Chismville

I think God has been showing off this spring! So many gorgeous, almost gaudily decked out trees! Sometimes I look longingly out the window day-dreaming of a walk. Other times I get my kids squared away and actually take that walk or run! One morning last week, I peeled myself out of bed for the joy of running. The air smelled delicious. The sky literally declared the glory of God. I kept thinking “How can anyone question the reality of God when they experience a morning sky like this one?!”

Some of my maternal instincts lately, have been channeled into my garden. Amidst her busy semester of classes, my sister, Emily gave me several hours of inspirational assistance and several hours of physical help. I borrowed the trusty old white truck I used to drive as a sixteen-year-old and loaded up on mulch and manure and supplies from Lowes. Emily helped me put together raised beds and surround my slice of gardening land with a rabbit proof chicken wire fence. (Maybe next year I can put up something a little prettier around it like a little white fence!) I feel quite comfortable with herbs, perhaps because I made my own little thriving herb garden as a young girl. But I am much more timid about vegetables. My past efforts haven’t met with all that much success, nor have I adequately set up a place to garden. David has said that renting is less stressful, but owning our own home and yard makes all the difference in my heart to garden! I discovered a small rhubarb plant (rhubarbs convey a sort of comfort to me, reminding me of Grandpa Hake’s beautiful garden and Grandma’s rhubarb jam and cobbler) and one little lone peppermint plant under a pine tree (which I proceeded to turn into sun tea).

One rainy afternoon, Hailey slipped out our back slider door and dumped out a half dozen of my plants into a huge puddle of water. When I discovered my two-year-old’s treachery, I hastily put the poor mangled little plants into my garden. I hope they make it! Since then, I’ve gotten a dozen more tomato plants securely in the ground. I run out each day to coddle my new plants and thank God for spring!

So I had the joy of being invited on a Mom & Kids Beach Trip in Myrtle Beach. What was I to do but go! Only approximately 475 miles stood between us and the delightful respite with friends by the sea! I was thrilled that the trip went even better than I had anticipated. What follows is the strategy that I employed:

I got up at 4AM and loaded the cooler and final little detail things according to my last minute list. I made myself a breakfast of eggs and some coffee. I nursed my littlest monkey and loaded her in the car with her favorite blanket. (I had all the kids shoes at their seats the night before.) I then woke my 6, 4, and 3 year-old monkeys and encouraged them to pop in the car with their one pre-selected blanket and pillows. I kissed my Honey goodbye and hit the trails at 5.

I had pre-loaded a box and placed it in the passenger’s seat with snacks and ziplocks of junk-drawer treasures for each little monkey with their name on it, books, a small cd-case full of cd’s and movies for this particular trip. I made a particularly marvelous energy bar recipe that a friend told me about and individually wrapped those in this box of tricks as well. I had a 2-liter of water and two smaller water bottles for myself and one to be passed to the monkey’s upon request.
My 6-year-old monkey proved most useful in the middle seat passing out said snacks and treasures and entertaining our baby monkey.

We commenced the trip in the stillness of pre-dawn starlight. As far as my little monkeys were concerned it was still night. I played a cd with a sonorous voice reading the first 35 Psalms or so. As the sun began to rise I played a favorite Judy Rogers cd with peaceful happy music and passed out breakfast snack bars. Our van is equipped with a dvd player and I let the monkeys enjoy a mommy-picked movie after that.

We made a total of two ten-minute stops. I informed the monkeys that the stop was coming up and they must put on their shoes and get out when I opened the doors. I started the gas and locked the car and herded monkeys into the restroom where everyone went! Then herded them all back again. I enticed them to enjoy the ride by offering lollipops to all but the youngest monkey when we were two hours from our destination.

My third little monkey who also happens to be 3, has problems with unfastening her seat-belt. I was able to entice her with various incentives and threats to refasten without actually having to stop! We arrived in Myrtle Beach at our marvelous destination around 1PM with time to enjoy the afternoon sunshine!

The trek home I employed similar strategies, except we left in the afternoon and I didn’t need to consider two full meals on the road. I hoped my monkeys would sleep a lot of the day…..which they did to some extent. Our second stop on the way home was longer than 10 minutes since I nursed my littlest monkey and treated us all to a Dairy Queen blizzard!

Bon Voyage to all small monkeys and monkey mommies on their journeys!

I love the recipes that go with special occasions. David’s birthday favorite for the past few years has been tiramisu. Here’s my current concoction that I plan to reuse since it turned out fabulous!

Sponge Cake (I have used ladies’ fingers in the past and can’t believe how easy it is to make my own and gluten free!)
beat:
3 egg whites till stiff
add in and beat:
3 egg yolks
then beat in:
1/2 cup sugar
Stir together separately then fold in:
3/4 cup flour(combination of white rice flour, fine corn flour, tapioca flour works well)
1 t. baking powder
1/8 t. salt

Bake in two greased 8″ cake pans at 350 for 10 minutes.

Tiramisu
6 egg yolks
3/4 cups sugar
2/3 cups milk
1 1/2 cups whipping cream
1 t. vanilla
1/2 lb. mascarpone cheese
3/4 cups strong coffee
4 T. rum
cocoa powder for dusting top

Whisk together in heavy saucepan egg yolks and sugar. Whisk in milk. Stir constantly and bring to boil for 1″. Cool this mixture in the refrigerator.

Whip the cream until set and beat in vanilla.

Thoroughly combine the mascarpone into the first custard mixture and fold whipped cream into custard.

Mix together cooled espresso or coffee and rum.

To assemble: Dip sponge cake pieces in coffee mixture and arrange in 2 quart casserole, glass bowl, or individual dessert cups or dishes. Gently spread with custard/whipped cream. Continue layering espresso-dipped cake and custard one or two more layers. (I used two wine glasses and a medium sized round glass salad bowl and did three layers.) dust the top with cocoa powder. Refrigerate overnight or at least 4 hours. Enjoy!!!

The air I breathe in bountifully, happy aromas representing the season, music I love, cheery sunlight that warms me and brightens my world, my babies cries that show they have needs I can meet, my husband’s cologne, the commotion and clamor of a happy, healthy family—I have so many rich things to be grateful for! Then the intractable foe comes sauntering into my head, eyes, world. How quickly the beauties I lavishly enjoy fade even becoming odious! My aspirations flee replaced only by desire to survive. My brain can hardly handle a thought of caring for my little ones….only the hideous monster on his chain or lurking just around my periphery. Was the Apostle Paul’s mysterious thorn in the flesh a migraine? He said that when he is weak he is strong. I fear I am too unsanctified to glory in this infernal weakness. However when my monster has finally truly left me in peace, I ponder the things I so often take for granted! I ponder and rejoice! God has given me so much to richly enjoy! There are some who struggle through each day in pain. I don’t know how they do it. God has given me life and health and strength and surrounded me with beauty and purpose! Oh how grateful I am!

This might not be of broad usefulness, but I thought I’d post it nonetheless just in case anyone else has ever wanted to quickly replicate gluten free graham cracker crumbs.
2 leftover gluten free waffle squares (we have waffles at least once a week at our house! )
1/4-1/3 cup almonds
1 T. brown sugar
pinch of cinnamon
Blend into crumbs in the blender or vitamix.

What next? Here’s the ooey, gooey yummy bar recipe I used this for the other day:

Melt 1/3 to 1/2 cup butter or coconut oil in a 9×13 pan.
Sprinkle “graham cracker crumbs” and stir. Press firmly into pan as a crust.
Pour 1 can of sweet & condensed milk over crust OR (if you don’t have it on hand and it’s easier substitute from stuff you have on hand) in saucepan bring to boil and boil for 1 minute:
1 cup sugar, 1/4 cup milk, 2 T. butter or coconut oil, 1/2 t. vanilla
Sprinkle with:
3/4-1 Cup of oats
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup un-sweetened coconut
1 cup peanuts or walnuts
Press down evenly and Bake 350 for 15-20 minutes. Let cool and cut into 24 squares. Enjoy!

I always get in a pensive mood when my baby is gone. David took Joel on a father son camping trip. Amazing to think we’ve been married long enough to have a little son old enough to be thrilled to go camping with his daddy! Pandora is playing my Michael Buble station and my golden dining room is dimly lit and a chocolate pup to keep me company and remind me that it’s past my bedtime! Speaking of bedtimes, when will my kids get the memo that summer sunlight doesn’t mean they get to stay up the entire evening? I remember lying awake as a kid on many hot summer nights thinking I’d never fall asleep and sheep never helped! I need to find a deeper reserve of energy to continue parenting these extra hours of the day. I question my mothering skills and stamina so much these days. I guess it’s good because it forces me to look to God and I always need Him whether I’m thinking about it or not. Joel believes I’m a good mother. He told a friend that I’m a very nice mommy because I gave him a really good hooker. Yes, a very good hooker indeed! My little feller has a deep-seated love of connecting things like water bottles to other things like puppies or railings or trees or chairs. My pink metal hooker was just the thing to do the job!
July has brought good things. Is it really possible that my baby sister Kirstie has turned the bold age of 18 today?! She has become such a dear friend and a beautiful talented young woman. July also gave me my favorite twin sister friends, Jen and Amy. My own daddy was born the day before we celebrate America’s freedom, and lovelies Eden and Emily also were born in this happy summer month. I’m glad that our move to Frederick has not dominated the entire summer. We’ve been in our new home just over a week and are already enjoying a more settled-in feel. We were surprised to find that our pictures “just happen” to perfectly match some of the wall colors we selected for our home. Hmm. wonder how that happened! Our neighborhood is fun to run with Grisham and our park is such a nice extension of our backyard to give the kids some exercise and a diversion. Our neighbors are all so nice and neighborly. My backroads drive to the lake is so much shorter than before. And Frederick library ranks in my kids’ eyes because of its parking garage elevator! I don’t think I’ll ever be able to walk through that library without shivering in recollection of Joel’s 3-year-old action of pulling the smoke alarm system and the additional librarian who made it her duty to assure I felt sufficiently humbled by the offense! Anyway, Aria finds the nearby river-walk fish fascinating almost as much as Hailey enjoys sampling the cigarette butts on the sidewalk.

I have become better friends with my journal so that when I think what is post-worthy to the general populous, I want to run back to the shy cozy place of my own little personal musings. Four lively children and a puppy have made me more introverted. I used to almost resent the startled comments that I had my hands full with two or three, but now my cup does overflow and I can wholeheartedly agree when people feel inclined to affirm the obvious. Another grocery store point I am now willing to concede is that the days speed by all too fast! I don’t think we can ever sufficiently savor the precious moments with little ones. I want to slam on the brakes and take them all in. I feel instead like a traffic cop with too many shiny red cars whirring past not sure which one to chase down and pull over. Then the hilariously memorable comments I think I will never forget have all but vanished from my memory by the end of the day.

When I journal, it’s like catching up with an old friend. I can selfishly comment on all the things I deem important. It all seems so banal when chatting with the world! The Lord has been good to us. He has blessed me with so much beauty all around me. I can hardly get enough of the green grass, the sunshine and rain and Hailey’s partly toothy smiles. My home is quickly filling up with boxes. With less than three weeks till our move date and without a newborn or a huge stomach, I’ve been motivated to conquer some of the organizing projects that can easily be neglected. I reclaimed several recipes and a $20 Victoria Secret gift card out of my labors! Four babies later I can dejavu that blissful newlywed time….only it’s all about online shopping these days! As I was going through boxes in our little storage shed, I remembered that it was at this very house two monumental celebrations occurred–surprise parties both at my high school graduation before I left for Equip and Indianapolis and then several years later I was royally surprised with a marvelous bridal shower before I became a California girl for what I thought would be forever! I never would have dreamed I’d call this same house home with my wonderful husband and four little children. I never would have dreamed my sister, bro-in-law, and little niece would live in the same downstairs where we used to have our slumber parties with our best friends, or that my kids would play in the same backyard whose trees we used to climb and talk about courtship and play capture the flag. Our God is big enough to handle the knowledge of a billion little intricately ironic subtleties that comprise our lives here on earth!

I’m excited about being home-owners though. There’s something nicely American about really making a home our own. (By the same token there’s something eternally valuable about not settling down too much. Our hearts will always yearn for something better since this life is not our eternal home.) It was on Aria’s third birthday that we fell in love with our new house. We threw water balloons at each other and ate a simple family picnic lunch in the shaded park community. After investigating all sorts of home possibilities, we finally felt our hearts engage in this place that is just right for us!

I had the blog bug and hope to catch it again. Sometimes there are too many things to write and not enough time. I am enjoying time with dear friends from San Diego. More to come soon…

Here is a small sampling of some of the amusing things I’ve heard recently:

Joel: What color are your stripes, Mommy?

Me: White and red.

Joel: White and red? Wow! I love white and red! They my favowites!

……..

to Kirstie:

Joel: Do you want to hold my precious Aria?

…….

Chalice always says, “Are you cold, Mommy?” when I change her diaper with cold hands. She never complains that my hands are cold for her.

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Joel is an optimist. I tell him he can’t do something and he invariably asks, “Can I do it Later?” “Later” is his magic word. I told him not to play with the fireplace tools. He said, “Can I use them later?” I told him when he’s older, I’d let him use the fireplace tools. A few days later he announced, “Mommy, I’m older now. Can I use these?”

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Our kids love to help us. Whenever David’s working on a challenging project, Joel will place his little hand on David’s shoulder and say kindly, “I’m helping you, Daddy.”

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If I stub my toe or burn myself (which happens often, I guess I’m a clutz) Chalice says with great sympathy, “I so sowwy, it’s okay!” She usually says it two or three times.

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My dad took Joel by his house when most of my siblings were gone. Joel asked, “Where are all your friends?”

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A couple days ago we had some new friends over. We were making preliminary introductions and Joel stood in the doorway hugging Chalice and said, “This is my cute Chalice.”

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Joel loves looking at pictures of people on facebook or various blogs. We clicked on a picture of Emily Howard and me and Joel said, “Look at Aunt Emily’s beautiful eyes!” “Oh Mommy has beautiful eyes too!” The picture had horrible red-eye. I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder!

Congratulations to Kendra and Jesse on the birth of Randy Nathanael Beaty this afternoon! I am SO excited for my sweet sis and bro and can’t wait to meet my new nephew!

I was pondering how magical are the little things in life through the eyes of a baby. Aria plays delightedly with her feet every time I change her diaper. She has become the world’s easiest baby. She smiles and plays and eats and sleeps and hardly fusses when her overly-zealous sister sits on her or enthusiastically pats her head or face. Although I’m trying to lead a peaceful and simple life, I can scarcely find time to update our little blog. I have written scores of interesting posts in my head like the one about my bubble bath with Joel and Chalice in our fancy whirlpool tub with Aria looking on, or the delightful snow flurries I experienced just the other day. I am proud of my sister Jenny as she books many Premier Jewelry shows and thrives with her new side job. Oh she is so entertaining! Heidi shows up faithfully every 6:30 AM of the weekdays to exercise with me. Sometimes I think it is a conspiracy to get me in shape and get me out of bed before my kids! David is playing basketball two early mornings a week with a group of guys. He’s such a good basketball player. It takes a real man to brave the cold at 5 something before work to shoot hoops. Kendra and I decided to start keeping eachother accountable for Bible memory. We now have nearly half a dozen people memorizing Isaiah 40! Please join us if you feel inclined. I plan to sign off this popcorn sort of post and head to bed so I’ll look perky when Heidi shows up tomorrow morning. Yay! for my new little nephew!