Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Helllooooo!!!

*dusting a few cobwebs*

Wow! That just might be my longest hiatus in my personal blogging history!lol!
So much to update on!

There will be a new baby in the family near the beginning of August!! Nope, not me! HA! I am going to be an Auntie!!!! They had an ultrasound yesterday and it's a BOY!!!!Hurray!! Everything looks great and he is perfect!!Praise the Lord!

We have also made the transition complete and are now officially an unschooling family!! WHOOHOO!!!I am so very excited about this and the kids have embraced it completely. It is such an amazing thing watching what happens when children are given a say in their learning and how quickly one thing can turn into another learning thing and we continue to build from there. A question about seeds can turn into a week long investigation about plant life!! Over the next little bit here the kids and I will be sitting down and choosing reading materials and other interesting things to explore for our learning!! Both Robbie and Alyssa have really taken off with their artistic talents and have been producing amazing drawings!! Alex has been exploring different writing ideas and has decided to work on a novel, he is such an amazing writer! Robbie and Alyssa would like to learn more about Canada and it's history. Robbie has a particular interest in the Canadian Government. Alyssa, Robbie, Kayla, and Mariah all have a real love of cooking! YAY!! Soon, I may be cooking less and less!
They already can cook a fair amount by themselves, and bake as well! Alex can make a mean banana bread!


Matthew is so big now! He just turned 16mos and has been moving out of the baby phase so fast! He walks and talks, his words are so very clear. I think he's the clearest talker I've had! He says very clear over 30 different words and has just started putting some small sentences together. (more juice, etc)He is still blissfully a boobie man and nurses still every 4-5hours. He has yet another cold, so I'm hoping he avoids the whole ear infection thing again.

As I have said in previous posts, I've been on a journey. Both an emotional one and more so a spiritual one. The Lord has been doing tremendous things in my heart lately and it is just amazing! The more I trust in Him, the more I see things coming together! The more balanced I feel and the more at peace I feel, and as you can imagine, this all trickles down into my role as Mama and wife. Don't get me wrong, it is difficult sometimes when it feels as though the entire world is against God, but then He sends me a little message or a nudge to remind me that there are others who see by His light. I can see His works when I just look back on the previous years when we were struggling...all the times God used someone to give what we needed or provided a way for us. We also learned that there are things that we really don't need or can easily do without. A good example is a vehicle. Now we have our van, but we do not all fit in it right now (haven't since before Matthew was born!) we have survived just fine for the past 16mos!

Yes, it does take some creativity to get places. I have the best tools! God gave me two perfectly fine legs and He even gave them to all my kids!!lol I am hoping that we'll be able to find a three seater bench for our van though. We have an opportunity to go to BC for holidays, and I really would like to go. Not to mention the fact that Bill's Mama hasn't met Matthew yet! So we'll see!

Hmmmm, what else......OH! I've been making changes with cleaning/skin/laundry products! This has been a major thing for this scent junkie!lol So far, I have successfully ditched all chemical skin stuff. I do not use any soap/cleansers on my skin. I no longer use any moisturizer or lotions. I use some stuff called Lunar Eclipse baby oil and belly butter
I absolutely LOVE them! I've also ditched traditional shampoo/conditioner! I was originally doing a baking soda/apple cider vinegar wash every 10 days with just water rinsing in-between...but I crumbled!lol So, now I wash with an organic, Paraben, Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate, phthalates, fragrance, color, silicone, EDTA, glycol, and petroleum FREE shampoo and conditioner! WHEW! That's a lot of junk, eh?!?! I'm still trying to work out a method, right now I try to wash every 7-10days and rinse in be-tween with water. deodorant is also gone!! But before ya'll think I stink...I did just change it and went with an organic, aluminum free product. It smells so wonderful and really works!! I was pleasantly surprised!

Laundry has been hard. I sooooo love my smelly laundry stuff, but it doesn't love Matthew, Robbie or Bill very much. So, instead of me buying 2-4 different detergents and fabric softners, I've just been slowly phasing everything out and using a natural plant based soap for everyones clothing and Claudia's Choices for Matthew's diapers. Next, is my bleach! Oh how I love my bleach!! This one is gonna be hard! I have only been using it every second or third all white load and have changed to a bleach free substitute. It just doesn't smell the same!!lol

Next, is my diet as well as the kids. I sure wish I could completely change over to organic, but unfortunately, there isn't a whole lot of stuff that comes in sizes I need! Everything seems to be average sized and I end up having to buy 2 or 3 of something so it can last and then end up paying a ridiculous amount. Although, I figure having a few things is better than nothing. I am using organic peanut butter and jam (for the kids and I, Bill still can't change THAT yet!!haha) free range, organic eggs, organic fruit and veggies, some snacks, nuts and seeds. For me, I am slowly allowing my body to adjust to less and less meat. I have a future goal of becoming RAW. I don't think I will do the same with the kids, unless they show interest. I want them to have access to ALL foods, even sugar. I think if I start putting up walls around their food, it will do the opposite. I believe educating them in healthy food options and providing healthy foods is a better approach. Of course, if I had been RAW all along, then obviously the kids would be too!!lol

All baby steps!! My first reaction was to just pull everything, but I then thought that is setting myself up for trouble. Little bits, here and there are much more likely to be effective!
So, I've been under a major lifestyle overhaul for the past while, it amazes me how one small change can effect other areas of your life. I'm so excited for what the future holds!!

Well, time to get going with the day. Robbie and Alyssa have been busy building something out of boxes and I told them I would take some pictures. Apparently, they are attempting to build the 30 story school from the show WAYSIDE A very silly show that I don't particularly enjoy, but, it got them thinking and unleashed their creative juices!!

God bless!!
~Penny

4 comments:

noelle said...

Oh, I have been missing you girlie!!! If you can find a CSA up there, you could maybe local food that you could can or freeze for winter. I do a TON of that and it's soooo much cheaper that way.

What about bread stuff? Are you making your own? I got a mill for christmas and love making my own bread from fresh flour. We don't use much sugar either...lots of local honey. It's good for allergies too.

Congrats to your little sister. Did you get your sewing machine? How is that going?

Updates girl, updates!!! LOL

Kristin said...

Hi Penny -- congrats on the new nephew! My baby is 16-months, too, and definitely one of our earliest talkers as well. Funny. I guess those older siblings really influence that (but it didn't so much with our second-to-youngest. He took his time speaking.)

Anyway, your homeschool plan sounds exciting and I applaud you for still nursing! Sigh. My baby just REFUSED at about 9 months. God bless!

Patricia Bennett Wilson said...

You sound like a really busy and really great mom! It seems we are all on a fast-track life! I has happy to know you are on God's track. He helps us over the humps and dips, but keeps the track straight. Enjoy the children. They will grow up fast.

www.icantseebuticanimagine.com

Sandra said...

Hey Penny! I sure have missed coming here reading your blog. It seems that I've taken an unintended hiatus from the blogs as well...from reading and posting. I think I say it everytime, but life just gets in the way these days. There's never enough time. I'm glad to log on and find you guys doing great. Congrats on the new nephew on the way...I pray everything goes well with the rest of the pregnancy. Mathew..16 months! Wow! Where does the time go? I don't get by here much, but you guys are in my thoughts and prayers. Have a great day!