Wordless Wendsday

Menu Plan Monday

Tackle It Tuesday

Several weeks ago you may recall mention of a young impoverished woman to be wed.
The young woman when asked what her colors were or what her dress was like told me she would be waring the only jeans she had and a t shirt.
I told her..."no way!"
This is your day.
I set to prayer over her for her means to be available to her.
I thought of many things and prayed for many other need for as well

After five hour, of spinning my needle and thread, the necklace was beaded.
This is the ladder stitch. i found myself in prayer sing "We are climbing Jacobs ladder".

I glued my knots (and my fingers, hair and cheek:), trimmed all threads and attached a Silver knot guard and a heart shaped knot ending that I attached to a (pearl type )clasp

After the children in bed I spent a few more hours and made the earrings and finished all the knots with glue. I used silver (sterling) kidney hoops.

I attended Bible study almost late. I gave the child the necklace. She said she was waring pearls and asked if I would be mad. I pulled up my dignity and offered it to her a free gift and told her that pearls sounded lovely.
She then closed the box and put it in her bag sorta tossing it aside. She said "thanks", and do you want to see pictures of her little daughter singing.
Stung a little, I remembered I was only keeping my word to her that I would make her a necklace. My word matters to me.
However the disregard stung a bit.
I then joined her and her pi as aunt in the small prayer group. I find her aunt the most inhospitable "professing" Christian I have ever met.
Now ya all that is really saying something and this woman is a missionary?
I asked the child if she were marrying of her own choice, she did not understand my question. I explained that I have been married many a year and have watched More than my share of marriages collapse because the wife married out of obligation or expectation of someone else and wanted to know for sure that this was her will.
Some of the other ladies were on the same page.
The aunt was not pleased with my question. Does that tell you anything about the wisdom of my question? The young woman then said that they have been together for four years and this was just the paper.
In class I spoke boldly and freely about the meaning of covenant.
I pressed the issue, a class mate said "did you do the study?" I told her I had not. The study taught the things I exampled to the class. Everyone had chance to share with her. It was a very good class. I told them about how in a mature marriage that the mans question of "Can I cut it" can only be answered by God. I told all the girls that witness to a marriage a wedding also have a responsibility in the covenant witnessed.

I said the same things to the groom at the before the ceremony. The pasture over heard me telling the young man these things and said that I had done his sermon for him.
I was asked by one of the ladies helping out to hold the door open for the bride.
I accepted the charge willingly, The aunt again was cold and indifferent to the bride. Control. She does not this girl and shows it. I was offering the bride a photo with a decent back ground and was pushed aside by the aunt (dis-respect intended).
I took several images and was so pleased to see the child (young woman) smile about the isle when I held the chapel door open for her. I ran around and slipped in the other side and sat down. Trying to capture this event for the child , I kept eye for the girls taking a few cell phone pictures and such. I tried to capture a few that would have been lost for her.

Be was beautiful in her dress.
I talked to her about the truth that she is beautiful, she said she used to believe that.
What has happened to this child to lose the truth so blindly.
Me thinks the aunt is a poison and a thief of her niece by marriage beauty.
She only helps them for the sake of the four year old child.
Shame, shame she has place upon her own head. Just shameful!

I captured a few images of the licence being signed. The aunt would not receive my offer to catch her image as she signed and blew me off.
I complimented her dress and she blatantly ignored me shunning me by turning her back turned to me.

I have done what is right.
I have spoken what Gad asked me to say. I have created beauty freely and gifted her with it.
The outcome may never be before my eyes and all seamed awash with insult and disregard. I care more for the friendship I have with God, that as his friend I have befriended this girl hoping to add a memory of beauty for her wedding day.
This was her wedding day. Lord help her with the marriage.
Friends I am exhausted of all of this and I let it all go.
I will be going to another prayer group on next Tuesday.
If The aunt (who leads this small group) asks of me why I will tell her.
That I find her inhospitable and I do not find a quality of character that I can respect in her presence.
Stings to do what is required (asked of) of us sometimes, but I can sleep and I like who I am.
I have befriended (in act) one whom God so loves that......

Independent Adventurer awards

Independent Adventurer awards
Daddy Man and I set up the Tent for the kids in the back yard for the weather is perfect.
The kids wanted an adventure.

Last weekend the kids slept out side in the tent all weekend

They slept with the "bears".
With the foodstuffs to consider they had their own ice chest complete with marshmallows and all the joyful things needed for a proper camp out.

This on the second sight out was what they awoke to on the patio door.
As Mighty hunter will tell ya, there is nothing like the hunt and the chase to follow!
This is the reward of the hunt.
He landed on doves shirt and she just stood there and screamed half fear and half delight.

This is a big grass hopper.
He is probably thriving on my garden in part :)

Sunday night
We made a BBQ and ceremony to acknowledge the courage and adventurous spirit they both showed. We all did the ceremonial collapsing of the tent otherwise known as the . Avoid the melt down of the tent being torn down and the fun ending)

BBQ hot dogs for the kids and cowboy beans, Daddy and I had steak. (It was awesome they had it half off as a family package and so I just cooked all of them (we had a lot of left overs)

My Beloved set up a wonderful shop light for the grill so I could see well.

The children had made their own "lap tops" by copying the keyboard onto paper and tapeing it into a hard bound binder. Too cute! This was their own doing.

Grandma and I made these on her machine in the afternoon. I had managed to hide them from the kids.

I made a formal big to-do about it.
Passing out the awards, I touched there heads and said "remember this allways"
Dash had a fit because he did not like the image of himself on the award and it all went down hill from there. He coped a real bad attitude.
Later he even said hurtful thins that wounded my peace.
I just walked away telling him some stupid (on my part comment about "here is a knife just cut my heart out") I know very stupid for the adult.
Dove just fell apart and ran to her room. I then went in to appoligize and admit to the stupidity of it all . She read jokes to me while I laid on her bed. It was pricesess. She said that she just wanted to cheer me up cause Dash was so mean.
Wow! How tender a daughter we have raised.

Dash has sence then been rather regressed and has been very clingy and pouty. Oh man parenting can be hard.

The Origins of life and leisure

Cotton before flower, with stem base (very sharp) and cotton with the seed still in it.
Fabric, in the begining.

Green Beans are flowers first.
Funny thought from beauty comes sustenance and health.

Woo Hoo A carrot!

With all this good food healthy teeth are growing .
"Look Mom another loose one".

I weeded...Now how do you say that single tense.

The Peas are sad.
I learned I should have soaked the seeds before planting.

My lettuce crop :)

I let the Ladies eat up the vines and melons.

It is a wonder a little water a lot of life.

Ladies in the morning sun.
Feed them...they will feed us.
That is the hope anyway.

Of late I have found myself fascinated with seeds.
This Honey Dew melon (a sweet tender fleshed fruit) Has the most amazing seed row.
I simply turned it over and was able to simply harvest the seed to plant.
I was thinking that these folks try so hard to make a melon that will make them money.
The life is in the seed. If I go buy seed at the store I will be paying them double.
Perhaps with this melon, using it's seeds,I may be able to reproduce it's quality.
Look at the seeds of the foods you eat they are so beautiful!

This is broccoli slaw. At the grocer , with a hankering for slaw...I thought to buy the ingredients and make it from scratch. Well I put the cabbage back when I saw the bags of organic broccoli slaw mix at a managers special for .99 apposed to $4.00a bag grabbing several bags I was able to make enough to add to the feast I took over to the Grand Parents on Sunday.
The dressing
Mao
rice vinegar
in the motor and pistil I added sea salt and celery seed.
Seed seed seed....
so beautiful!

I gave dash a long cooking lesson and made a feast together with him.
He finished of the dishes.

Boiling eggs 24 of them (the grocier had $5.00 dozon eggs for 2.29 on special.)
Heads up ...with range free eggs you can wait along time after date (up to two weeks) You see te eggs are much better to use for hard boiled eggs then. Eggs breath, the shell is porus with a membrain that protects the chick from air leaking out. When the egg is not furtile the air leaks out and so when they are a bit older egg the eggs do not crack when boiled for there is little air in them. So when you see eggs at date for reduced price buy a couple extra dozon and make egg salad and devel eggs.
Cool Trick!
place eggs in cool water and then boil for 10 minutes, emediatly remove into an ice water bath with BAKING SODA in it.
Now crack each end a little. Get under the membrain , now hold the egg in fist and blow a little . This removes the membrain and the egg will peel flawlessly.

Have you ever stoped and thought about the origins of the foods you eat?
A big part of the cooking lesson that I gave Dash was about this.
Now concider what was used to add to the main ingrediant can you figure it out?
Balance is key to food preperations. A balance of flavors, sweet,salty, spicy, bitter.
A balance of color is very important as is texture.

Dash discovered how to make mustard by investigatin.
Learn these things and you will know that the basic ingrediants to keep on hand will give you the power to make it for yourself with better core ingrediants and less expence.
Understanding is the begining of knowledge. Practicing that knowledge is the begining of wisom.
Think about it.
I gotta run Bible study and full day.
I am well I'll post more later just ran out of time.
I have been trying to get this post out all weekend.

Gleaning the grocery store.

Hello, Good Day to all of you!
there is an old saying "kill them with kindness"
Well yesterday in my anger about the melon vine , I found myself cleaning Doves room.
I had the melon vine at the table how it was around the vase roses.
When the children were in a few moments I asked mine to come to the table once there, I sat silent.
They wondered why they were to sit, Dove asked if I was sick.
After a few silent naturally emotionless moments ...I asked them if they had anything to tell me.
Dismayed it took them some time to catch on. Pointing to the vine helped.
They shared they did not want anything to spoil my (our) morning and Dove owned the fact that it was her idea. I asked them if my anger was that scary? They said yes it was. Lots of food for thought about my own behavior course change.

Busy day today.
I got groceries and then went to the school to take Dash some soy ice dream for his class party. They were having root beer floats.
Dove won honors of her art work being chosen for the wall at the school.
Grandma Look at your talented bedding artist. That composition is amazing for a 4th grader (even if I do say so my self).

I was so happy for her Esteem is flourishing like a flower!

That's my kid!
Personally I am impressed at her composition and dimension.
Look at the depth in the back ground green and the foreground with the lighter tone.
The creature looks like he is sitting on a limb and awaiting a treat.

I just got off the phone with the Vice President of the PTA.
(It happens that she was the sweet woman who covered me yesterday when I left the kids in the art room when Mrs. "T" was still doing her conference.)
She was surprised when she realized it was me. She was happy to have me. Some of the ideas I have pleased her. I will bring my own easel to show the posters on, as to intrigue the kids more than it just being clipped up on the white board.
She has asked me to be one of the Art Master Piece instructors for the Elementary School.
I have a good friend ( Hi Trisha) who serve in this volunteer capacity in the East Valley and she has told me a lot about it. I signed a sheet saying I was interested at the first of the year.
I will begin my three part training class on 10-23.
I will be assigned to my kids two class rooms for the first year. If I am interested in the position next year I will be picking up more classes. It is a 15-20 minute (twice monthly) presentation of art, the classics, to expose kids to the beauty and wonder.

I gleened the box of scrap for the chickens that the produce man gave me.
I found all this in it. The cost of these items alone is well over $5.
Kind is'nt he?
I have been thinking of myself as an old Character in a Book.
Her name was Ruth.
She married a guy who died and so did her brother in law. She stayed with her mother in law. She had moved to her part of the globe and just decided that she would stick with her and not re-marry.
What a friend.
Well this Ruth would go out into the nearby fields and follow the pickers.
The guy who owned the land saw her and had heard about her from the neighborhood gossip.
He thought it so cool, how she took care of the widowed mother in law. She was young enough to marry again but the two widows just hung out togeather.
Ruth took it upon herself to risk life and limb to grab the fallen food off the ground. Of course she would'nt think of pushing her luck by acually taking the good stuff of the crop itself. The owner told the crew to bug off, and leave her alone To be a little sloppy as to leave her a little extra of the good stuff on the ground. She gleened all day in the heat just so the two widows could have enough to eat.
Well that land owner eventually made a wife of her and gave her a lot of honor
for her heart was good.
She kept herself and her friend alive during some pretty hard times.

Well I been thinking about how I do that...I glean. It is hard times , but I have gleaned most my life. Grateful for what falls my way. Content in it seeing that there is so often a little extra laying there to stock up the pantry.
Gleaning the grocery store is now a pleasant art form of worship for me.
Today I came home with well over $600. worth of goods for $363.06
Gleaning the shelves (Fry's has some case goods sale on staples).
I have been hankering for some coleslaw again.
I saw the pre-sheaded and thought ...no ,I'll just shread my own and save the dollar.
I walked a few more steps...Organic dated 10-16-08...Four bags of shreaded coleslaw veggies normally 3.99 a bag $1.69 (Just left for me on the field, it was even in the Air Conditioned store).

It is hard times now.
So be a good friend and go out a gleaning. Be grateful for what falls. See the wonder in it. The character you practice will not go un-noticed.
Just think of my produce guy.
I grow chickens and keep vigilant, and he notices. Like Ruth... I have favor because I am grateful.
Lets all practice a little more gratitude.
Love Ya!

The Friendship Rose

My Dear Friend sent me a rose.

A friendship rose.

Those of you dear ones who I care so deeply for. So many of you come to mind. Care oh lyn, Denise, Amrita, Jaye, Michelle, Trisha, Angie, Corey all of you and so many more I am dull of mind to mention. You have all uplifted me with your kindness. It has been a bit trying for me lately as I know it has for so many of you, and yet your comments extend a selflessness that touches my heart and lifts my burden so the weight does not crush me at times.

My Beloved gave me two dozen roses today and his kindness took me to weeping big healthy healing tears. So many times your comments help me feel, heal and buck up to journey on.

Bren wrote...

Donetta...I hesitate to tell you this, but feel led to just the same. You know how God will use something bad and make it something good???...He use you in that last night. My children are wonderful...do NOT get me wrong, but my daughter is unattached and wounded. She was rejected and often time lashes out...at me. I had a quilt made of my own hands. HOURS AND HOURS of hand quilting on it. All hand appliqued...1/4" cross hatch. It was one of my best pieces and was wrought with blood, sweat, and love. My daughter cut it up. Not big, but little snips into fabric here and there. I was devastated. I found later she was only trying to "be a sewer like you, Mommy" by clipping the basting threads...she caught fabric in the scissors. I half believed that...I always wonder at the intent and motive in the destruction that follows her choices. I still have this piece...it hangs over my bed, clipped fabrics and all.
My insecurities have been full. I read your blog...every post. I SEE the bond you have with your children. I SEE the love you have for them unconditionally. You have helped me privately in my parenting, for which I am grateful. I have still always "known" in my knowing that my daughter will never love me the way Dove loves you. Dash, too. When I saw what those "naughty children" did, God said, "See...your children can love you and still hurt you. Donetta, DOES know." I recognized your pain, but also I felt a healing at the expense of it. Thank you for being willing to share this.

Two dozen roses for the loss of my melons

I am drawn to tears my Love.
Mr U. My friend and lover arrived unexpectedly a moment ago with these.
I am weeping .
Oh how your kindness touches me to the quick.
All those hard hours of digging in clay, by hand turning and amending that earth.
To have such a great loss as this today be acknowledged ...
I am snoty nosed , wet checks blessed in you my friend.
Your love heals me.

I will take it easy on the kids, I will think the best of them and let them explain.
For them to see these roses Love,
They will also be touched as only a Fathers Love for His Wife can touch a child.
I love you Mr. U.

Gleaning all the beauty from the ashes.
Entwined in Love.

Children risk life and limb

Naughty children!

VERY naughty children!
I went to toss out the trash and in the bottom of the recycle can I found this!
So was it the kids or the dog?
I am just on nails and thorns!
(pins and needles gone array!)
Oh I am so mad and sad and frustrated with all the hard work I do being torn up by others.
Oh a mothers rant!
Sounds like fun at my house after school.
Once I get home from the Parent/Teacher conferences...
Oh,...another stressful afternoon.
I want to go on strike!

In home child care issues.

I thought this would be a pretty thing...
To help out a Hard working single Mom by watching her little darling.
Put two forth graders in the same room in class all day then bring them home and have them spend another several hours together....Oh mercy it is not working out.
I have been doing my best to equip the girls with life skills and conflict resolution skills...
Oh I am tired of this daily battle of hurt feeling.
Dove comes home daily all bent out of shape.
I do not know who is playing who against each other.
We Moms stuck in the middle.
One Mom single with an adult son at home helping out and a 9 yr old who is so scared and troubled trying to make her way through the maze. She keeps a stressful employ and carries all the load on her.No other care giver, no hot water and a lot of pressure.
Another Mom with two special needs kids. One is an 11 year old who trying to find her way through. Hindered by her developmental challenges. Confused by all the mixed signals and little girl ploys.
I am tired of the everyday fuss and strife and stress.
Two little girls becoming young ladies with all the developing hormones and the emotional ride they are on.
This is like a made dog by the ears...
Now I am feeling threatened that the mom will retaliate.

Two mothers played against each other by two little girls who are each laming the other.
Now you know why homeschooling sounds so good.
I believe that we have to go through these social lessons.
I stopped homeschooling in part so that my children could learn these lessons.
Oh! the stress of the strife.
My notice given this is not long term in the best interest of the children not just my little family.
Just processing...
Would I be willing to take another child?..
The child is easy it is the baggage and challenges of interpersonal stuff that has been so very hard.

Update after Parent teacher conference. Once again my instincts are right. Dove is the little "Pet" of these two vying classmates. Hurt children , hurt children, and in this case my special Little Dove. She is a compassionate child who is easily made to comply. This has been a big growing season for Dove. Now it is time for her to become "Wise as the serpent".
I gave her the example of each of my index fingers being one of the girls who are waring over controlling her. Then she automatically raised her little finger In the middle I showed her how one saw the other using her as a "pet" and then the other came in and tried to make Dove their pet.
I told her each of the girls are hurt, they saw you r gentleness and were drawn to it.
I never want her to stop being a
"Little Dove",...
but it is now time to be wise and see the snakes in the grass.
When she asked what to do, I told her listen to your heart and stay out of your head. Her thoughts fled to fear and then I drew her heart in and she wants to play soccer at recess. I told her "play soccer". Follow her heart listen when she feels used and controlled remove herself from their grip. Do not stop being kind but do not be used.
She asked " what if I do not want to be wise...?"
Then I told her you will become a fool.
God blessed me with the wisdom today that I needed for this day.
I sought understanding and it came to me. The teacher and I spent well over and hour together when usually it is a 15 minute to the second conference.
The teacher appreciates that I see every kid as a treasure.
As Doves Mother she is my first duty and priority.
I can not save the other children.
I can only offer them Love.

Chocolate Lab Risks own life...

Remember the wonderful cantaloupe...

A BAD DOG!
A VERY BAD DOG!

The children went into the garden and closed the garden gate.
Guess who is too smart for his (my ) own good!
I am angry, lucky , very lucky for him I have a little bit of a sense of humor!
Apparently after the children admired it, he thought he would give this cook and gardener the biggest complement.
BAD DOG!

It's Eggman....

My Mom makes these better than Mc D's

Oh ya!
Mr Wonderful made these stainless steel rings for me many years back

Keeping the girls working overtime. They have yet to lay an egg.
Eggman is in the wings.
Eat girls eat!