Madison's new favorite spot.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Snow morning
They predicted it and this time, it came. A bit of snow to change my Saturday from a day full of outside engagements to one that will be spent quietly at home. The boys are still sleeping. I've taken a little turn outside to fill a feeder...
As the sleet falls, the lights on our tree, still up on the deck, add a little cheer!
Here's the first stanza of another Luci Shaw poem, fitting for the morning:
Light Gathering, January
Yesterday the sky began to drop small
handfulls of snow, randomly, like a fine
seed of hope being scattered onto the rooftops
to rumor a larger world. Or like pinches
of salt rubbed between bunched fingers
to season the season. Brightness gathers here,
there, anywhere --- these crumbs of a white sky
fall and fall like so much mercy, hushed
and persistent, each crystal startled after
the long descent, a glistening prism that rides
down the window glass of the world
on the sled of its melting.
...sadly only halfway since I forgot to buy more seed this week.
The daffodil tips, the "green out of gray,"
are green out of white this morning...
barely visible tips reaching up from under their crystal blanket.
barely visible tips reaching up from under their crystal blanket.
As the sleet falls, the lights on our tree, still up on the deck, add a little cheer!
Here's the first stanza of another Luci Shaw poem, fitting for the morning:
Light Gathering, January
Yesterday the sky began to drop small
handfulls of snow, randomly, like a fine
seed of hope being scattered onto the rooftops
to rumor a larger world. Or like pinches
of salt rubbed between bunched fingers
to season the season. Brightness gathers here,
there, anywhere --- these crumbs of a white sky
fall and fall like so much mercy, hushed
and persistent, each crystal startled after
the long descent, a glistening prism that rides
down the window glass of the world
on the sled of its melting.
Can you tell I am loving Luci Shaw these days? This poem is also from her collection, What the Light Was Like. This little book sits on my desk and I go to it often these days, reading poems here and there, finding phrases, images, metaphors that stir. My thanks to Bonnie, who introduced me to Luci Shaw, and whose book I have borrowed long.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
May I just say...
...at the risk of grossing you out, that dissecting the sheep plucks in anatomy class today was a worthy educational pursuit.
"What is a sheep pluck?" you ask. (Or maybe, like Aunt Lindele, you don't really want to know. If so, stop reading here).
A sheep's pluck is a sheep's trachea, lungs, and heart "plucked" right out of that poor sheepy's chest cavity and shot full of preservatives for your dissecting pleasure. Sheep guts in a plastic bag.
The preserving solution is not, shall we say, very fragrant. In fact, it stinks. But you get used to it. And with the windows open, it's not too bad. Thankfully, it was a warmish day and we could open the windows for a bit of fresh air.
As we dissected away, I heard comments like "Woah!" "Wow!" "Oh, coool!" "What is THAT?" and "Mrs. Pinckney, can I cut it here, too?"
I saw light bulbs going off all around as students finally really understood the pulmonary and systemic circulatory systems, the chambers of the heart, and the major vessels and what goes where. I heard one student say of a hunk of lung, "It's like a sponge." Yep, it is. Lots of little spaces to fill with air. How convenient for us oxygen dependent creatures.
We all decided that tracheas are pretty amazing structures and that we are very thankful for that strong C-cartilage that keeps our airways open.
"What is a sheep pluck?" you ask. (Or maybe, like Aunt Lindele, you don't really want to know. If so, stop reading here).
A sheep's pluck is a sheep's trachea, lungs, and heart "plucked" right out of that poor sheepy's chest cavity and shot full of preservatives for your dissecting pleasure. Sheep guts in a plastic bag.
The preserving solution is not, shall we say, very fragrant. In fact, it stinks. But you get used to it. And with the windows open, it's not too bad. Thankfully, it was a warmish day and we could open the windows for a bit of fresh air.
As we dissected away, I heard comments like "Woah!" "Wow!" "Oh, coool!" "What is THAT?" and "Mrs. Pinckney, can I cut it here, too?"
I saw light bulbs going off all around as students finally really understood the pulmonary and systemic circulatory systems, the chambers of the heart, and the major vessels and what goes where. I heard one student say of a hunk of lung, "It's like a sponge." Yep, it is. Lots of little spaces to fill with air. How convenient for us oxygen dependent creatures.
We all decided that tracheas are pretty amazing structures and that we are very thankful for that strong C-cartilage that keeps our airways open.
We want YOU to appreciate your trachea, too!
Seriously, it is weeks like this one when I am so incredibly thankful for the opportunity to learn with three great groups of high school students - my lab class kids on Tuesday and my two co-op groups on Thursday. They are interested, hard working, thoughtful, and fun. I marvel with them at our incredible bodies and am inspired by their questions to dig deeper. I certainly don't have all the answers for them. I am not an anatomy whiz (yet!) but I know where to look for answers and I'm not afraid of a few guts here and there. So, we learn together and have a blast doing it. At least I hope that's what they would say. From the comments today after our sheep plucks, I think they would concur.
"Revival"
"...but as the light lengthens, preacher
of good news, evangelizing leaves and branches,
his large gestures beckon green
out of gray..."
-from the poem "Revival" by Luci Shaw
photos from my garden
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Fourth Monday, 2010
It is, technically, not Monday anymore. But I've missed it only by 6 minutes as I start to write this post. So, I'm sticking to my routine here since I like the idea of starting and marking the weeks with thanks. Are you, like me, a little surprised that it is already the fourth Monday of this new year!
I have been intensely aware of the darkness through this month. Hard things in my life and in the lives of many that I know and love. Heartache, illness, breakdown in relationships, distance from God. Failure, pain, confusion, and just plain meanness. I have wondered, "Can I make it through just one day, God...just one...without tears?"
The darkness hangs close, filling the spaces around me. And it spreads - wide as the world. Haiti, India, Iraq. Ethiopia, China, Indonesia.
I walk into my kitchen on a day like today, a day full of sunshine and wind, a day scoured clean by torrents of rain last night and I see the light spilling across the table. It reminds me of a book title, What the Light Was Like.
Sometimes words stay in your mind. A phrase plays around the edges of your thoughts to stir and illumine. The five words of that title stayed with me and reminded me through this day that today and every day, we are to see, rejoice in, remember, and proclaim what the light is like....
635. lighting the corner where the blackbird sings.
I give thanks for the beauty of all that light.
I give thanks, too, for the way light shines in my life through...
636. loyal friends
637. praying friends
638. my faithful, wise, patient husband
639. sons who give up plans to care for others
640. sons who know the true Light
641. sons who serve in small tasks
642. those who come seeking a little haven in this home,
643. the joy of welcoming them,
644. the sharing of burdens,
645. rest and peace.
So much light.
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
John 1:5
I have been intensely aware of the darkness through this month. Hard things in my life and in the lives of many that I know and love. Heartache, illness, breakdown in relationships, distance from God. Failure, pain, confusion, and just plain meanness. I have wondered, "Can I make it through just one day, God...just one...without tears?"
The darkness hangs close, filling the spaces around me. And it spreads - wide as the world. Haiti, India, Iraq. Ethiopia, China, Indonesia.
I walk into my kitchen on a day like today, a day full of sunshine and wind, a day scoured clean by torrents of rain last night and I see the light spilling across the table. It reminds me of a book title, What the Light Was Like.
Sometimes words stay in your mind. A phrase plays around the edges of your thoughts to stir and illumine. The five words of that title stayed with me and reminded me through this day that today and every day, we are to see, rejoice in, remember, and proclaim what the light is like....
632. as it spills across the kitchen table
633. making little suns of the lemons on the counter
634. deepening the richness of wood and fabric
635. lighting the corner where the blackbird sings.
I give thanks for the beauty of all that light.
I give thanks, too, for the way light shines in my life through...
636. loyal friends
637. praying friends
638. my faithful, wise, patient husband
639. sons who give up plans to care for others
640. sons who know the true Light
641. sons who serve in small tasks
642. those who come seeking a little haven in this home,
643. the joy of welcoming them,
644. the sharing of burdens,
645. rest and peace.
So much light.
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
John 1:5
Monday, January 25, 2010
Farm fix
If you're needing a farm fix, as I do from time to time...
or want to learn more about sheep...
or just want to see some cute pictures of baby lambs...
check out Kristin Nicholas's blog posts, The Farmer Answers. (Scroll down several posts to "Ask the Farmer" if you want to start at the beginning and then work your way up through "The Farmer Answers" posts).
Kristin is a knit designer whose color sense I love. Her designs are unique and interesting. I have a signed copy of this book and look forward to getting this newest one before too long. I've also made Baby's First Balls for Clara out of this book, co-authored with Melanie Falick. I have another sweater pattern in the queue when I finish with my current project. So many wonderful heirloom projects to do, so little time.
Kristin and her husband and daughter live in western Massachusetts, not too far from where we used to live so I sort of feel a connection to her particular place. I recognize the geography. I like that.
or want to learn more about sheep...
or just want to see some cute pictures of baby lambs...
check out Kristin Nicholas's blog posts, The Farmer Answers. (Scroll down several posts to "Ask the Farmer" if you want to start at the beginning and then work your way up through "The Farmer Answers" posts).
Kristin is a knit designer whose color sense I love. Her designs are unique and interesting. I have a signed copy of this book and look forward to getting this newest one before too long. I've also made Baby's First Balls for Clara out of this book, co-authored with Melanie Falick. I have another sweater pattern in the queue when I finish with my current project. So many wonderful heirloom projects to do, so little time.
baby Clara and her knitted, felted balls
Kristin and her husband and daughter live in western Massachusetts, not too far from where we used to live so I sort of feel a connection to her particular place. I recognize the geography. I like that.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
This salad...
...is very, very good. Try it. Eat it. Frequently. That's what I'm planning to do.
Read the rest over here....
Read the rest over here....
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Oh, yippeeee!!!
Today I received this book in the mail...a delightful surprise from two very sweet people. Thank you, thank you, R and A!
Can't wait to read it and start bending few rules!
Staying home today....
from co-op to work on biology classes.
I need a productive day with the books. The prospect of 64 degrees and sun this afternoon is big incentive to get going in earnest this morning.
Meanwhile, my boys who have studied hard are at co-op taking a major AP World History mid-term. Poor Matthew, exhausted from a weekend of late nights, soccer, ping-pong, early Sunday music prep for church, and a long day at work yesterday, tried to review just a bit more last night, but couldn't keep his eyes open. I woke him and sent him to bed!
Monday, January 18, 2010
Third Monday, 2010
After a very full weekend, I give thanks for...
626. these two dear ones, like family to us, and special time with them this weekend
627. games and fun and laughter
628. and food and talk and reuniting with old friends
629. a gift of flowers
630. and traditions that continue...
631. I am thankful, too, for friends who call and listen and encourage and offer shoulders and time and prayer. A number of conversations over the last week have reminded me what a great gift true friends are. Sometimes we give, sometimes we take. No one keeps tabs.
"Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over..."
-from Luke 6:38
631. I am thankful, too, for friends who call and listen and encourage and offer shoulders and time and prayer. A number of conversations over the last week have reminded me what a great gift true friends are. Sometimes we give, sometimes we take. No one keeps tabs.
"Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over..."
-from Luke 6:38
Sunday, January 17, 2010
This afternoon we had...
More good food.
Two football games. I was rooting for the Vikings and the Jets. 2 for 2. Not that I care that much but I do have fun watching football with my guys and if you're going to watch, you might as well cheer for someone.
Snoozing...on the couch by Coty, me, and Rob. Not all at the same time. We did tag team snoozing.
Commercial competition. Yes, my sons can make watching muted commercials during NFL football into competition. Commercials are mostly obnoxious so Coty always mutes them. First one to guess what is being advertised gets a point. If you guess wrong, you get negative points. There are other complicated scoring rules, but since I am usually looking down at my knitting, I don't really pay too much attention.
A bit of knitting. The left front of my sweater is almost done. Then the sleeves and I'll be done with adult sweater #2. Then it'll be time for a hat or two or a scarf or another one of these!
Lots of boys. My guys plus friends. Wrestling. Shane thought it was funny that I kept knitting even when the sounds coming from the kitchen sounded like someone could be getting killed. They weren't. That's what boys sound like.
A ping-pong tournament. Rob won.
Another female. Yeah for Abbi! After her nap, she came downstairs and snuggled with Rob on the couch, reading her book while the game went on and napping a bit more from time to time. So sweet to look over and see them together. It makes my heart happy to see them.
A musical performance on guitar and piano by Matthew and Albert of their "power ballads." New tunes for old, old songs like Yankee Doodle and I've Been Working on the Railroad. I'm wondering when the album will come out.
Phone conversations with Jonathan and Erin.
A very, very relaxed time.
Two football games. I was rooting for the Vikings and the Jets. 2 for 2. Not that I care that much but I do have fun watching football with my guys and if you're going to watch, you might as well cheer for someone.
Snoozing...on the couch by Coty, me, and Rob. Not all at the same time. We did tag team snoozing.
Commercial competition. Yes, my sons can make watching muted commercials during NFL football into competition. Commercials are mostly obnoxious so Coty always mutes them. First one to guess what is being advertised gets a point. If you guess wrong, you get negative points. There are other complicated scoring rules, but since I am usually looking down at my knitting, I don't really pay too much attention.
A bit of knitting. The left front of my sweater is almost done. Then the sleeves and I'll be done with adult sweater #2. Then it'll be time for a hat or two or a scarf or another one of these!
Lots of boys. My guys plus friends. Wrestling. Shane thought it was funny that I kept knitting even when the sounds coming from the kitchen sounded like someone could be getting killed. They weren't. That's what boys sound like.
A ping-pong tournament. Rob won.
Another female. Yeah for Abbi! After her nap, she came downstairs and snuggled with Rob on the couch, reading her book while the game went on and napping a bit more from time to time. So sweet to look over and see them together. It makes my heart happy to see them.
A musical performance on guitar and piano by Matthew and Albert of their "power ballads." New tunes for old, old songs like Yankee Doodle and I've Been Working on the Railroad. I'm wondering when the album will come out.
Phone conversations with Jonathan and Erin.
A very, very relaxed time.
Cooking and talking and soccer
Today was a good day. Rob and Abbi are here and I've been working away in the kitchen to make lots of good food. I love to cook for friends and especially love it when they make special requests. Rob's request was raspberry cobbler which we had tonight with cream on top. Not ice cream, not whipped cream, just cream. It was very, very good.
Today, we also ate mixed fruit clafoutis (though technically, I suppose it was a flaugnarde since it was not made with cherries). We ate it hot from the oven with blueberry cinnamon bread and cheese omelets for breakfast. Lunch was leftover curried squash soup made with coconut milk for lunch. Dinner was lemon pepper tilapia, garlic mashed potatoes, apple/date/craisin salad, roasted tomatoes (thanks Laura, for a wonderful recipe), and rosemary bread. And then, of course, the cobbler. And good strong PG tips tea afterward. Ahhhh.
We have talked a lot. It's easy to talk with Robby and Abbi. I love them so much and am delighted that they've found each other. A bit of a whirlwind romance, but kudos to Rob for not sitting back and indecisively biding his time. I think a lot of young women would appreciate a young man with the kind of initiative and purpose he has demonstrated in pursuing Abbi. He surprised quite a few of us with his quick proposal, but we're glad and can't wait for their wedding in March. Arkansas, here we come!
Rob, Abbi, and I went to watch a soccer game this afternoon, too. Matthew and Joel's winter league team played in the most bizarre game I have EVER seen. The team they played was composed of very large, sloppily dressed, foul mouthed, disrespectful bullies. I've never seen so much blatant pushing, shoving, and foul play. The guys were thugs. Sorry, folks. If you'd been there, you would agree with me. It was unbelievable. It was not soccer. It was like a bunch of playground bullies taunting and picking on the smaller guys. When the ref called fouls on them, they laughed, and then did the same thing again. When they were carded, they sneered. It was crazy. I am proud of our guys who played hard and took a whole lot of abuse. They lost by one goal, but they certainly won the character victory.
And now, it is way too late. I should have been in bed at least an hour ago, but it's hard to go to sleep on Saturday nights before Matthew comes home from work. He just walked in, took off his Steak 'n Shake apron and headed upstairs to bed. So, I will say goodnight to good old Madison, turn off the lights and gladly snuggle under the covers with my sweetheart. His even breathing and the gentle rainfall will lull me right to sleep.
Today, we also ate mixed fruit clafoutis (though technically, I suppose it was a flaugnarde since it was not made with cherries). We ate it hot from the oven with blueberry cinnamon bread and cheese omelets for breakfast. Lunch was leftover curried squash soup made with coconut milk for lunch. Dinner was lemon pepper tilapia, garlic mashed potatoes, apple/date/craisin salad, roasted tomatoes (thanks Laura, for a wonderful recipe), and rosemary bread. And then, of course, the cobbler. And good strong PG tips tea afterward. Ahhhh.
We have talked a lot. It's easy to talk with Robby and Abbi. I love them so much and am delighted that they've found each other. A bit of a whirlwind romance, but kudos to Rob for not sitting back and indecisively biding his time. I think a lot of young women would appreciate a young man with the kind of initiative and purpose he has demonstrated in pursuing Abbi. He surprised quite a few of us with his quick proposal, but we're glad and can't wait for their wedding in March. Arkansas, here we come!
Rob, Abbi, and I went to watch a soccer game this afternoon, too. Matthew and Joel's winter league team played in the most bizarre game I have EVER seen. The team they played was composed of very large, sloppily dressed, foul mouthed, disrespectful bullies. I've never seen so much blatant pushing, shoving, and foul play. The guys were thugs. Sorry, folks. If you'd been there, you would agree with me. It was unbelievable. It was not soccer. It was like a bunch of playground bullies taunting and picking on the smaller guys. When the ref called fouls on them, they laughed, and then did the same thing again. When they were carded, they sneered. It was crazy. I am proud of our guys who played hard and took a whole lot of abuse. They lost by one goal, but they certainly won the character victory.
And now, it is way too late. I should have been in bed at least an hour ago, but it's hard to go to sleep on Saturday nights before Matthew comes home from work. He just walked in, took off his Steak 'n Shake apron and headed upstairs to bed. So, I will say goodnight to good old Madison, turn off the lights and gladly snuggle under the covers with my sweetheart. His even breathing and the gentle rainfall will lull me right to sleep.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Smitten!
Sorry, it's so small, but I think this is one of the cutest pictures I have seen in a long time...and that's saying a lot because there are SO many cute pictures of Clara. She and her Daddy are smitten with each other, don't you think!
Monday, January 11, 2010
Second Monday, 2010
Well, I do intend to post more than once a week in this new year but I have to say Week 1 of 2010 was not an easy one for me. Still, I give thanks...
615. Boys safely back to school. They didn't really want to go back to classes just yet and we were sad to see them go, but I'm thankful for safe trips, new classes, and the prospect of visits before long.
616. New anatomy lab class for me tomorrow. I love how much I learn every time I prepare to teach a new class. Simple columnar epithelial cells that line the stomach are amazing. I hope my students can find them on the microscope slides tomorrow.
617. Facebook chat. Yes, really.
618. Reading a very good book, The Reason for God by Tim Keller. Read it.
619. Robbie and Abbi coming this weekend. Woooooohooooooo!!!!! Pre-marital counseling, Sonic happy hour with the boys, tennis, lingering with coffee at the breakfast table, friends, reunions, everyone getting to meet Abbi and rejoice with them.
620. Getting back on track with walking after a bit of a holiday mileage reduction. Coty is such a faithful walking partner and Heidi is getting back to it after a stress fracture. Can't wait to walk with her again!
621. Do I really give thanks for the illness, heartache, sadness, and pain lately. The tears. Weeping with those who weep. Counting it all joy, giving thanks in all things is a struggle. I often fail. I give thanks that in my weakness and the weakness of other dear ones, Jesus is strong.
622. And I give thanks for friends - C, T, A and more. This verse makes me think of them..."Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel." Proverbs 27:9
624. Good news from Ethiopia, a sympathetic judge, and the possibility that little W, at least, will be home with M and M soon! Praise God for answered prayer.
625. There is always beauty, everywhere...if you look for it.
Monday, January 04, 2010
First Monday, 2010!
597. 30 years and two teapots to mark the anniversary!
598. Birthdays
599. Visits
600. A house full of boys
601. A house full of quiet : )
602. Morning reading
603. Warmth
604. Friends who accept impromptu invitations
605. Safe travels for J and K and E, L, and C
606. Weddings ahead!
607. Walks with C
608. Project finished, project imagined
609. Sunday dinner sermon discussion
610. Pastors who get choked up with emotion while preaching
611. A college acceptance
612. A new recipe to add to the repertoire
613. An engagement anniversary for E and L
614. Today's work - new syllabi for spring classes!
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