Happy Grandparents Day!

We love you. Life would not be the same without you. We live close by, by design. I want my children to know you. Thanks for all you have done for us.

Love you.

sept 2005 flashback

scroll down to see what i was thinking on sept 7, 2005
it is at the bottom, with the white kittens

Building Cathedrals

This is one of those things that got e-mailed to me (I didn't write it), & though I don't totally relate to every part, it is a good reminder of the sacrifices of love we mothers give. I wanted to thank all you mothers for all you have done in love for your children, & hope some part of this is encouraging to you. I really like the cathedral part. (this was just a quick copy/paste & I tried to fix the spacing errors I found, so if it looks funny, sorry....)

The Invisible Woman

by Nicole Johnson

It started to happen gradually...One day I was walking my son Jake to school. I was holding his hand and we were about to cross the street when the crossing guard said to him, 'Who is that with you, young fella?

''Nobody,' he shrugged. Nobody? The crossing guard and I laughed. My son is only 5, but as we crossed the street I thought, 'Oh my goodness, nobody?

'I would walk into a room and no one would notice. I would say something to my family - like 'Turn the TV down, please' - and nothing would happen. Nobody would get up, or even make a move for the remote. I would stand there for a minute, and then I would say again, a little louder, 'Would someoneturn the TV down?' Nothing.

Just the other night my husband and I were out at a party. We'd been there for about three hours and I was ready to leave. I noticed he was talking to a friend from work. So I walked over, and when there was a break in the conversation, I whispered, 'I'm ready to go when you are.' He just kept right on talking. That's when I started to put all the pieces together. I don't think he can see me. I don't think anyone can see me. I'm invisible.

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?' Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going... she's going... she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.'It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: 'To Charlotte , with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after whichI could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished.They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' And the workman replied, 'Because God sees.' I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.'

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself.

I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add,'You're gonna love it there.' As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Tomas Birthday :)

HAPPY

Birthday

Dad!

I love you.

Slideshow

2 Month Checkup

Talon had his 2 month checkup this morning, and is doing great. He is over 12 pounds, and over 23 inches long. He even smiled at the doctor, ha ha.

Pizza Party

Week of Fun

Last week we visited all the grandmas & grandpas & had a blast

here are the girls at a Golden Arches play area we went to w/Motherkitty & Tomas

Goin' to Grandma's

Over the river and through the woods, to Grandmother's house we go.....Motherkitty, it won't be long til you are holding your new grandbaby again :)

well, Talon is 7 weeks old and we are finally going to my mom and dad's house this week to visit

Natasha, Dancer Girl, will be 6 very soon and we are planning a pizza party at a local place, not Chuck E. Chz. Eliana, now 3 (Little One) is growing, growing, growing.

my aunt Sandy and her crew will be coming too. Hurray!

hoping and praying that everyone will be well and there will be no technical difficulties

Got Milk?

Baby Boy just had his 1 month checkup. At 5 weeks old he weighed in at 10 lbs 6 oz & is now 21.5 inches long. June just zoomed by. Finally, my parents were able to come visit today & we had a great day! Dancer Girl went to a special ballet workshop in June & they did a rumpus dance, like in Where the Wild Things Are. Actually, I think they are at my house :)

Bummed

Well, kind of bummed right now cause we should be at my mom and dad's, showing off baby Talon to my aunt and my cousins, getting ready to hop in the pool....

But Little One had a 102.6 degree fever, so we had to call and cancel. We convinced her to down some Grape Splash Tylenol and now she is feeling a little better, but we had to play it safe, and not pass on whatever her little body is fighting off.

Hope all you guys and girls have a great visit without us. Little One broke down and cried when I finally told her we couldn't go to Grandma's house. She was heartbroken. And if you talk to my mom, Motherkitty, she will tell you that I was crying too, on the phone. I hope no one feels it was a wasted trip because we could not come :(

Some june pics

here are some pics from the week or 2 after baby was born
baby will be 4 wks old this saturday...time sure flies
the one w/dancer girl with wide surprise eyes is when the baby tooted on her :)

June, 1 Year Ago

http://kittenyarn.blogspot.com/2006_06_01_archive.html

here is a link to stuff from june last year, 2006
i really just wanted to link to the father's day post, but this is the closest i got...

it is really cute to see how young the girls looked last summer
this summer we are doing similar things....summer reading, vacation bible school....only add in new baby & slow things down a whole lot, :)

we will be headed to my mom & dad's toward the end of the month, & dad's sister & lots of cousins will be coming too....i am very excited

(you will have to forgive the brevity of my posts & lack of punctuation, etc...back to typing w/one hand)

Quiet Morning

Have had a few minutes of quiet time this morning, and that has been good. Everyone is sleeping still except me. I have got lots to do....garbage, dishes, laundry, etc. but wanted to spend a few quiet minutes not rushing around before the day begins. There has been a lot of excitement around here lately with a new baby, and I have been trying every day to spend quiet times with myself and with the girls, talking and reading books. There have been a few days so far where we have watched WAY too much television, and I can see how it will be easy to slip into that habit again. Little One's busted lip is healing up, and the doctor said we have to find some Blue Lizard sunscreen to put on her scar as it heals, as well as Mederma. (unsure if I mentioned it but 1 week ago Thursday when my husband's mom was here, she fell off a chair in the kitchen and busted her lip pretty bad, on the inside and the outside...and instead of stitches they sutured the outside with that glue/gel stuff...).



On Saturday we will be headed to my husband's Nana's house to visit with his Dad who lives in Arizona (we only get to see him a couple of times a year). So we will see how baby does with an hour long car ride and a day away from home. He will be 2 weeks old on Saturday.



I have some daylilies blooming, and my some of my hostas actually bloomed. I was very surprised. We haven't gone out much since the baby has been born and the girls really miss it. Husband wants to mow the grass first, and get the sunscreen for Little One's lip. Probably already need to get mosquito repellent as we have already seen lots of them :( , and the girls complained about being itchy for days after the last time they went out. They have been having lots of fun lately, though, catching fireflies. My 3 yr old is especially good at it.



Well, Dancer Girl is up now. Hard to believe she will be 6 in August. Time to start planning her party. Time really does fly with little ones growing up! Anyway, hope you have a good one...gotta go make breakfast and start the day.

Psa 22:9
Yet you brought me out of the womb;
you made me trust in you
even at my mother's breast.
Psa 22:10
From birth I was cast upon you;
from my mother's womb you have been my God.

Sisters holding Talon

Baby Here!!!!

Baby Talon Blade was born on Saturday, June 2, 2007 at 2:21 pm. He weighed 7 pounds and 8 oz, and was 19.5 inches long....

go to my Dad's blog to see some pics....
you will have to scroll down to see some
i will post some later

Still 3

Went to midwife today and there has been no change, still 3cm

just thought some of you might want to know that earth-shattering news.

maybe baby boy just doesn't want to be born in may....maybe he wants his birthday to be in June. Or maybe he just wants to be one of the small percentage of babies actually born on their due date, ha ha

Still Nothing

This is mostly for my mom, ha ha
Found out I was dilated to 3 on Thursday at my midwife appointment, but nothing is happening....only an occasional tiny almost contraction kind of thing, nothing regular or anything

midwife said if I had any twinge of anything regular to come in to the birthing center......
nothing like that has happened yet......

mom, you will get a call if I go to the birthing center, and Dad will have plenty of time to take a shower! (She knows I am teasing.)

I know this labor is different so far than my other two....but baby boy will come when he is ready...though I know it is hard not to be impatient. Waiting always seems to be the hardest part.....

No Baby Yet

for those who may be interested....baby boy is not here yet...no contractions, feeling good

in nesting mode now, here is a pic of my girls near mother's day

Psa 145:9
The LORD [is] good to all: and his tender mercies [are] over all his works.

May Outdoor Pics

Here are some recent pics from the month of May. As you can see, Dancer Girl was practicing shooting baskets, and she succeeded in making one. I was so impressed, I snapped a couple of pics. Very cute. The calico cat is Leah, or Big Fat Kitty, our oldest, and the white one is Snowball. The plants are a tomato plant from Motherkitty and Tomas, mom and dad( can you see the little tomatoes?), some dutch iris (white/yellow-- look for the ladybug), spiderwort (purple), honeysuckle, a fern near my front porch, and another fern (japanese painted fern next to some hostas).

Quilt & Afghan Pics, etc

Here are a few pics of the airplane quilt and the afghan I made for Baby Boy. I also added a couple of the girls. I wanted to post the one with the pretty pink and dresses because I got those for about $3 each, and I thought they were so pretty. The other one I really like because they are so sweet snuggling on the couch under Daddy's UK blanket.

Baby Shower

Well, the baby shower went great! My mom took tons of pics....I didn't bring my camera, so I will have to wait for her to send me some.

So, I got the afghan done, the baby quilt done (airplanes, pics soon I hope), got the bassinet up....

got plenty of diapers at the shower, and now have plenty of baby clothes

everything is falling into place.....less than 5 wks to go

it was good seeing all my friends and my mom and dad at the shower