Not so good at blogging...

Life is happening.  I really have not taken the time to stop and update here.  I put a random picture or happening on Facebook and that's it.  I'm 23 weeks (and 4 days...but who's counting?) pregnant.  That has been going well.  We are still undecided about whether or not we will have our 6th home birth or our first hospital birth.  Obviously, we are hoping for the birth at home since it is what we are familiar with but we are not wanting to be foolish either.  I have not posted weekly pictures even though I said I would because I took one and I looked awful and never tried again...

The thing that keeps me from being writing much is our current life-circumstances.  I could just sit here and fill a page or three on all the stress that is going on in our lives but for now I will leave it that my husband is still very ill and has not been able to work consistently for much of this year.  This makes for tense times and for a very emotional pregnant lady.  We are often down to our last dollar and that is a very scary place to be.   Also, my husband's illness does not seem to be improving much which is also scary and confusing and such.  He's currently on a dairy free, gluten free, sugar free, red meat free, just about everything else free diet with little to no relief from his spastic colon (IBS) symptoms.

However, I promise not to make this blog a gloom and doom blog about all the bad things going on in our life.  I want to return to adding memories of our day-to-day life.  (Speaking of which, I need to finish and post the birthday post of my newly minted 4 year old).  I do want to give some highlights though of some crazy, wonderful ways that God has supplied our needs.

• As the seasons turned and I realized what my 2 biggest kids needed in their respective larger sizes (a lot), 2 separate families sent clothes home from church and supplied their needs almost entirely (oldest boy still needs a coat but it won't get cold enough for that here too soon).
• 4 separate families gave us monetary gifts that have been most needed
• A friend has supplied us with free eggs as she is able.
• My Mom and Dad got us a boat load of diapers from Sam's a couple weeks ago that should last us for a few months.
• Chris wanted a decaf coffee from the local coffee shop last week.  We have been patronizing this shop since it opened more than 7 years ago.  When I went in, having not seen us in a while, he asked about how we were and I was honest because we know him so well.  He sent me home with 2 bags of fruit (he had just discontinued the fruit cup on his menu) and some decaf coffee beans. 
• Just today, I left chapel with 4 bags of canned food from a kind older man who was "cleaning out his pantry".

I'm probably leaving some things out; there have been so many acts of kindness like this to us.  They are such wonderful beams of light that God has given us in this otherwise dark time.