Cute kids and a winter project

Here's a fun little before and after project I have to share with you today. On the left is what the entryway wall by our front door looked like. The first thing we did was paint the walls a soft gray color and then the carpet had to go. There are a few places carpet doesn't belong (in my humble opinion) and bathrooms, kitchens and entryways are some of those places. We replaces those lovely amber light globes you see on the left with some nice modern fixtures, but the ugly yellow gold window pane there still turned everything in its reach a pukey sick color. I really thought I was just stuck with it until next summer when we plan to replace that window. Then, one day I was walking by and the window cried out to me...."I can't handle being so ugly any longer....can't you do something temporary to help me through this stage of my life?" I was bewildered until I thought of that pint of chalkboard paint I've been hoarding. It took several coats, but I think the window is happier and I know I am! An extra benefit was that I got to add some free-hand chalk art as soon as the paint was dry. I don't have a lot of talent, but this is one thing I can do, so let me enjoy it, okay? 

 

Kaderick and daddy have had hours of fun this Christmas weekend with Kaderick's new Christmas toys. I'm pretty sure this coast guard helicopter and rescue set is their favorite. I know for sure that it's daddy's favorite. 

In the last post, I showed you the girls' doll house. Here they are on Sunday morning with their dolls and their (new for Christmas) matching dolly and me dresses. Momma is thankful for zulily in July. You can't beat $9.99/set! 

Below are some kid funnies copied from my journaling the last few months:

On our first day of Christmas vacation. The girls and I took a little drive and delivered Christmas cheer to several friends. When we drove up at the kids' doctor office, Kaderick wanted to go in so bad he was in tears. Finally got it out of him he wanted one of the suckers they give out. It was cold and raining and I didn't want to mess with carseat and coat so in a moment of mom desperation I promised to give him one at home to which he said, "But Doctor Hammer gives healthy suckers!"

Kaderick started a new medication today. We are hopeful that it will solve some issues he has struggled with since birth. Inexperienced lay people look at him and think I'm crazy when I say that he is sick. I'm going to be brutally honest here so feel free to scroll on if you wish (some will). Due to the high level of histamine he continually deals with, he has almost constant diarrhea. Not constant like never ending, but constant like that's the form (or lack of form as the case may be) his digestive system always takes. This has made potty training next to impossible and he suffers a great deal of soreness because of it as well. Tough for this mom as I have a potty training guru reputation and I hate to see him suffer! All my other kids were 100% trained within a 2 week period soon after their 2nd birthday. If you'd like to help us pray for success with this medication, we'd be most grateful. He is soooo good and deals with everything so cheerfully almost all the time. We are thankful for this, but understand that he really knows no different. We pray he can be even more comfortable soon!

Yesterday during piano lesson, Kaderick and I were passing some time together at Cost Plus when he became urgently hungry. Of course, there is nothing which can be classified as nourishing at Cost Plus, but I allowed him to select a small bag of gummy christmas trees. He clutched the bag tightly in his little hands and waited patiently as mommy browsed the store. He was getting tired and almost nodded off a couple of times. At one point he said to me rather apologetically, "Mommy, I wouldn't even get these, but I really need them! "

We just heard this crazy noise like a "mighty rushing wind" looked out and there were about 5,000 (probably an understatement) crows taking off from our yard. 

Kammy said, "Looks like the crows are having a continental congress!" "Okay, I've had too much social studies!"

I didn't get a photo, but the sky was literally black with crows.

Can't find Kade.....he's sitting in the bathroom on the potty with the door closed eating "torpedo" chips. He's such a boy!

Haha! Kalli just found out there is such a thing as canned sweet potatoes. She makes us laugh.

Since the kids have been fighting colds, and Kade's immune system is down, we've been trying to limit the others touching his toys. He just told Kaite in his gruff raspy voice, "Only touch the PINK toys, KAITE!"

One last picture. The littles have been playing play doh a lot this winter. Yes, it makes a mess, but it's really not so bad if you keep them off the carpet and sweep frequently. Plus, it provides hours of entertainment and builds creativity. Kammy made this horse without any molds and I think it's pretty amazing! 

And here I am signing off....spending time with this sweet guy while he works. 

And So this is Christmas...

Aside from baking and decorating, The first big event was the girls piano recital. Kayla and Kalli began taking lessons over two years ago and have really learned a lot in that time. Kammy just began a few months ago. It's interesting to see their different personalities come out even in this area. Kayla gets stage freight....Kalli and Kammy rather love performance. Kayla and Kalli have both learned to read music easily. Kammy is learning too, but it comes just a bit harder for her because she has an ear for music and can sit down and pick out anything without the work of reading the notes. Kayla, Kalli and Kammy all had solo pieces and then Kayla and Kalli also played a duet part. 

In church, we began a series entitled "God, We Have Room for You" the Sunday after Thanksgiving. It wasn't completely dissimilar to Advent. Each Sunday, a different ornament went home with each family as an appropriate reminder throughout the week. It was all about making room in the crowded busy spaces of life for Jesus to be born in us. And then on Christmas Sunday, our program was entitled "Christmas Born in Me."

I won't take up the time or space to relate the entire program, just share a few pictures and parts from the littles. Kammy has become an accomplished reader and we were proud of how she read her part with great inflection and expression. 

I struggled to find a part for her with a certain theme and finally gave up and wrote one. 

Up on a hill, boastful and tall, stood a large and elegant inn. It's ratings were mostly five star. It provided memory foam beds and swaddling sheets made of 100% silk for all its guests. A free continental breakfast was served each morning. Wake up calls were provided at no extra charge. Many important men had stayed here and rarely was there an empty room. It was the most coveted lodging in all of Nazareth. 

 

Joseph, wanting the best for his little family, went here first that night so long ago. But he didn't have reservations and he wasn't a VIP so he was told that there just wasn't room. As he and Mary turned to go, someone mentioned the stable down the hill. 

The stable was lovely and humble. Crudely built, but sturdy. It had no warmth of its own, but because it was home to the lowly beasts, it was filled with warm sweet hay. It had no light of its own, but it's rustic ceiling was open to the heavens and the moonlight flooded in. It had no memory foam beds, but because it was home to hungry animals, it's manger provided a cozy place to rest. As for the wake up calls here that night....they came in the form of a baby's cry. There was no continental breakfast served when the rooster crowed at the break of day, but the world rejoiced, because the very bread of life was born. 

 

And who do you think the wisest? The inn or the stable? Centuries later, the stable still earns a place in our Christmas story....even our Christmas decor. That stable once looked down on is now famous. And why? Because though humble and undeserving, it was willing. Willing to give all it had and willing to receive all it ever needed. 

I think the lesson is clear. I want to be like the stable. I want to be humble and strong. I want to shine my light to the lost, open my doors to the hungry, turn my heart to the heavens and awaken to the voice of the Saviour. Because....he's all I need.

 -Karen Bork

Kaite is our little singer and she really does quite well. We talked about how Jesus can't be born in you without a change taking place and you wanting to share Jesus with others. Her part was about being like the star and guiding others to the light that will change their life. Then she sang "Twinkle Twinkle Christmas Star."

In keeping with the theme of this wonderful Christmas story and how it will change our lives, Kaderick's part was about cherishing and keeping this story and God's word close in our hearts. He very proudly said, "Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee." 

It was a beautiful, meaningful program about the true meaning of Christmas....welcoming God to our broken world. 

When therefore the first spark of a desire after God

 arises in thy soul, cherish it will all thy care, 

give all they heart into it; 

it is nothing less than a touch of the divine loadstone,

 that is to draw thee out of the vanity of time, 

into the riches of eternity.  

Get up therefore, and follow it 

as gladly as the wise men of the east followed 

the star from heaven that appeared to them.  

It will do for thee as the star did for them, 

IT WILL LEAD THEE to the birth of Jesus, 

not in a stable at Bethlehem in Judea, 

but TO THE BIRTH OF JESUS IN THE DARK CENTRE OF THINE OWN SOUL. 

 -William Law

We had a beautiful white Christmas Eve and Christmas!

In keeping with a long-standing tradition, we celebrated with my Greenleaf family on Christmas Eve. My mom had surgery earlier this month and hasn't felt good for quite some time, even prior to surgery. We had a nice time though. It is always a blessing to be with family and to be "home." I know how important and special grandchildren are to grandparents and vice versa, so we do our best to keep in touch and up to date with those both near and far.

Christmas Day was spent at our home with our children. Unless we are out of town visiting family, these days have always been reserved for our immediate family. Children grow up and move on so quickly and it seems to me like we tend to neglect one another when there are so many people around. I can't even begin to put into words how special these times are to us. We keep Christmas pretty simple where gifts are concerned. Our rule of thumb is:

 "One they want, one they need, one they wear and one they read." (And yes, sometimes we break this rule by a small gift or two.)

 

 Kayla got a phone this year. She's going on 18, working and really needed it. But guess what? She didn't get an iPhone 6, 5, or even 4 lol. She got a cheap tracphone. I know I'm probably crazy, but it blows my mind to see 10 year old kids who think they are somehow entitled to all kinds of the latest and greatest gadgets. It has a limited amount of airtime per month, so calls and texts will be limited which is fine. Our family has yet to develop a love for texting....seems so impersonal when you could pick up the phone and tell a person whatever you're texting. Also seems like such a time-waster. I can talk while I'm doing other things, like cooking or folding laundry, while texting takes my full attention. Okay, so enough of my humble opinion on that. 

Another "big" item this year was the doll house Daddy made for Kammy and Kaite. He made it 100% with wood scraps that were here at the house when we moved. We used paint from our remodel project and I even made fun little light chandeliers out of medicine bottles and lace. Total cost was $0.00 but lots of love went into it and I'm sure it will be cherished for years/generations! 

And that's my whole world right there! 

Thank you, Jesus!

Christmas Baking

I

 

Edible pinecones. These are new on our baking list this year and I haven't sampled them. They are too pretty to eat....but hubby said they are really yummy. He has no qualms about eating pretty food.

 

Christmas cookies with the littles! Always a sticky situation and not for the faint of heart, but a tradition we all love.

 

Christmas Crack. Easiest yummiest toffee and so pretty and festive with the red and green M&M's on top.

 

Butterscotch Bars. These are Kammy's favorite food on earth. Some people call these cathedral windows which makes them a little more Christmas-y sounding I suppose.

 

Cranberry Bliss Bars. These are always a favorite of the family and a big hit at daddy's office too. These are a knock off of the kind they sell at Starbucks, but I've never even sampled them there.

 

Twix Thumbprint Cookies. Caramel and shortbread....what more do I need to say?

 

Cinnamon Sugar Mixed Nuts. These get way too much attention. The first time I made these the hubster thought he'd died and gone to heaven. They are so easy in the crock pot so I just did another 6 quarts of them. They are sitting so pretty on the kitchen counter waiting to go to work with Rick. I just hope they make it all the way there. I might need to borrow some time locks from Loomis. 

I almost forgot the white chocolate gingerbread cookies and I really can't do that especially since my husband says these are the best cookies in the whole entire world. Like ever in existence. 

 

In all honestly, and while we love a lot of this stuff,  it's more like a language of love, this baking we do at the holidays. We give to neighbors, friends, co-workers, teachers, mail-men, doctor's offices and so on and on. I usually only allow one/per person/day. Hubby being the exception. Haha. 

Birthday Boy!

 

 

It is difficult to believe that this little blue surprise is already three years old! The above photos, all captured by his adoring mommy (that would be me) are newborn, 1 year, 2 years and 3 years.

 

 

 

A friend gave him the cute little bomber jacket and the WWII model airplanes belonged to daddy. we bought them at an estate sale while we lived in Colorado Springs, CO. We never had room to display them until recently when they found a home in daddy's office. I bought him the little hat with goggles online. the propeller blades are from an old fan we salvaged from the neighbors trash. I had to scrub a lot and paint a little on it and then we just set him in a cardboard box and snapped away while he played!

 

He had a great time rescuing Kaite's little kitten from the tree in the backyard for this little photo shoot. He maintains a great love for fire trucks and all things red so we planned his party around that.

We had little smokies, in the bush broccoli, flaming jello, matchstick marshmallows, great cheeto balls of fire and licorice fire hoses.

 

 

His cake was simple to the extreme, but it made him happy. That fire truck on it was daddy's when he was a little guy. 

 

We thank God for this little man. he brings so much sunshine to our home.

Just today, he was back at MSTI for a checkup with his oncologist. It's never a fun way to spend half of your day and always a little stressful. Kaderick was amazing though. He hopped right up on the table for exams, chattered away happily to the nurses and doctors and never even shed a tear when he had blood drawn.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

 

We enjoyed attending once again, Caldwell's Night Light Parade. Waiting in the truck to keep warm, the kids take turns getting hungry and needing to go potty. Seven individuals in a space crowded with coats, boots, lost mittens, spilled drinks and various crumbly food items gets a little crazy. Let's be honest, voices raise and feelings are hurt (mostly among the children....haha.)
But then the magic happens.
Among the secular and traditional lighted floats, we spot numerous nativity scenes and enormous lighted birthday cakes for Jesus. This year's theme was "Christmas Through the Decades." One float boldly declared, "Jesus....the same through each decade!" Listen close, and in the background, you will hear, ...cast out our sin and enter in, be born in us today...
Beneath it all, a hurting world still somehow knows that JESUS is still and will always be the answer, no matter what the question.

 

 

We are enjoying time spent around the fire so much! One basket on the hearth holds a warm fuzzy blanket and the other some sparkly snowballs and a few pinecones.

 

 

The front porch is decked with greenery, old fashioned ice-skates, and a wooden sign I painted which proclaims, "JOY!" On the door is my old stand-by antler wreath.

 

 

Inside, you are greeted with the above Christmas-y scene on the hall bench hubby made for us this fall.

 

 

My baker Santa is still a favorite of mine. His jolly pose is nearby to some of my antique baking utensils.

 

 

More scenes from my Christmas kitchen.

We made the "Ugly Christmas Sweater Trees" from none other than old ugly Christmas sweaters and scraps of wood from our remodel project.

 

 

Did I mention that we have lots of wood scraps? All of the above wood signs and chalkboard art, are from said scraps, free-hand decorated by yours truly. It's been my relaxing little escape on hectic school-day afternoons. Its fast and simple which suits my style!

 

 

I really LOVE the little wood mailbox hubby made for our entryway. It has a practical purpose as well. Outgoing mail goes in here until the following morning when one of the children takes it out. Sometimes we even send mail to each other in this handy mailbox

 

This one I did for my mom, who really enjoys snowmen.

 

 

I already posted a fireplace picture, but this seemed like a good place to leave off especially since it shows the fun deer pillow cover I made. (Stockings pictured were also fashioned with scrap fabrics.)

 

Now, excuse me while I go finish up a few loads of laundry, score a test, check on supper in the crock pot, address a few Christmas cards, practice for a Christmas program, and compile a list of Christmas baking goodies.

 

Family Christmas photos

Rudolph Saves the Day!

You've heard about Rudolph with his bright shiny nose who saved Christmas with his light that foggy night? Well, I'm here to tell you a different story about Rudloph saving the day. 

Kaderick needed surgery recently and on the list of things to include in his surgery bag was a soft comfort item such as a stuffed animal. While he has several stuffed animals, Kaderick really doesn't seem to have a favorite, but he had been asking for a Rudolph every time we asked him what he wanted for Christmas. I thought it would be a good opportunity to combine his comfort item and his reward for being good during surgery, so I began to search for a Rudolph. Who knew it would be hard to find in a price range I was willing to pay?!?! Finally, I located one on Amazon. Delivery was promised for a few days before surgery. Then, on the day it should have arrived, I received a notice that it was delayed and wouldn't arrive until after surgery. Now, some would not think it a big deal at all, but for some reason it was important to me to give him a Rudolph the morning of his surgery. Finances and availability prevented me from just running out and buying him one locally, but nothing prevented me from praying about it, so I said a little prayer that somehow it would get here in time. Sure enough....about 8pm, the evening before surgery, a knock sounded at the door and UPS delivered Rudolph! Just for kicks, I went online and tracked the package. According to UPS tracking system, Rudolph was sitting in a truck at a service center in rural PA! Say what you want, but this mommy is convinced it was a miracle! God knew just how important it was to me. Yes, Kaderick would have made it just fine without Rudolph, but mommy needed to know that a God who cared enough to get Rudolph here on time, could and would have that much and more care and concern for my baby boy. 

See, I'd really been somewhat distraught inside over this surgery. We'd been warned when Kaderick was diagnosed with mastocytosis, that if he ever had to have surgery, it would be very risky. There are so many things involved in surgery, anesthetics, and pain management that cause degranulation of the mast cells. In plain English that means severe allergic reactions and anaphylaxis. Rudolph arriving was just like God speaking directly to my heart and letting me know that everything was going to be okay. I still didn't like it, but there was a new calm and I was able to help transfer that calm to Kaderick who did positively amazing through the whole ordeal. 

We had a meeting with the anestheologist prior to surgery and he told us all the things they'd be doing to prevent mast cell flares or reactions. They also called in a second pediatric anesthetist and had several special nurses there for him. It was the hardest thing ever handing him over to them, but I knew he was in good hands with the medical team and ultimately in God's hands. 

Since he can't have any narcotic pain relief, they did a caudal (baby epidural) and a breathing tube along with several mast cell stabilizers in his IV. Children's Hospital was amazing and the whole team just loved Kaderick (who wouldn't?) 

First he had his inguinal hernia repair and then his dental work. His dentist said he has phenomenal hygiene, but between the Masto and all the antihistamines he has to take, his poor little teeth were in pretty bad shape. Two of them ended up having to be pulled and four others had extensive repair done on them. One was even abcessed  and we pray and hope was the cause of his recent lymph node swelling.  He was in surgery about 3 hours. Mommy and Daddy were both so unspeakably relieved when they came and told us he had done well and we could come see him. He was still sleeping, but once he awoke, about half an hour later and was able to eat and keep down a popsicle, we were able to take him home. The doctors said he behaved like a child who didn't have mastocytosis. Of course, this is probably partly due to the extensive protocol they followed and the prayers that went up for him! 

It's been a week today, he's still recovering, still has occasional pain at the incision site, but other than one trip to ER with post-surgical croup (probably caused by the tube or some allergen he breathed) he's done fantastic. The croup was pretty scary....he was gasping on every decent deep breath he took and crying because it hurt his chest so badly. Everyone kind of rushed in on him in the ER because they could hear he was struggling and all Kaderick did was look up at them, gasp, and say in his raspy little voice, "Where's the toys?" In pre-op, there had been a lot of toys to play with and that's pretty much all he remembered of the hospital. One of the nurses ran and got him a large stuffed doggie which Kaderick named "Cheeto." After a few hours of breathing treatments and some steroids to open up the airways, we were good to go again. 

And that's the story of how Rudolph saved the day for Kaderick and his family. Only in this case, we know it wasn't really Rudolpoh, it was Jesus! 

Playing toys in pre-op

In recovery

Going home! Still soooo sleepy!

Recovering with Rudolph and Cheeto. 

Balloons from friends.   

Living Room Completion!

I think the photo is pretty self explanatory, but the door you see to the left of those beautiful new (repurposed) build ins that my talented hubby put in, leads to our master suite. Right now it's just a shell, but trust me, it's going to be worth the wait!

So, now that this wall is up and the build ins are finished, our living room is pretty much completed. 

Here is a bigger picture.....

 

And here are some built in shelf details.....

I love the skinny shelf to the left of the entertainment/work station. I've added a baby photo of each child and their baby books are on the bottom shelf. Things like this just make me loopy with excitement! And to review, here is the other side of the living room. 

Outside, we've added just a touch of curb appeal with new lighting and some hardware on the garage doors. It's all coming along. Slowly at times, it seems, and it's hard work, but also so fulfilling!