"Company" Meal

When we had company recently (& I made my super-easy menus), LG told me he likes it when we have company, because I make good meals. :) I'm sure I said the same things when I was a child. 

On a recent normal Monday night that was even a day off school, and started with a lazy morning, a day that held an appointment, an extracurricular, and two appearances by the babysitter, plus a morning funeral that Jim attended, we had a "company" meal, for just us. :)

Li'l Cheddar Meat Loaves

Easy Roasted Potatoes

Oven-Roasted Green Beans

Maximum taste for minimal effort. Just don't do it on a hot summer day or your kitchen will be hot!  And, if asked if there are any onions, just avoid the answer and say, "You may take them out if you see any." ;)

Extracurricular carpooling

We've been carpooling to swim lessons for over a year, and what a help that has been!  

Last year I would leave Tiny Town with my two plus their three second cousins (so thankful for our van!), drive 30 minutes east, meet their mom (after work) in the parking lot, and she would take them in to lessons, stay, and bring them home.  Meanwhile Little Miss and I didn't have to spend time waiting.  [Waiting involved two problems: one - she wanted to jump in the pool; and two - for awhile there, pandemic protocols did not allow siblings to wait inside.]  Instead she could come home and go to sleep in her own bed!  I got the best end of that deal!

This year the plan changed just a bit! 

I leave Tiny Town, happily drive 10 minutes WEST to Tinier Town, pick up the second cousins from after-care, drive 10 minutes back to Tiny Town, drop one of them off at her aunt's (with whom she goes to rec league soccer practice), and then drive 20 minutes EAST to meet their mom at one cousin's travel league soccer practice. She then takes the other two boys 10 more minutes west to swim lessons. 

But we're still figuring out what is best, because two little squirmy swimmer boys have to wait 30-45 minutes at a soccer field with no playground.  So we brainstormed.  And this is how it went this week ... with a few extra errands thrown on the front end for good measure!  :) 

4.15 drive 10 minutes west

4.25 install extra carseat in Grandma's car (for an upcoming ride)

4.35 pick up Rx at pharmacy

4.45 pick up 3 second cousins

(quickly swing by their dad's field to see the combine, auger wagon, semi grain truck, and octogenarian great-uncle scooping up spilled grain)

5.00 drop one off

5.20 drop one off

Keep Little Miss (of course), Little Guy & his swimmer cousin with me & go through McD drive-through (with a wait) and to pick up my Walmart order (with a wait), and then take the two swimmers back to the travel league soccer practice field

6. 10 drop the two swimmers off with the cousins' mom for 6.30 swim lessons, after which they'll pick up her travel league soccer son

6.35 arrive home with LM

put her to bed

7.00 unload groceries 

shortly after 8.00 - LG return home

Whew! So far it's working, unless we can brainstorm a better solution. 

Thankful ~ audio resources

I have a lot of (forced) rest time in my days. 

And, thanks to "fun" side effects from a new med, I have a lot of wake time in my nights.  Another "fun" side effect from the new med is that my eyes need more rest.  I have re-read the Mitford series on my Kindle app (1.5 times this spring & summer) when I rest or when I wake up at night.  But now I need to listen rather than read.  

I can request audiobooks through the Libby app from our library.  And I have a few books I haven't listened to on Audible.  I have a few more weeks of a subscription to the Abide app.  But podcasts are my go-to. 

And I have found some new podcasts.  Crossway has a few by Dane Ortlund. I'm currently listening to his series on the Psalms.  (In the Lord I take Refuge: Daily Devotions through the Psalms).   They also have a podcast titled "ESV Daily Light on the Daily Path."  The Elisabeth Elliot Foundation just launched a podcast.  I sometimes listen to Daily Prayer: Common Worship Morning & Evening Prayer by The Church of England.  Gospel in Life has Keller sermons, which bring back good memories of the mid-90s on the mission field when we traded Keller sermon tapes like baseball cards!  Sometimes I also listen to other churches' sermon podcasts.

The Abiding Radio app is also comforting. 

And I've discovered that some of my Kindle books are Whispersync compatible, though I haven't checked into that.  

Do you have any relaxing audio resource suggestions?

Broken

"I’m no longer a young man, but more significantly, I live with a compromised immune system. After my kidney damage back and the six surgeries that followed, I’ve had to accept that I will never be a fully healthy person for the rest of my life." 

~Paul Tripp, Wednesday Words, March 25, 2020

 

I, too, live with a broken immune system ... in multiple ways. 

"Primary immunodeficiencies (PI) are a group of more than 400 rare, chronic disorders in which part of the body’s immune system is missing or functions improperly."  Due to primary immunodeficiency, my immune system cannot fight off even the common cold. (And does not respond to certain vaccines.)  One can no more reverse PI through diet than one can change their eye color through diet. 

And so I have a monthly 4.5 hour IV infusion with a home nurse.  The biologic I infuse provides me with other people's immunity and is processed from plasma that people donate (sell) at plasma centers (not the Red Cross).  It has a 3 week half-life, so insurance approves it every 4 weeks ... and I will need it for life. 

Autoimmune diseases arise from when "immune cells make a mistake and attack the very cells that they are meant to protect." I am on two strong medications to slow down my immune system. Those medications further place me in the immune compromised camp. 

It's ironic that these two immune problems have opposite problems. One can't fight. And the other fights when it doesn't need to.  The treatments are opposite also.  The infusion is to boost my immunity.  In order to treat my (as of yet undiagnosed) autoimmune disease, I am taking two strong immune suppressant medications. 

Just like Paul Tripp, I’ve had to accept that I will never be a fully healthy person for the rest of my life.  This world is broken. My body is broken. My immune system is broken. But one day my body will be restored! 

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.

                                                                                        ~ Revelation 21.4

 

And if not

::Repost from June 2017::

Especially poignant these days. He is with us. He is building His Kingdom. May His will be done. 

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And if not

Our pastor has been preaching through Daniel.

A few weeks ago, his text included the phrase from Daniel 3.18, "And if not."  The context is when Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refused to bow before the image of Nebuchadnezzar and faced the punishment of being cast into a fiery furnace.

But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.

The British sent a telegram back to London from Dunkirk with those three words, immediately recognizable as being from Daniel 3, and prompting a fleet of boats crossing to Dunkirk and evacuating over 300,000 soldiers.

"And if not" is really cool to hear about, decades after what occurred in Dunkirk, but a little harder when you're living the story and don't know how it will end. May I be able to say that boldly and honestly!  (The current circumstance in which I want to say it boldly and honestly revolves around Little Guy's speech & hearing.)

Another mom encouraged me with these words:  "God has the power to deliver us from the furnace (and to heal our children) but even if he chooses not to we should continue to trust in him anyway (v17,18). ... Also, God did not expect them to face their trials on their own, he was there walking with them in the furnace."

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Last week we were at the church we attend when in Wisconsin, and the pastor was preaching on Jesus calming the storm:  

"If you are facing a diagnosis, Jesus has a mission. He is building his kingdom." 

What deep comfort! May his kingdom come in Little Guy's life! And in our lives as we walk this journey!

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Our own pastor a few weeks ago asserted that "the prayer, 'Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,' is as radical a prayer as we can pray.  Yet, no real Christian would pray any other prayer, for we know that He knows what is best."

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May His kingdom come. May His will be done.
 

Thankful ~ harvest

Harvest seems to be moving along at lightning speed.  It's only been two weeks since they started.  But they haven't stopped. You can get a lot of fields cleared, if you don't stop for rain and mud.  The horizon is totally different than it was a few weeks ago!

Today I even saw a farmer who had moved on from corn to beans.  And I saw another farmer who is already cultivating his field. 

As always, each year we are thankful to have a harvest. 

We're thankful for every day that the machinery works and doesn't break down. 

We're thankful for health & safety. 

We're thankful for Jim's 91 year old dad who is still out there, driving a tractor hauling two full grain carts back to the bins and empty grain carts back to the fields.  

We're thankful for the moments we get to see Jim, whether it's along the road next to a field when we take a meal, or in the barnyard when we pick something up from my sister-in-law and he happens to be working there, or right before the bus leaves in the morning, or on Sunday. 

We're thankful for the absolutely gorgeous fall weather!!

Hosting

I have a friend who practices the multi-use principle when it comes to (cleaning her house for) hosting.  They often host Bible studies, but she is smart about signing up to host Bible study the day before or after she's hosting something else.  Or to host something else the day before or after she's hosting Bible study.  

Unfortunately, it is rare for us to have someone in our home.  And, as with the rest of the world during the pandemic, "industry standards have fallen." ;) When it's rare to have someone over, it takes longer to make the house "company presentable," even though my definition of that has changed drastically.  

We had friends visit for an overnight last week, and though I left many things undone, and though they offered to do whatever they could to help while here (including mopping the floors), one thing I did do was to mop the kitchen floor.  

As a friend's daughter said about seeing fields harvested, "It's so satisfying!" 

What has been satisfying for you recently in your daily chores?

Meals for guests

We had overnight guests last week.  Three of us have food restrictions.  Take-out options (without driving 20-25 miles) are limited. So my plan was to cook simply. 

Our supper menus were as follows, with a fruit salad with one meal & (bagged) lettuce salad with the other. The most difficult item to prepare was fruit salad.

Tender Slow-Cooker Pork Chops

brown rice (instant pot)

frozen broccoli

 

Herbed Slow-Cooker Chicken

Oven Roasted Potatoes

Oven Roasted Green Beans

 

What are your easy go-to meals? Do you have any go-to meals for friends with food restrictions? (We were avoiding dairy, gluten, eggs, and sugar.)

Thankful ~ ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship)

Yesterday we were in Psalm 22. The teacher, an engineer from India, is gifted, and made the Scripture come alive. (The Holy Spirit had something to do with that, also!) 

Before the teaching, there was time to share each other's burdens in prayer. 

And there was coffee for my asthma attack.

And God ordained where I sat, so that one sister in Christ, just ahead of me, could easily turn around afterward and ask a few follow up questions on my prayer request and take notes to help her remember. 

My takeaway from Psalm 22: God is with us and He is trustworthy whether you're in the beginning, middle, or end of a trial.

Thankful ~ Moms in Prayer

On Thursday nights, Little Miss goes to bed early. My goal is to walk out of her room at 6.30, having sung & prayed.  And ... she's out! :) 

Around 6.50, I gather a cup of tea, my phone, and an iPad, and go to the {frigid} basement and wrap myself in a blanket. 

At 7.00, I log in to zoom on the iPad and pull up a link from Moms in Prayer on my phone. 

One by one, others join the zoom meeting.  (Or, text me to say they're having trouble, because I logged in to the wrong meeting. Ahem!) 

We say hi and then start praying. The prayer sheets are ready-made and easy to follow ... praise, confession, thanks, and intercession (for our children, teachers, school, and Moms in Prayer). 

We're so thankful for technology. Three of us live within a mile of each other, but with 2-5 young children each, sports activities, and 2 out of 3 husbands working on farms, it would be hard to physically meet. 

Our testimony is that we never feel like we have time for it, and there are always other things pulling for our attention.  But, when we say, "Amen," we know it was worth it. Our hearts are bound together, as we hear other moms praying for our child's salvation & future spouse, as we pray for another mom's child in his or her current struggles, and as we pray fervently for the salvation of teachers & revival in our school.  

I'm thankful for my sister-in-law encouraging me to start a Moms in Prayer group when LG started school at 3 1/2. I'm thankful for my two sisters in Christ at his private special ed school who joined me in praying.  I'm thankful for these two moms at our current school who are committed to MIP (and one out-of-state grandma, too!). I'm thankful for the many answers to prayer we have seen.

Thankful ~ perspective

I would like to spend 7.25 AM - 10.45 AM each weekday morning accomplishing items on my long to-do list.

But I'm thankful I have 3+ hours to rest.

I would like to make scrumptious homemade meals for my family. 

But I'm thankful for drive-through and frozen foods to get us through. 

I would like to wear my wedding ring and beautiful engagement ring. 

But I'm thankful for Jim's steadfast love which they represent even if they're not on my hand. 

I would like to not have a months-long cough. 

But I'm thankful for (yet another) negative covid test. 

I would like for LG not to have to stay home from school if he has a "symptom."

But I'm thankful for the doctor's note that says "allergies," his negative covid test, and all the house cleaning he did the day he was home from school. ;)

I would like to not struggle with selfishness, control issues, and worry.

But I'm thankful for the blood of Jesus to cleanse me and the Spirit's indwelling to transform me bit by bit. 

 

 

Christmas gifts (& birthday, too)

Have you done your Christmas shopping? 

I heard a lady on a podcast say she has finished hers. 

I listened to a parody video by the Holderness Family, recommending we start now because of shipping delays. 

I read the comments of people suggesting we shop local instead. 

I depend on ordering online ... in November!

Maybe this should be the year of homemade Christmas presents. :) 

On a related note, LG & LM usually celebrate their winter birthdays at Christmas, with both sides of our family.  So that means Christmas presents + birthday presents from my side and then Christmas presents + birthday presents from Jim's side. And, yes, that can be too much! 

I'd really like to limit the presents this year, but I'm not sure how.  I could list many reasons, but the #1 reason (that impacts our daily life) is that they are not capable yet of maintaining so much stuff.  The best solution I've heard is to have them go through their toys and donate, but they are VERY attached to them.  Yet it's hard for 4 & 7 year olds to comprehend, "If we can't donate some of your toys, you will not receive any new toys." The thought of receiving money for swim lessons or summer camp is not enticing to a child. ;)

So, I'm open to suggestions. What would you do?

Our tribe

One day when LG was 11 months old, a mom I had never met came and spent the morning with me (& LG).  Her teenaged daughter had also started wearing hearing aids as a baby.  She gave me so much encouragement!

And she said, "Whenever I see a child with hearing aids in a store or a restaurant, I always tell them I like their hearing aids."

This weekend we were in Wisconsin, at a restaurant, and I looked at the next table and saw a 6 or 7 year old boy with cochlear implants.  It seemed so normal to me, that it took awhile to realize he wasn't a boy I know from LG's school. 

And now I am that mom.  As we left, I stopped by their table, and said, "I like your implants!" And his dad eagerly told me how old he was when he was implanted, what state they are from, and what major city they travel to (85 miles from their home) to see a pediatric ENT and pediatric hearing clinic.  

They are my tribe, and I am so excited for that little boy and his family and that he has access to sound!

Thankful ~ the bus

Because we live in town (pop: 1300), our children are not eligible to ride the school bus.  

Except if they are a Pre-K student (due to the federal funding for that program). Pre-K is a half-day program. So morning Pre-K students go to school at the same time as their older siblings, and afternoon Pre-K students come home at the same time as their siblings. 

In the past, every family I have known with a Pre-K student has opted out of the bus when they have to drop-off (or pick up) their older children.  Because how can you be at home putting one child on the bus and also be at school dropping off the others?  So their Pre-K student only rides it in the middle of the day. 

And that was our plan, too, until the bus driver said she's supposed to pick up siblings. At which point, I immediately replied, "Yes, please!"

And now every morning at 7:25 AM, the bus pulls away from in front of our house with two happy children (+ others of course), and every morning at 10:45 AM, it returns with LM.

This is the only year a bus will ever stop in front of our house. 

But of all years, this is the year I NEED the bus to stop in front of our house. 

Thank you, Lord!

Thankful ~ family prayer

A recent Sunday afternoon ... 

Two brothers ... 88 & 91. 

One spouse. 

Seven first cousins ... from four families ... middle-aged.

Several spouses.

One grandchild ... a high-schooler. 

Prayer sheet listing requests for the brothers & their four siblings ... and any of their descendants for whom we had an update. 

Going together to the Throne of Grace, as we sat in a circle in a living room, taking needs to the Lord, dependent on His work in lives. 

(While those from out-of-state met on a conference call doing the same.)

Thankful for heritage. 

May the Lord be pleased to answer our requests ... and continue showing His goodness and love ... and may we all love Him and keep His commandments.  

And may we not wait 6 months before meeting together again. :)

Another post about family prayer