Don't Want the Kids to be Happy!

A friend sent me a link to a post about happiness and children.

It is awesome.

Check THIS out!

On the subject of college,

it is possible to go to college,

and not have any debt,

without help from the folks.

If you work your BUTT off,

AND

are lucky enough to be in a family who has a gazillion exemptions.

Another post for another day is how our life choices have affected our kids.

I think I will ask them.

Ode to the Laptop.

My laptop was arcing and then black smoke and then...a smell of burnage.....Yikes.

Well, the mac-fixer informed that she is running for office and would have more time after Tuesday.

It took a few minutes for me to put two and two together.

I was near tears.

I wasn't sure I was gonna live.

This means my laptop is in never never land for "I don't know how long."

It will get fixed and she does a great job for a great price....someday.

I should be grateful that I have a mac-fixer in this part of the country. Closest Apple store is 60 miles plus.

I am grateful. I just miss my baby.

Gratefulness comes in the form of this old and slow (i.e. decrepit and cumbersome) laptop from my hubby's work.

Otherwise, I would be dead in the water.

What would I do with all my "free" time?

Time spent pouring over other people's blogs,

paying bills,

perusing blogs,

researching curriculum,

reading blogs,

looking up stuff on Wikipedia,

commenting on blogs,

online classes,

blog, blog, blog.

I think I might have a problem.

God might be trying to tell me something.

I think I better listen up.

Miracle Man

Five weeks old.

Such a somber little man.

Halfway to now.

He is my miracle man.

I sneezed.

He said, "Bless you."

My eyes got teary.

He responded.

Appropriately.

He knew what to do.

And what to say.

His beginnings were tough.

A lot to overcome.

No eye contact for months.

Slow healing on the inside.

I got my first real hug just a few months ago.

Developmental testing today.

We have come so far and still have a ways to go.

But God does miracles.

And he is one.

Toilet Tales - The Final Chapter?

Is this the end of saga?

I cannot say.

Now we have THREE new toilets.

Two are the same and one is different.

Aren't they beautiful?

Due the unfortunate demise of the plunging commode, and after the first plugging, my wonderful husband sat around with his coffee buddy and actually calculated the amount of water we would save PER FLUSH with a new throne! When you have 11 people, I believe that is significant. Besides, he opened the water bill and was surprised. We will wait with baited breath for the arrival of the next water bill in about three months.

Cora's Turn

I suppose everyone should get a birthday or adoption day post. I am a little behind. They just seem to happen all the time, birthdays I mean. Cora turned 9 in September. It also happened to be the one year anniversary of Micah's adoption. Yes, all on the same day. It was special! This year, it was a great discussion point with Trey who insisted that he was adopted and we gently explained that he was not adopted, YET! So now that he is a little older, he seems to sort of grasp the concept, but not really. I was wondering how that would go with the little ones since they have always been here, yet have contact with their birthmother. Each of their stories is so different, yet the same. Honestly, so many are adopted now that it is a fact of life around here.

Back to Cora's birthday:
She had that smile on her face!

She and Grace decorated the cake!

Micah seems to like hats, but that's another post.
Micah, you have been a Peterson for a whole year!

I think it is so funny that they are mesmerized by the fire.

Happy birthday girl!

Blow, baby, blow!

Waiting for cake and ice cream.

The balloon dance.

Another wonderful celebration.

Can't I Be Normal?

Sometimes I just want to be normal.

What in the world do I mean when I use that word "normal"?

Accepted?

Like everyone else?

Kids in public school?

Two kids, a house, and a dog?

Having friends with kids the same ages?


Sometimes life is just plain hard. Very hard.

Being normal would mean:

Not listening to the "call".

Turning away from mega-mom-hood!

Not growing in Christ through the hard times.

Missing out on the multitude of blessings that God has planned for us.

Being oblivious to the pain and suffering in our community and our world.

As hard as life is, normal would be harder because then I would not be storing up treasures in heaven.

And you know what? In spite of me, my kids are happy. They truly are. They are learning to be secure and loved and cherished. They are learning boundaries and building relationships.

It is pictures and days like these that make me smile, that give me hope, that help me through the sometimes lonely and often times hard places.

Children are a gift from the Lord, no doubt about it.

Playing prairie girls and building forts.

Erika's fort in the woods.

Very creative and self-made.

Welcome to the Kloey and Cora's domain.

They build with what they find using nails and rocks for hammers.

They have quite a compound.

Cora made this horse.

Kloey has her own horse.

Micah is allowed to visit.

Three Things:

1) I am blessed.

2) My kids know how to play!

3) I probably wouldn't like "normal" anyway.

Temporary Home

We went to see someone yesterday.

Someone very important in the lives of my children.

She told me about this song.

She said it made her cry.

I wish I could say more, I can't.

I have hope. And hope is eternal.



Little boy, 6 years old

A little too used to bein' alone

Another new mom and dad,another school

Another house that'll never be home

When people ask him how he likes this place

He looks up and says with a smile upon his face



"This is my temporary home

It's not where I belong

Windows and rooms that I'm passin' through

This is just a stop, on the way to where I'm going

I'm not afraid because I know this is my

Temporary Home."



Young mom on her own

She needs a little help got nowhere to go

She's lookin' for a job, lookin' for a way out

Because a half-way house will never be a home

At night she whispers to her baby girl

Someday we'll find a place here in this world



"This is our temporary home

It's not where we belong

Windows and rooms that we're passin' through

This is just a stop, on the way to where we're going

I'm not afraid because I know this is our

Temporary Home."



Old man, hospital bed

The room is filled with people he loves

And he whispers don't cry for me

I'll see you all someday

He looks up and says "I can see God's face"



"This is my temporary Home

It's not where I belong

Windows and rooms that I'm passin' through

This was just a stop,on the way To where I'm going

I'm not afraid because I know this was

My temporary home."



This is our temporary home

A Surprise From the Fair

The kids are in 4-H. The girls worked on their horse projects and entered them in the fair. Thankfully, if you participate in an exhibit, 4-H gives you free passes. Of course the food is still deliciously exorbitant. We brought the camera but did not use it very much. We watched horse pulling, HAD to march through all the cows and oxen, saw lots of sheep, goats, and alpacas, and watched a few tractor pulls to top off the afternoon.

THEN, IT HAPPENED!

We stood in line to walk through the Poultry/Rabbit house. We don't usually stand in line for much because, well, you know, who wants to stand in line with a 3 year old, a 2 year old, and an eleven month old. Plenty of time standing in line caused us to reflect on how much Kloey wants a bunny. She has begged, pleaded, and written copious notes left on my pillow that are heart wrenching and sweet. Daddy finally said, "Yes" after he spotted two Rex bunnies that were for sale. He said, "Okay, if those two bunnies are still there when Kloey goes through later, we will get them." (The middle four were working at the 4-H food booth.)

THERE THEY WERE.

Is that a smile of sheer delight, or what?

Farmer Lindsey made a few phone calls, went to Tractor Supply, and got us all set up. We are now in the bunny business.

I know you are wondering...

the way things seem to multiply around here....

Two boys!

Hop and Scotch.

Moo Cows

VISITORS PLEASE REPORT TO THE OFFICE

We get personal tours.
We are pretty lucky.

The outdoor mama cows.
More than once,
we were reminded that all the cows
on a dairy farm are
GIRLS.

Some are shy and some aren't.
Are we talking people or cows?
Both.

Boys meet cow.

He does NOT like cows.
No way, no how.
Lindsey is lamenting that
he might not work on her farm.

On the other hand, she is a cow charmer.

NOT afraid.
Full of curiosity.

Closer, closer...

Lots of babies with these cute hearts on their foreheads.

Kloey got a kiss.
She most definitely will want
to work on Lindsey's farm.

If you are not black, then you must be white.

The working GIRLS.

A few outdoor calf pens.

This is what happens when someone else gets the camera.

There is a whole series of shots from start to finish.
Duty happens.

A new calf.
Isn't she lovely?

No bulls allowed.

He's not standing down.
What farm tour is complete without a tractor.
Small green shirted person in right hand corner
is
mesmerized.

The kids had to have a shot of home.

Whoever had the camera felt compelled.
Not exactly a farm buggy
or a pick up truck....
but, I assure you,
it smells like one.

Another delightful tour of the stomping grounds
of our wonderful daughter and sister.