Just Playing Around

Jesse and Brandon attended the Catholic Men's Conference this morning. The kids kept themselves busy playing dress up and practicing "shows". Mary makes a very cute cat, don't you think?

Pictures on the Wall

Back when I had much fewer children I went for pictures at least once/year. Usually they got them around their birthdays and the little ones got them for their half birtdays. Now, the photo studio is my worst nightmare. In addition to being pricey it's alot of work. On my wall are pictures that are really, really ancient. I decided this year around the kid's birthday times I would take them in for pictures. My mom was kind enough to come with me and help. We have three birthdays in February (all in the same week) so I took those birthday kids in for pictures today. Mary was less than thrilled (the first picture of her says it all, LOL) but Brandon and Sammy cooperated quite well. I was very pleased with the picture place and the prices. It was nice and roomy in there and not hot at all. It was also low pressure which is a plus. In addition you get your pictures 20 minutes later (and can shop at Trader Joe's while you wait for them!). (The place is called Portrait Innovations in Northville, MI) As I took the old (very, very old!) pictures out of the frames and put in the new ones I am struck at how fast time goes. It seems like yesterday when I had Brandon in for his 1 year photos and now he's nearly 17! It's a good reminder to enjoy the days as they come even amidst the laundry, cooking, diaper changes, fighting, soccer games, and everything else that goes along with being a mom to eight kids.

Happy Birthday (early) to my February babies!

Jackson the Reader

Jackson has made great strides in reading this year (and math too)! We are so proud of him. I never tire of the moments when my children learn to read and a lightbulb turns on. I frequently find Jackson cozied up and reading on the couch. We are so proud of him! We now have 5 avid readers in the house. We couldn't be happier!

Blessings, Prayer, and Failure

The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind. The shock and excitement of being pregnant has set in. The early weeks are always tough with fear of miscarriage and awaiting feeling yucky. I've gotten lots of congratulations and prayers so far and I'm am eternally grateful for that. Fr. Lee even blessed the baby in the Communion line last night. That was a nice treat. I'm struggling with the reactions I'll get from the *outside* world once it becomes apparent that I'm pregnant. I'd like to have a notebook on hand of what to say if someone says something rude. Alas I will probably just smile and try to be polite.

I'm in awe of the fact that God has decided we should be blessed with another child. Most days I wonder how I can possibly lead the children I have to where they need to go in life. I feel like a perpetual failure quite honestly. I try to do what's right, I fail, I try again. I am thankful for God's grace but wonder if I am abusing it in some way. I keep failing and praying, praying and failing. I look to the Saints like St. Peter and St. Augustine. Those who failed Jesus in so many ways but with prayer and perseverance they became saints. I hope I have the strength to persevere in that way. I am so thankful to God for all the blessings He has given us: a nice home, an income, good health, loving family, great friends - just to name a few. I am certainly not worthy of these blessings. I fail miserably at being a wife and squeak by in the motherhood department. I'm here asking you all for prayers. I am so grateful for what you have all brought to our lives. You inspire me to be a better person. I thank you all for that.

May God Bless Your Day!

Two New Princess Thrones

Every princess deserves her own throne. Mary and Cecilia's car seats had expired and I found a great deal on a couple of Britax seats. Thanks to daddy's very hard work over the Christmas break we were able to get these seats for the girls. Mary is quite taken with hers. Cecilia tolerates it more than her old seat. The sunflowers are very pretty (prettier than I thought they would be). Thanks daddy!

The kids and I went rollerskating with the homeschooling group on Wednesday. We usually have to miss because of violin but twice/year or so we skip violin and hit the rink. The kids had a great time and were wonderful helpers for Sam and Mary (thanks to the Plencner kids who were also big helpers!!).

That's it for now. We've had quite the exciting week. I hope you are all staying warm. Thank you all for the kind words and blessings regarding our newest addition.

God bless your day!

One More Soldier for Christ

Cecilia is happy to announce that she will be a big sister, God willing, in late September of this year (probably more like early October!). Look out Jon and Kate plus Eight. You've got nothing on the Ekblad's. :)

St. Gerard and St. Gianna pray for us!

The Church Militant

Jesse, my mom, my dad, and I attended the Pro Life Summit (www.proflifesociety.org) today. A BIG thanks to Brandon and Hannah who held down the fort for an entire (very long) day. We were able to meet one of the greatest men I've ever seen, Fr. Frank Pavone, of Priests for Life. (www.priestsforlife.org). There were many spectacular speakers including Dr. Janet Smith, Joe Sheidler, Ed Rivet, and many other very powerful speakers. The theme was that we are called not to be lukewarm, not to be polite, not to be in the background, but to be the Church Militant. We are soldiers of Christ. Abortion is murder of a baby and a destruction of a woman's life. We can no longer watch from the stands. We are all called by God to help defend women and children. It was a very powerful day and can be listened to (or purchased) here www.avemariaradio.net I encourage you to listen to the talks.

My beloved husband knows how much I love Fr. Frank and asked him to hold Cecilia for a photo. I am certain that Fr. Frank will be canonized one day. What an honor to speak with him and have him hold my baby!!

First Foods

Cecilia is always grabbing our food off of our plates and gagging on it so I thought I would try some *appropriate* food for her tonight. As you can see the out come wasn't good, LOL. I guess we'll just wait until she has some teeth and give her the good stuff. I generally just mash up table food anyway but thought I'd try out some of the fancy organic baby food that's out there now. Ah well - she'll just stick to her mommy's milk complete with coffee and Trader Joe's peppermint joe joe's ;)

The last picture is Mary with her baby in the cozy cocoon. Incidentally Mary says while looking at the baby's hands "she needs her nails clipped" LOL. I wonder where she heard that from.

God Bless Your Day!

Happy Six Month Birthday Cecilia!

I can't believe it's been 6 months since Cecilia was born! She is such a cutie (although she *could* sleep more at night ;) ). According to my sources these are her favorite things :

Sammy : She likes when you tickle her

Katie : She likes when you "do shows" for her

Jackson : She likes sucking on things and drinking "your" (mommy's) milk


The rest of the family was unavailable for consultation. I would have to say she is well cared for by her siblings. Samuel, especially, *loves* her very much. Mary is fond of saying "Celia needs a change" and she (Mary) also will give up her passi for Cecilia in a pinch.

It's amazing how God's planning works. I never thought I'd have eight kids. But we can't imagine our lives without them. Funny how God always knows best even when *we* have plans.

God Bless your day!

Happy New Year ( A Little Late!)

My computer has been a bit slow and, well, so have I. But we're still in the first week of the New Year so I figured I'd post some pictures from our New Years celebration. It was actually a pretty quiet night. We attended Mass and then came home for some yummy appetizer type foods (or you could call it high fat garbage). The kids made gingerbread houses, we watched Evan Almighty (one of our favorite movies), and waited up for midnight. Some of us made it (Brandon, Hannah, Owen, Jesse, and I) and some didn't (Mary, Cecilia, Sammy, Jackson, and Katie). It was fun!

May you all have a Blessed and healthy New Year!!