My Hands Are Full

I can't believe it's been 5 months since we posted last.  Ok, maybe I can.

I was reading some blogs today and came across a great quote.  It comes from a mother of 5 and she said, "If you think my hands are full, you should see my heart."  Don't you just love that!  It is hard sometimes, but always worth it.

We are less than 4 weeks away from having our third.  It's a boy and we still haven't nailed down a name.  It will come, right?  Everyone has an opinion, but we'll choose something great for us.

This baby boy has turned or grown or something this past week, because I'm finding I can hardly breathe at times, or almost passing out and always out of breath at the top of our stairs.  I don't want him coming early, I just want to breathe normally again.  I don't remember it being this hard before.  I've heard tales, and now I understand better. :) I am excited to have a little baby and another sweet spirit in our home!

We are in the middle of birthday frenzy at our house.  I can hardly believe Zach is 8 and Avery is (almost) 5!  What?!  It is amazing to see how they are growing, physically, emotionally and spiritually.

Zach was baptized and it turned out to be an unforgettable day.  A friend told me when a person turns 8 there is a physical change in their brain that enables them to process higher thinking (so to speak).  Bascially she was referring to the "age of accountability".  We believe at 8 a child is now responsible for their own actions (for the most part).  I have seen how Zach's questions and his comments have been more in depth and thoughtful.  I love it!

Avery is a ham and doing very well.  She will be starting Kindergarden this fall.  Her speech is getting better and I think she will do well.

There is so much to tell you, but it will have to wait.

My heart is full.

SUMMER FUN IN NORTHWEST OHIO

We haven't posted anything all summer, so I thought I would add some photo's of things we've done this summer.

We had a bowling pass for the summer at a local alley.  Zach and Avery had very different approaches to the game. 

I surprised Renae with a new patio and garage floor when she got back home from a trip to Colorado!  I need to take a picture of the finished product, with the painted walls, new doors, and shelving.  

Navy Week made a stop in Toledo this year to help commemorate the War of 1812 and the victory on Lake Erie lead by Commodore Perry in the U.S.S. Niagra.  A replica ship was on hand, as well as U.S. and Canadian Frigates, a Coast Guard Ice Breaking Tug, and the U.S.S. Hurricane, a small, heavily armed patrol vessel that helps protect against pirates. 

Labor day weekend was beautiful, and we had a great time at the Fulton County Fair.  The kids love climbing on the tractors.  Zach know's that Great Grandpa Marks always had Farmall McCormick/International Harvester tractors, so he let me take a picture of him on the biggest red tractor they had.

Zach and Avery had a great summer, playing with family, friends, and each other.

This past Saturday, Eric's mom got married.  It was lovely and we got some nice family pictures.  One turned out :).

Zach loved having some cousins over to play in the backyard.

The kids have been playing soccer and here is an example of Avery's feeling about actually playing in the games, at first. :)    Now she's all in. 

As you see here

Zach ran in his first run, The Dart Frog Dash at the Toledo Zoo.  It was pretty cool, and fast a 1K.  I almost missed his big finish!  I'm so proud of him.

Happy Summer!

Worth our very best effort

Today we (Primary workers) got to attend Relief Society (yay) for a lesson on visiting teaching.  The lesson was great and one thing that stood out to me most was a quote from President Hinkley.  He said that although visiting teaching may seem difficult at times, it just takes a little more faith, and that it was worth our very best efforts!  That's paraphrased of course.  It's worth our very best efforts!  That could be applied to lots of areas, and I'm talking mainly - family.

Often times raising a family is difficult, but with a little more faith and with our very best effort, we can expect great things!

It's been a few years since I heard this the first time, and I'm so glad I did hear it.  To pray for guidance in what I should be doing that day, in the very hour.  That may sound obvious or a small thing, but many times I have several things I could be doing (cleaning, cooking, playing with my kids, teaching, getting ready for bed :), weeding, ...) and I just need to know where my attention and efforts need to be spent then.  Who needs me?  Am I missing an opportunity to teach, to observe, to bond, to whatever.  There are many lovely distractions nowadays (is that a word?) and I so need His guidance to be where I should be, doing what would be best.  Ya know?

I feel His tender mercies sometimes and I know He's there, watching and waiting for us to come to Him.

On a related note, I think I figured out how to blog with pictures on our laptop.  Our old home computer is sooo slow and made it nearly impossible.  :)
Here goes nothing:

 Zach lost his two front teeth and I think it's so cute.  

 Avery with her great grandma Marie

 It's hard to tell, but Zach and Avery are actually holding a cat, TJ.  The cat belongs to our uncle Bob and aunt Susie.  TJ was nice and let them smother him.  Maybe the bigger cats were wiser and stayed away. :)

Zach at soccer practice!  I asked him to pose and this is what I got.  

Soccer is a love/hate thing.  This was definitely a love moment.

Zach loves it when he gets there, just hates getting ready.

Avery loved the idea of playing soccer, until it came to her first game where she was too afraid. :)

She played the next game so we're making progress.

Soccer is a winner in Zach's book for 3 reasons: snacks after games, a medal at the end of the season and third is actually playing soccer.

Happy Easter

Monday, Monday, da da, da da da da (from the Mama's and the Papa's).  I do love Mondays.
I'm going to just talk about random, unrelated things here.

General Conference was SO good.  Really, they must be practicing because it just gets better and better.
Things that stood out to me, a) teach my children to work and the gospel, b) Stop being negative..., c) family time is sacred time, and d) laborers in the vineyard - we all come at different times but the end is the same.  Are we so blessed?!  yes.

Easter is coming and tonight for Family Home Evening we planted seeds, carrots, green onions, cilantro, and faith.  I got the idea from my sil, Jocelyn and you should check out her blog, the link is on my sidebar, Steve and Jocelyn Christensen.  She also was on KSL after conference talking about teaching our kids about Easter.

I'm exhausted.

Eric sorted through a bunch of our storage in the basement.  Thanks Eric!  He found a Christmas present I'd forgotten.  :)  We're ahead for next year.

I love the smell of Downy's fresh pellets, the green Fresh scent!  LOVE it.  I make our laundry detergent so I can buy that stuff.

Avery is 4 and today she told me in the car that she lost a tooth. :)  Zach has been losing his and sometimes she will tell me she is too.

Our tulips are out, the forsythia is almost all green now, but we have tulips blooming too.  I love springtime!

Books I recently read, well this year so far, and liked.  "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand, "Snow Flower and the Secret Fan", can't recall the author, painful to read at times, but interesting.  I guess that's it.  I read "Some Tame Gazelle" by it was so boring, I don't recommend it.  I do like the title though, it refers to something to love, and we all need something to love.  Or someone!

Happy Easter

V-Day

What's new with you?  Thanks for asking.  I didn't want to take down the Christmas tree, but did.  I am however glad to put up my favorite Valentine's wreath.  Tis the season, for February madness, at least at this house.  I have heard a lot of people complain about February, like it's so cold....  Ok, so it is.  We have a nice love and candy holiday right in the middle, to warm us up. :)

My grandma Christensen used to live with us and each Valentine's day, after dinner, we'd start to get ring-and-runs at our door.  Each time, we'd get a valentine to one of us kids from different people, like Jack be Nimble, Mother Hubbard, ect.  We loved it.  We knew it was grandma, eventually anyway, and my parents would stop us from running and finding her outside.  She was a spry thing, cuz we could run pretty fast to the front door.   My mom made a special dinner for our family on Valentine's day.  I thought that was so cool.  They could have ditched us and gone out to dinner by themselves, but instead we got a heart shaped cake.  :)  (That didn't happen every year because sometimes you just need to get away :) )

I love the little things that people do to make life special.

We had a special plate reserved for someone's birthday, or someone gave a talk or something.  A babysitter came recently and brought fingerpaints and big paper for it.  The kids loved it and we're proudly displaying their handywork.  I also remember some days coming home from school and my mom had made us a special treat.  It's the little things, that special touch that said, "I love you."

We have three birthdays in addition to Valentine's day this month, so I need to get cracking.
Happy Valentine's Day!

To Elder and Sister Christensen

Dear Grandma and Grandpa Christensen,

I love you!  My mom gives me hugs and kisses.  I like to try new foods.  I like playing games with my family, like Mousetrap, Hi Ho Cherry-O, and Candyland.  I'm very, very good at spelling, adding, subtracting and reading.
     My dad is very good at Scrabble Flash.  My mom is kind.  I share toys with Avery.  I always listen to my Primary teacher.  Sometimes I get snacks for good things I do.  I learn songs in Primary too.  My favorite songs are, "I Am a Child of God", "I Love to See the Temple" and "I Lived in Heaven".
   I miss you and I love you.

Love,
Zachery


(Zach is a tad generous in his descriptions of himself.  I love it though.)