On Truth and Trust...

A "pijamie"-clad Buttercup came up to where I was sitting on the top step last night and laid her head down on one leg, and then put her legs across my other leg, with her body hanging across the gap between my knees. Considering that she and I took a very fast trip down the stairs just a few months ago, resulting in stitches for her and four hours on a fetal monitor for me (I was still pregnant at the time), it was a pretty trusting position to take!

In looking at the successive ages of my older children, I see, of course, decreasing levels of that overt trust. It got me to thinking about trust... As we age and begin learning about the world and all the evils that are out there, who and when to trust gets ever more complicated. Should I take you at your word when you say you'll show up for something? Does my trust require a contract be signed? Do I instill trust in others? Do I make my word my bond?

Living Intentionally and a Link to a Giveaway

I have goals and dreams, most of us do, I suppose, but I seldom write them down. I sort of take it for granted that the events taking place in my life are leading me, slowly but surely, through and to those things I am meant to achieve in life. When I was younger, all I ever wanted was to join the military and get a pilot's license. I joined the military at 18, married at 22, left the Navy at 24 and largely feel like my life has been an every-day gift.

Having that attitude doesn't require anything of me really, except that I show up and be open to going along for the (sometimes wild) ride. But that attitude also means I am not living my life intentionally. If I don't live my life with a thought to my goals and dreams, then I am not really living my life to its fullest potential. In short: I am letting big chunks of life pass me by as I float down the lazy path of the slow part of the river. 

There is nothing wrong with taking the come-as-it-may route, I get to see the forest for the trees that way. Heck, I even get to see the leaves of the trees that way - and the occasional Leaf Bug hiding in those leaves!

But this post is about changing that dynamic somewhat. This post is about making a "bucket list," but since I am not fond of that term, I'm using one I saw on another blog: "Life List"

Easy Recipes: Crusted Tilapia with Blueberry Gastrique

What to do when you look in the freezer the night before grocery-day and see frozen fish fillets, blueberries, and little else? Try out a new little experiment, that's what! Maestro looked at my Google search and said, "Blueberry fish?? YUCK!" But it's been a while since I put a recipe on here and this experiment turned into a real winner!

If you try it out, I'd love to see your critiques and comments!

Walnut-Crusted Tilapia with a Blueberry Gastrique 
accompanied by 
Coconut Rice

Rethinking Standards for Acceptability

There is something that has been weighing on my mind for a while now - and subconsciously I suppose I have been responding to the urge to make a change. As my children have grown, I've become increasingly aware of the objectionable content we are unwittingly, and sometimes un-willingly, exposed to, and the refrain has been:

If I protect my children from these images and ideas, how good are they for my own soul, development and moral compass?

30-Day Fast: Final Week Check In

Well, we're in our final week. I don't feel like 30 days has been long enough in some ways. Both good things and struggles have come from our time of screen-free living, and I'll do a sort of final tally here...

First, our oldest dog, Joker, whom we had with us for thirteen years, and who was about 15 years old died this last month. That was a blow. As we watched various struggles surface in his health, and thought they were only attributable to old age, we determined that we could handle it - he went deaf, then incontinent, then blind... soon after the blindness became apparent though, he began to have seizures and they showed the vet that he was in advanced stages of brain cancer that could not be cured. At that point, we gave him relief. The seizures were coming around every 3 to 5 minutes at that point and he was exhausted. As painful as it was to put him down, we knew it was right when his face showed the relief he so desperately needed.

Our old boy just last April - still pretty spry

Checking In - 2 Weeks

It has been two weeks since I signed off of most of the more recreational things that I do on the Internet. Things like streaming TV shows via Netflix, FaceBook, FaceBook games, my blog... But some of the things I've noticed bear comment so I've decided to do a sort of "check in" post. I still want to leave my last post about Ray up for the duration of September so I am writing this on the 14th, but won't post it until October 1st.

One thing I had planned to "leave behind" more was e-mail. I meant only to check on my e-mail once a week but quickly discovered that it just is not that easy in our society today. I would like to let it all go for the whole time, but I've had requests for information to be sent that just couldn't wait (homeschooling stuff, church stuff, scheduling, etc.)

So much easier is the "do as I say not as I do" aspect. The kids have not watched a show or played a video game. Maestro has been online a few times to work on the Computer Science badge he started for Boy Scouts. He started the badge before we started out "fast" and I decided at the beginning of the school season that I wanted to try to incorporate his badges into his every-day school work so he's been allowed to keep up with his badge work.

The kids have started asking how much time is left in September - or how much time is left before they're not "grounded." But I really don't see it that way. I don't look at it as a grounding at all - more of a ... break. A fasting period. It's good for us as a family.

Remembering A Great Man - and Tillie is Temporarily Signing Off

Yesterday I attended a military funeral for a former "First Shirt" (aka First Sergeant) who was a great man. This post is primarily about him and his leadership. But I'm putting in a side note first...

Lately, I have not been using the Internet and computer as the tools they are, but instead more as time-fillers, and the kids have been looking to watch "special" family movies or play video games almost nightly, creating somewhat of a nightmare in our lives together. Screen time is not what we want for our children or our family dynamic. Personally, I have three work projects to complete now, in addition to the projects we're engaged in as a family (like refinishing the basement!) and I want to reset the way we spend our time. SO, I'm taking a break from the engaging-but-time-wasting activities that I perform on the screen. For the next 30 days, we have put away the Wii and Nintendo DS's; we've unhooked the TV; we're limiting our time on the computer to work- and school-related projects and activities. I get about 150 e-mail a day from various sources - so I'll check those for one hour a week on Fridays.

Otherwise, if I'm needed more urgently, it is best to use the old-fashioned methods of communication: call the house or the cell phone, or hearkening back to even darker days: come knock on the door.

Now on to the funeral - because I cannot think of a more fitting way to pause my blog than to leave a note of remembrance for someone who was truly a stand up fellow.

SMSgt Ray Tudino was Jeff's "First Shirt" for several years and has made the round as First Shirt for a few other local units as well. We arrived ten minutes early, maybe a little more, and the parking lot was already filled with cars - we parked on the street, and walked up the hill to the chapel with friends we've served with who had flown in from Texas, Germany, and other points on the globe. That's what kind of man Ray was, people respected him and want to honor him, so they came from wherever they are stationed, no matter how far. 


At the front of the chapel, was a pair of military boots, standing empty. Where the boots meet at the heels, was a military-issue rifle, stiffly upright, a set of dog tags hanging down in front. On top of the rifle was a military helmet, empty, chin strap hanging down: the symbols of a military man lost. The ceremony started with the Final Roll Call...


"Sergeant Rollins..."
"Present." 'Sgt. Rollins' stands ready.
"Airman Phebes..."
"Present." 'Airman Phebes' stands ready.
"Senior Airman Blake..."
"Present." as 'SrA Blake' stands ready. 
"Sergeant Tudino..."
...  ...  
"Senior Master Sergeant Ray Tudino..."
...  ... 
"Senior Master Sergeant Raymond Tudino..."
...  ...
"I regret to report that SMSgt Raymond Tudino is not present..."


Rest in Peace, Ray. You will be sorely missed. 


And so, I will post again in a few weeks.