dave & janet horsman ::: keepin’ it real since 1998

To one of Phoebe’s many admirers at church…

No!  Mine…baby.  Mine…baby!

While wiggling Phoebe’s big toe (he’s trying very hard to be gentle!)…

Pig-piggy…home.  Pig-piggy…home.

As he is tugging at the fridge door handle with all his might…

Eat!  Pickle!  Eat!  Pickle!

Now don’t think that I’m suggesting I could teach such a class…oh, no, I’m still trying to figure out how to manage our newly expanded family of six. (Large to some, but still on the small side to others!)  I do know though, one principle that a lot of very large families adopt is that of the older children helping with the younger ones…

That, my friends, is money in the bank…cha-ching!  Sunday morning is the most hectic time in my week.  Dave leaves the house at six a.m. to prepare for leading worship at our church, so, yes, that means I need to get four kids ready for church all by myself!  I had getting three kids ready down to a science, but when Phoebe came along she messed everything up. 

A couple Sundays ago, as I sat down to nurse Phoebe, with about 25 minutes to spare before church started, I did a mental checklist of what had to happen before we left.  Just then I spotted Noah, still in his diaper.  I added “get Noah dressed” to the checklist!  Then a crazy thought crossed my mind, and I said, “Elijah, can you get Noah dressed?” just to see what would happen. 

About ten minutes later, Elijah led Noah out of his room all dressed…in an outfit that even matched!  So again, this past Sunday, I assigned Elijah the same task, and snuck in with the camera to get a photo.  I was amazed at how obediently Noah followed Elijah’s instructions!  Wow!

Since Phoebe’s been born, I’ve been asked a lot, “So how is it?”  To which I respond, “Very, very busy, but usually managable.”  Yes, it’s usually managable…there are moments in every day though, that are crazily out of control…when Phoebe is fussing because it’s getting close to her feeding time, Noah is crying petulantly because he wants to “play” in the fridge (which he just discovered he can open), and I’ve said that he can’t, Zeke is begging me to play a board game with him, and Elijah wants me to help him spell “mechanic,” and many other words for his story.  Aaaah! 

On the flip side, I also have some down time everyday…when Phoebe is sleeping peacefully between feedings, Noah is down for his nap, and Elijah and Zeke are playing aimiably at the park across the way.  Thank you Lord!  Which leads me to my final thought on “large family management”… try to keep your cool during those insane moments - they will pass - and savor the peaceful times while you can!

Here is something I just don’t understand…

How the male species feel like they’re bonding by staring at a TV monitor while playing a video game…in this case Mario Golf.  (Well, mostly the male species.  I do realize some females enjoy a good video game now and then too.  If you’re one of them, then more power to ya!  But I, most certainly, am not.  Maybe the fact that I lose miserably at every game that I play has something to do with it?)

Our kids are allowed to play a couple of hours of GameCube every Saturday morning.  A very welcome visitor for the past few Saturday mornings has been cousin Aidan from Canada.  Very cute.  Here’s a crazy thought:  in 15 or 20 years they’ll be reminiscing about the summer of 2007 - when they played the archaic GameCube together.

In keeping with the “My kids are growing up way to fast right before my eyes” theme, I snapped this picture of Zeke this morning…

Doesn’t he look like a teenager, the way he’s flung over the side of his bed like that? …Trying to catch a few more Z’s before facing the day.  I thought so, and when I told him to get up and get dressed - he and Elijah are going to a VBS this week - his response made me chuckle in disbelief even more…

“Just one more minute!” he pleaded, as he pulled the blankets up around him, and put his pillow over his head.

A whole month old already!  Smiling and everything…this cute little grin was awarded to her big brother Noah…

Having three older children makes me very aware of how quickly time passes…it seems like such a short time ago that Elijah was our newborn!  So I’ve been trying to savor every moment with Phoebe.  She’s a sweatheart, and I have to admit, given the choice between holding her, or sitting at the computer to write a post…well…I’m sure you can guess what I’ve decided most of the time! 

I plan to return to blogging soon though (probably more photos than text for the time being).  Between Dave and I, we’ll try to treat you all to a couple of blog posts a week (at least).  Thanks for checking in on us, and hope you’re having a great summer!

What a day it will be! My siblings and I will all be together for the first time in quite awhile. My sister Deb and her family arrived yesterday for a month and Janet’s mum left yesterday after being here for a month. The comings and goings this summer are happy and sad but well worth it. This is shaping up to be a very exciting summer. Phoebe is doing great and is sleeping great. Well, what I mean to say is, I am sleeping great so I can only assume that she is, as well! I had a nice time with her last night after Janet went to sleep. We watched Last Comic Standing and stared into each other’s eyes. Well, I’m proud to be an American where at least I know I can eat KFC and watch fireworks. God bless the USA!

Here is a Elijah’s directing debut all about a Soccer Ball and kids. A very heart warming story that will warm your heart.