things change

It's wierd how so many little things change throughout our lives. For example, as I was brushing my teeth tonight with hot water (how I like it) I realized that I used to simply LOVE brushing my teeth with cold water.

I'm sure if you think back hard enough, you'll realize that some little thing about you has changed too. Just saying...

Here's a sweet little picture to go with that random thought:

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Romans...

If we continue to send our children to Caesar for their education, 

we need to stop being surprised when they come home as Romans. 

 Dr. Voddie Baucham

This quote sums up exactly why I am 80% sure I want to homeschool my kids when they are in elementary school.  What do you think?

Today was a busy one.  Steve woke up at 5:40 to go snowmachining, and I tried to go back to sleep.  I slept fitfully until 7:40, when I decided to get out of bed and start my day.  I have had homework and housework piling up for the last couple of days but I have been so sick and unmotivated that I have been putting it off.  Today I knew I had to be productive.  I made a list on my phone before I even got out of bed, so I would not forget anything.  I started the first load of laundry before sitting down in my recliner to read my Bible.  I could not really concentrate on reading, so I prayed about my day and got started.  I set the dishes to soak and then got out what I needed to make bread.

Making bread is always such a relaxing activity, even thought I definitely worked up a little sheen of perspiration while kneading the dough today!  I made basic wheat bread for sandwiches and toast, but I used a recipe from my new cookbook.  It turned out delicious!  I am finally getting to be natural at making bread.  I don't have to watch the yeast to be sure it is active or get out my thermometer to measure the temperature of everything (I killed a lot of yeast in my early bread making days).  It is a mindless chore that gives me time to reflect, and I like starting out the day of work with it.  After I set it away to rise, I washed the dishes.  There were enough for two rounds, and when that is the case, I let the first round air dry on the rack while the second round soaks in the sink.

While the second round was soaking, I decided to go through my utensil drawer, something I have been meaning to do for a LONG time.  I got rid of a few things we never use, and lined the drawer with freezer paper.  Our cabinets and drawers are old and sort of ramshackle; Steve's dad installed them when Steve was just a baby and they've been well used ever since.  The particle board that serves as the bottom of the drawer is now flaking off bits of wood, which gets on the clean dishes.  So while I had them all out of the drawer, I decided to see how well freezer paper works as a lining.

I think it works pretty well for being last minute and free.  After finishing that project, I switched the loads of laundry then headed back to the kitchen to finish up the dishes.  When I next turned around, the dough had doubled, so I punched it down, turned it out and divided it into two loaf pans to rise one last time.  My house is always chilly, so I turn my oven on to warm and set the rising dough on the stove top to help the process along.  

Tidying up the living room and vacuuming came next, which is always fun now that Steve got me a new DeWalt shop vac that I can carry around with me.  

I love it because it runs on the DeWalt battery backs so I don't have to be plugged in all the time.  We don't have any carpet (except in our bedroom) so it works a lot better than a conventional vacuum would have worked for us.  I LOVE it.  Have I mentioned that I love it? :)

Once all the housework was done, I sat down to do homework.  That was around 11am, and I am just now finished with what I planned to get done today.  Whew!  I'm tired, and I think our houseguest, Leroy, is too!

Dragons or Dinosaurs?

Steve and I watched a really good movie that other day that I wanted to share.  We were just browsing through Netflix instant watch on our PS3 and came across this movie in the documentary category.  I love learning about both dragons and dinosaurs, so I eagerly clicked on this one and sat in anticipation as it started to play.  I had no idea that it was a Christian documentary, that was mentioned no where in the description.

(I guess if I would have looked at the picture close enough I would have seen the "Creation or Evolution", but I was not paying that close of attention)

If you want to do some serious thinking and be shocked by some crazy information, be sure to watch this or check out their website.  I think this movie has many good points, and the variety of art by cultures around the world really amazed me.  How could dinosaurs not have been alive when humans were, they were sculpting and drawing animals that look exactly like dinos!  Also, for those of you with kids, there is a free study guide and coloring book on their website.

Skiing and Vegetables

After having sort of a rough morning, Steve and I went skiing this afternoon and had a blast.  When we got to Kincaid Park, we saw the entire Dimond High School ski team playing games on their skate skis with no poles.  It brought back a flood of memories.  It feels like I should have skied over and joined them.  Luckily for them I didn't :)  But man, just like I mentioned in my last post, time just flies by!  It has been six years since I was on the ski team, and I can remember most of it vividly.  I loved being on both the cross-country running team and the cross-country ski team, my best memories from high school come from time spent on those teams, hands down.

We skied the mize loop, for any of you familiar with Kincaid, just as the sun was beginning to set.  It was so nice to get out and get some much needed fresh air.  I've been sick for the last couple of days, and today was the worst, so I wasn't sure if spending 30 minutes skiing at a fast pace was the best idea.  But now I know; it was a GREAT idea.

I love winter, because I get to spend so much time with Steve.  In the summer, he works like crazy and when he is home, he is usually too tired to want to do much.  During the winter months, work slows down drastically for him and we get to do everything together.

Here is a plane coming in over the trail.  Sad, someone's vacation is ending.

In other exciting news, our first ever Full Circle Farm Order came in.  As I type, Steve is preparing a salad from all the goodies and I cannot wait to eat it.  It all looks so beautiful and yummy, I took a picture to show everyone what real fruit and veggies look like.

Looks tasty doesn't it?!  If you want to sign up, don't forget to mention I referred you! 

thoughts on a snowy day...

As I went outside to get the mail, the heart-warming sound of snow crunching beneath my feet accompanied me all the way to the mail box and then back into the house.  The silently falling snow was beautiful and was already melting on my arms, shoulders and hair.  A smile was on my face as I came back in the house, but quickly vanished as I sat in my computer chair to finish two of my assignments.  I'm doomed to stay inside during the rest of daylight hours, to finish my homework and then attend my web chat class at 6:00pm.  I dearly wish that I could throw on my snowclothes and play outside, but I have too much to do, and besides, there is no one to play with.  I miss my childhood!  With my two sisters around, I always managed to coerce someone into playing with me.  This is one of the reasons I cannot wait to have my own children, so I can watch them play and enjoy their childhoods together (and secretly, I am excited to be able to join in their play).  Also, I am reminded of how important it is to cherish each day as it passes, for as time passes, we will look back on those days and smile fondly, wishing we could go back. 

I always get a little teary eyed and sad when I think of the passage of time, and how quickly it truly goes.  There are a few Simon &Garfunkel songs that describe this feeling perfectly, and make my hair stand on end when I hear them.  The first is Leaves that are Green.      

           

            I was twenty-one years when I wrote this song

            I'm twenty-three now, but I won't be for long

            Time hurries on,

            and the leaves that are green turn to brown

            And they wither with the wind

            and they crumble with the wind

            ...

            I threw a pebble in a brook

            and watched the ripples run away

            and they never made a sound

            and the leaves that are green turn to brown

Every time I hear that last stanza, I think of how, just like the ripples, time doesn't make a sound as it passes by and if we are not careful, we will not notice.

The second,

especially poignant when sung on their "Old Friends" tour a few years ago when both men were close to being seventy, is the song Old Friends. 

           

            Old friends, old friends

            sat on their park bench like bookends

            newspaper blowing through the grass

            falls on the round toes of the high shoes

            of the old friends

            old friends, winter companions the old men

            lost in their overcoats waiting for the sunset

            the sounds of the city sifting through trees

            settle like dust on the shoulders of the old friends

           

            Can you imagine us years from today

            sharing a park bench quietly

            how terrible strange to be seventy

            old friends

            memory brushes the same years

            silently sharing the same fears

           

 The last is a line from the little Bookends Theme. 

            Long ago it must be, I have a photograph,

            Preserve your memories, they are all that's left of you

This one makes me especially sad, until I remember that we have an even better life with our Father in heaven waiting for us when our life on earth comes to an end.   I pray that I remember each day to thank my God for the beautiful life he has given me on earth, as well as the perfect life that awaits me in heaven.  

Good Reading and Good Eating...

I am getting sick.  I knew it was inevetable, since everything else about the beginning of this semester is going so well, so I am not too surprised.  My eyes are achy and itchy, my nose is plugged one moment, running uncontrollably the next, and my throat is raw, though I continue to cough and make it worse.  Yay!  Today is the only day each week that I work the floor at REI (interact with customers rather than unloading the new shippment and stocking it) and of course I barely have a voice at all.  We will have to see how that goes.

In other news, I have been reading children's literature since the beginning of the semester for one of my classes, and have about 45 more titles to read.  It is so fun!  I forgot how good so much of it is, and it gives me some fiction to read/reread while still technically doing homework!  Love it!  Currently I am reading Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott.

Little Women is the first actual novel written for children in the United States that became a classic piece of literature.  I am embarrassed to say that although I have seen the movie, I do not believe I have ever read the book.  This has been the case with a few books so far, including Charlotte's Web.  Who did not read Charlotte's Web as a child?!  In the case of both books it hampers my excitement to start the books, because I think I know the story, but then once I start reading I am drawn into the story and able to imagine it my own way without the movie characters getting in the way.

For any of you wanting for something to read, I highly recommend going back and reading some children's literature.  I am compiling a list of Newberry winning, Honor mentioned, and otherwise just good old children's books from all the way back to 1922.  When it is done, I will post it on this blog.  For now, I'll include a list of what I have read so far, hopefully peaking your interest to read one or two of them, or to read  them out loud to your kids.  With the exception of Little Women, all the books I have listed today would be great for read aloud to kids 4 and up.

Children's Literature Completed Thus Far:

1.  Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White

This one surprised me with how meaningful the story is and how inspiring the characters are.  If you have not read this as an adult, you must!  But bring tissues, it is a tear jerker!

2.  Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIHM, by Robert C. O'Brien

Again, this is a story that I first experienced through the movie based on the book, The Secret of NIHM.  But the book is so much fun to read, in fact there were points when I literally could not put it down!

3.  Holes, by Louis Sachar

This book I actually read before I saw the movie, but I reread it anyway - it is always a good read.

4.  The Indian in the Cupboard, by Lynne Reid Banks

This one I haven't reread yet (need to find a copy - Titlewave doesn't have it), but I remember loving it when I was in elementary school.

And those are what I have read (or need to get read up on soon).  Charlotte's Web, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIHM, and Holes, are all excellent read aloud books, so for those of you with kids, try it out!

Girdwood Getaway

This weekend has been a blast! Steve and I headed to Girdwood to stay at the Hotel Alyeska for the weekend, and it has been so relaxing. Steve has been at Avalanche School both days, while I have been lounging around doing homework and daydreaming. I arrived at the Hotel yesterday with Kelsey and the boys; we swam the afternoon away and then waited for Steve to get back from Turnagain Pass for dinner. After dinner, K and the boys headed back to Anchorage while Steve and I headed down to the health spa to enjoy the sauna and the hot tub. The sauna was AMAZING. Funny thing is, we were both so tired that we were asleep by 10! But we slept so soundly that we were actually happy to get up at 7 so Steve could hit the road by 8 headed for Turnagain. I enjoyed a delicious breakfast at the Pond Cafe, and will spend the rest of the afternoon doing homework! It is starting to snow and is so peaceful here. Hope everyone else's weekend was good and included at least a few moments of peace :)

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Anchorage Relay for Life

For those of you who don't know, I work at the Anchorage REI store on Northernlights. 

I LOVE working there for so many reasons and this post is dedicated to one of those reasons.  REI is having an employee team at the American Cancer Society Relay for Life this year and I am going to be the Team Capitan.  A group of friends and I made our own team and did the Relay last year, and it was a blast.  I am so excited this year to be doing it with the REI team. 

I don't think I know a single person who has NOT been affected by cancer in some way or another.  PLEASE donate either your money or time to this cause!  You can donate at my personal page at this website. 

Thanks for reading!

10 things...

10 Simple things you can do to change our food system:

1.  Stop drinking sodas and other sweetened beverages

2.  Protect family farms;  visit your local farmer's market.  BUY LOCAL.

3.  Buy organic or sustainable food with little or no pesticides

4.  Tell school to stop selling sodas, junk food, and sports drinks

5.  Meatless Mondays - Go without meat one day a week

6.  Bring food labeling into the 21st century

7.  Eat at home instead of eating out

8.  Make a point to know where your food comes from-READ LABELS

9.  Tell Congress that food safety is important to you

10.  Demand job protection for farm workers and food processors, ensuring fair wages and other protections

from Hungry For Change

I almost forgot...

I also watched a movie today that I have been meaning to watch for a long time.  I already knew about most of what the film covered, but it was a good reminder to myself about our food industry and making the choice to know what I'm eating.

For those of you who have not watched this movie or read the book, I highly recommend it.  Please watch it!  We all need to be more aware of where our food comes from and why.  This movie and the situation that led to the filming of the movie, is just another motivation for me to eat locally as much as possible and also to only choose the fruit and veggies at the store when they are in season.  This is especially hard in Alaska, where no fruits or vegetables are in season for our long winter, but there are ways to get around it!  I know that until recently, I had no idea what food was in season in the various areas of the United States whatsoever!  As I am working towards getting my certification for teaching elementary and middle school age children, I feel especially strongly about teaching children to think critically about where things (including food and material items) come from. Share ideas among friends for choosing to eat more locally and from small farmers.  I know that Full Circle Farm is one option for us Alaskans, and I need to look into getting it myself.  For those of you who have tried it, what are the pros and cons?