My Computer Has an Owie!

 I don't know what it is about me, but apparently I am hard on laptop computers.  My last one was doing just fine then one day I turned it on to discover the screen had a big blackened area that looked kind of like a feather.  I was able to work around the black part for awhile but it grew and grew and eventually I gave up.

I bought the laptop I am now using about 2 years ago.  It's a smaller screen and I really love it.  I've had to replace the cord once, as it kept bending until it broke.  Now, though, my problems are bigger.

Once again, the cord is starting to deteriorate.  A little duct tape is helping that for the moment.  The screen, though, started making a little clicking sound when I opened it.  That went on for weeks and then it kind of closed with a tiny little misalignment to it.  Then, a crack appeared on the piece of plastic that covers the hinged area.  That crack kept growing until that plastic piece started raising up and I could no longer snap it back into place.  Well, what else could I do?  I got out more duct tape!

It looks pretty ghetto, but it still works!

Couch Gymnastics!

I love to rearrange furniture.  Do you?  I am not sure why, but I feel refreshed with the change.

Cordelia was visiting when I changed the furniture around this week.  I decided she should know the fun of "riding" on the furniture so I had her get on whatever piece I was moving.  Since I change my mind a lot, each piece of furniture gets rearranged multiple times.  She didn't mind!  She enjoyed my "thinking" times as well.  You know, when you have the couch in the middle of the room and then decide maybe you need to think some more about where to go with it?  That's when Cordelia learned the joy of couch gymnastics!

I absolutely LOVE being her grandmother (or grammy, as she's been calling me lately)!

Have a great week-end!

Today's Lesson - Vitamin D

A few weeks ago I went in for my yearly physical.  Instead of my general practitioner, this year I saw a nurse practitioner that I know from church.  I'm glad I did!  Besides the usual labs to check cholesterol, thyroid and such, she asked if she could check my Vitamin D levels.  I saw no harm in that.  I didn't expect there to be any problem, though.

I was wrong!  It turns out that I  am low in Vitamin D.  When I got that phone call I went online to refresh my memory on what I knew about Vitamin D.  I found a lot of new information on Vitamin D, including a lot of articles suggesting that daily requirements may be much more than once believed.  My friend put me on a recovery treatment of some pretty high doses of Vitamin D for 7 days of each of the next 5 months, with moderately high doses on the other days of those 5 months.  Of course I checked on these doses at reputable sites online to be sure this was acceptable treatment.  Because Vitamin D is fat soluble, there is danger in overdosing.  The treatment she put me on is called shock treatment, but it is considered appropriate for my levels.

I was surprised to learn that Crohn's Disease is a risk factor for having low Vitamin D levels.  That could explain my situation,  of course.  I was also surprised to learn that low Vitamin D levels are very, very common for people who live in the colder regions.  It makes sense.  Sunshine is one requirement for producing your own Vitamin D.  When it is cold, even if we do go outside, we cover up most of our skin.

Most of us know that Vitamin D helps us build strong bones but I did not know that it plays a role in our immune system.  Low levels are also associated with some cancers, irritability, depression, autoimmune diseases, high blood pressure, fatigue and other disorders.  My little internet research was quite enlightening!  If you want to learn more I'd suggest sites such as Mayo Clinic or Center for Disease Control.

I am telling you all this because yesterday I felt more energetic than I have in about 18 months!  Awhile back I'd asked Mike if he remembered the old me, the woman who flitted around the house doing stuff all the time.  Yesterday, I saw that woman again!  Maybe it was a just a good day, or maybe it was that I am catching up on Vitamin D.  At any rate, since I learned this is a common issue, I thought I'd just share a little lesson on Vitamin D today.  

Thanks for coming to class!

disclaimer:  I am NOT a doctor.  See your own medical professional if you think you are low in Vitamin D.

My Life as an Anarchist

Our family met up at the mall recently.  This is not new.  We do it about once a week for "mall lunch".  Eric was off and got to join us, so that was nice. 

After lunch we were just walking aimlessly about the mall.  Some of the family went in to see the puppies at the pet store but I'm not allowed in there.  Remember, those little visits are how we ended up with Bode! 

I was looking around and I saw a Native American store that I'd never entered.  It looked like they had some cool hand-made things.  They had a sign that said their last day was DIC 31.  I guessed they meant Dec. 31.  Since it was my last chance, I decided to wander in.  Maria came with me and eventually the entire family ended up in there. 

I enjoyed this little store and wished I'd gone in before Christmas as they had some neat gift ideas.  Maria and I chose some bracelets we liked.  This is mine.  It looks like stone but is actually wood.  I like it.

Besides the bracelets, I purchased a little giraffe toy Mike found for Cordelia.  When I was checking out, the man ringing up my total spoke to a woman off to the side in a different language.  She answered him and then he put this purse into my bag...

I asked him about it and he said, "Think of it as a late Christmas gift."  I thanked him and left the store.  When I got out of the store I took the purse out to get a better look.  Maria and Eric laughed when they saw it!  Sam was suspicious, wondering why the guy shoved it into my bag.  Here's what was so funny.  The front of the purse had the symbol for anarchist!  Luckily, I believe I can add a new front!

The funniest part of the story was that this purse from the Native American store had a tag on it that read, "Made in Equador"!

Name the Baby!

When I was maybe 12 or 13 I had a list of names.  These were names I thought I might someday name my children.  I am not sure why I thought I needed to get started with the list then, but it was fun for me.  Did any of you do that?  It seems to me that some of my friends did it as well.

Oddly, when we did have our children, I never really pushed for any of the names on my previous list.  When we were first pregnant Mike had the idea of the names Maria and Benjamin, both derived from his grandparent's names.  In case you don't know, our Maria is pronounced Mariah and is a Norwegian name.  I added my Grandma's name and Wa-la, we had a name we both loved, Maria Rose.

The second time around we stuck with Benjamin, after Mike's Poppa Benny.  Poppa Benny died before Mike was even born but we'd both heard fun stories about him.  Interestingly, he was a banker.  Our Ben is now a banker as well.  Mike's middle name and his Dad's middle name, Robert, seemed like a good choice.  It was kind of fun to keep that link going.

When we were pregnant the last time (yes, I said "we" but really Mike did not spend 9 months throwing up) Mike and I were settling on Isaac for a boy's name or Charis for a girl's name.  Isaac means laughter and Charis is Greek for grace.  My Mom's name is Grace so it would have been as though we were naming her for my Mom.  I liked that a lot but as it turned out, we didn't have a "her".

Sam was named by committee.  Maria was 12 and Ben was 8 when we had him and they really did not agree that our baby would be an Isaac.  They were not impressed when we said it would be fun to say "Mike and Ike."  They were very involved in the name-choosing and had strong opinions.  The debates went on for months.  We had some funny moments as we discussed what playground nicknames might occur with any name one of us mentioned.  I think I will refrain from sharing those.

Finally, just a few weeks before I gave birth (I can't bring myself to say "we" gave birth) we were all in the car and the name, Sam, popped into my head.  I ran it by the other's and no one had anything sassy to say.  So, Sam it was...actually, Samuel.  We'd already chosen his middle name to honor his cousin who had died just a few months before Sam was born.

So, Sam wasn't technically named after anyone.  OK, my family did have a dog by that name when I was a child but really, Sam wasn't named after a dog.  When I told Grandma Rose our new baby's name she thought I'd named him after my cousin, John.  That was the day I learned that John's name was actually Samuel John.  His birthday was the same day as our Sam's!  It was just a coincidence, though.

How about you?  Are you named after anyone?  Have you named your children after anyone?  I was named after the songs, "Wake up Little Susie" and "Peggy Sue".  Are you wondering why I'm talking about baby names?

Well, yesterday our beautiful daughter announced her pregnancy.  Click here to check out her blog.  They did a beautiful job naming their first, Cordelia Rose.  However, I thought maybe they might need a little help with this second one.  It's only fair!  Remember, Maria got to have a say when we named Sam!

Naming a baby now has some advantages over 20 years ago.  The internet is a marvelous tool.  Do you know you can look up names by heritage, such as Irish for example?  It's really fun.  You can also look up the meanings of the names.  I have taken this internet-baby name connection one step further.  I thought perhaps they'd enjoy the selections I came up with that are more unique than what is found elsewhere.  You know how on many blogs you are asked to fill in the word verification to leave a comment?  Well, I started noticing that some of those words were kind of cool!

We've known for sometime now that grandbaby #2 was on the way so I got started right away with my list. I've not shown it to Maria and Eric yet but I am certain they will be delighted.  Each of these is from an actual word verification; I did not make them up on my own.  I do think, though, that I could make up the meanings of them on my own.

So, since we were subjected to the committee approach when we named Sam, I am inviting you all to be on this committee with me.  It is sort of an adjunct committee, not exactly official.  I want each of you to tell me which name you prefer?  Is it Fratwist?  Chaltie?  You can choose from this list or from a word verification of your own.

Fessino
Adensti
Fratwist
Panco
Syceobna
Raffe
Essinc
Yedulsi
Michon
Lestical
Amsawei
Purodsh
Ceflepin
Autuencr
Retymun
Glepret
Besso
Eryop
Notonham
Kince
Chaltie
Abblos
Biasi
Etedst
Arksin
Suppharo
Kedin
Hessina
Subbi
Kansti
Fersey
Tingra

Engagement Anniversary

On January 2, 1978 Mike asked me to be his wife.  It was a beautiful proposal!  He gave me the world (a globe) and because I don't much care for wine, he presented a glass of buttermilk (my favorite beverage) for me as we toasted our future.  I realize that a globe and buttermilk wouldn't touch the heart of every young woman, but it really pleased me.  It showed that he had paid attention to what I liked.  It was a very personal touch to the evening and it made me feel so special.  It was also pretty funny.  That was a foretaste of our future; Mike can really make me laugh! 

We called our families that night but for some reason, I kept our engagement a secret from my friends for several days.  I went back to my dorm room that night and told no one.  I was kind of surprised at myself but for some reason it just felt like such a delicious secret and I wanted to savor it a bit.  A few days later my friend, Laura, noticed my engagement ring and the secret was out.  That was a fun moment as well!

I am so glad that I said "yes" that night.    I feel very privileged to have been chosen by this remarkable man!  We have been through a lot together.  We have grown together.  We have written our story together.  I love going through this life by his side! 

Kk

Happy New Year!  May 2012 be a great year for you and your's!

If you are new to this blog, I am offering a homemade gift to anyone who reports to me that they learned the ABC's of Bible Memorization.  Click on the link to see all the verses at once, or check  in each Sunday for a new verse.  Today, we are on K...

Psalm 100:3 Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

 I love to travel.  I really don't do that much of it but I hope to do more someday.  I really like the idea of seeing exotic places.  I was thinking about that recently when we were driving home from my Mom's house.  Our travel covered about 120 miles of the middle of Wyoming.  It is a drive I really enjoy but I have heard others who comment that it is a boring drive with nothing to see.

What I love about the middle of Wyoming is all the wide open spaces.  I find it to be prettiest in the warmer months but the winter scene is fascinating to me as well.  For one thing, it is so very barren.  My great grandparents homesteaded in this area.  I think that must have been pretty scary!  They came there from North Carolina where it is warmer and a LOT greener.  There must have been some trial and error as they learned what they could grow in Wyoming.  They had children; my own Grandma Rose was an infant.  I am sure that there was fear.  Apparently I come from some hearty stock!

Anyway, as I was looking out the window, thinking about exotic places I'd like to see, I realized that there are a lot of people in this world who never will see the expansive views of Wyoming.  There are people who would be so excited to see a herd of antelope or a golden eagle sitting on the fence post.  There are people who live surrounded by so many buildings or trees that they never get to have their eyes stretch over a view miles away.  It occurred to me that THIS is an exotic place to some folks.  So, I started snapping some photos from the car window.  I hope you enjoy this little exotic trip through the center of Wyoming.


For my readers who don't live where there is a lot of snow, this is a snow fence.  It helps catch blowing snow, placing the drifts on the prairie rather than across the road.  It helps some anyway.

If you look carefully, you can see the snow-capped mountains in the background.  We weren't travelling through the mountains that day but they were visible.

I love this scruffy tree.  When trees are sparse, you really notice their character as individual trees.

Wyoming is known for its cowboys.  Where there are cowboys, there are often (not always) cows.  This is their pantry.

It looks like nothing could live out there but it supports lots of animals, including antelope, deer, fox, gophers, sheep, birds and much more.  I didn't get any pictures of buffalo that day but there are some buffalo herds in that area.

This bridge is rather curious to me.  It didn't seem to have a road that goes to it.

There are lots of weird roch formations in this part of the country.

They drill for oil all over Wyoming.

This is a small version but that is an oil pump.  This area is the teapot dome.  Have you ever heard of the Teapot Dome Scandal? 

Thanks for coming along!

How to Wear a Scarf

 I really love scarves.  I love to make them and I love to wear them.  However, I only knew a few ways to wear them....that is, until now!

I don't follow fashion blogs but somehow I ran across a blog by a young woman named Wendy.    She also does videos for YouTube and one of them shows some really fun and EASY ways to wear a scarf.  Interested?  Well, check this out!  Even if you never plan to wear a scarf, it is still a charming video.

Also, I just want to say that I am pretty impressed with myself for figuring out how to imbed this video.   I'm just sayin'......

Shopping Takes a Lot out of a Girl!

I'm not really very fond of shopping but I have to say that shopping with Cordelia is a very fun adventure.

She is interested in EVERYTHING and discusses it all as we stroll around the store.  Her cuteness is dazzling.

Apparently, though, it is exhausting to be so dazzling.







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Looking at this Life from an Eternal Perspective

I have been having a joyfully busy life lately.  I am especially grateful for the time spent with family.  I am so appreciative that our son and daughter-in-law, Ben and Sara, were able to come for a visit!  The day after they left, I got to have a Christmas meal with my Mom and my sister and her family.  That hasn't happened since the 1980's!


During these busy times, though, I've not made time to check in on some of my blog friends.  This morning I checked in on Janine's blog, Love in Action.  Janine's baby son died 3 months ago.  She and her family are living with the pain of that loss.  On her blog today, as she shares her journey of mourning, she wrote this, "The only thing that brings my heart peace is looking at this life from an eternal perspective."


Isn't that so very true?  From an eternal perspective, this life is just a blip on a vast timeline, a timeline that stretches so far to the right there is no end.  This knowledge brings peace to me during times of stress or sorrow.  I know the miserable times won't last forever.  It is also welcome knowledge during times of joy as I know that after this life, joyful times will be unending!

    

A Bassoon Concert

Have you ever heard a Bassoon?  They are beautiful instruments!  They are beautiful to look at and really cool to hear.  My niece is an amazing musician and plays many different instruments.  I think the bassoon is her favorite, though, and we convinced her last night to lets us hear her play.  I wish I would have recorded it but you can hear someone else play a bassoon if you click here.

We also just learned that Stephanie has been chosen to be the concert contralto bassoonist for a symphony.  Congratulations to Stephanie!

Did you all have a lovely Christmas Day?  Do you open presents on Christmas Day or Christmas Eve?  


Mike's family was a Christmas Eve kind of family.  My family was a Christmas morning kind of family.  We've done it both ways over the years but since Mike became a pastor and was always busy with Christmas Eve Services we pretty much stuck with Christmas morning for a more relaxed time to open them.  This year, with Christmas being on a Sunday morning, we probably should have rethought that but we didn't.


Yesterday morning we got up early.  I made some Christmas cinnamon rolls that seem to have become part of our tradition.  I just use regular bread dough.  I made it in my bread machine Saturday night but you could even use frozen bread dough from the store.  I roll it out, spread butter on it and sprinkle a lot of brown sugar and cinnamon on it.  I roll it up, slice it and place the rolls into a buttered pan.  That is when the best part comes into play.  In a small pan I boil a stick of butter, a cup of brown sugar and a cup of vanilla ice cream... yes, I said ice cream.  Boil it awhile and then pour it over the top of the rolls.  Cover the rolls with aluminum foil, plastic wrap or whatever and put it in the fridge.  In the morning, bake it at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or so, until the center ones look done.  I flip it out onto a cookie sheet and let the goo pour down all over it again.  It is sooooooo good!  I have made up a vegan version of them now.  Instead of butter I use Smart Balance Light.  I substituted coconut ice cream but soy is fine.  Either way, it is yummy!


We went over to Maria and Eric's house to open presents.  That was a first for us.  I love having traditions but I also think it is important to do things differently from time to time.  My theory is that if our children see that the world doesn't end if Christmas has to be done a bit differently, it will make their first Christmas away from us easier.  I have lots of theories on lots of things and will be happy to share more if you wish.


After opening stockings, gifts and eating our cinnamon roll breakfast Sam went home as he was starting to feel ill.  We've had a nasty cold circulating through the family.  The rest of us went to church and by the time that was over, Cordelia was running a fever.    


Mike and I headed a few hours out of town.  It has been years and years since I had spent Christmas Day with my Mom and that was my wish for yesterday.  My sister, Tina, and her kids, Stephanie and Steven, were there as well.  They had to hold dinner for us quite awhile as we stopped along the way to help a family who's vehicle had broken down out in the middle of poor-to-no-cell-service Wyoming.  They had 4 little kids under the age of 5!  I don't think they were having their favorite Christmas Day but they were holding up impressively well.  Luckily the day was pretty warm and eventually a tow truck was finally summoned.


Anyway, we had a very busy but lovely Christmas Day.  Here's the photographic proof...

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A Love Worth Giving

The following is taken from A Love worth Giving to You at Christmas by Max Lucado...

"My prayer for you this season of giving is that you will receive God's love and accept your place as a dearly loved child in his heavenly family.  Accept the love that came in the form of a newborn baby.  Accept the forgiveness and grace bought for you through the cruel, nail-piercing reality of the Cross.  Accept his love won for you through the victory of his resurrection.  Let his love worth giving fill you, flood you, and change you forever.  Live in the knowledge and acceptance of this love.  Live loved.

Remember, God loves you simply because he has chosen to do so.

He loves you when you don't feel lovely.

He loves you when no one else loves you.  Others may abandon you, divorce you, and ignore you, but God will love you.  Always.  No matter what.

 

It is love worth giving.  To you."

Merry Christmas to you.  May you feel totally and completely loved this day.

Friday Fun

Friday was probably the best day of the visit this week with Ben and Sara as both were feeling better.  They'd both had sore throats and head colds.  Yesterday afternoon I went to a wildlife museum with them, which I quite enjoyed.  Ben grew antlers and was snatched up by an eagle.  Thanks to Sara, I have the photos to prove it!

We had a nice time.   It was good to be together!

From there we went over to play with Maria and Cordelia.  Ben wanted to make a snowman with Cordy.  Unfortunately, the snow was so powdery it was like trying to make a snowman out of sand.  Ben showed some heroic perseverence, though.

While Ben worked on the little snowman, Sara drew one for Cordy...

Cordelia appreciated both versions of a snowman.  I think she loved having her aunt and uncle there to play with her.  She may not always remember this day but somewhere in her mind I like to think she will always have the knowledge of how much they care for her.

Lessons in the Storage Room

Last Sunday the children in our church put on a delightful Christmas Program.  I took photos but I did not get permission from parents to put the cute faces of their offspring online so I will just tell you about it.  There were cute little angels, shepherds, Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus and all the others.  We had child musicians on drums, clarinet and even a soloist singing "Let There Be Peace on Earth".  It was just adorable.  I love it when little people get a hold of a microphone!

After the program we had a birthday party for Jesus.  The children had games, treats and crafts.  My personal favorite of the games was Pin the Hay on the Manger!

After the party, of course, was the clean-up.   I was helping put away the costumes.  Since moving into our new church building a few years ago we have a wonderful storage area.  Putting away the costumes used to involve packing too many storage containers into too small of a storage shed.  Now, we have ample storage places and we can even hang up all the costumes so that next year no one has to iron them.  We are grateful for this! 

It was up in that storage area that I found the best lesson of the day.

We have bare crosses up through Lent and then the white flowers beautifully decorating this one for Easter Day.  Right now, they are just stored out of sight.  It isn't time to put the emphasis on the cross; it's time to put the emphasis on the joy of the manger.  In the midst of that joy, though, I can't help but think of what was waiting for that cute baby in the manger.  The birth story is lovely and miraculous, but we already know that the baby lying there has a rough road ahead.  While we are celebrating Christmas, maybe it is ok to keep that in the back of our minds.

He was sent for a very specific purpose. 

He was sent as a sacrifice.

He was sent out of love for us.

Christmas List

Mike's family tradition for Christmas gifts involved making lists of what you wanted for Christmas so the purchaser of the gift just had to go shopping from that list.   Do any of you do that?  That makes sense for the  kids, I think, as they always had a certain toy or something that was filling their dreams.  It was fun to get them exactly what they were wanting.

For me, though, I have always found it difficult to cooperate with his request for a list from me.  It takes away that element of surprise I guess.  I love getting gifts that are totally unexpected, something that says the purchaser saw something cool and thought of me.  However, that is hard to do, especially when rushed.  I know that feeling of panic when nothing seems like just the right gift so I can see that a list can be helpful.

I tried to think of something I could use.  I thought about my closet.  It is FULL.  Sure, I have many times when I don't see just what I want to wear but I definitely have more clothes than I need.

I looked around the rest of the house and what I saw was a house full of stuff.  I have too much stuff!  I have to organize stuff, clean stuff, dust around stuff, put away stuff and find stuff among the stuff.  Sometimes I feel burdened by my stuff.  Do any of you ever feel that way?

That's when it came to me! 

For Christmas, I asked Mike to take away stuff from me!

I was proud of myself but for some reason that didn't go over with Mike.  That's just as well.  He might take away the wrong stuff.

Decorating the Tree

It has been a long time since all of our kids were home to decorate the Christmas tree.  The first year Maria went to college I was excited as the time approached for her to come home for the holidays.  My plan was to have the house all Christmasy when she walked in but the boys were adamant that I wait for Maria to help with the decorating.  I thought it was so sweet.

Mike got "John Denver and the Muppets" going with the volume at an exuberant level.  I'd set the tree up the night before, with help from Bode.  The lights were on and it was time to go through the ornaments. 

We have some really lovely ornaments, but you've all seen lovely ornaments before.  I want to show you our most interesting ornament...

This is a guy on a camel made out of pipecleaners.  I don't remember the whole story but our son-in-law, Eric, made this years ago.  I remember that he was new to the family and was noticing we had a lot of handmade ornaments.  He was goofing around and came up with this lovely deal.  I am certain he did not realize we'd think it was so funny we'd use it until the end of time!  The camel doesn't look too camelish anymore, but it makes me smile.  It makes our tree different from that of any other family! 

Does you family have any weird (sorry Eric) ornaments?

...or weird traditions?

Today I am thinking especially about my Grandma Rose.  I got to have my grandma in my life for almost 53 years.  I am so grateful for that fact.  Still, I selfishly wanted more.

Last year on this day my Mom called me to tell me Grandma Rose was dying.  I got in the car and drove up to the town where she lives.  When I arrived my Mom, my aunt and my cousin were with her.  I couldn't find a way to be close to her so I just climbed up on her bed and lay near her on top of the blankets.  Grandma fussed because she thought I would be cold on top of the covers.  I assured her I was fine but in true Grandma Rose fashion she needed to be the hostess.  She couldn't get up but she showed me where there was an extra blanket so I cuddled up under it and she relaxed.  I will always treasure that memory of Grandma taking care of me like that just an hour or so before she died.  She was a remarkable woman.

Grandma Rose loved babies.  She loved her garden.  She loved hand crafts; our shop, Wyoming Rose, is named after her.  She loved reading.  She loved following the political scene.  She loved reading her Bible.  Most importantly, Grandma Rose loved God.  She passed that on to her children and to her grandkids.  For that, I am most grateful.

There are a lot of us descendents of this beautiful woman.

She had a big impact on our lives.

We miss her.

I miss her.