Kai-versations: This sad, small, lonely house.

We found a home for the chicks at the beginning of this week. And Kai was absolutely devastated. In all fairness, she was like their foster mom. She fed them every day. Made sure they had water. And diligently checked the temperature in their brooder to make sure they were warm enough. So, in a way, they were her babies.

But I just couldn't have them living in my dining room forever and we eventually had to find them a home. We ended up selling them to my college friend's grandfather (via Twitter) and she came to pick them up. Kai bravely put each chick in the box and said goodbye, but the moment they were out of the house she broke down in tears.

And by tears I mean hysterical gut-wrenching sobs. For an hour.

When I finally got her to calm down I asked her why she was so upset and she said, "Because without those baby chicks we're just a sad, small, lonely house now. We have nothing here to keep us company. All we've got is 3 kids, 12 chickens, a rooster and a dog!"

Ah, yes. That sounds lonely indeed.

Sure she looks sweet, but...

this is the same girl who made him wear a plastic bowl on his head while he was trapped in the exersaucer yesterday. So, beware the cute older sister. They're never as sweet as they look. (Take it from someone who knows.)


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If at first you don't succeed, try laziness...

Alternately titled: How I Potty Trained My 2nd Born Child

When Ivy was in school last year her teacher encouraged me to potty train her. I thought it was too early (she was not quite 2 and a half) but because I'm eager to please I complied. I sent her to school in panties. And she had a few accidents every day for a while but eventually she was mostly successful at being potty trained.

Then in October I took her out of school. And being pregnant, exhausted, and (if I'm honest) a little lazy I put her in pull-ups to avoid having to clean up accidents during the day. I still encouraged her to use the potty but the presence of pull-ups lead to her regression into the not-even-remotely-potty-trained stage.

And I didn't care. Because I think it is easier to have a kid in diapers with a new baby than one who is teetering precariously on the edge of being potty trained. I know what you're thinking. But, I'd rather change a diaper than my sofa slipcover. Again. Apparently, though, other people cared. And I got some concerned inquiries into when I was going to start potty training again. I always said I'd tackle it when she turned 3. And then she turned 3. But the process was so overwhelming to me that I just couldn't stick with it. Plus my pediatrician said as long as she was potty trained by the end of summer I'd be fine. I was more than prepared to put it off until the end of summer. Or the beginning of Kindergarten. Whichever.

Then about a month ago, Ivy came up to me and said she needed to go potty. Which was nothing new since she'd been half-heartedly doing this all along. But she did it throughout the day. And the next day. And the next.

So I pulled out the Disney and Nick, Jr. panty collection and prepared myself for the weeks and weeks of accidents that would come next. But they didn't. In fact, in one month the only accident we have had was one where she fell asleep for the night without a pull-up on and woke up wet because she couldn't hold it through the night. Other than that? We've been gold.

It was so easy. So completely natural. And so much less painful than the 6 month process I put Kai through just so I could say my 2-year-old was potty trained. God bless her.

With Ivy, I took the lazy way out. And for once it actually paid off.

What potty training tips worked like magic for you? **Bonus points awarded if you give me tips for training boys to file away for when I have to train Trav!**

It's like Green Acres without the sparkly Gabor sister

Did I mention we hatched a bunch of baby chicks last week? Oh, we did. And they are too cute. Though not cute enough for me to consider keeping them. But, cute nonetheless.

Last week we got home from a birthday party and Thomas went out to collect eggs and ta-da! 12 baby chicks were staring at him from the nesting box. We lost one to an unfortunate water bowl drowning incident but the rest are residing comfortably in their brooder our dining room. (No, I'm not kidding.)

Did you ever know someone who had chickens in their dining room? Well, you do now...

Three Musketeers

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I'm Tackling a Mountain (of Laundry, that is) **Giveaway**

If there is one domestic chore I am terrible at staying on top of it's laundry. If I told you how many times I had to dig for clean clothes for every member of our family you would be horrified. Truly.

In fact, just this morning my husband scoured the house for a clean pair of khakis because I'd apparently forgotten to wash anything but dark clothes for the last, oh, 4 loads. True story.

And if you saw the mountain of clean clothes on top of the washer and dryer? Yeah, you'd probably think I'm the worst housewife ever. (And, I'm not sure you'd be too far from the truth.)

The thing is, I don't actually mind doing laundry. In fact, I like the actual process of washing/drying. But the putting away? That is the part that throws me off every time. And I end up dreading the putting away process so much that I avoid laundry altogether.

I'm trying to get better. Really. And today I'm tackling the laundry. All day. I'm not stopping until it's under control. But, I'm wondering if maybe you can help a girl out?

I just recently got a chance to try a bottle of Sun Burst Laundry Detergent to help me out in my laundry endeavors. And they want you to have a chance to try it, too!

First, though, I'll tell you a little bit about what I thought about it. My favorite thing about it? It's cheap. I mean, inexpensive. Because I totally hate spending money on soap. I mean, after all, isn't that literally throwing money down the drain? But I also hate clothes that don't smell/feel clean. So, when I discovered that this stuff did a great job, smelled good, and was super cheap? I was sold on it. It's even HE compatible which is awesome.

So, if you'd like to give it a try here's your chance. I've got 5 coupons good for one FREE 45.4 oz bottle of liquid detergent or one 49 oz box of powder detergent in any scent. And all you have to do to enter to win is help me with my laundry. No, really.

Leave me a comment below with your favorite and most helpful tip for getting laundry done or staying on top of laundry and you'll be entered to win!

So, go ahead, give me your best tips for controlling the laundry monster.

For more great projects, head over to Tackle it Tuesday at 5 Minutes for Mom!

***This giveaway (and all comments) will close Friday, July 10th at 2 p.m.***

Friends.

This weekend was one of those rare perfect weekends where time with friends and family have a way of reminding you just how blessed you are to have so many incredible people in your life.

I could write a whole post about how much we love our friends and how blessed we have been to be a part of many wonderful small group Bible studies. But, I won't because my friend, dewde, already said it better than I could.

Plus, he has an awesome video from this weekend to prove it.

Check out his post here. It makes me teary eyed every time...

Swimming for Faith

I love to watch my kids swim.

Ivy, having just turned 3, bobs in the water with her floaty vest on and her mouth just barely hovering above the water line. She swims all over the pool with her head straining to stay out of the water. It's heartbreaking and beautiful all at the same time. Her persistence coupled with her newly developing water skills make her a sight to behold.

It's like watching a calf try to walk for the first time. The whole thing is some ballet of awkwardness. Muscles learning their purpose. Uncertain steps being taken slowly and deliberately. Failure and success taking turns throughout the process and determination keeping the whole thing moving.

I like to think I've made it through all those awkward stages but lately I think I've become more and more aware of what an ugly sort of dance I'm in the middle of. My problem lately is simply this - I just can't seem to get the hang of this whole faith thing.

I know God is real. I know He is with me. And, if I'm really lucky, when things go bad I remember to turn to Him for help. It's just that the instinct to turn to Him seems to be mostly when it's the little bad things and not the big bad things that come my way.

My problem is that I lack faith in whether God will sustain me through difficult times. And the root of that is, if I'm honest, blatant materialism. God never promised us nice perfect houses and well-manicured lives. He promised not to give us something we couldn't handle. He promised not to leave us or forsake us. But, I want that to mean that I'll never have to struggle financially. Or endure emotional pain. And the thing is, that isn't realistic.

Like a spoiled child who always demands a present, I've tied God's love to my circumstances. I lose faith in His love for me when I don't get my way. In that way I'm no different than Kai or Ivy who accuse me of not loving them each time we leave Target without a new Hannah Montana doll. In those moments as I drag them out the door pouting and crying and insisting I'm the worst mommy ever because they didn't get the toys they wanted right that very moment, I think to myself, "Can't you see that my love for you is bigger than some silly toy? Can't you see that these stupid toys will be sitting in the Goodwill box in a few years while my love for you continues on?" I want to shake them out of their superficial understanding of my love for them. I want desperately for them to understand how big that love is. Does it not stand to reason, then, that God wants the same thing from me?

Last week God and I had a rough week. I posted that post about my keys and was all proud that I'd been happy with that little bit of encouragement. And then the next day, Thomas didn't get paid. He worked his hours. He did his job. And because someone in his department didn't do one thing that needed to be done he just didn't get paid. Though that didn't stop every bill I had scheduled online from clearing at exactly the same time leaving us with a bank balance that started with - and was highlighted in red. Which, as I'm sure you know, is never a good thing.

And then I had a fight with God. A big one.

'Cause, after all, hadn't I just told everyone how great He was for letting me know He was there with my keys? And hadn't I been so spiritually evolved when I said that it was enough for the day?

It was an ugly fight. And if I believed that God was the type to hold a grudge I'd be pretty scared right now about an imminent lightning strike. Luckily, I don't think God is really the lightning type.

In fact, as it turns out, He's more of the kill them with kindness type. Because despite all my tantrums (and a few very un-kosher words) He sent us a really huge (and much needed) blessing at the end of the week. And suddenly my faith was restored.

But, the problem is, if my faith depends on my circumstances then it can't really be faith, can it? At least not the kind that it should be.

For me, the whole thing is a lot like learning to swim. I can tell Kai or Ivy exactly how to swim. I can talk them through the steps. But unless it just clicks for them they're never going to get it. Something has to happen in them to make it work. And that is nothing I can give them.

And that is where I am right now. Struggling to swim in this sea of uncertainty and turmoil. Struggling to hang onto the buoy of faith that I know is there but that keeps alluding me. This is a lesson I need to learn. It is one I desperately want to learn. But, oh how I hate going through what it takes to learn it.

Ah...the baby smile.

I finally captured one of these on camera - the elusive baby smile! Doesn't he look like a charmer?


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