2012 Photo Review

Even photos can't adequately describe how full and blessed our life has been...is.  And it would take more space than I have, and more patience than you have, to tell you all that we've lived this year.  It has had it's struggles, of course.  I'm not one for reviewing things by the year, per se, but I can look back and see how God has made hard things, even bad things, Good for us.  On this earth, we should not be asking "why is there suffering?" but rather, "why is there so much beauty, joy, hope, love?"  I can only say that it is my faith in a God that causes Ultimate Good for His kingdom, which allows me to believe that only a loving God can overcome all the selfishness, violence & hatred that reeks all of our hearts.

I have had many thoughts swirling in my head, but almost too much to put into readable bits on this blog.  I don't make New Years' resolutions, nor resolutions at all.  But I do hope that I can keep working on my writing and share again, some of my thoughts with you.

So, here's our 2012 in photos.  It's a small way to share my life with you.

JANUARY

The boy is showing a musical inclination and starts teaching himself on his 3/4 size Yamaha, not just "air guitar" on a toy, like when he was little. 

 

The boy loves snow. At the first forecast, he's ready and waiting. Even if it's 7 in the morning

 

FEBRUARY

Not sure how this happened, but it was my birthday, but he got a new bike!

More treasured time with our host student from Korea, who counts oboe as one of her many talents.  Here, at District Orchestra.  In the 4 years, she's become our daughter and Boo's big sister. 

MARCH

 ... the returning hope of Spring

Chess club continues into Spring, and he ranks 2nd.

APRIL

Grandma comes to visit!

April flowers...

 

MAY

Science Fair project on Penguins!  Can you guess which is the real penguin?

...and an epic milestone college reunion! 

And we even went on a date!

 JUNE

Showing his Hopper-ish work (top.)  And the end (for now) of his 5-years at this Christian school.

 

...and the boy turns 10:

JULY

A month of camps!

Bible Camp with friends:
 

Hideaway Day Camp - the awesomest outdoor day camp around!

 

Environment Camp!

 

And a great story about his counselors, C&M:

C&M's grandparents were good friends with J's grandparents while at Penn State and were in the same field.  Then C&M's dad, and J's dad meet at a conference in their common field, and go on to become great friends.  C&M have known J since he was a baby, just arrived from Korea.  So in 2012, C&M were J's counselors!  They don't seem destined to enter the same field - C&M being interested in politics and J interested in architecture.  But maybe J could design them a house?

 

In between, an unusual but welcomed visit from Uncle Paul & fam from Lanna, Jo-jah!

Our beautiful gardens courtesy of HH, and Boo!

AUGUST

Many hours at the pool!  This year, with the encouragement of a friend, he tested to be allowed in the deep end, which meant hours and hours jumping off the diving board!

SEPTEMBER

Lots of excitement!

What has become our tradition - time on Cape Cod - this year during Labor Day week.

Through the years at Mashpee Commons:

 

Stand-up Paddle Boarding ("Supping")

 

(yes, that is my leg - just to prove I was there, too!)

AND the biggest changes of all:  HOME SCHOOLING!

PE at our home school co-op:

OCTOBER

 October may be the beginning of Autumn to you, but to Boo, it only means one thing: 

Fire Prevention Month!

NOVEMBER

For even Boo, November still means Thanksgiving:

but the best part isn't turkey, but being with grandma:

DECEMBER

2013

Hoping for elaborate, generous, abundant grace & peace.

Bad Enough

I've drastically altered how and what we eat in our household over the years.  I believe what we eat is really important, which may sound really obvious.  But if it's so obvious, then why don't more people eat healthy?  I have faced many crossed-arms of closed-mindedness and sardonic looks of disbelief, verging on the eye roll whenever I bring up the notion of Real food or Slow Food, as if I were some far-out Birkie-wearing crunchy granola.  WHICH I'M NOT!  (Not that there's anything wrong with that.) Anyone who writes for a fashion blog by definition, can't be!!

It's not just about whether the food is organic or not, because it's about more than that, but for argument's sake, or a brief blog post's sake, let's say organic food vs. industrialized food.

I realized it's not just that people have to believe organic is better, because I think people do.  It's that they have to believe the industrialized food is bad, or bad enough to make the extra trip, make the effort, pay the extra.  Otherwise, why change?

Why fix somthin' that ain't broked?

I had a long talk with a friend today.  She's seriously considering breaking up her very serious relationship.  He has a serious, congenital health problem that can be dramatically improved by lifestyle changes.  But he won't.  Seriously.  I guess he wants to keep cheating death, but he has to buy into the notion that the lifestyle he's living now is bad, or bad enough to make the change worthwhile.  Right now, he doesn't believe that it's bad enough - for his children, for my friend, for her children...for himself.  It makes me wonder if he values himself.

A former boss wanted to write a little book on change.  He wanted me to do some reseacth and thinking about it.  I was really stumped.  Within the context of Christianity, long-lasting change with regard to the essense of who we are, is impossible without Christ.  We have a Genesis-borne tendancy to deny God's importance in our lives and do what is good in our own eyes.

Change, in terms of day-to-day habits that do not go to the core of our Nature, can be accomplished,  because WE VALUE OURSELVES over all else.  If we believe that what we are doing/saying/living/eating is bad, or bad enough, we will change, to survive..  Maybe it's just the primal survival of the fittest.

These are my thoughts of the day.  More to come...

Until then, enjoy the holiday weekend.  Be positive, be useful, be safe.

A Shard of Eden

Every Wednesday afternoon, Boo and I make our trip to "The Farm," as we call it.  It's a place about 7 miles from our house, where's we've joined as CSA members.  Every Wednesday, we get our share of vegetables and fruit that are organically grown, bio-diversely farmed, sprouting from non-GMO heirloom seeds.

Boo says hello to the chickens

and walks around with me and Farmer Heather as she gets us our share of greens.  This is in addition to the tomatoes, beans, cucumbers, plums, peppers and the rest of our share of what is currently flourishing.  We also get a dozen or two of healthy eggs, some Farmer-made jams, pickles and such. 

I enjoy finding out, by email, what will fill our cupboard each week.  I love that Jinsok knows where his food comes from.  I love he knows who grows his food, that she works hard, that food comes in cycles and seasons, that sometimes they grow well and sometimes they don't.  But that each time we make our 7 mile trek, we're getting something really fresh - like 1 minute fresh - and that no chemicals are leeching into the waters.

I was hoping that joining a CSA would inspire me to cook more at home.  And it's working!!  Fortunately we like a variety of greens and we like our food rather simply prepared.  Tonight we had (grass-fed) beef and sage sausages, beans, Swiss shard (chard) with some Ezekiel bread.

Make sure there are no bugs in the shard!

Cook the stems first in raw coconut oil and garlic; add the leafy parts and add soup soy sauce to taste.

Feed child.

Strawberry Fields Forever

One of our favorite things to do - a sure sign of summer: pick-your-own strawberries.  There's an organic farm over the river and through the woods that we go to.  With Boo traipsing through the rows and eating right off the plants, I'm glad they're pesticide free.  He might end up eating a bug or two, but, eh!  Even the Husband went, but I didn't get any pics of him.
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[There is just no way to be stylish when going to the farm.]

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.[There

Mountain Sunshine

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Sierra Mist Natural

What makes it "natural?"  Real lemon and lime juices? Spring water? Organic something?  anything?

Noooooooo.  It's made with REAL SUGAR.  That is what makes it natural.

Sugar.  You know, the addictive stuff that is sprayed with chemicals, poisons our land [and therefore water,] threatens the health of the workers... you know the stuff that is processed and bleached, and subsidized by our government?  Yeah, THAT sugar.

Natural!

Vietnamese Food 310: Lettuce Wrap

If you've taken Vietnamese Food 101 and 201, Beyond Pho (which, if you haven't heard by now, is pronounced Phu.)  You're ready to move onto the 300-level upper class courses.  No prerequisites.  Just your charge card.

HH and I love Vietnamese food.  We haven't met one we don't like yet.  We love the combination of sweet and sour, mild and hot, rich and light, all in one bite!  We learned about this place Pho Hoa, which is actually a chain.  The meat was grilled to perfection, the greens were just-picked fresh and the interior...well, let's just end the comments there.  Any how!  Here we go...

Bún chả Hanoi, or Lettuce Wrap

Look at this spread!  On the left is my grilled pork, on top of bite-size rectangles of rice noodles and garnished with scallions and crushed peanuts.  At the upper right you can see HH's - similar to mine except with grilled shrimp.  I think you can order chicken, too, and maybe you can get a tofu version?  Here's a better photo below.  That big platter of greens has lettuce, Thai basil, mint and perilla, known to Japanese as shiso.  You can see also some slivers of carrot and radish which have been seasoned in a sweet vinegar.  The dressing in the little bowls are made of vinegar, fish sauce, red pepper and sugar.  It gives just the zing to keep every bite fresh and interesting.

HH had grilled shrimp

I always get grilled pork

Get the green(s) you want

Add rice noodles, meat, fixings, and vinegar dressing...

I'm making a bite with perilla (shiso) and mint...

And eat!!

Leave your American-western-European-heritage manners at the door, open wide and take a BIG bite. You'll be glad.  So many flavors and textures in one mouthful!

Bun Cha Hanoi, or Pork Lettuce Wrap.