Making Homemade Tomato Sauce with the Girls

This summer, we had a LOT of homegrown tomatoes! Homegrown tomatoes actually taste like a fruit! Our tomatoes were very ripe! Since we had an abundance, overflowing like Milk and Honey, we decided to can some tomatoes! The whole process takes time! But it was well worth it and the girls have some understanding how to can something!

Today feels like fall!

Abby reciting her memory verse

Sophie taking her phonics test!

Leah working on Arithmetic

It's October and we woke up freezing! Last week it was in the high 90's and today actually feels like fall! School is in full swing and I think we have a good routine going! Except, Hudson has not been sleeping through the night :0! He is a monster teether!!! This too, shall pass! I keep on reminding myself that! This business will only be for a time! The time will come when my kids won't want to do projects with me. Sleep with me. Cook with me. Read with me. As I ponder more on that.......I said, wait! If you have their hearts, they will always want to spend time with me! This is my passionate desire.....for them to glorify God! These are the days I will always remember!

Sophie's 1st grade Cursive Handwriting.....I think it's better than mine!

Hudson is one month old!!

He weighs over 10lbs! He is now out of his NB clothes! Time is flying by! He is still waking up once to twice at nights. He def has been more fussy then the girls. I am praying that when he is 8 wks...he can sleep through the night :) I am tired and weak...Lord give me the strenght!! Your grace is sufficient!!

Abby is continuing to LOVE her DVDs!! She is always the first one to get to them and first one finished!! I think she loves the inner action!! Division is going good so far.....we are on the 1's and 2's family.

Sophie has her good days and bad days.....today was her good one. Last week I had a hard time motivating her. Kinder is too easy for her....thus she is bored. She consistently is asking to go to school. Her drawing/journal is her favorite thing to do!

Leah is getting more and more independent!! She is a star!! We enrolled her in a writing class. Hopefully she will enjoy it. The girls are now taking piano, ice skating, writing(leah), and starting up swimming again......Huddy is crying so got to cut it short!

Lord is good.....ALL THE TIME!!

Multi-homeschooling

The only way I am getting through homeschooling is by the grace of God! You have to multitask! I am nursing, burping, changing diapers, and washing diapers while answering a math question, or answering a phonics question. All in all.....I wouldn't change it for the world! This is my life. A crazy life. A Good life. God is good. God is generous. God is graceous.

Hudson gained 14oz in one week!!

I was anticipating all week if he gained anything.....in fact he gained 14oz to be exact! Praise the Lord! The normal weight gain is 5-7oz a week at this stage. He almost tripled that! He now weighs 9.1oz at 20 days old. Hummmmm....still don't know if he will be a chunker at this point!!

Still in love with this boy!! I just can't put him down!! He is outgrowing his newborn look :( Did I tell you yet I am in love with Hud??

Hudson labor and delivery

How it all started.....

After my OB appts, I was discouraged to hear that I was only 40% effaced however, dialated to 3cms at 38 wks. Still no progress at 39 weeks. My mucas plug was dislodged about 3 days prior to labor. The girls and I walked on Monday.....and Monday evening. Then Tuesday we walked all the way to the purple park and back.

It all started Feb 2nd, 7am with contractions that were "different". It progressed as the day went on. I've been passing what's called the "bloody show" for couple of days. By 10am.....I knew these contractions were "different". Def, by noon it was in full swing. I called Jesse to let him know this is the real thing! After dropping off the girls to Papa and Meme's around 3pm, I drove myself to meet Jesse at the hospital to find out I was at 7cms! The nurse didn't know if I had time to have an epidural. They hurried to get that epidural in....awww! Wow! no pain! But found out there was a tradeoff.....which I think was not worth it! After waiting couple of hours for Dr.Santoro to come and deliver......he could not make it. It seemed at that point my labor had stalled. Just what I was scared of. Then as Dr.Matsomura broke my water....as I was told I had a bulgy bag of waters. It was not after 30 mins.....I could feel his head dissend into my birth canal. It was time to push! But I couldn't feel the contractions!! I am asking Jesse.....is it time to push?? He couldn't tell me either! After 45 mins of pushing with no progress......we decided to turn off the epidural! AWW.....finally feeling a little pressure.....I pushed through 2 contractions. I see doctors and nurses come in......I was puzzled. Then Dr.Matsomura spoke to the nurse....."get the squat bar, and shoulder dysplacia stool." I then was getting nervous! After the head dissended, the shoulder came out with little to no trouble! Hud had smaller features!

What a joy to see the girls come into the room to see their new brother! They have waited a long time!! They helped give him bath, listen to his heart, and just hold him!! Leah's joy was overflowing!

What I would do different......NO EPIDURAL!! Had I had no epidural....I probably would've had the baby after 1 hour! But, God is good! He is healthy....he is just perfect!!

How sleepy this baby was!! He didn't nurse until the next day. He lost 8-9oz from his birth weight which is normal.

We are in love!! Our hearts are melting! Thank you Lord for blessing us!!!!

Baby Hudson Levi Harder arrives.......

We have a new member in our family! Huddy arrived on Feb 2nd GroundHog day! He weighed 8.8lbs and 21.5 inches. Our joy for this baby is bursting at the seams! How God is so gracious and generous to our family! My labor and delivery story to follow!

Hud seems to not be gaining weight as fast as the girls did at this age! At 3 days old, he weighed 7.15lbs. He lost at least 10% of his weight. Then 10 days later only gained 4 oz. weighing only at 8.3lbs. It is so bizzare! He eats like a banchee! I guess he was not getting his full feeding....a sleepy baby! He is sleeping alright at nights. Up once or twice at nights. I don't mind....I love nurishing him with the Teets(as Jesse calls it).