As a stay-at-home mom, days just seem to go by with no discernible difference between them. Get up, exercise, read my Bible, pray quick before the kids get up, make sure someone's up to walk and feed the dog, get the other kids up, get breakfast, do school, run errands, make lunch, plan dinner....you get the idea. Then I go to bed and do the same thing the next day. The only thing different on a weekend is I don't usually exercise.
I don't usually take time to look around and notice the differences since last week, month, or even year. But recently, I've been struck by this thought - I no longer have a baby. Or a toddler. Or even a pre-schooler. I would no longer be allowed into MOPS!
As I've taken time to notice how Victoria has grown, it has helped me to see the changes in the other three. Victoria is adorable. She can tie her shoes, ride a bike, make a sandwich, set the table, make her bed, read simple words, do math, loves animals, and talks non-stop.
Caroline is beautiful, inside and out. She loves to dress nicely, is kind to others (except sometimes her siblings!), loves to read, has quite a sense of humor, is a hard worker, and LISTENS!
Jonathan is so cute! He's worked really hard to not cry at everything, and is doing great at that. He still has a tender heart that I don't want him to lose, though. He is also a hard worker, uses a push mower to mow the edges of the yard, loves to bake (he's my go-to guy for bread machine recipes!), loves to laugh, and is kind to others (except sometimes his siblings!).
Peter is...well, he's so big! Every once in a while I get a glimpse of the man he's going to grow into and it's weird. Good, but weird. He backs the car down the driveway and then pulls it back up when the others want to play basketball. He can cook, he babysits, he mows the lawn (riding mower), does laundry, and is also kind to others (except sometimes his siblings!). The thing I'm most enjoying about Peter is watching his walk with Christ. It's cool to see him work this out on his own (we're here, of course, but it's HIS walk, not ours).
None of them "need" me anymore, and I think that's great. They want me around, they talk to me, they hug me and kiss me, they make me nice cards for no reason, but they don't NEED me to do anything for them. I don't dress any of them, change diapers (thank GOD!), bathe them, pick up after them (much)... it is amazing how much has changed sooooo slowly over the past 13 years.
I guess I write this as an encouragement to moms of little ones and to myself. Years and years of diapers and nursing and consistent correction (over and over!) and being frustrated and tired and all the things that a mom of preschoolers is (and should be, if she's doing her job!)....is worth it. Yes, I know I'm not done and there are years and years of more work and prayer and crying and trusting God. But I'm not one who does a good job at looking back and noticing the good.
So here I am - looking back and noticing the good. God is good - ALL the time. Through deployments, war, sick kids and broken washing machines, dog bites, eleven moves, homeschooling, loneliness, and my sinfulness, God has been good and will continue to be so.
"Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her" - Proverbs 31:28
"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." - Galatians 6:9
We just got back from a week at the beach! We're able to stay on a military base down near Virginia Beach, and since it was "off-season", there was almost NO ONE there. The kids were really excited. So excited, that we had to go even this past Sunday when there were crazy wind gusts (up to 40 mph!) and they didn't care. Tim and I had on sweatshirts, cuddled under a beach towel, and we were STILL cold. Not our kids. They were in swimsuits and in the water having a grand old time. 
We didn't spend the entire time at the beach, however. We poked around a couple of military bases, we climbed the Cape Henry Lighthouse (191 steps!!) and went to the Virginia Aquarium. What a fun place! We saw sharks, touched sting rays, and watched river otters. We had a great time. We had a bit of a time getting Victoria to touch the rays, because we had been watching an old Steve Irwin show on Animal Planet and I happened to mention how he died. <sigh> Finally explained how they made it perfectly safe, and then she was happy to touch one.