15 Years

"Home is where your story begins "

15 Years ago today we held our first born, Brandon. I can't believe how fast those years went by. I still remember a lady coming up to me in a restaurant when Brandon was very little and she told me it would go by quickly. She was so right.

Brandon came into our lives soon after our wedding. 9 months and 3 weeks after. We knew we wanted to have children - I would jokingly say I wanted "Bunches!" And look where we are now.

When we had Brandon, I was a nanny so I took him to work with me. In fact, I took Brandon with me everywhere I went. I enjoyed being a mom.

Still do.

Brandon is an amazing young man. He is so creative, so caring, so strong. God gave him an incredible talent when it comes to art. His drawings are incredible. He made me a clay pot for Christmas that I will always treasure.

Whenever I am getting a little stressed, he asks me what he can do to help me, gives me a hug, and makes me a cup of tea.

And even when he was first diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome, he made me so proud with how he handled it. He still handles it very well. It's just part of him. I believe his great sense of humor helps him too.

I am just so proud of who he has become.

I look forward to many more years of watching him grow.

I love our Brandon and so happy God blessed us with him.

Our oldest and our youngest dressed for Halloween.

(Yes, they are dressed from The Hangover.)

Our handsome son.

St. Patrick's Day

"May your mornings bring joy and your evenings bring peace.

May your troubles grow less as your blessings increase."

Happy St. Patrick's Day ( a little late.)

We spent the day having little Miss Sarah evaluated for Preschool. I think she did ok. We will know in a week or 2 if she gets in. My biggest concern with her is how shy she can be - and the fact that she has no interest in giving up wearing diapers. This is the only preschool that will take a child in diapers.

We spent the rest of the day playing outside in beautiful weather.

I have really missed being outside with our children - though Jakey keeps making me get up and run after him. Being very pregnant makes it a little difficult. Hopefully Jakey learns quickly to stay away from the street.

Today is a little bit cooler. We still played outside for a little while, but I can't wait for temperatures nice enough to get out the sprinkler and baby pool.

Our little "June Bug" is wiggling around.

I can barely move with the sciatic pain I have, but Tommy pumped up the "ball seat" that I bought. That should help me to be a little more comfortable. Of course, our children are enjoying it as a toy right now.

Oh, and last weekend our son Ethan was in the play "Hamlet." He did a great job! He was a guard and was dressed like a policeman.

He is a very handsome young man. I am glad he has found something he really enjoys. Can't wait to hear what the next play / musical will be.

You can't fight naptime.



Rachel ~ 8 years old

"A daughter is a gift of Love."

Today our beautiful daughter celebrates being 8 years old. Wow! The years go by fast. Rachel is our oldest daughter and one of our best surprises ever. Not only because she was our first girl after 3 boys, but because we found out we were pregnant with her when her brother was only 6 months old.

And what a difference a year makes!

Last year Rachel wanted a Barbie doll. This year she wanted me to take her shopping at Justice for clothes.

I must honestly say that I enjoyed this year's gift. It was fun to go shopping with my little girl. She walked around the store with a huge smile on her face and then went into the dressing room to try on everything. She made me wait right outside the curtain so she could "model" each outfit for me. We had fun and she didn't take advantage of the situation. She picked out a few items and didn't "spoil" herself. She was happy. I was happy. We had a wonderful time together.

Now this weekend she wants me to take her to the new Justin Bieber movie.

I have to think about that one.

Rachel is 8 today.

Couples Retreat

"Family. Where love begins love never ends."

Tom and I went to a Couple's Retreat this weekend. It was wonderful.

I am a fairly quiet person ( unless I know you really well ) and get uncomfortable around groups of people. But I did a lot of praying about this weekend and hoped I would get through it with an open mind and spirit.

And I did. Tom and I both did.

We have a great relationship, a great marriage. I didn't sign up for this weekend thinking we needed any "help," I just wanted to spend some alone time with my husband focusing on our marriage. With 7 children, and 1 on the way, we don't get to spend a lot of time focusing on us.

We did get a lot out of this retreat. More than I expected to. Who knew we could get any closer? Who knew we would have so much more to learn about each other? Plus, we got to meet a bunch of great couples. And the couples we really got to know told us things that they saw in us that amazed me. Things I don't hear a lot of from "strangers." They pointed out to us that they were inspired by the fact that Tom and I put so much faith in God. We really try to live our lives for Him. We put our trust in Him. I know that we do, but it amazed me to hear someone else say that they could see that we do.

Baby is growing!

Baby is tucking it's little feet, hands, knees, elbows,...anywhere it pleases. I even had Tom put his hand on my belly so he could feel the little knee or elbow. It gets a little uncomfortable sometimes.

Only when I am pregnant do I get into the "baby shows" on tv. There is a new one called One Born Every Minute. I have a love / hate relationship with this show. When the women are screaming and crying during the contractions and birth - I start telling Tom "I can't do this again!"

But then when the Mommies see their babies for the first time and hold their babies - I tell Tom "I can do this again!"

In fact, this weekend at church I saw 2 women with their newborn babies and I started to get all teary-eyed. I can't wait to hold this little one.

Of course, I still have "baby" Jakey to cuddle with me. Jakey gives me lots of kisses and hugs right now. He is the most affectionate child! He has learned well from his siblings. They hug and kiss him all the time. He hugs and kisses them, our pets, and everything else. Yesterday he was kissing the tv remote. He is just the cutest little boy.

Of course, I think all of our children are the cutest, the most handsome, the most beautiful. They are a part of me and my husband, my bestest friend. They are amazing gifts that God has blessed us with.

Tea Party

Princess with her cocoa



4 Day Weekend

"Other things may change us, but we start and end with family."

Our 4 day weekend is almost over (only 2 days for Tom.) It's been very productive. Tommy and I spent the weekend looking for a new mattress and flooring for the kitchen. Wednesday our new bed will be delivered - and tonight Tom will continue to lay our new kitchen floor that he started yesterday. It makes such a difference already. When we bought our home we didn't upgrade any of the flooring because we figured we would change it ourselves within the first couple of years. We also only had 2 of our children when we signed the papers to have our home built. Little did we know...

Saving up for new flooring has been put on the back burner several times.

I have finally admitted to myself that I am exhausted!!! Taking care of 7 children while pregnant is hard at times. I wouldn't change it for anything in the world, but wish the housework didn't need to be done daily too. And who wanted a house with stairs? Our last home didn't have stairs - of course, while pregnant with Brandon we lived in a 3rd floor apartment with no elevator. Unloading groceries was quite the workout.

The one big difference I have noticed this pregnancy is how I feel with each Braxton. With previous pregnancies I would feel a little nervous with each "practice contraction." I would remember the pain that comes along with giving birth. This time, I feel a little excited with each one. The first moment you see and hold your new baby is so amazing, so special. Even during the first trimester when I felt nauseous and miserable, Tom had to remind me that I felt that way with my other pregnancies too. I guess it's a good thing I don't remember the negative parts of all this. I believe it helps that our children have all been very supportive and happy about a new brother or sister.

Many people we know are just finding out about our newest addition. There is no way to hide my growing belly now.

It's helped that it is Winter and I tend to "hibernate." Also, when we are out, I have a big coat on that covers up my pregnancy.

There are a few people who I know will roll their eyes or make a hurtful comment. I've even found myself trying to suck in my tummy when bumping into some of them. But I have had positive support from the people we have chosen to know our special "secret."

I did meet a woman at church the other day. She said she watches my family at mass and told me that my children are beautiful. She looked me in the eye and told me that she was proud of me. She is around my age and is a mother of 5. She said she knows from experience that not everyone sees big families as a good thing. She is proud that my husband and I are open to accepting God's gifts.

We try to be a good example of a loving family :o) 

One of my favorite quotes: "Preach the Gospel always. When necessary, use words."



St. Valentines Day

"For me, there is only one smile, one voice, one touch, one joy, one love. For me, there is only one you."

St. Valentines Day.

Last night Tommy and I went out for an early dinner at Lou Malnati's. I was craving pizza. It was so good! When we came home, we tucked our kids in for the night then I decided I would give Tom his gift. I made a dvd with the song "God Gave Me You" with pictures starting with when we met and ending with pictures from now. Most of the pictures were of just me and Tommy, but I had a little section in the middle that said "All because 2 people fell in love..." and I had our family pictures showing from 1 child to 7 and then I had our 8th's sonogram photo.

Amazing journey. We have certainly been blessed with a wonderful life together.

When I showed our children the dvd, one of our sons commented on how old Tom and I have gotten. (Thanks.) But one of our daughters commented on how Daddy looks so different, but Mommy has hardly changed. (Love her.) Our children watched the video over and over.

Today Tom gave me a beautiful card to go along with the beautiful red roses he had brought home for me on Friday. We gave each of our children their own mini box of chocolates. They were very excited. I love when they appreciate the little things. Our 3 year old daughter Sarah immediately opened her box, lifted it up to her mouth and licked the top of each chocolate. No one will try to take her candy! Smart little girl :o)

Tom and I are hoping to meet somewhere for a cup of coffee when he gets off of work. Our girls are looking through their Valentines they got from school. Our boys are taking turns playing games. Over the weekend Tom and I decided that our boys needed to start earning time to play video games. I put all the games in a bag and put them in another room. This morning, our oldest thought it would be fun to take the bag and hide it. He wanted to start "a game." And with a smile I told him, "Ok. Game on."

I found the bag within an hour - totally on accident to be honest. So then I hid the bag. He texted me later asking me if I had found the games. I said - Yep. When he got home I told him for every chore he did, I would give him a hint. After our other son got home, and after 4 chores and 4 hints, they found the bag. I like this "game." There was no yelling to get chores done - and I got a couple of extra ones out of them. I am going to have to look for an even better hiding place tomorrow.

Baby #8, our little June Bug, kicked hard enough for Tommy and our children to feel this weekend. Amazing. Little Sarah had her hand on me when baby kicked. She looked at me with a slight smile then quickly pulled her hand away. I asked if she had felt that. She nodded then gave me a look like she was kind of "freaked" out. I think she finally figured out that when we tell her there is a baby inside mommy - there really is a baby inside mommy.

Sweet.

I love to move around inside my Mommy.

Can't Control Others

"We cannot control the evil tongues of others; but a good life enables us to disregard them."

Wow! First of all, I think I have about 90 posts - but over 2000 views! Amazing. I started writing this blog for myself and for my family. I like the idea of our children reading this as they get older and I love to look back on what we were doing a year ago or just last month :o)

I am feeling our baby move more and more each day. Still amazes me that there is a little person growing inside of me. And I can honestly say that even though we might not have "planned" to have 8 children - each one was definitely "made" from love. Love from God and for God. Love between my husband and me. I know many can't understand having this many children, but to us they are not a number. They are our children and each very deserving of life and love. When I am hugging our children, I can truly picture God smiling down on me.

Why did I put this particular quote on the top? Well, because I know for a fact that there are a few that love to gossip about my family. Say hurtful things about one or more of our children, make judgement on how big our family is,...The few comments I heard this morning made me sit and cry. To my face these people seem kind. They smile, ask how we are,...but the knife goes in as my back is turned. I guess some feel the need to focus on others rather than on themselves - or maybe they are so bored they need to gossip. Well let me say that whoever gossips to you - will gossip about you.

(And really, adults shouldn't talk about or name-call a child. I think that's what bothered me the most. This person doesn't even know what our child is going through. Shame on this adult.)

So after crying to my husband over the phone, I felt a little better. He reminded me of what this quote is saying. We can't control others. A family our size is rare around here and we need to just continue to be the good, kind people that we are and not worry about those who want to talk badly about us. He so perfectly said to me, "I'm sure it's not personal. How can it be? None of them really know us."

We should all keep in mind that one day we will each be on our own. We will each be judged and have to answer for ourselves on what we have done and what we have said during our life here on Earth. We should live the best life we can. And to quote Mother Teresa, "Let no one ever leave you without feeling better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness: kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile."