the difficulties of daily life (with many small children)

Sometimes I feel as if I am having one-of those-hard-days every day. Amy continuously takes toys away from the boys or Owen will take toys away from Amy/Aaron causing them to scream frantically and it usually ends up with Owen being pushed or hurt (more crying). And usually those kinds of days are accompanied by much disobedience from the children. Then there are days when Jett needs quiet to study, and to prepare sermons, which is doubly hard when kids are doing the above things. Topped onto that is all the workload of a regular housewife (laundry, dishes, making meals etc) and you end up with quite a tough day, or week!

Many times (or rather every time!) I look forward to the kids bedtime because afterwards I can begin to unwind, regroup, think in silence, and refresh my mind with the Bible, and any good book I might be reading. But then there are the days when one kid (like right now for example) refuses to sleep. Believe me, I am quite hard on my kids when it comes to bedtime, but when a little one really is crying uncontrollably there really isn’t any point in keeping the poor thing wailing in bed and possibly wake up the other two… but, it does mean less quiet time for oneself and sometimes after a particular hard day, it is a trial, perhaps unexpected and unwanted.

I have tried to get up earlier in the morning to get a bit of this quiet time and from experience I know it is extremely helpful, but my children are early risers, even if I were to put them to bed closer to 8:30 or so they would still be up at 7am and then I would have even a harder day dealing with their grouchiness. But, I do manage something in the mornings. One mother had said to me that she looks more to the Lord for strength for the day. And isn’t that nice? I was thinking how getting married, and having children has driven me more to my knees throughout the day because I realize how needy I (we) are of grace and strength when dealing with the children. It is not an easy thing to be training up little ones! Naïve as I was I think I’ve taken quite the crash course in learning that fact. And I have so much more to learn and experience. (Homeschooling here we come…!)

So, what are you learning about childrearing?

Cheddar Ham Soup = so yummy!

Cheddar Ham Soup...

Is very tasty...

And excellent if you have leftover ham, mashed potatoes and corn! :)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of water
• 2 cups cubed potatoes (or even better use leftover mashed potatoes that have already been seasoned garlic powder/onion powder/ salt and pepper...)
• 1/2 cup sliced carrots
• 1/2 cup sliced celery (well, I tend to never have this on hand so this is optional in my mind!)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp of pepper (but I season to taste with the salt & pepper every time)
• 1/4 cup of margerine (uhm, no. I use butter)
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups of milk
• 1 cup of grated cheddar cheese (uhm I use much more than this make that 1 & 1/2 cups. Use full flavoured or close to it as cheese is a huge taste factor in this soup)
• 1 cup of canned corn (whatever you have as long as it has been cooked before)
• 1 & 1/2 cups of cubed ham (give or take...)

In a large saucepan bring water, potatoes (if they are the cubed stuff), carrots, celery, onion, salt and pepper to boil. Reduce heat; cover & simmer until veggies are tender. I usually add the mashed potatoes after the veg are tender and half of the milk and then start on this part: In a medium bowl melt butter in the microwave (or however you melt butter) add flour and whisk till its nice and smooth. Add 1 cup of milk and mix well. Add this to the large saucepan and cook until thickish. Add the lovely cheese you've been snacking on, and melt through, then add corn and ham (also something you've been snacking on) and heat through. Serve and enjoy... I think it mmakes about 4-5 servings maybe 6 but I doubt it...especially if your wanting 2nds. :)

comings and goings

I've been meaning to get around to this post but I keep getting interrupted or distracted or something else!

Anyways, to answer a few questions from FB, and also from here:

Our visas run out (legally speaking) 4 months after Jett finishes his course, leaving us till the middle of October to be out of the country. Some of you initially thought that I might be flying with three children over the Atlantic...uhm, absolutely not! I'm not that crazy! :D It actually happened to be before we knew we had to leave the country that my mother emailed me a wild idea. She thought since Jett would be in NZ in October, that perhaps she could come over to help me come back to Canada to visit her and the family for awhile. So yes sounds lovely but no I doubt that would happen. Little did I know! Anyways, our flights at the very moment are either being booked or are booked (hopefully the latter). My mom hopes to come to help me over (her flights are being booked simultaneously with mine), and that alone is a huge provision for us as Jett wouldn't be able to help me.

I hope to go to Texas (flights are currently being researched in order to find the best price :( ) in late Oct for about 4 months and a half...yes, I'm very nervous about this part...ready for it? *THE BORDER* :D Those good CBP officers hopefully will see that A. I have a return ticket, B. My husband could not be called to take a charge in the States because we don't have a vacant congregation there, C. Uhm...we have a car in the UK? And have been living there for 3 years? Anybody else have some good points to give to the CBP so that they will see I WON'T BE STAYING! :) Sorry for the caps, but I've had problems in the past so I'm trying to cover every last detail. And C is not really a good point I see that.

Now this does cause some problems for Amelia, because she is on regular doses of medication. Anybody know what I'm supposed to do in order to get her meds in the States? Surely all of Amy's letters from the Dr. would be sufficient... oh the stress. :(

But, all of these things are in the Lord's hands which is comforting.

Strength for the day

(by a James Smith 1859) Something I needed today was dropped in my email inbox fro Grace Gems. Thought I would share.

"As your days--so shall your strength be." Deuteronomy 33:25

This promise which ensures us suitable and sufficient strength for all future days--is made by One who loves us dearly. Loves us--but who shall describe, who can suitably represent His love!

It is Infinite love--and cannot be comprehended!
It is Eternal love--and cannot be measured!
It is Unchangeable love--and cannot be diverted from its objects!
It is Sovereign love--and was fixed on them without anything in them to attract or draw it toward them!
It is Divine love--
deeper than a father's love;
more tender than a mother's love;
stronger than a husband's love.

This Divine love is...
a fire that cannot be quenched,
an ocean that cannot be exhausted,
a sun that will never set!

too much stuff

Do you know what it's like going through childrens clothes/stuff and having to throw some away, put some in charity bags, and then what to do about the good stuff...do I ebay it? Do I advertise it on my blog? Hmm...!

So, I'm trying to go through the kids clothes, and my own too, this way hopefully, I'll have less to pack away, and then I'll be keeping only stuff that I would really use in the future.

So, does anybody need a baby bath? I also have a few pairs of girls shoes all Clarks, but I don't know if anybody has little girls 2-3yrs out there that would be willing to buy!

Anyways, it is fun going through stuff and remembering when the kids used to fit baby clothes, and those cute dresses and yes...on and on :)

Ooh I had better start working on that lasagna for tonight before I forget! :)

Our time in Skye...

...consisted of nothing more than figuring out stuff (we will tell you soon what that is) and just trying to keep up with the kids.And allergic reactions in this little man here.

We had two days of ok weather...which as you can see in the below pic the sky was not looking very promising!

And again...

And for all who miss those single-tracked roads and their passing places...

...I actually had fun driving on them today, reminded me of Harris days.

And of all things, we go to see the Mr John & Jesse Campbell, and the Jardines were there...I took my camera I really did, but I never once took it out. :( And theres the phone!

Halkirk & Amy & Annelise's Birthday

But first a photo I forgot to post...(sorry Sharon I didn't take many at all!)

This is John & Jett.

A week ago or so we were in Halkirk, Caithness (which is more or less a farm community so much like home). Annelise (Flora & David's girl) turned 4 on July 23rd, and then Amy turned 4 on July 24th very neat! :)

The kitchen is nice and large, so large little kids can fit neatly in cupboards now they will be not seen but likely heard! ;)

Amelia writing her name (she had to ask me what letters would finish her name but this is her handwriting).

Every little girl needs a nice dolly...so that is what we got her. Meet Baby Anna (rarely called Annabell.)

She took a liking immediately. :)


The cake unfortunately was store bought and was an awful cake in comparison to the cake Annelise's granny made!! I hope I never have to buy store bought again!

Monday, we went to Dunnet where Christina & John Logue live. Had lunch with Christina and the kids lounged around on the rug...

...and read on the fluffy rug...

...and they tried swimming on the rug too.

And that was Halkirk...well, not really I should have taken a whole lot more and I wish I did because you would've loved seeing Yvonne's children, and Granny Elsie. I'll try better now that we are in Skye...no promises though!

Still busy!

Mom has left, and arrived safely home. It was sad saying goodbye, I had to shed a few tears as I shut the door.

But Jett is back!

And the busy-ness doesn't end! Tomorrow we are heading up to Halkirk, Lord willing. Likely, we won't have internet access for the next three weekends, sorry, but that also means this blog will have to rest for a time too. :) But, it will be so nice to be somewhere where the kids have LOTS of room to run around...this should be fun :D ok and slightly hectic for the first while as we "resettle". And as usual there is so much to get done (packing etc) and I am being lazy writing this post...but, the clothes are all packed. A toybag is packed, lunch is already made and the snack bags are done, diaper bag is filled, and the toiletries are nearly packed as well... so I guess I have been somewhat productive. :D I just hope we can take the double stroller or else taking walks will be completely impossible (or extremely hard and therefore quite unenjoyable).

So hopefully you will hear from us (here) when we get back during the second week of August. D.V.

Oma's visit (part 2)

Just a few more pictures of mom's visit here with us. This again was taken at Deep Sea World. The place is situated in an old quarry. You can also see the railway bridge that goes over the Firth of Forth (try saying that over and over really fast!)

The next day we popped off to Scone Palace. This is where the kings of Scotland were crowned. Mom really liked this palace. I did too because they let all three kids go free (Amy should've been paid for).

This is the top of Moot Hill, here Mom is sitting on a replica of the Stone of Scone. They crowned the Kings on the real stone of Scone, I think? (Yeah, I was paying "alot" of attention... :D )

It was a good spot to get pictures, however the stone needed a good clean.

Wednesday Mom went to town and spent money at Markies (Marks & Spencers). That place has a lovely selection of skirts.

Thursday we went to the Library (Mom has pictures of that) it was a rainy day, so it was great to have a place for the kids to go to play and read.

Friday we went shopping again (but I only bought a book for Amy for only £2.99) and then we had a lovely coffee at the Mustard Seed cafe (it is also a Christian bookshop hence the name of the cafe, but both Jett and myself were surprised how many good sound books were there.)

Oh, and now it is Saturday and we aren't going to do too much besides maybe a walk to the park. :)

Oma's visit

Only a quick post here, as I need to be getting ready for the prayer meeting tonight. Here are a few pictures and a clip of our time with Oma!

Poor Oma had to read and reread the three books she brought for the kids.

Taken at Deep Sea World, Edinburgh.

sooo...we've been...busy?

Or maybe tired is a better word, perhaps. The three little pigs got colds last week and still are battling them. I think they are nearing the end because they are 1. Sleeping thru the night rather than crying because they have stuffed up noses...and 2. They are eating better, and constantly asking for food and 3. Acting their normal hyper, screeching, laughing selves. So yes, we are doing better...but still wiping noses every 5 minutes (or so) on 3 littles. :(

Anyways, everyone should know we had John and Sam for two nights...and we got no photos. They are supposed to be coming Friday again and possibly staying the weekend but whether I get photos...well, I'll try!

In other news, we went to Drummond Gardens yesterday afternoon. We won't be going again just due to the lack of flowers when you actually walk on the grounds, and the greek statues are just not very modest to say the least! But from a distance it looks neat eh?
Or perhaps looking out and away from them is the real beauty...fields :)

I snapped one of Daddy of course.

But I like him better with a few kids I think.

This pic was taken looking up at the stairs (where I took the first photo) yes it is a castle but not viewable to the public.

A little pond.

A beautiful funny baby.

Father and Son.

I should have taken photos of the driveway into the estate as that was probably the BEST part of the whole trip! It was a loong drive way with massive trees on both sides all along the way. Of course, the trees made a lovely canopy of leaves over the lane so it was very pretty.

But, we had to go home, and that is where my work began... :( Owen decided to spill his milk everywhere...but Amy was there to help clean up. :) They all had baths that night due to overall dirtiness.

And yes...the kitchen was preetty bad. Someone (child) turned the oven to broil/grill rather than the fan...and well, I had to scrape the beef pie's top off...anyways it turned out okay just rather a late dinner. (You might be able to see a bit of the "black" stuff on the counter. Ooh, but look theres cake :) a vanilla fudge cake to be exact (topping was a failure...but oh well).

And I had better give the kids something to eat. :)

summer warmth & sun = lots and lots of fun!!

Oh and chocolate cake...Yum...glad it is nearly gone though!

The past week I've been trying to get out of the house for Jett's sake...so, I actually finally with all three kids and a dualbuggy/stroller went to the high/main street of Perth. I came back sort of frustrated that the shops are so small and do not have the selection as Dillards and Macys (to name a couple) but of course I've been spoiled in Texas right? :)

We also finally went to the Library...yes, pretty sad after 3 summers here! But you have to pay for parking so...I was kind of saving money not going if you know what I mean. Amy & Aaron *really* liked the library...partly for the little aquarium of fish, and little table, chairs and colouring things, and there is a little fort of sorts there, and of course lots of books! I read a few that I knew and a few that looked decent. Fun but tiring!

And then...I bought a cheap £3 pool...was worried there was only a £10 pool but I spotted this at Tesco and was so happy! oh, the littles were too :D they were very tired that night!

But, nothing else to report just now. Just that J is busy preparing for Wed.

play!

Cuteness! I think my lil son is just cuteness (next to wildness of course).
Why do people think he is so "good"?They really do not know this boy I think!

But he is still cute, and of course excellent entertainment! People who do not have children simply because they do not want children have no idea what joys these little people are!I set up a little fort for the older two this morning and popped a wee couch in it too...

Let's just say they played for at least a couple of hours in here drinking tea... :D

It was so much fun I had to video them enjoying themselves.

new blog design

Always liked Sam's new designy blog, but thought how did he do it? Until today when all of a sudden this "new template" thingy appeared...oh soo this is how he did it. Anyways, sorry if you've been seeing a few changes here over the course of a week! I've changed and didn't like it and then rechanged it again...this, I "think" I like. It looks clean...lol which is very much me.

Ok, besides that what is going on in our little family? We just had the communion season here in Perth and it was very nice. Miss Dickie stayed with us over the weekend and let me just say I want to keep her. But I don't think she would be very happy to be a pet eh? ;)

I've been busy running errands for Jett (bank...printer ink...buttermilk to name a few) and also reading his exegetical exercises, and his essay (I have to reread the essay again...). Which has been interesting and profitable, except when I try to pull out my very litttle Greek skills...hey I picked out a few words I remembered and some that almost sounded like English words. I think I should learn Greek...I really do. Infact Jett wants the kids to learn Greek and Hebrew, and I say why not? We'll see though, right now we'll just concentrate on them learning how to read English.

The 23rd is coming very soon. It marks two things on our calendar, 1. Jett's Licensing/trials and 2. The arrival of two outlaws (John and Sam) Jett is due to be in London for the 27th Sabbath of this month. And Skye the following Sabbath...I can see this being a *very* busy summer. My mom has booked her flight and hope to comes just the day before Jett flys to Canada which is in the beginning of July.

And seeing how a post isn't the same without a picture I show you mr owens.

And a huge flower...so pretty it was. :)

Diaper duty calls... :)