Eight Arms, Please, Lord

I wrote this over a year ago when almost our entire family was struck with something. I'll say it again...sickness in a large family is a very effective means of sanctification. :)


Now it's headaches and fever and chills and coughing. Three down yesterday. Two more today, and I'm praying God will spare me at least until everyone else feels better.


How wonderful it is to know that God has a purpose in this, too. Pray I'll be a kind and patient Mama, please. 


Eight Arms, Please, Lord


Eight arms, please, Lord
Oh, I think it would be good
I could comfort, clean, and cook
And still hold sweet baby, too


I could get her tea and him his pills
Give him a blanket and her a book
And her a drink and him some kleenex
All without dispensing THE Look


You know, the Look that says to all
I'm only one person, with only two hands
Let me lie down, too, instead
And please quiet all these demands


'Cause when Mama's sick, there's no time off
Dishes to clean, sheets to wash, tea to brew
Babies to cuddle, backs to rub, meals to make
And all done with love and hand-blown kisses, too


But since additional appendages
Aren't Your ordinary means
I'd much prefer more grace and faith
And a heart that firmly clings


To Your providential care
Your tender Father's love
That only gives the best of gifts
With wisdom from above


A quiet heart for then I'll plead
And strength to do the next best task
And perhaps a nap thrown in somewhere
Yes, this is what I ask.
~Trisha Poff

Your Tea is Ready, Mommy

Clairesy runs to get me, telling me that my tea is ready. That's nothing unusual. I rarely finish a cup of tea without warming it in the microwave at least 100 4 times. Must be the distracted Mama in me.

I walk with her to get my tea and open the microwave to discover...

I have no clue how long she tried to warm this tea up for me. Evidently she pushed the right buttons, and we're all thankful the cup didn't explode. :)

Chuckling afterwards, I said, "Clairesy, you make me laugh. You know that?"

"Yeh maam." :) Giggle. Giggle.

And as I record this sweet example of Clairesy's helping spirit, she's busy trying to shoot flies with a leatherman.

I am one blessed Mama, and it's gonna be a beautiful day! 

The Coolest Gun You Can't Buy

Sorry.  You won't find this one-of-a-kind gun for sale....well, at least not,yet.  Luke's friend Christian made this for him and gave it to him on Sunday.

Amazing, isn't it?

And Luke had no trouble finding an outfit to match his new piece.

Mountain Man thinks Christian should open his own custom gun Etsy shop......well, maybe not.  Guns and Etsy...don't think so.

Thanks, Christian, for bringing such a big smile to Luke's face. 

Now if you'll just teach him to make his own. :)

How to Catch a Renegade Rodent

I confess.  I have a completely irrational fear of mice....completely irrational.  Just thinking abut them makes my skin crawl and seeing one, well, you might need some ear plugs.

So, for quite awhile, we've had a resident mouse in our pantry.  Key word...resident.  How did I know this?  It seems mice love chips and chocolate. 

Traps on the floor did nothing.  Scouring all the potential hiding places was absolutely fruitless.  Meanwhile, I'm on the verge of insanity.

Finally, at my wit's end and seeing the mouse's attempt to invade my stash of chocolate once again, I desperately threw an offer out to the children....."The one who catches this mouse gets a $50.00 Amazon certificate." 

Now, before you think my children only offer help when tempted with a gift that any bibliophile dreams of ...an Amazon certificate, let me explain that it had been suggested to me many times to clear off the bottom pantry shelf and set traps there.

But, no.  I wasn't going to have mouse guts on that bottom shelf, so I stubbornly settled for a mouse in the pantry instead.  Kinda dumb, huh?

Anyway, Nameless-Brave-Child took me up on this insane offer (I really didn't think anyone would catch this mouse, so making the offer was initially painless, and well, it was done in an  extreme state of frustration), and this child's first step was to, you guessed it, clear the pantry shelf.  I immediately objected, but then realizing I hadn't put conditions on the offer, I had to stand by and watch and offer my wisdom on why this approach would never work.

The traps were set, including one with cotton candy.  I shut off the lights and went to bed, expecting another unsuccessful attempt at catching this renegade rodent.  Meanwhile, Nameless-Brave-Child is salivating slightly in anticipation of the goods from Amazon   hoping to give Queen Mom some resolution.

Next morning...."Would you check the trap in the pantry for me?" were my words to Mountain Man.  (Yes, I can't even look at 'em.)  "There's one in there," he replied.  "What?"  I said.  "And it looks like it's been eating quite well, " continued Mountain Man.   

One Amazon offer.  Three traps.  A cleared bottom pantry shelf.  Bingo.  Nameless-Brave- Child caught my tormenter, and I was even spared blood on the walls.  Of all the traps, this nasty varmint went for the one on the floor!

How do we know this was really the One?  Well, since mice aren't a constant problem, it's a bit easier to figure this out.  I did set out chips and chocolate for the next few days but no one took the bait.  I think that's because he's dead.

Lesson learned: Never rule out options when desperate, and never offer rewards when on the brink of madness.

Most graciously, Nameless-Brave-Child declined the reward, but a deal is a deal, and after all, now my chocolate and I can rest in peace.

Got Clean Water?

Hi! This is Whistler. I want to tell you about a fun and helpful project we're doing.

In our geography studies, we learned about the layers of the earth. Did you know that there is clean water in the Earth's Crust wherever we walk? But you do have to dig very deep to get to it.

Please count to 8.

The author shared with us that in that short amount of time, a child just like me died because of drinking dirty water. So, we decided to do a project that would help others have some clean water.

Just get a jar and start putting money in it. Any spare change will do and dollar bills, too. When you're done, you can send your money to one of these places listed below. Here's a picture of the jar that I labeled for us to use. As the author suggested, we're going to keep it by the sink to help us remember that we are blessed to have clean water and to put money in the jar to help others.

Here are the places you can send money to...

World Vision (look at their online gift catalog and select "clean water" www.worldvision.org

Operation Blessing: Living Waters Project www.ob.org/programs/living_water/index.asp

Samaritan's Purse (look online for their gift catalog to give "living water" and clean water, too! www.samaritanspurse.org

At the end of September, we'll collect our money and buy clean water for others. Please do this with us, and let us know in the comments.

Love,

Whistler