Have your custom family painted...
Saturday, February 18, 2012
Friday, February 17, 2012
Bell Jar...
Thanks to Michelle for showing me this fun way to display
It will be nice to release all thoughts of Bell Jars from Sylvia Plath.. thank you very much.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Shelter
This above are photos of Jen's brilliant President's Day Lunch.. the only President's Day lunch I've ever been to.. but I hope there will be many more. Thank you Jen! It was a perfect day. (Fabulous photos courtesy of Jennie Dopp.. Thank you Jennie!)
Friendship is a sheltering tree... ~Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Most of us don't need a psychiatric therapist as much as a friend to be silly with.
~Robert Brault
Monday, February 13, 2012
Gratitude is a Princely Grace...
I wrote this article for Homemakers for American and they didn't end up using it.. so I'm going to publish it here and hope it's helpful to someone...
In the age of Entitlement, Gratitude is a Princely Grace: 10 Ways to make Gratitude Part of Your Childrens Lives
One of my husband’s professors in business school related a story about boarding a big city train with his large family. He was asked, "Are ALL of these children yours?" He answered that they were. "In a world of finite resources, how can you in good conscience have so many children?" The professor answered back, "We teach our children to contribute more than they consume." In an age of entitlement, that is the answer to many of society’s ills. But, how do you do that. Here are a few things that worked in my family growing up that I am trying hard to teach my own children.
1. Teach your children to love books. My mother and father read to us often. My mother preferred to read us large format stories with amazing pictures by talented artists. All of my mother’s children are art lovers. We loved horses, my dad read us books about horses: The Black Stallion, My Friend Flicka and Black Beauty. My Dad also loved the great poets and introduced us to Kipling, Shakespeare, Dickinson, Frost and others. When I was little, my parents weren’t rich, but we were surrounded by great books and so we had the world at our finger tips even though we lived in a very small town. We were introduced to other cultures and ideas and we knew what real poverty looked like. I remember coming home from the school library with a teen romance and having my dad send it right back to be replaced by books like The Hiding Place, The Robe, and books by James Michener and Irving Stone. I learned from those books about history and great writing and about courage and loyalty and other great values. I’ve noticed that many of the books on the current school list are quite light some of these consequential themes.
2. Be vigilant about the media you allow in your home. Children do not understand that the point of a program like The Simpsons is to make fun of bad behavior. Children will see you laughing and they will imitate that behavior. Bart is banned in my home as is Shrek and anyone else with bad manners or poor morals. Sponge Bob.. NO! I don’t expect that characters in books, music or film will always make right choices, that’s not art reflecting life, but I don’t allow media in my home that is not honest about the consequences of wrong choices. Children need to know that consequences always follow choices. In addition to the moral depravity you will keep away from your children, you will also keep them from advertisers who are anxious to tell them they can’t live without this or that thing.
3. Teach your children about money. I don’t believe in allowances. Out in the world, you don’t get an allowance, but I also don’t pay my children for every little thing they do. I don’t get paid for every little thing I do either. Some jobs we do just because we are part of a family and it takes efforts by everyone to make things run smoothly. After a certain age, children should be responsible for their own things. But, I also believe there should be ample opportunities for children to earn money of their own. When they are old enough to earn their own money, they should also be taught to manage it. What percentage should be saved? What can be spent? AND, what should be donated? Yes. I believe that children should learn to tithe. They should give 10 percent back to the Lord. If they don’t belong to a church, there are other ways they can learn to give, but a portion of what they earn should be given back in some way. I suggest ten percent. They should be taught to be charitable by example.
4. Teach your children to be grateful. This is pretty easy I think. If you are grateful, if you use the words "please" and "thank you" even when speaking to them, they will use those words as well. Count your blessings and teach your children to count theirs. Remember people in conversation who have helped you during the day, "Wasn’t it kind of that man to open our door?" Mention to your children how grateful you are for your home, for your church for your country and they will feel those things too.
5. Give your children yourself rather than toys or things. Nothing creates a brat faster than a child who is given stuff rather than attention. Nothing makes a child feel more special that a date with dad for ice cream. When I was little, I thought my dad loved pushing us in the swings more than anything else in life. Every once in a while my mom would say, "It’s your day, we can do whatever you want." Those words still make me happy.
6. Teach your children to admire the wonders of nature. My parents are not campers or outdoorsy in any way, but my dad loves his vegetable garden the pretty songbirds that visited our backyard, the sunsets and the stars. My mother loves the mountains, the flowers and the change of seasons. Growing up they often commented on these things and brought them to our attention and made us feel and acknowledge the wonder of the beauty around us.
7. Teach your children to have great joy in simple things. My grandfather always anticipates seasonal produce. He loves to stop and buy the cherries from a local grower, get the Vidalia Onions just as they come to market and buy the pick-your-own fresh peaches to make a pie. If you can’t be excited about the first bite of a new fall apple, you are missing something great in life. But, my point... there is something wonderful to celebrate everyday. Learn to be giddy about peaches and you’ll have a pretty happy life.
8. Learn to be patient. No one is above experiencing traffic, spilled milk, long lines and other minor irritations. Don’t make a big deal out of these things and the kids won’t either. Impatience is a lack of gratitude.
9. Don’t be afraid to discipline, but don’t yell and don’t hit. The point of discipline is to teach a child to discipline him or herself. If your kid doesn’t unload the dishwasher and you choose to ignore it, you aren’t doing the child a favor, When a child grows up and they don’t do their work... their boss will fire them. Families should be a training ground to make children ready to care for themselves and others. Allowing a child not to follow through teaches them that they are somehow entitled.
10. Love them. Let them know that they are loved, valued and appreciated and they will learn to love, value and appreciate others.
In my family now and growing up. These are some of the things that made a difference. I grew up in a family of seven children. All of my siblings have become people I admire and are people who contribute more than they consume.
In the age of Entitlement, Gratitude is a Princely Grace: 10 Ways to make Gratitude Part of Your Childrens Lives
One of my husband’s professors in business school related a story about boarding a big city train with his large family. He was asked, "Are ALL of these children yours?" He answered that they were. "In a world of finite resources, how can you in good conscience have so many children?" The professor answered back, "We teach our children to contribute more than they consume." In an age of entitlement, that is the answer to many of society’s ills. But, how do you do that. Here are a few things that worked in my family growing up that I am trying hard to teach my own children.
1. Teach your children to love books. My mother and father read to us often. My mother preferred to read us large format stories with amazing pictures by talented artists. All of my mother’s children are art lovers. We loved horses, my dad read us books about horses: The Black Stallion, My Friend Flicka and Black Beauty. My Dad also loved the great poets and introduced us to Kipling, Shakespeare, Dickinson, Frost and others. When I was little, my parents weren’t rich, but we were surrounded by great books and so we had the world at our finger tips even though we lived in a very small town. We were introduced to other cultures and ideas and we knew what real poverty looked like. I remember coming home from the school library with a teen romance and having my dad send it right back to be replaced by books like The Hiding Place, The Robe, and books by James Michener and Irving Stone. I learned from those books about history and great writing and about courage and loyalty and other great values. I’ve noticed that many of the books on the current school list are quite light some of these consequential themes.
2. Be vigilant about the media you allow in your home. Children do not understand that the point of a program like The Simpsons is to make fun of bad behavior. Children will see you laughing and they will imitate that behavior. Bart is banned in my home as is Shrek and anyone else with bad manners or poor morals. Sponge Bob.. NO! I don’t expect that characters in books, music or film will always make right choices, that’s not art reflecting life, but I don’t allow media in my home that is not honest about the consequences of wrong choices. Children need to know that consequences always follow choices. In addition to the moral depravity you will keep away from your children, you will also keep them from advertisers who are anxious to tell them they can’t live without this or that thing.
3. Teach your children about money. I don’t believe in allowances. Out in the world, you don’t get an allowance, but I also don’t pay my children for every little thing they do. I don’t get paid for every little thing I do either. Some jobs we do just because we are part of a family and it takes efforts by everyone to make things run smoothly. After a certain age, children should be responsible for their own things. But, I also believe there should be ample opportunities for children to earn money of their own. When they are old enough to earn their own money, they should also be taught to manage it. What percentage should be saved? What can be spent? AND, what should be donated? Yes. I believe that children should learn to tithe. They should give 10 percent back to the Lord. If they don’t belong to a church, there are other ways they can learn to give, but a portion of what they earn should be given back in some way. I suggest ten percent. They should be taught to be charitable by example.
4. Teach your children to be grateful. This is pretty easy I think. If you are grateful, if you use the words "please" and "thank you" even when speaking to them, they will use those words as well. Count your blessings and teach your children to count theirs. Remember people in conversation who have helped you during the day, "Wasn’t it kind of that man to open our door?" Mention to your children how grateful you are for your home, for your church for your country and they will feel those things too.
5. Give your children yourself rather than toys or things. Nothing creates a brat faster than a child who is given stuff rather than attention. Nothing makes a child feel more special that a date with dad for ice cream. When I was little, I thought my dad loved pushing us in the swings more than anything else in life. Every once in a while my mom would say, "It’s your day, we can do whatever you want." Those words still make me happy.
6. Teach your children to admire the wonders of nature. My parents are not campers or outdoorsy in any way, but my dad loves his vegetable garden the pretty songbirds that visited our backyard, the sunsets and the stars. My mother loves the mountains, the flowers and the change of seasons. Growing up they often commented on these things and brought them to our attention and made us feel and acknowledge the wonder of the beauty around us.
7. Teach your children to have great joy in simple things. My grandfather always anticipates seasonal produce. He loves to stop and buy the cherries from a local grower, get the Vidalia Onions just as they come to market and buy the pick-your-own fresh peaches to make a pie. If you can’t be excited about the first bite of a new fall apple, you are missing something great in life. But, my point... there is something wonderful to celebrate everyday. Learn to be giddy about peaches and you’ll have a pretty happy life.
8. Learn to be patient. No one is above experiencing traffic, spilled milk, long lines and other minor irritations. Don’t make a big deal out of these things and the kids won’t either. Impatience is a lack of gratitude.
9. Don’t be afraid to discipline, but don’t yell and don’t hit. The point of discipline is to teach a child to discipline him or herself. If your kid doesn’t unload the dishwasher and you choose to ignore it, you aren’t doing the child a favor, When a child grows up and they don’t do their work... their boss will fire them. Families should be a training ground to make children ready to care for themselves and others. Allowing a child not to follow through teaches them that they are somehow entitled.
10. Love them. Let them know that they are loved, valued and appreciated and they will learn to love, value and appreciate others.
In my family now and growing up. These are some of the things that made a difference. I grew up in a family of seven children. All of my siblings have become people I admire and are people who contribute more than they consume.
Friday, February 03, 2012
Thursday, February 02, 2012
The Red Hunter by William F. Buckley
William F. Buckley was about the only defender of Senator Joe McCarthy. I miss William F. Buckley, the founder of the National Review and really the Conservative movement. He died at work at his desk in 2008. President Regan said of him, "You didn’t just part the Red Sea — you rolled it back, dried it up and left exposed, for all the world to see, the naked desert that is statism,” Mr. Reagan said.
“And then, as if that weren’t enough,” the president continued, “you gave the world something different, something in its weariness it desperately needed, the sound of laughter and the sight of the rich, green uplands of freedom.” I really miss him during great political contests like the one we are embroiled in right now. It is this contest that has me interested to go back and read some of Buckley's thoughts.It was Buckley's firm belief that socialism and communism were the great enemy of our country and I agree with that more every day. In this book, Buckley talks about McCarthy's investigations into people and organizations that were determined to be loyalty security risks. Loyalty security is still something that is tested in our country. Long questionnaires, interviews and investigations are required to participate in government work at a security level. We would not want someone who is having a secret affair, a closeted gay, someone deep in debt to serve in a position where they could be blackmailed. In addition to that, it mattered to McCarthy and a great number of Americans as they learned the truth about Stalin and his communist regime that America also be protected against communist ideologies.
Sadly, McCarthy had his own problems. Addicted to drink and with an Iago whispering horrid advice in his ear, he fell from a high place besmirching his own name and all the work he had done.
Today, communism in our country doesn't often go by that name, but it exists in the highest offices in the land. You still can't get a security clearance and be deep in debt or ironically an alcoholic... but you can hold any office while supporting policies that are responsible for enslaving millions.
A very interesting read indeed.
One Day...
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In many ways this film was really well done. Just watching Anne Hathaway's changing hair and costumes kept my interest since it takes place during my own coming of age decades. But, though I'm also old enough to be a little more of a realist than a romantic. In high school and college.. this would have been a five hanky movie... no more.
With age and wisdom, this film is more of a cautionary tale. Love is a choice. Choose wisely. Instead of a love story, I saw a woman who wasted her life on a Heathcliff. Do you read Wuthering Heights as a cautionary tale? When my daughter reads Wuthering Heights, I might show her this film. Well, apparently, that's all I have to say about that.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Red Tails... The Tuskegee Airmen
TRAILER:
I love this movie. It could have been better. It could have had a much tighter script although there were some really fun lines. It could have had greater depth in the character development. There is some language and a small love scene where one of the actors is standing at the window with his girlfriend who is wearing a short silk nighty and it's made obvious they've been sleeping together. I say this right out because other than that, I think this a really great movie for kids, especially boys (although my girls loved it!) I really want to take all my nephews to see it. It is PG-13 mostly for war violence, but to me (I've seen a lot of war films) it's very minor stuff. This is NOT Band of Brothers. For example, one of the airmen is captured by the Germans which could be a terrifying scene.. it's not. They do make one of the German Pilots a very 2 dimensional stereotypical "bad guy" snarly, surly and racist of course.
There isn't a ton of depth written into any of the characters. This is a George Lucas Film so think Star Wars. But, it's a handsome group of very fine actors and they do a great job with it. The film is made to showcase just a few of the accomplishments of the AWESOME Tuskegee Airmen and it just makes you want to stand up and cheer. The special affects are really stunning to me. I would think all of the flying scenes have to be computer animation and they are amazing. If you have a 6-16 year old boy in your family.. you really might want to consider taking them to this in a theater with a NICE, BIG screen.
There are so many stories of courage like this in American History that could be told and should be told on the big screen.. Hats off to George Lucas for choosing this one! I hope it will be a huge hit for him.
Hooray!
Pioneer Woman's Flat Apple Pie...
(OK.. this isn't a very pretty picture, but it's a very delicious pie. It's almost the same size as an 11X17 jelly roll pan. But, it's not nearly big enough.. it's gone in 2 shakes!)
** NOTE I add a healthy helping of cinnamon to this recipe..
Pioneer Woman's Flat Apple Pie
Ingredients:
- 5 peeled & sliced Granny Smith apples
- 2 tbsp. flour
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 c. sugar
- 1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1 recipe Perfect Pie Crust
- 6 tbsp. butter
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 375-degrees. 2. In a large bowl, stir together the apples, flour, lemon juice, granulated sugar, brown sugar and salt. Set aside.
3. Roll out two pie crusts into large circles. Place the circles on large baking sheets.
4. Place half the apple mixture on one crust and other half on the other crust.
5. Fold over the edge of each crust so that it covers 2-3 inches of the apple mixture. No need to be artistic - the more rustic the better.
6. Dot the tops of the pies with chunks of butter.
7. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the filling is golden and bubbly. If the crust appears to brown too quickly, cover the edges with aluminum foil for the remaining baking time.
8. All to cool slightly, then slice into wedges with a pizza cutter. Eat ‘em on the go!
Variation: For extra sweetness, drizzle on jarred caramel topping after removing the pie from the oven.
(makes 2 pies)
Pioneer Woman's Perfect Pie Crust
Ingredients:
- 3 c. flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 ½ c. vegetable shortening
- 1 egg
- 5 tbsp. cold water
- 1 tbsp. distilled white vinegar
Method:
1. Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. 2. Add in the shortening. Using a pastry cutter, gradually work the shortening into the flour until the mixture resembles tiny pebbles. This should take 3-4 minutes.
3. Lightly beat the egg with a fork, then add it to the mixture. Next, add the cold water and vinegar.
4. Stir the mixture together until it's just combined, then remove half the dough from the bowl.
5. Place in a large plastic bag (do not seal) and slightly flatten with a rolling pin. After flattening, seal the bag tightly. Freeze. (Repeat to freeze second half.)
6. When you're ready to use a crust, remove one from the freezer and allow it to sit on the counter to thaw slightly, about 20 minutes. Remove from the bag and place on a lightly floured surface.
7. With a rolling pin, begin rolling the dough from the center, outward. Be gentle and patient; it'll take a little time to get the dough completely rolled out.
8. If you think the bottom is really sticking to the surface below, use a nice, sharp spatula to loosen it and sprinkle some extra flour on top.
9. Flip it over to finish rolling. Remember to roll from the center in single, outward strokes; no back-and-forth rolling.
10. Again with spatula, loosen and lift the pie crust and carefully lay it over a pie pan. Using your hand, lightly form the crust so that it fits inside the pan and overlaps the edges.
11. Tuck excess dough under itself above the rim.
12. Apply decorative effects to the edge.
13. Fill with filling and bake according to pie recipe's directions. For a pre-baked crust, fill with weights (or pinto beans placed on aluminum foil) and bake at 400-degrees for 10 minutes, or until golden.
(makes two to three 9-inch pie crusts)
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Tuesday, January 03, 2012
Homemade Tub & Shower Cleaner...
I used 6 oz of soap and 6 oz of vinegar. And frankly, it stinks to high heaven.. But, it also works far better than anything else I've ever used. And, I've used them all. Next time I might try Lemon Joy.. just because I like the smell better. Hopefully it comes in a non-Antibacterial because I don't like putting those soaps down the drain. But, this stuff is almost scrub free. There was a little left after I sprayed the showers and tubs.. so I went back to the master shower, added some warm water to the spray bottle and sprayed down the glass door. The verdict is still out. I love cheap, easy solutions like this. Try it!
HERE...
HERE...
Friday, December 30, 2011
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Monday, December 12, 2011
Thursday, December 08, 2011
Park City Show...
The Park City Show was an adventure.. a lot of work and I am exhausted. But, I learned a LOT... so if I ever become this insane again... I'll know more what I'm doing.
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