A Happy Mothers Day

I wasn't sure what this Mothers' Day was going to be like with Cliff gone. He's missed them before...3 in a row, to be precise. But still, it's been awhile that we've had him home now. The kids are older...I just didn't know what to expect. I should have known that the kids would do great.

They wanted to do something special for the traditional breakfast in bed, but unfortunately no one knew my cobbler recipe. (It's all up here...*tapping head*) Then Coree came up with the idea for Snickerdoodles (which I also love) but the recipe was defective. (I had to laugh when she showed the recipe to me. She got it out of my favorite ward Relief Society cook book that I received as a wedding gift. It has some killer recipes, but over the years, you learn which recipes you can trust just by the name underneath...and which you need to avoid for the same reason. This recipe belonged in the latter category.) Anyway, it didn't list Cream of Tartar in the ingredients, so when she came to it in the instructions, she didn't know how much to use, or if we had any, so Troy just advised that she skip it. They were still good though. They tasted like cinnamon scones. (I would have been thrilled with cereal.)

Church was great...even though due to scheduling problems that are too boring to go into, they ended up holding Fast and Testimony meeting on Mothers' Day. (Really? I get ONE flippin' Sunday a year to be served breakfast in bed, and you want me to FAST instead? Well, you already know how that went.) But the testimony portion was great. Lots of testimonies related to mothers, which was a nice take on the Mother's Day program. Patrick even participated, during which I received a new nickname..."Spiritual Body Builder". Love it!

I wanted to take a nice long nap when we got home, but the kids insisted we do presents. "There's presents?!" They had my attention now. Thanks to a sweet husband, email, and a dear friend here locally, I had a nice haul of gifts ("And none of that homemade junk, either!", Coree said. Ha! The homemade stuff is the best!). Cliff made sure to give them some ideas for what they could get, and Molly checked in with them too to offer her shopping services. It was all so sweet and thoughtful. I was very touched.

After I finally got my nice, long nap...I woke up with a hankering for salmon. so I made a recipe I've been wanting to try...Garam Masala salmon with a cool, yogurt and cilantro sauce, and red potatoes. It was delish! Fresh zucchini ribbons, just barely steamed with sea salt to compliment (It's a good thing the zucc was so fantastic at over $6 a lb.! Produce prices are hit and miss over here.)



Here's one with the light on so you can see...


And here's how we ate...by candle light...Jake insisted.


Mmmmm....now I'm hungry again!

Oops, I did it again

I know, this is getting to be an annoying habit. I am actually working on 8 postings between this one and the last one I published. I don't know why I let it happen. Well, I do...but it's no excuse. I do the writing on my laptop, which is SO easy to curl up with in bed (especially since it's the only company I have lately) but the pictures for Flashbacks have to be scanned (a grueling process with our dinosaur scanner) and the digital pics I upload from the Mac, which is (a) clear down the hall in the living room and (b) usually in use by some poor pubby (public school child...as opposed to "homey", a lucky, home-schooled child) for an insane homework assignment.

SO...if you are interested, this week you can look back between this post and the last one and see how I've been holding out on you!

As always, thanks for reading...and thanks for your comments. I'm really, honestly not narcissistic (much) but I do love to feel connected, even if only virtually!

Pain and Parenthood

Patrick and our awesome piano teacher

There is some knowledge that, try as you might, cannot be conveyed with words...can't be truly understood by reading a book, or even with an eye-witness account. Some things cannot be learned by passive experience. I am actually grateful for this fact, especially when it comes to being a parent. If anyone had been able to fully convey to me how hard it is to be a parent, I might have said, "Thanks, but no thanks." But I saw so many others doing it, and making it look easy, that I thought it seemed like a whole lot of fun...and it is, don't get me wrong...but the pain doesn't stop with childbirth (or the adoption process)...that is just the beginning.

By the way, I'm kind of a wimp when it comes to pain. Sure, people tell me all the time how strong I am for one reason or another...usually having to do with single parenting (part-time, while my husband deploys) or home schooling (which our family did for 5 1/2 years, and may yet do again, should the need arise)...but truth be told, I'm not really very strong at all. There are certain situations in life where there is no choice but to keep pressing forward. The only choice is to 'put on your big girl panties and deal'. But given the choice, I'll choose the easy, pain-free way every time!

So, it was an EXCELLENT thing that none of my friends could really truly show me how hard it is to be a parent. Because IF I had chosen the easy, pain-free way, I would have missed out on SO much besides the pain. If I had opted out of the pain of dealing with developmental delays, I would have missed out on the triumphant feeling of that first time, after months of working and waiting, a child reaches a longed-for milestone. If I had turned down the weeks in PICU, watching a machine breathe for my son...I would have missed out on feeling the tender mercies of the Lord as his life was spared and I came to understand what a gift from God he truly is. If I had shied away from the pain of watching my children be hurt by another, or misunderstood by a teacher, or disappointed or rejected...I would have cheated myself out of the joys of witnessing them develop the relationships that will sustain them in this life.

It is so hard for me to keep this perspective when I am feeling my children's pain (which is like your own personal pain, only magnified times 100). I don't know that I'm at a place yet where I can think, "For what is this helping me feel gratitude?" I just want to lash out and destroy whoever or whatever the offender. And I'm not ashamed to admit...I actually have made (and continue to make) some choices based simply upon avoidance of pain.

Why do I bring up all this talk of pain and parenting? I've just had the opportunity to reflect upon it many times since we've moved overseas. Our lives have changed in SO many ways that we've all been forced to stretch ourselves and there's been unavoidable discomfort as a result. Not only have we left friends and family, our home, jobs we loved, our country we took for granted (only to have the head of our family leave us for yet another foreign country); but we have completely changed the way we 'do school' by letting our children venture back out into 'the real world' of public education. I think this has actually been the biggest change of all, and it has been hard on all of us. I've been reminded many times over why we started home schooling in the first place. The homework is sometimes pure insanity, leaving me to wonder what they do during class. The stories the kids bring home are shocking, leaving me frightened for the direction our society is headed. The bureaucracy is stunning, making me grateful I've been spared it the past 6 years. Even so, we felt prompted and continue to feel reassured, that this is the right thing for our family right now.

The other day I received a phone call from Patrick's history teacher. As my chest tightened, I listened carefully for whatever bomb she was going to drop on me. She just wanted to tell me personally how Patrick's presentation on the Mongol expansion was so mind-blowing (and here I had chuckled when he left the house that morning with a Rubbermaid full of Lego dioramas). In fact, she wanted him to present it to her other honors class as well. She was also calling to see if I would encourage him to join the debate team (what a thought...Patrick using his skills for good and not evil). It was a short conversation for which I thanked her profusely. Contrast this with the pain I have felt through Patrick's pain as he has struggled to adjust to all of the changes going on in his life right now. One more triumph to add to the parenting treasure chest...right in there with a long-awaited, first conversation with a preschooler; watching a son come from death's door and tube-feedings to relearning to sit up and crawl; and watching a daughter experience the joy of a true, best-friend.

I know this roller-coaster ride will continue as my children grow...and I was gripped with a sense of panic when I came to the realization that it won't stop there, because grandchildren will just cause the cycle of joy and pain to repeat itself. Yes, it is a fabulous thing that I didn't know how hard this would be. I would have cheated myself out of the ride of a lifetime!

Flashback Friday...Yegoyand!

I seem to be on a ten years ago kick right now. We lived in Oceanside (which is right next to Carlsbad...home of Legoland) from 1997 to 2001. We loved our time there. We were so blessed with good friends, a nice home, a great job, and an opportunity for Cliff to go to grad school to become a Chaplain. Legoland passes were the best deal in town! We never had to try to pack it all into one visit, we could go for a day or just a couple of hours. We were pass holders from the time it opened until we moved...and then we missed it so much, we went back and did another year of passes, because we had only moved an hour away to San Diego.

Needless to say, we have oodles of Legoland pics...but I'll just share a few...


Troy does Lego driving school. I'm contributing his smashing success in real driving school to his early years at Legoland. I recommend it!



Panning for gold...this was the inspiration for my home school co-op history lesson I did on the gold rush. (Painting all those little rocks gold was more trouble than I thought, though.)



I don't know who looks more dashing...



Saving the (mini) world from tyranny and opression...



I'm not sure which mug is cuter!



This was always the highlight. I could do a blog post just on her jousting through the years!



"We must leave you for today, fair Lego citizens...but we will return. Rest well, knowning we are out there...on the watch, with foam swords at the ready..."

He just needed hangin'...

Walking past the bathroom the other night, I had to do a double take...


According to Jake, it all started with this guy...



And then WW III just broke out.



I have to admit, for being cheap and plastic, these guys are sure resourceful.



It really is all about the beans, bullets and Band-aids, and they were clearly up to the task. LOVE the linking cube cannons, too.



I would have gotten closeups, but I wanted to keep our PG rating. If you care to click to enlarge, do so at your own risk...the carnage is a bit much.

My Own Little Rainforest

I know I have mentioned my love for this tree a time or two...



But I just had to share it in (almost) real life with you. Listen...

Isn't that just the best? These birds hang out here every night just before dusk. I love the lead singer...the choir is pretty incredible, too.

Just another day in paradise...

So when are you booking your flight?

Flashback Friday...A whole gaggle!

Today's entry is bound by only one theme...random piles of people that comprise our family.


These are just pics I came across in my searching that tickled my fancy today. I love this face...and that all the boys are piled in the background.



This pic of my four favorite men just melted my heart and broke it at the same time. I remember these days when the kids would come running into our room in the morning. It would be a tight squeeze these days!



A gaggle of kids. I love Jake crawling over Troy to get to the remote.



OK...this one is the funniest! Look at each of our faces and how none of them match. I especially love Cliff's expression. Such good times...like herding cats!