Here is a quick update of our lives over the past month-

Sorry we couldn't attend the baby shower at Keri's house (due to illness), but here is the outfit that Emma was planning to wear. She spent some serious time picking it out, and I didn't want you to miss the experience.

This is one of Andrew's favorite places to be lately. I have no idea why.

We bought three flats of strawberries for a pretty good deal, so we spent many hours cutting them up and making strawberry jam.

Emma found a new little friend in our backyard and named him (or her maybe) Edward. Hmm, that's Ben's middle name. I wonder if there would be any connection there.

I got to spend a little time at my Mom's house visiting last week. I took down the Mother's Day card I made for her to go with the new oven we all pitched in to get her. The one she has is decent, but only two of the burners were working and they were the ones that are inconvenient to work with.



We've had lots of peek-a-boo. It's Andrew's favorite thing to do.




Mike hired the kids to de-weed the backyard. They all wrote out bids of what they would do the job for then Mike wrote out a contract with each of them. They all worked really hard and were super excited when pay day came. Of course they all had the money spent before they got it.

Mike has been working hard on the basement. This past week he got up the courage to make a hole in our foundation so he could do the plumbing for the bathroom. He whacked away at it for a few days then broke down and did it the man's way. He rented a jackhammer. The whole house shook when he was using it, but the hole is done and he can move on with the plumbing.

On Mother's Day, Mike made a cake and we drove up to his parent's house to give them some of it with a card. We didn't stay because Mike's Dad has bronchitis, but it was good to see them.

Yesterday was Kimi's tenth birthday. I can't believe how grown up she is getting. We are so glad to have her in our family. She is a great helper and a hard worker. I never have to tell her to get on the homework. She is the one that comes home and does it until it's done. She gets good grades and she asks for books for her presents. What more could a parent ask for?

We Love You, Kimi!!!

In the past month, we have also each had a turn being sick. We took Andrew to the doctor because he wasn't eating or drinking anything, and when we did manage to get something into him, he would throw it up. The doctor told me that if he didn't have three wet diapers in the next 24 hours (his diapers had barely been damp for three days, and he had diarrhea) he would have to go into the hospital. Well, he started doing much better and he didn't have to be hospitalized. Thank goodness!

Mike's company got bought by another company. The new company (or maybe I should say - some of the people in the new company, mainly his new supervisor) is not very willing to recognize what a valuable employee Mike is and they have lowered his status (no longer a branch manager, now classified as a salesperson) and cut his pay by thirty percent. They have put him on a probation period and if his branch doesn't prove themselves in that time, they will close the branch. Needless to say, Mike is working twice as hard for less money, and is looking for a new job. Prayers would be appreciated.

So, I guess that this update would kindof explain why I have been having some problems this past month. I didn't realize until just now that so much had happened. I guess that's what happens when you're not paying attention. Life goes on.

Okay, so here's the deal. I am busy, but not busy enough to blog only once a month. This is a post that you can probably put in the category of "Hmm, that's something that I didn't know about Michelle." Maybe you did know. I think I hide it well, but maybe not. You be the judge.

I struggle with depression. I try to not let it affect my life, or the lives of my family, but sometimes it really does. Some days it is really hard for me to do anything but make sure that my family eats something (we have had pancakes, pizza, and sandwiches a lot in the last month) and everyone (that needs them) has clean diapers. I usually make it worse because I am not a talker. I HATE talking about my problems. Because, you know, if you ignore it it will go away. That works every time - NOT!!! This is a very difficult post for me, because I would rather not talk about it. But, I have realized that if I talk through my problems and feelings, it gets better and I can cope easier and better. There are still some days that I think some Cymbalta would be helpful, but I hate drugs too. I don't even take Tylenol unless I feel like my head will explode.

So, that's what's been going on around here. You know, besides life with six kids. I'll try to do a real post, with pictures and stuff, sometime soon.

You'll want to scroll down and turn off the music for this one.

This is cute, but I still prefer the one in my last post.

Have a great day!