In the olive grove

Taryn's new camera

2012-02-05T00:12:00.002Z

Well, Taryn turned 13 in mid January. She's a good girl, and is growing out of her pre-teen funk, and she really wanted a camera. I think I talked about our options back in December.

So anyway, I did what research I could, and we finally made a decision. We wanted the Nikon Coolpix 8200. Then we had to decide from where to buy it. B & H, an online store, had the best price. A local store wasn't far off, and we could have it right away. Bob has ordered from B & H several times before, and wanted to do so again. Then we had to decide to order it "now" (before Christmas) or wait for the price to drop after Christmas and the new year. We decided to wait.

The price was the same after Christmas, so we waited for New Year, when Nikon usually releases its new equipment. Well, then the price went UP. So I decided to go ahead and get one, but the delivery date would coincide with our trip to Oklahoma for Cedwryck's birthday. So we waited a little more. Then when I remembered to order, they were out of stock! So we waited some more. Then, I finally got it ordered. What a relief!

The day it was scheduled to arrive (just over a week before her party), I waited anxiously for the UPS truck all day. I didn't want Taryn to beat me to the door and thus see the name of the sender, which I assumed she'd recognize. Listen, look, wait. Well, we had to go out for a few minutes about 6pm, and came home expecting to see the box by the door, but it wasn't there. So we waited until 9:30, when I checked the online tracking status, and it said the package was delivered at 5pm! So we got out the flashlights and looked all over the porch, the carport, even the storage building entryway, and then started to branch out. Bob finally found the camera, out of its box, and chewed on, under the clothesline. Oh, he was upset!

The box was destroyed, the user's manual, strap, battery, etc. were all scattered about the yard, and the camera was beyond repair.

So I began looking at my options, and we finally settled with calling both UPS and B&H. UPS sent their man out the next day to pick it up for return and "to be inspected." He told me he knocked on the door and got no answer. Well, I know the delivery guys are really rushed to cover a lot of ground, and he can't stay very long waiting. But I also know how anxious I was to be the one to the door, and I doubt that there was an actual knock. Part of the problem is that he parks his truck at the end of the driveway and walks up, thus adding to his rush AND making it harder for me to hear the motor.

Anyway, they sent it back, and though delivery took 2 days, the return took 4 or 5. And then B&H had to go through their return system, and then it was another 4 days to send it back. So, she didn't get it at her party, but she did eventually get it.

She is being very stingy with her pictures, so I can't show any sample shots, but it seems to be working well for her.

Why I homeschool

2012-01-28T03:23:00.003Z

When you realize that no one understands, and that there are genuine other world-views (or "plausibility structures"), what do you do? I try to explain.

There are many reasons to homeschool.
Here's a list of 101 reasons, mostly related to the breakdown of morality in government schools.
Homeschoolers do better academically.
Homeschoolers are more appropriately socialized. http://www.hslda.org/docs/nche/000010/200410250.asp
Homeschoolers don't have to deal with the government school schedule, PTA meetings, or just plain having to make their children do what somebody else wants.
There's no "homework" or doctor's notes, more field trips and time for "extra-curricular" activities.
Homeschoolers can eat lunch (and breakfast) that agrees with their tastes and health needs.
Homeschoolers can learn at their own pace. The curriculum is really tailor-made to each child.

These are all great reasons, and any one might be enough for someone to make the decision to homeschool.

But to me, these are all side benefits, and I'd homeschool EVEN IF none of them were true.

So why do I homeschool?
Because the Bible tells me so.

Deu 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:
5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.

Psa 78:1 Maschil of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my law: incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:
3 Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done.
5 For he established a testimony in Jacob, and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children:
6 That the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children:
7 That they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments:

(emphasis mine)
It's simple, I know. And argument can be made that one can teach one's children about God in the hours after "school" or on weekends, but you can't get around the daily, hourly instruction commanded in Deuteronomy. That is only possible in the homeschool.

This isn't a "personal" conviction, or passion, or calling. It's not personal at all! God's Word is for all of His children, if we will only accept His wise guidance and the benefits that come with it. "2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:" I'd love to quote 1 Timothy 6:3-6, but that seems a little bit over the top in this application. I do find it interesting to note that Paul, through the Holy Spirit, says it is the dissenters who cause strife - not the ones who insist on purity of doctrine.

I thought I'd talked about this before, but couldn't find the post, so I do apologize if you remember reading about it.

Disclaimer: there are exceptions to most rules, and I do understand that some people simply cannot homeschool, however the exception can't be the majority, and more people could do it if they only would. Disclaimer 2: I understand that not everybody is a Christian, and of those who are, not everyone takes the Bible literally. In those cases, what the Bible says has no bearing and that's their option (to believe or not). There is no merit in obeying a God who isn't believed.

hey

2012-01-24T18:31:00.002Z

How's the weather? It's been pretty warm for January, after a chilly Fall.

Anyway, I got my laptop to come back on yesterday, so I thought I should say hi.

Yesterday we did something new in our quest for health, but I'm trepidatious about making that information public. If you know me on Facebook you can check out my last 2 posts.

Ummm,
Okay, something I can tell you! I bought a used copy of The Maker's Diet and read it. There was a bit too much of personal testimony for my taste, and a little bit of selling his special supplements, but some interesting diet and health information. He suggests a lifetime devoid of sugar, white flour (and generally all grains that haven't been soaked or sprouted), pork, shellfish, and artificial anything. He suggests a two week cleansing diet of limited items, then two weeks of transition, followed by the rest of your life on clean eating. If we were desperate (as the author was when he began his regimen) we might try it, but since we are just fat and lazy we won't.

What we are going to do is stop eating out (haven't been to McDonald's in over a week, and some people are having withdrawals), cut out all pork (I'd stopped for a while, but lately we've been getting bacon and ham), and cut out all sugar. We are looking into options for grass-fed meat and milk, and of course we already have our organic eggs. Since we have quite a bit of bacon and sweets in the house, we decided to keep eating until the 1st of Feb, when anything that is left will be thrown out of given away, and we begin in earnest.

I've tried things before, but this time I think it will work because Bob is behind the idea. Also, it is an attempt to follow God's design for our health, which can only be a good thing.

I didn't intend to write a book review, so I've left out a lot, but I did want to mention that the author (Jordan Rubin) had Crohn's Disease and was unable to absorb any nutrients - he was down to 111 lbs at age 20 - and after following his own diet he was able to heal himself and gain weight. Also, I wanted to point out that the dietary advice is taken from the Bible, followed by modern science, including the research of Dr Weston Price, a dentist who traveled the world in the 30s. I am subscribed to a blogger who always talks of Dr. Price, and publishes traditional recipes. She is at http://nourishedkitchen.com/.

I had other things in mind, but I guess that will do for now.

Good news

2012-01-16T16:58:00.002Z

Announcing that we are expecting number eight!
He or she should make an appearance around the end of July, and I'll try to not be late with this one, as we Ned a July birthday, but not an August one.

We are considering a home birth, and have contacted a midwife, but we are a lot farther from a hospital than we were in England, and the midwives aren't as trained here. So we are also considering a hospital birth. If any of my local readers would care to leave a comment, I'd love to hear your suggestions as to a mother friendly birth experience. We hope to tour the local hospitals and make an informed decision, but well have to get on the ball.

And now you know. :-)

Excuses

2012-01-14T04:37:00.002Z

Sorry for the long delay in posting. I've only had my laptop on once since the last post, though I've tried a few times. I'm getting on Facebook and email with the iPad but it isn't easy to type with. So anyway just checking in.

Book Review: Fyodor Dostoevsky

2012-01-09T04:24:00.004Z

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

If you don't recognize the name Fyodor Dostoevsky, he's the guy that wrote Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov and a bunch of others. I've heard of these, but haven't read them. Perhaps that is the problem...

This biography is written in a "conversational style" which means that instead of just telling the story of Fyodor's life, it tells of Fyodor sitting up all night reminiscing with his friend(s). Occasionally we are brought back from the stories to witness a cough, a refill, or a reminder from the wife that it's time for bed. The book covers Dostoevsky's life from early boyhood to his death, in snippets - some as short as 2 or 3 sentences. Then at the end of the book, we suddenly have 10 full pages of a single quote, presumably the entire text of a speech given at a Pushkin festival. I admit that I skimmed over this speech, expecting at any minute to return to what I viewed as the story.

I didn't notice any typos as such, but on page 147 the book says Fyodor published his diary for four years, and on the next page it says that he had to stop publishing after just two years. This was the only glaring error in the book.

Overall, I was disappointed and frustrated with this book. I suppose the author, Peter Leithart, is knowledgeable of his subject, but he didn't do a good job conveying that knowledge. I felt, as other reviewers have said, that I came away from the book not knowing anything about Dostoevsky.
Also, I was frustrated with Fyoder being held up as a great Christian thinker when he is presented as a gambling womanizer. Other than his insistence that Russian character is all one with Russian Orthodoxy, we hear very little of his theology, but we hear quite a lot about his infidelities.

To end on a positive note, I now have a much greater interest in reading some of Dostoevsky's work than I had before. So I suppose on that point the book was successful.

feeling dumb but relieved

2011-12-30T03:02:00.002Z

We have our electricity bill set up on auto bank-draft, so every month we get the bill in the mail, but it is automatically taken out of our bank account on the due date, which is usually around the 22nd of the month.
This has its pros and cons; no stamps or trips to town, no worries about forgetting to pay the bill, but it comes out late in the month and we only get paid on the 1st.

Anyway, The bill that was due in late December arrived early in the month (or perhaps even in late November), and I understood it to say we had used $180 worth of electric, which was pretty crazy considering we hadn't run the A/C that month, and were still using the clothes line. We were frustrated, but what could we do? So all of December we've been watching the bank account, making sure we had at least $200 still there to cover the bill when it went through. But it never went through. Well, maybe it got out of sync because or the holidays. So we watched and waited.

Today we got the bill that is due in January. Maybe it was because I'd been thinking on my morning walk about the deposits we had to make when we opened all our utility accounts, but for some reason I paid attention when I read this month's bill. It showed a carryover CREDIT from last month of $120. This month's charges amounted to $60, and so we still have $60 in credit. huh. So I found last month's bill, and (as you have surely figured out by now) the $180 was our deposit being credited back to us. Last month's charges were only $60 as well, and were fully covered by the deposit, and would not be coming out of the bank.

So, I feel a little dumb for not reading it right last month, but quite relieved that our usage has gone down as we expected, and that we have 2 or 3 months without having to pay a bill at all.

Clothes

2011-12-29T03:51:00.002Z

Since Taryn was a baby, whenever someone would outgrow clothes I would box them up, label the box, and set it aside for any possible future child. This has saved us lots of money, and added lots of bulk to our storage rooms and pounds to our shipping weight. I upgraded the empty diaper boxes to Rubbermaid totes. We have separate tubs for boys and girls in every size/age category, and for once we have a large storage building and no prospect of moving.

So I have no excuse. Perhaps I'm getting lazy, or Bob is less tolerant of the messes that invariably link to any exercise in organization. Either way, we've come to the point that when somebody outgrows clothes and there isn't an immediate successor (Cedwryck goes straight into Riah's clothes, for example), we just shove 'em in a bag and take 'em to Goodwill.

Today we had to go to town for chicken food, and before we left Bob threw a big garbage bag full of clothes in the back of the van. So, after running some other errands we stopped at Goodwill and dropped off the donation. Since we were there, Bob and I went in. No one had mentioned any pressing need, so for once I looked for clothes in my size. I came away with 4 new-to-me blouses, a skirt, a jumper (that's a sleeveless dress that you wear a shirt under, not a sweater), and a WOOL COAT. I've been making do with a windbreaker and a couple of sweaters; my "heavy coat" was a ruana which is super-nice, but inconvenient in certain settings (can't hang it on the back of a chair, for instance). So I've been wanting a nice-looking warm coat, but they are hard to find in my size, and very expensive. I was SO super excited when Bob found my new coat. The lining is coming un-sewn around the armpits, but that should be easy for even a non-sewer like me to fix. Total price for my haul? $30.

I'm thinking my "finds" were a little bit of payback for the donation we made; anyway I'm glad to get something. My favorite tops have been a couple that my mom got for me at a garage sale 5+ years ago, and they are starting to look tired.

Then at church tonight a lady gave me a whole bag full of clothes! I haven't tried them on yet, but she gave me a really nice skirt a couple of weeks ago that fit very well. So now I'm all set for clothes I should start losing weight, huh? If only.

Food

2011-12-28T03:52:00.003Z

Since my food posts always prove to be interesting...

Yesterday (Monday the 26th) we finally had our Christmas dinner. I made grape salad (with some VERY tasty grapes), then Ultimate roast potatoes, then Brussels Sprouts, honey glazed carrots and raw carrot sticks, and the lamb which we sliced and seared in it's own fat, gravy from the lamb marinade, and store-bought crusty bread rolls. The chocolate log cake was already made. It was a challenge to get everything done at once, but Bob helped with the meat and it all came together. He took a few pictures before we ate.

Tonight I cooked again, this time drawing on some of my new recipes that I've been printing off. We had Parmesan chicken, Alla carbonara pasta, green beans, and leftover carrots and potatoes from yesterday. The chicken was delicious, and most of us were too full to want dessert.

Parmesan Chicken
• 1 cup fresh bread crumbs
• 2 cups finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (3 oz.)
• 2 green onions, chopped fine
• Zest of ½ lemon
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
• 4 single chicken breasts
Place breasts on greased baking tray; top with crumbs. Bake at 375* about 20 minutes.

This made a HUGE amount of crumbs, even for 6 breasts, so I ended up putting a layer down on the tray, then the chicken, and then most of the crumbs on top. Taryn thought the Parmesan should be cut back, but everyone else liked it (William said it was only a "little bit nasty.") The recipe included directions for a lemony sauce, but no one used it as the chicken was moist and flavorful on its own.
Enjoy!

Oh well, but still good.

2011-12-26T14:52:00.002Z

After I blogged Saturday I got sleepy and Bob got restless. He hadn't been feeling well all day, and it finally got to him. So instead of cooking the grand meal planned, we went out. We ate at McDonald's (splurging for sundaes all around), and drove out to Eureka Springs. There were a few shops open, but we contented ourselves with driving through and looking at the lights. When we got home I cooked the lamb; we may eat it today.

Sunday church was really nice. We had a sort of carol service, and there was a decent crowd. We came home and I whipped up some taco tartlets to take next door along with the chocolate chip dip with chocolate animal crackers, and carrot and celery sticks. As I was baking, StepSon and his fiance came by to give gifts to the children. How sweet!
Then we went over and ate and exchanged a few more gifts.

Time for breakfast.

But I also wanted to add that this year we gave away a goat and 4 ducks through World Vision, which was fun, and I recommend that to those who want to shop but don't need anything.

So far, so good.

2011-12-24T19:10:00.002Z

So much for thinking I'd be blogging more when Bob's semester was over. My computer is showing signs of illness, and I've been trying to get my documents organized and my recipes printed. You'd think hitting "print" 160 times would be non-complicated, but many of the recipes were in conversation format, with many extra instructions, and pictures. One, for example, was 6 full pages in Word. I got it down to 1 1/2.

Today is Christmas Eve! Tomorrow we will go to church in the morning, and then have lunch with Aunt and Uncle Nextdoor and MIL and StepSon and whoever else shows up. So we did our family time today.

Bob and I managed to sleep in until 7:45. I was headed toward the Christmas lights when I passed the kitchen window and saw SNOW on the ground! Some people may think it was a heavy frost, but I've never seen frost that heavy. The last time (the only time) I remember having a light snow on Christmas Eve was my first Christmas in England. Both times it was just the icing on the cake.

Anyway, I pulled the cocoa rolls out of the fridge to finish rising (they are like cinnamon rolls, but with chocolate bread, and cocoa in the middle), and mixed up the oven omelet. We read the Christmas story in the Bible and got dressed. Then I thought breakfast was ready, but it turns out that the rolls weren't quite done. So we ate the omelet and chatted for a while, then ate the rolls. It was 10:30 by the time we finished breakfast!

Then we opened our presents. Bob got a new printer last week, so that was his present, though I also gave him a 1 pound Reese's Cup.
Taryn got a mattress pad, a slip, a song book, a Sudoku book, and some hair bands.
Naysha got a play doctor's kit, 2 books to read, a slip, and a bicycle horn.
Riah got a wooden sword, a building kit with birdhouse, sailboat and other stuff, some tools, and a Sudoku book.
Cedwryck got a sword, a build-your-own rubber band shooter, a book, and some tools.
Ella got a pillow backpack, a baby doll bed, a paint-your-own wooden doll set, a book, tights, and a Dot-to-Dot book.
William got a bow and arrow set, a sword, a remote-controlled truck, a book.
Elijah got a set of ABC blocks, a soft baseball and bat set, and a chunky puzzle. He also claimed every other present as "mine."
Bob got me a 25th anniversary Snowflake bear and some dark chocolate and salted caramel candy.
We had a few things that were for sharing, or for every body. Flashlights for all, Sonic toys via the cake store, a Wii game via McDonald's Monopoly game, a computer game, a set of activity books about knights, pipe cleaners, and a pack of door hangers to color.
My brother sent up a Wii game as well. Sorry I didn't send you a gift, Wil. I have a little something; maybe we'll leave it with Mom and Dad?

After presents we did our chores, including a short walk with the dog. It is a beautiful day; bright blue sky, crisp cool air...

After a while we will have a nice dinner - I've been marinating a lamb leg since yesterday, and will make the ultimate roast potatoes as well as other delectable sides, followed by a chocolate mocha log roll cake.

For those who aren't on Facebook, we got a kitten yesterday. She's about 3 months old, solid black, and is polydactal (she has an extra toe on each front foot). She was in a cage-free cat shelter, and hates to be alone, but doesn't like to be held. She just meows and rubs on our legs. She is very active, and wasn't scared of us at all. Her name is Blackberry, for the color, and the ability to send texts (thumbs).
We let the rabbit in for a while yesterday to socialize, and they took turns being scared of, and curious about, each other.

Doctor visit

2011-12-15T04:56:00.000Z

Yesterday we went to Little Rock, stayed the night at the Air Base, and took Riah to the doctor this morning.

We made a decent start Tuesday morning, but hadn’t got 10 minutes out of town on the infamous Pig Trail when Taryn and I both got car sick. Bob drove carefully, but I had to strain every muscle and nerve in my body to focus on the yellow stripe in order to not be sick. We stopped at the one gas station on the road, got a Cream Soda and some garlic chips, and stood around for a few minutes, then I drove the rest of the way down.

After lunch at a Burger King, Bob took the wheel again, and we finally made it to the base. Everybody has to stop at the gate and show military ID to get in. I pulled out mine, Taryn’s and Naysha’s, and Bob handed over his driver license. The guard looked it over and asked if Bob had a visitor’s pass, and it still didn’t hit Bob until I pointed out that he’d handed over the wrong ID. One year out, and 20 year’s training just washed down the drain.

We got checked in easily enough. Our rooms were in the same building as last time, but this time we were upstairs. We unloaded and tried to unwind for a few minutes, then went back out to try some shopping. The BX (department store) was a bust. I did buy a new pillow, but we didn’t find anything else we were interested in. We had dinner in the food court – pizza for some, and Charley’s Grilled Subs for some. We hadn’t had Charley’s since we left Lakenheath. It was still good, but MY WORD they were slow. No one in the entire store had a smile.

Feeling somewhat better, we next attempted the commissary (grocery store). I found a few items that were cheaper there, such as oatmeal and canned pineapple, but for the most part the prices were comparable with what I see around here. Beef was quite a bit cheaper, but I didn’t want that sitting in my car for 24 hours. We ran into a couple from our church in Cabot (where we got married), and they remembered us quite clearly. We got some ice cream for a snack, and cereal and milk for breakfast, and headed back to the room.

It was only 6:30, and we had talked about going to downtown Little Rock to see if the river was decorated for Christmas, but with the car sickness, headaches, and thick fog outside, we decided to stay in. The children were excited to get baths, as we only have a shower at home, so we started in on that. As I walked down to the second room for Ella’s bath, I saw a sort of dayroom just past the door. There were toys, books, and videos. So after a few baths, we let the children play around for a while, then went back to the room and watched a video. Ice cream, followed by more baths, and we were ready for bed.

This morning we ate, cleaned the dishes, packed up, and checked out. We were a little anxious about getting to the hospital in downtown Little Rock, so just went straight out there, arriving 2 hours before the appointment time. We consulted the map and found we were just a few blocks from Central High School, an icon of the desegregation of public schools. So we headed that way, took a few pictures, and told the story the best we knew it (we were off by a few details). The children were interested, and some needed a bathroom very badly, so we went across the street to the National Park’s Central High School visitor’s center. We were greeted enthusiastically by a park ranger, who gave the children each a booklet to fill out in exchange for a ranger badge. We looked at most of the exhibits and were working on the books when Bob saw that it was 15 minutes until the Doctor’s appointment. So we made a mad dash to the car, and he dropped Riah and I off at the hospital door.

Arkansas Children’s Hospital is as difficult to navigate as most others I’ve been in, but we made it to the check-in desk right in time. Riah was measured, weighed, cuffed, and probed. Well, he had his blood pressure taken, and his heart monitored. We watched half of Johnny Depp’s Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. (Bob took the others to the capitol building where they heard school choirs singing Christmas carols.)

The long and short of it is, his heart is worse than we had last been told. His valve is leaking about the same as before, but now it’s dilating as well, and this concerns the doctors. Since our Primary Care doctor here in Huntsville failed to obtain any of Riah’s medical records, the doctors don’t know how much or how fast his heart has changed in the last year. They say we should come back in 6 months to see how things are progressing, but they think he’ll have to have surgery within a few years. In the meantime they say he can run and play, but no heavy lifting/weight training. So we are a little frustrated about that, but still know God is in control. At any rate, we will change Primary Care doctors, since this one couldn’t even hear the anomaly in Riah’s heartbeat, and wouldn’t get his records for him, and took 6 months to get the referral to go see the specialists.

Today was also Bob’s birthday. We wanted to have a nice lunch to celebrate, but he couldn’t really think of anything he wanted, so we started on the road home. There was nothing on the way out or Little Rock, so we stopped in Conway. We ended up at T.G.I.Friday’s. I’d never been to one before. It was okay. The food was all very good, and Bob’s appetizer was very generously sized. The waiter was in hyper mode and would dash off to get our order almost before we had ordered it. Dessert was a birthday splurge, but somewhat disappointing. Bob ordered “Oreo Madness” which was described as cookies and cream ice cream covered with an oreo crust and fudge and caramel sauce. It was an Oreo ice cream sandwich! Same as you can get at the grocery store for $1. The children each got an ice cream as well. The bill came with tip included, and set us back $80.

I drove after that, since Bob’s knee was already hurting. Not far out of town it began to rain. And then it poured. And then it lightninged. And I felt that the van was shimmying, so pulled over and Bob checked the tires, and he drove the rest of the way home. We stopped in Fayetteville (we came home via the interstate instead of the pig trail) for supper at McDonald’s. There was no church tonight, as they were building the set for Sunday’s play, so we stopped in and talked a bit and finished up the decorations.

Finally we made it home and now I will go to bed.

time to wake up

2011-12-13T13:42:00.002Z

We have a big day planned today (more about that later), so no one slept well last night. At 5am Riah knocked on our door and said, "It's time to get up." I told him it was 5, and we get up at 7; he should go to sleep.

Ay 6, William knocked on our door and said, "I'm super hungry!" I told him we'd eat in the morning, and he should go back to bed.

Now it's 8, and guess who isn't up yet. We drug Riah out of bed at 7:30, but William is still asleep.

To change subjects, Taryn wants a camera, and we plan to get one for her birthday (Jan). We have 3 possibilities so far, as she wants a good zoom, and we don't want AA batteries or some lesser brand. I'd like a manual option, so she can learn to set her settings, so one day she can better use our DSLRs.
Choice 1 is within our desired price range (on sale for $150). It is Nikon 6200, the upgrade to one my brother has and is happy with. It's fast, cheap, and has many features we want, including a 10x zoom.
Choice 2 is a Nikon 8200. It's more expensive ($240) but has 14x zoom, full HD video, and is even faster. It also has a metal body instead of plastic, and takes slightly better quality pictures. Neither Nikon has manual settings.
Choice 3 is a Sony HX7V. It's $220, has 10x zoom and full HD video, takes slightly better pictures, has a couple more features, and has limited manual settings. But Bob doesn't really like Sony for its history of exclusiveness.
What would you do?

Ah, breakfast is ready. Talk to you soon.

2011-11-30T23:06:00.002Z

The following is copy/paste from the online textbook. I thought this reading was pretty funny. The (square root) sign doesn't copy and paste, so I had to fill that in. Apparently blogger (Word does the same) thinks THAT is imaginary!

The form a + bi is called the standard form of a complex number. The real number a is called the real part of the complex number, and b is called the imaginary part. (Note that b is a real number even though it is called the imaginary part.) The following list exemplifies this terminology.

* 1. The number 7 + 5i is a complex number that has a real part of 7 and an imaginary part of 5.
* 2. The number 2/3 + i(Square root)2 is a complex number that has a real part of and an imaginary part of . (It is easy to mistake (square root) 2i for (square root) 2i . Thus it is customary to write i(square root) 2 instead of (square root) 2i to avoid any difficulties with the radical sign.)
* 3. The number −4 − 3i can be written in the standard form −4 + (−3i) and therefore is a complex number that has a real part of −4 and an imaginary part of −3. (The form −4 − 3i is often used, but we know that it means −4 + (−3i).)
* 4. The number −9i can be written as 0 + (−9i); thus it is a complex number that has a real part of 0 and an imaginary part of −9. (Complex numbers, such as −9i, for which a = 0 and b fi 0 are called pure imaginary numbers.)
* 5. The real number 4 can be written as 4 + 0i and is thus a complex number that has a real part of 4 and an imaginary part of 0.

Busy

2011-11-30T03:55:00.002Z

Sorry for not writing. I have things I want to talk about, but don't seem to have the time lately. Bob's school has become intrusive.

Anyway, I posted this in Facebook today:
Today we took the dog to be spayed. We dropped her off at 7:30am and picked her up at 5:30 pm, so decided to just stay in town all day. Did some Christmas shopping, birthday shopping, grocery shopping... Went to the Shiloh Museum in Springdale. It was a good but tiring day.

Serenity (the dog) is doing fine. When we picked her up, the folks at the clinic showed real affection towards her.

Bob bought his birthday present today - a new guitar case.

We went to Walmart and split up into two groups, so that each child could buy a present for one other child. They had fun with that.

The museum was nice, too, but Elijah was getting very tired there.

Anyway, we're still here. Talk to you soon.

It's officially Fall

2011-11-19T03:58:00.003Z

We had a few cold fronts, but I think it's really Fall to stay now. The leaves are mostly gone, and I've given up on the garden.

I knew the tomatoes didn't stand a chance, so picked all the green ones that weren't rotten yet.

We weighed a few of the big ones; one was 11.7 ounces.

Today I made Salsa Verde with a few of them. I found a nice-sounding pickle recipe, but I'm kinda tired of making pickles.

Anybody want some? :-D

This Sunday is our church's Thanksgiving lunch. Then Thursday is Thanksgiving at MIL's. Tuesday after that we have Serenity scheduled to be spayed. Then next Saturday is my Mom's family's Christmas party. The following Saturday we go caroling with the church; the next Sunday is the Christmas program at church, and Sunday after that is Christmas! Then a week til New Year's, and a few more days after that is Cedwryck's birthday. Then Taryn and StepSon. I think we get to relax in February.
Anyone care to share your favorite tips on taking time to be kind amidst all the hustle and bustle? I do allow anonymous comments; not even the secret word puzzle thingy.

Veteran's Day

2011-11-12T16:28:00.002Z

Yesterday almost amounted to an adventure.

It was Veteran's Day, and MIL had sent Bob an email with a long list of companies offering freebies to Vets/military, and Bob wanted to take advantage of some of it.

He had a couple of assignments due for college, so we finished those before we left the house, which made our departure about 11:30. Of course that made our first stop lunch.

We looked over the list and decided on Applebees (a chain restaurant) in Springdale. They offered free entree to vets, and we hadn't been there in a while. Bob got chicken & cheese penne, and I got unlimited soup, salad, and bread sticks. The bread wasn't great, but the tomato basil soup was very nice, and the Asian grilled chicken salad was great. The service was good, and everybody got full.

Next stop was a furniture store, where Bob and I tried on some chairs. Our 10 year old couch is going flat. We didn't find anything we wanted at that store, so we went on to Sam's in Fayetteville, where Bob got a free walking cane and we did some shopping and made two trips to the bathroom.

By then Cedwryck's feet hurt and we remembered that his shoes were too small, so we drove up to Rogers to Academy sport store. Ced tried on every shoe in his size under $25, and finally settled on some boots. He assured us that they were comfortable, not just neat. Then we looked for dress shoes for Riah; they only had one pair in his size, and he didn't like them. THEN we looked for shoes for Naysha, as hers are also too small. She tried on every pair in her size under $25, and found two that she liked, but they weren't quite the right size. So after another trip to the bathroom I got some insoles for my shoes, and we looked for bow string (they don't carry that), and then left.

Now it was nearly time for dinner. Traffic was bumper-to-bumper. I had my heart set on the free doughnut from Krispy Kreme, so we headed in that direction, thinking to stop first at KFC or Taco Bell for some protein. Well, we missed our exit so we had to go up to the next exit, turn around, and come back. Krispy Kreme was to the right, but we went left because we thought Taco Bell was that way. We drove a couple of blocks, passed a KFC, and didn't see Taco Bell. So we decided to turn around at the next light, and come back to KFC. We finally landed at KFC, where, with a name that includes the word "chicken," we expected to get some chicken.

After careful examination of the menu we discovered the "Value Menu" - with one item listed. I don't remember what they called it, but it came with 1 pc dark meat, potato wedges, and a biscuit, for $1.99. Sounded good, so we ordered 9 of them. Oh, he said, did you want thighs or legs? We tried to keep it simple by getting all thighs, Original Recipe. Um... he didn't know if they had that many thighs. He called somebody on his headset and asked. He reported to us that they only had 4 thighs. Okay, we said, trying to keep things simple, we'll take those 4 thighs, and the rest legs. So he called back, and said they only had 3 legs in Original Recipe. That's fine, we'll take the rest in Extra Crispy. So he called back to tell them to drop a large wedges. Then the manager walked up and asked what he was doing. He explained it all, and she said she already had an order in for dark meat. So we waited for that to get sorted, and finally got it all straight: 3 thighs & 3 legs in Original, and 3 thighs in Crispy. Then he looked up and said, "It'll be at least 10 minutes." Really? We told him to never mind, gathered the children, and went back to the van. Sigh. At least we have choices here.

Back to the bumper-to-bumper to look for Taco Bell, or something. We went back west across the interstate, and no Taco Bell there, but we saw Krispy Kreme coming up. I suggested we go ahead and get the doughnuts now, and then go on to eat. So Bob tried to change lanes, but a car pulled up beside him and wouldn't let him in. So when the light changed Bob tried again, a little harder this time. ;-) The other driver *should* have realized that he was being rude, but instead thought that Bob was rude. Oh, well. We made it into KK, got a mixed dozen plus our free one, and made it back onto the road. Still bumper-to-bumper, dark now, and past dinner time. We decided to leave Rogers, and were almost as glad to get out of there as we were glad to get out of Colchester 2 years ago.

Down to Lowell, and we exited there to finally stop at Taco Bell and eat. Just as I suspected, they had plenty of ground beef for as many tacos as we wanted. :-) Everything was fine there, and we started to shake off the stress of driving in Rogers on Friday night. By the time we finished dinner, Cedwryck decided he wanted insoles for his boots!

We stopped by MIL's house and shared the doughnuts with her and visited a while, before finally heading home and to bed. Phew.

Food part 6 and 7

2011-11-09T04:15:00.002Z

Yesterday was Elijah's birthday, so we had a few special touches. We flavored our breakfast oatmeal with chocolate chips. $4.

We went out for lunch to Granny's Kitchen (a local "home cooking" place) and it came out to $40.

For supper, we met MIL at her house. She provided all the dinner, and we bought an ice cream cake at Cold Stone Creamery for $33.

Total for the day $77.

We also bought new tires for the van, as the old ones were getting old.

Today we had eggs with our oatmeal - $7.50
Lunch was spaghetti with meat sauce - $9
Supper was Chinese chicken with brown rice, fruit salad, and peas. - $11.50

Total for today - $28

If I've done my math correctly, that puts us at an average of $40 per day for the week. That's pretty close to the national average for food stamp benefits; it's actually over the max for Arkansas. Of course, you couldn't eat out on food stamps, or buy a $30 ice cream cake (you'd have to settle for the $12 one at the grocery store).

Did I learn anything from all this? Well, I learned that eating is expensive, even at home. I learned I'd rather win an argument than have a conversation - it was hard to stick to the facts and not be trying to make some statement. :-)

Elijah becomes fashion police

2011-11-07T17:17:00.002Z

Elijah (who turned 2 today) has appointed himself the fashion police.

I was going to take a shower. I had already taken off all my clothes when the phone rang. It was MIL, calling to tell Bob that her dog who had cancer had been put down. I had a thought, so popped my skirt (with elastic waist) over my head, to come out to tell Bob my idea (that we could bring the dog out here to bury in our pet cemetery). I was covered from my neck down past my knees.

As soon as Elijah noticed me standing there (which was longer than I planned, since as soon as I got out of the bathroom Riah hopped in), he started pointing at my legs. I said, "Leg," trying to teach him the word. He walked around me, pointing and fussing at my legs. Then he pointed at my neck, then at my waist, as if to say "THAT belongs THERE." THEN he began tugging at my skirt hem, to pull it down where it belonged! So I squatted down, letting my skirt cover my legs and feet.

He relaxed and began to play again.

Then, when Riah finally got out of the bathroom and I started back, Elijah chased me down the hall yelling "Leg! Leg!" until I closed the door in his face. He was serious about me being decently dressed!

Food part 5

2011-11-07T16:07:00.002Z

Yesterday (Sunday) we had cold cereal for breakfast, as a special treat. $6.
Lunch at McDonald's - $23.
Supper at home was eggs & toast or peanut butter sandwiches, with leftover tortilla roll-ups. $6.

Total for the day - $35.

food part 4

2011-11-06T02:47:00.002Z

I'm going to try to do a whole week.

Today was oatmeal and milk (again!) for breakfast. I really wanted something else, but we slept in, and this is the quickest thing. $3

Lunch was at Mazzio's Pizza. We got the meal deal with 2 pizzas and dessert, then added cheese sticks and a soda for Bob. $27. (No service, so no tip.)

Supper was a pot luck at church, following a singing group. We took the cookies from Thursday plus brownies, chips & salsa, and tortilla roll-ups. $10 (that may be a little high, but better safe than sorry).

Total for today: $40.

food part 3

2011-11-04T21:32:00.002Z

Are you tired of my menus yet? too bad. :-D

Today we were out of bananas, so for breakfast we just had oatmeal and milk. $3.
(That's $1 for a half-canister of generic oats, and $2 for a half-gallon of milk. (In England, I could get a canister of oats at Tesco for less than $1US.)

Lunch - some had peanut butter sandwiches, some had leftover pizza and qusadillas, Bob and I split a can of soup (bought on sale, with a coupon). Then the children each had a boiled egg (our own eggs, but for the sake of argument I'm figuring them in at $3 per dozen, the going rate for organic eggs) and a cup of canned fruit at $.50 each (Tesco sold it for less than half that!). Then some had chips. I'm totaling this meal at $9.

The girls made a big batch of sugar cookies, which I'm estimating at $4. The frosting will be another $1.

For dinner we are having homemade BBQ meatballs, which cost about $8 to make. (Ground beef was $3 per pound at Sam's; I used 2 lbs, plus oats, egg, onion, and spices; then ketchup, sugar, and spices in the sauce.) If you count the full price of everything (a whole bottle of garlic powder for the 1 tsp I used), it would be $16. We will have corncakes (never had before, sounded good) at $2.50. I usually make macaroni & cheese with BBQ meatballs, but I'm out of Velveeta and we don't like sauce from straight cheddar. hmm. Maybe a salad? Green beans? I'll haul out the leftover veg from Wednesday. So, grand total for dinner is $14.

That's $31 for the day. We just might have ice cream later, at $3 per (3 qt) tub.

Now, if I was "broke" and we were trying to get by on very little, we could eat oatmeal more frequently. Protein would be limited to chicken ($2 per pound for boneless breasts) and eggs, and fruit and veg would be hard to come by. Maybe the occasional Iceburg and carrot salad; those are still cheap, but have little value.

So even with eating comfortably, we'd be $6 under for the day on food stamps, and would be tempted to spend that on some indulgence like Hawaiian bread.

Now, I acknowledge that it would be harder to meat the challenge with only 1 or 2 in the family, because smaller size packages cost more per serving, and it would be harder to have a variety of foods. We are truly blessed to be able to live as comfortably as we do.

More on the "food stamps" program, esp for Ganeida. This program is strictly for food. Other expenses are covered (or not) by other programs. I can see where it would be a good idea to set limits - this prevents people from buying cigarettes (for instance) on taxpayer money. But it also encourages a lifestyle of splurges and poverty; as you have a set amount of money, you may as well spend it; in addition, if you have any money in savings you are disqualified. Again, I see the reasoning behind that, but it is unkind to the recipients. If you just gave them the cash, they could choose to eat cheaply and save up for other needed items (or blow it all on beer!).

So, again, no solutions here, just thinking out loud.

Food stamp pt 2

2011-11-04T15:17:00.002Z

Just keeping tally of our eating expenses here, not trying to make a statement.

Yesterday we ate:
breakfast: oatmeal, bananas, milk - $4.50
lunch: chicken and cheese quesadillas, chips, leftover pineapple - $10.50
dinner: McDonald's - $22

Total - $37.

Food Stamp Challenge

2011-11-02T21:51:00.002Z

"The DHM" over at http://heartkeepercommonroom.blogspot.com/ has been posting about the so called "Food stamp challenge". She blogs about a lot of other stuff, too, so you'll have to look around.

The point of the Challenge, as I understand it, is for Congresspeople to make a point of how difficult it is to eat of the average food stamp allowance of $1.50 per person, per meal. The point of "The DHM", as I understand it, is that the food stamp program as it exists is unkind because it doesn't teach people to make do/get by/be frugal, and when they get off the program they are lost as to how to eat on a budget.

So today as I was cooking dinner, I did a little math. Our family would get (assuming the average above) $40.50 every day to "supplement" our food budget (as the proper name for the program is Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). Hmm; that's about one meal out at Chick-Fil-A, or Golden Corral on the kid's night special. I then went on to add up what we spent on food for eating today, all 3 meals at home. I'm assuming you don't want the itemized list of ingredients.

For breakfast we had oatmeal, bananas, and milk.
For lunch we had cheese toast, fried organic eggs, and fresh pineapple.
For dinner we will have (it's on the table now) homemade pizza (with beef) and fresh veges with French Onion dip.

Not extravagant, maybe, but plenty of everything. Grand total for the day? $32.50.

So what do you think? Should Congress get a clue? Should we re-vamp SNAP to include some education? Cut benefits? Increase them? Throw out the whole program?

Book review: The Grace Effect

2011-11-02T16:22:00.002Z

I recently signed up for a program whereby I receive free books (of my choosing, from a limited selection) in exchange for the writing of a review. So I choose The Grace Effect by Larry Alex Taunton.

My first impression was that the cover feels dirty. The red box on the front and the back cover are nice and slick, but the B&W photo has a gritty texture that I kept wanting to wipe off. But of course we mustn’t judge a book by its cover.
It is a good read. The book goes back and forth between an adoption story and musings on the effect of Christianity on civilization. I found both points interesting, but what kept me coming back to the book was the story; I wanted to know what happened next. (Yes, Ganieda, that’s how I read a book – deal with it!)
Is it well written? Well, I’m being super-picky here, but parts of it weren’t. I was looking for a quote to illustrate, but now I can’t find it. It is revealed at the end of the book that it is based on real-time blog posts, and was written quickly to get the thoughts on paper while they were still fresh. I understand the reasoning behind that, and it explains a lot of the tone of the book, as well as grammatical errors.
What’s the point of the book? Well, without giving any spoilers, it addresses the question “Is Christianity a good thing for society?” And it gives us affirmative evidence in the form of a first-hand account of a Ukrainian adoption. I agree with the author’s thesis, and as much as I enjoyed the narrative, I don’t think he made his point quite as strongly as he felt he did. I do plan to look for more books by this author to learn more of his apologetics.
Extras include a nice study guide at the back of the book as well as a thorough bibliography and a few family pictures.

accountability

2011-10-31T14:52:00.003Z

There's a saying going around Facebook that says something like: The best thing about getting old in a small town is that if I forget what I'm doing, somebody else will know.

I'm not old yet, but I understand about other people knowing our business. We are blessed to live on a "through" road, so there is a bit of traffic past our house every day. A lot of that is from people we know, and even more is from people who know us. At least three families from our church live down our road, past our house. Another three families (or more) can get to their house from our road, and are related to people on our road. Next door is Bob's uncle; his cousin keeps hay in the barn adjoining our field.

I'm not good with faces, so I frequently run into people I've never seen before who ask about our children, or chickens, or some project we're working on. Today as I was walking the dog, a man 3 houses down was leaving in his car, and he backed up to ask me about our "little blue car" (the Mini). Really? If he walked past our house I wouldn't know from whence he came.

The Mennonites know who we are, though I can only distinguish a couple of them so far. Bob was identified as "the bucket guy" by the lady who works at the cake store, because he occasionally goes in to buy a food bucket. Surely other people do, too? Maybe we're just the only ones who don't buy a cake when we go in.

Anyway, I don't really have a point to all this, just a reminder to my self that people are watching all the time (and people aren't as forgiving as God) so I better be good.

giveaway on the other "olive" blog

2011-10-28T13:58:00.002+01:00

Once upon a time I searched for Mama Olive or Oliveplants or some such derivative to see if Google knew about me, and I ended up on a blog called "Raising Olives." Guess what - they are another large, homeschooling family. We don't share all convictions, but I support 99% of what I read there.
Anyway, she is a lot bigger deal than I am and doesn't need my hat tip, but today she's hosting a giveaway of a study guide for Proverbs, by Kevin Swanson. You probably haven't heard of him, either, but he was the host of the Family Camp we went to in New Mexico back when Cedwryck was the baby. He also has a radio show.
So I want to win this book, and a blog post gets me 3 entries.

Raising Olives is here.

Kevin Swanson's page, where you can buy the books, is here.

Funny!

2011-10-24T03:13:00.001+01:00

I loved this skit! My American friends should know that Orange is a network, like Verizon, and a dongle is a little hardware thing that plugs into a computer.

ears

2011-10-20T13:25:00.002+01:00

A few days ago, Riah was not hearing anything. He would "Huh?" almost every statement, if he answered at all. We've had his hearing checked before, and the mechanics are all fine. After a day or two of this, I got off my procrastinator and looked in his ears.

Oh.

My.

They were so full of hard, thick wax that it looked like he'd broken off the tip of a crayon in there! I started digging, carefully but persistently. I worked out a couple of chunks, then poured in the peroxide and let it work awhile. And the next day I did it all again. I finally made some headway, and thought I'd got to the bottom of the problem one evening.

The next morning, Riah knocked on my bedroom door (it was 7am and we'd just got up) and said, "My ear hurts." I was immediately awash with guilt - what if I'd gone too far and poked something that isn't meant to be touched? So I answered that we HAD been doing a lot of poking around in there... When we got up we learned it wasn't my fault at all.

He had a small cut on the top of his ear, and the whole top half was a big ugly bruise! Ella said she heard Riah yell in the middle of the night, but Riah didn't remember doing so. We still don't know what happened, but the clues so far are: Riah was sharing Cedwryck's bed (maybe they were fighting in their sleep?),
There was a wind-up flashlight in the bed (the handle folds down, and he could have pinched his ear in there),
There was a "Bobby" hat in the bed (that Bob bought when he was in London for his sleep study) and it has a crack that could have pinched the ear.

The cut is heeled now, but the ear is still bruised and therefore I cannot dig any more. His hearing has improved somewhat, but is not back 100% yet.

Boys!!!!

A tale of two cakes

2011-10-10T04:16:00.004+01:00

Riah's birthday was in late September, and William's was today.

Riah invited everyone he knew to come over for his party, and had me cook a feast for them, including a "castle" cake. He's had castles before, most notably the "Robin Hood" themed one in 2008, but this year he made it easy - he wanted one like Taryn had when she was 6. THAT castle is my Mom's fault - she made one for me at least 2 years when I was growing up, and she even made Taryn's that year, because it was just 2 weeks after Cedwryck was born. So I agreed to give it my best shot.

I started off with 2 9x13" chocolate cakes. Except the first one was cooling on the counter, minding its own business, when apparently someone walked over and sat on it. That was bad, but not a total loss, since one cake had to be cut up anyway. The second cake was therefore invested with all my hopes for perfection. It stuck to the pan. Completely torn in half. So what did I do? Left it there and went out to the flea markets in town with my parents, who were down for the party. Yes, the same mom who made the original and perfect castle cake that I was trying to emulate.

Anyway, time and frosting heal most wounds, and we ended up with this:

William's wants were a little different. His main goal for the day was to get to play Wii. He wanted to be home, with just us, and for his cake he wanted a car. He's had cars before, that being his main love in life - right next to puzzles. When he was little, he'd go to sleep with a Hot Wheels car instead of a stuffed animal. He had a pickup one year, and a car last year (not sure of the other year; it's written down in my cake book that's still packed in a box, in the building). Anyway, I wanted to do a "3D" car, not just a picture of one. Taryn and Naysha made the batter - a peanut butter cake, which turned out to be the perfect consistency for making a shaped cake - and Bob came up with the basic design of the cake. All I had to do was frost it.
It turned out looking way better than this; I know Bob's camera did something to make it look all smudged like that! I was so proud...

The writing was supposed to be purple, but looked pretty pinkish in real life. William didn't seem to mind.

a whole week!

2011-10-10T03:47:00.002+01:00

I have a nice post planned, but I'm waiting on the pictures. ahem!

So anyway... Bob has just finished 2 weeks of online college. He's not a reader, so I've been helping him with that quite a bit. Taryn is helping teach the younger ones their math lessons.

College has proven to be stressful in many unexpected ways, and amusing in others. One assignment was to make a realistic calendar (homeschoolers call it a schedule) and post it to the class. One student had this to say: "don't know how to do the calendar thing this is bad and no help don't make it easy but my calendar would have easy to read and you coud fine it easy to and would show you how to make yours if you need one." huh.

Either way, it takes up a lot of time, and I'm learning things about Design that I hope I never have to use. We are also learning about each others learning styles, and natural intelegences and other psychological stuff. Apparently Bob learns best by looking at pictures in a group setting, with no music. I learn best alone, by reading, with music. So it is challenging for us to do the class together, but I think it's good for us. Also, he's a "global" learner, and I'm sequential. So when I help read the texts, I have to control the mouse - he's all over the page and it makes me dizzy!

Otherwise, we are raising the chickens, walking the dog, and finally harvesting some tomatoes. (Tomatoes are usually harvested around June/July, but mine are a little behind schedule.)

I see pictures in my future! Thanks, Bob.

oh well

2011-10-02T04:09:00.002+01:00

Was going to do a very clever diatribe about the death penalty and the media...

But the chocolate oat bars got done first, and chocolate trumps politics.

yummmmmm

(I guess now we all know why my blog isn't famous already.)

nother short one

2011-09-29T04:56:00.002+01:00

Well it's 11pm and I'm pooped, but Bob is schooling and so here we sit.

Tonight we had a real treat - the Mennonites came to our church. :-) We'd been told that they were sending a family to sing for us, and so expected maybe 8-10 people. We were wrong. There was a choir of about 40 young people, and several families came to watch and support the choir. There were more of "them" than of "us." And of course the singing was absolutely beautiful. A Capella, 4 part harmony, all crisp and clean. They did several contemporary songs that I recognized and a few old hymns. And afterward they stayed to visit. Now, the Anabaptists may be known for their cooking, which I'm sure is great, but they are really good at visiting. I had a nice in-depth conversation with Mrs. Y (whose husband and boys built our building), and got in a brief chat with a couple of others. They didn't seem distracted and in a hurry to get to someone or something else.

How did all this come about? Jesse (our deacon, if you have to put a title on it, I guess) and his wife have long been curious about the Mennonites in our community (they are a fairly recent addition), and like doing business with them in the two shops they have in town. When our family went to visit their church, Jesse really grilled us afterward, wanting to know about the singing, and the order of service, and everything. And apparently they did some singing at a funeral that Uncle Ken went to. So anyway, Jesse finally got up the nerve to ask somebody (probably their pastor/owner of the Huntsville Pantry), and they agreed to come out.

I'm so glad they did. :-)

Incongruity

2011-09-25T22:24:00.003+01:00

Yesterday I overheard two different young women as they held conversations that seemed slightly incongruous.

Both claim to be Christians.

One is going to a secular college to earn a degree in medicine, with the hopes of becoming a medical missionary.

The other is attending a Christian college to earn a teaching certificate so she can teach at a secular humanist school, while continuing to send her children off to other trained professionals.

Things that make me go "Hmmm."

contentment

2011-09-20T16:22:00.002+01:00

When I was 17, my dad and I were privileged to stay for a week in Langshott Manor in England. Go ahead, click the link - I dare you. It was a little different then than now (was privately owned, for one thing), but just as nice. Anyway, I used to keep a diary, and I distinctly remember writing about how much I loved the place and that one day I hoped to find my own home as comfortable and welcome to me as that hotel was.

Today is the day!

Every time I walk through the door into my bedroom I smile and think to myself "I love this room!" And we're not even finished with it yet. I like everything about the room, from the bathroom tile to the bedroom bamboo floor; the two-tone purple, the simplicity of the bare walls, the natural stone of the back of the living room's fireplace, the soft bed with the Egyptian cotton sheets and my Granny's handmade quilt. The children are not allowed in the room, so it stays clean. It's tiny for a master bedroom, but that doesn't bother me. We still have some painting to do, followed by door and trim hanging, but I don't mind that. We have some major work still to do in the bathroom, but I know it will get done eventually.
One of these days I'll take a good picture and share with you, but for now it is my private retreat.

On to greater matters of contentment, which really manifests itself under less than ideal circumstances. We are a family of 9, living in 1300 square feet. Most people would consider that less than ideal, but it usually feels about right. I do get frustrated at the low ceiling, but that keeps us warm on chilly nights. We have enough room to eat and sleep and do all those things that we do in a house. We do have a lot of stuff in the building, and there are some toys that just can't be left out (train tracks or elaborate block buildings), but that's okay. We're getting organized (very slowly) and bring more things in all the time.

I'm not happy with my kitchen cabinets (made by amateurs 60 years ago), but I can live with that for a few more years until we can afford a fix, and I really enjoy the spaciousness of my kitchen. I like my garden and flower beds, and the lovely trees. We are still considered rural, but are only 5 minutes from town, and only 1 mile from the highway (in other words, perfect location). We do owe money on the house, but it is to MIL, and interest free.

I am content here. I think, really, we have it pretty good.

But then we get to talking to other people, who shall remain anonymous. Well, listening to other people talk, really. And we hear things like "2600 square feet" (exactly twice the size of our house, and only 2 people living there) coupled with "small living room" or even "no place to put" and "not enough closet space." And it agitates me. Partly because, to be honest, it stirs jealousy. And partly because I just can't get over how we all tend to think that we each have some terrible burden to bear that no one else can ever understand. And maybe it bothers me a little bit because it just seems rude for these things to be said in front of us. I mean, it'd be like a petite woman complaining to a medically obese woman about needing to lose 5 pounds to get ready for bikini season. Think about your audience, people! And there is one other matter, but it would ruin the anonymity of this situation.

So thanks for letting me vent. I really do like it here.

pictoral review - my washer

2011-09-15T03:39:00.008+01:00

So I've been planning this for a long time, and finally found my round to-it. (Most people claim they will do something when they GET a round to-it, but really they're just ashamed to admit that they've lost it.)

Remember when Bob proved his undying love for me by going shopping in the wee sma's of Black Friday? We snagged a new HE/Energy Star washer and dryer at Sears for 60% off. Now that I've had it almost a year, I feel qualified to give my honest review.

First off, I need to say that I don't know what the model number is. It's not printed on the machine anywhere. So there ya go.

Okay, what am I talking about?

What I like about it:

(top load is easy to get into, and with no agitator it is easy on clothes, holds more, and is as efficient as a front-loader)

(this is all one load!)

(This is the first bottle of detergent I've bought since we moved back to the US. I'm still using it! Yes, it's a big container, but we are 9, and it's been 10 months)

Things I don't like about it:

(THAT is also just one load. So my laundry room is always a mess.)

I really am pleased with the washer. The dryer's okay, too, but I haven't used it as much because it's still cheaper to use the line. Anyway, I like the pause (to add a garment), the soak, the delay start options. I like the cheerful little beeps it makes when I turn it on. We've had no issues at all with the mechanics. Thumbs UP.

bummer day

2011-09-08T21:15:00.002+01:00

(I wanted to title this "Tragedy" but didn't want to freak anybody out.)

This morning started out like any other. I didn't sleep well, and finally woke up about 6:30. I stumbled into the light only to realize the phone I'd taken to bed with me (so the post office could call when the chicks arrived) had gone dead. So I put it to charge, found the other phone (it had a half-charge) and sat down to read my Bible.

I was almost done with my chapter when the phone rang. I said, "Hello" and he said, "Hello, this is (insert name here) at the post office," and the phone went dead. At least I knew what he wanted. So I woke Bob up, and he agreed to make the trip into town to pick up the chicks. While he was gone, I read the weekly Psalm with the children and then we went out to set up the chick box. We'd just got finished when Bob came back.

One chick was dead upon arrival, and one has non-working legs and will be dead soon. The rest are lively and curious. Our breed list: 2 Buff Laced Polish, 3 Black Leghorn, 2 Black Polish, 2 Crevecoeur, 4 Fayoumi, 2 Exchequer Leghorn, 7 Lakenvelder, 2 White Jersey Giant, and 2 White La Fleche. So, quite an interesting mix! The Polish are the ones with frizzy "hair" on top instead of combs, and the Crevecoeur have mohawks. Jersey Giants look normal, but are more like the size of a turkey. Leghorns are very common, but the Exchequer color is rare (it's black and white). Oops, I lost track of the others, but they are all pretty and most of them are unusual.

Once the chicks were settled, I got Serenity and started on our walk. We had just past our property line when I saw a dead animal on the side of the road, and then it hit me: it was Tiger! I gave a yelp, and ran sobbing back home. Just hearing that he'd died might have elicited a few tears, but running into him like that all unexpectedly kinda hit me hard. Anyway, I managed to blurt out what was going on, and Bob went to collect the body while I cried with the children (mostly Riah).

Once Bob got back I went on with my walk, and we made it the full two miles! That's all the way to the highway and back. When I first started walking Serenity in the mornings, I was able to go 1.2 miles. To make it longer now, I will have to go the other direction. :-)

After breakfast we had a funeral - Bob even made a headstone - out under a big oak tree. We were spent by the time that was all over, and decided to go out for lunch.

McDonald's, and then some shopping just in Huntsville, and back home. We WERE planning to go to the Tulsa Zoo today, as it's a special deal for members, with free train rides and tours of the keepers' rooms, etc. But Bob was already hurting by the time we had lunch, and as emotionally drained as we were, we decided to just not.

Oh, also today our picture order came in, with portraits from our VBS, but the poster-size we'd ordered for our bedroom got mixed up in the lab, and instead of a sepia English village we had a color pic of a bride we'd never met! Bob emailed the company and they answered right away... they'll re-send our pic and said we could throw away the other.

So, now I guess it's time to fix supper. Comfort food, anyone? Funny, I don't care much for chicken casserole as a rule, but whenever I try to think of something comforting I always pull out Meemaw's chicken noodle casserole recipe.

What I've been up to

2011-09-07T17:32:00.002+01:00

Because I know you are all dying to hear. ;-)

The last 2 or 3 days I've been laid out with a terrible cold. I was wheezing, snorting, coughing, aching... and I slept like a kebab (rolling over and over). But today I feel much better.

The weather took a lovely turn on Sunday, coming down from 100* highs to 78*. At night it's been in the upper 40s. No rain involved in the front, just absolutely gorgeous temps.

We had Bob's family over on Monday (Labor Day - a government holiday), so of course we had to rearrange the furniture last week, as well as the shopping, cooking, and cleaning. And just to keep it interesting, when we were out on Friday I bought a box full of ripe peaches. So Friday night and Saturday I made peach jam. And to add to the challenge, Bob went to an auction Monday morning while the girls and I cleaned house. He bought an old coal forge and a 4 wheeler. Still rolling my eyes at that one, but the rest of the family enjoys it.

Today I sent off draft #1 of Bob's travel voucher. This is the paperwork to get him paid for the moving expenses. Good thing retirees are allowed a full year to get it filed. Bad thing that when we stopped at Tinker AFB way back in the Spring, the guy that is paid to help with this sort of thing decided he really didn't have to.

Thursday we get another set of baby chicks. We hope more of these will be girls, as every day more of the others look more like roosters. The "4-H chickens" (red sex link) are laying well, but the mixed batch hasn't started yet.

Along with the furniture rearranging, we finally got the children's computer hooked up, and they are very glad to relearn all their games.

I've planted some Fall garden seeds, a little too late, but one never knows. Broccoli, rutabaga, Brussels sprouts, lettuce, spinach, and cress. My tomatoes have recovered from the hornworm onslaught, but still aren't producing anything. My cucumbers were still going strong, but I finally got tired of making pickles, so started growing the cukes bigger for cinnamon pickles, and the vines are now slowly dying. The bell peppers never really did anything, and as the sweet potatoes vine closer the pepper plants wilt away. The herbs have done very well. I've used some fresh and dried some, and I need to trim them again!

Serenity is growing, and losing some of her black. I walk her every morning (except yesterday when I was too ill), and she is responding very well to me now. Still won't fetch anything. She and Tiger both have fleas, in spite of the Advantage Plus monthly treatment, so we are working on a solution for that.

So I guess I could say I've "been busy" but that leaves too much to the imagination. I've been reading "The Light and the Glory" by Peter Marshall, jr, and it is challenging me on several areas.

Last night Bob and I watched "Divided" the movie online for free at http://www.dividedthemovie.com/ . VERY thought provoking. You should check it out and see if you agree with Christianity Today banning ads for it.

So anyway, it's lunch time. Bye!

Chicken poo: it's what's for dinner

2011-09-06T16:01:00.002+01:00

Doesn't sound quite as nice as the advertising phrase "Beef: it's what's for dinner," does it?

We got a newsletter this week from the U of Arkansas agriculture extension service, and among tips for seeding pasture and keeping worms at bay was a brief notice. (I'd love to quote it directly, but have mislaid the paper.) It said that to offset the scarcity of hay this winter, farmers can feed their cows chicken litter!! Now I know that cows process their food several times, and beef is not the same as grass, but still... SOMEthing of the original has to remain!

ick. The more I know about agriculture, the less I want to eat anything from a conventional grocery store.

still tired

2011-09-03T04:34:00.002+01:00

I've been getting about 6 hours of sleep per night, walking the dog first thing in the morning, reading my Bible, having breakfast, working in the garden, making pickles... And then comes lunch and the rest of the day!

Today we were in town for several hours. Not long after getting home, I asked Taryn to start a load of laundry. After all, we're having people over on Monday and I don't want giant piles of dirty clothes. Anyway, after a few minutes she popped back in the kitchen wanting to know how to clean cat feces out of the dryer. Huh? Tiger had been shut in the dryer for at least the time we were in town! He is fine, just a little stinky. But any thought I had of having it all together is now long gone.

This is what happens when Bob preaches on humility.

misc

2011-08-19T03:15:00.004+01:00

Words are fast failing me as it's already getting late and we haven't been sleeping well for a week or two. But I wanted to share some stuff... I'm positive there were at least three posts worth... hm. Anyway, we worked on the "closet" some this week.

The cukes are still doing well, and the tomatoes are over my head. This was one day's haul.

Today we went to the fairgrounds to check on our entries. There were a couple of frustrations, for instance Naysha took a picture of Taryn goofing off in the back of the van, and entered it as "People" (not posed). She got a white ribbon (here every entry gets a ribbon - white is close to being disqualified and not to be confused with third place), and on the comment section the judge wrote "this WAS posed." But we knew it wasn't, so we didn't have to feel bad about getting poor marks. Naysha got Grand Champion on her 4-H pullet chain hens, and Taryn got Reserve Grand Champion. (They were just the first 8 hens that Bob grabbed to take up there. But apparently they were our layers, because we went from 6 eggs per day to 2.) Naysha got Reserve Grand on a photo. I got Grand Champion on my watermelon rind pickles. And several entries got 1st or 2nd place. Made me happy.

So the other things to mention were the washer, but that gets a whole post, and our bedroom, but I need pictures for that. So I guess that's it for now.

parade float pictures

2011-08-17T23:14:00.004+01:00

Apparently you have to type something to go with the pictures or they all just disappear. Trying again.

parade

2011-08-14T04:36:00.002+01:00

Today was the parade, and official start of Madison County Fair.

Our 4-H club had agreed to do a float for the parade. We volunteered our trailer, and therefore became the principal players. For the last two weeks or so, another family has been coming over to help build the stage. The theme of the parade was "Hawaii" and we decided to do a memorial to the veterans of Pearl Harbor. What we ended up with was an aircraft carrier, with planes on deck and overhead, control tower with rotating satellite, and a backdrop of Hawaiian islands. Banners declared our club affiliation and our float purpose.

It was a lot of work for a few people, and the occasional feeling was hurt, but we pulled together in the end and got it done.

Our float was awarded second place, with the Boy Scouts coming in first (they had a tent and campfire - not sure what else). I got to drive the van, pulling the trailer; Elijah was in his seat, William rode with Bob in the Mini, and the other children were on the trailer. We waved and threw candy. It was fun, but slightly hot, and now it's over. We took some pictures; maybe I can get some from Bob in a day or two.

baptism pt 2

2011-08-09T04:03:00.002+01:00

I know that many churches "do" baptism differently than we do. I understand that some baptize infants because they believe the act imparts grace to the child and helps on the road to salvation. Some baptize infants because they view it as a sign of the covenant between God and His people, something like the OT circumcision. I can see the merits of both of these arguments, and I'm not here to say those ideas are wrong; I just want to say why we do things the way we do.

First, why baptize at all? This is actually the harder question for me. It's just one of those things that churches do. So let's dig a little... The first time we hear about anyone baptizing was John as "Mark 1:4 John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins." I'll be honest: I don't understand how getting wet remits ones sins. But I'll accept that baptism is a symbol of the spiritual work done in a person's life.

Second, why "believer's baptism"? We believe that baptism is symbolic of repentance and faith in Jesus, and only a person of certain age and mental capacity can experience those. Therefore it is fitting to baptize people who have professed faith in Jesus and repentance of sins, as "Acts 2:41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls." And "Acts 8:36, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? 37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest."

Third, why immersion? It's my understanding that the word baptism actually implies immersion. But beyond that,
"Romans 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." Immersion best pictures the death and resurrection, at least to me.

I think that about covers it. Thanks for sitting in on my lesson. :-)

baptism

2011-08-08T05:09:00.002+01:00

Why is it baptism but baptized? Seems like it would be s or z in both words.

I want to do this properly, but I see that several people have checked on the blog in the last couple of days, so better get something out there.

Today our church had a baptism, and Taryn, Naysha, and Riah were all baptized by Bob.

A brief how and why, because I understand that other churches do things differently.
How is easy - we have a small building, so no built-in pool. So we have an old-fashioned meeting on the river bank, and those giving and receiving baptism go out into the river. Today we had our regular meeting inside the church, sandwiches in the fellowship room, and then carpooled to a private river access about 8 miles away. There was a sermonette, a couple of hymns, and then into the water.

Bob says he's ready for bed, so the why will have to wait. I hope to get back tomorrow, but we have a lot planned already.

details

2011-08-01T17:23:00.002+01:00

Did you want to know how Thursday went? To keep it short, we had our cousin Betty and her granddaughter McKenna come over to keep the children out of the way. It helped a lot. They came about 9:30, as we expected the movers about that time. Well, about 10:30 I called the company, and they said the truck should be here about 1pm. So Betty went back home to get her laundry done; McKenna stayed to play. About 2:30 the movers called from Springdale to let us know they'd had a flat and would get here as soon as they could. At 5:00 Bob called the company, and they said the guys were on their way, and we weren't to worry; we'd still get a full-service job. At 6:ish the truck showed up. It was a full size flat-bed semi, and the driver didn't think he could make it up the driveway, though Jesse (who came over after work) thought he should have tried.
Anyway, it was nearly 7 before they got the first load onto a dolly and up the driveway, and it was about 11:30pm when they left. Bob and I used our flashlights to illuminate the crates and the ramp as the guys unpacked everything. We were cordial, as we knew the whole thing wasn't the fault of the actual movers, and they were very glad that all they had to do was stack things in the garage, and were very careful and friendly. The girls went to sleep about 10, on the floor of our family closet, and the boys finally conked out on the sofas. Bob and I made it into our own bed at midnight.

Do you want to know how Saturday went?
Bob and I woke up together, and I planned to walk the dog while he supervised the children. Except the leash is in the van. In the shop. In Springdale. So I went out anyway, to teach her to play fetch. But the cat interrupted, and then Bob did. So I went to pick cucumbers; got 16! But didn't start pickles because I wanted to take some fresh to church lunch Sunday. I made a pasta bake to take, and after it cooled I went to put it in the fridge. First had to remove the old dehydrated grapes - you know, the package we bought the day after everyone stopped liking grapes? So I set them on the floor as I made the switch, but Elijah came and started on the grapes. I told him no and took it away, and he immediately did a handstand in the pasta. Then I went outside for some fresh air, and found a half load of laundry souring in the basket. The girls got distracted while hanging clothes. The GM place called, and they can't figure out the van, so Monday they will send it to their diesel tech in Siloam Springs. All day we were waiting for MIL to come over, as she indicated she'd get some groceries for us and come look at our home improvements. But she finally called to say it would be Sunday before she could make it. Someone got in the building and knocked over 2 bookshelves. .... That's just the way it was. Then Sunday night Jesse preached about being content because we have Jesus. (Hebrews 13:5). So I'm not complaining, I just wanted to let you know how Saturday went. Cause, you know, people tend to think we're perfect. HAHAHAHAHA Yeah, we don't have to deal with that one.

product review - plastic wrap

2011-07-31T03:28:00.002+01:00

Why do people even use plastic wrap? Known in the UK as "cling film," and among many Americans by a popular brand name "Saran wrap," this thin clear plastic is a staple in kitchens everywhere, and just as universally cursed. It's supposed to form a self-sealing film over any material or shape, thus maintaining freshness of the item covered.

Over the years I've used Glad Cling Wrap, Saran, Target store brand, and various others. Most brands stick to themselves more than their intended recipient, tear easily except for attempts to tear off a piece, and are generally more trouble than they are worth. But we keep trying.

Once I bought a roll of "Sam's Choice" - the WalMart store brand - and was pleasantly surprised. It was thicker, consistently sticky to objects other than itself, and quite strong. But, of course, they discontinued it. I'd almost forgotten the stuff until we moved in to Grandma's house, and she had an old roll in the kitchen. Ah, it was nice while it lasted.

But then, a few weeks ago, I saw a package in WalMart labeled Great Value Professional strength, with a little blurb on the side claiming it was the same as the old Sam's Choice brand. I gladly purchased a box, and even let my Mom know about it.

The Great Value wrap is very thick and strong. It sticks well to most surfaces. This may be hard to grasp, but we used it on our floor glue bucket, to keep the glue from drying out so quickly. We were able to open and close the bucket multiple times, as the glue grew ever thicker on the wrap, without any tears or loss of use. In short, impressive. I do have one complaint (of course). The box is worthless. It's designed for the wrap to pass through a slot in the lid, in theory keeping the wrap from sticking to itself and easy to "start." The problem is that the slot isn't as wide as the roll, so if you use it the edges of the roll don't unroll, tearing off gradually wider strips off the edges until you are left with a big mess to unravel. sigh. I use mine by pulling the whole tube out of the box, measuring out what I need, putting it back in the box, and cutting it off with the tear strip. Very inconvenient, but I guess it's worth it because the product works, and as far as I know no other brand does. I do wish they'd make a better dispenser, though.

What we did yesterday.

2011-07-29T19:38:00.006+01:00

I'm rather tired to be typing, so I'll let my little friend do the talking for me.

Yesterday, we went from this:

To this:

Followed by this:

With a little of this on the side:

And then, just to keep from getting bored, I did this:

product review - razors

2011-07-28T17:45:00.003+01:00

Okay, you know me, I can't do anything in a straightforward manner.

I started shaving my legs at age of 10, using BIC disposables. OUCH! Cuts, burns, and not a close shave. Saw that my Granny used Personal Touch razor with disposable heads, so I got one of those and used it until I got married. Bob is the one who taught me to use hot water, which softens the hair and allows a closer cut. Nice!

He used Gillette, so I got the women's Gillette razor with disposable heads (is there a name for that style? I can't think of it.), and it was pretty nice. Then they started adding blades and revamping everything. When Gillette went to the Venus razor, I switched to Schick Quattro because I don't believe in goddess worship. It cut all right, but since I don't shave every day my hair is a little long sometimes, and it clogged up in the blades. I compensated by wiping the blades with a fingernail brush after every pass.

But then! Last week I couldn't find my razor. We were going swimming, I needed to shave. Bob has two Gillette Fusion bodies (because he lost one once); one had just had the head changed, and the other needed a change. So I got the old razor, put a fresh head on, and my life changed forever. Well, that may be a LITTLE dramatic. The Fusions scare me a little because of the single exposed blade on the back, but I can deal with that. It glided through my hair. I felt no pulling sensation AT ALL. And the blades are spaced so that the hair easily slipped through without clogging up. I got done in record time, and had the smoothest legs ever. (Well, if you don't count the varicose veins.)

It was so much better than anything I've experienced before. I wonder why "they" can't make a women's razor this nice. Well, I've long used men's Edge Shave Gel, I guess I can use a men's Gillette Fusion razor. It was just plain NICE, and I have no reason to look anywhere else for an easy, painless, close shave.

probably should write something

2011-07-28T03:42:00.002+01:00

There have been some developments...

We got the master bedroom floor clean, finally. Turns out the dried glue does come off, you just have to scrub it. We got all the trim painted and most of it up (haven't framed the door yet because that's the wall I haven't painted yet). We bought curtains and hung them, and picked out a ceiling fan and installed it.

Then, Tuesday, we went to Springdale to visit MIL (it was her birthday - 60!), and went to Lowe's to pick out a new door, door knob, and possibly our bathroom cabinet/sink. We walked around the store for a couple of hours, finally deciding that we would talk to our cousin's husband, who has a cabinet shop, to see what he could do for us. We got a door and knob, and headed out for dinner. I started the van as Bob returned the cart, and it gasped and died. Tried again, and it wouldn't start. huh.

Well, long story much shorter, we got Jesse to come out from Huntsville to pick us up and take us back home. He even stopped at McD's so we could have some burgers. We made it home about 9pm. This morning Bob drove back out in his Mini, replaced a fuse that he suspected. It didn't solve the problem. So he contacted the dealership across the street. They towed him over (for $55!!!!) and promised to diagnose it this afternoon. We didn't hear back from them today.

While Bob was having all that fun, the children and I cleaned the building, the yard, and the house. Tomorrow is the big day; furniture arriving! Most will be stacked in the building, but our beds, chests, and dining furniture will come straight in. Then we get to spend the next 10 years sorting through the boxes. :-)

I started another batch of pickles today, as the cukes continue to do well. And tried a couple of new recipes that we liked. I'm worn OUT.

Monday and Tuesday I walked with Serenity for about a mile before breakfast. The first day she pulled quite a bit, but finally got the hang of it. Tuesday she walked right beside me the whole time. Smart dog! I didn't go out today because I knew I'd be on my feet all day anyway. I hope to go again tomorrow.

garden pics

2011-07-22T03:52:00.002+01:00

I'm rather proud of my garden lately... Here is Cedwryck among the cucumbers and tomatoes. A few carrots and onions grace the borders, and maybe a marigold or two.

Monday

2011-07-20T20:51:00.003+01:00

Yes, it's Wednesday; what's your point?

Monday we woke up with a plan. Our furniture was coming Friday and we wanted to get our new bedroom ready for our bed. The goal - to install our solid bamboo floor. We'd watched several "how to" videos, read the label and the website for our glue, and were motivated.

First we laid out a few rows "dry" to make sure about measurements past the little closet. Bob cut the planks around the door frame, and to start and finish each row. I calculated that we would hit the fireplace (and the far wall) with 2/3 of a plank width left, so we didn't need to "rip" any for the first row. What we did need, however, was more shims - the little spacers that go along the walls. So Bob went to town for shims while I took apart what we'd lain and stacked it in order, and had lunch.

You keeping up? It was after lunch before we got started. But we decided to go ahead, because Tuesday we had 4-H, and if we did it Wednesday and something went wrong it would be too late to fix it.

Anyway, I swept the floor thoroughly, including scraping up paint blobs and miscellaneous dirt, and Bob pried open the 5 gallon can of glue. Now the videos we watched showed the guy quickly and easily pouring the glue straight from the bucket, but that must have been nearly empty because ours was heavy and awkward. It was thick, but runny, so Bob couldn't just scoop it with the trowel like he did for the bathroom tile. He's too smart to be put off with a little difficulty, though, and came up with an empty Hershey cocoa can (it's plastic, but I don't know what else to call it) to scoop out the glue.

So he scooped, troweled, and set in the first row (I helped). After 3 rows we noticed that the boards weren't really staying together. We knew that the videos suggested putting down strips of painters tape to hold the boards until the glue dried, but they indicated doing this over 5 rows together, after the whole room was laid down. But we discovered the most effective way to get the job done was to tape EACH INDIVIDUAL BOARD as we held it into place. Which doesn't even sound that bad, but you have to realize that whoever was holding the board would get at least one body part into the glue, which then dripped onto the floor, and had to be cleaned immediately with mineral spirits. Everyone says it cleans of easily right away with mineral spirits, but only hint about how hard it is to get off if it ever dries. They don't even give tips on how to clean it after drying - just don't let it dry.

Anyway, once we figured out the proper method, it wasn't too bad (just tedious). We managed to get the whole room done without losing our tempers even once. oh, yeah!
We were about 1/3 of the way through when the phone rang, and the caller ID showed "US Government" and I answered anyway. ;-) It was our friendly local transportation office, wanting to schedule our furniture delivery. I thought it was scheduled. She checked - no, that Friday date was the time for it to be turned over to them to be delivered. sigh. Same as when we got our storage stuff. So we scheduled for the following Thursday. Another week. So we could have put off the floor for another day or two, but we were already started.

It was about this time that we noticed the glue was getting nice and thick. Ummm, the glue is about $100 per bucket... it had better not go bad on us half-way across a small room! Bob's brain to the rescue again. He got some plastic wrap (cling film) and covered the bucket in between scoops, and while it continued to thicken, it was at a much slower rate.

I got another phone call from the government, wondering why I hadn't filled out my "completely anonymous" military life survey they'd sent recently. Umm, way to encourage trust in your promises of anonymity! The reason was that the survey had no option for retired folks.

The children cleaned the house, rinsed and mixed the pickles for me, watched a video, and played their harmonicas very loudly.

We finally got finished about 8pm, did Bible time with the children and put them to bed, then had our supper at 9:30 (Bob actually went to Sonic and got us burgers and ice cream). Elijah was so glad to see us when we came in, it was sweet - he just smiled and hugged us.

By the time we got going, I started pouring and troweling the glue while Bob cut the boards, and by the time we finished my hands and feet were pretty solid black and sticky. I washed several times in the mineral spirits, tried baking soda, and finally resigned myself to being sticky for a while.

As of Wednesday afternoon my hands are clean, but I still have spots on my arms and legs. My feet are still pretty black. Last night Taryn and I scraped off some glue, but when I tried again this morning it pulled the skin off so I quit.

We had Taryn take a picture, but I don't have it on my computer yet.

recipes

2011-07-13T18:12:00.002+01:00

Crispy Sweet Pickles with tips from my mother.
This recipe is what I grew up with. I'd eat these pickles plain on saltine crackers, on hamburgers, or any other way I could get them.

25 to 30 small cucumbers (less amount for larger ones)
1 cup pickling lime
1 gallon water

8 cups vinegar
8 cups sugar
2 teaspoons whole cloves
1 teaspoon canning salt

Thoroughly wash cucumbers. Slice crosswise, 1/8 inch thick. Place in a glass or other non-aluminum container.

Dissolve lime in water (use non-aluminum container.) Pour over cucumbers. Let set for 24 hours. (The pickling lime package says to refrigerate, but I have been making these for over 20 years and have always let them set on the counter.)

Drain cucumbers -- NOT INTO SINK. (If you have plants that like limy soil as opposed to acid, pour the lime water around them.) Rinse in clear, cool water 4 times, making sure to remove all the lime. Handle carefully as they are brittle. Cover with clear, cool water and let stand for three hours. Drain. Set aside.

Mix vinegar, sugar, cloves, and salt until sugar is dissolved. Pour over cucumber slices. Let stand overnight.

Place cucumbers and syrup in a large pot; bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 35 minutes. (Meanwhile sterilize jars.) Ladle cucumbers and syrup into sterilized jars, leaving 1/2 inch head space. Remove air bubbles with non-metal tool. Add more liquid if needed. Wipe rim and threads of jar. Cap each jar according to directions with lids.

Process in boiling water bath: pints 5 minutes; quarts 10 minutes. (The new FDA guidelines recommend 10 minutes for pints and 15 for quarts.)

Makes about 10 pints or 5 quarts.

Tips:
1. check your jars for nicks around the rim
2. use new lids -- the flat pieces
3. you can reuse the rings, but no rusty ones.
4. wash jars, rings and lids in hot soapy water, rinse well.
5. I always sterilize the jars before filling -- this is easy to do. Fill the canner with water, put the jars in, bring to a boil, reduce heat to keep it at a gentle rolling boil for 15 min. Do this while the pickles are boiling.
6. Leave the jars in the hot water with the burner off until ready to fill.
7. Take the jars out one at a time, dumping at least a part of the water into another container (if you dump all the water back into the canner, it will be too full) and fill them with pickles following recipe directions.
8. Be sure to wipe the top edge and the outside "screw rings" with a clean wet cloth before putting the lids and rings on.
9. Follow the directions that come on the box of lids about heating them before use.
10. Screw the rings firmly tight, but not over-tight, and place back in the canner of hot water.
11. Always place hot jars on a folded towel and not the bare counter; the cold against the hot jar could cause the jar to crack.

Onion-ginger relish
This recipe has a little story... I first tried an onion-ginger relish at the Cheddar Gorge cheese factory, absolutely loved it and bought a jar. Their website is here. I shared around at Christmas and New Year's. But it finally went bad, so I started looking for a recipe, and finally found this one. 200 versions of watermelon rind pickles on the web, but only one onion-ginger relish.

2 large quartered onions (I used 10 pearl onions because that's what I've got from my garden so far)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (I didn't have that, and the bought jar listed apple cider vinegar, so I used 2 T apple cider vinegar, 2 T red wine vinegar)
1 piece (2 inches long) ginger root, peeled, chopped
1/2 apple, chopped, optional (I didn't use; not in the bought stuff)
1 tablespoon whole coriander, crushed,Or 1 teaspoon ground OPT (I didn't use; the bought jar said "spices" but I generally don't like coriander)
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 sprig fresh thyme (I used 1/2 tsp dried - I planted some thyme this spring, but either it didn't make it, or it morphed into oregano)
Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Place onions in baking dish; toss with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste; bake until softened, stirring once, about 45 minutes. Let cool; slice. (I just chopped the onions coarsely and cooked in skillet over low heat with oil, salt and pepper.)

Place onions and remaining ingredients in medium saucepan. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Serve hot, chilled or at room temperature. Remove thyme sprig before serving. Makes 2 cups.

(We did the official tasting today, and liked it quite well. The only thing is, it's kind of dry. I wonder if I should add water before the simmering stage if I decide to make more and can it.)

news

2011-07-12T21:20:00.002+01:00

I was going to do a short blurb on Facebook, but realized there are several things worth mentioning.

You know Bob is getting money from the VA for being disabled. In spite of the program being called "Disability Benefits at Discharge" he didn't get his first payment until 5 months after discharge. We *thought* there would be a retroactive payment (backpay), but I got tired of waiting and contacted the VA last week. Today we got a letter in the mail, and a deposit in the bank!! Not as much as I'd hoped for (and I can't figure out why), but it is a nice bonus and not to be sneezed at.

We finally got the order for our furniture delivery!!! The movers should be here next Friday. Oh, that means we have to get to work. Anyone want to come visit this week and help lay wood floor, paint, or tile a shower? I'll feed you well. If you want to crawl under the house and hook up the shower, we might reimburse your traveling expenses.

I'm making pickles!!! I have the cucumbers sliced and soaking in lime water. I haven't done this in YEARS and it is so exciting. I really like homemade crispy sweet pickles. There isn't even a poor substitute available in stores.

ALSO, this morning I made one jar's worth of onion-ginger relish. We haven't had an official taste-testing, but the bit I licked off my finger while dishing it up was very nice.

Today we took Sergeant to an outdoor 4-H meeting, and the professional dog lady confirmed Bob's suspicions that "he" is really a GIRL! I kept thinking he was just immature. Anyway, we need to rename her - maybe Serenity. And, while she praised us for bringing the dog out, she said we ought to deworm her again (she'll bring stuff next week), feed higher quality food, and keep the dog out of the cat food and litter.

Our church is having revival meeting this week.

We are trying strawberry omelettes for supper.

In the garden, some freaky caterpillars have eaten EVERY leaf off our walnut tree. The zucchini gave up the ghost. The toms still haven't brought forth fruit. Obviously the cukes are doing well. And yesterday I got my sweet potato slips. Planted out one variety this morning; will do more tonight or tomorrow.

Short and rude

2011-07-06T03:52:00.002+01:00

Our church has been singing this song lately, and it gets "stuck in my head." In particular, the line, "I'll have a new body" stands out because it is sung only by the women. So the other day I let loose with just those 5 words. It was enough to vent the "stuck in my head" sensation. But Bob was in the same room, and immediately followed my outburst with the next line, "Praise the Lord!"

Umm, ya think maybe he shouldn't be buying me ice cream? :-D

accomplishments

2011-07-02T13:05:00.002+01:00

I probably won't get very far in typing out an actual post, so thought I'd try a list of what we've got done this week.

I painted the 3 walls of our master bedroom. Yes, 3...actually more like 2 1/2 because of the fireplace... There is another half wall to do, but it hasn't been built yet. So anyway, that's 2 to 3 coats of primer plus 2 coats of color. We chose a light purple color that turned out lighter than I expected. Taryn came into the room not long after I'd finished and was trying to imagine what it will look like all done; she said, "The walls are going to be purple" and I interrupted her because the walls ARE purple, and after a minute of hard looking she was able to see it. I think we decided to wait to trim it out after we get the floor in, because we'll need to measure from the floor up, and all that painting can be done outside.

William learned how to write a "W". Most (maybe all) of the others have been able to write their whole name by this point, but give him a break; he's left-handed. ;-) He's also starting to get that tall, skinny look of most 3 year olds, and starting to talk a LOT (which is a little bit difficult because he still lisps a bit and says "us" instead of "we" - part of the lisping might be because of his underbite, but anyway we are working on it).

Taryn learned how to swim. Riah and Naysha are right behind her. We've been out 4 times now, though yesterday's trip was a bust. The water was warm, and pretty dirty, and first thing I saw a snake... We stayed a few minutes but then decided to go home and have ice cream instead.

We picked the first two cucumbers last night. I guess I better get my canning jars sorted out.

And the big, life changing one: We got our building built. It's 30x40, wood frame but metal sides and roof, on a concrete pad. This means that we can unclutter the house a bit and then (drum roll, please) ORDER OUR STUFF! Remember our furniture, clothes, toys, and books that we had in England? I do. I remember our newish mattress set with great fondness. I remember our solid oak dining table, big enough for everyone to sit at; my computer hutch and chair; measuring cups; Polish pottery; girls' bed; bookshelves... Tuesday we will call somebody and tell them to schedule a delivery date. Finally, 8 months later, we will be moved in.
And then once we get our stuff sorted out, we can use the building for a photo studio on one side and a garage on the other. But the main thing is the beds. ;-)

Gone visiting

2011-06-27T03:56:00.002+01:00

This morning we visited the local Mennonite church. Don't worry, we got permission from our own leadership first. :-)

Why? We aren't going to leave our church. They believe the Bible, and we love all the folks there (especially the relatives). We've become familiar with some of the Mennonites in town, at the Pantry and the cake/book store. I chatted with a lady at an auction one day. The icing on the cake was the man who is going to put up our building is also Mennonite, and he pressed us to come visit. (I'm sure Dan at the Pantry, who is also the pastor, invited Bob as well, but I wasn't there so can't be sure.)

Why did we want to go? Behind the casual acquaintances is a bit of history. I'm not sure when I first became interested in the Mennonites... My favorite author as a child was (still is) Howard Pyle, who was a Quaker, and I loved (still do) to research... Follow my mind train here - I probably did some reading on these fringe denominations and had some early positive feelings built. Either way, when I was pregnant with Riah (Spring 2003) I began wearing a headcovering. I think this was brought on by personal Bible study; actually I'd read a blog or something about how the Bible did NOT demand women wear a covering, and the arguments just didn't hold water so I did more research. And when we started homeschooling Taryn I checked out zillions of curriculum options and landed on Rod and Staff - published by Mennonites in Kentucky. THEN we went to a homeschool conference where we chatted with a real live Mennonite at the Rod and Staff booth, and he gave us some teaching tapes from Charity Ministries, based in Ephrata, Pennsylvania. Sooo, we've benefited a lot from the Mennonites; we appreciate their stance on many issues, and agree with several key doctrines.

Okay... We went to their church, Lighthouse something or other, and enjoyed it very much. There was a good crowd, including at least 4 visiting families. Families worshiped together (not separated by gender, as some do); there was a devotional, a song, and then we broke into small groups for Sunday School, then back together for 2 more songs and a sermon, parting comments, and one last song. It was over before noon. Our impressions: they sing BEAUTIFULLY, the girls liked the cape dresses, Sunday School was nice as all groups studied the same text, we felt welcome if out of uniform. At dismissal, everyone stood up and just started visiting with their neighbors, not even congregating in the aisle as we are used to. Several people came to us and chatted a while, and one young man informed us that it was his turn to host lunch and we were welcome to join (Bob declined).

Conclusion. If we could go there without missing our own church meetings, we would. I feel challenged to make more deliberate choices in my daily life. And I'm hopeful about future friendships within the community.

checking in

2011-06-25T13:09:00.003+01:00

I've written a dozen posts in my head over the last week+, just none have made it to the computer. My computer time is limited to first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Night would be the better time to write, as the children are in bed and I have as much time as I want, but by then I'm too tired to think of anything to say.

So, basically, "hi."

:-)

Last Friday we had some people out to build a pad for Bob's building. Yesterday the trusses were delivered. Tuesday they're supposed to pour the concrete and Thursday they build the building. Yeah, they said they put up the whole thing (it's 30' by 40') in one day. This will be storage for now, so we can have our household goods delivered. And once we sort through that it will be half garage, half photo studio.

I've finally figured out what all the chickens are. We have 3 Blue Andalusians, 2 female; 4 Ancona, 1 female; 6 or 7 Black Leghorns, 1 girl(bummer!); 4 Red Leghorns, all girls (I think); 3 Red Pyle Cubalaya, all girls (I'm doubtful about one of them). We made these determinations after 2 girls were killed on night. We still don't know how that happened; one morning I went out and there was a body in the cage and one right outside the cage, violently torn up but not eaten. However, two days later we were looking, and one of the Cubalayas was gone. She stood out from the crowd because she was the only one with true "Red Pyle" coloring, and because she was crippled (we ran over her feet once while moving the cage), so I didn't include her in the numbers above. :-( When we realized she was gone, Bob reinforced the wires a bit.

Tiger is training Sergeant to be a good cat. He sneaks through the bushes and ounces with the best. :-D However, he can't climb trees very well. Those two are great friends, and I'm glad to see it. They eat each other's food, drink each other's water, and play together all day long. (Spell checker tells me "other's" isn't correct. hmm? it belongs to "other," right?) When the man came to deliver the trusses, Bob went down the driveway to meet him, and Sergeant went into his pen and looked at the man through the chain link. :-D We took the day off Tuesday and went to Pea Ridge and Prairie Grove battlefields. Sergeant went with us and walked the mile track on a leash. He does very well, and in fact the leash helps him to not get under foot so much. But by about halfway, he was getting tired, and every time we'd stop he'd lie down. He also had to be cajoled into walking through the sunlight.

Well everyone is up now so I guess I'll sign off.

Singing

2011-06-16T03:47:00.002+01:00

Not too long ago, Taryn entered the 4-H county "o-rama" vocal competition and won (against 1 other girl). This secured her a place in the regional o-rama, which was today.

Today we all woke up early, dressed (the 3 girls in their freshly-made 4-H club T-shirts), and got in the van. We had been told Taryn had to check in "by" 9:30am, at the Ozark high school, about 90 minutes away. So we tried to hurry. We got breakfast at McDonald's drive through and ate it on the road. Bob and I both almost got sick. After all, the road between Huntsville and Ozark is known as the "Pig Trail" because it corkscrews like a pig's tail.

It all worked out, and even with a 15 minute construction delay we arrived in plenty of time. The only problem was, individuals don't register. The county representative registers for the whole county at once. So we waited about 45 minutes for them to arrive. In the meantime we read the program and discovered that the competitions didn't even start until after lunch, the morning being taken with the "general assembly."

Needless to say, the group finally showed up and Taryn was registered in plenty of time for us all to get good and bored. After the assembly we had lunch (the county actually fed all of us with pizza, cookies, and bottled water) and then found the vocal performance room.

The room was overcrowded and got very hot, but the children did their best. Now here's my beef. Of course I'm prejudiced, but you all know I'm also fairly logical and can detach from my emotions. Taryn NAILED her song. She did 3 verses of Amazing Grace, a capella. She kept timing, and hit every single note. She did hold the song book, and was still wearing the T-shirt with a denim skirt. (I knew that they judged on the appearance being appropriate to the song, and had intended for Taryn to wear a nice dress. But at the regular club meeting the day before, we were told "everyone" would be in their club T-shirts, so we agreed to that. Turns out, they wore their Tees to the general assembly, but changed before the performances.) She held the mic firmly, didn't fidget or show nervousness, but didn't dance around or "act" in any way. So I can see where some of the other acts would get higher marks on the "performance" side. BUT Taryn was the ONLY person in her age group that actually sang very well. A few others did well, but mumbled a bit or missed a note or two.

As you can probably guess by now, she didn't win. DIDN'T EVEN PLACE. She took it well, and we philosophized about it all the way home, but it still gets me that the judges awarded the act rather than the talent.

Anyway, we learned a lot about how the whole thing works, and have hopes for a more enjoyable trip next year. (Don't go early, bring a change of clothes, don't hold a cheat sheet, add a little flair, bring extra water.)

the a/c saga

2011-06-06T04:00:00.002+01:00

Before we ever left England, where we had no air conditioning (at home or in the car) and the temps never get above the 80's, we talked about not having A/C when we moved back home. Bob insisted on buying a place with central heat and air, but I worked on him about not using it.

As you know, we ended up buying his Grandma's house. It has central heat and air, manufactured in 1993 (for those of you who are old, or math challenged, that's 18 years ago). We used the heat some this Fall, but we soon realized that it didn't actually get warm. So we turned it off and used the wood stove, which got plenty warm.

Then Summer rolled around. Tomorrow, for example, the forecast is a high of 93*F (34*C) with 53% humidity (and that humidity is pretty low compared to the last week). We suffered through for a while, with windows and ceiling fans and frequent showers. The problem was with our bedroom. The window, which faces West, doesn't stay open and has no screen so we didn't want to prop it open anyway. We bought a new fan for the living room, and it makes a nice breeze. So we went to Lowes and bought another new fan for our bedroom. Got it up last night, and it worked for a while and then started surging. It would go faster, and then slower. And we were still hot.

So today I thought maybe we should try the central A/C, just to see. Before leaving for church we closed all the windows and unblocked the vents and turned the beast on. There was a rattle clink, and it shut off. See, the return duct had been uncovered for a while and someone had thrown something down there. It seemed we were out of luck.

After church we went to Lowes again and bought a window unit A/C for our room. Took it home and started putting it together but didn't get finished before PM church. On a whim, Bob turned on the central unit again, and it came on fine. So we gave it a trial this evening. When we got home, it was nice and cool inside. The time of suffering is over for now; we will run the A/C at least until we get the next electric bill. ;-) The window unit will be useful in our new bedroom, which was an add-on and isn't ducted with the rest of the house.

Doghood

2011-06-05T04:03:00.003+01:00

We've been thinking about dogs ever since we got back to the States.

We talked (several times) about reclaiming Karlee, our Keeshond that we left with my parents when we went to England. That has been decided finally to leave her there, as she's happy and they are happy with her. She's about 9 years old, and after 3 years in one place it'd be a shame to move her.

We wanted to take things slow, getting the chickens established before we got a dog (and the cat established before we got the chicks). That has been done.

The "itch" was growing. Bob started visiting all the local animal shelters, every time we went to town. We took quizzes about what kind of dog would suit us. We talked about rules and training methods. Then it all started to come together.

One recommended breed was a Collie. Both of our grandparents had a Collie at some point. We were used to hair from Karlee. And then we found a pair of 3 month old Collies at the Fayetteville shelter. We asked to see them, but while we were waiting the other worker there informed us that someone had already applied for both of them. We started to feel frustrated, but she said people change their minds a lot and we should put in a back-up application. We did, but they didn't. No Collie.

But. While we waited to find out about the Collie, we visited the Springdale shelter. There we saw the sweetest 10 week old "Shepherd mix." We went out and bought a collar, bowls, food, and treats. When we found out about the Collie, we went back to Springdale and picked up the Shepherd. We named him Sergeant. He is a good little boy who needs to acclimate to life outside his A/Ced metal cage. He didn't mind riding in the car, and no one else minded when we took him shopping with us. If you're cute, rules don't apply.

Oh, a funny. While we were driving, we brainstormed for a name. All the children called out various suggestions : Captain! Midnight! Brownie! Duke! and Elijah wanted to join in. So he started calling out "Da! Da!" But we all ignored him as we thought of better names. Finally he let out a very loud and long "DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!" I answered him, "Thank you, Elijah; we'll keep that in mind." And he was quiet after that, just as if he knew exactly what was going on.

On aging and human dignity

2011-06-04T03:44:00.002+01:00

This has been in the back of my mind for about a year now, but recently came to the forefront as I have heard several people express disbelief at their advanced age.

So bear with me.

It has occurred to me that the soul of man is ageless. I used to wonder (when I was about 4) how old I'd be in heaven. If I died as a child, would I always be a child, or would I miraculously skip to a grown up? Are people really at their "prime" at age 25?

But since I've been getting older (ripe old 33!) I've begun to realize that I'm the same person that I was when I was 4. That sounds rather simplistic, I guess; of course I'm still me. My way of doing things has changed; I've learned a lot, had new experiences, and come to different conclusions than I used to. However, my way of feeling and thinking about things is still the same. The part of me that is essentially ME remains.

There are two personal applications to this revelation.

#1 is that my children will always be the same person as they are now. The things I say to them and do with them will affect them for eternity. This is a serious matter to consider. It is humbling and cautious-making.

#2 is that old people were once young. Another "duh," I know, but think about it. Think about how you see the elderly treated. How those under 70 talk to those over 80. Old people have the same ME-ness to them that I do now, and did when I was a toddler. Their bodies betray them at every turn, and sometimes even talking is difficult, but they still think and feel inside like a human being, not an elder.

I think this is what "Right to Life" is all about, if you'll follow me. Even, to a large extent, the pacifist position. Humans are made in the image of God, and have an innate worth. It doesn't matter if a person is not yet born, an illogical two-year-old, 30, or 96; they have a soul that deserves respect. The body changes and dies, but the soul remains.

So take the time to listen to those in a different stage of life from yourself. Children are just as earnest as grownups, and shouldn't be blown off because they are short. A stroke victim knows what she's thinking and is just as frustrated as you are at her inability to express it.

You get the idea, and I'm soapboxing now (hey, I invented a word!), so I'll quit. Thanks for listening.

oddly enough

2011-06-01T03:35:00.002+01:00

I keep forgetting to share this...

You know the overused and somewhat offensive phrase "kick his butt"?

Guess what. It came from the Bible!

Psa 78:65 Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine.
Psa 78:66 And he smote his enemies in the hinder parts: he put them to a perpetual reproach.

traveling mercies

2011-05-30T04:26:00.002+01:00

Every time I hear that phrase (traveling mercies) I'm reminded of a clip from the old Christian teen TV show "Fire by Night." (I tried to find a suitable video online but came up blank). A family was praying before taking a road trip and asked for "traveling mercies" when POOF a couple appeared. The man introduced himself "Hi, I'm John Mercy and this is my wife Sarah. We're the Traveling Mercys." God sent them to go with the family, just like they'd asked. :-D

Anyway, we just had a little trip down to my parents' house, and I wanted to share a few things.

#1. On the way down there we were passed by a car pulling a UHaul trailer, which had been carefully packed with boxes, lamps, a sofa... I know this because they FORGOT TO CLOSE THE BACK of the trailer! Bob had the sense to allow some space between our car and theirs, and we were glad when they exited the highway.

#2. We stopped for lunch at Hardee's (hamburger/fast food joint). As we were starting our meal a man who had finished eating stopped by our table, said "I've been looking for a sign; here's your money," and handed Bob $100. We were flabbergasted and barely squeezed out a "thank you" before he left.

#3. Sorry, I forgot this one. Anyway, we made it down and back in safety. Our chicks and cat are doing well, but very happy to see us.

Funny names pt 2

2011-05-27T04:36:00.002+01:00

We attend a small, non-denom church. As in, about 45 people on Sunday morning. I happen to think it's odd how many "matching" names we have out of such a small group.

Jan and Janet
Shari and Sherry
Ann and Anna
Velma and Thelma
Wanita and Valita (not sure of the spelling on those two!)
Fay and Floyd (okay, that's stretching it a bit... both are men)
Jim and Jim
Bill and Willie
Kenneth and Kenny (that's not too odd; they are father and son)
Don and Donovan (married to cousins)

And we've finally figured out that cousin Jesse's mom is sister to the man who's wife is sister to his father. :-D

excited

2011-05-21T04:19:00.003+01:00

Do you remember all those doctor visits Bob had last year, especially the VA appointments in December? Maybe I didn't even write about it... Anyway, it has all finally come together, and Bob will be paid a disability pension on top of his retirement pay. According to my careful calculations last year, it is just the amount needed to keep us comfortable without Bob having to work part time (or otherwise). Which is a good thing, since he actually doesn't do well at having to work for a living. Also great because if he meets an early demise (God forbid), I will continue to receive the disability payments (I don't get his retirement pay after he dies).

Last week I saw an ad in the paper about a sustainable farming retreat for veterans, here in Fayeteville. I'd heard about the group before we left England, but it was all in California so I dismissed the whole thing, but here they were in our own backyard. So I emailed and got Bob registered. The thing started tonight, with a full day tomorrow. We were going to let Bob go in, and I'd take the children out shopping, but before we could get away Bob came back to the car and said we could all go in. These people have put together a real nice deal. The premise is for them to help connect veterans with farms. They have professional farmers, business people, and resources. In the room tonight were our local USDA reps, a college professor, the manager of the largest organic farm in America, the ag guy for our US Senator, and a couple of local professional farmers. Maybe some others I forgot. I got to chat with a lady about applying for a $5000 grant to help us with our production. Tomorrow we get to tour a couple of farms, eat a special breakfast by a "real chef", and hopefully learn a lot more. The whole thing - food, books, lodging for non-locals (people from Hawaii!!), speakers - is completely free.

Next week my baby Naysha is turning 9 years old! Never a dull moment around here. ;-)

Ah, the other exciting thing is that I saw in the paper about elk hunting. There are elk on Arkansas state lands, and to control the herds they allow some hunting. The way it works is that any resident can submit an application, and they have a drawing to select 24 people to go on a hunt. I was pretty tickled that the paper had an article about getting your name in (in time to do so), rather than an article about who had been drawn (when it was too late to do anything about it). So I went to the website and put in Bob's name. Chances of him getting a shot at it (pun intended) are very slim, but at least he's in the running.

Edited Saturday morning: William woke up at 4am screaming about bees in his room... He had an uncomfortably high temperature (not dangerously high), so after medicine and a shower we decided that I would stay home today with all those who were less than well, plus Elijah. Bob took Taryn and Riah to the farm.

forgot I have a blog

2011-05-16T04:03:00.002+01:00

well, almost. At least, I forgot I hadn't written anything in a bit.

This week has been rather eventful.

Bob finished the second "chicken tractor" - sort of a coop on wheels. We moved the second set of chicks out, and they have proved not as smart as we hoped. We put them in the nest area, and it was several hours before they made it out to the food and water. Then they wouldn't go back up when it was cold and rainy! Two died one night for no apparent reason. The older chicks are adjusting well.

I went to the doctor and got a shot because the poison ivy was so bad. Good thing is I also got a prescription nasal spray to help with my allergies. With that and the Omega 3,6,9 pills I'm breathing a LOT better than I had been.

We went to Oklahoma (3.5 hour trip) and back in one day to see my brother, his wife, and their new baby. Well, she's 6 months old, but it was her first trip out of Texas. She's very good natured.

We helped MIL work on her new house, putting tile down in the living room. Bob did most of the actual help - I took the little ones and went shopping. :-) I'm mad at Target right now, which puts me in an awkward place because I don't like Walmart in general. So I don't know where to shop! Doesn't matter too much as it will be a while before I want to go again.

We've gone from sleeping with the windows open and fans on to building fires again. And more rain.

There was a family reunion on Saturday.

Today we had church 3 times. In the afternoon we went to the annual "Decoration" service at our local cemetery, where Grandma is buried.

Bob is semi on board with me about giving up sweets. He lost weight working at Walmart, but I have gained since we've been here and it's getting BAD. I'm now officially one of those people that you see and think "If I ever get that fat, glue my mouth shut." Swelling up like a toad with the poison ivy didn't help my looks any, either. At least that's gone down now.

Roses are blooming all across my back fence, and various flowers are showing off all around the yard. I planted zucchini and cucumber, and they have all sprouted.

We've had some nice talks with the children about Bible translations, and why women are curvy.

Elijah still only talks with single syllables that start with "d," but he is becoming increasingly animated and expressive.

See you soon!

Forgiveness

2011-05-09T03:28:00.002+01:00

This is long overdue, but I wanted to post about my computer fast/ Bible reading venture. Funnily, I didn't even consider it a fast until Bob preached on fasting the week after I'd finished. It was just this thing I was doing.

I'm afraid to ask what you all would guess I took away from my time in the OT. I know what I would think someone of my temperament would get out of it.

I got a good overview of God's dealing with Israel. How He put up with so much complaining and even arguing/bargaining, but didn't tolerate doubt. I made some nice connections in the timeline that frequently are missed when I just read one story or book at a time.

But the thing I learned personally is to forgive. Specifically that I need to practice forgiveness towards Bob. I had been going around mad at him ALL THE TIME. Every thing he did upset me. So I started with the big things. You know, losing his temper, or stealing the covers at night. ;-) I would make myself say the words in my head, "I forgive Bob for losing his temper." Once I got in the habit or verbalizing exactly what he'd done, and my forgiveness of the act, I found myself forgiving him for things that, really, shouldn't have bothered me at all. "I forgive him for wanting chicken instead of pizza for dinner." Really? That's something I have to FORGIVE??? It was little things like that that made me realize how sour I'd become toward him. Who needed the forgiveness?

As a result of my new habit... Bob didn't start taking advantage of me. I didn't lose out on my rights, or even my desires. Quite the opposite, in fact. I found myself feeling happy. Bob smiled at me more. I even felt more qualified to speak to him about things that weren't going right.

This has been going on for a full month now, so I can't blame the change on hormones or the weather. Forgiveness has really become a habit. As has often been said, forgiving someone who has hurt you doesn't help them; it helps you. :-)

Catch up part 2

2011-05-06T04:07:00.002+01:00

I want to blog every day, but every night I'm too tired. :-)

The big story of today is that on Tuesday we went to help MIL work on her new house, to expedite their move in. Bob helped sort out the curtain rods, and I cleared out the front flower bed. The landscaper must have not liked people, for every plant there was full of thorns or prickles. But what counts where today is concerned is that apparently one or more of the unknown plants was actually poison oak or poison ivy. I used to know what they looked like... The point being that my forearms are all red and bumpy and VERY itchy. ack!

In spite of all that, we've made some progress at home. We primed, painted and repainted (with the good, "one-coat coverage" paint) one wall of the living room. If you look closely you can still see the wall paper glue. So don't. :-) We have enough stuff to hang up it won't be a problem. Then we moved all the stuff from the other wall to the newly painted wall. This includes a glass display shelf, a piano, and the large bookshelf we bought at auction not too long ago. (I put a pic of it, right?) Of course all the shelves were full of stuff, so that was all unloaded, sorted and organized, and reloaded.
I did have the foresight to go ahead and paint the ceiling above the big shelf's new location, so we won't have to move it again. (Yeah, we're doing it backwards - walls first and then ceiling. What's your point?)
Then we stripped the wall paper from the now accessible wall, and started scrubbing off that awful glue.

In the midst of this chaos, Taryn has been scanning pictures nonstop. See, Grandma had pictures in every drawer, box, and cupboard in her house, and we volunteered to scan them all in to Bob's computer and make discs for everyone. It suddenly became pressing when we realized the family reunion is this month.

The chicks were getting crowded in their box, and some were getting picked on, so we went ahead and moved out the 4-H chickens (20 Red Sex Link girls) to the tractor that Bob and the boys made. They seem to be doing very well, though they haven't yet found their way up to the nest area. One got out today somehow, but stayed close until Riah found her and put her back in. The little ones in the box are happy to have more room.

Tiger has made a complete nuisance of himself, and since he's been "fixed" now, we moved him out of the house. I kind of miss him sitting on my keyboard as I type. :-/ He still has access to the back room, where we keep his food and water, but soon that will move to the garage and he will be an outside cat for real. He misses us terribly.

In spite of the sunny forecast, we've had showers every afternoon this week. Still nothing like last week, when we got a total of 17 inches of rain. Bob was able to mow some yesterday, but bent the blade again, on a root this time. He's thinking about cutting down the elm tree.

The roof guy never came out, but the insurance guy did. He thinks the leaks are just old damage, bad workmanship... Aunt next door agrees that it has leaked before in heavy rain. Any rate, it's not covered because it's not storm damage. So we'll try to patch it up and continue as before.

We had our first fresh salad of the season. I've never gardened this far north before, and it's kind of weird to be so far "behind." In San Antonio I know we had our peppers out in March, and the lettuce was bolting by May. But in NW Arkansas, May is still iffy for warm weather crops, and the lettuce is growing beautifully. The onions and potatoes look great, too. The tomatoes are holding out for warmer weather.

Ooh, I've seen a few new birds at the feeders lately. Hummingbirds. :-) Bluejays. Rose-breasted Grosbeak. Something yellow - maybe a warbler of some sort. And something small, very blue, and shy; looking at pictures we guessed Mountain Bluebird, but it's not supposed to live here. Maybe Indigo Bunting. I wish we could get decent pics through the kitchen window, but we just can't.

That ought to do for now.

for Mom

2011-04-27T14:14:00.006+01:00

But feel free to jump in if you know.

These two are Mystery Tree #1. It's the one beside the clothesline. It puts out super-sticky seed pods before the leaves come out.
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These two are Mystery Tree #2. It's in the flower bed between the clothesline and the house.
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.
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Mystery plant #1. It's in the same bed as Mystery Tree #2.
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Mystery Plant #2.

Okay, before I mess this up, I'll publish these. :-)

back again

2011-04-27T13:08:00.003+01:00

For those who still remember me... :-)

It was a long four weeks in some ways. I only read through Proverbs - 20 books in 28 days. But it was good for me. So, to catch up on the last month:

Bob quit his job at WalMart, as they put him on night shift and wouldn't take him off. The job involved endless climbing of stairs, and while he lost some weight, he couldn't walk on his days off.

We started work on our future master bedroom, since it's stayed wet under the house and Bob can't go hook up the plumbing on the future master bathroom that we'd already started on. We cleaned it out, masked off the fireplace (the chimney for the living room fireplace - this room was an add-on), and got the first coat of paint on the ceiling. While it was drying we went to Lowe's and picked out the colors for the walls and trim, and new crown molding. The next day we went to apply the second coat to the ceiling (the room was unfinished and will take 3-4 coats), and discovered the roof was leaking. So I called the insurance and Bob called a roofer, and we didn't paint.

Which leads me to point 2. It's been raining. A lot. For nearly a week. Our driveway has washed out, our rain barrel is full, all the trees have leafed out, and the grass and cool-weather crops are shooting up like rockets.

We have chicks! We got 20 Red Sex Link girls to show for a 4-H fundraiser (they were free, but we'll only keep 4 after the fair). Then a week later we got the chicks I'd ordered from Sand Hill Preservation Center. I ordered 25, they sent 27, and one died the next day. It was an assortment, and I got Anconas, Black Leghorns, Red Leghorns, Blue Andalusians, and Red Pyle Cubalaya. The RPCs are uncommon, and I can't get a lot of info on them, but the others are all heavy layers of white eggs. I appreciate the heavy layer part, but I think they'd sell better if they weren't all white. I've ordered a late season super assortment as well, so we'll see how that goes. The ages of the two sets were pretty close, so we dumped them all in together (in a large box in the garage). They are doing well.

It was a busy month, and I'm not gonna get all the details in one post, so I'll stop there. Look forward to seeing you more, soon.

nose in a Book

2011-03-28T04:14:00.002+01:00

Well. Several people I know of did this thing where they read the Bible through in the first 90 days of this year (almost over now!). When I first heard about it in early January, I thought I'd give it a go. So that afternoon I cracked open Genesis and got through half a chapter with about 4 interruptions from Bob. So, like I normally do, I quit and blamed him for it. Yeah, I'm THAT good.

Anyway, about every Sunday I get to feeling like I should really be reading my Bible more on my own, not just the morning and evening chapters with the family. Today I'm giving up on giving up. :-D I may not make the 90 day challenge, but there are 4 weeks left before Resurrection Day. Can you guess what's coming? I'm turning my computer off for FOUR weeks, or until I complete a full reading, whichever comes first.

If you need me, call or send paper.

This means you'll have to wait for the soon to be taken cute picture of William in his home-made medieval tabbard and cape. Poor you!

Love you guys. Hopefully this will go well for us all.

stuff

2011-03-23T03:40:00.005Z

I recently replaced my sewing machine and started sewing again. Today I finished this costume dress/nightgown for Naysha.

It is far from a professional job, especially around the neckline, but at a distance it looks okay. The belt and headscarf are just edged leftover pieces of material.

When I went out to take pictures of the hedge this evening, I also found some encouraging growth.

Looks like I need to get on with weeding the flower beds. :-)

Tonight I washed Taryn's hair in the sink and "did" her and Naysha's nails. We opted for a buffer and stickers.

planting a hedge

2011-03-23T03:26:00.002Z

OR How many birds can you kill with one stone, anyway?

Yesterday I finally decided to plant my privacy hedge. See, I'd come to appreciate hedges while we were in England, and our current situation could really benefit from one. I'd bought the shrubs a few weeks ago (some here, some there), and they'd been sitting around waiting for me. They had to wait a little longer, as I made the boys clean their room before we went out.

We all went outside together after lunch, and it was pretty warm (about 80*F) by then. SO bird #1, "sweat" (weight loss) and bird #2, "tanning" were on their way down.
Bird #3, of course, was the actual planting of the 11 shrubs. Birds 4 and 5 were just too convenient to miss - the rocks that we dug up were sent to fill in the driveway, and the sod that we dug up was sent to fill in low spots in the yard. As it worked out, I also pulled my back about halfway through the job, so I get to walk funny and be felt sorry for.

Anyway, pictures:

this had a thought pattern ...

2011-03-16T02:44:00.002Z

...two days ago, when I first wrote this in my head. No promises tonight.

Anyway, I joined Swagbucks. If you aren't familiar with the thing, it's a way to get "free" stuff or gift cards. If you join by following my banner/link, I get more free stuff. So how does it work? Well, you can spend as much or as little time on it as you like. There are 3 quick and totally free ways to earn swagbucks. One is to use their search engine. Every 3 or 4 times you search, you'll "win" anything from 1-20 bucks. Two is the daily poll - a quick silly question that gets 1 buck per day. Three is the surveys. Just by visiting the survey list you get one buck per day, and if you manage to qualify for any of the surveys you earn 25-200 bucks by spending 20 minutes on the survey. There are more time consuming ways to earn bucks, like playing free games or reading the blog for clues and anagrams. And there are things that cost money but give a kick-back of swagbucks, like joining Netflix or some other subscription service.

Ah, the good part. When you get a few bucks under your belt, you can trade them in for gift cards from Amazon or Target or whatever. Amazon gives $5 for 450 swagbucks. The amounts vary on other companies.

Oh, I don't think the search engine is as good as Google or Yahoo, but it usually gets me where I want to go.

When I had thought this post out there was a train of thought, but now I've only got one car. :-) I've slept 6:45 the last two nights combined and my brain isn't doing its job. So anyway, now I told you about Swagbucks.

Shari’s Lazy Lasagna

2011-03-09T21:56:00.002Z

A few days ago I was sort of craving lasagna, but I didn't want to make a "white sauce" that they use in lasagna in England, and I didn't have any cottage or ricotta cheese that they use in lasagna in America. So I made up this recipe all by myself, and we all thought it was VERY good. Sorry if the directions are a bit brief for you - I can expound if anyone is interested. And no pictures. I really wasn't thinking "blog post!" when I made it, just "dinner!"

Shari’s Lazy Lasagna as made 3-1-11
Brown 1 lb turkey* with ½ minced onion and 1/3 c bacon bits* (maybe less). Pour over 3 T of red wine; allow to reduce. Add 1 15oz can diced tomatoes and 1 15oz can tomato sauce, a dash of sugar, a dash of pepper, a good pinch each of basil and Italian seasoning. Simmer.
Meanwhile, boil 1 lb (10 cups) of egg noodles. Drain. Add 2 T butter, 2 oz cream cheese, and ½ c of parmesan cheese. Add 2 beaten eggs.
Spoon a little sauce on bottom of 9x13 pan. Top with noodles. Top with sauce. Bake 20-30 minutes at 350*. Top with 1 lb grated mozzarella; bake to melt. YUMMY!

* ground beef would do as well as turkey. Just here I can get the turkey cheaper.
* REAL bacon bits, not the nasty fake stuff. Or just crumble a couple of slices of cooked bacon.

input

2011-03-09T14:10:00.003Z

I was wondering if you guys prefer the new style of writing, little bits about random things, or do you want me to go back to the old method of just recording everything we did all day?

Have you even noticed the shift? :-)

Dinosaur

2011-03-04T17:39:00.002Z

I have to confess; Bob got an iPad. I *almost* bought it for him for Valentine's Day, mentioned it that night, and he high-tailed it back to the store the next day and got one.

My impressions so far are that it is a lot of fun, but not a real computer. :-) However, after playing a couple of the free games he downloaded for a while, when I put the iPad down and turned on my laptop I got this overwhelming sense of "dinosaur!"

The iPad is small, light, needs no accessories, is intuitive to use (my Dad picked up on it right away), and the battery lasts forever. When you push the button it is ready to go - less than 1 second boot time. It is quiet, doesn't get hot, and can be operated from any direction (turn it upside down and the picture rotates to accommodate you). Bob plugged it in to his desktop and was able to copy all his music with just a little effort. We are still unsure about other possibilities in using it with the desktop.

My only real complaint so far is that the pop-up (on screen) keyboard doesn't have arrow keys, so when I'm typing and see a mistake, I have to click on the place (which hasn't worked for me so far) or erase all the way back to the mistake.

I still like the (wireless) mouse approach to desktop use, as that enables a lot of freedom of movement. But for a laptop, touch screen just makes sense. So, while I hope my laptop lasts many more moons, I admit it's not the height of fashion or technology.

Pictures

2011-02-28T20:14:00.003Z

Here are a few I snapped this week.

Elijah is a pianist.

At the funeral

Playing at my parents' house.

Spotted this bald eagle just 3 houses down the road from us. I whipped out my camera and he started to leave the scene.

snippets

2011-02-28T03:19:00.003Z

I mentioned earlier that we went to a funeral. My family already knows that it was for my Uncle Elmo, my mom's brother-in-law. He was a home missionary to the deaf, and founded the church I attended as a small child. My mom's family is close, and Uncle Elmo asked to remain a part of it when his wife died 23 years ago. He had cancer for several years, so his passing wasn't unexpected, but still grievous. The timing was odd, as he died on the day of his mother's funeral. She was 101; he was 75.

At the family dinner before the funeral, an old friend teasingly asked how many of my children he could take home with him. I laughed him off, but Ella was listening and turned to him and said, "You can take Riah!" :-)

Traffic was the lightest I've ever seen on the highways between here and there, and I missed rain in all legs of the trip though there was flooding in Oklahoma City, and heavy rains here at home.

We recently got a wall calendar from vistaprint.com for "free" - we paid about $5 for shipping - and it's pretty nice. I was able to choose pictures from our Flickr page and place them on the months of my choice. I chose a design I liked, typed in notes on significant dates, and paid with PayPal. It arrived in a sturdy flat box and is of decent quality.

My brother ordered some stuff through my Amazon widget, and it worked! His making one extra click that day (to come here first rather than go straight to them) made me $25. Thanks, Zane! Feelin' the love.

Travelling without Bob...

2011-02-26T03:45:00.002Z

... is much noisier. :-)
I took the children down to my parents' house for 2 days to attend a funeral. Bob stayed home to work, which meant I got to drive the van (3rd time ever!) inter-state. Being thus forced to pay more attention to goings on, I have decided Americans need to re-vamp the driver's test. Here are the suggested new questions:

1. The passing lane is best used for _____
a. passing a slower vehicle
b. slowly cruising, oblivious to the world around you
c.testing out your cruise control settings

2. The turn signal (indicator) is used for _____
a. signaling when and in what direction you intend to turn
b. keeping rhythm for your internal music
c. There's a signal?

3. The best way to distract the driver of your vehicle is ____
a. jump up and down in the rear-view mirror
b. make sudden loud noises
c. cry and whine
d. all of the above, simultaneously

4. The best way to freak out other drivers is to _____
a. weave across the lane markings right as they come even with you
b. constantly change speeds
c. drive with brights on

5. When the sign says "work zone - no passing" you should ____
a. hurry up and pass
b. slow down to match the traffic around you

6. Cell phones are for ____
a. music, texts, internet
b. talking it up
c. when you're not driving

7. When there's an accident in the other lane the best thing to do is ____
a. suddenly slam on the breaks in the hope of causing a matching accident
b. speed up to get through the mess as quickly as possible
c. slow down in case of emergency workers exiting the scene

And one thing I can't figure - why is it that cars with out-of-state licenses are always the ones speeding? Don't people know they are more likely to get a ticket when they are foreigners? Ever hear of "When in Rome, do as the Romans do?"
Anyway, we made it in spite of all the stupid people out there. Of course, I never made any mistakes. ;-)

A little help from Sam's club

2011-02-17T18:35:00.004Z

To give you all a shudder of horror, here is Bob's and my bedroom BEFORE we went to Sam's Club. This is how we were living. I didn't hang up the clothes for the picture, but I didn't get the next load from the couch either, so I think it's honest.

Then we bought the Total Closet Organizer, and tidied up a bit. Everything that was in the room is still in the room, plus the clothes from the couch. I didn't hide anything in the closet. :-)

The plan is to eventually move the bed out to the old storage room, and to make this whole room a closet for all the children (and maybe us, too). I'll have my cross trainer in the middle of the room, so I can work out and watch them hang up their clothes. But for now, we are happy to not be walking over boxes to get in bed.

dork

2011-02-16T19:42:00.003Z

In attempting to "monetize" my blog, I signed up to be a Vision Forum Affiliate. This means, if you follow my link to Vision Forum and then buy something, I get a percentage of what you buy. The only problem is, I can't remember my username or password for the affiliate's site, to get a banner for my blog. I could email them, but it's kind of embarrassing. So, anyway. This link should work, if you want something right now. I'll eventually figure it out.

I edited it so "this link" is actually a link now. Told you I was a dork. :-)

oatmeal

2011-02-16T19:24:00.002Z

Seeing as how we are "poor" now, haha, we have been eating oatmeal a lot at breakfast. It's cheaper than cold cereal, and without all those additives I feel better about serving it. So anyway, two things I've learned.

1. The difference between "regular" oats and "steel cut" oats. Here in America we have "old fashioned" and "quick" oats - these are both versions of rolled oats. Then there is also this mystery substance known as "steel cut oats." All the health nuts promote this version, but I never knew why. All the stores that sell SCO have them in cans, so you can't see them to tell there's any difference, and they cost about 6 times as much, so I never bought a can to check. Here is Huntsville, Arkansas, is a small store known as "the Pantry" that I've mentioned before. They sell bulk food, mostly in plastic bags. On the back shelf is an area dedicated to oats. Old fashioned and steel cut. They are the same price per pound, and you can tell at a glance they are not the same thing.
I bought some SCO and then looked it up online. It seems SCO are to OFO as raw sugar is to white. OFO are toasted, steamed, rolled, and cooked again. SCO are simply chopped up. So while both are officially "whole grain," SCO are much less processed. That's why the whole-food type people are so excited about them. The thing is, since they aren't pre-cooked, it takes longer to cook them at home, so I don't know if it really helps to have them less pre-processed when I have to process them. Anyone? Regardless, the cooked product is nuttier, with a more varied texture, than rolled oats. Some of us like rolled; some like cut.

2. What to do with leftover oatmeal. As we cook oats for 9 people at one time, sometimes there is a bit leftover. One day some people weren't feeling well and so ate less, leaving quite a bit in the pot. I didn't want to waste it, so I searched for leftover oatmeal. I found a recipe for cookies, and made them, but they weren't very good. The other thing I found has changed out lives. (Sounds nice and dramatic, doesn't it?)

Take leftover oatmeal and spread it on your face. Rub it in good, as you want the "juice" more than the flakes. Let it dry for about 10 minutes, and then go rinse it off. This is an awesome facial treatment that will leave your face softly glowing for a day or two. Cured Taryn's blackheads in one treatment. Makes me look pregnant. Cheap as dirt, quick and easy to do. I'm actually wondering if toddlers have such nice complexions because they get food all over their faces when eating. :-D It's a little slimy at first, but really worth it.

undergarments

2011-02-16T04:29:00.003Z

I'll keep this brief in order to maintain my family-friendly status, but just have to share.

Last week Bob took us to Target and distracted the children while I did some personal shopping. (He also picked up a nice looking ice cream maker). Can I just say, the proper undergarments really make a big difference.

Today, in the car, Ella asked me (several times, because I couldn't quite figure what she was getting at), "What are these things that are sticking out up here?", gesturing with her hands in front of her chest. :-D It's okay to laugh; I am.

Good news

2011-02-12T16:50:00.002Z

Those of you who pay attention on Facebook already know this, but...

Bob is now employed! He is working for the Huntsville Wal-Mart, 40 hours per week (M-F, daytime). He was so excited that they liked him, he forgot whether he's to go in on Monday or be called in on Monday. Any rate, he has to do a drug test and provide some references, but he's in. The store manager was pleased with him, and told him that he will start off in the advertised position (stockist), but his immediate supervisor has been promoted to management in another store and Bob will move up to that position soon. We shall see. It isn't meant to be a career, just a way to make some money.

In other news, I got the bathroom walls painted. Bob wanted to do a "weathered" effect, so it took 3 coats so far, by brush, and needs a top coat on Monday. It looks really neat, and i think the whole thing will be nice when it's done. Of course, progress will be slower now that Bob's working, but we'll probably get more school work done.

We got all the wall paper off the hall and one wall in the living room. About 1/4 of it has been washed and scraped free of glue as well. We plan to paint it white, to be a clean background for all our pictures and decorations.

I cooked all day yesterday. Made yogurt in the crockpot (it's a little runny, but tastes fine), made "artisan" bread that is super easy and super yummy, and chocolate chip cookies from the King Arthur Flour book. They don't look like that special, but I think they are the tastiest choc chip cookies I've ever had. As well as making a decent supper.

The snow hasn't melted yet, so Bob took the children to Jesse's Mom's house to ride behind his 4-wheeler in an inner tube. It was a lot of fun last time. I'm home with Elijah so he can nap. I'm also trying a Lentil Chili recipe for lunch. Better go check on it.

Cookbook review

2011-02-09T02:04:00.002Z

At an auction recently I obtained The King Arthur Flour Baker's Companion: The All-Purpose Baking Cookbook. Am I ever glad I did!

I was going through the book to mark the recipes I wanted to copy to my personal files, and 8 out of 10 recipes sounded good. After a few pages I gave up and decided I just had to keep the whole book. Not only does it have some delicious-sounding recipes like "The simple but perfect pancake," "Stuffed French toast," "Parisian Street Vendor Crepes," there are also weight/measure charts (very handy for my British recipes), and nice tidbits on the history of the recipes, and some explanations of the effect of various ingredients.

Did you know that there are two kinds of croissant? One kind is made by a pastry chef, without yeast, and one is made by a baker, with yeast. I made the recipe with yeast, and we liked it very much. But it was that recipe that prompted my complaint with the book. The recipe clearly states the recipe makes 24 croissants, but when you get to the cutting instructions it says to take a whole recipe and cut it to 12. I checked the no yeast version and it said to roll out a 1/2 batch at a time, as it should have here. There was also a typo on the amount of butter, stating that 1 3/4 c butter is equal to 3 3/4 sticks when it is actually 3 1/2 sticks. (For those crazy Americans who measure butter in "sticks".)

Another recipe I tried turned out delicious. As it's a bit easier than the croissant, I thought I'd share it with you all.

Apple Dumpling Slices
10 Tablespoons butter (5 ounces)
2 cups water (16 ounces)
2 cups sugar (14 ounces)
2 cups all-purpose flour (8 1/2 ounces)
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup milk (2 5/8 ounces) (I used a bit more than this)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups peeled, diced apple (I reconstituted 1 cup of dried apples that we happened to have)

Preheat oven to 350* (180*C). Melt 4 T of butter in 9x13" dish (glass or ceramic is preferable); set aside.
In saucepan, heat the water and sugar until sugar melts.
Combine flour, powder, and salt; cut in remaining 6 T butter. Stir in the milk just until dough comes together. Chill the dough while preparing apples.
Turn dough onto floured surface and knead it gently until it's somewhat cohesive. Roll it gently into a 10x15-inch rectangle. Mix together the apples and cinnamon and spread them over the dough. Carefully roll the dough into a log, sticky-bun style. It may tear, but don't worry; mend it as best you can.
Cut the log into 16 slices; arrange over the butter in the dish. Pour the sugar syrup over the slices and place in the oven. Bake 40-45 minutes. The dumplings will be lightly browned on top of a still-very-liquid syrup. Be careful moving the dish.
Serve the slices with the syrup poured over the top.

or not

2011-02-09T01:40:00.002Z

Just a minor correction. Remember the other day when I said that Elijah was talking?

He's not any more.

Pretty much ever since I wrote that, he's stopped talking altogether. He points and says "da" about everything. He has many interests, but just one word. Oh well.

We did have one major milestone - Elijah is now weaned. I've let all my children self-wean, but everyone else has done it by their tenth month. Elijah was almost 15 months.

Why one should show tolerance

2011-02-06T04:03:00.002Z

We've had snow on the ground since Tuesday, and Bob has been chafing at staying indoors. Yesterday we finally broke out and puttered around Huntsville. We went to the "Pantry" - a small bulk grocery and deli run by Mennonites - and drove around a bit. Where our county road intersects the US Highway, the vehicle in front of us stopped and the driver got out, waving us around him. (This sort of thing happens all the time in England, but rarely here.)

So today we worked all morning, and after lunch went to Springdale for building supplies. At the same intersection, the car in front of us stopped and the driver got out, but only for a second. So I said, "Why is everyone stopping there??!" As the words left my mouth, Bob braked to stop at the stop sign, which happens to be at the bottom of the hill. And the thick blanket of snow that had been on top of the van since Tuesday all came sliding down the windshield. So, yes, we had to stop and Bob got out to scrape off all that snow and clear his line of sight.

We all had a laugh, and I hope I learned a bit about patience.

hey, a post!

2011-02-04T16:33:00.001Z

To make things easy on myself, I'm going to put up a note I wrote to a friend who asked for some info on our family on a variety of topics. Hopefully nobody minds. :-}

Dresses: We teach the girls to wear dresses, and so now they want to. Simple answer. We aren't so narrow minded to think that dresses are the ONLY thing ANY woman should wear, but we do think it's the BEST thing for US to wear. I believe the Bible teaches a Christian woman should be modest and feminine. That leaves a lot of room for interpretation, and each woman/family has to work that out for themselves.

Big family: I "do" it only by the grace of God. I am by nature very quiet and orderly and bookish - not a "people person." I think God sent me the children to challenge my comfort zone and make me grow. :-) I have wavered on the idea throughout my life. At times my life's ambition was to be a hermit. At other times I imagined I'd adopt and have 20 children. I never thought I'd marry a man who would work through things together with me. Anyway, about the time that Azariah was born, I started thinking about what God wanted for me in that department, instead of just thinking about what I wanted. I dug out my concordance and topical Bible, and the more I looked the more I found about how much God loves and desires children. Never saw anything about limits, or spacing, or prevention. So we went for it. :-) We've had to revise our position as time went on, and because I'm overweight and prone to joint problems, I have tried to space the children a little farther apart than would happen naturally, but I still look forward to the next one.
For the daily managing, it all kind of goes together. Since I have several children, it follows that some of them are older, and they help out a lot. Since we homeschool, I don't have to compete with outside influences as much, and the children are more what we've trained them to be.

Homeschooling: The best part? That's a hard one. I could be super-spiritual and say the best part is knowing that I'm doing what God has called me to do. Or I could be self-effacing and say the best part is not having to deal with the school personnel and programs. :-D I enjoy going at the child's own pace. Naysha is 8 and just now starting to read, where Riah is 6 and reads everything. Of course we are working with Naysha, but she's not under tremendous pressure to "catch up." I enjoy the freedom of time; that we can all go to activities during the day, or stay up late on a week night if needed. I like that Bob and I are the main influence on our children - they aren't teased or bullied into conforming with ideas we don't approve of.

Religion: We attend a little non-denominational church, and we teach the Bible, as plain and simple as we can. We read the Bible together (a chapter or less) every morning and evening, and discuss what we've read. We try to explain the hard stuff, but we don't "explain it away."

back?

2011-01-30T19:50:00.002Z

Sorry for letting the blog stagnate so long. I got my computer back and it works, but the motherboard may be going out. The first thing I did was copy all my pictures and documents - three years of life on 4 DVDs.

Suffering writer's block again... There are things in my head, simmering, but it's all stopped up.

I don't like not blogging

2011-01-23T22:54:00.002Z

There is no time right now, as we are getting ready for night church, but just had to stop in and say "hi."

Last night/this morning, about 3:30, Elijah woke up and was crying. By the time I was fully awake and dressed he'd quit, so I stood there in the dark and thought. My first reaction was grumpy and complaining, but I'd barely finished the thought when I interrupted myself and straightened up. I turned that grumpy thought upside down and gave thanks to God for providing and planning for me in such an amazing way. He has brought me to places I didn't want to go, but once I stopped griping and looked around, I realized it was a good place. (Literally and figuratively.) I am so grateful for this wonderful life I've been given!

Be blessed in the Lord this day. If you have been complaining too much, consider this your interruption. :-)

Gotta dash.

oh well

2011-01-20T19:50:00.002Z

I have lots of blog posts in my head, waiting to materialize on-screen, but my computer crashed. I push the power button, it gives one little "mmmph" and then nothing. The power light comes on, and it drains the battery, but nothing happens.

Funnily enough, Bob's desktop was doing the same thing. He took his hard drive and video card to a test/repair place, and they both checked out fine, meaning it was his motherboard. Bob didn't feel that he was capable of building a computer himself, so we went shopping. We didn't want another HP, as that one was only 2 years old (his old laptop also being an HP and the video card went out after less than 2 years). We did want a non-integrated graphics card, as Bob uses heavy graphics applications. That left us with about 2 choices in each store. After 4 stores, we made a decision and bought a ASUS. This is a new to me company, but they are getting high marks for reliability. Time will tell. Windows 7 didn't take too much getting used to; the programs work; his old hard drive is slaved in so there was no data loss.

I'm on Bob's laptop today. I'm supposed to be organizing the kitchen, but my head hurts. So I'm sitting here with the TENS machine helping some, wondering how long it'll take for me to get over myself and change a dirty diaper. No one else can smell it, of course... ;-)

We'll get things running before long.

lots o' hugs

2011-01-17T15:55:00.002Z

Last night I was blog-hopping while Bob watched something boring on Netflix, and went here, one of my bookmarks. She called my attention to this post about a family losing a toddler through a tragic accident. (Don't click unless you have a tissue handy!)

My children can tell you that I'm not overly sympathetic; I'm not even terribly sentimental, and I've never been accused of being sugary or clingy. But when I read that story I cried and cried. I got to worrying that something like this could happen to us, and then I remembered that I DID lose a child (miscarriage), and that my cousin lost a baby to accident, and there is so much grief in the world it's almost overwhelming.

Then I remembered this post that I'd linked to on Facebook just yesterday. And I repeated over and over to myself "God is good. I trust God." But I was still glad that Elijah woke up when we went to bed, so I could hold him for awhile. He just laid his head on my shoulder and let me hold him while I cried some more and prayed for each of my children in turn.

You better believe I gave each one a big hug when they woke up this morning. Reminds me of an old song, "shower the people you love with love; show them the way you feel."

smarter than the average 4 year old

2011-01-16T03:26:00.002Z

The other day (sorry; that's an inside joke. My dad uses the phrase "the other day" to mean anything from yesterday to 25 years ago) we went driving around and ended up at Eureka Springs. We went up to the Passion Play area, all closed for the winter, and some of the brave ones walked out to the Christ of the Ozarks statue.

As we were slowly driving back out past the little church, we stopped to look at what appeared to be a sign. There were some words in German, and then it said "Psalm 23." One of the boys asked "What's that?" And Ella - 4 years old and can't read in any language - said, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want." Stop for a second and let that sink in. The sign was actually a part of the Berlin Wall, according to information on site, and after contemplation I think it probably was not verse one, but rather "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil." Either way, Ella was pretty tickled with herself and went on to quote about half of the chapter. I still have no idea why she thought of saying that.

Funny names

2011-01-16T00:50:00.003Z

Yes, we have a few in our house, but that's not what I'm talking about.

There are a couple of businesses around here that really puzzle me. Do they think? Do market research? Read the sign out loud?

Business #1 - we pass this on the way to Springdale: Nacho Tire Service.
There are two problems with this. The first one is the image of nachos as tires. Nachos are thin, crispy, and usually triangular - not a good tire at all. The second has to do with southern pronunciation. "Nacho" sounds a lot like "not your." (For my non-American speaking friends, the "a" in nacho is pronounced "ah" like "father.") So there's a business, but it's not for me? For whom is it? Only Hispanic people can get there tires serviced there? Really, what are you trying to say?

Business #2 - I've seen billboards everywhere: Razorbraces. I get the idea here, really. The local college mascot is the razorback hog, and they are playing on that loyalty. But think for a minute... Braces... Razors... Do I have to explain this to YOU? Why hasn't someone explained it to the orthodontist?
I'm not the only one. Here's a website that actually has a picture of the billboard, plus a few other dumb names.

Shari's Chili

2011-01-14T03:05:00.002Z

Several years ago I came up with this recipe for Chili, and we like it a lot so I thought I'd share.

Shari's Chili

2 lbs ground beef, browned and drained of fat
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1/2 to 1 cup chopped celery
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 14-16 oz cans tomatoes, chopped, with liquid
8 oz can tomato sauce
3/4 cup beef broth
2 to 3 Tablespoons chili powder
1/2 to 1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 whole cloves
2 whole bay leaves
salt to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a crock pot. Cook several hours on low. Remove bay and cloves before serving.

Goes great with cornbread, or over Fritos, with cheese on top.

He Talks!

2011-01-14T02:18:00.002Z

Elijah is 14 months old, and he is beginning to talk. I find his vocabulary quite interesting and thought you might, too.
He says:

Mama (sounds nice, but it really means he wants a drink - applies equally to a cup of water or to breast milk)

Dog (just like it sounds. Often "dog-dog")

Hot! (He warns Tiger away from the wood stove, and reminds me to be careful whenever I add wood to the fire.)

Yes (this is actually silent; he "says" it by nodding his head emphatically)

Hi (accompanied by a wave of the hand)

Bye (accompanied by a wave of the hand)

Whoa! (when surprised, or falling, or dropping something)

More (in sign language)

Please (in sign language)

Shut the door (and "door" by itself. That he says this phrase so clearly and with the proper meaning is testament to the fact that he has 6 older siblings and it is cold outside)

water, water

2011-01-11T04:08:00.002Z

Saturday, when we were getting ready to go out, Taryn came into the living room holding up Ella's coat and said, "Ella's coat is soppy wet for some reason." Hmmm, would this need investigating? I think yes. So I told Taryn to hang the coat in the bathroom, and I went to check the crime scene.

The whole closet floor was soaked.

The water heater is in the girls' closet, and someone had loosened the drain valve, so that water was dripping out. It had soaked the carpet, the coat, a dress.... I turned the leak off, called Bob, and we set to work. We are planning to take up the carpet anyway, as there are hardwood floors underneath, so we just pulled it back out of the closet and cut it off. I cut back the carpet pad while Bob pulled up the tack strips, and we got it dried out in no time. I did leave the window open while we were gone to let the air circulate.

We were a little put out by the delay and the waste, but very glad there wasn't any thing wrong with the water heater.

The Other Boleyn Girl

2011-01-10T02:51:00.002Z

By Philippa Gregory

Well, hmmm. Overall impression: I enjoyed the book, enjoyed reading it. I'm not entirely sure if I *liked* it, though.

It's the story of Mary Boleyn, mistress to Henry VIII of England, and sister to his second wife (one of the beheaded ones). The book was made into a movie a few years ago, but I haven't seen it yet. I did, however, recognize a few scenes from HBO's "The Tudors" which I watched a few minutes of a few years ago when we had cable because it made our internet cheaper. The book was written in '01, so I guess the TV show got some ideas from the book.

Given the subject matter, there was quite a lot of "bedding" going on, but I would judge the book "R" rated rather than "X".

The main complaints were the continual harping on women's rights, and a few gaps in the story. The first - every so often a character would have an outburst about women not being valued, or equal, or free. But the story didn't bear that out to me. It seems that NO one, man or woman, was valued or equal or free. Only the King got whatever he wanted, and even he couldn't get what he wanted most (a son). Inequalities were based more on rank than gender. The second - a few lines were started, but never got back to, and then at the end one person was arrested that I'd never heard of before. That might be a fault with my reading rather than the writing, but it bugged me to have this character show up as if we knew him, and I didn't.

Then of course there's the actual story: family rivalry, beheadings, divorce, church and state politics, and heir-making.

What I hope to take away from the book is an impression of Queen Katherine. She was a real lady. Maybe some would consider her weak or even silly, but I admire the great strength that was required to smile, be gentle and non-reproachful as her husband continued to behave badly. She determined to do the right thing, even in the wrong circumstances, and to focus on charity rather than blaming those who were clearly wrong. It's the sermon on the mount in a corset. :-D

So that's my version of a book review. Hope you enjoy.