you never know the impact you're having

A couple of events this month have got me thinking about how we are having an impact all the time on those around us - even if we never realize it.

A guy in our church came up to me after the service a couple of weeks ago. He had been sitting behind us, and Alex was sitting with us as usual. It was a normal day and a normal church service. There was a baptism, of a smiling boy about 9 months old, and we recited the usual prayers and litanies welcoming this child into our "family" and promising to support him and his parents in their journey of faith. The pastor briefly mentioned adoption, in the sense that we are all adopted into God's family and are welcoming this child as well. Anyway, it seemed that this triggered the man sitting behind us to look at Alex and think about how Alex and Sam came to be where they are now. He told me he was overwhelmed and started to cry, just thinking of how their lives started out and how different their lives could have been. This of course shook me out of my everyday fog and made me appreciate anew the miracle that is our family. Thankful for our kids and ever mindful of their birth mothers.

Also, our kids' preschool teacher related an incident to me that has given me pause to think over the last couple of days. The kids were at her house when someone knocked at the door. Alex said, "Maybe it's God." (!) The teacher's son (4) said, "Don't say God, that's a bad word." (I think they've been telling him not to "take God's name in vain.") Anyway, Alex said, "No, God is GOOD! He's ALMIGHTY and POWERFUL."

A couple of take-home messages here...one, the wonder of being a child and fully expecting that God could be standing at the door at any moment. A friend of mine actually wrote a little Advent devotional using this story and connected this with the verse, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock." I believe God uses people to reveal himself but I rarely consider that the person I am dealing with (whoever is "knocking at my door") may be God's way of communicating with me. Hmm.

Two, I have to admit my first thought was, "Where did Alex come up with this?" We have probably spoken of God as good, great, powerful etc. but the word "almighty" is not in common use in our house...maybe it should be...anyway, I've been feeling a little remiss as a mom in teaching the kids about God. I haven't felt I've given them much in the way of "spiritual formation" and have felt guilty about not being more on top of that. So this seems like an affirmation, as if God is saying, Relax, mom - remember, it's MY job too, not just yours, to reach your kids. Very comforting.

Three - there are so many things our kids can teach us, if we would only pay attention. In the day to day crush it is hard to really see and really listen. Praying for eyes to see and ears to hear.

need a battery recharge

My batteries are running low tonight. It was a day of more than usual stress. I got rear-ended while stopped at a red light. The truck behind me was stopped too but the driver decided it was time to go when the left turn arrow turned green, even though our lane still had a red light. I didn't even see it coming. The kids were with me. Luckily we were all belted in and no one was hurt, but now 10 hours later I'm starting to feel twinges in my neck and back. The back end of our car is damaged, but the big GMC truck that hit us seemed completely unmarked. It did make me think about driving a bigger/safer car. Ironically, we just made two trips for car repairs last week and thought we were all done with car stuff for a while. The battery in the Prius died at 107,000 miles and the warranty goes to 100K. Figures. $3000 is a LOT for a battery with a 1-year warranty. It kind of undoes the savings you get on gas. I'm kind of disillusioned with car stuff right now...

In addition, I'm getting drained dealing with Alex's frequent tantrums. She is better than she was, but some days, especially when she's tired, she reverts back to the 3- and 4-year-old level - screaming, hitting, kicking, and even biting. Once she loses her temper, it is very rare that we can "talk her down" or get her to calm herself. And she can lose her temper on a dime, unpredictably, with no warning and sometimes no fathomable reason. We can and do give her choices, give her time out, take away privileges, talk to her about it afterward, etc. But I know she needs to teach HERSELF to control HERSELF and I feel at a loss as to what else we can do. The only encouragement I have is that (1) I know she is smart, and a good intellect will be on her side (2) she IS showing improvement as she gets older, even if it's slower than I would like.

I'm probably also feeling low because I'm getting over a cold. I've cut down on my workouts and I've been staying up too late. So hopefully I can start next week feeling better. My life demands a lot of energy and when I don't have it, I miss it!

Sesame Spinach Salad Recipe

Our new favorite spinach recipe. I've never seen Sam actually eat spinach until we made this. :-)

From my new favorite cookbook, Extending the Table:

Sesame Spinach Salad (Korea - from Pat Yoder, Goshen, IN)
Sigumchi Namul

This salad is typical of the way Koreans prepare and season cold vegetables. Tester found this to have a surprisingly wonderful flavor: "I hate spinach and just loved this!"

Steam until just tender and still green:

1 lb fresh spinach (500 g)

Strain and squeeze out as much water as possible. Cut spinach coarsely.

Place in serving bowl and add:

3 T. soy sauce (45 mL)
2 T. sesame oil (30 mL)
1 T. toasted sesame seeds (15 mL)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T. sugar (15 mL)
1 T. vinegar (15 mL)
dash of black or ground red pepper, to taste

Mix, chill, and serve.


A few notes:
1. I used half the amount of sesame oil to cut down on fat, and it tasted fine.
2. I used rice vinegar.
3. I used the minced garlic out of the jar - easier.
4. You can buy toasted sesame seeds at most grocery stores in the international foods section.
5. I forgot all about the dash of pepper at the end. It was still good.
6. We steamed the spinach in the microwave. You could do it the old way, or blanch it, if you want it a little more "al dente."

:-) Enjoy!

Two silly kid quotes in one day

After a rather dry spell, we had two good kid quotes today.

Alex has been trying to learn some tongue twisters. After attempting "She sells seashells at the seashore" a few times, she stopped, then said, "You made...You made...You made my brain go all BLACK!" She was mad that I laughed, but I couldn't help it.

Later, Bryan and I were driving the kids home in separate cars. Sam was with Bryan, and Alex was with me. We were ahead of the boys for a while and Sam asked, "Where's mama?" Bryan told him, "She's ahead of us. She's driving faster than we are." Silence. Then Sam says, "You're NOT Lightning McQueen!"

:-)

family photos - Sept 09

I already posted these on Facebook but am putting them here as well. The white shirts/white background were an experiment - I think it turned out pretty well!

Alex and God

Today we were in the car on the way to church and Alex said, "When I was a baby in Korea, and I was in my bed, God came to me and came into my heart."

This was especially sweet to me as I remember the many prayers I said for her when she was a baby in Korea. I wonder what she remembers of this experience.

Cascade Springs

Well, we didn't see as many fall colors this time. Usually by mid-September the leaves are changing at the high elevations, but on this trip we saw just a few. That's ok - it was a beautiful afternoon, warm and sunny.

I had to include the picture of Bryan changing Sam's diaper in the trunk of our car. It is a regular part of our life, one I suspect we would forget in future if we didn't have photo documentation. :-)