Faith Journey

~ my personal synopsis of a recent sermon~

As you work to strengthen your faith, do you find yourself wrestling with God?

It's funny how people sometimes seem to have a little 'g' god.  This is the god they created.  These people go to church, they are kind and generous, but when it comes to their own sin, they are a follower of their 'god'.  These people create a god the way they want god to be. It is a fabrication of reality. Their god is more accepting of sin, especially their sin.  Their god will continue to overlook repeated sin, especially their repeated sin.  Their god is okay with their cheating, lying, and deceiving. Their god is okay with being a follower on Sunday and not Monday-Saturday. These people are willing to condemn others for sinning, but they know their god will overlook these same actions when they display them. Basically, these people are pretending to be something they are not.  They pretend to be a follower of the big "G" God, but the reality is, they are not. Point being......God can't bless pretenders.

So, when God asks you, "Who are you?"  What do you say?

Are you a follower, or are you a FOLLOWER?

It's sort of like being asked the question, "Can you ride a bike?"  What do you say?

Let me ask you this, "Can you ride a bike, or can you RIDE a bike?"

If you said you can ride a bike, take 5 minutes to watch this video, and then continue reading below.

Understand that there is riding a bike, and then there is RIDING a bike.  There is being a follower, and there is being a FOLLOWER.  A true faith journey can be a radical ride. There is always a natural resistance to God.  This ride can be mysterious in that there will always be things you don't understand.  It can be exhausting as you try to understand but can't.  You will have to dig deep, and then there will be even more you don't understand. Then, in the end, you will be blessed.

Being a follower of God means letting go of the God you have created, yet never letting go of the God that created you. Be a follower of the big "G" God.

I might also add that I am continually working on my own faith journey.

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It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Last night I broke out the Christmas decorations.  In doing so, I planned to purge any decorations I hadn't used in years due to my basement space getting a bit cramped with boxes.  I have lots of decorations, but some are sort of getting a bit dated and old crappy looking.  I am so bad about throwing my Christmas stuff out or donating it, or should I say 'not' throwing it out.  I always think that maybe I will use it the next year.  I ended up boxing most stuff I didn't use right back up.

I was sort of excited about getting the tree decorated, but honestly, this is the first year my two older kids didn't seem thrilled about helping out. I turned on some Christmas music to help create the mood, and they ended up getting into the spirit once we got started, but before hand, I felt like they were really wishing they were outside playing with their friends.

Madison was a bit disappointed that we weren't able to put up our annual big Christmas tree, but I decided with a crawling seven month old and the risk of him messing with the tree,  and facing possible choking hazards, it just isn't worth it. With a recent visit to the doctor for a well-visit, I was reminded of the number of chokings that happen due to Christmas tree decorations.  This year we put a six foot tree on top of a table, and I think it worked out nicely.  Below you can see that it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the Phillips' house....... 

Don't you just love the holidays!

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Santa Baby

"I have been a good little boy!"

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Chocolate Chip Pie



It's Chocolate Chip Pie for Thanksgiving Day!

Pumpkin pie just doesn't work for the Phillips' kiddos, but CHOCOLATE sure does! My kids love pretty much anything that has chocolate or chocolate chips. And with it being Thanksgiving, I had to make a dessert I thought they would enjoy.  I didn't want to make regular 'ole chocolate chip cookies, although they are indeed yummy, because we eat those all the time.  Instead, I was looking for something more holidayish probably not a word, but oh well.  I went looking for something extra scrumptious, and that is when I came across the Chocolate Chip Pie recipe by the wonderful Paula Deen and the Deen sons. This pie received a five star rating, and I have to say that even though I haven't taken one bite yet, by the looks of them as they are cooling, I would have to guess that they are probably going to be a five.  See what I'm talking about!

Click here for the Chocolate Chip Pie recipe.  Enjoy!

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Shit My Kids Ruined

I was sitting at the doctor's office yesterday flipping through a Parenting magazine when I came across an advertisement for a new book called, Sh*t My Kids Ruined. They were nice and used the * for the i, but I figured I would just spell it out like it is.... SHIT, SHIT, SHIT...   okay, not nice. I know.

Of course I fell instantly in love with the title, and although I haven't read the book, I bet it is hilarious. Any parent can relate to it.  My first thought after reading about the book was, what a great baby shower gift this would make!  or maybe not.  The title alone is enough to make any new mom a tad scared. Actually, it would be a fun conversation starter at a baby shower.

Then I got to thinking, and I even posed the question to my husband, "Have our kids ever really ruined anything of ours that was important?"  Honestly, we couldn't recall anything major.  I mean, they have spilled crap on the couches, tracked mud onto the carpet, spit up on our clothes, and minor things like that, but I don't recall anything too terribly bad.  I suppose those things are to be expected. I am thinking we have been very fortunate.  Knock on wood!

I then decided to do a web search for 'Shit my kids ruined' and I came across a website titled exactly that. It seems that the book evolved out of an existing website that featured things ... AKA- 'shit'... that kids have totally screwed up. A few of the favorite pics I clicked on were the kid and the Nutella incident, buttering the lamp,  and the glittering of the couch.  To see other fun pictures, check out the website http://www.shitmykidsruined.com/ . I had fun scrolling through some of the pics.

What about you, have your kids ruined anything?

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Ride Shotgun

 

"Okay Kids, it's time to go," I say.

"SHOTGUN," someone screams out.

For the last few months, this has been a big thing at the Phillips' house. Whether we are on our way to school, the grocery store, or out to eat, Madison and Gibson are quick to say, "SHOTGUN!"

This past Sunday as we were leaving church, one of the kids yelled it, and then the other one chimed in with "No, that's not the rule." I got so tickled because I had no idea there was a set of rules for Shotgun.

I said, "Rules?" 
My husband replied with, "Yeah, we had all kinds of rules growing up, especially in college."

So here I am just thinking, "What kind of rules can you have for Shotgun?"  At my house, it was just the first person that yelled out the word got the front seat.  What more could there be?

He responded with, "You can only call shotgun when outside. Then, if you go back inside after you yell the word shotgun, you lose your chance at it.  If you use the word shotgun in context in sentence form, you get status points."  And then he gave a few more rules.


I needed further explanation of what 'sentence form' was all about. I soon found out if you can use the word 'shotgun' in a sentence, such as "My dad brought his SHOTGUN on his trip" or something crazy like that, it sort of earned you some bonus points (which mean nothing, I might add) in getting the front seat.

After this conversation, I got to thinking. I wondered if there were really some rules for the little game Shotgun. So, of course I go looking on the Internet.  I found a few sites that give some great information about the origin of the phrase, such as a person used to carry a shotgun to guard the driver of a stagecoach and they would ride beside the driver. They would refer to themselves as 'riding shotgun'.

There are more rules than I cared to know, but some of the crazier ones I got from a website Bored.com are as follows:

• One is allowed to ride shotgun as many times as he can call it, but for himself only. No one can call shotgun for their slower friend, unless the friend has a speech or mental handicap that prevents them from calling it for themselves.   sorry, that one made me chuckle
• In the instance that the normal driver of a vehicle is drunk or otherwise unable to perform their duties as driver, then he/she is automatically given Shotgun.  UH. you think?  I would hope so!
• A person may call "laser" or "Shotgun Double Barrel" after shotgun has been called, to override the shotgun call. This is only valid if the driver verifies the call as we see in Section 1.3.  Okay, you go read the rules to find out what section 1.3 says.

No wonder the website is called 'bored'... you would have to be bored to come up with all these rules. There are sections, revisions, and about 20 different amendments to the rules. After reading these rules, your kids would be so confused  they are sure to decide it's just better to ride in the backseat. 

Do your kids play this little game?  Do you have any specific Shotgun Rules at your house?

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Best Fudge Recipe

I asked around for "The Best Fudge" recipe, and this is the recipe I decided to use.  I was looking to make some fudge for my granddad.  He is in his nineties and not doing so well.  He doesn't have much of an appetite, but he has always had a sweet tooth for chocolate.  I feel sure he will at least sample a bite or two.

 

12 marshmallows

2 cups of sugar

1 stick of margarine

1 cup of choc chips

1 cup of pecans

1 tsp of vanilla

dash of salt

2/3 cup of evaporated skim milk, (in can) -

note- I actually used 1/2 can of sweetened condensed milk

Take marshmallow, sugar,margarine, evaporated skim milk, in 2qts cooking pan, heat over med high heat, continuously mix until it come to a boil, cook for about 6 1/2 min; continue to mix, remove from heat add choc chips; pecans and dash of salt, and vanilla 1tsp. Blend well, pour into pan cool, and cut and Enjoy!!!!!

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Palin Daughter...

What is it about the Palin daughter, Bristol, that has people shooting at their TVs and sending white powder to the studios of Dancing with the Stars? Well, according to what I read, the shooter fellow is bipolar so that explains his little manic episode. And I am sure with the FBI investigating the white powder incident, we will soon find out what kind of loony bird is behind that threat. The gunman could be facing ten years in prison for blasting his TV to smithereens and then pulling the gun on his wife. I am thinking that he probably should have just gotten his prescription refilled... would have been much cheaper!

I swear, people can bring politics up in any situation. Who would have thought... 

Dancing with the Stars + Palin Daughter = politics. 

Isn't it her MOTHER that is the politician?  Leave Bristol out of the politics. What's the hype?  It's everywhere  in the news...  speculation about the Republican Party and the tea party busting their little booties to vote for Bristol in an effort to help her win. 

Well, HELLO...

This is a voting show, so it very well might be true that the Republicans are encouraging everyone to vote, vote, vote. If you don't get the votes, you don't stay on the show.  Guess all the other dancers just didn't have the support they needed. This is a dancing show, but in the end, there is no way they can really control whether it is a popularity contest or a dancing contest. 

I will admit that I have only seen a few of the shows she has danced in, and I have never voted for anyone on any episode before, but this madness might just make me dial right in and vote for the Palin daughter.... Go Bristol!

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Baby Danger

Baby Dangers are Everywhere

I am convinced the best person to baby proof a house is the baby himself.  When Hudson first started scooting around, I walked all over the main part of our house looking for things that I thought would be dangers for the little guy. I put the plug covers on, I covered up sharp corners, etc.  It never fails though, just when I think I have found all of the danger zones, he draws my attention to something new.  The other day I had near heart failure when he seemed to be gagging on something.  It turned out to be a small leaf from an artificial plant.  Needless to say, all of the artificial greenery has now been removed. As a matter of fact, my house has become somewhat barren looking in an effort to remove anything deemed 'dangerous'.

Childproofing is one of my least favorite parts of the late infant/beginning toddler stage because your house becomes so undecorated looking. I am quite envious of people that are able to leave knick-knacks on their coffee table and have the items go untouched by their little one. Not the case with the Phillips' kids. And yes, I use the word 'no', but a crawling seven month old doesn't quite understand that yet. Plus, every time that I have raised my voice or used a deep tone Hudson is not familiar with, he has just sort of laughed.  Guess we need to work on that one. 

With Hudson (and my other two were the same way), everything is like eye candy. He sees things, grabs them, and they go straight in his mouth, which of course means danger danger. It also means that Mommy can't relax. I would much rather remove the dangers and be able to sit back and relax rather than jump up at every worry. I'm sure many of you can relate to what my house has become.  Here are a few changes I have had to make recently:

Close Doors

Get rid of Greenery

Gates on Steps

All magazines, glass bowls, etc. are removed from coffee table

In the next week or so I will be decorating for Christmas.  Christmas decorations + Baby = Real Danger!

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Family Picture ~ Mom Blog ~

This is our family picture taken for the Mill Creek basketball program.  Little Huddie was more interested in his mommy than the camera. I am blessed with three beautiful children and a handsome hubby.

Developmental Milestones ~ Mom Blog ~

Today, Hudson hit yet another developmental milestone.  I just can't believe how times flies.  He has been sitting by himself for a few weeks, but he has not been able to get into the sitting position without assistance.  Earlier in the day, I looked over and he was sitting, but I couldn't remember if I had put him that way or not. From that point on, I made a point to take note of how I left him when I placed him on the floor to play. Several hours later, there he was again, sort of looking like he was going to sit up.  I grabbed the camera and sure enough, he sat right up.  As you can see, he got a huge smile on his face.  Being able to witness these developmental milestones is one of the reasons I chose to take a year's leave from my teaching job.  If I were at work, I would have been teaching twenty-two other kids and enjoyed every minute of it, but I would have missed this very important developmental stage in my baby's life.  For these very reasons, I feel blessed to be at home.

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Stop Littering People! ~ Mom Blog ~

Okay, when I say, "Stop Littering" you very well may not be the one doing it. I surely hope not. After all, my blog readers consist mostly of (clearing throat here) sophisticated, classy, educated, litter hating, law abiding citizens, right?

So I'm sure that my frustrations are not directed to you personally.  Actually, I am hoping that when you read this posting, you will be the one that agrees that the littering madness has to stop. I mean, what normal person does this:

 
That's right!  This is what I saw today as I pulled into a fast food restaurant to grab a coffee. Keep in mind that although this area looks like it is out in the middle of nowhere, (the picture is deceiving) there is a main road to the right that I just pulled off of. To the left is a a Chick-fil-A restaurant, a Chili's, Wal-mart, etc. It is a very high traffic area.  My point being.....whoever dumped this crap here had to be a pretty brazen person.

When I first saw it, I couldn't help but wonder what kind of low class person would simply load up a sofa (that actually looked pretty decent I might add) with the intent to take it to Goodwill (I'm speculating this because there is a Goodwill less than 100 yards from here), and then when they find out the store is closed and it would be too much damn trouble to take it home and come back tomorrow, they just say, "Hey... how about we just break the law and dump our trash here on this property that doesn't even belong to us in hopes that maybe someone will drive by and think they have hit the jackpot when they find our reject furniture?" 

Come on people, grab a clue! I just don't get it.  let me continue with my litter rant here for a moment.

Littering is everywhere. What right do people think they have to throw their wrapper out the window? I've seen it done. What is a smoker thinking when they drop their cigarette butt out the window.  Have you seen the number of butts that accumulate at traffic lights? It's nuts.  I read a statistic that 13% of litter is from cigarettes. Check out these funny cartoons on cigarette littering. It's not a funny topic, but the artist makes the point clear through humor.

There are lots of littering statistics available, but a few interesting ones I found on Knowledge Galaxy are:

1. Over 75 percent of Americans have admitted to littering over the past five years.
2. Litter clean up costs local and state governments billions of dollars.
3. Men litter much more than women, even if there are garbage bins available.
4. Every cigarette butt takes at least 12 years to finally break down while it pollutes waterways and soil with lead, arsenic and cadmium.
5. One out of four adults that litter will deny their actions when confronted.
6. Nearly 10 percent of men say that they litter everyday.
7. 81 percent of litterers admit that higher fines and stricter laws would stop them from littering.


Many websites cite statistics and promote clean-up efforts, but when it boils right down to it, people need to simply STOP LITTERING!  Hence the website stoplittering.com  They have created a cute, yet thought provoking character to encourage people to not litter. Check it out, as you can buy a window decal, among other items, that gives the simple reminder to not litter.

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Yummy Baby Food ~ Mom Blog ~

I'm not sure I should admit it or not, but ......
Okay, I'm not sure it's a very sophisticated thing to do, but....
OH!  Whatever....  here goes.....I have been eating Hudson's baby food!  THERE!  I said it.

I don't eat all of the baby foods, just one of the foods, and these little thingies are pretty darn good. They are those Gerber Graduates Puffs. They come in all kinds of flavors, but the sweet potato ones are my favorite. Keep in mind that I haven't had a baby in the house for 11 years, so this particular baby food product wasn't around when my other kids were little. They have definitely improved some of the foods. I will also add that I don't usually eat a whole bunch of these little finger foods, but I might give Hudson a  few and then pop a couple in my mouth too.

As we were snacking together the other day, I started reading the nutrition information on the back of the container.  I don't think they have any fat and only a few calories.  Pretty good so far. They are made of whole grains and naturally flavored. Still good.  I kept thinking they need to market these for adults.

The only thing that sort of threw me off on the nutrition label was the serving size.  It said a serving was 70 of these things. WHAT?  It sounded like a lot, so I decided to count out 70. Keep in mind, they are made for a baby that has just started crawling. Whose baby has an appetite the size of a lumber jack? Maybe crawling is supposed to make you really hungry.  I don't know, but it just seems like a crazy amount. What do you think?

Just as an FYI, the green beans still look gross and the meat product baby foods still make me want to puke when I pop the top. ugh!

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Maybe your little one would like to try some. 

(or maybe Mom would)