|
||||
RSSArchive for the ‘family life’ CategoryPhotohunt: Pointed (rock and spade)Posted July 5th, 2008 by Jen in family life, the ranch5 Comments »
Today’s photohunt theme is pointed. The pointed spade smoothes on the mortar for the pointed rocks. This section of wall is part of the outer front facade of our home. The rock work may be done by the end of the weekend - one step closer to moving in!
We are grateful to God for the blessing of this home, for however long or short He chooses for us to make this our dwelling place. Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, construction, photo hunt, ranch, mortar, rock, masonry Independence Day!Posted July 4th, 2008 by Jen in family life, holidays, the ranch4 Comments »
We enjoyed our hometown Independence Day parade this morning, and the girls got their fill of horses…and candy. I call them “professional parade goers” since they never forget to bring their candy bags, and beg to go to any parade within a hundred mile radius. At first, I thought they just loved parades. I’m a slow learner.
We talked about the first 4th of July and will be listening to this story today about George Washington. If you have young children, I highly recommend subscribing to You Need a Story, an outstanding weekly production from Robert Green that will show up in your inbox every Tuesday or so, always an exhilarating audio adventure, maybe a classic, maybe an unknown literary gem. Here is a photo of my kids’ favorite parade entry this year: They adore the miniature horses, and we pass the farm where they live nearly every day, so they said a friendly hello! And of course, our dear friends from Lone Pine Clydesdales were back at this parade, all rested from last week’s parade.
“Was it for a great and awesome destiny?” JJ prodded. “Or a miracle?” I loved her guesses! What a thoughtful and creative mind. I certainly have those wishes for our great nation!! Do you have a wish for America? And any parade pictures posted? Let me know, and enjoy a lovely Independence Day, my fellow Americans. Technorati Tags: Fourth of July, You Need a Story, American flag, Independence Day WW: Christmas in JulyPosted July 2nd, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, family life13 Comments »
Ho, ho, ho!! Merry Christmas in July from my little soap-beard-Santa. For more Wordless Wednesday, visit the main page. ****** Technorati Tags: children, Christmas in July, wordless Wednesday America: the good, the bad, and the uglyPosted June 29th, 2008 by Jen in family life, holidays, humor, politics/world news, the ranch18 Comments » This next weekend ushers in the birthday of the United States of America! Here are a few word pictures from this past week from me, in small town America, 232 years and still going. I’ve included the good, the bad, and the ugly, but as you’ll see, in America, we take the good with the bad and roll with it, and even the ugly - well, it’s a free country and we can call ugly if we want. Yesterday morning, at a local parade, celebrating that old west pastime called Rodeo, I was thrilled to see my friends’ Clydesdales in all their hugeness. This was GOOD.
And where else but Prineville could I find the Amazing Trash Can Marching Band? They dispose of garbage in step and in style. These guys were GOOD!
On to the BAD…look at the interesting mound I discovered on our property a few days ago.
Kids, do NOT jump in the pretty pile, because…take a closer look: Ooowwww. These are some aggressive ants, and I’ve been scrambling to find out what they are. Most notably, they have a red head and body and a shiny black behind. At first glance, they look and act just like the Allegheny Mound Ants. Build enormous piles. Have red head/thorax and black abdomen. But those mostly live in the upper Midwest to the New England states and south to Georgia. So, another possibility is the Red Imported Fire Ant (RIFA). They also build mounds. Also have red forebody and black abdomen. But they live mostly in the southeast, however a few California counties have been infested, and there’s been suspected infestations in Oregon. I’m supposed to immediately contact the Oregon Department of Agriculture if I think I have these RIFAs, because they are considered an invasive species, and a serious health risk to pets and children, not to mention the damage that can be done to crops and other native plant life. A final suspect, perhaps the most likely, is the harvester ant. This is a common desert ant, which fits my habitat. Another aggressive mound-building ant. Someone wrote a whole thesis on the harvester ant and how it’s helpful in locating small artifacts in archaeological surveys. I think I’ll start digging for Paiute relics in this very spot. The only issue I’m trying to resolve with the harvester ants is whether it’s likely for them to have a red head/thorax and a black rear. This is the only photograph from the Oregon high desert (or anywhere) I can find that fits what I see here on my property; the rest are all red or all black. Anyone? I can’t live with these creatures. It’s summertime and they are seriously swarming. They inflict especially painful stings and bites. Enter the brave husband. With the poison. We are not poison-happy people, but there are limits to my consciousness. Don’t worry, my pretties, there’s enough here for everyone. Take this to your egg laying machine MOMMY!! But here’s a small problem. I went back to the mound yesterday, expecting it to be very quiet. But no. More activity and seemingly more ants than ever. I re-poisoned the area, and I’ll check again later.
Enough of the BAD! But, remember, this is the United States, and I actually own this land of the mother-of-all-anthills (and have many ant poison options), God bless America! Would you like to see the UGLY from small town America?
Isn’t it great that a local fruit stand can sell delicious, sweet oranges, ugly and all? Great value, free from government imposed pricing, grown on fruitful land in a country where one can actually be a land-owner, we are so fortunate. If you really want ugly, you can read this supposed celebrate-America-Fourth-of-July-but-really-just-leftist-propaganda editorial, for which this newspaper should be ashamed. How about these berries? I feel some baking coming on. One aisle over from the ugly oranges, and as beautiful as they come. In closing, I hope you enjoy this lovely song, one of my very favorites, from that incredible musician, Rich Mullins. Here in America. Some of my favorite lyrics from this song: “…Once I went to Appalachia, for my father he was born there, and I saw the mountains waking with the innocence of children…and the Holy King of Israel loves me here, in America!” Do you have anything (good, bad, or ugly) to share from your slice of America? God Bless the U.S.A.
Technorati Tags: fruit stand, ants, July 4th Parade, Crooked River Roundup, Fourth of July, Clydesdales, Rich Mullins, Here in America It’s all in the glasses.Posted June 24th, 2008 by Jen in family life, humor, parenting13 Comments » “Your students would really like you, Mom.” My almost 9-year-old son was speaking in a serious voice, knowingly pointing to his head. I was a classroom teacher before I had all these kids, and I was talking to my young ones about teaching. I smiled, completely warmed by his sweetness. “You know,” he continued, “they would think you are really intelligent.” More warming, and even little pitter-patters in my heart. What a kind-hearted, encouraging boy, he thinks Mom is smart! “You really think so?” I say, hoping for more of these lovely compliments. Having been his teacher for the past few years, it’s good to know that he values my brilliance, my astute nature, my… “Of course, Mom!” he states matter-of-factly. “It’s the glasses. They make you really smart.” Oh. The glasses. That’s what he so knowingly pointed to, not my clever brain at all. Ahem. Adjusting my glasses here. So, would you like to know where I purchased my super-powered glasses? Because I’m sure you all want a pair now. The Squeaky Wheel…gets locked in the bathroom.Posted June 17th, 2008 by Jen in family life, humor7 Comments » I do need grease, however. I was kept up half the night by the continuous, high pitched, squeak of a wheel. A little mouse, running on his little wheel, squeaking his little squeak, invading my sweet little dreams. Not a metaphor, my dear reader, this was reality. Big L saved up his money and bought a small, gray mouse yesterday, along with some mouse accessories, including a running wheel. Cute as a button and not much bigger, but goodness, he does run and squeak. I had no idea that an eight-week-old mouse had such stamina. I’m mouse-sitting right now while the kids are at Vacation Bible School. His name is Nampff, named so because his master likes the letters ‘N’ and ‘F.’ Note to self: buy some DW-40 today, so I don’t have to lock the mouse cage in the bathroom again to block out the everlasting squeaking of the wheel. I just need to get a decent night’s sleep. Note to pet store owners: don’t sell squeaky wheels. Revisiting Father’s DayPosted June 15th, 2008 by Jen in family life, parenting, religion8 Comments » I was commenting today over at Tipper’s blog, Blind Pig & the Acorn, on her Father’s Day post, and I’m reposting my comment right here, because it’s a good follow up to my previous post. Tipper blogs about her Appalachian heritage, a favorite subject of mine (with my own Appalachian father from the hills of West Virginia), and I’m seeking to reclaim some of those roots. Tipper’s post asked for three random facts about your dad.
p.s. Julie has a blog tag about an “a-ha!” moment you’ve had this week, so this will count as mine! Go check it out and see if you can come up with something, and if you’re reading this and would like to play along, consider yourself “tagged.” And if you also have some things to share about your dad, visit Tipper. Technorati Tags: family life, Father’s Day, Appalachia, fatherless, childhood memories, God, relationships For the Fatherless on Father’s DayPosted by Jen in family life, parenting, religion8 Comments » I am fatherless. On Father’s Day, I celebrate my husband as father of our children. But I’m still reminded that I am fatherless. You say God is my father. I’ve heard many, many sermons about how even if you don’t have an earthly father, God is your heavenly father, and that makes everything right -but I’m still understanding and accepting this concept. It’s an amazing truth, though, and taking hold of God as Abba Father, especially for the earthly fatherless, is powerful and redemptive. Redemptive to the same degree you accept Him as Abba, and lay down your pain, anger, disappointment, and mistrust. Greg Laurie has some great thoughts on this today; you may be blessed to read this. Of Deer Sheds and EggshellsPosted June 12th, 2008 by Jen in family life, the ranch15 Comments »
JoJo made the big find of the day, with this great deer antler. We stumble upon at least one every spring, as the deer run our property year round, and bed down and poop all over the place make themselves at home here. I remember my children’s amazement when they discovered that deer shed their antlers and grow a new set every year. Note to the deranged individual who continually posts comments here (I love my delete button) about how my husband, the deer hunter, is a “worthless, inhumane piece of sh*t for killing poor innocent deer” - JoJo did not kill this deer nor rip the antler from its head, the Hunter had nothing to do with this, and we love deer as creatures as well as deer for meat.
There’s nothing so lovely as watching children play in nature, discovering the wonder of God’s creation. Even when said deer horn is used by one child to impale the head of another child, it’s all worth it. It was an accident, people (and oddly enough, only involved the girls). Something to do with a made-up game called “Deer Fighters.” Stitches not even required, but today’s hike cancelled. I realize there are people who are “professional deer shed hunters.” They make money off these. Just in case anyone is tempted to come gather these, or any other objects, from our property, we have several signs posted just for you, all some variation of this one: Have a sunny day!
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, children, country, family life, homesteading, outdoor play, ranch, spring, wildlife, eggshells, deer sheds Still Dancin’Posted June 2nd, 2008 by Jen in family life18 Comments »
I looked through old wedding photos today. I fed him a piece of wedding cake, and I’m still feeding him today. It was not the smoothest of weddings, with 100 degree heat and babies crying through the entire thing, and our life since has not always been the smoothest thing. But we go on, we trust in God to give us the strength and courage to unceasingly love and serve one another. We plan, and dream, and laugh and hope together.
[posted for the Marriage Monday wedding post]
Technorati Tags: marriage, Marriage Monday, wedding dance Giving Thanks…for bread and beans…Posted May 29th, 2008 by Jen in family life, religion18 Comments »
Giving thanks today. Iris at Sting My Heart hosts the Thankful Thursday meme, and I thought I’d participate. I actually desperately need to participate today. Forgetting to give thanks to God for His many blessings is a paved road to bitterness, depression, anger, hopelessness, and despair. I’d rather not go there. So, today, I thank the Lord for…. ……the breadmaker my mother-in-law gave me almost 12 years ago, so I could make a fresh loaf this morning, as we are out of bread (dough only cycle is a lifesaver)…. ….the left-over beans and hotdogs from Connie’s BBQ, which she kindly sent home with us, so we could have a nice dinner last night, as we are out of everything…. ….the bag of coffee from Jane, from Christmas, stuffed in the back of the cupboard, discovered in the nick of time this morning, so I could have a nice cuppa joe to start my day, as we are also out of coffee…. ….an email this morning from my sister, Julia, asking me about a creation science children’s show, encouraging because I need to know I’m not alone in this journey…. ….an email this morning from my friend, Julie, inviting our family and a few others on a hike to the Camp Sherman fish hatchery, encouraging because I need fellowship with other believers…. ….the New Hope Church (in Hawaii) website, which has the daily Life Journal reading, so I can keep to a good schedule of Bible reading, as I will die a slow death otherwise…. ….a new family I just met on the side of the road (who randomly stopped to watch Chuck’s cannon shoot), who also homeschool and are also Christians, and live out our way in the country, encouraging because even though I haven’t called the wife yet, just knowing they are there, 5 or 10 minutes away, brings hope…. What are you thankful for today? Technorati Tags: Christianity, relationships, Thankful Thursday Happy Monday…Posted May 19th, 2008 by Jen in family life8 Comments » A quick little check-in here! If you were wondering, I’ve moved my friend Pixie’s “feature” story until Wednesday, May 21. She’s been out of town, celebrating her fabulous 50th! I’ve been busy and had company as well…and today is my husband’s birthday, so my family is further wrapped up in festivities. I look forward to telling you about Pixie, though. My next two feature ladies (Pixie and Connie) are amazing women who really embody the pioneer spirit that Oregon women are known for. Anyway, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the Hunter, the Pinewood Derby Dad, the Swimmer, the Father, the Teacher, the Husband, and everything else you are to us.
Technorati Tags: birthday, children, family life Imaginary friend, anyone?Posted May 16th, 2008 by Jen in family life, humor15 Comments »
When we’re done checking out our books at the library, JoJo loves to read with “statue girl” who appears to be permanently attached to this child-sized bench in the foyer. I might catch a snatch of conversation, and JoJo sits real close and just enjoys the company of her bronzed friend. My Aloha Friday question for this lovely May day is this:
I faintly remember having imaginary conversations with little friends, but the friends were usually people I actually knew. Then again, I think I had some imaginary friendships with characters I loved from my favorite books. I distinctly remember my dear stuffed animals, who I set around my bed every night as I told them to be on watch while I slept. Have you seen the Jimmy Stewart movie Harvey (1950)? He plays Elwood P. Dowd, a lovable guy with an imaginary pal who happens to be a six-foot-three rabbit. Can you top that?
Technorati Tags: aloha friday, imaginary friend, childhood memories, children Meanwhile, back at the ranchPosted May 13th, 2008 by Jen in carnivals, family life, the ranch11 Comments » Would you like to see what we’ve been up to at the ranch? The outside is nearly done, save for some dormers, the porch, and landscaping. Here’s the view from the east side.
Inside, we’ve been busy, busy. Drywall and texture is now complete, and tomorrow we begin painting. We spent the morning finalizing our interior colors (mostly earthy tones, some yellows, browns). We’re doing it ourselves, and the rest of today will find me and the kids pulling up paper from the floor and sweeping/vacuuming all the dust, in preparation for tomorrow. Here is my husband’s grand office last week (since been textured and primed):
It’s not all work and no play. The kids run around and find so many interesting things to do for a break. Like climbing trees: ….catching lizards…. We hope to be moved in to our new place in a few months. It’s been about three years since we first embarked on this project, so you can imagine how ready we are to be done, how excited we are to be “home,” how exhausted we are. :-) Learning in the Great Outdoors Technorati Tags: blog carnival, Central Oregon, country, family life, building a house, outdoor play, outdoors Magnum Opus: Happy Mother’s DayPosted May 10th, 2008 by Jen in family life, parenting17 Comments » HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY, all you moms, grandmothers, great-grandmothers, god-mothers, and lovers of little ones!! My husband captured this sweet moment with my littlest a few weeks ago. For Mother’s Day, I’d like to repost a tiny piece I wrote over a year ago, and in fact it was only the second post on this blog. Since I had about one reader at the time, you probably didn’t notice this:
These are some of the greatest lines of literature I’ve read on the subject of motherhood and parenting. Now, I just have four, not 514, but those four are absolutely the finest things I have ever made. I couldn’t state my calling any better than Charlotte, and her words are more inspiring than any parenting book I’ve read. Technorati Tags: Mother’s Day, Charlotte’s Web, magnum opus, motherhood Breakfast al frescoPosted May 7th, 2008 by Jen in family life, parenting11 Comments »
It’s that time of year; I’ll have syrup and sunshine on my pancakes, please. Technorati Tags: breakfast al fresco, outdoors, children The Crazy Way We Met: it all started on the road to Catalina IslandPosted May 5th, 2008 by Jen in family life24 Comments » “The Crazy Way We Met” is the topic for this month’s Marriage Monday group writing project at Chrysalis. I was on a long and torturous bus trip from Eugene, Oregon down to Catalina Island, California, with dozens of junior high youth group kids for their spring break church camp. This was my first big activity as a youth leader in this church, and it would seem I only landed there because I had nothing better to do. The youth pastor was driving, and called me up for a chat. I barely knew him or any of the other leaders at this point, so this was probably a follow up to my criminal history check. :-) Okay, not really, this church actually does a good job of screening its youth workers. But I may have appeared to be a bit of a basket case. I had just quit law school, which had been my goal my entire life, and was about to run away to France, where I had already committed to be an au pair for a French family in Besançon with four lovely children. So, the pastor says, “Jen, where do you see yourself in say, ten years?” I honestly couldn’t see beyond this head-numbing bus ride, and said as much. “I have no idea…maybe somewhere in France? I don’t know, but probably not Oregon.” I was only in Oregon for law school, and now I had no reason to be here. However, “something” caused the pastor to make a pretty bold statement, which I will never in my life forget:
Yep, the very first time I ever heard my husband’s name was this crazy youth pastor telling me I would marry this unknown person. Being the intensely curious person that I am, I immediately began asking, “Who is C.T.?!” It turned out that C.T. had been working with the youth group for a while, but then moved up to Portland to take a job with IBM. Lucky for me, his little cousin Kelly was in 7th or 8th grade at the time and was on this very trip on this very bus. She must have overheard my baffled question of “Who is C.T.?” and was more than eager to tell me what a COOL cousin she had! Not two months later, I met C.T. His department at IBM folded, he left for a month long surf trip to Baja, and then with nothing more exciting to do, returned to Eugene. On a Wednesday night, outside the Jr. High youth building, I stood with a few of the kids and watched a hot guy stride across the parking lot in our general direction. I had never seen so much as a photograph of the guy, but I instantly knew this was him. Less than a year later he asked me to be his wife, and we were married after the briefest 4-month engagement. How my pastor could have seen any scratch of compatibility is a wonder. I was a studious, bookish type, he was a surfer with a rebellious streak. But, we both loved the Lord passionately, had a knack for youth work, and little did I know at the time (much less the first few years of marriage), but I couldn’t have hoped for a better soul-mate and best friend for life. Here I am, not in France, but beautiful Oregon, now married to C.T. for going on 12 years, raising four of our own lovely children. The moral of the story: God is good. He knows better than you. He truly has a unique plan for your life. Sometimes He chooses to speak a prophetic word through a crazy youth pastor, so be listening.
Technorati Tags: dating, relationships, Catalina Island, Eugene, Oregon, marriage Even My Dog Has a Blankie!Posted May 2nd, 2008 by Jen in carnivals, family life, humor20 Comments »
My Aloha Friday Question is this:
From the loveable Linus eternally dragging his blanket to that maddening Maggie Simpson sucking on her pacifier with every breath, a child’s need for a comfort item seems to be universal. What sort of character were you? If you can’t remember or think you had no special comfort thing, what about your own children? Me, I had a bottle. I actually have no memory of being attached to my bottle; I only know from old photographs showing in stark black and white my chubby little hands clutching what must have been my soothing object. Plus, my big sister says so.
Technorati Tags: aloha friday, baby bottle, blankie, childhood attachment, family life, Linus, pacifier, dog BrothersPosted April 29th, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, family life, the ranch24 Comments »
My two country boys.
Technorati Tags: brothers, children, country, wordless Wednesday Carnival of Family Life: Tea EditionPosted April 28th, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, carnivals, family life9 Comments »
By the eighteenth century tea had taken hold of Britain and one remarkable consequence was the rapid development of pottery and porcelain for tea wares. The original Chinese tea cups were tiny fragile things without handles or saucers. The Europeans modified accordingly to suit their grand tastes for tea, making a bigger cup, and giving the teacup a handle to make holding a hot cup an easier matter. One ingenious tea cup variation of the late nineteenth century was the mustache cup. This cup was fitted with a bar across the inside for the drooping mustache to rest upon so the tea could be swallowed without first passing through a hairy filter. Which brings me to the first post about family pets (just thinking about hair): Matt M presents Polluted Pets EDUCATION Josh Lien presents Free Rosetta Stone - Learn a Foreign Language Elaine presents 2 - Two Little Dicky Birds Rose presents Trendy, green, frugal, and homeschooling Mark Montgomery presents Visiting College Campuses: Observations by a Professional Tour-Taker Renae presents Muss-Makers FAMILY FINANCE iMagxz presents 22 uses for Toothpaste tipsandtricks presents Getting More From The Tube Neelakantha presents 101 Tips & Resources for the Upside-Down Homeowner Matthew Paulson presents Lunchtime Lessons: Cheap Fixin’s and Good Ideas Debt Freedom Fighter presents 5 Ways To Save Money On Everyday Purchases Ken Clark presents Mother’s Day: Shop for Mom and Save for College Linda W. presents How To Talk About Money With Your Partner Mark Butler presents Living With Less Fathersez presents How I intend to help my daughters secure jobs they would like Leaving The Folks presents Creating a Budget Amy @ The Q Family presents Be a Hero. “Save the Cash, Save the World” Stephanie presents Coupons and Deals Matthew Paulson presents Cheap Vacation Idea: Don’t Leave Home Debt Freedom Fighter presents Why God Doesn’t Always Answer Prayers About Money K presents Meal Planning On Vacation
FAMILY HEALTH AND WELLNESS Theresa L. Twogood presents Big Picture Progressive Exposure Amy Vernon presents Are plastic baby bottles really dangerous? Aparna presents Correcting a gummy smile
FAMILY HUMOR Robert Bach presents Daddy Daughter Day Harrison presents Top 20 Wedding Dresses You Wouldn’t Be Caught Dead In Jenny Rapson presents My Daughter, the Cover Girl Tipper presents Lightning Strikes & Granny Terri Mauro presents Our First Special Olympics
FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS Evan Pangburn presents Park Chapel Christian Church Baby Dedication Erica presents Kids or Career? American Women Are Still Forced to Choose BeThisWay presents Love Uncluttered Jen presents Seasons Come and Seasons Go Amy Dyck presents Raw Passion Steven Chang presents Reconnecting With Your Spouse Leslie Williams presents The Nature of the Beast, A Problem to be Addressed, or Failure as a Mother
Christine presents The Earth Laughs in Flowers FitBuff presents Nintendo Wii Fit Release Date GP presents Mending Fences.. Not for the Sheepish Riley presents A Plumm Summer Kelsey presents Kids’ Face Painting PARENTING TIPS AND ADVICE Fred Black presents Have we Forgotten Amanda presents Keeping up, the story of three journals Abel Cheng presents What I Did When My Daughter said, “I Don’t Want to Go to School!” Lori Jewett presents Baby Talk Jessica Jones presents Winning at Parenting through Trust Neena presents Parenting Tips: Naptime Chief Family Officer presents Potty Training Tips Melitsa presents Tip: Sound communication This concludes the Carnival of Family Life: Tea Edition. Said Rev. Sydney Smith on tea and posts: “It is a place with only one post a day…In the country I always fear that creation will expire before tea-time. (from The Smith of Smiths). Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Family Life using the handy BlogCarnival Submission Form. Up next at All Rileyed Up. Technorati Tags: blog carnival, Carnival of Family Life, tea party, tea time How can I possibly have a child old enough to ride a motorcycle?Posted April 24th, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, family life, parenting, the ranch7 Comments »
Here is Big L, in all his nearly-nine-year-old glory, with his first motorcycle. I guess this is what comes after the “big boy bike.” First they shed the training wheels, then they shed the pedals. He was enjoying a ride around the trails Dad made at the property, his reward for spending a few hours helping clean up the drywall debris. He’s big enough for real work now, and when Dad called me to drop Big L off at the property to help him, it was not out of an affectionate desire for his company (although that’s a nice benefit), but because he truly needed a hand. I feel like I’m in a sort of time warp, watching my boy become a man before my very eyes. Vroom-vroom!
Technorati Tags: parenting, motorcycles, children, growing up, family life Carnival of Family Life - up next here!Posted by Jen in blog stuff, carnivals, family life2 Comments »
I look forward to presenting your excellent family posts! Be sure to come back here to Diary of 1 to see the great variety of articles on Monday, April 28. Oh, and the Christian Carnival is hosted this week at Everyday Liturgy.
Technorati Tags: blog carnival, Carnival of Family Life When Your 6-year-old Makes You CryPosted April 17th, 2008 by Jen in family life, parenting17 Comments » She tried to hide the card under my pillow last night, but Dad shooed her off to bed, not knowing her mission. This morning she was grumpy-sad because her big brother had taken the card from its safe-keeping under her own pillow and placed it in what he thought was a safer location. But all she knew was that it was gone. What the child went through to get a special card for her mom. She bought it with her own money, all the money she had, having no occasion but love, taking great pains to make it a surprise, and made me cry. I mostly cried because the card read, in pretty Hallmark lettering, “You’re Never Too Busy to Be a Wonderful Mom.” And even more precious was her own lettering inside, “Best Mom.” But I am too busy. I get short-tempered and forget to speak gently. I don’t deserve such a showering of affection. I was tenderly aware that I cannot take advantage of a child’s unconditional love for a parent. Yes, she would love me, and does love me, despite my many failings. There is such hope in the knowledge that love covers a multitude of sins, and my little girl so encouraged me to live up to her childlike love, and to possess that kind of love myself. I am the luckiest mom around to have a 6-year-old make me cry. Carnival of Homesteading #45Posted April 14th, 2008 by Jen in arts & crafts, blog stuff, carnivals, family life, health/cooking/food, the ranch10 Comments »
So here is a very SIMPLE carnival, which I suppose is in keeping with the theme of homesteading! There were just 12 submissions, which I’ve listed first, followed by some of my own Top 10 Editor’s Picks that I grabbed from around the blogosphere, which fit the homesteading motif. You’ll find my own small commentary following each post. (Let me know if you find any errors, omissions, bad links, etc.) Rose Denson presents Spearmint Hot Pepper Horseradish Spray posted at Grandma Rosie’s Texas Home.
Dora Renee’ Wilkerson presents Making Cottage Cheese posted at Y-2K Hippie.
Belle presents My Diary of No Shampoo—-Day 4 and 5 posted at Born 100 Years to Soon.
Valereee presents Foraging: hot new foodie trend, or the hottest new foodie trend? posted at Cincinnati Locavore.
Dave Trenholm presents How to Make a Square Foot Garden posted at Alberta Home Gardening.
Moobeema presents MooBee Farm: The Burn Barrel Incident posted at MooBee Farm.
Sister Brenda presents Da Yooper Pasties Recipe and Tutorial posted at haflinger.
Flossie presents Aunt Lizzie’s Pound Cake posted at The Funny Farm.
Stephanie presents So Much to Say! posted at Adventures in the 100 Acre Wood.
GP presents How Green is Your Garden posted at Innstyle Montana- Come on Inn.
Miss Amanda presents Cake Baking Photo Essay posted at My Learning Experience.
Jacque Dixon presents From the Archives- Gardening 101 - You *Can* Teach Your Children!! posted at Seeking Rest in the Ancient Paths.
At Tales from Creekistan, I found The Daffodil House. Just don’t look inside the house. At Blind Pig & the Acorn, I enjoyed The Fields of Home. I love that field, and read her garden wisdom. At Hidden Haven Homestead, this author is Counting Blessings. I’m just trying to count the goats. Down On The Farm shares some “Tails” From the Farm. In search of the perfect Jersey cow - bringing Buttercup home to the Back Forty. At Kentucky Hollers, Running Into the Neighbors can be a literal experience, and Catherine discovers that sometimes movie stars retire to the Appalachian foothills. Adventures in Farming coins a new saying, Snug as pigs in straw. The cutest little things I’ve ever seen. In My Kitchen Garden has an intriguing offer: Attention Homeless Organic Vegetable Lovers: Would You Like To Move To A Farm? Seriously. Pack your bags and go live with the enormous pot-bellied pig. Old Red Barn Co. clarifies work: It’s the reason you have kids, afterall. It was planting time, and lucky for Dana, she has a few sprightly young’uns. Yarnstorm muses about tulips and tempests.Wow, those colors. CraftApple instructs us on Gathering. For the seamstress in you - simple, foolproof techniques for a perfect gather. Happy homesteading, now get on with your baking, planting, stitching, haying, milking, crafting, canning, quilting life! Stay tuned next week, when the Homesteading Carnival will be hosted by Jacque at Seeking Rest in Ancient Paths. Submit your Homesteading posts HERE. Technorati Tags: blog carnival, carnivals, farm, garden, gardening with children, homesteading Homesteading Blog Carnival: Call for SubmissionsPosted April 10th, 2008 by Jen in blog stuff, carnivals, family life, the ranch0 Comments My, another blog carnival is on the way! The Homesteading Carnival will be hosted here at Diary of 1 this coming Monday, April 14. You can submit your blog post/article HERE by Sunday at 9 p.m. EST. This blog carnival description reads:
Now, if you don’t have a big ranch or farm with 12 children milking goats and collecting eggs every day, do not exclude yourself from this carnival! The Homestead Act (1863) provided the original homesteader with 160 acres if he could build a home on the property and inhabit the place for five years. But how many folks have 160 acres these days? And certainly not for free. Homesteading has a broader interpretation these days. There are urban homesteaders who may not have a lot of real estate but sure have a lot of self-sufficiency. Maybe you have a balcony vegetable garden, maybe you have some good advice for living simply, being frugal yet generous, becoming debt free, or have figured out creative ways for how to make do with less. Please share your wisdom!! Here is an unfortunate thing for a Christian like myself: Christian perspectives about homesteading are lost among the ideas of earth/nature worshippers, pantheists, pagans, socialists, New Age thinkers, and other extremes of the “green” movement. I believe that the Bible has answers for a rightly balanced life, with God at the center, and that Christian homesteading can be a piece of this balance. Once again, submit your homesteading blog post HERE, and I look forward to presenting an educational and inspiring collection of articles on Monday! OH, and don’t forget to leave a comment on my Gardening With Children post if you’d like to win a copy of Roots, Shoots, Bucket & Boots: Gardening Together With Children. Closes on Sunday evening. (The author, Sharon Lovejoy, left me a sweet comment on that post! Not a paid post, just a kind author.) First Juice StandPosted April 9th, 2008 by Jen in family life11 Comments »
Lessons learned by the girls: (from Mom) Do not yell at passers-by. (from self) Sometimes it’s your lucky day and someone gives you $1.00 instead of 25 cents. Sometimes someone gives you 35 cents instead of 25 cents. Sometimes you only have two customers. For Wordless Wednesday participants, visit 5 Minutes for Mom or the WW Hub. For weekend photography blogs, visit PhotoHunt or Wordless Weekend.
Technorati Tags: children, juice stand, sisters, wordless Wednesday Are you happy or are you holy?Posted April 7th, 2008 by Jen in family life, religion12 Comments » Marriage: For Happiness or Holiness? This is the topic for the Marriage Monday group writing project over at Chrysalis. I admit I really didn’t know where to begin on this topic because I was a little confused; I had never considered this view of marriage as either/or, but as both or none. Happiness and Holiness in marriage are certainly not mutually exclusive. I had to ask e-Mom over at Chrysalis what she was getting at. Well, once I figured out that there’s a book out there by a gentleman named Gary Thomas called Sacred Marriage with the subtitle “What if God designed marriage to make us holy more than to make us happy?”, it all made sense. I haven’t read the book, so I can’t presume to know all of Mr. Thomas’ basic premises. However, I did find an old article he published in Christianity Today (1999) in which he addressed the exact subject:
This cleared things right up. Why an entire book needs to be written when these four paragraphs would do… But like I said, I haven’t read the book, and I feel this way about nearly all self-help books, not just this one. IF happiness in this discussion is a selfish, inwardly focused, pleasure-seeking state of mind, and holiness is that state in which we are growing in the character of Christ, then this is an easy discussion. It seems that a self-focused happiness (what will make ME feel good) is in opposition to true humility. Humility is that holy quality of being free from pride, being intent on serving our spouse and meeting his/her needs, considering the other above ourself. So, yes, marriage should be more about working toward holiness than happiness. IF, however, happiness in this discussion is a mutual feeling you share with your spouse, as in, “we have such a happy marriage,” or a joint sense with your spouse of contentment, joy, and pleasure in your marriage, then this seems to be a holy thing in itself. And it seems silly to try to put this happiness in juxtaposition with holiness, because the two are working together like two parts of a body, just as the scriptures command. Happiness or holiness? I’ll take both, please. Five Year Old’s Solution to HellPosted April 4th, 2008 by Jen in family life, parenting, religion22 Comments » Aloha, it’s Friday! My fun question for you today is this:
Here is my answer, from a very amusing incident last week: Now that JoJo has turned 5, she is very smart. Perhaps she will go straight from kindergarten to seminary, for, you see, she has solved the problem of hell. We listened to Matthew ch. 5 today, and afterward I asked the kids what they thought. JoJo said it was a little bit scary - the part about someone’s whole body being cast into hell (v. 30). The fires, the eternal burning - even theologians have a difficult time understanding this concept. Is this real? Is hell a metaphor? But no matter, like I said, JoJo is very smart, and she had a solution:
Do you have a great “out of the mouths of babes” moment? I’d love to hear it, leave me a comment! (You can visit An Island Life for more Aloha Friday participants.) Technorati Tags: children, Christianity, faith, God, hell, heaven WW: How to Catch a RaindropPosted April 2nd, 2008 by Jen in family life11 Comments »
For more Wordless Wednesday participants, visit 5 Minutes for Mom or the Wordless Wednesday hub. Technorati Tags: catching raindrops, children, outdoor play, spring, rain, wordless Wednesday The Poison PostPosted March 31st, 2008 by Jen in education, family life, health/cooking/food11 Comments » I had a terrible scare this afternoon that led me to even know the following information:
Well, I did not want to write this post and have put it off, because I hate those stupid emails about freakish things that could happen to you. I always delete them, and just today a friend sent me an email about all the symptoms of a deadly form of breast cancer. I just can’t handle it all. HOWEVER, because MY CHILD just today nearly poisoned himself to death, I do feel compelled to give you all a reminder about Tips to Prevent Poisonings. I just wrote a post this morning about how Little L got into Big L’s candy basket. He is just one of those kids. He is 3 1/2, loves sweet things, and he is naughty, sneaky, and dishonest, God bless his cute little cheeks. We are working on all of these issues. And DAMN IT, children’s medicine is SWEET. I’m sorry, I’m just really angry about that right now. I couldn’t find Little L. He was supposed to be playing with Big L and the girls on the porch. They didn’t know where he was. I raced into the kitchen and t | ||||
JoJo and JJ would like to wish you all a Happy 4th of July! They say “We love America” and hope you do, too.
Dear children! I had had to say more than once. This holiday is about FREEDOM not candy! I don’t recall this inundation with treats at my childhood 4th of July parades. It’s all in good fun, but for kids the age of mine, it can be…distracting!
We stopped at our property on the way back to our rental house, and Big L took a moment to make a wish. “What did you wish for?” inquired JJ. “I can’t tell you!” he says.
America is soooo great, that even our “ugly” isn’t that bad. Okay, that is not true, there are truly horrific things going on in America, just as there are around the world. We all need Jesus! But, with our great nation’s birthday upon us, I’d rather find a bit of humor, a bit of appreciation for our free country.
“Mom! Look!” I had walked right by the 4-point deer shed, trying to keep my eye on the six children running wildly through our Juniper forest, praying the littlest ones wouldn’t trip on all the volcanic rock outcroppings. We had company, and they hadn’t seen our property yet, so off we went on a hike.
Big L was distraught that he was not the one to find the great antler, but some bird saved the day. His spirits returned as he soon raced over to me with his find: an enormous eggshell. We pondered what feathered friend could have hatched out of this. An owl? A hawk? An eagle? It’s anyone’s guess, but his treasure. Incidentally, he did find a spike antler later that day, which he immediately turned into a weapon.
Almost 12 years ago, we had our first dance as man and wife. It was in the old Franklin Grange outside Eugene, Oregon, just across the road from the tall-spired century old church where the wedding was held. I in my lovely white dress, handmade by a local dressmaker, he in his crisp tuxedo, rented from a little shop, a day of beginning. Who knows what the future holds, we are just looking forward to Kauai, sun, and surf.
Last week, we had another dance, in the old Lone Pine Elementary School, from about the same era as the grange. My wedding dress tucked away, perhaps for one of my girls, this was a day of continuing. Who knows what the future holds, we are just looking forward to our ranch, sun, … and dirt. Always looking forward, keeping hope, until the next dance.
Welcome to the Carnival of Family Life: Tea Edition! I’m so glad you’re here, please sit a spell and I’ll put the kettle on. I’ll be weaving a bit of the fascinating story of tea into my presentation of blog posts, and I hope you’ll be thinking of warm conversations with good friends. I found a lovely old book, 
Before the end of the eighteenth century the firm of Twining was using tea wrappers, printed in the style of tradesmens’ cards of the period. Grocers also began to wrap their customers’ tea purchases in tin and lead foil, which was included in the gross weight of the tea. But the practice led to abuse, and unscrupulous grocers gave false weights. At the same time, some Chinese merchants began to colour their cheap teas with artificial powder so as to make them look like the best. G. Huxley, Talking of Tea
When did his scooter sprout a motor? When did those endearing “vroom-vroom” noises of my baby begin to emit from a big, scary machine and not his pouty little lips? As every parent knows, and as every older parent loves to tell the younger parents, they grow up so fast.
Calling for submissions from all you bloggers who write about family! Graciously maintained by 
Welcome to the 45th Carnival of Homesteading! If you’ve been around here when I host a Blog Carnival, you know how much I love themes! But, alas, I had issues. Computers, kids, work, and some other meanies all conspired against me. Or maybe I was just lazy.
Total earnings: $1.35.