Description of Hannah's Work Day

Hannah is studying poetry and is writing several different types of poetry over the next few weeks. I liked this one. It is a description of her day at work.

Work

door, lunch away, room assignment
lunch away, room assignment, kids
room assignment, kids, play
kids, play, clean-up
play, clean-up, snack
clean-up, snack, worksheet
snack, worksheet, carpet time
worksheet, carpet time, gym
carpet time, gym, lunch
gym, lunch, nap
lunch, nap, play
nap, play, home

Ham and Wild Rice Soup

Here's a recipe that is a family favorite and a great way to use leftover ham from Christmas or Easter....

Ham and Wild Rice Soup

INGREDIENTS
1 cup wild rice (You can use long grain and wild, but I LOVE the wild rice)
3 cups water (I use 6 cups water with 6 chicken bouillion cubes)
3 cups chicken broth (I do not use chicken broth)
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoon chopped onion
1/4 - 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1-2 cups chopped cooked ham
1/2 cup shredded carrots (or thinly sliced)
3 tablespoons slivered almonds (optional)
1 cup half-and-half (I used mostly skim milk w/ a splash of half & half)

DIRECTIONS
In a pot, bring the wild rice and water to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 45 minutes.

In a separate pot, melt the butter over medium heat, and saute the onion until tender. Blend in the flour until smooth, and gradually stir in the chicken broth. Stirring constantly, bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and mix in the cooked rice, ham, carrots, and almonds. Continue to cook and stir about 5-10 minutes, until heated through and carrots are cooked. Thoroughly blend the half and half into the soup just before serving.

I have also sauteed fresh chopped mushrooms with the onion. And, I have also added corn (which David absolutely loves).

Enjoy!!

Lessons from a Sick Home (Not mentally mind you..well maybe a little)

Sickness...it's a reality that has hit our home in full force over the last couple of weeks. In my mind I strongly despise sickness. After all who really wants to be sick? Who wants to see the people they love sick?

And yet as I ponder this sickness I realize something. It has caused us as a family to SLOW DOWN.

In our culture it is unfortunate, but true, we move through life at warp speed. I'll give you an example...this morning as I was bleary-eyed, drinking my coffee I happened to look out the window to see the high school bus go down the street at 6:09 am. You read that right 6:09 AM. If I was in high school here, you would just have to hook me up with a perpetual caffeine IV.

Anyway, I digress. This sickness has caused us to slow down. All my youngest wants to do when he is sick is snuggle with mommy. While that makes it difficult to accomplish anything, it does make my heart smile.

So, we are enjoying this imposed slow down. We are enjoying playing games as a family. Last night the kids watched a movie upstairs and I sat by myself and watched two TV shows with quiet all around. Quiet in this house is RARE!!! (David did attend the financial peace class as our representative last night!!)

This bout of sickness has caused me to be reminded again of the importance of family time...I have an incredible family and we have fun together!!! My favorite memory of the last week is us all huddled in the living room playing apples to apples. Yes, all six of us played, even the four year old who cannot read. I can still picture him sitting in his daddy's lap, smiling and quite proud when his "green card" was picked.

We're headed into our busy season, but I plan to take the lessons from Sickville and apply them to Busyville. Even though we will be busy, it is imperative that we carve out time to be together as a family!!!

Snow Day

Snow days are rare in this neck of the woods. So, we have to seize the moment. My kids have learned to get out there EARLY because it melts by noon. They had a great day playing. I on the other hand stayed inside and watched TV. (Well I did walk outside long enough to take pictures).

I am a snow snob....I will only get dressed and go outside to play in the snow if there are at least 2-3 inches. However, I must admit that there is NOTHING in me that misses having to shovel snow.

Although I confess that I only shoveled snow once and my friend from Minnesota happened to drop by and see me shoveling snow. After laughing hysterically at my ineptitude, she promptly took the snow shovel and shoveled my driveway in a small fraction of the time it would have taken me.

Happy Birthday!!

We're excited that our little man turned a year older. He was excited to get "dollars" from his Nana. Unfortunately he was laying on the couch sick all day long.

He brings great joy into our lives. We look foward to what the next year will bring.

Blogger Block

It seems like a while since I've posted anything worth reading and that bothers me a bit. The truth is my brain seems to be taking a break.

Maybe it is hibernating for winter...I'm not sure. There are moments of clarity where I have a thought that seems blog worthy. Then, I sit down to blog and there's nothing there and I mean nothing.

Or, maybe it's the entrance of the Wii into our home. It has consumed quite a bit of my time. Last night I laughed so hard I almost peed (how in the world do you spell that?) in my pants on several occasions. Our friends Phil and Amber Wing and Mark Murdoch played carnival games, which by the way are almost as impossible to win as the real carnival games. David, bless his heart was comatose on the couch. He did entertain us with an occasional snore or loud groan. I think he has the flu, but boy did he miss out on the fun.

Or, maybe it's the wonderful time I've been able to spend with friends. Face to face time with people has taken precedence over technology during the month of January. Okay, so that's probably not such a bad thing!!!

Anyway, I'm hopeful that my brain will wake up soon and I will be able to write something worthwhile. So, for my three or four blog readers, please be patient. I'll be back!!!

Future Photographer!!

Recently I downloaded some pictures from Clara's new camera which has been kept in her room. Along with about a hundred videos of her, there were pictures that were a little different. I remember vaguely Elijah mentioning that he took pictures in Clara's room. He's so into pretend play that I didn't pay much attention. These pictures are proof that he WASN'T pretend playing, but actually DID take pictures.

Enjoy Elijah's first photo shoot!!! I really like the first pic.

Where's Waldo? (I mean Noah)

In the two group pictures from Clara's soccer night see if you can find Noah in the pictures. As I pointed out earlier Elijah is right in the middle of the fray. The question is Where's Noah? I'll give you a hint...he has on camo pants and a yellow shirt.

Crazy Soccer Girls!!

 

Sweet Soccer Girls

 

This past Friday we had Clara's soccer team over for a hang out night. This group of girls is really incredible. When I look at them I see glimpses of the women they will become. And yet, I also see them as the little girls they were almost three years ago.

Each of them have unique talents and abilities. They are all great athletes. They all prove each week how dedicated and disciplined they are. We are so pleased that Clara has the opportunity to know each of these young women and are grateful for their friendship.

And let me just say they played the loudest game of mafia known to mankind!!! Oh, and you will notice that our son Elijah is right smack in the middle of all these girls. He is living a charmed life!!!

Free Car!!!

Yesterday we were sitting in the parking lot of Taco Bell (our big splurge for the month of Jan) getting ready to depart. Our six year old son Noah pointed out that we really NEED a new car. The handles are falling apart and there are some interesting quirks to our car. Our philosophy is to drive it until it dies.

Anyway back to the story....

Noah says, "We really need to go online and get us a new car."

Me: "We can't afford a new car."

Noah says, "No, we REALLY need a new car. Seriously mom it's FREE."

Me: "Noah, cars are not free."

Noah: "Seriously Mom...you go online and tell them abour your car. They do interviews and pick out the best car for you. And it's absolutely FREE."

Me: "You can't get a car online for free."

Noah: "Seriously mom you CAN (And people he really is quite serious here). All you have to do is go to www.vehix.com and get a car for free, for absolutely free. Seriously mom that's all you have to do go to www.vehix.com and it's absolutely free"

At this point David and I laughed and laughed and laughed. Seriously...Noah has been watching too much TV!!!!

Happy Birthday Mom!!

This is a snapshot of my mom. Today is her birthday. She was born on January 3, 1929 making her, yes, you got it, 80 years old today. The rest of the family in Georgia got together with her for a special lunch out. In the picture with her is one of her three great grandchildren. Here's wishing you many, many more, mom!

New Year's Eve Party

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Here's a slideshow of our New Year's Eve Party this year. We had a great time and our house was still standing after 50+ people brought in the New Year. Lest you think I often have that many people in my home....this was a first. We enjoyed our time with friends and are looking forward to 2009.

Happy New Year!!!

My Christmas Present

This Christmas a chapter of my life was officially closed. Elijah no longer wears diapers. He is potty trained!!! It is my favorite Christmas present.

Around the Smith house we've had diapers in our home for about 13 years now. I'm ready to be done. And yet as I look at these sweet baby pictures I realize that we also no longer have a baby in the house.

Well I'm off to church (with no diaper bag in tow)!!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Reflections

Three events are banging around in my head and causing me to think seriously about life. That is quite a feat considering I've been going through my life at warp speed not really pausing to think about much. I've only been thinking about what to buy, what to cook, what to clean, what to wrap.

First, my friend Jill from college (who am I kidding, she's really like my sister and I thank God continually for her) had to leave her home of six years abruptly. When I spoke with her she was pondering what to pack (suitcases on a plane are limited) and what to ship. And, what to simply leave.

She pointed out when they moved from Las Vegas to Russia six years ago, they sold their household goods in a garage sale for $2,000. As she said "It's just stuff!!!"

The real difficulty, the gut-wrenching cut to the heart part is that they had to leave behind two precious children they've been loving on for over a year. Two children that they thought by now would be adopted as part of their family.

Second my friend Matt's (and Jana) grandparents home burned to the ground recently. Just typing that makes me want to sit down in a heap and cry. I can only imagine how that must have felt to watch your home crumble before your eyes. Granted I don't know them and have never met them, but I know their grandson and I know his character. Therefore, I know even though they are grieving the loss of their home and their possessions, their eyes are fixed on Jesus.

And finally, yesterday morning we found out that some friends from church came home Thursday, opened the door to their home and realized their house was on fire. Thankfully, they were able to put out the fire, but there is considerable smoke damage to their home. So, they are in a hotel for Christmas and are sorting through the rubble. It just so happens that their daughter and Clara play soccer together, so this family is well connected to our heart.

So three stories, if I heard them on the news I might think, "Oh, that's sad". But, since these are real people that I know personally, people I care about, I'm camping out here. These events are converging together in my mind and are really changing me.

It's changing my approach to the holidays. Last night there were about a hundred things I could have done, but I chose to sit down on the couch with three of my children and watch a movie. And I mean by sitting down with them, we were all not just on one couch, but on one couch cushion....serious snuggling (I'm glad I picked an intense movie). This season is an opportunity to slow down, relax, spend time with those we love. Why do I allow the commercial aspect to rob me of the joy of my family?

It's changing my approach to the stuff. Good grief, the last thing we need is more stuff. No I'm not boycotting Christmas and we do have presents wrapped under the tree, but this season is NOT about these gifts.

It's about the greatest gift!!! The gift of a baby born in unsavory cirmcumstances, in a less than perfect environment. His parents weren't at home when he was born, they were in a stable. It wasn't a perfect night. It had to have been quite difficult for Mary and Joseph.

Real emotions. Real fear. Real hardship. Real difficulty. Real labor. A child wrapped in cloths and placed in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

What about the witnesses to this miracle birth...shepherds living in the field nearby keeping watch at night. They were minding their own business All of the sudden an angel of the Lord appeared.

That might freak me out a bit. It also said, "The glory of the Lord shone around them." In the darkness the glory of the Lord shone around them. Then a great company of heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests".

So of course the shepherds go to check it out. I suppose if that happened to me I would go check it out.

They find Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in the manger. Doesn't seem like that would inspire what came next. "When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what they had been told about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told him. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told."

The reality of his birth probably more reflects the experiences of my friends....hardship, heartache, difficulty, fear, tears, stress. And yet the glory of the Lord shone around them. And yet God was praised. And yet Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.

The difficulties ended in Joy..Jesus was born!!!

Elijah's Photo Shoot

Since Elijah didn't crack a smile during his Christmas program, I thought I would snag a couple of good shots. After all I'm currently borrowing people's cameras to figure out what kind I would like to buy. So, I have a fabulous camera in my grubby little hands and am seeking a picture perfect shot of my little man.

Here's what I got...not a smile in the lot...

Elijah Stage Fright

Elijah's preschool put on a "Christmas play". It really was adorable!! I was proud of Elijah. He had two poses in particular that I thought I'd share. The first is he did do the "O" that they were supposed to do when singing O Christmas Tree. Let me just say I was proud of that "O" considering he was one of the few children that actually did it. The rest of the pictures reveal what he did pretty much the rest of the program.

I'm fairly certain he didn't sing. And, I'm fairly certain he didn't smile. I had a blast playing with my friends DSLR camera!!!

Remember the $4 turkey

Right before Thanksgiving I bought a $4 turkey at Kroger. We had it for Thanksgiving. We had leftovers a couple of times. And, I made soup. And, I froze the leftover turkey.

Two nights ago I made turkey pot pie for dinner from the leftover turkey. There was only one piece left which David and I fought over to take for lunch....I won!!! The filling however seemed to multiply before my eyes....I had enough leftover filling to make two more turkey pot pies that I gave as Christmas presents to my co-workers.

Tonight we are having the last of the $4 Turkey in Turkey Corn Chowder.

We got seven meals out of one $4 turkey. I have much to learn about frugal living, but this is definitely my biggest success so far.

Playing with Piles

The Smith's are on the long road of fiscal responsibility. We've been dabbling and now are attempting to get serious. Balancing our budget doesn't require an act of congress. Balancing our budget does require time, patience, humor and love.

Balancing our budget does require that I remember we have six people living in our home. It's like I have woken up from a drunken stupor (I mean fog) and am wondering where all these little people came from and why they cost so much money.

Anyway, I'm trying something different. As a visual person I've written each item from our budget on a separate notecard and am pretending it's a game. After all I always loved games...Life and Monopoly being two of my favorites from childhood.

After shuffling and re-shuffling, here's where I am at the moment and it's shocking realization. Our wants pile is much larger than our needs pile. We NEED shelter, food, clothing, transportation, medical care and a few things. We WANT a whole lot more.

I've read a few verses from 1 Timothy lately that keep hanging out in my brain. "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that."

AND

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

AND

"Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of life that is truly life."

So, today as I play with my piles...I lay them before God and ask for His wisdom, His guidance, His heart.