Yesterday morning I had the day that I hope never repeats itself. It was Reagan's sixth birthday and also her first day of first grade. Kind of a big day. I don't think I realized the enormity of the day until way after when a friend called to check on me. It started pretty rough and by 8 am, I had had it.
I woke up at 1:45 am, yep, in the morning, and couldn't go back to sleep. That's a pretty typical pregnancy characteristic for me. But usually I can go back to sleep after an hour or two. But yesterday, no such luck. I finally gave up, turned on Veronica Mars and ate a bowl of cereal at about 4 am.
In the midst of being awake for all that time I thought, "You know, maybe I should read my Bible. Do a good quiet time to get this momentous day started." But I was kind of being passive-aggressive with the Lord and was like, "You have the power to make me fall asleep, but you're not, so I'm not going to spend my time with you right now. No offense."
I probably made the wrong choice cause then I had to do the whole morning thing with the family. I made pancakes for Reagan's birthday breakfast, had to pack her lunch (please, no suggestions about making the lunch the evening before!), get her ready and psyched up for her first day of school (she, unlike me, doesn't quite love school yet.)
And then I pulled into the line to turn into the school. Holy Toledo. The line was like a mile long. So, yeah, we were late. I didn't get the first day of school picture. Well, I did get a rushed one, but not at her desk. And then I caught my reflection in one of the windows and oh my goodness. I think it's safe to say that I'm carrying twins...in my rear!
And then I did what any 31 year old mom of three+ would do. I broke down. Cried my eyes out.
So, yeah, I guess I should have done the quiet time.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Friday, July 30, 2010
Slavery & Bondservants
Slavery has been on my mind lately. I know. How fun to be me.
A couple of weeks ago, CCV had the very great pleasure of having Pastor Trent Renner preach. His sermon was titled "Bondservant vs. Slacktivist". And it made me think for days, and still does.
Slacktivism is a term that was coined in the the mid-90's and means that one is engaged, only on the surface, in causes. For instance, wearing a ribbon to support breast cancer, but not actually donating any money or pounding the pavement for awareness.
Pastor Renner was suggesting that American Christians tend to have a slacktivist mentality. We go through the motions, going to church, putting our kids in Sunday school, but when we leave service we go back to how we want to live, rather than putting Christ first in our lives.
His point was that either we are slacktivists or we are bondservants to Christ. A bondservant is one who serves out of love, reverence, and in total devotion.
In the Bible, the Hebrew word "doulas" is sometimes translated as slave. And as Americans we don't have a whole lot of fondness for the term slave. Doulas is correctly translated as bondservant. But unfortunately, when we read slave we don't want to have any part of it. And rightly so, I would say.
The American slavery period was not one that people regard with much joy. It was a terrible thing; people purchasing others, denying humane treatment, people regarded as property. This was not good. And thank the Lord the U.S. decided it was so horrible they were willing to fight to end it. However, because slavery in America was horrifying we can't fathom wanting to be in servitude to anyone but ourselves.
I think this has presented a bit of a conundrum with our call to be bondservants to Christ. Those of us who desire to follow Christ as Lord have to give over every part of our lives, and live in accordance with the Spirit. The beauty, of course, is that in living in servitude to Christ, we are free to become the person God has designed us. And it's not a life of emptiness. It's a life of purpose. It's a significant life. There is freedom in serving Christ.
A couple of weeks ago, CCV had the very great pleasure of having Pastor Trent Renner preach. His sermon was titled "Bondservant vs. Slacktivist". And it made me think for days, and still does.
Slacktivism is a term that was coined in the the mid-90's and means that one is engaged, only on the surface, in causes. For instance, wearing a ribbon to support breast cancer, but not actually donating any money or pounding the pavement for awareness.
Pastor Renner was suggesting that American Christians tend to have a slacktivist mentality. We go through the motions, going to church, putting our kids in Sunday school, but when we leave service we go back to how we want to live, rather than putting Christ first in our lives.
His point was that either we are slacktivists or we are bondservants to Christ. A bondservant is one who serves out of love, reverence, and in total devotion.
In the Bible, the Hebrew word "doulas" is sometimes translated as slave. And as Americans we don't have a whole lot of fondness for the term slave. Doulas is correctly translated as bondservant. But unfortunately, when we read slave we don't want to have any part of it. And rightly so, I would say.
The American slavery period was not one that people regard with much joy. It was a terrible thing; people purchasing others, denying humane treatment, people regarded as property. This was not good. And thank the Lord the U.S. decided it was so horrible they were willing to fight to end it. However, because slavery in America was horrifying we can't fathom wanting to be in servitude to anyone but ourselves.
I think this has presented a bit of a conundrum with our call to be bondservants to Christ. Those of us who desire to follow Christ as Lord have to give over every part of our lives, and live in accordance with the Spirit. The beauty, of course, is that in living in servitude to Christ, we are free to become the person God has designed us. And it's not a life of emptiness. It's a life of purpose. It's a significant life. There is freedom in serving Christ.
Obviously, I'm not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ's servant. -Galatians 1:10 NLT
More Information Regarding the Laundry Soap
I received some questions about the Laundry Soap thing.
First off, you can find all of the ingredients for the Laundry soap at Fry's. They carry Borax, Arm & Hammer's Super Washing Soda, and Fels-Naptha.
I do recommend Fels-Naptha over any of the other laundry soaps because I prefer the scent. I just did a Zote bar, and while only a dollar at Wal-Mart, then scent is more industrial than I like. The Fels-Naptha is a bit more fresh. The Fels bar is 1.79 at Fry's. But still a significant savings over buying processed laundry detergent.
If you need a liquid detergent because you have a front-loader, the Duggar's have a recipe for that. I requires liquifying the detergent by cooking. I have a friend who does this and she likes it just fine.
If you have any skin allergies, I would suggest using a Dove Bar or Ivory Bar since they are supposed to be safe on skin. But if your skin reacts to either of those soaps, then you're better off buying the Free & Clear detergents. Or, do some research to find out if there is a non-allergenic soap out there.
Now, on to the Dishwasher detergent. I don't like it. So, I don't really recommend it. It has left a bit of a film on my dishes. At first I was just using the Borax/Super Washing Soda mixture, but I had a film on my dishes. So I thought maybe it was missing some sort of soap (a la Fels-Naptha in the laundry detergent), so I have started adding a smidge of liquid dishwasher detergent in the dispenser. This has helped, slightly. Next I'm going to try reducing the amount of Borax/Super Washing Soda amount in the dispenser (rather than 2 tablespoons, just 1) in addition to 1 tablespoon of liquid dishwasher detergent (Cascade).
I'm not totally giving up on the dishwasher detergent, but I'm tweaking it to see if I can improve on it. I'll keep you posted.
First off, you can find all of the ingredients for the Laundry soap at Fry's. They carry Borax, Arm & Hammer's Super Washing Soda, and Fels-Naptha.
I do recommend Fels-Naptha over any of the other laundry soaps because I prefer the scent. I just did a Zote bar, and while only a dollar at Wal-Mart, then scent is more industrial than I like. The Fels-Naptha is a bit more fresh. The Fels bar is 1.79 at Fry's. But still a significant savings over buying processed laundry detergent.
If you need a liquid detergent because you have a front-loader, the Duggar's have a recipe for that. I requires liquifying the detergent by cooking. I have a friend who does this and she likes it just fine.
If you have any skin allergies, I would suggest using a Dove Bar or Ivory Bar since they are supposed to be safe on skin. But if your skin reacts to either of those soaps, then you're better off buying the Free & Clear detergents. Or, do some research to find out if there is a non-allergenic soap out there.
Now, on to the Dishwasher detergent. I don't like it. So, I don't really recommend it. It has left a bit of a film on my dishes. At first I was just using the Borax/Super Washing Soda mixture, but I had a film on my dishes. So I thought maybe it was missing some sort of soap (a la Fels-Naptha in the laundry detergent), so I have started adding a smidge of liquid dishwasher detergent in the dispenser. This has helped, slightly. Next I'm going to try reducing the amount of Borax/Super Washing Soda amount in the dispenser (rather than 2 tablespoons, just 1) in addition to 1 tablespoon of liquid dishwasher detergent (Cascade).
I'm not totally giving up on the dishwasher detergent, but I'm tweaking it to see if I can improve on it. I'll keep you posted.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Recipes
So, among my million things to do, I have to make a Costco run. And I just don't have it in me to do it with my three in tow. Although Costco at lunchtime does suffice as lunch...I still don't have the energy to do it.
But I'm in the desperate situation of needing dishwasher detergent. Oh, the dilemma...
So, I googled dishwasher detergent recipe and look-y what I found. I just tried it and have no doubt that it will now replace Cascade. I already make my own laundry detergent, a la the Duggars, so I had Super Washing Soda and Borax on hand. I'm so glad that I found this! This saves us money, for sure. I very rarely find dishwasher detergent on sale, and we're running our dishwasher just about every night. We were going through LOTS of Cascade.
And in case you're wondering who has time to do all this, I would like to say that both of these recipes take almost no time at all. I probably spend 10 minutes making the laundry soap, every 6 or 7 weeks. That's how long the laundry soap will last. And the dishwasher detergent is no different time-wise than pouring in Cascade.
Also, some of you have expressed a desire to have more Asian recipes in your repertoire. I found one the other week on one of my new favorite blogs. (Thanks, Charissa!) This Sweets girl has some killer recipes. Check her out.
Anyways, I decided I would check her blog for a chicken/broccoli Asian-influenced recipe for dinner one night (needed to use up broccoli). And I'm so glad I checked her blog, 'cause this is one of my new favorites. Check out the Broccoli Mushroom Almond Chicken recipe!
I omitted the mushrooms as they are severely underappreciated by Mr. Wilhelmsen and children. (It is my goal for the rest of the year to change his mind in this area.) And the only problem I had is that I put in too much lemon. I doubled the amount of sauce (per Sweets suggestion), but I think I may have tripled the lemon unknowingly. So, go easy on the lemon if you try this. I used whole almonds that I roughly chopped. I think we all liked it, but it would have gone over much better if I had gone easy on the lemon.
Overall, I have been trying to do some new things, but also trying to refine what we like regularly.
But I'm in the desperate situation of needing dishwasher detergent. Oh, the dilemma...
So, I googled dishwasher detergent recipe and look-y what I found. I just tried it and have no doubt that it will now replace Cascade. I already make my own laundry detergent, a la the Duggars, so I had Super Washing Soda and Borax on hand. I'm so glad that I found this! This saves us money, for sure. I very rarely find dishwasher detergent on sale, and we're running our dishwasher just about every night. We were going through LOTS of Cascade.
And in case you're wondering who has time to do all this, I would like to say that both of these recipes take almost no time at all. I probably spend 10 minutes making the laundry soap, every 6 or 7 weeks. That's how long the laundry soap will last. And the dishwasher detergent is no different time-wise than pouring in Cascade.
Also, some of you have expressed a desire to have more Asian recipes in your repertoire. I found one the other week on one of my new favorite blogs. (Thanks, Charissa!) This Sweets girl has some killer recipes. Check her out.
Anyways, I decided I would check her blog for a chicken/broccoli Asian-influenced recipe for dinner one night (needed to use up broccoli). And I'm so glad I checked her blog, 'cause this is one of my new favorites. Check out the Broccoli Mushroom Almond Chicken recipe!
I omitted the mushrooms as they are severely underappreciated by Mr. Wilhelmsen and children. (It is my goal for the rest of the year to change his mind in this area.) And the only problem I had is that I put in too much lemon. I doubled the amount of sauce (per Sweets suggestion), but I think I may have tripled the lemon unknowingly. So, go easy on the lemon if you try this. I used whole almonds that I roughly chopped. I think we all liked it, but it would have gone over much better if I had gone easy on the lemon.
Overall, I have been trying to do some new things, but also trying to refine what we like regularly.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Announcing...
Jack Jack is going to be a big brother! Yep, that's right. The Erik's are expecting another Little Willy.
I can imagine you have a ton of questions. I will attempt to anticipate your questions.
1. Yes, I do know how "this" happens.
2. No, I did not drink the "water" nor will I "stay away from it".
3. Also, while we are excited, no this was not "planned".
This has taken us all by surprise. Originally I was on the four-kids wagon, but there was no real peace. I kept thinking I needed to do it. And then I realized that I was trying to control the size of my family rather than trusting God. I finally got to a place where I trusted God with the size. God was telling me to give up the four-kids thing. We were done having kids.
But, oh, no, I must have misunderstood the Lord. He was asking me to trust him. Not that He wasn't going to bless us with more children.
Four pregnancy tests later, and I'm pretty convinced that I'm pregnant, due mid-to late February.
And yes, we will be done after this. I know it may not be a good idea to make that decision while pregnant, but honestly, I think four is going to do it for us.
I can imagine you have a ton of questions. I will attempt to anticipate your questions.
1. Yes, I do know how "this" happens.
2. No, I did not drink the "water" nor will I "stay away from it".
3. Also, while we are excited, no this was not "planned".
This has taken us all by surprise. Originally I was on the four-kids wagon, but there was no real peace. I kept thinking I needed to do it. And then I realized that I was trying to control the size of my family rather than trusting God. I finally got to a place where I trusted God with the size. God was telling me to give up the four-kids thing. We were done having kids.
But, oh, no, I must have misunderstood the Lord. He was asking me to trust him. Not that He wasn't going to bless us with more children.
Four pregnancy tests later, and I'm pretty convinced that I'm pregnant, due mid-to late February.
And yes, we will be done after this. I know it may not be a good idea to make that decision while pregnant, but honestly, I think four is going to do it for us.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Ode to Oreos
Lately it seems like I can't form coherent and meaningful thoughts. And it's with everyone. I was trying to tell Erik that my exercise videos were not sharing into the Media Center and I couldn't come up with the word for videos. I was like, "you know, the things." over and over. I'm surprised he stayed around to figure out what I was talking about.
All of this has lead to me having a bit of a blogging back-up. And I'm thinking a blogging laxative is what I need. (Funny, huh? I just came up with that myself!)
My friend Kim told me last week not to sweat the whole no-dairy thing and just give Mati Oreos for desserts. That's what one of her friends does, and it works pretty well. So, on Friday at a birthday party I gave Mati some Oreos. She was pretty happy. Now, here's the problem. I'm kind of addicted to Oreos, especially the Double Stuft and Cakesters variety. But oh well! We are eating Oreos in the Wilhelmsen house this week!
Why so many Oreos? Because Erik left for Africa. He's going to be gone for 12 days helping a mission's school get set up with a local network, trying to get internet access to the school, and training some of the missionaries on general networking and troubleshooting tasks. And having listed all of that, I have no idea how he is going to get it all done in only 12 days. But I will pray for him and I know that God will accomplish more through him this week than I can even imagine.
Can you hear the pride in my voice? I'm overwhelmed at Erik's courage to go somewhere so foreign and give so much of himself for the Body of Christ. I'm excited to hear the stories; and I pray he will find something edible and palatable.
So, back to the Oreos. Reagan last night was lamenting about Erik leaving and I was trying to cheer her up by telling her all the fun things we'll get to do. And she still wasn't all the cheered. So I mentioned that we could eat Oreos every night until he comes home. And you know what? She was immediately happy! That is my girl! We can always find the bright side when food is involved. Food is nourishment for the soul. Isn't that a Proverb?
In the meantime, as the girls & I are shoveling Oreos, I'm wondering in the back of my head how it is that Oreo, with a creme filling, doesn't have milk. Troubling, to say the least. But oh well! I don't know how they can make a delicious cookie without dairy, but they have. And I love those cookies. And yes I realize that this is contradiction from my last post, but hey, we've all got to cope in some way.
I heart the Oreo! Bon voyage, Erik. I miss you already.
All of this has lead to me having a bit of a blogging back-up. And I'm thinking a blogging laxative is what I need. (Funny, huh? I just came up with that myself!)
My friend Kim told me last week not to sweat the whole no-dairy thing and just give Mati Oreos for desserts. That's what one of her friends does, and it works pretty well. So, on Friday at a birthday party I gave Mati some Oreos. She was pretty happy. Now, here's the problem. I'm kind of addicted to Oreos, especially the Double Stuft and Cakesters variety. But oh well! We are eating Oreos in the Wilhelmsen house this week!
Why so many Oreos? Because Erik left for Africa. He's going to be gone for 12 days helping a mission's school get set up with a local network, trying to get internet access to the school, and training some of the missionaries on general networking and troubleshooting tasks. And having listed all of that, I have no idea how he is going to get it all done in only 12 days. But I will pray for him and I know that God will accomplish more through him this week than I can even imagine.
Can you hear the pride in my voice? I'm overwhelmed at Erik's courage to go somewhere so foreign and give so much of himself for the Body of Christ. I'm excited to hear the stories; and I pray he will find something edible and palatable.
So, back to the Oreos. Reagan last night was lamenting about Erik leaving and I was trying to cheer her up by telling her all the fun things we'll get to do. And she still wasn't all the cheered. So I mentioned that we could eat Oreos every night until he comes home. And you know what? She was immediately happy! That is my girl! We can always find the bright side when food is involved. Food is nourishment for the soul. Isn't that a Proverb?
In the meantime, as the girls & I are shoveling Oreos, I'm wondering in the back of my head how it is that Oreo, with a creme filling, doesn't have milk. Troubling, to say the least. But oh well! I don't know how they can make a delicious cookie without dairy, but they have. And I love those cookies. And yes I realize that this is contradiction from my last post, but hey, we've all got to cope in some way.
I heart the Oreo! Bon voyage, Erik. I miss you already.
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Cow's Milk
It has been an interesting few weeks for us here in the Wilhelmsen house. We have had some dietary revelations in regards to Jack & Mati. Jack has been put on a hypoallergenic formula (no dairy) and after a blood test has revealed a slight milk-allergy for Mati, the doctor asked us to put her on a dairy-free diet.
This has lead me to wonder if perhaps we all need to go dairy-free. And this has not been a fun thought, to say the least.
Perhaps Reagan needs to be on a dairy-free diet, although she's not having any physical symptoms. And Erik does already have a lactose aversion, which he controls with acid reducer pills.
Well, this has all lead a larger questions: Is cow's milk all that good for us? I admit that I drink a fair amount of cow's milk products. I use half & half in my coffee daily. I love cheese. I love butter. So, the idea of living a dairy-free lifestyle is incredibly scary to me. But I have also heard that we are the only mammals to drink another mammals milk. Is that wrong? I don't know if I believe that drinking cow's milk is wrong. But maybe we consume too much of it.
I think we'll probably end up somewhere in the middle. I don't think there is a suitable enough substitute for baking & I love me some cheese!
For the past couple of days I've been attempting to keep all dairy from Mati only to be foiled by Erik giving her things that no-doubt have some sort of dairy in them. So, I don't know if dairy-free is going to happen for us. Thankfully Mati isn't deathly allergic to milk so a muffin every now and then probably won't affect her.
I think the solution for us is going to be along the lines of what Chandra says here. More plants, less meat (including dairy), and if I don't think my great-grandmother would recognize the products in it, don't eat it.
This has lead me to wonder if perhaps we all need to go dairy-free. And this has not been a fun thought, to say the least.
Perhaps Reagan needs to be on a dairy-free diet, although she's not having any physical symptoms. And Erik does already have a lactose aversion, which he controls with acid reducer pills.
Well, this has all lead a larger questions: Is cow's milk all that good for us? I admit that I drink a fair amount of cow's milk products. I use half & half in my coffee daily. I love cheese. I love butter. So, the idea of living a dairy-free lifestyle is incredibly scary to me. But I have also heard that we are the only mammals to drink another mammals milk. Is that wrong? I don't know if I believe that drinking cow's milk is wrong. But maybe we consume too much of it.
I think we'll probably end up somewhere in the middle. I don't think there is a suitable enough substitute for baking & I love me some cheese!
For the past couple of days I've been attempting to keep all dairy from Mati only to be foiled by Erik giving her things that no-doubt have some sort of dairy in them. So, I don't know if dairy-free is going to happen for us. Thankfully Mati isn't deathly allergic to milk so a muffin every now and then probably won't affect her.
I think the solution for us is going to be along the lines of what Chandra says here. More plants, less meat (including dairy), and if I don't think my great-grandmother would recognize the products in it, don't eat it.
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