Easter 2010

Easter was so much better this year than last year--understandably. I even managed to get everyone's clothes to coordinate, though it was certainly the last possible minute before I knew exactly what they would be wearing. The more children there are, the harder it is. Let me tell ya! I realize it's not imperative that they all match. I just can't help it. I adore seeing them all looking like they were made to be photographed together (even if it is virtually impossible FOR ME to get a good group photo of them).

Ready, set, go!!!

I found Saylor's dress at Rhea Lana. It's a Strasburg. If you know Strasburg, then you know that the $35.00 I spent for it USED, but in "like new" condition, was a steal!! When I purchased the dress, I didn't even know for sure that it would be her Easter dress, though I knew that would make the most sense, considering I never spend $35.00 on any one clothing item anymore. Once I got serious about putting the ensemble together, I MADE it work. Her shoes are L'Amour (great brand we've owned before) and also came from Rhea Lana for only $8.00.

While I couldn't find that exact pink for the boys' clothing, I was perfectly happy just doing "shades" of pink to match Saylor. Noah had a brand new pair of plain-front khakis hidden in his closet (what a great discovery!). We got his pink, polo-style shirt at Belk's on sale for $9.00. Yes, ma'am. He wore brown shoes we got off Freecycle and have been saving until he reached this size.

Gabriel wore a white shirt and pink sweater vest that belonged to Noah when he was this age. However, Gabe is built quite differently than Noah was, so the vest just barely covered his very round tummy. (I LOVE Gabe's tummy, just so y'all know!!) Let's just say, it was a one-time outfit for Gabriel. That's okay, though, because the whole thing was hand-me-down (a.k.a. cheap). And since then during my recent attic work, I discovered a pink, polo-style shirt in a 3T just right for him, so they can still be matchy sometimes.

I found Atticus's three-piece Eton suit (just missing the tie) at Rhea Lana as well. The WHOLE thing was $6.00. I liked the way it contrasted with Saylor's pink dress but also was well within the same color family as the other boys' khaki pants. AND I found his shoes there for $4.00. Not bad, eh? After that, all that was left to do was run by The Toggery for a headband for Saylor (ugh--$12.00) and socks for the babies. So I spent a grand total of $74.00, and obviously we'll continue to make good use of most of the items. Certainly beats the $300+ I could have easily spent on a Wooden Soldier collection. And then, they may have had hats, but we wouldn't have been able to afford shoes. Anybody ever gone to church barefooted? I'm thinking not such a good idea.

Not that Easter is all about the clothes OR how much one spends on them. I'm just documenting. I was proud of myself for being so ultra-frugal again this year AND still somehow keeping the kids coordinated. Our friend Melissa was kind enough to compliment us on how well-matched the kids were. I could have hugged her neck right then because it was just exactly what I needed to hear!
Their baskets were probably a little bare this year.

1) I had decided to include hardly ANY candy.

2) We were running VERY low on eggs and didn't bother buying any more.

3) I refuse to buy all the cutesy plastic toys and novelty items just to fill a basket, because that's just more stuff being brought into our home, and stuff tries to destroy me.

4) I didn't have time for handmade gifts. Boo!

My big plan was to give them each a pair of Crocs. However, we were sort of broke-ish when it came time to purchase basket goodies, so Saylor (who already has plenty of shoes, if you ask me) got a favorite movie--the original Pollyanna, which I had left over from CHRISTmas purchases. And Gabriel got a pair of brand new Ralph Lauren sneakers I found at Rhea Lana for $8.00. Then I ended up finding Noah's Crocs (brand new!) at Rhea Lana for $9.50 and managed to get Atticus some "right now" fake Crocs and some Disney Crocs for the next size up (which he is already IN, by the way), both of which were a mere $3.00 and in great shape.

I did bake sugar cookies (made with Sucanant), cut them out with Easter cookie cutters, and iced them. That was my big endeavor this year. Yeah, don't anybody faint from amazement or anything!

I actually got Noah to smile for a photo! What?! Now, we just have to try to overlook the many bicycle-wreck marks on his poor face.

Doesn't Saylor seem pensive? Actually, she's just pretending her new DVD is a notepad, and she's jotting some things down. She's so funny that way.

Gabriel was delighted with the eggs. Well, really, the whole day was fun and exciting to him!

Atticus was so cute, waving "hi" to some random neighborhood kid who drove by on his bicycle while we were outside.

I just had to drag out last year's group photo. Thought it would be interesting to see how much they've grown and yet how unchanged my "family photo" techniques.

As you can see, some already have mouth-fulls of the TINY amount of candy I included in their baskets. THIS group shot was as good as it got. The rest contain even MORE chewing, scrunched noses, even some blue lips, as Gabe thought he could go ahead and eat a dyed egg, shell and all. One of these days, God will have completely cured me of my perfectionism. But I must say, I will always remember how sweet they all looked coming into church early (since I was singing) all together...and looking like that's exactly as it ought to be! I was one proud mama.

Snips, Snails, & Pretty Pigtails

Noah may not know everything there is to know about soccer yet. But he certainly gets in there and isn't afraid of the action. No, sir! I think he's a lot like me and really wants to always "be the one" who gets the job done! Ha! Even his guitar teacher says he's really picked things up quickly. And, believe me, it's been with very little practice. We're still working on that nice, disciplined lifestyle we know we're supposed to have by now. *sigh* But seriously, the other day Noah finally pulled out his guitar, immediately checked to make sure it was in tune (he definitely has an ear for that...), and then absentmindedly began strumming a chord combination. I swear, he sounded like he'd been doing it all his life. The strumming pattern itself was so laid-back--it really sounded good! And, y'all, I know I'm biased 'cause he's my boy and all, but I'm telling the truth here! He is just a natural!

Saylor is such a big girl now. If you know her well, you know that for her entire life she has owned (and adored) a small, pink blanket called "Silkie." When she held it, she sucked her thumb. It was an automatic response. From babyhood to age five, this is what would happen. She mostly only had it when sleeping, so it wasn't too big of a deal for us. But deep down I was a little worried that once she lost her front baby teeth, we'd have a mess on our hands. Well, the Lord was good to us and one day about a month ago, Saylor just flat-out lost "Silkie." I mean, for REAL lost it. We looked everywhere!! So, after quite a few tears were shed that first night at bedtime, she had no other choice but to go to bed without it. The next day it was still nowhere to be found, but by this time Saylor was a little proud of herself for making it okay without it. Since then she's only had a handful of moments where she really felt distraught not having it to comfort her. She's doing so well!! And she has truly delighted in telling her grandparents, etc. about how big she is now. And no thumb sucking! (She never even considered putting her thumb in her mouth unless she held Silkie. So, that part is completely over and without any blood, sweat, or tears.) Isn't that a blessing?

Then there's Gabriel...aka Resident Woodcarver and Visual Artist of Many and Varied Media, has recently been enjoying different activities, like filling the sink with water until it overflows the top (that's always fun), eating whatever scrap of food anybody was foolish enough to leave alone for two seconds, and dumping contents (like unpopped popcorn, for instance) of plastic baggies onto the carpet. He's always sweet about it, though. When you tell him, "NO! We don't do that," he says, "Oh..." and nods his head like he completely understands. He's one of those kids that will have to try everything at least once--just to see what it's like.

He is also turning into quite the little talker. Mind you, we still have a world of trouble understanding him. (Just try to speak the English language without using "g" or "k." Yeah...sort of limits him a bit.) But he tries so much more than he used to and even puts two and three words together on his own. The other day this little girl got hurt in Saylor's dance class, and Gabe said, "Mommy, girl...ear." Of course, it sounded like "Mommy, duh...ee-uh." But I got it. And it made my day! A few other marvelous things that regularly come out of his mouth nowadays are: "upstairs," "Honda," various friends' names, and "oatmeal."

Atticus is my Cuddle-Bug. I recently weaned him so Paul and I could take a trip to Eureka. Hate weaning...so. much. But he did great. He really did! Every once in a while (even now) he'll ask to nurse, which breaks my heart, but so far I've been able to distract him easily, and he doesn't fuss or anything when I put him in his bed without it. Still, it's hard for us mamas. I'm just so thankful that he is so very snugly. He loves to sit in my lap when I'm reading or we're watching something together as a family. And he's one of those babies who loves to put his head on your shoulder while you rock him. It feels so good to have his sweet little head up against my neck. In fact, I'm starting to tear up a little as I type this post, so precious he is to me.

The theme this time is definitely "Progress," wouldn't you say? They're growing up on me, y'all.

Project 365: Week 18

Sunday, April 25, 2010

No time for a picture today. You'll have to follow the link on Monday's entry to understand why.

Monday, April 26, 2010

One guess as to where I am today.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Friends brought yummy, healthy food. Such a blessing!

And "Mimi" (my mom) was here today to help. The kids got to spend some time outdoors. Poor mom had to keep chasing the little ones down to keep them from going around to the front of the house and down to the street. Boy, one of these days, we are ALL going to rest so much easier--because there WILL be a fence.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

We had a family favorite comfort food for breakfast today. Baked Oatmeal. I intended to post the recipe, but didn't get around to it. Stay tuned. I'm thinking next Wednesday...

Thursday, April 29, 2010

I dropped the kids off for their last day of Academy. (Can I get an Amen?) They were so excited today because there would be pizza parties and field day activities and afterwards they would be surprised with going to stay with some friends. (We didn't disclose all the information to them. We know better!) Paul and I are headed out-of-town to Eureka Springs for a couple of nights!!

Friday, April 30, 2010

This was my perch for most of the day. Nothing but quiet.

Saturday, May 1, 2010

It's our last day in Eureka. Paul was done with his conference by noon (yes, it was a working weekend for him), so we headed toward the historic district for some lunch. We caught the tail end of their "Artrageous Parade" and also ate a couple of the most fabulous burgers in all the world! Mine was the "Avocado Pepper Jack Burger," on which there was at least half of an avocado! Mouth-watering doesn't begin to describe it!! If that doesn't put some color back in my cheeks, I truly don't know what will!

After we browsed a few shops, we drove over to Quigley's Castle. The whole idea of it sounded intriguing to me. I'll have to post separately about it, because I took too many pictures to share here. It was amazing.

Another long week. I keep getting behind in reading everybody else's posts. Thank you, Sara, for hosting...and for keeping the links up so I can eventually get around to every one!

My Help

If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter you know that over the past week or so I've been meditating on Psalm 121, as I've been sharing excerpts each day.

Psalm 121

I lift up my eyes to the hills.

From where does my help come?

My help comes from the LORD,

who made heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot be moved;

he who keeps you will not slumber.

Behold, he who keeps Israel

will neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD is your keeper;

the LORD is your shade on your right hand.

The sun shall not strike you by day,

nor the moon by night.

The LORD will keep you from all evil;

he will keep your life.

The LORD will keep

your going out and your coming in

from this time forth and forevermore.

Last week was a rough one, but I have found much hope in these words and...even in God's creation. In fact, as I was out in my back yard one day beholding the beauty in the intricate details of this rose bud, I was even more in awe of how He loves me. How He cares about the things I care about. How He hurts when I hurt. I am humbled by this love. This unexplainable, unearned love for me. It's miraculous to me knowing that I can rest assured that His love is there, holding me steady when the earth shifts beneath my feet. When everything else seems to be falling apart, I am held safe and secure in His loving arms.

Sunday morning I was privileged to help lead worship, and one of the songs we did was "Lift My Eyes" by David Crowder Band, the lyrics of which are:

Come let us worship the King (echo)

Come lay Your heart at His feet (echo)

Come let us worship the King (echo)

Come let us bow at His feet (echo)

And I lift my eyes to the hills

My help is coming

And then I led us all in a new song: "I Will Exalt You" (Hillsong)

Verse 1:

I will exalt You

I will exalt You

I will exalt You

You are my God

Chorus:

My hiding place My safe refuge

My treasure Lord You are

My friend and King Anointed One

Most Holy.

Verse 2:

Because You’re with me

Because You’re with me

Because You’re with me

I will not fear

Coincidence? I think not. I just love how God ministers so personally to us in our times of need, even as He is ministering to others in totally different ways--but at the very same moment. And I cannot even begin to tell you how my spirit was moved as I sang these words!

Did life get easier/better after my special worship time at church Sunday? Well, no. As a matter of fact, things went from bad to worse pretty fast. I hadn't intended on sharing all of this on the blog, but the more time has gone by, the more I have felt led to explain what's been going on, with the hopes that someone out there needs to hear this story.

On Sunday, April 18, I fell down the stairs at my parents' house, injuring my tail bone something awful. The next morning, I discovered I was spotting. You see? I was nearly 9 weeks pregnant with a new little Davidson baby. We had yet to share our good news with the family, with our church, with you guys. And now this. After rushing back home for an emergency ultrasound, we learned that our baby had passed away about a week and a half earlier. It was a horrible, horrible discovery. A horrible reality.

I went home, devastated, deciding to wait to miscarry on my own. Exactly one week after the fall on Sunday, April 25, the process began. But it was nothing like I had expected. In fact, I was totally unprepared. It was overwhelming and scary and horrifically traumatic. By about 11:30 p.m. Sunday night I had passed out several times, turning blue the last time, which prompted my very worried husband to call 911. One ambulance ride to the ER later, I found myself in the hospital faced with the decision to either have emergency surgery and blood transfusions NOW or to wait five hours to see my own doctor. Exhausted and scared, Paul and I decided to wait it out. I did end up needing the surgery, but it was such a relief to have it done by my own doctor who had made CERTAIN that it was necessary first. (Let's just say the whole ER episode was in a word: unsettling.)

It was a whirlwind experience, awful in so many ways. And now? I am home, left heartbroken and physically VERY weak (due to extremely low blood counts). I am just so, so tired. But I am also calm. I have a source of strength and peace like no other. I have THE only true source. Sometimes it takes some tough stuff in life to really make our hearts tender again so we can finally worship with our whole selves. And I am just so grateful and blessed to be worshiping the Lord with my life, even when things aren't going my way. So as I gaze at this young rose, I am truly filled with hope. One thing I know on this day is that this little rose bud already contains everything it needs to open up into a gorgeous yellow rose. God gave it these essentials. And then, He was (and IS) faithful to provide it the sun and the rain in all the right amounts according to this one flower's needs. There WILL be a rose. And it WILL be beautiful and a testament to His love for detail.

Y'all, I've been through it over the past couple of weeks. I've run the gauntlet of physical and emotional extremes, and I've lived through it only by the grace of God. I've been so blessed by friends bringing flowers and meals, by people offering to help out. I've even been able to go on a little getaway with Paul this weekend. And it's been so needed. Granted, I'm a little scarred. My arms are bruised from all the needle sticks, my body will need lots of time to recover from an invasive surgery, I get winded and lightheaded easily and get a lot of headaches as my body tries to "work" with much less blood, and my heart. is. tender. with the daily thoughts of our sweet baby who's already in Jesus' arms. Right now I don't know how I'll ever make it through this trial. But I DO trust Him. I DO know that He will use this hard-to-bear pain to sanctify me. I DO place my hope in a Savior Who loves me and Who endured so much more because of His love.

My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.

There WILL be a rose.

Not Me! But Maybe YOU???

I am not one bit relieved to have just done a giveaway for which I don't have to ship a thing! Because I'm really organized and prompt at shipping things out to people. Always. I mean, I did NOT just hand-deliver a CHRISTmas card to a friend the other day (because they moved and it was returned to us). I did NOT hang on to it for nearly four months!! That's absurd!

And I did not have a moment's fun reading all your comments. (By the way, obviously NOBODY likes waffles!!!) But. I actually DO have a winner. For REAL, Yo! Maybe it's you???!!!!

Or maybe it's .....

Yay!! Tamara B., I'm sure you do NOT want the waffle maker like everyone else (only you DO, don't you?). Listen, I am not one bit jealous of you either, because the waffle maker and all the other prizes I was offering so weren't my thing--they weren't appealing to me in the slightest. (Yeah...and I also hate chocolate.)

Now, back to what else I haven't done. I am not STILL organizing outgrown and winter clothing to put away in the attic. And I have not let all these clothing piles sit around in the living room, hallway, playroom, and bedrooms for weeks on end. Y'all know me better than that. I always keep things neat and tidy.

And while I'm at it, I might as well tell you that this child........

.......has the most attentive parents in the world. Those are most certainly not choking hazards he holds in his sweet little hands. He's perfectly fine. Really. Parents of four children are oh, so experienced and would never let such a dangerous scenario take place. And definitely not WHILE we take photos of it!!

MckMama has more Not Me! Monday posts over at her place. Or does she??? Hmmm...

Project 365: Week 17

Sunday, April 18, 2010

I've been enjoying our azaleas lately. They look so good with the contrasting lemon-yellow shrubs (I can't remember what they're called) in our backyard bed. These poor azaleas have really been through it, too! I'll never forget a busy Paul and a pregnant me trying to save these things from strangling grasses and weeds and too much sun (said the landscaper guys we had out to give us an opinion). I think we moved like nine established azaleas and at a pretty risky time. But they've all done pretty well, despite our very NON-green thumbs.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Today there are no pictures. It's a bad day. Very bad. But a day on which my friends came through. I am so thankful for them. And I am blessed to be a child of God, Who already knows the plans He has for me. I have hope in His promises.

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Today it's just me, Atticus, and Saylor. Paul's working out-of-town and Noah and Gabriel are staying with Mimi (my mom) during the day. They're all staying there at night. So tonight I promised Saylor we'd cuddle in the bed upstairs and watch a movie before bed. She was so cozy with her blanket and dolly she decided to just go ahead and sleep there for the night.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Our second day home alone. We spent part of it quietly doing some school work at the kitchen table. Honestly, I wish I had never put our school room upstairs. It makes it so hard to get anything accomplished, as the school-age kids still need a lot of help with their work, the babies need constant supervision, and I can never break away to make our lunch, etc. I'd much prefer to have a room off the kitchen or something.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Today Paul and I stayed home from work (no Academy for me) just to reconnect and rest. The big kids went to Academy, leaving the babies home to play "Ring Around the Rosies" and such together. I tried my best to capture the game in a photographically-pleasing way, but they were just spinning too fast in too dark of a room. So, Gabe's shirt is still "moving" in the picture, but this was the only shot I had that showed both of their laughing faces. And I just wanted to always remember how silly they were.

After Academy and baby naps, we all set out for the dreaded "Evil of Evils": Wal-Mart. We needed some basic stuff and, frankly, none of us was up to facing it alone. But the kids certainly made the best of it.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Tonight we surprised the kids by taking them to the "World of the Pharaohs" Exhibit at the Arkansas Arts Center. It would have cost our family $58+ just to the see the exhibit on any given day. But tonight they were having "Family Night." Our whole family was able to go for just $15. AND they served refreshments, had live actors in period costume, and lots (too many, in fact!) of hands-on activities for the kids. Paul and I were a couple of nervous wrecks because it was so crowded, and well...it's just hard keeping up with everybody, especially when some like to confidently run off to try this or that and others frequently need to use the bathroom. But. The kids enjoyed every moment. They thought the whole thing was just awesome! So. It was worth it, wouldn't you say? (Atticus didn't get photographed, since he was strapped to my hip in our sling. I'm sure I'll find a way to make up for that eventually.)

Gabriel pounded reeds for papyrus.

Saylor thoroughly enjoyed the archaeological dig. (She found the most treasures, by the way.)

Noah ground some grain into flour using a mortar and pestle.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Don't you just love it when you stay up late getting a uniform ready and making snacks for your child's soccer team, only for the game to be rained out?? What--that hasn't happened to you? At first it felt like a huge waste, but then I realized: more for us! These are Alton Brown's granola bars. We think they're YUM city! (This time I used Sucanat in place of the brown sugar. They taste great, but they don't stick together the way they do with brown sugar. I think I didn't take into account that Sucanat doesn't "pack" like brown sugar, so there's probably less sticky stuff than with the brown. Next time I'll add more Sucanat.) They are not, however, soaked. A friend recently sent me a soaked recipe for granola (not bars), but I was too chicken to attempt a new recipe and actually try it out on somebody else! So I stuck with the tried-and-true. (Shannon, I believe you were looking for a granola bar recipe...?) Maybe I'll try combining Alton's recipe with the soaked version and see what I can come up with. In the meantime, I guess we will somehow have to find a way to consume the soccer team's goodies. *sigh*

After the "rain out," Saylor and I had to go get her ballet recital pictures made. I would have liked to have gone to Beth Moore's simulcast, but I didn't have much confidence in Paul getting Saylor's hair up in a bun, etc. so I had to miss out.

She was gorgeous, as usual.

I can't imagine a prettier face in all the world.

That was my week.

Long.

And an emotional roller coaster.

Sara's got the whole list of project participants over at her place, so that's where I'm headed next. See ya!