Snow: Take Three...Fun!

The snow keeps falling, and we had some fun last night!

Calling All Salad Lovers

My friend, Sharla, sent me a website that she enjoys using for great recipes. Here's the link: My Most Favorite Salad Ever, Ever, Ever, Ever. I went online to check it out, and the homepage at that time had a recipe for an incredible Asian Noodle Salad. It included tons of wonderful raw veggies and I couldn't wait to make it. Well, I just made it, and let me tell you, it's divine! Jason and I both loved it, and I think you will too. When she says use a lot of cilantro, do use A LOT of cilantro! Also, it looked like it would make a TON of salad. It does, but it isn't too much if you want leftovers. Also, if you don't put the cilantro in the dressing and just add it when you eat it, then it will last 3 days, which is about how many days you'll be eating the salad...and I promise that you won't get tired of it. I took a picture of my salad just to entice you!

Snow: Take 2

Fallen snow has covered our village once again. Yesterday, we had several snow showers, but the temperature wasn't low enough for it to stick until last night. We woke up this wonderful Saturday morning before Resurrection Sunday to snow-covered roof tops and fields. Jason and I couldn't wait to go outside and give Jackson a second chance at the snow...but this time with mom AND dad! We had a wonderful breakfast (that's important), bundled up, and then set off to enjoy the snow. Here's a shot of Jackson, refusing to wear his hat, and Jace in our backyard:

We climbed to the top of our street, which is VERY steep, to enjoy the view. This is the only shot I got with Jackson who was very much being a daddy's boy today:

Jackson was asking for food, so we headed back to our house and got one family photo:

Jason tried to get Jackson to walk in the snow or to play with it. He stepped in it once and then decided he didn't like it (either the feel or the sound). Jason made a snowball and Jackson signed and said, "Baaall." He touched it once, in the next photo, but that was enough for him:

Jason tried to pick a snowball fight with me. I definitely won, but he tried to blame it on the fact that I could use both hands! When we had just moved to Italy in October 2001, we got a lot of snow. Jason and I walked through the town and found a huge snow-covered soccer field. We thought it sounded like fun to build a snowman, so we did. I've wanted to do that again and today was the perfect day. We put Jackson outside in his highchair with some food while we quickly built the snowman, or should I say...snowwoman. Here she is:

In honor of Easter, we gave her two Easter baskets and an Easter hat. Since our Christmas tree is STILL on our back porch, we gave her Christmas tree arms. And in this house you either have to love food or love to cook (or both), so we gave her an apron! She's quite a festive little snowwoman who definitely needs to work on her waist and hips!

We hope you all have a wonderful weekend praising God for His grace to us and His power to raise His one and only Son from the dead! We love you!

"...we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection." Romans 6:4-5

I just had a thought and wanted to add it to this post. When we think of Easter (or Resurrection Sunday), we think of spring flowers, sunny skies and pastel colors. We definitely don't think of snow. But isn't He wonderful to give me a visual reminder of what He's done in my heart?! Because of Jesus' death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead, my sins are no longer like scarlet; they are white as snow!

Soccer Legs...Still Sexy!

Jason's been playing indoor soccer with some coworkers. He's having a lot of fun and enjoying being able to do a sport he's played his whole life. Jackson and I don't make many of the games b/c they are all at 7 or 8 at night. Last night, we decided to go since Jackson took a long afternoon nap. Here are some shots of my #14!

Chris came out to play goalie for the team. He was such an incredible asset. Even better, he's an amazing Christian man who's been a huge encouragement to Jason at work.

Allow me to mention that in 1994, our high school voted on the sexiest legs of some of our male athletes. The only thing pictured in the photos were the legs. I didn't "know" Jason at the time, but I knew of him and I thought he had some good lookin' legs. I remember voting for his legs in that contest, which he won! Little did I know that those sexy legs would be mine 5 years later! Here they are making a corner kick resulting in a goal! If you ask me, they still look good!

Here's Jackson...finally on the court like the big boys! I hope he gets his dad's genes.

Cook in Training

It may take longer, but cooking is so much fun with Jackson!

He loves to help make bread:


Juice fruits and vegetables:






And pat the pizza crust:


It's no wonder the kitchen is his playroom!

Ireland...Postponed

We had planned to be in Ireland this week; however, we decided to postpone that trip until we have a clearer picture of the future. With such big career changes and life changes ahead, I didn't feel comfortable spending money on a trip when we have no idea what's coming our way. I hear Ireland is beautiful in the summer, so maybe this is a blessing in disguise! We'd appreciate your prayers regarding Jason's new career and yet another transition for our family. Love to all!

Agricultural Fun

This afternoon we went to a town nearby our village. I still don't know what was officially going on, but we had a lot of fun. There were booths and events scattered throughout different parts of the town. We first came upon what looked like a big agricultural exhibition. There was farming and ranching equipment everywhere. I was wishing that my mom was with us so that she could explain most of the stuff we were seeing - like the machines they use to milk the cows. Being a breastfeeding mom, I was pretty interested in the whole process and felt so much sympathy for those poor cows - there's no way pumps feel as good as the real thing! There was also somewhat of a petting zoo. Here are some pictures of what we saw:



This calf was so sweet. I got to feed her (she licked all over my hand) and pet her. Jackson tried to pet her once, but she moved too quickly and it scared him. He didn't cry, but just held onto my shirt with a death grip. She also kept mooing when the other children would pet her back. I was thrilled that Jackson got to hear a real moo (and not just the sounds I try to imitate)!









We should have left the stroller in the car. We didn't even use it and all Jackson wanted to do was push the stroller. Here we are seeing all of these cool animals and he's squealing b/c he wants to push the stroller! We finally gave him what he wanted:



I stumbled across this area, which reaped great rewards!



When I first put him on the saddle, he started to cry and grabbed onto my sweater so tightly; but, once the pony started moving, he was interested in the ride and enjoyed every minute of it.

We left the agricultural area and went to the auto and play area. This was fun for daddy and baby!





What a great day! And here's the funny part: When we got out of the car, I was not thrilled about being there. I was uncomfortable, tired, and not in the mood to be adventurous. It only took about 5 minutes and I was sold. This happens more often than I'd like to admit. I think something is going to be terrible and then I end up having the best time and having to humble myself and admit that I was so wrong. I'm glad that I was wrong about today. It was so much fun!

Cookbooks

I love to cook! I really enjoy it and I love providing wholesome and nutritious meals for my family. Here are a few cookbooks (or websites) I am currently using for recipes:

The Ultimate Smoothie Book by Cherie Calbom
http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Smoothie-Book-Delicious-Desserts/dp/0446677752

I love this book. Currently, I make a smoothie just about every day, either at breakfast or for an afternoon or midmorning snack. For one, it's easier to get raw veggies into Jackson by juicing them - he still doesn't have quite enough teeth for great chewing. It's also nice to break up the monotony of just eating a piece of fruit or a raw veggie. Plus, I can put the smoothie in a cup for Jackson and he can drink it on the go - no more passing pieces of fruit to the backseat for him to get all over his fingers and clothes (I really like that part...smile)!

Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld
http://www.amazon.com/Deceptively-Delicious-Simple-Secrets-Eating/dp/0061251348/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205585770&sr=1-2

This cookbook is all about hiding fruit and veggie purees into the foods you already enjoy. I like this book b/c it's given me great ideas on how to pack every meal with even more vitamins and minerals. Everyone in my family like veggies and fruits (so far), so I don't use this as a veggie replacement. I simply use this as a way to make everything more nutritious.

The Homestead Kitchen
http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/recipes.htm

I found this website just before Jason bought me my grain mill. I have used several of her bread recipes and breakfast recipes. I highly recommend the pumpkin cinnamon rolls, the oven-baked french toast, the baked oatmeal, the whole wheat oat dinner rolls, the graham crackers, and her basic whole wheat bread recipes.

Whole Foods Market
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/index.html

I use them for all kinds of stuff, particularly soups and side dishes.

Happy cooking and eating!

Soccer Ball and Stacking Cups

Tonight, we had another reason to do a little celebration dance. Jackson kicked his first ball! Jason was kicking Jackson's little Nerf soccer ball in the kitchen while I was cooking and Jackson was eating pecans. Jackson walked over to the ball and kicked it without any prompting. (And to think that I think I need to "teach" him stuff...he picks it up all on his own and it's much more meaningful.) Jason was very excited that the first ball Jackson ever kicked was a soccer ball. He switched back and forth between kicking it and throwing it several more times. It was so much fun! I got a few pictures of his later kicks:





Just this past week, Jackson has decided that stacking things is not so bad after all. He has some stacking cups that have been one of his favorite toys. He used to love pulling them all out (once I had stacked them) or knocking them down after I had stacked them upside down and into a tower. I tried getting him to stack them inside of each other, but he would not have it. He couldn't stand for two cups to be stacked together, much less all twelve of them. I gave up trying and decided that he would stack when he was ready to stack. Well, last week, he started stacking cups out of "his" kitchen cabinet, which is full of Tupperware, plastic cups and bowls, spoons, Popsicle molds, etc. Here's a photo of him and Jason stacking his "stacking" cups:

Give Him More Credit

I just have to write down what just happened so that I don't forget. I love these little moments when Jackson shows me how his mind is constantly absorbing and learning!

I was folding laundry and Jackson picked up a dryer sheet and held it up to show me what he'd found. I said, "Oh, that's trash. But you can put it in the basket." He often puts things in the laundry basket, so I thought he'd understand that. About a minute later I hear a sound and am wondering what he's up to. I go to the kitchen and he's closing the cabinet door. He turns around and looks at me with a big smile on his face, and I realize what he's just done. He opened the cabinet, pulled up the trashcan lid, and put the dryer sheet in the trash can! I've never "taught" him trash or trashcan. He's just seen me do it hundreds of times. Times like these make me smile so big. We did a little celebration dance in the kitchen!

ma-ma

A couple of weeks ago, I asked Jason if we could pray about Jackson saying ma-ma. I was a little disheartened b/c he never said my name. I knew he could say it b/c he has before, but he had gone so long without even uttering a ma, much less a ma-ma. I have to admit that I was a little hurt. After all, I am the one who is constantly with him....maybe that's the problem :)

He got very sick the last week in February. I've always said that he never says my name unless he's sick or in the depths of despair. Well, he did say my name that week. Very little, but he did say it. It was bittersweet for me: I was happy that he knew my name and was calling out to me in his time of need, but I was very sad that he had to get so sick to do it.

Well, a week and a half after being fully recovered, I am happy to say that he says my name more often now...at least once or twice per day! It will take a lifetime to catch up to the constant da-da, da-da, da-da-das, but I'm just happy he knows my name!

I guess this just gives me a glimpse of the joy of the Lord when His children call Him by name!

Happy Birth Day Landon!

Landon Robert
6 March 2008
2:04 pm
8 pounds 2 ounces
20 1/4 inches long

I am a proud aunt, for the third time, of a very healthy and beautiful baby boy!!!! Thanks to my brother, I was on the phone from Germany when Landon's daddy came out to the waiting room and announced his birth. I was also on the phone when they got to go in and seem him for the first time. Thanks be to God for international calling, cell phones, and unlimited call plans! Landon, mommy, daddy, and big brothers Dawson and Colin are doing very well. In fact, Colin was practicing his new skill...walking!...in the waiting room while Landon was having his first meal! Oh, I love my brother-in-law. He sent me a picture 46 minutes after Landon was born! He is so awesome!! My sister, Meredith, took the pictures I've posted. Thanks, Mer!

Snow!!!

Last night, when Jason got home from his indoor soccer game, he took me outside to see how beautiful the stars were. This morning, he woke me up to a winter wonderland...snow falling in huge flakes and covering the ground! And, thankfully, it was sticking! Oh, we live in such a beautiful country! Here's a picture of our village taken from our backyard (once the snow had stopped falling):



I was so excited and couldn't wait for Jackson to wake up so that we could go outside and play. He doesn't have any snow shoes, so I was trying to think of how to keep his feet dry. I put plastic bags over his shoes and legs and then put his pants on. Well, he did not like my idea and he did not share my enthusiasm about the snow:



The snow was amazing. It was so powdery and didn't feel wet at all. I was dreaming of being on the slopes with Jason and racing down to the bottom. (Skiing is my very favorite thing to do!) I tried throwing snowballs at Jackson, throwing snowballs at myself, making snowballs for him to hold...but nothing worked. The kid did not want to be in the snow and he definitely did not want the plastic bags over his legs. (On the latter part, I can hardly blame him.) Here's a photo of our footprints. I tried bouncing him across the snow covered grass. He didn't like that either.



I decided to take a drive through our village so that I could take some photos and he could see the snow. This worked much better, although I was nervous as heck about wrecking the truck. Me, snow and driving are a recipe for disaster - at least that is my track record. Here's our content boy in the warm car:





This next picture really made me laugh. Yes, it's our Christmas tree still laying (although sometimes standing when I stand it back up after a heavy wind) on our back porch. You'll have to give us a break. While the garbage men take your trees, we have to haul ours to the forest. We just haven't done it yet. I'll say it's because I think it makes a nice back porch decoration.



I gave the snow one last chance. I carried Jackson to our neighbor's garden. I thought that maybe he'd be interested since I had taken off the plastic bags and his puffy jacket. There is a cute area next to their garden where I've always wanted to take some photos of Jackson. I thought today would be a great day to put some action into my desires. Well, it wasn't successful:



I put the camera away and we just walked together. He liked that so much better. And I have to say that I did too! Maybe if daddy had been home, things would have gone differently. Everything is much more fun when daddy's around!

"Her Body, Her Self, and Her God"

I was reading Jason's John Piper devotional called Taste and See. I came upon the following devotion and loved it so much that I want to share it here. I think it is so applicable to today's woman. It's a long post, but so worth it!

"The Minneapolis Star-Tribune carried Mary McCarty's review of Joan Brumberg's book The Body Project. The book is about the difference between how girls saw themselves one hundred years ago and how they see themselves at the end of the 20th century. Brumberg analyzes diaries of adolescent girls from the 1830's to the 1990's. Her conclusion, according to the reviewer: 'In the 19th and early 20th centuries, girls' diaries focused on 'good works' and perfecting the character. In the 1990's, the diaries are fixated on 'good looks,' on perfecting the body.'

For example, one diary from 1892 says, 'Resolved...to think before speaking. To work seriously. To be self-restrained in conversations and actions. To be dignified. Interesting myself more in others.' Contrast this with an entry from 1982: 'I will try to make myself better in any way I possibly can with the help of my budget and baby-sitting money. I will lose weight, get new lenses, already got new haircut, good makeup, new clothes and accessories.'

What is remarkable about this shift from 1892 to 1982 is that it parallels exactly the shift, described in the Bible, away from what God wills for women. Consider the shift of focus from 'good works' to 'good looks.'

'Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness.' (1 Tim 2:9-10)

'Your adornment must not be merely external-braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God...You have become [Sarah's] children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear.' (1 Pet 3:3-4, 6)

Brumberg's diagnosis of the problem, however, seems to miss the mark. She writes, 'Today, many young girls worry about the contours of their bodies...because they believe the body is the ultimate expression of the self.' That may be true. But it is not helpful, because it gives the impression that something else beside the body is the ultimate expression of the self. In other words, Brumberg seems to assume that self is the starting point, and expressing the self is what life is all about. The problem, then, is just finding out what the 'ultimate expression of the self' is.

The Bible has a radically different diagnosis of the problem. It has a radically different starting place. First Peter 3:5 says, 'In former times, the holy women also, who hoped in God, used to adorn themselves, being submissive to their own husbands.' The biblical starting point in dealing with the fear of looking unacceptable is God. Does a woman 'hope in God,' or hope in the approval of men (and other women)? This is the key to 'not being frightened by any fear' (1 Peter 3:6). This is the key to being free from bondage to the mirror.

The biblical goal of a woman's life is not to find the ultimate expression of the self (neither 'body' nor 'character'). The biblical goal in life is to express the all-satisfying greatness and trustworthiness of God. Expressing God, not self, is what a godly woman wants to do. Excessive preoccupation with figure and hair and complexion is a sign that self, not God, has moved to the center. With God at the center - like the 'sun,' satisfying a woman's longing for beauty and greatness and truth and love - all the 'planets' of food and dress and exercise and cosmetics and posture and countenance will stay in their proper orbit.

If this happens, the diaries of the next generation will probably go beyond looks and character and speak of the greatness of God and the triumphs of his grace. And they will more often be written from Calcutta than from the comfortable houses of America."

Grateful

We just got through a very long week of sickness. Jackson had a terrible stomach virus, which had him vomiting for days. I'm so very grateful to say that he is feeling much better and is back to his normal self.

The Lord is so gracious to show me the good things in the midst of a trial. I discovered a whole new level of love that a mother has for her child. Jackers did not leave my side for 4 days. The first two days, I held him or slept with him constantly. He threw up on me almost every time, which was 19 times. And this wasn't always b/c I couldn't avoid it. I just could not hold him away from me while he was vomiting and reaching his arms out for me and crying.

The Lord also showed me that "other things" can wait. With all of the time that I spent laying in bed holding my baby and doing 19 loads of laundry, my house did not fall apart and we still managed to eat well. Too often, I allow all of the things that need accomplishing to overwhelm me. I think they just have to get done...or else...I'm not a good homemaker, I can't multi-task, I'm too slow, I'm lazy, I'm not organized, I can't prioritize... I know, it's terrible and oh so wrong of me. It's something that I'm working on, and my God is so good to show me the error of my ways.

Today, Jason stayed home with Jackson so that I could go to church and worship. We didn't want to put Jackson in the nursery on the heels of his sickness for fear of spreading anything to the other children. Jason allowed me to go since I had been homebound for a week. It was wonderful and I should just say how much I love our church home here. Our pastor has such a heart for Jesus, His Word, and His people. He is so sincere and so very humble. I really enjoy being under his teaching.