May Already?!?!?!

Where did April go? This year is going WAY TOO FAST!!!
I guess I'll recap the end of April and see what has been happening around here.
RJ has had several "school" ball games since I posted last. His team is undefeated! WOW!! They had several cancelled games this past week due to the rain. On Saturday the 25th, he had a double header and we got sunburned from sitting in the sun all day!
He is also playing on a Hot Stove team here in our town. He had a game with them on Wednesday & then Thursday he was able to play with them again since his school game was cancelled. They were down by 2 and RJ got up. He hit a sweet stand-up triple bringing home the tieing run. Then they walked the next batter & the next batter got up and hit a simple base hit. When they threw the ball to 1st to get him out, RJ took off for home & beat the throw, bringing in the winning game.
B's first softball game got cancelled due to the rain. She will have her next game this week. She loves playing softball and is getting quite good at it! She is a righty but bats left handed. It has taken several years and getting up into the older level for the coaches to quit trying to 'fix' her when she gets up to bat. She has been batting left handed since coaches pitch so let's just leave her alone! HAHA!
R has her first game on Tuesday also. She had practice this afternoon & did a good job at pitcher & in the field too. She has come a long way in pitching since last year. What an improvement.
May has started off with a bang! Rod was gone with some friends playing in a band for a fundraiser thing on Friday night, RJ had a game - which got rained out in the 1st inning, Rachel had practice - at which she got soaked about 5 minutes before I got there to pick her up! Saturday, RJ was suppose to have a double header but due to weather things got changed around. Instead of leaving the house at 7, we didn't have to leave until 9:45 so that was nice. After the game, we spent the remainder of the afternoon & evening at some good friend's house. We had a great time & as always enjoyed the fellowship of friends.
I cannot believe it is almost Mother's Day - have no clue what I am doing for my Mom or MIL. Also, our 20th anniversary is coming up soon. RJ has about 2 weeks left in school ball then all of our games will be here in town instead of his being all over the place.
Well that is our latest update!!

Rod's Doctor Appointment

Rod had a doctor’s appointment yesterday with his neurologist - just his yearly check up. He has had increased seizure sensations, but not increased seizure activity.
I had him ask about this, when we went to the doctor 6 months ago we asked but we saw one that was filling in for his regular doctor and he was NOT any help at all. So I am glad that he saw his regular doctor today. We found out some things that will increase the sensations and so we will try to correct that.
One is fatigue, which we knew about and with his job sometimes it just can’t be helped but I will push for extra sleep on days after he has worked lots of hours.
The other is aspartame, which he has had an increased amount of since we found out his blood sugar was high. So now, we will have to work on sugar another way and he will not be drinking coke zero anymore.
He is going to have blood work done (routine for medications) and also has an EEG scheduled. He has not had one for a while so I am glad the doctor ordered that.

Another Warriors Win!!! Brandi's practice & Dinner!

Another Warriors WIN!!!! GO TEAM!!! They are now 3-0!!

Tonight RJ's arm was bothering him - not sure what is up with that but we will have to keep an eye on it. It was a bummer because we had several people at the game to watch him tonight! He only batted twice and played in one inning because of his arm :(
Our youth pastor, his wife and son all came out! And then another family from church were there - we were playing the school the boys played for - and their nephew also plays on the team with RJ.
They won tonight 14 to 3 in the 5th inning. GO TEAM!!!!

Brandi had her second practice tonight. She said it went well, and that she almost got hit in the head by both of her coaches during batting practice! HAHA! I am SO thankful to several good friends who are helping with transportation for some of these practices & future games. I need to be cloned about 3 or 4 times!

I am so proud of Brandi and SO thankful for her!! She has cooked dinner 3 out of the 4 nights this week. We have had spaghetti & salad, salisbury steak & mashed potatoes & veggies and tonight we had a freezer meal (cheeseburger pasta). She is such a HUGE help around the house, especially with me working! I don't know what I would do with out her!!!

Our plans have been changed this week!!

The beginning of our week changed dramatically!! RJ was suppose to have a game Monday but the other team cancelled. Then they were going to have practice but rain cancelled that, so they scheduled for Tuesday & again rain cancelled it - and the Wednesday practice too. Although we had already told the coach that RJ would not be able to make the Wednesday practice.

RJ's hotstove team DID practice Tuesday despite it raining. The boys were soaked!! But with so few practices they have to get in what they can I guess.

Rachel's team also practiced tonight but again, since it is Wednesday and we have church on Wednesdays, she did not go. Hopefully she will be able to make it to her practice Saturday.

Easter!!!!

HAPPY EASTER!!!!! We had a great Easter!!! Church this morning, and of course we took a few minutes for pictures!! Came home to a great meal and some quiet family time!!! Priceless!!!

I am SO thankful for a Risen Savior and all that Christ did for us on the cross - even though we are not worthy of it! He loved us before we were even born and died for us!

Busy Day!!

What a busy day!!!!
Brandi & I had 'FRIENDS' class at 9. We had planned on having class until 3 but then had some changes to the schedule and had to end at noon.
The church had a community Easter Egg-stravaganza and that was a lot of fun. Pastor Christina planned the whole thing and it was wonderful! I am not sure how many people were there but it looked like a ton!! We had 1000 eggs out there filled with candy!! Rachel went on the hunt!


Brandi helped with the 'petting zoo' area. Her friend brought a couple of goats and Brandi helped her. There were also rabbits, sheep, and I am not sure what else out there!!



RJ also had his first practice with his hotstove team. He knows 2 boys on the team, which is good. He has not played spring/summer ball in Wadsworth before. He did play fall ball last year in Wadsworth so that helped him a bit. I don't think it bothers him to play with a new group of boys, which is good.

Softball!!! It has begun!!!

Both the girls have gotten their calls about softball. They are both on the same teams they were on last year. Brandi had her first practice tonight and was SO excited!!!

We are going to be spending our time RUNNING the next 3 months!! Baseball, softball - if I am not at home or at church, I will be at one field or another!!!

RJ's second Warrior's game PLUS Proud Momma Moment

RJ had his second game - they played Kingsway Christian school. Once again, they played excellent and they run-ruled them in the 5th inning with a final score of 21 to 3 or something like that.




Each game, the team members & coaches take a professional practice ball and all sign it. It is then given to a team member who exhibits certain qualities. Below is a portion of an email that I got from the set of parents who had to pick the boy to get the ball that night.

<<had the privilege of being asked to choose the player of the night to receive the ball that the players signed. The criteria was: attitude on/off the field, encouragement to others, helpfulness, amongst other qualities. We both were very blessed to watch RJ serve, encourage, and help the other players-even before he went on the field to play!! He really deserved this honor.>>

I am SO proud of RJ!!! It does a mom's heart good to hear comments like this about her child!!

Happy Anniversary to my Parents!!

Happy Anniversary to my parents!!! I hope you have a great day together!!!!

Hard Day

Today was a hard day. Today would have been Justin's 19th birthday. It is so hard to believe he is gone :( I worry about some of the other family. But I continue to remember them in prayer. God can heal their hearts if they will let Him.

State TBQ Meet

We had our state TBQ meet today. The first thing they did was give out league awards. Our team took 2nd place for the season and one of our students took 3rd individual. I am SO proud of them! Even if they didn't answer during the quiz meet itself, I know they are hiding God's word in their hearts and learning!
For state meet placing, our team took 1st and one of our students took 1st individual!! We had a few rough rounds but were able to pull through! They remembered what they studied and learned!
I don't have any pictures yet, but as soon as I get them I will update this blog post and put them on here!!

Far Above Rubies and Passport to Purity

I am excited about some new curriculum I got.
The first is "Far Above Rubies", which is a high school curriculum for girls. Brandi looked at it and wanted to start it NOW! That is always a good sign! HA! This curriculum is based on Proverbs 31:10-31 and each unit is based on 1-2 scriptures. It is designed to train young ladies to be virtuous women. It will train a young lady to be a help meet to her husband, a nurturer to her children and a keeper of her home. It will help build her character in a Godly way! I am excited about it!!
There is also a curriculum for young men that I will be getting for RJ - it is called "Blessed Is The Man". It is not yet ready so I can't buy it yet.
I also got "Passport to Purity" that we will be doing with the older two children (separately of course) in the very near future and then we will do it with Rachel when it is time. :) I like the visual lessons in it that will help with teaching the kids about purity and why it is important. I just now need to figure out what kind of special weekend to plan for each of them!

RJ's first Warriors Game

RJ had his first game tonight. They arrived early for some batting practice and to warm up. The team did a good job. We played Canton Heritage.
They were down the first inning 0-2 but that was the end of that! They run-ruled them, not having to take their bat in the 5th inning, winning 14-4.


I just think their hats are cool!

JBQ State Meet

Rachel's JBQ Team had their state meet this weekend. Both of our teams did wonderful. Rachel's team got 3rd place in their division. We are so proud of them!

The walls of the church in the children's department had some fabulous paintings on them. We took some photo-op moments! LOL




Of course the kids enjoyed swimming at the pool after quizzing on Friday! One of the favorite parts of the weekend is staying in a hotel with a pool!


RJ & Brandi went along to help officiate. RJ was a score keeper and Brandi was a judge.

We ate a a great restaurant, it was a BBQ place. During our wait for our table some of the girls had a little fun posing for pictures and goofing off!!

A Walk at River Styx Park

We took a walk this afternoon at a park behind our house. The weather was so nice and the sun was shining!! It felt good to get outside!



We will have to compare pictures in another month or two and see how the park looks with leaves on trees and green grass!!

RJ - Baseball

RJ has had the opportunity to be on a baseball team that is all high school home-educated boys. They will be playing a variety of private schools this year. They have about 20-25 games scheduled and have been practicing since the end of January.
Their name is the "WARRIORS" and our home field is in Big Prairie. Our first game will be the end of this month. I am looking forward to the ball season, although I will probably be going crazy come April when the girls start practicing/playing for softball & RJ's summer team starts practicing and playing too! HAHA!

Fine Arts

This weekend was the Fine Arts Festival in Dayton. Our students all did excellent!! RJ & Brandi both did a variety of things. Each group & each student did well and had fun! What I love most about Fine Arts is that it helps students explore different things to find their God given talents, and then to grow those talents! I am looking forward to this summer as our students have opportunities to use those talents and the things from FAF while doing some missions outreach around our community!

Drama - RJ & Brandi were both in this

Brandi's Human Video

RJ playing in "Christian Band"

Brandi's Small Ensemble

I am so proud of RJ & Brandi for using their talents!! I hope they continue to use and to grow them!!

Modest Clothing Concerns......SGK post

I got an email recently from Dannah Gresh regarding a petition they have for modest clothing for young girls. I have pasted it below. Please take a minute and sign the petition if you are concerned about the clothing available for your daughters or granddaughters, or even the girls that your sons/grandsons are seeing daily wherever they go.

I've noticed that you've commented on my blog recently. Thanks! Did you know that this month we're giving away two mother/daughter bundles worth up to $135. We're doing it in an effort to get moms blogging about our petition.

What petition? It was featured in USA TODAY yesterday. You can read the article here...

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/retail/2009-03-08-teens-modest-retail-clothes_N.htm

Our Bod Squad Petition is a collection of signatures from moms who say ³no² to sexy clothes for our girls and say ³yes² to retailers who provide age-appropriate adorable fashion. If that sounds like you, keep reading. The American Psychological Association has linked inappropriate fashion to things like eating disorders, depression and early sexual activity. We want the fashion industry to read that report! We need moms who blog to blog, blog, blog about this so we can make some noise and effect change in the fashion industry. Will you help?

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Thanks for your help!

Boy, It's been a while...........

Boy, has it been a while! Last I posted was in November. Of course with November came Thanksgiving then the Christmas holiday. We had the kids choir musical at church, which 2 of the kids were in, RJ ran lights and Rod helped with sound. We had Christmas dinners/parties to attend. We celebrated Christmas with my husband's father, brother & his kids on Christmas Eve. Christmas morning is always spent with just us here at home. Then we went to Rod's Mom's side of the family gathering. That is always loads of fun. New Years Weekend we took off as soon as kids got home from their NYE All-Nighter & went to Tennessee to celebrate with my family. That was a long trip but fun to be with everyone. Everyone but my one brother & his family was there.

January brought a pain that we have never experienced before, and I pray we never experience again. Our nephew (Rod's brothers son) committed suicide on January 15th. When the phone rang at 2:30am on the 16th we knew it was not good, as the police and my BIL were all looking for him. We cried, we comforted each other, then we knew we would have to tell our children that their cousin had died. We have had death in our family but not like this.......It was sad time. We spent hours upon hours at my BIL's house, fixing food, making sure they had what they needed, just being there. The funeral was extremely hard. Continue to keep the family in prayer - my BIL and several other family members are not saved.

February brought waves of sickness through our house. All three of the kids had strep throat and Rod had a nasty case of bronchitis that required shots and breathing treatments and knocked him totally flat on his back for a week. Nothing like any bronchitis I have ever seen before. Thankfully I did not get sick.

In January, right before our nephew died, I started subbing daily for a teacher that was going on maternity leave. I started out with just doing after care and she continued doing her afternoon class. Then the first of February I started doing her class in addition to after-care. That was a good experience and I had fun - tons of prep work though! HA! She came back to work this week so I am back to subbing on an as needed basis (which is 3 days this week already LOL). Subbing is great and I enjoy it but working every day is not for me! HA! I enjoy being home doing what God has called me to do.

Well, that is a 4 month update from us! This weekend is Fine Arts Festival so I am sure I will have pictures and updates to share!