And Then There Was Peace!

The kids were all having an independent and quiet activity at the same time!  So I just enjoyed the moment by snapping pictures to remember the moment.

This morning alligators were coming to get us.  So we had to use the bridge.  

Quiet time begins! 

You are just too cute, baby Mena!!!  

Magdalene reading at her "desk".

She has influenced Tobias in her good reading habits.  She has been sitting and looking at books since she was at least 14 months.  Jordan, did she do this earlier?  I can't remember.  

Working on H today.  Magdalene did a great job on the one below.  Tobias helped me do the others.  

Beautiful scenery and more snow today!  

Magdalene's Opinion

Magdalene and Tobias never noticed the missing tooth when they came home from Grandma and Papa's house.  I was starting to wonder when they would notice.  Time passed....they never said a word!  Then I said to Magdalene, "Magdalene, remember Mommy went to the dentist yesterday."  

"What happened to your tooth," questioned Magdalene.  "Well, Mommy had to get a new one."

She beamed and then said, "I want a new tooth."  She then placed a finger over her front tooth to pretend it was gone.

Now that melted my mommy heart.  Magdalene, you made a difficult time for me seem so much better.  

An Authentic Portuguese Lady

BAM!  Scary right!  Well, it's over with and now I have to deal with having one REAL front tooth.  I do have a denture for the missing space.  And no Helena, I will not use a Chicklet gum in its place.  Although that would be entertaining for others, but not me.  haha.  You would think I could bear pain well with having three c-sections, but wow, yesterday was miserable.  I had my hands in prayer mode the entire time.

Why did I chose to get a denture instead of another alternative, well, the other alternatives could have resulted in yet another infection down the road.  I read the studies on root canals.  My front tooth has been dead since I was twelve years old.  It allows bacteria to be harbored, which could lead to a serious illness down the road.  So I contacted the Iowa "Dr. Oz" on this, and he recommended a denture.

http://iowaholisticdentistry.wordpress.com/2012/03/06/hello-world/

I have a lot of dental anxiety and hate sounds.  Well, who would like those sounds, right?   Now Jordan will be returning to him to remove three mercury fillings.  If you have mercury fillings (they look silver), they can cause a multitude of health problems.

I guess I look more Portuguese now.  Where's my head covering, walking sticks, and sheep?

Teeth Removal....and Snow...in the House???

 Good evening ,family and friends!  We are just recovering from colds.  Compared to last winter, this cold seemed like a breeze!  It seemed like we were afflicted with various illnesses last winter.  We are truly grateful that it was minor, and we all recovered quickly.  We pray you are all in good health!

Miss Magdalene is going to start school time next week.  Initially, I was going to start with her this week, but I decided to wait until I get my teeth removed.  Yes, my teeth removed.  Oh my....

I have had a binator, braces (twice), gum surgery to keep my front teeth from spacing, a root canal (from a sport's injury), and now teeth removal.  I am finally getting my wisdom teeth out....and the tooth with the root canal.  It's infected.  I read too many studies and recently visited a holistic dentist.  I will have a denture in its place.  By the way, did I mention that it's my front tooth!  

So please pray for me.....I love to smile, but smiling with a fake tooth will be hard.  I must be humble.  Now on to the fun pictures!

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Egg nog anyone?  Magdalene placed an egg in her cup and called it egg nog.

I brought the snow to them after naptime.  It's just too cold and windy to play outside.  Thank you to one of my favorite blogsites.  Sensory bins with snow!

Philomena touched the snow for the first time!   

Patty Cake in Portuguese!

Winter Mornings

Winter can seem long.....

when you are in a house under 900 square feet, but we are thankful for our little home

Here are some of the things we do to pass the time when Daddy is at work:

We sings songs, 

say our prayers,

 help Mommy in the kitchen with baking and cooking,

help with the laundry,

decorate the walls with stickers,

read lots and lots of books,

puzzles

AND 

Tease Percy with spray bottles.  We actually were painting the snow with our fun washable paint mixed with water.  It didn't come out very blue, but we had fun painting our snowman.

Coffee!  It's a must for mommy so she stays alert.  You never know what the day can bring.

Kisses and hugs....lots of kisses and hugs

Playing outside if the weather is nice.  Magdalene, for some reason, thought our candy cane decorations seemed tasty.  

Getting the mail is good exercise!

Watching God's beauty when we're outside.  

And dreaming of going to the park

Playing with window crayons.  Tobias loves to draw and color on the window, and the best part, they are washable!  

Rediscovering old toys.  We brought our easel back into the house, and the kids had fun with it all morning.  We plan on using the easel for "school time" as well.  

Having fun with presents from Christmas.  

Thomas...train track....and Tobias wishes Daddy were with us.  Daddy always sets up the train track just right for Tobias.

Tobias looks so much like Jordan in this picture so I had to post it.  I think this is the first time that son looks like father.  

Playing with magnets

Playing with Philomena

And most importantly, we pray throughout the morning.  This morning we brought baby Jesus down for our morning prayers.  We specifically prayed for our guardian's help with obeying Mommy.  

The kids have been really good about including Philomena in their play time, but they are not so kind to Percy.  I don't even have to kick out Percy from the living room anymore, because the kids remind Percy he has to go back into the kitchen.  Philomena is really loving Percy time though. She smiles when she sees him.

Say Goodbye....Three Times!

Helena, my sister, came to visit over her Christmas break.  It was wonderful to have some family around!  She tended to Magdalene and Tobias so I could take my time waking up in the morning.  That was wonderful!  The best memory I have of the trip is Magdalene's reaction to hearing that Bear (her nickname) was leaving.  I didn't mention anything to the kids the day we were dropping her off, because she always seems to have a happy and positive attitude.  The last time my mom visited, she said, "That's okay.  Because grooown UPS come baaack!"  Yes, she sang that.  She takes after her mother, tias, Vavo, and Grandma Marian on that one.  We like to sing all the time.

We took Bear to Chucky Cheese that morning, and Daddy was able to join us.  We had a great time playing the games.  I then mentioned we would be heading to the airport to drop off Bear.  She immediately had a sad reaction.  No smile.  No song.  Eventually Helena scooped her up in her arms and talked to her.   I had never seen her react that way when one of my family members comes to visit.  I have a feeling that this will only be the beginning of tearful goodbyes for the kids now.  My heart ached at that moment.  I felt so sad.

Magdalene was expressing what I was having a hard time with as well.  You would think that saying goodbye should be easy for me.  I have been saying goodbye for some time now.  We moved away from our extended family when I was nine.  Let's just say...we were all very close.  But I learned to adapt and cherish the visits in the summertime.  In all honesty, I believe it allowed my own family to grow closer to each other.  Living far away from my parents is not easy as well.  Knowing that my children will not get to visit their grandparents on the weekends is hard for me.  But you learn to adapt, pray harder, and move on.  But saying goodbye to my sisters....well, I haven't gotten used to that one.  And I am not sure if I ever will.

So when Magdalene reacted so seriously and with sad emotion, I held it together and remembered that I must be strong and happy.

Well....I guess our Good Lord took pity on me, because we never had to say goodbye that day.  Flying that day was out of the question.  Yes!  I knew I loved winter for a reason!  Then the second time I was dropping Helena off, once again, her flight couldn't take off.  It was like music to my ears.  Helena even joked around and said that I couldn't mention her staying anymore in the rosary intentions.  Helena stayed for about three weeks!!!!  Magpie and Tobias loved playing with you, Bear!   Cinnabuns loved having you rock her to sleep.  Jordan and I miss our Duck Dynasty partner.

And I miss my true friend.....my kindred spirit....my sister.

Love you, Helena.

Here are a few pictures of the visit:

 Jordan relaxing while trying to put Tobias to sleep.  Naptime with Tobias is brutal!

 "Can I trade my dump truck so I can hold baby Jesus?"   "Can I give my block?"

 Happy parents of three children under three with a live-in nanny.

 Welcome to Duck Dynasty from my sisters

 Magdalene got tap shoes, an apron, and such.  She was excited!

 Everything is Thomas at this house now.

 Daddy babysat while Helena and I watched Catching Fire in Charles City.

 Cinnabuns drinking chicken broth!

 Jordan's gift this year was going rabbit hunting with him.  I was nervous.  I had a loaded gun.  And I prayed a rabbit wouldn't come my way.

 "What do you mean...Bear is leaving?"

 "Well, Tia Brenda better come here soon then."

 "You're kidding, right Momy? Bear wouldn't leave me.  She's my protector from the guy next to me."

 Group shot!

 Rested parents

 Magdalene showing some skills

 And helping Daddy pump the air mattress for Bear after we found out about her flight.

 "Yes, Bear is staying!"

 "Let's partay!"

Being goofy with Philomena