Well, it's been a loooong time since I blogged.  Between losing our 4th baby and life and homeschooling, I haven't had time or inclination to blog.  I'm not even sure if I should or not.  I do struggle with having relevant things to say.  I don't want to just yammer on to myself, kwim?

However, an update...

I am pregnant again.  With our 5th child.  If the baby cooperates, we'll be finding out what it is in exactly 1 week.  At this point, I'll just stick with a healthy baby that the Lord lets us raise, although a little pink to offset 4 blues would be nice. ;)  So far, the pregnancy has gone extremely well.  I usually have a lot of energy and relatively few discomforts.  I'm feeling lots of movement, especially during homeschool time.  :D 

For homeschooling, we're getting ready to start the 2nd quarter of Sonlight's Core 1.  DS will be about 1 semester behind his peers, come fall, but we're really not worried - that's why we homeschool, eh?  It's going well, and he is progressing nicely.

All the Garden boys are growing and growing up.  I can't believe that our sweetest little one is 3!!  He is so talkative and imaginative lately.  It is so fun to spy on him when he is playing.

I've been sewing some maternity items, and I've started a couple of blankets for the new baby.  It started out as an act of hope and faith, but now I can't decide which one, and I guess if we find out gender next Thursday, that will determine which one gets finished. ;)  One is out of a superwash wool in peach and terracotta.  The other is a pinwheel blanket out of a variegated cotton - peach, brown, and cream.  I'm trying to stay neutral, but you can tell that the neutrals do have a little more of a "girl" flavor.  If it's a boy, I'll finish the peach/terracotta blanket and crochet a boyish trim in brown.

Can't think of much else, and I must be off to finish supper.  I have to take a meal to a family from our church, so I need to get hopping!

Haven't been here in so long.  I was thinking of letting the blog go, but I just can't do it yet...

I'm 25 weeks pregnant now.  Baby is moving, growing, and all those good things.  We are blessed to have another healthy baby boy growing inside.  I am praying lots for patience and endurance, though.  The discomforts of pregnancy have hit earlier this time, and it takes a lot of patience not to blow up like I used to. 

I can't remember if I posted about having appendicitis at 13 weeks.  It was pretty scary, and really painful.  Fortunately, my appendix was removed before it ruptured, and the recovery wasn't as long as it could've been.  I still have to take care about overdoing it, but I've been back to "near normal" for quite some time, so I'm sure that this is where it's going to stay until after David is born.

If anyone is still reading, please comment and let me know how you're doing!  I don't remember the last time I was back here!!

I have a confession to make.  I really love watching Biggest Loser on NBC.  I don't normally waste my time watching much TV anymore, unless it's to rest on the couch while the boys watch PBS Kids or a movie with the family.  However, the one show that we watch regularly is Biggest Loser.  See, DH needs to lose a little weight and I think seeing the successes of people much bigger than him really helps keep him motivated.  And for me, I love seeing how some of these people come on to change their health for the better, usually for their family's sake.  For example.  Ken from the Red Team was voted off tonight (a decision I think Red Team will come to regret), but to see how much weight he has lost since he was eliminated is nothing short of amazing.  He lost more at home than at the ranch, and even helped his wife lose 50 pounds.  The pictures they showed of them look great!!!  It's stories like these that really warm your heart.

One contestant that we've been watching fondly is Bobby from the Blue Team.  Bobby reminds us so much of DH's childhood friend, Troy.  Their personalities are similar, and they look like they could be cousins at the least.  And Marty looks like a ringer for Troy when he was much younger, and also seems to have a nice personality.  These men have made amazing strides in their weight loss goals, not to mention the other men on the Blue Team, Eric and Brian.  So, our favorite team is the Blue Team where the men are in it to be healthier for their families, and they truly are a team.

So, that was my confession.  I really like to watch Biggest Loser, and my favorite team is the Blue Team because it is full of men who seem to have really sweet personalities and love their families enough to leave them for 3+ months to try to lose weight and get healthy.  I can't wait until next week!

Well, after a long hiatus, I'm back.  We've had company, been sick, and started a remodeling project here, so not a lot of time to get online and blog.  Fortunately, the visit was nice, we're starting to get better, and the remodeling is going pretty well, IMO.  But, tonight, I needed an easy supper.  It doesn't get any easier than breakfast for supper.  Sometimes, it's really easy, but I did feel like cooking, so we made DH's favorite - biscuits and gravy.  Some of you might recall that DH cannot have dairy, but there is a way to make excellent biscuits and gravy with nary a drop of milk.  Here's my method.

Brown a pound of your favorite sausage in a pan.  Meanwhile, preheat your oven.  My biscuit "recipe" (aka, the Bisquick box) recommends 450, which takes a while with my oven.  So, after the sausage browns, I let it hang out while I mix up the Bisquick.  I use unsweetened soymilk or rice milk in place of the milk.  After I get my biscuits ready to go, I turn my attention back to the sausage.  Transfer your sausage to a bowl, and have it ready by your stove.  Then, if you need a little more fat in your pan, add Earth Balance (dairy free margarine) and melt it.  Also add flour and mix well.  I eyeball it, so no real measurements for this gal.  When the flour and margarine are well mixed and have cooked a bit, add unsweetened soymilk.  I think I use about 3 cups for a pound of browned sausage.  Whisk the flour and milk together really well (my secret for no lumps) and bring to boil, stirring constantly.  When it is thick, add your sausage and reheat.  By this time, your biscuits should be close to done, because the oven gets done preheating sometime during your gravy making stage.

When your biscuits are done and your gravy is made, put it together for a fairly quick and very simple breakfast for supper - dairy free, even! :)

I'm not sure what the temp is now, but it was in the 30s this morning, with a wind chill of 21.  It's a blustery fall day that one would normally find in mid-November rather than October.

However, it is a good day for snuggling up with the kiddos and making all sorts of yummy comfort food.  Tonight we're having crockpot BBQ Beef (beef roast seared on all sides, then placed in the crockpot and drowned in BBQ sauce, shredded when cooked through), probably some baked Hubbard squash, broccoli, and homemade rolls.  I can't wait!!!  Tomorrow is supposed to be just as chilly and windy as today, so we're going to have some white chicken chili tomorrow, and my mouth is watering for that, too!

Enjoy your fall day and spend some time snuggling the ones you love!

Well, this week is going to be short and sweet.

National Association of Nouthetic Counselors

This is a fabulous organization that trains biblical counselors.  Whether you're dealing with a particular sin that has you down & you need some help or accountability or if your marriage needs some help, a NANC-certified counselor is sure to get you on track, and in a biblical manner.  A counselor uses the entirety of Scripture to counsel you (and help you learn to self-counsel), along with select other materials.  Even in the marital counseling, focus in on your role, your sin, and what you should be doing.  Don't worry, no one walks out of a session being the bad guy - your spouse gets it just as much (sometimes more!) than you do.

I heartily recommend going through some NANC-based counseling for every believer.

This summer, I discovered this fun little grain (seed, actually, but it's used as a grain) called quinoa (Keen-wa).  There aren't a lot of recipes out there for it, and I was stumped, but found a couple of really good recipes that I absolutely love.  One caveat is that quinoa is covered with some very bitter saponins that must be removed or you won't like the quinoa very well at all.  Many recipes say to rinse it well under running water in a fine sieve.  I don't like to do this, as it is messy and takes a long time.  Instead, I usually choose to roast the quinoa, which has always worked for me, and it's much easier.  After it is done roasting, I transfer it to a bowl until I'm ready for it again.

Since becoming pregnant, this little wonder grain has really been high on the cravings list, so I've been making my tried and trues a lot.  I'm getting ready to branch out and make up my own recipe, so I'll let you know how it goes after I try it.  Until then, I'd like to give you my two favorites.  One has a southwestern flair, and I found the recipe on the Internet.  The other one is, well, I guess French or something, and I got it out of the Body + Soul magazine.  I have adapted the recipes to suit my tastes, so they aren't the originals, but fairly close.

Rio Grande Quinoa Salad

3 T lemon juice

3 T olive oil

3 T cilantro, minced

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

1 C corn (I use frozen kernels)

1/2 C quinoa

1/2 t cumin seeds

1 C cooked black beans

1 md tomato, diced

3 T red onion (sometimes I use scallions instead)

Whisk together first 5 ingredients; set aside.

In a small saucepan, toast quinoa and cumin seeds until fragrant.  Add 1 cup of water and the corn.  Bring to boil, cover, and simmer until tender, approx 10 minutes.  Remove from heat and let rest 5 minutes.  Fluff the quinoa and allow to cool slightly.  In a bowl, combine the quinoa, black beans, tomato, and onion.  Pour in dressing and gently toss to combine.  Refrigerate until ready to serve. 

*As a side note, this is good warm, too, when you're too impatient to wait for it to chill.

Summer Quinoa Salad

1/2 c quinoa

4 tsp olive oil

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1/2-in chunks

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 scallions, thinly sliced

1/8 t red pepper flakes

1 tsp chopped fresh thyme

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 md zucchini, quartered and sliced 1/2-in thick

1 lg celery stalk, sliced

1/4 cup dry roasted pignolis (original recipe calls for toasted slivered almonds)

Toast quinoa in pan.  Set aside in bowl and return pan to heat.  Add 2 tsp olive oil and sautee yellow pepper, garlic, scallions, and red pepper flakes approximately 5 minutes.  Stir in quinoa, thyme, 1 c water, salt, zucchini, and celery.  Bring to boil, cover, reduce to simmer.  Cook approx 10 minutes until tender but not mushy.  Add pignolis and remaining 2 tsp oil.  Adjust seasonings to taste.  May squeeze 1 lime for extra zing.

This is excellent both warm and cold.  Serving suggestion is to chill, but we like it warm with roasted chicken.

Yes, it would be appropriate for me to break my long blogging fast with a WFMW.  It seems that it's all I get done these days, if I can get on to blog at all.

Anyway, I'm combining this with the announcement that there will be another Garden baby come sometime during May 2007.  We've broken with tradition here, so maybe it will even be a girl to completely smash the tradition.  Our other children's birth month/year are as follows:  1/01, 2/03, 3/05. 

Anyway, the morning sickness, er all-the-time sickness.  It's not so bad this time, but I have to really stay on top of things.  First of all, I am never hungry.  Seriously.  I have to eat, eat, eat, eat.  Secondly, I can't get too full or it makes it worse.  Then, I jump from miserably full to starving in a few seconds & don't allow time to prepare.  Thirdly, avocadoes; 'nuff said.  For some reason, avocadoes have helped me so much, especially on a big salad dressed with honey mustard dressing.  I've been having these nearly daily for about a week and I've had less issues with nausea than ever before.  I've also weaned the baby, um, toddler, which helps too, as I don't need quite as many calories now & don't have to quite as frequently.

When I'm not eating my salad, here's a short list of what has helped:

a splash of lemon juice in my water

nuts (kept the bathroom for those midnight munchies)

crackers with nut butter

goat cheese spread on crackers or veggies

hummus with whole wheat pitas

Altoids (ginger preferred, but peppermint also okay)

Pregnancy tea, lightly sweetened

These are working for me, and I'm immensely grateful!

My tip this week is my laundry detergent.  I have a pretty severe sensitivity to any artificial fragrance.  I get a nasty migraine, a runny nose, and sometimes an asthma attack, so I pretty much avoid anything scented.  The exception to this is if it is scented with essential oils.  This limits me often to the more expensive "organic" or "health-food-store" type products - lotions, soaps, shampoos, shaving cream, etc.  For laundry, I could use the "free and clear" versions of many soaps, and I do sometimes.  However, I also cloth diaper, so sometimes these products are a little harsh on delicate skin or they don't clean as well as I'd like.  Fortunately for me, I tried Bi-O-Kleen laundry powder when it was on sale at the health food store.  Normally I prefer the ease of liquid (and it does come in a liquid version), but Bi-O-Kleen powder is awesome & I don't mind its powderiness.

Bi-O-Kleen is a bit expensive, but when you figure in that one whole box will last a family of 5 at least 4-6+ months, it turns out to be not so bad a deal.  It smells freshly citrusy, which is nice, and a little bit goes a long way.  Not to mention that it is super environmentally friendly.  With the rage being "environmental consciousness," you can wash you clothes and feel a wee bit of pride that you're doing your part, and that your clothes are clean.  It is the first "environmentally friendly" laundry detergent I've found that works really well.  At least it works for me.

I was making breakfast for my 9 month old Bubba.  He was sitting in front of the TV playing while the news was on.  I was still working and waiting for my MIL to come so I could go to work.

As I went to change the channel to Sesame Street for the baby, they broke in with shots of the first plane hitting the World Trade Center.  A cold feeling sunk into the pit of my stomach, and I wondered who would play such a cruel trick by interrupting programming with that.  I quickly realized that it wasn't a trick, and it was heartbreakingly real.  I continued to watch in horror as the second plane hit, and MIL let herself in and joined me to see if what she had been hearing on the radio was true.

My hubby called to see if we had heard anything, as that was the buzz of his co-workers who were just finishing their commute.  We cried and prayed together, and then I left for work.  The atmosphere at the office was oddly quiet.  I worked for an HMO, and my cubicle was near the call center, which was usually quite noisy.  I could hear muffled sniffles from the call center staff and enrollment representatives.  I was completely numb with shock, and tried to do my work as best I could.  My hands were shaking so badly, though, that I pulled up a prayer service on the Internet and joined in with them.

I went home for lunch and hugged my baby close and enjoyed his nursing, grieving for the babies who lost their mamas and mamas who lost their babies that day.  I also thought of the scripture passage that talks about how much better it would be for those who were childless in "those days" - it was definitely one of "those days." and although I am and always will be grateful for my children, I can understand what the scripture means.

Going back to work was one of the hardest things I've done, as I didn't want to leave my baby and his tender snuggles.  I did finish the day out a little more successfully than the morning and came home to my family.  HOH and I just cuddled with baby Bubba on the couch and watched the news with shock, learning about the Pentagon and PA crashes as well.  Shortly after dinner, we heard the terrible sound of a jet going overhead.  Terrible because all air traffic had been grounded for the time being, and we knew that sound didn't belong in the sky.  As we rushed out, we caught sight of the underbelly and realized it was AirForce One, which was making a fueling stop nearby.  FIL called to ask us if we had heard/seen it, since they lived in the path as well.

In the five years that have come since September 11, 2001, my life has grown and changed, through the grace of God.  I'm so immensely grateful for his blessings.  It is with great sadness, though, that I remember that others were not so fortunate as I.  Somehow, in God's plan, this all worked out just perfectly.  I will never understand it, but now I can be at peace about it because I've realized that God is truly in control; He is just and wise beyond my finite understanding; and He watches over His people with a tenderness that I can't even begin to imitate.

In closing, I'd like to share the gorgeous lyrics of a Michael Card song.

The Tears of the World

Lyrics by Michael Card

(From A Sacred Sorrow, NavPress, February 2005)

In any split second

There is enough pain in the world

To overwhelm every gentle heart combined.

The world’s pain is as vast as the ocean.

The sorrow of the world is as deep as the sea.

Could the ocean really be the sum of the tears if the world?

Warm

Salty waves of grief

A tidal force of sorrow

 

That ebbs and flows as inwardly the world groans while outwardly its poor passengers cry out to a God whose eyes are dry.

When Jesus appeared there was a tear in His eye that was as old as the world.

It was not His own. It was the world’s tear.

 

And when even a single one of those tears would course down His unshaven cheek and disappear into His beard, it was as if a black breaker full of the world’s tears was exhausting itself upon the clean sands of the shore of His Father’s invisible compassion.

 

Jesus wept the tears of the world.

How is it my eyes are dry?

Or only wet with my own tears?

 

For the tiniest speck of one of the millions of seconds of my life has there ever been the smallest drop of one of the world’s tears in my eyes?

 

When they see me, does the world see a man of sorrows?

 

Or do they see a false pretended joy that they could never know because I have never known it myself? Could never know it while holding so dear my own comforts.

 

Grant me, O Lord an acquaintance with such tears that the world has wept.

 

Surely the presence of such a great grief in my life would displace my small sadnesses, my petty anger, my selfish sorrows.

 

O red-eyed Jesus, turn my tears into the worlds tears.

And awaken in the deepest part of my falsely satisfied soul

When I'm pregnant, I have a hard time with heartburn, and tomato products make it even worse.  Worse still is the fact that I cook with tomatoes probably 5 times a week or more.  It seems that we are a tomato eating family - spaghetti, chili, chili spaghetti, soups, casseroles, etc.  One trick that works is to put a pinch of baking soda in with the tomatoes, especially in chili and spaghetti.  It gets foamy there for a while, but when the foam is over, I am better able to handle my beloved tomato products.  Even though I'm not pregnant now, I still use this trick, as it just seems to help the meal "sit" better.  Not to mention DH's gratitude when he doesn't have to sit up refluxing supper.

It's simple, but it works for me! :)

Somewhere this week, and I can't remember where, I found a blogger who was requesting good sources for learning classic hymns that were "modern" in their style, yet retained their musical integrity. 

My husband and I love the hymns, and are always looking for really good CDs.  Our absolute favorite is the Passion band's Hymns for Worship CD.  We also enjoy Fernando Ortega's beautiful accompaniments to many wonderful hymns on his CDs.  He even has an older album out that is entirely composed of hymns, although we don't own it yet.  If you're into a more country/bluegrassy style, Buddy Green has an excellent album of Hymns and Prayer Songs on his website that my boys just love.  I'm sure there are more artists out there that have good hymns with their original melodies but updated accompaniment, but these are the ones I have and love.  Now, if I can just remember the nice bloggy lady who posted about this, I can point her to my post.

I'm so thrilled at how well things are going!  I can definitely see fruit already.  He now really listens to stories and can answer many questions about it, even later in the day after reading it.  He is also beginning to "get" phonics, which is a tremendous relief.  I think teaching him to read will be fairly easy.  He absolutely LOVES science and math and wants to do both every day.  I am currently alternating days for those 2 to hold him back to a more moderate pace.  Our first read-aloud has been The Boxcar Children, and it is a big hit. We've read ahead a couple of times already, so we'll just add in another book in the days before we reach our next read-aloud assignment.  I'm thinking it will probably be the Hank the Cowdog book we started but haven't finished yet.

Things are even going better with the 2 little ones.  I try to spend some time with them before we start our lessons, which seems to help "fill up their tanks" so I can spend the one-on-one time that Bubba needs when we're doing school.  They are also invited and encouraged to listen to the read-alouds, so they don't feel left out.

The only thing that is a bit difficult is getting all the home preserving done as well as the housework.  I'm very grateful that I ran across a homeschooling/home management logisitics site and set it up this summer.  It has given my days more structure so that I'm able to keep up with my work, for the most part.

All in all, this is going much more smoothly than I had ever dreamed, and I'm so incredibly grateful that I'm able to do it.

Boy, it's been busy around Ezekiel's Garden!  But, here I am, back again, and ready to share my tip for Shannon's "Works for me Wednesday" meme.

My tip revolves around garden produce, since I can't seem to keep up with the cucumbers lately.  The giant 10-12" cucumbers with very few large seeds even at 1.5" diameter!  One tip, since a family can only eat so many cucumbers before declaring mutiny, is to give them away.  Well, that doesn't work so well when one has a dearth of garden-fresh cucumber-loving neighbors.  Enter plan B.  Pickles.  What?  Those messy, time-consuming, stinky things?  Nope.  Kosher dills.  Seriously.  They're simple, not too stinky, and don't take forever either (we're talking an afternoon vs. 2 weeks).  I found my recipe by scrounging around Google until I found one that looked delicious and easy.  I think it is the Heinz Recipe.

Here it is:

Kosher Dill 

4 lbs pickling cukes (around 12 of mine)
14 cloves garlic, peeled & split
1/4 cup canning salt
3 cups distilled or apple cider vinegar 5% acidity
3 cups water
12-14 sprigs fresh dill weed
28 peppercorns

Wash cucumbers; cut in half lengthwise (due to cucumber size, I cut some into 1/2" chunks and some into 1/8" crinkle slices). Combine garlic and next 3 ingredients; heat to boiling. Remove garlic and place 4 halves into each clean jar, then pack cucumbers, adding 2 sprigs of dill and 4 peppercorns. Pour hot vinegar solution over cucumbers to within 1/2 inch of top. Immediately adjust covers as jar manufacturer directs. Process 10 minutes in BWB. Makes 6-7 pints.

Another tip is to keep some brine on hand in case the cucumber ever slows down enough that you can't make a full batch but can't possibly give them away either.  It keeps in the fridge for quite a while (not that I've had occasion to find this out)

I will admit that until this summer, I've probably eaten a total of 1 jar of pickles in 10 years.  I don't normally like pickles.  Well, until these babies, that is.  I have probably eaten 2 jars all by myself.  I'm not going to tell you how many pints I have on my pantry shelf.  All right, I will, but I'm not telling how many I've gone through already.  *sigh*  Anyway, 30 pints of dill slices or chunks.  And, we've eaten at least 3 pints of slices and 4 of the chunks, not counting the 3 or 4 pints we've given away to friends.  Should I tell how my kids beg to eat them at every meal?  Naw.  That'll be for another post - wierd food habits at the Garden.

That's all.  Just my tip on how to prevent cucumber waste, and possibly an idea for Christmas gifts... ;)

Since the nights are cooling, I thought I'd share a tip that we like to do some evenings.

We have an old tractor wheel in our back yard as a fire pit. It is propped up on stones to promote air flow, and since it is from a tractor, it is just big enough to put a couple of pieces of wood in for a wienie roast or "marshmallow burn" as Timex calls it. We rarely remember kindling, so in a moment of desparation, we decided to twist paper grocery sacks and use them. Well, they worked, so now I have another use for all my Trader Joe's and Wild Oats bags.

Another tip is to have your s'mores ingredients all laid out on paper plates to be ready for the hot marshmallows. This helps keep things running smoothly so you don't have a backlog of toasted marshmallows (and impatient kids) waiting on the s'mores, and the plates can be burned when you're done without releasing as many chemicals into the air as styrofoam.

Somewhere I read a ton of variations on the traditional S'more, but can't find it now.  Instead, I leave you with a S'more recipe you can have any time!

S'mores Trail Mix (makes a ton!)

2 boxes honey graham cereal

1 bag mini marshmallows

1 bag M&Ms (or choco chips, in a pinch)

Optionals:

nuts

dried fruit

Mix together and store in an airtight container.

This Sunday's service was AWESOME.  I just had to share.  Now, I love our pastor, and he's had some really good sermons in the past, but this Sunday's took the cake.  Here is the link to the church's website.  There is a link to an archive in the "Sermons and Studies" section to hear other messages from Pastor Flatt.

The worship service was really nice as well.  It was my very first time on the praise team, and I had such a blast.  As soon as I accepted, my prayer was that the Lord be glorified and not me.  Every time I felt nervous, I'd just remember that it wasn't about me at all, and it helped so much.  It was such an honor to be able to serve the church in this way.

To top things off, my parents were up for a visit.  It was a really nice visit, especially since many recent visits have been a touch strained.  I feel that the Lord had them here providentially.  For those that don't know, they are charismatic and very Word-Faith focused.  I have been concerned about their beliefs for some time, as quite a few of them stray widely from those of mainstream Christianity.  To hear their questions after the sermon, and to sense their openness, when there had been nothing but hardness in previous occasions, was truly amazing.  The Lord also helped me with wisdom and boldness in talking to them and trying to explain the doctrines of grace.  I thought I was fumbling a lot, but some of the elders to whom I was relating this wonderful news said that I did great - yay God!

For a weekend that I was dreading so much, it sure turned out to be one of the best ones I think I've had in a long time!

We've been very busy lately.  We went to Bloomington IL this weekend to visit some dear friends.  It is always an enjoyable visit - such a blessing!, but also tiring.  No sooner than we got home, my sister, niece and niece-in-law come for 2 days.  They just left, and we're still tired! 

We went to a local spray park, which was tons of fun.  Then, today, we got up and went swimming after breakfast, ate a quick lunch, and headed off to our local living history museum, Conner Prairie.  Conner Prairie was a total blast!  The boys got to help milk a cow, shoo chickens into the coop, and learned some ABCs from the schoolmaster, Mr. Ferguson.  I can't wait to do it again! :)

Well, I've been doing a bit better in the slacking area, but it's not at all what I outlined! The bedrooms are about 50/50 most days - some days the beds get made and sometimes they don't. However, I've been doing really well at the laundry and the kitchen. Go figure! I'm just pleased with myself that I'm getting motivated to try to get this place tidy. It's only a little over a year old, so there's hope while it's still young! I can't remember if I've mentioned it, but HOH also suggested hiring someone to help me with the vacuuming and dusting a couple of times a month, since that seems to be my worst pitfall. I was delighted at the suggestion, and after I get my new "un-slacker" self down better, we'll see if I still need that help.

I hope I'm not too ambitious with my garden this year. I just ordered quite a few seeds from Seed Savers Exchange. I have 5 different kinds of dried beans coming, carrots, brussels sprouts, leeks, peas, peppers, winter squash, and some herbs. This is in addition to the tomatoes and summer squash that my mom will be starting for me and bringing up later this spring. I'm very excited. I can't wait for it to warm up so I can work the soil.  I'm really excited about the beans.  I love beans, and it is a bit disheartening that my sons all look at beans like they are some sort of alien life form.  Oh well!  I guess that means I only have to fight DH for them.

A bit of an update on the "library" project that HOH has going - he is putting the facing on the cabinets right now with Bubba. They're about to quit because it is late and the two babies are sleeping, or were before that last round of banging. I'm really excited about how it is turning out. I think it will be beautiful. His friend from work is supposed to come over tomorrow night and help him make the top for it - yay!!! Can't wait to see it!!! :) We may be able to install the new floor (Pergo or hardwood; we're still undecided) this coming weekend!  This is particularly exciting because I may actually get all the book boxes unloaded and out of the way before Short Stuff has his birthday!

1. Who is your favorite Biblical personage, other than Jesus?

Esther or David.  God used them both so mightily.  Two very great stories of providence.  :)

2. What is your favorite book of the Old Testament?

Probably the Psalms because they are so deep.  I also like Esther, Ruth, both Samuels, and the minor prophets I've waded through.

3. What is your least favorite book of the Old Testament?

I have only read about 1/3 of the OT, but Ecclesiastes has always been difficult for me.  So, that or Numbers (so dry).

4. What is your favorite non-gospel book of the New Testament?

Again, not read a lot in here, either.  Last semester our ladies' Bible study went through Philippians using Elizabeth George's book as a taking-off point, & I loved it.  I've also enjoyed Ephesians, Galatians & Hebrews.

5. What is your life verse?

Jeremiah 29:11

It seems to me that my plans may not always be His plans, but His plans always lead me to someplace better than my plans would.  :)

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Today, I visited a new LYS.  I am so in love.  It is teeny compared to the other I normally go to, but it is closer, they have a great selection of superwash wool in all different sizes, and they are so friendly (which is a big changeup from the other one).  They have these 2 adorable little pomeranians, and the little girl, Fiona was absolutely beside herself trying to love on my boys, who, I might add were very well-behaved & the darlings of the half-hour I spent there.  :)

God has certainly led me on quite a journey in my faith life! From a Charismatic Protestant to a conservative Roman Catholic to a reformed paedobaptist to a reformed evangelical.

I grew up in a charismatic/pentecostal home. My parents are still very much charismatic, although they attend church at a Church of God (Anderson IN) in their home town. In addition, they are more than a little supportive of the Word-Faith movement, also known as "name it, claim it" movement. It never sat right with me, and I still don't think it encompasses what God wants His children to believe, but I leave that between them and God. To that end, when I got out into college, I went through a period of testing - going to different churches, not going to church at all, attending campus fellowships, etc.

Ultimately, though, I met HOH at the beginning of my sophomore year, so I really only searched for maybe 12-18 months at most. When I met HOH, he had just taken some time off from Catholic seminary to discern God's will for his life. He met me, and the rest was history. The way he explained his faith, it just seemed so much more "real" to me than all the talking in tongues, "if you're not healed it's because you have hidden sin in your life because God doesn't want His children to be hurt, poor, sick, etc.." or anything else I had experienced. So, shortly after we got married, I was confirmed in the Catholic church. Things went along fairly well for a few years, going to mass, learning that there was a lot more to faith than what I was raised with, and just plain growing up.

The bottom fell out of my nice little world when I was pregnant with Timex, though. HOH felt a pull out of the Catholic church and decided that we should join an Anglican splinter group. The particular group we were in was extremely small with no real pastor (not to be demeaning to our friend who had started this church). I finally convinced HOH to come back to the Catholic church, and there we stayed for another year or so, where I was desparately trying to put down roots in a church that was so big that if you were gone for 2 years, nobody noticed.

One day, HOH decided that we should go to Bloomington IL to meet PastorK, whom he had met on the foray with the Anglican splinter group. As an aside, PastorK is a reformed Baptist minister in Bloomington, and a wonderful dear friend of our family. I was very resistant to this visit, because I knew HOH wanted out of the Catholic church so badly, and I couldn't understand it, at the time. I have since realized why, and obviously I agree now. This visit was very painful to me. I was scared of being ripped up by my roots and trying to fit into yet another church group, especially when I have so few friends anyway. There were many tears at this visit with PastorK and his lovely family. Finally, I awoke the final morning, and God had completely changed my heart. I know that this was God because I certainly wasn't going to budge if it was left up to me (thank you God that it wasn't!).

We came back from that visit with a firm resolve to find a good Bible believing church. PastorK suggested the PCA so that HOH wouldn't have to deal with the minor issue of infant baptism vs believer's baptism while there were other, more major theological issues with which to grapple, like justification, double imputation, free will, predestination, and all the other terms that good Calvinists like the throw around. ;) We found the right PCA church on the very first try, and we enjoyed a little over a year of great spiritual growth there. We also have some very dear friends from that church. Then, a little over 6 months ago, HOH felt that something wasn't quite right with his baptism, and that it wasn't necessarily because it was a Roman Catholic baptism. So, we went to Bloomington IL again, and PastorK had the honor of baptizing HOH this summer. After this trip, it became obvious to our family that our PCA church was no longer the place that God wanted us to call our church home. Thus began the church for a reformed body that held to believer's baptism.

Praise to the Lord that we found a good church, First Baptist, fairly quickly. Since then, we've been blessed even more richly in our spiritual lives than ever before, or at least I have. God has really used our pastor, our ladies' Bible study leader, and our Sunday School teachers to grow my faith. I have a desire to study God's word, which I had never had prior to this, even though I always considered myself a Christian from childhood. I yearn for a closer walk with Him and to please Him more than any other person in my life, even my family. I want to plumb the depths of Him and His mysteries, drinking of the fullness of His mercy and goodness. God is so good, and I'm so happy that He chose me! It is with excitement that HOH and I approach our upcoming membership. There are only 2 steps left in our process - giving our testimonies in front of the church and being voted in. If you remember, please pray for us the evening of March 12. Pray that I remember all that I want to say about my testimony!

Thus ends the story of my faith journey to this day, although I know it will continue for many years to come! While I don't always understand why God had me in some of the places I've been, I'll thank Him for the blessings that it has yielded.