Church and Children

Church with a large family of little ones is a challenge for even a Saint. Every week, we do our best to attend Mass and keep the kids from erupting in the pew with anything from a loud noise, crying, talking, arguing, making body noises, or picking thy nasal cavity.
Those are just to name a few issues.
Mike and I have 'battled' getting to church for more than a decade and most of those years contain at least one child under 12 months. It has challenged us.....so much! 

The typical Sunday finds us winding our way to an open pew and filing in. I kneel down and do my best to focus on prayer by asking God for help in being a good wife, mother, sister, daughter, and thank Him for all the blessings he has given our family.

Suddenly, I feel a shove against my back and realize that Nick and Noah are laying on the pew and kicking their feet at one another. 

AARRGGHH!

Score:

Peaceful meditation: 0   

Church Challenges: 1

So, I jerk them apart, usually by an ear, and remind them that God is asking us to be especially with him in adoration at Mass. Sheepish, yet suspiciously suspicious looks are staring back at me and my first finger, which is always pointed toward someone. So, I tuck my finger back into its holster and turn around. For at least another 20 seconds...

"Dear Lord.....Noah, stop it........thank You for all that You have blessed us with.....put the books back, Nick............please help, God! Amen."

Mike and I have decided to break our family up into defensive zones of control. We alternate between one with Katie and the older 3(who are fairly obedient at mass) and the other gets the two boys. This has, for the most part, worked out to some degree. It means one of us is walking Katie at the back of church and the other appears to be in a referee/wrestling/disciplinarian role the entire time.

I know that there may be a day in the future when I am sitting in the pew and thanking God for all I have and asking Him to help me be a better mother, wife, grandmother....and I will look over and see a mother with her little children. 

And remember. 

And miss.

So, I am doing my best to love every day and to embrace the vocation of motherhood that He has blessed me with. To also remember that ultimately, God knows my heart and knows my struggles and that He is understanding of my situation currently. 

My Mass may be complex and prayers may be brief and in between a small skirmish, but He knows me and loves me and that helps comfort me during church when I seem to need Him so much.

A Kiddo Funny Moment...

My birthday boy...Today!...has the flu. He has been ill for three days and I gave him something to drink when he asked last night.

"What is it?" He peered at the orange liquid with suspicion.

"Gatorade," I replied. "It will make you feel better."

He drank it and later called to me a request.

"Mom," he yelled. "Can I have some more of that alligator juice?!"

Too funny!

Oh...The Good 'Ol Days of Illness...

Let me say this for starters. 

For some reason, peppermint comforts me. I like the sweet and bitingly cool and refreshing flavor and scent of it. It comforts, soothes, and relaxes me.

This past two weeks have been filled with days and nights of fevers, emesis buckets, Kleenex, baths, showers for croup then followed by 5 minutes in my bathrobe outside in -5 degree temps to help 'shock' the bronchial tubes, dripping noses, pink eye, headaches, bleach, crying miserable kids, and diarrhea.

Did I leave anything out??

For some reason, my family likes to take illness in children to the heights that only a death-defying ride at Six Flags can provide. We don't just get one illness, we get them all at the same time in some wild round robin fashion where varying viral illnesses and bacteria jockey for their rightful place as emperor for a day...before moving on to the next unsuspecting tot. Then we will exchange that virus for this bacteria between siblings so at least everyone has one...dare I say three illnesses at the same time. I mean...we are teaching them to share.

Sigh...

So, is it any wonder that this drooling sleep-deprived dishrag of a woman is sitting here with Peppermint spritz body perfume sprayed on, drinking peppermint tea, and eating candy canes and peppermint Hershey Kisses?

Not to this girl, folks.

I'm just trying to hold on to sanity...and a box of Kleenex. 

Life in Perspecive

I am jumping in here with a 'life in perspective' moment. We do tend to, as humans, place too much weight on some things and not enough on other more important things in our lives. A saying that I cannot remember the origins of comes to mind. The saying states that if you hold a pebble right up near your eye, the eye must focus entirely on it and is unable to proper see much else. Stretch your arm out and hold the pebble as far away as you can. Only then is the pebble in its proper perspective and you are able to place that which you were so focused on away from consuming you and into a more manageable place and where it should be in relation to your life.

To expand upon our humanity, please visit this site, which will only emphasize where we really are to our universe. But, isn't it wonderful how special and important we are, even then!

www.kiroastro.com/writings/perspective

What to pack for Disney...

I'm making a list..I'm checking it twice...

Well, honestly, I'm checking it about 30,000,000 times. How in the world does a mother pack for 8 people for Disney World???? There are lists galore out there that I have copied off the internet, but I cannot honestly seem to trim back more than jacking the house up off the foundation and shipping it down there based on what we will probably need. I am excited, but I am thinking about calling U-Haul rather than the van rental that has been scheduled. 

My parents rented a 15 passenger van for the trip...God bless them! It will be my family, my BIL and sister and their 7 month-old daughter, and my mom and dad for a total of 13. Cozy! My eyes DID cross, however, when dad suggested that we only pack what could fit under the seats. 

Mercy!

Then it came to me...Space bags! I have to take an inflatable mattress with us anyway and there is a reverse on the inflator, so I think this may be it!! Anyhow, say a prayer for me that it will work.

I just cannot see fitting my entire house under the seat...

Back On the Blog!

Wow...after much of forgetting passwords and such, I found my way back to my blog. I have plenty to write on and plenty of time to sit at the computer today because my infant daughter is ill with the croup and a nasty head cold so we are vegging out.
I hope that this will be legible and that I even remember writing it because after three days without much sleep, I am having a hard time remembering how to pour a bowl of cereal. My husband is in no better shape. His 36th birthday was yesterday...Happy Birthday, Honey!...and he is so tired from finishing this semester in his MBA program, working full time, PLUS spending any time with me and our six kiddos, I'm surprised we're not just sleepwalking.....wait.....I think we are. Not sure. I'll have to get back with you after some sleep. (eyes crossed)
The whole house has some head cold/croup going on so we sound like some tragic band in concert of sniffs, coughs, and "horn" blowing. In a fit of pique yesterday, I wondered whether we should make a go of some type of CD release.
We are, however, on the cusp of a trip to Walt Disney World hosted and paid for by my parents and my sister and BIL. The kids, though not running at 100%, were excited to have a week off homeschool and preparation for the big trip. My whole family, except on sister and hubby, will be going down there and we are looking forward to having a blast. I hear them in the background watching the free DVD from Disney and talking.......and coughing, sniffling, and crouping....
Baby is finally asleep.
Better get SOMETHING done while I have a moment..

*Kiddo Moment*

My 5 year-old son, Noah, came into the kitchen last night and pointed to a box of muffins and asked for one. It was about 9pm, and my husband told him that they were for breakfast. Noah slumped his shoulders and left the room, so my husband and I continued our conversation.
Five minutes later, Noah returns with a huge smile on his face.
"I'm ready for breakfast!"