Work Day

Warning: If you have already read If You Give a Mouse a Cookie to your toddler a zillion times, this will seem like a repeat.

All I wanted to do was wash the curtains in my bedroom and bathroom.  Honestly.  I don't know how these little tiny jobs turn into three-hour projects!  I took down the dusty curtains and threw them in the wash, then hung them on the line.  In five minutes they were ready to be hung up again.  But then I thought, I should really wash these windows first.  Before washing windows, though, I needed to move the horizontal blinds, cough, cough, sneeze!  Better clean those, too. Upon further examination, the windowsills needed a good scrubbing. So I did that. But what is the point of washing only the insides of the windows, when the screens and the exterior of the windows contain 20% of the dust in the surrounding desert? Off came the screens, and I began scrubbing. The girls saw what a fun time I was having, and pretty soon I was out of a job,  Tom Sawyer style.  

I know you're curious. Why are all the girls matching? They were planning ahead for a game of tag in the dark last night, which they did, with Kristy's kids and their friend, Mackenzie.  No, Alizona and Booklover are not twins. And yes, Emily seems to have a conviction against wearing a pony-tail in her hair.

The crowning moment was when my kids THANKED ME for "letting" them help! (LOL! I love it.)

(Please pardon the veranda floor... we've been meaning to get to that for two years now...)

Carnival of Homeschooling

The 121st Edition of the Carnival of Homeschooling is up at Principled Discovery. Go visit the Homeschool Bag Lady! 

Homeschool bag ladies are

"not just equipped with the standard fare of mom’s bags such as hand bags, diaper bags, snack bags, library book bags or shopping bags, either. Oh, no-no-no. In addition to these standard fare bags, these moms shlep a multitude of other bags making it undeniably easy to identify her as a Homeschool Bag Lady."

She's got the activity bag, the library bag, the press kit, the shopping bag, the gym bag, and more -- the whole kit and kaboodle.  Check it out. And while you're there, read heartnsoul's entry!

Ocotillo (O KO TEE' YO)

UPDATE:  To my horror, I have found that my research on this plant was quite faulty!!  Here is the content of a comment I received on this entry:
I wanted to write you concerning the article you wrote on the ocotillo.  It is commonly mistaken for a cactus but it is actually a plant.  The leaf on the plant we have grows just above the base of the thorn but the leaf is not a part of the thorn.  There may be a variety that is actually a part of the thorn, not sure, but the one we have the leaf comes out just above the thorn at the base.  Thought you may want to check the info out for yourself because I am not a botanist by any means.  Just wanted to make sure someone who lives far from the desert and had never seen the plant didn't actually mistake it for a cactus.
Thank you, Cherie, for enlightening us!  (I did wonder about those new little leaves growing above the thorns...)


My earlier post on cactus (with a little help from a kind commenter) has inspired me to try making cactus jelly.  We will have to wait until later in the summer to do that, but in the meantime I have suddenly become interested in photographing and learning about the other species we have in our yard. This one is my favorite -- ocotillo.  This pd photo is nicer than the one I took with houses in the background.

Ocotillo are tall and spindly and grow up to about 20 ft. high, depending on the variety.  They bloom from March to June (or later), depending on rainfall.  This one blooms each time it rains (which is not often this time of year!) or whenever it is watered.  I love the flame-like clusters of flowers at the top of each stalk, because they seem to add a touch of gracefulness to the harshness of the environment here. They are beautiful waving in the breeze.

(Above photo by Amy.)

Amy pulled one of the flowers apart and gave us a great view of the stamen, anthers, and pollen.

The bark of this cactus is beautiful.  Young stalks are green and look like several stalks have been glued together.  As the plant matures, the "seams" separate and dry, leaving beautiful variegation.

The strong thorn is actually a part of the leaf stem. When the leaf dries up the thorn is left.

When the leaves have all dried up, only the stalk and thorns are left.  But as soon as it rains, here come little buds, just above the thorns.  I prefer these obvious thorns over the nearly invisible, fine stickers that many other cacti are armed with!

And for those of you who are trivia buffs or mathematicians, I have two more pieces of interesting news. One, Alison discovered the Fibonacci spiral when she looked down the length of a cut piece of ocotillo stalk. Two, if you are ever stranded out in the desert wilderness, and you just happen to have a match, and you also just happen to have a good, dry piece of ocotillo, you can start a good signal fire.  Burning ocotillo sends up a black, greasy smoke. (File that away with my earlier tip on Elmer's glue.)

MOMS OF MANY Exercise Challenge Update

Twelve days ago I decided that if I don't start really doing some walking or SOMETHING, in a short time, I won't be able to do ANYTHING.  For the past nine out of twelve mornings I have gone for a one-mile walk first thing.  Three of those days I have had my DH's company, which is a good motivator.  It's a lot more fun walking with him than walking alone, and besides, we go an extra 1/4-1/2 mile farther when he is along.  Okay, one mile is not going to help me lose any weight, and I feel like a total spaz out there trying to walk fast and tripping over my feet at the same time.  But it is already making me feeling a bit more energetic during the rest of the day (like I knew it would -- why didn't I do this a long time ago??). I haven't lost a fraction of an inch or lost any weight, and I don't expect to until long after my cells come to the realization that I am not trying to kill them, but to do something good for them.  They always panic when I start talking about losing weight, and they hold on for dear life.  But after only a week and a half I do feel better, and that is a good benefit.  After I get some coordination back, I will go farther. So now, all of you who encouraged me before I started (and that includes those of you who have been encouraging me for the past twenty years to start walking), you have my permission to say, "I told you so."

Look Ma! No Training Wheels!

It's been a bittersweet day. Our baby has had her training wheels taken off -- a great big event for her and for me. The baby is growing up!  What happens next?? Reading? No, been there, done that. Tying shoes?
Here, she doesn't know Dad isn't holding on.
From that to this in just a few minutes!
Now we are 87% cyclists in this family. One more to go... (that's me, lol.)

Getting Away From God

Have you ever felt lost in your Christian life? You knew who your Father is, but you didn’t seem to have any fellowship with Him, and you couldn’t “see” his working in your life any more?  Has your flesh gotten the upper hand and drawn you away from the Lord?  Have you ever gotten ahead of him and found yourself wandering around with no direction? This can easily happen when we take our eyes off the Lord, even for just a minute!

Recently I lost Emily at Kmart. She doesn’t normally wander away, but when she didn’t see me she thought I had left her. How many times have I told her, “I would NEVER leave you”? But, leaning on her own understanding, Emily went out the door in a hurry!  When I looked up she was GONE. Without a trace! I called her name repeatedly, but she could not hear me!  After tearfully wandering in the parking lot for a bit, Emily actually thought about asking the taxi man to take her home, or maybe she could walk home by herself. But more than she wanted to be home, she really just wanted her mommy! Shortly my daughter was discovered by a K-Mart employee, who took her back inside the store. Emily went along willingly and sorrowfully, knowing she was helpless and in danger of being run over or stolen away, and very sorry for not staying with her mom. We were tearfully but happily reunited a few moments later, and I spent the rest of the afternoon recovering from a near heart attack.

What a picture these circumstances lend us.  If you have wandered from the Lord, there are some things you need to realize.  First of all, God has promised that will never, ever leave you nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5), so stay right in the place where you were last with him. Keep doing what you know he wants you to do for this moment, and the next, and the next, until he makes himself known to you again. When you don’t “see” him, don’t panic. He is still there. Just trust him and wait on him.


Second, as a wandering Christian, you are not “lost”. You are still saved. Unlike me, our heavenly Father is never an irresponsible parent (*blush*). If you are truly saved, he is holding you in both hands, never to let you go. (“And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one." John 10:28,29; “If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.” Psalm 139:10) He knows where you are at every moment, even when you are far away from him! (“Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there." Psalm 139:7,8) He knows that when you are away from him, you are not only helpless, but you are in danger, too. You are in danger of losing your way, as Demas did (2 Timothy 4:10), in danger of wild beasts (“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour,” 1 Peter 5:8), and in danger of living without the blessings of God on your life. Are you aware how precarious your circumstances are?


Next, before you can get help finding the Lord again, you have to be willing to admit that you have left him! That is called confession. Real repentance will make you willing to turn around and go back to him. No one can make you go back to fellowship with Christ if you don’t want to, but aren’t you miserable without him? The Bible says the Lord Jesus calls his sheep by name. Can you hear him calling your name as you wander? He loves you and he left all to win your soul, just as the good shepherd left the ninety and nine to find the one little sheep that had left him. (“How think ye? if a man have an hundred sheep, and one of them be gone astray, doth he not leave the ninety and nine, and goeth into the mountains, and seeketh that which is gone astray?” Matthew 18:12.)  You belong to Jesus Christ!


Finally, what a joyous occasion it will be when you and your Saviour find each other again! He is a good God, a wonderful Saviour! The Bible says there is actually joy in heaven when a sinner repents! (“I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth”, Luke 15:7)  The whole population of heaven is excited about your return. There is nothing better than being restored to fellowship with Jesus, except not losing that fellowship in the first place.  I was SO happy to have my dear child back, and Emily has stayed very close to me ever since.  But we both would have been better off not going through that experience! 


If you have never been saved, the Bible says you are in darkness, and you do not know where you are going.  You may think you know where you are, but you do not know the way Home.  If you have been saved and you are away from God, going Home might be the easy way out, but having your fellowship with Christ restored right now would be so much better! Be warned – getting back to him will take longer than it did to get away from him.  But the results will be worth your trouble.

I hope you have never wandered away from your Father.  But if you have, know that he loves you and he is earnestly seeking you. Turn around. Be willing to be led back to him.  Not only will you have your fellowship with him restored, but you will also find safety, security, and JOY in him!

Carnival of Homeschooling

Grab a cup of whatever you like to drink, take off your shoes, and make yourself at home at the Nerd Family's blog for the 120th Carnival of Homeschooling.  Your children are invited to come along and play with the Nerd kids in the playroom. Oh, and bring a friend!

If you would like to submit a post for next week's carnival, go here and get your entry in before Monday night at 6pm (Pacific).

Say Hello :o)

To my children's great astonishment and envy, I have added a low-budget c-box to my sidebar.  It has been suggested that I move it up a bit so that it is more visible, but I have a good reason for leaving it down there where everyone can't see it.  I am telling you right now that it is there, so now you know.