Father's Day at the Fam's

Bear Prayer

I read this joke in Country magazine, and thought for sure I could remember it and tell it to my family. Well, I proceeded joyfully, and absolutely forgot the main part altogether. My Mother and I are both mentally retarded when it comes to telling jokes. (Bless her heart). I did NOT inherit my Father's Irish joke or story telling ability, unfortunately. I actually had to tear the joke out so I could tell it to my family properly and share it with you.

A Minister was hiking in the woods one day when he came face-to-face with a huge grizzly bear. Knowing he couldn't outrun the beast, he dropped to his knees and prayed: "Oh Lord, have mercy on your humble servant. If I could ask only one thing, please make this bear a Christian." The minister heard a noise and looked up just as the bear dropped to its knees with a thud and folded its front paws as in prayer. Awestruck by the miracle he had just witnessed, the minister heaved a huge sigh of relief. Then the bear began to speak: "Lord, bless this meal that I am about to receive..."

Uh-oh! Hot dog!!!

CROATIAN CHICKEN WITH SOUR CREAM

1 lg fryer chicken, or 1 whole chicken, cut up
1/2 c. butter
3 T. flour
2 tsp. paprika
2 c. sour cream
1 lb. sliced mushrooms
juice of half lemon
1 T. chopped parsley
salt and pepper to taste.

Wash chicken and cut into pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Melt butter over medium heat. Fry the chicken in hot butter until golden on all sides. Place in a well greased baking dish. Add flour to butter and cook approximately one minute. Add lemon juice, mushrooms, paprika, and sour cream. Season with salt and pepper. Pour this sauce over the fried chicken. Sprinkle with parsley. Cover and bake at 375 degrees for about 45 min. till chicken is very tender. Serves 6.



CHICKEN CALIENTE (KING RANCH CASSEROLE)

3 lbs chicken breasts, or 1 whole chicken, cooked, reserving
1 cup broth.
1 lg onion, chopped
1 lg. green pepper, chopped
2 T. butter
1 tsp. chili powder
dash garlic salt
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can tomatoes and green chilies, drained and crushed
1/2 lb cheddar cheese, grated
12 corn or flour tortillas, cut into strips

Bone chicken and cut into bite sizes. Saute onion and green pepper in butter. Combine chili powder, garlic salt, soups, broth, and tomatoes. Place 1/2 of chicken in a large casserole; top with 1/2 soup mixture, tortilla strips, onion and green pepper, then cheese. Repeat layers. Cook covered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes; then uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes. When I made this the first time, I used a soup can pretty much full of broth. The second time, maybe a half can. If you skimp on broth, the tortillas don't puff up as moistly; they're better moist than just dry strips.

Hi, my name is Lori, and I throw sea anenomes

I actually tried posting pictures of my growing garden at least twice, but it wouldn't work. Problems with the page or something--connection timing out, try again. Hmph.

A few days, William was getting cozy with me in bed. He looked at the open area under the eaves and told me he saw.......a rabbit. It was white, and it was "eating a yanwich." Ha ha!! He also sang almost perfectly Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, which was SO heartwarming! :)

School is out in 1 week!! Thank you, Jesus!!! I am so ready to not be chilly, as in, bring on the summer weather!!

I plan to start the girls on swim lessons for the first time. I sign them up the day school ends. Maybe I'll do Zach after their session is over. (Three kids with lessons at once adds up, dontcha know). Saturday, at the school down the road, I took the kiddos and 2 neighbor kids to an open swim for a little while. The rule is, I have to be in the water with them, unless they are older and proven swimmers. So, I got in the warm water (indoors) and held William the whole time, in his swim diaper (wonderful things--those). This was something I was doing FOR THE KIDS, but it ended up being totally fun. There was a poolside basketball net, some balls, a plastic sea anemome, and a plastic stuffed alligator floating around, which I took advantage of, like a fool. I was throwing them to and at my young charges. I get an unbelievable kick out of throwing flotsam and jetsom at loved ones--always have. There were a fair amount of people around, and blissfully, I didn't care. I was surprised at how much exercise I seemed to have gotten just playing! I was sorry we couldn't stay longer! But holding William the whole time did tire my arm.

I also bought a book of piano music right before the swimming. I have had this untuned piano for what--2, 3 years? Have I bought any new music since having it? Had it tuned? NO!! The music I have is hand me downs from my childhood music lessons and my parents' house--pathetic!! Apparently, I was waiting for the earthshattering suggestion/direction from my husband to go down to such and such music store, when I didn't have the kids, and GET SOME MUSIC ALREADY!!! Cuz it was so hard to think of that myself. Sheesh!! It really is surprising how much it meant to me to just have someone else give me that obvious instruction. The music store, which I had not been in before, was SO COOL. They sell instruments and accessories and tons of sheet music. Big store, lots of good energy. Picking 1 book was a challenge, but I'm happy with what I got. I probably spent 4 hours this weekend playing--unheard of!! It also has guitar chords, so Chris can dink around with it, too.

Is anyone interested in a couple of awesome chicken recipes I have/will make for the second time in a matter of weeks? If you are, let me know, and I will post the directions. One is Croatian chicken, and the other is King Ranch Casserole.

Bikers for Jesus

I am a Harley babe, now, did you know that? Chris and I took a moonlit ride last night, tight leather and all......... Yeah right!!! HAHA!! Actually, he MADE me get on that little dirt bike with him. First he had me in front, which was ridiculous, and he was going a bit too slow in the alley, and I really thought he was going to go straight into this shed. So then I got on the back and really had nowhere to rest my feet. We had no helmets, and I was wearing a skirt, and it was twilight, but my BAD BOY and I rumbled out of the alley, in front of our house, across the street, and back. I was really scared to death and had to hold on tight while resting my legs on air. I prayed that we weren't going faster than our guardian angels could fly. I couldn't have stayed on any longer, cuz my butt was RIGHT over the exhaust pipe. HOT. When I got off, I was kinda shaky, but we both had big stupid grins on our faces. Yes, it was illegal. More of a rush than this desperate housewife has had in awhile. I could get used to rush, I think.

Ta da!!

Zach took his first day (out of two) of SATs today. He thinks he did well. We'll see.

Chris bought him a dirt bike for his birthday, and that is exciting, but the kickstand was welded on, and it doesn't stay running. ARGH!

I went with Jessie on her field trip a week ago to the Washington History Museum. It was quite exhausting. And I found out yesterday that one of the other moms that went actually PASSED AWAY within the last few days!!! I don't know how yet, but isn't that SHOCKING!?? She looked not much older than me, I spent a number of hours chaperoning a field trip with her there, she had like 3 kids, and now she's gone forever!!! Yikes!!!

On a brighter note, I got some more stuff planted in the front yard today. It started out muggy and dry, and I was positively inspired to get petunias, large yellow marigolds, snapdragons, alyssum, and geraniums. I got done just as the rain started. My raised bed full of veggies is really coming along nicely. I took a picture, but it doesn't do it justice, plus it takes 6 and a half weeks to upload. My Mum stopped by for lunch today, where we ate on the front porch. The two chairs out there plus my old white "shabby chic" nightstand(with potted alyssum in yellow tin bucket and a small candle lantern as accessories) from my teen years are a recent addition, and tre cute, if I do say so myself.

Happiness is getting cool stuff for cheap at Ross and Goodwill! Yay!! I got several new outfits at Ross and this antique looking green colander and red jello/cake mold at Goodwill (.99 each!). Those 2 items are now resting on the wall above the stove looking like I paid 24.00 each at an antique store!!! Smug, glib, and smart are feelings that come to mind.

Need a new quick dinner idea? Here's what we had tonight: pasta salad with canned salmon, ranch, quartered cherry tomatoes, fresh parsley, green onions, cooked broccoli. It could have used some extra zing from, like, flavored salt, but it was quick and healthy.

"I had long realized that she [my mother] was no longer my most powerful amulet against danger........And I suppose the reality of no amulet at all against the great, killing wounds of life was simply too awful for me to deal with." --Anne Rivers Siddons,in King's Oak

Hey! I have something to say!

This was a really great day, thank God. I took the kiddos to Home Depot to get a half whiskey barrel with a barrel liner for the goldfish. We have had the big fat goldfish for 4 years now. He is in the 10 gallon tank all by himself. Well, Zach has been bringing home more and more goldfish, frogs, salamanders, and newts. They are crowding his small habitat. So, it was a matter of getting them a proper habitat or doing something different with the boring, space hogging goldfish. The neighbors didn't want him for their small outdoor algae-ridden pond, the pet store wouldn't take him....so...think, think...think, think....put the fish outside and let all the amphibians have the tank! We ended up not with a barrel, but a large plastic pot that looks like a fancy terra cotta pot. We also bought a water lily plant for it. You would really not believe how much fun and joy me[yes, I like to use bad grammar once in awhile], the kids, and Zach's animal-loving neighbor friend had with this project. Zach brought out all the amphibians and put them in the pot for a play date for quite awhile. It was so fun to see the salamanders dive and swim and come to the surface. The frogs kept wanting to escape. I put a metal mesh cover over the pot because there is so much kid activity and birds around. I put the 2 white plastic chairs next to it. And this is on the concrete slab in the shade of our shed, where there are also 3 green rectangular planters of baby lettuces. On the east side of the shed there were some plywood squares, a paneled, painted door that was rapidly antiquing in the weather, and a leftover piece of white picket fence. I moved the plywood squares elsewhere (upstairs--how beautiful they look there, too!), but put the antiqued, peeling door on its side leaning against the side of the shed where the lettuce and fish pond/pot is. The fence section is now on the other side of the shed resting in the dirt and leaning against the shed where the sunflower seedlings and nasturtiums are (in the raised bed). It looks so much cuter this way. I can't believe it never occurred to me to do something useful with that stuff just leaning against the shed looking hideous from the alley.

We had fun setting up the tank for the amphibians. It had a filter from the gold fish, which I will continue to use. It is half full, and there are flat rocks piled up for resting places. Of all things, and this isn't really that aesthetically pleasing, but it works for now, I put a cylindrical glass container full of dirt for an island and stuck a lilac branch with leaves in it. The critters seem to really love it in there with plenty of clean water to really stretch their limbs in and stuff to do! :) It was a mild day--sunny. Yesterday we got some needed rain, and the week before got amazingly warm and sunny! I would have taken some pictures of some of these things, but Chris has the camera.

We had a pleasant spring dinner. I baked a turkey breast last night and used it for a turkey salad today. The recipe I used called for diced turkey, fresh lemon juice, grapes, sliced almonds, mayo, orange peel and served on a bed of lettuce. It was a really great combination of flavors. I put just a smidge of salt, pepper, and mustard in, as well. Dessert was Jessie's favorite...strawberry shortcake...appropriate cuz today is her tenth birthday. We celebrated last weekend, which was really fun. I am actually in the middle of doing a ton of dishes, cuz our dish washer is out of commission. It is really a big deal to go back to doing them by hand with a family this size. Phew!!

Chris is in Arizona golfing!!! He left with his boss and a few coworkers early yesterday morning. They are staying at a resort and coming back tomorrow. This was a bonus/incentive thing, which the employees only partially paid for. Chris pretty much never takes vacation time, even though he has it. Work has been stressful, so this is good for him. Of course, it is really hot there--101 degrees when he called last night!! Argh!

Bounty to be

William--"I DO IT!!!!!" He was actually having a mutiny about our bounty to be (vegetable planting). He wanted to help NOW, constantly. ("How about if I tear open these seeds and just sprinkle them all over? Do you need a shovel now? How 'bout if I cultivate those corn plants you just planted?)

I made an enjoyable trip to Portland Avenue Nursery and bought seeds and vegetable starts for the raised bed Chris made for me last summer! William was whiny, hungry, and demanding, but he did get to help plant pea seeds and nasturtium seeds. I bought peas, green beans, broccoli, green onion, and lettuce from seed. I planted corn starts and celery starts for the first time ever. There are 2 Brandywine tomatoes and 1 patio tomato in there. There are 3 pumpkin plants and 6 bush cucumbers. The peas and beans are both bush varieties, so I don't have to worry about supporting them. I planted the nasturtiums in the border and put giant sunflower seeds in my old empty raised bed, with nasturtiums for border. I am pretty happy about this! The new bed has had only the 3 dwarf blueberries in it for so long now! The picture looks pretty bare, but it is full of God's nums. I will do updates--it should fill out beautifully--it gets really warm and sunny there. I am sorry you have to crane your neck to see that left photo. I didn't turn it. Oops!

Yikes! It's been 2 weeks since I gave evidence of being in the land of the blog living!

Our neighbors got a new swingset and some sand, so after school, the kids swarm over there to play! Awesome!!

Only 6 weeks left of school, thank God. Parents get spring fever, too!!

Sunday, we got KFC and went to a park in Puyallup to play, but it was really chilly though sunny. And I got hurt twice! First, Zach started closing the back hatch of the minivan, but my head was in the way! Ow! I am really amazed I didn't get a cartoon sized lump. My lower back and hips were in a lot of subluxated pain this weekend (getting dehydrated contributes). Well, I was trying to be spry and jump up onto this cement block, but with my bad back and age and stiffish jeans, I just ended up sprawling on the block and scraping my shin. It was embarrassing, but I don't think anyone but Zach saw it! There was a boy with a large lizard at the park, so Zach had fun chatting with him. Zach now has an alligator lizard, a small frog, a newt, a salamander, a goldfish, and like 4 snakes in his room. He just started mowing Grampa's lawn, so now he can pay for the stinkin pet maintenance!!

Zach is going to be 12 in 3 weeks and Jessie will be 10, so I need to plan several celebrations!

I saw the movie RV on Saturday with a friend. It has Robin Williams in it. The previews made it look retarded, but it was actually quite funny, at least in the theater. It seems movies are always better at the theater!

And that's my exciting news!

What I'm listening to: Jewish music with a punch(as in BAM!!)--Matisyahu--"Youth". If you are adventurous, check out this guy on Amazon.com. Usually, you can hear samples of music there, that's why I like it. LOVE THIS CD--amazing, edifying, funky!!

Coffee Cake

I doctored up some Bisquick and made a pretty tasty coffee cake this morning. This is the family size recipe, doubled.

4 cups Bisquick
1 1/3 cups milk
1/3 cup sugar
2 eggs

about 3/4 cup jam
about 3/4 tsp almond extract

Streusal topping
2/3 cup Bisquick
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 slightly softened butter
1/3 cup sliced almonds

Heat oven to 375. Stir coffee cake ingredients until blended. Spread dough in greased 13 x 9 pan. Mix jam and almond extract. Spread on top. (Spreads easier if you microwave the jam just a bit). Stir together streusel topping; sprinkle over batter. Bake about 30 minutes, or till knife inserted in center comes out clean.

April is springtastic!!!

Saturday night, Chris and I went out to dinner to celebrate our 13th anniversary. We went to this Argentine restaurant I had read a good review about. I wanted to try something different. I was actually so disappointed by how noisy and small and crowded it was (and the review did warn me), that Chris was nervous. But once my meal came, I was transformed! I hope I never forget how amazing it tasted. It was a skirt steak that was a long strip, threaded curvily like a snake onto a metal skewer and mesquite grilled. It came with a large, juicy prawn, and a chorizo sausage(didn't like that). It was served on polenta, which was fine textured, a little spicy, smoky, cheesy? and dressed with some kind of fresh diced tomato topping/salsa. They gave us a free dessert, which was a piping hot chocolate lava cake with a scoop of possibly homemade vanilla ice cream. I was painfully full when I left, but very happy. I even had leftovers!

A bumper sticker I saw recently: Lord, please help me to be the person my cat thinks I am. Har har!!

I am so digging the spring and the fresh air and flowers and blossoms and hardly having any hay fever symptoms!

Eye roller: So many ads now, for even food, furniture, clothes, feature people with mp3 players to show how up-to-date/modern/savvy/cool/relevant/youthful they are. I am slow to jump on most bandwagons, and this annoys me (so I secretly want an Ipod, and don't have one. So what!)

Coloring Easter eggs seems more boring every year. The vinegar water colors are so pale. What if I want bright dark red? Maybe I will paint the ones I hardboiled with bright acrylic paints, hide them in the yard when the girls get home from school, and then make egg salad sandwiches with them. Not looking forward to the onslaught of sugar this weekend. I'm not even buying any sugar nums, but the kids will be getting them. And everyone will get more cavities and become hyper, and I'll eat more than I wanted to. Yeah, like I'm still lifting weights. I wish I was able to keep that up. I should be. I believe in it. It's not the easiest thing getting 6 people to a warehouse (Chris' work) once a week and trying to concentrate, stay motivated, and keep everybody safe and happy. Argh! Still doing treadmill at 12:00 when my favorite show comes on, whenever I can. Medical transcription gets neglected so much. It's also pretty hard sometimes. I believe I am so tired, I am rambling quite a bit and becoming boring. Good night, or good morning, as the case may be for you, dear reader.

Recipe for the Precious

Southern Red Velvet Cake
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 1 oz bottle red food coloring
1 tsp white distilled vinegar (my cider vinegar worked fine, I thought)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 3 (9 by 1 1/2-inch round) cake pans.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. In another
large bowl, whisk together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla.
Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined and a smooth batter is
formed. Divide the cake batter evenly among the prepared cake pans. Place the pans in the
oven evenly spaced apart. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through the cooking(weird, huh?), until the cake pulls away from the side of the pans, and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Remove the cakes from the oven and run a knife around the edges to loosen them from the sides of the pans. One at a time, invert the cakes onto a plate and then re-invert them onto a cooling rack, rounded-sides up. Let cool completely. Put layers together with a layer of frosting between. Frost top and sides. Place whole pecans around top and crushed pecans on side of cake.

Cream Cheese Frosting
1 lb cream cheese, softened
4 cups sifted confectioner's sugar
1 cup soft unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla

Combine cream cheese, butter, and sugar till smooth. Add vanilla, and beat at high till fluffy. Store in fridge till somewhat stiff, before using. May be stored in fridge for 3 days.

I see yellow....and red!

Jessie is reclining in front of our new and improved living room color. The cake is the humdinger I made for company last night--southern red velvet cake with a whole bottle of red food coloring and cream cheese frosting. It is ALL GONE!!! Wah!!!

My chipped jam jar can actually hold some GREAT stuff!!

MOTHER!!! YOU'RE COMMENTING!!! YAY!!! I told her that the day she started blogging, I would eat my hat and post it to my blog!

You know you MIGHT not be the most miserable person in the world if any of the following occasionally happen to you:
1. Your husband puts a new coat of paint on the orange "fire walls," paint that you picked, while you are at work, and since you love it, he loves it.
2. Your 3-year-old's ABSOLUTE DELIGHT in the unique riding area on some of the Home Depot shopping carts proves to lift your spirits unexpectedly.
3. The pharmacy's worth of Mannatech products you are taking all of a sudden kick in, and when yesterday (and the 5 days before that, and the 30 days before that, etc.), you felt depressed, old, and tired, today you feel young, vibrant, alive, energetic, and HAPPY.
4. Your husband is very patient and loving in your pre-Mannatech-effected state.
5. Your son's rabbit who was kept in the laundry room and constantly soiled it, took a walk out the cat door.... and didn't come back. And your son is not heartbroken. Nor are you!! Mu ha ha ha!
6. You sacrifice day in and day out to home school, and yet, you learn SO MUCH and are blessed to have the amazing quality time with your child, who is learning great VALUES and BIBLE, as well as cool middle ages stuff (at this juncture).
7. You ask God to help you make your money S T R E T C H, and He does.
8. You don't live in a "GREAT NEIGHBORHOOD," and you're not "RICH ENOUGH TO GIVE YOUR CHILDREN EVERYTHING THEY COULD WANT," but your daughters have a great friend next door(with a hot tub and fun-loving parental units), and your son has a great Christian friend across the street. On the other side of you, they have a trampoline, and they share! In the back of you, they have go-carts and an undeveloped area where your kids can roam around looking for "treasures."
9. Your son has a friend at church whose dad likes to bring him along to do things like fish and clam. (This weekend, Zach went clamming for razor clams for the first time. He had the best time ever. I learned how to clean these clams for the first time and make fresh clam chowder. And yes, there IS a difference when you use fresh clams!!! It tastes like the ocean instead of the can. :) )
10. Whereas not too long ago, you constantly were thinking how small and crowded and UNFINISHED your house was, you started realizing what a prize a craftsman bungalow is, and now you are into researching authentic decor and feeling PROUD of your great house.
11. You are not impressed that your midsection is growing and prospering(rather than your savings account), but you are still mobile, pain free, limber, flexible, strong, enduring, and youngish.
12. Your 9 new red primroses cheering up the front yard were only .60 each!

Does your cup runneth under?

You know you might be a pessimist if any of the following are true:
1. The proverbial "glass half full" sounds like a lot more than your cup ever holds.
2. Everybody else's glass is prettier than yours.
3. Your glass is a chipped jam jar.
4. Your glass is 1/3 full of 2 day old water.
5. You caught the cat drinking out of it.
6. It was only tap water, not even purified. It probably has lead in it.
7. Somebody should care enough to bring you something decent.
8. You could get up and get it yourself, but you're too tired because you've been pouring water for everyone else ALL day.

Well, it sure does feel springy all of a sudden, thank God!! The blossoms are out, the air is balmier, springier, pollen-filled, and my hayfever started a few days ago. Argh.

We had another very nice weekend, which went too fast. I promised the kids quite a long time ago that I would take them to see Narnia at the theater. I think it's just about done showing there, so I took the 3 olders on Saturday. It was awesome, of course!! We got back and had grilled cheese sandwiches and apples and then headed to Chris' work! This was our 3rd Saturday we went there to....lift weights!!! Wow!! Chris' boss recently bought a weight bench and punching bags and such, so we are doing some couples' lifting while the kids skate or scooter around the shop. Chris used to lift weights in high school for football and early in our marriage. I've always been interested, but only sporadic in my activity. He pushes himself and me--he's motivated and motivating!! It's fun to have this new family activity/couple activity. We don't go to all that many places as a couple or as a large, unrich family. This is free and fun and healthy! Yay!

Yesterday was very, very restful. I enjoyed my 2 hour rest/nap upstairs while Chris did the first round of dishes--yay!! We read the paper, watched TV, had chicken breasts baked with olive oil, garlic, balsamic vinegar, sage, salt and pepper, and spaghetti with spaghettic sauce. I was dying for dessert, as usual, but I had a handful of granola instead. We managed to do family devotions after dinner, which doesn't always happen.

Well, Zach is doing a grammar worksheet, and he'll be done soon. I will then read a chapter from the medieval fiction book we are reading, A Door in the Wall.

Dull moments few and far between

We had the strangest scene at dinner tonight. One minute there was relative normalcy as the kids got into their chairs, talking, joking, teasing. The next minute, wild laughter and crying at the same time! It all started innocently enough: I brought in a bib to put on William, but I must have really been taking a hike mentally. As I was chatting with the kids and not paying attention, I calmly proceeded to put the bib on Zoe! (She is 8). I was thinking, "Boy this is tight when you snap it over her hair. Hmm....Oh well!" (Like totally!!) But then I immediately stopped thinking about it and went to sit down. Then it dawned on Zoe. She HOLLERED, "I'M NOT A BABY!!!!!!!!!" and immediately started crying and storming off to her room, of all things! If anything, I would have thought she'd have said, "MOM!!!!!" and laughed and looked at me funny! She was SO UPSET!! (Is she sleep deprived right now?) Meanwhile, the rest of of us were rolling on the floor, laughing till we cried at the absurd airheadedness of my space-out mistake and her indignant, surprising response. This only made Zoe madder in the other room, and she continued to cry and yelled out, "IT'S NOT FUNNY!!!! I CAN HEAR YOU!!!" (Yeah, and she's not even a teenager yet. ) After I got control of myself, I went in there to tell her AGAIN that it was an accident, REALLY, and not meant to humiliate her to death. She tried to be stern when she came out, but failed miserably!!! Tee hee! Thankfully, she got some good laughs in, after all!

I am back from my mini-vacation in New Hampshire. I spent Friday through Monday with Jill's family. It was very restful and peaceful and beautiful to spend that many kidless, non-working days in their large home in the country! I saw Grandma Sweet on Saturday, and Jill and I got coffee and lunch and went to a cute gift shop. I really loved driving the country roads and seeing the New England countryside and houses. The blizzard was a new one for me! It delayed my flight a day. Jetblue airlines was a pain to deal with--they couldn't be reached over the phone, and wrongly charged me 90.00 to change my flight. (They reimbursed me). Then we had a long, boring, 2 hour delay at the airport because they COULDN'T FIND A FLIGHT CREW!!!!! Geez Louise!!!!!! But it was wonderful visiting Evan, Jill, and their precious kiddos. And it was so gratifying to wake up from one of my many naps--grin, grin--and Jed was genuinely thrilled that Aunt Loe-ee was up! I loved their 2 cats, too. I was able to take a long walk on Monday while Jill got groceries. We watched a few movies and some winter Olympics on the weekend. Also, I got to see Lindsay and her cute apartment. I left winter behind and came back to my daffodils blooming!!

Wow, we lost the Superbowl!! I didn't watch one minute of it, happily. Chris did, at someone else's house. He came home hoarse and morose, plus he slightly bumped someone's car who had wedged him in!! But he doesn't have to work today, cuz that was the deal if the Seahawks made it to the Superbowl. Good thing, cuz my car decided to not start again for the third time in half a week! Friday, I had to walk to and from school to get the girls cuz of the car. Thankfully, it wasn't raining cats and dogs! It's a 25 minute walk to the school. And we have a newer school we can SEE from our house! It's days like that I kinda wish they were at the new one.

This weekend I get to fly to New Hampshire!!! Yay! I will be visiting Grandma Sweet and staying with Jill and Evan!! Grandma wants me to clean out and organize her closet--isn't that funny? The interesting thing is that Jill and Jed will be flying out here shortly after that! Wow!

We haven't amended our orange walls yet. But I moved the treadmill into the living room. I'm filling out my clothes a little too well, and I'm just not spending the time in the boring laundry room. (That's where the treadmill was). So Friday and Saturday, I spent an hour on it, running half the time, whilst watching TV. It was so much easier with the TV on. I've really tried being stoic and listening to music or reading or listening to books on tape in the laundry room, but I get bored to tears after 15 minutes. Chris got on it, too, and put me to shame, running at a pretty fast pace. Then he went in to work to work out where they have some weights recently purchased. Zach went in to try it too, cuz he was interested. Zach especially liked this punching bag thing that is attached at floor and ceiling.

We had Zoe's birthday at Grandma's house Saturday night, and that was fun. She will actually be 8 tomorrow!

The photo below shows the scary Halloween orange, and some examples of how we might rectify it. Chris tried some pale yellow glazing, which actually looks too white (it was some old half white glaze I already had which he mixed with pale yellow). I tried some bright yellow with glaze blotted on, and then some berry/brick mixed with glaze blotted on. I think I like best the spot that has both bright yellow and red blotted over the orange. This is kind of a conondrum.

Oh, and Peter Rabbit escaped last week. :(

I'll do a quick post. Last weekend Chris and I went to see "Walk the Line," the Johnny Cash movie. We got there 45 minutes late and had to sit in the front, but it was a great movie, and we had fun.

This weekend, we needed to put a second coat of ceiling paint on in living room, and that led to a spur of the moment decision to repaint the walls. They did need repainting, and "since we were going through all the effort...." Chris was tired of the cheerful light yellow, so we agreed on a tasteful lightish medium ochre. Well, he came home with a VIBRANT, RICH, IN YOUR FACE pumpkin. He told me not to be scared, but I was. We put a coat on the walls, but I can't live with it, so we are going to have to do something different--like some faux glazing to tone it down.

Got toddlers? My sunday school kiddies got a kick out of putting little foam heart stickers on a sheet, then grabbing corners and shaking them up and down. They were very diligent about picking them up again so they could do it again, and again! Great activity for indoors in winter!

I got as far as taking my midterm exam for medical transcription this week. I got an 86%. Now there is a bunch of editing training, which I love. After this, I'll get to the real transcription practice! Yay!

The world is full of cactus, but we don't have to sit on it.
--William Foley

The Animal Planet channel was on the other day, and it was an animal rescue show. It looked like maybe Arizona. This woman called in about her neighbor's cat who had apparently somehow gotten COMPLETELY embroiled in some cactus! The poor cat was COVERED in stickers, not moving, and meowing piteously! They got it to the vet, tranquilized it, and spent the next 2 hours removing prickers! It then looked normal and had to be on pain relievers and antibiotics for 10 days. It had looked so absolutely horrible--like a cat shaped cactus plant. I guess kitty hadn't talked to William Foley.

ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES JACK A DULL BOY. ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES JACK A DULL BOY. ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES JACK A DULL BOY. ALL WORK AND NO PLAY MAKES JACK A DULL BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
CABIN FEVER, HERE! MUST GET OUT AND DO
SOMETHING BESIDES RAT RACE DUTIES! The sky has been either light grey, medium grey, whitish grey, mottled grey, watery grey, or kill-me-now-I-can't-take-it-anymore-grey. A little help, here, oh great WEATHERMAN IN THE SKY? Here's my typical scenario: Thursday is a mental health day and I have to daydream all day about good things and fun stuff to do Saturday so I don't climb the walls and start crawling around on the ceiling with foam coming out of my mouth. Saturday comes along: I was up late the night before cuz work lets out no earlier than 12:30 usually. Then I have to unwind and/or visit with Chris if he's still up. 12:00 noon Saturday and I'm still not dressed and quite groggy, and there are mountains of laundry and not exactly bouncing out the door on great adventures. Chris actually has to work today, too. It's not raining, though. The least I could do is go to Point Defiance Park with the kiddos. I'm pretty broke and that's free.

Last Saturday I did a mommy and me date with Zoe. We went to Krispy Kreme donuts, which I religiously avoid normally. We had wanted to go to Red Robin and get dessert, but of course they were packed. My donut was so amazing and only 1/3 satisfying. I could have gobbled 2 more, but I resisted. The coffee packed a wallop! Now I know who has high octane java! We then walked over to Toys R Us and bought Trivial Pursuit for kids and Yahtzee. The kids and I played Trivial Pursuit for the next few hours, and it was SO FUN!!! I had to drag Zach kicking and screaming to play, but after 1 minute, he was totally into it! He had to have a long pep talk though when he exhibited extremely poor sportsmanship cuz his YOUNGER sister beat him! The indignity!!

I want to go on a road trip and a boat trip and have some tiramisu. I need these things.

Okay, okay, Kristi, a new post is forthcoming! :)

Our computer was out of commission for a few days being de-virused. We now have more protection and a different browser. Hopefully things will go more smoothly now.

What is like unto a Saturday where the sun actually pokes its head out already and you're still in your jammies at 12:45!? Chris is leaving for a friend's house to watch the important football game. Zach spent the night at a friend's house last night, and friend's sister slept here. We're pretty much forcing Zach to shower and nap, and he's not happy about it. He had stayed up really late, of course. Wednesday, Grampa took him and a few other boys on a tour of an aircraft carrier. Zach came back in a great mood. It was great for him to have the monotony of studying broken by a GUY EXCURSION.

What am I supposed to do about this rabbit? No really--any suggestions? (I'm calling it Fluffer Nutter, and yes, the coloring actually does look like marshmallow fluff and peanut butter!) I'm kindhearted and martyrish enough to let it run around the house to exercise, but Chris can't stand it and says its unhygienic and "How many times do I have to put my foot down about this?!" Of course I clean up after the rabbit really well, but if it messes an area and Chris gets to it first, that's not cool. It's cold and wet outside, and we only have a small cage. This shouldn't be my problem it should be Zach's. But all animal issues become my issues because I am responsible and caring, and kids can't really be trusted. Supposedly you can get rabbit leashes at Petco!

Yesterday we had an injured starling stay for a few hours. I think the cat had tackled it. Zach rescued it and cleaned off a bite mark with hydrogen peroxide. We calmed it down, let it rest, gave it some seeds. The neat part was when the rabbit and the starling were sharing an apple! He perked up and was hopping around the room, so I let him go. He flew with a crooked tail to a nearby tree and watched us for a bit as if to say, "Thanks, mates!"

True story: the mother of the boy Zach was with was trying to explain about Communion to her 3-year-old, telling him it represented the Body of Christ. He looked at his little piece of cracker and said, "I think I got the skin!"

"...And Mom and Dad can hardly wait for school to start again...." This song seems to be in my head a lot lately. I wonder why that is....

I'm about ready to put my computer in the dishwasher--I keep getting these INFURIATING popups!!! And that is Chris' domain to fix.

We've been letting Peter Rabbit roam around the house during the day. Can you believe it? His cage is so small, and he looked so bored in there. It's just a matter of cleaning up his small, dry "backfires" from time to time. He hasn't eaten all the electrical cords or torn into the couch, Garfield style. He's surprised us with what he's been interested in devouring, though. I was just finishing up an apple, when somebody brought him over to me . Well, he smelled that apple and went crazy! So I gave him the rest of the core, which he loved. He also nibbled on some dry bagel on the ground and some raw oats. When I brought home the groceries last night, he was in the kitchen checking things out and got very excited over an open bag of tortilla chips in one of the bags. So I gave him one of those! He's also nibbled on the cat's food and enjoys radishes, carrots, and lettuce. Oranges--no.

Last night, on the Christian channel, I actually caught something really good. Often, if it's opulently dressed pastors shouting about prosperity or something, I quickly change the channel....but this was about the reality of Heaven and Hell. There were testimonies by some men who had taken a "break" from their body when they were in the hospital and where they were when they were in limbo. These were not Christian men at the time--they were mostly atheists, actually. One guy, who had been run over by a vehicle driven by the KGB and was pronounced dead and in the morgue's freezer, with collapsed lungs, actually was not quite dead and came to as they were about to do an autopsy on him. His experiences of pressing darkness and terror caused him to turn to the Lord and be saved! One of the weirder ones was of a man who was in the hospital, very sick, and when he went outside his body for quite awhile, he went to stand beside his wife and talk to her. He felt very much alive and actually got mad at her for "ignoring" him! But then he was called away down a long, gray, blurry tunnel by some blurry people, who seemed syrupy nice at first, but then got ruder. Eventually, after walking forever with these people, he got severely abused and injured by large numbers of them for a long time. He said they really derived satisfaction from it, and although it was horrible, he kinda knew that was where he deserved to be. He was finally left alone on the ground, scratched, emotionally and physically battered. He was there for quite a long time, when something told him to "pray to God." He didn't even know how to pray, and struggled to remember the simplest things to say even from being a tot in Sunday School. But whenever he could manage to say anything prayer-like or about God, it was like boiling water on all those horrible people--they couldn't stand it! He drove them all away calling out to God. And Jesus came down and gently lifted him up. All the filth and shame and injuries, inside and outside, evaporated. Jesus hugged him like a Father, patted him on the back, comfortingly. They had a wonderful conversation! They reviewed the man's life, and he learned that whenver he had been kind and good, it made the angels, God, and Jesus happy. But whenever he had been selfish and bad, the opposite. I'm getting a little fuzzy on some of the rest of the details, but the man had to go back to earth. He didn't want to leave at all and wanted to know Jesus and the angels would be with him. Jesus said they always had been and something about the value of repenting, casting our cares on him, and all the good things that matter that are supposed to be coming out of our hearts and mouths towards God and man. The man hosting the show said that there is a dangerous trend afoot, where people who nearly died and experienced a bright light and comfort, will come back and preach comfort and "everyone goes to Heaven, it's all good after this". They try to discourage people from believing in the sin, the Hell, the salvation aspects!! Another atheistic physician, who was dying of some acute illness, barely held on through the night waiting for his Christian friend to show up and show him how to be saved. This man had been witnessing to him about the love of God for 5 years and had endured some arguments and ridicule from this Doctor. But who did he desperately want when he was dying? It was an endless night of hanging on. He kept slipping into horror and coldness and deep darkness, but in the morning,He did pray the sinner's prayer, and experienced God's salvation and peace!! I really love these stories! There are really good to remind us about the realities of Heaven and Hell, sin and salvation, and to pray for those around us!

If you want to check out an amusing website, try iusedtobelieve.com--stuff adults believed as children, like words to songs, what they saw on TV, all sorts of silly things.

An inspirational story from Guideposts: Joel Osteen, a Texas pastor, wrote the story. Among other things, he told about his mother who got very sick with liver cancer in 1981. She was very yellow and lost a lot of weight. The doctors didn't have any hope for her. "But my mother never gave up. She didn't complain about how sick or weak she felt or how hopeless the situation looked. She spoke only positively of her situation. And she filled her mouth with God's words. We'd hear her going through the house speaking aloud, 'I will live and not die. I will declare the works of the Lord.' She was like a walking Bible. Something powerful happened. Her appetite came back, she started gaining weight. Her natural color returned. It has been nearly 25 years since my mother received that death sentence, and today she is completely free of cancer."

Another story from a travel TV show about Germany, I believe: Hundreds of years ago, when the the plagues were raging, one town prayed to God to spare them. They promised Him they'd act out the crucifixion/Passion every ten years if He did. God spared the town, and they have been doing what they promised every ten years, even to the present time! I saw a blurp of it--there was a man up on a cross, and it looked realistic! I guess the men even grow their hair and beards out for months and months beforehand to make it look more authentic!

Things that go bump into the piano!! (RC car) 

Our very own exercise wheel! 

Two dolls! 

Two more dolls! 

We've been very good this year, Santa!! 

Zach's new rabbit, Peter 

Jessica as a Chinese Tea Cup in her class's production of The Nutcracker  

It is Tuesday, 12:48 p.m. The reality? I just finished breakfast, which included gingerbread men snitched from my girls' 7.99 Costco all-ingredients-included (YES!!!) gingerbread house. The gingerbread isn't really top quality, but that didn't stop me!

I felt like I got ran over by a truck this morning, so after dropping off the girls at school, I lay down in front of the heater to sleep some more. Three hours later.....here I am, much more alive. Yesterday, I went to the mall TWICE and did some intense planning and shopping for Christmas. The night before that, I had stayed up till 3:00 a.m. watching too many of my favorite shows on TLC--"What Not to Wear." Zach's doing math, and he is working on finishing up an Alexander the Great book. The girls have a half day tomorrow, and then everybody's off school for awhile! I think I can be done with Christmas shopping tomorrow, if I'm lucky. Anybody out there done? If so, good job! My little fantasy, when I planned this week off, was to bake cookies with the kiddos all week and enjoy the Christmas music, take it easy, etc. Yeah, right!

Anybody watch that relatively new kids show about Lazytown, with the hero in the blue spandex or whatever who tries to get kids moving and eating more fruits and veggies? I read a review about how well the show was doing and how it does affect kids positively. That made me wake up a bit. In winter, kids can happily watch TV all afternoon and evening if they are not stopped. And it seems like a parent has to infuse some of their own precious energy to come up with different indoor active ideas. Since I didn't have to work last night, I took the time to look up "indoor active games for kids" on the internet, and found some neat ideas which kept the girls busy for the rest of the evening! (Zach was at a friends house playing with and wishing for his friend's new rabbit). First, we tried playing variations on tag outside. But William was puzzled and stood at the front door and howled at us. He didn't want to put his shoes on and join us. I also felt kinda silly running around the house outside in public, although the exercise was great while it lasted, and it was exhilarating. So we came in and played "zombie tag." The person who is "it" has to be the zombie--they close their eyes, put their hands out in front of them and groan while they look for their prey. And whenever they groan, the others have to groan back (kinda like Marco Polo). Then it was a treasure hunt. The website (Wizardkids.org or something--no it is not a witchcraft site) had printable clues in pirate language that rhymed. So I hid these clues inside and outside, and they led to a treasure at the end, which happened to be gold candy coins the first time--hid in the cookie jar! My Mom had sent over some stocking stuffer candy, and I ended up using some of that; now I'll just have to replace it. They had SO much fun! After a few times, they took over writing clues to do their own games. But they did need help hiding them, cuz, for example, Zoe would put the clue saying, "Look on the piano" on the piano.

Our big fat Greek feast 

The Champions 

Greco-Roman thumb wrestling 

Yesterday, our family celebrated the end of Zach's 30 days of Greek studies. My parents and Kristi joined us for "Olympics," Zach's recital of Psalm 139, a puppet show, and a Greek dinner. We were supposed to do a big thing for the end of our Egypt studies, a Passover seder, to be precise. But I would rather do that in spring. Zach did a really great job memorizing the Psalm. He didn't think he could do it, but I told him that Olympic champions wouldn't win with that kind of attitude, and that he COULD do it. This is the longest thing he's ever memorized. I am so proud of him! Chris videotaped everything. I talked a bit about the ancient Olympics, and then Zach and I did a little play. We used this little colorful folding stage with a curtain and put it on the piano bench. The play was something Zach had to write based on an ancient Greek myth or legend of his choice. He picked the story of Daedulus and Icarus. We made cardboard characters with popsicle sticks and acted out what he had written. It was fun! Then the kids all came parading out--Zach had a homemade Greek flag, Jessie had a homemade torch. We did "chariot races" where the bigger kids wore this toy jingle bell harness and Will was the rider. They took turns taking off, with Will sitting on his rear on the wood floor and suddenly being RACED forward! They did a javelin throw with a long skinny beef jerky; there was Greco-Roman thumb wrestling, running on the treadmill, and the long jump. They all got "olive leaf crowns" when they were done (small silk ivy wreath).

Dinner was really good--I got three Greek recipes off the internet--stuff I hadn't made before. We had Greek salad, Souvlakia, and Baklava. Different fare, and delicious! It seemed kind of summery cuz Chris barbecued the marinated chicken cubes (the stores didn't have any lamb) and there was plenty of veggies like tomatoes, cukes, green peppers.

After dinner, we watched "A Merry Christmas Bean" movie, which was quite funny. Tonight at 6:00 we'll go to the Christmas program at Church. Tomorow night is Jessie's class program at school, and since I have all week off, we'll all be able to go--yay!

I was examining my mini hot glue gun whilst waiting for it to warm up, and you'll never guess what one of the two warnings says. I am not making this up. "Warning: Nozzle & glue will burn unplug after suing."

"And visions of homework elves danced through their heads." 

Zoe really gets stressed out by the Christmas season. 

This is the charming "choo-choo" that took us to our Christmas tree. 

"Dashing through the house, in a one-William open sleigh...." 

Yes, William fell asleep in this box with a gingerbread cookie in his mouth. 

It's been a long week, and we're only 2 days into it. I have not started my Christmas shopping....but I do have 9 days of vacation time to use up!!! Yay!!!!

My Mom had a Christmas luncheon today at her house. She provided a very nice meal with goodies in her beautiful, Christmasy house. A very neat group of Christian ladies were there, and as is tradition with these get-togethers, my Mom had everybody share what the Lord's been doing in their life. It was such a blessing to hear people share, really such a blessing and a comfort to know I'm so not alone, and that God is so loving and caring and faithful!!

I don't know what the deal is with the "situation under the neighbor's camper." So far, so good....

Elementary homelessness, my dear Watson?

Om, yeah.....I'm posting again 10 hours later.....

The night before last, as I drove into our yard about midnight, my lights shone on the car across the street. There was a guy messing with the tire, like removing it, ya know, with a jack and a tire iron. This car of our neighbor's is quite dented, and they don't seem to use it. And I'm like, "Does this young black man live next door to these people? What's going on?" As I walked into my house, I looked back at him, wondering if I was looking at a tire thief. He was looking at me, too, but then he disappeared. And the tire remained. (And this morning, there is still a tire on that spot, plus one resting on it....?!?!)
Last night, I turned out the lights and headed upstairs to bed at 1:00. And then the next door neighbor's 2 dogs started barking their heads off. They do this from time to time, and being the suspicious night owl that I am, I like to peek out the windows and see if there are any scary dark figures about, causing the dogs to raise an uproar. Well, this guy, I assume, had been waiting for me to put the lights out. I was looking out the front room, and I saw this strange blue light flash onto the front porch ceiling. When I was upstairs "gone to bed" as far as he was concerned, but still peeking, he goes to work on the tire again. I see him use a flashlight, which, before he leaves, switches to a blue light. And the dogs are still barking, and I'm uneasy and feeling very Nancy Drewish. One of the dogs decides to bark in its back yard toward the alley. Apparently, its owners are gone or dead asleep. And they don't have their new shed light on, helping to illuminate the dark back corner of their yard. So, I'm staring into the alley from the laundry room, fully expecting this guy to show up as the cause of the dogs' unease. And my attention is drawn to the dark axle area of this large camper vehicle, parked in the neighbor's yard directly in back of our house across the alley. I stare at this little pin light until my eyes see stars. Surely, that's that guy's blue flashlight, isn't it? I watch for the longest time, and the light moves very slowly, and it looks like someone has a flashlight in their teeth, and they're removing a tire. This is all under the camper. (Can you remove a tire from under a vehicle on the inside?) I stare, wonder, think, fear, pray, and finally call 911. I think that's the first time I have called them. It's 2:something in the morning, my feet are bare and ice cold standing still on the lineoleum of the detached laundry room. The guy on the line hears my story through chattering teeth and tired mind. Within a few minutes, two policemen on foot show up in the alley with their flashlights. Yay! They shine their lights here and there, talk to me, and!!!!!!!! "Don't see anything." They leave, and from my post, I STILL see the stupid light. They shut my back gate for me, though. It had been open(chain link), and so was the shed. But I was too scared to shut either. They certainly didn't spend too much thorough time shining their light under the camper....and even made a comment about how it was probably a homeless person trying to keep warm! I watched a few more minutes after they left, prayed for safety for the umpteenth time, and wearily went to bed at 2:45. It was a few minutes before I could sleep. Not really a satisfying conclusion to my "mystery"! This morning, I looked under the camper, and I saw a tarp under there. It was wedged under at least the tire I had watched, and their was a small mattress with a clean sheet on top.....nothing else...no tire iron, flash light...but the tarp was kind of raised near that tire, and the dirt underneath was disturbed, like this person may have hidden partially under the tarp and maybe a coat or blanket when the cops shone their lights. Argh! What's a girl to do?!

Pots, cups, and thrones

Zach made a reproduction Greek pottery vase today in school. I bought some self hardening "Mexican clay," a few tools, and a small glass bottle with a cork. He then covered it with clay, added Greek style handles, and tried to make it smooth. It was tough to get it smoothwithout a pottery wheel. When the pottery is dry, he'll paint black Greek style figures and/or scenes. He's also working on a play of a Greek myth--Daedulus(sp?) and Icarus.

Jessie is going to be a "Chinese Tea Cup" for her school's production of The Nutcracker on Dec. 20th. It's even going to be held at a different school, and a high school at that!

William got a haircut today, and for the first time in his life, he didn't have to sit in my lap. He didn't cry, nor did I have to wrestle with him to get him to keep his head still! It was a miracle! Usually, I've had to tip pretty nicely cuz I feel so bad for the hair cutter! I guess he decided that now that he's 3, he's going to put childish ways behind him and be a big boy. (Yeah, right!!) He did also accomplish some new goals with his potty chair this week--he learned that it is a GOOD thing to use the mini throne for an **ADDITIONAL PURPOSE**!!!! Yay!!

We actually have some sun and blue skies today, praise the Lord! On our way home from Church, we noticed an unusual train going by. It was stopping a lot of traffic, and we had to be careful not to rear end some people who practically just stopped right where they were. It was some kind of old fashioned steam engine. We caught up with it, got out, and looked at it as it went by. It whistled loudly, and we waved at the folks inside. Zach said he has heard it for 3 days. I think it said Mt. Rainier Scenic Tours on the side. Neat!!

Yesterday, I finally did something I've wanted to do for a long time--I took Jessie out for a Mommy and Me day. She had a 2.00 gift certificate for Baskin Robbins I had promised to redeem with her. So we got scoops of ice cream and then went to the dollar store where we got a few things, including cheap coloring books for her and Zoe. Then we went to the library and got some books and movies. She checked out an Apple Dumpling gang flick. Chris and I watched "The Terminal" last night. It was pretty good, mostly because of Tom Hank's character, but kind of hard to watch (if you've seen it, you know what I mean.)

Have you made a dent in your leftover turkey yet?

Alright, I want to hear how everyone is creatively using up their turkey. My mom gave me the carcass, so I'm going to make soup with it; I'll probably add rice and vegetables. Right now, I'm waiting for my lunch to cool down so I can eat it. I boiled up some water and added leftover raw veggies (baby carrots and broccoli flowerets) from Thanksgiving appetizers, then a package of Top Ramen. I threw in some diced turkey, canned mushrooms, and Yoshida's sauce(kind of a sweet, soy sauce/ teriyaki flavored number) . It looks really good.......mmm....tastes good, too!

Thankful pilgrims about to dig in 

Good day, friends! It is 11:30 on Friday. The kids have no school, so we got to sleep in and stay in our jammies! Zach and his friend have been outside in the rain, playing, and just came in again. Will is watching 101 Dalmatians and yammering constantly about the "y" he actually found this morning. That would be his pacifier. Chris had to go in to work after all--not sure it will be a whole day, though. I am doubting whether I'll make it in tonight with this cough.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day yesterday. The morning got a little tense, cuz we were scurrying around trying to get breakfasted, dressed, make a pumpkin pie and a spinach dip and get over to the fam's by 1:00. This was complicated by the fact that Will put both hands on the wood stove and burned them. His scream was heart rending and he was fussy for quite awhile. His hands aren't blistered though, and he seemed to forget them once we got to Grandma's.

Zach and Jessie enjoyed their sleepover. Zach got to get on the roof (his favorite thing in the whole world, he told Grandma) to help put up lights. He also caught a salamander and a frog! He did let them go, later. Jessie enjoyed having a sympathetic Grandma to give her extra attention and a kindly ear for all her chattering. :) Zoe enjoyed getting rid of her siblings for a little while, too. She rather gloated in it! My parents had Zach and Jessie do Thankful lists, and they are very good lists!

We actually got over there by 2:30 and nibbled on some good snacks until dinner was ready. It was a wonderful feast my mom put on, as always. The table looked lovely, and we tried to exercise restraint, but ended up very full anyway. There were delicious pies and coffee, and then we cracked open our traditional 1,000 piece Charles Wysocki pumpkin scene puzzle. And we got it all done!

William watched his new Thomas the Train DVD Kristi got him for his birthday. Chris and Zach played some lively ping pong in the garage for quite a long time. I really enjoyed being able to relax, be myself, and indulge in our strange family funniness that got us really cackling our heads off at times. We also played Trivial Pursuit, and my Mom won! The kids actually took part, and that was gratifying to watch. They had to learn how to answer fast! It was funny, because they'd come up with locally-inspired answers like "Columbia River!!!" for an answer to "What's the longest river in Europe?"

I am thankful for a God who answers prayers; a committed Christian husband; godly, praying parents; healthy, wonderful children; our cozy house; food, clothes, electricity, heat, clean hot water, working vehicles, washing machines, driers, dishwashers, coffee, and friends to keep in touch with via blogging!! :)

Hacker in the house

Zoe went to the doctor today and was told she has pneumonia. Argh! She has been acting just like Chris did when he was sick. The doc gave her an inhaler as well as antibiotics, cuz she's wheezing some. Didn't expect that! William actually came down with hives yesterday; it was really strange. They were gone this morning, and the doctor said it could be a viral thing--he's got a cough. She asked if he had eczema. I said he had when he was a baby. I really had better not get this pneumonia, but if I do, I'll probably get to the Dr. quicker than the other two cuz I'll know what I'm dealing with. She said it's not extremely contagious, but not unusual for a few people in a family to get it. Calgon, take me away (to a warm, lakeside resort).

I tried unsuccessfully for a half hour to post 3 pictures. I always have a hard time, and "Hello" isn't responding. SO IRRITATING!!!!! I was going to show you Jessie's salt dough relief map of Washington state, which is quite good, and of which she is justifiably proud. Also, I was going to show 2 pictures of William at his little family birthday party yesterday. He's turning 3 on Wednesday, and my parents came over for cake and to bring their gifts. I made a German chocolate cake from scratch, and although it was a bit crooked and the icing thinner than I would have liked, it was moist and delicious!

My mom got Will a plastic case that holds 24 cars (Hot Wheel types). HE LOVES LOVES LOVES IT, MOM!!!!! He's been playing with it nonstop!!! To him, a car is a "woe-woe." Tractors are "nay-nays." I don't know where he came up with those names.

We had Chris' mom over for dinner, since we won't be with her on Thanksgiving, but at my Mom's house--yay!! Can't wait!! The kids will have 2 1/2 days off from school next week, and my Mom even invited them over for a sleepover Wednesday night. I'll have Thursday only off, and Chris gets Thursday and Friday off.

Last night, after the 3rd dishwasher load of dishes, I was so exhausted, I felt sick. I had gotten to bed really late Friday night and then gotten up and immediately started working on cooking and cleaning for our guests. Chris and the kids all worked together as well to help, and their rooms even look great! Zach dug up the little Christmas tree and put it on his desk. He also put a string of fake candy and a string of mini lights on his bunk bed. Looks cheerful and makes a great night light! Chris particularly impressed me, cuz he did a lot of delegating and also just chipped in without being asked. Nor did he get grumpy or tense about it. Woo hoo!!! So I lay down at 8:30 p.m. in bed and didn't come to for 4 hours. Then I made the poor choice to eat a quesadilla, which sat very unfriendly-like in my belly. So by about 4:30 a.m., my stomach felt a bit better, and I was tired enough to go to sleep. I was on the couch, with William on me, not enough blankets, watching TV in the middle of the night, feeling icky. Just another day in Paradise. But I did make it to church, since I had to do Sunday School.

A few days ago, our cat, Max, brought in a mouse he was harassing. It was still alive, but I think it was quadriplegic at that point. It was bleeding on the wood floor, so I took it outside. A little while later, William, trying to be helpful, came out with a bandaid opened up, which he earnestly and tenderly wanted to apply to the "mou." :)

Last night, at work, we had our annual "turkey bowling." They set up bowling pins in the traditional format, mark off a line, and then we get to "bowl" with a turkey breast in a cloth bank bag. It's quite awkward, and your hands get kinda gross and slimy afterwards. Most of the guys did pretty well, but some of the women actually flung it up at the wall! Some of the framed pictures received a bit of turkey abuse. Later, I saw a paper sign on a framed picture in that hall that said, "Cheryl was here." :) And I think the guy with the camera near the pins must have had some close shaves. I didn't hit a single pin. Never have been much of a bowling fan, although that was my first date with Chris. :)

Well, what's new....Chris is finally mending from being really, really sick. The doctor said it was either bronchitis or pneumonia. I personally think it was pneumonia--there was blood in his horrible coughings, as well as fevers, and extreme fatigue and sleepiness. And he was that sleepy even without the expensive narcotic they gave him! They also gave him antibiotics, and he seems a lot more alive than he did even days ago, thank God. Would you believe my carnal side was really annoyed seeing him constantly on the couch for over a week coughing like a maniac? I can understand just a smidge what some 60-something women go through--RHS, or retired husband syndrome!! Ha ha!

Zach and I are studying ancient Greece now. We're done with Egypt. We also just started with Spongebob Squarepants typing CD ROM. It's fun and motivating for him. He does drills to learn the basics, but if he gets sidetracked by the games, he's still learning! :) We'll start a brand new Math-U-See tomorrow--"Focus on Division." He's learning about Greek myths and the fables of Aesop, how to draw different Greek columns, the various systems of the body, new spelling words, ancient Greek life, and writing exercises. And he's reading a juvenile book about Alexander the Great. As usual, I'm learning right along with him stuff I really never knew.

Tonight, at work, I got 3 balloons and a Milky Way candy bar and a Key pin to commemmorate my 5 years of imprisonment, I mean employment, with Key Bank. I was going to try to start being more careful and mindful of intake and output, cuz my clothes are starting to shrink thanks to Halloween candy and the near impossibility of exercise...but the milky way seems to have forced itself upon me. Just call me WONDER WILLPOWER!!! Surely, TOMORROW will be different than EVERY OTHER DAY, and I will wake up earlier, super energized, and get on the blessed treadmill.

Excuse #37

This morning, I said to Zach, "It's up time, Zach."..............Awhile later, he was still in bed. "Zach, how come you're still in bed?!" "Huh? Wha-? Oh......I was dreaming that I was duct taped to the bed and couldn't get up!" Good one, Zach.

I carved a stenciled headless horseman design into my pumpkin for work, but the judges were blind, and I didn't win even 3rd place, which I feel I should have...honestly! They seemed to favor originality and additions of STUFF and a clean pumpkin interior. So, if I could do it again, I would make the inside of my pumpkin sparkle, light the candles, and put fake blood on the outside near the head or something. Third place was this really lame pumpkin someone had freehandedly designed a key on. It wasn't even the proper key of our logo, they didn't punch out the design, and it was not even symmetrical!!! LAME!!!!!!! There weren't any cash prizes like with the costumes, though. People brought food, and we had fun, until we had to go back to work until late!

Chris took the 3 younger kids trick or treating in the rain, with his sickness, and he came back with a high fever. When I came home tonight, his shirt was soaked from feverishness. He didn't go to work today. Pray that he gets better soon and that I don't get it? I've been careful not to kiss him and to wash my hands religiously before I eat! He's been really sick for days!

Is everybody eating enough candy for an army? William has turned into a demanding candy monster--it's really annoying. Throwing it all away and showing him empty containers sounds good! But he threw his pacifier away (why, I don't know), and he hasn't had it for days! Maybe this is the true end, the true weaning! (It's about time!!!!)

It really feels like winter is upon us--tonight it was 47 degrees and rainy coming home.

headless horseman 

excited munchkins! 

Yesterday was a pretty decent day, weatherwise. Apparently, I really needed to cool my heels, because I got up late. Chris brought me coffee in bed and kept everyone under control. Then I read the paper in bed for another hour. My Dad needed to get out of the house cuz of a baby shower, so he took the 3 older kids to the waterfront for a walk and then out for lunch. I was itching for something to do out of the house, so Chris and I went to this drive through Greek place and then to a nearby park with William. I got a beef and lamb gyro, which was huge and yummy. I couldn't finish it then, but the portion I couldn't eat tasted great late at night. :) Chris got calamari and chips--it was breaded squid or octopus and fries and some marinara sauce to dip the seafood. It was so good! William had a great time running around chasing sea gulls, jumping in puddles, and playing with the fallen leaves. Then my Dad met us there with the other kids, and they played for awhile, too. Chris has been pretty sick, so he crashed on the couch for the rest of the evening, while I made chicken pot pie, cleaned up the kitchen, and kept the kids under control. I started my couch quilt by hand, cuz I just haven't been able to get to my Mom's house to use her machine! Today, the pastor continued to speak about hope. What I took away from it is, "Keep tying knots in that rope, and keep trusting God!"

Wow, it's late. I just got finished reading and commenting on peoples' blogs. I'm eating my cheese sandwich and Halloween chocolate the kids brought me from the church shin-dig. Chris woke up sick this morning, but he had to take them to church this evening, anyway, or else there would have been an uprising. Wish they had done the festival on Saturday....or do I? It's a pretty busy, chaotic event where the kiddos and adults (if they want to) get to dress up, play lots of games, get candy, have fun, and see a puppet show with a message. I took them last year, and it was really draining. I told the girls, " Bring a separate bag, and when you get any chocolate, just drop it in and bring it to me." I was kidding, but when I got home, there was actually a sandwich bag with chocolate in it! Yay!!!
I sent the camera with Chris, but he forgot to bring it in. I'll probably post pics of the kids in their costumes in a few days. Monday, we have a pumpkin carving contest for the different departments at work, and I got arm twisted into contributing. They provide huge pumpkins for us. I bought a stencil kit with skinny saws and patterns at the store. I plan to do a headless horseman design. There's also a costume contest, with cash prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place! Anybody think I could pass as Napoleon Dynamite if I got a wig, glasses, t-shirt, and moon boots!? Ha ha!! If I won, it would pay for the costume purchases!

I've got a headache, and I'm tired, and I cried on the way home from work about a dozen things!!!!! But only briefly. Life is really hard a lot of the time, gosh dang it!!!! But of course, I am extremely thankful for my many blessings. ANYHOO!!!!! Hey, I don't gripe much here, do I?! My real plan was to share what I made for dinner, cuz I know I have a loyal following just waiting for me to share another fresh idea, right?! Ha ha!!!
I invented this years ago and call it "Bean Pasta Goulash." You can really vary it, but basically, you boil up some pasta (I used half a package). While that's cooking, you saute half an onion and a red pepper and some fresh garlic in a good sized, deep saucepan. Tonight, I added a bunch of shredded sun dried tomatoes, 2 cans of drained, rinsed black beans, a can of sliced olives, a cup of shredded cheddar, and the pasta. It was good with garlic salt. Oh, I also added some broccoli, which I boiled with the pasta. This is a colorful, vegetarian, high fiber, low cost meal. At other times, I have used parmesan, basil, and canned, diced tomatoes.
Bon Apetit! And a festive Friday to all! At least, may the end of it be festive!

I was researching the Passover Seder on the Internet today, cuz Zach and I were going over the Exodus and Passover, etc. I found this quote I thought very rich. I don't know exactly what the author was referring to, but he/she was talking about the different meaningful components of the Seder and the history of the slavery and the freedom of being released from it, etc. (Anyone ever celebrate Passover with the traditional Seder?Looks very appealing!)

"A whole vessel can contain its measure, but a broken one can hold the Infinite."

Have you been broken? Or had your heart broken, maybe more than once even? Well look what you can hold now! :)

How to recycle roast beast

Thought I'd share a way I used up leftover roast beef, potatoes, carrots, and gravy. I made Cornish pasties!!!! All I had to do was make the dough, roll it out, cut into 6 inch circles, put the chopped up leftovers in, bake, and enjoy! I added a little water and worcestershire sauce to the innards first, so they were moist and flavorful, not dry and bland. Here's the dough recipe:

2 c. flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 c. shortening
1/3 c. ice water (slightly more if desired)
Combine flour and salt in bowl. Cut in shortening. Add enough water to form dough that will barely stick together. Knead dough on floured surface 4-5 times. Roll it 1/4 thick; cut into 6 inch circles. In center of each circle, place a moderate spoonful of meat and potatoes, onions, and carrots, or whatever you have. (Make sure it has salt and garlic and any other seasonings you want. And don't put a really dry mixture in--it won't get any moister, and dry pasties are not good.) Fold circle in half over filling. Press edges together to seal and crimp edges. Cut slit in top and bake at 400 for 15 min and then turn down to 350 for 30 min.

Friday night was a fun one for the kids. The girls got to go to a pizza birthday party and then a sleepover. Zach had a "Royal Rangers" sleepover at the church with his buddies. They got to stay up ALL NIGHT and eat, play video games, play sardines, and other such fun. Most of them really did stay up all night! Zach looked okay, but when the rest of us were ready to go to the park cuz it was such a gorgeous day, we found him on his bed. It was 1:15, and he was dead asleep. I wrote a note telling him what we were doing, with Chris' cell number. I taped it on his shirt, and we left! Had a lovely time at the park. There was this rock jutting out of the water, and there was a gaggle (or whatever) of turtles sunning themselves! It was really cute! Then we got bubble shakes. When we got back 2 hours later, Zach STILL HADN'T WOKEN UP! I went to Walgreen's for a half hour, came back, he was still asleep! That was a four hour nap! One of his buddies went to sleep from 12:00 noon yesterday till 6:00 this morning! Wow! When Zach woke up at twilight yesterday, he thought it was a new day! Glad we took advantage of the nice weather, cuz today is cold and rainy! Argh!

Dear online diary, before I forget for all time, I wanted to record that William calls his strawberry lemonade "jui-ade." His little friend, a toddler also, calls lemonade "emma-lade."
Was watching the Christian channel a bit this evening, and guess who I saw? Mr. T was talking very enthusiastically about what it means to be a Christian. (How many watched the A Team?) One thing he said that I don't want to forget, though it makes me squirm big time, is not to just tell your friends at church you're thinking of them and "praying for them." He's like (in his no nonsense way, if you know what I mean), "HELP 'EM!!!!!! If they're unemployed, help 'em get a job! Are they not able to buy food?! Help 'em!" (I'm paraphrasing a bit). Of course, we can't help EVERYONE, and prayers ARE worth a lot, but he really has a point! Gulp. Get behind me, selfishness!!

GREETINGS, EARTHLINGS,
How goes it? I got to bet incredibly late last night and up incredibly late this "morning." Hmmm...It's pretty wonderful to have such self-sufficient kids who don't self-destruct on their own...although William could have used a diaper change and more calories quite a bit earlier than he got them, heh heh.....made some delicious cinnamon rolls from a tube--yum! Chris went to an early morning men's espresso at church and after that to help with a project there. Yes, our church is modern and has an espresso/book shop inside! It's pretty cool, actually. The money made goes toward the church, it's good experience for the youngsters working there, the books are great (there's music, too), and you can meet a friend in there before or after church for a drop of whatever go go juice you like.
Yesterday it was 72 degrees! Wow!! So unexpectedly balmy! Then, in the evening, it got really windy and rainy. I guess there was lightning, but I missed it, because I was stuck in my stall at work. (Don't really have a stall, but my time there is as thrilling as being a tethered cow--groan).

some of the other quilt squares 

9 patch squares 

What's new

The kiddos have today and tomorrow off from school because of staff meetings. Our van is being repaired right now--there's a leak which is letting out coolant, causing the van to get pretty hot and the heater to not work. Chris has been going through a lot of coolant to keep it topped off. Luckily, Parkland Chevrolet has a shuttle to bring us to and from the place while it's being worked on. I have spent an hour or so there with the kids before, and there isn't much for them to do besides go ga ga over the vending machines.

I had Monday night off because of Columbus Day, but the next night, I worked for seven hours. The banks were actually open Monday, just not the Fed or proof departments! So we pretty much had double work Tuesday. I studied my Medical Transcription course Monday for the first time in weeks. Argh!

I took out the changing table from boys' room--was really sick of it in there. The bottom shelf was collapsed cuz it held books and legos and stuff, and it really irks me to see it collapsed and messy. I sanded my Goodwill find of a dresser and put a coat of paint on it. Also bought some new handles for it. It will go in there once I get the other coat on and hardware on. The boys have been sharing one dresser, and Zach has only had 2 of his own drawers.

Yesterday, I went through my antique 9 patch quilt squares and separated the ones needing patching from the sturdy ones. I ironed the sturdy ones and trimmed them to 3 1/2 inches square. Any that were too small also got rejected. When I put all my good squares together, it looked like a really cute antique doll quilt. If I want to make a twin size quilt, I'll have to repair those other ones, and maybe even add the larger squares from the other set that don't match. Tomorrow, I will go to my Mom's house to do some quilt sewing. I've got the scrap quilt top for couch ready to be sewn together.

Can I brag one second? Zach has amazing aim! He can make bulls eyes no problem with a bow and arrow! Sunday, after church, someone dared him to shoot a clock with his new pistol bb gun. This was a MAN, who thought the bbs were rubber (they're plastic), and he said he'd buy a new clock if it broke! Well, Zach hit the clock and cracked it!

Life with a 2-year-old

I got a few funny things from my Parenting magazine from an article called "Life with a 2-year-old."

"Spending the day with a 2-year-old is like working for a cranky, hormonal , half-drunk boss. At least at work you'd know when a conflict was brewing. You'd have time to prepare for it and write memos in your defense. But a 2-year-old will just suddenly freak out because you won't let him hold your knife, walk into the street, or put his hand in a dog's mouth.....Another child could be holding a piece of belly button lint, but that would be the piece of belly button lint that Zain couldn't live without.
These days, he's practicing for a career as a professional imit tester. I tell him, 'Don't throw the ball inside.' A minute later, he'll roll the ball a little. Then he'll drop it from an inch off the ground. Still not technically a throw. Then a little bounce. A few minutes later, he'll push the ball in midair. A throw? I never know when he's actually crossed the line. By the time I step in, I'm not sure which of us has actually won that round.......
Every night, as I leave Zain's room, I whisper to him, 'I'm so lucky to have you. You're the best boy in the whole world.' And on most nights, I actually mean it."