Just Dreaming

The morning has a rough start.
I'm yelling at my kids almost constantly.
There's too much to do and no one is moving fast enough.
We rush through the morning, eating breakfast and getting dressed.
She chooses her clothes and they don't match.
She is putting on numerous necklaces.
Her schoolgirl outfit she insists on wearing is my least favorite.
She wants the black tights, not the white ones.
His outfit matches, but the pants are too small.
The back of his pants are all wet from some accident of sorts.
There's no time to change, at least his outfit matches.
Their shoes are too small.
I look at the clock and realize they are about to miss the bus.
Then look at another and see that every clock in the house is set on a different time.
What time is it? Are we early or are we late?
I'm still shouting and rushing, frazzled from the chaos.
I decide to drive them, heck with the bus.
We arrive at school and there are boys playing in the street.
They look at me and shout bullying comments as we pass by.
They are in fifth grade.
Sitting down in the cafeteria, my children find their classes.
I've forgotten their lunches.
They've got no lunch and no snack for later.
What was I thinking? How could I forget?
A teacher hands them each a slice of bread.
I'm embarrassed and on the verge of tears.
I hear a group of fourth grade girls giggling and speaking of things girls their age shouldn't even know.
Oh my gosh, that will be my daughter in two years.
What am I doing here? Why are my kids at this school?
My children barely look like they belong here and my heart is aching.
Why do I go through this every morning? Why don't I homeschool?
I'm so crabby to my kids......



And then I wake up. It was all a bad dream. A just-before-wake-up-time morning dream. Phew. I get my bearings and am relieved. And humbled.

Would this be our reality each morning, each week if we sent our children out of our home to school? I doubt it. It was awfully extreme and so vivid.

BUT, a dream like this on a Monday morning does make me approach the new day and this new week of homeschooling very differently. I'm glad that this is our reality, this is our Monday morning. For us, it works.

I'm Sarah and I'm a homeschool mom. Good morning!

I hope your morning and your day are off to a good start!

With A Full Heart

(This can also probably serve as my Thankful Thursday post this week)


Perhaps it's the change of seasons and nostalgia that fills the air as one season flows into the next. Maybe it's hormonal changes and a settling that has filled my days.

Pondering and cherishing. Resting and waiting.

It's a good place to be. I notice how peaceful this place is and how enjoyable life is living here.

Life is settled. Our family is growing and the children are thriving. My marriage is as blessed as ever. Breathe in, breathe out. Each day flowing into weeks. It's simpler here.

As always, yearning for a deeper relationship with Him but finding that I'm not questioning or wanting. Not at odds. No grasping. It's a much more safe and secure place to settle in, come what may.

I am at peace.

My hopeful heart is happy and full.

And I just had to remind myself how blissful this feels.


May you find yourself with a full, uplifted heart today too!!

Mommy Matters: Intimates

Finally back with a Mommy Matters post. Somehow they got lost in the shuffle of things around here, but rest assured I've still got a number of questions that need answering before this baby arrives!

So yes, today I decided to focus on 'intimates'. Specifically, bras. I just didn't want that word sitting up there hanging out on the top post. You never know who might get here with that word up there.

I'm going to lay it out there and be honest, so please don't blush. I promise, it won't be THAT detailed.

Let's just say that I've grown in more areas than my belly during this pregnancy already and honestly I'm getting a little worried. At this rate, things are gonna be awfully large before baby arrives and if nursing is in my future (which I'm hoping it is) then we're gonna really be gettin' big. Yikes. Here again, since it's been some time that I've been this abundant, perhaps I've forgotten that I was this large before. It's hard to say.

What can you tell me about maternity bras? Nursing bras? What I'm finding online is an acknowledgment that there is indeed a difference between the two, but in my searching I'm also finding that it is almost impossible to find maternity bras and every site only shows nursing bras. I don't remember having a problem wearing a normal bra during my pregnancies before, but I'm wondering if opting for a maternity bra (if I can locate one) would be a better choice.

Do you mind sharing? What do you do/wear at the later portion of your pregnancy? Where do you shop for your bras? Brands? Stores? Any other suggestions or recommendations? They are appreciated.



**Note: I promise I won't giggle if you start to blush while commenting.

Thankful Thursday

Joining in with Jamie's wonderful idea to bring back Thankful Thursday. A great reminder to be grateful for the big and small things that make up our week.


I'm thankful for....

Autumn in MN

Fun in the leaves

Children cheerfully playing

And simply enjoying

Precious children who don't mind having their picture taken

Friends who come to visit

And of course, a husband who works hard and most often misses out on all of this fun.

Autumn Daybook

For Today...10.5.10

Outside My Window...in the 40's this morning and it's suppose to be in the lower 70's today. Windy too, which means many of the trees are becoming quite bare already.

I Am Thinking...about baby names, how this baby will look when she/he is born and what it will feel like when I hold them in my arms for the first time. aaahhhh....

I Am Thankful For...crisp autumn air and the colorful leaves on the trees that are quickly covering the ground they fall upon.

I Am Praying...for an uneventful second half of this pregnancy and a change in my body that will allow for the possibility of more babies in the future.

I Am Reading...The Promise of Lumby by Gail Fraser

Around The House...leaves, pumpkins and scarecrow decor; Laughter and fun with our out-of-state friends.

From The Schoolroom...lighter days at the desk and more time out and about with our guests.

From The Kitchen...Tator Tot hotdish; Spaghetti & Meatballs; Cream of Chicken/Wild Rice Soup

For The Rest of The Week...more visiting; dentist appointments for the kids and I; a local fire station tour with our homeschool group on Friday; extended family annual hayride on Saturday.

One Of My Favorite Things...feeling more active by walking and doing my Wii Fit again since being taken off of bed rest restrictions. Hooray!

Picture Thought I Am Sharing...




Read more Daybooks over at The Simple Woman's Daybook.

A Whole Lotta Sunshine

Sunny days fill the landscape of our autumn surroundings and we are completely enjoying them.

When I needed a snack idea for Little Flowers last week, I rummaged around and found a cute cupcake recipe I had pulled from a magazine.





Feeling Sunshiny? Check out the recipe over here.

Baby Blessing: 20 Weeks

Half way this week!

What makes it even better was that all of us got to sit in for the ultrasound on Monday. It was so fun to watch the littlest member of our family wiggle around. Although I've known this for a while and my last OB appointment confirmed it, this baby is content to sit very low. Even the ultrasound tech had a tough time getting a good look at baby's head since he/she is sitting way down in my pelvis. It added to the fun of the ultrasound experience when the tech had to keep tilting the bed that I was on, until finally she got the views she needed by having my legs W-A-Y up in the air! Baby just was not going to cooperate for nothing.

In even more exciting news, I just heard back yesterday from Dr. K with the results from my ultrasound regarding the marginal placenta previa condition. The placenta has moved up and is in a much better position, so things should be back to normal. Hooray!! I got the green light to resume my normal activities again! Everything is looking great once again and normal. I am so looking forward to getting outside some more and enjoying autumn walks with my family. Thank you again from the bottom of our hearts for all of your prayers you sent our way in the last four weeks. I know that we were blessed by them immensely.

Lily was especially looking forward to the ultrasound and couldn't wait. Ever since our early look at baby when I was in ER a few weeks ago, I think she's somehow felt left out and so disappointed that she missed it. Poor girl. Over the last four weeks since our little hospital stay, Lily has also been asking me several times a day whether I have felt the baby moving or not. It's cute, really. I do think though that she just wants to be sure that everything is okay with her sibling and knows that if I'm feeling movement it's a good thing. She's eight now, so she is so in tune with this sort of thing.

Both of the kids regularly acknowledge baby most every day now. I blame the growing belly and the reminder that is quite obvious. Lily has no problem patting or rubbing my belly, even outside of our house. The kids will even tell baby good-bye if one of us is leaving the house or we'll be apart for a little while. We also make sure that baby gets hugs and kisses at bedtime too. Although Jonah is still working on his aim for kissing my belly. Depending on where I'm sitting at bed time (most often lazing on the love seat) I may get kissed much higher or much lower than my belly (*ahem* if you get my drift). And Lily, well, she's also noticing that other things grow much bigger during pregnancy as well. I suppose she's at that age to be aware of that kind of stuff. It does catch me off guard though, especially since it's becoming ABUNDANTLY clear that things are getting much bigger. Yup, we're all in for some changes around here.

Here are the latest updated photos. Yes, I've grown! I still have to pinch myself sometimes when I realize that I.AM.PREGNANT. Only mere months ago, I was uncertain whether I'd ever feel a little one stirring within me again. We have not forgotten how truly blessed we are to be expecting and waiting on baby.