We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We left for my parents’ house on Wednesday and they treated me, Josh, my brother, and sister-in-law to a double-date that night. We ate sushi and went to a movie. It was SO nice to be out with only adults and have uninterrupted adult conversations…and really good sushi!

Thursday of course was the big food day and that was spent at my parents’. Since my mom is still recovering from her back surgery, my sister-in-law and I took on most of the cooking. My dad smoked a big turkey breast and cooked a small ham. Laura and I made macaroni and cheese, broccoli cheese and rice casserole, stuffed squash, and sweet potato casserole. The entire day was relaxing and enjoyable.

On Friday we packed up and headed to Josh’s parents’ house out in the country. Josh’s dad lost his job as a music minister two years ago. He found a new job about three months later but it simply wasn’t enough to maintain their budget. Their home has been on the verge of foreclosure for a year now. They’ve had it up for sale for over a year. If it doesn’t sell by January 4th it will be auctioned off as a foreclosure.

The Wilkersons have lived in this home for 18 years. It’s a beautiful white house with four bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, and a mother-in-law suite including a kitchenette nestled on ten acres with two ponds. Believe me, if Josh and I could have sold our house and afforded a $250K mortgage we’d have done it in a heartbeat. It’s home. It was a very bittersweet time at their house. The entire family took one last walk down to the ponds, the boys climbed their favorite tree, threw rocks in the water, and simply remembered the last 18 years.

Camping, fishing, birthday parties, a rent-free apartment while Josh finished college, and home to some of my favorite memories over the last ten years; their house will be dearly missed. Through it all, God has been faithful to provide and Josh’s parents have stood firm in their faith knowing God would never leave them nor forsake them and He will ultimately lead them to their new home in the next few weeks.

It was wonderful having Josh’s older sister Mandy, her husband Matt, and their little girl Lucy down from Atlanta. Lucy and Owen are only five months apart and we celebrated her third birthday the day after Thanksgiving. They could be twins. I certainly wish they saw each other more often.

On Saturday we headed to the Christmas tree farm to cut down our tree. This has become such an incredibly enjoyable tradition. Every single year we head out to Clark’s Hill Christmas Tree farm the weekend after Thanksgiving. The all load up on the hay ride and the tractor driver drops us off at just the right spot to pick out our tree. Once the tree is cut down, shaken, and netted we all sit down to enjoy hot chocolate, hot apple cider, and boiled peanuts. The kids take pictures by the big Christmas Tree that shows how much they’ve grown since last year and the little ones love the bean bag toss. When it’s time to check out the cashier gives everyone in the family a miniature candy cane and we head home to decorate the tree.

Jesse with Josh’s younger sister, Erin.

I’m amazed at how relaxed I am now that the foster children have gone home. I haven’t officially resigned yet, but I plan to by the new year. I can’t explain to you just how wonderful it is to just be back to “our” family again. Even daily tasks like laundry, dishes, and preparing dinner are so much more enjoyable now that the stress level in our home has flat-lined. The constant feeling of being overwhelmed has completely left me. I just can’t put it into words. I’m so thankful for the season we spent in foster parenting, but I’m also thankful to be moving on.

God is so good.

~audrey

Oh I just couldn’t wait until tomorrow to post this delicious info!

Our Books-A-Million store just up and disappeared about a month ago. It was the strangest thing. Then all of a sudden there was a HUGE ugly, orange sign in its place:

2nd and Charles

To be honest, the sign makes it look like one of those cheap, ghetto clothing stores….well that sure taught me not to judge a book by its cover! It’s a new project by the owners of Books-A-Million! We’re only the second city in America to get one. It’s a gigantic used book store! When you walk in you feel like you’re in a library. Aisle upon aisle, row upon row of gently loved books for Goodwill prices.

Last year a friend purchased and individually wrapped 25 different Christmas books for her children. Every day of December they got to open one book and on Christmas day they opened the book telling the whole story of Christ’s birth. I thought it was a great idea but also knew it would be quite expensive. Well this store made me feel like I’d hit the jackpot!! They had FIVE book cases full of holiday books. Some were Christ-centered and many were just fun books about Christmas. I ended up buying 28 books in all, including several readers for my big boys to use during school time (Boxcar Kids, Magic Tree House, etc.), some hard back books with the dust jacket still on it (Jan Brett, Max Lucado, etc), and even a few golden books from my childhood (the Pied Piper and the Three Billy Goats Gruff) and my total was $78. It averages out to only $2.78 per book. Some of these books were originally priced at over $20 a piece! I cannot wait to wrap them all and place them in a basket where the boys will choose a new one each day to lead us up to Christmas. It’s going to be so fun. I think I will pass them along to my niece next year so she can join in on the fun.

I only have one niece and she and Owen are five months apart. Her name is Lucy and her birthday is this Saturday. While we were out today, I bought her birthday present. One of the gifts is a Christmas book that I found at the used book store, but the other gift is this precious magnetic dress-up set by Melissa and Doug.

It will be even more fun to shop for her Christmas gift in a few weeks!

I will leave you with this: As my foster children were loaded into the vehicle that picked them up to take them home, Owen stood crying in the driveway because he wanted so badly to go with Sister. They became best buddies and I know he will ask where she is when he wakes up in the morning. It broke my heart.

~audrey

I just got the phone call (well actually it was a text!). The kids will be picked up and taken to their parents by lunch time!! I can hardly believe. It’s so bitter sweet. They will be missed dearly and I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know their parents, who are wonderful people who love their children more than life itself. I look forward to keeping in touch with them. This is the kind of success story that makes foster parenting worth every pain and inconvenience. What a great way to end this season in our lives.

Here are more pics from the photo shoot with Ashley. LOVE THEM!

Happy GOING HOME DAY!

~audrey

Ashley so graciously took pictures of my family and the children on Saturday evening down at the Savannah Rapids. The weather was gorgeous and the kids were pretty cooperative. Ashley is bringing me the entire CD this morning and I can’t wait to see them! She did an amazing job. Would you believe this is the first family picture we’ve ever made?! That’s pitiful, I know.

Here is your sneak peek 🙂

To top off a great evening, a girl stopped me when we were first getting started and she said,

“I hope this isn’t weird, but I follow your blog and I wanted to come over and say hi.” That was so fun and exciting! The girl’s name was Ashley and she is a photographer and was actually there at the river waiting for clients to arrive.

I’ll post more pictures later when the CD arrives.

Happy three-days-before-Thanksgiving!

~audrey

The hearing came and went and the judge ordered that the children return home!! We just have to wait a few more days for the order to be signed and filed and we’ll be back to the Fab Five.

Tonight I’m going to a young women’s event out in the country. It’s not really that far away, but it’s at the home of a friend who has five acres and lives off a dirt road. We’re going to have a bonfire, food, lots of laughs, and a ton of fun. I hate leaving Josh in the evenings after he’s been working all day…but I need a break too so I’ll just go for a couple of hours.

This weekend we’ll get things tidied up before the kids return to their parents. Yesterday actually went by very quickly. I watched Anne of Green Gables while I folded and put away about four loads of laundry, I cleaned the kitchen, and most importantly I thoroughly cleaned out my van. I like my van so much better when it’s nice and clean.

I can hardly believe Thanksgiving is in six days. I think I’m finally getting in the Christmas spirit. I’ve had Christmas music playing and the weather has turned cool again; it’s been wonderful. I’m planning something wonderful for Josh and I for Christmas. I can’t give any details now because every once in a while he reads my blog! 🙂 🙂 Can’t wait!

Happy WEEKEND!!!

~audrey

Today is the day (again). The hearing is at 4:30 this afternoon and if everything goes as planned I should hear by 5:00pm whether or not the kids will be going home today! I’m so torn between being super excited and trying not to get my hopes up. Their bags are still packed from the uneventful November 1st hearing. All I have to do is bathe both of the children this afternoon when Sister gets home from school and then W.A.I.T.

Sister doesn’t even know there’s a chance she could be going home today. I don’t want to get her hopes up again if it doesn’t happen. Plus, it will be SO exciting to see the look on her face if I get that phone call and am able to tell her, “YOU’RE GOING HOME TODAY!!” Oh I can’t wait! It will be so exciting.

I have plenty of things to do today. Publix has an excellent week of buy-one-get-ones and items under $.50. I got 35 items last night, spent $31 and saved $54!! The only problem is, I don’t have room for all of the boxes of food that I bought! I have to get in the garage today and clear off some shelves and do some reorganizing. I also need to clean…..my entire house. So that should keep me preoccupied.

I just put baby down for his two to three hour nap, so I had better get to work.

P.S. Homeschool buddies: The boys and I did our first lesson in Saxon today and it was a lot of fun. Definitely more interaction and variety than our old faithful Miquon. I think we’ll enjoy it. I decided to put the boys on the same level since they’re only a grade level apart and I feel like Miquon kind of launched Jesse into more difficult concepts that will allow him to hang with us just fine in Saxon 2. Ali, I think you guys will like it if you decide to make the switch.

Happy “hope-to-send-the-kids-home-today” Thursday!!

~audrey

Somehow I stumbled upon this quaint little homeschool blog called Books and Bairns (which is a Scottish word for a child; son or daughter). She challenged us to record a day in the life so that we might glean from one another the freedoms and liberties that come with our choice to homeschool. Whether we record a day that we skip school altogether or one in which we sit around for five or six hours reading, writing, and learning (HA!). This is what today, Monday, November 15, 2010 looked like in our little white house:

5:50am– I woke up and cleaned the office of an attorney I go to church with.
7:15am– I woke little sister and got her ready for school.
7:55am– Josh left for work with little sister in tow.
8:00am– Breakfast for the boys, everyone got dressed, and we started our chores.
By 8:45am we were in the car on our way to Publix and Kroger for my weekly coupon shopping. Not only did I spend $34, but that is also the amount of which I saved! Pretty good grocery trip.
We got back home around 10:15am. I unloaded the groceries and fed the baby a snack before putting him in bed around 10:30am for his nice, long nap (he’s such a great sleeper!). Once baby was sleeping, I posted my shopping success on facebook for my ladies at church (I taught a coupon workshop last week and some are still needing a little help).
11:30– We ate lunch. Corndogs and applesauce. Yum.
12:00– We finally hit the books. Mondays are usually light. We read, review our memory work from last week, and work on tomorrow’s presentations for co-op. Jesse gets to give a persuasive presentation on his favorite Thanksgiving dessert while Joshua will present on the guillotine. Afterall, what could get a seven year old boy more excited!?
After school we spent over an hour cleaning their room (the boys’ room, that is). This was the kind of cleaning that requires a trash bag. Out with the old, broken, and neglected. For 2011, the word is SIMPLICITY in our home. Their room looks wonderful! Let’s see if it can remain that way for a whopping 24 hours.
After all of that cleaning, the boys needed to go outside and run and scream for a while, so that’s what they did. Owen went down for a nap, baby boy was still sleeping, and the oldest two went out back and dug holes to play in where they plot the next major battle and discuss things like LEGO structures and who will be forced to take the first shower tonight. While the big boys played, I attacked a few large piles of crap. You know, those piles that start off as a few sheets of paper on your kitchen counter or bedside table and suddenly it’s twelve inches high and you’re having to balance each item you add, knowing eventually you’ll sort it all out, but for now you have no earthly idea what’s in there!? I had two or three of those piles. Yuck. I think I finally sorted them into categories such as: trash, file, bills-to-be-paid, coupons to save, and even a put it back where it belongs pile full of DVDs and books. Unfortunately the smaller, more organized piles are still on my bedroom floor.
Somewhere in the midst of our productivity I was able to strip a few beds, wash the linens and return them to the proper beds before having to leave to pick up little sister from school at 3:30.
We normally have a prayer meeting at church on Monday nights, but tonight I’m playing hookie and look forward to finishing up the laundry, putting the kids in bed early, and maybe even getting a bath where I might actually shave my legs!
On a side note, my husband asked me last week, “Honey, you go to the store all the time and you’re always making lists; why can’t you remember to get shaving cream??” My response was quite simple, “Well dear, I only remember to get the things I actually USE.” Thanks to jeans and very blonde hair, I only have to shave about once a week (if that!) with an electric razor. Sorry babe, I’ll try harder to remember.
Now it is 4:35pm. We have entered that time of day that most mothers dread. That time when the kids are tired, getting hungry, and aren’t sure whether they should crash or keep running. Mine are plopped in front of a movie at the moment. I’m hoping its going to rain any minute now. I will begin bathing the fab five as soon as dinner plates are cleared from the table and the bedtime march will begin promptly at 7:30pm.

All in all, a good day.

Happy Monday!

~audrey

That’s what I now call my dermatologist: The Butcher.

I don’t think she can let me leave her office without taking a piece of me with her. I understand, we had a skin cancer scare in the summer of 2008 which left me with a 2 1/2 inch scar on my left arm…then another scare on my right arm about a year ago…and this time, three stitches and another scar on my left thigh. I laughed it off as she told me she needed to remove another spot and it would leave a scar:

“Oh, it’s no biggie. I certainly don’t display that part of my leg anymore!”

But seriously, my husband is going to start calling me Frankenstein if she doesn’t lighten up. I’ve learned my lesson! Here I am, 28 years young and have had three cancer scares in the last three years. I’m out of the sun! I sit under the umbrella every time we go to the pool, I wear major sunscreen, a hat, blah, blah, blah. I’m being smart now. Let’s just hope the five or six years that I baked myself in hopes of the golden tan I never received didn’t do any permanent, terminal damage.

Just last month my OB/GYN informed me that I have “Fibrocystic Breasts” (is that TMI?). He went on to tell me that it’s nothing to be concerned about, except for the fact that the cysts make it difficult to differentiate a cyst from a lump that needs immediate attention. The next thing he said hit me the hardest:

You drink a lot of caffeine don’t you? Excessive caffeine can make cysts worse.

Um, well, didn’t I just tell you I have an average of five to six kids in my house on any given day? YES I drink a lot of caffeine! How else would I function??

Yet somehow his warnings were enough. From that day forward and for the last month and a half now, any coffee I drink is decaf. My coffee pot is resting on a shelf in the garage. But you want to know the biggest shocker?? I feel GREAT! You see, coffee dehydrates your body. For people who drink a lot of caffeine, you need to drink even MORE water and I was not doing that. If I was thirsty, I’d pour myself some more coffee. One of the first things I noticed when I quit drinking coffee was that I was going to the bathroom more often. And instead of reaching for my coffee cup, I now drink water when I’m thirsty (imagine that!). I have more energy now and I’m less irritable! Apparently the caffeine would not only keep me awake, but it also made me quite jittery and short-tempered. I didn’t even realize it until I stopped drinking it.

My poor kids!

Needless to say, I don’t plan on going back to the coffee habit ever again. I still enjoy a cup of coffee like a smoker likes his cigarette, but I only indulge about once a week and when I do, it’s decaf. A girls gotta have her vices, right?

I’m so excited it’s Friday again. Six more days until our foster children’s next hearing. I’m certainly not holding my breath for this one. I’m praying, for their sake, that they’re able to go home next Thursday so they can be reunited with their family and be with them during the holidays, but Josh and I are mentally and emotionally prepared for them to stay if that ends up being the case.

We’ve had a few ‘jammie days’ this week and I’ve come to realize that I’m just lazy on the days that I don’t get dressed and make my bed. Even if I have big goals for the day, I just can’t seem to get motivated if I don’t properly prepare myself…by getting dressed, running a brush through my hair, and picking up my bedroom.

So, I’m dressed, bed is made, kids are fed. It’s time to start school.

Happy FRIDAY ya’ll!! Have a great weekend!!

~audrey

I taught a coupon workshop at church last night and Josh made dinner for himself and the kids. As a result the kitchen was trashed a little messy when I got home. I was tired so I went straight to bed without touching a single dish or picking up the living or anything. I knew it wasn’t the best idea because I don’t particularly like waking up to total destruction, but I’m starting to see that sleep can be much more important than going to bed with a clean house.

The weather is absolutely gorgeous today with a high of 75 and not a cloud in the sky. I opened the windows when I got home from taking Little Sister to school and quickly debated with myself as to whether or not I should make the boys sit down to do their school work or let them play outside while I clean up for about an hour.

After filling my sink with hot water and pinesol, the decision was clear and the boys headed to the great outdoors to dig more holes in the backyard. The kitchen was clean in no time and I made the boys clean up the living room and their room. After a little less than an hour the house was clean, the boys were nice and dirty (just how they like it) and we were all sitting in the school room working on Week Eleven’s memory work.

It was totally worth it!

I can’t believe we only have ONE week left before our co-op takes a seven week break for the holidays! This semester has flown by and I look forward to taking it down a notch for those seven weeks. We’ll probably still do math a few days a week and spelling at least twice. I’d really like to steal a friend’s idea from last year by buying and wrapping 25 Christmas books; one for every day in December leading up to Christmas. There are books at the dollar stores and several $5 deals on kids Christmas books at the Christian book store. I think that would be a fun treat and of course I’d make the boys read the books to me so I’d be killing two birds with one stone. 🙂 It’s been so much fun having both Joshua and Jesse reading well this year. Life is a lot easier when your kids learn to read….and potty train….and stop using sippie cups…and no longer need a car seat….the list could go on forever but somehow life does not actually get easier as you pass these milestones. It’s fun nonetheless.

Well, the dishwasher is running and my babysitter will be here soon. I have a dermatology appointment today because I realized I have two very small cysts on my head which would not be an issue except for the fact that I realized I’ve lost all of my hair where both of the cysts are (we’re talking the size of a pencil eraser, but still!) so I’m having them removed in an hour.

Happy Wednesday!

~audrey

We were so blessed to have a dear friend of mine as Jesse’s tutor (teacher) at co-op this year. Mrs. Wessner is truly a gift from God to the eight children in her class. Some of our weekly memorization material is already put to music on the memory CD, but about half of it is not. However, every week Mrs. Wessner creates her own little ditties for the memory work that is not already set to music. These songs are always easy to remember and quite catchy! Usually the mothers are holding their phones in the air during class so we can record the homemade songs and use them throughout the week to help our kids with their memorization. Mrs. Wessner uses a variety of voices, her own animation, and the joy of the Lord to teach our children to love learning. It’s quite infectious and I always look forward to Tuesday mornings with Mrs. Wessner.

Just last night, Jesse was in the shower in my bathroom and Owen was in the bath tub in the boys’ bathroom. At one point I could hear Jesse singing about the Protestant Reformation in the shower while at the same time I could hear Owen (my three year old that sits in class with us on Tuesdays) singing the five phases of the moon (which Mrs. Wessner put to the tune of Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes) in the bath tub. I have to smile at those moments when it really hits me that the things they are learning at these tender ages really will stay with them forever.

We sure love our classical home education and the Classical Conversations community.

Who knows what I may learn from bath time tonight!

~audrey