A Mother's Heart

When he's nursing,

I stroke his cheek,

And rub his little arm

...and fall in love all over again.

Slumber Party

We were blessed to spend a week in Florida with some great friends. These are friends who are counted as dear as family. We planned a slumber party for the girls at one house and for the boys at a different house, with all parents attending :-). The girls house went swimming, ate lots of food, watched Narnia, painted toenails and curled hair. Definitely memory making at its best!

Before & After....or....How to save $15 (x8)

When you have five boys, and a husband, who need haircuts every 6-8 weeks, you learn to cut hair. Otherwise you end up spending $100 every two months. So, according to my calculations, I've saved our family $600 every year, for YEARS lol.

When pregnant with Ransom, I was miserable at the end and could not stand for more than minutes. So haircuts didn't get done (because we are too cheap to pay for it LOL!). So by the end of February, my children looked like this:


Good thing we homeschool! After a week of recuperating, I felt better and now they look more like this:

Now that's a cute kid. (ps. This is Daniel, age 11)

A Dream Fulfilled

I've had a dream, as long as I can remember. It involves raising my family in a natural way, eating the food we have produced, being involved with the animals that will eventually provide food for our family. But living in Florida, that is a difficult dream to achieve, when small houses on small lots cost so much.

We did what we could by moving to western Palm Beach County where we could have an acre and get chickens. And that was quite a joy.

But when we moved to Alabama, I hoped to expand our dream if possible. We had a small problem with contracts on our rental and found ourselves in a position where we had to buy a home quickly. We had looked at several, but nothing with "farm" potential. So we decided to buy a home that we loved, even if it was a log cabin in the woods (with NO farm potential lol). We figured it was temporary.

The Lord knew better. Shortly after moving here, we realized the situation may not be as temporary as we figured due to the housing situation in Florida. I prayed and prayed for a solution, which has taken years. But it has come.
This is what the property looked like when we bought it. Beautiful, but wooded. Sure, Grace is cute, but look past her. Nothing but trees, as far as the eye can see. I told Robert I felt claustrophobic. In an effort to accomplish the dream, we had the property timbered. And this is what it looks like now.


Robert has finally given me permission (translation: we finally have the money) to call in a bulldozer. So we begin now. I'm journaling this for posterity's sake. Within a few months, we should have the beginnings of our pasture and our chicken coop. That's step 1. I have steps 2-5 planned, but we'll wait on the Lord for that development :-).

Are you sick?

Sickness is an all too common occurrence in our world. Praise the Lord we have natural remedies that we can use to combat illness. It is a rare occurrence for a Bracker to go to the doctor (not unheard of...thank the Lord for doctors...but rare). When the children get ill, instead we head to the kitchen.

Normal remedies:
1. Cod liver oil taken immediately upon symptoms of ANY kind.
2. For urinary tract infection symptoms, we add an ounce of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar to 4-6 ounces of water and add a tablespoon or two of honey (which is itself antibiotic).
3. For cough, we use homemade cough syrup made of an onion simmered in an inch or two of honey for ten minutes and then strained.
4. For sore throats or any deep cough, we use a mixture of a couple tablespoons of honey, a sprinkling of cayenne pepper (great for circulation!), and a couple cloves of smashed garlic.
5. For ear aches or sore throats that feel ear related, we lay on our sides and fill the ear canal with hydrogen peroxide. Let sit for a minute and feel it bubbling! This takes away the pain and fights the infection. Do both sides!

We haven't had to see the doctor for throat or ear ailments for years!

Now if you'd like to read further, I got this from "Herbal Antibiotics" by Stephen Buhner.

Garlic: Antibacterial, antiviral, antiseptic, antiparasitic, antiprotozoan, antifungal, anthelmintic, immune-stimulating, hypotensive, diaphoretic, antispasmodic, cholagogue.

Garlic has been used medicinally for some five thousand years. This is the most powerful herb for the treatment of antibiotic resistant disease. No other herb comes close to the multiple system actions of garlic, its antibiotic activity, and its immune-potentiating power.

When the bulb is bruised or crushed, garlic produces a byproduct compound called allicin. The odorless, sulfur-containing amino acid in garlic, alliin, comes into contact with an enzyme, allinase, and produces a conversion to allicin, which is the primary compound responsible for garlic's strong odor. Allicin and several additional compounds in garlic have all shown antibiotic activity. Extracts made from the whole clove of garlic or separate individual compounds have consistently shown a broad-spectrum antibiotic range effective against both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria and most major infectious bacteria. Garlic juice diluted to as little as one part in 125,000 has been found to inhibit growth of bacteria. Clinical studies have repeatedly shown that garlic is active against strains of bacteria that are highly resistant to antibiotics. Unlike many herbs, garlic is dirctly effective against viruses. Garlic is perhaps the most extensively tested herb in the world and human trials have shown its powerful effectiveness against bacterial and viral infectious agents.

April: The article continues to tout the benefits of garlic and ends with this sentence:

If only one herb could be used to combat an epidemic spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria, garlic would be it.

Preparation and Dosage:

Eat 1 clove up to 3x a day for prevention. The cloves may be diced and mixed with honey for palatability and to reduce nausea. The best way to intake fresh garlic is to juice and entire bulb and drink with carrot or tomato juice. Take 1/4 to 1 teaspoon mixed with 16 ounces of tomato or carrot juice once an hour upon symptoms. Garlic capsules can also be used: 3 capsules 3x a day as preventative. During acute episodes: up to 30 capsules a day.

Be aware, garlic usage makes a person smell like garlic after a while, but to my thinking, if you have the beginnings of the flu, it's better to smell like garlic and stay away from antibiotics.

Intense Love

I always forget the intensity of the love I feel towards a newborn. I am amazed every time I give birth at the miracle of this baby that they hand me, and then they tell me, he's mine! This is our little Ransom Bracker.
Before we knew it was a "he" we had named him Mercy, because of the mercy shown to us by God in forgiving our sins and calling us His children. We wanted a name that was equal to that in power and meaning for a boy, but couldn't think of one. Then we heard a song on the radio talking about how we were 'ransomed' by Christ, and we knew that was it. You see, it was that Ransom, that gift of His life for us, that makes it possible for us to have eternal life. All we have to do is believe in that redemptive death on the cross and show our belief through repentance (turning away from ourselves and our sins). So we are proud to introduce our little Ransom who is just the sweetest baby in the world. His mommy & daddy absolutely love him (and love to sleep with him because he loves to sleep with us). Here, Robert is taking his Sunday nap on the couch with our little guy, so Mommy can take an actual much-needed nap. His siblings love him...all of them...and there is often a competition for who gets to hold him first. Of course, they don't all want to hold him...some just use him as a prop. He's 3 weeks old and is a full-fledged member of Play Time. Most of all I spend time protecting him from overzealous siblings and nursing him, and he loves to sleep. Those are his favoritest activities of all time. But when he's awake, he's got plenty of entertainment. Life just got a whole lot more fun :-).

Just Catching Up

We are truly in the waiting mode, with Baby supposed to be arriving any time now. He's officially due mid-week (a few days), but the doctor says my body is doing nothing. Absolutely nothing. So we expect it to be longer.

Basically, the Bracker family is on hold. I've told the kids we're not doing much because simply Mama can't do much. I sit 80% of the time. But still I thought I would fill you in on what the kids are doing.

Thomas didn't get the memo that said, "Don't schedule anything in February." So he is preparing for a puppet performance with his youth group. And his Civil Air Patrol squad is gearing up for a major color guard competition on the 13th. I'm not sure how he expects to get there (maybe roll me there), but he's made his plans. He's also going bowling with his Sunday school class on the 20th, but he's got a ride for that. And every Saturday night he goes to an awesome Bible study at a friend's house for teenagers. They eat and do their Bible study and play games. But he's got a ride for that too. Good thing! lol

Daniel got the memo. And unfortunately, Daniel's basketball season was canceled. He was so disappointed, but he's making the best of it. So now, he's just busy with his school work and his trampoline (did I mention he spends at least an hour a day on the trampoline? He has for *years*).

Bethany is super busy with her crafts. She is constantly making things (which terrifies me, because I'm anti-mess and anti-creativity). And she has started a new praise & worship interpretive dance class in town which she LOVES. She is super-dramatic.

Ethan has come into his own. He's practically a genius, reading and remembering everything he reads. Mostly he reads encyclopedias, almanacs, anthologies, etc. And he can play the piano by ear. No joke. All of the children take piano. Some struggle more than others. But Ethan can play any song, using chords, both hands, you name it. He plays for our family devotions now, because he can keep up with no problems. Did I mention he's 7? He blows me away!

Grace is just beautiful and thankfully is just happy playing with her Littlest Pet Shop and her dolls. She does her school diligently, reads a lot, and is just happy all of the time. Thank the Lord for Grace!

And Asher is our rough & tumble, Still!!!! He gets injured every day, but then he just gets up and goes. If you say it's time to go downstairs. He growls and says, Upstairs. If you say tea? He says water. He will not agree with you, until his hand has been slapped at least three times. But get this....he's happy! He's happy the whole time! Such a blessing to our family! He's fun-loving and almost always in a good mood. He'll disagree with you cheerfully!

So that's a quick update on our family. I won't be posting again I don't imagine until Baby comes, which should be soon. And then I'll post a few pix of Baby.

Last night when the children were all dancing in the living room to some Christian rock music, Robert asked me how another voice would fit in the group. We laugh because there's so much noise already. But the baby will just fit in. We know that. There's so much love in our house, it's overflowing already.

Can't Wait - Truly Expecting

Well, today is 37 weeks, and we are getting so excited. This weekend I pulled out Baby clothes. I cried as I went through baby girl clothes and I cried as I went through baby boy clothes. Oddly, I was crying because either way, I wasn't going to get to use one box. Funny, huh?

Our family is just giddy with anticipation. Asher and Baby have matching Pooh towels that he is anxiously waiting to use. He wants to know when Baby is going to stop "hiding". Everyone else is just excited about finding out if Baby is a boy or a girl and excited about spending time at the hospital :-). This baby is going to be so loved. The girls want to dress up a girl and the boys just want another "vote" on their side (they have quite the majority building up). The big kids all want to hold the Baby, and the little ones do too.

So these are going to be three loooonnnng weeks, but Christmas came, didn't it? Delivery Day will come too. And I'm so glad. Because I love this Baby more than life itself, and I'm so grateful to God for blessing us with another head to kiss, another bottom to diaper, another girl to take to dance or another boy to take to soccer (I know, I know Grace is the soccer Queen! lol). We are being blessed with another precious life to teach about Jesus. I truly can't wait.

Tip of the Day

We do about two loads of laundry a day (Beth is in charge of combining and bringing down all hampers once a day). So here's my tip of the day. We do this to save a couple dollars a year.

Only use half a dryer sheet. That's all. No rocket science. Just rip it in half. It works fine.

Now aren't you glad you came to my blog today? ;-)

April

The Hostess With the Mostest

What a great hostess! Maybe she has learned a lesson or two about hospitality. We try to open our home at least semi-regularly for guests for several reasons. First, it's fun. Second, it teaches us all to share and to put the needs and wants of others first. Third, it keeps the house clean :-). Well, Gracie got a wonderful tea set for Christmas (Thank you Grandma Willis!) and has put it to use with daily tea parties in her room (invitation only). It is quite an honor to be invited for tea in Grace's room. She brings down her pitcher and I send her up with tea and a snack to share. Baby (another Grandma gift) is always invited, and today the special guests were her brothers (who we call Little Man and Middle Man). Asher is too young to balk at a tea party. And Ethan is too aware that *real* food and drink are being served. He can put up with a little pink for a snack. LOL

Christmas at the Brackers

Christmas at the Bracker house is a lot of fun. We take it slowly and calmly, but somehow each day gets filled up with activities. Our town begins the month of December with a Christmas parade that we have attended for five years straight. Some years we are in the parade on our church float, but this year we just watched. Something about "not getting as much candy when you ride".
The parade goes right through the heart of our town on the main road, so many citizens get there an hour ahead of time and tailgate. We tried that this year and it worked very well. We had our hot chocolate and camp chairs and blankets and had a fabulous time!

We've had Christmas parties at church and at home. We had to watch Alabama beat Florida, and it's best to do it with company!!! The children had Christmas programs at church, along with our church celebration called Christmas in the Country, a two day festival that includes everything from hay rides to a live manger scene with animals.

Our family has baked tons of sweets, to give and to eat. The girls and I made homemade Christmas cards to send out, which was lots of fun! And tonight we're going out to drive around and see Christmas lights.

I am beyond thrilled that, as a country, we still take time to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. It seems that might be lost in all the hoopla, but not at our house. We do a yearly advent calendar to keep a daily focus on the true story. We also have memorized Luke 2 as a family, where the Bible describes the birth of Jesus. And then on Christmas morning, we read again through the Biblical description *before* we open presents. It may seem like just a list of things that we do, as opposed to how we feel, but that's because it's hard for me in a blog to explain the investing we do in our children daily. As we homeschool, we talk about the Lord constantly, and so it is very real to our children. They understand the difference between truth and fiction, the foolishness of the world vs. the wisdom of God.

Christmas is a lot of fun....celebrations are supposed to be! So we celebrate Christ's birth with festivity. In our home, we try to celebrate a lot of different aspects of life with festivity, because we were created to glorify God. So whatever we do, we do to the glory of God. Our birthdays are fun. Our family nights are fun. Our family devotions each night are fun. Frankly, it's hard to get together with 8 people who all have a great sense of humor and not have a good time.

Anyway that's a picture of a Bracker Christmas. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas with your families, and I hope you all have the peace that comes with knowing Christ, knowing He is in charge of your life.

Birthday Season

In the Bracker house, all 9 birthdays happen within the same six month period. It's called Birthday season and when Bethany's birthday ushers it in, we all get excited. We have four birthdays in the fall, followed by holidays in November and December. Then we have four more in the winter (and Ash in early Spring).


Beth's birthday is first. We only get parties when we turn 5, 10, or 15, so Beth just decided to invite a friend (and siblings) over to make Monster Cookies! The recipe is so large, we had to cut it in half and we still had too much (with 12 children!!!). You scoop them out with an ice cream scoop.




Grace's birthday is next, two weeks later. She turned 5 and got her BIG party at the park with all of her friends.




Lastly, Ethan comes 3 weeks later. He turned 7. Robert took off work and the whole family went to the Tennessee Aquarium. Then we ate cupcakes and did presents at the Taco Bell, which happens to be where our family eats out 98% of the time.

Now we get a break for holidays until 2 birthdays in January and 2 in February. One of the February birthdays will be a literal birth day. Can't wait for that one. :-)

The Beauty of Piano

When we began piano lessons, it seemed a burden to sit in the teacher's driveway for an hour (2 teachers x 4 children @ 1/2 hour each= 1 hour). We'd struggle to find things to do and feel we were wasting time.

Well, all that has changed. Because now we spend 2 1/2 hours in the front yard and it has become a blessing. Funny how the Lord changes things, isn't it? See, we lost a teacher when one of ours married. And then we added Gracie to the roster. She's 5 and was DYING to take lessons (whereas some others merely tolerate the lessons). So five children in a row equals 2 1/2 hours.

But now, we use our time wisely and look forward to our weekly picnic. We eat lunch together, a weekly picnic, under the trees. Then when Thomas goes in, we do elementary science. When Grace goes in, we do history. When Ethan goes in, we do spelling. When Daniel & Beth go in, we play and read. It's so much fun! The children bring soccer balls and books and we have such a nice time.

So if you're bored on a Thursday afternoon, think about the Brackers. You know where we'll be! :-)

Our New Van

When we found out we were expecting our newest little one, one of our first thoughts was, "Well, The Mini isn't going to fit any longer." So we began shopping. Unfortunately, our criteria are not readily met in Alabama. You see, we needed something that would fit our family, but luxury was not high on our list. Since we've determined not to take on any debt (we're completely debt-free except for mortgage), we were restricted to using cash on hand. So we turned to EBay.

After searching and bidding on a few, we found our new van in Denver! We won the van with a bid of $1950 and I flew to Denver to pick it up. Robert tried to be chivalrous, but it simply wouldn't fit into his schedule (between work and being Beth's soccer coach). Besides, I really wanted to fly and drive across the country. To him, it was a chore. To me, an adventure.

So I left one Saturday morning by plane, arriving in Denver in early afternoon. I was there about an hour filling out paperwork, and immediately turned around and drove home. I left Denver around 5:00 p.m. Alabama time, early enough to be able to enjoy two hours of daylight in Colorado. It was completely worth it! I'd never been to Colorado before! That night, I drove through Kansas, sleeping from 12:30 to 4:00 a.m. at a truck stop. By 7:00 a.m. I was driving through Kansas City, and that began a really long day. I killed a skunk, got detoured and subsequently lost in St. Louis, ran into a practical typhoon in Nashville, and arrived home at 8:30 p.m. to very excited children.

The van runs GREAT! It's 1995 with 90,000 miles. Engine is good and strong, transmission too. Interior is basic, definitely no frills. But lots and lots of space.

And best of all? It's paid for! And it will only take 7 months to refill our "van" envelope completely, including the new van, airfare, gas, etc. I think 7 car payments (to ourselves) is much better than 60! Anyway, that's our adventure. The children have named the van Shakespeare. We're keeping the Mini to use when we have less than 9 people to save gas.

Soccer....Together!

Somehow I didn't blog at all in September. Sorry everyone! It's because of soccer! Once soccer season begins, our lives are consumed with it. We put up with it because it's only two months worth (Sept. & Oct.) and because we can do it TOGETHER!

How's this for logistics? We have six children, four players, four different teams, a total of 7 practices a week, and 4 games. Thomas helps us by chaperoning and transporting. Asher just tags along as we run from field to field.Thankfully our soccer league respects church, so our soccer is limited to three nights a week (Wednesday off) and Saturday.

Anyway, above are my players:
Dynamite Gracie, who scores a minimum of 3-4 goals per game. Her coach says she just "understands the ball".
Eager Ethan, who has a great time playing and following the ball. We pay him 10 cents each time he kicks it, to inspire him to get as close as he can!
Give-it-all Bethany, who does her very best in every game. Robert is her coach, and she really gives it her all.
Strategic Daniel, who can handle the ball really well, but tends to want to take a longer view of the game and plan where he's going to go (think: chess).

We LOVE soccer as a family, bringing snacks, watching games, packing water bottles and blankets, you name it. I'm so thankful for wholesome, family oriented activities.

Sunday Morning Tradition

We have a very special Sunday morning tradition. It never occurred to me to share it with anyone, until this morning when I was just overwhelmed with gratefulness as I looked around the room. What I saw was The BrackerCrew eating breakfast together happily just before leaving for church. You see, while I iron and dress children (and somehow throw clothes on myself), Robert makes pancakes. It's a good system and one we all enjoy. Plus, we get pancakes! We do this most Sunday mornings. We have to leave for church at 8:00 a.m., so we all have to work together to make sure everyone has shoes and Bibles. The pancakes just make it all special :-). Thanks Robert!

A Lasting Legacy

I want to take a moment to thank my parents for one of the best gifts they have ever given me (only after teaching me about the Lord). It started when I was a Junior in high school. I still remember very clearly Mom and Dad telling me they were expecting a baby. There were three of us at that time, two girls and a boy and we were all either teens or pre-teens. A baby?!? I don't think I was nearly as excited as they were.

But that was the gift. Not the brother (sorry Andrew!), but the joy. You see, they were thrilled! And it was contagious. Throughout that pregnancy, we all anticipated and anticipated, and when Andrew was finally born, we had the most fun with that baby. I was a Senior in high school during most of his babyhood, already dating Robert. And we thought little Andrew Simon was awesome! We all did! He had something like six parents. And he got cuter and cuter.

And then when he was about 2 or so, it happened again! We're having another baby! Woo-hoo! Mom was thrilled, Dad was thrilled. Robert & I were married already, but thrilled. By this time, Cindy was in high school, but she was excited. And when little Benjamin was born, we were all on hand. Now the family had a 3 year old (by this time) and a baby. By the way, Mom was 40 by this time, but I don't remember her complaining.

We were blessed again three years later, Mom and Dad's last. There was no less excitement, and this time we were rewarded with the most precious little girl. My little sister, Abigail, is now 13 years old and is a huge blessing to my parents.

So what exactly is the gift? My parents taught us to view children as God views children, as gifts and as blessings. From the very beginning of our marriage, we had that excitement, that perspective. Lord, please send as many as you want, because frankly, they're a blast!

We've been married just short of 19 years and the Lord has blessed us with six children, and we are expecting our seventh. Each one has been terribly fun and I can't imagine life without them. When we found out we were expecting our seventh, you should have heard the cheers from the children! I hope we are passing down the same perspective to our children. I hope they know how great they are, so great we'd gladly take more!

Six Flags Over Georgia

We took a family trip to Six Flags Over Georgia on Friday and had a great time. We've been doing a new budgeting system for a couple of months now and had only budgeted $100 for this trip. But with tickets, parking, food, and Taco Bell afterwards, we came in at $91. Granted we had a few tricks up our sleeves, but that's what makes it so much fun! April and 3 of the children had free tickets from a reading program. Asher was free anyway. We bought Grace's ticket on EBay and had a coupon for B1G1 Free for Robert & Thomas. We parked at a Wendy's (asked permission!!!) and walked a quarter mile for FREE! The children all got Dipping Dots or snow cones, but we brought breakfast and lunch from home. All in all, we worked together and it was a fabulous, fun day! Enjoy the pictures!


Daniel loved the water slides, while Thomas just spent time pouring water on unsuspecting victims from above.


While Robert took the older three on coasters, I took the littles on trains and boats galore! Above is the Monster Mansion, which scared the littles. Good thing I took the picture ahead of time. Below, I took the littles on the skybuckets. They really enjoyed it!



Here Grace is feeling friendly at Thomas the Train land. After going on her first up-side down coaster, she felt Thomas the Train was "so slow Mom". I hate it when they grow up at 4.


And we did get together for half the day for family rides. The Mind Bender was a coaster when I was a child. Of course then, it was the fastest coaster in the park. Now, 4 year olds ride it regularly. You can see Daniel and Beth in the front, Robert with Grace behind them, and Thomas bringing up the rear. Ethan politely declined the whole upside-down business.

I'm so proud of these guys. It was hot, it was crowded, and there were several times we had to "make do", but they did not complain all day. Robert and I even mentioned to each other how content they were. They're growing up such happy children!

Love of Gardening vs. Black Thumb

I try. I really do. Since I was a child, I have planted things in pots and put them in windows. Put seeds in the ground. Walked around gardening centers and come home with pretty flowers. And they usually die.

I'm not kidding. My husband is amazed. Frankly, I'm amazed. Those gardening books do no good.

But here's what I've found. Some plants are fool proof. So you know what I do? I plant and plant and plant. And about 10% of what I plant either stays there because it's just stubborn, or I actually figure out how to make it grow.

So here are our success stories.

BTW, take careful note of Vanna (oh...I mean Grace). She's my model for the day. I just couldn't stand how cute she was with the glasses.



Tomatoes, I have learned. I still can't make enough, even with 20 plants!!!, to provide us with enough. Thankfully, we have a gentleman at church who loves to bring me a giant box each week! But my tomato plants live and not only that, they make tomatoes!!!!



I've also fallen in love with herbs, and the best thing is, they are hard to kill. Here Grace is in our herb garden. We have sage, oregano, thyme, rosemary, and chives. My favorite is by far the chives. They flower!!! And when we have baked potatoes or any potatoes (!) I sent the children out with scissors and they cut me chives. Fresh and free!!! I love it! The BEST thing (are you all paying attention???) is that they are all perennials. I do nothing and they come back every year and make free food!!!



This last picture doesn't deserve recognition yet, as I haven't had a chance to kill it. It's untried. But it's so much fun that I couldn't stand it. I bought this tree for $5 at the Birmingham Botanical plant sale in the spring. Do you know what it is? A BAY TREE!!! All of those leaves are bay leaves waiting to go in stew! Do you know what that means? I'll never buy bay leaves again! So for $5, I get bay leaves for the rest of my life.

For the record, I've also found success with daylilies and daffodils (you can't kill them! They bloom, they die, they bloom again). Also hostas are my best friends. All of these plants propagate themselves (can you tell I love free?) so they make more and more and I can spread them out. This post is too long, but if you have a plant you can't kill and is rather pretty, then share! I'd love some new ideas!

Lazy, Hazy Days of Summer

Ethan

Bethany

Daniel (in the red shirt)

Thomas pushing Asher

Grace & Asher

Spent the day at the park with friends. We've been suffering the effects of burn-out, so we took two weeks off of school. What a great way to spend the day :-).