Happy Veterans Day!

Happy Veterans Day!

My Thankful Challenge post today...I am thankful for our military. I am thankful for those who have served. I am thankful for those who are serving in the military now.

Many times in our house, we have discussions about etiquette. I know that's an outdated ideal in many homes across America. But it was important to both my husband's mother and my mother, and these ideals have been passed on. My mother will be happy to know that we actually do use the Emily Post book she gave us for a wedding present! It's not just a paper weight! (I can see all my readers trying to imagine just how Tutone reacts to these conversations. That's for another post on another day!)

So I asked my husband, who served at one time in the Army, about Veterans Day etiquette. Although Veterans Day was originally meant to honor those who had served in foreign wars, such as WWI and WWII, with the decline of respect for our nation's military it has become more than acceptable to honor anyone who has prior military service. On this day, etiquette be darned! Thank anyone who has worn the uniform please! And then do it again on Armed Forces Day, which next year will fall on May 16, 2009.

A Veteran's Day Tribute, By Joanna Fuchs

If someone has done military service,
They earn the title "veteran," and more;
They earn our deep respect and admiration;
That they are special no one can ignore.

They sacrificed the comforts we enjoy;
The list is long of all the things they gave;
Our veterans are extraordinary people;
They’re loyal, dedicated, true and brave.

When terror and invasion were real threats,
They showed us they could handle any storm.
We owe our freedoms and our very lives
To our veterans, who served in uniform.

Our veterans should be celebrities;
They’re exceptional; no other group compares.
We’re grateful for the many things they’ve done;
They’re always in our hearts and in our prayers.

We owe our veterans support and friendship;
Let no one ever question what they’re worth.
These men and women served us and our country;
Our veterans--the very best on earth.

...More Things to Be Thankful For....

After watching the following PSA, I have found a few more things for which I am thankful. Watch...



I am thankful that my husband knows how to deal with all of the cables in the back of my TV! I am thankful that he can take care of my computer. I am thankful that he encourages me to learn more about my computer, although who can keep up with the rate of change of technology? Well, he can, but it's his job! And I am extremely thankful that he purchased my DirecTV package so that I can watch all my football games in HD now, and I do not have to wait until February.

Thank you honey!

And to those of you who got a big laugh at John McCain's daughter (not really) just remember, your day is coming!

Disclaimer: I cannot be held responsible for any of the other videos this site puts up so do NOT click on those!

The Giving Thanks Challenge

Thank you Leah in Iowa, for the Second Annual Giving Thanks Challenge! And for reminding us to take time this month to be thankful! Doesn't it seem like the American way to skip right over Thanksgiving and move right onto Christmas? That might not bother me so much if I thought that we understood, as Americans, the true meaning of Christmas.

Being thankful is so important!

So visit Leah's blog and start your list of things to be thankful for!


Now you may be wondering why I listed Kleenex as today's item for which I was thankful. I am not trying to be irreverent. I am being serious. I'll be honest that there is some humor in it, but still I am thankful for it. When we say, "Thank God!" and we really mean that we are being thankful to God, is that irreverent? I don't think so. Something to ponder, I guess. It depends on where your heart is I guess!

If you lived in Texas in November, you'd be thankful for Kleenex too. Apparently, it is Cedar season. I did not know that before we moved here. I love Texas with my whole heart. And I will put up with any allergies that it throws our way, especially since mine aren't the ones that are that bad. ;)

This morning poor Super sneezed and then came running across the school room with his hand over his nose yelling "Gross!" Ahhh...life with boys. I would think it was a cold but then I remembered, that's why they call it Cedar Fever. So it looks like an autumn of Claritin and Kleenex for him. That's why this morning I am thankful for Kleenex.

Although I looked across the school room a little while ago and he had two pieces of Kleenex stuck up each side of his nose. That's nasty. I told him I was going to take a picture and put it on my blog if he didn't stop. That fixed that problem. ;)

On to why I am thankful for you, my friends! I couldn't do this without you! Please know that you give me the encouragement and wisdom every day to make it through this journey of homeschooling!

"I thank my God in all my remembrance of you."
Philippians 1:3

...Eww What's That?

Actually, Coach Mom didn't say "Eww what's that?" Tutone did. As promised, I have a few slow cooker recipes for you. But our first recipe comes with a story about my youngest son, who is generally not a picky eater, but those of you with picky eaters will appreciate it.

Tutone: "Why is there green stuff in the crock pot?"
Coach Mom: "That's chicken."
Tutone: "Chicken shouldn't be green."
Coach Mom: "The chicken isn't green. It's pesto. It's on top of the chicken. That is what is green."
Tutone: "Food shouldn't be green."
Coach Mom: "Tutone! You eat green food all the time. Apples are green. Limes are green. Many of the pieces of candy I have seen you eat are green."
Tutone: "Well, I don't think that I am going to like pesto."

6 hours later...

Tutone: "Are you going to make this again next week? This is the best food we have had in two weeks."

OK. So now I should be happy because he liked dinner, right? But instead I'm more than a little irritated because...hey! What do you mean this is the best food we've had in two weeks? What about....sigh!

So without further ado...here it is...green chicken!

Pesto Chicken

4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can cream of celery soup (I use the 98% fat free)
1 cup milk (I use skim)
1 envelope pesto sauce

Serves 4-6 depending on ages of your children!

Place chicken in slow cooker. I put my chicken in while it was still frozen. Pour all the other ingredients over the chicken and cook on low 6 hours. Serve over fettuccine.

And Now for a Word from Our Sponsor, Part 2

My husband let me know the other day, that it was I that had missed the point of his favorite commercial. Who me? Miss a point? Am I blonde? Oh, yeah.

First of all, I did get the actress' lines wrong. But the point that I missed was that my dear husband was saying that his favorite part of these commercials, the part that reminds him of me, is that the Mom is constantly there "giving it" to the boys. She doesn't let them get away with anything. He was admiring her. He wasn't saying she was crazy. He respected her toughness.

So my apologies to my lovely husband. And you will see, that he is number 2, on my list of things that I am thankful for! I love you!

...It's Time to be Real!

This week my friends were talking about cleaning lists again. Isn't it amazing how often this topic comes up? But this time, Martha Stewart's name came up. I started thinking about how my feelings on Martha Stewart have changed over the years.

I used to love Martha Stewart when I was younger. Before I got married and had kids, I bought all her magazines. You know, before I had to pay for things myself. Isn't it amazing what a dose of reality will do?

How do I say this nicely? I am a Texan in spirit, but not in speech, so it never really sounds quite as nice when I say something. See Texans are fiercely independent and tough but then they say "Bless your heart." I've got the one, without the other. I'm a little more the bull in the china shop type. (I heard that Sharon!)

I am sure I could do all the things in the Martha Stewart magazine, if I had the money to employ the staff that she does. But even more than the staff, it is the money to purchase the materials . Early on in her career, her work really was simpler. But it's easy to pick on Martha Stewart, everyone does. It's a horse that has been beat to death. It's a problem that extends far beyond Martha Stewart.

Every time we go to the grocery store, we are bombarded with magazines. You attempt to avert your eyes from the tabloids and what do you see? You see the decorating magazines. Those seem harmless. After all, they are about your domestic art. In a way, it's about your family. It's like a trade magazine for housewives, right? Except for one thing, they are designed to make you spend money.

You know what it's like for women? It's like seeing all those airbrushed women on the covers of fashion magazines. You see enough of that and you think you have to look like that. Well, we see enough decorating magazines and we think our houses should look like that. Or that we have to serve food that looks like that. Or that when we throw a party, it had better look like that. It's unrealistic. It puts an undue burden on our husband's wallets. And we put undue pressure on ourselves. (If my husband is reading this, and wonders if I am feeling a prick of conscious about Christmas magazines, yes, yes, I am. I am working on it.)

Ladies, let's take those masks off. I believe God wants us to be good stewards rather than a good Stewart. He wants us to be who He created us to be. There is nothing wrong with decorating your house. Certainly you know, based on the lists that I have published here, that I believe there is nothing wrong with cleaning your house! And you know how much I love throwing parties, and theme cooking! Housekeeping is an art. But it doesn't have to be expensive. It only takes you.

If you really believe that He created you to be like Martha Stewart that is awesome! But if you don't, and you have been trying to reach that bar of perfection and it is doing nothing more than making you miserable, then may I suggest a more simple approach? I refuse to advertise any one show, especially one I rarely watch, but I know that those decorating on a budget shows seem to have inspired my sister Robin.

God gave you special gifts. Your creativity, your ingenuity and your family's personality should be the things that are reflected in your home. Above all else, when people come into your home, they should know who your family serves.

...And Now for a Word from Our Sponsors!

Have you ever wondered how much of our every day life and speech is influenced by the latest commercials? Lately, I have noticed that you can tell which channels people watch by what kind of commercials they repeat. For instance, if it's not a commercial shown on a sports network, chances are good that my kids and I haven't seen it. If it's not a commercial shown on a political news network or a kids channel, then my sister Meredith has not watched it.

Some of my favorites lately...

My boys seems to be entertained primarily by fast food commercials. Marketing money clearly well spent, since I fathom that pre-teen boys were probably their target audience!

Super shared this little bit of logic the other night over dinner. He tried to become very serious and asked me, "If vegetarians don't eat meat because they love animals so much, then aren't 'meat-a-arians' the real tree huggers?" Then he looked at me and smiled his "Get it?" smile.

Without skipping a beat, his brother Tutone deadpans, "It's a personal choice."

I swear they practice these skits before they come to the table. And before you ask, yes, we have covered carnivores, omnivores, and herbivores in homeschool. That's the joke. They call it a "meat-a-tarian" in the commercial. ;)

...

Phil gives me the "hairy eyeball" every time the roll over minutes commercials with the whacked out mom comes on. Apparently it reminds him of somebody he knows. I have no idea who. ;)

In the latest one, the two sons are arguing because one son has the "new minutes" and the other son has all the "leftover minutes". During this argument the mom comes in to, you know, ascertain the problem. She leans over and mixes up all the minutes and asks them if they can tell now who has the "new" and who has the "leftover". When they respond, "No." She repeats, "No? No?" like she is about to lose it.

This actress portrays perfectly a Mom on the edge. Whenever she talks to her sons, she points at them and widens her eyes. Phil finds eerily familiar. The actress probably has sons herself.

My response? Moms wouldn't lose it if sons didn't fight over ridiculous things!

...

My friend Molly has had it rough with sick people in her family this year, poor thing! With no medical background, I am constantly dispensing unsolicited medical advice. But of course, I always caveat it with an oldie but a goody. "I'm not a doctor..." of course, I don't play one on T.V. so I have to change it.

My email usually goes, "I'm not a doctor, and I don't even play one on T.V." and then straight into my advice. To be fair, and Molly will back me up on this, my advice is usually that she needs to call the doctor right away.

But Molly hit me back with a good one today. And it's new! We will not get into specifics about what was wrong with her poor little guy this morning. It was pretty gross! But after I dispensed my advice, (and prayers!) she responded, "I know you aren't a doctor, but you did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night, right??"

Awesome!