In Remembrance Of....

This is in remembrance of Sylvanus M. Moyer, Jan 3. 1916-Dec 28, 2009. A little background on Grandpa as I remember, he was born in Souderton, PA and during the depression things were very hard. News was heard that in Newport News, VA things were better. Land was available, so S.M.'s family bought 700 acres and sold some off to others and kept 300 acres for themselves and built a farm. At the age of twelve Grandpa moved to Newport News, as years passed he met Grandma, married and continued to farm on this land.

Grandpa and Grandma's wedding photo.

Grandpa and Grandma have been married for 68 years! A wonderful example set for the rest of the family.

One of my many memories, is fishing with Grandpa. Their farm was located on the banks of the Warwick River where a pier extended out and Grandpa always had crab cages down in the water which he would pull out and show us these crabs that were moving around opening and closing their pinchers. He'd reach in, grab a hold of one, pull it out, crack it open and use the meat as bait. I remember many lessons on fishing from Grandpa. He showed us how to crack open the crabs and how to extract the meat for bait, and yes I did try and was successful. I remember he even showed me how to tell a male from a female! He had a little john boat (I believe) that I remember rowing out into the marshes with Grandpa and exploring a little- or it felt like we were exploring. I remember gazing down into the water watching the many jellyfish moving around and being somewhat afraid of them. I didn't do much swimming there-not really liking the salt water and those jellyfish! Most of my childhood memories of Grandpa include this pier and his love of fishing. My memories are old and somewhat faded. If I could go back I believe I would try to remember a little harder and appreciate more. As children we live our days in the present not realizing that someday these are going to be treasured memories.

But Grandpa left us with his legacy and our family. This picture was taken several years ago and there have been many additions to our family since then. The wonderful thing is that we are Christians, we gather together to socialize, to sing harmony and to have a good time. Families are still together and keep connected. Grandma remains here on earth to spend some extra time with her family, while Grandpa is rejoicing in heaven, may we all be united one day.

Christmas Vacation

I am so glad for Christmas Vacation! I have enjoyed having my kids all home at the same time, and believe it or not, I feel like I have a little more time to do some extra things around the house! When the older two are at school, I need to play and entertain Rachel, when they are home, the three play together and I have some time to "catch up". This Christmas Vacation we have had an abundance of snow to occupy Jacob and Ashley. I just need to help with the bundling up and the unbundling over and over, but that's okay! I am also so glad we have a basement where they ride their scooters and bikes and release some energy.

This was a Sunday morning we were all dressed ready to go to church, when at the last minute we did not go due to ice, so I had time to take a couple of pictures. My girls like to dress alike. Every Sunday morning we deal with the issue of matching dresses. I do not have matching dresses for my girls, since we rely on hand me downs, but this year, I tried to find new Christmas dresses to match. Ashley is in the big girl section of clothing, so I did find a red dress to match, although it is not identical. On this particular morning all girls were happy since they "matched".

I did manage to get the kids together for a quick picture. Rachel does not like to be out in the snow since it is so deep and hard for her to walk, plus she does not like being bundled up so much. This was Violet's first time outside as well. I had her bundled up good as you can see. We are all dealing with colds and coughs, so the little ones weren't out long. I do enjoy watching Jacob and Ashley play in the snow, and did get out a little to throw some snowballs at them. I feel torn, wanting to play outside with them, but yet needing to be inside with the little ones.

The cookie making is in full swing. I have not made as many different kinds of candies and cookies this year. I just can't seem to get it done. But I do have a lot of willing helpers. I let them help and am thankful for kitchen space for them to all work at the same time. It's also interesting to see who hangs in there and works until completion and who just works a little and then they're done.

I sit Violet in her chair while I work in the kitchen. She loves cheerios, banana pieces, crackers, and throwing her sippy cup on the floor! Notice her missing sock? That seems to be her little trademark. Wow, is she growing so fast!

We are currently reading Little House in the Woods, as our reading project, and hopefully will finish this book soon and move on to the next. Well, it seems as if I have used up my time, the kids are getting restless, with all the interruptions it's hard for me to concentrate and keep my train of thought going, so until next time........

Ashley's Birthday

My dear little girl is turning 6! Wednesday is Ashley's 6th birthday, so our family gathered on Sunday to celebrate her birthday and also to dedicate Violet to God. My children's birthday affect me so much differently than my own. My birthday is another year, a different age, not really that big of a deal. On my children's birthday I reminisce. I reflect back on the birth, holding that new little baby, those feelings of happiness, the adrenaline (where did that go?), and ultimately end up thinking- how does time fly so fast? Now Ashley is turning 6- so how did that happen? Ashley wanted a tinkerbell cake-so here is Tink sitting on her tree stump. I enjoy making these cakes for her, it is fun to plan and to think about these cakes and I enjoy watching their anticipation as they watch these cakes being made.

And of course there are gifts to be opened. This one is of a wall hanging that is currently up on the wall by her bed, given by her Grandma.

Sunday morning, we dedicated Violet to God. Violet wore a beautiful gown sewn by her Grandma. This is very special as all three of my girls have worn this gown on their dedication. The details to the dress are just amazing. And, Violet did wonderful. She was presented to the congregation by an awesome friend. Violet did not cry as I thought she would, and she just did great! What a wonderful day we had! Full of so many memories I don't want to forget!

Thanksgiving

Unbelievable how quickly time is marching on. Children are growing, seasons are changing, and we are in the midst of the holiday season. We are trying to remember to be thankful for all things we take for granted and to keep Jesus as the center of our holiday busyness. Meanwhile, I am adjusting to looking over at Violet and seeing her in an upright position. I never know where I am going to find her and at times, I need to run for the camera to catch those funny moments. Violet holding on the banister made me laugh, simply because she was there laughing all by herself, I suppose she was pretty proud she accomplished this feat. The laughter is what drew my attention to her and then of course I said, "don't move, let me get my camera!" This caught my sentimental self, when I saw Jacob reading to Ashley. How kind he is to read a book to Ashley at her level of reading. Jacob is into reading chapter books that don't always have a lot of pictures, so it is nice to see him pleasing his sister.

We started out Thanksgiving with a Thanksgiving feast at Ashley's school, which I was able to go in and be a helper. I love helping at the school, and wish I could do more, but..... Ashley dressed as an Indian with a beautiful costume. Then the class had a wonderful feast of popcorn, grapes, apples, trail mix, and a turkey cookie. I believe they all had a wonderful time.

We have begun to pull out the Christmas decorations and all the beautiful Nativity scenes which I love the most. It was really neat to talk about the birth of Jesus with the children and to hear Rachel say "I want to hear more about Jesus" Rachel, I hope we do continue to keep this as a center of our conversation, and yes, I do think we will be talking more about Jesus.

It"s two o'clock.......

It's two o'clock, and the pressure is on. I have the Violet and Rachel sleeping, which hopefully will occur more frequently. Now, I have an hour to race around the house and get some things done, and here I am at the computer. However, the apple pie is in the oven and the main dish is made for supper, so I feel like I can splurge and spend a couple minutes on the computer. This past week was busy with Ben visiting family in NY, and leaving me parenting by myself. We did good and Jacob really helped me a lot. He was the man of the house and he would do what I ask him willingly and without fuss. Ashley also did not fuss in the mornings prior to school, and just did so good! I was so proud of them. Friday eve we spent with our small group from church making gingerbread houses. We had a lot of fun, and it helped the evening go by so fast. I feel so blessed to be a part of a great church with people my age, and in my stage of life. I am surrounded by young families and my children have other children to play with and to feel safe. So for this past week of thankfulness, I am so thankful for my friends. Those who listen, who share, who call me, who support me, who love, those friends who are just so special to me. I am so thankful for you! Your friendship means so much to me. Our gingerbread house.

My four children, whom I am so very thankful for.

Party time

All week I have been thinking about my Thankful Thursday theme. The kids and I have discussed being thankful for my car which we rely on to carry us to all different places, thankful for our beds that feel so good when we fall into them, thankful for the food that we can afford to buy and then eat, and thankful for the jobs that we have to help meet our needs. I decided on Thursday to focus on being thankful for our health. So many people around us have health struggles and different viruses are causing young people to be ill. Thru all of this, our family has been relatively healthy. Yes, we have minor complaints typical of the season, but overall we have maintained our healthful condition, and I am so truly thankful for that. Focusing on being thankful is such a healthy exercise for our minds. It has helped my children in directing their thoughts. I really should do this throughout the year and not just one month.

Friday night was the great, anticipated party night in Ashley's room. Ashley prepared by making a list of activities and collecting craft items for her planned events(food was not permitted). Jacob pitched the tent in her room, sleeping bags were arranged, and the door was closed to adults. They had one hour to "party" and then we settled them down and this is what they looked like. It was so fun to hear them giggling and having a good time, feeling so grown up without adults! Before we went to bed, we peeked in, and of course had to capture the moment.

What fun they had, and now they are planning the next party!

Thankful on a Friday

I wanted so much to do a Thursday Thankfulness, and I spent all day thinking of all the many things I am so thankful for. Thursday sped by and I did not get my blog written. However, I had a wonderful thankful day thinking of the many wonderful aspects of my life. I am so thankful and so blessed with my family. My children and my husband fill my heart with happiness. Laughter, tears, chaos, noise, all emotions from all extremes fill my house, but I am so thankful for each and every one. I can't imagine my life being any different, and God has truly blessed me. An update on Violet, here is her new skill. The stairs are like a magnet to her. I put her down and she will change her direction to head for the stairs. Yesterday on my thankful Thursday she bumped down the stairs not once, but two times. And yes, I was thankful she did not get hurt too bad.

Oh, she is so proud, look at her laughing!!

Oh look, here is a new discovery. What fun it is to unroll the toilet paper, what a mess she can create. She has even started emptying the bookshelf with our many books--didn't take a picture of that one, it was way to messy to forever remember.

We have been listening to children's worship music and yesterday while I was focusing my thoughts towards thankfulness, this song started playing and I thought how appropriate. Remember this song? Give thanks with a grateful heart. Give thanks to the Holy One, Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ His Son....And now let the weak say I am strong, let the poor say I am rich, because of what the Lord has done for us......Give thanks.

Oct 31st

Yes, I am a couple days late here. Someday, I plan on catching up with my life and having everything under control. Back to reality, some days I feel like life is spinning wildly out of control, and I am grasping to catch a hold and keep up. Oh it's not as bad as it sounds. However, I am posting this blog several days late.
We look forward to Halloween so much. We anticipate dressing up in our outfits and visiting my paternal grandma. I just love going to visit her and sadly we just don't visit enough. Halloween is a must. She loves seeing the children all dressed up and watch their enthusiasm as they talk about their costume. All the other elderly folks love to talk and visit with them as well. We just love visiting her. This Halloween we spent all day at our soccer tournament. I was so thankful Ben spent the day with me and helped me with the children all day. Usually I am going to soccer games by myself with all four children, so this was a wonderful treat and a great day as a family. Here is a picture of the kids at their Great Grandma's.

(Rachel is going through a stage of sticking her tongue out when getting her picture taken, I hope this passes soon!)

After visiting Grandma, we head on to the church to have supper and planned activities for the children. When all the events are over, we head home happy and tired, dreaming of next year.

Birthday Bash

On Oct. 27th, we celebrated Ben's birthday together as a family. Birthdays are so very special. We make a big deal out of birthdays! Ashley was a little disappointed that she did not get to go shopping to get daddy a special gift, so I suggested she make something for him, like a picture or a painting. Ashley said she wanted to make choc chip cookies, so after school, she made a batch of cookies. I enjoy working in the kitchen with her, she is such an eager learner. Here we are with Ben's special request: a pumpkin pie made with real pumpkin. (I baked 4 pumpkins earlier in the day for pies)

And opening presents. It is so fun to watch the kids give daddy their gift. They are tearing off the paper before he gets his hands on it. (he doesn't mind, of course)

Later Ben pulled out his trombone that he had when he was younger. This was a special request of Jacob's and they all took turns trying to make some sound with it. We had such a good time together. I realized that this is the 15th birthday I have celebrated with Ben, wow, does time fly. 15 sounds like a long time. Our we that old???

We've had some fun in the leaves, I'm sure we will get out there again for more fall fun. This was our first leaf pile of the year.

I caught this picture of Ben and Jacob playing ball together. It is fun to have some beautiful fall days and being outside together. We have so many things to be thankful for. Some of these memories I hope to treasure forever and capture some on camera. I do believe as crazy, at times stressful, this season is the best one of all. I love my kids, my little family, and I am sooo thankful for each and every one of them. I can't imagine my family being any different.

Changes

We've had some changes in our house. They are for the good of course. Little Violet has been out growing her little cradle that she has been sleeping in, and I have been really wanting to get her in the crib. However, Rachel has been sleeping on the crib mattress on the floor, so, we needed to get Rachel a twin mattress set and do some changes. Here is a picture of Violet's crib corner in Rachel's room. It is so nice to be able to put her in the crib, awake, and let her fall asleep without fear of her falling out and onto a hard wood floor, like in the cradle.
And dear little Rachel got a new bed!! She is so very proud of her big girl bed and has been sleeping in her bed now at night!

Violet enjoys sitting in the highchair watching the supper table chaos while getting used to a sippy cup. Our supper table goals include 1. toning the voices down 2. taking turns talking 3. sitting on the chairs properly. It seems like our meal times are just chaotic. Everyone wants to talk, voices get louder to be heard, and Ben and I are trying to correct proper table etiquette, etc..... Ben and I are very outnumbered here and I think it helps to have a better adult to child ratio. But we do the best we can, we sure aren't perfect, and we do make a lot of mistakes!

Violet continues to crawl everywhere. I really have to watch her. She disappears so quickly and I am often saying "where is Violet?" and "what does she have in her mouth?" She has already fallen down the stairs from the playroom into the garage (4 steps).

Violet has begun to pull herself to a standing position. One reason why I really wanted her out of the cradle. I went in to get her out of the cradle and she was holding on to the side of the cradle standing up!!! So of course I feared her going head first to the floor!! She stands flat footed and locks her legs, and doesn't want to sit back down. Where has my baby gone????

Days fly by, I really don't know where they go or what I do. But children are cared for, played with, read to, and loved. Meals are prepared, snacks are given and diapers are changed. Laundry is never done, house is never cleaned, but every day I am so thankful for where I am and what I am doing. I feel so blessed to have this opportunity to love these kids. I ran across a cute poem that is fun to read

A Mother's Prayer

Father in heaven, make me wise,

So that my gaze may never meet

A question in my children's eyes.

God keep me always kind and sweet,

And patient, too, before their need;

Let each vexation know its place,

Let gentleness be all my creed,

Let laughter live upon my face!

A mother's day is very long,

There are so many things to do!

But never let me lose my song

Before the hardest day is through.

by Margaret E. Sangster

Its Monday

It has been 2 weeks since I have been to the grocery store. Supplies are running low, so this was our errand for today, a nice long grocery list and getting Violet's 6 month pictures taken. We got the pictures taken, smiles were in abundance, everyone is happy. Then while grocery shopping, still everyone happy, Rachel is sitting in the basket and Violet in the baby carrier in front. I am shopping away, when all of a sudden Rachel throws out the Ragu container. It burst all over the floor. Ragu is everywhere. I am standing there with my mouth hanging open wondering "did this just happen, and where did this come from?" There were several people in the aisle, and I am so thankful no one got splattered. I however, wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear. My kids are not even fussing! Where did this behavior come from??? Rachel was very silent and very still. We had to find a little clean-up man to help us and then needless to say we checked out what we had and went home. On the drive home we had a little discussion about throwing things. Hopefully this will not happen anymore. It's a Monday, the beginning of the week and I hope it improves!! I have no flour or sugar, I guess we will need to make another grocery trip sometime this week, what a bummer. But for now I am still recovering from this grocery experience.

Soccer Game

We had our first soccer game this afternoon! It was so much fun to see the kids enjoying themselves. They are on the same team, and it is fun to see them together. When Ashley was running after the ball she had a constant smile on her face. This picture of her is while playing defense. They have an excellent coach who lets the kids play all different positions. Every one has an opportunity to "run after the ball". Jacob didn't want to play defense, but he did good.

Jacob did come very close to scoring his first goal, maybe next time.

Rachel, Violet and I sat on the sidelines cheering them on. They did wonderful, and even won the game. And tonight, they are very, very tired. We are looking forward to a fun, busy weekend!

It's been awhile

Here's the latest news: Violet is crawling! She is on the go, and is venturing outside her safety zone of "the rug" It is fun to watch her crawl around and every day she is mastering the skill better and better. At times while in the "crawl" position she will straighten her legs and stick her behind way up. It is so funny, I wonder why she does this? My concern is what is she going after and what is she going to put in her mouth? It is a bit of a challenge to keep the older children's small toys away from a mobile Violet. Violet went for her 6 month check up today, she weighs 15lbs and 1 oz. She is in the 90th percentile for height, although I can't remember her measurement. After her dr's appt I was planning a big grocery stop, but in the store, Rachel fell apart (unusual for her). I do believe she is tired after getting up so early. So, no groceries later, I am home trying to think up a plan for supper.
This is a picture of Jacob, yes, he is running on the treadmill. He likes being the fastest runner in his class, and this year another boy runs around the track faster than Jacob. So we told him he just needed to keep running and after some practice, he would run even faster. Jacob came up with this idea that over the weekend he needed to run on the treadmill to practice. He ran one mile on Sat and again on Sun afternoon. Come Monday at school, his legs were tired and he still couldn't pass this one boy. So we encouraged him to take it a little easier. He is playing soccer and is running there!

It really warms my heart to see my children playing together. When every one is getting along and having fun, I feel like we are doing something right. Just a dirt pile entertains them for a long time.

I caught Ben reading the girls books before bedtime. This doesn't always happen like this, our evening routine varies. Sometimes I am rushing off to work at 6:00pm, soccer practice cuts our evening short, and homework changes things. Plus, we are pretty good about the 8:00 bedtime, but it makes our evenings just fly by!

Ben's parents were here from Wed to Monday morning, and it was so nice to have extra hands and open arms for the children. We all enjoy having them with us. Thanks dad and mom Bast for all the help you give to us! We love having you here.

I have started working an 11pm-7am shift at work. It touched my heart when I came home, and Jacob poured a cup of coffee for me. He seems to really help out when I am gone. I am trying to do this without a babysitter. Fatigue and I are already close companions and so far, I am managing. My laundry pile is getting huge, and the dust is collecting, but oh well. I am Just thankful I can work as little as I do.

After school fun

This week has flown by, and I am trying to get used to having the days slip away. Some days I getmething done, and other days I think I am going to get something done. We have spent some time outside enjoying this beautiful weather. Here Rachel is in her dress (the outfit for the moment) playing in the dirt. One bonus to living in a constant construction zone is the piles and piles of dirt we have. The kids don't know what it is like to live without dirt! Ben cut down some trees, and left this pine tree for the kids to play on and let me tell you we have walked all over this tree. It is very long/tall, and we have played follow the leader, and practiced balancing on this tree. Ashley loves walking on this tree and even Rachel can walk on this fallen tree.

We also got the baby swing up again, with the rope fixed, so Violet has enjoyed swinging. I also was able to get the garden somewhat ready for fall while she sat in the swing and watched.

Jacob is enjoying 2nd grade. His group of friends have discovered the sport of kickball, so when I ask about school, I hear about the eventful kickball game during recess and who ran the fastest, etc... I guess that's what is important. One afternoon after school I was able to get a quick picture of his afternoon activity of playing cowboy. Hmmmm, once again, I am thankful for dirt.

And of course, I have to include a picture of this beautiful baby of mine, who is just growing so fast and is just amazing. She is near crawling. She gets up on her hands and knees and rocks back and forth and then ends up on her belly. She wants to crawl, but hasn't quite gotten there yet. When I went to work the other night I left specific instructions that Violet was not allowed to crawl. I didn't want to miss her milestone. So the kids were excited to tell me the next morning that every time she got up on her hands and knees, they made her get on her belly again. It also helped that Ben put her in a bag sleeper to make it more difficult.

Now this evening I need to get supper ready. I have been in a slump recently regarding supper plans and ideas. Hopefully I will pull out of it soon. I just feel like I fix the same ole things over and over again. No one here is complaining, it's just my thoughts and we do seem to end up with a balanced complete meal. Just a tired cook dreading the clean up process after bedtime. UGGGH! Oh for a cook, housekeeper and laundry assistant, then I could sleep and play, what fun that would be!!!