Christmas 2010

"Have courage for the great sorrows of life and patience for the small ones. When you have finished your daily task, go to sleep in peace. God is awake."

Christmas 2010. Another wonderful year. Our family went to mass on Christmas Eve - Ethan sang in the children's choir. The really good thing about that is that it gets us to our church early. Mass started at 4:00, but children in the choir were to be at the church by 3:00. We got a nice long pew where we all got to sit together. By the time mass started, our church was completely filled! It is a big beautiful church. People were standing all around all the way back to the doors and in the hallways by the restrooms. And being there that early, gave 4 of our children a chance to fall asleep and take a nap while the choir sang Christmas carols.

After mass we took our children out to eat. It has become a tradition on Christmas Eve. It is one night when we take all of them to a restaurant - which is a treat. Plus, it is never crowded. This year they wanted to go to Cheeseburger in Paradise - again. That is where we ate last year. I love their food, so I was all for it. It was fun. Our children behaved for the most part and enjoyed their dinners.

When we got home, it was time to quickly make some cookies for Santa, make food for his reindeers, hang up our stockings, and check the internet to see where Santa's sleigh was last seen. When they announced that Santa was in Canada, our children ran around saying they had to hurry and get to bed. They all went to their own beds and most of them fell right to sleep. I think Ethan got up 7 times before 1:00am to check to see if it was morning yet. Jacob decided he was done sleeping in his crib around 1:00am too. I'm not sure how I fell back to sleep, but the next thing I knew, we had 2 boys standing over us with coffee in their hands telling Tom and I it was time to get up. It was 6:00am. We soon had 6 children and 1 tired, confused little boy trying to get us to get out of bed. We asked for a few minutes to enjoy our coffee and then we got up.

Santa was very good to our children this year. He always is. Our children don't really get gifts except on their birthdays and on Christmas, so we feel it's ok to "spoil" them a little. They're good. Plus, it's fun for us and I love seeing them so excited. Which they were.

We went to my sister's home that afternoon and had a wonderful dinner there with her family and our parents. It was a great night. We brought our nephew back home with us and the boys stayed up way too late. But that is what sleepovers are all about right?

So now I am trying to make room in our house for the new items. Getting organized and putting together a lot of donation bags for tomorrow. Tom thinks I am already "nesting" and he loves it. I think it's a little early for that, but maybe with each child it starts a little earlier.

Merry Christmas!

December Already?

"Don't look down on someone, unless you're helping them up."

Have I really not blogged since November? Wow! December is flying by. I am trying hard to stay relaxed and enjoy this time of year. I love Christmas! The music, the decorations, spending time with family, getting cards in the mail,...

December did start out a little rough this year. The stomach flu visited our home and stayed for a long time. It was very quick with each person, but we would get a day or 2 in between of no one acting sick. We would think we were in the clear and then someone would "get sick." The friendship between me and my washing machine has grown.

Along with the flu bug I got a sinus infection too. Not fun - but very common for me, especially when I am pregnant. I tried for about 2 weeks to get rid of the pain and pressure myself, but finally had to go to Convenient Care one evening. I was looking for some help and relief from pain, what I got was a lot of disappointment. Oh, I got the antibiotic from the doctor, but from the nurse I got some uncomfortable, unwanted comments. She could see that I am pregnant. She asked if this was my first. I gave her a little smile and said no, this is our 8th child. Her response? Oh, honey! Don't you know what causes that yet? You know there is a thing known as birth control. 

Are you kidding me? I am sitting there with tears in my eyes from the pain in my head and this nurse chooses to make me feel even more uncomfortable and thinks I need a "lecture" on having babies. Then she continues with telling me she wanted 2 and her husband wanted 6 so they compromised and had 4. Her youngest 2 are in college now and I better consider sending my children down South to college if I ever want to afford it. How was I going to have enough money to pay for 8? 

Really? Did I look like I was there to discuss my children's college funds? Did I look like I wanted this woman's opinion on anything except how to feel better? Because what she was doing, was not helping me feel any better. Why do some people think they have the right to voice thier opinions like this? As soon as some people find out how many children I have, they feel they have the right to make any comment they want to me.

Did I say anything? No. My husband said I should have, but I was in pain and this was a woman that I was looking to for help. I didn't want to have a conversation with her. I do wish that I would have grabbed a comment card. I believe this place does send a "How did we do?" form to your home to fill out after you visit. I'll be looking for it in the mail.

Most of our shopping is done, cards have been ordered and are ready to be picked up today, and visiting Santa is next on our list. Every year I tell our oldest I just need one more picture with all of our children with Santa. Well, I keep stretching that comment each year. And of course, next year I will need one more.

Baby 8 looks wonderful so far. Tests have come back great and now we wait until the end of January to take a peek at him/her again. My belly is out there, so more people are finding out. Our children are sharing the news too. They are very excited - and theirs is the only opinion that matters to me.

Merry Christmas!

Noah is 9

"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you as you are to them."

Happy Birthday to our son Noah Stephen (aka Snowman.) Big 9 year old today! We started the day with blueberry muffins. Noah had a candle in his and we all sang to him. For lunch, me, Tom, Jacob, Sarah, and Leah went to Noah's school and had lunch with him. We brought McD's. I am glad that Noah is not too old for this yet. When he saw me he gave me a huge smile and hug. And I love going to my children's schools and hearing "Hello Mrs. Sherman" from other children that know me.

Noah is a wonderful little boy. He is the only one that gave me a "real" warning that he was ready to be born. Eight days before his due date, my water broke. I am thankful that I was at home when it happened. Noah was 6 lbs when he was born. Little peanut. And it is amazing to think that when he was 2 yrs old we put him in speech therapy because all he said was Momma, Dada, and Baby (for Rachel.) He will now talk to you non-stop. About everything! He has so much knowledge in his head. It's amazing. He is a lot of fun and is one of the sweetest people I know.

This morning Tom and I went to have the First Trimester Screening done. Our little one is growing just as he or she should be. Measurements were right on for our due date and the test looked good so far. We have to wait a week to get the bloodwork and have everything "calculated." I am still amazed at how perfect our baby looks at only 12 weeks old and 2 inches big. Baby was wiggling around a lot. I absolutely love seeing the little hands - all the little fingers. At one point, I put my left arm over my head to get more comfortable. Our baby did the exact same thing. Baby's left arm went up over his or her head. The technician made a comment about it and smiled.

So now I am up and trying to do laundry. I skipped a few days and now I am paying for it. I laughed at myself last week when I was doing laundry. After I was done filling and starting the washer, I patted it - like it was my buddy. I thought: Wow! Either I am going a little crazy, or I am spending too much time with my washing machine.

I am also going through boxes of clothes in our basement. I have decided it is time to let go of some stuff. Trying to be strict with myself. There are people who need clothes, and I have a ton just sitting in storage waiting to be used someday - maybe. I have at least a vanload of clothes to donate. I am also digging up coats and hats and gloves. It has gotten pretty cold here today. I am not  prepared for cold weather.

Tonight I am very thankful that we have a home and are not out in the cold. Our house might be a little small for all 9 of us (soon to be 10), but at least each of us has a warm, comfortable bed to sleep in.

Giving Thanks

"Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. And lo, no one was there."

Thanksgiving Day. My mother-in-law came over for Thanksgiving dinner. We had a wonderful day. Food was yummy and our children were very well-behaved.

After eating, we decided it was time to share our news with our younger children. We gave Jacob a note to pass to Noah and Rachel. Rachel read it outloud.

It said: I am thankful for my little brother or sister.

It took a moment, but they quickly understood what the note meant - and thankfully we have it all on video. Noah's first words were: "Wait! What just happened?" It was priceless. So now everyone knows why mommy has been so tired and not feeling well. The girls are very excited!

Friday, Tom and I got up at 3:00am and got to our first store by 4:00am. We shopped all day. We got home around 5:30pm. We had a great time - got some terrific deals, but mostly got to spend time together.  

On Saturday, Tom and our 2 oldest took our 3 pets for their yearly check-up. Our cat, Moose has lost some weight. We were concerned. Well, yesterday I got a phone call from our vet. Moosey has diabetes. Ugh. I was upset, but I quickly reminded myself that lots of people hear this about their children - this is my kitty, not my child. Still, he has been a wonderful cat. Our children love him and he loves them. He is always cuddling with one of them. So this morning I learned how to give Moose insulin shots. I told my children to pray to St. Francis and we will see how Moosey does on the shots and new diet. Hopefully after awhile the diet will work and we can take him off insulin.

Oh, what we do for those we love.

Tonight we took our children to the movie Tangled. Very good. Everyone enjoyed it. (Brandon stayed home and babysat Jakey. Tom had taken the boys to Harry Potter on Sunday.) It was a nice "treat" for Noah's birthday. Tomorrow Noah Stephen turns 9!

And tomorrow Tom and I are going to our 1st Trimester Screening. I always get nervous before this test. I just want it over. I have to have hope and faith that our child is healthy. We are praying for all good news tomorrow.

Showing

"Blessed are those that can give without remembering and can receive without forgetting."

I guess it's about time to start telling. I can't "hide" my belly much longer.

Last Sunday I helped with Children's Liturgy. I had to go to the front of the church with all the little children. After mass, one of my friends came up to me and asked me if I was pregnant. I smiled and said "Why would you ask me that?" She said she could tell by the way I was standing up front at mass. Guess I had my hands on my belly. Thought I was helping to "cover up" that area, but instead I brought attention to it.

Last night our children were talking and our 7 yr old Rachel said to our 8 yr old Noah: Maybe Mom will have another baby. If it's a girl, we will have 4 boys and 4 girls. It would be even. And Noah replied: Rachel, Mom is not going to have another baby. Brandon and Ethan just smiled at me. (Our oldest 2 - they know.)

And then this morning, I was in the kitchen and Leah, 5 yrs old, told me that my tummy is really big! I said Thank you Leah. That is what every woman likes to hear.

Yep. I think the news has to come out on Thanksgiving. Maybe at dinner when we go around the table and say what we are thankful for.

10 Week Ultrasound

"God tells us to burden Him with whatever burdens us."

My husband came home and picked me up to go to our ultrasound. I was so happy he could make it home. I was nervous and I was full of water! Tom and I were talking about how this was a little too "familiar." When we were pregnant with our 3rd, we had a miscarriage. We found out for sure with an ultrasound at 10 weeks. After a week, my body still wouldn't let go and I had a D&C the day before Thanksgiving.

(Deep breath.)

We got to our doctor's office. Thankfully, we only had to wait a couple of minutes before the technician came and got us. While she asked a few questions, I was trying to say a quick Hail Mary and Our Father. Then we started the ultrasound. Wow! Did our baby grow! Such a huge relief. He/She measured 10 weeks 3 days and heart was beating in the 160's. The little hand was up by the face and the little legs were kicking. Amazing. We tried to get a nice profile picture. I honestly was having a hard time seeing what was what in the picture we got, but Tom and the tech could both see it fine. 

It is so beautiful to see the little life inside.

I have so much to be thankful for.

On our way home we stopped to pick up my wedding ring. It looks so shiny and new. They did a wonderful job. When they asked if we wanted to look at anything else, Tom asked about Mother's Rings. We told them I used to have stackable ones, but first of all the store we used to go to stopped making them and second, stackables didn't really work for me anymore. Then they asked how many children we have. I think this was the first time I had ever said to someone outloud we are expecting our 8th.

Now we're trying to decide when to tell everyone, especially our children. Our 2 oldest know, but not the other 5. And once our 8 year old, Noah, knows - everyone will know.

Doctor Visit

"A baby is God's opinion that the world should go on."

Little stinker kept quiet today. My doctor searched for our baby's heartbeat, but could not find it. I am trying to stay positive. Tomorrow I will go in for an ultrasound. In my heart, I know that I will see a beautiful little heart beating. I will update tomorrow when I get home.

This morning I woke up with a new idea for my Etsy store. I will have to work on that in my "spare" time. When I do, I will share the link.

I also had a great morning with my Bible Girls at Bible Study. We started a new book about being a wife and mother with grace. It was a good discussion.

Well, this evening has been a bit exhausting - both physically and emotionally. I am going to go get everyone ready for bed, including myself.

School Support

"The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches, but to reveal to him his own."

This morning my husband and I went to our 8 yr old son's school for an IEP meeting. I am so thankful for the support he has at his school. Everyone was so wonderful at the meeting. We all agreed that Noah still needs some help at school, but now it is focused more on his "tic disorder" not his academic work. Noah is a very bright little boy who has a lot of energy and has some difficulty focusing on his work when he is having tics. I am so happy with how the meeting went. I know that he is surrounded by people who really care about him and want to see him succeed.

Tomorrow I go back to my OB to see if we can hear our baby's heartbeat. If not, I will go in for an ultrasound. I felt very sick and tired yesterday and took it as a good sign. I still made it to Eucharistic Adoration last night to spend some quiet time in prayer. I have to have faith that all will be ok.

I read on a "baby" site a post by a woman that really got me thinking. She wondered why a couple would continue to have babies when they were worried about being able to afford Christmas presents for the children they already had. I was surprised by that statement. Christmas should be about Jesus and family before it is about toys. She said something like - sorry kids we decided to have another child rather than getting you more gifts. Somehow, in her mind that made the couple heartless. I know presents are a big deal to children on Christmas morning, but I hope our children always understand the importance of life and family over any object. Hopefully they would choose their sibling over a new video game or Barbie :o)

For our family, Tom and I save a little out of each of his paychecks through the year and put it in a separate Christmas account. Then our children get 3 gifts each - the same number Jesus received when he was born.

When we were expecting Jacob, he was our "pickle gift" to our children. That is how we told them we were pregnant. And to this day, our children still talk about the best present they ever got on Christmas - the news that there was going to be another brother or sister.

I don't think I can wait until Christmas this time. This child might have to be our "What we're thankful for" news at Thanksgiving dinner.



My Diamond

"Count your blessings."

My prayers to St. Anthony were answered through my 1 yr old son Jacob. I was sitting on our couch this morning when Jacob crawled by me, reached under, and grabbed something. He sat up and was looking at something in his little hands. I thought he had found a piece of food, so I leaned down and took it from his fingers. It was my diamond! Amazing! I picked up Jakey and gave him a huge hug and told him Mommy is going to go buy him a new toy today. Yay!

Thank you St. Anthony for working through my son.

Appointment

"Hope is faith holding its hand out in the dark."

I went for my appointment yesterday. Doctor could not find our baby's heartbeat. I am trying not to worry. I will go back next week to see if we can hear it. If not, I will go in for an ultrasound. Jacob did this to me, so I am trying to stay positive. Plus, I am still feeling very tired and nauseous. I've never been so thankful for nausea.

Good thing about today: Went to the High Honor Roll breakfast at our son, Ethan's school this morning. It is wonderful that they do this for the students. Each student received a certificate and each parent received a "Proud Parent" cling-on for their car.

Bad thing about today: While sitting on the couch I noticed my diamond fell out of my Engagement/Wedding ring. Where do you even begin looking for something like that? I called the school to let them know. You never know. I once lost a sapphire earring that Tom gave me while we were dating. I called the stores at the mall where I had been trying on clothes that day. One store called me the next day. The cleaning crew found it right before they vacuumed it up. So who knows? Maybe my diamond will be found when the school is cleaned tonight. I am a bit nervous to vacuum my home. I will keep praying to St. Anthony to please help me find it.

My Birthday

"Standing up for what is right can be hard - especially if you stand alone."

I am officially "in my 40's" now.

For my birthday I got to mark one of my goals off. I drove downtown Chicago - and didn't really enjoy it, but made it. Our family went to the Science Museum. We have a family membership and hadn't used it yet because we would have to drive two cars for all of us to go and I wasn't ready to do that. Of course, that means paying for 2 cars to park too. That alone costs a bit of money. And I didn't notice, but our pass only allowed for 3 children. Huh? The lady let us in without buying more tickets, but told us we would have to get a hold of membership to change it. I did. They are sending us new cards. The day was good. Our children had fun and learned a few new things that day. They really enjoyed the submarine exhibit. And our son, Noah is like a little sponge for knowledge. He loves to learn about everything. He is always talking and asking questions. It is fun to go to museums with him.

Today I am going back to the doctor. They are going to listen for our baby's heartbeat. I am a little nervous. I think I am only around 9 weeks and so I know that it might be hard to hear the heartbeat. I went through this with my last child. I ended up going in for an ultrasound the same day because they couldn't hear the heartbeat. Thankfully, all was well. So now if I don't hear our baby's heartbeat today - I won't know if there is something "wrong" or if it's just too early.

It is still amazing to think that we will have another family member this summer.

Halloween

"God doesn't require us to succeed; He only requires that you try."

Halloween was a lot of fun at our home. We invited a few neighbors and family members over to celebrate Leah's 5th birthday - then fed everyone some healthy food before sending them out to collect all the candy. The weather was beautiful and our children had a lot of fun running around with their friends.

Yesterday was Eucharistic Adoration at our church. I love going to EA. I walk in there and as soon as I sit down in the dark and quiet church, I let it all out. That is one moment when I let go of all of my responsibilities. I just let myself be a child before our Father. Last night I sat and cried. My tears were not necessarily sad tears. They were just made up of everything I needed to hand over to God. My fears, my frustrations, my exhaustion. Taking care of a home with a husband and 7 children while being in my first trimester with our 8th child can feel a bit overwhelming. I felt much better after spending time praying and then singing during the Benediction. I came home feeling "rested" and renewed. I am very blessed. I have a warm, cozy home and a wonderful, loving, supportive family. I can do this.

Leah

"Celebrate Life"

Today we celebrate the 5th year of having our sweet beautiful blondie, Leah. Leah is our 5th child. (I am the 5th child in my family too.) I found out we were expecting Leah right before we went to DisneyWorld. No wild rides for me - a lot of snacking and taking breaks. 1st Trimester and DisneyWorld don't really mix well. But I LOVE going to Disney with my family. Can't wait to plan another trip there, but we will have to. All that fun requires money - Plus, we don't have a vehicle that fits all of us to drive that far. Ha!

When I found out I was pregnant, I was a little surprised. I wanted to be clever with telling Tommy.

First, I tried putting a hot dog bun in the oven. "Bun in the Oven." Well, Tom came home - it was Friday so we do pizza and a movie with our children - and Tom brought in the pizza and went over to the oven to bake it. I stood there as he opened the door, pulled out the plate with a bun on it, he placed it on the counter, and put the pizza in. Hello? Nothing. He didn't even question it.

Second, while on the couch I put my feet on his lap. The socks I was wearing said "Expecting Mommy" all over them. He didn't notice.

Third, I went upstairs to our bathroom mirror. Now, we used to play this game called Mad Gab. You would say words out loud, that when said together, would sound like another word or phrase. We did this on our mirror a lot, so it didn't surprise Tommy when he saw a note on the mirror. This is what I wrote:

Whee harp Reagan ant.

Tommy struggled with it for a few minutes. I had snuck into our room to watch him. He kept saying it and I was trying very hard to control my laughter. I could "hear" him saying the correct sentence, but he couldn't.

Now say those 4 words aloud and blend them together and you get:

We are pregnant.

Finally he got it. And Tommy's face was priceless!

Leah is a sweetheart. She loves her family very much. She loves to sing and dance and play dress up. Leah used to be sort of a "tom-boy" until her older sister, Rachel got a hold of her. Rachel was very excited to get a sister. Someone to play dolls with and to dress up. Rachel taught Leah the fun in getting pretty with hair and clothes. 

Leah has beautiful blonde hair that she got from her grandma - and the most amazing blue eyes. She always has a smile on and is ready to play.

Happy Birthday to our "Stinkerbell."

7 weeks

"Faith is Hope realized."

Tommy and I went back today for another ultrasound. Baby measured 1 week older and baby's heartbeat was good. I guess the week before it was a bit low and they were concerned, but no one told me. Our doctor said that it looks like a good pregnancy right now, but we should still probably not share our news with too many others yet. Everyone in the office seems very cautious around me, which actually makes me feel more nervous.

So the only ones that will hear of our news are those that read my blog. And once you know, all I ask is that you pray for good health for me and my baby.

I will go back in 2 weeks to listen to my baby's amazing heartbeat.

7 weeks - I am growing!

6 weeks

 "Babies are amazing!"

Yesterday Tom met me at my doctor's office. I had an ultrasound scheduled.

The first thing the tech said was that I looked like I was only 5 weeks pregnant. My heart sank. I expected to be a couple weeks later than that, so I figured the pregnancy had stopped. Been there before.

So after a few measurements, she told me she wanted to do an internal ultrasound. She let me visit the restroom first. As soon as I shut the door, I cried. Too many emotions going through me. I went back in the room expecting the worst. The tech started doing more measurements and asked me to be very still. After a couple of minutes she turned the screen towards me and Tom. "There's your baby's heartbeat." And there on the screen was our baby. The size of a grain of rice with an amazing heartbeat. The tech handed me a picture and said "Congratulations!"

Tom and I just looked at each other. When the tech left the room Tom told me that if he had ever questioned this child, the look on my face when I thought we had miscarried made him realize just how much we need this baby to be ok.

We went back to the waiting room to wait for our appointment with my doctor. We got out our calendars. We were puzzled at the timing. How could this be? Only 5 - 6 weeks?

When we got into the room with my doctor, we talked to him about the date. He said 2 things. First, the possibility that our baby wasn't growing. Second, we were wrong about when we got pregnant. (Which we did figure out how we could have gotten that wrong. Nursing a child can really throw your cycle way off! In fact, when we took that first test, we really might not have been pregnant yet.)

So next week we are going back for another ultrasound to see if our baby has grown.



6 weeks - my heart is beating



Roller Coaster Ride

"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies."

I am on a roller coaster! Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to get off.

My bench has come into my dreams again...

This time, she got down. She ran to Him and took His hand. They walked to the beautiful garden behind the tall gate. She was happy. But then she heard someone crying. The next thing I saw was me sitting on the bench with my head in my hands. Then I felt her little arms go through my hair and wrap around my shoulders. I closed my eyes and held her tight.

He stood by and smiled.

I'm not sure what all of this means, but I like to write it down for myself to look back and read later.

 I went in for a 3rd test this morning. Tomorrow I will get the results. Friday's test looked great, but Monday's test looked iffy.

Faith. God has a plan for me.

And I saw something on my sister-in-law's FB wall.

"A woman's heart should be so hidden in Christ that a man should have to seek Him first to find her." ~ Author Unknown

Love it!

10-10-10

"You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith."

It is 10-10-10!

Have you ever had someone come up to you and say something to you that was exactly what you needed to hear? I feel like I got a "message" today. The 9 of us went to mass this morning. We sat in the back this time. I was trying to get everyone settled before I headed downstairs to help teach Children's Liturgy. I'm not sure why, but I really felt like people were looking at us. We did have a very long line of chairs set up for just our family. It might just be me, but if people look at us, and I can tell they're counting our children, and then they look at me without a smile - I feel like I am being judged. You would think I would feel comfortable at church, but even there I let it get to me sometimes. (I have heard things that have been said behind my back by "friends.") At the end of mass our children rushed to get into line for donuts. I was gathering our things and holding little Jakey when an older lady came up to me. She looked me straight in the eye, put her hand on my shoulder, and smiled. She told me my children are absolutely beautiful and so well-behaved. She said she knows people with one child who can't handle the one. She said she had always wanted 6,8, or 12 children - she had 3. She looked at me and said,
"God knows what He is doing."

I really appreciated this lady coming up to me. I needed to hear that. It was nice that my older children heard what she had to say too.

My "bench" again

"Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you..."

So over a week ago I thought I might need to take a "test." Late, tired, just not feeling right. And even though I am sometimes very comfortable living in denial - my husband is not. He convinced me to just do it. We did. I was shaking the entire time and just stared at the test. Negative. There was a moment of relief followed by a moment of slight disappointment. My head verses my heart.

Then a couple of days ago I had a dream and saw my "bench" again. She was still there. A little girl with dark hair. She looked confused, a little lost. Jesus came over with a gentle smile on his face. He knealt down, put His hands around this little girl and carefully picked her up. He gently placed her on the bench. She just looked at Him and he continued to smile at her. It was as if He was telling her that everything was going to be ok.

And that was it.

Yesterday, I decided to take another test...

Respect Life

"Any fool can count the seeds in an apple. Only God can count all the apples in one seed."

One step forward - two steps back.

Yesterday was a bit frustrating. I guess some people just refuse to understand. A little compassion would be nice. I get tired of trying to explain my 8 year old son's tics and behavior to adults that I have already explained it to. Sometimes I just want to tell them to "deal with it." Any frustrations they feel, can't compare to what my child is feeling.

My oldest also told me that there are kids making fun of his tics at school. He used to want everyone around him to know about his TS, but now he doesn't. His teachers all know, but he doesn't want all of his classmates to know. Maybe he doesn't want to be known as the kid with TS. He still seems to be comfortable with who he is, but he is a high school teenager. Lots of changes. As a mom, I want to explain to these kids so hopefully they will stop mocking my son, but I will respect my son's wishes. I want him to see that he can trust me with his feelings.

Poor kid just found out he got another "hand-me-down" from me. He was looking a bit yellow to me - eyes, then skin. We got bloodwork done and found his bilirubin levels elevated - same as me. Looks like we both have Gilbert's Syndrome. Nothing to be too concerned about. Just need to try to not get overly stressed or tired.

This last Sunday was Respect Life Sunday. Father talked about accepting children, taking care of those who are sick and/or elderly. I liked where we sat. We usually sit up front when we go into the church, but this time we sat in the back - second row from the last. Behind us was a lady in a wheelchair who was being cared for by her husband. Next to them was an elderly couple who really enjoyed our children - especially Jacob. And a few more elderly people. Then there was our "big" family. Together, we were a good example of  "Respect Sunday."

I feel we are very blessed with all of our children - but I still really needed to hear Father's homily.

Photos!

"Life began in a garden."

Oh my goodness! I am so happy :o)

I am such a "work in progress" when it comes to blogging. I love to write! I love to take photos! And I am proud to say that I finally took the time to learn how to put photos on my blog! Yep - there's a button you click on. Not too difficult. I feel like going back and adding photos all over the place, but I'm not going to. I will start adding them now. I am also proud to show off one of the two pumpkins the Sherman Farm grew this year. Woo Hoo! Not bad for our first year. Every year we say we're going to make a jack-o-lantern for Halloween, and we don't. No excuses this year!

I haven't been on here for a little while. I meant to get on for our second son's birthday last week. We now have 2 built-in babysitters! Happy Belated to our "Eepy!" I'm not sure where that nickname came from. But we like it. Plus, he would like to be an author someday of "scary" children's stories. He is a big fan of Goosebumps. And his books are going to be "Eepy's Creepies." Nice. Look for them in the next few years.

Two of our homegrown pumpkins.

So our son, Noah's, teacher sent me an email. Noah is a little tired of his classmates asking him about his tics so she asked him if he'd like to teach the class about Tourettes. He would! Awesome! His teacher ordered a book to share with the class about Tourettes and accepting other people's differences. Sharing with the school and his classmates, was the biggest help to our oldest son who has Tourettes. B is a wonderful role-model for Noah. B handles his tics very well and is great with teaching others about TS.

Ok. My little "Noah humor" this week...Noah was upstairs and yelled down to me and my husband, "What is the password for the computer? I wanna play a game." We told him to wait and one of us would be there in a moment. After a minute, Noah impatiently asked again. So Tom says "It's supercalifragilisticexpealidocious." There was a 5 second pause, then we heard, "How do you spell that?" He cracks me up.

Tourettes Uncovered

"Life is simple, it's just not easy."

Please spread the word to watch Tourettes Uncovered on Monday night at 8:00pm on the Discovery Health channel. The more people know, the more they will hopefully understand. Our oldest was diagnosed a few years ago, but looking back, we knew early on that there was something going on in his little body. He is now a teenager and is very positive about his TS. I'm sure there are moments when he really wishes he didn't have his tics. There are places he can't go, things he can't do, and people that don't understand and think it is something to make fun of. He does have "friends" that joke around with him, and that seems to be something he doesn't mind. When it's done with kindness, it's not a bad thing. If it makes my son smile, it's not a bad thing.
Our 2nd son had an eye tic a couple of years ago, but we never pointed it out to him. I'm not even sure if he noticed it. The tic has gone away, but OCD has welcomed itself. I also have OCD, so we talk about it together and even joke about it. It helps us both.
But now our 8 year old is struggling. He started having terrible headaches and tics over a year ago. He would come to us crying and screaming that his head hurt. Scary. Then he would shake his head and cry because it would make his head hurt more. And he couldn't stop. We took him to a neurologist who set Noah up with a bunch of tests. They found a cyst in his brain, but didn't think it was causing any of the symptoms. They did find through one of the tests that he might have seizures someday. I still don't know what that means. But thankfully he has never had a seizure and the cyst has not changed. We are still dealing with headaches and increasing tics.
Last year Noah started slapping himself. His teachers told me they thought it was to get attention. Honestly, that made my heart sink. The people that are with my son 5 days a week thought that what he was doing was something he could control - and I knew it wasn't. I tried to explain to them that I believed it was a tic, but I had to get a note from his neurologist to give to them - because I'm just his mother right? I don't know anything about my own child. Frustrating. So here we are starting a new school year, with a new teacher and in the upper elementary school building. I am once again going to try and educate about TS to those that spend all day with my son. I am trying very hard to keep the "Momma Bear" side of me calm. It's a bit difficult because they don't see or hear everything I do. They don't know that when my oldest started having full-body tics and cursing at a young age, his younger brothers were scared asking me if that will ever happen to them. And I couldn't give them an answer. We needed to wait and see. They don't see my little boy struggling to read and write his homework while his hand has to touch his face every 2 minutes and his head shakes and nods uncontrollably. They don't hear my child cry that he can't stop shaking his head even though he wants to because his head really hurts.
Noah has always had a lot of energy and has always been a tough little kid. But he is also very loving and caring. He is creative. He is fun. Anyone who has ever really gotten to know him, loves him. And man, is he honest! I am going to write a book with all of his quotes someday. It will make you laugh.
And after 3 little sisters, Noah finally got a little brother - and he is amazing with him. Jacob is like his best little friend right now. Everyday, Noah gets out the dinosaurs, the transformers, and the power rangers and shows them to Jakey. Noah gets so excited to show Jacob all the great boy toys around our home.
So next week I am hoping that many people watch the special about Tourettes on Monday night, and I am hoping that I have people with open minds and hearts at the meeting I am going to at Noah's school to discuss his IEP and schoolwork. I pray that they are understanding of what Noah needs to succed this year.

Get going!

"To get something you never had, you need to do something you never did."

Has anyone noticed the date today? It's 90210 day :o)
It's also - get going day! Today I am cleaning out the closets. What a job! And now that I have started it, I can't quit. Right now you can't even walk into our boys' room. I am waiting for my 2 youngest ones to take their naps so I can get back to work. 1 down, 1 to go. Trying to fit 3 girls into one room is not too bad. Trying to fit clothes for 3 girls into one closet - nearly impossible! The boys are even tighter. 4 boys in one room. They don't seem to mind. I am just tired of trying to fit baby Jakey's clothes in there. We could turn our loft into a bedroom, but our children said they don't want to. The loft is their hang-out room. Their bedrooms are just for sleeping. We did find the most awesome beds for them. Our girls and our boys have bunkbeds w/loft bed. Three beds that take up only 1 bed space on the floor.
With school starting and 5 children gone most of the day, I am also trying to do some things for myself (during nap time of course.) Crazy right? I am trying to convince myself that I can do whatever I set my mind to. I am really good at giving the motivational speeches to my children - to my husband too. Why is it so hard for me to listen to myself? Maybe I should record my voice - or look into a mirror. Remember that character from SNL that used to do that? Ha! I have a picture of me from my wedding day where I am looking into the mirror. We had a good laugh when I started quoting the SNL character: "I am good enough and people like me."
Lots of decisions being made around our home. Lots of prayers. I need to feel very comfortable with any decision I make. I don't like to force things to happen - still trying to figure out if that is a good thing or if that's how I allow myself to stay in my comfort zone.
Gotta get going! Today is the first day of the rest of my life.

Our little peanut

"Celebrate the little things in life."

Happy Birthday to our little peanut Sarah. 3 years ago she came into our world weighing only 4 lbs. She did very well being so small. She came out screaming. They let me give her a quick kiss, then they took her to the NICU. Tom followed. After I was all taken care of, my Daddy came in. My friend had brought my daddy to the hospital - and my camera. I was put in a wheelchair and taken to meet my daughter. It was difficult seeing her all hooked up in the NICU, but we knew she was being well taken care of. I spent as much time as I was allowed in the NICU. There was one doctor that took a great interest in Sarah. He was amazed at how well she was doing. When he ordered tests for her, he would call down to the lab to make sure they did it immediately. The first night, she did stop breathing once and there were some concerns and thoughts of having her moved downtown to the Children's Hospital. But little Sarah was strong. She loved having her little feet rubbed. She would straighten her leg and stretch out her little toes. The lactation consultant came in on the first day and asked me if I wanted to try feeding Sarah. She told me that I should tell the nurses that I wanted to feed my baby. The nurse I had was wonderful. She helped me to hold my little bitty baby and helped me get her to latch on and nurse. She did great!
Later, Sarah's brothers and sisters came to the NICU and took turns holding her. Most people would be nervous holding such a little baby, but each of our children were very comfortable holding their baby sister. Brandon even gave her a bottle.
My mother and father came to visit. They were only in town for a couple of days. I guess Sarah wanted to make sure she got to meet them before they traveled overseas. And we had a few friends and neighbors come meet Sarah at the hospital too.
We had an idea of giving our baby the name Sarah if our baby was a girl. We still didn't have a middle name. The hospital kept telling us we had to pick a name soon. They kept coming in to have the Birth Certificate filled out. We thought we still had a few more weeks to pick a name, so there was a little bit of pressure. But then I decided I wanted her to have my name - and Tommy agreed. Sarah Christine.
The day I went home, I was miserable. I remember pacing my room and I started to panic. A nurse went and got my doctor. He came in and helped to calm me down - then the "tough love" happened. He looked at me and just told me straight that I had to go home. My other children needed me and Sarah would be just fine in the NICU. I could come visit her every day. Which I did. Tom drove the 30 minutes every morning before work to sit and give Sarah a bottle. When I could find someone to watch my other little ones, I would go for Sarah's 2nd feeding. I would also go at bedtime to feed her and tuck her in. Taking care of 5 children at home and driving back and forth to the hospital for Sarah, and getting up every 2 hours during the night to pump - was exhausting! I did have one night where I finally brokedown. I was leaving for the bedtime feeding when I just fell to our laundry room floor and cried. I was so tired, but felt the need to go see our baby. Tom told me it was ok to just stay home and take care of myself for one night. Tom called the hospital - used our password "precious" - and spoke to the nurse who was taking care of Sarah that night. I got on the phone and she reassured me that Sarah was ok and that she would hold her and cuddle with her for me. Nurses are the best.
The song "Sarah Smile" by Hall and Oates came on 3 different times while Tom and/or I were in the NICU feeding Sarah. Great song. Perfect lyrics. I had never really paid attention to it before. One of the nurses was sitting with me when it came on once. She said "Just wait until it is her wedding day and she has her Daddy-Daughter dance to this song." Wow.

Small movement, Huge relief

"Sometimes it is the little things that mean the most."

3 years ago today was one of the scariest days of my life.
I was pregnant with our 6th child and due mid-October. The night before, I was sitting on the couch and was realizing that I had hardly felt our baby move all evening. I drank some milk, ate a snack, and just sat still. Every once in awhile I would feel a little nudge. I figured that maybe there was just not a lot of room left - or maybe the baby had been moving a lot earlier and was now resting. My parents had been over visiting, so I figured I just hadn't been paying close attention and didn't notice. I went to bed.
When I woke up, I was immediately nervous and scared. Our little baby always kept me up or woke me up during the night from all his or her rolling around and kicking me. Nothing. I went downstairs to get my oldest children off to school and to tell my husband about my concerns. Again, I drank some milk and ate a little something to try and get our baby moving. All I felt were little nudges here and there. Something was just not right.
After my husband left for work and our older children left for school, I called my doctor's office and spoke to his nurse. She told me I needed to come in. I told her I would have to call my husband or my parents and see if one of them could come & watch our 1 1/2 year old daughter, Leah. I told her maybe I could come in in a couple of hours. The nurse told me - No, you need to come in right now. That is when the panic set in. I told the nurse I would have to bring my daughter with me and hung up. Just then, there was a knock on my door. My friend's little boy was at my door checking to see if Leah could come out and play. Wow! God works fast :o) I grabbed Leah, went outside, and told my friend what was going on. My friend took Leah from me - Leah was in her diaper only - and told me not to worry and to just go. I know God puts certain people in our lives for a reason.
I grabbed my purse and left. I called Tom on the way and through heavy tears told him I was on my way to my doctor's office, the office near the hospital. Tom met me there. They set me up for a non-stress test. After an hour or so, the doctor was not comfortable with what he saw. Our baby was being very "lazy." He sent us over to the hospital for an ultrasound. One of the scariest moments of my life. The ultrasound tech put the sensor on my tummy and we all stared at the screen. There was our child. Amazing. Beautiful. But completely still. His/her heart was beating, but there was no other movement. The tech started poking my stomach, trying to get our baby to do something, anything. Nothing. Tears were streaming down my face as I closed my eyes and prayed. The tech continued to search for movement for about 15 minutes - though it felt much longer. He continued to poke my stomach, I continued to close my eyes. Suddenly I heard the tech yell - Did you see that?! I quickly opened my eyes, tried to focus on the screen, and said - No. He then told me that he saw our baby's foot twitch. Then I saw the little foot inside of me move. A slight movement, a huge relief. I then closed my eyes again and thanked God.
Our doctor came in and, needless to say, told us our little baby didn't pass his/her test. At first they were going to just keep me overnight and observe, but then decided that they weren't comfortable with that plan and I would be induced right away. As long as our baby's heart tolerated the induction, they would not do a c-section. I got hooked up and then the pediatric specialists came in to visit with me and Tom. Our baby was going to be 6 1/2 weeks early. We needed to hear what that meant for our child's health. They made sure we understood everything. Then we waited.

Jacob is 1

"I celebrate you"

Happy birthday to our littlest love, Jacob Edward.
Jakey wanted to start his day off right - with Mommy :o) At 11:45 last night, Jacob woke up. At midnight, we were downstairs together. I did a little videotape then we cuddled on the couch until he fell asleep in my arms. One year ago today I held Jacob in my arms for the very first time. Jakey is a beautiful, amazing little boy. He has brought much love, joy, and care into my life and into our family.
And now the birthday day is coming to an end - just as it started - with Jacob in my arms. Sleep tight little one. May you always feel the love, care, and comfort you do right now. Mommy loves you.

Love is Waiting

"May the love hidden deep inside your heart find the love waiting in your dreams."

Wow! That quote makes me think of my Bench Dream. (I wrote about that in an old blog.)
One year ago, Tommy and I were very excited. We went to my OB appointment and were told I was 3 cm dialated and asked if we wanted to have our baby the next day. What a feeling - to know you are finally going to meet someone you already love so much.
We went to the music store with smiles on our faces and just walked around looking at music we might like to listen to at the hospital. Of course, we always do this, but have never played music in the delivery room. There are a lot of things you think you might need or do in the delivery room, but once you are there you just kind of "go with the flow." At least I do. After the store, we had lunch at Ruby Tuesdays.
We went home and asked my parents if they would like to meet their newest grandchild tomorrow. I don't remember how well I slept that night, but it was comforting to know my mother was staying the night and we would be going to the hospital in the morning.

Happy Jakey

"People love others not for who they are but for how they make them feel."

Jakey already had 2 front teeth on the bottom and now he has his 2 top front teeth. Yay for him! It is a little sad to know I won't see his beautiful toothless smile anymore, but he worked very hard for these teeth.
Jacob is really socializing these days. He loves to wave "hi" to everyone. He opens and closes his hand to tell people to come to him or to give him something.
He is great at giving hugs! I love how he hugs Leah and pats her on the head at the same time.
He tackles our kitties and puts his hand out for our dog to lick.
He says "Dada" "Mama" and "Lyla" :o)
And if he hears someone laugh - he laughs right along.
We are convinced Jakey was born with music in his soul and this morning he proved it once again. We were cuddling in bed, waiting for the alarm clock to go off. It is a radio alarm, so when it went off music was playing. Jakey sat up and just started nodding his head to the beat. He looked at me with this "Oh yeah" kind of look while continuing to go with the rhythm. We should all wake up so happy and ready to go.
Jacob is just precious. Jakey makes everyone around him smile. He makes us laugh and enjoy the moment. Helps us realize what happiness is all about.

Lock Down

"Treat everyone with politeness, even those who are rude to you - not because they are nice, but because you are."

This is one quote that I say to my family all the time. It is important to remember who you are and not let someone change that. Surround yourself with others who are good to you. The Golden Rule: Treat others as you want to be treated. We are getting to practice this a lot on each other this week. Our children have been told to stay indoors. We're on "lock-down" at home :o)
But first...Last week my friend came to visit with her family. She and I have been friends since first grade. Amazing. We had a great day together. Steak on the grill for dinner and ice cream from The Chocolate Shop for dessert. Yum! We stayed outside all evening with our new fire pit. (A gift from them - so sneaky.) We made s'mores and played Bags. Good time.
Our garden is growing! We picked some "monster" zucchinis yesterday. Our oldest son found a recipe and made zucchini bread. It was really good! I don't think I have ever had zucchini bread before. Even our picky eaters liked it. I think having a garden will help our children to want to try different vegetables. It is exciting to go into the backyard and see veggies growing where there once was nothing.
So back to spending time together this week. We have had a lot of home and family time. 6 of our 7 children are sick. Our oldest is fine and so are me and my husband. But the others have a fever, sore throat, headache, rash. Jacob is covered head to toe with red spots. I decided to take him to the doctor yesterday. I figured if I found out what he has - I'll know what everyone has. The verdict: Hand Foot and Mouth disease. Ugh. Thankfully it only requires time and TLC.
I usually have great quotes from our son Noah, but this time I have one from our daughter Leah. The other night, Leah and I went outside and we were looking up at the sky. She said "There's the first star," as she pointed up. "He's first. He gets to park wherever he wants."

Family Vacation

"Families are Forever"

I can't believe we're halfway through July already.
Brandon and Ethan had a wonderful time at camp. Brandon was home for one full day before leaving for our Church's Youth Ministry Mission Trip. He went to Michigan and helped clean up a Community Center and Garden. I was told that Brandon was awesome! He was caring and a very hard worker. I am very proud of him.
Our family went on vacation last week. It was great! We go to Wisconsin with my side of the family every year. This was Jacob's first time, so the one difference this year - we couldn't all fit into one vehicle. Ethan rode with my sister's family.
I love spending time with my siblings and parents and watching my nieces and nephews grow up :o) Most of them are taller than me now.
Our kids love hanging out with their cousins. We had a great week with great weather. The first day was the 4th of July. We watched an amazing fireworks show over the lake. The rest of the week was spent swimming, boating (along with "tubing" - Fun! - even Leah and Sarah did it), golfing (Tom took Brandon this year - he really liked it), making s'mores, playing tennis, walking, picture taking, bedazzling (I think Rachel would bedazzle everything if I'd let her), shopping, playing cards & dominoes...Very full fun days.
One highlight was the Family Tennis Challenge. One loss and you were out. Noah is 8 years old and has never played tennis. He really wanted to play, so we let him "sign up" last minute. Well, who knew? Noah won against 2 of his aunts and 1 of his uncles. Ha! It was fabulous! He made it to the final 3 before being taken out by his cousin.
Noah was an early riser on vacation. He would walk over to the "main" kitchen to see who was there for breakfast. One morning he went on a nature walk with a few of the adults. They ended up going canoeing. My sister said that Noah saw a spider on the water. He said "Look at that spider! He is walking on water! He is walking on water...just like God." Noah has a great mind :o)
The end of our vacation always ends the same way. At the Candy Shop. Leah and Sarah's faces were priceless. We handed each child their own basket and told them they could each get some candy. This place has everything!
Now we are home and still trying to get things put away. Noah is in "summer school"- a little extra help in reading and writing. The rest are trying to get back into the habit of doing their chores again.

Unfamiliar Morning

"Home is where you can say anything you like, because nobody listens to you anyway."

Good Morning...It definitely is an unfamiliar morning.
Our 2 oldest sons are at camp this week. We drove them to Ingleside on Fathers Day. I truly miss them. Not only because it's nice to have a built-in babysitter when I need or want to run out somewhere, but because they are an important part of my day.
Brandon was very excited. He really enjoys Tourettes camp. This is his 3rd summer there. He was a little upset last week because he thought he might have to go back on his medication. His meds make him so tired and he puts on a lot of weight too. He started rubbing his tongue across his teeth - and couldn't stop, even when it hurt and started bleeding. He took one of his pills and slept an extra 4 hours that morning. So he is at camp without his pills. He doesn't want to be so tired that he can't enjoy camp. He is doing whatever he can to control this "tic" on his own.
Ethan was a little nervous about camp. I think he'll make great friendships and have so much fun that the week is going to fly by for him. It will be nice for him to talk to others that understand more about OCD. I can talk to him about it, but I think it'll help him to talk to someone more his age too.
Campers and Counselors come from all over the world for this camp. England, Australia,... I find it amazing that we live less than an hour away. What a blessing. I hope our children continue to go and enjoy the camp and end up working there someday.
Last night there was a tornado warning where their camp is. I'm the type that believes that "no news is good news" so I'm going to believe that they are fine. I stayed glued to my laptop until the warning was over. I prayed while I watched the little red spot on the map move away from them.
The other part that makes this a different type of morning - Jakey is sleeping. In his crib. Since the day he was born (10 months, 3 days ago) he has slept with me at some point during the night. Not last night. Did I wake up with a smile on my face thankful for the full night sleep? No. I had to quickly get up and check to see if he was ok. Which he was. Which he still is. Still sleeping in his crib right now.
Jakey is now pulling himself up to standing, shaking his head no and "bobbling" it up and down for yes. He is eating mostly table food that we cut up into teeny tiny pieces. Those who know me know that I am a little freaked out about choking. Brandon, our oldest, choked on a grape when he was about 4 years old. To this day, I do not allow grapes in my home. My friends joke about how my children treat grapes like "drugs" when they come to their home and see them. They let out a surprised "You have grapes?!" And then gobble them up.
So I have 2 Noah quotes for this week. The day before the boys went to camp we attempted the impossible. A family photo. We got a picture with all 9 of us, but since Sarah was "in charge" we didn't get one with just our children. Sarah wouldn't let go of Daddy. But that gave us a different idea. We got a picture of Tom with our 3 daughters and one with me and our 4 sons. That worked. Of course, we had to do a little bribing to keep everyone smiling. We agreed to take them out to eat. This is very rare. Our children used to love going to Old Country Buffet - and with picky children, it's a great place. So we took them there after. It's changed a bit - for the better. And really wasn't as expensive as we had feared it would be. At one point Tom kept calling our son Ethan "Noah." I said (while pointing to each child and in a somewhat joking manner) "Tom I don't understand why you do that. Ethan looks like an Ethan and Noah looks like a Noah." Then Noah pointed at Brandon and said "And Brandon looks like an idiot." Ok. Not nice, but quick for an 8 yr old. A little later our children were eating their desserts and Ethan said "Is it hot in here?" Noah quickly said "No. It's just me." Where does he get this? Must be from being the 3rd boy.
Well, it's getting familiar again. Cats are meowing to be fed, Sarah needs a diaper change, dog needs to go out, children are hungry, and there is a request for Dora to be put on.
But first, I feel the need to go peek in on Jakey again :o)

Being "Mom"

"The moment a child is born, the mother is also born."

It's been awhile. School is out - let the fun begin! Well, we will once the sickies go away. A few achey tummies, a couple of sick tummies too. And Baby Jakey has Roseola. For 5 days he had a high fever, then it went away and the next day he broke out in a rash. Once the doctor couldn't find anything to cause the high fever, I had a feeling we'd be seeing the rash. Not a big surprise.
It is nice to have our happy little boy again. Jacob is back to giving big "hi" and "bye" waves, kisses, and clapping his hands. Jakey can even pull himself to standing now. I think he wants to keep up with his siblings. I must say, this little boy is going to be well taken care of. He has brothers that love every little thing he does - and sisters that want to hold him and play with him all the time. At church, during peace, we all kiss each other. Now Jacob will give kisses too. He sits in my arms and just keeps making kissy sounds with his mouth while looking around. It's pretty adorable and makes our children laugh. I am excited to have another little boy to raise.
The same day that Tom and I celebrated our 15th Anniversary (Wow!), Brandon graduated from 8th grade. Woo Hoo! I tried not to think too much about Brandon graduating, but once he walked into the gym for the ceremony, I cried. Mommy got teary. Time has just flown by! Where did my little baby B go? He's so big! Taller than me! Amazing. I remember when he was about 18 months old. We were eating in a Baker's Square. An older couple came by and commented on how cute B was then looked at me and told me to treasure every moment because it goes by so fast. They were right. And I do treasure every moment of each child. I also treasure the wonderful man that shares these moments with me.
Today we took our children to the pool. After, Tom took our boys to shower and get dressed in one room while I took our girls to another. Standing there with my 3 daughters - I was just hit by the moment. Wow. I have 3 daughters. They were all saying different things to me, but the one thing in common was that they were all calling me "Mommy." There are 7 people in my life who call me "mom." When I stop to think about that, it just amazes me. It is wonderful.
Anyone who knows me well knows that I have many ideas. I love to be creative - and I always have a new idea to share. Someday I'd like to do something with one or more of my ideas. Hopefully I will. Sometimes when I get frustrated with not having the time to do my "own"thing - I just remind myself that right now my "job" is to be a mother. The nice thing is, at this time, our children would love to grow up and work together. They talk about us all living near each other and possibly having a family business. Being their mother, I would love that too. Maybe that's one benefit of 9 people in a 3 bedroom house. You learn to love being really close :o)

Last Week of School

"A sunbeam to warm you. A moonbeam to charm you. A sheltering angel, so nothing can harm you."

Last week of school! Summer is coming! Brandon is celebrating the end of 8th grade at Six Flags today with his class.
Where is the wind now that I want it? It is so hot outside! And our children had me stay outside all weekend. Our yard looked like a water park yesterday. We had sprinklers, pools, water guns, and water toys all over. It was nice to just hang out. We had plans that we canceled - a couple of questionable tummy aches - it's nice to be able to just let everyone run around outside together. After we put our children to bed, (And watched Bret Michael's win Celebrity Apprentice!!!) Tom and I sat outside and had a drink. It was nice. Relaxing. We just sat and looked at the stars. Tried to pretend like we knew what we were looking at :o) Dippers, Orion's Belt, and other Constellations,...No clue.
Last week was Carter's wake and funeral. I was blessed to be a part of it. Bible Girls took care of the food and drink at the wake. Over 1000 people came. People (including my husband and our son Ethan) waited for over 2 hours outside. It was touching to see all the people. It got cold as the day went on, but thankfully the rain stayed away. My friend and BG, Betsy came up with the idea of taking coffee outside to the people in line. I immediately thought - what a great idea! - so she and I went out. I brought out the coffee and Betsy brought the cookies. We were pretty popular out there. Soon our friend and BG, Ana joined us too. People really appreciated a hot cup of coffee and I honestly thought - Carter would want this.
My friend and neighbor came to my house the next day and watched our 2 little ones that aren't in school so Tom and I could go to the funeral together. I cried, I even laughed a few times. The eulogy was amazing. The gentleman that did it, did it so well! He spoke as if Carter was saying it. What a wonderful little boy! Very sweet, very caring, lots of fun. At the cemetary they passed out cards that had the song from "Greatest American Hero" on it. (Believe it or not I'm walking on air. I never thought I could feel so free. Flying away on a wing and a prayer. Who could it be? Believe it or not it's just me.) They also played a song a lady wrote about Carter. I had it in my head for the next couple days. Beautiful. Then we all let go of blue balloons. My friend and neighbor said she could picture Carter with his arms open, catching all the balloons.
On Friday, Ethan tried out for his first Musical. He made it! Woo Hoo! So proud of him. It takes courage to try out. He had to go in and read a few lines then sing a short solo. He is going to be in Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat. One of my favorites! I saw it with Tommy a few years ago. Donny Osmond! He signed my playbill after the show. It was awesome :o) Ethan then went to his first dance that night. He had fun. Great day for Eepy!
Today is the last Monday of the school year! I have one home with a tummy ache. Noah just didn't feel well this morning. He has a fun day planned at school tomorrow, so I told him to stay home and rest today.
He's upstairs watching a movie while Sarah and I watch Dora and Jacob naps.
Jacob is 9 months old! He is still "army" crawling. He can sit up on his own and can stand up while holding on to something. He waves hello and good-bye and claps his hands. I love this age! It's all about being cute. And he does it well.

Carter

"While we try to teach our children all about life, Our children teach us what life is all about."

Today I woke up to the news that 6 year old Carter Kettner had gone to be in the arms of God. My day stopped. I tried to write something to his mother, but couldn't find the right words. I woke up my children and got them ready for school. I hugged each of them a little tighter, a little longer. They noticed.
The first time I saw Carter's mother was when she drove by my house in a truck and stopped to chat with my neighbor. She seemed like a lot of fun. I remember thinking "I would like to get to know her." But the next time I heard her name was when news of her son came out. I prayed for their family, sent a small gift to their home, and tied blue ribbons around my 2 trees. (Blue - Carter's favorite color. Ribbons - to show hope.) I have gotten to know Carter's momma through church and a Mother's Bible Study. I have been able to do a few things for their family through our group. For this, I am thankful.
I am so honored to know this family. God knew the right parents for Carter. They show so much love, care, and faith. I know God must be very proud of them. They have shared Carter with so many people. They have so many people praying and spreading hope. They have kept their faith strong. May God continue to give them strength.

Our Boys

"The spirit is there in every boy; it has to be discovered and brought to light."

Jakey is really getting around these days. He "army" crawls everywhere and picks up everything along the way. I am constantly vacuuming and grabbing toys and paper off the floor. He sits up and plays with his toys. He is a very happy little boy. Always smiling and waving to people. I love when we're out in public and someone says "hi" to him. He'll be sitting there sucking his 2 fingers and when someone says "hi" he'll take his fingers out, smile, and wave - a big wave! His hand open and his arm swaying back and forth. Very cute. I think it kind of surprises people - makes them smile and laugh.
My parents were here to visit and to help us celebrate our 3rd son's First Communion. Noah looked very handsome and proud in his shirt and tie. We had a nice little get together with family at our home after the blessed event. Now Noah just has to remember to receive the Body of Christ at mass. He keeps forgetting to put his hands out - he keeps them folded and he gets a blessing then I need to whisper that he receives.
Brandon our oldest has gone to Tourettes Camp the last 2 summers. This year we are selling chocolate bars to raise money to send him. Chocolates sell very fast around here. I sold 90+ the first day. I'm now waiting for another shipment so we can try to raise more money. If we sell enough we might send our 2nd son to camp too. He used to have an eye tic, but it went away. Now, he is showing signs of OCD. We talked to his doctor about it. Right now it's pretty mild. Ethan just comes to me and we talk about it. OCD can be part of TS - so can ADD.
ADD is something Noah shows signs of. He also has some tics that come and go. Right now his tic is to "slap" himself when he does something "wrong" or just makes a mistake. He told his Neurologist that when he is sent to his room for a time out, he has to slap himself hard. That breaks my heart. His doctor has diagnosed him with a tic disorder. Tom and I are pretty sure he has / will have TS like Brandon. At least Noah has the best role model for having TS in Brandon. Brandon is very positive and doesn't let it stop him from doing anything. He likes to explain it to people and even says he is happy he has it.
Brandon is also raising money to go on our Church's Youth Group Mission Trip this summer. He'll be going to Michigan to help people who need it. I don't know how I'm going to handle Brandon being gone for 2 weeks, but I think it is going to be a great experience for him.
Today Ethan went to school dressed like Elvis. They are doing a Wax Museum at his school later this week and today he had to give a speech as the person he picked. Sarah (2 yrs old) asked Ethan why he looked so cute today :o) I blowed dried his hair with gel. I wonder if he'll want to continue styling his hair this way. On Friday he'll be going to the Jr. High School to have lunch. He is excited to go to Jr. High next year. I think Brandon is excited to go to High School. I'm a little sad that they won't be in the same school. They will be in a few years when they're a Freshman and Senior. That should be fun / interesting.

Hope & Prayers

"God understands our prayers even when we can't find the words to say them."

Today we are praying for our friends. We are praying for a miracle. We are praying for comfort and strength. As a mother, knowing another mother is hurting, I can only pray, hope, and cry today. I wish I could do more.

Easter

"Spring is filled with so many gifts from God."

Last week was Spring Break and Easter. The week went by way too fast! At least we were blessed with beautiful weather. Our children enjoyed a few days of playing outdoors and I got to enjoy sitting outside with my friends too.
A week from today wasn't so fun. I woke up with a terrible migraine. I took some medicine, my sweet boys brought me some coffee, I handed my oldest son our baby, went to the bathroom and got "sick" several times, emailed my hubby, then laid down. All I remember was crying and praying that the pain would go away. I fell asleep. When I woke up I thought - Oh my gosh it must be about 10:00am! I looked at the clock, it was 3:30pm!! Ethan came upstairs to see how I was doing. What wonderful children I have. Wonderful family. Wonderful neighbors. The older children watched the younger ones. They said Daddy called every 2 hours to check up on them. Each of my neighbors called too - one even sent down her teenage daughter to help Brandon with taking care of Jacob and the younger ones.
Well, of course this migraine has sparked curiosity. I always get migraines when I'm pregnant. I took advantage of this on April 1st by posting as my status on Facebook -- Guess What? A few "fell for it" before one person figured out that it was an April Fools Joke. I believe I have a few friends who would like me to be the one to keep filling their "baby needs." A few also told me that I should be careful with what I joke about :o)I guess so. I'm still wondering if I should really go buy a test...
Thursday, we took all 7 children to the mall to see The Easter Bunny. Brandon was thrilled - Ha! He told me that every year I tell him just one more picture - then I have a baby and make him go be in just one more. He was a good sport. He complained about it all the way up to the bunny, but then held Sarah and had a wonderful smile on his face for the picture. He is so good to his mommy.
On Good Friday we had our Easter Egg Hunt in the cul-de-sac. What a beautiful day! We had a big turn out as usual. So much fun. We have all the children get together for a picture then let them loose. The eggs are gone within a few minutes. It's great seeing them all run around with big smiles. Then they all sit in little groups to open up their eggs, eat a few pieces, and trade others. After, a few of us families stayed outside to share breakfast. Everyone brought something and Tommy pulled out the grill. We had donuts, cinnamon rolls, egg casserole, french toast casserole, grilled potatoes and grilled veggies - lots of coffee, juice, and milk. Very yummy! (No meat - Friday and we have a couple of vegetarians.) That night we went to church to watch the youth group do the Shadows of the Stations of the Cross. Well done. The Stations are so powerful. I was proud to see our older children pay attention. (Ethan was in the balcony, in the choir.)
On Saturday we just hung out at home. Grandma Pat came over later in the afternoon and watched baby Jacob while Tom and I took our other 6 to the indoor swimming pool. We met our neighbor there with 3 of her children. I enjoyed watching them all play together. Our 3 older boys spent the entire time together. Sarah got daddy to take her into the kiddie pool. She went down the little slide for the first time and learned that it was a lot of fun. She and Leah and their friend Ellie had a great time. Rachel hung out with me in the warm pool and practiced her swimming. She left me for a little while to go down the big slide and to play with her sisters in the kiddie pool, but mostly we got to have a nice little time together.
Next morning was Easter. Our children got up and ran downstairs. I thought they would have gone right for their baskets, but when I went down to get some coffee, they were all sitting and waiting. Then they looked at all their candy and the Chipmunks 2nd movie that The Bunny brought. They watched the movie right away and then we got ready for mass. Ethan was in the choir so we had to be there 30 minutes early. That was a good thing. Our church was very crowded at this mass. And our family needs to get a long pew all to ourselves :o) Grandma Pat met us at church too. Our children looked very nice all dressed up. Jakey had on a sweet little baby blue vest with a white shirt and cream colored pants. I brought my camera so we could get some nice children-family pictures by the lillies on the altar. And it was again beautiful outside so we got some more pictures in our front yard of all of us.
Tommy got the grill out again. (Love the grill!) We had a very nice Easter dinner together. Everyone sat nicely - once we got settled at the table. We had on some nice Christian Music that my mother and father had sent to me. While I was feeding Jakey in his highchair, I noticed his first tooth had finally broken through. His bottom right. Yay Jakey! Then all of our children got up and started putting their fingers in his mouth to feel the tooth. He would bite down and they would scream and he would laugh. It was pretty cute.
When dinner was done and cleaned up, our children reminded us that we never did color our eggs. So we did. We got out the newspaper and everyone got to do a couple of eggs. That stuff really is messy. I bought a "glitter" kit and a "tie-dye" kit. I think I should just get plain color kits and stickers :o)
Yesterday, Monday, was back to school day. Only Leah was excited. She missed her teacher. Noah had spent the night coughing and getting "sick" from it, so I let him stay home and rest. Last night I went to Eucharistic Adoration at our church. Love that time I have with Jesus. (My son tells me I'm turning into Grandma :o) Maybe so.) I had a lot to think about and to pray about.
Today is Tuesday. I had our 3 older boys take showers this morning and I bathed our 3 girls. After I sent them off to school, I remembered that today was Picture Day for Leah. Ugh. I sent her with wet hair and a long sleeve t-shirt. Oh well. She had on black leggings with a black skirt that she insisted on wearing. I'm so glad she did. The skirt probably saved the outfit. And I'm glad I didn't do my usual braid or ponytail when her hair is wet. When she got home she showed me how she smiled. She told me that someone brushed her hair and that she stood with her arms crossed - that covered up the little stain on her white shirt :o) I'm sure her picture will look adorable. At least I didn't spend the morning stressing out about her hair and outfit. Brandon's kindergarten picture is still my favorite school picture. I forgot it was picture day and he had on a hooded sweatshirt. He looked so "natural" so "Brandon" in the picture. I loved it - still love it!

Bobo

"Don't wait to make your son a great man - make him a great boy."

Our oldest child, Brandon turned 14 last week. Wow! I've been a mom for over 14 years. Amazing. What did I even do before having children?
Brandon was born 9 months 3 weeks after our wedding date. We knew we wanted to have children - it was still a little surprising how quickly we were blessed. We got married, moved into our new apartment in another state the next day, spent a few days getting comfy then went on our Honeymoon to DisneyWorld. When we returned to our new home I started a new job. I worked as a nanny. This worked out well because I found out I was pregnant a couple weeks after starting and I was able to continue working while pregnant and then I just brought Brandon with me after he was born.
Brandon was born before we went with Biblical names. We named him after the actor Brandon Lee. (We saw him in The Crow - he died while filming it.) Our son's middle name is Thomas after his daddy. Soon after he was born, I heard Pamela Anderson named her son Brandon Thomas too. He was named after Brandon Lee and his daddy, Tommy. Probably the only thing I have in common with Pamela Anderson :o)
I was so happy and excited throughout my whole pregnancy with Brandon. Everything went smoothly. The only big change was moving one floor up in the apartment building Tom and I lived in. We had a one bedroom and we moved into a two bedroom. We moved from the 2nd floor to the 3rd. The real difficulty was the stairs - and no laundry. Well, there was a small laundry room, but after we found a dead rat in the dryer - we started spending our Friday nights at the laundromat. Carrying a stroller, a baby, and groceries up the stairs was kind of a pain. Taking our dog Justin outside every day and night wasn't fun either, but I love thinking about where we were when we first started together as a married couple - and parents.
Tom was an airplane mechanic when we first got married. He later found a job as a locomotive mechanic, and then as a forklift mechanic. I graduated from college 2 weeks before our wedding with a minor in Fashion (my first major) and a major in Child and Family Services. Before college I was a nanny and after our wedding and moving I went back to being a nanny.
To celebrate my job, Tom and I bought season tickets to Musicals at a new place called Rosemont Theater. We would be able to see all of the shows that season before our baby was due. I still remember the green velvety maternity dress I bought to wear to the last couple shows.
Moving to a new state was hard for me. I missed my parents and my friends back home. I was so thrilled when I found out I was pregnant. I already loved taking care of other people's children - now I was going to have my own child to love and care for.
When labor started, it was late at night. Tom and I were in bed and I started feeling what I thought were contractions. We called the hospital and were told to come in. I think it was around 1:30 am that I called my parents to tell them. I thought I'd be having our baby within a few hours. Nope. Labor was long and painful. I had a midwife, we were trying to go without an epidural. I went for many hours, but then I got so tired I just couldn't keep myself under control with the pain. I finally got an epidural and was able to rest a little bit before meeting our first son. 23+ hours later, Brandon was born. I remember holding him, being totally exhausted, and swearing never to have another child. Ha! I must have been crossing my fingers. My parents, my oldest sister and her husband, and my oldest brother were in the waiting room. They came in to meet Brandon. He was a very healthy, adorable baby boy. I fell in love with him immediately. Brandon and I had a tight bond. I took him everywhere with me! And he was beautiful. We even had a modeling agency offer him a job, but they told us we'd have to sign a 5 year contract and be able to be downtown any day and any time. We were young and couldn't afford not to have our "steady" jobs. We wouldn't be able to drop everything and go downtown. Plus, I didn't want to commit to something for 5 years. What if Brandon didn't like it? What if we didn't like it?
Brandon. "Bobo." He is amazing. He is a very kind-hearted boy. Very spirited. Very creative. He has an incredible artistic talent. His drawings amaze me! And he has such a positive attitude about his Tourettes. He likes to teach others about it and doesn't let it get in his way. I am so proud to be his mother and to have him as my son. I have enjoyed watching him grow. I used to hold this little boy on my lap - and now he stands taller than me. We have a wonderful relationship and hope we always do. I know we will. Brandon is very special to me.