My Makeup-less Week

So, as part of my Lenten observance and Walking Humbly, this week I wore no makeup.  At all.  Anywhere.  And, I didn't just hide out in the house either.  Among other things, I ran about 8 shopping errands, sang in front of my church, ran kids to various activities, and today will host a birthday party.  I had countless conversations with others.  And, here's my big revelation . . . the most shocking and potentially life-changing thing I learned . . . are you ready for it?

Here it is . . .

No one's paying as much attention to me as I thought they were. 

Duh, right? 

But, here's the thing:  why would I be hesitant to leave the house bare-faced?  Because of what others might think of me?  But, that's just it . . . they aren't thinking of me.  What do they care?

I look in the mirror and see the zit on my chin, the scars on my cheeks, the too-large pores, the bags under my eyes, my non-existent eyelashes, and lips the same color as my skin -- sounds awful, right?  But, I am my harshest critic.  And, why in the world should I let these things bother me if they don't seem to bother anyone else?

It's really freeing really.  Here's the honest truth, it wasn't until we were at church Wednesday night, about to go up and perform a special that John looked at me and said, "You're not wearing any makeup, are you?  Is this the week you're giving that up?"

Wednesday, people! 

My own husband! 

And I'm worried about what others might think? 

Watch out world!  I may just start wearing sweatpants everywhere I go!  I guess there's no need to warn you, though, because you won't even notice!

This week, Little Boy greeted me each morning with the same words he used last week:  "Momma, I love you.  You are the best Momma."  Sure, I know that the subtext is, "Aren't I sweet?  Don't you want to get me some breakfast now?"  But, the point is, I'm the same Momma this week that I was last week.  The people in my life who matter at all don't care a lick what I look like.  They do care about how I act, what I say, what I stand for . . .whether or not I get them breakfast. 

Ahhh.  Now there's the challenge.  A bad attitude or sour spirit cannot be masked by a little concealer.  Now that I know no one is paying much attention to my outside, it's time to spend a little less time making it up and a little more time developing a heart like Jesus.  Ultimately, that's Who I want people to see when they look at me anyway.

Final Lenten Week: Walk Humbly

Okay.  Here we go. 

I guess it was about a year ago that I first knew I would be doing this.  I'd asked my sister what she was planning to give up for Lent last year.  She mentioned that she'd briefly considered giving up makeup for the Lenten season.  40 days with NO MAKEUP?  "I could never do that!"  And as soon as I'd uttered those words, I knew I would do it.  After all, that's what Lent's about, right?  In the past, I've given up meat, chocolate, cereal.  Nothing has hurt too much.  But, it's supposed to be a real sacrifice.  It's supposed to be hard.  It's almost embarrassing to admit it's a hard thing to give up.  I mean when you look at it like this, "God provided the ultimate sacrifice, allowing His Son to die a brutal death to save me.  I guess I could give up makeup for a week as a way to remember that sacrifice."  Yep, embarrassing.

Now, for some people, this might not be too hard.  But, I vividly remember the day, just before I started the 7th grade, when my mom took me over to her friend's house for a Beauticontrol makeover.  She purchased me my first makeup, and from that moment on, I wore it.  Always.  Everyday.  I may have left the house without it perhaps 3 or 4 times in the, umm, lots of years that have passed since then.  I've certainly not gone without it for a solid week.

I pondered this challenge all year, off and on.  When I came across the Carbon Fast, I thought, "this is much more my speed.  I'll do this instead."  And, then I saw the "Walk Humbly" week.  And,  there I was again.  Of course, walking humbly is about much more than bypassing makeup.  It's about becoming smaller so that He becomes bigger, greater.  As a song from "A New Liturgy" puts it:    "I'm only a part of the story.  But, I'm a part of the story.  So, I'll take my part in the story, get out of myself, get over myself, get lost in the story of somebody else."

Real Simple says, "According to a new British study, the average woman spends 474 days of her lifetime (that’s one year, and 3 months) applying makeup and other cosmetics."  Holy bat poop!  I mean, I don't even see my face when I'm out in public.  I "put my face on" so that others see me a certain way.  And why?  Is it not entirely about vanity?  Is vanity not in direct opposition to humility?

Don't worry, I ran this idea past my hubby:  "I'm thinking of giving up makeup next week.  Seems like the kind of thing I ought to run by you.  Any opinions on this?"   He had the exact right response.    He just turned and delivered me a look that said, "Are you seriously asking me this?  What kind of jerk would I be if I had an opinion on this?"

I thought of several ways I could walk more humbly this week.  I could go logo-less, avoiding name brands, or not post to FaceBook (I mean the subtext of most of my posts, after all, is "aren't my kids cute?").  But, I decided that this one thing will provide enough of a challenge.  I am going to throw in "wearing no jewelry" because it seems to go hand-in-hand with the spirit of :no makeup."  Other than that, though, we'll just leave it at this.

And, of course, I'll be praying:
Father, help me to overcome my selfishness this week.  Help me avoid making an effort to impress others.  Humble me, and allow me to see others as better than myself.  Help me not to look out only for my own interests, but to take an interest in others as well so that I may have the same attitude as Your Son who, though he was God did not think of equality to God as something to cling to.  Instead, He gave up his divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.  When He appeared in human form, He humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross. (adapted from Philippians 2:3-8).  Father, help me to get over myself and my own self-consciousness enough this week that I may see others more clearly.  Lord, use this sacrifice, however small in the grand scheme of things, to draw me closer to You, to teach me more about Your heart and Your call on my life.

I think it's pretty fitting where this week ended up falling.  If Lent is about sacrifice and deprivation, what better week to go without makeup and jewelry than the week leading up to Easter Sunday morning when we traditionally get decked out in our finest to celebrate the resurrection of our King?  So, I'll go through passion week entirely unadorned only to get all decked out for the big Sunday celebration.  I love it!

Now, for anyone who may be thinking, "Isn't telling everyone what you plan to do on a week that's all about Walking Humbly a bit incongruous?", I would say Yes.  Definitely, yes.  But, I needed to post about this for a few reasons:
1.  I've posted every Lenten week thus far and thought it might be weird not to post anything on this final week. 
2. Confessing my own difficulty in giving this up is humbling in and of itself.  If anything, this post is borne out of shame more than pride, as it's so deeply embarrassing that this small thing is so difficult a thing for me to give up.  What does that say about me, after all?
3.  I need some accountability.  If you know I'm doing this, then I'd better really be doing this. 
As further confession . . . you know, for all of Lent, this week has been looming at the end.  The weekend of no-sleep-goat-kidding-in-the-wee-morning-hours, my skin revolted and left me more broken out than I've been in months.  I found myself in Walmart, wandering the skin care aisle thinking, "If I got an acne treatment that just so happened to be tinted, that would still count as 'no makeup', right?"  Uggghhh.  After a minute or two, I mentally swatted myself on the wrist for such legalistic thinking and rushed myself out of that part of the store.  Am I the only one who has these weird arguments with myself?

Anyway, here we go!

More Gadgets than Humans

According to BPD Group, "the U.S. is home to 425 million web-connected devices, while the U.S. Census Bureau reports a population of 315 million."  We now have more web-connected gizmos than we do people!

Wow!  And, so true.  You've heard me talk about how we don't have television, but don't let that fool you into thinking that means we're disconnected.  Let's inventory our house:  3 Kindles, 2 iPads, and 2 laptops, 1 desktop, and 2 smart phones.  That makes 10 devices in a household of 5. 

I'm aware that I've become a bit "preachy" here lately with my Lenten posts and all, so I'm not going to elaborate on what this stat says about us or how it ought to challenge us.  I'll just say "Wow!" and otherwise let it speak for itself.  Happy Thursday!

Lenten Week 5: Live Contentedly

One of the most quoted Bible verses has got to be Philippians 4:13:  "For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."  But, the verse right before that one is often overlooked:  "I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything.  I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little."

We live in a nation of plenty, of excess.   These many material possessions surely make us happier, right?  In Seven, Jen Hatmaker tells us that, "a survey of life satisfaction in more than sixty-five countries indicate that income and happiness track well until about $13,000 of annual income per person.  After that, additional income produces only modest increments in self-reported happiness.  It's no wonder.  We are incurring debt and working longer hours to pay for the high-consumption lifestyle, consequently spending less time with family, friends, and community."

Hmmmm.  Looks like maybe we ought to spend a little more time being happy with what we've got and a little less time envying the Jones'. 

In an effort to live contentedly this week, we will attempt to:
1.  take more out of the house than we bring into it.
2.  go through and clean out the kids' rooms (the only rooms I've yet to purge this winter)
3.  hold a yard sale to raise $$ to donate to those who are learning to live contentedly on much less than we have
4.  pray like this:  Lord, grant us the grace to live differently from the culture around us and to know that a life gaging fullness by possessions is an empty life indeed.  Give us the wisdom to discern the difference between wants and needs and to choose wisely how we spend the resources You have entrusted to us.  Help us to see the many, many ways in which you have blessed us that have no monetary value whatsoever. 

As for last week's "Acting Justly,"  I learned so much from Shane Claiborne's podcast on social justice (download it for free on iTunes).  I cannot accurately quote directly because I was running on a treadmill while I listened, but here are some of the post-run notes I made that are worth checking out:

1.  Justice on a social level is about love.  It's about falling in love with a group of people who are marginalized, outcast, or downtrodden and joining your voice with theirs as you work to bring them equality, fairness, love.

2.  If God has given us the eyes to see and the ears to hear a need, perhaps it's because He's inviting us to be part of the solution.  He may be calling you to be the agent of change.

3.  For those who are hesitant to give to the needy because they fear being taken advantage of, let us remember that when we meet Jesus face to face, He's unlikely to tell us that we got taken advantage of too often.  If we err in our giving, let us err on the side of grace-- err on the side of trust.

4.  Justice is not about being the Good Samaritan in Jesus' parable rather than the priest or Levite.  It's about asking the question, "why are so many people getting mugged on this road?" and seeking a solution "Maybe we ought to pave this road to Jericho or have it patrolled more closely."

5.  Claiborne offered another metaphor:  Justice is not about giving a man a fish or even teaching the man to fish.  Rather, justice is about asking who owns the pond.  In my discussions with John this week, though, he proposed an even better ending to the metaphor.  Yes, we can ask who owns the pond, but that ought to lead us to the conclusion that the pond is God's.  What we ought to do, then, is be sure that everyone has equal access to the pond.  I really like that.  My hubby -- he's so smart.  :)

Lenten Week 4: Act Justly

**First, the goats have now been listed on Craigslist.  If you know of anyone who may be interested in one or both of our little guys, please feel free to forward the links below:
http://jonesboro.craigslist.org/grd/3675258055.html
http://jonesboro.craigslist.org/grd/3675255364.html
Thanks!**

This week's Lenten focus is to Act Justly.  This, of course, comes from Micah 6:8 where God tells us what He requires of us: "to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God."

I've heard this verse a lot. But, as a life-long church-goer,  I can't say that I've heard a lot of sermons on "justice."  Mostly, my experience with the term has been more to do with people getting their just desserts or some reference to our legal system.  What does God mean when he asks, no, requires us to "Act Justly"?

I guess the dictionary is as good a place as any to begin.  Just, the adjective, means "guided by truth, reason, equality, fairness."  Well, I definitely want to be like that.  I can think of justice in terms of circles within circles -- the innermost circle being those that I feel are closest to me and the outermost being that vast ocean of humanity that I will never encounter personally.  The innermost circle is my little family.  Am I fair in my treatment of my kids?  Are my expectations of them guided by reason?  Moving out a circle or two, how do I do justice in my community, church, extended family? 
The thing that may be the most challenging, though is thinking about those outermost circles.  If a pebble drops in the water of the innermost circle, do the ripples or waves not eventually reach the outermost circles as well?  Sometimes it's challenging to think in those terms, but I think that acting justly is very much about considering how the way I personally live is affecting my fellow man.  Are the decisions I'm making daily or the systems I'm a part of detrimental to people in the outermost circle -- people who I may never encounter?  

What I can't help but notice about the Bible verse, though,is the verb act.  This is not a call to read about justice or to be in favor of justice.  It is a call to do justice.   To move.  To act.   How do I do that? 

Honestly, this week's focus leaves me reeling a little bit.  I feel ill-equipped.  In the past Lenten weeks, I've had some concrete things that I've done during the week -- things that I can check off a list.  This week, though, -- a week that is all about doing -- I feel at a loss.  I'm struggling with coming up with ideas that are doing justice.  Help?

I wish I had more concrete things to do this week, but, alas, this is all I've got (for now):
1.  Make a list of Fair Trade shopping sites and make use of them when needed to purchase gifts and the like. 
2.  Learn more about how to "Act Justly" in my community.  One way I'll do this is by listening to Shane Claiborne's podcast on the subject (search iTunes to download it for free).
3.  Pray like this:  God, create in me a clean heart, a just heart -- one that is sensitive to injustice, unfairness, and inequality.  Give me eyes that I may see the parts of myself or my world that are unjust and create in me a desire to act out Your justice.

Lots More Footsteps!

(**If you're looking for a goat update, skip to the end.**)

For this week's Lenten observance of caring for the earth, I ended up having to order the reusable baggies.  They're not in yet, so I can't really report on how that's going. 

I loved my use of www.catalogchoice.org.  All I had to do was create a free account, then as unwanted catalogs came to our mailbox, I just logged on and entered the name of the catalog, source code, and our customer code.  The site generates a request to stop mailings.  It even sends me a follow-up email to let me know that the company has removed me from their mailing list.  Love it!

By far, the most significant effort this week, though, was reducing my use of the van.  I had hoped for warmer weather. We did have some beautiful, sunny days, but, oh, were they windy! 

I won't bore you with all the details, but Little Boy and I made good use of our little umbrella stroller this week.  I knew all the walking would be a challenge, but I was surprised how much the kids enjoyed it.  Little Boy was disappointed when on Thursday we had to get in the car for a trip to Ash Flat to pick up our Co-op food order, "But, Momma, the stroller is my favorite!"

On Monday, I found this little note in my pocket just after I'd enjoyed a nice, leisurely stroll with Girl 1 to her dance class.  On that walk, Girl 1 commented that "It's funny how you see things so differently when you're walking than when you're in the car."

Most days the girls rode the bus to and from school, making use of gas being expended anyway since the bus drives right past our house daily.  On Wednesday afternoon, though, the bus doesn't get home in time for me to get Girl 1 to her 3:30 dance class.  They all thought it was a fun adventure for me to "pick them up" from school on foot, walk them all to dance where we dropped off Girl 1, and then walk home. 

I loved the way walking slowed our days down a bit.  We had to plan ahead and be aware of the weather.  We had lots of time to talk about the things we saw along the way.  As Little Boy told me as we were parking the stroller on the porch at the end of a walk, "I can't wait for the girls to get home, and I can tell them that the birds with the red bellies is robins!"

All told, I walked 10 miles or so that I would've otherwise driven and combined several errands so that my overall miles driven were greatly reduced this week.  I'm hoping that as the weather warms, we'll be able to enjoy more walks like the ones we had this week. 

For those who are looking for an update on the goats, the little ones are doing well.  They're so adorable as they figure out how to eat and walk and jump.  They're still doing a lot of sleeping, though.  Sleeping is not something I've been doing much of.  I keep thinking that Razz is about to deliver, as she's been showing signs of early labor for about 2 days now.  Determined not to miss the birth, I "sleep" with the monitor by my bed, listening for any odd sounds.  Last night, I made 5 trips out to the shed to check on things.   Surely by Monday's post I'll have more baby pics to share and can finally get some sleep!

A Look at Convenience Foods

We all want things to be easy.  The problem, when it comes to food, though, is that typically the easier a food is, the more processed it is . . . and the more processed it is, the more unknown ingredients it contains.  Generally speaking, trying to stick to natural ingredients that have names we recognize is a good idea. 

There once was a time when little was convenient.  Convenience just wasn't a choice homesteaders of the past had.  Now, though, we have to look at the variables of our time, our money, and our health and make decisions accordingly.  And, one person's "convenience" food may not be the same as the next person's. (I did recently discover that our grocer store sells pre-shelled, hard boiled eggs in nifty little 4 packs.)

Let us consider, for example, the pancake.

I suppose the ultimate in convenience would be a trip to IHOP, where someone else is left to clean up the sticky countertops.

Short of that, though, are these.

(Yes, I did snap this photo in the freezer section of the grocery store.  Yes, I got a couple of weird looks.)

What cracks me up most about these is the "8 Individually Wrapped Packages." 

Let's assume, that we have the time and resources and inclination to make our own pancakes.  Still, there are various levels of convenience involved.  Are you going to reach for a box of Bisquik?  I did for years and years.  Or, will you throw together your own mix of baking powder, flour, milk, and egg?

That's the level of convenience we now go with.  Who knew it was so easy to mix up a batch of pancakes?  Still, some crazies might argue that it's still "convenient" because I don't grind my own flour. (If you're laughing, you  must not have spent much time around hard-core homesteaders on the blog-o-sphere.  They have a way of making me feel lazy on even my most industrous day.)

Just so that you don't think I stick exclusively to the more time-consuming route, here's an example of a convenience food that I'll defend.  We love our grapefruit around here.  I typically buy 2 5lb. bags per week for our morning juices.  I've also started buying jugs of this stuff for snacking.  (My grocery checker may be starting to wonder whether there's some new way of manufacturing meth that involves grapefruit.) 

This little heavenly jug contains the perfectly prepped wedges of 10 grapefruit.  Do you know how much time it would take to do that by hand?  Also, like I'm someone from an episode of Hoarders, I'm stockpiling the used jugs.  They'll make great cannisters in the pantry for beans, rice, and such.

All of this to say, when the grocery list includes items that are more processed or contain ingredients that I can't pronounce or that wouldn't fit on a notecard if I tried to write them all out, I find myself wondering "could I make a version of this myself that would be better for us?"  My experience with pancakes and other things has given me the confidence to ask this question.  And, with the power of the internet and, specifically, Pinterest :) on our side, how can we fail?

Also, I look for other ways to create convenience.  We all know that some days are busier than others.  On a day when I have more time, I could mix together all the dry ingredients needed for multiple batches of pancakes and store it in the pantry, ready to be used just like Bisquik.  Or, when I've made a few too many pancakes, I could lay the cakes out on a baking sheet to freeze individually before stacking them up and throwing them into a freezer bag (or several -- hey, I could even wrap them in "8 Individually Wrapped Packages"!)

If you're interested, here's the recipe I've been using for pancakes lately:

1.5 c. flour

2 Tbs. sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1.25-1.5 c. of milk

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 Tbs. vegetable oil

Enjoy!

Is It "Unfair" to Force This Life on our Kids?

http://blissfulbblog.com/blog/2012/5/2/my-happy-place.html

Adults are adults.  We can choose for ourselves how to live.  But, kids are game-changers.  As parents, we make choices all the time on behalf of the kids God has entrusted to our care. 

It's not a stretch to say that our family lives differently than some others in a few key ways.  For example, we have no television.  We have no game systems.  We produce our own milk, cheese, eggs, veggies, and more, and it's often hard work that the kids are sometimes in on.  Let's be clear:  our children did not choose this way of life for themselves.  Is it ethical for us to choose it for them?

As anyone who follows me on Pinterest is by now well aware, I've become obsessed with Tiny Homes.  I can probably trace this interest back to time spent camping as a child.  I was amazed by how my grandparents camper could compress all the necessary kitchen appliances into such a tiny space.  And, the way my brother's bed in our pop-up camper transformed into our breakfast table with bench seating in time for breakfast was just awesome.  So, as I've considered how many square feet our own family of 5 could be comfortable living in, these ethical questions arise again.  Is it ethical for me to require my children to downsize and live a smaller lifestyle than the one to which they are accustomed? 

Children are all so different.  Hands down, it's Girl 1 who bucks up against our simpler lifestyle most, and I don't think it's just that she's the oldest.  While Girl 2 and Little Boy could be happy outdoors for hours on end, especially if there's dirt or water or (joy of all joys) a combination of the two to be played with, Girl 1 will eventually tire of it.  She likes her Barbies.  She likes her air to be conditioned.  She likes her iPod.  She likes her lotions and bubble bath.  Her bedroom is handily the largest one in the house, and it overflows with STUFF.  She prefers her bread and cheese "from the store."  She likes time alone in her bedroom to read, dance, write.  So, since I'm pretty sure the other two would be happy living in a tent in the backyard, it's mostly Girl 1 that I consider when I ask myself these questions on ethics.

How much space do we really need?  Do the kids each need their own bedrooms?  How many bathrooms could we get away with?   Would the kids be happy living in a smaller space?

Girl 2 and Little Boy are constantly underfoot, spending little to no time in their bedrooms.  And, most of the time, that's the way I like it.  I sometimes joke to John that we have this nice-sized house but all congregate and actually live in about 1,000 square feet of it.  There are, in fact,  many ways in which I think we'd be pretty good at living small.  As is infrequently the case in houses the size of ours, we only make use of one common living area.  We eat together.  We do homework in one common space, the girls sitting side-by-side on stools.  We love to spend time outdoors.  We like each other.   The kids (for the most part) can't get enough of each other.  As our resident housekeeper, I prefer things uncluttered.  Our Hurricane Katrina experience predisposes us to a loose connection to 'things."  The kids are pretty good about sharing things (for example, their shared iPad.  I think it's proven to be an excellent lesson in shared ownership.  I mean, really, how many things do our kids really have joint ownership of these days?  Sure, one child may have to share his possessions with another sibling, but ultimately most things "belong" to just one kid.  Our kids have really handled this unusual situation very well.) 
I recently came across an article on The Tiny Life that posed the question, "Is It Ethical to Raise a Child in a Tiny House?"  The article is interesting, but what I loved most was the response of reader Jason Blum:

My wife and I are raising four children in 1000 square feet – maybe not a tiny house, but certainly smaller and anyway, the size of the average home in 1950 and even a bit on the large side 50 years before that.
I am asked on almost a daily basis when we’ll be moving into something larger and I always politely blame the real estate market and change the subject.
But the truth is:
1) 1000 square feet can be thoroughly picked-up, laundered and vacuumed in a morning, instead of consuming your entire weekend.
2) In a small house, you can’t go days on end without seeing your kids because they’re down in the rec room playing xbox.
3) The kids are, or should be, outdoors anyway – home is just a place to eat, clean, read and sleep.
4) You’re going to have to get rid of your crap sooner or later. And if you do it later, you’re less likely to properly re/freecycle it. If you can make “crap-management” a small part of your daily routine, it never gets overwhelming and you’re more likely to value what you have, or find good homes for what you no longer need.
5) Or the best approach to “crap-management” is of course the finely-tuned crap-detector your small home will inspire in you. Everyone does this: they fill whatever space they have with crap. If you can’t spare the space in the first place, you’re forced to approach your acquisitions much more thoughtfully. This is a tremendously important life-skill I want my kids to learn.
6) In a smaller home, your kids have more opportunities to experience the family’s ecological footprint. In larger homes, the destination of the central vacuum or the distant rumbling of HVAC are all just abstract mysteries and lend to the illusion that earth’s resources are infinite.
7) Close quarters provide more stimulation, which makes it easier to resist the lure of television, for which there hopefully isn’t any space anyway.
8) A smaller home reinforces the lesson that over-consumption is a more urgent problem than over-population.
9) A smaller home in America is actually pretty average or even large by the standards of most of the rest of the world.
10) In a smaller home, children get to witness the parents navigate all the above – they get to see for themselves how critical moderation is to sustainable living.

Well said, Jason.  What say you?

Lenten Week 3: Fewer Footprints, More Footsteps

"The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it."  Genesis 2:15

This week's Lenten focus is Care for the Earth.  There are tons of ways this could be done.  Gladly, lots of the easiest ways we've already implemented, such as switching to reusable grocery bags, composting, recycling, and so on.  This week, though, I wanted to make it hurt a little.  Here are some excerpts from TearFund about the week's focus:

"Many of our lifestyle choices are as a result of changing times and advancing technology which have made far more goods and services available to us than ever before. There are many benefits, but have we also come to expect an unsustainable level of speed, convenience and comfort as a result of this?

When looking at the level of emissions generated from personal car usage and the impact it’s 

having on climate change, there comes a point when we must ask ourselves whether necessity, comfort or even laziness rank above flooded homes, displaced people or hungry children in our hearts and in our minds? It makes you think when you look at it from a different perspective."

According to the US EPA, "The combustion of fossil fuels. such as gasoline and diesel to transport people and goods is the second largest source of CO₂ emissions, accounting for about 31% of total U.S. CO₂ emissions."

With this in mind, my goals for this week are four-fold:

1.  Reduce (drastically) my use of the car  by walking when possible and either eliminating regular errands or combining them so that I only have to make one trip "to town."  I'll log how I do and report back. 

2.  While I have greatly reduced the amount of disposable items we use around here, I do still stock plastic baggies.  I try to use them sparingly, but, still, they stare at me accusatoriallly whenever I open their drawer.  This week, I aim to either sew or purchase some reusable baggies.  (My local fabric store doesn't seem to stock the waterproof fabric I'd need for the liners, so I may have to resort to ordering them).

3.  Using www.DoNotMail.org, I will attempt to unsubscribe and thus reduce the amount of junkmail that makes its way to our house via snail mail. 

4.  Pray this beautiful prayer, courtesy of TearFund:  "Father, help us to see how our lifestyle affects your creation and to remember people who are suffering because of it. Please give us insight, wisdom and the courage to face the truth – no matter how uncomfortable or inconvenient it may be.  Help us to turn positive actions from this weeks’ fast into habits. Encourage us when our actions seem small and remind us how important they are, and how connected our lives are to our global neighbours. Enable us to make wise choices and give us grace in our daily lifestyle decisions. Let our sacrifices be worship unto you. Amen."

Lenten Week 2 Re-cap

As the blog will be silent tomorrow in honor of the National Day of Unplugging, I wanted to go ahead and give a quick re-cap of this week's Lenten focus on Loving Neighbors. 

This week, I was able to commit a RAK (random act of kindness) for at least one person per day.  And, is nearly always the case, I was so blessed in the giving.  I did find that it helped me to get outside myself a bit, which is, of course, always a good thing.

Also, this week, we'd planned to donate money to Heifer International to help feed neighbors far away.  While I do love Heifer and support their efforts at various times throughout the year, I happened to receive a plea from Action Against Hunger in the mail this week and thought it serendipitous.  According to TearFund, "The world produces enough food for everyone, but not everyone has enough food. . . . At the moment 1 in every 8 people globally goes to sleep hungry every night, and 2.8 million children die from malnutrition each year."  Action Against Hunger claims that $35 is the cost of saving a life.  That amount covers the nutritional needs and medical treatment involved in the first and most crucial month in the life of an undernourished infant.

Now, on to next week . . . Caring for the earth.  It's not going to be easy to stick to the sacrifices I have in mind for this one!  Check back Monday to read up on the weekly Lenten focus.  Enjoy your Day of Unplugging tomorrow!

Week 2 of Lent: Love Your Neighbors

Well, I decided to extend Week 1 of Lent and am just getting started now on Week 2.  (Because Lent begins on a Wednesday and ends on a Saturday, one week was going to be longer anyway, and I was so enjoying Week 1!)  I absolutely loved my Week 1 emphasis of Enjoying Creation.  I visited with the goats a lot, enjoyed the sounds of outdoors even when I was indoors (using the baby monitor), trimmed back the roses, and learned a bit about hanging laundry on a clothesline.  Just because the week is over, though, doesn't mean I intend to stop these things.  I've just enjoyed them so much!

It is time, now, though to move on to Week 2, which is Love Neighbors (for anyone who's a very careful reader of my blog, yes, I did change around the order of the weeks.)

Doing my "poop chores" while enjoying the beautiful weather!  (The kids had the camera ;)

This week, I will . . .
1.  Complete one random act of kindness per day for someone outside our home.  (You never know, it might be you!)
2.  Eat cheaply so that money saved on groceries this week can be donated to Heifer International and used to feed neighbors far from here who do not enjoy our food bounty.
3.  Pray -- Pray for God's eyes so that I may see others as He sees them and that I may be aware of ways in which I can help the plight of the needy.  And thank God for the many who devote their lives to providing for and loving on "the least of these."

Want to join my in Loving Your Neighbors this week?  What will you do?

National Day of Unplugging

Get ready to unplug!  The National Day of Unplugging is sunset to sunset March 1 and 2.  Here's some info, straight from the official website for the event:

"Do you have multiple cell phones? Take your ipad to the beach on vacation? Ever find it hard to get through a conversation without posting an update to Facebook? Is your computer always on?

"We increasingly miss out on the important moments of our lives as we pass the hours with our noses buried in our iPhones and BlackBerry’s, chronicling our every move through Facebook and Twitter and shielding ourselves from the outside world with the bubble of 'silence' that our earphones create.

"If you recognize that in yourself – or your friends, families or colleagues— join us for the National Day of Unplugging, sign the Unplug pledge and start living a different life: connect with the people in your street, neighborhood and city, have an uninterrupted meal or read a book to your child.

The National Day of Unplugging is a 24 hour period – running from sunset to sunset – and starts on the first Friday in March. The project is an outgrowth of The Sabbath Manifesto, an adaption of our ancestors’ ritual of carving out one day per week to unwind, unplug, relax, reflect, get outdoors, and connect with loved ones."

Hmmm.  I read something the other day that talked about how we are taught from a young age not to interrupt -- it's rude.  And, yet, we interrupt ourselves (or allow ourselves to be interrupted)  all the time.  So true, right?  I'm engrossed in a book  in the evening and my phone dings to let me know I've got a new email.  (Insert bookmark and swipe finger across phone screen.)  Oh, good, it's a shipping notice for my soap making supplies.  Then, I notice the little icon hovering over my FaceBook button. Oh, look -- someone tagged me in a FaceBook post.  (Click on FaceBook tab.)  30 minutes later I'm all caught up on how everyone I've ever known has spent their day.  Now, what was I doing?  Oh, yeah, enjoying a book.

Those tabs in our internet browsers or app buttons on our phones or the equivalent, sure do make it easy for us to switch gears and cover a lot of mental ground quickly.  And, there are some times that that's great.  Other times, though, it would be good to be a little less distracted. 

Agree?  Want to unplug with me?  Check out the link below to sign the pledge to unplug on the National Day of Unplugging.

http://nationaldayofunplugging.com/

Simple Living

Some of the bloggers I read regularly were featured in the February/March issue of Mother Earth News.  It was fun to see some familiar faces. 

"Hess and Hamilton have also learned that living simply (and loving it!) is a mindset that can be cultivated.  Spend time with others who share your beliefs, she says, and limit media consumption, especially TV.  Most of all, 'Be mindful of the things that bring you bliss and don't cost money -- the tree that bore its first fruit, having long dinners with your spouse, having a happy marriage. . . . You can't pay for those things.'"

Seems like excellent advice to me!

Let Us Ponder a Shocking Statistic

In John Pilger's book, Freedom Next Time, he writes:  "On September 11, 2001, while the world lamented the deaths of 2,974 innocent people in the United States, the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation reported that another daily mortality rate continued:  36,615 children had died from the effects of extreme poverty."

36,615.  A day.  Everyday.

What are you doing about it?

What am I?

Hmmmm.

Drama in the Checkout Line

Okay.  It's been over a week now, and I think I'm ready to talk about it.  Before I begin relating the dramatic events that transpired last Tuesday, let me first say that I know that I've had it pretty good in terms of child-centered drama.  Sure, we've had the usual topples and falls, the paper wads up the nose and BBs in the ear.  But, nothing serious.  Last Tuesday, however, was my most fear-filled moment thus far as a parent, and I'd like to recount it for you now.

Tuesday started like any other day, only Girl 2 came down the stairs with pink cheeks.  A quick check with the thermometer revealed that, yep, she was running 102 degrees.  She said her throat hurt but otherwise had no complaints.  She popped some Tylenol while I whipped her up some Cream of Wheat.  About 20 minutes later, the fever had broken, she'd eaten two bowls of hot cereal, and was chasing her brother around the house laughing.  It seemed she was feeling better.  Obviously, she couldn't go to school, but could we still run the Wal-Mart errand I'd planned for today?  We were in desperate need of some groceries AND I'd spent 30 minutes searching the price-match adds and generating our meal plan accordingly, and those adds expired today.  She was tackling her brother, surely she could handle a quick trip to Wal-Mart!  Right?  (In retrospect, I admit this was not my finest parenting moment.)

In the store, she was a big helper, running up the aisles in search of granola and the like.  In the checkout line, she jumped in line ahead of me and paid for her TicTacs with her own money.  The cashier handed her the receipt, Girl 2 turned to put it in her purse, and then  . . . she fell down.  Onto the floor.  Just collapsed.  With no warning whatsoever.

My first instinct was that she'd tripped or something, but then I saw it . . . her eyes.  Wide open, glassed over, and rolling back into her head.  She was unconscious.  I was immediately on the floor, holding her and yelling like a crazy person.  "Help!  Help us!"  I was yelling her name.  I was shaking her.  I was slapping her cheeks. 

When we got to the doctor later and the nurse asked me how long she was unresponsive, I wanted to say 5 minutes because it sure felt like it.  In reality, it was long enough for me to freak out (as described above), then attempt to pull myself together enough to start to check pulse and breathing and try to remember my CPR training.  Maybe 15 seconds?  The longest 15 seconds of my life. 

And, then, suddenly, she was awake and on the floor of Wal-Mart with her Mom in her face and about 8 Wal-Mart employees hovering nearby.  Needless to say, she was scared.  The Wal-Mart employee who went on record as a witness claimed that she saw Girl 2 smack her head on the floor, but there was no knot and her head didn't hurt. 

After getting her comfortable, filling out the official Wal-Mart accident report, and being escorted to our car, I drove her to our family doctor who'd agreed to see her right away.   We must have looked pretty funny.  I carried this 50-lb. first grader like a baby as Little Boy walked alongside us into the doctor's office.  But, how could I let her walk?  The last time she did, she passed out without warning. 

The doc ran all kinds of tests and did bloodwork.  She tested positive for Flu type B and was dehydrated.  The dehydration probably led to her fainting spell.  She showed no signs of head trauma, and the doctor suspects her fall was cushioned by her arm.  In the week that followed, she so generously, passed that flu around to the rest of us (except John, so far - knock on wood). 

But, in the days that followed, as I was cooped up in the house caring for all of these sick kiddos and pushing liquids, my mind kept reproducing the image of Girl 2 splayed out on the floor with her eyes rolling back into her head.  It seemed that everytime I closed my eyes, there it was, haunting me.

That first day, I didn't let her out of my sight.  I set my rear view mirror so that it was looking right at her face on the way home.  I lay next to her as she napped that afternoon so that I could listen to her breathe.   My mind was so stuck on that moment of terror in the floor of Wal-Mart . . . that moment when I was thinking "this is it.  This is the moment that every parent fears.  I'm losing her.  I'm losing her right now!"   I became overwhelmed by the responsibilty given to me by God to care for her to the best of my ability.  Lord, what a daunting and humbling task! 

But, later, a breakthrough happened.  I was running on the treadmill in the garage.  John was home and watching the kids inside.  But, I couldn't listen to music or an audio book because I was too busy waiting . . . listening for the shriek. . . waiting for John to cry out for me to come inside because she'd collapsed again.  That was when I realized the fear that had overwhelmed me.  I was tip-toeing around, waiting for disaster to strike.

I've prayed similar prayers before, but it was time to pray it again. . . Lord, I know that they are not my children, but yours.  Thank you for honoring me with the task of providing for and loving on them.  Equip me to be best mother that I can be.  But, help me to know that there is only so much I can shield them from.  I give this burden, too great for me to carry, to you.  Please bury this fear and let me rest in the peace that comes from knowing that you are in control.  

And, you know what?  The ever-present image subsided.  And, when I look into her eyes, I see them full of life.  And, when I dropped her back at school for the first time once she was better, I did so knowing that she wasn't going in alone. 

I know a few "over-protective" parents.  I'm sure you do, too.  Here's the thing. . . there are things that as parents we can do (and should do) to protect our kids, like washing hands before eating and not allowing our kids to eat rusty nails and stuff like that.  But, we are surrounded by dangers.  Any moment could be "that moment."  I now know that Girl 2 could be running across the yard kicking a soccer ball and then suddenly collapse to the ground.  But, we cannot live in fear.   Parenting is a high calling.  It requires a lot from us -- some days more patience than I can muster. But, fear is not one of those things.  Pray protection, and then let the fear go.  Besides, the safest place for them to be is in His arms anyway. :)

The KP Project -- Has There Ever Been a Cooler Idea?

Shane Claiborne (you already know I love me some Shane!) wrote,

"I had come to see that the great tragedy in the church is not that rich Christians do not care about the poor but that rich Christians do not know the poor. . . . I long for the Calcutta slums to meet the Chicago suburbs, for lepers to meet landowners and for each to see God's image in the other. . . . I truly believe that when the poor meet the rich, riches will have no meaning.  And when the rich meet the poor, we will see poverty come to an end."

Powerful concept, huh?

The Karpophoreō Project based in Austin, Texas, is making it happen!  I recently finished the book 7:  An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess, by Jen Hatmaker (thanks, Justin!).  It's a good one.  Anyway, Jen makes mention of the KP Project, and I fell in love with the idea.  According to Jen (you'd feel like you were on a first-name basis with her too, if you'd read the book), here's the concept:

"Willing partners offer KP their land for a backyard garden and/or backyard farm (the farm involves chickens, and I'm sorry, but I can only handle so much, ya'll), and the KP folks BUILD AND PLANT THE WHOLE GARDEN.  Their team includes regular volunteers as well as formerly homeless men and women. 

"Then, they come out weekly and prune, treat, and harvest.  Half the produce stays with the homeowner, and the other half is sold at farmer's market or in CSA boxes.  The formerly homeless who work the gardens keep 70 percent of the profit.  Bam.  Sustainable income from locally grown organic produce with nearly zero overhead. Genius.

"What a creative use of privately owned land in lieu of costly public property!  What vision to connect privilieged landowners with the chronically homeless, building relationships and making something beautiful together."

Ummm.  Seriously.  Has there ever been a cooler idea?  I mean, how many people have you met who "would love to garden but have no idea where to begin"?  Maybe you're even one of those people.  This amazing concept teaches organic gardening as it helps lift its employees out of poverty.  Empowerment for all!

I may just be really out of the loop, but I've never heard of anything like this.  If I had a little more gardening experience, though, I'd probably be trying to figure out a way to copy-cat this right here in my community!

New Year's Resolutions -- Progress Report

Too often, I've stumbled upon a list of New Year's resolutions mid-year, only to have the thought, "oh, yeah, I forgot I was planning to do X this year!"  So, this year, I decided that I would review resolutions monthly so that I can refocus my efforts.  And, in case you're wondering, no, I do not plan to subject you to this every month.  I'll just make a note on the 1st of each month in my planner to do a progress check.  Here's how things are going so far.

1.  Teach the kids skills to make them more confident and independent.  Girl 1's once-a-week cooking has been a big hit!  Also, Girl 2 has stepped it up in the kitchen and has been a big help in garden planning and prep work.  Little Boy is getting his shoes on the right foot almost every time (on the inside of each shoe, I drew a profile of a person and told him to make them kiss to get the shoes right).  He's also carrying his dishes to the table and putting on his own clothes (albeit, he consistently puts his undies on backward AND inside out -- baby steps).

2.  Run at least 365 miles, including all area 5K races.  So far so good.  We've not had any area races yet, but we're registered for the one later this month, and because of training for the crazy race we have coming up in May (more on this later), I'm well ahead of my mileage goal.

3.  Pray through Common Prayer for Ordinary Radicals.  This is going really well.  I'm loving this book.  John is doing this, too, so it's nice that we can discuss the readings together.

4.  Pray consistently with the kids at bedtime.  It turns out that one of John's resolutions was to read to the kids at bedtime, so we've been able to work these two in together.  With the girls, we are reading a chapter a night then having a quiet prayer time.  Little Boy enjoys reading the books he's chosen from the library each week.

5.  Market some homemade wares (soap, probably).  Nothing on this yet, but I'm in the planning phases.

6.  Eat/serve more raw and whole foods.  We are definitely doing this.  In fact, as I was searching the pantry for canned goods to use as the molds for my newspaper pots, I could only find one lone can of soup.  The rest of the "canned" goods in the pantry were actually mason jars.

7.  Support local businesses with my dollar.  Umm.  Well, I'm buying my gas locally, and we all get our hair cut in town.  Other than that, I've not done so well with this one yet.  Well, this is what today's post is all about -- renewing the focus.

8.  Learn more about farming (goat kidding/cows/organic gardening).  With it's limited daylight hours, winter provides a natural rest time on the farm.  Because we enjoy very little screen time around here, that's meant lots of quiet evenings spent with books.  I'm now all read up on goat kidding.  I plan to do more research on bee keeping.  And, I've finalized my list of books I want to buy with the Amazon card I got for Christmas.

9.  Volunteer some of my time to a worthy cause or two  (??)  The Bethany Project hasn't hosted any events yet this year, but I'll definitely be involved with that when they do.  I did notice a church in Batesville yesterday had a sign up regarding their soup kitchen lunches.  Hmmm.

10.  Eat lunch at the elementary school once a week.  We love doing this!

11.  Replace more personal hygiene products/ household cleaners with homemade/cleaner versions  Well, the baking soda shampoo effort didn't turn out so well, but nearly all household cleaners are now homemade.

12.  Maintain an active/interesting blog.  You'll have to be the judge of this one!  ;)

How are your resolutions going?

The Most Depressing Day of the Year

So, I read an article recently that said that, statistically speaking, today, January 22, is the most depressing day of the year.  The article didn't really explain, but I'm just guessing that this is because the high of the holidays has worn off, we're all back to the grind, and spring still seems SO very far away.

Little Boy would argue, though.  He seems just fine today, but January 3rd, when he watched me take down the Christmas tree and literally cried, "Momma!  We will never have Christmas again?!" I'd say that was his low.

How can we beat those winter blues?  Here are some tips from someone who's definitely no expert.

1.  Get outside (especially when it's sunny).  Seriously.  Vitamin D is a commonly recommended supplement for mild depression.  But, why add another bottle to the medicine cabinet when you can just bundle up and take a brisk walk.
2.  Get dressed up and go out.  I don't know about you, but I wear a lot of sweatshirts this time of year and really like my comfy spot by the heater in the evenings.  But, a sure plan for keeping the blues at bay is to get all dressed up (maybe in my sparkly tights!) and hit the town with my favorite date.  And, don't make it spontaneous.  The anticipation is half the fun.
3.  Plan your garden (or flower beds, if you're not the gardening type).  Just planning for spring will help put a little spring back in your step.
4.  Pamper yourself.  For some of you, just shaving your legs during this time of year would qualify as pampering (I'm not going to name names ;).  Maybe paint your nails.  Or, have a home spa day.  Take yourself out to lunch (if you go to Elizabeth's, please bring me back some chicken salad).
5.  Try something new.  Make a new recipe for dinner.  Get a new haircut (or color!).  Visit that shop that you've been eyeing but have never made time to check out.  Learn a new skill (I'd love to learn to crochet.)
6.  Get beyond yourself.  Do something kind for someone else.  And, I don't just mean donate money.  DO something.  Bake cookies for the lunch ladies at your kids' school.  Surprise a special person at work, just as he's about to take his lunch break and offer to take him to lunch.  Offer to haul your elderly neighbor's trash to the curb for her when you're hauling your own. You get the idea.

If you actually try any of these ideas for beating the blues, I'd love to hear about it!  Also, got any ideas you'd like to add?

Resolutions for 2012: A Look Back

As the year draws to a close, I thought I'd take a look back and evaluate how I did with my resolutions for the year.  By my calculations, I've checked off about 45% of them.  That doesn't sound very good, but what would that be as a batting average?  Pretty good, huh?

Here's the screenshot of the original list.

Let's review, with commentary  (blue for goals achieved and red for goals unmet):

1.  Read through the Bible  Yep.  I've managed to do this one!  I've done this on even-numbered years since 2006 and LOVE it! 

2.  Spend less; reduce debt  Umm.  Not exactly.  The kids are involved in more activities than ever before, and we've spent a hefty chunk this past year on setting up our little backyard farm -- money well-spent

3.  Run a 5K and/or bike the Katy Trail  YES!!!  Since I got the post-surgical green light to begin running, I've run 6 different 5Ks and loved every one!  I would still like to bike the Katy Trail, but spending a week away from the farm is not very practical right now.

4.  Drive less/ bike more  I have driven less.  MUCH less.  I try to limit my driving to Batesville to one trip per week.  It makes for a long day, but Little Boy and I just try to get all the errands done at once.  I have not biked more.  I don't really know what I was thinking with this goal.  Where was Little Boy supposed to be while I biked to the grocery store? 

5.  Learn to do new things, such as garden organically, milk goats, make soap and cheese  A giant YES! to all of these!  I've actually learned to do a lot of new things this year (and tried to share most of them with you!)

6.  Spend one-on-one time with each child daily  Sadly, no.  This one did not get accomplished.  I mean, sure, I was able to give them all daily squeezes and affirmation, but I did not get to spend the undivided-attention kind of time with each of them EVERYDAY.

7.  Improve my Spanish  Again . . . Fail.  This is one of those things that gets pushed to the backburner year after year. 

8.  Save for Guatemala trip  Our previously scheduled Guatemala trip was delayed for myriad reasons and hasn't been rescheduled.  This makes it hard to get motivated to save for it and to work on the Spanish.  This does need to become a priority, though.  Girl 2 is ready to explore the culture and country of her birth. 

9.  Give regularly to church and a non-profit  Yep.  Kind of.  The non-profits changed throughout the year, but we were always giving.

10.  Develop a friendship  Through the Small Town Moms group I joined this year, I was able to meet several great ladies and develop some new friendships. 

11.  Walk unassisted  This one may seem a bit silly, but I was still on crutches when I made the list.  I accomplished this one early and have been walking (mostly) pain-free since January.

So, I've got a pretty good mix of red and blue up there.  Not on the list was "create a new blog and manage to post a new blurb EVERYDAY!"  I didn't really see the blog coming.  But, I'm sure glad it's something I started. 

So, it's good to look back. . . but now it's time to look forward.  What will my goals be for 2013?  What are yours?

Merry Christmas!

From The Book of Common Prayer, one of the collects for Christmas Day:

Almighty God, you have given your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and to be born of a pure virgin:  Grant that we, who have been born again and made your children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit; through our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom with you and the same Spirit be honor and glory, now and forever.  Amen.

And, then, there's this, which is also great, from Common Prayer: a Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals:

O Word, now wrapped in human skin:  speak peace on earth through your children.

Amen, right?  Merry Christmas to you and yours! 

Love,
Ashley