What was she thinking?

No pictures for this post.
That would be illegal.
Curious yet?

Last night, Robb, in his anxiousness to restart the show our family was watching together, went to check on the girls, who were taking a potty break. He hears through the bathroom door Madison talking to Megan. Assuming she is guarding the door for Megan(the door doesn't lock), he gently opens it. To his astonishment, he finds Madison awkwardly perched over the pedestal sink relieving herself. She is just as surprised to get caught in such a mischievous act. What is a parent to think of such a thing? Very naughty to be sure. But hilarious in a bewildering way.  What was she thinking?!

And what am I to think? Have I failed as a mom? Do I need a childproof sink? I never could have guessed I needed to instruct my children not to EVER pee in a sink. Well, I may have mentioned it to my son once. I just never thought it was necessary to tell my daughters. I thought only boys did crazy, gross stuff. Guess I was wrong.

Kids Hijak my Camera

 

 

 

Playing (and Fighting) Fair

Megan has spent most of Mitchell's football practices on the sidelines, creating cheers and routines with her friends. This week that all changed. Boys entered the picture. They wanted the girls to cheer for THEM, specifically.  The girls would have none of it. They wanted to play ball. Tackle football. The rule was made that the girls could tackle but the boys could only tag. Megan reported to me quite proudly after their scrimmage that she took two different boys down to the ground. Guess having a brother around has it's advantages. For football anyway.

I got to thinking. I do that sometimes. This story has a familiar dynamic. What man doesn't want a beauty by his side cheering him on? But we'd rather take him on straightaway. Those rules sound familiar....like the rules we make with our husbands. Seems the rules are always tilted in our direction. And then we take him down. To the ground. Doesn't seem fair. Or respectful.

Sorry Honey.

Poem

from my sister's blog

Footstool Poems

Reaching

In the garden, for the apple, beyond what was good,
Eve reached.

On the cross, arms outstretched, in love for all,
God reached.

I must not reach so far as she, and cannot reach so far as He.

In grace, away from sin, toward my only help,
I reach.

Toward holiness, toward my God, in divine love triumphant,
I reach.

Unsinkable Women

This is Violet Jessop, Titanic stewardess. At least that's who she was for bit, anyway. On any other day, she would be known as one of our landladies. Today Debra Jean also became Nora, a flamboyant Titanic music hall performer, and the unsinkable Molly Brown, as she presented a shortened version of her one woman show "Unsinkable Women: Stories and songs from the Titanic" at a nearby nursing home.

Taco Soup

A mainstay in our family's diet. Best of all, Robb loves it and makes it himself. I'm a fan of any meal I don't have to cook!

1 lb hamburger, browned
1-2 pkg taco seasoning
2 cans undrained corn
2 cans undrained chili beans
2 cans undrained diced tomatoes

Heat and serve with cheddar cheese and Tortilla chips. We also use it as a dip with Scoops chips.

Fruit Salsa

I couldn't find a recipe that I liked, so I merged two together and came up with this!

10 apples
5 firm peaches
1 bunch cilantro
1 c green pepper (about 2 peppers)
2 jalapeno, seeded
1 red onion
1/2 c cider vinegar
1/2 c lemon juice
1/2 c lime juice
2-3 c Roma tomatoes
1 t salt
2 c brown sugar

Chop all, combine and eat fresh or simmer 10 minutes and pack in sterilized jars. Process 15 minutes in boiling-water canner.

Football, Bible Study, Bible Quizzing

Our fall has started with a BANG! Our evening are full M-T-W-Th, so we barely have time on the weekends to gather our thoughts and start again!

Mitchell started football after a year of anticipation and planning with his friends. Mitchell was proud to tell me that his coach likes the way he and his friend Matt practice tackling. They're not shy, and plow right into each other! As you can see from the photo, his buddies are all happy to be attending practice at the same time and place....and their parents are as well!   The track is next to the field so I can get in my walking while my girls play with their friends. And so, football practice couldn't work out any better for everyone!

 Wednesday was our first Bible quiz practice, and I have the opportunity to coach four great girls-one of them being my daughter Megs. I am grateful for this chance to focus on my middle child and cultivate her relationships - and mine- with her friends. We will memorize two verses each week from the book of 1-2 Corinthians, and hopefully have some fun along the way.

Today (Mon.) I start Beth Moore's study esther: It's tough being a woman! I can't wait! We have a total of 28 ladies signed up, so we will have three discussion tables and I will facilitate at one of them. After doing so many studies taught by Beth, I feel a bit like she's my friend. Over the summer I missed her- and the way she leads me in my study of the Best Book!

Kitchen work

I'm in that funny time of year when I can't decide if I should be planning school or canning garden produce. Thankfully my garden isn't humongous, so I'm not completely overwhelmed, but still the urgency remains to preserve the food that my small plot grows. In my old fashioned farmhouse cellar, shelves are slowly filling with hamburger and bread and butter pickles, apple pie filling and applesauce. My freezer, also, receives weekly deposits of green beans, jalapeno peppers, green peppers, zucchini, and tomatoes. It feels satisfying. Yet I know these productive kitchen days are nearing their end. Soon the canning jars on my kitchen table will be replaced with Language Arts, Math, Science and History books. Thankfully, I use curriculum that requires little planning, so I'm gonna can away!

Hired Help

Your sackful of God

More than Three Dollars

I recently received my August subscription to Voice of the Martyrs and was challenged by this quote from Wilbur Rees. I have edited it in an effort to modernize and personalize it.

"I would like to buy $3 worth of God please. Not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a [Starbucks mocha] or a [warm day at the beach]. I don't want enough of God to make me love [a manipulative woman] or [serve one less fortunate than me]. I want ecstasy, not transformation. I want warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please."

The director of VOM commented after sharing this quote, "We can starve ourselves, our congregation and our Christian denominations if our sackful of God is too small."

Is your sackful too small? Is mine?