Thanksgiving, Advent and everything in between

What does Mr. Turkey say?

Gobble Gobble Gobble

When it is Thanksgiving Day

Gobble Gobble Gobble

  I have discovered the secret to doing it all - the good, traditional Thanksgiving fare and the adorably decorated table. A secret Martha herself learned long ago. You ready for it? Have somebody else do part of it. Profound, I know! In American Thanksgivings past, we've had neighbours join us, our Chinese Canadian friends or people we just wanted to reach out to. This year we did something different. I propositioned an American friend of mine - I'd do all the cooking if she'd like to do crafts with our kids, do a table scape and a fun kids table. She agreed and it was a hit! I wish I had better pictures because this seriously doesn't do it justice - it was adorable. I kid you not. It can sometimes be a challenge to pass on to my kids important holidays and traditions from my upbringing while living in another country. Canadian Thanksgiving is in October (which I really like having it then) but the history of it is different. For one night I was like every other "normal American", celebrating with friends and family the first meal of Thanksgiving between the Pilgrims and Native Americans so long ago. Thanks, Dina!

Other things we've been up to? We've been busy! Both kids have had their cooking classes at the local grocery store. I stay with Zanna but Will is a drop off.

Since I last posted, we've been to the National Arts Centre for a wonderful show, visited the recently reopened Museum of Nature, took a tour of Canadian art at the National Art Gallery (I love living in this city!), Will had a karate tournament, we toured the bird sanctuary (hospital) along with all our regular activities. I gotta slow down....

And now it is Advent. As I start busily decorating for Christmas, celebrating Advent slows me down and forces me to focus on who we are celebrating. 

Here's my mantle this year. I thought I would change it up and use the wall art I made at a local art store a few years ago. The store's since closed which is too bad because I'd love to do more!

Here's some of what we're doing to prepare for Jesus birth - a journey through history leading up to His birth. I downloaded a free Jesse tree devotional complete with ornaments. I then laminated the ornaments. That's right - just call me the LAMINATOR. In an Arnold voice. I laminate everything that's not nailed down. But I digress. 

Blessings on your Advent celebration!

October memories

 Can't believe it's November - October is just a memory. We made lots of fun memories though! (after my nervous breakdown!)
Will is pictured here with his Senseis from karate after having tested for his brown belt. He worked hard for this one! It took him about an hour and a half to complete all his kada's (spelling?) leading up to this point and had to spar against his Senseis as there was no one else testing in the same belt that time. We celebrated with a trip to Dairy Queen after!
Will also played violin for his first funeral. A lady from the retirement home that Wayne does a service for weekly and the kids usher and throw around hugs and smiles - passed away and wanted Wayne to do the funeral. Will did a great job as he accompanied an organ and a singing group in "Amazing Grace".

October ends with Halloween (or Reformation Day as I like to focus on!) and the kids went out in freezing cold weather lead by their Dad who, although bone tired from a 13 hour workday and freezing temperatures awaiting, took the kids around the neighborhood to collect a feast of sugar. What a guy! The pumpkin never did get carved but the kids didn't seem to notice (maybe because of their face being immersed in the candy jar?).
Anyway, will was some Star Wars character and Zanna was - what else? - a princess!
Also this month, we were able to go to the National Art Centre to see our first opera - Hansel and Gretel. Quite a morbid story but they managed to "fun it up".
We also survived Wayne being gone for 6 days (who's counting) in Calgary for WELS Canada AGM.  We were all happy to welcome him back home!!

A long tradition in my home growing up was to go on a nature walk and put together a nature poster board that we would display for Thanksgiving. This year we did a twist on that - more of a nature corner. I hope to continue this corner for other seasons so we can appreciate a bit of God's creation as the seasons change. The kids like this and they often come back from a walk with some treasure to add to the table.

They also did some art with leaves that I posted on the bulletin board - got this great idea from a book called "Look what I did with a leaf" by Morteza Sohi - I got from the library. We'll be sure to do more with these!
Enjoy the last days of fall!!
I have yet to make our leaf cookies.....

Fall adventures

We've been busy with studies and getting into the routine of a new school year. We've gone apple picking and visited a farmers' market on Saturdays where we've picked up farm fresh eggs, vegetables and meat.
We accompanied Wayne to Vermont for pastors' conference and explored the resort town of Stowe, toured Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream factory and roughed it in some very dingy but pricey hotel. We've gone on a nature walk and attended the butterfly exhibit at a local university.
We enjoyed a visit from Jake and Fran last month. Life has been busy but .... fall is fun!!

Why do I bother?

When people ask me what I do, I often hesitate. Where do I begin?

I'm tempted to reply with "What don't I do?"

Truly, I don't want to come off sounding like some martyr. I feeling truly blessed to do what I am able to do -

Care for my family and home.

And yes, often times that looks like the above pictures. Not glamorous, no paycheck at the end of the day

but more often than not, rewarding and important. Payment in hugs and kisses and knowing that

I'm serving and glorifying the Lord in the seemingly mundane tasks I do in any given day.

I find great joy and reward in decorating for the seasons, cooking creative meals,

home educating, finding ways to show love for my husband.

But then there are those days that I ask myself......

Why do I bother?

That day was yesterday.

Why do I bother cleaning a house with the exception of the basement - you know the one that has large

dust bunnies following you down the stairs, an area that has seemingly exploded, laundry in piles

and unmentionables hanging from the drying rack....

only to have my husband take our guest down there to show him something?

Why do I bother cooking a Thanksgiving dinner only to have something so embarrassing happen

I can't even type it because I'm so mortified?

Why do I bother spending hours practicing a violin piece to play for church on Sunday only to have my

daughter run circles around me while I'm trying play so that I hit her in the head with the violin bow

before I've barely started so that I'm so angry I give up, pack my stuff up, haul her out of there and leave the

service before it's even over?!!!!!!!

Why do I bother spending thousands of dollars over 4 years on violins and violin lessons for my talented

son who brought his violin to church to accompany the Sunday school choir on a song they are to sing

for church next Sunday - knowing full well that

It's broken in half.

Oh yeah.

Quite honestly, the wounds are still fresh so that the answer to this question is still a little blurry. I do seem to recall

through my haze a passage from Scripture

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9a

Paul goes on to say that he will boast all the more gladly about his weaknesses so that Christ's power

may rest on him.

So in taking advise from Paul I declare ....

I am not a perfect housewife!

I am not a perfect home educator!

I am not a perfect hostess!

I am not a perfect musician!

I do not have perfect kids!

For when I am weak, then I am strong - through Christ who gives me strength!!

Back to Homeschool

We spent our last hurrah of summer at the Labor Day Retreat in Massachusetts. My parents were able to attend the retreat by making it a part of their fall Harley ride. It was lots of fun to have them there and we all had a great time at the camp. It was the perfect way to end summer and start fall - surrounded by Christian friends, fellowship, Bible study and activities. We left refreshed and ready to go!

Tuesday was the first day of school and what better way than to have a field trip! We stayed an extra night in Albany, New York and visited the Battlefield of Saratoga. We explored the visitor's center, dressed up, watched a film on the Battle of Saratoga that was the turning point for the Americans in the Revolutionary War and drove to the checkpoints in the park where key events happened. Having never learned any of this in Canada, Wayne enjoyed the history lesson too!

Today was our first day of school at home and to celebrate the occasion, the kids make some back to school cupcakes. We started our day with a Bible lesson focusing on Genesis 1 and creation. What a great way to start our year! From there we started a new spelling program (I hope this will help!), began a geography program that has us become geographers exploring God's creation, Saxon 5/6 and continued our study of American history.

It never fails that at the start of every school year I go into a panic attack as the yellow school buses drive by. I wonder if we're doing the right thing? Do I know what I'm doing? Are we using the right curriculum? The doubts can overwhelm me! I'm thankful for the moments of clarity that come only through being in God's Word. We strive to do our best as parents and make decisions based on how we can best serve the Lord, even when that means going against the norm. It's sure not easy yet I somehow find that comforting.....

Do I Get Another Option?!!!

The first sign we saw on our trip back from the States didn't have the option of Correctional facilities. I jokingly asked for a third option. The next sign immediately gave me one. Which one to choose?

The Last Days of Summer.....

I do not have a green thumb. I blame my mother but let's not get into that. Despite this, I still like to have flowers to enjoy in the backyard and plant some tomatoes we can enjoy about this time in the summer. This year, because we were gone for three weeks in July, I didn't want to invest in a whole lot of plants since I wouldn't be around to care for them. I decided to try planting some wildflower seeds in my half barrel out back. Zanna helped me sprinkle them and water them. And then we watched green shoots sprout up. I kept watering them. They looked like weeds. I thought maybe I was watering weeds. But it was a chance I was willing to take. We returned from our holiday during which my neighbor so nicely agreed to water my flowers. They were all alive thanks to her - and my barrel of weeds turned into lovely wildflowers!! What fun to pick a bouquet and bring it into the house for all to enjoy. Humor me.
Will enjoyed "Lego my airplane" camp at the Aviation Museum. This lucky boy got to play with Legos everyday for half of the day with other like minded boys (and one girl) and the other half was spent learning about airplanes and related things. The last day was highlighted with an actual plane ride that lasted for about 15 minutes. Will got to sit in the front, took lots of pictures with his camera and even a short video of the descent (sound like anyone we know and love? Big Will (my grandpa)!)

August always brings us 2 weeks of VBS between the 2 churches Wayne serves - in Ottawa and Quebec. We hosted Kingdom Workers from Wisconsin the second week as they volunteered their time and energy into the Quebec church's VBS. We loved having these young adults in our home, getting to know them and having them interact with our kids. What a blessing!! They did a great job and served their Lord faithfully. Our church's VBS in town ended with a community fun day with the bouncy blow up slides and stuff, carnival games and food. Wayne thought the sumo wrestling might be fun (inspired by The Office - Beach Day episode) and it was the highlight! Pictured here is our lovely family - good enough for the Christmas card, perhaps?
Last weekend we had our big reunion with the families we traveled to China with. (a few families are missing) It's been 31/2 years and look how they've grown! It was great to catch up, share memories and watch the kids play. They will always have a special bond!

Otherwise, we have truly been enjoying our summer break. It's a treat to sleep in, make a lazy breakfast, go for picnics, meet friends at the park, family walks, bike rides, read books, a trip to the new water park and lounging in our backyard (with a view of my flowers!).

Yesterday I even spent all day in bed! What?!! It's not as exciting as you may think. To recap:

February 2010 - intense pain in tooth

March - root canal

April - different tooth in intense pain - tooth pulled

June - braces off

August - temporary crown on root canal tooth

Permanent crown doesn't fit, another temporary

A cavity on an unrelated tooth is found

Yesterday - oral surgery to insert titanium post into space with no tooth, highly drugged experience, spent the rest of day in bed

So that's my story so far - looking forward to seeing how it all unfolds. It's getting pretty old. I try to be thankful for the care I am able to get, the technology available and a supportive husband. And medication. Thank you, Lord.

Summer Vacation in Wisconsin

We've had a busy and fun-filled July spent visiting my family in northern Wisconsin. The kids are pictured here with my grandparents who live close by my parents. It was so good to see everybody. Apart from the delicious meal Grandma provided for our group and several small visits hanging out on their deck, Zanna spent an afternoon of special attention with her great grandparents. And Will had the privilege of an overnighter, talking model airplanes with his great grandpa.
Other highlights of the trip included a visit to a nearby children's museum where Will found this ridiculous costume and walked around with it on most of the afternoon.

The ladies (me, Mom and Zanna) hit flea markets galore all over the area in search of hidden treasure. On a Friday night you'd likely find our group at a restaurant that served us fish fry and sweet whiskey old-fashioned drinks (with a maraschino cherry or two). We cruised the lakes on Mom and Dad's boat where the kids both practiced their navigation skills on the open water. Lord help us..... Zanna has a tendency to look behind her as she's driving (looking for a reaction to her speeding up) instead of what's ahead of her. The kids and I hung out at the beach in Minoqua one afternoon. Will rode on the back of Dad's Harley for many hours (with his mother's prayers drowned out by the noise). The men (Dad, Wayne and Will) could also be found at the shooting range, testing out guns to see how well they could hit their target. (hello - we're in the USA!) More prayers! Will and his Oma did a duet at their church on Sunday. They played "In Christ Alone" with Will on the violin and Oma on the organ/piano. We were concerned that one look over the balcony revealing a much larger congregation than to what we're used to at ours might cause some stage fright. No worries needed, it was a beautiful moment shared between grandson and Oma, glorifying God with song! (sigh of relief!!)
Wayne attended summer quarter at Seminary in Mequon, WI the first week we were there. He took two classes, both of which he enjoyed and found helpful to his ministry.

At the end of our stay, my Mom and I attended the Women's Ministry Conference at the Sem. I hadn't been back since Wayne's graduation. It was fun to see it all again, including our crappy old apartment in Harbour Pointe in an area of town I very quickly drove through, fearing for my safety (we're not in Ottawa anymore!). I met my sister-in-law Steph at the convention and it was fun to catch up and briefly see her girls and Wayne's brother Jeff. The conference was wonderful in content, inspired by being on the very grounds where all our synod's pastors through the years have been so carefully trained in the Word of God. We attendees to the convention had the privilege to worship with and be taught by two professors and the president of the Seminary along with many godly women who shared their wisdom and encouragement with us. Wonderful and uplifting!

Mom is on the Women's Ministry committee and had meeting afterwards. While she did that, I met up with a dear friend from Grafton, did some shopping and eating at the mall one afternoon and browsed the aisles of Northwestern Publishing House by myself (this is big!) It was lovely!!

It was good to be "home", be spoiled by Mom's good food and hospitality, enjoy the beauty of the northwoods of Wisconsin and miss home. Sometimes you have to leave it to miss it.

I milked a cow on my B-day!

For my birthday, my family gave me the royal treatment! For breakfast I was served eggs benedict on the red "you are special" plate (a family tradition). Then we were off to the country for a day of perusing an antique/restored furniture barn, a picnic with a view of the St Lawrence seaway and a visit to Upper Canada village.
We all got a chance to milk the cows except for Wayne who opted out of the experience due to allergies (no, it wasn't a cop-out - he gets quite miserable on farms!). Will was the natural in the family having done it in September when he lived in the village for 2 days as a boy in the 1860's. But for Zanna and me it was a weird but fun experience!!
And Will surprised me with a gift he purchased from our church's recent silent auction he participated in by buying a Christmas figurine for 25 cents and giving it to me for my birthday - haha!

The day ended with a nice meal out for supper alone with my hubby!!!

June Days

June is probably one of my favorite times of the year - maybe because it's my birthday month as my family is reminded of on June 1st. But now is represents the time of year when we bask in the accomplishments of the school year that comes to a close. The weather provides us endless opportunities to lounge in the backyard, play at the park, go on nature walks to feed the birds and squirrels and take family bike rides or walks. Fresh air and Vitamin D - what a combination! The picture above is Zanna picking strawberries at our local berry farm. She was finding some good ones to put in her basket but when I'd look next they'd be gone having fallen on the ground unnoticed. Will was not impressed by the whole objective as he doesn't even like strawberries. He just stood in the hot sun whining. I've realized the hard way that maybe we're not cut out for this - we're more of a stop by a roadside stand and buy baskets of already picked berries kind of family. Oh, well. I guess it's my job to provide different experiences for my kids and some they'll love and some not so much!
Will had his violin end of year music recital and did a lovely job. It's exciting to hear how far he's come. I'm so impressed with his confidence in performing in front of anyone, his musical ear to hear when he's in or out of tune and his enjoyment of the instrument that has brought me so much joy in my own life. I'm so thankful we share this passion together!
We finished school early in the month, wrapping things up with a newspaper unit, our study of the human body and our American history ending the year with the expansion out west. To celebrate our final day, I had planned a fun outing to a local town's festival. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned and Will made for himself a pretty lousy last day where he missed out on our outing and stayed in the church office to finish the school work he didn't want to do at home. Overall, we had an awesome year - by far our best. But the last 3 weeks were rough and my patience was tested over and over again. I was under the impression that I would be teaching my children and that my children were to be the learners. But I have taken many lessons for myself this year - the major one being that I have more weaknesses than I ever realized. On my own, I am hopeless - and the depressing thing is, I know there are more weaknesses to discover. I have been humbled!! I have found myself depending more on the Lord this year for patience, wisdom, strength and self-control to just name a few. But the difference in this year from past years is that I thought Will was the one that needed to learn these things and that HE was the one with "the problem". So this teacher has also realized she's a student. I'm exhausted - thanks goodness for summer break!!

Family pictures

A friend of mine was kind enough to use our family as practice for her love of photography and new business. Despite the cold of the day, I think she managed to capture some precious family moments!

Marriage, Homemaking and Parenting

Back to my love affair with books. I'm up to marriage. Now I'm sure you're thinking, when you're married to such a perfect guy like Wayne, why on earth would you have to read books on marriage? Of course I totally agree with you and Wayne is quite wonderful. And I'm grateful to be able to say that our marriage has improved through these long 12 years of wedded bliss. However, the beginning had quite a few rocky moments I'd like to forget about but they also made us stronger. And like any good relationship, we have to work at it. So the following books have helped me/us in some way.

The 5 Love Languages - Gary Chapman - we read this together years ago and even went through the study guide in the back. I'm thankful he was willing to do this because we really learned alot about each other that even now we still reap the benefits from.

Creative Counterpart - Linda Dillow - this one I could probably stand to read again but I remember it giving me some clarity back in the early days of parenthood when I was trying to balance God, husband, child, home, church, self, etc.

The Power of a Praying Wife - Stormie OMaritian - while I didn't always agree with her Biblical beliefs on prayer, I certainly appreciated it opening my eyes to what I could be praying for in the key areas of his life. I like to think of myself as my husband's personal "prayer warrior":)

Fearlessly Feminine - Jani Ortlund - not just about marriage but God's plan for womanhood in general. A book I studied on the phone with my Mom (I have a good phone plan)

The following books are homemaking and stay-at-home mom encourgement -

The Hidden Art of Homemaking - Edith Schaeffer - a classic!! Written by the widow of the late Christian philosopher Francis Schaeffer. The back cover says "I would define 'hidden art' as the art found in the ordinary areas of everyday life. Each person has, I believe, some talent which is unfulfilled in some hidden area of his being - a talent which could be expressed and developed."

The Stay at Home Mom - Donna Otto

Celebrate Home - Angie Peters

Every book I've read by Sally Clarkson -

The Mom Walk

Seasons of a Mother's Heart - my personal favorite (I think)

The Mission of Motherhood

The Ministry of Motherhood

This author is a mentor to me. She also has the benefit of perspective as her children are getting to the age of moving out but all these thoughts and experiences are still fresh in her mind.

And now we get to parenting. I have a read many, many, many books hoping to find the "right way" to parent. Guess what I've discovered? There's no such thing. No matter what I do it will be by the grace of God these kids survive in one piece and end up on the "other side" with me for eternity. I pray alot. Having said that, there have been some insights into parenting that I have found helpful through various resources and here are some of them.

What to Expect the First Year - has to be my first parenting book. Gave me something to go by and some expectation of what is "normal" (whatever that is)

Bringing up Boys - Dobson - because now that I had a boy what was I going to do with him?

The New Dare to Discipline - Dobson - good advise

My favorite books when the kids were really little were the books my Mom gave to me from when I was little - so from the 70's. This read with the assumption that the Mom stayed at home, Dad worked and things were pretty "traditional". This was good for me because so were we! I especially loved the pictures depicting what a day in the life of an infant, 1 year old, 2 year old, etc could look like. Hey, I needed all the help I could get. Yes, some of the info was outdated but I referred to these often.

Boundaries for Kids - Cloud and Townsend - very good. They also have more "Boundaries" books available for all ages in case you have an issue - ha! Really useful read with good examples.

The 5 Love Languages of Children - Chapman and Campbell - yes, they have one for parents too. Another good read. While I may feel I'm showing love to my children in a certain way they may not be getting their needs met. Interesting.

Loving Our Kids on Purpose - Danny Silk - has changed our parenting 10fold. I'm not kidding. A friend passed the CD's on to us as her copyright allowed the sharing of it to 10 friends. Wayne and I downloaded it to our iPod. Parenting works best when we're on the same page! This guy is great to listen to and his ideas work. Bottom line. It's hard to implement sometimes because it is different in many ways from what we were doing before and how we were raised so it's good for me to listen to again every so often. Highly recommended.

Parenting with Love and Logic - Cline and Fay - I am currently reading. This book is actually what inspired the previous book mentioned so the ideas are similar.

Gotta go - speaking of parenting, my daughter is throwing a hissy fit.

Happy Mother's Day, Birthday, Ascension

May is Will's birthday month. He turned 10!!! I can't believe it. My parent's came for the occasion. In past years, my mom has helped me plan, prep and carry out some sort of themed birthday fest for Will and friends. But this year was different. He had the choice of party or more expensive LEGO than he normally gets and as you can see from the picture - he wholeheartedly chose the LEGO. Whatever floats your boat, son. He also wanted a DQ cake so I was even off the hook for baking. Mom and I kept looking at each other on the days leading up to the big day thinking that we should be doing something to prepare. Other than wrapping gifts, making the requested beef enchilladas and his choice of breakfast (breakfast sandwhiches, BTW) that was all that was asked of me! Will had a great day and had completed the LEGO by morning (he took a sleeping break).
Ten days ago on Thursday we celebrated Ascension - the time in the church year when Jesus returned to heaven to prepare a place for believers in Christ. We celebrated by having a picnic outside (you can see in the picture my children eating their hotdogs and contemplating their great commission :) For dessert we had strawberries on a cloud - otherwise known as Cool Whip.

And finally, we celebrated Mother's Day - albeit a bit late but better late than never. Last fall, Mom and I had gone to the movies to see "Julie and Julia". I got her the DVD for her birthday in April and so for Mother's Day I took her to Le Cordon Bleu for a three course lunch. Yes, this is the same renowned culinary arts cooking school known so well in France and all over the world. It is the only one in North American. And it was fantastic!! What a treat - when can I go again?

Out of Town and Mother's Day

We'd been looking forward to a change of scenery for a long time. Last week we accompanied Wayne to Syracuse, NY for a Pastor's Conference. We went a day early and stayed at a resort with an indoor water park. It was lots of fun and the kids had a blast!
After our family getaway, we checked into the hotel that the other pastors were staying at (funny, no water park there!) and while Wayne was in meetings, I dragged the kids shopping. I had been having a "Target twitch" for months so one of our stops was to roam up and down the aisles of this wonderful place. We also (uh, I also) enjoyed going to the outlet mall and stocking up on the clothing deals for the kids. We don't have much for outlet malls here and it amazes me how cheap you can find things there. Let's just say the visit was a success and we'll leave it at that!
It's funny, the longer I'm gone from the States the more foreign it seems to me. This time we were especially struck my how difficult it was to eat well in restaurants. I even tried ordering a cobb salad and had trouble finding the lettuce that was hiding under 3 different types of meat and processed cheese. Our family usually just drinks water with most meals but most places made it more expensive to drink tap water and tried luring us with cheaper prices by ordering a value meal with a gigantic pop. As much as we complain about how green and healthy it is here (sometimes seems to be in the extreme) I guess it's rubbing off on us and now it seems weird not to have a separate path for bike's, bring your own bags to the grocery store and fill up that annoying green bin that's sure to stink up the joint come mid August. Anyway, when we came home I made a massive stir-fry loaded with veggies and made some whole wheat bread!

Mother's Day was lovely - how blessed I am to be called Mother! I received several homemade gifts made in cooking class and Sunday school. I also received a charm for my Pandora charm bracelet. I was treated to a Tim Horton's breakfast in the morning before my Pastor husband rushed out the door. What more could I ask for?

It's not just about me?! and children's fun fiction

Growing up, I had altogether too much American history so much so that I was unaware of the rest of the world. Part of this was due to the fact that we kept moving around and I would just miss geography. Don't get me wrong, I knew my states and capitals like the back of my hand. I studied my community and the state I lived in. I even went so far as to do a state report on another state I had never even been to! (how's that for exotic) But the bigger issue was that it just wasn't a priority in the curriculum. My family used to tease me about my lack of geographical knowledge. I didn't know if Europe was a country or a continent. Seriously.

As I entered adulthood with such a gaping whole in my learning , I suddenly found myself married to a man from another country. Then I found myself moving to this strange country north of the border that growing up I would cheer for in the Olympics if the US team wasn't doing so well. Yikes. I was really ignorant.

I am determined not to less this happen to my children. I want them to see the world God created - not just focus on a little corner. I want them to be exposed to other cultures, foods and religion in an environment where we can talk, learn and pray for people we may never meet. I want to them to see people that look and sound different from us as souls Christ came to save. And so I journey with my children all over the world (including North America!) through books.

Window on the World - a look at 92 unevangelized countries and peoples of the world. Included color photos, a story, interesting facts, maps and suggested prayers

What the World Eats - 25 families, 21 countries, 525 meals - photos taken of what families in various parts of the world eat in a week, how much it costs, where it comes from, challenges and stories. Amazing.

Material World - same idea as above except the homes people live in representing 30 countries

American Indian Prayer Guide - Historical and contemporary stories on the indigenous people of North, South, and Central America

Gladys Aylward:the adventure of a lifetime and And the Word Came with Power were biographies I read aloud

Same kind of Different as me - for adults; I recently read this and it moved me very much. It's a true story of two men - a modern day slave from the southern US and a rich Texan art dealer. Read with a box of kleenex. highly recommended!

Now onto Children's fun fiction

There is so much I don't think I could even put a dent in it. I will mention up front here that there's a lot of "twaddle" out there for children. By that I mean, well, crap. Dumbed down, abridged, poor quality, no substance, weak story line, underdeveloped characters. It doesn't have to be like this! Because there's also endearing characters we fall in love with, beautiful story lines, rich vocabulary - whole, living books. These are the ones we cherish the most and line our own bookshelves (which I beginning to think I need to get more of).

A great reference for me in finding all the good stuff is a book (of course) "Books Children Love - a guide to the best children's literature". Divided into genres, ages, reading levels, etc. Very helpful. Personal favorites for our family

Beatrix Potter - the complete tales

The complete Winnie the pooh

James Herriot's treasury for children

The Little House series

Virginia Lee Burton stories - great for boys!

Holly Hobbie books (toot and puddle)

Robert McCloskey books - Boston anyone?!!

C.S. Lewis - Narnia series

Charlotte's Web (Will: why are you crying mommy?)

The Secret World of Og (Will never laughed so hard!)

The Railway Children

The Boxcar Children

Ginger Pye

Jan Brett books

Johnny Tremain

Yes, I could go on but I think you get the idea. When we first made the decision not to put Will in junior kindergarten, I had no idea what our plan was. But the one thing I kept hearing and reading was to read, read, read with you kids. I figured that I could do and it would buy me some time. Even now that Will can read on his own, it does not replace the read aloud time we have snuggling on the couch or up in the play structure. He doesn't have to concentrate so much on reading and can enjoy hearing the story read to him as he's introduced to vocabulary and ideas above his reading level. And it's just plain fun! Yep, I'm definitely going to need more bookshelves!

Books, books and more books!

Hi, my name is Rachel and I am addicted to books.

There, I said it.

The kids and I were at the area bookstore last night (you know the one with the coffee shop conveniently attached?) and I felt downright giddy being surrounded by so many good reads. Granted, I was stuck in the kids' section but I still get excited. I think the written word is amazing - it transcends time, culture, language; communicates stories, lives, thoughts, ideas. It must be amazing for the Lord himself to choose this medium to carry His very words In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1 WOW! Out of all the languages of all the world at all times he specifically choose Hebrew and Greek as the original languages of His written word for good reasons. Those that study these languages are amazed at how specific and precise these are. IE - our English language has one lousy word for "love". So I love my husband and children and I also "love" my Dairy Queen blizzard? Crazy but true in different ways. Deuteronomy goes on to say Fix these words of mine in you hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Deut 11:18. Matthew says that His words will NEVER pass away. His words have the power to change hearts and minds and to strengthen our very faith!

So as you can probably figure out, the Bible (love my Concordia self-study NIV)is my regular read and one I read to my children most often.

So when I'm not reading the Bible I like to read books about the Bible - people mentioned, specific doctrines, commentaries, history. Usually published by Northwestern Publishing House and sometimes by Concordia Publishing. My favorites worth noting would include the People's Bible series on the books of the Bible and teachings. I think it's interesting to read a Lutheran looks at series on other denominations, their history and teachings and how it differs from what we believe. I've read "The Fire and the Staff" twice now to see clearly how our doctrine affects our worship practices and how a change in worship practices can change doctrine (scary if not Biblical based). I LOVED the "Spirituality of the Cross" by Vieth and have highlighted the heck out of that one. "The Theology of the Cross" was one heavy read and I caught about half of it if I were to be honest. But the part that I got was amazing and I'll probably pick it back up in the future to attempt the other half! Awhile back I read "Connecting Sinai to Calvary - A guide to the Old Testament" by Jeske. Really helped me with the connection between the Hebrew lifestyle and my Savior. "Gospel Motivation - more than Jesus died for my sins" by Koester is a good one too. I'm currently reading the classic "Orthodoxy" by G.K. Chesterton.

Hang with me - I'm going to have to do this in several different posts by genres or I'll confuse myself.

Next genre would be the spiritual growth of my children. After all, as their mother my mission field starts in the home. Jesus commanded me and all believers to "GO and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." Matthew 28:19, 20. Since their baptism as babies we've continued to nurture their spiritual growth through the means of grace - the Gospel in Word and Sacrament. Over the years as they grow developmentally we've adjusted the age appropriate levels that we do this but we try not to "dumb it down" too much. I think children retain and understand far more than we give them credit for. Abridged versions of Bible stories worked well early on. We mainly used the NPH Sunday School materials here at home and we could do two lessons over 4 days with a hymn study on Friday. BTW - the hymns in our hymnal are sooooooooooo good in their content. It's not about the "catchy" tune always but the spiritual truths and teachings that are taught through song. Even as babies, toddlers and preschoolers we've used the "Little Visits" devotions from NPH. Now with Will we are in our 2nd year with the Concordia Sunday School program and LOVE it! There's so much content that it takes us almost all week (at least 3 days anyway) to cover it all. It also follows the church year which I love because it ties it in to what is happening on Sunday - don't you just LOVE Good Shepherd Sunday?!!!!! We got to do it all week!! And on Fridays Daddy teaches the catechism (love the well-used pages of my blue Luther's Catechism). And no more abridged Bible stories - we got rid of that as soon as we could. Will received his first personal Bible a year and a half ago at Christmas with larger print that's easier to read. He also memorizes alot.

Stay tuned for more diverse genres (if anyone out there cares, because really I'm having a blast reminiscing about my books)!!!

Signs of Spring

Flowers picked from our front yard - brought in the house to enjoy!

This is the year for my lilac bush! I planted it several years ago and have been patiently waiting for those purple flowers. Nothing says spring like lilacs!!

And finally, we crack open a new box of sidewalk chalk. What fantastic colors!!!

Ode to my Tooth

Ode to my Tooth

There once was a tooth in my mouth

It started to hurt and things quickly went south

I'm in a lot of pain

I may go insane

So tomorrow it will no longer be

I will look like a hillbilly

Will and I are currently doing a unit on poetry so I thought I'd try my hand at it.

After spending thousands of dollars on orthodontic work in an effort to have straight teeth, and being 3 months away from being done with it all (or so I thought) I have a tooth that's unable to be saved. It's cracked inside so bad that a root canal would be useless. This one is being removed tomorrow. It's caused me pain for months now and in that respect I'll be glad to see it go. But I'm not looking forward to the hole. I've nothing against hillbillies ( I grew up in the Ozarks) but I'm not eager be toothless. Although this could be that little nudge I needed to start brewing some homespun moonshine in the backyard......

So I'm a little sad on this last day with my tooth. And all I really have left to say about it is - tomorrow when the Tooth Fairy comes to visit me, she should know my fee has gone up since she last came to visit - I expect some jewelry now:)

He is Risen!

The stone has been rolled away! In it's place is a butterfly - a symbol of new life.

Our Journey Through Lent

Lent is the time in the church year from Ash Wednesday to Easter - 40 days, not including Sundays - where we reflect on the sacrifice Jesus made for us. Special Lenten services on Wednesday evenings are offered at church that are more somber in mood and content that the joyfulness we experience on Sundays. We prepare our hearts for the ultimate joyfulness of Easter Sunday when we rejoice knowing our sins are forgiven through faith in Jesus!
This year the kids and I planted our first "Lenten Garden". In it we find a pool of shells reminding us of our baptism when we were adopted into God's family and received saving faith in Jesus while we were still infants - what a miracle! The pool is shaded by a "prayer plant" (that's the name - I found it at Home Depot!). On a hill we have the cross made from sticks the kids found on our nature walk. A path of rocks lead from the cross to a tomb Will and friend made from modeling clay complete with the rock to be rolled away on Easter morning.
Three candles (the Trinity) cover the perimeter of the garden that will be extinguished on Good Friday. On Easter Sunday the rock will be rolled away and replaced with a beautiful butterfly symbolizing new hope in Christ!

But when the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. Titus 3:4-7