Memorial Day

Re-Occurring thoughts on the day.

I think next year we will craft red poppies and pass them out. Oh, Lord...prompt my heart to do so.

To My Love,
A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.
Psalm 68:5
Love,
Me

Re-Constructed Tees

I've linked to her a few times before because I think she's really cool.

It's strange...sometimes when Christine blogs about stuff...we are living the very same stuff over here in our neck of the woods.

So weird.

Here's a mini tutorial on our reconstructed tees.
Cut the armpits out and either leave the neck the way it is...or cut it into a deep v or a swoop.


Use the armpits to make patches.


Add buttons to the patches.

911

I asked Zion to draw what she knows about the events of 911.


Isn't it amazing?!?!?!?!?! She wasn't even born yet...when the attack came...and somehow...it's part of her experience/memory.

The fabric of our shared memories...woven by a WEAVER.  So powerful.

Balsamic Avocado

Great snack. Good fat.

Roasted Chicken W/ Garlic Spinach & Rosemary Potatos

The potatoes come out super tender when I cook them in the microwave. A drizzle of olive oil...sea salt and pepper...fresh rosemary...Heaven on earth.

Antipasto

The thing I love about antipasto is that there's no wrong way to do it. Add what you want.

Antipasto means......??????????????

"Before the pasta." Whole wheat w/whatever sauce.

Another breakfast idea.



I've been dying to do melon sprinkled w/lime and chopped mint...but didn't have any in the house...so the kids got plain old melon.

Nothing fancy...but I do try to make whatever I'm serving look "pretty." Or at least, "somewhat pretty." For some reason...I think that's important...growing up surrounded by daily attempts at beauty...reaches for beauty.

Caprese

Breakfast.

Some people like theirs w/balsamic sprinkled over the top. I prefer mine w/out. Make sure your mozzarella and basil are fresh.

You may or may not know that Zion Evangeline has recently announced her future intentions. She want to be an actress.

I found her practicing a very dramatic acceptance speech.

"Thank you very much for this wonderful award....for this very very shiny crystaly (sp?) sparkly shiny award."

LOL it's a cross from our china cabinet. Lord, help us.

Veronica. Veronica. Veronica. Raw. Real. Transparent. Funny. Lovely. Sunshine.

What an honor to celebrate the upcoming arrival of her daughter, Isabella.

Blessings are bestowed by a giver. Praising the Giver of Life for the gift of life.





It got me to thinking...am I handling my gifts...given by The Giver well? Lord, I need Your help daily. Thank you for Your faithfulness.

Summer must be close because Zion's wearing shades....


....and Bradley's hanging them.

Sauteed Mushrroms w/Garlic, and Rosemary

I do not have finicky kids. They eat just about anything and everything I prepare. And, I am big on veggies. My kids love them. All five of them love every veggie you can name. I seriously do not think there is one they do not like.


Exercise those palettes, Moms so that they grow into sophisticated ones.

Sauteed Snap Peas w/Garlic and Soy Sauce

One of my life's loves is food. I am a food lover. A lover of food.

Over the years...I have had many people tell me that they enjoy my blogged food/recipe ideas. If you know me well...you know I never ever follow a recipe...(unless it's baking we are talking about...and even then...I tend to wing it.)

As a stay at home mom of five...I know how challenging it can be to come up w/new ideas...so through this blog....I pass along peeks into our kitchen.



Perfect side dish or snack.

Look at what I found @ Savers for $2.99! It's in mint condition too.

Happy Flower Designs

Proud of Jemima Bakytgul as she sets up her little cottage industry. Her shop is beautiful and business is booming.

Turkey Patties w/ Black Beans

Ephesians 6

...and......
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

1st Peter 5:8

Boys were out and about.

Had to grab this from Jana's blog. Our home-fellowship kids. 7 years living life together and counting.

Plan B

The boys and a few of their friends are stuck safe and sound in a Beaumont hotel w/ a radiator problem. Lord willing, the issue will be resolved in the morning and they will be on their way. If not...He's got other plans.... which are not their own....and because they are His...He will be faithful to reveal what He has in store for them.


And because they are His....they will submit and obey.


And, here's the advice I give to my big boy 18 year old re: the Beaumont Breakdown/car fiasco.......

"Son, write what you know."

_____________________________

We were w/a pastor friend of ours when the back and forth "we need help we're on the side of the road w/hobos harrassing us and the bandaid fix didn't work so now it's getting late and we need to sleep somewhere" phone calls were coming in.

Heath's wisdom w/a chuckle....

"It's an adventure."

_____________________________

Braverijah's faceook staus:
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds.

Mcabe's:
What a chill night!

_____________________________

A long time ago I realized little god BIG PROBLEM....BIG GOD little problem. Still believe it...it's just sometimes easy to not trust that truth immediately.

Lord, thank You that the circumstances of our lives never take You by surprise. Thank You for what You allow...thank You for what You purpose.

Our Supreme Court

Some people are more politically inclined than others...but it's not really a justifiable option in my mind at least...for Christ followers to remain in an ignorant place regarding what's going on in that realm.

This is an interesting article and it made me think of this one.

Happy B-Day, Jules

I was 16...she was 14.....

I am 43....she is 41. Today!

Red Dawnish

Steer clear...if you are Peta ish.

And so soon after my "love of rabbits" post too.....

________________________________

Mcabe calls me down to the kitchen. "Come NOW!"

That translates in my world...to "BRING YOUR CAMERA!"

_________________________________
I swear, all I could think of was the film, Red Dawn. If it ever comes down to it....we will be fine.

Every platoon needs comic relief...and a negotiator...the guy who can talk his way out of the tightest of tight spots.


We got food....via the hunter and gatherer.



Josh, the guy w/the camera is a nurse in training...so he will be the in camp medic...taking care of all our wounded.


Michael, the one w/the curly hair will be the "gadget guy." The one who manages the "free radio" system.

Chinese Tea Ceremony

I'm telling you...we have the COOLEST library ever!




Learning Chinese characters.

Winding down w/ a good ole round of Head Shoulders Knees & Toes in our leader's native tongue.

Nigerian Princess

Years ago...we bought this book for the Johnson library....




This week...a friend of theirs... a Nigerian princess came to read it to the kids. A real honest to goodness princess!

The Lord is so fabulous. I love the way He brings people into Zion's life who love rabbits so that she can experience the love of rabbits.

So this is what a co-op looks like at lunchtime.

Treading on Holy ground over here. So much prayer cover coveted.

We ain't what we ought to be, we ain't what
we gonna be, we ain't what we wanta be, but thank God, we ain't what we
was.-Amen-Anynomous


from Gwen :)

Not my eldest...but my first born.

Joel 2:25

Google Calvin's commentary and then....let the Holy Spirit do His convicting work.

"And I will restore to you the years that the locust has eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you."

Babies

Quiet. Gentle. A peek into four cultures/families.

Maybe a bit slow paced for our drive-thru culture, but not for me.

There was non erotic boob stuff...so if you are hyper sensitive or weird...stay home...... and never visit Namibia if you'll be frequenting himba huts......be a peeping Tom in a tightly compacted Japanese high rise........stumble across a nomadic Mongolian mom w/ her baby in a yurt.....or live next door to mother earth loving skinny dippers in San Francisco.

We laughed out loud numerous times. Even the kids.

The take away from Galilee..."We are all so different but I guess we're the same too."
______________________________________

Me: What did you think of that movie?
Zion: It wasn't a movie...it was a documentary.
Me: What did you think of that documentary?
Zion: I loved it. And.........each baby has meeeeeeanness.
Me: Which means?
Zion: Each baby is sinful.

______________________________________

From Jemima, "Oh, I learned a lesson! All babies are created equal."


Ending song by Sufjan Stevens.

Very cool.

Adoption Stories

So this looks great.

HA! Home-educating moms will get a KICK OUT OF THIS! Check out Galilee's latest blog post...especially the comment from the IEW master himself. She is in shock.

Be still my heart. What a sight to wake up to.

We love Mexican food over here. Fish Tacos especially. To die for!

One Race

Important post over at Cate's blog today.

For more info see Answers in Genesis.

See Only One Race

See Darwin's Plantation

Also...



Also...



And...

this video.

Just got a text from my girlfriend which read...

......"Tried to play UNO w/some Mexicans today but they kept stealing the green cards...Happy Cinco De Mayo."

We've been through and surrounded by some ridiculous fear & pride (sin) based times of prejudice together.

What she meant by the note was..."Even though you're a white girl....I still love you. It makes no difference, Sister."

Of course she sees my "whiteness"...if she didn't...then she wouldn't be seeing the me the Lord created. But that's just part of what she sees.

Moving past the obvious...sees all of me.

And I know that she knows that she knows that her ethnic ties to the Navajo & Cocopah tribes and her ethnic ties to Mexico don't mean all that much to me...besides the fact that it's super cool that we are one in Christ.

Alright, I also like the fact that she has access to kickass fry bread.

Love her.

Our library runs this really cool program...where kids can practice reading out loud to dogs. The theory is that for some, it's less intimidating than reading to humans. I like it because reading out loud isn't really one of those things my kids get to do a whole lot of the time....so it's good practice.

For their co-op class, the girls are currently reading Chosen By God by R.C. Sproul. It's heavy stuff so we're going through it together. Galilee and Jemima are taking turns reading out loud while we are driving.

Zion sits back and gets to glean wisdom from what she's hearing and all the TULIP discussions which follow.

So I had an er adventure today.

Haven't been feeling well. Started w/big time allergies a month ago...which turned into at least the last two weeks of a gross mucus pocket that will not go away...headaches...constant blowing of the nose...hacking up a lung and looogies etc. Started daily netty pot treatments, mucinex popping...and beginning a cycle of antibiotics that we keep stockpiled after self diagnosing a sinus infection on Friday. Today, I woke up not only w/ an ear & tooth ache...but feeling "off." Was on my way to Urgent Care when I lost feeling in my left hand...felt faint...and almost passed out.

Bria rushed me to the er...where I was met by Bradley and my father. Mom took the girls. Mcabe got a ride from classes to Sola...and the doctors ordered a CT.

No brain tumor.

No sinus blockage.

I do have chronic sinusitus. A percocet for the pain, a steam shower, an icepack, and a prescription later...and I am home.

The hand thing and the feeling faint....that's how my body reacts to anxiety.

We have the coolest friends EVER in our circle of friends! Co-op Field Trip today.
Thaks, Jeni...for the photos. Wish I was there :(