Thankful Thursday

Have I mentioned how much I love summer? It's pretty much here, and I've been in a great mood all week! I've also been waking up ridiculously early...buy I don't mind too much :)

This week I am thankful for:

1. Double dates with my sister and her man :)

2. Newborn baby snuggles! I'm pretty in love with my new niece.

3. Lemonade, sun tea, ice cold water...oh, and cool lime refreshers from Starbucks!

4. My sister in law visiting this week :)

5. Suntanning on Candice's deck while the kids play all morning.

6. A warm evening for soccer yesterday. It was a nice change from the arctic wind we normally get!

7. That I finished my rag quilt! 

8. A beautiful Mother's Day. I meant to do a whole blog post about it, but my blogger app has been acting up. Maybe soon I will!

9. A husband who offered to buy me all new bathroom towels. Now I have a set of matching charcoal grey towels from Costco, and I love them :)

10. Pots of flowers to decorate my yard :)

What are you thankful for this week? I hope this next one is great for everyone!

Wordless Wednesday...Addison's birthday wish list

Totally Normal

 A totally normal photo of our girls drinking a smoothie...it's the bed head and nose picking that keep it real around here!

Where Does The Real Problem Lie?

As I read through all the articles I've seen regarding the Kermit Gosnell case, I've been thinking. What is the real issue? Is there one particular aspect of Gosnell's practice that the media is trying to highlight? What is the base reason he is even on trial…where does the problem lie?

Is the real issue the cleanliness of his clinic? I've read sentence after sentence in many articles that highlights how "disgusting" his clinic was. Graphic paragraphs about blood stains on the table, instruments not being sterilized properly and a cat living in the clinic are scattered throughout the articles that talk about the case. An unclean clinic is a health hazard and can allow unwanted infections in the people who are meant to stay alive in the clinic, but is that the real issue?

Or is it the severed baby parts that he kept in jars? This one makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up and brings me to tears almost every time. I haven't seen anything (yet) that explains WHY he was doing that. Obviously he had a reason of some sort, but given that he regularly took babies from their mothers' womb, is that behaviour SO much worse that it's worth locking him up? I'm not sure.

Maybe the real issue is that he kills babies after they are born alive, rather than in the mothers' womb. I suspect this may be part of the real reason he's on trial, but really, is the line between right and wrong when it comes to abortion really as thin as the opening to the birth canal? Is that the line where one goes from a trained health professional to a heartless murderer? Ugh, my heart is aching just writing this. Of course that's not right. OF COURSE it isn't. But it's the accepted way, and children are dying by the thousands because they are on the "legal" side of the birth canal line. 

"If you can't see, hear, or feel something, it doesn't exist" (Horton Hears a Who) is how we as a society have excused abortion up until this point. We just ignore what it really is, and the Gosnell case is making that really hard to do. 

He's also being charged with performing abortions past 24 weeks, which is illegal in Pennsylvania and 39 other states. Are we as a society still going to accept abortions before 24 weeks after this? Probably, but we HAVE to know that it is not as simple as "emptying the uterine contents" or "tissue". Are we appalled by his actions because the babies LOOKED like babies? If that's the case, he is being singled out unfairly, because he is most definitely not the first doctor to do that. 

For some people, I think the biggest issue is how he treated the patients. I've seen in articles that they were not treated with basic dignity and respect, but were sat on blood stained blanket, and neglected.

I'm done for now. I can't end this with an answer for what the biggest issue is and why everyone is so appalled by Gosnell, because I believe people will have different reasons; maybe one that I mentioned, maybe a combination of them all. No matter how this trial ends, here is what I believe personally:

Abortion is the killing of a child, whether it's done at 3,12, 24, or 30 weeks of pregnancy. It is a baby. Anyone who has performed or helped with an abortion can't deny that.

The patients…the women who get abortions are not cold blooded killers. I can't speak for everyone of course, but I believe strongly that a huge percentage of women who get abortions are scared for one reason or another. Whether it's financial, health, relationship, or some other reason, they feel that getting an abortion will help. I believe that rather than fighting for better, safer abortions, our energy would be better used by supporting our fellow women with the other things  that have led them to the point where they feel that they even need to make this decision. I can't imagine that it's an easy decision for anyone to make, no matter what their situation. 

My heart goes out to any of you who have been faced with it.

 I believe that women are mislead terribly about abortion, on every level. I hope that by the end of the Gosnell case, if nothing else, the misconceptions about abortion are exposed.

This post may seem fragmented…I have no idea because I just wrote what came out. I know I could go so much deeper in many of these areas, but right now I'm not going to. I just….had to say this. 

As I've been writing, a picture of Danica is visible on my screen….one that I took as she was starting to cry. I meant to put it in the trash because it's not a picture I would normally post. As I write this though, I keep glancing over at it, and it just seems to fit. It fits how I'm feeling right now, and always have about this very sensitive topic. It's how I feel for the babies….for the women….even for the doctors. 

Thankful Thursday

It's spring! Well actually, it almost seems like we skipped spring like weather and have gone right to summer...which is fine with me!

What I'm thankful for this week:

1. The sunshine! Vitamin D has done out while family good!

2. Being able to kick the kids out of the house by 9 am. My living room floor actually stays clean for most of the morning now, lol :)

3. The progress on our house this week! My cabinets are being built as we speak...I am so excited!

4.sundresses :)

5. Being able to go on a date with Daniel this week and watch Iron Man 3, which I highly recommend, by the way!

6. Getting to spend a whole day with my Grandma yesterday :) she even helped me sort through all the summer clothes, so that was awesome.

7. Laughing with my husband. I'm so thankful that he "gets me" and my strange sense of humor :)

8. Soccer season is here! Sure it's as cold as the arctic at that soccer field, but the kids have fun and I get to see other moms that I don't see very often!

9. Our dog that keeps me company on my runs

10. Blooming trees :)


What are you thankful for this week?
May your next week be great and contain just enough chocolate to distract you from mount laundry!

What Does A Rooster Say?

With four girls and a talkative mama (the first step is admitting it, right?) there tends to me pretty much constant chatter in this house...hence, the name of the blog.
Most of the time it's fairly normal chatter. Okay, some of the time...

Ah, who am I kidding? We are kind of whack-a-doodle over here :)
Still, the conversation at the breakfast table caught be off guard this morning.

It started with all of the girls pretending to be roosters.
"Cock-a-doodle-doo!" Over and over. I'm pretty proud of how well I ignored it actually.
Then, "hey Tegan, what does a hawk say? Hawk-a-doodle-doo!"
"What does a clock say? Clock-a-doodle-doo!"
Tegan, confident that she had caught on to the game, turns to me and says, "hey mom, what does a cock say?"

Me: "New topic!"

And that was breakfast.

Happy Sunday! Here's a cartoon I think all of my fellow moms will appreciate :)

Thankful Thursday

Can it be true? Could the snow possibly be on it's way out...and spring be here?
It sure felt like it today, despite the ridiculously intense wind!

Here's what I'm thankful for this week:

1. The snow leaving...yay!

2. Our new vehicle. I know I've said it before, but I am really in love with it!

3. That soccer starts this week :) the girls are really excited!

4. That I got to spend all day Sunday with my grandma :)

5. Chocolate haystack cookies

6. Grocery shopping alone at night.

7. That the kids can play outside for longer than 5 minutes...everyone is so much happier

8. I strongly dislike the wind, but I'm thankful that its drying up all the mud :)

9. Sweet sister in law's who introduce me to addicting iPhone games :p

10. Snuggling with my man!

And now, without further ado...may I introduce May! Hopefully it's gentler on us than April was :)

And as always, leave something you are thankful for in the comments!

Walk Humbly With Your God

I have posted this before, both on my blog and on Facebook, but I just felt like I should post it here again today. I often think of it when people talk about God. It is a brilliant example of just how much God loves us, I think. 
The word "religion" frustrates me. It has it's place, sure, but to the average individual it is a word full of rules, regulations, disconnect, and unforgiveness. In many places where I see the word religion, that place is also full of intolerance, even hate, for something or someone. 

When God created the world and us as humans, He created us for a relationship with Him. Not a "you better love me or else" type of a relationship, but an actual connectedness. A place where we know His heart and He knows ours, because we talk to Him about it. He wants us to walk with Him and to shine His love to everyone around us. Not hate. NOT hold up signs that say "God hates gays", not hurt each other with our words an actions...because He's not like that.
He is mercy, grace, and love. When we are in that place with Christ, inexplicable peace follows :)

What the student in this story does for his fellow students? He did that for us, but on a much greater scale. 

"Jesus is my Savior, not my religion." 



There was a certain Professor of Religion named Dr. Christianson, a
> studious man, who taught at a small college in the western United States
> . Dr. Christianson taught the required survey course in Christianity at
> this particular institution. Every student was required to take this
> course his freshman year, regardless of his or her major.
>
> Altho ugh Dr. Christianson tried hard to communicate the essence of the
> gospel in his class, he found that most of his students looked upon the
> course as nothing but required drudgery. Despite his best efforts,
> most students refused to take Christianity seriously.
>
> This year, Dr. Christianson had a special student named Steve. Steve was
> only a freshman, but was studying with the intent of going onto seminary
> for the ministry. Steve was popular, well liked, and he was an imposing
> physical specimen. He was now the starting center on the school football
> team, and was the best student in the professor's class.
>
> One day, Dr. Christianson asked Steve to stay after class so he could
> talk with him. "How many push-ups can you do?" Steve said, "I do about
> 200 every night." "200? That's pretty good, Steve," Dr. Christianson
> said. "Do you think you could do 300?" Steve replied, "I don't know....
> I've never done 300 at a time." "Do you think you could?" again asked
> Dr. Christianson. "Well, I can try," said Steve.
>
> "Can you do 300 in sets of 10? I have a class project in mind and I need
> you to do about 300 push-ups in sets of ten for this to work. Can you do
> it? I need you to tell me if you can do it," said the professor. Steve
> said, "Well... I think I can...yeah, I can do it." Dr. Christianson
> said, "Good! I need you to do this on Friday. Let me explain what I have
> in mind."
>
> Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in the front of the
> room. When class started, the professor pulled out a big box of donuts.
> No, these weren't the normal kinds of donuts, they were the extra fancy
> BIG kind, with cream centers and frosting swirls. Everyone was pretty
> excited it was Friday, the last class of the day, and they were going to
> get an early start on the weekend with a party in Dr. Christianson's
> class.
>
> Dr. Christianson went to the first girl in the first row and asked,
> "Cynthia, do you want to have one of these donuts?" Cynthia said,
> "Yes."
> Dr. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do
> ten push-ups so that Cynthia can have a donut?" "Sure." Steve jumped
> down from his desk to do a quick ten. Then Steve again sat in his desk.
> Dr. Christianson put a donut on Cynthia's desk.
>
> Dr. Christianson then went to Joe, the next person, and asked, "Joe, do
> you want a donut?" Joe said, "Yes." Dr. Christianson asked, "Steve
> would you do ten push-ups so Joe can have a donut?" Steve did ten
> push-ups, Joe got a donut. And so it went, down the first aisle, Steve
> did ten push-ups for every person before they got their donut.
>
> Walking down the s econd aisle, Dr. Christianson came to Scott. Scott was
> on the basketball team, and in as good condition as Steve. He was very
> popular and never lacking for female companionship. When the professor
> asked, "Scott, do you want a donut?" Scott's reply was, "Well, can I do
> my own push-ups?" Dr. Christianson said, "No, Steve has to do them."
>
> Then Scott said, "Well, I don't want one then." Dr. Christianson
> shrugged and then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten
> push-ups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't want?" With perfect
> obedience Steve started to do ten push-ups. Scott said, "HEY! I said I
> didn't want one!"
>
> Dr. Christianson said, "Look! this is my classroom, my desks, and these
> are my donuts. Just leave it on the desk if you don't want it." And he
> put a donut on Scott's desk. Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow
> down a little. He j ust stayed on the floor between sets because it took
> too much effort to be getting up and down. You could start to see a
> little perspiration coming out around his brow.
>
> Dr. Christianson started down the third row. Now the students were
> beginning to get a little angry. Dr. Christianson asked Jenny, "Jenny,
> do you want a donut?" Sternly, Jenny said, "No." Then Dr. Christianson
> asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten more push-ups so Jenny can have a
> donut she doesn't want?" Steve did ten....Jenny got a donut.
>
> By now, a growing sense of uneasiness filled the room. The students were
> beginning to say "No" and there were all these uneaten donuts on the
> desks.
> Steve also had to really put forth a lot of extra effort to get these
> push-ups done for each donut. There began to be a small pool of sweat
> on the floor beneath his face, his arms and brow were beginni ng to get
> red because of the physical effort involved.
>
> Dr. Christianson asked Robert, who was the most vocal unbeliever in the
> class, to watch Steve do each push up to make sure he did the full ten
> push-ups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all of Steve's work
> for all of those uneaten donuts. He sent Robert over to where Steve was
> so Robert could count the set and watch Steve closely.
>
> Dr. Christianson started down the fourth row. During his class,
> however, some students from other classes had wandered in and sat down
> on the steps along the radiators that ran down the sides of the room.
> When the professor realized this, he did a quick count and saw that now
> there were 34 students in the room. He started to worry if Steve would
> be able to make it.
>
> Dr. Christianson went on to the next person and the next and the next.
> Near th e end of that row, Steve was really having a rough time. He was
> taking a lot more time to complete each set. Steve asked Dr.
> Christianson, "Do I have to make my nose touch on each one?" Dr.
> Christianson thought for a moment, "Well, they're your push-ups. You are
> in charge now. You can do them
>
> any way that you want." And Dr. Christianson went on.
>
>
> A few moments later, Jason, a recent transfer student, came to the room
> and was about to come in when all the students yelled in one voice, "NO!
> Don't come in! Stay out!" Jason didn't know what was going on. Steve
> picked up his head and said, "No, let him come."
>
> Professor Christianson said, "You realize that if Jason comes in you
> will have to do ten push-ups for him?" Steve said, "Yes, let him come
> in. Give him a donut." Dr. Christianson said, "Okay, Steve, I'll let
> you get Jason's out of t he way right now. Jason, do you want a donut?"
> Jason, new to the room, hardly knew what was going on. "Yes," he said,
> "give me a donut."
> "Steve, will you do ten push-ups so that Jason can have a donut?"
>
> Steve did ten push-ups very slowly and with great effort. Jason,
> bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down. Dr. Christianson finished
> the fourth row, and then started on those visitors seated by the
> heaters. Steve's arms were now shaking with each push-up in a struggle
> to lift himself against the force of gravity. By this time, sweat was
> profusely dropping off of his face, there was no sound except his heavy
> breathing; there was not a dry eye in the room.
>
> The very last two students in the room were two young women, both
> cheerleaders, and very popular. Dr. Christianson went to Linda, the
> second to last, and asked, "Linda, do you want a doughnut?" Li nda said,
> very sadly, "No, thank you."
>
> Professor Christianson quietly asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups
> so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?" Grunting from the
> effort, Steve did ten very slow push-ups for Linda. Then Dr.
> Christianson turned to the last girl, Susan. "Susan, do you want a
> donut?" Susan, with tears flowing down her face, began to cry. "Dr.
> Christianson, why can't I help him?"
>
> Dr. Christianson, with tears of his own, said, "No, Steve has to do it
> alone, I have given him this task and he is in charge of seeing that
> everyone has an opportunity for a donut whether they want it or not.
> When I decided to have a party this last day of class, I looked at my
> grade book. Steve here is the only student with a perfect grade.
> Everyone else has failed a test, skipped class, or offered me inferior
> work. Steve told me that in football practice, when a player messes up
> he must do push-ups. I told Steve that none of you could come to my
> party unless he paid the price by doing your push ups. He and I made a
> deal for your sakes."
>
> "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Susan can have a donut?" As Steve
> very slowly finished his last push-up, with the understanding that he
> had accomplished all that was required of him, having done 350 push-ups,
> his arms buckled beneath him and he fell to the floor.
>
> Dr. Christianson turned to the room and said. "And so it was, that our
> Savior, Jesus Christ, on the cross, pleaded to the Father, 'into thy
> hands I commend my spirit.' With the understanding that He had done
> everything that was required of Him, He yielded up His life. And like
> some of those in this room, many of us leave the gift on the desk,
> uneaten."
>
> Two students helped Steve up off the floor and to a seat, physically
> exhausted, but wearing a thin smile.
>
> "Well done, good and faithful servant," said the professor, adding "Not
> all sermons are preached in words."
>
> Turning to his class, the professor said, "My wish is that you might
> understand and fully comprehend all the riches of grace and mercy that
> have been given to you through the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior
> Jesus Christ. He spared not only His Begotten Son, but gave Him up for
> us all, for the whole Church, now and forever. Whether or not we choose
> to accept His gift to us, the price has been paid."
>
> "Wouldn't you be foolish and ungrateful to leave it lying on the desk?"