Raw, Organic, super-charged Mommy Power

Cat and Rollersk8ing

2010-06-08T06:25:00.001-07:00

This night of rollersk8ing became a fateful night. I did a fancy show-off move (it wasn't really that fancy) and broke my foot. I didn't KNOW it was broken until the following morning when I couldn't walk. This occurred at the beginning of May and the darn foot still gives me trouble.
I threw in pics of my cat, Abner, just b-cuz I love him and he's my cuddle buddy. Also, he was my best friend when I couldn't walk anywhere. He loved it. It was as if he was saying, "FINALLY you're sitting still long enough for me to have a good nap on your lap". Perhaps that was the reason I broke my foot: to bond with my cat. Who knows?

It's been a long hiatus!

2009-06-04T08:00:00.000-07:00

I am back to blogging after a break over the winter. I didn't intend to take a break but I got distracted in the world of myspace and facebook.
I canceled the myspace account after I lost interest, but am still actively using facebook.
The main reason I am back to blogger is because of some friends of mine who are in the Philippines and their blog is updated on a weekly basis. It's a great way to check in with them without having to pay for texting or long distance phone calls. The blog is http://shofar-mc.blogspot.com/ if you are interested in going there. The work they do includes teaching in schools and jails, constructions projects, sponsoring local bands and showing a powerful Jesus movie translated in the native language of the people who live there on Cebu Island.
I have been keeping busy here on the home front. I decided to start my own business during the worst recession in 80 years: I started giving piano lessons. It began with learning how to make a professional looking ad to hang up around town. So far, I have 2 students, and a third is coming today for a consult. I am very excited about this!
This year, I probably won't even make enough money at it to have to claim it on my taxes, but I need to keep track of it as it grows- wouldn't want to get into hot water with Uncle Sam!
I also thought that I should probably start to formally give my own son piano lessons. He's 13 and is actually interested in doing it now. Back when I tried to teach him in 1st grade it was like pulling teeth! Now he's picking up on it quickly is eager to learn.
If any of you are still out there blogging, I'd love to hear from you. I imagine in the coming days I'll pay a visit to whim, imran, dorky dad, dirk star and others who I remember fondly from my regular blogging days.
PS- Dirk: I told you Obama would win.

Take your stand- the right way

2008-09-30T06:30:00.000-07:00

The following is a chapter from the book, "God Isn't In a Hurry" by Warren Wiersbe. I copy it here in response to yesterday's news about the pastors who endorsed a presidential candidate from their pulpits (it was a group effort among several churches.) These pastors may be facing legal consequences for their actions, and as a Christian, I say good. As you will read from this chapter that I have chosen, I am not your cliche evangelical Christian. The chapter has a lot of great advice for all of us, no matter what your beliefs, but keep in mind as you read it that his main audience are Bible believing Christians.
Take Your Stand- The Right Way
“There was a time when most evangelical Christians were satisfied with silence. When great issues were being discussed, the dedicated Christian watched and prayed and stayed out of the battle. For believers to be involved in politics or social issues meant that they had forsaken true Bible separation.
But now that day is over. Today, dedicated believers feel guilty if they fail to register their convictions about great moral and social issues. With the dawning of this new day, some new problems have emerged. If we do not solve these problems, our speaking out on issues will create more difficulties than did our guilty silence.
Perhaps the first problem involves information. Most of us are not experts in these fields. What we know about Bible translations, abortion, capital punishment, social welfare, and a host of other issues has been gathered second-hand. Our information is selective because most believers read only the literature that they agree with. This means that we have studied only one side of the issue, if we have studied even that. I am amazed at how many Christians consider themselves experts on complex issues simply because they have read a pamphlet or a magazine article.
This leads to the second problem- the danger of manipulation. A few writers and speakers can control the thinking of millions of people because their readers or listeners do not know any better. The word for this is propaganda. By using the techniques of propaganda (name-calling, half-truths, glittering generalities, and so on), clever writers or preachers can convince an audience that theirs is the only righteous cause. It is even possible to twist Scripture to defend their position.
Our third problem is making these issues tests of spirituality and fellowship. The enemy is out to divide God’s people, and he finds plenty of ammunition available wherever believers disagree about matters that have high emotional content. At a time in history when the church desperately needs to be united in its witness, sad to say, we are divided on marginal issues. Instead of devoting out time and money spreading the gospel, we are busy in other activities that neither strengthen the saints nor win the lost.
There is a fourth problem- speaking up on these issues in an immature manner. I have read some of the letters sent by evangelical Christians to people in places of leadership, and I have been embarrassed. To be sure, not all letters are embarrassing, because there are still Christians who know how to disagree with others without being disagreeable. But some of our public servants must have a biased opinion of evangelical Christians after reading their mail.
Having said all of this, I am not suggesting that the church retreat into silent obscurity and never raise its voice in either approval or protest. But I do have some suggestions to make that might, if followed, sharpen our witness to an unbelieving world. The next time you plan to write a letter to anyone in a place of leadership, keep these suggestions in mind.
Get the facts straight. In other words, don’t believe everything you hear or read. Be especially careful about signing petitions in the vestibule of the church. If you have ever played the party game ‘Gossip,’ then you know how the ‘facts’ can get garbled as they are ‘communicated’ from one person to another. In recent years, the Federal Commission was deluged with letters and petitions protesting a law that was not even being considered!
Beware of propaganda. Even well-meaning evangelicals can use name-calling or exaggeration in their zeal to defend truth and oppose lies. Never allow somebody to manipulate your thinking just to support a crusade. Take time to pray and consider the issues calmly and with the facts before you.
Speak the truth in love. If you feel you ought to register your convictions, then do it in such a way that your letter will make it easier, not harder, for the next Christian to witness to the recipient. Many people in public offices are convinced that evangelical Christians are ‘cranks’. (Some of the mail I have read has almost convinced me at times!) Practice the Golden Rule and write the kind of letter you would want to receive yourself.
Don’t get detoured. As the salt of the earth and the light of the world, we must make the principles of righteousness felt in our society. But our main task is not to protest corruption but to preach Christ. The heart of every problem is still the problem in the heart; and that problem can be solved only by the gospel. To devote your energy and time to some personal crusade while ignoring the Great Commission is to play right into the hands of the enemy.
I sometimes feel that the church today is like an adolescent who is trying out his newfound freedom of expression. In recent years, it has been popular to be a Christian, even a conservative born-again Christian. That popularity will not last forever, for the enemies of truth and righteousness will not stand by and do nothing. However, the time has come for us to mature and move out of that adolescent stage. Yes, we must make our convictions known; but let’s make sure they are true convictions and not just shallow opinions or secondhand prejudices. Let’s also be sure that we know what we are talking about, lest we embarrass the gospel by our zeal without knowledge.
Proverbs 18:13 might be a good text for all of us: ‘He who answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame to him.’”
PS- One last comment from me- I find it interesting that I heard that news story yesterday, got a bit mad about it, and then this morning- as part of my routine devotions- the next chapter I was to read was about this very subject. It really put my mind and heart at ease just to know there ARE sensible Christians out there! BTW, this book was published in 1994. It could have been today!

Here we go!

2008-06-27T05:50:00.000-07:00

This is the time of year that we embark on a very interesting journey. This year we are going to Wyoming. (Last year we didn't go)...The year before that we were in Colorado, then West Virginia, then it starts to get a little foggy for me as far as the line-up, but there's Wisconsin, Idaho, Montana, California, Arizona, Pennsylvania and Nevada somewhere in there too. Every year (except 2007 for us), a different National forest with the same folks. What am I talking about? The national Rainbow Gathering of Tribes.
My husband and I and 2 of our friends are linking arms with a group from Minneapolis to share the love of Christ with the people of the Rainbow Gathering. Some will love us for it, some will not. To read more about Steiger Minneapolis and the missions work they do, click here.
Their aim is to reach the lost world for Christ just like any other church, but the people they are called to reach are usually the people the mainstream church disregards or pretends does not exist. This can mean anyone from Sudan to the inner city of Minneapolis. Much of their church has been built by younger people who came out of lives that ultimately would have ended in an early demise: homeless, drug addicted, abused, or alcoholics- many by very early ages. These folks who have been set free by Jesus Christ have turned around and are now the backbone of an effective and growing ministry that feeds the homeless here and abroad and ministers to those in physical and spiritual need.
My husband and I are blessed and excited to join them in their endeavors to reach the Rainbow people. I will post news of our trip when we return.
If you want to find out more about the Rainbow Gathering, click here.

So wish us luck or better yet, if Jesus is your friend, please ask Him to watch out for us and help us to be effective!
Until we get back...
Bye!

A monumental first step

2008-03-31T17:55:00.000-07:00

Today was the first step of what may prove to be many. What was downright frightening previously has been made to be slightly more doable as of today. What previously caused the flight part of the "fight or flight" syndrome to occur, just may be able to be overcome someday. We all have irrational fears. Some are private, but some, like the one I am speaking of now, are as obvious as the end of your nose. They can run our lives, because we cannot seem to overcome them. They keep us confined, both physically and mentally. They make us think we can't accomplish certain tasks- even simple tasks such as spending quality family time with those you love. It's a horrible feeling to know that your family is right downstairs, and if you could be with them, you would- you bet you would....if it wasn't for....

the DOG.
But today a milestone has been made. Today was the first day in the history of cat ownership that our cat got up the guts to venture downstairs all on his own free will. It didn't last long, and he was quickly overcome with kitty jitters and the anticipation of doggie-chase, but he did it!
Perhaps some of you remember when we adopted our cat, Abner on August 1st (me and my hubby's anniversary, incidentally). Since his adoption, he has warmed to our family swimmingly. He sleeps with us and cuddles up so nice and warm and tight that I can hardly imagine sleeping without him now. And, strangely enough, our dog also sleeps in bed with us, and Abner doesn't seem to mind that in the least bit (sorry dog trainers, we let our dog sleep with us and we like it that way). But once day time arrives, it's a whole different game. The cat simply will NOT come downstairs and the times when I have carried him downstairs to try and show him that it's not really such a scary place to be, his claws dig into me so deeply that I have to use a tweezers and drill set to release them. He's so tense that it feels that he's died and immediately gone into rigor mortis.
My theory is that at his previous home, there was a dog there who loved to chase cats and he's been forever scarred by the ordeal. Now, I must admit, our lab mix, Vern, is no angel in this area. But she is obedient, and will usually listen to us when we discourage activity which we don't approve of. So the cat has nothing to fear.
I just hope that today's first step is the beginning of many ventures into the rest of the house and Abner will soon learn the joys of the living room, dining room and kitchen- not to mention the ability to curl up in my lap while I watch the Simpsons with the rest of the family.

Does this dog look scary to you? She runs away even when my rabbit gives chase! If you know how to communicate this with my cat, please tell me how!
Thanks!

Faries and other miscellaneous items

2008-02-04T06:31:00.000-08:00

I was thinking the other day that if I ever had a daughter, I would want to do a fairy theme in her room. Fairy tales are the epitomy of childhood, are they not?
On a different note, we went on a couples retreat this weekend and it was great. The speaker had some amazing practical insights into marriage. Here are some random snippets from my notes:
From Matthew 5, the beatitudes:

Recognize your own spiritual poverty ("Blessed are the poor in spirit...")
Be merciful to your spouse ("Blessed are the merciful...")
Matthew 5: 16 (look it up); the application to marriage is to shine God's glory to your spouse!
As 1 Cor. 13 says, "love keeps no record of wrongs" and if we are to be a loving spouse, we won't either
Remember that God is soverign- he will deal with your spouse's 'issues'

Our role as wives is to be a helper (which automatically assumes that we are on the 'same team')

There are a lot more things I learned, but that is just a recap.
I also reminded myself how cool my husband is- and he really is! I am super-duper thankful for him!
On a completely different note, me and a friend of mine got the very neat opportunity yesterday to go into our local jail and watch the super bowl with the fine incarcerated ladies who are residing there. We were able to bring in some good old Wisconsin super bowl goodies: venison sausage, muenster and co-jack cheeses, an assortment of crackers, cherry coke and oatmeal raisin and peanut butter cookies (thank you Blind Munchies Coffeehouse for the cookies! They were grrrrrreat!)
All in all, I think it was a fun and fruitful endeavor. It is always a good idea for those "Bible study women" to just be real people for awhile and hang out and root for a football team and eat cookies. I saw some sides of the women that I hadn't seen before, and I got a tour of one of their cells, which was kind of her.
Please continue to pray for our efforts in jail ministry! Thanks!

BTW- for those of you hoping we are having more kids, don't take my fairy bedroom comment too seriously, it was just a random daydream that I had!

Why Trees Whisper

2008-01-24T07:26:00.000-08:00

I read this and enjoyed it so much that I copied it here to share it with you:

Why Trees Whisper

Estonian Legend
Retold by Anne Pellowski

In the early days of earth, not long after the trees were created and humans were forced to leave Paradise to work, a man went out to the forest to cut wood. The first tree he came to was a pine tree. But as soon as the man lifted the axe he heard a voice cry out.

"Don't strike me. Can't you see the sticky tears that are already coming out of my body? If you hit me it will bring you bad luck."

The man did indeed see the sticky sap coming from the several cuts in the tree trunk, so he moved on farther into the forest. He came to a spruce tree and again raised his ax. But the spruce tree protested.

"Don't cut me down. You will find me of little use for my wood is twisted and knotty."

Unhappily, the man went on until he came to an alder tree. Once more he raised his axe to strike but the alder shrieked at him.

"Be careful that you don't wound me. Whenever I am cut, blood runs from my heart. It will stain my wood and your axe blood red."

The man went no farther but called out to God.

"How am I to get wood to make fire and to build shelter? Every tree I meet cries out and pleads that I not cut it down."

God took pity on the man and said: "Return to the forest. I will see that hence forth no tree will talk back or contradict you."

The man did as he was told and this time no tree spoke to him. None protested as he cut down to make shelter and to make a fire.

The trees were not happy about this. They dared not complain aloud to God. Instead, they began to whisper softly, each time a person entered their domain in the forests. If you approach a group of trees anywhere, you can still hear them softly whispering to each other. They are gently complaining about their poor treatment at the hands of humans.

Commentary:

Many of our musical instruments are made of natural materials, but they have been refined to such a high degree that it is difficult to find the natural object behind all the polish. Also, we forget that music often imitates natural sounds in the environment: the brushing of leaves against each other; the wind whistling through trees or rocks; the songs of birds; the snap, crackle and pop of growing and dying trees and plants.

When I tell "Why Trees Whisper," I like to have on hand some tree branches to wave through the air to create different kinds of "whispers." It is challenging to see what range of sounds one can come up with while using only natural things, without altering them in any way.

Like the floss of dandelions and milkweed, ancient stories like this one should continue to be sent floating out into the wide world, in much the same way they have drifted down to us across centuries. By telling them, we keep alive our wonder at the tremendous variety of life on our planet.

Happy 60th post!!

2008-01-11T05:44:00.000-08:00

This is a goodbye post- not goodbye to blogging, but goodbye to our Bible study. Last night was the first Thursday we spent at home by ourselves in a long time- about 10 years, in fact!
While I will miss the study, it is definitely time to move on to new things. Our original purpose for having the study was to start a church. If we could join all the people who graced us with their presence throughout the years we WOULD have a church. Some of them moved on to join the fellowship that sponsored the Bible study, which is about a 45 minute drive from here. We are very happy for those people and I take comfort in knowing that some fruit came out of all of our antics that we used throughout the years to try and advertise and support the study!
Memories of a failed church plant: (or a successful re-location ministry, however you choose to look at it!!)
Meeting in a coffeehouse (in their attic space with no possible fire escape!)
Having a punk band come play for us and having about 10 kids show up for it
Meeting outside in Veteran's park when we had no place to meet
Dog-sitting a deaf Great Dane who could obey hand signals
Ministering to the Grateful Dead folks when the Dead came to play in Wisconsin
Letting people use our house while we were out of town
The ladies meeting for prayer on campus on Tuesdays- one of which was 9-11-2001
Handing out controversial literature, which, in hindsight, was TOO controversial!
Taking a "year off" of Sundays to meet on Sunday morning for Bible study
Being able to minister to an old college friend
Meeting in a tattoo parlor for 2 years
Fun Island! (Those of you who were there, remember!)
Pretending to be asleep
Many, many grill-outs
Countless questions (only a few answered!)

And many many more!

Here's to the people: (names omitted)

The runner
The D.J.
The ex-hippie mom with a daughter named after a cluster of stars
The over-sized New Zealand er who stayed on our under-sized couch for a week
The two college girls who went on to marry two men in our home church
The biker dad
The car accident victim
The gardener
The tattoo artist
The angel with a walker (and an attitude!)
The inmates (at least 4 that I can think of right now)
The trapper
The wanna-be inventor
The Dead Head who married a friend's sister
The interior designer
The movie and music buff
The Civil War re-creator
The two biker ladies: and then there was one
The dogs: Harry-butt and Vern-o
The dummy (no, it was an actual "dummy"!)

Hm mm. Good times.

PLEASE VOTE

2008-01-10T08:30:00.000-08:00

I don't want to tell you who to vote for or what party to associate yourself with, but simply to use your ability to vote. If we as the American people take this privilege for granted, someday, it just might be taken away from us.
The following is copied from Rock the Vote :

Manchester, N.H. - Jan. 08, 2008

Building on the momentum of last week's historic turnout in Iowa, 18-29 year olds in New Hampshire today turned out to the polls in huge numbers, in some locations spilling out the door and forming lines up to an hour long as large turnout exceeded expectations.

(See photos: here) Today's results reinforce the fact that young voters will play a critical role in the 2008 elections.

According to CNN's exit poll, 18-29 year olds made up 18% of voters in the Democratic primary today, up from 14% in 2004. Among Republicans, 18-29 year olds made up 14% of voters. (there was no 2004 Republican exit poll)

Given these numbers and word from election officials that turnout is "absolutely huge" statewide, it's clear that young voter turnout is up significantly today.

In fact, 18-29 year old voters made up a larger share (18%) of today's Democratic primary vote than either 30-39 year olds (15%) or 65 and over voters (13%) did.

"Clearly, 2008 is the year young people are Rocking the Vote," said Heather Smith, Executive Director of Rock the Vote. "When candidates reach out to young voters and talk to us about issues we care about – health care, Iraq, education, and the environment – we respond and vote in powerful numbers."

"Young voters' energy this election year is amazing," continued Smith. "Across the country, young people are organizing on their campuses and in their communities, getting registered, volunteering for campaigns, getting their friends involved, and getting out vote. In 2008, Rock the Vote will run the largest youth voter registration drive ever – registering two million 18-29 year olds – and work to increase young voter turnout to the polls for a historic third election in a row. Given the energy so far this election cycle, I have no doubt young adults will Rock the Vote in November."

According to the CNN exit poll, young Democrats split between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton while young Republicans voted for John McCain.

18-24 year old Democrats supported Barack Obama (61%) over Hillary Clinton (22%);

25 to 29 year old Democrats supported Hillary Clinton (37%) over Barack Obama (34%);

18-29 year old Republicans voted for John McCain (27% of 18-24 year olds and 37% of 25-29 year olds) over Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, and Mike Huckabee.

In New Hampshire, Rock the Vote worked online and on the ground to turn out young voters today. Rock the Vote staff and volunteers organized on Facebook, did get-out-the-vote reminders at Dartmouth College, placed ads online and in student newspapers, distributed get-out-the-vote toolkits to high schools, and secured radio DJ's in New Hampshire to run PSA's reminding young listeners to vote.

Looking to November, young voters' record turnout in New Hampshire and Iowa indicates that 2008 is shaping up to be the third consecutive major election in a row with strong young voter turnout. Turnout went up significantly in 2004 – by 4.3 million over 2000 levels – and went up again in 2006, that time by 1.9 million over 2002 levels. In 2008, there are 44 million eligible 18-29 year old voters in the U.S., more than one-fifth of the electorate, a political powerful group that campaigns now know they must mobilize to win.

For more on Rock the Vote and young voters' turnout to the primaries, see www.RocktheVote.com and also check out our blog, http://blog.rockthevote.com.

DISCLAIMER TO MY CHRISTIAN FRIENDS:

Yes, I know "this world is not our home" and I know that we won't make any "real change" in the world through politics, but if we have this ability to have a voice and we don't use it, aren't we being neglectful of some civic duty?

And if you don't vote simply because you're afraid of voting for the anti-christ, the solution is simple: vote for a woman; the bible is quite clear the anti-christ will be male (but we could have told you that already, right ladies?)

If you can't poke fun of religion and politics, what can you make fun of??

Fun Website to Read

2007-12-18T05:38:00.000-08:00

"CAT ENEMA CAT "^
I have nothing interesting in my own life to share at this point, so I thought I would just check in and recommend an interesting (albeit somewhat disturbing) website to check out. Disclaimer: I have a weird sense of humor, especially when it comes to issues concerning poop.
Here's the site: I gave my cat an Enema
Did you read it? Go on, it's not so bad- it's not even that long- certainly not nearly as long as some of your posts- ha ha!
One reason I found the site particularily funny is because the cat in question looks a lot like the cat we adopted in August. (Abner update: He is doing quite well, he still dislikes the dog, but will sleep on the same bed she is on as long as me and my husband are in the bed too. He has been a little out of sorts lately as we have been dog-sitting my parent's dacshound, Pepper, who barks a lot and scares Abner. I tried to tell Abner that he could kick his butt if he wanted to, but Abner is too much of a 'fraidy cat for that).
See if you don't think the Cat enema cat ("Fred"- God rest his soul) doesn't look like a pissed off version of my cat:

Tough Times?

2007-11-17T17:19:00.000-08:00

Many of my beloved church friends have been through some hard times as of late. A mission team arrived back from a trip to India this week and their absence took it's spiritual toll on many of us. Gladly, for most people, these tough times serve only as a scalpel in the hand of God to cut away some nasty infectious sin that has been growing on the heart for too long. This "medical" procedure is generally painful, and I'm not sure, but I don't believe God uses pain medication for it. Since I am very close to several people at church, I have heard first hand of the successful operations which were performed during this time. At times, I was fearful that some of them wouldn't make it, but while I cannot report zero casualties, I can say that everyone whom I thought would make it did.
The trip to India was a success and I am eager to hear more about their adventures tomorrow. I must simply say how pleased I am that God would allow me to be a part of this church family, and while I wasn't physically in India with them, my heart, prayer and dreams were there with them. I am not certain how, but we are all so intricately connected by the bonds of love and spirit that the truth of it washes over me like a flood.
While studying tonight to teach in the jail tomorrow, I found a quote that so perfectly expressed my view of the difficult times in life that it brought immediate tears. I believe Mr. Spurgeon has induced more spontaneous tears in me than any other dead man!

It is not hard for the Lord to turn night into day. He that sends the clouds can as easily clear the skies. Let us be of good cheer. It is better farther on. Let us sing Hallelujah by anticipation. -- Charles Haddon Spurgeon

So, I sing.

The Himalayan Mountains

Gettin' Curvey!

2007-11-01T10:46:00.000-07:00

Right now, even as I type this, I am at Curves. I have been a member since August, 2006. I have been hesitant to write about my experience on this blog because I didn't want anyone to think that I was receiving financial profit from this unprompted advertisement. In reality, this isn't an advertisement, because I am not trying to convince anyone to 'do what I did' but I do want to share how being a member has helped- and yes even changed- my life (so cliche- I hate that).
I can blog now at Curves because the manager just recently put in a laptop computer near the "weigh-in" area.
My family and I moved to a small town about 4 years ago and after almost 3 years of trying to build relationships with people and mostly failing, I decided to join Curves in order to make some new friends. Little did I know that the residual effect of this would be that I would lose over 40 lbs, many inches, and a lot of joint pain in my knees, hips and feet! The pain was the first thing to lose. After being a member for about 6 months (and not losing even an ounce of weight) I decided to give the Curves diet a try. Here I am almost 9 months later and 40+ pounds lighter. I have about 10 lbs to go until I reach my goal (please pray for me- those last pounds can be stubborn I'm told!!)
And, naturally, I have forged friendships in the process, however, this is slower going than the weight! Small towns can be a tough nut to crack when you're not a native, but I have grown very fond of many of the ladies at Curves, and I can only guess that the feeling is mutual.
Well, I better get going- the place is about to close for it's afternoon hiatus (it's closed from 1:00-3:00 every day for cleaning).
Whatever you do for your friendships, life and health, I wish you a happy holiday season, a full tummy (but not too full) and a lot of laughter and loveliness!
PS- The above picture is NOT me and I'm not even sure I would like it to be! I used it as an illustration of how much stretching I've been doing lately- I FEEL like I SHOULD be able to do that, but alas, I cannot.

Why I love Autumn

2007-10-01T06:29:00.000-07:00

Sun shining through golden leaves
Wool sweaters
Smell of wood stoves
Smell of wet leaves
Watching squirrels stash their food for the winter
Fresh orchard grown apples
Pumpkin Pie!
Hay rides (yes, we still do those in the mid-west!)
Sudden whirlwinds of leaves flying down our street
Hot apple cider
Coffee tastes better when it's cool out!
Walking the dog and kicking leaves

If you have never read the description of a Wisconsin fall in "Travels with Charlie", you need to!

Enjoy your Autumn, everyone! I am!

Not your typical Bible study...

2007-08-23T09:27:00.000-07:00

Howdy folks! I wanted to share some pictures with you from our Bible study we have every week. We are not your regular Bible study attendees, as you can see. Things get a little wild at times!
These pictures are from a particular week when the teacher was gone and there was a camera left on the table for the people to do with as they wish....I don't think that will happen again anytime soon! There was couch jumping, carousing and see-no-evil antics which would NEVER had happened had the teacher been present! It's a good things these guys go to a Bible study regularly, cause they need it! (Ha ha).
If you are in the mid-west area, and are interested in a church, here's a link to look up.
We just had our huge concert extravaganza (see previous post) and it went very well. The majority of the attendees were college students, which was exactly what we desired. The henna booth was exotic and bohemian looking and it was hopping with customers! I have no idea how many tattoos I gave on Saturday, but let's just say that when I closed my eyes that night, I saw swirly henna designs behind my eyelids! The whole gig was an absolute blast, though. It's neat that I can serve God by doing henna tattoos (all the proceeds went to missions in India).
This whole church thing is a major part of my life, so I thought I'd share a little about it with you. Obviously, I am fortunate to have a group of friends who like to study the Bible, but don't take life TOO seriously! We have a bit of fun in the process.

YESHUAPOLOOZA!!!

2007-08-16T08:43:00.000-07:00

Right now you may be saying, "WHHHHAAATTT??" Yeshuapolooza is a 6 band concert extravaganza that our student organization puts on every year. This year will be the 10th year, so we're really going "all out" for it! There's going to be

6 Live Bands - Hog Roast - Henna Tattoos - Full-on Coffeehouse - Live Radio Interviews
and much more!
The coffeehouse represented is my favorite in the world, The Blind Munchies Coffeehouse and they'll be selling Mochas, espressos, fresh bakery and of course their famous sweet iced lattes (it's worth driving across the country just for those- believe me!)

So if you're from Wisconsin or Minnesota, or if you're just in the mood for a road trip, you can catch all the action at:
UW Stout, Menomonie, WI
On Sept 8th, from 2:00-10:30
Info line: 715-235-9300

The bands featured are:
Runway 36
Tom Feldman and the Get Rites
This is Luke
In overflow
Camera Can't Lie
Survive the Drive
The pictures above are from Yeshuapolooza 2005. They are pics of actual henna tattoos created that year, Mitch McVicker and his band who played that year (they were GREAT!) and one pic of the drawing table where you can sign up to win door prizes and free merchandise.
If you're thinking about coming, I encourage you to come check it out- it's a lot of fun for free!

Meet Abner, our new family member!

2007-08-05T15:35:00.000-07:00

Abner - Adopted 08/01/2007
Male Domestic Short-Hair
Est. Age on Arrival at Animal Ark: 7 years

Hi! My name is Abner. I am a friendly , obedient, quiet, easy going, orange tabby fellow. I ride well in cars and I use my scratching post. I am tolerant, but not playful, with other cats and dogs and I am good with children. I can be a vocal guy, so if you don't want a cat that talks with you, then I wouldn't be a good choice. I love affection and to rub against you.

History: I was surrendered by my family because they were moving and had too many cats

We adopted Abner on August 1st (our ninth wedding anniversary!)
He is very personable and, as the description states, he REALLY loves to rub up against you! I call it his violent affection because he practically head-butts you when you're holding him in your arms!
He is still getting used to the house, and he has yet to meet Vern (our lab mix). We aren't sure how he will react to my son's Guinea pig, either! Hopefully, he'll ignore her like our other cat did (who died on Sept. 1st).
It's so nice to have a cat around. He's very content to cuddle and to give "hugs" (he puts his paws up on your shoulders when you hold him).
The humane society said he is tolerant of dogs, so we're hoping they will get used to each other over time.
If you have any tips on how to introduce them properly, I'd love to hear them!

It has tasted blood

2007-07-24T08:40:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy summer thus far (my blogging has suffered for it) but our family does occasionally get to do the family camping excursion once in a while. On one such excursion this summer, we were cleaning breakfast dishes at our leisurely pace when our son asked permission to go play on the merry-go-round at the camp's park. Naturally, we said, "of course".
What we did not understand was that this merry-go-round hadn't had much action yet this year, and it wanted blood.
To give a bit of background here: Every year, our church does an "all-church camp out" and this year, we decided to try out a new campsite for a nice change of scenery. The week before the whole church camped out, our little family unit (all three of us- and the dog, Vern) checked out the campground to see how big it was, how the water tasted etc.
Back to the story:
Our son comes running over to us and said, "I hurt my foot". He wasn't crying or even limping all that much so my first response was to say, "Oh you'll be fine....." and then I said, "OOOhhh! Get your foot up here" (meaning on the picnic table bench), which he dutifully did.
I took off his rope sandal, which provided little to no protection against the vampirous play equipment and washed his foot with my drinking water, which REALLY got the blood flowing!
It wasn't until I told him that he would need stitches that he sounded remotely worried!
So, having no first aid kit, we got out a clean coffee filter and slapped it on the wound and had him put some pressure on it while we took him to the local clinic.
Everything worked out fine. He got 11 stitches in all, and was quite pleased to hear that he would have a handsome scar.
His foot had been under the merry-go-round as it was spinning, and it (the merry-go-round) was very close to the ground, with hard packed gravel all around it (not soft playground sand). A bolt or metal plate from the underside of the thing caught his foot and ripped his flesh back and under the healthy un-ripped flesh further up the foot. The doctor had the challenge of pulling the skin back to it's position and scrapping all the grit and gravel out of the wound (by this time, my son's foot was blissfully numb).
Now the stitches are out, and tonight will be the first baseball game that he'll have played since before the church camp out (in the beginning of July). All is well that ends well.
As my husband says, "Pain is temporary, glory is forever and chicks dig scars".

PS- The picture of the merry-go-round above is not the offending piece of equipment. I feared had I included a picture of it, you would have run away screaming in horror. The pictures of the foot are, however, really my son's foot.

The Power of Cheese

2007-07-08T14:42:00.000-07:00

My dear readers, it has been over a week since my last confession.
We have been quite busy around here with 4th of July happenings and all (relatively tame stuff, I won't bore you- at least I hope not!)
The subject for today is CHEESE. Since I was born and raised in the cheese state, I thought perhaps I would share that experience with you.
I appreciate my cheese more than the average Wisconsinite because of my 3-year stint as a vegan. I have discovered that veganism isn't well suited to a Wisconsin lifestyle, so I reverted to my old ways and became a lacto-ovo vegetarian (actually, since I'm in the confessing mood, I have eaten fish a couple times this month too, but it was only a brief falling away, I assure you).
In Wisconsin, we have cheese trays at every occasion: graduation parties, Christmas, you name it, it's got cheese. We have cheese balls, cheese curds (the fresh, squeaky kind), cheese in our salads, cheese as appetizers, desserts or toys (string cheese).
During the time that I was vegan, I satisfied my cheesely urges with a homemade recipe for cheese sauce using nutritional yeast. I also bought vegan cheese at the local natural food store quite often. None of these alternatives were ever as good as the real thing, I will admit now (and for you rabid carnivores out there who want me to say the same thing about Boca burgers- sorry, it ain't gonna happen. I NEVER liked meat like I like cheese).
I highly recommend going vegan for a short period of time, however, because that first taste of real cheese melting in your mouth is sheer heaven. The taste is so much stronger when you haven't experienced it for a long time.
If I hadn't been spoiled by fresh Wisconsin cheeses, none of this would have happened and I would still probably be vegan today. Alas, the call of Gouda, Brick, Havarti and blue or Gorgonzola cheeses called out my name. I hope all of you get the chance to experience squeaky cheese curds once in your lifetime, and someday, I would like to go to a beer-cheese tasting event- it's like wine and cheese only with beer (if that doesn't scream Wisconsin, I don't know what does!)
I plan to post my favorite cheese dip recipe on my recipe blog soon, so check it out if you're so inclined. And enjoy your cheese! (Note: In this context the word cheese does not mean Velveeta or any kind of "cheese" that comes in individually wrapped cellophane wrappers).

Trip to Madeline Island

2007-06-28T12:12:00.000-07:00

These pictures are from our recent trip to Madeline Island. The top pic is the front of a cafe called, "Tom's Burned Down Cafe" which is more of a bar than a cafe. The first time we were on the Island, my husband and I went there for a late breakfast at 11 am, and were informed that the only thing they had to eat was frozen pizza! That's all right, though, because the atmosphere more than makes up for their lack of food choices! The signs which are hanging all over the cafe could keep you entertained for hours. I'm a quote fan, so I was naturally enthralled.
On this trip, we were unable to stay there for long, but it was fun to visit it again. We stayed in a cabin with some friends of ours from church and had the kind of good time that one can have only when with the best of friends.
The bottom pic is of myself and my lovely husband, enjoying our ferry ride back to Bayfield, WI.

No Rainbow this year

2007-06-16T12:11:00.000-07:00

This year will be the first year that my husband and I have not embarked upon a journey to the Rainbow Gathering with the missions team from Steiger Minneapolis .
We hope someday (maybe next year) we can join them again. This year, we feel called to stay in our hometown and minister here. The Bible study had a newcomer this week, which only serves to confirm that our decision was from God.
I will personally miss the Gathering terribly, however. I do not recommend anyone to go on a whim, for it is a rough place in many ways. But the people there are hungry for something, but they don't know what it is. It's like that spiritual itch they cannot reach. Jesus talked about this to the woman at the well in John 4.
I pray for Joe, Pixie, Preacha Randy and his tribe, and all the other wonderful folks I met there through the years. This would have been our tenth year in a row.
God speed to the Steiger team and the Jesus Kitchen- we will miss working with you all!
-Mama R
PS- to read about the gathering, click on the link above and same with Steiger Minneapolis they are a top notch ministry, and have bases around the world

Life is a dream- A meme.

2007-06-02T19:48:00.000-07:00

I read the blog Quantum Leap today and she did a meme that I hadn't seen before about dreams. She said anyone who read it could consider themselves tagged, so here goes!
What are your dreams? Not things that God has promised you, but things you dream about or things that you whisper in His ear. Be bold, Be Honest, Be courageous!

1) I dream about the woman God has prepared for my son. I also pray for this woman wherever she is and whatever she is doing that God would grow her into the lovely 'Proverbs 31 woman' who would complete my son.

2) One of my favorite dreams is about heaven. I dream of being there a lot- not in a depressing way at all, but in a surreal and breathtaking way. I also dream of the moment I look into Jesus' face for the first time. That will truly be a dream come true!

3) As far as dreams that are a bit more earthly in nature, I dream of having a kitty! Our cat died last fall, and although I miss him terribly and I know no cat will ever be like him, I hope to again find that "just right" feline to grace our home with his or her presence. Cats are so relaxing to have around!

4) During the winter, I dream of spring a lot. This is my 32nd spring I have experienced, and each one seems better than the last! As we move into summer, I begin to dream of swimming in rivers, boating, camping, watching my husband and son toss the football around and throwing sticks for the dog until she falls over!

5) Many of my dreams have come true already in life:

I have a wonderful husband and son
I love the home God has given us
I love my dog- she rocks!
My church family could not be more awesome- seriously!
I have more true friends right now than I ever have in my life
I get to teach in the jails- which really rocks!

6) I dream of someday doing more traveling and missions work. Places I'd like to go are as follows (but not a complete list!)

India
Nepal
Ethiopia
Alaska
Brazil- especially would like to see the Amazon!
Spain
Italy
Ireland
New Zealand

I could go on and on about traveling! Traveling by train is especially appealing, but any way is fine!
I know there are many other dreams luring in the cobwebby recesses of my little brain, but that's all I can think of for now! How about you? What do you dream about?
I am going to tag: Kayla Jo , Got Chocolate , and What's so Funny . Like Quantum leap, I'll also say that if you feel so inspired, consider yourself tagged! It's a fun topic!

What's wrong with the world?

2007-05-31T06:39:00.001-07:00

To mildly disclaimer this post, I'll just say that I am a Christian and I make no apologies for doing a Christian post. I am aware that some of you are Christians and some are not and I hope that either way, you'll find this post intriguing, thought-provoking or otherwise useful to your mind or heart.

What is it in the world today that makes us cringe when we watch the evening news, read the paper or look at the horrifying statistics concerning the state of the world today (example: Every year 15 million children die of hunger).
Is it possible to make right the wrongs that are continuing to spiral downward in society?
These are tough questions.
The thing that is wrong today and has been from almost the very beginning is sin. Sin is selfishness, greed, and corporate money-grabbing. Sin is strife, war and conflict of every kind. Sin is sexual molestation, rape and violence. Sin is arguing over petty issues, deceit and pride. It is at the foundation of all that is wrong with the world.
"The one thing God hates is sin. It grieves and provokes Him, and He will destroy it. The one thing that makes man unhappy is sin. The one thing for which Jesus had to give His blood was sin. In all the communication between the sinner and God, this is the first thing that the sinner must bring to God- sin."*
Unfortunately, the world paints sin as a positive thing. Commercials, ads and talk shows promote sin as a "healthy" thing. Naturally they don't see it this way and they won't come out and say they promote the "really bad" sins, but it is a source of enticement and it hooks people in. The child molester doesn't just one day decide to harm an innocent child. It starts privately and in small doses. It grows slowly over a period of years. He or she continues to justify their actions in their own mind and they find pleasure in their sin. Left unchecked, they may find themselves severely addicted to a horrifying sin.
This is an extreme example, but you get the idea. Any so-called "little sin" left unchecked, can grow into something quite ugly given time. This is where addictions come from. Every human being has an addictive personality to one degree or another. We all have made poor choices, said things we regret or dated people we wish we hadn't, right? What were the motives behind those actions? Saintly, pure and holy, or selfish and prideful?
I am in the same camp as everyone else. I am a sinner. I am part of the problem.
All the things I hate in the world are as a result of sin. If I remember this, and I bring my fleshly urges to Jesus every single time they arise, He will take control of these things in my life for me.
Many of the Bible studies at our church lately have had the theme of "paying attention" to our Christian life. What better way to continue to pay attention than to take to Christ every thought, feeling or motive that isn't true, right and holy?
I'll end with another quote:
"The forgiveness of our sin is a complete forgiveness. God does not partially forgive....Forgiveness is the access to all of God's love....It is not enough to know that I once received forgiveness. My life in the love of God, my living communion with Jesus by faith [being friends with Him every day]- this makes the forgiveness of sin again always new and powerful. It is the joy and life of my soul."*
"When someone becomes a Christian he becomes a brand new person inside. He is not the same anymore. A new life has begun!"-2 Corinthians 5: 17
(*both quotes from Andrew Murray's phenomenal book, "An Exciting New Life")

Food fight!

2007-05-22T07:07:00.000-07:00

I was tagged to do a food fight entry sometime ago, and I didn't forget!
Here's my top 5 places to eat in no particular order (note: I already did this post and it was awesome, but I hit the close window button by accident and lost it all, so now this is only a mediocre version of the masterpiece I had done a few minutes ago!! I'm OK, I'm getting over the loss, I think now!!)

1) The Cheese Factory Restaurant, Wisconsin Dells, WI.
Here's a description from their web page, "We offer you a full palate of sensory delights in a totally smoke-free environment: freshly prepared vegan and vegetarian dishes from our own recipes, delicious in-house bakery cakes and pies, great cappuccinos from freshly roasted Ancora coffee beans, decadent old fashioned ice cream soda fountain desserts, hand-painted murals on our walls, and nostalgic jukebox music – all served up in a warm and happy atmosphere of fun and freedom for everyone."

2) Hard Times Cafe, Minneapolis, MN.

Address:

Area: West Bank

I don't think you want to hear a description of their restaurant from their web page ( it's probably rated R) but I'll tell you that this place is an experience that everyone should have. It's got everything one could wish for in a cafe (according to me, at least): loud music, gruff tattooed staff, graffiti galore, excellent coffee and cheap, yummy vegetarian cuisine! I'm telling you, if the atmosphere isn't your cup of tea, try to get over it long enough to order their Greek appetizer plate (really a meal) and a Turkish (or Arabic) coffee (espresso brewed through spices and mixed with honey). It's absolutely a divine taste-bud experience- all for way under $10!! I love it.

3) The Raw Deal. Menomonie, Wisconsin. If you're in Menomonie, the best way to find the Raw Deal is to first find the Menomonie Market and look around the building because The Raw Deal is in the same building. The Raw Deal faces Broadway. It's more of a simple cafe, but they offer tasty salads, smoothies, scrumptious raw desserts (cream "cheese" cake made with ground raw cashews) and wonderful coffees. It's a place everyone should check out- even if you're not "into" the raw food craze, it's a 'new experience' for you!

4) For you carnivores out there:
Earthquake Burgers, Puyallup, WA
I haven't been to Earthquake Burgers for over 10 years, but it was a memorable experience indeed! Me and 4 of my co-conspirators (or, friends as you may call them) shared one burger and it was more than enough! The mammoth size wasn't the only thing that impressed me, the flavor was exceptional as well.

5) My chain entry:
For those of you who don't want to travel to Minnesota, Wisconsin or Washington, I'll include in this list my favorite chain restaurant: Chili's
Chili's is usually considered to be a carnivorous favorite, but a vegetarian friend of mine turned me onto it by pointing out the fact that Chili's has the option of substituting a black bean burger for a beef patty in any of their special burgers! That has made all the difference in my mind! It's great to know these things as a vegetarian when you're traveling and you want to go to a veggie friendly place, and you don't want to wander off the interstate too far for fear that you'll get lost!

6) Bonus entry: A place I have never been to, but would like to try is Ecopolitan .
If any of you have ever been there, I'd love to hear a review!!

That's all folks. I wanted to have a wide diversity without alienating anyone (which is pretty hard to do). Let me know your favorite places to eat; I like to travel, so perhaps I'll check them out someday!!

Tagged by Dorky Dad

2007-05-12T15:36:00.000-07:00

I was tagged on May 1st by Dorky Dad and I have yet to fulfil the blogger duty of tagging. It's called Chinese Frozen tag, so I'll try to put something about China or something cold or frozen into each one- in keeping with the title of the game (who comes up with this stuff, anyways?)

1) Twice I have winter camped. The first time I would rather not speak of, and the second time was with some of the good folks at Steiger at the Rainbow Gathering missions trip (look at previous posts of mine with rainbow gathering in the subject if you are curious). Winter camping is an experience that you ALL need to experience because it will forever make you thankful for your furnace and stove!

2) I get very cold every night right before bedtime- what's up with that?

3) I have never played Chinese checkers, but I recently learned what it was at a street level event, and I said (like an idiot), "What is that you are playing, it looks Chinese or something" and everybody laughed because they thought I was making a joke. I wasn't.

4) I really like Chinese food. Not so much the deep fried Americanized version, but the real thing. My Dad recently got me a vegetarian Chinese cookbook and I'm dying to try out some of the recipes!

5) The closest I've ever been to China is in the Philippines, in the year 2000 (I think). It was the second missions trip our church had sent over to the Philippines and that ministry has really grown over the years. I would LOVE to go again sometime and see the Shofar missions Center someday. Our good friend Dani and her husband are leaving the DAY AFTER TOMORROW on a trip! Ahhhhh! I am so excited for them (this is her first trip and she'll be there for 3 MONTHS! Reminder to self: Pray.)

6) I love our coffeehouse's "Sweet Iced Lattes"- they truly are a slice of heaven on earth. Given the opportunity and the financial ability, I think I would drink them until I made myself sick. There are very few beverages I am this passionate about!

7) Living up here in the frozen tundra, I think I appreciate spring more than the average person. Us Minnesota / Wisconsinite folks have a limited opportunity to enjoy warm weather- and I really do.

8) My friends were in China briefly during the bird flu scare. I was glad I wasn't them.

9) My feet were both frost bitten as a small child and now I can save people from frozen lakes with my dead black foot without feeling a thing (wait, I think I just saw that in a movie).

10) I may live in the frozen tundra, but I hate wearing a coat. I hate it so much that people start to see me without a coat in the winter and they feel sorry for me and take it upon themselves to buy me a coat, but I still don't wear them much. So now I have a closet full of coats from Saver's and Goodwill that big hearted people bought for me that I will never wear. Pretty pathetic, eh?

The price of a mom: $138,095

2007-05-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

The following is an article from MSN, afterwards is some of my own commentary:

"What's a mom worth?

According to one new report, $138,095 a year.

That's the figure in a report by Salary.com, which calculates the wages that would have been paid a stay-at-home mom in 2007 if she were compensated for all the elements of her "job." That total is up 3% from 2006's salary of $134,121.

Moms who have jobs outside the house would earn another $85,939 for their mothering work, beyond what they bring home in existing salary.

The job descriptions that Salary.com used to determine a mom's salary includes 10 jobs that moms do on an average day: housekeeper, day care center teacher, cook, computer operator, laundry machine operator, janitor, facilities manager, van driver, CEO and psychologist."

To these jobs, I as a mom could add spiritual advisor, nurse, veterinarian and teacher. My kid was home schooled for five years, and during those years, there were other duties involved!

Despite all the hype about mother's day, I guess I just don't see it as an important holiday. Most mothers don't place nearly as much value on some flowers and a card on mother's day as a simple hug, a thank you or an acknowledgement of her training (such as remembering to cover their mouth when they burp!) To have a child who remembers and obeys what you say is more valuable than any silly card in the whole world!

Whatsoever things are lovely

2007-04-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

In Philippinans 4:8 we are told to focus on good things. Anything that can be deemed as lovely, pure, praiseworthy or excellent in any way, these are the things we are to keep our mind upon.

Obviously the ultimate praiseworthy 'thing' in life is our friend, savior, creator and lover of our souls, Jesus. But other things come to mind as well, such as things that he made! Have you ever noticed that the things that are 'God-made' tend to be perfect and beautiful, and the things that are 'man-made' just screw things up?
A few years back, I had the awesome opportunity to visit a mountain. I had seen a few other mountains, but this one blew them all away in it's stunning majesty and splendor. It makes me cry with the memory, it was so breathlessly great.
"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."-Phil. 4:8
With all the violence in the news lately, I find it helpful to think on things that are excellent and praisworthy. For me, it's special parts of God's creation. Feast your eyes on his artwork!

Anniversary of Columbine, April 20th, 1999

2007-04-20T07:20:00.000-07:00

Today is the anniversary of a tragedy in American history. While the wounds of the Virginia Tech massacre are still raw, families of the students killed eight years ago are remembering their loved ones.

A couple years ago, I read a book by Rachel Scott, one of the victims in the Columbine shooting. Her faith and life are still a living inspiration to me, a mother. The fact that this teenage girl was able to stand up for Christ and keep herself from all the temptation that surrounded her at school is an incredible monument of hope to me. In her life, as well as in her death, she lived her faith out in tangible ways. The decisions she made were motivated by her love for Jesus and her love for others. The fact that she was young did not deter her in thinking that she could and should make a difference in people's lives.
The book is called, Rachel's Tears . Here is an excerpt from the book (which is actually her diary that her mom published after her death): "Go after God. Whatever it takes, do it. And don't give the excuse, I am just a teenager or I'll do that when I grow up, because it doesn't work that way. God wants to know you NOW."
Author:Rachel Joy Scott
I highly recommend that you read this book, no matter what faith you adhere to. It is a powerful testimony.
Please take a moment to pray for the families that are hurting from these tragedys.

The treasury of books

2007-04-13T07:49:00.000-07:00

Honestly, I cannot remember a time in my life when I did not love books. From "Little Golden Books" to the "Trixie Belden" series to more adult books like "Animal Farm", "Lord of the Flies" and "The Screwtape Letters", books have been a rich source of inspiration, comfort and pure knowledge to me throughout life. At any given time, a person could ask me, "So, what-cha reading these days?" and I think I could answer quickly with at least two or three titles at any given time. The main one that I intend to always and continuously read is the Bible. There are others that are an "annual read", such as "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis. I have lists upon lists of books I intend to read; recommendations from pastors, teachers and mentors.
This post was inspired by wizened wizard and her nostalgic remembrance of the book, "The Velveteen Rabbit".
It is my hope and prayer that my son will have the same passion for books that I have, especially the Bible. Thus far in his lifetime, he has read more of that book than many adults. This morning, when his reading of Genesis got cut short, he was sorely disappointed. My heart swelled with joy at this realization that he is developing a true love for reading God's Word!
Here is a list of indications I have come up with that show how truly "good" a book is:

You have a hard time putting it down and doing what you're "supposed" to be doing
You find yourself quoting it and talking about it quite often to your friends (much to their boredom, usually!)
As you reach the end, you start to slow down a bit, because the thought of ending the book is too painful
The description of scenery, characters and events are so real they become your home, friends and memory
Certain passages are so poignantly stunning that you must stop to reflect or even cry at the beauty of them
You can remember the title and author years after you read the book
You can remember the time of year and where you were sitting when you read certain passages years after you read them

All good books are alike in that they are truer than if they had really happened and after you are finished reading one you will feel that all that happened to you and the afterwards it all belongs to you; the good and the bad, the ecstasy, the remorse, and sorrow, the people and places and how the weather was.
~Ernest Hemingway

Please share your experiences with beloved books if you like- I love to learn about other people's interests!

A new place to shop

2007-04-03T05:32:00.000-07:00

Howdy folks!
I would like to share with you a new website that I've recently discovered. Beware: it can really suck you in (or, like in my husband's case, give you the heebie-jeebies)!
It's like ebay, except everything on it is homeade! I described it to my hubby like, "a craft show that's out-of-control" (he HATES craft shows- I think if one has a certain level of testosterone, you're not allowed to enter into them). It's called etsy (see link in next sentence....)
However, I find this website much more fun than going to a craft show. Rather than wasting an entire day looking at tables upon booths of stuff just to find that one special quilt, you can do a search for it, and order in it your home! No more sore feet or verbal obligations to each vender that catches your eye.
I really enjoy looking at the "softies" as they're called. The little girl in me comes out when perusing these strange stitched dolls. Some of them are slightly similair to the movie, "The Nighmare Before Christmas" with their big eyes and thread patterns.
I am also a fan of the thai fisherman pants, and they can be found for a reasonable price on this site.
Some of the jewlery is incredibly unique and interesting, too. The pictures here are obviously only a miniscule sample of what's available.
I'd better get going, my dog just threw up.
PS- Disclaimer: let me be perfectly clear that I love my husband deeply, and the fact that we like different things just keeps life interesting! Check out his blog it's a lot of fun!

Feeling sucked dry?

2007-03-25T19:25:00.000-07:00

“I Slept, and Dreamed that Life was Beauty”
by Ellen Sturgis Hooper

I slept, and dreamed that life was Beauty;
I woke, and found that life was Duty.
Was thy dream then a shadowy lie?
Toil on, sad heart, courageously,
And thou shalt find thy dream to be
A noonday light and truth to thee.
I have always loved this poem, and the first two lines roll in my mind at the most unexpected times. It is a good indication of fine wrtting when you can hear the lines once or twice, and have them bouncing around in your brain for years after you heard them.
This weekend, my husband and I went with others from our church on a retreat. It was one of the best retreats I have yet to have participated in. Shortly before the retreat, through means that I am not going to divulge here, God revealed to me how much I truly LOVE doing jail ministry. It was so eye opening to realize that I really am passionate about teaching God's Word in the jails and helping the women who ask me for help. It is one of the high points of my life. I was incarcerated in 1994 for most of that summer, and I appreciate God allowing me to "redeem the days" through this ministry in our church. The topic for the weekend was about preparing a message. I found it interesting that in the week before the retreat, God was working to show me how much I love teaching, so that when the weekend arrived, my heart was primed and ready to try and soak in every word that was said. For the past several weeks, I had felt "sucked dry"; torn between different ministries, family life, work and my private relationship with God. It all felt like a bubble that was blown almost to it's limit. But now it is so clear to me what a healthy thing that is, and that I am just being prepared for the future.

PS-Our dog was ill when we got back. She could barely get up on her own, and when she did get up, she fell over. She limped, and she was quite lethargic. Today she is much better. I don't know what happened or what was wrong with her. Had it been on a weekday, I'm sure we'd have taked her to the vet right away, but we waited and watched her closely.

20 ways to deal with insanity

2007-03-21T20:13:00.000-07:00

I'm having trouble coming up with a valid post this week, so I'm taking the cop-out road and pasting an email a very beloved friend sent me today. I will add that this has been a horrendously emotionally charged week, due in part, I'm sure to the up coming retreat our church's school of ministry is having this weekend. I am really looking forward to it, but the spiritual warfare leading up to it has been hot and heavy! Enjoy- and try to stay sane!1. At Lunch Time, Sit In Your Parked Car With Sunglasses on and point a Hair Dryer At Passing Cars to see if they Slow Down. 2. Page Yourself Over The Intercom. Don't Disguise Your Voice. 3. Every Time Someone Asks You To Do Something, Ask If They Want Fries with That. 4. Put Your Garbage Can On Your Desk And Label It "In." 5. Put Decaf In The Coffee Maker For 3 Weeks. Once Everyone has Gotten Over Their Caffeine Addictions, Switch to Espresso. 6. In The Memo Field Of All Your Checks, Write "For Smuggling Diamonds" 7. Finish All Your sentences with "In Accordance With The Prophecy." 8. Dont use any punctuation 9. As Often As Possible, Skip Rather Than Walk. 10. Order a diet water whenever you go out to eat with a serious face. 11. Specify That Your Drive-through Order Is "To Go." 12. Sing Along At The Opera. 13. Go To A Poetry Recital And Ask Why The Poems Don't Rhyme 14. Put Mosquito Netting Around Your Work Area And Play tropical Sounds All Day. 15. Five Days In Advance, Tell Your Friends You Can't Attend Their Party

Because You're Not In The Mood. 16. Have Your Co-workers Address You By Your Wrestling Name, Rock Bottom. 17. When The Money Comes Out The ATM, Scream "I Won!, I Won!" 18. When Leaving The Zoo, Start Running Towards The Parking lot,

Yelling

"Run For Your Lives, They're Loose!!" 19. Tell Your Children Over Dinner. "Due To The Economy, We Are Going

To

Have To Let One Of You Go." 20. And finally, when ordering at a typical fast food resteraunt's drive through, try ordering chinese.

Pictures of Vern and Wacky

2007-03-10T18:35:00.000-08:00

Hey kids, my husband and I are hitting the road for a few days here, so I will be away from the computer. I am very excited about this little venutre! I will blog about it when I get back, but until then, I thought I'd share pics of my dog, Vern (female) and our rabbit, Wacky.
Our dog got her name from my son. One morning when he was about 5 years old, he informed me that he'd like his name to be changed to Vern -cause he really likes that name. I naturally refused. He then asked that if I ever had another kid to not name it Vern because he'd be really jealous! Later that night, when I told my husband what he had said, he laughed so hard I thought he'd pop a blood vessel or two! We decided right then that if we ever got a dog, we'd have to name it Vern- be it a girl or a boy- just to try and make our son jealous of a dog. (And because it's funny!)
The dog was introduced to the Rabbit when she was just a puppy, so she doesn't think anything strange about co-existing with a rabbit. It's kind of cute- they fight over food just like two dogs would. The rabbit sticks his whole head right into the dog dish while Vern is eating- she could crush his little head, but she doesn't.
Enjoy the pictures, I'll be back next week! Peace.

6 Weird things about me: TAGGED I'm it!

2007-02-19T10:01:00.000-08:00

RULES: People who are tagged should write a blog post of 6 weird things about them as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don't forget to leave a comment that says "you are tagged" in their comments and tell them to read your blog.

1) I enjoy soaps a lot, yet I don't bathe every single day; more like three times a week. When I say I enjoy soap, I don't know if you appreciate how much I love soap! Especially homemade locally made soaps with essential oils for the scent. You'd think this love would get me in the tub more than 3 times a week, but it doesn't. I never understood the American ideal of bathing every day- hardly no other country would bathe that often. It's bad for your skin, and hard on your hair!

2) I am an only child. This alone may not seem unusual, but I am married to an only child and my kid is an only child. The only regret I have in that arena is that my kid doesn't have the fun of having several aunts and uncles- our first cousins are like "stand in" auntie and uncles!

3) I visited most of the states in the US before turning 20. Much of this traveling was done alone, some of it was with friends. Very little of it was done with my family on the quintessential, "Family vacation". My parents aren't too hip on road trips. We did go to Washington DC when I was 10 (we flew), and that memory is quite vivid. About this time of year (early spring), I get really itchey to get on the road. Most of the time, I don't even care where the destination is, as long as a good amount of miles are covered!

4) I really enjoy Q-tipping my ears. I know it's gross, but I love it. My hubby found this out about me, and bought me a value pack of Q-tips from a department store- I was excited! I think that pack lasted over 3 years! (He's so good to me!)

5) A group of people and myself go to the Rainbow Gathering every year. I don't think of it as a "weird" thing, but when it comes up in conversation, people are usually intrigued. See my posts about it from last year (the posts are in July and August). The reason we go is to run a kitchen called, "The Jesus Kitchen", and we give out food, Bibles and God's love (which is always free!)

6) I'm a vegetarian, but I don't mind cooking meat for my family. This goes back to my Christian beliefs and what Romans 14 says about our eating habits (if you're interested, you can read it on your own). Everyone is allowed to have their own special diet, as long as what you do is done, "As unto the Lord". In fact, I get a real joy out of cooking meat for my family, because I know they enjoy it, and it's something special for them.

I'm tagging: Got chocolate?, Little hooper gurrrl, Mandy olin, The Hippee Parade, The fastest hermit in da west, dig?, Faith that Flies in your face! (All of whom are links on my blog here, so take a gander when ya got the time!)

Our visitor for the week

2007-02-12T08:01:00.000-08:00

This week we have a visitor! His name is Pepper. He is a miniature black and tan Dachshund. My mom is out of town for the week, and since my Dad is a traveling salesman, and isn't always close to home, I volunteered to take care of their dog for the week. It is too cold to allow the dog to be outside during the day- he hardly has any fur at all on his under-belly! My husband and I have always noticed a distinctive odor emitting from Pepper. We thought it had to do with diet or grooming. I looked at a Dachshund website briefly today, and quickly discovered that a distinct "doggie" smell is common with these dogs! Who'd have thunk it? (As the older folks I know would say). I gave him a bath last night, and it helped somewhat, and I plan to buy him something for his breath, but perhaps it's just HIM! He gets along smashingly with our lab mix, Vern. She seems to like the company. The difference in size doesn't keep them from smelling each other's butts- but Pepper has to stand on a couch to do it!
Pepper freaked out on our guinia pig- Shiloh, - he barked and scratched at the glass case- there's no way he's tall enough to get in there (just in case, I closed the door to my son's room). So it's been a little exciting around here. I love hearing about people's pets, so if you have the time, do share! Thank you for all the well wishes last week when it was so cold- it's much warmer now; currently it's 16F- quite a warm spell!
Dachshunds
What's good about 'em
What's bad about 'em

If you want a dog who...

Comes in a variety of sizes (all smallish)

Comes in a variety of coat types and colors

Is comical and entertaining

Doesn't need a lot of exercise

Makes a keen watchdog

Is sociable with other family pets, especially other Dachshunds

Lives a long time

A Dachshund may be right for you.

If you don't want to deal with...

Suspiciousness or sharpness toward strangers when not socialized enough

Scrappiness toward strange dogs

Stubbornness

Notorious housebreaking difficulties

Digging holes

Barking

Regular brushing/combing (Longhaired)

Regular clipping/trimming (Wirehaired)

A distinctive doggy odor

Serious back/spinal problems

Cold! If the thermometer had been an inch longer we'd all have frozen to death.

2007-02-05T07:24:00.000-08:00

Windchill: -34F.
That's right now where I live! All the surrounding schools have closed EXCEPT the one that my husband works at and the one my boy goes to! Only one of our vehicles started this morning, so I'm at home for the day! I'm glad I don't have to go anywhere. Curves was delayed for 2 hours; I bet the manager had car trouble. I'll have to do my pilates DVD to make up for not going (you can be sure I won't be going outside for a walk or anything!) Sorry, Vern, no walk today.
I even brought our tough-as-nails rabbit, Wacky in for the day today. He's very good in the house. He gets to hop around in the kitchen and eat organic carrots all day. I got a picture of he and Vern together today- but alas, it was taken with an old fashioned camera, so you'll just have to wait for that one. I don't understand how all the schools around us can be closed, but we're still open. I guess we're just tough. Here's some photos of the icy tundra near where I live. So what's the weather doing in YOUR area?

Music Reveiw- Beleza Tropical, compiled by David Byrne

2007-01-30T08:23:00.000-08:00

Recently I've had the pleasure to experience a Brazilian compilation CD that was issued in 1988. Each track is pleasuarable in a unique way, but I would have to say my favorite is the very first track- "Ponta de Lanca Africano (Umbabarauma)" by Jorge Ben. It's a lively, percussion-driven funky bassey tune. If anyone can interpret the name of that song, that'd be way cool! Here's what the New York Times had to say about it when it first was released:
"'Beleza Tropical,' the first of several post-bossa nova Brazilian albums to be compiled by David Byrne, focuses on Tropicalismo, the movement in the late 60's and 70's in which American folk-rock and pop-soul influences filtered into Brazilian music by way of television. The movement coincided with a period of political repression in Brazil that lasted until the late 70's, and some of lyrics in these gently propulsive ballads contain cryptic metaphors for struggle and freedom. Mr. Byrne's very personal compilation is a 14-cut sampler of his favorite tropicalist music. Included are four cuts by Caetano Veloso, three by Gilberto Gil, two each by Milton Nascimento and Jorge Ben. The guitar-based music is melodic, passionate and texturally spare, the lyrics visionary. Excellent explanatory notes by Arto Lindsay and Mr. Byrne give the music a historic context."
I've been listening to it non-stop for three days now! I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in bossa nova, folk or rock music. It's funny how I stumbled upon it: Some friends and I were having a girl's day out to the cities where we hit thrift stores and coffeehouses and the last stop before we came home was Cheapo (if you don't know what Cheapo is, I am sorry). Having only $4.00 in my wallet and not desiring to use credit, I didn't think I'd be purchasing anything. But, as a seasoned consummer, I was able to make this pure gold find, and I am so happy I did! I spent a whopping $2.95 on the thing! (Me and my thrift sale buddies have a running joke on how when you get a great deal, you don't just show off the product, you HAVE to tell the price; it's mandatory!)
We'll talk later. Happy bargain shopping! If you have ever heard this CD or any of Byrne's other compilations, let me know- I'd be interested in your opinion! What a great source of income, eh? "I do compilation CD's for a living"- man, I covet that job!

"Aquarium Day"

2007-01-15T07:27:00.000-08:00

Today, I think my son and I will go to the aqaurium. I love the tunnel aquarium! It feels so warm and inviting under all that oceanic blue water with all the tropical fish whizzing past your head! The sting rays seem magical as they 'fly' over the top of your body. It almost feels like you can reach out and touch their under-bellies.

The last time I was there, they were feeding the octopus (at the end of the tunnel- he's in a tank) and the feeder was explaining that you could tell that he was excited about feeding time because of the bright colors he was turning.

As she reached over the top of the tank to feed him, his appendage reached out and wrapped around her whole arm- all the way up past her elbow. She seemed undaunted by this strange affection and calmly pulled the "arm" off of her own. It made a distinctly loud popping noise as each suction cup came off of her skin- POP! pop pop poppoppoppoppop!!! It was amusing, gross and amazing all at the same time. I will never forget that sound.
At an earlier date at the aquarium, my son and I watched the sea horse tank for a few minutes, in part because one of the tiny seahorses (they're all tiny) was acting strangely, convulsing and jerking about in the tank. Then right before our very eyes, his stomache burst forth and these miniture sea horses shot out of his tummy- it was like watching a miracle (indeed it was). So I am looking forward to what magic and miracles the aquarium has to offer us today. If anything remarkable occurs, I'll be sure to let you know!

The sickness goes on- and on

2007-01-11T09:54:00.000-08:00

Thus far this winter, our family has had chicken pox, lice and strep throat. My hubby and son are currently on anti bio tics for the strep, and for a few days, I thought I had miraculously escaped it's evil clutches. Yesterday morning began with the scratchiness and now today, there's fire in my neck. Ah well; it could definitely be worse. I truly thank God that our family has only had these minor ills and not something life-threatening. I'll admit, I gave in to the complain-bug a couple times (when sleeping on the couch with chicken pox- one giant ball of itch and misery), but the whole time I actually was able to acknowledge God's plan in all of it by His grace. It seems like I've been learning a hard lesson: even if I stay home forever, God is fully capable of running things without me! Yes, a bit of humility has been spoon-fed to me.
It's been good. Tonight is the home Bible study at our place, and I'm looking forward to hanging out with close friends (I just won't breathe on them!). We're in the book of Mark, chapter 4, where Jesus calms the storm. What a fitting picture for me to think about today: when life's storms are tossing you all around, look to Jesus and He'll give you the ability to walk on water- to rise above the wind and waves!
And in reality, the "wind and waves" I experience are nothing compared to 99% of the rest of the world. We are so blessed. I'll leave you with a quote:
"Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith." -Francis of Assisi

The Raw Deal- CLICK HERE!

2007-01-03T21:13:00.000-08:00

I tried something new today. Maude (from the movie, "Harold and Maude") said you should try something new everyday. I went to a raw foods resteraunt today. I would almost classify it as a cafe. I have been meaning to go to Ecopolitan (see my links) for quite some time, but either time or money have been in short supply (too short for that kind of adventure). But a friend of mine gave me a newspaper article and I just had to check it out. I had the pasta-shaped zucchini with shredded carrots, garlic, crumbled nuts and a scrumptious red sauce- oh, and kalamata olives. Plus, I ordered a "funky-monkey" smoothie- which proved to be way too much food, but extremely good! The entree was bursting with flavor- I saved some of it, and ate the remainder as a midnight snack, and WOW- it wasn't just my high expectations talking; it really was absolutely delicious. I highly recommend high-tailing it to your nearest equivalent cafe in your area. And for those of you in Wisconsin, get yourselves to the Raw Deal in Menomonie. I think you'll be glad you did. PS- I have no affiliation with the owners or employees of the Raw Deal. I just simply liked it a lot!

Saved man Wasted life

2006-12-28T20:54:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I had the oportunity to teach in the jail about a subject that greatly interests me: "Things that seperate / alienate us from God." Since I have been listening to some Genesis mp3's lately, the story of Lot came immediately to mind. Lot was Abraham's nephew. You can read about him in Genesis 12-14 and 18-19. He was a man who had a good start in life- after all, he was Abraham's nephew! He had a terrific male role model and a good family. Second Peter 2:6-8 tells us that God considers Lot a "righteous man". At some point however, Lot's priorities got messed up. Many people believe it was when he followed Abram down to Egypt. Egypt was a rich and worldly nation in those days, and Lot got an eye-full of all the best that this world has to offer. His heart never seemed to get over that experience. After he and his family came back from Egypt, Lot moved closer and closer to a very wicked city called Sodom- and further away from his Uncle Abram!
This story spoke volumes to me this week as I prepared to teach it. Lot turned his heart to material possessions and seperated himself from fellowship with any righteous influence in his life and it cost him dearly. The last time we see him in Genesis 19, much of his family is dead and he's drunk in a cave. That's it. He was a saved man (2 Peter says so), but had a wasted life. I guess this is my greatest fear; that I would squander away all the gifts and opportunity God has given me. No Christian starts out with the intention of wasting their life- we all have grandiose plans to, "do something for God". Perhaps that's the problem- we think we can do something for God, when really it's him that does it all for us and through us! I don't know. I certainly don't claim to have all the answers. But I know the one who does, and I'm sticking with Him. I don't think it's a coincidence that I studied this passage right before the new year. I'm not given to flippant and meaningless "New year's resolutions", but I do believe in making each year, week, day and moment count for Christ. Obviously, I fail every day. Hopefully with God's help I'll fail less this year than the last! Thank you to all of you who have read my blog this year- if you have commented on it, you have been prayed for.
God Bless you this year!

Ripple, lyrics by Robert Hunter

2006-12-20T22:17:00.000-08:00

This is just my little way of expressing my nostalgia concerning the end of the year drawing nigh, and a new beginning on the next bend. These lyrics will never get old to me, and they always remind me of old friends, and friends I should still have, but don't. I still pray for a lot of people whom I have touched throughout my life, and I trust that those prayers reach out across state lines- or even across oceans to change those people's lives. I heard it once said that prayer is the spiritual version of an air-strike; God can reach anyone, anywhere, even when we don't know where that person is. Rippling across time and all barriers, here goes yet another prayer for those whom Jesus loves, but I have failed to continue to connect with on a human level.
Ripple
If my words did glow with the gold of sunshine And my tunes were played on the harp unstrung Would you hear my voice come through the music Would you hold it near as it were your own?

It's a hand-me-down, the thoughts are broken
Perhaps they're better left unsung
I don't know, don't really care
Let there be songs to fill the air

(Chorus)

Ripple in still water
When there is no pebble tossed
Nor wind to blow

Reach out your hand if your cup be empty
If your cup is full may it be again
Let it be known there is a fountain
That was not made by the hands of men

There is a road, no simple highway
Between the dawn and the dark of night
And if you go no one may follow
That path is for your steps alone

(Chorus)

You who choose to lead must follow
But if you fall you fall alone
If you should stand then who's to guide you?
If I knew the way I would take you home

I'M NOT IMMUNE!

2006-12-17T08:35:00.000-08:00

Well, boys and girls, it finally happened. I got the chicken pox. It all started when my kid got them a couple of weeks ago (see my post about it). I had never had them as a kid, but like usual, I didn't worry too much about it- after all, some random website said I only had a 10% chance of contracting them as an adult. It seems some folks are fortunate enough to build up the anti-bodies they need with out exhibiting any of the symptoms.
I noticed on Wednesday afternoon a mild burning sensation on my nose- right on the side where the nose is attatched to the face- right in that crack there. It felt like a minor bee sting. Then around 5 o'clock I looked at my stomache in the mirror, and saw 2 little red spots looking out at me. At that point, it's easy to delay the inevitable in your mind, like, "Oh, it's been dry outside, it's probably just a rash". So I went to Bible study Wednesday night- despite my fears, and I ducked my head whenever anyone passed me in the stairs or in close proximity! I hadn't been to a Wednesday night (except the 5th Wednesday study) for a month! (Between Thanksgving and staying home with my kid for CP)...so I was pretty determined to go.
By the following morning, it was confirmed! The doctor prescribed an anti-viral medication, and I've been home ever since. I think the worst is over, though. Two nights ago was pretty difficult. Thank God for Benedryl and Calamine lotion!
Well, I better go, all this typing is making me tired.
PS- the picture has nothing to do with my post, I just like it.

Cold And Flu Prevention Tips

2006-12-06T18:58:00.000-08:00

Here are some tips to help keep you healthy and germ-free during these cold winter months:

* Sneezing into a handkerchief just redirects germs back at you. Always sneeze outward so as to shoot germs as far across the room as possible.
* Pack your sinus cavities with Vicks Vap-O-Rub to fully mentholate your respiratory system.
* Do not blow your stuffed nose into tissues—this is a myth! Always suck your phlegm into the back of your throat and swallow it in great, goblike mouthfuls.
* You don't have to subject yourself to other people's germs. If you see someone who appears to have a cold or fever, contact your local police department.
* To prevent infections, have sick people cough into your food. This light "inoculative" dose of germs will boost your body's defenses against a full-blown infection later.
* If you are a sickly, anemic, weak person, you have a higher susceptibility to colds and flu. Try not to be such a pansy-ass.
* Sometimes, a severe respiratory infection will cause the lungs to fill with fluid. If this occurs, flush your lungs repeatedly with boiling hot water to clear them. A hose down your windpipe will help get around the gag reflex.
* Make sure your HMO package covers visits to the Halls Of Medicine.
* The flu is an extremely contagious, life-threatening disease. Flu sufferers should be either shot with a silver bullet or tortured to death by a professionally shriven, church-appointed excruciator.
* To keep warm in the winter, replace your blood with mom's homemade chicken soup. Noodles should be no greater than one millimeter thick to prevent coronary blockage.
* Remember: Your body produces phlegm for a reason. Always save your mucous, and keep it near you in jars at all times.
* Germs generally enter the body through the skin. To protect you from infection, shave yours off.
* Zinc and Vitamin C help fight colds. Vitamin C can be found in oranges, but zinc is a semi-precious metal found only in Africa. If symptoms persist, organize a jungle safari to seek out the fabled Zinc Mines of Sugolahara.
(Stolen from the Jan. 2006 issue of The Onion).

Blisters, spots and pox- Oh MY!

2006-12-01T09:17:00.000-08:00

Yup- you guessed it. The dread disease of chicken pox has come into our household. My son had what I THOUGHT were pre-tween zits on his face yesterday morning (3 of them) and he had complained of body aches and a headache the night before and yesterday morning; however, I thought his symptoms had to do with the fact that it was only 5 degrees outside and I was requiring him to walk to school! So, like the mean mother I am I said, "Stop whining and get walking" (OK, it wasn't that harsh). I have one thing that keeps me from feeling totally inept: I walked with him (Vern did too). He'd stop every block and grab his tummy and moan- I thought it was indigestion from the pot-luck the night before! I told him to go see the school nurse if his symptoms persisted past 1/2 an hour (which, I guess he didn't do).
I had to be at work at the time he got home, so I get this phone call at work, and the woman who handed the phone to me said, "It's your husband. He said it's 'Kinda an emergency'." KINDA AN EMERGENCY?? Well, I had no idea what THAT meant. I thought maybe the dog wouldn't stop puking or something.
Unfortunately, he was at school all day with the chicken pox! Oooops. I've never had them, so I was a bit apprehensive, at first. But I read up on the subject, and I'll probably be fine. I don't have any sign of them yet, so I'm probably in the clear (and what mother could NOT give her kid a hug when they're sick- I mean, it's just not possible!) The boy's frist response was, "Does this mean I get to stay home from school?!!" with an big grin on his face!
So, today he's peppered all over with bumps (like the picture), and taking a cool baking soda bath.
He's got some pox in his ear- that would drive me CRAZY! I'm really weird about particles in my ears.
So, if you're the praying sort, please pray for my little guy, and that he'll be playing football during recess before too long.
Thanks for reading!
-Mama R
PS- for more info on chicken pox, click on "Blisters, spots and pox- Oh MY!" above.

This picture made me laugh- I thought I'd share!

2006-11-28T07:37:00.000-08:00

We survived Thanksgiving! Can we survive Christmas?

2006-11-25T18:37:00.000-08:00

We went to my in-laws for Thanksgiving- like we usually do! It was nice. We got to see my cousin-in-laws and their two little kids and their two dogs! They came all the way from Kansas with all those children and pets in the van- sounds like a recipe for going nuts! One of the dogs is a pug- my favorite! Our other cousins brought their little "Puggle"- it's only like 8 weeks old. It was really fun to play with a wriggley little puppy!
Oh, and all the people are doing well, too (ha ha).
Time to get ready for Christmas! Don't get too crazy, and remember what it's really all about!

Click here for Seitan Recipes!!! Mmmm!

2006-11-10T06:37:00.000-08:00

This year, instead of turkey, I think I'll have seitan (SAY-tan). I've had it many times before, and MAN is it good! I honestly don't know why people eat meat with such wonderfully tasty alternatives out there (but each to his / her own). My husband just doesn't like the idea of eating something that's pronounced so similiarily to "SATAN"(see my link to my hubby's blog- he has a hilarious article called, "The Prince of Darkness is in my Fridge").
Last year for Thanksgiving, I bought a tofurkey roast and made vegetarian stuffing. It was very good, but kind of expensive. Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday (which you may think is strange for a vegetarin) but to me it's really not about the food. Really. It's a chance to get together with folks I don't get to visit with very often and have some well needed fellowship; all that without the added pressures of feeling compelled to buy gifts and all that stuff.
As a commentary on Christmas and commercialism, I heard a funny quip on the radio this morning. The DJ introduced a song as, "Being against the evils of commercialism" and added that the band had printed, "Thanks for buying this CD" on the outside of the package. Isn't that the way it is? We all hate it, but we all do it. We're all hypocrites!
Sinner.

2006-11-04T17:57:00.000-08:00

Talking Dogs

I'm on a talking animal kick now....My hubby will be so excited (he doesn't like movies with talking animals)!!!

2006-11-04T17:54:00.000-08:00

Cat Talking

This made me laugh so hard I cried! God made such fun creatures, didn't He?

Sounds of Peace

2006-10-06T07:22:00.000-07:00

I found this poetry site for kids and I wanted to share the wisdom of one of the kids- they are so precious- no wonder God says we should be like them!

The water is so peaceful at the prettiest lake.
I hear the crunch of the fall leaves as I walk around,
I hear the song of the blue jay out in a meadow.
I hear the water trickling down the roots of a tree.
I hear the swoosh of the grass as I walk past.
It makes me feel so happy I could be alone forever.

- Jillian, 6th grade

2006-09-26T08:35:00.000-07:00

Well, as the pic implies, my house is rather empty lately. Despite this, I have been very busy....as you'll notice, this is the first post that I actually wrote myself for quite awhile (rather than just cutting and pasting something from a favorite website such as the bug-in-your-food article).
Last night, I did "in-house" training (again!) for work, and this time, I got to give out the client's medication while my supervisor observed me. Thank God I did it all right! I was a little nervous. It may sound like a simple task, but as Sharon was stating in the Bible study last Wednesday, there's protocal for EVERYTHING! I literally have to check 3 times to make sure the right medication was administered. (and then document everything, of course!) This is a good thing, though, because it keeps everyone accountable.
So that's the not-so-fun part of work. The fun part is just getting to know the clients and the other folks who work there. I can't really go into it on a blog, but some of the people's idiosyncricies are really neat and interesting to get to know.
I heard one of the houses has a hobby farm, so now I'm really excited about visiting that facility; I guess it's out in the country. I also heard that one of the other ladies that works there gives a Bible study for some of the women, and that greatly interested me. Please pray for me for opportunities- it will be interesting to see what God does in the coming months!
I should probably get going,....house work waits for no one! (well, actually it does, however I have fire safety training tonight from 2-8 so I need to get a lot of stuff done by 1!)
Ciao!
-Mama R

Campout Food

2006-08-18T07:37:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again- Time for our church camp-out! I thought I'd give a link with some camp specific recipes on it for anyone who is interested. Also- check out my post a couple weeks ago with camping recipes right on the blog.
My son looks forward to the annual campout almost as much as he looks forward to Christmas! It's the highlight of his summer.
I hear there's some tastebuds salivatin' already for the jalepeno-bacon wraps I make every year; don't worry, I won't let you down (my hubby looks forward to them as much as anyone!)
This year has a twist- a wedding! That'll be great fun. What'd ya say we dump Gatorade on 'em when they've officially tied the knot? Maybe not....makes for a sticky honeymoon.
See ya'll at the campout! I'm super excited about it (as you can tell!)

2006-08-08T10:33:00.000-07:00

Another year of the Gathering has come and gone. As I sit and reflect on this year’s Rainbow Gathering, as always it’s hard to comprehend and mentally digest. Each Gathering is different, in that I get to see God work in different ways and I get the chance to talk to different people or to be used by God in different ways. This year I don’t feel as though I talked to as many people. This was really discouraging at first, but now that I am home and can reflect on it, I think its okay that I didn’t talk to as many people because God chose to use this time to break my heart once again for the Rainbow Family.

I happened to get pretty sick at the Gathering this year, which was not fun at all and really put a damper on my enthusiasm to want to talk to people or even be at the Gathering. One day, as I was getting over being sick, I was sitting in our camp looking out over the valley we were camped by. I was watching people walk along the main trail that went through the valley, and I saw this man walking along. Both of his legs were twisted and walking was not coming easily to him, but he just kept putting one foot in front of the other and limped along the trail. As I watched him, I wanted to cry because God spoke to me, in the quiet way that he does, and said, ”This is who you are here for.”

Though I don’t feel that any of my words this year had much of an impact on people, I know that just in me being there and serving with my team and helping to run our kitchen, The Jesus Kitchen, God used me to be a light in a dark place and to show me that these people are in desperate need of the love of God.

There is always so much that happens at the Gathering and no way of describing it in one letter. Hopefully, you can get a glimpse of God’s heart and love for these people. I thank all of you for your prayers and support for this trip; there is no way that this trip would happen without people standing with us.-"T"'s story.

2006-08-01T10:45:00.000-07:00

Jerry's birthday/ My Anniversary
Today is my 8th anniversary, it also happens to be Jerry Garcia's birthday...he would have been 64. This is my little tribute to him and all the music he is responsible for creating.
There was a time that the Grateful Dead were just about all I lived for, now they play a back seat to my dedication to my spiritual family at church and my physical family at home. Most of the time, the music plays on, but more as a background to the rest of the life going on around me.
There are certain parts of the Grateful Dead experience that I will never go back to, but I still enjoy the music, and it still speaks to me where I'm at today.
To quote Cream Puff War, "All the endless ruins of the past must stay behind".
Now, I want to write about what this day has really come to mean to me- my anniversay. My husband is the most kind, gentle and yet at the same time hard-core and solid person I have ever known. I am so blessed to not just know him, but to be married to him! He is such a strong and inspiring person that I have to remind myself to rely on Christ for my strength rather that on my husband, for I know that all his strength and gentleness comes from the Lord.
All in all, I am thankful for the lessons I learned in my past life, but I am very grateful that my life is in the place it's at right now.....and really, that's the best spot I could imagine to be in- the past and the present and the lessons learned fused together (by God's grace) to form who I am today. Praise God!

2006-08-01T10:37:00.000-07:00

2006-07-25T08:49:00.000-07:00

ONE PERSON'S GATHERING STORY:

One day at the gathering, I was contemplating all of the glorious food i was missing when Aaron came up to me and said, "you know, if you wanted to pray for some food, you could pray for cheese." At the mention of cheese my eyes started to water. I hadn't eaten cheese for months and definately not for a week at the gathering. (cheese happens to have been the love of my life) So i thought to myself, it won't happen but whatever! three days later someone told me we had received a huge block of cheese. I felt really guilty. I had never prayed for it, yet here it was. I realized while "guarding" the cheese from everyone else that it often happens this way in life. God is so faithful to give us everything we need and more than that. Aaron didn't know that i had not prayed for cheese, and I think I even told people that I had prayed for it (I didn't neglect the prayer on purpose, I actually forgot all about it) So even in this weird circumstance God allowed us to all have the blessing of cheese. (somthing not to be taken lightly!) Praise God who knows us so well!

2006-07-24T17:01:00.000-07:00

To the left are Odon Soterias- a band we were honored to hear at a most unusual location- the Rainbow Gathering!

We washed feet most of the day at the Gathering. Some of us were blessed to have our feet washed, as well. It is truly humbling to be in either position- the washer or the washee!
Here is a picture of Rachel washing her husband Nigel's feet.

Here are Mark and Kirstie- our courageous leaders at the Jesus Kitchen. YAY!!! Notice their flamingo stir sticks- they're a fashion "MUST HAVE" at any Rainbow Gathering! Mark and Kirstie are newly married, so Mark kept thanking all of us for joining him on his honeymoon.

2006-07-24T11:20:00.000-07:00

This is Ben, Amanda and Josh at Amanda's Birthday party at the Gathering! Amanda is wearing a "birthday girl" ribbon.
This is Levi and Ben blowing party favors with their noses (and that's all I have to say about that)...
We took a day of Sabboth rest and had a party (for Amanda)- someone brought in streamers, balloons, and even a twinkie with candles! The twinkie was pretty squished from being in someone's pack!

Here's some pictues from the 2006 Rainbow Gathering in Colorado, USA! All the pictures here are of people from the Jesus Kitchen (based out of Minneapolis, MN- a Steiger International ministry). Our aim is to share the love of Jesus with the folks at the Rainbow Gathering by giving food, water, prayer, footwashing, sandal repair and basic kindness to all who come into our kitchen. Our hope is that people will see the truth in Jesus' love and desire to have a real relationship with Him, thereby gaining eternal life!

2006-07-11T19:58:00.000-07:00

JUDGMENT

Lovely title, isn't it? We don't usually like the concept of judgment. I have been studying for teaching in the jail today, and the subject I get to do is Judgment. Part of me thinks, "Don't these girls know enough about judgment already- I mean, for pete's sakes, they're in JAIL!" But then I pondered on how we usually have a twisted view of judgment; we commonly take our human version of judgment and try to fit that type of imperfect judgment upon God. We forget that God is perfect, and therefore will perfectly judge.
Pastor Mark speaks at the Rainbow gathering every year about LOVE and TRUTH. We all dig the concept of Jesus' love, but we'd like to forget about the truth Jesus spoke about (John 14:6). The same goes for mercy and judgment; we love mercy, but despise judgment. However, we fail to see the entire picture, for without the judgment of God, how can we receive His mercy?
I think the ultimate example of these things in play at the same time is on the cross. God judged our sin (in Jesus), and was therefore able to be merciful to us. He loves us in perfect justice and truth. He truely is an awesome and perfect God!

2006-07-10T20:04:00.000-07:00

Rainbow Warriors
Hey kids, we're back from CO. It was quite a journey to say the least! The physical obsticles were many from the beginning. Some of you heard about the "Kamakazie" scout team being diverted by the forrest rangers (who, for the record, were just doing their job and are nice people), and the school bus had some mechanical challenges on the way (over heating in the mountains). But, as always, God is "always by our side" like the song says. God provided a school bus repair shoppe in the town where we were having troubles!
On the hike in, I thought the altitude was a physical being who was trying to beat me up! Every 10 steps or so I had to pause and gulp some of the crisp Rocky Mountain air. But we got in, and the site turned out to be a beautiful one- complete with a view to die for (pictures will be forthcoming at a later date).
I only made one trip in due to the fact that I had some physical pain (unexplained) the two-three days before the Gathering, and I didn't want to push myself beyond what I should do. This was a humbling start to the experience, as I usually try to make multiple trips on the first day to bring gear into the Gathering. The team was phenominal this year. Praise God for that! Early in our trip, people seemed to find their niche of service, and the body of Christ ran smoothly for the entire duration. Many of our people became sick with a stomache bug (I actually just got over it today- I probably caught it on the way home on the bus), so at any given time, we were short a couple of people because they were puking or pooping- BLECH....double BLECH while you're hard core camping and your latrine is a hole in the ground! Kudos to all those who had the SICKNESS while we were there- it was bad enough to have at my in-laws house! I honestly did not hear one word of complaint about it (I heard everyone's symptoms though- being the in-house "Mama" that I am)!!!
Personally, I did not have any truely "fruitful" encounters. I know Mark got to pray with a prodigal son who decided to come back home. He wandered into our camp, and was just going to eat his lunch, when he heard the worship music and he broke down and asked for prayer.
I overheard a lot of interesting spiritual conversation happening at all times within our camp, and it is always so hard to tell what kind of an impact they will have on down the road.
There were some cases this year of people we had met in former years who are now following Christ: one of whom was aggressively attacking us (verbally), but he remembered the kindness Jesus showed him through us and now he belongs to Christ- Hallelujah!
It will be interesting in the next few weeks, as the email stories flow, to hear more of what God did with the team this year. I am in the kitchen quite a bit, so I am not as intensively involved with some of the conversation that occurs as some folks are.

Part of me is still processing the trip, even though we got back four days ago. Thanks again for all the prayer. God was faithful all the way!!

2006-05-22T09:23:00.000-07:00

Fruit Cake (Raw)
INGREDIENTS
o Raw organic nuts (hazelnuts, cashews, almonds, etc)
o Raw organic ground almond
o Dried fruits (raisins, golden raisins, dried apricots, figs, dates, etc)
o Fresh fruit (apricots, strawberries, bananas, etc)
o Dollop of raw organic almond butter
o Few drops of squeezed orange juice
o Raw organic carob powder
METHOD
"You take some..." (as starts most recipes from a 1700's Swedish cookbook by Kajsa Varg)...

*Raw organic nuts, a handful each of whatever kind you prefer, I used hazelnuts, cashews and almonds. Chop them up carefully. Also I added a good handful of raw organic ground almond (bulk at supermarket).

*Add dried fruits. I used raw organic raisins, golden raisins, dried apricots, 4-6 figs, 4-6 medjool dates.

*Add fresh fruit. blend up two fresh apricots, a few strawberries, or a banana and add a big dollop of raw organic almond butter.

Mix it all in a big bowl with a sturdy fork. If your dried fruits are too dry to cling together, you may have to moisten the mix with a few drops of fresh squeezed orange juice.

On a piece of wax paper (kitchen parchment paper) form the mixture in the shape of a log.

Sift raw organic carob powder through a tea strainer over the log and sprinkle ground almond over it, too.

Voila! there's your Yule log (or raw vegan christmas fruit cake).

2006-05-21T17:58:00.000-07:00

I am grateful.
Sometimes in order to find out how good we have it, we need to jump out of our little world and into an alternate reality for just a little while; like today- I had the opportunity to go to a different church than what I normally do. It's a great church and I really enjoyed the time we spent there, but as Dorothy says, "there's no place like home!"
God has me placed exactly where He wants me to be, and I am so grateful for that. My church family is of unspeakable value to me. I really do not know how some folks can be Christians and not have a regular church family. It really blows my mind!
On a separate subject, my husband and I are planning on going on a missions trip very soon, and if you would just randomly pray for us, that'd be terrific- we can use all the prayer we can get! The place we're going is very spiritually dark, and the enemy [..."your adversary, the devil..."; see 1 Peter 5:9] has had a hold of the territory there for a long time. We have been going every year for 8 years- this will be our ninth- and I believe the enemy is finally beginning to lose ground in this battle. In a battle, when you enter 'enemy territory', it sometimes takes a long time to loose the grip of the enemy on that territory. But when I think that these people technically belong to the LORD (after all, He died for them), I am encouraged!
Today, my husband was the "guest speaker" at a church, and one of the things he said was that we need to be more like our dog. A dog is always excited to see you and be with you, right? We should be like that with Jesus. "I can't get enough of Him; I want to be with Him all the time; go for walks; ride in His car; beg Him to 'pet' (bless) me!!" Yeah- I want to be more and more like that with Jesus! That is my prayer today.
Signing off.......Here's a parting Scripture:
"When you go out to battle against your enemies and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt, is with you." Deuteronomy 20:1

2006-05-05T11:55:00.000-07:00

"Nothing I can do will make me special. No awards I can earn will make me a better person. The taproot of my being grows in the rich soil of the being of Christ instead of in the shifting sands of worldly accomplishment." -Leslie Williams
Remember that our flesh is never satisfied. No amount of awards, well-wishes, flattery or compliments will ever feed my ego to the point that it will never hunger again. The fleshly ego cannot be tamed or lulled to sleep. The Bible tells us the only way to deal with it: KILL.
"But may it never be that I should boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." -Galatians 6:14
James 1 says that the person who is double-minded ("two-souled") will not receive wisdom from God. When we ask God for wisdom, we need to be wholly on His team- suited up and ready to play (fight). Why would the Lord give his perfect wisdom to someone who doesn't intend to use it for the purpose of His Kingdom? This realization just makes me cry out, "Lord, if there is a part of me that is not 100% on your side, KILL it! Please. Remind me when I get distracted; help me stay on course."

2006-05-02T09:07:00.000-07:00

The last post I made is from a recipe website that ROCKS! It's "recipies from food down under". You should be able to check it out simply by clicking on any of the green ingredients in the list. It's got everything from wild game recipies (for you hunters out there) to vegetarian and raw food recipies. There are flags of the world on the top of the home page, and by clicking on one of the flags, you'll find an array of recipies for that nation. You could have guests over for an "Afghan" night or an "Austrailian" night or whatever cuisine strikes your fancy!
Challenge your taste buds and your cooking expertise and check it out!

2006-05-01T13:38:00.000-07:00

Hello! I want to rant a bit about something ALL "super-charged mommies" are all too familiar with. We all do it every day, but don't want to keep it around. It can tell you what kind of health you are in, but is NOT healthy in and of itself. We get rid of it, cover it up, flush it down, yet it is of utmost importance- yes, you guessed it, I'm talking about POOP.
I read somewhere that Hypocrates (you know, the hypocratic oath guy) once said that he could tell you everything you needed to know about a patient if he was able to examine the patient's dung. After thinking upon this, and reflecting through the years about it (and yes, doing some amateur examining of my own) I have come to believe that saying.
In my reading about small children I read that the reason kids have abnormally large bowel movements for their size is because their intestines are not all blocked up with all the toxins that we slowly aquire throughout the years. This realization solved what had been rather disturbing for a new mother; when I peeked into the toilet after my newly potty-trained son "went", I saw a huge snake-like coil in the toilet that had to be 75% of his entire height! I was astonished! However, after doing a minor colon cleansing, I discovered that my "passageway" was much more clear to "make" impressive "artifacts". Sometimes I even wished that, like my uninhibited son, I could call the nearest person into the bathroom and show them my accomplishment. (Actually, I had a friend that did a colon cleanse, and was so proud of his creation that he took a picture of it on his cell phone. What if he had dropped his cell phone into the toilet while doing that? Can you imagine trying to explain that to your phone carrier?)
There's a great website about poop- just Google the "Scoop on Poop". It will answer such questions as:

Why is bird poop white?
What's up with corn poop?
Why do dogs like to eat cat poop?

2006-05-01T10:54:00.000-07:00

I've been considering lately what power looks like- specifically in women, and more specifically, in Moms. Mother's Day is coming up (and no matter how humble your mom IS, believe me, she KNOWS)... And any good mother will gladly get up on Mother's Day, silently do her normal chores, and refrain from saying a word about Mother's Day. If her family happens to forget about Mother's Day until they get to church or the mall (or for the whole day!) - well, that's to be expected.

Here's the question: Does this scenerio represent weakness, or power? I want to pose the idea that the silent, humble woman has far more raw power than any brash, demanding woman. The woman with a "quiet heart" exhibits self-control, love for her family, and meekness (power under control). In the society that we live in, "MOM POWER" is a mis-understood term. It takes a strong woman to 'hold in' her urge to scream when her toddler spills paint on her favorite dress; to show compassion to the 4th grader who accidentally broke a priceless vase; or to firmly and lovingly deal with a child having a temper tantrum (sometimes us moms would like to have our OWN temper tantrum in that situation).
I won't go on and on about this, but I'll end with a couple Bible verses:
In the description of a Worthy woman in Proverbs 31, Solomen says, "She girds herself with strength, and makes her arms strong....She opens her mouth in wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue." (Verses 17 & 26).
And who does our power come from? "...I am filled with power- with the Spirit of the LORD..." -Micah 3:8

Raw, Organic, super-charged Mommy Power

Cat and Rollersk8ing

It's been a long hiatus!

Take your stand- the right way

Here we go!

A monumental first step

Faries and other miscellaneous items

Why Trees Whisper

Happy 60th post!!

PLEASE VOTE

Fun Website to Read

Tough Times?

Gettin' Curvey!

Why I love Autumn

Not your typical Bible study...

YESHUAPOLOOZA!!!

Meet Abner, our new family member!

It has tasted blood

The Power of Cheese

Trip to Madeline Island

No Rainbow this year

Life is a dream- A meme.

What's wrong with the world?

Food fight!

Tagged by Dorky Dad

The price of a mom: $138,095

Whatsoever things are lovely

Anniversary of Columbine, April 20th, 1999

The treasury of books

A new place to shop

Feeling sucked dry?

“I Slept, and Dreamed that Life was Beauty” by Ellen Sturgis Hooper

20 ways to deal with insanity

Pictures of Vern and Wacky

6 Weird things about me: *TAGGED* I'm it!

Our visitor for the week

Cold! If the thermometer had been an inch longer we'd all have frozen to death.

Music Reveiw- Beleza Tropical, compiled by David Byrne

"Aquarium Day"

The sickness goes on- and on

The Raw Deal- CLICK HERE!

Saved man Wasted life

Ripple, lyrics by Robert Hunter

I'M NOT IMMUNE!

Cold And Flu Prevention Tips

Blisters, spots and pox- Oh MY!

This picture made me laugh- I thought I'd share!

We survived Thanksgiving! Can we survive Christmas?

Click here for Seitan Recipes!!! Mmmm!

Sounds of Peace

Campout Food

“I Slept, and Dreamed that Life was Beauty”
by Ellen Sturgis Hooper

6 Weird things about me: TAGGED I'm it!