Saying Good Bye

This weekend I lost my first parent. I have been so blessed to make it 38 years before having this happen. I knew it would come eventually. It had to. We're on a path to death from the moment we are conceived. But… this was not expected. And what do you say when it comes to pass? 

Taken before the birth of the two great-grands, and three additional grands… This is family. This is love.

I am the "lucky" one. Of six children, I am the only one who lives more than about a four hour drive from my parents. So I have not been as close to the final days and hard moment-by-moment events. And I am the "unlucky" one too. Now that he is gone, I am hearing more and more about how many of my brothers and my sister went to sit and chat with him regularly; some of the even went daily. The grandkids, and new great-grands who were brought around, and how much they were loved. 

First 10k and Marathon!

I am so excited and thrilled for The White Knight and Chef! Last week we traveled to Ohio so they could run in the Air Force Marathon. Chef did his first 10k (finish time: 1:07), and TWK finished the full in 5:22 - that is an average pace time of 11-12 minutes! I am so impressed and happy for them both.

Maestro was going to run as well, but that was a Mom Fail. I had his race time and date wrong (his was the day before everyone else) and so we missed it because we were still driving out there.

At the starting line

The trip out we stopped briefly in Baltimore for a friend's retirement ceremony, and then had a sleep over night and a bit of walk around in Pittsburgh - but that is for another blog post. A little later on, I'll also do more update and put the whole marathon story, what essential oils were used (you know we used them!) on my Three Friends Fitness blog. This post is all about my two Guys sticking it out and pushing through to levels they had not reached before now. 

Way to go, Guys!

About 2 hours after Chef finished,
and 30 minutes after TWK

Meditation Monday: The Still Quiet Moments

Maestro, as his nickname suggests, is very into music of all (most) kinds. But there is something about a good, quick tune that gets you pumped up when there is a lot of heavy, boring work to be done - like cleaning up the house, laundry, schoolwork, etc. But it's tiresome and just a lot of work from a kid's perspective, so we crank up the tunes. Today, Maestro had on a pop music station.

So few of the songs are appropriate for us to listen to that he ends up changing the station every second or third song. Well, that slows down our work considerably! I prefer to listen to Dave Ramsey podcasts while I work - it is inspiring for me to hear about others who are also struggling to become debt free. 

Or I listen to talks and lessons by people who have reached a point where they earn a full-time paycheck doing what they love and helping others - usually people doing Young Living as a business. I'm on my way, but not there just yet. My goal is to be there entirely by 2015 when the White Knight can retire and paint, create and "Art" full time - it's what he loves and his work is so beautiful. I'd like us both to do what we love full time. 

Just Do What You Do

I'm working on a song about staying at home with the kids - I call it We Didn't Mess the House Up and is sung to the tune of (what else?) We Didn't Start the Fire. It is a work in progress and not at all finished, but I'm willing to share a small part of it here:

Christmas Focus

In my best "Mom" years, I start planning all the birthday parties and holiday events in September, right after my own birthday and Labor Day weekend. This year, is not one of my "best Mom" years. We have done birthdays lightly, with simple family dinners and (unexpected but joyful) time visiting with Grandpa.

In missing the organization boat this year, I think we've actually managed, however inadvertently, 

to have a truly spirit-filled holiday (holy day) season.

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

Scenic Sunday: Washington DC Folklife Festival

I realized after last week's post that if my pictures were going to be taken on Saturday, the actual "Scenic" posts would be Sunday! So continuing on with what I started last week, here are some photos taken yesterday while attending the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington DC with my family and friends. I am using these posts as a way to encourage me to look more closely at the beauty - and sometimes oddity - in the world around me. I am not always the most observant person in the world, largely because I am busy keeping a head count to make sure all of the children are accounted for. Enjoy the story of our day!

Each year the Smithsonian Folklife Festival focuses on three things: a country (Columbia), a type of music (Soul/Blues), and an organization (Peace Corps.)

Scenic Saturday: Leakin Park, Baltimore City, MD

Welcome to my first Scenic Saturday!

"Time together as a family" seems to be our theme lately. We've been working hard in our family to cut down on our spending, our clutter, and our screen time (the irony of being on a computer to type this notwithstanding). In the process, we've made our time together count for so much more. Saturdays on my blog are dedicated to increasing our attention to seeing and sharing new and interesting things throughout the week as a way to slow down and enjoy the ride of life! 

Saturday, we walked down to Leakin Park at the end of our street. There is a trailhead there and we wanted to take it out to the old Crimea Estate House, which is about 1.5 miles from our house, by foot. Here are the scenes of the day...

The crew at the beginning of the hike: Smeagol at right, then Bruiser, Maestro, Buttercup and Pop (Mr. Magoo was in the sling and behind the camera with me!)

Little Moments of Domestic Memory

Not pictures from my childhood - but of memories my own children may one day have of our "little" family!

I don't have many memories of my earlier childhood years, and what I do have are foggy and more like dreams than reality. Sometimes I question whether or not a "memory" really happened or is something that my mind made up somewhere along the way. I'm not sure what that says about my mental health, but for now I'll keep doing my Sudoku puzzles and learning new things and making new friends to help "strengthen" my brain. But this is a post about the force and power of one of my memories and how small moments from our childhoods can affect the courses of our lives.

Flying in the Right Direction

I saw a flock of birds riding the currents yesterday. Birds have always fascinated me - we've all heard of the way geese work with their V-formations, the fresher goose taking the lead and falling back when tired, two geese staying with an injured goose, etc. These were some other, smaller variety of bird. I'm not sure what type because they were too far away from me. Their formation was more like a ball - a ball of birds. What was interesting to me is that they stayed in their "ball" formation even when the wind blew them about this way and that, never running into one another, seemingly never losing their place in the rest of the group.

How often do we move this way in society? Accepting what is supposedly our position in life, not jostling for a better position within our own social circles, and enjoying the ride? My growing "flock" of birds often jostle for a better position - more like dogs in a pack, I suppose, than birds working together. If the birds don't work together, they will end up crashing into one another and bring the whole flock down out of the sky.

When my children are given a job and they act more like a flock than a pack, they manage to finish the job fairly quickly. I love those moments and cherish them. The last time we raked the leaves and bagged them up, we were a flock. I didn't have to yell - everyone grabbed a tool (rake, shovel, bag, etc.) to get the job done, and we floated on the breeze.

Getting their beds made this morning was a whole 'nother story. I found myself praying for serenity and asking God for help to not yell and scream to get the pack in line. They snarled and bit (at one another, not me!) vying for who was going to be top dog, beneath the Alpha. Needless to say, more work was needed in fixing the situation - if they're working, eventually harmony comes - or bedtime. Either way is a win-win situation for me and for the family.

As we get closer to our 25- 30 person Thanksgiving dinner and as families all over these great united States work to make feasts, may we all strive to be more like the flock of birds than the pack of dogs (and God give me patience when the Dogs come out!)

This post is linked to: 

Thanksgiving on a Grand Scale

WHAT A CROWD!

We're flying out to Washington state for Thanksgiving this year. We'll be there for just over two weeks and haven't been since 2007! How long has it been since you last saw your mother?! Well, I have a big family: my grandfather was one of six children (all boys!), so there are lots of cousins and aunts (the uncles are all gone now, sadly.) My mother is one of ten children, I am one of six, my brother and sister-in-law have seven, we have four, another brother has three... As you can imagine, Thanksgiving will be a FULL HOUSE! We're expecting to cook for 25 people, minimum.

The logistics involved in a "regular" Thanksgiving are enough. In our house "normally" we schedule the menu about 3 weeks in advance so we have time to figure out who will bring what, how much to make, etc. We also schedule a timeline out so that the food all comes out hot at the same time (relatively speaking) and we're aware of what needs to be made in advance (pretzel salad, for instance.)

I have been asked two questions: 1) what do we "normally" have for Thanksgiving? and 2) Can we provide the rolls (apparently Mom went home and talked about my bread.) SO, I'm guessing the list so far for 25 people looks about like...

100 yeast rolls

3 pans of pretzel salad (an absolutely yummy dessert dish - that it seems like only my in-laws make anywhere)

2 turkeys (my guess)

2 stuffed acorn squash

6 lbs. of stuffing

6 pies

6 - 8 lbs. of potatoes for mashing

1 lb. of brussle sprouts (I'm probably the only one who will eat it!)

8 - 10 cans of cranberry sauce

3 lbs. of homemade cranberry sauce

3 gallons of apple cider

5 gallons of milk

I know there is more - in our house here in Maryland, we usually also have roasted root vegetables (carrots, turnips, parsnips, garlic, apples, etc. drizzled with olive oil, topped with rosemary and baked for about 20 minutes at 450) and the family back home has their favorites - just like I know there will likely be more than 25 people attending. Always plan for one thing, and expect more to show for something like this!

In spite of the chaos that I know will ensue and the noise and confusion - there is also the excitement, the fellowship and the love of being with family and friends, both old and new. My one request was the pretzel salad and stuffed acorn squash (to make a main dish for us vegetarian-types.) What does your Thanksgiving look like? Do you have a favorite "must have" recipe?

Sneaky

Last night... I did it. I snuck out. I have needed to buy some new underthings for a little while now, but it is hard to stand and look for the right size bras with three boys and a girl antsy to get moving on to do other things. And really, don't we all just need a little time for ourselves every so often? Even Mother Theresa took time each day for silent, personal prayer time during which she was alone.

So, as always, using that innate sixth sense that nearly-two-year-olds have, Buttercup came to me and was very agitated. I picked her up and told her that I would not be gone long, that she would stay home and play with her Pop and her brothers, etc. Don't we so often try to find a way to go out without all of the tears involved in helping our youngsters become comfortable with separation from us as parents? This is never an easy process but sometimes seems to be a needed one, at least for the parents. I have not felt it harmful for the child as long as we make sure they are with someone that is trustworthy and loves them - such as their Pop, in this case. When I told her I'd be gone for a little while, etc., she put her face in my shoulder and in a very muffled tone said, "No."

Not crying; not wailing or hollering, but just, "No."

Then I went up and got some change from Jeff's change box. I set the pennies and nickels on the table alongside a piggy bank that we have, (the "Nana Jar") for her to use. She took the ... ahem... bait immediately. I took that opportune time of distraction to take out a bag of trash - through the back door. And, looky-here, somehow the keys just happen to be in my pocket. So into the car I went, backing silently down the driveway in neutral with the engine off. Once I hit the street, I turned the key... and ran, leaving my pint-sized warden behind, happy and content with her pennies and bank.

At the mall, I got my new clothes, bought myself a small bag of swedish fish, and took my cell phone to a "corporate" store to see if it can be repaired or do I need to send it in for replacement? With that, I closed down the mall and headed home in triumph. Being that it was only 9:30 when I arrived home, the kids were all still awake but all were happy and well cared for. They had had "Papa time," which I think is important for children to get on occasion. Even Smeagol, at eight, has commented on society's tenancy to marginalize the father's role in the life of a child.

(How's that for home schooling? Yesterday we had a whole discussion about in-vitro fertilization and whether papas are really necessary for life and for children... I was a little surprised, I'll admit, because he doesn't tend to think that deeply on a lot of things, or so it seems, but there were good questions in there.)

And I agreed with him: Papas are more important than society - and sometimes our friends - give credit for. And so my sneaking out was of benefit to all. For me, surely, but to the rest of my family as well. Think I'll have to do that again every few weeks. Where to go next? Perhaps just for a walk in the park, or to get my hair done, or to take a friend out for tea, or.. or... or... so many options I will have to make time for them all!

Magic Flat-Dough Recipe

I am on a baking/cooking blog kick lately. So be it. I'll just put them in as drafts and then post them when I go a while with few other ideas on what to write about. But I've been thinking: I suppose this blog doesn't really have a "point" to it yet. I started it with the idea of seeing where it goes over time. Will I have an eventual purpose that jumps out at me? Well, so far, I have to say that I don't see much of a pattern yet and can only hope that my posts are edifying to someone. My friend Beth has a blog with the primary focus on knitting. Another friend focuses on the journey she is making to adopt a child. I've consider making mine cooking - but do I want to jump in with the 2,000,000,000,000 other "cooking" blogs out there? And what would my focus be? Breads, I suppose... Eh. Homeschooling? Again - it's being done to death by voices more experienced and wiser than mine. Same thing for religious studies, Orthodox Christianity, home businesses and so many others. Well, for now I'll regale you with another recipe and say only that if you see a pattern that I have missed, feel free to jump in and help me narrow it down some!

Like so many families, we like to occasionally gather 'round for pizza night. By and large though, we've expanded our idea of pizza night to make-your-own-pizza night. Once I discovered how easy it is to make the dough, I can't help but put it on the menu occasionally.

One of the things I've discovered only today is that this dough is more versatile than I thought. If you bake it with holes poked in the dough, it makes pizza; bake it without the holes poked in, just rolled out flat, you have pita bread (let it rise a little bit to get "pocket pita"); fry this dough in a skillet to get Chapati bread - similar to what you find in a Kebab house or like Indian Naan bread. Fried it makes a super tasty, quick lunch bread!

This dough freezes well - but freeze it in smaller batches so you can make one pizza out of one frozen loaf and you don't have to worry about what to do with the rest or wait for it to thaw for a long time.

So without further ado, here is the

Magic Flat-Dough Recipe

This takes about 15-minutes to make and makes one extra-large or two standard large pizzas. The basic recipe is taken from the Reader's Digest, Down Home Cooking, cookbook, but I have changed the method slightly, being the ... expedient... cook that I am!

Ingredients:

1 c. warm water (110 - 120 degs.)
1 packet active dry yeast
3 c. flour (I use bread flour, but it calls for all-purpose)
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. olive oil

To Make:

1. In a large bowl, mix the flour and salt and make a small well in the top of the mix. Put the dry yeast in the well. Pour the water over the yeast, drizzle the olive oil over the top of the water before mixing! Mix the water into the flour with a wooden spoon (or spatula) until the mixture is a soft dough-ball.

2. Knead the dough for about 3 minutes or until smooth and elastic.

3. Use the dough in accord with one of the following recipes:

• Pizza Dough: I recommend cooking slightly before adding toppings (think of how the crust looks when you buy a Boboli atthe store.) To do this: roll the dough out into your preferred shape (rectangle/circle/triangle, whatever), poke holes in thedough with a fork, unless you have one of those fancy pizza-poker-thingies you see at the pizzerias, put in the over at 450 deg's F. for 10 minutes. Add toppings and bake for another 10 - 15 minutes
• Pita: Roll out slightly thinner than for pizza dough, do NOT poke holes in the dough, bake for 15 - 20 min. at 450 deg. F.
• Chapati bread: put some olive oil or butter in a fry pan, roll the dough out fairlythinly (it will puff up a bit when frying)and fry it briefly on each side in the oil.

In the picture: pita on the left (before baking), chapati on the right (during frying.)