The things kids say...you

So obviously our children are P.K.'s (pastor's kids)... we try to do things that make our kids want to come to church and love church and love everyone there... but kids get their own ideas. Our church loves children and loves outreach. We bus in loads and loads of kids and we all share the responsibility in looking after them once they are at church. I really like to think our church is very child friendly. However, it seems this compassion has left poor little Macy very confused. Each Wednesday night at the end of each class the teacher will separate the bus children and get them ready to load, it is very important especially with the little ones who don't notice if they get on the wrong bus.  Last night during this process Macy's teacher Miss Kristen asked the bus students to please line up. Macy announces to the class that she doesn't not have to ride the bus BECAUSE SHE HAS PARENTS! Oh my word! This kind of embarrassed me a little. What have I said to make her think that all these kids do not have parents. I haven't decided how to address this topic, but I found the comment to be somewhat humorous, but I assume this will be one of many times that what I hear coming out of my child's mount has me thinking about what has been coming out of mine!

Little Prayers

I always have the fear in the back of my mind that raising children in the ministry is dangerous... that they might hear too many much or experience to much while they are so young. On the other hand, I hope that being exposed to so many people will give them compassion. We can always hope. We always pray before meals and at bed time... I love little kid prayers so I've always asked Macy if she would like to pray, but she is pretty bashful and has always declined. However about a month ago Macy decided that she was ready to pray... I was pumped! So here is what she says (a nap time prayer): Dear God, thank you for our food. thank you for Macy's town. Thank you for all the people in Macy's town. Amen.  I gotta tell you lately I haven't been feeling the love for Rockaway. Sometimes it's hard to be patient and wait for change, but from the mouth of my three year old daughter... We are thankful for Macy's town and everyone in it! A few days later she wants to pray at meal time... I believe it was lunch. Here is what she says: Dear God, Thank you for our food. Thank you for Jonathan. Thank you for Amy. Thank you for Colten and thank you for Macy. Amen.  Some days it feels like nothing you do is important, but to her it is and it is always nice to hear it. I love the simplicity and truth to such little prayers. I love my kids and I love what they teach me!

It's been a while...

Well, it's been a while since I've written a blog... Life is busy with two little kids running around! (today yelling) You know I expected the work to increase, but WOW... little boys are a handful! With all joking aside I love my kids... It's hard to imagine life without them! So much has happened since my last post... The new church building has been built, Macy turned three, we had Colten, and he is already 1! Things have been up but they have also been down. This August we lost a baby and with that came many emotions. We have been so blessed and I don't want to seem ungrateful, but the sadness has been overwhelming at times. However, God is faithful and He is good all the time. Church is going well and with the new space brings new growth. We have added a very nice (free) bus. Church is becoming healthier... it seems like we have more workers. We always need more, but things are looking up! The winter has been tough... several deaths and I hate death. It's so sad and I'm human so it's hard to imagine what heaven will be like. It's hard to not be sad when we lose someone. I'll never get used to it, but I guess that is how we are designed so it's ok. I think I'm going to start blogging more... Macy has started gymnastics so I'm sure that will provide some fresh material and Colten is into everything!!

Learning the Lingo

I am learning the as children learn to talk they may or may not use the correct words. It's like they have their own lingo. Recently we watched three little girls for a friend. We had an awesome time playing, coloring, eating, ect. I did learn that I cant always assume I know what children are trying to tell me... For example, Macy roars like a lion when she wants to watch Nih-kilan (however you spell that)!! Jonathan actually figured this out before I did!! During the course of the two days between my little girl and her three friends I have learned a few things... My favorite: Red dip is ketchup; choo choo means Chuggington; yellow dip is mustard (obviously); shoo wee means I just pooped in my diaper; silence means someone is doing something they shouldn't be (like eating dog food); wee is the slide; go wee means I want to slide (NOW)... You get the idea. I am sure anyone who is around youngsters knows how this goes!! Kids sure are cute and very entertaining!

Back online!!

Well, it's been a while... Daisy, the dog chewed up the cord to plug in the computer!! Such a sweet looking little thing!! I can't believe how much I missed facebook and the internet! We were only with out for 4 days. I am very glad to be back!!

7 Ways to Save Money

Lately we have be trying to faithfully live by a budget, which doesn't come naturally for me or my husband. BUT now that we are parents we must start planning for the future. I thought I'd share a few ways we've learned to cut back. Enjoy!!

1. We plan our meals in advance and only buy the groceries on the list!! (this is hard, but it is nice once you get used to it and it keeps you from buying on impulse)

2. Eat at home... which is much cheaper than eating out.  This one has been hard for us because we travel quite abit, but it is the best area to save the most amount of money.

3. Plan trips in advance... instead of running to the store every time you need something wait and make a list and get it all done at once. This helps cut down on gas expense.

4. Don't buy paper towels. This one was hard for me. I hate using a rag, but I have adjusted and we now use old rags to clean and just throw them in the wash and reuse them. This one is also ecofriendly.

5. EAT LEFTOVERS. My husband hates this one, but if you are throwing food away you might as well be throwing money away.

6. Learn to discern a Want from a Need.... we "want" alot of things, but do we really "need" it.

7. Evaluate your monthly bills and make sure that you are getting the best deal possible... (insurance, cell phone, cable, ect) We recently refinanced and cut 10 years off the life of our loan, saving us tens of thousands of dollars on our house.

Oh the things we learn!! If you've found other ways to cut back, please share!!

Baby Proof

I had no idea all the simple things that can be so dangerous, such as a table and chair, a toilet, a marble...

I've learned to make sure the bathroom door is ALWAYS closed!! My daughter loves to splash around in the potty! To bad she wont actually use the potty.

I've also learned that if I push the chairs all the way to the table she cannot climb ontop of the table nearly as easily.

I've learned that anything small enough will go directly in her mouth!! So gross. So gross.

No matter how much they want to stand up in the cart (buggy, basket, ecgt) this is a Very bad idea.

Mostly I've learned that no matter how much cleaning, organizing, and baby proofing I try to do my toddler WILL find something to play with that could get her into trouble!