Becoming Janel

Links for 2009-11-03 [del.icio.us]

2009-11-04T00:00:00-08:00

Bandana Waves
Very lovely style!
Wreath How-to
Simple Holiday Style
New Mamas
Great advice for new mamas or anyone who has lost a loved one.
Cook's Country TV
I was out and caught their episode on turkey and GARLIC MASHED POTATOES. oh wow! Love these guys!
Garlic Mashed Potatoes - Cooks Country TV
I saw them make these last week. I can't wait to try them!
Perfect Petals
I stumbled on these tonight. I haven't ordered, but I very well might.

Links for 2009-10-11 [del.icio.us]

2009-10-12T00:00:00-07:00

Hooked On Globe Lights
I love the look too. What a great, cheap & easy way to accomplish it! If you don't have any, grab some string lights after Christmas for next to nothing.
Planning Cards for Shopping
This would work wonderfully for fabric already made up into dresses. That way you have a color reference when you're looking for a complementary piece.

Links for 2009-10-10 [del.icio.us]

2009-10-11T00:00:00-07:00

Holiday Decor
While we don't do Halloween, this idea could easily be modified for Thanksgiving, Christmas or even Easter by changing your ball colors.
Great Uses for Old Windows
Old windows rock. Rich has a collection in the garage for when we get to build our next house - whenever that will be.

Links for 2009-10-09 [del.icio.us]

2009-10-10T00:00:00-07:00

Homemaker Lessons
Free lessons for becoming good homemakers.

Links for 2009-10-08 [del.icio.us]

2009-10-09T00:00:00-07:00

City Camping
Nature tamed into manageable proportions.

Permanent Blogging Vacation

2009-10-07T14:30:00.003-04:00

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven...

Ecclesiastes 3:1

It's October. The leaves are vibrantly hued, crisp and falling here in New England. I said I would be back, and here I am. Unfortunately, it's not the way I imagined it. My sensing change was correct, only I got the direction wrong.

While I haven't given many details about the auto accident I was in July a year ago, it has impacted our life in more ways than I can explain. Fifteen months later, I still never know what the day holds when I open my eyes in the morning. Even though I no longer suffer from chronic daily back pain, I still have significant short term memory loss, processing issues and crippling fatigue that drives me to bed before noon some days. While having me say weird or redundant things at parties is good for a laugh, it stinks when I'm trying to explain fractions to my first grader. And the whole fatigue thing is very, very old.

This summer was exciting because a new treatment brought me back to a consistent 85% of normal mental function. I had about three months where I got so much caught up or accomplished and felt alive and almost normal again! My flock of doctors, family and I were all thrilled. But by the time the kids and I completed our first full week of school on September 11, the strain of thinking sustained substantial thoughts brought it crashing down again. So for the last month, when I planned to get on with my life, I shelved my projects, crawled back into bed and have been groping under an Eeyore style rain cloud, hoping I'll wake up tomorrow to be my old sunny self.

As for blogging, I toyed with the idea of doing something radical and different. Maybe a photo blog or some short bite of inspiration? But to be honest, my family needs what left of me more than you all need my not very inspired inspiration. So until a miracle happens, I'm no longer going to hold out hopes of blogging again. God is faithful to fill in gaps left when he calls folks on - not that I've been filling too many gaps recently, but you know, in theory. In any case, seek and ye shall find a much better replacement.

For those who are wondering about how I am spiritually, I'm treading water. On bad days it's easy to think that I must be creating, condoning or doing horrible sins for God to allow this to happen. But on the other hand, it's arrogant to think I'm Job. And yet, God has a sovereign plan that we are each a part of, even if we can't see it.

People do stupid things that hurt folks who are innocent bystanders. Whether by accident or design, I got caught in the crossfire and God is using it to draw me closer to him. I try to keep it all in perspective and continue to persevere, but it's hard when grounded thoughts escape like grains of sand through an hourglass. I'm learning grace, patience, that what doesn't matter simply doesn't matter and a whole basket of other "goodies." The lessons aren't wasted, I just hope I remember them - so I don't have to repeat them!

Please pray for us. It's been a hard road for everyone and I doubt the end is near. Many thanks to those who have held us up in prayer these last couple years. I doubt we would have made it this far without them!

Until we meet again or chat on Twitter...

Links for 2009-10-05 [del.icio.us]

2009-10-06T00:00:00-07:00

Are Your Children Safe?
Excellent article and points about parenting today.

Life's About Changin'

2009-09-08T07:00:00.000-04:00

Growing up in the backwoods of Pennsylvania, I'm an old country music fan. I would still be a listener, but my oldest talked early and loved to repeat the songs he knew. As I'm sure most of you know, some lyrics shouldn't be repeat by adults much less adorable 18 month olds. e'hem

Right around the time Rich and I got married in 1994, Patty Lovelace came out with a single called "How Can I Help You Say Good-bye?" While not exactly my situation, it reverberated with me. Being newly married, pregnant and horribly homesick, the song constantly reminded me that "life's about changes, nothing ever stays the same." It was a great comfort.

In the 15+ years that have followed, something always reminds me of this song when Rich and I are faced with a big life change. When my eyes are still glazed over at how so many events can come together to make it known that a change is God moving, I am able to look up, know God is in control, take a deep breath and remind myself that the only thing that never changes is that things always change.

God is on the move, again.

I'm taking about a month off from blogging to get back in the groove of homeschooling for the year, reorganize some administrative stuff at the CWP and finish a project I'm excited to share with you. I'll still be tweeting, so follow me on Twitter. But be warned, it's going to be catch as catch can with tweeting because we completely rearranged the downstairs and I probably won't have an internet connection at my computer for another several days to a week.

In the meantime, please enjoy my archives and the past issues of the CWP. There's lots of good stuff in there. : ) I hope your school year is off to a terrific start! Until October...

Make Your Own Fairy Wings

2009-09-04T07:00:00.000-04:00

Ariana's fairy wings are in need of an overhaul. Here's a great tutorial to make new ones!

Fanny and Me

2009-09-03T07:00:00.000-04:00

Normally, when I take a Jane Austen heroine type of test I come out as Emma Woodhouse. If I'm feeling extra spunky that day, I could be branded as Elizabeth Bennett. I suppose there are worse Austen characters to be labeled as, take Lydia Bennett for example. Although my younger self is a lot like Emma, I'm not so meddlesome anymore. My Mr. Knightly has done some amazing things in my life too. But being "Emma" is still always a bad dream come back to haunt me.

When I took this test, I thought the results were interesting:

Your result for The Jane Austen heroine Test...
Fanny Price
62% romance, 45% sauciness, 46% etiquette, 69% intelligence

Still waters run deep. You've got plenty of intelligence and more heart than you get credit for. But you never say a word when insulted, and this reticence sometimes allows others to assume you're a pushover. You're also a bit shy in mixed company, which leads those who don't know you well to accuse you of snobbery. They couldn't be more wrong! You just never seem to know what to say. Of course, the meek shall inherit the earth...eventually. But do you really want to wait that long for redemption?

Ideal matches: Edmund Bertram, Edward Ferrars, Captain Benwick, Colonel Brandon
Guaranteed heartbreak: Frank Churchill, John Thorpe
Not worthy of your affections: Henry Crawford, John Willoughby

Yup, only the closest to me know how much I've been truly riled or insulted. And Lord knows they'll hear me rant until I've gotten it out of my system, forgiven and forgotten. And yes, I have been called a snob because I wouldn't participate in some discussions. Honestly, I just didn't have anything to add. Meek? Well, the jury is still out. If anything, I'm like Ben Franklin in that regard: "I added Humility to my list, giving an extensive meaning to the word. I cannot boast of much success in acquiring the reality of this virtue, but I had a good deal with regard to the appearance of it."

Edmund Bertram definitely has his appeal. Mr. Ferrars never really was my cup of tea, although Colonel Brandon would make any woman an amazing husband... Frank Churchill and Henry Crawford both struck me the same way: rake! Willoughby too.

How about you?

Creating Hat Blocks on the Cheap

2009-09-02T07:00:00.001-04:00

Oh! What an easy way to create hat blocks!

The Blessing of Connectedness

2009-09-01T07:00:00.001-04:00

While we've been planted for four years now, our family moved 4 times in 6 years before that - all for work, all unquestionably prompted by the Lord. All the moves were out of the area moves. One was an hour, another 2 hours away and the other two moves were over 1800 miles.

It's easy to get disheveled and disconnected and hate the thought of starting over yet again. After unpacking box #85 (which was probably yet another box of books), your mind leaves you and you begin to think like Elijah: “Lord, I’m the only one! There's nobody but meeeeeee!” Of course that’s only after the thought before boxes 72, 64, 53 & 47 which was, “Will I ever finish??”

When the stuff from our last move arrived in New England in early April 2005 , I focused on unpacking and redefining "normal life" for our new situation. Then I spent June through August and then November through January doing a serious chunks of painting and wallpapering because the house needed it. I’m still not done four years later, but I’ve expressed my creative self and changed all the nasty colors from the last owner enough to be satisfied for awhile. Besides I'm just plain tired of painting.

When I wasn't painting, cooking or doing laundry, life clobbered me with the challenges of a new homeschool year. It's easy to get bogged down in the details when everyone in the house feels the same way: desperate need for "normal" and to feel connected again. Besides, it's nice to get a fresh perspective from an outside view.

While we were out in the Midwest, I tried plugging into a small local homeschool group that I found out was leery of non-native folks and people they “didn’t know.” The big in-town group was a bit too far of a drive for me with a then new baby. Happily though, we found our Fellowship Survival Quotient with another homeschool family a few minutes up the road. That wonderful family was the only earthly thing that kept me sane during the five months I lived alone with the kids while Rich looked for a house back here in New England.

Surprisingly, God provided support in my backyard with this last move. There is a wonderful family just 10 houses up the street. The mom had been praying for homeschoolers to buy and move in our house. She got her prayer answered. While God hasn't connected us in a way either of us imagined, we know his seasons are not our seasons and we've commented on it several times.

Our family has had to limit our community time in the last 18 months or so because of everything that's happened, but God has still been faithful to build relationships that have inspired and blessed me in ways I never expected. I've been challenged, encouraged, mentored and simply been. It's a beautiful thing.

If you’re not involved with a local homeschool group, Christian fellowship or other group of similar interest, I strongly urge you to pray about finding others in your area. Nothing beats being able to look into someone’s face and honestly know that they care and are rooting for you. Folks that have walked a mile in your shoes are priceless. Thankfully, God provides in his time.

Education and Flowers

2009-08-31T07:00:00.000-04:00

Much education today is monumentally ineffective. All too often we are giving young people cut flowers when we should be teaching them to grow their own plants.

John W. Gardner

How to Make a Pillbox Hat

2009-08-28T07:00:00.000-04:00

Sweet and easy.

(FYI: The last 2 minutes of the video has nothing to do with hat making.)

Mothering Encouragement

2009-08-27T07:00:00.003-04:00

It seems I have a thing for watching moms of littles in the grocery store. Who knew? Maybe it's that their sweet little ones leave me longing for cute, squishy baby toes again. Maybe God just puts me in the right place at the right time.

A couple weeks ago I kept crossing paths with a mom who had a 3-ish year old daughter in the main basket of her shopping cart and a dapper little guy, whom I found out later had turned one the day before, riding shot gun. Each time I passed him, he was either giving a sermon, expounding Newton's Law of Gravity or explicating on some other equally important topic. "Really?!" his mom replied to one of his most emphatic declarations. I remember saying that.

Pointer finger in the air passionately accenting his inflective statements of baby gibberish, I know I laid eyes on a future lawyer, politician or preacher. Seriously. He was adorable.

I laughed as I walked by him that last time. I turned to his mom and said, "Oh he's so cute. I really miss that age. My youngest is 6." I don't remember how our conversation started, but I stood there in the middle of the spice isle laughing with this complete stranger about the joys and frustrations of mothering little folk.

Motherhood is a curious thing.

As the conversation flowed I mentioned I had had 4 children in 8 years. "Oh my! I'm so overwhelmed by two. I can't imagine four!" she said. I told her that by number three you're so used to being sleep deprived that one more won't bother you. We both laughed. Then I told her that a girlfriend of mine is pregnant with number nine. I thought her eyes were going to pop out of her head.

When she wonder out loud how my friend of soon to be nine survived, I told her my friend positively loves being a mom. "She's one of those women born to mother and loves every minute of it."

With a hint of longing, wishing she had been born with that gift too, in a sweet way she replied, "Oh, I know those kind of women. I hate them. Well... not really. You know what I mean." And I do. I continued that my friend is organized, her older children are great helpers and what doesn't matter, simply doesn't matter. She doesn't stress about things that aren't important and focuses on things that are.

As we continued to talk I shared with her that even though it seems crazy and impossible when people tell you to enjoy this time, seriously, try too. You look up and it's gone. Try to keep time in perspective when the days seem positively endless. Because they do end, all too quickly as I've found.

In my usual animated way, I ended up in the middle of the isle as our conversation progressed. It wasn't until I heard "excuse me" that I realized where I was. Apologizing to the older gent, I said, "I'm so sorry. I'm having a mom moment." The three of us laughed and the older gent pushed his cart on.

Slowing beside the little expositor, who by the way had stopped preaching and was silently watching me with an attentiveness that I only dream of from my own, the gent then turned to us and said, "Well, that sure beats these senior moments I've been having lately." We nodded sympathetically and chuckled again.

But this time, something clicked for my tired mom of two. She slowly shook her head and said, "Wow, that really puts things in perspective." Yes, it does. Oh, yes it does.

If I have the opportunity to encourage a mom of littles, I try to. They need it. I'll never forget the crazy day six odd years ago when three little boys and a very pregnant Me chatted with a complete stranger in the grocery store. She smiled and inquired after my tummy. I've clung to our conversation for years. I'm so glad I listened.

Links for 2009-08-26 [del.icio.us]

2009-08-27T00:00:00-07:00

Cultivating Home: Home Education
Simple is good.

Violins and Such

2009-08-26T07:00:00.001-04:00

I finally found parts online to fix our violins. Those who don't want to learn piano are learning to play violin. For some, it's been a long awaited experience.

While cleaning up and wondering why one of the violins were left out, I opened the case and found myself propelled back into the old fashioned gangster days of the 1920s.

I guess the whole family enjoys vintage flavor, even if the transported medium is modern through and through.

Swallowing Camels, Straining on Gnats

2009-08-25T07:00:00.019-04:00

Recently I was reading an online discussion about the subject of headcovering and its application in the church today. Headcovering can be a hot topic in conservative Christian circles. This discussion was thoughtful and respectful, unlike some I’ve encountered. It sparked some reflection on my part, although not on the subject of covering or not covering.

The church today has embraced some whoppers as gospel while leaving The Gospel in the dust. Sorting it all out and putting the correct amount of emphasis in the correct place with the correct context can be sticky business - and almost nobody agrees. Then, once you feel you have a handle on things, knowing what hill to die on, for what doctrine, when and how, is subject to the Spirit's individual leading. God’s calling for Peter was not the same task he gave John, even thought they were both spreading the same Gospel.

The study of whether to cover or not isn't something I've dug into because Rich and I both think there are bigger fish to fry when it comes to errant doctrines currently in the church. While I completely agree that we need to stop picking and choosing what doctrines we embrace, one of the points made in the headcovering discussion, we need to be sure we are majoring on the majors and minoring on the minors. We’re not furthering a positive witness of the Gospel if we’re swallowing camels and straining on gnats. The questions I ask with regard to any biblical doctrine are: In the larger context of Scripture, is the issue a gnat or camel? How big are the principles behind the practice? How do those principles play into the dynamic of major and minor?

I think an important thing to remember is that sometimes we can become myopic. If we’re tremendously passionate about something other than the saving work of Jesus Christ, is our focus in the right place? Is our passion in the right proportion? Headcovering is not an issue that directly affects our salvation – nor is the version of the Bible we read, the type of music played on Sunday morning or if we pray at the same time each day. Because of that, I believe that as long as our heart is open and we’re not rebelliously abstaining or embracing, there's grace if or until God convicts us otherwise.

I’ve found that when I’m in doubt about something or can’t come to a firm conclusion, I need to wait before I move because often God hasn’t finished making his point. If you’ve wrestled with any issue where you’ve stayed awake nights (or spent days) stuck in thought, I encourage you to ask if it is THE issue itself that the Lord is convicting you about or if it is something bigger, like an issue of a rebellious heart over wanting his will no matter what that happens to be? Sometimes we can’t see the forest for the trees.

One of my pet peeves in reading thoughts like those I’ve given above has always been, “Yes, well that’s nice, but what does it live like?” – Just like the original question posed about headcovering. My best “live like” answer is don’t be quick to embrace or reject, but be like the Bereans. Seek, continue to do the things you know are right and wait. God will let you know exactly what it looks like to live in time. Seek and knock and you will know – eventually!

We each need to dig into and examine Scripture. And then we should work to apply the truths to our lives no matter how painful or how much we dislike them. But we need to be careful that we don't become legalistic in our application of the truths. We don’t want to be clanging gongs and cymbals.

Unfortunately, as Christians we often disagree with each other on the smaller points of doctrine, depending on our background and doctrinal perspective. Learning to accept and do hard things isn’t always pleasant. Doing the unpleasant when everyone else thinks you are wrong is even harder. I dislike hard things too, but Jesus told us up front that being a disciple wasn’t going to be easy.

Doing Science

2009-08-24T07:00:00.000-04:00

A couple years ago when I asked Rich what he thought we should do for science, he said "teach them the scientific method" without even blinking. So not having a clue where to start, I went to the library and typed "scientific method" in the card catalog search. I found a neat book for teaching the scientific method: Science Fair Success Secrets: How to Win Prizes, Have Fun, and Think Like a Scientist by Bill Haduch.

In the first 5 chapters he explains the scientific method in depth for kids to understand. Granted, there are some wise crackers with endless jokes about shrimp, but the kids giggle & get it. Chapter 6 contains 20 winning projects from nation science fairs to reproduce. So first we studied the nuts and bolts of the scientific method and then we spent the next several months doing experiments. The kids had a blast.

I Googled a bit on the scientific method as well. I came up with howtoteachscience.com She's a disenchanted ex-public school science teacher who is now homeschooling her children. She has a great introduction to the scientific method lesson that we did to get our feet wet.

Homemade Ice Cream

2009-08-21T07:00:00.000-04:00

Homemade ice cream doesn't have to be difficult. It takes me about 5 minutes to throw a batch of ice cream together.

Though any ice cream maker will do, our ice cream maker is made for by Kitchen Aid for my mixer. It takes 6-8 cups of mix.

While you can make cooked custard-like ice cream, you don't have to. Fresh ingredients frozen together are just as good. (Easier too!)

To make about 7 1/2 cups of ice cream mix. ALL measurements are approximate. Taste it to see if you like it or not. To make this recipe for a smaller freezer, halve it.

1 cup sugar - I use a raw cane sugar
1-2 tsp vanilla

Mix.

Add about a pint of heavy cream - I buy it at Sam's Club because it's $2.50 per quart.

Mix.

Add whole milk until you have about 7 1/2 cups of mix.

Chill, stirring often, until frosty and the place in your ice cream maker.

To add fruit, you can either add it whole in chunks, blend it with the milk or mash it. You can also add crushed Oreos or M&Ms, but chill them in the freezer and add them just before the ice cream is ready. (Soggy, frozen Oreos are nasty.)

Make sure you chill your bowls and your storage container. Homemade ice cream melts quickly in the summer.

A Child of Mine

2009-08-20T07:00:00.000-04:00

I love Mark Shultz's story telling music like Rich loves Don Francisco's story songs.

I bought the piano music to Mark's Songs & Stories album several years ago. You Are a Child of Mine resonated with me at the time. God was trying to keep me grounded in my connection to him. The song helped cement what he was trying to teach me. May you be connected and embraced as well.

Birthday Pants

2009-08-19T07:00:00.000-04:00

For his birthday, Christopher requested pants with pockets "big enough to hold all his" stuff. That's a tall order. Define big enough Mr. 9-Year Old Boy Who Is Always Carrying An Armload.

I didn't have a suitable pattern so I drafted on from scratch. While that usually doesn't work to make patterns for me with my remedial fitting skills, I can do that with the kids and have it turn out beautifully. I measured hips, waist, inseam, drew a rough sketch on some of my "bag of fabric for 99¢" camo denim, curved the seat and started cutting. They didn't turn out too bad at all.

Since the big pockets were the thing most desired, I cut them 16 inches x 12 inches each. Using an example from a pair of his shorts, I mitered the corners for optimal fill and put in a pleat so they are about 12"x12" finished. I also added two spots of velcro on each pocket. We don't want anything to fall out.

Them's big pockets. And on a little guy, those are really big pockets.

I didn't want to fuss with a zipper, so I added elastic around the back and some recycled hook and eyes on each side. They work mighty fine and have 2 more settings so there is room to grow. (Thank God little boys don't have hips!)There's elastic around the ankles too. That should keep the snakes out while he's out on his next mission.

Now comes the $10 million question: Are the pockets big enough for our birthday boy? YES! These suckers will hold five, count 'em, f-i-v-e Rescue Rangers with plenty of room to spare. (Yes, there are only four in this picture. One had to clean his room while the others stood for their photo op. I promise, all five fit in there!)

And for those of you who are clueless about how big these little dudes are, I've added a picture along side my tape measure. These guys aren't skinny little Barbie.

Mission accomplished.

Oh. You should see how funny he looks when he walks with his pockets full. hehe

Current Events :: Part 2

2009-08-18T07:00:00.002-04:00

When we did our first current events unit, I looked through the teaching current events pages I printed off. I found two core teaching ideas that drove our study.

Why is it news? Each day, newspaper editors around the world must make decisions about which stories they will publish. Stories make it into newspapers for many different reasons. Invite students to look at the stories that have made the front page of a local newspaper during the last few days and to talk about why each of those stories made headlines. Among the reasons students might come up with are these:

Timeliness -- News that is happening right now, news of interest to readers right now.

Relevance -- The story happened nearby or is about a concern of local interest.

Magnitude -- The story is great in size or number; for example, a tornado that destroys a couple houses might not make the news but a story about a tornado that devastates a community would be very newsworthy.

Unexpectedness -- Something unusual, or something that occurs without warning.

Impact -- News that will affect a large number of readers.

Reference to someone famous or important -- News about a prominent person or personality.

Oddity -- A unique or unusual situation.

Conflict -- A major struggle in the news.

Reference to something negative -- Bad news often "sells" better than good news.

Continuity -- A follow-up or continuation to a story that has been in the news or is familiar.

Emotions -- Emotions (such as fear, jealousy, love, or hate) increase interest in a story.

Progress -- News of new hope, new achievement, new improvements.

In the days ahead, study each front-page story and talk about why editors decided to put the story on page one. Which reason(s) on the students' list would explain the newsworthiness of the story?

A five W variation. Provide each students with a news story. The student lists on a separate sheet of paper the who, where, when, what, and why of the story. Then the students' papers are collected and redistributed so no student has his or her own sheet. Each students takes a look at their five W list and writes the opening paragraph of a news story based on that information. At the end of the activity, students share their stories and the original stories to see how they compare. How accurate were the students' stories?

Both of these suggestions and more can be found in an article entitled Twenty-Five Great Ideas for Teaching Current Events! at EducationWorld.com

To tackle current events from a Christian perspective, I added my own questions:

How does this event promote or violate Biblical principles and a Biblical World View?

Do you think this event brings God pleasure and joy or pain and sorrow? Why?

These questions were a great springboard to discussions where we could open the Bible and pull out Scripture to support or disprove these questions.

2009 Hat Fair :: Best of the Fair Winner

2009-08-14T08:00:00.001-04:00

The votes are in. Elisabeth is our winner with her post on the hats of summer from the golden age of Hollywood. Elisabeth, please email me!

Many thanks to the ladies who took the time to put together a hat post. I thoroughly enjoyed reading them and hope that others did too.

Enjoy your weekend.

A Birthday Gift

2009-08-13T07:00:00.000-04:00

I think I have the sweetest boys in all the world. Yes, I know I've got a mother's bias. But let me make my case before you roll your eyes.

Josh and Ben were invited to our 15 year old neighbor girl's birthday party. They've been friends with her since we moved here four years ago. They find her a neat person to hang out with and they wanted to make her something nice.

Last year we got her some yarn and knitting needles and I taught her how to knit. Since she hasn't come over to learn how to bind off yet, they thought something more concrete might be in order this year. They racked their brains for something suitable.

If she was a boy, they would have made her a foam sword or bought Legos, but a girl? hmmm...

They asked me if I could help them make her a skirt, and could they borrow some fabric too? After thinking about how discriminating girls are about clothes, (Thank you Ariana.) they decided against it. Too many fabric choices. Too many style choices. Too limited sewing skills unless they bribed Mom. So they thought some more.

It was decided that they would make her a bracelet, out of sea shells, that they had hand picked on Hampton Beach. Josh scrounged some jewelry parts from his rock tumbler set. Ben begged the rest from my stash. They cut holes in the shells with a drill, choose beads and asked me to attach them.

Not bad. Not bad at all. The Birthday Girl was thrilled. Her mother was amazed. I am thoroughly proud.

My only thought: Is it appropriate for guys to give jewelry to girls with whom they have no romantic interest? hmmm. Well, for better or worse, they did.

In Pursuit of a "Quiet Life" :: Part 2

2009-08-12T07:00:00.004-04:00

When we all finally nod together, acknowledging that we're each unique, women also need to remember that there are seasons in life. We won't always have lots of free time or none. Likewise, sometimes we have tons to do and other times, not so much. So as we pursue the quiet life of seeking God, it won't look the same today as it does next week or even next month.

When a mother has young children, she's not going to have the time to do lots of quiet Bible study type things alone. There is a good reason that God exhorts the unmarried woman to be about the things of the Lord. The unmarried woman has the time to spend copious amounts of her hours engulfed in "quiet time" and ministry during her single years. An older woman, whose children are older or grown, will also be better able to dedicate quiet hours.

What about the in between years and women who come to Christ after she has children? For that, there's the grace of a quiet life. These are some of the ways I've found to help me live a it:

1.) Read Scripture with your children at each meal or when you wake up and before bed or both. Start at Genesis keep reading. Do it several times a day. Bless them as you bless yourself by reading God's Word out loud. If they have questions, wonderful! It means they are listening. Answer them if you can or find the answers if you can't. Being future kings and priests, they need to hear Scripture everyday as well - even when they aren't big enough to read it themselves.

2.) Begin and end the day with prayer. Many years ago Rich and I decided that we would get the children up with us at 5:30AM to pray. Each morning they pile on a half awake Momma and we teach them to pray by praying with them, out loud, about the things on our hearts. They have learned to pray by listening to mature prayers and praying themselves. Bedtime and mealtime are other wonderful opportunities to pray with them.

3.) Pray during the day in good times and bad. Cultivate a habit of thanking the Lord for his blessings. Thank God for the sunshine and the rain, your food and dessert. Pray for wisdom when a difficult situation comes up or when you hear an emergency siren. Go to him when you are at a loss for words. Seek to order your day according to his priorities.

4.) Listen to sermons throughout the day while doing quiet tasks. Ponder and pray about what the speaker is saying. Ask God for wisdom and truth. Let your little ones hear it too.

5.) Keep watch for God sightings. Look for God at work as you go about your day. Praise him for his blessings! Find places where God should be invited and isn't and then do so. (I confess, my kids did this at VBS this year, but I love it!)

Giving up the guilt of quiet time does not mean we skip or even scrimp on our relationship on with the Lord. It just changes from a once a day appointment to a daily walk with God. I find it more fulfilling.

As I've said before, I really appreciated Come As You Are when I read it. It freed my spirit quite a bit. If you're still struggling with quiet time and your Christian walk, it might be a great resource to look for.

Spider Web Roses

2009-08-11T07:00:00.001-04:00

Oh these are glorious and simple!

Current Events :: Part 1

2009-08-10T07:00:00.004-04:00

A few years ago we studied current events. I found I need to open my eyes to current events just as much as the kids do. I get buried with various events in "My Snarled Little Corner of the World" and forget others. I want to get back into checking out current events, so I thought I would revisit and update this post I did in 2005.

I asked my always-on-top-of-the-news husband why he felt it was important to keep up with current events. His answer: "God is all knowing. We should seek to follow his example by know what's going on around us." Ouch, but indeed, God does set that example.

I spent an hour Googling for kids' news sites. I thought I would share the links with you. Disclaimer: I haven't dug deeply into any of these links to know if they are liberal, conservative, Christian, heathen or otherwise. Caveat Emptor.

I found a couple lesson plans, suggestions & idea sites as well.

http://www.eduref.org/cgi-bin/lessons.cgi/Social_Studies/Current_Events
http://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/lesson_plans/current_events/
http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/lesson/lesson072.shtml

Various Kid Specific News Sites

I have these sites sorted loosely by the dates I noticed on their articles. Some didn't have any and others, without pulling out my calculator & calendar, I couldn't tell. So I stuck them in the random update category. As we use them daily, I'm sure I'll get a better handle on updates.

Daily Updates
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/students/pop/index.html
http://teacher.scholastic.com/scholasticnews/news/index.asp
http://www.studentnewsnet.com/

Weekly Updates
http://www.worldmag.com/
http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/

Unsure or Random
http://www.gwnews.com/
http://www.timeforkids.com/
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/kids/
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/
http://www.pitara.com/news/news_world.asp
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/kidspost/orbit/kidspost.html
http://www.kindnews.org/
http://www2.townonline.com/parentsandkids/

Misc, But Having Some News Topics
http://www.weeklyreader.com/

The 2009 Hat Fair

2009-08-07T07:00:00.028-04:00

Welcome to the Second Annual Hat Fair!

Oh for the love of hats! In every color and every shape, you can watch them parading across the sands of time. Winter, summer and seasons in between, hats have been a woman's staple fashion for centuries. While currently out of style, I have high hopes that they will never be forgotten.

In a tribute to vintage hats, Elisabeth of In My Own Little Corner put together a lovely post on the hats of summer from the golden age of Hollywood.

Jordan assembled her hats for us to admire. She has excellent taste and the beginnings of a wonderful collection.

Elizabeth from Sewing by Elizabeth offers a glimpse of her beautiful hat collection with an innovative, yet functional way of displaying them.

Clare at Sing Me the Old Songs shares the silly and sensible when she asks and answers the question What is a Hat?

Many thanks to the ladies who submitted posts! Please pop over to the side and vote for your favorite post. The winner will receive a $5 gift certificate to Amazon.com. Voting is open until next Thursday, August 13 at midnight. I'll announce the winner on Friday, August 14.

Be thinking ahead and plan join me next August for the Third Annual Hat Fair!

I thought I would include some fun hat links for those who love hats, but don't feel comfortable wearing them.

Are you one of those women who love hats, but insist they don't look right on you? Well, here is a tutorial on two changes in the way you wear a hat that can make all the difference. For the best look, cover your ears and tilt the hat slightly to the left. That's it! You now have no excuse for not wearing one.

eHow has a few extra tips for wearing a hat. The first and most important is to "choose a hat that fits your face and complements your skin color." Unless you have an oval shaped face that can wear almost anything, choose one style then stick very closely to that shape.

I know that the first tip to picking a hat is always find one that fits the shape of your face. Isn't it maddening when you don't know how to do that? Aside from trying on dozens of styles, there is a whole Squidoo Lens dedicated to wearing hats with details for helping you determine that!

Now ladies, there is absolutely no excuse for not wearing a hat. Enjoy!

In Pursuit of a "Quiet Life" :: Part 1

2009-08-06T07:00:00.034-04:00

As I eluded to yesterday, quiet time has been touted as The Holy Grail of our relationship with God. You are to sit quietly and alone, read and/or study a passage and pray, daily, to make sure you have spent time with God before you go off and live like everyone else. If you do not have your quiet time, fellow Christians might start knocking on your door, or via your RSS reader, and call you to repentance for grave sin. Should you skip it, some folks even start questioning your salvation or dedication to Christ.

Examples from the lives of Moses, King David and even Jesus suggest that they spent time alone with God in prayer. We are told the kings were to read The Law all the days of their lives, but what about Adam and Abraham who never had the Scriptures to study? While the example of spending time in God's Word and prayer is modeled, how was it done?

Scripture talks of praying without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18); studying to correctly handle the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15); and to always be prepared to give an answer (1 Peter 3:15), but "Thou shalt have quiet time" is no where to be found. A biblical command to keep a "quiet time," as usually taught, is not there. How did the church get here from there?

Over the years the church has embraced traditions, that although may be very good, aren't a mandate of Scripture. Quiet time is one of those as far as I'm concerned. I think we've taken a great idea and elevated it to something it wasn't meant to be. Instead of making people feel guilty for not having a completed check list of things they "must" do in order to be "holy," we need to encourage folks to connect with God and study his word in a way that works for them in their particular season in life.

Several years ago I read Come As You Are by Marita Littauer and Betty Southard. The point of the book is that different personalities understand, relate to and worship God differently. It then provides ideas and suggestions to grow as a Christian and in your worship of the Lord. For me, as long as the truth of God's Word is handled correctly, I find little difference in whether you pray quietly in your chair at 6AM or out loud while you swap laundry at 11 o'clock. Both bring you into communion with God.

There is a complete profession dedicated to categorizing and grouping the unique characteristics God gave folks. It's even known in education circles that there are several types of learners - auditory, tactile, visual, etc. and you need to teach them each differently for them to truly learn a subject. Why do we then continue to exclaim proudly that "God made us each different!" and turn around and insist on a cook cutter way to be a better Christian? We can't have it both ways.

As Christians, we need to embrace our God created differences in our worship of him. Ultimately, no matter where we are in our Christian walk, it's not about one specific daily thing that we do. It's about a moment by moment relationship of seeking God, dumping the sin in our lives, living his will and basking in his presence as we go about our daily lives. And we need to do that 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year - not just every morning from 6AM to 7.

No Quiet Time?

2009-08-05T07:00:00.007-04:00

Back in October of 2007 I wrote about the videos Jennie and Stacy put together for their Passionate Housewives book. (If you still haven't seen them, I encourage you to do so.) The following May, during a crazy week of brunch prep, an anonymous commenter left quite a rebuke because of what I wrote in that post. Her wrath was especially directed towards my statement about giving up my daily quiet time with God. While I'm quite a bit late in my response, I still feel as though I should address it.

In essence, the commenter was angered and saddened by my comments (and Stacy's) about abandoning quiet time. And yet, Stacy and I "have found hundreds if not thousands of hours of free time to blog to your heart's content and write books." And questioned "Is your relationship with God less important than your 'me' time?" Her parting thoughts were: "Are your children truly seeing God first in your life if you aren't even willing to set aside time to nurture this precious, eternal relationship? Please rethink your priorities!"

This (I'm presuming) woman has very legitimate concerns and asks excellent questions! Is God a priority in my life and do my children see my relationship with God? I hope that if she knew me personally she wouldn't have to wonder! I also hope she's asking the same questions of the women in leadership at her church, peers in her Bible study and even of herself. As Christian women, we need to make sure our focus is on correct, biblical things.

First thing's first, I do not currently and have never advocated abandoning Bible reading and study, rejected prayer or discounted the importance of a daily relationship with God. Each is necessary and essential to the Christian faith. My problem is with the implementation currently taught in churches and Christian ministries everywhere.

What I am advocating, and I think Stacy might be too, is overthrowing the legalistic practice of "quiet time." While the Church pridefully denounces legalism, with its next breath, it turns around and legalistically imposes the practice of quiet time, inflicting great guilt on all those who fall short of the "ideal" model. While we need to encourage each other to be in the Word and communion with God, I don't think we're following a biblical model to accomplish either. In the long run, I think we're hurting the church.

Secondly, after being a wife, mother and serving in the local church, I write because I am have a heart for it and am gifted by God to do so. I write out of love for God. It is an act of worship and ministry and service to the Church. It's Titus 2 mentoring, if you will. My children know this.

What I write is part of our family ministry. Just like the children help with the women's groups I host locally and the brunches I plan, they are part of my online writing ministry too. They offer ideas, help around the house and pray for my readers - yes, all of you. When I was hit with some serious health issues in the past year, I did not abandon my family to write. I pretty much stopped writing and focused my energies at home.

When my children were younger, I spent years where I didn't complete one article and scribbled no more than a dozen sentences. Now I'm in a different season of life. I have older helpers that leave me time to write, mentor and encourage. Should God bless us with more children, I may very well give up writing again. Should I fall down the stairs or get another brain injury, you can be sure I'll stop blogging again. But each of those situations is for God, Rich and I to decide upon when the time comes. And for inquiring minds, my husband supports my writing endeavors - even to the point of personally spending over 200 hours programming last year's CWP redesign.

The final objection I'll share was the question of "Have you also integrated your time with your husband throughout the day in place of one on one time?" The answer to that is yes! You'll find us laughing in the kitchen while I'm making supper, smooching in the office while watching a movie with the kids and talking in bed after we turn out the lights. Just like I don't put God in a box where I only show up at 7 o'clock to read his word and pray, I also don't tell my husband the only time I can spend time with him is at 5 in the morning. I have a real, living relationship with both of them that ebbs and flows through out the day and year.

Even though I have never, ever come close to suggesting that we should abandon our relationship with God, people will read and think what they will. Don't give up talking to God, loving him, studying his word or teaching it to your children. Take advantage of the quieter moments to speak from your heart. He knows that quiet isn't always a decibel level.

Easy 1940s Hair

2009-08-04T07:00:00.003-04:00

Apparently I am one who doesn't bush my curler curls out enough. Well, I know better now! Brilliant!