Pigs and kitties...in the kitchen

So I was preparing dinner the other day and my 3 1/2 year old was helping. He is such a good helper...really.
Side note: I was looking for a video we rented today and he had taken it out of the car and put it next to the T.V. where it is suppose to go. He just has the sweetest heart.
So back to the story...Over Thanksgiving, my father-in-law and Jason's uncle went hunting for geese. They brought 11 home. My kids and I happened to be hanging out at my in-laws house when they arrived back from their big hunt. Liam was fascinated by the geese and watched as they cleaned and prepared them. He willingly ate the goose that night for dinner.
We have naturally started having conversations about meat and where it come from. As Liam was helping me cut up the ham for dinner the other night, we began to talk about how ham comes from pigs. I said, "We also eat beef from cow." And Liam said, "...and kitty cat." "Ummm...Liam I don't think we eat kitty cat." "No it's too furry." Yep Liam, that cat fur can be a real downer when your eating.
And then just a few minutes later Liam told me that we needed to buy a pig...and then when he is bad we could kill it and eat it. Always thinking.

So those are the conversations we are having in our kitchen while making dinner.
And be careful when you are around my son...apparently we just kill and eat things that are bad.

Merry Christmas

Just do it...you won't regret it

I like to cook but I don't like complicated recipes. I also don't have super sophisticated tastebuds that require fancy ingredients that always seem to offer minimal taste. Go fig! My sisters bought me this little baby for my birthday and I have to say that it is probably my favorite cookbook. I haven't tried a recipe that I didn't like. I'm just saying give yourself this gift this year....and use it!! It is so worth it and your whole family will love you for it. Oh and our dear Pioneer Woman is from Oklahoma. She also has a website that is full of great ideas and recipes.

tara

I am thankful for a bathtub...

The story goes that my Granny was at a women's retreat or something of the sort and the leader asked them to share what they were thankful for. Well being good Christian women, each person went through their list that inevitably included spouse, children, church, country. It was my Granny's turn and she said that she was thankful for her bathtub and being able to take a bath. It makes me smile every time I think about it. Leave it to Granny to make it real. So on this Thanksgiving Eve, I am thinking about what I am thankful for and whereas my husband, beautiful, healthy children, home, faith and country are at the top of the list, I think I want to make my list a bit more basic this year.

I am thankful for running water and indoor plumbing.
I am thankful for being able to read.
I am thankful for grocery stores.
I am thankful for electricity.
I am thankful for our cars and our house.
I am thankful for my microwave and oven and stove.
I am thankful for air conditioning and heating.
I am thankful for the stream of conveniences that make my life easier.

I don't mean to sound materialistic. I just know that I take so many of these things for granted and life without them would defiantly be more difficult. I have to confess my own attitude of entitlement. I so often take these things for granted, thinking that I deserve such luxuries and give very little thought to the fact that not only do I not deserve them but that majority of the world is living without such "necessities". And so on this Thanksgiving I am thankful for all those things that make my life easier and give me the freedom to enjoy the luxurious love of my family.

Have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!

-t

This is Share Time

So in light of yesterdays blog, I would love to know some of your favorite Thanksgiving traditions and/or memories. I am always looking for ways to make the holidays more meaningful for my family. Please share!!

Thanksgiving Kelly style

I just read my little sister's blog on Christmas commercials. It made me smile. Our family loves Christmas. I would say that it is inspired by my mom but my dad certainly gets into the spirit of this wonderful holiday. All of that is to come in the next month but while I'm reflecting on holidays with my family, I feel like I should share some of the wonderful things about Thanksgiving Kelly style.
*We were always the hosts of this great day.
*There is enough food to feed a small country--completed by roast, ham (which is always so salty that we are lucky to get our rings off of our fingers at night, right mom?), turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, 7 layer salad, fruit salad, broccoli and rice, green beans, baked beans, sweet potatoes and rolls and then the desserts consist of pumpkin pies (yes that is plural), pecan pies, and a few other fattening pies just for good measure.
*It was always fun to see how quick my mom went into panic mode trying to get the house in order before our guest arrived as we sat and watched the Macy's Day parade--her tradition to panic--our tradition to laugh and enjoy the parade (I would like to say that this has changed a bit in the recent years as we have grown up...but it hasn't really)
*Cinnamon rolls (there is a whole post coming on these babies but can I just say it is what heaven will taste like--if we can taste heaven)
*The annual trip to Big Lots and Kmart. That is right folks, it is impossible to be thankful without a little shopping. And nothing says "Thank you for our harvest" like Big Lots. And what is Thanksgiving without a slushee from Kmart. I'm just sayin. And I have to say that I am usually very thankful for things like shoes and shirts when I leave these stores. Apparently some people don't own such things and that is why they have to come to the store without then on.
*Then the leftovers that get to be consumed.
*There is laughter and love and family and thankfulness and kindness and everything that one hopes for when they dream about their perfect holiday and I get to be a part of it. I have been a part of it for 31 years and I have to say that I am truly thankful.

Blessings,
t

Teach Your Children Well...

I just wanted to share with you some info on Wildflowers: Character Resources. My sweet friend Sarah started this business as a ministry to come alongside moms and help them learn how to grow character qualities in their children. It is great, she does all the research and then offers information and resources that are applicable to the character quality you are working on with your child. She also has an amazing monthly newsletter that emphasizes a particular character quality. Sarah provides tons of ideas, scriptures, stories, songs and encouragement. They are usually applicable to the season or holiday that is celebrated within the month. It is just such a wonderful resource!!! Check her site out!

Also, I am going to be hosting a come and go party the first weekend in December. She will highlight some of the resources and books she has for sale and also have a character lesson for the kiddos. If you are interested, leave a comment.

-t

Rantings of a SAHM

"Housework is a treadmill from futility to oblivion with stop offs at tedium and counter productivity."--Erma Bombeck

I am a stay at home mom. I never really planned to be a stay at home mom but when I got pregnant, Jason and I both agreed that it was a good choice. He was going into school and it made sense to have me at home, taking care of things. I was excited about my new role. I was a new wife and now a mom. It was what I had wanted as long as I could remember.

Now almost 4 years later, my perspective is perhaps a little bit different. I love being a stay at home mom but I will now be one of the first to shout "Amen" when the difficulties of being a stay at home mom are the center of conversation. I have been thinking about it over the past few days and what it is exactly that makes being a stay at home mom so hard. When explaining it to people, it sounds so simple. I take care of our kids. We get to spend our days at the park and zoo. I clean the house and do the grocery shopping. I make my own schedule. Whereas that is all true they are all oversimplifications. I find it difficult to explain what makes it so hard--for me. The monotony of housework is unexplainable. It has to be a bit like Chinese water torture. Dishes--it doesn't matter how often I do them, they are never done. Or they are all done, but guess what it is dinner time and now I have a whole mess of dishes to clean again. The same can be said about laundry. It gets done but unless it is done while naked, I'm already behind. I clean up messes and then I clean them again and again and again. That, my friends, is hard. And let's talk about motivation. When I worked out there, I was motivated by a paycheck or expectations. I do not get paid and there are no bonuses and/or raises. I don't have a boss over me telling me how to do it and what needs to get done (unless you count my husband but he isn't really like that). I do make my own schedule. So what keeps my house from falling apart? What keeps me making dinner every night? What gets me out of bed in the morning and in the shower? Me. I'm not being egotistical. As a matter of fact, I think it was easier when I left the house to work. And then let's talk about the fact that I am talking and reasoning all day with a 3 1/2 year old (the 1/2 is very important to him). And he is a talker. Some days I love it and some days it is just too much. I long for adult conversations. I long for alone time. And I do get alone time but it is always at some expense. And that is fine but some days it is a hard reality. And don't even get me started on the pressure to raise smart, well rounded, achieving, kind, loving, independent people. Yeah, good luck with that. And then there is just the spinning plates...always spinning plates.

But I wouldn't change it right now for the world. I am learning so much about myself--my selfishness and capacity to be selfless. I am learning how amazing it is to watch to little people grow and change and learn and love. I now know what it feels like to love someone (or two little someones) so much that it hurts.

Whew I just needed to get that said. There is more but I have written enough that I feel relieved.

-t