Heat Wave

I'll be the first one to admit I'm a die hard clothesline fanatic. I think I've blogged about it, actually. And yes, I traipsed through 3 feet of untouched snow to do this. My jeans were soaked and my legs were numb. But really?....I DO have reason for this weirdness.....

SEE.....

The red blanket is a giant king sized down comforter that goes on Hayden's bed. Hayden woke up this morning sick. Pukey sick. Thankfully he didn't leave his sickness on the comforter. For preventative maintenance I did strip his bed, wash his sheets, and hung the comforter outside to kill any sicky bugs that may have decided to take up residence on it during the night. (I wasn't about to even try to shove it in my washer and a trip to the laundromat was out of the question).

Hayden was sick. Wyatt spent most of the day cuddled on the couch with his "Blank" (blankie) and a juice cup and sporting a nasty fever. Yvette managed to dodge this quick bug completely (today anyway).

Everyone is in bed, hydrated, drugged, and sleeping. Thank goodness it seemed to be a quick 12 hour bug with a little bit of a lasting fever. I guess the next few days will tell the truth though.

Hope everyone is staying healthy through the 2011 midwest blizzard.

Turkey Burgers and Beans

Can you tell what I'm dreaming about?

You got it.....summertime...sweet summertime. Yes, I can almost feel the warmth. Oh, wait....that's from the wood stove just a couple feet away. *sigh* Apparently Mr. Groundhog says an early spring. I'll believe it when I see it. Early spring means early flood. Flood...our inevitable reality every spring.....you want to see pictures of the past couple years?....I'll post them in another post. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, please oh please enjoy a scrumptious turkey burger recipe that we've come to love. I know....turkey burger? It was a hard one to get past my husband at first. But this recipe is very tasty and John has actually requested it a few times. AND, considering ground turkey is much cheaper than ground beef right now (and much healthier)...well....
it's worth a try if you are looking for something different:

1lb ground turkey
1 egg
1 green onion
1 garlic clove
1/2tsp ginger
1-2T soy sauce
1T brown sugar
1T sesame seed oil
2tsp sesame seeds
1/2tsp black pepper

mix together and patty out for frying. *ground turkey is a bit mushy, so what I use is a large cookie scoop or ice cream scoop and patty it on the pan.
serve on a bakery bun with lettuce and tomato and cheese and you will be in heaven. SO TASTY!

Alpacas On Parade

It has been a long while since I've written about our furry friends who live out back. Yes, they are still there. Yes, we still LOVE them! and YES, we are planning on adding to the herd in June.

This is a glimpse of their excitement on a typical day.....

They parade around the pen in single file down the snowblown path (thanks John!).

They LOVE visits from the kids. Although that has not been a very regular thing since we've been plagued with below zero temps as of late.

And they are all around doing really really well. We love "the guys" (as Wyatt so lovingly refers to them).

Minnesota Winter

home...

A Discussion On Boobs And Life....

Came across this article today and thought it was fantastic.
Can anyone relate?

Dancing in the Minefields

I saw this video for the first time last fall and loved it. It made me cry. I was reminded of the words preached at our wedding. The homilist spoke of the cross that marriage is. Not the cross that marriage can be, but the cross that it IS. And the abundant graces and blessings that are given when it is carried TOGETHER and carried with faith. The beauty of the suffering that we all inevitably experience in more ways than one is astounding.
The song also reminded me of my parents. Two people who have suffered more in their short 35 years of marriage than many lifetimes of marriages combined. Two people who have carried their cross with such grace and faith it is INSPIRING. I always knew I was blessed to be born to them....to belong to them.....

I love you mom and dad. Thank you for your example.

Order From Chaos

Today marks 1 full week into the new year. Can you believe it? Craziness.
Anyway, I have a few New Year's resolutions which include regular blogging, no biting my nails, and smiling more. But my #1 New Years' resolution isn't health/weight/diet related like 90% of most people. (Though I could stand to refine that aspect of my life a bit more...)
My resolution is simple: to achieve order and maintain it joyfully. Simple but certainly NOT easy. The intent was mostly practical but then I remembered my spiritual director years ago say to me, "Theresa, exterior disorder reflects interior chaos..." Which is as true today as it was 8 years ago when she said it to me. She is a wise woman. And so my quest began after the Christmas hustle and bustle ceased.

Order from chaos (in all aspects of my life) is a tall....TALL order to fill. Where does one begin?

I am not completely overwhelmed with the job...though most people would be if they really looked at my life. I know I have the tools and possess the know-how but what I lack is DISCIPLINE. I.Am.Lazy. And laziness is an ugly hideous vice that slithers into every single aspect of a person's life (when it isn't kept in check). It is dangerous and disgusting and it has gotten a bit out of control for me these past few years.

The weapon of choice?.....a book. Yes, a book. I've read this book several times over the past 4 years. I've applied a few of the ideas in it though I always made an excuse that it didn't really apply to me yet because my kids weren't old enough to apply the techniques mentioned. Yeah right. I was just lazy. Looking for an excuse. Anyway, it is a fantastic book and I am going to pick it apart and apply it because I KNOW it will help. I've LIVED a similar lifestyle before and there are immense blessings that come from it.



Seeking to order my extremely disordered tendencies is going to kill me. And I say that quite literally. But I know without a doubt that God is asking me to put forth an complete and sometimes heroic effort to achieve this....NOW. I say heroic because lazy people like me tend to do something half-assed or begrudgingly incomplete and almost seek out a reason to bail or flee at the first sign of conflict or obstacle. The author makes a wonderful point by saying, "YES!, God will bless the effort. But He needs to have an effort to bless." And by effort she means a whole-hearted, fully dedicated effort to change. A complete dedication of my WHOLE self to my vocation. It is there that the graces and blessings are waiting.

And that is what the first 2 chapters of the book are about. They are beautiful and motivating and provoke thought, excitement, and change (for the willing and mold-able soul). This week as I dive into chapters 3&4, I focus on my vocation and my daily response to God's call by

*****doing what I ought to do with a joyful and willing heart....and pure intent...

And so by the grace of God I go. Because only with Him is this even remotely possible. ;-)