Fall on the Farm

It's Fall. The pomegranates are in season. Tonight we're celebrating Tracy's new apartment. And part of the celebration is pomaritas. Trying a new recipe tonight so there will be a report. But meanwhile, wanted to post some pics of the Funny Farm. Want to post every season to diary the changes/growth. Here's the album for Fall:

http://s412.photobucket.com/albums/pp206/tmeihaus/


The pomegranate tree:

http://s412.photobucket.com/albums/pp206/tmeihaus/?action=view&current=11-8-2008276.jpg

Later with the report on the pomarita!

Over Two Years Later....

Wow. Has it really been over two years since I last posted? So many wonderful things have happened. I was able to visit Liz in Italy in November 2006. That was an amazing trip. I'm posting some pics. It inspired me in so many ways. I have done lots of catering. Mike and Josh have been in Speech and Debate and Mike and I are headed to Birmingham, Alabama for Debate Nationals. He qualified with his partner, Jarah, in his second year. Way to go Mike and Jarah.

Liz is graduating from UCLA in a couple of weeks. Katie has received grants and awards for her Chemistry work at UCSB. Way to go girls! Josh has taken up the guitar and is doing an amazing job of learning it by himself. Way to go Josh! Evan finished his tour with the marines and is now living with us, and is back in school. Way to go Evan!

I have a new camera so hope to be posting more photos, especially with all the exciting events upcoming!

Spring Has Sprung

I love this time of year. The promise of fruitfulness hangs in the air. Flowers are blooming in profusions of color and trees are blossoming forth their fruit. The summer heat hasn't yet ravaged the fresh beauty. The wonder of God's recurring seasons and the proof of His promises is visible even to the naked eye, "Never again will I curse the ground because of man even thought every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures as I have done [in the flood]. As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease." (Genesis 8:21b,22)

So much has happened since the last post. Happy and sad. Liz threw me a bomb diggity of a 50th birthday party. Josh turned 11. Katie and Liz both got 4.0 GPAs this last quarter. Mike is happily dissecting a frog and worm for biology. Katie rented an apartment for next year with some girls. Liz will be leaving in June to spend 6 months studying in Italy. I have been offered free airline miles by my generous sister Cis, to visit her. An impossible dream come true. And I am attempting to post pics on my blog!

Yet, also, difficult issues needed to be addressed. A friend, Marge Futoran, lost her battle with cancer, and is now in Glory. The hard work of growing up and growing older leaves us sometimes weary. And yet the seasons of life march on, sometimes mercilessly. And yet in all of this, there is the hope of the promise that God causes to endure all that He has set in motion. The reality that He is a sovereign God Who will accomplish what He wills. And He constantly reminds us of this with the newness of life every Spring. I think that is what I love most about this time of year. Oh, the beauty is amazing, the fruit sweet, the veggies abundant, but it is mostly because it is a fresh reminder of the faithfulness of God. His promises are real and can be trusted.

So, as I post this, I look with great hope for the future. Not because of anything in me, but because my Father in Heaven has continued His faithfulness and made sure that Spring has Sprung.

Happy Happy Wheat Free

Since my friend David and I have been talking about wheat free diets, and he has now linked me on his blog, http://whateverisnew.blogspot.com/, I think I should do a little write up on this whole wheat free thing. I personally have had dramatic results in my life because I have gone wheat free. Symptoms that have disappeared when I am wheat free, and that return when I eat it are: depression, fatigue, irritability, numbness and tingling in my arms, bloated stomach. I have personally seen people cured of reflux as a result of getting off wheat. I have seen many children with disruptive behaviour calm down when they are fed a wheat free diet.

Is all this anecdotal? Perhaps. But there are several websites with excellent information available. I am linking some here. One of my favorites is Brain Talk Communities, http://brain.hastypastry.net/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=141. This is the specific link to gluten sensitivity. This link is to general categories available on the site: http://brain.hastypastry.net/forums/index.php? I believe there is a high incidence of people struggling with wheat/gluten intolerance. There thousands of children on anti depressants. Could this be related to the junk food diet so many people eat today? If you google wheat sensitivity, gluten intolerance or celiac disease, you will get all sorts of links. I think there is a non celiac sensitivity to wheat that can occur, so even if a test does not reveal a celiac problem, going off wheat will show if unexplained symptoms will go away.

The great thing about this is that it only takes 4 days completely off wheat to know if it is a problem (actual intestinally related problems may take longer). You might want to discuss this with your doctor, but I have found most doctors are not really familiar with this problem.

Giving up wheat is not as difficult as it sounds. I make a killer wheat free brownie that people love! We have wheat free donuts, cookies, waffles, pancakes and all sorts of delicious meals. There are all sorts of tricks at keeping the cost down too.

So, if anyone reading this is intrigued, and wants to chat about it, let me know!

Comfort Food With a Flair

Well, this next week will be cooking crazy. I am barely able to navigate a path through my kitchen for all the supplies standing their ground. So, before I dive into the 10 events over four days I will update. The girls have gone back to school to face an even more grueling quarter. It's a good thing they love school. I am so proud of them both. I hope Katie somehow gets help hauling her 200 pounds of luggage off the train (seriously, I am not exagerating here). And thankfully Liz arrived safely at UCLA after driving a mere 80 miles per hour (where does she get her love of speed????).

So with them safely (?) off, I now need to focus on cooking, lots of it. I have realized the reason I love catering is because it is a legal adreneline rush. But I really do love cooking. I have decided that "comfort food with a flair" is my schtick. As I approach 50 this year, I don't ever want to grow stagnant. I love discovering new ways of dishing out comfort. I love to cook, I love to serve people, and get paid for doing what I love.

And I think I might have found the area for my bed and breakfast. The Amador, Oroville area. Anyone know some acreage and vines that are crying out for a new life? All I ask is that the land wants to give of it's fruitfulness, it be a place where spirits can be renewed, and much love and laughter can dwell there. Oh, and it comes cheap! I have a dream.......

Christmas Outside The Box

Gifts come in all shapes and sizes. But for me, the best ones don't usually come in boxes, and rarely have a physical size. For many years my children have asked me what I want for Christmas. And my response always was/is, "Just your love." When they were little, they were happy with that response because, of course, they had no money. So they would make cards and wrap unwanted toys and put them under the tree for me. But somewhere along the way, they started thinking their love wasn't enough. And that store bought presents were better. But I guess it takes being a mom to really understand how MUCH we consider the love of our children a gift. They don't owe us love. It truly is a gift.

This season has been crazy for us. Since Thanksgiving there has been for me two lunch jobs, one extended family dinner, one fancy catered dinner for 32, and a wedding for 250. The girls finished their finals at UCSB and UCLA just two weeks before Christmas, and started working at Mervyns so haven't been available to help much except at the wedding. This in addition to all my regular jobs. Oh and construction work going on here for a few days (including the cleanup). SO many gifts. Money enough to pay bills and buy Christmas presents. Wow. Wonderful but crazy.

But still, with all the work available, 3.86 and 3.91 GPA's for the girls, a beautiful tree, good food, family and good friends (the N's stopped with presents an gave me a gift certificate to the spa!), a warm house, health and I could go on and on, the second greatest gift is the love of my children. Oh we have our fights and disagreements, but we love each other. And as much as the kids might fight with each other, they love each other fiercely. They might be too young to realize it yet, but they do.

This year, I feel the hand of God's blessing heavy upon me. He has been good to us in 2005. This season I have been reflecting on where we have come in the last five years. I hope to write about it soon, mostly to remind myself of God's goodness to me, and to remind the kids of what an awesomel and loving God we have the privilege of calling Father.

And that is the greatest gift of all. Jesus came to the earth, born of a virgin, grew in wisdom and stature, healed the crippled, weak and sick, and taught God's wisdom and truth. And according to God's eternal plan, was crucified and died for the sins of those who would trust in Him. He bore the wrath and punishment we deserve. But it didn't end in the grave. He rose from the dead, because death did not have victory over him, and because of this we can have eternal life through him. The offer is extended to all. It is a gift, offered freely. There is nothing we can do to earn a gift, it is free by its very nature. And we are reconciled to God, through Jesus, God's gift to us. And to think, it all began with the love of a Father and the love of the Son....

So setting aside ALL the terrible things about this time of year, the frenzy, the stress, the mess, the wayyyyyyy too busy schedule, and the fact that Jesus most likely wasn't born at this time of year, it is wonderful to reflect on the good gifts we have all year. The ones that come outside the box......

So Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night. And Liz, Katie, Mike and Josh, your love is still, the very best gift you ever give me.

Home Team - 1, Washing Machine - 0

There isn't a lot I hate more than paying someone way too much to do a simple job. Two or three times before I have been able to fix the washing machine, once with the help of an engineering friend who hot wired the washer until the part I ordered online arrived. It's amazing what you can do with a paper clip. Of course, we all avoided the big loop of wire attaching the paper clip to the washer. Funny, no one wanted to test the strength of the current running through there.

But I digress. So, today, when I went to throw the current cleanings into the dryer, I noticed the dirty water still in there. Ugghhh. Why did it have to be their hole digging clothes that were in there at the time? I played with the switches and of course, it was nothing simple like an out of balance load. I suspected a belt from the sounds and action, but it came from mostly ignorance of how machines work.

You gotta love the web. Within a few seconds, I had, at my fingertips, all sorts of great advice about how to repair my washing machine. One site said it good be a clogged drain pipe. Pulled it out of the wall and, NO, lol, it wasn't a clogged drain pipe as water started pouring out of it. Then, as I was fussing with some stuck sock underneath the washer, I noticed a belt on the floor. I called Mikey, who sees way better than me and whose fingers work way better, and within 5 seconds, the belt was back on, and I had a working washing machine! I would have been VERY unhappy to pay someone at least $60 to fix that. Woo hoo.

I think I'll run a load of wash. Maybe even two . Just be without a washing machine and have LOTS of kids running around and you will know how exciting running washes can be. And yes, I realize it is Friday night at 7:00 pm. I have no life, but I do love the life I don't have. Especially when I have just beaten a broken washing machine. Well, team work beat a broken washing machine. Thanks Mikey and Josh!