New Schedule Update

Well, the schedule is a couple of weeks old now and we are still following it. I do have to admit Tanner and Caelan are struggling a bit with Quiet Time now, but I'm committed to it! They do alright, but told me today that they want to take it off the schedule. They know to expect it, though, and stay relatively quiet and occupied reading their book selections. They have fallen asleep a time or two, but that is not really the point. I just want them (okay, and me!) to have a little down time in our day. I took a picture of our new schedule. Of course, we are never right on time with everything. I don't want this to rule our day, but to be an aide to our day. I am excited about how much it has changed our daytimes. The kids watch very little TV, only every few days for an hour or so. Otherwise they play or read books. We have a lot of books on tape we got from a daycare that closed down and they love to listen to those. They have found one that is an exercise routine and they do it almost daily. It's fun to watch Trevor try the moves in his almost-2-year-old way!

Desitin....

....is really hard to get out of hair.

I've washed it six times, once with dish soap, and I can still feel it.

New Routines

Today we started a new routine with the kids. I have been working at eliminating TV from their daily experience, but to do that I needed to have a schedule they could count on and I could follow. Yesterday during Trevor's nap, Tanner, Caelan and I worked on what their routine should include and made a couple of posters for them to follow throughout the day. They were very excited about it and jumped right into the routine today. I snuck in a quiet time for them during Trevor's nap time and as I type this post they are sitting on separate couches reading books quietly! I love it! Every time we finish an activity today they run to their posters and see what is next. The best part about it is that they helped me come up with the schedule, so they have really taken ownership of it. When Caelan started to protest quiet time today, I just showed her the poster and she quietly chose some books and climbed onto the couch.

I have been working on some new routines myself, as well. Not in the form of New Year's resolutions, just some changes I decided to go ahead and make. I am trying to get up at 6 o'clock each morning for some quiet time before the kids wake up. I have found that I am pretty grumpy though, if I don't get 8 hours of sleep. So, that means I must go to bed by 10! Tony's trying to adjust!! The nights I work (only two nights a week now) I will have to forgo the early morning. My kids don't deserve a grumpy, tired mom. But otherwise, I will be rising a bit earlier than has been my habit lately. Also, I'm trying to get myself back onto a routine for keeping up with the house and life otherwise. Catching up after the holidays has slowed me down a little, but I hope to be into the swing of things by next week.

Finally, we have been wanting to be more intentional with discipleship for our family. This Christmas we were able to find some great scripture memory music cd's put out by Max Lucado for the kids. We also got some devotional books geared for young children. And, my favorite, I found a two-volume set of Hymns for Kids that includes a book with the stories of the hymns and a music cd. The music is very nice and includes children's voices. I heard about the set over at Mommy Life.

I am excited about the changes, and the kids are, too. I'll let you know how we do over the next few weeks!

Looking Forward and Looking Back

I read somewhere that a traditional symbol of the new year was an image of a man with two faces, one looking forward and one looking back. Looking back over this year in my memory doesn't do much for me. My mind dwells on the difficult days and places I don't want to go. But if I look back in our photos for the year I am reminded that God always gives us hope, even in the darkest days. My kids have grown so much this year! Tanner is learning to read, Caelan is becoming a person with thoughts and ideas that she is sharing with us, and Trevor is expanding his vocabulary daily, always surprising us with what he says. These are some pictures of the kids on Christmas morning.





I'm glad for the close of a year. Looking back is good, but I am looking ahead today. Looking forward to how God will restore what the locust has destroyed this year. Looking forward to relationships restored, routines regained and purpose re-recognized.

Who Knew?

Who knew a few logs could spark such creativity?





Tanner and Caelan played for a few hours this afternoon in their new log house, complete with kitchen, living room, and bedroom. After these pictures, they furnished the house with a couple of small lawn chairs.



They were orphans, they built a pond, it was a castle....just too much fun!

He's Home!

We went to meet Tony at the airport last night. The kids all made welcome home signs for him, and they all managed to stay awake on the drive to the airport even though it was past their bedtime. They were so excited to finally see him walking down the ramp. And, of course, so was I! Today we took it easy. Tony slept in while we had our morning routine and got up in time for lunch. Then I finally got to look at all of his pictures from the trip.

This afternoon we built a house for the kids out of the small logs from a few trees we had cut down. Now, lest you think we are incredibly ambitious, we actually created the outline of a small house out under our cedar trees. I'll try to take a picture tomorrow. We took the idea from Tony's parents, who created a similar house in their backyard for the grandkids. Tanner loved it and really got into putting the logs down. He was ready to build a mansion!

After supper it was baths for the kids and then they all went to bed and so did Tony. He is exhausted and trying to get his days and nights back on schedule. And now I think it is bedtime for me, too!

The Journey Back

Tony has been gone for 10 days on a trip to the Philippines. We've done alright without him, but I sure will be glad to load the kids into the car tomorrow evening and drive to the airport to pick him up. Life just isn't right without him! He's had a great trip and I know that his life has been impacted because of his willingness to serve Christ wherever he has opportunity to go. I can hardly wait to see him and hear everything about the trip.

But he will not be the only one sharing about what has happened this week. I have over a week's worth of stories to tell as well. Our church family has been so wonderful while he was gone, taking the kids when I needed a break, watching them while I was at work, mowing the yard and helping out with a little extra yard work. We are truly blessed with some incredible friends! Of course, there are stories about the kids, too. We did school this week with Tanner and Caelan. They have been so eager to work on anything I could get together for them. (School this year will officially start in a week or so. Tanner will be joined by three cousins of the same age for school together. It will be kindergarten. I will trade off teaching with my sister and sister-in-law. I will continue to do preschool work with Caelan.) We rearranged some of the furniture this week. Hopefully Tony will like it!

However, just as I am looking most forward to listening to Tony's heart about his experiences and not just the details of his days, I am also looking forward to sharing with him my heart and the experiences that have shaped it this week. I will not be sharing all of those treasures here in this post. I do not know how much of it I will share here at all, but I do want to begin to write again. My mother-in-law asked me recently when I would be adding a post here, but quickly added that she understood why I had not posted. It has not been an easy year for me and my family. I have been dealing with some deep wounds and needing to heal. If you have read my previous posts, then you have had a glimpse of my journey, but that is all. I am not ready to openly share details, nor do I believe this is the appropriate place for the discussion, as many family members are involved, but I do want to share some of what is happening in my life, as it is my testimony to God's grace extended to me and my family in the midst of tradgedy.

The lyrics below are to a song by Casting Crowns called 'Praise You In This Storm.' My personal storm is by no means over, but I sense a breaking in the clouds. I have found a peace in the midst of raging winds and driving rains. There are still tears, but there is also hope that my torn heart, though changed, will heal.


I was sure by now
That You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say “Amen”, and it’s still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
“I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard me cry
You raised me up again
My strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can’t find You

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
“I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth


Tony's journey back home is a long one. He has been far away. I'll be so glad to have him back. My journey has been long as well, eight months or more of storms. But I am coming back to wholeness, and though it has been hard, I'm glad to be here.

Flowers!

We spent the day today working in the yard. It seems that we have spent almost every Monday (Tony's day off) working in the yard since sometime at the beginning of March. I have really enjoyed it and have learned a lot. We have so many flower beds. We still have not made it around to all of them for spring maintenance. Anyway, here are some of the sights around our house this week.

The Heat is On!

Well, I now have two sisters-in-law who have begun blogging and are much better than I am at updating. I'm going to have to pay more attention to this!

Things at home are calming down. Work is going well. Last night I had my last night of orientation, so next week I will be working independently with the patients I am assigned. That is a little intimidating, but I am sure it will be fine. And, of course, there will be nurses all around who I can go to with any questions I may have. The kids are adjusting to being home with Tony on the evenings I work. They are getting special daddy time, playing games and eating bedtime snacks.

I think being at work 3 evenings a week is making me pay more attention to the details in my home. Being at home all the time can make you lazy - you have all day to get things done and often don't get it done because of wasted time. I'm getting just as much or more done now as before and I've started making more time to just BE with my children. We are playing together outside or connecting inside on days outside isn't an option. I want them to know that me being gone some of the time doesn't mean that they have less of me. They are really great. Big Brother is a Rescue Hero nut right now. He loves playing with his heroes and pretending to save people. Sister Bear is loving her outside time. I bought some new sidewalk chalk for her and her goal has been to get it to disappear. Every time we go outside she is coloring big patches on the sidewalk. She comes in covered in chalk herself, but feeling rather triumphant about the patchwork she has created. And my Little One is walking around just being proud of what he can do! He loves to pester his sister and takes just about any opportunity he can to see if he can get her going - a typical boy, I guess!

So, life is going well. We are studying the book of Acts at church right now, and I am excited to see what God is going to do to empower our church body and what He is going to do in my life, as well, as we look at the gift of Pentecost together. He is good to us, giving us gifts that are good when we least expect or deserve!

He's Walking!

My Little One finally took his official "Snavely 10 Steps" tonight. His first birthday was Friday and I thought he would be walking a couple of months ago. I guess he just had his own ideas about it. About a week and a half ago he took his first step, but he didn't take any more that I caught until the last day or two. Then tonight I guess he just decided it was time and made it through all ten of the steps required by the Snavelys' before a baby is a true walker. I'm so proud! He'll be tearing up the road soon!

Tomorrow morning I start work. We decided a couple of months ago that it was going to be necessary for me to work part-time for the next year or so to catch up with life and get rid of some debt we have accumulated. It has not been an easy decision, but because of some poor planning it is needed for a time. My new job is at an area hospital as an RN on the Medical Unit. I will be working in the evenings after my initial training time. It will be an interesting time, I'm sure. I'll keep you all updated.

Just one final note...I don't know if all little girls are like this or not, but our Sister Bear, who is a mere 2 1/2 years old, has earned herself constant supervision and may be subjected to baby monitor after bedtime. In the last four days she has colored all over her daddy's computer screen, broken a light bulb by dragging the lamp across the floor (and then she cut her hand), conditioned our hallway carpet with a layer of lotion, colored said conditioned carpet with a sharpie, buttered our kitchen counters and candy dish, and painted my bedroom floor with fingernail polish. I'm not even going to tell you about what she did when she accidentally went stinky in her panties. I promise we really are good observant parents. I have no idea what has gotten into her, but whatever it is, it can turn this house upside down in two minutes or less. Speaking of which, I think I should go check on her......

Long Pause? Sorry, I've been stuck.

Have you ever experienced or been around someone who was paralyzed? I have a nephew who was born with spina bifida. He is paralyzed from the waist down. I don't know if he will ever walk. The doctors say he won't, but who knows what God may do in his life in the future. His paralysis is a result of a spinal injury and, aside from an act of God, he has no real hope that his paralysis will go away.

I had a friend in high school who had Bell's palsy our senior year. She was out of school for a few days because the illness caused paralysis in her face. When I looked it up I found that this paralysis is a result of a virus that causes inflammation of nerves in the face. It peaks after a day or two and the person usually recovers completely after a few weeks, although the effects may be felt for 3-6 months.

When I was in nursing school I worked in the Pediatric ICU. One of my first patients there was a little girl, maybe 18 months old, who was experiencing respiratory failure. I can't remember why her respiratory system was shutting down, but I do remember that she was temporarily paralyzed with medication so that she could be put on a ventilator while her body healed. Once her body had healed enough, she was weaned off the ventilator and was no longer sedated. The last time I saw her she was playing happily in her hospital room, waiting for dismissal, with no apparent effects from her illness and no sign of paralysis at all.

The past few days I have been thinking about different kinds of paralysis because I believe that I have been experiencing a spiritual and emotional paralysis of sorts. It is not a paralysis that is permanently disabling, as in the case of my little nephew; nor do I believe it is a paralysis caused by an illness, as with my high school friend. I believe the paralysis I have been experiencing is one similar to the little girl in the PICU that has been induced to allow healing in my spirit and emotions. In the past few months we have encountered family crisis of one sibling's divorce, another sibling's spiritual journey away from belief in Christ, and financial difficulties. At each encounter, and as each came, I have felt myself being slowed and eventually stopped in my tracks. Prayer has been difficult, not because I didn't want to or didn't believe Christ would hear or could intervene, but really just because I haven't known what to pray. I have been at a loss for words, and my communion with my Lord has been rest, quietness and dependence on His love for my family and knowledge of my heart. I believe there are times in our spiritual journey that words cannot express our heart, but Jesus knows us. When we are paralyzed, He knows our needs and uses the induced rest to heal us. At least I believe that is what He is doing for me. He has been my 'ventilator', breathing for me when I couldn't breathe. Sustaining my life while the Father has been healing my heart and making me strong again.

So, hopefully, I am coming out of this paralysis and I don't expect any negative effects to remain. I am looking forward to what our powerful Father can do, not only in my life, but in my family's life. He knows me best. He has sustained me. He has been healing me and building my faith in His plans. My life is different because of these experiences. My heart has been changed and challenged. Now I am looking forward to gaining new strength and joy.

James 1:2-4
2Dear brothers and sisters,[b] whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. 3For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything.

Saying Goodbye

My grandma passed away last week. She fell after Thanksgiving and broke her hip. She was doing really well until the last day. She had moved to a nursing home for rehab and had been enjoying the people there. Then on Jan. 3rd her body just gave up. She went into kidney failure and heart failure and died that evening around 9 o'clock.

(This picture is of her with my now 4 year old. We were visiting her on Christmas and a few of the somewhere around 70 family stockings are hanging in the background.)

I had been to visit her in the hospital a couple of times with my little one. She really enjoyed the visits and loved watching him climb around the room. "He's such a smart baby. And so beautiful. All of our babies are beautiful!" She never let an opportunity pass to brag on her great-grandson to the hospital staff.

My grandma was a very giving person. Every Christmas she still had gifts in stockings (that she had hand-stitched and decorated) at her house for each of her 4 daughters and their families, which was no small thing. She had 22 grandchildren and 40 great-grandchildren! What a legacy to leave. Her family was very important to her and we all knew she took pride in being our grandma.

Her funeral services were a great celebration of her life. All but two of her grandchildren were present, most with their families. The two who couldn't make it live out of the country, in Mexico and Japan. We shared many memories of family events at her home, times with grandpa and grandma centered around the pride of being part of such a great family. I'm going to miss her presence here when we gather now. I had a really wonderful grandma.

I Nearly Burned Down the House

Happy New Year! I thought I'd let you all see how our New Year's lunch went today. I turned on the stove to warm the vegetables for our dinner and accidentally turned on the wrong burners. Whoops. Oh, yeah, I also had a dish cloth, a pot holder and a cheese grater sitting on the burner I turned on. Double whoops.

We went to Mcdonald's for lunch so the house could air out a little. And to think, I had actually managed to have a good dinner prepared on a Sunday afternoon! Oh well. Tony was glad for the excitement and a story to share. Go figure.

We had a wonderful Christmas, which I hope to blog about in the next couple of days. I have lots of pictures to share. I am glad the holidays are drawing to a close, though. I think we are all ready for a return to routine!

The Christmas Tree

My little girl is in love with our Christmas tree. Tony and I set it up one afternoon during nap time. When Sister Bear woke up and came downstairs it was all lit up and she was in awe. She keeps me reminded to plug it in so the lights dance for her and she cannot keep her hands from touching the ornaments that cover the tree. (I'm just glad I went ahead and bought the plastic ornaments last year instead of those glass balls!) She loves to play with the little nativity set I received for my high school graduation from Granny Meg, our library's storytime reader. The wise men and angels are her babies and she carries them quite carefully. Christmas is becoming more exciting each year as my children are growing older and are beginning to anticipate and understand the celebration. Big Brother actually remembered that he put the star up last year and was sure to be in the room for the tree decorating finale - he again put the star up on the tree. The Little One is going to be close to walking by the time Christmas day arrives. He isn't there yet, but he is learning so much every day; I don't think it will be long.

It is always a busy season. We are in the middle of "crunch week" for the children's Christmas production at church. Three Wise Men and a Baby. The kids are doing great. I am up to my eyeballs in costumes for the Wise Men and King Herod, but I think it will all get done in time! When the play is over we have Christmas parties for the kids at church and a little time to get ready for the excitment of visiting with family over the holiday. I am looking forward to the lull after Christmas day and the opportunity to spend some time with Tony and the kids just playing. It has been a while since I have taken a day to live in their world.

My goal this season is to create some family memories that they just might hold on to for life. One of my favorite things to do during Christmas is to sleep in the living room with the tree all lit up. The atmosphere of the room lit by the tree and the family snuggling up together on the floor with blankets and pillows all around speaks of peace and comfort and closeness to me. Maybe we'll play some games or put together puzzles or just drink hot chocolate and read stories out loud. Whatever we do, I plan on having a good time and enjoying the awe of Sister Bear as we have fun around our Christmas tree.