Pumpkin Patch Day!

I love love love the pumpkin patch! Maybe it's because I like orange. Maybe it's because I like the coolness of fall. Maybe it's that going to the pumpkin patch is a tradition we have not missed in 8 years. Maybe it's because we spend a day together doing something really fun and seasonal. Actually, it's probably a bit off all of the above.

We had a great time this year as usual. The only problem was that it has rained so much that everything was muddy. Mud is dirty. And it smells bad. And it gets on everything. And standing water in a pumpkin field does not do good things for pumpkins. Yuck! Fortunately, the farm had harvested a whole bunch of pumpkins and stored them in a barn full of dry straw. So even though we didn't get any pumpkins in the field. we were able to bring home some nice pumpkins from the barn. A picture speaks 1000 words, so without further ado, here are 7000 words!

Twenty Years

It was a balmy Tuesday evening, October 17, 1989. I was 10 years old and in 5th grade. My dad was on his way home from work in San Jose, California. My sister was at her friend's house in Felton. My mom and I, along with my friends Kara and Lisa, were in the car on the way to our house where we would eat a quick dinner before heading back out to Awana. Because we lived out in the country, the mailman wouldn't come all the way out to our house. We stopped to get the mail at the long row of mailboxes on our road. I clearly remember getting the mail, and slowly thumbing through it, hoping for a letter from my pen pal in Wyoming. My mom was in a hurry to get home, and kept trying to get me to give her the mail. I ignored her, and continued piecing through it.

I don't know what caused me to raise my head and look around, but I did. Goosebumps ran down my spine as I noticed the leaves quivering on the tree outside my car window. Then came a deep roar, and a sharp cracking noise as all hell broke loose and the ground began to violently shake. The shaking intensified, and the car began to bounce. My head hit the ceiling of the car several times because I had my seatbelt off to get the mail. I can remember feeling like I was in a disaster movie as the shale cliff just in front and to the right of our car cracked, and came pouring down across the road, a mere 15 feet from our car. Boulders crashed through the fence on the other side of the road, and the road was entirely buried in the landslide.

I didn't know at the time that I had just experienced the Loma Prieta earthquake, a 7.1 earthquake on the San Andreas fault on the central coast of California.

I was too scared to even cry, or talk, or move. It took a while for the dust to clear. My mom was finally able to maneuver the car up and over the rock slide. The rest of the road home up the hill was littered with rocks and debris. An occassional aftershock put me back into panic mode.

On arrival at our house, we were relieved to find it still standing. Our soaking wet cat met us in the driveway. Apparently he had been sleeping under the deck beneath our hot tub when the earthquake hit. Kara, Lisa, and I sat out in the middle of our horse pasture, safely away from power lines and structures, while my mom made a quick dash inside to grab a few things and survey the damage. Among the items she grabbed was my dad's Ham radio. We were all thankful at that time that my dad had taught me the basics of operating the Ham radio, and had set me up with emergency call letters. I turned on the radio and was able to get in contact with my Uncle Dave, a San Jose police officer. He assured me they were all fine over there. He was able to connect with my dad, who was also safe and sound.

As soon as Kara and Lisa's parents came to pick them up, my mom and I got back in the car and went to pick up my sister. We arrived home at the same time as my dad. Daddy had incredible stories of buckled pavement, giant landslides, and boulders the size of cars that he had witnessed on his treacherous commute over the mountain highway, Highway 17. We stood on our front deck and prayed together in the dusk, thanking God for protecting our family.

That night we had a candlelight dinner of lunch meat, cheese, and ice cream. We ate as much as we wanted, because we knew our power would be out for some days. After dinner, my sister and I cuddled together under the kitchen table with our dolls and flashlights while my parents scraped the kitchen floor. The entire kitchen floor was coated in a mix of Karo syrup, worcestershire sauce, and broken glass. At bedtime, I slept under my parents' bed, the only place I was convinced was safe. I slept there every night for the next month.

My sister, Jenny, and I played lots of Monopoly in the days following the quake.

The aftershocks continued for the next several days. We got so we could tell they were coming about 3 seconds before they actually hit. The crickets would stop chirping at that point. Those days following the quake were spent cleaning up messes, checking in with family and friends, and as soon as the power came back on (5 days later), watching news coverage on the tv. To that point we had listened to the news on a battery powered radio, or on the radio in the car.

That awful earthquake had devastating effects on our area.
* The quake killed 63 people
* injured over 3,700 people
* left about 12,000 people homeless
* the upper level of the Bay Bridge collapsed, causing cars to plummet to the lower level
* A two-level viaduct on the 880 freeway in West Oakland collapsed, killing 42 people
 
I was later to learn that the epicenter was just 5 miles from my home.
I will never forget that day. And I pray I never have to go through an earthquake like that again. That was enough earthquake to last me for a lifetime!

Superhero Celebration Recipe

My children are not perfect, little angels. Nope, they are sinful people, just like the rest of us. So frequently I find myself focusing more on the wrong that they do, rather than looking for growth and good choices. Last week I was convicted of this wrong focus, and I decided to watch for growth, and to celebrate what I saw. My mom was brilliant at the skill of spotting the good in my sister and me. I want to be like her in that area. My mom was also a fantastic maker-of-occassions. Her memory inspired me to create a special occassion for my family this week.

During last school week, I learned that Snapper had made some great strides in the areas of courage and wisdom. Pepper also displayed some growth in obedience and self-control. As I was pondering this, a great idea flashed into my mind--why not have a superhero theme day, and celebrate character growth? After all, it is strength of character that makes a real-life superhero. We included our friends the W's in our special day. Since many of you have wanted to hear more about it, here is what we did.

1. Start a morning with a special activity that requires endurance. We climbed Pinnacle Mountain, a 1,000-foot-high mountain in Central Arkansas. It is a very rigorous trail that has rendered me still completely sore a whole 3 days later! Other options might be taking a hike, completing a challenging obstacle course, or biking a longer route than usual.

2. The hike to the top of Pinnacle took us about an hour and a half. When we reached the top, we ate the picnic lunch we had carried up.

Then we presented each child with a certificate honoring their areas of character growth, and a Bible verse to go with it. We made a big deal about each child, and told them how we had witnessed the growth. At the conclusion of your activity, discuss with your kids how building character is like climbing a mountain; it is challenging and can be difficult at times, but the rewards are great. If you would like the template for the certificates I made, email me at lifeartist48@yahoo.com and I will email them to you.

3. After we got down from the mountain, we stopped at a convenience store for cold water and ice cream--cool refreshment and a sweet reward for hard work.

4. Snapper and I made a brief stop at home for showers before heading out to our local paint-your-own-pottery shop. (Matt and Pepper opted for naps at home). On the way there, I told Snapper what we were doing next. We discussed how we are like pots in God's hands, and that He is making us into a spectacular work of art. We are not finished overnight, and the work is often painstaking. In fact, we have to go through hard times for our character to become beautiful. She really seemed to get it when the lady at the pottery shop explained how firing our piece turns the paint a brighter color, and makes it shiny.

You can go the pottery shop route. Other options would be building something with clay at home (Fimo, Sculpey, or salt dough can be baked), making Shrinky-Dinks, or working in the garden. Use the process to talk to your kids about how growing godly character is a challenging, sometimes painful process.

5. End your day with a Superhero Supper. I served Hero Burgers, Tater Tots, and Powerade. I had originally planned on serving Super Smoothies, but I ran out of energy (and grapes).

Hero Burgers

Slice a loaf of French bread lengthwise. Toast middle-up under the broiler until light brown.

Mix together:
1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
1 can tomato soup
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. dried minced onion
1/2 tsp. salt

Spread meat mixture over toasted bread, making sure to cover the edges of the bread to prevent burning.
Broil 4 inches from the element for 10-12 minutes.
Top with grated cheddar cheese and broil until cheese is melted.
Slice into 3-inch-wide pieces and serve.

6. Pray with your kids and thank God for helping them grow to be more like Him. Over dessert, you can discuss other areas of their character that need work, and commit to help them grow in those areas. Don't forget to notice the progress they make, even when it is very slow. Because they know you are watching for growth, your recognition and praise will mean a lot.

Great follow-up for this fun day is to begin reading about real-life superheroes. There are many of them to be found in the Bible. Others--such as Amy Carmichael, Billy Sunday, Hudson Taylor, and Elisabeth Elliott--are delightful to study, too. Your local Christian bookstore can direct you to the biographies of these heroes of the faith.

If you try having a Superhero day, I would love to hear all about it!

Savoring Sunday

Wye Mountain is a secluded spot about 30 minutes west of Little Rock. There's a tiny Methodist church on the mountain. The church sits on 10 acres, 7 of which are covered with daffodils. During the peak of the daffodil bloom season, the church hosts a daffodil festival. You can make the trek up the mountain and play in the daffodil field free of charge. They even have a u-pick section roped off in the field. Daffodils are $1 per dozen. Every spring since Pepper was born, we have taken a day and gone up to Wye Mountain as a family to play in the flowers and to take pictures. It is a beautiful piece of Arkansas, a great, inexpensive way to enjoy time as a family. The daffodil bloom peak landed on this weekend. We had planned to go up as a family, along with Deb-Deb and her boyfriend, Ryan. Today is Deb's 19th birthday, and we thought a picnic in the daffodils would be a fun birthday celebration. Well, Matt is still in Colorado. So there will be no Wye Mountain picture of our family this year. But I got some fantastic shots of Deb-Deb and Ryan, as well as a bunch of Snapper and Pepper. We took sandwiches and cupcakes with us, and enjoyed them while sitting in the grass, surrounded by daffodils. I even brought a candle and matches so we could sing and Deb could make her birthday wish. It was a special time, and I savored every moment. Here are my favorite pictures from today. Enjoy!

Visit www.moblyng.com to make your own!

Just What I Needed!

While we were on the road the last 2 months, I really missed our daily routine and the comfort of home. Now that we've been home for a few weeks and are back in the routine, I began to feel just a tiny bit restless--ready for some good fun. This was a weekend of good fun.

Friday night the staff ladies of our church hosted a lock-in for the church ladies. Good food. Good friends. Well-planned activities. Laughter in great abundance. Sweet conversations. Hardly any sleep...and totally worth it! I have not laughed that much in a very long time. When I first arrived, I was hit by a wave of sadness and lonliness for my Arkansas best bud Carol who moved to Tennessee last month. But that lonliness soon passed, and I had the most fantastic evening. Thanks, staff ladies! We need to do that more often!

I crawled into my bed at home at 7:45 on Saturday morning and enjoyed some dozing and cuddling with my sweet hubby for an hour before getting up to face the day. The kids slept until 8:30, then joined us in our bed for a while. I soak up those Saturday morning cuddles with them. I remember cuddling in bed with my parents, and it is a memory that makes me feel all warm inside. I hope in years to come that Snapper and Pepper have those same warm memories. Once we were up and at 'em, it was project time. The weather was a balmy 74 degrees with a light breeze. I opened the garage door, cranked up my new 90's playlist on my iPod, and spent just about the whole day priming my kitchen cabinet doors. Matt stationed himself on the front porch with his tile saw, and cut all the tile for the living room entryway, fireplace hearth, and downstairs bathroom. Snapper and Pepper played together beautifully all day. Their activities included: Jumping on the trampoline, building cities in our two sandboxes, digging in the dirt, playing Star Wars (stick light sabers), doing gymnastics on our new tumbling mat, decorating our driveway with sidewalk chalk, riding bikes and scooters in the cul-de-sac (yes, Snapper actually rode her bike ALL BY HERSELF), and eating pickles on the front porch. I only had to break up one argument all day. I think that's a record!

When it got dark, we closed up shop. Matt completed the entryway and hearth tile! He ran out of tile before he could finish the bathroom. I finished priming all 19 cabinet doors. All that's left for me is the final coat of paint, putting on the new hardware, and hanging the doors back up. We brought the kids in, and saw for the first time how absolutely FILTHY they were. I don't think I have ever seen Snapper that dirty! And wouldn't you know it, Matt had them in the tub before I could get pictures of them! We put in some bubble bath and ran the jets to create a mountain of bubbles. They were so cute with only their faces poking out of the middle of the mound! And wouldn't you know it, the battery on my camera was dead! Stink! You'll just have to use your imagination to picture them. Seriously though, it was adorable.

Matt made dinner (steaks with savory mushroom sauce and garlic couscous) while I scrubbed the kids. I finally got the sharpie art off Pepper's arms and face. Hee hee! When the bubbles finally dissolved, I was horrified at the BLACK water and the layer of silt at the bottom of the tub. Oh gross! So I put Snapper in the shower, drained and rinsed the tub, and washed Jackson again.

After bundling the clean, sweet-smelling kids into their jammies, we all enjoyed a tasty dinner together. We played tennis on the Wii for a while before tucking two tired kids into bed. Then Matt and I played on the Wii for another 2 hours before we finally crashed. It was an almost perfect day. The only thing that would have made it perfect was if the ice cream man would have come down our street. We heard him in our neighborhood all afternoon, saw him on the next street over, and had our money all ready. What better way to celebrate the first warm day of the year than to buy ice cream from the ice cream man (is this magical for anyone else?)! But alas, he decided not to come down our street. Snapper was so sad. She sat on the front steps and watched for him through her binoculars for a half an hour. Sad!

So I had to blog about our weekend because it is a weekend I want preserved forever in my memory...just a good ol' special, fun day. I'm home from church this morning. Something I ate yesterday does not like my guts today. And Pepper has a lovely seal cough...he always gets croup when there's a major shift in the weather pattern. We're looking forward to a relaxing afternoon--garlic artichoke parmesan dip and a good NASCAR race. Ah yes, my restlessness is gone. This weekend is just what I needed!

2008 Top 12

Happy 2009, my friends! I love New Years Day. I don't make resolutions, because it seems making a resolutions dooms my venture. Instead, I evaluate life and set goals for the year. On New Years Day, though, I also like to look back at the year prior. As I have thought about 2008 today, I have realized just how eventful it was. Here's a recap, inspired by my friend Lori: The Top 12 Photos of 2008. Each photo is a favorite of mine, depicting something special or unique that happened in 2008. I'll put an explanation of my photo choice under each picture.


This one had to come first because it is my favorite Snapper and Pepper photo from 2008. They didn't know I was taking their picture, and it perfectly expresses their love for each other. They fight, yes, but they love each other with a fierceness that amazes me.


Lots of things quicken my heartbeat, stir my emotions, but none more than watching my sweet husband interact with our children. Snapper and Pepper adore their daddy, and he is a fantastic dad. Whether they're sharing tender moments (see next photo), or wrestling together, their moments are sweet and I LOVE that!


This year Pepper's personality has emerged in full, and his focus has switched from Mommy to Daddy. Daddy is Pepper's hero (as it should be), and watching the father-son relationship blossom has been a high point of the year for me.


Each year I make a photo calendar for the dear ones who support our ministry. Throughout the year I constantly watch for those picture-perfect moments in nature to capture for the calendar. This is my favorite nature photo of the year, which is featured in September of my 2009 calendar. Why September? Because September (my birthday month) never has the prettiest picture! Hee hee!


Much of our character development focus with Snapper this year was on developing a heart of unselfishness. We watched her make great strides in this area as she is learning to put the needs of other before her own needs. This is the "after" photo...after she donated her hair to Locks of Love in May. What a neat opportunity to be unselfish! I'm so proud of my girl.


My boy is every inch a boy! What picture personifies my all-American son than this one?


He cleans up really nicely, too, though. This is Pepper's 2-year-old birthday portrait. It captures him completely.


For 3 years now we have lived 2400 miles away from our closest family member. Because of this I have come to the following conclusion: FAMILY is the best vacation destination. We enjoyed some time with my crazy-fun cousins in Oregon this spring. This picture is a reminder of the good times and great memories I share with my family.


Since we're away from family, we have chosen to make family here in Arkansas. This picture is Snapper with her best friend/adopted cousin V. It is my favorite because it captures the whole essence of 6-year-old BFF's.


Quite possibly the highlight of the entire year was Snapper's baptism. What greater joy have I than to see my children walk in the truth! Frosting on the cake: Matt got to baptize her. Snapper's heart belongs to Jesus!



After 10 years of sleep problems (horrible, regular nightmares, insomnia, frequent waking), 6 years of unexplained weight struggles, 3 years of abdominal issues, increasing extreme mood swings, and seasonal emotional slumps, I finally have answers. For all these years, no doctor has been able to get to the bottom of my health struggles. I've taken many different medications with no success, only acceleration of my symptoms. Until the end of August. When I went to see a new doctor recommended by several friends, I was at an all-time weight high. After 2 appointments, this wondeful doctor diagnosed me with Atypical Depression. For information look up Atypical Depression at www.webmd.com. He put me on a low dosage of an antidepressant, and my life has turned around. Every symptom that has baffled me for so long is explained by this condition, and one simple medication has solved the problems. As the chemicals in my brain have balanced out, my body has followed suit. My metabolism has increased, my appetite has decreased, weight has fallen off. I sleep through the night most nights and rarely have nightmares. All the other issues have resolved as well, and I feel better than I have since before Matt and I got married. The top picture of me was taken in July. The bottom picture was taken last week. I am 30 pounds lighter, and loving life again. The change in me rounds out (or rather, thins out) my Top 12 of 2008. I wonder what next year's Top 12 will look like...

My Kind of Day!

I woke up this morning all cuddled up next to my hubby. Apparently it was cold last night, because I tend to be a loner in bed. We enjoyed just being there together, listening to Snapper and Pepper giggling in Snapper's bed and talking about the coming week. At 9:00 we got everyone up and dressed and headed out around 9:30. After we dropped Deb-Deb off at work, we enjoyed breakfast at the Old Mill Bread Company. Yummy! Then we headed down to Hot Springs, Arkansas, for a few hours. Hot Springs is a wonderful, historic, old town about an hour away from our house. It used to be a resort town, centered around the natural hot springs that bubble up under the city. There's a fantastic museum, lots of fun little shops, and great restaurants. At this time of year it is all decked out for Christmas. We drove around a lot, and then found a little hole-in-the-wall place to eat lunch. It is called Mollie's. And for you Arkansans, it is located on West Grand Avenue in Hot Springs. Oh. My. Gosh! Talk about awesome food! Matt had a reuben sandwich that was thick, juicy, and perfect. I had an open faced hot roast beef sandwish with mashed potatoes (it was a hot sandwich kind of day here). The kids shared an enormous, hand-pattied burger that was of high quality beef. It was SO GOOD! Good enough to drive down to Hot Springs for again. After lunch, we took the scenic route home. Arkansas is such a beautiful state, even in the barrenness of winter. We really want to move out of the city and out into the country before too long.

When we got home, Pepper went down for a late nap, and Snapper and I grappled with her loose tooth. The darn thing has been loose since April, but she's a total chicken about losing teeth. Don't ask me why...I don't know why, and neither does she. She just doesn't like the tooth falling out. But this poor little tooth had to go. The new tooth was coming in behind it, and the baby tooth was sticking out at a right angle to her gum. She refuses to wiggle it, so I've been helping it along over the past week or so, with an occassional push or tug. Today it finally gave, and was so loose I was afriad she'd swallow it. And for Snapper, the only thing worse than having the tooth fall out would be not having the tooth to give to the Tooth Fairy. So with some firm persuasion for Snapper, and a little dental floss for the tooth, the two parted ways, and Snapper has a lovely new space in her smile. So cute!

When Pepper woke up, we broke out the cookies, sprinkles, and frosting, turned on the Christmas music mix on my iPod, and spent an hour decorating cookies together as a family. Matt was the most creative with the cookies. Snapper managed to keep her hands out of her mouth! And Pepper ate more frosting and sprinkles than he actually managed to get on the two cookies we gave him to decorate. Don't worry...he had his own spoon and own little bowls of frosting, too! I frosted some cookies, but had more fun manning the camera. Little kids with frosting are great camera food!

We closed out our evening with some Christmas reading. The kids are tucked in bed now. Matt's watching a Christmas movie and making a puppet. I edited today's pictures, and put them in a slide show for you, as they are too numerous to post in this blog. So without further ado, here are the pictures.

Visit www.moblyng.com to make your own!

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas!

Ahhhh, what a weekend! It started out a little bit rocky. I was all pumped up about getting our Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving, but Matt seemed less than enthused. On Friday morning, I asked him why he didn't want to get the tree that day. A simple question led to a much-needed, 3o-minute discussion about Christmas, family traditions, our families' histories, and our indivudual expectations about Christmas for our family. My eyes were opened to why Matt has never gotten into the Christmas prep before. And he realized for the first time, I think, just how much my childhood traditions have shaped me. The end result was stunning--Matt's new outlook completely changed the course of our weekend. It was one of those special weekends I'll never forget.

After our discussion on Friday, we loaded the kids into the car and headed to Hobby Lobby to refresh our Christmas lights. After 7 Christmases, our tree lights finally bit the dust. We also had some 40% off coupons, so we got some additional lights for the outside of our house. Then it was on to Home Depot for a tree. When I was a kid we always used to go up into the Santa Cruz Mountains with my cousins to cut our tree at a tree farm. But the last few years Matt and I lived in California, the tree farm trees were dry, and the farms were pretty picked over. So we started going to Home Depot for our tree. We have never been disappointed. The trees are beautiful, affordable, and very fresh. This year's tree is probably the healthiest tree we have ever had. The kids had fun playing in the trees while Matt and I picked out our tree.







We got our tree home and the work began! Matt pulled out our Christmas tubs while I cleaned the living room. Matt moved furniture. I broke open the tubs. Matt set up the tree. I went through the tubs and pulled out everything I wanted to use for decorating this year. Matt and Snapper put the lights on the tree. I went camera crazy! I am still touched by how careful Matt was to evenly space the lights. He even wrapped lights up the trunk, knowing that I like that. Pepper got to put the star on the tree this year. It was his first time!









Snapper and I started decorating inside while Matt started the lights on our porch. I made a wreath for the front door and arranged silk poinsettias for the dining room and kitchen. I got all teary unpacking the stockings and hanging them over the fireplace. So many memories attached to these precious things! It was fun to share some of my memories with Snapper. And Pepper was so cute playing with the nativity set. "Mama, I gots Mawy, Jofus, and the Jesus Baby!" After all the decorations were out and set, I cleaned the living room again and put the tubs back in the garage.







Then came what Snapper had been anticipating all day: decorating the tree! When I was growing up, my dad's godmother and my mom built ornament collections for me. When I got married, my mom gave me the box of ornaments she had been collecting for me all those years. I am doing the same for Snapper and Pepper. How sweet to share more memories as we upwrapped each ornament from the tissue paper! Matt hung his ornaments. I hung mine. Snapper hung hers, and Matt helped Pepper hang his. More tears were shed as we reminisced about Christmas Past.





We all went to bed that night contented and tired. Saturday brought more fun! The kids played on the lawn while Matt and I worked on the rest of the outside lights. Pepper "helped" me snap the hangers onto the lights. Snapper policed Daddy to make sure he didn't fall off the roof. Even our kitties, Zoe and Alara, got into the action by climbing out the bathroom window and joining Matt on the roof.







We ended our day with a trip to Purple Cow for hamburgers, fries, and ice cream cones. We decided that post-decorating lunch at Purple Cow must become a new tradition! When darkness fell, we turned on those magical lights in our front yard. Matt did a beautiful job, and survived to tell about it! It was a sweet weekend for sure. A great kickoff for the wonderful month of December!