Halloween: YAY - or - NAY ???

Do you do Halloween?
I think this is a big one among Christians.
Do you participate in dressing up and giving candy/tracts?
Do you only hand things out but not dress up?
Do you avoid it altogether?
Do you leave home and do a "fall festival"?

We have friends that do any or all of these.
Some are passionate about their stance.
Some have never given it much thought.

For a few years now, I've felt that I didn't want to participate in the costumes.
I'm fine with handing our tracts and making it fun for others,
but I really haven't felt the need to have our children be fully involved.
Jimmy, sees it different.
He doesn't see a problem with Halloween as we do it these days.
He has fun with the kids dressing up, lighting the house, and passing out tracts and candy.

SO, we do it.
It's not a hot button issue.
He feels it's fine, so I don't push it.
No scary costumes.
No scary decorations.
No scary pumpkins.

This brings me to - - - WHAT DO YOU HAND OUT????
We try not to have much in the way of candy around here.
It doesn't sit right with me to give it out either.
I don't want to be THAT house that passes out pretzels.
or toothbrushes.
or little spider rings.

This year I thought I was really cool.
Today at Target, they had 15 packs of glow bracelets for $1.
I bout 8 of them, so that's 120 bracelets.
I was all excited when I showed the kids.
They told me I was lame.
We were now THAT house.
The one that doesn't give candy.
We'll let Jimmy be the judge.
:(  I thought I was cool.....


Also on my mind is 4-H.

Photo credit goes to the 4 H website!

Do you do 4-H?
Did you growing up?

The sign-ups are about to begin online - October 1st.
Lexi is all over this. 
She has a list of things she really wants to do.
Archery, possibly fashion, rabbits, preserving food.....  among more.
I'm still really unsure of how it all goes down.
We will definitely do the intro to 4-H class to find out all the 411.

Dylan isn't so sure.
I think it would be good for him, but he is such a teenager.
He wants friends, but doesn't want to step out to actually meet anyone.
He wants to do things, but doesn't actually want go anywhere.
I know some things interested him, but I dn't think I can convince him to step out and try it!


The Love Dare for Parents tells us to treat our children with compassion.
We are to model after Jesus.
He was SO compassionate in so many areas.
There are many examples listed in today's reading of exact instances where Jesus showed comopassion.
Things we can model exactly!
Why don't we do this???
It's not roket science.
It's reading the bible and actually DOING it!
Wow!  Novel idea, huh?

Photo credit goes to the feeding South Dakota website!

We have a Movie night tonight downtown!
If you are local, come down and check it out!
We have teamed up with Feeding South Dakota and are showing Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs.
This month, they are raising awareness of all those kiddos that go home with nothing to eat.
The free breakfast and lunch at school are about all they get.
Couldn't be a better cause to raise awareness for.
Hopefully I'll have some great pictures to show you tomorrow!

Ugh.... the schedule

Everyone settling in to their fall schedules???
I am loving the temps this week!
Perfect weather to get out and do something!
NOW, I just have to actually get out and do it!
Maybe I'll take the baby for an afternoon walk.

Lots of things are beginning this week.
My schedule will be adjusting and changing.
I'm not really liking that.
I'm trying to talk myself out of each and every one of them - actually.

First, a new bible study tomorrow morning.
This means the kids doing their schoolwork without me in the morning and spending the afternoon in our together stuff.
Every week.
I know it will be worth it, though.
It also comes with homework, I hear.
When will I possibly have time to do it - I tell myself.
Uhhh....  aren't you supposed to be making time for God every day?
It comes with a bible class for Arabella.
I hear it is WONDERFUL.
Be without my baby?
She LOVES other kids.
She is fine with other adults when I'm not in her view.
She loves new toys and singing and dancing.
She'll be fine - will I?

Lexi will begin violin on Thursday afternoon.
I hope she loves it.
I hope she wants to practice and I don't have to nag her every day and make it a chore.
She has wanted it for so long!
But with it, comes more scheduling.
Every thursday.
Every day to practice.

I will need to begin preparing for a study I am co-leading.
It is about parenting.
I want to get to much from this study.
I want all the other mommies to get so much.
I don't want to mess it up.


There is so much I want to do and I can't possibly fathom how to fit it all in.
Mostly it's me.
I am a home body.
I like downtime.
I don't like to over schedule.

Say a little prayer for us.

Here are some pictures from the last day....

Lexi's new-found love of archery.  She is hoping to add it to her 4-H program.

My kettle bell workout yesterday.  I love kettle bells.  My favorite is the Kettlebells app in Ipad.

This is how I'm attempting to remove millions of fruit flies from my home.  My addiction to hoarding fruit is not conducive of removing fruit flies.  Any ideas?

Arabella really wanted to help Lexi with the dishes this morning.

Pears cooking down to can pear sauce.

Smoothie for the kids for lunch.  A bunch of over-ripe bananas, a tablespoon or two of cocoa powder, about a cup of plain yogurt, a pinch of stevia powder, 1/2 to 3/4 cup of peanut butter, and a glass full of ice and water.  Blend it all up - YUMMO.

Today in the Love Dare for Parents, the remind us to use manners.
Kids learn by example.
They want to be respected.
They respond to love and kindness and MANNERS.
Model that behavior for them!
I know some think that you shouldn't have to coddle your kids and should be able to order something done and it be done.
It doesn't hurt anyone to say please.  Say thank you.  Say I'm sorry.  Don't burp in public :)
Your home will be much more peaceful if you practice what you are requiring of them.
Now go say thank you for something!!!

New chai recipe and a busy day

So I have a chai recipe.
It is a really good recipe, but I'm always on the lookout to try others.
I've tried some REALLY spicy, REALLY sweet, and some are just REALLY bad.
This one that I made this time is SO GOOD.
It is the only one I've seen that has you toast the spices.
I think it adds a depth that none have had yet!
I did add a couple vanilla beans from the bottom of my homemade vanilla.
I think that was the only thing I changed!

We ran errands all morning.
Beginning with picking up our Azure order.
I decided to order
ginger, watermelon, glycerin for tinctures,
olive oil, my favorite raw cheese,
hormone free butter, my favorite yogurt
that I use to make my raw milk yogurt,
a WHOLE case of organic pumpkin....
and a few other things that I can't seem to think of.
I'm still interested to hear what you get and find are great deal.

We headed to Sam's to get all our organic veggies for juicing.
By far the best prices on spinach and carrots.
They also had a great price on raspberries and Baby Bell cheeses.
That made my kiddos very happy and gave them something to much on for the rest of the errands.

Our next stop was the County Extension Office to ask all our 4-H questions.
Tiffany handles that and she was SO NICE.
I think she convinced Lexi that it would be great.
The whole way home, she was picking out all the things on the list that would be fun to do.
Dylan was even considering a couple things...  WOOHOO!
Did you ever do 4-H?
What was your favorite topic?
I'm still a little bit confused as to how it all works.....

At home I made my favorite lunch salad.
I have to keep lettuce and things all cut up in the fridge or I won't take time to do it and I'll just snack.
My favorite has lettuce, tomato, cucumber, avocado, pumpkin seeds, salsa, and homemade ranch.
YUM.
One time I would have just ran through a drive though.
So glad I don't even think of that as an option anymore!

Another great time-saving tip is my chicken in the crockpot.
It's my baby sister's birthday today and we will go over to my dad's for dinner.
He's having pizza.
We don't eat pizza.
The kids will, but Jimmy and I won't.
I wanted to have something ready that we could munch on when we got home but didn't have to work to hard to make or we'd just snack.
I took out one of my favorite yummy hutterite chickens from the freezer.
I buy a few every month - they are such a good buy for only $6.25 each!
Put it on some bunched up tin foil (next time I'll use parchment.  TIN?  What was I thinking?),
drizzled olive oil, sprinkled spices and turned on low.
It smells SO YUMMY!
It will be delicious when we come home later!

The parenting reminder for day 8 is to cherish your children.
That doesn't mean just love them from afar.
That means touch them.
Every day, hug them, put our hand on them, wrestle with them.
Even if they don't seem touchy feely and it takes you so far out of your comfort zone.
Even if it takes time that you don't have to give.
The feeling of love they will get from a one second touch will speak
volumes as to how you feel for your child.

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