Where the Kudzu Grows

4 Moms Open House Video Tour

2010-08-06T15:08:00.003-05:00

Video Tour - Part 1

Video Tour - Part 2

Video Tour - Part 3

Video Tour - Part 4

Video Tour - Part 5

Video Tour - Part 6

2010-08-05T21:56:00.001-05:00

We're moving!

2010-06-10T16:50:00.003-05:00

We're moving! No, not to my elusive Amish farmhouse in Kentucky but just the same, we're relocating our blog from Blogger onto greener, more Lady Why friendly pastures. Let's call it the cyber-version of an Amish farmhouse in the Kentucky hills.

Hop over to our new home for Where The Kudzu Grows and look around! Consider this your invitation to our housewarming party!

And, you can thank dear Flibby for my new look. She is my resident blog designer, creative mastermind and computer programming guru. I'd be lost without her!

Revisiting courtship

2010-06-07T15:04:00.000-05:00

I have written on this topic before so nothing I say will be particularly new. But, this past weekend when we ventured up to North Carolina to participate in Scott Brown's Memorial Day picnic, we had the benefit of witnessing some of the fruit of courtship. Nothing encourages quite like seeing those who are a little farther down the path and to witness the good fruit of your convictions vicariously. What a blessing it was!

Since I first talked about our convictions and decisions, my daughters have grown older. I now have one daughter of marrying age and one very close. Unlike today's culture, I do not encourage my daughters to delay marriage. I pray that the Lord will send them the husband of His choosing in good time so that they may enjoy marriage and children from an early age. I was married at 21 and I have always found that to be a great gift of the Lord.

We have one camp of relatives and friends that are telling my girls to wait. Don't get 'strapped down' with a husband and children too early. There's plenty of time for that. Enjoy life! See the world! Get a college degree! Build a career! And, as I heard Voddie Baucham say in a recent talk, suck all the fun you can out of life and when you've done it all and there's nothing left, get married and die. Gotta love that Voddie!

Our view is that our daughters have been prepared by the Lord and by us from birth to be wives, mothers and keepers of their homes. It is their dream, their aspiration and their calling. In the Lord's good time, we pray He will be pleased to send them the husband He has chosen and He will bless them with a houseful of delightful children!

Then there is another group of concerned citizens that accuse us of sheltering our poor girls. Our twenty year old daughter has never been kissed. ~gasp~ She has never been on a date. ~shudder~ She has never had a boyfriend. ~oh, the inhumanity!~ This makes a few people a little twitchy. As much as we aspire to see our girls married and embracing their call as wife and mother, we also don't allow them to frolic about the dating scene. How can these two convictions possibly go together? After all, if we want for our daughters to marry, shouldn't we let them get out there and find themselves a man?

The correct answer is no.

Here is our position in a nutshell. We believe the Lord has chosen each husband and wife for each of our children before the foundation of the earth. Our children are preparing themselves for this man or woman and have been throughout their lives. We have prayed for these future spouses. They are preparing and keeping their hearts for these future spouses. Our daughters do not pursue a husband. We believe scripturally the Lord reveals to the man His choice for a wife and the man then, out of reverence for the Word of God and respect for familial authority, approaches the father of the young lady for permission to pursue her with the intent of marriage.

From this point on, courtship will look different for every family and probably different for every son and daughter in our family. We will let the Lord lead us when He brings us to that phase of life.

Making the commitment to not only keep physically pure but also emotionally pure is unusual, unfortunately. But, this past weekend in North Carolina, we were surrounded by many happy endings. David Brown, at the ripe old age of 18, married his bride... the one he had set his intentions on when he was 13. The one he built a beautiful house for when he was 16. The one he prepared for all his adolescent years. He married her and they are expecting their first baby. They are both 19. Another courting couple was happily married and expecting their first child. All the families that we met were like minded in this and the interaction between the children was respectful and refreshing. The little boys waited to be seated until the girls all had a seat. A brother traded places with a sister so that the sister would not be put in the awkward position of sitting next to an unknown boy (who happened to be my oldest son). The boys catered to the girls with a protective and respectful reverence. I can't even express what a balm to my heart it was to witness this at all the various ages represented.

There is a reason why we do the things we do. There is one purpose in all things and that is to glorify the Lord and to give great weight and significance to the things the Lord says are to be dear. The relationship between husband and wife is one of those things. My daughters are ready, in the Lord's timing, to be wives to their husbands... husbands we have prayerfully remembered and asked the Lord to raise up under the stewardship of like minded godly parents who are no doubt praying the same for my girls right now.

When the Lord brings them together, it will be a time of great rejoicing for both of our families and I pray that the testimony they will have on that day will be an encouragement to other families a little farther back on the path.

And, I can't wait to be a grandmother. Icing on the cake.

Delightful Gardening!

2010-06-03T13:38:00.007-05:00

One of the many, many, many, many things I love about summer is my garden. Why I haven't been a gardener all my life I simply do not know because it is a wonderful pleasure to me now. This is my third year gardening and here are a few snapshots into my fun!
My beans are growing six inches every day!
As long as this guy eats the bugs and not my plants he's welcome to stay. Creepy, yes. But, I can handle it for a little pest control. If he eats squash vine borers, I'll even kiss him right on top of his scaly reptilian head. ~shudder~
I love the sight of the shoots grabbing hold of my trellis... like tiny little cucumbery hands holding on.
Red berries, soon to be blackberries. Jam, anyone?
There is truly nothing I love more than the smell of tomato plants. I love the look of them, the feel of them, the smell of them, and their hairy little stems. I heart tomatoes!
Green beans!!
And more green beans!!
My squash plant is doing amazingly well! So far, the vine borer hasn't set up camp. Oh, I know it's coming. I've only had about fifty squash and zucchini plants devoured by my nemesis over the years. This flower, however, will soon be an heirloom squash assuming it hurries before the borer finds it!
Cucumbers!
This, my friends, is monumental, colossal and downright legendary! A zucchini in Lady Why's garden! Imagine! Never before in the history of my garden have I been able to grow a zucchini. Old wives' tales say that anyone can grow a zucchini. Think what that does to a novice, black thumbed gardener when she hears that and sees every attempt at growing zucchini turn out about as well as BP's attempt to plug a hole in the ocean with golf balls.

But, here at long last is an actual zucchini! Be impressed, my friends. Be very impressed.
My cucumber bed is FULL of these flowers!
And these tiny cucumbers! I better hone up on my pickle making skills. Oh, right. I don't have pickle making skills. I better acquire some pickle making skills... and fast!
More squash potential awaits.
Oh, isn't this the most beautiful sight you've ever seen in all your born days. Take a moment. I'll wait.
And this. The granddaddy of all my gardening endeavors. The. Cherokee. Purple. Tomato.
My Cherokee Purples are up to my chin now and filling out with these. I can almost taste them!
And I can taste these! They're still a bit sour but they're almost ready for picking by the bucketful!
And that is how my garden grows.

Lest we forget...

2010-06-02T07:27:00.007-05:00

We spent an incredible weekend at Scott Brown's farm enjoying a celebration of God and country, a grateful thank you to all our armed forces and veterans, and a celebration of the Lord's sovereignty over our nation. Not something you see too much of nowadays. It was refreshing, inspiring, convicting and amazing all at the same time.

The farm. Oh. my. word.

May I just say the Brown's farm is all I've ever dreamed a farm could be and then some. It was stunning. Truly.
I appreciate every opportunity I have to fellowship with like-minded believers. There aren't too many of us and when you can gather together in one place, it is quite a blessing. We started the weekend at the Brown's church. It was so refreshing to gather in a church where children are welcome and not shuffled off into age segregated Sunday Schools. I love hearing baby noises in church and to know that is welcomed and encouraged does my heart good.

We fought long and hard to find that and now we have. Being at the Brown's church reminded me how far we've come on this journey and gave me a new appreciation of my own assembly. I love my church dearly. It is a rare and beautiful gem!

Several families played patriotic songs that honored the Lord, our nation and our flag. It was not politically correct.

Children of godly and noble men. From left to right are Virginia Phillips, Triumph Bradrick, and Providence Phillips.
I love this picture. Scott Brown was holding his grandson, Triumph. When it was his turn to speak, he just stood up and placed Triumph on the podium during his speech. Children are embraced and included. They understand that children are a heritage and they walk that out even in the small stuff.
The young boys were part of the opening flag raising ceremony. The flag was flown at half staff in honor of those who gave their lives so that our children might walk in freedom.
Two of my favorite boys thoroughly enjoyed riding in the military jeeps. They also had hay rides which were a big hit.
You didn't think Hannah would be left out, did you?
I think at one point there were some races going on. Poppy was in the losing jeep on this one. She took some great pictures considering the terrain she was bouncing over.
A portion of a grateful nation.
As you can imagine, my boys really liked these!
Many of the boys came in full uniform. It was wonderful to see!
My children loved climbing and exploring them all.
I haven't even begun to process everything I learned from the weekend. On the way up and back we listened to Voddie Baucham's talks from a recent homeschool conference. Between that, the Sunday morning message, and the talks at the picnic itself, I have been thoroughly convicted and inspired. I will write more about everything I learned once I can get my heart around it all.

In the meantime, I want to say a sincere and heartfelt thank you to each and every one who has served or is serving in our armed forces, especially now with leadership that is less than supportive. I want you to know that because of your sacrifice I walk in freedom and that is not a small thing. It is a huge thing. A thing which none of us will ever be able to repay. On behalf of all the families who love the Lord and our country, thank you.

We will never forget. I hope your Memorial Day was as special as mine.

The Good Samaritan

2010-05-19T17:23:00.006-05:00

Wrestling with God

2010-05-11T07:51:00.005-05:00

It's not fair. Sometimes the Lord's will is excruciatingly painful. In those times I have difficultly saying, "Not my will but Yours, Lord." I'm in that place right now. My sweet and dear friend, Colleen, is in a battle for her life and my heart is breaking into a thousand pieces. Not her, Lord! Not Colleen! She doesn't deserve this. She's so good. She's so faithful. She's your servant. Visit this affliction on someone else. Someone evil. Someone bad. Someone You don't love.

Someone I don't love.

I never said my heart or my thoughts were pretty.

Colleen has breast cancer. She's been battling it for three years but this last year has been hard. Hard is really a soft word for the physical pain and anguish she's experiencing. It has spread to her bones and her liver. Her body doesn't react to medications very well so she always struggles to find a medication that can relieve her pain and nausea.

It's so hard to watch my friend suffering.

It's so hard for her four little girls to watch their mommy suffering.

It's so hard for her husband, our pastor, to watch her suffering.

It's so hard for our church assembly to watch her suffering.

It's so hard.

When I'm praying for Colleen every minute of every day, I start out godly and righteous sounding. I pray for the Lord to heal her. I pray for her comfort and the comfort of all of us who love her. I pray for the Lord to use this trial for His glory. And, I mean all that. In my head. But, then I quickly digress into, "Don't do this! Don't do this, Lord! Do. Not. Do. This. To. Colleen. You can't! You shouldn't! It's not right! No! No! NO!"

I'm wrestling with the Lord. Kicking against the goads. I ashamed to admit it but there it is.

Colleen is my dear, sweet friend. I want her to live. I want her to laugh again. I don't want to see sorrow on the faces of her children. Of her husband. Of her church family. Or on mine.

My faith is being tried in the Refiner's fire and that's never a pleasant experience. But, I know it is good because everything the Lord does is good. Even this. Even though it's bringing us to our knees and shattering our hearts into a thousand pieces. Even this is for our good and His glory. And at the end of my wrestling and kicking, I bow my knee to the sovereignty of God and I continue to faithfully pray for healing, for comfort, for deliverance from this trial... but, most of all that the Lord's will be done.

Please pray for my dear friend, Colleen. She is in the hospital today having surgery on her chemo port. Pray for her comfort and the comfort of those that love her.

There are lots of us.

For my mother

2010-05-09T07:11:00.000-05:00

Mother Mine

O Mother mine, if I can be

To little ones who look to me,

A mother half as sweet and wise

And tender; if they but surmise

That in your likeness I have tried

To grow, I shall be satisfied,

Mother mine.

~Author Unknown

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Heartbroken

2010-05-03T22:00:00.011-05:00

The Gaylord Opryland in Nashville has been a part of our lives for years. We've been many times and it holds a cherished place in our hearts. We love this beautiful fountain. How many times have we sat and watched the light and water show? I can't count.

And, put our hands in the little fountains.And stood at the majestic ones.I love this place. So, you can imagine how my heart feels tonight as these pictures emerge of 'our' place.

Our favorite hotel is flooded in a mighty and devastating flood.

I can't imagine the monetary damages. It will probably take months to calculate.

This is the canopy we drove under when we arrived.

The majestic fountains are under water.

My favorite hotel is flooded with dirty diesel water. I'm flooded with sorrow at the sight of it.

At the same time, I am so thankful they were able to evacuate everyone.

It's a miracle no one was hurt.

I have sat under these umbrellas and enjoyed a morning croissant.

The beautiful flowers are gone.

I held hands with my sweetheart under this gazebo.

I took my baby boy for rides on this escalator so many times, people at the cafe were staring.

I have no words except one...

Heartbroken.

My singers

2010-05-01T23:25:00.005-05:00

Flibby and Poppy sang a few songs for a commemorative CD that was given out at our church's 25th anniversary celebration today.

They are singing What Wonderous Love is This. These are the kinds of things that bring a mama joy!

Enjoy!

The Chronicles of Life with a Two-Year-Old Boy

2010-04-28T08:00:00.006-05:00

I told him not to do it, but does Mr. P listen to me? Nooooooo. He thought it would be great fun to teach my sweet innocent boy that boys are 'equipped' in such a way as to make a trip inside the house to use the bathroom unnecessary. Any tree, bush or other patch of brush will suffice nicely. When you teach a boy that he can do his tinkling outside, you're bound to run into trouble at some point.

Think of the family reunion at the lake when such a boy as mine might walk to the end of the pier and announce to 98-year-old Aunt Mable that she should look at the arch he can make and how far he can 'shoot'. Aunt Mable might have a coronary and who's fault would that be?

Mr. P's, of course.

Or think about the neighbors that already think us rather freakish for having chickens and six children. What if they catch a precocious two year old 'watering' their prize winning roses? You can see where I'm going with this.

So, was it any surprise that yesterday my boy was on the third floor of our house, in the window seat of his sister's room, talking to daddy through the open window? No, happens all the time. They were talking and telling each other hello, my boy way up high which he thinks is pretty wonderful.

That's when she heard it. Flibby, working diligently on a blog design or some such something, heard the tell-tale sounds of tinkling. She spun around to see my boy, Thomas the Tank Engine underpants around his ankles, 'watering' the bushes through the screen on her window shouting, "Look Daddy! I'm tee teeing on the bushes way up high!"

So, proud was he. So, mortified was she.

Somehow I think this is only the beginning.

It's spring!

2010-04-26T09:58:00.003-05:00

It's spring, glorious spring! While I can do without the tornadoes, I am loving all things related to the weather of spring. My garden is going in which is why I'm a neglecting my dear blog a bit. But, it will be worth it when you see the pictures of the peaches that are prolific on our peach tree... or the five beds of Cherokee Purple tomatoes... or the kale that's up to my waist. These are good things, my friends.

I am putting in a few extra beds for tomatoes after I found out that Muir Glen canned tomatoes contain BPA in their liners. Nothing is more disconcerting than to feed your family food you think is healthy only to find out that Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted Tomatoes, your absolute favorites, have been poisoning you with BPA all along.

Sometimes ignorance is bliss. The more I know, the more I'm tempted to pull a Chicken Little and scream, "We're all going to DIIIIIEE!" I'll refrain. The Lord is in control and He is the Author of our health. You have to do the best you can with what you have and what you know then leave the rest up to the Lord.

That, and convert your front yard into a tomato patch. I'm doing both.

The recipe box

2010-04-20T18:05:00.005-05:00

There are many things I regret in my life. I regret that I was more concerned about who was sitting behind my in Algebra II than I was about polynomials. I regret that I spent all the money I earned while I was young and single on skinny jeans. I wish I had spent more time with the Lord and less time in front of the TV. But, one of my most stinging regrets... one that haunts me quite often is that I did not appreciate and soak up the incredible wisdom of my grandmother.

Meme's house was in the country and it only had one gas heater and one window unit air conditioner, both in the living room. I hated going there when I was a child. It was boring and they didn't have a TV. They didn't even have a phone until 1975. My Meme cooked everything from scratch. She had a huge expanse of a garden which she tended all by herself. I remember sitting on her front porch snapping my weight in beans. Hated it. Loathed it. Wished I was home watching The Hardy Boys.

Meme has been dead for many years now. Once I became older and wiser, I realized what a treasure I had in her. She was an incredible seamstress, sewing lingerie at a factory as long as I can remember. The biscuits she made were a little taste of heaven on earth. I've never known such biscuits since her kitchen table. Cracker Barrel biscuits give me a hint of Meme, but they aren't the same. Why did I never ask for the recipe? I didn't appreciate such things back then.

A few months ago, I happened up on a yard sale. In chatting with the family, I discovered the contents of the yard sale belonged to a little old lady that had died and her children and grandchildren were selling off her possessions. There is nothing so special about that. We run into estate sales all the time with a similar story. But, this sale was different. This lady was different. She was so much like me! She had gardening supplies, cake decorating equipment, books on health and wellness, and enough quilting material to fill a U-Haul truck. It was like I was seeing myself in everything she had owned. Her children were talking to me about their mother's "quirks".

My mother wouldn't put a single thing in plastic! Said it leeched out chemicals or something in her food.

Neither will I!

You're going to buy those health books? My mother had tons of those silly things. The relatives all thought she was a little loony the way she read them.

So do mine!

I'm glad someone's going to use that sunhat. Mama insisted on growing her own tomatoes. She said no tomato was as good as one from her own vine.

Me too!

I love this woman. I don't know her name and I never met her but we are kindred spirits. Her children had two sales. I spent way too much money at both but wish I had spent more. Then finally I heard that an estate company had come in to have a final estate sale before the house is put on the market. I had to go.

She's family.

I wandered through her house, touching her things, noticing how our tastes are so similar. Her towels were beautiful. I would choose them too. She had beautiful silver and crystal, a wonderful cast iron collection, a beautiful rocker. I loved it all and would have brought it all home with me if I had a million dollars. It was all too expensive to even consider.

Then I saw this.

On a shelf next to more cookbooks that I had missed the first two times around was a small plastic box of recipes. Handwritten recipes. Some dating back as far as the '60s. Penned in her own hand with little notes telling where she had this or how she came to acquire that or who liked this best at Thanksgiving.

Reminders not to take the foil off too soon so as to over-brown the cheese. Remarks about how fine to dice the onions because "no one likes a big bite of onion for their breath's sake".

Little parenthetical comments with brand suggestions.

(Ritz is always best)

Yes, for one dollar I walked away with the most priceless thing in that house. Why her children wouldn't want these is a mystery to me. The history recorded on these index cards, magazine and newspaper clipped recipes is a treasure that will be as dear to me as if it were my own Meme's. I'm afraid one day they will regret not grasping the value of something as simple as their grandmother's recipe box.

When that day comes, I hope the Lord sends them to an estate sale and blesses them with a recipe box. And, I hope it is as sweet and dear to them as this box is to me.

It will be like sitting on their Meme's porch again with a lap full of snap beans. Ask me how I know.

Is a lack of Carol Burnett a sign of parental neglect?

2010-04-15T19:42:00.005-05:00

Today on facebook, I posted this... (Disclaimer: Beware some language at the very end of the clip)

Anyone born before 1990 certainly has seen or heard of this infamous exchange. This episode was the stuff of legend when I was a child. I think I probably saw it live on our weekly Carol Burnett viewing.

Carol Burnett was a family friend that was always welcome in our living room. She is a comic genius that none can rival. I guess I just assumed my children would absorb this knowledge by osmosis or that it possibly traveled the placenta and settled in the comedic appreciation portion of their brains.

Not so, apparently.

It's sort of like the moment when you ask your six year old what time it is and she looks at a non-digital clock and says, "What's this and what do those sticks mean?" You realize in a flash that there has been a glaring omission in the education of your children. Oops.

This is how I felt when my newly seventeen year old daughter said, "What's that Carol Burnett thing you put up?"

What's that Carol Burnett thing? You mean you've never seen it?

No.

Noooo? How can you have never seen the infamous Tim Conway Elephant Story Outtake?

I dunno. Is it funny?

Is it funny. IS IT FUNNY?

Heavens to Betsy. I have failed as a mother. Off to spend the evening in front of YouTube educating my children on legendary comedy.

*tugs at ear with a wink*

Frankenfoods: Who is responsible?

2010-04-14T16:40:00.000-05:00

"I think that the real reason for genetic engineering is to put absolute control of the food system into corporate hands" ~Wendell Berry

Monsanto has had a long and sordid history of actions unbecoming those of a civilized society. Remember Agent Orange? Remember the PCBs and the poor people of Anniston, Alabama?

In 2002, Monsanto was found guilty of negligence, wantonness, suppression of the truth, nuisance, trespass, and outrage in knowingly exposing Anniston to toxic waste. According to an article in The Washington Post:

"Under Alabama law the rare claim of outrage typically requires conduct 'so outrageous in character and extreme in degree as to go beyond all possible bounds of decency so as to be regarded as atrocious and utterly intolerable in civilized society."

So, who is in control of the genetic modification of our foods? Monsanto. If that doesn't give you pause, it should. There are several things going on here. First of all, profit is the priority for Monsanto and they don't mind stepping over a few cancer patients, deformed babies and dead bodies to get there as evidenced by their past actions. Power is a close second to profit. By genetically modifying seeds and crops, they can patent their "invention" and control this product. By genetically modifying crops that withstand Round-Up (their signature herbicide), they sell more Round-Up. They are slowly seizing control of the seed market and therefore, the world's food supply by these patents.

Genetically modified foods increase profits by creating crops that can withstand herbicides, insecticides and/or manufacture their own. They also dominate the seed market by slowly absorbing all other seed manufacturers and not allowing farmers to save their seed. The biotechnology industry (of which Monsanto is king) is not concerned with the effect on human health other than how a scandal such as the Anniston, Alabama situation might slow them down. Because they don't want anything interfering with the way they are allowed to market their genetically modified products, they squash testing, manipulate testing, alter test subjects to taint results in their favor and discredit any scientists who speak out against biotechnology. They have also intimidated media outlets who seek to expose some of these issues.

Back in the late 80s when Monsanto was entering the technology of genetic modification, they knew they needed some public relations assistance. Monsanto met with then Vice President Bush and asked for regulation just as President Reagan was embarking on his massive deregulation of corporate America. Oh, the irony. Monsanto had a black eye and they knew that if they tried to market genetically modified foods, people with Anniston fresh in their memories, would not trust a word they said. But, if the United States Government told people genetically modified foods were safe to eat, the product would be trusted. Of course, they were deeply entrenched with officials in the USDA, EPA, and FDA so Monsanto had a blank check to do as they pleased. They still do.

Justice Clarence Thomas worked as an attorney for Monsanto in the 70s. He wrote the majority opinion in a 2001 Supreme Court decision which found that "newly developed plant breeds are patentable under the general utility patent laws of the United States." This case benefited all companies who profit from genetically modified crops. Again, Monsanto is far and away the largest of these companies.

Michael Taylor was an assistant to the Food and Drug Administration commissioner before he left to work for a law firm to gain approval of the artificial growth hormone produced by Monsanto. Taylor later became deputy commissioner of the FDA from 1991 to 1994. He was later reappointed to the FDA by President Obama.

Dr. Michael Friedman was deputy commissioner of the FDA before he was hired as Senior Vice President of Monsanto.

Linda Fisher was an assistant administrator at the EPA before she was a vice president at Monsanto. In 2001, she became the Deputy Administrator of the EPA.

Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was chairman and CEO of Searle which Monsanto acquired in 1985. Rumsfeld made upwards of $12 million dollars from the transaction.

As you can see, federal oversight of Monsanto does not mean much when Monsanto executives hold high positions in the regulatory agencies that govern them and regulators are given sweet deals at Monsanto for 'playing ball'. Monsanto has dictated policy at the EPA, USDA and FDA since the late 1980s.

What does all this have to do with the safety of genetically modified foods. Only this, Monsanto profits from genetically modified foods. Their patents on these foods increase their market hold and eventually, at this rate, they will control the world food supply. Because they have so much at stake and due to their past actions, human and environmental health are clearly very low on their list of concerns. Also, because they control the procedures and releasing of studies on these products, many of the studies cannot be trusted. Our best research comes out of Europe which is not under Monsanto's thumb quite as far. From those studies, we have much to fear in GMO safety.

So, what foods are genetically modified and how can I tell if they are in my food?

I'm glad you asked. I'll cover that in my next installment of Frankenfood.

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

Here is Part 1: An Introduction to Frankenfood

This also may be of interest:

Food, Inc.
The World According to Monsanto
The Future of Food
The Monsanto Story

In which I prattle on about wisteria...

2010-04-08T15:20:00.013-05:00

Yesterday we took a trip to the zoo. If I were a good homeschooling mother, I would tell you that I took my children to the zoo for a wonderful and educational encounter with exotic animals not native to our continent for the purpose of broadening their horizons. That's what good homeschooling mothers do, of course.

On the other hand, while your children are building ideas and thinking on the habitat of the southern hairy nosed wombat, mama might possibly be deepening her knowledge base of the local flora by sitting under the arbor outside the predator building pondering the wisteria which is on the brink of full bloom. Mama might also need to ponder the length of that sentence and the reasons why she is referring to herself in the third person.

Plus, the fact that it was sunny and 81 degrees didn't hurt my feelings at all, as you can well imagine.

What does it say about me as a homeschooling mother that my two year old was just as excited to see chickens as he was to see the southern hairy nosed wombat? More hooks needed to hang animal relationships on, perhaps?

We have these in our backyard, son. Let's go look at the giraffe.

No, mama! I want to see the shickens!

He was also quite fond of the "deer" (read: gazelle)

Mama, Daddy can shoot him!

No one ever accused us of being politically correct at the zoo.

We also enjoyed the "pig"! (read: Red River Hog)

Here piggy, piggy, piggy.

HERE PIGGY, PIGGY, PIGGY!

Mama. He won't come to me.

Honey, that's because "pigs" aren't stupid.

This lovely lady wouldn't come to my boy either. He really thinks all the world should be his petting zoo.

But, once we saw the train, the lack of affection from the lioness was a distant memory. If there's one thing my boy loves more than ~~torturing~~ petting the animals, it's trains! As you can see, some of my girls are also quite fond of the train.

If there's one thing I love more than riding trains, it's sitting under an arbor covered in these.

It would not be wrong for a wisteria loving mother to pay for her children to have two rides around the zoo on the train so as to lengthen the time she could sit under the wisteria arbor alone. Some say that would be $24 and thirty minutes well spent. Not that I would say that.

Or do that.

A completely and purely hypothetical and random example that just came out of nowhere.

Where was I? Oh, yes...

Thankfully, my children were able to spend a lot of quality time learning about lions, their habitat, their food, their behavior, and all the lyrics to Circle of Life. Probably more time was spent reading each and every lion plaque, twice even, than any other animal.

Because the lions are right next to these

Which expands out into this.

And really that's what learning is all about.

In fact, we learned so much, we're going again next week. And, the week after that.

I see a future in zoology for my children.

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

2010-04-04T00:00:00.000-05:00

Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre. And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments: And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen.

~ Luke 24:1-6

He is risen indeed! I hope your Resurrection Sunday is rich with the wonder of the resurrection and the blessing of Christ crucified, dead and buried, and rose again on the third day. Just as He said.

Praise His Holy Name!

Proper care and feeding of a telemarketer

2010-04-03T18:46:00.003-05:00

I'm not a big fan of the telemarketer. They are just a little above Ben Bernanke in my book. Of course I hear all these noble stories of people more spiritual than I who take an opportunity to witness for the Lord when an obnoxious telemarketer calls. A heavenly appointment, I think it's called.

Why can't I be more like them? I want to. Really I do.

When telemarketers call me, I hang up. I'm not usually hanging up on a person. Most of the time it's a computer that's hearing the blunt end of my thumb clicking the 'off' button on my phone.

Oh, I've already signed up with the "No Call" list. Those fellows can get around that. Then I read somewhere that if you ask them to take you off their calling list, they have to do it. Bah ha, to that one. I've also written an actual letter and actually mailed it to an actual company that was looking for another guy with my last name. Seems he skipped out on his trailer payment at the trailer park. I'm not even kidding.

When I received three calls this week by the same telemarketer, I had to get creative.

What's annoying about a telemarketer? Yes, it's annoying for them to attempt to separate me from my money but that's not the big thing. The big thing is they are wasting my time and my time is valuable. I decided I needed to waste a little of their time. Not noble motives, I know, but go with me on this. It gets better.

This particular telemarketer has a computer that starts out with something like, "This is a credit card company with CRITICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR CREDIT CARD!! There is no problem, actually, but if you would just wait through our intermidible hold muzak since you have nothing better to do, eventually a live person will pick up and try to consolidate your balances for a lower interest rate." My memory might be a little rusty on some of that.

What did I do? I pushed "1" and waited. And waited. And waited. Eventually, Anjeev answered the line and before he could lay out his spiel, I said, "Could you take me off your calling list, please?" Anjeev hung up without a word. Rude.

Second call in as many days, same thing. Push '1'. Wait. Sanjaya answers. I ask nicely. Sanjaya says, "No." and hangs up in my face. Oh, this means war, Sanjaya! War!

Today I get a call. Thinking back over heavenly appointments and all that, I decided the next time I get a call, I'm going to share the Doctrines of Grace with my Hindu buddy. But, knowing deep in my heart that my motives might not be pure, I don't think the Lord would be pleased. Doing the right thing for the wrong reasons. I frown upon that with my children and I hold myself to the same standard.

So, today when I saw that all-to-familiar number pop up on my caller id, I happened to be listening to my Gaither CD. I happened to be preparing my heart for Resurrection Sunday. I happened to be contemplating the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Good timing, Rajit.

I pushed '1' and I waited while singing along to Sinner Saved By Grace. I waited through the first verse. Guy Penrod was belting it out as only he can. Verse two in the song and in the repeat play hold muzak. When Rajit finally came on the line, I put the phone up to the CD, cranked it up on high and listened as Guy Penrod hit the high note...

♪I'm just a sinner

Saved by grace

when I stood condemned to death

He took my place

Now I live and breathe in freedom

with each breath of life I take

I'm loved and forgiven

back with the living

I'm just a sinner

Saved by grace♪

Preach it, Guy! Guy Penrod shared the Lord as only he can by belting it out as only he can.

Rajit was blessed. I'm sure of it.

We're doomed. That's all there is to it. Doomed, I tell ya.

2010-04-03T10:16:00.004-05:00

Well, first there's the dolt from Illinois who doesn't care about the Constitution. Sorry, buddy. There's this little thing called an OATH OF OFFICE where you swore to UPHOLD that pesky little document called THE CONSTITUTION. Remember that day? You don't like it, then you don't need this job. People of Illinois, fire this man!

Traditions of Men brings up an important point. Are we, the American people, so uneducated on the Constitution that we just don't care whether or not our lawmakers uphold it? Or care about it? I shudder at the thought.

Then we've got the idiot from Georgia who needs a psych evaluation. He probably thinks the earth is flat too. The first time I saw this, I honestly thought it was a joke. It HAD to be a joke, right?

No joke.

The headmistress says it up so well in her post appropriately titled "From the Department of I Wish We Were Making This Up...."

Come to find out the idiot from Georgia is in the late stages of Hepatitis C which has CLEARLY impaired his mental faculties. Everyone in Congress knows he's not playing with a full deck. Yet, he's still there (blame that on the voters of Georgia) and serving on committees (blame that on Nancy Pelosi). It begs the question... why would Nancy Pelosi continue to appoint and keep an obviously mentally impaired man (best case scenario) and/or whacked out blithering idiot (worse case scenario) on congressional committees? Hmmmm. She'll take her 'yes men' any way she can get them? That's my theory.

However you slice it, we're on the fast track to hell in a handbasket.

Just calling 'em like I see 'em.

Now this is what I'm talkin' about!

2010-04-02T10:17:00.009-05:00

Spring, glorious spring. Where have you been all my life? Kids, grab the sunscreen and the mosquito spray! We're going outside!

Friday April 2

81° F 56° F

Saturday April 3

76° F 54° F

Resurrection Sunday April 4
79° F 54° F

Monday April 5

83° F 56° F

I must be living right, that's all I'm saying.

Organic Food on a Budget, Part 1

2010-03-30T22:02:00.004-05:00

Eating organic produce is becoming more and more important as a protection to your health and the health of your family than ever before. With the increased use of toxic pesticides, genetically modified crops and growth hormones, knowing what is in the food you eat is vital.

If you think that organics are out of your price range, think again! It's true that coupons for organics are not as common as traditional processed foods. But, as you saw in my last post, there are deals to be found if you know where to look. In the first part of my organic savings series, I want to talk about the produce co-op.

At our local health food store, we have a program called Bargain Share. Basically, the owner of the shop orders organic produce in bulk which offers the best price. She then divides up the bulk produce into our individual boxes which we buy each week. A 'whole share' is $50.00 and a 'half share' is $25.00. My family of eight buys a 'half share' each week. Today's box yielded the pictured items. We never know what will be in the box as that depends on the best deal the store can get and what is in season. The basic staples of lettuce, apples and such are generally in the box every week.

To buy this amount of organic produce from a grocery store or health food store would be about double the Bargain Share price. Buy purchasing organic produce as a group, you can greatly lower your cost. If you are interested in this type of bulk savings, there are several options to explore.

Go in with several other like-minded families and place a regular, standing order with your local health food store. If your store doesn't offer a buying club program similar to our Bargain Share, ask them if they would be willing to start one. If not, see if they will do a bulk order for you and organize one yourself with some of your friends.
Explore some local buying clubs. I do some of my buying from Something Better Natural Foods. They deliver to a nearby city and I have a friend in that town that is willing to pick up my orders for me when I place one. If they don't deliver near you, look into setting up a delivery point in your area.
Join a CSA. We have several farms within an hour's drive that we have purchased produce from throughout the year. These farm may not be certified organic but if you know your farmer and know his philosophy and growing practices, you can rest assured your food is not contaminated with pesticides and other unsavory things. To find a local CSA, go here.
Last but not least, grow your own! That's the best and most economical way to know what is in the food you put into your body. It's not as hard as you might think. I've grown tomatoes, my friends. If I can do it, anybody can do it. Trust me. Don't think you have enough space? Check out the Dervaes family! If you overlook the environmental agenda, you'll find a wealth of inspiration and information on their website. Love those folks! When I saw what they could do with 1/10th of an acre, I got busy on my own rather largish suburban lot. I'm mini-farming right along with them. Still not convinced? Visit the square foot gardener. That guy can get even the blackest thumb neon green. Ask me how I know.

All in all, there are many creative ways to bring organic foods to your table and stay within a modest budget. My mindset about the cost of quality food was changed by a quote from Joel Salatin. He said, "You think my food is expensive? Have you priced cancer lately?" Well Joel, when you put it that way...

Organic food works for my family and it can work for yours as well.

Chewing on GMOs

2010-03-29T20:43:00.006-05:00

I'm teaching a class on GMOs next week and I've been organizing my research and thoughts in a way that hopefully won't cause everyone in the class to go comatose within the first five minutes. It's a hard sell. Not everyone is as ~~obsessed~~ interested in this topic as I am. But, what's new about that? No one ever accused me of having common interests.

So, since I'm trying not to be too verbose and technical, I'm weeding out (Ha! Weeding out. I'm a punny, punny girl) all the dribble and the numbers and the stats and trying to find the heart of the matter.

Here's the situation. A genetically modified organism is one in which a scientist type guy takes DNA from one thing and splices it into another. The DNA does not even have to be from the same species. For example, there is a scientist right now who has taken the gene from a fish that can resist freezing and spliced it into a tomato plant with the hope that his tomato plants can now resist freezing. The purpose of this technology is to build better plants... plants that can resist pesticides, pests, extreme temperatures, will last longer on the shelf, produce higher yields and so it goes.

Here's the problem. The process of genetic modification has not been adequately studied and the companies that are out to profit from the technology hold all the cards. That means there has been little to no objective testing on the safety of these foods. Even though there has been no testing, these foods have been in our food supply since the late 90s. The testing that has been done has shown an increased risk of cancer, organ damage, depressed immune system, and unexplained lesions in the digestive tracts of rats. Might warrant a closer look, no?

Here's the solution. Legislation needs to be enacted (We can pass that bogus health care bill but we can't get this? Classic.) that requires genetically modified foods to be labeled. Get this. Monsanto has successful sued some companies that have labeled their products as free from GMOs. Monsanto's position is that to label something as GMO-free implies that to have GMOs is bad. So, even companies that do not use GMOs can't necessarily freely label that fact even if they want to.

Also, MUCH more research free from corporate and government influence needs to happen en masse and pronto.

In the meantime, know that the main sources of GMOs are corn, soy, cotton and canola. These GMO ingredients make up 70% of all processed foods. Makes you feel all warm and fuzzy, does it not?

Buy organic. Organic products do not use GMOs. That's not always possible but do the best you can with what you have.

Are you still awake? Did you learn something? Add a PowerPoint and my infectious laughter plus about another hour and a half of this stuff and tell me if you'd be riveted.

Or maybe I'd rather not know. Ignorance is bliss... except when it comes to GMOs.

Organic Savings!

2010-03-27T11:40:00.006-05:00

When you strive to feed your family a diet made up of natural, organic, whole foods, you do not have to sacrifice bargain shopping or coupons. It's true that there are few, if any, coupons for fresh produce, especially organic produce. You can find some deals and coupons for processed organics but we try not to eat too many of those either.

Eating healthy does not have to break the bank, however! I am beginning a series this week on how I feed my family organic whole foods on a tight (read: pinching grocery pennies until they scream for mercy) single-income-big-family-including-teenagers-who-eat-a-lot budget.

Here is my best deal this week. At Whole Foods, the large cans of Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes (well, actually all the Muir Glen Tomatoes but my favorite is the fire roasted) were on sale 2 for $4.00. This is quite a deal at Whole Foods where this can is usually priced at $4.39 each. There were point-of-purchase coupons on the aisle for $1.00 off 2 cans of tomatoes. Because I stock up when I find great deals, I bought 20 big cans of Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes for $30.00 or $1.50 a can. The same size can of Publix store brand non-organic tomatoes (and not fire roasted, I might add) is $1.79. That is quite a deal and my pantry is now well stocked until the next great deal rolls around.

Later this week I'll talk about produce options, packaged organics, and buying and storing in bulk. (See link below) Really, if we can do it on our microscopic grocery budget, anybody can!

For more great deals, be sure to hop over to Money Saving Mom!

Organic Food on a Budget, Part 1

Look up "cute" in the dictionary and this is what you'll find...

2010-03-26T16:59:00.004-05:00