Fishing

I took the boys fishing Friday night, and Scott took us all on Saturday. We didn't catch anything, but it was nice sitting by the lake, watching the loons (the waterfowl, not the children. Well, it was nice watching the loony children, too), seeing the fish jump, and looking at the clouds.

Turkey courtship

Saw these two lovebirds (ha ha, punny) upon our return from running errands this morning. I hope she says, "yes!"

They're a little blurry because I was taking them through the window and was all the way zoomed in...

Garden of the Earth

Just wanted to share some pictures from Code-man's concert last night, "Garden of the Earth." They had an Earth Day/recycle/take care of our planet theme. Can you spot Code-man?There he is! Second row, on the left.

Code-man played a drum on "The Earth is Our Mother," a Native American chant.

The kids did a terrific job, and the theme was wonderful. Even better, the concert coincided with the school's art show, for which the kids made recycled art projects. Logo made flowers from old floppy disks (raise your hand if you still have a floppy disk drive--I don't), and Code-man made a bowl out of an old magazine (really). Some of the other classes made CD mobiles, wooden piece collages, rock pictures, and jungle multi-media pieces. Hats off to Mrs. S and Mrs. Y.

And here's Logo, being Logo, before the concert. Chip said that my pictures of the boys in and around trees captured their essences perfectly...I think this one does it even better.

Yup, that's Logo. I might just have to frame that one.

The Arsenal

Seriously? Do my children really need this much fire power? And this is just the nerf guns: it doesn't include the squirt guns or the dress-up guns or the bow or the swords...

Pictures of children in and around trees

I think I must be trying to connect to my husband's heritage...I have countless pictures of my children adorably looking at tulips. I took more than one of Bubby today, but had to post this one which also contains my famous color-shifting tulips.Here's one of Bubby up a tree. It's easier to keep an eye on him up there, since he can't get down by himself. He looks like he's having a good time, doesn't he?And here's Code-man, practicing for senior pictures, or maybe he's holding up the tree.Logo, looking slightly deranged. He's of the opinion that smiling for pictures is too passe...or something.My attempt at a "professional" pose. Guess I'm not quite ready to quit my day job, yet...

Logo's birthday

My middle baby is 7 now...

Here he is at his party on Sunday blowing out the candles on his dragon cake...beautiful day, lovely party, wonderful birthday boy.

Here's a better look at the cake--I took one with the candles lit, but "unrecognized file format" strikes again...and the dragon was beheaded shortly thereafter, so no retakes.

The Amazing Egg Hunt

Just have to brag, because once again, I've come up with a brilliant idea (it's rare enough that it's worthy of note). I know that some of you are fans of "The Amazing Race"--those of you who have at least seen the show will appreciate this more than others.


So each year, we send our children on an Easter egg hunt. We generally will send them on a treasure-style hunt, where they are given a clue to an egg, which contains the next clue to the next egg, which contains the next clue, and on until they reach the end. Sometimes there's a grand prize at the end, and others there isn't, but it's all fun.


You may have noticed that I'm in a bit of a funk these days, so I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to put it all together this year--inspiration and creativity is key. So I hadn't really been thinking about it a whole lot until yesterday when the threat of disappointing my kids spurred me to action. Zap, an idea popped into my head, and The Amazing Egg Hunt was born. Really, it was so simple, and the boys had a great time with it. Code-man's already been telling me what the Easter Bunny can do to make it better next year...I didn't bother to tell him that it was the best the Easter Bunny could do in the circumstances, and by the way, the E.B. was freaking out as she was outside hiding clues at 11:30 last night...


If you don't care, you can stop reading now, but I'm mighty proud of this egg hunt, so I'm going to list the clues we used below (there are some pictures down there, so maybe you at least want to scroll through).

Welcome to the Amazing Egg Hunt!
On the hunt, you will be working as a team of three to complete your tasks and bring you to the pit stop and the big prize. You must collect your eggs and clues in the provided basket and not make a big mess when searching for your clues. The person who finds the clue must let someone else open it.
To begin your adventure, make your way to Bubby’s room and search for your next egg.

Detour
All team members must make their way to one of three showers, then wash their hair and body and dry off. Once all members of the team are dressed in their Easter finery, you will receive your next clue.

Route Info
All team members must now make their way to the sandbox, where you will search for your next egg.

Detour
Team members must weave through the provided cones carrying an egg on a spoon (Bubby can just carry the egg). If the egg is dropped, the team member must start over. When this task is completed, you will receive your next clue.

Road Block
Choose one team member to climb into the fort, out on to the monkey bars, retrieve an egg, and slide down the slide (the other team members can slide down the slide, too, if they want).

Route Info
Make your way to the living room, where you will search for your next egg.

Detour
Each team member needs to pick up and put away the number of toys they are old (so Code-man puts away 9 toys, etc). These can be from anywhere, upstairs or downstairs. You will receive your next clue when all of the toys have been put away (all the way away where they belong).

Road Block
Team members must now collect the garbage and recycling from the following areas:
C & L’s room
Kitchen (under sink)
Upstairs bathrooms
Bubby’s room.
Once the garbage and recycling has been collected, place it into the appropriate bins, and take the bins out to the road. Once the bins are in place, you may search for your next egg.

Route Info
Make your way to the garden, where you will search for your next egg.

Road Block
Two team members must make their way to the tree fort, climb up, and yell “Happy Easter” as loud as they can. When the task is complete, you will receive your next clue

Detour
All team members must now ride their bikes down the bike path to where the “Lake” should be, where you will search for your next egg. After you find your egg, return your bikes to the garage.

Route Info
Make your way to the basketball court, where you will search for your next egg.

Detour
Each team member must make the same number of baskets as they are old. When all the baskets have been made, you will receive your next clue.

Road Block
Team members must now make their way into the house while balancing a marshmallow peep on their head (Code-man—no hands; Logo—one hand; Bubby—two hands). When you have reached the laundry room, eat your peep and search for your next clue.

Route Info
Make your way to the Pit Stop in the Living Room. Happy Easter!

They were the first team to arrive (of course), and as winners of this leg of the race, they won Easter baskets filled with edible and inedible goodies.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Went to the zoo on Saturday--it was a lovely day. For once, the tiger was moving--I think we've only ever seen him sleeping. The snow leopard and cougar (puma/mt. lion) were out, too--I didn't believe they actually existed until yesterday.

Guess what our favorite treat at the zoo (and amusement parks, and festivals, and parades, and the circus, and...) is!

We went to the Conservatory, too. The spring flowers in the sunken garden were gorgeous--well worth the trip, if you haven't been yet. I tried and failed to get a good picture of the boys with the flowers in the background, but they enjoyed staring at the koi. I think the koi liked them, too.

Sunday

For Jesus' disciples, all of their hopes and dreams had died and were buried right along with Jesus. But today, we proclaim:
Christ is risen!
Christ is risen, indeed!

And because Christ is risen we have been given eternal hope, not just today, but every day.
Amen. Alleluia!

Saturday

Today I think of Jesus' friends. We know that the disciples still didn't understand what was happening--they still didn't quite "get it" until after Jesus' resurrection. We have the benefit of knowing the end of the story, but what must they have been thinking and feeling on that dark Sabbath day, the day after their beloved teacher's death? Confused? Abandoned? Scared? Wondering what comes next? Where they will go? What they will do? These men and women had literally left their old lives behind, to travel with Jesus and to learn from him. They left their jobs, their homes, their families...all of that, just to have it all end with such sudden and crushing finality.

In the church we attended during my teenage years, it was a tradition to strip the altar at the end of the Good Friday worship service. The congregation would sing the verses of "Were You There?" slowly and ponderously, pausing between each one while someone would read one of Jesus' last words, and more items would be taken from the chancel area: the big Bible, the candles, the altar cloths. After the altar was bare, it would be draped with black cloth, and a crown of thorns would be placed on the draped cross. After each verse of the song, more lights would be turned off, so that it would be completely dark by the end. We would leave in silence, in the dark. It was an extremely moving experience, a loving act of remembrance.

Do you know that hymn?

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Oh, sometimes, it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

As I would leave the church's sanctuary, devoid of light, seemingly devoid of hope, Jesus' last words echoing in my mind, it was easy to imagine that I had been there, witnessing the horror, the blood, the pain, the cruelty. And, in a way, I was there. Every one of us was there, because our sins were the nails driven through Jesus, into that cross, and it was Jesus' love for us that kept him there.

Warning: Cute Kid Story Ahead

So Hubby called tonight. He was driving on a windy road, came to a place called "Lover's Leap," and decided to call me. I, of course, told him not to jump! But anyway, while we were talking, Bubby slipped out the sliding glass door to our deck (note to self: get a child-proof lock for the sliding glass door). I didn't even notice him leaving until I heard the outdoor faucet turning on. I looked out, and there he was, outside, wearing Logo's shoes, spraying water at our gas grill (no, it wasn't on). It was just so funny seeing my little 'un wearing these 6 sizes too large shoes. What a cutie-pie.

In other news, Code-man called Sawblock to ask permission to build a ramp/ladder in one of our oak trees. SB said yes, and just look what happened!Just in case you can't tell, Code-man and Logo climbed really, really high.

And Hubby--here's where I put the swing, for now...

That was in sunnier times... (uh, yesterday)

Friday

From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"--which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Matthew 27:45-46

It feels so right to me, that the sky became dark, because this was a dark, dark time. Have you ever felt so utterly, completely abandoned? Oh, it makes my heart ache. Horrible. Even worse than horrible. In fact, that is the definition of hell: being completely and eternally excluded from the presence of God. This exclusion from God's presence is the consequence of sin. Jesus, bearing the sins of the world, experienced this, on the cross, so that we would never, ever have to.

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. Matthew 27:50-51

Do you understand the significance of the temple curtain being torn? In the temple, the curtain separated the holy place from the most holy place. No one was allowed to go into the most holy place except for the priests, because that's where God was. In fact, the priests wore bells on their robes, and a rope was tied to their ankle, so just in case the priest died while he was in there, they could pull his body out without entering the space containing God's presence. The idea was, if they couldn't hear the bells tinkling anymore, the priest must not be moving, and must be dead. With the curtain torn in two, there is no longer a separation. Jesus made it possible for each of us to come directly into God's presence.

When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, "Surely he was the Son of God!" Matthew 27:54

Surely, Jesus is the Son of God!

Thursday

In the night in which he was betrayed...

It's Thursday, the day we remember Jesus' last meal with his disciples at the Passover feast. Jesus began the evening celebration by washing his disciples' feet, something which normally would have been done by a servant--just one more example of Jesus' complete counter-culturalism. In fact, Peter was horrified, at first, at the thought of his Master washing his feet. Jesus told them,

"I have given you and example to follow. Do as I have done to you. How true it is that a servant is not greater than the master...."John 13:15-16a

After supper, Jesus went to a quiet place to pray. He "began to be filled with horror and deep distress" (Mark 14:33), and told his friends "My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and watch with me." (Mark 14:34)

He went a little farther and fell face down on the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting him pass him by. "Abba, Father," he said, "everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will, not mine." Mark 14:35-36

I'd just like to point out, here, that saying Abba is like saying Daddy. Can you imagine a 30 year old man calling his father Daddy? That, more than anything, demonstrates to me the sorrow and distress, even despair that Jesus was feeling. Luke reports that

He prayed more fervently, and he was in such agony of spirit that his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood. Luke 22:44

Once again, I love this picture of Jesus. It is so easy, amidst the miracles and healings and teachings and throwing out of demons and walking on water, to remember that Jesus is God. And it is so easy to forget that he was, at the same time, fully human. I think we just gloss over that part sometimes, because it's so difficult to understand how he could be both, God and human.

And yet, here he is in the garden. Jesus knows what he has to do, and, quite understandably, doesn't want to do it. It will be difficult. It will be humiliating. It will be painful. It is beyond words, what Jesus will go through. But Jesus, because he loves us (US!), does it anyway. Jesus has free will, too, we all do, and he chose salvation for the world, redemption for us all, in exchange for his life.

When I was younger, I never really understood why Good Friday was called good. I never understood why Jesus had to die. It seems to me that the day on which Jesus died was awful, horrible, terrible, anything but good. I guess I didn't understand salvation at that point, or how God can use even the most horrific situations to fulfill his purposes.

It is no accident that Jesus' sacrifice came during the season of Passover, the time when Jews remember the angel of death passing over the Hebrews' homes just before their escape from slavery in Egypt. If you remember, the Hebrew people were to slaughter a lamb, a perfect lamb, without blemish, and smear its blood on their door frames, which would signal to the angel of death that this household was to be spared. Jesus, on this night in which he was betrayed, became the perfect passover lamb, once and for all, and his blood is smeared over the doorways of our hearts, sparing us from the horror and the grief, the agony and distress of death: the slavery of this imperfect, sinful life.

Wednesday

Continuing in our journey together through the week before Jesus' death, this actually happened Tuesday (two days before the Passover Feast), but I'll talk about it today (since nothing is recorded in the Bible for Wednesday).

Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover, was approaching, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of the people. Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present. Luke 22:1-6

The rat! One of the Twelve, Jesus' most trusted inner circle! How dare he? How could he? Let's back up a bit to an incident that happened the previous Friday in Bethany. Mary (of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus) took a jar of expensive perfume, and poured it on Jesus' feet, anointing him.

But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected,"Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages." John 12:4-5

Why, indeed? Read on...

He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put in it. John 12:6

Oh. Gotta love that commentary from Jesus' favorite disciple. And then Jesus responded:
"Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial." Mark 14:6-8

In John's gospel, this little incident is reported in chronological order, so even before the triumphal entry into Jerusalem, but in each of the others, it's recorded right before Judas heads to the chief priests seeking to betray Jesus. I don't think that's a coincidence or a mistake. It seems that Matthew, Mark, and Luke all felt that the perfume incident was a direct antecedent to, and perhaps even a catalyst for Judas' betrayal.

I feel a little sorry for Judas. He gets a bad rap, but I think he honestly thought he was doing the right thing. He must have thought Jesus was a little crazy after the thing with the perfume--he must have felt like his teacher was losing it, and going to the chief priests, allowing them to take Jesus into custody, probably seemed like a prudent course of action. If Jesus is going insane, Judas must have thought, then it's for his own good that he be taken off the streets before he can hurt himself or others. Of course, it didn't hurt that the religious leaders were willing to pay Judas for his betrayal, given what we know about Judas' money habits.

Then there's this: yes, Judas had free will, we all do. Yes, Judas chose to do an evil thing. It was all Judas. But! God made Judas, created Judas from nothing, and God knew Judas' inmost thoughts, God knew what Judas would do when faced with that situation. Jesus knew that Judas would betray him and placed him in his inner circle anyway, because that was what needed to happen. The son of man needed to be betrayed, so that we all could receive forgiveness for our sins. It needed to happen, and Judas was the one chosen to do the deed. It was Judas' destiny. Now we can get all tied up in a discussion of predestination versus free will, but quite frankly, I don't want to do that right now. The point is, God knows each of us better than we know ourselves, and God placed Judas in that place, at that time, so that the scriptures would be fulfilled. I feel like, in some ways, we owe Judas a debt of gratitude.

Judas was sorry for what he had done. Matthew reports:
When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned [to die], he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. "I have sinned," he said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood."Matthew 27:3-4

Judas had no idea that Jesus was going to die as a direct result of his action. I like to think that God forgave Judas his sin. We know that God uses all circumstances, good and bad, to honor and glorify God, and it is certainly the case here. God used Judas' betrayal, his sin, to redeem the world. Thanks, in part, to Judas, we've been washed in the blood of the lamb, and made clean. We have been set free from the shackles that bind us to this imperfect world, and we are free to live the life of perfect communion that we were made for. Out of the devastation and destruction of our sins, the most beautiful things can happen. Only God has the power to do that.

How to make seed balls

Seed-Balls (a.k.a. Seed-Bombs) are a seed distribution technique. Evidently, there are guerrilla gardeners out there, who make these and lob them over fences into neighbors' neglected yards, along the highway, or into vacant lots. The seeds are protected, from those who would eat them, by the clay, and sprout on their own once enough water has fallen to release the clay. I'm making them to give out as favors at my middle child's birthday party, and I could definitely see this being a great idea to do with kids for Earth day or a garden party.

This recipe is from http://heavypetal.ca/archives/2007/03/how-to-make-seedballs/, but there are lots of variations out there.

Mix 5 parts dry red clay, 3 parts dry organic compost, 1 part seed, and 1-2 parts water (just enough water to form a mix that will hold together). Pinch off small bits of the mixture and roll into 1/2 inch balls. Let them sit for a few days until they're completely dry. The Heavy Petal gardener used a 16 oz measure and said the recipe made enough for 300 (!) seed balls.

The red clay you can get from a well-stocked craft store or from a pottery supply store--remember, you want the powder, not the pre-mixed stuff. The seeds can be anything you want, although it's a good idea to include only native plants, or at least non-invasive plants, if you're planning to use these to re-plant the world guerrilla-style.

Here's a little more explanation about seed balls: http://heavypetal.ca/archives/2007/03/a-brief-history-of-the-seed-ball/

Tuesday

This week, that we call Holy Week, in which we remember and celebrate the events that happened in the week before Jesus' death, is the most well-documented week of Jesus' life. If it was me, with all this stuff going on, my mind would be reeling. I just can't get my brain around the impromptu parade of Sunday, followed by cleaning house at the temple and teaching all week, all while one of your closest associates is plotting with your enemies to get rid of you. I can't imagine how the tide of public opinion could shift so swiftly, that they were shouting praises to a king five days before shouting even more loudly for his death.

So, today I want y'all to think about something that our children's timeline Bible says happened on Tuesday of that week, but the other Bibles just say happened sometime between the triumphal entry and the last supper. Jesus was teaching in the temple, and the religious leaders thought he was dangerous and stirring up trouble (true, true), and so they were looking for a way to get rid of him, and they sent a spy to try to trick Jesus. Let me just stop here to say, what a smart man Jesus was. He knew they were trying to trap him, which, really anyone could have seen, but he knew exactly how to transcend the situation, and not get snared in their trap. Amazing.

Anyway, the spy asked Jesus if the Jewish people should pay taxes to Caesar. This is a no-win question because if Jesus said they shouldn't pay taxes, the Roman government would be upset, and accuse Jesus of treason, but if Jesus said they should pay taxes, the Jews would be upset, and not just because they didn't like paying taxes. I'm a little vague on this, but it was something about graven images being against God's law, and, of course, the coins used to pay taxes contained a graven image.

So what did Jesus answer? He asked the spy to show him a coin, and then asked the man whose image and name appeared on the coin. "Caesar," he replied, to which Jesus answered, "well, if this is Caesar's, give it to him, but make sure you give God what belongs to Him." (that's the Step-by-Step Bible wording, you've probably heard it with renders and untos in the past). The religious leaders were "amazed" by Jesus' answer (me too). They were so sure that they had caught him, but there was nothing they could say to that. Stay tuned, though, because those religious leaders just don't give up...

I've thought a lot about the second part of Jesus' answer: "make sure you give God what belongs to Him." It gives me tingles to read that, because the Roman coins were made in Caesar's image, with Caesar's name on them, but we, flawed and imperfect as we are, are made in God's image, and God's name is written on our hearts. Sure, the Caesars of this world can have their money, but God...God demands all of each of us: everything that we are, everything that we do.

Holy week, revisited

I'm not feeling particularly inspired or spiritual this holy week...I'm not sure why that is--perhaps because I've been too busy wallowing in self-pity because Hubby's out of town, and will be, through Easter and beyond. I feel like I should* be feeling close to God and meditating on holy things, but I'm not...so you're all in for a treat. I'm reposting my holy week musings from last year, hoping that rereading them will inspire me. Maybe they'll inspire you, as well.

*There's that darn "should" again...
* * * * * * * * * * *
Today is Monday of Holy week, the day that I traditionally think about Jesus going into the temple and overturning tables. I think this actually happened on the same day as the triumphal entry, which we celebrate on Palm Sunday, but today is the day I think about it. I love to think of Jesus that way. So often we view Jesus as kind of a pushover. That's not exactly the right word, but do you understand what I'm trying to say? Jesus was and is perfect. And he was always telling people to love one another and to serve one another, and that the last shall be first, and to turn the other cheek, and you kind of get the idea that he's not going to stick up for himself, and that we shouldn't stick up for ourselves either. But I love that picture of Jesus losing his temper and driving the money changers and dove sellers out of the temple. It reminds me that yes, Jesus is fully divine, and yes, Jesus is perfect, but that Jesus was also fully human. Just like me (except for the part where I'm not anywhere near perfect). Jesus faced the same fears and anxieties and temptations that we all face. If he could triumph over those, that gives me hope that I can, as well.

Oatmeal

I am pleased to report that we've perfected our cinnamon roll oatmeal recipe. In a blind taste test, 2 out of 3 tasters preferred the home made version--the third tester insisted that both were equally good. So here it is, just in case you want to make it yourself.

Place
1/3 c. quick oats
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
2 t. packed brown sugar
2 shakes from the salt shaker and
2/3 c. water
in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 60-90 seconds (we do ours for 75).

That's it. I also add a bit of skim milk (maybe 2 T.) and about 2 T. chopped walnuts to mine.

Enjoy!

Results

Well, I'm sure you've all been holding your breath waiting for the science fair experiment results, so here you go. As you know, Code-man's science fair project is titled, "Does Temperature Affect the Growth of Stalactites and Stalagmites?" Since real stalactites and stalagmites take thousands of years to grow, Code-man decided to grow crystals that form in the same way as cave formations. Cave formations grow as water containing dissolved bits of rock drips into a cave and then evaporates, leaving the rock behind--magnesium sulfate crystals form in much the same way, growing larger as the water it's dissolved in evaporates.

So Code-man made a super saturated magnesium sulfate solution, and placed it into two cups. Between the cups, Code-man draped a piece of string. The idea is that the mag sulf solution will move up the string though capillary action, then down to the dip due to gravity. If the water then evaporates before the drop falls, a stalactite will form. If it drips first, a stalagmite will form. Code-man set up three sets in three different temperature environments: room temp, refrigerator, and crock pot on warm with the lid off. We actually ran the experiment in the different temperatures twice, and didn't note any stalactite growth during our data recording period. I was frustrated by the lack of growth, so I set up another experiment. This time, all of the variables were exactly the same, except one: the string drape. I know they were exactly the same, because I draped two strings in the same set of cups, and even then, the difference in string drape was only about 1/8 of an inch. This time, in one hour we had about 1 inch of growth on one of the strings, and about 1/4 inch on the other (as you can see in the picture above, after 2 days, we have a column (a stalactite and a stalagmite that have grown together). It's about 5 inches tall). This, more than anything, convinced me that we were not going to be able to get meaningful data from our three different environments. Even if we did get something to grow, we wouldn't be able to tell if any differences were due to the temperature, or to the drape.

We did, however, make enough observations to draw a few conclusions. We noticed that in the cold environment, crystals started forming in the solution at about 4 hours in--the mag sulf didn't want to stay dissolved. From this, we conclude that if a cave is too cold, stalactites and stalagmites will either form very slowly or not at all, because there will be less rock dissolved in the water. In the hot environment, crystals started forming on the surface of the solution--meaning they were forming as the water evaporated--at about 10 hours in, and in the room temp environment, crystals didn't start forming on the surface until 24 hours in. From this, we conclude that stalactites and stalagmites are likely to form more quickly in a warmer cave, as the water will evaporate more quickly. Exciting stuff, eh?

Day 4

Only one more day to go. You know, this is one of the most fun spring breaks I've ever had. The only thing that would make it better would be having Hubby along on our adventures. The weather has even been just gorgeous and spring-like. This morning, it was off to MOPS. I just have to say, I love my discussion group. I wish we could all hang together again next year, but I think they'll probably split us up. Good, I guess--that way I'll get to know some more amazing women. Now we've got more friends over (Derek again and Louie), and Bubby is finally napping...

The real test comes tomorrow. It's the perfect storm of bad spring break karma...the weather is supposed to turn colder, with rain and maybe even snow, and we're going to be stuck at home all day with no plans and no friends to distract and entertain us. Tomorrow Code-man needs to start growing his stalactites again, now that we know how to do it, and we (I) decided that we needed two full days of not going anywhere to keep an eye on them. What have I done? Maybe we only need one full day of not going anywhere, followed by twice daily measurements for a week...

Then it's the weekend, and back to school on Monday, followed by Hubby's return very late Monday night :-)

Day 3

Day 3 of our exciting spring break Stay-cation found us making the trek to Club Just Jump, followed by lunch out and cookie hunting (sadly, there were absolutely no cookies in our house, and no chocolate chips with which to make cookies, either, last night when we were craving them).

Club Just Jump was lots of fun. It was hard to get them all to stop bouncing at once, so I settled for two out of three. For those of you who have been to Crazy Bounce, Just Jump is a lot smaller...like maybe 1/3 the size, but still enough fun for all of us. That obstacle course was nuts.

We spent two hours there, and those boys wore me out...up the slide, down the slide, up the slide, down the slide, through the obstacle course, up the slide, down the slide, through the other obstacle course three times, repeat! With about 15 minutes to go, I corralled all three of 'em in the bouncy basketball court, and laid my weary self down in a corner. Each time a ball bounced my way, I attempted a half-hearted basket, but I think I only made one.

Upon our arrival home, we washed the truck, which of course, necessitated getting out the hose.

I'm not really sure if it looks better now than before we started, but at least we made the effort. Then Code-man decided a little archery was in order. I really thought I had more time before I had to come up with family archery guidelines...

Up next, more fun tomorrow!

Spring Break day 2

Day 2 of our Spring Break Stay-cation found us heading off to Nickelodeon Universe at MOA, and just in case you were wondering, no, I was not brave enough to park the Suburban in the ramp.

Sponge-Bob says "Think Happy." Logo was not thinking happy at the time of this photo.That's three kids we don't know, Bubby, Code-man, and Logo.

Judging from number of times ridden, I would say the Log Chute was our family's favorite ride.

They're in there...really.

And, proving, once more, that it is impossible to go to the Mall of America without running into somebody you know, we saw Louie, Alex(andra), and their mom, Andi today.

That's all for now...more fun tomorrow.

Thanks, Hubby

Pink!

For those of you who don't know, Hubby is currently away in North Carolina, drinking beer (he says he's coordinating the start-up of a newly installed filter, but I know he's just there to drink beer), for an extended stay. We, of course, miss him terribly, and he says he misses us, too. The flowers are sitting at Daddy's place at the table...not a very good substitute. Love you, Sawblock.

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Spring Break Stay-cation Day 1: Grocery shopping followed by having friends over (and more fun planned for tomorrow!)

That's Derek, Code-man, Logo, and Blake.

Working man

Code-man is earning some money by taking care of the neighbors' dog while they're on vacation. Here's Code-man and Bailey this afternoon.

Science Fair Season

Yes, here it is again, Science Fair Season. At this point, I've managed to release my anxiety over the effort that will be required for a repeat of last years' success, and the anxiety caused by my 2nd grade nephew's awesome science fair project earlier this year, so I'm doing well. Yes, I know it's not about me...at least it's not supposed to be about me, but the competition is intense, and since I have a degree in biology, I feel like there's no excuse for my kid turning in an inferior project. Everyone knows that parents are judged by the success, or failure, of their children, whether that's fair or not (you know you've done it, too). But I've told myself in no uncertain terms (and continue to tell myself, as needed), that it's Code-man's project, and I will support him in its completion, but he is ultimately responsible.

Anyway, the title for Code-man's science fair project this year is, "Does temperature affect stalactite and stalagmite growth?" Really. He's going to grow cave formations. I would say, "where does he come up with these things," but I know where he came up with this particular idea. I'm impressed. So now my corollary to Code-man's project has been, "Creating a warm microclimate." Code-man wants to grow speleothems in three different temperatures. We've got cold (the garage) and medium (the house), but warm is a challenge. We decided to try the crock pot on warm, and we're attempting to keep the temp between 95 and 105 degrees by turning it on and off throughout the experiment.

My "real" experiment these days is "Replicating cinnamon roll oatmeal." Code-man really likes Quaker's cinnamon roll flavor instant oatmeal, and we're almost out. I have a coupon, so I'm just waiting for it to go on sale, but then I thought, we could probably make this ourselves for much less. If you use the microwave, quick oats are just as fast as instant, and much less expensive. This could have broad reaching implications for the boys' future Boundary Waters trips.

So each morning this week I've been experimenting with my oatmeal. We're almost there--Cody told me that the cinnamon was right, but it just needs more sugar. Once I think I have it we're going to do a blind taste test. The other day I changed both the amount of cinnamon and the amount of sugar, and then as I was standing in the kitchen waiting for the microwave to ding, I mused, "oops, I probably shouldn't have changed more than one variable at a time," to which my helpful 4th grade scientist replied, "yeah, mom, you should only change one variable, because then if it works, you don't know what did it." Thanks, bud.

Sometimes I think I'm such a nerd for approaching problem solving from a scientific perspective, but I realized that I'm showing my children that science is relevant to their lives, and that the scientific method is a great way to solve problems and find answers. Score one for the nerdy science mom!

As a funny side note, this morning as Code-man was attempting to set up his experiment, Bubby had has hands everywhere. He really has talent for messing things up when it counts the most. Fed up, I decided to go get the exersaucer and plunk him down in it until Code-man had everything set. I brought Bubby down with me to retrieve it, and when he saw what I was getting he said, "oh, thanks mom!" in that cute little boy voice of his. He was actually excited to sit confined in the saucer, and, when we took him out to eat breakfast, he promptly left the table without eating and climbed back in!

Absorbent, revisited

Ha! I think someone at P&G must read my blog (by the way, P&G person, please leave a comment :) In January, I blogged about one of their absorbent products, and then yesterday I was in the store and I noticed that the packaging had changed. Now it's "Adaptive Absorbency & Fit TM". I'm not quite sure what that's supposed to mean, but it sounds good. There's nothing on the package about this lightweight material absorbing 10x its weight; now it says "[this material] absorbs 4x more than you may need, yet feels amazingly light." Hmm. Why do I need something that absorbs more than I need to be absorbed? Not sure. I'm also not sure if that makes more sense than saying that something that's very light absorbs 10x its weight. They've also lowered the price--now it's only about 25% more expensive than the regular non-"improved" kind.

And just in case you're wondering, yes, I bought the product again. Once again, with coupons, and a gift card deal, the new product was less than the older style. P&G, I still love your products, even if I think your packaging slogans need a little tweaking. I'm probably the only nerd who notices these things, anyway.

So I just wanted to share that with you all so that you could bask in my all-powerful bloggy-ness. When I'm famous, you can say you knew me when...

Mosaic

I'm an artsy craftsy kind of person. I love taking something ordinary or plain and making it into something beautiful. It really doesn't even have to be beautiful, as long as it's something I've made. Lately I've been drawn to mosaics, wanting to look at them, wanting to learn how to make them. I'm a thinker: I always want to know the why of everything, so I've been considering my recent fascination with mosaic. I think I'm so drawn to mosaic because it uses broken pieces to create something beautiful. It reminds me of the way God works in my life, taking all of the ugly, broken parts of me, parts that I would just as soon throw in the trash, sharp edges and all, and arranges them into a beautiful masterpiece.

It is interesting to me that sometimes mosaic artists take pieces that are, by themselves, beautiful, and break them on purpose, to put them back together in another way. Sometimes I wonder if that's what God does in my life, too. I wonder if God breaks me, through circumstance or hardship, for the purpose of putting me back together in a way that brings glory to God, and brings me into closer relationship with God. I wonder if I am God's beautiful masterpiece.

It's Ty-Guy's 8th birthday today! Happy Birthday, Ty-Guy (not to be confused with Fly-Guy, of course).

Why have I not thought of this before?

I think you all know me well enough to realize that I don't splurge* on a whole lot of things. One convenience item that I do like to use is sanitizing wipes. They're kind of expensive, but for some reason they just seem to clean better than a sponge or rag + cleaning solution. The kids like them, too, and since they've been doing more chores, we've been going through them a lot faster. We ran out last week. My brain being too full to remember much anymore, I forgot to add wipes to my list, and of course I didn't remember, when I was in the store, that we were out.

This morning, as I was lying in bed, listening to the sounds of little people emerging from sleep, I remembered that we didn't have any sanitizing wipes, and that the children were going to want to do their Saturday morning jobs soon. I thought about what we might have on hand that they could use instead (I mean besides the obvious sponge or rag + cleaning solution), and I thought about our home made baby wipes. I would never, ever let the kids use store-bought baby wipes to clean--they cost way too much per wipe--but the ones I make, for less than one cent each, would be fine.

And that's when it occurred to me: I can make my own sanitizing wipes. Yes I can. It's so obvious, why did I not think of this before? So, I went to the internet to get ideas for what to soak the wipes in, and once again, the choices are obvious: rubbing alcohol, bleach solution, or any cleaning solution. Really. It's that simple. I think I'll use pine-sol, because 1. I don't want to use bleach, 2. we don't have very much rubbing alcohol on hand (and Hubby is probably using up the last of it while I type, trying to take old state park stickers of the 'burban's windshield), and 3. I like the smell of pine-sol (interesting note, I never liked the pine pine-sol scent until we lived in a home made of pine logs--for some reason it just smelled "right" there. Now that we no longer live in a log home, I don't like it quite as much--but I still do like that scent). I'm not quite sure how much I will dilute it at this point.

For those of you who don't know, here's my recipe for home-made baby wipes:

1. Cut a roll of Bounty or Viva paper towels in half and remove the cardboard core from one of the halves (we've used a bread knife, electric knife, table saw, and mitre saw to cut--I think Hubby prefers the electric knife).
2. Mix 1 T. baby oil, 1 T. baby wash, 1 T. white vinegar (to inhibit mold growth--I think we only have to add this because we use well water), and 1 c. water in a lidded container large enough to hold the half roll of paper towels ( I use Rubbermaid 1.5 qt containers from Wal-mart).
3. Put the paper towels into the container, cut side down, replace the lid, and turn upside down until all the liquid absorbs into the towels.
4. To dispense the wipes, pull up from the center.

So for my sanitizing wipes, I'll use pine-sol and water instead of baby oil, wash, and vinegar.

So simple!

*Rereading this, I realized that many people wouldn't consider pre-made sanitizing wipes to be a splurge or luxury item...just so you know, I do.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Suess!

In honor of Dr. Suess' birthday tomorrow, the boys made their own Suess-creatures. I wish we had had feathers or even better, a feather boa, in our craft box, but the creatures turned out well despite our limitations.Here's a closer look at Bubby's--it sort of blends in with his PJs in the above picture, doesn't it? I couldn't get him to hold it up so you could see its eye...I would say, "hold it up," and he would hold it up over his head, and then I would say, "down a little bit," and he'd put it way down by his knees, all the while looking at me like he thought I was losing it. Finally, I said, "hold it just like this. Don't move," but he moved--you get the idea, though--it's sort of a one-eyed chick with a bell on a curlicue on its head. I personally think this one is the most Suess-like.

I probably should mention, before you start thinking I'm a super-mom or something, that this project was not completed without a fair share of whining, throwing things, a little yelling, and a bit of deep breathing and counting to 10. The children just don't seem to understand that there are three of them and I only have two hands.

Look at this big fish! Yowza. Code-man and Logo fishing in the comfort of the ice house.

Portside Bait and Liquor: Home of the Big Mean Fish

Do you do windows?

I washed windows on Saturday night. I feel the need to tell you this because number one, I don't think you'll notice if I don't tell you (especially since most of you won't see them again until...well, I don't know when), and number two, they were only clean for 10 hours. That's right--within minutes of Bubby waking up on Sunday morning, his hand print had reappeared on the living room's picture window. "Mommy, there's a bird," he exclaimed excitedly. Yes, honey, but do you have to touch the glass? I'll be able to see the birds much more clearly if you resist that particular urge. This is exactly why I rarely wash our windows (it's been at least 2 years), and I only wash them at night. A clean piece of glass acts as some sort of mystical siren to grimy little hands, and quite honestly, if I'm going to put the effort in, I want the results to last longer than that.
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Speaking of wild birds, today Bubby was outside shoveling as I was plodding back and forth between the truck and the house, bringing the groceries in. All of a sudden, I heard a shriek and Bubby ran into the kitchen, yelling that the turkey was chasing him. He told me, "the turkey went faster." He told me I had to come outside to see the turkey, but it was gone by the time I got there. I wonder if it was a pheasant, since we've been seeing a lot more pheasants than turkeys lately. Anyway, up until that bird chased him, Bubby was refusing to eat turkey because, "the turkey comes back outside and I see him," (excuses don't have to make sense when you're 2) but after this little episode, he insisted that a turkey sandwich would be best.

My husband and I have been camping together for a long time. At some point along the way, we agreed upon the following division of labor: Sawblock packs the equipment, I pack the food, and we each pack our own clothes. As our family has grown, my packing responsibility has grown as well--I am now responsible for packing clothes and personal items for four* people, toys and books, as well as all of the food for the five of us. At times, it is too much for me. It's a lot to keep in my head, and even with my myriad lists, the responsibility is crushing. What if it rains all weekend and I forgot to pack the rain coats? What if it's in the 100s and I only packed one pair of shorts for each boy? I pack with the constant, nagging fear that I'm forgetting something essential.

My husband, his Dad, and our two oldest boys are ice fishing this weekend. Hubby was responsible for packing clothes and equipment for three and half of the food for five. I noticed this morning that he forgot a few things, like eggs for the French toast, condiments for the brats, and carrots (but that could have been an intentional omission--Sawblock doesn't seem to be quite as concerned as I am about our children eating vegetables every day). My first thought was, "oh no!" But then, optimist that I am (always looking at the silver lining), I thought, well maybe now Hubby will have a little more compassion when I'm whining and complaining about how difficult it is to pack for camping! See, Hubby, it's not as easy as it looks.

*Yes, it's true, Code-man and Logo are old enough to pack their own clothes, but left to their own devices, they would forget such essentials as underwear or toothbrushes, and so, even with a list to work from, they still require close packing supervision, which falls to me.
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Speaking of "oh no," I was watching some short track speed skating last night (can you see where this is going?), and who was skating, but Apolo Anton Ohno, in the 500M final. Apolo was in fourth place, and then he scooted up into third and I was cheering for him (go Ohno!), but then he dropped back into fourth. As the skater in fourth was making his move I was moaning, "Oh no, oh no, OHNO!" He couldn't hear my warning and the other skater accomplished his pass. Ohno finished in second, but got disqualified for shoving another skater out of the way. One of the Canadians, who finished first, also shoved someone out of the way but was not disqualified.

Code-man's 7 layer bars

Press about 2/3 of a tube of refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough into the bottom of a greased 8 or 9 inch square pan. Bake in 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes, or until half-baked. Remove from oven and sprinkle with ~ 1/2 c. slivered almonds (toast them first, if you prefer), ~ 1/2 c. shredded coconut, 15-20 caramels cut in 1/4s, ~1 c. mini-marshmallows, and ~ 1 c. mini-chocolate chips. Crumble remaining cookie dough on top. Place back in 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until the cookie dough looks done and the marshmallows are melty and lightly toasted. Yummy.

Construction

I think Bubby was born to be a construction worker--he has natural talent. This morning, when we were playing outside, Bubby was moving snow using his loader, just like they move dirt at construction sites. He would move 3 loads from here over to there, and then move a load from here to somewhere else, then go back to there and spread the snow around, and then take a load from there to here, then take a load from here and move it 2 inches to the right...the only thing we were missing was 2 other guys to stand around drinking coffee with me (we were missing the coffee, too). That, and Bubby wasn't taking breaks every couple of minutes.

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Speaking of construction zones, I feel like I need to be wearing a hard hat lately when I walk the older boys to their bus stop. Our driveway, on the uphill side, is shaded all the time, so it doesn't melt the way the rest of the driveway does. Even worse, the run-off from the house heads down the hill, gets to this shaded portion, and freezes. So right now, we've got a slanted patch of ice, the width of the driveway, and about 15 feet long. Getting down without falling is challenging, but fun; going back up toward the house is pretty close to impossible. The other night when Logo and I were bringing the garbage and recycling bins back up to the house, I thought I was going to have to send Logo in to get Sawblock to come and get me in the truck. I just could not manage to navigate up that icy patch with a 96 gallon cart in tow. Eventually, I made it, with help from Logo standing above me on a dry patch. I'm sure it would have been quite comical to watch, as from a kneeling position, I attempted to shove the cart toward Logo, demonstrating Newton's third law of motion* quite graphically. This morning I told the boys they were going to have to go to the bus stop on their own until the driveway melts--I was only half kidding!

*For those of you not "in the know", Newton's third law states: for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Swarm v Mammoth

Final Score:

Swarm 15

Mammoth 5

Yes, we really were that close. And by the way, what's with all the Gajics on the Colorado team?

Chores

Whoops! I don't know what I did, but that last post published without my permission. must have been a slip of the fingers...but I don't know which ones.

Last October or so, I was feeling frustrated by the lack of help I was receiving from certain children around supper time. I would ask, "who wants to set the table," and they would groan in response. You would have thought I was asking them to clean their rooms or something. So I set up a supper-time chore rotation. One child is responsible for setting the table, one clears the table, including putting away any leftovers, and the third takes the garbage and recycling from the kitchen to the bins in the garage. I was expecting resistance from these children of mine, just based on their past reactions to being asked to help with any of these activities, but it's worked extremely well. No complaints--they just do their jobs. I think the difference is that the expectations are clear, consistent, and applied equally. Now the only one groaning is me (internally, of course), because it's a little difficult to keep Bubby on task sometimes, and it's frustrating to try to get him to do something that I can do so much faster by myself.

Buoyed by the success of the supper-time chore rotation, I recently implemented Saturday morning jobs, as well. It took me a long time to actually put this into practice, because I was concerned that they wouldn't do a very good job. But then I realized that even if they don't do a very good job, something is better than nothing, and these particular chores are ones that I haven't been able to get a handle on consistently since Bubby started taking one nap a day instead of two. I also had a hard time coming up with an acceptable division of labor.

So now each of them needs to clean their room, which consists of picking everything up off the floor and putting it where it belongs, and clearing off their desk and dresser (Bubby doesn't have a desk or dresser, so his job is easier). Then one kid is responsible for cleaning the downstairs bathroom, one cleans the upstairs hallway bathroom, and the other cleans up the family room and vacuums the basement and the stairs.

The kids are doing really well with these jobs. Yes, there's some grumbling, and they need lots of guidance (which means more work for me at the front end), but I'm sure they'll get better at each of their tasks as they gain more experience. But beyond that, my boys are experiencing what it means to be a family--we share in the fun and good times, and we also share in the hard work of keeping everything running. They now have the opportunity to experience the pride of a job well done, with the accompanying self-esteem boost. And they're learning that if they make just a little bit of effort to keep things neat during the week, the Saturday jobs are much easier--all great life lessons for my little ones to learn.

Lettuce

This Thursday, our family is responsible for providing lettuce, tomato, and onion for a taco dinner for 120 people. Anybody know how much lettuce that is? I think my perception is probably skewed because I like lots and lots of lettuce on my tacos. I think I probably put more lettuce than meat on my tacos. We always end up needing more lettuce for our family taco nights than we have prepared for the meal. I just don't know. I'm trying not to have anxiety about this, but I am, in general, an anxious person. I tell myself, we can buy extra--iceberg lettuce is on sale this week for just $1 per head. I hate to waste it, though, and I don't think we can return unused lettuce, even if it's unopened.
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Warning: This post contains graphic content

Speaking of graphic warnings....the other night Sawblock and I were watching the Olympic games, and Apollo and that RJ (or is it CJ?) kid had just won gold and bronze in the mens' 1500 M short track speed skating event, when Mr. Costas said, "we must warn you, the video we are about to show may be disturbing to some people," and then less than a second later, there's poor RJ (or CJ) bleeding out all over the ice in August--he cut himself on his skate during a race, knicking his femeral artery, and almost died. Bob! That was not enough time for me to cover my eyes, let alone get myself out of the room. I'm disturbed, all right! That was really not something I wanted to see.

Anyway...my graphic content is not quite that graphic. We're having poop issues in our house (yes, I said it: poop), so I've been looking at the labels of a variety of stool softeners, fiber supliments, and laxatives lately. I've noticed that they pretty much fall into two categories: those which produce a "result" within 6 to 12 hours, and those which produce results within 1/2 to 6 hours. But all of them, all of them, say to take them (or give them, in our case) at bedtime. Are they crazy? I am not going to give my kid, who normally sleeps for 11 hours at night, something that's going to make him want to go poop in 1/2 to six hours, right at bedtime. Seriously, what's up with that? They say to stop use and contact your doctor if there's no bowel movement in the prescribed amount of time!

Pictures

Some pictures taken in the past couple of weeks:

Working on Pinewood Derby cars.

Ice fishing.

The Winter Pokey at Logo's concert, "Seasons Greetings." Logo was "put your warm hat in..." Hot Air Affair.

They actually launched!

Night sledding

Facing the demons

Some months ago, I admitted, in this space, to being the victim of parking anxiety. While I have not yet taken on the parking challenges presented by THE MALL, I am thrilled to report that on Thursday, I successfully parked the Suburban in a straight-in/non-pull-through spot (I only had to back out once to get myself satisfactorily centered in the spot). And later that afternoon (you're not going to believe this) I parallel parked! At the school. Yes I did! It was easy--much easier than the straight in spot was.

40, continued

A few weeks ago, I asked my husband what we could give 40 of to my brother in honor of his 40th birthday. We brainstormed, tossing out a few inferior ideas, and then Hubby said we could give him 40 personalized bottle caps. Brilliant! My brother enjoys brewing and bottling (and drinking) his own beer. OK "enjoys" is perhaps a bit of an understatement. Anyway, I thought he'd like the idea. So I did some research and confirmed that, yes, you can get anything on the internet.

So we gave him 40 bottle caps that look like this:

And one magnet (to grow on). Isn't that just the niftiest gift ever?

40

It's my brother's birthday today. Happy Birthday, brother.

I am so geeked about the gift Sawblock and I got for him. I've been restraining myself for weeks (yes, weeks) wanting to brag to y'all about this gift we came up with--actually, it was Sawblock's idea. One more day! I'll tell 'ya tomorrow, 'cause I don't think he's opened it yet.
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It was MOPS day again today. One thing I can be sure of, MOPS meetings always make me think. Today our subject was "Finding the Hero in your Husband," so, of course, after the speakers were through, talk at our table turned to husbands, and I found myself, once again, reflecting on what a great husband I have. It's true he's not perfect, but neither am I. I don't think I would want a perfect husband, because that would make me feel that much more inferior. He loves me unconditionally (even though sometimes I don't see how he could), and he does his best to make me feel valued and cherished and protected. Every day. I don't know if it was luck, skill, or destiny, but my hubby most definitely ranks at least in the top 95th percentile for husbands. Love you, hunny. Thanks for being my hero.

A new goal

I was with my sis in law on New Year's Eve, and we started talking (as people will do at that time of year) about Goals For The New Year. I used to make goals every year--it was fun. One year, my goal was to make pasta; the next year I vowed to make homemade ravioli. One year, my goal was to make paper; another, to learn one-stroke painting. One year, my goal was to make a pie crust and get it into the pan without breaking it. I finally managed to do it in late October of that year, and promptly vowed never to make a pie crust again. Years later, pie crust no longer intimidates me. As you can tell, my goals were never very elaborate or difficult, but they were something to work toward, and always something I'd never done before.

Sometime between the births of son two and son three, I stopped making annual goals. I stopped because...I was too tired to even think of a goal to accomplish, let alone actually take steps to achieve it. I stopped because...I was too busy. I stopped because...I knew that when push came to shove I would put the kids' needs before my goal, and it's just plain disheartening to set a goal and then not be able to accomplish it. Why bother, I thought. From time to time I would reflect on that time of setting fun goals for myself in my life and mourn its passing, but I never took much time dwelling on it because, well, because life happens, and then I'd be off dealing with the next kid-induced crisis.

The consensus from my conversation with Chip seemed to be: we're too tired, too busy to set goals for ourselves, but even if we did set goals, they would be kid related, because at this point, for better or worse, our children are our lives. I think both of us didn't necessarily like it, but were forced to admit this truth's hold on us.

For some time, I've been trying to streamline my supper planning and preparation process, since I don't have as much time or energy to devote to that anymore, and a few months ago it dawned on me that it would be a lot easier to plan meals if I just used a rotating schedule. My kids' school uses a 5 week rotation for their lunch menus--it works for them, why not for me? I mentioned this to Chip, and she, the supportive and loving sister that she is, jumped on it. She immediately broke through the biggest obstacle that was preventing me from going forward and told me that she would make it her goal to make sure that I accomplished mine (isn't she great?). Unfortunately, back on my own, and out of Chip's enthusiastic circle of influence, I've constructed at least 10 more barriers (or, perhaps more accurately, excuses) as to why a rotating meal plan is not going to work for our family.

Don't worry, though! I have a new goal, but don't tell my husband or my kids :-) My goal is to make at least one vegetarian supper a month this year (not including January, because I didn't think of it in time). This is more than a goal, though. This is a declaration that I am a woman, beyond the demands of motherhood or matrimony. This is an acknowledgement that my wants and needs are at least as important as those of my children and husband. This is me, not defined by my job or status, but by my thoughts and feelings and dreams, breaking free.