I can’t think of a clever way to break the news, so I’ll just say it plain and simple. I’m pregnant! I went to the doctor this morning and had a whole string of tests run, including an ultrasound showing that so far everything looks good. Since we’ve lost babies before to miscarriage, we realize that lots can happen in the first trimester. But we’re so excited about this most recent gift, that we can’t think for very long about what might go wrong.

When I got home from the doctor we told the children the news, and they all took it in their own ways. After Laura beamed a big smile at me, she got serious and asked, “Where are we going to PUT this baby?” Miguel asked me several times today about being “preg-a-nent”. I had to explain how far away the baby’s due date is…all the way to November, which really doesn’t compute in Mike’s little head.  Amelia was all excited and added her vote for another girl.

Once Luke had given the whole idea some thought, he suggested that we should do something special tonight to celebrate. I didn’t see any reason not to go along with his idea, so I pulled three cake mixes out and let Luke pick his favorite.  Luke helped me whip up the cake, and we served it tonight after we got home from our Wednesday-night church activities. (Judah was so excited about our new baby that he decided to help himself to some cake before we headed to church.  He got several fist-fulls before Michael caught him and put a stop to his little party!)  We also sang a silly “Happy Birthday” to the baby, and then we had a more serious prayer time. We thanked God for the gift He has sent, and we asked if maybe we could move to a bigger house sometime soon.

At church tonight I had a great time telling my friends and church family our good news. The kids in Junior Choir burst into applause when I told them about the baby.

Tonight I am “glowing” with delight at our news. But I know full well that in a few weeks, when the nausea hits, I’m going to be quite a bit less enthusiastic about our “little blessing”. Still, I won’t let that dampen my excitement for now. Soon enough reality will come crashing through the door.

Thanks for sharing in our joy!

Love, Christie

We’ve been having a BLAST making jewelry! Laura and I have been whipping out the necklaces, bracelets and earrings every chance we get.

But here’s my big challenge. The boys outnumber the girls in this house two to one! And every boy in the house wants a necklace of his own! So I’ve been working hard to figure out masculine necklaces for my boys. I’ve had fun experimenting, and they love their necklaces. My mother-in-law asked for photos of our creations and I still haven’t done that! I’m ashamed of myself. (Sorry, Mom!) But if you can imagine boys strutting around with black or blue seed beads, bits of rocks & shells, and one of them with an odd glass frog on a string, you get the picture.

Today Amelia created a necklace and bracelet for her doll. She was so pleased with herself! But tonight I discovered that she got a little too familiar with my stuff, and it appears that she was snipping away at one of my new silver-plated chains that Laura and I want to experiment with. That girl!

Michael brought home some beads from one of his co-workers friends this afternoon. (Thanks, Chris!) That’s where the funny frog came from for Miguel. Miguel is our frog boy, so we knew that glass frog would need to go on a necklace for him. I finished it tonight and slipped it around his neck for him to discover in the morning when he wakes up. I’m eager to hear his response.

Oh, and I have to tell you, I’ve been having great fun experimenting with the magnetic clasps! They work great, and I’m wondering why anyone uses anything else? I’m SUCH a novice, but it’s fun, and I don’t mind admitting that I am a beginner.

What are you doing these days that is new to you?

Update: It has come to light that Amelia was NOT the one to cut the silver chain! After questioning everyone, Isaac finally confessed to the deed. Now I need to figure out what to do with him! Oh, and I also need to learn not to be so quick to jump to conclusions about who does what around here!

First of all, before I give a “news in brief”, I want to let you know that this blog is often a joint effort between Michael and me.  I throw all of the words and thoughts into a mumbo-jumbo on the screen, and then Michael comes along behind and patiently cleans up my post, adding margins and links where necessary.

But if you look at my last post, you’ll see that he just might have gone a little too far in editing!  Check out some of the links by clicking on the blue words. And I don’t know how he did it, but he crossed out one of my words at the end and changed it!  I guess that’s what I get for being married to a computer genius. 

OK, now on to our regularly-scheduled program…

The past week has been exciting!  One week ago today (Tuesday) we had the biggest snowstorm of the season.  State Farm closed again, so Michael got some more time home with the family.  It got so windy and snowy here that even the city buses were pulled from service.   The next morning things were still a bit hairy, so schools were closed for a second snow day and State Farm employees had until noon to get to work.  Our street still hadn’t been plowed, so it was an effort for Michael to get to work even by noon!

Last Friday my sister (Joyce) and I, along with my sister-in-law and her daughter (Mary & Naomi), headed to a ladies retreat put on by our church.  It was at Grand Bear Lodge at Starved Rock.  We had a fantastic time, complete with encouraging meetings, a fun time in the indoor waterpark, great food, and staying up way too late.  The best part of it all was when I got home and Michael said, “Well, Honey, once again I really appreciate all you do here on a daily basis.”  Then he said, “You should go away more often so I can be reminded of what you do.”  I didn’t even hesitate in answering, “OK!”

Other than those two things, life is just going on its merry way.  Laura is working hard on her music, practicing both viola and piano daily.  Luke is working hard on becoming a better reader.  Amelia keeps us all smiling and wondering when she got so grown up.  Laura and I are still making jewelry and really enjoying all that we’re learning.  Laura made her own turquoise & silver necklace and earrings that are strikingly beautiful!

Yesterday I took the three older boys for haircuts.  Miguel came home with purple spikes in his hair, and Luke had orange spikes.  Isaac was the stodgy one of the group and declined anything fun or colorful.

So now you’re all caught up on what’s happening here.  The adventure continues!

I warned Michael!  I told him well in advance that I was planning to get hooked.  No doubt he believed me, but now he can see my prophecy has come true.

I’ve started making jewelry.  Yesterday a good friend made the rounds to the craft stores with me and guided me in my first purchases.  She’s been making jewelry for 15 years or so, and she was able to keep me from wasting too much money.  We had so much fun!  I never knew there were so many options and beads.  Amelia was with us, and she kept hollering, “PINK!”  We saw more pink beads than I ever knew existed.

Yesterday afternoon Laura and I made our first bracelets using magnetic beads.  Today we’re already chomping at the bit to make more jewelry.  Just a few moments ago I was looking online for ideas on making earrings.  Since I have three holes in each ear, I have lots of room for earrings.

You might be thinking that I must have come home full of apologies to Michael for the money I spent.  But I assure you, I am NOT feeling guilty in the least.  This morning, bright and early, Michael woke up Isaac and they were at Target by 6 a.m. waiting in line for the privilege to purchase the Nintendo Wii.  After many months of searching and waiting and wishing, we are now the proud owners of the Wii.  I don’t think my husband or older children will notice me until the middle of next week when they finally wonder what there is to eat. I’ve even threatened to go back out and do some more jewelry shopping since the new Hobby Lobby ad has indicated that another section of their jewelry stuff is now on sale.

Have you ever made jewelry?  Do you have any tips or suggestions for me?  More importantly, do you have a Nintendo Wii?  If not, I can can’t sell ya’ one…cheap! 

It was past her bedtime, and she had been weepy and fragile for the last hour, but I just couldn’t help but let Amelia be involved in a very special project… a project that only comes around once every ten years or so.
Earlier today I went to a moving sale, just to see what there was to see, and what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a large black refridgerator, just what I’d been seeking!  As we’ve been remodeling our kitchen, we have been acquiring new appliances (clarification: in our house “new” means “new to us”), and I’ve been so delighted with the microwave, dishwasher and stove.  But our trusty old fridge has just kept chugging along as we kept our eye out for just the right thing.  In order to qualify as a replacement, a fridge would have to be bigger than our current model, it would have to be black (white would do, if necessary, but black is my preferred color), it would have to have the freezer on the top or the bottom, but a side-by-side would NOT work for me, and it would have to be a good price.  As you might imagine, such a unit is not easy to find.  But alas, today, I found it.  I called Michael and he looked up similar models online.  Turns out, these fridges can start out over $1,000 and easily move up to $1,500 or so.  After some negotiation, the folks agreed to come down a little on their price, and we agreed on $500 for the 4-year-old refridgerator.

After work Michael borrowed a friend’s truck and another friend’s appliance-dolly and went to get the fridge.  He and Roy wrestled the beast into the kitchen, and then we took a break for supper.

I told Amelia, “After you finish eating that piece of bread, you’re going upstairs to bed.”  She didn’t argue.  She must have known she was tired.  But as she was finishing, she saw her Daddy heading back toward the fridge to start cleaning it up and readying it for it’s new contents.  She asked, “May I help clean the fridge?  I want to help put the food in!”  I hesitated.  I knew she’d enjoy the work, but it really was her bedtime!  After a quick consultation with Michael, we agreed that she should stay up and help.  It really is a rare opportunity, and it’s a fun one.  She was given a sponge and she worked hard on the parts she could reach.  The fridge was really quite clean, but there were cracks and crevices that needed to be wiped down.  Amelia was so eager to do a good job.  I put the little boys to bed so that we could work uninterrupted.  Once the fridge was clean, I sat down in front of the old fridge and started handing things to Amelia.  She had fun putting the condiments in the right places, loading the produce into the bins, and sliding the yogurt on to the right shelf.  It was fun to watch her work.

Now that our job is done Amelia is heading off to bed.  She’s even more tired than before, but she has a great sense of accomplishment.  Better yet, she knows where everything IS in the fridge.  :-)  I think I can use that kind of help in the near future!

Those of us who live in Central Illinois tend to be skeptical of the weather forecasts.  So often the interesting or exciting weather passes us by completely, and we’re left holding those gallons of milk and frozen pizzas we hurriedly grabbed off the store shelves to sustain us during our blizzard or tornado.  So yesterday when the forecast indicated we might get a few inches of snow today I refused to get my hopes up.  Snow would just be too much fun and too beautiful to really happen.  But alas, this morning, as I was laying in bed wishing my three energetic bedfellows would go back to sleep, I had to smile as Mike pushed back the curtains and exclaimed, “It snowed!  It’s still snowing!”

All morning and now through the afternoon it has snowed steadily.  It’s so beautiful.  I have no reason to be out and about today.  I’m just enjoying the beauty.  I did my grocery shopping yesterday,  so this morning I had everything I needed to fill the crock pot with chili.  It’s simmering away, perfect for our snowy day.  I think I’ll whip up a double batch of corn muffins to go with the chili.  That’ll be yummy!

Last night my sister-in-law, Mary, and her two girls arrived back in Bloomington, joining Roy who arrived Sunday.  We so enjoyed having a visit with them last night before they headed across town to their temporary apartment at my parents’ house.  We keep dreaming and praying that they’ll be able to move to Bloomington, but they haven’t made a final decision yet.

Oh!  One more exciting thing to report!  Yesterday  Michael and Roy installed two new windows in our upstairs bathroom.  They are so beautiful, and I can’t wait for the beautiful Spring weather so I can open the windows and feel the breeze.  Let me rephrase that.  I CAN wait for Spring.  Today I want to enjoy the snow.  And those new windows mean our bathroom is warmer during this cold weather.

What’s the weather like where you are?  What’s your favorite kind of weather?

Tonight I’m a football widow, at least that’s what I think I’ve heard it called. Michael took the three oldest children over to my folks’ house to watch the Superbowl. We don’t have cable tv here, so the fans had to search elsewhere for a place to watch the game.

Can you believe I was actually tickled when the house was finally left to just me and my three babies? I couldn’t decide what fun things I would do with my three youngest children, but I was looking forward to having some time to focus on them. I had to smile at myself, because just a few short years ago I would have felt overwhelmed and abandoned to be left at home with three children ages five and under. But now that “three children” is only half the gang, it feels strangely celebratory to have “only” three kiddos.

We haven’t done anything too exciting, but we made a fruit smoothy to share, and then we played with the computer some. Next Mike hugged me and said, “I want to take a bath.” Hmmm. Not anything I would consider hugely entertaining, but I finally decided it wouldn’t hurt anything. I ran a hot bath, and Miguel dumped a bunch of toys into the sudsy water. He played for a while, and once he was done, Judah wanted to climb in. So here I sit, playing on the laptop, watching my baby play in the tub. Oh sure, I have to keep rescuing the laptop from water splashes, but it’s fun to see how much fun a kid can have in the bath.

Now Amelia and Mike have wandered back upstairs, not wanting to be left alone downstairs any more. They’re having fun playing with Judah, and no doubt Judah feels like a prince with two servants waiting on him. I suppose we’ll have wet sleeves and more water messes, but hey, it’s well worth the price of the entertainment. Bedtime is actually past, so as soon as this bath is over, I’ll toss everyone into bed and try to get some real computer work done.

Sometimes when my mother has the children over for a visit, she’ll comment that they played in the bath for a long time. I guess I see now why it’s such a treat.

I think we might have started a new family tradition.  We’ve started watching “American Idol” as a family.  It’s one of the few shows that we can watch as a family, and the kids really like it.

Tonight we ate popcorn for supper, got the younger three kiddos bathed and off to bed, and then sat and watched the auditions for Idol. I found it interesting that Luke takes the lead among us when we’re listening to the various singers.  He’ll ask everyone, “So, what do you think?”  And then we’ll confer among ourselves as to the qualities of the various singers.

Today was a fun day.  Michael was able to do a few of the home projects that we’ve had hanging on for a while.  Probably the most intriguing thing to me (and I know I’m easily entertained) is the mirrored switch plate we found at the old-house salvage warehouse.  We put it in the small bathroom on the switch that we took from our kitchen when we tore everything out of it.  Have you ever seen a mirrored switchplate?  I’ve never even heard of such a thing!  Anyway, it’s up, and I’m fascinated by it.  I hope that someday, when someone sees our kitchen and little bathroom, they’ll think that the bathroom was original to the house.  With the antique sink, antique door, and whatever else we stuff in there, it will look really cool.  I have a dream that someday, if we ever build our own house, we can shop for things at the old-house salvage to give our house character.

Well, my blog today lacks a bit of cohesiveness, but that’s ok.  :-)  I guess that’s how I’m feeling right now… a bit scattered, cold (Do you know how COLD it is here???), and not thinking about much of anything for very long at one time. 

Tomorrow is Sunday.  I have no idea what’s for Sunday dinner, but hey, suspense is good for everyone.   Cheers!