What We Are Up To

Today is Saturday and we are making this soup for lunch (and dinner). I am halving her recipe, though. And maybe the chard only for the adults.

Go-To Cookies

I know it's not good to use cake mixes because they are loaded with sugar and contain hydrogenated oil. But sometimes, like when Pavilions puts them on sale for 59 cents each, I cannot resist. And I have to make my favorite quick-cookie recipe.

You need a cake mix, a stick of butter, 2 eggs, vanilla and chips.

I like Betty Crocker dark chocolate cake mix. I take a stick of butter out of the freezer, melt it in a big microwave-safe bowl, and then let it cool (maybe 10 minutes).

So preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Take your bowl with the melted butter and crack two eggs into it. Pour in a little vanilla extract and scramble everything with a fork. Add your cake mix and mix it until combined, then add any type of chips you like (I used a combo of white and semi-sweet here - also yummy with butterscotch or toffee). Spray 2 cookie sheets and drop 20 cookies on each. Bake for 10-12 minutes. They should still be a bit soft when they come out, kind of like brownies.

I will take these to our homeschool co-op Christmas party tomorrow.

Fun Time Had By All

Yesterday afternoon we filed all schoolwork completed for the week and then decorated for Christmas. The lighted church is one of my favorite trimmings; I had a small amount of red thread left after a scarf and it was just enough for the church to rest upon. And though I don't much care for this hanging light the rest of the year, I feel differently when the snow angels make their home in it.

That evening we went to South Lake Avenue in Pasadena, which is one of my favorite spots. My mother used to work at the Bullock's (now a Macy's) that anchors the block, and lots of families frequent the shops and eateries in the evening (and there is not the frenetic-pace feeling you get in Old Town or in other venues).
For Christmas, The district is sponsoring local musicians to play by the Corner Bakery and Coffee Bean on three Friday nights, and last night was the first. We ate treats to the sounds of jazz, choral, and clarinets and came home to our Christmas tree, lighted church and snow angels. December has gotten off to a good start.

I had a neighbor who moved away maybe five years ago, and I still pray for her. She and her husband were an extremely successful couple with a young son and infant daughter. She was doing her obstetrics/gynecology residency and he was doing his in gastroenterology. We both had small children and would sometimes visit after one of her long shifts at USC County hospital. She dealt with very difficult cases at USC, at times involving drug-addicted, poor, battered women.

One day when I naively asked her if she performed abortions, she said with a sad, tired smile, "Well, this week was great. I killed two babies." She described a patient who had had 5 or 6 babies, and they did an abortion and a hysterectomy on her simultaneously. She described the procedure and the moving uterus vividly. It was hard to remain calm. I do not remember the other patient she described. As I probed, she expressed genuine discomfort with the whole procedure and seemed fully willing to acknowledge that abortion involved a moving, living baby. But it was all part of the profession and her religious beliefs did not prohibit her.

This interesting article by Chuck Colson brought her to mind.

In one of his books (I cannot remember now which one) Dallas Willard suggests that as you read the Bible, to the greatest degree that you are able, you put yourself into the shoes of the people in the stories. The Bible is powerful, but it is also far removed from us in time. This makes it come alive in the here and now and helps us apply it.

In that same vein, a leader of our homeschool group suggested the Chronicles of the Kings series by Lynn Austin. She and her teenage sons read them as they studied the kings of the Old Testament and she ended up using them for a book club. If you ever thought that Chronicles and Kings were the boring parts of the Old Testament, you will take another look after reading these books. Extremely powerful. Three more notes: 1) Pasadena Central Library carries them and I could not find them in the LA County system. 2) I do not think I would let my kids read until at least junior high. I was upset when we studied the Aztecs and Mayans - they've got nothing on the ancient Assyrians. 3) I have only read the first two so far.

From the author's website:

Chronicles of the Kings series
Following the lives and legacies of King Hezekiah and his son Manasseh, this series takes readers through the history, drama and promises of the Old Testament. Embracing God's law, following God's will, and growing in faith is easier said than done for the father and son. Three-time Christy Award winner Lynn Austin brings the Bible to life in her gripping historical novels.

1. Gods and Kings
2. Song of Redemption
3. The Strength of His Hand
4. Faith of My Fathers
5. Among the Gods

Thanksgiving Mantel

My kids make comments that communicate the following: Other homeschool moms do cool crafts; we never do creative projects; when can we use the glue and glitter you buy every year....

Well, I got the hint. My friend Suzie is wonderful with paper crafting and I got this garland idea from her. Very simple, and the kids helped with it. We actually got out the glue.:)

You need scrapbooking paper (regular thickness works better than cardstock) cut into 2 inch squares. (This is the most labor-intensive part of the project for a simple crafter. A big paper cutter probably used by serious scrappers was borrowed from my dad. He uses it for photos.) Lay out a piece of cotton string and glue the squares on point with the string in between (like a string sandwich). That is all there is to it.

I already bought a Christmas paper pack from JoAnne and am looking forward to a garland with reds and greens. And I think I will make it longer than this, maybe to go over the door.

45th

Today was my parents' 45th anniversary and we all went to Northwoods Inn for lunch to celebrate. I feel so very thankful for their continued involvement and support in my life and for their decades of faithfulness to one another.

The marriage of Jerry and Pat Jambazian, imperfect as all marriages must be, has taught me that you make it work. You stay - you don't leave - and you make it work.