14 October, 2009
I accidentally grew a pumpkin!
After multiple tries to grow tomato, pepper, onion, and zucchini, I had given up. I could get nothing to grow...clearly, I do not have a green thumb! Then, one day, a large green vine started growing out of my compost bin. It got longer and longer and bigger and bigger. At first I thought it was a zucchini plant. But, it turned out to be pumpkin. We had to leave for a month just as the pumpkin was forming. I had no idea what to expect upon our return. When we got back, the vine had withered and what was left was a large green pumpkin. It has since turned (mostly) orange and is now on our dining room table. Apparently, my former failures were due to a soil problem!
23 August, 2009
Jesus For President
Just finished reading Jesus For President. Quite a challenging book by Shane Claiborne- with the potential to be quite motivating. I say "potential" because nothing, outside of God Himself and our will to do can truly be motivating. Nonetheless, the book is, at worst, thought provoking and is well worth the read. He begins by going through the Bible from the beginning and showing how God intended for our world to operate. He includes many intreaguing facts from the past and much history. Further into the book, he exposes controversial issues regarding our American way of life as well as our government/ politics. Then, toward the end, he explores real life ways we can impact our nation and make our mark as true followers of Jesus. Though not for the "faint of heart," this book is full of radical old ideas we would do well to embrace.
07 August, 2009
tractor park
Every family has certain "special" names for things. For example, I knew a girl who said her family called waffles, "bubbles." Don't ask me why. Our YWAM Denver has the "tractor park." Every Friday evening this summer we have gone to this park to have a family picnic. I don't know the actual name of the park and I'm not sure anybody does. Who cares? We all know what we're talking about and we know where we'll all be on Friday evening- the "tractor" park.
The kids play on the playground equipment. Some of the men gather to throw balls and frisbees to one another. Other guys and girls play tennis or board games, while still others just sit and chat. The weather is always warm- though sometimes windy- and the company is always refreshing. So, tonight, for the last time this summer, we will be going to the tractor park for supper.
The kids play on the playground equipment. Some of the men gather to throw balls and frisbees to one another. Other guys and girls play tennis or board games, while still others just sit and chat. The weather is always warm- though sometimes windy- and the company is always refreshing. So, tonight, for the last time this summer, we will be going to the tractor park for supper.
06 August, 2009
When poop hits the fan
I don't often "snap." But, yesterday I did. Thought I should be committed...here's what happened:
So, Friday I lost my keys. Actually, they vanished. I know exactly where I had them...and they're gone. Anyway, so yesterday I was still looking for my keys - 5 days later- in completely illogical places hoping against all hope that they would turn up in say...my children's lego box (nevermind that I lost my keys at the base or that my boys have not played with their legos in the past week).
In the midst of the key saga, I needed to go to the bank. So, at 9am, I loaded my boys into the car and proceeded to try to start the car with the replacement key my husband had made the previous day. The car would not start. The oil light came on and I decided it better to bike. Not only did I need to go to the bank, I also needed to get Micah some new shoes. So, I attached the kid trailer to my bike, loaded up the boys, and set off. Halfway to the consignment store, I noticed my front tire was splashy. Nevertheless, we made it to the shop. I turned in some of my boys' old stuff and got Micah a pair of new shoes. There was a bicycle repair shop nearby, so I petaled on over there to get my tires re-filled.
On my way to the bank (which, by the way, is uphill) my husband called. Sweaty and already tired I answered next to the very busy street. Amidst the traffic, I heard "go home. the car is fine." I went home. He drove me to the bank. Well, he drove me halfway to the bank. Halfway to the bank I remembered I only had half of the money I needed to deposit. He drove me home. I collected the other check. Then, he drove me to the bank. Post-bank, we ran by the hardware store to pick up a couple of things and then to the library to drop off some books. On the way home, we stopped at a friends' house where Ben was going to do some work.
I got in the drivers seat and the car would not start. Turns out one needs a special key for our car. Knowing my husband was not going to risk his (our last) working key on me, I walked home with the boys. I made lunch. They decided they did not want to eat their lunch. Okay fine. "You don't have to eat your lunch, but this is all you are getting until supper time," I explained. They were fine with this...for about 30 minutes. They soon became hungry and wanted "other food." I stuck to my guns. I continued searching for my keys. Surely they were in the boys' underwear drawer! Of course they were not.
Later in the day, we were all exhausted. The boys, who still had not eaten, were hungry. Micah began to completely ignore anything I said to him. I was angry. I banished the boys to their room and told them not to come out until I called them. I threw a wooden kitchen utensil across my kitchen and it broke against the wall. I went into the garage and started to cry. "I'm a horrible person!" I thought. I went upstairs to apologize to the boys, but told them they still needed to play in their room for a while.
The bike and kids trailor were still in the middle of the garage. Ben would have to park there when he got home. So, still crying, I began to work on cleaning the garage. No sooner had I prepared a space for the bike and trailor, did Ben come home. The garage door opened, I walked the bike and trailor outside and I noticed that not only was my husband home, but he had a friend with him. I was mortified! My face was red, I was still angry and upset, I was wearing a T-shirt and work out shorts, and my hair was a mess. Fantastic! Ben got out of the car and proceeded to tell me the story of how he spent the afternoon (and $60) to get me a new key. Our poor friend...standing there...trying not to be there! He picked up some feathers from the ground (I am still not sure why there were feathers on the ground), handed them to me, and said "Psalm 93." I was too embarassed to thank the poor man! At this point, I just looked at the ground and started taking the trailor off the bike.
After we got the bike trailor off and put everything back into the garage, Ben and his friend left. It was near dinner time. There was nothing to make in our house and I had lost any and all motiviation to cook. I pulled myself together, got dressed in something decent, and took the boys to the base for supper. We sat with Ben's friend.
So, Friday I lost my keys. Actually, they vanished. I know exactly where I had them...and they're gone. Anyway, so yesterday I was still looking for my keys - 5 days later- in completely illogical places hoping against all hope that they would turn up in say...my children's lego box (nevermind that I lost my keys at the base or that my boys have not played with their legos in the past week).
In the midst of the key saga, I needed to go to the bank. So, at 9am, I loaded my boys into the car and proceeded to try to start the car with the replacement key my husband had made the previous day. The car would not start. The oil light came on and I decided it better to bike. Not only did I need to go to the bank, I also needed to get Micah some new shoes. So, I attached the kid trailer to my bike, loaded up the boys, and set off. Halfway to the consignment store, I noticed my front tire was splashy. Nevertheless, we made it to the shop. I turned in some of my boys' old stuff and got Micah a pair of new shoes. There was a bicycle repair shop nearby, so I petaled on over there to get my tires re-filled.
On my way to the bank (which, by the way, is uphill) my husband called. Sweaty and already tired I answered next to the very busy street. Amidst the traffic, I heard "go home. the car is fine." I went home. He drove me to the bank. Well, he drove me halfway to the bank. Halfway to the bank I remembered I only had half of the money I needed to deposit. He drove me home. I collected the other check. Then, he drove me to the bank. Post-bank, we ran by the hardware store to pick up a couple of things and then to the library to drop off some books. On the way home, we stopped at a friends' house where Ben was going to do some work.
I got in the drivers seat and the car would not start. Turns out one needs a special key for our car. Knowing my husband was not going to risk his (our last) working key on me, I walked home with the boys. I made lunch. They decided they did not want to eat their lunch. Okay fine. "You don't have to eat your lunch, but this is all you are getting until supper time," I explained. They were fine with this...for about 30 minutes. They soon became hungry and wanted "other food." I stuck to my guns. I continued searching for my keys. Surely they were in the boys' underwear drawer! Of course they were not.
Later in the day, we were all exhausted. The boys, who still had not eaten, were hungry. Micah began to completely ignore anything I said to him. I was angry. I banished the boys to their room and told them not to come out until I called them. I threw a wooden kitchen utensil across my kitchen and it broke against the wall. I went into the garage and started to cry. "I'm a horrible person!" I thought. I went upstairs to apologize to the boys, but told them they still needed to play in their room for a while.
The bike and kids trailor were still in the middle of the garage. Ben would have to park there when he got home. So, still crying, I began to work on cleaning the garage. No sooner had I prepared a space for the bike and trailor, did Ben come home. The garage door opened, I walked the bike and trailor outside and I noticed that not only was my husband home, but he had a friend with him. I was mortified! My face was red, I was still angry and upset, I was wearing a T-shirt and work out shorts, and my hair was a mess. Fantastic! Ben got out of the car and proceeded to tell me the story of how he spent the afternoon (and $60) to get me a new key. Our poor friend...standing there...trying not to be there! He picked up some feathers from the ground (I am still not sure why there were feathers on the ground), handed them to me, and said "Psalm 93." I was too embarassed to thank the poor man! At this point, I just looked at the ground and started taking the trailor off the bike.
After we got the bike trailor off and put everything back into the garage, Ben and his friend left. It was near dinner time. There was nothing to make in our house and I had lost any and all motiviation to cook. I pulled myself together, got dressed in something decent, and took the boys to the base for supper. We sat with Ben's friend.
22 June, 2009
The past month
On May 25th, we drove down to Colorado Springs where we ministered with Stefaan Hugo and taught on the topic of the Holy Spirit for a few days. On Thursday, the 28th, we drove back up to Denver just in time to un-pack, re-pack, and watch So You Think You Can Dance before taking Ben to the airport. He spent the next week in New Haven, CT participating in a "silent retreat" and listening to the Lord about our future. We picked him up from the airport on June 3rd and continued driving down to Tyler Texas. Fifteen hours later, we arrived, exhausted but in one piece at my parent's house. We rested and hung out with my family for the rest of the day. The following morning, we celebrated my sisters' 24th birthday before we all packed up and drove to Baton Rouge to celebrate my grandfather's 80th birthday. We had a great time as a family sharing stories, taking photos, and eating incredible food. The following day, we spent more time with the family swimming, eating watermelon, and playing a game of croquet. We left again the following morning to travel back to Texas. The next day, we relaxed as well as celebrated my brother's 18th birthday. The following afternoon, we began the long drive back to Denver, stopping in Dallas to drop my sister off at the airport. We arrived home at 4:30am Wednesday, June 10th. Four days later, we left for New Mexico with several others from our church. After another long day in the car, we arrived safely in Farmington at Many Waters Mission. The next four days were spent in the Navajo reservation doing a VBS as well as some construction for a local church. Friday of that week was our "fun day" so we headed to Four Corners and to Mesa Verde for the day. The next day we drove back to Denver...just in time for Father's Day the next day! Now we're here for 10 weeks before our next adventure - and I'm glad to be home for a while!
12 June, 2009
trouble with boys
I can't keep my boys out of trouble! If they're not pulling out the books, they are making a "fort" with all the couch pillows as well as all their stuffed animals, all the blankets in the house, and every pillow they can find. If they're not getting into paint and painting their bodies, they are playing in the car messing with all the controls and stuffing coins into the vents. If they're not trying to pour themselves juice, they are trying to put on a movie for themselves. If they're not pulling out all my sewing supplies, they are getting into the toothpaste. If they're not tearing leaves off the tree, they are "feeding" the neighbors dog sticks and branches. If they're not marinating each other in juice, they are smashing their popsicles into the ground. Boys! If they're not asleep, they are getting into things!
29 May, 2009
pizza with boys
My boys. Today they played with transformers, ran around like "superheros," and played pirates with underwear on their heads. Typical day. I gave them juice in sippy cups. They purposefully spilled their juice on their table so they could paint each other with it and put it in their hair. Typical day. For dinner, Zion wanted pizza. I put the yeast and water in the bowl and threatened the boys. "If this spills on the floor, no pizza for dinner!" I said as they looked intently into the bowl and I walked into the other room for a minute. No more than a minute later, I came back into the kitchen...just in time to catch Zion pouring chocolate syrup into the yeast mix. Chocolate syrup pizza! Yes, what could be better! Thankfully, he had not put much in and I could still use the mixture for our pizza. I made the dough, let them knead it (play with it), and set it to rest. Zion helped me roll it out as I got out ingredients for the topping. As I prepared the pan for the dough, Zion began spreading the sauce...on the still lumpy dough smeared across the counter. I had to scrape the sauce back off so I could finish rolling out the pizza and put it on the pan. We cooked the crust for a few minutes before adding the toppings. Then, I let him spread the sauce and put on the cheese. As the pizza cooked I gave the boys a bath. Had to rescue tissue from the tub and their frog shaped anti-slip dealy-bobs (yes, that's the technical term) went flying. They, by the way, never did get clean. Micah still had sticky juice hair when he went to bed, I fear! Typical day. ...what adventures will tomorrow hold?!
12 May, 2009
green me
For a while now, I've been trying to "green" up my life. Though I'm all for helping the environment, that has not really been my motivation. Mostly, I just want my kids to grow up pesticide/ antibiotic free. So, about a year ago, I switched from cough syrups and pain medicines (things I rarely used anyway) to essential oils. Slowly, I started using the oils (as well as other natural ingredients such as vinegar, baking soda, borax, and salt) to replace other things as well...lotion, bath salts/oils, cleaning supplies, and pesticides. Essential oils kill germs- and keep them away- better than chemicals or antibiotics and since God made them with between 200-800 chemical compounds (many more than the 1 or 2 antibiotics are made out of) bacteria (as well as virus' or fungai) do not mutate with their use.
Yesterday I finally decided I will never again use the commercial cleaning supplies I have had just sitting around for the past year and got rid of them. Yesterday also, I bought castile (olive oil soap) for the first time and wondered why I waited so long. The stuff is absolutely amazing and leaves the skin feeling soft and smooth, not sticky and dry like regular soap. My next project is to get rid of most of my plastic eating wear. With two little boys, I'm not sure how that one will work, though! I guess we'll see.
Yesterday I finally decided I will never again use the commercial cleaning supplies I have had just sitting around for the past year and got rid of them. Yesterday also, I bought castile (olive oil soap) for the first time and wondered why I waited so long. The stuff is absolutely amazing and leaves the skin feeling soft and smooth, not sticky and dry like regular soap. My next project is to get rid of most of my plastic eating wear. With two little boys, I'm not sure how that one will work, though! I guess we'll see.
26 April, 2009
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