What happens when..

You’ve only been allowed to have one child.

And when your precious child was born they forced you to be sterilized….

And then the unthinkable happens….

Pray for the people of China.

Thus says the Lord: “A voice is heard in Ramah, Lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted for her children, because they are no more.” Jer. 31:15

photo credits: AP and more from AP

This week in pictures…

sandwiched in by rain

funeral of a parish founder. Memory Eternal!

School

A long awaited privilege

warmth and books

outside fun

my son the tree frog

And a happy birthday to my dear daughter.

21 years old! I can’t believe it.

5 Things Meme

The friendly writer2b tagged me with this meme:

1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read the player’s blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

First off, I’m not following the rules.. because I don’t like to tag anyone. But, please let me know if you decide to join in.

What were you doing five years ago?

1. homeschooling 5 kids.
2. taking dd to and from tutors and realizing she needed more help than I could give her.
3. chasing an almost 2 yr old
4. hoping hubby’s big bonus would come through so we could take the family to Italy - it did.
5. completely unaware of blogging! (I stole this one, but it’s true!)

What are five things on your to-do list for today (not in any particular order)?

1. laundry.
2. take dd to swim lessons.
3. do more reading with youngest son.
4. visit a friend in the hospital.
5. call the paving company to set a date to start the job.

What are five snacks you enjoy?

1. Chocolate chip cookies
2. pistachio’s - off the shell please
3. hummus and Rye crackers
4. Low Carb Cheesecake (okay, that’s not a snack to YOU!)
5. Sun Chips (cheddar)

What five things would you do if you were a billionaire?

This is very tough - that is way too much money.

1. Start an orphanage - this has been something hubby and I have thought about for years
2. Go back to England.
3. Take the family and visit our oversea missionary friends for an extended time: Guatemala, Papua New Guinea, and Budapest.  This is another thing hubby and I have talked about for years.
4. Send each of the kids on an overseas missions trip.
5. Give it away.

What are five of your bad habits?

1. Spending too much time online
2. procrastination
3. not having a game plan
4. putting off my prayers until the house is very busy
5. eating things that make me ill (why do we crave the things that are bad for us??)

What are five places where you have lived?

now this will be very boring because I have lived in the same county all my life:

1. my parent’s home in Maryland
2. an apartment with a friend in Maryland
3. the “mouse house” with the same friend in Maryland
4. first home with hubby in Maryland
5. the “little yellow house” where 4 of our kids were born (in Maryland).

What are five jobs you’ve had?

1. house cleaner - this is very funny to most people in my family.
2. church secretary at church #1
3. Gov’t employee doing data-entry and teaching secretaries how to use that new fangled thing called personal computer
4. church secretary at church #2
5. homeschool mom

Again, let me know if you play along….

We met Tom Bombadil

At least that’s what hubby says…

On Saturday I took hubby out to meet with a local tree man. I had been calling around looking for “the tree”. No one carries it so I left a message with a wholesaler asking if he had them. He kindly called me back and we had a pleasant conversation. He explain that nurseries don’t carry the great white oaks because they don’t transplant well, but he had other oaks, just as nice he would be willing to walk around a show them to us. I asked “So you sell to the public?” His answer: “Occasionally, and I’ll make an exception for you.”

Wonderful!

So saturday we head into the thick of prime real etstate. I mean this is one of the most expensive zip codes in our area. But, off the beaten track, along a dirt road, is a farm with an old house. Right in the midst of McMansions and sprawling manicured lawns.  As were driving up in the misty rain through the lines of trees, both big and small, my husband is just smiling. “We’ve come to Tom Bomadil’s house!” he laughs.

“No, we’re not! And please don’t say that to him!!” That was my big mistake.

You must know that telling my rebel, quirky husband not to say something like that is almost a dare. Sigh.

We do have a pleasant time and I am also enchanted by the surroundings. This place breaths peace. The owner is a lover of trees (shouldn’t we be calling him an Ent then?). He proudly walks us through the property looking at his trees.

He takes us into the house, where he shows us the original three tree trunks that he has kept as beams when he built the house. I want to move in.

Then it comes… oh yes, my husband has been beaming the ENTIRE time we’ve been with this guy.

“Do you know Tom Bombadil?” An “ugh” comes from my lips.

“Why no, I don’t think I know him”, he answers. We’re saved! I deflect the conversation to something safer… he’s grown up in this county, he went to the same high school as my dad, he fondly remembers visiting my great-uncle’s hardware store in Bethesda as a kid. We finish up our sale and head out, my husband still beaming and singing the Tom Bombadil song under his breath. When we get home he excitedly tells the kids we’ve met Tom Bombadil. They’re at the age where they’re non-plussed by this information, but this does not deflate my hubby a bit.

The best part is: We get to go back next week and pick up our tree.

Old Tom Bombadil is a merry fellow;
Bright blue his jacket is, and his boots are yellow.

photo credit: Ladd Arboretum

The best Mother’s Day present - ever.

Happy Birthday to

my sweet 17 yr old

Falling off the List

I realized this morning that I’m reading two books that weren’t even on my Spring Reading Challenge list. Then I tried to remember, without success, what exactly was on my Reading Challenge list. So, off to the computer I went to check it out. What a surprise to discover that I have finished all but 3 choices. Those 3 I have decided not to finish/read anyway, so I guess I’m not really “off the list”.

I’ve begun reading these two books:

Portrait of a Lady is for book club in June and, clocking in at 600+ pages, I hope I’ll be able to finish it in time. We actually chose this book in April and I promptly forgot about it. Now I fear I may be a bit behind. However, I’m already finished about 80 pages and I’m hooked.

Mother Garvilia is a book recommended by fellow blogger, kristinsdottir. With a statement like “This book changed my life”, who could pass it up?? Since I don’t have a deadline I’m savoring each bit and reading slowly.

Its a rainy day today. A good day for a cup of tea and a good book.

A Thoughtful Meme

This comes from Michelle’s blog….

Outside My Window …there is lots of green.

***

I am thinking … getting school done with my 6 yr old.

***

I am thankful for … allergy medicine

***

From the kitchen … sounds of breakfast being made.

***

I am wearing … sweats and my favorite shirt.

***

I am creating … a garden that needs very little work.

***

I am going … to take my son to his last science class this year.

***

I am reading … Mother Gavrilla: Ascetic of Love.

***

I am hoping … to work on my pool today and finish a Russian film I started last week (after I do school of course).

***

I am hearing … The Harry Potter game being played.

***

Around the house …I have sleepers, students, and gamers.

***

One of my favorite things … dark mornings and prayers by candlelight.

***

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week[end]: watch a friend’s son, celebrate a daughter’s birthday, find the perfect tree for hubby, and watch Cranford.

***

Here is a picture thought I am sharing …

My creative son. That was his race car.

***

I don’t generally tag people, so if you’d like to join in the the Meme leave me a comment with a link to your blog.

Sunday Dinner

Earlier last week my oldest emailed me and said her boyfriend wanted to cook the family dinner this Sunday for their visit. She wondered if that would be okay?

Um… yeah..

It was very tasty and I enjoyed not having to make it.

A Walk with Jane Austen

About 10 pages into A Walk with Jane Austen I had a good belly laugh. I knew this was going to be a travel diary book but, unbeknownst to me, it was written by yet another love-starved, belly-button gazing writer trying to turn her life around. Sadly, this one did not live up to my expectations of a travelogue book to Jane Austen’s England. It turned out it was more about her trying to find a Christian husband and pining after one guy, whom she met and spent time with for one week of the trip. Perhaps I would have liked it more if I had not just finished Eat, Pray, Love. However, putting these books side-by-side there just wasn’t much of a comparison. The writing in A Walk with Jane Austen wasn’t nearly as captivating or interesting. During the first half of the book I felt like I was reading a 15 yr old’s personal diary, “Does he like me? Does he hate me? Should I wear the green skirt with my flip flops or the jeans?” The most embarrassing part is that writer is in her early 30s! She really appeared rather stunted in her maturity. I often wondered how different the book would have been if Ms. Smith had made the same commitment as the author of Eat, Pray, Love: no romantic involvements for one year while I get my life together. It just seemed like so much time was wasted on that one subject. In her defense, the writer was dealing with a mystery illness.

The book did have its good parts. I enjoyed the times she wrote about Jane Austen, her life, family and country. I loved learning more about Jane Austen, whom I know so little about. Having been to England myself, I was looking forward to getting back there through the pages of this book, but the author never really gave me a taste of England. I think the idea for this book was great, I just think it would have had a better in the hands of more mature author.

**One final note: Many people have had to endure my complaining about the choices ladies bring to both my book clubs. I usually rail against the fluffy and trite selections I’m forced to read, when the world is full of many excellent choices. Well, this book put me in my place because it was my own contribution to book club. Hopefully, I’ve learned to keep my judgments to myself next time.

Weekend photos & a musical link

I’m hoping this will work. It should be two slideshows from this past weekend. You should be able to pause one or the other. I hope this doesn’t crunch someone’s internet too badly.

These are from Holy Friday afternoon and Saturday morning:

Pascha 2008:

Finally, here is a recording of one of my favorite Paschal hymns. When I hear this song I think of a Cradle Orthodox lady I met at the parish ministries conference I went to last year. During a small group session we got on the subject of English being used in the services. She expressed how much she appreciated coming to an OCA parish where she could understand the service. She told us first time she heard “The Angel Cried” in English she just cried and cried because she’d been singing it all her life but had no idea what she was singing and didn’t know how lovely it was.

The Angel Cried

ht: to Matt for the song