Happy Birthday Tatum Grace!!

I feel like I've known you forever and yet it's hard to believe it's already been 5 years since I first held you!  By the time you arrived, my 3rd daughter, I was pretty sure I knew how to "do" little girls.  But you, Tatum Grace, surprised me and convinced me even more that our Papa God makes no cookie cutter little ones. 


At 5 years old you:
 - Live up to your name: Tatum- cheerful, bringer of joy.  We partake in your joy of life every day.  There are not too many moments that you're not laughing or trying to make someone else laugh.   From the time you were a baby and still today, many people tell me how much they enjoy you and your personality and how fun you are to be around.  Grace- well, Grace.  You exhibit grace as well as any 5 year old can.  You are very quick to love people.  God has used you in many ways to teach me about grace and how He has all that we need for every moment.  You are very determined in your views and I have really learned to rely on God's grace to give me wisdom on how to reach you and teach you and hold your heart.

- You are full of antics. Still.  When you were one we nick-named you "Tatum the Tornado" until it hit me I really didn't want to profess that over you and told everyone we weren't allowed to say that anymore.  My oh my though, the things you come up with baffle me!  Just in this past year you have cut your hair THREE times and cut your eyebrows almost completely off with manicure scissors. You take risks. (Here's a story to enjoy from when you were smaller)

- You love to "collect" things.  Every bag, basket and bucket that you can get your hands on you fill with stuff; books, toys, cards, anything.  We have spent many hours searching for things only to find it was in one of your collections.  Some people would call it hoarding, but I'm putting it in a positive light and teaching you about moderation (and cleaning up after yourself).

- You love to learn and are learning to read very quickly.

- You love Jesus and love to talk about Him.  You have understanding for things that blow my mind.  Your faith is simple, just like it should be.  You trust God because you really seem to know His love for you.

- You still suck your fingers.  Daddy said no more, I am backing him.  I would never tell you this now, but it's hard for me because, you know, I sucked my fingers happily until I was six. Although not every waking moment like you do, but still atleast to go to sleep.  Hopefully we can get this habit broken and rescue your teeth and minimize the amount of germs you put directly into your mouth. Obviously when I talked about this issue here and here... it was not resolved.

You are a joy to us Tatum!  You help make our hearts full and we anticipate the amazing things that God has in store for one like you!

Happy birthday sweet girl!!

Helpers for Homeschooling

Since I homeschool my children in 3rd, K, and Pre-K and I have a 2 month old baby, I have to be able to have some things each one can do independantly during the day. They all love to be on the computer so... these websites have been a great help to me because the girls are learning, they are having fun and their attention is being kept for the half hour or so that I need it to be. Yay!

Spelling City is awesome! Each week I input Lauren's spelling list and she can learn and practice her words, play a bunch of different games, and take practice tests. The site will say the word, then a sentence and then the word again just like I would do for the practice tests. When you sign up for the site it keeps track of all your lists, so all she has to do is click on the correct one. All for free! If you pay a membership fee, it will also keep track of test and game scores too. This would be awesome even for kids in public school to have fun with practicing their words.

Starfall is a fun website for prek and k or any little ones learning to read. They have phonics practice with different songs, stories that the child can "read" along with, and a number of different games to practice sound blends. It is very easy to navigate, my 5 and 3 year olds have no problem playing by themselves.

For more ideas that make life work, visit We are That Family for Works for Me Wednesday.

Chloe's Birthday Tea

For probably 6 months, Chloe has been asking to have a tea party for her 5th birthday, "no boys allowed, except Daddy and Judah." Since I was due to have Judah on Chloe's birthday, I wasn't sure when to schedule this party since I had no guarantees of when labor would be. :) We were finally able to schedule the party a month after her birthday, and the waiting was half the fun for her! She was so excited to plan and prepare for her party. For the first time I saw her as the list maker (wonder where she got that), organizer, planner type. She planned the color scheme, picked the cake and organized the activities, she was quite the little party girl.

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My aunt loaned us all of her collectible teapots for the little 5 year old girls to all have their own. Quite the brave soul isn't she? :) There were no mishaps and I shall be returning the teapots in fine shape thankfully. I will say though that having all the teapots made the party what it was! The girls loved having their choice of "teas" and pouring their own drink. They all had the sweetest lady manners and one little girl said, "I feel like a woman". Too funny!

The Teapot Cake. (This cake came on one of those recipe cards that come in the mail when they're trying to sell their cookbooks... Well I didn't buy, but the idea for this cake came in handy). That would be my frugal tip for today- make your own birthday cakes!

All of the girls seemed to have fun, and I know Chloe loved her party! So thanks everyone! A special thanks goes out to my Mom who did so much to help me that day, I couldn't have done it without you. And to Aunt Tressa, who loves parties so much and would do anything to make a party a good one, even let little girls use your pretty teapots. Ya'll are awesome!

This post is linked to Frugal Friday over at Life as Mom. Stop in there for more frugal tips!

More Water Fun

What better thing to do on a cool, breezy summer day then go to a spray park and let freezing water pour all over the children? That's what we thought. :) It is water week ya' know! Jeremy was off today so we thought we would do something fun in honor of water week, and although it was fairly chilly, the girls had fun and that's what counts.

Lauren, making the most of it.

Chloe, freezing but wanting a picture. .

Tatum and Jeremy, chilling where it's warm.

And here is the picture of cuteness that sits on my lap as I blog. :)

The Scariest Thing

Maybe it's because we have a new baby and the weight of the responsibility of another life always feels heavier when new ones come. Maybe it's because every day I'm faced with my own carnality and the carnality of my children, the proof that we need a Savior. Whatever the reason tonight the scariest thing hit me.

My children will one day choose their own way.

I shudder just to type it out. Right now I choose most of the things in their lives, what they eat, what they watch, what they wear, what they play, what they listen to, how they treat one another. Now of course within the parameters that we have set they have choices, but we are in charge of the parameters. One day though, they will decide Who will have their hearts, and I so desperately want them to choose Papa.

All of the thoughts that would try to plague me are ones not uncommon to any mother: What if I don't do it right or good enough? What if I'm too strict? What if I'm too lenient? And then of course the biggie: What if I don't show them the joy of living in the Love of our Father?

Truly this is so fresh to me that I am teary even typing this out. I could allow all of these things to torture my mind, make me try to control every thing and situation, and even them, but that is not love. I am reminded that it is God's love that draws us to Him, not because He forces us but because He wants us and when we recognize and feel His desire for us, what can we do but surrender? What greater thing is there than being so desired and loved that His own precious life would be sacrificed while we were yet sinners?

So, I could allow these things to torture me, but I won't. Instead, I will pray. For the children and for Jeremy and I. Instead, I will be love to my children. The kind my Papa is to me. The patient, kind, humble, selfless, forgiving, bearing up, rejoicing, believing the best, enduring, never failing kind.

Then the scariest thing won't be so scarey.