Arriving in France

The view from the plane

Gana hasn't seen his brother in several years.  And I had never met him.  So, this was a very special arrival for us!  Lots of hugs, kisses and a few happy tears!

 Gankhuag and his baby Azaa

Chimgee, Gankhuag and Azaa

Paris from the window as we drove by:

On the way to Gana's brother's house, we stopped for a picnic.  The weather was mild and it even sprinkled a little, which was actually very refreshing after that long plane ride.

The countryside from Paris to Rennes

And I couldn't stay awake:

Family Time

 (Would you look at how cute this baby is?!?!?!)

Beautiful.....like mother, like daughter.

It was such a wonderful way to begin our vacation.  We only regret that the time was too short! 

The Wild Rumpus

The night Max wore his wolf suit 
and made mischief of one kind and another......

We love family time.  We just like being together...sometimes all in a pile.

Even though we are always all together, we try to have special  family time at least once a week.  Last week we came home from church, grilled out and then spent the afternoon in a pile watching Where The Wild Things Are, complete with paper crowns for all the kings and queens and princes and princesses of wild things.

We finished the evening with peach cobbler and homemade amaretto whipped cream.

 

Sitting there, cuddled on the basement couch with my husband and children, laughing, wearing goofy hats, and eating yummy things, there is great contentment.  It's times like these that I wish I could put in a bottle in order to enjoy their sweetness anytime I want, even when my kids are grown and out in the world doing whatever wild things the Lord leads them to do.  I sometimes wish there was a pause button for life.  I would like to freeze moments like these and savor them a little bit longer.

 

The happiest moments of my life 

have been the few which I have passed at home 

in the bosom of my family.

--Thomas Jefferson

Summer has (obviously) not been about blogging

It's been a long time since I've let so much time elapse between blog posts!  I have several undeveloped posts swirling around my right-brain.  But, the left-brain is still MIA, so nothing much has gotten accomplished.

Actually, though, July has been beautiful.  Peaceful.  Relaxing.  Lovely.

June had us swept up in so many activities we scarcely caught our breath from one exhilarating event when another was upon us!  But July swished itself gently in and we all breathed a sigh of relief.  I valiantly held the reigns on our schedule (that's my job, isn't it as manager of this tribe?) and did not commit to any meetings, field trips, park days, or classes.  It was tough, let me tell you!  But, in exchange for this hard-fought effort, we gained a month of laying on the grass, playing in the sprinkler, obsessing over homemade ice cream, grilling out, camp-outs in the tree house, sleeping in, staying up late and having something I've never before understood--those lazy days of summer.  Ahhhhhhhhh.  Refreshing.

So, here are some updates in no particular order of importance or in any sort of timeline.

~We celebrated my brother and sister-in-love's eleventh anniversary by attending their vow renewal ceremony.  They renewed their vows on the same day and at the same time as they did eleven years ago.  I considered trying to squeeze into my bridesmaid's dress, but thought better of it.  There is such a thing as dignity.  (A phrase that I will use again before this post is over.)  The day was super blessed.  I wept, of course.  It was a hard fought victory, these 11 years.  I am proud of Josh and Serena for standing when the whole world was telling them to give up.

~So, I've been absolutely obsessed with making homemade ice cream.  It all started, I think, when we watched It's Complicated.  The movie itself is pretty forgettable.  But, the food was rather inspiring.  Meryl Streep's character makes ice cream when she cannot sleep.  In the movie they eat lavender honey ice cream, the result of her insomnia.  So, a couple days later I was shopping with a friend in Silverlake and went to the Spice Station.  It's my new favorite place.  Gift ideas for Christmas, my birthday, Mother's Day, Send A Gift To Your Favorite Blogger Day include gift certificates or gift sets (they have one entirely of about nine different kinds of salt!) from there.  I promise to cook something for you.  Anyway, while we were there I bought an ounce of organic lavender.  The next day I created lavender vanilla ice cream.  Because it involved not only my children but some that I was babysitting for a friend, I used this method (but not this recipe). Kids had fun kneading it.  Normally we make our ice cream in a Donvier Chillfast which we picked up years ago (at a yard sale?  I seriously cannot remember.  It's an older version, though.).  The great thing about this ice cream maker is that it does not require salt, ice, electricity or elbow grease.  It's super easy.  I pop the ice cream in the freezer while I'm tending to lunch or dinner and every so often I give it a spin.  In the last five days I've made ice cream three times: lavender vanilla, blueberry rum, and jasmine green tea.  In fact, as I type this blog post I'm eat the jasmine green tea.  It's my favorite so far!  Tomorrow........we'll see.  I have several flavors I want to try.  I will keep you posted, most likely on the Gomboblog, which is where I usually talk about food.

(Image from here.)

~OK, so I was in the park playing with my children recently, making small talk with other parents on the playground.  More than one mom asked me if I was at the park for the free lunch.  Let me insert that I was aware of the government's school lunch program and that it goes year around.  In our previous neighborhood (we just called it the 'hood, if you know what I mean) the community center promoted the free school lunch program through the summer.  I naively assumed that was because we lived in a lower-income neighborhood.  However, we do not now live in a lower-income neighborhood.  Curious, I took the kids to the "free lunch."  The picnic area of the park was roped off and stereotypical school lunch ladies were there with food carts and hairnets.  On the rope hung signs that said "NO PARENTS ALLOWED BEHIND THIS POINT."  Well......you know me.  My inner response was something like H.E.Double-Hockey-Sticks No!  I marched on through.  Each of my children--including the baby was handed a small brown cardboard box which contained a piece of microwaved-in-its-plastic-wrap-cheese-pizza, milk (which Meg insisted "tasted funny"), a fruit roll-up and a snack-sized bag of carrots.  No signing in required.  No verification of age (anyone appearing under the age of 18 gets a lunch).  No verification of income or residency.  So, I positioned my kids at a picnic table, baby still in the stroller.  I sit down with them and start opening up the milk cartons, pizza, etc.  A lunch lady on a power trip comes over and informs me, "You are not allowed to sit down.  You can stand behind your children, but not sit with them."  My initial response was to stand up.  But, something inside me said, "What the?!"  So, I sat back down again.  The lunch ladies glared at us and circled the tables making sure that no food was sneaked into backpacks or purses and that no adults attempted to take any bites.  No food is allowed to leave the roped off area.  Anything not eaten, whether or not it was opened, has to be thrown in the trash can.  We could see with others that the lunch ladies really enforced this rule.  Strictly.  The whole atmosphere was really intimidating and unfriendly.  And the beauty of it all is that this is happening all over town at several different parks and community centers.  Theoretically, I could eat as many lunches as I could fit in about a two hour window, by going place to place.  Is it any wonder the State is bankrupt?!  Your tax dollars at work.  A couple days later I told the kids that we were going to the park.  Luc said, "Are we going to eat that free lunch again?"  Gana said, "No son.  There is such a thing as dignity."  When Luc gave him his puzzled face, Gana explained, "If you are willing to be treated badly in exchange for something just because it is free, you don't value yourself."

~My best friend and her wonderful husband just gave birth to their second baby boy!  He's beautiful and I'm so happy for them!  I wish I could be there to snuggle him in person.  As I can't the Lord will have to do it for me, through my prayers.

~My mother sent me this blog post: 50 Summery Things To Do For Your House.  It totally inspired me today.  It somehow kicked me out of autopilot and gave me such joy for making my home beautiful and scrumptious.  I had a blast today, adding little touches here and there and livening up this place.  It has sent me meditating today, as I puttered around, about what it means to be a homemaker and not just a housekeeper.  I think there is a blog post on this theme in the works.  Left-brain, come in Left-brain.  Do you think we could schedule in some blogging time for the right-brain? 

Ordinary Days

This exactly fits my mood and meditations lately.  A perfect continuation from this post.

Before you hit play, get your handkerchief.  If you click play before you do so, don't say I didn't warn you.




H/T: Starr at Lost In Laundry

A Patchwork of Sorts

Sometimes it seems like I've lived several different lives.  I've been a chiropractic assistant, a secretary, a missionary, a pastor's wife, a pastor, a teacher, a doula....

Recently, at a Bible study people were discussing what they would do if money were no object.  People shared very wonderful, very noble, very grand visions.  If you ever have a small fortune of which you need to dispose, I know some people with wonderfully compassionate and life-giving aspirations.  Other people shared, quite honestly, actually, that they would like to travel, see the world, and improve their own living conditions.  As I sat in the back and pondered that question for myself, I had to think a lot harder than one should.  As I scrambled to come up with something as mind-blowing as what I was hearing, I realized that if I had a ton of money, I would like to be doing exactly what I am doing now, except a little more.  Let me explain: If I had more money I'd be giving bigger contributions to organizations like Compassion and VOM.  I'd take more trips to Mongolia and help our church there with resources to accomplish all their dreams.  But, my daily life, I really wouldn't want to change.  Living a quiet life, surrounded by my family with wonderful, supportive friends.

This should be your ambition:

to live a quiet life, minding your own business

and working with your hands,

just as we commanded you before.

I Thess. 4:11

My days are a patchwork of little things that perhaps don't amount to much on their own, but together are satisfying and beautiful and interesting and surround one with warmth on a chilly evening. 

In the mornings I sometimes take the dog for a stroll through our neighborhood where we smile and greet the elderly Chinese couples who are out for their morning exercise and Tai Chi.  But, sometimes I ignore the morning and cuddle up next to Gana until little children begin to join us.

In the morning we do our chores and I hang the clothes on the line, patting myself on the back that we are so "green" but really it's just that the gas lines to hook up the drying haven't been run in our garage yet.  But, as it turns out, I love hanging laundry.  Watching the diapers hang on the line and blow in the breeze causes something in my soul to stir, as if my inner pioneer woman is happy.

I love snuggling up with my babies and reading to them.  Sometimes we read silly picture books.  Sometimes we read great and lofty literature, well beyond their reading levels.  I love it when my children cry, "One more chapter, puleeeeeeeze."

I love the non-scheduled, but always welcomed breaks throughout the day when I sit down to nurse the baby.  That's usually when I update my Facebook page or blog.  In fact, as we speak the baby is happily nursing and putting her feet in my face at the same time.

I love our days at home, when I see relationships be nurtured and love flourish between my children. The other day Captain was sick and spent the day in my bed. Meg sat next to him for hours, stroking his head and reading him stories.

I love it when we have our friends or friends-to-be over.  I love sitting up late into the night swapping stories and laughing and sometimes crying.  We are rich in friendship.

I love when Gana is outside building something--like the tree house--and teaching the kids how to use a level, a square or a hammer.  I love it when they all--Gana included--come inside covered in paint and smiling.

Every day here is not perfect. We have our moments of drama, you can be sure.  But, altogether our life is what I want it to be.  Even if we struck it rich tomorrow, I wouldn't want our life to change too much.

I Timothy 6:6

But godliness with contentment is great gain.

Of all my lives already lived, I feel, at the moment at least, that what I am doing today is as important as anything I've ever done.  In fact, perhaps it's more important.  Perhaps what a woman does hidden away by her clothesline or cuddled up on her sofa with a raggedy copy of Prince Caspian is more important than what happens on Wall Street, Main Street, the White House or the School House.  What am I doing after all, with my patchwork days?  I'm making a living quilt for my family.  I'm giving my kids something--that indefinable thing called Center or Faith or Foundation that they will take with them someday when they leave our little home.  And I'm giving my husband something called Security or Warmth or Motivation that he takes with him each day when he leaves our little home and calls him home every evening.

"How can it be a large career to tell other people's children about the Rule of Three, and a small career to tell one's own children about the universe? How can it be broad to be the same thing to everyone, and narrow to be everything to someone? No. A woman's function is laborious, but because it is gigantic, not because it is minute. I will pity Mrs. Jones for the hugeness of her task; I will never pity her for its smallness." --G.K. Chesterton

An afternoon in Santa Monica

"We're in Santa Monica!  Everyone make a crazy face so we blend in!"

My sweet friend, Ariunaa!  Not afraid to stand on the dragon's head!

Luc said, "Help Mom!  I've been stabbed!"

Riding a carosel never gets old to me.  I guess I'm just an old-fashioned kind of girl.

Ariunaa, Belgee, and Captain

Luc

Israel and Meg

I have a feeling he knows, but I'll ask him.

The following are pictures of my dolphin-safe tunas:

Little jungle creatures:

Working together as a team, like little ants, burying Ariunaa alive.

Here's today's gun show at MUSCLE BEACH in Santa Monica.

Parallel Play