My Misconception of Music

When I was little I went to church two times a week: On Sunday I had church and Sunday School, on Wednesday I had Choir Practice. Later on there was communion class, and Confirmation.

It was a very traditional church. The hymns sang in church were typical; unlike the contemporary churches, and services.

I remember singing How Great Thou Art. As a kid I loved that song! Why? Because it had art in it. It was talking about how great art is. How could I not like it? LOL I didn't really understand the, "Then sings my soul, my savoir God to thee..."

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The adults I went to church with loved Go Tell it on a Mountain. It was pretty catchy, and a strong song. As a kid I pictured Julie Andrews in Sound of Music. She escaped the Nazi regime by hiking through the mountains.

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Another song I loved was Onward, Christian Soldiers. It to was a strong song. Heavy voices from the church bellowed, and echoed in the church. Men sang this song stronger than most. The low notes were more accommodating to them; compared to the other songs. I loved it because the song to me was about the green plastic toy soldiers I saw some of the boys in my class play with. They were marching to war.

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This post is in no way bashing church, or religion. It's truly my thoughts as a child.

He Thinks I'm a Vampire

Isaak came in to see me and said, "Mom I have a mouth guard just like you."

He was wearing his vampire teeth upside down.

WW: Catapult Wars {linky}

We got the boys put it together yourself catapults, to keep them occupied at Grandma and Grandpa Apel's house.

Mica was inspired during a William Gurstelle's talk on The Art of the Catapult.

The boys have continued their catapult wars at home.

Isaak at war.

Mica at war.

PBS Computer Games

Grandma and Grandpa Apel are getting rid of stuff. They bought a 1992 home on wheels and are moving to Southern California in the fall. We came home with an old laptop for the boys to type on, and play learning games online, an ironing board, which is better than the one I had, a blender, a small end table, some stuff Daddy picked out of their garage and he collected his old artwork that was hanging in their hallway.

Playing PBS games on Grandpa Apel's computer.

Isaak and Mica got a tour of their "new" 1992 home. Grandma Apel said to Mica, "What did you think? Was it as sparkly as you thought it would be?"

Mica said, "Well not really. It really looked out of date to me."

We all laughed. It's a good thing that they understand the kid's - no filter in their talk. If you ask them something, they'll give you the answer they are thinking.

Now if I could just get them to shut up about the foods that they don't prefer. Isaak in particular said, "This is gross! I don't want to eat this!" I had to shhhhh!!! him a few times. The odd thing about our kids is that they prefer salads and raw veggies over cooked ones. They look suspiciously at casseroles. They like fresh fruits. The canned pineapple didn't go over well. They aren't picky eaters to me. I'm used to what they eat though. I've heard that some kids won't eat a single veggie.

The Amish Community

One of my favorite things I did with Grandma and Grandpa Apel was when we visited the Amish community.

I explained that we just need to get out of the house once during the day. It's not to get away from them. They have two cats. I'm really allergic. The boys need time to run, or just get away. In school they have recess. They live in a small town, so there's not a lot to do.

The first day we went to the exciting Walmart. The second day we planned on going to the Y. I had forgotten that I've always wanted to go to an Amish Community that was near by. I remember Grandma Apel talking about going there before.

So we went. Out of respect for them I did not take pictures, but I so wanted to.

I prepped our boys for the adventure we were about to take.

On our way we saw one man riding a buggy. Isaak kept insisting he was on the Little House on the Prairie, and it was Doc Baker riding that buggy.

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We saw live stalk everywhere. I said the cows looked fluffy, and healthy. They probably aren't pumped full of antibiotics and growth hormones.

We passed this same school.

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We also passed many of these structures that held dried corn.

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Mica kept pretending that we were going back in time. Like we were in Back to the Future.

One store had a hand written sign outside that, "Please dress modestly."

We wanted to go in a cheese store, but it was closed. Into the general store we went.

I bought all this stuff:

Milk Strike

Isaak's in the midst of a milk strike.

I'm not really worried about it. A lot of what I read about milk these days isn't positive. I question the, "Helps your bones, so you can grow." bit.

We're one of the only species out there that drinks from another source. The process is pretty gross: Over squeezed utters. Not to mention the antibiotics, and hormones that are put into the milk. If you buy organic, is it really organic? I question that to. I bought local milk in a glass container, and Isaak thought the milk was gross. What's a Mom to do?

Mica will drink almond milk, but only the original, or sweetened kind. I'd love to buy unsweetened almond milk. I just can't convince the little ones to drink it.

I think all milks on the market are heavily processed; no matter what kind you choose to drink. The milk that isn't cow's milk is said to have dangerous levels of carrageenan in them. To be honest I didn't even know what carrageenan was. It's a processed thickener. Apparently it's bad. It's in rice milk, almond milk, and soy milk.

Here we were on a trip, and Isaak would not drink his milk in his thermos. I'm not the type that likes to throw stuff away. So I got something fun on our trip.

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When one drinks with these straws it turns the milk into a subtle chocolate flavor. It's not as strong as putting chocolate syrup in the milk. I don't like the idea of adding chocolate, or sugar to milk, but these are less sugar that adding old fashioned chocolate syrup. I told the boys that this was just fun for the trip. It's not a regular thing I'm going to buy.

They drank their milk up.

Now that we're home I'm going to give milk a break. I'll push water instead.

About their bones growth, they eat a lot of foods with calcium in them. Here are 12 foods that are loaded with calcium:


1. Soybeans 

Cooked, a cup of soybeans can offer a whopping 175 mg of calcium to your diet. These veggies can be used in a wide variety of dishes.

2. Okra 

A cup of cooked Okra delivers 172 mg and is great fried, boiled, or served alongside pretty much any meat.

3. Almonds 

One ounce of almonds (23 nuts) has 75 mg. Enjoy by the handful or in your favorite salads. You can even sprinkle them on chicken while it’s being cooked to infuse your whole dish with almond-y goodness!

4. Collard Greens 

A cup of boiled collard greens has 266 mg, and have much the same function in cooking as lettuce. Try substituting collard greens for lettuce the next time you can, and you’ll be getting your calcium!

5. Oranges 

A half-cup of oranges contains 52 mg and is, as you'd expect, delicious in almost anything from salads to fruit bowls.

6. Spinach 

A cup of boiled spinach has 245 mg. It makes a great side dish for many meals, and in its raw form can be substituted for lettuce on sandwiches and in salads.

7. Kelp 

One cup of raw kelp has 136 mg. While eating seaweed doesn’t immediately present itself as a normal thing to do, those in the know have discovered that this surprisingly flavorful vegetable is high in a variety of nutrients, including calcium.

8. Broccoli 

Two cups of boiled broccoli have 124 mg. Fairly common vegetable, but rarely praised for its high concentration of useful nutrients like calcium, broccoli has recently come into vogue as a wonderful food with all kinds of health benefits.

9. Blackstrap Molasses 

One tablespoon has about 137 mg. By using blackstrap molasses to bake certain kinds of bittersweet foods, you can take advantage of its high concentration of calcium.

10. Sesame Seeds 

A quarter cup of sesame seeds has 351 mg calcium, and are delicious when sprinkled on chicken, fish, or just by the handful.

11. Brazil Nuts 

Two ounces of Brazil nuts (12 nuts) have 90 mg. In addition to the expected protein, Brazil nuts in particular are high in calcium and can be added to salads or main dishes, or just enjoyed by the handful.

12. Celery

Two cups of raw celery have 81 mg. By combining celery with peanut butter, you can indulge in a delicious, flavorful snack that helps fill your daily quota of calcium and protein. Vegetables rarely are seen in connection with nutrients like calcium, especially with the overwhelming popularity of milk in this regard. However, for those who don't like milk, are lactose intolerant, or are simply looking for a different way to get their daily nutrients, these vegetables and others are a good place to start.

The boys get spinach just about every morning for breakfast. They love oranges, broccoli, celery, and nuts of all kinds - almonds are consumed the most in our house.

What are your feelings on milk? Do you drink it? What kind do you drink?

It's 2014

Now what?

I'm not the type that makes New Years Resolutions. I sometimes make small goals, and hope that I keep them, but I do this all the time, weather it's New Years, or not.

Here are my recent goals. You can call them New Years Resolutions if you want.

1. I want to do more arts and crafts with my kids. They enjoy the Lowes Clinic, so I'm thinking we should do more project like they do there at home. Isaak in particular loves building, creating and crafting. I bought him some new clay for Christmas. We have scratch board kits. We bought DIY Catapult sets to keep the kids busy at Grandma and Grandpa Apel's house.


2. Keeping things cleaner. It's sounds easy enough, but isn't. I work full time, so it's hard keeping things as clean as I'd like. Papers accumulate! It's easier with Daddy home on the weekends. Last weekend I washed all the bedding, and drapes. This weekend I rearranged the baking cupboard. One step at a time.


3. I want to continue trying new foods. This is a goal I set awhile ago. I've tried a lot of new recipes, foods and restaurants in 2013. I want to keep it up. Sometimes I just need to try the foods cooked/served differently when I don't like them. Example: I'm not a fan of avocados plain, but I love them mixed into salads, and smoothies.


4. I want to keep going to the Y. This to isn't anything new. I say this because many people start going, then stop. It's a good thing to keep up.


5. I want to keep putting my school handouts into a different program. Once this is done it's done. There will be minor changes, but it will feel good to have the bulk done! I have a semester to go! 

What are some of you goals?

I Went Out of Town, Now I'm Back

We went to visit Grandma and Grandpa Apel. It's about a 5 hour drive. It took us 7 1/2 hours to get there. It was snowing. It wasn't slippery, but the powdery snow was blowing everywhere. That made it hard to see. Daddy decided to go a different way. Ideally it was a great decision because there was less traffic. It ended up being more difficult because there was a ton of no passing zones. We had a snow plow in front of us doing nothing, but blowing a white dust behind them, and in front of us.

We ended up having to call Grandma and Grandpa Apel to opt out of lunch, and ate at the crappy McDonald's that served no salads, and had the opposite service of fast food.

Mica kept asking, "When are we going to get there?" We of course couldn't answer that. He was unusually our more whiny kid on the trip there.

We did finally make it.

I'm behind in blogging, but will get caught up. I have some winners to pick for some giveaways that ended.

Random Tid Bits

1. Mica was in the bathroom for 5 minutes with the door closed. Travis said, "Mica are you almost done brushing your teeth?" Mica said, "I haven't started. I was too busy looking in the mirror." What is he going to be like when he's a teenager?


2. Mica and Isaak have been into dancing. They make themselves laugh when they watch each other dance. I'm pretty sure Mica was dancing, and watching himself in the mirror. We got stopped at the store the other day. A man said to me, "Your boy's should enter a dance competition. It's my every day world, so I didn't find it as amusing as he did.


3. I went to the dentist the other day. I have one sister that loves the dentist, and another that hates it. I don't love it. I don't like it either. I think it's crazy that I along with many others go to the dentist more than we go to the doctor. Dentists take x-rays more than doctors to. Our teeth are just a small part of our whole body. I've never had a cavity until I skipped going to the dentist. I'm not about to start skipping it. 


4. Isaak's so cute! He told Grandma, I love those things! Mom loves those things to. Daddy and Mica hate them though." What was he talking about? Pomegranates. I think they are tasty!





5. Mica has a friend that moved. They were buddies. Mica insisted on writing him at Christmas time. He thought for sure that this kid would write him back. Well he hasn't. His Mom called, and they are in town, and taking Mica to the Amazing Pizza Machine today! Mica is happy about that. He still wants a Pen Pal. If you know someone that is interested in being a Pen Pal (old school) let me know. Mica WILL write them back. Even if postage is going up another 3 cents.

What's Your Favorite Board Game?

I have two favorite board games: Scrabble and RummiKub. I like them because they are games filled with thinking. Daddy said to me, "Why do you like those games so much?" I said, "Because they work the brain, and they're fun." The types of games I like help reduce Alzheimer's and Dementia. I say this, but my Grandma played thinking games all the time, and still got Alzheimer's. I still can try, and keep my brain active.

I'm not good at Scrabble. In fact I loose almost every time to Daddy.

I still enjoy playing the game because it's a challenge.

Growing up I loved RummiKub. Have you ever played that?

Great Aunt Becky introduced us to the game. Great Grandma Kent loved to play it with us. I grew up playing with the leather case, and all. Fancy I know. Now I have a cheaper set, and it's just not the same. If you like playing cards, you'll love playing RummiKub. This is one game I'm great at. If you've never played, I wish I could teach you the strategies. I'm the Queen of putting the game in total disarray, and being able to put it back together again.

Travis and I taught Mica how to play RummiKub the other night. I should have helped Mica. I bet then he would have won. ;) Daddy was his right hand man. Daddy is great at Scrabble, but I can kick his butt in RummiKub.

Mica still needs help, but he's getting the game.

Where was Isaak? In bed. The little curious punk decided to have a bubble bath in the sink. We've told him before that he only needs 1 squirt of soap. Somehow my soap dispenser has to be filled up a lot! He filled the sink with enough soap to cover his whole body. I know we should be happy that he's at least washing his hands. We didn't get on him too hard. It was pretty close to his bedtime, so off to bed the little tike went. RummiKub is for ages 8 and up anyhow. If he were up, he'd help me with my hand.

What board games do you like?