Family Day....(and High Fashion).

Kaden has been begging....and I mean, begging to go ice fishing  All.  Winter.  Long.

So, Kevy and I decided to drag our feet no more, and we agreed that Saturday was the day to make all of Kaden's wildest dreams come true.  Or, to - at the very least -  rid ourselves of his incessant reminder that "We never even went ONE time LAST year...and this winter's almost over!!"

Poor little shiners.  Prepare to meet your watery grave...

Neither Kev or I are overly fond of ice fishing.
He's not a huge fan because he doesn't love the idea of walking on potentially thin ice.
And when you hear horror stories of seasoned veteran's falling through, it just doesn't overly thrill his soul.

And me?  Well, I just hate being cold.
And I can think of about a bajillion things I'd rather be doing on our Family Day.

Traipsing out to claim our spot on the lake.

However.  We have three small Hoolies who love any sort of adventure; and when we suggested ice fishing over breakfast, you would have thought we were telling them that we were going to Disney.  That's enough to make me put my (really) big girl pants on and decide to embrace the day in all of its goodness...and coldness....and ice-y..ness...

It's really the little things.
Four bucks for some bait and a thermos of hot chocolate.
It doesn't take much to make 'em happy...

First, Kaden is picking one out to be Ransom's "very own."

And the day was decently warm.  There were no whipping winds or freezing wind chill predictions.  This made me happy.  And there were tons of vehicles driving over the lake....which made Kevin happy, because that told us for sure that the ice was deep enough.

" I think the fithy wanths thom popcornths, Mama!"
I'm certain he does, Love.  

This is one of the many ice shacks that I was tempted to break into.

And a really low flying little airplane.  There were lots of those things out there playing around yesterday.

This is Kev modeling our....er...."Ice Shack"....of sorts.  And his rockin' rabbit hat.
I married a regular Daniel Boone.
That's Kaden in the background doing slave labor.

This is Kev sweating profusely.

So, for those of you who have never had the extreme joy or privilege of ice fishing....allow me to take you step by step through the process.  After you have your bait, your ice fishing traps, your snacks, your ice auger, and all of your little Hoolies rounded up...you then proceed to march out onto said lake and claim your territory for fishing.  Many people do this via snowmobile or vehicle.  We prefer the "use your children to pull your things down onto the lake with sleds" approach.

See second picture previously posted for the Kevin and Amy method.

Then, you decide where you are going to drill your holes.

And you also secretly swear under your breath at all of the other fishermen who are using electric ice augers...while you really wish you'd taken your friend up on his offer of borrowing his.

And you proceed to dig said hole.

Since we only have about ten weeks of pregnancy left to go...our Model today is sporting her Father's vintage 1950's snowmobile ski pants neatly buckled underneath her ever expanding girth, with a thick layering of her husbands' ginormous transfer station find of a ski-doo jacket over the top.  She also despises any hat of any sort of top of her head...but for the sake of foregoing any and all sense of pride and dignity she completes her outfit with a rockin' beanie of a hat...pompom excluded...and a pair of her husband's oversized and nonmatching gloves, to boot.

Try not to be jealous.

Remember:  "Comparison does indeed destroy contentment."
Just trying to be helpful...

Setting the first trap...

And depending upon how many ice traps you have...well, you proceed to dig that many more holes.
You will be happy to know that there was 12+ inches of ice to dig through.
We were sufficiently safe and secure on said ice.

Once the traps are set, the fun part begins.
You sit.  And you wait.

And if you're lucky, a fishy will bite - sending a little orange flag flying up into the air to let you know.
Then, you all will run as fast as you can on the slippery ice and see who can break their neck the fastest getting to the trap first.  It's a fun little game we like to play.

We also had a hole where we just let the boys jig a little fishing pole down into the water.
Ironically, this is where the boys hung out the most.
And, this is the place where we actually landed our one and only fish.

And it was a doozy.
Wait for it......wait for it.....
Brace yourselves.
It's going to be amazing.

 Aaaaand there you have it!
Our one and only catch of the day - caught by Sir Kaden, himself.
What?  You can't see it?

There you have it!
A wee yellow perchy.
Glorious.

And, Voila!
Ice fishing in a nutshell.
This is Jesse...doing...um...well....just "being Jesse."

And so, the fishing was somewhat unsuccessful, but the company was fun.
The snacks were delish, and the hot chocolate was cozy.
The weather wasn't too cold, and the heater worked nicely.
And the afternoon naps that were had by all were sufficiently lovely.
Along with the two Cribbage games wherein I successfully crushed my Love...
Yeah....all in all... I'd say it was a pretty great day, after all.

And now this?
Well THIS....is just a WHOLE lotta'....something.

For the broken...and for those who have done the breaking.

For the child....or the adult...who has ever been bullied.
And for the one who has done the bullying...

For the Mama who walks alongside her Love who is being belittled.
And for the Mama who needs wisdom with her Love who is doing the belittling...

For my children to watch...and to remember...
For if and when the day comes where harsh words are spoken to you and about you.

And....even more importantly...
For you to remember that sticks and stones do break the bones....and words forever wound...

My Loves...
Flesh of my flesh....
This is the prayer of your Mama ~

May your hearts be forever tender.
May you always root for the underdog.
May you never be the bully.
And may you always love the lowly.
May you see with Jesus' eyes.
And may your heart bleed when you see others hurt.
May you always be the greatest cheerleader of the one who is hurting the deepest.
And may you never be the cause of another's lifelong wound.
But if you are....may you see it for what it is...and may you seek to make amends.
May you never be comfortable when you see someone else's pain.
May you seek to be a healer...

And if you ever are the brunt of this brutality...
My sons, might you remember this to always be truth:

You are enough.
You are worthy.
You are wildly loved.
You are desperately wanted.
You will never be the wrong answer.
You will never be abandoned.
You are not alone. 
Not ever...
And may you run - run fast and hard and never stopping - into the arms of the Ultimate Healer...

"God makes a home for the lonely." ~ Psalm 68:6

"You have put my tears in a bottle....." ~ Psalm 56:8

"The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." ~ Psalm 34:18

Ten Pounds of Delish.

For supper last night, I made an "everything but the kitchen sink" kind of a chicken stew.  It was one of those nights where the cupboards are starting to get a little bare, and the fridge just had all sorts and sundry bits of randomness throughout it, with nothing really substantial to feed the whole lot of us.

But, I did have a wee little bird in the freezer.
And you know what they say.....
"A bird in the freezer (small though it may be)...is better than a big one...that's still at the store."
Or... something catchy like that.

So, anyway...
I chucked that baby into a stewpot - frozen and all - and cooked 'er down...down...down.
Then, I picked all of the meat off her bones, and chucked the carcass right back into that pot with a whole lot of other randoms like garlic, onions, carrots - etc. and made some homemade stock.

And for supper, we had "Whatever was left in the fridge Chicken Stew" for supper.
Broth and bird with a little bit of leftover quinoa and rice, half a head of brocolli, a partial head of cauliflower,  some baby carrots, an onion, a fistful of mushrooms, a zucchini, a bunch of green beans, the remnants of a partial bag of frozen corn, and even a couple of sweet potatoes cubed in there for good measure.  I tossed in some basil, some garlic salt and powder, and just a bit of Creole seasoning for taste, and called it good.

And you know what?
It was rather delish.
A cozy bowl of comfort, indeed.

So, it only seemed fitting to make some sort of "Everything but the kitchen sink Muffin" to go alongside said soup.
Plus, I might have been having a craving.
But, there are no prep pictures of cute little boys helping their Mama in the kitchen.
Yesterday was wild and hairy for just about the entire day...so last night's meal was a get 'er done, dealio.

Get in.  Get out.  Get 'er cleaned up.  And get them Hoolies abed for the night...
It was just one of those days.
Kind of like being on Survivor.

But, anyway - here's the recipe for the muffins we had last night for super...and for today for breakfast...and again for mid-morning snack.  They are healthy and hearty, and they weigh about ten pounds each.

I doubled the recipe to make 24 ginormous muffins.  The recipe below will give you a dozen good sized ones, or you could also fairly easily spread them out to make 18 smaller sized ones if you don't feel like being as piggish as me...

Here you are:
"Pumpkin Blueberry Bran Muffins"

4 cups bran cereal (The recipe called for raisin bran.  All I had was regular bran cereal.  No biggy).
2 cups fat-free milk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
3 eggs
2 cups flour (spelt, whole wheat, half unbleached white-half wheat, whatever.  I used a couple different kinds).
1/2 cup brown sugar (or honey or maple syrup)
6 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon (I used 2).
1 tsp. salt
fistful of frozen blueberries --- especially if you didn't use raisins in your bran
fistful of flaxseed
....and really whatever else your little heart desires.  This is just all I had.  Chia seeds would be good.  Or any other kind of frozen fruit.  Whatever.  They are that kind of a  - "chuck what you have into the batter" - type of muffin.

1.  To the four cups of cereal, add the milk to soften the flakes.  Mix with spoon.
2.  Add pumpkin and eggs.  Mix well.
3.  In separate bowl add the flours, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and anything else dry that you've added.
4.  Mix dry ingredients with bran flakes mixture.  Add frozen blueberries.
5.  Fill greased muffin pans 2/3 or more full.  I loaded mine right up.

Bake at 350 degrees until toothpick tests done.  This will vary depending on the size and weight of your muffins!  Serve hot and piping.

Dee-lish.
A poorman's supper of comfort.

And then I took a bath and promptly rolled myself to bed...

Like Sand in the Hourglass...

...so are the Days of our Lives.
Wasn't that the name of an old soap opera, back in the day?
Or maybe it's still running, for all I know...

I remember my Aunty Sharon used to be pretty hooked on soaps back when she still lived with Gram.
Wild little thing, that she is...

Regardless...I kind of love the title.

It suits the "here and now" of my life, quite well.
I feel like I am watching my children sprout up and grow right before my eyes.
It's like it's happening right while I'm looking at them...and there's nothing I can do about it...

Maybe that's why I keep having babies...

And even though some days - like today for example - are somewhat akin to Madness with spills and messes...and even a ginormous grease fire on my stove, to boot....

 ...Even though I just put that blasted tent back in the basement...and got their room back in order so that one could at least walk through it....and maybe even see the floor for a day or two....

This is my fleeting, blink of a life...

These days of bed-headed little boys....
And of waddling, very pregnant me...

The days of load upon load upon load upon load of laundry...

The days where rest time is not an option, or else I shall lose my sanity...
And the days where I just scrubbed my floor, but now there's milk and cereal all over it...

Are also the days of mid-morning tea parties, courtesy of treats sent back from Grammy...
And of grocery shopping in my living room.
Today, I bought cherries and fifteen matchbox cars.
Score.

They are the days of school on the couch.
...with sounds and letters finally starting to click and make some sense for one little boy...

And of Magic TreeHouse Books by the fire being what makes the biggest boy oh sooo slowly start to discover the love of reading for himself...

 If this love grows...well, that for me, equals a successful school year.

 These are the days of reading out loud during breakfast...
And of making grand "Carnival" plans for when Daddy gets home from work.

One dollar gets you in for "free" and allows you to play every game as many times as you'd like...
My boys are learning the worth of money...
...And of the many many ways one might be able to get said dollar...

 They are crazy days where the Littles get "the boot" outside because the inside was just getting too nuts.
And then the Mama remembers to "slow and to see" for herself.

So, she sits and she swings...
She laughs and she plays...
And she fills up the little love tanks...that she may have depleted just a bit during the chaos of the morning...

She talks, and she bends low.
She laughs, and she walks alongside.

She says "I love you," with more than just words...
And she remembers that little hearts are fragile.

Might she remember these lessons for tomorrow....

 More of You ~
And less of me.
Clear my eyes ~
Help me to see.

Little lives...
Give me grace.
To hear their hearts ~
And see Your face.

Give me joy ~
A heart for You.
Fill me up ~
To start anew.

Guard my heart.
Protect my soul.
A brand new day ~
To start out whole....

Because His mercies are new every morning....
And because tomorrow is a brand new day.

Boston!

This year, for Valentine's Day, Kev and I were actually together...when I thought all along that we were going to be apart because of his week away of training...but then, last minute I hitchhiked my way right into his trip to Boston...so we ended up being together after all...which was really really special....because I didn't think we were going to be.  But we were.  Whew.

I think I'm shleepy.
Yes, indeed.

So, when Kev got out of training on Thursday night, he found me waiting with bells on....(well, what I really mean is something other than yoga pants on), and we kicked it to a restaurant called Legal Seafood that everyone had been talking about all week long.

My red-hot, slightly fried from a week of learning, date!  Woot!

Oh Goodness.
Heaven on a plate.
 
I am a lover of all things seafood, so it was just a meal of all things glorious:  grilled scallops, shrimp, mahi mahi, swordfish, and salmon - along with choice of potato and veggies.  So delish.  And so much fun.  And absolutely no wait at all.  Major bonus.  On our way out the door, we heard the hostess telling people that there was a 2 1/2 hour wait to be seated for all those hanging out in the lobby.  Yuckadoo.

And then we finished off our festivities at a fun little self-serve yogurt place right down the road.  I love those places - where you can serve yourself whatever flavors of yogurt that you like and then top it off with about 30 choices of toppings.  That place was lovely.  And very delicious, too.

And then we rolled ourselves back to our room, put our comfies back on, and finished the night watching American Idol and drinking sparkling cider.  We're wild like that.  And it was awesome.

Training wrapped up around noon on Friday, and since the plan for picking up the boys wasn't until noon on Saturday, we figured it might be fun to go poke around and try to get ourselves lost in Quincy Market and the North End of Boston.  I called up my virtual tour guide - my cousin Jodi, who knows the place like the back of her hand, and who also was very accessible to the internet should we need some real help - and off we traipsed like two kids in a candy shop...

 ....which is very much unlike two kids on The Amazing Race, by the way.

A show that I would really, really love to go on someday....and a show where I think that Kev and I could make for some pretty good t.v.....with there just being one minor detail that could pose for one very major problem.

We are really, really good at getting ourselves lost.
Like, we're awesome at it.

This is Kev trying to get us to the North End....which supposedly was a very simple place to get to.  All we had to do was follow the outlined-in-red-on-the-sidewalk "Freedom Trail."  Only problem being, half of the sidewalks were covered in snow, and sometimes that Freedom Trail went in two different directions, and other times, we weren't sure if we were heading to the North End or down to Chinatown, for that matter....

But, we're also really good at asking for directions...and at having fun.
And, because we're both so super competitive, I still think that we'd have a decent chance on that racing show.  Plus, when I'm not gloriously great with child...I can run like the wind.  In my dreams, anyway...

It's on my Bucket List.
If that man would ever stop getting me pregnant...

Another thing that we're really good at is finding awesome coffee shops.
This dude was our coffee artiste.

He made these for us.
How very romantic, eh?
And super delish.  And cozy.
Kevy already slurped in his before the picture was taken...that's why his isn't as pretty as mine...

This was the name of the little shop.
Cute and fun.
It was my favorite part of the whole day.

We are also good at listening to suggestions from all knowledgeable ones on where to go for some famous taste treats.  And since everyone and their dog seemed to be walking around with bags that were labeled "Mike's Pastry," we set off to have a see....and a taste....for ourselves.

We split a cannoli.
The Florentine one with the crunchy outer honey coating.
Holy cannoli was it ever delish.
I ate most of it while Kev worked on getting us lost some more....

Mike's Pastry.
Go there the next time you are in Boston.
When we were walking around with our own little to-go box we heard a dude say:  "Hey!  He's got Mike's! Take him out!"  It's true.  I could've taken him.  I was larger....

Want to know one thing that we are both really, super horrible at?  History.  We both royally rot at all things historical that we should probably know to be historically accurate and true.  And since Boston is full of history....I felt like quite the dunce for most of our strolling about.  I took pictures of things, because it seemed the important thing to do...and because some of these places seemed to be important.

But, I'm not really sure.
I is a homeschooling Mama, yes indeed.

This is Paul Revere.  I remember reading about him.  I actually can kind of even remember part of a poem that we memorized about him.  "On the 18th of April, in '75, (or was it '79??) hardly a man is now alive who remembers that famous day and year."  Buuuuut, that's all I've got for ya.  I'm impressed I remembered even that much.....and something about "The British are coming!  The British are coming!"

Yuuuuup.
That's about it.  Now my brain hurts.

I am good at finding things and taking pictures of things that I know my Hoolies will be interested in, however.  Big long eels for sale is one of those things.  Just sayin'.  They thoroughly appreciated this picture when I showed it to them.  I got all of the proper "oooohs!"  And "aaaaahs!"  And "Groooooooss!" that I was hoping for.

Sweet success.

And super, super olde chowder houses that have been around for ions are also lovely to look at.
And historical, too....
Right?

Ah-ha!  It's true!  It's a historical landmark...

Sooooo, that about sums up the Kevin and Amy tour of Boston.
You're welcome.

We sampled our way through Quincy Market, too, but I had to put my camera away because my hands were too full of all of the little tasties that I kept trying.  I liked Quincy Market.  It was yummy.  And I liked the North End, too.  Sweet, little, yummy cobblestoned Italy, it was.

I did not like the cost for the parking garage....nearly $40.  Ho-ly Hannah.  We almost got an ulcer when we saw the fee.  Nor did I like the traffic on our way out of the city.  However, overall, our spontaneous little afternoon out and about and walking about 86 miles when we really only needed to walk about 10 blocks was well worth the trip!

We got exercise.
We got culture.
The weather was glorious.
The company was fabulous.
And we learned a little bit of history, to boot.

That last sentence is a total lie....

Lent for the Littles.

As usual, I am way behind in posting about things that could be currently helpful...but such is my life these days.  So, while Lent started last Wednesday, and we are now five days into the season already, I shall continue to embrace my "it is what it is" motto of life...and share with you a really cool "Easter Prep" of sorts that - if you like - you could either put a rush order on it to use for this season - albeit a few days late - or simply "bookmark it" as a potential idea for next year.

My apologies.
It is what it is...

Anyway, my Mom actually is the one to thank for this super sweet family devotional activity. It is called "The Messiah Mystery - Uncovering the Meaning of Lent."  Family Life is the company who came up with the idea, and Barbara Rainey - mother of six, by the way - is the author of this devotional.

Here's what I love about it.  She makes it super simple and only as involved and as interactive as you want it to be.  There is virtually no "work."  I hate work.  She has different sections highlighted in bold - and if your children are eight years and younger, you just read those sections....and she has other parts with much more detail - if your children's attention spans are longer.  Perfect for a wide gamet of ages, and I love that.

Growing up, my family personally never took part in Lent - although I think the idea is great.  In recent years, there have been some super sweet ideas floating around - several of which we have used like the "Resurrection Eggs," the "Resurrection Rolls," and the "Jelly Bean Jars" where kids can put different colored jelly beans with different meanings behind each color all throughout the Easter Season....and then on Easter morning, they will find the rest of the jar filled right up to the top with white jelly beans - symbolizing God's grace that covers our sins etc. etc.

All awesome ideas.  And many of which I will probably use again this season.  I love things like this - things that cement teachings into our children's hearts and minds but that are also super fun and interactive.

So, this is just another one of those things - another countdown of sorts - one that focuses on setting the stage, and preparing our hearts....following Scripture from clear back in the Garden of Eden to help us all remember our need for a Savior and to anticipate the greatest miracle of all time.

And I love that she makes this so super simple.  I am wretched at follow-through.  I love ideas, I love grand plans....but so rarely am I able to make it all the way from start to finish with something if it is too overly detailed.  Rockin' Mrs. Rainey knew this, so she wrote only six sessions - meant to be read every Wednesday before Easter...but with flexibility like that...one has an entire week to make sure they get it done!  So, this morning, for example, we did the very first session....that was intended for last  week - "Ash Wedesday," by the way.  But, no big deal.  I like this!

 Setting the stage....

Because the kids are supposed to pretend to be clue-finders, to set the stage, I sent them on a little scavenger hunt all around the house - with clues written in the tiniest of fonts, so that they would have to use the included magnifying glass to read them.  I had a tiny little prize at the end, Daddy read the first devotional, and then there is a paper chain you can make that's included in the package, to rip off one day at a time and add to a poster that you put up on the wall.  Each day we will fill in the picture a little bit more....and get ever closer to solving "The Messiah Mystery!"

So super cool.
And the kids love it.

"God's story in the Bible is actually a series of clues...one of the most mind-boggling mysteries of all time.  You see, with God, nothing is random.  Every detail is ordered with purpose, so His clues aren't haphazard or let behind accidentally.  They are purposeful and perfectly orchestrated.  In the Old Testament, written thousands of years before Jesus was born, God used real people's lives and things that happened to them to tell the world who Jesus would be.  These people's lives were living clues!  God was carefully, brilliantly giving the world directions to find Jesus.  Like a long, red ribbon that we can follow through the years, these signs lead us to God's Son.  The clues seem to say:  Here's what He will look like.  Here's what He will do...."  

 "...Watch for Him.  Pay attention.  He is coming!"

And so we are watching.
And we are waiting.
And we are counting down...

For more information:
1-800-FL-TODAY
FamilyLife.com

"...to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things." ~ Ephesian 3:9