February In Review

I loved reading your comments, I think I'd like to come gaze out y'alls windows!  Scene 1 was my current view... And by the time I had finished writing, it had changed to scene 2:

 

The winner of giveaway #4 is Karen, who commented: "I see my bird feeder  (which is empty) I'll fill it up yet before leaving my classroom... blue sky, brown field, an astute brick southern mansion up on the hill beyond the field that separates our little white school house from them. "

Karen, email your address to christopherbethany@juno.com and I will get "The Ministry Of Ordinary Places" sent your way!

I really enjoyed doing this month of giveaways; thanks for participating and making it fun! The only thing I don't like about giveaways is that I can't make everyone a winner. I'd love to. ☺

February held more than just giveaways and more cold days. I thought I'd give you all a little review of the highlights with pictures....

On February the 4th, I turned 40.

That's a big number.

But the celebrating made it almost worth it   -- there were no less than six different celebrations, each one special and unique. It made me feel humbled and tearful. 

My youngest came home from kindergarten reading words and little stories!

There was a school open house with a powerful speaker and fun exhibits. Lillian's classroom made this little town...

Complete with so many fun details...

She was proud to point them all out. 

Jasmine turned 15 on the 8th.

Yes, she's that much taller than me. 

Current favorite game. 

This particular time his first question was

"Does your person have a mustache?"

You can imagine his glee 

when the answer was yes!

My birthday surprise from Chris was scribbled on a napkin at the restaurant...

After consulting my children, everyone wanted to go back to Florida again!

As I told a friend 

who asked about our trip afterward --

"It was good, in a 'very-much-not-how-I-envisioned-it' kind of way".

We got an Airbnb in northern Florida this time and the weather didn't cooperate very well -- not so much lovely sunshine and blue sky as we were hoping for, the promised pool not open... but we really did have a good week together. 

We have a science museum membership right now, so we enjoyed two museums!

The first one had lots and lots of hands on projects we all loved. 

This was a challenge to hang 10 to 12 nails on one upright one. 

Chris and I managed to get

 20 nails on there!

This fellow showed up one day to check out our picnic. Came right up and snatched a tidbit off of the picnic table!

The second museum was a Naval Aviation Museum. Simulated flying with The Blue Angels and watching a video about the space station had to be the highlights here. 

Blue skies and sunshine though we may have lacked, it was still a lovely far cry from the snow and cold of Ohio!

Putt Putting was a big hit. 

Twice. 

And the most fun of all was having our own little house to hang out in. It meant cooking most of our meals but that was actually kind of fun too, to see how efficient we could be with using up every little bit of food by week's end. 

Scum was the game of choice, 

even while traveling home. 

I also had discovered an app that allows me to borrow audio book through our local library so we enjoyed "Cheaper By The Dozen" and "The Phantom Tollbooth".

And then it was back home and straight back to real life the next morning!

And this was my view on March 1

And now I really must run along and take care of laundry and get something else done. Happy Monday to all!

To Crumple In A Heap or Sing Precious Memories?

I glanced casually at the clock and stopped short. Is it really almost eleven? Frantic glance at the microwave, "No, it's ten till ten. Wait. What is going on here?" Snatch at my phone... "The microwave clock is set one hour behind?? You've got to be kidding!"

That wasn't the beginning of the story. The beginning of the story started four days earlier when the electricity went off for seven hours the day my husband was planning to leave for a week. I'll not bother you with the rest of the week, except to say there's been a lot of snowy roads and a lot of plans that have not panned out.

The story I came here to talk about is Thursday.

With rain on Wednesday and a temperature drop and possible snow forecast for during the night, I had Isaac park the van at the bottom of our treacherous lane before going to bed. True to the way my week had been going, we woke up to snow falling and a covered road. I used to refuse to even try driving in snow, so I am getting braver. But oh, how I hate it.

Off we went, on a road that no snowplow had yet touched. I should have known what was coming when I passed the first high water spot but on we went. I was gritting my teeth, anticipating the first bad hill, when we rounded the corner to see a truck parked on the road and beyond him, water. Our road floods easily and this isn't the first time our morning trek has turned into a debate about whether or not to drive through. With the truck sitting there though, I didn't even bother to try. I put the van in reverse and struggled my way back to the road I'd just passed.

One good thing about where we live, there are multiple ways you can travel to reach the same destination. We turned around and wound our way back the way we had come; past The House On The Hill, on out to the interstate and around the world to school by SR 513. I confess, my drive home included tears and a good bit of verbal frustration and self pity. I felt lonely and forsaken and in desperate need of some Jesus in skin.

I got home and set to work on hot lunch prep, busily texting my husband as I worked. His week that was to be spent helping his buddy with a countertop job in AR was turning out to be even more frustrating than mine, with cabinets not arriving and walls not being painted, to name just a few of the complications. After describing the latest disaster, his next text made me throw up my hands and laugh. "Preeeeeeecious memories........" he typed, complete with musical notes on each side. Typical, typical Christopher!

"Perspective, Bethany," I muttered. "Perspective."

That was right before I glanced casually at the clock and realized my time was running out....

After some frantic scrambling, 

 I grabbed the shovel

and scraped the snow so I'd be able

to drive up when I returned. 

And I trucked all my stuff 

down the hill to the van

with some precarious moments

along the way

(You try opening a van door while

standing on slippery snow

And holding two hot pans of brownies.)

 And. I went to school and discovered that I probably wasn't Job being attacked by Satan after all. One of the ladies helping with lunch had fallen the day before and broke her arm and the other lady discovered her casseroles were still cold when it was nearly time to serve lunch.

I didn't break out singing "Precious memories" but I did decide that that was a better option than my earlier urge to crumple in a heap.

The End.

Even so come the end of this week.

Amen.

Pickleball

It is a cloudy, chilly morning. Matter of fact, we've had quite a lot of clouds and rain lately, and I'm feeling a little rebellious about it. Not that I'm complaining or anything but Winter Is Coming, you know.

My house is cozy and warm though. And I've already mixed up a batch of sourdough bread, which makes me feel all accomplished and Ma Ingalls-ish. Isaac now has his license, so off the children went to school by themselves! Maybe that's part of the prairie woman feeling because that leaves me stranded here without a vehicle. Not that I usually go anywhere during the day but, you know, when you don't have it you're sure you'll need it.

Anyhoo......

So here I sit, drinking my coffee and looking around every few seconds at Charles' "Mom, mom! Look!" And trying  to decide what I should say this morning. Should I dip into the murky waters of joy and grief? Should I talk about living with uncertainty; the questions of what God wants from me - from us - at this stage in life? Or should I tell you about nights at the park and the discovery of Pickleball?

I hope you're not too disappointed if I go with the easy one.

You should know by now that we're a fairly flexible bunch around here. We're not the sort who has our days planned to a tee and if we do, those plans are more likely to get changed up than not.

Jasmine and I clean the tire shop Chris manages. We try to get it done once a week but the day and time varies (see above) and sometimes we suddenly decide at 4:00 on a Thursday night to all go in to the shop to clean and eat the pizza that dad will order. Just as typically, the pizza might never get ordered because of a customer at closing time, so the shop might get cleaned and we might end up with pizza from Little Caesar's at a park we haven't been to before.

It was a lovely evening and the children were soon done with pizza and off to try out swings and slides. There was a basketball court being kept busy by some energetic boys and beyond them, more courts where people appeared to be playing tennis. I didn't pay too much attention to the activities and was actually chafing to go home when I realized that Isaac had joined the players and that the sport was actually called Pickleball.

Pickleball? I'd never heard of it. According to Wikipedia: "Pickleball is a paddle sport that combines elements of badminton, tennis, and table tennis. Two or four players use solid paddles made of wood or composite materials to hit a perforated polymer ball, similar to a Wiffle Ball, over a net."

The sign says -- "This court is reserved for Pickleball only. Open to public - beginners welcome. Instructions and equipment provided." Beneath that are listed days and times for playing.

Apparently most of those interested are in the 50-60-ish age range, or so it appeared from the crowd gathered that night. Isaac was the only one of us wearing tennis shoes, which is a requirement, and they welcomed him in and taught him the rules. They quickly decided that he had too much energy and wondered what court he had played on before? ☺

We went again last night, equipped with tennis shoes this time, and the three oldest and Chris all tried their hand at the game.

It is apparent that a lot of them playing are regulars and that the games are purely for fun and exercise. They are some of the kindest people I've seen, welcoming my crew warmly and appearing to enjoy a game that included a newbie 10 year old as much as one with their seasoned cronies.

It's too bad we discovered this at the end of summer rather than the beginning. But you can bet our children will be wanting to make the most of every chance we have left! I guess this proves again that flexibility often provides you with gifts in the most unexpected places.

What about you -- have you ever heard of Pickleball?

A Recipe And A Problem

The two have nothing to do with each other,  just so you know. They were just the two random things I felt like sharing this morning.

    ---------------------------------------------------------------

I don't often try new recipes. I was going to say that's because cooking isn't my thing but I think it's actually more because I'm married to a man who likes the same tried and true dishes every time. Every once in a great while I try a new recipe and it ends up in the tried and true category. 

I went looking for a different recipe for chicken one night and found "Man Catchin' Oven Baked Fried Chicken". I didn't need to catch a man, but it did turn out to be pretty good chicken!

     Recipe:

1 1/3 C Flour 

1 T Garlic Powder

2 T Seasoning Salt

1 tsp Paprika

  --Whisk together in medium sized bowl

2 Large Eggs -- beat eggs in small bowl

1/3 C Butter

8 pieces of chicken (I use boneless skinless breasts but you could use any pieces)

Dip pieces of chicken into flour mixture, then into egg mixture, then back into flour mixture. Place on greased baking sheet. Do not cover. 

Place in fridge for half an hour. (According to the lady sharing the recipe, this is the whole key to this dish. Do not skip this part.)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

Melt butter and drizzle evenly over chicken. 

She said to bake it 30 - 40 minutes. I do more than 8 pieces of chicken, perhaps that is why it takes mine at least an hour to get done. 

It truly is delicious! All seven of us love it, and that is quite an accomplishment. We've even used the leftovers for cold chicken sandwiches on a picnic. Sadly, I have no pictures to share. 

    --------------------------------------------------------------

I do have pictures of the problem. 

I'll give you three guesses....

1) A tornado went through our area?

2) This is a drop off spot for toys for the homeless?

3) Someone has too much stuff?

If you guessed #3 you are the winner! The winner gets to come cart off all our junk. ☺

Seriously. How? How does this happen? 

I think, in the dark corners where they get stashed, the toys breed like rabbits. They divide and multiply and spill out everywhere until finally someone says "Enough!"  Last week that someone was a tall, dark haired girl in this house and we spent an entire afternoon on the painstaking process of elimination. And that was just the girl's stuff. Meanwhile, upstairs....

How do you do it? Do you have an organized process of only a certain amount of toys? A monthly system for purging? A 6 month program for switching out toys? How do you handle having older ones who are fed up with the mess and younger ones who think every scrap paper is a treasure? What about a grandma who gives toys liberally? Or gifts someone gave that aren't particularly one's taste? You can't very well donate your eliminated stash to Goodwill where the wrong people might see them! 

And then you have the mother herself who contributes to the problem *occasionally*

Only last week she bought the large rug pictured above because it was only $4.99 and she couldn't stop thinking how fun it would have been to play with..... Sigh. 

At least it can be walked on.

We currently have quite a pile of boxes and bags to be delivered to some thrift store far away. We might be sick of going through stuff but it sure does feel good. Even the treasure hoarders agree. 

What Is Summer: The Glow And The Reality

What is summer?

Summer is green, luscious green everywhere. Little garden, growing wildly. First the blooms, then tiny, promising fruit. What a thrill to watch it grow, then pick and enjoy the product of our labors.

(Also: Living in the middle of the woods it means weeds grown up, up and out of control. Until I feel like I'm living in a jungle and no one cares but me.)

Summer is popcicles on a hot, sunny day; homemade ones. Made with the relic Tupperware molds of our past. 

(To be honest: we've made them once this year and they disappeared in about 2 days.)

Summer is fourth of July picnics at the lake. 

(Confession: picnics anywhere, much less all together at the lake, are not really 

what-you-might-say

a regularity with the Eicher family. 

This was special.)

Summer is storing up the bounty for winter. It's watching the full jars line up slowly and feeling the adrenaline rush of the lids sealing with a satisfying 'ping'.

It's a friend sharing her bounteous dill and your mother-in-law digging out more jars from her basement. It's pulling out old recipes, long unused. It's the smell of vinegar and spices. It's tomato sandwiches and cucumbers on butter bread and weary bones at the end of the day. 

(Full Disclosure: It's a sweet, caring husband who takes an afternoon off to go to a produce auction to buy his wife veggies for canning -- a husband who likes to buy things at autions; lots of things. It's a wife who discovers she really may not have learned so very much in 17 years. [That's putting it all very mildly])

Summer is long, lazy days and evenings. It's a game of Clue, first thing in the morning. It's a trip to the Library and gazing in awe at the American Girl Doll collection on display. It's an afternoon spent on the recliner with stacks of books. It's crafting a swing set for your poor Fisherprice children who desperately need one. 

(Reality: It's settling fusses over one person having both Fisherprice toilets while their sibling has none. It's a perpetually toy-strewn living room, non-stop Adventures In Odyssey and people who constantly think they need to be fed. It's hoping for some quiet time in the morning before everyone wakes up for the day.....)

Summer is busy and lazy and fun and taxing, all rolled into one. It is also short and fleeting and deserves to be 

enjoyed to the full. 

How's your summer?

Geocaching: One Giant Treasure Hunt

Used to be, when my family gathered, it was tradition for my mom to have a treasure hunt for the grandchildren. The hunts were never big and elaborate, nor were the treasures. But the special feelings and memories were huge and all the grandchildren looked forward to the little tradition with anticipation. Maybe that's why some of us get such a kick out of the giant treasure hunt called Geocaching?

It's been quite a while ago that I heard about this quirky pastime. Several of my siblings have spent time hunting down various caches but somehow I've never gotten in on the action.

According to wikipedia, "geocaching
is an outdoor recreational activity, in which participants use a global positioning system (GPS) receiver or mobile device and other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers, called "geocaches" or "caches", at specific locations marked by coordinates all over the world. A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook and sometimes a pen or pencil. The geocacher signs the log with their established code and dates it, in order to prove that they found the cache. After signing the log, the cache must be placed back exactly where the person found it. Larger containers such as plastic storage containers or ammunition boxes can also contain items for trading, such as toys or trinkets, usually of more sentimental worth than financial."

If you are interested in the origin and history of geocaching, you can find the full story here. This fun hobby even has it's own personal lingo which you might find intriguing and helpful in deciphering information about geocache sites.

Last week I decided to look up some info and try out this crazy, giant treasure hunting. There are several caches hidden less than 5 miles from us, so Sunday evening the girls and I went on a little excursion.

Our first destination was a graveyard next to a park we sometimes visit. The hint they gave us was "Under stone, ask Elizabeth". Being able to put two and two together, we went searching for a gravestone with the name Elizabeth.

Lo and behold, there she was!

And there was our box....

With all the little treasures and logbook inside......

We checked it all out and added our name and the date to the log. Then, we tucked everything back where it was and exclaimed,  "That was fun! Let's look for another one!"

Since there was another one located in an older part of the cemetery, we went ahead and searched for it too. This time our hint was "Don't get your arms scratched up like I did placing it". 

Didn't take us too long to say I Spy!

I'm not really sure why it's so much fun but there's a whole list of them around here I would love to search for! We haven't managed to convince the men of the house that it's exciting. Maybe one of these days when it's not so hot we'll get them talked into going with us. One good search and they'll surely be hooked, right? I'm already dreaming of finding one in every state we travel through. Shhhh. Don't tell. 

And now I'm curious -- have you heard of geocaching? Have you tried it? Are you a fan?

7 Days, 7 Photos, And The Importance Of People

There's this challenge floating around on social media right now: "7 days, 7 black and white photos of your life. No people. No explanations. Challenge someone different every day." I'm a sucker for these kinds of things.

Maybe it's because I'm in love with lists. Maybe it's because I like the spark that a little challenge adds to my life. Maybe it's because I really am a social media addict. Or, maybe in the case of this particular challenge, it was the intriguing idea of 7 pictures of my life that didn't include people.

Do you have any idea how much of your life includes people?

Coming up with 7 meaningful photos of your life without including any people in them is harder than you might think. I quickly discovered my whole life is entwined with people. My life without people would be meaningless, dull and lonely.

I did do the challenge. I spent 7 days looking at my life with eyes to see what photos I could take that would give a true picture of what it includes. The interesting fact is that, while the photos do not include people, every one of them is evidence of the many people in my life.

Day 1/7

Five mornings a week I pack lunches for my school children. The contents of each are as individual and unique as the person who eats them.

Day 2/7

It's a rare day that couldn't include some version of this photo. Why? Simple. Seven people live in this house and they all wear clothes.

Day 3/7

Some version of this photo could also be found nearly every day. Why? Again, the people who live here. At least three of them are young, creative, messy and have huge imaginations -- that's a house behind those curtains.

Day 4/7

Five afternoons a week I see some version of this scene. It represents the privilege of a Christian school and a row of dedicated mothers, unified by one cause: Time to pick up school children.

Day 5/7

Shopping day. Need I say more? That Goodwill bag is definitely the most fun part of the photo.

Day 6/7

Food prep. How much of my life is taken up by that task? I could have just used some version of this photo every single day but the stuff usually disappears before you have a chance to take a picture, if you know what I mean.

Day 7/7

This is kind of my favorite photo in the whole bunch. That silent, empty auditorium represents so much more than meets the eye. It represents community, friendships, encouragement, fellowship, belonging, growth, accountability, security, faith, love... All because of the people who are not pictured.

             -----------------------------------------

Maybe some of you are like me. If you are, take up the 7 day challenge! Regardless, take this opportunity to go let all the people in your life know how important they are to you.