Tagged by CenterDownHome

If I were ...

... an ice cream flavor, I'd be Apple Mint. I read about Apple Mint ice cream in Redwall. They make it with mint leaves and real apples and real cream. I would love to get the Kitchenaid ice cream bowl for my mixer and then try this out. It sounds creamy, fresh, and yummy. Most people would crinkle their noses at it for its weirdness. Yup, that's me.

... a fried food, I'd be a Natchitoches Meat Pie. Never heard of it? I hadn't either until our honeymoon in New Orleans. It's a pastry crust filled with spiced ground meat (pork and beef), red and green peppers, onions, and stuff- then deep fried. Cajun, filling, and suprisingly compact.

... an extreme sport I'd be a house painter on a three story Victorian house in tornado season in Iowa. Yup. Done that. Doubt it is a sport? Try it and then get back to me. In fact, the season's coming up and I have extra paint brushes....

... a retail store, I'd be an antique and oddities store. Does that count? I could spend hours wandering the isles of places like that.

... a vegetable I'd be a kohlrabi. These little veggies are hardy, will grow almost anywhere, and look like they are from Mars. Yup, that's me!

... a fruit, I'd be a raspberry, still warm from the sunshine and wet from the morning dew. Not over ripe, just a little tart, and full of seeds.

... a building, I'd be an old historic stone church with twisting spires and hidden alcoves. I'm still exploring all of my own mysteries, faith, and beauty.

... car, I'd be a 1971 VW Super Beetle. Parts of the axle duct taped, high maintenance, good gas mileage, and really fun to drive.

Not tagging anyone, but I'd love to know some of these things about all of you!

Evolved

Today served as a reminder for me as to how far I've come.

10 years ago I thought breastfeeding a 1 year old+ was yucky, co-sleeping was dangerous, and the no vaccine crowd was a danger to our society. I was the one who made nasty comments in public about people who did these things.
10 years ago I preferred boxed food and felt a little sick even thinking about food from someone's garden let alone eating it.
10 years ago there was no way I was changing my name when I got married. Hyphenated maybe.
5 years ago I had a closet full of harsh cleaning chemicals that I used without gloves.
5 years ago I put down my pen and camera and pursued a career instead.
4 years ago I was still pretty sure that food labeled "organic" was a scam and it was the same food as the other but with a higher price.
4 years ago I was warned away from La Leche league when I probably could have used their support more than most.
4 years ago I trusted most advice anyone gave me.
4 years ago I didn't know how to change a diaper.
3 years ago I worked full time with a newborn baby in daycare 9 hours a day 5 days a week.
2 years ago I worked part time with an infant then toddler in daycare.
2 years ago I started to help in our garden and kitchen.

Now I prefer fresh food even over organic produce, even better picked right off the vine in my own back yard.
Now I understand what pesticides and hormones and preservatives in food did to my body.
Now I understand the importance of community and finding support for my choices.
Now I can change a diaper (though I have not in almost 2 years), kiss a boo boo, and change a load of laundry at the same time.
Now I work at home and not when I should be present for my family.
Now I question what we use as cleaning aids in our home and on our bodies. I am working to not have anything in our home that would kill us or our pets or our garden.
Now I seek out my own answers, co-sleep, breastfed a 2.75 year old who weaned herself, I vaccinate but question when it is necessary.
Now I homeschool.
Now I can cook to feed my family and understand the basics of kitchen chemistry and have only a 5% chance of starting a small kitchen fire.
Now I honor the commitment made to my husband and family by taking his name and making it my own.

It did not happen overnight. It did not happen upon the birth of my first daughter. It is still happening now. I am evolving into the mother and wife that I want to be and finding all the best parts of me once left abandoned. I am working towards gentleness for my family and myself.

Too Cool, Old School

Today is tax day for us, we gather up all of our many, documents and head off to an accountant. Life should be much simpler than it is, but alas. So, while celebrating the day we find out how much money we loaned to our government at a rate of 0% (ie, our refund), Lil'Bug asked us what taxes are.

???

I know what they are, but how do I explain to a three year old? So, my explanation was as follows: Mommy and Daddy give a lot of the money we work really hard for to some people. Those some people decide how best to use it; some of it builds roads, some pays for police and fireman, some helps pay for other kids to go to school, some helps "the sad babies"* get doctors and food, a lot pays for soldiers and wars, and a lot pays for the work that the some people do to decided all of these things. That's the sum of it.

* "the sad babies" are who we also donate clothes and toys and food to, she decided they must be really sad if their mommies and daddies can't get them clothes and food and toys.

She crinkled her nose at me. Thought about it for a bit and then responded, "I saw a fire once. We need firetrucks. I have too many toys anyway." Huh. Ok.

So since I was sharing our kitchen table wisdom, I thought I might also share our unexpected science lesson for the week:

"I want cheerios!" Lil'Bug can be a bit cranky, so imagine this as a grumbling demand and not a joyful shout.

"Ok, let me just get the milk," I said.

"No, I want cheerios with water."

???

"Yuck. No," said Daddy.

"Hmmm. Why not? Sure you can try it in a little cup," I pour a bit and put water on it.

Crunch. Pause.

"Mama, why is it yucky?"

"Milk is a colloidal suspension. Water is just a liquid. So, milk has all these tiny good things floating in it that make it harder for the milk to make the cheerios soggy but plain water doesn't. Make sense?"

She looked at me. She looked at the milk, "Cool. Old School." She opted for the bowl of cheerios with milk BUT only after she ate all of the contents of the small cup with cheerios and water.

Lessons learned- the science of liquid AND a lesson in parenting. What if I had just said, "No, yucky. Because we said so. Deal with it kid."? There was no harm in what she was asking to try. If she's asked to eat laundry soap, then I would have said no, but cheerios and water? Let her see for herself why we think it is yucky and explain to her a bit of science. No harm, LOTS of learning. As a bonus, her day was brightened up and she lost her case of the grumps. Discovery and joy can do that to a tot.

Technology Woes

It figures that when I finally make time to sit down and attend to my online classes, the college's network goes wonky and no one has access to anything. When will it be fixed? They don't even know what happened as of yet. I called about 5 minutes into the panic. The online classes AND campus email AND payroll are all gone according to the hyperventilating helpdesk guy. He's got it way worse than I do is my guess.

So what should I do with the time? It is not like it's a get out of jail free card since I will have to make time for the work later and that's a bugger. I am considering what I will have to do later and do it now so I can just switch the tasks and not get behind. Problem with that is I am all tuckered out and I use the sit down and grade as my physical down time. Argh.

Also, when will Blogger get the spell checker to work? EVER? They should just take the function down if it is never going to work again.