Listen

The last warm day of Fall came and went. 

 

That girl.  I tell ya.  

I realize when I watch her sweet independence and uninhibited joy that she expresses what my insides won't allow.  You know?  I would love to put on my swimsuit and lay out a blanket and have a snack with my imaginary friends and favorite chickens.  But I'm far too busy with grown-upping.  And besides, you all would text each other about how I've finally gone and lost it for real and draw straws for who gets to run my intervention.  But she gets to do it and I get to watch her and feel threads of the warmth of it all.  One of the many perks of being a mama.  Fact.

But now its freezing cold.  The whole family is heat packing like champs now.  One each for my tummy, back, neck, and feet.  I don't drink tea but I drank five cups yesterday.  But.  I do so love fall, especially because of leg warmers.  Did you know you can cut off sleeves of old tshirts and make them?  Counting my refurb pairs, I've got 5 pairs now.  Woot-woot!

Carole says that this is meant to be my season of Listening. 

It seems like we are hoping for basic answers about things like faith and family and just plain our - my - space on this big spinning ball.  I want to feel alive and excited and inspired, but I'm good with right now not being all that, and instead just settling down and paying attention. 

She says we'll tackle the doing and dancing and getting after it later, and for now I should Listen.

Today there was an earthquake in Kansas.  Facebook is blowing up about it.  But I didn't notice any tremors because at that moment I was very busy screaming - for real screaming - at the eldest for not respecting me when I corrected her during her piano practice.  Something to the tune of "I'm 35 years old and I have a college degree and I know how to count notes in a measure and I will not tolerate your bla bla bla bla bla."  At which point the Buzz began also screaming "You're not 35, you're 29!  Mooommmmm!!  You said you're 29!!!  29!!  Mommmmm!"

So the Listening.  Its sporadic.  But at least the effort is there, right?  Fall is very much here and the quieting I feel is good.  Mmmmm so good.

* The hands pic and the quote are from good old pinterest.  Not my camera.  I wish.

WP

I like to think of myself as a planner.  Like a really great planner with serious planning skills.  I may have even told one or two people that when I grow up sometime in the next 10 years, I want to be a capital-P Planner.  Of very important events and rad parties and huge, magnanimous life celebrations.

Then I get to plan something, and I realize I'm a serious Wannabe Planner.  Capital-W.

For my new fancy job (travel...big office...home computer....cell phone allowance...company credit card....and BUSINESS CARD!), I planned a big youth rally for all the high schoolers in Kansas I could find.  Somewhere there's a manual on what to do when you're new at your job.  And in that manual, the first chapter probably says that you should 1) not volunteer to lead large projects.  And that you should 2) under no circumstances, fly your boss in as keynote speaker for said projects, because then he would be present, in the flesh, to know just how successful - or not - you were at Planning.  But that is one book I did not check out at the library.  Ever.

Here he is...a fuzzy shot my friend took mid-speech....

And the guy behind him is a Mennonite Rockstar I brought from Phoenix.

The whole thing went splendidly.  It was fun, meaningful, faith forming, time well spent.  But it gave me a coronary and brought home that although I feel like the ultimate Shiznit Planner, I am not quite yet.  Yet. 

So that was Saturday. 

But first there was Friday!  Halloween!!

No school, my perfect nephews here from IN, my aunt here from MI, my cousin here from IL, my sister's in-laws here from MO....half the US map coming and going from Weaver Street all in one day.

It was a cluster.  But oh it was fun!
I planned the heck out of that day too....crafts, snacks, signs, menus, costumes, even the wine.

And the trick-or-treating.....also a cluster.  The 80's Hairband Rockstar that on other days is known as the man I live with stole the show.

Rahhh ahhhhhh ahhhhh ahhhh ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. 
I may be a Wannabe Planner, but I.will.get.you.my.pretty!! 
Mark my words!

curried carrot soup

Fall is HERE.  Right here!!  Joy really is now!!

So I put up my fall decoration.  Singular.  A canister, well really a set of three canisters (you know, go big!!), on my windowsill.  There.  Now its time to cook!  Yesssssssssssssssss!

This is my favorite soup ever ever ever of all time.  If you make only one of my recipes ever, choose this one.

Superman and Sleeping Beauty and Nine Going On Sixteen were playing happily.  

It may seem trite, but I know you parents hear me when I say that there's something so extremely life-giving in getting to take your time with a task because your kids are playing happily.  It happens once every-other never, so we have to live.it.up!!

 They don't know what a gift they are giving us - and each other, really.  Better than Christmas.  You can put a bow on the fact that I got to take pictures, turn up the music, and chop the vegetables in the calm.  I love the smell in the kitchen when I make this soup, and I got to totally savor each whif!

Curried Carrot Soup (from DeeDee - who makes all things in life just a tad tastier and happier than your average Joe!)

8-10 big carrots, peeled and diced

1 large onion, chopped

4 stalks of celery, chopped

6 Tbsp. coconut oil

3 tsp. chicken bullion paste

4 c. water

2 Tbsp. curry powder (I like this recipe with red, but any kind works)

1 tsp. paprika

1/2 tsp. turmeric

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1 tsp. dried onion flakes

Sauté the carrots, onion, and celery in the coconut oil until tender.  Add the rest of the ingredients and let simmer on the stove for an hour.  Blend the soup until its fine (I love the immersion blender!).  Serve garnished with crushed peanuts, chopped cilantro, and sour cream.

The baboli rolls you can buy everywhere right now work great for making individual pesto bread.  Just cut them down the center length-wise once, and then 3 or 4 slices an inch apart cross-wise.  Stuff the cracks with pesto and a little shredded mozzarella.  Wrap it in foil and put it in the oven to warm.

YUM.

Happy fall, one and all!

Serendipity

"Let yourself be drawn by the stronger pull of that which you truly love."

- Rumi

Fall, you do not disappoint!!  We didn't plan it...we meant to bike River to preschool and bike back home, but Sage said we should go to the arboretum and to me that sounded like easy entertainment for her and the little friend we gained at drop-off.  I thought we would take a lap and then head home to toys and snacks and to do lists.

But it was an absolutely breath-taking fall morning. These two played with sticks and leaves and tree berries and literally walked me through the most quiet, joyful, Slow-Down that I never knew I needed.

They played for 2 hours.  I got restless and thought of the books I should've brought and things to be done at home and work, played on my phone, texted, paced.  And f.i.n.a.l.l.y. slowed enough to sit quietly and watch and remember what it is to play with such inhibition. Their silliness and unplanned play gave me permission to just plain get simple in my brain.

Gerry, a man with two daughters and grandchildren of his own - that I learned to know at that spiritual direction day (click here) - stopped and spent some time with us. He took some of these photos, and with his quiet presence encouraged me to stay quiet and breathe in this space.

I'm so dang lucky to be living this life...tripping over myself with happy accidents like this this!  Fills me to my brim.

13 for 2013

When your daughter tells you she wants to dress up as an astronaut for Halloween, it might go something like this...

1.  You check yourself and notice that you're stressed out and too busy for costume making this year.

2.  Show her the cool princessy, fairy-ish rockstar costumes at walshart in hopes of convincing her to choose that instead.

3.  Check yourself and notice that your daughter said she wants to be an astronaut and realize that is the coolest thing ever and heaven help us you're trying to raise a strong woman who can do anything including fly to the moon.

4.  Check yourself before you wreck yourself, and make the dang costume!!!

5.  Make your first ever ebay purchase....an astronaut helmet for $4.99.

6.  Go to your favorite Sherwin Williams for white painters coveralls for $7.99.

7.  Send your daughter on her bike to the hardware store for red duct tape.

8.  Get out your stapler and that duct tape and work your magic.

9.  Dress up your easy-to-please other two children in walshart costumes because you gave all your energy to your astronaut daughter.

10.  Dress up as a witch because a) your closet is full of black stuff b) fake eyelashes are a tradition and c) on this one day of the year you get to let your witchy self out to play.

11.  Find some friends who will host you for dinner and wear the pink mullet you bring along.

12.  Line your kids up for a picture.

 13.  Pimp your kids for candy on one very gorgeous October night!

Halloween 2013, you were so good to us!!!!!

come on in

Oh my goodness, its really really here.  Thank you, Fall, for showing up.  Just when we needed our days to be shorter, our tempers to be longer, our breath to be deeper, and our hoodies to be zippered!

We let Fall in this weekend with rugby, fires, and sleep.

Ryan's playing on a Wichita club team, and wow they mean business.  I don't understand the game at all, but here's what I do know: Big guys run and run and don't stop, and they often tear each other down to the ground, and no one wears helmets or pads, and sometimes they yell words like "scrum, bind, engage," and there's a big ball that kind of looks like a football, and they wear short shorts, and LOOK AT THEIR SOCKS!  Seeing Ryan in those made the club fees and evenings he's gone totally worth it.  Hi.lar.ious.

Look at that big guy on the left.  Please, Goliath, don't break my husband.

We didn't camp at the Winfield bluegrass festival this year, and good friends - knowing I would be gloomy about missing out - called and suggested an UnWinfield Hotdog Roast.

If you listen closely enough, I think you could truly hear things slowing around here.
I don't just love this season, I love the changing that happens in these few weeks.
Fall, you are good good good to us.

blacklight

Number 927th thing I love about fall......it gets dark early enough to bring out the black light at our nightly dance party.

Rock.  Party.  On, People.  Rock party on.

Halloween

Oh it was SUCH a fun night.  There's nothing quite as fun as getting all dressed up and pimping your children for candy.    We had an absolute blast - everyone was comfortable in their costumes, which is no small thing - we ate candy for supper and breakfast - and were home, bathed, and in bed by 8.  

Rockstar....

 Rrrrrrrrrrobot...

cutest little bumblebee EVER...

the best shot out of 25 that I took trying to get all three together...

 Trick or treating at the Villa...

I don't know why I got such a kick out of this guy.  He was wearing these girly devil horns and was grumpier than all get out.  Loved him!  

even Nanny JoJo and Solomon dressed up for us to visit...

Lyndon - our neighbor and Riv's best bud - stopped by...

...because what's Halloween without some candy trading?...

Ryan and I attended a grownups only Halloween bash last weekend.  Ryan was a rugby player because that's really his #1 aspiration the last year or so.  I was a cat because it was cheap and comfortable and most importantly I could wear fake eyelashes.

This was a big camera moment because we crossed party lines and got friendly with a republican!!

Happy Halloween!  I'm off to eat more chocolate.  I cannot stop.