I wonder...

I wonder, Why do people use milk in their cold cereal and then throw away the milk? Do they do that with soup, too? Just eat the veggies and meat and pour the broth down the drain? What do they do with cream soups? Hmmm.

I wonder, Why do people sweat the little things? Why have a nervous breakdown over whether or not the purple shoes match precisely with the purple purse?

I wonder, Why cats scratch on the glass to be let in, and then turn around five minutes later and scratch on the glass to be let out? Can't they just stay one place or the other for a while?

I wonder, Why do dogs like to tear up trash bags and spread the contents around the neighborhood? Why can't they be happy with the food they receive?

I wonder, Why do Greenville technical colleges give passing grades to people who turn in papers with improper spellings, words that are not even words, missing punctuation, sentence fragments, sentence run-ons, and other general grammar mistakes?

I wonder, Why can't I ever find a pair of baby shoes? I have one baby in the house. He's not quite two. He owns several pairs of shoes. Well...that's not quite accurate. He owned several pairs of shoes. Now he owns several individual shoes that do not match. Where does the matching shoe go? One is a camoflage tennis shoe. I guess it's hiding from me.

I wonder, Do other moms wonder the same things? I suppose if my life was devoid of dogs, cats, and children, much of my wonderings would not exist. However, I wouldn't enjoy life if I had no children, so that's not an option. (The dogs and the cat, I have discovered, I could definitely live without. Especially when I had to lay out mouse traps recently. Helloooo? Cat? You are supposed to be earning your keep around here!!!)

Responsibility Bears the Pain

Ah youth! The crispness of the fall air, the leaves turning hues of orange at every turn of the head, the thrill of the souped-up go-cart...

My just about 18-yr old son, C.J., was taking our neighbor's son for a spin around the block. However, the go-cart is in need of a few minor repairs...and a new set of tires. Something with a little tread left on it would do nicely, I think.

Oh...I should mention that he rolled it once in our garden before he later took it for the spin around the block. The one his father has been telling him NOT to do....

Now, to misquote from a favorite ballad, "Then a whine and a jolt and a great roadside roar, and it laid my Curtis James on that cold asphalt floor."

Well, when the skidding stopped and the dust settled and my son and Eli crawled back up the hill, CJ was quite a mess. But he managed to walk back to the house.

I have to say, I'm very proud of him. No, not for crashing the go-cart (which actually doesn't even belong to us - he was fixing it for someone else!). But he showed a great deal of responsibility in relation to the neighbor's son. When he realized they were going to roll, he placed himself between Eli and the pavement. Eli sustained a few bruises; C.J. removed several layers of skin on the palm of his hand and on the backside of his leg. The pants were trashed, and we actually cut them up while he was in them so his sister could doctor his leg while I tended his hand. I was glad that he was concerned enough for Eli that he didn't want him to get hurt. Now... if only he had been thinking more responsibly before leaving the yard, he wouldn't have been hurt. But, I think he learned a valuable, albeit painful, lesson.

Funny Turkey Poem

From Lori Hayward:
Need a new Turkey recipe??
The turkey shot out of the oven
and rocketed into the air,
it knocked every plate off the table
and partly demolished a chair.
It ricocheted into a corner
and burst with a deafening boom,
then splattered all over the kitchen,
completely obscuring the room.
It stuck to the walls and the windows,
it totally coated the floor,
there was turkey attached to the ceiling,
where there'd never been turkey before.
It blanketed every appliance,
It smeared every saucer and bowl,
there wasn't a way I could stop it,
that turkey was out of control.
I scraped and I scrubbed with displeasure,
and thought with chagrin as I mopped,
that I'd never again stuff a turkey
with popcorn that hadn't been popped.

Excellent blog post on vaccines - see link

This was a very well presented article. It states both sides of the vaccine issue, yet stresses the point that deciding whether or not to vaccinate should be a PARENTAL choice not a governmental mandate.

Here's the link: http://www.parentalrights.org/blog/parents/vaccines-autism-and-parents#comment-39749

If you want to take about 6 mintues of your day to read this, it's a good article.

I'm a firm believer that this is a choice issue. If you feel, (after doing research - not just blindly following what we've all been told for 30 years), that vaccinating is a safe and protective procedure for your child, then go for it! If, after doing research, you feel your child may be put at greater risk by receiving the vaccines offered, then you should have the right to decline. It's as simple as that.

After reading this article, if I lived in NJ and had to use public day cares...I'd move out of state.

50 years? Congratulations!

In this day and age of mass divorces, I LOVE to hear about folks married 50 years and beyond.

We are joyful about seeing Dick and Shirley Meyer celebrate 50 years this coming October 25th. Can't wait for the party!!

My daughters and I have been talking alot about marriage and love recently (likely due to our friend Susan getting married in December!) and the following thought is recurring:
Love is not just a "feeling" - it is a choice, every day, every minute, every second.

A spouse chooses to love their mate, in spite of their dirty socks, pack-rate habits, bad breath, curlers in their hair, unshaven face, unshaven armpits, loud t.v., lack of conversation, etc.

They choose to love even though their spouse is going bald or growing hair on their upper lip.

They choose to love even if their spouse is going deaf or getting fat.

They choose to love even if they've heard that story 40 billion times.

They choose to love even when their spouse gets mad and says things that are hurtful.

Good times, bad times, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health.

It's a vow, not a feeling.

God chose to love us. The Bible says while we were yet unlovely, while our works were nothing buy filthy rags, while our best was rotten, God still chose to love us, His creation, and send His only Begotten Son to die and pay for the sins we committed, and will commit. We were unworthy, yet He died for us to show His love for us. He chose that. It wasn't a mushy feeling that might go away one day. It was a choice. I praise the Lord He made that choice so that I might have salvation, and that you might have salvation, through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.


God bless all of our friends and relatives who are sticking it out, even when it's been unpleasant. Even when it hurts. Even when it's wonderful! Through it all - they're still together.

Praise the Lord!

Birthday Blessings

Well, I have been enjoying all the little emails and posts on facebook and phone calls - whew! I'm very thankful so many people have thought of me today!

It's a good day. My oldest brother called and we talked for 2 hours!!!! That was fun!!!

I have the three youngest home with me today; Curt took the three oldest to Farm Fest Day sponsored by Bob Jones University. It's an overcast day, windy, lovely temperature; in truth, the perfect fall day. The kids and I ran a couple errands and came home and Isaiah helped bake my cake.

God sent me flowers today, via my new neighbors. The Reinas have been very kind to us since moving into the neighborhood, and Phoebe and Isaiah went down there with a thank-you card for some items recently given to Phoebe. For their return trip home, they were given some snacks and a HUGE dark orange mini-mum plant. It's simply gorgeous! Of course, the neighbors had no idea it was my birthday, they were just being kind, as always! But, God knew it was my birthday, and now I have a wonderful spray of color for my kitchen. Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Mr. & Mrs. Reina!

I have a sleeping baby, a mug of delicious coffee (with cream and sugar, of course!), and a lazy afternoon of doing whatever I want. What more could I possibly ask for?!

Grammar Cue: Then or Than

Here's one I believe is rooted in pronunciation. Writers often use "then" when they mean "than." I think this is because people do not pronounce words clearly. The two sound similar, though they mean different things.

For example:
He was happier then he had been in a long time.
The writer means "than." However, when speaking, it often sounds like someone is saying "then" - and they very well may be, if they don't know any better. "Than" is a comparative idea - in comparison to how happy he had been up until this point in time, he was now happier.

"Then" is a time word, used when showing a sequence of events. For example:
First we went shopping, then we went to the salon, and finally we arrived home.

Make sure you are using the correct word!

Grammar cue:That is that and that's too much of that!!!!

Okay, some have suggested blogging about specific topics, especially as they pertain to a home business. Well, my home businesses are editing and publishing. It dawned on me I had information which would profit not only my writers, but also fellow homeschoolers. So, I will endeavor to make several posts a week pertaining to writing, grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc.

This is the first!

We are going to discuss the complete and total overuse of the word "that." This word, far above all others, is used as a "filler" in sentences, similar to speakers who use "um" or "like" because they can't think of the next real word.

For example:
The next day that came around, I found myslef wishing that I had an apple tree. That would be so convenient. That I could go right outside my door and pick apples would be great! I hope that I will be able to plant an apple tree that will grow lots of apples that can be turned into pies.

Obviously, you are reading the above, thinking, "Okay - who would write a paragraph in such a manner?" Well, my friends, you would be surprised! Read the following and see if it doesn't sound much better:

The next day, I found myself wishing I had an apple tree. It would be so convenient. I could go right outside my door and pick apples! I hope I will be able to plant an apple tree capable of growing many apples; then I could bake apple pies.

You see, you can rewrite a sentence to make it clear without using "that" at all. Now, sometimes it is appropriate to use it, and it can add clarity to a sentence. However, the vast majority of folks tend to use it entirely too often. Look over the next letter you write or the next report your child writes for school. If you come across the word "that" determine if it is truly needed for the sentence to make sense. If not, remove it!