All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy

Proverbs 22:6
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

So spring is upon us, aah I adore spring.

Playtime and free time abound. Relaxing days with out the school pressure. What more could a girl want. Freedom to step out side with out ice cold winds chilling you to the bone. Popsicles on the front porch with my favorite group of peoples. Sweet handfuls of dandelions from my loves. Seeing sweet Benna wave excitedly when we are heading out of doors.

Bliss pure bliss.

So what does spring and child training have to do with each other? Tons.

We have a family golf/ pool membership at a local country club. So that being said how does this deal with my kids?

We have decided even though we can all golf there for free if the kids go with out daddy, because this mama don't golf:-) They have to pay. Yes with COLD HARD CASH out of there sweet little piggy banks!

Do you know what the next verse is after the very famous to train up a child?

Proverbs 22
7The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.

Life is not about play. The Bible repeatedly talks about the slothful and idle and the borrower. And not in a good way. If we allow our children to expect leisure over work we have failed them. It is already in our sin nature to want the easy way out but we must fight it and guide them.

The kids also want to take summer classes. Puddin' wants soccer, Lula wants anything with her cousin, and Racky wants to take a Lego Robotics class. Well guess what? They have to pay half.

Racky's class in the most expensive. So he has been working up a storm to pay for it. No more thinking about it when I offer a job. He is on it. Also it is that job or no job. No picking or choosing. If he were working for a real employer he couldn't say I'll pick up sticks but I don't like to pull weeds. Also we pay by the job not the hour. So it is in their best interest to work quickly and see if mom will offer up another job.

What really kills me is the fact that I need to work along side of them and teach them to work. It is so much easier to do something by myself than have 5 kids helping me. So many people send their kids out into the world and let other teach them to work. That's not how it should be it is the parents job.

Genesis 3:19
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground;

The Zoo

Yesterday our zoo membership expired. Thus one last trip to the zoo. We went to the "far away zoo."

We haven't been there in years so it was new and exciting.

Benna LOVED the animals. She would pull herself close and just stare. I love seeing the world through their eyes.

Own it

Lately the idea of starting a new blog, an anonymous blog, has been bouncing around my head.

Why? So I could shout from the hill tops my opinions with out backlash or repercussion. I could spout off whatever I wanted.

This my friends would not be good. I'm sure my very few reader all know that I am of the very opinionated sort. Pretty much its my way or the wrong way. I know I'm working on this.

Well lately I've had a big hang up with people not owning up to their mistakes. They want people to cover for them or simply pretend its not there. Or even better they want to shift the blame to others. OWN IT FOLKS! Talk about erk me.

Then it dawned on me. An anonymous blog? Surely I wasn't being like them?

Why yes I was. Ugh! I didn't want to own it or stand behind it.

Ouch that hurt.

If I can't put my name on it I shouldn't write it. Even if it was always anonymous and perfectly hidden someday I will still have to own it.

Proverbs 18:7
A fool's mouth is his destruction, and his lips are the snare of his soul.

Weekend Blessings!

We've been sick! All weekend long and still today we aren't quite up to snuff. No one wants to hear that so here our blessings just from this weekend.

Friday our wonderful SIL watched our five kids plus her three plus her daycare kids while the hubby and I went to a business meet and greet thing at Fredrick Meijer Gardens. Thanks Sharon we owe you big time!!!

While we were there we were drawn for a $25 gift card to Panera. So we after stopping at Chipolte our date night full of wine, cupcakes, and finger foods and butterflies and yummy burritos bowls only cost us $15. Not bad for a nice night out who says dates have to cost a lot of money.

Saturday said sister in law called to let us know that the Walker Bike Trail group was giving out bike helmets at the local fire station. Well two kids "needed" new helmets. Benna and Hubby both received bike helmets free to us.

While standing in line for the helmets a girl gave us 5 free kids meals to Applebee's and 2 free frosty's- only two of the kids like frosty's!!

Sunday morning everyone was well enough to go to church!! A hour later not so good but at least we made it.

Monday we received a phone call that Puddin's name was drawn from the helmet thing and he won some car washes, Ucello's and subway gift cards.

Not 20 minutes later we got yet another call that Lettie had one a free pizza and Lula won a BIKE. Yes it's a boys bike and too big for her we were still quite stoked!

God is good!

Mr Steady

Hey Racky who do you want to be like when you grow up? "ME!" He answers.

Oh to be so comfortable in ones own skin.

This kid is great. He is a kid that is truly fine with someone out running him or being stronger or smart than himself. He doesn't worry about the small stuff or even care.

While he does have a little bit of a short fuse in him he hates injustice. He just can't grasp people being mean just because they can. He's bewildered by the teenager texting on the car next to us, "she might hurt somebody". Dumbfounded by the kid who doesn't listen to his teacher at school. And don't even read him a book on slavery or the like.

Young innocents. I hope he never out grows it.

Purpose to Smile

I was watching 19 kids and counting or maybe is was 16 kids and counting or 17 kids and counting.. what ever you know what I'm talking about. And Michele Dugger said that when her kids where little she would "purpose to smile at them". Even when she was overwhelmed and knee deep in toddlers and she couldn't do anything else she smiled. What a wise woman. That just always stuck with me. A smile reciprocates a smile.

Food.. again

Again with the food!

I found out where our local supermarket gets their pineapples from and went directly to them to buy them for cheaper. Yippee!! $1.90 each and they are the big ones. That turns into this...

9 pineapples= 14 quarts. $1.32 each with lids.

So with that turning out pretty well I went down the street from them with my SIL to see what else we could scrounge up.

5 lbs. mushrooms -split with SIL

35 lbs. potatoes - split with SIL

40-45b lbs. spaghetti squash

6 pineapples - yes more.

5 lbs. mandarins. - these were fabulous!!

$55, yes that takes a huge chunk out of your grocery cash but if it saves me a buck or two I'm game. We have enough bellies to fill and will go through it all that it's worth it.

If you think of it in terms of pounds of food it's a steal. $55 divided by about 90 pounds equals 61 cents a pound for REAL food.

I'm hoping to go back and get more pineapples so that I can hopefully get about 25 quart jars more. I didn't get them all at one time because I couldn't spend all of my money in one spot you know.