Charlie's First Snow

Isn't he just adorable? :)

Creative Kids

Anna read in a book about "Ice Cream" and how to make it. So it was a very handy thing that it snowed today. :)
She took a little heavy whipping cream, a little sugar, a tsp of vanilla extract and SNOW....
She mixed it up, and it was really delicious! Of course, we made sure she picked her snow from a good place where no cat or goat had been. :)
She now understands what "Don't eat yellow snow" means.

I think she is proud of her creation!

Giving Erika a taste.... she just woke up. :)I think she likes it!
Now it is Sarah's turn.
The ice cream gets a Thumbs up! :)

Thanks Anna, we all enjoyed your creation!

SNOW!

My Very First Award

Thanks Diana :)

Are We Missing The Point?

I have been thinking about the subject of "Sex Education", and how it is taught. Every family is different. Some families are very open, some never mention it and leave it up to the schools.
In Mike's case, his dad left a book in his top drawer, where he knew Mike would snoop, and would then become "educated". LOL

I remember my mom asking me if I had any questions. I didn't. I didn't want to talk about it with her. I didn't know what "IT" was anyway..... she insisted on telling me, and then I was grossed out.
And there was no more discussion. I was only left humiliated again and again and she retold the story of my response to her explanation of where we came from. . "Do you mean you did that 3 times???"
eeewwwww!

Ok, it was a funny statement. But I didn't know it then.

By the time I was in high school, "Sex Education" was really more about contraception and venereal disease. There was no discussion on marriage or being set apart for 1 partner. It was only about body fluids and function.
And the BIGGIE! How to prevent a disaster! What was the disaster? Not sexual intercourse before marriage, not the emotional damage caused by multiple relationships and partners.... NO! It was the most awful thing that could happen of all! It was the ending of youth. It was the ending of LIFE ITSELF! It.... it was.... It was a BABY! AHHHHHHH!!!!!!

How sad when you think about it. A baby, was presented as the ruiner of life. A baby was presented as strapped on, excess baggage to be mourned and gotten rid of.

This got me to thinking long ago about how to present the long handed down information of reproduction and how God intends our families to be created.

If we only teach our children that the reason to refrain from sexual intercourse is to keep from having a disease or having a baby, we are doing a HUGE disservice to them. All that is going to teach them is to have sex carefully, and with contraceptive protection.
It will not teach them about the values in Scripture that say that Fornication is wrong.
It is sin.

We told our boys that God has reasons for forbidding fornication. They are to prepare us to be separate, and in self control. They are to prepare us for the spouse that God has chosen for us. They are there to prepare us for a family in HIS timing, not our own.
There is much reward spiritually, for following God's plan.

1. Becoming one with a spouse and NO guilt. No hiding. No shame.
2. No regrets.

It is an amazing thing to look back and have no regrets. I have never talked with anybody who had sexual experiences before marriage, without some regret, or emotional baggage.

I want to teach my children that God knows what is best for His Children and that a baby is never, EVER a burden, an albatross, or a punishment.

Teaching sex education to our girls is very different from teaching it to our boys.
We emphasized with our boys, how they must be responsible, turn their eyes from
temptation, and save the pleasures of marriage, for MARRIAGE.
We are teaching our girls about saving themselves for marriage, but also about not being a distraction or a tease. We are teaching them that their value is not wrapped up in acceptance from boys.
We are continuing to teach how the baby that is born in an untimely way, or out of a sinful relationship, will have undue hardship because there was no thought about the responsibility that comes with having sex. This does not mean that the baby is to blame, or should be blamed. The baby is an innocent party and is STILL a gift.

In raising our little kitten, we have had many conversations about what it is like to parent a baby. One of our girlies was feeling rather impatient, because Isabella, our kitten, was being so fidgity and fussy while feeding. I was quick to ask her, if she would be impatient if Isabella were a baby?
She thought for a moment and said, "I don't think I should be a mother!"

I told her, many mothers feel that impatience, but have to learn to not act on it. Mother's find all sorts of areas in their lives that they must turn over to the Lord and ask him to help them with.
And this is a good way for her to see areas in her life that will be challenged when she DOES want to become a mother.
So we looked at our precious Isabella in a new light. Not as an annoyance, but the gift that she is. And our daughter continued to feed her and took more time to give her the attention she needed. And in that moment, I could also tell her about how it is best for babies to have 2 parents, so they can help each other to care for the baby.
If she were having to parent the kitten all by herself, without the help of the rest of the family, just think about how stressful that could become.
Our bigger focus however, is on holiness. and why we would want to follow what God teaches us in Scripture in the first place.

As we teach our children about more mature things, we have learned to not just sit them down to throw some information at them, like giving them, "the talk", but instead, it is more like a continual ongoing natural conversation where there is much room for humor, seriousness, warning and encouragement, always directing them to the ONE who is their real guide through life. HIS plan, and HIS map book for figuring out life, is written in HIS word, the Holy Scripture.
It is so wonderful to have a book of guidance and comfort that we can turn to and glean from at the tip of our fingers.

I do pray that our children and grand children will come to understand how important their marriage relationships will be, and how there is a great plan for bringing our little blessings into our families. I also pray that they will not see sexual intimacy as the focus of their early adult years, but they will put it in its proper place in their lives.

One season at a time, is what I tell them. Right now you are in the season of childhood. Don't be so quick to want to get to the next season, but enjoy this time that God has given to you.
The same goes for the next season and the next. If we don't enjoy the seasons we are in, that is when we get into trouble trying to enter the next season before the proper time.

Erika Finished Her Drawing

She wants to design a quilt like this......
Outta my league! :)

It's Borscht Night!

We are making a steaming pot of borscht for tonight.

For Starters: I like to bake the beets in the oven, like a baked potato
so that the skins fall right off and they can be grated easily.Yikes, I need to clean my oven! :)

We will be using 2 lbs of beets baked and grated
1/3 cabbage grated
4 TLB of vegan buttery spread
2 quarts of vegetable broth
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup of shredded carrots
1 celery stalk, diced
1 small onion diced
1 can Muir Glen diced tomatoes
2 garlic cloves minced
salt and pepper to taste
chopped cilantro
sour cream (for those who are using it these days)

Saute' all the shredded stuff together with garlic and buttery spread
for about 5 minutes. Add broth and bay leaves and tomatoes
bring to a boil and then simmer for about 30-40 minutes.
add salt and pepper to taste, and cilantro
remove bay leaves
serve in bowls with a dollop of sour cream.


And now the most picky taste tester in the world!YEA! She likes it! She devoured 3 bowls full!

Thank you for viewing our dinner! :)

Anybody Ever Wonder Where Canola Oil Comes From?

Since I have been reading that Canola oil is really good for you, and it is MUCH cheaper than Olive Oil, I started using it. Then, I got to wondering, "what in the world IS Canola oil? Where does it come from?
Sooo, I googled. :)

This is what I found out!

Canola oil actually comes from the Rapeseed Plant. I'm kinda glad they changed the name, even though it is a rather pretty plant.
That had to do with the Canadians though. Canadian Oil Low Acid. Apparently, from what I read, the Canadians discovered the use of rapeseed as a great oil source.

However, the Asians have been eating the entire plant for years. They use it in cooking and for oil. The plant is part of the "mustard plant" family.
I didn't ever find out if the seeds are as small as mustard seeds. :)

The Vulnerable Among Us

This subject has been weighing heavy on my heart, before the latest fiasco in Haiti came about, with the supposed "missionaries", taking advantage of a terrible situation.

Children are our most precious gift from the Lord. Children are not given to us by accident. No life, NOT ONE is ever a mistake.
Children are also totally vulnerable to those who have been entrusted with their care.

But there is another vulnerable group. We don't often look at them.
They are the parents. They are the frightened teenager who just found out she was pregnant.
They are the poor parent, as in Haiti, who's home has fallen down. They are the poor peasant in Russia who's life is hard, and they have little money. They are the parents who's child will be born with a disability.

There are many vulnerable times in the life time of a parent, where in the timing of a tragedy, or perceived tragedy, a coerced decision is made under pressure. Everybody knows, you shouldn't make a financial decision under pressure, with the smiling salesman wanting you to sign on the dotted line so you can drive home in a dream car.
The same should be for the parent who is pressured to make lifelong decisions, not only for their own life, but for the life of their child.

Why is it automatically assumed or accepted that a young mother, if she is single, should just give her baby away? In a perfect world, it is of course a best situation for a baby to have a mother and a father.... but we don't live in that world.
In a perfect world, it would also be nice to buy your baby designer clothes and make sure a swimming pool and horseback riding lessons were are on the future agenda, but for 99% of the world, that just isnt' the case.

So does that mean that 99% of the world, isn't fit to parent and only the richest that live among us should be allowed to raise children?

That seems to be the attitude of the "missionaries" who took children in Haiti. They actually approached parents who had children and told them that THEY would give them a better life, promising education, housing and even a swimming pool! (according to Wall St. Journal Article) Tragically, parents who were already
traumatized from the last couple of weeks, gave their children to this group, with the understanding they would probably never see them again. The children were sad and crying and didn't want to be away from their parents.
Could you imagine strangers coming up to your parents and doing this, and being handed over to a stranger to go to another country?

Children are not THINGS. They are connected to their parents. They LOVE their parents.
If these people were really "missionaries", why didn't they go to Haiti and offer to help the parents with food and shelter so that they could rebuild their lives? Why did they not preach the gospel to the parents?

What about the teenage mother? If she wants to keep her baby, which many DO; why do we not help the family? Why do we not help her to stay in school, finish her education and give her aide in taking care of her baby, until she can get on her own two feet? There are many wonderful young mothers who have raised their children well. Not every teenager who gets pregnant is a party queen. One such young lady I know of just got married to a wonderful man. Her daughter was in the wedding and was so excited to be getting a daddy.

I am bothered by the agencies who cater to richer couples who cannot have children, that seem to have a steady stream of young girls who give their babies for adoption. I saw a documentary on this, and I was apauled at the "counseling" given. It was more like a pressure session to convince a girl for 7 months that she would not be able to parent this baby and give the baby all it deserved, making her feel selfish for wanting to keep the baby.
It is NOT SELFISH to want to keep your own baby. It just isn't.
It would be selfish to not take care of your baby. But if you want to parent your own child, that is not a selfish act. It is a sacrificial act.

I am disheartened to find out that there are unscrupulous agencies working world wide to get parents to give children up for adoption, and this is really bothersome. We have enough REAL orphans in the world, without creating an "orphan industry".

How pompous of us to tell somebody they are selfish to keep their own baby if they are poor.
I was in that very position many years ago. My family stepped up and helped me through a very difficult period of time. But what if instead, somebody had told me I was selfish for keeping my children? How horrible to do to somebody!
Adoption is a WONDERFUL thing under the right conditions. Of course we have been blessed by adoption. But I would be horrified if I felt my girls had been sent to an orphanage out of coerscion.
And what about the guilt of the birth mother who is pressured to the breaking point? What about the child who has all the questions about why?
Adoption has more than one face. It is about LOSS AND GAIN. Because of somebody else's loss, we have gain, yet our children always have that loss in their history.

If we REALLY want to help families.... then help them stay intact FIRST.
Then the children who really need adoption services can be helped and we won't be creating a business built upon greed, heartache and disaster.

A Very Sweet Gift

From A Very Sweet Friend. :)

Isn't this totally cool? It is a Ya-Ya Fan, from Bulgaria! :)
Thanks so much Jeane. :) My friend, as busy as she is, found this when she was adopting her latest 2 babies in Bulgaria. I feel so blessed to know her. She has taught me so much.
Check out her blog here.

Introducing Isabella

With her eyes wide open!
She is so adorable. She will be 3 weeks old on Wednesday. She loves her mama's Erika, Anna and Sarah, and her Ya-Ya too. :)

A New Month! Already!

To start off our school mornings, we have letter writing or art. The girls simply love a book JJ gave to them last year. We have used it again and again. Today, Erika and Sarah chose art, and Anna chose to write a letter to a friend.

We also talk about the new month. I was making sure they were spelling FebRuary, correctly, and got the response back, our calendar says "Februbeary"?????

Of course it does, they got the calendar from Build a Bear. LOL

Sarah Hit the Big 60!!!!

Sarah was promised a few months ago, that when she hit 60 lbs, we would head for Chuckee Cheese to celebrate! She has such an active little body, and eats like a peanut about a million times a day.
Her food choices are fabulous, but not quite the types of food that would make one gain weight. LOL
She LOVES vegetables and fruits and fresh grains. For breakfast, eating a cucumber is her idea of wonderful. :)

Soooo, she is still pretty tiny for a 10 year old.

She has worked very hard at ignoring mom slipping whole heavy cream in her milk, and giving her extra butter for her bread. And finally, this week, she weighed 60 for the whole week!

So, she ran around Chuckee Cheese like a little ping pong ball, and managed to eat 2 pieces of pizza in the process! Good Girl!

Mom and Dad, Katie, Erika and Anna, enjoyed the trip and playing a few games too. :)


Here she is in her new favorite Ice Skating Pose.,...

Way to go Sarah!

The Confusing Label.... continued

Before I blogged about Walmart's "naturally gluten free" sauce that possibly contains wheat.
The front label says, "a naturally gluten free food", but on the back, the newest label says, "possibly contains traces of wheat". THAT is NOT gluten free!

So today, I was more careful. I really am picky about where my food comes from. I always assumed, since tomatoes are so easy to grow in the South, and Bentonville Arkansas is where the food is prepared, it would seem I was eating Arkansas tomatoes.... but no.... my tomatoes are coming from CHINA! I won't drink apple juice that is not fresh, because IT comes from China, and now the tomatoes come from China too?

Wow, we have gone from electronics to apple juice and tomatoes!

Better yet, I LOVE chinese spices but have shied away from them because of where they come from. But today, I was eying this chili sauce. I looked to see where it was from, mind you, most of the label is in another language..... it is made in the U.S.A..... it doesn't say where it gets the Chili from, but it is certainly made in the U.S.A. LOL
Who would have thought?

How convenient that it is time to get ready for gardening..... I think tomatoes will be at the top of our list!

A New Year, A New Beginning

Several years ago, I was a vegetarian. I became a vegetarian, because I was having trouble with possible MS. I say "possible", because the Doctor was 99.9% sure, but to be 100%, he wanted me to have an MRI done, and we couldn't afford it. We had already spent ENOUGH....

My doctor wanted to send me to a Neurologist, and he wanted me to start on a steroid.
I ran the other way to an alternative doctor.
He too thought I had MS, and started me on a special diet. He said it would take 6 months before I felt different.
He was right. It took 2 years to feel fairly normal.

Looking back, I had these unexplained episodes about every 5 years that got worse and worse with time.
Some lingering things always stayed; like dizziness, and vision problems.

The last BIG attack I had was in 2000. So, I have been overdue.
Well, I got all big for my britches and went off my diet for a long time.
I started having issues again, and went Gluten free 3 years ago.

That wasn't enough.
I really needed go back to the other way of eating.

Last week, an unrelated issue popped up..... my blood pressure was out of control. It was SCARY out of control, and I wound up calling our new doctor late that night.
I really like this guy. He actually answers his phone!
He told me to go to bed. He would see me in the a.m.
When I went in, he told me he felt that I really needed to go back on my old diet, but he wanted me to be gluten free and VEGAN!
So, I'm studying up on this.... and I'm finding some really delicious ways to prepare healthy foods for my family.

I have had a great 5 days of Veganism. :)
Did you know you can take black beans, brown rice, portabella mushrooms, garlic and onions, and mash them all together to make a really great burger patty?

I sauteed the mushrooms and onions in olive oil, and then added them to the mashed beans and brown rice. Formed them into patties and cooked them with a little canola oil.
Everybody loved them.
I also found out there is a rice mozzarella cheese substitute, and I used it to make gluten free pizza last night. I topped it with tomato slices, onions, olives and mushrooms. Delicious!

It is a little harder to figure stuff out, but I think we can do it!

My cheat day will be Friday night, so I can have a little coke with my pizza. Other than that, I really think I can do this! :)

Guess Who's Birthday Is Coming Up?

And yup.... it is the big one.... :)

Sarah Has A New Blog

My they are growing up! Sarah asked for a blog too.... I think blogs are great ways to teach typing and writing skills. However, I do try to refrain from correcting too much. LOL

So, Sarah's blog is now in my side bar. It is called "Sarah the Dreamer". Her profile is just about right. LOL
We were watching the ice skating where the girls put their legs up behind their heads while twirling on the ice.... (looks very uncomfortable to me) .... and Sarah has had this stuck in her head for days.
Well, while we were at the grocery store the other day, I was studying labels, and turned around to find her posing in the aisle with her leg up not quite to her head, but not far, her back arched, perfect little nose in the air and her hand in one of those balet poses. Then I saw this man that was going the other direction sort of amused at the block in the aisle. LOL

"Ummm Sarah, you're blocking traffic"...... For her, she was far away in a distant land floating on ice and hearing the crowds cheer.... Then she woke up and we were at Sprouts. :)

A New Feature

I just added a search feature to my blog. I am awful about labeling.....
I really like it. AND... I found this old post that I had forgotten about.
It relates to adoption, and since I'm on an adoption band wagon right now,
it wouldn't hurt to read it again. :)

Human Children, Hello!

A Gluten Free Label Rant

I have been gluten free now for over 3 years. It has transformed my digestive system and I am committed to being gluten free and not careless in my grocery purchases.

So, for a long time, I had found gluten free products at walmart. I wasn't thrilled with the sugar they put in tomato sauce, but hey, it was guaranteed gluten free. So now, the VERY SAME BRAND, with a new label, says at the bottom, "Naturally Gluten Free", but if you read the entire label, it says "manufactured in a plant that also processes wheat"..... ummmm, so how can it be gluten free? Oh I see, it is a "naturally gluten free food" before they process it.
Yea, I can grow a tomato and guarantee it is gluten free in its natural state....

This kind of labeling makes me crazy mad! They are messing with my life here..... I want to feel good. There have been several times that I have cooked and eaten food and then thought, I think I just had gluten, but couldn't figure it out..... I just wonder if the products have always had traces of gluten and now the labels match the truth?
I saw this same sort of label on Blue Diamond rice crackers. It shouts gluten free on the front of the box, but on the side of the box it states, that the crackers are made in a place that also manufactures products with wheat.

I wish folks would stop trying to get in on the gluten free market without being honest and wreaking havoc on millions of intestines across the nation!

Gluten FREE should mean EXACTLY THAT! No wheat, anywhere nearby, no glutens ANYWHERE nearby to cause a gluten free person harm.

On a good note: I am drinking a fabulous roasted tomato pepper soup made from Pacific Natural Foods.
Great taste and GUARANTEED gluten free!

Does anybody know of any tomato sauce that is guaranteed gluten free?
I would hate to have to grow and can that many tomatoes! Not with this shoulder anyway.

Adopting Older Children

Most people who are in the adoption community know about the grim statistics of children who age out of the orphanages in Easter European Countries. Many of us shudder at what would have happened to our children, had they not become a part of our families.

But did you know that the statistics right here in the United States are not that much better?
Did you know that fewer than 50 % of teens in the foster care system are operating at grade level, and fewer than 3% of kids who age out of the system go on to get a college degree?

There are children who are released from Foster Care at the age of 18, with no visible means of support, no bank account and nowhere to go.
This doesn't sound too much different than what we read about in other countries.

We have adopted from Ukraine AND we have adopted from the United States foster care system. And I cannot imagine what would have happened to our precious daugthers if they didn't have a family.
Many people feel that they cannot adopt in Ukraine or Russia due to the extensive costs.

If you heart is wanting to adopt and bring a child into your family, please, PLEASE consider the Foster Care system. There are many children who need permenant homes. I know of many who will say, that when they read the files, all of the kids have problems. Well, just because Eastern Europe doesn't mention problems doesn't mean the children there are perfect and the children here are messed up.
OF COURSE they are going to have some issues. But these issues are there because of the lack of a normal family life. Much of the issues these children have are due to neglect and abuse.

pictures from heart gallery in N.Texas

There is a huge difference in cost when adopting in the U.S. An organization who is working hard to get children into permenant homes is called "Heart Gallery". Check out the Hart Gallery near you, and consider opening your home to a new family member. If you have any spare bedrooms, please consider filling those rooms with love and laughter.

Are you too old? Probably not. You can adopt in the U.S. until you are 63~!! :)