This chart proposes to identify which nutrients your body is asking for when you crave certain foods. Interesting! Though I wonder what craving these means…..
sigh. Somedays I really miss corn syrup.
Author Archives: Kim Halloran-Fry
our domain
"Ladies, our homes are our domain to tame. And this isn't a one time project. Just like child training requires constant upkeep, so do our homes. Never stop thinking about what you might try next. Rearrange furniture and try out new colors in your mind. Enjoy the challenge of organizing and making lovely on a budget. Rise with a smile to the job of daily tasks mixed with long term projects. Be the queen of your home who oversees all, as well as the sweet servant who washes the floors.
…the environment that you surround yourself with and the attitude that you wear each and every day can have either a negative or positive effect on your own, as well as each person in your family. Your mindsets, moods, energy levels, and productivity will be impacted by your surroundings. The more organized and lovely you make your home, the more you will enjoy your work and rest in it.
and another thought-
"Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox comes an abundant harvest." Prov 14:4
God is saying, "Chin up, Honey. If you didn't have any children you wouldn't have any mess."
He is reminding us that without oxen there is no manure and I guess you could say the same about children and dirty diapers. We don't want to complain about our blessings. The messes are a result and a part of the blessing!"
on reading ahead
"…she further increased her advantage by reading every book assigned to me and reviewing every assignment… She spent many evenings, after a long day of teaching school, reading lengthy books. She tried to make certain that she was ahead of me so that if I had any questions about my work she would be familiar with the material.
Mother encouraged me to work independently as much as possible… Yet she also scheduled time nearly every day for us to work together. Whenever I missed a problem she would sit down with me and determine where I had made the mistake. Because she had worked the problems the night before it was a simple matter for to find my error and correct it.
Although she had as many as five students during the time that I was in high school she always found time to give each of us individual instruction….The one on one interaction was critical to my mastering high school material."
– Alexandra Swann, No Regrets
This is remarkable to me and incredibly inspiring considering her mother had ten children in thirteen years, moved to a new city, remodeled a home, had a preemie, and went through a near fatal bowel reconstruction for one son while this was taking place.
I have said in the past that I could not do it. But I realize now that the alternative is often being frustrated the next day trying to help a student who is confused about material with which we are unfamiliar. I have come to think time spent planning would be better spent knowing the literature and texts inside and out so we can discuss them and this is where I would like to focus.
Another advantage Joyce had was that she needed only to do this once, for the rest of the children used the same books and read the same literature titles for their courses so that time invested with the first child rolled over to all the rest making it much easier with the younger children despite there being more of them.
I suspect the prime reason she was able to do so much was that they had and answering machine and no computer…. Really mulling that one over.
Caravan or bust!
"We love seeing new places in the country and we have fun on the journey. It is exciting to see the children's eyes light up when they see something interesting or new. Of course, there is a lot of work in packing for a family of ten."
True that. We are living these words as I write. In other rooms suitcases are being filled and anticipation is high as we prepare for our trip to Ohio. As luck would have it Allen got scheduled for a work function the week after my birthday. My present? The children and are riding along and visiting with Rebecca and family. Hopefully we won't try their patience too terribly much! (She is a saint…she is a saint!)
I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for the sweet notes you have left here in the past week. Between trip prep, computer mishaps, and a traveling husband I have missed some of the notes initially or was unable to track down addresses or whatnot. So I am doing what I so prefer not to do and sending my gratitude impersonally. Forgive me! Please know your letters are dear to me and keep me going when the candle is burning on both ends as it has been this month. They also take me on delightful rabbit trails when you leave your own url's for me to follow. : )
I have had a few neat things to share over the past months so I set them up to run next week. It is possible I will be able to check in once or twice from the gyspy computer. I promise to catch up properly when we return.
Cheyenne
Cheyenne is a sleepy little cowboy town which mercifully escaped the 'modernization' trend of the 70's. It's brick storefronts remain intact with visible ghost ads along the alley side walls. It was wicked windy the days we were there. It felt as thought we might blow right off the map at times. Still the rugged beauty was undeniable.
We began with the lovely historic homes Allen was inspecting.
Directly behind us was a herd of pronghorn who were quite comfortable among the cars and commotion:
We checked in here:
and then ventured downtown:
While we were at The Plains the little boys were at The Dog and Duck. I suspect the accommodations were even more gracious there. Karen I don't know what we would do without you!
Clean sweep – running the numbers
Re-reading some of my organization books helped me see why we still have some 'hot spots' around the house. Both Peter Walsh and Dawn Noble have said that it should take no longer than five to ten minutes to tidy up a room. That isn't a deep clean, mind you, but rather the time it should take to make it presentable again after use. If it routinely takes longer than that there is likely still too much clutter. Or, it may not be clutter per se but just too much stuff, period.
This seems to be the culprit in our school room/craft room and another purge is in the works. The main rooms have fallen reliably within that 5-10 minute guideline but there are a couple bedrooms and that school room which could use more help. This clean-time goal is a great litmus test to help determine if you have an appropriate amount of 'stuff' for your spaces. We obviously don't. <g>
Some other helpful time estimates from the Noble book:
It takes about this long to clean these areas -
* a closet: 4-8 hrs
* a bedroom: 8-12 hrs
* a kitchen: 10-14 hrs
* a garage: 8-12 hrs
* an office: 16-24hrs (includes file system overhaul)
Having a reasonable time frame in mind when you plan a project goes a long way towards seeing it through. I have grossly underestimated the time it takes to complete a clean sweep in the past. Of course we have to remember these are working hours. They don't include breaks for the myriad crises big and small that tend to crop up in homes like ours such as people needing sippy cup refills, having expected bodily fluid overflows, surprising mom by cutting the dog's hair or finding the Sharpie marker. It is nothing short of astounding how resourceful small children can be when their mother is working…
Figuring in those interruptions could increase one's project time significantly. Unless Dad is home to occupy little people I try to break those big jobs up into sections and just work on one at a time, like one shelf in the pantry or one drawer etc. We recently finished a large binder of our important documents in that way. We gathered all our birth certificates, sacrament documents, insurance paperwork, social security cards, and shot records into page protectors in a three ring binder which is kept in fireproof safe. (Highly advised to make copies of same and store them in a second location like a safety deposit box.) It is handy now in case of emergency. Little by little one goes far….
Right words
(photo courtesy LIFE magazine)
The Right Word
Only the meaningful should come to the lips of those who strive
for higher development. To talk for the sake of talking, for
example to pass the time, is damaging. We should avoid talking
to each other purely for enjoyment. We must, however, not
isolate ourselves from being in contact with other people. In that
kind of contact, our talking must slowly develop into
meaningfulness. We are always ready to talk to others, but
everything we speak must be well thought out and well consid-
ered. Otherwise, it is best to remain silent. One must try to use
neither too few nor too many words. Listen first, and then
process what was heard. - as quoted in A Week in Nokken
The decision to write again has come after much contemplation of this principle. It has challenged me more than I can say. (no pun intended…) How do we reconcile the virtue of silence without retreating into isolation? When we re-enter the world after a time of retreat how do we assure that we do not once more fall into idle chatter and distraction? I can't say with certainty I have found definitive answers to those questions but the guidance given above seems to be a good start.
To talk for the sake of talking…
If care is not taken this could become the very impetus to blog. So, my first challenge has been to discern whether there is something worthwhile to say and what the motivation is for saying it. Are we compelled to share sincerely or to garner an audience or worse, applause?
Susan's thoughts about writing are very like those I have tossed about for weeks now. Certainly anything I could say has been said or could be said better by others. So why am I saying it? That was my question but it occurred to me in the end that none of us ever really thinks the very same thoughts nor experiences life in just the same way. Even those of us who share a worldview will find those values and goals playing out differently in our own lives. For me it is for this reason that it is not only all right but desirable that each of us shares her own perspective.
Everything we speak must be well thought out and well considered…
The very thing that makes electronic communication so appealing – the ability to provide instantaneous response – is also is greatest weakness. While it is a thrill to be able to correspond in real time with those across town or across the planet it does lend itself to poorly considered conversation. In the pen and paper era a letter might was not only written but composed. How often do we really allow ourselves the time necessary to properly compose our thoughts?
We can pick up the phone, shoot off a text message, instant message. An editorial which would previously have taken days or weeks to draft and publish can now be sent into cyberspace within moments of the thought entering one's head so very different from the way people have communicated for most of time.
When I contrast that rather constant chatter with this scenario:
She brought the letter to the tablecloth under the lamp and… they all sat around the table thinking of last things to say while Ma wrote them down with her little red pen that had a mother of pearl handle shaped like a feather. When her neat, clear handwriting filled the paper she turned it and filled it again crosswise. -The Long Winter (Wilder)
I am not sure we are better for the speed. Seems better to:
Listen first, and then process what was heard…
But then to always remember that it is still most desirable to remain silent as much as possible. Ignacio Larranaga tells us that:
All that is definitive is born and consummated in the midst of silence: life, death, the hereafter, grace, sin. All that throbs is always hidden.
God Himself is so silent we are told we must "be still" to know His will. These past months of quiet contemplation of His word have opened my heart to new possibilities. While my tendency has been to give God my laundry list of requests and pleadings, I have instead tried to quiet myself enough to consider what it is He has to say about our life and His will for it. This is helping me to see each event as having come directly from the hand of a loving Father leading us away from ourselves and towards His best.
It takes regular doses of quiet contemplation to keep that focus and those cannot be skipped. This will necessarily preclude excessive surfing. I don't want to lose what I have worked so hard to gain.
The past months have ushered in the promise of profound change for our family – some of which are too uncertain to share just yet. The prospects have been alternately exhilarating and terrifying to consider. Life is changing in totally new and unexpected ways, but continues to be full to the brim with the goodness of God. I hope that in some small way this little corner of cyberspace will help me to document that abundance. So for that reason I am here again, my virtual mother of pearl pen in hand.
Spring on the ranch
"The year is at spring,
And day's at the morn,
Morning's at seven;
The hillside's dew-pearled;
The lark's on the wing;
The snail's on the thorn;
God is in His heaven -
All's right with the world!" - Robert Browning
I hope all is right in your world and that you have smiled broadly and laughed out loud at least once today. Take Abbie's cue : )
be back soon
Just wanted to pop in here to say hello should there be anyone left out there. : )
We are in the process of a much-needed update and facelift for the blog and then will be back to visit again. I hope you have been having a delightful spring. God bless.
a time to keep silent
Several things have been weighing on my mind lately. One is this maxim shared by Bill Gothard:
Time is a valuable asset which attracts many robbers.
A related thought was this from Horace Mann:
Lost yesterday, somewhere between sunrise and sunset, two golden hours, each set with sixty diamond minutes. No reward is offered, for they are gone forever.
Scripture says something similar when it tells us to "redeem the time, for the days are evil." (Eph 5:16) I have been stewing over the implications of all this and how time online – both reading AND writing – figured in. I have spoken with women much wiser than myself about this. Colleen's post asked many of the same questions I had. I have seen earnest rebuttals to these concerns, but to be truthful, they don't reassure me much about those lost diamond minutes. Not right now.
Then I read this description of St Rita of Cascia:
…instead of visiting or gossiping with the women of the neighborhood, she remained at home, never leaving it except to pay a visit to her aging parents or go to Mass or Vespers… She paid much attention to the comfort (of her husband) and took zealous care that his clothes were always scrupulously neat. The management of her household was wise and prudent, and she taught with example what she advocated with words…. For Rita knew well that all the beauty of the King's daughter is within. She was kind and affable (to all in her care) and studied to make them happy and contented….She saw that they attended their religious duties, taught them good and polite manners, and molded them into models of obedience, neatness and propriety.
She was ever diligent, never idle, in her vocation. Can I honestly say I am as diligent? Can I honestly say time spent in conversations here are as effective as other things I could be doing right now? Is it ok to divide my attention so?
I thought of various reasons I have come online and when really pressed there doesn't seem to be much that sitting here could help. Trouble with schoolwork? Think of what 30 min a day reading just a step ahead of my kids in their books could do. Fussy preschoolers? They don't need more ideas, they need me at the table with a box of crayons. Stress? 30 min more each day in quiet prayer would go a long, long way. And so the list went.
For me, right now, it has become all too clear that more words and more screens are not the best direction I could be taking. There is indeed a time for everything under the heavens, a time for speaking and time to keep silent. In fact there can't be much worth saying if it isn't borne out of regular periods of holy silence and contemplation. This is such a time.
So for now I am quieting myself in all the ways I can. Fasting from excessive chatter, fasting my eyes, redeeming the time. I am sure the bustling cyber world will continue to revolve with or without me, but I did want to let those of you, who have become so dear to me here, know where I was in the meantime – starting lent early.
God bless you.
Prayer
Teach me to fix my eyes on the things of
heaven even as I walk each day with my feet
planted firmly on the earth. Help me, through
the practice of virtue and the pursuit of devo-
tion, to avoid anything that would otherwise
cause me to stumble in my attempt to follow
Christ and to be an instrument of the Holy
Spirit.
heaven even as I walk each day with my feet
planted firmly on the earth. Help me, through
the practice of virtue and the pursuit of devo-
tion, to avoid anything that would otherwise
cause me to stumble in my attempt to follow
Christ and to be an instrument of the Holy
Spirit.
– from novena to St Francis de Sales
Starry Sky Journal 