Lilla Rose Black Friday Sale

Lilla Rose is having a Black Friday and Saturday sale!

Everything is 20% off with some items 50% off! Customers also receive free shipping with orders over $50!

The above headband is only $11.90. I recently purchased one of the headbands for Madisyn. Her hair is very long and the headband hold it back really well. She also doesn't get headaches from it.

Even Flexi-of-the-Months are 20% including the new Winter Wonderland clip!

I really like the new Holiday Flexi - Joy.

So check out the Lilla Rose sale, remember it ends tomorrow at midnight!

Plan to Eat Black Friday Sale

 

Plan to Eat is having their yearly Black Friday sale. The sale continues throughout the weekend. You can purchase a yearly subscription for only $19.50. I've blogged about Plan to Eat here and here. I love the service!

Happy Thanksgiving!

* I meant to post this Wednesday so you can pretend that I'm not always running way behind. ;-)

 

Our 4-H club frequently visits area nursing homes. This is one of our favorite activities in which to  participate. We were also really glad to get to include Christopher in our fun.

The nursing homes have small aviaries and the kids love to watch the birds. They wanted their picture made with the pretty birds.

 

The kids make homemade cards to hand out to the residents and staff. The kiddos also enjoy the card making party we have. Madisyn and I do most of the writing and the younger kids really get into decorating them.

 

This little turkey loves to talk to anyone. She and Henry will even enter rooms by themselves to holler "Happy Tanksgivin".

 

We have a great group of 4-Hers. I love how involved they are in the community.

 

The second nursing home we visited is more of an assisted living facility. One of the ladies started reading the card she was given and my little ones and Christopher flocked to her like she was about to read the best storybook ever.

 

Later the same evening we were able to attend a grant ceremony where our club was awarded $1250 to use in our community service projects!

The next day we visited another nursing home and were able to take Christopher with us. The kids are loving that they have a cousin that lives close.

 

No Greater Joy

E

A few months ago, Griffin came to Kent and said he wanted to be saved. Kent spent the next several weeks questioning Griffin to make sure he fully understood what being saved meant.

When our older two children came to us with the same thoughts, we also asked them lots of questions. The last thing we want to do is have a child that is unsure of their salvation.

Kent and I know lot of adults that professed Christ at a young age and seem to have not fully understood what that meant exactly. It tends to leads to adults who are unsure and unsteady in their faith.

After his countless sessions we felt Griffin was ready. He went before the church and asked to be baptized and become a member. Of course, he was quickly accepted. One of the men of the church made the motion and Ty seconded it. I thought that was pretty special to have your older brother be such a big part of your church membership.

Another special part of Griffin's baptism is that Kent gets to be the one to baptize him. Any baptism is special but this momma tears up seeing a father baptize his son. Our  children are incredibly blessed to attend church with several family members and church members who are like family.

I have no great joy than to hear that my children walk in the truth.

III John 1:4

December Flexi of the Month

The December Flexi of the Month is now available from Lilla Rose. Quantities are limited, so order soon to ensure you can purchase this beautiful flexi in your preferred size!

Thanksgiving Weenie Roast {Part 2}

I love this picture that Madisyn caught of Lynden and Ellison. They look like they are sharing a secret.

Mom and Robin did a great job organizing everything.

Justin decided that hot dogs weren't cutting it and confiscated Dad's brats. I think they learned that brats don't cook very well over a campfire. Some slightly raw sausage may have been consumed.

The boys had a great time cooking marshmallows. However, I'm pretty sure that more hit the ground or flames than were actually eaten.

This is an example of Mary Claire and Izzy's "direction" of Liberty and Isaac. I heard lots of "sit here", "No, sit down", "You want to stay right there". LOL What would younger kiddos do without older siblings to direct their ways?!?



I added this picture in to show the other side of Mary Claire. That girl has a sassy side. I get this look at least thrice daily. LOL

Thanksgiving Weenie Roast {Part 1}

This year we decided to do something a little different for Thanksgiving with my side of the family.

A few of the kids were sick a few weeks ago so we didn't get together for Ty or Mom's birthday so we started the evening with birthday gifts.

Mammie had lots of help getting her gifts open. It's just one of the services that grandchildren can provide.

After the gifts, we began the main event. . .  The Weenie Roast!

Yes, we had a weenie roast instead of a traditional Thanksgiving. Chalk up to one very pregnant woman, a upcoming vacation for the grandparents and a very busy family.

Mom and Robin made some chili to compliment the hot dogs and Robin set out an awesome S'mores bar.

The kids had a great time playing. Izzy and Mary Claire played together the whole night. Mary Claire is finally old enough to not be a "baby" and interact a little more and the two of them had a blast. The seemed to bond over the fact that they were both excellent at telling their little brother/sister what to do!

One of Ellison's favorite spots seemed to be snuggling with Mammie.

A Bushel, A Peck

and a hug around the neck!

Last month, Grandmaw let us know that Uncle Keith had an apple tree with apples free for the picking. The kids and I made a trip to his property and got what we could reach. Kent came back with us to get the rest.

He had a very busy few weeks and we had to go after work. The bed of the truck served as a make shift ladder and we relieved the tree of it's fruit.

Mary Claire was a bit short to reach the apples but she gave Minnie Mouse a grand tour.

Henry picked up apples that didn't make it into the crate and placed them in it. He also found time to pose for a few pictures.

When the kids and I picked apples the first time we gathered about half a crate. Kent helped us gather twice as many apples in half the time.

Over the next week Madisyn and I washed, peeled, cored and sliced all the apples.

Then we laid them out on the dehydrator and made one of our family's favorite snacks. I wish I could say the 8 gallon bags would last a long time but we'll be luck to have any left come spring.

Quilting Bee

My friend, Candyce has made several quilts and offered to teach me how to make one. I purchased a jelly roll from etsy and set to work.

 

At home I sewed the jelly roll strips into groups of four. Because I was making a baby quilt I only needed 20 strips sewn into 5 groups.

Then I headed to Candyce's house. The kids had a play day and Candyce was my teacher. She help me cut the groups into block and then sew them on top of one another.

She kept showing me how to cut, press, sew, cut, press repeatedly until we had 12 blocks. This was my first attempt at pieced quilting and Candyce proved to be a great teacher!

After I left Candyce I came home and added a border to the top she helped me assemble. I looked online for directions for mitering corners and completed in the border in a short amount of time.

My next step was to put a call out on Facebook for a quilter to finish the top. I found a great lady that lives less than 10 miles from our house. If you have any idea where we live, it's amazing that someone who could provide the exact service I needed lived that close.

I selected a heart pattern and in just a few days received a call that the quilt was ready to be picked up.

 

I love the way all the materials came together and I can't wait to see a little girl wrapped in it.  I can't wait to make another!

We found the tutorial here

Pregnancy Update

I haven't blogged much about this pregnancy so I decided that an update was way overdue! We're now at the 33 week mark which hopefully means we'll meet our little girl in 9 weeks. Liberty was 2 weeks late and I'm praying this little one doesn't want to set a new record. :-)

We did give in and have an ultrasound. We took the children with us and they begged to find out the gender of our newest little one. Baby #8 is a girl and will make our family tied with four boys and four girls. Four seems to be the magic number, as we are also planning for our 4th homebirth.

Things are progressing well. I'm experiencing all the normal pregnancy aches and pains. We don't have eight children because my pregnancies are easy but they aren't really "hard". I visit the chiropractor at least once a week to help with hip and pelvic pain. I've seen a chiropractor regularly in my last 3 pregnancies and I can't say enough about the relief that I receive. I highly recommend Palmer chiropractors.