The Vacation That Almost Wasn't-Memorial Day Weekend 2015

Let me start with a little bit of a set up.

I had a bad break out of eczema on my hands a couple weeks before, mainly just on one finger.  The finger was getting better, but the eczema was spreading, so I went into the ER at the prompting of my husband and family.  The Dr told me what I already knew.  It's a form of eczema called Dyshidrotic Eczema.  Last time I had eczema problems, I had to cut out gluten, so I cut out gluten with the outbreak, and the Dr put me on an oral steroid.

I was on the oral steroid for 6 days, decreasing dosage each day.  Thursday was my last pill.  I was feeling pretty confident that I hadn't had any side effects from the medication, which I was relieved.

Friday 5/22
 
I was wrong.  I ended up throwing up twice Friday morning.  We were thinking of staying home, but I thought I was ok, so Richard and I made the decision to just go.  Take what we had packed and go.  

So we went.  We forgot Ethan's swimsuit, and some foods that I had planned on taking/getting, but just leaving made it less work for me, and everyone else chipped in.  I wished I wouldn't have thrown up, but I'm glad we didn't miss out on our vacation!

We stayed at the KOA in Warrenton, OR.  We rented one of their 1 bedroom cabins.  It was literally just beds in the cabins, swing on the front porch, and a fire pit and picnic table outside.  I was making the bed up, when I found a super long banana slug RIGHT in front of my face!  Richard got it out and threw it into the woods.  Then we did a check for any other surprise guests.  

Our home for the next few days :-)

Saturday 5/23

We decided this day would be our "adventure" day.  We all love the movie "The Goonies" which was filmed in Astoria, and other parts along the Oregon Coast, so we went to see "The Goonie's" house, Mikey's house where "The Truffle Shuffle" happened, and where they discover One Eyed Willy's map, and learn about Chester Copperpot.  You have to walk to get there.  It's a private residence, so they have you park near a school and walk to the house.  We took a pic by the sign, and a couple in front of the house.  I talked the kids into doing the Truffle Shuffle, but they only agreed to if Richard and I did.  We have pictures of this, but I will NOT be sharing those LOL! 

Afterwards, we decided to try and find something to do in Astoria.  It really is a cute town, and we spotted an arcade on the way in.  The Arc Arcade in Astoria.  This place was so much fun!  A nerd/geeks paradise!  It's made up of a lot of classic games and comics, action figures, and even a full size Tardis!  We were there quite a while playing Mike Tyson's Punch Out, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Burger Time, Tetris, Donkey Kong, Star Wars games, and Pac Man.  Some of the games were free play as well!  Richard got a Darth Vader with removable helmet to add to his Star Wars collection, and I got a couple pics in the Tardis.  Definitely recommend hanging out at this place if you are in the area and it's your sort of thing.  I wish I had taken a picture of their "Rules".  It said stuff like don't be a poop face lol.

We were getting hungry, so we tried finding a good Clam Chowder place in Astoria, but the one people were recommending was closed for a wedding.  So we decided to head into Seaside and go to Seaside Brewery, cause their clam chowder is pretty good and they have gluten free options.  Richard and I both were running low on phone battery, which we used as our GPS.  For some reason, our car charger was not a "supported accessory", and wouldn't charge our phones.  GPS took us to a bridge that was closed, so we had to find a different route.  I wrote down the steps in case our phones went kaput, and we took the back roads back.  We came upon a woman in the road who flagged us down to let us know that we might get stopped, there were some cattle in the road!  Sure enough, there were cars parked along both sides of the road, and a woman in a truck was having a herd of cattle following her!  We were a little freaked out that maybe they would start licking the windows, but they followed the lady in the truck, and we even saw some mother cows herding her babies along to if they started to veer in a different direction.  We wished we could have gotten pics, but we didn't think of it until it was too late, and we didn't know if we had enough battery.  It was like something out of City Slickers (coincidentally, Richard and I's first movie date was City Slickers 2).  Something you don't see everyday, and it was a first for us.  Of course, we were imitating Jon Lovitz from A League of Their Own after that...Jon Lovitz-A League of Their Own





We got to Seaside Brewery-had some nummy food, then went to Radio Shack and purchased a new car charger.  We headed back to camp to have a campfire and take it easy. 

We had gone camping with my Uncles, Aunts, and cousins in the past, and when they would build a campfire, they always poured Citronella oil on the wood.  The stuff used as fuel in Tiki Torches.  We picked some up this time, because it's good fuel and it keeps the bugs away.  At one point, the fire started dying down, so Richard grabbed the Citronella oil and poured a little on the fired.  WOOOOOSH!  The fire went up REALLY high!  Elijah and I scrambled to get away from the fire, and Richard backed up and we were all in kind of a shock for a moment.  Richard then asked if we were Ok.  I couldn't resist, I started singing "This Girl Is On Fire".  ;-)  We wrapped up the night by playing Heads Up (it's a fun app!!) and preparing for Sunday, where we had decided we were going to stay at the campgrounds the whole day.  They had a ton of activities planned for the weekend.  :-)

Sunday 5/24

We woke up and had breakfast at the camp (free all you can eat pancakes!!  I had bacon and eggs though-no gluten :/  

We all made Tye-Dye t-shirts.  Mine has a big purple heart on it <3

We watched a comedian/clown/magician type guy, Bill Robison (http://billrobison.com.istemp.com/)  He was quite funny and the kids really enjoyed it.  He had a bit where his microphone started acting up, and he'd hold it to different people's heads and it would say different things, like one tough guy the mic said "I like to wear ladies underwear).  He was quite entertaining, and if you get a chance to see him, you should!

They also showed the Goonie's that day in the big room.  HEY YOU GUYS!!!!

At night, they did karaoke.  Richard talked me into singing "A Broken Wing", by Martina McBride.  It was fun, I wish Ethan and Elijah had sang something though.

We wrapped up the day by having a campfire and playing Heads Up.  We were preparing to go home tomorrow :-(


Monday 5/25

Leaving Day

It was easiest for me to just have Richard take Elijah to the pool so he could swim.  Ethan stayed with me and we packed up the van.  We were sad to be leaving, but today was our beach day.  To wrap up our own Goonie's mini adventure, we had to go to Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach.  You can almost see the ship in the background, with one-eyed Willy at the helm....

and there we are in our tye-dye shirts :-)  We had a wonderful, memory making time.  SOOOO glad we went!!!



   

 

 

The blessing that started with a rude encounter, police involvement, and a 60 day termination of lease notice

Longest title ever, sorry.  This story seems surreal to me, and I didn't know how to title it.  In order to set up the events that occurred this last week, I'll need to jump back to when my family moved into our current apartment.

We first moved into this complex for 2 reasons.  1st:  We needed a place to live, 2nd: we wanted to help a friend from our church out.  She wanted to live on the 3rd floor apartment, we wanted a bottom floor apartment, which is where she was currently living.  She was told by the apartment manager that there were no transfers.  When we came to look at the apartments and he showed us the 3rd floor, I had asked if we could possibly rent the bottom floor, and our friend could have the top.  He agreed, and we signed a year lease.  We were happy, our friend was ecstatic, things were good.

I run an in home daycare.  I watch a total of 3 children at a time.  I can legally watch 3 children without having my home licensed, and anymore than 3 is overwhelming for me.  I let the apartment manager know that the reason I wanted a bottom floor apartment is because I watch children.  I had asked where friends or parents should park when they come over, and I was told the spots marked "permit" were unassigned. 

After our lease was signed, I turned in our evaluation of the apartment, our inspection.  I made sure to mark every little thing, as we paid a hefty deposit, and I did not want to be responsible for anything that was already this way.  The manager was not happy with my evaluation, was very condescending, and talked very rudely to me, hinting that he wanted to give me a new sheet to have me do it over again.  It stayed as it was, and I told my husband that I didn't want to have to deal with the manager anymore, if there was something that needed to be discussed, I would prefer he did it.

Fast forward to last week, (after a few more incidents of rude encounters), a parent was dropping off their child to my home.  The parent parked in a spot marked "permit" and the manager of our apartments, who none of my friends had ever met, came and started yelling at him, saying he was allowed to park there and that he was going to get towed.  He was rudely told to ask the tenant who he was visiting where he was supposed to park.  Parent asked me, I said, "any spot marked permit", which he said was where he had parked.  He called the Apt. Manager and left him a voicemail stating that although his job may be a stressful one, there was no reason to be rude.  It was very unprofessional.

A couple hours later, manager came to my apartment and knocked (banged) loudly and repeatedly until I answered the door.  He told me that I needed to come to his office to work out this parking situation.  I asked if I could bring the 2 girls I was watching into his office.  He said "are you running a daycare center here?" I said I wouldn't call it a "center", I was watching 2 kids.  He then questioned whether or not I was qualified to be doing that.  He said he needed to show me the paper work I signed regarding the parking policy.  I said I had it, and I would work out something with the parents dropping their children off.  He then informed me he wasn't here to cater to my business, and that my friend was trying to get him fired, when he should have been thanking him, he had saved him 300 dollars.  I did look at our parking policy, which stated no one could park here unless they had a permit in their window.

My husband, Richard, came home, and I had filled him in on all that had transpired during the day.  He decided he'd go and talk to the manager and clarify further if there was anywhere for people to park, and to tell the manager he didn't think it was right the way he was talking to me, and his friend, and he had requested that I come to his office to talk about it, so Richard was going to go instead.  He got to the office (during office hours), and the manager let him in, was on the phone, and said "I'll have to call you back, mom, I have to take care of some business".  He then told my husband "thanks a lot for interrupting my phone call, I just found out my aunt died."  He said this with an angry tone.  My husband then stated he was sorry, but he needed to discuss what had happened this week.  For those who know my husband, he is an even keeled, peaceable, gentle person.  He is very reasonable, and likes to talk things out and he's a helper to everyone, and always wants the best for people.  He told the manager he didn't appreciate the way he had talked to his friend, and to me.  The manager then yelled at him to get out of his office, and Richard stood up and told him, firmly, but not angry, that he wasn't leaving until they discussed this.  The manager said "I'll call the police then!" and Richard said "go ahead".  So he did.  The police showed up, got both sides of the story of what was going on, and said there wasn't really anything for them to do there, so they left.  Richard came home, and relayed the story to me.  Shortly after the police left, a 60 day termination notice was put on our door.  We were moving (which we would have done termination notice or no at this point). 

Immediately, I was on Craigslist, For Rent website, and Apartment Living to see what was available.  There were a few places I put an email in to take a look at.  One was a duplex that was about 100 dollars more a month then where we are now, or an apartment that was about 10 dollars more a month, but 15 dollars more a month less than another lease here would be.  Both seemed like temporary solutions, and we knew we'd have to explain to the landlords about the manager here, and nothing seemed ideal. 

Thursday, the day after this happened, I sent a message to the daycare parents that, for the time being, it would be best to meet somewhere close to pick up their kids.  One parent said he was going to look into his mother in laws property, to see if she had something that might work for us.  His wife called a couple hours later, and set up to take us all to a place after work to show.  A 3 bedroom duplex, garage, and fenced backyard, all for the same price as the place we were at now.  I was randomly crying during the day, overwhelmed by this blessing. 

We looked at the place, and fell in love with it!  It's going to be perfect for us, and the owners are such a blessing!  We didn't even have time to stress out about where we were gonna go, God placed these beautiful friends in our lives, and they have been such a blessing!  Beyond anything we could have imagined!  This new place is in a neighborhood and next to a school, and within walking distance of our church! 

We will be out of here by June 30th, which is when we need to be.  We are so thankful for this awesome blessing! 

So this is our 24 hour adventure, that started out pretty rough, and ended up having a dream place :-) 

I just like to smile, smiling's my favorite!

As some of you know, I work with children (in home childcare).  I hear and see a lot of funny things that make me smile just thinking about them.  I love reading peoples status about kids and some of the things they have said or done, they always make me smile.  Today, while dropping Elijah off at school, a mom was walking her little girl into class and she was holding a baby, who was looking at me over mom's shoulder. I smiled, and the little boy gave me the biggest grin, which made me smile even more.  Went to get my coffee, and I was just smiling.  Everyone that I smiled at, smiled back.  Instant return on your smile.  I probably even over use the smiley emoticon ;-)  I thought about how when you see someone in a car with a goofy grin on their face, and it makes you smile.  I have probably been that person that you chuckle at while you drive by (When "What Does The Fox Say" comes on in my van, we all let loose).  And I really like smiling!  Pass one on today!  

Here are 15 health benefits to smiling!  (via http://www.sunwarrior.com/news/15-health-benefits-of-smiling/)

1 – Lower Heart Rate – Smiling slows the heart and relaxes the body. This lets the heart work without overworking. People who smile and laugh often are less likely to develop heart disease. Smiling reduces blood pressure temporarily too.

2 – Reduce Stress – Stress is a common problem in the modern world that causes a myriad of health problems. Stress relief may be as simple as smiling a little more throughout the day. Smiling releases endorphins that counteract and diminish the stress hormones.

 3 – Better Mood – The endorphins do more than kick stress to the curb. Endorphins lift your mood. Feeling down? Slap a smile on your face, even if it isn’t entirely genuine at first, and turn your entire day around with something simple, easy to do, and free.

4 – Increase Productivity – Smiling has been shown to increase productivity while performing tasks. There’s truth to the “whistle while we work” mentality. This also explains why silly internet memes and pictures of cute animals can actually get people motivated and working harder after a few moments of smiling or laughter.

5 – Encourage Trust – Studies show that we are more trustful of others when they smile and smile genuinely. Trust is an important part of social health when dealing with people, whether they be loved ones or just acquaintances. Seems relationships are truly built on smiles.

6 – Produce Empathy – When we’re embarrassed or caught doing something questionable, often our first response is a smile. This instinct breaks the initial ice of embarrassment, promotes leniency in what others think of us, and engenders a sense of empathy since we’ve all experienced embarrassment and we want to smile along.

7 – Avoid Regret – We smile to avoid feeling bad for not smiling. Sounds weird and circular, but we don’t want to hurt people’s feelings so we smile when someone shares some story about their dog, even if we don’t really care. Studies show that if we don’t smile, we feel regret for failing to do so. This regret brings down our mood and boosts stress hormones.

8 – Kill Pain – Smiling and laughter both have been shown to lessen pain. They release endorphins that lift our moods, but many of these act as natural painkillers too.

9 – Increase Attention – Stress limits our perceptions and narrows our attention. Our body kicks into fight or flight mode where we can focus only on one of those things. Smiling counteracts this and widens our attention again, opening us back up to multitasking and insights that come from the fringes of our perception and our subconscious.

10 – Contagious – Around 50% of people smile back. This spreads the health benefits throughout those around you and it comes back to you several times as well.

11 – Build Attraction – Smiling makes people more attractive. This seems to be especially true for women. Men are more likely to approach a woman who smiles than one who simply makes eye contact while women aren’t necessarily drawn in by a smile alone.

12 – Earn Success – A smile can appear confident, self-assured, and on top of your work. Those who smile are more likely to earn more money through tips and raises. They are more readily approached with business ideas and offered advancements.

13 – Look Younger – Smiles naturally lift the face and in studies have shown to make people look younger, around 3 years younger on average.

14 – Longevity – The effects of a good smile extend past just the exterior good looks. People who smile more often live longer too, around 7 years longer than most according to one study. It releases stress, helps the heart, and much more to keep you healthy longer.

15 – Boost Immune System – Smiles help the body relax and this lets the immune system react more quickly and effectively against invaders.

I'm THAT mom...

It hit me today, I'm one of THOSE moms.  And it also hit me that I'm really ok with that.

My 3 boys (I'm counting the husband) are everything to me.  I love them, I even LIKE them.  I love spending time with them.  I have found that I sometimes am a little sad when Winter, Spring, or Summer break is over and they have to go back to school.  

My kids don't take the bus to school, I drive them.  My oldest had some anxiety issues in 4th grade, and the only way I could get him to school was to drive him.  So even after he overcame his anxiety, I still drove them, because it put less stress on both of them, and honestly, not having to get up earlier and stand out in the rain waiting for a bus is ok with me.  I like to sleep, so I will find a way to savor an extra five minutes.  

I used to walk them into class, but since they've gotten older, I walk my youngest, Elijah, into the school and he leaves with his class, while my oldest, Ethan, is fine with me dropping him off at the door.  When Elijah is leaving, he always gives me one last wave before going down the hallway, and we hold up the numbers 1-4-3 (I love you) before I leave, and he usually gives me a couple kisses goodbye.  When I drop Ethan off, I always wait and watch til he is in the building, and he knows that I do.  He doesn't look back and wave like Elijah does, but he knows that I'm there watching and praying over his day.

Why am I writing this?  Too much caffeine?  Not likely.  To exalt myself?  Hardly!  My kids don't have cell phones, cause they are usually with me, or they are somewhere that they can get a hold of me.  I don't let them watch movies that are rated R, and if they are PG-13 (or and 80's PG film), I prefer to watch it first before I subject them to it.  I don't let them have soda very often.  I don't let them play games that are rated M.  I have all their passwords for their emails and facebook account, and the passwords that they have on their tablets.  I monitor the history on their tablets and on our computer.  I limit their game time.  I watch shows that they watch (LOVE Spongebob).  This is just my families convictions.  These are things that we decided for OUR family.  I'm not writing this looking for applause (if you want to, you can), or for critiquing, or to tell everyone they need to follow this same set of rules.  Heck, I didn't even have these same set of rules growing up (sorry for the strong use of "heck", just trying to emphasize a point).  I wanted to write this to say, "This is me".   

I saw a little girl, about 3rd grade, walking to school by herself.  Busy street, raining, and she's walking alone.  I thought about getting on facebook for a "rant", and decided instead of focusing on that, focus on myself.  Ranting doesn't usually do me any good (unless I'm ranting about no coffee in the house, in which case some kind hearted person usually will lend me a cup ;-).  I think that in any area, a lot of times our human nature tends to want to point out external things that we think are wrong, and things that someone ELSE should change and do our perceived way.  Parenting is overwhelming, hard work.  Every time I think I've got this parenting thing down, I find I don't know anything.   We are all doing this with our own personal set of life experiences, with our own convictions, and our own set of values.  I am THAT mom.  You are THAT mom (or dad, grandparent, etc).  I ENCOURAGE you to be THAT.  We are all doing our best, keep pressing on! 

In The Beginning

Genesis 1:1-5 NASB "1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day."

I'll admit, I've read this more times than I can count, never really thinking about it.  Yeah, earth was created, blah blah blah.   Know all about it.  Gotta love how God can take something like this, at the oddest times, to reveal something new, a new perspective that kind of takes you back and makes you think.

A couple weeks ago, I was listening to a cassette tape (still have a tape deck in my purple van :-), a cassette my little sister had when she was younger (and yes, I snagged it). It's called Songs From The Beginner's Bible, by Jodi Benson (who does the voice of Ariel in The Little Mermaid).  I was driving two 2 year old girls to pick up a kid from Kindergarten (just would like to say that I am justifying listening to this because there were children in the car...but honestly would listen to it anyway, who am I kidding?) Obviously, the first reading she does is from Genesis-and the story of creation.  Not a very long story, but one that got me to pause a minute.  In verse 2, it says the earth was formless and void, and that got me thinking, much like we are, spiritually (see where my thinking process is going?).  We come as empty vessels, sometimes broken, often times wounded, with not a lot to work with.  Then there is a stirring...(Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters), and light is revealed in us, separate from the darkness.  While this process has begun, there are still periods of night, still times when we must endure through, knowing that the night time is only temporary, and there is always the hope and promise of light, and to let the perfect work be done in our lives.  This was just what I got from the first day! 

^{Genesis 1: 6-8 NASB  "6} Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” ⁷ God made the expanse, and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. ⁸ God called the expanse heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day."

2nd day, heaven is revealed/created.  Or as many Christians like to call it, home.  God builds a place of dwelling, a place to look towards, a place to BE.  THE place to BE.  Separated, set apart, filling a void.  The dark waters are still there at this point, but God has put his "Sold" sign and claimed it as His home.  Talk about a fixer upper!  He doesn't have anything to work with (on our end), and to our eyes the situation seems bleak, but just wait...there's more!  


⁹ Then God said, “Let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. ¹⁰ God called the dry land earth, and the gathering of the waters He called seas; and God saw that it was good. ¹¹ Then God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit after their kind with seed in them”; and it was so. ¹² The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good. ¹³ There was evening and there was morning, a third day.

3rd day, LIFE!  Stopping the drowning, bringing forth refuges, making the waters that were dark and pointless have beauty and meaning and purpose.  Then we start with the producing.  Fruit, vegetation, plants that produce more of their own kind, multiplying and showing that there is no limitation!  No need for hunger, or thirst.  We start showing solidity, God working in us and allowing us to show His Love and Glory.  There may be some pruning here and there (often painful), but this is His home.  Always necessary.  

¹⁴ Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years; ¹⁵ and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so. ¹⁶ God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day, and the lesser light to govern the night; He made the stars also. ¹⁷ God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, ¹⁸ and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness; and God saw that it was good. ¹⁹ There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.

4th day, Sun and Moon (Son).  We never have to be in total darkness again!  Son is revealed, and is reflected, even at night!  What about nights with no moon?  There are stars!  That light is readily available to us, ALWAYS!  

²⁰ Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.” ²¹ God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good. ²² God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” ²³ There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.

 5th day, things get meatier .  All that fruit you are producing, it's starting to be noticed.  Filling those waters with life, filling the sky with life.  Those waters that were formless and void?  Now there are creatures searching, wanting food and light, and they can see that you got something.  After the Son is revealed, Now you are getting ready for disciples!  

²⁴ Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. ²⁵ God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good.
²⁶ Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” ²⁷ God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. ²⁸ God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” ²⁹ Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; ³⁰ and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so. ³¹ God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day."

A very busy day indeed!  The land is getting more life too!  Sharing more and more of the dwelling place and the ever producing that God wants to do in our lives.  God then creates man, in His image, bringing man to a place of completion, maturity.  Giving us all kinds of food, giving us authority, and blessing us!  

(By the seventh day, He had completed His work and rested).  We are promised rest as well.  

God bless you in your journey to becoming a new creation. 

 

 

Indonesian Stir Fry-First recipe post!

My kids came home from school last week with a recipe book titled "The Healthy Recipe Cookbook", put out by Oregon State University (I'm a Ducks fan myself though).  I tried this recipe last night for dinner, and it was like having Pad Thai, but a lot less expensive to make!  I added some stuff and didn't put some things it called for (don't like onions), and the whole family loved it.  No pictures, cause I didn't think to take pics of the process (I tried the "mock Cauliflower mashed potatoes", and it was a disaster, so I didn't want to take pics in case this happened again lol)

So here's the recipe (I've also pinned the recipe on Pinterest). 

https://www.foodhero.org/recipes/mo-moo-indonesian-stir-fry-0

Instead of crushed red pepper flakes, I pressed a clove of garlic, and no green onions.  I also added a little rice vinegar with the cabbage. 

Santa Claus

Santa Claus, St. Nicholas, Kris Kringle...he has many names, and many meanings to people, myself included.  This Christmas, I've really been thinking about my belief in the big man, and what it has meant to me, and my children.

I have 2 boys, 9 and 7.  The 9 yr old started questioning the existence of Santa last year a little.  He would say things like "I think Santa is more of a spirit of Christmas than actual person".  This year, he's been saying things like "I think Santa is a myth", and what he wants for Christmas is to actually see Santa (that's what he's asked Santa for).  He's also asked me "mom, have you ever lied to me?"  After finding me hiding Easter eggs on Easter, I think the whole "Easter bunny" thing is done.  So this Christmas has been one that I'm sure a lot of parents have to come to at a certain point, "do I tell my kid this year?" 

I've been struggling with this more and more as the season goes on.  Do I tell the older one, explain who St. Nicholas was, and let him in on "the secret", and have him promise not to tell little brother, (which I can imagine his first fight with brother would bring that one straight out), or do I tell both?  Or neither? 

I remember my parents telling my little sister, who was about 6, the story of the "real Santa".  She came home after hearing this story, and the first thing she tells everyone, "Santa's dead."  Harsh words to hear from a 6 yr old!  I was 12 and it hurt to hear that said, kind of like hearing a kid say "I don't believe in fairies" while watching Peter Pan...you wanna scream "NO!"

I want to share why I believe/believed in Santa.  I grew up believing in the big guy.  There was a certain magic I always felt on Christmas Eve, like something great was happening.  I gotta be honest, I still feel that way every Christmas.  I may not get up as early as I used to, but I still feel that excitement knowing that even if there weren't a single present under that tree, the day was going to magical, where great memories would be made.  There was a certain wonder about snow and Santa and stars...and remembering miracles taking place thousands of years ago in mangers.  I decided to allow my kids to believe in Santa, because Santa represented to me kindness, and a giving spirit.  A lot of times, like Charlie Brown says, the whole Christmas thing becomes a big "commercial racket".  The kindness and giving spirit I want to be in my boys, not about the toys or the commercialism that often tries to creep into the holiday's.  Which is a different problem I'm having with my youngest, who has asked Santa for : an iPod touch, a DS, an Xbox 360, and games for the DS and 360.  None of which we can really afford this year.  In trying to explain that he might not get these things, it's "Santa doesn't have to buy them, he makes all his stuff!".  Oh dear....

This holiday season, I am going to remember all my Christmas' and Santa and think about what made that special.  Was it the toys "Santa" brought me?  Cause I honestly don't remember one that was from him.  I do remember the joy and family, and music, and laughter that always is, and always will be.  So while I ponder whether to let my kids in on the secret, or how to let them in, I'm going to make sure and always remember why Christmas is celebrated.  The One who brings hope.  The Prince of Peace. 

Merry Christmas!