If I can JUSTIFY it, that makes it right!....Right?

"Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus" Philippians 1:1. Such a simple unassuming verse, really just a friendly way to start a letter, nothing in that sentence is speaking to me, right? This was a focus verse for our recent Sunday sermon. I must admit that I have read this verse thousands of times (okay, that might be an exaggeration, hahaha) and just glossed over it, to me it was always just a formal way to start a letter in the old days, but Sunday's sermon changed that for me. Our sermon brought the focus on the word "servant," and whether we could write a letter to someone, or to a group of people and call ourselves servants of Christ Jesus. The translation that I use chooses the word slave instead of servant, which in my mind provides even more powerful imagery as to what living a life for Christ truly looks like. Can I truly call myself a slave to Christ. This whole aspect of servanthood is so tricky because it is easy to justify why I am not serving, especially when it is something that I don't really want to do. If I can justify not serving my neighbour, my family, my friends, my congregation, strangers that I meet, whomever Christ puts in my path, is it okay? I mean really, I truly feel that I have great reasons to abstain from serving the lady at play group who really needs me to watch her kids so that she can take a mental health break (I have four of my own), or the friend who God has placed in my life that may need more of my time than I want to give right now (I just don't have spare time), or the family in church that needs me to make a meal (I have to cook for us first). Let me share my justification, I am up at least twice a night, most nights four or five times, I am sleep deprived and exhausted, I am working from home (not as easy as it sounds) and right now putting in at least 25 hours a week, I need to clean my own house, my laundry is out of control, and my kids are too crazy right now, life is just so busy, see, abstaining from servanthood is justified at my stage of life, or is it. I know that no one would look at my list of reasons and say, that's not a good enough reason not to serve, but when I meet my saviour, and he says to me, you know I put so and so in your life so you could serve her, that lady at play group she really needed you that day, will it matter that I can justify myself? When the people around me need serving is it my right to justify why I can't be the one to serve? When God has placed me in this place, he has caused me to live where I live, to interact with whom I meet, and to be around situations that I have the opportunity to help in, does it matter that I can justify it? The answer is no. I know many reading this will say, you are busy, you need to take care of your family first, you are tired, you need to take care of yourself first, all of those are true, but are they truly a Christian worldview? I know that we can get ourselves too involved, and at times we serve out of guilt or in areas that we shouldn't have, but I know that there are times when little things come up in our lives, things that maybe don't seem like something God would ask us to do, and yet if we need to justify ourselves or explain why we can't do it, are we sure that God isn't whispering in our lives saying, serve your neighbour, do this for me. When I look back on my life, hopefully at an old age, will I be able to say, Shawna, slave of Christ Jesus? I believe that if I allow myself to justify not serving the people around me due to "my stage of life," I will just continue to find reasons to justify not serving those around me at every stage of life. I don't think that it will matter that I can justify why I didn't serve when the opportunity presented itself, all that will matter is whether or not I did it, whether I was there for those who needed me. I pray that my eyes will be open to the opportunities Christ gives me to serve him, I know that being a slave to Christ means living a blessed life, even if at the time it feels inconvenient. I have a list in my mind about how I will serve people when I am out of this stage of life, but really, why not do it now? Okay, I know that some of those things on my list I can't do, but there are things on that list, that if I was truly a slave to Christ Jesus, I could do. So with renewed passion, I look for the ways to serve Christ now, and as this blog is meant to cherish memories for my family, I hope that this post will remind me of this moment in my life, and that when I become jealous of my time, when I desire to make my plans, when I am not in the mood to be a servant, that I will stop and ask myself, if I can justify it does that make it right?

The First Day of School!!!



Cheyanne's teacher asked them to draw her a picture
and bring a "friend" to her first 40min. day.



Wow, I can not believe that I have experienced a first day of school with one of my kids! I just can't believe that time has gone that quickly. I remember my first day of school pictures that my mom took every year, especially the embarrassing one standing on the bus steps while the whole school bus waited for her to take the perfect picture and our bus driver laughing as he waited! Thanks mom. It just seems surreal that my baby girl is grown up and off to school. At least now a days the first day of school spans about a week, or at least it did in our house. We took pics of her first visit to school, her first half day by herself, and her first full day of school. Michael laughed at me and said that by the time Mason is in school we will probably forget to even take a photo of his first day, but I doubt it. She loves school! Her first short day she seemed a bit nervous, but every day since she is so eager to go that she forgets to say goodbye to me! I think her favourite part is the fact that she gets to have lunch there, she is always making sure that I haven't forgotten to pack it for her. She has a great friend in her class that we carpool with, and I love listening to their conversations on the drive. The other day Cheyanne was encouraging Anna to pray when she has bad dreams, what a neat bond they have already as sisters in Christ. I get to go along on her first field trip next week, and I think I am more excited than she is, I can't wait to observe her with her classmates!

          Cheyanne going to school has also provided me with one of my first major recollections of an I will never moment. Before you have kids you always have ideas or opinions about what your kids will do or say, or won't do or say, and then you have kids and realize that it isn't entirely up to you, and they just might do or say exactly what you thought they would never do, and likely it will be embarrassing, lol. I don't think that I had a lot of things that I believed my kids wouldn't do, but I do know that I definitely said I would never send my kids to a Christian school. I am not sure exactly why  I felt this way, perhaps it was because I went through the public school system, or knew kids who had more problems at a Christian school than a public one, or simply because I want our family to be in touch with our community, but for what ever reasons, I clearly said I wouldn't do it. Well, I have to eat my words because Cheyanne is going to King's Christian School in Salmon Arm. For a number of reasons this was the best choice for our family. It wasn't an easy decision, and even after we had made it I feared that we might have made the wrong decision or maybe we didn't pray about it enough before we decided, or maybe I wasn't listening and God had really directed us differently. Cheyanne's first week of school has completely erased all those fears, I feel that it has totally confirmed that we followed God's leading. It was so amazing for me to go to Cheyanne's forty minute orientation and see her teacher pray with her, to hear her come home from her second day of class singing "Our God is so Big, Our God is so Good," and to watch her come home from school with an emphasis on manners and kindness. My biggest fear about the first day of school was that I would be sending my naive little five year old into a classroom of her peers and I would begin to see her character slide. I know it has only been a week and she will likely pick up some undesirable habits, but I do feel that she is in a place that will nurture her character. I don't know if all of our kids will attend kindergarten at the Christian school I suppose we will have to see where God is leading when the time comes, but for Cheyanne, I believe it was the best decision we could make. Isn't it great to have a God who cares enough about us to lead us in decisions that seem so minuscule, I mean really, it's just kindergarten right?

Cheyanne loves her lunch kit!!

Cheyanne and Anna going for their first time alone,
it was only half a day and I still found I couldn't talk
about it without getting choked up!

Eventually all the kids' pictures go in the flower centres



Isn't this such a beautiful hallway?



she is ready for her first full day, backpack and all!

She chose a Tinkerbell backpack, we loved
back to school shopping together!!

Aren't they Cute......when they're sleeping?

This isn't a post that is all that interesting, and I wouldn't have written it at all if it weren't for today, it's all about the picture. So this week has been a particularly brutal one in the sleep department. Bella, who has never really consistently slept through the night, has been up all night long. She regularly gets up once in the night but this week she has been up hourly starting at about eleven or so. (Anyone who has ideas on why she might be doing this please comment and share them with me). What makes it worse is that Mason is still up two to three times a night, and they are not coordinating it very well, and one seems to get up just after you have started to fall back to sleep. Even the other two girls, who are usually good sleepers, have gotten up a few nights this week. This all adds up to very little sleep by us parents, that being said, I actually feel pretty good considering the lack of sleep. Michael is isn't faring quite as well, he needs more sleep then me, and isn't going to catch up anytime soon because he's doing morning milking for awhile, so if he seems like a zombie when you see him this is why. So back to the photo, it turns out that the lack of sleep is catching up to Bella, who doesn't nap in the daytime either anymore. One minute she was sitting on the floor and the next....

Yup, she just sat down and passed right out on the floor. I don't know if she fell asleep sitting and fell over or if she just laid back and conked out. Either way it made me laugh! I am sure this is God's way of making me see the humour in the situation so that I don't go crazy dwelling on the sleep deprivation, lol.

On A totally unrelated note, Mason is  beginning to feel the effects of three sisters:



They are already dressing him up in little pink tutus!

What a Weekend!

It has a been an incredibly busy week, and weekend. Cheyanne has started school (a milestone that deserves its own blog post), I am up to my eyeballs in work, and our weekend was full of outings and events. We took the kids to the fair, had Dexter spend the night, and went to see the Sockeye.

                  Michael and I decided that as much as we love the IPE, we were going to sit this year out and take the kids to the Salmon Arm Fair instead. And wow, was that ever a great decision! The Salmon Arm Fair can't be compared to the IPE, but for our kids' age, it is perfect! The girls were able to wander around the barns and the exhibits with out having to stay attached to us, and we were able to relax and enjoy showing the kids all that the fair had to offer. There was less people and it really had a family atmosphere to it. I was also impressed by the amount of Christian representation at the Salmon Arm fair, it was neat to see christian schools, Pro-Life, Samaritan's Purse, and many other Christian organizations with booths set up in the exhibit hall.

we checked out the animals,

hung out in the area for families,

took cheesy photos,

and ate ice cream.

(I normally don't allow the girls to have anything but light coloured ice cream when we go out,

but hey it was the fair, and my common sense lost out!)

Cheyanne's first photo, pretty impressive!

The sockeye run at Adam's river was so much fun! We took our kids, and Dexter to the provincial park area on the Adam's river where I used to go for field trips with the school growing up. It was a great day! I thought that we got stopped a lot and asked if these were all our kids when we go out with just us, but add one more kid into the mix that looks like he belongs, and man, we didn't get two feet into the trail before people were commenting on our family and asking if they were all ours, hahaha. I guess people aren't used to such big families! It was a neat experience seeing the kids in such a beautiful setting observing such an incredible event. Dexter was so excited every time we saw a red fish in the water, him and Bella ran around yelling "big fish, big fish" all over the park. Seeing the fish through the eyes of children was exciting, as I explained to Cheyanne what was happening and read her the information I could see how amazed she was. It was a neat opportunity to talk about the wonder of God, and how he gave these fish the innate ability to know exactly when they should swim upstream to the spawning grounds. I almost shared during sharing time in church today (but I didn't want to stand up and talk, I'm kind of a wimp that way) about how yesterday's trip reminded me how thankful I am for my children, everyday they make me stop and admire what God has created. I can take for granted what is around me but they make me appreciate it. Cheyanne brought home a brochure so that she can take it to her classroom for show and tell. She can't wait to teach her class about the Sockeye, I think she might just grow up to be a teacher. After lunch my parents, who had been camping in the area, joined us and we finished walking around the park. When we were finished we spent the evening celebrating salmon season with some friends and neighbours. It was a great day, and we certainly tired the kids out, after three hours of walking and a bbq outside in the fresh air, they were so tired we put them to bed and didn't hear a peep from anyone (except Mason) until morning.

Dexter just tagged along behind in his borrowed gum boots, pretending to fish.

I set the camera up on the timer to get a picture of us all

by the water.

checking out the river bank

if not a teacher, than maybe a biologist

We were quite a crew walking through the forest,

later in the day we added two more as my mom and dad

joined us.

Mason was perfectly behaved as usual!

6 Months already!!!

I can't believe Mason is six months old today! Time has gone by so quickly, and it doesn't feel like we have had him around for six months. I want  to make sure that I write down some little facts about him regularly, for a few reasons, one so that I can remember what the kids were like at each age, and two, so that I don't become one of those people who state that there kids were doing this by such and such an age or that they never did that... lol, this way hopefully when I am telling people what my kids were like I will have actual documentation and I won't cause all the young moms to roll their eyes at my exaggerated claims, hahaha. Hopefully one day I will take some time to do a quick blog about the girls as babies so that I can have something in my blog about them at a young age as well seeings how I started blogging so much later. Anyways, back to Mason.

          What can I say, at 6 months old Mason has 6 teeth. I couldn't believe it when he popped his first tooth shortly after he turned 4 months, and he hasn't stopped popping them! I am hoping that he slows down soon or he will have a mouth full of teeth and look way older than he should! On top of his teeth making him appear older, he is huge!! I haven't weighed him on a baby scale, but according to the wii fit, he weighs 18lbs already! It won't be long until he out grows his second carseat! He rolls around the house to get to things that he wants, and can manage to get into the magazines or piles of paper around the living room. I have discovered that when on carpet he is beginning to scooch in the army crawl style, however on our laminate flooring he is usually in a sleeper so it seems to be a bit too slippery for him, that's my plan for slowing him down! lol. He manages to get his knees underneath of him, but hasn't yet figured out how to use his hands to hold his body weight so he sits on his knees and face, it's pretty cute. Mason rolls all over the playpen and manages to get himself stuck in the corner or wedged against the side. He still isn't sleeping through the night and is up at least once a night, and lately it has been three times a night. Because he is not sleeping through the night he still sleeps in the play pen in our ensuite bathroom, when he begins to sleep through the night he will move into the crib and share a room with Bella, but as of right now I find it easier to just go into our ensuite than to walk across the house in the middle of the night, especially as the nights have started to get colder! He is still just the cutest little boy ever, and he is always quick to give everyone a smile. His sisters love him and he loves them. They can make him giggle like crazy, it is too cute and I keep saying that we need to video tape it but we haven't done that yet, hopefully we will do that soon because I would love to show him just how cute of a laugh he had. As Mason turns 6 months I am sad that the time is going so quickly, but I am enjoying watching him reach developmental milestones, even if he is doing it earlier than I would like. When I look at Mason, and my girls I know that I am truly blessed. My heart feels like it is so full of love and joy that it could just burst, it is amazing how much you can love your kids. I feel like God has just given me so much and I am overwhelmed by his grace. We were challenged in church today to look at what was going on in our life and to ask ourselves why are the things happening in our life that are happening, and all I could think was I don't know, I have been so blessed and I know that it is only because of God's grace, because I haven't earned any of it. So as Mason is officially half a year old, I am praising God for my beautiful, healthy son, as well as being reminded how thankful I am for all my kids, and my amazing husband. "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of Lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17

6 months old today!!

relaxing after church today.

hanging out after bath time

sharing some cuddle time with the big sis

making friends with Uncle Barry

hanging out in the barn in his "Phat Farm" gear

Goodbye Summer :(

Wow, it is September first already, and I can't believe another summer is gone. I must admit that the realization that this summer has past has put me into a bit of a funk. As this summer ends a new chapter in our family life begins, we will no longer have Cheyanne at home full time and we will have to share her with a class full of other kids. I wish I could say that I was as excited for her as she is but I'm not. So seeings how I am not ready for summer to be done, I have figured that what better way to bring back the joys of summer than to sit and reflect on what a great season we have had.

             It has been an incredibly hot summer, the kids and I have spent most of our afternoons at our beach on the farm. We have a beautiful place to swim with our own little dock, and the cows aren't too close, lol. This often meant that supper had to be something simple, also, our house is so warm in the afternoon that most days  I couldn't bare to turn on the stove or oven and heat things up even more. My solution; I invented "Shrek Smoothies" (you could give them any kind of kid friendly green title). Shrek smoothies have made me feel a lot less guilty about not cooking a gourmet meal for supper every evenings. They make me feel like my kids have had a healthy and nutritious meal regardless of what we are eating with it. Shrek smoothies consist of frozen strawberries, spinach, avocado, vanilla yogurt (or any flavour you like), and milk. The avocado makes for a wonderful texture, and the spinach adds all kinds of nutritional value. If you don't think that your kids will go for a green drink you can always add raspberries and blueberries, their colour seems to overpower the green and it turns out purple instead. This recipe is very flexible and you can add any frozen fruit you would like, as well as whatever yogurt you enjoy, it just takes some experimentation.

             We started our summer with an early camping trip over father's day weekend celebrating Bella's birthday and father's day with Grandpa and Grandma Olund. The girls also participated in swimming lessons at our local pool, both of them passing their levels. Cheyanne is a fish, she can swim so well, and I was so proud of Emmersen who overcame her dislike of water in her face in order to dunk her head under water and float assisted on her tummy.

             Our family loves celebrating Canada day! It gives us a chance to thank God for the beautiful country we were born in and to celebrate with our community. I have grown up going to the Lion's Club pancake breakfast that they put on Canada Day (and Mother's day), and my kids will do the same. We get all dressed up in our Canadian colours, head in for breakfast, and then enjoy our small town festivities, complete with a parade and carnival games at the park.         

 

           The next big task on our agenda was to plan and pack for our ten day camping trip at noisy creek, which I have already written about. That trip was the highlight of my summer, and though doing anything with four kids my kids' age is a little chaotic, I can't think of a better way to spend our holidays. I hope that as long as my family continues to spend time with each other, our kids will always enjoy taking time away from a busy life to spend a couple of weeks in such a serene environment.

           We spent alot of time visiting our extended families this summer. It was great to have the girls (oops, and Mason, hahaha) see so much of their Aunts, Uncles, Great Aunts, Great Uncles, cousins, grandparents, and great grandparents. We also took in a family BBQ that our kids absolutely loved. We didn't get home until 1:00am and the girls partied it up the whole time, swimming, colouring, and playing wii! I also discovered a new bread recipe that makes the best, and healthiest bread ever! (Thanks Aunt Pauline).

          Michael and I are officially getting old! We just attended our ten year high school reunion, that's right, ten years! It was great to see everyone again and catch up with where people were at. Most people looked exactly the same as they did in high school, and I must confess, I still think Michael's the cutest boy in our class!! We also celebrated our ninth wedding anniversary. I can't believe it has been nine years already. I love my husband, he truly is God's greatest gift to me!  Throughout the day I kept thinking about what I would have been doing nine years ago at that time, it brought back some beautiful memories! I had a great day, my amazing husband planned for me to have a morning at the spa. This was my first spa experience, and what a relaxing couple of hours I had. We then went out for a romantic dinner with no kids, thanks mom for babysitting!

           Salmon season is upon us and Michael has been spending a lot of time on the river, luckily for us he has brought home some meat! Every fish caught gets its picture taken. So far he has caught three good sized fish, 11.5lbs, 14lbs, and 16.7lbs! His success has meant that we have had some delicious surf n' turf meals! With almost two weeks left I am hoping that we will add to this number and fill the freezer even more.

            Renee and I finished our summer off by taking a trip to Abbotsford to celebrate Marie's baby shower and took the opportunity to put in some shopping time. I don't think either of us have ever spent so many hours in two days in a shopping mall, but we definitely maximized our time with only one kid each! The babies traveled amazing and we were able to spend time visiting with some great people! Michael and the girls spent the weekend enjoying each other. They spent their time at the park and doing crafts, and even managed to keep the house fairly clean. I had taught Cheyanne to tie her shoes over the summer, with the deal that she could pick out her own shoes when she was able to consistently tie them, so her and Michael went shopping at superstore and bought a very cute pair of runners, so cute that I wished that they came in my size! Isn't he a great dad?

           I know that we had many other great moments this summer that I have forgotten to include, and that some of the best moments have been just watching my girls play together, or seeing Mason smile and giggle. I have to say though, that taking the time to think about what a fun summer I have had had definitely perked up my day. Now I better stop stalling and get my kitchen ready for freezing twenty dozen cobs of corn!