My Personal Retreat

Just wanted to make a brief note about my personal retreat this past weekend. It was a wonderful time to rest, read, think, pray, plan, eat, and I even took a little time to shop. I will blog more in the days to come. I went so I could write my goals for the next year...a first for me. I completed that task. And found it enjoyable dreaming about what books I'd like to read this year and lots more. I was too weary to walk more than once plus it was a bit rainy. But the place I went was a beautiful old house. 3 other women were there and we had the house to ourselves. Amazing that they entrusted this place to us for the weekend. Thank you Lord for this place and this time. It was much needed.

Green

I have so much enjoyed watching the trees become green again! But oddly enough this year I find the pink trees and forsythias (which I truly do love) rather annoying. Would you just green up already? I know that is just awful but I have had enough of cold weather. I luv the warm evenings and days...
Reporting back on my window plants. The daffodil lasted all of 1 1/2 weeks. It now sits in our garage all spent and ready to be planted. Bummer...that was way too short. I'm keeping an eye out for a pretty plant that will last more than 1 1/2 weeks. As for the herbs, they are going crazy and about ready to take the kitchen over. Of course I haven't thinned out the plants because plant murder is just not one of my things. There are 4 plants and the one that hasn't really grown much is the oregano. Must be a tough one to grow since of course I'm very skilled at this!
3 weeks til my retreat. Can't come soon enough. I dream about getting away all by myself and laying in bed listening to quietness in the morning. I do love the littlest one even though she screams "Mama" "Mama" "Mama" "Mama" "Mama". You know I was thinking about this tonight: is she trying to make me totally crazy? What's with having to repeat yourself 40 million times in a row? No wonder I'm so worn out. "Mama" isn't the only thing she repeats. Tonight it was "Juice" "Juice" "Juice". I recognize she wanted juice but did she have to say it a billion times? Persistent. That's what she is. She did get juice but I made her ask for it nicely. It was the cutest thing. She stood in the kitchen and I watched her calm her little self down and say "juice please" in the nicest voice. She made me proud.
My middle child has been hugely helpful with her and I've been enjoying having a bit more time with her this week.
Well, now that the littlest one is in bed, the 4 legged one is whining upstairs. Agghhh!!! does it just never end?
I'm going to go make sure she's not terrorizing our groceries and then plop myself down on the sofa. Enough for today.

Spring Time

I so much wanted to express myself on this blog but the fullness of life has put a nix on that one. So, I will have to lay aside those expectations of doing 52 pictures and Way back When-sday. And I'll plan on blogging when I blog.
This has been an amazing week for weather! It has been in the 60's here and sunshiney. We spent some time in the yard blowing bubbles, drawing with chalk, and playing in the sandbox. We went to the park and I pushed the littlest Baum for a long time as I soaked in the sun, admired the blue sky and noted that there are buds on the trees! Hope. That is so refreshing after winter. After the gray and colorless days. I'm good with winter until the end of January. And this year was even worse because in February the littlest Baum got sick and passed it on to all of us. It's now Spring and we're in the last half of March. The littlest Baum has brought yet another cold home with her and passed it on to me. And Papa Baum continues to not feel well from the first sickness. One day at a time. It sure reminds me to lean into my LORD. He holds our breath. He created each of us. He is the Great Physician and I depend on him.
My favorite magazine is Better Homes & Gardens. A few weeks ago I was shopping at Value World (they have used clothing and everything else). I found a BH & G from March of last year. It cost me 25 cents. They had an idea to buy a bulb for my windowsill and some herbs along with an outdoorsy sculpture. I found small daffodils at the grocery store with happy yellow wrapping around the pot. Then I went to the dollar store and found a robin and put her on my windowsill next to the daffodils. I asked Papa Baum to look for some herbs at the Depot (as the littles Baum calls it) and he came home with a kit to pot 4 different herbs. You should see them! I do believe I planted way more than should have been planted. so now there are a billion chives, cilantro, oregano and parsley plants popping up and I don't know what to do with them. I am concerned if I remove 1/2 of them or 3/4 of them, that I will be considered a plant murderer. I wish this didn't bother me so much. Just thin them out and be done with it! Right now they are sitting in a darker spot on the counter. Once the leaves are bigger, I'll put them on the windowsill and in June will put them outside...maybe. Well, that is, if they make it that long.
And what I'm most excited about these days is another retreat. I went on a personal retreat last May and it was so nice. It was at a Catholic Retreat Center. This time I'm trying a new place. I will be making my own meals this time around. Last year I wrote my life mission statement.
This year I plan to pray and look at the next year. What goals do I want to accomplish in the next year in 7 areas of my life: Individual, Wife, Mother, Homemaker, Administrative, Family & Friends, and Ministry.
I love the Franklin Covey material. I've got an awesome planner that I bought for my 40th birthday. Then I read 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and was so inspired to re-evaluate my life. I long for my life to matter and these habits are tools to help me live my life to the fullest. The author, Stephen Covey, is a Mormom, which I don't endorse but his principles are astounding. I am able to take them and apply them directly into my life. It took about 2 years to read the book because my goal was to implement what he taught in there. So much to learn and I'm just beginning. Thus the mission statement and the 7 areas of my life. Life makes so much more sense. We are all uniquely made and I believe I have strong Administrative gifts which is why Covey's stuff impacts me so much. We all need to find the best way to become who God intends us to be. It's not the same for all of us. God is our guide and I'm so grateful.
Well, this reminds me I'm going to go check out the retreat center on-line to see what the grounds are like. How many acres? I love walking and exploring.
Have a blessed day...

52

Bates Hamburgers and Fries are the best! Keith, little Baum and I enjoyed a delicious dinner last night. This was a special treat! There is just something about their burgers. Actually the whole experience is fun. Bates is a tiny hamburger stand in Livonia. If you want to order takeout, you wait in a 8x4 porch type area with a window into the kitchen where you can see them cooking the burgers and fries. The menu is so simple. Another plus. Simple is good. They take your order and when it's ready, hand you a white bag filled with burgers and another one for fries. Do you want 6 or 12 burgers? Plain or cheese? Yummmm!!!

Way Back When-sday

Again, another Capri-Kel addition. She is such an inspiration! Speaking of inspiration, my Mom said I am inspiring her to cook. Well, to be honest, it all began with her many years ago.
The first picture is my Mom with my brother and me. That was taken in Atlanta when I was 6. We lived there for 4 years. I had to include that so you could see a picture of my Mom!!
She made the most awesome castle birthday cake. I think her specialty is baked goods. I also remember the chocolate sheet cake she used to make when I was a teenager. And when she POURED the chocolate icing on the cake it just leaked right off the side of the pan and I had the privelege of cleaning it up. Always had that most awesome privelege!! Anyway, the second picture is from my 9th birthday. Bet you hadn't guessed that! That's my Dad and my brother. We lived in Philadelphia at the time and see that wallpaper? it was so awesome. I love textures and that wallpaper had fruit on it that had a velvet feel to part of it. I also hate textures at the same time. But that's just another of those things about me. Hey, this was 1976. That was an awesome year to live in Philadelphia! I believe it was a huge celebration year for the Bicentennial! For those of you more versed in history, feel free to correct me.
Capri Kel would be proud to know that I was a huge fan of Laura Ingalls as well. See my hair? It was from those pioneer days.

The Way to Cook Inspired by Julia Child

I have found myself really enjoying learning to cook. It seems that it's been in me for many years but life has been full and it hadn't seemed like something I had time to pursue. Til this past summer when I felt discouraged with menu planning and my lack of creativity...I prayed that God would please help me be inspired.
Well, I had no idea that shortly after that, the movie "Julie and Julia" came out. Wow! I pulled out my cookbook "The Way to Cook" by Julia Child and asked my daughter if she would like to begin some cooking from there. I'll share pictures one day from those times. For now, I want to introduce my most recent joy: Cooking!
I'm learning to enjoy wandering through the fruits and vegetable section at the grocery store. Finding new ingredients like leeks to cook with.
Today I made Chicken Kiev for lunch. Mmmmm... it was so good. I love something baked in the oven on a winter Sunday. The recipe called for 1 1/2 sticks of butter. I used 1/2 of that. I'm sure I could use even less, but that was a good start. That recipe was from the classic Better Homes and Gardens checkered cookbook!
I'm looking forward to experimenting a bit with our microwave-making more than popcorn and reheating food.
And sometime I'll share about the soups I've been making from our church's soup kitchen cookbook. Yum! Those have warmed up some cold and dreary days.

52

Well, I'm so inspired by my friend that I'm going to get going again on this blog which I barely started on!
So, she wanted to know if anyone wanted to join her in taking 1 picture a week for the year. I will attempt to do that. But first I must get our camera hooked up to our computer. Accomplished. Amazing.
Picture 1 is of all of us on 12/28/09 (okay, that's last year, but I think that's pretty close!)
Picture 2 is the littlest Baum sitting outside of our "tent" yesterday, 1/11/10. I remember doing that with our older 2 when they were her age. That was a long time ago!