Brothers

These guys are fast becoming....too old.  Too big.  Too smart.  It's not fair.  No further words are needed for this post - I'll let their good looks overtake you. :-)

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It's (supposed to be) Fall!

I was thinking of titling this post "Autumn-mazing Pumpkin Scones" or something of that nature.  Because it's fall, and these scones are truly amazing.  But somehow (besides the title sounding kind of....er...well, honestly, dumb) I felt that the lack of autumn weather would kind of hinder my writing capabilities. 

Because it's still in the 90's here.

But anyway.

I recently had a pumpkin scone at Starbucks - I have never had any of their pastries, but on this particular day I did indulge - and it was so so good!  I've been wondering if I could authentically re-create them at home, and today I gave it a try.  They turned out really well.....only I didn't find out until after I iced them that they could  have used just a few more minutes in the oven. :-)  But they are still good, nonetheless.

 It made 14 scones; unfortunately in a family of eight they won't last long (except now that we are down to six they'll last a little longer....).   They are so yummy with a cup of coffee, too......

 Joshua, patiently waiting for his scone. 

Since we are on the topic of fall, I want to mention scarves.  I have posted before about how much I love scarves ~ they just add so much to an outfit and are super cute!  I keep thinking that one of these days I'll wake up and we'll actually have chilly weather and I'll be able to pull out some of my long-sleeves.....but so far, nope.  The day I was actually wearing the outift above I ended up getting way too hot. :-)  Oh well. 

Fall is still here and I do love this time of year.  And now stores are beginning to stock up with Christmas decorations.....David and I are already desperate to listen to Christmas music!!  Our family rule is nothing until after Thanksgiving though. :-)  Even if the weather hasn't cooled down much it still feels a bit like fall ~ hot chocolate, pumpkin scones, cozy evenings watching our new favorite show, Mission Impossible, board games, and if nothing else, at least long sleeve pajams. :-) 

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Friends and Family

Yesterday before church, we had our good friends the Camerons over for lunch!  They are moving out to their farm soon and we figured we better snag them for a meal before they leave us lol. :-) 

I had fleeting thoughts of a crisp autumn day and long sleeves and hot chocolate and a cozy grill out.  But being as it was (and always is) we had a nice steamer and a very sweaty eating experience (for those of us who ate outside) and an abundance of flies.  Hannah claimed lacing your plate with onion rings would keep the flies away but she didn't seem to have much luck with that......:-)

Kayla, Hannah, and myself.  I've known these wonderful girls since they were like 6 and 9 maybe?  And now they are these sweet young ladies:-)  I'm gonna miss them when they move....hopefully we'll see them at church most of the time, though!

And as for these munchkins,  life goes on in it's various forms for each of them.  David is really busy with school these days; he is enrolled in the K-12 program now and that keeps him very busy academically. :-)  I think the routine and rigor of tests and assesments are a good learning experience for him - I can testify to the fact that when I was his age I did not take school seriously at all!  So now he has an outsider expecting his lessons turned in ON TIME and done well.  It's definitely different. 

I keep reminding him that even though school can seem so monotonous right now, it really does matter when you're my age and thinking about college, SAT study, and possible scholarships. 

Isaac is learning to READ!  I literally feel like I was just learning how.  I still remember reading those beginner stories in Mom's reading book.  He is also thinking alot.  It's so neat to see his little mind processing things.  Now he asks what big words mean, like yesterday he wanted to know what 'absolutely' meant.  Even though he won't give me kisses anymore, and hugs are a forced display of affection for him, he remains one of the sweetest spots in my life.....:-)

Joshua has been asking some rather.....well, interesting questions recently.  He has this thing for the Easter story; he constantly asks Mom if he is going to be crucified on a cross like Jesus someday.  At first this was a surprising and semi-cute question....but it's gotten a little annoying now!   Last Sunday after church he leaned up against one of the poles outside and said, "Look!  I'm just like Jesus on the cross!"  (said with giggles and smiles....uh, unfortunately....) And then the other day Dad mentioned that his stomach hurt, and Josh immediately piped up (rather cheerfully) "Are you going to die, Daddy?"

Where to even go from there lol!

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The Latest

So this morning I decided to stop procrastinating this long over-due blog post and just start snapping pictures.  Of anything.  Naturally, Isaac and Josh were the first two people I went to. :-) 

They were in the middle of playing Lincoln Logs (hence the buildings at my feet).  Cute guys. 

Joshua wasn't exactly in the mood to smile in this picture due to the accidental destruction of his building during the scramble to pose correctly for the self-timer setting on my camera..... 

SAT study continues.  As well as it can.  I have actually found a ton of helpful SAT study resources online, first and foremost being Khan Academy, followed by Baron's SAT study prep, and quite a few others.  Getting a good SAT score should be a piece of cake with all of the resources available to me....you'd think!!  Too bad learning is part of equation. :-)  Ah well.  My test isn't until December 1st, so it's very easy to just put today's studying off until tomorrow - but I am such a procrastinator anyway, so that will totally not work.  I'm plugging away every day, bits at a time...in fact I even bribe myself.  I wasn't "allowed" to do this blog post until I had studied for a few hours this morning.  :-) 

 And this is the pile of books (only some of them) that are sitting on my desk, just waiting to be read.  I bought so many books at Summit and I haven't finished one of them yet!  I've been so busy!  Plus Mr. Reeves (church) loaned me The Potter's Freedom in answer to my total confusion on freewill / Calvanism / origin of sin, so I'm trying to work my way through that one.  It's very good and making a lot of sense; but I'm only on chapter 3 of 14....so I still have my reading cut out for me!! 

David recently started school for the year - this year he is enrolled in K-12.  So far I think he is enjoying it; but this is only day two so we'll see how it goes. :-)  He also has a piano recital tomorrow!  He's playing two pieces and I'm looking forward to seeing him perform.  I have certainly had my share of recitals in the past......they're always a bunch of fun but nerve-racking. :-)

Brushing teeth....Isaac had three cavities recently and we were all a little worried about how he would do getting them filled.  But he did great. :-) 

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Summit Notes: Axis

One of my absolute favorite sessions at Summit was a group called Axis: Apathy to Action. 



The title itself reveals what they're all about - first, discovering what axis your world is spinning around (what does your life revolve around?), and then, challenging you to think about how that axis is affecting your world.  Because even if we think we're tripping along through life unaffected by what we read, watch, and hear, the fact is that there are thousands of messages bombarding us every single day.  And they do affect us.  If we think they don't, we're deceiving ourselves.   And if we fail to think intelligently, by default, others will gladly do the thinking for us.

It turns out that media is what sways the culture.  Media counsels us.  The stuff we read on the internet, the books or magazines we get, the music we listen to, the movies we watch, even the video games we play......they are all sending us different messages, many of them conflicting with what we claim we really believe. 

It's so easy to consider all these messages as benign - they're not really saying anything bad, and even if they are......well, so what?  It's not like we actually agree with what we're hearing.......or do we?

Media affects us more than we would ever like to believe.  But it's so hard to detect because most of the time it's just a song, or just a movie, just a story.  It's not like any of it is real, right?  And it's not like it really changes the way I think......right?  Can't we be "in the world but not of it".....able to enjoy the good stuff and turn a blind eye to the bad?  It's hard to believe that most of the media messages we get - the ones that just not a big deal - are actually worldviews in disguise.  

Though most of us would like to believe that we're strong enough in our faith to be able to "deal" with the bad messages we're getting, able to walk blindfolded through a busy intersection without getting hit, the fact is we're never quite as "strong" as we'd like to think we are. Remember that "let him who thinks he stands take heed, lest he fall" (1 Corinthians 10:12). 

Don't believe that the stuff you hear has a hidden worldview in it?  Take a look at the lyrics of one of Katy Perry's top hits, "Friday Night":

There's a stranger in my bed

A pounding in my head

Glitter all over the room

Pink flamingos in the pool

I smell like a mini bar

DJ's passed out on the floor

Barbie's on the barbecue

Last Friday night

Yeah we danced on the tabletops

And we took too many shots

Think we kissed but I forgot

Last Friday night
Yeah we maxed our credit cards
And got kicked out of the bar
So we hit the boulevard

....Chandelier is on the floor
With my favorite party dress
Warrants out for my arrest

This Friday night
Do it all again

So in just a few verses, we have Katy Perry's description of fornication, getting drunk, the lovely hangover in the morning, possible reference to drugs, poor monetary stewardship, late nights at the bar, complete oblivion to what she's doing because she's apparently high, a warrant out for her arrest, and oh! What fun!  Let's do it again next Friday!   Underneath a catchy tune (I do love the song minus the lyrics) lies suggestions that doing all of these activities isn't so bad....in fact they're fun.  And normal. It seems that many songs today emphasize the "you're only young once" idea, making everything permissable. 

This is just one small example of literally thousands of popular hits - for 2012 alone!  We've been getting messages just like these for as long as we've been alive.....this is just a recent example.

And that's just music.  *Gulp* If we took a look at all the other forms of media, like facebook, twitter, myspace, ipods, videogaming, tv, movies, cellphones (just to name a few)....we could be coming up with dozens of examples of a worldview we're being presented with.  Or a way of life - plugged in and tuned out. 

But media isn't bad.  At all.  I happen to love  how convenient media has made life....it can save a lot of time and energy.  But it's how we use this convenience.  It seems like we're so "stimulated" with all the new gizmos and gadgets that we're being lolled to sleep - and totally apathetic to the ideas that our minds are being saturated with in the process. 

Remembering that all forms of media act as a counselor to us is imperative.  Because who or what we hang out with....or spin our little worlds around.....is what makes us who we are (Proverbs 13:20)  We need to filter all these ideas through a Biblical worlview if we hope to survive the rapidly changing culture around us.

"Show me your friends, and I'll show you your future." ~ Bill Cosby

Axis really helped me to start recognizing the messages I'm getting.  They're everywhere!  In fact I just discovered the worldview behind "Friday Night" a few days ago.  I'm picking up so much more than I used to.  There are messages (subtle though they might be) everywhere.  I even picked up a touch of self-actualization in the Arthur and DW theme song that I watched for years as a little kid........

"You got to listen to your heart, listen to the beat, listen to the rythym....it's a simple message and it comes from da heart, believe in yourself, believe in yourself, well that's the place to start!"

                          
Note from one of the speakers:  What if, when we look inside to "find ourselves"...we end up find a real jerk?!

So.....I could go on and on with tons more examples and amazing qoutes.....but that is going to have to wrap up this particular post. :-)  Do you have any examples of media messages that have worldviews behind them?  It's a new interest of mine to pick apart songs and movies haha....so please comment and share!!  :-)

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