Don't let his tiny size fool you...what he lacks in stature, he makes up for in spunk and spirit!!
Daddy went into work extra early so he could travel an hour to see the kids play their last soccer game...then he traveled the hour back to work to finish out his work day. Odesco actually scored 2 goals... it was such fun to see him so excited. P and C's team won their game too. Both big boys played their hearts out and were grateful that Daddy was there to watch them. We got our exercise as we ran back and forth between the 2 fields :)
The littles enjoy one last team huddle with their wonderful coaches!
Boys and their toys! This picture cracks me up...after the soccer game the G brothers came home with us. Don't worry, they did get outside and run around a bit but this seems to be their favorite thing to do!
I just love home schooling...here, Andy who is a 17 year old home schooler ( and one of our prized babysitters!) was teaching our history coop about Napoleon and his military tactics .. he also expertly led a discussion regarding whether Napoleon was a hero or villain. What a blessing to see the fruit of our friend Kim's labors as her son did such a fine job!!
King Odesco, Spiderboy Jenkins and soldier LWhile the older kids were learning upstairs, the little ones were having a grand time of controlled chaos in the basement.
People often ask what the younger ones do during school time. Well, after I have finished with their 1:1 time, they work on activities...yep, these times often challenge my love for order but it keeps them busy and out of harm's way and it gives them ample opportunity to practice their clean up skills!!
"And God saw all that he had made and said,'It is gooood!' " Odesco cracks us up with his creative interpretation of these words as he says them and gives the thumbs up sign when we review their lessons from All of God's Creation class-
People often ask what the younger ones do during school time. Well, after I have finished with their 1:1 time, they work on activities...yep, these times often challenge my love for order but it keeps them busy and out of harm's way and it gives them ample opportunity to practice their clean up skills!!
"And God saw all that he had made and said,'It is gooood!' " Odesco cracks us up with his creative interpretation of these words as he says them and gives the thumbs up sign when we review their lessons from All of God's Creation class- 
Miss Britt and Mercy after an impromptu Sunday afternoon together...G was invited to a friend's house after church and Mercy was a bit put out but almost instantly pulled it together...a major evidence of God at work in her heart! Later, Daddy took the rest of the kids to watch Brittany's brother play in a soccer game and Mercy was invited to go home with Brittany ....what an unexpected blessing and in light of her earlier choice to 'do what is right and good', it was a great teaching opportunity to show how God does reward us when we honor Him~often our rewards are awaiting us in heaven but this day, Mercy was able to receive a tangible reward here on earth :) The news of this unexpected blessing also gave G the opportunity to flex her 'rejoicing with others' muscles. He certainly does use all circumstances to train our hearts :)
Odesco has been pretending he is a dog...he races around on his hands and feet(his knees don't touch the ground) and he is quite the speedy pup...he loves it when the girls attach a 'leash'(aka: scarf) to his waist for the full effect.Never a dull moment~ these guys certainly can entertain themselves !! I think Odesco spends more time getting around in puppy mode than walking...it amazes me how fast he is and that his back doesn't ache!
Mercy was given the opportunity to 'teach' a segment God of All Creation class by reciting the days of creation using her illustrated book that she has been working on in class.She was in her glory as being the center of attention is what she loves best.....
Daddy's little helpers ... ripping out the old powder room.
Our little construction site' right in or very own backyard...these guys thought it was such fun to pretend they were building with the ripped out remains of the bathroom. 
Mrs. Di bought a coconut at Produce junction and had the unique experience of watching Mercy and Odesco crack it open and devour it!
Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes...filling up these boxes with the treasures I'd been collecting all year was a bit chaotic( an understatement!) but I'm grateful the kids have the opportunity to think outside of themselves. If you are interested in this wonderful ministry, go to www.samaritanspurse.org and click on the Operation Christmas Child link.You can even enclose a letter and picture of the child sending the package. Once we received a letter back from Jamaica(written by the child's mother) and another time from Moldova (written by a family friend).Moldova is near Ukraine...don't worry, I had no clue either and had to look it up on our wall map when we received the letter!.
The aftermath of a 'little help' from my little helper :) 3 Days later and I'm still finding remnants of dried up pumpkinbread batter on the window screen, plant, windowsill etc.
Mercy sporting her new 'do'. I tried a head full of 'microtwists' which look really cute on her. She kept trying to say this and could not get anything but "macaroni twists" out...so,I have a feeling this new style will forever be dubbed 'macaroni twists'!!
P, our growing boy with the endless appetite requested something other than cold cereal for breakfast on Saturday morning. He wanted to know if we could have pancakes...I was about to get in the shower and told him if he wanted to make them, that was fine with me...so here he is with a little help from 'King Odesco' making breakfast...he did most of it but needed a bit of help with the actual cooking and cleanup :)* L has definitely been showing signs of anxiety regarding his upcoming surgery (scheduled for 10/31-please pray!). He is easily provoked to anger, very whiny and just overall not himself. He is able to articulate and attribute these outbursts to his fears ("I just can't stop thinking about it and I have a plan...I'm going to hide under my covers so that I don't have to go!!") but is frequently reminded that 'choices have consequences' and God still holds him accountable for his sin. By God's grace, 'Thankful eyes' helped me yesterday to see the many opportunities to point my little boy to the compassion and faithfulness of a loving heavenly Father who will comfort and carry him during this time. I am also really sensing that this is part of the 'making of the man' for our little guy...that God is doing a mighty work in his little heart and will use this experience to grow his faith and secure his trust to anchor him in the years ahead. I am asking God for grace to deal graciously and patiently with L in his "high maintenance mode" and that the Lord would supernaturally grant him peace to walk through this scary time. Daddy has been having sweet talks with our little man as well assuring him that trusting in a sovereign God is the only way to have peace...tough truths for an adult to consistently put into practice and even more challenging for a 5 year old
*On Monday I learned from Amazon. com that they suspected fraudulent activity in my account and closed it . Curious, I checked my paypal account 'just in case' and learned that a huge wad of money had been charged to my account for jewelry and other stuff! By God's grace, 'thankful eyes' helped me to be grateful that this was caught early and that the charges were reversed. Had I not received that Amazon email, I would not have known about the paypal mess. The hassles of spending much time on the phone( and the kiddy chaos resulting from a distracted mommy) , paled in comparison to the hassles that would have surely ensued had the problem not been identified so early!!
*Yesterday, Mercy in her typical enthusiastic( but just a wee bit impulsive) manner wanted to 'help' me as I prepared to turn the mixer on to make pumpkin bread. Only problem is she pushed the lever to '10'( before I could instruct her to start at the lowest setting and gradually increase the mixer speed)-This sent flour and pumpkin goop all over her hair, shirt, the cabinets, and counter. By God's grace 'thankful eyes' helped me to actually laugh, snap a picture, and rejoice that she was in the process of undoing her hair in preparation for the next hair style. How grateful I was that this did not occur after I had just spent the typical 4 hours doing her hair!!! I definitely would have failed that test and am grateful for God's kind timing!
* Right now, we are in 'remodel mode' as M gutted our powder room on Sunday due to a chronic leak and a much needed face lift since this room has not been improved (aside from a new toilet seat and wallpaper!) since we moved in 14+ years ago... Remodel mode means that the family room is now home to all of the contents of the old bathroom(except the toilet...I'm grateful for that :)) and the living room is now home to the sink and cabinets soon to be installed. Typically, my idol of order would be rearing its ugly head... I still feel it lurking around under the surface of my peace & order craving heart, but by God's grace I am choosing to focus instead on being grateful for my hubby's handyman giftings and the expert help of DaddyK (Jenkin's and Felicia's Dad) who gets a job done in a hurry. Oh, I'm thankful also for the fun of choosing a new wall color, towels, throw rug, and a trash can!!!
* Upstairs is also very disorganized as we pulled down the 10 bins from the attic in order to do the labor intensive clothing switchover for all 8 of us. God's prodding to look with " thankful eyes" has helped me to see the immense blessing of all of those bins which typically feel like endless work and clutter...how blessed we are to have such generous neighbors, family and friends who graciously gift us with hand me downs to clothe the kiddos year after year!!! God has provided with such an abundance that we are often sending huge overflowing bag loads out the door to bless another family :) In fact, I have 2 large bags awaiting our annual homeschool clothing swap and I'm not even near finished yet :)
Now, I wish I could report that every 'opportunity' has been viewed with 'thankful eyes'...unfortunately, more times than not, my gaze is less than thankful -often viewing these God given 'opportunities' as unwanted interruptions. Or, my view is skewed by unbelief instead of viewing the goodness and wisdom of God in the midst of the challenge. So, for now, I am praying for the grace to view all things with 'thankful eyes' as I seek to honor Him with a growing meek and quiet spirit.
We would be so blessed if you would pray our little man L and his upcoming surgery on Wednesday. As I type, he is snuggling with Daddy on the recliner chair, watching the World Series and eating a chocolate chip cookie...attempts at drifting off to sleep were futile as he crashed this afternoon and took a much needed 2 hour nap. Now he is quite chatty and not at all sleepy! Thankfully, everyone else is in bed :) We are actually letting him sleep with us tonight since he has been waking up fretful and scared...it seems he just needs a little extra TLC right now :) Shh...don't let the other kiddos know!!!
I'll try to update after his surgery on Wednesday...
Thanks for praying and continuing to check in~
Praying for grace to grow in viewing 'those moments' through 'thankful eyes'...
Love, Mama B
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