So I have to tell you about some of Laney's deep thoughts. I mean, this kid must really have a brain that churns, churns, churns. The other day she asked me about what Heavenly Father and Jesus created. I tried to explain to her how they made the heaven and the earth, water, animals, the sun and moon, all the nature stuff.
Well, I thought she had it, but a day or two later she went on a stint about how Jesus makes cars and houses and the kind of car and house she would like to "order" (for lack of a better word) for our family. I didn't even get started on explaining to her about putting in life "orders" :) Instead, scrambling at this point, I back peddle and explain how Jesus also made man/people. And how we all have intelligence and brains and we use our brains to be like Jesus and try to make things in our world. A kinda of practice I guess you could say...
So again, I think she's got it. A couple of more days go by, and then, today, she says, maybe Jesus will make a little rain today since it's so hot. NOW, how am I going to explain that while He did make water and earth and everything else, He also lets the laws of nature run their course?! This girl just out thinks me, I kid you not. Between her and the dog, I just can't keep up. :)
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
O, Romeo, Where Art Thou?
This is the face of a patient man, and the face of his best girl, Laney. My dear husband, patient man numero uno, has endured 7 months of pregnancy hormones to date (just counting this pregnancy). After the past couple of weeks it's a wonder he still thinks children are worth the mess it makes of his wife. Afterall, he's the one who has to clean up the mess of a wife. Let's all take a moment and pray for this poor poor man.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Summer Fun
Some how I've managed to type a really clever and charming post and then delete it once my pictures were uploaded. I'm no longer feeling so clever and charming so here's a brief recapped of my former post:
This summer we've tried to be more adventurous and leave the house, the yard and the neighborhood. Having worked almost Laney's entire life, I never realized what an effort it takes to get out there and do things. At least for me, it takes a lot of effort to get out there do things. We've definitely spent time inside doing projects, outside playing with the dog and the neighbors (we LOVE our neighbors!) and chilling out in the house. This year though, we've travelled a little, watched free movies at the local theater, attended library project days, met friends, gone to local parks, etc., etc. I think Laney's really enjoyed herself; I know I've been relieved to not have to stare at the same four walls every day. Check out our pics to see the kind of fun we've been having:
At the local water park
With church friends
In the nature center pretending to be a bug
Harvesting our garden at the nature center
Having the best summer ever!
This summer we've tried to be more adventurous and leave the house, the yard and the neighborhood. Having worked almost Laney's entire life, I never realized what an effort it takes to get out there and do things. At least for me, it takes a lot of effort to get out there do things. We've definitely spent time inside doing projects, outside playing with the dog and the neighbors (we LOVE our neighbors!) and chilling out in the house. This year though, we've travelled a little, watched free movies at the local theater, attended library project days, met friends, gone to local parks, etc., etc. I think Laney's really enjoyed herself; I know I've been relieved to not have to stare at the same four walls every day. Check out our pics to see the kind of fun we've been having:
At the local water park 
With church friends
In the nature center pretending to be a bug
Harvesting our garden at the nature center
Having the best summer ever! Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Salsa!!!
This last Sunday I tried my hand at making homemade salsa. This was not only my very first experience with making homemade salsa, but I also canned the salsa. Now, while I have often canned with my mother and family (I consider myself a professional canning helper), I have NEVER canned anything by myself, without close adult supervision. What a treat this was. ha ha ha
To begin with, I do have pictures, however, I am having problems downloading them from my camera, so I'll have to post those later. Secondly, please remember, I am not a solo canning professional. So, here is how it went...I decided to make salsa because my neighbor and a really nice lady at church had a bunch of tomatoes from their gardens they had offerred to me. Also, I've been meaning to try out the solo canning for some time now, but haven't had 1) the guts to do it 2) the energy and 3) a canner. My mother, a professional solo canner, had a spare canner she gave me and then all I could blame this on was my energy and bravery. I don't like to say I'm a whimpy person, so I felt slightly goaded into action this summer. With the gift of the free tomatoes, I felt as if all my opportunity for excuses were taken away. It started out well enough, I gathered a canning book, some jars, other canning tools and all my ingredients in my kitchen. THEN I let them stare at me for approximately 3-4 days while I gathered my courage and energy. It's hard to have energy for anything when you're 28 weeks pregnant, but a marathon of canning (read 6 or so hours, not days) took much courage gathering. :)
Next, I waited for some down time between errands, child entertaining, and mandatory appointments. Then, I just made myself start. Much to my amazement, it wasn't so bad, but I made several classic novice solo canner mistakes. First of all, my blanching water was not hot enough for my tomatoes, and I ended up slightly cooking the tomatoes, instead of just shocking them to get the skin off. Cutting steaming hot tomatoes into chunks isn't that easy, and I don't recommend it. It adds considerable time to the canning process. Then I also left in too many of the jalapeno seeds. Now, I know they measure hot on a scale, but not being a knower of the scale, let me invent my own. If bland is 0 and hot is 10, I like my stuff at a 3 or 4. My jalapeno salsa was a 8 I would say. Oh my. So there was some scrambling, and some internet researching, and a some errand running to the grocery by my friend who helped me out since it was Sunday (mistake #3 - never can on Sunday in case you need to run to the market!). We finally figured out we could add some of the following and lower the heat level of the salsa : sugar, more cider, some tomato paste, some more diced tomatoes. I now feel confident to say my salsa is a 5, not an 8. Still a little spicy for me, but bearable when added to sour cream or other dishes.
Overall, I feel like the event was a success, and I am proud of me for getting my 12 little jars of salsa made and canned. Yay me! Next I'm going to try my hand at peaches, and apple pie filling. Maybe even green beans if I can squeeze in a trip to my parents when their beans come in. I'll be sure to keep every one posted.
To begin with, I do have pictures, however, I am having problems downloading them from my camera, so I'll have to post those later. Secondly, please remember, I am not a solo canning professional. So, here is how it went...I decided to make salsa because my neighbor and a really nice lady at church had a bunch of tomatoes from their gardens they had offerred to me. Also, I've been meaning to try out the solo canning for some time now, but haven't had 1) the guts to do it 2) the energy and 3) a canner. My mother, a professional solo canner, had a spare canner she gave me and then all I could blame this on was my energy and bravery. I don't like to say I'm a whimpy person, so I felt slightly goaded into action this summer. With the gift of the free tomatoes, I felt as if all my opportunity for excuses were taken away. It started out well enough, I gathered a canning book, some jars, other canning tools and all my ingredients in my kitchen. THEN I let them stare at me for approximately 3-4 days while I gathered my courage and energy. It's hard to have energy for anything when you're 28 weeks pregnant, but a marathon of canning (read 6 or so hours, not days) took much courage gathering. :)
Next, I waited for some down time between errands, child entertaining, and mandatory appointments. Then, I just made myself start. Much to my amazement, it wasn't so bad, but I made several classic novice solo canner mistakes. First of all, my blanching water was not hot enough for my tomatoes, and I ended up slightly cooking the tomatoes, instead of just shocking them to get the skin off. Cutting steaming hot tomatoes into chunks isn't that easy, and I don't recommend it. It adds considerable time to the canning process. Then I also left in too many of the jalapeno seeds. Now, I know they measure hot on a scale, but not being a knower of the scale, let me invent my own. If bland is 0 and hot is 10, I like my stuff at a 3 or 4. My jalapeno salsa was a 8 I would say. Oh my. So there was some scrambling, and some internet researching, and a some errand running to the grocery by my friend who helped me out since it was Sunday (mistake #3 - never can on Sunday in case you need to run to the market!). We finally figured out we could add some of the following and lower the heat level of the salsa : sugar, more cider, some tomato paste, some more diced tomatoes. I now feel confident to say my salsa is a 5, not an 8. Still a little spicy for me, but bearable when added to sour cream or other dishes.
Overall, I feel like the event was a success, and I am proud of me for getting my 12 little jars of salsa made and canned. Yay me! Next I'm going to try my hand at peaches, and apple pie filling. Maybe even green beans if I can squeeze in a trip to my parents when their beans come in. I'll be sure to keep every one posted.
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