Confessions of a PBS addict

I have a confession to make. I am addicted to PBS. And I know that because every time there is chaos and fighting I find myself saying, "Let's watch PBS!" And even when it's peaceful, there are certain times of day when I just feel like turning it on. 7am-not even sure what's on...10 am-Sesame Street...3pm-Cyber Chase. Ken has punished one of our children with no TV or computer for a few days....and I'm the one suffering the most!

I definitely have a problem.

God loves them the most...

These thoughts have been brewing in my mind for a few days. Having just celebrated Andrew's 14th birthday, I naturally was reminiscing about the beginning of our journey with children. Ken and I had been married for four years before we were blessed with our Andrew. Two of those years were spent praying, hoping, despairing, hoping, praying, despairing....you get the picture. We wanted a child so badly, but after 2 years of trying to conceive the doctor said I was not going to be able to get pregnant without the help of modern medicine. I specifically remember sitting on the couch in our apartment one night, preparing a lesson for our Sunday School. It was a particularly hard day, and I was in the despair part of the cycle. So I told God I was not even going to pray about having a baby anymore. I was giving up and couldn't handle the up and down emotional roller coaster anymore. I was angry, I admit. Perhaps throwing a grown up version of a temper tantrum. I opened the lesson book that laid in my lap and my tear filled eyes landed on these words:

This time next year you will have a son.

I kid you not. And I felt even angrier than before. "Didn't I just tell You I was not going to hope anymore?" I yelled. I think I even threw the book. That was around Thanksgiving, 1993. It was just a few months later that I found out I was with child. He was born the following fall, just as God had promised. God was very good to us. I know there are many who still go through the pray, hope, despair cycle and may never be blessed with a pregnancy like we were. I don't understand it, but I'm so grateful he saw fit to bless us with not just one miracle, but five.

Now Andrew is 14, and planning on going to Mexico for his first missions trip. As I was praying for him and the trip the other morning, I thanked God for "my" Andrew. I felt a gentle rebuke, even before I finished that sentence. "Your Andrew?" So I tried again, "Our Andrew?" Still not quite right. The truth is, Andrew and the rest of these miracles are not mine and Ken's, they are God's. We are stewards of these little people. I felt convicted of flared tempers and careless words and of discipline that was more angry than loving; convicted of being too busy to listen and too lost in my thoughts to respond with sincerity.

I love Andrew.

I love these kids.

And God loves them even more.

Talk to the animals, part II

So, Ken came home last night with his own bizarre animal story. He was on the scaffold at the job, thinking and working, and a bird landed about 3 feet away and started chirping at him. Not in the angry way of a mama bird protecting her nest, but in the conversational way that a bird might talk to another bird. Then she flew away. Now that would be unremarkable, I suppose, except it happened again a little later in the day in a totally different spot. Ken was leaning up against the truck, talking to the homeowners, and a bird (he thinks it was a different one) landed within arms reach on the rack behind his tool box, and started chirping at him in that same conversational tone! In light of my own bizarre animal experience, we thought that was pretty hysterical....and it has confirmed what I've suspected all along...

You see, if I'm Snow White (see comments on the last blog...) then

Ken really is Prince Charming! And I bet you didn't know he was related to the Cat in the Hat, did you? It's a fairytale life we lead...

If I could talk to the animals....

There is a chipmunk that lives in the rock wall that lines our driveway. Or maybe there's more than one, they all look the same. I'm not sure if it's the same one, but Andrew tried to befriend it many years ago, with no success. Jon did the same, spending hours sitting quietly, leaving little treats in hopes of earning his trust. To no avail. Today, I was walking up my driveway, toward the barn, and there, in the middle of the driveway sat the chipmunk, looking at me out of the corner of his eye. Little sides heaving like he was scared out of his mind. Not moving, not trying to run away. I was a little worried about Sassy trying to catch him, because she was sniffing around up ahead, so I moved my leg ever so slightly to scare the chipmunk into action. He run about a foot away, stopped, then turned and ran straight toward me and

started
to
climb
up
my
leg.....

He only made it up the back of my shoe before I screamed and shook him off. Then he scurried off into the bushes. I have no idea if he was being friendly or just aggressive...weird, eh?

Soup for lunch

I made beef vegatable soup for lunch today, and it was really quick and easy after spending a little extra time yesterday during my dinner prep. Last night's dinner was short rib meat in the crock pot with onions, garlic and spices. I used the bones which I cut off the meat to make a beef broth. So, while I was preparing dinner last night, I put a pot of water on to boil with the bones that I otherwise would have thrown out. Today, after I skimmed the hardened fat off the broth, I added the leftover meat from last night, some soup green (see below), and leftover egg noodles from last night. I brought it to a boil and let it simmer for a while and voila! Delicious, nutritious beef vegetable soup for lunch!

Soup green is something Oma has used forever in her cooking. She has always generously shared her supply with me, but this summer I finally made some of my own. Using the food processor that Oma let me borrow, I shred carrots, onion, red, yellow and green peppers, and celery, one at a time. The mix is up to your taste, but Oma's suggestion was not too much celery, because it "takes over!" Mix in some salt and that's it. It's an easy way to add nutrition and flavor to spaghetti sauce, soups, taco meat, rice...almost anything. It freezes well, so you can make a big batch at once...which is good because it's messy shredding up all those veggies so I wouldn't want to do it every week. I froze it in quart containers and I keep one in the fridge. No worries about spoilage because of the salt, and I use it within a week or two.

Yum! Besides, I have to try to find a way to feed 5 children without burning through the bread a loaf a day! Now that I bake, I'm infinitely more aware of how much bread we eat! :>)

I remember when....

she was a rockin' shortstop and could run faster than any boy I knew....(that includes you, Jer!)

she shared Jesus and her friendship with me.....

she almost started a panic at Virginia Beach when she yelled "shark" after seeing a dolphin....

she was a fast strumming guitar player who could out-sing anyone on American Idol....

she was Queen of her Senior Prom....

she didn't realize I was changing and let the boys into our dorm room....(I'm sorry, are you decent?)

she was the most caring and thorough nurse in the Nursing Home...

she married her high school sweetheart and started her beautiful family...


Happy Birthday, Dee!



I thank God for the many years I've been blessed to enjoy your friendship!

First Day of School....

for Daniel! I don't want to shock anybody, but this homeschooler does believe a little time away from mom is a good thing---for both mom and child! Provided the program is quality and the time is in short bursts, especially when they are young....I'm so pleased to have found out about this new preschool, it was a real answer to prayer. It's run by moms who love their kids, it's 5 minutes from my house, it's only two days a week, and it's free! It's a cooperative preschool, so each mom takes a turn teaching. So, every 5 weeks, I will team up with another mom and we will have some fun with the kids. I am a teacher at heart, and this will be a fun, different outlet for me.

And for those of you who are wondering if Daniel had trouble separating himself from me....the answer is not one little bit. I was pleasantly surprised when he walked over to the children and began playing with the toys, and he never once looked back at me. I think this is going to work out just great!

Goodbye, Oma and Grandpa

You'd think after 13 years of summers here and winters there, I'd get used to the inevitable goodbye. But, not so. It's still as hard today, and maybe harder. Back on a plane they go, to drier air and wider skies. Emma and I are still drying our eyes....

Oma did alot of cleaning up while she was here this summer, and I have some plunder to show for it! An old cabinet, in the basement of the brick house when they bought it, has now become part of my new pantry! After our trip to Deerfield, my eye has been drawn to all things primitive--which is a decorating style I have recently learned from those more learned in these matters than I-- so I snagged some shelves Oma was done with and Voila! A pantry that makes me smile each time I enter....and it's efficient to-boot! My counters are less cluttered, my cabinets, too--and I can store extra canned goods, etc. without losing track of them in my basement, as I have done from time to time.

Some old looking utensils and a wooden bowl complete the pantry which is both pleasing to the eye and functional.