Fall Into Reading September 23, 2008
I have always been an avid reader. Ask my Mom and she will most likely tell you about me being the best reader in my first grade class, having read over 50 books. Since becoming a mother though I have had to put it by the wayside. It’s not because I have no time. I do. It’s just that books entrance me to the point of neglecting other duties – like cleaning, cooking, and the occasional stinky diaper. If I start a book, I literally cannot put it down until I am finished. Every once in a while I will still pick up a book from our weekly library trips and immerse myself.
Anna, on her blog, has posted a list of books she wants to read. She was inspired by Katrina at Callapidder Days. I have decided to try reading in moderation and join in on the challenge. There are a number of books that I have been wanting to read, and a few that Zac has been persuading me to read. Without further adieu here is my list:
Non-Fiction:
The Revolution by Ron Paul. I started this one, but then we got busy moving from Iowa to Alabama.
The Law by Frederic Bastiat. Thank you Anna for this suggestion. I figure to know Zac is to know this book so it is going to be one of the first I read.
A History of the South by Francis Butler Simkins. Since I live here I figure I should probably know something about it.
Slavery in the United States by Louis Filler
The Coming of the Civil War by Avery O. Craven
Fiction:
A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway. I picked this one up from the library but haven’t really gotten into it yet.
Quo Vadis by Henry Sienkiewicz. I read this a few years ago and really liked it. I think I read it in just three days and it is not a short novel.
1984 by George Orwell.
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss.
Now, I know that seems like a lot but I know I will speed right through the history books and at least Quo Vadis, which is one of my favorites and Stepping Heavenward which I read once a year and is my all time favorite. So there you go.
A budding artist September 22, 2008
Some might say she is a genius, some may call her the next Van Gogh – a prodigy even. I call her Sophia. She loves to draw faces. She’s good at it too. Just look at these pictures she drew and their real life counterparts.
First, my beloved Mother
Now look at this likeness.
Incredible, isn’t it! Look at the closeup. Pay close attention to the arms and legs. The scale is just pure perfection.
Because Sophia loves both of her Grandma’s equally she made an equally stunning likeness of Marga. Here’s Marga.
Now look at her masterpiece. It really does rival the Mona Lisa. If only she drew it on a piece of paper or canvas instead of a magnadoodle.
You know, based on this drawing I would say she thinks of you as a princess, because we all know princesses have hair that goes down to the ground. And because I love ya and am all for equal treatment here is your closeup.
I can’t wait to cash in on her artistic ability.
My favorite Hymns this week September 20, 2008
I love hymns. I love them so much I had “love of hymns” on my husband list. Yes, I had a husband list. I had far more requirements than just cute and tall and I wrote them down. Anywho, back to other matters. Hymns. I love them because they are meaty. Even the ones that are more simple in content have far more to say about God and our condition than many modern “worship”songs. After singing or listening to hymns I feel like I have something to think about rather than just something to “feel”. I am not denying that we should have good feelings about God, but we should treasure our minds and our thoughts and attempt to “take every thought captive to Christ”. Hymns are such a wonderful way of helping us struggling sinners to do this. I know I am probably losing many people here because when the think of hymns they think of a bunch of ladies singing falsetto to a lone piano accompaniment. Well if you haven’t been introduced yet to Indelible Grace or Red Mountain Music, then you are missing out. They do hymns to modern, and in my opinion, great music. They effectively make hymns more accessible to people whose musical aesthetics desire guitars and drums, and other instruments besides the lone piano (gasp!).
All that to say here are some of my favorites this week:
Come Boldly To The Throne Of Grace
Taken from the Gadsby Hymnal # 675
Come boldly to a throne of grace,
Ye wretched sinners come;
And lay your load at Jesus’ feet,
And plead what he has done.
“How can I come?” Some soul may say,
“I’m lame and cannot walk;
My guilt and sin have stopped my mouth;
I sigh, but dare not talk.”
Come boldly to the throne of grace,
Though lost, and blind, and lame;
Jehovah is the sinner’s Friend,
And ever was the same.
He makes the dead to hear his voice;
He makes the blind to see;
The sinner lost he came to save,
And set the prisoner free.
Come boldly to the throne of grace,
For Jesus fills the throne;
And those he kills he makes alive;
He hears the sigh or groan.
Poor bankrupt souls, who feel and know
The hell of sin within,
Come boldly to the throne of grace;
The Lord will take you in
No Sweeter Subject
No sweeter subject can invite
A sinner’s heart to sing,
Or more display the glorious right
Of our exalted King.
Grace reigns to pardon crimson sins,
To melt the hardest hearts;
And from the work it once begins
It never once departs.
The world and Satan strive in vain
Against the chosen few;
Secured by grace’s conquering reign,
They all shall conquer too.
Twas grace that called our souls at first;
By grace thus far we’ve come;
And grace will help us through the worst,
And lead us safely home.
.
.
.
Both of these have MP3 samples on the Red Mountain Music link.
*Sigh* My baby is in Ballet September 15, 2008
Am I the only one that wishes children came with remote controls? I know what you are thinking and I am not talking about a mute button. I’m talking about pause. Rewind. Where does the time go?
I like one quote I heard a few months ago in regards to raising children; “The days are long but the years are short”. No kidding. Thank goodness for camera’s. Rewind. Here is a picture of Sophia from a few days after she was born.
Those were the days when she was not bouncing off the walls. All she wanted to do was sleep. Pause. And then at about five weeks she “woke” up and our lives have never been the same. From then to now we have been through many of those moments of sheer joy and pride, but tainted with a little sadness as our baby was becoming something different. Leaving behind something cherished. I have felt it coming for a while; when Sophia would ask for a particular pair of shoes to go with her dress, or when she would pick a dandelion and put it in her hair – she is becoming a little girl and leaving behind toddlerhood*. *sigh*. Last week Sophia started ballet and ushered in full-fledged little girldom*. Pause. A bittersweet moment indeed.
Next thing you know she will be moving out, getting married and I will be sitting in my rocking chair knitting little booties for the next generation of Hensley’s.
Thankfully I have Ellie who is never going to grow up. Just look at this picture. She can barely even reach over her bald head! I think that is a clear sign that she is going to stay small, irrational, and perpetually cute.
*Note: I fully acknowledge that the words toddlerhood and girldom are not established words (Zac) but one of my best friends is a linguist and she will gladly tell you that legitimate words are made up all the time. So =p.
Carrots and pumpkin pasta September 6, 2008
Carrots. The wonderful, yummy nutritious veggie that most toddlers gobble up with the help of America’s favorite condiment – ranch dressing. I serve them almost everyday with lunch. Sophia gobbles them up. Ellie hides them under the table, in her diaper and wherever else she can get away with not eating them. Well a few days ago I promised her a treat IF she would just finish one carrot. Succumbing to the temptation of a cartoon or a bath – whatever, I don’t remember what rare thing I promised her – she quickly stuffed the carrot in her mouth. A minute later she spit it out. Then she put it back in. “Good grief kid, you are not a bovine”. I actually said that, but don’t worry she didn’t understand. She chewed on her cud some more. And some more.
I speak no lie when I tell you what I am about to tell you. She chewed on that carrot for close to 30 minutes. I don’t even think she chewed and swallowed. I think they just disintegrated into her mouth or absorbed into her cheeks because it was there so long! At this rate she would have to be eating veggies every waking hour for her to get a good daily intake. I sincerely wish it wasn’t the quantity of veggies one ate, but the amount of time it takes to eat it that matters because if it were so I wouldn’t be supplementing her diet with gummy vitamins and coming up with recipes to sneak them in.
Anywho here is a recipe that we like here because it is nutritious and delicious.
Pumkin pasta
1 can of pureed pumkin (15 ounces I think)
1 small onion, diced
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
5 tablespoons of butter
1 – 1 and a 1/2 cups of chicken stock
1/3 cup of heavy cream or half and half
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp each chopped fresh parsley and basil
Directions
1. On medium heat melt butter. Add onions and garlic and sautee until translucent. Add canned pumpkin and 1 cup of chicken stock. Add more if the mixture is too thick.
2. Meanwhile boil water and cook 1 lb of your pasta of choice according to package directions, minus 2 minutes.
3. While still a bit undercooked add pasta to sauce with about 1 cup of pasta water. Cook until al dente – about another two or three minutes. Add cream and salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with parmesean cheese and fresh herbs.
Enjoy!
Excuse my absence September 3, 2008
Every spare moment I have had I have been reading, contemplating, and praying about some recent developments in American politics. I swore off politics after being bitterly disappointed with the result of the “Ron Paul Revolution” in which I so ardently participated. This bit of news, though, in my humble opinion reaches far beyond the realm of politics. Upon hearing the news I had knee jerk reaction. Since then I have come full circle through much pondering and have seemed to settle in one place – that God help me, is firmly planted in His word. I don’t plan to expound on any of that here as my words are often clumsy and insufficient. I will though provide a few links of some food for thought along with some lively discussion. If you do visit these links please be sure to read the discussion too as it is helpful to hear the “other side”. My selections may be a tad biased – if you are looking for something that only affirms your already held beliefs then don’t bother.
Ketocton Baptists (there is an especially helpful Biblical exposition in the comment section of the entry “A Sad Day in American History”)
I feel like the last 6 days I have been wrestling with God and I am tired! Hopefully tonight I will have lighter things to report like the digestion of carrots. Stay tuned.
