On My Mind~~Cute and Fuzzy Edition

For some reason I don't fully understand~~it's probably because we are softies when it comes to cats~~Man of the House, Girl of the House, and I have been trying to domesticate a stray cat. Feral cat would probably be a better term. This kitty was born in our neighbor's yard and often wanders over here to see what she can see. She likes to sit in our front window and watch us, and she will even let us pet her through the open window. Of course, we have to feed her! But she won't come in or let us get too close when we are on the same side of the window as she is. Man of the House has dubbed her Nausicaa after the princess in Homer's Odyssey who meets Odysseus when he's washed on shore after a shipwreck and he's lost all his clothes. Nausicaa (pronounced with four syllables!) has just become of marriageable age. So has this cat, so to speak. What we will do with her if she really does adopt us I do not know, but we can't resist getting to know her. She's adorable and very appreciative!



Cat of the House, our permanent, long-term cat, loves to watch the birds at our feeder. Sometimes he'll hang by his front paws from the windowsill to get a better look at all those delectable birdies that are out of his reach. Oh, the longing expressions and the licking of chops that go on!




You can read other "On My Mind" entries at Rhonda's blog.

2011 Reading Challenge~Book #11

Events conspired against me getting my planned book, The Blessings of Weekly Communion by Ken Wieting, finished this week. I had volunteered to be a test administrator for our local homeschool support group's standardized testing this week. That in itself would not have hindered me from completing my book, but Girl of the House caught that nasty stomach-bug-followed-by-upper-respiratory-gunk that seems to be going around these parts. She has been sick all week. Man of the House wasn't 100% either. All those convergences greatly reduced my reading time, alas. So I will keep plugging away and give a full report next week.

All was not a total loss, however. I listened to another P.G. Wodehouse book, How Right You Are, Jeeves, which was a bright spot in a rather dreary week. (Did I mention the rain and dark clouds which descended early on and stayed for almost the entire week? No? No doubt you have heard about the rain and flooding on the east coast. Thankfully, no flooding occured here, but there was plenty of rain!) Wodehouse is a comic genius, and the narrator, Ian Carmichael, is spot on in his voicing of each character. Sometimes I forget that I'm hearing just one actor; Carmichael is that good.

But it's back to my serious book this week. I'm halfway through already, so barring anymore unforeseen hindrances, I should be able to finish it. I plan to read books of a theological and/or devotional nature in observance of Lent, so expect to see rather serious titles added to my list from now through Easter.

What have you been reading? Share below:

Family Culture

Every family has its own culture. That culture is based on shared experiences such as dinnertime rituals, vacations, holiday traditions, and sometimes trials and tribulations. Those experiences give families their own language and inside jokes and references. Just as many families have done, our family language has borrowed extensively from books and movies. Last week I began making a list of the lines we've borrowed and that are now an everyday part of our family culture. The list is six pages long and I'm still adding to it as we think of new ones! I thought it would be fun to share some of those from time to time. I'll give some below, and you try to guess the source. Some are more obvious than others, and I don't guarantee that I have the quotes exactly correct, but they should be recognizable. Feel free to leave your guesses in the comments. The prize is the knowledge of a job well done. :-)

Here we go:

The proprieties must be observed at all times.

There’s more to him than meets the eye.

Is this a kissing book?

Constant viligance!

I need two kinds of ice cream. I'm recuperating.

What does MRCVS mean to you?

Don’t want anymore corpses. Get a reputation.

Cyril never has any money.

No lickin', no larnin'.

Great doctrinal import

Things are boiling up nicely.

Things are not very good around here.

They’ll be safe with me; I’ve got twelve guns in my room.

I want some PTA!

It's a pome. I'm quotin'!

You shall not pass!

Difficulty distinguishing sounds

If I had ever learnt, I would be a true proficient.

Don’t give any of your startling speeches.

The spirits!

2011 Reading Challenge~~Book #10

Ever since I was a little girl, I have loved pioneer stories. I read my copies of the Little House series until they were falling apart. I still have them. When my girls were little, we read Little House and many other pioneer stories, including the Kirsten series from American Girl and Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink. When Girl 2 came home from a library sale with Journey Cake by Isabel McLennan McMeekin I was intrigued. When several years later I still hadn't read it, I thought it would be a good candidate for this reading challenge, and I wasn't disappointed. Journey Cake was 226 pages of pure delight!

The story revolves around the five children of the Shadrow family whose mother has recently died (alas) and whose father has gone ahead to the Kentucky wilderness to begin a new life for his family. When summer arrives, the children are to travel from their old home in North Carolina to meet their father in Kentucky, accompanied by their freed slave woman and her husband, who is still a slave. The year is 1793. They face toil, discouragement, and danger along the way, but they are also helped along by the good folks of Piney Settlement, where they partake in a pioneer wedding and meet Johnny Appleseed.

My favorite chapters of the book are those in which the Shadrows spend a few days at Piney Settlement, a cluster of three or four houses in the woods of Kentucky. It is here that we see the warm hospitality of wilderness folk and witness the women keeping house with ingenuity and creativity in primitive circumstances. I adore books in which housekeeping is a prominent feature, and I suppose that's why I enjoyed these chapters most. I am fascinated by housekeeping without modern conveniences, though I'm very glad to have them myself! It's interesting how everyone~men, women, and children alike~all assume the importance of tending to the home. Indeed, in the circumstances of Piney Settlement, it was absolutely necessary to the survival of the family.

Last week I wrote that while I liked The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall, I didn't love it. It was just . . . lacking in magic and good writing. Journey Cake is much superior. The language, while being suitable for children, was much more sophisticated and lyrical. Compare these two paragraphs chosen randomly. The first is from The Penderwicks:

"Batty had never had a hero outside her own family. She had always figured that her father and Rosalind were enough heroes for anyone. But as she bounced crazily up and down on Skye's shoulder during that wild run to safety, a new hero came into her life. She watched Jeffrey work that bull as though trained from birth as a toreador. This way and that he went--darting, weaving, spinning, jumping--always heading away from Skye and Batty. And the bull followed, frantic to rid himself of this exasperating intruder."

Now from Journey Cake:

"Tim Smith shouted with laughter and apologized handsomely. Soon the children and Juba were laughing with him and bidding him an affectionate farewell. His rough brown hand lingered for a moment over Kate's and he made a pretty speech of thanks to her for mending his leggings. His tone was so warm and friendly that she blushed like a wild rose and looked up into his face admiringly with sweet and womanly candor. He was a handsome man, her heart told her, young and strong and kindly, a man who would make a girl a fine brave husband perhaps somehwere in a day not too far off. She would be sixteen before long. Most girls were married at that age . . . Maybe there would come a day."

Do you see what I mean? I'm becoming persuaded that this time period~Journey Cake was written in 1942~is a golden age of American children's literature. Johnny Tremain and Carry On, Mr. Bowditch are other examples that spring to mind. Though written for children, the authors of this period seem to think enough of children to write lovely, lyrical prose that tells the story clearly but expects something of the reader. So different than The Penderwicks.

So I heartily endorse this book. If you are looking for something new to add to your children's reading lists, or if you love children's literature as I do, you could not do better than to give Journey Cake a try.

Here's Mr. Linky. I'd love to know what you are reading!

Three Guesses What This Is

As I've mentioned before, last summer Man of the House was accepted as a minister in The American Association of Lutheran Churches. Though he has served in campus ministry and as an elder in a Reformed baptist-type church, this is his first time in a liturgical tradition (which we are loving, by the way). So I have to get used to seeing odd things about the house, such as this:



Know what it is? A jar of palm ashes for use on Ash Wednesday. Man of the House needs to experiment with the proportion of oil to ashes before then. The joys of being a novice . . .

2011 Reading Challenge~~Books #8 and #9

With the aid of my trusty CD player (yes, I still use old, antiquated gadgets), I listened to Wendell Berry's A World Lost, another in his Port William series. I was rapturous about Hannah Coulter a couple months back, remember? Berry did not disappoint me in this book either. He writes with a beautiful simplicity and clarity about people I wish I knew. A World Lost is about a murder, but it's not a murder mystery; indeed, we know almost from the beginning who the murderer was. The story focuses on the nephew of the murdered man and his discovery over the years of what really happened to his beloved Uncle Andrew. Berry reveals few details about the incident; instead he shows the reader the imperfect but likable character of Uncle Andrew. If you're new to Berry, don't start with this book. Hannah Coulter is a better starting place. But you could read it second like I did. :-)


The Penderwicks is a children's book I've wanted to read since Girl of the House brought it home from the bookstore a few years ago. (I love children's literature!) The reviews on the back cover compare it to old-fashioned family stories like those of E. Nesbit, which I really like, but I found The Penderwicks lacking. The story was rather predictable and the writing lacked polish. Also, does anyone write children's stories anymore in which both parents are still living?? There were some clever aspects, such as the Penderwick daughter who works math word problems for fun, but I was expecting so much more. I'm guessing this book was written specifically for second or third graders, and as such it probably hits the nail on the head. Girl of the House told me she really liked it. I liked it but didn't love it and probably won't read the sequels. If your child wants to read it, by all means, let him. It is certainly superior to many children's books available today, but it does not live up to E. Nesbit.

What are you reading? Share your thoughts on your blog and then link here (if you don't have a blog, feel free to write something in the comments):

Two Great Men

Two great men were born on this day: George Washington and Man of the House. One of them is famous and has had many books written about him. The other is obscure, ordinary, and unimportant in the eyes of the world but is so very significant, extraordinary and important to his family.

To My Husband~

I have watched you over the years forego many of your own desires in order to grant the desires of your wife and daughters. You have gone without and sacrificed many things for us. You have worked harder, longer, and more tirelessly than anyone should have to to provide so abundantly for us. Thank you.

You have kept your family at the center of your life (with Christ as the center of that center) and blessed us with your time, attention, and commitment. You have never let hobbies or work come before us, and I've never once doubted your love and faithfulness toward us. Thank you.

You have consistently and faithfully acted as the "house pastor" of our family. You've led us in prayer, the reading of the Scriptures, and weekly worship. We have grown in the Lord through your service, the result being an adult daughter walking with the Lord alongside her believing husband, another daughter about to be confirmed in the faith, and a wife who has grown greatly in the faith (I hope and believe!) under your leadership. Thank you.

You have taken difficult stands and made hard decisions. You have not caved in to the pressures of the world but stood firm for what is right and true and good, even when it wasn't easy and meant a more difficult path lay ahead. You follow the calling God has given you even if it means being misunderstood and undervalued. Thank you.

You are the best man I know, and I am very blessed and privileged to be your wife, as are our girls to be your daughters. Happy 47th birthday!