Can You See the Wind?

Each month, I recieve email updates from a parenting website about milestones that my children should be encountering.  One of the more recent 4 year old updates told me that my child will become an investigative reporter wanting to know the who, what, when, where, and why of every situation. THAT is an understatement!

I generally love questions from my Blue Bird. I like that she is thinking through things and discovering. I enjoy teaching her and explaining things...most of the time.  (Though, admittedly, in past weeks I have actually set a limit to the number of questions she is allowed to ask...It's funny to watch her weigh a question in effort to determine if it is worth using up one of her five allowable questions.)

The past two days, however, her questions have taken on depth that excites me. Yesterday, during lunch, she asked me a series of questions about how she came to be in our family:

A: "Why are some babies adopted?"
Me: "Sometimes mommies and daddies have a baby that they are unable to take care of, so they let another mommy and daddy take care of it."
A: "How was I adopted?"
Me: "You weren't adopted, Sweetie. You were born to Daddy and me."
A: "How was I born?"
Me: <deep breath to myself> "Daddy and I planned to have you and God put you in my belly.  Remember when Caedmon was in my belly and grew bigger and bigger? It was the same with you."
A: "How did I get out of your belly?"
Many of you are smiling here. :)  I'll not tell you my exact words, but I ended up assuring her that she did not come out of my feet. And she ended the conversation by saying, "I bet it hurts."  :) Um...yeah...it does, my Dear! :)

Today our conversation was more eternally focused.  We were eating a snack and listening to praise and worship music. The particular song started out soft and slow and gradually built up. 

A: "Why does the music get bigger?"
Me: "Because the singers are excited."
A: "How can we be excited about something that we can't see?"
Me: "That's a very good question. Let me think about my answer for a minute." <quick prayer for wisdom!>
I took her outside onto the step. I told her to close her eyes and tell me what she feels. 
A:  <giggling> "The wind blowing my hair into my face."
Me: "Open your eyes. Can you see the wind?"
A: "No"
Me: "How do you know it was the wind?"
A: "I can see it moving things."
Me: "Jesus is like the wind. You can't see the wind, but you can see the effects of the wind. You can see the grass moving and the trees moving and feel the hair blowing on your face."
A: "I can see the wind blowing your hair!"
Me: "Right!  Like that, we can't see Jesus, but we can see Jesus doing things around us. We can feel Him in our hearts." 

And through that amazingly open door into Abby's heart, I was able to walk in and share with her about my relationship with Jesus. I talked with her about spending time with Jesus by reading my Bible and praying. I told her about how He helps me make decisions and teaches me.

She soon was off the step playing in the wind and acting out the story of Robin Hood. I continued to sit in awe of the moment. I remembered a day when she was about 3 months old. I placed her in a baby carrier and took a walk. I was so afraid that day about how I would tell her about Jesus. What if I messed up or said the wrong thing? What if I ruined her for life, for eternity? I have prayed and prayed for wisdom in raising her. Today, I experienced an answer from Jesus.

I reflected on the love I feel for her. Love. You can't see it. You can't measure it. But when you experience it, you KNOW what it is.

What's Cookin' at the Campbell's

The bad news is: I went over my grocery budget last week.
The good news is: It all evens out. Because I bought such a HUGE ham (I got caught up in the excitement of cooking Easter dinner for extended family), I will not need to go to the grocery store this week.

And this will be a short cooking week for me because we are going to North Carolina for the weekend. Dear Husband is presenting a paper at ISCA (International Society for Christian Apologetics). His paper is entitled "The Concept of God and the Problem of Evil".  So proud to see his name on the ISCA Meeting Schedule!

 The kids and I will be hanging out at the hotel pool! (Tune in next week to find out how I entertain two little ones in a hotel for a weekend!) We will end the week with a wonderful visit with my dear friend Karen, her husband and precious new baby girl! So exciting!!

So here is my attempt to use up 10lbs of ham in 3 days! :)
Monday: Leftovers from Easter dinner.  Ham, baked beans, corn, cucumbers and tomatoes and rolls
Tuesday:  Ham and swiss casserole from allrecipes.com (Caedmon will simply have ham and noodles with Mrs. Dash)
Wednesday: Breakfast for dinner! Scrambled eggs with ham, green peppers, onions and tomatoes, bacon and biscuits.
Thursday-Sunday:  Ham sandwiches?  Haha!  In all seriousness, we are planning to eat cheap by taking bread, peanut butter (I found peanut-free peanut butter for Caed!), fruit cups, apples for lunches and not quite sure about dinners yet. 

I hope I can find a sale on chicken next week! :)

Biscuits

Caedmon is a picky eater...and since there is very little he can actually eat due to allergies, I'm always thrilled to have a fall back food that he almost always will eat. My biscuits are one such food.  It makes me feel good that my little boy, loves my biscuits! :) (Note: note the healthiest of choices...so I do try to limit him!)

3 cups of Martha White flour (I used to use Greater Value...but recently tried MW and there REALLY is a difference!)
4 tablespoons of shortening
water

Preheat oven to 425.

Pour 1/8 cup of canola oil into the biscuit pan.

Mix ingredients, I simply "eye" the amount of water. Add until doughy consistency. 
Lay out a mat or wax paper and coat with flour. Kneed dough until mixed well. Flatten and sprinkle flour on top.
Using round cookie cutter, cut biscuits out of dough.
Use the oil in the pan to coat both sides of biscuit.
Bake biscuits for 22 mins.
Broil on high for 1 1/2 minutes to brown tops of biscuits. (time may vary depending upon your oven.)

Serve with dairy free butter, apple butter, or honey.

Chicken Stir Fry with Rice

Courtesy of Kim Weatherford

1 lb chicken, cubed
3 eggs
1-2 cups of whole grain rice
1small  bag of mixed frozen veggies (we've used stir-fry mix with green beans, broccoli, etc or peas, corn and carrots are good too!)

Begin cooking rice in a pot according to package directions. (I add dairy free butter and a touch of salt).
Lightly coat the skillet with olive oil, salt and pepper. Saute chicken until cooked through. Add veggies and continue to saute until chicken is browned and veggies are cooked. Remove from pan and set aside.

Scramble eggs then add chicken and vegggies. Once rice is cooked, add rice.

Top with favorite seasoning or soy sauce or both!

Taco Rice Skillet Recipe

Courtesy of Jeannie Elkins

1 lb hamburger
Chopped onion (however much you want. I use 1 med. onion)
1 Envelope taco seasoning
1Can diced tomatoes (drain most of the juice off)
1 Cup instant white rice
1 Cup water

Brown burger and onion. Drain. Add rice, water, tomatoes and taco seasoning. Stir, cover, simmer on med-low for about 15 min stirring a couple of times until all liquid is absorbed. Serve with tostio chips or use as a filler for taco salads or soft tacos

Variations:
-top with shredded cheese
-sour cream
-add a small can of mexi-corn

This is one of our family's favorites!!

Note for Dairy Free Living: Taco Seasoning contains milk, as does the cheese and sour cream (obviously). When making this dish, I brown the burger and onions, add tomatoes, corn, rice and water, then simmer for 10 minutes and pull out a serving for Caedmon.  Then I add seasoning and cheese and more water if needed. Top with sour cream! YUM!!

What's Cookin' at the Campbell's

Here's our menu for the week:

Tuesday: Grilled hotdogs, grilled corn on the cob
Wednesday: Taco Rice Skillet (recipe courtesy of Jeannie Elkins), Caedmon will have a cheeseless version.
Thursday: Chicken Stir-fry with Rice and Veggies (recipe courtesy of Kim Weatherford)
Friday: Breakfast for dinner (my favorite!), quishe, turkey bacon, biscuits and of course coffee!
Saturday: Beans, corn bread, fried potatos, sliced tomatoes (My in-laws from WV are coming to town, so it will be good old fashioned fun!)
Sunday: HE IS RISEN!  Happy Easter!  We'll be having ham, mashed potatos, green beans,carrots with brown sugar, and rolls (dessert: Hershey Ice Cream Pie)
Monday: Spaghetti bake with meat sauce and garlic bread (dairy free butter)

What's cooking at your house?

"Debbie and the Long, Drama-Filled, Whiny, Patience-Wavering Kind of Day"

I'm 31 years old...and still, one of my very favorite books to read after a long, rough day is Judith Viorst's version of "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day".  I love to get under my plush red blanket and read this book, taking careful note of the illustrations on each page. I can so relate.  Here's my version:

"After I put the kids to bed, finished the dishes, folded the laundry, swept the floor and fed the guinea pig, I sat down to read a long awaited novel.  This luxury, however, caused me to go to  bed entirely too late. I did not hear my alarm at 5:30 and slept through my quiet time.  I awoke with a start to two little faces staring at me within inches of my nose. They are hungry. I roll out of bed and trip over a doll stroller and slip on a toy car and by mistake step on the dog.  Once in the kitchen, I spill my coffee all over the counter and both kids are making a list of things I need to do for them IMMEDIATELY . I could tell that it was going to be a long, drama-filled, whiny, patience-wavering kind of day.

"At breakfast, Blue Bird wanted waffles.  Cave Man wanted candy. Husband wanted eggs. Dog wanted out. I simply wanted a sip of my coffee.  I gave them all cereal.  All but Husband protested.

"I think I"ll move to Hawaii.

"After breakfast I had 30 minutes to get the kids ready to leave the house.  But then, Cave Man removed his diaper and got poo all over the bathroom floor.  Blue Bird talked non-stop while I cleaned up the bathroom floor.  Cave Man refused to wear anything except his Choo-Choo train pajamas and Blue Bird refused to wear anything that was not a costume.  I did not have time to change my shirt but did manage to pull on some jeans. Neither kid would brush their teeth. Blue Bird cried about injustices while I brushed her hair and Cave Man ran through the house with a roll of toilet paper streaming behind him.   I left the house 45 minutes later, with Spider Girl and Pajama Boy by my side. Where did I put that cup of coffee?

"I could tell it was going to be a long, drama-filled, whiny, patience-wavering kind of day. At least I had enough time to put soup into the crock pot for dinner.

"At playgroup, everyones kids looked clean and groomed. I noticed that other mothers had neat hair styles and remembered that I forgot to brush my teeth. Children played all around us. My two kids clung to me like a life preserver.  'Go play!' I told them. 'Go see your friends. Climb up the slide.' I said.  But they only wanted to sit on my lap.

"Other mothers brought healthy and fun snacks like cheese and crackers and gold fish.  Guess who only packed juice.  Children  all over the play ground ate one crumbly cracker after another. Guess whose kids were singled out by the custodian and forced to take their juice outside the play area.

"I could tell it was going to be long, drama-filled, whiny, patience-wavering kind of day.

"I could tell because after play group I took the kids to Wal-Mart to buy only a few groceries. Both kids were sitting in the cart and could not keep from touching each other. Cave Man refused to sit on his bum. Blue Bird would not stop whining.  Each child began to pick at one another until I lost my cool and leaned in very closely to whisper threats that would scare an Army General. 'If you don't stop touching one another...if you don't stop whining...if you don't sit down right now...you will lose every single toy you've ever owned once we get home.

"I ended up leaving the store with 0 items on my list and 5 other items extra.

"'I hope you grow up to have 5 kids each just like you' I grumbled. "I hope you each have to fly in an airplane with all 5 kids to visit me in Hawaii."

"We stopped at McDonald's for lunch.  I bought the kids happy meals but they were out of the super hero toys so the kids had to settle for 3 and under toys. They were out of hazelnut flavoring so I had to have my iced coffee plain. I hate plain iced coffee. 'I'll bet they have hazelnut in Hawaii' I told the drive-thru worker.

"It was a long, drama-filled, whiny, patience-wavering kind of day.

"I had one more stop to make before heading home but both kids were melting down as I drove so I decided it could wait. I was eager to get home so that I could put the kids to bed for a nice long nap. I day- dreamed all the way home about getting to take a nap myself.  But both kids fell asleep in the car and even though I was SO careful not to wake them and they were fast asleep as I carried them into the house, their eyes sprang open as soon as their precious little heads hit the pillow. A 15 minute nap in the car is not fair for anyone. It only gives enough rest to aggravate. I wonder if people in Hawaii nap?

"We tried to play outside but Blue Bird got bit by a bug and cried.  Cave Man wanted every toy that Blue Bird held and then cried. And of course it started to rain. Inside the house, I tried to get creative. But Cave Man ate the play dough.  I thought we could play with the dog, but Sophie would not sit still long enough for Blue Bird to play salon or for Cave Man to ride her like a horse. After Cave Man bit the dog, Sophie begged to go outside...even in the rain. I do not blame her. I wanted to go too!

"'I am having a  long, drama-filled, whiny, patience-wavering kind of day' I said.  No one even heard me.

"At dinner I realized the crock pot had been unplugged. The soup was not cooked. I poured it into a pot and set it on the stove. I turned on the water and began to fill the sink for dishes. The kids began arguing over which dvd to watch. I go to the living room to practice conflict resolution. I return to the kitchen to find the sink over flowing with sudsy water and the pot of soup burning on the stove.

"It would have been a great night for pizza. But we are on a tight budget so burned soup was the meal for the evening. Both kids complained and ate very little. I ate very little too. For once, their complaints were well founded.

"I got soap in Blue Bird's eyes at bath time and even while she was still crying, Cave Man bit her arm. Blue Bird wanted nothing to do with the water for the rest of bath time and Cave Man had to be pulled from the tub kicking and screaming. A wiggly, wet child is difficult to contain. I left the bathroom drenched.

"'I think I'll move to Hawaii' I say to Husband as I pass him in the hall.

"At bedtime, they both want water. Blue Bird has to use the bathroom...AGAIN! The stories are too short and the prayer time too long.  They want me to sing songs that I do not even know.  The night lights have low batteries and we are out of AAA's.  I kiss them both goodnight and head for the couch.

"It has been  a long, drama-filled, whiny, patience-wavering kind of day.

"Husband says some days are like that. 

"Even in Hawaii."


***End Note: It's true that some days are "just like that" for every parent.  This was meant to be a funny exaggeration of a typical day.  But I have to admit, even after a long, hard day...nothing gives me more pleasure than hearing my kids say, "I love you, Mommy." just before bed. I am blessed!