Purely Drivel

Simple Solutions: a new beginning

Sometimes, that husband of mine has pretty good ideas. 

And sometimes, I even listen to them. 

We were chatting last night about my someday dream of writing a book.  I still have no clue what I'd actually like to write about - fiction is what I've always been drawn to, but Tom suggested that a book of short steps to a more natural way of life from a broader Christian perspective would be interesting.  He even suggested a title: Simple Solutions.

See, we tend to get a lot of questions about the simple way we try to live, about the foods we eat, about gardening (which we really don't know a whole lot about), about homeschooling...and while I'm not an expert at anything, I love to research and share what I've learned that works for me.

Am I actually planning to turn this into a book?  Probably not.  But I am planning to start a series here on the blog.

See, the fact that I don't eat refined flour or sugar?  It's a solution.

The natural, alternative sweeteners that I use?  They're a solution to that no refined sugar problem.

Choosing to homeschool?  Another solution.

The garden beds in our backyard?  Yep, that would be yet another solution.

The amazing Bible Study book I found recently that I'm planning to share about tomorrow?  Solution.

I've got a little list I've started but if there's anything specific I do that you want to know more about, let me know.  I'm also planning to share a lot of the blogs, recipes and other sources that I've come to love and rely on for inspiration.

And I want to stress that I'm not perfect.  Even though I've eaten very little refined flour or sugar for nearly two and a half months, I still wake up every morning wishing for a maple donut.  Homeschooling is something I struggle with every day.  I'm just as good at killing things in the garden as I am at growing them.  And while I do seek to live as simple and natural a life as possible, there are days that is incredibly difficult.

But I have to live what I believe.  And I'd like to share a little bit more of that here.

Looking Back: An Intentional Year

It's so hard to believe it's the last day of 2009.  In some ways, I feel like I lost a good part of this year due to illness and it's gone all too quickly.  In other ways, I don't think I could possibly take more of what 2009 had to dish out and I'm thankful it went as quickly as it did.

2009 was my year of living an intentional life.  It grew naturally out of 2008's year of conscious living, and I think there will be a natural flow into 2010's goal.  I do wonder what this past year might have been like if I hadn't spent March through August ill, but I also know God is sovereign and nothing that has happened this year has been beyond His control.  

To live an intentional life...to put thought and meaning and prayer into all that I say and do and am...that's not something that's going to end after one year.  I've always been the sort of person to ponder decisions, to pray and seek and think and...well, generally drive my husband nuts with what he sees as my over-thinking.  And there is some truth to that, I admit, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

One of my biggest realizations over this past year has been how much of the world lives with no intent at all...bumbling through life, bouncing and reacting like a pinball rather than living with purpose. 

Maybe it's easier to live that way, at least in the short term.  

Maybe I spend too much time thinking about the legacy of all I do and say.

Maybe I take life way too seriously.

I don't think so.  

I've seen this year how truly making each decision matter and how grounding each day and each action in Christ has lead our family to some pretty amazing places.   Our gardens, our food choices, homeschooling (that' s a big one!), decisions about healthcare and wellness...even the gifts we gave for Christmas...all of that is so wrapped up with intent and purpose.  

2009 has been incredibly stressful.  My health issues...Tom's job issues...that crazy decision to homeschool...behavior issues with the kids...eBay sales being off due to the economy...trying to do more every single month with less...it's been a rough year.  Somehow, choosing to live with intent each day has made it easier.  I'm not really sure how.

I am truly grateful for this past year, for all that it has taught and shaped me.  2010 will bring new challenges and joys, as each year tends to do, and I will grow and change some more.  I look forward to what these next 12 months bring.

Most of all, though, I pray that tomorrow begins a year of gratitude.

Christmas Memories

I was the last one up last night.  It's not often that happens.  The kids were in bed and so was Tom, and I had the living room all to myself.  As I enjoyed having the whole couch to myself  by the light of the Christmas tree, I had this weird experience of Christmas memories flooding back, almost like a movie.

I've always had a strong case of Christmas Eve Insomnia so old movies are a strong memory when it comes to this time of year.  I remember being wide away at 3 am one Christmas morn, watching That's My Boy and High Time on channel 26.

Memories of Christmases with new a new baby sister, of new baby brothers and of new baby cousins...all of whom are old enough to be married and parents as well.

Christmas Eve's at Gram and Gramps, when Santa would stop by to bring us each a gift and Papa would announce, "Hark, I hear the sound of reindeer hooves!".

Of visits to Granny Wooten, always so frail, who would give us kisses and tell us we'd grown.

Of times with my Grandma baking cookies and playing cards with cousins in her backroom, which I always remember as being so cold.

Going to Great-Grandma vonMoos's to take her a small tree and decorate it for her, as she pulled out boxes of heirloom glass ornaments.

Christmas day at Grammy and Papa's, with piles of presents and fudge and homemade caramels and family everywhere.

Of Anderson/von Moos Christmas parties full of even more family and fun, with Swiss Mac and Cheese and a white elephant gift exchange that could make you fall out of your chair laughing.

Of cards from Great-Aunt Ella and Uncle Eddie, always with two crisp dollar bills inside.

Of Christmas card photos, with Mom trying to get four kids to smile and look at the camera all at the same time.

Of watching a Good Times marathon with Dad one year, waiting for Mom to finish getting everyone else ready to head to Gram and Gramp's.

Of pots of Gram's chicken and noodles and then, in later years, Grammy's chicken and noodles.  Now, the chicken and noodles are mine and I will pass this recipe and tradition on to my own children, along with the love that goes into making them.

Of caramel pecan rolls and lebkuckens, of almond cookies and snickerdoodles.  One year, Carrie and I made 17 different kinds of cookies, while PBS broadcast holiday specials like an Andy Williams retrospective and An Ozark Mountain Christmas (which I would love to see again someday).

Of watching A Christmas Story for the first time, and  thinking that I'd never heard my Dad laugh so hard. 

Of getting to stay up past bedtime to watch A Charlie Brown Christmas and Rudolph, a tradition that I still keep with my own two little ones.

Memories of coming out on Christmas morning to find gifts we didn't even know we wanted, but would love for years.  That crazy push-me-pull-me spinning thing that was meant for outside, but spent most of the winter in our living room.  A My Little Pony nursery that Hanna played with many years later, a Barbie and the Rockers stage and dolls, new bikes, kitchen sets and more.   A black and white panda and a rocking chair for my first Christmas...the bear still in my closet and the rocking chair in my living room.

And once I had brothers, Legos...always Legos.

This year, as I prepare to spend my second Christmas away from the family that makes up so many of my most treasured memories, I am so very thankful for the little family of my own God has given me.  For my dear husband, who supports and loves and treasures me.  For my beautiful girl, who is so very like me.  For my silly boy, who can make me laugh like no one else.

Have yourself a Merry Christmas, and may it be filled with new memories to treasure.

Christmas Countdown

We're almost there - can you believe Christmas is just a few days away? 

So far, we've been able to enjoy a quiet little holiday season.  Sure, there have been a few hectic days...but they've been just that - a day or two here and there and not the entire season as a rule.  As I lay in bed last night, all the things that must be done in the next week went rolling through my head... and I realized it's not really that much.  And the things that will take up our time are not stresses, but pleasures. 

Today:

• Christmas Cleaning (with the business of the last few weeks, our poor house is in desperate need of a good scrubbing)
• Studio time (a few custom orders to take care of)
• Christmas party at the Caponi's

Sunday:

• Church (Tom is needed at all 3 services
• Studio time
• A bit more baking? (I have a need for spiced nuts and want to try making them with sucanat instead of refined sugar)
• Youth Christmas Party/Open Gym

Monday:

• Tom's first day of vacation
• Studio time 
• Bake banana/pumpkin breads
• Sherlock Holmes premiere at Universal (date night)

Tuesday:

• Take treats to church staff
• Studio time?
• Communion service at church (that Tom is part of)

Wednesday:

• Movies with the kids

Thursday:

• Cook turkey/prep stock/bake bread for Christmas Day
• Dinner at Robata (thanks to a gift)
• Christmas Eve service at church
• Open a few gifts

Friday:

• Pray the kids don't wake us up before the crack of dawn
• Sing Happy Birthday to Jesus
• Enjoy Christmas

Also in there, we're hoping to get in lots of bike rides, lots of games of Apples to Apples ($7.99 on Amazon right now - if you don't have that game, get it now!) and doing nothing as a family.

Sounds like a perfect recipe for Christmas week to me!

40 Loaves by C.D. Baker Review

40 Loaves by C.D. Baker

I love little books.  A little something that I can keep by the bedside or even tuck in my purse and take with me as I run errands. 

Even more than that, I love little books that contain big truths to big questions that we're all too often afraid to ask.

40 Loaves is one of those books.  In 40 little chapters, it covers topics as varied as:

• Why do I want Jesus in my life?
• Why do I fear unbelief?
• Why am I so discontented?
• Why do I pray only in emergencies?
• Why are some Christians so hard for me to like?
• and so many more.

While it's meant to be used as a 40 day devotional, I've been a little overwhelmed with those right now.  Instead, I've kept mine in my purse for those down moments that come each day.  Waiting at the doctor's office, in the car (while my husband drives, of course), at the pharmacy...all those moments I'd normally find myself reaching for a magazine or staring out the window.   It was perfect.

Each chapter was short enough to read in just a few minutes, but I kept finding myself coming back to it in thought and prayer later each day. In fact, if I had one criticism, it would be that some of the topics are a little too deep to be covered in such a short writing.  At the same time, I can't really say that's a true negative because it often sent me to my Scriptures to dig deeper.  Perfect as a little gift this holiday season, I'd also love to see churches give this book to those who are new to following Jesus or even to new church members. 

Available for purchase here.

Hardcover: 176 pages
Publisher: WaterBrook Press; 1 edition (October 6, 2009)
ISBN-10: 0307444902
ISBN-13: 978-0307444905

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Gratituesday: Hope

When we anchor our hope in God's steady love and good plans for us, hope becomes a
permanent part of us.  We have hope not because we are powerful or smart or resourceful
but because of who God is.

Mary Lou Redding

I came across this quote in my Advent study yesterday and it shook me. 

I have struggled with hope mightily this year.  From health issues to financial issues to church struggles, it's been an overwhelming year.  There have been many days when I've felt that hope - simple hope for a better tomorrow - was beyond me.  

But lately...over the last week or so...hope has started to awaken again in me.  I may be coming closer to the end of the medical mysteries, but the financial and church struggles...well...I don't think they're going to be over any time soon, but I am finding a new sense of peace about them. 

...hope faces reality.  Hope is not merely putting on a happy face, denying our needs and frustrations, and mouthing familiar phrases about how good God is. 
Hope faces squarely what life is and what it is not.

Mary Lou Redding

Hope isn't hiding your head while the storm blows around you.  Hope is seeing things for how they truly are - acknowledging the reality of each and every situation -  and knowing that no matter how difficult, how frustrating, how hopeless they may seem...they are never beyond God's love and plans.

In that, I find hope.

For a long time now, I've put my hope in people and in the future.  I can't do that anymore.  Real hope - the hope that God desires for me to embrace and live on a daily basis - can only be anchored in His love and His plans.   It must be based on reality, realizing that people aren't always what they seem and that the future is only God's to plan.  

I am so grateful for the hope lessons I've been learning, and grateful for the true hope that only comes with knowing who God is.

Want to read more Gratituesdays?  Head on over to Heavenly Homemakers!

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Advent Preparations

Advent's primary message is to wait, listen, get in touch with God, and prepare our lives
and hearts for Jesus' coming. For speeded up, stressed out people (that would be most of us),
this is an intriguing invitation.     

Beth A. Richardson

One of my goals for this holiday season is to incorporate Advent into our family's Christmas observances.  It's actually been a goal for several years now, but it's only been this holiday season that I've had time to actually do it.  We've always had Advent calendars since the kids were little but in my prayer to simplify this holiday season, I've felt the call to really explore and celebrate Advent.  

What is Advent?  Well, it's one of the seasons of the church year.  The word Advent means "arrival" or "coming" and represents the approach of Christ's birth as well as His second coming.  Much like Lent is a time of preparation for the celebration of Christ's resurrection on Easter, Advent is a time in which we prepare our heart's for His birth.   The dates of Advent vary each year, but it always begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day.  This year  Advent begins tomorrow, December 30th.

It seems like everyone I talk to this year is seeking a more simplified, Christ-filled Christmas season.  For me, celebrating Advent is the perfect solution to that desire.  This year, I'm planning to start simply but, much like the boxes of Christmas decorations that I add to each year, I'm hoping to add a little something new to our Advent celebration each year.

This year, I am doing a personal Advent study, we'll be doing this one as a family, and we will take part in lighting our Advent wreath along with the Sunday readings posted here (this article has lots of great family Advent activities as well).   I'm also planning to pull some activities from The Adventure of Christmas by Lisa Whelchel as they seem appropriate.

As I was researching for our own Advent celebrations, I came across this article and it summed up my feelings about Advent so perfectly (click on the author's name below to read the entire thing - it's worth the read).

We need Advent because so much in our culture tells us that this season is about buying—
the perfect present, the perfect decorations, the perfect feast, even the perfect memories for our families. We need more than anything to be reminded of God’s perfect gift to all of humankind.

We need it because so much in our culture tells us that Christmas begins at least the day after Thanksgiving (if not the day after Halloween). We need to be reminded that we are waiting,
that God’s time is not our time, that the world waited a long time for a savior.

We need it because so much in our culture tells us that our lives should be built around
our jobs, our purchasing power, our frantic schedules.
We need to remind each other that we belong to God.
We need to tell and hear the story of a God who chose to become poor and vulnerable.

Lynn W. Gilliam

This year, I am choosing to take the focus on shopping and rushing and consumerism of Christmas.

Want to join me? 

I am a big believer in making things work for you and your family.  Because Tom works on Sunday evenings, we'll be doing several of our readings and candle lightings on Saturdays instead.  Personalize, rearrange, and find a way to incorporate and celebrate Advent in a way that blesses your holiday season. 

A few more resources:

Advent Daily Devotional Readings

Advent Resources from the United Methodist Church

Advent

Evangelicals and Liturgical Worship 

Advent and Christmas Around the World resources from Elizabeth Foss

it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

 

I cheated a little and put up most of the Christmas decorations yesterday.  It's what I usually do while avoiding all stores like the plague, but since I didn't have to cook yesterday it freed up a little time.  And I have to admit, it was nice to walk into the house after dinner with Tom's family and see the little bits of sparkle and glitter. 

My favorite wreath is on the front door, little trees are tucked in with my teapots and the Nativity is in it's place.  Caleb helped with the Nativity this year, and actually shouted "yes, yes, I did it!" after putting baby Jesus in the manger.  Christmas seems like it's going to be extra magical for him this year.

Everything but the tree is up, and Tom and the kids will bring that home today after helping unload at the church tree lot this afternoon.  Hanna was a little concerned that I was giving them control of picking out the tree, but I'm fairly confident that they'll do just fine.  Ornaments and lights can cover a multitude of tree issues.

I'm also working on plans for the rest of our simple holiday season.

• We are really trying to limit the gifts we give this year.  We've always exchanged gifts with all of my siblings and all of the nephews and neice.  I'm limiting it to just the kids this year.  And I'm thinking the grandparents and great-grands might get framed photos of the kids...I just can't justify spending money we don't have right now.  I am keeping my eyes out for a little something to make for everyone, though.
• My 7 year old boy - the one who wants EVERYTHING he sees on TV - he can't come up with a Christmas list.  I asked him to give me 5 things he really, really wanted.  He's at two.  A fish tank and a new scooter.  I have a few other ideas and will keep working on him.  Hanna had no problem giving me a list, and it's interesting to see how much it's changed since last Christmas.  Last year, she wanted shirts from Abercrombie and American Eagle...this year, she wants craft supplies and vintage clothing.
• We're going to be home alone on Christmas Day.  Most of our relatives that live here are going elsewhere, so we're thinking we might  open up the house to friends and family that don't have other plans for Christmas dinner.  I'm still trying to come up with a theme. 
• Christmas baking is going to be a little simplified this year.  I saw Dr. F again earlier this week, and she was finally able to get all of my test results that Dr. B ran last spring.  The results that he'd told me were perfectly healthy. 
  They weren't. 
  Not at all. 
  I was at the very least severely anemic, and she couldn't even figure out what other tests he thought he was running.  She ordered new tests and is 99% positive I have some underlying hormonal issues that are being exacerbated by Insulin Resistance.  I get my results Tuesday afternoon. 
  Which brings me to why Christmas baking going to be simplified this year.  Dr. F pretty much demanded I go off all refined sugars and flours, as well as white potatoes and pasta regardless of what the test results show.  Luckily, I've been finding some no sugar/no flour blogs and have lots of practice eating this way for short amounts of time.  She thinks I need to make it permanent.  It's how I know we should be eating anyway but I find it odd that in all of the health issues I've had over the last few years, no doctor has ever told me to modify my eating habits. 
• Other plans are in the works for Advent studies and our Christmas Around the World homeschool unit (I'll share resources as soon as it's all done).  I'm planning to dedicate tomorrow to finishing those up.   And the Christmas card letter is about 75% written in my head - I just need photos to go with it. 

Over all this year, I'm praying for a simple holiday season.  I'm hoping to have the shopping finished by next weekend, which might be a little over-optimistic but I'm still shooting for it.  

My goal for this Christmas and Advent season?

To focus on the true meaning and reason...and in doing so, celebrate a peaceful, Christ-centered holiday.

counting my blessings...

I've mentioned before that it's been a rough year around here.  Health issues, financial issues, church issues...in many ways, I'm simply thankful that 2009 is drawing to a close. 

But my gratitude goes so much deeper than that. 

I am grateful for a Savior who never deserts me, never forsakes me...who walks with me each step of my day, who knows my pain and my joy better than I do myself.

I am thankful for my family. 

For a husband who supports and encourages me.

For a daughter who's love of creating mirrors my own, who's delight in creating mirrors her Creators and who continues to astound me daily with her insight and maturity.

For a son who is so full of life that he has to wake me up at 5:45 to tell me his hand is asleep...who makes us laugh and makes us cry and still loves to snuggle as a rather large seven and a half year old.

For parents who are always there, no matter what I need.  For a mother-in-law that I treasure.  For grandparents that continue to be my role models and cheerleaders all at the same time.  For brothers and sisters and nieces and nephews, for aunts and uncles...for the tapestry of people that create this family I love and miss so dearly.

I am thankful this year for the opportunity and the ability to homeschool my children.  It certainly hasn't been easy.  There have been days that I was ready to pack them up and send them off to school...but ultimately, I know we've made the right decision and I see that every day.  I'm thankful that I have this chance to educate not just their minds, but their hearts as well.

I am thankful for the choices we've made all along to live simply.  While I've continually had to find ways to make our budget stretch further and further, I am thankful that we've never lived extravagantly or far beyond our means.  

I am thankful for the call God has placed on my heart to be a homemaker.  There is no higher calling that I could aspire to than to make my home a haven for my family.  I find great joy in creating and serving meals that nourish and encourage health.  And I'm thankful for the desire God has given me to learn about nutrition, especially as it's looking like at least part of my health issues are food related.

Finally, I am thankful for oh-so-many friends...those that we share our lives with on a daily basis and those that are far away.  I'm grateful for the encouragement and prayers, for the friendship and for the support. 

2009 has been a rough year, it's true.

But it's also been a year full of God's love, shown in so many different ways and faces.

I am truly thankful.

Gratituesday: caramel rolls and traditions

 
I made caramel rolls yesterday...already made a loaf of bread for supper and chicken stock  to make chicken soup for dinner for all of my sickies.

I'd also attempted to work on a few work necessities but technology wasn't my friend yesterday.   The scanner wouldn't come up and my Cricut refused to cooperate.  About half of my to-do list for the day involved those two items and it was a little frustrating.  When all else fails, I spend some time in the kitchen.  Things usually work for me in there.

I love caramel rolls.  They're yeasty and gooey and sugar-y...and so good.  They're also a food I remember eating every Christmas at my Grammy and Papa's house (although with pecans, but I didn't have any today).  In a season filled with food traditions, those caramel pecan rolls are still one of my favorites.

I've been thinking a lot about traditions over the last few weeks.  It was even the subject of one of my Wednesday night classes at church a few weeks ago.  Traditions are important -- and they're so easy to marginalize. 

Traditions provide checkpoints where we can pause and slow down.  I force myself to wait until the day after Thanksgiving to put up the tree and put on Christmas music.  It's a cue for me to slow down and begin to savor the holiday season.  The Charlie Brown holiday specials have worked the same way for me since I was a child. 

Traditions create memories and communicate love.  My grandmother has created an amazing tradition of quilts as gifts for milestones.  High school graduation, marriage, babies...I don't know of any better tradition to commemorate a special accomplishment and communicate love all at the same time.  In fact, I sleep with my high school graduation quilt every single night and have for years.  It's a Grammy hug even when I'm far away and I find that pretty special.

Traditions add rhythm to our schedules and lives.  We tend to think of traditions as holiday related, but simple daily things can become traditions as well.  We clean the house once a week, together as a family.  When I was growing up, Saturday morning was our time to clean.  I try to get it done on Fridays so we have a clean house and a free Saturday, but it's still a tradition.

In many ways, the traditions we take part in let others (and ourselves) know who we are as a family.   Some of my favorite holiday memories are times spent at my Great-grandparent's home.  There was family and friends and people I'd never seen before.  Everywhere.  There were kids at the kitchen table, the grandparents and great-grandparents in the formal dining room, my parents and their generation in the sitting room, and more tables set up in the family room.  There was always a place for anyone who might need one and never too many around any table.  I remember being about 8 years old and getting to sit in the formal dining room with Gram and Gramps, my grandparents and the others.  I was so proud that Gram thought I was old enough to join them that I can still remember the chair I got to sit in (it's at my grandparent's house now and I have to fight the urge to try to sneak it home with me).

Traditions are a comfort, much like the stuffed Snoopy that Caleb carries back and forth to California with him every time we fly.  That Snoopy has now flown nearly 50,000 miles and is the first thing Caleb packs for every trip.  It's made many a grumpy TSA agent smile, too.

Traditions are flexible -- they can change and grow as our families and their needs change and grow.  I have to remind myself of that.  We began celebrating St. Nickolas Day when the kids were quite small.  Originally, it was a little something fun.  The kids would put their shoes out and Santa's elves would fill them with candy and a small gift.  When we moved to Florida and went home to California for a few Christmas's, St. Nickolas Day changed.  It became our day to celebrate Christmas with just the four of us.  The things we normally did on Christmas morning - reading the story of Jesus' birth and singing Him Happy Birthday - they got moved to St. Nickolas Day.  It was when the kids opened their big gifts from us.  Last year, we stayed in Florida for the first time and St. Nickolas Day changed yet again.  Santa's elves still brought candy, but they also brought a game for the entire family and holiday pajamas for the kids. 

Traditions are what we choose to make them.  My Mom's family is large, with lots of kids and even more grandkids.  Getting everyone together on Christmas wasn't really possible, so for years everyone got together for a big family party the weekend or two before.  The location rotated every year and who made it and who didn't could vary.  There was always, however, a white elephant gift exchange...which included in years past a giant sombrero, a high school era statue of my Mom's head (which came back the following year wearing a helmet) and a giant frozen fish head.  There was always great food, and way too much of it.  And there was always lots of time to catch up and laugh and remember.

I am so grateful for the traditions I grew up with, as well as the ones we've built in our own little family.   I am grateful that they give me a platform from which to share with my kids the love and legacy of family members they never had an opportunity to know.  I'm also grateful for the way traditions help me to instill in my children the things I believe are important.  And perhaps, more importantly, I am grateful for the way traditions connect me to family when we're so very far away.

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