Friday, March 03, 2006
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Beautiful Things
It has been a very busy day, but it has also been a good one. The house has remained fairly clean, Bard spent the afternoon doing laundry, I have clean sheets on my bed, The Baby is asleep, the other children are in bed reading, and I had several nice conversations today.
One of the best conversations came when I arrived home after an outing with my dear Bo. I opened my e-mail and found a note from A Circle of Quiet. She reminded me in this blog post that it's okay to enjoy the beautiful things in life and she had reiterated that in a very articulate way in her note to me.
I do know that beauty is real, but naysayers close to me have attempted, with some success, to squelch my love for the lovely things. There's a trend in our culture to ridicule those who love beauty, to attempt to pull them down into our mediocrity, and when I admit my love of beauty, even to myself, I feel shallow and vulnerable, like the addlepated Anne of Green Gables who was so often twitted about her romanticism.
Yet I think the Lord is trying to tell me something about my love of beauty, because it has been a theme in my life, especially lately, to accept beauty. In reading Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge, I've seen that there is nothing at all wrong--in fact, it's completely natural--for women to love beauty.
This evening, Bo and I took a ride to claim a FreeCycle item and I was touched again by simple beauty, this time in the form of an old cast-iron farm sink. Even though it was sitting in the frozen mud when we arrived, my breathing was practically stilled when I saw it. I had romantic visions of a farm wife washing dishes while looking out over her family's land. Yesterday, as I looked out my bedroom window, I could see my chickens--hens and roosters--out in the yard pecking around under the swing. Framing the window was part of my collection of blue glass, things that my mother-in-law has given me and things I've collected over the years. This morning, I held a tiny, fragile baby bunny. It nuzzled against my fingertips, searched for a place to warm itself, and then curled up and fell asleep in the palm of my hand. I gazed, amazed, at the tiny paws, the whispy whiskers, the miniature ears and the new fur that was growing all over its little body, and I was in awe.
Yes, there's realism in the dirty laundry. Yes, it's honest to admit that they kitchen table is never fully clean. But, as A Circle of Quiet reminded me, things that go right, things that are lovely and beautiful...those things are real, too.
Thank you, aCoQ, for that thought-provoking interlude in my day.
Philippians 4:8 (New International Version)
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
One of the best conversations came when I arrived home after an outing with my dear Bo. I opened my e-mail and found a note from A Circle of Quiet. She reminded me in this blog post that it's okay to enjoy the beautiful things in life and she had reiterated that in a very articulate way in her note to me.
I do know that beauty is real, but naysayers close to me have attempted, with some success, to squelch my love for the lovely things. There's a trend in our culture to ridicule those who love beauty, to attempt to pull them down into our mediocrity, and when I admit my love of beauty, even to myself, I feel shallow and vulnerable, like the addlepated Anne of Green Gables who was so often twitted about her romanticism.
Yet I think the Lord is trying to tell me something about my love of beauty, because it has been a theme in my life, especially lately, to accept beauty. In reading Captivating by John and Stasi Eldredge, I've seen that there is nothing at all wrong--in fact, it's completely natural--for women to love beauty.
This evening, Bo and I took a ride to claim a FreeCycle item and I was touched again by simple beauty, this time in the form of an old cast-iron farm sink. Even though it was sitting in the frozen mud when we arrived, my breathing was practically stilled when I saw it. I had romantic visions of a farm wife washing dishes while looking out over her family's land. Yesterday, as I looked out my bedroom window, I could see my chickens--hens and roosters--out in the yard pecking around under the swing. Framing the window was part of my collection of blue glass, things that my mother-in-law has given me and things I've collected over the years. This morning, I held a tiny, fragile baby bunny. It nuzzled against my fingertips, searched for a place to warm itself, and then curled up and fell asleep in the palm of my hand. I gazed, amazed, at the tiny paws, the whispy whiskers, the miniature ears and the new fur that was growing all over its little body, and I was in awe.
Yes, there's realism in the dirty laundry. Yes, it's honest to admit that they kitchen table is never fully clean. But, as A Circle of Quiet reminded me, things that go right, things that are lovely and beautiful...those things are real, too.
Thank you, aCoQ, for that thought-provoking interlude in my day.
Philippians 4:8 (New International Version)
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
Lunch Interview
T.M. came yesterday to interview me for the local newspaper and even though the bread dough was pretending to be soup, we had a wonderful time.T. is a homeschool graduate who began writing for local papers when she was fourteen. She now writes a weekly column and regular articles for the paper. Her weekly column is about women and cooking. T. herself said she can't cook, but she's so much fun to have around, I think I'll forgive that. :-)
Yesterday, Bard and I arose early (early for us is usually before 8:00) and ate breakfast and then started cleaning the house. I made granola (it didn't turn out, Irene! I don't know what happened, but I only cooked it 3/4 of the time at the right temp, and it got too brown. It's edible, but not big and chunky, like I'd hoped). Houdin got up and cleaned the porch. Really! He scrubbed off the chicken poop and cleaned up the Christmas tree (yes, there was STILL a Christmas tree on my porch) and basically did a wonderful job. Bard did laundry (we're almost caught up!) and helped clean everywhere. Monet took care of the trash (complaining the whole time) while Sweetheart and The Baby put all the shoes and coats away. By the time T. arrived, the house was clean, the meal was just about ready (Bard and I had made our dishes the night before) and we were relaxed.
The only problem was that the bread dough, for whatever reason, came out soupy, so instead of trying to fix it, I just decided to make biscuits instead. Since I was freaked about the bread dough, I tampered with the biscuits, and, as a result, they weren't as good as they usually are. But the manicotti that Bard made was excellent, and the cheesecake was divine, as usual. And we discovered that every dish we provided contained dairy products; even the salad had cheddar and bleu cheese toppings! Both the cheesecake and the biscuits contained sour cream, and the manicotti was stuffed with ricotta, parmesan and mozzarella.
The best part about the whole meal, though, was the company. T. was kind, personable, intelligent and real. We had good conversations about life, learning, dating and even cooking. T. took Taylor's and my picture for the paper. Can't wait to see how that turns out. And through the whole meal, Sweetheart only dumped her plate on the floor twice and spilled her ice water on the table once. T. stayed long enough that her mother called to see where she was.
Thanks, T., if you ever happen to read this. Our famiy enjoyed your presence in our home.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Wild, Wacky Wednesday
I got this from Kate at The Tate School.
1. I know you indulge yourself - but how?
2. What's one book you'd like to read sooner then later?
3. What's the next practical TO DO project for your home?
4. Do you like silence or background noise?
5. If you could revisit a certain era, which one would it be?
Here are my answers:
1. Usually, by going to the used book store and spending hours and hours scanning the shelves, buying as many as I can afford, going to see a GOOD film at the independent theater, eating a GOOD meal at an independent restaurant while enjoying GOOD conversation, and doing it all with my favorite person in the world...my dear Bo.
2. Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and some of the books by Terry Pratchett. My daughter loves them, and I think I would, too. Right now, I'm thinking about starting a book group for teens and young adults, but I don't know what book to start with. Because we live in a conservative community, I want to choose something that won't be offensive yet will be deep and meaningful and entertaining. Suggestions are welcomed!
3. Prepare a garden. After that, probably put in a lawn? I don't know. I also need to think about fencing in an area for our future breeding dogs.
4. It depends on the situation. Conversations...silence. Morning...usually silence. Cleaning...music or audio book. I was an only child and too much noise makes me a bit nutty.
5. This is a hard one. Probably Elizabethan England. I love the dresses, culture, socializing. But I'd most definitely have to be upper class. Otherwise, the twenties in America.
Wednesday's can be wild, I'm sure you agree,
Sometimes even wacky, to some degree.
So let's make it fun, what do you say?
How about a little session of Q & A ?
Keep it simple, sweet and short ,
Or write an essay of some sort!
Let's get to know each other a wee tad more,
Perhaps this could be a Wednesday weekly lore...
Sometimes even wacky, to some degree.
So let's make it fun, what do you say?
How about a little session of Q & A ?
Keep it simple, sweet and short ,
Or write an essay of some sort!
Let's get to know each other a wee tad more,
Perhaps this could be a Wednesday weekly lore...
1. I know you indulge yourself - but how?
2. What's one book you'd like to read sooner then later?
3. What's the next practical TO DO project for your home?
4. Do you like silence or background noise?
5. If you could revisit a certain era, which one would it be?
Here are my answers:
1. Usually, by going to the used book store and spending hours and hours scanning the shelves, buying as many as I can afford, going to see a GOOD film at the independent theater, eating a GOOD meal at an independent restaurant while enjoying GOOD conversation, and doing it all with my favorite person in the world...my dear Bo.
2. Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and some of the books by Terry Pratchett. My daughter loves them, and I think I would, too. Right now, I'm thinking about starting a book group for teens and young adults, but I don't know what book to start with. Because we live in a conservative community, I want to choose something that won't be offensive yet will be deep and meaningful and entertaining. Suggestions are welcomed!
3. Prepare a garden. After that, probably put in a lawn? I don't know. I also need to think about fencing in an area for our future breeding dogs.
4. It depends on the situation. Conversations...silence. Morning...usually silence. Cleaning...music or audio book. I was an only child and too much noise makes me a bit nutty.
5. This is a hard one. Probably Elizabethan England. I love the dresses, culture, socializing. But I'd most definitely have to be upper class. Otherwise, the twenties in America.
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