Hammocks

SO.....one of the newest "different" things in our home is our hammocks.  We (yes, we) sleep in hammocks.  The kids do EVERY night, my hubby and I sleep in our randomly.  But we all enjoy swinging instead of bed sleep.  So......WHY?

Well, my hubby and I were out on a date one night (yes, rare, but it does happen occasionally) and we began talking about our kids and their need to have new sleeping arrangements.  The baby was quickly "outgrowing" his pack-n-play and so, we had to find something different.  At that time, our boys were in bunk beds and the girl was in a day bed.  We were thinking two bunk beds, that would just be the easiest....we thought.  When we began looking into it we decided that two bunk beds would be VERY crowded in one room.  We didn't really like that idea.  We aren't really big on furniture...and that would have been a LOT.

So......we began exploring our options.  We looked at building beds that would be custom fit for that room.  We looked at lofts in the ceiling....you name it, we explored it.  Then we thought, why do they have to sleep in beds?  We started looking into hammocks and fell.in.love with the idea.

We asked the kids how they felt about never making their beds again.  They eagerly agreed that would be nice.  We asked them about hammocks and they were sold. VERY excited :)

We searched and searched and then bought four hammocks.  The ones we chose were fairly cheap, about $40 each.  We were happy with that since we likely wouldn't have found bunk beds for less thatn $160.  We bought them they came in and the were nice.....a bit small, but nice.

We quickly decided that our eldest needed a bigger hammock.  Once we got his we liked it so much we exchanged them all.  Then bought an extra....just in case we had an emergency in the middle of the night and needed it!

The good things about hammocks are-
-ALL the extra space
-EASY cleaning, just throw in the wash/dryer
-no pressure points on your body
-very inexpensive
-no bed's to make
-just plain fun!

The bad things about hammocks-
-no bed to bounce on (my kids always say they want their beds back to bounce)
-have to hang it in the morning, we have nails where they hang their hammocks, so that they have the room free.
-I am drawing a blank......

Mommy & Daddy's hammock

The first hammocks

Our newest hammocks

I'd be happy to answer any and all questions you have about our hammocks.  We love them, they are a perfect fit for our family, but I would totally agree that they are not for everyone.

About me........

I've been noticing lately, that my family is a bit, um.....different.  We don't typically do things the way MOST people do.  I've decided to share some of the things that we do different and tell why we have chosen this route.  I am not sure how long this will last or even how many things there will be, but I thought it might be fun!  Now, some of you who know me well might have a thing or two that you'd like me to explain.  If you do.....I'd be happy to!  Just let me know!  I *think* I will post Monday, Wednesday, Friday for a while and we'll see what happens!  Stay tuned Wednesday to see what the first thing will be :)

The Vote

:)  I am smiling because you all think I am about to talk about the presidential vote.  Maybe not.  Maybe I just revealed a little too much about how big that was to me.  Truth is it was too big of a deal to me.  And God has had my attention and I am working on that!

No, the vote I am talking about is the vote we place EVERY TIME we make a purchase.  When we go to the store and purchase something we are saying, I like this, give me more!  Now that could be said about any purchase.  Matt and I try hard to think about what we are voting for, or what we are telling the store, when we buy something.  We try to buy things that are made in the USA.  It's important to us that we support America and the economy here.  Now I know there are LOTS of people who are very content to pay less for the item made in China, but honestly, I'd just rather support America, even if it means paying a little more, and yes, this is coming from me.....

Most of you know me and know I'll use coupons and sales and puppy eyes and whatever else it takes to get something cheap or free at the grocery store or drug store.  I am all about a bargain.  So much so that I went to CVS three times this week!  Yes, three times.  Did you see the ad?  Everyone should have gone!  I got free toilet paper and free paper towels!  HOLLA!  Anyway.  When I got the ad yesterday (Wednesday) about the Thanksgiving day sales I started planning how I would do this.  I wanted to go early so as to not disturb my Thanksgiving day and I wanted to make the purchases in such a way that I'd spend as little money out of pocket as possible.  I was also preparing food for Thanksgiving day and so I didn't do as much planning as I wanted, but I kept thinking about it and how I wanted to get it in.

This morning Matt, the kids, and I were all watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (b/c it is a BIG part of Thanksgiving for me!) and I started talking to him about going.  We then started talking about what I would be voting for if I went.  Matt reminded me that I was a bit sad that he is to be at work on Thanksgiving day (today) at 8:30pm.  Which means he has to sleep this afternoon to prepare (which is why I am typing this on Thanksgiving), which means that our Thanksgiving has been cut a little short.  We talked about how it hasn't always been this way.  Just a few short years ago "his store" didn't open till 4 or 5 am on Black Friday.  The response was SO large that they begin opening at Midnight.  People lined up SO early that they have now pushed it back to 9pm.  The people cast their vote, the stores listened and they responded.

I am not saying this to complain.  No, please don't hear that.  We are THANKFUL that they open then, the extra money he will make is VERY much appreciated!  We do wish that wasn't an option and would gladly give up the money to have to time here at home.  However, the store will be open and they don't really give an option, so Matt will be there :)  And we will praise God when that check comes that is slightly bigger ;).

I am writing this to remind you that what you purchase, and when you purchase it tells the stores what you want.  I know that seems elementary, but really when I think about it I am quite surprised.  I have told MANY, MANY stores I want them open on Sunday, yet I am bummed that my husband has to work on Sunday.  I complain about MSG and HFCS in foods all the time, yet occasionally I'll buy something with those ingredients, telling the store I want this item, get us more.

Now I know that the truth of the matter is that my little vote doesn't really matter.  My not shopping at CVS today isn't going to keep them from opening next year on Thanksgiving.  However we need to remember that our voice is heard no matter how small it may seem! 

Limited Time

Hey Friends!  I just found this on one of my favorite blogs!  Happens to be e-books that I don't own, and worth the price any day of the week.  But when you read about a precious family of 7 who just lost their daddy, it is all the more worth it.  This is 9 ebooks (you don't have to have an e-reader, you can read them or print them on your computer, I did that for YEARS before we got our Kindle!) for $5.  Each author donated the book, so this is 100% donation to the family!  I have already bought mine, you can pay through pay pal!  I encourage you to go get yours now!


Here is the link--http://life.yourway.net/barlow-family-benefit/

Speechless

I don't know who actually said this first, but it is a good little saying that is floating around, "live like no one else lives, so you can give like no one else gives."  In my down and out attitude these past few days I have been complaining to God about that a bit.  We do live like no one else lives, and financially we STILL can't give like no one else gives.  It's been kind of a bummer, for me.....some of you know me well and you know that I love to give, I LOVE IT!  To me there is nothing greater than seeing the smile on someones face when you give them a small (or big) gift!

So anyway. At church Sunday, some friends were telling us about some new bunk beds they just got for their kids.  They were really excited about some of their family buying the beds for the kids and just kinda mentioned in passing, that they were now just looking for some cheap mattresses for the beds.  Now, for those of you who follow our other blog, you know that my kiddos are now sleeping in hammocks!  (yeah, crazy, I KNOW)  So on my back porch I had a STACK of mattresses, twin mattresses, four of them to be exact.  Two were spoken for by some friends, but we still had two (well actually three) left.  We were planning to keep two, but really didn't NEED to keep two, so we were able to tell them we had TWO mattresses that they could have!

I really didn't get it till later that day that b/c we live like no one else were were able to give!  (seriously, how many people do you know that sleep in hammocks, and you can't count our family of 6!)  I was SO thankful that despite or finances God was allowing us to give.  I still am amazed that God can use us to give and meet the needs of others.

Now, flash forward to yesterday afternoon.  Our friends come to pick up the mattresses and we begin to chat a little about different things. And he hit a sore spot for me.  He started talking about an item that Matt has REALLY been wanting/needing since before we bought this house.  It is an item that we CAN live without but really, we do kinda need it.  Our friend, not knowing anything at all about our situation or our need, drove home the point to me that we really did NEED this item.  (I am still not for sure it is a need, but regardless)  I found myself VERY sad yesterday afternoon that even in all my frugality (is that a word?)  I had done a few things to try to get this done for him, but  I just could not make this happen for my hubby.  NOTHING I could do would make it to where we could afford this.  Since our friend was something of an expert on this issue, I decided to email and ask him what would be the cheapest, best way to get this item.  I was determined to work toward this goal, eventually, I knew I could do it.  LONG story short, by the end of the night he was talking to my husband telling him how he would give us one.

It still brings tears to my eyes to see how God uses the Church to encourage and love on us.  He allowed my family to bless theirs (which just blessed me beyond measure to be able to help them).  But then He allowed their family to bless us, which I think blesses them, from the sounds of it!  Neither of us ASKED nor expected the other family to be able to just meet the need we had, but God, in His wisdom allowed it to happen.

My guess is, He wants me to know that even though this season of life is hard, He still cares.  He loves me.  He allowed me to do the things I wanted to do, and He gave my hubby the thing he wanted/needed most!  All He wants from me is for me to get out of the way, stop trying to do it on my own and allow Him to show me how it can be done!

Kinda Hard

I've been thinking a lot lately...and some of it has been good and some of it has been not so good.  I hesitated to even start writing this b/c truth is I am TWO days behind on my Bible Study and really, that is probably why things are kinda hard for me....I just need to make time for what matters most and let everything else fall as it may.

But the truth is things are kinda hard.  Even when they "look" okay, they are still hard.  This morning found me sitting in the waiting room, with David, while the other three got their teeth cleaned.  David was, as usual, the center of attention, smiling at all the mommies there.  They were drooling over him, telling me what a fun age he is.  I smiled, agreed and told them what a loveable child he really is....

Then one lady and I started being more real than just the surface, "Hi, how are ya?" and it was nice.  We laughed about how hard motherhood is.  We joked about the things we said we'd never do, and now find ourselves doing.  We laughed about how we wished we'd listened as older/wiser moms gave us advice, how we now know that they were right.  We even laughed about how we smile when we see a mom with an infant screaming in Target and we think that is a "sweet" cry but the mom can't stand it.  You know what I'm talking about?  That sweet newborn cry?  It is sweet, esp when you have the fresh sound of that annoying 5 year old cry in your ears.

I really enjoyed chatting with the moms in the waiting room.  They were fun.  But it got me thinking about real life and how we are in life....you know, the "Hi, how are ya?"  "Fine, thanks, and you?"....end of the story.  This has been a HARD week in the Chilson house.  The kids are more rebellious than ever and we've had a few surprises and curve balls that are just making life HARD.   Yesterday was a little more than kinda hard and as I found myself driving to the Church for dinner and AWANA I wondered what I would say when people said, "Hey Jess, how are ya?"  I also knew that people could look at me and tell that things weren't "right".....So as I thought about how to answer that question, I thought well, physically I am FINE, so I could answer with that.....My kids aren't in the hospital, my husband still has his job, we aren't hungry, we have a home, we have everything we need, really, I AM FINE....

but, really?  Right now, life's kinda hard....I don't want to be whinny or complain.  I want to do everything with out complaining and disputing, and I am trying, but these little things are just getting the best of me.  That disposable diaper I found in the washing machine (AFTER THE CLOTHES HAD BEEN WASHED), yes, it made me cry...b/c that was after the morning we had where that loveable child SCREAMED for over an hour, on the stretch of time where my husband worked 8 or so straight days and in that time he worked 3 night shifts, and we discovered we have a small pest problem, and......you get the picture.

SO while I know that this issue of "I'm fine" has been beat to death, I do have to wonder when we are fine, but life is kinda hard, how do we answer that??  Sometimes I feel like there is a fine line between fake "fine" and whinny and complaining and just being real.  Right now I'm fine, seriously, when I look around at things OTHERS are dealing with, I am fine.  I am more than fine, I am blessed beyond measure, but sometimes I want/need to be real and tell ya that life is just kinda hard.....ya know?

been a while

I know it has been a while since I posted.   But this is why I like it here :)  I can share when I want to and don't feel too bad when I don't!  God has been doing some pretty cool things here in my little life.  Maybe I'll get around to sharing them soon :)  Or maybe I'll just forget again!  (Forget to share, not forget what God's doing!!)  Anyway, Rebekah Jenks shared this a week or so ago after a conversation on how bad mommies can be after bedtime.  This was a HUGE blessing to me, but I admit, it hurt a bit to read it this morning, as my kids were waking up, groggily DEMANDING breakfast NOW. . .whew.  I need to remember to be Grace Mommy during the day as well as at night!  I hope this blesses you as much as it did me!!

http://momheart.org/losing-sle?fb_action_ids=10151154749285100&fb_action_types=og.likes&fb_source=other_multiline&action_object_map={%2210151154749285100%22%3A10152030145480597}&action_type_map={%2210151154749285100%22%3A%22og.likes%22}&action_ref_map