Happy New Year!

2009 is almost here. Here are some thoughtful ways to bring in this New Year.....

Consider this list of Jonathan Edwards' resolutions.

http://scionofzion.com/resolutions.htm
(Disclaimer: I know NOTHING about this site, other than it offered the most printer-friendly version of these resolutions that I could find. As always, use discernment!)

Here are thoughts about the resolutions especially for our young adults, but all of us can benefit from reading this series. Here's a link to the first article. Follow their listed links to the rest.

http://www.therebelution.com/2006/02/teenagers-resolutions-part-1.html


Doug Phillips of Vision Forum sends this reminder out at the end of each year...

http://visionforum.com/hottopics/blogs/dwp/2007/12/3287.aspx


Be intentional! We can all use these tools with our own families to make 2009 a year of living more intentionally to His glory, redeeming the time He has given us.

Love,
Queen Mom

Chips and Dip

Before he started feeling even worse than he was feeling over the weekend, Mountain Man enjoyed giving Little Bit a tutorial in chip and dip eating. Those of you who know him well know that Mountain Man will choose a bag of chips over chocolate any day (I just don't get that...). Anyway, as soon as Little Bit heard the crinkling of that chip bag, she decided to join her Daddy up at the table and get in on the goodies. Here Daddy shows her the proper way to dip a chip.

"Remember to actually eat the chip. Don't just lick off the dip.""You're kidding me, right? I have to eat the chip with the dip?""Yes, you have to eat them together. Otherwise, it would just be dip, and you'll miss the full effect."

"Daddy must be joking...why can't I just eat it my way?""Ok, I'll try it his way. It can't be worse than green eggs and ham."

"Hey, Daddy's right. These do taste great together!"

And after they came to an understanding, Mountain Man even cleaned up his little ranch-dip-covered princess. The End.

WALL-E: a Movie Review

~WALL-E~

Setting: 2815 A.D.
Rated: G
Star Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5

~~~ ~~~ ~~~

A couple weeks ago, my family and I watched the Pixar film WALL-E. I think we were a little skeptical about it at first, but when we had finished it, we all agreed that it was a surprisingly good movie, full of many twists and portrayals which reflect the present state of the masses in this age of entertainment and electronics.

The setting for this movie is over 800 years into the future. Garbage has basically covered the entire planet, and humans evacuate, living in giant spaceships which contained all the necessities for life. Originally, the plan was for humans to take a sort of vacation for a little bit, while specially designed robots cleaned up the trash and attempted to make earth inhabitable again. As it turns out, the clean up failed, earth remained void of life, and people continued to remain in space for hundreds of years.

By some mishap or other, the dutiful WALL-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) is the only robot left on the earth. His existence is somewhat monotonous until one day a rocket from outerspace drops off EVE (Extra-Terrestrial Vegetation Evaluator). From then on come adventures which I will leave you to find out for yourself.

There was no objectionable material apart from one brief scene (which many children won't even pick up on, but you know your children better than I do), where Wall-e finds a piece of ladies' undergarments in the refuse he is cleaning up.

I read an article in World magazine in which director of WALL-E, Andrew Stanton (who also did Finding Nemo and professes to be a Christian), was being interviewed. He said that people were misunderstanding the film's purpose, saying it was a commentary on environmentalism or obesity. Stanton says that this was not the movie's purpose at all. It is about relationships. (Please read the whole article at www.Worldmag.com. It is extremely interesting and thought provoking. Search under Andrew Stanton.)

But I want to address the dominant theme of what humanity is becoming. When WALL-E visits the spaceship Axiom, what does he find? He finds humans in a sickening state of laziness, leisure, and ignorance. They have robots who do literally everything for them except sleeping and eating. It is disgusting. But the humans have sunk down so far that they don't even see it that way. They have become fat, slovenly, and unable to do anything for themselves. They don't even walk anymore! Instead, they have special robotic chairs that transport them wherever they wish to go. They eat meals in liquid form from cups like big babies. They have television screens which are in front of them literally all the time. They are so caught up in being entertained that they don't even notice the things going on around them.

How are we like that today? We live in an age where people don't want to think. They want to be entertained. People pathetically abuse electronic devices like TV's, iPods, video games, etc, etc. They have become lazy and ignorant, their minds dumbed down by so much thoughtless entertainment. I'll bet you if you approached the average American today and asked him when he last read a good book, he'd look at you as though you had come from Mars. Or if he had read a book, it was most likely something so dumbed down that he didn't need to think about what he was reading. Perhaps that's why books by authors like G.A. Henty, Daniel Defoe, or Jules Verne aren't read much anymore these days! People refuse to think! God gave us brains: we just need to actually use them!

Sadly, even many "Christians" have fallen into this pit. Many of them only open their Bibles once a week on Sunday, because throughout the rest of the week they just don't want to take the time to read God's word and think about what it says. Many so called 'church services' have become intent on entertaining people or catering to their whims and leisures, instead of discipling them.

There is one particularly disturbing scene in WALL-E, which reflects the dumbing down of people in this day and age. The captain is in the process of figuring out how to return to earth after EVE finds a little green plant growing among the refuse. One of the things given to him is a control manual in book form. When given this, the captain doesn't even know what it is! He can't even figure out how to open it!

Another point of this movie is that technology and things can never replace our needs for love, relationships and interaction between human beings. Stuff cannot replace those needs because they are essential to living the life God gave you.

I guess I'll wrap up by saying that if you do watch WALL-E (and I highly recommend you do so), then don't get stuck on the 'humans have destroyed earth' theme. Remember that this was not the intent of the film. If you focus on that too much, then you will miss all the other good stuff in WALL-E. Andrew Stanton said that he "was just using the circumstances of people abandoning Earth because its filled with garbage as a way to tell my story."

"The hand of the diligent shall bear rule: but the slothful man shall be under tribute." Prov. 12:24

"He that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster." Prov. 18:9

"The desire of the slothful killeth him; for his hands refuse to labor." Prov. 21:25

Persevero,

Scribe

Snapshots of Christmas Day

God blessed us with a beautiful Christmas Day celebration. I do think we're one of the rare sets of parents who have children who DON'T rise at 4:00 a.m. and run for the gifts. We were up late playing Phase 10 on Christmas Eve, and the children didn't even get up until almost 10:00 the next morning. We enjoyed a simple breakfast of coffee cake, and Mountain Man read from the Advent, 12 Days of Christmas, and Ephiphany devotional book that we've been using. After a bit of clean-up, we enjoyed opening gifts after listening to the children quote Luke 2:1-20. Gift-opening takes quite awhile in our family because we open each gift one by one. It's nice to watch the expressions of delight on the children's faces, and the children have learned to be quite patient, thinking not just of themselves and what they'll be "getting." Each child received three gifts, and we finished up in about 1-1/2 hours. We enjoyed a lovely Christmas dinner later that evening. Here are some moments from our day....

Here are the children reciting Luke 2:1-20. One of the most creative gifts we received were these homemade coupons from Scribe and Little Big Man for back rubs and foot massages! Little Bit loved the new dress that Scribe gave her. Whistler received this GIANT coloring book from Reaches Up. This really is amazing, with beautifully detailed pictures to color and LOTS of information about butterflies. It proves you can learn AND color at the same time! :)

This has been on my list to buy for the Littles, and I'm glad I finally did. Boo has really enjoyed this mat, and she has been very gracious in sharing with Little Bit. Mountain Man bought another pen for it so they can use it together. (however, we're having to teach Little Bit that the she is supposed to draw with the pen, not drink the water from it!)
This has been in Reaches Up's hands almost non-stop since he opened it. What 6 year old boy doesn't want to be a spy? The briefcase even shoots darts from the side. So cool!Reaches Up also loves his new apron, which our dear friend, Caity, so kindly embroidered for us with the title, "Chef Luke." He can't wait to get cookin' with Daddy!


Mountain Man with one of his princesses, dear Whistler.

Here Little Bit demonstrates her fine ability to open gifts.She was delighted to receive her own doll, a 12" Corolle, which is known for its wonderful vanilla scent. Some of the young men in the house think we have too many of these....
Whistler loved receiving this first book of sewing called See and Sew. It is beautifully detailed, teaching hand stitching first. Mommy will be learning right along with her. :)

Here the children show their new ornaments. Each year their MeMaw gives them each one. They'll have a nice collection when it's time for them to celebrate Christmas in their own homes. (I don't really want to think much about that...:( )

I was thrilled to open this present...a bread machine. Our family easily consumes a loaf of bread in one sitting, so it will be nice to toss in the ingredients and have a fresh loaf of bread in a few hours.

As you can see by Little Big Man's expression above, the big surprise was ipods.Mountain Man, Scribe, and Little Big Man all received one. (Little Big Man inherited Daddy's old one.) Scribe had the shuffle, and he's done a great job of managing his time with it, so we decided to give him one that actually has a screen. :) The ipods come with a couple of conditions....they'll be used to listen to books and teaching CDs and sermons, etc. as well as the music, and they cannot at any time become divisive...in other words, you can't use them to separate from or tune out the family.

A couple of Mountain Man's favorite gifts were this music stand and a guitar stand. Here Little Bit tries to show Daddy how to set it up. :)

So easy to please, Mountain Man loved his new coffee mug. However, it's such a great design that now all the members of the "Saturday Morning Coffee Club" are asking for one.

One of the most favorite family gifts the children received was the classic Twister game, given to them by their Aunt Krista. It has provided much laughter and fun, and you'll be surprised to know that even Queen Mom, at 7-1/2 months pregnant, played a round of this and actually WON! :) If I can do it, ANYONE can play!

Alas, today finds many of us not feeling so well, so it will be spent resting, taking vitamin C, enjoying peroxide in the ears (it really does work!), and praying that this will be a very short-lived illness!

Love to you all,

Queen Mom

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! We love and miss you all!

Christmas Lights, Hot Chocolate, and Dickens

Last night we took our annual drive around Albuquerque to look at Christmas lights. We decided to eat dinner at Chick-Fil-A (our only one is an hour away, so that was a treat), and we had a marvelous time listening to an unabridged but dramatized version of Dickens' A Christmas Carol. We topped off the evening with hot chocolate from Satellite coffee. Our time together was simply wonderful!



One of our favorite stops was the Speake House. The family used over 85,000 lights in their display and set everything to music. Here's a video that gives you an idea of how amazing the show was. The Littles walked over to the house and danced under the arches. (turn off the blog music to hear the video)

The audio of The Christmas Carol we listened to was produced by American Vision and Five Talents Productions. It is fabulous, and we highly recommend it! Regardless of how many times you've seen the movie, you miss so much of the story if you don't actually read Dickens' book. This audio is a great way to enjoy this story together as a family. You can find it at www.americanvision.org.

After all of the excitement, most children would be like Boo, passed out contentedly for the rest of the ride.

But, Little Bit is not like most children. She was born with an Energizer battery....and when it comes to sleeping..well, she doesn't seem to need much of it. Here she is beaming at the same time Boo was sleeping soundly.

We're so thankful for God's protection as we traveled around and for the blessing of enjoying these Christmas joys together as a family.

The Art of Self-Discipline

It's that time of year. Regardless of what you call them...resolutions, goals, etc., most of us can think of many things we'd like to do differently in the New Year or things we'd like to accomplish for the first time. There's something about a New Year that marks in our mind a "new start" or a "fresh opportunity,"even though we can accomplish any of these goals any time of the year.

Perhaps we want to read that book we'd never thought we could tackle, train our children to be more diligent in a certain area, or get up earlier and have a consistent time in the Word. There are so many possibilities, but at the root of being able to do any of them is that often elusive (especially if you don't have a natural bent towards it) art of self-discipline. More often than not, it is not the uncontrollable circumstances, but a lack of self-discipline, that is the one stumbling block in our paths, continuously frustrating our desire to reach a certain goal or accomplish a certain task. So we trip over it, fall, get up, and start again. However, after doing this several times, we give in to the bruises of discouragement and simply quit.

We tell ourselves we'll try again later (which isn't always bad), but often later never comes. If you're wanting to read a certain novel, and you never finish it, well, you truly can come to it "later" and not suffer any dire consequences. However, if you are focused on spending time daily in the Word or being more consistent in teaching and training your children in a certain area, then quitting simply isn't an option. The consequences are eternal.

I certainly don't have the art of self-discipline mastered. That's why I can speak too well of how a lack of it can be discouraging, frustrating, and annoyingly persistent! So, I was very encouraged when I came across this post by John MacArthur which offers very practical advice about cultivating self-discipline in ourselves as well as teaching the same to our children. Some of the tips might seem especially difficult (um, see the one about not eating the doughnut that caught your eye) and others might be second nature to you already, but, as Pastor MacArthur so aptly reminds us, "...you cannot split your life into the secular and the spiritual. Instead you must live every aspect of your life to the glory of God. And self-discipline cultivated in the seemingly mundane things of life will spill over into the spiritual realm."

www.gty.org/Resources/articles/24

Pressing On,
Queen Mom

When the love of books goes too far.....

Here's what I found one morning recently when I went to wake up the Littles....

Poor Reaches Up....displaced by The King of the Golden River.

Weekly Rewind Catch-Up

I've neglected to post a "Weekly Rewind" for the past couple weeks, so here's an update of what's been going on....

~Mountain Man is loving his guitar lessons, and his music teacher has been pushing him to try his hand at composing. Last weekend, my Beloved recorded his first song. It was quite the surprise to have him come home with a CD of his recording, and I'm hoping he'll let me post a link to it here soon.

~Because of some complications, I had to return to the doctor on Monday to have my surgery site examined. It was a very messy day in town (i.e. snow and rain), and the truck wipers simply stopped working when we were getting ready to head home. We just prayed and prayed, asking God to please make them start working so we could get home safely (since it was an electrical issue, we couldn't just pull into an auto place and have them fix things). Praise the Lord! He graciously answered our prayers.

~We love being at home. However, this week found us having to go to Albuquerque four times because of my doctor's appointments. This upset the schedule quite a bit, but the children were so great about making an almost daily trip to town, and behaved so well wherever we went. It was encouraging, too, to hear the positive comments from strangers about our family (and even enjoy a free meal!)

~Wednesday brought another trip to the dermatologist to check on my nose. Sadly, she thought at that time that the graft would not be taking and wanted me to return on Friday. At yesterday's appointment, she decided that she does think the graft will take, though the scarring will be more significant. We'll deal with that once the skin has healed more. For now, I'll have to continue keeping everything bandaged and will see her again on Dec. 30th. I'm so thankful for the many people who were praying about this for me, and I would appreciate your prayers for complete healing and amazingly minimal scarring. I'm also grateful for a very patient and loving husband who has taken care of this wound from day one!

~We've been experiencing the "humble and contrite" spirit much this week in our family. It is wonderful to see God at work in our children, answering our prayers for them, and bringing glory to Himself as He draws them into a deeper relationship with Him.

~We've enjoyed watching two versions of "A Christmas Carol" this week, one with George C. Scott (the one we normally watch), and the other with Patrick Stewart. Only the older boys watched the second one with us, and we liked it pretty well, but we still consider the Scott one to be our favorite. We'll be watching the original one that was done in 1951, I think, later this week. It's been fun to compare the different versions.

~Though it's something seemingly small, it's also quite significant, since we spend so many hours of our lives cleaning....I discovered Mrs. Meyers Clean Day GERANIUM scent, and I absolutely love it. The smell just makes you want to clean! Plus, it's safe for the children to use. I just dilute a small amount in a spray bottle and use it as my all-purpose cleaner. I've found that World Market has the best selection of Mrs. Meyers if you enjoy those products.

I'll close with a quote that expresses my thankful heart so very well....

"From David learn to give thanks for everything. Every furrow in the book of Psalms is sown with the seeds of thanksgiving."

Jeremy Taylor (1613-1667)

Love,

Queen Mom

Simple and Delicious

It seems inevitable to be on the go more this time of year. For our family that can mean a homemaking disaster if I don't prepare ahead of time for our absences, especially when it comes to meals. Here's one of our favorite simple but delicious meals, and I especially like it because it puts an end to overcooked ravioli and ravioli that gets cold before it even gets to the table.

Easy Ravioli Bake

~from Betty Crocker

1 jar (26-28 ounces) tomato pasta sauce

1 pkg (25-27 1/2 ounces) frozen cheese-filled ravioli

2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

2 T. grated Parmesan cheese

1) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 13x9 pan with non-stick spray.

2) Spread 3/4 c. of the sauce in baking dish. Arrange half of frozen ravioli in single layer over sauce; top with half of the remaining pasta sauce and 1 c. of the cheese. Repeat layers once, starting with ravioli. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

3) Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 40 min. Remove foil; bake uncovered for 15-20 more minutes or until bubbly and hot in center. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.

~Variations: use meat-filled ravioli instead or add 9 ounces of frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed to drain, or 1-1/2 ounces sliced pepperoni on the first layer of ravioli

This is great made ahead of time and refrigerated for up to 24 hours.

The Smallest of Things

It's always refreshing to experience those days when good news abounds, and we find joy in the
smallest of things...

~My OB appointment today went very well. Everything is looking great, and we tentatively selected a date for the c-section. It's February 17, which also happens to be my brother's birthday.:)

~It seems like so many favorite places of ours are closing their doors these days. We used to love going to a restaurant called Wingstop. Their wings were the best, and the atmosphere was family-friendly enough that we could enjoy going there with the whole family and meeting friends, too. The only one in Albuquerque closed down some time ago, but we were delighted to see the "Coming Soon--Wingstop" sign at a building on our way to the doctors. Hopefully, they'll still be as family-friendly. The building is just a few blocks from where I'll be delivering Next Girl, so I already know what I'll be asking Mountain Man to bring me if their doors happen to be open by then.

~We decided to eat lunch at Pizza Hut today so Reaches Up, Whistler, and Little Big Man could redeem their "Book-It" reading coupons. That's a program in which students get a free personal pan pizza each month after reaching a reading goal. Now, none of our children need incentive to read, but it's fun getting a free pizza as a bonus. Anyway, we were greeted by the very kind waitress who knows us and seated at a table in the middle of the restaurant. I guess walking in with six children and being 7-1/2 months pregnant does turn some heads, but we were so shocked to hear, after placing our order, that one of the customers was paying for our meal! I approached her to thank her, so surprised by her generosity. She told me that she thought it was wonderful that we had so many children and that I homeschooled (the waitress told her that). She wished me a Merry Christmas and then left. The older children rushed out the door to thank her, and she told them "Merry Christmas and God Bless You." I pray God will bless her over and over for her kindness which was simply a glaring reminder of God's goodness to us in the most unexpected of ways.

~A trip to Target to look for shoes for the boys resulted in being able to buy several cute newborn outfits for Next Girl at clearance prices! Because you know, come February, all of the Spring clothing will be out. :)

Thank you, dear Heavenly Father, for the many unexpected blessings you showered upon us today...reminders that no gift or experience is too small for which to give thanks.

"No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks."

Saint Ambrose (340-397 AD)

"Gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder."

G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936)

Holiness~Chapter 3 Part 3

~Queen Mom here finishing up our discussion of chapter 3 of J.C. Ryle's Holiness.

Ryle ends this chapter with some hard questions to help us apply what we're reading and learning. "Are you holy?" he asks. He then discusses a host of things that he's NOT asking when inquiring about our holiness...

~not whether you attend church regularly
~not whether you've been baptized and take of the Lord's Supper
~not whether you have the name of Christian
~not whether you approve of holiness in others
~not whether you like to read about the lives of holy people or talk of holy things

But, "Are you yourself holy this very day, or are you not?"

He explains that his asking and pressing this question "so strongly" is because Hebrews 12:14 is so very clear that "Without holiness no man shall see the Lord." Yet, so many Christians reflect nothing of Christianity besides the name. His desire is for us to consider this text and search our hearts, examine ourselves.

There will be many objections to his questions, he states, as he addresses the many excuses we might have to offer...

a) Well, I think about holiness a lot...more than most people. His response is that this is "not the point. The poor lost souls in hell do as much as this. The great question is not what you think, and what you feel, but what you do."
b) Not everyone is meant to be holy. That is a gift that only some Christians have.
Ryle counters this objection with the reminder that 1 John 3:3 states that "every man who hath hope in Christ purifieth himself." Once again, Hebrews 12:14 is mentioned, too, reminding us that "without holiness no man shall see the Lord."
c) You can't be holy and do your duty in this life, too. Then, Ryle states, you must remember that "with Christ on your side, nothing is impossible. It has been done by...David, Obadiah, Daniel.." who are just some examples from God's Word to prove it.
d) But I wouldn't be like everyone else if I were so holy. Exactly, replies Ryle. True servants of Christ should be unlike the world around them..."a separate nation, a peculiar people."
e) Then very few would be saved. "I know it," answers Ryle. He reminds us that Jesus told us in Matthew that narrow is the way that leads to life, and there will be few that find it." "Men will not deny themselves the pleasure of sin and their own way for a little season." We must be willing to take up our cross daily, for "that which costs nothing is worth nothing."

He next asks us if we "feel the importance of holiness as much as should?" He thinks most Christians do not consider the subject of holiness very much and reminds us that "Judas Iscariot seemed very like the other apostles." Yet, we cannot neglect speaking about the character of God's people, nor should we constantly bemoan our corruptions as an excuse to "cover spiritual laziness." "If we say with Paul, 'O wretched man that I am,' let us also be able to say with him, 'I press toward the mark."

Finally, he offers advice to those who desire to be holy...

1) Christ must be our foundation. This cannot be done in our own power. You must be joined to Him. He quotes Traill's statement that "wisdom out of Christ is damning--righteousness out of Christ is guilt and condemnation--sanctification out of Christ is filth and sin--redemption out of Christ is bondage and slavery."

Holiness is God's gift to HIS people. "It is the result of vital union with Him. It is the fruit of being a living branch in the true Vine."

2) To continue to be holy, you must abide in Him. We're told in John 15:4,5 , "Abide in me and I in you. He that abideth in Me and I in him, the same beareth much fruit." God is our Physician, to whom we must daily go to keep well. He is the Manna which we must daily feed on, and the Rock from which we must daily drink. We must be "rooted" in Him and "built up" in Him.

Ryle then encourages us with this closing thought..

"Whether we live, may we live unto the Lord; or whether we die, may we die unto the Lord; or if He comes for us, may we be found in peace, without spot, and blameless!"

The Real Thing

After a couple of years of using an artificial pre-lit tree, (I know, it seems criminal to some of you...), we decided to buy a real one this year. Yes, the ideal would have been to drive to a forest and chop/saw down our own tree, but without a chain saw, this wasn't an option. We are hoping to tag along with some friends next year and make a party out of getting our trees together while we use their chain saw. :) Nevertheless, the children enjoyed even this adventure, and we have a lovely Christmas tree, with special thanks to Whistler and Reaches Up for all their hard work.
The big guys strung the lights, and we realized 400 little lights really aren't that much.

Even Little Bit did her part helping decorate.

We love the colored lights and the variations (flashing, twinkling, still, etc.) available. It was a nice change from the still white lights, and it's such a beautiful sight in the evening.

It's What They Love to Do

Wrestling with Daddy, that is....Last night we watched Wall-E together, and then the children enjoyed piling up on Daddy. It's one of their all-time favorite activities, and they'll tell you they never get to do it enough.

Even Little Bit tried to get in on the action, but her efforts were more of a protective nature. She kept trying to get her siblings OFF of Daddy.

As you can see in the background, Boo wasn't too keen on the pile-up and wrestle concept. She preferred a more restorative activity as seen below.

Nurses Boo and Little Bit kindly give Daddy their homemade remedy for body aches and bruises. He patiently took the medicine.

Not limited by conventional medicine, the little nurses decided to try the benefits of an ipod charger and wooden rulers to help their patient quickly recover.

After all of the pummeling was over (well, it wasn't that bad..), we settled down for some snow cream and a game of Yahtzee, and Mountain Man was the big winner.

We're Proud of You, Scribe and Little Big Man!

Scribe and Little Big Man reached some amazing goals this week, and we're so very proud of them. Scribe finished copying the entire book of James. It took awhile, as he and Jake (who is copying it as well) added beautiful embellishments along the way. Here's a look at how many pages of copywork it took, as well as some of the art he added.

Little Big Man finished reading through the Bible (with just a few edits by Mom and Dad...passages he'll read later.) We printed out a schedule for him to follow early in the year, and he was so diligent each day to have his Bible reading time.

Just as God so graciously blesses us, we chose to bless the boys with a book or books of their choice. Scribe chose a trilogy written by Lloyd Alexander, and Little Big Man chose a series called Archives of Anthropos by John White. We're so proud of you boys! May you always strive to use your time to the glory of God, loving His Word and investing in that which has eternal value.

It Could Be Worse...or Keep Your Eyes Fixed on Jesus

"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..." (Hebrews 12:2)

I had my stitches taken out yesterday. I don't want to bore you with details, but I'll sum things up by saying that it didn't go as I hoped, expected, wished, prayed, etc. It made me reflect on my medical experiences, from taking a prescribed medication and having the reaction that only less than 1% of the population would ever get, to having major surgery and coping with complications that just aren't typical, as well as a constitution that seems to require much more pain medicine than the average Joe. I sometimes feel like the poster child for Murphy's Law (if anything can go wrong it will), but as a Christian, the reality is that I'm simply the clay being molded by the Potter.

I asked Mountain Man what lessons he thought I should be learning from repeated struggles with medical procedures and medications not working as they're supposed to, and he reminded me that "It could be worse." Instead of being frustrated that it was painful to have some of the stitches removed, I can be thankful that all of them weren't painful. Instead of being distressed that part of the wound is still open, I can be thankful that some of it closed up. Instead of being weary of this not being over, I can be thankful for the gift of time and for God's purposes in all things. I know....perspective changes everything.

That thought made me wonder (kind of sounds like "If You Give a Mom a Muffin..") why my initial expectations are so easily frustrated to begin with. Why do I expect a certain medication to do a certain thing, or a certain procedure to be easy or difficult, painful or not. It's because I wrap my expectations tightly around everyone else's experiences or advice and hold loosely to the fact that God's plan for me might be very different.

Just because one friend had no complications from surgery doesn't mean I can expect the same. Just because the doctor's say all will go well doesn't mean I can hold that as a promise. The only sure thing in any of it is God's love for me, and His promises abundantly found in His Word. When my eyes are fixed on everyone else's experiences, I can't have them fixed on Christ and His provision for whatever I'm facing.

There's much comfort in hearing how things have gone for others...things that we're facing ourselves. It doesn't just have to be medical procedures. We want to know if a certain curriculum worked, if a certain parenting approach was successful...we want guarantees ahead of time that if we do A, we'll be certain to get B. Learning from each other is very edifying and beneficial, except when a certain result becomes such the expectation that anything else causes discontent or defeat or discouragement. My life is in the Hands of my Sovereign Lord...it is molded by His will, not by my friend's experience or what everyone else says should happen.

My life is also a loud reminder that God has worked the opposite way as well, often defying medical expectations with His healing and deliverance. I've discounted much advice from medical experts, choosing to wait instead on God's healing. Mercifully, He's done that many times...the unexpected, the welcomed surprise. I didn't question those times. I just eagerly grasped His will for me, certainly not whining because things didn't work out as miserably as everyone said they would.

But my flesh isn't so gracious when things don't go as I hoped, planned, or was told. And so I let go of those expectations, and instead patiently wait for His will to be done, not rushing through what He has planned for me and the wonderful opportunities to grow in my walk with Him, but instead, keeping my eyes fixed on Him, knowing His plan is working for me a "far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory," (2. Cor. 4:17) than I, in my own wisdom, could ever design.

"Ah, sirs, let me tell you, there is not such a pleasant history for you to read in all the world as the history of your own lives, if you would but sit down and record from the beginning hitherto what God has been to you, and done for you; what signal manifestations and outbreakings of His mercy, faithfulness and love there have been in all the conditions you have passed through. If your hearts do not melt before you have gone half through that history, they are hard hearts indeed. 'My Father, though art the guide of my youth' (Jer. 3:4)."~John Flavel, The Mystery of Providence

Love,
Queen Mom

Comfort Food~Potato Soup and Garlic Cheese Biscuits

As a potato lover, you would think I would like potato soup, too. But I don't. However, since most everyone else in my family loves it, I do enjoy making it for them, and I'm continuously trying to find that "perfect" recipe. I already have a recipe that they all love, but it is very time consuming. Thus, it doesn't get made as often as my family would like. I recently made this version, and Mountain Man loved it. The reviews were mixed from the others, but I have to say it was quite easy to put together. Served with garlic-cheese biscuits, it makes great "comfort food."

"Restaurant-Quality Baked Potato Soup"

(We don't like this name, but I guess it says a lot about the fact that people don't cook at home as much as they used to...)

(This makes 6 servings. I made 1-1/2 times this recipe for our family.)

2 potatoes

3 T. butter

2 c. chopped onion

2 T. all purpose flour

4 c. chicken stock

2 c. water

1/4 c. cornstarch

1-1/2 c. potato flakes

1 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. ground pepper

1/2 tsp. dried basil

1/8 tsp. dried thyme

1 c. half and half

1/2 c. shredded cheddar

8 oz. bacon, cooked and crumbled ( I just used real bacon bits)

2 green onions, chopped

Cook potatoes at 450 for 45 min. to 1 hour, or until done. Set aside to cool. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions until tender and golden brown. Stir in flour, and cook 5 minutes to make a roux. Pour in chicken stock and water. Add cornstarch and mashed potato flakes. Season with salt, basil, and thyme. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove skin from cooled potatoes and discard. Dice potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes, and stir into soup, along with half and half. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until thick. Spoon into bowls and garnish with cheese, bacon, and green onion.

~from Allrecipes.com

Of course, we needed a yummy bread to serve with the soup, and my garlic-cheese biscuits seemed perfect. The basic biscuit is from Martha's Family Cookery Book, and I've combined suggestions from other recipes to come up with this final one.

Queen Mom's Garlic-Cheese Biscuits

2 c. unbleached flour

1/4 tsp. baking soda

3 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. garlic powder

4 T. shortening

1 c. buttermilk

3/4 c. shredded cheese (more to your liking...)

Mix flour, soda, powder, salt and garlic powder together. Cut in shortening until mixture is crumbly. Add buttermilk and stir gently to make a soft dough. Add cheddar cheese. Roll out dough on floured surface, and cut out biscuits with biscuit cutter. Place on baking sheet greased with butter, and bake at 400 degrees on top rack for about 12-15 minutes, or until done. Mix 1/4 c. melted butter with 1/2 tsp. garlic powder and brush over tops of biscuits.

I double the recipe to have enough for our family. Enjoy!

Snow Day Fun

The children were excited to wake up and find snow on the ground yesterday morning. They were even more excited when Mommy said they could go out and play after breakfast! Scribe took Little Bit out to let her taste the snow and put her little tootsies in it, too.

Here Reaches Up and Little Big Man enjoy throwing snowballs.

Even Boo got out there and played with the rest of them, amazingly managing to keep her dress dry the entire time!

The children attempted to build a snow fort a block at a time, as Little Big Man shows you here. But, there just wasn't enough snow, though it was lots of fun trying.

One of our favorite winter treats to make is snow cream. Scribe decided he'd do something a little different for everyone and make snow-cream shakes instead. Everyone loved them...

even though they had to share.:)

Finally, the children tried their hand at paper snowflakes. Surprisingly, it's not something we do every year, so it was a bit of an adventure. We pasted them to the dining room windows, and they look lovely, especially when the sunlight shines through.

Beautiful snow....playful children...great memories.