Glutton!

We had a great Thanksgiving, Joe, Amanda and Natalie went to Dallas and I missed them, but all in all it was good . I let Keely in my kitchen this year to help me. This is kind of funny, I've never been good at sharing the kitchen, not because I don't want help, not because I'm totally impossible to please, but because I can't think with to much activity in the kitchen and I'm afraid of messing up. I asked Keely to come over on Wednesday and we would bake pies and do what we could to get ready for Thursday. We did and chopped celery and onions for the dressing and made cornbread for dressing. I was bragging about Keely's help and she was like "Yea Mom let me chop the celery and onions" She might not want in my kitchen any more! No- actually she made pies and offered much support. We made eight pies and I sent pies with everyone! It was one of my best Thanksgivings. I even ate more than usual, I think because it taste better when someone else cooks! I am going to start sharing the kitchen more!

Thanksgiving really peeked my interest in my family history this year and I started some research and I have found out that I am a mutt and I found some history I can be very proud of and some that does not make me to proud, and all I really learned is that I hope that someday when one of my descendants look back at me, they can say that she fed people. I have been blessed so, fed so well physically, spiritually, and emotionally, I just hope I can give the same to yet another generation to carry on.

MySpace

I was just thinking how many people have a distaste for Myspace and I understand, but I like MySpace and Facebook, because I can see so easily what the kids are doing and much of the time what they are thinking. They do expose a lot of information. I do think if you have a child on MySpace you should be monitoring them and their friends. Yet I have to remind myself that just because not all of my friends hold fast to my moral standards, nor do Joda's that my way of life is not the only way of life and I am not great about getting out there in the world, and I am not the authority on life styles. However, with that said if you want to date my daughter, you should know I'm looking at you and is the picture you paint of yourself on MySpace really the one you want me to see? Is it the one you want employers,teachers and your Mother or Father to see? I do think that kids tend to put up a profile of themselves that they think the other kids will like, and sometimes they are really as shallow as they look, but much of the time we have to look past some of the surface things to really see their heart. I like MySpace I get to see the kids that my daughter is in contact with.

Onions!

I realized when Joda brought home this onion painting and was telling me that her instructor Mrs.Stephens was teasing her about peeling those onions, that I have never asked her to peel an onion. At least now she can say she has peeled an onion. I probably didn't peel one till I was married, actually there are a lot of things I did'nt do till I was married. Some of the things that stand out in my mind.
1. I didn't fix plumbing problems.
2. I had never baked a pie.
3. I had never baked a Turkey, or cooked a Thanksgiving or Christmas meal.
4. Never cleaned toilets.
5. I don't think I had ever did any house cleaning except for my own room.
6. Never paid a bill.
Kinda seems like I could have been a me, me , me person, but
a few things that I did before I was married was.
1. I fed the animals. Lot's of animals. Before breakfast. My Dad always said you don't eat till you have took care of your animals.
2. I worked in the garden.
3. I played outside insted of inside and rode my horse daily.
4. I helped with the laundry, our washer and dryer was out in the well house, so we had to run out to the well house to rotate laundry and bring it in the house.
5. I washed dishes.

The really funny thing is, when I married, I know I asked a lot of cooking questions and my Mom became my best friend, even before I had children. I liked the good home style meals my mom cooked and wanted to be able to do that. I started cooking Christmas dinner when I was 19 years old for the whole extended family, because when Joe was born I wanted him to smell that Turkey when he woke on Christmas morning. I still don't like to clean, and only do enough to not live in filth. I feel like I must make Joda take responability for her animals, but actually have to make myself let her feed ( I want to feed animals) Maybe thats why I have chickens, Joda does not like the chickens much so I feed them and gather the eggs. It all worked out, I learned to cook and to actually enjoy it, I learned to sew a little, because of desire, I love gardning and anything out of doors, I never learned to enjoy paying bills, but I did learn to enjoy having them paid! I've also learned to be a plumber, carpenter, tile layer, painter, mechanic out of need or want. I could'nt get a job doing these things but I can keep us going around here. So, I guess it is okay that Joda doesn't peel onions yet, she can load and unload the dishwasher, washer and dryer, she can sew a little, bake frozen cookie dough, clean the bathroom (except the toilet) I still do that, but that is okay because I know once she moves out it is her job, she helps with the gardning and had her own little garden (weed patch-haha) Out of need or want she will learn to be domestic. The one thing she seems to really be embracing is a love of our Lord and living with integrety, she is learning to be an honest, caring, loving person and I could not ask for more.

Right Brain or Left Brain

I've always thought of myself as a left brained person, very logical, reality based, no nonsense kind of person, but this morning I did a right brained left brained test and find out that I'm a right brained person. Well actually according to the test I use both sides, but at first glance the dancing girl is spinning clockwise which means you are right brained. I think it's fun knowing I can use both sides of my brain, I think it is fun knowing I still have a brain.

I homeschool my daughter, youngest of three, the others all graduated public school, and I am quickly finding out that my fellow Christians question this decision more than the secular world. I have very high expectations for her, but they are not of the sort that most parents have for their children. I have learned through much blood, sweat and tears that your relationship with God is paramount to your survival in this world, and that achieving very high educational goals is secondary. It might afford you more things and might enable you in many ways and might afford you some sense of security, but remains secondary to that relationship with God. That relationship alone is life sustaining. I know many highly educated people that are not happy in their field and I know many happy people with no higher education as a matter of fact I know many poor people that are happy and I know they cause the Lord much joy, so please don't be arrogant to me. I'm not a religious freak, I'm just a mother doing her best to raise a daughter to serve the Lord, I know all the pros and cons of public education, I've already been there. I'm not sacrificing a child here, I'm trying to give her life and a little more support and a little less scrutiny would be great. Don't worry she studies all the normal stuff. She is exposed to the world and worldy things plenty, we let her out of the box some.(She has all the things all teens think they can't live without) just with reminders that things don't bring peace to the soul. Were not perfect parents and she is not a perfect child, but nothing wierd about us, except that I decided to do things my way instead of societies way this time. My intention is to raise a God loving, seeking child that will recieve support to persue whatever educational goals she is inclined to persue after highschool, and that is that.

Oh the right brain thing, I think it is acquired in my case from much spiritual searching, I think that society teaches us to rely on our left brain a little to much.