Under the Pines

August

2011-08-26T18:05:00.005-05:00

Okay, so I have promised many posts with heaps of pictures of various projects and gatherings over the past 9 months, but have failed miserably in keeping y'all updated on here. To tell the truth, I'd much rather read about what's going on with others than write what I've been up to. Part of this is because it's less work on my part, and part of it is that I've been ashamed for having posted so little in the past year.

Anyway, today I want to give you guys a good blog post. Pictures. Stories. The whole nine yards. Without further ado, here are the highlights from our month.

The first weekend of the month we spent three days camping with some friends, all of whom are part of our newly formed homeschool group. We had a great time despite a few unforeseen problems, including a huge rainstorm that sent us all running for shelter.

That same weekend was the county fair and I entered six items, five of which placed, and three of which got first place. When Toby and I went to pick up our entries, we also went on a few rides and got root beer floats afterwards. I like having a big brother. :)

Here is a picture of my three clothing items, all of which placed first.

This past Sunday we traveled several hours away to visit with some friends. Their town was having their annual hoedown, so we headed over there and toured the rustic buildings filled with all sorts of cool old tools and everyday items.

There was real, fresh ice cream, so Rae and I just had to have some.

Here is a shot of all the kids together.

From left to right: Jon, Rae, Grace, Noah, Toby, Lynae, and Michael. We all had a great day together and can't wait to get together again.

Other than that, my month has consisted of gardening, math, soapmaking, and lots of coffee.

Bach Flower Remedies

2011-07-29T13:43:00.003-05:00

I recently read Bach Flower Remedies by Julian Barnard for the Natural Medicine course I was taking and found it very intriguing. When I said Bach, you probably thought of the great composer Johann Sebastian Bach, but the man I am referring to today is Dr. Edward Bach.

Born in 1886 in England, Dr. Bach studied medicine in London and became a doctor until 1930 when he left his practice in search of a new way of healing. Over the next 6 years, Dr. Bach discovered 38 flower remedies for different emotional imbalances which he believed were the cause of many physical diseases.

His way of discovering the remedies was indeed, very unorthodox as he claimed to have a psychic connection with the plants. When experiencing a negative emotion, he would hold his hand over different plants until he found one that alleviated the condition. He would then study the plant, it's root system, the flowers, the way it grew, it's heartiness, etc., and found incredible parallels between the plant and the people and conditions it was able to treat.

Although his work was controversial, there is over 70 years of evidence that his remedies can, in fact, change a person's behavior and help them become a more balanced person. Someone that is always blaming themselves whether or not they are at fault should take pine. Someone that is easily discouraged should try gentian.

If you would like to find out more about Bach's 38 remedies or are interested in finding out what you could use, check out this website. Also, you might check your local health foods store to see what they offer in the way of Bach flower remedies.

"It is only because we have forsaken Nature's (I say God's) way for man's way that we have suffered, and we have only to return to be released from our trials. In the presence of the way of Nature (again, I believe in God's power, not Nature's) disease has no power; all fear, all depression, all hopelessness can be set aside. There is no disease of itself which is incurable." Dr. Bach

Uncle Tom's Cabin

2011-03-23T20:19:00.003-05:00

I recently read Uncle Tom’s Cabin and was asked to write my thoughts on it here. Discussion is welcome.

First of all, I would like to point out that if anyone today tried to get a book like this published today, it would not happen without some serious editing. The author appears to be racist in the extreme, to the point that modern readers cannot help feeling somewhat embarrassed reading her language. From beginning to end the book is riddled with racist descriptions and statements, clearly showing the author's bias. I have listed a handful of examples, and put the racist keywords in bold for you skeptical speed readers.

“For convenience sake, we have said, hitherto, two gentlemen. One of the parties, however… did not seem… to come under the species.”

“…and though the auditors immediately about him were generally of his own colour, it not unfrequently happened that they were fringed pretty deeply with those of fairer complexion…”

“Tom, who had to the full the gentle, domestic heart, which, woe for them! has been the peculiar characteristic of his unhappy race…”

“The African, naturally patient, timid, and unenterprising…”

“…attired in hunting-shirts, and trailing their loose joints over a vast expanse of territory, with the easy lounge peculiar to the race…”

“Tom, who had the soft, irrepressible nature of his kindly race…”

“The negro… has deep in his heart, a passion for all that is splendid, rich, and fanciful… which… draws on them the ridicule of the colder and more correct white race.”

“If ever Africa shall show an elevated and cultivated race—and come it must, sometime, her turn to figure in the great drama of human improvement—life will awake there with a gorgeousness and splendour of which our cold western tribes faintly have conceived. In that far-off mystic land of gold, and gems, and spices, and waving palms, and wondrous flowers and miraculous fertility, will awake new forms of art, new styles of splendour; and the negro race, no longer despised or trodden down, will, perhaps, show forth some of the latest and most magnificent revelations of human life. Certainly they will, in their gentleness, their lowly docility of heart, their aptitude to repose on a superior mind and rest on a higher power, their childlike simplicity of affection, and facility of forgiveness. In all these they will exhibit the highest form of the peculiarly Christian life…”

“They stood, the representatives of their races. The Saxon, born of ages of cultivation, command, education, physical and moral eminence; the Afric, born of ages of oppression, submission, ignorance, toil, and vice!”

“… struck at once upon the feelings of a sensitive and impressible race…”

“…of all races of the earth, none have received the Gospel with such eager docility as the African. The principle of reliance and unquestioning faith, which is its foundation is more a native element in this race than any other; and it has often been found among them, that a stray seed of truth, borne on some breeze of accident into hearts the most ignorant, has sprung up into fruit, whose abundance has shamed that of a higher and more skilful creature.”

“…the capabilities of the race, are encouraging in the highest degree… they are remarkably intelligent and quick to learn.”

Never mind that most of these descriptions and statements are either false or offensive. It should not be encouraging or remarkable to see a black person's ability to learn, for example: They are all humans! They are 100% the same as any other person of any skin color, thinking that their intelligence or ability to learn would be any different is racist!

Also, notice how most of these quotes paint all people who happen to have darker skin as gentle, kind, patient, Christian people. One would almost think that being born with darker skin was a ticket into heaven, especially compared to the stereotypical lighter skinned person in the book, who is painted as a spiritually disoriented and mentally unsound brute, as shown in the following quotes:

“And the trader leaned back in his chair… apparently considering himself a second Wilberforce.”

“Mr Wilson’s mind was one of those that may not inaptly be represented by a bale of cotton—downy, soft, benevolently fuzzy, and confused.”

“’It’s undoubtedly the intention of Providence that the African race should be servants—kept in a low condition,’ said… a clergyman…”

“’…and I’m sure they can go to church when they like, though they don’t understand a word of the sermon, more than so many pigs… they are a degraded race, and always will be…’”

The general idea throughout the book is that slaves are inherently Christian and slave owners are inherently heathen.

“’Depend on it, God will bring you into judgement for this.’”

“…injustice is… inherent… in the slave system, it cannot exist without it.”

There were some things the author stated that makes a reader question her faith.

“There is one thing that every individual can do, they can see to it that they feel right.”

Wait... so... huh? I mean, every individual can feel right, I suppose, but I had no idea that was important in the grand scheme of things!

“Rachel never looked so truly and benignly happy as at the head of her table.”

Rachel is a Quaker wife. Her husband is there with them. And yet he is barely mentioned at all. Why isn't he sitting at the head of his table? Why does he take a submissive role in the family leadership? We are supposed to see this family as a sort of ideal, or at least the author wants us to.

Then there is a letter written by a darker skinned man to a friend, which is not only full of racist remarks, but also ironies to modern readers.

“’It is with the oppressed, enslaved African race that I cast my lot…

‘The desire and yearning of my soul is for an African nationality…

‘…On the shores of Africa I see a republic… this republic has at last become an acknowledged nation on the face of the earth…

‘…the African race has peculiarities yet to be unfolded in the light of civilisation and Christianity, if not the same with those of the Anglo-Saxon, may prove to be, morally, of an even higher type.

‘I trust that the development of Africa is to be essentially a Christian one. If not a dominant and commanding race, they are, at least, an affectionate, magnanimous, and forgiving one…

‘I myself, I confess, am feeble for this—full half the blood in my veins is the hot and hasty Saxon…’”

The irony of this whole letter is that it predicts that Africa and its development will be as Christian or more so than American civilization, and have even higher moral standards. What we see in reality is... well, less than their wild predictions.

And finally, as a fan of all things related to fairies, I personally was offended by the author calling one of the villains a "sooty gnome." But I will adopt the forgiving and gentle characteristics of my African superiors and not hold her accountable for this offense.

The Good Earth

2011-02-23T14:53:00.002-06:00

Someone asked me recently if I like reading. I told her that I am not a good reader but if I have time, I do enjoy reading if the book is well written or is about something that interests me. But try and find a book about dragons that is poorly written, I dare you.

A lot of the things Ma has had me read lately I have not enjoyed even though they were well written, because they were about things that nobody enjoys. Things like Russian work camps. Stuff that sends chills up your spine. And so as I picked up The Good Earth, I was cautious and did not expect to enjoy it. But I dove right in anyway.

It didn't take long for me to recognize the story. I had not finished the first chapter before I knew the basic plot. The man gets married, treats his wife like crap, his wife is still loyal, he becomes wealthy and falls in love with a young woman and marries her, the first wife dies, young chick gets the first wife's pearl earrings. You can even ask Lynae if I didn't tell her all those things would happen.

I don't know how long ago it was, but I knew I had seen a movie of this story sometime a very long time ago. I remembered the young man at the beginning of the story was getting married that day, and he was so excited that he was even going to wash his whole body. I think I was eight or possibly younger when I saw it. But I remembered it.

The book is believable, and could very easily be a true story. It is about humans who act and think like humans. Nobody reads it and wishes they had a similar life to any of the characters, but I think everyone sees a little of themselves in it if they are honest.

The first part of the book is enjoyable. The young family is poor and they work very hard, O-lan working in the fields with her husband until she must take a break for a few hours to give birth, and then coming back out to help him for the rest of the day. Wang Lung treats his wife fairly and he trusts her. We also see that he is honest, when even though they haven't eaten meat in months he refuses to eat meat that his son stole.

The high point of the story is brief. Wang Lung acquires a bag of silver and his wife finds a handful of jewels, which allows them to purchase three hundred acres of the finest rice fields and makes them wealthy. But a bad year comes and Wang Lung, having nothing to do but wait, goes into town and spends his time with another woman. Over and over again he tells himself that because he owns so much land and has so much money, it is okay for him to spend time with other women besides his wife, because everyone who has as much land or money as he does so. And then he tells himself that it's okay for him to marry this woman because everyone with as much land or money as he has does so.

That's where the story starts heading to its low point. Wang Lung keeps getting richer and buying things that should make him happy, but they don't help. Anything he buys is like a band aid. He sends his sons to school, but the oldest son skips school and gets into mischief with his cousin, and his youngest son won't be content until he becomes a soldier. His middle son is thrifty and brings him joy, but even he fails his father by the end of the story, ignoring his father's counsel to not sell the land. As he gets older, Wang Lung realizes that everything is backwards. His daughters make him happier than his sons, and of them all the one that brings him the most joy is retarded. The book doesn't really say what the child's problem was, but she is always referred to as the "poor fool" who couldn't speak or understand anything that was happening. The young new wife is constantly demanding things, and by the end of the story he goes out of his way to annoy her.

The story closes with Wang Lung leaving his palace to live in his old earthen hut, and to be near the land where he was born and where he was content with O-lan. "Out of the land we came, and into it we must go," he says, reminding us of Genesis 3:19, "For dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."

It must be February again

2011-02-19T23:06:00.003-06:00

Wow, am I feeling dark. Of all my outlets, there aren't really any where I'm truly free to express myself. At least that's my current perception. Maybe it's better that way.

February in Minnesota is somewhat like transition in childbirth.

Grace's Blouse

2011-02-08T12:02:00.007-06:00

This year, I have been taking a sewing course from one of the ladies in our church for high school. Mom drew up a list of things she wanted me to know how to do by the time the course was over. One of the things Mom wanted me to learn was how to smock. Well, when I first read that, I had no clue what smocking was. Thankfully, my teacher, Mrs. B., knows all about that stuff. That's why Mom wanted her to teach me.
Anyway, Mrs. B. got out some books and found a pattern that included smocking that she thought I might be interested in making. It was for a girls blouse that looked absolutely darling. Right away I could envision Grace skipping around in it on Christmas morning with a big smile on her face because I had made something specially for her. I said sure, and we started cutting out pattern copies and fabric.
Fast forward about a month and a half. Christmas morning. The blouse was finished, wrapped, and waiting under the tree. With my camera on and in hand, I watched as Grace unwrapped it.
Isn't she cute?
Look at those eyes! You think she likes it?! Me too. :)
Here's what the front looks like.

A close-up of the front smocking. Note that I used three different colors; starting with the boldest and ending with the lightest to give the appearance, from far away, that the smocking gradually disappears into the lower front.

The inside of the front smocking. That smocked row at the top helps hold all the pleats in place.

The outside of one of the sleeves. I used the same pattern and colors for the sleeves as with the front.

And the inside of the sleeve. Here I did three rows on the inside because there are no seams to help hold the pleats together. This also gives that smocked area on the sleeve some elasticity.

So what do you think? Does it look daunting to you? Well, stay tuned; I'll be posting about my second smocking project with more pictures and more in-depth descriptions soon. :)

Blessings!
Lynae

Hello again!

2011-01-11T17:32:00.003-06:00

It certainly has been a while since I blogged! I must confess, blogging has been on my mind for quite a long time, I just never got up the courage to admit that I should have done it sooner. Until now.

I should have done this sooner.

Fear not though, nothing very bad has happened to make me remember our audience. Obviously, I have not died, and you will be glad (I would think) to know that none of us has suffered some life-altering bad thing. We are all still breathing and doing a dandy job of it, too.

I have been staying fairly busy lately with school, knitting, sewing, and all the other little things that tend to take up time in life. I will, hopefully, post oodles of pictures of my finished sewing projects at a later date.

School is going very well for me. I do believe this is the first year that I have looked forward to doing math. Hopefully I will continue with these good feelings towards my school for several years to come. :D

As I mentioned earlier, I have taken up knitting. One of the ladies from our church, a Mrs. B., had the patience to teach me how to do it, and I am quite grateful for that. I have started a baby blanket that is coming along quite nicely. So nicely, in fact, that I will most likely have it done by the end of next year, which is sooner than I last speculated.

Well, I must be off to make potato soup, so until next time, I leave you with this.

Blessings!
Lynae

A story I heard from Ball

2010-08-20T22:07:00.002-05:00

Ball is an older man who lives at the resort. He always has a story to tell. Thought this one was worth sharing, I found it quite interesting.

After the tremendously unpopular Vietnam War, the US government moved a large oriental family into Ball's community. The family was given a house and a vehicle, and the man of the house found a job at the plant where Ball worked. Since he couldn't speak English, the man's son also got a job there to translate for him.

Everybody was sure that the oriental family was Vietnamese, but the government kept saying they were from Cambodia or someplace, and that they were never at all involved in Vietnam.

Well, one of the men who worked at the plant had been in Vietnam and one morning when the oriental man walked in, he shouted something in Vietnamese, and immediately the oriental man hid beneath a bench. I am not sure what the man said in Vietnamese, but from that he could tell that this Vietnamese man had fought on the front line.

Ball has been known to stretch the truth a little, but I thought it was an interesting story regardless.

Soap's up

2010-04-15T00:22:00.002-05:00

I just finished listing soaps on Etsy. Go check 'em out! You can find a link on the left side of the blog or on the info tab of my Facebook profile. If you're local, give a holler... I've put some of each aside for my local customers.

Here's what I ended up with:

June Garden
Lilac
Lemon Verbena
Cedar and Spice
Gingivere
All Natural Cooling Mint
Cucumber Melon
Clean and Fresh
Lavender Mist
Woodlands Shaving (vegan)

Enjoy!

Life

2010-03-11T16:34:00.003-06:00

Life is much like a large city, there is always something going on, you always have somewhere to be, and every time you look up to see something, you fall behind. That's about how I feel right now.

I feel like I'm standing on a ball, trying to juggle school, housework, family time, a social life, and me time. Every time I stop to do one thing, I fall behind on the others and there's a domino effect; everything tumbles out of order. I lose control and start slipping off my ball. Every time I finish one task, two more have taken it's place. Every once in a while I jump off my ball and curl up under the covers hoping everything else will magically disappear and my life will be perfect, but then someone tells me to wake up and pull my weight, and I'm at it again.

Sometimes I get really into it and can even get ahead in some areas, but usually I am just working at keeping up, and the thought of being ahead is only like a distant boat that I'm not on. Sometimes the stress can get ahold of me and I start making excuses, blaming one thing on another, but really the only way to make it better is to zip it and keep moving on.

As I fumble with all the different parts of my life, I watch other people doing flips and making jokes, never noticing when they land on their heads of start slipping from laughing so hard. All I can see is how well they are doing and wish that I could be like them.

Right now is one of those times. I feel like everyone around me has their life perfectly under control while I'm struggling to stay balanced. Like everyone is completely oblivious to the fear I have of falling behind, and the embarrassment and pain of having everyone stare as I fall and land on my face.

But now I've exhausted all my time on this area of life and must move on to something else before I take a tumble. Until next time, remember, we all take a fall now and then.
Lynae

Mozilla Thunderbird

2010-03-10T18:14:00.004-06:00

A year ago today I got Mozilla Thunderbird as my email program and even though I didn't like it an awful lot better than my old program, I knew that today, March 11th, 2010, I would have to make a blog post about this.

In the past 365 days I have received:

9141 emails from Facebook or Twitter

168 personal emails related to trapping

484 personal emails not related to trapping

1929 junk emails, spam, or sensitive information that needed to go down the memory tube...

2969 of those emails were for friend requests confirmed or received

... for a total of 11,722 emails received.

Not to mention the 216 sent.

I wouldn't say Mozilla Thunderbird is any better than any other email program, especially since I can't change the language. Oh well.

It's soapmaking time again!

2010-03-03T12:58:00.004-06:00

During the month of March, I plan to make soaps in the following scents:

Clover & Aloe
Lilac
Lemon Verbena
June Garden
Gingivere
Cooling Mint
Cucumber Melon
Clean & Fresh
Lavender Mist
Woodlands Shaving Soap

I also plan to make a gardener's soap and try a blend of oils that is supposed to work as an insect repellant. I might even make another batch of Cedar and Spice, since that's a favorite.

I will probably offer most or all of the scents for sale in my Etsy shop and locally. Because I'm making so many different types, most batches will be relatively small. Since the cure time is a few weeks, I wanted to get the word out now. If you think you might be interested in buying more than a bar or two of any of the scents listed above, let me know soon so I can adjust the batch size if necessary. If you try it and decide you want more later, I can still go back and make more... just remember it takes a few weeks to cure.

Thanks for helping me support my hobby!

Homekeeper's Journal ~ 2/16

2010-02-16T12:23:00.002-06:00

Here’s What’s Happening...

In My Kitchen: Three of the children are cleaning up after a pancake feast. Three carrot cakes are still waiting to be frosted or frozen (maybe both). Later we'll be making meatloaf, potatoes, and asparagus. Yum!

With The Children: The older two are juggling school and additional work responsibilities. Toby is toying with the option of getting his license, and has discovered texting. Jon is looking at the onset of puberty. Mike is outgrowing his clothes. Grace is improving her reading skills... will be in this stage for a while, but it's always exciting!

What I’m Reading: Giants in the Earth, by O.E. Rolvaag. I plan to follow it with the sequel, Peder Victorious.

What I Have Been Learning: Lots of random tidbits! Uh-huh... and my mind is making new connections, too. I just can't put my finger on any of them to share with you.

What I’ve Been Noticing: I tend to think a lot, but not very well.

On The Back Burner of My Mind: Finances. I have a priority list a mile long, and need to make sure it's in order and that I stay on track as our situation changes.

In The Deepest Darkest Recesses: I'm very uncomfortable with several aspects of my life right now, and praying for direction, courage, and strength to press on.

Valentine's Day

2010-02-05T20:38:00.002-06:00

Valentine's Day has never really concerned me. After all, it's all about giving chocolate and red and pink heart-shaped cards to your sweetheart, and since I have never had a sweetheart, it just never really mattered to me. Well, a couple of weeks ago that changed.

Now, before you start thinking that I've gotten a boyfriend and gone all weird and romantic on you, let me explain myself. I love History. I love History so much, that when my Mom asked me to teach my younger siblings World History, I jumped at the chance. Since then, I've been teaching my siblings, and have been learning just as much as they have.

We recently learned about how the Valentine's Day tradition began, and I was surprised when I read it. To explain all this, I'll take you back to ancient Rome around the year 269 A.D. in February. During this time period, Christians were being persecuted for their faith by the Romans, and there was a Christian priest named Valentine who was about to die for his faith. Valentine died on February 14th, the day we know as Valentine's Day.

So what do chocolate and heart-shaped cards have to do with this? Well, the Romans had a holiday known as Lupercalia that they celebrated on February 15th. On this great feast day, young men and women would pair up and spend time together and even exchange gifts. Some of these couples would even marry one another as a result of this courtship.

So what about Cupid? Did he come from this? And how did a martyr and a Roman holiday get put together? Well, Cupid was supposedly the Roman god of love, and if you got shot with one of his arrows, you would fall in love! In 495 A.D. Pope Gelasius decided to replace Lupercalia (February 15th)with the remembering of Saint Valentine (February 14th).

Although it has held the name of the martyr Valentine, we've made Valentine's Day more like Lupercalia. So this Valentine's Day while you're buying chocolates for your honey, or better yet, eating chocolate from your honey, spend a minute and think about Valentine, the priest who died for his Christian faith.

Lynae

Of Mice and Men

2010-02-04T20:54:00.002-06:00

I was recently assigned the book Of Mice and Men to read. I had seen the movie when I was a little younger, so I knew the story line, but reading it really made clear the troubles of the Depression.

Of Mice and Men is about two men looking for work together. George is a smart but rather cynical man, and Lennie is a tall, hardworking man with limited mental abilities. Knowing that the Depression was a hard time to get work, I was surprised when I realized how dedicated George was to Lennie. Not only was Lennie someone that George had to supervise all the time, but he was also a threat to every job George could find.

I was even more surprised when I found that the two weren't even related! So here's a man who could be fending for himself that chooses to look after someone who is even less fortunate than he is! That got me thinking about how self centered our culture has become. We've gone from looking after one another to thinking of ourselves first. Nowadays if people were put in that kind of position, many would choose to leave Lennie behind and worry about themselves. After all, they'd reason, they had it hard enough already. Why go and take on an unnecessary burden?

What about you? Would you be willing to take care of someone you aren't even related to? Even if they cost you your job? Why or why not? Just something to think about.

Lynae

Random things that make me happy

2010-01-30T16:19:00.003-06:00

snuggling with my kids
cardinals
lilacs
the smell of spring
the smell of fall
the smell of rain
the smell of snow
silence
watching my kids figure something out
getting all the bills paid
the smell of hot sand and pine trees
being home alone
the idea of grandchildren
back rubs
a successful vegetable garden
fresh-picked, sun-warmed plums
setting off on a road trip
a breeze on a hot day
pileated woodpeckers
nap time

Sharing my work

2010-01-22T19:27:00.003-06:00

Whether we got complaints on my last post or it just didn't quite make the cut, I have been mercifully assigned the opportunity to redo this task. I will show my real work this time, instead of just my quotes.

Before I share it with you, I must tell you a little. See, I don't actually write in my journal in the Roman alphabet like typical humanoid beings in America. I use an ancient writing system, and this paragraph successfully explains why while telling a story and capturing the thought process of young Americans these days, in case you hadn't already heard the bad news. Anyway, this alphabet does not have all the same sounds as our beloved Roman alphabet, so I have corrected any misspellings for your sake.

"Why do I use runes within these pages? People stopped using runes a thousand years ago. And why do I still use them? To restore tradition? No, English speaking people are too far gone for that. To hide what I say? No, most of this nonsense I would not be afraid to show the world. What is there to hide? Do I write in another two alphabets to impress people? Miserable folly: it is hardly an accomplishment, and what of it is impressive impresses nobody. Do I do it because it is easy? It is easy now to say such, but there was a time when that was not so. I think that that is my real reason now. When I started I was a silly preteen whose world revolved around being a spy in the war between the sexes, a stupid... conflict twixt misinformed or superstitious children, which relies heavily on the belief in the presence of cooties (an indescribable but undesirable parasite in twentieth century mythology) in the opposing party and its sympathizers. I think my idea was to make my messages more resistant to interception, but I soon realized the whole war was pointless. If the girls had cooties, they were not going to lose them no matter how much information I intercepted. But as I discovered the facts, I kept using Anglo-Saxon runic for secrets. But now I think runic characters are more efficient, and that is why I still use them. It takes fewer characters to write the same word in these runes, except for a few rare situations."

There you have it. Unfortunately, that was about the most profound thing I have written in my journal so far. Let's just say it was slightly embarrassing to put that on the internet.

Sharing my work, er, quotes

2010-01-14T16:23:00.002-06:00

I wonder if you would really be interested in reading most of my work. I'm guessing not. I wouldn't be. So I have decided to share with you the product of the bridge between work and play, and that is some of my favorite quotes from books I've read for pleasure. Because half of them are for humor and the other half are for business, and this is supposed to be about work, we will try and stick with the business ones, but you might laugh at some of them anyway. Just don't tell.

"But then there are the other kind, those... who never do good, because they don't know how to and won't listen to any advice... Naughtiness can grow and grow, like a marshweed, until it turns to badness, then if it continues there is only one word for it: evil!" Bella in "Outcast of Redwall"

"You read me like a book. I do have a secret, but trust me, all will be made known to you in the fullness of time." Methuselah in "Redwall"

"Don't be ashamed to weep; 'tis right to grieve. Tears are only water, and flowers, trees, and fruit cannot grow without water. But there must be sunlight also. A wounded heart will heal in time, and when it does, the memory and love of our lost ones is sealed inside to comfort us." Cregga in "Taggerung"

Here I'll cheat a little bit. See, I enjoyed "As You Like It" so much that even though it was for school, I would read it again for pleasure, so I don't mind putting some of its quotes here.

"In respect that it is solitary, I like it very well; but in respect that it is private, it is a very vile life. Now, in respect it is in the fields, it pleaseth me well; but in respect it is not in the court, it is tedious." Touchstone in "As You Like It"

" 'So so' is good, very good, very excellent good, and yet it is not; it is but so so." Touchstone in "As You Like It"

"Then learn this of me: to have, is to have; for it is a figure in rhetoric that drink, being poured out of a cup into a glass, by filling the one doth empty the other; for all your writers do consent that ipse is he: now, you are not ipse, for I am he." Touchstone in "As You Like It"

"Therefore, you clown, abandon,-- which is in the vulgar leave,-- the society,-- which in the boorish is company,-- of this female,-- which in the common is woman; which together is, abandon the society of this female, or, clown, thou perishest; or, to thy better understanding, diest; or, to wit, I kill thee, make thee away, translate thy life into death, thy liberty into bondage: I will deal in poison with thee, or in bastidano, or in steel; I will bandy with thee in faction; I will o'errun thee with policy; I will kill thee a hundred and fifty ways: therefore tremble, and depart." Touchstone in "As You Like It"

"I did dislike the cut of a certain courtier's beard: he sent me word, if I said his beard was not cut well, he was in the mind that it was: this is called the Retort Courteous. If I sent him word again, 'it was not well cut,' he would send me word he would cut it to please himself. If again, 'it was not well cut,' he disabled my judgement: this is called the Reply Churlish. If again, 'it was not well cut,' he would answer, I spake not true: this is called the Reproof Valient. If again, 'it was not well cut,' he would say, I lied: this is called the Countercheck Quarrelsome: and so to the Lie Circumstantial and the Lie Direct." Touchstone in "As You Like It"

"I will name you the degrees. The first, the Retort Courteous; the second, the Quip Modest; the third, the Reply Churlish; the fourth, the Reproof Valient; the fifth, the Countercheck Quarrelsome; the sixth, the Lie with Circumstance; the seventh, the Lie Direct. All of these you may avoid but the Lie Direct; and you may avoid that too, with an If. I knew when seven justices could not take up a quarrel, but when the parties were met themselves, one of them thought but of an If, as in, 'If you said so, then I said so;' and they shook hands and swore brothers. Your If is the only peace-maker; much virtue in If." Touchstone in "As You Like It"

Now on to the LOTR quotes. LOTR geeks, unite and rejoice. Innocent civilians may leave at any time.

"Tell me what you want done, and I will try it, if I have to walk from here to the East of East and fight the wild Were-worms in the Last Desert." Bilbo in "The Hobbit"

"Now it is a strange thing, but things that are good to have and days that are good to spend are soon told about, and not much to listen to; while things that are uncomfortable, palpitating, and even gruesome, may make a good tale, and take a deal of telling anyway." J.R.R. Tolkien in "The Hobbit"

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve." Bilbo in "The Fellowship of the Ring"

"Why, I feel all thin, sort of stretched, if you know what I mean: like butter that has been scraped over too much bread. That can't be right." Bilbo in "The Fellowship of the Ring"

"The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater." Haldir in "The Fellowship of the Ring"

"Yet you speak the truth, that is plain: the Men of the Mark do not lie, and therefore they are not easily deceived." Eomer in "The Two Towers"

"But there, my friends, songs like trees bear fruit only in their own time and their own way: and sometimes they are withered untimely." Treebeard in "The Two Towers"

"For I was talking aloud to myself. A habit of the old: they choose the wisest person present to speak to; the long explanations needed by the young are wearying." Gandalf in "The Two Towers"

"We boast seldom, and then perform, or die in the attempt." Faramir in "The Two Towers"

"But nay: the praise of the praiseworthy is above all rewards. Yet there was naught in this to praise. I had no lure or desire to do other than I have done." Faramir in "The Two Towers"

"...adventures, as I used to call them. I used to think that they were things the wonderful folk of the stories went out and looked for, because they wanted them, because they were exciting and life was a bit dull, a kind of a sport, as you might say. But that's not the way of it with the tales that really mattered, or the ones that stay in the mind. Folk seem to have been just landed in them, usually -- their paths were led that way, as you put it. But I expect they had lots of chances, like us, of turning back, only they didn't. And if they had, we shouldn't know, because they'd have been forgotten. We hear about those as just went on -- and not all to a good end, mind you; at least not to what folk inside a story and not outside it call a good end." Sam Gamgee in "The Two Towers"

That concludes this blog post. I just finished The Two Towers and plan to read The Return of the King soon, so stay tuned!

Comfort

2010-01-07T20:09:00.002-06:00

Comfort could be defined in several different ways. It could be snuggling up on the couch with someone you love and watching a sappy movie. It could be eating that bowl of oh-so-good potato soup. Or it could be sitting in front of the fire watching the flames and getting that really sleepy feeling. Whatever it is, we often think of it as stopping and taking time to enjoy something.

For me, comfort is found in the country(as well as, I admit, in all the things mentioned above). Having lived in the country almost my entire life, I really love the peaceful atmosphere here. Sure, I have work to do, but I can always slip outside and watch the grass dancing in the wind or take a bike ride down a dirt road, or lie down in the snow and look at the stars. Here I am surrounded by God's magnificent creation, and I can truly enjoy it.

On the flip side of that coin, whenever I'm in a city everyone has something to be doing or somewhere they need to be going, and for a while it's fun to be going everywhere and doing whatever is cool, but after a while I feel trapped in a rat race and I long for the comforts of the country lifestyle.

Surely there are comforts of living in a city, but I would prefer watching the deer walk through the orchard over being able to walk to the grocery store or the movie theater.

Comfort

2010-01-07T10:15:00.002-06:00

Comfort is a great thing. You know, I actually sometimes cry? (Orange alert, write this down, Toby is a normal mortal person.) It's true. And when I am busy crying, I generally don't want to be bothered. When I'm sad, I'm cranky. It comes with having a great attitude the rest of the time (if I may say so). Comfort is when I fall asleep in the middle of it and waking up to find that the house isn't cold.

Every once in a while I have this itch to read a great book. There are some really great books out there, but you have to actually dig to find them sometimes, which can mean hours spent looking before you find it. Comfort is finding the book and reading it with a cup of cocoa and a bowl of raisins.

Sometimes you don't have to dig to find the great books. Sometimes they come to you. That's when the real comfort starts kicking in, when you can curl up with a great book without having had to look for it for hours.

Comfort is walking around town barefoot looking for agates by the train tracks or in the park.

Southern comfort is the same principle, but it comes with strings attached. You don't get southern comfort in MN. You probably actually can't get it even in Illinois. You really have to be further south to appreciate the southern comfort.

Winter in the south

2010-01-06T21:55:00.001-06:00

Lindsay absolutely nails it! And it only took me about 5 seconds to realize I used to watch her husband on TV when we lived in Kentucky.

Homekeeper's Journal ~ 1/6

2010-01-06T20:51:00.002-06:00

What’s happening in my home?

In the kitchen… We're using up the produce from the $15 food share we bought last weekend. It's all about peppers, potatoes, salad, bananas and citrus.

With our marriage… We're getting used to a new schedule. Loren is going to bed just after an early dinner, getting up around the time I go to bed, working an early shift at his new job, then sticking around for a second shift as a driver's helper. I kind of love having quiet evenings and the bed to myself!

With the children… We're still on a roll with school. I'm back in planning mode, though. Toby wants to finish early to go start a summer job in mid-May. It's also a good time to revisit my plans for the younger three. Each of them is progressing at a different pace, but I do like to teach them together when I can. I'm trying really hard not to be overwhelmed by Jon's challenges.

Around the homestead… The rabbits and chickens are surviving the cold, and we're still collecting a few eggs each day. I put together a chart in Microsoft OneNote to keep track of yearly notes on each of our apple trees. I currently have 31 trees charted.

In my “Inner Man” (2 Cor. 4:16)…

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Refrain
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Refrain

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

What's happening in your home this week? Visit Sylvia at the Christian HomeKeeper Network to participate in the Homekeeper's Journal each Wednesday.

2009 Book List

2010-01-01T14:28:00.001-06:00

These are the books I read or started reading in 2009:

Brave New World
Amusing Ourselves to Death
Rules for Radicals
A Walk in the Woods
Cold Comfort Farm
Atlas Shrugged
Trying Differently Rather Than Harder
Damaged Angels
1984
Rich Harvest: A Life in the Garden
Diabetes for Dummies
The Enduring Hills
The Glass Castle
Eats, Shoots & Leaves
A Sane Woman's Guide to Raising a Large Family
The Kitchen Boy
Russia: A History to 1917
The Gulag Archipelago
The Encyclopedia of Country Living
Moby Dick
The Elephant in the Playroom

Homekeeper's Journal ~ 12/23

2009-12-23T13:58:00.002-06:00

What’s happening in my home?

In the kitchen… Today we're baking butternut squash, making mashed potatoes, and decorating sugar cookies. Bread and cranberry sauce are already prepared.

With our marriage… It's all about money this week. Job is ending, unemployment is pending, and hubby keeps spending! But God's provision is unending.

With the children… We're studying history (birth of Christ), cultures (various Christmas traditions), science (weather, cooking, and how babies develop [thanks, Lizzie, and congratulations!]), math (We received 5 photo cards. What is the probability that each would be from a family with three or more children of only one gender per family? Oh, and you ate HOW many cookies??), music (hymns and carols of all sorts), and of course reading various Christmas books we've collected. We're also trying to keep things low-key for the sake of the young man who tends to lose perspective when things get too exciting at certain times of the year.

Around the homestead… We're locating all the snow shovels in preparation for a Big Snow. I'm also hoping that certain people will take care of a certain issue about which I've instructed and pleaded and refuse to nag... at least for now.

In my “Inner Man” (2 Cor. 4:16)… I am overwhelmed by the generosity of the friends and neighbors who have our backs during this challenging time. I pray God will show me how and when I can pay it forward.

What's happening in your home this week? Visit Sylvia at the Christian HomeKeeper Network to participate in the Homekeeper's Journal each Wednesday.

Waiting

2009-12-23T09:08:00.003-06:00

I had been waiting to shoot the pistol for almost a month. I finally got to shoot it yesterday with Lynae... we had a ball. We set up a target out back and each fired ten shots at it... let's just say the target wasn't full of holes when we were done. For those of you who don't know, I bought a 22 handgun about six weeks ago, but because of the laws in MN, we had to get a special permit before we could pick it up. After we got it, things were pretty busy and I didn't have much time.

I have been waiting to get my driver's (apostrophe? EDITOR?) license for about six months. I could have gotten it long ago, and I've been driving for a year and a half now. I'm still waiting, because I can't pay for car insurance. One more summer of hard work ought to cure that though. But until that summer comes along, I'm waiting.

I will wait until January 2nd to start bragging to 2poor about my weasel. See, every year there is a Largest Weasel Contest on Trapperman.com, and the amount of prizes involved... it's through the roof I'm telling you. Last year I was in the Kids' Division, and I won 1st place. This year I'm in the Adults' Division, and my biggest weasel is a full 2 inches longer than the one I had last year, so I'm beginning to think maybe 2poor was right... I do have a shot at 3rd place (behind the Jack Pine Savage, a phantom and weasel whisperer, and 2poor himself).

I know how much my readers like folklore, so here is your dose for a little while. It occured to me some time ago that in much of Europe there are tales of elves and fairies who played tricks on people and sometimes did good things too. I looked at African folklore and found the same was true there, although in possibly less abundance. I looked at "Native American" legend and found the same was true here. But what got on my nerves is that in the local newspaper, people are still today talking about the same kind of creature... only it has a different name: a nisse. Now something you must understand about this community; the town I live in was settled by a certain group of people from Poland, the town south of us a few miles was settled by Danes, and the town south of that was settled by Finns. Each town has a name in a different language. But the Danish town is still very, very Danish. The street signs are all in Danish, with the English name in parentheses. The Welcome signs are in Danish. And this town is responsible for the newspaper.

In this newspaper, I saw that there was much ado about a nisse sighting in town. Apparently there was a cash reward for anyone who caught or found the nisse. There was a suggestion in this last paper, that to deter any nisses while you were celebrating Christmas, you should carry an Æbleskiver pan around with you.

This information in a reputable paper got me worried. Go ahead, try and translate "nisse" from Danish into English. I tried it using several different translators and while I only got "certain" sometimes, most of the time I got "goblin." Now while this suggests something exciting in the language, I will not go there. The point is, this nisse is out and about. Look out.

All this to say, I am going to wait to drive to the Danish town to shoot a nisse with my pistol under the pretense of checking my weasel traps.

Don't worry folks. This is a joke. I have learned that most of the time, your local nisse will help you out unless you offend him. So I will not shoot an innocent, sweet little nisse.

Homekeeper's Journal ~ 12/16

2009-12-16T08:19:00.000-06:00

What’s happening in my home?

In the kitchen… It's beginning to smell a lot like Christmas! Cookie baking has begun with the annual batch of Russian teacakes... when baking, seems like SO many and when eating, not nearly enough.

With our marriage… We will be celebrating -- or at least acknowledging -- our 17th wedding anniversary this week.

With the children… School is still in session. Also, lots of letters are being written, plays enacted, and snow forts begun.

Around the homestead… Parts of the house are looking clean and decluttered for the season. The guys purchased and installed a new heating element for the hot water heater, which I hope is the last repair we need to do on it for a long time. We're back to wondering if we can get the chickens to go outside, or if it would be better to not even open their little door during the day and let in the cold breezes. (Input and experiences welcome.)

In my “Inner Man” (2 Cor. 4:16)… As I talk to my children about being prideful and ignorant, I am reminded of my own tendencies and pitfalls. I am also reminded of my own role in teaching these children, and see that while we're ALL sinners in our own right, there may be ways I need to do better at teaching these children to overcome their own obstacles. My toes hurt!

What's happening in your home this week? Visit Sylvia at the Christian HomeKeeper Network to participate in the Homekeeper's Journal each Wednesday.

Hardship

2009-12-14T12:27:00.002-06:00

We have had a pretty rough year. With Dad in and out of work since July, we've been cutting down on our wants so we can focus on our needs, but when there are seven people to take care of, it can be tough to cover all of the needs.

It's incredible to me how God can bless us though. In August, Dad was able to see his family and some friends in Maine, and I was able to attend a friend's wedding in Oregon. How? My Dad's Aunt paid for my Dad's trip, and when she heard that I had paid for my trip entirely out of my own pocket, she gave me a check that more than covered the cost of my trip! When I found out, I was astounded. God was using her to bless us, and she was happy to do it for us.

Another way he has blessed us is through our church family. Recently, I was looking in the freezer and thinking about how bare it was. We had no frozen dinners, and absolutely no ground beef. "Well," I thought, "God will provide for our needs.". Well, guess what a family from church gave us? 17 pounds of homegrown ground beef! Why? They said that they had more than they could use, and weren't sure if their freezer was going to keep working until they could use it all. Shortly after that, we got about two boxes of peppers from our churches' food distribution program. So guess what we were able to make in abundance? Stuffed peppers! By this time, our freezers were almost all full. To top all that off, last night, another family from church offered us some more homegrown ground beef! As I was lying in bed last night, I thought, "where are we going to put all that ground beef? We'll be overflowing with blessings!".

God has certainly blessed us through our hardships, and my faith in Him has really grown. So next time you are in need, just put your trust in God, and He will bless you.
Lynae

Hardship

2009-12-10T10:59:00.004-06:00

I didn't want to write about hardship, because all the hardships I've been through sucked. But I suppose that's kinda the point, and because it's been assigned I guess I can't really skip it.

Scanning hardship files...

Hardship: a condition that is difficult to endure; suffering; deprivation; oppression

God is good. In fact, he's really awesome. He actually broke a sea into two parts so people could walk through it without getting wet, and then he put it back together, drowning the bad guys. I don't know about you guys, but I would have trouble doing that. Even Eragon wouldn't be able to do that very well, and he's a fictional character. God is so awesome, he can't be copied. But that's beside the point, this blog post is supposed to be about hardship, not a fictional character.

But maybe it's not beside the point at all. Maybe God's greatness has everything to do with hardship. I'll let you figure that one out on your own, but I'll warn you, if you figure anything out, it's only by the grace of God.

Let me help you out. The Hebrews were stuck in Egypt for 400 years. I don't care who you are, 400 years is a long time to be stuck someplace, even if you're not a slave. And I'll remind you, this was after the flood, and after the flood God shortened the lifespan of humans to a limit of 120 years. There are scientific arguments for how this could have happened, related to scientific arguments about how the flood could have covered the whole earth, how earth could have never had seasons before the flood, and how earth survived for 1500 years before rain was even imagined. But once again, I'm getting sidetracked. I'm a pro at that. I feel like the gal in the Progressive commercials. ANYWAY...

So the Hebrews were stuck in Egypt. This was tough for them. Think of the founding fathers. They rebelled against England simply because they weren't being represented well enough and were being treated unfairly. The slaves in Egypt had it even worse. They had no representation at all, and they were also being treated unfairly. But skip ahead a few pages, or chapters, if you will. See that God led them out of Egypt, and even though they were not very appreciative, he led them to the promised land. And he did this through a fellow who had once been more Egyptian than Hebrew, and had married a woman who worshiped false gods. (She was converted, I'm sure.)

And if that's not cool enough, God did the same kind of thing 3800 years later, and now slavery is considered the signature of a savage nation. Now we have people saying we can't even use animals like slaves. I think they took it too far there, I mean, the same God who freed the slaves also gave men the right to use the animals wisely, but I think you get my point.

Hardship really does suck, but it looks like it's a lot easier to handle when God is on your side. I mean, if God be for us, who can be against us? Who would really want to be?

I didn't cite any references here, but if you'd like to learn more, check my information, find inconsistencies in my text, or whatever, I would recommend you purchase a Bible and read it... the story about the Hebrews is in the end of Genesis, beginning of Exodus.

Homekeeper's Journal ~ 12/9

2009-12-09T09:30:00.003-06:00

What’s happening in my home?

In the kitchen… we'll be making dozens of stuffed peppers and freezing them today. For supper, we'll have baked tilapia with pineapple mango salsa.

With our marriage… I hope to surprise Loren later today with a new pair of his favorite work boots. He'll be out delivering packages in the snow the rest of this month, and these will help keep him safe.

With the children… we're digging into the school work this week. There's no telling how long we'll go before we start Christmas break, but for now, school is definitely in session in spite of the snow.

Around the homestead… it's cold and snowy out there! We're getting back into the routine of tending the fire to keep the house cozy. It's so much easier to stoke a fire than to start a fire

In my “Inner Man” (2 Cor. 4:16)… honestly, my inner man is a little hungry this week. Despite my gratitude for God's provision, my focus has been inappropriate these last few days. It's having such a negative effect on me, I really must change it ASAP.

What's happening in your home this week? Visit Sylvia at the Christian HomeKeeper Network to participate in the Homekeeper's Journal each Wednesday.

Lunch

2009-12-08T14:55:00.002-06:00

Sauteed:

onion
bell pepper
garlic
cauliflower

Added:

curry powder
garam masala
turmeric
cumin
salt
cayenne
diced tomato

Simmered while cooking:

lentils
basmati rice

Added lentils to curry mix, served over basmati rice, topped with plain yogurt, with warmed tortillas on the side.

The verdict:

"This is great."
"Especially with the tortillas. I give it a 10."
"Mmmm! Great!"
"It's a very strange dish, but it's good."
"It's not really my thing."

Homekeeper's Journal ~ 12/2

2009-12-02T14:19:00.004-06:00

What’s happening in my home?

In the kitchen… we are rising to the challenge of seeing how little we can spend on groceries this week. We've got plenty of food, so it's just a matter of using what we've got. We were recently blessed with a fellow church member's "extra" beef. I'm about to break out the soap making tools again.

With our marriage… I'm very thankful for a hard-working husband. He just finished working for a very challenging employer, and I'm praying God will continue to refine Loren while showing Himself faithful as Jehovah Jireh, our provider.

With the children… the younger set is looking forward to Christmas shopping, crafts, and tasty holiday treats. But for now, they'll have to be content playing outside (supervised!) while Mom works. Toby is busy with trapping and taxidermy, and Lynae is making jewelry and working as my right-hand chica as I send out soap orders.

Around the homestead… the basementhas been refilled with firewood. We still need to gather and store hoses before they are covered in snow. We have one or two hens laying, but most of them are taking a break despite the fancy light set up I provided for them. Christmas cards are sent, and delightful smelling packages are being mailed each day.

In my “Inner Man” (2 Cor. 4:16)… I have rediscovered Stormie Omartian's The Power of a Praying Wife and am working each day to live Proverbs 3:5-6:

⁵Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. ⁶In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

What's happening in your home this week? Visit Sylvia at the Christian HomeKeeper Network to participate in the Homekeeper's Journal each Wednesday.

Cookies

2009-12-01T17:58:00.005-06:00

The other day while I was on the computer, Mom gave me a link to a peanut butter cookie recipe and asked me to make a batch. I looked at the recipe, and thought it was a total rip-off. I mean, it only called for 3 ingredients! Well, I started getting supplies out and thought, "If this is as easy as it sounds, I could blog about it!" so I rushed upstairs and got my trusty camera.

I then preheated the oven to 350* and mixed up the 3 magic ingredients. I also added chocolate chips (they aren't in the recipe, but I didn't care). Soon I was staring at this lovely mixture:

I started rolling out some of this lovely dough and soon had a cookie sheet filled. I then made some smaller cookies because varied cookie size works well for us.

I baked them for 10 long minutes, and put them on a cooling rack.

Well, after eating a cookie, I realized this was no rip-off recipe. It was perfect. Quick, easy, and so delightful, I think we'll start making these on a weekly basis!

Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 and mix all ingredients. Feel free to add nuts, chocolate chips, or anything small and yummy. Roll into balls and place on cookie sheet. Press with a fork to make that cool design. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Take out and cool. Or eat them right away. It doesn't matter, but make sure they get eaten at some point.

My Great Adventure

2009-11-24T11:59:00.006-06:00

Mom and I recently made a trip down to the Mall of America, but this was no ordinary shopping trip. We were going to Ree Drummond's book signing. For those of you who don't already know, she is a blogging mother of four and she just published her cookbook, which we were eager to get, so we seized the opportunity with great pleasure.

Because the Mall of America is about two hours away, we had to leave fairly early to get down there. During the drive, we talked about how awesome it was going to be and how cool it was that we could actually go. Well, we got down to the Twin Cities and soon realized we didn't remember exactly which route to take, so we got ourselves kind of lost, but then Mom remembered the right way and we got unlost. Thank God for moms that remember the way!

We got to the mall right as the signing started. With my hands shaking, I bought the book and got in line with Mom. And then we stood. And stood. And stood. And after a while, Mom just couldn't stand it any longer, so she went and sat and watched me inch along with my precious cookbook and a big grin on my face.

You know, when you stand in a line full of ladies for as long as I did, after a while you become acquainted with the ladies around you. Well, the group of ladies in front of me were busy chit-chatting, so I turned around and started talking to the two ladies behind me. They were very nice women, and thought it was great that I was interested in cooking considering my tender age.

While we were talking, I noticed that they were dressed in a manner which I had never seen in real life. These two women were covered from head to toe with the exception of their faces. I had seen women dressed like this in pictures, and knew it was a religious thing, but couldn't remember the religion. Well, after standing in line for about three hours, I finally said, "Do you dress that way for religious purposes?" to which they said, "Yes we are both Muslim converts". "Oh okay." I said, and then thought, wait, some Muslims hate Christians enough to kill them, and I'm Christian! After that we kept chit-chatting, but I was a bit more reserved.

Well, after 5 long hours of waiting, it was finally my turn. The nervousness had worn off into tiredness, hunger, and excitement, but as I got up onto the stage I started shaking all over again. I was about to talk to my favorite author!! I handed the picture-taking lady my camera and sat down next to Ree. Wow! She's beautiful! I thought. Our conversation was as follows:

Ree: Hey sweetie, how are you?
Me: I'm good, and you?
Ree: I'm great! Is this book for anyone in particular?
Me: Just me
Ree: Okay, and what's your name?
Me: Lynae, that's L-y-n-a-e.
Ree: Oh that's a beautiful name!
Me: Ah, well, I owe that to my parents.
Ree: Well they did it all didn't they?

Meanwhile she had written: To Lynae
Enjoy!
Ree/PW

We had our picture taken, and that was that. I got off the stage all trembling and happy. There was Mom waiting for me, and all of a sudden I felt so bad for her having come all that way and not even getting to share the experience, but she said she had been able to watch me which was just as good. We picked up one of the free T-shirts that were being handed out for all the Pioneer Woman fans, grabbed some dinner, and came home.

On the way I kept looking at the picture of me and Ree, and thought, some people would say it's ridiculous to stand in line for five hours just to get a book signed. Really it is, but the memory that I have now is priceless.

Thanks, Ree, for coming to Minnesota!

Remembering: Thoughts and quotes

2009-11-10T17:29:00.003-06:00

Over the past month or so I've been reading a book Mom had me read, called Remembering. It's about a farmer who hates the new style of farming, with big machines and stuff, and has fond memories from growing up on a family farm that had been passed down for several generations. I thought that while the story was a bit rough around the edges, and had been written with the attitude that that was okay, it was inspiring, like it touched a part of me deep down inside that had never been touched, or if it had, I didn't mind feeling it again.

I wrote down some of my favorite quotes from the book. Here are the ones related to farming:

"This is economics we're talking about. And the basic law of economics is: Adapt or die. Get big or get out."

Yep, that's it. All the rest fall into the Miscellaneous category. I wrote them down because I either felt that I would use them again someday, or otherwise found them interesting.

"Even if she does not feel cheerful, she will be cheerful. She will be looking for reasons to be cheerful..."

"The city at night... is like the forest at night, when most creatures have no need to stay awake, but some do, and that is well, for the place itself must never sleep. Some must carry wakefulness through the sleep of others."

"He knows that he is looking at her across an abyss, that if all the world should burn, they would burn divided in its flames. She is wearing the veil of American success, lost in the public haze that has covered the land from sea to sea."

"Have mercy upon me, O God, after thy great goodness; according to the multitude of thy mercies do away mine offences... Thou shalt make me hear of joy and gladness, that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice... 'Are you all right?' It is the young woman in the seat next to him, who to his astonishment is patting his arm. 'Yes. I've been all right before, and I'm all right now."

"Spare us, O Lord, the logical consequence of our ingratitude. Remember not, Lord, our offences, nor the offences of our forefathers."

These last couple are related to flying in airplanes, and I got a kick out of them, but I see where the guy's coming from.

"... and they are sealed within the possibility of flight, committed to the air. We commit these bodies to the air, O Lord, and to Thy keeping."

"Spare us, O Lord, the logical consequences of our folly."

Request:

2009-11-05T01:52:00.000-06:00

Flu + asthma = please pray!

About that hairstyle

2009-11-01T23:02:00.002-06:00

In Lynae's "Facebook" post, she mentioned seeing someone with the same hairstyle as hers. I must elaborate.

During a recent shopping trip, I took the kids to lunch. In the restaurant, I saw a woman I'd guess to be about 70 years old. There was something very familiar about her, but I couldn't place it. I knew I'd never seen her before. And it wasn't her beautiful brown eyes... no, it was her hair I recognized. It was thin, fine, light blonde, cut in short layers. She appeared to have a most stubborn cowlick on the right side of her forehead, visible through the bangs meant to cover it up. It was exactly like Lynae's hair!

I told Lynae she should ask the woman what was the best hairstyle she ever had, figuring she's been around long enough to have tried several. And my darling daughter actually did it! She went up to a perfect stranger, told her she'd noticed they had matching hair, and asked what her favorite hairstyle was. Well, the poor woman didn't have a favorite hairstyle. She bemoaned the fact that her hair had always given her trouble, and boy, could Lynae relate. She said her best solution was to wear hats.

That day, Lynae happened to be wearing a hat. So there ya go!

Not one to give up on my darling daughter's challenging hair, and ever willing to cut it shorter, I gave her a pixie cut this weekend. SO cute!

Facebook

2009-10-26T18:16:00.002-05:00

Facebook has been giving me grief for the past several days. At first I thought it was just because they were doing another makeover, but after the first two days I knew there was more to it than that. I have tried logging on countless times, but it refuses to cooperate for more than 5 minutes at a time. To add insult to injury, Mom, Dad, and Toby are all able to get on Facebook, so I'm all by myself in this one.

So during the time that it has not let me on, I have come up with some great status updates that are now no longer relevant including the one about the person that thought I was 20, seeing someone with the same hairstyle as mine, my experience as my Dad's secretary, our terrific ad-lib play, having it snow in October, and my several trips to Duluth. Oh! And my awesome shopping trip to Kohl's. I have also completed a 1000 piece puzzle by myself, looked at all the blogs I enjoy at least twice each, listened to at least 100 Glenn Miller/Michael Buble songs, and almost called my best friend.

Hopefully, Facebook will let me on soon, and if not, hopefully I will be patient in waiting on it. Oh how I wish I had a laptop!!!
Lynae

Sisters

2009-10-10T14:56:00.004-05:00

As many of my readers are already aware, I have two (2) sisters. But only 50% of my sisters are biological siblings so the other half is always flattered to hear that they look just like me. (Haha)

All two of my sisters are younger than me, which is cool because I read that a little sister is one's biggest fan, and it's fun to see some friendly competition over who is a bigger fan of Toby, especially for me. They are both encouraging and good sports. I have made a slide show of Lynae and me for your enjoyment.

Thanks for watching!

Snow

2009-10-10T10:22:00.002-05:00

We have snow. It's not often we see it falling on green leaves. It does look pretty piled on the apples still hanging on the trees.

Most years, I love being out in the autumn weather, enjoying the crisp air and beautiful colors and heavenly smells and flavors. I love putting the garden to bed, walking the property to check the apple trees, driving through the golden glow of the sun-lit trees and feeling their amazing warmth, and taking the kids out back for bug-free evenings of fires and hot dogs and marshmallows. I even look forward to putting away the summer clothes and digging out sweaters, coats, boots, and hats, handing down the hand-me-downs and sending away the littlest people's clothes that have survived being used and outgrown yet again. It's a huge and overwhelming job which takes over half the house for a couple days, but I like the organization and the growth and change it represents.

But not so much this year. This gorgeous season has made it clear to me how much zest I have lost over the past few months. Maybe it has to do with the drastic downturn of our personal economy. It could be because I haven't been taking care of myself for a while, and chronic illness is currently kicking my butt. It probably even has something to do with the fact that I've changed seats at the dining room table since last fall, and no longer have a lovely view of the back yard. Whatever the contributing factors, I don't like it. When I looked out the window last night to see our first beautiful snowfall, there was no excitement. Not even a smile. Only a sigh. And that just won't do. Minnesota is too harsh a place to live without anticipation, joy, and wonder at the changing seasons.

And if October feels like February, how will I ever survive February?

By clinging to God... speaking of which, I'd better get to it!

Brothers

2009-10-06T14:44:00.002-05:00

I have three very special young men as my brothers. Each of them has their own talents and weaknesses, and each of them plays an important part in our family. Of all my brothers though, today I would like to focus on my older brother Toby. Toby is a fabulous guy, and he has always been there for me. Ever since he met me 14 years ago, he has treated me like someone truly unique.

For a long time, he was my only friend, and over the years we have developed quite a special relationship. We tell each other almost everything, and of all the people I know, he probably knows me the best. Because we have been through things together, he can relate to what I am feeling. We often find ourselves sitting upstairs talking about what has recently happened, or laughing over things that happened years ago.

I have met many girls who tell me that their big brother is their worst enemy, and every time I hear that, I wish that they could have as good a relationship with their siblings as I do.

Friends

2009-10-06T10:35:00.003-05:00

I've got a few friends, in fact if you're reading this you are probably experiencing one of the side effects of being one of my friends and should talk to your doctor immediately. Truth be told, I have way more than a few friends... I actually recently crossed the threshold of 1,900 friends on Facebook. And I'm making more all the time. The MN Trappers Association has welcomed me and given me a column in the quarterly magazine, and just last week they gave me the privilege or doing a weasel trapping demo. As a result, I am meeting a lot of great folks from across MN all the time, adding to my cache of friends.

I decided that "the good ol' days" are a pile of nonsense. When were the good ol' days? Basically any time one was hanging out with one's friends preceding the present time. Am I right? Isn't that why just about everybody loves "The Music Man"? Because we certainly don't love it for its morals!

I have made a short list of some good times I remember fondly, roughly in chronological order, for your enjoyment. Many of my readers will remember some of thes times as well:
The Youngs' house on Wednesday nights for Bible study
PACHEK meetings
Duck "Hunting" in the rain
Primo Voce
Sunday afternoons at Solid Rock
4H Livestock judging, especially at the Western Rivers Expo
Building PACHEK float for the Christmas parade
Trip one, stopping in NY and KY
Trip two, stopping in NY to surprise all the relatives
MTA conventions
Hiking and canoe trips 3 hours north of here
WI convention
MTA district meetings
Goofing off on Sunday afternoon just the other day... especially when we found a 220 conibear trap

Friends

2009-09-24T14:27:00.004-05:00

I recently went to Oregon to visit with some friends. I was super excited to be going because not only was this my first trip all by myself (which made me feel grown up), but it was also the first time I had seen my best friend in almost 4 years. Well, best besides Toby.

Well, in the nice good while that I was there, I spent almost every minute allowed with my dear friend Christa. We talked about everything we could think of about what had happened in the 4 years that we had been apart, and still had more to say. And sometime in there, probably while we were laying on the rocks silently enjoying the sunshine, I realized that we had really built a strong relationship over the years.

I mean, we have known each other for like 10 years, but we were never really "friends" until she moved away, because then we started writing as often as we could, sending our messy scribbles across the country to someone who treasured every word. At first, we were still starting to get to know each other, but after a while, we were able to laugh at each other's jokes and trust each other to keep our little secrets. And guess what? When I moved a year after that, I knew that I wouldn't be losing her because as long as I had her address, we could still keep in touch just fine.

As we spent that quiet time together, I realized that after those years, we had built a relationship. Not out of friendship bracelets and sayings like "You're my BFF!", but from paying attention to one another and making sure the other person knew how much we really cared. Sure, it took a long time. It took 10 years! But we both kept working at it for the other person's sake, and look where we're at now!

I love and miss you my dear sweet friend!

Beginnings

2009-09-17T18:31:00.004-05:00

I began school. I have been bragging to my friends on Tman about how cool my school is. And it is better than the past few years... at least so far that seems to be the case. And here's a good place to start enjoying school again... at least it's a better place to start than 10 years from now.

I started a new job. It's not too bad. I'm getting paid fairly, and I like that. I also like having a few bucks of lubrication when I go somewhere... I don't have to stick to a budget like a leech to a leg. I like the change. Which brings me to my next paragraph:

It feels like I've started this really cool thing where people want to take me places to do fun stuff... last week Mr. and Mrs. 2poor invited me to come with them to the WI trapping convention, and this weekend 2poor has invited me to come with him and Stinkey to Owatonna, MN for Cumberland's trapper appreciation day. The weekend after that, Pellethead invited me to his place for a board meeting for the MTA, and I hear there will be donuts (due probably mostly to Wheelers' request that they be there) and barbecue sandwiches!

I started a journal. I haven't had a journal since 2001 because I couldn't remember what all the meaningless pictograph was supposed to mean, so I threw it out and gave up hope. This time though, I am writing real words, with real letters, even if they aren't the letters normal Americans can read. About half of it is in an ancient alphabet that hasn't been used for about 700 years... call me Egbert the Scholar from now on.

Beginnings

2009-09-17T15:01:00.003-05:00

Well, we have begun a new school year, and I am now a Freshman. I think. Anyway, we have done a very good job staying on task, and I must say that I am under the impression that this is our best school year yet. You might be wondering why I would say that, and even if you are not, I would be happy to enlighten you.

First off, I am very excited to have started 9th grade, because that means that when I'm finished this year, I will have only 3 more years of school left, which is definitely worth celebrating.

Second off, we have stayed on task so well that I am inclined to think that we will finish this year's school this school year. (Isn't that awesome?!)

Third off, I am using curricula(?) that are not horribly boring, which is good, because I get sick of horribly boring curricula very quickly, don't you?

And fourth thing is, I am doing a lot of reading. In fact, I am doing more reading than anything else. Except maybe writing. Anywho, I love reading, so naturally, I love what I get to do.

And these my friends, are the reasons for my being so excited about school this year.

I dare say it's time for an update

2009-09-09T18:05:00.002-05:00

There's a lot I haven't blogged about this summer. I think it's time to share some of it.

This is the ninth week since my husband was terminated (not laid off) from his job. That was a new experience for us both, and the first time he's been out of work in about 20 years. God provided very well for us during that time through our garden, our friends, and our neighbors. I'm sure He did even more than we noticed. He's good like that.

During the 19 years we've been "together", Loren and I have always done well spending time apart. It was a pleasant surprise for me to see how well we got along once we settled into spending every day together. I'm actually going to miss having him around when he starts his new job next week!

Last month was a big travel month for part of the family. In blogging about the trappers' convention, Toby forgot to mention that Loren took all the kids camping there for the weekend. That gave me a nice, quiet break. Shortly after they returned, Lynae spent two weeks in Oregon visiting dear friends. Loren spent time with friends and family. And Toby went on a canoe trip, about which he has already shared. All of them were enormously blessed during their adventures! And since these trips overlapped, I spent several days at home with Jon, Michael, and Grace. I, too, was blessed; it was wonderful to see the "little kids" step up to share the additional household responsibilities.

Those kids aren't going to be little for long. The three youngest have each grown at least a couple of inches this year. And of course, as we wrap up the birthday season, they're all older than they've ever been.

This is the part where I should think of some clever closing paragraph, but I missed my nap today and I'm feelin' it. So it's either publish now or send this post to the draft pile, never to see the light of your screen.

Boundary Waters

2009-08-29T11:45:00.002-05:00

I recently went on a canoe trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in northern Minnesota. Pictures may be forthcoming, but then again they might not be. I make no guarantees. But I will tell you about our trip. I went with Mr. Schutt, Mr. Kling (Mr. Shutt's new son in law), David, Isaiah, Daniel, and Austin.

I quickly earned the nickname "paddling machine," because they said I paddled like there was no tomorrow, and they also said I had this look in my eyes that could freeze steel... hmm, I'll have to remember how to do that look. Everybody wanted me in their canoe. That's a good feeling.

I saw fresh moose tracks, some of them only 15 minutes old. I also saw fighting crawdads, one of which was blue. I saw some leeches about 8 inches long. When we were canoeing through some windy river areas,m which were full of beaver dams, I saw muskrat poop on nearly every rock. I also saw a lot of mink and otter poop. We even saw a muskrat, which Mr. Schutt named Suzie, and we saw a beaver.

I caught 2 northern pike. One of them was about 2 feet long, making it the largest fish I have caught. Austin brought with him some smelt for fish bait, which, when he saw that they weren't catching any fish, he cooked up and gave to me. And I ate them. Mmm.

Yesterday, our last day, we had our longest portage. It was 480 rods long, which is exactly 1 1/2 miles. When we portaged, everyone would carry their packs, which averaged around 55 pounds, and then some people would carry a canoe as well, while carrying their packs. They carried the canoes on their shoulders, just like a voyageur, although these canoes were doubtlessly a lot lighter than a wooden canoe. These were kevlar and only weighed about 45 pounds each.

Because I have things to do and places to be, I can say no more. But I would definitely go there again, and I think just about anyone would love it.

Convention

2009-08-18T16:06:00.002-05:00

This past weekend I went to Chisholm, MN, to meet with roughly 2000 other trappers from around the state. We got there early Friday morning, and I stayed until late on Sunday afternoon.

Friday morning, as soon as we got there, I went to a MN Trappers' Association Instructor course. The MTA pays to educate anyone who wants to become a trapper, and the instructors are all volunteers. I became an instructor and got certified, making me one of the youngest instructors the MTA has had.

Friday evening, I wandered around for a while until I found some friends from Tman. I had brought my guitar, and when they found out, they asked me to play for them. This is the picture they took of me.While I was hanging out there, a tough Minnesotan fellow came beeboppin' along with his prize...
Here is a picture of a great trap which was embedded in a great looking log bench. The trap is worth about $125, and I think the bench sold for about $400.
Here is a picture of our friend Cedar. She and her husband 160user are great people, and I'm glad to know them.
I stayed with a few of the other folks from the MTA and helped clean up on Sunday. This is a picture of us after we had put all the tables away. In order from left to right: Wheelers, Julie (Wheelers' wife), Mr. Gary, Bogmaster, Mr. McElmury, and then, on the far right, you can see me standing in front of a few ladies... I believe they are Mrs. M :)
So that's what I did this past weekend. Now I just got a phone call from a fellow from church, he wanted to know if I could go to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness with him and some friends this next week. Heck yes. I got some videos from the last trip we took together, but unfortunately I am not too good with a computer and therefore cannot get those where you can see them. However, I am sure my mother or my sister could do it and make it look easy, so I will let them do it.

Blogging philosophical

2009-08-05T10:09:00.002-05:00

From Atlas Shrugged, first published in 1957:

"Money is the barometer of a society's virtue. When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion -- when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing -- when you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors -- when you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you -- when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice -- you may know that your society is doomed. Money is so noble a medium that it does not compete with guns and it does not make terms with brutality. It will not permit a country to survive as half-property, half-loot.

Whenever destroyers appear among men, they start by destroying money, for money is men's protection and the base of a moral existence. Destroyers seize gold and leave to its owners a counterfeit pile of paper. This kills all objective standards and delivers men into the arbitrary power of an arbitrary setter of values. Gold was an objective value, an equivalent of wealth produced. Paper is a mortgage on wealth that does not exist, backed by a gun aimed at those who are expected to produce it. Paper is a check drawn by legal looters upon an account which is not theirs: upon the virtue of the victims. Watch for the day when it bounces, marked: 'Account overdrawn.'"

Stress Relief

2009-07-20T22:39:00.002-05:00

Last night the stress of life got to me, and I ran away.

Ok, actually I drove.

I drove out to a nearby swamp, where I found the waxwings I'd been missing! And a goose, too. I also saw some ducks, a fisher, and a 6-point buck.

After all that and a gorgeous sunset over recently hayed fields, I was ready to go home again.

Local Sign

2009-07-16T23:08:00.001-05:00

The forecast calls for highs in the mid-50's here tomorrow. I don't mind that a bit!

The value of a thousand words

2009-07-06T12:13:00.002-05:00

A book I'm currently reading on fetal alcohol effects led me to hunt down the single picture I have of one of my sons as a baby. Thankfully, I found it. That one, poor-quality copy of a polaroid brings tears to my eyes every time I see it. Sometimes it's for the time I missed. Sometimes it's for the hurt that baby had already experienced, and the hurt he didn't know was yet to come -- the hurt I wish I could've protected him from, and the hurt I was a part of.

As well as I know my son, and as much as I love him, looking at that picture makes him seem more "real" to me. It gives me a different perspective of who he is now. That fresh perspective, the tenderness toward him, and the tears are so very important. He desperately needs me to be impacted in that way, encouraged to keep learning how I can better love and help him.

Lord, give me the strength and courage to continue this journey.

My kids on Daily Kos

2009-06-23T11:44:00.001-05:00

How unlikely is that??

Ah, but what a hoot!

And now they're 16 and 14.

Happy Birthday, Lynae!!

Temporary Mohawks

2009-06-15T13:15:00.000-05:00

Michael and Jon like it when Lynae cuts their hair!

Broiler Update

2009-06-14T19:29:00.004-05:00

Remember these little cuties?

Most of them are grown up now.

They're all meaty and tasty-looking, aren't they? I see Stir Fry... Barbecue... Cacciatore... Dumpling... Soup...

Here are our young layers. This is their Amish pose. One of them is clearly not cooperating. Happy free rangers, they are... and that's ok, since they haven't yet discovered the gardens.

All right, you are sentenced to time in the chicken tractor! Just kidding. We put it in for a size comparison. And as you can see, after 7 weeks there's quite a difference.

So if you plan to call or stop by next weekend, we'll be butchering.

The Garden is In

2009-06-14T17:20:00.005-05:00

After a few false starts, we got the garden in last week. This picture shows most of it. If what we've experienced so far is any indication, I LOVE these raised beds! I'm doing square foot gardening without the permanent grid. Mel would not approve, but it's working for us so far. I do see the benefit of the grid, and may install it later on. I have my squares mapped out using Plangarden so I can keep track of what's where.

I did not plan to use perlite in my raised beds. I started with vermiculite. When we were ready to fill the majority of our beds, we couldn't find vermiculite in the amount we needed. After calling around in the Duluth area, we found one nursery that supposedly had vermiculite in big bags. When we got there, we found it was perlite in bags that said "Vermiculite Perlite". I was so tired of looking at that point, I just bought it. I'm not thrilled with it, but the plants don't seem to mind much.

The potatoes and onions are already as big as they were by harvest time last year. That's a very good sign. I'm hoping that the horseradish we transplanted into pots to hang out with the potatoes will deter any potato-loving pests.

If the zucchini plant in the front corner produces, it will be a first for me. I just thought of something. Do these plants grow both male and female flowers, or do I need to plant more to get fruit?

I have planted enough beans to feed a small army. In the past, I've gotten a pitiful yield from the beans I've planted. (Really, I've gotten a pitiful yield from everything but my grape tomatoes.) I wouldn't really mind having "too many" this year.

Grace has her own garden again, too. She's growing various flowers, chives, basil, cilantro, oregano, and a tomato... not yet sure which kind. Her garden is right outside the back door, which makes it the perfect location for the herbs we'll use most.

This week we have lots of warm weather and a bit of rain in the forecast, so I'm hoping our plants will grow and be happy!

Spring Break: Week 2

2009-05-07T01:19:00.003-05:00

I started a couple more blog posts last week, but we were so busy, none of them was finished. Maybe if things slow down, I can post them.

This week we're making raised beds. I replanted garlic, since last fall's planting failed miserably. It's late, but we'll see what happens. Tomorrow I hope to get the peas and spinach in the ground. Other seedlings are doing well under the grow light.

Wednesday was a big shopping day down in "the Cities". We had a Lowe's card from Kentucky, so we went to the nearest Lowe's and spent what was left on that. We also had a coupon for Home Depot, so we went a little wild buying plants there. Lynae and I both bought shoes at the Nike outlet. I noticed a Claire's across the parking lot, so we took the opportunity to do something we'd been discussing quite often lately; the girls both had their ears pierced.

We went to Perkin's for supper. It was the most peaceful restaurant meal we've enjoyed in years. We had a whole back dining room to ourselves, with wonderful ambiance and classical music. The kids are beginning to recognize classical composers, which made it even more special. We took some time to pray together while waiting for our meal. It was truly memorable.

Before coming home, we picked up a few more things for the garden at Walmart. Then a handsome young man drove us safely home, whereupon all the children soon tumbled into bed.

And now... it's my turn!

We may have a breakthrough!

2009-05-04T10:21:00.002-05:00

The kids had their annual testing last month. The results aren't all that interesting, except for Jon's. He's tough to figure out sometimes... what IS going on in that brain of his??

His results showed that his vocabulary is extraordinary, and he has a very good grasp on social studies and science, but his language skills and math skills could only be worse if he didn't answer ANY of the questions. So basically, the best way for him to learn is to hand him a book and let him read about a topic, rather than using workbooks like we so often do for grammar and math.

Guess what? I found the Barron's Painless Series on Amazon, and I think we're on to something! I handed him the Painless Junior Math book and said, "Here, read your book." No conflict, no frustration. Within five minutes, he was excited to tell me he understands a concept he's struggled with for the five years I've tried to teach it to him. He keeps nodding his head as he's reading, saying, "Ok, I get it now." And the beauty of it is, it's a book he can read again later if he needs to. He just told me, "That's a pretty good chapter (on telling time). Now I don't even have to count the numbers by 5's anymore."

HALLELUJAH!!!

"I can tell today's gonna be awesome. It's warm out, and a good day to be outside. And also, I just learned how to tell time, so that helps my feeling that it's gonna be awesome."

Spring Break: Week 1

2009-04-28T00:29:00.006-05:00

This morning was the official start of our four-week spring break. By 8:00 we were at the post office, picking up 21 broilers and 10 layers. By 10:00 we were ready to go back to bed.

The light ones won't be cute for long, but will be delicious in 6-8 weeks.

We (and by "we" I mean the kids, mostly) picked up trash from the yard, raked up the hay that insulated our underground pipes and provided traction for our otherwise icy and later muddy paths, and began the daunting task of bicycle maintenance. We also figured out the answer to an actual question typed into my Spring Break To-Do List: What's the deal with the staple gun? The deal was, it was jammed. Should be good to go now.

Tomorrow we will go shopping for all kinds of fun stuff -- a tub and sand for sharpened tools, a new garden cart, chicken feed, and probably a bunch of other stuff we need but I haven't remembered to put on the list. I'm also in the market for an exterior door, a shower enclosure, and a toilet. Doesn't that sound fun??

Jon gets to visit the orthodontist, too. That should be interesting; he's pulled out three teeth since his last visit.

The rest of our week will likely be rainy, but I think we'll still get a lot done. I'm hoping it will clear up after that, though, so we can enjoy more afternoons like this:

and this:

The Gulag Archipelago

2009-03-27T01:10:00.000-05:00

God was there, too:

Nikolai Aleksandrovich Kozyrev, whose brilliant career in astronomy was interrupted by his arrest, saved himself only by thinking of the eternal and infinite: of the order of the Universe -- and of its Supreme Spirit; of the stars; of their internal state; and what Time and the passing of Time really are.

And in this way he began to discover a new field in physics. And only in this way did he succeed in surviving in the Dmitrovsk Prison. But his line of mental exploration was blocked by forgotten figures. He could not build any further -- he had to have a lot of figures. Now just where could he get them in his solitary-confinement cell with its overnight kerosene lamp, a cell into which not even a little bird could enter? And the scientist prayed: "Please, God! I have done everything I could. Please help me! Please help me continue!"

At this time he was entitled to receive one book every ten days (by then he was alone in the cell). In the meager prison library were several different editions of Demyan Bedny's Red Concert, which kept coming around to each cell again and again. Half an hour passed after his prayer; they came to exchange his book; and as usual, without asking anything at all, they pushed a book at him. It was entitled A Course in Astrophysics! Where had it come from? He simply could not imagine such a book in the prison library. Aware of the brief duration of this coincidence, Kozyrev threw himself on it and began to memorize everything he needed immediately, and everything he might need later on. In all, just two days had passed, and he had eight days left in which to keep the book, when there was an unscheduled inspection by the chief of the prison. His eagle eye noticed immediately. "But you are an astronomer?" "Yes." "Take this book away from him!" But its mystical arrival had opened the way for his further work, which he then continued in the camp in Norilsk.

Coincidence, or Providence?

Mud season

2009-03-25T12:38:00.000-05:00

It's no longer February. And that is a very good thing. In my world, February is the longest month of the year. So long and difficult, in fact, that it takes me well into March to recover. By the time I come to my senses, well, here we are in mud season.

Mud season is serious business here. Much of the outdoor activity is on hold and I, for one, am trying hard not to get stuck in the driveway. (I'm also hoping my guys keep the truck out of rain-drenched fields.) Lynae was right; we're surrounded by puddles. And many of them seem to be headed straight for our basement.

The return of the birds is one nice thing about this time of year. I heard a sandhill crane a couple mornings ago. Toby noticed a robin this week, too. Soon we'll see the bluebirds, the swallows, the warblers, maybe the waxwings. The frogs will come out, and the mosquitoes, the first brave and colorful flowers... and then we'll be well into Spring. Very nice, indeed. And remembering that will get me through mud season, I'm sure.

Hope

2009-03-17T18:21:00.004-05:00

Hope: The feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.

You know, right now I am living in a swamp, and so right now we're surrounded by puddles. Not only that, but it's hard to find a decent place to park. It is also kinda hard to stay cheerful about the good weather when you're surrounded by water.

During times like these, it is important to stay hopeful. If we are pessimists about it, then of course it's going to suck! But if we just look forward to the drier months, then we won't even be thinking about the water, and the time will fly.

Keep in mind that no matter what situation you're going through, that things are in God's hands, and things will turn out for the better in the long run, if we let Him take care of them.

Wonderful!

2009-03-10T19:28:00.001-05:00

As some of you may already know, we are planning on taking a vacation. I am really excited about that, because it will really be a double vacation. You see, we're going to New York (State) to see some relatives, and then stopping in Kentucky to see some friends before coming home.

I honestly can't decide which I'm more excited about; seeing my relatives, or seeing my friends and my old home. I'm really glad though that we get to do both.

There is one tough part though, and that is finding someone to take care of our animals while we are gone. You see, around here, if people aren't busy all the time, it's usually because they are old. All the kids go to public school, almost all their parents have jobs, and all the older folks that aren't still in the work force are too frail to come over 2 or 3 times a day to feed the chickens and walk the dogs. But I know that the Lord will provide, and that we won't have to worry, because He's good like that.

I won the weasel contest!

2009-03-09T18:52:00.003-05:00

There was a contest on Trapperman.com recently to see who could catch the largest weasel. They had a separate division for children, and there were 6 other competitors in the children's division. I had the largest weasel and won the contest, which proved to the trappers on Trapperman that I am a devoted disciple of the Timber Midget, which is code name for Mr. Van Driel.

So I went to the Post Office the other day, and I opened the door and I quickly detected the fragrance of skunk essence. I wondered, "why does it smell like skunk, I haven't ordered anything lately have I?" No I hadn't ordered anything, but I had won the weasel contest. I had a large box, and when I went to get my box from the postmaster, he freaked out, as per usual. Don't tell him I said that, because he's getting better at that. Anyway, I had a large package that smelled like skunk juice, and I carried it all the way home. When I got it in the door, my own mother sent me away with it because of the aroma. I had to open it outside. When I did, I saw I had 3 weasel boxes, an F&T hat, some beaver lure, and some weasel lure. The latter of them was the offending odor which ruined the postmaster's day and freshened the scent on the brand new cap. The hat still smells like skunk, but I keep it where Mom doesn't go too often. The weasel lure was in a sealed jar, taped shut, in a Ziploc bag, wrapped in newspaper, in its own box which was taped shut, and inside the big box, and it still stunk up the post office.

In the adult's division, the two top contestants were Jack Pine Savage (Arnie Peterson), and 2poor AKA Timber Midget (Mr. Van Driel). I forgot who got third place, but I know these other guys personally, and they know me personally.

Armor of God

2009-03-06T19:18:00.002-06:00

Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. Ephesians 6:11

Mom and Dad recently discussed a rather sensitive subject with Toby and I. It was about some things that we need to be aware of as young adults, but don't want to learn about the hard way. It was at that time that I realized how important it is to my parents that we remain pure, and how much they would rather we learn from other peoples mistakes rather than by making our own.

That got me thinking about how very blessed I am to have parents who are willing to spend time teaching me and informing me about the world, so that when I am living without them to guide me, I will be able to live as a godly young woman. That they want so much for me to succeed, that they have worked so hard to be a big part of my life, so that during my trying teen years, we will maintain a healthy relationship, and I won't end up looking for affection elsewhere.

With this in mind, I leave you this evening with this Bible verse.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Ephesians 6:13

What do you think?

2009-02-24T17:00:00.003-06:00

I am not one for political arguments or anything like that, but when something collides with my religious beliefs, I won't stand back and let the government do as it pleases without stating my thoughts on the matter. Now if you are really smart, you have probably figured out that this is about my thoughts on a certain matter that has something to do with the government.

You may have heard of a treaty called U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child (the CRC). This is a treaty that the U.N has come up with. And guess what? If it passes here, the United States will be voluntarily ceding its sovereignty to the U.N. Isn't that something? You can read a very interesting article on this here.

Here are a few eye catching excerpts as well:

The treaty clearly bans all corporal punishment, including spanking by parents. Congress would have both the duty as well as the power to implement legislation which directly imposes legal sanctions against parents to spank their children. Spanking could be a federal crime if the CRC is ratified...

The biggest areas of potential conflict, understandably, are the issues of education and religious instruction. If your child decides he no longer wants to be homeschooled and wants to attend the local public school, the decision will likely come down in his favor...

Children will have a legally enforceable right to complain about anything they wish...

So what does this mean? Basically it means that parents will not be allowed to train up their children in the way they should go. It means that parents will have little or no control over what they have birthed, and kids will be allowed to twist people's arms to get what they want.

I don't know about you, but that makes me furious. Sure, I will still be allowed to do my chores and help in the kitchen, but when I have children of my own, they will be able to turn me in for disciplining them. I won't have control in my own home, and my children will, in a way, have more rights than me.

So what do you think? Should we let this stinker of a bill pass, or should we speak up for what we believe? Whatever you think, please be praying for our country. It needs all the prayer we can give.

Too much of a good thing

2009-02-22T21:27:00.002-06:00

Last week, on Sunday, I was pretty grumpy. I actually was really mad. So I went in my room and chose to use my evil energy on something not unproductive. I did 100 sit ups. This was quite an accomplishment for me because my previous record was 80 sit ups, and that was 2 years ago. I enjoyed the workout. I did it again the next few nights. But the pain I experienced in the daytime was unbearable, so after four days of agony, I quit. That was on Wednesday. Just today, my abdominal pain has abandoned me, and I am happy about that.

Today we went sledding in Cloquet. That was a great time. You may have read in a much earlier blog post about the hill in Cloquet. If you haven't, it just rocks. This year, the whole bottom of the hill was covered in jumps. I hurt my knees really badly, but it was fun, so I didn't worry about it. I got close to 3 feet of air some of the times, and usually I landed on my side, with my sled landing about 10 feet away.

Then we went bowling. Lynae, Grace, and I were all bowling in the same lane. We agreed that if Grace beat Lynae or me, whoever Grace beat would pay for a game of pool. The end of the first game was discouraging: Lynae won, followed by Grace, and I was 27 points behind Grace. But then we played a second game, and in the end of this one, I had 157 points, Lynae had 97, and Grace had 94. I was much happier with this one, but I had to pay for the game of pool. I paid for the game of pool. Lynae beat me. As of right now, I am still waiting for her to reimburse me for that.

I never thought.....

2009-02-18T21:52:00.003-06:00

Facebook has really changed my life quite a bit in the past few months. It eats away at spare time and tempts me daily to join in the word games, war games, and other virtual games it has to offer me.

At the same time, it has become a major motivator for getting my school and chores done. It has helped me connect to people that I haven't seen in years (or seen at all). It is also pretty much the most high-tech thing I have.

I never thought that a little web page could change my life, but my facebook has. I now must work every day avoiding things and resisting things that will drag me down. It has brought me into a big persons world, where I must decide what to do with my time.

Thankfully, my parents have put restraints on what I can do with my time. They have welcomed me to the world in a way that has protected me from many things, while at the same time I've been able to see what's out there. Someday I won't have them there to watch over and guide me, and I will have to make these decisions myself. I'm glad that they are working hard to this day to instill good habits in me, and I dearly hope I don't disappoint them.

Tell me now...

2009-02-11T07:21:00.004-06:00

I was at the doctor yesterday. I don't go there often anymore since I upgraded myself to a state of invincibility*, but some things never change, or if they do, it isn't easy. Things that don't really affect your health but you go to the doctor anyway. Shots are a good example, but I never get any shots. The reason I was at the doctor was that I had a wart on the bottom of my foot, and if you ever look at a foot you will quickly notice that the bottom is the part that generally is placed on the ground in an attempt to perform graceful locomotion. During this process, the wart generally hits the ground before the rest of your foot. This requires that the weight of your body drives the wart into your foot every time you step. It isn't pretty.

I had this wart for about two weeks, and then we went to the doctor because it was driving me crazy. Well, wouldn't you know it, halfway to the doctor, we had car trouble. This is not because we are white trash trying to see how much farther we can get our 1986 El Camino to run, these things just happen. So we got it to Deep Rock, and then I ran home to get the car. We finally got to the doctor's office. When we got in the room, the nurse (?) needed to know if I had any health problems. She asked if I was allergic to any medicines, who my doctor is, (to which I replied, "I ain't got one"), how old I was, and then she said, "ok, you're 15, do you smoke?" What do you mean, "do you smoke"? Why would I smoke? Isn't that illegal at my age? Why would I want to do something illegal if it had nothing to do with driving?

So, I told her that I didn't smoke. Then she left and the doctor came in a few minutes later.

The doctor told me all about the method he was going to use, which was the freeze method. I was familiar with this method. I had a wart on the palm of my hand several years ago, and Mom tried to freeze it, but it would not die, and so it stayed there for several years until it just went away. I had a wart on my scalp around the same time, and it too went away after several years. Anyway, I was not too thrilled to hear that the doctor was going to freeze the wart on my foot, but I held still, and it wasn't as bad as I expected.

* This is a joke. Most people my age think they are invincible. I could care less if I'm invincible, all my friends go to the doctor.

Love

2009-02-10T18:15:00.003-06:00

Love: a feeling of warm personal attachment or deep affection, as for a parent, child, or friend.

Love is a very strong feeling that each of us has for certain things. For instance, I love my family and friends, but I love them each for different reasons.

I love my friends because they treat me kindly and include me. I love my family because they are always there for me; ready to do me a favor, help me with my work, and teach me so I can mature.

There are also other things I can love; such as the smell of fresh flowers or the sound of a flowing river. This is a type of love but isn't the same as the love I feel for my parents. I love the smell of flowers simply because they smell nice, but I love my parents because they have shown me love. That is something that flowers can't do for me. They can never even come close. My parents have worked hard to train me, care for me, and help me become who I am today.

And yet, there is one person that I love more than anyone or anything else that I've ever known. Someone who has done me so big a favor that I can't even begin to repay them. You see, Jesus died for all my sins. That may not seem big when it's put that way, but if he hadn't done that I would have suffered for my sins for all eternity. By putting my trust in Jesus, I can be sure that I won't have to suffer those consequences. That's a big deal, and I can only do a very little in comparison. How can I show him love though? I can thank him for his wonderful gift, and obey his commandments. I can show gratitude by thanking him and respecting him, and I can share the love with others.

Economic wish list

2009-01-28T23:52:00.003-06:00

I was only able to skim the first 172 pages of the House economic stimulus bill. After that the absurdity was just too much. It reads like a child's Christmas wish list, before the "Ok, now let's get real" part. And yet, most of the Democrats are drooling over the thought of all that extra money, not considering the real cost of such outrageous debt.

In the spirit of understanding, I'd like to share my own absurd wish list:

Physical health - To ensure the optimal physical health of the family, we will need a complete inspection of our home, to include inspection for pests, mold, asbestos, lead, and other harmful substances. We will also hire a chiropractor, nutritionist, cook, personal trainer, and homeopath. All expenses for training, equipment, supplies, and modifications will be covered. So will doctor visits and prescriptions, of course. Dental and orthodontic care will be covered, including general anesthesia when desired.
Mental health - Costs covered will include psychiatric evaluations, therapies, drugs, weekly date nights, monthly retreats, and quarterly vacations complete with qualified respite care provider for special needs children. Hobbies shall also be covered in full, to include additional buildings and equipment as necessary.
Housing - Monies will be provided for kitchen expansion and renovation to include energy saving appliances and code compliant installation of wood cook stove, bathroom remodel to include rearrangement of fixtures in such a way as to reduce skinned knuckles and general irritation. House shall be equipped with iron removal system for all plumbing, new water softener, secondary laundry facilities, walk-in freezer, new and matching siding on all parts of house regardless of age, functional windows in front room, insulation over bathroom ceiling, updated soffits, and solar panels on south-facing roof. Squeaky floors, cracks in walls, poorly painted trim, and faulty drywall fasteners shall all be repaired. Woodwork shall be restored to its original beauty, as shall all hardwood floors. Basement shall be sealed against water leakage, and all possible causes of such leakage shall be eliminated.
Education - Laptops shall be provided for each student, fully loaded with necessary hardware and software for optimal educational opportunities at each grade level. All books shall be covered upon approval by primary educator, with oversight provided by chief administrator. Funding shall be provided for biweekly field trips, to include lodging and meals as necessary. Tutoring shall be provided as deemed necessary by primary educator. Costs of state mandated testing will be covered by local school district; however, chief administrator will retain sole rights to viewing of results of said tests. Funding will also be provided for enrichment classes and activities, to include summer camp, driver's ed, and private music lessons.
Transportation - An outrageous sum shall be provided for shiny, new vehicles for each licensed driver in the household, until September 30, 2012. Vehicles will be chosen based on the needs of the primary driver. Considerations will include cargo space, gas mileage, leg room, temperature control, and typical driving conditions. An honest and reliable mechanic will be kept on retainer, with all upgrade, maintenance, and repair costs covered by this plan. To properly house these vehicles, demolition of the old garage and construction of a new garage will take place ASAP. In order to prevent damage to vehicles occurring on our property, the driveway will be upgraded to asphalt, with special considerations for the swampy nature of the property.
Sustenance - Money and professional help shall be provided for livestock, its housing and equipment, raised garden beds filled with luxuriously amended soil, a lovely and functional root cellar, and a summer kitchen outfitted with all necessary equipment for food preservation. In addition, house shall be equipped with all necessary improvements to ensure smooth operation of appliances and utilities in case of power outage.

Yeah, ok, that was fun. And look at how many jobs would be created!

Now it's time to get real. Some of those things may be necessary, and we'll find a way to cover them without additional debt. But nothing on that list addresses the real need we have, to seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness.

Does our nation need that any less than you or I do?

And do they really think it's worthwhile to buy condoms on credit?

My painting

2009-01-28T13:57:00.004-06:00

I have always enjoyed painting, but drawing on the other hand is a disaster for me. The only two things I'm actually good at drawing are houses and tulips. Well, Mom has been trying to help me feel good about my art, so she recently had me sketch and paint a picture. The rules were that I couldn't copy other work, I had to make it of flowers, and I had to do my best.

Well, I kept putting it off, hoping that I could forget about it, but finally I had to do it. I had 2 days to come up with a flower scene, draw it, and paint it neatly. I finally sketched it, and realized that it was a lot easier than I thought it would be. Then came the fun part; painting it. I mixed acrylic paints until I came up with the desired colors, and carefully applied them. Here is the finished product:

This is the first work of art I have ever made that I am not ashamed of. Sure it has mistakes, but I was able to learn from this experience that if I just relax and stop worrying, it will be okay. And that my friends, is worth more than the best painting in the world.

-10° in Frigid, Minnesota

2009-01-26T21:45:00.003-06:00

It takes longer to clear the frost from the inside of the windshield than the outside.

People here can leave their cars running while they run into the post office... or the grocery store.

And the bagger will still take the groceries out to your car without a coat on.

Back at home, the wandering pup can be sent out to "be quick" by himself; he won't stay out any longer than necessary.

When sent outside to play, the kids will probably decide to come in after just one pair of snow-filled mittens, rather than changing into a second pair and going back out. And the 6yo will probably leave her hat on her head instead of leaving it in a tunnel of the snow fort.

The humid air blowing out the dryer vent causes it to snow on my kitchen windows.

What's not to love about that?

The hopelessness of life without Christ

2009-01-24T19:02:00.004-06:00

From The Gulag Archipelago:

"If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?

During the life of any heart this line keeps changing place; sometimes it is squeezed one way by exuberant evil and sometimes it shifts to allow enough space for good to flourish. One and the same human being is, at various ages, under various circumstances, a totally different human being. At times he is close to being a devil, at times to sainthood. But his name doesn't change, and to that name we ascribe the whole lot, good and evil."

Except for the saving power of Jesus Christ, we have no hope of ever rising above the hopelessness of that cycle. While we may still struggle, through Christ we have the strength to be overcomers. The grace God extends to us is so amazing! Who among us deserves to be spared the penalty for the evil sin nature within us?

Believing in change

2009-01-24T18:17:00.005-06:00

It seems I keep hearing Obama supporters say that now that he is president, "we" have hope, can come together and work to improve this country, etc. What were they who call themselves "we" doing before? Were they not helping the poor, the elderly, the sick, the less fortunate by giving of their time, talent, and money? Were they so busy sucking lemons they couldn't see past their own wants and complaints?

How curious that conservatives have more of a reputation for giving to charity than liberals, regardless of income level. Just who is looking out for "the little guy", and who has been passing that responsibility off to the government?

I must echo much of what the Headmistress had to say today:

It's just not that difficult to take the family to a nursing home, to package up supplies to send to hurricane victims, to take a bunch of games to a local childrens' home to play, to bring baby clothes and diapers to a homeless shelter or a crisis pregnancy center, to package toys, school supplies, and goodies in a shoebox to send to children in Mexico for Christmas, to bake cookies or muffins and take them to the older people at church- these things are not painful, not terribly inconvenient or burdensome (so much the contrary that it's embarrassing to mention them)- and you don't need the President to tell you do these things.

Or you shouldn't.

My family and I have done many of those same things, and others as well. With one income. And the busyness of homeschooling. And involving a child with special needs. That doesn't mean we're rich, or special, or have more time on our hands than anyone else. We all find the time and money for that which is important to us.

I am surprised and disappointed that it has taken so many Americans until now to feel they had permission to serve others. Especially those who claim Jesus as their Lord. (Did they read the handbook?)

Just imagine where this country would be now if the Obama followers had been helping others for the past eight (or more) years rather than sitting around waiting for the government to issue more handouts. If only they had believed in this kind of change all along.

I got myself an unlikely new disciple for my cause...

2009-01-18T10:20:00.004-06:00

Well I've had a couple of my traps in the house the past week or two, for pictures and whatnot. Last night my baby sister, who is now 6, saw me firing a #1 on my hand without flinching or anything, and she came in to watch me do it some more. Then I told her to try it because I knew it wouldn't hurt her, but she was pretty nervous. I told her she could put her hand in her sleeve to fire the trap if she wanted, so she tried it and she didn't feel any pain, so I told her to try it with bare hands.

She was kinda nervous, she wanted me to give her all my money if it hurt her, so I said I would. She fired it on her hand and started laughing.

I hope that she tells all her friends, especially if she meets any people who are animal rights folks, because if a 6 year old feels no pain in a trap, which, by the way, I used for mink and muskrat earlier this year, then is there any reason that an animal would feel pain?

2009-01-17T15:43:00.002-06:00

Well the temperature has warmed up nicely, and we were blessed with a fresh dusting of yard grace last night. The sun is shining and snow is drifting. The trees are filled with the usual birds: chickadees, nuthatches, redpolls, and goldfinches.

We're spending a cozy weekend at home, working on skill development and getting to know ourselves and each other better.

I think I can see February from here.

Winter Activities

2009-01-12T19:28:00.004-06:00

As you know, there are a lot of different activities that people do in the Winter. These range from snowmobiling to ice fishing. We all have certain favorites, often based on our varying lifestyles, that tell others a lot about ourselves. For instance, there could be someone that enjoys going north from the cities to go skiing, while someone else prefers to stay in their home watching the birds.

Our family has seven people that all enjoy certain things.

Grace loves making little snowmen, and going skating on our little pond.
Michael likes having snowball fights and sledding.
Jonathan likes duking random stuff out with Mike and having snowball fights.
I find pleasure in shoveling and sledding(what a nerd!).
Toby likes building giant snow forts (yes, I will show some pictures) and walking across town to check traps.
The parents prefer to stay inside watching the birds and the football games.

Just by looking at a group of activities, and picking out the ones that different people enjoy, we can gather quite a bit of insight about their personalities. These things all reflect who we are. Grace is a child at heart, Mike and Jon are boys who love having someone else their own size to play/wrestle with. Toby likes doing big important things, and I prefer simple tasks and traditional play, and the parents enjoy being inside enjoying the wonderfulness of Winter.

Not bad, considering my sheltered life

2009-01-12T10:53:00.002-06:00

I've seen this around, but it was reading it on Esther's blog that made me decide to actually do it here. The ones I've done (that I remember) are in bold. (Just because I don't remember it doesn't mean it didn't happen.) Which have you done? I'd love to know.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given generously to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea - it seems likely that I did, but I don't know for sure
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch - I don't even know what this means, really
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied - though it wasn't the money that did it
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Been deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt - I'm workin' on it
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone - my poor toe!
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car - it's not all it's cracked up to be
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous - I may have and just don't remember. I'm like that.
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Goodnight Moon

2009-01-11T04:04:00.002-06:00

This evening I drove Toby around to pull the rest of his traps, since he's pretty much done for the season. I saw a gorgeous view of the moon rising over a farm and came back home to get the camera and the recycling. The view was slightly less gorgeous by the time I was able to get a picture, but I did snap this one while Toby dropped off the recycling.

Just a reminder

2009-01-08T18:27:00.002-06:00

When your children use the toilet consistently, appreciate it.

When they understand the relationship of numbers to objects, appreciate it.

When they do something because it would please you, appreciate it.

When they sleep more than six hours a day, appreciate it.

When they make a connection between the name of an emotion and their own feeling, appreciate it.

When they have dreams and aspirations and show thoughtfulness and kindness, by all means, appreciate it.

Whether or not you CHOOSE to parent a child who is challenged in these areas has no bearing on its difficulty. And don't believe for a second that any amount of money is what makes it all worthwhile. If you think I'm wrong on these points, please enlighten me.

Snowforts

2009-01-07T18:16:00.003-06:00

Winter is a wonderful, enjoyable season, full of snow, sledding, fights and forts, and school. I generally do not participate in the snow fort building festivities, as I prefer shoveling off our tiny pond so that we can go skating.

Toby is usually the one in charge of doling out sections of our biggest snowbank, and building a snow fort which he then is happy to share with me(he's so sweet!). This year he built a huge snow fort, which is really more like a mansion without a roof. He even made seats for himself and I, dug out of the sides of the thick walls, which were given an appropriate but redundant name a few years ago by Grace which stuck: buttseats.
This year Toby outdid himself by building a snow fort with a moat, a courtyard, a watch tower, a keep, and all connected by a three way tunnel. He also decided that the old fashioned open doorway was too difficult to defend from strangers and little siblings, so he filled it in and dug another tunnel for the main doorway. Thankfully, he respects the fact that I'm scared of going into small tunnels, lest I get stuck, so he made the two in this fort nice and roomy. Pictures of this amazing structure will be forthcoming.

2008 is almost done

2008-12-30T06:42:00.004-06:00

I think I have a new New Years tradition figured out... see, I have 10 rabbits waiting to be skinned at this moment, and each of them takes about 30 minutes to skin, and 15 to 20 minutes to butcher. What if we got everyone involved and saw who could do the most work with the fewest mistakes. That would be fun! (?)

The MN Trapper's Association midwinter meeting is this weekend. I will let you guys know how that goes. Due to the lack of demand for fur at this time by fur buyers and countries that are our primary consumers of wild fur, mainly Russia and China, and the global economy at this time, I am not going to sell my fur. There are plenty of people selling more than enough fur to cover the current demand, and the more extra unused fur there is, the lower prices will be. I think I would do better to wait to sell fur until things start improving so that the prices will go up again. Until then, I am donating my fur to the Tanned Fur Project in MN to help educate people about trapping and go to scholarships that the MTA gives.

I saw something interesting the other day in a trapping book I got for Christmas. It had fur prices back in 1925 and they look very similar to what most people are getting today. The dollar now has 1/12 of the value it had in 1925. This means that most of the fur has dropped in value to 1/12 or even a smaller fraction of what it was worth back when we had a local market, when we had more people in the United States who were willing to make garments out of American fur, and when there weren't a bunch of bunny huggers crying about the animals as if they were little people in furry little jumpsuits.
Muskrat: $1.50 for large
Skunk: $3.00 for large
Possum: $1.25
Large mink: $10.00
Small mink: $6.00
Raccoon: $7.00
Otter: $30.00
Northern beaver blanket: $20.00
Red Fox: $8 to $12
Gray Fox: $2
Fisher: $75
Marten: $25
Weasel: $1.50
Coyote: $7

Here are fur prices as they were expected for this fall/winter. It turns out most of these prices were wishful thinking as nobody is willing to pay these prices the way the economy is looking.
BEAVER: Best at $45
MUSKRAT: $4 or slightly better.
WILD MINK: $16 to $18
RED FOX: $22 to $24
RACCOON: $22 to $24;
COYOTE: $20 to $24.

Here is what I have observed people getting for the furs not mentioned above.
Skunk: $4
Possum: $1 (although I have heard rumors of them getting up to $60, I don't believe them.)
Otter: $30
Gray fox: $10
Fisher: $35
Marten: $40-$45
Weasel: $3

A lot of those 1925 prices are looking really appealing right about now. I was born a century too late.

I will apply for the MN Conservation Corps this year, and applications are coming out in the next few days so I'm really excited about that. If I go, then I will be busy for 8 weeks of the summer fixing up state parks and things like that. I will be pretty busy when I am finished, but I think I will be able to go to the MN Trapper's Association Rendezvous next summer since it will be around August 14th and hopefully MCC will be out by then.

I'm looking forward to getting my driver's license this year. Unfortunately, I don't think I will be able to get my license while I am in MCC, so if I want to drive myself to the Rendezvous this summer, I will need to take my tests for that on the first Thursday that I am out of MCC before I go to the Rendezvous, so I will be in a hurry!

A Minnesota Christmas Season

2008-12-26T09:04:00.002-06:00

Around here, we encourage the kids to shovel snow for fun. This little girl went out in her blanket sleeper, wearing her mom's stylish scarf, just so she could shovel. We now have a big snow pile at the bottom of our back steps which will remain until sometime next May, but if she continues to enjoy shoveling, it's well worth it.
I have reached the point where I no longer need to control every aspect of the decorating. This year, the family adorned the tree without me. For smiles like that, it's totally worth it.
That got Lynae in a festive mood, so she modeled some clothes she received in a package from Grandma Martin.
One day this month, the roads were particularly treacherous. I sent Toby to take pictures of the drama outside our door. I'm not sure why he inserted himself in this picture, but his expression just invites speculation, doesn't it?
Christmas morning. What a thing! The children dug into their stockings long before we started opening gifts. One of the first presents Grace opened contained these beautiful hair clips. She doesn't need a mirror to perfect this style! And just look at that face... wanna guess how much sugar she's had?
When she lost her other front tooth a few days ago, you know what song we taught her...

Toby and Lynae received a joint gift. "Uh... Mom, it's Norton Utilities. Isn't Norton that stuff you'll never put on any of our computers?"
"Oh, whew! It's just the box. Look at these amazingly awesome compasses we got instead!"
Here's our ragtag bunch at the end of the day. This picture tells a dozen stories, not all of them blogworthy. But get a load of that weird patch on Mike aka Camo Boy's head.
That's not Photoshop, folks. It's Curad.

Let me back up, just for a sec. For many years, the unique nature of our family has required that we take a break in the middle of opening Christmas gifts. But we're making progress. This year when things were getting out of hand I mentioned taking a break, but we recovered (snicker) and kept going.

Five minutes later, Lynae brought over a gift for her and me and began to open it. As she did, Michael darted away. A split second later, I heard a thud in the next room. Mike aka The Storyteller came back, holding his head. "Ow, ow. I was just walking along, and I bumped into something." Uh-huh... turns out, in that split second he ran through the dining room, around the corner, through the foyer, and up the stairs, where he slipped and hit his head on the newel.

We then took a 10 minute break while we cleaned up the blood trail, assessed the damage, and ran through the likely scenario if we drove him to the ER, got the 2-3 stitches in his forehead, and returned home to the rest of Christmas. Then I replayed in my mind the portion of the drive where I second guess my decision to make the trip to the ER, stop speeding, and wonder if I should turn around and get out the butterfly bandages instead. (For the locals: It starts at the cemetery on 43 and ends at Two Sons Road, by which time I have cell reception and have gotten necessary assurance from my dear husband that we are, indeed, doing the right thing.)

We've gone in about a half dozen times over the years. Each time, the doctor agrees it's an "iffy" sort of wound, but it's good that we came in for this reason or that (or that or that). Today, we decided that this was one wound that would do just as well with home care as it would with stitches. Sure, stitches might leave a less noticeable scar. But on the forehead of a rough and tumble young man, a scar does not seem inappropriate. So I patched the boy up, and covered it all with a honkin' bandage.

We returned to the living room to continue opening gifts. Lynae finished unwrapping the book we'd received: Natural First Aid. How timely is that?! I quickly checked the Table of Contents for anything glaringly appropriate... ah! The Recovery Position! Turning to page 18, I was able to see that Michael had naturally chosen to lie on the floor in a very similar position. We adjusted him to match the illustration, and then were able to carry on with the rest of the gift opening.

As you can see from the photo above, he is recovering nicely. Well, we don't know about the dreaded scar yet. But I'm sure he'll be fine. Heck, even with that bandage, he looks better than some of us at the end of the day.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T22:21:00.002-06:00

I hope your Christmas was full of blessings.

I will be spending the next week preparing for a fresh start with the new year. My shopping list includes Hefty bags for the clutter we've been overlooking that's got to go. The dusting that's been put off for too long (you know, in those rooms that didn't get the Christmas makeover) can now take place -- tissues have been restocked.

And I have a great blog entry in the works, chock full of pictures.

By the way, Ree's Christmas Rum Cake... yum. Just thought you should know.

Winter

2008-12-17T17:04:00.002-06:00

Well, it's that time of year when the weather turns cold, road conditions get bad, and everyone is out and about. With parties to attend, gifts to buy and wrap, treats to make, and decorations to hang, most people have little time left to spend enjoying a mug of hot chocolate as they watch the snow fall. Many people become so involved with commercial things that they don't enjoy what we naturally have.

Sayings like ''Merry Christmas'' and ''Peace on earth'' are written and said everywhere, but although it might be merry, Christmas is anything but peaceful.

And on the day after Christmas, people flood the stores to find bargains. By New Years Eve, we have become so cranky and exhausted that we don't bother staying up 'til midnight, unless we have to.

And then comes February, when everybody gets cabin fever, and wishes it was Spring. The holidays are over and there isn't anything to look forward to.

So I would encourage you to go sit down near a window with a cup of hot chocolate and watch the snow. If it's not snowing, put out some seed and watch the birds. Just take some time to relax and think. It will be worth it.

Snowed in

2008-12-14T13:55:00.003-06:00

We're getting a "blizzard" today... I don't suspect it will amount to much this far south of the lake, but we'll see. Loren has made it into work for the night and will stay until the roads are clear. The snow will be followed by some Minnesota cold. I thank God that we're as prepared as can be to stay safe and cozy here at home.

I've got one sick child all bundled up and sleeping it off in the other room. Hopefully we won't pass the germs around with the Christmas cheer.

Now it's time to shut down the computers, put on some Christmas music, clean the house, and make some goodies. Fun!

I feel so special!

2008-12-11T12:01:00.002-06:00

We have a pileated woodpecker who has included our place as part of his hangout. Actually, we probably have a pair. I just haven't seen them together yet.

This picture shows how much bigger they are than downy woodpeckers.

Long ago and far away

2008-12-09T16:40:00.002-06:00

In a state called Kentucky, there lived a little family of four. There was Mom, Dad, Toby, Lynae. Mom and Dad wanted their son and daughter to have some more siblings, so one day, they all sat down in the living room and discussed foster care.
''It might just be for a little while, or they might stay with us forever.'' said Mom, ''Either way, you would have someone else to play with all the time.''
''You mean we could like, go to the post office with them, and play outside with them, and stuff?'' asked Toby.
''Yup, sure could!'' said Dad, who had been sitting quietly.
''Yeah!'' said Lynae, '' That would be cool, cuz' then I could be a big sister!'' who was the baby of the family.
So the next two years were full of classes and exams and paperwork, until finally one day they received a call from a social worker. A half hour later a car came rolling down the driveway, and the social worker and a little boy got out. The social worker proceeded to take a baby boy out and talk to Mom while Toby and Lynae showed the toddler all around the house.

Since that day, we took in their little sister (who was born after the boys came to us), adopted all three, and hauled them up to Minnesota. The novelty of being a big sister has worn off, and I sometimes find myself wondering what it would have been like if we hadn't adopted, but I love all three of my little siblings more than ever, and find it hard to believe that they've been a part of the family for over seven years already.

Back in business

2008-12-06T20:41:00.002-06:00

This is a picture of a pine marten. I got it off Google. You will want to look back at this picture if you have never seen a pine marten before.
I have not been blogging too much recently because I've been on Trap Talk. Where friends hang out and talk about stuff. Well, as some of my readers may have guessed, I put some stuff in my profile when I logged in. One of the things I put in my profile was that I do some taxidermy. And since this is a place where trappers hang out, there were some people needing some taxidermy done.

So a few weeks ago I started getting customers. My first one came in the mail yesterday. It is a beautiful pine marten from Alaska. So as soon as I get the supplies I need, I will be mounting it in my new fur room.

Pyrex explosion

2008-12-06T19:06:00.002-06:00

I just heard a loud noise in my oven. The Pyrex pan I had supper in was broken into dozens of pieces. Thankfully, I was cooking large items and not a casserole or something, which would be even messier to clean up!

I'm also thankful that tonight, I did something I NEVER do: I prepared two chicken dishes for supper. So we will still be able to eat a hearty meal. I even wondered, as I prepared them, why I was doing such a strange thing (for me). I'm so glad I followed the urging of the Holy Spirit!

Toby jammin' Part 2

2008-11-30T09:06:00.003-06:00

I think this is my current favorite. I know when I was younger, the kind of love this song is about is exactly what I needed... and Loren was strong enough to give it to me. And then came Toby, making it all even sweeter. But enough sappiness... enjoy.

Toby jammin'

2008-11-30T02:30:00.001-06:00

Enjoy!

Hey, God, thanks for that 2x4

2008-11-29T14:57:00.002-06:00

I've known for nearly three years that Jon would be getting braces for a tooth that hasn't come down. He's supposed to get them put on next Tuesday.

Honestly, we deal with emotional fallout from so many unusual things, we often find it best to be matter-of-fact about all that we can. Braces turned out to be one of those things. We briefly discussed it during our last appointment, and then moved on to something else. I'm such a lousy mom. Thanksgiving night we were playing Apples to Apples, and he played his "braces" card for the word "awful". He mentioned that on the card, it says he can't eat corn on the cob, which is one of his favorite foods. (I didn't know that, either... it seems to me they're ALL his favorite.) DUH, ya think he might actually have thoughts and feelings on the subject of braces? Unfortunately, in his communication with me these past few weeks, those thoughts and feelings took a back burner to his hatred of me and the rules of this house and how I discipline his sister unfairly and why I should stop feeding him and why the heck do I keep him around, anyway, besides the fact that I love him? I did well to remain calm and continue loving him and feeding him and disciplining his sister, not once stopping to discuss braces.

Today, it finally hit me that I should maybe look into what he can and can't eat, hygiene issues, etc.

Now I feel sorry for the little guy. Some of his stocking stuffers will need to change. And I'm guessing he's going to be pretty sore for a while, and may not be up for the big day of shopping and errands we have planned for Tuesday.

I'm thankful that God hit me with this ahead of time, so I can at least be a little prepared. And maybe the last-minute sympathy is a good thing, too. I just hope it doesn't mean I'm as lousy a mom to him as I sometimes think I am.

Catching weasels.

2008-11-29T09:21:00.002-06:00

This is me with my first two weasels of the season. I caught them in the same day. As you can see, the one on the right is a lot bigger than the one on the left. They were so different in size, the small one stretched shorter than most small weasels do, even on a slender stretcher, while the large one stretched longer than most large ones do on a wide stretcher.

I'm glad it's almost over

2008-11-28T22:55:00.000-06:00

Just as I thought, there's a good reason why I don't normally blog every day. In this season of life, I don't have much to say. I know enough about my beliefs and opinions to recognize those with which I agree or disagree, for the most part. But it seems that thoughts of my own are hard to grab onto.

I chalk it up to stress and mental atrophy, mostly. The real question is whether it concerns me enough to change it. The answer that occurs to me first is that I've got more pressing problems. But if I'm not a thinker, how do I expect to deal with those problems?

Then again, I'm often told I think too much.

(sigh)

I'm glad November is nearly over.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T10:14:00.000-06:00

I hope you have a wonderful day, full of awareness of the blessings that surround you.

It's beginning to look a lot like Thanksgiving

2008-11-26T15:03:00.002-06:00

Pies are done.
Rolls are rising.
Mashed potatoes and butternut squash are ready.
Cranberry sauce looks gorgeous.

I must admit, even though I've been making mashed potatoes for 17 years, I couldn't resist the urge to stop halfway through mashing and find out how Ree makes 'em. I don't know what I did before finding her... I do know cooking wasn't nearly so fun.

As an added bonus on the ta-da list, my first Etsy order is in the mail.

After rebooting the laundry and getting out the special holiday dishes, I'll be kicking back with a ~~bottle~~ glass of white zin and watching a video.

Time to bake the pies

2008-11-25T23:10:00.000-06:00

I should've been baking pies earlier. Instead, I was playing computer games:

The Eyeballing Game
Fantastic Contraption
Bridges

Plus I spent far too much time on Facebook.

Time to go make apple, pumpkin, and pecan pies, and maybe some rolls, too. Good thing I got a nap!

A real, live cake wreck!

2008-11-24T22:01:00.002-06:00

We've started cruising the bakery corner when we get our groceries, now that we've discovered the hilarity of Cake Wrecks. Tonight we found one so deliciously awful, Lynae just had to run out to the truck for her camera.

Comment away... you know you want to!

Thanks to God

2008-11-23T13:23:00.002-06:00

Here is a lovely old hymn we sang in church this morning. You can listen to the melody at cyberhymnal.

Thanks to God for my Redeemer,
Thanks for all Thou dost provide.
Thanks for times now but a memory,
Thanks for Jesus by my side.
Thanks for pleasant, balmy springtime,
Thanks for dark and stormy fall.
Thanks for tears by now forgotten,
Thanks for peace within my soul.

Thanks for prayers that Thou hast answered,
Thanks for what Thou dost deny.
Thanks for storms that I have weathered,
Thanks for all Thou dost supply.
Thanks for pain, and thanks for pleasure,
Thanks for comfort in despair.
Thanks for grace that none can measure,
Thanks for love beyond compare.

Thanks for roses by the wayside,
Thanks for thorns their stems contain.
Thanks for home and thanks for fireside,
Thanks for hope, that sweet refrain.
Thanks for joy and thanks for sorrow,
Thanks for heavenly peace with Thee.
Thanks for hope in the tomorrow,
Thanks through all eternity.