30 weeks!

Only about 10 weeks or less to go! It's been a long couple weeks though. I slipped and fell down the stairs on Father's day, June 17th. I did not go into L&D to get checked out, since baby was moving fine. But I had a very large bruise on my backside and plenty of strain and aches..it's been just over a week and I do feel alot better. However, last night I had a bleeding episode in the evening. Scared me, since I had fallen..I was worried about the placenta or something. Isaiah was still moving around fine. I have had alot of contractions..mostly braxton-hicks, normal for me.
Although I hadn't had any more bleeding today, I was finally convinced to call a nurse. Of course..they wanted me to come in and get checked out. Isaiah's heartrate was GREAT and he was kicking the monitors. I was checked by the midwife on duty..no more signs of bleeding at all..but my cervix is thin. She said 'about 1/2 in'..thinner than normal at 30 weeks..but she didn't know what normal would be for a 30 week woman having her 8th baby! I'm on complete pelvic rest till 34 weeks, and am supposed to do kick counts and watch for any more bleeding or change in contractions. Gabe wants me to buy an emergency birth kit to have on hand....just in case. I went kinda fast with Caleb. ;o)
So..there's out latest update!

One year ago..

One year ago...

we were in Washington state, staying at my dad's home and visiting with family. I can't believe a whole year has gone by, and within that year..we lost dad, and grampa. So many changes..
I was looking over some pictures of the trip today..I am SO thankful I snapped away and took as many as I could. I even took video of dad rotatilling the garden..and pulling Eliahna and Caleb in the wagon.

I can't go back..but I can look at these pictures and soak up the memories and keep them in my heart forever.

We left dad's house on May 6th. I took a picture of him walking back to the house as we were driving away...the last time I saw him.

May 6th is a hard day anyway..the day my Gramma died, 17 years ago.

I'm so thankful for the blessings in in my life. My precious children..my wonderful husband..and all the family we have who love us unconditionally. I'm thankful for the Lord..who 'healeth up my broken heart..and bindeth up my wounds'..as in Psalms..

We are having a.....

Looks like I'll be needing to come up with a new title for my blog since we're having...another baby BOY!!! Ultrasound yesterday shows a healthy, strong little boy. We are naming him Christian Valour.

Name change...we're naming him Isaiah Christian Valour Watson!

A strong name for a strong little boy. 7 boys...wow!!!

16 weeks

Baby W is doing GREAT. At my appointment yesterday, the heartrate was in the 140's. Ultrasound is scheduled for April 19th!! I've been feeling soft kicks. I found out I haven't gained as much as I thought. Our scales are off by 8lbs! I've only gained 11lbs..not nearly 20!

I almost have Ethan's 4 year high school plan all together. There are a few electives he needs to choose. We just really need to settle on grade 9 subjects.. I'm so glad we can use whatever we please! There are SO many options out there..it's almost overwhelming!

:)

Started my day at 445am..

I awoke early this morning and couldn't go back to sleep. Part of it was worry..about finances (minor worry) and a friend who may have metastacized cancer -she's a mama to 5 young'uns. (major worry) Her name is Stacey if you'd like to keep her in prayer. She's in Oregon.

So I gave up and came downstairs, knowing Gabe hadn't left for work just yet. He leaves at 5am. He's always glad to see me before he leaves! It hasn't happened since I became preggy. I do love getting up early. It's 7am now and the children will be waking soon...but to have those two hours of quiet in the house...ahhhhh!

I made out a new seven day crock pot menu yesterday. Seven days to be repeated the next week, lasting until next payday. I planned out suppers and lunches, and some choices for breakfast. I made out my shopping list yesterday afternoon, since we were going shopping last night after work. I was excited that I had a menu to go by again, and easy one to boot!
Food prices are making me crazy, though. I always feel so bummed when I can't get everything on my list. I'll have to do some tweaking of my menu now, cutting out some meals that require beef, and cheese. Our pantry is full, our fridge..not so much. Which this morning I realize may be a blessing in disguise..Gabe mentioned how warm the fridge seemed when he woke this morning. I think it's days are numbered.
I know we are richer than many, many people in other countries. Sometimes it's SO frustrating to be shopping so carefully to buy inexpensive things to feed my family, meaning I need to cook from scratch and plan  ..and I see people filling their carts with 'cr*p' (aka-frozen boxed foods, sodas and chips) and paying with an EBT card. Considering we do qualify for SNAP benefits and choose not to use them, ya..I'm a little judgy-wudgy this morning. Maybe I need another cup of coffee. (see how rich I am? I get to drink coffee..with milk! Sitting in a nice chair, in a home that's warm- or cool when I want it to be..and the FREEDOM to read my Bible and not have to worry about being arrested for owning one. Yeah..there's bigger things in this world to be fretting over.)

Lord forgive me for being judgemental, and for worrying..and complaining. I know You provide for our every need...and even for our wants! Forgive me for coveting the ease that others seem to have. Help me to be a better steward of our resources..to share with others. Thank you for these blessings that surround our table...the joy they bring to our lives. When our numbered days are over..our CHILDREN are the only thing we leave behind on this earth that matter. What a blessing it is to have our quiver full.

New things and old things. (Kefir and FB)

New Things:
A friend from online shared some of her Kefir Grains with me (via mail). I was a bit intimidated at first...but the process if very easy! I'm not sure I can stand to drink plain kefir milk. It reminds me of the milk that used to sit out at my best friend's dairy parlor. If you've been in a dairy, you know what I'm talking about.

There so SO many ways to use kefir milk though. A few I found on THIS site. First on my list to make is bread and smoothies.

Old Things:
After a bit of prayer and discussion, we decided to dip our toe back into the world of Facebook. I'm really not interested in cultivated a huge 'friends' list full of people I do not know, nor engaging in discussions that draw my mind and attention away from what is most important (my family and the Lord).
So far we just have family and a couple local friends. I wanted to keep in better contact with my siblings (since they are all on FB now)..follow my brother's restoration project (36 Dodge truck)..and just take each 'friend request' as it comes. We won't be uploading pictures to FB though, which makes us rather boring, since most people just want to snoop at pictures anyway. (and yes, we're guilty of this too :P )

And Pinterest. Something that was introduced to me a while back, but with great disappointment realized I couldn't 'Pin' since I didn't have a FB account. My mother-in-love walked me through the steps..and I'm on my way to 'Pinning' all my interests to my boards. Lotsa fun. It's like a gigantic Favorites webpage complete with pictures to remind me what the link is about .

I think that's about it for now. Sweet toddler is running water in the sink upstairs, so I think I had better scoot up there quickly!

A Psalm While Packing Books

Yogurt..more homemade goodness

It's been over 3 years since I've blogged about making my own yogurt. I do it a bit differently now...it's SO easy though. There are many different ways to go about it..but here's what I do:

I use whole or 2% milk. It makes a thicker yogurt.

I do about 3 quarts at a time. I slowly heat the milk in a pot, checking the temperature and stirring occasionally, till it reaches about 180 degrees. Then I remove it from the burner and let it cool to below 110. If it's too hot, it will kill the yogurt starter.

I used Dannon plain yogurt as starter when I don't have my homemade yogurt on hand. I add about half a cup or so into the cooled milk and whisk well. Then I pour the milk into 3 clean quart jars.
I put the jars somewhere warm..right now that is on my counter near the heating vent in my kitchen. I cover them with a warm towel and let sit overnight. They'll be set up by morning. You do not want them to get too warm, or you will kill the yogurt starter. In the winter, I keep the jars covered inside my oven, with the oven light on overnight.
You can let them sit a bit longer if you want it thicker, or more tart.
Cover and store in the fridge.

I use it in homemade smoothies, or over frozen blueberries, and drizzled with honey.

Good stuff! Easy. Much cheaper than store bought.
:)

Homemade bread..

Nothing beats homemade yumminess. I've recently started baking homemade bread on a regular basis. I'm not sure it's actually saving us any money, since the kids eat MORE bread now :) But I enjoy it. I love the smell of fresh bread in the house, too.

Here's how I make my bread, using the rolls recipe I've been baking for several years already.

Recipe:

3 1/2 C warm water

1 C honey or sugar

1 C oil

4-6 TBSP yeast

Mix in Kitchenaid or by hand and let rest for 10 mins or so.

It may look like this...

Must be happy..it's smiling! (creepy!)

Add:

3 eggs

1 TBSP salt

9-10 C flour (I used 2 cups whole wheat and the rest as all-purpose flour)

When I reach about 7 cups it becomes too much for my Kitchenaid, and I have to dump it on the counter to knead the rest of the flour in by hand. This is when a Bosch mixer, or an Electrolux would be handy. But they're soo pricey....

I divide the dough into my four new bread pans, which are sprayed lightly with oil.

and let rise about an hour...

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. I remove them from the pans immediately to cool on a wire rack.

They didn't rise as much this time..either from the whole wheat I added, or when I bumped the oven on accident..it may have made them fall a bit. Still yummy!

*tip...a friend mentioned not allowing the bread to rise too much, which may be why mine fell. So allow it to rise to just above the edge of the pan, and it will rise to the correct height while baking. :)

Our sweet baby

Meet our sweet baby..lying on it's side, looking straight at us, with the left arm up and waving!

And for my birthday..my sister sent me some beautiful flowers!

Update on me

I had my first nurse-only appointment. My official due date is Sept.2nd! Mayo has finally done some remodeling, and the L&D and Post partum is all on the same floor now. No more being wheeled into an elevator at 4am with a brand new baby while strangers gawk at you, you looking like death warmed over from being in labor for 17 hours. (no, I'm really not bitter LOL!)
I wish they would figure out a way for 'only' private rooms. I just pray when I have the baby, they've not been busy. I detest sharing a post partum room even for a few hours.

I'm excited that they have labor tubs now though! The nurse told me women have even delivered in them. I can't wait to ask the midwife a little more about that at my first appointment...on Feb. 9th. :)

I'm 8 wks 5 days today. Very tired, slightly nauseous..not horribly sick like some of my other pregnancies. Just enough to know everything is going well.

Remember that 'bit of joy' I mentioned?

That little bit of joy I mentioned a couple blog posts ago?



He or she will be arriving around Sept 1st.

Yes, Watson baby number 8 is on the way.

 I found out on Dec.21st, but I kept it to myself for a while.

Morning sickness has kicked in and things seem to be going well. 

A great mix of emotions..happy about the baby, sad about my dad.

A baby is God's way of saying the world should go on...

Homeschooling...for high school.

It won't be long. Our oldest is 14, going on 15. He'll finish his 8th grade work by June, and starting high school level this fall!

What are we going to do?? We couldn't possibly teach high school, could we?? I mean..we only have a high school diploma.

Are we smart enough for this?

What does it take to learn? What does he need to know?

He needs to know how to study. How to discipline himself and stay on a schedule. He needs to know what his interests are, and pursue them. He needs to study his Bible daily, and know what the Lord wants of him. He needs to be an independent learner.

We are not here to fill his brain full of information. We're here to guide him, and foster a love of learning. We provide the materials he needs. He's the one who needs to pull up his boot straps, and do it.

When he was 5, I pushed him and pushed him to read. I though he HAD to read in order for us to do school. I thought we were behind. It was embarassing when, at 6, he still couldn't read..and would rather dress up as a knight and take his sword outside to fight off the evil army. At 7 I would spend hours pushing him to write words, sound out words..on and on. He just wasn't getting it. Was he stupid??

No. I was. I fell for the lie that all children follow the same learning time table. I backed off a bit. It finally 'clicked' and at age 8, he was reading. Now he reads anything and everything he can get his hands on. Why was I so worried?

My current 7 yo is learning to read. He's catching on SO quickly..it's FUN to teach him to read. He was not ready at 5, or even 6. It would've been miserable to force him to read. I'm so glad that I waited until he was ready.

It's going to be ok. I graduated high school. I know how to do it. He knows how to learn. We can do this. No doubt.

Our Christmas..soon!

We're celebrating Christmas this year on the 31st. (It just isn't Christmas without Daddy, and he had to work last weekend!)

The kids are on countdown. They spent the day cleaning..I want it clean on Christmas. It will be a nice, relaxing day at home, Lord willing. We'll start with reading the Bible and saying a prayer to 'open our day'...then we'll give the children their gifts. I'll cook up a big breakfast of sausage links, bacon..and I even bought pancake mix. (I NEVER buy pancake mix...always make it from scratch) Gabe can make monster pancakes. With orange juice, coffee and maybe cinnamon rolls.

The kids can enjoy their 'toys' throughout the day..instead of hurrying up to get ready and go. We'll make an early supper of fried clams, and pizza 'stromboli'..we'll have some fingers foods and popcorn since it's also NEW YEAR'S EVE!!! We'll bake and decorate the cookie mixes my Aunt Marie sent us..maybe make some divinity. I also bought 3 two liter bottles of Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash to share in the evening. We'll play some board games..and maybe share some New Year's Resolutions. I'm sure we'll watch a movie...or two.
Lord willing..it'll be a good day. Gabe has 3 days off.

To say the year wasn't good would be a lie. It ended with incredible pain and heartache..and a bit of joy..but we have so much to be thankful for as we look back on the year. I'm so glad I 'listened' to that voice that told us to take that trip back in May.."Do this for Dad.." Now I know why..

God is good...all the time.