Rosey Eyes

Verb - It's What's Happening

2011-09-04T19:58:00.000-04:00

Ridiculous Fun for a Great Reason

2011-06-12T02:04:00.001-04:00

So, I've decided to drag my family - kicking and screaming, if necessary - into an era of whimsy and happiness.

In an effort to expedite the fun and whimsy, we've re-painted my drab walls a fluffy light yellow color known as "Winter Wheat," we've purchased a light blue sofa so enormous nearly everyone we know can sit on it simultaneously.

See how enormous that sofa is? Tonight's fun had Jimmy and I plus three teens sprawled out watching Dr. Who and iCarly...

We've also rediscovered some of our favorite "Outsider Art" that we'd collected early in our married life but for some reason tucked away for years. I think we subconsciously knew we'd need a season of un-fun in order to appreciate this new season of whimsy and happiness.

See. Whimsical. We got this awesome rooster at an antique and oddities store in Chattanooga. He's cool.

I just love this little guy. He makes me smile!

Ok, admittedly, these guys tend to disturb some folks, but they make *me* happy. I know, I embrace my strangeness. These are by an artist named Todd Marone. He does some really interesting stuff. We were lucky enough to find these paintings on eBay pretty early in his career, so they were affordable.

Another part of our formerly fun and soon-to-be-newly-whimsical-and-happical life is that we're doing a show! Yes, you heard correctly! A show, as in theater! As in doing something that is actual real-life fun! Huzzah!

On Friday and Saturday, July 22 and 23, Jimmy and I, along with a bunch of our goofy friends will be producing Death By Chocolate, a murder-mystery dinner show. AND - not only will it be ridiculously funny, it's a fundraiser for an amazing ministry we're a part of: Forever Fed, Inc. which is a mobile food ministry dedicated to feeding the hungry in North Georgia.

Forever Fed isn't just a soup kitchen where folks line up hours in advance for an opportunity to have some stuff plopped on a plate as they pass by (not to dog on those ministries - people need food...). But, Forever Fed takes the food TO THE HUNGRY - in places where there are concentrations of hungry folks. And, the meals are GOOD! Yum-O! Last week alone Forever Fed provided 1045 meals. That's amazing! And it's all done by these awesome volunteers who have a huge heart to share the love of our amazing God though feeding folks who otherwise wouldn't have a healthy meal.

Here we are standing in front of the truck during one of the school breaks, making healthy lunches for the kids in a local apartment complex where they often don't have enough to eat. On this day we probably provided close to 100 lunches (each of which had enough food for 2 days).

So, head on over to this page to buy your tickets to see our show! Not only will you have a ridiculously fun time and a great meal, but you can take a stab (pun intended) at making me break character -- now it's worth the $35 just for that, right???

MY Method of Keeping 100% Up-To-Date on Scrapbooking

2011-04-02T00:30:00.002-04:00

I enjoy scrapbooking. I love taking the time to make beautiful layouts of pictures of my adorable kids, my dogs, our house, etc. It's my way of wallowing in the memories and clinging to those tiny little toes and wet noses and the long-ago moments before kids when my house was clean.

See How beautiful she is? The background paper is hand inked and colored by me. This takes time. Lots of time.

Here's the problem: If I make beautiful layouts of each of the photos I take, I end up approximately 9 1/2 years behind. This is NOT an exaggeration. It's a fact. And it makes finding photos for school projects quite difficult.

So, now I have found a solution!

And yes, I'll share it with you.  

Here are my raw materials: 

iPhoto (or photo organization software of choice)
Shutterfly (an online photo printing source, that has cool tools) 
We R Memory Keepers Binders
 We R Memory Keepers Photo Sleeves in different configurations 
Traditional Scrapbooking Supplies (paper, scissors, adhesive, embellishments, etc.)

And here's what I do:

  Import all photos into iPhoto (or whatever you use for photo organization). I like iPhoto because it automatically creates "Events" out of any photos taken at the same time, so that's helpful. It keeps stuff together so I don't have to wonder if the picture of Annie eating a Popsicle is from the 4th of July 2010 or her brother's birthday.  
I go through and delete any unnecessary photos (eg accidental photos of the inside of my purse or unnecessary duplicates.)
I upload all remaining photos to Shutterfly, keeping them organized by event, which Shutterfly would call keeping them in separate "Albums." Each major event or season gets its own "Album." In this case, the word "Album" is basically a folder, not an actual "album" that you print. For instance, "Annie's Birthday" or "Fall 2010".
When Shutterfly has a sale - and they regularly do - I buy a 500 print "card" so tha I can get my prints for a little as like 9 cents or so. You don't have to use all of those prints at one time, use them as you need them.
When I have some prints to use, I print whatever photos I can. They are shipped to my house. Shutterfly prints the date of the photo on the back, so if it gets out of order, it's easy to put back in place.
As soon as the photos arrive I immediately slip them into We R Memory Keepers Photo Sleeves. These are basically page protectors that will fit into the We R Memory Keepers 3 Ring Binders. The page protectors are available in a lot of different configurations - because photos come in a lot of different shapes and sizes. So, some sleeves will have slips for six 4x6" landscape photos, or have slips for 2 portrait and 3 landscape pix... they have many different sized slips for photos. So, the photos just slide in.

But, Rain, these Photo Sleeves sound just like the old photo albums we used to use. So why is this so special???

I'll tell you why it's special. It's special because the sleeves come in many combinations, and you can choose what order to use them in your album. AND, you can combine them with full-page Sleeves, which accommodate a 12x12" layout.

Brilliant!
This gets the photos into an album right off the bat. So I'm technically never behind and can always look at my photos.

As I'm slipping the photos in, I can refer back to iPhoto or Shutterfly if necessary to know what event the photos were from. I make sure to use one of the 4x6 slots to put a card in that says what the event and date was for each event.
When I get a chance to scrapbook, I take my album and flip through and see what I'm in the mood to scrapbook. I pull those photos out and do a traditional 12 x 12 layout (or six) and then put 12 x 12 page protector right into the album where I pulled the photos out. So, as you flip through my books, you can see some pages pages where I've just prettied up the 4x6 slips, and some beautifully scrapbooked pages and some pages where I've only managed to slide photos in.

Here's the best part: ALL of my photos are in there. They're all in order. I can find them and look at them and wallow in those tiny toes.

And totem poles.

And Little Sisters with Big Brothers.

And New Houses...

And Easter Sundays.

So, Here's the First Test

2011-03-11T15:27:00.000-05:00

Remember a little while ago when I ranted about "Slacktivist" mentality and asked you to pause before you roll your eyes at me when I ask for help - pause and actually consider what you might be able to do?

Ok, so, here's the first test.

We're about to bring some kiddos - orphans, mostly, and others living in orphanages - here to live with families for the summer. Two of those families are trying to raise the nearly $7,500 it will cost them just to bring the kids here. They're SO clever, though. They're doing a fundraiser give-away.

So, to be clear, you could win an iPad2, or other great prize just for helping them bring some kids here for the summer. How cool is that?

Please take just a moment and look at their blog and consider helping them out.

Of course, if you want, if you feel called, YOU could host a kid. Really, you could. Shoot me a message and I'll get you the info. Some of my favorite kiddos don't have host families yet.

Helf Family Blog and Give-Away Details

Before The Eye Roll

2011-01-02T01:54:00.000-05:00

I'm 'bout tired of a few things.

Seriously.

Sick and tired, if you must know.

As in had it up to here, totally over it, done-diddy-done with it.

I'm tired of being upset. I think I spent the majority of 2010 being just ill about things -- my kids, other people, other people's opinions of me, the government, the people upset with the government, my hair, the price of gas.... I have just been up-set.

And I'm 'bout tired of it. So, I'm not going to be upset any more. Well, that's my goal, at least.

But. See. There's a difference between being upset and being indignant. I'm upset when someone gives me that look like I must be a terrible parent because my kid isn't sitting still. I'm upset when the price of gas goes up 30 cents overnight. And, I'm upset when I simply can't get my kid out of bed in the morning. This is the kind of stuff I'm not going to let get to me any more.

Seriously. Hold me to it.

However, there's this whole other level of upset that I call being indignant. That is to say that it's being upset because something is unjust -- on a larger level. I am indignant when I look around me and see so much wealth and starving kids living right next to each other. I am indignant when there are so many children with no parents and yet it takes $40,000 and a literal act of congress to adopt one. I am indignant that in our community where we literally throw away pounds and pounds of food daily, the shelves of the local food banks are bare. I am indignant when I get an e-mail or FaceBook message asking me to "sign" and online petition about something and I see how many people have slapped their name down there.

Wait.

Why am I indignant about that?

Well, I'm indignant about that because this insane slacktivist mentality has so permeated our way of life that it's nearly impossible to get actual, useful support for important causes because we all feel like we've done our share by signing the petition, or dropping a few coins in a fireman's boot or changing our Facebook status for a day.

Ugh.

This kind of stuff just gets me riled up. Seriously. How is it that the most powerful nation in the world - the country know across the planet for it's compassion and dedication to helping those in need -- has been reduced to such complacency? I realize that there are still a lot of people who actually do step up and help. I saw our church deliver Christmas gifts to 250 families, a friend's ministry that feeds the hungry several times a week, a team of folks who headed over to Africa to help in an orphanage that means the difference between life and death for orphans. Another team headed to Eastern Europe to give hope to orphans. There are still people who help. But, not as many as could.

I can't tell you how difficult it was to find enough people in our extremely affluent community who would step up and fill a 2-gallon zip-lock bag with a few Christmas gifts and write a letter to an orphan in Latvia. Seriously. I live in a neighborhood with 10,000 homes all valued over $200,000 and we couldn't get 150 people to do this. Yes, I know, it's a hard year - people are struggling to make ends meet... But there was no shortage of people in line at Target for the $400 flat-screen TVs on Black Friday.

I don't begrudge people the fruits of their labor. I think if you study hard, get a good education, work hard at your job and bring home a fat pay check that you should be able to buy a big tv... and a Lazy Boy to watch it from. But, if you can afford that, surely you can afford to help someone else. Surely you can give hope to a child across the globe by letting him or her know that someone cares. Surely you can buy a few dozen mosquito nets for kids in Africa. Certainly you can get up early one Saturday or skip dinner one weekday and help hand out food to people who otherwise wouldn't have any. Shoot, you probably can afford to pare down your grocery list for a week and buy double of everything so that you can give the second set of groceries to a family in need -- either because you know them or by giving them to a food bank.

We have it so amazingly good in this country. Seriously. Even most of those who are the worst off here have it better than many of the people in the world. And, despite how busy, difficult or crazy your life is, I can pretty much guarantee you someone else could use your assistance and YOU HAVE THE MEANS TO GIVE IT TO THEM!

Really.

You do.

You might not know it.

You might not believe it.

You might not even want to, but, you *could* make a life-changing difference in someone else's existence.

And, you want to know a secret?

It's fun to help someone out. It's better than a roller coaster. Better than double chocolate brownie chunk ice cream. Nearly addictive.

Want to know another secret?

A lot of times, it's pretty easy, too. Just, not as easy as slapping your name on the online petition, though. You'll actually have to *do* something.

Now, I realize that I harangue you all about helping out. I'm constantly asking for folks to step up and sponsor an orphan in Latvia or buy Christmas gifts for a kid in the community or provide book bags for needy kids, or help pack boxes of stuff to head overseas, or paint a house for someone in need, or make a card for a soldier. And, maybe you don't have the money to sponsor a kid, but I bet you *can* make a card. I also bet you can hammer a nail or make a meal for someone who's just out of the hospital, or help stuff pencils and crayons into book bags...

So, I hope you'll consider actually coming through when I ask for help some time. Or, when someone else asks for help. Catch yourself right before you huff, roll your eyes and think that you don't have time/money/skills to help. Right before the eye roll, stop for a second and say to yourself, "Self, how can I make this work? How can I fit this into my schedule?" And, I bet you are clever enough to figure it out!

But, if you don't, I won't get upset. I gave that up.

So, here's a way you can help RIGHT NOW! Something that has to be finished by the morning of Friday, January 7, 2011. You can make a handmade Valentine's Day card that we'll send off to Operation Write Home and they will send to a soldier who will then have an beautiful card to send home to his or her sweetheart. You have the ability to do this. It only takes a few minutes and it doesn't cost much money at all and it's actually kind of fun. It won't change the world immediately. It's not going to even directly save someone's life. But, it does make a real difference because it lets a soldier know that someone cares enough about what our troops are doing for us that this person (you) took the time to make this card and get it to them. Then it also lets the soldier's sweetie know that their sacrifice of being away from their loved one is appreciated. And that they are loved.

Like this one I made:

Here's also a few other ways you can *do* something the really make a difference in this world:

The Latvian Angel Project Web Site

Papa's Pantry Website

Forever Fed Website

Operation Write Home Website

Give a Kid a Chance Website

MUST Ministries Website

Simple Obedience Ministries Website

Can I Tell You a Secret?

2010-10-20T01:00:00.001-04:00

Time has sped up.

Seriously.

It's faster than before.

Or I'm slower.

I've not written in ages and I feel it... my fingers aren't quite certain what letters to hit and my thoughts are stuttering.

But, tonight I made a card.

A pretty card.

For Baby Girl's teacher.

Because Baby Girl did NOT behave today.

School has been trotting along smoothly for Baby Girl -- good behavior reports, good grades, good, good, good. And then today. Today she got not one, but TWO frowny faces in her agenda. And the following accompanying notes from the teacher:

"Not following along when reading."

AND

"...was VERY distracted today - playing with tiny pieces of paper in desk - Just doing nothing - She has work to finish."

Can I tell you a secret?

It made me a tiny bit happy. Don't get me wrong. I scolded her. We talked about appropriate behavior. We did ALL of the work she was supposed to have done in class and all of her normal homework. She didn't get to play with her best friend and had no TV tonight.

But inside, I was just the tiniest bit happy.

I don't want my baby to misbehave. I hope she never does this again. But, since she did, I got a the tiniest bit of satisfaction. Maybe it's not a proud moment, but at least now I know someone else understands the frustration of dealing with Baby Girl when she's in her own world... and finding tiny pieces of paper more interesting than her Reading, Writing and 'Rithmatic. And I know I'm not totally alone.

So, in the morning, Baby Girl will write a note of apology in the pretty card I made for her awesome teacher. And I won't feel so guilty for feeling happy. Cause it's a really pretty card.

A Card for A Hero

2010-07-15T14:19:00.000-04:00

Lately I've been creating some cards for Operation Write Home, which sends homemade cards to the soldiers overseas so that they can, in turn, send them back home to their families. You should try it.

Anyway, today they issued a challenge to make cards for our heroes to send home to their kids. Here's my first efforts. I made a few for me to use as well as a few to send to them. The ones for my use have a button on it, but that thickness can be problematic for their uses, so I eliminated it for the ones to send to them.

It's A2 size (4.25 x 5.5 folded) using Kraft colored cardstock, half an A2 scalloped note in Mango and some scrap strips of K & Co Citronella paper. The image is a Basic Grey stamp stamped with Versafine in black. Colored using Copic markers. Can't recall where the ribbon came from. The sentiment inside is, 'You Are Precious."

Let me know what you're making!

quiet

2010-07-01T10:12:00.000-04:00

hound dog red droopy eyes
worn from life distracted
peer over eyeglass rim and monitor haze
to witness life in the quiet morning

So, How is Annie Doing in Traditional School?

2010-03-03T23:37:00.003-05:00

“So, how is Annie doing in traditional school?”

I’ve gotten this question a lot lately, and that’s one of the things that’s pretty stinking cool about Facebook!

The short answer is “great!” but there’s so much more to it than just that she’s doing great. It has changed a lot about my relationship with her -- in a positive direction -- and is helping me see what a cool kid she really is.

Mired in the struggles of educating the poster child for ADHD (emphasis on the “H”), it was very difficult for me to realize her utter coolness. I knew, intellectually, that she was awesome -- I mean, she’s a Rose, and therefore by definition is cool -- just ask the twins. I’d hear others tell me how sweet she is, or what a great heart she has, or that she’s clever -- so, I *knew* it, but I didn’t experience it myself. I was too caught up in the screaming matches:

“Here are your spelling words, please copy them three times each.”

“If I get this one right, I get to watch one iCarly”

“No, you simply need to do this whole sheet.”

“When Sam eats ribs she cracks me up. She’s always hitting Freddy... that Sam, she’s so funny!”

“Annie, we’re doing spelling right now, not iCarly.”

[child turns upside down, feet in the air, head hanging off the chair]

“You will NOT leave this room, eat one bite, watch one iota of TV or play one video game until you write these words 3 times each.”

“See, if I take Barnabas’ tail and I tie it to Obi’s leash and then they go outside, and then can I see Sarah today, or is she not at home, cause sometimes she’s at her Mimi’s house and they have a big backyard, so, yeah, we need to just sell this house and I think that we can get one near her Mimi’s house for, yeah, about $100.”

“Write the words”

“No, I think you can do it.”

“YOU WILL WRITE THE WORDS”

silence - [child stares at the ceiling]

“WRITE THE WORDS” [mother slams the pencil onto the paper for emphasis]

“When Elmo dies, can I get a dog that stays little forever, cause Alex, she has a dog and Shay Shay is tiny and she’s never going to get big, ever, and she’s so cute and when Elmo dies I want a dog like that,”

“The words, Annie, please write the words” [mother gives herself a time out in attempts to diffuse the situation]

“I got my hands up, they’re playin my song, and now I’m gonna be okay! It’s a party in the USA...”

“Seriously. Really. I mean I leave for, what, 30 seconds and you find your iPod? Really? THERE WILL BE NO MUSIC EVER AGAIN IF YOU DON’T WRITE YOUR WORDS”

You get the picture... it’s difficult to see the awesomeness through the irritation.

So, today we had a very different word experience. I came home after work and she had done her assigned three sentences about today’s story -- an amazing feat for a child who only one month ago held an anarchist view about creative writing, in that sentences should contain only words she liked and should NOT have to have BOTH a noun AND a verb! So, I pulled out the flash cards I made for her with her sight words and spelling words on them and with minimal struggle managed to bribe my way through them with her and SHE ACTUALLY KNEW SOME OF THEM -- MANY OF THEM, in fact!!!

So, after dolling out the promised candy prize (yes, I know, bad Mommy, but, hey, I’m conquering one thing at a time here) we snuggled on the sofa and chatted. ACTUALLY CHATTED about her day -- about her classmates, about how Jesus wants us to love EVERYBODY, even when they cough really gross all the time -- about how compromises actually work cause when two little girls want the same one piece of paper and there is only one left and both of them really want it, it is just a fact of reality that they can’t both get what they want and since Jesus wants us to love others, and care for others, we can’t actually be happy if we get that piece of paper cause the other person will be so sad, so a compromise can help everyone not feel so sad, so maybe they can split the paper, or color on it together, or one get it this time and agree that the other gets it the next time... you get the picture... We actually conversed. REAL conversation. For the first time, probably ever. Because I wasn’t trying to get her to write something, or finish some math or glue something into her timeline book (which I STILL think is way cool and WILL be having her glue things into) and she had gotten her opportunity to express herself and all her interesting thoughts with her friends at school.

Now, I’m not saying that having her in traditional school isn’t without difficulties and won’t have it’s own set of obstacles -- it will -- but for right now, even if she doesn’t learn to read or write or add (although, baby girl GETS the whole Math thing) I’m FINALLY getting to build into her those far more important things like love, honesty, compassion... that I not only wasn’t getting to build into her while homeschooling her, but was probably modeling the exact opposite for her because of my frustration.

Homeschooling is AWESOME. I loved so much about it. I believe in it. I hope to get to homeschool her again. I hope that LOTS of others will consider it. It has SO much merit. But, for right now, I know without a doubt, that we’ve made the right choice for her. Even if it’s only for a few weeks... even if it’s for the rest of her school career... I thank God -- literally -- for every one of you who have helped mold Annie into the way cool kid that she is. And for those of you who may not have had the opportunity to experience her, but have prayed for her and for us!

Today was a pretty flippin awesome day.

Coin Carpet Stalemate

2009-09-15T20:09:00.005-04:00

Simple Assignment -- sort coins. Easy, right? Well, unless you’re Baby Girl.

We have a young puppy who occasionally pees in the house or tears something up. Not a huge deal. See how cute he is?

We have a very old dog who has started peeing in the house... not sure why -- seems like spite, but I'm a bit of a conspiracy theorist. Notice the missing tooth? He's old, but cute.

As a math assignment, Baby Girl was to sort coins into bowls. Easy, peasy for most kids. Four bowls, four basic coins -- penny, nickel, dime, quarter. We already had a pail full of coins to use. I got her set up and she was carefully sorting the coins appropriately into the bowls. It was going well. Much better than I expected.

Wow -- that'll buy some Starbucks!

Then the old dog peed. He peed on the rug, he peed on the carpet, and then he peed on the linoleum. No problem. I know what to do. Get the mop and have a boy get the steam cleaner.

Problem. To accomplish this I walked away from Baby Girl...

she dumped ALL of the coins -- all 1000+ of them onto the floor and then, because she LOVES to “be a dog,” she started digging through them al la Clifford digging to bury a bone. Coins flying everywhere.

What you can’t see in this picture are the coins under the chair, the coins under the piano, on the sofa, in the kitchen... down her shirt...

I stop mopping to get her to stop digging. While I stand in awe of the mess before me, she quietly slithers away. I pick my jaw up off the floor and begin calling for her. She quietly reappears, seeming contrite (I assume for the coinage) and I ask her to please pick up the coins. She digs through them -- I tell her she’s not allowed to be a dog -- as soon as the crocodile tears and cries that “No one lets me be a dog! I LOVE to be a dog” subside, I inform her that she is not allowed to leave the area until all of the coins are picked up.

This is the end of hour one of the confinement.

At the end of the first hour I risk a brief trip to the restroom. Now I know why she was contrite. It wasn’t the coinage.

She’d locked the old dog in the bathroom with food and water. Leash, stuffed duck and towel an added bonus.

Hour 1.5.

This is how well that “consequence” worked.

Consequences never work with Baby Girl.

Hour 1.75: Daddy arrives. He’s calm, cool, collected, logical. He looks at the mess and demands that Annie hand over her light saber -- favorite toy -- he walks to the trash can and she frantically begins cleaning up, crying, “Don’t throw it away. When F. and M. come over with there’s I’ll just be a loser with my saber in the trash!”

ahhh.... the right currency, a calm demeanor.... that’s all it took....

Hour 1.9: saber no longer in sight -- forgotten. Coins that had been cleaned up now re-dumped on floor. Cries that she needs help. Daddy hands her a dust pan -- great tool. She begins to pick up the coins with the dust pan. Yeah! Maybe the tool will help. She discovers that the dust pan makes a marvelous coin toss scoop. Coins flying everywhere.

Daddy walks into the garage and deposits saber into trash bin.

Wild hysterics. Crying. Screaming at the top of her lungs. Neighbors must think we’re killing her. Hitting herself in the head with fists of coins... Coins still on the floor.

She notices the motion detector for the alarm system. The little light blinks on when she moves It’s done this since before she was born. She suddenly stops crying and asks calmly, “why is that blinking?”

Really? Really??

Daddy calmly explains the motion detector. He’s only been home 20 minutes. He’s still calm.

Satisfied with the explanation she returns to the coin carpet and empties onto the floor the few coins that had miraculously made it back into the bucket.

Maybe I can live with a coin carpet... I might have to. Cause right now I can’t see a future where she picks them up.

A day in the life.

Not So Surprising...

2009-08-27T21:15:00.001-04:00

At a friend's recommendation, I took a little online quiz. The questions were interesting and the results... well... you tell me? take the test yourself here.

Your result for Howard Gardner's Eight Types of Intelligence Test ...

Naturalistic

8% Logical, 45% Spatial, 47% Linguistic, 27% Intrapersonal, 18% Interpersonal, 27% Musical, 20% Bodily-Kinesthetic and 51% Naturalistic!

"This area has to do with nature, nurturing and relating information to one's natural surroundings. Those with it are said to have greater sensitivity to nature and their place within it, the ability to nurture and grow things, and greater ease in caring for, taming and interacting with animals. They may also be able to discern changes in weather or similar fluctuations in their natural surroundings. They are also good at recognizing and classifying different species.

'Naturalists' learn best when the subject involves collecting and analyzing, or is closely related to something prominent in nature; they also don't enjoy learning unfamiliar or seemingly useless subjects with little or no connections to nature. It is advised that naturalistic learners would learn more through being outside or in a kinesthetic way.

Careers which suit those with this intelligence include scientists, naturalists, conservationists, gardeners and farmers." (Wikipedia)

My Dumb Dogs Get It

2009-03-27T14:36:00.002-04:00

* This is an article I wrote several years ago for a christian women's magazine or maybe for a women's group I was leading.... I was reviewing some of my previous articles and thought this one was at least worth sticking out there to remind ME what I need reminding most!

Deuteronomy 5:32-33
So be careful to do what the LORD your God has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or to the left. Walk in all the way that the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess.

2 Chronicles 34, also 2 Kings 22 – 23 (read the whole chapters for extra insight)
Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and walked in the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left.

Proverbs 4:25 – 27
Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you.
Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm.
Do not swerve to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.

Today my dogs inspired me. They didn’t stand up and speak or read from the newspaper or even save a baby from a burning house – they just did what they’re supposed to do – what God intended.

I was busily reading an online devotion – trying to make the most of the words in the quickest amount of time so that I can move on to the next task. My dumb dogs began scratching at the back door demanding to be let out, and then even whining. This annoyed me – I thought about responding, just to get them to shut up, but then I reminded myself that God’s Word is far more important than the leanings and desires of my dumb dogs. After all, they really are pretty dumb. Elmo loves to stand directly under my feet and then, when I step on him, he shrieks and looks at me with such pitiful eyes. Barnabas is the big doofus. He runs into things. He barks at the wind. He’s so afraid of people walking that when he see you moving towards him (because he always decides to lay down across the only entrance to a room) he gets so afraid that the can’t decide which way to move and usually ends up getting stepped on.

Well, these dumb dogs really wanted out today – they just couldn’t be swayed to wait until I finished my devotion, so I got up and walked over to the door. Together, these dogs who often will run in circles for no good reason, made a straight B-line for the back corner of the fence. They were completely intent on catching whatever it was that had invaded their yard. They weren’t distracted by the birds (usually the prey of choice) nor by the dog next door (their choir partner). They had a job to do. It’s not one that they chose – they don’t need the food that critter would have provided, they’re already over-fed. They’re just programmed to respond – God made them that way. A critter invades, they go after it – no questions, no distractions, you just can’t stop them.

I believe that if I approached life this way, I’d be a lot closer to the person God intended me to be. I know that, like Barnabas and Elmo, He has programmed me for a purpose. If I just waited for God to speak and then moved like lightening – unswerving – toward the goal He has set for me, I can’t imagine what I could accomplish for the Kingdom. It’s not that I don’t know what God wants from me. Once I stop thinking and over-analyzing everything (like my dumb dogs) I usually hear loud and clear. But, all too often, I get distracted by the birds and choir partners of life…

Poor Sick Baby

2009-03-07T13:45:00.006-05:00

I've got a sick baby. Ok, so she's not ACTUALLY a baby, but she's MY baby and even at almost seven years of age, the things she wants most when sick are the very some things most of us want: for Mommy to held her, to have someone bring all the right foods, to have the dog curl up with her, to watch bad tv, to be left alone, for the water to taste better, for raisins not to roll off the plate, for bread -- RIGHT NOW and then not, to have ALL of the covers, but hate them all... She's sick and nothing will be right until she's not.

We're a pretty healthy lot, so dealing with sick kids doesn't happen very often and I'm not really sure what to do. But, here I sit on the sofa at the foot of the bed reading everyone elses blogs and typing on my own, listening to her alternately whimper and then aggravate the dog. She's currently curled up on the floor at my feet, arms lovingly choking the dog and annoying him to no end. Even in sickness she's impossible to keep still.

Perhaps it's the paint fumes from dh and son #1 painting my soon-to-be-scrapbooking room a lovely blue or maybe it's that my only nutrition today has come in the form of Thin Mints, but this is actually kinda nice. I mean, what with the sick kid and all, I don't feel the least bit guilty looking at the insanely disgusting carpet or the pile of crap on virtually every horizontal surface or even the plastic bags full of junk I recently purchased but have yet to put away that are hanging from the knobs on my dresser drawers. Nope, I have a sick baby and she needs her mommy... so, until she's well, I'll just sit here and wait, and eat Thin Mints and occasionally fetch her the food that she swears will make her all well, that she'll take one look at and let sit... and, because she needs me to be here, I'll just let those plates of uneaten raisins, unopened applesauce cups and undrunk water bottles sit. It just wouldn't do for me to leave her, afterall -- she's sick!

So, what blogs am I following? Thanks to the recent addition of Vienna RSS Reader, I'm following too many and adding more daily. So, here are the top:

The Pioneer Woman -- This lady just cracks me up and offers some advice in several areas of shared interet: farming, decorating, homeschooling, cooking.

Big Mama -- just plain funny.

Card of the Week -- Scrapbooking, stamping and papercrafting ideas and links to other blogs, cause clearly I don't have enought already.

"The only thing that interferes with my education is my schooling" -- Albert Einstein

Annie-isms: I'm a WHAT?

2009-01-01T18:07:00.004-05:00

Today Jimmy and I decided to take a stronger but more loving approach to parenting -- yeah, whatever, we just don't want to yell anymore. It doesn't work, isn't loving and sounds ugly.

So, Annie had an entire ark's worth of stuffed animals in the foyer -- I guess it looked like a good playground to her. At 5:30 p.m. Jimmy told her that she had until 6 p.m. to clean them up or they would be thrown out. We gave her a couple of warnings and at 5:59 p.m. I walked with her over to them and reminded her one last time.

As she sorted through them, and began to grab some of them to take upstairs. I reminded her that they needed to go where they belonged. I guess that was ONE too many reminders because Annie replied -- in all seriousness, "Hey! Quit talking to me like some kinda mad woman!"

I had to walk away because seeing me laugh would just have encouraged her....

2009 might just be a little more challenging (and humorous) than I expected.

photo taken at the Pirate Museum in Nassau, Bahamas.

Annie-isms: A Descriptive Paragraph About Frogs

2008-12-02T15:44:00.001-05:00

When asked to write a descriptive about frogs, Annie crafted the following:

Frogs have big puffy cheeks like Croagunk the Pokemon. Some frogs are green. Croagunk is blue with white bandages around his tummy.

She's 6! I don't think it reflects well on my parenting that she can better describe one of the less-important Pokemon than actual frogs.... In her defense -- sort of -- at one point she wanted to say that most frogs are green but some have polka dots and wish they were rainbows.....

I love this kid and just wonder what on Earth she will be like when she's older!

I Can Hear The Hooves...

2008-10-24T14:15:00.001-04:00

I'm not really sure what to do with this news story I've been following.

Perhaps you can help me sort it out.

Part of me wants to vomit at the thought of being jailed for a thought crime.

Part of me want to slap this dude in the face, spit on him and then yell at him for about a week.

And, part of me wants to rip out the book of Revelation and answer the burning question -- is this the first or third sign of the Apocalypse?!

SO, here's here's my understanding on what's going down: This Australian guy, Gerald Toben, was sitting in his Australian home from about 2000 - 2004 posting crap on his web site denying the Holocaust. Reprehensible, no doubt. At some point in October, he finds himself in the US in need of flying to Dubai. He catches a flight and has a layover at Heathrow airport in London where he's arrested for the crime of "Holocaust Denying" based on a 2004 EU arrest warrant issued in Mannheim, Germany.

This was not a case of a criminal seeking political asylum. The guy didn't commit the "crime" in Germany. He didn't even commit the "crime" in London where he was arrested. His "offense" is not a crime in either Australia, where he sat publishing it, nor in the UK where he was arrested. As far as I can tell, the extradition treaties in place when he posted the material did NOT include a list with this "crime" on it, nor did it meet the dual criminality requirements (meaning it's a crime with equivalent punishments in both countries). So, why, you might ask, is he being arrested? It seems that there is a mandatory extradition law that requires any EU country arrest and immediately extradite anyone that has an EU Arrest Warrant issued by any other EU country, regardless of whether the "offense" was unlawful in that country or not.

Granted, it is VERY difficult to have sympathy for Toben -- he's not just some guy who posted a few mis-guided thoughts on his blog. He's actually been arrested before for similar "Hate Crimes" and even allegedly attended a conference in 2006 entitled "Review of the Holocaust: global vision" held by President Ahmadinejad of Iran. Not a model citizen for sure.

The question is, however: are we now under one law? Are each of us now held to the laws of other countries, even when we're not in those countries and, perhaps, never go to those countries? Belgium, it seems, has already had to deal with this issue when an arrest warrant for murder was issued by Poland for a woman who had an abortion. Again, arguments about the crime aside, the issue is one of our Constitutional Rights -- are we to be held to the laws of EU countries regardless of the law's legitimacy based on our Constitution and regardless of whether it meets the requirements of the extradition treaties we have with those countries?

What's next? Sharia? (don't roll your eyes -- the radical Muslim populations are wildly increasing across Europe... it could happen)

So, before you book a flight, think back.... have you posted anything on the Web that some other country might deem offensive? Have you committed an act of any kind that would be deemed a crime in any part of the EU? Are you certain? Might want to re-direct your flight and avoid the EU, unless, of course, that's you destination... and then I might have to ask, "Why?"

If I Culd SAve Time In a Bottle

2008-10-13T09:15:00.000-04:00

You know all of that time you spend standing in front of the fridge/pantry/cabinet/grocery store shelves staring and wishing that something appropriate would appear? And, how about all of the time you spend waiting for someone that you KNEW was going to be late, but you had to be on time anyway because you're just that way? Or how about all of the time you spend NOT answering the questions, "SO where should we go to dinner?" I want to save all of that time in a bottle and pour it out into the night so that I can actually get enough sleep without missing anything cool.

I really resent that I have to sleep... there's just too much life out there waiting to be lived!

Annie-isms: We Just Got Ding-Dong Ditched by Our Six-Year-Old

2008-09-19T12:50:00.002-04:00

It’s nearly midnight and I just can’t stop laughing. We’ve spent the ENTIRE evening trying to get our precious Annie to sleep. She’s resisted, she’s bargained, she’s pulled out the, “You just don’t care about me!” hollered down the hall. She even got her High School Musical microphone and made announcements from her bunk. She WON’T sleep.

After round three (or forty five, I can’t remember) of crocodile tears, we put her back in her bed… again… and were surprised by the silence. Great, maybe she’s asleep. Then we hear a soft but distinct knock at our bedroom door followed by the quick retreat of tiny feet. Upon opening the door we’re met with a note left on the floor.

Our dear darling little one, who has been struggling so with learning to read and write has left us a note. It reads “ANNIEISHie” and on the back there is a map – to where, I can’t tell – but it’s clearly a map.

So, best as I can tell, sweet Annie Rose ding dong ditched us to try and rope us into a game of hide and seek by actually writing a note entirely by herself for the very first time.

I love that kid.

Further Evidence of Impending Stardom

2008-08-18T14:08:00.003-04:00

Shopping at Target this morning, looking for jeans for Annabelle.

Mommy: Do you like these, Annie? (holding up a really cute pair of jeans)

Annie: Can I have this purse?

Mommy: We're here for jeans, do you like these?

Annie: Ugh! Can I at LEAST have this belt?

Mommy: No, we're here to get jeans.

Annie: But it's like SO cute!

Mommy: I said no.

Annie: Ugh! Mo-om! I have to have style! I have to rock out!

Where does she get this?

The Honest Thoughts of An Unapologetic Rock 'n' Roll Drama Queen

2008-08-14T16:28:00.002-04:00

age 6 years, 136 days

Last night while riding in the car, Annie said, “Daddy, I need some music.”

So Daddy turned on WABE – classical music.

She said, “what kind of music is that?”

Daddy replied, “It’s classical music.”

“Why’s it so boring?”

pause

“I need some Rock and Roll Music, Daddy!”

Independence Day

2008-07-04T16:01:00.002-04:00

It's Independence Day. And, after 43 (I think) years, I've finally learned to spell independence without having to rely on spell check.

So, I'm sitting here at my computer exercising my right to read e-mail, play around on FaceBook and be a sloth when I see an e-mail from someone on my homeschool loop. Should have been the first indication that if I wanted to remain slothful, I should shut down the e-mail and focus my efforts on flinging food at my friends and creating pieces of Flair on Facebook. But, you see, the trouble with being slothful (sloth-like?, am I making up words here?) is that your mind doesn't function at it's normal rapid rate and so, the automated response kicked in and I opened said e-mail.

sigh.

It was a simple e-mail. Just a few words and an attachment.

The few words read, "Here's a copy of the Declaration of Independence in case you don't have one." Implication being, of course, that I will be reviewing this document -- this reason for my "day off" -- with my children.

You see, as a homeschooler, I'm supposed to take every opportunity to educate my children on what's actually important and not just what will help them pass some government-imposed test. Actually I assert that as a PARENT I should take every opportunity to educate my children on what's actually important and not just what will help them pass some government-imposed test. But, well, that's probably best saved for another rant.

sigh.

So, now having been presented with the reminder of the educational opportunity and having been relieved of any excuse that I didn't have the necessary text, I downloaded the attachment and, because I'm out of black ink, copied the text in to a Word document so that I could change the text color to blue and print it out. Whew!

I set in my mind that I would present the family with the pages and together, passing the Declaration around, we'd read it. But, in an effort to make certain that it all ran smoothly, I began to read it to myself.

Have you ever read the Declaration of Independence? These were some upset people! Now, I realize that should be obvious. One doesn't simply declare independence from his country because he's miffed or irked. No, they were flat ill with the king.

After reading and re-reading for about an hour, I finally finished the document and think I have digested it. It's not that long, it's just thick. It's also just important. Good grief, these folks up and sent a letter to the leader of the country saying that they were totally fed up and were leaving. They detailed their grievances and outlined their response.

Cool stuff.

Anyway. Since I had my Independence Day slothdom interrupted by this document, I thought I'd give you the same opportunity. So,

Here's a copy of the Declaration of Independence, In case you don't have one.

In Congress, July 4, 1776.
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power. He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever. He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have we been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

This is a Copy of the Text of the Original Declaration of Independence / dated 4th July, 1776.

Frantic Joy

2008-05-26T15:07:00.011-04:00

The last few months have been a lot. It's amazing how tings just seem to come in waves. *

We recently returned from vacation in Destin Florida to a family full of pandemonium. While we were gone Jimmy's mom fell and broke her arm in three places -- I mean REALLY broke it. My dad spent two days in the hospital with chest pains (turns out it's nothing but stress, thankfully) and my brother has had sudden, unwanted and unexpected change of housing which puts him far away from the rest of the family.

So, after driving a LOOONNNGGG way home through torrents of rain I walked into a house that smelled like poo. Immediately I opened the windows and began looking for a dog pile, which I never found. Not the way a vacation was supposed to end. But, this vacation went anything but the way it was dreamed!

I looked forward to this vacation. I anticipated it, planned for it and dreamed about it. How nice it was, I thought, that we could head to the beach when it wasn't so crowded. No fighting for a "front row" chair position on the beach. No over-crowded swimming pool where the water temperature makes you wonder what the water to pee ratio is. No scorching sun that prevents you being outside during the "hot part of the day" which turns out to be 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. No, it was going to be serene, restful, almost picturesque.

Then, much like the Dasani commercials, I was ripped back to reality. The week leading up to vacation I was FRANTICALLY cooking up a storm so that we could have healthy meals and so that we wouldn't have to eat out and I wouldn't have to spend my vacation cooking. This worked well, as I froze enough dinners and a few lunches and took a quiche along for good measure. The cooking, packing and list-making took almost all week. The hollering and threatening took the rest of the available time and, by Thursday at about noon we piled the grumpy kids into the van, slapped headphones on them, plugged in the iPods and drove away.

Now, the thing about going to the beach when no one else is there, is, well, no one else is there. Not a problem for me. I have enough of "one elses" in my everyday, so I was looking forward to solitude -- reading a couple of books, contemplating my proverbial navel, etc. However, in my frantic planning and list making, I had failed to realize that the kids don't share my love for peaceful nothingness. So, you see, while the pee ratio in the pool was down, so were the available playmates. And, of course, while I got a "front row" chair position on the beach each day, I had to be the sand castle maker and wave chaser. While I didn't have to cook dinner, I did have to remember to defrost it, heat it up, serve it and clean up afterward.

Ok, I can hear you thinking -- why is Lorraine bothering to blog this awful vacation experience. This almost sounds like complaining! Well, here's the thing. I found that I actually did enjoy helping Annie build a sand castle. She actually became much more interested in the moats and aqua duct systems than the actual castle, which remained a lump in the middle of the moat. My little engineer! The Lord smiled on me as he stirred up a nice breeze which had the dual effect of making the beach a comfortable temperature AND creating the need for almost perpetual "red flags" so I didn't have to go swimming in the water. I ended up being blessed that the beach wasn't over-ridden with bikini-clad girls. There just wasn't much to worry about, so I could let the boys take their bikes and just go! The cooking still wasn't fun, but, well, nothing is free, right?

We also had the unexpected blessing of meeting another homeschooling family who have started a church in Ohio. They were great to talk to!

We had another blessing upon our return. Jimmy's wonderful mother had spent the first part of the week (pre-arm break) cleaning our house and replacing things -- like new rugs for the kitchen, a new curtain for the french doors, a much-needed additional table for my office. It was difficult to figure out how to react when I walked in to a clean but poo-scented house. It turns out, in case you're interested, that the poo smell was actually over-fermented kefir grains. That took us a week or so to discover, which, of course, means that I haven't been tending my kefir... but, well, that's really okay.

So, now we're back and I'm actually relaxing.

I'm rediscovering joy. Really. I think I'd forgotten that we're supposed to be joyful. I had been so focused on doing everything "right" that I forgot to have fun! Not just in the vacation preparation, but in all of life. That's so not cool.

So, I'm blogging again. I'm listening to music again. I'm scrapbooking again. AND, last night I stayed up until 3:30 a.m. doing absolutely nothing of any importance. Ahhhh... life is good, isn't it?

* yes, I realize that I made a typo, leaving the "h" out of "things." but, if you read it like it's written and then add "mon" at the end of the sentence, it actually ends up conveying my real sentiment, so , I left it in the final editing.

Other Way Cool Things That Happened on Vacation

My sons took me to lunch on Mother's Day at my favorite restaurant, La Paz, which no longer exists near me, but does exist in Destin.

My kids humored me by cheerfully escorting me to an Arts Festival in Sandestin after lunch on Mother's Day.

I won a necklace worth a reported $500 in the Arts Festival raffle.

We discovered Zoo World in Panama City Beach.

I had a real connection with Sydney the Gentle Giraffe and spent quite a bit of time petting and feeding him. I really didn't want to leave him.

My wicked sunburn turned into a nice "base tan."

The kids had a GREAT time fishing in the lake that's just outside our condo door.

My awesome husband bought me a camera for Mother's Day, which I used to take more than 450 pictures.

I now have quite a few blackmail photos of each of my kids.

"The only thing that interferes with my education is my schooling" -- Albert Einstein

Reading Freakout

2008-04-29T10:13:00.003-04:00

Have you ever read something that just set you over the limit??? It's not that the one thing you just read was so alarming that it calls for life-altering actions, but it's just the proverbial straw breaking the camel's back? Well, today I read just that sort of thing!

I get a number of crazy newsletters -- not surprising, since I'm more than just a bit odd. I get the usual homeschooling newsletters, Christian women encouraging each other newsletters, tree hugger newsletters and, of course, Healthy Living newsletters. This article was in the latter of these categories.

I receive a weekly (actually far more frequent than weekly) newsletter from Dr. Mercola. I'm not really certain exactly who Dr. Mercola is, but a friend recommended him and as far as my research has shown, what he says is on the money. Today I received one of his newsletters and the second article was entitled: "New Stealth Chemicals Hidden in Your Food" This caught my eye and, skipping over the first article on B12 absorption, and noting the third article on how to stop men from missing the toilet, I headed straight to find out just what is hidden in our foods... more MSG? Sodium labeled as something else??? Perhaps some GMO veggies/grains or cloned animal products... No -- this was even beyond my wildest imagination -- I can't imagine WHO thinks this stuff up, but I sure wish they'd stop!

It appears that some company (innocuously named "Senomyx") has developed some chemicals that, as I understand it, block, excite or otherwise confuse your taste buds so that things don't taste like what they're made of. This is being used to allow food to have less sodium, sugar, etc. but still seem like it tastes good... So, the food you eat can be made of, I supposed, virtually anything and it will taste good to you! And the best part is --- drum roll, please -- they don't have to list the chemical as anything more than "Artificial Flavoring." AND -- they didn't have to do much testing on the safety of the chemical, because it only take a tiny bit of it to be effective! WHAT?? Now we can't even rely on our taste buds to help us discern whether food is edible?

Well, needless to say, I checked good ol' Dr. Mercola out -- I mean, come on, certainly the FDA tests this stuff -- maybe Dr. Mercola is being alarmist. No, this is exactly what's happening... and here's how Senomyx couches it, (quoting from their Website as of April 29, 2008)

Senomyx is using proprietary taste receptor-based assays and screening technologies to discover and develop novel flavors, flavor enhancers and taste modulators for the food, beverage and ingredients industries.

Taste modulators?????

HUH???

I don't know about you -- but this just sort of freaks me out! I guess it's just that this is on top of all of the unlabeled genetically modified grains that we get, the unlabeled cloned meat that is coming (ok, to be "fair" they probably won't sell actually cloned cows, but progeny of cloned cows...ewwwww) which is on top of the hormones, antibiotics and other chemicals they inject into our meats and the saline, dyes and other solutions the "butchers" at the grocery chains pump into the meats to make them look good. Not to mention the fact that virtually everything we eat is now made substantially of corn... because it's either actually made of corn, enhanced with corn syrup or fed corn. And, this all on top of the (alarmist, but possibly true) reports that surmise that mad cow disease is rampant and that virtually ALL beef world-wide is infected hereditarily and that this could be linked to Alzheimer's....

What's an eater to do???

Well, we've already gone almost totally organic. We've stopped shopping at the local "regular" grocery store and started shopping at Whole Foods, which isn't perfect, but it's better. We've planted a larger garden than we ever imagined and we'll eat off of that as much as we can. We buy organic grains (wheat, kamut, rice, oats, etc.) in bulk from a local, trusted supplier and we make our own bread. We buy raw "Pet" milk (more later about raw milk -- don't get me started!) from a dairy with grass-fed cows and we've been looking into splitting a grass-fed cow (for meat) with some friends. The only thing left is to move to a farm and raise all of my own stuff... but I'm not sure this city girl is quite ready for milking cows and swiping eggs from angry hens.

In the meantime, I'll just keep reading my weirdo newsletters and getting myself worked up and making whatever changes I can to what we eat, drink, breathe and put on our skin. And, I suppose I'll pray. That's probably the best protection from all of this insanity.

If you want more info on any of this, here are some links:
Dr. Mercola's Site
The Article Referred To Above
Senomyx's Site
Article About How Keep Men From Missing the Toilet

"The only thing that interferes with my education is my schooling" -- Albert Einstein

What's in a Name?

2008-03-28T02:56:00.003-04:00

I'm naming the garden gnome Boisfeuillet (pronounced BO full ay)... or Sven....

My Homeschooled, Un-Socialized, Cloistered Kids Are Running Me Silly

2008-03-26T16:30:00.002-04:00

Can I just tell you how blessed I am?

Woah.

It really just hit me as I was typing a response to an “E-vite” and having to say “maybe” to a Girls Night Out party this Friday. Not only is it amazing to me that I have friends who send me E-vites because they actually want to spend time with me, AND that I want to spend time with them – but, I have to say “maybe” because I’ll be on an all-day field trip with my sons. Yes, my home schooled, “un-socialized,” “cloistered” sons!

Between the home school ice skating day, the Tuesday and Thursday night soccer practices, the insane turn-around for Thursday night youth group, the monthly “Friday Night at the Blue Light” youth events, the Monday and Friday afternoon Martial Arts classes, the field trips, the Wednesday morning classes at COMPASS Arts (guitar and drawing) and their Wednesday afternoon classes at The Master’s Academy of Fine Arts (Art, Music, Drama and History), I barely have time to gas up the mini-van (yes, I know… mini van… what can I say?) And that’s not to mention the play dates – and, whatever you call it when your kid is 16 and is having a “play date” but you can’t call it a “play date” because they’re “too old for that.”

It warms my belly (with stifled laughter) when I tell folks that we home school and their first reaction is, “Don’t you worry about their socialization?” Have they MET my kids? I’ve not seen more social people anywhere – certainly not the teens I see hanging around the neighborhood, or that I hear screaming at their moms at the store! My kids – all three of them – can easily and appropriately (mostly) have a conversation with virtually anyone: adult, child or peer.

The other day, at one of the home school events, a home schooling friend of mine was telling me that someone said that her children are not “normal” because they’re home schooled. I thought – out loud, actually – NORMAL??? If the kids I see around are normal, I’m GLAD my kids aren’t “normal!” We aim for better than “normal!” I am blessed to be able to help mold my children into people of integrity. People who see the world through eyes of compassion, who understand the relevance of the Scripture in their daily lives and aren’t ashamed to live it (not perfectly, granted). I’m blessed with the ability to be with my children as they work through issues. As they begin to mull things over in their minds and to be able to step in, if necessary. If it’s called for, I can take my son out to the coffee house in the middle of the day and help him see through a difficult situation – no shouting, no accusations – just mom and son working through something. How awesome is that?

It’s actually a family joke with us. One of the kids will do something peculiar – could be anything – and I’ll say, “You’re so weird!” The reply is always, “I got in the right family!”

When we decided to home school I had no idea the amazing resources that are available! It runs the gamut from resources to help Annie to arts classes and field trips for the boys to support from other home school moms.

When we decided to home school Annie – which was about three days before she was set to start PS – we did so because we’d stumbled upon a wealth of information and hope for her “special needs.” We have discovered that we can tailor the curriculum and the school day to meet her needs – which I am discovering are no more or less “special” than any other child’s needs! I just wish that every mom could have the awesome experience of schooling her children! To see Annie’s face light up when she reads a word, or gets a Math problem right, or learns something new. To see her face sort of “screw up” in confusion about a new topic and then hear her work it out as she begins to talk about it. To know that she’s right on target for HER – not just for some list of standards (although, we do mind the standards and keep aware of where she stands in relation to them).

Of course, it’s especially easy to write about this right now, because all three kids are at The Master’s Academy of Fine Arts for four and a half hours! And, don’t get me wrong, there are days when I don’t feel this way, at least for a few minutes. But, that’s another entry. Today I wasn’t to focus on how blessed I am to be able to home school my kids.

"The only thing that interferes with my education is my schooling" -- Albert Einstein

Garden Gnomes, Latvia, Homeschooling and ummm something else

2008-03-17T21:02:00.005-04:00

Okay - so here I am again, starting a new blog -- mostly because I can't remember where I put my old blog. If you know, please tell me, although I don't think there's anything of real interest there.

So, three basic areas to cover today: 1. Homeschooling, 2. Latvian Missions, 3. Give a Kid a Chance, 4. Garden gnomes. So, that's four, not three, but you'll notice a pattern here...

1. Today was a GREAT schooling day! Yes, GREAT! Sometimes schooling really stinks, sometimes it's a joy. That's life. This morning when I sat down to grade my 16-year-old twin sons' work from last week (yeah, I didn't really do a great job grading last week), they had ALL A's. What a treat. I only had a few things to send back for re-working. Woo hoo!

We use Switched on Schoolhouse for their core curriculum and it's working well, although the boys have asked for something different next year. They thought it'd be cool doing all of school on the computer. I guess they really didn't think it through to the logical conclusion that it would mean READING everything. Not sure what they were thinking.

In addition to SOS, they attend the Master's Academy of Fine Arts once a week for Art, History, Music and Drama as well as COMPASS Arts -- one for guitar and one for drawing. The boys are following in their parent's and grandparent's footsteps -- budding artists with little patience for sitting still!

Okay, so back to the GREAT schooling day. The boys both finished their work without too much fuss and even did their chores without me asking. Of course, that might have something to do with my utter meltdown at 9 a.m. when breakfast wasn't going so well and the devil got a hold of my tongue -- but I'd like to think it was out of the sheer love for school and cleaning -- I'm allowed a fantasy every once in a while!

Our dear little Annie has struggled so much with school. Just every aspect of it has caused her grief! She's confused. You see, at one point, because of her attention issues (she's been diagnosed with AD/HD -- don't EVEN write me about this if you are going to say it doesn't exist or is a cop out -- walk a mile in her shoes and THEN tell me what you think!), we really believed that we HAD to send her to public school so she could get the help she "needed." So, we began to prepare her for that. Thank the Lord (literally) we discovered that we could homeschool her and that what she "needed" was what we could offer! YAY!

So, lately she asks when she will get to go to the school with lockers. Poor little Annie, she had it in her mind that she's not getting to go to Kindergarten at the school because she doesn't know how to read. No matter how many times I tried to explain homeschooling to her, she just didn't get it. SO -- today we had a breakthrough. I think she finally gets it. She now realizes that she's learning everything she'd learn at the place with lockers PLUS a lot more. She's thrilled that she gets to go to Master's Academy and she understands that she couldn't do that if she went to PS. Also, she finally gets that MOST kindergarteners can't read -- not just her. AND that she's working on a second grade level in Math -- which she wouldn't be allowed to do in PS. So, all is good.

That sparked a renewed interest in school! She actually read a "story" today. BIG triumph. She worked diligently in her new workbook and did new spelling words for this week and new letters of the week and we even found Portugal and Latvia on the Globe -- one of her digressions in her schoolwork. It suddenly became critical that she see where Granddad's parents came from and where her brothers used to live. Then straight back to the workbook.

And that, my friends, is a GREAT Homeschooling Day!

2. Latvian Missions -- Okay, so my calling in life, in addition to being a wife and mom, is ministering to orphans in Latvia and the people who care for the orphans (Social Workers, Orphanage Directors, Foster Parents, etc.). Along with my Husband and sons, I am part of a ministry called Latvian Angels. We match each child in a children's home with a Christian sponsor who agrees to pray daily for the child, write a letter of introduction (including photos) and provides Christmas Presents for the child along with occasional correspondence. It's a cool ministry. So, we recently figured out our budget for the year (we've really been running by the seat of our pants for the first three years of the ministry). I was STUNNED, can I tell you I was floored that our budget exceeds $16,000 -- and that isn't including the Christmas gifts that the sponsors will provide. Ummmm... God's got a LOT of work to do here just to pick my jaw up off the floor -- not to mention providing the funds!

So, we're planning some fundraisers and we're confident that, like He has in the past, He will provide! First up is a traditional Latvian pankuka dinner set for April 19 at my friend Merle's house. If you're in North Metro Atlanta you're welcome to come. Adults $10, kids $5.

The picture on this post is of the Staff of Hope for Children, a great ministry in Latvia that works with orphans and kids at risk. We took them out for a dinner and brought them a gift of matching scarves... they're as goofy as we are... I'd love to show you some of the precious pictures of us with the kids, but it's not permitted by the Latvian government -- which I guess is understandable. So, you'll have to settle for HFC staffers!

3. Give a Kid a Chance -- So, a former pastor of mine always said that you should do missions abroad to learn things that you then bring back home and use. So, I guess that's what's happening now with me. I've been doing missions in Latvia and really just sort of wrote that notion off as untrue for me. BUT, it seems that for the third year in a row, I'm working as the volunteer coordinator for our HUGE outreach, Give a Kid a Chance. This is a cool thing. We provide every child in need that lives in our county with what they need to start school -- backpack, school supplies, a haircut, dental, medical and chiropractic screenings, clothing, etc. Way cool. So, we're ramping up and meeting each week and really, instead of typing this hideously long Blog entry, I SHOULD be e-mailing volunteers....

4. Garden Gnomes. Don't know why, but I have a thing for garden gnomes. I'm not really into kitschy things in general. I usually like abstract and folks art -- not things like... garden gnomes... but there's just something about those little buggers that makes me smile. So, I finally broke down and bought one!

It all started with my daughter letting the neighbor's giant black lab into our yard. You see, she does this and she's not supposed to. She KNOWS she's not supposed to. She does it any way. So, I'd finally had it -- the LAST straw -- I sent her to her room, notified my son that he was on "Annie Duty" and headed to Home Depot to fix this issue.

After buying chicken wire (to bury in the ground around the fence where the dog and Annie both dig, creating a hole for him to climb through), Prickly bushes (to deter both girl and dog from coming near the fence), Top Soil (to fill in all of the holes the two of them have dug), and a hasp and lock (so the "gate" between our yards can't be opened by anyone without the combination) I was pooped! And, none too happy that my time and money was going into fixing such an inane problem. As I stomped out of the garden section, there he was -- smiling at me -- this little garden gnome holding a wooden sign that said "Hi." Well... now he's at home and for some crazy reason that small amount of retail therapy allowed me come home with a good attitude and be excited about the improvements we're going to make to the yard!

I suppose he needs a name....

So, hideously long blog entry one -- over and out.

"The only thing that interferes with my education is my schooling" -- Albert Einstein