Happy With Myself?

Mother's Day

2010-05-09T16:58:00.006-05:00

Surrounded by the never-ending chore list, it's easy to get discouraged and frustrated. Our house is on the market right now, and it needs to be tidy all the time. I'm constantly picking up, Febreezing everything and Windexing (mmm, Windex) the bathrooms. I literally growl under my breath when I see the boys carelessly throw down their things instead of putting them away. Don't they know that I'm neurotically cleaning all the time? Their beds aren't made meticulously and there's always a stray sock under the bed. They hide toys on the "dark side" of the bed (the side you don't see from the door), and there's always toothpaste or mouthwash in the sink in their bathroom. Don't get me started on the ever-present smell of pee. Like I said, it's easy to get frustrated.

It's hard work to be a Mom. It's hard to be consistent. It's hard to be patient. I'm no expert. Sometimes, it's just easier to let them watch TV.

Yesterday, Mother's Day, I contemplated the art of Mothering. I must be so frustrating to my children. I feel like I'm constantly critical of them and nagging over dirty clothes on the floor. I certainly don't do all the things I want to with them and I'm lacking in the "funzone" a lot. I feel like a tyrant sometimes.

Yet, they like being with me. Silas collapsed with laughter yesterday when I did an imitation of Wicked Witch of the West from the Wizard of Oz (nailed it, by the way). And Corin painted me a lovely Walter Anderson print their teacher gave to his class for them to complete for their Mothers. He was so proud of his work! Felix loves for me to read to him and he still (all 54 pounds of his four-year oldness) likes to snuggle on my lap. They all beg to "help" me in the kitchen with cooking, and they fought over who got to take care of me when I came home from the hospital after Lida B was born. They adore their baby sister and love to hold her and occupy her attention when I need to do something.

Even though I'll still be neurotic (let's not kid ourselves), I will try (and fail a lot) to keep this time in perspective. They will not all being under my roof forever. There will be lonely times where I wish they were around more often soon enough. I understand that it happens faster than you think. I'm glad they're my kids. And I'm glad I'm their Mom.

I'm off to Febreeze and Windex.

Collage of New Orleans

2010-05-06T11:53:00.002-05:00

We recently went to New Orleans for the day and this is a collage of the pictures. I found this feature on my Picasa page, which is where I edit my pictures. Thought it was pretty cool. Download it for free here.

Mini Layer Cakes

2010-05-06T05:53:00.009-05:00

This week is Teacher Appreciation week at my boys' school. There is a theme for each day, but, alas, I've not done ANYTHING. With a tinge of self-loathing, I berated myself for a couple of minutes and then decided to do something with a bang. After all, we do appreciate my boys' teachers; both of the school-age boys adore them. I do want to show our appreciation for their hard work. I initially thought I'd make a cake for each teacher, but that was starting to add up (and would've taken HOURS), so Quinn (the genius) suggested making small layer cakes. I was given small tart pans (a little bigger than the palm of your hand) a few years ago by my Grandmother (who's a genius baker) and I've never used them.

I dug them out of the back of the cabinet (I have six) and washed the dust off, greased and floured them and then set to the mixing of the cake. You could easily follow directions on a cake mix, but I decided to "kick it up a notch" and make my (er, Southern Living's) Triple Chocolate Bundt Cake recipe.

1 box Devil's Food with pudding in the mix
1 5.9 ounce box of instant chocolate pudding
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/4 cup oil
3 cups chocolate chips, divided
1/2 cup whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour bundt cake. Mix 1st five ingredients in a bowl until well blended. Stir in two cups of chocolate chips. Normally, you would pour this into a prepared bundt pan, but for the mini cakes, soon approximately two big tablespoons full into prepared (greased and floured) mini pans. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for approximately 18 to 19 minutes.
Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes in pan and then remove from pan to let cool on a wire rack for a bit.

For the next bit of "notching it", I prepared an easy recipe of cream cheese icing.

1 8 ounce package of cream cheese (softened)
1/4 cup butter (softened)
1 box powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix together. Apply a generous amount of cream cheese icing between two cakes and then let sit on rack.

Ganoche sounds hard (perhaps because it's a Frenchy French name), but is super easy to prepare. Simply take the remaining cup of chocolate chips (from cake recipe) and 1/2 cup whipping cream and stir them in a small saucepan over low heat until they melt. Let sit, unheated, for a couple of minutes after the chips are melted.

Then apply two large spoonfuls on top of each layer cake, spreading to the edge. Then lick the saucepan (you know you want to). (Also, please ignore chipping nail polish on my fingers, ugh that looks bad).

To finish the cakes, sprinkle a dusting of powdered sugar over the top. I would wait until just before serving to do this last step. I applied the sugar last night and this morning it had melted into the ganoche. No biggie, I simply reapplied the dusting again.

This recipe made six layer cakes. It could make more or less, depending on the pans you used. You could use a muffin tin and make REALLY cute, tiny layer cakes.
The cakes were so cute and made a really pretty presentation. You could really do this with any kind of cake. I think next time I'll try it with red velvet, with cream cheese icing in the middle, and a white chocolate ganoche on the top. I placed the cakes on a pretty disposable plate this morning and sent them to school with the boys in a box lid, which also means they may not make them EXACTLY to their teachers. Normally, my pride and vanity would make me go to the school myself and take them, but, ick, Lida B didn't sleep well last night and I'm pooped. I'm guessing Silas will have a serious mishap; poor thing gets his clumsiness from his Mother.
Anyhoo, I'm about to make a fresh cup of coffee and get a "sliver" (snort) of the last cake, which our family sampled this morning for breakfast. It was delicious!

Approaching the End

2010-05-04T07:38:00.002-05:00

We are approaching the end of our time here in Jackson. Quinn is not completely done with classes; he will finish his final year in Birmingham, via the internet. Our job at Community Presbyterian starts in June.

Quinn reminded me last night that, when I was sobbing one night when we first moved here, that I would cry when we left. That seemed hard to believe when we first moved here, I missed my home and my home church family so much. But now we are preparing to leave, and so are others (to go to their new homes), and I know visits with them will be far and few in between. I feel like this is an abrupt ending to our time here, even though I knew it was coming for two years. I've made some good friends and it's been so lovely to live near family. I'm having trouble wrapping my mind around not being able to see them as often.

Two years seemed like an eternity, but it has zipped by so very fast. I'm thankful for these two years. They've been difficult, but have brought Quinn and I closer together. And then there's Baby Girl, the unexpected addition to our little family. I wouldn't trade these two years for anything.

I'm looking forward to moving back to Birmingham. Dear friends await our return and our church is excited to have Quinn on staff. It's nice to be wanted. I feel like we're returning into a giant hug.

I'm gonna need it.

Lida B

2010-03-24T05:50:00.001-05:00

She's added a whole new element to our lives.
We're in love.

Surreal

2009-12-06T10:03:00.003-06:00

There's a pink stroller in my living room.

It has a pink car seat to match.

It has flowers on it.

It's very girly.

I have a few baby clothes put away in a closet upstairs.

There's a bouncy seat and a Leapfrog toy in Quinn's office.

We're still circling around a couple of baby names.

I am enormous and nauseated and have heartburn.

And yet...

It feels strange that there is another baby coming. Maybe it's because pregnancy overwhelms me so much. Quinn talks to the baby and I feel her kick and move and wonder how our lives will change because of her. It still seems so far away that she will be here (and there's more vomit and heartburn coming before she does), that I just put the thought aside.

Really, can it change that much? Our lives, I mean. We already have three children and adding another mouth to feed doesn't really change the dynamic of our lives too much, except that she's a girl.

Yet, somehow I think it will.

Melancholy

2009-11-15T17:35:00.002-06:00

Having a bit of a melancholy day today.

Thinking about how fast the boys are growing and am sad about it, but at the same time have very little patience with them. Sigh...

Tired of the boys getting sick every other week. Or every week. I've not been sick. Quinn has not been sick. Which I'm thankful for.

I think there's something important leaking from the van. So saith the man. I really don't think anything about the van unless the air conditioner is not working as fast as I want it to or I'm broken down by the side of the road.

Feeling chubby. Blah, blah, I know I'm pregnant, but I have a bit of complex. The weight gain is driving me nuts. It's not helpful that I can no longer keep up the four mile trek I was doing. The Braxton Hicks get quite annoying after a bit.

I miss my friends in Birmingham and friends here. I feel like a hermit lately. And I'm terrified to go anywhere significant because I'm afraid I'll throw up (last trimester nausea has come).

I had to drop Christmas choir (which I adore) because it ran too late and I would fall asleep or simply not show up because I had conked out on the couch at 7pm.

I miss my mom and my sister. They'll both come sometime when the baby is born, but I miss them anyway.

I need to clean my house and must muster up the energy to do this, but it's so daunting.

The children are bickering. Sigh...

I don't like days like today. I feel like I've been on the verge of tears all day.

Sorry for the downer folks. It'll get better. I know.

2009-10-31T05:51:00.003-05:00

Alone
by Edgar Allan Poe

From childhood's hour I have not been
As others were; I have not seen
As others saw; I could not bring
My passions from a common spring.
From the same source I have not taken
My sorrow; I could not awaken
My heart to joy at the same tone;
And all I loved, I loved alone.
Then- in my childhood, in the dawn
Of a most stormy life- was drawn
From every depth of good and ill
The mystery which binds me still:
From the torrent, or the fountain,
From the red cliff of the mountain,
From the sun that round me rolled
In its autumn tint of gold,
From the lightning in the sky
As it passed me flying by,
From the thunder and the storm,
And the cloud that took the form
(When the rest of Heaven was blue)
Of a demon in my view.

Well, that explains a bit, doesn't it?

I see a busy day before me, but it's all fun times for our family today (bring on the candy) and tomorrow starts November! The countdown is ON for this baby to come. My last trimester starts in one week! October went by super fast, as will November and December because of the holidays to come. Here are some pictures of our Halloweeny activities. We also did Mummy Dogs (think pigs in a blanket with a leetle bit of the hot dog showing throwing to look like a mummy- mustard drops for eyes work well), but without the pictures.

Have a safe and fun Halloween!

I think I'll dress like a witch after all...

2009-10-23T19:21:00.005-05:00

Saw this article on my friend, Amy's, blog and thought it was interesting...

Here's the original link, but I thought I'd just repost the article here so you don't have to go through the trouble of clicking on the word "here".

Concerning Halloween
by James B. Jordan
August, 1996

OPEN BOOK, Views & Reviews, No. 28
Copyright (c) 1996 Biblical Horizons
August, 1996

It has become routine in October for some Christian schools to send out letters warning parents about the evils of Halloween, and it has become equally routine for me to be asked questions about this matter.

"Halloween" is simply a contraction for All Hallows’ Eve. The word "hallow" means "saint," in that "hallow" is just an alternative form of the word "holy" ("hallowed be Thy name"). All Saints’ Day is November 1. It is the celebration of the victory of the saints in union with Christ. The observance of various celebrations of All Saints arose in the late 300s, and these were united and fixed on November 1 in the late 700s. The origin of All Saints Day and of All Saints Eve in Mediterranean Christianity had nothing to do with Celtic Druidism or the Church’s fight against Druidism (assuming there ever even was any such thing as Druidism, which is actually a myth concocted in the 19th century by neo-pagans.)

In the First Covenant, the war between God’s people and God’s enemies was fought on the human level against Egyptians, Assyrians, etc. With the coming of the New Covenant, however, we are told that our primary battle is against principalities and powers, against fallen angels who bind the hearts and minds of men in ignorance and fear. We are assured that through faith, prayer, and obedience, the saints will be victorious in our battle against these demonic forces. The Spirit assures us: "The God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly" (Romans 16:20).

The Festival of All Saints reminds us that though Jesus has finished His work, we have not finished ours. He has struck the decisive blow, but we have the privilege of working in the mopping up operation. Thus, century by century the Christian faith has rolled back the demonic realm of ignorance, fear, and superstition. Though things look bad in the Western world today, this work continues to make progress in Asia and Africa and Latin America.

The Biblical day begins in the preceding evening, and thus in the Church calendar, the eve of a day is the actual beginning of the festive day. Christmas Eve is most familiar to us, but there is also the Vigil of Holy Saturday that precedes Easter Morn. Similarly, All Saints’ Eve precedes All Saints’ Day.

The concept, as dramatized in Christian custom, is quite simple: On October 31, the demonic realm tries one last time to achieve victory, but is banished by the joy of the Kingdom.

What is the means by which the demonic realm is vanquished? In a word: mockery. Satan’s great sin (and our great sin) is pride. Thus, to drive Satan from us we ridicule him. This is why the custom arose of portraying Satan in a ridiculous red suit with horns and a tail. Nobody thinks the devil really looks like this; the Bible teaches that he is the fallen Arch-Cherub. Rather, the idea is to ridicule him because he has lost the battle with Jesus and he no longer has power over us.

(The tradition of mocking Satan and defeating him through joy and laughter plays a large role in Ray Bradbury’s classic novel, Something Wicked This Way Comes, which is a Halloween novel.)

The gargoyles that were placed on the churches of old had the same meaning. They symbolized the Church ridiculing the enemy. They stick out their tongues and make faces at those who would assault the Church. Gargoyles are not demonic; they are believers ridiculing the defeated demonic army.

Thus, the defeat of evil and of demonic powers is associated with Halloween. For this reason, Martin Luther posted his 95 challenges to the wicked practices of the Church to the bulletin board on the door of the Wittenberg chapel on Halloween. He picked his day with care, and ever since Halloween has also been Reformation Day.

Similarly, on All Hallows’ Eve (Hallow-Even – Hallow-E’en – Halloween), the custom arose of mocking the demonic realm by dressing children in costumes. Because the power of Satan has been broken once and for all, our children can mock him by dressing up like ghosts, goblins, and witches. The fact that we can dress our children this way shows our supreme confidence in the utter defeat of Satan by Jesus Christ – we have NO FEAR!

I don’t have the resources to check the historical origins of all Halloween customs, and doubtless they have varied from time to time and from Christian land to Christian land. "Trick or treat" doubtless originated simply enough: something fun for kids to do. Like anything else, this custom can be perverted, and there have been times when "tricking" involved really mean actions by teenagers and was banned from some localities.

We can hardly object, however, to children collecting candy from friends and neighbors. This might not mean much to us today, because we are so prosperous that we have candy whenever we want, but in earlier generations people were not so well o_, and obtaining some candy or other treats was something special. There is no reason to pour cold water on an innocent custom like this.

Similarly, the jack-o’-lantern’s origins are unknown. Hollowing out a gourd or some other vegetable, carving a face, and putting a lamp inside of it is something that no doubt has occurred quite independently to tens of thousands of ordinary people in hundreds of cultures worldwide over the centuries. Since people lit their homes with candles, decorating the candles and the candle-holders was a routine part of life designed to make the home pretty or interesting. Potatoes, turnips, beets, and any number of other items were used.

Wynn Parks writes of an incident he observed: "An English friend had managed to remove the skin of a tangerine in two intact halves. After carving eyes and nose in one hemisphere and a mouth in the other, he poured cooking oil over the pith sticking up in the lower half and lit the readymade wick. With its upper half on, the tangerine skin formed a miniature jack-o’-lantern. But my friend seemed puzzled that I should call it by that name. `What would I call it? Why a "tangerine head," I suppose.’" (Parks, "The Head of the Dead," The World & I, November 1994, p. 270.)

In the New World, people soon learned that pumpkins were admirably suited for this purpose. The jack-o’-lantern is nothing but a decoration; and the leftover pumpkin can be scraped again, roasted, and turned into pies and muffins.

In some cultures, what we call a jack-o’-lantern represented the face of a dead person, whose soul continued to have a presence in the fruit or vegetable used. But this has no particular relevance to Halloween customs. Did your mother tell you, while she carved the pumpkin, that this represented the head of a dead person and with his soul trapped inside? Of course not. Symbols and decorations, like words, mean different things in different cultures, in different languages, and in different periods of history. The only relevant question is what does it mean now, and nowadays it is only a decoration.

And even if some earlier generations did associate the jack-o’-lantern with a soul in a head, so what? They did not take it seriously. It was just part of the joking mockery of heathendom by Christian people.

This is a good place to note that many articles in books, magazines, and encyclopedias are written by secular humanists or even the pop-pagans of the so-called "New Age" movement. (An example is the article by Wynn Parks cited above.) These people actively suppress the Christian associations of historic customs, and try to magnify the pagan associations. They do this to try and make paganism acceptable and to downplay Christianity. Thus, Halloween, Christmas, Easter, etc., are said to have pagan origins. Not true.

Oddly, some fundamentalists have been influenced by these slanted views of history. These fundamentalists do not accept the humanist and pagan rewriting of Western history, American history, and science, but sometimes they do accept the humanist and pagan rewriting of the origins of Halloween and Christmas, the Christmas tree, etc. We can hope that in time these brethren will reexamine these matters as well. We ought not to let the pagans do our thinking for us.

Nowadays, children often dress up as superheroes, and the original Christian meaning of Halloween has been absorbed into popular culture. Also, with the present fad of "designer paganism" in the so-called New Age movement, some Christians are uneasy with dressing their children as spooks. So be it. But we should not forget that originally Halloween was a Christian custom, and there is no solid reason why Christians cannot enjoy it as such even today.

"He who sits in the heavens laughs; Yahweh ridicules them" says Psalm 2. Let us join in His holy laughter, and mock the enemies of Christ on October 31.

Check out the site. I've never heard of celebrating Halloween from this perspective before. I've always considered Halloween harmless for the kids to dress up and get candy and decorate some pumpkin cookies and carve a jack-0-lantern, and all that jazz. I have very pleasant memories from my childhood Halloweens (especially since my sister's birthday was the week before the said event and there were some spectacular goings on with that). I scoff just as much at the term "Fall Festival" as I do "Winter Break" in lieu of "Christmas Vacation". I've ignored the naysayers because I simply don't care. I like Halloween, stamp-stamp, and I'm gonna get some Snickers from the neighbors. We'll do our Jack-0-Lantern (scary is the vote this year) and set him on the porch with a light in his belly. Quinn put his foot down about the Halloween Tree, but I love the idea, Abbey! Maybe eventually...

If I've stepped on your toes, I certainly do intend to (wink, nudge), but I also am hoping to remind you of our central focus forever: the gospel of Jesus Christ and that it is central to our lives; our very existence. Letting my nine-year old dress like a skeleton instead of a superhero will not devalue the gospel.

Like in a lot of things, moderation is delicious...

Excerpt from the Raven

2009-10-11T19:34:00.004-05:00

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor
Eagerly I wished the morrow; - vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow - sorrow for the lost Lenore -
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore -
Nameless here for evermore

PS... picture is by Gustave Dore
PSS... Quinn won't let me name the baby Lenore. Or Poe. Or Raven. Sigh...

October's Here

2009-10-02T19:07:00.003-05:00

"From ghoulies and ghosties and long-legged beasties, and things that go bump in the night, good Lord deliver us." (Old Cornish prayer.)

I love the month October. Smile.

Of course, the playlist is up. And, of course, there will be caramel apples. And possibly other new things. And childhood Halloween stories. And the traditional last minute costumes for my kids. And Poe. I love Poe. And spooky quotes (like the one above, which raises the hair on the back of my neck, in a good way) will periodically appear.

Fun times...

more to come...

Legacy of Swarthy Eyebrows

2009-09-27T07:05:00.007-05:00

Yeah, so I changed my layout. I did it here on Shabby Blogs (Thanks Virge) and I love it (if you're on FB and want to see my fabulous new blog background, click on the original post thingy at the bottom). It was the least complicated background change I've ever done. Most erase everything you've done (like in the sidebars), but this one was super easy.

I've been thinking about having a daughter this week. And also about ants, which have raided our house this week. But mostly, I've been thinking about having a daughter. I have visions of a dark-haired little girl, with an easy smile and a winning spirit that attracts many friends. And she may be sweet, but she could possibly be bossy (I'm a bit bossy), she could be neurotic (ahem- let's not even go there), she could could be manipulative (not me!), she could be overwrought and emotional and snotty (visions of myself when I was fourteen) and she could have dark, swarthy eyebrows. You may be thinking, "What? You don't have dark, swarthy eyebrows!". Oh, yes I do. I carry tweezers and a mirror with me at all times (just in case I have an eyebrow emergency). I still have visions of being called Kim Dukakis in 1988. Do you remember him? Allow me to remind you.

Michael Dukakis has swarthy eyebrows. Just saying...
Anyway, why does this matter? It doesn't. Except that I'm vain and neurotic and self-righteous and want her to beautiful and winning and sweet (See? That reflects how good of a mother I am). I've never thought about any of those things when I've been pregnant with the boys. My only thought when I've been pregnant with the boys is, "Wow, I wish I would stop throwing up." But now we've introduced a new element in this life and that is how I (ME) could affect my daughter. Will she watch me obsess about food when I feel out of control? Will she see that I'm more conscious of my appearance that I should be? Hmmm... How irrational my expectations are! I am a sinner raising children! My human-ness affects everything I do. Really, the only thing I know that I do right is saying to my children, "Hey guys, Mom's not good enough on my own effort to get to heaven, thank goodness for the sacrifice of Jesus and the grace of a loving God. I'm gonna screw up big-time (and do all the time), but Jesus is perfect."
And we've already raised (practically speaking and with the help of her mother) one little girl and I'm watching her be an adult with exceptional interest. She's beautiful and kind and we're awfully proud of her. She's our girl.

Maybe she could help us out a bit with baby girl #2... What do you say, Rach?

Ups and Downs

2009-09-11T17:32:00.002-05:00

I should be unloading the dishwasher. And throwing in another load of laundry. And possibly sweeping the floors. Definitely packing my suitcase. And yet... here I sit. Well, I did clean the lint from the dryer so I'm good, right?

I've been a range of human emotions this week. On Tuesday, Quinn and I went to have a sonogram done of the baby. I've been dreading this appointment, more so than previous pregnancies, not because I've experienced problems, but because there reasonably could be problems. And I'm getting more neurotic as I get older. This actually has been my easiest pregnancy and THAT, my friends, is saying something. Anyhoo, the sonogram technician was fabulous and the appointment went off without a hitch. And I found out I'm having a GIRL! I was surprised and elated. How fun! Oh, the bows and shoes and dresses... You know I'm going to love it. Possibly the best part has been telling everyone I know. It's been good and my smile has just nearly hurt my face. On Tuesday night, I came home from Back to School night at Silas' school and our good friends, the Speeces, were here and had brought a lovely pink, smocked dress for our baby girl and strawberry icecream (pink) with pink tablecloth on the table, pink napkins, and a It's a Girl! balloon hovering over the table. What a lovely surprise!

And then on Wednesday my Pappy died. He was diagnosed in August with pancreatic cancer and then he died Wednesday. It was very fast. I knew it was coming. We all did. And then it happened. And now I'm flying out tomorrow morning, without my husband and children, to go to the funeral with my parents and sister and two of my nieces. And today I've been a basketcase. I burst into tears during carpool duty (which, by the way, if you burst into tears in carpool duty, then you are done with carpool duty for the day), and really just wanted to come home and sit next to my husband on the couch and not think about anything. Which is kind of what I've done, except that I can't stop thinking about the trip and the baby girl and my sweet little family and death and Pappy's amazing imitation of Donald Duck. He always smelled of pipe tobacco when I was a little girl, which I loved.

Sigh...

Somehow, Christ is glorified in this melting pot of emotions. My only consistent hope in this world of constantly changing happiness and sadness is Christ. And the tears will fall (from both happiness and sadness), but He is still my hope.

Air Quotes and Being "Healthy"

2009-08-03T08:28:00.003-05:00

I read a chapter this morning in my "free" pregnancy book from the doctor's office. I put "free" in air quotes because (1) I like air quotes and (2) because it's not free, perhaps I should say the book is "included" in the large deductable I will be paying to my insurance company. Alas, it's better than no insurance at all, so I will be satisfied with my "free" (can't help it) book.

Anyhoo, the chapter caught my eye because it was called "staying healthy while pregnant". "Healthy" (in my warped little brain) means "skinny", so I gave it a read. It's interesting, with this being my fourth baby, that I get MORE obsessed with not gaining too much weight while I'm pregnant instead of becoming more "oh well, I gain weight when I'm pregnant". I get very irritated when I read articles about staying "healthy" (see above air quotes on my definition of healthy) when I'm pregnant, because I don't gain 25 to 30 pounds when I'm pregnant; it's more like 40 to 45. This, in part, is due to the fact that I am hungry every two hours (not unlike a newborn baby) and must have something substantial to eat (three strawberries are not going to cut it). And when I say "hungry", I ain't (using bad grammar for emphasis) just whistling Dixie. "Hungry" means "I must eat now or I will puke". I know this from plenty of experience. Sigh... So I make my delicious, neurotic cheese toast snack (one slice of bread with two pieces of turkey, two slices of provolone cheese and a healthy sprinkling of Lowry's garlic salt with parsley placed under the broiler for approximately four minutes) at least twice a day and kick myself for not eating an apple, even though I know an apple ain't (see above parenthesis for using bad grammar) gonna cut it.

I am neurotically (I mean "healthily") exercising and trying to drink a lot of water, but my weight is steadily creeping up because I absolutely cannot stay at the recommended "2100 calories a day is all a pregnant woman needs". So I scream at the book "EXCEPT FOR WOMEN WHO THROW UP WHEN THEY'RE HUNGRY!". Of course, the book (which does not have ears) cannot hear me, but my husband can, who thinks I'm crazy when I'm pregnant anyway. Which is only a little bit true.

And so I press on...

News Flash

2009-07-14T04:29:00.003-05:00

Hmmm...

I haven't blogged in a while. I guess you know that.

Let me sum up:

1. We had a great year in our public school system. This came as a complete shock to me because I wasn't planning on having a great year. The boys did very well in their classes and Quinn and I were both pleased with the outcome. Will we homeschool in the future? Not sure. Maybe. I think it will depend on circumstances and the individual ways the boys personalities pan out.

2. Working this year was an educational stretch for me. I learned how to become more efficient at home (of course, this came after the initial two weeks of crying everyday after school) and I liked having the same hours as the boys. Someday, I think I shall become certified (that was meant to sound lofty- didn't you see the 'shall'?).

3. This is our last school year in Mississippi. Quinn will finish up his on-campus classes this year and then we will move back to Alabama. I am excited, but will be sad to leave new friends we've made. And we've made some dandies.

4. And last, but, wow, not least, I'm pregnant with baby #4. Yes, somewhat (HOLY COW, IS THAT POSITIVE????) shocking information for us, but I'm growing more excited about the new life growing in me. I am eleven weeks today and still in the throws of panic-eating (I hate vomiting and my body likes to be sick when I'm pregnant) and trying anything to help keep the nausea at bay. I always struggle with my body image when I'm pregnant. I eat all the time (panic-eating) and, duh, typically gain a good bit of weight when I'm pregnant. I'm still running (uphill battle) and trying to stay active (even though I DO like remaining sedentary), but I'm still feeling chubby. Of course, it doesn't help that I get a positive pregnancy test and the next day I cannot button my pants. Anyhoo, I'm due on February 2 and am already excited about the hospital stay (there's cable at the hospital). We find out in September the sex of the baby. Felix insists that it's a 'sister'. We'll see.

Maybe I won't wait another three months to blog.

Painting 101

2009-05-17T14:46:00.002-05:00

I've learned to paint since we've moved to Mississippi (which has been one year ago tomorrow) and not just "the middle" either (which was my only painting job I was given), but real "I'm gonna paint this living room if it KILLS me" painting.

Well, today I've tackled the upstairs bathroom. And I'm learning some interesting things about painting. I'm documenting them so that I'll remember not to repeat the mistakes AGAIN.

1. Wear old scarf in hair. I have paint at the end of my ponytail from where I've turned my head in a small, confined place.

2. Wear shoes. Because it is the bathroom, we had to move the toilet to paint the wall behind it. I don't know if you've ever moved the toilet in your house before, but when you move a toilet it smells very bad (plus it's my boys' bathroom- if you catch my drift) and there's "liquid" that seeps from the inside of the toilet onto the floor. I was wearing shoes, but I spilled paint onto them (number three coming up) and took them off to rinse them and then promptly stepped in "liquid seepage" and closed my eyes in disgust. Niiiice.

3. Do not place tray of paint precariously on the edge of the tub. This may seem obvious, but apparently it did not occur to me at the time. And then it fell over. Butter side down, of course.

4. Do not use the edge of tub as a step ladder. This may also seem obvious, especially because I'm a wee bit accident prone, but I'm content standing on my tippy-toes to reach the wall above the tub. I did come downstairs to get my phone though, in the hopes that, if I did fall, I would be conscious enough to call 911. Isn't that a good idea?

There. Documented. Now I'm going up for coat number two. And some bleach to clean up the seepage.

While I'm Avoiding Pilates...

2009-05-08T05:33:00.002-05:00

Yes. It's true. I got up at 4:45am to do pilates and have sat my booty at the computer instead. I am sipping coffee (with Creme Brulee creamer... mmmm), and mulling the fact that I am, in fact, avoiding the Windsor Pilates lady and she's sobbing in her DVD box.

We are in the process of repainting (hello and thank you to Heather and Crissy who SURPRISED me with their presence for my birthday and helped me paint the living room! We had great fun!), fixing, and (perhaps) laying the Pergo flooring before my family comes up to visit in two weeks. While you may raise your eyebrows in apparent disbelief over my monumental chore list that I put off to the last minute, I scoff at your disbelief in loftiness and snobbery. I work better under pressure. Ish. Of course, I am not laying the floors (ha), but I have learned to paint (also ish) and have just a wee bit of guilt of asking my husband if we can do this and that while he's preparing for finals. More scoffing by you? Well, I ask of you, which is more important: The house being done to perfection before my family gets here in two weeks or Quinn finishing well in his classes? er... Don't answer that.

I've also been mulling over smells. Now, if you know me at all, you know my fascination with different smells. This smells bad (ew, smell it! Um, ok!), this smells good (sniff... ah!), what can this smell be (hmmmm...). I've been reading Rebeccah's stuff on living a simpler life (check it out), which also equals living a cheaper life ("cheaper" almost outweighing my weird "smelling" thing), so I have been enamered with making my own shampoo, deodorant, yogurt, and toothpaste. I have not actually done these things yet. I think about it and think it would be good. And really, the only thing that is stopping me is smells. I like the smell of brown sugar shampoo and Dove soap. I love standing in the deodorant aisle at the store, agonizing over which deodorant I should pick. And don't get me started with shampoo and hair products. I prefer to go to the store by myself when I'm picking out these things so that I can stand there as long as I wish to pick out the most perfect smelling item. So, I have my dilemma. Cheap versus smelling really good. I shall mull still.

I have two weeks left of school.

I'm going to start food journaling again. (I need more obsessions)

The clock is chiming 6:00am and I must get started with my smells....

DivaCup

2009-04-20T19:49:00.004-05:00

I'm sorry. I usually don't post stuff like this, but I thought it was, um, interesting. Maybe a little gross. Well, since my husband ran screaming from the room when I said, "Hey, check this out", I'm guessing it's not at all a point of "interest" for men. And a lot gross.

I, however, am intrigued. Check it out.
By the way, it's for a woman's monthly, just so you know. Perverts.

Creature of Habit (Well, I want to be, anyhow)

2009-04-03T10:20:00.003-05:00

I mentioned in yesterday's post that I made lists that included me peeling wallpaper. Well, I find myself making lists everyday now. Different lists: grocery lists, organization lists, to-do lists, idea lists, weekend lists, etc. I find myself looking forward to writing them. More so than actually accomplishing the tasks on the list.
Currently I'm writing this list:

Weekend List:

buy birthday present for a birthday party tomorrow (creative ideas?)
take out spring/summer wardrobe for everybody
deep clean upstairs and downstairs
and, of course, the everpresent: PEEL WALLPAPER in upstairs bathroom

I'd like to transfer my desire of MAKING lists to actually ACCOMPLISHING them (especially that BATHROOM!). At least I feel like I'm getting SOMETHING done if I write down what I want to do. Maybe if I set a timer that would help.

Spring Fever Makes Me Cranky.

2009-04-02T10:21:00.003-05:00

Feeling overly critical.

Burnt out from school. Don't think I could have a jobby-job where I didn't have a summer break. I'm longing for it.

Really want to paint rooms in my house. That, of course, must come AFTER I peel wallpaper. Hmmm. I keep writing "peel wallpaper" on lists, almost as an afterthought. It's not working. I ignore it just as well if it's written down.

Haven't taken the Spring Clothes out. Need to. Silas has finally outgrown size 5 shorts; he turns 7 in two weeks (hello, WOW). Poor baby, he looks like a ragamuffin. I usually love taking out my spring clothes, it's like a surprise from last year.

I just finished the Twilight series. I have a hard time reading what I term "Hype" books, because I usually don't get the hype or I think it's over-hyped. Twilight is a BIT over-hyped (admit it!). It's not the greatest writing and Bella is an annoying character. I didn't like her until the fourth book, when she finally developed into a strong character. However, the story was a bit addictive and I read it in every moment of my spare time. The movie was... okay. I'm hearing all of my Twilight "Fanatic" Friends howling (forgive my pun) at my critique, but I did read it. So, um, there.

What shall I read now? Help me. Even if you hate my critique.

Time for lunch.

Brian Regan on Flying

2009-03-21T15:40:00.001-05:00

Love. So funny. Nearly peed my pants watching him with the girls the other night.

"It comes with a turnip and a spork."

Tim Hawkins Scary Bedtime Prayer

2009-03-12T19:20:00.001-05:00

I've been obsessed with this guy today. Laughing, laughing, laughing... still laughing...
This one is BY FAR my favorite. His scary face is solid.

Soup de Jour

2009-03-01T11:14:00.003-06:00

Quinn and I have fallen into the glorious habit of cooking together. I enjoy this immensely; we spend time together, chopping vegetables and stirring our concoctions with anticipation. Concoctions, you say? Yes. We've learned, over the past couple of years with a slim purse, how to cook cheaply and there's nothing cheaper to make than soup. Spicy Black-Eyed Pea Soup, Black Bean Soup, Pinto Bean Soup, Chicken and Rice Soup, Taco Soup, Tortilla Soup, name it and we come up with something. Not having all of the ingredients for the soup never bothers me, what does an Internet recipe know anyway? So we make do, come up with delicious alternatives, and then I promptly never think to write it down. If you have broth, veggies, a leetle bit of meat (though not always required), and a cupboard full of spices, then you can make a delicious concoction yourself. Shaun, Virginia's husband, once said that he hated to bake because it required too exact of measurements, when, with cooking you really can do just what you like to make it taste as you like. I've come to believe him, though I've not always thought that it was so. Why would you change a perfectly good recipe?
Well, it started when I never had the EXACT amount of ingredients for this recipe or that recipe, or if I was missing an ingredient entirely. I used to dismiss the recipe altogether, but then I thought, "why not try it without that". This led to, "but I don't like that, what if I did this instead?" Now, I've nearly become too arrogant (say it ain't so) with my liberations with recipes. Or, perhaps I should say that we (hubby and myself) have become too liberal because we usually make the soups together. Though, I prefer to call it scientific (doesn't that sound better?). We test things and glory in our success. And soups are usually very successful because you can always add more broth or spices or veggies or whathaveyou to ensure the success.
You may be saying to yourself, "But I could never do that! What if I get it wrong? I don't know even how to start!" Well, my dear reader, why am I blogging about it? Surely not to gloat in your face! I, in my soup knowledge arrogance, will help you get started.

First: A lot of our soups are chicken based. Cooking a whole chicken is cheap (a heckuva lot cheaper than just cooking chicken breasts) and then you have your own chicken stock. You can accomplish this by boiling a chicken until the juices run clear, but I loathe the smell of boiling chicken and prefer to roast mine. Just throw the chicken in a roasting pan, fill the pan halfway with water and season the top of the chicken with whatever spices make you happy. We usually use garlic salt (because it is always here). Bake at 350 degrees for approximately two hours, or until juices run clear. Save the liquid (hello, chicken stock) in a covered container until you are ready to use. I can usually get about 6 cups of cooked meat off a whole chicken and I store them in Ziploc bags until I'm ready to use them. For those in a time pinch, get a rotisserie chicken from the store. Of course, you don't have to use chicken. You could use beef or bacon or ham. Or be vegetarian. You are the boss!

Secondly: Flavor. So you've made your chicken, and you've learned how to cut the meat off the bone and save the broth for your soup experimenting. Now, let's think of the beginning of the soup. Flavor is the key, which is monumental in most recipes (who wants a flavorless meal?). We always (always, always, always) start any soup recipe (and many other recipes as well) with a whole chopped onion and minced garlic (yes, Shaun, it's fresh). If I have celery, then I chop some of that, too. Saute onion and garlic (and celery) with Extra Virgin Olive Oil until it is tender. Doing this at the beginning enhances the flavor of your soup and nearly ensures your success with experimenting. These ingredients are always at our house; they are like milk and bread.

Thirdly: The stuff in it. After sauteing your onion and such, pour in your chicken stock. I always pour in a box (32 oz) of chicken broth, too (unless, of course, your base is beef-then use beef broth... Vegetarian broth is also handy if that's your preference) to increase the amount of soup. You can use water and chicken bouillon as well. Then comes the stuff in it. You can use as much or as little chicken as you like (I used about a cup of chicken in our soup today, and just cut it very small to stretch it) and then dumped whatever my little head desired in the pot. I had a hankering (shutup, I live in MS) for artichoke hearts (yum) and decided to base my recipe around that. I cut up a can of the hearts with the chicken and dumped them in the pot. Then comes the real dumping. Let's see, I put in raw broccoli and spinach today, two cans of Northern Beans, and the chicken and artichoke hearts. The beauty of soup experimentation is that you get to decide what you want! The consistency was to my preference (it can be thin or thick) and so then I went to spices. Spices are VERY important. You could really use salt and pepper if that's what you have, but why not mix it up a bit? My standard favorite spices to add to any soup are cumin, red pepper, ground mustard, and italian seasoning. I'll start off with a teaspoon of each, then judge how I like the taste. Sometimes I'll add curry, chili powder, or cajun seasoning to spice things up a bit. And then I'll add salt to taste. I've also replaced a taco seasoning packet for my favorite spices or add a Ranch packet to make things a bit creamier.

Lastly: the rolling boil. After all ingredients are in the pot, we turn the heat on high and let it boil for about 10 minutes, stirring the whole time to ensure the soup not burning. Then we let is simmer for however long we need it to. The longer it simmers, the better the flavor is. Serve it up with whatever you like.

Ideas: Since the beginning process is very similiar everytime we cook (the sauteing and such), only the stuff in it changes. Here are some ideas to change things up:

Taco Soup: 1 can each kidney beans, pinto beans, black beans, corn, Rotel tomatoes and diced tomatoes. Add taco packet (and Ranch, if you want) as seasoning.

Bean Soup: Add four cans pinto beans, 1 can spaghetti sauce (we use Hunts), and can diced tomatoes. Season as you like. This was one of my favorite soups ever. We used a lot of Italian Seasoning

Vegetable Dump: This is fun! Take whatever leftovers you have (yes seriously) and dump it in the pot. Add cans of whatever to stretch the soup. Season as desired.

Spicy Black-Eyed Pea Soup: This one I've used for a long time and used to have a recipe for it, but it's long gone. I just go by memory now. 4 cans black-eyed peas, 2 cans tomatoes (I use one Rotel and one diced plain). Use 1 to 1 1/2 tsps of cumin, curry, ground mustard, and chili powder. We usually (though not always) saute 1/2 pound of bacon in the pot and then and then saute onions and garlic in the bacon fat. Mmmmmm.... This is in lieu of sauteing with olive oil, though you may choose to do that instead. This is a spicy one, but my kids gobble it up! They like it with the chopped bacon (that you cooked at the beginning), shredded cheese and a spoonful of sour cream. This is the soup pictured at the top of this post.

Fillers: Adding 1 cup of uncooked rice or 1 to 2 cups of dry pasta before you boil the soup will stretch your meal. Or, as Crissy Sharp says, "Put a can of corn in it." I like to say that with an extra thick southern accent. Because it's fun.

Experimentation is fun! Give it a go.

Ash Wednesday

2009-02-25T05:38:00.003-06:00

Today is Ash Wednesday. Last year, we were at Community Presbyterian (home church in AL), had a pancake supper with our congregation on Tuesday night, which was followed by information about Lent. My husband helped plan this meeting and I was planning Lent Sunday School lessons and the preparation of our hearts for Easter in Sunday School (teaching 4k and 5K). We've done this the past few years, and last year was the first year our church observed it together. I loved it. My jogging group would talk about the gospel during our runs and our general need for Christ, sometimes with tears and broken hearts. There's something about giving up something you enjoy (that may be very hard to do), to make you see your own lack of self-worth. It's very introspective. It's meant to be.

This year, I didn't even really think about it until yesterday, when I arrived at work and everyone was wearing Mardi Gras beads (apparently, Mardi Gras is a big deal in Jackson, MS), and the children made masks and such in their classes. Double blink. How could I forget? I enjoyed it so much last year. Did I enjoy it because I was participating with my husband and a group of good friends? Did I enjoy it because I participated in giving up something that I loved? Was my own self-righteousness the reason why I loved Lent last year? Pause... Our church does not "do" Lent here (as a whole- maybe some families do it independently) and Quinn has been swamped with schoolwork and has not thought about it. Guilt.

I loathe seeing my own self-righteousness.

And yet, seeing it breaks me and points me to the cross. My heart is filled with selfish ambition and my own self-importance. Lent is never about me. It's about Christ and me seeing my need for Him.

Love It

2009-02-23T06:17:00.001-06:00

see more pwn and owned pictures

LOL. Can you see this happening? I can and it makes me laugh harder.

Reflections of a Human

2009-02-16T08:09:00.003-06:00

We went to Birmingham this weekend for our church's 25th anniversary. It was lovely. I'm sad the weekend went by so fast.

There are a hundred things whirling about in my wee brain, but I shall not wax eloquent (ha) on them this morning (class starts in 20 minutes). Instead, I will give you, in question form, a tidbit (if you will) of my thoughts.

Seminary time is a strange time. We're living completely different lives than we used to. How will this reflect on our future? Will this play out in our ministry?

Am I really going to be a pastor's wife someday? The thought of that makes me tear up and want to throw my head in my hands and sob. I don't feel like I'm cut out for the job. And yet, it appears that it will happen. Husband will be a peach of pastors. And I shall be his liability.

Crow's feet is making me angry. My vanity is an absolute idol. How can I be a leader and yet have so many things that I worship other than God? Be honest. I cast it off as "obsessive compulsive" (eating, laundry, exercise, appearance, performance), but is it really that I'm building my own dissolving, crumbling, imperfect kingdom? There is such a fine line between being healthy and being obsessed. I never walk that line. I think about it and jump right into obsessiveness.

Where will we live when we go back to Birmingham?

Will I have another baby? Or two?

Am I really thinking about going back to school this summer? Because I sure am procrastinating on getting things started.

Rachel, Rachel, Rachel... What will she do? Who will she marry? Where will she live? She is our girl, though I never birthed her. I watch her with interest and fear.

My heart is full and there are tears behind my eyes. Life is unsure, though I'm pretty sure of my calling. Why did He choose me for this purpose? I am unworthy of the calling.

Valentime's Day

2009-02-07T06:20:00.002-06:00

Have you ever noticed that a lot of children will say ValentiMe's Day instead of ValentiNe's Day? If you haven't noticed, then I'm telling you, THEY DO. It must be easier to pronounce the M instead of the N. Well, this fact has not escaped my music teacher at school (she's a smart cookie), who integrated spelling the word Valentine out loud with the children and having the children practice pronouncing in together for her lesson this week. It would go a little bit like this:

"Boys and girls, why are we singing songs about 'being my Valentine'?"

All together, with big smiles and sparkling eyes, "Because it's close to Valentime's Day!"

"Yes. Boys and Girls, let's look at this chart together. Spell Valentine with me." She uses and pointer and points to each letter as the children spell it with her. "V-A-L-E-N-T-I-N-E." Big smiles. "Yes. Very good. Tell me, boys and girls, is there an M in that word?"

"Noooooo." Big smiles.

"You're right. There is no M in the word Valentine. We don't say, 'Val-en-tiiimme'. There is no M. Watch my lips, boys and girls: Vaaalll-ennn-tiiinne. Don't put your lips together at the end of the word. Vaaalll-ennn-tiiinne. Can you try that?"

"Vaaalll-ennn-tiiiMMe."

"No, boys and girls, not 'mmmm', 'nnnn'. Don't put your lips together. Try to say 'nnnn'."

"nnnnnnn."

"Very good. Now let's try to say Vaaalll-ennn-tiiinne."

"Vaaaallll-ennn-tiiiNNe."

"Very good!" She points to a picture of a Valentine Mailbox on the poster. "Boys and girls can you tell me what this is?" Hands shoot up. She calls on a child.

"It's a Valentime Mail Box!!!"

Sigh...

The DOOM of the Squirrel

2009-02-03T05:35:00.006-06:00

This past weekend, Quinn decided to clean out the fireplace. We've not lit a fire in it this winter because it was advised that we wait to get it cleaned first. We called a couple of chimney sweepers (cue Dick van Dike image from Mary Poppins) and, WOW!, they are not cheap (cue Dick van Dike image with angry eyebrows holding out his hand for money)). So, Quinn decided that he would give it a go. He's handy and he's cheap (in a good way) and I have full confidence in his abilities. It's a very messy job (I sat, invisible, on the couch, reading a book), but I think he actually liked getting dirty. While he was sitting on the hearth, cleaning out the inside of the fireplace, he opened the grate (???) to let things that might've gotten trapped up there fall to the bottom. And then, THUMP, a THING lands in the bottom of the fireplace. A dead thing. That used to be alive. Sad story. The previous weekend, we had heard much loud (very loud) scratching from the top of the fireplace, and since we didn't really know how to get the critter out, we just hoped that he would figure it out himself (he got in, didn't he?). Yeah, he didn't make it.

Poor little guy. The children were nearly in tears, but Daddy quickly took care of the deceased squirrel and finished cleaning the fireplace. After I took a picture, of course. Morbid.
But see? Now we have a working fireplace. And I am happy. Because the living room is the coldest room in the whole house.

Thee End.

All Aboard the Sarcasm Train (choo!choo!)

2009-02-02T19:29:00.002-06:00

Here we are, in the middle of winter and my seasonal depression crap has kicked in full force. I'm weepy and depressed and really could just do with some warmer temps and some flip flops without my little piggies turning into ice cubes. I realize that I'm in Mississippi and you folks up in those colder states are pointing and laughing at me. And perhaps even (gasp!)scoffing at me. Show me some sympathy! I grew up in Florida and this time of year, my little Floridian heart longs for the warm sun (yeah, don't ask me about being a Floridian in August- I'll deny it- the sun will melt the hair off your head). My best defense against the winter blues (besides driving my husband crazy with incessant tears) is sarcasm.

We celebrated Groundhog Day today at school and will celebrate it the whole week by singing joyous Groundhog Day songs and reading ancient Groundhog Day stories at school. What? Did you NOT celebrate Punxsatawney Phil emerging his tiny, rodent head out of the ground? Well THAT is a travesty.

Of course, this holiday (snort) shall be IMMEDIATELY followed by Valentine's Day, oh the day that made Hallmark stores what they are today. I will make 60 Valentine's Day cards this weekend (possibly 70!) and make four dozen cupcakes next week for school parties. And sing Valentine's songs aplenty.

And, OF COURSE, that will be immediately followed by President's Day. Do you have your President's Day cards filled out and ready to mail? I'm a little behind on that right now. You know, I may not actually get those out this year. Wipe your tears.

Contrary to my previous statements, I actually am enjoying these events. It will make February go by quickly and March brings (ta-dah!) Spring!! And Spring Break! And Daffodils! And Cherry Blossoms! And open-toed sandals! Well, maybe not open-toed sandals in March (a mistake I make every year), but there will be a lot more open-window days. Sigh.

Off to get a blanket for my frozen piggies...

An excerpt from The Bells by Edgar Allen Poe

2009-01-28T17:42:00.004-06:00

Hear the loud alarum bells -
Brazen bells!
What a tale of terror, now, their turbulency tells!
In the startled ear of night
How they scream out their affright!
Too much horrified to speak,
They can only shriek, shriek,
Out of tune,
In a clamorous appealing to the mercy of the fire,
In a mad expostulation with the deaf and frantic fire,
Leaping higher, higher, higher,
With a desperate desire,
And a resolute endeavor
Now - now to sit, or never,
By the side of the pale - faced moon.
Oh, the bells, bells, bells!
What a tale their terror tells
Of Despair!
How they clang, and clash and roar!
What a horror they outpour
On the bosom of the palpitating air!
Yet the ear, it fully knows,
By the twanging,
And the clanging,
How the danger ebbs and flows;
Yet the ear distinctly tells,
In the jangling,
And the wrangling,
How the danger sinks and swells,
By the sinking or the swelling in the anger of the bells -
Of the bells -
Of the bells, bells, bells, bells,
Bells, bells, bells -
In the clamor and the clanging of the bells!

Read the whole poem here.
There are four parts to this poem by Poe. This is my favorite excerpt; the other two are about jolly jingle bells (woah), happy wedding bells (but you know death will be a part of it somewhere), and death bells tolling (ding, ding!). My heart started to race as I read this section; I just sensed the apprehension of waiting to find out just what WAS the emergency in which the bells were sounding? I love it when he writes:

...Of the bells- Of the bells, bells, bells, bells, bells, bells, bells-

I can hear his agitation and panic. And madness, let's not forget madness. Love it.
Just in case you didn't know... Edgar Allen Poe's birthday was January 19, 1809 (this, of course, bears a strange coincidence to it being my brother-in-law's birthday-he can do a great, ominous laugh, btw). This is the 200th anniversary of the year of his birth. There are celebrations the whole year through! You know what that means, don't you? That we will celebrate here, on my blog. Oh yeah, I'll wait for you to stop leaping for joy.

Happy Birthday, Poe. Dude, I love your stuff.

Twenty-five

2009-01-24T10:53:00.002-06:00

Love these things. I recently did this for Facebook and thought I would post it here. Consider yourself tagged.

1. I'm way more girly than I used to be. I Love jewelry, make-up, high heels (with cool hose or tights), interesting color combos, and jackets (year round).
2. I loathe winter though I love winter clothes (scarves and a vintage leather Agner trench I adore).
3. I've just started (in the past year or so) reading the "classics". I refused to read them in high school because I didn't want someone to tell me what to read. I used Cliff's Notes. Cheater, cheater pumpkin eater.
4. Come to think of it, I cheated a lot in high school. My mother is so proud. Stop cringing, Mother.
5. The older I get, the more OCD I get. About everything. Don't get me started on laundry.
6. Alright, you got me started. All the laundry must be clean, all the time. It doesn't have to be folded and put away, but it does have to smell good. I must smell every piece of laundry as I fold it. Sniff, mmmm. Sniff, mmmm. Sniff, mmmm. Some of you know this and are rolling your eyes right now.
7. I have very vivid dreams and nightmares. Sometimes, I wake up and don't know where I am. And I scare the crap out of my husband with screams or sobbing.
8. I love chocolate (if you've known me for ANY length of time, then you know this), but I cannot eat it anymore because I think it is linked to me having dizzy spells (what? I can say "dizzy spells" like an old lady) and headaches.
9. I. Want. To. Have. More. Babies.
10. I enjoy cooking. A lot more than I did than when I got married. I was a tad bit intimidated of my in-laws and their ability to cook amazing southern food. I think we had been married for three years when I ventured to be brave enough to try a recipe on my own.
11. I'm incredibly lazy, which is why Facebook is so appealing. It's pretending to do something, while you're really just being very, VERY lazy. "Hmmm, I think I'll look at Flair and give it to somebody. They will love it. I'm so productive." Flair is fun.
12. I love pretending to be the bad guy. I love to do an evil laugh (bwahahaha) and tap my fingers evil-ly. Especially with my children, who like to run from the room, screaming. Need a baby sitter?
13. I wish I could play the guitar. I can't get past the whole "wow, my fingers are really bleeding" thing.
14. I christmas-treed the SAT's in high school. Yeah, I didn't do very well on it. Wait, I only did that on the math part. There, that makes it better.
15. I don't like taking prescription medication. I think it's because I have a bit (BIT) of an addictive personality.
16. I never smoked weed. I did smoke two clove cigarettes in college (Yes, Bible college) and got as sick as a dog. I'm talking green and laying on the bathroom floor kind of sick. Never cared much for the smell of cloves after that.
17. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I just love to dress up and pretend. I never really grew out of that.
18. I'm a wee bit morbid. It kind of goes with that "I like to pretend I'm the bad guy" thing. And I adore Edgar Allen Poe. By the way, did you know that January is his birthday month? It's true. I'm gonna have to do something about that.
19. I know a lot of information about Ted Bundy. A lot. Yes, the serial killer.
20. I want to lose ten pounds. Never satisfied with my weight. Pretty frustrating, actually.
21. I'm going to bleach my sheets today. I LOOOOOOVE the smell of bleached sheets. Sniff, mmmm.
22. I've learned to love running. But you may be bored hearing about that by now. "yeah, yeah, we know. You love to run. Shutup."
23. I wish I were more disciplined with stuff. And not so lazy.
24. I want to make the goal to be three inches taller. Yes.
25. I'm only motivated to clean my house when there are people coming over. And there are. In about five hours. Toodles.

Five Things I Thought Were True About Running

2009-01-20T15:44:00.004-06:00

1. Fancy, shmancy running clothes make you faster. While this is not true, they do make you look cooler and that counts for something. For me anyway. Because I'm a vain peacock.

2. It looks painful. Or beautiful. Depending on who you watch run. I probably look like I'm in pain, especially if I'm singing a lil' ditty.

3. It is a good way to get in shape. This is true, but not in the way I'm thinking. I'm thinking I should look like Kate
by now (duh, from Lost), but I don't. I'm thinking she probably exercises a LOT more than I do and generally eats less. And she definitely has cooler hair. No, I'm NOT jealous. Okay, maybe a little. (Hello, THIS WEEK is the season premiere!)

4. It's boring. It's not boring. I actually, ahem, like it. And like it more every week that I do it. It's alone time, chatting time (with Melanie- we run together twice a week), laughing time (alone and with Melanie- yeah, sometimes I look crazy), and a time for me to think and process and recover and contemplate and be goal-oriented and be thankful and be mad and be happy and be curious and think about my humanity.

5. You'll grow to hate it. Not so. I've grown to love it and look forward to it. To feel sweaty, feel my feet beat the pavement, feel my arms swing, to go slow, to go fast- I feel very human and very alive.

Here's a great way to start.

Cock-a-doodle-doo

2009-01-18T14:59:00.002-06:00

Daddy and Felix have a conversation.

Daddy: "Hey, Sweet Cheex Beex!" He says this in his "I'm talking to the kids voice", which is so cute.

Felix: "I not a sweet cheex, Daddy. I a big boy."

Daddy: "Well, you're a silly goose!"

Felix: "I not a silly goose, Daddy. You don't hear me cock-a-doodle-do, do ya?"

I guess not.

Wearing Pink

2009-01-15T10:59:00.002-06:00

I'm sporting pink today, in honor of Magdalena. She passed away on Monday morning in her Momma and Daddy's arms. Magdalena had Edward's Syndrome. Her Mom, Julia, started keeping a blog in May of 2008, after she was told that her baby she was carrying was going to be born with Edward's. Go here to read her story. Quinn shares a class with Noah, Magdalena's Daddy, and has admired his courage and his faith in the Sustainer of our strength.

Today is the funeral. They've requested people attending the funeral wear pink, in honor of their precious baby girl. I'm not able to go, but am there in spirit.
Pray with me as they go through their grief.

Cake Withdrawal

2009-01-14T16:47:00.002-06:00

So...

I feel a lot better.

The vertigo has gone away, for the most part (I still have occasional twinges). I'm so glad.

I miss cake.

Proof A Photo Can Haunt You

2009-01-11T13:56:00.004-06:00

Can you find me? Yeah, the creepy lookin' one. Please note: all the other girls are smiling (my sister-in-law, Kerri, on the far right-standing). I am not smiling. I am intimidating. And apparently modeling the most awesome hairstyle ever.

This is from Camp Ikthus, maybe in '97 or '98. We dressed that way (what way??) for Kangaroo Court. I loved it. I'm sure there are more of these out there.

Fun times.
Love it, LOVE it, LOVE THE CAMERA!

Self-Diagnosed

2009-01-11T07:18:00.004-06:00

The scan was clear.

We found out Friday afternoon that the scan was clear, which is good news (duh), but that leaves me still feeling dizzy and not knowing why.

I talked to the nurse, who seemed at a loss for words (did she want the scan to NOT be clear???). She said, "Well, do you want to come back in?". Um, why? I told her I would call them back if I wanted to talk to the doctor or if I needed a referral to see an ENT (ear, nose, and throat specialist). (Don't call us, we'll call you). I started thinking (ouch, OUCH!), and was determined to figure this thing out myself. At this point (around 4:00 Friday afternoon), I was actually feeling okay (the headache did not have its vice grips on anymore) and the dizzy "cloud" (that's what it kind of feels like in front of my eyes) had lessened.

So....what was the difference? I had taken a Meclizine pill (the prescribed medication for dizziness), which might have helped, but I had still been feeling bad three hours after I had taken it that morning. The only other thing I had done differently that morning was sliver off chocolate cake periodically throughout the morning. Pause... And I had eaten a fat slab of it the night before... and the night before that. And woke up feeling wretched the two mornings in a row after consuming it. Hmmm... Maybe it had something to do with sugar overload. I did google "can sugar contribute to dizziness?" and saw chat rooms and web sites where people were talking about that. Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) can cause dizziness and such and it does run in my family, but I didn't think that it would carry on for two weeks. However, I decided to limit (cutting way back) on my sugar over the next few days to see what would happen. On Friday night, I didn't have any dessert, and woke up Saturday without the hangover-type headache I had woken up with the prior two days, though the dizziness "cloud" was still there (but to a much lesser degree than the day before). I took another Meclizine, had an egg for breakfast (instead of cereal), and started taking a vitamin supplement called lipo-flavonoid (I picked it up at CVS), which is supposed to help with "inner ear health" and Meniere's disease (Jan, you should check this out!). By Saturday afternoon, I felt almost completely better. The dizziness cloud was gone and my headache was minuscule.

I will continue to lower my sugar intake and take the supplements for the remainder of this week to see how it goes. This morning I woke up with a little bit of the "cloud", but no headache.

I know you all are hanging on a thread waiting to see what will happen.

"Oh no, no chocolate cake? Whatever will she do? I just can't wait to see what happens this week with her new diet! This is so exciting."

I know, that's you. You'll just have to wait and see.

What Am I Doing Right Now?

2009-01-09T10:06:00.003-06:00

...Listening to my Pandora station

...Running white vinegar through my dishwasher to help dishes not be "cloudy"

...bleaching my sheets because of a disasterous nosebleed Silas had. He kinda freaks when he sees blood. He rarely cries if he's injured, but if he sees blood (even if he's not injured), he totally freaks. The spray of blood on my sheets looks suspicious. Hopefully CSI won't come with one of their blue-light thingy-s (official name) to find blood. Well, hopefully they won't come at all. I'm guessing they won't. No murders here, lately.

...putting away a mound of laundry that looks suspiciously like I'm hiding something under. Like a dead body. The red chair in my bedroom attracks laundry.

I swear I'm not hiding a dead body.

What the heck? I must have CSI on the brain.

...comtemplating the CT Scan today, which I've come to believe will be a complete waste of time. And money. But we're going anyway.

...wearing pajamas, because I'm home from work. I like being home.

...packing for Grandma's, because we're going this afternoon to pick up Cheex (that's Felix), who's been with Grandmother this week. I've missed him so much.

...diagnosing myself, because I'm an expert at such things. I believe I have Benign Positional Vertigo, which (I remembered today - would've probably been helpful information yesterday at the doctor's office), that I was diagnosed with this 10 years ago. The exercises are what is horrid about the recovery.

...unless, of course, I have Meniere's Disease, which means I'll treat symptoms forever.

...Either one has no preventable measures. Unless you count "avoid head injuries", as preventable. Which I can't and can't.
What can I say? I'm clumsy.

...thinking about going to chiropractor to see if he can do something with my ear crystals. Sounds weird, but several people have mentioned it, and I've been reading about it today. And, call me crazy (too late), but I'm tired of being dizzy. And headachy. And nauseated.

...sigh... need to go finish get ready for stuff.

Results?

2009-01-08T16:54:00.003-06:00

So I went to the doctor today.

Long story (very, very long) short, I've got Vertigo.

Ta-dah.

Also, for your information, I'm not pregnant, I don't have high blood sugar, my blood pressure is a-okay, and, in general, I'm the picture of health.

Except for the nagging Vertigo symptoms, I'm topnotch.

The doctor was concerned about my Vertigo symptoms because there was no sign of why I should have them (usually, this time of year, Vertigo is accompanied with fluid behind the ears because of colds and/or allergies). So, he decided I should have a CT Scan.

Ahem.

I'm sure everything is fine. Though, there is a slight discomforting feeling when the doctor says, "I kinda wish I DID see something in your blood tests."

What does that mean?

He actually was very kind; thorough and gentle. I liked him.

Tomorrow I go get the CT Scan.

Today I'm taking medicine to help with the Vertigo. It's helping. A bit.

Here's to being normal soon. For me anyway.

Randomology

2009-01-06T19:47:00.002-06:00

I like eggs, but I don't like the smell of them cooking (until they are done) or the smell they have as they are washing in the dishwasher. Bleah.

The same goes with ground beef.

I always like the smell of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil, for those who aren't in the know. like me). I like the smell of it cooking or straight from the bottle. It just smells good.

The same goes with shampoo. Except that I never cook shampoo.

On Tuesdays, I eat lunch with Silas and his class at school. I get asked a lot of interesting questions, like today when little Joshua said, "Hey, Mrs. Hill, do you want to see how I can flatten my cheeseburger to make a pancake?" Ugh. No, but thank you for checking. Also, if children ask you, "Mrs. Hill, do you want to see us race to see who can drink our milk the fastest?", the correct answer is "no", otherwise I cannot be responsible for what you see coming out a six-year old's nose and mouth.

I still have Vertigo symptoms. Annoying, annoying, ANNOYING. I'm almost ready to go to the Doctor. Almost. I loathe a co-pay. And taking medicine. And going to the doctor to have them tell me, "Yes, ma'am, I'm afraid you have Vertigo. There's really not much you can do about it, but thanks for stopping by. Will that be debit or credit?" Or, even worse, to have them tell me (like a doctor did ten years ago when I had inner-ear Vertigo in college), "This is what I want you to do. Sit down in a chair and vigorously shake your head back and forth and up and down for thirty seconds. Then, immediately stop and focus on an object in the room. Do this three times a day. This will re-train your brain to not have Vertigo." And also make me throw-up. A lot. It's torture. I did it the other night (sheer desperation), and then slept for twelve hours after I couldn't open my eyes from the migraine headache it produced.

So, that being said, I'm afraid I'm going to be one of those old people who has to tell you all of my aches and pains. I don't want to be that way. So, nix the previous paragraph, unless you already read it, then, um, I'm sorry. Just pray I don't get pregnant while I have a blog. You're in for it then. I'm not a pleasant pregnant person. Alternate personality takes over.

Yawn. Well, my goodness, it's 8:07pm and I'm pooped out. Off to bed.

Resolving to be a Resolver

2009-01-03T07:16:00.003-06:00

It's misty, humid, and gray outside. Supposed to rain all day. Matches my mood. The house is a total wreck, my Christmas decorations are up still, and I have three packed suitcases that need to be unpacked. I'm dizzy (though I feel there is improvement in this area-finally) and unmotivated. I haven't exercised in a week (because of dizziness, throwing up, and the like) and it sends my wee neurotic brain into overdrive.

And I'm reading all over about New Year's Resolutions.

There is something about them that appeals to me. Starting fresh, making a list, checking it twice, gonna find out who's naughty and nice (wait a sec- sidetracked). So that appeals to me, until I think about when I fail (which I inevitably will, because I'm a human being TA-DAH) and then I'm not interested in making the list at all. I hate looking at a list I've not completed. It reminds me that I'm a loser.

So if I were to make a list, it would be the total loser list of things I can accomplish in one day. Or something I already have accomplished, like "quit smoking". Well, I don't smoke so I can check it off. Or "be neurotic about laundry". Well, looky here, I AM neurotic about the laundry. Check. Or "lose 10 more pounds". See, that one just annoys me because I've been on a diet (ish) forever (like since I was a preteen) and it's never really accomplished because I'm never (ever) satisfied with my weight. Even if I did lose ten more pounds, then I would wonder how difficult it would be to lose five more. Grrrr.

It's interesting that I do accomplish things. I can run four to six miles at a time. I've been able to stabilize my weight for approximately four and a half years (not including pregnancy). I've become more organized (no, really) out of necessity and I'm not a complete slob (unless I'm sick - like now). I love to take pictures, and I see marked improvement in that area. I've become more confident in teaching about music and I try a lot of different recipes that would've scared me to try five years ago. See, I'm counting up all of my righteous accomplishments. Aren't I good?

Life is messy. Life is unpredictable. And I can't make a list of resolutions that will fail. It reminds me of my own humanity. And, quite frankly, I don't want to be reminded. Reminding me of my own humanity makes me realize that I need Jesus. I can't do jack on my own. I like to do things on my own. It's fun. And rewarding. And makes me a tad bit arrogant in my own failing skin. And though it's accomplished, it's flanked with failure, because I'm HUMAN.

So maybe I do need to make a list. Purposely reminding me that I need Jesus. Why does my flesh fight Him? Why do I not want to remember that I'm human? Why do I want to be a superhero? I want to remember my own accomplishments, even though they are streaked with my own sin and failure.

Maybe I will make a list.
Tomorrow.

Jump Rope Fun

2009-01-02T15:15:00.009-06:00

My parents bought some outdoor fun things for the children to do while we were down there. The most popular thing that was purchased was a long strand of rope that we used for a jumprope. We took turns turning the jumprope and singing the old-school songs while the kids jumped. It was so fun!

Even Uncle Nick got in on the fun! Although he looks like he may be enjoying a leetle too much.

Waah!

2009-01-02T07:27:00.003-06:00

I've been very sick. Bleah. We are home now and I'm still recovering from what I thought was a wretched stomach bug, but am now thinking is some kind of vertigo or something. Dizzy and headachy, which came hand in hand with nausea. It made the last four days of our trip in Florida pretty miserable for me. And the trip home was like a 12 hour roller coaster (in a not good kind of way). And the baby is congested which means he pukes. A lot.

So, we're home now and recovering. I will post some pictures later from our trip. But am feeling a little dizzy right now.

Chocolate Fountain of Love

2008-12-26T00:02:00.002-06:00

We had a wonderful Christmas. There was a lot of laying around, watching mindless movies, and then partying with the family at my Aunt and Uncle's house in the evening. They had... a. chocolate. fountain. And not a rinky-dinky one either, but a beautiful one with cascades of chocolate loveliness flowing from its depths. I nearly burst into tears of joy when I saw it. And then proceeded to dip everything in my reach into its chocolaty curtains. So that you know, the following is very good dipped in chocolate:

homemade marshmellows that my uncle made
pecan pie (oh yeah)
sugar wafers (number one)
oreos (that I stole from the pantry)
chocolate chip cookies
cream puffs
crackers (I just wanted to see if it was good- it was)
nutter butters (chocolate and peanut butter? bliss)
pretzels
animal crackers (for the heck of it)
brownies (can there be too much chocolate? I think not.)

Needless to say, I'm feeling a little bit ill.

We had a great Christmas and have been enjoying my time with my family. I love to laugh with them. It's fun.

Wiping a little chocolate off of the corner of my mouth and thinking of running an extra mile in the morning...
Good night!

The Incarnation

2008-12-24T15:11:00.002-06:00

So then we confess that God fulfilled the promise which He had made to the early fathers by the mouth of His holy prophets when He sent His only and eternal Son into the world at the time set by Him.
The Son took the "form of a servant" and was made in the likeness of man, truly assuming a real human nature, with all its weaknesses, except for sin; being conceived in the womb of the blessed virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit, without male participation.
And He not only assumed human nature as far as the body is concerned but also a real human soul, in order that He might be a real human being. For since the soul had been lost as well as the body He had to assume them both to save them both together.

Article 18: The Incarnation
Belgic Confession

Merry Christmas!

We're off again!

2008-12-22T21:30:00.003-06:00

We have had a wonderful time in Birmingham. Lots of visiting, a little bit of shopping, and too much WHITE TRASH. Must cut myself off from this stuff. I just need to make a clean break of it. I can quit at any time. If I want to. Whenever I want to. No, of course I don't have any for the car ride tomorrow.

Ah, the car ride tomorrow.
Things I hope for:

No puking.
A stop at Starbucks.
No puking.
Quick stops that are decently spaced from one another.
No puking.
8 1/2 hour trip instead of 12 hours.
Which means, there must be NO PUKING.

Yeah, you can hope that for us.
Puking does make for interesting blogs though...

PS... Thanks to Scott and Melissa for housing us! We had a great time and I'm glad I got to break in your new front-loading washer and dryer that I'm so not coveting. Thanks again!

To Do List

2008-12-22T08:10:00.003-06:00

Let's see...

I'm in Birmingham and have visited Jason and Michelle (family), have attended my lovely church (Community Presbyterian), ate lunch and dinner with dear friends, have enjoyed the hospitality of the Holmes (thank you so much for the white noise machine!), have done a little bit of laundry (because I'm neurotic), and have gotten to visit with my dear Rachel (surrogate child, who is now a grown-up).

Well, the only thing that is left, dear readers, is my obsession with Big Saver Thrift Store. Bargains, here I come.

Must go get ready now...

Snacks, Tutus, and Bells

2008-12-19T04:31:00.007-06:00

*** Spirit Fingers *** Go Productivity!

I've been up since 3:30am. My brain is too busy. I want my brain to STOP being too busy. It's driving me nuts. I cannot wait to be done. Being busy. But since my brain functions on hyper-activity, it's not looking too promising. Tonight, I foresee a Benadryll cocktail coming my way. Early.

I made the cutest thing this week. I'm going to be a millionaire because of it. No, do not mock me. It is a tutu for one of my nieces. And it. is. C-UUU-TE!
Well, I should say, I cut strips of tulle and Diane did the actual "putting together". I'm a good cutter. It took six yards of tulle to make one. SIX. But it is really cute and tulle is cheap. Love it.

I've cooked about a gazillion things this week, including this delightful yumminess:
Yes, folks. That is white trash. I need to be a tad bit more obsessed with running because of it. I discovered this week that if you put a whole bunch of white trash in a big bowl to be portioned into bags for teachers "later", the white trash will be eaten. By myself. And my husband. It is gooooood. Other things I've cooked: banana nut bread (for teachers), fudge (for my grandfather and for Corin's Christmas party), and Cornbread Dressing (for the "Christmas feast" at school today). Yes, the need to run is pressing on me. I'm about to go.

Corin performed in our church's bell choir on Sunday. They did a great job. But aren't they so cute in their robes?

It was a great experience for him. He was not happy about doing it, but he did stay committed (with just a bit of "encouragement" from Mom and Dad) and he did well with his part.

Well, it's time to get this Friday started (including forcing myself to run, so that I can stop feeling guilty about it). It's going to be a looooong day. Working, baking (seriously, more baking???), shipping packages, printing pictures, wrapping presents, laundry (forever and forever), packing, de-Christmasing my house before we leave for FL (which probably won't happen), and packing clothes makes for quite a day. And two Christmas parties to boot. Which means I have to look pretty.

Here goes...

Dean and Company Christmas Special -- Toxic

2008-12-17T14:04:00.001-06:00

This airs only in Birmingham. And only at Christmastime. Every Monday night. It is physically impossible to change the channel. The words "train wreck" come to mind.

Come

2008-12-17T05:47:00.002-06:00

Come to earth to taste our sadness,
He whose glories knew no end;
by His life he brings us gladness,
Our Redeemer, Shepherd, Friend

Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus

He experienced the sadness of earth. There is insecurity here. What will happen in the future? How will He manifest His glory through me? How will I suffer? How is He making me? He knows. I do not know. There is a great deal of frustration in that. It's easy to despair. There is comfort knowing there is justice; there is satisfaction that this is not eternity. There is relief through tears; there is comraderie through grieving with believers. I am not content with this Hell on earth. I will be pleased when we are done.

Trivial Pursuit

2008-12-13T07:08:00.005-06:00

Did you know that I'm full of useless information? Yes, it's true. And I pass the savings on to you, folks. Of course, you may think "Wow, we should get her on our team to play Trivial Pursuit". Nope. I'm pretty bad at that, mostly because I do this: "What IS that called? I know the answer, I just can't THINK of it." And then my teammates say, "What good are you?" And then my feelings get hurt and then I REALLY can't remember my useless information. So don't ask me to play Trivial Pursuit. But on my own, and in conversations with people, I'm chock full of info that you don't really need to know. You may be asking, "Why Kim, how did you acquire such useless information?" Folks, let me tell you, it just happens. My brain attracts it, I decide it is interesting, and then when there is a lull in the conversation (don't like lulls), I spring something like, "Did you know that Japan's Santa is called Santa Kurousu?" And people are amazed (ish). My information benefits you. Remember and be the lull-stopper.

In Japan, celebrating Christmas is very similar to the way that Americans celebrate Valentine's Day. There is no day off for Christmas (with less than 1% of the country being Christian, it's really just not a big deal) and it's particularly important for single women to have a date. Single woman need to have a date with their sweetheart on Christmas Eve and the gift they receive is very significant of the way their sweetheart sees their future together. Store-bought Christmas cakes are purchased by every family (ordered weeks in advance) to be consumed on Christmas day, and the leftover Christmas cakes are compared to single women who couldn't get a date on Christmas Eve. Nobody wants a Christmas cake on Christmas day. It's a big joke. Doesn't it sound like a nice joke? Women who are 25 and older (and not married) are also compared to old, unsold Christmas cakes.

I've wondered since I was a little girl what the song "I saw three ships" was about. If you've never heard of it, it's a Christmas song that states:

I saw three ships come sailing in
on Christmas Day, on Christmas Day
I saw three ships come sailing in
on Christmas Day, in the morning.

There are other verses, including a reference to "and all the bells on earth shall ring on Christmas Day". This song is an old Christmas carol from England. In days of olde, before there were telephones and such, the only way an island like England could receive news was from the ships that sailed in. If there was news, then they would ring the bells on top of the ship many times, so that people could rush to the harbor to hear of whatever news there was to be heard. On Christmas, the ships that would sail in would ring their bells because it was Christmas. Yes, very interesting.

The word "ujima" (oo-ji-ma) means "work together". It's an African word. Use it in a sentence today. I know I will.

Other important things I've learned this week from working at a public school:

1. Periodically check hallways for stragglers who have somehow escaped the classline and have chosen to stay in the hallway to play with the fire extinguisher.

2. Jewish dance for a song called "Joyous Chanukah". I've performed and taught this dance at least 24 times this week.

3. I've learned how to play the "Dreidl" game. Any takers?

4. Getting out at a half day because of bad weather is an absolute nightmare. Some children (because parents either cannot be reached or do not care) are left at school anyway. And somehow, Jackson, MS escaped all snow, even though there was 2-5 inches of snow within 30 minutes of us. But we DID get PLENTY of freezing rain.

Off to a fun-filled day of grown-up time. So exciting! The kids are visiting Grandma at the "Ponderosa" (as we affectionately call it) while Daddy hunts (him kill big deer- provide meat for winter). I'm going to turn on Pandora and clean (ooo, big fun) and then go shopping. By. My. Self. Well, with my friend Diane, but by myself means without kids. Have a great Saturday!

12 Days of Christmas

2008-12-11T18:06:00.001-06:00

Have you seen this? Unbelievable and funny. Take a look!

White Trash Christmas

2008-12-11T04:23:00.003-06:00

Yesterday was Silas' teacher's birthday. Since I'm a good room mother (ha), I decided to make her a lovely little homemade goody bag. Of course, since I have approximately 12 frozen (code: frozen rotten) bananas in my freezer, banana bread is an automatic (and will probably be in her Christmas homemade goody bag as well- look, the bananas are falling out of the freezer everytime I open it). Anyhoo, when I make banana bread (this recipe is the best), I make one big loaf and three mini loaves. Mini loaves are great for teacher gifts. And because there are three, I made some for Felix's teachers, too (yesterday was his last day at lab school- which I forgot, and then remembered on Tuesday night that I should probably put a little happy together for his teachers for Christmas- yeah, no stress). So, banana bread is done, wrapped, and placed in a gift bag yesterday morning at 7am. But so was this delicious tidbit: White Trash. Have you heard of this stuff? There are several variations (names vary as well) of it (some with white chocolate and some with dark chocolate and powdered sugar). Both are delicious, but my favorite is the dark chocolate (shocker) with powdered sugar. It is absolutely, sinfully, addictively delicious. It makes approximately 10 to 11 cups, so it makes a great gift for multiple teachers.

I shall share. First, as I said, there are several variations. You could really add ingredients how you like. I like raisins. Chocolate-covered raisins with powdered sugar. Mmmmm... To some of you (ahem, Ginger, who is probably shivering with disgust) um, don't add raisins. If you like the version with white chocolate, there are lots of different variations here, which is where I found the recipe I used, but I changed mine up a bit.

White Trash

1 12oz box rice chex
1 12oz bag chocolate chips (2 cups)
1 cup of peanut butter
1 cup of butter
1 to 2 cups of raisins (or Craisins)
2 to 3 cups of peanuts (or cashews or almonds, you get the picture)
1 1/2 cups of pecan halves
3 cups powdered sugar (a box and a half)

In a large container (really big), mix together cereal, raisins, peanuts, and pecan halves. In a saucepan, melt chocolate, peanut butter, and butter over medium heat, stirring constantly. Once melted, pour chocolate mixture over cereal mixture, making sure all of it is covered with chocolate. Stir together to make sure all is covered. Using gallon bags (I used three), put approximately 4 to 5 cups of chocolate-covered cereal in each bag. Pour powdered sugar (a little over a cup for each bag) over chocolate mixture in bag. Seal bag and shake until mixture is covered with powdered sugar. Done! Put in containers as you like.

Warning: This product is completely addictive and I refuse to accept any responsibility for your inability to control yourself. As of yet, there are no 12-step programs for White Trash addiction. I'm working on it. My name is Kim and I'm a White Trashaholic.

Gingerbread Folks

2008-12-07T21:30:00.004-06:00

It's fun to make cookies with friends! Our friends Brad and Carrie came over this evening for supper (and Christmas pictures) and Carrie and I decided to make gingerbread for the kiddies.
I'm not a big gingerbread fan. I've made it before (because it's sounds like such a nice, Christmasy thing to do) and I've never cared for it much. However, I got the hankering this week to make some gingerbread men with the boys and let them decorate. So, I dug out my Southern Living cookbook and looked it up. As I was compiling ingredients, I noticed the recipe called for dark brown sugar (which I don't have, because I don't care for it) and molasses (bleah). I substituted light brown sugar (which I always have plenty of) for the dark brown and then I noticed I only had a tablespoon (or so) of molasses left. The recipe called for 2/3 cup, so I knew that I needed something to substitute. I used honey. And I loved it. They were the best gingerbread cookies ever! EVER, I say! Anyhoo, I decided to post the recipe so perhaps, if you didn't care for gingerbread, then you may try this one on for size. Two things: don't let the lemon juice scare you, it gives the cookies just a touch of tartness (but not too much), and if you don't have a gingerbread man cookie cutter, never fear! I don't have one either and balled up gingerbread dough and then used two balls for the head and belly and then divided two balls for the arms and legs. They turned out cute!

Gingerbread Folks
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon molasses
2/3 cup honey
1/3 cup lemon juice
6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 salt
2 1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
assorted candies
white frosting

Using a big bowl, beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; gradually add brown sugar, beating well. Add eggs, molasses, honey, and lemon juice, beating well.

Combine 2 cups flour, baking powder, and next 6 ingredients in a large bowl; stir well. Add to butter mixture, beating at low speed until blended. Gradually add remaining flour, beating after each addition. Shape dough into 2 balls. Cover and chill for about an hour.

Roll one portion of dough on a greased cookie sheet. Either use your cookie cutters to cut out cookies, or use the ball technique I referred to earlier. We only made 8 gingerbread men, and then we ball up the rest and did criss-cross designs on the front (like for peanut butter cookies) and then iced them with the white frosting after they were done. Bake at '350 degrees for 9 minutes.

Let cool, and then decorate with white frosting and candies.

White Frosting

2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1/3 cup half and half (I used heavy whipping cream)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Comebine all ingredients in a bowl, beat a medium speed with an electric mixer until mixture is spreading consistency. Put in decorator bag with tip (or sandwich bag with corner snipped off) to pipe around the edges of the gingerbread.

The children had a great time and the kids (with their candy spread out all over the table- we used the frosting as a paste for the candy) were in heaven. And the hot, round ones straight from the oven with the frosting? Holy cow. They were good.

Give it a whirl!

Things I Thought I Had

2008-12-04T16:05:00.002-06:00

...gumption to run after school (nope, I'm freezing in my house)

...more laundry detergent (screaming out loud, "MUST HAVE LAUNDRY DETERGENT! AUGH! WHAT WILL I DO? MUST FEED NEUROTIC BEHAVIOR!!!")

...no wrinkles (hello, crow's feet, and other non-named wrinkles)

...one more Snack-size Snickers

...more Tiramisu creamer (sigh)

...five less pounds (bought a big Snicker's yesterday because I ran out of snack-size. Why yes, I totally freak out when I don't have any chocolate and behave irrationally. I feel like I'm a monster. WHERE IS THE CHOCOLATE? Hmmm, I want some now. Luckily, for all involved, there's always-ALWAYS Ghirardelli chocolate chips in my freezer.)

...more energy (see lack of running because it is cold)

On a side note... I hear the ice cream truck going down my street. I just want to tell him that it is December. And that it is 45 degrees outside. Incidentally, he never drove down the street in the summer. He started in October. Strange man. And he looks creepy, too. No children, you cannot get ice cream from the crazy ice cream truck man who drives his truck in December. It's illogical.

I should try to run. I should. Maybe I'll just wear my running clothes and make people think I run. Yes, that's what I'll do. I'll just don my electric blue, spandex running pants and go places. Like the Mrs. In Ministry Christmas Celebration. And the grocery store. Gratification? Check. You know you want to come with me.

Tunin' Up

2008-12-02T19:06:00.003-06:00

I've been listening to some great Christmas music this year. Over the Rhine has their newest Christmas CD (maybe 2 years old) playing for free on their website. I'm listening to it now. It's fantastic. Listen here. And I always have the Over the Rhine website connected to the blog (check to the right). Just click on the record player. And, of course, I have the Pandora station going all the time (except at work, where they block a WHOLE bunch of sites because they don't want employees to "abuse" it. As if!) Anyhoo, if you don't know Pandora, then I will not judge you (out loud), but simply let you know that you must register
here (registering is free, you only need an e-mail address) and then simply enter in some bands (at Christmas, I just enter in "Christmas" after my favorite band) and Voila! you've got Christmas music you love coming out your ears. BTW, the Carpenters are not on my Pandora list. I'm sorry. But the radio stations simply play them too much at Christmas. I used to really like Karen Carpenter. Really. Not so much anymore.

In other news (yes, music obsession is news):

Quinn is finishing up his semester and I'm glad. Greek and Hebrew on the back burner (for a few weeks anyway) and my hubby is back. There's a rumor of Pergo floors being laid, but that's just a rumor. Though I am crossing my fingers.

My house is clean. And has been since Sunday (including the Master Bedroom, which is the house dumping ground). I keep looking at it nervously like, "when EXACTLY is this going to fall apart?" Because it will.

I went running this afternoon in the hopes that I could ditch this extremely resilent headache I've held onto for two days. I left this afternoon around 4:45 (it was still light) wearing black running shorts and a black running jacket. And by 5:30 it was dark outside. And I'm running in black. Good thing my legs are so pale that they act as reflectors. Side note: I'm officially a snob about running clothes now. My friend Melanie works at a running store and has given me some running clothes that she didn't need and I'm in love. I used to scoff at people who bought expensive running clothes, but now I see why they like them so much. So now I look like an official runner when I run. I didn't before, you see.

Off to put the kiddies to bed. The natives are restless. And Mommy needs to sleep.

EEE-vil Family Pics

2008-11-29T17:32:00.006-06:00

Well, it really wasn't THAT evil.

We DID coordinate family pictures and they turned out pretty good, except for a few silly faces from the boys. Note to self: Keep smiling and don't yell at boys to straighten up and stop being silly. The next picture will be of everybody smiling happily into the camera, except for Mommy who is giving the evil eye to a small child.
Here are some of my favorites:

1.

2.

3.

4.

They are numbered one through four. Which one do you like best?

Thanks to Linda, my mother-in-law, for taking the pictures!

Over the River and Through the Woods

2008-11-29T16:22:00.013-06:00

We had a great Thanksgiving weekend at Grandma's house; even family pictures went well. We did a lot of hanging out and WAY too much eating. Now, I'm sitting on the couch with my boys and watching (well, KINDA) the Iron Bowl, which is exciting in an anticipatory way.

So... favorite things about Grandma's this weekend:

Holding my newest baby niece, Macey McKay, who is the yummiest thing ever and has only increased my desire to have another baby. I got to feed her and talk to her in an obnoxious "I'm-talking-to-a-baby" voice, which is similiar to the "I'm-talking-to-my-kitty-cat" voice.

Having to decide between pumpkin pie, pecan pie, lemon pie, chocolate cake, pina colada cake, banana pudding, or chocolate chip cookies after every meal. Usually I would just get a "sample". You know, because I had to remember what each tasted like after every meal. They were good. And people fight over pecan pie at Grandma's, which is good fun. Bonus. Last year, people would pre-cut pieces and hide them (ahem, Kerri).

Watching the children play tirelessly with their cousins. They had a great time. The boys cried when we left.

I got up with Michelle and Kerri at 4:30am Friday to go to Black Friday at Walmart. Terrifying. And yet, exhilarating. I got some great finds, including a Deluxe Monopoly for $10.

Red Hot Wassail. Oh my. It's good stuff. If you've got a perculator, (gonna pick one up at my next thrift store run) drop a large handful of Red Hots (the candy) in the basket at the top of the perculator, then pour apple cider in the bottom. As the cider heats up, the Red Hots melt in the juice and make it all cinnamony. If I try it at home, then I might try to add some orange peel rind and cloves to the Red Hots. It just SMELLS like the holidays. It also is lovely to curl up on the sofa and watch a movie with everybody, wearing flannel pajamas and nursing a hot cup of wassail. Mmmm...

Shelling 60 pounds of pecans with all the ladies in the house. Sounds like punishment, but many hands make light work. And laughter. And good conversation.

Mornings, lying around in pajamas, drinking coffee, watching the news and making fun of the people who try to sleep late when there are 21 people sleeping in the house. I love mornings there.

Here are a couple of pictures of favorite people we see there...

Granddaddy and Grandmother with all of their grandbabies, from left to right (Corin, Felix, Granddaddy, Ansley, Grandmother, Macey McKay, Karis, and Silas).

Quinn sister, Kerri's, girls: Macey McKay, Karis, and Ansley. Aren't they precious?

Jason and Michelle with two of their girls, Kaelyn and Marli.

Uncle Jay and his little sister, Madison (who refused to take a picture by herself, dadgummit).

This is everybody that was there (and spent the weekend) with Grandma and Papaw front and center on the glider.

And I just love this one:
Kerri's little girl, Ansley, doesn't really like to have her picture taken. But I got a couple while she and Felix were playing in the leaves.

Well, I'm back to the game with my family and our matchy matchiness. Roll Tide!

Evil Plot

2008-11-26T07:21:00.003-06:00

Bwahahahaha...

AND NOW, in my evil pursuit of dominating the ENTIRE WORLD, I have planned an event so disastrous, so monumental, so EEEE-VIL that my family, dare I say my husband, will rue, yes RUE, this day for the remainder of their ENTIRE lives.

There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth in the wilds of the forest, mad with the eternal prospect of my plan. Dry your tears children, there is no. turning. back.
I am giddy with the prospect of torturing the children with my plan. I am laughing my evil laugh and tapping my evil fingers in the prospect of goading my husband into tears.

I have planned... family pictures. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

With matching black shirts. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

And jeans. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

I AM DIABOLICALLY, PURE EEEE-VIL.

The End.

PS... This event will take place today at G'ma's. Run... if you think I won't find you... BWAHAHAHAHAHA!

Being Home and a Dose of Reality

2008-11-25T10:19:00.004-06:00

The boys are upstairs taking books off a bookshelf so that we can move it to make room for their Christmas tree. Yes, I'm one of those horrible people who has my own "pretty, themed" Christmas tree downstairs (it's MINE and you can't have it!), and the boys have their "Wow, that looks like a kid decorated it" tree upstairs. I even got colored lights for it. I wish they had had the big old-school ones like we had when I was a kid, but they didn't. Pooh. So that's what we're about to do. And I've got Christmas music blaring. Not a Christmas station (done with that forever), but something jazzy and folksy. Nice.

I am immensely enjoying my week off from school. I woke up this morning and did the victory hands (arms straight up in a V) and said "Day Two!". I nearly forgot how much I enjoyed staying home with the boys. I gave them haircuts this morning, we're about to decorate their Christmas tree, and later I'll have them help me make pumpkin pies to take to G'ma's house. Of course, I'm romancing the whole thing a great deal because I remember there were times that I looked at them with a crazy look in my eye. "Go find something to do, please. Momma's going a little bit crazy." Unfortunately, the older two know the look and scatter quickly. But I'm enjoying them now. So, I'll take it. And be glad.

I'm so glad I'm not humbugging Christmas this year. I had a severe case of the Christmas doldrums last year. It was pretty bad for everyone. I'm not sure why my mind has changed (we have less money this year, the economy is pretty bad, and I've recently moved away from my home church), but I think that maybe I'm more thankful for my family this year, and I see how the Lord is sustaining us and showing His grace through our daily lives. We have been blessed through the kindness of others and I look forward to be able to see old friends and all of our family this year over Thanksgiving and Christmas. We have awesome friends and Quinn and I have made some beautiful friendships here and love their company. Our families don't quarrel with one another and are not petty about stuff, but rather love each other. My life definitely does not suck and I was a bit of a brat last year. Sometimes I feel like I revert back to a fourteen year old girl (no offense girls, but you'll see what I'm saying in 10 years) and think the world is all about, you guessed it, me. It's good to have a good dose of reality and see that I'm a blessed woman and I should stop my selfishness.

The boys have successfully finished their job and are ready to move the bookcase and the duct-taped Christmas tree (didn't you know that you could use a undecorated Christmas tree for ambush practice on your brother?) into place. I'm going to soak up the fun.

Good Times with Friends...

2008-11-24T16:50:00.014-06:00

SUCH a fun weekend. Sigh. Two weekends in a row with old friends. I might be getting spoiled. Whatever shall I do THIS weekend? THAT's easy. Going to G'mas for Thanksgiving and hanging out with the family. It's going to be great. My job? Pumpkin pie. I'm working on the most perfect pie crust ever (of course, in my head, it's ev-uh). Secret? Butter-flavored Crisco. Yes, I know. It's not real, but it makes the pie crust so flaky and buttery (it's ALMOST real) tasty.

So we did a lot of stuff this weekend. Quinn and Chris fixed the sink in the kitchen (which held towels and bowls underneath to hold drips AND it smelled funny. Bonus). Yay! And they also fixed a broken flusher (you know, the thing that flushes the toilet) and fixed some outlets. Crissy and I decorated the house for Christmas on Sunday and had a couple of drop-in visitors (thanks Carrie and Diane)and we had a bee-yew-ti-ful turkey for lunch after church. I made Paula Deen's Cornbread Dressing, which was phenomenal. Really.

Saturday, whilest the men were repairing and such, Crissy and took the children to the Manship House, which is in downtown Jackson. I loved it. It was left to the city of Jackson in 1975 and then was restored to its original 1838 appearance. No photos were allowed to be taken inside the building, but I did get some outside.

This is the side porch. The children loved climbing all over the steps (we really did make the tour guide a little crazy). Felix and Brody were trying to peek through the windows.
All the children hanging over the rail at the house.
I loved the handiwork of the house, all originally done by Mr. Manship himself (he was the mayor of Jackson during the Civil War). You can't really see the doorknobs, but they were gorgeous, even all through the house. The key to the front door.
The Manship family was given the original bell from the Jackson City Fire Department (which Mr. Manship is credited to start) and it was displayed in the yard.
The children were all permitted to ring the bell (thank you, kind tour guide) and then would lay their hands on the bell to feel the vibrations.

I loved walking through it, but it made me appreciate what I have now. Namely, toilets and running water. Oh, and electricity. I do want to go back for their Christmas stuff:

Christmas at the Manship House
Manship House Museum
Jackson, MS
(601) 961-4724
Daily tours feature Victorian-style decorations Tuesdays through Fridays, 9 am - 4 pm, and Saturdays, 10 am - 4 pm. Reservations required for groups of ten or more. For information call 601-961-4724. This event occurs from 12/5-12/23/08.

It's all authentic Christmas decorations for the original time period of the house. AND, can you say FREE? We're going back.

We had a great weekend with our friends. The children had such a wonderful time (they are really much like siblings and my two oldest boys worship Ty, the oldest boy of the Sharps who can do NO WRONG). I'm thankful for good friends, both old and new. Which makes me think of this old diddy:

Make new friends, but keep the old
One is silver, and the other gold.

But I Wanna See the Rockettes, too!

2008-11-20T05:56:00.004-06:00

Misy, my girlfriend since college a bazillion years ago has a sweet little girl who she entered a picture of in a contest to win tickets to see the Rockettes in Birmingham. She just found out she's a finalist for the contest! And Lana would be in the show's nativity! So I'm doing best friend duty and asking you, my readers, if you would e-mail contest@wdjconline.com and vote for #10 Lana Lowery to win! You can vote one e-mail per e-mail address. This is the picture that was entered.

Isn't she cute? Now you MUST vote, based on cuteness factor alone.
Good luck Missy and Lana!

Conquering Bear

2008-11-19T17:29:00.003-06:00

A conversation at my house:

"Are you throwing away that Indian vest?" I asked this of my husband who was holding the paper bag "Indian vest" that Felix made at school.

He looks at it. "Felix doesn't want me to, 'Daddy you not throw my 'ndian vest 'way'" (Quinn does a very good impression of Felix). He takes the folded up paper bag to Felix who, of course, wants to put it on. Along with his cute headdress.

"I a 'ndian," he states proudly.

"What's your Indian name?" Quinn asks him. He has been given the name 'Conquering Bear'. Again, you don't have to tell how cute my kids are.

"I not 'membuh." He looks puzzled.

"It's Conquering Bear. Can you say that?"

"No. I a 'ndian." Resolute.

"Yes, but your Indian name is Conquering Bear," I put in. "Can you say that?"

"No. I a 'ndian." His eyes are fixed stubbornly and he crosses his arms.

"But what's your 'ndian name?"

"I not 'membuh."

"It's Conquering Bear. Can you say that?"

"No. I a 'ndian. Miss Sandy said I a 'ndian." Arms still crossed.

"Do you want to be Little Bear?, "I asked (so trying not to laugh at the poor little thing).

"How about Baby Bear? Do you want to be Baby Bear?" Daddy asks. Even the big brothers are joining the conversation.

Felix looks confused. "No. I not a beh-uh (bear). I a 'ndian. Miss Sandy said."

I get down on my knees. "Can Momma show you wear your name is on your vest?" He nods and lets me take off the vest. I show him the back of the vest. "See? Right here it says 'Conquering Bear'. Can you say Conquering Bear?"

He nods. "Con-que-wing Beh-uh".

I put his vest back on and he says, "I a sweet 'ndian."

Oh, yes he is.

Later...
when asked a couple of minutes ago what his Indian name was (really, so that I hear him say it and I could spell it phonetically for this post- you lucky reader, you), he replied, "I Spi-duh-maan."

"No Felix. It's Conquering Bear. Can you say it again for Momma?"

Corin cut in, "No Felix, remember? You are Conquering Bear Spiderman." To me Corin said, "See Mom, he didn't really like Conquering Bear, so we gave him the name Conquering Bear Spiderman."

"I Con-que-wing Beh-uh Spi-duh-maan."

Ah.

FYI

2008-11-18T19:48:00.003-06:00

Well,

I had a wonderful time in Birmingham this past weekend. I love my home church. Thank you, dear church family, for such a lovely weekend. And Quinn appreciates the Quinn Tax, by the way. We'll be there again. Soon. With Quinn.

The apple cider vinegar has been dutifully taken (along with the entire glass of water so as not to gag). I have attributed all good things happening lately with my body to drinking apple cider vinegar. It's the winner (dingding!). I'm going on two weeks with no eczema now. I am now able to wear wedding rings.

The dishwasher has been loaded, but it is not full, so I can load breakfast dishes and start the dishwasher before I leave to go to work. Yesssss. Small joys.

My Google Reader says "no unread items". Which makes me happy. In a neurotic, obsessive way.

I am slightly panicking over the dirty laundry on the kitchen floor. I DON'T LIKE DIRTY LAUNDRY. Ever. My children were playing in it earlier. Naked.

My goal is to go bed at 8:30pm. It is not lofty. And I'm giddy over the prospect.

It is very cold here tonight (well, maybe not for you Yankees), but the temperature is 28 degrees and I've officially reached the "my-hands-and-feet-will-not-be-warm-again-until-May" point. I like to stick my hands and feet on Quinn. He does not appreciate it, even though I call it "loving" him.

This morning I ran 5 miles in under 40 degree weather. In shorts. Because I'm lacking common sense, apparently. In defense of my idiocy, I thought it was warmer than that outside, and if I get too hot, I can't run as far. So, I ran, did well, came back to my house, and my legs promptly broke out in hives. Interesting. Uncomfortable. Lesson learned? Probably not. Didn't you read the part where I ran well?

Today we had a Thanksgiving potluck at school. I've been looking forward to it for several days. Throw a whole bunch of Southern Women together and bring food? I'll be there. With triple chocolate bundt cake (my signature piece, thank you very much). I actually don't remember much of what I ate (except for DEE-licious Pecan Pie) because the chubby girl who resides in my brain (you could call it schizophrenia, but I prefer to call her "the alternate") took over my body and ate whatever she could get her hands on. I really only remember seeing the pecan pie. I think I had apple cider. Not vinegar. I ate broccoli for supper (with maybe a 5minute "lecture" with the children on superfoods and eating things that are good for you). And I only remember slivering the remnants of chocolate cake for two solid hours this afternoon. Curses.

I hear PBS on, which means my husband is done with school work for the night. I'm off to torture him with my iceblocks, also known as, my hands and feet.

Low Gap

2008-11-14T05:33:00.001-06:00

This is where I'll be tonight.
And I can't wait.

Accomplishments

2008-11-11T20:13:00.002-06:00

Ah, the accomplishments of a busy mom may seem somewhat mundane, but still, at the end of the day, I sigh through my drowsiness and Benadryll induced cobwebs and recall ANYTHING notably done through the day.

I went to work today (with a stuffy nose and ringing ears). Sang songs about turkeys (which means that I also pretend that I'm a turkey and dance like a turkey... it's fun... you should try it) and did a Christmas bulletin board. Listened to Frank Sinatra and laughed with Lida (my teacher, whom I love) for a good bit. I love Tuesdays.

I did a piano lesson.

I finished editing a photo shoot, burned it on (to?) a CD to deliver today, and promptly left it on the counter this morning. Maybe I'll remember tomorrow.

I neglected to take something out of the freezer this morning, so I made homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches for supper. It was good. Quinn pureed the soup with a portable milkshake blender and it was creamy and delicious. But don't ask Silas, who sneered over it for about an hour.

I attempted to run this morning with my friend Melanie and a good deal of medicine head. We squeaked out four miles, but really did the last mile and a half walking. Frustrating. I want to be well. I'm getting new running shoes soon. You know, because that will make me stop coughing.

I drank two tablespoons of my new obsession: Apple Cider Vinegar. You should google the benefits. Actually, I'll help you. Here you go. It cleared up my face (which has been prone to break-outs on and off for years) within two days of starting to take it a week and a half ago and I haven't had one since. And yes, it's nasty stuff. Bleah. Worth it.

I got to hold each of my boys today. Felix is a chubby baby who giggles sweetly and tells me that he's my baby, Silas curls up in a "Si-ball", smiles, and says "I love you, Mama!", and Corin begs for me to pretend to fall asleep on his head (complete with snoring) and screeches with laughter when I do this (everyday). Smile. They are all so different.

Ah, the Benadryll cocktail has set in and I'm about to settle in for the night. So I'll finish switching the laundry and with that done, be asleep within 10 minutes.
Toodle-ooh.

Sleeping is an accomplishment I enjoy.

8

2008-11-10T10:55:00.002-06:00

I saw this on Jawan's blog a while back and couldn't resist doing my own.

8 Things I'm Passionate About:

1. The Gospel of Jesus Christ
2. Freedom (both in living the gospel and in my country)
3. My Family
4. My Friends
5. Shoes
6. To leave a legacy of the gospel with my children, displaying grace to them to make their faith more tangible.
7. Beautiful things.
8. Reading

8 Phrases I Often Say:

1. Four on the floor
2. Eat over your plate, please.
3. I do not wear your shoes.
4. Did you feed the cat?
5. Hip and lip, boys and girls!
6. Please do not use your sleeve as a tissue.
7. Did you use soap?
8. Stop antagonizing your brother!

8 Things I Want to Do Before I Die:

1. Go to Europe.
2. Have more babies.
3. See my children grow older, marry, and have their own children.
4. Get really good photography equipment and learn how to develop my own film.
5. Learn how to garden (and like it).
6. Be better at sight-reading music. I'd love to be able to play jazz.
7. Learn how to refinish stuff.
8. Grow very, very old (or die at the exact same time) with my husband, who is the best guy in the whole world.

8 Things I Currently Want/Need:

1. RUNNING SHOES
2. eye make-up brush
3. Zicam
4. Cowboy boots
5. some cool tights
6. dangly earrings
7. sifter
8. Kim Taylor's newest CD

8 Favorite TV Shows

1. Lost
2. What Not To Wear
3. House
4. The Office
5. Judge Judy (don't judge me)
6. Dirty Jobs
7. Clean House
8. I Love Lucy

8 Favorite Restaurants

1. The Purple Onion (Oh, I want a Gyro!)
2. PF Changs
3. Tamburro's (in Trussville, AL)
4. DREAMLAND ribs (oh my)
5. Chipotle
6. Guthrie's (oh, the sauce!)
7. Macaroni Grill (but only with a host of girls from Community Pres)
8. Bop's Custard

8 Things That Happened Today:

1. Woke up at 3:00am (yep, naptime is nigh)
2. Made White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies (the last of it, thank you)
3. Talked to my Mom
4. Kissed my husband
5. Did laundry
6. Watched Star Wars (AUGH! I hate Star Wars!)
7. Called in sick to take care of my sick babies. Who are watching Star Wars.
8. I found a long lost scarf I've been looking for.

8 Things To Look Forward To:

1. Going to Birmingham this weekend!
2. Going to G'ma's for Thanksgiving!
3. Going to FL for Christmas and seeing all my family. Good grief, I miss them like crazy. I also get to see some old friends.
4. Providence Presbyterian's Christmas Choir Presentation which is going to be awesome. I am in love with the music.
5. A nap
6. Friends visiting (tentatively? still fun to look forward to)
7. My hubby coming home (maybe to a clean and well-rested wife, but we'll see)
8. Making some extra money from taking Christmas pictures.

Give it a whirl!

What to do, what to do...

2008-11-10T06:48:00.008-06:00

What do you do when you have sick children, have called in sick to work because of said children, have a cold yourself and have been awake since 3am because you forgot to take a Benadryll last night to help you sleep through the sniffles, but have been drinking coffee steadily since 4:30am and are now too jittery to lay back down?

Well, you check all the blogs, look on Facebook for a little while to see what's going on there, and, lastly, Yearbook Yourself. What is it? Well, it's fun, that's what. And certainly, it's a gigantic waste of time, but where else can you get a picture that looks like this:

I assure you, I've never tried the horn-rimmed glasses look. You should try it when you're up in the middle of the night, frustrated that you can't sleep because of a runny nose. It's fun. Though, admittedly, I do like this one the best:

I do have a little trouble with the face placement. I don't know why. Probably because I'm shaky with caffeine overload and have trouble with eye-hand coordination.

Noses to wipe, coughs to suppress... busy day for Momma.

Pecan Pickin'

2008-11-09T07:10:00.008-06:00

Pee-can or peh-con... However you wish to pronounce it, this is the season for picking them. I see people on the side of the road picking pecans up off the ground. And since pecans are so expensive (yikes) and I love them so much AND since the RTS campus is FULL of pecan trees, we decided to take a family trip over to pick some for a couple of pecan pies (my absolute favorite wintertime pie). Well, the pickins' were mighty slim (I'm guessing a few other families had the same idea), but we managed to find a few.
It's hard to pick pecans when you're eating a popcorn ball, but Felix was really just content to walk around with his empty bag and occasionally lay his popcorn ball on the ground to pick up one pecan at a time. Of course, he then picked up his dirty popcorn ball and resumed consuming it. Note to self: when your baby is diagnosed at the tender of age of 7 months with a nut allergy, do not assume (at any given time really) that he is no longer allergic. I check every couple of months to see if he's still allergic. Hives, vomiting, and eczema is the usual follow up. No different at pecan pickin' day; we allowed him to eat one pecan and he immediately broke out on his face and threw up. At least he was in the grass. Lesson learned.
Silas has teeth exactly like mine. And, although I grew into my enormous teeth, I always felt like they were too big for my mouth when I was a kid. I used to beg for braces. Hmmm, braces don't make teeth smaller, just so you know. That was my erroneous view.
Silas and Corin loved finding pecans. It was like a giant egg hunt.
Corin kept asking to eat them.
We had a great time and we got enough pecans to make a couple of pies! Now, I've not shelled them yet, but here's to hoping. I'm actually hoping that since my Mother-in-law has an enormous pecan tree in her front yard, she'll bring some to Thanksgiving dinner and all the ladies will de-shell together. That's always fun. Is that too much of a hint, Linda?

How To Gain Five (or more) Pounds (an Instructional Post)

2008-11-08T10:24:00.004-06:00

Disclaimer: You have to be an emotional eater. If you are not, then I do not know how to identify with that and this post is not for you.

First, you must be diagnosed with walking pneumonia or some other disabling, but not life altering, illness. This will disrupt attempts to exercise because of hacking fits that make you sound like you've chain-smoked since you were twelve. People looking at you with sympathy and disgust is a bonus.

Secondly, you must enjoy eating (with gusto even). And you must also have made the previous allowance on yourself that you could eat more than what was good for you because you were running 18 miles a week. So, when you cannot run (because of chain-smoking hack), you are used to the calorie intake and still continue eating the mass amounts you are used to.

Thirdly, you must make/have plenty of sweets. Sweets include white chocolate macadamia nut cookies that are from the cookie dough fundraiser at Corin's school (warm from the oven helps), peanut butter popcorn (for which I cannot be held responsible for the amounts I have eaten because it is so addictive), Trick or Treat candy that sits in a bowl on the kitchen counter calling my name (how can I deny a Hershey bar that's calling my name? It's so lonesome), and of course, cake. Any cake will do. Even cake that you don't really like, but it's sweet and you need something sweet, so it will satisfy the sugar addiction. Additional helpful tip: work in an environment of emotional eaters who like to bring in "snacks". If you are not a sweets kind of person (which I cannot identify with), salty things like chips or beef jerky (?) might help with your goal.

Fourthly, guilt is essential for both emotional eating and lack of exercise. Put both of them together and you've got prime ingredients for an unhealthy weight gain.

Fifthly, do not keep a scale. I do not keep a scale because it has been reported to me that I have an unhealthy obsession with the numbers the scale reads. I do not necessarily agree with this diagnosis (AUUUUUGH!!! I HATE NOT KNOWING HOW MUCH I WEIGH!), but I suppress the urge to buy a scale to keep peace.

Sixthly, you must continually try on clothes that fit too big or perfectly two weeks ago, but are a little snug around the waist now over and over again to climax the rising feeling of panic. And then make a cake so you can lick the batter in the bowl to make you feel better. This must be done at least twice a day for best results.

And, lastly, you must get a cold on top of the recovering hacking cough to help you solidify the helpless feeling that you will never be able to exercise again.
And go make some cookies to help you feel better.

Looking Forward To...

2008-11-07T05:59:00.003-06:00

Life has been moving very quickly lately. And I just keep cramming more stuff in. I need a breather.

I'm looking forward to the insane weekend in Birmingham next weekend. I'm bringing my friend, Diane. Hilarious.

I'm looking forward to a week (A WHOLE WEEK!) off at Thanksgiving. Whatever will I do?

I'm looking forward to going to FL at Christmas. I miss my family bunches. It will be so good to see everyone there and spend Christmas with them.

Speaking of Christmas, I don't feel as cynical this year about it. I've been enjoying Christmas choir practice, where we've been practicing these old carols that are beautiful. I'm looking forward to Advent and I'm glad I'll have two weeks (TWO WHOLE WEEKS!) with all my men. And I'll probably decorate after Thanksgiving and enjoy it.

I'm very glad today is Friday and tonight I'm going out with my friends Nikki (the one who resembles me) and the aforementioned Diane to a Christmas craft thingy that I can't remember the name of (Mistletoe something or other). It doesn't matter what the name of it is, because it will be fun to go out with the girls. And we're going FREE! Can't beat free. The tickets cost $12 a piece (to go to a craft show???), so I wouldn't have gone otherwise.

I'm off to start my Friday of singing Turkey songs to children. Here's one you could do with your little ones:

Here is Mr. Turkey (make a fist with your thumb inside)
And this will be his head (stick out your thumb)
See his pretty tail with feathers green and red? (Put you other hand behind fisted one, fingers spread)
Be careful, Mr Turkey! (shake your hands, like the turkey is scared)
Today is Thanksgiving Day. (put your hands in a prayer position underneath your chin)
If you want to keep on gobblin', (make your thumb and pointer finger like a beak that's gobbling)
You better run away! (scurry away your fingers really fast)

Felix wants to do this again and again (and again, and again). "I wanna do dat again."

Have a great Friday!

Too Much Sugar

2008-11-04T19:07:00.005-06:00

I cannot throw away chocolate that was acquired through Trick or Treating. Even though it's making me slightly ill. That and a lack of running (because of my so-called "walking pneumonia") make for slightly tighter pants. And an unhappy me.

We're watching the horrid election coverage, which I don't want to watch. The last two presidential elections, I would be up on and off all night long turning on the news. Ugh. I didn't even want to turn it on this year at all. That was met with the "uh, well I'm going to watch it" response from my husband and now I'm sucked in. Sucked in, I tell you! I have that nervous, sick feeling in my stomach and I'm reading a Benadryll (or two) in the near future.

Because I have too much chocolate and Trick or Treat candy in my house, I made a made-up recipe for caramel corn. How hard can it be? Harder than I thought. No fears though; I did eat way more than I should have, even though I prefer the peanut butter popcorn better (for each bag of popped corn, boil 1/3 cup Karo syrup, 1/3 cup peanut butter, and 1/3 cup sugar with a little bit of milk... Stir together with popped corn and make yourself sick).

Laundry to be folded. Laundry to be put away. More laundry to wash. Always.
Especially if you have a slight tendency to want all the dirty laundry to be clean in the house. All the time. Like me.

Work has been crazy the past two days. Let me share my hypothesis... Trick or Treating last Thursday... more candy acquired by teachers and others on Friday... children ate candy hand over fist all weekend... parents (who are relieved that their hyper/over-sugared children are going to school) pack candy bars for their snacks... teachers regret their candy gifts on Friday (they were supposed to eat ALL of it this weekend)... children sprout wings and bounce off the wall all day yesterday and today... my guess? Tomorrow, too.

Ugh. More election doom and gloom. I think I'll take that Benadryll now.
And maybe a Pepto.

MIM Takes A Walk in the Woods

2008-11-02T15:10:00.021-06:00

I've been so thankful for the Mrs. in Ministry group that meets here. These are women who are either in seminary or their husbands are in seminary and we're all basically in the same "we're broke and in seminary" boat. They are a huge encouragement to me. I'm a social butterfly (shocking, yes) and gravitate towards people so you KNOW I'll hop on a retreat and...

Mrs. In Ministry had our retreat this weekend and it was only three blocks from my house! How cool is that? Here Sheri and Laura are chatting it up.
There was a lot of good eating (Andrea LOVES to be on my blog).

And there were great prizes (coffee, gift certificates, bread, and candy). This is Trace. She's due with her first baby around Christmas.

There was a fantastic bonfire (fire!fire!fire!). I had to control myself. Meaning I whispered to myself, "You can't melt things in front of these people, yet. You can't melt things in front of these people, yet."

Diane was having "issues" with the wire hangers. NO MORE WIRE HANGERS!!!! Ooooh, vicious.

Can you guess why I laugh at this girl (Carrie) the whole time I'm with her?
posed.

posed.

and posed.
She's hilarious. And she's not from the South. Which makes her fun to shop with. "Why are you laughing at me?" "Felix just said 'y'all'. That is so funny." Yes, you can have no Southern accent and say the word y'all. Just so you know.

Brooke and Liz are in my small group.

And it was fun getting to know more people.

Rebecca is also in my small group and we share too much information with each other about facial hair.

There were fun games (I am, apparently, a LOSER with a big "L"). Whatever. With a big "W".

And, of course, there was my bosom friend, Melinda. This is also a great picture of my sundamaged skin and WOW, do I have nose hair? THAT is unbelievable. Well, believable, but UNACCEPTABLE. But a lovely smile from Melinda.

Nikki and I have been told we look alike. By our husbands. Weird. Hello, she's NINE YEARS younger than me. I'll take it.

Can you have a women's retreat without doing a craft? That would be a NO. We made etched glass. I suppose I could link something on how to do it. But I won't. It was very gloopy. And they turned out pretty good! I'm actually thinking about... oops... can't tell that (Christmas is coming, you know).

Marie, Gina, and Liz posing for a quick pic while we wait for our etched glass to set.

A great time with a fun group of ladies!

The Cheese Shop sketch, Monty Python

2008-11-02T15:09:00.001-06:00

For Melinda. Because she could DEFINITELY talk like the guy requesting the cheese.

"No, no don't tell me. I'm keen to guess."

Conehair and Coffee

2008-10-31T15:54:00.007-05:00

I promised I would post pictures of my conehead. Well, here you go. To make your own conehead, you must have a leetle bit of length with your hair. I do have length, but I have a lot of layers, so I do a lot of bobby pinning. Tip your head upside down and place a plastic cup in the middle of your crown. Wrap your hair around the cup and secure in place with an elastic band. Put loose hairs into place with bobby pins. Beautimous.

Incidentally, this is what I look like (well, not the hair and well, today was Friday casual day where we wear our school shirts. Look, this is what my FACE looks like) on most mornings: fresh make-up, bright-focused eyes, alert (though coffee-induced) and ready to go to work. This is what I look like when I get home: The sunglasses help me get through the afternoon. The cup came out at precisely 3pm. I'm pooped. I'm glad tonight is the women's retreat and I'm glad. I'm about to go (after the neurotic lady folds the laundry) and chill for the rest of the afternoon.

Mmmm. Yes.
I think I'll make some coffee first.

Oh, I've been asked why we don't have parties at school. I just don't think they call them "parties" anymore. I think you can "bring in cupcakes" for your kid's birthday or "do an educational activity" for a holiday. I "helped the children make caramel apples". Yeah. Don't really know. Maybe there were too many parties. I like how we "redefine" stuff so that it "fits someone else's definition".

I'm off...

Trick or Treat

2008-10-31T05:08:00.011-05:00

Because of Clinton High School's Homecoming Game, Trick or Treating was moved to October 30th where we live. You can bet there were a lot of groaning parents (especially those who don't have high school-aged children) because of a school night trick or treat. I heard the word "second class citizen" at work. However, I was pleased (no complaining here!) because Mrs. In Ministry planned their women's retreat weekend starting on October 31 (hello) and I am going. So now we are on the morning after trick or treating. There is lots of candy (good candy, btw) and my children will be grouchy and resistant for waking up for school. There is still good times to be had for today though. I (having assumed the room mother role for Silas' class, after the previous room mother moved away) am making caramel apples with the children today and Corin's class will have "it's not a party" cupcakes (no parties allowed). Felix is going to wear an old Superman costume to school today and his little class will trick or treat at school. Cuteness.

SO. Last night, we had the Speece's over for dinner (Lincoln and Melinda) and then decided to head over to Old Towne Clinton's Trick or Treat. We hurriedly put costumes together just before we headed out.
Silas was Luke Skywalker. Yeah, you don't have to tell me how cute my kid is. But you can if you want. If you're ever in a fix for a costume, this one is SUPER easy. Khaki pants, Oxford button down (inside out, with the collar tucked and wrapped with a belt), a cape, and, of course, trusty light saber (which was the only thing that was purchased- and that was on his birthday in April). Cheap. Easy. Adorable.
Felix was an Indian (using Corin's old costume from 2006 -it's a little big, if you can't tell- and Indian pants we inherited from the Morgan's). Here he is standing next to Halina. Oh, excuse me, the bee-yew-tiful Snow White.
FYI: I tried to use the make-up pencils I found at Walmart (curses), but they had to be LICKED to write (they wouldn't work otherwise). Now I know. OUCH!
Corin was a mummy. This was, I originally thought, brilliant. He had first wanted to be a troll, but this was decided against because of the "too spooky" factor (and it was going to be hard to do). So he asked to be a mummy. Hmmm, two rolls of toilet paper for a costume? Um, yes. I don't know how it escaped the "too spooky" factor, but it did. I was going to black out his eyes, but, again, the Walmart make-up pencils were horrible. FYI. We used one roll of toilet paper and some black tape we had and he looked great. Initially. It was great fun watching Corin get wrapped and taped. Hudson requested the roll from the used toilet paper. Don't question Dr. Speece.
Here are all the children just before we headed to Old Towne:
As you can see, Corin is completely wrapped. We then got in the car, took the five-minute trip to downtown Clinton, then exited the car to find that Corin needed a fix-up job. Luckily, Quinn and I brought toilet paper and more black tape to do the job. However, after doing two activities at Old Towne (which was a little anti-climatic to me) and then heading back to the car to go back to our neighborhood to do some trick or treating, this is what he looked like:

Mummy with toilet paper is not a good idea. It would probably have lasted a little longer if I had purchased gauze or something. However I'm very frugal (or cheap) and I didn't want to buy it. After trick or treating (which Silas decided he was ready for bed at 7:30 and didn't want to go), where Corin dropped a little bit of toilet paper on every lawn we tramped through, he had a tiny bit on his legs (stuck there by lingering tape) and a little bit on his shoulders.
All in all, we had a great time. We had a great dinner with friends and enjoyed chatting with neighbors while we tricked or treated. Today will also be good fun and I will do my hair crazy for school (think cup in hair-yes, I will post a picture).
Have a great day! Blogginess will change tomorrow.

Mere Humanity

2008-10-29T05:45:00.003-05:00

A quote from The Black Cat, by Edgar Allen Poe:

And now was I indeed wretched beyond the wretchedness of mere humanity.

Love me some Poe.

Nervous Jack

2008-10-28T05:51:00.008-05:00

We carved our pumpkin on Saturday with the Donahoos and had a lovely time. This year we decided to make our pumpkin look nervous because he will sit on the front porch with our headless scarecrow. He's not headless on purpose (I don't like to do VERY scary on Halloween, just "deliciously" scary), I just haven't given him a head yet. I'll take any recommendations for a scarecrow head because I'm having a hard time.
The children love to help Daddy with this tradition! And I love roasted pumpkin seeds. Just rinse them, let them dry a bit (on a paper towel on the counter), throw them on a cookie sheet with some olive oil and garlic salt, back them for about 10-ish minutes (or until they smell done) in a 350 degree oven, and, Voila!, you've got a great, salty snack.
The man doing his job.
Felix loves "Nuhvous Jauck".
And here he is!

Bulletin Board Validation

2008-10-28T05:23:00.007-05:00

I've talked a bit about how I've gotten to play with bulletin boards at school and how much I enjoy it (surprisingly so). Well, this week is Drug-Free Week (because I'm at a Kindergarten-1st grade only elementary school-cynical? NO) and we (as teachers) were encouraged to decorate our doors with this years theme: "Bee" Drug Free. And my door won for my hall! Oh, thank you so much for your thunderous applause! Yes, it's one of my lifelong goals (I think I need a tissue). Anyhoo... here it is:

I love my bee! I saw it on a little girl's shirt one day and sketched it right there (with the phrase "I gotta bee me"-no originality here- I'm a copycat). Here are two more I've done (for further validation, if you will):

This is the October board.

This is the November board.

I need some help with drawing people. But I wanted to see how much I could remember (from art class a gajillion years ago) about drawing perspective.

oh, and Mom, here's the Flat Stanley stuff:

Silas' class did the story "Flat Stanley" and they sent their own Stanleys to somebody they knew in the United States to have them take pictures of Stanley doing stuff they do in their city. We sent Silas' to my Mom and she did a great job. We miss you, Grandma and Papaw!

Dr. Beex

2008-10-25T21:19:00.005-05:00

Felix attends preschool at the Lab School at Mississippi College. It's an excellent preschool program and Felix loves to say that he goes to Mississippi "Cawlige". Today was their homecoming parade and the Lab School had a float of "What I Want To Be When I Grow Up". Ginger brought some kid scrubs she had at her house and Felix was Dr. Beex. Because he doesn't know what he wants to be when he grows up. He's three.
He was awfully cute with all the other kids.

Mummy Dogs

2008-10-25T20:40:00.011-05:00

The Donahoos are visiting! We are having such a great time and today we made a new tradition: Mummy Dogs! They turned out great. You'll want to get a pack of hot dogs (we got Turkey Dogs) and two packages of crescent strips (they're in the refrigerated section). They were easy, fast to make up, and the kids loved it. Check it out...
First, separate the strips and give each child two pieces, a half piece of cheese (cut if you'd like), and a hot dog.
Next have the children press out the strips a little. But only if you're singing a favorite song, like Cullen.

Place the cheese around the hot dog and then take the first strip and wrap it first around the bottom, and then wrap it around the dog, overlapping the strip as you go up the dog.

Next, start the next strip up the dog, leaving a space at the top for a face. To make it a little easier for the children, we had them tear off 3 inches of the second strip of dough, and then had the fit it on top of the hot dog, like a turban. So cute.

I loved watching Felix and Ansley. They are awfully cute together.

Even the Daddies got in on the fun (okay, we forced them for photo opps).

Well, Trace needed just a leetle bit of help.
They turned out good!

Reformation Night at Mrs. in Ministry

2008-10-25T07:06:00.007-05:00

Mrs. in Ministry meets on Thursday nights and we were notified in September that the four small groups in MIM would make a 10 minute presentation of how the Reformation played out in four European countries in the month of October. The four countries were Germany, England, Scotland, and Switzerland. Our group was assigned Switzerland. We decided to do "Reformation Jeopardy". And, oh my, it was fun. Here are some pictures of our presentation. I was Alexandria Trebek. Me likey a mustache. I told you I would look like a man if I didn't de-hair.

Liz, Trace, and Rebecca were the contestants. They were good.

You know I loved hamming it up as the hostess. It was super fun.

We had a little bit of trouble at the end, mostly because we were winging it. Well, mostly I had trouble with the end. But it was funny.
Rebecca Corley had the correct answer, or rather, the correct question to the Final Jeopardy answer.
What was the Final Jeopardy question? Though I can't remember verbatim, it was something like this:
This nickname was given to a woman who was famous for marrying and then being widowed by four famous reformers in 14 years.
Who was the Bride of the Reformation?
Her name?
Wibrandis Keller-Oecolampadius-Capito-Bucer.
Say that three times fast.
To see the rest of the pictures, go here.

My Bad

2008-10-22T20:11:00.003-05:00

CORRECTION: Michelle was diagnosed with high cholesterol, not high blood pressure. My apologies, Michelle!

Tidbits

2008-10-21T20:24:00.003-05:00

I want to be here:
I want to be there and reading a book and listening to the lovely noises a nice creek makes. Except maybe not overcast. That picture looks like it could be overcast. I'm going to need some sun. And a firm 75 degrees. AND a good book; DEFINITELY not Tess of the d'Urberville's which was one of THEE most depressing books I've ever read. Probably something I've read before, like, oh-I don't know, maybe Anne of Green Gables. Oooh, I know- Anne's House of Dreams. Yes, definitely. And the children will splash by the creek and then run in the snake-free, mosquito-free, bee-free, tick-free field. And I won't need insect repellant. And I'll have a good sandwich and some delicious coffee. And Quinn will probably be studying Greek, but isn't he always? Anyway, it sounds nice. It looks nice.

And we're back.

I'm not there. I'm in Crazyville. And in Crazyville, I'm in a whirlwind and don't have time to catch my breath. There's no creek. But there is craziness.
I will tidbit it for you:

Felix's Dr. told me on Friday that he thinks I have Walking Pnuemonia. I have chosen to think positively. And not believe him. You think I jest, but I am feeling better. The coughing is what annoys me. I don't like antibiotics either (if you know me, then I've covered this before- soapbox style), so I'll just live in my world of positive thinking. Falalalala, falalala (Deck the Hall inset).

Felix is better from his bout of nasty coughing (Dr. called it Walking Pnuemonia, but again- falalalalala-lalalala) and he did take an antibiotic though- much as I hated to give it to him.

Cars are being worked on. Yes, plural. Both.

Thursday night, we are having a Reformation Celebration for Mrs. In Ministry. Our small ladies' groups each have a European country we're talking about that famous reformers worked in (think: informative speech disguised as small presentation Ta-Dah!). Ours is Switzerland. I won't tell you EXACTLY what we're doing, but I'll give you a hint. I'm Alexandria Trebeck. Think Groucho Marx and Alex Trebeck have a baby girl and you get me.

My cat keeps pooping on the carpet. I don't know why. But it's making me mad. I hate carpet. A girlfriend I run with tells me that she may be depressed. Are you freaking kidding me? The ONLY hormonal woman allowed in MY house is ME. Poop on, kitty. No therapist for YOU!

At church, I'm teaching children how to play handbells. Oh, you didn't know I played handbells? Neither did I. It's a fun time learning experience for ALL of us.

I had teacher conferences this week with both of my boys' teachers. Of COURSE, they told me that children were joys in the class (duh). But can I say, I just despise all the testing they (the public schools)do with children? It's annoying. And, by the way, the teachers thought there was too much testing, too. I realize I'm in Mississippi (yes, I KNOW it's #50!), and our school system where we live sets their standards higher than the state of Mississippi requires, but, good grief, it's just A LOT.

I made a Dee-licious soup tonight. It was one of those dump and go soups. Of course I'll share! Saute some onion in olive oil (I think everything I do starts with that. Throw some garlic in if you'd like). Dump in the following: 1 can of tomato soup, 1 can diced tomatoes, 1 can kidney beans, 2 cups cooked chicken (or canned if you're in a pinch), 1 box of chicken broth (or maybe three cans), 2 big handfuls raw spinach, 2 sliced carrots, 1 cup of uncooked rice, and lots of seasoning (red pepper, cumin, curry, ground mustard, salt, garlic salt, onion salt, oregano). I just dumped more stuff in until it tasted like I wanted it to. Let it boil for about 10 to 20 minutes (on med high) and then let it simmer for at least a half an hour or so. The longer is simmers, the better it tastes.

I need a haircut.

And a pedicure.

And maybe a massage.

How about a ribeye?

With some delicious Bananas Foster for dessert.

And good coffee.

4:30am is clawing at my brain. Must go to bed. Please check Virginia's website for a Scarier Skeleton. It's one of my favorite Jack Handey skits.

Why a Scary Skeleton?
Because it's scary, it scares people. If it's not scary, what's the point of even having one?

Want Fries With That?

2008-10-21T19:53:00.003-05:00

This weekend, our family trekked over to the "Ponderosa" (aka, Grandma's House) to hang out with family. Quinn's cousin Jason came from Birmingham, bringing in tow his loverly wife Michelle and two of their chilluns. We have always been very close with them, and my kids refer to them as Uncle Jay and Aunt Shell and Quinn and I have always referred to their girlies as our nieces. Anyhoo... last year, about this time(ish), Michelle was diagnosed with high blood pressure. Well, she's a walking picture of health. Tall, dark, gorgeous, magazine hair, thin, you know, the works (hello-look at her). She had, for a while, been eating healthy and exercising.

And she was STILL diagnosed with high blood pressure. She wanted to try to change (even more) her eating habits to avoid taking blood pressure medicine, which is known to have life-long effects on the liver.
And then her 38 year-old brother died suddenly from a heart attack. He had a wife and three children. Devastated, she grieved with her family and feared for her own. As his sister, what was her prognosis for health? She plugged away even harder at trying to find alternatives for blood pressure drugs, changing her diet again and again, exercising more often, and still her blood pressure was high. Constantly researching, she found more and more natural ways to make her body healthy and work more effectively. Whenever all the ladies would get together at G'ma's (or when we were invited over for dinner in B'ham) she would share tidbits of what she learned and I would (or wouldn't) apply them to whatever I was doing. This past weekend was no different. After listening to her talk about what new thing she had researched, or hearing about the Blood Type Diet (which her doctor told her was nonsense, but since she's been on it, her blood pressure has come down- go figure), I encouraged her to start a blog. So she's done it.
Go check it out.

PS... I ate four white macadamia nut cookies before I posted this...
PSS...I also have been trying to cut down on my refined sugar intake...
Yeah, yeah I'm going, too. Well, she's on my Google reader. I'll keep tabs. It's time for you to post a new tidbit, Michelle.

Homemade Snickers Candy Bar

2008-10-17T05:42:00.004-05:00

Oh yeah, got your attention? It grabbed mine. I saw this idea on this website and you can BET I'll be trying to make it. SOON. It just screams "EAT ME, FAT COW". I've also been looking at The Crafty Crow a lot lately because they have a TON of Halloween foody (and non-foody) things to make. I'll definitely be trying this: It looks super easy and they are adorable. Last night I was called the Halloween queen by one of the girls, but that cannot be true (though I do have a good Halloween playlist) because of my lack of general desire to be crafty. I am slightly more crafty in October than any other time of the year. I especially like foody items. Like little pigs in a blanket that look like mummies. Cute.

I Get To Be Guilty

2008-10-16T21:22:00.006-05:00

Had coffee against my better judgement at Mrs. In Ministry. It just smelled sooo good. Didn't know if it was decaf or not. I'm guessing, two hours later and wired, that it was at least half-caf and I'm not sleepy. I do things at night when I'm not sleepy that I don't do in the day. I'm not usually feeling awake at night, so it's almost like I am more carefree (even careless- definitely have more verbal diarrhea at night) and have this desire to link with a child-like tendency to smile fearlessly into the night. I rolled down the windows (in my paint-peelin', dirty, green mini-van) and blared some old school Over the Rhine (oh, I was rockin') and sang "I get to be guilty" (Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander) at the top of my lungs with my hand outside the window, feeling the cold rain hitting me. It was glorious. So rebellious.

And now to Poe.

Poe, Poe, and more Poe. Why do I like Poe? I know I have stated because he's a genius, but it is the whole of his descriptions that I love the most about his stories and poems. You can feel, see, know, and shiver at his descriptions, knowing his grief or his fear or his worst desires or tendencies. His writing is so human and unbelievably revealing. What is terrifying about "The Raven" is not the bird. It's just a bird. It is the main character's grief for his lost loved one that is so transparently horrific; his terror at his own loss. What did he see? The Raven mercilessly taunted him, not because it could, but because anything taunted his grief. Life itself taunted his grief over the lost Lenore. I think Poe's poetry reveals so much of his mind.

And his short stories reveal his deeper, darker thoughts. His descriptions are second to none for creating a mood of general spookiness.

During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country.

(The Fall of House of Usher)
I can picture this day perfectly.

Isn't there something so nearly unearthlike about an apt description? So closely tangible, and yet just out reach about the beauty of words? How can they evoke such fear? Such sympathy? Tears? Terror? I am in awe of words.

I recommend The Pit and the Pendulum (for fear and waiting terror), The Raven (for exhausting grief), and The Masque of Red Death or Hop-Frog (for horrific poetic justice). Good grief.
Go read some Poe.

Parenthesis and Poe

2008-10-13T20:03:00.006-05:00

I'm tired and pooped out. And redundant, apparently. I've skipped Christmas Choir tonight (because I'm lame and lazy and feeling guilty because of it) and am now about to go to bed at 8:10. Feeling kind of rollercoaster"y" lately; just missing old friends from the 'Ham (that's Birmingham to all you non-Birmingham-ites), missing my family in FL (that's Florida for all you, uh, who neglected to memorize state abbreviations in Elementary School), and feeling smothered in activities (which I partly bring on myself and partly get because of work). I just made chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese icing (of course, the cream cheese icing is dyed orange and a candy corn is placed on each cupcake. You know, because it's fall) and I am feeling a leetle bit sick from snagging a bit of icing here and there (and here and there... and there and here... ugh. bleah).
So, after all that lovely, annoying complaining, I shall leave you (to go to bed) with some Poe. Because I love Poe. Some of you may not like Poe, and I'm sorry if you don't. Because he was a freakin' genius.

An excerpt from "The Tell-Tale Heart", which is one of the best short stories in the whole world. Ever.

Now this is the point. You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But you should have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded -- with what caution -- with what foresight, with what dissimulation, I went to work! I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before I killed him. And every night about midnight I turned the latch of his door and opened it oh, so gently! And then, when I had made an opening sufficient for my head, I put in a dark lantern all closed, closed so that no light shone out, and then I thrust in my head. Oh, you would have laughed to see how cunningly I thrust it in! I moved it slowly, very, very slowly, so that I might not disturb the old man's sleep. It took me an hour to place my whole head within the opening so far that I could see him as he lay upon his bed. Ha! would a madman have been so wise as this? And then when my head was well in the room I undid the lantern cautiously -- oh, so cautiously -- cautiously (for the hinges creaked), I undid it just so much that a single thin ray fell upon the vulture eye. And this I did for seven long nights, every night just at midnight, but I found the eye always closed, and so it was impossible to do the work, for it was not the old man who vexed me but his Evil Eye. And every morning, when the day broke, I went boldly into the chamber and spoke courageously to him, calling him by name in a hearty tone, and inquiring how he had passed the night. So you see he would have been a very profound old man, indeed , to suspect that every night, just at twelve, I looked in upon him while he slept.

Ah, yes. It wasn't the old man who vexed you, I see, it was his evil eye. I can see now why you would want to murder him and then dismember him. Thanks for explaining. No, of course I don't think you mad. Who said you were mad? Certainly not me. I'm, um, just going out this way. No, you sit here and I'll, uh, be back, ummmm, later. Thanks.

Love it. Deliciously scarey, if you will.

Monster Pizzas

2008-10-11T20:01:00.009-05:00

Today, we had some friends over to make Monster Pizzas. This is such a fun activity (though very noisy) and the children had a blast. You can make this project as easy
as you want it to be. We made the pizza dough from Jiffy Pizza Crust, but you could easily use a tortilla, pita round, or ready made pizza dough from the refrigerated section at the grocery store. Decorating it is the fun part.
This year, I remembered the difficulty of transporting the finished pizzas onto a cookie sheet from the wax paper last year, so we used parchment paper this year to let the children decorate their pizzas and the problem was solved. I love that you can put parchment paper directly in the oven. After setting parchment paper in front of each child, we gave each child a ball of dough and let them shape it in whatever way they chose.
After shaping the dough, the mommas put a bit of pizza sauce on the dough and then the kids went to town with the toppings. As far as toppings go, we had kernel corn, raw mushrooms, turkey pepperoni (which I was skeptical of, but it's quite good!), spinach leaves, sliced red pepper, sliced tomatoes, black olives, and mozzarella and cheddar cheeses available. Everything was set in its own bowl and the children just helped themselves to what they wanted. The skull turned out to me the most popular.
After the children finished decorating their pizzas like they wanted, then we simply picked up the parchment paper with their pizzas on and set them side by side on a cookie sheet. They baked in a 400 degree oven for approximately 10-15 minutes (depending on how you like your crust). They turned out great!
You should give it a whirl...

Caramel Apple Fun

2008-10-08T20:57:00.009-05:00

We had some school friends over the other day to do caramel apples with us after school. Caramel apples, though messy, are the easiest things in the world to make. Just grab two bags of caramels from the store (one bag is never enough-I like my apples EXTRA carmelly- yes, that's a word- shutup spellcheck), unwrap the squares (unless you're lucky enough to have a grocery store that carries the caramel chips- I'm not), throw them into a saucepan with a couple teaspoons of water, and then stir the caramels over low heat until they melt. Poke the sticks (that come in the caramel bag) into the apples (granny smith, gala, and rome apples work better than red delicious and golden delicious) and then hold apple over saucepan and spoon caramel over apple until sufficiently covered. Place apple on small sheet of wax paper and continue until you have your desired amount of apples. We like to have decorating stuff ready on the table for the kids to decorate their apple while the caramel is still warm (so the toppings stick). We have chopped pecans, candy corn, and melted chocolate to drizzle in separate bowls on the table with spoons for each child.

Troy, snacking and decorating... There's no other way to do it!
Felix being a ham, of course.

Silas and Toby had a lot of fun (and made a lovely mess) making their apples and eating them.

Toby with a kiss of chocolate on his mouth, adding the finishing touch on his apple.

My new friend, Candace, loving that I took her picture while eating the be-caramelled jewel.

Really, can a flattering picture be taken of someone eating a caramel apple? I think not. But it sure was good.

Sugar Cookie Righteousness

2008-10-08T20:25:00.004-05:00

Yes, I have sugar cookie righteousness. I make REALLY good sugar cookies. Not bragging (well, maybe a little), but they're so good. Yes, I will give you the recipe (which is just the Southern Living recipe), but YOU MUST FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS PRECISELY OR IT WILL NOT WORK. YOU WILL NOT HAVE THE BEST SUGAR COOKIES IN THE LAND IF YOU DO NOT FOLLOW MY DIRECTIONS EXACTLY. Okay, so in a minute...

It is a tradition in our house to make pumpkin shaped sugar cookies (BEST IN THE LAND!!!!- sorry), dip them in Royal Icing, and then allow children to decorate them with Jack o'lantern faces. We did this on Monday night, in between work, school, homework, dinner, and Christmas choir practice (why, yes, I AM crazy busy! how did you know?) Well, this year, to make things CRAZY interesting, I acquired a ghost cookie cutter and I allowed the children to do both. SO CUTE. The boys had a great time rolling out the dough and cutting their cookies and then (because I had to skip off to choir) Quinn helped them with their Jack o'lantern faces.
Nice, wholesome, October fun!
Here's the recipe for the cookies (with my neurotic instructions included, of course):

Classic Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter, softened (must use real butter- I will hunt you down if you don't)
1 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt

Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating well. Add egg and vanilla, beating well. Gradually (important) add flour and salt, beating until well blended. Divide dough in half; cover and chill 1 hour.
Roll each portion of dough to 1/3 to 1/2 inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut with desired cookie cutters. Place on cookie sheet.
(THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART) Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes. The cookies WILL NOT LOOK DONE. You will say to yourself, "they are not done." But they ARE done. They just don't look it. Trust me, "not-looking-done" is part of the perfect cookie. Cook cookies for a minute on sheet, then place on wire racks to cool completely. After cookies cool, then you will want to dip them in Royal Icing, which is as follows:

2 cups powdered sugar
3 tbsp meringue powder (hard to find-try baking/cooking stores)
5 to 6 tbsp warm water
1 tsp light corn syrup
food coloring

Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Beat at medium-low speed with an electric mixer. The original directions call for you to do this for 5 to 7 minutes, but I only do it for a couple of minutes, then dip the cookies, face down, in the icing so that the surface of the cookie is smooth for decorating. If you'd like, separate the icing into different bowls and tint the icing with different colors. I like to do the base coat in a solid color, and then let the boys go at the cookies with small paint brushes or toothpicks. They have a ball.

The next morning, we packed a ghost cookie up for the boys' teachers and a note calling them "bootiful" and sent them on their way. What a nice kiss-up family we are.

Steve and Barry's Closing!

2008-10-05T05:53:00.003-05:00

I saw on Fab Finds that 100 Steve & Barry's locations are closing. I went here to check out what stores were closing and, sure enough, the Birmingham, AL location is on the hit list. I've heard the prices are unbelievably low (and their original prices are $10). SO, for my sake, please go to the Steve and Barry's on Roebuck Pkwy and tell me that everything is picked over and there's nothing left, because I would LOVE to go there and see how low everything is marked. But, alas, I cannot.

Happy Hunting!

Things to Remember if You're Me

2008-10-04T15:00:00.003-05:00

When jogging in the morning, stop by yard sales while you're sweating and breathing heavily and don't bring money. Then, when they are annoyed that you like stuff and know that you don't have money, ask them if they'll hold it for you for a 1/2 hour or so. THEN, when you get home, don't shower or anything, just grab the $10 on the counter and head back out with your three-year old to the afore-mentioned yard sale. Let him wander around yard, knocking down stuff periodically, while you peruse lovely yard sale. He's cute, they'll get over it. He didn't break anything. Get the very cute, nearly new New Balances for a few bucks in three-year old's size and a couple of shirts that he doesn't need (including a brand new glow-in-the-dark skeleton shirt-cool). Of course, get more stuff than you have money for and see if they'll take your deal. Then promptly put new shoes on your three-year old because HE REALLY WANTS YOU TO, and then drive home. Don't shower when you get home, but instead, hurriedly try to clean your house before lovely mother-in-law comes over (I'm still in the denial stage of wanting my mother-in-law to think I'm clean-HA- I've only been married to her son for nine years, I'm sure she hasn't guessed yet that I only clean when people are coming over). Allow three-year old to come in and follow you around the house while dusting (also- be sure to leave windows open AFTER dusting so that when husband uses blower to blow the driveway-all the residue comes back in the house and settles on all the dusted furniture) and windexing and keep sniffing the air, trying to figure out where the poop smell is coming from. Let 10 minutes pass (traipsing through house with three-year old following) and STILL wonder where the poop smell is coming from. Turn on the lightbulb that suddenly appears over your head and look on the bottom of three-year old's new shoes. Discover dog pooh. Curse silently. Remember all the areas that you traipsed through and spray carpet cleaner on all areas, cursing that you have carpet. Take nasty shoes outside to spray off and get yourself soaked in the process. Lay shoes out to dry, making a mental note to throw them in the washer, while three-year old is UNHAPPY that his new shoes are wet. Sorry buddy, I didn't traipse through dog pooh. Do not shower before in-laws come to take the boys on a trip to the museum, but stand in the laundry-covered kitchen floor, with stinky sweatiness and greasy hair, talking to lovely mother-in-law (who really is lovely and doesn't mention my nastiness). Watch children leave and go get ready for date with your husband. Ah...

Thank you, Grandmother and Grandaddy for our time out this morning. We needed it.

Martin Luther on Music

2008-10-02T05:57:00.002-05:00

As some of you know, October 31st is also Reformation Day and I love Martin Luther's story. This is my new favorite quote by him about music:

When man’s natural musical ability is whetted and polished to the extent that it becomes an art, then do we note with great surprise the great and perfect wisdom of God in music, which is, after all, His product and His gift; we marvel when we hear music in which one voice sings a simple melody, while three, four, or five other voices play and trip lustily around the voice that sings its simple melody and adorn this simple melody wonderfully with artistic musical effects, thus reminding us of a heavenly dance, where all meet in a spirit of friendliness, caress and embrace. A person who gives this some thought and yet does not regard music as a marvelous creation of God, must be a clodhopper indeed and does not deserve to be called a human being; he should be permitted to hear nothing but the braying of asses and the grunting of hogs.

(Martin Luther, 1538, in his foreword to a collection of chorale motets)

A clodhopper indeed.
I totally ripped this off another blog I saw this morning.
I love it.

Excerpt from the Raven

2008-09-30T20:12:00.002-05:00

"Prophet!" said I, "thing of evil!- prophet still, if bird or devil!
Whether Tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted-
On this home by Horror haunted- tell me truly, I implore-
Is there- is there balm in Gilead?- tell me- tell me, I implore!"
Quoth the Raven "Nevermore."

The Raven, Edgar Allen Poe
Gustave Dore art "Is there Balm in Gilead?"

Favorite and Fashion Faux Pas

2008-09-30T17:55:00.004-05:00

Currently, I'm listening to my Spooks playlist and listening to Felix howl like a wolf on the Little Red Riding Hood song. Cute.

Today is Tuesday, which is pretty much my favorite day of the week at work. On Tuesdays, I have three kindergarten classes, one Special Ed class, and the rest of the day is considered a planning day. We (my teacher and I) listen to Frank Sinatra, Natalie Cole, or whatever else just happens to grab our attention. My lovely teacher, who is actually a REAL certified teacher so she has ACTUAL work on Tuesday (lesson plans), but I get to do what she calls "paper dolls". I call it "doing bulletin boards". I didn't realize how much I would enjoy this, and I get slightly carried away with what I get to do (imagine that). For instance, for October I had a big scarecrow and a big pumpkin that was laminated. I did a yellow background and orange edging. I decided that I would make "curly" grass (made from construction paper with the edges curled with scissors). Staple, staple, staple. Old school scarecrow is super-cute; he has the movable legs (I'm sure you can picture this scarecrow; nearly every family I knew in the early 80's had either the scarecrow or the witch with movable legs on their front door), so I make him look like he's dancing. Still, it kind of looks very... ordinary. Can't have that. I decide to make a haystack. Make a haystack. Don't like the haystack. So I decide that a cornstalk will be better. Make cornstalk with silky things hanging from cobs. Staple, staple. Hmmm... Old Pete (I've given the scarecrow a name) needs a fence behind him. Remove Pete, pumpkin, but not cornstalk. Make a fence. Staple, staple. Put Pete and pumpkin back. Staple, staple. Hmmm... (when I say, "hmmm...", this translates to at least five minutes of my head cocked to the side, quizzical look on my brow, and squinting my eyes to see what else I think my bulletin board needs). I had borrowed some colored chalk from the art teacher earlier that morning and, even though I had never shaded with chalk before, I set to work. Blue sky over yellow background, with orange and pink fading out at the top. Shade the fence with black and put a couple of knotholes in it. Shade the cornstalk with yellow, brown, and grays. Add additional long, grass blades behind curly grass. Finished, with my hands and fingernails filthy and chalk all over my clothes. But I love the look. And I enjoyed myself immensely. Not artwork, mind you, but not hideous. What next? Our school is doing a "Bee Drug-Free" (which makes me a little sad-they're in K-5 and 1st grade!) door contest, so I'm thinking a GIGANTIC (my teacher teased about my word choice earlier today) bee with GIGANTIC grass, and GIGANTIC (see why she teased me?) flowers. Maybe the bee has on a cute bow-tie or something.

On a completely different note:
We have a highschool helper on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Our helper is a very cute 16-year old girl who always has cute hair and awesome purses. She's very stylish. Which is why what she wore today concerned me GREATLY:

She. Had. On. Acid. Washed. Skinny-leg. Tapered. Jeans.

Let us all scream collectively. I'm having remembrances of this:

That hair was my dream hair day in 1989.
I asked her if she was wearing acid-washed jeans. To which she replied, "Yeah, aren't they cool?" Uh, no. She was also wearing Air-walk slip-ons with hearts on it. Hello, I'm screaming, "Is it REALLY coming back to eighties fashion?" If I start curling my front bangs and using excessive amounts of hairspray, just shake your head and gently lead me away. Take the orange face tinter out of my hands and wipe the crystallized pink lipstick off my mouth. Tell me you love me, but you're not going to let me do it. Relive the eighties, that is.

I think I remember saying the same thing about flared pants.
Oh, crap.

AW, YEAH (say that in a rapper kind of way- practice it now)

2008-09-28T16:32:00.006-05:00

My most productive time of the year (craftily speaking) is approaching quickly. Usually, I would defer the privilege of changing my blog until October 1st, but since that's Wednesday, and since that's a weekday, and since I'm insanely busy during the week, you're getting the Halloween stuff early.

And since I had such huge demand last year for my Halloween playlist (well, in my house anyway -sans hubby- who rolls his eyes at me during most of the month of October), it will make it's 2008 debut shortly.

AND, if you're reading this on Facebook and wondering, "What the heck is she talking about? I'm looking at a boring, white, Facebook page." Then, my dears, scroll down and click on "View Original Post" and, voila!, you will be at my magical, Halloweeny-flavored blog. UNLESS, of course, you hate Halloween, then don't. I like Halloween. A little.

You can bet there will be monster pizzas made this month, as well as caramel apples, hopefully some delicious apple cider

Hot Cider

2 qts. apple cider
½ cup brown sugar
¼ tsp. salt
Wrap the following ingredients in cheesecloth:
1 tsp. whole allspice
1 tsp. whole cloves
Dash nutmeg
3” stick cinnamon
Slowly bring to a boil, cover, simmer for 20 minutes. Take out spices.

will be made from a recipe that I got from Marsha's blog, and YOU KNOW I'm gonna read a ton of Edgar Allen Poe (and probably quote it on here- lucky you).

Yea! I love this time of year.

And to just kick things off (ahem):

"'Will you walk into my parlor?' said the Spider to the Fly,
'Tis the prettiest little parlor that ever you did spy;
The way into my parlor is up a winding stair
And I have many curious things to show you when you are there.'"

(You may now do an evil Bwahahahaha laugh...)
The Spider and the Fly by Mary Howitt

Help My Unbelief

2008-09-28T06:31:00.003-05:00

I know the Lord is nigh, I would but cannot pray
for Satan meets me when I try and frights my soul away.

I would but can't repent, though I endeavor oft
This stony heart can ne'er relent 'til Jesus makes it soft.

I would but cannot love, though wooed by love divine
No arguements have power to move a soul as base as mine.

I would but cannot rest, in God's most Holy Will
I know what He appoints is best, and murmur at it still.

Help my unbelief, my help must come from Thee.

I love this song; it nails me right on the head. I avoid it at times (as I tend to avoid self-contemplation) because I don't want to think about how stubborn I am, or how much I need Him. And yet, I still have the verses floating around and reminding me of my own pride and unbelief. This skin is quite frustrating.

Pedometer

2008-09-26T05:45:00.002-05:00

Yesterday evening, I trekked over to the seminary to join the other seminary wives for Mrs. in Ministry. I enjoy this Bible Study so much; meeting with other ladies who are in our situation (broke and in school) and having the opportunity to encourage one another, pray, laugh, and sing together. I arrived a few minutes late (had to take movies back to the library on the way) and slid in to join the group for singing. I was seated close to the back door and settled in for the speaker, who's husband was on staff at the seminary, as she talked about hospitality. Suddenly, there was a low beep-beep beep-beep sound. I was glad I remembered to turn off my phone and ignored it. Then the other women around me start looking around, trying to find the beeping. Is it me? It can't be me! I pick up my enormous purse and put it up to my ear (yeah, looking crazy is always your best bet), just to see if it WAS me. Sure enough, inside my purse was the culprit. I slipped out the back door to find the annoying thing and remembered that I had been given a pedometer at school by the P.E. teacher, who had had some extras. Let me just say, I hate digital pieces like watches and pedometers because I can never figure what buttons to push to make it do what I want. However, the pedometer the P.E. teacher gave me was brand new AND included instructions. I piddled with it for about 10 minutes in class, got frustrated because the instructions were NOT GOOD, and put it in my purse to let my dear husband figure it out. And then promptly forgot I put it in there. Until last night, that is. Once outside, I fished out the beeping culprit and pushed buttons until it turned off. Slipped back in (except that I had escaped out a door that locks automatically behind you and had to knock to be let back in- yes, more attention on me during a speaker, please) and sat down in my seat by the door. A couple of minutes float by and I'm enjoying the speaker, who is telling funny stories. Beep-beep beep-beep. Argh! Again? I lean over, fish it out of my purse again and push buttons until it turns off (knowing I'm not fixing it). Then I get up, open the back door, and toss it outside. Stifled giggles are heard around me. I sit back in my chair and feel like a complete moron (who can't turn off a pedometer, for cryin' out loud). Listening to the speaker... funny stories... good ideas for serving unexpected guests dinner... beep-beep beep-beep beep-beep beep-beep. More stifled giggles. I do the "Are you kidding me?" face. I did not throw it far enough apparently, because, though it is muffled, it is still loud enough for everyone to hear. Sigh. I decide to ignore it and am silently willing for everyone else to pretend not to hear it. It eventually stops. And periodically beeps one time every 10 minutes or so until the speaker finished. I step outside, pick it up and put it back in the depths of my purse (you know, so that there can be future embarrassing events), and join the other ladies who have laughter in their eyes.

True story.

Quotable

2008-09-24T20:16:00.003-05:00

I haven't had time to read blogs in two days. This is driving me nuts. I like for all of my blogs on Google Reader to be "marked as read", but I cannot actually mark them as read until I actually read them. Secret. I'm neurotic. This is driving. me. crazy. MUST READ BLOGS TOMORROW. I'm going to bed in a moment, but I thought I'd share a quotable with you.

Little girl to me at school today. Please remember I live in Mississippi.

"Mrs. Hee-ihl"
"Yes, sweet girl?" That's what I call all the little girls when I cannot remember their names. Don't scoff. There are 730 kindergarten and first graders at my school.
"I know whaiy your naa-ame is Mrs. Hee-ihl."
"Why darlin'?"
"'Cuz you werr hi hee-ihls evry day. That's whaiy."
All of the other little girls nodded in amazement at her genius. I just smiled and said, "That's right!" And no, I have not given up heels at work, despite their discomfort on my feet. They're just too pretty NOT to wear. I do bring flip flops to change into though.

Kids say the darndest things...