A Heart Toward Home

"...But as for me and my house, we will serve (worship) the LORD."
Joshua 24:15

Friday, September 30, 2011

Shopping!

Two weeks ago I stopped by the Goodwill and went to a consignment sale. Sarah and Isaac are my children that don't have hand-me-down clothes so they needed some things. I wanted to share some pics of a few of the things I bought. I bought all these pieces plus 3 more tops for Sarah (that I didn't take pics of) for a total of $32! I thought that was GREAT! That is my kind of shopping!! :)

This was one of her favorite and she wore it to church the next day.


Sarah also liked this top. It looks so cute with some bluejeans!


Cute dress! It will be great for church this winter!


I thought this was a cute outfit to wear around the house or to town on cold days.


Isaac LOVES these kinds of pants (and so does his mother)! They are a little too big but he can grow into them. :)


Thought he would look very handsome in this. He can wear it to church this winter.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Football 2011

Football is well on its way! Isaac is loving it and doing a great job!


#34 is the Camp kid!


I went to his game on Saturday and he did really well! I am a very proud mommy!! :)





I love you Isaac and am so glad you are getting to play football!

Saturday, September 24, 2011

7 things about me!

My friend Nancy has tagged me and included me in the "Fun Facts Friday". I just got this info so mine will be Fun Facts Saturday! LOL!! Thanks Nancy for thinking of me and "tagging" me! So here it goes....

Directions are:
1 List 7 facts about yourself
2 Give the "award" to other bloggers
3 Inform them about it

1. On September 17th I celebrated 16 years of God changing my heart. He opened my eyes to my sin and my need for Him! (That is so special to me)

2. I struggle with being a perfectionist (I know sometimes that isn't a bad thing, but other times it is)!!


3. Hate to admit it but I am a people pleaser :(


4. I LOVE being pregnant!


5. If money and time was not a factor I would still be doing what I am doing now. (CEO of the Camp household!)


6. My Dear Hubby is my BEST Friend!


7. I can not wait til my kiddos are all old enough for the whole family to go on a mission trip!





Now I will "Tag"....


Dodey
Wendy
Athena
Kay
Candice

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Make your bed

I read somewhere years ago that making your bed is 90% of cleaning your room. There is nothing like entering a room with the bed made. I try real hard to make my bed first thing in the morning. Bryan is so great about either helping or doing it for me. When my bed is made it does make the room look so much better. Honestly it doesn't take that much time and even my children enjoy helping me make the bed. I guess this is one reason I get them to make their bed every morning, if they make it a habit now it will come natural later. Do you make your bed every morning? Do you have a helpful hint for making a room look nicer?

Friday, September 16, 2011

8 months old

Joanna was 8 months old on Wednesday. I took her for a check up today and she weighed 19 pounds and was 27 inches long. She had a great check up and the Doctor said Joanna is doing great! :) She is doing more and more each month. This month she has learned to crawl ALL the way to the top of the steps. She loves that she can do this. I have to watch her so close because she will go stright for the steps in a minute! The first picture below of her on the steps is of what she will do, turn around and smile at me as to say "Look at me, mommy". Can you see the smile on her face? Then I have included a close up of her on the steps.


Joanna is already helping with chores around the house. As the kids and I were cleaning out the dishwasher and cleaning up the kitchen Joanna climbed in the dishwasher. She is just so cute! The kids just love her and watching her grow and do new things.


The weather has been really nice some nights and so while Bryan is at football practice with Isaac I have taken the other kiddos for a walk. Joanna LOVES the little car. Gigi and Pop got that for Timothy when he turned 1 and it is so nice that Joanna is getting to enjoy it also. I wish I had a video of her riding in the car to share. She just gets so excited and if I didn't have her buckled in she would tump right out.



This last picture is of Timothy and Joanna taking a bath. Seeing these two together remind me so much of Isaac and Sarah when they were about this age. :) I love it!!


Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Sarah is....

much better today! We are so thankful that she has no fever today! We are still praying that her cough and the little ones coughs go away! I have felt a weight lifted to know that she has felt better today. I know that tomorrow she will feel even better. Thank you to each of you who prayed for our sweet girl! Your prayers mean so much to our family...Thanks!

Monday, September 12, 2011

Oh my what a week!

I have debated about posting this! This is my blog to my children and I want to journal about the things we have been through recently. If you want you can skip this post or if you continue reading....beware, you have entered into our lives!!

We returned from vacation on Thursday, September 1st. On Friday night I began to run a fever. It was a low grade fever (99 or 100) and due to nursing an infant and lack of rest and fluids while on vacation, I wrote it off as mestitis. Then after further thought and by Saturday night I knew it must be a sinus infection. I felt pretty bad Sunday and barely made it through both church services. On Monday morning I felt some better and actually was able to get a few things done. Monday night came and as I was preparing supper it hit me and I got the chills and could NOT finish supper. If I had not known any better I would have thought I had the flu! Tuesday morning dawned and I still felt yucky and I began to take some medicine and by lunch I was really feeling better. On Wednesday morning 4 out of 5 kids woke up with a really congested cough. My mind began to ponder what in the world could be up. Sarah was the worst and when I took her temp it was 99.7. Not too bad but she did not feel good at all. I mentioned it to a friend of mine who is a nurse practioner and she said that there was a terrible virus going around. The kids and I stayed home from church that night. Thursday morning the kids were still the same. Sarah was still running a fever and it was around 100 before lunch. When she woke from her nap that afternoon I could tell she really did not feel good. I took her temperature and it was.....104.9!! Yes, you read that correctly! I was real worried now! So I took her to the after hours clinic. They gave her an antibiotic and I just knew that this would help and she would be feeling better come Saturday morning. Not so! She has continued to run a fever. The virus usually last 5-7 days. I took her back this morning because now her cough is much worse, even to the point of she can't sleep. She has a new medicine now because her lungs sounded like pneumonia could be starting. I took her tempature a few minutes ago and it is 103.8. Which means she is still contagious and not feeling well! Today is day 6 so I am thinking and praying that tomorrow (day 7) will be better. It has been real hard emotionally and physically. I have struggled to stay focused on things that are true! God is greater than all this and He is with us! I am praying for His strength and endurance. I am so thankful that it is not the flu (again), that we don't have a life threatening illness, that we have each other, that God is providing for us and many more things I could list! Please pray for each of us to recover and that my sweet Sarah would be back to herself real soon! It is so hard to see one of my children sick (I know you all understand that feeling)! Thanks ahead of time for your prayers!

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Grandparents Day!

Today is Grandparents day! I wanted to post about the grandparents in our lives. I could have exhausted you all with pictures of all the grandparents with each of our kids and then some. So where do I begin?

This is Bryan's grandmother (his mom's mom). We call her grandmother Nell and she is so precious to us. Grandmother Nell is always the sweetest thing to our family and we enjoy every minute that we are with her. When we got to visit her after Joanna was born she made us lunch and it was so delicious! She is always making us laugh! When Elijah was a baby Bryan took his grandmother to visit one of her brothers who live in Missouri and they took along Isaac and Sarah. They all had such a great time. They went to the zoo and just enjoyed their time together. I am so thankful that they were able to make memories with Grandmother Nell. We love you Grandmother Nell!




These two "young ladies" are my grandmothers. My dad's mom (Nanny) is on the left and the other is my mother's mom (grandmother). Both of these ladies are very dear to me. My Nanny lived behind us most of my life so she has always been right there. I remember eating breakfast with her and she would make the best chicken and gravy...yummy! Nanny has so enjoyed my kiddos, I could tell you story and story of her with each one of them. When we lived in Alabama she was always so faithful to help me out if I needed an extra hand. One time in my married life we moved in with my parents for a couple of months and Nanny and I got real close. Oh, I could go on and on of my memories of her and the many ways she has blessed me. I love you Nanny!




My Grandmother is also a special lady to me. I can not count the number of times I would be at her house. She always kept my favorite cereals in the cabinet and I knew right where they were. Grandmother always had something to eat, even if it was candy. She too would make breakfast, but I remember her breakfast as eggs and toast. Those were the best eggs! She also made the BEST green beans and chocolate cake! My grandmother made MOST of my birthday cakes and oh were they ever good....I can almost taste them now! :) Thanks grandmother for all you do for me and have ever done! I love you bunches!




Here is a picture of Bryan's parents (pop and gigi) with the kids. Pop and Gigi are some really great grandparents. When we go home and spend the night with them they always do something special with the kids (Gigi cooks with them and Pop takes them for a tractor ride). My kids LOVE to go to Pop and Gigi's house! Bryan's parents have been a HUGE blessing to us and we r so thankful! Gigi is always ready to help out in what ever way she can! Sarah and Elijah love to help Gigi make homemade cinnamin rolls or anything she is cooking. Pop is always great about playing games with the kids. The last time we went to their house he got in the floor and played match with the boys and he has played checkers and cards with Isaac! God has blessed our children with Pop and Gigi and I am so thankful for them being my kids grandparents! We love you Pop and Gigi!!


I just had to post this picture of my parents (a.k.a paw and maw) with the kids! I love it! It also tells something, my parents will do whatever for my kids!!! :) My dad is always saying "You just wait til your a grandparent one day". Yes, my parents have my kids spoiled rotten. I am an only child so these are the only grandkids my parents will ever have. They don't have any other grandkids to divide their time with. So I am so thankful that God didn't give us just one kid, that would be the most rotten kid that ever lived! LOL! Last night Isaac called my dad to tell him about his football game yesterday and they talked for 1 hour!! Sarah thinks when they come to visit that she needs Maw's undivided attention. Elijah and Timothy are wanting to wrestle with my dad and Joanna will just take whatever attention she can get! My kids get overlly excited when they know my parents are coming for a visit. My parents are a big blessing to us and we are so thankful for them! We love you very much Paw and Maw!!!




WOW! WE are truly blessed with some REALLY awesome Grandparents!!


HAPPY GRANDPARENTS DAY!!

Monday, September 5, 2011

Homeschool Moment

The boys (mostly Elijah) have been learning their letters during school time. We learned the letter "I" and we made these Indian headbands! They loved it! Don't they look like my little Indians? We are having so much fun with these two during school time and they are learning lots and doing so well! :)



The big kiddos learned about Christopher Columbus and drew these pictures.Sarah's picture is above and Isaac's is below. Sarah and Isaac are doing very well in school and they love doing History and Science. One day they will have to be doing History and Science on their own so for now we huddle up together on the couch and go over them together. I love it!


With having little ones around and having to homeschool the bigger ones I needed HELP! I don't stay right up under Isaac and Sarah all day but there are times when I need to go over something with them. I had read about "Rug Time" before but never have done it consistently. This year I went through all the kids toys and divided them up into three boxes and then left some in their toy box. We also have two of those play rugs that are not being used. Each week I get out a different box of toys and rug for them to play with. They can only play with this at a certain time during the day and they have to stay on the rug! I have realized that my little boys LOVE "rug time"! This also gives me about 30 minutes to 45 minutes to help Isaac and Sarah if they need me. Also, my big kids have asked "When do we get "rug time"?" :) So sweet when they all have time on the rug together. Joanna even likes "rug time"! Thankful that God opened my eyes and showed me this, I just have to share it! The picture below is of all the kids having "Rug Time"!!!






Saturday, September 3, 2011

Vacation Part 3





After lunch at the Apple Barn on Monday we went to the water park. Bryan, Pop, Paw, Isaac and Sarah headed to the outdoor park while the little boys took a nap. Pop took the pictures above. There were more but I didn't want to overwhelm you all with pictures. Bryan's parents stayed one night with us. To save the grandparents another trip to Tennessee we celebrated Isaac's birthday on Monday night. The picture below is of him blowing out his candles. Isaac loves pizza so we also had pizza for supper!


Then on Tuesday we spent the majority of the day at the indoor water park! The kids loved it! I got to ride the rides this year and had so mch fun being with the kids! Elijah wanted to bad to ride the tube rides but he was not tall enough. :( Talk about a disappointed little boy!! Timothy could have swung in the kiddy pool swings all day! Miss Sarah loved the plain ole pool and swimming like a fish!! Isaac enjoyed some of all of it! The kids really enjoyed the time they spent in the water and splashing around! Below are some pictures of our time at the indoor water park.
























On Tuesday night we went to a trout farm and grill. The kids caught the trout and then the people cooked it. That is as fresh as you can get! Very delicious! All the kids enjoyed fishing and then ate it up! Timothy caught the biggest fish. Isaac wanted to keep fishing. Sarah did not like the "blood". Elijah had fun fishing and being outside. It was fun to watch the kids catch the fish. My parents had a great time too! The people who own the trout farm were really nice. Have any of you ever been trout fishing? The pictures below are of our fishing adventue.












Then we went back to the Apple Barn for breakfast on Wednesday morning. The best breakfast ever!! We took these last two pictures that morning. We came back home on Thursday. The vacation was so nice but it is good to be back home and in our own beds! Now we just have to wash up clothes and get back in the swing of things! :) What is your favorite vacation spot?




Friday, September 2, 2011

Vacation Part 2





I just had to include these sleeping pictures! I love pictures of my babies sleeping. They took some really GREAT naps on our vacation. The kids would play so hard that when nap time came they had no trouble going out. Timothy and Joanna did not sleep great at night but slept pretty good to be away from home. I have to say with little ones that is one of the tough things about vacation is their sleeping. :(

On Monday we met my parents and Bryan's parents for lunch at the Apple Barn in Sevierville, TN. The food was so delicious. Ever ate there? If you ever eat there be sure to take your church bulletin, you get a discount if you have one. It was so good to see our parents and the kids loved getting to be with their grandparents! Again this year we wore matching shirts. :) Below are pictures of our time at the Apple Barn.


I thought this was a really great picture of Gigi and the "girls"!


Elijah was all about his Paw this year and wanted his picture made with him! :) Can you see the love in his eyes?


The girls! We chose yellow this year because that is Sarah's favorite color. Hard to believe the picture of us last year I was pregnant. Joanna was in that picture too but we just didn't know that she would be a girl! :)



My dad (Paw) and Isaac.....always together! Isaac really struggles with sharing Paw with the other kids.


Elijah and Bryan! Elijah wanted to be with Bryan alot and thinks he can do whatever his daddy does.


I know the straw is in Timothy's face but this was the best picture of him and his Gigi! Sarah had to get in the picture too! :)


Pop and Timothy! These two should get along great, they both like tractors!


Elijah loves being with Paw and Maw and his Pop and Gigi!


Bryan was a great help in holding Joanna and tending to her. He is always ready to step in and help me in whatever way he can!


I love my mom! We are so thankful for her and dad! They are always blessing us in many ways! They are the ones that take us on this vacation and we are so very thankful! Looking at this picture I realize that one day that will be me, Sarah and Joanna!


More to come....stay tuned for part 3!