This and that

I finally have a few minutes... Unfortunately, I have just come down with a bad cold, sore throat, achiness, etc. Since I am nursing, I can't take decongestants. Ugh! My hubby just took Jamie to Scouts and the younger boys ran along, too. Baby is asleep in her swing. I'm thinking I should probably become horizontal for a few minutes, but wanted to write some lines as I have been noticably absent lately. I'm good for pictures!

Dan won his baseball game on Saturday. The score was 11-5 and he got 3 runs. One of them was a home run, so he got the "game ball." He was so excited. Now they go into tournament play. I hope that doesn't last too long. The schedule as been crazy.

I have a few prayer requests: Please pray for Dan. He is "acting up" lately. It is like he is vibrating, can't keep his hands to himself, says unkind things, is very selfish, etc. It is really wearing on me. We are trying to make sure he doesn't get too much sugar or things with additives. Stu needs prayer for work. We haven't had a closing since last summer. I am very overwhelmed and so is he. Condos are selling and we have many under contract, but they need to be completed and are behind schedule. We need financial blessing! I am feeling discouraged in a lot of areas right now. Please pray for me to persevere and trust God. I haven't been able to sit through a message at church since the baby was born and I'm feeling like I'm in a spiritual valley. Not sure what else to say because there's so much... thanks!

A kid again...

Max has a blast skating for the 1st time!
Nancy takes a break to feed Eden...interesting!
Celeste with one of her best friends, Brandon

What fun last night! Our church rented out the local skating rink and I took 5 of the kids. (Dan had a baseball game and Stu was coaching.) I wasn't planning on skating and neither was Max, but we both had a real good time! I posted a few pictures. This was Max's first time and he was like a kamikaze skater--falling forward through space. I'm a little sore today, but not too much worse for wear.

Also, I took Celeste in to take the College Placement Test today. I about had an anxiety attack when I left her at the testing center on the campus to move the car. She's SO grown up now. Praise God, she's so smart, she passed into all college courses. We will hear in late May whether she's been accepted into the Dual Enrollment program. Thus starts a new phase in our lives here.

Heart of FL Air Show

Stu took Dan and Max to the Air Show yesterday. Also, their little friend, Ben, went along. They had a wonderful time looking at the airplanes and talking to pilots. My big brother, Ed, was there with Gainesville Police's helicopter. Ed is a Captain with GPD and, on a personal note, he is a helicopter pilot. He has his commercial license and is a certified instructor. Cool!

Little Road Trip

On Friday, Celeste and Jamie performed at the Lake City Relay for Life with Mimetime. Mimetime is a group of kids from our church that does Mime and some signing to Christian music. I drove up with Celeste, Jamie, Eden, Tommy, Lettie (a good friend from church), Isaac (mimer and her son), and Katie (Lettie's daughter). We had a good time! All of the Mimes and company went to Moe's for dinner afterwards with everyone. YUM!

Here are a few pictures from the weekend. They include my Dad and StepMom (Pipa and Mima). Also, there is my younger brother, Jamie. We hadn't seen him in over a year--3 years for Celeste and Jamie. It was a crazy weekend and I was exhausted when we got home. It's a challenge to travel with 6 kids--but mostly the baby and the toddler wore us out! In addition, it was Dan's 8th birthday on Easter Sunday. I can't believe it's been that long. He's getting so big!

Mini vacation

We're in Sarasota for the weekend. I've taken lots of cute pictures, so I will be posting them when I get home. Right now the kids are outside playing yard darts with their Pipa. My brother, Jamie, is coming in later this afternoon. I haven't seen him since December 2005. Celeste and Jamie haven't seen him in about 3 years. We're excited!!

Put to the Test

Today is testing day. FL law for home schoolers requires that they turn in either a yearly standardized test or be evaluated by a certified teacher. We like to do the test. (I couldn't find an evaluator who would give me valuable feedback, so I gave up!) Anyway, Celeste, Jamie, and Dan are testing today and tomorrow all morning. Please pray for a good outcome! I hope I do well--it is a reflection on how well home school has gone this year. Usually my kids test many grade levels ahead. I'm hoping that continues! Meanwhile, I have to go get a shower before the rest of the younger crew gets up. Bye!

Gators Win 2nd NCAA Championship in a Row!

GO GATORS!!

84-75

GatorZone

Big kids come home tonight

Hi all! It's been a busy week here without Celeste and Jamie. I have gotten a lot more organized and we're functioning rather well without them, BUT they fly in tonight late. All of us can't wait to see them. Celeste is feeling under the weather. I think she has a bad cold/flu. Please pray for her. Jamie, Celeste, and Dan all have testing on Thursday and Friday, so I am hoping all are well at that time. 2 days! Then we're all going to Sarasota to visit my parents for Easter. It should be a great time! We haven't been down since last May. We like to go to the beach in May. Hope to do it again this year, too!

In other news, I've been using the cloth diapers on Eden. I think I finally figured out how to get the smells out of them with my very hard water and high efficiency (silly) washer. I am using baking soda in the wash and vinegar in the rinse. BTW, don't buy a Fisher & Paykel washing machine. They don't get your clothes clean. I may be purchasing something else here soon. I ordered more Chinese Prefolds (rainbow short) from Green Mountain Diapers. I also got some toddler diapers to try on Tommy. We'll see how that goes. I hope to get him potty trained one of these days. I am looking forward to my order arriving tomorrow. I also LOVE Motherease products. They have the absolute best covers. No leaks ever!