Around My House...

The Rapture

There has been a lot of talk about the end times lately in our house. That and discussion on how to hear the voice of God. Needless to say, family devotions have been very interesting. Kelsea and Haley have been listening to Pastor Lonnie's three set CD series on Revelation. It has stirred up a spirit of evangelism in our home. They have all been sharing Christ at school more than they ever have before. This makes a mother proud and it also stirs my spirit.

I have always believed that a great spiritual awakening and worldwide revival is going to take place through young people. Watching such an awakening occurring in my home right now, I am looking for an extreme global outpouring to take place at any time.

"And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams" (Acts 2:17)

Ministry Stuff
Every week I try to sum up in words what God is doing... and well, there aren't enough words. In our home, family, community, church, ministry... He is moving. As the church, we have made it a priority to solve the problems nearest us, and as we have started to do this we are seeing increase. As a family, Craig and I make our girls and each other our first ministry... and we see increase... our relationship with Daddy God... priority... relationships with others... priority... and we see increase.

Personally
I wish I had an extra five hours per day... some days I just have to take a deep breath... whew...! I know it will get easier once we move to the Dallas-Hiram area. I just have to hold it together until then. Seriously, I have SO much to do... and 24 hours just ain't cutting it! BUT... as Bishop says, "TIME is something we're all given the same measure of daily..." So, I will make it work... just like everyone else!

And right now it it TIME to cook dinner....

Miracle in the Mouth

My three oldest girls had to visit the dentist today. We showed up with xrays from their last visit in Chicago, which was at the tail end of January. They all had cavities, some more than others. Kaitlyn has had more work done on her teeth, and the other girls has been minimal. So, we showed up ready for the drill, xrays in hand.

Imagine our surprise when the dental hygenist AND dentist could not find any cavities in Kelsea or Haley and only a couple in Kaitlyn! The xrays and our previous dental visit showed two in Kelsea, three in Hakey and several in Kaitlyn. Well, the final decree was Kaitlyn has a couple and that is it! The whole office was surprised but not my husband! He was walking around saying, "Hey, I prayed and asked God to intervene!" And intervene He did... so awesome!

Keeping Up with the Sloans

Have you ever worked so hard on something consistently and for HOURS that your entire body ached like you hiked the Himalayas?! Well, that would be me!

I have been working on our new home and that has included heavy lifting and moving things and dragging or pushing what I couldn't carry. And my muscles are sore! BUT my house is coming together! Woo Hoo! I really want to put up some pictures but I want to wait until my furniture comes in. So, hopefully in the next couple days! There's a lot more I WANT to do but it will wait until I pull the funds together! :)

Aside from that working at home is becoming something I am getting used to. It can get strangely quiet which can be good and boy can I knock out work FAST... but sometimes the quiet is "LOUD!"

I am working on a steady schedule too so I can make the most of my time ALL of the time. I have so many projects happening right now! I'll be sharing one of the newest ones VERY soon. Keep your eyes peeled!

My parents will be visiting this week as well. They'll arrive Thursday evening and stay for a few days before heading to see my sister in Texas. The girls are OVERJOYED that their Poppy and Grammy are coming!

Kaitlyn has been getting her bearings at OHS and as many of you know, she and her former "special" friend are well, "special" again. (Craig will not allow me to call it anything other than that! :) Kelsea is in the midst of cheerleading team tryouts for next year. She'll be in high school. Haley and Lexi are making new friends and doing SO well. I am very proud of them! Hakley managed to teach Kelsea how to do some new acrobats this week and taught Lexi to ride a bike with NO training wheels! Woo Hoo!

Our puppy Lola has not been feeling very well today and last night. Please say a prayer for her. Yes, I believe God loves our animals too... he made them afterall! :)

I'm off to watch for the bus. The girls should be home in a minute.

Glad we could catch up a bit!

Happy Birthday Katie-Lynn!

Today is my oldest daughter, Kaitlyn's 16th birthday. Sixteen! I can hardly believe it! In two years she'll graduate high school and then be off to college. Wow, where did all the time go?

She is such a good girl. She has a heart for God and a desire to serve him. She is also a very talented dancer, choreographer, singer, and has a knack for media arts. At the age of 13 she preached her first sermon, and at the age of 14 she was leading dance ministry in our church.

We are so proud of her and the woman she is becoming!!!

Happy Birthday Kaitlyn Brooke!

Fall Fun Photos

Here are some fun fall photos of the younger girls, Lexi and Izzie... Lexi is Tinkerbell... and Izzie, well, she was SUPPOSED to be a french poodle BUT she wouldn't let me put the whole costume on her and was freaked out by the face paint! SO- I got her to put a few pieces of the costume on at home but she left the house as a Tennessee Vols cheerleader! Oh well!!!!

Lessons from Lexi

Wait, wait, wait... I have to share a couple things my six year old Lexi said this week....


The Air We Breathe?

In a converation at dinner Lexi was telling us about what she learned in science. They have been learning about extinction. I asked her what animal was in danger of or was extinct that interested her. She was trying really hard to remember and said, "Oh now I remember! Oxygen!" We were all really trying to figure out what she was talking about. "Um, sweetie, are you sure?" "Yes mom, oxygen are getting extinct. You know, those things that work on farms pulling stuff?"

Me: "Oh, you mean oxen?"

Lexi: "Yes, that's what I was saying, oxygen!"


Three What?

Lexi: "Mom, have you ever seen a three eyed dog?"

Me: "A what?"

Lexi: "A three eyed dog."

Me: "Um, no, can't say I have hon."

Lexi: "Oh, well, they are really special. They help blind people get around cause they can't see. The dog sees for them.They are called three eyed dogs."

Me: "Oh, yes, I think I know what you are talking about now." Seeing Eye Dogs...


Lexu has been soaking up first grade, she really loves learning and always has an interesting twist to whatever she shares! Thought you'd like to hear a little, Lexi style!

My Weekend

My posting has been sporadic over the last week. With Craig ministering in Florida it has been just me and the girls for the last week. And I had been gone four days as well the week before. SO, I felt it was really important that I spend some qualty time with my girls. We really had a fantastic week together. I didn't even turn on the computer much, just cooked dinner with them and spent a few hours each niht together. After working all day and them with school it was the perfect end to the day although we all missed Craig terribly.

On Friday night we ordered Chicago deep dish pizza and watched Wife Swap and Supernanny. Then we all turned in fairly early because we had to get up early the next day.

On Saturday, we did our bi-monthly grocery trip at Meijer. Meijer is a lot like Super Walmart/Target. They were having a fall festival so the girls got lots of candy, crayons, water colors, apples, and trinkets while shopped. It kept them all busy! I loaded up my two carts (boy those cashiers hate to see me coming!) and checked out, then we headed home to unload and relax.

Sunday afternoon I took Lexi for a haircut then treated the girls to High School Musical 3. It was fun. One of my coworkers was sitting right beside me with her daughters. Who knew! We ran a couple more errands before heading home. The girls ate a light dinner then got ready for bed and school the next day.

I ended up working from home today because Izzie's sitter was not available. I amazed myself at how much I accomplished even from home with a two year old!

And now, I'm getting ready to make a pot of chili for dinner and wait for Craig's arrival. This will be it for today because I have to finish my Take Root article for tomorrow and get my girlies ready for school tomorrow!

Driving (with) Miss Kaitlyn & Other Sloan Stuff

Our weekend has been both busy and relaxing. As I type this I am sitting up in my bedroom, partly because I have a snuffy (as Izzie says) nose and partly because I am resting before Craig and I relax for a bit together and watch Amazing Race and some other new shows. Sunday nights have kind of become "our night" when the kiddos go off to bed. I usually last about 2 or 3 hours then I am nodding off!

Yesterday we did our bi-weekly grocery shopping. It is a serious ordeal, and a little time consuming. I took the older girls to help me. First I hit up Aldi and grab anything on my list that I can get there. Plus, the little ones like the fruit cups, and I like their price compared to everywhere else! The we head to Meijer in the suburbs where we finish up! It is about 2-3 cartfuls and every checker groans when they see us coming! The checker this week said he was about to signal the manager to come out, shake our hands and throw confetti. LOL! But, I stock up for two weeks at a time and we rarely, if ever eat out. Maybe once a month, and we might do take out once as well. The girls take their lunches too, so we end up getting the best bang for our buck!

While pulling into Meijer, (which has a very long industrial park driveway which is not used much), I was somehow coerced by Kaitlyn to allow her to drive and show me what she's learned in driver's ed. Evidently, she has learned to "park" so, in a moment of weakness, I said, yes. What was I thinking?

It seems she forgot to mention that they had not learned to use the gas pedal yet, as a matter of fact, they get into trouble if they even try to use the gas pedal. Instead, the cars are wired to cruise at 5 mph and they use the brake pedal and gears only. For some crazy reason, since I was unaware of the no gas pedal rule, I told her to put her foot on the gas which she did, and was doing quite well...going 10 mph for about 10 feet. Then, when it was time to turn, I gave the instruction to flip the turn signal on. I don't know if it was the confusion of pressing the forbidden gas pedal and flipping the signal, but she made this huge serving motion that almost through us into a small tree, thank God she managed to remember where the brake was!!!!! Anyway, I took over from there... and then told me about the "forbidden" gas pedal... We'll see how soon she'll get to drive again...

In other news, Craig and I have been taking some courses on churchplanting which have been awesome! They are interactive and come with lots of homework and some terrific resources. It seems God is triggering some new possibilities and potential doors through taking these courses... I'll be sharing more in a week or two... as we continue to seek the Lord and listen...

Until then, I'm going to bathe my little ones and get them ready for bed!

Today...

I have been knocking out so much work today that I looked up about an hour ago and saw it was almost 4 pm! Whoa! I am on a roll! I'll be able to go home and do the same tonight. Dinner is in the crock pot, Craig has a meeting and I'll have some time to focus. I smell opportunity!

One thing that must be done is getting the house ready for Haley's birthday party tomorrow. she is so excited! I am planning a very girlie "Spa Party" complete with ALL the trimmings... facials, manicures, pedicures, and makeovers. Of course we'll also have chocolate fondue, little snack trays and banana splits! We're also going to watch the new Cheetah Girls movie and then some of the little girls will be sleeping over! Saturday morning will find Daddy (Craig) making pancakes. Then he has to head to a church workday and I have to take the two older girls to Steve and Barry's in the suburbs for some school clothes. I have finished getting the school supplies and all of Lexi and Haley's clothes.

It has been such a chore this year! I suppose because we've had so much going on with our move, work, and Craig and I both have upcoming ministry appointments in September.

Before I sign off, be looking for a special announcement in the next few weeks. It is something I am SO excited about.. I can't wait to share!

Until then...

Haley's Birthday and Guess Who's Using the Potty!

Sunday is always a busy day in our home! Our church presently has two services and will be going to three in September. We leave our house at 7:15 am. It's a long day when the girls and I stay for both services. When we do, we don't arrive home until after 3 pm. THEN we get to have lunch. I try to take snacks, juice boxes and water but typically everyone wants some serious food as soon as possible!

Today we came home after the first service to meet the plumber. Of course Craig had to stay but the girls and I hurried home. Thankfully, the plumber found and fixed the leak without having to tear out my dining room ceiling! I was not looking forward to living in a construction zone so that was terrific! I'll try to get some pictures up of our new home this week. I am about 90% done with everything. I just have to complete the bathrooms, new bedding for the girls. organizational stuff, and some decor items.

Craig got home late from church because he had to visit someone in the hospital. He was thrilled to find an intact ceiling when he arrived home!

Another exciting bit of news... Isabella used the big girl potty! Okay, okay, I know... TMI! (BTW- that is not a picture of Izzie)

This evening we celebrated Haley's 11th birthday as a family. Her birthday was actually the 4th but we were moving so she graciously allowed us to postpone our celebration. We had a great time! She'll be having a party with friends this weekend, a sleepover. For her presents she received the new Jonas Brothers CD and the newest Dance, Dance Revolution game for her PS 2. Needless to say, we've been listening to a lot of pounding from the upstairs in Haley's room! ALL five of the girls were up there taking turns. This is going to be a FUN new toy, I can tell already! Craig keeps looking at me with that, "Seriously????" look on his face. I just smile and shrug my shoulders... I'll bet he'll be up there with them in no time!

All in all, I can't believe she's 11! She is our miracle baby, well, their ALL miracles, but Haley was born at 29 weeks. That little trooper defied every odd and was off the vent in less that 24 hours! She was eating from a bottle in no time too. My doctor told me that she knew she'd make it as soon as she pulled her out during my emergency C-section. She started squirming and fussing in spite of living in my womb where her protective water sack had ruptured at 19 weeks. Talk about the power of prayer!!! I had a placenta abruption at 16 weeks which caused continual hemorrhaging and eventually my water broke. After spending several weeks on bedrest and in the hospital for a few weeks, Haley had to be born. We named her Haley which means, "heroine," as in 'female hero.'

About two months after she was born we brought her home. The first year and a half was rough. She was in the hospital and at specialists more than I can recount! Still, God's hand continued to rest on her. She is now a very healthy 11 year old, on the honor roll, sweet, loving, a friend to all, and full of SUCH potential! That girl has a tremendous destiny ahead of her! I am so proud and honored to be her mom.

Happy Birthday Haley! Mommy loves you!

Sidebar: Craig blogged his thoughts on Haley's birthday too... I had to giggle for a minute. I think he confused a couple of the girls' birth stories with hers. With five, yeah, I'd say that would be easy for a dad to do. You know us moms, after going through all that... we remember EVERYTHING! One thing's for sure though, that man LOVES those girls, so we won't fault him for forgetting a few little details!

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