Happy Valentine's Day!

I'm in surgery this morning.
...and I'm LOVING it!

We just make our valentines in Picmonkey, print them at riteaid 40 for $4.99, and staple some candy on them.

Fun, fast and homemade.

I had to steal a copy of this card for my urologist.  I tell him he is only the second man I've ever shaved my legs for.  ;)

(This is the first year I didn't make cards for my big kids- I love sending them to school with cards and candy.  Next year!)

School valentines are fun...

But for me?? How can I resist this guy?

Mmmmm.  I LOOOOOVE him.

Enjoy your day!!

Hope it's more romantic than mine will be.
Love is good.
xoxoxoxo

A "Lady of Leisure"

A friend of mine just just quit her job and joined the ranks as a non-working mother.  

(What an oxymoron.  Is there even such a thing as a non-working mother?)

Her husband jokingly refers to her as a "Lady of Leisure".  (Which sounds quite charming, considering he is from England and never tires of me commenting on his darling British accent.)

I have been chuckling to myself about this for the past few days.  

Yes, literally chuckling as I leisure.

It makes me smile to think that women employed outside the home are classified as "working women" while women who "stay at home" and write "none" on the forms where we are asked for our employment, are "non-working".  

(We park on driveways and drive on parkways-- this drives me crazy.)

"What do you do?"  We are asked by the crisply groomed women at our husband's work parties.

"Me? Oh, I uh, stay at home.  I don't work."  

We stutter, smile, wipe spit-up off our shoulder, and move on to the next equally inspiring conversation.

That whole night we will be internally regretting our response and mentally coming up with 100 better answers to that one incredibly important question.

At least, that's what I do. 

(I use this example a bit tongue in cheek, because we've all been there.  However, I frankly enjoy conversing with crisply groomed men and women.  I am a confident wife and mother. Most people are very respectful of the work I do.)

Friends, Mothers, those of us receiving a paycheck, and those of us lucky enough to spend our days spending our husband's paycheck (hehe)--

What do we do?

I analyze and prioritize this daily!!

The ability to choose how I spend my time is a gift that comes with a sacred stewardship.

I feel grateful to have a husband that can support my family so well.  

I feel grateful to be home with my children.

I have the unique opportunity to choose how I work each day.  

My best days are deliberate and I am always working.

We are each accountable, at the very least to ourselves, our families, our neighbors, and our God for how we spend our most precious resources.

My life is one of purpose and choice.

At Todd's next work party I might say, "What do I do?  Oh, I am a lady of leisure."  They will look at my hands and laugh with me.

I have been known to write-

Occupation: Superhero

Employer: God

Yes, I have.

This is NOT a blog post about whether we should spend our time working in or outside our homes.  This is a blog post about perception and language.  I think way too much about these things.  And perhaps, it is a post about self-awareness and reflection.

Calling me a "Stay at Home" mother is akin to calling "Working" mothers, "Coffee Break Moms", or better yet "Out to Lunch" mothers.  

{I have the same amusement with homeschooling lingo.  Just for the record- I choose to send my children to public school for part of each day, but I am still a mother who teaches her children. I homeschool and work.  Thank you.}

I do enjoy working for families at home.

I value the work I do.

There are days when I waste time, actually stay at home, enjoy the most lovely naps, and eat Bon Bons.  

Take that back, I don't even know what a Bon Bon is- but I probably want to eat them.

As a working mother, I am proud to be "unemployed".

I may not receive an independent paycheck, but I add equal value to our lives.  

I do not need to have the SAME job as my husband to be EQUAL with him.

I AM paid for what I do.

I'm not offended by language, just amused.

Time to run and enjoy my life of leisure.

Yes, I am a housewife, stay at home, non-working mother of eight.  

It's my job.  ;)

The best part of my job is-- I get to choose how I prioritize my time.

The hardest part of my job is-- I have to prioritize how I spend my time.

Today- I want to DO GOOD.

How's that?

What do I do?  

I go about doing good.

I work as the CEO of a non-profit organization that serves in homes, churches and the community.

And, I love my job!

Tally ho!

Life, as a lady of leisure, is good.

(I think I want to eat my boss.)

Boiled White Icing

For Jakob's birthday, I attempted boiled white icing from The Tasha Tudor Cookbook.

I also made her from scratch cake, but it wasn't my favorite.

(I love Tasha Tudor's art work and traditional style.)

Tasha Tudor's Boiled White Frosting
Simple ingredients-
(Don't you love making things with simple ingredients?!!)

2 farm-fresh eggs (or the store-fresh you have in your fridge)

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup water

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract (we used rum flavoring- I have no idea why we even have that never mind used it.)

-Whip the egg whites till stiff (not dry).

(Leah whipped ours but we did it first and while we were cooking the sugar, the eggs separated a bit.  So, we just whipped them a little more later.  ?)

-In the top of a double boiler, over hot water, place the water and sugar.  Stir until the sugar is dissolved and then boil without stirring till it is -242 degrees on a candy thermometer.

(We used a double boiler but mine is weird and it took forever to boil- like over an hour.  Next time I'll just boil it carefully on the stove.  

Tasha also says that when it is ready the mixture will "spin a thread when blown from a spoon."  That sounds magical.  My sugar never spun a thread, it just played dead.  But someday, my grandchildren will say, "Please make my birthday cake with Grandma's boiled white icing, so we can watch it spin a thread when we blow it from a spoon."  And my daughters will sweetly indulge them, blowing icing threads like professionals.  Just saying.

-Add the sugar water to the eggs.  This takes (more than) two people.  A child hold the mixers, a mother to pour a gentle, magical thin stream, and seven onlookers to ooh and awe in anticipation.

Continue beating until the mixture reaches spreading consistency (and resembles marshmallow Fluff.)

-When the frosting cools, ice your cakes.

This makes a lot of frosting.

Mine would have been beautiful just poured onto the middle and top of two round cakes (without icing the sides).

Or, sprinkled over a bundt cake.

It was late and we were in the mood for ooey goodness so my cake looked like this...

You can make a cake at least this cute.

Boiled white icing makes life good

Time to celebrate!

the wave.

I know I need to cut his hair.

I will miss the wave.
Life {with a baby boy} is good.

February Snow Day in Upstate New York.

Traditionally, February is known for being a LONG, dreary, winter month.

 I was prepared to feel snowed in and claustrophobic as I learned to navigate my first northeastern winter.

 When we lived in the northwest, we were warned of the depressing rain.

Moving to the east, we were warned of SNOW.    

 I never expected that I would genuinely LOVE both rain and snow.

Snow is BEAUTIFUL.

 I took a mere five minutes, grabbed my camera
(shot on automatic, gasp!, with my trusty 50 mm lens),
and really SAW my beautiful world.
(These are the pictures I shot, from my camera, in succession.)

Gosh.  This Earth is beautiful.

 Look at these cute kids!

They are MINE.

I am so lucky.

 Snow makes beautiful light.

 We couldn't afford ski passes this year.  

My kids are so happy just playing outside in the snow.

They build forts and sled and sometimes get into snowball fights.

Snow is really fun.

 I have cute kids, snow AND a puppy.

(He looks husky in this picture, doesn't he?  My aunt thinks he has a bit of husky in him.)

 Can you see our little foot bridge?

Our pond is frozen over... someday we'll be cool enough to make that an ice skating rink.

 This is our neighbor's old red barn.

It's dreamy.

 Winter is bright and beautiful... not so gloomy.

I need to remember to GO OUTSIDE!!

Fresh air tastes good, it feels good for my soul.

 I wish there was sound for this picture... 

Cute kid squabbles about foot placement.

"Waits!" and "Ready?" and "GO!"

Followed by a very slow descent and a laughing stop halfway down. 

 This is what children were meant to do.

 I love that they ride down together.

 And climb back up together.

(No chair lifts on this ranch.)

Eve always wants to be part of the action.  

I hope that as she grows she will remember this time with her siblings.

Her life is so much more fun because she has two parents and six older siblings who adore her.

Only three more years of everyone living at home.
Jakob will graduate in 2017.
Three years-- Eve is almost three and she was born, yesterday.
sigh.

How I cherish these snow days!

Can you feel how much Jakob loves this puppy?
It's because he wakes up at night with him, and cleans up his accidents, walks, feeds and trains him.
Imagine how I feel with my now 15 year old pup (and 14, 11, 10, 7, 5, 2, 8 month, 12 week)...
Yeah, all of them.
I love them so much it hurts.
{And they are A LOT of work I tell you-- especially on snow days.}

We want our children to grow and become- that's what we raise them to do.
But, if I could, I would freeze today and replay it every February forever.

I love this life.

I'm grateful to be alive.

Families bring joy.
I am joyful.

Jake's Pake.

-15 pancakes for breakfast

-Burger King for lunch.

-Heart Attacked locker (with candy inside)

-Fruit-filled crepes for dinner (with bacon and OJ).

-Mom-made old fashion cake with boiled white icing (a bit messy, but fun)

-Happy Birthday with trumpet and clarinet accompaniment 

-New leash, poop bags, and fleece jacket for Rocco from Aunt Carol.

-New ski coat, hat, goggles and lift tickets from mom and dad.

-Ordered a ski helmet from Grandma and Grandpa Moss (ordered on Amazon).

-And-- one week at EFY- Palmyra.  (We just happened to get the last spot.)

-No dish duty!!

Favorite things about Jakob from the family...

Eve- "When I say 'stop' he puts me down."  And, holding a pancake, "I love your pake, Jake."  (Love how she still calls cake pake.)

Lily- "He always helps me pour my cereal."

Leah- "He is good at teaching me to train dogs."

Ellie- "He teaches me good tricks, like how to find pencils by staying after class and looking on the floor."

Anna- "He is always nice to me (even if I'm not so nice to him)."

Drew- "I love playing games with him."

Mom- "He's very quick to apologize and have a soft heart."

Dad- "He's so willing to help out.  I'm not sure we could do it without him."

That's a wrap.

We really love our #1.

One year till 16... 

Slow down little grasshopper! 

Look at that beauty...

Life is good!

15.

He is chill, funny, and great with kids.

He has always been more disciplined and kind than I am.

He's got skillz...

Cooking, French Horn/Piano/Singing, Academic, Soccer/Running, Art, public speaking, scouting, refereeing (at home and on the field), peacemaking, etc..

There are times when I wish for my oldest a little more of life's fun things and a maybe a little less sisters.  ;)

But, I think Jakob is the kid he is because  our life has shaped him.

I really like who he is.

I feel blessed and honored to mother him.  

He is honestly one of my favorite people ever.

Happy Birthday kid!

Love you!!