Going My Way, Sailor?

I sure hope so!



Kind of reminds me of my other favorite sailor.

The Headboard

Let's just say I finished it. It's not perfect. It's not how I would do it were I to do it again. But it's a headboard.

Safety First

Favorite Pastimes

"Art"

Another stellar photograph taken by yours truly.



If you can get past the blurriness and the off-centeredness, you will see our newest piece of fine art. This is a floor puzzle I got on clearance at Pottery Barn Kids for around $5! It was so cute that I decided to bust out my good friend, Mod Podge! I used it to glue the puzzle to a piece of plywood and then covered the top of the puzzle with it as well. If you have not discovered the wonder of Mod Podge, get yourself to Hobby Lobby today and buy some. You will thank me later.



I like the way it turned out! And I like that it was cheap. That makes it even cuter to me.

Special thanks to Mr. Rives who willingly does the grunt work for my projects. In this case, it was cutting wood and then figuring out the best way to attach hangers and hang it. I come up with half-baked ideas and he makes them happen--we are a perfect match!

What's One More?

So I decided to start a new blog. There are a million of these out there but I wanted one to record my journey as well as compile a list of sites and blogs that I find useful. Keep in mind--it's still very much under construction!

I am making you aware of it, not because I have it all figured out and would now like to impart my wisdom to you, but because I'm really enjoying this process of becoming...shall we say "unprocessed"-- and would like to keep track of it and share it as well. And sharing is fun (at least that's what I tell Asher.) I'm not an expert and I'm not really offering anything that you couldn't find somewhere else (and done better!) Nevertheless, such as I have, give I thee.

My plan is to make note of all of the information, recipes, tips, and major life-changing epiphanies that I run across. Ok, probably not a whole lot of that last one, but still...it may be worth your time to occassionally drop by.

And, as always, I heartily welcome your comments, questions, and even vile criticisms. But let's keep that last one to a minimum, shall we?

Did I Mention Jude is Walking?

He is. Just a few steps at a time. He takes two or three and then Asher dashes passed him and he resorts to crawling to catch up. And he requires lots of clapping. Lots. We oblige.

Lewis Nails It (as usual)

During my afternoon "meditations,"—which I at least attempt quite regularly now—I have found out ludicrous and terrible things about my own character. Sitting by, watching the rising thoughts to break their necks as they pop up, one learns to know the sort of thoughts that do come.

And, will you believe it, one out of every three is the thought of self-admiration: when everything else fails, having had its neck broken, up comes the thought "what an admirable fellow I am to have broken their necks!" I catch myself posturing before the mirror, so to speak, all day long. I pretend I am carefully thinking out what to say to the next pupil (for his good, of course) and then suddenly realize I am really thinking how frightfully clever I'm going to be and how he will admire me...

And then when you force yourself to stop it, you admire yourself for doing that. It is like fighting the hydra... There seems to be no end to it. Depth under depths of self-love and self-admiration. (quoted in The Narnian by Alan Jacobs, 133)

And then Piper nails it some more (as usual)

Humility senses that humility is a gift beyond our reach. If humility is the product of reaching, then we will instinctively feel proud about our successful reach. Humility is the gift that receives all things as gift. It is the fruit not of our achievement but of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22). It is the fruit of the gospel—knowing and feeling that we are desperate sinners and that Christ is a great and undeserved Savior.

Humility is the one grace in all our graces that, if we gaze on it, becomes something else. It flourishes when the gaze is elsewhere—on the greatness of the grace of God in Christ.

(HT: Desiring God blog)

In Which Asher Crosses off "play in the rain" from his "Childhood Memories to Acquire" List

In the Interest of Full Disclosure:

I ate 2 bean burritos from Taco Bell last night. And Asher ate a taco. Just keeping it real.

New Phase or New Me?

By now, most of you are probably ready for me to move on dot org with my whole "I finally figured out that eating crap is a bad idea" series and find something new to write about.

Soon, but not yet. I found this interesting post today and wanted to get your thoughts.

I find myself in the same place as this blogger. I have eliminated all packaged and heavily processed foods from our diet. I buy mostly organic produce (with emphasis on avoiding the "dirty dozen.") With just a few exceptions, I am making all of our food. And to be honest, it costs a lot more. We have reworked our budget to accommodate these new changes. We moved money from the "entertainment/eating out" category to "grocery" and I still find myself having to put things back when I am shopping.

I'm in the process of figuring out the best ways to spend our money. For example, my current rule of thumb is that I buy organic produce that isn't in season but that we aren't quite ready to give up yet in the interest of eating "in season only" foods, like lettuce or carrots or apples, at the grocery store. There is a local organic co-op where I could buy these things, but they are shipping them in too and the overhead at HEB is much lower so they cost less there.

But for seasonal items, I have found it more cost-effective to order a "share" of produce. You don't get to choose what you get but I like having some choices made for me. I would like to, one day, eat entirely seasonally, but I'll climb that hill another day. Or year.

That's just one area I'm attempting to order. I'd love to hear any tips you have for what you buy or how you buy it.

It isn't cheap to eat real food. But I do see it as an investment. And an obligation. And a pleasure actually.

Say What?

Yep--I baked! On my quest to take more responsibility for what goes in the food that goes in my family, I made oatmeal raisin cookies and graham crackers and they both turned out pretty good.

My little taste-testers approved. I would say neither one has what you might call a discriminating palette, but I was still happy to see them gobble them up.





Want one?



The graham crackers are a little more labor-intensive than what I normally care for, but comparing the ingredients in these to a box at the store makes me willing to invest a little more time. And, it must be said, moderation is key. Just because they aren't processed doesn't mean I let my kids fill up on them. Kris Rives, however, did fill up on them. And now I need to make more.


ps--I did make a few changes to the cookie recipe: I subbed 1/2 of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat flour and I used turbinado instead of granulated sugar. On the crackers, I followed directions EXACTLY and even measured by weight, not volume. Alton Brown would be proud.

You Know What They Say About Desperate Times...

Or Tip #41 in Jamie's Guide to Surviving and Thriving with 2 Little Boys

Sometimes you do you what you gotta do to have a quiet ride home. $.54 bought me two ice cream cones and a reprieve from tears and whining--priceless for a mama who just wrangled two wired-up and worn-out little boys solo at a wedding reception.





Yes, I let my kids eat an ice cream cone in the car. Yes, it was a bribe. Yes, I had trespassed upon their good graces by cutting nap time too short and then requiring a modicum of good behavior at a wedding we attended. Bad call.

Lesson learned. Got some ice cream in the process. No permanent damage done (I hope.)