My new "art"...

This is some of what you see as you walk through our front door of our new home. Actually this pic is taken at a side angle, so it is what you see coming out of the guest bathroom, but it is in our entryway. So, anyway...the painting is not my new art. It is one of my most prized possessions that my parents bought us for a wedding gift way back in 1997. I could still look at it for hours. It has all of my favorite colors and I have made up things in my life that are symbolized by each element in the painting. Oh, I LOVE IT!

My new "art" is the Lichtenberger Family thing. Since I am not crafty by any stretch of the imagination, but I LOVE all things homemade and handmade, I frequently get lost on www.etsy.com where you can find almost anything crafty and artsy made mostly by women, many of whom are stay-at-home or even homeschooling moms. I want to support them because they are infinitely talented and have found a way to help support their family while staying home to provide the best care. This cling-on-vinyl number was created by willow creek sign company. They are a group of Air Force wives and stay-at-home moms, so I was especially excited to purchase from them. They also created the bird family I have over the kitchen window.
(Notice also, James' mad painting skills. He painted the cut-out area with the painting a contrasting color. He also painted the inside of all of our windows that same color. I am really please with it.)



In this pic the kids are watching one of the guys working on our backyard. {funny that he is working while on the cell phone...multi-talented} We now have an extended patio with pavers, a rock border, and fake grass...No landscaping yet. We have to wait until winter to plant anything or it will die. Another reason to love AZ! Stay tuned for pics of our new lush backyard! Ha!

Momma @ 36 and Daddy @39

(So you won't have to wonder how old we were in this pic in 2010.)
We have so few pics of just the two of us. We need to be way better at documenting our marriage. We do a pretty good job of creating and recording important memories for the kids, but truth be told, the last real "date" we went on was on James 39th b-day...October 23, 2009.
We need a regular date night in a big way!

Day 5...of pics with Mom. We're done!

Since it is always sunny in Arizona, we do enjoy the outdoors quite a bit. Every morning after Daddy leaves for work we quickly complete our chores and then go on a 20-30 minute family walk for part of our "PE." The kids either ride bikes or scooters or walk and the babies ride in the stroller. Our jogging stroller has a busted tire, so I have been pushing this mammoth thing. I can't wait to get a new tire!



Since we moved in to our new house, our morning schedule changed a bit. We used to do morning seatwork at the table before even getting up from breakfast. Now, we have breakfast with Daddy and play until he leaves. Then we do chores and have our walk. After we get home, I put Preslie down for her morning nap and the kids get started on seatwork. As soon as she is fast asleep, we do school. We can usually complete seatwork, circle and calendar time before she wakes up (2 hours later). We can have reading time with her around. Lucy usually colors, plays and watches Baby Einstein or Teletubbies while we do seatwork and joins us for circle and calendar time.

Okay, to be completely honest, I am so glad we did this challenge, but I am ready to stop posting pics of myself. I am starting to feel a bit narcissistic! Hopefully I can be better about posting a pic of myself with the kids at least once a month or so now that I have developed a habit of being more intentional. Now we need more pics with Dad!

Day 4 Challenge & the pipe cleaner club

My first born isn't a baby anymore! She is growing up so fast. Shelby is so excited about her Pipe Cleaner Club (notice the bracelets we are sporting). She taught herself to braid, so she spends much of her free time making pipe cleaner bracelets for her club. She made Noni one for every day of the week. We all wear them proudly around here. I am going to get her some other kind of thread so she can actually start making ones that will last, but for now, Hooray for Pipe Cleaners! She has a blog that she posts on about once a year, and she posted about the club. She is hoping to get some comments from kids wanting to be in her club so she can make and mail them some. Go here if you want to check it out.

What is the challenge I am participating in? CLICK HERE

Day 3

When all else fails, TICKLE! Why do kids love to be tickled? It is pure torture!But, it is a great way to bond, distract, change their mood, or just get a cute pic they will love later...when tickling isn't their favorite thing, but they still remember when it was.

Take the Momarazzi challenge. Click Here.

Momarazzi challenge day 1 & 2

My home slice Emily is challenging Moms to embrace the camera and capture themselves in photos...skills or no skills, make-up or no make-up, over or underweight, good or bad hair day, our kids will want to see what we looked like way back when...and so will we.
Click {here} to see the challenge. So here goes my first 2 days...a little late.



Shelby took these for me. I love that Jesse is in focus and I am slightly out of focus. Unintentional Symbolism?



I reluctantly love that we captured how awkward my bangs are in this one, because this is who I am...the girl who has one good hair day a month and the rest are awkward hair days, just never quite right. More than that, I love how sweet Lucy looks. She has a tear in the corner of her eye and she is a little pale because she has had a fever the past few days. No other symptoms, just fever and sleeping a lot, but she has been sweet and clingy too.

side note: Yes, I did post twice in one day, and yes I did get a whole lot more done as well. Do you know how little I sleep, and how early my kids rise people?

Who or what is your Isaac?

I love reading to my kids, but sometimes it is even better to hear them reading to me. For one thing there is great satisfaction for me in knowing that I taught them one of the most important life skills of all, how to read. But it is more than that. To be able to sit back and listen to a story rather than read it gives me a different perspective and allows my mind to wander and grapple with the meaning behind the text.

Today, Shelby read to us from the Jesus Storybook Bible the story of Abraham and Isaac, the one where God asks him to sacrifice his son and then stops him before he does it. I have read this story hundreds of times and heard many teachings about it. One of my favorite teachings describes the story as a beautiful production put on by God himself to illustrate the coming substitutionary sacrifice that would be made with his own Son dying in our place.

Well, today it struck me from another angle. God's word is so cool like that. Every time we read something over again we might receive a new message...a living message that applies to our lives differently today than it did yesterday.

So, anyway, it struck me that since Abe prayed for a baby for over a hundred years and Isaac was his promised son...the true miracle gift from God in his old age, that maybe...just ,maybe Abraham struggled with placing Isaac as the central focus of his life...even above God at times. I may be wrong, but wasn't Abe human after all? Didn't all of the important biblical figures struggle with the same things we do? So, it isn't a stretch to think that Isaac (the son they never thought they'd have) may have, at least some of the time, become an idol for Abraham and Sarah.

So, essentially, God asked Abraham the question he asks all of us at some point or many points in our lives. Who (or what) do you worship?
Me or your son? Me or your wealth? Me or your reputation? Me or your body? Me or your home? Me or your security? or even, Me or your church? Me or your ministry?

Most times it seems that when we are tested like Abraham was and asked to give something up, something that holds more of our affection than God himself, and we get to that point where we are willing to sacrifice it on the altar, God usually says to us, "You have shown me that you love me and you trust me more than (that person or thing) and so I will give it to you because your affections are no longer upside down." Either that or He gives us a new desire to replace that "thing," one that aligns with His perfect plan for our lives.

I have seen it happen in my own life over and over again. Too many stories to tell because I am a control freak and so He asks me to release my grip on something or other at least a few times a year. But, the two biggest ones have been having babies and living close to family. Babies and family happen to also be the two biggest things that fight for my affections above God. I have a feeling my Isaac's right now are friends and church...2 other huge affections for me. I had some amazing friends and a wonderful church family in Kansas who I might have relied on a we bit too much. Now, every time I make a good friend here it seems like they move away. It has happened twice already and the third is moving in a few weeks. Sometimes, I feel like I have come to a place where God is enough, regardless of whether or not I have friends, but then I get all lonely and depressed again...I'll keep you posted on those Isaccs as God works on me some more.

I have heard story after story of girls finally releasing whether or not they would be single for life only to meet their husband soon after. Or people always dreaming of being a missionary (to the point of idolizing it) and finally telling God that they accept the fact that they may never go, only to have God work out the details for them to do it. I have seen people who put all of their security in their job be laid off and then when they finally release the job search to God a door opens. I have heard of churches giving up on their "church growth" plans (that they were executing all on their own strength) and handing them over to God only to have the more people than they could fit through the doors come their way shortly there after.

The bible is so many things...a true history of God's people, an instruction book for life, a living personal message from God to each of us that is timeless and applies to every generation. It is also a picture of the character and purposes of God. If we want to know how He works in our own lives, we can read about how He worked in the lives of our forefathers. Then, we will recognize it when He is doing the same kind of work in us. Talk about faith-building!! When we understand who He is and how He works and then we see Him working in our own lives, Boy Howdy!
How can we not believe?

SO, who or what is your Isaac?
Comment or email me your story so I can be encouraged by God's work in your life.

Guess whose shadow???

The precious little pixie with the crazy fro and the personality to match...Guess who?



The brilliant beauty with a funky style and a perfect blend of diva and tomboy...Guess who?



The pretty little pipsqueak who is finally flashing a heart melting toothy grin most of the time. Guess who?



The sweet and sensitive heart breaker with fabulous blond hair, blue eyes and dimples to die for. Guess who?

When you fast...

I just had an epiphany of sorts. For some reason, my little brain just made an important connection. I just now realized (five months after the fact) that James job offer at USAA came in January...right in the middle of our 21 day Daniel fast. We were fasting and praying for direction. In my mind, honestly, the direction I was anticipating from God did not include staying in Arizona, that is why I think I missed the connection. Although we had resolved ourselves to the fact that we were staying here, things just weren't happening on the job front and we really thought the answer might be to move back to the midwest where the economy hadn't had such a hit. We had been praying for months for direction, but for some reason the answer came in mid-January.

I want to be very careful not to sound like we deserve any credit because we fasted or that we "moved God's hand" because of our actions. I believe in a sovereign God who is in complete control and doesn't not require me to act in order to answer prayers. He also will not be manipulated by people who fast in order to get something from Him. It just doesn't work that way...that is a self-centered philosophy, not a God-centered one.

However, He is also a loving God who graciously allows us to partner with Him in what He is doing in our lives in a very mysterious way. In this instance in our lives He used fasting as a way to draw us together for a common purpose and to draw us into Him so that we would be focused on His plan, not our own. For the first time, we both felt like He was asking us to fast from food and for a long period of time. It's not like we were really "looking forward to it," but we felt like if we chose not to we would be being disobedient. Every other time we have contemplated fasting from food, we haven't followed through. I believe it was because every other time it was our own idea and not God's. We had learned just enough about fasting to know that it is necessary, but we hadn't been "called" to do it before. Since this was our first fast from food, we decided on the Daniel Fast.

((We have fasted before, but it has always been from media, technology, or reading material apart from the Bible. All things that tend to take up a great deal of our time and cloud our focus when we feel out of balance. This time we felt the need to take it a step further.))

Toward the end of the 21 days of fasting, I entered into a sweet intimate time with God when I felt like he was giving me direction for my own life...reminding me of who I am and who he created me to be...showing me how I had lost so much of myself over the past few years in all of the busyness of our lives...revealing to me how I can still be me and be a wife, mom and servant of God. At the time I was just so excited about all that he had revealed to me during the fast that I didn't realize He had also answered our prayer for direction for our family during the fast...a good stable job for James.

I can't even begin to explain the hows or whys of fasting. I am just learning myself, but the fact is that fasting isn't just an extra, fluffy, added little optional act. If you are a child of God, you will face a time when fasting is necessary. Listen for it...be obedient...it is worth it.

Jesus didn't say, "If you fast..." He said, "When you fast..." Matthew 6:16

Papa's Birthday and their Edible Garden

We celebrated Papa's birthday this past Sunday with his famous grilled burgers. Yep, he got to cook his own birthday dinner, but he is the best cook in the family, so he probably preferred it that way. We all went in together to get him a day's fishing trip complete with bass boat rental to the AZ lake of his choice. All of the guys will go, including Jesse. Shelby got to go to River Dance with the girls for Noni's birthday, so it is his turn for some male-bonding time.



Gotta love Matt...What else can I say?



This is the simple starter garden my parents have planted in their front courtyard. I am in love with edible landscaping. Nothing goes to waste. It is organic, lovely, and delectable and I am so impressed. They have all kind of herbs, lettuce, onions and strawberries. They also have rosemary and lavender bushes lining the front walk. We will be planting our very own edible landscaping in the fall/winter.



The kids love to run out there and pick their own tasty treats. My parents also bought a bunch of ladybugs to keep the other bugs away, so Lucy and Jesse play with them whenever they get the chance. Homeschooling science at its finest!



Fresh Strawberries. Healthy sweets for the sweet-a-holic in the fam!

Baby Legs: Unique and thrifty baby wear

These baby legs are saving Preslie's knees from our hard tile floors. Jenn made several pairs for the kids before we left Kansas, and we have gotten a lot of use out of these puppies. Lucy used them on her legs when she was crawling, and Shelby and Jesse used them as arm and leg warmers.



To make them, all you need to do is buy a package of knee socks in the ladies or juniors section, about $5 or $6 for 2 pairs of cute ones, then cut off the foot part, fold over and either hand stitch or sew the rough edge. The elastic on the sock will hold the top end up on the thigh or arm and the other end will hang down.



For lazies (like me) who don't mind a little fringe, you can just cut off the foot and leave the rough edge. Unless people get up really close they won't be able to tell the edge is rough.



Since these are pretty uncommon and super cute, they are sweet shower gifts. The fact that you actually "made" them with your own hands will make them extra special to your friend. I know mine are special to me because Jenn made them.



When they get older they can wear them on their arms like Leslie on Bridge to Teribethia. How cute is she??

Daddy's shirts tradition & sleeping in the crack...

On the lighter side...Shelby and Jesse have a tradition now when James goes out of town. I don't even know if we have ever told him, but they always sleep in his shirts because they smell like him and it makes them feel like he is close by. They also take turns sleeping with me. This is more for me than them even though they love it, because I still hate to sleep alone. I know, I am a baby! He was in Kansas City last weekend for Janell's graduation (Congrats Dr. Lichtenberger!) so we were in "dad's traveling-tradition mode."



Here is a new favorite dessert around here that is half way healthy. We have a banana covered in peanut butter with chocolate syrup drizzled over the top and a few sprinkles. I had to take a pic of this because Shelby noticed that the chocolate on the plate looks like it spells "love." Totally unintentional...freaky!



Lucy just has the banana with chocolate syrup and sprinkles. I have found that sprinkles make almost anything taste better. Sometimes for a treat we top oatmeal or yogurt with them.



Pictures do not to this justice, but at least it will jog my memory when I look back at this years later. Ever since we moved the girls' twin beds together, there is a crack in the middle. Even stuffed with a few rolled up pillows and blankets, there is a crack. Well, the crack is Lucy's spot. She loves the crack and will fight to the death for it if anyone else tries to sleep there.



The crack is just her size. She must feel all snug and cozy in there. It reminds me of God hiding Moses in the "cleft of the rock."

30 days...

On Netflix, I just watched the first episode of the tv docu-drama "30 days" with the Supersize-Me guy. In this episode he and his girlfriend leave their life of comfort for 30 days to live the life of minimum wage workers. One purpose of the show is to measure the impact on someone's life when they experience a month in someone else's shoes. It is very eye-opening for them as they experience the full lifestyle and all of the emotional and physical effects of living on such an incredibly tight (almost impossible) budget.

I am so thankful to say, now in retrospect, that we could have made a docu-drama similar to this one last year, and we are forever changed. We see EVERYTHING differently, through new eyes. We will never again take for granted the simple things in life. Never again will I ignore the prompting to provide a meal, a gift card, or a free break for someone. Never again will I feel the least bit superior because of my education. Never will I make any assumptions about someone because they have government health care or food stamps. Never will I be able to look at a struggling Mom in a grocery store and not catch a glimpse of the pain and loss of dignity behind her broken smile. Never again will I think or say, "He is able-bodied and strong, why doesn't he just go get a job?"

I makes me sad to think about how many times I heard from friends or acquaintances(several) about how if their husbands lost their jobs, they would just go get a job doing anything...whatever it takes, because "he has such a strong work ethic." I always felt the same way and probably said the same thing about my husband, who is well-educated and hard-working. But, until you have lost a job in this economy, you have no idea how difficult it is to get ANY kind of job. Truth is, I have no idea either...I only got to participate as a wife, prayer partner and friend, but I can tell you that even from my perspective it was HARD. (James had a job, but it was basically commission only, and it barely got us through.)

{I don't share this to make anyone feel guilty...just to say that I have been learning to be more careful with my words (a lesson that anyone who knows me knows I need to learn) and I would encourage others to just try to be a little more delicate about certain matters, because many times we have no idea the impact of our words. and many times we'd be horrified to learn that we hurt someone totally unintentionally. I know I have, and it makes me sick.}

It is still incredible, amazing and slightly unbelievable to me how God carried us (pretty comfortably compared to many struggling families) through 2009 and provided a good job for James at the beginning of this year. Remember when I asked for a story of hope? Well, now I have one. Funny how we are promised hope when we persevere through suffering.

In Romans 5:3-4 it says, "we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope."
We can live in hope and not in fear, because we have passed through the fire and survived. Every new fire we pass through gives us tougher skin and strengthens our hope that we shall overcome.

I am not sure if the "Super-size Me" guy is a Christian or not, but I think after his 30 days on minimum wage he would have to agree with Romans 5:3-4, even if just in theory and as applied to his life.

(side-note: Neither super-size me guy nor myself probably know what TRUE suffering feels like...we have only caught a glimpse, but a long enough glimpse to be forever changed. For that, we should rejoice.)

Potty Humor...Help!

Knock Knock
Who's there?
Interrupting tootie
Interrupting tootie who?
I like Tootie Matt!

This is the knock knock joke that Lucy made up and says over and over to the point of driving everyone insane.

The "interrupting..." knock knock jokes are our favorite thanks to James bizarre sense of humor. We have done interrupting baby, cat, dog, giraffe, fish, boss, teacher, mom, dad, car, and the infamous "tootie." James started it all, and like a snowball picking up momentum, it has grown into a force to be reckoned with.

A little potty humor here and there doesn't bother me or James. Bodily functions are pretty funny and in the grand scheme of things there are much worse things they could be joking about. You can't even watch a kids' movie in recent history without there being some potty humor. Fine, I get it, I am not going to bring the hammer down for a giggle here or there or a strategically placed toot, tootie or booty comment. We do, however, draw the line at butt, fart and other more crass words to describe parts or functions. Everyone has their limits, and ours are probably more lax than many and less lax than some in this area.

So anyway, for the longest time it was a rare joke or comment here and there...just enough to get a laugh, but nothing excessive. Now, it has gotten OUT OF CONTROL! Every song is rewritten to include toot or tootie, every joke contains a toot, tootie or booty, and at least twice an hour on average, there is some potty humor exchanged around here. It has gotten so bad that Lucy has even learned to do it.

No one can have gas without letting everyone know, "I just tooted," "It was a skunk spray," "It was a SBD," "Lucy tooted," "AWWWW Shelby tooted, I am not going in there."

One of Jesse's sight words this month has been "but." When we work on it I feel like I am sitting there with Beavis and Butthead as much as he and Shelby laugh about it.

The thing is, I am at a loss for what to do. Yes, I said it. I am hardly ever at a loss when it comes to issues with the kids, but this one has me stumped. We honestly wouldn't mind if it were once or twice a day, but the frequency is embarrassing and unhealthy. Any advice?

Little Sisters...

These two are 19 months apart and there is no way to tell yet if they will be the best of friends, but I sure hope and pray they are. Shelby and Jesse are inseparable and definitely best friends. They are even really close with Lucy despite the 3 year gap between she and Jesse and 5 years between she and Shelby. Right now, Preslie is just along for the ride.



I try to get them all to entertain her and they are getting better and better as she is more and more able to interact with them. Here, Lucy is teaching her to blow a raspberry, something she has mastered quite well. Our latest game is to mimic Preslie at the dinner table. Developmentally, babies gain so much confidence and power when they see that they are able to cause an effect. When she slaps the table, we slap the table, when she talks, we mimic what she says. She gets a huge kick out of it.





Bumble bee, bumble bee, out of the barn, I'm gonna get you, under the arm...tickle tickle
Bumble bee, bumble bee, out of the pin, I'm gonna get you under the chin...tickle tickle.
Everyone in the family like playing this game with Preslie to see if they can make her chuckle. Lucy is tickling her foot here. She loves the attention. It is a great distraction technique in the checkout line or doctor's office too.

Mother's Day

For Mother's Day we had dinner at Picazzos, our favorite pizza place that has gluten free pizza. pasta, and dessert. YUM!!!

In the morning, we went to church at Day 12, a church some old friends of ours are planting in downtown Phoenix. It was kind of like a Kansas reunion, so great to worship with several families we hadn't seen in years. And, it was great to hear Brian teach again. The man is gifted!



Uncle Matt...We are trying to savor these last few months we have with him before he leaves for law school in August. He has chosen OU, so he will be moving to Norman...far far away. We love living so close to him right now. He stops by almost every day even if it is just for a few minutes. The kids call him affectionately, "Tootie Matt." He is going to kill me for blogging about that, but hey, it is going to be a great memory one day.

Nagging & reminding...the vicious cycle

I find it incredibly ironic and annoying how when I learn something new and determine to put it into practice, I am immediately forced into situations where I must put it into practice and I usually fail.

Today's failure came with my failed opportunity to train my kids to develop good habits instead of training them to only respond to my nagging and reminding. I read the best little ebook yesterday. One of the best parts about it is that it is FREE, but it also revolutionized my thinking. Every Mom and Dad should read it. The particular thing that it focuses on is training your children to develop good habits in every area of life, habits that will carry them well into adulthood.
The problem is that most of us are reinforcing bad habits instead of encouraging new ones.

In order to form a habit we have to do something the same way over and over.
This is an excerpt form the book:
Here’s a little science lesson for you. You have neurons in
your brain. Those neurons talk to each other. And if you have
certain neurons repeatedly talk to each other in a certain sequence,
your brain starts to make note of that sequence, or route. The more
times you mentally travel down that neuron route, the closer your
brain gets to running on auto-pilot.
It’s the same for your child. Every time he runs through a
specific mental sequence, his brain is one step closer to making
that sequence a habit.
Charlotte put it like this: “Every time we do a thing helps
to form the habit of doing it; and to do a thing a hundred times
without missing a chance, makes the rest easy.”
It stands to reason, then, that if you allow your child’s neurons
to take a wrong turn, you will not be reinforcing the correct route.

That means, I needn't wonder why it is that I have to nag and remind the kids over and over to pick up their toys before getting more out. That is what I have trained them to do. It doesn't matter that that is our rule and that they know the rule. The habit I have helped them form is "wait until mom reminds or nags us to pick up our toys." I have helped them form this habit by doing it the same way over and over and not forcing them to cognitively process the rule and practice the habit.

The appropriate thing to do would be to tell them from the very beginning, at the very time I introduce the rule, that this is the expectation and "I will help you to remember the rule until it becomes a habit." So, when they move from one group of toys to the next without cleaning up, instead of saying, "Go in there and clean up the Pollys. You know better than to get out the blocks when the Pollys are still out. I shouldn't have to tell you this over and over," I should walk them back into the room and say something like, "I promised to remind you about our expectations until it becomes a habit," and allow them to think it through and process what task it was they were supposed to perform. When they remember themselves, and go on to do the task it helps to reinforce the GOOD habit. If I tell them, it reinforces that I only have to do what Mom asks me to do...fostering dependence, not independence.

This reminds me of a philosophy I have often heard from some Moms regarding chores. Many Moms are against regular daily chores because they want to be able to tell the kids whatever needs to be done at the moment and have them do it and they are afraid if they have chores they won't do the other things they ask. While I kind of understand the dilemma here, it is faulty thinking. If our goal is to train our kids to become independent, eventually working ourselves out of a job, this philosophy will not work. It requires that we give constant instructions if we want them to perform a task. There is no initiative required. It also causes kids to be insecure.

Think about it, if you went to work each day and had to wait for your boss to tell you what to do every step of the way, you'd feel pretty powerless, confused, and insecure. You'd probably do nothing unless you were asked, because you'd have no idea what to do. You would also resent your boss for constantly having a new to-do-list for you. There is power in having a clear job description with expectations laid out. Sure, it is optimal to have freedom along with responsibility, and that freedom comes naturally because you know what you have to get done and you can organize your day accordingly. And, when your boss cares enough about you to lay out a job description for you, encourage you and give you gentle reminders instead of new to-do-list and nagging comments you have a lot more respect for him right? You want to work hard to please him, because you know he is worthy of your respect.

Our kids are no different...why do we think they are?
Why is this such a hard lesson for me to learn?

We have SOMETHING to do!

Just reflecting on my motivation this morning:

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.
All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.

(I will never forget that I was saved from death...Literally, ruled by my own selfish desires and plans for my life, I didn't have hope...I had stress and worry and I was tossed back and forth by my emotions when things didn't go as I hoped they would or people disappointed me.)

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.

(It is still awe-inspiring to me that He chose me and He loves me and He has given me a new life...a life that has a plan that He made before the foundations of the earth. In this lies my hope. I am not in control, nor do I want to be. I have something to do, but it isn't all up to me. God planned it and His plans will succeed every time. All I have to do is obey. It is my joy to obey Him because I love Him.)

For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:1-10

"Never Minimize the implications of the fact that God gives us SOMETHING to do." ~Beth Moore

We are His workmanship, our kids are His workmanship...He has plans for us...AND I have a sneaky suspicion that those plans have a whole lot more to do with our IMPACT than our COMFORT.

I think I have PMDD and you might too...**Girls only**

I spent most of my life rolling my eyes at people who blamed their emotional mood swings on PMS. I always had cramps, but never fought the hormonal emotional battles I had heard people speak of. I honestly thought that some women just used it as a convenient excuse to be crabby. Until now...

After each pregnancy, my monthly cycles have gotten increasingly more difficult especially when it comes to mood swings and irritability. Since my cycle returned after having Preslie, it has been the worst. The strangest part has been the restlessness, insomnia, jittery feelings and basically feeling like have had 10 cups of coffee all of the time for the 3-4 days before my period starts. I even have a hard time holding my eyes still. I have never used meth, but this is what I imagine it to feel like. It was totally freaking me out until I had a few other friends mention those feelings to me. So I started looking into it and this is what I think it is. PMDD. I know it is period related b/c ever since I discovered this, I have gone back to using Progesterone cream the second half of my cycle each month. (I have done this for the past 5 years and it has totally changed my cycles-shorter periods, longer time between periods- I went from 22 to 26 days)
Well, this month I was out of town when I was supposed to start using the cream and I missed the window. Not only have I been all sketched out and psycho, but my period started on day 21 instead of 26. I am telling you what, Progesterone cream works and I won't be forgetting it again any time soon.

Here are the facts about PMDD with all of my symptoms in bold: Let me know if you think you have it too so we can give each other tips on how to control it naturally without birthcontrol or narcotics!

About 75 percent of menstruating women experience mild to moderate premenstrual symptoms. But up to 10 percent of menstruating women have premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) — a severe, sometimes disabling form of premenstrual syndrome (PMS).

Premenstrual dysphoric disorder is distinguished from PMS by the severity of its symptoms and its impact on relationships and daily activities. Symptoms of PMDD — which occur in the last week of the menstrual cycle and usually improve within a few days after menstruation begins — include:

■Persistent sadness or depression
■Marked anxiety, feelings of being "keyed up"or "on edge"
■Mood swings often marked by periods of teariness
■Persistent or marked anger or irritability
■Decreased interest in usual activities
■Fatigue or lethargy
■A feeling of being overwhelmed or out of control
■Flu-like symptoms, including muscle aches, headaches and joint pain
■Breast tenderness
■Changes in sleep patterns — problems falling and staying asleep or sleeping too much
■Changes in appetite — overeating, lack of appetite or specific food cravings

Here is the Progesterone Cream I use. I have done a lot of research and it has the most testing and positive reviews:

I like our house.

To start off the list of positive things about Arizona, we have our house. While it is not our dream home (doesn't exist in stucco) I love that it is small but cute. We have a nice open kitchen that shares a good sized open area with our one living room. After moving from Kansas where we had 2 living rooms, a separate dining room and a full basement, I thought one living room would be a difficult adjustment. Not so. It frees up so much precious time because there is so much less to take care of.
This is a pic of James making breakfast for the fam yesterday morning. Don't worry, he kept one hand on Preslie's back most of the time, so she was safe up there. he loves to make breakfast. It is his favorite meal to cook, so we can be sure if it is his turn to cook, we're having eggs, bacon or sausage, and pancakes or biscuits and gravy. He always makes his Grandma Lichtenberger's eggs with lots of butter. I used to be grossed out by the texture, but I have grown to love them over the years because he does.



Here is the room I am second most excited about, the play/school/music room. The kids spend most of their time in there when they are not outside or resting. We do school in this room each morning. It is possible to do school at the kitchen table, and more than fine...we have done it for over a year now, but it makes a huge difference to have a separate space. The kids seem to take it more seriously and get more excited about it since we have a "classroom." Lucy has all of her toys in there, so we can just close the door she is entertained while we do school. There are also times when I have one or the other of the older two take Lucy out and entertain her while I work one-on-one with the other one, and again, we can close the door to block out the noise. Since we only have one living room, we only allow a few baby toys in there and the rest of the toys and games are in the play/school/music room.



The kids even play school in here sometimes when I am not around. I love walking in to find Shelby teaching Jesse math problems on the dry erase board. Although, sometimes she is a tiny bit impatient with her 5 year old brother when he doesn't catch on right away. We all have to remind ourselves sometimes that he is only 5. Since he and Shelby are so close we find ourselves treating them equally and expecting the same things out of him that we do out of Shelby who is 2 years older. I think it is okay, though, b/c as a man he will have a lot expected out of him and we are kind of just preparing him for that reality.



This room is actually the 4th bedroom in the house. Thankfully it is downstairs just off the living room. Since we utilize it in this way, Preslie is sharing a bedroom with Jesse until she is old enough to move in with the girls. The first few weeks were rough becasue their schedules are so different and she woke him up all of the time, but he is learning to sleep through her fussing until I can come get her, so it looks like our temporary solution is going to work! We will just have to apologize to her later that she had to spend a year in a Star Wars themed bedroom.



I have several stacking plastic containers in the closet that contain all of their toys (separated and organized...remember, I am a reformed messy, so give me props!) I also keep all of our school supplies in plastic containers in there. I have my mom to thank for all of those containers. She has always been a super organized person (hence, my rebellion) and the containers used to be hers until she found new containers that better fit her needs and then donated all of these to me.

In fact, as I look around our home, much of what we have is a hand-me down from family or friends or from a second hand store. One reason I feel good about posting pics of our home is that I am not bragging about all of the nice, brand new, expensive stuff I have. On a budget, and with a conservationist mentality, I am still able to create a space I love with gently used furniture and art. It may not all match, but EVERY piece has a story or is connected to a loved one. I love that!

Peace by the Sword...

Last night when I was trying to fall asleep, I was thinking more about this whole spiritual warfare thing and how weak I felt during that time and it 2 passages of scripture jumped into my mind. The first was Ephesians 6 which talks about putting on the full armor of God so we are ready for battle each day. Specifically I was reminded of the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. Interesting how peace is brought with a sword. When we are equipped with the word of God was can be certain to win spiritual battles.

So then I was thinking, what specific word would He speak over me to give me peace in the midst of such paralyzing fear. And, Philippians 4:6-8 popped into my head. Most people who are familiar with God's word are very familiar with the first part of this passage, 6-7, and 8 separately used in a different context, but when you read it all together and soak in the implications, it is much more powerful and applicable to our lives.

6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

It is almost like verse 8 is instructions on how to accomplish verse 6. It is kind of like where the bible and psychology meet. Simply reading verses 6-7 without finishing the passage might give us the idea that not being anxious is a simple act of will. Truth is, that in addition to prayer, petition and thanksgiving, we are called to do a whole lot of thought management. Of course, if I am focused on the scorpions and what might happen I am going to live in fear. When I research scorpions on the internet and ask everyone I meet about their scorpion experiences, I am feeding that fear.
When I choose to manage those thoughts, and replace them with new ones...thoughts that are of all things noble, right, pure, lovely or admirable I am filled with His peace.

So, with the sword of the Spirit (God's word), in my hands, I am going to win this battle, the whole battle. Not just the scorpion thing, but the whole "Arizona" battle. It is no secret to my loved ones that Arizona is not our dream home. However, we know that God has us here for a purpose for this season and we are determined to work with Him and not against Him. We have peace about our circumstances, as uncomfortable as they are. But, we'd like to have the kind of joy in our circumstances that ideally would accompany that peace. Therefore, from this point forward I am choosing to manage my thoughts and live out Philippians 4:6-8. I am sure I will regress from time to time, but with the Lord's help (and some gentle verbal spankings from friends and family), I will win this battle. I am going to take the next week to really meditate on the positive side of living here. Get ready to hear a lot about the beautiful state of Arizona!

close encounters of the scorpion kind...

I was just nursing Preslie to sleep and I saw a shadow on the ceiling and immediately froze in fear thinking it was a scorpion. Thank God it was just a shadow. This past year has left some permanent scars that I am fighting to let go of. I have come to understand that this scorpion thing is a spiritual battle, and I am determined to win. As I nursed PJ to sleep just now, I seriously had to fight back the tears in remembering how painful of an experience it was living with those awful creatures.

We found 40+ scorpions inside our last house, 35 of which appeared between June and September. We didn't even count the ones we found outside, but when we had a pest company over for a "night hunt" with black lights, they found 17 in the yard in about 30 minutes time.

The absolute worst episode was the moment we brought Preslie home from the hospital to her new home. It should have been a sweet homecoming, but it quickly turned into a horrifying nightmare. (I am not being dramatic when you consider all of the emotions and hormones that go along with coming home from the hospital with a newborn.)
We walked in and I sat the infant seat on the table to get Preslie out and immediately looked up to see 2 scorpions hanging from one another from the ceiling. I screamed and had James get them in a jar and then told him to vacuum the whole house. Vacuuming is the only real thing you can do in a moments notice at 7 pm at night, and you just hope that you suck a few up. So, while he was vacuuming Lucy's room, he saw a scorpion on the wall. Ok, now I am wigging. I grab the phone and go in the living room to call our pest company and then glance over at the wall and see one crawling on the baseboard in the living room. By now, I am hysterical. There was no way I was sleeping in that house with my newborn our first night home after being greeted by what appeared to be a full-on infestation. So, we packed her up and headed over to my parents where the other 3 kids were already staying and we all stayed there for 2 nights. Enough time for a pest company to come out and spray. (Which is pointless for a quick fix, b/c spraying only kills their food source. Scorpions are practically immortal...demons, I tell you.)

I feel like the entire first year of Preslie's life and our first full year in Arizona are forever tainted in my memory because of those things. We had to turn on lights before walking into any room(James almost stepped barefooted on one in the kitchen, and I in the bathroom), wear shoes in our house from June until September in order to avoid stepping on one, check our beds and the kids beds EVERY nap and night time, shake out our clothes and shoes before putting them on(once, I found one on Shelby's clean clothes she was getting ready to put on), check the toy boxes before letting the kids get toys out(Shelby almost grabbed one in her toybox), look carefully when we opened doors or cabinets so we didn't put a hand on one accidentally...It felt like camping in our own home, and I am not a camper, so it was not fun for me. No, it was not an adventure.

By September, with the help of our INCREDIBLE landlords, we had done EVERYTHING possible to scorp proof the home and switched to a natural pest control company that used safe spray and products that repelled them as well as killed them. Natural Home Solutions is a fabulous company. The heavy chemicals that the other company was using were making my kids sick and they weren't working anyway. We bought plug-in bug repellers and even got a cat. After that, we only saw a handful. Praise God!

Still, we feared that when we let our guard down one of our kids would get stung. PAUSE...time out...Why were we even afraid of the suckers? We have heard story after story of people being stung in bed, when they put their clothes or shoes on, or by stepping on one. Stories of small children and babies being stung by scorpions who have ended up in the ER with convulsions, foaming at the mouth, seizures, and serious breathing problems. For adults, unless you are allergic to them, it is usually like a really painful bee sting and them the region goes numb for days up to a week. We could deal with that, although not ideal, but to have to see our newborn or 2 year old go through that seemed terrifying. Plus, have you seen the picture above, they are UGLY. Honestly tell me you wouldn't fear them if you 40 in your home, on your baby's walls and dresser...

Like I said in the beginning, I realize that there was some serious spiritual warfare going on. I am not making this up, every time we would get excited about being here or experience some kind of joy, we'd see one. It was suffocating. Yes, I admit that I should have had more faith. What is fear, but a lack of faith? I was just at a point where I didn't know how to overcome that particular fear with faith. I lost some of those battles and gave into the fear. I am ashamed of that, but when it comes to my kiddos, well, any mom knows what I am sayin'. No excuse, just the reality of my situation at the time.

Thanks be to God, we are in our new home and we have not seen a scorpion yet. I am sure we will from time to time because we do live in the desert, after all. Once a month would even be fine with me. I truly hope that I can get to a point in my faith where I do not jump every time I see something out of the corner of my eye that resembles a scorpion. I continue to pray for that.