Snapshots: May and Some of June

Things around here are winding down...or up...I can't really tell which way they're going.

The kids will finish up school this week.  Praise the Lord!  This mom is ready for a break!  I think the kids will enjoy some extra free time as well.

As we have relaxed our daily schedule quite a bit, the Crew has had plenty of time to perfect their paper airplane making abilities, have lots of water gun fights, and attempt to dig giant holes in the front yard.

Naturally, we also have many appearances of soldiers (from both the past and the present), pioneers, and various community servants.

During one of our many trips into town for doctor appointments, the kids and I took a quick side trip over the mountains.  Before moving to Virginia I had discovered a discount grocery store, but with our current location it has been impractical to make a trip there.  After some inspiration from another blog I just had to go.  We stocked up on a lot of pantry items and paid about half the price we would at Walmart.  I really can't wait to go back!  I know...life changes when you're a mom to a handful of kiddos!

We have enjoyed several family hikes over the last few weeks.  A trip to Shenandoah National Park was especially exciting when we saw several deer within just a few yards of us.  One fawn even walked within an arm's length of Claude and the kids!

Claude's parents visited us a few weeks ago.  Too bad we ended up with a stomach virus while they were here!  Why these things happen, I have no idea.  But we all made it through...and then everyone came down with a cold the following week.  Gotta love living in close quarters with a bunch of kids.

 
Joshua, Hannah, and Abigail participated in the Awana program at our church this winter and spring.  It was an adjustment for us to get used to driving to and from church twice in a day, but so worth it!  They had a blast, memorized a lot of scripture, and have been encouraged in their walk with the Lord.  They had a big party, store to spend their Awana Bucks, and their last awards ceremony last month.  They can't wait to start in the fall when Jeremiah gets to join them.

 
We have seen more and more wildlife in our yard this spring.  There is a rabbit that has been spotted several times in the morning and around dusk.  The kids spotted something black, larger than a squirrel, and smaller than a deer.  It could have been a shadow.  They are having fun dreaming up all of the different kinds of animals it could have been.

They found a turtle who lived in the front flower bed for a few days before taking off into the wild of the front yard.  And Joshua also spotted a deer bounding out toward the road during a thunder storm last week.
 

The weather is getting warmer.  I'm getting more and more pregnant, if that's possible.  And we're ramping up for the arrival of Chew Crew 6.  35 weeks and counting.


It could be soon.  It could be more than a month from now.  The suspense is always a bit too much for me.  But how much more exciting does life get?!

Well, it can always get more exciting when chocolate pudding is involved!

Snapshots: Camping

I'm not exactly the "funnest" mom on the block.  When it comes to special outings and little extras I just don't do very well. I enjoy spending time with the kids, but the days are full of meals, dishes, laundry, schoolwork, diaper changes, and discipline.  Of course, they are also full of cuddles, laughs, funny things the little guys say, and interesting conversations with the older crew.

In an attempt to be fun and spontaneous, I planned a little escapade for last weekend.  Claude was out at a 50K, camping overnight in the little van so as not to miss an early morning start.  I thought, why not take the kids camping while he was away?

Before you start thinking that I'm some kind of super mom, just check out our campsite.

Our very large toy room (soon to be occasional guest room) seemed like the perfect spot for our 9 person tent.  Of course, it had to actually fit.

Which it did.  Perfectly.

We started our campout with a rousing game of Memory.

The kids were bouncing off the walls (literally...if they could defy gravity they would have been up and down and all around the walls and ceiling).  The excitement was extreme, and they didn't even know that we were sleeping in the tent.  They were wired from a day of merely playing in the tent.

I went for easy, camping kind of food - hot dogs and frozen peas (still frozen) served in coffee filters.

*Note: Coffee filters are my new favorite way to serve everything from hot dogs and sandwiches, to popcorn and pickles.  Try them.  They are awesome.  Cheap.  Compact in the trash.  No washing necessary.

Next we enjoyed S'mores, which I made in the oven.  Half a marshmallow, two pieces of chocolate, and a two graham cracker halves.  The kids each had about three, but even with that their sugar intake was significantly less than if we had used full marshmallows and twice as much chocolate.

Everyone thoroughly enjoyed them.

Here are a few of the messy faces.

While the older three kiddos watched "Milo and Otis" (which, by the way, scared Abby immensely), I sat upstairs to monitor the little guys.  They did well, but boy did they blow a lot of raspberries before they finally conked out.  My lips were tingly and then numb just listening to them!

And then, before I knew it, everyone was sound asleep.  One was even snoring.  One claimed to have stayed awake the whole night.  :)

And then Rachel woke up three times in the night.

And then she cuddled with me on my mattress and we slept for a while.  And then she woke up, walked all over the tent, and brought things to drop on my head.  And then she toddled down the stairs with me at 5am because I finally caved and decided to give her a bottle of milk.

We slept beautifully after that.  :)

And then the morning came and with it the metldowns and grumpy attitudes I had feared.  Saturday was a bit rough and I was so glad when Claude walked through the door!

We had fun.  Made some memories.  And learned some rules about tent dwelling.  Now that we've had a practice run maybe we'll attempt a "real" camping trip!

45 Minutes

 The morning was great.  We got up, made it through our morning routine, even read a few books with the little kids.  School time was smooth.  Everyone was in their places doing what they were supposed to be doing.  It was a good day.

12:05pm - Two children began throwing tantrums for different reasons.  I cleaned up Rachel from her lunch, attempted to put her in her bed and quickly realized that she needed a new diaper in a bad way.  Jeremiah walked in the room and it became obvious that he also needed a new diaper.  So I began the process.

12:15pm - Both tantrums persisted as I cleaned up the little guys' diapers.  Both messes were a bit bigger than I had anticipated.  Rachel needed a new shirt.  Neither diaper swished out in the toilet nicely.

12:20pm - One tantrum ceased, but the other ramped up as I rinsed out some pretty fowl cloth diapers.  It didn't take long to be literally elbow deep in some pretty mucky water.  Ewww...

12:22pm - Hannah comes through the front door, screaming, "Abby won't let go of the jump rope and I already asked her to!"  Oh, yes...this requires my direct attention.  Not.  I send Hannah back out to resolve the jump rope issue with her younger sister.

12:24pm - Still up to my elbows in diaper water, trying to keep Rachel out from underfoot, and Hannah enters yet again.  This time sreaming about ten times louder than the last time.  "Abby hit me with the recorder!"  Cry.  Sob.  Jump up and down.  Yep.  Another tantrum.  At least the tantrum from the other room had toned down to some moaning and groaning.

12:30pm - I look up to explain to Hannah that I cannot deal with the recorder/jump rope situation because my hands are covered in poopy water.  I see blood streaming down her face.  A blood nose.  Perfect.  I send Hannah to get some tissue.

12:33pm - The diapers are rinsed.  My hands are scrubbed.  The bath tub is bleached.  Hannah is still freaking out.  She runs in to find me and I send her right back to the bathroom where she started.  She leaves a drippy trail of blood through most of the downstairs.  My usual pregnancy heartburn rears a very ugly head about now.  Oh, well...no time for that.  I get the hydrogen peroxide, put Rachel in her play yard, and hope that this is over soon.

12:35pm - After cleaning the blood trail, I find Hannah standing over the toilet.  Screaming.  There is blood everywhere.  Her hands and arms are covered.  Her clothes are covered.  The toilet seat is covered.  Blood is splattered on the walls, the floor, the outside of the toilet, the sink, the mirror.  I'm glad I have the hydrogen peroxide and that I apparently have a strong stomach after working through those messy cloth diapers.  I start cleaning.

12:45pm - Hannah is clean and changing into fresh clothing.  Her nose is no longer bleeding.  The bathroom is clean.  The laundry has been rinsed with hydrogen peroxide to prevent stains and is in the washing machine.  All tantrums have stopped.

12:50pm - Three of the kids are playing play dough.  They are laughing as if none of them had thrown a tantrum, produced a blow out poop, had a blood nose, or beat up their older sibling with a recorder.  (Please note, the blood nose was NOT from Abby.  It happened all on its own.)  Rachel is in bed, not asleep yet, but on her way.  And the complaining from Tantrum-Thrower Number One has ceased.  Now it's time to dictate a spelling list, supervise violin practice, heat up lunch, and prod the preschoolers as they clean up the Duplos.

If ever you hear a mother or father with a few (or more!) small children in their constant care, this is what you should think of when they say things are "busy", "hectic", "crazy", "exhausting", "tiring", or "non-stop" at their house.  This can happen any time of day or night without warning, without due cause.  Things are running smoothly and then BAM!  Everything spontaneously combusts and chaos abounds for 45 minutes.

Okay...so on a good day it only lasts 45 minutes.  I won't even get into what a bad day can look like.  You're smart.  I'm sure you can imagine.

After you have imagined, then you can say a prayer for any parents you know who have a troop of little tikes at home.  You may just be praying at the precise moment that a blood nose, two tantrums, two incredibly messy diapers, some heartburn, and a few other urgent matters collide in one big train wreck.

Of Forests and Fields: An Ode to Inspirational Trail Running Films

When someone in your household is into trail running you end up viewing many short films meant to inspire and encourage a love of the sport.  Here's the Chew Crew's take on the whole thing.  Hope you're inspired to go run a few miles!

Password: 2005ChewCrew



Of Forests and Fields from Chew Crew on Vimeo.

Boy or Girl?

For the past several weeks the Crew has been in an ongoing discussion.  Will Chew Crew 6 be a boy or a girl?

Last week we found out and now that we've had some time to celebrate with cake, we're ready to let you in on our little surprise.

To view this video in Vimeo use 2005ChewCrew.

 
Chew Crew 6 - Boy or Girl from Chew Crew on Vimeo.

Got Enough Kids?

I found this post in my "Drafts" folder.  The statement which sparked it was given to me the summer of 2013.  We were sweating out a hot, humid holiday gathering at our church.  I was noticeably pregnant, the kids were obviously tired, and we were attempting to get everyone's things gathered up and into the car.

Why comments like these come at times like that I have no idea.  Sometimes I wonder if a pregnant belly comes with a sign that reads, "Please make rude, unwanted, or just plain weird comments, especially when I am hot, sweaty, and ready to have the kids in the car."

And that is why I don't leave the house except on Sundays.  :)  Just kidding!  Kind of...I mean, I don't leave the house except on Sundays but it's not actually because of these types of comments.

Now, on to the post.

"So, have you got enough kids?" the gentleman asked me.


I fumbled through the few lame responses that I know are tucked away somewhere in my head, but came up short.  All I could do was smile, look in front of me at all four of my children, and smile again.  Updated to add: Now I would just laugh and say, "Apparently not, because God is giving us another!"

Where the question came from I can only guess.  Perhaps he was just curious about us.  Maybe he felt like he needed to say something and that was the first thing that came out.  Or maybe he can't quite imagine family life outside of the American norm - 2.01 kids, a dog, a cat, and a white picket fence.

Something in the delivery of that question, however, made me wonder if he has some ideas about family planning.  If so, I'm guessing that we have not followed any plans that would be deemed wise.  Apparently we have been foolish in this matter of having children - something that has been told to us before and that was when we only had one child and one on the way.

This man's question has been on my mind for the last few days.  So far I've constructed a simple response that I will file away in an easily accessible memory file.  I'm pretty sure our family will have more comments like this one, so I want to be ready.  That response is to smile, look at my children, and say, "I can't imagine life without any one of them."

Beyond finding an appropriate response to future statements, I have some issues with this idea of having "enough" kids.  To me the question implies that children are a commodity, an accessory to our lives.  We decide how many we want and when.  We set a limit on what is "enough".

The first is to do with contentment.  If we haven't had the number of children we desire, we are unhappy and potentially jealous of others who have the size of family we have planned for ourselves.  We may not be able to take joy in the life God has given us.  That might mean wasting away some special years as a single, with our spouse, or with our first (and maybe only) child.

If we find ourselves crossing our self-imposed line of what we can handle, then we run the risk of becoming bitter and resentful toward others - even toward our own children.  We may say something like this, "I wish I had stopped after just one.  Two is more than I can handle."  And do we think that our kids don't pick up on those attitudes?  They know that they are the "mistake" or the "oops" child that nearly sent Mom into panic and despair upon finding out she was pregnant again.

The second problem I have with the "enough" mentality is that by reducing children to a commodity of which we can have too little or too much, we are devaluing their very existence.  When it comes down to it, the value of a child is subjected to our current feelings on the matter.  If I've wanted a child for 10 years and finally conceived and birthed a healthy baby, that child is valued greatly.  On the other hand, if I find myself pregnant before my wedding day rolls around that child may not be as warmly received or as highly valued by me or by others.

God values children.  He doesn't think of them as a nuisance.  Neither does He place them on a pedestal.  He loves children because He is love.  And He loves people of all ages and stages just the same.

 
In Psalm 127 children are described as a "heritage from the Lord".  I know that many people who have convictions about not using birth control use this verse as a way of saying that everyone should live as they do.  I'm not here to make such conclusions.

What I do want to point out is that throughout Psalm 127, the value of children is made clear.  They are important.  They are a gift from God.  That value does not and should not change just because something falls outside of our "enough" boundaries.

If we truly value children, then we should find no trace of discontent or bitterness in regard to our family size. 

Whether God has allowed our family planning to be executed precisely on our schedule, we find ourselves mourning through loss of pregnancy after pregnancy, or we are reading that little plus sign just weeks after our wedding or when we already have an infant in the house, we would do well to be content with the way in which God has chosen to bless us.

 

Movies and Missing Egg Rolls

Over Christmas we took a 5,000 mile round-trip adventure to see my parents in Montana.  It was fun.  It was exciting.  It was adventurous.  And it was abounding in throw up.

Part of what made this such a fun trip was that we managed to surprise my mom with our little journey.  My dad played the role of accomplice, which meant no surprises for him.

Or did it?

What no one else knew was that aside from making a last minute 36 hour trip, we still had one more suprise up our sleeve.

The kids insisted that they could keep this secret until Christmas morning, when my parents would open a homemade movie as a gift.  And they did an awesome job!

Maybe they were just having too much fun sledding and vomiting to think about it, but they were put to the test on Christmas Eve when my dad sat down with Joshua and Hannah to look through the photos on our camera.  The above photo, which we used on the cover of the DVD gift, was on the memory card.  He asked them what they were looking at and why they took the picture.  They sat quietly, said, "The box was empty," and left it at that.

I was amazed!  Apparently they are good at keeping surprises a secret until just the right time.

Anyway...on Christmas morning, amidst the near chaos of our entire family opening gifts, we were able to share the Chew Crew's very first motion picture making endeavor.  We had fun with this project, and the kids are already talking about making more in the future, so stay tuned!

Until then, we'd like to share with you, "The Mystery of the Missing Egg Rolls".  To view our short (really, it's less than 2 minutes) film, click through to Vimeo and use 2005ChewCrew.

Mystery of the Missing Egg Rolls from Chew Crew on Vimeo.

White Christmas

Apparently I made a "typo" on our little car note.  I'll blame it on sleep deprivation.



A couple of weeks ago the kids and I took a trip to the local post office.  The woman helping us struck up a conversation with Joshua.  They talked about Christmas and all the things he was looking forward to.  He said he wanted snow.

As we left the post office the woman said to him, "I hope you get that snow you're hoping for on Christmas."

It's been a few weeks and we had to drive 2,500 miles, but from the looks of my parents' back yard, I think we will be enjoying a white Christmas after all.

 



Grampa, Claude, and the kids built this fort in the yard yesterday.  That was before the snow started falling.

 

 



Early last week I received a phone call from my mom.  My grandfather had been taken to the hospital and things didn't look very good for him.  By Tuesday he had gotten worse, and on Wednesday he passed away.  It all seemed very sudden.

As we had updates from parents through the week, Claude and I were talking about whether or not we should (or even could) travel to Montana to be with my family during this time.  On Wednesday afternoon we decided that we could do it.

We have talked about taking a road trip this way for quite some time, but it always seemed out of reach.  The driving time is about 36 hours - not a short trip by any stretch of the imagination.  To have the time off work and the money to afford the trip never seemed like a realistic possibility.

But last week we realized that with Claude's days off over Christmas and New Years, we had the time.  But time is not the only resource needed for a long road trip.  After a long distance move and buying a new vehicle, did we have the money for the trip?

Yes, we did, because God's provision abounds even in the midst of major expenses.

On Saturday morning we loaded the kids in the van and started driving.  Joshua and Hannah were so excited about the trip that they got up around 5:30am, dressed themselves, changed Jer and Rachel's diapers, and even got the little ones dressed.  Amazingly, we left on time that morning!

We told the kids how many days we would be driving, but some of them still thought we would be at Grampa and Gramma's house that night. 

 

We tried to only stop three times each day, including our overnight stop.  Of course, we had some unplanned stops, but the entire Crew only unloaded three times a day.

 

These photos were from our last day at a rest area in Sheridan, Wyoming.  I think I can understand why people move out there.  It is some of the most amazing scenery I have seen!

After three very long days of driving, we are enjoying time with family.  The kids are enjoying playing with cousins, getting to know the dogs, and playing outside as much as possible.

 

 

We do, after all, have a very long return journey.

 



Thanksgiving

By the Numbers...
1 bag Chex Mix
1 jar pickles
1 jar olives
1 jar banana peppers
"Prenzels" (aka - pretzels)
29 slice of cheese
2 sleeves of crackers
5 lb. potatoes
1 bag cranberries
Orange juice
3 pkg. cream cheese
1 1/4 cups butter
1 cup half and half
2 lb. green beans
4 slices bacon
Garlic and onions, lots
Milk
Grated cheddar cheese
Bread crumbs
5 cups flour
2 cans olives
Yeast, salt, sugar, etc.
1 jar Nutella
1 graham cracker pie crust
2 fancy dresses
Bike races for 5
Postcard writing
A rousing (and nearly catostrophic) game of Farkel
A handful of meltdowns
A couple of fights
1 runny nose
2 bottles of sparkling cider
The Chew Crew minus 1 cuddled under one blanket
1 very tasty roast turkey

=

Chew Family Thanskgiving 2014
(and a LOT of leftovers!)

Rachel didn't get the memo that we're supposed to smile for the camera...

Big Boy Bed

Here's a good way to get your exercise in for the day.  Put your 2-year-old into a big boy bed for the first time.  Make sure his bedroom is on the second floor and that you are writing a blog post about the experience busy on the first.  Run up the stairs each time you hear his feet pitter pattering, lift his 25 pound body into your arms, walk briskly to his bed, and administer discipline of your choice.

Repeat.

And repeat.

And repeat.

Listen to the funny things that your adorable and defiant little son has to say about his first night in a big boy bed.

"I'm just going to sleep now, Mommy."
 
"Mommy, I was walking and then running."

"I need a derrink!"

"Mommy, I'm not in my bed.  I'm on my bed."

"Daddy, I'm going to get up!"

And then have a good laugh at Big Brother's speech regarding the importance of obeying Dad and Mom and staying on your bed.

Big Brother:  "Jer, if you don't want to have spankings you should just stay in your bed.  Then you can go to sleep and forget about all of the spankings you just got."

Little Brother:  "Okay."

Remember to snap a photo once he finally dozes off to sleep.

Oh, yeah...have some ice cream or chocolate ready to celebrate your success.  And to replenish your energy reserves.  ;)

Snapshots: Sunday S'Mores

I know, I really owe you an actual post with more than two paragraphs of text excuses.  Sorry...this post will not be it.  But rest assured, I have been blogging in my head for about three weeks.  Eventually some of that will translate into some real writing.

For now, please enjoy some pictures from our backyard "camp out".  I'm not sure why we called it that because we weren't camping out at all.  But we did have a nice fire going and we enjoyed plenty of hot dogs and s'mores.  Yum!