FAQs About Us

Okay, so these aren't really frequently asked questions, but surely someone out there is wondering! Besides, all the cool bloggers have FAQs on their blogs.

Where did the idea for this blog come from, and if you're so busy, do you really have time to blog?
I've been trying to find the exact post, but my slow Internet is not cooperating. However, I'm fairly certain that I read it over at The Simple Dollar. He talked about how keeping a journal of fun things that he did with his kids every day for a year motivated him to do more of those things. We do a lot of fun things — games, silly songs, rhymes, crafts — but as I try to balance work and everything else that is life, sometimes I find that those things are the first to go. I'm hoping that keeping a record of them will keep them in the forefront so that doesn't happen!

Who are your three doodles and where'd you come up with those silly nicknames?
Thank you for asking! What mom doesn't love to talk about her kids? When I was pregnant with our first baby (Riley, who is now worshipping at the feet of Jesus after an early miscarriage, along with our fourth baby, Taylor), a friend of mine said that we should call him/her Doodle. I've called my DH "Doo" since we were dating, so it seemed like an obvious nickname. Ever since, we've called all of our babies "Doodle" before the BIG ultrasound, and I use variations of that name as their nicknames now. Admittedly, I don't really stick to the ones I've chosen for this blog in real life, but they seem appropriate anyway. Using aliases was the only way DH would allow me to post pictures and videos of the girls, and it seems like a wise decision.

And so, introducing...

Pumpkin Doodle
Born in October, this seemed like an obvious choice. At three years old, she is giving us a run for our money, and I am clinging to the hope that it might get easier when she turns four. Pumpkin Doodle personifies the term "strong-willed" and being three seems to have just emphasized that. My mom assures me that my sister seemed to get easier overnight when she turned four, and so we're pressing on and trying to enjoy three anyway. Thankfully, my friend Tara is just a couple of months ahead of me with her oldest daughter, and so we compare battle scars weekly!

However, Pumpkin Doodle is also incredibly smart, with a memory and imagination that amazes us daily. She will be a frequent video guest singing songs and telling stories, since I know you don't want to hear me sing! Did I mention that she's 13 trapped in a 3-year-old's body?

Monkey Doodle
Monkey Doodle was my Cling-On for her first 18 months. She spent most of that time in my arms or by my side, and I wasn't too sure how things were gonna go when her little sister was born. However, she has continued to become more and more independent over the last 8 months, and she is an AMAZING big sister. There is nothing that warms a momma's heart like watching your two-year-old stop what she's doing, for no apparent reason, to walk over and kiss the baby!

She is very, very little (we're watching to make sure she doesn't continue to fall off the growth chart, not because we care if she grows up to be little but just because we want to make sure there's no medical issue we're missing) and she's just starting to talk clearly and in full sentences (unlike her big sister, who was talking up a storm very, very early), but it's becoming obvious how much she really does know and understand, and I'm loving having a two-year-old again!



Sweet Doodle
Sweet Doodle is just that...sweet. Everyone in our house absolutely adores her, and no one more than Monkey Doodle. She is absolutely the easiest baby I've ever met and has been from the moment she was born (emergency c-section aside!), and it was even more striking after having a Cling-On for a baby the time before. At almost 8 months she isn't quite sitting up on her own, but I think that's because she's too busy chasing after her sisters. Since she's learned to do the army crawl, she hasn't sat still for a moment, and we're spending a lot of our time just making sure there's nothing on the floor that she can choke on, which could be considered a full-time job with a 2- and 3-year-old in the house.

She could also be called Sunshine Doodle, as she lights up the room with just a simple smile!



Do you plan to homeschool your children? All the way through high school?
We are planning to homsechool, and yes, we plan to homeschool all the way through high school. We currently live in a county that is one of the worst in the state educationally, and we're in one of the worst states to start with. We had already made the decision to homeschool before moving here, so that wasn't a concern for us, but it has definitely sealed our decision.

Why are you homeschooling?
That's a good question, and I don't think the answer is a short one. It's NOT primarily to shelter our children, and it is not really even our desire to shelter them. Rather, we just want to be there with them along the way so that we can share our beliefs and help them sort through their questions as they develop their own faith.

Educationally, it's important to me that they have the freedom to study those topics that interest them most and that they're not spending time waiting for the slower learners on a topic or, alternatively, being rushed through those subjects they need more time in.

A big part of it is simply because I want to be there as they discover the world, as they learn to read, as they figure out something that excites them and for all of their "light bulb" moments. I gave birth to them, I lose sleep when they're up in the middle of the night, I clean their poop and vomit, and — doggone it — I want that privilege too!

Are you a Montessori teacher?
No, I am not. I have no formal Montessori training at all, but I DID attend an authentic Montessori school (as in the founder and director trained directly under Maria Montessori) from the time I was 2.5 until I graduated 8th grade. I love Montessori materials and incorporate many (but admittedly not all) Montessori principles into our daily lives and activities that I plan for the girls.

Where do you stand on all the "hot" issues on the Internet today?
I almost hate to say this because I feel like a lot of the Internet is about extremes, but I'd say I'm pretty much your average middle-of-the-road girl. My take on some of the controversial issues of the day:

Fundamental versus emergent...
I am a Christian. I don't really think anything else matters. Flame-suit on, ready to be flamed.

Seriously, this blog is NOT about my take on Christianity, other than instilling a love of Christ and a servant's heart in my girls. But just to get it out of the way, I probably fall more on the side of emergent than fundamental. Do I believe in absolute truth? ABSOLUTELY. I just don't believe that there's any person or denomination that's gotten it all right. I don't feel called to judge those who don't know Him, and while I pray that they will come to experience peace and salvation in Him, I feel much better equipped to just love them and let the Holy Spirit do the work of convicting them. I don't think today's church (as a whole) does enough to meet the physical needs of people today...there are too many people sick and starving and dying around this world.

And that is why I love my church. Our pastor speaks truth and is not afraid to point out some of the "harder to swallow" Scriptures in the Bible, but we also spend a lot of time meeting the physical needs of those in our community and around the world, without judgement or expectation.

Okay, whew, that got longer than I intended!

Quiverfull versus birth control...
We don't use chemical birth control because we haven't found one that does not fall into the abortafacient category, no matter how small that risk may be. However, we are trying to avoid pregnancy for the next couple of years, for my health and sanity. I want lots of kids, and our current plan includes at least five (Ha! DH does not agree with the "at least" part...yet!). So we're somewhere in the middle, I suppose.

Vegan? Raw foodist? Fruitarian?
I am inspired by my Internet-friend Sarah and her journey to becoming a fruitarian, but to be honest, I don't have the self-control or willpower necessary to make this change. Do I see the benefits? Absolutely (truly, you can't read her blog and not see the benefits). But I'm Italian, and I'm just not ready to give up my bread and pasta. I DO look for ways to make our current diet healthier, and I'll be including some quick and easy and healthy ideas as we go along.

Frugalness versus extravagance...
Okay, I admit it. I think I fall into the "frugal so that I can be extravagant" category. We're trying to lower our grocery budget (have you read about Crystal's $40 a week budget over at Money Saving Mom?), but we're also planning a trip to Disney World in the fall because there's nothing quite like seeing the Magic Kingdom through the eyes of a child!

And that is probably more than you wanted to know. Thanks for humoring me!