Cardinal Acre

A Day Book

2012-01-05T17:10:00.001-06:00

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...it is near dusk. Much traffic going by as people pick their children up from after school care and come home from work. A family is walking across the park and there are a few dogs frolicking in the park. It is a pleasant 65 degrees.

I am thankful...not having to cook a "real" dinner tonight. Husband is working late to catch up on paperwork so the kids and I are having pancakes and turkey sausage.

In the kitchen...Pumpkin bread is in the oven.

I am wearing...by blue L.L.Bean knit sleep pants, a light blue fleece pull-over and a black t-shirt.

I am going...to stay home tomorrow! Maybe...I might go to the 10:30 yoga class.

I am wondering...where my daughter is. She went to the park to play and is due home NOW.

I am reading...Unpacking the Boxes by Donald Hall, Plain Wisdom by Cindy Woodsmall and Miriam Flaud

I am hoping...my son is almost done with homework.

I am looking forward to...next weekend when my husband will be gone hunting and I can watch all my junky TV.

I am hearing...a plane flying overhead, the pencil sharpener (homework isn't done!) and the hum of the computer.

Around the house...a deep cleaning needs to be done, but I'm not very motivated to do it.

I am pondering...why there are videos instructing people on how to unpack boxes. I discovered this when I searched for a link for the book mentioned above. Isn't unpacking fairly self explanatory?

Some of my favorite things...Unsweet Iced Tea and real books.

A few plans for the rest of the week...my daughter's delayed 10 th birthday party on Sunday.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...the fireplace mantle in winter attire. I think it needs more color.

2011 Reading Challenge

2011-12-31T17:11:00.000-06:00

Well, I made it...I actually read 114 books this year! At the very end I made an executive decision to include the chapter books I read aloud for the kids in order to make the goal. Someone asked what my favorite book of the year was...that question is simply impossible to answer. Some of my favorites included:

The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo

I love books for young readers that challenge their intellect. The themes of hope, faith and love that inform this story resonate with me.

Wild Comfort by Kathleen Dean Moore

The author does an excellent job of distilling the way nature speaks to her. I finished this book wanting to spend a week camping...and I'm decidedly not a camper!

The Evolution of Faith by Philip Gulley

I've said it before....he says exactly what I think, feel and believe, just so much better than I can say it.

The Reading Promise by Alice Ozma

As a reader, and a mother who still reads to her children, I had to love this book. So many memories and connections are made reading together.

I'm not going to be as ambitious with my challenge for 2012. Eighty books sounds about right. Towards the end I was feeling a little stressed about getting it done and found myself selecting short, quick novellas just to get the numbers in. I'd rather focus on reading what I really want to read.

Happy reading to everyone for 2012!

Gratitude and Looking Ahead

2011-12-30T17:02:00.001-06:00

The light today has been divine. It's clear, sunny and nearly 70 degrees, which I suppose isn't very wintery, but it has made for a pleasant day. My children and I enjoyed the morning at the Dallas World Aquarium visiting many tropical birds, fish and animals.

As 2011 passes in to 2012 I wanted to take a moment to say how very grateful I am for my home, health and family. I also take some time today to look forward to 2012. Designating a word for the year has been very popular in blogdom. I've always struggled to come up with one word to work with and have inform my entire year so I've never really participated. And I'm not going to this year either. Grace holds power for me right now. I want to better understand the meaning of grace. I want to better exemplify grace in my life. This is something I plan to spend working on this year.

Health is another word that holds power for me presently. This past year we discovered that both of my children have high cholesterol. Hypercholesterolemia runs in my husband's family. While we do not eat horribly, neither do we eat for optimum health. The last thing I want is for my children to end up on cholesterol medication in their 20's so my plan for this year is to focus on improving our overall eating habits by incorporating more whole grains and vegetables. If I could just figure out how to get my kids to eat vegetables!!

My final goal for this year is to grow my yoga practice. I would love to experience Yoga Nidra at least once and I plan to continue with my three times a week practice, hopefully getting to the point where I feel comfortable practicing regularly at home.

The Tree-2011

2011-12-08T21:05:00.002-06:00

Seven More

2011-10-28T17:06:00.000-05:00

Once again joining in at Coversion Diary.

1) I had a blast at the Texas Book Festival last weekend. I sat in on sessions with Kate DiCamillo and Rebecca Stead, Nancy Tillman and Heather Vogel Frederick, Eileen Christelow, Marla Frazee, and Paul Zelinsky, and Emily Jenkins with Paul Zelinsky for Toys Come Home.

2) My favorite session by far was Kate DiCamillo and Rebecca Stead. In my book Kate DiCamillo is a rock star. I LOVE her books The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and The Magician's Elephant. Both books are riven through with the themes of faith and hope. I had not heard of or read anything by Stead before, but was compelled to buy both of her books. Connection is a hard thing to find and I felt a strong connection with her. One thing she said that has stayed with me is about the fact that as a child she realized it was impossible to really know other people's stories. I can remember having the same feelings, in fact still do today. This idea is what inspired her to write.

3) I stayed with my brother and his wife while in Austin. They have a new puppy Jazz. Yes, she is actually a puppy (about 10 months old)...a great dane/lab mix. Sweet, sweet dog, though a little excitable at times!

4) Tonight is the fall festival at school. Fourth grade AIM (our district's gifted/talented program) students will be revealing there miniature golf course made entirely of recycleables. My daughter is very excited to show off her handiwork.

5) Today was a glorious fall day. Mid-60's and sunny.

6) We are hosting Thanksgiving for my husband's family. Something I both dread and look forward to. Love seeing and hosting family, but I know how exhausting it is to do all that cooking!

7) Currently reading Priscilla Warner's book Learning to Breathe. Good so far.

Seven

2011-10-07T08:58:00.004-05:00

Susan at Home Hum posted a Seven Quick Takes Friday post last week that I really enjoyed reading. It seemed like a good idea to join in! Here goes:

One--I'm still puzzling over the conversation I had with another mom yesterday about sending our 12-year old children on a chaperoned school bus to a UIL Science competition. Really the whole thing puzzled me, but most especially her reaction to my obviously wrong response to her question about if I was going to let my son ride the bus. He is.

Two--My daughter's soccer team lost their game last Saturday 11-1. It was a brutal and frustrating loss for a number of reasons...other team mates not even trying, the fact that one of her teachers coaches the other team and the majority of the players go to her school. I'm hopeful that this Saturday's game is less demoralizing for her.

Three--Today I'm accompanying my son on his 6th grade field trip. They are visiting a leadership development facility through group challenges and physical challenges. I would much prefer to spend the day at home alone, reading, but this is probably the last field trip I will be asked to accompany him on so I'm going.

Four--I walked with a friend on Wednesday and I'm still sore! From a walk! I do yoga once a week and 45-60 minutes on the eliptical 3-4 times a week and a little walk did me in! I obviously need to step up my work out....or just walk that same path every day! Hmm, that would actually be cheaper....there's something to think about. If I dropped the gym membership I could join the yoga studio that I want to join and walk for cardio.

Five--Back in July I broke the little toe on my right foot. I've finally decided it isn't going to heal.

Six--The animal shelter had a pot belly pig up for adoption today. Wonder what the story is on that. They had a bunny too. He was free to a good home.

Seven--I'm participating in a facilitated book study for the first time and am really enjoying it.

Join Seven Quick Takes at Conversion Diary.

Today's Daybook

2011-09-21T21:45:00.001-05:00

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...I see a dying tree in desperate need of rain, sun a cars carrying people home from work.

I am thinking...about the book study I'm part of for the book A Parent's Guide to Gifted Children. I've attended two sessions so far and am amazed at how helpful I'm finding the information for parenting in general. I'm also considering what one of the moms said this morning about how we can celebrate our children for sports accomplishments, but not for being smart. This was something I had never really thought much about but do realize that I very much temper my bragging about how smart and creative my son is. However, I have no problem bragging on how talented my daughter is as a soccer player. Why do we, as a culture, value one over the other? Why do other parents take it personally when you brag about one, but not the other? Definitely some interesting questions.

I am thankful...that Leila's poison ivy is finally starting to look better.

In the kitchen...tomato sauce is cooking for chicken parmigiana.

I am wearing...a black knit dress.

I am going...absolutely no where and it's wonderful to have a night off.
I am wondering...what time my husband will be home for dinner.
I am reading...the aforementioned book, Poser by Claire Dederer.

I am hoping...Leila's poison ivy looks much better in the morning so we can start tapering off the steriods. Also hoping she never comes in contact with poison ivy again!

I am looking forward to...yoga on Thursday.

I am hearing...the Wii being turned off, the hum of the computer.

Around the house...all is well.

I am pondering...

One of my favorite things...

A few plans for the rest of the week:

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...

(add your picture here)

Simple Woman's Daybook is the brainchild of Peggy Hostetler.

Where Were You?

2011-09-11T07:00:00.001-05:00

A cool breeze blowing through the house. Cornflower blue skies. A happy 2-year old boy digging in the backyard dirt. Yet to be born little one kicking away. Just out of the shower, ready to start the day. The phone ringing. My husband saying only, "Turn on the TV." And then, horror. It must be an accident. But how? How could something so tragic happen with today's technology? Then a second hit and the answer becomes all too evident and the question changes frow how to why. Phone ringing again, my mother this time commanding that we stay home, as if pulling away from the images before me would be possible. Tears, so many tears. Tears for those lost. Tears for what this means for my family, my Muslim family. Tears for the world I'm bringing an unborn child into. Prayers, for the salavation of souls, for the safety of my children, for our country. Ending the day asking that God be with us.

Alan Jackson: Where Were You?

Five Minute Friday: In Real Life...

2011-09-09T16:23:00.003-05:00

In Real Life...

I'm struggling with this one. I keep thinking in real life I am, but then I hit a roadblock. What am I exactly? And is that the only way to complete this sentence. In real life I am a thinker. My house isn't always that clean. I enjoy my friends. I'm nosy. In fact, I'm trying to figure out what the group of people is doing that just pulled up out front in a bright yellow truck loaded down with lawn equipment. They are hovering around an SUV that's been parked oddly all afternoon. Hope it's one of theirs...In real life I struggle to make sense of life. In real life I try to be kind but don't always succeed. O.K. the guys are driving away. Think they had an issue with some of their equipment. In real life I want what's best for my kids. In real life I'm scared to try new things. The thought of walking into Noontime Pageturners Book group at the library scares the wits out of me. Is this normal?

Today's Five Minute Friday Writing Prompt from Gypsy Mama

Five Minute Friday-Rest

2011-09-02T22:35:00.000-05:00

Today's topic at Gypsy Mama's Five Minute Friday is Rest.

Rest. Nobody ever seems to have enough of it. How often do you hear friends say "sorry I haven't called. I've just been so busy." I realized a few years ago that I was using that as an excuse and I quite saying it. I also realized that often people claim to be exhausted and too busy as something of a badge of honor. I decided that wasn't a badge I wanted to be wearing. Now I do my best to get enough rest. But I must admit to being a night owl who likes to stay up reading so I probably don't really get enough rest since I'm also a mom who must get kids out the door and to school five days a week. Another admission: I nap almost every afternoon! Little cat naps sitting in my chair, usually with a cat in my lap. It's amazing how refreshing 10 or 20 minutes can be. I can't go much beyond that though or I feel worse instead of better. Rest is something I'm afraid our kids aren't always getting enough of either. I'm always amazed at the number of little (5 and under) kids out with their parents at the grocery store or wherever after 9pm. Don't those parents realize how very vital good sleep is to those little growing bodies and brains?

Forecast

2011-08-29T17:50:00.001-05:00

Now: Clear, 96.4 °F

Feels Like 101 °F Wind(mph)

Tonight: 77 °F Partly Cloudy

Tomorrow: 104 °F Partly Cloudy

Tomorrow Night: 79 °F Partly Cloudy

Wednesday: 101

Thursday: 97

Friday: 95
Chance of T-storms
30% chance of precipitation

This forecast makes me happy. Can you guess why?? Starting Thursday we are finally below 100 and have a semi-decent chance at rain! And when you extend to the 7-day forecast it looks even better. 92 on Sunday!! Woo Hoo! We are at 62 days of 100 or above temps for the summer of 2011m with many days at 106, 107 and even 108. It's been a long, hot summer and I'm ready for it to be over with.

Daybook

2011-08-27T16:28:00.002-05:00

It's been a long while since I posted a daybook.

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...it is hot and sunny with a very slight breeze.

I am thankful...for air conditioning. Did I mention it's hot? 106 to be exact.

In the kitchen...planning on making pumpkin bread for the kids breakfast next week. A little fall flavored food to make us forget about how hot it is!

I am wearing...a white linen tank top with black embroidery and a black linen skirt.

I am going...out to dinner with the family tonight. Most likely Olive Garden. We are all fasting today and need the quick salad/soup/breadstick course!

I am wondering...why my daughter insists on playing Wii games that frustrate her.

I am reading...Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg and Stillness by Richard Mahler. Plus re-reading The Journal Keeper by Phyllis Theroux.

I am hoping...next week goes well for my kids at school. Potential teacher challenges.

I am looking forward to...the end of Ramadan (Monday is the most likely last day) and getting back to normal family life. Because the fast is broken so late the kids have been eating dinner before us. I'm in the kitchen, but it isn't the same as all of us sitting down together.

I am hearing...the sound of the computer, my stomach growling and Wii baseball very quiet in the background.

Around the house...I updated my downstairs guest bath with new linens from Target today. Pretty towels with a bird and vine print along with some teal green solids.

I am pondering...if my broken baby toe will ever feel better! I broke in nearly two months ago and it still hurts.

Some of my favorite things...Sharpie pens and journaling.

A few plans for the rest of the week...mostly quiet time at home and maybe a trip to Ikea to replace glasses. In the last few weeks we have broken about a dozen glasses. Many of them broke in the new dishwasher. I'm figuring out that it needs to be loaded in a very specific way.

Here is picture for thought I am sharing...my 9 year old daughters nook which was inspired by her wonderful fourth grade English teacher.

Simple Woman's Daybook is the brainchild of Peggy Hostetler.

Honey, the Cat

2011-08-25T23:10:00.001-05:00

This is Honey. She loves to lay on her back.. And yes, she likes her belly rubbed, but only if I'm doing it. She weighs about 20 lbs. No she doesn't eat table food. It's cat food only for her. She loves people. She has some odd quirks (besides laying like a dog!), I mean, really, cats curl up, sometimes stretch out, but never on their backs. She moans when petted, which is really hard to describe. She plays in the toilet first thing every morning and only in the morning. She's very happy and purrs loudly to let us know it when we all get up early in the morning. She will let me mess with her paws for hours. She recently discovered the hermit crab and is at this very moment sitting staring at his cage. Her nose is covered in black speckles and the tip of her tail is white. She honestly has more presonality than any cat I've ever had and we lover her bunches.

Here is the first post I ever did on Honey.

This post was inspried by Dawn's post about her family's new kittens.

Welcome

2011-08-09T17:29:00.000-05:00

Leila at Like Mother, Like Daughter challenged her readers to share the entry ways to their homes and view them as a visitor might. So this morning first thing I took pictures of both the front entry, the one visitors use, and the garage entry, the one our family uses. Here are the before and after photos:

Yes, this was taken today and no we aren't experiencing an early fall. Our trees are so stressed from lack of rain and high heat they are starting to drop leaves. Not too bad. I would like to have some flowers out here, but it's just too hot. I was taking this at about 9:00 and had to have shoes on in order to keep from burning my feet!

Standing at the front door. Motorcycle boots. A t-shirt slung over the stair banister? The kitty is the prettiest thing in the picture. That is Laika.

The living room, which is open to the entry. Kids junk in the floor.

The dining room. Also open to the entry. Laundry on the table. Cat toy in the floor. Laptop case on the floor.

The entry from the garage.

My very small laundry room that we enter through.

Everything put in its proper place. This time Honey made it into the picture.

Again all the stray bits picked up. The blinds open for some natural light.

Laundry put away. Laptop put away. Puzzle still out. We spent too much time getting it put together to even consider putting it back in the box!

There are no after's of the laundry room. Not much can be done with that space. By necessity it must stay clear, the only advantage to having such a small laundry room.

F is for Fall

2011-07-22T05:18:00.001-05:00

Over a year and a half ago I started a project using my Flickr favorites to create mosaics using the alphabet for inspiration. I stopped at 'E'. I decided that restarting this little project might be a good way for me to get back on track with posting. So without further ado, here is 'F'.

*Please note: none of these pictures were taken by me. Links to all can be found at Flickr.com

The View From My Place

2011-07-20T12:23:00.001-05:00

West

East

North

South

Nicole at Redbeet Mama had a post up Monday showing the Western view from her house. She asked her readers to share. I decided to share all four views! I feel blessed to live in a house that has views out all four directions. The three places we lived before this did not. Our last house only had windows on the front and back, the place before that had windows on three sides and the one before that had windows on only the front (it was a townhouse). I don't know anything really about feng shui, but it seems to me that it isn't very feng shui to not have windows on all four sides of ones home. I also feel fortunate to have both sunrise and sunset views.

Blogging Struggles and an Update

2011-07-19T22:59:00.000-05:00

Why is it that when I sit down to type something to put on this blog my mind seems to go blank? I've really struggled recently with this question. There are so many things in my head that I know would be better off recorded, but I'm struggling with doing that. Not just here but in my paper journal as well. Not completely sure why.

What I am sure of is is that this summer has simply been too busy. Two soccer camps for my daughter, riding lessons, multiple trips to meet my mom to drop off and retrieve first one child and then the other, Boy Scout camp for my son, Boy Scout meetings, an eight-day trip to Gulf Shores, Alabama (picture above from the balcony of our condo at dusk), and Ramadan starts in early August.

Early Back-to-School Shopping

2011-06-12T23:33:00.000-05:00

O.k. so school just got out last week...But, I will be loading up on reusable lunch bag items from this site, stocking up for the beginning of the next school year which is a short 10 weeks away!

The Merry Month of May

2011-05-25T22:25:00.000-05:00

Is nearly past. And, as is typical with the ending of the school year, it has been a busy month. When I looked at my calendar for this week I was both shocked and pleased to see it nearly empty. Truly a blessing. Next week is a little crazy with end-of-year parties and awards ceremonies and closing flag ceremony that my son's scout troop is leading. Then it's officially summer break time--eleven whole weeks of fun to be had! Last week I had my hair colored again...dark highlights to make me look salt and pepper gray. The all over gray washed me out too much. I've been working out frequently and feel so good. Back in late February I joined 24-Hour Fi**ess and started taking a variety of classes. My favorite class combines step aerobics with strength training. Next favorite is Thursday yoga. They offer three yoga sessions with three different teachers. It's interesting to me how different each teacher is. Other May adventures include chaperoning on a field trip. This is not one of my favorite activities. I usually go on all of my kid's field trips, but I don't go as an official chaperone. Not crazy about being responsible for other people's children while in a wide-open public space. And I find riding a school bus with 40+ wound up grade schoolers trying. We've been through two rounds of severe weather with hail and high winds, including last night. The picture above is of the sky at dusk with a beautiful rainbow. My Brownie leader duties are almost at an end. I'm sad that my daughter opted not to continue with scouts, but happy that I won't be leading a troop next year. Our weather has been very mild this spring. Just last week there was one day when pants and a sweathshirt were needed: for Texas highly unusual this late in the season. We've usually made it well into the 90's by now. My prayer is that this is a harbinger of a mild summer. The wildflowers were beautiful this spring. Abundant and such glorious colors.

Where Have the Last 36 Days Gone?

2011-04-19T21:29:00.001-05:00

It seems hard to believe that I last posted here over a month ago. I think it's the longest I've gone between posts. Time has a way of passing without our noticing. Nothing major has happened, unless you count my son going off on his first camping trip as a Boy Scout. It was only for two nights and he was only 25 minutes away so I didn't feel as bereft as I will come July when he's gone a whole week and three and half hours away!
Other distractions have been reading, of course. I read an amazing memoir by Annia Ciezaldo about the time she spent living in Iraq and Lebanon during war. She humanizes the people of both countries primarily through descriptions of their food. Just one of several books I've finished this past month. I made a conscious decision to spend more of my free time offline. That is one of the biggest reasons I've been absent from her. The time I do spend online I spend on tumblr. It's slightly addictive.

Five Minute Friday-I Feel Most Loved When

2011-03-13T20:38:00.000-05:00

Gypsy Mama's Five Minute Friday writing prompt this week was I Feel Most Loved When

Start:

I feel most loved when I'm seen and heard. When my unique self is acknowledged. Little gifts that honor my likes and interests. Little actions that are respectful of my personality, my need for time alone. For quiet. I feel most loved when my new haircut is noticed, my new dress is noticed. When people see beyond what I am and look like to who I am at my core. I feel most loved through small gestures, cooking and cleaning up when I'm not feeling well. I would be happy to get small little gifts every once in a while for just because. Love really is in the small things.

Five Minute Friday-When I Look In the MIrror

2011-03-05T14:40:00.001-06:00

Last week was a crazy, busy week with my son getting ready for his Destination Imagination competition. His team took 5th place out of nineteen teams. Plus they won an award for innovation! He also chose his band instrument for next year. He will be a flute player, at least for 6th grade band. Anyway, I never managed to get a post up last weekend. I'm glad to be back participating this week-even if it is Saturday and not Friday! So here is my five minute post on When I Look in the Mirror I See

Start:

When I look in the mirror I see a woman who is getting older. But you know what I'm o.k. with that. I feel blessed to have the opportunity to age. I consider it a blessing from God. It isn't always easy...the gray hair, the random facial hairs, the achy joints, the wrinkles. But mixed with all that is realizing that with age comes a growing intelligence. It's not just knowing more, but being exposed to more. I'm also finding more time for myself which means I'm working out, reading more, enjoying my friends. I realize as I get older that all those things you thought were such a big deal twenty years ago really didn't matter all that much which helps put decision making in perspective. Knowing this helps me stay focused on the big picture, pay attention to the things that matter.

Stop

Hosted by Gypsy Mama

Speck Update

2011-03-01T16:39:00.000-06:00

We visited my parents over Presidents Day weekend and were amazed at the progress Speck has made just since Christmas. He gets around pretty well on just his two front feet, but still uses the cart when outside. At Christmas he was playing soccer while in his cart! The best news though, is that he will occassionally stand on his rear legs. He can only take about two steps, but it is definitely progress. He recently had a physical therapy (yes, you read that right) appointment and the therapist was very optimistic for his long-term prognosis. I'm hoping it is sooner, rather than later, that he walks unaided as my mom is about worn out caring for him. He weighs nearly 90 pounds and must be lifted into the cart eight or nine times a day. My dad is gone for weeks at a time so the majority of the duty falls to her.

Share Your Week-Five Minute Friday

2011-02-12T14:32:00.001-06:00

O.K. so it's Saturday, not Friday...life you know.

Once again Gypsy Mama's Five Minute Friday writing prompt. This week it's "share your week"

Start:

This week started with a major warm-up over last week. And with the ability to finally leave the house after five days! I'm probably the only one in my family who enjoyed being stuck at home for five whole days. The kids were excited to get back to school on Monday. It was the first day back for my daughter's teacher after a three month maternity leave. She was happy to have her regular teacher, although the sub was fabulous (I think I might have liked the sub more than L did.) Then, unbelieavably for Dallas, we got a second round of sub-freezing temperatures with ice and snow resulting in yet another missed day of school on Wednesday. Honestly, the kids have missed more days of school due to weather in the three years we've been in Texas than they did in five years in Indiana-you know, where it actually snows! Seriously, I'm thinking an investment in a few dump trucks and plenty of ice melt would be worthwhile for our little community. The only reason everything shut down for a day and a half was due to about 1/2" of ice. Seriously, a 1/2" of ice!

Stop.

The Mail-Five Minute Friday

2011-02-04T21:16:00.001-06:00

Today's Five Minute Friday prompt from Gypsy Mama is: What's the best thing you've received in the mail recently?

Go:

The best mail I've received recently? Honestly, I can't say I've gotten any great mail recently. Lots of bills, catalogs, tax documents, a couple of letters and cards (those are good, but not fabulous), but nothing outstanding. Last week I got a book from Border's that I had ordered (Gunilla Norris). That was good. Getting books is always good. The Ann Voskamp was on backorder-who knows when I'll see that! We got lots of picture cards for Christmas. The best one was my friend who tried for many years to have children and was finally blessed two years ago with quadruplets. The cutest bunch of little boys you'll ever see! It's always fun to see how people's kids have grown over the year. Getting the mail for the last four days has been a nice break to the monotony of being iced/snowed in. Magazines. I always look forward to getting my magazines. My favorites have to be Southern Lady and Life:Beautiful.

Stop.

Brrrrrr

2011-02-02T21:45:00.001-06:00

Yesterday at about 6:00 am we hit 32 degrees-that was our high for the day. Then started the rapid plummet of temperatures. Currently, Wednesday about 9:00 pm, we are sitting at 19, which is pretty much where the temp has hovered throughout the day, after single digit lows last night. The last time we had this many consecutive days of sub-freezing temperatures was 1983! For a little more perspective our normal high this time of year is in the low-50's with lows in the 30's.

As is typical of winter weather in north Texas this storm came in as rain that changed to freezing rain that changed to sleet that changed to snow. Only problem is we only got a light dusting of snow so it's all ice out there (which means there isn't even anything to send the kids out to play in!) . School was cancelled for yesterday and today, and they've already cancelled for tomorrow. Ditto for my husband's office. Friday isn't looking much better with snow forecast for tomorrow night and a predicted high of only 32. We are all getting a little stir crazy! I think tomorrow we will have to bake some cookies or muffins and maybe work on a Valentine craft. Maybe this one. Or this one. Or this one. It also sounds like a good day to get out the Wobble game. Although I must admit that my inclination is to kick back with a good book and cat curled up on my lap!

Picture is street in front of house at 2:00pm Thursday.

The Women

2011-01-29T17:26:00.000-06:00

Participating in Gypsy Mama's 5-minute Friday writing prompt. This weeks topic: The Women

Start:

Women, the heartbeat of their home. They set the tone. Contribute either chaos or calm, or some mix in between. We nurture. We love. We maintain. How many ways do we make every day special? We support. We make sacrifices-doing things we don't always want to do because there is benefit for our spouse, our children. We have soft sides, but can be hard when necessary. Each of us is unique, different, our own person. Our society isn't always kind to us-doesn't always recognize our contributions as worthwhile. Places unrealistic demands on us.

Stop.

Image from Awesome Art

The Bread of Angels

2011-01-23T15:38:00.002-06:00

I just finished The Bread of Angels by Stephanie Saldana-a wonderful, educational journey through the life of a 27-year old woman studying Jesus in Islam in Damascus on a Fulbright Scholarship. The author, a native of San Antonio, with degrees from Middlebury College and Harvard Divinity. Given all of this one wouldn't be blamed if they thought The Bread of Angels might be a dry read. Trust me it's not. In fact, I found myself unable to put it down. Ms. Saldana brilliantly combines the stories of the people of her neighborhood, from the Baron, her 73-year old Armenian neighbor to Hassan, an artist and recent refugee from Iraq. Then there is the reason she is in Syria-to study Arabic and the role of the prophet Jesus in Islam. I'm personally fascinated by the topic of Jesus in Islam. Unfortunately, there isn't much written on this topic so the little tidbits in this narrative were very enlightening. I'm praying that Saldana will write a book on this topic alone. Interwoven between these two stories is that of Saldana herself-her past, her dreams for the future, her developing love story with Frederic, a novice monk at the monastary she visits.

This is one of those stories that stays with you, makes you think, helps you to realize that there is always two sides to every story. One of the strongest parts of the book, deals with ordinary citizens living in the shadow of war. Saldana moved to Syria in September 2004, just over a year after the US invasion of Iraq. While she is there a car bomb is detonated in Beirut killing a former Lebanese prime minister and Syria is accussed of responsibility, which in that region leads to more than a little tension. On top of that Syria's relationship with Israel is always tenuous. My favorite passage from the books is this one:

"And it seemed to me so strange, so utterly surreal, that in the same space of time I could be reading a book and somewhere on the other side of the earth a man was being shot, or a child was in pain, when everything in front of me looked so still and quiet and even, for a brief moment, entirely beautiful."

I often think about this when I'm reading newspaper accounts of events happening in other places. I marvel over the fact that so many people live such immensely difficult lives so this passage particularly spoke to me. This whole story spoke to me.

Fifteen Favorite Authors

2011-01-16T17:35:00.000-06:00

Brenda at Coffee, Tea, Books and Me had this post up a while back. It's certainly no secret that I love to read so I quickly made my list...it just took me several months to finish it up and get it posted!

Kate Di Camillo The book The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane is one of my all-time favorite books.
Sue Monk Kidd We think so much alike spiritually.
Philip Gulley He says what I believe far better than I can say it.
Scott Russell Sanders He writes quite a bit about place, one of my favorite topics.
Anne Morrow Lindbergh Gift From the Sea is such a classic
Mary Oliver Readable poetry. I struggle with poetry, too much hidden meaning. Oliver somehow takes the sublime and makes it accessible.
Anne D. LeClaire Her book on silence is inspirational to me.
Gladys Taber Lovely nature writing. I long to live the lifestyle Taber lived.
Wendy M. Wright A mother writing on contemplative living. I can relate.
Elizabeth Andrew I love her book On The Threshold. More writing about place.
Joan Anderson She makes me think.
Maeve Binchy I'm crazy for English fiction.
Anne Lamott Funny, irreverent, insightful.
James Herriot Simple, lovable stories about animals and the vet that cared for them.
Katrina Kenison Mother. Again, I can relate.

100 Things I Love

2011-01-07T19:13:00.000-06:00

This time of year always brings out the organizing part of me. Over the last few days I've spent a good deal of time going through copious numbers of spiral notebooks that I use to keep notes from books I've read (for those who follow me on Goodreads you will now understand where all my updated books read are coming from). One of the things I found was a list of 100 Things I Love that I wrote out about three years ago-glad I had dated it. I decided a new one was in order and wanted to share it here.

Y (my husband), A (my son), L (my daughter), Laika, Honey (the cats), cold days, snow, autumn, cardinals, bluejays, hummingbirds, stars, open windows, books, journaling, hot baths, candles, tin trays, mountains, the Hallelujah Chorus, walks on the beach after dark, playing games with my children, the feeling after I work out, a perfect glass of iced tea (unsweetened, please), Texas bbq brisket, quiet, libraries, local bookstores, sunflowers, bluebonnets, spring strawberries, winter clementines, autumn apples, summer tomatoes, old china, original art, pasta, gelato, chocolate, long walks, Edward Hopper, Vermeer, Rosamunde Pilcher, family heirlooms, dusk, piano music, lunch and conversation with friends, whole days at home alone, Southern Lady magazine, impressionism, Austin, listening to my children discuss books they've both read, Gladys Taber, farmer's markets, Texas Olive Ranch olive oil, afghans over my lap on cold days, a cat curled up in my lap, a cat near my feet while I sleep, shadows, afternoon sun streaming in and hitting clean wood floors, hot buttered torrillas, listening to music in the dark, my children's artwork, fresh flowers on the table, full bookshelves, my little room with a desk and shelves full of possibilities, Christmas, roosters, red/blue/yellow French country colors, Italy, rainy days, swimming on hot Texas days, butterflies, native plants, embroidered linens, warm crusty croissants, Red Dirt music, berry smoothies, silver trays, crystal candlesticks, Maine, Mary Oliver, St. Benedict, contemplation, pens, notebooks, wood bowls, Gift from the Sea, clouds, Kate DiCamillo, small towns, jigsaw puzzles, the Sunday paper, red gingham, quilts, globes, my hairdresser, my new car, vanilla.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-23T20:25:00.003-06:00

A very Merry Christmas to all.

Illustration by Tasha Tudor

Christmas 2010

2010-12-20T15:59:00.001-06:00

Just a few pictures to commemorate our Christmas

We Will Still Give

2010-12-14T23:34:00.000-06:00

Give we will, because no child should wake up to a bare tree on Christmas morning. Although, I do wonder if Ann at A Holy Experience doesn't have the right idea. I wonder if her family's tree won't be the most abundant come Christmas morn.

I've been thinking since I posted on the 4th about this whole issue. It's one I struggle with, obviously. Our blessings are many, my children are very fortunate. I want them to know this. I want to constantly remind myself of this. But how? Many of my hours are spent thinking about poverty-it's causes, it's solutions, what I can do about it. I find it difficult to reconcile my comfortable lifestyle knowing there are people working two, sometimes three jobs, always one step away from ruin, doing the best they can. I find it even more difficult knowing that there are people who have lost their will to support themselves, lost their dignity really.

I anger at the people who say "they could do better if they'd just try." So many are trying, but our current systems don't make it easy. Education, banking, employment-they've all changed drastically in the last 15-20 years. Changes that have been most devestating to our middle and lower-class citizens, our working people, the backbones (literally) of our country.

But how can I, the typical suburban mother and housewife, make a real difference? These are the questions, thoughts, worries out of which my previous post originates. I don't know the answer, but I will continue to wrestle with the question.

Children and Table Learning

2010-12-14T21:11:00.000-06:00

You must read this post from Leila at Like Mother, Like Daughter if you have children still living at home! Her advice on having children participate in meal time preparation and clean-up is excellent.

Is Adopting a Family the Best Way to Help?

2010-12-04T21:28:00.001-06:00

Renee at FIMBY has an Internet Holiday Reading List up at her site. It's a great list, I highly recommend checking it out.

One link in particular caught my eye; Scrooged by EarthMama who writes about the disillusionment she felt in trying to sponsor a child from an Angel Tree. This caught my eye because I've felt much the same way she feels. This is my story of why.

Several years ago I was part of a moms group that sponsored a mother and her two young children for Christmas. When we delivered the gifts three things really struck me. One, she never said 'thank you'. Two, her living room was piled (I mean every surface covered) with children's clothes. These were obviously used clothes, and I had no way of knowing if they were donated to her or things she purchased. What struck me was the astounding excess, far more than her two children would ever be able to wear. Three, my son's comment when we got back in the car about the fact that the little boy had tons of Legos. Now, I'm not implying that these children shouldn't have nice things or should be limited to the bare minimum. I was left thinking again about what in this experience upset me after reading Earth Mama's post, and I was finally able to articulate the questions that had been stewing in my head. Questions like: Was going on a big shopping spree for the "less fortunate" really helpful? Who benefits most (me or the recipient)? Is there a better way to help? I truly believe that the shopping spree mentality is not beneficial. What many of these kids desperately need we can't buy at Target, wrap in pretty paper and put under a tree. They need the same thing my children need-to learn delayed gratification, that saving and hard work are most always necessary to have the things we want. To my mind, having a big black bag show up at your door full of prettily wrapped gifts somehow doesn't send the message that hard work pays off. Dare I say that what we've lost is the stigma attached to asking for help. It seems to me that there is almost a sense of entitlement, a lack of humility, that goes along with lists like those Earth Mama encountered. Lists that included XBox, DS etc.

As to who benefits...As Hank Steuver says in Tinsel (great book, by the way), "Sometimes the neediest are the ones doing the giving, those of us who need charity to fit some fantasy we're having about our own spiritual well-being."

Is there a better way to help...yes, but it's not near as easy as picking up an extra Candy Land game or hat and mittens at Target. It requires time more than money. It's mentoring a high school kid. It's volunteering for a literacy organization. It's sorting donations at the local food pantry.

Lest anyone think I'm some saint doing all, or even one, of the above, let me assure you I'm not. I stand as convicted by my words as I hope anyone reading them will be.

Photo courtesy of ACO.

The Trees

2010-11-21T10:14:00.000-06:00

The Trees by Mary Oliver

Do you think of them as decoration?

Think again.

Here are maples, flashing.

And here are the oaks, holding on all winter

to their dry leaves.

And here are the pines, that will never fail,

until death, the instruction to be green.

And here are the willows, the first

to pronounce a new year.

May I invite you to revise your thoughts abou them?

Oh. Lord, how we are all for invention and

advancement!

But I think

it would do us good if we would think about

these brothers and sisters, quietly and deeply.

The trees, the trees, just holding on

to the old, holy ways.

A Little More About Me

2010-11-20T17:42:00.014-06:00

Lindsey at A Design So Vast posted this yesterday. I just did one of these last month, but this one has some unique questions so I couldn't resist.

LIVING

Where do you live: Allen, Texas

Favorite art: Hopper, Rob Kendrick, Mary Cassatt

Pets: Two cats and a hermit crab

Favorite neighborhood restaurant: Sad to say I don't have one...we haven't found a good local place yet.

Favorite cocktail: Don't drink

Who inspires you: People living their dreams

Necessary extravagance: Quality shoes

Favorite place in the world: A library or good book store

CLOTHES

Designer: J. Jill, Coldwater Creek, Eileen Fisher

Jeans: Don't wear jeans! I can never get any that are comfortable and fit properly.

Underwear: Not too picky.

Sneakers: Nike

Watch: Cell phone...seriously I haven't worn a watch since I quit work two weeks before my 11-year old was born.

T-shirt: Target Mossimo boyfriend tees

Day bag: Currently a Liz Claiborne that I've carried for seven years, and that needs to be retired. I've asked for a Brahmin tote for Christmas.

Evening bag: my favorite: I'm afraid my lifestyle doesn't merit an evening bag.

Favorite city to shop: Right here in Allen...

BEAUTY

Lipstick: Burt's Bees lip balm

Mascara: Makes my eyes water...I know my eyes would look better with it, but it really doesn't look all that great running down my face!

Shampoo: Shikai

Moisturizer: Origins

Perfume: I don’t like perfume and rarely wear it. Sometimes I'll wear a body spray.

Toothpaste: Tom's of Maine

Soap: Ivory

Nail-polish color: None on my fingers-I'm too hard on it. Any shade of cheap reddish burgundy polish on my toes.

Who cuts your hair: William at Shear Ego Salon, Allen

Who colors your hair: no color...see my post on going gray.

A Week in the Life-Saturday

2010-11-19T20:01:00.002-06:00

Slept until 10:00! It was wonderful to not have any reason to get up.

While I was in the shower dh told me soccer was cancelled. Yippee a whole day with no obligations.

Dh and kids were gone from 11:30 until 4:30. I read, wondered around the yard, sat on the back porch. In other words, a whole lot of nothing.

Dinner will be barbecued chicken, orzo with zucchini and roasted broccoli.

-------------------------------------

This was the final post in a series I did back in the spring....I'm going through editing the long list to be published posts I have and decided to post this one so my Week in the Life would be complete.

A Year of Ordinary Days

2010-11-19T16:52:00.003-06:00

I have recently discovered published journals and am thoroughly hooked. My current read is The Extraordinary Year of Ordinary Days by Susan Wittig Albert, a chronicle of the author's life in 2008. Anything with the words "ordinary day/s" in the title catches my attention and I'm so glad I purchased this one while at the Texas Book Festival. Ms. Albert's days are truly ordinary, but within the ordinariness beats the soul of an interesting life. I believe that we all have interesting lives amidst the everyday ordinariness, if we just take the time to notice.

Wittig Albert begins a new journal every year on her birthday (conveniently her birthday is Jan. 2). I was inspired to do the same. My birthday isn't quite so convenient-it was this last week-but I started a journal to record the everyday, ordinary happenings anyway. As I've said before I've kept journals on and off (more off than on!) for a number of years. I've always struggled to keep up with them and one of the reasons why is because I never felt like I had much to record. The idea of a journal of ordinary days takes the pressure off, I don't need to come up with something interesting to record all the time. I can simply record life as it happens. My suspicion is that rhythms will appear that I'm not aware of, currently unnoticed reasons for gratitude will surface, needed changes will reveal themselves.

Today I thought I would share a bit of what I've recorded so far.

November 12:

Lots of running around this morning. First, a 30-minute workout on the treadmill. Whole Foods for a couple of items-primarily marshmallows for this weekends s'mores.

The phone rang at 5 something this morning with no one on the other end-at least they didn't talk. Of course this leaves both of us unsettled wondering who it could have been.

November 13:

Here at Lake Murray. We arrived about 10:30. At the moment I'm sitting in front of the fire.

It's beautiful out here. The leaves all seem to be scarlet this year. It's also peaceful here. The fire crackling. An insect chirping. The occassional screen door banging.

November 16:

I desperately need a "do nothing" day. Maybe Friday. Tomorrow I'm in the library (at school) most of the morning. Thursday is holiday feast (at school), A's riding lesson, pack meeting (cub scouts) and Astronomy Night (at school).

November 19:

I'm finally having my day at home-with a child who is not feeling well.

Autumn In Texas

2010-10-27T17:35:00.001-05:00

It's always a little slow in getting here, but finally we are starting to have strings of cooler days and the trees are revealing the slightest hint of color. It's not New England or the Midwest, but it's home.

"Fall is the older season, a more seasoned season. The weather surrounds you instead of beating down on you. Clouds bobble across the sky, and there are fresh winds, and misty salmon sunrises, and then cool blue skies. The weather is lighter, marbled and it makes you feel like striding again, makes you glad that so much works so well" Anne Lamott, Plan B

Seeing Numbers

2010-10-06T23:30:00.003-05:00

My children and I had an interesting conversation this evening. My 5th grade son is having a difficult time memorizing his times tables so we've been working with flash cards. While we were playing around with them tonight he made the comment that many of his classmates say that they see a picture of the problem in their heads, and that's how they've memorized the tables. He does not see these pictures. I do and so does my daughter. In fact, she sees her number picture in color. The numbers are blue on a purple background. I'm sure there is something about multiple intelligences in that. What most intrigued me, however, was my son saying he doesn't see the number sentence with the answer attached. He works the problem every single time he sees it. He has memorized probably through his 3's. Now, why is this intriguing? Because he's dyslexic and I'm left wondering if this is just one more manifestation of it.

A Little About Me

2010-10-01T18:20:00.002-05:00

I know some people find these tedious, but I think they are fun! Dawn at By Sun and Candlelight posted this one. Be sure to let her know if you participate.

1. What's your middle name?

Lyn

2. What's your favorite magazine?

Just one?? Southern Lady, Southern Living, Life:Beautiful, La Vie Claire

3. What are you wearing right now?

White peasant style blouse with embroidery and long denim skirt

4. What color are your bed sheets?

Ivory

5. Who was your third grade teacher?

No clue!

6. What is the weather like right now?

Sunny, about 80, with a slight northerly breeze. In Texas we call it heaven.

7. Do you know how to ski?

Sort of...there's a story behind me and skiing.

8. What was the last thing you drank?

Tazo Iced Tea Brew Iced Tea, no sugar

9. Dream vacation?

Maine or a Grand Tour of Europe

10. Favorite article of clothing?

My black Land's End knit dress

11. Do you prefer baking or cooking?

I like both, but I prefer cooking.

12. Is your hair above or below your shoulders?

Above

13. What drink do you order when out?

Water or Iced Tea

14. What book are you reading?

Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott

15. What did you dream about last night?

Not sure

16. What was the last movie you went to?

The one about Amelia Earhart

17. Any injuries at the moment?

None

18. What color is your bathroom?

Sort of a yellowish gold

19. What's the state of your laundry right now?

A load in the dryer that needs to be folded, a partially folded load in a basket and a pile of towels ready to be put away sitting on the dining room table. Sunday is my usual laundry day so there's lots of dirty clothes too.

20. Do you take vitamins?

21. Where do you love to shop?

Target, Market Street, Central Market, Borders

22. How often do you buy groceries?

Once a week on Monday.

23. Do you have a pet/pets?

We have a 16 year old cat named Laika, a three year old cat named Honey and a hermit crab named Hermie.

24. If you are married, when is your next anniversary?

We celebrate 17 years this month!

25. How do you take your coffee and/or tea?

Coffee-don't drink; Tea-plain, no sugar

26. Mac or PC? Desktop or Laptop?

Desktop

27. Favorite month of the year?

November. It finally cools off a little.

28. Do you have a hobby?

Journaling, Reading

29. What salad dressing do you prefer?

Pretty much any viniagrette.

30. Live or fake Christmas tree?

Fake...allergies.

31. Did you walk or take a bus to school?

Took a bus.

32. Do you have any phobias?

I'm not so good with heights. Escalators - and to a lesser degree, elevators - freak me out. I'll ditto Dawn completely on this one! Except I'm o.k. with elevators.

33. What's your favorite snack food?

Nacho Cheese Doritos...I refuse to buy them!

34. When do you take your shower/bath?

First thing in the morning.

35. What time did you get up this morning?

Alarm went off at 6:40, I got up at 7:00.

36. What's your favorite animal?

Cat

37. Have you ever broken a bone?

Nope.

38. Do you wear makeup?

Yes, foundation every day and sometimes eye shadow.

39. Do you speak any foreign languages?

A very little bit of Spanish.

40. Have you ever played a sport?

No.

41. Your last UPS package contained ...

Clothes from Land's End.

42. What's on your desktop?

The Kabaa during Hajj.

43. What is your home page?

Yahoo.Mail

44. Extrovert or introvert?

Introvert

45. Favorite board game?

Monopoly

46. What class did you like best in high school? In college?

Drafting in high school and art history in college

47. What would you do with an extra hour each day?

Read, probably.

48. Do you have allergies?

Penicillins and seasonal ragweed

49. Are your nails painted?

Fngers, no. Toes, yes.

50. Where are you right now?

In the office. Running back and forth between the kitchen as dinner cooks!

***

A Chill in the Air

2010-09-28T20:28:00.000-05:00

The last few days have been heavenly. After weeks and weeks of 90's and 100's we had our first little bit of autumnal air. Three days with the windows open is pure bliss as far as I'm concerned. I look out this afternoon to see this cardinal using the waterfall on the pool as a birdbath. I spent a few joyous minutes watching him go through his ablutions.

I was even inspired to do a little fall baking. I made a batch of chocolate chip pumpkin bread.

After about six years I figured out how to use the night function on my camera. I was attempting to capture a picture of the full moon with Venus as a super bright star, but didn't quite get it. I thought this picture was really cool though.

Sketchbook Project

2010-09-22T22:14:00.001-05:00

This sounds amazing. I will defnitely be making a trip to Austin in March to check it out.

Speck Update

2010-09-19T21:03:00.000-05:00

A quick update on the dog. He's still paralyzed, but showing a little improvement every day. He's staying at his regular vets office do to some bladder issues. Hopefully, he will be going home sometime this week. On Thursday last week he got wheels! The look like these:

He was quite happy to have more mobility. The doctors still think he will eventually walk on his own again., but it could take up to a year. Thanks to everyone who prayed for him. He could still use it!

Doggy In Need of Prayers

2010-09-05T22:54:00.001-05:00

This little guy could use your prayers and good wishes. Last Tuesday he ruptured a disc in his back causing rear paralysis. He had surgery to repair it on Friday the 27th. Progress has been slow, but he is finally showing some signs of improvement. His name is Speck and he is my parents dog.

Finds of the Week

2010-08-17T17:57:00.002-05:00

Some random links to fun and interesting things found while surfing this week.

The Daylight Map. Too cool.

I'm a huge fan of reading lists and this one for children is perfect!

A wonderful new website from Heather at Shivaya Naturals and Julia from Adirondack Mama.

I think these will be good for dinner tomorrow night with Pasta Fagioli.

A new to me author that I just can't get enough of.

Enjoy!

Ramadan

2010-08-09T08:45:00.002-05:00

Ramadan starts August 11th this year. I struggle with it every year. It isn't my tradition, but rather something I do so that my husband won't be observing alone. I don't like it. It's hard. I complain about it. I feel guilty for complaining about it. I know it's not the proper spirit with which to approach the experience. So I was struck in the heart while reading Esther deWaal's Seeking God when I came across this passage from The Rule of St. Benedict: "If a disciple obeys grudgingly and grumbles, not only aloud but also in his heart, then even though he carries out the order his action will not be accepted with favour by God who sees the grumbling, unless he changes for the better and makes amends" (5. 16-19).

de Waal goes on to say that "...obedience is really about love. It is our loving response to God which a murmuring response altogether wrecks...The outcome of obedience undertaken in these terms is that it brings with it an inner freedom." As the beginning of Ramadan approaches I'm still unsure of how exactly to put this into action. Obedience is not exactly my strong suit. Growth is not an all at once thing, I suppose, so perhaps acknowledging my reluctance to fast and the complaining spirit it brings out in me is a first step.

Image found at Global Voices Online

Journal Keeping

2010-08-07T09:50:00.003-05:00

While on vacation I finished The Journal Keeper by Phyllis Theroux. I loved this book. It spans six years of the author's life and is in the format of undated exerpts from her pesonal journal. In the course of the six years Theroux loses her mother and finds love. Throughout I kept thinking to myself I wish my journal were so in depth, so revealing of my deepest self. In the postscript to the book Theroux describes how she keeps her journal and I realized that if I kept mine the same way I could have the type of journal I desire. I think the most important aspect of Theroux's method is consistency, as in daily. She also keeps a rotating selection of books as inspiration near her chair.

She provided a reading list, which of course started me thinking of what books would be on my personal reading list. This is what I came up with:

The Gift of an Ordinary Day by Katrina Kenison
Plain and Simple by Sue Bender
Everyday Sacred by Sue Bender
Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
Mary Oliver-any and all
The Rule of St. Benedict
Seasons of a Family's Life Wendy M. Wright (which I don't currently own, hence it's missing from the pic)

My own journals are not fancy affairs: five-subject spiral notebooks. I like these because of the pockets. I'm forever printing things off the internet or tearing editorials and articles out of the paper and magazines, the pockets are handy receptacles for all this inspiration.

I don't currently journal every day, and honestly don't know if I ever will. I have tried in the past, and I must admit that I felt calmer and more centered than I ever have before. Plus those journal entries are some of the most insightful I've ever written. I wish I had a good excuse for why I don't commit to daily journaling. Ultimately, it's a matter of will. And letting go of perfection.

Experimenting for Dinner

2010-08-06T15:31:00.001-05:00

A little experiment for dinner tonight...I may take the zucchini out and replace with green beans, we'll see. Somehow garlic didn't make the shot, but there will be plenty of it.

Sweet Summertime

2010-08-03T21:28:00.001-05:00

We just returned from two days at the beach. There was lots of time spent digging in the sand, playing in the water, getting too much sun, snorkeling for the firs time and making memories.

Tomorrow I will be delivering both children to my mom for their final week of Grandmomma Camp for this summer. Then it's home for new shoes, haircuts and finding out what teacher we have and who's in class with us this year. School starts, unbelievably, in two short weeks. Thankfully, we avoid the madness of buying school supplies by ordering the kits offered by the school. Although, I must admit that I won't be able to resist a few new notebooks and pens for myself.

Shadows and Puzzles

2010-07-23T17:15:00.001-05:00

The sight that greeted me as I started my day today.

My daughter and I like to work on jigsaw puzzles together. This one has sat, neglected, for the better part of the summer. At lesat until yesterday when Miss L. decided to start working on it again. Now it's nearly finished.

Dream Vacation

2010-07-10T21:35:00.000-05:00

I've always had a picture in the back of my mind of my dream vacation spot, but I've never quite found it. Until now. I'm a fan of Joan Anderson and follow updates from her website. In June of next year she will be hosting a retreat on Monhegan Island off the coast of Maine. This place sounds blissful. No visitors cars. No cell phone reception. It's necessary to take a ferry to reach the island. Nature trails galore. The Atlantic in all it's glory. A lighthouse. Watching boats come into the harbor. This place would do my heart good.

Favorite Word

2010-07-08T21:24:00.001-05:00

This afternoon my eight year old daughter was flitting around the house sing songing the word 'shape.' "Shape," she says, "such a funny word. A word that means something and means something else." What she meant was that the word 'shape' represents all the shapes (circle, square, rectangle). I found her thought process interesting. She decided shape was her favorite word and continued flitting around sing songing it. Then she asked her brother (he doesn't have a favorite word) and I what our favorite words were. Wow! I honestly have never thought about having a favorite word, but her question made me think. What immediately came to mind was the word 'contemplate.' A deep word, a word that has weight, a word that seems somber, but can be freeing. A word that requires some work. A word that needs to be used more often in our culture, I think.

Do you have a favorite word? Please share.

Going Gray and Being Real

2010-07-05T15:30:00.001-05:00

I've been going gray since before my oldest child (who is turning 11 tomorrow, but that's a whole other post) was born. I've been coloring my hair just as long. This year I decided to go natural, and I've been struggling with it a bit. My husband doesn't really like it. Then, this afternoon I'm reading Firstlight by Sue Monk Kidd and come across the story about her daughter asking if her great-grandmother's wrinkles hurt. Kidd responds by reading The Velveteen Rabbit to her, ending with "You see, Ann, Grandma is just getting 'real.' That's all." But what really hit me was the author's further musings about how the markings of age don't matter much, except to those who don't understand. "What mattered was becoming 'real.' What mattered was loving and being loved for a long, long time."

From now on when I struggle with this part of aging I'm going to remember this story from Sue Monk Kidd and know that the most important reason I can give for why I'm doing it is because it is a part of the "real" me. A part of which I hope everyone in my life will chose to love.

This Time and This Place

2010-06-28T18:07:00.000-05:00

At the moment it is raining, a much needed blessing, creating a dark, moody sky. My youngest dear child is spending a week with her grand parents (Grandmomma actually as Grandaddy is on the road.) Oldest dear child is sitting on the couch reading a book. I am not so patiently waiting for the DH to come home with the missing ingredients I need for a lasagne dinner. The room is a little warm, the A/C is set on 79, and the rain storm has cooled the air outside giving the A/C a break. It won't last long I'm sure. The house is so quiet that the only sound I hear are my fingers tapping the keyboard. I love the quiet. Every once in a while a car zips by on the wet pavement outside. I often wonder where all these people are going. Actually the school system's daycare is at our neighborhood school this summer, most of them are probably picking up children. Ah, at last I see the car I want to see coming around the corner. I will go fix dinner: Lasagne with some fresh strawberries for dessert.

Balance

2010-05-26T17:23:00.001-05:00

I've posted before that I normally save computer time for after my kids are in bed, while my husband uses that time to watch TV. I'm not a big TV watcher, especially not of soccer on the Spanish language channel! And I find it nearly impossible to read while the TV is on. My husband has been gone for a week and I've used my evening time to read and it has been pure bliss. I realized that, while I love reading blogs and posting on my own, what really nourishes my soul is reading, with the IPod playing soft music in the background. Now, I don't plan on closing down this blog as I really do enjoy posting occassionally. However, I will be spending much less time reading other blogs. I'll stick with a handful that I really find enjoyable. You will see them listed in my sidebar. My plan is to move the IPod dock to the bedroom, along with a comfy chair and table and read to my heart's content in the evenings with only about an hour of computer time each night. So what am I reading you ask? The Cloister Walk by Kathleen Norris, The Tuscan Year by Elizabeth Romer and Into the Story by David Maraniss.

Still Around

2010-05-11T22:06:00.000-05:00

I know I've been neglecting this space. I usually blog in the evening after the kids are in bed while dh watches TV. He had commitments every night last week which gave me control of the remote and I took the opportunity to watch some of the things I had stored on the DVR. I have every episode of Bill Moyers Journal from January! I finally got through a few of them. Plus the kids and I hit the road to my parents over the weekend while dh stayed home and took a motorcycle safety course with his two brothers. I'm not real keen on the idea of his having a motorcycle I must admit! He also has Mother's Day to make up to me!! But not to worry we are doing something this weekend which will be nicer anyway as places won't be so crowded.

I'll probably be scarce the next few weeks as we are heading into the final four weeks of school. The list of upcoming activities makes my head spin. Two end-of-year award ceremonies, kickball tournament for two grades (which I got suckered into volunteering for today!), two end-of-year parties, puppet show that my son's dyslexia class puts on, school carnival, volunteer luncheon...not to mention the two remaining Brownie meetings and two outings. The girls receive a portion of the money they made selling cookies. Some of it we carry forward to next year to fund our troop, but we are restricted as to the amount. In the future we will use our proceeds to fund summer camp attendance, but for now I feel like my girls are too young (girls, regardless of age, are required to sleep seperate from adults--a policy that I do not think is appropriate for eight year olds!) so they were able to select a special outing and an organization to make a donation to. They chose a bounce place for their outing and the local animal shelter for their donation.

A Week in the Life-Friday April 16th

2010-04-26T20:56:00.001-05:00

I realized after downloading pictures that I did not have one single picture for today! I'm a little mad at myself for not taking any. I did, at least remember to make some notes for the day. This morning I got back on the workout bandwagon. From there I went to the bank to make a deposit then off to the library to pick up holds...yes, for the second time this week. I usually go at least twice each week. I made a quick pit stop at home then went up to school to read for my son's class while they ate lunch. My afternoon was quiet. We had no activities this afternoon. I like to have at least two days a week with nothing scheduled after school. It works out except on weeks when both kids have scout meetings, which thankfully isn't very often. We are also fortunate right now that my daughter's twice a week soccer practice is at the park directly across the street from our house. It is so nice to not have to drive to practice! Plus, I get to go back home and prepare dinner while she practices and I can see her out the kitchen window. My husband made it home relatively early tonight so we grilled hamubergers. He usually doesn't make it home until 6:30 or 7:00 most nights so it's always a rare treat when he's home before 6:00.

A Week in the Life-Thursday

2010-04-24T21:12:00.001-05:00

About twice a year (Spring and Fall) I get the urge to move furniture and just generally refresh everything. So this morning I started the day by moving furniture and cleaning in my family room and formal living room. You can see before's on my AWITL Monday post. Above is the after of the formal living room. Below is the after of the family room. The house always feels so fresh and light after moving things around, clearing some clutter and wiping down surfaces that get missed in the day-to-day cleaning.

After getting everything back in order I headed off to the school as I had a date to read to my son's class...or so I thought. Turns out my date was actually for Friday.

For lunch today I made a Broccoli Pasta salad with a mayo/plain yogurt dressing. It was pretty tasty.

I spent the afternoon reading. Some of my notes from A Tree Full of Angels by Macrina Wiederkehr.

After bringing in and reading the mail I couldn't help but notice the irony of the return address on my Texas appliance rebate program application.

After school we made a fresh batch of Chocolate Mudballs a recipe found at New Nostalgia.

Dinner was homemade pizzas. The kids had hamburger. DH had hamburger, olives and mushrooms. I had carmelized onions and green peppers.

Our Earth Day Contribution

2010-04-20T21:06:00.000-05:00

We are making a major contribution to Earth Day this year...new air condintioner units! We will be going from two, fifteen year old, 10 SEER units to one 16 SEER and one 15 SEER unit. We are hoping for much increased efficiency and lower bills! As you can see the old ones are a little rough. One of them was making some heart-stopping (this is Texas...it's heart stopping when you have no A/C in August!) noise at the end of last summer. I'm not sure what it means that I'm so excited to be getting new A/C units...could this be a statement about my age, I wonder?

A Week in the Life-Wednesday April 14

2010-04-20T20:37:00.001-05:00

Nearly every day starts with my taking time to put away dishes from the night before and sweep the floors. This morning was no different. After completing this daily ritual it was off to school where I stuff Wednesday folders (envelopes full of flyers about upcoming events at school and graded papers) for my daughter's class. Every other Wednesday I volunteer in the school library and today was the day for that. No pictures of these activities as I'm not comfortable using my camera on campus unless it is specifically to photograph my children.

After completing my library shift I took a quick walk through the neighborhood since I didn't have time for the gym. Forgot my camera for this (:

I also forgot to take my camera to capture the blissful afternoon spent in the company of good friends as we enjoyed lunch together! My friend, Catherine, invited myself and one other friend for lunch. She had made homemade pizzas and salad with fruit crisp for dessert. The food was delicious, but the company was even better.

Once a week my 10-year-old son volunteers at our city animal shelter. He plays with the dogs and cats, takes the dogs out, cleans litter boxes etc. Today was this week's day. We all enjoy visiting the kitties and loving on them a little bit. He likes taking the dogs out, but I'll admit I'm not much of a dog person so I usually just visit the cat room.

This little kitty is a real sweetie. I hope she has found a home!

Dinner tonight was tacos...a food that my dh won't eat so the kids and I have them on nights he's not home. He had a dinner conference tonight. This picture is of the kids enjoying their strawberries dipped in sugar dessert.

When I went to select books for our reading time I found this on the couch...

This cat loves to lay on her back with her belly sticking up...especially in the sunshine.

A Week in the Life-Tuesday April 13

2010-04-18T21:09:00.002-05:00

So Tuesday found me hitting the snooze three times as on every other weekday. Then getting ready and hustling kids out the door. After a quick clean-up in was off to the Rec. Center to workout. Then a stop at the post office to mail a return. Next, another trip to Target because the other one was out of my son's much needed Zyrtec, plus I bought the wrong size socks yesterday. After that it was Market Street for meat and few extra produce items. Then home. Lunch was hummus with pita chips.

This is the floor of what we call the art room. I've been working on organizing clippings that I will use for my journal and recipes that pull out of magazines. I spent a little bit of time in here this afternoon working. With Honey the cat as my companion. The birds that hang out in the trees just outside this window make her a little crazy. I can't raise the windows any higher or she will bust through the screen to get out. Don't ask how I know this.

Dinner tonight was Chicken Parmigiana with homemade sauce.

Indestructible

2010-04-15T22:27:00.000-05:00

Books are one of my favorite things to give as a gift. Today I was shopping for a baby gift and discovered the most beautiful baby books I've seen in a long time. I purchased the only two titles Target had and wished they had more! This is a new idea in baby books called Indestructibles. The books are paper-like, but are completely drool-proof, rip-proof and chew-proof. Both of my children were consumate consumers of books (and I don't mean taking in the story) as babies. I would have loved to have had books like these. As far as I'm concerned though the best part is that the illustrations by Kaaren Pixton are so colorful and engaging. You can bet I'll be looking for these little books everytime I need a baby gift in the future!

A Week in the Life-Monday April 12

2010-04-12T22:23:00.001-05:00

The alarm went off at 6:33 as it does every weekday morning. Why 6:33 you ask? Because I can hit the snooze twice and the third time it goes off the time will be 7:00 which is when I really need to be up. This is a weird little habit that I honestly had not thought much about before typing it out here! I always shower as soon as I get up, then get dressed and start to work hustling kids to finish lunches and getting dressed so we can be out the door by 7:45. I walk them to the crossing guard and they walk the rest of the way to school solo. My weekday mornings consist of putting away dishes from the night before, sweeping the floors, and vacuuming if needed. This morning my house looked like a train had come through so it took a little longer than usual to get things in order.

Next on the agenda was making a grocery list.

Finally I was ready to head out the door to workout here. Where I endure 15 minutes of torture on this (I'm slowly working up to 30 minutes after only being able to do 3 minutes back in January!) and 35 minutes on the treadmill. I try to do this every day, but usually end up doing four. From there it was off to Super Target to buy groceries and socks for my son...again. It seems like I just bought him socks a month ago. Perhaps I need to spend some time going through the Lego bucket and cleaning out under his bed to hunt for dirty socks. Last stop was the library to pick up books I had on hold and replinish our poetry and picture book supply. This is what I brought home:

The rest of the afternoon passed uneventfully with watching the noon news and a couple of DVR'ed shows including Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution which once again made me cry. And, of course, I started reading from my stack.

Flowers my daughter brought me. She picked them off the neighbor's bush. Hope they don't mind.

2:50 and time to pick up children rolled around before I knew it. The afternoon always seems to pass in a blur of homework and kids running in and out so that 5:30 and time to start dinner arrives in no time. Tonight was Boneless Breast of Chicken with Three Peppers from Giuliano Hazan. I doctor this up by adding about four cloves of finely diced garlic once the pepers are done, let it cook for about one minute and then add chicken stock to deglaze the pan and help create more sauce since I serve it over pasta.

After finishing dinner and clean up it was time for baths and reading. We finished Minn of the Mississippi by Holling Clancy Holling tonight. Good book full of lots of information about the United States's most famous river. It is now 10:30. These two posts have taken me far longer to put together than I anticipated and I'm ready for bed. Good night.

A Week in the Life-Sunday April 11th

2010-04-12T21:30:00.001-05:00

The day started with my husband's alarm going off at 6:30. Much earlier than usual for a Sunday morning! He was on his way to the dive pool to try out his new gear. I managed to sleep a little longer and was up at 8:30 with the plan being to make chocolate chip pancakes for the kids. However, I discovered that they had been sneaking chocolate chips so they lost their pancakes and had to have cereal for breakfast. There was another scout event today so I had to get laundry going so he would have his uniform. Finally, about 10:00 I sat down to read the paper. Reading the Sunday paper is one of my favorite Sunday morning activities.

Before I knew it it was time for lunch...leftover pizza for the kids and two buttered tortillas for myself. Then my son and I were off to The Nature and Science Museum at Fair Park to meet the scout troop for a badge workshop. I grew up in Texas, but have never visited Fair Park--home of the Texas State Fair (hence the ferris wheel in the background below) and Cotton Bowl. It is much different than I imagined. After spending two hours in the workshop we took advantage of our free admission to tour part of the museum then hung out on the grounds for a while.

After a stop at the grocery store on our way home to pick up a deli chicken and some potatoes we headed home to get dinner ready--deli chicken, Giada's smashed potatoes (without the dressing), and broccoli salad also picked up at the deli. After dinner it was bedtime for the kids. We skipped reading because by the time we finished eating it was after 8:00 (husband and daughter were at his soccer game so we had to wait for them). My husband and I sat and talked until time for us to go to bed!

My son entertaining himself while I cooked.

The Trash!

2010-04-10T21:14:00.000-05:00

We participated in an annual creek clean-up with my son's Boy Scout pack today. This was our second time to participate and I was happy to see many fewer plastic bags this year. However, the number of styrofoam containers (mostly cups) was overwhelming.

I must admit that this isn't my favorite activity of the year. For one thing, you get dirty. I don't like to get dirty. For another, there is copious amounts of poison ivy. By the grace of God (well, actually if I'm honest it's more by strenuously avoiding any activity that might bring me into contact with it), I've never been infected with this enemy, but know lots of people who have. Enough to know that I really, really, really don't want to ever find out what it feels like! So why do I do it? Because if I accomplish nothing else in this life, I hope to accomplish the task of raising children who become good citizens. I believe that participating in things like this helps towards that goal. It makes them much more aware of their community and it makes them want to help take better care of it.

A Week in the Life

2010-04-06T20:52:00.002-05:00

Ali Edwards is hosting A Week in the Life. This is a project designed to document one full week of your life...every single little thing. As many photos as you can take. Then take notes about each activity. The idea isn't to show perfection, but your life as it actually is. What do you do every day? Who do you see? What does the house look like by 5 in the afternoon? What did you eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner? What is the weather like? What are you reading? What did you bring home from the store? You get the idea. Pay attention to it all, record it all, journal it all. For just one week. Ali then encouranges you to scrapbook it. I'll admit I probably won't get around to making a fancy scrapbook out of this project, but I will be posting here and I will create a small notebook with pictures. I'm fascinated with the ordinary and how it speaks to us. I can't wait to get started on this project!

Links, links and more links

2010-04-01T21:19:00.000-05:00

Things I've collected links to over the course of the last month. Mostly things I would like to be able to refer back to in the future so I need a good place to put them where I can actually find them again! This is a very random list!

I love this Un-toy List at Are So Happy. Every child should be so lucky as to have a toybox filled with such goodness.

Book Page Egg Wreath at Lemon Tree Creations

Geode Easter eggs. My little scientist will LOVE this! I think we will do this project on Friday when the kids are home for Good Friday. I found this link at Crafty Crow.

This wonderful excerpt about the importance of family meal time and celebrations from the book Making a Family Home by Shannon Honeybloom. Found at Rhythm of the Home, a wonderful new e-zine from Heather at Shivaya Naturals and Bernadette at Sugar in My Bowl.

Slow Family Living is a website/blog with so much information, on what I like to call sane parenting, that I could spend a whole day reading.

On creating and preserving family margins from Simple Mom. Written by Stefani at Blue Yonder Ranch.

On Lectio Divina a way of prayer that I'm very drawn to.

It's A Spring Reading Thing

2010-03-31T10:12:00.001-05:00

I have a draft post full of links to good ideas that I've found while blog surfing...I just don't always remember to include a notation of where I originally found the link. All that to say that I have no idea which blog I was reading that alerted me to The Spring Reading Thing at Callapidder Days. As a reader I knew I had to participate, but picking a list of books has been difficult. The library doesn't have some of the books I most want to read, neither do the bookstores I frequent which means I will need to order them online and I keep forgetting to buy a new Vis* gift card (we don't use our credit cards online...I know, a little behind the times we are.) So here's my list and I will do my best to remember that gift card the next time I'm at Kroger. A couple of these are books that I do have and have started, but just haven't managed to finish.

This Handmade Life by William Coperthwaite: I bought this book with birthday money back in November. It's a very interesting read, but for some reason I keep putting it down to read other things. I would like to get it finished.

A Conservationist Manifesto by Scott Russell Sanders. This is one I will need to purchase.

Hand Wash Cold: Care Instructions for an Ordinary Life by Karen Maezen Miller. Again, I need to order it.

Ordinary Time: Cycles in Marriage, Faith and Renewal by Nancy Mairs. I'm a little more than halfway through her book A Dynamic God which is a challenging read but also deeply resonant with me. Thankfully the library has this one.

If the Church Were Christian: Rediscovering the Values of Jesus by Philip Gulley. Gulley, along with James Mulholland wrote If Grace is True: Why God Will Save Every Person and If God Is Love: Rediscovering Grace in an Ungracious World. The first is a statement of belief tht God will save everyone...no matter what. The second explores how believing in such grace affects one's life. In this new book, "Gulley wants us to consider what the church would be like if more Christians modeled their lives after Jesus, embodying his love, compassion, hospitality and forgiveness." as stated in this review at Spirituality & Practice.

I'm sure I'll read more between now and June 20th, but these are the books that I most want to read during that time. Maybe I'll even post reviews as I finish each book!

It's Home, but Sometimes I Wonder

2010-03-30T17:27:00.000-05:00

About the great state of Texas that is. I'm sure everyone has seen the news stories regarding our illustrious State Board of Education's recent proposals to alter the state standards regarding the teaching of Social Studies and American History. Much has been made about the board's attempts to instill conservative religion into Texas education by re-wording some of the requirements and through the inclusion and elimination of several key figures in history...including the elimination of Thomas Jefferson as a key figure of The Age of Enlightenment! It is worth noting that Jefferson hasn't been completely erradicated from the curriculum only this one area of study. However, this is a key area of study as Enlightenment thinking heavily influenced the founding of our nation. And here in lies the rub with this particular group of SBOE members. They want the school children of Texas to be taught that the United States of America was founded solely on biblical principles.

You can find a few minutes from the meeting that made some of these hairbrainded decisions here. I tried to find the standards in their most current state of revision (which will be voted on in May) but was unable to.

Thankfully, the leader of this pack was voted out of office, as were several of his cronies. However, their terms aren't up until January 2011...enough time to do a lot of damage! I wanted him out so badly that I voted in the Republican primary just so I could vote for his challenger who is more moderate (a relative term here in Texas)! There wasn't a candidate for this position on the Democratic primary ballot.

I think the saddest part of this whole debacle for me is that it took this sort of extreme engineering by a very small group (15 members on the SBOE, seven of whom tend to push socially conservative views) to make the people of the state of Texas aware of what was happening right under their noses. The second saddest part is how many still remain unaware of what is going on or just don't care. Just shy of 116,000 people voted in the primary election in a district that includes all or part of 29 counties. The portion of our county covered alone has an eligible voting population that exceeds 116,000 people. The scary part is that only 860 votes seperated the two candidates.

Anyway, instead of just complaining I thought I would encourage everyone to take some action. Follow this link Start a Petition » to sign the petition at change.org and this one at Texas Freedom Network imploring that we Just Educate!

Storm Clouds

2010-03-25T21:23:00.000-05:00

I glanced out the kitchen window while doing dishes last night and saw this amazing mass of clouds moving in. Even though I knew this sight was a portend of some rough weather to come I couldn't help but marvel at the beauty. Thankfully, these clouds had more bark than bite. We ended up with a heavy rain and some wind, but no hail or tornadic activity and it all passed quickly bringing in cooler temperatures.

Come Spring

2010-03-23T22:27:00.001-05:00

I know spring officially started Saturday. On Saturday here in Texas it was about 34 degrees. Then on Sunday it actually snowed nearly 6"! So in honor of the first actual spring-like day I offer this poem.

Come Spring

Come spring,
honey butter sun
spreads,
its bread
the emerald buds
of new bloom.

Sprays of bouquets
flinging a maze
of ruffles and lace,
blazing,
a baby's breath
like candy tuft
in the sun,
come spring.

from A Humble Life: Plain Poems by Linda Oatman High

2010-03-22T20:51:00.001-05:00

Lovely video. Karen Maezen Miller is a Zen Buddhist priest and teacher who writes the refreshing Cheerio Road . Hand Wash Cold is her second book. I can hardly wait to read both this new book as well as her first book Momma Zen.

On This Day

2010-03-13T14:46:00.000-06:00

Today is a beautiful early spring day. We awoke to birdsong this morning. Trees are in bloom. The sun is shining brilliantly. I have windows open to give the house a good airing out. And I'm finally feeling a better. Still have a few day before I'll be back to complete normal, but I'm thankful for better. Ah, I love you spring.

Flu, Flu, Go Away...

2010-03-10T16:43:00.000-06:00

...and please don't come again another day! I'm finally emerging from my couch cocoon after four days of battling an absolutely miserable case of the flu. I have no voice, but at least I'm not shivering uncontrollably from fever induced chills. My house looks as if a small army of dust bunnies has moved in and we won't even talk about the lack of proper nutrition around here. On the up side I've spent most of the day today wrapped up in several good books and have lots of blog post inspiration stored up. Hopefully tomorrow I'll actually be able to do something with all this inspiration as I plan on taking it easy again since next week is Spring Break and I need my energy so we can enjoy it! A trip to the grandparents is planned as well as a trip to see the Juame Plensa exhibit at the Nasher.

Read Across America Day

2010-03-01T22:27:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow is Read Across America Day. In honor of this wonderful celebration I thought I would share our current read alouds. Just tonight we started Jean Craighead George's On the Far Side of the Mountain. Her website is beautiful, by the way. I highly reccomend a visit. We are also reading through T.S. Eliot's Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats. I try to read a couple of poems at the beginning of our read aloud time each night. I just discovered that this book of poems is the inspiration for the musical Cats.

And since we are talking about children's reading I had to share the link to Literacy Lava, a wonderful online publication loaded with tons of ideas for encouraging children's literacy. I've printed the most recent issue (would have printed them all if we had enough ink!) and will be giving copies to each of my children's teachers.

Be sure and follow the Share a Story, Shape a Future blog next week for lots ideas and inspiration for growing a reader. The theme this year is "It Takes a Village to Raise a Reader.

E is for Emboridery

2010-02-28T09:51:00.002-06:00

E is for Emboridery
Originally uploaded by Among the Oaks
Continuing with my Flickr Alphabet project and trying to get caught up for AlphabeThursday.

Edited to add: I need to clarify...these pictures are from my favorites file at Flickr. I would give my right arm to be this talented, but, unfortunately, I'm not! None of these beauties is mine. Click on the link and you can see the links to the actual artists.

February

2010-02-27T21:00:00.000-06:00

This is the direction I look out my kitchen window. I couldn't resist this sunset.

Getting ready for Valentine card swap.

She was fine until a very fat, wet flake landed on the top of her head.

My Brownie troop playing with shadows.

My 10-year-old's science experiment. He has always has something going.

The closing assembly for today's DI (Destination Imagination) challenge.

Valentine's Flowers

Excuse the Mess

2010-02-26T00:07:00.002-06:00

I'm trying to figure out how to add a third column to my blog...while I figure it out things may look a little strange. Bear with me...and any help is much appreciated!

Interesting Links From This Week

2010-02-22T21:51:00.000-06:00

A couple of things I found of interest this past week:

The lovely idea for a Family Wish Bowl from Olde Common Candles.

This article at Magic Onions about a childhood of elemental simplicity. I love what Rick Tan has to say about keeping our children's environments simple. I haven't been a purist in keeping my children's environment completely natural. However, I have avoided electronic and "one-use" toys. We've always had lots of Legos, Playmobil, blocks, train set, cars and play figures like dinosaurs etc.

Just as an aside, I remember talking to the mother of an infant during a playgroup when my kids were about four and six. In passing I mentioned that we did not have any battery operated toys. She was amazed and couldn't imagine what in the world they played with. I knew that our discussion had had an effect on her when, at the next playgroup, she mentioned that she had gone home and purged all the battery operated toys and was asking relatives to give more open-ended things for the upcoming holiday. The best part was that she had seen an immediate difference in her baby's engagement with her environment and had realized that without the talking, flashing, beeping prop between them they were actually interacting on a more elemental level. It was really cool! I'll admit that I actually didn't avoid battery operated because I thought they weren't all that great for my kids. I avoided them because I couldn't tolerate the noise! Knowing what I know now I'm glad I have a low tolerance for electronic noise!

This cool Rubber Band Pinball toy found at Journey Into Unschooling

Last, but not least, this post from Life is Not a Cereal outlining a 36-week art appreciation curriculum. We don't homeschool, but I do try to expose my children to things they don't get as in depth in school (like art and music) through our nightly reading. This curriculum is absolutely perfect!

Olympics

2010-02-21T21:17:00.000-06:00

We are spending far too many hours watching Olympics coverage these days. I've DVR'd everything so we don't have to watch every single moment and can skip the commercials, thankfully. My son has shown a particular interest in speed skating and the luge. My daughter in figure skating, which was something of a surprise as she's a little tomboyish. I just love the excitement of seeing the joy of these athletes as they succeed at the goals they've set for themselves. Today I watched Lindsay Vonn win the Alpine event and Shaun White take gold in the half-pipe. Even though I knew the outcome before watching it was still thrilling to watch.

D is for Deliciousness

2010-02-12T16:08:00.002-06:00

My creation
Originally uploaded by Among the Oaks

I'm reposting because I can't figure out what's wrong on the original post!

SNOW!!!

2010-02-11T20:07:00.000-06:00

To understand why this is so exciting you must remember that we are in Texas! The weather people say we have about 7" on the ground with more on the way. Now, it isn't really all that unusual for this part of North Texas to have one or two measurable snowfalls each winter. What is unusual is the amount and the fact that it will be on the ground for more than 24 hours! It's so pretty, but I must admit a little odd to see palm trees so loaded.

D is for Deliciousness

2010-02-09T20:54:00.004-06:00

My creation
Originally uploaded by Among the Oaks
I started this flickr alphabet project back in the fall. I got stuck on 'D' and just today finally came up with a good idea for it!

Ordinary Days

2010-02-08T20:48:00.004-06:00

I found this video at Clover Lane. I would absolutely LOVE to hear Katrina Kenison speak. I'm currently about half-way through her book The Gift of an Ordinary Day and have underlined and highlighted so many passages that I might as well highlight the whole book. It's a book that needs to be read at least once every year while we have children at home to remind us of how fleeting and special these times are.

January

2010-01-31T22:11:00.009-06:00

I decided to see if I could actually make it through the whole month taking a picture a day. I did fairly well, only missing a few days. Here is my month in review.

The winter mantle

Pink Lemonade kitty won from Magic Onions giveaway!

Sick day

Taking in the morning sun

Lego creation

Journaling

Hot chocolate on a cold winter's day

After reading the paper

Morning light

Afternoon snack

Soup cooking, kitchen laundry being folded, dishes washed

As I Sit Here

2010-01-20T21:21:00.006-06:00

As I sit here right now. My version of the Daybook, for today at least.

Outside my window...it is dark.

I am thinking...please let my little girl wake up without fever tomorrow morning.

I am thankful for...getting tickets to the local Newcomer show after finding out that Austin was sold out!

I am wearing...black sweat pants, blue sweat shirt and white socks.

I am remembering...that I need to e-mail my son's teacher.

I am going... to hear Carrie Newcomer on Friday night!

I am currently reading...It's Really All About God by Samir Selmanovic

I am hoping...that everyone is better tomorrow.

On my mind...the possibility of my husband going to Haiti next month.

Noticing...how quiet it is right now.

Pondering these words...the poem "The Place Where We Are Right" by Yehuda Amichai

From the kitchen... tonight was a version of the Pioneer Woman's Favorite Steak Sandwiches

Around the house...things are getting a little untidy after having a sick child for the past four days and not feeling that well myself yesterday and today.

One of my favorite things... hearing my children getting along instead of fighting.

From my picture journal...a picture of my nearly 20 pound cat being a lap cat. We've had her for over two years and just last week she realized, quite by accident, how good being a lap cat is. My daughter had put a loop of yarn around her neck while she was sitting on the back of my chair. She jumped down to the arm to try to get it off...she ended up sitting in my lap working on it (it was loose so she was really playing with it). Anyway, she finally got it off and plopped down right where she was. As I petted her she started purring and decided to get comfy!

My take on the Daybook...

Haiti

2010-01-14T22:36:00.003-06:00

Tears. My heart breaks for a people whose daily lives were already so extremely difficult. Years ago I read the book Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder. It is the story of Dr. Paul Farmer who, with passion, starts the process of bringing primary healthcare to the people of Haiti. As I read the book one of the overriding thoughts I had was about how difficult life was for the Haitian people. Today I pray for all the people so desperate for clean drinking water and simple food. Please, if you are compelled, consider making a donation to the organization Dr. Farmer helped found Partners in Health. They have a number of operational facilities and personnel already on the ground in Haiti ready to help. The Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders are also wonderful organizations already operating on the ground.

I Don't Want It To End

2010-01-03T19:38:00.005-06:00

I just checked my e-mail and immediately thought, I'm not ready to start the busy-ness back up. I've thouroughly enjoyed the last two weeks. No volunteer commitments, no practices or games, no scout meetings, no homework or tutoring. Instead we've had plenty of time to read and just hang out. Those volunteer commitments are worthwhile ,except maybe 4th grade party coordinator! Helping in the school library is definitely worthwhile as is my son's time at the animal shelter. And I know that scout involvement is a positive for both kids, and my daughter loves her sports. It's just that I really enjoy quiet (well, mostly) days at home with no running around to do for this that or the other. So it is with some reluctance that I look to Tuesday and the start of school and everything else.

2009-12-24T17:16:00.000-06:00

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas!

The Kitchen Sink

2009-12-22T17:29:00.005-06:00

Rhonda at down-to-earth is hosting a really cool weekly feature where she features a picture of a readers kitchen sink. I love this idea, as so much of life happens at this little seemingly mundane spot. It is where I do some of my best thinking. It's where I can be thankful for the bounty of food our family has, not to mention 24/7 running water. It's a great spot to observe mother nature. Where my children start down the road to being a productive member of a functioning household by helping to wash dishes. This is a real picture taken at the end of a day of baking for friends and neighbors.

Do check out Rhonda's featured sinks.

Gingerbread Houses!

2009-12-21T21:12:00.005-06:00

For my daughter's eighth birthday we hosted a gingerbread house decorating party for five of her friends. I'm always amazed at how different personalities and artistic sensibilities come out in exercises like this. I think they were all amazingly creative and I can tell you they had a ton of fun!

I Won!

2009-12-08T22:44:00.003-06:00

Oh happy day! I won this little lovie from The Magic Onions and her newest sponsor Mama4Earth

Please make sure you stop by and visit both of their lovely sites.

First Gift Under the Tree

2009-12-06T19:02:00.001-06:00

The first gift is under the tree! It will be the one I'm most excited to open on Christmas morning. My eight year old daughter did all of this by herself, including finding the wrapping items without ever asking me where they were. I'm sure the gift inside is lovingly homemade as well and will be treasured for years to come.

Christmas Decor

2009-12-06T12:53:00.004-06:00

My children begged to put out the Christmas decorations yesterday. I obliged. I'll admit I can be a little particular about the way things are set up. My husband makes fun of decorating shows where the decorator will adjust one little thing slightly before declaring a room perfect. That's a stab at me, I'm afraid! Anyhow, these pictures are the result of my 10-year-old son's decorating efforts. Everything will be staying right where it is as his feelings would be terribly hurt if I rearranged. So the displays aren't "perfect" this year, but he had fun and our house is very festive!

Reflections on Thanksgiving

2009-11-27T23:12:00.006-06:00

Being grateful. Something that generates much talk. Yet, something that is often difficult to achieve.

I feel truly blessed and am always aware at the surface of just how blessed I am. Too often, however, I forget to go below the surface for the finer things that result in real, lived gratitude. Living in real gratitude is easier, I think, when life is going along smoothly, comfortably. It gets hard when things become more difficult. Thanksgiving day in North Texas was a lovely day; beautiful bright sunshine, pleasant aromas coming from the kitchen, an abundant table, family to share the day with. But, honestly, I barely stopped to register any of it. I was so focused on getting dinner on the table and then getting it cleaned up that I forgot to appreciate how very delicious it all was. So focused on the chaos that naturally arises from the presence of five young children that I forgot to be thankful for their health and imaginations. So it is with an imperfect memory that I attempt to recall the good things of our Thanksgiving celebration.

Children enjoying a romp in the park with their daddies and uncles.

The too easy to overlook blessing of enough food.

My children's willingness to try new things at the table.

The big baby smile after he conquered the stairs for the first time...and 50th!

That same baby smile on the swing at the park for the very first time.

Toy cars scattered all over the floor by a car obsessed three-year-old. It's funny how quickly the days of my son, now 10, having his cars everywhere faded from memory.

Honey Cat didn't scratch anyone! This might actually be considered a miracle.

The time we were able to spend as adults after all the children were tucked snugly into bed.

Time for me to get to know my SIL who just moved to the states a little better.

Every Other Family in the Four County Metro...or Just Us.

2009-11-02T21:45:00.008-06:00

Saturday was an absolutely perfect day here in North Texas. This after several soggy, cold weekends. We decided to take advantage of the day by visiting the Dallas Arboretum. Unfortunately, so did every other family in the four county metro area. The parking lot was closed and they were running a shuttle from a remote (and I do mean remote) parking lot. We finally found the remote parking only to encounter a line that stretched for a good city block, made longer by the fact that every family in line had 2.2 jogging strollers and the jumbo sized Radio Flyer wagon outfitted with all the supplies one might need for an afternoon at the Botanical Gardens. Whatever that might be. Anywho, we decided we really didn't wish to spend such a beautiful day with every other family in the four county metro so we left. After much grumbling and complaining from the middle and back rows we finally decided to head to The Heard Museum of Natural Science. It turned out to be our good fortune that the Arboretum was packed as we ended up having the Heard practically to ourselves and it was wonderful. I suspect much better than if we had braved that line and spent the day with every other family in the metro area. So please sit back and enjoy our lovely pictures of a natural Texas fall. The Heard is a natural science museum that consists of six different walking trails, each highlighting a particular habitat (forest, wetland, prairie and meadow.) We walked the wetlands and the prairie trails, and visited the animals in the sanctuary. With all of our recent rain the wetlands look more like a lake than a swamp.

I'm sure the linked within will pick up my post from last October's trip to the Arboretum so enjoy those too. It's a completely different environment, but equally as lovely...as long as every other family in the four county metro isn't there with jogging strollers and wagons!

Touchstones

2009-10-26T23:18:00.005-05:00

I found this link while surfing through blogs...I'm pretty sure this is an exercise from The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron.
Touchstones: Make a quick list of things you love, happiness touchstones for you. River rocks worn smooth, willow trees, cornflowers, chicory, real italian bread, [etc.]. Post this list where it can console you and remind you of your own personal touchstones. You may want to draw one of the items on your list–or acquire it. If you love blue velvet, get a remnant. . . Play a little.

Here is my quick list:

Cats

Children laughing
Staying home
Autumn
Cold nights
Chocolate
Books

Candles burning
Dusk
Sunflowers

Fall Decor

2009-10-14T21:00:00.004-05:00

I finally got around to taking down my spring (yes, I said spring) decorations and putting up a few things for fall. Everything feels a little fresher now.