Soup Recipes

Strawberry Soup by Sami

Strawberries
Peaches

Put them in a pot. Mix them. Turn the oven on.


Soup by Autumn

20 Tablespoons to put in the pot. Chicken broth with some Honeydue. with some eggs. then put it on the stove for 30 minutes!

(Punctuation and spelling exactly as she wrote it) =)

My husband and I couldn't stop laughing when I shared these with him tonight.

Once an Arafat Man: Good Reading!

Today I finished reading Once an Arafat Man by Tass Saada with Dean Merrill. It is Tass' biography/autobiography of his life. He was born in Palestine and then forced to move with his family and live as a refugee. He joined the Fatah and fought under Yasser Arafat. This book is his story--of both his life and his faith.

Last week, we watched the movie, The Kingdom. It was a powerful and frightening movie. As I read the first part of this book, I put Tass's story in the context of what was in that movie to help me picture what he did and what life was like for him. The first half of the book is very easy to read, not too gory or bloody in its description. It isn't especially engaging writing, but the first half does convey the story of Tass's life well. The second half is really what makes this book worth reading. There are a lot of interesting things to think about in the second half. Pg. 196-200 were particularly powerful to me. On page 197, there is a quote near the bottom that I think is worth pondering...

"The pattern of finessing the truth, of saying one thing but doing another, is epidemic in Middle Eastern politics. It explains why progress is often so excruciatingly slow. It also illustrates the desperate need on all levels, from high government halls to the common street, to speak honestly and accurately about one's intentions."

I think that right now the same could often be said about politics in the U.S., but I think that is a whole other kettle of fish and I don't know that in the U.S. we finesse the truth quite the way it is culturally acceptable to do so in the Middle East.

I appreciated Saada's description of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as well as what he believes are the reasons behind it. I think it would be good for every Christian to read this part of the book. I think it would give us all great deal of compassion for the Palestinians and understanding.

Last year, I read Jimmy Carter's second book about Palestine and Israel. It was very good (as was the first), but this book is different because it comes from an insider. Saada above all wants peace for all and truly wants to live out the Lord's command for us to Love One Another as God has loved us. This book is such a worthwhile read!

Please note... I was provided with this complimentary copy from Tyndale, but I would have read it on my own. If you want to understand the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, read Jimmy Carter's book Palestine: Peace, not apartheid and this book. The two books are different, but I think they compliment each other.

Random Thoughts for the New Year

I was cooking spicy black bean soup when I began to have a lot of random thoughts that I wanted to write down... So, here goes...

I miss the places I've been. I grew up out west and I didn't appreciate it as much as I wish I had. I miss Quaker Meadow Camp, going to USC football games, going to the Rose Parade each year, and In-n-out. I hope I will be able to help my children make the most of the experiences they have and help them learn to savor them. I never thought I'd end up living so far away that I wouldn't get to enjoy these things again and yet here I am. I miss those familiar things that I loved about my childhood.

Yet, of all the places I've lived, I loved Colorado the most. That was where I really felt like I fit. At the time, I lived there I never wanted to live in the South. Yet, the South is the second place I felt the most comfortable. I am thankful for the warmth and hospitality of the folks in the South. I learned to appreciate manners and politeness. I learned to write thank you notes...

Which leads me to my next random thought. I read a good quote yesterday in my Bible study that made me think about Christmas and learning to write thank you notes.

"In order for a gift to be truly given, it must be received. Without the recipient's acceptance and acknowledgment, the gift is, in effect, an offer."

Good food for thought... As I just typed it, I thought about how often we will offer to help a friend, but it isn't truly a gift until that friend takes us up on our offer and then we are able to give. There are many gifts that are given without expecting a response in return, but it is the response or thank you note that tells us what they meant to the other person.

I am looking forward to writing thank you notes with the girls this week as we get back into homeschooling. Growing up out West, thank you notes weren't common practice, but they were in the South. Even though I miss the West a lot, I'm thankful that I've had the chance to live in different places and learn from each place I've been.

Very Funny Chick Flick Clip...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/permalink/m3TQ7D9KX5Y3ZY
We watched this clip last night on Amazon. It really was funny. It's from a movie called He's Just Not that Into You. I didn't want to want to watch it when it came out because of the title. I just didn't think I'd like it. But, it turned out that I loved it. There is definitely a lot of language I could do with out and a few scenes (hold onto the remote), but I LOVED the end! In the middle, my husband (who I actually got to watch it with me and he enjoyed it) turned to me and asked me if it did end okay. I told him--yes--the end is my favorite part.

A few weeks ago, while mired down amidst taking care of the kids, Molly, our house, and my husband, I was just getting through each day. My husband came home and told me about how he had related the story of our engagement/proposal/dating to a gal and I could tell that he (and the gal) thought it was a great story. At the time, I couldn't see it. It didn't seem particularly romantic to me, just pretty normal, I suppose.

But, I watched the end of this movie and there is a scene that is very romantic and genuine and it made me feel the way my husband did when he told our story about when he proposed to me and about our engagement. That was a blessing to me.

I can't give a blanket recommendation on the movie without warning you that there really is a lo of bad language in it (not really much more than other movies these days though) and there are a few sex scenes, but they don't show much. But, if you've seen it or if you do see it, I'd be really curious to know what you think about it.

Either way, watch the clip, you'll really laugh!

Several things on my heart, but...

My kids are all sick, so I can't write all that I had hoped to today.

There were 2 main things that struck me today. The first is from my Bible study this morning. I just started Becoming a Woman of Faith by Cynthia Heald and it was interesting the connection that the passages I was to read helped me realize. The passages were from the Gospels and were about how Peter saw Jesus walking on the water and walked out to him, but then doubted when the wind came up, the second was about Thomas refusing to believe Jesus was alive unless he saw Him himself, and the third was when Jesus was in the boat sleeping and the disciples woke him because of the storm. The question about the passages was what did the disciples do and what was the consequence/result of that. I struggled with the consequence part, but then I realized as I reflected on the third passage that the disciples were putting their trust in Jesus--who they could see and not God. So, they cried out to Jesus to save them instead of having faith that God would. And Jesus speaks to Thomas about how those who believe but have not seen will be blessed.

I realized that perhaps the disciples in each story were putting faith in what they could see rather than what they could not. I kept thinking about this. In their case, it was putting their faith in Jesus who they could see, rather than God the father--who they could not. In my case, I can put my faith in myself who I can see rather than God's faithfulness. Often, I rely on myself rather than trusting God. It can be easier to trust myself or others that I can see rather than God who I cannot. This was eyeopening to me this morning when I realized what the disciples had done and what it means to have faith.

Cynthia Heald includes several quotes which were wonderful and one of the other readings was Psalm 77 (I think) in which Asaph cries out to the Lord in his distress and then remembers and contemplates God's faithfulness in the past and all that He had done. It is by focusing on the truth of our convictions and the things we know to be true that we dispel doubt.

The second thing I've been thinking about today has been a much sadder part of life... This part is a bit of sensitive matter.

I reviewed a book for Amazon yesterday called Great Answers to Difficult Questions about Sex http://www.amazon.com/Great-Answers-Difficult-Questions-About/dp/1849058040/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262138760&sr=8-1 I write my reviews as Anne from Baltimore. If you have time, would you read my review and affirm what I wrote if you agree with me? The more I thought about this book, the more it concerned me and the things that are taught in this book.

People ask me a lot why we homeschool and one of the reasons is what is taught in the schools. This book brought all of that back to me. The book didn't take a stand in any way that kids shouldn't have sex--simply that they can once they hit puberty. I would understand if this was a science book, but it isn't valueless. There are morals being advocated in this book.

There was something I read in a great book by Dr. Paul McHugh in his book called The Mind Has Mountains. He was relating the story of a doctor who discussed with him his job--which was to take out perfectly good body parts that people didn't want because they wanted to be the other sex. The doctor told Dr. McHugh something that I have come to feel is more and more wise--that "Just because we can do something (in this case medically) doesn't mean we should".

I think that definitely applies to a lot of things talked about in this book.

For example, just because 11 year olds can have sex, doesn't mean they should.
Just because two five year old boys want to undress and play doctor doesn't mean they should.
Just because a 7 year old girl wants to touch her doll inappropriately doesn't mean she should.
I could go on, but I don't think I need to. I think that pretty much gives you the idea of the perspective of the author of this book.

What makes me most concerned about all of this is that at first I read it and it didn't seem so bad. But, then as I mulled it over, it was like big red flashing warning lights started going off. I thought about the authors definition that good touches are touches you like and bad touches are ones you don't and realized that that's a dangerous definition--especially putting those in light of the stories from the book that I just mentioned.

Well, it is time to go to bed. I have 3 sick kids and I'm low on sleep, but these things were burdening my heart.

The Sweet By and By...

My last post was a quote that I read in this book and one that I thought was really good. I've finished it now and I did enjoy the rest of the book...

I enjoyed this book because it caused me to reflect on my own childhood and my responsibility for my decisions and who I am. But, let me back up a moment. This story is about Jade Fitzgerald who owns a vintage shop in a small town and is about to get married. She has significant baggage but is about getting married. She and her fiancee had decided that they would let the past be the past and not dig into each other's baggage or dredge up the past. But, Jade isn't able to avoid this because of several circumstances in the weeks leading up to her wedding. The story flows smoothly and easily. It is interesting and I enjoyed the characters. There was only one major flaw for me but it has to do with how little attention her fiancee received and his baggage. It seemed very disproportionate.

I have noticed that in our society today we are reticent to take responsibility for our actions and it was such a refreshing and convicting part of this story for me as Jade does this. It caused me to think about my childhood and how my actions affect my own life.

Christian fiction today is much like this book. It fits well within its genre. It isn't the best book I've read, but it is an enjoyable read and it's one you could sit down with a cup of tea and a blanket with and settle in to read.