Meaningful Moments Monday

I am starting a new section on my blog- Meaningful Moments Monday. If anybody would like to join in please leave a posting with a link to your site, or just leave a posting with your meaningful story or picture. If it takes off I'll try to get fancy and figure out how to make a button and have the URL listing you see at all those other very sophisticated sites. And if it doesn't sound like fun to anyone else that is a okay with me:)

Life is not measured by the number of breaths you take...

But the moments that take your breath away.

Can't Keep a Good Man Down

My husband must be the most stubborn man alive. I say that with love and affection, but a little irritation as well. He had his surgery Thursday, yesterday we removed all the bandages and today I found him mowing the lawn when we returned from the mall. Granted, it is a riding lawn mower, but our terrain is bumpy and hilly.

This is how our conversation went before we left this morning.

Hubby "I'm going to mow the grass today."

Me: "I don't think that's a good idea. Your Mom or I can do it."

Hubby: "I can do it. All I have to do is sit."

Me: (knowing how stubborn he is) "Okay, fine. But wait until I get back so I can help."

Hubby: "Alright, I'll wait."

Now about this time I figure all I have to do is come up with some project that will keep him busy, but in a sitting position when I get home and the mowing will be forgotten. Good, problem solved. So we call on the way home from the mall to see about bringing him lunch and guess what, he doesn't answer his cell or home phone. His mom tries, I try a little later. At this point I have images of my husband laying helpless somewhere knee gaping open and bleeding to death.

We race home. Baby screaming in backseat because I didn't stop to nurse her before heading home. I was too afraid I might find my husband in the front yard with the lawn mower laying on top of him, with no one around to hear his screams of help.

And as I speed down the hill and our house comes into sight there he is on his mower tooling around the side of the house, all in one piece, no blood.

I decide to ignore him until he comes into the house, head hanging, waiting for an earful from me.

"All I can say is that you took another 5 years off my life as I envisioned every terrible thing that could have happened to you. At this rate you will be left to explain the facts of life to our girls on your own and help them with all their wedding plans because I won't be around!"

I watched as all the color drained from his face as that thought sank in. Humph, that scared him more than the threat of a total knee replacement. I couldn't help but feel a tinge of satisfaction.

Now maybe he'll slow down...yeah right!!!

Saving Pennies

We love to find pennies. My girls can spot them in the parking lot at ten paces. "Look Mom, I found a penny", they shout out gleefully and then usually follow it up with a little dance. Isn't it great that small children can appreciate the value of even a penny!

I hate to admit this, but before I was frugal when I would come across pennies in my drawers I would throw them away. Or instead of lean over and pick up the penny on my floor I would let my vacuum suck it up! I know, I know how could I. To give myself some credit if it was a nickel or a quarter I absolutely would keep it. Anyway, don't you worry I have changed my ways. We now understand the value of mere pennies in this household.

We have a glass milk jar and we have deemed it our loose change bank. Anytime we find loose change we drop it in our jar. The girls love to scour the car and sofa cushions for treasures. And yes, all those pennies people carelessly drop out of their pockets in parking lots, sidewalks and such are true finds for my little ones.

Now when we want a special treat, like going for a coke or ice cream, we go get our "milk money" and count out our pennies (and the odd nickels, dimes, and quarters that find their way in). I heard of a man who saved his loose change for twenty years and was able to use it to take his wife to Hawaii for a second honeymoon!

So my tip is to save your change, who knows where it might take you:)

For more frugal tips head over to BiblicalWomanhood.com.

The "Potholes" Of Life

I woke up very early this a.m. and took hubby in for his knee surgery. He has never had surgery before and I guess I was more anxious about it than him, but I shouldn't have been. The admitting nurse took his blood pressure and it was 95/60, cool as a cucumber. The nurse had to ask him if all was well when she finished with the IV because he hadn't flinched or made a sound. Tough guy:)

The doctor removed the loose bodies arthroscopically, but really had to work the larger 1/2 inch pieces of dead bone and cartilage out, yikes! There was a small tear on the meniscus that he mended, which we thought might have been there. But then the doctor said he had what he called a pothole on the weight bearing portion of his knee. Most likely some old injury that has left him with a large area of dead cartilage and bone, creating a "pothole" in his knee. This little injury will keep him on crutches for 10 days and in a brace.

And how did hubby take all this...he wants to go back to work tomorrow. I had to force him to sit down when we got home and relax. He came out of the operating room ready to go, bright eyed and bushy-tailed. I am never that lucky. I always want to sleep for a week!

Anyway, I hope none of you see me on the news as the crazy woman who tied her husband to the couch, but that may be what it takes to make him rest!

How do you like it?

I get asked a lot how I like living out in the "country". I say "country" because we are in a neighborhood, it's just that our houses are at least 1 to 10 acres apart and our house borders ranch land on two sides. But it is very different the neighborhood we lived in before. Just like anything, there are good things and bad things. I know you are dying to know them so I thought I'd make a list.

Pro: I can stroll outside in my pajamas to get my newspaper in the mornings without risk of being seen.

Con: I may step on one of numerous prickly plants if I forget to put my shoes on.

Pro: Kids can run and scream and play at all times of the day without disturbing any neighbors.

Con: I'm not within shouting distance of help.

Pro: I can go all day without seeing or talking to another soul.

Con: I go all day without seeing or talking to another soul.

Pro: I can come and go undetected by anyone.

Con: I miss the greetings of the neighborhood children as I pull into my driveway.

Pro: Lots of wildlife to watch.

Con: I walk outside on constant alert not wanting to step on snakes, tarantulas, rats, etc.

Pro: No cockroaches.

Con: Just centipedes, scorpions, mice, and the occasional snake.

Pro: Lots of hills for sledding.

Con: Lots of hills for mowing.

Pro: Can leave the windows open at night and not hear one car, train, or plane.

Con: Can lie in bed and wonder what exactly is making that strange howling noise outside my window.

All of this aside, I must say the things I miss the most are our old friends, the knowledge that at anytime I could step outside and probably run into a neighbor. We would chat about what we were cooking for dinner while our kids would play in the yard. I knew if I had an emergency I was surrounded by people who could and would help and it would only take minutes to get that help.
So to that question "How do you like it?"...I reply, "It's wonderful, but it wasn't so bad before either."

Frugal Friday

I'm not extremely frugal by nature so I take all the help I can get. My mother-in-law sent me a link to this site that has lots of good ideas. One I have tried is shopping in my own kitchen cabinet and freezer. I have enough food to make dinner for at least a week, even though I thought at first glance I needed to go to the grocery. She has lots of neat tips on shopping at home first, before you go spend money needlessly. Just wanted to pass along this find.

Happy Frugal Friday and for more tips check out BiblicalWomanhood.com.

Not My Momma's Cooking

Cooking is a passion in my family. Growing up we spent time in the kitchen as a family. We sang, we laughed, we ate! Eating good food was an experience we all enjoyed, we savored the moment. I remember when I was about 13 and my Dad was in the middle of transitioning into a new job so he was home for several weeks that he made eggplant Parmesan. I don't mean a dish of it, I mean a kitchen full of it. My mom and him had gone to the farmer's market and bought tons of fresh eggplant, made their own sauce and covered every inch of available counter space with dishes of eggplant Parmesan. I got in from school and the house was filled with the incredible aromas of garlic and tomatoes. Yum!

My grandmother, Nano, was also in the middle of planning or making the next meal. Cooking took all day, from before sun-up to late evening. Everything was fresh and homemade. I don't remember too many canned goods in my childhood except for the ones we canned ourselves. Vegetables were frozen or fresh and the only meat that came ready to eat was the tuna fish my mom and sister loved to eat for lunch (the mere smell of tuna fish grossed me out when I was little).

Two things that you'd never find in my parent's kitchen---crockpot and pressure cooker. That is why I've had such a hard time with both of these appliances in my kitchen. But times have changed and I have decided the crockpot is my new best friend. I leave the pressure cooker to my husband who makes a wonderful chili and also beans using this method. With Little One I never know what frenzied state we may be in at supper time so I've learned to throw dinner and the crockpot during morning downtime and waalaa hubby walks into the door to a dinner that's ready to go. I've made peace with my decision to take some short cuts in my cooking in order to preserve my sanity, or what's left. My compromise is that we will cook as a family on the weekends and holidays. I will plan those gourmet meals for times when someone can entertain Little One for me.

The challenge right now is finding healthy crockpot meals that don't use so many canned items that tend to be high in sodium etc. I've found a few sites that offer some good recipes in this area and am beginning to experiment with them. I'm also, now, a huge fan of Sandra Lee's semi-homemade on the food channel. It lets you cook without completely giving up everything to pre-made, pre-cooked foods.

My two oldest have decided to star in their own cooking show. We taped their first session this weekend and they had a blast. I need to hurry up and edit it to put on my blog, so be looking for the Divas in Training Cooking show!! They have told friends they have their own show on the Internet so I better get on the ball:)

So I guess I'll pass on some new traditions to my girls in the kitchen, along with the old way of doing things, and that's okay.