Closet Full

So I have two posts that I would really like to write; and one more than the other, but at the moment I must write the one that I have the time for since I am getting sleepy!  Also, I have spent an entire afternoon (I kid you not) editing three months worth of family photos!  Phew!  I have been taking advantage of Scot being home this week!  First of all, please forgive me in advance for my brief post that could be totally riddled with grammar mistakes as I am somewhat sleep deprived with not only having a newborn but we have had illness after illness in this house off and on for the last seven weeks straight!

Anyways... So again we are a large family living in a rather small house, a concept for which I have beaten to death and will continue to do so for a while probably!  Being that may, we have decided to find added space and organization wherever we can find it and once we find and accomplish the project, I have and will post it on here.  Our latest project, although it was done weeks ago, was the girls' bedroom closet.  It was crowded and completely just about unorganized as it could possibly get.  Once again, however, Scot and I failed to take before and after pictures but hopefully the following pictures will give you an idea.

  Sky Baby and Paize playing in their closet back in the summer of 2009.

 

Top shelf of the girls' closet before the completion of the project.

 

Everything that was in the closet.  Well, everything excluding the vacuum!

 

So the closet was absolutely chaotic if you can gather that from the pictures!  So Scot decided just before I was to have Mac, that it was time to start remedying the problem at hand so Scot formulated a plan that included blueprints and more so to speak.  He gathered supplies and started to tackle the job and the following picture shows the space and organization he found in the completion of this awesome project and a job well-done! (BTW he didn't use any pre-fab kits.  This was ALL custom made.)

 

 



 

Officially

We are officially a "Table For Six" now!  Mac officially joined our family on November 13th at 3:56 PM weighing in at 8 lbs and 4 ozs, and 21 inches long.  We are so blessed to have this beautiful, full head of blond hair, baby boy join our family!  He is a mellow baby and so easy going especially when I remember such things as when I placed him in his carrier yesterday at his feeding time to quickly go pick-up his sisters from school, as nailing down a routine is far from being accomplished at this point.  I feared that he would scream with understandable displeasure during the drive; however, in the end, that was simply not the case.  He is an easy going baby boy thus far.  Perhaps the perfect match to our large family as he is our blessed sixth member.  Like with all of my children, I have fallen in love with him and his precious personality!

I am so excited to have all six seats around our dining room table filled.  We are a family of six and I am blessed to no end by that fact.  Each member of this family has something precious of their own to give and to share amongst our table of six.

I have more I would love to share, but I am currently in the adjusting phase to life as a busy mom of four now, with one of those children being a newborn.  I have posts I would like to write and to share, but please be patient with me as my household adjusts.  From the girls' re-done closet and new organization to what I have come to realize as a mom prior to the birth of Mac to the weeks proceeding his birth; but with the Holidays and such at hand, it could take me a bit to share.  Therefore, until next time, hopefully sooner than later, have a joyous Holiday Season as we celebrate Mac's arrival during this wonderful time of year!

Small Kitchen; Large Family

Excluding some minor details, our kitchen renovation is complete and I thought that I would share with you some pictures.  I wish that I had taken some before pictures, but oh well I didn't. Therefore, I will provide a quick description of what was there prior and how the kitchen has changed; and how we make our small kitchen work for our growing, large family.

We got new kitchen cupboards, counter tops, back splash and a new kitchen sink!  I am so excited about the new kitchen sink; mainly because I had been using for the last several years a one basin sink, which made washing dishes and doing such things as straining spaghetti while having other dirty cooking utensils and dishes in the way, quite difficult if you can imagine.  However, having a two basin sink makes life easier for me!  Also, having a taller faucet makes it so much easier to fill water pitchers and such too!

We also got a new microwave!  But this microwave is so much better than our original one and it is in a much better location than the prior one!  Our old microwave used to sit to the left of the stove on the counter top, leaving very little room, if any room at all, to prep for cooking or to dish out plates of food.  I would have to pick up each dish (five total before Mac arrives) and carry each plate to the stove, fill the plate with food while holding the plate with my free hand because there was simply no room to set it down.  I would do this five times in a row to get dinner on the table.  Now I can lay out all five plates on the counter top just by the stove to plate the food!  Oh how splendid! (Oh and yes, there is a plate full of steak marinading on the stove top when I took this picture today!)

Excluding the new window treatments, there is nothing really new in this picture but I wanted to show this part of the kitchen anyways.  I keep my Tupperware and the like in the bottom of my little kitchen cart we like to use as a kitchen island.  Above the cart hangs my pots.  I found this pot hanger at Lowe's on clearance a few years ago.  Hanging my pots and pans have provided me more storage space for other items since storage space is limited.  I think this was a great addition to our small kitchen and it has really freed up space for other items and storage.  I also, use the rack to hang up the kids' lunch boxes to dry out each day after school, which again is very helpful.

My kitchen is small but I have to say just doing these small simple things have really helped me gain quite a bit of functional space now, which is very helpful for a table of six!

The Smell of Freshly Cut Grass and a Cool, Gentle Breeze

Two weeks ago, when the girls were in school, I took Little Man to the park.  I want to spend as much alone time and fun time with him as possible before his little brother arrives.  I have enjoyed spending alone, quality time with each child through out the last several years.  Each of my children have their own special personality.

Anyways, we arrived at the park on one gorgeous Friday morning.  It was simply gorgeous!  Little Man played on the playground for just a few minutes and then he wanted to go for a walk around the small pond.  Everywhere we walked he wanted to hold my hand.  It was so nice and I enjoyed every single moment.  We came up upon picnic tables, where Little Man sat down and insisted on having a snack.  I quickly pulled out his snack and sat down right beside him.  He started talking like crazy as my mind wondered for a few minutes. 

I looked around and soaked everything in.  I heard him chatting away; I smelled the freshly cut grass; I heard the breeze moving through the leaves of the trees; I felt the cool, gentle breeze hit my body and I saw how the sun glissoned through the moving branches.  I then took a few quiet moments to thank the Lord for His creation around me and for providing me with the means to be a stay-at-home mom.  Such a blessing and a gift to be able to excuse myself from the hustle and bustle of a working life and mom, and to be able to have moments like these with my children and to just be able to slow down is just surreal to me; and I simply refuse to take that opportunity for granted.

With four kids, it really doesn't make sense for me to work.  By the time my pay check would come in and after we paid for childcare, there really wouldn't be much leftover.  I would simply be paying to send my kids to be watched by somebody else besides me; and in the end, that just wouldn't be worth it on so many levels.  Even after I had my first child, Scot and I made the decision that I would be a stay-at-home mom.  First of all, I had worked in the daycare setting for nine months and decided that that was no environment I was willing to put my child(ren) in.  Secondly, we wanted to raise our children and simply did not want anyone else to do so; therefore, we made the decision to make sacrifices and adjustments.

It isn't always easy being a stay-at-home mom.  Often times, you feel like you can lose your identity and perhaps a little bit of your mind being with children all day and you may find yourself longing for some adult interaction as I often do; HOWEVER, it is worth all of that and more.  True, perhaps being a stay-at-home mom and lacking an additional paycheck can bring about sacrifices, like a smaller house, less dinners out; no private schools and high tuitions; or the need for some consignment clothes shopping may arise, but those are all minor in the great scheme of things for Scot and myself.  As I am quickly learning, your babies...your children...are only going to be young and little for only so long, and before you know it they will be growing up and you will discover how very precious every moment spent with your kids was worth it and needed.  They grow-up so very fast.

Now I do understand that some parents have to work in order to make ends meet.  I also understand that there are single parents out there who have no choice but to work; but I also believe that there are some parents (get ready because I just may ruffle some feathers here) work because they don't believe they can stay home with their children and are too afraid to even try.  Some refuse to try because they have decided that their kids would drive them too crazy if they did stay home.  While others simply do not wish to make the sacrifices it would take to become a stay-at-home parent.  They are either only concerned about their own perceived needs and beliefs, or they are way to concerned about keeping up with the "Jones" to even give it a try because a wealthier lifestyle and/or toys and money mean more to them than their own kids and being with their kids.  It is true.  There are people like that out there; whether you wish to believe it or not.

Sacrificing those comfort things make you more aware of God's goodness in your life and you recognize His provisions for you and your family in your life.  You learn more about trust and faith in regards to God.  In a few short years, your kids will grow and be gone, right before your very eyes.  For Scot and myself, we have concluded that those empty treasures of this world are simply that--nice but empty--and we much rather have our children get the most of us while we can.

God fills my cup; My cup overflows...

Lord, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. Psalm 16:5 (Kids or no kids, apply this scripture to your life.)

A Couple of Brown Paper Bags

So this year I have two kiddos heading off to elementary school.  Some day, we will have all four kiddos attending school.  So what I did and used this year will most definitely come in handy in the future.

With a larger family, it helps NOT to purchase all of the school supplies at once.  Scot and I like to purchase various items through out the month of July through mid to late August, in order to prevent a huge chunk of change being taken out of our pocket purse all at once.  With this shopping style in mind, I pulled out paper bags this year and labeled each paper bag with each girls' name (but for the sake of privacy, I have turned the bags around for this picture).  As we shopped and came home with the various items, we placed them in the correct bag and marked the item(s) off the supply lists that were placed under the correct and corresponding paper bag. 

True, for some of you this could be considered a bit of an eye-sore for a month or so, but I kept the bags up in my master bedroom and out of the way.  And it really helped me keep things sorted and in order until the day came to take the supplies to school.  Therefore, a little mess didn't bother me much; especially when I plan on doing the same thing next year!

"Another One Of Those Mommy Sites" (Here and Now Advice)

My husband mentioned to me last night during our dinner and as I was explaining the reasons for my new blog, that he believed it sounded like "another one of those mommy sites."  I suppose that he is right and this blog may just be another one of those sites but I feel led to continue and I will not be simply putting up posts about how we keep our expenses as low as we can as a family of six; but I will also share about our experiences, thoughts and advice in regards to a larger family living in today's society and economy as well as how sometimes our philosophies may go against the norm, which is alright!

Now I will clarify one point, which is that I am by no means a "couponer."  I actually suck at it.  Scot and I both really suck at it.  It is not our thing.  I have tried two to three times, and I have failed miserably every time.  Therefore, this blog is at least not one of those couponing sites. I will, however, share with you various things that work for us and that help our budget as well as some tips about what works for us living as a large family in general and perhaps the ups and downs.

So for today, I will begin with one of my tricks of the trade that I do this time of year.  One trick that I do this time of the year to help lower the costs on clothing expenses for the kiddos, especially during the school shopping season, is to to think now and buy future needs now.  What I like to do this time of year is I go ahead and purchase new swimsuits for my children while everyone is shopping for and thinking about school and school supplies as well as clothes for the cooler weather ahead.  Right now is a great time to hit the clearance racks for next summer; especially, for swimwear.  This year and last year as I, like everyone else, was shopping and thinking about school, I shopped the clearance racks specifically for swimwear!  I found swimsuits for 70% off, which was a great deal! 

When shopping, always hit the clearance racks because you will never know what you may find.  I also found a grey cardigan sweater for my eldest daughter for only a few bucks, which was off the clearance rack, and is for the following school year because it was of a larger size.  Always, think about how the here and now may benefit the future and future expenses.  I will be sharing other tricks of the trade with in the next couple of days.  Keep a look out if you are interested!

Reasons For This New Blog

Well, after much thought, I have decided to open an additional blog.  I have a desire to express how we manage as a family of six, living in a small house in this economy.  However, as I have felt led to start such new topics, I wanted to keep my blog, Doors, with its original purpose with out getting bogged down with my new thoughts, additional ideas, and stories of our experiences as I have ideas to continue to write more posts for my original blog as well.

The title of this blog originated after a discussion that I had with an extended family member about a year ago.  We were chatting about how do some people decide how many children to have was what was right for them and how everyone was different and had their own strengths as well as dreams and such.  She proceeded to tell me, and those around us, that she thought that two children was a great even number for her and her family as a "table for four" at restaurants was an easy manageable number to obtain seating for dinner.  With in the last few weeks, as we have gone on various summer outings that led to meals out and about in the community, sometimes asking for a table of five can be interesting much less asking for a table for six in the near future will be as I am currently pregnant with our fourth child.

As I have recently come in contact with other families with four or more kiddos while hearing their stories and experiences recently about having what is now considered in this country as a "large family," I wanted to share some of that with others.  We sometimes get looks and stares but I am okay with that even after the nurse made a comment at Kidmed yesterday about how many children I had and how I had another one on the way.  She told me that I was a brave woman as we walked back to have my two-year-old son's cut on his lip examined by a doctor.

My husband and I just wouldn't have it any other way!  We are truly blessed by God; and we love where we are at.  It is not always easy but we simply wouldn't have it any other way. Waiting for a table for six is okay with us when we are out and about, even when the hostess may scratch her head as she determines our seating.  And when we are having a meal at home, we already have a table for six ready for us with an empty chair waiting our newest little member who will be arriving in November...hence this new blog, Table For Six.