Random Thoughts Thursday

I can't believe it's been a whole 2 weeks since I last posted on this blog!  Life has been very full.  I've had many many an idea pass through my head and heart of things, stories, photograph oldies, my kids' birth stories, prayers, praises that I wanted to blog about... {{sigh}}... Just didn't happen my friends. I've been literally in pain about not being able to put stories into photographs and snap cute pictures of my kids... {gritting teeth} Grrrrrrrr. I just remember that in light of eternity, it's just a thing, an earthly desire. I can certainly wait a few more days!
Fresh bread, supporting my husband, schooling my kids, starting a new season of WOW Bible studies(I just soak in our prayer time together, it's sweet!), living and loving life, buying skinny jeans(yeah, I know, scary)... God is so good!  I was able to be involved in a little of my husband's career aspirations lately.  It's tough to be intricately involved when you have 5 kids at home, but this last week I was so blessed to have tagged along with him to a BNI (business networking international) meeting, at 7:30 am in the morning... *yawn... SO FUN!  It was neat to meet a lot of his peers and colleagues and see how much they appreciate, respect and love my honey.  It was his day to do a presentation about his services, job, talents, etc. but he also did a lot of pictures and stories of us, his family-just to throw in a personal touch.  He wrote THE FUNNIEST song ever for the event as well and sang it while he played his guitar making everyone become a mess of laughter, smiles and appreciation... everyone feels bad for the person who has to follow up his ultimate prize-winning presentation this week. It was THAT great!
I am so excited to be ordering my camera!  Ordered it last night!  WOOHOO!!! A Canon EOS Rebel T1i EF-S 18-55mm IS Kit !  It should be here in the next week. I am beyond ecstatic!!! You'll be getting far more pictures on here again. Probably an annoyingly gross amount more...
This last week, I have been a healthy eating, daily exercise participating mama... got to kick those lazy no good holiday eating habits now!!  I want to look my red carpet best. Haha. It's ZUMBA day today! Whoot!
Getting excited to head east to New York in March, which is amazingly about the same distance away as flying to Japan from here... crazy.  I've been there once before during my highschool days, before the Twin Towers we're gone... We will be leaving on a Monday and getting back on Friday. Three whole days of wandering the streets of New York with my mom and sister... can't wait!  Although, it is hard for me to leave my family(and I hate flying), I know this is a wonderful opportunity! I will certainly enjoy spending time with my sissy and mother dear(and taking awesome pictures with my new camera and lens *wink*giddy giggle). We will be doing some high style New York shopping, show watching, delicious dining and historic sightseeing. Excited!!
My baby at 19 months is interested in potty training, we're taking it slow but I have a feeling she is going to be earlier than three of my other kids at becoming potty-trained. My second in command was 18 months old as well as she became trained at the same time as her older sister who is 12 months older... she's always had the drive to keep up and excel and my fifth blessing reminds me of her.
Starting to feel old these days. Crackly joints, sore muscles every morning... I am finding I can't home school my kids, workout and work all in the same day and feel okay. Darn it.
Last night while at work two teenage boys sauntered into Jolts and Juice and tried to bedazzle me into giving them a complimentary "brownie". "First of all..."I said facetiously" those aren't brownies. They're pumpkin bread. Secondly, your charm isn't going to work on me. Nice try though!"  So I walk off with a smile and a few moments later they motion for me to come back over and ask, "So, let me ask you something, why didn't our charm work on you?" I replied matter-of-factly,"Probably because I am twice your age."  As I rested my elbows on the counter and my chin in my hands, they we're like, "26?"~"27?"~"28" as I shook my head no in between each guess..."29." I said as I finished the guessing game for them. Yes, 29 years old even though I still intermittently interject the word "like" like quite too often in places where "like" doesn't necessarily need to be used... Okay, so I'm not twice as old as them but still... c'mon, give me a break boys. I'm almost old enough to be your mother... and you are old enough to know better than to be begging!  Get a job, and budget! Anyway, when they left, stomachs growling and pride delfated, they said thanks for the water and I said thanks for the charm. Heehee.

I adore Mary Jane's Farm magazine. My mom bought me a subscription and it is pleasingly chock full of delectable recipes, homey activities, healthy living tips and is just plain bound up quaintness in my hands. Love it!  I have also enjoyed using her whole wheat Budget Mix in recipes. It's a lot like Bisquick only healthier!  I used it to make cinnamon rolls of sort yesterday. Here is what I did(approximately, as I am always just throwing things into my dishes and baked goods, praying they turn out... and they usually do(fingers crossed).

Cinnamon roll dough:

2 Cups Mary Jane's Budget mix

2T. brown sugar

1/2 cup butter cold and cut into pieces

1 cup buttermilk

t. vanilla

Whole wheat flour for kneading and rolling dough out

Filling:

1/4 cup organic butter softened

brown sugar

honey

cinnamon

nutmeg

Frosting:

whipping cream

2 t. fresh lemon juice

powdered sugar

t. vanilla

Cut in butter with Budget mix and brown sugar until it resembles course meal. Add buttermilk and vanilla. Add whole wheat flour or more budget mix until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Knead and roll out into a 1/4 inch rectangle. Spread butter on top, then sprinkle on brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Top with squeezing desired amount of honey all over the sugar. Roll the dough and slice into about 1 inch pieces. Place in a greased pan and bake at 450 for 15 minutes or until desired brownness.

I then whipped up the frosting adding ingredients until desired consistency is reached.

Yesterday, I also had my two oldest girls walk a couple of these rolls down to a neighbor friend about 3 1/2 blocks walk away. I was slightly worried about letting them go on their own but they did great!  Went there and back with no problem. It's hard to let go of our kids but when we do it's amazing how they grow up and excel on their own!

My husband and I enjoyed a date this week. We try to get out every other week on our own. Just to enjoy each other's company, have fun and get to know each other better. We feel like kids again when we are out on the town... we almost don't know what to do with ourselves at times!  No diaper changes?  No emergency potty runs?  No tired fussy kids?  Although, we embrace all of that as parents, it is still a nice break from the norm to go on a date.  If we don't go to the movies, we usually go around town getting things done! Haha, it may come as a surprise, but we enjoy going to Home Depot to plan our attic remodel or stop by Walgreens and grab diapers... it's just fun to be together, holding hands and spending time together as a couple. I love my husband so much!

We watched the movie,"Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" and we're enamored by it's drama and depiction of how greed rules and runs our country and how rumors/word of mouth play a big role in making or breaking large influential company's success. It sent our brains a reeling.  If you like powerful dramas and touching love stories that leave you with the sense of how much the world needs Jesus, I would definitely recommend this movie to you.

I will leave you with this photo of me sporting my new diaper purse... yep, I'm a mom and proud of it!
God bless, friends.

Snip-it

I love coffee. I work at a coffee shop. I really enjoy talking and relating with people. I'm around hoards of people at work. I am supposing my job fits me well.

I am still saving to purchase a new camera to replace my broken one.  I have about $500 saved up thus far but I'm shooting for $700... should have it in about a week. WOOHOO!! I am contemplating getting one of THESE Cannon cameras, within budget... not sure yet, though. Thinking I should get some advice from an expert before finalizing my decision! It's bound to be an upgrade no matter what I end up getting.

I really enjoy taking photographs. Especially of my children... who doesn't!  I also enjoy setting up for, taking and remembering pivotal points in life by snapping a "story" picture.  A picture says a thousand words, right?  I think so.  After buying a more "spendy" camera I may decide to invest in a better picture editing software... again I would have to do some research or seek out professional advice first, as well as take a class on how to best use it but as of now I frequently use the free version of Picnik to do minor editing and absolutely love it.

I am so in awe of the men and women who are our military and their families.  They are our heroes. We pray for you often and are thankful beyond measure for your sacrifice.  Only God knows your sorrows and sense of loss, lonliness and the destitution that you must face at times... we love you and are thankful to you for your service to our country. God bless you!!!

Homeschooling is going so awesome. My husband as always is a godsend and organized the rest of our school year by printing out daily/weekly workbook schedules for my girls AND putting them into handy dandy notebooks ta boot!  He rocks. We have been flying through school books and I feel my oldest is more than ready to do the mandatory state test this year. It's pretty much a no-brainer to pass those tests, but a timed test is still daunting for anyone, especially a 3rd grader. She'll do great!

I was home schooled 5th through 12th grade. I graduated a year early, though so essentially I only did 3 years of high school, then went and got my diploma and my GED.  Before homeschooling, I attended a Christian school for K-4th grade. I am still in touch with some of those students I went to grade school with in Montana!  Such awesome memories and it's completely sweet to still be in contact with them. Daily, we met in a 4 roomed square schoolhouse complete with bell steeple, built in the early 1900's. It was in the middle of a large field of long brown grass and felt like a little country schoolhouse.  It WAS a little country Christian schoolhouse! Great memories---Torn pants on the swing and trying to hide it the rest of the day by keeping my legs smooshed  together. Haha--- running a race with the boys, oh, and kicking them, too... playing four-square, jump rope contests, show and tell... ha!  My 3rd grade teacher with the most awesome-est name ever: Mr. Wolfshorndl... wow, not even sure I spelled that right.  But I sure do remember his name!! Do you remember making shapes with a string and your fingers?  A friend and I totally did that together for show and tell one time. We. We're. Awesome--- The downtown two story library and all of it's eerie-ness, along with doing an origami class there once... I also tried dried seaweed once from a classmate who was Asian and LOVED to snack on it. My friend and I walking on a frozen swamp and me falling through... Anyways, I could go on and on about fun and amazing memories from that time in my life. What are some childhood memories that YOU might have that just make you stop and smile when you think about them? I'd love to hear about them!!

Some online sites I love to visit are my friend Brooke's Sweet Bee blog for vintage fashion inspiration and Fabulessly Frugal for recipes, deals and coupons... in fact one of my most favorite childhood breakfasts were posted on Fabulessly Frugal recently!  German pancakes. Right here.  It's fabulously yummy!

One of my fave photographers Amber Fischer is having a Valentine's Photo Booth shoot this Saturday. I am excited to be able take my kiddos in for one of her brilliant photo creations!

So that's a snip-it of who I am, where I've been and some of what it is I like to do.
Now it's your turn to tell me a little about YOU!!

War

The world's filthy muck has a dark hold of me.
My feet are death gripped by the heavy sludge of sin and rejection.
A once beautiful creation, now marred and disfigured. Covered in the stench of blood and death, I reel with doubt.

Evil clings. Weaves and lies it's way inside to become one. It reigns.
Movement only sinks my feet deeper still as all feeling hardens to stone.
The rancid smell of sulphur steaming from hell below, seemingly streams with laughter down the bars around me. Air has turned thick with ash of the bodies claimed before.
Terror tightens my chest. My lungs seize.  My breath shortens and ever living again becomes but a dream as I sink lower still.

The war raged on inside of me but the outcome had seemingly already been written. The ending had already begun.
I struggled. Death beckoned. Then threatened. Hands were useless. Words are empty. Life was definitely slipping away.
The blackness grew stronger. Hope left. I was alone. I could taste the bitter end.
As my last tear fell, I shuddered and became limp as steamy hot breath engulfed my neck.
"Succumb," he hissed, "succumb."

"Jesus..." a prayer flowed from desolation. The rush of the Spirit instantly opened my eyes. My heart confessed and started beating once more.
"Jesus," I whisper again through parched cracked lips as I strain to keep my head above the suffocating nothingness...
"I need you."
"I need YOU."

Instantly my feet we're met with solid truth. Light and life stream from the blackness of the furthest corner of my prison. My broken heart felt again. Relief. Gladness.
I was drenched in renewed strength and joy bubbled from the depths below as out of the blackness my feeble body rose, resting steadfastly on a large wooden cross.
I fell to my knees. Trusting. Staking my faith in Christ and His death on the cross. Which is forever constant. Able. Enough. The end to all ends.

I turned my face into the strong cleansing wind that had begun to mightily blow taking with it the stench of death and the crippling weight of sin and mortality. The disfiguring thickness of earth's mire melted from my skin. Clarity came. Movement began again. Freedom won.
As I turned to face the wind, I saw following closely behind, a mighty roaring refining fire. Purifying. Cleansing as it engulfed. Painfully burning away parts of me twisted with cords of evil. Completely breaking it's hold on me.

Walls crumbled. Hell defeated, roared away, being eaten alive by pure light. Perfectly beaten.
My frame, lifted up as a feather floating to safety became utterly drained of failures. Disappointments and fear. Being filled instead with healing light.
Dead to mortal life. Giving up on me. Hoping once again in Him. Alive. Alive.
Healing tears of joy streamed down my cheeks and soaked into fresh soil below the new green grass-a growing season had now begun. A newly washed heart healthy and thriving, blossoming under the goodness of grace.

"Come"  He said beautifully as only a heavenly melody speaks. "Hold onto me." Grace poured from his lips as Jesus reached out, both arms streaming with light and love, revealing his scarred wrists. My hands lifted to embrace His. He smiled tenderly and pulled me safely to his side, "Come, walk with me again, dear one", as we turned towards Heaven, His all-encompassing presence swallowed me up to glorious eternity.

nuttakit

The Dirty Dozen

The most important foods to buy and eat organic.

A snip-it's view into of the world of a child's mind and the chuckles I get daily from hilarious things I read or witness while schooling my children:

One of My Second in commands assignments in Science while studying her environment:

Name one thing that you can
See.
Smell.
Hear.
Taste.
Feel.

Her answers:

Name one thing that you can
See.    trees
Smell.    flowers
Hear.    birds
Taste.    sap    grose
Feel.    bark

Where did she come up with THAT? Why not an apple from a tree... or a berry from the bush... Sap? Oh my goodness like she's EVER even tried to taste it.  Maybe it's actually very yummy. Haha...and "grose"... let's just say spelling isn't exactly her strong point... yet. Anyway, there are SO many cute little lovelies I get from correcting, teaching and having all of my kids home with me all day. On days when baby is into everything, tensions are high, sleep deprivation looms, questions are coming to me from five different directions and attention spans are non-existent, I sit down. Scream. Sigh. Pray. Remember why we chose to home school them. It's not because I have to, because I'm following the crowd or even because it's the best way. We home school our children because we feel led to. The Lord has called us to it. Only He knows the ins, outs and in betweens of why. Only He knows what every other alternative would bring in ours and our children's lives if we chose to go our own way(and believe me I second guess our decision to home school every year). Because along with doing what the Lord desires in our lives for our children's sakes, sometimes sacrifice on our parts as parents spares us reaping the concequences of what would otherwise be completely folly.
On days when life is overwhelming, I take a moment to look up, pray and remember to keep my eyes focused, my perspective heavenly and my heart thankful.  It doesn't matter who you are, where you live, your social status, how perfect, pretty, marred or confident you are, whether you're locked in a windowless dungeon because of your faith or on top of the world you can look up and sing:

I have a maker
he formed my heart,
before even time began
My life was in his hands


He knows my name
He knows my every thought,
He sees each tear that falls
and hears me when I call


I have a father,
he calls me his own
He'll never leave me,
no matter where I go


He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
and hears me when I call

-Paul Baloche