Apr14

You Want YOU!

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You Want YOU!

Here we are, the middle of April already.  I have been enjoying April showers or rather, April storms.  We prayed and prayed for rain, waited and waited.  Well, prayers were answered eventually as they always are.  

February and March flew by at the blink of an eye.  Great things have been happening and there have been struggles too.  This is why it’s not a great idea to stay away from your blog for so long because you have no idea where to start.  So what I will do is sum it up with what I have learned from the good and the bad.

It’s not always easy to do the right thing, especially when the right thing is blurred by all the influences we face.  Friends, family, Church family and media are all instrumental in the way we live out lives and the choices we make.  It is hard for me to sift through the information overload and find what works for my God, my family and I.  The last couple months I have really been tested as to what kind of character I want to have.  In some cases I have failed miserably.  Hopefully I can learn from the poor choices I have made.  

Most of the time we don’t want to own up to our failures because we are ashamed of them.  We want ourselves and everyone else to believe we are perfect, flawless.  And if we do happen to find a flaw, we do everything we can to cover it up or begin to have this rough exterior for protection from others. Not only do I do this but fear of rejection keeps me from sharing parts of my life with others. For example, only two people in my daily life know the this blog address. The truth is, we shouldn’t need protection from others. In fact, the people in our lives should be the very thing that encourages self growth from our weaknesses.

Take the time to read Your Children Want You, which is a fantastic post on use how important how we feel about ourselves is and how it affects the people in our lives. A great reminder that we, especially parents in this particular post, in the race to be the best lose sight of what is really important to our kids. US! WE are what our children consistently need at any moment of any day in any situation. Not perfection.

I read the post from Power Of Moms over and over, choked up because of the amazing truth to it and also because it hit home. I realized that not only do I cheat my children when I get the mind-set that I am not enough, but I am cheating myself also. The pressure to be “ON” is immense in this world. We have to be on our game at all times. We fight for acceptance. We fight for praise. We fight for validation. We fight for recognition. We fight for friendship. We fight for love. From everyone else but ourselves.

So now my eyes are opened. I need ME. I deserve the love and respect of myself to be happy with who I am. I should acknowledge my weaknesses and accept were I need growth without feeling like a failure because I am trying my best. Getting wrapped up in what someone else might think of me or not think of me, is a waste of emotion. It’s also debilitating. I believe we are all constantly evolving but when we let someone else’s opinion override our own we are stunting that growth. That affects us, our children and anyone we care about.

How do YOU be there for yourself? Is it hard for you? What are some strategies you can share?

Jan30

New Year, New Expectations

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New Year, New Expectations

In the past I have found myself lowering my expectations of myself as the year goes by. This last year was one of the better years I have had. Not because I have lived perfectly or exceeded all I hoped to, but because I have really seen growth in myself. I struggled in many areas and made a ton of bad decisions. I seem to push as hard as I can against myself. The way I am learning to handle those mistakes is where I have seen my growth.

This is now a new year. January was an interesting month. I set new financial goals, religious goals and relationship goals. And, yes, it’s already been rocky. Just last week I had myself in a bit of a funk. I called my cousin and asked her “what is wrong with me, why do I feel this way?” She politely told me that I needed to give myself a break and then gave me a few suggestions of what the problem might be. It didn’t take long before I talked myself out of feeling sorry for myself and got up and got moving.

Even though we think we need someone to tell us the answers to our questions, more times than not we already know. I am thankful for the push my cousin gave me to get out of my funk but it makes me wonder how I let myself get there? Better yet, how do I continue to let myself get there? That answer will be different for everyone but I know mine, FEAR. I am always afraid of what comes next. Always wanting someone else to show me or tell me or guide me. Someone to hold my hand and “approve” my decisions. Not the best character trait! Instead of worrying about it, I’m gonna try and change it. It is important to me to stop looking for this approval. I’ll let ya know how it goes.

What are your expectations for the new year?

Dec23

Guacamole Anyone?

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Guacamole Anyone?

Ripe Avocados

There are huge benefits to being in a farming family. We have access to all sorts of fruits and vegetables year round thanks to my father in-laws green thumb and generosity. Though it is a challenge to get everything eaten up before it goes to waste! So when I Farmer brought in a large bag of avocados I knew we would never get them eaten in time.

I decided to do some research and find out if I could freeze them. Turns out you can! In order to prevent them from browning and spoiling, you have to do a little extra work. After they were cleaned, peeled and seeds removed I tossed them into the blender with 1 tablespoon lemon juice per avocado and puree until smooth.

Once smooth, you know the lemon juice has been evenly distributed and do not have to worry about browning. I snuck a little taste and let me tell ya, with some spices and a little kick, that stuff is going to be fantastic on some carne asada tacos!

But until then, I will pop ‘em in the freezer and hope my first time at freezing avocados is a success!

Dec22

A Christmas Story

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A Christmas Story

I’m sure you all read this from yahoo too, but just in case you missed it, I had to share:
Redied To Donate Organs

What an amazing miracle here at the holidays! Car accidents are true tragedies and head injuries don’t always turn out the way we pray for. This was an exception though. Going from being in a coma and talking donors for organs to awake and talking!

Some words from the young man’s mother:

“Nobody could ever give me a better Christmas present than this — ever, ever, ever,” said his mother, Susan Regan, who is vice-president of the insurance company Lovitt-Touche.

“I tell everyone, if they want to call it a modern-day miracle, this is a miracle,” said Regan, 59, and a Catholic. “I have friends who are atheists who have called me and said, ‘I am going back to church.’”

No doubt!

Not everyone gets this answered prayer but when you are meant to be here, you are meant to be here!

Dec21

Four More Sleeps

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Four More Sleeps

So, here we are. Four sleeps until Christmas morning. I seemed to have let time get away from me. It’s been a while since my last post. I have been plugging along through life and enjoying my family. This Advent season has been more important to me than previous ones. I cannot quite put my finger on why but I can say that I seem to “get” it more than before. I have a better understanding of just what God, Jesus, Mary, Joseph and many more did for us. The kind of Faith that Mary and Joseph had in God is truely amazing. Mary had been on my mind and as the priest absolved me off my sins at confession yesterday, I was surprised when Father said to keep looking to Mary to find my strength. I’m sure many people are keeping Mary in their thoughts this time of year but this is exactly what I have been doing lately.

As the kids are tearing into their packages this Christmas morning, look at their happy faces and remember how strong our Blessed Mother is and enjoy the benefits we have recieved from her Faith.

Merry Christmas!

Oct17

Someday Of Rest

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Someday Of Rest

My intentions for sometime now has been to give our family a day of rest. That day of course being Sunday. The plan has been for me to have all housework done, all laundry done and all errands ran by the end of Saturday. That way the only thing left to do Sunday is Church if we haven’t gone Saturday night, enjoy family, cook, eat, play and pray as a family. Unfortunately this has yet to happen consistently.

There is hope though. Now that I am implementing my Rule Of Life, all these things should be done. Well, okay, things are never DONE, but you know what I mean. You get to a stopping/take a break point and instead of starting another project or chore, I plan to honor the day. We should be able to have a true day of rest. Of course that will be when walnut season is over and Farmer goes back to taking Sunday off of work, which just doesn’t happen this time of year.

The Perfect 'To Do' List

Part of the problem is Mass jumping. What’s that you ask? There is a simple explanation, going to different Mass’s at different time at different Churches. When I first started attending Mass thirteen years ago the idea of so many choices seemed great! Now it just seems… confusing. It also keeps us out of a routine which os okay sometimes, but not on a weekly basis. We don’t know if we are comin’ or goin’! We really strived for Saturday night Mass (as you can tell by the monthly menu, out to eat on Saturdays) but if that didn’t pan out we would decide what to do the next morning. Then I wondered, why is it not panning out? Well, because Saturdays can be busy. Parties, weddings, home projects, family gatherings, etc. If it happens, it’s likely on Saturday. Another reason is, we have too many choices. We have two options a weekend at our local Parish. Before another Parish opened recently we had seven options at the Parish where we were married, kids were baptized and where kids attend school. Anytime you have that many choices, you have a problem. It’s like setting the kids in a candy store and telling them they have to pick one thing and stick to it. Not happening! They would go bonkers!

The only solution in my opinion is to go back to basics and stick to it. To me that means one consistent Mass time, in the same Church, every Sunday morning. That is our best bet to have some kind of routine. We won’t have the ‘are we’s’ and the ‘when’s’ and the ‘where’s’.

More importantly than routine, we have a set day to do what God asks of us which will refresh us for the coming week.

Wow, that sounds so nice.

Do you and your family take a day of rest? Is it a struggle to just let things go and enjoy life’s blessings?

Oct15

Monthly Menu

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Monthly Menu

Here you go Jen! This is what our menu for September looked like:

Monthly Meal Menu
Week Day Date Meal Check
8/29-9/4
Monday 8/29 Chicken burritos, brown spanish rice, black beans
Tuesday 8/30 Chicken Burritos leftovers
Wednesday 8/31 Hamburgers and sweet potato fries
Thursday 9/1 chicken sandwiches and veggies
Friday 9/2 Chicken dumplings
Saturday 9/3 Out for dinner
Sunday 9/4 Homemade pizza
9/5-9/11
Monday 9/5 Pizza and salad
Tuesday 9/6 Tri-tip, artichokes and rice
Wednesday 9/7 Whole wheat spaghetti, salad and bread
Thursday 9/8 Tri-tip leftovers
Friday 9/9 150th Party
Saturday 9/10 Out for dinner
Sunday 9/11 Ribs, corn and beans
9/12-9/18
Monday 9/12 Rib sandwiches, chips and fruit
Tuesday 9/13 Baked chicken, pasta and salad
Wednesday 9/14 Chicken pasta and salad
Thursday 9/15 Concert
Friday 9/16 halibut tacos, rice and beans
Saturday 9/17 Out for dinner
Sunday 9/18 Beef tacos, rice and beans
9/19-9/25
Monday 9/19 Beef noodles and salad
Tuesday 9/20 Oven fried chicken, corn on the cob and potatoes
Wednesday 9/21 Baked pork chops, rice and salad
Thursday 9/22 Fried chicken leftovers
Friday 9/23 Baked pork chop leftovers
Saturday 9/24 Out to dinner
Sunday 9/25 BBQ burgers, sweet potato fries and fruit

This particular month we happened to stick exactly to the menu. It doesn’t always happen that way but I try to work in any changes into lunches or other meals so food is not wasted.

In fact, this last couple weeks I have struggled being we were so busy with Fatima. This week was better until the end of the week. I ate out several times but at the same time we got to spend time with family and friends and that is a fair trade in the long run for sure!

Oct10

Our Lady of Fatima Celebration

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Our Lady of Fatima Celebration

The preparations leading up to our school and Catholic community’s annual “Our Lady of Fatima” celebration was once again more work than what seems possible. Once again, Our Lady came through and all the work, sweat, tears, frustrations, long hours and overspent energy paid off BIG time. Not just financially for all of our children and the Catholic school, but also for our whole community. The families of our Parish, Parish school and supportive friends and family made Fatima a success once again. So many gave their time, resources and anything else they could to feed over five thousand people for free. Anyone who wanted to come and grab a plate, from anywhere, was welcome at our table. If you haven’t experienced something like this, it is truly a blessing to see.

The event was held yesterday on the school grounds. There were carnival games, food, candy, raffle drawling, silent auction and live auction. The weather was beautiful (which isn’t always the case) and everyone seemed to have a great time. Each grade makes a homemade project to be auctioned off during the live auction. Now, normally with walnut harvest I don’t get to bid on items because I am chasing the kids around. Lucky for me it happened to rain earlier in the week and so our growers were forced to slow down their picking. Growers not picking equals Farmer getting a few hours with us at Fatima! We were all happy to be there together but if I’m being honest, I was just happy to be able to bid on the kids class projects. Terrible, I know.

Farmboy's Pre-K Blanket

The Pre-k project was up first and I was lucky enough to be a part of helping the kids make it because I am the room mother. Their little handprints were so cute and they had so much fun creating it.

Sweatpea's 1st Grade Cork Board

The first grade also used their handprints for their project mostly because once again, it’s cute, but also because it’s easier to do with the younger ones.

Turns out, my mother in law and I make a pretty good team. I was able to snag the Pre-K blanket from another bidder who got to her limit and backed out. There went my budget I was doing so well with! My mother in law was battling it out with another grandmother for the cork board and she wasn’t going to rest until the auctioneer announced “SOLD” with a hand gesture her way. I won’t talk about how much she ended up paying for that darn thing but in the end, she WAS the winner.

As you can see, this event has the potential to bring in a lot of money for the school and usually delivers. I have yet to hear exactly how well we did yesterday but I am confident that the Lord once again has provided for our children. Without this Fatima celebration the school doors would be closed. It generates THAT much money, seriously. But more than that, we would lose the message of Our Lady which you can learn about here. Anyone who has concerns about the people in the world today would rest their heads much easier after witnessing the generosity that I was blessed to be a part of.

Oct6

Diplomat or Doormat?

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Diplomat or Doormat?

Everyone needs to be needed. We all enjoy the feeling we get when a person makes us feel like we are the only one that can help them out. When someone needs us personally, we feel validated. Rather it be because you are an expert in a certain area, a workhorse or the most reliable person that comes to mind, the fact that you are the chosen one is nice. On top of that, it feels awesome when you actually succeed at helping someone.

But what happens when instead of the trustworthy source, you start to become the push over source? I don’t like to sound pessimistic but the fact is there are people, lots of people, out there that like to take advantage. I know some of these people. Sometimes I think they wonder, ‘if s/he will do this, I wonder if I can get them to do this, this and that?’. They have your number. They know you want to keep the peace and do a pleasing job. Next thing you know you are in way over your head, sacrificing your own responsibilities and overwhelmed.

Don’t we all know people like this? I am not saying I am guilt free of this behavior, especially when I was younger and even more selfish than I am now. But it only takes one, ok maybe two or three, good times of being the “door mat” before you start to figure out what’s going on. And hopefully after that third time you start to learn how to manage these pushy people in your life. Better yet, you know for sure how you DO NOT want to treat others.

I wonder, how do I not let this harden me against the many people who truly need my input or helping hand? My first impulse when propositioned by someone is to run! Say no thanks and split. Then immediately after my second impulse is to start brainstorming all the ways I can contribute to whatever it is they need. Then my third impulse (and lately, final impulse) is to throw up my hands. My attitude becomes ‘it’s just not worth it’ and I end up walking. I miss an opportunity to use one of my God-given gifts out of fear of being used.

Just as everyone needs to be needed, no one wants to be used. I believe that God made me reliable. I’m not saying I’ve never let someone down or missed something important, but trying not to is important to me. And I would like to think that most of the people in my life believe they can count on me. I love that about me and that’s probably what makes this so hard. I am hoping I am wrong but it sure seems getting trampled on goes hand and had with this gift.

So here’s the real question, how does a reliable person NOT become a doormat? If you have the answer, enlighten me!

Oct4

Mashed Potato Salad

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Mashed Potato Salad

My mom has made this potato salad for years and we all love it.  Normally I wouldn’t change a thing about it.  But when I made it this the last time I was out of celery so I just added a teaspoon of celery salt instead. I apologize for the picture quality, I am still having some computer issues.

Ingredients:
5 lbs russet potatoes
3 boiled eggs
1/4 c sliced olives
3 forkfuls of dill relish
1/4 c red onion
mayo to desired consistency
1 tsp celery salt
salt and pepper to taste

Peel, cube and dump the potatoes into a stock pot. Cover with water and set on stove on high heat. While your potatoes are cooking get all your other ingredients out. Dice your eggs, olives, onion and add to an extra-large bowl. Add the dill relish and celery salt. Now you don’t want to take your potatoes out too soon. Remember this is called a “mashed” potato salad. You want to cook them until they are just a couple of minutes away from mashing. Drain in a colander when ready and add potatoes in with the other ingredients. Add your mayo. Everybody likes a different amount of mayo but I’m pretty liberal with mine. I put at least a cup and a half. Maybe more. Add your salt and pepper. Then get out your large spatula and start mixing. Now, the potatoes should be so tender that they nearly mash just from mixing everything together. Put it in the fridge to get cold. After salad is cooled check flavor and add mayo, salt or pepper to your liking. Now it’s ready to serve!