Okay. Okay. Okay.

HERE I AM!

Did you miss me? It has been a while. A long while. My laptop kind of crashed out on me. And who likes using a desktop? Not me. Besides, I have to fight with the boys to use the desktop. Youtube videos, anyone?

We ended up getting the me the kids a chrome book to use for school work. That means it is usually not in use in the evenings! Yay for me!

Let's see, where did I leave off? Disney trip. Long story short, that was 2 years ago now. We had a great time. I probably (read: will never) will not get around to finishing my trip report. Sorry. It was a while ago, and so much has happened since then.

Since Disney, I have lost 160+ pounds! Go me! We have become more involved in our church and I am so glad to say, we finally found 'home'. We got bees! We moved! Again. Probably for the last time. More on that later. My dad died this past October. And the biggest news? Which, if you know our family, probably isn't surprising:

Fifty Little Piggies!

Baby #5, Lincoln Phillip will be joining us in mid-June!

Psalm 127:4

Like arrows in the hands of a warrior, are children of one's youth

I am working on posts about: my dad, our bees, our other animals, my weight loss, homeschooling, kid updates, and homestead updates. Hopefully, a home tour of our new home will come soon as well! Keep checking back for new posts! Don't want to wait for new posts to see pics? As always, follow me on Instagram at thirtylittlepiggies

Disney Trip Day 3- Animal Kingdom!

Our third day there, we had to do something, even though Lena wasn't feeling her best because we wouldn't have time to finish everything before we had to head home.

Super excited for Disney!

So that morning we headed out to the Animal Kingdom. Luckily, Lena seemed to be doing better, smiling and eating a bit and keeping it down.

The kids absolutely loved riding the tram to the actual park. Alta says that was her favorite thing the entire time, silly girl. The first view of the park for the kids was wonderful, they were in awe of everything to see.

 Immediately, they saw Chip N Dale and Rafiki, though they were on their way into the park and not signing autographs at that moment.

This is his suave face.

We headed into the park after our bag searches and ticket scans. We walked around a bit just taking in the sights until it was time for our first fast past. We spotted Daisy Duck and since she had a short line, she was our first character meet!

After Daisy, we meandered over to Africa to get in the FP line for the Safari.

Kilimanjaro Safari was excellent! It was a guided "jeep" (aka large bus/jeep thing, seating 5 or 6 people per bench) driven around the safari part of AK. We saw several types of animals. They seemed like they were all in an open area, but if you looked close, you could see there were barriers.  But Disney does a good job at hiding it. Some of the animals can come really close to the jeep, we had a giraffe standing within 10 feet of us.

After the safari ride, we walked over to It's Tough To Be A Bug, while waiting for our next FP.

Unfortunately, by now, Lena started fussing and became restless and just not a happy girl. We toughed it out in Bug, and once the show started, she chilled out a bit.

When we finished at Bug, we walked over to Dinoland USA because our next FP was for Dinosaur. We stopped and ate our packed lunch, while waiting for the FP time. Meanwhile, Lena started running her fever again and became listless. We decided that I would take the girls back to the hotel and take a nap and depending on Lena, we would come back that evening and catch Lion King with them, or I would just pick them up at park close.

While we were napping, Sam and the boys rode Dinosaur, Expedition Everest, and Kali River Rapids. They also caught Lion King, and the boys were called on stage to participate it the show! I am so sad I missed that! That is the tough thing about being Mommy, having to decide which child's needs come first. Obviously, Lena's came first in this scenario, because health was at risk as opposed to the boys' emotional health. Lucky for me, Sam recorded the entire thing, so I was able to watch them.

The girls and I went to pick up the boys and we came back, had dinner and relaxed.

Missed days 1 & 2? Click Here!

Disney Trip- Day 1 & 2

I guess it has been a while since I last posted. And by that, I mean months. Oops. I'm busy. Really busy. I thought homeschooling would lead us to a more simple life. Instead, we are going from Cub Scouts, to 4-H, to church, to visit friends and family, and on and on and on. Add that to schooling and caring for the kids, home, and animals, I'm a busy mama. But I guess, this is the time of our life. I wouldn't change a thing.

Our family just got home from our very first real vacation. We've only been camping or in a cabin or visiting family before. So this was different. And big. We did our first vacation in a BIG way. We spent 11 days in Orlando at Disney World, Lego Land, the beach, Ripley's, and swimming. It wasn't all fun and games, Lena became really sick during our trip and landed herself in the ER, but after she got better, we had a lot of fun.

DAY ONE:

We packed our bags, and left our house around 5 pm on April 15. Our plan was to drive through the night so the kids would sleep most of the time. Great plan. Except the night before Lena started running a fever and threw up once. On our way out of town, we stopped by urgent care at her pediatrician's, and had them take a look at her. They decided it was teething, but gave us an antibiotic in case she started pulling at her ears or anything. He gave us the all clear to head on down a have a good time. So off we went!

Driving through the night was a great idea in theory, but with a sick and fussy baby who isn't a great sleeper to begin with, it was torture. She cried and fussed 85% of the drive. The other kids did great, sleeping most of the time and watching DVDs the rest.

We got to our hotel around noon on the 16, and they allowed us to check in early, which was wonderful! I have nothing but great things to say about the hotel. We stayed at the Royale Parc Suites (Quality Suites) in Kissimme, FL. It was clean, family friendly, and very nice for a budget hotel. That evening, Lena seemed to feel better, so we went to Downtown Disney.

Parker was having the time of his life in the Lego Store, you could see his mind working on all the new things he could build.

Can you guess which one belongs to which kid?

DTD was nice, not as great as I expected. It was pretty overpriced and under tons of construction. We stopped at Candy Cauldron and the kids got character cookies and Sam and I shared a Mickey cookie. We then window shopped a bit until we got to the Lego Store and the kids loved it. Especially Parker, he was in his element! Prices weren't too bad, I may even hesitate to say, they were cheap (for Legos). They had build your own mini figs 3 for $9.99, so each of the big kids built their own mini fig. After the Lego Store, we walked around some more and found the dancing waters, and since we were getting ready to leave, the kids played and got soaked. Lena started fussing really badly, so we came back to the hotel to get ready for bed.

All the dancing water pics are terrible, the kids were running around like crazy.

DAY TWO:

That evening and night, Lena got worse, she started throwing up and refusing to eat as well as running a fever. After being up all night with her, we pushed our first Disney day back and tried unsuccessfully to find a doctor to see her. Our insurance would not cover any convenient care down there except Walgreens or CVS, unfortunately, they wouldn't see her because she was younger than 18 months old. Again, I called her pediatrician, and asked for zofran to get her hydrated, she refused and again said it was teething or a bug and she would be better by the next day. So instead of Disney, we went grocery shopping, got the kids' some souvenirs, and then went back to the hotel and I took the big kids swimming while Sam stayed with Lena in the room.

View of our hotel courtyard

Our hotel had a kiddie pool, plus a big pool which was awesome for this mama!

Sick baby Lena.

Check out Day 3!

Happy 6 Months, Lena!

Lena is 6 months old today! She is such a happy little girl. I am not sure what her stats are because she doesn't see the pediatrician until December 3, but I'm guessing she is around 20 pounds. She is our biggest baby by far! 

She can army crawl anywhere she wants to go. She can roll both directions, which she does all the time. She started saying "dada" yesterday. She sleeps pretty well about 4/7 nights, usually only waking twice.

She cannot sit unassisted yet, she can only tripod for a few seconds before falling over. She is a smiling and laughing baby, but for whatever reason, as soon as the camera comes out, she will not smile or laugh. She's a stinker.

She loves her family, especially Landon. They have a great bond and he loves to tote her around and show her things, play with her, and generally love on her. 

She has started sampling food. So far she has had mashed potatoes, avocado, yogurt, shredded chicken, and bananas. She has loved it all and has done well with it. 

She is also still breastfeeding. She is definitely getting more formula than breastmilk at this point, but she is still getting every drop I can produce. I am hopeful that we will make it at least a year. 

Family Trip: Bald Knob Cross

The other day, Sam and I took the kids about an hour up the road to Bald Knob Cross.

They loved it, the people in the gift shop were very nice. They gave the kids a penny with a cross punched out and said something along the lines of  "Jesus is the one sent to us" and then three of the crosses that were punched out for the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. 

The view was breathtaking, and the cross is beautiful with its new siding. I would recommend a trip to see this awesome cross. It really is a nice sight to see. You can read about the history  HERE 

My Mom

My mom has been having health issues again. In fact, she had a heart attack last week. It was touch and go for a while, and she was in the hospital in A Fib for a week. But she seems to have turned around. She is still very weak and tired, but she's getting there. Hopefully, she is on the road to recovery now.

What do stay at home moms do all day?

Stay-at-home-mom. Or SAHM. I have seen a few posts on facebook lately about how SAHMs are lazy, sit around all day, and they pamper themselves. And the big question, What do SAHMs do all day?

When Sam and I got married 6 years ago, we decided I would be a stay at home mom for a while. Then I started school, with the intention of going to work when I was finished. A few years later, here I am with a nice nursing degree and 3 kids. Together, we decided our kids needed me home. They are all quite young, 5, 3, and 1, and we knew that we would be paying most of my check to daycare. Plus, for a good job, I would be driving an hour to and from work. It just made sense for me to stay home, at least until our youngest, whoever that may be, is in school. We get along fine without my income. We aren't rice, but we live comfortably. So, what do I do all day?

Well, for starters, I kiss boo boos, comfort our night crier, give baths, feed and clothe kids, I read books, play games, teach letters and numbers, how to share, and how things work. I also watch when someone says "look mommy!" I babysit babydolls and stuffed animals, I am a patient for future nurses (or doctors), I tickle backs and tummies, and most importantly, I love.

But it's not all good things. I punish, I correct a pincher, I sit someone in timeout, I say "no, we don't talk potty talk" a million times a day. I am the bad guy sometimes. I change a diaper, I wipe a butt, a nose, or hands.

Then, there are the household duties. The cleaning, the laundry, the yardwork, the animal care, the car cleaning.

A typical day for me starts at 6-8 depending on when Alta decides to wake up. From there, she gets a diaper change and a cup of milk. While she drinks, I get myself dressed. By the time that's done, the boys are pounding down the steps. I make and feed them breakfast. I feed the dogs, the cats, the chickens, make sure the hamster has food, and make sure everyone has water. I might feed myself, if I have time. The boys then go outside and play, Alta plays around the house while I do dishes and laundry. Then it is snack time. While they eat their snacks, I pick up the living room or bathroom or both, if there is time. After snacks, Alta takes a nap. The boys do their thing, usually back outside, they would live out there if I would let them. I do outside chores. Stir the compost, pick up dropped apples and pears, pick up trash or sticks, maybe weed the garden, I am also working on the garage a little bit at a time. I also try to play with the boys, if they let me, usually they will if the neighbor kids aren't around. Then I go in and make lunch, Alta will wake up, we all eat. Then I try to do school work. Parker is learning his letters and Landon is working on kindergarten and first grade things so he doesn't forget or fall behind for when school starts. Alta sits in her high chair and listens to us sing and learn. We also will try to do a craft or color or play with play-doh or paint at this time. Then it is back outside, but this time Ali and I go too. We spend an hour or so playing in the yard. Then come in for snacks again. Then I pick up the house again. The boys go back out and Ali and I putter around the house. We play with her toys, read, or just sit and cuddle. She then takes a nap, if I'm lucky. During this nap, I finish what I didn't get to during her first nap and then clean the floors or something else that I can't do when she is awake. After she wakes up I start thinking about dinner and start it while she plays around the house. Around 7:00 I have the boys put away all outside toys and come in. They then pick up any toys around the house. Sam gets home at 7:50, we eat, the kids get a bath and go to bed. Hopefully by 9, again, if I am lucky. I try to pick up anything that's left out if I have the energy. We spend time together watching TV or whatever. We go to bed around 11. We sleep, and then another day starts.

This is my typical day. Throw in the days where I have to go shopping, pay bills, or go take care of my mom, or even worse, if someone is sick, all the above gets even more busy.

I laugh when I see someone commenting that a SAHM does nothing all day. I laugh, because, really, they have no idea.


Some days I would gladly trade it in for a daycare and scrubs. But normally, I love my job, I love taking care of my kids, I love being here when my husband gets home from work and taking care of him. I love that I have a husband, who takes care of our financial needs, while I take care of our emotional needs. It is a busy life, but it is a good one. 

Easter and 6 years!

Happy Easter and happy anniversary to my husband. Six years ago we got married.

We have been very busy the last few days with family. I am planning a picture post of all our Easter visiting, and also a lovey dovey post of our relationship. :) 

I hope you all have a great day spent with family and friends!

Our Christmas in Pictures

The first few are Lady of the Snow, which is a wonderful place to go during Christmas, it has camel and donkey rides, petting zoo, crafts, puppet show, legos and little people to play with, Christmas tree exhibit, and of course, the lights.

The next few after will be Christmas at the nursing home with Sam's family, then Christmas eve at my mom's, and finally Christmas morning at our house. Enjoy!