Wednesday, December 31, 2014

On to a New Year!

The year has almost concluded. Here in the Mountain Time zone we have just over 12 hours until we kiss 2014 goodbye.  It's a time for reflection and renewal. Over the last few years, I've actually gotten more serious about resolutions. About four years ago, was when I really got down to brass tacks and thought through a whole bunch of different things I wanted to improve and get to do over the year. They were lofty goals, and I think I made a good attempt, but ultimately they all fell through.
Last year, I set out smaller, but still challenging goals.

In a few hours, during my kids' quiet/nap time, I will be finishing my Bible reading for the year. It was a great exercise. I loved the different perspectives of each translation and the wealth of wisdom contained in those covers. I love getting to know God more and understanding Him in different ways. I had wanted to better understand what it meant to put His kingdom first - while I think I have a tiny bit better understanding, I think what I learned was that to put a year limit on learning about it would be fool-hardy, and it should be a resolution for my entire life, not just a mere 365 days.

For 2015, I only really have two for now. S and I are still in conversation about one that we will be working together on, but for me I am resolving to memorize the book of James and to finish at least one of the book projects I already have on the go. I currently have four, and I'm finding that the plots are getting muddled together and none of them are getting my full attention. SO! One at a time, hopefully.

Anything you are resolving to do for this coming year?

XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

More Christmas Musings

I have been thinking a ton about Christmas lately.  I know it IS that season and all, but the thoughts are far from the normal things like who is getting what, if I have enough time to do all the baking I want, how to plan out the weeks of vacation so as to promote peace instead of chaos and so on.

This year it has been more about the theology of Christmas and how it is celebrated.  Piggy-backing on the last rant post I had, I've been thinking about why our family celebrates in the ways that we do.

I love Christmas just as much as the next person, perhaps even more, but what I'm realizing is that I like the traditions and hype of the traditional holiday, much like I like Valentine's Day or even my own birthday. The thing is, Christmas as we know it in North America has really fallen into 'just' another holiday that capitalizes on manipulating feelings and people trying to outweigh their greed by trying to give more.

Hear me out. I'm not saying everyone who celebrates Christmas is like that, but our society really is changing the holiday, isn't it?  I kind of love the society holiday, I really do - the eggnog, the movies, the lights, and even the tree.  Thing is, I love the birth of Jesus more. I doubt that Jesus' disciples really celebrated Christmas. They might have acknowledged his birthday, sure, but more in a 'Oh, now you're older' sort of way, not with giving each other gifts and setting up a recreation of the stable he was born in. I doubt they even did that after his death and they understood (or were beginning to) the magnitude of what Emmanuel really means.

Jesus' birth in and of itself is pretty spectacular, especially considering all of the miracles that went along with it, but without the cross, it is not as significant as we make it out to be. Even within the story that we reminisce about each December alludes to the cross - in the gifts of the wisemen - a gift given to anoint a dead body. It's sobering isn't it, among the ribbons and bows? Death.

I think the traditions that were started are dandy (and I do so love them), but we've built on them and, I think, obscured the reasons they were started in the first place. For instance: St. Nicholas.

I think St. Nicholas would be appalled by the flimsy Santa Clause that is based loosely around him. Santa twists the story of giving into manipulating children into being good all year in order to earn toys or favor. St. Nicholas, and the story that sparked us having the tradition of stockings, gave to people who were undeserving and poor. He mirrored the gospel so well - the idea of even when were still sinners Christ died for us. None of this being good for goodness sake, but rather, accepting that we ARE sinners, and need a saviour. The Saviour that was born as God incarnate in a stable in Bethlehem.

I'm not saying we do away with fun and presents and eggnog. I'm saying we need to have fun and enjoy our families and maybe spoil them on December 25th.  I'm also saying that December 25th is not the only day we need to celebrate Christmas. To relegate the celebration of God coming down into human form to just one day is, in a word, pithy. We need to live EVERY day in light of Jesus' birth. We need to live EVERY day in light of Jesus' death. We especially need to live EVERY day in light of Jesus' resurrection. 

Our celebrating of Christmas, I submit is not too overdone one iota. Our celebrating is too weak and insignificant. Let's up the ante. Let's really show the world how significant our Lord's birth was by not just giving gifts on one day, or being extra kind because of a season. Let's also not scare our kids with elves or threats of less toys because of their behaviour. Like us, they don't deserve favour or more toys because they are good! They need to understand the Gospel - that we are all sinners who are offered God's free gift of forgiveness through Jesus shed blood. We don't get that gift because we are good, we get it because GOD is good.

Celebrate Christmas! Celebrate it everyday!

May you see the Gospel more clearly as you celebrate.

XO and Merry Christmas,

J


soli deo gloria

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Thinking Out Loud

Okay, so I might not just be thinking out loud here. I might actually be stepping up on to a soap box, ranting my little face off. 

I just read ANOTHER blog post/article/talk about how some one is giving up Christmas, or giving gifts to their kids, or not, or are, or or or.

ENOUGH.  Please. Enough.

Though those articles, I hope, are well meaning, it is starting to feel like we're justifying our own ways of celebrating Christmas. They (we) are trying to say, "Look at me! I'm doing it the right way!"

...Is there a right way?

I submit that there is. I think the right way is the way that you personally honour Jesus the most. Perhaps that is giving everyone and their cousin gifts until they ask you to stop. Perhaps that's not even putting up a tree and going to sleep in a stable with your own child wrapped up in swaddling clothes.

Something that has popped up in my head surrounding all of this has been Jesus talking about fasting, or praying. We are not to do it like hypocrites. Matthew 6 says this:

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
“Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

“And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."


The key in this, regarding all of the posts lately is verse 1 : Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them..."
While not all of the articles or whatever might not be doing what this verse warns against, what are they doing?  Are they helpful? Maybe. Are they promoting Christ-likeness? Perhaps.  

My point is this : why are YOU celebrating Christmas the way YOU are? Do you know? Is it traditions handed down that you engage in because it's fun? Is it because you have actually thought through what would be most Jesus-loving? Is it something else?

I don't want to shame, guilt, or scare you into changing how you celebrate Christmas (or don't), but I do want to challenge you to think through why you do what you do and for whom.


Now, I think I'll step down off this soap box and eat some gingerbread.

XO,

J


soli deo gloria 

Friday, December 5, 2014

Crafting at Christmas

I love to make things. It's part of the reason I started this blog - to share ideas about creating art, music, food, or even wearables. 

When Christmas rolls around....or the thought of Christmas presents or decorations enters my head about mid-July I start dreaming up different things to make or bake for people around me. I love it! I love the challenge of finding something fun for me to knit that would also be liked and worn by the receiver. I like spending time praying for the person who will get it as I finagle over the tiddly-bits.

I also LOVE putting Christmas decorations up. I also LOVE making Christmas decorations. Often S has to reign in my desire to be crafty at this time of year because it is super overwhelming all of the different ideas streaming through the house. 

Last year's big idea was capis shell look-alike garland. Basically, I punched/cut out HUNDREDS of wax paper circles then sewed them together to make garland for the tree. It looks just like I wanted it to.  Problem of this year, though, is that we got an absolutely GINORMOUS tree and I have to probably cut about 3-5 hundred more circles out in order to make enough to go around the rest.  Never can have too much, right? 

This year, I had two main ideas: cinnamon snowflake garland for the windows and a stocking hanger. The first one started off grand. (I'll do a post about them later this week) I made them all up and decorated them with puff paint so they actually look like gingerbread.  I love them....but they will not do what I want them to, which is hang straight. There are some improvements that S has thought up (thank God for critically minded husbands! ...really, he balances out my zany ideas and gives them legs), but they might have to wait until next year until their fruition.

BUT!  I did get the stocking hanger all finished! Here are the pictures of the process (the long, and over complicated process that we would refine, should we ever attempt to do it again):
Step 2 (step 1 being cut the board to size) Paint background colour



Step 3 -get your husband to mark off 1/4in squares in the most complicated manner you can think of (our method was tacks and string)


Step 4 - pencil mark in your pattern (I chose a cross stich pattern I found on Pintrest)



Step 5 - paint over your pencil marks



Step 6 -Seal the whole thing with a spray lacquer 




Step 7 & 8 - add hangers to the back and hooks to the front

Step 9 - step back and admire after you hang your stockings!


And there you have it, folks, how we spent our last week on my latest crafty idea!

More Christmas craftiness to come in the next few days!
XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria!

Monday, November 24, 2014

The Here and Now

I haven't written for a while.  It happens, most often, when the rest of life is put in a spiral of chaos.

We've had a few really crazy weeks in a row. From Little Red getting scarlet fever to appointments for Buddy to hyper real nightmares to you name it.

For the most part, we're doing okay. S and I are just drained. It's a down season again, I think. The hope is there that the up will come. There are so many things to look forward to like American Thanksgiving, or friends coming to visit, or even Christmas.

But.  What about today?

ugh. Today. The Here. The Now. What about today? How do we get through today? Some days, we knuckle down and just do it. Other days we break a little and spend a hefty amount of time blinking back tears. Other days God gives us visible reminders of his grace in the form of a neighbor bringing us dinner, or a friend getting us a humidifier at cost, or even an email from an old friend.

On the days God doesn't give us visible reminders it's easy to forget His goodness. But, even on those days, His goodness reigns. He still has scooped us out of the miry pit and washed us clean as snow. And that, THAT is enough.

Trying to keep my chin up and knees bent,
XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Updates all around

Food stuffs:

A couple of weeks ago I started our second batch of sauerkraut. My son's respite aide gave us two cabbages from her garden - one purple, one green. I was super excited to chop it all up and get it fermenting!  It looked so pretty in the jar with all the layers intermixed.  It's just about ready to start tasting and moving to a cooler environment to slow/stop the process and eat it all up!

On the crafting front:

I had to repick a pattern for that gorgeous wool I was working with. The lace pattern was much much much too involved to do with three kids in the house and only a little while a day to do it. I traded it for a less complicated lace pattern and was actually almost entirely finished with the back section when I dropped about 6 stitches in a row! AH! in a stocknit stitch I wouldn't have fussed and just fixed it, but this was yarn-overs and knit two togethers and so on....I had to take it all apart and start ALLLLLLL over again. It was a sad day.  Today, though, I'm 2/7 of the repeats to catch up to where I was.  It's actually going better than the first time through, AND I fixed a few mistakes I had made the first time, so a time consuming win, I'd say!

Resolutions:
Like in my last post I had said I'm into the final reading of the year!  It's been interesting. I for sure would not have picked the Message again for this task. It's an interesting perspective, but it is not my favourite. I've worked through Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and Matthew. I really love the Old Testament....okay, I really love the New too.  It's been good. I'm looking forward to getting out of the laws and rules and getting into more narrative again.

Life:

We are finally gaining some margin again. The interruption to our lives that came in the form of school has finally settled down and we're not in full out survival mode. We've had a few hiccups, like Halloween and other appointments, but it's becoming more familiar, and therefore more routine, and less likely to trigger a certain little one's anxiety.


How are all of you?

Xo,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Grace in a Mistake

Yesterday I got a phone call from one of the professionals that we are taking Buddy to to get some help in dealing with his sensory processing disorder.  It was about a charge for a detailed response that they are sending our way.  Our benefits for Buddy are already dried up because of the rates, so this payment was going to be all out of pocket.  As far as we are concerned, any amount of money is worth the help that Buddy needs to live a successful life. The trouble is, though, our budget is kinda tight, and we were going to have to rearrange some of our budget columns in order to find the monies to pay this charge. 

I prayed about it. I wasn't too thrilled that we'd have to spend the money on the report, but I was willing to do it if we had to. 

When I told S about it, he was kind of flabbergasted. WHY were we charged? We didn't know that this report was going to cost more than the original assessment. He was concerned enough about it, that he called and asked about the charge. 

He got some answers, but our professional was going to check into a few things to see where the miscommunication happened, and whether or not it was ours or her fault.  We hadn't intended on her changing anything for us, it was more of a call to clarify things for the future.  We left it alone.

This morning, I got an email from our professional and it had all of her costs and everything. Sure enough, there it was in black and white that there would be charges that we would have to pay for. Shoot!  Off I go to rearrange our budget....

Then I got a phone call.  She had realized that she had not sent us all of the program costs prior to us coming in for the assessment or even the writing of the report. She apologized and reversed the charge!!

This was particularly meaningful to me because I've been struggling with figuring out how we're going to actually get Buddy the help he needs from the people who understand him because each one is super expensive. I really want to trust God with it, but I'm finding it so very hard when we have therapy materials to buy, appointments to pay for, and time off work to add insult to injury.  The thing is, God knows. God sees. God is good. I really believe that even if every last penny of ours was used up for Buddy God would still be good. It's more, this time, it was as if God was speaking directly to my heart and saying, "I know you are worried, you don't have to....at all. I want good for Buddy, too. Let me take care of you."

Thanks, God. Thanks for your grace in this situation, and thanks for your provision in this specific area!


Praising,
XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Resolutions Revisited 2

Today marked the last day of my second read-through of the Bible this year.  Two down, one to go!!
The last time for this year, I'm going to use this plan (Plan), but condense it down for two months. To do that, I'm going to read 6 sections a day.  As I have a few days left in October, I should be done ahead of schedule, but we'll see, it might just be enough time, should life get in the way! 

This time round, nothing REALLY stuck out to me.  I think it was because of how I attempted to read it - it was broken down into a different kind of literature in the Bible every day - but, but the time Monday rolled around again, the continuity and flow was completely broken. I was going from Psalms to prophecy to epistles and back again. It was too much for my brain to take it. Once I stopped that and just read each section until it was finished, it was much better. 

I came away this time grateful. Grateful for God's Word, that I have the ability to sit down with it every day and pour over it! I am grateful to have a different version to give a tiny bit of a different perspective on 'too familiar' passages.  (This next time I'm going to use the Message, which I've never even cracked open before!) I'm grateful that God's word has been preserved and translated so well.

My other resolution, which I haven't talked about on this blog, but would like to now, is also going well.  I had resolved to not 'like' anything on Facebook without also commenting or otherwise engaging with the photo, comment, etc.  I have often felt like just liking something lets us off of the relational hook far too easy. It's much easier to hit a button that has little actual meaning than to type out that we appreciate something, or even WHY we appreciate something.  The times I do just use the like button is when I do not know the person I am 'liking' - like if they had a great comment that I agree with, or if they posted a photo of someone I know (though, I usually comment on those too) or if there is a humongous thread of comments and the one I wanted to affirm was waaaaay at the beginning.

It's really eye opening to me how I've changed in my use of Facebook. I actually have to stop and think before I move on to the next status or picture or even a blog post. It is also humbling, because, often, I feel like we gauge how well we, personally, are liked by the amount of button clicks there are on a certain post or whatever have you. I think it's crazy! Wouldn't a comment or an actual face to face conversation about that same thing be much more meaningful?  It's pushed me to start those conversations, and I like that.


Have you been working on your resolutions?  Have you started thinking about the upcoming year's resolutions you want to take on?  Wanna pray with me as I consider mine?

XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria!

Friday, October 17, 2014

A Revelation

In the last month or so, S and I have been visiting a psychologist to help us get a handle on how to give our family the best care.  Having a person who is trained to know how 'invisible' disabilities wear on families has been invaluable.  From explaining what executive brain function is to reiterating how extremely important good sleep is for the body, she has been an excellent resource for our family.

One thing that I didn't see coming, but probably should have, is that I have some of the same struggles Buddy does, but to a lesser degree.  Buddy, as we're finding out more and more almost weekly (as we go to different appointments and see more specialists) has both OCD and Sensory Processing Disorder (or SPD for short).  Both of these are anxiety disorders, so that means his little brain and body are under constant barrage from things that cause anxiety and stress on him. 

Me, I have a lesser form of SPD, or at least, that is what we're thinking at this point. Our psyc. talked about symptoms in adults, and asked many questions about my childhood. There are so many puzzle pieces that fall into place, that it is crazy. I am going to be visiting an occupational therapist to either confirm or debunk the tentative diagnosis. We're hoping that she'll also have some practical advice on how to stave off some of my almost-ever-present anxiety. 

Backing up, it's amazing that we missed it. Maybe we've not been able to see the forest for the trees. Or maybe even the bark got in the way of seeing a tree! 

Now, I'm taking steps to know when my body is regulated and practice more and more to keep it there.  One way of looking at SPD is this:  imagine you are at a rock concert that is louder than loud.  Next, imagine your friend next to you is whispering to try and tell you some crucial piece of information. ...The rock concert is sensory input and the friend whispering is tasks you are supposed to be doing, or even a conversation you are supposed to be engaging in.  If you could turn down the concert, you'd easily be able to understand what it is your friend is saying.  The task, though, becomes figuring out either how to turn down the concert OR interpret what the friend is saying in spite of the noise...or sometimes, even both.

It's a challenge, but I am so grateful that we've been made aware of it and can actually find the sound dials to turn down, turn off, or ignore the overwhelmingness of the 'concert'.

Have you had any revelations lately?

XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Saturday, October 11, 2014

A Simple Prayer

My heart melted today. 

I had a rough case of hiccups that left me saying 'ow' every few seconds. Little Red kept asking if I was okay. Buddy kept saying 'bless you.'

I continued on like this for about ten minutes. It really wasn't fun.  We started to eat lunch, when Buddy suddenly looked up at me and said, "Momma! We need to pray!" I looked at him, confused, and then we bowed our heads.

He asked God to heal me and make me feel better. Super simple prayer. Super sweet.

I had no more hiccups.

It was really cool to see how God answered Buddy's prayer immediately. We pointed it out to him and his eyes grew wide.  Then we asked him what we should do next.

He bowed his head again and he prayed another simple prayer. "Thank you for healing momma and making her feel better."

Seriously, it was one of those moments that I don't think I could ever forget. Not just the sweetness from my little man, but the way in which God let Buddy see Him in action.  I cannot even try to tell you how much my heart feels like bursting.


How's your Saturday?

XO,

J

Soli Deo Gloria

Friday, October 10, 2014

Little Bugs, Big Problem

Back at the beginning of spring, S and I bought a meyer lemon tree. It was one of the most thrilling purchases I have made. I know that makes me a nerd, but still,  it has brought so much happiness to my little corner of the world.

It had one tiny little lemon on it when we got it, and I could almost taste it's sweet lemon-y goodness, but that never happened.  For some inexplicable reason, the tree dropped the lemon before the little jewel could ripen.  It was a sad day.

After a few weeks of dutiful care and watering, blossoms bloomed all over the lovely plant. It made my whole main floor smell like a delicious lemon grove. It had been an unexpected surprise (aren't all surprises?). I knew it would bloom, but the SMELL! SO SO SO wonderful.  I dutifully looked up how to pollinate the blooms by hand, and did so.

I began to wait expectantly for more little lemons to form and mature. Sadly, it was not to happen this season. Unknown to us, aphids are sneaky little bugs that can ruin all your hopes and dreams for homegrown, from scratch lemonade. They are so small they can sneak through the screens on your windows...and those same screens keep their predators (namely ladybugs) out. It was a losing situation for us. At first, I wasn't sure what those specks on the tree were, and then, before I knew it, they multiplied to a number that was too great to squash with simple interventions like putting ladybugs that we found on the leaves.

My son's respite aide came to the rescue. She suggested spraying the much loved tree with a weak soap and water solution and put it outside until the offensive little critters were gone. It worked!  After about two months of living on our table outside the tree was free from aphids. We brought it back inside and continued our vigilant care of baby tree.

It was growing. It was putting out new leaves and growth all over the place. The only thing hampering it's growing season were my girls' desire to remove its leaves.

Then, this past week, I noticed something. The aphids had made a return to my plant! I put several lady bugs on the tree, hoping it would stop their advance. It might have helped, but today, I had to take matters in to my own hands.

I wiped down most of the leaves, took it back outside and sprayed it with a Castille/water solution, and then I took to washing down every inch of the wall and counter where my lemon tree lives. There were little bugs EVERYWHERE!  UGH! They had even wiggled their way into the space between the windows! It's a buggy nightmare. I've now vacuumed, washed, prayed, and now am hoping that this aphid problem  is squashed.

In all of this, though, it sounds a lot like living life with temptation, doesn't it? We work on it. We get advice, and it seems to go away for a time, but often, right under our noses, when we aren't paying the closest of attention it HITS us. Sometimes, we don't give in and all we have to do it batten down the hatches and up our watch on this area, other times it is a huge problem and the fruit in our life is forfeit. In any season, though, we have to guard our hearts and rely on God's grace to overcome.

Where are the aphids in your life? Is it time to check for them again? Have you recently taken stock of how you are doing?

XO,

J

Soli Deo Gloria

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Change of plans

So, 'member how I was working on that sweater with the intense lace pattern that I needed to have a laminated sheet/wax pencil to keep track of?  Well, even if you don't, don't worry. You won't see that sweater on my body in the near future, or even late future.  It might happen at SOME point in my life, but not now. 
With the kids running around and things around the house that must be accomplished, I cannot focus the time and effort needed into the sweater to actually make it look like the pattern I was following. I have switched it out for a different lovely cardigan, but the lace pattern is nowhere near as involved and I could set it down, say to pull a child out of harm's way.

Sometimes life is like that, isn't it?  We set out a great plan for our life, even get the supplies and supports in place and then once we actually start in on the plan, it unravels. Our best intentions are for naught, and at times take the place of even better things. We need to bow out. We need to put the dream back in the truck for perusal at a later date. We need to hone our skill before making a mess. We need to take stock of current responsibilities and priorities. It's not just about attempting or even planning on doing something good. It's about realizing the difference between good, better, and best.

That little charm of wisdom has always given me trouble. Often times I am content with good or even better, but rarely strive ALL the way for best. Someone once told me that good is the killer of best. Best doesn't always mean something harder, sometimes it means simpler/easier/less time consuming.
Sometimes you have to step back and take stock of how your plan will affect the rest of your world and that might determine best. There are a lot of factors, no?

What good plans do you need to trade in for best?
XO

J

Soli Deo Gloria

Thursday, September 25, 2014

A Week of Downs

This week, as I had written earlier, was supposed to be full of great appointments and planning and crocheting. 

...Then this week actually happened.

Little Red had her eyes checked again. They are doing much better and there isn't even a smidgen of a possibility that she'll need surgery now! Hooray!  She keeps her glasses for now, but we'll go back in about 6 months to see if she will even need those! 

Tuesday we had workmen in our house creating a bit of chaos. Things are back to normal now, but it wasn't exactly a pleasant day.

Enter yesterday. Yesterday we ate our breakfast and waited for our lovely friend to come to watch the girls so I could take Buddy to our new occupational therapist.  It was going to be the first time she had seen him in person, but she was going to give us the results from the different surveys and questionnaires we've already filled out regarding his how he responds to his world.  I was super hopeful, as I've only heard great things about this woman, and it has been a long journey to even get to sit in her office. The results she gave us yesterday were like wiping another layer of grime off of a dirty window. We can't see perfectly, but we can see better how Buddy's tomorrows will be. The picture isn't a good one. With this therapist's help, though, there is much hope that Buddy can live a relatively normal life!

About 3 minutes from our arrival S's phone rang and he handed it to me. It was my dad. Strange. I answered, and in those 3 minutes I learned that a woman I have considered to be my grandmother had passed away.

ugh.

My own blood grandmother passed away when I was really little. I have a few memories of her, but mostly they consist of stories my mum tells.

This woman, though, Grandma T, was the one who helped me learn how to make rice krispies, start a row of knitting, took me to Swiss Chalet for special dates, and learned how to skype with me and my kids.  She prayed for me, encouraged me, and always wanted to be up on the latest news of my family.

Those three minutes of a phone call made me glad I had made an emergency trip to my parents house in Ontario back at mother's day. I was able to see her for the last time. I was able to introduce Little Bird to her and give Grandma T one last hug and kiss.

I will miss this dear woman. I am glad, though, that she is now with Jesus and far away from the pain and body that gave up.

Hopefully, the rest of this week will look up.

xo,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Saturday, September 20, 2014

Preparing for the week

So, I have to admit I failed.  Badly. In my apple craziness, I started some apple cider vinegar. I looked up how to do it and was all gung-ho.  The first week went well, I watched them, added water to them, and then....I relaxed my watch on them.  BIG mistake.

A day or two later, I noticed a smell. It was not a good one. It was a rotting apple stench. The water levels had dipped way WAY too low. The top layer of the peelings/cores was molding and grody. It was super unfortunate.  S scooped out the yuck and we replenished the water, hoping all would be well.  It was not. In the business of the week, I left them alone again....the smell returned, and this time, we put the jars outside to quell the smell in the house.

...let's just say they were a big hit for the little critters in the great out of doors.  Sigh.  As we did dispose of them, though, we were encouraged!  Once you got rid of the gross bit at the top, the bottoms seemed to be doing exactly what it was supposed to. It was still in the alcoholic part of the ferment, so as we were dumping them, our kitchen smelled like a brewery.

Oh well! Now we know better for next time!

This week is going to be insane for our family. We have appointments galore, friends visiting on the weekend, and Little Red turns THREE!!  We aren't doing anything huge like a party or anything, but we are going to have some friends and cake and gifts and the normal type things.

I'm working on a surprise for her, though, right under her nose.  On Thursday, I went to the second hand store that is just down the alley from us. They were having a clearance sale. I found a few shirts for Little Red, who is growing like crazy, but more importantly,  a dolly crib! The surprise is a little crochet blanket to go along with it. She already has the crib, as if was impossible to hide it when I walked through the door with it.

I'm using up some sock wool that I used to edge Little Bird's special blanket. It's bubblegum pink, and I think it's going to be adorable!  I'll post a picture when it's finished - hopefully before next Sunday!

Today, we're going to prepare for the coming week - make sure sheets are washed for friends, decorations for cake started, priorities in order ....those kinds of things!

What's in store for your weekend??

XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Saturday, September 6, 2014

When Life Gives You Apples...

This week has been insane. A neighbor of ours has incredible apple tree that bears wonderful fruit. Thing is, though, they don't want any of it this year. Knowing that we asked for a few last year, they were gracious enough to come and let us know that we could strip the tree bare if we were so inclined.

Inclined we are. The first night, three days ago, S and I picked about 60 pounds of apples. SIX ZERO.  I came in a little bit earlier than S and started peeling and coring my bag to make apple sauce. S came back with two IKEA bags mostly full, got me to empty them all into one and he went back to fill them up again.

It's been a bit of a blitz to get these apples processed. So far, I've made applesauce, an apple cider vinegar starter (or 6), and apple pie filling.  Going on the stove and crock pot right now are apple jelly and apple butter. In my head, I'm dreaming of dried apples and cider.

I'm having to take a break right now from all the coring and peeling because my hands are literally starting to swell from the effort. I have only about 10ish pounds left from the first picking, and I'm thinking they are going to be boiled down for jelly, too.

It's amazing, really, and I have a better understanding of the origins of American Thanksgiving - people who have an abundance of food giving it to others to make it through tough winters. Being on the receiving end gives much cause to be grateful.

The saying about life giving you lemons refers to turning bad situations around...well, I would like to offer a new spin with a different fruit - when life gives you apples, share. Keeping the good things of life to yourself will just end up giving you indigestion and an under appreciation for life. Sharing your joy tends to multiply it!

In apple bliss,
J


Soli Deo Gloria

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Contiuing On

Have you heard the news about Iraq lately?  Things aren't getting better.  Sure, there are people who have gotten out, but there are plenty who have not.  It breaks my heart.

It's been weeks, months even, and the danger hasn't abated. You know what, though? If we didn't have the internet or a radio we would have no idea that this was happening. We would continue on in our daily lives blithely unaware.  ...Maybe we even do that now, when we do have some basic information of what is happening.

Buddy still went to school yesterday. S still went to work. I still baked and had a friend over. My girls still played. S and I still went to our new psychologist (she is AMAZING and going to give us tools to help us with parenting our atypical little man as well as grow in resilience). Life, for us, still marches on.

It's crazy to me how little changes for the majority of people outside of the crisis zone.

We are continuing on in prayer, and raising more awareness, but not tons else.

What are you doing?

xo,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Monday, September 1, 2014

Plunking Notes and Praising Hearts

Back when I was 5 I had the pleasure of taking piano lessons. I didn't do very well, and I feel like I was the stereotypical kid who didn't practice enough, nor cared enough to even notice.  I do remember crying in most every lesson, but I don't really remember why.  My recollections don't really seem to be all that joyous.

I also don't really know what's changed in the last 22 years, but the switch has been flipped! Last week, a friend of mine came over to watch my girls while I took Buddy to his kindergarten open house (WHAT? how can he be that old already?!). When I came back, Mr. P and I talked until S got home. It was a great time to catch up and encourage each other. The other thing that came of our conversation was that he was willing to lend me/us an extra piano keyboard that he had 'just lying around'. 

AH!  I was silly-school-girl excited about the prospect of playing the instrument again.  I had no idea where to start or anything. I know I am sort of still able to sight read, at least for vocal music, but the last few days have shown me that is a good start, but not as useful as I had hoped. I skyped with a dear brother/friend of mine who plays extremely well. He was able to give me some 'easy' direction of how to improve technique as well as refamiliarize myself with the piano. The excitement level went up a few notches. I really could hardly wait to unzip the keyboard bag and plug it in...but first, I had to procure it.

Friday rolled around and I asked (read: begged) Shane to go with me to pick it up (I have a serious phobia of getting lost...no joke).  He said no. AAAAAAAAAAH! What was I going to do? How could I wait another minute.  Then, he remembered he had to pick something up from work, so why not take the kids along and go get the keyboard too? 

I was thrilled!  We went to his work, then we were on our way to our friends' house.  Twenty minutes later, I had the stand up, the keyboard out, and was able to make my first few notes.  Oh how awful it sounded!

My goodness. Some things, like riding a bike, you never forget (so they say), but piano is, sadly, not one of those entirely rememberable things.  Alas, I really had to start from square one...or at least 1.5. 

I printed off the free music sheets my dear friend had pointed me to and I was on my way! It took about an hour or so of CONCENTRATED effort to even get the first exercise to a point where it kind of resembled what it was supposed to sound like. I was encouraged, but most of all, I was grateful.

It seems to me as if God is letting me enter in to a spring season in my life. Things are often muddy and gross, but the chill of winter is gone and new leaves are emerging! I am thrilled. ...more than thrilled, really.

Though I may not be making a beautiful sound on this new-to-me piano, you can sure bet that it is joyful!

XO,
J


Soli Deo Gloria

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Decongestants and Thankful Hearts

I've been pretty quiet around here lately. There have been some major world events that have claimed my attention and driven me to my knees in sobbing petitions to God. Even still, the persecution of minorities in Iraq are still happening. Some things are getting better, but it is still not the best situation - and probably won't be for some time.  - If you want a few resources that I created to pray more effectively than 'God help the Iraqis' - then comment with your email address and I'll send you some!


Anyway - I am back now. This last weekend, my husband's best friend got married!  They are a wonderful couple, and I'm so glad they tied the knot! It was a crazy insane weekend of decorating, visiting, and celebrating.   I shed so many tears for sheer joy for them!  I also stayed up WAAAAY too late with our dear friends who we rarely see who were housing us for the weekend. So many good conversations. So many memories to store.  So wonderful.

...So draining on my immune system. I woke up on Sunday morning completely congested with a lovely sore throat to boot.  It's the first time I've gotten sick like this in a long while, and I'm super grateful for that fact. 

On our drive to and from the wedding, I was reading to S to pass the time. We got through much of the book on the way there, but my voice gave up all too early on the way home. We ended up stopping more to kill the boredom. (We could also do that because some other AMAZING friends took our three kiddos for the three days we were away!!!!)

All day yesterday I coughed and sneezed and made my way through half a box of tissues. Just as we were going to bed it hit me. I can take decongestants again!  WHAT?!  This is the first time in YEARS....YEAAAAAARS that I've gotten sick while not pregnant or breastfeeding. I looked at S and was so beyond grateful that I'm pretty sure I teared up. (that or the exhaustion was kicking my butt, but I'll go with grateful this time!)

Life is kind of like that, isn't it? We don't tend to be grateful for something until we need it, or we can't use it.  Today, I am so grateful for decongestants, a little man who turned 5 today, and the rainy day that's cooling us down!

What are you grateful for?

XO,
J


Soli Deo Gloria

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Creative Learning

I have always loved reading and learning. Those things often go hand in hand. When I got my Kindle I could hardly believe the free library at my finger tips (there is a TON of free content like classics, deals of the day, and so on).

I loved school for the classes. I am, for sure, an all out nerd. I took calculus for fun, and it turned out to be my favourite class in high school.  It might have helped there were only 6 of us in the class, but I actually believe it was because it stretched my mind and made me think.

I also loved taking French and German, and waaaaay back in fifth grade I took a tiny (TINY) bit of Spanish. Language is fascinating to me. Combine my love of learning with reading and languages and you have a perfect storm of geekdom. At one point in my senior year I bought the book 'Teach Yourself Hindi'. I worked through some of it and got to a place where I could ask what something was, tell you my name, and understand some vocab.  It came in handy on a month long visit to P-stan. By the end of that month, I could follow some conversations when I went visiting with some friends (not ALL of the conversation, but the jist).

Anyway, two summers ago S and I went to a language acquisition course. Once I got past the heat and the crazy amount of stairs (I have IT band syndrome - ouch!), I was in my glory! It was so much fun practicing all of the different sounds your mouth can make - I would giggle my way through half of them knowing I looked hilarious in my North American pronunciation.  My favourite thing to come out of that course was the practical learning aspect of it - how to fashion your own language learning course where there is no school.

That brings us to now! I have recently enlisted some of my new dear friends who have, only a year ago, moved to Canada to help me learn Farsi! I doubt she/ they knew what they were getting into when they said yes! HA!

We try to meet about twice a week. So far, this has mostly been over skype. In order to gain vocabulary, I've been cutting up magazines and making flash cards to hold up in front of the web came. It has nourished my creative streak as well as my intellectual side. Oh how good it feels!

Cards for colours!
The theory behind the method I'm using to learn this new language is listening, listening, listening to as much as you can before you speak. SO! In the first round of learning new vocab, like say those colors ^  , I'll hold up a card, my friend will tell me what it is. I'll do that until I think I mostly remember what they are. Next, I'll hold up a colour card and she'll say a colour. I'll have to tell her 'yes' or 'no'  as to whether it was the correct word or not.  THEN! She'll ask me to hold up a colour and I'll have to pick up the corresponding card.

It kind of feels like a game, but it is super useful. So far, we've done simple pronouns, colours, articles of clothing and some body parts. Once we get past some of the basic vocab, we can put them together.  Now, she'll tell me 'he is wearing a purple shirt and blue scarf' and I'll have to hold up the right cards! The next step will be using 'not' and having more complex sentences like 'she is not wearing a green coat, but she is wearing a blue scarf'.

God has given me this awesome opportunity, and I can't wait to see how He uses it!

Fun, no?
XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria!

Monday, July 28, 2014

One Whole Year!

Yesterday marked the one year anniversary of when we got the keys to our very own home!  It was such a relief. It was such a hard time. It was so wonderful to use that key to open a new door!

This year has held much for our little family. We've unpacked. We've started to put out some tentative roots. Buddy started school. We planted a garden. We put up pictures. We found books that had been stored away for years. We spread out. We purged. We have done so very much.

Most of all, we've grown.

When God opened our eyes to the possibility of staying in Canada for longer than either S or I had imagined, our hearts and minds went crazy. There were a lot of different situations and instances God used to PRY our eyes open, which hurt like mad, but we're ultimately grateful for them now.

 God used some of those same situations and instances to reveal deep, ingrained sins, fears, control vs. trust issues, and so much more. Through friends, wise counselors, books, the Bible, and, of course, the Holy Spirit, we've been able to take steps out of the mire and muck and onto some more solid footing.

We're not out of the woods yet, and some days it feels like we're barely out of quicksand, but we are gaining margin. We're using that margin to fortify ourselves (by God's grace) and our family.

I'm also starting to use that margin to write more, learn a new language, and work through some crippling fears I have (like getting lost!!).

We are so grateful God let us step back before we completely crashed and burned. We're also so entirely grateful for this peaceful haven He provided for us. Here's to as many years as God gives us here!!

Grateful,
XO
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Haze

There's a pretty large forest fire about 7 or so hours away from my house.  Quite people have had mandatory evacuation.More people are on evacuation notice. It's not a pretty picture. It's about 3,100 ha big and still growing. The crews are trying to contain it so as to prevent oil rigs and gas plants from going up in...more than smoke.

Here, we are not feeling any of the heat, seeing the flames, or inhaling the thick smoke. Right now, though, the haze has rolled in. It's eerie. There is a faint, and I mean FAINT, smell of smoke.

It's pretty crazy how the fire that's so 'far away' can have affects at this distance! This prompted my mind to  see an analogy for our lives.  How often do sins in our lives affect us like this fire is burning up the provinces?

We sit in spiritual dryness and then a careless spark gets fanned into devastating consequences. Sometimes, it is a chance to start over and rebuild our entire existence. Other times we find ourselves scrambling to find pieces to pick up and put back together. Many times, though, our wildfire is not in isolation. Those around us can get scorched, or choke on the smoke. Some may take precautions and flee, while others might soak themselves in life-giving Water and fight.

May our spiritual lives never get so dry!

In mulling over all of this, we need to pray. We need to be aware of the danger both in the physical sense from these insane fires in BC and Alberta, as well as the inner ones around us. May God pour down rain!

xo,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Friday, July 11, 2014

Catching Up and Revising

It's once again time to update you on my resolution this year.  I'm about halfway through the second reading of my Bible.

This time, it is not going so smoothly. I found a reading plan online that I thought I would love. It breaks each day of the week into a different portion of the Bible that you get to read. Monday is Gospels; Tuesday -Poetry; Wednesday- Prophecy ...and so on.

As it turns out, I really dislike it. REALLY dislike it. It's super hard to get a feel of what's going on as you try to remember something from a week ago to build on. Mostly, I feel disjointed and frustrated.
Because of this feeling, I've found myself missing more readings than before. At one point, I was probably about 4 or five days behind! AH!

Yesterday, though, I caught up. Today, I'm still on track. BUT! I've decided to switch things up. Instead of reading one type of Biblical literature on a given day, I'm going to finish the category before I move on to the next one. SO - it'll look more like from now until the end of July will be Prophecy, then Epistles, then...then...then.  I think it'll be easier to pay attention and see the connection between the different books.

This time through I feel like I haven't learned much. I guess some of the themes like remembrance and grace have been reinforced again, but nothing has been an 'ah hah' moment or anything else.

Hopefully with this new switch up, it'll be easier to make sense of things again. I guess I have learned that context is an extremely important part of understanding!

How have your resolutions been going?
XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Saturday, July 5, 2014

Living With Mistakes

There have been so many blog posts and discussions surrounding the whole 'Mommy War' thing that happens.  Most of them focus on making sure you know that you are awesome at what you do, and others are awesome at what they do, so don't worry about it, it all evens out in the end. Others focused on things like Facebook being a false front to who we really are - meaning we don't post our bad pictures of when we're frustrated with out husbands or kids or when we burn the stew or so on. Facebook helps us (especially mothers who are house-bound in need of adult interaction) present our best as if it was what our lives are like all the time.

I think this is where the 'Mommy Wars' posts have fallen short for me. Many of them actually shame people who are honestly good at many different things and share about it - they assume that there is some area of their life that is completely lacking. It might not be true - they really might be good at everything and have their heads above water. Others shame people because they don't even comprehend how you can't get out of your pajamas and feed your kids something other than dry cheerios on the couch. These 'dry cheerio' moms might be the ones who are posting the fabulous pictures, or they might be silent bystanders wounded by unkind comments.

I'm guilty of perpetuating the 'War'. I've posted my knitting projects I've finished, or baking that has turned out delicious, or even pictures of my kids dressed for church on Easter.  I've posted one or two pictures that show a 'fail', but they are humorous and not telling about 'normal' life at my house.

I don't show off my mistakes. I don't post about how many movies my kids watch in a single week. I don't talk about how I get so frustrated with having to pull out knitting (again) that I throw it to the other couch.

What am I doing?! Honestly, if I break it down completely, I'm trying to show you how I am god and perfect in every way. ME? I don't need help - I've got this thing called life completely figured out - didn't you see that picture of Little Red's hair done up? Didn't you see that I made ravioli from scratch? ...c'mon, would a god need YOU?!

It's awful, isn't it? I do it, and then forget that I know nothing about life in anyone else's shoes. 
What I do know or at least think I know,(then promptly forget in the throws of war) is that how we tend to present ourselves is not at all how God sees us.  We try to define ourselves and put out on social media or where ever.  We hope no one sees the chink in our armor, and when they do we either run for cover, or draw our swords for an all out battle. What we need to do is not be afraid and say 'Yup here's the chink, and you know what, here's what's under the armor - me, a human marred by sin, saved by God, and important to Him.'

Maybe we struggle to see ourselves with God's eyes and that's why we hide in the spotlight (or backstage). We want to feel important or worthy or lovely, but we forget that we already are.

We let our mistakes, which show off our need for Jesus, define us instead of giving us a reason to praise. Example: I forgot an important appointment - I could fret and feel stupid, but Jesus saved me because he loves me and I can call for another appointment. OR  I yelled at my kids for spilling their milk AGAAAAAAAIN - I could feel like a bad mom and get more grumpy, but Jesus saved me out of my mistakes and I can be grateful I can ask Him and my kids for forgiveness and start fresh in a few minutes.

I may make mistakes, but I can acknowledge them, give them to Jesus, and get over them rather than get stuck and let them define me. It kind of reminds me of the AA - "Hi, I'm so-and-so, and I make mistakes"...."Hi so-and-so"...right? Instead of touting our success, though (I've gone x amount of days without making a mistake) we show off Jesus (It's more like Jesus saved me x amount of days ago, and He's still doing awesome work).

...now, if only I (and we) lived like this all of the time, what would that look like?

xo,
J

Soli Deo Gloria (to only God be glory)

Sunday, June 29, 2014

Sweater Update with Knitting (or crocheting) Trick

I finished it! The sweater (some assembly required) that my parents bought me for Christmas! It's not long sleeved, as I was thinking it would be, but I like it just the same.  I do have to weave in the ends, and block it, but the knitting part of it is finished!
The back

The front...the sleeves were still in progress.


Since I finished it, I naturally moved on to my next pattern. S two Christmases ago got me a lovely gift certificate to River City Yarn.  Why did I wait so long to use it?!  I was hoarding it, that's why. I didn't want to use it up on something I was never gong to use.  With the finishing of the 'easy' sweater, I found a bit more challenging, but ultimately more lovely (instead of practical), sweater pattern (Lovely Sweater patter (it's free!!)

I found some gorgeous wool/silk blend and have cast it on.  I came up against a problem, though: the lace chart is pretty tiny, super hard to follow, and has TONS of repeats. S graciously got one of his friends at work to print it much larger, so that solved one issue for me.  I was able to figure out the next one on my own.

I've had a roll of contact paper just hanging out in my craft drawer for who knows how long. I saw it and was like "YES!"  I stretched it out and it was more than enough to cover my newly printed pattern. I am now using a wax pencil to mark each row after I finish it! AND! Two birds with one stone: it wipes off for the repeats!

My pattern with the wool and wax pencil
 (I do know the picture is the wrong way, but I tried a few times to right it, and it just didn't work.)

I'm probably way more excited about this than I should be, but I'll chalk that up to lack of sleep. I do think, however, that this will exclusively be how I work with lace patterns from here on out!


Hope it helps you too!
XO,

Soli Deo Gloria

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Paste, Snow, Lilies

I should add my name to the title of this post. Those three things, like I, are whiter than white.  I literally glow under black light, and I'm not talking my teeth (though, they do too!).  I have to wear a white shirt to outshine my legs or arms when I do anything under black light.  You think I jest. I really, sadly, do not.

I've come to terms with my body's shade of skin. It's not exactly something I can change. ...Well, that's not exactly true. I can turn into a lobster, candy cane, or some other configuration of red and white.

Anyway. To combat this blinding sight, I've made myself some 'tanning' lotion.  There are tons of conventional products out there that change the appearance of skin tone. I can't really use any of them for so many different factors. My lily white skin is also incredibly sensitive. It's so bad that if I even think about parabens BAM there's a rash (oh great, look at my forearm).

Around Mother's Day, S and I decided to buy a KitchenAide mixer. One of the major deciding factors in this purchase was being able to make my own lotion.  I've been researching, gathering tools, and steeping oils for a little while now.  Once the lovely machine was nestled into its spot by the fridge, it was time to test out a lotion recipe.

I used the WikiHow link about lotion and did the easy version first. It was a super simple recipe that included avocado oil, beeswax, rosewater, and grapeseed oil.  I like it, but it felt a tad bit oily on. The fix was more rosewater in the mixing process.

Next up was the one I'm going to share with you today! Peppermint Mocha lotion. It has real, from the source, fragrance.

First step is to grind some coffee beans as fine as you possibly can and add it to your oil of choice. (Mine was grapeseed) Leave it in a cool dark place for about two weeks, turning it over or shaking it once every two days or so.

Once your oil has steeped and gained all of the lovely coffee properties, strain out the coffee grounds. (I used the coffee grounds with some sugar and baking soda for an awesome body scrub!)

Again, I used the Wiki link above for the ratios for the basic lotion, minus the Vit. E oil (though, I would have used it had I had any)

Melt your oils of choice  and beeswax together (I used grapeseed, jojoba, and shea in a 2:1:1 ratio) 

Once it is just melted (careful not to scorch!), put it in your bowl with distilled water (or rosewater or orange blossom water or similar liquid like aloe or what have you).

It's time to WHIP this stuff like mad. If you have a mixer it takes maybe ten-ish minutes with scraping down the sides fairly often to make sure it's evenly mixed.

Once your lotion has thickened up, it's time to add the darkening agent: cocoa powder! In my double batch (from the link) I used less than a tablespoon of cocoa.  It gives just enough color to lessen the glaring from the sun off of my legs.

I also added some peppermint essential oil for another little kick - but that's up to you!

I would add some pictures, but I really don't want to blind you - and this go 'round of lotion making didn't get documented.  If you really want a picture filled how-to, let me know, and I can work on it!


One word of advice -if you do add in anything besides the oils, water, and wax, PUT IT IN THE FRIDGE to keep it fresh, elsewise you will have some moldy, stinky lotion going on. (yuuuck - I learned the hard from a tiny sample I had left out in a baby food jar for a friend - rats!)

Hope you can hydrate and 'tan' without any of the nasties too!

XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Monday, June 2, 2014

Dandelion Marmalade

Before the rain hit this week, Little Red and Little Bird and I made it back over to our neighbors' house to pick more dandelions!  The girls were both pretty good at getting those wonderful yellow blooms into our big bowl.

Once we got back from our tiny excursion, I put them to bed and got down to work removing the petals from their heads.  It took most of their nap time, and to try and redeem the time a little, I was listening to  this.  It's a stellar sermon on the second commandment. 

The petals from these dandelions went into the dandelion marmalade that I made on Sunday afternoon.

Dandelion petals in the marmalade
Isn't it just pretty?  It also tastes wonderful - kind of like sunshine and summer mixed with oranges and honey.


I worked from a few different recipes and then a general how-to about marmalade.  It was kind of confusing, and my first go-round (as I mentioned in my last post) was less than jam-like. The second and third attempts, though, I think turned out just they way I wanted! To save you the trouble of figuring out how to do it, I made up a recipe. Hope you can do it at some point - it's been really fun for our kids to see how we can use up these flowers.

Here's the recipe:

2 1/2 cup dandelion petals divided into 2 cups and 1/2 cup
3 cups of water
1 orange peeled and diced
500 g granulated sugar
juice of 1 lemon

0. (I forgot this step, until after I finished the other ones and didn't want to renumber...and it's important!) Put a plate in the freezer or fridge to chill.

1. Put water, 2 cups dandelion petals, and orange in a medium sauce pan and bring to boil. Turn to low heat and simmer, covered, for aprox. 1 hour.

2. Strain all of the solids from the liquid, making sure to press all of the juices from the petals and orange.

3. Put the liquid with the sugar and lemon juice into a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Do NOT stir once the sugar has dissolved (it will crystallize your mixture).  Boil until mixture reaches approx. 220 degrees F.

4. Take off of heat and drop a scant spoonful onto your chilled plate. If it is too runny (not a jammy consistency) bring it back to a boil and let it go up 1-2 degrees then test again. If it is the correct consistency move to the next step

5. Stir in the 1/2 cup dandelion petals then pour marmalade into sterilized jars. The petals will float to the top - if you want to disperse them throughout the whole jar, give it a stir when the marmalade is at room temperature (if you are not sealing the jars).

6.  Seal the jars if you are not planning on using it up within 2 months (refrigerated).

Enjoy!

One way that I for sure know that I've been dandelion focused lately is that Buddy asked S when he was going to bed why God made dandelions - Buddy's answer (when S asked it back) was so that we could eat them.  How sweet is that?!

Anyway, hope you enjoy the sweet spread,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Friday, May 23, 2014

Just Dandy

Over the winter, I started pinning things to a sustainable living Pintrest board. Mostly, the pins revolve around foraging and replanting kitchen 'scraps' like the bottom of your celery.  I was hoping that I would do something with the board, and the last two weeks, I have!

S and I are a part of a community garden initiative this year. We have a 4x12 raised bed that we could plant in.  When we went to the work bee to make those boxes, we brought the kiddos along.  I was on little one patrol, so I brought along a huge bowl, and took the kids to look for edible plants! We found some chives and dandelion greens. Buddy absolutely LOVES picking things out of the grounds and being able to eat them. (We're working on the which ones to eat educations)
Buddy picking chives (bottom bowl had ice to keep everything from wilting)


Since the initial forage, we have gone out a few more times.  The last times, we were gathering dandelion blossoms. The kids loved picking the flowers and it took probably 10 minutes to gather as much as we would need. I'm pretty sure our neighbors think we're crazy, but I think they'll like the jelly we made for them.
Dandelion blossoms

After they were all picked, the real work started. The blooms got a bath in order to wash all the bugs and dirt off of them.
  
washed and set out to dry

After the blossoms dried for a little while, it was time to pluck the petals from the base.  It isn't hard to do, but it is a little time intensive. While I was pulling the petals apart, I was thrilled with how pretty it looks! Dandelions of the same family as chamomile or daisies, and when you take them apart, it's quite easy to see it.

Dandelion petals
Aren't the petals pretty? I had grand plans the first day I was cleaning the flowers to make all sorts of things.  It turns out you needs TONS of flowers to get enough petals to do much at all.  The first bunch was only enough to put into a quick bread recipe I found.

Dandelion bread - fresh out of the oven


The bread was yummy and pretty, but I don't think I'll do it again. It wasn't a distinct enough taste to warrant the whole process.

Yum!

Can you see the pretty yellow petals?
I did use more petals to make apple dandelion marmalade, but I didn't read the instructions properly and it has turned out to be more of a flop that is delicious on top of ice cream or crackers!  Oops.

I'm going to post later next week about the marmalade that did work! 

Overall, I have loved the entire process and am looking forward to picking those fun yellow flowers throughout the summer!

Sunny and yellow,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Craft!

I know I haven't exactly been posting about crafting or cooking lately. I had had high hopes at the genesis of this blog to be fermenting veggies and cooking and crafting as if that was all I did.  The thing is, it really isn't all that I do. It's becoming more frequent that I cut down on the frivolous and cook simple healthful meals instead of coming up with tempting appetizers or delightful desserts. There have been times when I can pull out the stops and make a mess of the kitchen, and they have been wonderful. 

Lately, though, I've been sneaking in a row or two of knitting in between laundry, dishes, and organizing copious notes and resources surrounding stress management or self-regulation in children.

I got some lovely wool from my parents for Christmas. It's grey 1-ply all Canadian sheep wool. Oh! It is wonderful. When I saw it I didn't immediately know what I was going to do with it.  Usually, I buy my own yarn, as it is often hard to come up with something that fits parametres set by a certain amount of yardage. BUT! I recently found a new tool on Ravelry (a knit/crochet pattern treasure trove) - it has search parametres that include yardage, yarn size, and so on. Before, I had just looked for certain items, like socks or blankets....little did I know I was using it in such a juvenile way! Hooray for better searches!

Anyway, I found a lovely simple top-down raglan sweater that is highly customizable. The thing that drew me to this pattern, was the lovely button detail that is actually a functional closure!

As I was surveying the yardage needed for the size I thought I needed, I realized I was about 200yd short. I dug through my stash of leftovers. I had a few balls that I bought on S and my 5th anniversary. They are gorgeous hand dyed alpaca. I didn't want to use them on just anything, what with the emotional significance and all. This sweater was just the perfect place! I added some stripes and we're off to the races!

Here's a picture!
The sweater with my 'are you taking the picture' face.
So, in the picture, I had already taken the sweater off the needles and restarted because the sizing was WAAAAY off for me.  I did it in a much smaller size, and  you can sort of tell in this picture, too, that it's still a little big.  I frogged it back to just under the bust and added quite a few more decreases!

I'm almost back to where it is in this picture.  With the extra yardage from the extra decreases and size decrease I think I might have enough to make it a long sleeve sweater, too!

This is the first adult piece of clothing I've made. I think I might be hooked.

I'll update you later when it's closer to being finished!

knitting one, purling...none,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Friday, April 25, 2014

Reflections on Easter

A week ago was Good Friday. A week ago was the anniversary of a death that set me free. 

This year, as I've been thinking about Easter, taking in the different services, and fielding questions from Buddy, new things struck me. By far, the most powerful idea that stood out to me was how all of nature reacted to Jesus' death.

Think about it. The sky grew dark. The earth shook. Creation seemed to understand the magnitude and agony wrapped up in the crucifixion. It is a terrible and wondrous thing to dwell on.

The week before Jesus gave up his spirit, He alluded to nature and how if we do not praise Him, the rocks will cry out. While I'm not going to say that the earthquake was praise, I will say it was a moan, a cry, desperation made manifest to alleviate the grief brought on by the death of the Creator.

On Sunday, a friend of ours did a brilliant job singing the old hymn "O Sacred Head Now Wounded", accompanied by a stand-up bass. This hymn has become a favourite of mine in recent history, with the mournful tones and matching lyrics, but the verse that stood out this time, echos the sentiment of natures grief:

"What language can I borrow to thank Thee, Dearest Friend,
for this, thy dying sorrow - a pity without end."

How can we even begin to comprehend, let alone express the exquisite anguish of the cross? I find that I don't often focus on  the scorn of the cross, but on my benefit from it. How selfish and shameful is that? -it's like another nail in the coffin, so to speak. I am grateful for the work done there, but forget how it was done. This year, my soul was moved to silence, to wordless streaming tears of pain.

To focus too long on this grief and wallow in it is not great. We know, unlike his disciples at the time, that Jesus did not stay dead.  The gloriousness of the resurrection is juxtaposed so perfectly. My soul, on Sunday could not keep quiet, but again, had no language for praise grand enough. Nature again takes up where we cannot  - Psalm 19: 1-4. :

The heavens declare  the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands
Day after day the pour forth speech;
night after night the reveal their knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words, no sound is heard from them.
 Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.

How do we praise a God like ours? How can we but help it?

XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Feeling Worth

Lately, I've been struggling with the place God has put me. I have always dreamed of moving overseas with my family and learning a new language, cuisine, customs, and so on.  I had never fathomed living for a prolonged time in a suburb of a capital city, mostly house-bound, and being a house wife. It often feels like I'm just putting in time, or on the worst days, that my role is of little or no worth.

I have posted before about how I'm not very good at keeping house or even at times feel that I am good at mothering my kids. That's not really what I want to chat about today.

Today, I want to draw attention to something I've been learning.  This precious pearl has come to me through a variety of means, but most obviously, through a Bible study I just started this week.  The lesson deals with understanding God's call on your life and serving Him with faithful obedience for the sake of His glory.  It's not a simple lesson, nor is it a "one-time, thanks I've got it now," kind of thing. It's more like one of those polishing another layer of grime off of a jewel kind of lessons.

Anyway. I've always known God has a plan and a purpose for me and my life. I've always thought that ministering overseas was it. While it still might be, it also might not be. I really don't know at this point. What I do know, is about now.

Now, God has called me to be a house-bound, suburban dwelling house wife with three kids and a wonderful husband.
Now, God has called me to be aware of triggers and stressors for my son.
Now, God has called me to be and encourager of my stretched-thin husband.
Now, God has called me to be an example of a godly woman to my daughters.
Now God has called me to endless loads of laundry, piles of dishes, and daily diaper changes.
Now, God has called me to practice trust.
Now, God has called me to learn resilience.
Now, God has called me to understand brokenness and healing.

Now, God has called me to a number of things, each of them with purpose, meaning, chance to bring glory to Him. None of those things are insignificant when we look at them with the proper perspective and proper end goal - His glory!  That is weighty! That is immense! That is impossible - but I know, through Him, and only that way, I can do it!

The worthiness of my life has little to do with my role or task - It has everything to do with Him who called me to do it. He gives meaning and worth to even the most 'mundane' task.


How is He calling you?

XO,
J

Soli Deo Gloria

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Resolutions Revisited

So, back in January, I told you about my resolution to get through the Bible three times this year.  It was the only one I really had for the year of 2014, with the hope of learning to better follow the command of not worrying about today which is pushed forward by the other command of seeking first God's kingdom.

Well!  It's been an awesome few months. I am 3/4 of the way through my Bible for the first read-through. I used a different translation than I ever have before, as well as it's chronological version. It has been excellent and has given me fresh eyes for familiar texts. 

Something that stood out to me this time was the people of God are really that: people. While they might seem like spiritual giants (and let's face it, are), but they are staggeringly human and sinful as well.

Adam, a man who walked and talked with God disobeyed a 'simple' command and then blamed shifted.
Noah obeyed and built a boat, but then also planted a vineyard and got stinkingly drunk.
Abraham, though faithful, had trust issues, especially regarding his wife.
Lot, Jacob, Rachel, Moses, Aaron, Miriam -It goes on and on, and I haven't even left the Pentateuch!

I am finding it all comes back to people like Gideon, Saul, David, or the lepers who found the empty camp. They are unlikely, by our standards (even their own, really!!), to accomplish anything great.  In actuality these people did not do anything great. They did not have that ability. They are just like us. The difference is that God picked them out. God worked through them. God gave them the ability to obey, or lead, or father a nation, or defeat a blaspheming giant, or the multitude of other things that you see throughout the Bible.

I believe that God uses the unlikely or impossible so He can show off and have us see how incredibly awe inspiring He is. We, lumps of lifeless clay, can do nada, nothing, zilch, zippo, etc apart from Him. I think when we, in pride, get in His way and think 'hey look at how I can mold myself into anything I want', we lose sight of the grander, perfect plan that our Potter has for us- garnering praise for Himself. (- it kinda follows the James passage, doesn't it? Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord and He will raise you up - and what greater heights are there than praising an Almighty God?)

I also think that when we try to attempt something for God that it kind of falls flat on its face. I'll reiterate, without Him nothing is possible. The biblical example that kind of comes to mind is Rebekah getting Jacob to dress and smell like his older brother in order to gain the blessing.  While he did get the blessing, Rebekah paid a high price of having her son have to run away. She never saw her son again. If both she and Isaac had obeyed there would not have been as huge of a rift in that family, I believe.  Humble obedience, keeps the family together. - ha for your own and for the universal Body, eh?

Anyway, I'm excited to get into the New Testament and see how this theme continues!

I've also been mulling on different resolutions to make regarding other areas of my life. I'm still unsure of what exactly to resolve, but I think, it would go something along the lines of challenging myself in the crafts I love - so finishing the first adult sweater pattern I've been knitting. Following through on learning the basics of water colour and practising. ...things like that. Maybe when I actually come up with something solid I'll let you know.


How are your resolutions coming?

xo,
J

Soli Deo Gloria