Just when I thought I was doing fine with not feeling obligated to blog, I learned a reason why I should - at least every once in a while - check in with some manner of post. My Mom and Sisters-In-Law have convinced me that it just is not proper that I leave them hanging […]

This is Part Three of a series with advice for large families who are expecting twins. You may read Part One Here and Part Two Here.
Some practical thoughts from Susanna:
Don’t put any preparations off! I cannot stress this strongly enough! Start now and feel urgent about it! Do the most physical tasks first […]

This is Part Two in a series with advice for large families who are expecting twins. You can read Part One Here.
Susanna’s family was arranged like this at the time their twins were born: their other children were Boy 13, Boy 11, Boy 9.5, Girl 7.5, Girl almost 5, and Boy 14 months. Here is […]

Every time a new circumstance occurs in life, I feel compelled to do new research. It is my signature move. Funky worm on the tomato plants? Research. Unidentified stain on the carpet? Research. Illness? Rash? Research. Twins? Research.
My modus operandi regarding the twins phenomenon involved asking (discreetly- as I didn’t want to get flamed!) on […]

I hate to read them at night. I never get a pinch of sleep. Those books with so many twists and turns in the plot that draw you deeper and still deeper into the complex lives of the characters make me edgy. When will their lives settle down into a logical pattern? When can I […]

There is an unwritten rule that mothers of large families know. The ones who do not know this rule, figure it out on their own pretty quickly, as there are no shortages of situations in which it will need to be applied. Any stranger in the grocery store, most relatives, casual acquaintances, pastors, and even […]

As much as I’d love to say that things are back to normal now that Momma has left the couch, I am realizing that is not quite accurate. There does seems to be a new normal developing, though. It seems to be the usual plan after any season of crisis-mode living, and with my fickle […]

When my girlfriend called to force me into submission blackmail me offer her family’s services in our preparations for some friends visiting, I caved willingly accepted their help. I know her family, and have seen them in action before… they work really hard. So when she and her four teen daughters […]

We should have crises more often. They can be very encouraging. Folks that have sane, quiet lives may never have the opportunity to be encouraged in the way I have recently. Of course, they may never have the need to be encouraged as I have needed, but still.
The first several weeks of morning sickness […]

Our first plan was developed in order to help protect the mental health of those close to us, who, without the benefit of a biblical worldview would not handle such wonderful news well. It was also protection for myself in particular, for, fending off the 6.4 billion questions that would ensue following such an announcement, […]

This morning Babydoll climbed up to the kitchen sink and began splashing gleefully in the oatmeal pot that was soaking after breakfast. The picture doesn’t do justice to the soggy oatmeal floaters that flew in each splash, and truly the mess was minor compared to what I have experienced with my boys in the past, […]

Here’s a question following up from the comments of this post:
I’ve been enjoying the dialogue on your blog about training children with managing their rooms. Once again, I’m amazed at the things I’m just now learning (b/c I was never taught), but now thankfully, I’m finding those “Titus 2″ women out […]

So, we were in town some today. The kids were great…it was the other folks who encouraged me to stumble. Father saved the day just before I blew my testimony. He’s good that way. I submit this not as an example of righteousness, but as proof (only those who do not know me in […]

It really is freeing. Getting rid of all our superfluous stuff makes the days run smoother and creates a peace in me that is addictive. After a season of thorough decluttering, I want to always live like this! Without the follow-up step to decluttering ~ that of keeping the stuff out ~ I […]

Where I come from, “It’s snowing down South”, is the common phrase to communicate to a woman that her slip is showing below the hem of her dress.  As grateful as one certainly is after receiving such information, it is still rather disconcerting to realize that the thing has crept down on you without […]

I know practical. I am a boring, no nonsense kinda gal. Although I can usually get the job done, there is often much to be desired in my fleshly modus operandi. I assess the bottom line and trudge in headlong without noticing or caring about the people in the process. But I am learning […]

I am always, no…frequently reminded by Mr. Visionary that I never see the good in a situation. After almost 17 years of marriage and many circular conversations, I have learned to not argue this point . My casually mentioning the fact that said visionary does not allow extremist words from myself the antagonist, as these […]

I am quite sure it has gotten worse since we moved to the farm. In fact, I can hardly remember anything more than a rare occurence when we were city-folk. And it never happened at an innapropriate time…at least not often. Things are definitely regressing.

I am a very visual person. I can perfectly picture house […]

Although Hillary Clinton and I are diametrically opposed on say, every issue under the sun, I do have one point of agreement with her book,  It Takes A Village.  I have not read the book due to this same circumstance of being opposed to her opinions,  but I have to be honest-I rather like the title. […]

A rumpled brow, a furitive glance behind each shoulder…then ‘the question’. With obvious trepidation in their voice and fully expecting the worst, they ask, “What do (gulp) the children think of her?”

If these folks could be a fly on the wall in my home…

“Hurry up you guys! Everybody come quick-she’s doing it!”

From every corner of […]