Category: Archives

I have a lot on my mind at the moment and not enough time to write down my thoughts!

Here are some random tidbits :

As of the last day of May, 2010, I am no longer in my 20s.

This week, I decided to color my hair not just for the sake of something new and wild (like pink highlights) but to color gray! I used an awesome organic haircolor called Organic Color Systems which I found through my friend Robyn at Shear Miracles.

One of my conversations with fellow blogger Megan Dunham at HalfPintHouse was quoted at World Magazine online!

Our time in Japan is just about up! I will miss the karate dojo where my children and I have been practicing Shotokan karate, the lush green plant life, our close proximity to the sea, and the peaceful lifestyle of not having to lock our doors. Details forthcoming as they solidify.

Currently, I am…

-Working on my full accreditation through the Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth… over 100 essay questions!

-Eagerly awaiting the arrival of our Veritas Press homeschooling curriculum for the 2010-2011 school year! Micah is officially starting school this year, although we’ve been working on his reading and math skills these past two years ;)

-Preparing for our upcoming month-long home leave to the US, just a few weeks away!

-Researching housing made out of storage containers (We are considering building our own house when we move back to the US!)

Check out these links on storage container housing:

The Cordell House – Numen Development (Model we like best so far!)

Shipping Container Housing Guide

Qwik House

Intermodal Steel Building Units and Container Homes

ContainerHome.Info

ZeroHouse.net

What do you think? Could you live in a house built of shipping containers? Why does or doesn’t it appeal to you? What features would you want included in your home?

… and now, I will fall into my bed and hopefully sleep through the night without anyone tearfully sleep-walking into my room or mistaking my stack of cloth grocery bags in the foyer for a potty!

This past week, I commented on What I Want, a post at There Is No Wealth But Life about expectations and parenting. The post began, “When I say that I do not want to be a stay at home mother, it is because I want something else…” and it drew me in.

At the end of her post, Rae (Twitter @nowealthbutlife ) asked, “What do you want? If you are already a parent, how has reality changed your plans and dreams?”

Rae asked if she may use the comment as a guest post.

I said yes.

An excerpt:

I found out I was pregnant in the midst of big deadlines at work at the bank. I didn’t even tell my husband I had bought the test. Why should I? It would be negative anyway.

I took it after work, still wearing my snappy navy dress suit and classic leather heels.

My expensive woolen executive armor didn’t shield me from the truth in the urine.

You can find the rest of the guest post as well as Rae’s thought-provoking blog here.

How would you have answered Rae’s question?

Asahi’s Green Cola is made without artificial coloring or flavoring…. but does contain high fructose corn syrup.

What does it taste like? Watch the review at http://www.youtube.com/user/yuckypeas#p/u/0/qTYEr9_xjWo Please subscribe to my YouTube channel to be the first to see my videos :)

Click HERE to View on YouTube …. and subscribe to my channel, YuckyPeas!

This weekend, we had a lovely brunch together. Everyone helped to make Banana Nutella Cr̻pes. While we worked, in true homeschooler fashion, we talked about Henry Ford, assembly lines and efficiency. We also passed around the Cthulhu Cr̻pe Monster Рthe result of the last slosh of batter in the pan that seemed to take on a personality of its own.

(Banana Nutella Crêpes served with a delicious Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier make for a well-balanced breakfast!)

Favorite Classic Crêpe Batter Recipe

1 C milk
4 eggs
1 C flour
1/2 TSP salt
1 1/2 TB melted butter

Mix until smooth.
Let rest for 30 minutes (this is the key!) before use.

Dessert Crêpe Batter: Prepare Classic Crêpe Batter and add 2 TB sugar and 2 TB liqueur.

Chocolate Crêpe Batter: Prepare Dessert Crêpe Batter with flour reduced to 3/4 C and add 3TB cocoa powder.

Next time you think what you’re doing isn’t a that big of a deal, consider that Adam and Eve’s sin was eating fruit.

It hit me pretty hard today that, what I thought was being gracious by overlooking small offenses, was seriously enabling sinful behavior in our home. In fact, because I’ve let the little things slide, I now have quite a mess on my hands.

It’s easy to rationalize that some sins are just little boo-boos, but the reality is that sneaking video games when you’ve been told not to play them during school time is just as damning in God’s eyes as murdering someone. The earthly consequences are drastically different, but the eternal consequences are morbidly the same. My habit of overlooking has been misleading my children to think otherwise.

The more I thought about it, I realized that the sin of all sins, the one that cursed us humans, was, by our standards, seemingly benign and easily rationalized. God didn’t mandate, “Whatever you do, don’t build a spaceship!” Instead, He made a rule that was easy to break. Adam and Eve were told not to eat fruit! (Genesis 2:15-17)

Therefore, it is pretty much impossible for us to say, “It’s not fair! My my sin wasn’t as bad as Adam’s and Eve’s!” By the smallest of sins being the worst of sins, no one can ever say that they are without sin. (Romans 5:12-20 ; 1 John 1:5-10)

I am humbled, thankful, and, regarding my tiny little parenting boo-boo, stand quite corrected.