Why I Cook From Scratch

Menu planning.  Those two words used to give me despair.  I cook three meals a day for six people.  Per month that is 90 meals being prepared.  The task of sitting down and planning out meals used to be my most hated chore.  We did it for a while, but that all changed last fall . . .

After much procrastinating, I decided to start cooking using the GAPS diet.  GAPS stands for Gut and Psychology Syndrome.  I really do believe that if we had been able to faithfully follow this diet it could have really helped Bubba (read "helped", not "cured"), but it was almost impossible to follow this strict diet.  I did learn a lot about cooking while attempting this.  We also experimented with the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, which is similar to GAPS but easier.  It was still very difficult.  And finally we spent some time cooking Paleo-style.  All of this experimentation in the kitchen got me used to making everything from scratch.  And when I say everything, I mean it.  Ketchup, taco seasoning, spaghetti sauce, dressings, etc.  Right now we have settled into a gluten-free diet for Bubba, with almost everything from scratch.  And can you believe the menu planning is no longer an issue?

I love it because we always have what we need in our pantry.  And because of the restrictions on some of the diets, we got used to eating the same meals over and over.  I have to admit that there was some mom guilt there, like my children are going to suffer as adults because I'm not giving them a different menu all the time.  But you know what?  It works!  The family is happy, I'm no longer stressed, and we're eating at home 99% of the time.  Win-win.  :)

                                         Inside our pantry

I Am Extremely Magical

Or at least my kids think so.  Want to know why?  You may want to sit down.  I moved the outdoor slide into the living room!

Oh my.  You would have thought we'd announced we were going to Disneyland.  I'm talking about at least two hours of giggling and joyful shouts.  It was great.

Grandma also got points this week for finding a fun and unusual toy for them:  PigJax.  Yes, a game of jacks with little pigs.  Weird, but fun.  Giggles has enjoyed them so much I suggested maybe we re-decorate her room in pigs, just to tease her.  She was not in support.

It's the little things in life.

My Life Verse

There are so many beautiful, life-changing verses in the Bible.  I've never been able to pick just one that has a particular meaning for my entire life, but there is one that keeps coming back to me and I read it again just recently.  It's found in the book of John; the third chapter. 

²⁷ John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. ²⁸ You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’ ²⁹ He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. ³⁰ He must increase, but I must decrease.
(New King James)

Verse 30 is so amazing to me .  . . "He must increase, but I must decrease."  The New International Version words it this way, "He must become greater, I must become less." 

How has this been a comfort and strength in my life?

When Bubba has screamed endlessly and I just want to throw in the towel.  He must become greater, I must become less.

When I hurt my husband by a thoughtless comment, and I remember.  He must become greater, I must become less.

When I'm frustrated by my children, who are still learning and growing in their maturity.  He must become greater, I must become less. 

When I'm tempted and tried.  He must become greater, I must become less.

No matter the situation, the truth remains the same.  Why does this give me hope?  Because I don't have to carry the weight of perfection.  He is greater!

"Boo Wice" and Other Stories

The other night Ethan and I went out to help our friends prepare for the very first service in the church they are starting.  How will God work through it?  I can't wait to see.  It's exciting!

While we were out we left our little monkeys in the hands of teenage twin brothers who have babysat for us before.  The two of them do a great job with the kids. When they gave an account of the night, it came up that Bubba wouldn't eat his dinner.  (It was Louisiana red beans and rice.)  That's nothing new.  However, he did keep asking for "boo wice".  After a few attempts to understand him, Spunky finally asked if he wanted blue rice.  And strangely enough, that's what he wanted.  No, he's never had blue rice.  I have no idea where that came from, but they mixed a couple drops of food coloring in and he was as happy as could be!

Now on to the slew of pictures . . .

 Here's Spunky in a career class she took in our co-op learning to do web design. 

 Some of the girls from our co-op on a field trip to the science museum.

 Bubba strikes again!  He thought is was absolutely hilarious to put stickers on the dog.  Archer had no opinion.

 Our sweet girl getting her ears pierced! 

Game night with friends.

I'm super proud of my little reader, Giggles.  We were trying to figure out which Magic Treehouse books she still had to read and discovered that she read ALL of them this winter.  (Okay, all except two, because I didn't approve them.)  That's like 45 books.  She's bummed that the next book isn't supposed to come out until fall, so we're trying to find some alternatives.  We decided to start the illustrated classics.  She's currently reading Pollyanna.

Calico is keeping our hands full right now.  Two-year-olds are SO much fun!  Her daddy has been working with her to chew with her mouth closed, and the other night at dinner she got a reminder.  I wish I had a picture of her reaction.  She just stared at him for a second, then put one hand under her chin and one on top of her head before slowly and deliberately chewing (while staring defiantly).  I really think she was being sarcastic, although I've never seen someone that little exhibit that behavior.  We'll be keeping our eye on this one.  :)

Fun Day Monday

Sometimes this old mom breaks out of the routine.  Last night was one of those nights.  I can't remember why, but it just seemed like the late afternoon/evening was dragging on and on!  I knew the kids had some energy to get out, so we did relay races.  They lined up and took turns running a set course downstairs with a ribbon.  Since they didn't have another team to race, I timed their trials and then they tried to beat their fastest time.  The best part of this was watching Bubba.  He was absolutely hilarious.  Imagine giving the ribbon to a boisterous puppy and you'll get the idea.  Instead of tagging the couch (halfway point) he would take off in a different direction, roll with it, laugh like crazy.  It made the timed trials somewhat unpredictable.  :)

Next each child got a ribbon and we turned up the music.  They danced while I attempted to take pictures. 

After that we made miniature calzones.  The kids loved making their own.  You may notice Calico looking sad; I think she wanted to roll out the dough but couldn't quite get the hang of it. 

The finale of the night was curling up with a book.  We're reading through by "The Sign of the Beaver" by Elizabeth George Speare.  It's part of our curriculum so the big girls were pretty interested.  The little two . . . not so much! 



New Year, New Bible Reading Plan

I have to share a link to a Bible reading plan that Ethan and I have been following for then last week.  It's really different from any I've followed before, but I like the variety.  We've found that it takes us about 30 - 45 minutes in the morning to complete.  (Well worth the lost sleep time, by the way!)  I don't know about any of you, but I am a complete mess when I neglect my time with my Father.  He is so good!

Here's the link:

http://www.sohmer.net/media/professor_grant_horners_bible_reading_system.pdf

Does It Come with a Yarmulke?

My parents went out this week and bought themselves a Jewish refrigerator.

It all started on Christmas day. 

We have an absurd and frightening tradition of burning the sweet potatoes for major holidays.  Not every year, no.  That would be too predictable.  Yet on a fairly regular basis, the potatoes come out blazing.

This Christmas was like every other.  The kids were happily curled up with a movie while final dinner preparations were being made.  Some of us were visiting in the living room, when suddenly the loudest noise I've ever heard came out of my mom's kitchen. 

I'll be honest.  It scared the crap out of me.

We raced out there to find my dad staring at the oven with an incredulous look on his face. 

"What happened?!" we asked.

"An electric current just shot out of the oven," my brother answered, as he casually sat at the counter.

And it had.  Electricity had shot out, hit the door of the oven, and returned to it's fiery lair. 

My dad still hadn't spoken.  I examined his face carefully.  He appeared to still have both eyebrows and all of the remaining hair.  My heart slowed.

Apparently the oven had shorted while it was doing what, you may ask?  Broiling the topping on the SWEET POTATOES.  Of course.

After the circuit was shut down, someone reached in and gingerly removed the pan.  The marshmallow-y topping quivered, unscorched.

It was a Christmas miracle.

The rest of the day was fairly non-explosive, which was good.  Fast-forward to Wednesday, when my popped by while she was in town.

"Did I tell you Dad and I found a new oven?"

"Mmm, that's nice."

"And while we were there we decided to buy a new fridge too."

"Hmm."

"It's all stainless steel, and we're thinking it's not going to match the microwave so we may have to replace that."

"Right.  Makes sense."

"Did I mention that my fridge is Jewish?"

"Your WHAT is WHAT?"

Now she had my attention.  My mom can be goofy, but she had hit a new height of bizarreness.

"My refrigerator is Jewish.  It has settings for the Sabbath."

And she wasn't kidding.  It turns out that they can flip a "Sabbath" switch anytime they decide to.  It will turn off certain parts of the fridge in observance of Jewish law.  I mulled this over for a minute, before speaking.

"I'm guessing it's not circumcised?"

"KIMBERLY!"

"Sorry, I couldn't resist."

Indoor Date Night

My parents gave Ethan this Ogosport game for Christmas.  At first I wondered if we'd play it, but then we picked it up and started playing the night of Christmas.  It was SO MUCH fun!  Granted, we were tripping all over toys and the puppy was chasing the ball when it dropped, but it was great. 

Fast-forward to tonight.  We arranged earlier today for a friend to come over for a little bit tonight so we could go run an errand and have a mini-date.  She ended up not being able to come out, so we set the kids up with a movie and started playing again.  (This time with a clear floor!)  I haven't laughed so hard in a while.  I can't say that either of us is particularly skilled with this game, but it didn't matter. 

Hope you feel inspired to try something new for your next date night!

Why the Heck Do I Even Try?

This was my "To Do" list for this week, in no particular order.

Scrub master bathroom from top to bottom.  Take the car to the carwash and vacuum completely.  Make homemade bread.  Make lentil soup.  Make sweet potato soup.  Teach the dog something.  Take the dog on walks.  Hand-wash the kitchen floor.  Hand-wash the entry floor.  Organize the master bedroom.  Organize the baby's bedroom.  Paint a picture.  Paint more pictures.  Write descriptions for upcoming classes at the academy.  Clean and organize the bonus room.  Make Ethan's Christmas gifts.  Get ahead on curriculum planning.   

Here's what I've actually done.

Painted a wall.  Cleaned the master bathroom.  (Okay, 1 point for following through on that.)  Cleaned up 15 or 20 puppy accidents.  Started a Christmas gift-buying list.  Made bread and lentil soup.  (2 points.)  Thought about planning our advent calendar activities.  Talked to hubby on the phone.  Went coupon grocery shopping with Bubba. 

I did mention that the girls are gone for three days, right?  I figured going from four kids down to one would somehow magically make me superwoman.  Sigh.  Well, there's still tomorrow.   :)

In The Last Month . . .

* We adopted a puppy.  His name is Archer.

Baby boxers have funny shaped heads.  His is already starting to look more normal.  I've forgotten what having a puppy means.  It's like having another child, only this time we can keep him in a kennel when we need a break.

* The girls went to their first slumber party.  I love how my friend planned it out.  They were tired the next day, but not excessively so.  They watched "Soul Surfer" and really liked it.

* Read the book "1001 Ideas for Teaching and Raising Your Child with Autism".  One thing that stood out to me was about respect.  Even though Bubba doesn't talk much, he does understand us.  It's important for me to remember that and not always talk about him like he's not there.  (Harder than you might think.)

* Had a harvest party with some friends.  Highlight of the night, in my opinion, was the dance contest.  All the kids and several adults participated.  We had two judges.  There really was no contest.  The winner was a four-year-old boy that could get down!  He was hilarious to watch.

* Started thinking about the next semester in co-op.  I will be teaching a dance class for grades 2-5.  Really looking forward to it!

* Preparing for the hubby to go to Dallas next week.  So thankful that my parents are going to take the girls part of the time so it will just be Bubba and I.  We have one morning that his aide will be here and I am going to CLEAN.  (I feel the word must be in all caps to show how serious I am.)  I may even skip meals or eat as I go to make the most of the time.  I'm more excited to get some deep-cleaning done than I would be if I won a trip to Europe.  (Well, maybe.)

* Calico has gotten into reading, big-time.  She'll be seven in a couple weeks and has been devouring chapter books.  It's kind of like a dream come true for me, because I adore reading and know that it has helped me to learn so much.  She's reminding me of myself when I was a little girl. 

Some Women Are Dripping With Diamonds

If you've ever seen the Annie movie, you may remember a song that Miss Hanigan sings. 

Some women are dripping with diamonds
Some women are dripping with pearls
Lucky me, lucky me
Look at what I'm dripping with . . .

Little girls

I feel a little like Miss Hanigan this week.  Our dear friends R. and T. had a getaway for a few days and we get to take care of their daughters who are seven and five.  They are GREAT kiddos!  However, I've learned that jumping from four to six kids is a bit challenging.  We keep running out of kid plates and have had to separate the older two from the younger two at night due to too much giggling.  :)  The nice part is that the girls are also homeschooled, so they fit right into our routine.  And their mama packed three meals for everyone plus daily schoolwork for them, so it helped quite a bit.

One funny moment: last week Spunky told me that she had figured out glue works really well to stick things to the fridge.  We had to have a big talk about why we don't do that, of course.  So yesterday we had a Mad Hatter Tea Party and the two big girls wanted to surprise me.  Bright and early in the morning they tidied up the downstairs and put up little teacup decorations that they made.  It was so sweet!  . . . until I figured out they had GLUED the teacups to the walls!  And the cupboards.  My eyes must have gotten really big when I discovered it, because Spunky was quick to point out "But don't worry mom; we didn't glue ANYTHING to the fridge!!" 

Sometimes there just aren't words. :)

FINALLY!

If you've wondered why I've been mysteriously absent from the blogging world it is because something was broken on my blog.  Yes, that's actually true.  I had to switch over to the new editor from the old, an answer I only found by going to "Help". 

It feels so good to be back!

Now if I only had something significant to say. 








Darn.

Hello, July

It has been three weeks. I haven't taken a blogging break like that in quite some time. Right now . . .

- Calico is sitting next to me, saying "hi-low!" to my phone, over and over again.

- Bubba is loving on his cars in the playroom

- Giggles and Spunky are fixing their hair, preparing for our family "July birthdays" get-together at Nana and Grandad's

And I am taking a break from cleaning. Not any spectacular cleaning; just the daily stuff. For the first time this month I made a crock pot meal and feel like it's not a bad time for a break. Yay for no dinner prep!!

This week I decided to REALLY start couponing. I actually bought the binder and the baseball-card-organizing sheets. Oh yeah. On Tuesday I made my first purchase with coupons and felt a little giddy. It wasn't much, just 10 boxes of cereal for $10, but it was fun!

Our new non-profit has kept us incredibly busy. We have a logo.

We had a benefit yardsale that raised over $1000. LONGEST day of my life! :) But well worth the time and effort. It paid for our 501c3 application and the logo design. We also had a booth at the God and Country Festival, where we ended up getting about 150 people on our contact list. Another long day that was well worth it.

The girls and I (plus two neighbor girls) have been reading through the Little House on the Prairie Series. I just adored those books growing up! We've attempted some get-togethers with some other homeschooling families to do related crafts, but it's tough in the summertime with schedules. We're doing things like cloved apples, nightcaps, butter (from scratch), button necklaces, and jackrabbit stew.

Bubba has been turning some corners with his speech. It almost makes me cry every time he says something new because it's SO difficult for him. We had a breakthrough the other day. His aide and the kids and I were all out going to the library and she wanted to stop at Little Caesar's. So we parked in front and she went in with Spunky, who'd asked for permission. Bubba clearly said, "I want to get out of the car." Thrilled, I replied, "No, Miss Julie and sissy will be back in just a minute with the pizzas. We're staying in the car." And that was that. He went back to playing with his car.

Why was that such a big deal? The normal scenario would consist of this:

People get out of the car. Bubba starts screaming. I say, "Are you hungry, honey? What's the matter? Are you tired? We're going home right after this." Etc. He continues to scream, maybe bites himself for good measure. I feel stressed and frustrated and worried. The baby starts to cry.

So, that not happening was a good thing.

We've also had some relapses in the pottying department. He's had several accidents a week at naptime and bedtime. Unfortunately he's back to smearing #2 again. I try to catch him but it's difficult. I'm considering getting a camera in there. And replacing his carpet with a concrete drain. ;)

Time to get dinner on, but I'll be back soon to give some more updates!

Sad Goodbyes

Our little exchange student flew home yesterday morning and we are so SAD. She was such a great addition to our family.

Introducing her to street hockey was a must.

She already loved badmitton so we played a few times.

Rollerskating!

What a view. :)

Inside "the car".

Fun with games on the phone.

Banana splits!

So we hosted last summer and while it was okay, we definitely didn't bond with our student. This year was incredibly different. Mary is fun-loving and very polite. What cracked me up was how quickly she assumed the role of big sister. I heard her correcting the little ones (but it was always appropriate). Before we knew it she was unbuckling Calico from the car and taking her inside each day and playing in the backyard with Bubba.

We are going to miss our student but at least we have an email address for her. And who knows? Maybe someday we'll go to Korea!

What to Do?

The girls have been attending vacation Bible school this week and it has been so different around the house. They're gone from 9 a.m. 12 p.m. During that time Bubba's aide works with him and Calico takes a nap, so I have been getting a lot done! It's very strange. I also have a break this week from the little neighbor girl I homeschooled during the year, so it almost feels like I don't have kids for a couple of hours. I can't imagine if this was the norm. Stay-at-home moms who have their kids in school must get so much accomplished every day. I'm a little jealous. ;)

I've been doing smaller organizing projects around the house, leading up to the mother of all projects: our master bedroom. When we bought our house I was okay with having a huge bedroom, but also kind of wondering what we'd put in it. So we turned half of the room into a library/craft room. I hate to admit it, but it has become a craft dumping ground. Occasionally I wade in, grab some scrapbook papers or ribbon, and make my way out. Carefully.

Anyway, Ethan and I talked about it and decided we had to do something to make it better in there. So waaaaay back in February my mom and I went shopping for something to organize my craft materials. We lucked out big-time at a scrapbook store that was selling off their floor displays. This huge twirling display was only $25. (Actually free to me because it ended up being my birthday gift!) Anyway, from the first picture you can see that it even opens up for storage. And guess how much I've organized in that room so far? Um . . . . well, I threw enough stuff in to take a picture. That's it. So tomorrow and Friday IT IS GETTING ORGANIZED! I have no excuses now, no kids interrupting or lessons to plan. You blogging friends can hold me accountable, okay? Guess I better go get to work!

Life

Baby's first trip to the dentist! She doesn't look too upset in this picture but she did end up shedding some tears.

By the time she got to the treasure box and was allowed to pick out a toy she was all smiles again. She chose a pair of bright pink sunglasses.

Spunky and Giggles entered their first race. They did awesome and loved the medals they received.

A moment of joy - Bubba is extremely happy when he's buckled into his car seat. I'm not sure why his car seat ended up in the backyard but he took full advantage of the moment. He stayed out there for probably a good hour reading a book and cuddling with his blanket.

The first lemonade stand of the summer! Grand total earned (in 1 1/2 hours): $6

Calico and Fred have a conversation. :)

Such a Busy Time

Our exchange student from Korea has been with us for 5 days and we all really like her. The picture above is the girls building a volcano for a (home) school project.

Her profile described her as shy and very self-reliant. I'd agree with shy, although she seems to be warming up to us a little more each day. And it took her no time to warm up to the kids! She is very polite and well-mannered.


Last weekend the girls had their end of the year recital. As much as I love watching anything my kids do, I must confess that sometimes I find ballet boring. But this year's Cinderella was an exception! The stepsisters really made the show with their jealous antics.

It looks like our Calico is going to take after her daddy and be a tree climber! Ethan was just standing next to the tree and she about leaped out of her arms trying to get into it. Of COURSE I had to capture that on film.

Speaking of Calico, lately we've noticed that she is extremely stubborn and very dramatic. It is so cute but we try to be really careful to not encourage the behaviour. Ethan was cooking here and she wanted to play with him, but when he couldn't she grumpily threw herself down on the floor and held onto his leg. I think it may be an uphill battle to good behaviour with this one!

Lazy Me

I'm sorry to my friends that I haven't been much of a blogger lately. Not so much for my posts, but for the fact that I haven't even commented or read anyone else's post. I wish I could say I've been busy traveling or doing something exotic, but the truth is it has just been . . . . life. Sickness. Recovery. School. Spring cleaning. Etc.

It looks as if we will be getting a Korean exchange student again! She should be a little older this time; a fifth grader. The girls are really excited.

We have big news to share, but it may have to wait a couple of days. I also have two new book reports to write up. :) So stay tuned!

Whoa.

I kind of just signed myself up to run 4 half marathons in 4 weeks.

I'm a little bit scared and a little bit excited.

See, the longest race I've ever run is a 5k. Yeah. I'm planning to run a 10k next month, but that's a bit shorter than a half.

But the deal is . . . . the races benefit kiddos in India. Kiddos with AIDS. And that breaks my heart. So I kind of think that even if I need to walk, run, or somersault my way through them it needs to happen. Those kids deserve it.

Prayers appreciated. :)

Growing

Our week of spring break has been a time of much growth. Our darling Calico took her first steps! She is just shy of 14 months. With all the children, this may have been the first time that Ethan and I were able to witness it together. And speaking of things growing up, we're starting our very first garden! We started an indoor greenhouse with carrots, tomatoes, pumpkins, and spinach. The entire family has been enjoying watching the seeds break out of the soil.

The girls discovered my juicer on the shelf and wanted to give it a try. Now they want to juice everything. I told Giggles we could juice a chicken and her eyes got AWFULLY big. Poor girl halfway believed me. Funny story, when we were first married my favorite kitchen gadget was my juicer; Ethan's favorite was his deep fryer. (This just perfectly represents our eating preferences in a nutshell, by the way.)

One night while putting Calico to bed she was really having a rough time of it. Giggles offered to read her a story and it's become a little routine they share. I l.o.v.e it! Sweet sister time.