Mustard Seeds

Sick

Sorry there hasn't been much posting. Wed. night I Anne and I got a dose of food poisoning (I'm pretty sure.). She recovered great. Me...not so much. You know how you usually feel a ton better after getting all the bad stuff out of your system? Well, when you're pregnant the not having anything in your system also makes you feel nauseous.... and weak...oh so weak. It's taken me a good two days to recover. And, I'm still pretty tired.

My sister-in-law came to rescue and took the kids so I could sleep and recover.

So all that to say, we've got some catching up around the house to do...posting may not resume for a little while.

Little Reformers

On Tuesday, we celebrated Reformation Day. (Snow delays, you know). Here are the Little Reformers.

And, here I am in full garb with Anne (a Reformation princess) and Jack (Martin Luther).

 

Reformation Day is upon us!

Well, we were planning on celebrating Reformation Day today with a few other families, but the snow day "bumped" our plans. Instead, I think we are moving the activities to early next week (some of us will be gone over the weekend).

But, YOU can celebrate Reformation Day this weekend. And I would LOVE to hear about it and see pictures. If you do any type of Reformation Day activity, please send me an email (janna@mustardseedswriting.com) and attach a picture. I'll do a post next week with everyone's pictures. Please Note: If you do not want your picture posted online, please say so in the email, otherwise, I'll assume you're giving permission to post. Be sure to include if you have a blog, so I can link you.

In the meantime, I've got two more PDFs for you:

A color sheet with the "Luther Rose" and a verse. The Luther Rose was an important symbol for the day because it was a seal that Martin Luther wore as a ring. The Luther Rose consists of a black cross, on a red heart. The heart is set in the middle of a white rose. The white rose is placed on a field of heavenly blue. Encircling this field is a ring of gold.

And, a printout of Reformation Facts and Activity Ideas.

Can't wait to hear your Reformation reports....

It's Still Snowing

Snowy scenes from yesterday...Meanwhile, it's still coming down outside. We have at least two feet.

Anne looks very cold and serious here, but really, she had a marvelous time!

 

Pumpkin Patching in the Colorado Cold

Wow! Looking at that post title, I realize how much I love alliteration.

 

 

An Announcement

That's right Baby #3 is currently growing in my belly. Our family is very excited.

Anne is ecstatic. For the past couple of weeks she's been walking around with animals stuffed up her shirt. I'm proud to announce that she's had many successful pregnancies and deliveries of bunnies, cows, baby dolls and puppies.

As for me, I'm doing well, too. No throwing up, although there are waves of nausea. Mainly I'm just tired. No, tired doesn't seem t quite do it justice. I am exhausted. I'm napping every chance I get.

Baby is due June 15. I'm only seven weeks, but I look about three months pregnant. My stomach just seemed to pop out immediately this time. I thought it happened fast with Jack, but this time it was almost instant! My midwife laughs and says, "We call that the ripple effect. With each child it pops out bigger and faster." Anyone else experienced this with Baby #3?

By the way, I have no shame this time. Maternity clothes are already in use. No trying to squeeze into normal jeans this time. I'm all about comfort.

Giveaway Winner

And the winner of the box of spinning gourds is..... Lucky # 6. That's you Kristen Haufs. I've already got your address, so I'll drop these in the mail this week. Happy spinning!

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Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:

6

Timestamp: 2009-10-24 20:46:06 UTC

Friday Night Lights-Part 3

More handpies for tailgating (or wagon-gating) at the football game. This time, they are meat handpies so we served them up for the dinner course.

DINNER: Irish Beef Handpies

Here is the recipe. They were dee-lish, but I might add some more seasoning next time. And I made my own pie crust, using this recipe.

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DESSERT: Pop rocks.

Remember these? I scored some on clearance at the grocery store, but my supply is running out and I can't find them anywhere now.

 

Jack watching some of the "big boys" play. This was sweatshirt that I made using freezer paper for the stencil.

My Fall Wishlist

New Danskos. I've worn my brown leather Danskos ALL the time for the last 7 years, and they are literally beginning to fall apart. Aren't these lovely? I love the deep red color.

To feed my new interest in pie making, I'd like to get some pastry-making supplies.

Pastry cloth

Check out these darling hand pie molds.

A pie shield

 

A good pie-making book.

Wives and Daughters is SOOO good. I'd love this DVD set.

This pattern to make some cute softies.

A new large tea kettle.

What's on YOUR fall wish list?

Fall Eats from the Garden

I made this corn and butternut squash chowder, using some squash from a friend's garden. I love the zing the curry gives it. 

I've also been using up all my green tomatoes (saved from the first snow of the season) by making up fried green tomatoes. I've made these trying a couple different coatings, but have decided I like using Italian bread crumbs best. The ones I made using white corn meal lacked flavor and the crunch I like. Also, I've found it's best to use the really green, hard tomatoes. The ones that are "just starting to turn" end up cooking up really mushy.

Simply slice your tomatoes, coat in egg, then in bread crumbs, and then fry in veggie oil. Be sure to sprinkle coarse salt on top and pair it with ranch dressing. Yum!

Harvest Lessons & A Giveaway

I've recently learned some more mothering lessons from my garden. You may have remembered this post. Well, I guess this time it's technically a lesson about my harvest. You see this year, I planted these cute little spinning gourds. I purchased a couple last year, and they were so much fun, I decided to grow some our own.

I started the seeds under the plant lamps in garage, so a lot of time was put into them even before planting outside...I had lots of plants so I gave some to my friend C.L. to grow in her garden. We both put the little seedlings in the garden around the same time.

A few weeks later while I was over visiting her house, I noticed a few of the little gourds on her counter. I have to admit I was quite jealous. My plants were growing sooo slowly and I was wondering if I would ever get fruit. Here she had already harvested some!

She kindly offered to give her's to me. "No, no," I said. "I'll wait and see if I get something. Although, I'm a little nervous. I planted a ton of plants and nothing yet."

Later in the summer, I did in fact reap my own little spinning gourds. In fact, I've got a large container full of at least 50. It just took my garden a little longer, apparently.

Then, it hit me. I've got to stop comparing my gourds to other people's gourds. God gave me my own special garden (my family). And my own special sprouts (Jack and Anne). And our harvest time and how we all grow  and produce fruit will always look a little bit different than other families.

Do you find yourself comparing sometimes? It's not always in a jealous way. For me, it's just sometimes, "Oh, I better start working on Anne's letters and numbers. So and so already knows how to read..." I wonder if I'm running behind or if I'm parenting correcting. And sometimes it's really unreasonable too, because I often forget that two of her very closest gal pals are actually about 1.5 years older. So they are all at different stages.

Anyway, the next time I start to compare, I'm going to remember this gourd-y lesson God revealed to me and say, "Stop comparing gourds."

GIVEAWAY: Want a reminder not to compare "your gourds to other people gourds?" Leave a comment between now and Friday and I'll draw a name. The winner will get a little box of spinning gourds in the mail. Believe me, little hands will have a blast spinning them around.

Translating the Bible

In Martin Luther's time, the Bible was only available in Latin--a language very few could read. While he was in hiding (many people wanted to kill him), he translated the Bible into German. This way, the common man would be able to personally read and reflect on God's Word, instead of relying on priests and scholars.

Have your little one "transcribe" the Bible by copying an entire page or just a chapter of the Bible in their own handwriting. Or just have them write one verse. Or, if they don't know how to write (like mine), they can just pretend to write. 

To make it more fun, let them use a quill or feather. And let them use a fun color of watered-down poster paint.

Someone is knocking on my door

Last year, we didn't go trick or treating, but we did knock on some doors. We took the kids to the homes of a few friends and family. They used some homemade wooden hammers(that my hubs helped me make)it and knocked on the doors saying, "Happy Reformation Day!"

 

Martin Luther used a wooden hammer or mallet to nail his 95 Theses (or statements) on the door of Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. While it may seem weird to hammer something to a church door, it wasn't actually uncommon. The church door served as a bulletin board of sorts. These statements outlined his disagreement with the teachings of the church at that time--namely that salvation was being "sold." Luther emphasized that salvation was through faith in Jesus Christ alone.

So we gave each little one their own hammer to run around banging on doors. It was a huge hit. When friends opened the doors, we gave them these little cards, which the kids colored earlier in the day. On the back of the cards are a few facts about Reformation Day. And, of course in exchange the kiddos got some sweet treats. Here's the PDF for the cards so you can print out (back to back) and make some of your own.

To make your own wooden hammers, simple drill a hole in a wooden block and fit a wooden dowel into the space. I also used some wood glue so it would hold up through some major hammering.

You can also purchase one here.

Reformation Day Costumes

Dressing in costumes is a major part of celebrating Reformation Day. Renaissance/Medieval costumes. Think: princesses, knights (think armor of God), Robin Hood, maidens, etc. I saw a knights kit at Target (in the toy section) for $12. And with all the Halloween costumes in stores, you should be able to find a costume relatively cheap and easily.

You can also go for a traditional monk costume. I made Jack's out a brown turtleneck and a piece of cording. 

More on Anne's costume from last year here...Every little girl loves dressing up like a princess and this is a perfect opportunity.

Capes are also very fun and reformation-ish.  Simplicity Pattern 5927, is a very easy and simple pattern to follow. This pattern requires very little sewing when you make it with felt (what the pattern actually calls for). You pretty much cut out the cape and the hood and then just sew those two pieces together. Add some ribbons ties and you are done. Plus, with felt recently on sale at Joann's these cost only about $8-9 to make (including ribbon). I altered it a bit for Anne's version (above) to include a lining and the strap and vintage button across the top. I used red velour for hers. Note: Red is the liturgical color of Reformation Day.

Do you celebrate Reformation Day? Any costume suggestions you'd like to add are welcome!

What is Reformation Day?

Last year, for the first time, we celebrated Reformation Day (Oct 31). For those of you who also might like to celebrate this year, I thought I'd better post some stuff so you can plan your special day. Over the next couple of days, I'll be reposting some ideas from last year as well as some new items.

To me, Reformation Day is an opportunity to teach my kids a little church history and instill in them the message that our salvation is through faith not works. And, yes, this my attempt to create an alternative to the spooky stuff (and sometimes evil) associated with Halloween. Let me be clear: I'm not saying you're bad if you celebrate Halloween. No judgment here, my friends. This is just something we are doing for our family.

Let's start with...What is Reformation Day?

• On Oct 31, 1517, Martin Luther (then a Catholic monk) posted his 95 Theses (or statements) on the door the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. This act triggered the movement in world history known as the Reformation.

• The Reformation was the great rediscovery of the good news of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. At that time, the Roman Catholic Church had become corrupt and was teaching false doctrines like salvation through good works. Some were selling “indulgences.” They said if you purchased these indulgences, you would gain forgiveness for sins.

• Although, Reformation Day is more commonly celebrated in the Lutheran Church, Martin Luther is a hero of faith for us, too. Protestant churches that we worship in today are the result of Luther's brave acts to restore the gospel—salvation through Jesus Christ—to its rightful place as the cornerstone doctrine of Christianity.

• The story of Martin Luther is one of courage, adventure, mystery and triumph. There are many aspects to the story and many theological implications. Explaining all these items can be confusing for some younger children. To help my pre-school age children understand the Reformation, I focused on the fact that Martin Luther helped people realize that salvation is only through Jesus Christ:
  • “For it is by grace that you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

Also, the illustrated book above is a great resource. Beautiful illustrations and it does a great job outlining the history. The text may be a little long on some pages for really tiny ones, but I just abbreviate as I read sometimes.