Gathering Thoughts

I seem to be on a roll today or something. I don't know.

I am working on getting into a routine so that our family's priorities are established. For the family, our growth in Christ is top priority and we have been having problems. Of course though... right? I mean, if it were easy everybody would be on the 'J Train'. (Excuse me... I am a huge fan of Toby Mac)

So we are trying to get the kids to realize that in all we do, God comes first. The best way to teach them that is through our own example. If I am not reading my Bible and not in the Word, then why would they want to read their Bibles?

It goes further than that. We caught ourselves stressing that the kids rooms had to be clean and things had to be tidy, and then we looked at our own bedroom.

We got trapped in the do as I say not as I do trap that many parents can find themselves in. So, we are going to change that.

God is top priority. That means we focus on Him. Everything we do is for His glory. (That includes me actually writing the way I am suppose to... )

Anybody else have the problem of losing sight? Or, does anybody else have the problem of backing down when faced with opposition?

It sometimes seems that the closer we get to God as a couple (Me and Jeff) the worse some of the kids get. It is disheartening at times. We know we have to pray for them, but the good Lord has given us free will. If they don't want to respond to the urgings of the Lord... there isn't much we can do is there?

God Bless!

Summer Infant Extra Tall Walk Thru Gate

We received this gate, or the older version, when our 5 1/2 year old was born. At the time we were living in a small 2 bedroom house and he made kid #3 that was living with us. This gate was and is a godsend. It took the girls quite a long time to figure out how to open it and it is definitely tall enough to keep the kiddo in.

The gate is 36 inches tall and will fit door ways 28" to 47.5" wide. There are some doorways however that the gate will fit into but is not a good match. This gate has worked wonderfully for us.

We still use the gate, even today. We have it in the doorway between the kitchen and the mudroom/laundry room. In fact, when we moved we lost some of the installation parts and all we had to do was call Summer and they sent us what we needed for free!

It has taken the abuse of 6 kids, 2 dogs and a cat. Which for pet lovers, even our 10 year old cat loves the gate. She can jump over it and get away from the dogs if need be.

I can see us continuing to use this gate for some time also. Aside from being a safety gate to keep the little ones out of harms way or to keep them in the house on those beautiful spring or fall days when you have the doors open, the gate is also a good boundary. It sets limits. And when the pets are involved, it keeps them in a confined area if need be.

I give it 4 1/2 stars. If the opening was a little wider and it was easier to adjust the width it would be 5.

Holy Thursday

I find myself torn today.

Today is the anniversary of the crucifixion of Jesus. Or.. that is the general consensus. My soul wants to honor the Lord and focus on Him. Even moreso than normal. As important as Christmas is, Resurrection Sunday is even more important.

So why am I torn?

Because today, four of our six children are participating in easter egg hunts. Where the focus is on the furry rabbit and how much candy can they collect... and of course how much can they eat before they get home and it is rationed.

Why is it okay for the school system to worship the pagan goddess of fertility when it is not okay to mention that Christians celebrate the resurrection of their Savior?

We find it already difficult to get the school to understand that we limit the junk food the kids eat (we have removed things like red 40, high fructose corn syrup, MSG, etc), the school doesn't understand that we see it as the kids responsibility to do their homework and to get papers signed, not ours. The school also doesn't want to get involved with consistency, or stopping a child from lying when they know the child is lying. In the grand scheme it makes me almost want to homeschool. Almost.

More thoughts I suppose. The older I get, or perhaps the strong my faith gets, I see more and more of what is wrong with the world.

Praise the Lord!

So... Bloodwork, stress test, imaging, echo, abdominal ultrasound, and lots of poking and proding later... It is determined that Jeff's heart is that of a 30 year olds.

He did not have a heart attack. In fact nothing of the pains were with the heart.

They are guessing that what happened was due to an old injury from when he was a kid that caused a lot of scar tissue across the left shoulder and chest wall.

Rough Night

We have been at the hospital since about 9:30 last night. Jeff was having bad chest pains and other problems so I took him to the ER at Horizon. They admitted him.

The ER was able to tell us that he DID NOT have a heart attack. They could not explain the chest pain though.

This morning doing the echo, abdominal ultrasound and the stress test.

We just ask for prayer.