Dead Duck

If I were not so tired, I'd come up with some kind of clever duck obituary to tell you that one of our ducks is no longer with us. But the brain is just not functioning tonight. So I'll just have to tell you: one of our ducks died. Now we have just one duck here on our property, and one other duck, which is participating in the duck relocation program. It was a very sad thing for my husband and me, but our kids haven't even asked about it yet, so they don't know. It's the kind of sad thing that when you find out about it, you pause for a few seconds, say how sad it is, and then ask what's for dinner.

What's What...

What's blooming:
Lavendar
Tomatoes
Squash

What's injured:
One of our (stupid) ducks (too stupid to know that the POND is the place to go to get away from dogs)

What's being read by me:
Feminine Appeal, by Carolyn Mahaney

What's changing:
My kitchen (already much more organized)
My schedule (no more computer in the mornings - ok, so I DID look up the weather this morning, but there were huge black foreboding clouds in the sky, and it only took ONE MINUTE)

What I wish I knew:
Where to put all the stuff I'm taking out of my kitchen

What we just bought:
One miniature, totally grass-fed cow, to be butchered the end of next week
Toaster oven to replace that evil microwave oven

What we need to buy:
One smallish freezer in which to put all that beef

What's on my heart:
I miss my sister! :-)

The Audible Voice of God

For those skeptics out there who don't believe God speaks to anyone in an audible voice, let me testify: I have heard the voice of God. Here is what it sounds like: whirrrr thmmmmmmmmm (in descending tones).

You may think that is more like the sound of a computer crashing. But to my trained ears it sounded more like...(cue angel music) "Amey...you're spending too much time on the computer. Give it a rest!"

OK, so here I am at our OTHER computer. But I'm telling you, I'm going to go on a computer "fast" this week - no computers before 3 p.m. So if you see me post something before 3, then leave me a comment telling me to shape up!

It helps that I have so much to do. I am ready to do some serious kitchen reform (I wait to reform until I absolutely cannot stand it any longer). Also, I bought a scheduling book this weekend that is going to solve all my problems. Sooo....it's time to get to work! ;-)

What Works, What Doesn't Work, and an Idea Whose Time Has Come

What works:
-Sugar-free peach pie (sweetened with Sucanat), with homemade (no sugar) whipped cream
-Sugar-free raisin coffee cake (Sucanat also in the topping)

What doesn't work:
-Tadpoles in the fish aquarium (they don't die, but they don't grow either - you must need some kind of special tadpole algae or plankton or something that exists naturally in ponds)
-Lettuce and spinach in a long rectangular Rubbermaid container (same as the tadpoles - the plants live, but they don't grow beyond about 1 inch. Maybe the soil was bad? I don't know.)

An idea whose time has come:
100% Juice, carbonated

I haven't tried this yet, but it looks like a good idea. :-)

School Plans

I have now begun my serious planning for our older son's first grade this fall. I also have a huge list of books to look for when I shop (which will be SOON!). I can't wait for the shopping part. This is the highlight of my life. I love it. The hardest part so far has been coming up with a schedule and realizing HOW BUSY I AM GOING TO BE. Kindergarten was a breeze. First grade is a huge jump in the amount of time you spend in schoolwork. Still not so much that it takes most of THEIR day, but it will almost certainly take most of MINE. Especially since our younger son is about ready to learn to read, so I'll be doing a few kindergarten things with him too.

I decided we wouldn't have a long summer break this year or next year. I think their memory work and math really suffer when you have 3 months off, so I think we're going to try 3 weeks of school and 1 week off throughout the year. That works out to about the same amount of time off. We'll also have one "light" (?) day per week when we go to the library and have art and a piano lesson.

A Haughty Spirit Before a Fall

I realize that my post last night might have been a little..."over the top", even though it was MOSTLY all in fun. I also realize that the moment I start bragging about my wonderful children will be the moment they do something in public that will really embarrass me. That's why I'm writing THIS. Maybe God will have mercy on me. "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall." And well I know it. Just when I think we're starting to "get it all together", something happens that seems to throw me back to square 1. Like lying and disobedience. Or yelling at the top of their lungs in Wal-Mart. Or hitting each other...hard. It's difficult to overcome those sin habits, but in a way it's a family tradition, going all the way back to Adam and Eve. I have enough trouble overcoming those things myself (I have learned to control my urge to yell in Wal-Mart, however). Now I have to steer my children through the potholes too. Sometimes it feels like a 3-ring circus. ;-)

Triumph of a Weird Mom

I splurged today at the local farm supply store. I bought a copy of the most recent issue of the magazine Mother Earth News (I'm not much of a magazine reader).

About this magazine (this has nothing to do with my story): as the name implies, it is a very "green" magazine. But I'm beginning to come around to the fact that those "eco-wackos" are not as crazy as I once thought. I'm still not on board with the whole global warming thing, but maybe that will change. Never say never, right?

So I'm sitting outside in my lawn chair, reading my Mother Earth News, watching my boys pick and eat wild strawberries by the handful, when my daughter (2-year-old Beanie Jeanie) notices an illustration in the magazine of a bunch of strawberries sitting next to a small stack of Oreo cookies. Here is what she says (I am not making this up): "Strawberries, Mommy! Look! Strawberries! What's this? (pointing to the Oreos)" SHE HAD NO IDEA WHAT THOSE OREOS WERE. But did I tell her? Absolutely not.

It reminds me of the time when in a brief moment of insanity I took my boys to McDonald's for lunch. Ronald McDonald was there all dressed up in his clown suit. My boys had no idea who he was. I was such a proud mother that my sons did not know who Ronald McDonald was (Ronald McDonald was probably in a state of shock that two young boys were treating him like a perfect stranger). I explained to them about Ronald McDonald before I realized - wait a minute - now they DO know who Ronald McDonald is. So that deflated my "weird-mom-pride-bubble".

Hey, I can't help it. When you've got great kids, you tend to get a little proud sometimes. Just don't come near my daughter with Oreos, UNDERSTAND???

Heard in Our House Tonight...

"Hey! You're supposed to be nice to me tonight. It's Father's Day Eve."
(This wasn't directed to me. It was directed to our three children as they tried to put their "stinky feet" in Daddy's face.)

Terri's Autopsy

Just read the actual autopsy report for Terri Schiavo, as well as this op-ed by Kevin McCollough, which is right on target.

Good Article

I suppose I'm a little underqualified to write a lot of political commentary here, but I did really like this article by Walter Williams, which I just read this morning. It concerns legislating behavior that does not negatively impact others, specifically the "Click It or Ticket" campaign to enforce the seatbelt law.

A Real Jam

Sorry about the title. HARRRR

So here's the scoop on my jam-making adventure:
-Had the jars, (most)lids, and rims cleaned and ready by 10 am, and pans in place
-Picked up 16 quarts of strawberries shortly after 10 am
-Got started about 10:30
-After removing underripe berries, only 14 quarts were actually "jammed"
-My grandma was here and helped tremendously by staying with the kids as I picked up the strawberries, washing the strawberries, removing the hulls, and stirring the jam mixture (had to be stirred constantly as it boiled) so that I could help my 2-year-old daughter after she vomited (twice)
-The worst of the mind-numbing activity was over by 3 pm
-Didn't even attempt the dishes until 6 pm
-Pizza and subs from the local pizza place for dinner around 7:45

And the grand total: 37 half-pints

The jam turned out good, but it does have a slight tart taste to it. My husband says he likes it best that way, and he's not just trying to make me feel better. He really does like it that way. I do wish it were a little sweeter, though. But it's not really my fault - the berries were more tart than usual for some reason. It's still very good, however, and no doubt we will eat it ALL. And thankfully my Beanie Jeanie (daughter's nickname) started feeling better around 4 or 5 this afternoon (her vocabulary word du jour: "vomit" - how nice).

Today I proved once and for all THAT I REALLY CAN DO AT LEAST 5 THINGS AT THE SAME TIME. My grandma will vouch for me on that one. :-)

Strawberry Round-Up

Yes, it's that time of the year again. Time for the great Strawberry Round-up. I buy my strawberries from an Amish family down the road, and they are reserving sixteen quarts for me to "jam" tomorrow. Please don't laugh. Sixteen quarts is A LOT of strawberries. It is my hope that it will make enough jam for the year since it is our favorite. Last year I made strawberry jam but it did not gel. But it made a great topping for pancakes! Fortunately it wasn't a big batch. Later in the summer I made peach jam and it turned out great, so I feel confident going into my first REALLY BIG experience in jam-making. This will be eight batches. My grandma is coming over for the festivities.

I don't use sugar in my jams (I guess you probably figured that). But I do sweeten it a little with frozen concentrated white grape juice, and that seems to work just fine. But you have to use the special pectin especially made for sugar-free jams and jellies. Trust me on that one. :-)

So What's Your Point?

I apologize if my posts are turning into one big "health-kick" blur lately. It seems that is where my interest is right now, so naturally that's what I'm writing about. In a few more weeks I imagine I'll be writing more about homeschooling because I'll be doing my first grade planning then.

Any time you start thinking about health and nutritionally-related matters, sooner or later you're going to start wondering, "what's the point?" Does it really matter how much time, energy, and effort we put into living as healthfully as possible? Or, as someone once commented to my husband when the topic came up - "you gotta die somehow".

I have chosen to believe that eating healthfully is actually a matter of good stewardship over our bodies, otherwise known as "temples of the living God". Romans 12:1-2 are commonly quoted verses, but they are relevant to this topic, and bear repeating:

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God - this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."

I think that gnosticism is alive and well in Christian circles today when it comes to eating habits. Clearly, Paul is saying in these verses that the physical realm has great bearing on the spiritual realm.

The point: eating healthfully is a spiritual act of worship, honoring the One who created us.

Microwave Clarification

My husband pointed out to me that I should probably clarify our recent decision to not use our microwave anymore. So...LET ME CLARIFY THIS. The reason we decided to do this is because of the way microwaves change the molecular structure of the food you are heating up. You've probably heard the warning that you should not heat up a baby's milk in the microwave because it heats unevenly so there could be hotspots you can't detect when you test the milk on your wrist. Included in that warning is the information that doing so can also damage the nutritional content of the milk. The same is true for any food. From what I understand, eating food that was heated in a microwave causes changes in the chemical properties of blood, some of which are suspected of causing cancer and immune system depression, among other things.

So our decision to get rid of the microwave has more to do with healthful eating than it does radiation, although that should be a consideration also. There, you see? We're not nearly so strange as you thought we were. :-)

The Maker's Diet

Well, I finished reading The Maker's Diet, by Jordan Rubin, over the weekend. The author proposes a 40-day diet to get your body "back on track". His dietary guidelines stem mostly from the Bible, although some things he suggests are based more on more recent scientific findings. Of course among the biblically-based guidelines are the exclusion in the diet of unclean animal meat such as pork and shellfish.

I found his suggestions to be very similar to Dr. Mercola's (link in sidebar) and also Doug Kauffman's. A few differences: Rubin suggests that fish is a good way to get your vital omega-3 fatty acids, Dr. Mercola says a high-quality fish oil is better due to all the contaminants in fish (even farm-raised); Rubin says certain grains (especially sprouted) are fine in the final stages of his diet, Dr. Mercola and Kauffman say avoid all grains due to mold, pesticides, and genetic engineering (aka GMO).

There are also a few suggestions regarding supplements in The Maker's Diet that may be worth checking out. The author is the founder of a company (Garden of Life) that makes certain nutritional products. We already have some of their coconut oil, which I think is great. They also sell some aromatherapy and cleansing products that are recommended in the book (of course).

And that leads me to my only complaint about the book. Sometimes it read just like an infomercial: lots of advertising and less scientific information justifying the author's assertions. I don't have any reason to doubt the author's experience, though. Following this particular diet saved him from his horrible existence with Crohn's disease as a young adult. I certainly agree that what you eat has a huge impact on your health and feelings of well-being.

Off the Grid Part 4?

It hadn't been an hour since I commented to my husband how much I enjoyed having electricity (we were talking about living in the "good old days") last night when we had an electrical storm and the power went out. Recalling last January when our power was out for FIVE DAYS, my comment was "THIS is NOTHING". Last night the power was off from 9 pm until about 12:15 am. Of course we had all the windows open to compensate for the lack of air conditioning (not an issue last January), so we had the opportunity to involuntarily participate in a party going on down the road from us. They had hooked up a generator so they could play their loud music. You would think we lived in the city, but we don't. We're rural. Maybe not rural enough...;-)

We're also remembering that we need to get a hand-powered water pump so we can have water when the power is out.

Animal News

We received our 1/2-lamb this week, and so far we have dined on lamb chops, and also a few "lamburgers". Originially, I thought there was a good chance I wouldn't like it (I'd only ever tried lamb once or twice before), but it was great! It was more expensive than beef or chicken (I think it worked out to $4-and-something per pound), but it won't be that expensive if we raise our own! Maybe someday...

We lost another one of our laying hens this week. That makes two within the last two weeks, which is quite distressing. Now we only have one that is laying eggs - not nearly enough for our family. I guess that is the risk you take when you let chickens just roam around your property unhindered. My husband is thinking of making pens for them that are light-weight so that they can be moved around each day to give them fresh areas of grass to eat. We hope we can get a few more chickens soon, to replace the ones we've lost. We also hope that it won't be too long before our new chicks are old enough to start laying eggs. After eating our own chickens' eggs for a while now, I am having a hard time accepting the fact that I'll have to buy them until our younger chickens start producing.

June

Quote from a 4-year-old, having just woken up, while still rubbing his eyes:
"It's June, Mommy!"