Mother Teresa

"Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin."

I belong to a Mother's Bible Study at my church. The book we are studying right now is about Mother Teresa. She was so loving and caring - amazing life. The one thing she says is that we should see Jesus in everyone. "Each of them is Jesus in disguise." I am trying. Even in my children. When they are whining for something I try to realize that they aren't just little people "bugging" me, they are gifts from God and God gave them to me and Tom to take care of. I need to take care of them. When they are hungry, give them food. When they are thirsty, give them drink. Clothe them. Care for them when they are not well - both physically and emotionally.
We went to mass last Sunday in the evening. Mornings can be stressful when we're rushing to get out with everyone, so sometimes we enjoy going at night. If our younger ones are tired, it can be a little difficult. This Sunday, our children were acting pretty good, but we still had a couple of "moments." Our baby was crying and I had to stand up with him. While standing against the wall, our 2 youngest daughters kept running back and forth between me and our pew. Of course, when things like this happen you think everyone is looking and paying attention to you. But at the end of mass while we were getting our coats on, a lady sitting a couple of pews behind us, smiled at us and told us how wonderful our children were during mass. She said she enjoyed seeing our "big" family. We smiled and thanked her. It was nice to hear. We went to the back of our church and were getting ready to go out into the cold to our 2 cars, when another lady came up to us. She had smiled at me from across the Narthex then walked across to our family. She said that she was sitting behind us during mass and just wanted to say how much she enjoyed seeing a family with so many children. She asked if any of them were twins and then told our children how well-behaved they were during mass. Our children smiled at her and I thanked her for letting them know. I said it was nice for them to hear that from other people.
Later, I thought more of these 2 ladies. I believe that God sent them over to us. We are to see Jesus in everyone and perhaps these ladies were like Jesus coming over to Tom and I to let us know that we're ok, we are doing a good job. There are times when we feel a bit overwhelmed, especially when I get a phone call, or a note telling me that one of our children goofs off in class or isn't getting their work turned in, or got into trouble for misbehaving - again. And some days our home is very loud. Some days I feel like it is 7 against 1 (when Tom is at work.) Some days I am being pulled in 7 different directions. I tell Tom to never call home between 4:00 and 6:00. Homework, getting dinner ready and nursing a baby fill those 2 hours. I can't fit anything else.
People ask how I do it. I don't know. Sometimes I feel like I'm not doing it right, but I am doing my best. I really do enjoy every single one of our children. From chatting with my teenage son to cuddling with my 5 mth old baby (and kissing those sweet chubby little feet.) In fact, Jacob looks a lot like Brandon when he was a baby. I feel like I went back 13 years and then reality hits and I realize just how quickly those 13 years went. (I'm going to have a kindergartner and a college freshmen in the same year!)
People also ask me if we're "done." I usually just smile. I don't know. I know that some people don't understand and just assume we're crazy. We're really not. Tom and I are best friends. We have chosen not to do anything to stop a pregnancy because of our faith. Our children literally come from God and the love between me and my husband. It's amazing to think about that while looking at our children. Plus, we have been blessed with being able to have children. We have been blessed with being able to care for them. No, it's not always easy, but it's worth it. Even though we miss out on some things. We've noticed that we're not always invited to things that we used to be. I guess we're a few too many now. That's ok. "Love begins by taking care of the closest ones - the ones at home." And those that truly love us - love all of us. We are a family and each person is a very important part of our family.

A New Year Begins

"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass - it's about learning how to dance in the rain."

Busy beginning of a new year. Back to school, trying to make a committment to get to the gym, nasty cold passing back and forth between our children...Today I have 3 little ones clinging to me and Chocolate Cheerios all over my couch.
I am loving Jakey's little bald head. It is so sweet. So soft. He is growing so quickly. He's rolling around, playing with toys, and I'm afraid he won't fit in his cradle much longer. (Sarah and Jacob wear the same size diaper now LOL.) The last few nights he's slept in my arms. I'm just not ready to put him in his crib in the boys' bedroom.
Last week we finally got back to the swimming pool at the gym. It's so nice once we get there. The water is warm and our children have a lot of fun together. It's so nice that they have each other to play with. I held Sarah and played with her while Tom gave Leah a small swim lesson. Rachel, Noah, and Ethan swam together and went on the waterslide together. Brandon didn't want to go, so he stayed home and watched Jacob. It's nice he's old enough to babysit and it's nice that he enjoys watching his baby brother.
Tough week with the school bus. But now the school is involved because of another parent. A parent who is in denial of her own children's behavior. You can't even talk to her or her husband. When someone else has a problem with one of my children, that parent can talk to me and know that I will discuss it with them and with my child. It's the same if I have trouble with another child. I can discuss the problem with the other parent(s) grown-up to grown-up. This particular mother called me and yelled on my voicemail. Did she call to discuss it as an adult? No. She called to just yell and tell me that she was reporting my children to transportation and the schools. I felt like she was kind of being a "bully." Of course, she said her children did nothing wrong. Well, I'm sure by now she has learned differently from the school (and videotapes.) Better that way than me trying to convince her. There are many others having troubles with her boys. She may have just opened up a big mess for herself. Besides, I think it's pretty silly to say that a 6 year old little girl is being mean to an 11 year old boy. I know our boys don't get along, but leave my daughter out of it. That just makes me angry.
Next weekend I am leaving all this drama behind and going to Iowa for my "oldest" friend's 40th. I am so excited! We've been friends since first grade. Our 2 oldest will be staying with my sister, so we'll "only" be bringing 5 of our children. I wish we could bring all 7, but this way we only have to take 1 car. I will miss our 2 boys, but they love being with their cousins. They'll have a good time - and I am looking forward to seeing friends and having fun too.