Modern day pirates on a technological sea!

After my husband's recent experience trying to buy a book, I went looking for answers.  I found this article: link, but little other information on the subject.  The article only further puzzled me.  What is going on?  How hard can it be to buy a book?  It wasn't even an original Gutenberg Bible or an autographed first edition of some celebrated author a hundred years dead.  It was a Bible commentary, and while rather an obscure branch of literature, I didn't think there was anything too peculiar in his attempts to purchase a scholarly work in his field; he's done it a hundred times before.  Sure, one time they sent us a book of crossword puzzles but that was probably a mistake.  This time it took five tries to order the thing from 5 different sellers.  The order was canceled by two, we received the wrong tracking numbers for two others, and the last failed to arrive until long after the estimated arrival date and no tracking number was given.

While amazon was gracious enough to refund our money on the failed attempts, I wonder why there isn't some sort of check or control over such occurrences, we can't be the only ones thus afflicted and it can't be cheap for amazon to handle so many fraudulent orders nor does it do much for customer morale and satisfaction.  And why is the internet so silent about it?  For any other topic there are a million opinions, discussions, and crises, but on this topic the above article was all I could find.  Weird!

Christmas miracles

It is weird having a rather regular Christmas: no home visits, paperwork updates, rescheduled court dates, waiting for 'the Call'...  We are just a regular family with regular kids, I hardly even remember they aren't ours biologically most of the time!  For the first time in eight years, adoption is not at the forefront of our lives.  I don't miss the ache of another Christmas without a child, but for some odd reason not being on the waitlist somehow leaves out a little of the excitement of the season (though our 'calls' all came in the spring!).  For some reason I always got super hopeful this time of year, and no, it wasn't too many hallmark movies, for some reason one just anticipates miracles this time of year.  Then I remember that baby the world waited thousands of years for and our own meager waits pale in comparison, and even if we never got the 'Call' or finalized an adoption, that baby was still ours, as He can be yours.  So if you are aching from infertility or singleness or divorce or miscarriage or death or health issues or whatever this holiday season, remember 'the Reason for the Season,' and know that whatever season of life you find yourself in, you aren't alone or forgotten or insignificant or overlooked and believe it or not, eventually you may just find yourself on the other side, laughing at all the stress and worry and fretting and frustration you put yourself through in the interim.  There's a plan, a story, a purpose for each of us and my prayer for you this Christmas is that you find the Hope and Joy implicit in such a wonderful thought!

Baby on board?

I've only flown with kids once, and that was quite unintentional: we had a sudden adoption placement two weeks before a long scheduled trip and it was either take the baby along or stay home.  She snuggled down in her baby carrier and slept most of the time, even with a packed flight, a long layover, and a late plane, she did just fine, but that was a newborn.  This time around she'll be two and just past the 'lap baby' window and this time her brother is coming along.  We got a great deal on tickets, which is nice since we now need four of them, but this will also be only my second time flying Basic Economy, the biggest hitch of which is not being able to choose your seat.  I was quite surprised on our last flight to be separated from my husband, I didn't even know such a thing existed!  It wasn't a big deal, as the baby and I shared a seat, but what happens when they decide to place my 2 year old five rows up from the nearest parent or my socially anxious, first time flying six year old has a panic attack because he's alone with strangers?

I did a google search on the phenomenon and came up with two very different answers: one camp was really annoyed that parents would dare buy 'economy tickets' and then burden everyone else with their problems.  The other consensus basically said you can trust the goodness of people (or their innate desire to not sit next to someone else's unsupervised kid) to accommodate the situation.  The truth is probably somewhere in the middle.  It would be nice if they had a 'family economy' ticket that would seat a parent by young children by default, not necessarily the whole family together but at least one parent by the little kiddos.  Of all the groups that might take advantage of a Basic Economy ticket, besides for college students, families with multiple kids would be high on the list, because not only are finances a little tighter if you are raising kids, but you must also purchase several of them.  And the idea that only rich kids should be allowed to fly (those whose parents can afford the exorbitant luxury of choosing their seats) is snobbery indeed.  I might as well counter that if you don't want to be bothered by the unwashed and illiterate masses and their drooling spawn, you should fly first class.  Does anyone else see visions of the hatch slamming shut on the lowest class passengers as the Titanic was going down?

But happily this has not been my experience.  On our last flight, the flight staff did everything they could to make it a happy flight for everyone.  One of the four legs of our journey was dreadful, we had anticipated a five hour layover but it became seven as the plane was late, it was overbooked and crowded, we were all tired and just wanted to be anywhere else.  They packed us in like cattle in a trailer but they got us where we were going and that was all we paid them to do.  Thankfully that was a rare exception, usually things go much more smoothly, but I know it is a risk.  We won't be doing layovers this time, we'll just drive to the major airport, so that will help quite a bit, but it still may be an adventure.  We also plan on getting there early to make it as easy as possible for everyone.   I'm just puzzled why this is even a 'thing?'  Either have an accommodation for parents of young children or don't make the tickets available to minor children.  They'll accommodate someone's internet certified anxiety animal (which may or may not be legitimate) but my two year old is just another passenger who can fend for herself?  Curiouser and Curiouser!

Garlic cheese biscuits revisited

I hate biscuits...well, not really, just the memory of the rock hard flavorless baking soda biscuits of my mother's creation.  I love the canned monstrosities made perfect with a plethora of ingredients one cannot pronounce or safely use outside a chemistry lab.  I've made a nice, fluffy, layered rendition of my own, which is tasty but a lot of work and messing around for a 'quick' bread.  But for everyday use, tastiness, and ease of making and clean-up, this has become my standard recipe.  I like to add a bit of parmesan to the dough and omit the butter/garlic drizzle but otherwise leave it pretty much as is.  After the recent holiday, I even used it as a topping for a leftover chicken pot pie: take the leftover chicken and gravy, add a bag of veg, and top with the dough in a cake pan, bake until done, and you have dinner!

The overlooked

There's a new movie out ('Instant Family') taking a realistic look at foster parenting and I'd kind of like to see it, but the preview shows a teenaged girl at a foster event telling the lady who eventually chooses to foster her and her siblings that nobody cares about the older kids who need a home, it is all about the babies and little kids.  Our community does a Christmas drive for some of the needy families in town, asking for gift ideas and then allowing community members to purchase the item.  Usually it is things like boots for a little boy or a sleeper for a baby, but something completely different caught my eye this year.  I hung back and let everyone else pick over the paper ornaments with the requested gift, curious to see what would be left.  It was the only one not chosen: a surprise basket for an 84 year old man.  Certainly not cute or adorable, but just as important as the little kids that steal much of our attention this time of year.  I'm rather excited to bring a little joy into the life of this anonymous gentleman when all others might well overlook him this holiday season.  Is there someone in your life or community that could use a little kindness, a smile, a kind word this holiday season?  Someone who nobody else is likely to notice or care about?  Let's make it a merry Christmas for everybody!

Anticipation

Anyone currently waiting for anything important (a proposal, to adopt, to conceive, on approval for a house or The Job or graduate school...) will likely tell you that it is not a pleasant experience.  I've been there, especially in the area of adoption, which has comprehended years of my life in total, but strangely of late I've found myself reading the blogs and stories of others on the same journey, whether currently in the wait or in retrospective reminiscence thereof.  Why would I want to relive what some might call a sort of mental torture?  I just reread 'Pride and Prejudice' and was reminded of my teenage angst as I watched the 5 hour miniseries (Colin Firth!), wondering how any of the characters could endure so long in the miasmic stew of not knowing, save that all their future prospects were certainly blasted into nothingness.  Why am I now, in looking back, a little wistful that the waiting is over?

It taught me patience in a world of instant fulfillment.

It taught me trust in a society full of disappointment.

There was something to anticipate, something to look forward to, no matter the frustrations of the moment, there was a joy to come that must make it worthwhile.

It taught me that I could live and even flourish without the hoped for blessing, I could go on living even if the hope was never realized.

And strangely, in the moment that joy was realized, it seemed rather anticlimactic, like Christmas after the last present was opened: months of waiting and hoping for this?

So did the ancients hope for their Messiah, their coming King who would save Israel from its political and cultural enemies.  For thousands of years they waited, and many observant Jews wait still.  But during this season of Advent, though some people count down to Christmas with dog treats or bottles of wine, we remember that waiting, that ancient longing, fulfilled in a way no one anticipated, that none expected, that many could not or would not accept.  Something so anticlimactic it is still considered the greatest scandal of all time: something to be mocked, laughed at, ridiculed.  And it is a reminder that we wait still, for a second Christmas as it were, one that will not leave anyone disappointed or dismayed or wondering if 'this is it?'  Perhaps that is why I get a little nostalgic during this particular season for things that seemed quite painful and interminable at the time.  I've that same longing, we all do, and it isn't for an adoption to go through or graduation day to come, save that greatest of all Adoptions and Graduations.

Were I to do it differently, I'd try to enjoy the wait more, to focus more on the anticipation and less on my current lack.  To wait with more excitement and patience, if those two are compatible, as I believe they are.  To not look down on the present in the light of what might be.  Mayhap I could even glean a little wisdom in that greatest of all waits, for which creation itself verily holds its breath.

Let the story begin

There is something of a debate about whether having your first child is harder or having your second and then having two kiddos to keep track of.  But I disagree with both ideas, infants, especially your first, are rather life changing, but I don't believe that it is the hardest part of parenting.  I get tired of people comparing parenting to having a dog.  A baby is sort of like a dog in that you must attend to its most basic needs at the first and must guide and shape its behaviors and growth, but there the comparison ends.  You can sell, kennel, or even kill your dog without legal ramifications for one thing.  For another, you shape the dog's attitudes and behaviors, whether intentionally or not, and it becomes what you shaped it to be.  There is some hard wired behavior, preferences, and individual quirks of course, but much of this can be shaped, guided, and influenced with proper training and environment.  The same cannot be said of children.

The first five years were a breeze, feed him, change him, make sure he gets sleep and learns manners; we have aced this parenting thing!  But then he became a person, a real person with his own opinions, ideas, fears, doubts, hopes, dreams, and ideas about how things should work.  Some kids get it at two (the terrible twos!), some kids are born that way, some are late 'bloomers,' but they are all individuals and all unique persons and their will will eventually exert itself.  A dog may be stubborn or slow about house training, but he won't sit there and argue with you, negotiate, manipulate, make excuses, break into tears, yell at you and otherwise try and convince you that his way is the only way to do something.  It was rather a shock, literally overnight, that our usually compliant son decided he wanted to be in charge and do everything his way.  Ugh!  And I thought I was clueless when I brought him home from the hospital.  Maybe boarding school is an option?

That's parenting.  It's tough, it often isn't pretty, it is never easy, but I've never done anything so wonderful either.  It means something.  It will influence the world for generations to come.  It can change the destiny of an immortal soul.  It wrings your heart but fills it too.  And it isn't just being a parent or spouse, it is any close, social interaction with our fellow men: an act of kindness, friendship, comrades in arms, teammates, a church family, school fellows...  A dog just can't do that.  Dogs are safe.  Dogs are simple.  They offer companionship and company and fun without the risks of heartbreak and sorrow that accompany all human relationships, yet neither can they fulfill you the way a great friendship or having a child can.  They can make you momentarily happy but they won't give you Joy.  You can love your dog and he you, but you can never know true Love save from another person.  Relationships, especially parenting, are dangerous and hard, but nothing worth doing is ever easy.  But to experience great Joy you must first walk through the dark and winding vale of Sorrow and Toil, leaving behind the safe and sunny suburbs of Me First.  A dog will sit happily by your side wherever you abide, while the child will dart headlong into the swirling mists of uncertainty, demanding that you follow or abandon him to his fate.  But the journey is well worth it, for there is no story else.

Garlic cheese buttermilk biscuits

The title says it all, the only thing I changed was adding a little parmesan cheese to the dough along with the dry ingredients, these are very flavorful and easy, especially if you like garlic!  Enjoy!

Summer Sausage in the Oven!

Yes, you can make your own summer sausage at home with nothing more exciting than an oven.  Check the seasoning section at your local grocery store and find some 'Morton's Tender Quick' and it is as easy as that.  For all you nitrate-phobes, there is some scuttlebutt on the interweb about using just straight salt instead, but I'm not going there, I'll let you do the research for and against and make your own decision.  I still keep mine in the freezer or the fridge, regardless.  You can also use this method to make meat sticks, just roll the meat into a cigar looking cylinder instead of a largish log and watch carefully as it cooks, so as not to dry it out too much.

Mix 1 pound ground meat with 1 Tbsp of Morton Tender Quick and refrigerate overnight.

Add desired seasonings and mix thoroughly (onion and garlic powder, black pepper, a little chili powder, Worcester sauce, mustard, liquid smoke, no salt though as the tender quick already has plenty!).

Roll each pound into a separate log and place on a broiler pan (or a cooling rack atop a jelly roll pan) and place in a 220 degree over for about 4 hours (you want an inside temp of 165F).  For meat sticks it is only an hour or two.  Let cool before serving, store in refrigerator or freezer.  Enjoy!

The Strange Heroism of the Intentionally Childless

I'm afraid 'intentionally childless' is going to be the next transgender movement.  I just finished reading an article (theoretically from a Christian perspective no less!) on why this very personal decision is quite justifiable, especially from a Biblical perspective.  There are many reasons to not have kids, don't get me wrong, I've been there, but this article wasn't talking about those of us not in a stable relationship, biologically incapable, carrying a lethal gene, or otherwise in a situation that makes childrearing/bearing difficult, impossible, or downright deadly.  It was talking about a couple in a situation wherein they could reasonably have a kid or six but they just don't want to.  And that's fine, everyone needs to make that decision for themselves, and I'd rather you didn't commit parenthood if you are so viscerally opposed to it, but when the authors of such articles wax long in trying to justify their decision, that's when it really gets weird, and rather embarrassing, especially in trying to get the Bible to back you up.

The pride in their decision, the disdain with which they view all others who might disagree with their choice, and the convoluted arguments made in support of their decision is what really puzzles me.  Make your decision and live with it, you aren't required to change anybody else's mind or gain their approval; you need to live with the consequences, but the decision is yours alone.  Why is there such a need to justify the decision to all and sundry, to get the rousing approval of society at large, unless we all know, deep down, that there is something a little selfish and wrong about it and we're trying to convince others so that in the end we can feel confident in the decision ourselves.  There's also something a little backwards about saying you are trying to save the world by not having kids, which is what the main argument in favor of intentional childlessness boils down to, that or someone just doesn't want to change their life/lifestyle to include the little buggers.  To the latter, all I'll say is have a great time.  To the former, have you truly thought this through?

Huge human population = destruction of the planet.  This is the environmental stewardship argument for childlessness, with the idea that having no kids will somehow shrink the burden on our overly stressed planet.  While on the surface it sounds all nice and green and eco-friendly, when all is said and done, the only thing that will die out is the idea behind it.  The best way to pass on your ideals (like environmental stewardship) is to pass them on to your kids, but since you don't have any, all those planet killers with three or four spawn apiece will multiply and ravage the planet in a few generations.

I'm too important/busy to have kids.  This seemed to be the intent of the article that inspired this post, arguing how most super heroes don't have kids because they are too busy saving the world, a job only they can do.  Reality, however argues otherwise.  Even the President of the US has kids.  Every Einstein and Pasteur in recored history had parents, if not a family too.  You are one of 7 billion people on the planet, whatever you can do, so can someone else, you might even be able to do it and have kids!  And who knows, maybe those kids might one day be important and busy people too!  Nobody is that important or irreplaceable, save perhaps the kids you'll never have.  That's the one thing you can do that nobody else can: create and raise a new and unique individual!

As for the Biblical support for the case, I'm still trying to find any.  I'm sure the apostles might have chosen celibacy rather than to endanger a family on their dangerous missions, but most moderns aren't counted among the 12 or willing to do likewise.  I don't think the ease of modern birth control is a Biblical reason to forgo children.  I can respect a person's choice not to get married or to have a celibate relationship therein if they feel very strongly upon this issue, but to cherry pick a verse here or there or use an obscure story as a general rule to justify your chosen lifestyle is a distortion of scripture and an insult to your listener's intelligence.

Either have kids or don't, but don't count yourself as victim or hero in making that decision.  It is your choice, as are the consequences, but don't twist logic, history, or facts simply to justify your choice.  The only person you need to convince is yourself!

Yes, Virginia, there are content and happy parents!

Wow, I can't believe I found this article in this modern day of proudly childfree couples wherein 'maternity' leave is now offered when you get a new hermit crab.  I used to read a certain snarky mommy blog as it humorously described the ups and downs of motherhood, but it has descended into nothing but a complaint forum for bitter mothers who miss the bar scene and have nothing better to do than run one another down and evangelize the liberal agenda.  I found it rather depressing and haven't gone back since.  It seems everywhere you look parenting and children are being bashed nowadays as the epitome of selfishness and vanity while would-be parents are cautioned that even one child will inevitably bankrupt one, destroy the planet, and one's social life, not necessarily in that order.  No wonder the birth rate is at an all time low in industrialized nations!

But there is hope out there, as the above article shows, we are not all crazy (those of us who are actually parents and actually find it a rewarding and enjoyable experience...most of the time!).  Take heart, moms and dads, there are still people just like you all over the world and you are doing the most important job there is: raising the next generation.  And hopefully we raise them with a little more sense than the current one!

Rebel with a lens

We are entering our second year as school age parents, our son is a first grader, and yet again I find myself rebelling against the ancient ritual of yearly school photos.  For the price of one of the lesser packages you could buy yourself a very decent used camera.  Even my arch nemesis the camera phone is becoming a legitimate means of taking decent photos.  A little practice, some trial and error, and a Pinterest account and you could take some very nice pictures for a fraction of the price and they'll probably be better quality as well.

One of the things that really bugs me is photos that are edited to the point of fantasy.  A little tweaking of light and shadows is fine and necessary, but unless you are a graphic artist making an original work, artistic license can be taken way too far, especially when the photos look fake.  When I was a kid it was actual film and what you got you got, and everyone got photographed in front of that drab gray background, but it looked like a natural photo, or as natural as you get in a portable studio setting.  My son's photo last year looked like a two dimensional cardboard cut out pasted on various cool backgrounds.  My husband was all excited about the one with the map on it (being a geography nut) until I reminded him that we weren't buying pictures for the background!

Instead, we took a family mini-trip out to one of our favorite spots and snapped a bunch of photos of not only the schoolboy but also of the entire family and we got a bunch of great shots and had a blast too.  It also showed him in his natural habitat looking like, well himself, rather than something with all the interest and expression of a passport photo.  Some kids take great shots for strangers, but mine gets about as excited and cooperative as if he were getting a mugshot done.  So we are countercultural and take our own school photos, it may not work for a lot of people, but for us it is actually one of the highlights of the new school year!

Traveling: Family Style

I hate hotels, I can't ever fall asleep or feel at home or relax.  They are just so crowded, noisy, impersonal, and uncomfortable (at least the cheaper ones in which we can afford to stay).  I much prefer to stay with friends or family, or the next best thing: renting one.  I'd much rather stay in someone's spare bedroom than even the poshest hotel of my personal experience, well maybe not my husband's aunt where the cat pees everywhere, but that would be the only exception.  Even better is finding a whole house/apartment/condo to rent.  We've done this several times now, often for the price of a bad hotel we get a whole condo to ourselves with multiple bedrooms, a full kitchen, and even laundry.  It is especially nice when traveling with young kids.  Have you ever tried to get a baby to nap in a hotel?  Or tried to hang out with said baby when she won't nap?  It's nice to spend part of the day hiking or sightseeing and then come home for a homey meal and a nap and then off to more adventures in the evening.  I was a little leery at first, but we've had great experiences with many of the rent my house/apartment/yurt/cabin/sofa websites and won't hesitate to do so again!

Let there be shoes (and a place to put them!)

It is ridiculous how many shoes are needed for just 6 feet and how much clutter it causes in the entryway.  I was in desperate need of a shoe rack but really not interested in spending $50 for something of cheap construct and tacky design.  Instead I borrowed a few bricks from the stack outside and found a few scrap pieces of laminate in the basement.  My grandmother has a bookshelf made by stacking bricks and barn wood, I adapted the technique for our shoe dilemma and it works great!  When we remember to use it...

Preserving flavorful weeds in 60 seconds or less

If you've ever found yourself with too many fresh herbs (store bought or home grown) this is the idea for you!  Dry your herbs in the microwave.  The results are surprising.  I've been air drying basil, which takes about a week and gives you a khaki green result.  This is actually green green and takes a couple minutes.  A good thing too, as most herbs seem to grow like weeds, and in the case of mint, they look like it too!

Wood cleaning magic!

I'm not usually a garage sale fanatic but today I happened upon a set of four solid wood folding chairs, well made and solid pieces but the wood was dusty, dirty, ugly and dry and when you tried to fold or unfold them they were a good exercise in arm strength.  My husband sort of looked at me like I had wasted $20 on the lot, but we desperately need extra seating for all the people he invites over for dinner all the time so I took a gamble.  Not having any commercial stuff to clean, lubricate, or restore wood I resorted to google and came across this article. 3/4 cup oil and 1/4 cup vinegar?  I had that, why not?  The chairs couldn't get any uglier!  I did add a few drops of lemon juice just for a nice smell and went to work.  Wow!  The chairs are clean and happy and actually sort of pretty (in a folding chair sort of way) and actually open and shut without fuss or noise or trouble.  Just like magic!

Benighted

It seems everybody is taking pictures of the night sky lately, I pretty much shrugged it off as a passing fad, mainly because my aging camera didn't have the ability.  Here's a great site if you want to learn the basics.  I particularly liked this quote, "unless you are lucky enough to live in a remote rural location with super dark night skies...," finally someone who envies where I live!

Hope amid the ashes

What is it with great writers and clinical narcissism?  Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters certainly have their prime examples (Lady Catherine in 'Pride and Prejudice' along with Jane's aunt in 'Jane Eyre' and the husband in 'The Tenant of Wildfell Hall,' just to name a few), but I seem to run across it in many famous or classic books.  I just read T.H.White's 'The Once and Future King' and it comprises the entire base of the story amongst the 'Orkney Faction:' Morgause and her sons.  It is scarily fascinating how he actually delves briefly into the issue, determining that it is the mother's relationship with her child that imbues him or her with courage and love for others, etc. rather than acquiring it externally from teachers or experience.  This is not to say such things cannot be learned later in life, but if no conscious effort is made to acquire them, and we merely live out our lives unconscious to our own failings as is the wont of so many, the result can be disastrous, as the tale goes on to show.

The scientific and sociological literature rarely touches on this subject, and if it does, it is only a brief and indifferent look at the havoc it can wreak upon the human heart, soul, and mind, especially when it is a parent.  But it is heartening to find that we are not alone, that it has been a social travesty down through the ages, and perhaps the suffering and grief involved in such relationships has produced some of the world's greatest writers and most renowned books.  The home is supposed to be safe and sacred, it is our first introduction to the world and our initial classroom, but what happens when it becomes twisted, broken, and cruel?  Certain authors have offered us a glimpse into such a hell and the demons it is wont to produce, but we also find that all is not lost, they have escaped it and proved that they have become stronger thereby and that gives hope to all who lived through just that, whether we yet realize it or not.

All's fair in love and war, but what about the county fair?

Ah Fair Season, to most people on the planet I suppose that really doesn't mean much, but here in the literal middle of nowhere, it is a very exciting and busy time...at least it used to be.  I've been taking stuff to the fair for as long as I can remember, first open class baking with my grandmother then a hundred different 4-H projects and later open class photography.  Now I'm taking a little of this and a little of that and getting my son involved too (his second year as Grand Champion in the youth Foods division).  This year was also my first year actually judging anything.  I've never judged radishes before, but I was in charge of the entire 4-H gardening division (consisting entirely of the aforementioned radishes and a clump of rhubarb).  Our fair is really, really small (I used to exhibit at the biggest county fair in the entire state, which was bigger than my current state's State Fair).   don't know how long it can go on or survive, perhaps it is just that our tiny community doesn't have the population to support a county fair or perhaps it is that it is a dying tradition, like so much else in this anti-social, technical, and politically correct age.

Small as it is, I have been satisfied with the judging at our little fair, at least until this year.  I entered a fair once where it was very obvious that the awards were based on the name rather than the exhibit and I never entered anything there again.  It takes time, money, and thought to get something together and what's the point if you are doomed to lose because you don't have the right last name?  The photography exhibit this year was a little like that (everything else was fine).  One person had about 29 pictures (they have every right to enter as many or few as they choose) and every one did great while the rest of the entries really didn't amount to much though several of the pictures were far superior to those of the person in question.  I would love nothing more than a healthy selection of excellent photos, but when a person with a display of mediocre pictures steals the show, it is rather discouraging.  Perhaps the judge just had different taste or a less scrupulous eye, but the pictures selected as 'excellent' were far from it, they weren't bad but they sure weren't great.  Perhaps that is why the county fair is languishing, when the judging becomes partisan, no one wants to take the time or bother to enter anything.  Which is a pity, for we need art and beauty and crafts and flowers and good food and creativity in this technical age of isolation and languishing community.  Perhaps it was a fluke, and we'll give it another try, somebody has to carry on the tradition if it is to remain one!

Intriguing thought indeed!

Having a rough time or wondering what it all means?  Here's quite a unique perspective on the situation!

How to catch a mouse?

I don't often have mice loose in the house, usually a teenager mouse off on his own for the first time sneaks in for about 24 hours every fall and then we never see him again.  But this one has been hanging out in the kitchen/laundry room for several days.  My son was the first one to see him behind the dryer, so I set a trap and caught him...only by the toe.  You know that old schoolyard rhyme about 'catch a tiger by the toe, if he hollers let him go?'  Well he squeaked a bit, got loose, and scampered off.  I set the trap in the pantry as I saw a few signs he had been in there but to no avail.  Hoping he had scampered off permanently, he then surprised me under the sink as I was throwing something away but he vanished down a hole before I could do anything.  I moved the trap and either he was getting smarter or the trap malfunctioned because he licked off all the peanut butter without setting it off.  One day I heard him crunching on something behind the stove.  Not sure what to do, I needed a brilliant plan but I was completely out of brilliance, at least for the next 12 hours.  I finally took matters into my own hands, quite literally, the silly thing was in my potholder drawer when I went to get an oven mitt so I quickly pulled out the drawer and he jumped up inside the cabinet on some of the little boards that hold it together.  Without a second thought I scooped him up and took care of the renegade mouse problem.  And yes, she was fine with it, it isn't the first time the little bugger has been handled.  Didn't I mention this was a white mouse?  An escapee from the fish tank in the basement?  I wouldn't recommend this method for wild mice, but for a renegade pet mouse it works just fine!

Of herblore and stewed coney

I've always loved the scenes in the 'Lord of the Rings' wherein Tolkien wanders off in a rather humorous fashion into herblore, especially the desperate search for King's foil and the reminiscences of old wives wherein a true professional is rather baffled, and as an expert herbalist myself, having now grown basil successfully for a full two months, perhaps I should write my own epic upon the subject (being that there are far duller things being put into print).  But I will refrain, at least until I am a true master of that particular art, say three or four months in perhaps?  But let me simply conclude that if I can manage it, anyone can, growing basil that is, not writing up their wisdom thereupon, that takes a very dull pen indeed, perhaps Miss Bates might be able to accomplish the matter but certainly not we lesser mortals!  Tolkien's elvish poetry was certainly a good exercise to allow him the privilege, but the rest of us should tread cautiously in this matter...

Sweet pepper cheesy pasta

My brother is obsessed with his insta-pot, which is amazing since I never knew he cooked anything save on the grill.  On a recent visit he made this pasta dish which was amazingly tasty, and while I didn't like all the bits and pieces that needed washing after, I thought I'd adapt it to my non-instal-pot life (less washing up!).  These are more like guidelines rather than a recipe, feel free to adapt it to your own taste/needs/lifestyle!

Sweet Pepper Cheesy Pasta:

In a cast iron dutch oven (who needs Insta-pot when you have cast iron?) or your favorite pot with a lid, saute 1/2 of an onion (minced) with 1/2 of a yellow or orange sweet pepper in a little oil until tender.  Add 3-4 chicken thighs, skin side down, seasoned to taste, and sere until skin is brown and crispy, flip over and cover pot, continue cooking until cooked through.  Remove from heat, allow to cool until you can handle the chicken, remove bones and skin (if desired) and shred chicken into bite sized pieces return to the pot.  Add ~4-6 cups of water (or broth) and return to heat; bring to a boil, scraping lovely brownings off the bottom of the pan as you do so.  If using water add enough bouillon to make 2-3 cups of broth and stir until dissolved.  Add ~1 pound of rotini or other small pasta and bring to a boil, making sure there is just enough liquid to completely cover the pasta.  Replace lid and cook on medium low until water is mostly absorbed and the pasta is tender.  Add a cup of mozzarella cheese and a block (8 oz) of cream cheese, stirring over low heat until melted and well blended (add a little milk or cream if necessary) and a smooth sauce is formed.  Enjoy!

Parenting in an alien world?

The world we knew as kids (assuming you were born in the 1980's or prior) no longer exists, save perhaps in movies like the Karate Kid or ET.  I love freaking out kids by telling them I existed before the internet!  So what has technology done to a whole generation?  How do we make the best of it if we still have kids at home?  Here's a very interesting article on just that topic.  Personally, we've raised our now six year old with very little technology, basically only an occasional movie or baseball game on TV.  He's struggled a little bit with all the computer based testing (apparently the only thing they do in school!) but otherwise I think he's done very well and even his teacher thinks the benefits far outweigh any negatives.  I figure since my husband's 90+ grandmother figured out how to do email and computers weren't commonplace until I hit junior high and my generation still managed to figure it out, he'll have no problems whatsoever.  The best part is imagination doesn't run on batteries!

Epic Gardening

In honor of the season, we'll go retro and look back at why I don't raise veggies:

The Egyptians got locusts, the Irish had blight, I get a haybine (for all you city people, just think of it as a giant lawn mower).  Of all the gardening disasters, this really wasn't something I had anticipated.  Weeds, drought, disease, bugs, deer, rabbits, okay, those are foreseeable garden annoyances.  Someone turning your sweetcorn into silage, not so much.  Our house has hayfield on three sides and the previous residents had a little garden out back on the edge of one, so that is where we stuck ours, except technically we don't own the property so the owner was well within his rights to mow hay right through my vegetable patch, I'm not sure he even realized it was there!

I'm actually very amused by the whole ordeal, I was not meant to have a vegetable garden and this just proves it!  And now I don't have to weed and water the rest of the summer for hardly any return.  The deer had trampled my poor peppers, my squash never came up, and the rabbits were slowly decimating my corn (like beavers!).  The potatoes were doing well, but as I had less than $1 invested in seed potatoes it is not a staggering loss.  I was getting rather grouchy with those silly bunnies though, every night I would have one less corn plant and it was horrible watching it die slowly, much better to have the whole thing done with in one fell swoop!  It is almost revenge on those atrocious rabbits…mwuhaa haa haa…yes that was evil laughter.  I think I'll stick with flowers from here on out or maybe try a few peppers in containers.

Gourmet or Bad Gardener?

I've finally taken the plunge and become a trendy foodie: I used fresh, homegrown basil in my latest pasta dish!  Now before you roll your eyes and say 'that's so three years ago, get with the times lady,' let me remind you that I am so far behind the times I still think the original Oregon Trail (circa 1987?) is the best video game ever!  I love basil, I use it in practically everything that isn't a dessert, but it gets spendy buying herbs and I've always wanted to try growing my own.  It is impossible to grow anything in my current climate, at least of the edible sort, what with herds of rampaging ungulates, 100% clay soil, and pretty much zero rain for most of the summer so I content myself with a few weeds, I mean wildflowers out in the flower beds and refrain my vegetable gardening to the freezer section at the local grocery store.  But I do have some nice big, bright windows so thought maybe an herb or two (also of the weed family!) might survive indoors.  I planted basil and parsley and both seem to be doing well, but the basil had reached the stage where I should be pinching it back.  I pinched back a tad too much on one plant, half the plant to be honest, and instead of wasting it, it went into the goulash.  Bad gardener, good cook?  Only time will tell!

Baby photo fails

It is finally a beautiful spring day out there, the dandelions are blooming and I really wanted to take a picture of our daughter amid the signature spring flowers (yes, they are flowers!).  I got some really cute shots, except in every one she is literally trying to or in the process of eating the dandelions!  Good thing they are edible!

The Strange Controversy of Celebration and Existence in the Modern Era

I was just thinking the other day that it isn't safe or politically correct to celebrate anything anymore, because obviously you will be offending someone somewhere, no matter how innocuous the day, I'm sure even Groundhog's Day must tick off the animal rights community no end.  Columbus ruined his day by apparently being a genocidal maniac.  I need not even mention the scandal that is Christmas.  In the US we just celebrated Mother's Day this past weekend, but I wonder how long it will last.  Father's Day is inappropriate and insensitive for all the fatherless children and single mothers of the world and because it celebrates men of all things, therefore it is obviously anti-woman (as some would reason it).  But what do you do with Mother's Day in light of the gender-transition movement? I've heard the UK is moving to strike 'mother' from it's medical jargon as an offensive term just in case the expectant parent happens to identify as male or something else.  As if that weren't confusing enough, motherhood itself is becoming rather a questionable pastime in our modern west.

I struggle personally with the holiday, having been raised by an abusive mother who once questioned my methodology in requesting a hug and later in my struggles with infertility and adoption, but I don't think we should quit honoring other women just because it is acutely painful to me, but there are many that think differently, either because they have likewise been injured by their own mothers or are unable to have children for a variety of reasons, understandable but selfish, or because they consider children at best a hobby or a nuisance and at worst a plague upon humanity.  I find it a rather chilling side-effect of modern culture that the very foundational stones of civilization (people) are becoming less important than our domestic animals.  The pet section at your local big box store is likely bigger than the baby section.  I'm fine with people having pets, but when those pets have a more socially acceptable place in society than kids, it becomes rather worrisome!

How many people do you know that have foregone having kids and instead 'adopt a fur baby?'  Few people see anything wrong with loving a dog, but a growing number are seeing something wrong with even wanting kids in the first place.  But the hard irony is that there wouldn't be people around to love dogs if previous generations hadn't also loved kids.  This isn't to beat up on the pet industry, I could as easily go on with examples from other lifestyle choices like traveling or skiing or any other human endeavor.  What it comes down to is the robot's worldview from 'The Matrix' is slowly coming true: humanity is a disease that is ravaging the planet.  The grand irony is that the robots were the bad guys in that film but a growing number of people seem to be agreeing with them, ergo having kids is akin to destroying the world and therefore a selfish and heartless endeavor, much better to commit suicide as a species and enjoy our innocuous pleasures in the moment and feel smugly proud of that fact and socially shame anyone who thinks otherwise.  How long will Mother's Day last?  The more important concern is how long will civilization last with such an attitude?

The parable of the lost snake or a novel in-law deterrent

We have a snake, well truthfully it belongs to a young lady who is out of the country for a couple years, but I never thought I'd be a snake owner (or sitter).  But apparently our scaly friend has slithered his way into our hearts because he got out the other day and we were all rather sad about it.  So I looked up snake escapes on google and found one article that has been plagiarized on a hundred different sites and set about trying to locate the beast.  I'm apparently rather fond of the creature, as is my son, and I certainly didn't want to have to explain to his young owner that he had vanished on my watch.  Worse, my in-laws are coming this weekend and they don't like even the idea of a snake in the house, let alone one loose in the basement where the spare bedroom is!  Then I have to find a pet sitter for the snake and his rodent friends while we are gone this summer and how do you tell the pet sitter that you have a snake but you don't?  Awkward!  And then we are in a rental so it isn't even my house should he die in an air duct or get caught in the oven or washing machine: the gruesome (and expensive) possibilities are endless.

One of the suggestions was to sit quietly and watch/listen hoping to find some sign of the creature, but that really doesn't happen at our house, at least until the kids are in bed and by then I need sleep too.  But last night it so happened that everyone went to bed at a decent hour and the house was silent, and this being a nocturnal species, I sat in various dark rooms and listened, though I thought it rather pointless as he could be anywhere in the house or even outside (though it was cold enough to snow) and they are almost silent in their movements.  We had hide boxes and heating pads and water bowls and a few rodents scattered around hoping to lure him out into the open but had seen no trace or hint of him though we had turned many a room inside out and upside down.  Then I heard a thud in the laundry room.  There he was, behind the washing machine, bumping against the drying rack which had made the noise.  I can't quit smiling, silly snake!, but we're very happy he's back where he belongs, though it might have been an interesting way to keep the in-laws out of the house?  Jesus spoke of the lost coin and the lost sheep, but we had the lost snake, I never thought I'd see the day where I missed a snake!

Twinkie Cupcake Disaster Trifle

I knew I shouldn't have tried baking today, what with my little micro-chef grabbing the bowl of greenish goo (that was once vegetables) and unwittingly sending it flying, but it did land right side up so the mess was only half what it might have been so maybe it is okay after all.  I haven't had a Twinkie in years, but for some reason that's what I've been craving lately so I've tried a few recipes that were pretty good, but not really worth the trouble of doing them over again.  I found this one that uses a box mix so I thought I would give it a try, I even managed to have marshmallow creme on hand this time (I tried substituting marshmallows in one recipe and that was a whole other mess).  But the frosting seemed a bit too sugary (2 pounds of powdered sugar for 2 dozen cupcakes?!) for my taste, but I need not have worried, I never got that far!

First I had no yellow cake mix but figured a white one would do.  Then my timer didn't start, rather I reset the clock instead, so they got a little more done than I would like but still edible and I must say the cake was very fluffy and moist and very, very fragile.  I used silicone muffin cups to bake mine in and they were a sad mess by the time I finished getting them out (note to self, cooking spray!).  So I had a pile of the homeliest cupcakes you've ever seen and there is no way the poor things would handle either frosting or filling in that state.  So I did what any self respecting home cook would do in such a circumstance (no I did not eat the evidence, at least not all of it!): I made lemonade (metaphorical lemonade, you know...when life hands you lemons?).  I cut them in half and lined the bottom of a large plastic container (with a lid) with cupcakes, topped them with the filling, and then the other half of the cupcakes.  Atop this, instead of the super-sweet frosting in the recipe, I substituted this one made from boxed pudding and whipped topping (though I only used the four serving box as it was what I had).  I then stuck the whole thing in the fridge and can't wait to try it tonight for supper, I mean after supper...it was wonderful, will definitely make again!  May all your disasters turn out as sweet as mine!

I couldn't say it better!

Here it is folks, if you want your haphazard domesticity to be a happy one, here is the secret!  Joy thy name is wisdom!  Enjoy!

The Mommy's New Groove?

Is it just my experience or do babies turn otherwise normal people into semi-creepy stalkers who think they are justified in asking the most intimate personal questions?  I'll be traipsing through the bean aisle idly comparing species and price per ounce only to look up and find someone nose to nose with my daughter in her car seat in the shopping cart.  Or unloading my hard won legumes at check-out only to have the guy behind me barraging me with personal questions while literally touching my child's cheek instead of attending to his own groceries.  Or the fifteen different old ladies who ask if she's for sale at the thrift store, which is rather disconcerting when you are in the middle of an adoption and she's not even legally my kid yet!  I won't even get into the tips, hints, advice, and questions about any and every aspect of birth, conception, infertility, adoption, and parenting from complete strangers!  I don't know what it is, maybe it's just me, but this has happened with both my kids.  A baby seems to act like a full moon on a werewolf: people just mutate into semi-rude enthusiasts who have never heard of boundaries or tact.

What do you say?  What do you do?  You don't want to be rude but you also don't want strangers in your kid's face.  How do you answer impertinent questions, especially when it's an adoption and you'd rather not get into the gory details with a random person in the checkout line?  It's bad enough when the relatives go a little batty, but do I really have to deal with it at the grocery store from complete strangers too?  Maybe I should just be like the guy in 'The Emperor's New Groove,' and start shouting, 'no touchy' at all and sundry and set my myrmidons on them when they throw off 'my groove.'  Me likes!  Remember: 'Do not meddle in the affairs of mommies, for they are subtle and quick to anger.'

How to feed a baby or something like that

I've never really understood the 'airplane noise' approach to feeding small children.  Maybe I'm too prosaic or impatient to try (though I'm silly enough at other times).  But with my vast experience (n=2), perhaps I needs must write up a case study on the phenomenon.  My hypothesis shall be: a baby in motion will stay in motion...wait, sorry wrong branch of science!  How about: the best way to feed your baby is however your baby likes to eat.  If your baby requires the airplane method, then by all means use the airplane method and don't let anybody tell you otherwise.  My son wouldn't eat anything for 2.5 years and my daughter will eat anything (including scavenging under the buffet for lost crumbs and handfuls of dirt out of the flower pots!).  You could make airplane noises until you gained altitude but my son would still just glower at you and scream if you tried to put anything in his mouth unsanctioned.  He was also using silverware (big people version) by a year and insisted on doing everything himself and was the neatest baby I'm aware of (it was rather scary).  His sister is a happy disaster, the messier the better!  She might even smile at your airplane noises but don't stop feeding her to make them or you'll hear about it.

So there you have it, the simplest and easiest method to feed a baby: get a baby that likes to eat, nothing could be more straightforward...but you have a baby that isn't a good eater...hmmm...have you tried the airplane method?

Surviving Mother's Day and every day in between

Mother's Day looms, and for many, it is a painful day indeed, either because of a broken family, the death of a loved one, or the inability to have a family of your own for one reason or another, but here's an article you might find helpful for surviving not only that day but perhaps a lifetime of such sorrow, but also remember, this past Sunday was Easter, the very day when all we think we knew about life and death, suffering, hope, and despair got turned on its head.  Joy comes with the morning, remember that!  But first we must endure the night, and it can be long indeed, but morning will come if only we can hold on.

Amazing 'Clean out the fridge' Potato Soup

I love this recipe, if you can call it that, it's more like guidelines, but it cleans up a bunch of leftovers and uses whatever you have on hand to make a tasty and hearty meal that can be adapted to your own dietary peculiarities.

First, take that bag of potatoes you need to use up before it goes bad (2-5 pounds) and take the biggest pot you own (5-8 quarts) and a good knife and a little water and you are well on your way to homemade soup.  Cut the potatoes into bite size pieces (peel if you like) and toss them into the pot along with any raw carrots or celery you'd like in the concoction and add just enough water to cover the vegetables.  Boil until soft.  At this point you can let it cool and put it in the fridge until you are ready to eat or you can continue on to make your masterpiece.

To the steaming pot of potatoes add either chicken bouillon or broth (if using broth, feel free to drain off some of the water) about 2-4 cups worth, garlic, onion, basil, rosemary, black pepper, parsley, and seasoned salt (or your preferred herbs and spices).  If you want to add in frozen or canned veggies at this point, feel free.  Stir in a cup or two of milk (or cream!) and a cup or two of ham, bacon, salami, sausage, chicken or whatever meat you prefer (if any).  Heat through and add 2-3 cups of your favorite cheese right before serving (stir in well).  The potatoes should be mushy enough to thicken the soup, if not, you can use an immersion blend, squash them up a bit with the spoon, add some potato flakes or thickener of choice.  Enjoy!

Not our ways!

For those days that just won't go right, here's an enlightening and encouraging article.  For the person who is so focused on the what, working their fingers to the bone for some great cause, that they forget about the why, here's another great article.  And another on busyness for the person who sees their value in what they do, not in who they are.  These all showed up on the same day, a day I was struggling with one of the great philosophical questions of the ages: what is it all about, what does it all mean, am I actually accomplishing anything meaningful?  I'm not just a busy mom/career woman trying to balance the work/life conundrum like so many others in my cohort, rather I'm an ex-career woman turned stay-at-home mom, one with a chronic inflammatory disease that sometimes makes it hard to get out of bed of a morning, let alone accomplish anything productive besides just surviving the day.  My husband is out shoveling snow and I want above all else to help him, but I can't, not if I don't want to spend the next three days sick and miserable.  So here I sit feeling useless, unproductive...worthless.

But that's our culture speaking, one that defines one's value by one's usefulness.  That isn't the scale I should be using to judge my situation, not if my faith means anything.  I am valuable simply because I was created, if I never accomplish anything else in my entire life, that's okay.  The success of others shouldn't discourage me, it is not a competition after all.  There is no dishonor in a small, quiet life if that's the course I've been given to run and I run it faithfully, well, more of a stumbling walk, but the metaphor still holds.  'His ways are not our ways,' and 'the heart of man plans his way but the Lord establishes his steps,' should give me some clue, but sometimes I am a very slow learner!

Dutch oven garlic cheese pull apart bread!

I've tried a dozen different recipes and techniques to produce a soft/crusty savory garlic cheese pull apart bread but most have come away rather blasé and not worth repeating and I nearly gave it up as impossible, but the advent of a dutch oven in my life and my success with other yeasty breads therein has given me fresh hope.  I found this recipe and it's a keeper!  I used a basic white recipe (1.5#) from the bread machine instead of purchased dough.  I baked it in the oven and found it needed a much longer cooking time than that recommended (375 for 30-45 minutes) and taking the lid off for the last 5-10 minutes makes it nice and golden brown on top too, enjoy!

The unthinkable!

I grew up in the era when computers were merely entertainment machines with green and black screens and requiring actual floppy disks to do anything at all; I was over the moon when I hit seventh grade and was able to type papers instead of writing them longhand.  By then the computer games had also evolved to include color and an attempt at 3-D graphics.  It was also about this time I fell in love with the Sim games (no, not the Sims, but the less flashy and far more interesting forebears including Sim Ant, Sim Farm, and Sim Earth (I was never a Sim City fan...too bucolic!)).  I spent hours (months?) mastering the games.  But, as with all great games, the technology evolved and those beloved classics are now but a thing of myth and legend.  I've dabbled in a few of the more modern 'app' games of a similar mien but haven't found anything that captivated me like those old floppy games did.  Either the world was tedious and uncreative or there was too much waiting or ad time or there was no point or strategy or challenge.

I had given up on anything even half so interesting as my childhood favorites, wondering if all creativity had died with the new millennium, but happily I was wrong.  This last week I ran across a game called Dragonvale, and I am hooked.  It is something like Sim Farm meets Pokeman (I've only played the version for the original gameboy) without those silly 'matches.'  It makes both my biology nerd and fantasy geek sides happy and it may also do the impossible for this 'must have satisfaction this instant' generation, namely making you wait up to two days to breed some of the rarer dragons; it's almost like surfing the internet via dial-up!  The art work is beautiful, there is geeky genius and humor everywhere, you can't master it in three days but there is enough to keep you occupied that you don't give up in despair either.  Overall, I'm very happy with my discovery, and even better, unlike some games where the more you tap the more things happen, there is a limited amount of things you can do before having to wait, forcing you to have a real, non-virtual life.  Who thought an app could teach you patience?  

How to commit virtual suicide or attack of the irate 'pet parents?'

I found this article rather fascinating, now before you stone me for linking to it or the author for writing it, take a few minutes and process what he is trying to say, it is an intriguing look into an issue that says much about our self-obsessed modern culture.  I work in the industry and the swift transition from 'pet' to 'child' has been rather concerning to me though everyone else seems to just think it is cute and harmless (and a boon to my profession); I find this fuzzing of the edges of what is and is not a person rather disturbing, especially as an adoptive parent (try searching 'adoption' on Pinterest and see what comes up: scads and scads of dogs!).  This article is a timely and incisive look into the topic and is well worth the read, even if you are scandalized that some people still believe that a dog is still just a dog.

'...for the days are evil'

'Redeem the time,' is how the titular phrase starts out and it's been on my heart lately.  We just finalized our second adoption, after nearly eight years of paperwork, waiting, and emotional rollercoasters, I still haven't quite realized that we are done.  We're just another family now, no more waiting, no more social workers or paper work, no more wondering, hoping, yearning, doubt and despair, angst and frustration.  I can leave the state without permission; I don't have to check in monthly with anybody; there is no more paperwork to update.  Weird!

If I could change one thing about the process, at least of those things over which I have control as the cost, bureaucracy, frustration, ungainliness are quite beyond my means to rectify, it would be to wait gracefully.  The days will pass whether I am frustrated or content, anxious or at peace, despairing or hopeful.  However long it takes, it is undoubtedly a long process, a full quarter of my life!, and wasting the time in angst is not helpful to anyone, most especially myself and my family nor does it help the process in the least.  Why can't I just have faith, be content and hopeful that things will work out as they will, and even if they don't work out as I hope, I must still live with that reality so I might as well get used to the idea.  Perhaps I have finally learned that lesson, albeit too late to help in either of my previous adoptions, but perhaps it will help in future endeavors?

They say marriage is an excellent discipleship tool and I will certainly add parenting to that list, but being waitlisted during the adoption process certainly has its own character honing aspects too.  Even when it seemed like I was like to wait forever and futilely at that, even if we had not been successful, the wait would not have been in vain.  'Faith is the substance of things hoped for, a belief in things unseen,' so why can't I just wait in faith?  As what can be more hoped for or unseen than waiting for an adoption to go through?  But it is not completely unseen, my Father has seen it, or not, if it is not to be, He has been there (is there, will be there?, what is the proper tense for an eternal perspective?) and all He asks is that I trust Him to know how things will turn out and that He'll take care of the details in the interim.  That is Faith.  That is what this waiting is all about, molding me, making me more like Him; to be content in the present for He knows and will provide for the future, whatever betide.  This is so much easier to say in retrospect!  I wonder if one day we will all look back on all the needless fuss and bother we experienced on a daily basis and laugh at ourselves as I do now at my fruitless anxiety during our adoption wait.  Wise is she who learns to wait in peace ere the wait is over!

An amazing way to bake bread!

I thought it might be possible, but couldn't find much out about it online (therefore it must not be possible, right?).  I've lately had a dubious flirtation with cast iron and lately have acquired a dutch oven (5 quart cast iron pot with lid).  I found plenty of articles on bread in the crockpot or no-knead recipes for the dutch oven, but what about a regular yeast bread recipe?  I finally found this article, that actually made it sound possible so I gave it a chance.  I followed the directions using an oatmeal honey bread I haven't made in quite awhile, plopped the dough straight from the bread machine into the preheated dutch oven, put the lid back on and tossed it in the super hot over for 30 minutes.  It sure didn't look like much when that sorry little blob of dough sort of oozed/globbed into the pot, but I hoped for the best.  The results were amazing!  I tend to make French loaves when I make loaf type bread as I can never get it cooked on the inside without over browning the crust, or the crust looks great but it is still doughy in the middle, ugh!  This rectifies that little problem beautifully, besides for that, the crust is crunchy, the loaf is beautifully artisan, and the bread itself is super soft and moist.  I love it!

Can you change a tire and other dangerous logic

I'm getting tired of those advertisements on the radio about adopting kids out of foster care, don't get me wrong, they are funny, catchy, memorable and certainly get your attention: truly a successful ad campaign.  What rubs me the wrong way is the message that if you can change a tire or bake a cake or have any other basic life skills, then you too have what it takes to adopt and parent a teen out of the foster system.  It is a grand and noble sentiment, truly, and I love getting the idea out there, perhaps to people who have never considered it and might make great foster parents, and these kids certainly do deserve loving, stable homes and families, none of that is wrong or bad.  What I abhor is the suggestion that anybody can do it, everybody is ready, it's easy as getting out of bed in the morning.  There are ad campaigns urging folks not to buy puppies as spontaneous Christmas gifts because dogs are a serious commitment, how much more so a child, especially one who has literally lived through Hell and has serious emotional damage.  But anybody can do it!  No, they can't.  It will destroy both the parent and the child if the parent goes into this thinking it will be easy as pie when it is all out war, war against the rage, frustration, abuse, abandonment, neglect, fear, shame, hatred that have been aimed at that child since he first was aware of anything.  Normal parenting is often difficult, these kids take it to a whole new level.

I am not saying it cannot be done, that it is impossible, that it isn't worthwhile, that it isn't necessary, but it is hard, very hard, and people need to know that before getting involved.  The commercial makes it sound so easy, easier than a puppy even (already housebroken!), but in reality it is the hardest thing you'll ever do, probably the most worthwhile, but also the most heartbreaking and frustrating, for progress will come slowly and there are some things that will haunt these kids (and their parents) for the rest of their lives.  You don't send a soldier out thinking he's going to have a squirt gun fight on a sunny afternoon and then he can be home for tea when in truth you send him into the trenches for months, if not years, and think he'll make it, why then do they sugar coat this issue?  It isn't fair or healthy to either the kids or the parents, because both are soldiers in a lifelong war against the horrors that led to them being in this situation in the first place and they need to know that going in, not thinking it will be a walk in the park, a piece of cake.  Worthwhile?, absolutely, easy?, absolutely not.  Certainly consider it, by all means, but know what you are getting yourself and that child into before you take the plunge.  The system itself is broken, they are doing the best they can, I understand that, but lying about how easy it is to parent these equally broken kids isn't going to help anybody, most especially the kids.

Baked Donut Recipe 6.0

I continue the search for the perfect baked donut, I ran across this recipe for vanilla muffins and I think it is the best so far!

What's your reading level?

I found a treasure at the local thrift store a few months back and it not only brought back a bit of nostalgia but it spawned an obsession.  When I was a kid in elementary school, it was a BIG deal to bring home the latest collection of Garfield comics in one of those soft cover, brightly colored books from the library.  My husband and son were so excited the former hopped on the interweb to see if he could find a few more.  We now own 19 volumes (of 30) and my son is just tickled, so instead of reading sensible things like 'Goodnight Moon' or 'Green Eggs and Ham,' we are reading Garfield cartoons, and as the word count per strip is about equal to one of those horrid little books he brings home from school, not to mention it is a lot more interesting, I suppose it isn't a bad thing (that and I haven't been this excited about story time in a long time!).   I wonder if they have Shakespeare in comic form?

Of mice and...mice!

Yep, I have a snake, not exactly the first pet I thought we'd have as a family but that's life, and as it happens, this particular reptile is even more picky than my five year old when it comes to the gastronomical side of things: he doesn't eat vegetables either, or dead rodents for that matter, which necessitates live rodentia, and as I live 100 miles from the nearest purveyor of fine rodent specimens, the easiest thing to do is breed my own.  So now I have a snake and mice, but my rodent breeding attempt got off to a bad start, namely my original foursome of mice all turned into gentlemen mice, and as progressive as our modern world has become, it has not yet made any impact on the rodent world.  It took several weeks to figure that out and a grand trip to town to procure female vermin, it also meant that my population dynamics were very much behind schedule, as the snake had to eat in the interim, but not to fear, we had a plan.

But as with all brilliant and diabolical plans, something went wrong, namely my dear hubby decided not to make the journey into town the other day to procure more rodentia to tide over said snake until our mouse population is self sustaining, it was only a blizzard after all and now the poor snake will have to go hungry for a bit.  But that's the weird thing about snakes: they don't have to eat like us mammals.  The books says this particular species has been known to go months and up to a year without eating and still does fine, so I suppose he can survive a few days until we again can make the grand trek to town.  If only you could buy live mice on amazon!

From utter terror to laissez faire

I remember bringing our son home from the hospital and wondering what I was supposed to do now, I'm in charge of a life!  I called a friend who had also recently brought her first child home for moral support and we survived the first few hours and then an entire night and then an entire day...  Then you bring your second one home and casually hop on a plane two weeks later, child in tow!  With the first you observe all the 'rules' be they pediatrician guidelines or governmental regulations, with the second you can't remember what the rules are, except they aren't supposed to have tomatoes until they are twenty three or was the thirty, and I think egg whites?  I've found myself adding a little salt to those mashed up carrots and even resorted to letting her cry instead of getting up three times a night (she's now sleeping through the night after only 2 weeks of gradually cutting back on night time excursions on my part).  A friend (with 2 kids at the time, now up to 4 and expecting 2 more!) told me once that she 'hadn't slept through the night in 4 years,' and I really didn't want that to be me.  So at six months of age and twenty plus pounds, I decided she could at least cut back to once or twice a night and as it was going so well we pulled an all nighter and she does just fine.  Sleep, my old friend, how I have missed you!  Parenting does get easier with experience, but I'll never be an expert, as there's always a new phase or personality quirk!

New Year's Resolution Breaker

If your new year's resolution is to lose weight/eat better, run away, run away fast, because this recipe for cheese sticks (in your waffle maker) is amazing and even better than the restaurant appetizer.  So if you are still here, enjoy!