Hello!
This is my first blog about me being a mommie and my MommieVentures! I am excited to have started this and excited to see what comes from it! I hope that I can keep up with this and, most of all, have fun with this!
Focalin
What is Focalin?
Focalin (dexmethylphenidate) is a mild stimulant to the central nervous system. This medication is a modified version of Ritalin (a common medication for attention disorders) and contains only the most active component.
Focalin is used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Symptoms of attention deficit disorders include continual problems with moderate to severe distractibility, short attention span, hyperactivity, emotional changeability, and impulsiveness. Focalin should be given as part of a total treatment program that includes psychological, educational, and social measures.
Focalin may also be used for other purposes not listed here.
(To read more about Focalin, please click here.)
This is the medication that our two oldest are on. I wasn’t sure how they would react to being on it or how quickly it would take for their bodies to react to this medication. I saw a difference the same day! At first I wasn’t sure if it was the medicine or just a coincidence or not. As it turns out, it was the medication. Oh boy, am I happy that we choose to give them meds!
Our oldest didn’t have the best reaction the first 2 days. He became very angry & hostile towards pretty much everyone & everything. The dr that owns the practice that their dr is at also goes to our church and we are friends with. We saw him Sunday at church and told him how M was reacting to the meds so far & he told us to go ahead and give him 5mg more. (He was taking the smallest dose to begin with which was 5mg). So the very next day I give 10mg and he is much better. His teacher has even said that she has seen a difference in his behavior! He did get sick at school the other because he didn’t eat breakfast at school because he said he wasn’t hungry. So that tells me that the meds are affecting his appetite, which I was prepared for anyway.
Our second oldest, D, cannot swallow the pills just yet. Thank goodness we can open the pill, sprinkle it on some applesauce, and he can take the meds that way! He is the one that I noticed a difference in right away. He is so much more mellow and calm. You can talk to him when he gets angry without him yelling and screaming. He is also now catching himself when he starts to do something that he shouldn’t. It’s so nice to be able to enjoy him without these unwanted extras.
This past weekend is so quite and mellow in our home. There were moments when I wasn’t sure if I was in the right house or not. When we were at church and talking to people, they weren’t running around…they were actually sitting and being calm. This was not the normal in our home before they started these meds. Again, this is why I say that I am glad we decided to give them to the boys. And, hopefully, as they get older we will be able to teach them ways to cope and deal with some of their issues and maybe be able to not take meds at all. Who knows what the future holds….all I know is I am glad that we found something that can work for them both!
Filed under Blogging, Family, Hot Topics, Just for Fun, Kids, Moms
I Owe My Mother
My mommie sent me this in an email the other day & I definitely got a laugh out of it! I could hear say these things to me when I was a little girl & I heard myself saying these things to my kids now. Hope you enjoy this as much as I did!
Happy Mother’s Day 
I Owe My Mother
1. My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE.
“If you’re going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning.”
2. My mother taught me RELIGION.
“You better pray that will come out of the carpet.”
3. My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL.
“If you don’t straighten up, I’m going to knock you into the middle of next week!”
4. My mother taught me LOGIC.
“Because I said so, that’s why.”
5. My mother taught me MORE LOGIC.
“If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you’re not going to the store with me.”
6. My mother taught me FORESIGHT.
“Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you’re in an accident.”
7. My mother taught me IRONY.
“Keep crying, and I’ll give you something to cry about.”
8. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.
“Shut your mouth and eat your supper.”
9. My mother taught me about CONTORTION-ISM.
“Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!”
10. My mother taught me about STAMINA.
“You’ll sit there until all that spinach is gone.”
11. My mother taught me about WEATHER.
“This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it.”
12. My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY.
“If I told you once, I’ve told you a million times. Don’t exaggerate!”
13. My mother taught me the CIRCLE OF LIFE.
“I brought you into this world, and I can take you out..”
14. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION.
“Stop acting like your father!”
15. My mother taught me about ENVY.
“There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don’t have wonderful parents like you do.”
16. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION.
“Just wait until we get home.”
17. My mother taught me about RECEIVING.
”You are going to get it when you get home!”
18. My mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE.
“If you don’t stop crossing your eyes, they are going to get stuck that way.”
>19. My mother taught me ESP.
“Put your sweater on; don’t you think I know when you are cold?”
> 20. My mother taught me HUMOR.
“When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don’t come running to me.”
21. My mother taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT.
“If you don’t eat your vegetables, you’ll never grow up.”
22. My mother taught me GENETICS.
“You’re just like your father.”
23. My mother taught me about my ROOTS.
“Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?”
24. My mother taught me WISDOM.
“When you get to be my age, you’ll understand.”
> And my favorite:
25. My mother taught me about JUSTICE.
“One day you’ll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you!”
My mother taught me about CHOICE.
“Do you want me to stop this car?”
Filed under Babies, Blogging, Family, Friends, Funny, Guest blog, Holiday, Just for Fun, Kids, Moms
Wordless Wednesday & Thankful Thursday
I forgot to do this yesterday, so I figured that I would roll both posts into one!
Wordless Wednesday
My son went fishing for the first time this past Sunday to earn a belt loop in scouts
Thankful Thursday
I am so very thankful for my Mister! He works so hard to provide for all of us & be there for each of us when we need him. He can’t always do that, but it’s so comforting knowing that he wants to be there opposed to looking at it like a have to. I thank God for this man everyday & don’t know what I would do without him….nor would I like to find out!
Filed under Blogging, Faith, Family, Just for Fun, Marriage, Moms, Thankful Thursday, Wordless Wendesday
End of a season
Well I wouldn’t say end…more like a pause.
2 out of 4 of our children are playing spring soccer right now. Their last game is next Saturday. I am sad for them that the season is ending but oh so glad because that means that I don’t have to sit out in 100* weather for 2 hours out of the day. Oh and I will be able to actually sleep in on Saturdays now too!
Our 6 year old will actually start soccer camp the first week of June. I really hope he enjoys that!
All 4 are wanting to play in the fall, so Saturdays will be extra busy then!
Another pause to a season is coming for me. I have been working in the 2 year old room at our church every Sunday for the past few months. I have really been enjoying it..both the kids & the lead teacher. I have told the director that this Sunday (tomorrow) will be my last day until August when school starts up again. As much as I am enjoying it..I end up hurting so much afterwards. I am not wanting to go into labor early because I don’t know when to say ‘when’. Much rather be safe than sorry.
So those are things that are ending over the next 2 weeks. And school will be following very shortly!
Hope that you all are having a great weekend!
Homemade Part 2
Back in December I made a post about making homemade dish, laundry, and hand soap. Over the last two weeks have had to make a second batch of laundry & hand soap…still have plenty of the dish soap. So I thought I would give an update on how they worked, if I recommend them, and if there would be anything that I would change about them.
Dish soap:
I have found nothing wrong with the powder dishwasher soap that I made. I made it at least 6 months ago and haven’t had to make another batch yet. We can have a full load of dishes to do up to 3 times a day. We are only using a tablespoon at a time and doesn’t need more than that. It has no smell to it and works wonderfully! I have mine stored in a small trash can that has a lid & keep it in the kitchen under our bar.
Laundry soap:
The first batch that was made my mother-in-law wanted to replace using a bar of soap with soap nuts. Now since I had never made this before I went along with it. It cleaned the clothes and everything just fine….no issues there. My issue was that it was very runny…it’s supposed to thicken up like soap. This time around I did it the way that the directions said & hopefully it will look right in the morning. It says to have it sit overnight to thicken. I used a scented bar of soap in hopes that the smell would make the clothes smell good. I will let you know how that goes….errrr…smells once I use it.
Hand soap:
The first batch I made was very thick! I mean it literally looked like snot in a container. And instead of getting soapy (like store bought soaps do) it seemed to just absorb into the skin before you could get it all over your hands. Again, I used a different bar of soap this time thinking that the issue was the brand of soap that I used. After the second batch cooled and sat overnight….it did the same thing. So I am thinking that I need to use less glycerine next time around. I am going to use about half of what the recipe says and see if that doesn’t make any sort of difference.
Here are a few pictures of the 2nd batches of hand & laundry soap that I have made.
Hand soap
Laundry soap
All links to the recipes can be found here on my first post about these recipes. None of these recipes are mine!
Filed under Blogging, Family, Guest blog, Housework, Just for Fun, Moms, Product review
Wordless Wednesday
I really enjoyed doing this when I first started and so I am going to start back up again. It made me look around for something wonderful to capture….I all too often miss the little things around & this is a great way to take some time and smell the roses
35 weeks pregnant with Baby L
Taken on 051\12
Filed under Babies, Blogging, Family, Just for Fun, Kids, Moms, Pregnancy, Wordless Wendesday
My Hero
Let me be honest by saying that I haven’t always thought of my husband (Mister) as my hero. Never really looked at anyone that way. Over the years and as Mister & I have grown up and closer…he is my hero on a daily basis. I know he would probably roll his eyes at that statement but it is so very true in my eyes.
There were many times in our past where he wouldn’t stand up for us or wouldn’t do certain things because of his own pride. And it ended up hurting us as a couple & as a family because of the choices that he made & didn’t make. He had to learn from those mistakes…right?!
He absolutely did! And he started changing and making better choices and becoming the man of the house. Now was this an easy transition for me? Absolutely not! In the beginning I fought tooth and nail on most things, if not everything. To have him be one person and then almost over night start changing into someone else, or should I say a better him….was alittle overwhelming. Thoughts of him leaving me because I wasn’t growing like he was and all sorts of thoughts would run through my head. I was definitely not helping him out with what he was trying to do nor did I make his life easier by acting the way I did. But he stood by me and put up with me and did whatever he needed to do in the end to better his family. And you know what?! I thank God everyday for him doing that & making the choices that he did. I eventually saw what he was doing and wanted to be his helpmate in these changes…..not another obstacle he had to push through.
Now I know that some women have issues with submitting to their husbands & that’s fine. I am not here to discuss that but we can if you would like in another blog post. I am here to tell our story and what my opinion is. So remember that if you plan on commenting (which all comments are welcome).
Believe me when I say this took years! It wasn’t easy and it wasn’t pretty but it was worth it. And I would go through it all again to be where we are on this very day. Mister has done great things for our family and I know that he will continue to do so no matter what else is going on around him and\or regardless of what anyone else has to say about his choices. He has a big back bone and isn’t afraid to show it & use it! And I love him for that! Many men out there don’t have one and then, in turn, don’t use it. Men need to start being men!
Anyway!
Yesterday I had to take our youngest to the dr to get caught up on shots. Turned out they gave me the wrong date on the little cards that have your appointment time\date. I wasn’t upset by this…no biggie to me. Just meant we could go to the park sooner! After I piled all the kiddos in the truck and made sure everyone was buckled I went to start the truck. It didn’t start. Mmm….what in the world could be wrong with this thing!? There was gas in it, nothing was left on to drain the battery, and there was power getting to the truck (radio and clock were working just fine). So I did what any woman in my shoes would do….call my mechanic husband and tell him what was going on. He first thought that maybe a wire had come loose or a belt popped off….both of these things happened before & were easy fixes. Well when none of those things were the problem he was stumped. So he said that he was on his way..he was at work. He gets there and figures out it’s the starter. We make plans & figure out how to get the kiddos & I home. No big deal, everything is worked out. He has the truck at work today and is working on it in between the vehicles that comes through his work.
My point to this very lengthy blog post is this….he didn’t have to come out to where we were. He could have said I don’t know what the problem is and since I am at work I cannot help you. There have been many many moments where Mister didn’t have to do what he did, but he did them. I always make a point to tell him thank you because he doesn’t have to do these things. He has a choice in how he treats me, the kiddos, and all the situations that come up in our lives. It never fails either because he will always say “I didn’t have a choice” when in reality he most certainly did! There are plenty of men who prove that point everyday. They choose not to be that man in their wifes lives. They choose to not be the hero for their family. And I love that my husband has chosen to become our hero.
Let me just say this.
I am not saying that I am hopeless by any means….I know darn well how to take care of myself and kiddos. It’s the fact that Mister loves us enough to tell me not to worry about it & he will take care of it. It’s the fact that he is willing to drop what he is doing when I need him & come help me out. It’s the fact that he wants and strives to be the best that he can be. That’s a man…a real man. And most of you out there know that there aren’t many left. You may have this man in your life but your story is different from mine…that is totally ok! Of course your story will be different. I am just wanting to take a moment and give praise to Mister for everything that he has ever done for our family. I know it’s not easy but at the end of the day when I lay my head on my pillow, I know that Mister will always be there for us no matter what. And that is a comforting feeling for me.
Exciting news!
Since 2010 I know that I have been wanting to move to Texas to be closer to my mom. Her and my step dad own a few businesses that they are starting up & remodeling & all that good stuff. (They have been working years on this & cannot wait to see it finished!)
Anywho, Mister (what I call my husband) wasn’t very keen on the idea at all when I first brought it up to him. I did explain to him why I wanted to move and how I thought it would benefit all of us from doing so. He thought about it for quite some time before he agreed with me. He had a few different reasons why he thought it was a good idea, but we eventually got on the same page. In early 2010 we started looking into the area and contacting people from the city we were looking into to get some insight & information. We didn’t have th ability to get on a plane and check out the area ourselves.
We had a plan & move date in mind when we started planning this big move (we were in NC at the time). Well for whatever reason this move was placed on the back burner….I think something called life got in the way.
Then we were faced with a huge decision right before the summer of 2011. It was either stay where we were & be in the same situation we were in OR pack up and move to TX. My husband made the choice right then and there to pack up and move to TX. As excited as I was, I was very nervous….the distance & lack of planning was very intimidating to me. But I trusted Mister and backed him up 200%. I know that he was trying to do what was best for the 6 of us and that he wasn’t going to let anyone\anything get in his way of that.
So we have been in TX since July of 2011. Things are falling into place slowly but surely. Even though from the outside things might not seem like they have changed….they most certainly have! But this is not my exciting news!
Now I cannot go into a lot of detail out of respect to my mom and step dad, but they are going to finally be moving to where we are & where they are working on their businesses! They were supposed to down here a looong time ago but again with that thing called life, things didn’t pan out the way they had planned. But they will be down here sometime this month…mostly likely towards the very end of May! I am super excited!!!! Even Mister is happy and excited about this! We haven’t told the kiddos and probably won’t until it gets closer just so we don’t have to explain that it’s not time yet. And if you have kids….then you know that telling them something too far in advance isn’t the best thing you can do for yourself 
Anyway, that’s my exciting news for right now! I couldn’t be happier for them because I know this is something that they have been working so hard for this for such a long time.
Yay for great news!
Do you have any news that you would like to share? If so, we would all love to hear about it!
Stop having babies!
This statement as been said to me many times over the years, but I have had it said to me twice within the last 2 days. Usually these comments aren’t so close together. One was from a woman who has never met me & just happens to belong to the same local mom group that I do. The other was from my mom…this isn’t the first time she has said these words to me.
Now for the woman who doesn’t even know me, I told her she might want to think before she spoke and that not everyone has thick skin (mine has gotten thicker over the years). She said sorry and asked me not to hate her…..don’t apologize for your opinion & I would never hate anyone. I simply told her that her opinion didn’t matter to me therefore I couldn’t be offended nor did she hurt my feelings. And those statements are true. I don’t care about others opinions and I am not offended. Most are ignorant comments anyway.
About my mom. I am currently pregnant with my 5th baby & she has been telling me to stop having babies & to get my tubes tied since I was pregnant with baby #3. As you can clearly see, I didn’t take her words to heart. It’s more discouraging to hear from your mom (or any family) than a friend or stranger. So it gets to me sometimes when she says it. I understand where she is coming from and just wants the best for me and my family….but the choices we makes aren’t up to her nor do we consult anyone before making the choices that we make.
I would like to say something….might raise a few eye brows, might not. I have been thinking about how to word this since this afternoon after getting off the phone with my mom. And to be honest, I am not sure how this might come out. All I know is that I will be honest about my feelings, views, and beliefs. I am not asking you to agree with me, think the same way I do, believe the same way I do, or anything else along those lines. All I am asking is to be respected for the choices that are made with our family even though you may not agree. I have never minded explaining our beliefs or why we choose what we choose. But don’t ask me and then criticize me for those beliefs. This is our life. We answer to no one.
The amount of children I have & whether or not I am closing my womb isn’t up for discussion with anyone but my husband. We put our trust in the Lord and know that He will provide for us and knows what is best for us better than we do. Just because you wouldn’t have a large family doesn’t mean that you need to push you wants\needs\dislikes onto me. I can tell you right now that it won’t change my mind or make me think that you are right. How many children I have does not & will never affect you & your daily life. I don’t ask anyone to care for my children or pay for my children. My husband & I do those things. If someone offers help or says they would like to watch the kiddos, then that’s different. I am not sure why everyone else cares about the number of kids we have. If someone could explain why you care…then please tell me.
After a couple gets married, people soon start to ask “When are you two going to start having kids?”
Then you have baby #1.
Soon after that people ask “When are you having baby #2?”
Some might ask if you are finished now that you have 2. Others won’t say anything until you have a 3rd one and then people start to ask “When are you going to stop?”
What is the point of these questions\comments? People can’t wait for couples to have babies and then once the couple has a certain amount, it starts to make others nervous and question this couple. Is it because these people are uncomfortable with the fact that this couple has more children then they would want? Is it because these people don’t think that they themselves could handle that many children? Perhaps there is some jealousy mixed in there?
I don’t know the answers to these questions, but if someone would like to answer them in their opinion, please feel free to do so!
Whatever the reason you feel you need to make these comments (and feel that it’s your place and appropriate), you should probably just walk away before opening your mouth. Mothers & Fathers of large families don’t walk away from talking with you thinking that they should listen to you or that you are right. We walk away from you thinking that you are rude & who do you think you are voicing your opinion like that?! (Yes, everyone is entitled to their opinon…but it’s called time & place).
Also, there is no need to ask if we know what causes this. We aren’t stupid!
I am tired right now and cannot keep typing, but if you would like to hear our beliefs and reasons on having the amount of kiddos we do….I will be more than happy to make a post about it. Or I might do it anyway.
If you are friends with me on my personal page and have an issue with the fact that I have 5 kiddos (and possibly more), then do me a favor and just take yourself off my friends list.
One last statement.
It’s our life. Be apart of it or don’t. Simple as that.
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Filed under Babies, Faith, Family, Friends, Hot Topics, Just for Fun, Kids, Marriage, Moms, Pregnancy, Rants
Tagged as beliefs, comments, family size, large family, opinon, questions, rude