Words of Wisdom Wednesday

"Childhood is that wonderful time of life when all you need to do to lose weight is take a bath." - Richard Zera

"I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." - Jesus

My Cousin Alex

Just a . . .

. . . boy and . . .

. . . his . . .

. . . umbella . . .


. . . on one sunny day.

Not-Me-Monday: Play Time

This week I did not decide to clean out my cabinets only to find some packaged pasta that expired in 2003. I also did not, in utter disbelief, take a closer look at the package to make sure that the number three was not just an eight that had been sort of "rubbed off". Nope, not me! Since 2003 I've graduated from college, gotten married, had a baby, and moved multiple times - I most certainly would not haul around the same package of pasta for that long. Good grief!

This week I also did not sleep in past my normal shower time, and then just decide to take a shower with Juliette awake later on that morning. I did not let her play on the bathroom floor, while I lathered up. Nor did she decide that the whole basket of toys I had lugged into the bathroom on her account was not nearly as exciting as plain old toilet paper.

And I didn't manage to get my freshly cleaned foot in any of the pictures either.


Nor did I continue to take pictures while the steam started to fog up the camera lens.


Nope, not me!


My daughter has not started grinding her teeth (does anyone have ANY advice on this?), nor have I resorted to letting her have her pacifier in order to keep her from doing this.

Seth and I also did not drive around town last night looking at various houses for sell. That would be silly, since we still own our house in The Big City, and we're not even sure if God wants us to buy a house here. Spend time shopping when you're not even going to buy? Nosirree. Not me!

We did not enjoy a community wide picnic this weekend either. Nor did I tie a balloon to Juliette's wrist and let her crawl around the park with it. Balloons are too dangerous for little children. Not me!


Nor did I have impeccable timing when it came to this shot. Let's just say my child does not get her big head, full of hot air, from me. No way. Definitely not me!

~~~

More Not-Me-Monday Fun:

Lasting Fruit

Now that our lives are settling down a bit, we haven't been making multiple trips to The Big City, which means that I'm back to my once-a-month-shopping routine. While limiting our grocery-getting definitely saves us time and money, it is always a challenge to find ways to keep fresh fruits and vegetables edible for an ENTIRE month.

There is always the option of eating canned or frozen versions, but frankly doing it yourself is a lot of work, and store bought or not, processing limits the nutritional value. Besides my husband has been caught eating an entire jar of peaches in one sitting (without sharing, I might add!), so there is NO WAY that I could can/freeze enough to keep up with his appetite.


So what's a girl to do? Well, I am learning that there are certain fruits and vegetables that last better than others. We eat the ones that will spoil more quickly at the beginning of the month, and towards the end of the month we eat more cabbage, yams, potatoes, zucchini, squash, etc. I also have discovered that if uncut and refrigerated, a watermelon will easily last at least a month. So guess what we've been eating this week?



She clearly doesn't want to share her piece with anyone. So don't even think about it!

Of course there is some fruit that will never go bad - the fruit that is produced in Christ. I'm praying that we'll have a bountiful supply of that fruit around here. Here's hoping that your home will have an abundant harvest of lasting fruit too.

"You didn't choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit . . ." - John 15:16

Words of Wisdom Wednesday

"Mothering is not the ultimate goal of being a mom, revealing Christ to the children is."

- Priscilla Shirer

Olio

My new year's resolution this year was to become better at crossword puzzles. Because, frankly, I stink at them. And having an English degree, people pretty much assume that you know a thing or two about words. But when it comes to crossword puzzles, well . . . let's just say that it has been a flaw that I've tried to keep secret and hidden for many years - or at least the many years I sat through literature lectures. But I am improving. Okay, okay - improving might be considered a very generous word, but I am trying.

Anyhow, from time to time there is a clue about an "anything goes stew" or "hodge-podge" and the answer is olio. This is not to be confused with the word oleo which is the answer for another clue reading "margarine-like", and the word by which my grandmother still refers to Country-Crock Butter. Does anybody else's grandmother use that term for margarine? I've seriously never heard it used by anyone else but her, which is but one of the many reasons why she is so special to me.

Anyhow, in case you couldn't tell, I'm sort of in an olio mood. So the following is a hodge-podge of stuff that has been rolling around in my head. Beware, you might just wish that I had stuck to practicing my crossword puzzle skills!

• I've decided that one of the most wonderful things about having a child is that you get to be reintroduced to some of life's greatest little joys: like PB&Js, crayons, and the Rubber Ducky song.

• You can pretty much expect to never find anyone who says that their life turned out exactly like they expected it to. Hard, but true.

• Seth has been working on a beard for nearly 5 days now, and he definitely has a serious scruff going on. I used to think that the hair on my legs grew fast, but that is nothing compared to him. He is the fastest hair grower I know. Can they use facial hair to make wigs? Just think of all the bikers that could donate to Locks of Love.

• Isn't it fantastic that young children get as much enjoyment out of the gift wrapping as they do the actual gift?

• I grew up with the tradition that every birthday each member of the family had to say either a blessing and/or list some of the reasons why the birthday boy/girl was so special to them. That's a tradition I definitely want to keep. What are some of your favorite family traditions?

• If the producers of the Biggest Loser really wanted to help the world, they would strike a deal with the candy makers limiting the displaying of Halloween candy to October only. Seriously, does anyone need to start preparing for Halloween by buying their candy in August?

• My daughter is now turning everything in sight into a pretend phone. Blocks, stuffed animals, weeble people . . . even her hand will do in a pinch. I'm thinking that maybe I've been on the phone a little too frequently lately.

• Isn't ironic that the definition for olio also includes something about a style of beard? I'm not making it up - truly!

Enough of the olio - but since I'm sure you're wondering, here is my favorite crossword puzzle site: http://www.webcrosswords.com/

Not Me Monday: Boating, Partying . . . and Snow?

Seeing that today is the first day of fall, we most certainly did not wake up to winter weather. And I definitely would not be unprepared and leave lots of things outside that really shouldn't get wet.

In a warmer time and place we most certainly did not enjoy my husband's big new purchase with both his family and mine.




I have never made Juliette go out on the boat when she was sleepy. Nope, not me!




I always make sure my child takes naps in ideal sleeping environments.



During that same visit with my in-laws, Seth's father most definitely did not decide to participate in a local restaurant's eating contest.



He did not have to sign a liability waiver before eating one of the world's spiciest burritos in thirty minutes or less. And he absolutely didn't finish it with time to spare.




The manager of the restaurant didn't present him with a t-shirt, and we weren't proud of him one bit. His also didn't just have a fruit slush for dinner either, because his stomach wasn't a little off after all that.


Seth did not inform me that he thought this shirt was a little skimpy for a daughter of his to be wearing, and I totally didn't think to myself that he might say that before I even put it on her. Nope, not me! And I definitely didn't just leave the shirt on her, even after I realized that it was a bit small. Never!




Of course, it was Juliette's birthday this week, and Seth did not have to work a little late that night. I did not just put our bench across the porch opening, so that Juliette could wait for "Dada" outside. Nope, I'd never resort to such measures to just try and pacify my child for "a little bit longer". Not me!




I also did not manage to get pictures of Juliette eating her birthday breakfast . . .



. . . and her birthday dinner . . .



. . . while totally neglecting to get any pictures of her eating her birthday cake! Nope, not me! I always record the most important moments of my child's life. Speaking of birthday cake, I definitely didn't just take the crumbs and leftover frosting from Juliette's birthday party cake . . .




. . . and form them into a little personal cake for her actual birthday. Nope, not me! I'd certainly make sure that my daughter had something a little nicer for her very first taste of sugar.

Did I say sugar? Whoops, I absolutely didn't make the cake with sugar, because I'd never let my child eat such stuff at such a young age! What sort of mother do you think I am? Definitely not me!

~~~

Go here for more Not-Me-Monday fun::

What A Difference A Year Makes

Happy Birthday Precious Baby Girl!

Beach Baby

Juliette's First Time Playing the Sand

First Freeze

We had our first freeze this weekend. It never truly seems to me that summer is over until there is no longer a point to watering the garden. There are still some peas and spinach that need tending to, but for the most part it is time to say goodbye to summer and hello to other s-words . . . like sweaters, soups, and snow boots, of course. What sort of s-words did you think I meant, silly?

Some of the greatest things about this time of year are all the wonderful harvest vegetables that are ripe and ready for eating. I did a little experimenting a few weeks ago, and came up with a yummy Harvest Veggie Curry recipe, that Seth just can't get enough of. Here it is sans pictures, but I hope you enjoy it anyways!

Harvest Veggie Curry

Fill a roasting pan with all your favorite harvest vegetables, cut into chunks. I used:

Red Onions

Red Potatoes

Eggplant

Zucchini

Drizzle with olive oil and roast at 350 degrees until tender.

Take 2 chicken breasts and cut into bite-sized pieces.

Cook in a skillet until just done.

Add vegetables and 1/2 cup coconut milk and 1 Tblsp. curry (add more to taste, if desired). Heat thoroughly and serve. Note, if the sauce is too thick, add water to reach your desired consistency.

~~~

On a different note, it is my sister's birthday today. Juliette's been working on a little something special for her:

Rememberance

This was a memorial that I came across in Boston. Each one of the dog tags represents a life that has been lost in the Afghanistan and Iraqi wars. Today is a day for remembrance - for their lives, the lives lost in the attacks on 9/11, and for all of those who have made sacrifices on our behalf.

No matter which side you stand on when it comes to these wars, military action, or national defense, I think we can all agree that a great price has been paid. Let us not forget to honor that sacrifice.

Lord, let us live lives that are worthy of those that have given up theirs.