Not Quite Ordinary Observations

For Today...Monday, May 21, 2012

(I’m trying out new thought starters this week. Who knows how much this will evolve over time!)

The great outdoors...require rain. The early summer cycle of rain skirting all around us or just staying in the clouds has begun. We are praying for a wetter summer than we’ve had the past few years – starting with an inch or two this week! I’d rather it not wait until Saturday because Olivia wants a pool party for her birthday. But, if that’s when we can get rain, we’ll make other birthday plans!

A heart of thanksgiving...for wisdom to talk through ways to make the summer easier; for children who are very self-directed in so many ways; for friends, new and old; for shelves full of resources to make homeschooling easier; for encouragement to stick with discipline.

A heart of prayer...for friends with sick children, for friends who need rest, for marriages that need healing and strengthening, for wisdom about how our little church can truly utilize the resources we do have to reach the community around us.

My diversions…I don’t know that there will be many diversions for me this week, other than taking time to just relax with my hubby. But, the nice thing is that some of my “work” is enough fun to feel like a diversion!

Thoughts from the kitchen…cooler cooking in the summer. See my projects below!

On my bookshelf...Praying with the Grain by Dr. Pedro Martinez is on the docket for this week. I’m halfway through the first chapter and really hoping the rest of the book follows suit. It’s off to a great start! I’m also hoping to get The Traveler’s Gift by Andy Andrews read this week.

Projects...I’m experimenting with cooler ways to cook through the summer. Doug found an induction burner on sale last fall, and today I used the cast iron dutch oven on it to heat up the liquid ingredients for granola bars. Oh my goodness! What a difference it made! Very little heat was released into the air around the burner and pot, and the mixture itself cooked beautifully without bubbling and popping all over me.

The next experiment is baking bread in the roaster oven. I can put it out in the laundry room, which we keep closed up during the day anyway. Olivia is mixing up the bread right now, so we’ll know how that works in just a couple of hours.

Meanwhile, the crock pot has been sorely neglected of late. Mainly because I haven’t planned ahead. That will change this summer (both utilizing the crock pot and planning!).

Sounds of the moment...the thud of the stand mixer kneading bread dough in the kitchen. The gentle click of the ceiling fan above me. Frogs seeking shelter on our front door. They are so incredibly loud!

Last week we learned...just how much school work we can still get done even when the schedule needs to be tweaked. (And yes, we gained academic knowledge as well.)

A favorite thing from last week...cooler temperatures.

The planner...an online meeting tonight, haircuts for myself and Olivia at some point this week (hopefully!), a Bernina class for me on Friday, and then Olivia’s birthday Saturday!

Because visuals are fun...(and because I finally got pictures off the camera!)

Olivia and I are not “pink” girls. But, we both came out of our rooms wearing hot pink t-shirts Saturday! Such things have been happening with greater frequency lately…