Black Cat Cupcakes

 Pumpkin Patch

4h awards

 Cupcake for October

So I did "just do it"!  I went outside and made mud pies.  This morning my 3 yr old and I did squats and push ups.  So worth it. It had been too long since Sharon has used her Chef skills in the kitchen, even though, she helps me make meals all the time, by choice!  She insisted on taking cupcakes to our COOP (school) on Tuesday.  It would seem, however, that noone in my town sells black string licorice.  I used scissors to cute Twizzlers into whiskers until 9:30 at night when the 33rd cupcake was finally done!  It seems I am at a loss for words tonight, so I will let the pictures speak for our fall adventures thus far. 

JUST DO IT

During Sharon's origination of her blog we had lot's of technical difficulties with sound.  So, we took a break.  It's been three years since our last blog.  After going back and reading some of the posts I realized I should of started a blog for all my kids.  Even if there was a sabbatical.  The memories, the joy,  and the love I fell when reading what Sharon and I did together make this blog worth revitalizing and maybe 3 more....!  Sharon has done many cooking sessions that have not been recorded.  She still loves to cook and now has taken on sewing, which she says she loves.  She has sewn an outfit for 4H artistic clothing and took her project to Colorado State Fair!  She seems to be happy when helping me clean, cook or sew.  Today I watch her play outside in the dirt - mud pies of course- while her little brother plays in the tent.  Sigh, why am I in here..................................

59 degrees, 58 degrees, 57 degrees....that's the temperature in my house as the morning goes on.  It's very possible the pilot light has gone out.  Now I've watched my husband many times re light a pilot light, but unfortunately I am not confident enough to do it.  Of course, he is out of town working, therefore, I will need to call on a friend to help me out.  The warmer side of this situation is there is an electric heater in the bathroom downstairs for the girls to keep warm while getting ready for school and the best way to warm up a home is to bake!  So it looks like we'll be eating cookies for breakfast.  Funny this experience happens the morning after I  have decided I need more passion in my life.  Passion brings warmth (in so many ways).  The passion of enjoying the morning with my kids by baking cookies and eating them for breakfast.  The passion of trying to keep my nose warm by giggling and exercising with my toddler.  The need for passion came to me when I started thinking of not wanting to look back and always wonder what could of been, what I'm missing, why, why, why.  Instead, I need to have passion for the present and passion for the future.  I see my children fearful of getting excited about seeing family and friends, about receiving gifts in the mail, about having the time of their life.  They fear because it's not consistent, they fear because that consistency has been removed, they fear because I fear.  I cannot change others, I cannot change the past, I can change my passion for life now and how I respond to the situations and circumstances we find ourselves in together.  (I just realized the word passion may bring ads on my page that are not encouraged by me, I will try and block them but if I don't, please forgive me).  So today, I will not be afraid to have fullness, I will not be afraid to show irresponsibility in efforts to show joy, I will not be afraid to look at my children and know every smile, every word, every action is forming their very being.  I will use this information to form children of love, not rules, form children of compassion, not selfishness, and in effect, I will be more loving, compassionate and hopefully able to see the things that are important and let the others take care of themselves.  I need to change my model of reference for starters.  Who do you look to for model of reference in your life?  Are they the ones you don't want to be like?  Are they the ones you wish you were like? Are they the ones that you covet their lifestyle?  I have changed my model of reference and I will not look to the universe as the universe is way to unpredictable. I will not look to the church as the church is only a building with people just like me, looking for passion. I will not look to my family as my family is looking to me.  Where do I find passion?  My very inner being reveals this answer so I go to the creator of my being.  Tried and true, waiting for me to ask for the passion that was already planned for me.  I guess I just needed a little bit of cold weather to direct my path to the warmth of passion.

Cookies Yummy!

Looking Inward

So character lesson for mom? not Sharon?  Could it be?  Maybe the events of the last two days were meant for me to develop some qualities that are seriously lacking?  Being a role model is definitely the most direct and influential part of our children's life and I think that is reflecting itself clearly to me this year.   My 12 year old daughter is teaching me huge on humility, obedience and peace.  As she is growing into a young adult she is exhibiting personality qualities that we started teaching her when she was 7.  As I am awoken this morning by my infant hacking gunk up from his chest at about 5 am, after being up every 2 hours, or so, from him teething and wanting to nurse, I decide that he coughs much less if I am standing.  Good morning world.  His coughing does not subside so we shower in hopes the steam clears him up a little.  He seems to be coughing less and ready to get out.  So I let him run around the room while I am lotioning and dressing etc.  He decides to play under the sink.  No I'm not supposed to let the baby play under the sink but there's nothing under there, except maybe that Listerine bottle he just knocked over.  No biggie it's closed....or is it?  I turn my back only to hear glug glub glug glub and the Listerine is pouring out onto the carpet. As I am stomping it up with a towel (my bath towel) Tobias decides to empty my drawer and spread my Q-tips and flossers out.  OK just relax I"ll get those in a minute.  Than I hear the sound of air excaping his little behind, but it's not just air.  Poop is now pooring out of his behind onto the carpet so I grab another towel and try and catch his "stuff" from hitting the carpet anymore.  He gets upset as I am wiping his leg and I have to carry him in a "eww please don't touch me or fling anything on me" hold.  As I lay him on yet another towel to change him, I open the wipes box and the wipes are all dried out.  I command him to stay still (ever tried to command a 9.5mth old) as I reach for more wipes.  Luckily he held and I cleaned and OH Goodness, where are the diapers.  Oh there they are under that pile of laundry that we barely missed with the Listerine.  Diaper on.  Now I have to restomp the Listerine as Tobias fusses because he doesn't feel good. 
What is important in life?  Patience, Peace, Self Control.  With the events of my supermarket experience, and this morning and other small things (another family funeral), that po(o)pped into my schedule and before 6 am this morning I think I need to remember what I prayed for recently.  I don't think the Universe is against me or the stars are out of aline or evolution is trying to make me decide survival or not.  I choose God who is probably working on me so my kids future can be Joyful and Hopeful. He's definitely answering someones prayer and I better be paying attention or the Universe will definitely make my life difficult if I let it control me. 
As best as I can remember from the movie "Pretty Woman",(yes, it's been that long since I've been able to stay awake or get through an entire move), "I choose Who, I choose when, I choose.....Well you get the picture.  Blessings for all those moms out there that think today is going to last forever.  You will look back someday and realize it really wasn't that much time and wish it would of lasted a little more.  So enjoy today, even the Listerine spills, poopy carpets and the insensitive supermarket experiences.  Laugh Love Live  Three areas in my life that definitely need focus.

Color Cut Character

I love Bob Books.  Beginner reading books.  They are short with only one short vowel sound throughout the whole book.  No plurals or silent e's in there to confuse a beginner reader.  Only problem is I can't find my set!  So Sharon is reading out of a reader set that uses plurals.  To make it harder I think I'm dealing with a possible dyslexia issue.  She picks up letters from other parts of the page and she reads the words backwards. I have to cover up the "s" at the end of the plural word and all the other words on the page.  Today's book was a little longer and she was having trouble with her "t's" and "p's".  Very frustrating for her :(.  She did do a character lesson on using night time to rest.  The mission was to color a picture and than to reconstruct it into a puzzle.  Her assignment was to read a bedtime story.  I only thought my first was strong willed and had struggling learning tendencies...my Sharon is a storm of challenges. But if she takes after her namesake she will prevail and prevail with excellence. 

FALL FUN FOOD

This fall is beautiful!  I love the dazzling color changes.  My home sits surrounded by cottonwood, elm, mulberry, black walnut, willow and other trees that are changing in stages.  Sharon's cookies are loved by Shoshana the most.  They do have nuts and raisins in them so not for everyone.  But the fact they don't have sugar doesn't affect the taste.  Shoshana has been crocheting a purse for her BFF for about a month and has finished.  It turned out really good.  I'm very proud of her for sticking with it, even when I would take out rows that didn't quite match.  Abigail is doing a unit study on a novel and made raspberry preserves for one of the projects.  Raspberries are only $1.25 a pint at City Market right now (4 pints for the price of one) so I think we may go back tomorrow and stock up.  Abigail loved it and wants to make more.  I planted 5 raspberry bushes this summer and hope that the 3 that look healthy produce a little next year.  Thanks to Chef Sharon for sharing her blog space.  We have paper pumpkins and homemade wreaths next.  Stay tuned.