Hello

Hey!  So, I rarely post on this blog anymore...and here's why:

1.  I have 7 kids and am very, very busy.
2.  I am no longer following Trim Healthy Mama.
3.  I post mostly to my Facebook page as it is quick and easy.
4.  School will be starting soon, and I will be even busier.
5.  I need to dedicate my time more to my family and our home.

Some things that have happened in the last few months:

1.  We have 3 gardens this year.  I am enjoying my first year of canning!

2.  I found out I was misdiagnosed with PCOS, and am using other means to try to lose weight.

Where have all the Strong Women Gone?

Our culture is constantly bombarding women with this message:  "Women are better than men."  It has become a bad thing to be a man in this day and age.  With all the sexual misconduct allegations against pretty much all the men in powerful positions, I wonder if we should just acknowledge that every man who has ever talked to a woman is a sexual predator.  (kidding...I'm kidding...seriously!)  I fear for my boys growing up in a society where chivalry is looked at as sexism, and where they are seen as bad simply because they are male.  I fear for my girls growing up in a society where staying at home and being a wife and mother is scorned.

You don't have to be feminist to be a strong woman.  It takes strength to go against the grain.  It takes strength to submit to the man you married.  It takes strength to stay at home with small children, teaching them, and guiding them in the right way.

All I see in movies, in commercials, in the news, is this message that women have been opressed for SO LONG, we need to push for our rights as women!  What rights don't we have?  Oh...yeah... the "right" to kill our children...to rip the babies out of our wombs.  Yeah, that is so worth fighting for...NOT!  How insane is that?!  We have thousands of women marching for the "right" to murder their babies.  I'm ashamed for my fellow women.  I am angry.  I am sick.  It's disgusting.  You know what...you didn't make that baby on your own.  You needed...oh, that's right...a MAN!

Why should women want to be wives and mothers? Why should wives submit to their husbands?  Why should we love and protect our unborn children's lives?

Because God says so.
  
Strong women are those who love their God with all their hearts, minds, and souls and obey Him.  Strong women are those who love their husbands and children.  Strong women are those who stand up for their beliefs and are not swayed by trends or ungodly paths.  

"She dresses herself with strength...Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come." Proverbs 31:17a, 25
 

Post Partum Ponderings

Well, it's been 10 weeks since I had Teylie.  I struggle alot during the postpartum stage.  I hate my body, it's so fat and none of my clothes fit.  I'm heavier than before the pregnancy, which is frustrating since I worked out 3-5x a week up until the 34th week, and ate well for the most part.  I am not the type of woman who loses weight easily, and breastfeeding doesn't help.  I am also still trying to sort out my day, on top of schooling 4 kids, nursing a baby, trying to corral 2 small children, and keeping my house clean.  I'm worn thin, let me tell you. (I have been staying on top of the bathrooms, at least!  And my darling husband has been doing the laundry until I get house and school pretty much under control. {can it ever be under control with 7 kids??})

My mom-in-love (and Dad) moved away from us, which is very hard.  They lived just down the road so not having them so close is taking alot of getting used to.  I'm trying not to cry every time I think about it. We saw them every Sunday at church, and every Wednesday for Pioneer Club when they were at Prayer Meeting.  So, going from that to only seeing them once a month or so is really difficult for both me and the kids.

We have FINALLY gotten back into a school routine!!  I think we're on track to finish school by June this year!!  I do some school during the summer as my kids need it so the transition back into full time school isn't SO hard.  Liam is doing school about 2-3 days a week, so he'll do some during summer, too.  Ronan is begging to do school, so I think we may try Kindergarten in the fall with him. He turns 5 in December.

I've been brainstorming some ideas for more posts, so stay tuned!!

I really appreciate the understanding you all have as I cannot blog all the time. 

She is Here!

Well, I know it's been a while, I'm sorry about that.  We have been so SUPER busy this last month!

Teylie Robin arrived on November 30, at 5:45pm, weighing 6lbs. 12oz. and measuring 19in.  Our church put on a baby shower for us, and we were unable to make it as it started at 6:30pm the day she was born!  I went to see my midwife the day before and was admitted.  Even though she was slightly early, she had no need to be in the NICU.  We stayed for 2 days and then were discharged.  Teylie was showered with love by all 6 of her siblings. 

We had a great Christmas with the family! My older brother came up from FL to visit and it was good to catch up with him.

Our family had a good 2017...I cannot wait to see what the Lord has in store for us in 2018!

Jumbled Thoughts

Yesterday, I saw another mommy blogger post on Facebook, "What do you spend on average per child for Christmas?"...and I was shocked by the answers.  Most people commented that they spend an average of $200 - $500 PER CHILD.  I was floored! Who has that much money to spend per child for a holiday???  I didn't comment because you know how much we budget per child??.......$25-$30.  That's our budget per child.  And our kids are perfectly happy and content.  We have the set budget, and whatever can fit in that amount is what they get.  So it could be one gift, like LEGOs, or it could be 3 smaller gifts.  It would cost us $3000 if we spent $500 per kid for gifts!!  Now, I honestly don't care what you spend on your kids...I just didn't realized it was that common to spend that much. 

I'm fairly confident this baby girl will arrive within the next week.  Midwife visit yesterday showed effacement and dilation.  Today I'm feeling extremely moody, cranky, stuffy, crampy, and Teylie has been quiet.  I have a stuffy nose with a sore throat from post nasal drip...which I get before labor.  I also get these moods where I just want to be left alone.  I am SO cranky, it's ridiculous!!  I am trying to not be...but it is very hard.  My back and lower belly ache so much!!!! Mary said Teylie is also in a -1 station so she is definitely getting ready to come. 

I cannot wait for Black Friday....because my husband lets me play Christmas music and put up my Christmas decorations!!!!!!!!!  

I'm Back!

So, I finally got a new laptop!! I budgeted one in this week, and found a nice one for a great price!  I bought and returned 2 devices in 2 days...before finally finding the right one!! (the Walmart electronics guy had no idea what he was talking about, and I ended up buying another tablet...which is considered a mobile device.  The Chromebook I got at Target isn't compatible with most coupon printing software...so I couldn't use it for the very reason I bought it in the first place!!!)  I ended up getting an HP with Windows 10, and I am loving it so far!

This means that I can now post blog posts with pictures and all kinds of other nice things again!! So stay tuned! Thanksgiving is coming up, and our baby's birth looks like it will be in the near future.

Our newest Baby Sortwell

I posted about our 20 week ultrasound that showed we are expecting a girl.  We have finally figured out her name!!!  Now, it took us a while because we had a first name, but the middle name we had chosen just wasn't working with it.  Our brother's first wife's name was Kaeli Ann...and we discovered she kept his last name (Sortwell).  She isn't a very nice person, so we didn't want our daughter's name to be SO close to hers.  But we were pretty set on the first name.  In order to make it work we decided to go with my mother-in-law's  name, Robin.  So, our daughter's name is...

Teylie Robin Sortwell

Hey There!

So, I still don'the have a desktop or laptop computer, but my tablet rebooted itself and works much faster so I can post from there.  I can' figure out how to upload pictures, though.  Just wanted to let you all know I'm still here.  I post from my phone onto my Facebook page, so click the Facebook icon to the right and follow me there!

Our Newest Baby

This week I am officially at the halfway point in this pregnancy!!  And yesterday was my mid-term anatomy ultrasound.  I was able to drop my oldest 5 kids at a friend's house, and my mother-in-law, mom, and youngest went to the doctor's office. 

What I love about the place I'm going to is that the neonatologist I am under (while being seen by midwives) does my ultrasounds.  He is the formost 4D ultrasound doctor in the area, so he does things quickly and efficiently.  What used to take me an hour with the tech at the other place took 20 minutes with him!  He also asked if we were finding out the gender, to which I said "YES"!! 

I had this feeling I am carrying a girl, although at my last check up the heartbeat was 140-150s which is what my boys were, so I waivered a little.  But the past week I felt a strong girl 'vibe'. 

He checked my cervix to see if there was a change indicating preterm labor.  Everything looks great and sealed tightly shut!  So then, he went straight to the reason I was so excited.  He asked me first, "What do you think you're having."  and I said, "I think it's a girl."  He took a look and said,

"Looks like the girls have it!  It's a girl!"

Fionna is just over the moon excited to be getting another sister.  Kayson was super disappointed at first, but today he is feeling much better about it. 

Now, Bram and I need to find the perfect name for our little girl! All we know right now is her middle name will be "Ann" after his Nana Brow.  (his Nana Jones' middle name is "Anna" which is pretty cool!) 

She was shy.

I Love having a Garden!!

Seriously...is there anything more amazing than seeing plants you've planted and watered, and weeded yield their fruits???  AGH!!!  It is SO very exciting to me!  I checked my plants today, and I have tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, summer squash, blueberries, strawberries, spaghetti squash, jalapenos, cabbage, broccoli, and potatoes all growing at a great rate!  I even picked some bell peppers that were ready.  Here are some then and now pictures...

THM Recipe: BBQ Bacon Chicken {THM - S}

I came up with this recipe on a whim.  I was craving BBQ flavor and bacon.  There are a few on plan BBQ sauces you can buy in a store.  I'm sure you can find some on Pinterest as well.

BBQ Bacon Chicken
(Print This Recipe!)
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

1c. Any on plan BBQ sauce.  Mrs. Criddle has a great one here
6-8 chicken breasts
6-8 slices bacon (I used thick cut)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400.  Trim fat off of chicken.  Cut each breast in half width-wise.  Coat chicken in BBQ sauce.  Wrap once bacon slice around each piece of chicken.  Spread more BBQ sauce on each piece of chicken.  Place on a greased baking sheet or roaster pan. Put into the oven and bake 30-45 minutes.  When internal temperature is 160, flip chicken over and broil for a minute or 2, to crisp up the bottom of the bacon. 

Or, You can heat up a grill and grill them! 

ENJOY!

THM Recipe: Chicken Jalapeno Popper Casserole {THM - S}

I am currently in love with all things jalapeño!  So, I took a recipe I found from Pinterest and turned it into a THM-friendly meal!

Jalapeno Popper Chicken Casserole (S)
(Print this Recipe!)
Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

2 jalapenos, diced small (seeds out)
4-5 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
2 cups Monterrey jack cheese, shredded
1 box Dreamfields rotini pasta, cooked.
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cups water
1 pkg. 1/3 fat cream cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook chicken and pasta.  Dice chicken. Dice peppers.  Put chicken, diced jalapenos, & pasta in a casserole dish (I used an 11x15 pan).  Shred both cheeses.  Bring cream, cream cheese, & water to a boil in a medium sauce pan.  Slowly add in shredded cheeses, stirring until cheese is melted.  Pour over chicken, jalapenos, & pasta.  Mix together, put into the oven for 20 minutes covered.  Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes.  ENJOY!

Milestones

Well, we made it past 10 weeks!!  Darcy was miscarried at exactly 10 weeks, so I was nervous as we approached week 10 with Sparky Nugget (as my kids call the new baby.)!  I had a midwife appointment this past Wednesday, and Libby used the Doppler to try to find a heartbeat.  It took about 5-7 minutes, but we finally heard the "thwump-thwump" of a heartbeat!  I unexpectedly teared up.  It was such a beautiful sound!  Libby understood, and said, "At least they are happy tears!" 

I have the mid pregnancy anatomy scan with the neonatalogist in August when we are at 19 weeks.  I am SO excited to find out if we will be having a girl or a boy!  We do have some names picked out, but are undecided between 2 boy names and 2 girl names.  We do know that if Sparky is a girl, her middle name will be "Ann,"  after my husband's Nana Brow.  Since this is the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, I thought it'd be cool/fitting to use the middle name "Luther" if it's a boy...after the man who started the Reformation by nailing his 95 Theses to the doors of the church in 1517. 

I love Summer!

I'm so excited....because my husband and I are busy creating our vegetable garden, front flower garden, and our front porch haven!! 

Our front flower garden has been slowy deteriorating since we moved in 9 years ago.  My mother-in-law had some mini roses and tuilps in the front garden.  It was a cute little garden!  When we lost our little Darcy last year at 10 weeks gestation;  we buried him/her in a corner of the little garden.  My husband bought a beautiful headstone and we put it in the garden.  We want to make it look pretty, so we have planned a cute flower garden to spruce the space up.  

(not my garden)

I love growing vegetables!!  I love transplanting the plants and watering them. I love watching the veggies grow from tiny to big because I took care of them!  We have a slightly raised bed garden in our backyard.  This year we are planting tomatoes, broccoli, potatoes, basil, cilantro, cucumbers, zucchini, spaghetti squash, jalapenos, cabbage, cauliflower, blueberries, and lettuce.  Our strawberries have come back even though I planted them 2 years ago!! I am excited to see how these veggies will grow!

My dream has always been to have an inviting, relaxing front porch for people to relax on.  I love white wicker!  I have to figure out what colors I want, but I know it will include red accents.  I cannot wait to have this space all set up! 

(just an idea picture)

Nearing the End

It's that time of year again!!  The time of year where kids can play outside all day, and Mommy doesn't have to constantly say, "Do your work!"

It's almost the end of the school year!! 

We started over with our curriculum about 6 weeks after school started, so we are behind in a few subjects...but for the most part...we should be done by the end of June! 

Don't get me wrong:  I love homeschooling!!  But I do enjoy my summer break.  I will do a few things with the kids, like make them read a small chapter book at least 3x a week to keep their reading skills up. 

Even though Liam will be 5 by September, I may wait a year to start him in school.  Right now, he doesn't seem at all interested or ready to start.  I'll be able to determine more closer to fall. 

Are you almost done?  Hooray! 

I Love Food!

Ok, so...I have to confess...I LOVE FOOD!!!  Pretty much all of the bad things like donuts, pizza, burgers, fries, cheese, cupcakes, cheesecake, etc.  are what I love.  Food tastes amazing, and when I'm stressed, it makes me feel better. (mentally...physically, if I eat too much, I do NOT feel good.)  And with a love of food comes the yo-yo weight gain/loss.  I hate that!!  I'd rather see the scale moving down...not up and down. 

So far, this pregnancy, I haven't gained anything.  I lost 2lbs., actually.  But I have been eating horribly...as in, burgers, chips, mac 'n cheese, and what not.  It's bad...

So, I've decided to do my best to cut out sugar and bad fats...basically THM but with a ton more grace and understanding. (plus, this pregnant mama wants her Sweet BBQ Bacon burger from McDonalds every once in a while!!) 

Tonight, I'm making THM Lemon Bars which I will review in the coming days/week.  I also plan on making more THM dinners, which the kids and the hubs like.  I also bought some Halo Top ice cream in Salted Caramel and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.  Hopefully I will maintain a  healthy diet throughout the pregnancy!!

 

Our Newest Baby!

Yesterday, I woke up and I was bleeding.  I panicked immediately, and scheduled an ultrasound with my midwife's office.  Turns out I have my usual subchorionic bleed...that normally resolves itself around 7-8 weeks.  I am SO relieved!!  I did get 2 pictures of our new baby!  There isn't much to see, as I am only 6 weeks, and baby is the size of a sweet pea.

Baby Sortwell #8!

THM Recipe: Cheesy Bacon Dip (S)

This recipe came from my aunt.  She always brings this dip to family gatherings, and it is just SO delicious!!

Cheesy Bacon Dip (S)
(Print this Recipe!)

Ingredients:

6 slices cooked bacon, chopped
6 green onions, chopped (just the green parts)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup Mayonnaise

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.  Keep refrigerated.  Serve with on plan tortilla chips, any one of the crispy recipes in the THM cookbook, or chicharrones.

Enjoy!!

Determined to Stay Active

I am resolved.  No excuses.  I WILL maintain an active pregnancy.

I always say I'm going to keep up with exercises and workouts during my pregnancies...and then promptly use the fatigue, the aches, the pains to excuse my laziness.  Well, not this time!  I'm currently at my lowest starting pregnancy weight since Fionna (I was 130lbs. when I got pregnant with her...)  at 167.  I want to keep that, and maybe lower it.  At the most, I don't want to gain a ton more.  I only gained 7lbs. with Winry so I know it can be done!!

So, what's my plan??

1.  I will stick to a healthy diet.

I will mostly stick to a Trim Healthy Mama diet with graces given for times I just slip or knowingly go off plan.  I'll be watching calories and counting macros to some degree.  I will make sure I'm getting the right amount of protein.  I'll be making better choices.

2.  I will actually workout.

I've found several pregnancy weightlifting programs that I want to follow.  Of course, no super heavy weights, but since I was already doing that prior to getting pregnant, I can still do it during.  I also will still be doing my Zumba, PiYo, and RIPPED classes when I can.  I thoroughly enjoy jogging in the summer, and cannot wait to start back up soon!

3.  I will listen to my body.

With all exercising, you must listen to your body.  If it feels uncomfortable, check your form.  If it causes issues afterwards, lighten your weights/shorten your reps.  Knowing what your body can handle is great for preventing injury.  Listening also means, if you're craving something, eat it.  It's ok if it's not the healthiest...just have it once.  If you crave it all of the time, maybe try finding a healthier alternative.  I'm currently craving jalapenos...which are pretty healthy...so that's a plus!

I am determined to remain active and healthy throughout this pregnancy.  I enjoy working out, and being active, and that can make a pregnancy pretty enjoyable, too.   

A Rainbow of Hope...and Fear

After the Great Flood in Genesis, God put a rainbow up in the sky, to show His promise to the earth.  Today, whenever we see a rainbow, it reminds us of God's promises, and that He never breaks them.  It gives us hope, knowing we are loved by a God who keeps his covenants with His people.

A miscarriage is one of the biggest storms a family can go through.  It has dark, dark days.  The sun never seems to shine.  All is despairing and gloomy.  And sometimes God sends a rainbow.  A Rainbow Baby is a baby conceived after a loss...whether that loss is a miscarriage, still birth, or newborn death.  It is the beauty after the storm.

Last week, during our flu escapade that lasted 5 days, we found out we are expecting again.  Seeing those 2 pink lines gave me such mixed emotions!  I was elated, excited, and surprised.  And with that came the fear. 
"What if I lose this one, too?"

God is in control over all things.  And He loves and cares for me and my children both living and in heaven.  If He chooses to take this child to be with Him in heaven, then that is His will.  I have comfort and joy knowing that I will see my children again in heaven someday.  And if He mercifully allows this child to remain on this earth, we will love and cherish him and raise him up to love the Lord. 

Everyday brings joy knowing there's a little life inside of me.  Some days I have mini panic attacks that wash over me like a wave.  I have to calm myself down.  Pray.  Beg God to give me His peace.  I know it's normal to be hyper-aware of every twinge, every cramp, every strange feeling after a miscarriage.  I am trying my best to trust in the Lord and give my cares, my baby, into His loving arms.

So, here we go again!

 Baby Sortwell #8 is on it's way!