New Year's Kuka ( aka Olie Bollen )

All my life, New Year's Day has been the day to make and eat New Year's Kuka.

Now, before you go either correcting my German (because it's kuchen, not kuka) or telling me this stuff is called Olie Bollen, let me defend myself.  You know how families are...we say things differently and know precisely what is meant.  So, you say poTAYto and I say poTAWto and we're all still friends! ;)

Secondly, I had no idea these delicious doughnuts were of Dutch origin until last year when I mentioned our tradition on a forum and had another woman tell me they eat the same thing, but call them Oliebollen.  (I was somewhat surprised anyone else knew what I talking about.  As a kid, I learned early on that my family ate things NO ONE else in the entire town had heard of.)

Then, when searching for the spelling for this post, I ran across the name written as two separate words:  Olie Bollen.  See...different folks, different strokes...same yummy New Year's treat!

Here's the recipe so you can enjoy your own (and call them whatever you like!)

Amy's New Year's Kuka (cuz that's what my recipe card says!)
1 pkg yeast
1/2 c. lukewarm water
1/4 sugar
1/4 c. shortening
1 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
2 c. flour
1 c. raisins

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water.  Add sugar, shortening, salt, egg, & flour.  Mix well.  Fold in raisins and let dough rise to double.  Drop by tablespoonfuls into 400 degree oil in a deep fat fryer.  Fry until brown and done in the middle.  While warm, roll in sugar.

Eat them all gone for tomorrow we diet!

Happy New Year!

Husbands and Wives - What We Share

A year ago, I was in the throes of birthing our 6th child.  It was an emotional time for us as a couple.  Less than a year earlier we had watched our 5th child die, now we were moments from her younger brother being born.  2008 held misery.  The early morning hours of 2009 held healing.  We had come full circle, living through both extreme grief and extreme joy.

A few months after the death of our daughter and a few months into my pregnancy with our son, I had a dream.  It was one of those chaotic early pregnancy dreams.  I wanted to divorce my husband and marry another.  However, when I looked at this man, my real husband, who shared the memories of the birth and the death of my precious little Emily, I knew I could never walk away from him.  The worst day of my life was the worst day of his life.  I awoke from that dream in tears.

A husband and wife share not only a bed, but life events.  His pain is my pain.  His joy is my joy.  The babies I've birthed have been his babies too.  And the child I buried, he buried as well.

It is easy to get caught up in our differences.  It is easy to proclaim, "He just doesn't understand me!"  It is easy to see everything from our own point of view and ignore the fact that circumstances that affect us affect our husbands as well.  The financial strains, the wayward child, the too-small house are all circumstances that each member of the family must deal with in their own way.  It is part of our story.  It is a section of the path the Lord has set before us.

I walk this road with my husband at my side.  Sometimes we are holding hands and all seems sun-shiny.  Other times he feels a million miles away and I trudge along, feeling sad and alone.  Yet when I glance over at him, I am able to see someone who knows the same joy and the same pain I know.  He knows the bliss of being the first pair of human hands to hold his child.  He knows the hot tears and heaving sobs of grief.  We share too much to break from the path and go our separate ways.

This post appeared At The Well on 12/31/09

Where Was I a Year Ago?

Find out today At The Well:

pssssst....HERE is a hint!

Christmas Reflections

For most, the celebrations are over and decorations are quickly finding their way back into storage tubs.  Not for us.

Having lived in a Swedish community for several years where Christmas decorations were not removed until January 13th on King Knut's Day, we adopted a later set-strike for the Christmas decor.  I want to savor it for as long as I can.

Espeically this year.

This Christmas season I made some poor choices until it was nearly too late.  I chose to become preoccupied for the first time in ...well, forever.

I've never understood those who speak of wildy-busy holidays that they find totally overwhelming.  I've always enjoyed everything about Christmastime.  But this year, things were different.

This year, I lost my focus.

The realization of that lost focus was a major contributor to me posting my 2009 Review and taking off for a while.  I needed to figure out what had happened and how to get back the focus I had lost.

I know I said "until next year", but all it took was a couple of days to reach an understanding.  And what I realized needed to be shared here.

I lost my balance.  Not the kind that causes you to fall off the balance beam in 4th grade gym class, but the kind that leaves you clinging to the sides of life petrified that the white-knuckled grip you hold won't last long.

I was "getting by" and things were still getting done, but I wasn't really enjoying any of it.  I was beginning to feel as if lots of other things "owned" me and my time, but all I really wanted to do was sit still and soak in the season.

This Christmas was spent at home.  On purpose.

We were snowed in to boot.  Perfect timing.

The blog was on auto-pilot and I had nowhere to be and nothing to do but enjoy my husband and children and RE-focus on my Savior's birth.

So, I leave you with a few pics from the quiver.  I pray your Christmas was blessed...

and focused!

 

 

Favorite Homeschooling Idea of the Year

Join the discussion in my BlogFrog community:

What's Your Favorite Homeschooling Idea of 2009?

Until Next Year...

The sun is setting on 2009.

It's been a year of healing for our family.  A new baby.  The one year anniversary of our daughter's home-going.  Returning to the places I was never sure I could return to.

The 3 year old got potty-trained.  I managed to put together a few sewing projects, but most of them were quick and easy since I found myself needing to regroup and refocus.

This blog also brought it's own blessings.  The readership here more than quadrupled in 2009!  (Welcome to all my new readers!  I hope you are blessed by what you read here.  I'm looking forward to getting to know all of you!)  I got a blog makeover (and hosted my first large-scale giveaway!) My header picture took on a new meaning.  I did my first ever series on Creative Writing.  I joined the team At The Well.  And just recently, I won a 6 month contract to write for a natural parenting internet company!

Our family started working on eating healthier (continues to be a work in progress) and my closet got a makeover.  I learned more about genealogy, wool longies, and driving a 15 passenger van!  I even learned something more about babywearing...a topic I already felt pretty well versed in!

I found myself climbing out of a crisis of faith that stemmed from losing Emily (I hope to write about that journey in 2010) toward a recommittment to raising children who see God's grace in me.  I learned to listen to my children and enjoy the blessing of children who actually like each other.

I gave all of you some of my favorite recipes, our If/Then Chart, a look into how we homeschool our littles, and the embarrassing and enlightening confession that a man taught me how to keep my kitchen clean! *gasp*

My husband stocked our freezer with buffalo meat and I stocked our pantry with my once-a-month shopping.

We loved, we laughed, we lived.

And now we rest...until next year.

Merry CHRISTmas All!

Cream Cheese Party Wreath

Have a party this season?

Try this:

Cream Cheese Party Wreath
2 pkgs (8oz) cream cheese, softened
1 pkg (8oz) shredded mild cheddar
1 Tbsp chopped red bell pepper
1 Tbsp finely chopped green onion
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp lemon juice
green olives, cut for garnish

Beat cream cheese and cheddar with electric mixer until well blended.  Add red pepper, green onion, Worcestershire and lemon juice.  Mix well and refrigerate for several hours.
Place drinking glass in center of serving platter.  Drop rounded tablespoonfuls of mixture around glass, working outward.  Remove glass and garnish with chopped green olives and pimentos to create holly effect.

I Am the Proud Owner of My Very Own Domain!

It's something I've tossed around for a while now, but didn't understand well enough to do.  Finally, a few days ago, I took the leap and...

Got my own domain!

I wanted the .com, but someone (who isn't using it, by the way) already owns it, so I "settled" for the .net.  I also had to learn a few things about CNAMEs and A NAMEs and all that jazz (yeah, I almost cried).  But, I figured it out just about midnight last night!

As you'll see nothing changed and nothing is missing and you can still get here from the blogspot address.  But I'll tell you what...it sure feels good to own my own piece of the internet!

So, *drumroll please*...

I am now officially residing at:

www.raisingarrows.net

(woo hoo!)

Travel Games...Without Pieces

photo courtesy of kevinzim

'Tis the season for traveling!  In fact, the last couple of days I've logged quite a bit of Windshield Time with my awesome husband and cute-as-a-button kids.  

Before we started driving a 15 passenger van, we found more often than not our precious little ones had managed to drag the entire contents of their rooms into the minivan.  Not cool when you have children packed in like sardines with no elbow room in a van that is piled to the ceiling with junk, beloved toys.

When the 15 passenger came home I knew something had to change or else we'd end up with not just the contents of their rooms in the van, but the contents of the rest of the house in the van.  I just couldn't hack the clutter.  So, I made a rule...

No more than 2 items per child in the van at any given time.

That equals 10 items...plenty to keep 'em busy, right?

To be honest, there are still times when they need something to do.  So, in the spirit of eradicating boredom, our family invented a myriad of travel games ...all without pieces!  (I do so love games without pieces!)

My kids and I spent some windshield time the other day brainstorming all our games, so here is the list:

• ABC - Find all the letters of the alphabet along the road.  This is a cooperative game where all the players search out billboards, license plates, restaurants, street signs, etc in the hopes of finding every single letter (no skipping or giving up allowed!) before reaching their destination.

• I Spy - Good old-fashioned game of "I Spy with my little eye something...orange."  Other players guess until someone discovers the answer.

• Last Letter-First Letter - Start the game with any word.  The last letter of that word is then used to begin the next word from the next player.  So, if CAT is the word, the next player has to start a word with "T".  If TURTLE is the word, then the next player has to begin their word with "E" and so and so forth.

• Color/Shape Hunt - Pick a color or a shape (or both!) and work together to find as many things along the road that shape and/or color.

• 20 Questions - One player thinks of an object and the rest of the players ask Yes or No questions until someone guesses the object correctly.

• Spell a Word - Similar to ABC, except you pick a word and then try to find the letters in that word in order.

• Penny Hawks - This game started in an act of desperation (too many voices in too small of a space!) and has become one of the kids' favorite games (probably because they get paid!)  The older kids get a penny (up to ten cents) for each hawk they spot.  The little kids just get a penny per bird of any kind.  You can choose any bird or landmark...make it hard if you're not in the mood to pay out!

• Rhyming Game - Mom or Dad pick a word and everyone takes turns coming up with a word that rhymes.  I say Mom and Dad pick out the word because inevitably if left up to a child to choose, he or she will want to have everyone rhyme with something like "hippopotamus".

• Spelling Bee - Just what it says it is.  Pick a word...have them spell it.  Great way for you homeschoolers to work in a little car-schooling!

•  Stories with Holes (also known as Lateral Thinking Puzzles) - A favorite of mine!  But beware, these are tough!  We have several books of these that we sometimes take along on trips, but I also have a few memorized as well.  One person gives the scenario and everyone else asks Yes or No questions until someone solves these sometimes outrageous brain-teasers.  Riddles can also be a good way to pass the time.  If you get good enough, you can make up your own.
  

Now, gather up your family, jump in the car, and play some games this busy travel season!

If you'd like to know what I pack for our family day trips, just click on the link!  And perhaps you are interested in how those of us sportin' 15 passenger vans organize the thing...read how Peace Creek mama does it.  Take the stress out of traveling this holiday season and enjoy the memories!

I Won! I Won!

Take a look at the left-hand sidebar, folks!  I'm still in shock!  (and seriously overjoyed!)

Thanks a million to all who voted for me!  I have the best readers in the world!

(and in case you are reading me in a feed reader, I'll have mercy on you and offer you the link to what all this hoopla is about: Winner of Blog To Inspire '09 )

Blessing to you all from a mama who is walking around with a big cheesy grin on her face! :)

Frugal Gift Wrapping

We'd all like to save money this holiday season.  Why not save it in the way you wrap your gifts?  Here are a few of my favorite frugal gift wrapping ideas...

1.  Save Boxes & Bags

Our recycling plan includes both corrugated cardboard and paperboard, so I have quite a few boxes on hand at any given time.  However, there are some select shapes and sizes I do not send to recycling because they are the right size for wrapping up presents.  These I break down and keep in the garage.  When they are broken down, they take up very little space and can easily be reassembled.

When you receive a gift in a gift bag, keep the gift bag for using again if it is still in good shape.  Which brings me to my next idea...

2.  Have a Gift Wrapping Storage Container

In our basement I keep a tub with all those saved bags, ribbon, and tissue paper, small boxes, and any other items I think might come in handy for dressing up gifts (beads, small flowers, etc).  This keeps everything neat and tidy and in easy reach when I need to quickly throw together a gift.

I also keep a Christmas wrapping box that is long and accommodates rolls of wrapping paper.  Included in that box are tape, scissors, and a pen.  That way I can just grab the box when I'm ready to wrap presents instead of hunting for all sorts of paraphernalia.

3.  Buy on Sale
After the holidays you can find some great deals on wrapping paper.  I've also had good luck with finding brand new rolls of wrapping paper at thrift stores!  Make sure the price is good and buy it up.  You'll thank yourself later.

4.  Let the Store Wrap It...IF it's free
Some stores do gift wrapping for free and often on weekends you can find ministry groups in the malls wrapping presents for free.  Don't hesitate to use this service.  They want you to.  In fact, this year especially, more and more stores are offering free gift wrapping services in order to entice shoppers.  Be aware, however, that often the free wrapping offer is only on certain dates and usually only on weekends.

5.  Have a Gift Wrapping Party
Why not pool resources?  I've got some great wrapping paper but no ribbon.  You've got a great supply of ribbon but are lacking in gift bags.  If your home is anything like ours, gift-wrapping is something done by mama in the middle of the night.  Why not get together with friends and make it something fun...and frugal!

6.  Get Creative.
Gift wrapping doesn't have to be the traditional paper with cutesy snowmen on it.  Think outside the box and try a few of these ideas:

• Newspaper - wrap your gifts in newspaper (the comics section if you want some nice color)

• Paper bags & raffia - cut along the "seams" of your paper bag and then wrap the gift, making sure any markings on the bag are to the inside.  The rustic charm of brown paper is always lovely when coupled with the inexpensive beauty of raffia.

• Embellish trash bags -  Have a large gift you need a sack for?  Rather than go out and purchase one of those large gift bags, try embellishing a trash bag from home.  Cut snowflakes from paper or coffee filters and tape to a black or white bag.  Paint stripes or designs on the bags or leave plain and add a decorative ribbon or tie to the top.  The bonus of this idea is that come Christmas morning you have a ready-made place to stuff all the trash!
  

• Make your own bows - This is my favorite suggestion the holiday season (and my new found obsession!)  The kids and I spent one afternoon making bow after bow after bow from this tutorial, originally found on Money Saving Mom.  The results are stunning!
  

• Wrap with fabric - I have a friend who keeps a piece of lovely material on hand for the sole purpose of wrapping gifts with it.  In fact, that piece of material has been everything from a table cloth to a make-shift skirt!  All you have to do is cut a piece of material the right size and wrap as normal, pinning with safety pins as you go.  Add whatever extras you'd like and you have a wonderfully unique package!
  

Do you have a creative way to wrap gifts that doesn't cost a lot of money?  Share it here!  I'd love to hear about ways you cut corners in the gift wrapping department!  (Be sure to read through the comments section...readers have left some great ideas!)

This post is linked to:

Grief - Those Who Walk the Path Ahead

"Uphill Path" by wwarby

The path of grief is never easy.  Its rocks and craggy places stumble you when you least expect it.  Perhaps you hear something or smell something or remember something...

and you trip.

I've written before about how much comfort it brings me to walk cemeteries and read the headstones of children who died before their parents, and then to read their parent's headstones and see that they continued to live and did not succumb to their wounded hearts.  When I read these markers of past lives, I feel less alone.  I do not feel like the only woman who has ever lost a child.

Grief has a way of consuming us.

The telemarketer who calls and asks for a donation for children's hospice because "this may be their last Christmas" doesn't realize how those words cut me to core.  The teenager recounting how "fun" the haunted house with the "coffin ride" was doesn't have a clue how un-fun coffins really are.

I could easily make this all about me.  I could easily let my grief define me.  I could easily shout at people, "My daughter died!  What serious thing have YOU endured???"

But that would mean I've allowed the jagged rocks and gnarly roots to take hold of me.  It would mean I could never reach back to someone behind me because this path would ALWAYS be about me.

Ahead of our family walked another family.  A family who reached out to us when we could do nothing but stand in the middle of the path and cry for mercy.  They took our hands and guided us through our first steps.  They did not leave us alone to find our own way.  They did not allow their own grief to hinder them from helping us.

In many ways, their path seemed even more treacherous than ours...they were walking for three children.  Yet they were not entangled by brambles and branches.  Yes, they were bruised and scarred...there is no way around that part of this path.  But it was because of their pain that we were able to be comforted by them.  They knew our pain.  They were living it too.  They were just ahead of us on their journey.

If you are the friend of a grieving parent, read this and love them through this pain; but if you've not been there yourself, don't give advice...pray for someone who can.  If you are a grieving parent, don't let hopelessness entangle you and keep you standing in a quagmire of self-pity.  If you are new to this road, pray the Lord sends you someone who walks ahead of you...someone who knows your pain and doesn't mind getting dirty.  And someday, be the one who walks ahead and reaches back to help another gain a foothold.

I encourage you to take a moment to visit Lynnette Kraft's site and purchase a book from her where you can learn more about how a family could lose three children and not lose their joy.

Cranberry Walnut Jelly

A delightful holiday spread 
and wonderfully delicious gift!

Cranberry Walnut Jelly
5 c. cranberries
2 c. water
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
4 1/2 c. sugar
1 box Pectin (or 6 Tbsp if bought in bulk)

Wash your jars in hot soapy water, rinse well.  Lay out on a cookie sheet and place in warmed oven. (this dries them and protects them from contaminants)

Place cranberries and water in a large pan.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.  Remove from heat.







Stir in walnuts.  Stir in pectin.  Measure sugar into a separate bowl and set aside.

Bring to a rolling boil while stirring constantly.  Quickly stir in all the sugar. Return to a full rolling boil and boil for exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Skim off any foam with a metal spoon (I didn't have any).

Ladle quickly into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of tops. Wipe jar rims and threads. Cover with two-piece lids. Screw bands tightly. *Invert jars 5 minutes, then turn upright. After jars are cool, check seals. *OR follow water bath method recommended by USDA.

See how simple that was? 

And the taste...oh honey, you'll just have to make some and try it for yourself!

Looking Out, Looking In, or Living.

I spent my growing up years being someone else.  I was the people pleasing only child (my closest sibling is 14 years older).  I became whoever I thought I needed to be in order to keep people happy.

I always admired those who had the courage to be unique, but unique I was not.  There just wasn't much there to define me.  I cheered, I sang, I played volleyball, I got good grades.  But I stood for nothing.

Now granted, a lot of teenagers don't stand for much.  They don't even know there's anything out there to stand for, so, I can cut myself some slack there.  However, looking back, I can't help but see wasted time.  18 years of trying to look like everyone else?  Sad.

I was trapped in a copy and paste world.  Yet I longed to be different.  I stood in that fortress of safety surrounded by clones of myself staring out at a world that was both beautiful and frightening. Leaving my comfort zone was not high on my list of things to do.

Then, I grew up.

It was in college that I first began to recognize diversity.  I began to consider who I really was now that I was in a place where no one knew me and I could reinvent Amy.  I began questioning everything, thinking through everything, and finding my own answers to questions I'd always allowed others to answer.

Finally, I was finding myself on the outside of the status quo that had been my home for years.  There were meadows and forests and fields to discover just as there were swamps and ditches and quicksand to muddle through.  I tromped from one thing to the next, trying on life as one would try on garments in a store...discarding one thing, stuffing another in my Keep Pile.  It was exhilarating and exhausting to be one person one day and a different person the next.

I also found myself looking about me at others in the great, wide world (because old habits die hard) and trying on the same things they had on.  So-and-So looks smashing in her smart business suit...think I'll try being her tomorrow, or Little-Miss-Fun always wears a hat...wonder if I could find me a hat so I can be fun too.  It was all just part of the journey toward trying to figure out who Amy really was.

But one day I found myself on the outside looking in.



I craved stability.  I wanted to stop reinventing myself.  I wanted to wake up in the morning knowing who I was and not waiting on my latest whim to define me.

That is when I came to the understanding that the definition I was looking for was rooted in Christ.  I could search and search and search, but never find a lasting identity in and of myself.  Humans are just too fickle for such things.

When I recognized this, I found balance.  I found the life I was looking for.  It is a life that is neither looking out longingly or looking in regretfully.  It is a life that is IN the world yet not OF the world.  It is living the way God intended us to live...abundantly.

Does this mean I'm always balanced?  Nope...I'm human.  (fickle, remember)  I have to continually be reminded that Jesus is our cornerstone and our living water.  He provides stability and beauty.  He offers us the opportunity to be ourselves AND be His.  When we belong to the King there is no need to choose between the fortress and the field...they are both His and we can run and dance and sing and LIVE!

How are you living today?  Abundantly?

Homemade Wipes Solution Recipes

I'm sure there are some of you wondering what I use to wet down my homemade cloth wipes.  Well, folks my truly flibbertigibbet personality hasn't allowed me to land on one wipes solution I use consistantly, but there are three that have been my favorites over the years that I'll share here, along with tons of links to others!

Amy's Wipes Solution #1 (aka Froo-Froo Solution)

You'll need a container of some sorts like an old disposable wipes box.  (I do know some people who use spray bottles to wet down wipes individually with their favorite solution, but I am not coordinated enough to accurately aim a spray bottle at a square piece of cloth...go figure)  I fill the container with wipes and then pour over this solution:

Mix together:
2 c. warm water
1/4 c. aloe vera gel (I use Lily of the Desert)
2 tsp baby shampoo (I use Burt's Bees)
1 tsp vinegar
5 drops lavender essential oil (I use Aura Cacia)
5 drops tea tree oil (also Aura Cacia)


Amy's Wipes Solution #2 (aka Diaper Rash Solution)
Once again, you'll need a container.  Fill with wipes and pour this solution over it:

Mix together:
2 c. water
1 tsp vinegar

Gently and liberally wipe diaper area.  Let air dry.



Amy's Wipes Solution #3 (aka Simply Lazy Solution)

Warm tap water on dry wipe as needed


(Can you guess which one I use when I'm pregnant or overwhelmed or both?)

Here are links to more wipes solutions you might be interested in trying.  Got a favorite of your own?  Share it here in the comments section!

Diaper Jungle Wipes Recipes
Natural Birth & Baby Care Wipes Recipes
MakeBabyStuff.com Wipes Recipes
Zany Zebra Wipes Recipes

Cloth Diapering Package Winner...

I had to smile when Random.org chose the winner...

SunflowerMom

(Wow! I link to her AND she wins some fluff for her stash all in the same post!)

Congratulations!

ps-Got ideas for giveaways you'd like to see here?  Have a product you'd like to give away here?  Contact me via my profile page!  I LOVE helping out Work-At-Home-Moms!

BS26VPYQUPQF 
9R6GTXCK6BT3 

Make Your Own Baby Wipes For Cheap

Baby wipes just come with the territory, don't they?  If you have a baby, you have baby wipes.  It's not really something you can get by without.  You don't wake up one day and say, "You know, baby wipes are a hassle.  Think I'll quit using them."  It just ain't gonna happen.

So, now that we've established your "need", how's about we get creative?

Cloth diaperers the world around know that once you start cloth diapering, you'll soon be cloth wiping as well.  There are tons of sites selling absolutely adorable cloth wipes, but honey, when you get right down to it, wipes really have but one purpose, cute or not...need I say more?

So, this little tutorial is all about fast, functional, & frugal.

If you make your own cloth diapers, oftentimes you end up with scraps that are perfect for making wipes.  Here's a scrap of organic cotton flannel that I could easily get 2 wipes out of.

But really, any old mostly-cotton fabric will do.  And don't forget your recycled/repurposed fabrics.  One of my favorites is an old t-shirt.  Knit is a great fabric for wipes.  Does your husband's t-shirt have too many holes in it?  Make it into baby wipes!  Has your t-shirt been ruined by greasy fingerprints and stains?  Don't pitch it! Repurpose it!

A good guage for the size of your wipes is to simply lay an outstretched hand on the fabric:

I like to make my wipes 2 ply.  (T-shirts make this an easy task.)  Simply lay your hand out there to guage size and then cut fabric into squares based on your hand size. (this is not rocket science...don't worry about  measuring exactly)

Now sew up the edges.  This can be done a couple of different ways.  I own a serger, so I usually serge my wipes (not caring one bit if the thread in the machine matches the wipe color...remember what these are used for...)

Here's a picture of the finished project with serged edges (total fluke I had pink thread in the serger!):

Not everyone has been blessed with a serger, so if you are using a regular sewing machine, either zig-zag the edges or use a "pine-leaf/serged" edging:

Here's the finished product using a traditional sewing machine (notice I only bothered to stitch 3 sides since the 4th side is already closed due to knit being tubular.  Let go of your need for perfection...remember what these are used for...)

That's all there is to it.  It really is that simple.  And that cheap.

What if you don't have a sewing machine, you say?  My first cloth wipes were baby washcloths.  You can usually find these for cheap at thrift stores.  No need to pay for new...remember...yeah, ok, you're gettin' the idea.

Got too many receiving blankets around the house?  Cut them up and make them useful.

Buy up some of those cheap (not too scratchy) washcloths that come in the huge packs at your local discount store.  They make great wipes!

Repurpose, repurpose, repurpose!  Pretty soon you'll be seeing baby wipes everywhere!

********

And hey, all you cloth diapering mamas!  Don't forget today is the FINAL DAY to enter to win a cloth diapering package from Angie's Essentials!  Go to my Diaper Giveaway Post and enter to win!

I'm a Finalist! Please Vote!

I could hardly believe it when they announced it yesterday!  But, there I was...listed among the finalists for the Blog to Inspire Contest.  I had actually kind of figured I was out of the running since I wasn't mentioned in the summary of entries post from the day before.  But, I was wrong...oh, how glad I am that I was wrong!

You see, I poured my heart out in a post that has been nearly 2 years in the making.  Shortly after Emily's death a friend of mine encouraged me to write about the breastfeeding relationship we shared.  I started and restarted that post a million times over.  It never flowed right.  It never said precisely what I wanted...what I longed to say.  I wasn't sure it would ever get written.

Then one day on Twitter I saw something about a writing contest asking for inspiring entries on things like cloth diapering and baby wearing.  I immediately thought of my post on Wearing Emily, sparked by my irritation over an Advil ad.  However, when I went to rework that post, I just couldn't change it.  I knew I had to leave it like it was and write something new.  Write the one thing I'd been trying to write on for months...Breastfeeding: The Memory of Emily.

I'll be honest, friends, I cry through my grief posts.  To date, there are 66 of them and I have cried writing every. single. one.  There are a lot of tears flowing through this blog.  I remember a time when I wondered if this blog would ever begin to heal.  I wondered if I would ever write something that wasn't etched in grief.

Almost imperceptibly, my writings here began to reach beyond the grief.  I found passions again...I found joy again...and this blog became what it is today. Yes, much of what I write still carries the weight of a grieving heart, but how can it not.  Losing a child has become part of who of I am.  That will never change.

So, my precious readers, those who have journeyed with me from the beginning and those who have just arrived here, I would be most grateful if you would consider voting for me and the words you read here on my blog.  Voting opens at 11am EST on December 4th and closes at 12pm EST on December 11th.  You can visit this link to cast your vote:

Blog to Inspire Contest Poll

And please consider telling your friends and family about this blog and this contest.  Thank you so very much!

It's a Sacrifice

We recently made the leap into Sonlight curriculum (thanks Sarah, Laney, Carrie, Raising Olives, and Heidi Whitman for all your help in making this transition as smooth as possible!)  I'm still hashing out a few things (could be a blog post of its very own at a later date), but for the most part we are enjoying the change of pace.

As a thank you for buying one of their Core curriculum sets, you receive a pendant made from a mite, the same sort of mite the widow from Mark 12:41-44. would have dropped into the treasury at the temple in Jesus' time.  The pendant is a reminder of the sacrifices homeschooling mothers must make each and every day to be able to homeschool.  To some it may seem small and insignificant...to those of us living it, we know how tremendous it truly is.

For me, the pendant took on another meaning as well.  I wear it on the same chain as the silver locket containing my precious Emily's picture.

  This locket, given to me by my dear La Leche League friends, is also a symbol of sacrifice.  While I did not willingly give up my Emmy, I have had to learn to live daily in an attitude of willing sacrifice.  As the song says, "Blessed be Your Name on the road marked with suffering...there is pain in the offering...blessed be Your Name."


There are those who will tell you that living what you believe and being who you are in Christ doesn't carry any pain or sacrifice.  They are wrong.  True, we'd rather not endure any hardships, but hardships do not mean we've done something wrong.  It is iron that sharpens iron.  Flowers and smiley face stickers don't quite do the trick.  Sometimes this life we live is hard.  And that is okay.  It is an offering.  It is a sacrifice.

Read some of my favorite posts on living the sacrifice:

Oh The Pain from my sister-in-law Stephanie at Strength Will Rise Up (on the sacrifice of becoming a Proverbs 31 woman)

A Mother's Day Musing from Allison at Olive Plants

Suffering ~ God's Will? from Lynnette at Dancing Barefoot

(You can purchase your own mite pendant at The Jerusalem Gift Shop. )

Would you like to read about our first 6 weeks using Sonlight?  Read the Series:
Six Weeks of Sonlight

Traditions

When you have children, doing something one time makes it a tradition.  You know how it is...

"But Mom!  We ALWAYS eat chocolate chip cookies for breakfast!"

When it comes to the holidays, it isn't just the children who feel a sense of tradition.  We adults feel it too.  There are certain things that just are.  Don't mess with them.

Granny ALWAYS makes the stuffing.  We ALWAYS use the leftover turkey and rolls for sandwiches Thanksgiving night.  We ALWAYS put the tree up the day after Thanksgiving.

The boys ALWAYS string the lights.

We ALWAYS put tinsel on the tree (because Ty's Granny ALWAYS put tinsel on her tree)

Daddy ALWAYS puts the tree topper on while everyone ooohs and aaahs.

We ALWAYS get out the Playmobil Nativity Set.

We ALWAYS train the new baby in the house not to touch the tree and reward him with toys on the floor near the tree that are just his own.

 And we ALWAYS play Christmas music while we decorate (and every day after that).

Tradition is so much a part of the holidays that we can easily become discouraged when traditions fail to happen at their regularly scheduled time or fail to happen at all. We feel as though something just isn't quite right. We may even feel like everything is ruined if certain traditions don't happen.

Ever wonder if Mary, all those many years ago, dreamed of having a normal, perfect birth with her midwife and the women of the family surrounding her in her home with all the things she would need for her first child right there clean and ready?  I'm sure there were traditions among the Jewish women surrounding childbirth that Mary assumed would be a part of her birth experience.  Yet, I am sure when she embraced her precious son, all those expectations melted away and any frustration she may have felt about being drug halfway across the country on donkey-back only to find herself birthing in a barn disappeared.

Traditions are not what this time of year is all about.  Yes, they make things special and yes, we enjoy them, but don't let the practicing of traditions become the be-all-end-all of Christmas.  Don't let the likely chance that something will change this year ruin your holiday season.  Embrace what you are given.  Embrace the Son.

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