Reincarnation

The Lifecycle of a Butternut Squash

Before:





After:

How to pick a career: by a 4 year old

"Mommy, you want to know the ONLY reason I wouldn't want to be a fireman?"

"Sure honey. What is the one reason why you don't want to be a fireman?"

"I don't want to slide down that pole."

"Oh, I see. Well, maybe you could just use the stairs. Then would you want to be a fireman? You like everything else?"

"Well, and I don't want to get too close to the fire. That would be dangerous."

"Right, I could see that. So you want to put the fire out from farther away."

"Yah. Like sometimes they put the fire out from ladders."

"Right, that would be great son! Would you like to go up those ladders?"

"Well, the ladders are pretty tall. I don't think I want to go up the ladders either. That might be dangerous because you could fall off into the fire."

"Good point, honey. So you don't want to slide down the pole, and you don't want to be close to the fire, and you don't want to climb the ladder. So why DO you want to be a fireman?"

"I like the uniform and I want to drive the truck."

"Well that is a good basis for a career choice. Well done." (mental note: just be glad he didn't say he wanted to be a fireman because it is a good way to pick up babes...)

Mental note to self

When your 2 year old daughter says she is all done her noodles and peas at supper, believe her and do not continue feeding her more bites. Why? She will begin throwing them up around 9 p.m. and keep at it until 1 a.m.

Unless of course you *enjoy* NOT SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT AGAIN...


I'm okay. It's all good. Take a deep breath.....

Wow-ful Women Wednesdays

Today's selection is for my kindred heart, Jessica. I know that she will likely get teary-eyed along with me as I watch this for the millionth time since finding it on youtube. Talk about talent, and beauty, and emotion, and WOW-fulness...

But beyond the mere brilliance of a scene from Les Mis, this chokes me up because of what it reminds me of and what time of life it draws to memory. Let me say it this way:


There once was a playwright named Mike
Who wrote several musicals I like.
When I acted those scenes,
I felt just like Fantine.
My wish? an end to his writer's strike.

There once was a stage at West London
Where a certain young Barbara was undone
by the chance to forget
Who she wasn't quite yet
and the hope that her "new me" would soon come.


It was as close as I ever came to this: (get the tissues ready)

hand me downs

I love words. Good words. Highly percussive words. Rhyming words. Sensical and non-sensical words. Written words. Spoken words. Well-chosen, timely words.

Which is to say, I really do not like it when words are wasted, twisted, and re-interpreted and stolen, forcibly being made to mean things they never were intended to (and yes, I realize my own choice of words is sadly lacking, and I too am guilty of verbicide much too often.)

Which is to say, I am very aware of the phrases that are on the clothes my girls wear and how these words, under different circumstances, would be lovely. But on a t-shirt? They can leave much to be desired. Let me back up a bit:

We have a neighbour girl who likes to give my girls all her hand me downs. This is great because they are hardly worn at all, they are typically very cool which dispells the "homeschool aura" which might otherwise possibly surround my daughters' wardrobe. And apparently it somehow becomes good blog fodder.

I read once on Stuff Christians Like, which is a site that I really can't fully endorse but will admit to reading fairly obsessively, that girls today, who wish to remain pure and modest, need to learn this important truth: Your Butt is not a Billboard. He was speaking in reference to the highly ironic line of sweat pants that had the phrase "True Love Waits" written in bold across the seat of said pants. Talk about conflicting messages!

So back to the post at hand. I, with eagle eyes, peruse the clothing in these hand me down bags for any tacky phrase or highly immodest cut. I thought I would enlighten you to some of these phrases and you tell me if you would let your 9 year old daughter wear them. So without further ado,...

Barbara's Top 10 List of "My Baby Is Not Wearing a Shirt that says THAT" phrases

10. Soccer Girls Kick Butt!

9. Girl Power!!

8. Yes, I do know I'm cute.

7. A Hell's Angels logo rip off

6. I'm a Princess--and princesses are always right!

5. Phat! (especially once I looked up what that actually means!)

4. B.U.M. Equipment (my 8 year old decided that made her feel silly)

3. Girls rule, boys drool

2. A Skater boy broke my heart (on the front) So I broke his board (on the back)

1. Juicy!

So call me old fashioned but I think "juicy" should refer to peaches, girls are supposed to learn to let the boys (meaning their husbands eventually) lead, Hell's Angels are not to be imitated or emulated, and that heart breaking really shouldn't even be a consideration for a girl who is too young to babysit or stay home by herself. yikes. Don't get me wrong: I have not searched the internet to learn how to crochet my own lace collars for my girls' new denim jumpers, but I do think there could be a happy little spot in the middle where my kids are dressed like they live in 2008 but are not advertising their bodies or their snotty attitudes on their clothing.

There. I got it all out. Time to step off my soapbox and go hug my little ones while they are still young enough and innocent enough to think hugging mom is a good way to spend the day.

Sleepless

First off, let me say that as a general rule, I do not like being woken up at 3:30am and then having to stay up from 4:30am on with a baby. However, there are times when these rare and annoying occurances give a little something that makes me go "maybe *this* is why I was supposed to wake up this morning".

So wee baby boy decided to wake up this morning and not settle back down. As I stand in the kitchen holding him, noticing how lovely he looks at this time of day, feeling the cool of his cheeks and his chewed-on-damp fingers holding my neck, wishing I had remembered to buy milk for the cup of tea that would taste really good right about then, I notice how brightly lit my house is for 4:30am in the beginning of fall. I make the assumption that the back yard is light enough that I could read a book at the patio table (if I wasn't afraid of dewy spider webs and earwigs).

So I try to look at the moon thinking I would like to see a nice bright full moon. But I can't find it out the window. It must be directly over my house, or perhaps off to one side where I have no line of vision. And I marvel to myself just how brightly the moon is shining to light everything up like that.

Then I remember: the moon doesn't shine; it reflects the Sun. The lyrics of a Sara Groves song come to mind and I turn my admiration away from the moon and onto the Lord who is all brilliant and glorious.


You are the Sun shining down on everyone.
Light of the World giving light to everything I see.
Beauty so brilliant I can hardly take it in.
And everywhere you are is warmth and light.

I am the moon with no light of my own
Still you have made me to shine
And as I glow in this cold dark night
You know I can't be a light unless I turn my face to You.

Fuel for Thought

A few weeks ago my pastor spoke on Jesus being tempted in the wilderness. He made a comment that was excellently profound to me. He said "The devil always promises things he cannot make good on. He cannot fulfill his promises." In context he was talking about Satan offering Jesus the world if only He would worship him. The point was that Satan will tempt us with good things he is actually unable to give us. Those good things are not his to give. Very helpful to remember.

However, what really struck me was that same truth on the flip side of the coin: The horrible things that Satan promises to do to us he cannot do either. He cannot make good on his promise to shame, kill, destroy, defame, devalue, or snatch away from the Lord. Those wounds which he promises to inflict are only his to do as the Lord sees fit. It is not in his power to do anything to me that my loving, heavenly, sovereign Father has not willed.

Thank you for that Lord. Keeping that in mind gives me the confidence to resist Satan and to flee from him. No matter what he threatens me with, You are still in control and nothing that is not for my good can befall me.

Listen to the sermon here. Or, if I'm technologically hindered here and that link didn't work try going here and scroll down to the August 31st sermon. And then, because my readers are so keen, I know you will want to go back and listen to the first two sermons in that trilogy.

Wow-ful Women Wednesdays

Well...

Quite some time ago my dear friend Paula won my contest of "Who knows what is an Oxford Comma" and I promised to give a prize. Just now am I realizing I failed to fulfill said promise. SCANDALOUS!!! I suppose it just goes to prove that you can't believe everything you read online. Bwah hahaha.

Still, the lovely Paula directed me to this next Wow-ful selection. I had not previously heard of this group but now am glad to have become acquainted with them.

So today I have decided to post this video of Celtic Woman, which is a bit of a misnomer as they are actully "women" not "one woman" as well as there are often men in the back ground vocals as well... confusing, no?

However, this selection reminds me of two of my great desires in my quest to be a Wow-ful Woman vocalist: 1) to be able to sing such brilliant harmonies, especially when acapella and 2) to have this most brilliant of a wardrobe and the opportunity to wear it (it is a bit much for a Sunday morning)!

Enjoy!

The Results are In

Despite the incredible amount of rain, the parade went on as planned at the Fall Fair and the folks lined the streets to watch it. Our children had a blast picking up soggy candy off the street and then begging me to eat all of it. (not before they share the sour candies with me though. We'll call it a service tax.)

Then off to the exhibitors hall:



28 items entered. 5 children entering their wares.

23 ribbons received.

First place red ribbons: 4

Second place blue ribbons: 4

Third place white ribbons: 6

Thanks for coming out burgandy ribbons: 9

Apparently the other 5 items didn't even need to bother showing up as they ended up ribbonless...

The kids had a hoot, and I am proud of them. Next year I may even try and enter some muffins...that's about all I got!

Heard At My House

Actually....heard at my church:

Scenario: Standing in the nursery with my pudgyily gorgeous 7 month old son.

Lady: (grabbing the baby's cheeks) Wow, Look at your fat little cheeks! You look just like your momma!



nice.