The Nursery Reveal....

I know the blue chair doesn't match and I'm planning on recovering it soon, and the TV on the floor is just temporary. 

The ballerina picture is one that I had when I was a little girl that I have been holding on to. 

Thanks to my dad and my mother-in-law for helping me paint!

Being Thankful

This past week we celebrated Thanksgiving. A day where you spend all morning cooking, being with family and friends, and eating WAY too much food. 

I have a lot to be thankful for. I hope to add to this list throughout the year and learn to be grateful for all the blessing that have been given to me. 

1. Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior, who took the nails for me and my sins on the cross 

2. I am married to my best friend and love of my life, who works so hard to provide for our family. 

3. Trevor, my oldest son, who I can't believe is going to be 10 in a week. 

4. Patrick, who when he wants to, can be as sweet as can be 

5. Phillip, who is such a ham and full of energy

6. Baby Girl, who will make her debut soon, for completing our family.

7. My parents, who have always been to there when I need them

8. My In-Laws, who are great examples for me in my walk with Christ

9. My Sister-In-Laws, who I have seen grow into beautiful young women, both inside and out.

10. Steven's Brother-In-Laws, who bring the quirkiness and humor to the bunch and whom my boys love 

28 weeks, 8-12 weeks to go!

16 weeks

21 weeks

22 weeks

25 weeks

28 Weeks

I can't believe that I am already 28 weeks pregnant! Steven and I were talking the other day that our little baby girl will be here soon. Anywhere between 8-12 weeks away. I have never made it to 40 weeks with any of my pregnancies. Trevor was 4 weeks early, Patrick was 6 weeks early and Phillip was 2 weeks early.  Going early is not something that I plan for, it just happens.


We have re-arranged our entire house to make room for our Baby Girl. Our office furniture moved into our living room and our living room moved into the dining room. Our dining room table is now being stored at my parents house. We have been working to prepare the nursery and I have been shopping for baby girl clothes. I am not use to seeing SO much pink in our house, this is a new thing for us.

Baby Girl's Clothes

Baby Girl's Room (not done yet, still lots to do!)

Days 11, 12, 13, 14

I am really bad at blogging everyday. 

But this blog post has such big news that it doesn't matter that I haven't blogged for several days. 

We had big news to share this weekend. We found out at our Gender Reveal party that our little peanut that is due Feb 7, 2013, is going to be a GIRL!!

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. Psalm 139:13

Day 10

Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are children born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. Psalm 127:3-5

Tomorrow is Saturday. October 13, 2012. I have been patiently waiting for this day since Sept. 25. Tomorrow is our Baby Gender Reveal Party; we will find out if our little "peanut" is a boy or a girl. Boy or girl this baby is coming into a family that will love them unconditionally. A family that will always be there to nurture, teach, guide, discipline and love.

I feel truly blessed to have 3 wonderful boys and have another baby on the way. I have been given much more than I have ever deserved. As I sit and type this, I can feel the baby move; kick or flip. Sometimes I'm convinced that there must be 2 in there because it feels like a wrestling match. ( trust me, there's only 1! But how jaw dropping would it be to have pink and blue balloons float out of the box tomorrow)

Day 9

Since the beginning of the month I have made a point to read my bible and a daily devotion every morning before getting out of bed to start my day. I feel like my daily schedule is more calm and we seem to get more things accomplished with less tears and yelling. 

I have a bible app on my phone that has several different devotions plus a daily bible verse. The devotion that I am reading right now is about attitude. This has been on my heart and I am specifically praying for Patrick and myself. The last few days I have noticed a small change in his attitude, or lack of. I am trying to talk him through it rather than fuel it with my own negative thoughts and comments.

Day 8

They say attitude is everything. The attitude you have can certainly change any situation that you are in. Having a bad attitude all the time makes life very unhappy. But why do people have such bad attitudes all the time? Or how can their attitude change at the drop of a hat?
Patrick has an attitude that changes without any notice. I don't think he even knows why sometimes. Is it because he is a middle child? Is he having some resentment against His brothers? The new baby?
My prayer is to have God's wisdom in these situations. For his words to be said that they may reach Patrick and we can understand why he acts this way. For his patience so that I may not have an attitude or short temper when confronting Patrick.

Day 6 & Day 7

Ok so blogging everyday for 30 days is just not going to happen. This past weekend was so busy and this pregnant momma was TIRED!! So tired that I went to bed at 8:45 on Saturday.

The devotion I read this morning was 1 Corinthians 6:19-20. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own, you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

As I spend this month renewing my spirit, I am also going to be renewing my body. There's not a lot that I can do since I am pregnant, but I can make sure that I continue to eat healthy and drink lots of water. I would like to try to add some daily exercise to my schedule. Taking time to rest for a few minutes during Phillip's nap does seem to refresh my energy for the afternoon. I will still try to do that everyday.

Day 5

Have you ever had a day where your children drove you crazy all day? I'm mean, they had their moments of not listening but other than that they were just loud and sorta obnoxious. Today was that kind of day, but I choose to count my blessings in the midst of the craziness.

1. All my children are healthy
2. I am blessed to be a stay at home mom.
3. I have a wonderful husband who works so hard to provide for us.
4. Feeling our "little peanut" kick and flip
5. My children have active imaginations as they run thru the house dodging the bad guys and bombs.
6. That I am the "safety" from the bombs and bad guys for Phillip.
7. I have wonderful parents who can help when I need it.
8. Our refrigerator and pantry are full of food.
9. Mount Laundry appears every Friday in my hallway.

Day 4

This is a reminder that I need when I am am out all day and tired at night, but the house is an utter mess! 

I did have my quiet time this morning before I got out of bed. Trying to avoid technology is hard when I have a bible app on my phone that has devotionals. At least I had my quiet time before I checked my e-mail, Facebook, or looked at Pinterest. Small steps.....

Day 3

It's amazing to hear the voice of God when you sit quietly and listen. Tonight while I was participating in the prayer gathering at my church, my pastors lead us through a time of quiet individual prayer and reflection; leading us to search our hearts and confess our sins to God, to ask God to use us where we are in our lives, and to ask him to help us in an area where we are struggling.

The biggest area where I am struggling is in my daily walk with God. I forget to stop and have my quiet time. Technology has a way of stealing quiet moments of my day: Facebook, Pinterest, my e-mail, or even watching a movie or just having the TV on for background noise. I am really hoping over the next month, I can unplug from technology and plug back into scriptures. My plan for this is to set a timer and check my e-mail and Facebook after breakfast, when Phillip takes a nap and then again before I go to bed. I need to not have my phone with me while the boys are doing schoolwork.  Technology also has a way of stealing the moments that I can spend with my boys. I need to take advantage of the time I have with them at home. 

God also spoke to my heart that I am doing my best when it comes to being a wife and mother. There are times when I feel like I am failing at both. Several times a week it looks like a tornado has hit the inside of my house: the laundry is a mile high or fills the hallway floor to where you cant help but step on it. The dishes are piled in the sink, on the counter or left in other rooms of the house. Some evenings I even forget to have dinner for Steven when he gets home.  Homeschooling is like a roller coaster, we have our good days and bad no so good days. There are times when I lose my cool and yell at my kids for something that is very 

trivial. 

Day 2 The right timing

It is sometimes very hard in my busy day to find quiet time for myself. I usually go to be between 9-10 and typically wake up between 6-8. Usually the boys are awake by the time I get up, which is no big deal since Steven is awake and not yet ready for bed. He has been working from 6pm til early in the morning.  He goes to bed shortly after I wake up.

Today was a day! I was about ready to throw in the towel with our homeschool work. The boys were just being difficult with each task that had to be done. I was able to sit for a moment afternoon to fold towels so I put on Pandora. Draw Me Close started to play. I sat there, closed my eyes and just listened to the lyrics and prayed them.

Draw Me Close

Draw me close to you,
never let me go
I lay it all down again
to hear you say that I'm your friend.
You are my desire.
 No one else will do
'cause no one else can take you place
To feel the warmth of your embrace.
Help me find the way
Bring me back to you

You're all I want
You're all I ever needed
You're all I want
Help me know you are near.

31 day challenge....

It's the first of October and I've seen this challenge on several blogs and thought that I would give it my best shot. The idea is to blog every day for one month about one topic. Huh? What to talk about for 31 days. That's a long time! And it's an even bigger challenge to blog everyday with the busy schedule that I have. But like I said, I'll give it my best shot.

So, what's my topic? Well, this past Sunday my pastor spoke about how do you know you are a Christian?. I am a Christian. I believe with my whole heart that I'm a sinner and that Jesus died on the cross for my sins and rose three days later and ascended into heaven. I made that decision in Aug. 1999. So I know that I'm going to heaven one day. But what he said about really spoke to my heart.

My pastor made several points in his sermon from 1John 2:3-17. 1. A Christian possesses an obeying faith.  2. A christian possesses a loving faith. 3. A Christian possesses a growing faith.
A growing faith? That's the point that hit me the most. I don't feel like I have been growing as a Christian. I know that God is there, but there are times when I don't feel Him. He hasn't moved but I have.  But what is a growing faith?  A growing faith desires to read the Bible; applies the Bible to their life; and hungers more and more for truth from Scriptures. (thanks Pastor Craig for message on Sunday, I really needed to hear it!!)

My hope for the next 30 days is to grow closer to God, to sit and listen for his voice of wisdom and to be a better Christian model to my family in the process.

New School Year!!

                                                      My precious preschooler!!

My fantastic fourth grader!!

My terrific third grader!!

I was a little behind on taking our "first day of school" pictures. So we'll just call these "first day of school with Phillip's cast off" pictures. 

Our schedule of 3 weeks of school then 1 week off has been great. Having a week to plan the next 3 has worked out very well. I feel like we are actually accomplishing some things. Also it gives me time to get my house really cleaned. 3 weeks is about all I can take of some things piling up. 

Last year we attempted to use the work box method, but I just wasn't really happy with the storage bins that I had bought. We really didn't have an official place for them and I felt that they just looked pitiful. I am very excited about how we have things organized this year!

Each of the boys have their own set of drawers for their daily school work. You're probably wondering what Phillip's is filled with; puzzles, coloring books, lacing cards, flashcards, books, his Cubbie book. 

Each of the boys did pick out what picture they wanted on their own drawer tags. Phillip likes Ningajo, so he picked Jay. Patrick chose a Matrix Lego guy and Trevor picked his favorite football team, Steelers.

 I also made the workbox tags that show what they accomplished during the day. 

Here's hoping we have another great school year!!

Where did Summer Go??

 It's hard to believe that August is almost over. Where did the summer go? The boys and I had made a summer bucket list hoping to cross off them all. I think we had about 30 fun things listed and we crossed off 7. I think we will save our list for next summer.



Building with marshmallows....

Phillip has been in his cast for about 5 weeks. We had a doctor appointment and next week he gets it off. I am so excited!!! I know that Phillip is ready for it to come off. He has been a real trooper about not being able to do a lot of things that his brothers can do.

Phillip napping.

16 weeks pregnant! Just starting to show a little bit. I go back to the doctor at the end of September for an ultrasound. We are planning on having a Gender Reveal Party to find out if it's a Little Prince or a Little Princess! I think most everyone is thinking pink for us. 

                                                                
We have officially started our 2012-2013 school year on July 30. Trevor is in 4th grade and Patrick is now a 3rd grader. My plan is to do some basic things with Phillip if I can figure out a daily schedule.  Maybe this week we can get some beginning of school pictures done. Better late than never right? Our schedule this year is something a little different. 3 weeks on then 1 week off. So far it's working for us. Hoping to be able to get ahead so we can take a little longer break when our baby arrives late January/early February.

Crayon Artwork!

 What can you do when it's really really hot outside?? 

Melt crayons inside!!

 I glued the crayons on each canvas board in the pattern that Trevor and Patrick made. Neither one of them wanted to use the hot glue gun. Both were very excited to use the hair dryer to melt their crayons!

Both boys are very proud of their art.  The art is hanging in our hallway and it looks BEAUTIFUL!!

Saying Goodbye to New Life

We are preparing to leave this morning from Munkacs and drive to Budapest. It has been a wonderful week here. Seeing the amazing things God is doing among these people. It's hard to say goodbye knowing that I won't be returning next year. I do look forward to the year that I will be able to return. We do have a 6 hour car ride to Budapest. Hopefully crossing the border will go as smooth as possible. I am looking forward to the tour of Budapest tomorrow! Thank you all for your prayers and support. It has meant a lot to me and I know that it has helped me tremendously thru the week. I love you all!!

Seeing God Work

This morning we had VBS at New Life Church. We divided up the children into 5 groups instead of 6, since Archie, Teresa and Alicia were meeting with her landlord. Praise GOD that all the details were worked out today and everything is set for Alicia to stay at this apartment in Munkacs.

I helped in the craft station helping the children make butterflies. They really seemed to like them a lot. After VBS we had several hours of downtime. I took a nap since I wasn’t feeling very well. It was very hot today and I think that the heat was really getting to me.  We learned after lunch that a small gypsy girl was hit by a car this morning as she was cross the street to come to VBS. We were told that she wasn’t hurt (no broken bones) but also that the hospital refused to treat her since she was a gypsy. Talk about heartbreaking!! I did get to meet this little girl when her grandmother brought her to the church. I sat outside with her and helped her make the butterfly craft. She had a big smile on her face when we were done.

Alicia and her parents, along with Pastor Jonas meet this afternoon with the mayor of Munkacs to talk about the kindergarten. The report that we got back from them was that it was a good meeting. They are trying to work out the details of registering the kindergarten. Our entire team met outside and surprised the Mayor and sang him Happy Birthday in English. Ana, one of our translators said that he was very surprised and loved it.

Our plan for this afternoon was to walk thru the local Gypsy camp, where the children live who have been coming to the church for VBS.  We instead drove thru on our way to Porchahaza. The team last year did not visit this camp. I am really glad that we didn’t walk thru the camp. It was very hard to see the conditions that they live in. There is lots of trash just everywhere. I remember seeing it last year when we visited different camps.  The sad thing is that these people don’t know any different lifestyle. Seeing the conditions they live in and then thinking about how we as Americans live is sickening. We have SO much stuff t hat we just take for granted. Having food, clean water, clothes that fit. We worry about missing our favorite TV show or not having the newest electronic device. This is nonsense in comparison to how these people are living.

Our time this evening at Porchahaza was great. There was a smaller group of children, only about 70. They did great listening to the bible story and making their tambourine bracelets. We then took the children outside to a field beside the church to play games. Lindsey and I jumped rope with some of the boys. I also helped the girl’s team when it was time to play tug of war. The girl’s team won a few times and they were very very excited!!! Before we left we sat the children down and gave them each an apple to eat. Afterwards we came back to the church to eat dinner. Stuffed cabbage and fried chicken meatballs. Very Yummy!!

It is amazing to see God work among these people. They are eager to hear the word. Our team shared that 4 youth were saved today! Praise GOD!!! 

A day full of VBS!

This morning our team went to a village named Rat to have VBS with the children. Several times while we were preparing for our trip we were told to be flexible, plans may change. As we had our evening devotion last night and talked about today's plans, we came up with our plan for VBS at Rat. They have a church building in their village with 3 rooms. Our plan was to use all three rooms, but when arrived we saw several men working on filling in the floor of the church. The other two rooms were not two rooms but one room with a start of a wall in between. Alicia came up with another plan and I have to say that this was an awesome VBS!! The kids were great! Even after they played games and colored in the hot sun, they still were very excited that we were there. When we returned to the church we had a few hours before VBS started at 5pm. Josh worked more with some men building the tables and chairs. The table and chair look fantastic. I hope I can post pictures of that soon. Alicia was very excited seeing the finished project. She is hoping to have the tables painted in different colors for the classroom. Our team decided to feed the children sandwiches instead of biscuits before VBS. The ladies on the team with the help of the translators made over 250 sandwiches! It seemed like we had a smaller group of children this evening for VBS, but there were still alot of children. Alicia and Candace shared the bible story of David playing music for the King. The kids really liked the tambourines that they made. We did send the children home tonight with a piece of fruit. Our plan tomorrow is to have VBS at New Life church in the morning at 9am. Tomorrow night we will have a church service. Kyle is going to share an encouraging word, our team is going to sing a few songs while Kyle and Marty play their guitars. I think that Josh, Deanna, Aubrie, Ada Faye and Aubrie are going to share a testimony. Prayer Requests: For Gods presence to contine to be felt during all of our activities. For strength for all of the team with the heat outside For our team as we prepare for and share during the church service tomorrow.

VBS at New Life Church

Today we had our first VBS at New Life Church. Compared to last year I think that it went great! We had a meeting this morning with the youth of the church and were able to get them to be group leaders. It was great to give them that responsibility because the younger children look up to them as role models and have respect for them. 80% of the youth are new believers. They each were given a colored cross to lead each group. It was awesome to have their help getting the children divided and kept under control. This was a big relief for our team. as we were able to really focus on each task assigned to us.

We were given some shocking news about the number of children to expect. We heard that the last team had 500 children. This worried us a little because we had planned for 300 children with the crafts. It was truly amazing to see just how well word of mouth works. This morning several youth from the church went to the local village and told the children to come. Before I knew it, the driveway in front of the church was full of children! I think our final count was 220. God knew how much we had prepared for and he knew how many we would have. Praise God!! 

I worked with Stacey at the coloring station. Our station was right after the bible story. I thought this was great because the children knew about the picture they were to color. The chant we are teaching them this week was caught on pretty quickly. Today's chant was "God is King. God takes care of you and me." 


Deanna, Lindsey, and Marty were in the puppet station. The kids were very attentive to the puppets and to Marty as they did the EvangaCube. During one of the rotations, a youth from New Life Church shared his testimony. Marty said that the kids had their eyes glued on him as he spoke. I believe that this was the first time that the youth were given such a big role with the young children. 


Teresa and Ada Faye worked with the children making a sheep craft. Kyle and Aubrie were leading the children in songs and dance. Josh and Archie were playing games with the children in a big field beside the church. Candace and Alicia were sharing the bible story with the children. I think everyone had a great time in their stations. 

After VBS was over we fed the children lunch before they went home. While the food was still being prepared, we tried to get the kids to help pick up the trash that was around the church. Candace shared that she had talked to some kids, telling them that they did a good job and that God saw what they were doing.  Hearing this made the children even more eager to pick up trash. This showed that they got the message today that was taught. HUGE PRAISE!! Planning the food didn't work out like planning our crafts. Unfortunately not all the children were fed something to eat before they left. 


Our team divided after lunch. Josh, Archie and Marty went with some men for New Life church to go and purchase the supplies and tools needed to build the chairs and tables for the kindergarten. The store that they went to was more helpful than we ever would have thought. They cut all the tabletops, chair seats and chair backs for a very reasonable price. . The store even put and edging around the tabletop. The ladies on the team stayed and prepared the crafts for tomorrow. We are going to go out to Rat, a Gypsy village nearby in the morning to do VBS.

HUGE PRAISE!!! Alicia has found a place to live. All the details will be finalized later this week.

Thanks you all for the prayers for Candace. Her knee did not bother her at all today. Thank you also for the prayers for me, I felt much better today.

Prayer Requests:

Ada Faye - she did fall in the shower but seems to be ok, Please pray that she won't begin to fell pain.

God is SO Good!!

We have made it to Munkacs! All of our luggage made it! Thank you all for your prayers. Our flight to Newark was fine. We enjoyed our 5 hour layover is Newark the best we could. The plane we took to Frankfurt was HUGE! It had a second story above first class. I sat next to a woman named Elizabeth. She was a Christian and a very sweet woman. I shared with her about our mission trip and she asked that I pray for her son who is an unbeliever. The flight seemed very long since we were packed liked sardines. I don't think I slept much at all on that flight. We arrived in Frankfurt a little ahead of schedule and did make it to our connecting flight to Budapest with no delays. Praise God because we were a little worried. Since there wasn't much time between flights and you had to get your passport checked. The last flight I did mange to get some sleep on, but not much. Taking Dramamine did help with the nausea during landing. After arriving in Budapest, we waited for our bags. 13 people, 4 crates, 2 guitars, and 30 bags (including carry-on bags) arrived in Budapest. We had a team of 6 translators waiting for us with 3 vans for us to ride in. After lunch at McDonald's, we had a 5 hour car ride to Munkacs. The ride through Hungary was beautiful when I wasn't looking at the back of my eyelids! I was finally able to get some much need sleep. Te best part about the car ride was the the border checks didn't take real long. I think we made it thru both check points in about 1 hour & 15 minutes. So much better than te several hours last year! We made it to the church and had dinner waiting for us. I have that all I have done is eat and have probably gain several pounds in one day. Dinner was very yummy pizza! After dinner we went to the church service here at New Life. I love listening to the Gypsies sing their worship songs. I was able to sing along to a few that I recognized. After an hour of singing, Archie Jones had our team introduce themselves to the church. This mission trip. Was the first international mission trip for 4 of our team members. Pastor Marty shared some verses. Psalm 96 1-3 Deuteronomy 6:4-9. He shared about teaching our children and neighbors. Pastor Jonas challenged everyone about teaching their children, praying for their children, and for caring for their neighbors. Pastor Jonas also shared how there has been a spiritual renewal among te young people of their church. I am really looking forward to see how God is going to continue to work this week thru our team. I do have some prayer requests: 1. That I will feel well this week and not be too tired. The flight and car ride was a little uncomfortable at times. 2. Ms Candance- she twisted her knee as she was getting to her seat on the airplane and was in some pain today. Please pray that God will heal her quickly. 3. That our communication between us, the translators, and the children will be clear so the message we brought to share will be well received. 4. That everyone stays healthy and hydrated during the hot moments of the day 5. Stacy- she is wearing a boot on her foot due to a stress fracture. Please pray that God will give her the strength for the week and no to cause any more injury to that foot. I hope to blog again tomorrow! God Bless!

Leaving for Ukraine

It's 6:20 am. The plane takes off around 8:48. Just a little over two hours away. I'm so excited to be going back this year. My team has planned some great VBS stories and crafts. I believe that we all are serving in a area that God has strengthened us for. I am working with a great group of ladies (Teresa, Stacy and Ada Faye) in the craft and coloring station. Alicia and Candace will be telling the bible stories. I'm excited that this year we are going to have a puppet team: Marty, Deanna and Lindsey. Archie and Josh are going to be leading the game time with the children and Kyle and Aubrie will be leading music. Please pray for each member of this team that God will use them in a mighty way to teach the Roma children about Him.





This year's theme for VBS is focused on the life of David. God is King! The stories Alicia and Candace will be teaching are: David is anointed as King, David plays music for the King, David's faithful friend Jonathan, David loves his Enemy, and The King of Kings Celebration Day.  Our crafts to coordinate with our stories. We will be helping the children make a sheep craft, a butterfly, a tambourine and decorate a backpack.