A Real Snow Storm

This what I saw out the front door this morning. 

An attempt to clear some snow. 

This is what I got done before the snowblower died. 

A good size limb down. 

More snow shoveling. My dad is coming down with his big blower to finish. 

It is still coming and so I left a corner to measure it when it is finally finished snowing. 

Bendick's Room Makeover

My project for the last month. I don't have any good before pictures. The walls were dark paneling, which shouldn't be too hard to imagine.

 And we now have blue! Valspar's Crispy Blue. I like it. And the trim paint is just white paint from Wal-Mart. Mom and Amy came few a few hours one afternoon, and helped paint the walls (You didn't think I did all that myself did you?).

 The wall behind the bookcase wasn't there originally. Clark built a stud wall and put shelving in there, and I now have a "walk-in pantry". I should post pictures of that too sometime. The bookcase itself is an antique lawyers bookcase. It used to have glass doors at some point in it's life. I looked online to see if I could find any, but didn't have success. It seems the bookcase lasts longer then the doors. I suppose if I wanted to, I could have someone that knows what they are doing build me some and restore the thing, but not sure if it's worth it. Anyway. The bookcase is from Clark's great-grandparents, Hershey, I think. I'm looking for curtains for the closet door. And I need to get a quart of paint and paint the closet interior and touch up a few spots on the walls.

Looking the other direction.

 Curtain close-up. Wal-Mart fabric and made them myself. It was easy. I considered tan walls after I bought the fabric, but I only have about three other rooms that are going to have tan walls, and I wanted some variety.

Wall words. I bought these at Bargain Bills, and painted them myself. I was quite pleased with how they turned out, as I am not very artistic. Benny "helped" paint the K. I just need to figure out how I want to hang them on the wall. I also want to get this picture for the room as well.

Watching the process of hanging curtains and blinds. Notice "Petie". Petie, or "Woof-woof" as Benny calls him, has become an important part of life in the last week. He eats, sleeps, goes to church and plays with Benny, and would take baths, wash dishes, and go shopping, if Mom would allow such things. I'm kind of glad in a way that Benny did attach to something. I'm hoping it will make overnights easier. Though then we run the risk of loosing Woof-woof, which would be sad.

All moved in! He slept just fine the first night, better then we did in fact.

Hooray!!

Now on to other things. Cleaning and SOS this week. Then shall I tackle my bedroom?!

A Few Pictures From Recent Life

Roses from my man for Valentines Day. Those roses made me happy!

Benny

Gwen and Benny from when Gabes were here recently for a visit. They played nicely together most of the time.

And my goofball again. And no, he's not this angelic all of the time. 

I was going to post pictures of Benny's room, but the pictures are still on the camera. I'll try again soon.

Reality vs The Clock

Hi,

 I want to introduce you to a man. Actually I am going to tell you about a typical day in his life.

5:00 am: The alarm rings and instantly his feet are on the floor.
5:05 am: He is awake and alert and sipping on his hot chocolate he has just made and he is reading his Bible.
6:00 am: Time to eat breakfast which was freshly made by his wonderful do all wife.
6:15 am: Go outside, start the car, and come back in to get ready for work.
6:30 am: Leave for work.
7:00 am: Arrive at work.
4:00 pm: Time go home after a successful day.
4:30 pm: Walk in the door to a happy wife, clean house, and well-behaved child.
4:45 pm: Time for around the house projects. Take out the trash, balance the checkbook, build shelves.
6:00 pm: Supper time.
6:30 pm Devotions
7:00 pm: The man takes a shower
7:15 pm: Family time. Singing, playing, and talking about the day.
9:00 pm: Bedtime
          
             Those of you who nodded your head in assent to this schedule may now go back to your puffy white cloud and may the the euphoric winds of perfection blow you sofltly on your way. Don't forget to play a few soft notes on your harp as you float slowly by. Oh, and please hurry because your shadow is blocking out the sun.
           To the rest of us who are still here, I used to think that way too. Otherwise I wouldn't be quite so hard on those folks. Anyway time introduce another factor.

          Hi, my name is Reality. I am going to tell you about a young man. He would tell you himself but he would sugar coat it to look better to those looking down from puffy white clouds. (By the way, I take great pleasure in tipping people off of puffy white clouds. It is what I do.)
          This young man got married and had the idea to live on one of those puffy white clouds. He would get up at 5:30 every morning and so on and so forth. Then I (Reality) showed up. I am going to tell you about a typical day in this young mans life.
        6:30 am The alarm on his phone rings. Hopefully it rings quietly, otherwise it will wake his wife and baby who were up half the night before. Due to the fact he was up to help out with the baby, he finds it very difficult to keep his eyes open and falls back to sleep till 7:15 am.
        7:15 am The young man finally opens his eyes, puts both feet on the floor and staggers out to the living room to find his Bible. Bible found, he will now sit blinking sleepily for 15 minutes.
        7:30 am He opens his Bible and reads a couple chapters through the fog, trying to make some sort of application and he does receive some nourishment. Although probably not enough. My name is Reality and I have to tell the truth.
        7:45 am Time to start the car and get ready to go.
        8:00 am The young man kisses his wife and heads off to work. He has 70 mi to drive and he needs to make a gas stop.
        9:45 am The young man is finally settled in to his job and will work till 5:30 pm or 6:00 pm.
        11:15 am There are some phone calls he needs to make, this takes him about 15 minutes to half hour.
        5:45 pm The young man is ready to go home. On the way home he has to make as grocery stop and he also hits a deer. These two incidents cost him about half hour.
        7:45 pm He arrives at home to a tired wife and grouchy baby.  He gives his wife a big hug and they eat supper.
        8:15 pm He heads off to the shower.
        8:45 pm Family devotions.
        9:00 pm Time to give baby a bath.
        9:30 pm: The young man watches the baby while mommy showers.
        10:00 pm: The baby is still going strong and won't settle till 10:30
        10:30 pm: The baby finally goes to sleep and the young man makes the decision to spend some time with the wife. They have ice cream and watch a movie.
        11:00 pm: Off to bed.
         2:00 am: The young man is awakened by his wife and is asked to fill the steamer. It will be 2:30 till he goes back to sleep.


         (My wife informs me I might be overplaying this, but it makes a point I guess.) Tell me, is there anyone out there who can identify with this? To those of you who are still able to keep the ideal schedule, I congratulate you, enjoy it while it lasts. After you are married, you won't ever find it again till you children are grown up and leaving home. To those of us who have been visited by Reality, lets put our chins up and live life the best we know how. I think the key is not in the keeping an exact schedule, but in what do we do with each new unique day that God gives us. A good day isn't determined by the clock, but by the opportunities and circumstances we find ourselves in. Did I read my Bible regardless of the clock? Did I take time to say good bye to my wife regardless of the clock? Did I take 15 minutes out of my day to share Jesus with a coworker? Did I see a sunset I wouldn't have normally seen because I came home a different hour than normal? I beginning to wonder if there isn't a reason that God choses to make each day different. It is OK to plan your day, but there is no guarantee that it will happen the way you planned. Get real, life isn't gonna play by your rules.

Thats all!!

P.S. The baby went to bed at 8:30 tonight. I rest my case.

  

How Life Really Is

     “I’m going to do something important with my life,” she* said, eyes bright with hopes and dreams. “I don’t want to have a normal life. I don’t want to just sit at home and be a normal American Mennonite woman. I want to do things, to make my life count. I don’t want to put my time into a nice house and lawn; to waste my time and money shopping and scrap-booking and drinking coffee. I don’t want to just get married and raise a family and enjoy life. How can people just sit and do nothing while the world is going to wreck and ruin around them? Why can’t we do something about it? How can people be content to just go to work and come home and make a comfortable life for themselves? Surely those people that go to the mission field are heroic, godly people, sacrificing their all for Jesus.”

     I hear that girl. In some ways, I was her once. But life and experiences and perspective have changed those ideals.

     When your husband cheerfully goes to work every day, and you both do your part to  live on one income, so you can stay home with your children, suddenly the whole go-to-work-and-come-home routine looks different. For one thing, the money goes to pay the bills, and you live from paycheck to paycheck, carefully budgeting to make things stretch. Just because we live in North America does not equal richness. I’m not denying however, that we live higher then parts of the world, but there are parts of the world that live higher in material things then we do. But what I’m trying to say is that sometimes it’s a “Hudson Taylor” faith walk for trusting God for our needs, even in “rich” North America.

     In reading and hearing from those that have gone overseas to live and share the gospel, I am amazed at how much their lives are like mine. They do dishes and laundry. They try to make their homes a haven for their families, and a place of hospitality for others. They struggle with the same feelings of inadequacy, and wondering if they are really making a difference. They have child raising questions and difficulties. They struggle with living in a different culture, perhaps in a different and more intense way then I do, but the bottom line isn’t that much different. They go out to coffee shops with friends, and get together with others for recreation times. Basically, they do the same things I do. They live out their lives for Jesus just like I do here at home.

      Basically, when you strip away “things”, life and human thoughts, here or anywhere else on the globe, aren't that much different. I realize there is a difference in places ravaged by war, disease, famine, and natural disaster, but if those things happened here, to me, my life would be lots different too.

     Women in all cultures like to have their house pretty and respectable. I'm not talking huge and fancy, I'm talking clean, and creative with their decorating resources. They like to get together with friends, visiting and doing things. I'm pretty sure they even go to market (think shopping) together.

    And raising a family is the most important thing you can do. Godly children can shine the Light in their generation. Hudson Taylor** had a mother too. She never went overseas; I doubt she traveled very far in her lifetime, but she perhaps did more for the Kingdom of God then we think.

    So to you young women, with your dreams and ideals, keep dreaming. Those are good ambitions. But in the meantime, dig in right where you are now. You will be doing essentially the same things the rest of your life, no matter where you live. “Wherever God has you, be all there,” our pastor said once. Such sound advice.

* ‘She’ is a composite of many people I have heard in person, or been myself. I'm not thinking of any one person.

** Hudson Taylor was used in this article because he is a recognizable figure. I have a few issues with how he handled things, particularly with his family. But I recognize that God used him in spite of human failings.

A Post About Life

     My toddler is sleeping. I am enjoying the quiet "me" time. He woke up very grouchy and didn't want to eat breakfast. I'm suspecting the large bump at the back of his gum had something to do with it. Sigh. He climbs on everything he possibly can. He can say a few words, "no", "down" and "ouch" being the most recognizable. Other communicating is done by pointing and saying "Uh? uh?". I think that perhaps it would have been a good idea to teach him sign language, an idea that I sort of scoffed at. He had several weeks of horribly restless nights, and I was at my wits end to decide if something was wrong or if he was just being bratty. Finally as I thought about it, I remembered that his nights started being bad about the time I tried introducing milk. I quit trying to give him milk and presto! He started sleeping better at night. Hmm. Perhaps there is a connection there. But now what? Can a toddler grow strong bones on juice?
     I got a gardening catalog in the mail yesterday. Now I am dreaming. My problem is that I'd love to have all kinds of flowerbeds with nice flowers in them, but I have a hard time keeping them clean. Ah well. I want to try doing strawberries in a raised bed, so I'm going to be researching that this winter.
     We are having a very warm and snow-less winter so far. I keep wondering if we are going to get real winter. The lakes aren't really frozen over yet, and the snowmobile trails aren't exactly open. 
     The other day we were driving down the freeway, and we passed an ambulance that was on the way back from a run. There was an EMT sitting in the back smoking. Wasn't that sort of well, dangerous? And stupid?
     People always said that being a parent would teach you humility and unselfishness. And it does I suppose. But I think the biggest thing I have been sort of learning, or seeing I will learn, is patience. A child does not learn his lesson after one or even two times. At least my child doesn't. And so we go over and over it again. Multiple times a day.
     I am hoping to spend the rest of my week cleaning house. And next week I am going to hopefully finish organizing Benny's room and get ready to paint it. But, plans often don't work like you want them to. :)

From Our House to Yours

/

Merry Christmas!

 God Bless Us Everyone!! 

The Grabers 2011

Someday we will take a family picture in which we are dressed up and don't look like we just hiked half a mile up a mountain. 

My Favorite (Christmas) Cookie

(Pretend there is a picture here of a cookie, with strawberry jam in the middle, and a drizzle of frosting across the top)

Strawberry Cream Cookies
1 c. softened butter
1c. white sugar
3 oz. softened cream cheese
1 T. vanilla
1 egg
1/4 t. salt
1/2 t. baking powder
2 1/2 c. flour
Jam (I use strawberry preserves, and wonder if that doesn't help prevent overflowing the cookie)

Cream the butter, sugar and cream cheese together, add vanilla and egg, and mix well. Add dry ingredients and chill dough. Shape the dough into small balls, place on cookie sheet and make an indention in the middle. Fill indention with jam. The cookie will grow as it bakes, so you don't really have to worry about the jam overflowing.  Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. And then I make a stiff frosting with powdered sugar and milk and pipe it back and forth over top. These freeze well. And they are yummy!

Yup, We Train 'Em Young...

My men doing dishes for me. :)

Why We Celebrate Christmas

Lu 2:10. And the angel said unto them, "Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger."
13. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14. "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

John 12. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13. Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
14. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Between secular materialism on one hand, and pious disregarding on the other, these verses help us find a balance in Christmas. Surely the fact that God so loved us that He sent His only begotten Son to earth to save us, should be cause for celebration!

Atmosphere

Cabin atmosphere

      I was sitting in my house Saturday evening after we got home from the cabin when something suddenly occurred to me. I realized I had the same feeling about being home that I had had at the cabin all weekend. Which got me to thinking about atmosphere and what kind we create. And maybe part of my feeling at home in either place has to do with my MIL and I having a similar style at decorating. But anyway...
    The other week Clark and I were on a date and went to eat out at Perkins. Now, the walls were painted a cozy color, and the decorating was nice, and even the lighting was nice. But, the music was jazzy and the two TV's on the wall certainly did not help. Atmosphere? Yes, I suppose. What I want when I'm on a date with my man? Nope.

    I like clean and uncluttered, but still homey (as in perhaps knowing it's clean under the clutter). It helps my state of mind. When the kitchen is piled with dishes, I do not get the feeling of a peaceful atmosphere. Right now, neither the laundry corner, nor the chest of drawers in my bedroom give me the impression of an uncluttered state of mind. And the back room certainly doesn't give anyone the impression of peaceful and uncluttered.
     But I think that atmosphere can also rise above environment. On Sat. eve. the table was piled with odds and ends, and the floor was covered with books and toys. Yet there was still a warm and cozy and peaceful atmosphere. I think that the attitude we show in our homemaking, is a reflection of our internal life. If I am content inside, my home likely will reflect that. If there is turmoil or busyness, my home often reflects that as well.  On the flip side, I can have ever so cozy and homey of an environment, and if there is disagreement and bickering, the atmosphere is decidedly not peaceful.
   What kind of atmosphere are we women creating in our homes? A place of peace and rest at the end of the day? Or constant hustle and bustle and busyness?

And I am Thankful...

     For LIFE...and health. We had a close call with a semi last night.  I don't like to think about it, what could have happened. I think Clark and I would have come out ok, but not sure about Benny. And I'm doubly thankful for my men today.
     For Salvation...and those who are taking the gospel to others. To all of you that are working with the kids on the Reservation, keep going. You are doing a good work.
     For family. We love you all and have great times together. And to our parents for raising us. Clark and I are often amazed the the similarities in our up-bringing. I'm afraid our kids are going to be raised the same way we were. :)
     For church family. We love you dearly.
     For a messy house, it's warm and it's home. For dirty dishes, we have plenty of food to eat. For dirty laundry, we have plenty of warm clothes to wear.
     For a little boy that is wanting attention. It means he has a mommy and they love each other.
    

For My Mom

...And anyone else that cares.

     This is post-hair cut. This was a week or so after, so it had grown out a little. And it's grown out even more now, so I'm happier with it then I was at first. Cutting the hair of a very active one year old is an interesting feat, I knew i had about five or less minutes before he'd be tired of the project. I think I did it in about three minutes, and it looked like it!

     This week was one of those tough mothering weeks. His very stubborn side tooth was bothering him again. I hope that THIS time it comes all the way through. And then he got a head cold as well. So for about four nights I was getting  up every hour or so. And that was with Tylenol. Last night he slept better, as in only getting up every 2-3 hours. And he's happier and eating again this morning. So I'm hopeful that we're over that hump. I had to wonder yesterday, how I ever did it when he was newborn and nights like that were a fact of life. It seemed much harder this time around.

     And I wanted to paint my whole bathroom this week. Ha!

Tidbits From Our House

Fall is slowly giving way to winter. We had frozen precipitation falling from the sky the other day.

Here is a recipe that I've made a time or two this fall.

Pumpkin Spice Cake

 Mix together:

2 c. mashed pumpkin

3/4 c. vegetable oil 

2 c. sugar

2 eggs

1 t. vanilla

Then add:

 2 c. flour

1t. salt

2 t. soda

2 t. baking powder

1 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. ginger

1/4 t. each of cloves, nutmeg, allspice

Pour into a 9x13 pan and bake for 25-30 minutes at 350.

And then I like to frost with either a sugar crumble, or caramel frosting, which is:

1 stick of butter

1/4 c. milk

1 c. brown sugar 

Mix together and heat until the sugar is dissolved. And DON'T let it boil (learned that the hard way one time). 

Then take it off the heat and add 2 c. of powdered sugar, and beat in well. Let it set until it's cool (don't stir again), and then spread over your cake or cinnamon rolls or whatever.

      So those are my fall recipes. Speaking of cinnamon rolls, I'm going to make myself hungry for some if I think about it too long. I suppose I should make a pan and send them to work with Clark sometime. 

    Today I read the book "Safely Home" by Randy Alcorn. And I've also been reading "He Chose The Nails" by Max Lucado. Both are very thought provoking reads.

    I'd post pictures of the little man's new look since his haircut, but I guess we haven't taken any yet. Hmm. Clark is coming home to figure out what and where the funny smell from the dryer is. I'm wondering if something somewhere didn't get a little too hot. Not a good feeling. 

Our Last Week in Pictures

 

     We are having absolutly gorgeous fall weather this week. We're soaking up all the sunshine we can, winter is not far away. It's actully rather unusual to have such nice weather this late in the year.

      It's a good feeling to have our gardening and harvest over and mostly put up for the year. Sometime I think it would be fun to do a Harvest Celebration, and have everyone bring something they've raised.

     Here are a few hooligans enjoying a pile of leaves. :)  They had a big pile raked up, and were jumping off a tree branch into the pile. I'm not actually sure how many peoples are in there; five maybe?

      We've been frantically working on outdoor projects while the weather is nice. Here Benny is trying his hand at planing. 

     We took a flying trip out to NE last weekend. It was soybean harvest time, so we got to see a little bit of that operation. I think I like NE best in the fall. We had a lovely, fun time there. 

 

     And finally a few pictures of my super-cute, way-too-grown up kiddo. He's been loving this weather, and likes nothing better then when I let him play on the deck. I'm not sure what he's going to do when the weather gets cold. I'm afraid we shall both suffer. He's a neat freak; bits of stray papers are promptly thrown in the trash can, as well as the occasional toy and sippy cup. He hates having sticky hands too. Both traits inherited from his father. And he has discovered the joys of books (inherited from his mother), and thinks I have nothing better to do with my time then show him a book. He says a few words, and is discovering animal sounds, his favorites being "rowrr", "moo", and a snorting sound for a pig.  He loved playing with Gabe's cat and dog when we were in NE. 

     Here are a few more pictures.