Reminders During A Day At The Beach

We decided to spend a day near the ocean. I must say that the beaches of the Northwest are quite chilly this time of year!

Brrrrrr!

Throughout the day, as I snapped my pictures, I was reminded of how beautiful life is. This may be a little cheesy, but I'm going to have some fun.

Here are a few images and "life's little reminders" that we captured today. I think they are good reminders for everyone.

"Walk softly, and carry a big stick; you will go far."
~Theodore Roosevelt

"Keep those most important in your life close to your heart."
(Ben and his mom)

Always keep snacks handy!

" Got Milk?"

Puget Sound is cold and windy in December....wear a scarf (especially if your Mother-in-law made it for you for Christmas).
*Okay, that's my own two cents, but it's a true statement!*

"Little boats should keep close to shore."
~Benjamin Franklin




" When walking in high places (like on TOP of the Deception Pass Bridge), don't look down!"

And Remember....

"Falling (off a 300-foot bluff) can be deadly!"

(Words to live by)

* * *

"Oh, There's No Place Like Home For The Holidays..."

"Daddy, will you read me a story?"

The Princess wears Pink!

We feasted on TWO turkeys: one was fried in the shop....

...while the other one was baked in a bag.

(Joe tried to pick the turkey up in order to get some gravy drippings, but the bottom fell out!)
"Nice try, Joe-Martha!"

But who needs two turkeys, when you can feast on watermelon?

Ping-Pong tournaments.

"I will help you up the stairs, my princess..."

(This game went on for hours!)

Good times with Glo-Stix!

Cousin-Buddies!

Apparently, a new series of STAR WARS books has been released!

Watching TV from under the ping-pong table (While the tournament was in progress)!

Mommy and Hayden

(I'm not sure when this was taken....why didn't anyone tell me about these until I downloaded the pictures?)

New Curious George monkey jammies for Christmas.

"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"

Sound the trumpets....

We are on vacation!

We have taken a 2 1/2 week break from farm life to visit family in Washington state. Where the farm is about 30 minutes from Mexico, our vacation is taking place 30 minutes from Canada. Life is full of extremes.

We are on an island north of Seattle. There is SO much I want to blog! Hopefully I will be able to find a way to download the pictures off my camera, eventhough I left my USB cable at home.

Isn't this picture (above) pretty? This is the Deception Pass Bridge which we have to drive over in order to get to the island. It's only a few miles away from the house we're staying at.

Lovely.

So far we have:

Lounged around

Eaten food

Watched movies

Opened presents

Eaten

Walked along the beach

Made Candy

Driven to a really old restored lighthouse

Visited the movie location for "Practical Magic"

Battled at Ping Pong

and

Crashed (toy) helicopters

* * * * *

I still need to get Canada to stamp my passport....

More blogs to come!

"Pass the Ribs, Please!"

Do you remember THIS story; when I popped some ribs out of place after being thrown across the room?

Well, the day before flying away for our big "Christmas Vacation", I did something I have never done before, and swore I never would.

I went to the Chiropractor.

My back cramped up again. After two days, I was in such agony that I couldn't lay down, dress myself or take a deep breath. I was in so much constant pain that I rocked from side to side while standing, unable to sit still...even for a second. Desperate, I decided to visit the Chiropractor.

The idea of going to a Chiropractor has always scared me. Cracking bones, just sounds a little weird to me and since I had heard a few horror stories, I decided that I would never step foot in a Chiropractic office. However, I knew that going to the ER would most likely result in a Cortisone shot. Somewhere I could hear my cartiladge pleading with me to try the Chiropractor first.

I listened.

Not able to play "tough" anymore, I broke. After not sleeping for three days, I begged Ben to help me find relief while tears streamed down my face. I took a Vicadin, since we had some left over from Ben's fire accident. It didn't even TOUCH the pain.

After dropping Hayden off at a babysitter, we drove to the Chiropractor (in the city) that everyone raves about. During the consultation I painfully tried to sit still as he felt up and down my spine.

"Well to start off, I feel five ribs out of place right here on the left side (all the ones behind the shoulderblade)."

Unfortunately, I had to lay down on my stomach, which was so excrutiating that my whole body shook while I yelled and gasped through grinding teeth. Ben tried to crack a joke. He received the same response that my Labor and Deliver nurse got when she tried to tell me "it's not that bad" during a particularly intense labor contraction. I didn't remember this, but was later told by witnesses that I (the sweet, kind, modest-speaking girl) "turned into Satan" and spewed some vulgar language.

I am ashamed to admit that, but it's true:
Intense pain which inhibits my ability to breath makes me grumpy.

It's now 9 days later. I was able to lay down last night for the first time in 13 days. The ribs are back in place, but there was SO much inflamation, that it has taken a long time to sooth the angry muscles and nerves.

I'm hoping I get feeling back into my two left-hand fingers which are currently tingly...it's really hard to type without feeling the keys!

I'll admit it: I was wrong about the Chiropractor. I'm going to visit him on a regular basis and even put him on my Christmas card list!

I wonder when his birthday is.

I'm hoping I finish healing today. We are in Washington; on an island north of Seattle and about 30 minutes from Canada. A fresh layer of powder is blanketing the mountains and they're calling to me...they want us to come snowboarding and sledding!

I'd like to listen to them.

Hot Tamales!

It has become a Christmas tradition in the the Southwestern United States for Mexican-Americans to make home-made tamales.

With entire families getting together, it is not uncommon for a group to make 50 pounds of tamales....or more.

I've heard that everyone has their own TOP SECRET recipe for the masa, and everyone is sure theirs is the best.

The tamales are made to eat AND share.

Click HERE for an article about the Christmas Tamale Tradition.

We've decided that Ben is allergic to Mexican food, which has been extremely inconvenient since I LOVE it and we have lived in the southwest for most of our married lives. Everytime he eats it, he gets very sick. We have no idea why, but it just doesn't agree with him, nomatter WHAT he tries to avoid.

Homemade tamales are the exception....he CAN eat those.

And trust me, we DO. We LOVE them. They're like potato chips for us: we can't eat just one!

A white truck pulled up to our house yesterday afternoon. We soon realized it was one of our farm-worker friends, Manuel, and his wife...both from Agua Prieta (which is just over the border in Sonora). Ben walked up to the driverside window and after a few minutes of chit-chat was handed a HUGE freezer bag of fresh homemade tamales. They were SO fresh, infact, that the bag was still hot and sweaty since they had not had enough time to cool off.

Manuel's wife sat smiling in the passenger seat. She already knows that we think her recipe makes the very best-tasting tamales.

Ben commented that I had secretly wished to learn the "craft". I never thought I had a chance, though. "Who would ever share their secret recipe and technique with lil ol' gringo-me?"

To my surprise she nodded and smiled, confirming she would teach me.

I'm not exactly sure how this is going to work out, since I don't speak much Spanish and she doesn't speak much English.

By the way: These pictures were taken in the canyon near the farm. More stories of THAT place to come soon!

The Candy Bar

Every Christmas it's something else.

In addition to the usual traditions, I get inspired to get wild and crazy with something I don't usually do.

This year it has been making Christmas candy.

I don't even know how many pans of Fudge, Almond Rocca (my mom's favorite candy), and Peppermint Bark I have made so far. As far as fudge is concerned, I'm at least up to 6 pans.

Our kitchen looks like a bomb went off. I decided to designate the Island/Bar as the candy storage area. Pans are stacked onto each other in rows all down the sides of the bar.

Now, I need to give it away before it ends up in our stomachs and on my thighs!

Last night, as I stood over the stove and mixed my bubbling pot of "brew" (carefully checking the temperature), I imagined what it would be like to start a candy store. Actually, a gourmet candy BOUTIQUE. I imagined the color scheme, the decor, and the aprons everyone would wear. I even decided on a location. Surrounded by windows, passers-by could look into our kitchen and see us making our fresh sweets and treats. Unable to resist the aromas, they would be compelled to come in for a taste.

What a dream.

Then I sampled my luscious concoction and felt a sharp pain in my tooth.

"A Cavity? I haven't had one of those in (literally) 10 years!"

(Bummer!)

On second thought, unless I buy gum by the case (to keep my mouth busy) maybe a candy store wouldn't be such a great career choice for me.

Anyway, if YOU would like to get in the holiday spirit by creating your own "Candy Bar", click on the links below (these are the recipes I used):

*Chocolate Fudge
*White Chocolate Fudge
(I just used the Chocolate recipe and added White chips instead)
*Peanut Butter Fudge
*Mint Chocolate Fudge
(I just used Andes mints instead of chocolate chips)
*Tiger Butter Candy
*Peppermint Bark
*Almond Rocca (scroll down)

The Linus Effect

Amid the usual shopping and "hustle and bustle" of the holiday season, we have decided to work on a "family service project" and we would like to share it with you. Maybe you can help us affect the lives of children.

We have friends who started a humanitarian group, called Village Of Hope, after adopting children from Ethiopia 13 years ago. (That's the "long-story-short" version.)

How did they plan on adopting TWO and end up returning with SIX?

(To read a MUCH BETTER version, follow the links below:)

Part I: "Making Room For One More." Click HERE.

Part II: "With Joy..." Click HERE.

To visit their website, which explains more of what their group does, click HERE.

Picture: One young girl washes her hands as another young girl drinks from the same water.
The river was filled with raw sewage.

Their mission is to rehabilitate the Ethiopian village of Kersa Illala (and surrounding villages) through a structured humanitarian program, which teaches self-reliance and independance. They work in six areas: Protecting children, Water and sanitation, Women empowerment through education, Family Income, Agriculture, and Healthcare.

* * * * *

We are looking forward to going on an "Expedition" to Ethiopia (with VOH) in April. In the meantime, we hope to get involved in other ways...which was when I had an idea.

While driving home from the store a little late one Saturday night, Hayden asked for his blanket. It's pretty common since I keep a specific fleece blanket in the car for just this situation. The blanket is comforting and soothing for a sometimes long and uncomfortable road trip (for a 4-year-old).

As Hayden snuggled up to his blanket, a thought came to me so clear and strong, it was as though someone whispered it into my ear.

Flashing red lights and ringing bells made us stop for a train. With the "clink-clank" sound and passing freight cars in front of our windshield, I turned to Ben and shared my idea in an enthusiastic tone. "I'm going to see if they need blankets for the Children's Home."

The Children's Center in the village is a safe place for kids. A lot of these kids are orphaned by disease and war. As I thought of Hayden and how much his blanket comforts him, I thought of those kids at the Center.

Kids are kids.

And those "little ones" thousands of miles away are just like my little Hayden here at home. I wanted them all to have a blanket to snuggle.

I sent an email to DeAnna and she wrote back right away. I quickly found out that they are in "desperate need" of blankets. "I never seem to have enough for everyone," she mentioned in her response. Winter is coming and it's getting cold, especially at night.

So here's the plan:
So far we have put together 18 "snuggle" blankets (made out of fleece) and collected 19 baby receiving blankets. We are also planning on putting together tied twin-size quilts, which will go on the beds at the Children's Center.

Quilt Materials:
The quilts are going to be made out of flannel twin-size flat sheets. We are going to buy them (on sale and clearance) at stores like the Dollar Store, Wal-Mart, and Target. Two sheets will be put together (with batting in the middle), and then tied with yarn. The edge will be finished with a home-made binding. This creates a fairly inexpensive quilt.

We have friends, family, and members from local churches who are willing to help us put the quilts together and tie them, but right now we are trying to gather the materials. Our goal is to start with 20 quilts.

Feel the Spirit of Christmas:
If you are interested in helping, let me know. I have added a "ChipIn" link (just under the blog title) for those who would like to make a monetary donation toward materials. Payments are made securely through PayPal, but you do not HAVE to have a PayPal account to donate.

Feel free to "Copy" the ChipIn widget and add it to your blog or website....Maybe YOUR friends and family would like to donate. You also have permission to add a link (from your blog) to my blog.

If you have other ideas of ways you would like to help, contact me or leave a comment.

I'm looking forward to sharing pictures and stories with you of our experiences with Ethiopia and Village of Hope.

Thanks Friends!

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

*All pictures used on this post (except Linus) are from Village Of Hope.

"It's like Butta!"

We were planning on being non-traditional and spending Thanksgiving this year at the "Happiest place on earth,"

Disneyland.

We were planning for this until (WHILE planning) we talked to a Disney Representative who said,

"I don't want to discourage you or anything, but I just want you to be aware: you may just want to plan your trip on another weekend. For some reason EVERYONE thinks that NOBODY will be here on Thanksgiving and Christmas, so our park sees about a 25% increase in population volume on those weekends. Just so you know."

How non-traditional.

Well, alrighty then.....
I guess we will be planning on going another time.

(Boo.)

So, after considering a hundred OTHER non-traditional things we could be doing on Turkey Day, we decided (at the last minute) to be original and just have dinner and watch football. I DO have to admit, however, that it ended up being filled with firsts:
Our house wasn't packed with friends and family, I didn't start preparing food on Wednesday, the pecans on top of our casserole were fresh from a local orchard (I know because I shelled them myself), and the sage sausage in our "Cornbread, Apple, and Cranberry Dressing" was walking around oinking a week ago. (We live on a farm now, remember?)

Oh, one more thing:
Instead of cooking a turkey, I made Glazed Cornish Game Hens.

How VERY non-traditional.

As I whipped up fresh Honey Butter, I thought back to last week when I asked Hayden if he wanted a little brother or a little sister.

Hayden: "I want a little sister."

Me: "Good, and what should her name be?"

"Hmmm..." He paused and thought intently. After a moment of silence while staring at each other he replied, "Butter!"

Me: "You want your little sister's name to be Butter?"

Hayden: "Yes."

Butter Brannon (hmmm.)

In our family, we try to "shake things up" a bit by being non-traditional on occasion, but naming a baby BUTTER may just be a little out of our comfort zone.

Besides, it seems that everyone ELSE is trying to come up with wacky names for kids these days. With everyone now going to Disneyland on Thanksgiving and naming their kids names like "Apple," maybe using the traditional, normal (Brannon family) name "Aida" would actually be a little more non-traditional. (huh?)

(By the way: if we have a little girl join our family, her name IS going to be Aida. And, no, I am NOT pregnant yet.)

"The Fabric of Our Lives"

The science behind cotton candy has always fascinated me from the time I was a little girl visiting the annual carnival. Later on in life, I was asked to help at a cotton candy booth at a fair.

It was a dream come true.

I had a BLAST twirling the sticks and spinning gigantic beehives of pink sugary fluff. Everyone loved me as their "Cotton Candy Lady."

I felt like I was a celebrity.

Some farmers in this area grow cotton. We didn't, so I don't know very much about the Cotton Crop. Those neighboring crops, however, are being harvested right now.

We were driving down a dirt farm road a couple of days ago. With cotton being harvested on both sides of the street, heaps of white fluff laying all over the ground almost created the feeling of fresh snow. Almost. (Okay...not really, but doesn't that paint a picture in your mind?)

I am a very "touchy" person. As I walk through stores, I have an over-whelming desire to touch everything. I imagine it was not very fun for my mom to take me through a store as a child, and I have to admit that this tactile compulsion has not diminished with age. I LOVE to touch things: to feel texture and experience life through my fingertips.


Which is why I suddenly screamed, "Pull over!" after realizing that I had never experienced the feeling of freshly-harvested cotton. When the car came to a stop, I jumped out the door, hopped over a culvert, and started to gather my samples.

Twisting it between my fingers and pulling it apart, a thought came to my mind.

"This is a familiar feel...I've felt it before...what is it?"

And then I realized: It feels exactly like the Cotton Candy you buy at the state fair.

It almost changes the way I feel about my Hanes Cotton Tees. Almost. (Okay, not really.)

"....That's Amore"

I've loved Dean Martin since I was a little girl. My mom introduced me to his music and we used to sing his songs together on long road trips.

I like his style,

I like his music,

I LOVE his voice!

Did you know....
While living among fellow stars in Hollywood, Dean and his wife used to throw big parties for all their fancy-pants celebrity friends at their house.

Dean liked to go to bed early, though. He would leave the party and go into his house to get ready for bed. Around the time that he was ready to go to sleep, if the party was still going on and people were still there, Dean would call the police.

"Hi Officer, Dean Martin is throwing another one of those parties of his and it's really loud...people are trying to sleep here!"

Then, the police would come to his house and break up his party for him (not knowing HE was the one who made the call)!

Now THAT'S funny!

...but what a great idea!

I thought of Dean, sang his songs, and twirled around the kitchen in my apron as I made dinner last night.

"When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie...."

What was for dinner?

Homemade Hand-Tossed Pizzas:
(...one of my favorite things to make.)

*Potato, Alfredo, Rosemary Chicken Pizza
*Jack Daniels BBQ Chicken Pizza
*Grilled Vegetable and Cheese Pizza

I make my crust from scratch and hand toss it myself because it tastes better. It's my favorite crust and I can't get it anywhere else, so I have to make it. I bake the crust on a CLAY STONE and make it super thin (more like how pizza is actually served in Italy).

If you would like more information (and the recipe) for the crust, let me know. BUT, you can also buy prepared pizza crust at the grocery store. For instructions on how to "hand toss" a pizza, click HERE.

I thought I would pass along the TOPPINGS I used on these tastey pizzas, in case you would like some ideas on what to make for dinner....

Potato, Alfredo, and Rosemary Chicken Pizza
Sauce: Alfredo
Meat: Grilled Chicken
Toppings: Thin-sliced Potatoes, Rosemary (fresh or dried)
You can also add sliced Tomatoes, which is really good and makes a pizza with a funny name: "Tomato, Potato, Alfredo"
Cheese: Fresh Grated Paresan Cheese
Note: You may want to steam or boil the potato slices first to make sure they are cooked all the way.



Jack Daniels BBQ Grilled Chicken Pizza
Sauce: Jack Daniels BBQ Sauce
Meat: Shredded or sliced Grilled Chicken
Toppings: Thinly-slice Onion
Cheese: Shredded Mozarella OR Cheddar



Grilled Vegetable and Cheese Pizza
Sauce: Marinara OR Pesto (my favorite)
Toppings: Grill Veggies (Zuccini, Summer Squash, Potatoes, Onion, etc)
Cheese: Shredded Mozarella, Grated Parmesan AND Crumbled Feta

Notes: Remember to cook the pizza until the cheese on top browns. I usually cook them at 400-450 degrees-ish. The good news is that pizza is something you can play around with...it's hard to mess-up a Pizza!

When I was in college, my roommies came up with "Trash Pizza" (you know who you are). They added left-overs and veggies that needed to be eaten before needing to go into the trash. We ate everything on our pizza from beans to broccoli. "Just add cheese." They were actually REALLY good!

Enjoy!

Funny Story: I was going to make a crust and (instead of toppings) add butter, cinnamon, and sugar. While hand-tossing it and throwing it into the air, I dropped it. (Oops!) That one went into the trash.

Freakishly Fatiguing Festival

Do you like my goulish witch shoes and Beetlejuice stockings?

I'm playing a witch for Halloween this year.....
....and I'm also the activities' committee for our church.

Yes, that's right....
I am not ON the committee....I AM the committee.

I felt quite a responsiblity in this position. With the majority of the congregation being retired, this particular chapel (in this particular farming town) hasn't had a Halloween activity for the kids in a number of YEARS.

Being the festive diva that I am, I decided to take the ball and run with it.

"Showtime" (Beetlejuice reference) was last night....and I ALMOST didn't make it out of bed this morning for church.

Despite my adoration for the fall holidays, this week has left me feeling about Halloween, what I feel like the day after Christmas. I am SO exhausted after this Fall Festival, that I am ready to throw away the candy, pack up the decorations, and take a big nap!

We had a lot of fun, though. These were some of our carnival activities:

*Face Painting

*Bobbing for Apples

* Cake Walk

*Bean Bag Toss

*"Fishing for Treats" Fish Pond.

*Festive Fall Photos

...and More!



I'm pretty positive everyone had a blast...and if they DIDN'T, it was their own fault.
(I've never painted so many Jack-o-lanterns and ghosts on cheeks before in my life!)

"This was a great activity," one said. "Let's do this same thing again next year, except next time let's add a haunted house in the cave-like basement of the church."

Thinking of repeating this week and adding more activities makes me tired.

"I'm ready for my nap now."

Happy Halloween!

"Frankie" Loves You!

And I love this "wicked" hat I bought off of eBay!

"And The 'Husband Of The Year' Award Goes To...."

We have a memory foam mattress.
Translation: there are NO springs. Therefore, when you jump on it, fall on it, or throw you wife on it, it does NOT bounce!

I believe I have FINALLY gotten this point across to my hubby.

Last weekend, we were planning on going to a friend's house for an evening of game-playing and socializing. At 5pm we were still lounging lazily on our lovely couch. Ben jumped up after noticing the time. "We have to get going," he announced in a motivated tone.

Playfully I threw myself across the cushions and said, "I'm tired, carry me!"

My husband used to be a firefighter. It makes him feel good to throw me over his shoulder and run down the hall. I guess it's one of those things that makes him feel manly and strong. Being the supportive, thoughtful wife I try to be, I will willingly pretend to be lazy so that he can indulge his caveman insticts. (Isn't that nice of me?)

And so he did, what he does everytime, he hoisted me over his shoulder and headed across the house. I played along, laughing, and watching the world pass by upside-down. Entering the bedroom (don't worry, this is G-rated), he lifted me into the air, and threw me across the bed.

Triumphant, he turned to walk out of the room while I laid there, unable to take a deep breath or lift my head.

My husband, while showing his caveman-like strength and abilities, had managed to throw me down so hard (and at just the right angle) on our unforgiving bed that one of my ribs was tweaked a bit out of place, causing all the muscles between my shoulder blades (and up my neck) to seize.

We didn't know it was a rib at the time.

The next couple of days were extremely painful, but my husband was even more tender than he is already. After drawing baths, getting me food, and rubbing my shoulders he sat on the couch with me as I watched my shows of preference. At one point, after wiggling nervously next to me, he leaned over and whispered in my ear,

"I'm sorry I broke you."

Soon he had an idea: "Could it be a mis-placed rib?"

Standing me up, crossing my arms in front of my chest, he re-aligned my back. We heard two "pops" in between my shoulders, and I started noticing relief within hours. It's been a couple more days and although I still have a tender spot, I'm noticing quite an improvement (besides the fact I can take deep breaths now, too). It's always a bonus to be able to breathe.

Maybe he DID "break" me, but he has been trying really hard to make me feel a lot better.

Video Killed The Radio Star

I served a mission for my church from 1998 to 2000, (which is why and how I speak French) and for almost 18 months I didn't watch television.

It produced an interesting perspective: suddenly, for the first time in my life, commercials seemed ridiculous. When I came back home, it took me more than a week to finally feel interested in trying to watch TV. I sat on my couch, pondering the "TV fast" I was about to break, while holding the plastic remote in my hand. I turned on the "boob tube" and within one hour turned it off again, out of irritation. I couldn't stand it anymore. I noticed three things:

1. Commercials seemed more loud and obnoxious than ever

2. Pharmaceutical companies had started advertising prescription drugs (hearing, "ask your doctor if Lipitor is right for you" was something I had never heard before). Now, considering my mom had passed away the week before because of complications from a prescription diet pill she got after "asking her doctor", you can understand why my blood started boiling when I heard the voice on the commercial rattling off the usual list of "possible side effects"!

3. The background music of all these shows was really loud. While watching the new game show "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" I found myself feeling short of breath because the beating heart sound playing in the background was stressing me out. (By the way, If you want to play online....click HERE.)

Oh, one more thing.....
I found myself thinking, "what's a reality show?"

Can you imagine?

So anyway, I eventually got over that "TV aversion" and, sadly, became familiar with the "Seasonal Line-Up" once again. Years later, while living in the Mesa area, we bought a 54-inch plasma and subscribed to over a thousand channels. "What have we become," I thought to myself, ever so briefly, before clicking through the channels and memorizing my favorites.

In March, we disconnected the flat screen (for the move to the farm) and didn't watch TV again.....

Until a month ago

When we were introduced to DirecTV.
(uh, oh)

I have to say that I had become (seemingly) dependant on TV again as a stay-at-home mom. It was a way to be connected, to have "company" during the day as I went about my things to do. After moving to the farm, isolation was the hardest thing to deal with: no TV, no visible neighbors, no LIGHTS...it was lonely when Ben was working late. The radio was on a LOT and my i-pod was working over-time.

So, when we were scheduled for our "hook-up", after six months of silence, you can understand why I was counting down the hours.

He finally came, and while he was working, I found myself flittering anxiously around the house, and pacing like a hyper chiauaua. To calm myself, I sat at the computer. While checking my email, it began. I heard it. A commercial broke the silence. After ten minutes I found myself in the same position I was in after my mission.

"That is SO annoying," I thought to myself. "Why did we hook this up?"

As soon as he walked out the door, I grabbed the remote and turned the noise down.....WAAAAAY down. I tried for a week, but nothing sparked my interest. Once again, people seemed phony, reality shows seemed fake, commercials were loud, AND women appeared to be wearing even less clothing.

Has "simplifying" curbed my television addiction once again?

Has the absence of television led me to expand myself; to have the time to teach my 4-year-old to read, to learn how to make pies, grow herbs, and sew quilts....to do things for my family? (hmmmm.)

Well, at least we have the NFL Superfan package.

...okay....and HGTV!

Fall Break

I've been a little ABSENT lately, and have taken a break from the blog community.
During my time away I HAVE, in fact, kept myself very busy.

Over the past 10 days, I have:

* Organized the closets

* Sorted over 600 pictures (from my birth through adulthood) for scrapbooking and family archiving

* Spent a LOT of money on eBay

* Become the new reigning TETRIS champion of our household (two times)

* Sewn the tops to TWO twin-sized patchwork quilts

* Applied for Passports for our family

* Made three full-length kitchen aprons

* Learned how to make apple pie....from SCRATCH!

* Bought a Sony Handycam Camcorder--NOT from eBay

* Planned a Halloween/Fall Festival for our church

* BAKED two apple pies....from scratch (just for practice)

* Reviewed a bizillion house floorplans

*Lost 5 pounds without even trying (YeeHaw!)

It's been a good week, don't you think?

MOUNTAIN LION UPDATE

Do you remember about a month ago, when I posted the blog about the Mountain Lion?

For a reminder, check it out here.

Well...
There's more to the story....

Last week, a friend of ours (after hearing us tell the story the day before) came up to us at the Homecoming Football game.

"Guess what I saw on the road just after sunrise this morning?"

(She told me to guess, so that's what I did:)

"A helamonster... A tortoise... A snake.... An illegal hitch-hiker..."

I started throwing guesses in her direction. She just shook her head and got a big grin on her face.

"TWO baby mountain lion cubs waddling across the street and moving like a couple of baby bears. They were crossing the highway into the farm....into your field to the north. They can't be more than a few weeks old. They were so cute!"

CUTE!
I'm sure they were to her, but I was less enthusiastic. I could feel the "Oh, GREAT!" look wash across my face.

Those little cubs are going to grow and now we can say that we have THREE (living in the corn field) on the farm, at least! The corn harvest is going to start soon. THEN where are they going to go?

I HOPE they go toward the Chiricahua Mountains that are just east of the farm....isn't that where they're SUPPOSED to be anyway?

The Healing Power Of Country Living

NOTE: I did NOT take the above picture, nor is it a picture of this area.

I found a sign that I loved so much I had to buy it. It's an antique-looking wooden sign with vinyl letters that read:

"Garden...

There's magic in the dirt"

At first I just thought of it as a fun sign that fellow gardeners would appreciate, but as I thought of it I wondered: "Could there really be something to that?"

I wasn't jumping for joy when I realized we were going to be moving to the farm. I was very comfortable having a grocery store, gas station, and Bed, Bath, and Beyond on every corner. I poured my heart and soul into our home and the thought of moving, well honestly, made me angry. We knew, however, that there was no way to persue "the farming and land thing" from a distance, so we jumped right in with both feet (digging my heels in on MY part).

I can now say, however, that I AM softening up. There are little experiences that literally take my breath away and make me stop what I'm doing to think a little. As I look forward to the opportunities that are infront of us and realize JUST HOW MUCH we are being blessed and "guided" I realize that this IS having an amazing effect on our lives. My anger is healing....but that isn't the ONLY thing being healed.

It was last week as I was putting on lotion. Ben, realizing what I was doing, came up to me and raised both his elbows up to me so I could share my lotion with him as well. Out of habit I rubbed his elbows....and then it hit me and I froze.

"You're elbows; they're healed! Where is your Eczema?"

Ben has had horrible Eczema on his elbows since we met! Sometimes they have been so bad they have bled. After years of lotions, prescription creams, and home remedies we felt defeated. Hayden inherited "the curse" and we battled it with him for years. Now, after moving to the farm and (literally) forgetting about the Eczema, it has vanished. I spent the rest of the day checking and feeling Ben's elbows in amazement.

And then, we started to realize all the other ways our health has improved within the last six months. Hayden and I used to get sick every couple of months. We were always missing church and activities and I was starting to get a complex when friends would say we were "always getting sick" despite my clean house. I can say that NONE of us has been sick since we've been here. The pollution and congestion has been cleared out by fresh clean air and water that's been purified by nature.

We have a list of noticable health improvements: more energy, improved respiratory, calmer digestion, feelings of peace and contentment, feeling more gratitude, no more migrane headaches....I could write pages on this. We didn't even realize just how much we were dealing with until it started to go away.

Could there really be something to that?

Garden....There's Magic In The Dirt

Going "Home"

I like my camera.

But I've learned that it does NOT have an easy time taking ACTION shots.

We went to the rink....FINALLY.
Since then, Hayden has been asking me constantly, "Mommy, I go iks-kating?" THAT is going to be a FUN Kodak moment! (and I will share them with you, of course.)

I've been skating most of my life. No matter where I live or how different the area, the rink is like a familiar friend that never changes and always welcomes me back. Wherever I live, the ice feels like being home; A different home. My first home will always be with my family, but my second will always be the ice.

The session was great...and silent. The only sound I heard was my breath and the music coming from below my feet. I love listening to my blades scratching the ice.

Most of the pics were WAY TOO blurry, but here are a few highlights....

Ahh...I can feel the stress melting away

(For me: better than the Spa-can you believe it?)

This is a spin...I'm spinning in circles.
(It would take too long to TYPE an explaination of what this looks like in action, so I won't.)

I HAD to take a picture of THIS!
This means my spins were centered (that's GOOD)

Stretching out my back after a spill
"Ice Yoga, anyone?"

There is a joke with figure skaters and hockey players to "watch out for the blue line, it will trip you!"
(notice where the blue line is located.....hmmm.)