pulling the plug

We're changing things up around here: No tv during the week. Zip, zilch, nada.
Some of you are probably a lot smarter than I am and had this going on from the get-go. I, on the other hand, always foolishly thought,  we've always had a nice balance... no need to get drastic. ;) 

You see, my kids didn't used to watch too much tv. 
But as they've gotten older, it's gotten to be more and more... and now they don't like to watch the same things, so that's more and more time that the tv's on... mostly, I blame it on the all-things-screen obsessed going-on-eight-year-old boy in my house. 
Regardless, however we got here, it's gotten out of hand. Waaay out of hand.

The two biggies right now:
My kids didn't watch Spongebob until lately.  And now suddenly Sawyer is obsessed. OBSESSED.
And Savannah is likewise preoccupied with watching every single Full House episode known to man.
She'll get up at 6:30 in the morning on the weekends to watch the reruns.  And have the DVR record it when she leaves for school.
Meanwhile, Sawyer discovered that he gets a little taste of (his idea of)heaven with the fact that Spongebob is in fact on one certain channel for hours straight every afternoon when he gets home from school, making it so convenient to kick off his shoes, grab a snack and relax after a hard day at school, soaking up all the Sponginess... and losing all track of time in the real world.

Add to those tendencies suddenly fuller schedules and a big handful of things that need to get done each day... and we're in trouble. Sorry, but summer's over kiddos!

Sawyer has a tiny bit of homework (practice work) most every day... that is a huge fight to get him to do.  I'm hoping that snapping him out of his Spongebrain er, Bob coma will help with that. Also, his teacher moved him up to the highest spelling group (he's in the highest reading group, but his spelling is a struggle we've had going on way, way below that) wanting to really push him and see how it goes, so he really needs to spend a good amount of time on his spelling list every day of every week.  Plus, you know, actual reading time each day.  And how about actual childhood playing and oh yeah, eating.  And soccer on Thursdays. And we still enforce enjoy early bedtimes. ;)

But SJ is actually the one who is a little more crammed for schedule.  She gets home an hour later now that she's in middle school, so her home afternoon time doesn't even start until almost 4:30.  That will leave three short hours 'til bedtime (that's reading in bed time for her) to do any homework, spend 30 minutes each day practicing multiplication facts (a stickler for her, so we're spending some real time working on it), practice piano, practice for band, and of course eat dinner, and oh yeah, it'd be nice if she could help clean up and hopefully relax and actually spend some time with her family.  Oh and Mondays are minus an hour to go to actual piano lessons.  Luckily, she doesn't get on the bus until 8 in the morning, so she has a extra little leeway in the a.m. as compared to Sawyer.

Anyway, all that to say... I made the executive decision to unplug the tv during the week. 
[not literally. this is only as far as the kids are concerned. the grown-ups?... are you kidding?  all the new shows are about to start up for the fall!]
I also made up some little magnetic charts for the kids to "plan" their own afternoons each day... handing them the responsibility of looking at their time and fitting things in to get everything done that they need to get done.  They have to slot in time for homework and practice and so on and so forth.  And of course snack time and free time...
...that doesn't include the television. 
I expected that little detail to be met with an uproar... but surprisingly, they agreed to it easily after I showed them how it just wasn't smart to waste time with tv right now... and after I reminded Sawyer especially that it was making it really hard for him to be cooperative with getting his spelling and homework done the best that he could.
Dare I say, they actually agreed with me. And got busy planning their Monday afternoon ahead of time... ;)

So, we had talked (and agreed) about it over the weekend, but I was braced for complaints this first morning as well. (tv has almost always been on first thing in the morning around here... kind of some brainless wake up time for me the kids)
But complaints never surfaced.

So it makes this choice a lot easier.  So far. ;)
Check back in with me when I have a fussy baby, I'm trying to get breakfast made, lunches packed, dinner ready, I have the two bigger kids at each others' throats, Ryan's working late, and I'm ready for the day to have been over at 4pm.

How about your house?  Do you have to regulate tv during the week vs the weekends? Are your seven-year-olds kids as obsessed as mine with screen time?? What works for you?

hello friday

Well, hello Friday.  Here so soon?
Actually I was wondering if you'd ever get here.
I am beginning to wonder if that's how my weeks are going to be from here on out... a crazy mix of "the days are long but the years are short" mindset.  Every single day I can't believe it's only Monday, only Tuesday, only Wednesday, not yet Friday and then all of a sudden the week is done and I don't know what happened with time's fly-by.

But it is Friday.
Hello.
Hello middle school skate night. (a bit scary!)
Hello no-plans-weekend. (minus soccer practice.)
Hello to some real August weather. (finally!)
Hello to entertaining the idea of repainting a bedroom.
Hello to probably not really doing it. ;)
Hello new favorite song my husband introduced to me... which makes it better than just me hearing it myself. ;) It's a cheery little song to have stuck in your head...
"Some days are better than other days, but these days life is better with you"

rest

The word rest has been whispering in my heart lately.

I want rest.
I feel like my faith is being so tried right now.  It's so very easy to let myself doubt what we're doing here, to let myself worry how things will turn out.  To let fear creep in. To wallow in feeling like things are so out of my control.
But I don't want worry, I don't want fear.  I want rest.

There's a song (below) that's been somewhat my mantra as of late, and with it I am reminded that the real rest I'm longing for is a constant choice; that the rest I need is truly a verb and not a thing to 'have'.

rest  (rst) noun

1. Cessation of work, exertion, or activity.

2. Peace, ease, or refreshment resulting from sleep or the cessation of an activity.

3. Sleep or quiet relaxation.

4. Relief or freedom from disquiet or disturbance.

5. Termination or absence of motion.

rest, rest·ed, rest·ing, rests verb

1. To be at peace or ease; be tranquil.

2. To depend or rely: That argument rests on a false assumption.

3. To be located or be in a specified place for a time: The original manuscript rests in the museum.

4. To be fixed or directed on something: His eyes rested on her face for a moment.

5. To place, lay, or lean for ease, support, or repose.

I want rest... but it's not rest that means everything is easy and relaxed. (although that can be so appealing!)
I want the rest that doesn't mean I've fallen asleep, but rather that I am at peace... while depending, relying, being located in, fixed on, directed to, and able to lean on one big thing for support and repose... it's the rest that only comes in the security of trusting God. Of being firmly in His will. The kind of rest that is established in Him; throughout the situation, no matter the chaos swirling around. The rest that doesn't just calm the situation, but rather calms us, and all the while matures us, refines us, even in the not-so-restful circumstances.
I don't just want to get through all this and get to the "rest" at the end. (although, again, I will appreciate a little of that too!!) 
I want rest IN it. Because ultimately I want to come out of this better…refined by Christ.
I want our family’s faith and trust to be increased and I want to see Jesus in all of it.
I'm learning that means I will be sent into those parts of life that He knows we can’t quite handle on our own. But with Him, resting in Him, we come to discover... we’ve got this.  He calls us to those places… and I want to better recognize what an opportunity that is. What an honor that is.

I can't navigate this on my own. I am just a timid, scared, faithless, trustless sinner.
But Jesus can make me -can make our family- this bold, excited, faithful, trust-filled, forgiven family that’s ready.  Ready for what’s ahead.  Because more than anything, we have to know we’re not ready on our own, but with Him. We are His… and He’s declared that He is ours.

Isaiah 43:1-3: “But now, this is what the Lord says—he who created you, he who formed you: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, your Savior…”

What an amazing promise and comfort that is.
I want to rest in that.

Jesus, I am resting, resting, in the joy of what Thou art
I am find out the greatness of Thy loving heart
Thou has bid me gaze upon Thee and Thy beauty fills my soul
For by Thy transforming power Thou has made me whole
 
O how great Thy loving kindness; vaster, broader than the sea!
O how marvelous Thy goodness lavished all on me! 
Yes, I rest in Thee Beloved and know what wealth of grace is Thine
I know Thy certainty of promise and have made it mine

Jesus, I am resting, resting, in the joy of what Thou art
I am finding out the greatness of Thy loving heart

Simply trusting Thee Lord Jesus, I behold Thee as Thou art
And Thy love so pure, so changeless, satisfies my heart
 Satisfies it's deepest longing, meets, supplies it's every need
And surrounds me with Thy blessing; Thine is love indeed.
 
Jesus, I am resting, resting, in the joy of what Thou art
I am finding out the greatness of Thy loving heart

Ever lift Thy face upon me, as I work and wait for Thee
Resting 'neath Thy smile, Lord Jesus, earth's dark shadows flee
Brightness of my Father's glory, sunshine of my Father's face
Keep me ever trusting, resting, fill me with Thy grace  
  
 Jesus, I am resting, resting, in the joy of what Thou art
I am finding out the greatness of Thy loving heart

hello monday

Hello tired morning.
Hello messy house.
Hello full day.
Hello to-do list a mile long.
Hello baby not napping.
I'd love to say hello to my bed again...

Hello Monday.

and, and, and

It's Thursday.
Feels like a Monday.
But also that it should be Friday by now.
Unfortunately, now that school's back on it's time to officially remember what day of the week it is.
I'm in trouble.

It feels like we've been so busy, but we haven't really.
I think that's because it's all in my brain; a million things going on at once.
All the stuff swirling around getting us into the routine of school and "Fall" (I say that with huge quotation marks, as it is still obviously barely mid-August)... all the things we still need at teachers' requests, schedules, evening open houses, and squaring away logistics of the extra things like band and piano lessons and soccer starting up.

And then all the stuff going on with Coen... not only are we are pretty much in the midst of a loooong and uncertain/possible/probable plan and placement change so that I'm dealing with the extra visits and communication and, oh yeah, EMOTIONS that go along with that, but we are also suddenly having our child case worker change at the same time as our own Family Support Worker getting a promotion which leaves us to be assigned a new worker on both ends.  At the same time.  In an already stressful (to me) situation. So, extra meetings and rundowns and EMOTIONS again.  Blech.

And now that the big kids are gone for a chunk of the day (and I have a great napper here with me) I'm also trying to "organize" and be intentional with my time and my job as homemaker... I feel like most of the summer was NOT my best time as a mom and wife when it came to cooking and cleaning and all things home.  My biggest goal was to utilize the short time off we had and really try and have the most fun.  Which honestly did not include regular laundry or deep cleaning or feeding my family all that well (from scratch/wholey/healthily). It was a very lazy summer on my part.
So now that I have the down time, I've been more intentional about planning good meals, preparing nutritious breakfasts and snacks, orchestrating our time at home into more structure and efficiency, etc, etc, etc.  As well as catching up on some deep cleaning, closet purging, and on and on and on. Did I mention laundry has been taking over our house?

And we're trying to plan for -trying being the key word; lots of intentions, not a lot of actual accomplishment- our big Fall Trip.
And somewhat attempting to work in me going with Ryan on his Boston trip next month and so the pros and cons of the money and juggling involved in planning that and the logistics of handing the kids off for a few days are constantly swirling in my head as well.

So yeah, my brain is full.

But.

Our school year has started off better than I could have asked for... our mornings have been smooth and enjoyable, the kids are loving their new classes and I'm overwhelmed with how lucky we've been yet again to get some pretty incredible teachers who seem to fit with our kids (and me!) so well. The kids have been happy to get going to school each day and come home having great days to report. :)

happy school boy... even at 7am :)

And Coen is doing awesome... he is just seriously the best baby and spoils us completely.  He had his six month check-up this past week and had four shots and he's teething big time this week (seriously, any. day. now. please.) and so he's been a little whimpery-whiney, but even still... he's the happiest and most laid back baby I've ever seen.  He's at that super fun age where he's getting so "real" with us... he's beyond the moon excited when the kids get home from school... he squeals with delight when we come downstairs in the morning or after naps and he sees the dog waiting at the bottom of the stairs... he's grabbing our faces and snuggling into shoulders and holding us back when we're holding him.  He's grabby and giggly and his favorite thing right now is playing peekaboo with his little lovey blanket (or bib or book or whatever's nearby) with everyone and anyone who'll give him a second glance.  Especially the handsome little kid he met in the mirror the other day at the dr's office... ;)

And our house has stayed mostly tidy and functional these first few weeks (due in some small part to a couple of caseworker visits per week as of late, no doubt) and I've mostly been planning meals and have packed healthy inventive lunches and have had fun and (mostly) nutritious snacks ready for the kids when they get home.  And I purged the playroom and my bedroom and bathroom are actually clean, which is a nice change!

And I am so looking forward to a vacation.  Whatever it looks like.
And the possibility of running away with my husband for four days.  Even though it's only a possibility at this point. Even though it'll be a lot of him at a conference and colleague dinners and such... but I dare say I'd enjoy some time to myself in a nice hotel or wandering around a fun new city.  And really loving the possibility of my littlest sister and her new baby coming to hang with my kids and visit with us. :)

So my head is busy full, but it's full because of a life that's full and blessed.

Now if I could just remember what day of the week it is...

lovely day

Ever since school started we've had hot, humid, thundery, rainy weather.
Much to the kiddo's chagrin, we haven't been to the pool for over two weeks.
But we woke up this morning and it felt like a fresh, beautiful fall day.  Cool clear and sunny blue skies. :)

I promised the kids that we would hit the pool as soon as we got a sunny day.  But the weather was just too perfect, so we changed up our plans.  It's rare that a day in mid-August around here is actually enjoyable to be active outside... and not have to be in the water to be comfortable. ;)

So as soon as SJ got home from school and Ryan got home from work, we grabbed a picnic dinner and hit the park.  Low to mid-seventies with a cool breeze in TN in August?  Oh yes, I'll take it.

We walked some paths and we enjoyed some dinner and we met another great dane (puppy)(that was already as tall as Clementine) and the kids played on the playground for what seemed like forever.
It was such a nice day, I just couldn't get over it.
In fact, I had that old Bill Withers' song "Lovely Day" playing non-stop in my head... :)

this kid LOVES swinging :)

Then I look at you
And the world's alright with me
Just one look at you
And I know it's gonna be
A lovely day... lovely day, lovely day, lovely day...

and this furry kid loves watching all the kids play :) "someone come pet me!!!"

(gf) banana oatmeal muffins

I've been wanting to share a few recipes lately... I'll put most of them over on my food blog, but wanted to stick a couple here just to have out there as well. 
Now that school has started, I've been trying to be that much more intentional about filling breakfasts, healthy snacks, and easy lunch ideas that the kids (ahem, Sawyer) will eat that are actually nutritious.  I've come across quite a few that have been pretty good successes in our house (and lunchboxes!), and like I said, I'll try and get a handful of them up on the other blog, but I thought I'd start here with our latest favorite from last week:

(Gluten/Wheat free)
Banana Oatmeal Muffins

2  1/2 cup oats (old fashioned kind, not quick cooking)
1 cup of plain low fat greek (or regular) yogurt
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar or sweetener of choice
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1-2 bananas

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray tin with non-stick cooking spray or line 12 muffin tins with silicone or foil liners (I find the paper liners don't work well when baking with a base that does not include flour, they always seem to stick to the paper).
Place oatmeal in food processor and pulse until fine. You can then add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor or as I did, (my food processor is too small) just dump them all in a bowl and combine. I added some mini chocolate chips as well. Cinnamon chips would be yummy!
Divide batter among cupcake liners, and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

I also made a batch with strawberries instead of bananas.  Together would be good also, I just happen to have a kid who doesn't like strawberries so I did two batches.

I especially like these because I have a kid who won't eat breakfast... seriously some mornings it's like pulling teeth to get him to eat anything. If I'm lucky I can get a whole grain waffle (with Nutella) down him or he can usually be tempted with muffins and breads.  Problem is, he just does not have an appetite in the morning and so it really has to be yummy... he won't go for them if they taste too "healthy".  He loves these Banana Oatmeal Muffins however, and I feel good thinking when he eats one of these, he's essentially eating a bowl of oatmeal w/ fruit, yogurt and a side of eggs! :)


Do you have any new breakfast, snack or lunch ideas (nut free for us here please!) I should try?

2nd & 5th

I'm not even gonna bother with the "where has the time gone" and the "I can't believe how fast they grow up" stuff...
Even though I totally don't know where the time has gone and I seriously cannot believe how fast they do grow up.  It's insane.  And scary.  And a little sad for this mama.

But here we are at 2nd and 5th this year... the beginning of a new school year, new grades, new friends, new teachers, and for SJ, a new school!

Yep, this one's now at the middle school.  Talk about growing up....

Savannah was a tad nervous going in and being the youngest again.  But she found lots of friends as soon as we got there to help ease her fears.  Here's her and her bestie, ready to start the fifth grade!!

They're both excited and looking forward to this year.  We've heard nothing but great things about both of their teachers... well, Savannah has more than "a" teacher for her classes (and band this year!!), but we're confident it's going to be a fabulous year. :)

p.s.
We went out for a little dessert before dinner after school to celebrate them both having awesome first days. ;)

the rest of our summer

We crossed quite a bit off our list in our short two months of summer.

We went to STL; Six Flags, the Science Center, a [non]baseball game, and Circus Flora.

We went to the drive-in (Despicable Me 2 and Monsters University)

We managed to hit the lake a couple of times

We camped in the backyard

We had lemonade stands

We did VBS

We passed two sessions of ARC swim instruction

We miniature golfed

We slept in and stayed up late, we watched way too much tv (Full House is the new obsession) and played way too many video games, we chased fireflies and slipped and slid down the slip 'n slide, we made fudge pops and s'mores, we did three great puzzles and played lots and lots of card and board games.

And of course we swam. And swam and swam and swam. Coen was a summertime pool champ.  Seriously could hang out there all day.  He love, love, loves the water and otherwise, he was always happy to chill and nap in the stroller. We spent hours at a time down here... five hours one afternoon and not a peep of complaint from our littlest swimmer. :)

It's been a great summer... so sad to see it end this year!

where we've been all summer

Well, to start off, June sure flew by didn't it!
Along with blank dates on the ol' blog. :(


We saw a lot of old friendly faces in June.
The Laughlins stopped in both on their way to and from Florida and we got to spend some good time with them.  We went to the zoo and we went swimming and just hung out and enjoyed some of our favorite company. :)

The following week, we had a little vacay/staycation of sorts.
Vacation in that we left the town we live in.
Staycation in that we went to the previous town we lived in and stayed at friends' homes. And did a bunch of fun "we miss St. Louis" stuff that we don't get to do anymore... with people we don't regularly get to see anymore.

We left on a Wednesday, (thinking we were getting an early start, but discounting all the freaking summer road construction between here and there)(turned our 5 hr trip into an 8hr trip.) and arrived at the Swinigan's that evening.  So good to see them and let the kids just enjoy each other hear all their good news lately and basically just pick up where we left off last we saw them. :)

On Thursday, Kevin worked and Heather and the girls had a few errands to run, but Heather was kind enough to keep Coen with her all day while Ryan and I took our big kids to Six Flags for some fun in the sun.  We spent the first half of the day in the waterpark, slides (Sawyer and Ryan did the Bonzai Pipeline!!), lazy rivers, wave pools and all.
Lots of water, lots (and lots!) of sun. :)
Sometime around one or two, we stopped and snacked a bit and headed over to the other part of the park.  First stop: take a load off and scope out the park on The Colossus Ferris Wheel (18 stories high!)...

We hit Thunder River and the log ride of course, as well as a few of the big coasters. Savannah opted out of most of them, but Sawyer had a blast. At only 7 years old, he'd not yet been on any real roller coasters... I think he was taken a little by surprise at how fast and crazy it was at first, but he was screaming and laughing and had his hands waving in the air like the best of them.
He did The Boss and American Thunder (formerly called Evil Kenevil) and the new Ninja.
Savannah did the ferris wheel and the carousel. ;)
Ryan did talk her into Batman... because Sawyer was too short for it.  She was hesitant (of course), but they walked up there and there was actually no line, so they got right on before she had any time to really think about it. Ha!
We were pooped that night!

Friday we hung out most of the day, and then all ventured to see one of our favorite local events, Circus Flora.  (It's like a mini, STL based Cirque du Soleil show) Fun, fun!

That Saturday was low key day, with the kids just loving getting to hang out and play together. We got out in the middle of the afternoon and headed to the theater to see Monsters University.

Sunday we bid the Swinigans farewell, met up with some new friends at the Science Center for a few hours, and then made our way to the other side of town to see the Malones.  We had tickets to the Cardinals ballgame that night and we went out for dinner beforehand.  The pub we ate at had a free trolley down to the game, and the kids were giddy to take a ride.  Even though it was pouring and storming. :(

The game was delayed three hours... everyone was a good sport while we made it about half that time (til 8:30) but with five kids past their bedtime and no game start in sight, we gave up and headed back to the house.

tired, bored, good sport cotton candy smiles

We left St Louis pretty early Monday morning and took our time getting home early enough to be able to unwind and relax a little. 

All in all, it was a really great trip, packed with fun stuff and fun people and we're so glad we had a chance to get up there and and enjoy it.