Melodious Memory Lane

Spurred by a conversation with a friend last night I was taken on a reverie of my childhood cinema favorites. For fun I started making a list of some movies I would really like to have in my library. It would be fun to watch them with my kids and all that nostalgia and what not.

So I got done with the list and 20 of the 27 were musicals! Wow!

Since I know that you just have to know… here is my top 10 list of the greatest musicals ever (that I have seen).

10. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
9. Beauty and the Beast
8. The King and I
7. Fiddler on the Roof
6. Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory
5. Sound of Music
4. The Wiz
3. Wizard of Oz
2. Mary Poppins
1. Music Man

What is your favorite movie genre?

Botanical Buddies

You know that feeling of self-discovery when you realize something about yourself that has always been there but never been formulated into words and uttered? Epiphany and light-bulb-moment are terms for this occurrence. Last week one happened to me. Do you want to know what it is? Of course you do, that is why you are reading. (smile!) Drum roll please: I am an outdoorsy gal. There you have it! Stuff like skiing, hiking, swimming, camping and beach fun all float my boat. In any inclement weather I prefer to be out of doors. When given the choice I want to be communing with nature. And I drag people along with me. (another smile!)

Here is a group of pictures taken on our last Fun Friday. We picked up the kids of a fellow home school family and headed to the botanical gardens. Before unloading the truck I assigned Botanical Buddies so that they could roam and explore; yet still be safe. It was a blast!

Momentous Mothers

Listed below are the wonderful mothers I know who have impacted my own formation as a mother. I wanted to pay tribute to them. They are a treasure that I hold in my heart. The characteristics following their names (demonstrated in the interaction with their children) are the ones that shine out above all the many that I could have listed. The list could be much longer if I were to include the women throughout history that I know only through study and literature that have also aided me as a mother. To the women here in this list I say thank you so much for being who you are and making a profound mark on my life. May God bless you.

Organized in alphabetical order:

1. Amy R. – Valuing the journey
2. Beth W. – Care and nurture
3. Carolina M. – Encouraging individuality
4. Charlesene M. (my mother in law) – Strength
5. Claudia B. – Placing importance on heritage
6. Danielle H. – Being fun
7. Daryl C. – Learning
8. Denise H. – Unending and unconditional love
9. Emily H. (my sister) – Purposeful connection
10. Heather H. – Hope
11. Jill H. (my mom) – Serving and putting others first
12. Joy G. – Belief in others
13. Joyce L. (my aunt) – Prayer
14. Julie M. – Sacrifice
15. Kristy L. (my aunt) – Instilment of character and faith
16. Laura B. – Thoughtfulness
17. Laura K. (my grandmother) – Industrious
18. Linda K. (my aunt) – Making kids feel important
19. Lisa B. – Patience
20. Mary S. – Tenacity against all odds
21. Phyllis H. (my grandmother) – Being herself
22. Peri Z. – Giving value
23. Rebecca G. – Trust and friendship
24. Shawn S. (my sister) – Doting adoration
25. Tracy C. – Including her kids in the process

In the years to come I expect this list will grow as I come to know new mothers. I am grateful to my Lord for filling my life with the voices of these ladies.

Happy Birthday DaRonn!

My wonderful husband is 33 years old today. To honor him here is a list of 33 of the multiplied many things that I think are just great about my man.

1. He loves God
2. He is passionate
3. He is not afraid of being who he is
4. He strives for excellence
5. He is a good bowler
6. He makes funny jokes
7. He plays with our kids
8. He is always trying to become better
9. He is man of integrity
10. He tells the truth
11. He is a man of action
12. He is a hard worker
13. He is a visionary
14. He is good at starting stuff
15. He hopes for the best
16. He prays
17. He studies the word of God
18. He seeks advice
19. He makes good decisions
20. He is a good judge of character
21. He abhors mediocrity
22. He is a picky eater
23. He has his sights set on the world
24. He enables others to reach their full potential
25. He is a considerate and loving husband
26. He reads lots of books
27. He is good at technical stuff
28. He travels
29. He is a friend
30. He helps people
31. He is kind to children
32. He loves his sons and daughters
33. He loves me

Doing What They Do

My ten year old trying her hand at oils for the first time. She is an artist. Her preferred style of expression is pencil drawing. But anything pertaining to creative arts is her outlet. She loves dance, music, painting, crafts, clay, sewing, drama, making books and whatever else she can do to create.


My eight year old doing a word find. These or sudukos are his choice these days. Anything that is building or constructing he enjoys as well. I am amazed at what he can do with his legos and other building sets. He is a thinker.


My six year old doing her lessons in school. She is a worker. She says to me, "Mama, I want to work hard in school today." Her undaunted approach to tackling problems is inspiring. I am wondering what God is going to do with her life. It will be amazing to see, I am sure.


My eighteen month old licking a book. So far he has tasted: deodorant, hand lotion, crayons, bubbles, all the furniture in the house, door handles, books, and seat belts. I can't complain because this flows over into his eating of actual food too. He will eat anything!

This was a glimpse at what my kids like doing. What did you do today that was YOU?

The AM

Yesterday this:
Hope deferred maketh the heart sick… (Proverbs 13:12)

Today this:
… but joy cometh in the morning. (Psalm 30:5)

This:
My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. (Psalm 5:3)

And this:
Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee. (Psalm 143:8)

The long and short of it is that the prospective house help came to the house on Monday, I showed her around, explained the job, we talked about hours and pay and together we decided that she would start Tuesday at two. Two o’clock rolled around, 2:15, 2:35, 3:00 and still a no show. I call the number she gave me and talk with her sister, who is clueless. Then the work I had been saving (so I could train her how to do it) I had to do. It wasn’t the work that upset me. What upset me is that this is not the first time this has happened and it causes me to over analyze everything.

So what am I going to do if she decided to show up today? Good question. I will know when and if the moment presents itself.

Things look brighter now. Thanks to all who sympathized with me, I really appreciate it.

While we are on the topic of the morning… some of my morning sounds:
Cars in the busy street we live on
Airplanes over head
Husband moving about
My kids playing
Venders opening the market
Children rushing to the school in front of our property
Our pets asking for breakfast
Birds
Staff watching DVD bible school courses
Kids in the orphanage praying as I hang my clothes on the line

What is the best part about your morning?

One Chapter More

My wonderful husband bought a book for me about writing fiction called “The Lie that Tells a Truth” by John Dufresne. So I am finally in the last chapter. In his chapter about writing dialogue he addresses the motives behind why we communicate. Do any of these apply to why you post or read blogs?

Now, we all know there is no comfort in small talk, no solace in chitchat, no substance to idle jabber about the weather or mutual acquaintances. So why do we do it? We talk with each other for various reasons: to inform, to compare, to seduce, to clarify, to cloud, to charm, to deceive, to alarm, to evade, to demur, to bedevil, to reassure, to offend, to warn, to befuddle, to flatter, to belittle, to thank, to bluster, to rattle, to arouse, to soothe, to illuminate, to apologize, to inquire, to amuse, to brag, to inspire, to order, to explain, to encourage, to dissuade, to convert, to argue, to process, to instruct, to vent, to accost, to excuse, to call attention to ourselves, to hear the sound of our own voices, to be polite, to pass the time. But when we talk to understand, to understand ourselves and what we’re doing or what we think we’re doing and why we’re doing it, then we tell each other stories. Stories are how we remind ourselves who we are and how we’re connected. Stories are sacred and communal like a burial and the gathering after it.

While we are on the topic of chapters… Thanks to two marvelous women from the church I had four completely uninterrupted hours of time at my home to myself today. I cannot remember the last time that this happened. So I decided to get some heavy work done on the book I am writing. Can you believe I wrote four chapters and have just one left to write? Then the final tweaking and it is done. I am so excited.

Tantalized

Scent of health… cucumbers

Touch of familiarity… a sharp yellow No. 2 pencil in my hand

Sight of hope… a sincere embrace of reconciliation

Taste of comfort… cold chocolate milk

Sound of relief… husband’s key turning the lock to come in

Scent of comfort… lit candles

Touch of relief… binding of a longed-for book in my hand

Sight of health… a new born baby’s lips

Taste of familiarity… Schlotzsky’s Original sandwich

Sound of hope… my children laughing

Scent of hope… the wetness of a clear morning after a night of rain

Touch of comfort… husband’s hand on the small of my back

Sight of familiarity… the faces of my friends

Taste of relief… cool water

Sound of health… rhythmic thud of tennis shoes on the ground

What is tantalizing your senses?

Yay for Art Day

Thursdays are Art Day here at our home school. We have been having a good time creating together. Usually some of the kids of another home school family who live a few blocks away walk down to do the art project with us. It makes for a fun time for everyone involved (teacher included). So far we have made: me posters, rubbings collections, potato prints, slot sculptures, color spinner pull yo-yos, and woven paper. Each week we learn an art vocabulary word. I make the oversized vocab cards with card stock. The top line is the term, the second line is the definition and finally the card has an example of the term. Some of my projects I find at the Art Attack web site. I love art!


Getting all set up


Raimy with some of the vocabulary cards


Gabrielle working hard


Timothy finishing up


Aren't they lovely?! (The art is pretty nice too)

Plugs

Yesterday I was just amazed at all the free online services that I use on a regular basis. So here is my plug of gratitude (in no specific order).

Email: www.juno.com and www.yahoo.com
Online community and Scrabble spot: www.facebook.com
Online home school network: www.thehomeschoollounge.com
Blogs: www.xanga.com and www.blogger.com
Blog reader: www.igoogle.com
Chat and daily news blurb: www.yahoo.com
Video chat: www.skype.com
Chat and video chat: http://get.live.com/messenger/features
Translation page: www.wordreference.com
Bibles online: www.biblegateway.com
Search engine and image search: www.google.com
Browser: Internet Explorer (thinking about using Fire Fox)
Trivia: www.wikipedia.org
Preaching: http://www.wolc.com/sites/v2/index.php?sitearea=page&pid=197 and http://www.northpoint.org/messages and http://www.apple.com/itunes/overview/

What free stuff do you use on line?

FYI...

A friend of mine posted these facts on her blog and invited her friends to do the same. It has been a while since I have done a tag so here it goes. You can do the same if you like. Feel free to add your own facts if you want.

Favorite color? Green – ‘cause it’s shades are so varied and emotive
Middle name? Lynn
Favorite movie? #1 Far and Away #2 In Good Company
Favorite ice-cream? Vanilla with orange sherbet swirl
Favorite indulgence? Driving
Favorite verse? 1 Timothy 1:12
Favorite pop? Fresca
Favorite bible story? Joshua and Rahab
Last book / current book? See “Kid in a Candy Shop” post
Most desired place to visit? Israel, Germany, and Ireland (we’ll stop there because I could go on and on and on and on…)
Collect anything? Books, kaleidoscopes, culture
Favorite thing to spend money on? Office and school supplies, electronic gizmos
Do you like any sports? Love to swim, is hiking a sport? (I like to do that too)
Dream car? A nice big new truck with seating for many and lots of horsepower
What color is your bedspread? Teal and white quilt made for our wedding by my mom and her sisters.

Backyard Adventures

Just 15 minutes from our home sprawling on the side of a mountain lays Tunari National Park; this was our fun Friday destination today. The sun shone on my children’s way as they headed out on the trail to adventure and exploration. For an entrance fee of just a buck fifty we will be back again; and next time with a picnic lunch. Here are some snapshots from our morning.

Bearing Gifts

We have a gal here with us who will be teaching in the bible school network for a month. She brought us down goodies! Yeah! And my sneaky Thumbbuddy (Danielle) sent some cookies down with her for us. :o) I feel super loved!

We get the regect Chips Ahoy down here. Every package I have bought have seemed over baked. The ones pictured here are yummy! And notice the plethera of Peeps! Yeah - Peeps Party Central!

Nothing like the real thing when it comes to diaper cream.

A coffee grinder!

Kid in a Candy Shop

Look at this stack of books tempting and taunting me. I feel like a kid in a candy shop; oh where oh where do I begin? And these are just the top picks of the delicious treats lining my shelves. Usually I have three or four books going at the same time. A couple in the stack I have already begun. I just want to read them all right now because they all look so good. You could say I have a literary sweet tooth.

Here are the titles of my top seven reading picks right now. (Like I said, there is a bunch more on the shelves that I want to get to as well. Yum yum yum!)

“The Divine Conspiracy” by Dallas Willard
“The Mission of Motherhood” by Sally Clarkson
“The Ministry of Motherhood” by Sally Clarkson
“Sacred Parenting” by Gary Thomas
“The Lie that Tells a Truth” by John Dufresne
“Walking from East to West” by Ravi Zacharias
“The Grand Weaver” by Ravi Zacharias

Cock-a-Doodle-Squeak

We don’t have roosters, we have guinea pigs. My oldest tells me that they wake her in the morning so that she feeds them. She might just end up being the wife of a blond American pig farmer who has a weekend job as a pastor like she keeps telling me.

My childhood wanna-be-when-you-grow-up dream was tri-fold: a famous farmer’s wife who travels the world. Hm. Travel the world: check. Famous: enough to my satisfaction. Farmer’s wife: yep, if you count sowing the word of God in the hearts of people, plowing up hard ground to plant new works, and the harvest of souls that is so ripe in this land.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

My Eight Year Old Boy

Yesterday I took the kids up on a mountain for our first Fun Friday field trip. I let them take pictures and we will be posting their slide shows on our family site. I got some great pictures of Timothy while we were up there. I think that eight year old boys are some of my most favorite people in the world.

Peeps!

I feel so loved! My friend sent me three packages of Valentines Peeps. Peeps are my favorite sweet and they happen to be seasonal (Valentines day, Easter, Halloween and Christmas). This first pack was finished in the first 15 minutes that they hit the house. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you Daryl!!!

Run, Mama, Run

Ringtones are out of my league; but I do know how to assign different ring sounds to individuals on my contacts list from the options in my cell phone. I have one general ring sound for the whole world – except one person: my husband. His ring sound is called bullfighter – it’s that cheesy music that you hear whenever you see some commercial of someone running. Well, I was in my room and the phone was in the dining room. Papa’s ring sounded for all to hear. I rushed out to the dining room and my kids saw me coming. My youngest daughter yells out to me as I whiz by, “Run, Mama, Run!” It sounded just like the famous Forest Gump phrase. It was so funny!

Things I am lovin’ today:
- A well made turkey cold cut sandwich purchased for lunch
- Bugles and Mineragua – a great combo
- Google Reader – I just switched all my subs – it is great
- Lists and charts
- Pilates
- A clean desk top even after a week
- Our 2 cute guinea pigs
- The fact that I remembered how to spell guinea pig
- On line Scrabble
- The book of First John
- Driving
- Hooded sweatshirts with pockets for these drippy days

Books I am reading at this point in time:
- “Mere Christianity” by: C.S. Lewis
- “The Lie that Tells a Truth” by: John Dufresne
- “Sacred Parenting” by: Gary Thomas

Projects I am working on right now:
- A surprise party
- Organizing for this year of home schooling – first week of February we start
- Church leadership get together on Saturday

Did I mention that I like lists and charts?

Pharisaical Pharmaceuticals

My passionate pharmacist uncle Jeff Langdon always says, “Better health through pharmaceuticals.” Next time you are at his pharmacy in the Walmart in St. Joe you can say hi to him.

Sometimes when I am reading the Word of God it feels like medication is being administered to an ailment. At times I am completely oblivious to the malady that would necessitate treatment, but the Great Physician knows and gently applies what is needed so that my spiritual health is no longer compromised.

Have you ever noticed how frequently, especially in the book of Matthew, Jesus addressed the Pharisees? The big deal with this group of people was that they relied on their own actions for the redemption of their souls and imposed on others heavy burdens of duties to achieve the self-righteousness that they enjoyed. The term “bible-thumpers” might be used in today’s vernacular to loathsomely describe them. They majored on the minors of requirements and forgot about what really counts. I believe that Jesus had hope for these people and that is why he took the time and breath to address them so strongly and so regularly.

Last night at church DaRonn ministered on the importance of self-examination. He talked about the importance of looking inward to assess your spiritual state. Both he and I have made it a practice for quite some time to do just that. Quite frankly we often say to each other, “I don’t have all the answers. I don’t know it all.” We have decided that in all our striving we have not yet “arrived”, and the truth is we really never will.

I did not always think that way. I used to portray many of the same characteristics of the Pharisees. I was a Pharisee. Case in point: when I was 10 we attended your typical non-denominational store front church. During praise and worship the leader would instruct the congregation to raise their hands and worship God. I was so very stubborn that I absolutely would not put my hands down until the minister instructed us to. I would look around (unless we were instructed to close our eyes) and see that I was following the rules and become disgusted at all those that were not following the rules. Not until he would say, “You may put your hands down,” did I even think about lowering my arms. And I thought that this was a part of holiness!

God, in all his grace, began to treat this area of Pharisaical tendencies in my life. His treatment has been a gradual dosage of his holy word changing me little by little. I am so grateful to him for it! There are so many, many verses that he has brought to me. This is one of my favorite portions taken from a chapter full of warnings for the Pharisees:

Matthew 23:23-24 (New Living, which by the way I refused to use in my high school years for reasons of sacrilege; God have mercy, sinner that I am!) 23 “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. 24 Blind guides! You strain your water so you won’t accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel!”

Jesus calls this behavior ignorant, blind and hypocritical. Such a strong and vivid admonition is given by the Good Teacher. So, today as I reflect and remember where I have come from I will refocus on where I am going. Today I choose to not swallow any camels. Thank God for his Pharisaical Pharmaceuticals.

First Class in the Third World

As promised another train story. This is an excerpt from the old fashioned pencil and notebook journal I kept of our experiences. This particular selection was penned right after my adventure to capture the essence and emotion.

20-XI-07 Bolivia – November 2007

On the train ride from Oruro to Uyuni the need arose to use the bathroom. Before the trip began they showed a video in the cabin about the ride, safety regulations and the facilities available. They especially requested that proper use of all equipment be observed. The actress demonstrated what this proper use was in actuality. While demonstrating the use of the lavatory she smiled as she squeezed some soap from the dispenser and washed her hands in the tiny sink. Everything seemed so modern and pleasant.

I was so excited to go to the fancy dining car they had showed. I thought it was going to be so cool to walk between the cars by opening and shutting the doors. I just wanted to do it all – including using the bathroom. My moment had arrived.

So I found my way to the middle of our car where the fancy restroom was and opened the latch. Immediately I noticed two things. First it is significantly cooler in the w/c than in my nicely heated executive cabin. Next, the clickety-clack of the train track was much louder in the toilette (as the door indicated that this room was). Following theses first two observations I was sure I felt a breeze. Yes, there was cold air blowing on me – from below! I slowly peered over the edges of the metallic toilet seat only to discover that this was nothing more than a glorified squatty potty! A hole in the floor of the train with a filthy tube providing a great view of the tracks passing below. But, when you gotta go you gotta go. So I did my business. It was so cold! But I haven’t stopped grinning since. It was fun.

(For a similar type of story click here)

As an after note… I think I now know why the cute little Bolivian model on the video was smiling. She was probably thinking, “You’ve got to be kidding!” Well, I followed her lead to the letter; I was smiling the whole time I was scrubbing my hands in the diminutive basin. Oh, and this is the very best and most luxurious way to travel to Uyuni. I know because not even 10 seats up from me was seated the new United States ambassador to Bolivia and all his body guards with the twisty plastic tubing coming out of their ears.