home/household. 4)Praying and reading God's Word. 5)Mindful of time. 6)Mindful of money. 7)Teaching the boys.

What do the boys need me to be? 1)Loving. 2)Speaking wisdom. 3)Teaching kindness. 4)Treasuring and pondering their growing up. 5)Praying for them. 6)Not lazy.

Micah 6:8 He has shown thee, O Man, what is good and what the Lord requires of thee: but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God. (btw, I have no idea what version this is. It's just how I memorized it when I first became a believer b/c it was a song we sang in youth group!)

Lord, please teach me to love my husband and my children. I desire to bring you honor by allowing you to transform my relationships. I humbly submit myself to your will and your ways. I want to honor Ed by being a good, godly wife that is a blessing to him. I want to teach my children with a godly love so that they can learn to fear you and love you. I love you Lord, and I thank You for all the grace you pour into my life.

A Payneful Week on POH

Hi all! The authors of POH have decided to split up the remaining summer weeks amongst ourselves to cover whatever topics our little hearts desire. I've decided to focus my week around the ups and downs of being a SAHM. I'll start with sharing a comic strip that hangs on my fridge door (you can click on it to see it better if you need):


I thought maybe I would tell you all a little bit about myself as well, since I think we've acquired some new readers that I don't know personally.

I am 29 years old. I grew up in Fort Wayne, IN. I became a Christian 13 years ago when I was a junior in high school. I graduated from Indiana University with a degree in Spanish Education. I have been married to my husband, Ed, for 6.5 years. We spent the first three years of our marriage at seminary - I worked for 2 years and then stayed home the last year of Ed's school. We have lived in Indiana, North Carolina, California, and now Chicago. I have two sons. Samuel is almost 4 and Joel is 2.5. I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis 1 year ago. I have had 3 surgeries since then. I underwent a total colectomy (they removed my whole large intestine) and now have something called a J-Pouch. We would love to add more children to our family, but I am not able to start trying for another baby until next year. I stay home to care for my family and home. My husband works second shift, so he is home with our family during the day. Aaaaand, I can't really think of anything else to tell you. :)

I want to be really honest with you all this week about my feelings as a SAHM. I have my highs and lows, the things I'm grateful for and the things I resent. I really hope you will feel comfortable to share your comments with us. If you'd like to add something to the week or ask me a specific question, please leave your comment here or e-mail me leahpayne@hotmail.com. I am a really open person, so please feel free to ask me any questions this week that you are curious about - even if it is outside of the SAHM topic. I hope we can have a really fruitful week!

Begging for help

Thanks for all the wonderful suggestions--please keep them coming!!

As our faithful readers have probably noticed, our schedule of topics has run out! Not to fear, we will still be posting over the next few weeks as we work on a new schedule for the fall. Please check back OFTEN to see what we are posting--I can't tell you, it is a complete surprise (as in, we aren't even sure ourselves)!

But as for our new fall schedule, we need your help. Please comment on this post and let us know what topics you want us to discuss. This blog exists to glorify God and encourage the many women (and few men) who read it, so please let us know how we can serve you. We want to talk about your suggested topics, so bring them on! If you don't make suggestions, you may be forced to read repeated reports of how cute our kids are, or how much money we saved on groceries, or how great Southeastern Seminary is. We can't carry that on forever, so we look forward to hearing from you.

Can you say A DORABLE?!

I think this week is sort of an unplanned one for us here at POH, so I thought I would jump in and post a link to the most adorable little playhouse I just came across. I have been cruising decorating blogs all week looking for inspiration for my home. And then I came across this playhouse. And now all I want is a little girl!!! Check this out - you won't be disappointed!

Lydia's Birth Story

Lydia is already over three weeks old and I wish that I could freeze time. It is flying by and I just want it to stop so I can gaze at my sweet newborn and remember all her baby-soft newness for a little longer. She is just the best baby ever! She is so laid back and sweet. She cries so little, almost as if she is reluctant to cause a stir and only cries out of real necessity. I really want to cherish these days because I know she will be running around with her older brother and sister in no time at all!

I always like to write out my children's birth story so I can remember their first few moments and Lydia's especially because it was all such a whirlwind. But first, here is a little background. Meredith was born at our home in North Carolina in 2006and Jonathan was born at our home in Virginia in 2008. We had the same wonderful midwife for both of their births. In 2009 we moved to Scotland and though there is a national healthcare system here, I had the option of choosing a homebirth with the health service midwives. I was 11 days overdue by the midwife's calculation (only 6 days by mine) and was about to lose my chance at a homebirth if she wasn't born soon (they make you go to a hospital if you are more than 12 days overdue). I woke up early Monday morning suspecting that my body was finally preparing for labor (bloody show). I thought contractions might start later that morning, but nothing happened at all. A midwife stopped by my house later around noon just to check on me and offered to sweep my membranes. I took her up on it and figured it might be my last chance to jump start things in time to have a homebirth. She said I was only 2 cm dilated and only partially effaced. I was pretty discouraged and thought that there was no way I'd be in labor anytime soon. But I was determined to do everything I could and after she left I took 3 tbs castor oil (on the advice of Audrey, our ever knowledgeable midwife that delivered Meredith and Jonathan). I had taken castor oil to start Meredith's labor, but I was already in pre-labor and having regular contractions with her and had been for several days. I decided to lay down and take a nap and a contraction woke me up at exactly 4:00. I started timing the contractions and they were coming every 10 minutes for one hour. I was still skeptical that this might be real labor and continued to watch the clock while keeping busy around the house. I vacuumed and did the dishes. Around 5:30 I called the midwives to let them know I thought I was in labor and they warned me that my contractions could still stop even after two regular hours of them. They said it would also take them 45 minutes to get to my house so I should make sure to allow time for them to arrive. I assured them that I didn't need them yet and continued to piddle around the house hoping to make the contractions longer and stronger. Mom fed the kids and Ben dinner and I watched them eat while sitting on the birth ball in the living room, still unsure if this was really "it".

Around 6:00 I began to know that I was really in labor. At this point, I really needed either Ben or my mom to push hard on my back when I was having a contraction and I couldn't talk or do anything else during them. They were coming every 4 to 5 minutes and lasting a minute long. My mom began scrambling around the house to get the kids and herself ready to go to Jarred and Chelsea's house. I needed Ben to stay right with me to push on my back. I was handling contractions by being on my hands and knees on the floor. Ben had to drive my mom and the kids to our friend's house and I hated to see him go! Who would push on my back while he was gone?! I was also feeling my labor progress really, really fast at this point and wondered how I would wait 45 more mins for the midwives to get here. I called them back and told them to come as soon as they could.

Ben left our house and I was moaning through contractions. Our friend's house was only a few minutes away but I hated being alone. The midwives actually arrived while he was gone and it had only taken them about 10 minutes to get here instead of 45! (They said they were on their way to a fitness class in town). I couldn't even get up to answer the door and yelled for them to come in. Ben got back home a few minutes later and they were busy doing all their prep work. They checked my blood pressure and listened to the baby. Everything was fine but I was beginning to have a hard time coping. We decided to go upstairs where I would be more comfortable. I could barely make it up the stairs and felt one contraction on top of another. When we got upstairs the midwife checked me and announced that I was only 5-6 cm dilated and the baby was posterior (meaning her spine was to my spine which was causing my back pain). I was so discouraged to say the least and wondered how I would make it several more hours. It was probably around 7:45 at this time. The midwives told Ben and I that they would go back downstairs and left us alone. I remember him being on the bed beside me pushing on my back during contractions and asking him how I could possibly make it through several more hours of labor when I was already in so much pain and feeling like pushing. I had one or two more contractions and couldn't help but push through them. I didn't feel like I was getting any resistance and the pushing urge was getting so much stronger. I asked Ben to go ask the midwives why I was pushing when I was only 5 cm dilated. He never got the chance.

The very next contraction was really strong and my water broke all over the bed. I was shocked, having never had my water break on its own before and I really felt the baby moving down. The midwives heard me yelling about my water and pushing and rushed back upstairs. They saw that I was pushing hard and hurried to put on their gowns and get their supplies ready. Minutes later her head was born. I still have no idea how I went from 5 to 10 centimeters in only a few minutes. I remember being so surprised that her head was born and asked over and over again if her head was really out. They assured me that it was I had no urge to get her out and was able to patiently wait for the next contraction when the rest of her body was born. The midwives caught her (I guess) and put her on the bed right in front of me. Ben and I just stood there looking at her grey-ish body wriggling on our bed totally stunned. Neither of us could believe that she had been born so quickly. Our midwife (Ailean) exclaimed in her thick accent, "You have a red-haired Scottish baby!" and sure enough she is. We never had time to get the video camera out or take any pictures of her first few moments (which I really regret). I remember after several seconds thinking that I should look and see if she was a boy or girl. I checked and saw that she was a girl, which wasn't a surprise to me at all. I always knew she would be and I was thrilled! She pinked up right away and I was able to sit down and hold her for the first time.

Lydia's birth was really surprising to me and was an answer to prayer. I pushed for three solid hours with Meredith and one hour with Jonathan and was really dreading the pushing phase of this labor. But, it was really only minutes long. Thankfully, that made the birth and my recovery so much easier. I have felt really, really good lately (especially after being pregnant for what seemed like forever). I was also really worried about not knowing our midwives at all. That ended up being inconsequential. They really didn't do much during my labor at all. In my previous birthing experiences I think I needed support and encouragement because they took so long. This time around there wasn't time for it! The Lord has blesses us indeed!

Welcome, Lydia Carolyn!

Congrats to the Laird family! Margaret gave birth to Lydia Carolyn on June 21st. (We're a little behind around here, aren't we!?) She weighed 7lbs, 10oz and joins big sister, Meredith (almost 4) and big brother, Jonathan (2).

In other news, we'll be back to semi-regular posting next week. We're trying a modified (read: not planned) schedule for the remainder of the summer. Each of us will be responsible for a week and we aren't scheduling topics ahead of time. Maybe Margaret will post Lydia's birth story! We'll just share whatever we're feeling led to share or revisit something posted on another blog.

So, now's the time to share topic requests that we might address this summer OR add to the fall line up (to come in September). Please share a topic/question/suggestion with us so we can consider it for future posts! Thanks, POH readers. We hope you are enjoying your summer!

Oops! Book Giveaway....

I realized recently that I never did the drawing for the book giveaway! So, I've finally done that and wanted to share. Sorry it took so long, but I hope that Rachael enjoys reading this book.

She was comment #13 (as chosen by random.org) and wrote:

"I always love reading new books and right now I'm on the hunt for a new one. This book sounds very interesting!"

Remember, if you want to purchase the book for yourself or get more information about the author (our friend, Kevin) - you can visit his website, http://www.infantsnomore.com/!

Stay tuned for our new plan for posting the rest of the summer months. Hope you all having a great summer!

Weekly Outings With my Girls

The topic this week is about outings with our kids and things we do to make them go more smoothly. I figured that the easiest way for me to write about it would be to tell you where we go each day in a normal week. But first, let me just say that although I love to take my girls on fun outings, my favorite days are when we can stay at home and keep to our normal schedule. Things just go so much easier and more smoothly when we are home and the girls know what is going to happen next. So I try to plan all my errands for the same day or two and stay at home the rest of the week. However, we do have several activities that we do on a weekly basis that we all enjoy, and even more so during the summer time.

Mondays: Usually a catch-up day for us because I try to just relax and spend time with my family on Sundays. I don't do a lot of housework or cooking, so on Mondays we stay home and catch up!

Tuesdays: Possible Early Grocery Morning and then a normal day at home: We usually stay at home on Tuesdays, but if we have to go to the grocery store that week, we will go early right before my husband heads off to work. (I try to make a monthly meal plan and do most of my shopping at the Farmer's market, farm, or during our monthly trip to Trader Joes, so we don't have to go to the grocery store every week.) I like to go when my husband is available to help because Karis is currently in the "learning how to push a little buggy" stage. She listens very well, but often gets carried away and will run into things. So I usually put Karlie in the Ergo and push the big buggy while Mark helps Karis manage the little grocery cart. If I go without Mark, then Karis just walks beside the buggy instead of pushing her own cart. There are two things that help us get through the grocery store trip more smoothly:

1. Laughter. Karis is absolutely hilarious pushing that cart around. It is very easy to get all stressed out because it is inevitable that she will run into something or someone, but we just choose to laugh at her. She gets so excited and tries so hard to help. Almost everyone that she runs into laughs at her, so why shouldn't we all just have fun as she learns? :)
2. The "one-finger" rule -- Karis knows that she is allowed to touch things with one finger, but she cannot pick up anything unless we tell her to put it in her cart. This satisfies her unending curiosity and gives her a little freedom, but keeps her in check as well. I will warn that the rule is not so great if there happens to be glass bottles or other things that are easily broken, but she is always under our careful watch so we just warn her ahead of time that those things cannot be touched.

Wednesdays: Daddy date and toddler pool time: Wednesday is my husband's day off and he has gotten into the habit of taking Karis out to do whatever errands he needs to do. She absolutely loves it and looks forward to and talks about her "Daddy and Karis" time all week long. This week she went with him to the dentist, last week he took her to the local Seminary Student Center to watch the soccer game, and the week before that, they took the dog to her check-up at the vet. It just sounds like boring errands to me, but to Karis, it is very special and exciting! I usually pack snacks for her and a coloring book and markers to keep her busy if there is any waiting involved.

Toddler Time at the Pool: Last year, Karis was scared of the pool and we decided that we needed to go more often so that she would get used to it. A pool in our area offers "toddler time" from noon to 1:00 every day and it is only open to parents and children ages 4 and under. This was absolutely perfect for Karis because there were just a handful of Moms and little ones and she grew to love the pool. An hour is plenty of time to wear out a toddler and it was perfect for meeting Mark on his lunch break. I never had the nerve to go all by myself since neither of my girls could swim and I probably won't this year, either :) We haven't actually gone to the pool yet this year because I have been really sick from morning sickness, but I'm hoping to start next week. We always pack lots of snacks and a handful of pool toys.

Thursdays: Turf Tikes and the Library: My husband runs an awesome sports facility, MVP Sports, that offers classes in soccer, basketball, T-ball, and tennis to little ones. The soccer classes actually start at 18 months, so Karis has been going to soccer class with her Daddy since she was just a little thing! She loves it! It got a little more difficult once Karlie was born, because the younger ages are parent-child classes and I still had to be able to chase her around while carrying Karlie so Daddy could focus on coaching. I used a hotsling with Karlie as a newborn and the Ergo from 6 months to a year. Once she turned one and started walking, however, she didn't want to stay in the carrier one bit! So now I just let her run around and chase balls and the other kids and it has worked out fine. It is definitely a work-out for me as well as the girls!

Library: My girls LOVE books and they LOVE the library! We don't go to story-time, although I think they would really enjoy it, simply because it doesn't fit our schedule as well. (Like I mentioned before, I try to stay home when I can, so we go to the library when we are already out and about :) Karis is really easy at the library. She loves choosing books and sitting on the fun carpet and looking at them. Karlie used to be easy at the library as well, when she would stay nicely in the Ergo while I picked through and found the best kids books. Now that she is mobile, however, she is obsessed with the books and really wants to get down and pick them out. I usually first set her down by the board books, because they are just in a big table and she can't really mess them up. I usually have about 5 minutes to myself to pick out a handful of good kids books while she is engrossed in the board books. After that, she is a crazy girl, grabbing books off the shelf left and right! Yes, I am working very hard to train her to have good library manners, but she doesn't quite have the hang of it yet :) I cannot describe to you how incredibly excited she gets when she sees all those books! After about 10 minutes of following Karlie around and teaching her to sit down and read the books she chooses (instead of throwing books around left and right :),I put her back in the Ergo so we can check out. Since I no longer have twenty minutes to leisurely browse through the books, my biggest tip is this: Utilize the online reserve function of your library!!! I usually reserve between 15 and 20 books each week so that I know that we will get home with plenty of good ones. If you run out of good books to reserve, check out some of these reading lists:
Websites:
Early Years Read-alouds -- Simply Charlotte Mason
Classical Christian EducationSupport Loop: 1000 Good Books List
The Consortium for Classical Lutheran Education booklist
Five in a Row booklist
Our Library's book list

Books:
The Read-Aloud Handbook: 6th edition by Jim Trelease
Honey For a Child's Heart by Gladys Hunt

Friday: Stay at home and keep a normal schedule!


Saturday: Farmer's Market or our CSA Farm: My girls LOVE the farm! I buy most of our meat and eggs at the Farmer's Market, so I go there at least one Saturday a month. This spring, my family purchased a market share CSA from a local farm. We paid a sum of money ahead of time and can go every week to pick out fresh fruits and veggies at a discounted rate. During spring strawberry season, we went every single week with the girls to pick strawberries! It was so much fun and I love the fact that my girls know exactly where their food comes from. Now that it is so hot and I am so sick with morning sickness, we just go to the farm and buy what they have already picked almost every week. We also go to a different farm to get fresh milk, but I only do that once a month because I am part of a group with 5 other ladies and we take turns picking up milk for each other.

Sunday: Church: We attend a very small church and the children stay in the service. This is both wonderful and very exhausting, but we are blessed to have a very understanding church family. Rather than viewing the children as a distraction (which mine definitely are, ha,ha), they view them as an opportunity to minister to our family. They have told me so many times how much they enjoy it when I turn Karlie loose and let her come sit with them. I really appreciate this because it is an extremely loving environment in which to teach my girls obedience and the art of sitting still. So here is how we manage: Karis is three and is old enough to sit still for the entire service (usually a little more than an hour). We bring lots of snacks and a coloring book and markers (I LOVE the Color Wonder Markers and books!). She has learned to be quiet and sit with us, although sometimes if Karlie gets attention for being loud, Karis will start to act up and we have to take her out and discipline her. Karlie, on the other hand, is definitely still in the training period! For the first 9 months of her life, she slept in the Ergo while at church. But now she is very excited about being there and seeing all our friends and doesn't really want to sit still. So we are taking it slow. I figure that at 17 months, a half hour of sitting still is a reasonable expectation. So she sings, eats her snacks, looks at books and colors on my lap for 30 minutes. She is not always quiet and usually gets mad at some point and has to be disciplined a couple of times. But she is definitely getting the hang of it and I am really grateful to have such a safe place to teach her to sit still. After about a half hour, I let her walk around and visit with other members of our church family for the duration of the service. Fairly soon I plan to bump it up to 45 minutes, but she is not quite ready for it :)

So that is a summary of our weekly outings! Hope it was helpful and I would love to hear about places you like to take your kids and your tips for success!