So my New Year's Resolution was to take life slower and I have often complained here that I can't seem to slow down life. There are so many good things to choose from, and I want my boys to have such good experiences, the best I can provide, and there are so many people I can help, and...And the year is halfway gone. I had a really good idea for the homeschool group I am in, and asked permission to start it. The idea would require little of me and so I was prepared to jump headfirst into it. But something inside has continued to stop me. Today my reading was about a simpler life. Knowing how to say yes and no. Being in God's Presence even amid the hustle of life; I know that I get more tense and stressed and away from the Presence the more I endeavor to do. The question Thomas Kelly put out was, "Do you really want to be in the Presence? Do you really want to slow down? Because you can always make time and a way for what you really want." Boy did that hit hard! So I have definitely decided to wait until next semester to think about starting the new program. Perhaps having the extra children a little less, as the youngest starts school this winter, will allow me a little more breathing space. Being done with the big 4-H trip will help, too. My husband suggested only doing music one semester and art the next, instead of trying a year of both. I will learn how to slow down, even if it is slowly.

An excerpt from A Testament of Devotion: "And an immediate corollary to this is the weakening of the merely calculated, rationally planned decisions. When we lived in the one-dimensional time-ribbon we had to think life out all by ourselves. The past had to be read cautiously, the future had to be planned with care. Nothing was to be undertaken unless the calculations showed that success was to be expected. No blind living, no marching boldly into the dark, no noble but ungrounded ventures of faith. We must be rational, sensible,intelligent, shrewd. But then comes the reality of the Presence, and the Now-Eternal is found to underlie and generate all time-temporals. And a life of amazing, victorious faith-living sets in. Not with rattle and clatter of hammers, not with strained eyebrows and tense muscles but in peace and power and confidence we work upon such apparently hopeless tasks as the elimination of war from society, and set out toward world-brotherhood and interracial-fraternity in a world where all the calculated chances of success are very meager." I hope Condoleeza Rice knows about this.

I don't want to be an environmentalist. They dress weird, cause economic trouble, have a superior attitude and a doomsday aura, and they hug trees. But as time goes on I realize I am an environmentalist. I don't want to eat foods grown with chemicals or that have been genetically engineered to travel well and look pretty on a shelf. I don't want my children to go through puberty early because the cows have been fed steroids. I want my meat to actually be meat only. I want to breathe deeply of clean, fresh air. I want my grandchildren to have a good, green Earth. I read a good article in the August 2006 National Geographic called "A Deeper Shade of Green". It is written by, YIKES!, an environmentalist. He talks about carbon fuels being what enables a country to grow economically, but also being what causes global warming and pollution. What if we were to rethink our ideals? What if we lived in smaller homes, drove less, and ate local foods? Environmentalism has to "transform itself into something so different that the old name really won't apply. It has to be about a new kind of culture, not a new kind of filter; it has to pay as much attention to preachers and sociologists as it does to scientists; it has to care as much about the carrot in the farmers market as it does about the caribou on the Arctic tundra. That's what the printouts on atmospheric concentrations tell us, and it's a message echoed by the researchers studying happiness and satisfaction. We don't need a slightly rejiggered version of the world we now inhabit; we need to start working on changes on the scale of the problems we face." So what am I doing about it? I am trying to grow food with compost. I recycle as much as possible and try to buy only what I need. I raise chickens. I hope to milk goats. I make my own bread. I try to reserve my driving for one day. I hang laundry on the line and only mow the grass when you can't walk through it anymore. I guess I have become an environmentalist, but I refuse to dress weird!

I was told yesterday at church that the boys and I look like zombies. I said you would too if you had been through what we had. It was a wonderful vacation, but very full and lots of late nights visiting. Then the boys were sick and then when we got back we had to go again! The 4H club met at a lake in Raleigh and spent Friday. It was a lot of fun with lots of floating toys, pedal boats, and a huge slide called The Beast. After that the boys went to a sleepover for a friend's birthday. So by the time Sunday came we were pooped! I went shopping yesterday for a dress for hubby's 20 year high school reunion. I found a cute little black number with some black heels. Hubby said they'll wonder what kind of preacher's wife I am! As it only took 2 hours from leaving the house to being back I felt like the shopping went well. Shopping is not my favorite pasttime. Today we stay home to get caught up on lots of things. I picked my pumpkins yesterday since some bug is ruining them, so today I cook/can pumpkin. I also have to pay bills and make sure everything is ok in the money dept. A friend is coming to play with the boys. And I may try to hang laundry between rain drops. At least it is raining, there wasn't any while we were gone for 10 days! When all of that is done I will sit down and figure out how to slow down my life this year.

Here are some more thoughts about Canada. It looks very American; Wal-Mart, McDonald's, Toys-R-Us, same gas stations, even 7-11! Other things do not look American: speed limit 100 (km per hour), QEW (Queen's Express Way), flowers, flowers everywhere. Evidently it upsets Canadians to have someone suggest they are another America, but they don't have much an identity of their own. They are doing a great job trying to eliminate waste. Packaging of products is less. Milk comes in plastic bags. Food and paper are composted by the city. Recycle everything you can! You are given one trash bag per week per family, use it wisely. The letter z is pronounced "zed". It is difficult to find a doctor. They like some strange candy- coffee flavored, ugh. Border crossguards are just doing their job, not very friendly even if you give a happy good morning. They really like, no love, Tim Horton donuts. There is one on every corner! I wonder what their impressions of Americans is? _______________________ Went to breakfast with my husband this morning to a Mennonite restaurant. We were commenting on the women wearing dresses, partly because they are not to wear men's clothing, but partly because they think pants will cause a man to lust. My husband wondered if we should tell them skirts do more for him than slacks!

We made it back yesterday evening. It was a wonderful trip. I thank God for the blessing of safety on the entire trip, hassle-free security and crossings, and absolutely fabulous visits with old friends. We stayed up late so many nights to talk that I need a vacation of napping to catch up on my rest! First we went to Philadelphia. My friend there has nearly grown children and when we met they were in K and 3 grades! I can't believe how old everyone else gets while I stay so young. J.D. has a dog and the boys had fun playing with her. They also enjoyed the hot tub outside in the evenings. We spent the first afternoon looking over the little suburb we lived in when the boys were born. They got to see where the apartment was, the train station, park, their first library...#1 said he would like to live there again. As for tourism we saw: Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, Christ's Church (where Washington, Franklin, and others went to church), Franklin's grave, the mint, Washington Square- a memorial to Revolutionary soldiers, Betsy Ross's house, a museum on Franklin and the Franklin Institute. We ate the local Philly Cheesesteaks (#1 liked them a lot) and water ices and gelattis (which everyone loved). We left there to go to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island for a morning. Highlights there were riding the ferry across the harbor, going up in the pedastal of Lady Liberty to "look up her dress" ( you can no longer go all of the way up in her), and imagining what it would be like to arrive as an immigrant at Ellis Island. One account of a Russian was that they only knew uniforms as something to fear and they did not speak the language. So when they arrived to uniformed doctors, train attendants, workers, police, etc. they feared everyone and wondered what they had gotten into. We looked for family names on the wall, and found some common surnames, but our people have been here since the Revolutionary War so we don't imagine being related to them. Then we moved on to Canada. That was all in one day- leave Philly, go to Liberty Island, drive to Canada- a long day to be sure. We had no trouble crossing the border and very little trouble finding our friends. MapQuest is great! My friends have 2 more children since last we met and the first 2 are quite grown up, so we had a lot of catching up to do. The kids hit it off right away and that made the visit even more enjoyable. #2 had planned to pack his snow boots for Canada, but was glad he didn't when it was a heat index of 112 degrees! Highlights were: Niagara Falls and riding the Maid of the Mist (which is much more a rainstorm than a mist!), watching huge ships go through the Welland Canal lock and dam, and riding an antique carousel for 5 cents a ride. Yes, I said 5 cents a ride! We even got to go put our feet in Lake Ontario. Very Cold! We wanted to do Canadian things as we had done Philadelphia things so my friend introduced us to the culture too. They eat fries from stands like we get ice cream or hot dogs, she sent home their candies which we will try today as a family, and maple syrup. Canada is the world's largest producer of maple syrup. Then we dropped by WV to see the grandparents and then headed home. Both boys picked up a bug on the way home so I guess they were vacationed out. They were able to tell the grandparents a lot of what they did and learned, as well as the fun they had, so I think it was a great vacation and experience. Now back to work getting this place in shape!

I am preparing to leave town for an extended trip of site-seeing and friendship renewal. The boys and I are leaving tomorrow for Philadelphia and then on to Canada. I know that I am excited for the boys to see where they were born and to look at some very important historical and national landmarks, but I am also excited to see my friends. They are the kind of friends that you can not see for many years and then just pick up again as if no time has passed. God has blessed me with many of those friendships. Yesterday I went to a homeschool conference and then hubby and I went on a date. A friend babysat for us. We will exchange the babysitting next month when she celebrates a wedding anniversary. I have a feeling she will be one of those pick-up friends. --------- Joke from the movie A Prairie Home Companion: Did you know diarrhea is hereditary? It runs in your genes! I also liked:Why do they call it PMS? Because Mad Cow Disease was already taken! I recommend the movie as a blend of humor, tenderness, friendship, and family.

It is amazing to me that a guy in 1941 was writing about the fevered pace of life in America! That was what my devotional reading in Thomas Kelly's book was today. Boy do I ever feel it, too!!! I am trying to get everything done so I can leave town for a while and it is running me into the ground. I am wondering if the trip is going to be worth it. I have been in the garden a lot lately in the mornings, thus the fewer blog posts. Today was a much cooler/lower humidity day. I was able to finish the hoeing and spread lime and fertilizer. I gave in to the fertilizer. I was trying so hard to raise a garden without anything but organics, but I don't have enough compost built up. At least I am not spraying any chemicals. Then I planted more corn, beans, squash, zucchini, and carrots. I am hoping by the time I get back they will be up and I can give them a good start. I think the fall garden here may be more successful. Right now I have cucumbers and pumpkins out the wazoo. The pumpkins are nearly ready- I don'tknow how that happened- so when I get back I guess I will be picking pumpkins. Goldie is not going to hatch any chicks this time. The nest was too small for her and the eggs didn't get incubated properly. Boy do they stink!! Maybe I will try again in August if she is still broody. I also limed the goat pasture a bit today so maybe the grass will improve. I spread turf builder earlier this week. Then tonight I helped at the shelter. The stories and circumstances are awful. Thank you God for a husband who treats me with love, care, and compassion. Please watch over Tammy, Betty, and the others. Then it was on to internet searches and making grain and honey orders. Now I have packed up curriculum for a conference tomorrow and have even arranged for babysitting. So after the conference I get a date with my loving husband- before I leave him for 10 days! I wonder if that is what the fevered pace was 65 years ago- or is it worse?

I remember 4th of July as a kid. I have a lot of cousins and my grandparents had a large farm. We would meet for a picnic that had LOTS of food: watermelon, hotdogs, corn, baked beans, potatoe salad, cake, popsicles...I don't know how much the kids ever ate because we played so much. There were softball games and kickball, hide-and-seek, climbing the crabapple tree, walking to the pond, and anything else we thought fun at the moment. Then we stayed out late while the parents talked. We played with sparklers and caught lightning bugs. It was great. This year we had a cookout at our house with some friends and people from church. I think I can say the same for my kids: I don't know how much they ate, but they had fun playing. Then we went to the Town Commons and watched the fireworks show. We had glow sticks for the kids before the fireworks and that kept them very entertained. I loved the 4 year old's thoughts on fireworks, "WOW! It's a miracle!" Last year Hubby and I went to the WV State Fair and saw a production of Prairie Home Companion. During intermission Garrison Keillor walked through the stands and had us sing songs as a group. Monday night as we finished watching the video of Masterpiece Performances, GK did the same with that crowd. Meryl Streep was one of the guests and she was in tears before it was over. From experience I can say, it is difficult to sing America the Beautiful in a large crowd without being in tears. You have no common bond with these people, except the bond of citizenship, and it is enough to unite you. May God shed His grace on us all. Happy Birthday, America.

I took the boys swimming yesterday for the first time this summer. We took a couple of girls from church with us and they had a blast. I love listening to my kids when they use their imaginations. They were being different ocean animals and "it" was the Killer Whale trying to catch them. When I was finally able to get into the water (I like my water really warm or it takes a while to get in) I was the whale. I said I didn't think it was very nice to call your mama a whale! Then we came home and the kids played for a while. They like going through the corn field next to us and playing hide and seek. I remember doing that when I was a kid and it is a very fun game-there is just enough "lostness" involved that you can scare yourself, and that is part of the fun. Afterward we went to Sunday in the Park and listened to some good music. Then, Surprise, Surprise, Masterpiece Theater was having a live broadcast of Prairie Home Companion! It was a very happy day. ____________________ I am excited about the possibilities of serving the women at the Violence Shelter in more ways. We had a meeting yesterday and came up with some good ideas. More people will be able to be involved now and this ministry can truly feel like it belongs to the whole church, not just a few ladies. May Jesus flow through our actions into the lives of these women and children.

My parents left about 11:30 this morning, only staying long enough to do the work and move on. I think my mother would have been happy to stay longer, but dad felt like he needed to get back. "I have a lot to do at home!" I know the feeling, but sometimes you just have to stop and visit. I guess he did that a bit when the boys went up to visit, though. We finished the fence at 10:15 this morning. My husband and Dad worked on it Thursday and Friday, and Dad and I finished it up this morning. It is a woven wire fence and surrounds about an acre. Dad says if we fertilize and lime the pasture and get it built up we could support 7 nannies and their young on that. I don't know if we want to get into it that much or not. The 2 kids are cute and Millie seems to be starting to accept them and want their company, but she might have been as happy to remain the only goat. I wonder what will happen when the kids arrive in a few months! Mom spent her time sewing covers for cushions on the porch and cleaning my house. Yesterday I took her to New Bern to pick blueberries. We picked 28 pounds! There is just nothing like fresh, fat blueberries. We ate a lot yesterday and have some still for eating, but most have been put in the freezer. I will have to pick again when they are ripe here so I can take some to my father-in-law. He was very put out that he missed the picking this year.