Christmas time has arrived at our house! It has been so good to have a break from college, we have taken a few weeks off from homeschooling as well. I have used the extra time to get ready for the holidays.. We all went out and picked a Real Live tree this year, we got a HUGE one too, 10 ft'er it goes all the way to our ceiling. I love it, and I love the wonderful smell of a real tree.

This is the entry table this year & the Christmas train my mom gave me fits right on the shelf along with my lighted Santa lantern.

This is the piano top in our room with snowmen and snowflake lights a glow (these are the new LED lights, I am not wild about them)... a vintage Santa found a home in my master bath

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My kitchen counter has a super sweet pics of my boys in a Santa frame beside a Christmas cookie jar

above the sink some country angles have landed. Merry Christmas!!

A thankful heart..

Oh it is so easy for me to get caught up in the stress of life each day. I am to easily caught in the struggles of life between the challenge of diabetes, and trying to manage and come to grips with Autumn's behavior. Just trying to stay on top of getting my degree, educating my children, keeping food in the pantry and the dishes clean.. it is often all consuming. I feel lacking in most areas many days. I long to be a better christian ( I want to be a light for others), a better wife (more supportive and less critical) , a better mother ( more patient, more joyful, my children are a blessing and I hate it when I give mine the impression of being a burden instead), a better nurse ( so often I feel unable to do enough for patients to ease suffering, to educate, to just have a more compassionate attitude toward some). So in the mist of all these worldly cares and burdens I wanted to stop and be thankful for a recent night of fellowship we had at our church.

Our church is struggling in some areas and we have felt scattered and lost for a while ( just like the lost sheep). We hosted a community thanksgiving dinner inviting other local churches for singing and fellowship last week. I am so thankful that we were able to attend, since I started working weekends I have missed our monthly potluck dinner and the fellowship so much, this dinner was such a blessing for me. I felt such peace and love in my heart for everyone there. I am blessed to live in a wonderful small town with loving christian neighbors all around me. It really was wonderful to have that evening with Friends and family. I know the spirit of God filled that building that night and I am thankful. I feel renewed to start the Christmas season with a grateful heart and joyous attitude. Blessings to all..

Today was a great day for the lake.. Yep Z got his cast off yesterday! so for the first time this year we headed to sandy beach. It was a really good thing too, since he has yet to straighten his leg out, it proved to be excellent therapy for him. So good in fact that we may go back tomorrow.

I am enjoying having a week off from classes. Dd is home and although it has taken some adjusting on both of our parts things have settled down the past couple days. I needed to sit on the sand and relax, just to take a breather and process things. Some already know this but Caden has been getting yearly lab tests as part of a study for siblings with type 1 diabetes, We were notified this week that he has tested positive for antibodies, three to be exact (gad65, anti insulin & ICA512) So what does it mean??? well we are having further labs and tests ran, but the reality is that he is most likely developing or will develop type 1 diabetes. We have no way to predict when though and it is possible that he might not. The doctors really don't have the answers as this is very new territory in predicting risk factors. It may be that we are catching it early ( even years) before any symptoms show up, for now his blood sugars are normal. I am not sure that I have even taken the time to process the thoughts of this yet, today I am just glad that for now at least he doesn't have diabetes, every day that we can say that is a blessing. And I am really thankful for the beach...

We will be very busy in the coming weeks, college starts again, home school starts next week, Dd will need to see her therapist once a week & will see the Doctor week after next. Z goes back for follow up on the leg in a month and to see endo in October. And Caden has more testing that we will be doing at children's next week and he will be followed closely. Blessings Lisa

For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse. Romans 1:20

Hubby took some photos of the thunderstorm last night from our front porch. I am amazed more and more at God's wonderful and powerful creation. Having spent the better part of a year in detailed study of molecules, cells, human anatomy and now the design of mathematics I find it hard to believe that anyone could truly believe it all ' just happened' (evolution.)

God's universe speaks of his attributes. The singular universe is composed of three elements: space, time & matter. Space is a tri-unity composed of width, depth & height. Time is a tri-unity of past, present and future. Matter is a tri-unity of solid, liquid and gas. We are one person made up of three parts, a body, a soul, a spirit. The atom is composed of protons, neutrons & electrons. This phenomenon of one entity that is divided into three parts goes all the way through creation and screams of the special Trinitarian God of the Bible. ( from the Evolution of a Creationist by Jobe Martin)

Teaching my children that evolution is only a theory (the fact is it's never been proven) and teaching them that creation science is real science (not make believe conjured up by desperate Christians) is one of the backbone reasons that I am choosing to home school. How can our children possibly defend their faith in the Bible as the solid word of God if they are taught in public schools for years that so much of what is written in the Bible about the creation of the world and man is false? I have been shocked at how much evidence that contradicts evolution has been left out, covered up and willfully kept out of textbooks that our children are given. There really is an agenda being carried out, and christian parents must make it a priority to educate themselves about what's really going on in our schools and colleges.
blessings, Lisa

Sometimes the best laid plans.....
See all the plans in my previous post? Well they came to a screeching halt the next day when Z broke his leg while at the 4th of July parade. We spent the weekend at children's hospital, going through surgery, managing diabetes pre and post op. Came home Monday but he has continued to feel bad, run high blood sugars and run fever off/ on, today reaching 101.3 so off we went to our ped where he was dx with strep throat! How I hope the antibiotics take care of this and the fever and he is not getting an infection in his leg. So no church camp for us, diabetes camp is more than likely out also. He is so down hearted right now. Last night he told me this "mom, I am going to cry for a little while, but its not because my leg hurts, ok" I said "ok sweetheart" and I lay in bed and listened to my son sob, as quietly as he could under the covers, not from pain but from the limits he is facing right now. It broke my heart and I wished It would have been me. I know that I need to remember my blessings right now and I do have many, but I am having such a wonderful pity party for us right now... prayerfully Lisa

Summer is certainly in full swing, our garden is providing a few yummy squash every day.The tomatoes are really starting to produce and within a day or two I plan to make a pan of fried green tomatoes. ( we all love them) Today I picked several cucumbers and I plan to make a jar of pickles with them. I had one mess of green beans but they just haven't done well and I doubt I will get any more. I have never been able to get a good harvest from my green beans or peas? I plan to try a fall crop and see if I get better results. We are getting a few peppers now also. These photos are how the garden looks now.

I am happy to be finished with my first summer math course, I will start the second course on Tuesday of next week. Church camp begins Monday, this is the first year Z gets to go (since it's not the same week as diabetes camp this year.) I will be going to camp to keep an eye on his blood sugars and be a cabin "mom'. I will have to leave each day to go to class but I can return every afternoon. Then diabetes camp starts the 12th, Z always has a great time & looks forward to going each year.

Autumn is working hard on her treatment plan and could possibly be coming home before the end of summer. I am planning on picking her up while I'm in little rock on the 12th, for a 3 day pass. She has grown up a bit & is showing a little more maturity. Praise be to God.

I would like to find time to spend a day at the lake with the kids, have a yard sale, plant a flower bed.... oh well, Happy 4th everyone! God bless.

This week the topic for the making your home a haven challenge is setting a wake up time. I have been trying to continue the morning routine from the first post here //http://lhazclewis-life.blogspot.com/2009/03/tammy-httpwww.html but early to rise is an area of struggle for me. I am going to continue to set my goal of getting out of bed between 6 - 6:30. Reminding myself that by doing that the day will go so much smoother & it allows me to have a quite moment to study my bible at the start of the day.

We finally watched the movie Fireproof last night. I loved it, I love all three of the movies they have made. What a wonderful work God has done through those movies, for years to come lives will be touched by those films. Anyone who hasn't seen them, run to the nearest rental store and get Flywheel, Facing the giants, & Fireproof. I must say that my favorite is the first one Flywheel, the film quality is not quite as good as the others but the message is so strong.

Autumn is home for the weekend she is doing very well. I let the boys stay home from school today to spend time with their sister. I am looking foreword to Easter, having the family get together. Today we must get some housework done, Tomorrow we plan on dying eggs.

We have a new batch of kittens this week (5) tiny gray & white, the boys are just loving it. Even I have to admit that there's not much cuter then little kittens. The recent cold weather may have killed some of my garden :( I'm not sure what will bounce back & what is gone, I plan to get new seeds started this week to replace any plants that are lost. Caden has a book that he loves called the Oak inside the acorn, while I was digging some dirt for my lettuce plants we found an acorn that had rooted, I showed it to Caden & transplanted it to a container, explaining that some day when he was grown up, it would be a big oak tree, he can plant it & have his very own tree. It has really grown the past few weeks. What a great opportunity to show how just like God has a plan for the tiny acorn to become a big strong oak, he has a plan for each of us to become

the person God designed us to be. Happy Easter

Today I read a post over At the well http://www.titus2atthewell.com/2009/03/are-you-born-supervisor.html that I want to share. Please visit the link above to read the entire post but the essence was being thankful for our husbands. I want to list some of the things I am thankful for toward Harry,
1. he loves to spend time with me
2. he can make me laugh
3. he is a good dad, he loves to do family stuff
4. he is kind hearted
5. he's always willing to help others
6. he never criticizes my homemaking skills (no matter how lacking they may be)
7. I believe he loves me, I can trust him.
8. he works hard to provide for us

Now those of you that know me know that I can be very strong willed and even hateful at times. He somehow puts up with me and my sharp tongue, and for that I am thankful. I wouldn't trade him for anything in the world.

With so much going on these days I am having difficulty finding time to blog. To update on things going on around here the past week or two.. First off, I am so glad spring has arrived, I have a bath tub full of tender little plants sprouting up getting ready for the garden.

tiny seedlings awaiting their home.. Speaking of the garden, Paw Paw came and tilled us a large place for this year, I am so excited to have a big garden instead of my postage stamp size place that was last years. Zack and I went over to the horse lot yesterday afternoon and brought back a big ol' bucket of horse doo that we worked into the garden soil last night. I have started peas (sugar snap & canning), lettuce, spinach, radish, squash, peppers, onion, collards, and green beans. I am looking forward to adding tomatoes.

Autumn came home over this past weekend for her first 48hr visit, it was nice to have her home, although she struggled with some transition issues. She is doing very well, her grades are pretty good. She has done so well with the structure at this facility, she's afraid of getting out and not being able to cope again. I'm not sure what her future holds but I know the Lord will always be with her, She has been reading her Bible again ( PTL) I am comforted in that she is happy, that's all I ever want. Of course my hope is for her to come home and be able to live happily and have the experiences that most young girls have, I believe that it is possible. She will be coming home again next week for another 48hr visit. Pray all goes well.

This week was a great week for wags and grocery deals, I will post on these separately.

Ways I can be a blessing...

I ran across this blog site today, http://www.titus2atthewell.com/
one of the lessons really hit home for me. I want to be a blessing to my husband and children, a 'keeper at home'. So I've started a list of things that by doing I will be a blessing to them...

I will be a blessing to my husband by keeping our home tidy & welcoming, keeping things organized where he can find them, by cooking a home cooked meal each night, keeping laundry put away, by saving money on the things we buy, by keeping a garden to provide fresh veggies and canning & preserving the gardens bounty. I can bless our pocketbook and our earth by using a clothes line this spring & summer to dry our clothes, using simple earth friendly cleaning products, taking more showers (not long soaks in the tub)
I will be a blessing to my children by getting up in time to cook a healthy breakfast (this is a big one since I tend to like to sleep in, and the kids often prefer cold cereal)
I will bless my children by teaching them what I can about growing your our food, preserving food, saving money and cleaning house so that they will be able to provide blessings for their own families some day. It seems so simple yet each of these things makes a big impact for your family. I hope you will stop by the above mentioned website, the devotionals are wonderful & really help keep focus on being keepers at home.

Finally .... here are photos of our house.

Here is the front, the garage is on the right just out of sight.

Then the back as seen from the field.

This is the living room: from standing inside the front door in the foyer

looking to the front door, & from standing in the breakfast nook.

this is my kitchen & breakfast nook, I really, really love it.

I realized in these photos that I have yet to get the stickers off my windows & my fridge is covered with stuff from the kids and ect..

Here is the dining room it's RED, I love my square table, I need to get drapes on the windows. right now we use the corner hutch to hold school books.

My utility room is great! Larry did a great job building these cabinets to make this room just what I wanted, the wall not seen in this pic has a small closet for cleaning supplies and also a coat rack. Someday I want to put a bench here and add a wall calender/message center.

This is the 1/2 bath just off the living room. I added the photo with the potty so you can see how pretty the stained concrete floors are.

Our bedroom & master bath (Harry called this color turd brown, I like it though) As you can see the window trim is missing from the glass block window above the tub, they sent the wrong size and have yet to replace it gurrr!

this is Caden's room, note that there's no bed in here, because he is still sleeping with us!! (well beside us anyway.) He uses this as a play room.

Here is Z'a room, he is into army stuff can you tell?

Autumns room is not getting photos because it's a disaster. but here's the upstairs bath.

I truly love our home, all the work we did was so worth it, so far I haven't found one thing I would have done differently. I even love cleaning it. I feel amazingly blessed that we were able to build and have things turn out as well as they did, with no major problems. Now if only I had some nice flower beds :)

I don't think I've mentioned just how much my mom helps me, I could not make it without her. She has always watched my children while I worked or if I just needed her too. I am so grateful that she is such a big part of their lives. I swear my boys would just move in with her if I let them ( except at bedtime Caden would call to come home and snuggle with mom :) We live close by and see her almost daily. She is always at the kids baseball, basketball games. Even though we still have several years of the boys playing ball, I will miss it when they are grown and no longer involved in the school sports. My mother and I have had many a good memory watching softball and traveling to the 'middle of nowhere' for games. I bet she will read this too... so thanks mom, for all you do for me and the kids. I love you.

Had a wonderful Christmas..

Well it's over and the house looks like a wrapping paper tornado hit it. We had a wonderful trip to Branson, got back at 10:30 Christmas eve. Our daughter has had a really good couple weeks, we are so thankful and praise God for that. Right now, all thoughts of placement are on hold, I know it is the prayers of many that have made the difference. (thanks Kathryn). I couldn't stand the thought of her not being with us for Christmas. The weather was cold and rainy so we didn't visit Silver dollar city, instead we headed to splash country indoor water park, our children are half duck and LOVE anything water so this was a huge hit. Mom really liked it also, huge hot tubs and nice lazy river floating:) We always enjoy the condo, the kids feel "rich" and mom and dad feel like "at least we are getting some use out of this time share were stuck with" lol. We spent Christmas afternoon at hubby's parents, got to visit with several friends and kin folks we haven't seen in a while, uncle Tom and Robbie are back safely from Iraq, another PTL.

We are cooking ham and fixings on Sunday for my mom and sister. The children got way to much stuff as usual. Here are a few pics ..... Cadens favorite gift was a game boy advance. He has played this old one we have for months and couldn't see the screen very well because it didn't have a back light screen, his new one does and he LOVES it plus all the old games work on it. Z got the guitar hero game he had hoped to get, a dd got a new cool phone (doubles as a walkman too.) The boys got matching star wars pjs. too. Hope everyone had a blessed Christmas.

All week this week Z has came into our room and fell asleep in our bed, its nice at the end of the day to have the whole family hanging out in our room. Dad is on the computer, Caden and I are cuddled in the big chair and Z laid out on the bed. Every night its the same.. ( us) " Don't fall asleep there Z" (Z) " I won't, I am just resting here for a while." Of course in just a few minutes he is sound asleep. But I don't really mind at all, cause I know that before long he will grow out of wanting to sleep here with mom and dad. He is almost 12 yr and time is flying by, so this will be my "miss this moment" for the week.

Thoughts on Z &b-ball

Yesterday I sat watching Z practice B-ball and I was just amazed by him. He has never played before and just a few weeks ago, he new nothing about the game, he couldn't dribble, shoot, ect. anything...he has improved so much! He is really starting to understand the plays and what is expected of him. I think his coach is doing a great job, but what makes the difference is HIM (yes, I am bragging). He gives 200% of what is asked of him, he is a great team player, (looking out for his team mates). Such a good spirit and willingness to do what is asked. Now don't ask me why I was surprised by this yesterday, because that is just how he is, and how he has always been. What crossed my mind while I watched him, is how blessed I am to get to be this young man's mother, how fast his childhood is going by, and just how much I will miss these days when he has grown up.

cuddles from caden

Ok so its way too early for me to be awake because I have to work tonight, but I woke up hungry and since I am awake anyway I couldn't resist checking out some of my fav blogs ( yes this is addicting) So as I set here at the computer, Caden who was napping on the couch, wakes up, staggers sleepily beside me and I hear "mommmmmm" yeah all drawn out like that, and of course I reach out, and he clamors into my lap to snuggle up to tell me "what my dream was about" ( he means what he had a dream about) which today was sponge bob. After a couple minutes he's gone, off to play, and I am reminded that it won't be long before he won't automatically come to mom's lap. He is growing up and I just want to treasure each snuggle. I thank God for him, I thank God for that moment, and for letting me realize just how precious it was to share with my little guy. That is the kind of mother, and person, I try to be. One that realizes each minute is a gift and savors my life.. I just wanted to post that moment.

Just wanted to share

I love reading other blogs and most I've seen have posted pics on them, so I wanted to share a few things that I am enjoying this morning..

Our house faces east, so each morning as the sun comes up I get this wonderful light streaming through the glass of our front door, what you can't see in this pic is that the foyer is vaulted and we have a large arched window set up there so even more light comes in. I love it so much, and I am so glad we decided on the double entry door. I really am enjoying our new home.

This is my table in our foyer, I dressed it up for fall. I am really proud of it because I got the dresser at a scratch and dent place for $149, it has a tiny water mark on it you would hardly even notice. The topper is a valence bought on clearance, the lamp from wal-mart and the cute pumpkins and the black bird candle holders I got at the gift shop at the hospital ( not the best price but helps support a good cause). I think it looks really cute, my fav is the black birds.

And finally...tah dah...is Cadens new bed!

(I know that its really an over sized chair with a tattered soft cot on it) But this is a major step for him. please realize that he has spent his entire life sleeping right up to mommy! Yes he was a breast baby and he thought this was the only way he could sleep. We tried many things and had finally settled on letting him sleep on a pallet beside our bed, but he still hated it and felt " left out and all alone" (his words) and " with no one to snuggle up to". Then daddy had a great ideal to put the lg chair up to our bed and fill the space with pillows, he added the softy cot ( Caden loves it) and presto.. he feels like he is still in our bed and everyone is happy. Once he gets used to sleeping alone in his space we will move toward his room upstairs. Great Job Daddy!