The Fall Round-Up

Here the hungry boys pose patiently, waiting to eat these freshly, baked oatmeal muffins. As you can see, Sam (in hat) is rarely without his "gun", which is actually part of one of our dining room chairs (?????)...LOL!

R.I.P, dear aloe vera plant. You once flourished in our home and added comfort and relief to burned and irritated skin. You brightened the living room with your greenliness. Now, you are but a victim of a heinous plant-beating crime.

Greyson holds the weapon used in the plant-beating crime. It is confiscated as evidence "exhibit A."

The guilty perpetrator confesses after a bit of questionning (wink).
This is what you do A LOT when you live and strive to survive with 6 brothers. And as you can see by Rachel's smile, it's kind of fun sometimes (grin).

John, with his weapon at-the-ready.

Frolicking in the leaves.

Noah, #6, ready to lay a hit on somebody.

Malcom getting into position.

The victorious Pop Warner Peewees Greyson and Elijah.

We had to take this picture to show Sam trying to fit his enormous head into a too-small-for-him football helmet.

Things are slowing down a bit here. We are all catching our breaths before it gets busy again.

Take care and say "hi" by leaving us a comment HERE.

Thanks!

Camy

We're now in the homestretch of football season. One more game!


At this point, our whole family is exhausted....even the football players themselves. We are thankful for an upcoming, short break. We are contemplating winter sports at this time with the boys.


For your listening pleasure, I have added a playlist of some of my favorite music (see sidebar). Perhaps you can take a listen as you read the blog entries!


I love these chorus lyrics by Mark Schultz in "He Will Carry Me"


Even though I'm walking through the valley of the shadow
I will hold tight to the hand of Him whose love will comfort me
And when all hope is gone and I've been wounded in the battle
He is all the strength that I will ever need
He will carry me....




You will see that my playlist is full of songs that encourage during the struggles of life. These songs really lift my spirit, and I hope you will find them a blessing as well.

This week we are trying to clean and organize (after all the chaotic activity during football season). Shoes are our biggest project right now. We have 3 large laundry baskets full of shoes! LOL! They are a blessing, but we need to weed out some of them. We only have 18 feet in our house to put shoes on (grin).

Have a blessed and wonderful day!

(p.s. We got to hear our baby's heartbeat! Rachel and Sam accompanied me and got to hear it as well. At the same appointment, my blood was taken, which Greyson and Elijah were thrilled observers of the process...quite a homeschooling fieldtrip, eh?)

Can't wait to hear your comments...click HERE to say "hey."

Never A Dull Moment

We sure stayed heavily occupied last week, as you can tell by the absence of blog entries.

Our family has a new addition. Meet "Kit", Rachel's new American Girl doll, courtesy of her Grandpa and Granna.

The addition of this doll to our household has created quite a stir. The boys are somewhat stupefied by this feminine creature. It would be their delight to kidnap Kit and rearrange her anatomy. However, their mother has strongly cautioned them against such a feat....as well as listed the possible consequences of such an event.

Needless to say, Ms. Rachel is so delighted with her new "sister", her reference to Kit. So sweet! Can you believe that we put away her dolls a few months ago after Rachel announced her new, profound interest in science? She still loves science, but she's not ready to put Kit into that stored-away doll box.

Here are a few other happenings at our house this October:

This is one of the myriad of Lego creations by Greyson and Elijah featuring the Indiana Jones theme. They've been hard at work building and taking photos of their masterpieces.

Did you ever make leaf paths when you were a kid? I remember making leaf houses on the playground in elementary school as a child. Here is a "leaf labrynth" (as Greyson has labeled it) in our front yard. Greyson worked hard raking and organizing this pathway, much to the delight of the younger children! They played for a few hours, running and finding their way around the winding maze. Greyson timed them as they navigated, which caused competition, which in-turn caused dissention, which led to arguing, tears, blah, blah, blah (grin).

Rachel is holding a plate of her bread creations, fit with sprinkles!

Still more bread....if we're lucky, this will last us 2 days.

As you can see, there is never a dull moment in our home, and we thank God for that.

Hope you and yours are enjoying October!

Send us your comments HERE...we sure love hearing from you!

Blessings,

Camy

My Haven and Place of Rest

This is my kitchen sink, my haven from the world. My place of prayer, solace, tears, laughter, rejoicing, sadness, brainstorming, ....you name it. It is clean right now, for the first time in weeks. I have been tired and pregnant-nauseous, which often inhibits my ability to tidy and keep the sink area clean and clutter free.

I love my 70's vintage orange formica countertop! Not only does it hide a lot of warts, but the yellow tones in the orange tend to brighten my mood a bit.

I love to put a few drops of lemon essential oil in my dishwater. The scent both relaxes and rejuvenates me at the same time, not to mention that it cuts grease. There are also two, small oil-burners for simmering various essential oils. These help to tone down cooking odors and cheer the air.

I like to put up reminders in this place of habit. To my right, I have an afternoon list, a verse, and a postcard from a dear friend with a suffering sister. Since I spend long hours at this spot, it is helpful for me post items that I want to keep in mind.
On the left side of the sink, I have poster that reminds me to be thankful for freedom of religion in this country. These are dear souls who have either been jailed or killed for their Christian faith in Sharia law countries. When I feel downhearted, a glimpse of this poster tells me that many of my worries are so minor....



I have learned to love the times spent at my kitchen sink, my haven and place of "rest." Getting lost in my thoughts, as well in piles and piles of dishes each day is what I do here.



Blessings to you this day.



Thanks so much for your comments. You can leave them HERE



~Camy

Pancake Sunday

On Sunday it is always my aim to cook up a pancake breakfast. Well, it does not always happen for various reasons, yet today it did. We wanted to share our breakfast with you all. (Oh, and by the way, the recipes will follow this entry)

Noah is not entering an "all-you-can-eat" pancake breakfast. This is meant for our family (grin). Thankfully, Noah has extremely strong biceps....despite that fact, however, he still struggles to hold the immense towers of pancakes steadily on the tray. (not to mention that he is a bit clumsy sometimes as well :o).

Here are Dad's special order banana pancakes (the ones I cook lastly because they really mess up the grill). We must keep the Dad happy and banana pancakes will do the trick (smile).

Elijah holds up his gluten-free special order. (Elijah, your shirt is on backwards)

Some of the children are literally fainting from hunger (ahem!) as Mom annoys them with another photo. (John, get a shirt on, would ya please??)

After all the hard work of carrying and transporting literal piles of pancakes from the kitchen to the table, Noah is rewarded with a giant stack of peanut butter & syrup covered hotcakes. Yes, he ate every last drop.

Everyone went away from the table satisfied...at least for a few minutes anyway.

Here are the recipes:

Basic Wholegrain Pancakes (adapted from the La Leche League cookbook) We quadruple this recipe to suit our family's desire for massive amounts of food.

2 cups milk (or other nondairy liquid)

1-3 eggs

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups flour (we use freshly-ground whole wheat)

1/4 cup honey or other sweetener, optional

1/4 cup oil, optional

Combine liquid ingredients, sweetener, & oil. Combine well. Mix separately the dry ingredients, stir well to combine. Add dry ingredients to the wet. Stir until lumps are almost gone. Cook on a hot skillet or griddle.

Elijah's Custom Gluten-Free Pancakes

Stir the following together:

3/4 cup garbanzo bean flour

1/4 cup tapioca starch

1/4 cup potato starch

1 tablespoon guar gum or xanthan gum

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

Stir the following together in a separate bowl:

1 cup of water

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1 egg

2 tablespoons oil

1 tablespoon brown sugar

Combine the wet and dry ingredients above together. Stir well until batter reaches thick consistency. Batter is a bit thick. Drop onto greased hot griddle or skillet, cooking about 3 minutes per side, turning twice. Each side should cook 2 times. Serve!

Have a great day!

Blessings,

Camy

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Bad Mom

It's been a rough few days...I have been very sick and in bed most of the day (fun). This is not pretty when you have an 11 year old boy in charge of 4 younger siblings (of whom 3 are boys).

Yesterday, 11 year old and 9 year old played videogames all day...seriously. I did not have the gumption to redirect or instruct them to do something else. While the two of them indulged their videogame fancies, the other little ones ruled the roost (yikes). 3 year old boy drew on the walls with dry-erase marker as well as in some of our good books (frown). We won't even discuss how the kitchen looked....(shudder).

So, I am thankful that today is a better day, and I was able to get up and eat breakfast (very carefully so as not to upset my fragile constitution at this juncture).

I aim to get supper started this morning so I don't have to worry about it this evening. It seems that I feel worse later in the day, and the kitchen is the last place on this earth (w/ the exception of our heavily-used boy bathroom) that I want to be.

Our supper today:

Hamburger Gravy w/ Mashed Potatoes

I use ground turkey for this recipe, 3 pounds.
Saute ground turkey w/ chopped onions. Stir in about 3-4 tablespoons flour until browned. Add either chicken or beef broth and stir well over medium-high heat. Add other spices (or salt and pepper) according to taste. I like to add a splash of Bragg's Liquid Aminos for a rich flavor.

This makes a delightful gravy to put over top mashed potatoes. Comfort food at its best! (Let's hope it comforts me at the end of the day when I am feeling yucky).

I am sorry if I sound like my posts are full of complaining. If I am physically compromised, my attitude becomes negative. However, last night as I was doing the dishes (at 10:00 pm..frown), I listened to the radio program called "Nightsounds" by Bill Pierce. He has one of those deep, hypnotic voices. The program features older, Christian music with an encouraging theme.

Mr. Pierce mentioned how God will never leave us nor forsake us, even (and especially) during the tough times. I have found this to be true! It really blessed me.

Hope you have a great day!

Blessings,
Camy

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Sharing Struggles Leads To Catharsis

I was chatting with my friend Elise today about the common struggles we face as mothers of large families. Elise has 8 children that are very similar in age to my children.

We were discussing the frustration that occurs when momma is down (sickness, pregnancy, overtired, blah, blah, blah, etc..) and how when momma is down and out, the children have inefficient oversight and management. This eventually (in a very short time!!!) takes us to the "point of what-seems-like no return."

Meals go down the tubes, the house goes by the wayside, you can't find anyones shoes or socks, and everyone becomes very cranky. Many of you can relate to this very same phenomena. If you have many children, it is like a monster that gets bigger and bigger! (actually, I think the monster is the toddler, who isn't being as well-trained as they could be...LOL!).

As we spoke, I could feel the relief of being able to share this similar struggle with a dear, dear friend. What a blessing that God provides friendships that allow for deep sharing. So cathartic!

I was telling my friend that I could observe from my vantage point, debris on the floor, books and toys strewn about the room, etc. etc. It takes less than an hour for it all to unravel and happen.

Phew!

After we complained awhile, we began to realize the blessings God has given us through our large families. Powerful blessings that are almost beyond words. The struggle, the pain, the frustrations are always replaced with laughter, joy, companionship. I don't think either of us would change of thing....

When I hung up the phone, the song "Praise You In This Storm" by Casting Crowns came to my mind. This song puts me in tears at the revelation that God is ALWAYS there in the midst of tough times. We just have to listen a bit harder for his voice.

If you have time, take a listen to "Praise You In This Storm" by Casting Crowns (lyrics included): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiRDpkoCKi8

...and I realize that some of you face serious struggles everyday that make mine look minimal. May God encourage you today.

Blessings,
Camy

**Leave your comments HERE...Thanks!

(Oh, just wanted you all to know I am working on a daily check-off chart for our homeschool and school duties. It is my aim to post it soon!)