Last Month's Birthdays

Well, I haven't completely given up the blog yet. This has been a good place to chronicle our children's growing up. Two of my favorite young men had birthdays last month, and I want to take time to honor them here.

R turned 12 in November. On his birthday, we remembered how hairy he was as a baby. We were thankful that he wasn't in the hospital this year (he had surgery to remove part of his mastoid bone two years ago). We were also glad he hadn't had any broken bones or stitches this past year!

R is the son who keeps things light around here. One of his gifts is being able to include EVERYone in whatever fun he thinks they ought to be having. He tells the funniest stories, has an amazing vocabulary, and his love language is still punching. (Family joke; truly, though, he loves to be punched and to have his back scratched.) This past year he taught himself to play guitar and he learned a bit of ballroom dancing. (Look for the slight young man wearing a tie with flair!) He had his first season on swim team (which he enjoyed mostly for the social aspect!). Our avid reader continues to devour hundreds of pages at a time and he will happily chat your ear off on about any topic (he's well versed in a variety of subjects thanks to all that reading!). If he gets in trouble, it's usually for talking instead of working. He is extremely happy to have a friend who lives in our neighborhood and would spend every day with friends if he could (or maybe watching football- or BOTH!). Our R is absolutely a delight to us. He can cause me to feel a level of crazy I'm not comfortable with... but he also adds color and joy to my life. Love him!

G turned 3 in November. I love 3 year olds. They say the funniest things! When I read to G and there are animals on the pages, he often asks me to stop reading and tell him WHO the animals are. For awhile, I was confused by this. Now, I understand that when there are two animals, I am the bigger animal and the smaller animal is always G. He also uses pronouns incorrectly, although it's endearing. "Him wants to go outside" would be G speak. Also, "Him wearing his hat." G has a weakness for gum. We know better than to give him a pack as a gift; he eats the entire package at once. And then we find it: on our bed cover, in his hair, on the floor, under his bowl at the table...

For Christmas, G got a new bike. (His old bike had issues with the tires and training wheels.) The boy is ELATED about this bike. He rode circles in the house before we took it outside. He happily took off with a loud, "Weeee-who!" He comes up with all kinds of loud, happy exclamations. Lately, he has even taken to making up songs and singing them to us. (Yesterday he sang about the baby Jesus in the clothes in the manger.) He loves to sit on the counter and help me with everything. Thankfully, he still takes regular naps. He usually gets up from them slowly and still wants lots of snuggles on my lap (which I'm glad for!). He likes for people to lay with him when he goes to bed. I thought he only wanted me because he still likes to put his hand down my shirt (ahhhh!), but apparently anyone's skin will do. And, one night, I found out, that he didn't really want me anyway. He said he wanted Daddy to lay with him. When I asked why Daddy was better than Mommy he said, "Because Daddy shows me funny cat wideos!" (And how can I compete with funny cat videos in bed?!?!) I think we all wish he would stay little and talk with his cute imperfections and need us just a little bit. It may just be me, but I think I detect that we're all in denial that this precious boy is already three.

Feeling Full (and Thanksgiving is tomorrow!)

This may be the longest hiatus I've ever taken from the blog. Let me assure you, it's not because our life has become dull and slow and nothing is happening around here. Just one little mama can't quite keep up with it all and also find time to write about it.

YET.. I'm awfully full these days, and I thought I should share.

I've been taking a "Joy Challenge" that Tommy Newberry offers. It's 40 days of focusing on JOY and adding joy-producing habits so that you can live more fully the joyful life you were intended to live. I needed this focus. I've grown complacent, lazy in my thinking, and let go of counting gifts (like blogging) as life has felt plenty full. Seems that giving up some of these good little things has had a pretty significant impact on my attitude. The good news is that it's never too late to give thanks and live a joy FILLED life!

What we focus on expands. As I focus on the good gifts God has given, on the blessings and happy things and lovely things in my life, I'm finding more and more of them! Just this week, I've noticed the amazing gifts of being given a deer (FREE meat?!) and having our particularly amazing landlord teach the boys how to process the deer. Not only that, but my absolutely amazing husband has put in extra time after dinner to clean, cut, and grind the venison.

Also this week, aforementioned landlord began replacing the (low grade, four-year old, white!) carpet in our rental house with Pergo flooring. Amazing and generous. The big boys have been helping him, learning how to put in floors, etc. I love the skills for them just as much as I love having the nasty carpet out and the shiny, slippery, lovely floors in!

O at special 14th birthday dinner

There's much more, but the two things that really stand out to me are related to O (now 14). Earlier this week, an older man in our community called to ask if the big boys would rake leaves in their lawn. O and R have also helped this couple spread mulch and done other odd jobs for them in the past. They were able to finish their school work and spend a few hours raking leaves before they started in on the floors here on Monday. That evening, Mr. T called (the older gentleman). After talking to O briefly, he asked to talk with me. For several minutes he explained to me that the boys had done a great job with the lawn, doing everything he asked (and then some!). He said "they worked their butts off" and earned every dollar he paid them. His wife is a teacher and so he clarified with me that our boys were, indeed, home schooled. I told him that was true. He then told me that The Lawyer and I were doing a great job as parents, that we have great boys, and that we are doing things right. After thanking him for the unexpected compliments, he reiterated what a pleasure it was having our boys over and that they would like to call them again for other jobs because O and R were so polite and hard working. Well! What an unexpected gift to have a total stranger affirm the character of our children.

Finally, my mother heart was touched by O's thoughtfulness this week. He took on the project of adding the tomato cage and Grow Lights to our TowerGarden- just to bless me. (And the effect was stunning AND productive!) While I was out with four of the children for piano today, O managed to install Pergo in our bedroom (with awesome landlord) and was working to clean and put things back in order to surprise me. Again... just trying to bless me. I was so encouraged by this! I'm not sure that these thoughtful acts have happened before. Maybe now that I'm looking for them, I see them?

Feast of Trumpets- A Good Season for Us

Our family has been learning a lot about the Biblical feast days. We're fascinated by what we are studying! The children have joined The Lawyer and I in watching some video teachings and we've read Scripture together, seeking to understand things we haven't seriously considered before. Because of this, we were talking about whether or not we would celebrate the Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah) last week. (I apologize that this is long, but I want to remember how the Lord met us!)

The main reasons we had not to celebrate were that we simply didn't know how to (and reading and figuring it out takes time!), we didn't have a trumpet or horn or shofar, we didn't have special feast foods on hand (and I didn't want to try my hand at making challah!), and we didn't have anyone to celebrate with (and really, celebrations are so much more fun with others!).

So, this is a story of how the Lord met us in our weakness and neediness and brought glory to His kingly name.

First, we admitted that even though we didn't know how to celebrate exactly, we did feel compelled to celebrate. We were convicted by the idea that these are the feasts "of the Lord" and that as the Lord's people, we ought to observe them. There is so much about this idea that stirs our hearts, it would be impossible to share it in this post. Suffice to say, feasts are special times for the Lord's families and we believe that special food, special traditions, special ceremonies or music or readings all help us to remember and think on what the Lord has done, what He has promised, and who He is. What wonderful ways to talk to our children about the Lord and prepare our hearts for Jesus' second coming! Celebrating the Feast of Trumpets appealed to us.

THE SHOFAR: I've learned that when I think I lack something, I can just as my Father. Either He provides it, or I didn't really need it. Therefore, I asked the Lord to provide a shofar or horn IF He wanted us to celebrate this Feast. We needed it by Monday. We couldn't buy it (a shofar runs about $40-$500 and we only had $30 discretionary funds this month). Each day as I walked, I would remind the Lord that we were waiting to see if He would provide a shofar and that we were willing to celebrate this Feast if He met this need.

Finally, on Saturday night, I had the idea to post on our church yahoo group that I was looking to borrow a horn or trumpet. I doubted that anyone would see a post so late at night or that they would check the group on Sunday. I didn't hear anything back. I wasn't surprised, but I was a little disappointed because this was one of my last hopes for finding a horn. Sunday morning, I pulled in to church with the kids at the same time that another family was just getting out of their car. By the time I got out of our van, the father of the family was beside me, TWO shofar/horns in his hands. We got to PICK which horn we would borrow. It struck me how generous God is to supply MORE than we need sometimes.

THE FOOD: Now that we had a horn, I really needed to plan a Feast! On Monday (the Feast day), I organized a quick grocery list and prepped a special meal for the evening. I had to run out for something else, and took 2 boys with me to Kroger. We picked up our few items, including the wine, challah, yogurt covered raisins, and bugles. Then, we went to the self-checkout, which is where I realized that my wallet was is the other van. The sweet checkout lady has seen me so often that she let me buy the wine without an i.d. and I wrote out a check for the groceries. She took the check and we took our groceries and began the long walk to the door. Then, another cashier started calling to me across the store, telling me to come back. I so wanted to pretend that I didn't hear her. I was practically out the door with my 2 bags of groceries and 2 little boys who were driving their shopping carts with enthusiasm (and a bit rowdier than I like). Still, I returned. She couldn't accept my check without my i.d. and apparently the other cashier had gone on break after we handed her the check. We ran through options, but they didn't work for me. Come back later? No; I had a napping child at home, food to prepare, and no time to return. Go retrieve the wallet? Same problem with time. Have the Lawyer stop by? Too troublesome. I pleaded with her, "please? I need these groceries for a feast tonight. I can come back tomorrow and pay and you can hold my check?" No way. So, I sadly handed her the bags of groceries and two sad little boys and a very sad me walked back across the store to leave. "Ma'am!" I heard again. She called me back again. Apparently, a woman had overheard our exchange and offered to buy the groceries. Touched by the generosity of this woman, we went over to thank her. I held out my check to her (she declined) and then asked for her name so I could send her cash. She again declined. "You have a very nice family," she said, "and you are a very nice woman. I do this all the time. I'm the Lord's and I do it in His name." Well! I believe I was crying as we walked away for the third time. Now, we had our Feast food- and we didn't even pay for it.

THE FELLOWSHIP: It's pretty tricky to get together with people; everyone is just so busy. Still, we had a family in mind that lives close to us and has become dear to us over the past few years. On Monday we invited them to join us for our Feast of Trumpets celebration. They said YES! (It's a small miracle that they were even available!) Neither family had much food for the evening meal, so we decided to eat dinner in our own homes and then gather afterward. For some reason, that just didn't sit well with us, and by that afternoon we asked them to also join us for dinner. They did! Not only did we have enough food (I'm surprised how our two small packages of lamb could feed two families!), but they brought food, too, and it truly felt like a feast. Beautiful, varied dishes and flavors, and the fun of sharing mealtime with this precious family made the feast so special to us. And THEN! Then, we took turns reading Scripture, discussing the Feast of Trumpets, eating our fun Feast food, and then singing (with guitar, violin, mandolin, shakers, and horn!) together. It was a lovely, joyous time of learning and celebrating. I can't imagine what it would have been like not to have had others to share this with!

O and I made a festive, multicolored banner to hang. The kids cooked and cleaned with me. We readied the house for our guests. We combed through information on the Internet and printed little packets for our time together. Our Feast observance surely could have been improved upon (keeping the day holy and without work would be a great start!), but still it was fun and holy and exciting and memorable. We are SO very thankful that the Lord provided, drew our hearts to worship Him in this way, and showed us clearly that He was pleased for us to celebrate Rosh Hashanah. The kids have already started talking about next year and next Feast (Yom Kippur is tomorrow!) ... which is keeping The Lawyer and I digging and reading and learning and praying. What a good season to be in!

Summer Farm Time 2015

Curtis/Dickson Cousins

Rockcut Park with Griffith cousins

O (13) and R (11)

L (10) with cousin H

Fishing with Grandpa

G (2)

On Class Reunions and Years Gone By

This year my high school class celebrates 20 years since our graduation. Whew! That just sounds wrong to me! I am now one of the "old people" who seem to always be tagging on the phrase, "how can it be?" to every milestone, birthday, anniversary.

I'll admit, I wasn't sure I really wanted to go to this reunion. I've never been to a class reunion. Mostly, because we aren't usually in IL when the class reunions take place, but also because I just wasn't sure I really wanted to put myself in that situation. You know, the awkwardness of having people size you up and seeing if you measure up to what they thought of you back then or what they thought you would make of yourself. I imagined that I wouldn't know what to say to people, that the 20 year span would have obliterated all we once had in common. I wondered if the old cliques would still be circling, leaving me feeling a little like the odd one out. And truly, deep down, I wondered what seeing my peers would reveal to me about myself (how did I compare)... and would I like it? I used to know where I stood with this group of people, in terms of class rank and perhaps in what they thought of me. (My high school self was not one to party or date around, so there are a lot of people in my class I don't know very well because I wasn't at their social gatherings. I was probably known as a bit of a goody goody and one who studied. At the same time, we had a small school, so I was also able to play sports and be involved in lots of activities, too.)

This dinner was especially intimidating to me because The Lawyer wouldn't be with me. Nor would my cousin (and class mate), Andrew. I hadn't seen most of these people at all in the past 20 years. I'd really have to stand on my own two feet. Would I be confident in who I am? How would I feel if people questioned me about our family size (there are usually some comments!) or our decision to home educate? What was I going to say if they asked what I "do?" On the other hand, what would I ask them- after more years apart than we ever had together? Would I recognize them? Would it be awkward? Would I be able to appreciate and esteem my class mates so they felt valued?

I'm so happy to say that it was an absolutely lovely evening. It encouraged me and filled me up beyond what I ever would have expected. (Some of that is due to the extrovert in me!) I didn't recognize everyone; there were some pleasant surprises. I was struck by how beautiful these people are. Clearly, we are older. Yet, I felt at home in the same smiles and warm eyes (with gentle creases now!) that I remembered. These ladies and men are wearing the years well and it was good for me to see. Some of us look a little worse for wear, but I know there are stories of heartache, grief, loss, sleep deprivation, hard toil under the sun, the strain of raising children, losing parents, etc. . . and so each one of the people I spoke with seemed more beautiful than I remembered.

We sat around chatting about school lunches and teenage boys, of sports and spouses and things going on around town. I was struck by the sweetness of sharing the moment with these class mates and friends of mine (I use the term "friend" loosely. We had a small class of 63 students, so we were all pretty well acquainted). They are good citizens to have in their small towns. They are good parents (as much as we can be!) and they are endeavoring to do good in their homes and in their community. I was PROUD of them, proud to still be part of this group of good people who are doing so much for those around them. I heard them supporting each other (buying sausage and pancake breakfast tickets from one another) and I could tell in the way they spoke to each other that it was GOOD that these men and women had each other for support and community.  Even though I was the one in the circle who lives far away, I still felt connected to them and thankful that the people I love have these good folk close.

There wasn't much awkwardness. I was in my element, asking questions to find out all I could about these old classmates of mine. Their past 20 years were absolutely fascinating to me! I needed more time to talk to each of them! There were so many fun surprises- the couple who met online; those who met on a blind date; the farmer who just became a father (of twins!) a few weeks ago; the husband and wife who drive hours and hours to support their superstar softball athletes, the WI beer brewer, the unexpected banker with gorgeous blond wife, the ultra-successful divorced man, the newly married pair, the woman expecting her first baby this fall. With 20 years to look back over, there begins to be a pattern and a tapestry, and a making sense of some things, and surprises that maybe we should have seen coming. It gave me a glimpse of what I expect one day in heaven might be like a "big reveal"- when all the hills and valleys of our lives are laid bare and exposed for their purposes. Just this little glimpse was almost glorious. . . I had the sense that the Master had been working out His plans.

And so, the night ended and I was full of thankfulness and joy. For my best friend Kim, and all my other friends, too. For this circle of people that I was still connected to. After all these years, it was plain to me that we were still connected in some way, at some level. I'm glad to be part of this group of imperfect people who are yet striving for good. I don't quite feel that I fit in, but I do feel that somehow our strengths complement one another and we have new things to offer than we did 20 years ago. It's mysterious to me, and yet also confirms what I suspected deep down. When we look for good in others, we find it. When we truly share our lives with those around us, we are joined in some way. If there is another reunion in five years, I will be happy to visit with my class mates again.

Quinoa, Chickpea, Chard Salad

This was DELICIOUS! I'll post pictures (hopefully!) from my phone. I love versatile recipes like this. You could swap chickpeas for different beans. I used baby kale once and the next time I used chard from our TowerGarden. I didn't have toasted nuts, but didn't miss them. The dressing is lovely; feel free to experiment! We had this as a side. I like it on top of greens. It would also go well in tortillas or pitas.

Quinoa, Chickpea, Chard Salad

1 cup quinoa
1 can (or 15 oz) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
1 cup diced cucumber
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
3 cups baby kale or chard
1/4 cup diced red onion or shallots
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts or almond slivers

2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (I had less, but used 5 drops lemon essential oil)
2 tsp. honey
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup EVOO
fresh pepper, to taste

1. Cook quinoa according to directions. Let cool.
2. Chop veggies and put in a large mixing bowl.
3. Whisk dressing ingredients together.
4. Add cheese and quinoa to veggie mixture, then pour dressing over and gently stir to combine. Enjoy!

Easy Hummus

Easy-(Chick)Peasy Hummus
(A reposted recidpe from years ago. Still good; we made it today!)

2 cans garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed (or about 3 cups cooked beans)
Juice of 1 lemon (a little zest is good, too!)
1/3 cup of olive oil (less if your processor can do it!)
1/3 cup of fresh mint leaves
1 tsp. cumin
salt to taste

1) Put all ingredients in processor and run until smooth.
2) Enjoy with veggies, pitas, or on fresh tomatoes. Yum!

Two Year Old Perspective

Life is just more fun with a two year old around. It just is. They say the most amazing things. And because they are often hard to understand, you really have to make an effort to catch every word and decipher it, which makes it all the sweeter.

This week, we saw a giant beetle in the pool during the kids' swim practice. Later, it was in a bucket and the younger boys had fun looking at it. The coaches asked the boys what they thought of the beetle... and had a tough time understanding what G replied. It sounded like he said "is tummy... (something) is ..." but was really an exclamation, "it's as tall as me is!"

Later, he and M were playing under one of the tables, and he came back to me crying. I asked what happened and he told me that he hit his "front head" on the table. Front head is a lot like forehead!

Today, we were walking to the van after my exercise class. A silver mini with black stripes had parked next to our (giant looking 12 passenger) van. "Look, Mom!" G (2) exclaimed. "A golf cart!"

He also likes to ask his brothers, "What's that?" when he sees vehicles and wants to know what kind they are. Jeeps and convertibles are especially interesting. "Guess what!" is another favorite saying of his, and we all melt when he says, "Wook!" (look!). Today, he fell off his chair and screamed, "Oowwwwwwwww! I'm bweeding!"and the big boys thought it was hysterical (because he wasn't really bleeding.) He insisted, "Yes, I am! Wook!" Fun and preciousness! Loving these days!