Christmas is Coming . . .

. . . and I'm getting ready!

Ok, I know it's a little ways away. And I have our Annual Thanksgiving Celebration to host first. But I have found a fantastic tool that helps me get organized (yeah, really!) and focus in on a little each week, getting tons of my preliminary stuff done before December even gets here.







My Christmas Binder, the Christmas Countdown inspired by Cynthia Ewer at OrganizedChristmas.com





For the next 6 weeks, I'll be setting up my checklists, focusing on to-do lists, dividing and conquering to get all the important tasks taken care of. Each week has a different theme focus, which helps me take stock of the state of things around here (or in my brain!), make a plan and set that plan into motion.


It was such a blessing last year, I'm ready to jump in again this year! By the time we arrive in December, we are able to enjoy the festivities and celebrations we so enjoy, remembering the birth of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

School is in Session

I thought I'd share a little peek into our school day - - here you see the younger kids hard at work on their Math assignments. Math is usually the first subject of the day. It's everyone's favorite, and important to get a lesson in each day, so it's a great way to get us going in the mornings.










Even little Bekah has her own schoolwork. I created this little game in a file folder. We call it 'Cupcake Counting'. She has colorful cupcakes lined up inside of a file folder, each numbered from 1 to 10. There is a little pocket that holds colorful sprinkles (I used a balloon-shaped paper punch to create these) and Bekah's assignment is to place the appropriate number of 'sprinkles' on each cupcake. To change things up a bit, sometimes we 'color-code' them to get in a lesson in colors as well as counting.




And, yes, the bunny ears definitely improve brain power!!!

Anway you slice it . . .

. . . it's still lunch!

I am always amazed at how much more delicious my meals are when I slice, dice and serve them up with a new twist. Years ago I discovered that if I baked my meatloaf in muffin tins, making mini-meatloaves, my family gobbled them down. But make a traditional in-the-loaf-pan-meatloaf? I'd be lucky if they each ate one full serving. Same recipe, different shape. Can you really take a lump of ground meat, mix in all the mixin's exactly the way you always have, and then pass it off as something really delicious just by changing the shape? Go figure. Who knew? It really does work!



For lunch for my younger crowd one day recently, the creative juices started flowing. I cut PBJ sandwiches into 4 small triangles rather than 2 boring rectangles, sliced the apples into pac-man shapes showing a flower at the center of each instead of ordinary wedges and crinkle-cut the carrots (much more tasty than traditional carrot sticks). Added a few chips, and the boring 'Usual' for lunch became exciting, adventurous, and extra-ordinary!

Mom's reward was seeing their large-eyed faces grinning ear to ear, shouts of 'cool!' accompanied by comments about her awesome culinary skills and questions like 'who is Pac Man anyway?' soon followed by 4 clean plates. YES!

Who knew peanut butter and jelly for lunch could be so good? Guaranteed to entice even the pickiest of eaters!

Someone Had A Birthday . . .

and that someone turned 8 years old! During my blogging hiatus, Gabriel had another birthday. He is growing into such a fine young man.








We celebrated his day in the usual style -- balloons, streamers, birthday wishes, a visit from Grandma, gifts galore, a phone call from his overseas Sis.





And of course, a cake designed especially for Gabe.

Garden Report

Our poor garden has really struggled this year. This crazy wet Spring and Summer we've had has not provided ideal growing conditions in this Missouri clay. The tomatoes struggled, the green beans were pitiful, the peppers did a little bit better. Even the zinnias took until September to reach the height they were a year ago. Only 2 out of 15 sunflowers made an appearance - beautiful, but not the spectacular show we had hoped for.

But, on the bright side, we had cucumbers coming out our ears! We were really in a pickle . . . well, surrounded by them, anyway! This has been dubbed 'The Year of the Cucumber'. We've had a poor crop the last couple of years, so everyone is celebrating -- they do love my dill pickles. We've also put up plenty of relish and bread&butter pickles as well. For something a little different, we canned a couple gallon-sized jars with nice, big cucs -- like those you might find in the barrel at the old-fashioned General Store. Gabe requested a batch of 'fancy slices' (he likes the 'crinkle' cut pattern on them).

It's the first year I've tried growing herbs (other than dill). The rosemary disintigrated, the parsley turned yellow and withered, the sage disappeared. The lemon balm got a slow start, but then really took off. 3 out of 4 hissop plants survived. The echinacea (purple coneflower) hardly grew, only producing 1 flower. But the basil was lush and gorgeous. I LOVE LOVE LOVE basil -- having it fresh is wonderful. I dried some in the dehydrator for use throughout the year. I use it almost daily, so I am very happy having my own.

Speaking of the dehydrator, I also dried the last of our pepper crop -- a few jalapenos, couple of red and green peppers and plenty of habaneros, along with a couple of onions. Once dehydrated, I crumbled them up together in a glass jar, and voila! My own spicy seasoning mixture!



We were able to put up about 30 quarts of salsa. That is about a third of what we use each year, but we will enjoy it while it lasts. We were also blessed to find a source of peaches, so we were able to get 30 quarts of peach halves put up, along with a couple batches of peach preserves. And I don't even think I've mentioned the 20 quarts of applesauce we put into the freezer!



The season is changing, and so we are looking forward to the winter holidays and special events, making plans for next years' garden and projects. Thankful for what God has provided this year, hopeful for what is to come next year.

Our 4th of July Holiday Weekend

The tradition continues: the weeks leading up to July 4th were full of bustling and planning and cooking and shopping, and list making and list checking, etc. I think Independence Day is the children's favorite holiday - our freedom, liberty, the constitution, the founding fathers, our God the Creator -- all these things should be celebrated and remembered so we do not take them for granted.


This year, Brent and Melissa made the trip down to join in the festivities. It was great having them here. The kids all had a lot of fun playing games and getting everything 'just so' . . .



and the big boys enjoyed testing things out, just to be sure, you know.










After services on Sunday, Dad took everyone to Mom's favorite restaurant for dinner - what a treat! I love having all my family gathering around. The food was delicious, service was great and company was terrific - time just always goes too quickly.





On the Menu: Grilled hamburgers and hotdogs and brats, potato salad, chips and guacamole and salsa, baked beans, fresh veggies, fresh fruit and melon, our red/white/blue USA jello mold, festive cupcakes and dragon. Yes! I said "Dragon!" He was the 'Keeper of the Fireworks' but we ate him anyway! He was very sweet indeed.





After the meal, things really got exciting!

The Arsenal




The Gathering: our big house and big yard are a great blessing at times like this.


and the noise! Noah still would rather have silent fireworks.




Just as dusk approached, the big boys fired off rockets that drop parachutes, and the children and Dad ran and ran to see who could catch them. We tried to have plenty available - but it seemed this year the wind took many of the parachutes over the electric fence into the pasture. Still, a good time was had by all!


And then we broke out the sparklers - the little guys are not so little, and not so afraid, so it was very fun, and exciting. I especially enjoyed helping baby Ezra,now 15 months old - he had to be in there with the rest of them. He was NOT going to be left out!










Once again, the show was awesome - plenty of ooohhhhs and aaaahhhhhhhs and wows. We have cleaned up and recuperated and looking forward to next year - though I can honestly say I am a bit relieved it will be a whole year before we do it again - whew! Maybe you'd like to join us?

Our Whirlwind Birthday Season

Since late May, it's been Birthday Central around here - 7 birthdays in less than 5 weeks, in our immediate family.

To start things off, Esther decided she'd like to make some fancy soaps to send to her sister-in-law for her birthday in late May. She chose a rose mold, and added scent and color to melted glycerine soap base, creating these fragrant blossoms:

We had lots of fun, and they turned out really nice. I think Esther surprised herself at how pretty they were, and Melissa really appreciated them. We also made 'Confetti' soaps, by stacking chunks of colored soap base into a cylinder, pouring in white soap base to fill, and then slicing into half circles (oh why did I not get a picture of these?)



Of course, the boys were not too excited about the whole flower thing, so they opted to make bug soap and turtles and frogs. Who knew creepy, crawly things could make such good, clean fun? These cute little soaps have made great gifts for some friends. This project is definitely on our 'Do It Again!' list.


Just a few days after Melissa's birthday, Brent celebrated his 24th. My, how the years have flown by! Having grown children, living away from home, FAR away from home, makes their birthdays tough on this old mom. I tend to reminisce and think on happy memories, and work at fighting away my melancholy. I miss the joy of baking Brent's strawberry/rhubarb pie, and decorating with streamers and a homemade birthday sign sporting his name. Ah, well -- life goes on! But I'm thankful for the luxury of telephones, as I was able to hear his voice from across the miles and a postal service that delivers my cards and packages.


And so, we move on. Look who comes next - me! Twenty-four years ago, we brought our firstborn home from the hospital on MY birthday. He was 2 days old, what a wonderful birthday present! How young and scared I was! How thrilled we were! Seems like yesterday.



Eight children later, they all join in with their dad, and make my birthday special. Once again, Caitlin surprised me with chocolate covered strawberries. She always finds a way to get them done without me knowing it. She is a wonder! She also whipped up a delicious Black Forest Chocolate Cherry Cake for me. Can you tell chocolate makes Mama happy? A gift card to my favorite restaurant, flowers wired from overseas, and my very own pocket-sized digital camera, along with special handmade pictures. They sure know how to spoil their mother!





A week later, it's Noah's turn! He is now 6 years old, will be starting first grade this year, and was very excited to have lost his 2 front teeth just in time for his birthday. You can do such cool things when you are missing so many teeth at once. The bottom 2 have not completely grown in yet, so there is quite a gap.



He especially wanted a baseball birthday this year, so Caitlin helped me make his dreams come true with the BallPark Cake. He loved it! Only trouble was, when it came time to blow out the candles, he needed plenty of help. What with that gaping hole in the front of his mouth, the wind went every which way, but straight out, and he missed EVERY SINGLE CANDLE! We told him this must be an extra special birthday, because this had never happened before. He was happy to have brothers and sisters around to help him out.



And so a few more days pass, and we are on the phone, making a call overseas to wish Alyssa happy birthday. My Flag Day Baby. 23 years old. All grown up, married with a baby of her own. I won't get into how emotional it is for me, but she's happy and doing what she loves. We all miss celebrating this special day with her, but sending cards and care packages makes it fun for us and for her. One of these years, I'm hoping God will bring all my children home for a visit during this birthday season, and we'll have One Big Birthday Bash - won't that be fun?


And 3 days later . . .



. . . Wee Bekah turns 4 - now, THIS birthday was a bit tough on Mom. On everyone, actually, because it means our baby really is growing up. I'm so glad she is generous with her hugs and snuggles and kisses.



Now, any of you that know this girl know that she's all about pink. And that includes birthdays. Especially Pink Poodle Birthdays! And so, Mama says, "My wish is your command" or something to that effect, and with some input from Esther and Caitlin, I whipped up this very cute cake for my baby girl.




Okay, it's Caitlin's turn. She definitely hides from the spotlight, but I caught her on film (so it was a digital camera, but you know what I mean). She's generally busy taking care of things in the wings, quietly helping out in the background, or behind the camera. On Sunday I had her front and center and wouldn't let her escape!



It is so nice to have Grandma near by. She is able to pop in to enjoy our little birthday celebrations.

For a change of pace, Esther and I made an Angel Food cake, covered with whipped topping and fresh strawberries and raspberries. Caitlin enjoyed it, and so did the rest of us! It was light and fresh tasting after all the heavier sweet treats we've been having lately.







19 years old now, and all grown up. But she still was very excited to receive another Nancy Drew Mystery computer game. How long will it take her to 'crack the case'?




Whew! If you have made it all the way to the end of this post, I applaud you and I thank you. This is a chaotic time each year, but a joyous time, filled with love and memories. Here's wishing each of you a Happy Day!

Have A Happy Day!

Cheerfulness and contentment are
great beautifiers
and are famous preservers
of youthful looks.

Charles Dickens

A cheerful look brings joy to the heart,
and good news gives
health to the bones.

Proverbs 15:30 NIV

Today's Lunch Menu . . .

Mus'Go Chili -- yum, yum!

Before the busy weekend is upon us, I decided to clean out the frig while making lunch today. I found a small dish of diced green peppers, 1/2 an onion chopped, a bit of cooked burger, a bowl of cowboy beans, and a partial serving of black beans and burger. Yes, there were a couple of other items (that's right! only a couple!) that went straight to the chicken/scrap bucket, and so they don't come into play here. Well, seeing these items lined up on the counter, I had a flash of de'ja'vu and inspiration all at once.

I could see my mom bending over the bottom shelf of the refrigerator in the Little House in St Louis, probably on a Saturday night, saying "This must go, this must go, this must go. . . Looks like we are having Mus'Go's tonight!"

Well, all these beautiful ingredients practically jumped into the pot themselves. They were begging to be sauteed up all together in a bit of olive oil, and have a can of tomatoes and a few savory spices join them (a few spicy ones, too). How could I resist on this cool, rainy afternoon? Wonderful how everything works together for good, isn't it?

Lesson to remember - Inspiration is often found in the mundane, everyday tasks - so be ready and watching!

Don't UnderEstimate the Little Guys

Last night, during our evening devotions I was again reminded that I often underestimate my younger children. We've been reading through the gospel of Mark. Every child that can read takes a turn reading a couple of verses out loud, then we discuss what we read, ask questions about things we didn't understand. I'm continually amazed (ok, maybe I shouldn't be, but I am) at what a great job even my Littles do at reading out loud, and comprehending what they've read.

I recently heard this phrase "Practice makes progress." What better way for our children to practice reading, practice thinking on spiritual things, practice listening skills, practice patience, practice taking turns than as a family gathered at the end of the day. Some may think the Bible is too difficult to understand - 'practice makes progress!' The wheels of their minds are constantly turning, so why not fill them up with stuff of substance, rather than fluff?

And talking about 'the wheels turning' -- as I tucked the little boys into bed, I could see something was floating around in that brain of my 5 year old. I hung around a few extra minutes, just to see if he'd reveal what was developing in those thoughts of his -- sure enough, it all came spewing out. He seems to be a little confused about family relationships.

N-"Mom, Alyssa used to be a girl"
Me-"yes, she's still a girl"
N-"No! She used to not be married"
Me-"yes, but now she's a grown up married lady"
N-"Right. and she used to not be a mom, but now she has a baby"
Me-"yeah, Arioch was born here last summer. He's going to be a year old soon."
N-"so, he's my other brother?"
Me-"No, he's your nephew - you are Uncle Noah"
N-"I'm a kid. I'm an uncle? I'm not grown up yet. but I'm growing up fast, huh? That's pretty neat."

Yes, they grow up very fast. He still had a quizzical look on his face as I left the room. He'll figure it out.

In the meantime I need to slow down and listen to their questions, take time to give a thoughtful answer, or make the effort to discover answers together. They keep me grounded and on my toes and get my priorities back on track. I wouldn't want it any other way --


And they really know the art of enjoying a plate of spaghetti!