Oh, Spring, where have you gone?

From celebrating 10 years with this amazing girl...

To the dreams of flying again... 

 

Treasuring every moment with these girls...

 

Yet, taking the time to rest...

Trying new things...

Memories made with Nana...

Rekindling the past fourteen years...

Yet thrilled to see what the future holds.

Filling Up our Summer Bucket

For the past several summers, I've written out a summer bucket list of sorts. Last year was more organized, systematic, perhaps too ambitious, so this year we're going a little more low key.  It will still be fun, but a little less formatted, yet some new summer ideas for my imaginative girls to look forward to.  My greatest desire this summer is honestly to become more disciplined on a daily basis.  My prayer is to spend more time reading, training my girls in His Word (Psalm 15), and catching up on projects that have been put off for the last year.  Hopefully, there will be a little purging of stuff, simplifying of rooms, and focusing on what God has for our upcoming school year.

 

Summer bucket list for 2014:

• take each girl on a date
• farmers market
• road trip to Greenville, SC and Atlanta, GA with my girls
• go to museums (Life & Science Museum in Durham and the planetarium in Chapel Hill)
• outdoor movie night
• print pictures from the past year & put them in photo albums
• memorize a Psalm
• teach the girls something new
• finish Sophie's baby scrapbook
• a week of summer camp for all three girls
• watch Anne of Avonlea
• go camping (backyard again?)
• summer reading
• free summer bowling
• $1 movies
• swim with friends at the pool
• ABC's of summer writing
• Morning Mind Stretches
• outdoor photo scavenger hunt

These free printable lists allowed the girls to write (or draw) their own summer bucket lists as well.  Sophie got a little happy with the red marker.  Her four items are #1 Go camping #2 Beach #3 Go to Japan to visit Nana & Papa (how I wish!) #4 Go hunting (for butterflies).  My favorite on Naomi's list was #5 Family Shopping (not sure what exactly that means, but it sounds good to me).  Chloe was a bit more ambitious.  Her's involved lots of reading (200 books to be exact), skateboarding, handstands, and splits.  But my favorite is #7 Get into the habit of doing my devotions.  Let it be real, Lord!

Summer Movie Schedule

Barnes & Noble's Summer Reading Program

Free Summer Bowling

Printable Summer Bucket Lists

ABC's of Summer Writing

Quinoa, Gyoza, and Other Weird Vegetarian Ideas...

My spring/summer menu plan is finally completed (now that spring is over, of course).  But hopefully, it may be something worth using next year as well.  I have loved menu planning since our early years of marriage, but have found using a monthly/seasonal menu plan to be even more beneficial in this time of my life.  Being a vegetarian, I'm already viewed as a little weird, so why not add to that weirdness by adding things like quinoa (pronouced "keen-wha") and gyoza (what I learned to make in 8th grade Home Ec class)  I tried to lessen our carb intake, since that's the easy option when eating vegetarian, but not necessarily the healthiest.  I may try to substitute lentils instead of quinoa on some Mondays for the cost issue.  We've tried some of these recipes, while others are still a guessing game.  Some (esp the salad ones) may have to be accompanied by Annie's Mac n Cheese for the sake of my non-salad lovers.

Monday - Quinoa
1.  Quinoa, Black Beans, and Corn Tacos
2.  Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
3.  One Pan Mexican Quinoa
4.  Sesame Ginger Quinoa Salad

Tuesday - Fish
1.  Salmon Cakes
2.  Tuna Lunch Bites
3.  Baked Salmon with Garlic & Dijon
4.  Fish Tacos

Wednesday - Beans
1.  Baked Southwestern Egg Rolls
2.  Black Bean Soup
3.  Tempeh Chili with corn chips
4.  Bean & Cheese Burritos






Thursday - Salads
1.  Grilled Summer Vegetable Salad
2.  Quick Asian Noodle Salad
3.  Broccoli, Tomato, & Tortellini Salad
4.  Easy Greek Salad

Friday - Family Favorites
1.  Chipotle Black Bean Burger
2.  Pizza (homemade or take-out)
3.  Japanese (gyoza, edamame, yakisoba)
4.  Hot Dogs, cole slaw, chili

Saturday & Sunday - Whatever...
1.  Spinach Quiche
2.  Waffles & smoothies
3.  Grilled Sandwiches
4.  Baked Potatoes

For the days when I just want to throw the menu out the window, there is always take-out pizza!  Mommy's life-saver!

To my Daddy...

 

To my daddy... 

- the man who preached in Japanese & English so his daughters could understand the sermons

- the man who renovated our cabin to be the best in all Tak & Toyama

- the man who gave away three daughters in marriage and sat in the waiting room for all seven grandchildren

Thank you, Dad, for instilling in all of us a love for God, His Word, and the lives of others who need to know Him.  Thank you for being such an amazing example to us!  

As a Papa, you can't be beat.  All of the grandchildren adore you and know you'll always listen and you'll always be there even if physically you're thousands of miles away.  We all miss you so very much!!  Happy Father's Day!

Longing for something different...

Finishing well to the end... easier said than done.  The pool is open, berries are calling to be picked, our summer bucket list is itching to be chalked out, and mentally, we are all done!  Next week should finish up our school year in the amount of days required.  A few books will continue throughout the summer to keep those wheels-a-turning.   

Change is the only constant part of life.  As humans, we are often longing for something different... a change of pace, a change of scenery, a break from the mundane.  I am ready for a little change!

I'm ready to read more, at least things that I want to read and not just what's listed in our lesson plans.  I look forward to curling up on the couch with my girls and reading some of our favorites and some new ones too.  

I finished Cleaning House by Kay Wills Wyma.  The subtitle says it all:  A Mom's 12-month Experiment to Rid Her Home of Youth Entitlement. She begins the book by asking the question, "Why am I standing with my arms up to catch my kids before they even get a chance to fail at work?  Instead of encouraging independence and an ability to assess a situation with an eye to what needs doing, I've taught them to be utterly dependent on me."  Guilty!

But by the end, she challenges and encourages parents.  "Culture doesn't determine who people become.  People determine what the culture will be.  Might our equipped, empowered, unentitled kids be the ones who set the course for the future."  Excellent book, but probably geared more towards parents of older elementary to high school children.  I've definitely learned a lot and hope to incorporate some of the advice gleaned from this book.

My current read on my nightstand (purse, pool bag...) was given to me by my sweet husband.  Treasuring Christ (when your hands are full) by Gloria Furman and has been exactly what I needed to read at this time in my life.  When I can't get through the introduction without underlining half of it, I know it will be a keeper.  What I have loved the most about this book is how scripture is infused within every paragraph.  She doesn't just write fluff to make me feel good. Everything word written is based upon God's word.  

"Day and night, moment by moment, we must choose to rest in Jesus.  That's what it means to treasure Christ when your hands are full, whether you have one child or a dozen." 

"Advice on things such as choosing a safe car seat or teaching a finicky preschooler to eat a well-balanced meal is easy to come by. Instructions on how to love your neighbor and nurture your children are also readily available.  What we are less likely to come by is encouragement to consider how the gospel transforms our motherhood." - G. Furman

Grace Goals...

For some, goals may be determined as standards demanded to be met, for others they are laid out as a form of accountability, yet even others find goals to be traps for failure for all those plans unmet.  I can easily fall prey into the last category.  Here it is mid May, June drawing close, and in the blog world, I'm far behind.  But there is grace...  No one else may care whether I blog about goals or not, but it does (in some weird way) hold me accountable, pushes me to step out of my complacency, and strive to just get out of bed sometimes.  

Aspirations for April...
1.  Plan a new spring menu (less grains, more veggies & protein). - almost completed!  
2.  Point my girls to the real meaning of Easter. - not as I had hoped, but yet no regrets. (read more about it here.)
3.  Start every day with a clean kitchen table. - I maybe accomplished this goal every other day.  Not perfect by any means, but on the clean days, there was more freedom in starting off with an open surface.
4.  Finish two of the books I'm reading:  Not a Fan by Kyle Idleman & Cleaning House by Kay Wills Wyma. - Whoo hoo!  I read Not a Fan with my homeschool group and it was convicting once again.  I'll try to write more about Cleaning House in the near future.
5.  Truly rest on our little family spring break. - such a blessing!

So for the rest of May and June, my goals will be layered with grace, thought through and laid out with the hopes of fulfilling them, but given wide enough boundaries that I pray God will glorified through them.

Grace Goals for May & June:

1.  Finish our school year well, not just surviving.

2.  Plan and enjoy my 10 year old's (oh my goodness!) birthday party.

3.  Make our summer bucket list.

4.  Read Treasuring Christ when Your Hands are Full by Gloria Furman and A Million Little Ways by Emily Freeman.

5.  Find and try healthy recipes for summer essentials (sunscreen, fruit wash, insect repellent, etc).

6.  Declutter my closet.

7.  Prioritize my mornings.

8.  Open our home to others (& choose to let go of my expectations).

For my mama...

Mother's day is only a few hours away where my mother is right now.  She will wake up in a tiny apartment with my dad showing his sweet appreciation for the wife and mother she is and has always been.  How blessed we are!  Memories fill the walls with pictures of the growing generations, the computer screen keeps her in tune with the daily ups and downs of her offspring's lives, and the phone close by is a constant reminder that we are only phone call away. 

My mother is amazing...  I'm sure I didn't always say that as a teenager, but I know I believed it even then.  As a Nana, she can't be beat.  The patience to teach my girls how to sew, the support she and my dad have shown by coming to every recital possible (even over Skype), the tea parties, the walks, the list could go on...  

But what I love the most is the legacy she's given to my sisters and me, and to our children. Her greatest desire is for us all to know her Lord and redeemer who (as she would say) pulled her up out of life destined for destruction.  She is constantly pointing my girls to Jesus.  For this, I will be eternally grateful. 

Even though, you're on the other side of the world, "Happy Mother's Day, Mama!"  Thank you for being the most amazing example of what a godly wife and mother looks like!