Tag Archives: memories

memories

A Mothers Joyful Heart

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Psalm 127:3 (ESV)   Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward.

I can still remember the feeling of my children when I was pregnant for them.  I remember the movement they would make, the hiccups that kept them jostling around in  consecutive rhythm, and the elbow or knee that would poke out under my rib that kept me from being able to bend forward.  I remember the glorious feeling that God had chosen me to be their mom on this earth.  That he chose me to carry two of His children so that I could raise them up in His word and teach them what I know of Him.    What a blessing, what an honor.  

Proverbs 22:6 (ESV)  Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

My daughter and I had the opportunity to spend some time together a week ago leaving the boys home to meander doing “boy stuff”.  The true test of how much I am healing.  From not being able to drive at all, to driving the 8 hours one way to our home away from home.  The drive back home 4 days later was more of a challenge, yet we made it safely and the memories of our time together will be a blessing for many years.

We cooked, shopped, took apart old watches and made bracelets out of the gears, and began working on quilts from the material we found at the quilt store.  We also drove around one day with our cameras and took some photographs of nature and the beauty that God provides.  I think many people go through their days not noticing what is around them.  Not us, we embraced the moment with two lenses, one lens being the eyes of youth and the other being the eyes of age.  We laughed and discussed how glorious God is that he has found favor in us to have given us the ability to see beauty in the things around us.   From the flowers blooming in the garden of a older woman, to the trees in the forest lining the road way.  We saw deer, a skunk, an eagle, and the black squirrels jumping from limb to limb playing tag.  Our weekend was not short of excitement.

My highlight was spending time with my daughter, and watching the doe with her fawns that visited our yard each day.  Sometimes more than once.  At one point I opened the upstairs window to capture a clear shot and I heard one of the fawns honk as he/she communicated with his/her mom.  I nearly cried.  I watched as mom looked in all directions before she led her babes across the street, and watched as she led them to the greenery teaching them to forage for food.  I also watched the babes chase one another around the yard jumping and running at full speed.  It was beautiful and for a moment I felt a connection with the doe.  We were both teaching and spending time with the blessing of our womb.

I hope that you find favor in the site of the Lord and that you can see the beauty that is around you.  No matter where you are, what you are doing, what affliction tries to carry you away, I pray that you can and will cry out for the eyesight to notice the creations of the Lord.  Enjoy the pics, we sure enjoyed taking them.

 

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And the surprise out my bedroom window at 5:30 a.m.

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Big, fluffy white coat and a tail that swirled and swayed as he ran into the woods (when I tried to take the screen out to get a better picture) … If only it didn’t smell!   🙂

 

Lymes, memories

Spring Vacation Where are You?

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Oh it’s been a long winter!

With snow, cold weather, Lymes, co-infections, viruses and just plain old feeling physically like my body is not my own.  Where is our spring vacation?  I think this is the first year in as long as I can remember that we did not go to a warm destination.  So, that being said, I’m posting pictures of where my head wishes we were.  Maybe this will inspire spring…. maybe?

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I feel warm and refreshed already.  Do you?

 

 

Menus / Recipes, Why?

Waffles & Leftovers

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When the kids were little, we had fun with breakfasts.  We had muffin Mondays, Twisted Tuesdays (which could be anything from omelette’s to yogurt), waffle Wednesdays, thankful Thursdays (again, either eggs or yogurt) and french toast Friday’s.  As years have gone by and they are getting older, we still don’t eat much cereal and eggs are usually the breakfast choice.  Unless of course, mom is having a good morning and we change it up a bit and make either muffins, crepes, or waffles.  This morning, I felt pretty good and was able to make my husband an omelette and the kids waffles.

As I served them up, our son announced that he really wasn’t looking forward to waffles as they “usually have no flavor and honestly just don’t taste good”.  This mornings however, were “delicious and were the best ever”.   When they asked me what I did different I told them that “I think it’s better you don’t know and then you’ll keep on enjoying them”.  Of course, that only made them really want to to know what was in them   so I informed them that the left over sweet potatoes they’ve avoided for two days were discretely placed in their “delicious” waffles.   Our son had already assumed there was a vegetable in there somewhere.  After all, when they were little I used to add things like carrots and zucchini to their muffins and either cut up prunes, dates, or apricots to their pancakes.  Who needs chocolate chips in pancakes when you have apricots?  🙂

Anyway, I thought I’d share the recipe for those of you looking for something really yummy and easy to make.

Waffles & Leftovers (this made 5 waffles)

In a blender add the following ingredients in the order given and blend until smooth:

8 farm fresh eggs

2 tsp. organic vanilla

1/2 C. raw honey,

2 tsp. organic apple cider vinegar

1 C. precooked organic yams or sweet potatoes

2 tsp. celtic sea salt

2 C. Organic Almond flour

2 tsp. baking soda

2 TBS. variety chopped presoaked, dried nuts

1 TBS. shredded organic coconut

Make sure you have a hot waffle iron that has been lightly oiled with either lard, grape seed oil or a coconut oil.  Pour your batter in the waffle iron, close and set timer for 3 minutes.  If you have a waffle iron that turns over, I usually pour in the batter, set the timer and turn over immediately, then turn it back when I have about 1 minute left.

What is wonderful is fresh or frozen cut up fruit to place on top of the waffles with a little butter.  Who needs syrup when you have fruit?  🙂

memories

Communication Oppression…

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Finding myself having the conversation with several people this week about the Lyme debate and the controversy between doctors, I wondered whether or not anyone has thought about the fact that as a society we just don’t know how to communicate with one another any longer.  I mean, a patient is supposed to be the one who “hires” a doctor, not the other way around.  It seems that in the search for treatments for wellness, the patient treads onward from doctor to doctor looking for someone who will listen to their list of ailments in hopes that the doctor is actually listening and will be able to communicate back that they are concerned and will do everything they can to get to the bottom of the “cause”.    In more than one instance I can think of, between friends or others I’ve spoken to about Lyme, the story is always the same.  The doctor listens, gives feedback, lacks compassion, and ends up laying out the reasons why the ailments are not Lyme yet something else that needs more testing.  It’s an endless cycle.

Why?  I just don’t get it.  I mean, why can’t our medical community communicate with one another, discuss the issues their patients are having and work together for the common good of man to find a solution.   What happened that doctors now feel they have the upper hand and the patient is no longer the employer?  Maybe the question should be asked, since when did we as a society give up our own rights to our health and allow the medical community to be in the drivers seat?  I think that the doctors should be more like the GPS that guides and directs yet has no authority on which way we actually decide to turn.  They should work more to gain our trust in them and work harder to convince us we should continue paying them for their services.  Not the other way around.

Guess it’s just another random thought as my week winds down and I reflect upon recent conversations and the efforts we are all making to win this battle with the spirochete.

Amazing that in the 1960’s Paul Simon wrote the lyrics for Sound of Silence, a song about the disconnect in communication with people.  How people just don’t communicate freely due to the oppression of not hearing one another.    As he sings this song in 2009, I wonder what he was thinking as he looked out into the audience considering that those thousands of people were going to likely leave Madison Square Garden, sit around a table with 5 other people in silence while they texted others about the concert.

I pray for communication… amongst families, children, peers, friends and doctors.  I pray that our medical community will begin listening to their patients and really hear what their ailments are, and that they will care for them as their own loved ones.  Breaking down walls of silence and communication oppression.

Can I just add a funny:   When I was in college, one of our family friends had invited my mom and dad, myself and boyfriend at the time, to see “Neil Diamond”.  Now, this was something my parents had done before and I was always green with envy as I just loved Neil Diamond.  I was so excited to be included this time, I enthusiastically yelled “YES”… We are going!  Well, as the evening approached and excitement was heightened, my mom’s friend was discussing the impending evening to see “Paul Simon”.  Stop!  Wait!  WHO?  Oh no…. Oh yes!  Well, it was not the concert I had hoped for yet the memories of that evening have remained.  I think it was about 4 years later I finally got to see Neil Diamond… Yes the same friend obtained the tickets, this time however, I confirmed the name before agreeing!  🙂

memories

Valentines Day

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I will admit that I have been a cynic.  I have for years wished everyone a “Happy Hallmark Valentines Day”.  You could say that I just chalked up the day as another way for some to make money and for others to be nice to their loved ones once a year.  In my mind, you should be nice to those you love every day of the year, not just one.  Well…I admit I was wrong.

I did some checking to see what the history of Valentines Day was and much to my surprise I learned that the day has actually been around since before the 14th Century.  Prior to the 14th century it was a day to celebrate the martyrs named Valentine.  In 1382 the first recorded writing of Valentines Day being associated with love was Chaucer’s poem written for the first anniversary of King Richard II and Anne of Bohemia’s engagement.  There is much controversy as to the exact date that Chaucer was referring to, however, it still remains to be the first recorded writing associating the two.

There you have it, I was wrong.  Knowing that Hallmark made it’s debut onto the greeting card scene in 1910, I’d say the celebration of love on February 14  has had it’s mark on history much longer and deserves at least to be recognized as a day of celebration.  I apologize to all those who have endured my cynical attitude toward the day in question, I promise to be more “loving” here on out on that “celebrated day of love”.

I know the day held great significance for my parents and they bestowed that upon my brother and I growing up.  I mean, it was like Halloween all over again with the candy hearts we woke up to.  My children used to get heart pancakes on Valentines Day when they were younger and my husband and I usually have exchanged cards and roses over the years.   So when did I become cynical?  I guess it happened when I realized that some people only used it as a day to be nice to those they otherwise would not be.  I saw the florists rake in the dough on flowers of guilt purchased by husbands who work long hard hours and remember at the last moment that the day is about love.  Wrong, yes!  Honest, yes!  Remorseful, yes!  So my friends far and near…

Happy Valentine’s Day!

And in recognition of Chaucer, here is a little piece of history (note that this is only a few lines of the poem that is actually around 700 lines):

The Parliament of Fowls

A garden saw I, full of blossomy boughs
Upon a river, in a green mead,
There as sweetness evermore enough is,
With flowers white, blue, yellow, and red,
And cold well-streams, nothing dead,
That swimming full of small fishes light,
With fins red and scales silver bright.

On every bough the birds heard I sing,
With voice of angels in their harmony;
Some busied themselves birds forth to bring;
The little coneys to here play did hie.
And further all about I could see
The dread filled roe, the buck, the hart and hind,
Squirrels, and beasts small of gentle kind.

Of instruments of strings in accord
Heard I so play a ravishing sweetness,
That God, that maker is of all and lord,
Had heard never better, as I guess.
Therewith a wind, scarcely it might be less,
Made in the leaves green a noise soft
Accordant to the fowls’ song aloft.

Th’air of that place so a-temperate was
That never was grievance of hot nor cold.
There wax also every wholesome spice and grass;
No man may there wax sick nor old;
Yet was there joy more a thousandfold
Than man can tell; never would it be night,
But always clear day to any man’s sight.

 

 

 

memories

Christmas Memories

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As the years slip by and the children grow older, Gary and I laugh at how we have changed our views of the holidays.  We’ve stumbled from our first Griswold Christmas,  of family, obscene decorating and parties, to where we are today.  Quiet Christmases spent with just the four of us.  Every other year we have the pleasure of celebrating with an additional one or two family members, with a tree that has minimal decoration’s and dinners that amount to appetizers.  Though we enjoy the celebration of family and friends, it has become apparent that change is in the air.

Last night we turned on the Christmas Vacation  movie with Chevy Chase and laughed over Clarks decorating of the house.  When Gary and I were first married Gary took it upon himself to see if he could top Clarks display by putting enough lights on the house we could see it lit up from the top of the street.  At our second house, we witnessed him dangling from the ladder over the front door as he tried to hang a huge wreath over the window.  Our third house had the welcome addition of lighted reindeer in the yard and blow up snow globes with the inside of the house looking like a Christmas Museum.  Our current home struggles to keep up with the Christmas fanfare.  Simple professional lights lining the house and one tree outside, and inside has been degraded to just a simple tree with enough decorations to hide the areas where the lights are out.  The snowmen that once adorned the window boxes are still stashed in the basement, the decorative green corner swags sit in their storage bins and the stockings…. we aren’t quite sure where those have ended up.  The soldiers lie still,  sleeping away another year of not being placed on the banister steps and only one Madame Alexander doll makes it on the tree.   As for the parties, those have long since become a thing of the past and our extended family celebrating Christmas together has ended due to distance, death and divorce.   In fact, the last time our entire extended family celebrated Christmas was in 2004 and the last time we celebrated with our parents all together was in 2007.

As we opened up the branches of the artificial tree on Saturday, we shared fun memories of Christmases past and real trees that were freshly cut hanging over cars,  those too big to stand alone and tied to walls, and those that fell during parties.   We talked about movies that make you laugh and cry and got excited looking for them so that we could enjoy watching them in the next few weeks.   After hanging half of the decorations, we started watching the movie Elf.  Laughing at the memory of our son dressing up as Elf and surprising his dad at his office.  Yes, he even had people on the streets laughing as he pretended to pull gum off of the railing of the bridge and considered jumping into the large tree in the lobby.   The memories and laughter had me thinking of A Christmas Carol, considering the past, present and wonderment of the future.

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It may sound sad to others, yet to us it has brought new opportunity for the four of us.  We have started out our holiday season the last two years enjoying Disney and the beautiful displays that go up the day after Thanksgiving.  Spending that first week of December driving around the campsites to see all the work put into decorations really is something all four of us enjoy, and hopefully something we can continue.

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It makes me wonder how many more Christmases will we have with our children before they move out and marry, having children of their own?  How much longer will we be able to celebrate in our own home before we have to start traveling to theirs? (After all, 17 years ago we started the tradition of not leaving our home on Christmas day, so I hope our children will continue that when they start their families.)   Our senior is taking college classes and is confident he will be leaving as soon as he finishes his degree.  Moving to Scotland is in both kids future plans.  The question of the future remains, will they stay there or will they return to raise their families here?  Will they end up somewhere else?

Do I long for Christmases of the past, with family, parties, decorations and fanfare?  Of course!  However, I embrace what God has done with our family unit and the memories that we are making.  It is with great Joy that He has shown us what is truly important at this time of year.  It’s the reminder that Christmas is not about us at all, it’s about celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior.  It’s not about shopping, stress, speeding tickets, selfish desires and parties.  Nor is it about the mythical figure of Santa.   It’s about worshipping  the creator of all things and enjoying the simple pleasures of just being together, with smiles and laughter that will be heard in stories for future generations.

memories

“Make sure to have on clean bundies…”

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Oh the power of prayer…I marvel at His mercy!

“What?  Are you serious?  We are stopping 35 miles from home?  What are we going to eat for dinner?  I was looking forward to sleeping in my own bed!”  Oh out of the mouths of babes… can I still call them that when they are 17 & 14?

We tried with all our might to get home before the snow, however, we delayed slightly by leaving Orlando on Saturday at 10 rather than friday.  Although, if we had left Friday, we would have run into the sleet and ice that hit the mountains on Saturday.  As it was we saw numerous cars on the side of the road and a semi that had spun out in Knoxville when we got that far on Sunday.

Knowing that we were going to hit some snow, I began to pray and sent out texts asking for travel mercy prayers to those whom I knew would actually pray.  By the time we hit Indianapolis, I saw on the local news channels in our home town that there were numerous spin outs with several multi car pileups.  Not excited to see what was coming, I admit my panic level rose slightly.  Gary and I have differing views of snow and what is drivable vs. “stay at home and wait it out”.  Being that I already didn’t feel good and was in quite a bit of pain due to upping one of my meds, I admittedly was even more anxious. When you add in the extras:  that we were in a 40 foot RV made out of plywood placed on a semi chassis, towing a car, riding with your best friend, your two children and two cats, to say the least I was extremely uncomfortable.

Not knowing quite what else to do, I embraced the moment by washing the dishes as Gary drove and put away all sharp projectile objects, cleared off the counters, pulled sheets off of the bed, changed from my pajamas into my clothes and into clean “bundies” and brushed my hair and my teeth.  After all, my mother always joked that you needed to make sure to have on clean underwear just in case you get into a car accident.  I thought that it would be appropriate to brush my teeth as well just in case recessitation would be in order.   Then I sat in the passenger seat with my phone to capture spin outs, hoping that it wouldn’t be ours.

Thank goodness I didn’t capture anything other than snowy roads, which by the way got so bad that we could no longer see any lanes.  After almost two hours of driving trying to guess what was a lane and going at a speed of 30 mph, we crossed the border into our home state and stopped for the night at a rest area.  Yes…. 35 miles from our house!  It wasn’t pretty yet it was necessary.  We did not have to experience any spin outs and we missed all of the fun others were having closer to home.  Rather, we sat on the couch of the RV watching Duck Dynasty reruns, eating cereal and chips for dinner while truckers began to follow our lead and pour into the rest area.

This will be one final mishap memory in the travel journal of our 2013 Thanksgiving road trip to Florida.   Alongside the memories of the glass gallon of milk that fell out of the fridge (for the second time), monster mosquito bites (thanks honey for grilling for us), the toilet that overflowed during the flush out process (note to self: don’t leave the campsite when you are flushing out the black tank), and the cat crap cleanup…trying to forget that one actually!