One resort north of here is advertising that they have more colors than your crayon box.
And it’s true. The trees are gloriously ablaze in especially vivid colors this year.
As Minnesotans, we tend to savor every drop of color — knowing the stark whites and greys of winter will soon blanket everything.
The leaves may be dying, but they are going out with a bang. They are displaying the splendor of the One who created them.
Fall is a reminder that we are all dying, too. Our bodies will eventually fail in one way or another. And while we are in the “fall” of life, aren’t we, too, called to display God’s splendor?
My baby is turning 5 this week. And soon we will be reuniting with relatives who live far away, and already I can hear them exclaim how tall my girls are growing.
Growing, yes. But not like weeds. Like trees.
“…They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.” -Isaiah 61:3
I have an older brother, whom we will call Brent Uncle Zebra Killer, and he reminded me about my birth order status every single day of my childhood. Every single day. Some big brothers are exceptionally pesky in that way. Some learn all they know from their biblical precedent: Cain.
Poor Abel. I can relate to him, too.
No my brother never did kill me — although he has killed a zebra, so I’m sure you can imagine what he did do to me. If we could rewind back to my childhood at any given daylight moment, you’d probably hear me shrieking, “Leave me alone!” at the top of my lungs and using every ounce of my 65-lb. body to hold my bedroom door shut to keep him out.
Or perhaps you’d hear us arguing about something. We were famous for disagreeing about trivial things, like whether or not popcorn is good to eat. He doesn’t like the stuff, and I ask you, who? Who does not like popcorn? Who?
Looking back, I think all I needed then was some respect, some space, and some alone time. And he just didn’t get it.
Actually, my brother still does not know when he should leave me alone.
Last night, for instance, he felt the need to call my house at 10 p.m., which would have been fine. If we lived in the same time zone. We do not. I’m a night owl, yes, but I happen to believe that midnight phone calls should be strictly reserved for baby announcements and emergencies. Seriously!
If I hadn’t been so startled and terrified of waking the rest of my family, I probably would have yelled, “Leave me alone!” into the phone.
We also still disagree on trivial things, although we have become much more civilized in that department. For instance, he’s lived in the ever-green state of Washington for the last umpteen years and is missing the myriad of fall colors. With his head high in a cloud of nostalgia, he is trying to convince me that Oklahoma’s fall colors peak in early October.
Um. No.
Minnesota has splendid fall colors right now. See?
And he’d know this if he ever actually visited me here.
But according to my sources on the ground, Oklahoma still has lots of green leaves and warm days right now. Next week, he’ll have to see it to believe me, and even then if I say “I told you so,” he’ll give me no credit whatsoever.
Oh, siblings. You can’t live with them.
Or can you? I am thankful that “Leave me alone!” shrieks are not heard at my house. Our girls are close buddies. And while they do get on each other’s nerves some days, for the most part, they never yell at each other and are l-e-a-r-n-i-n-g to respect each other’s space and disagree respectfully. Emphasis on the word learning here.
Anyway, rather than hearing “Leave me alone!” shrieks, more I often hear statements like “I need some alone time with Mommy.”
That was Laurel this week. So today, since we are such sweet, considerate little-sister types, we went to the park to play all alone.
Now, please excuse us while we use this blog to throw leaves at my brother.
These are for you, Uncle Zebra Killer.
We’re going to physically throw this colorful leaf assortment at you…
because we’re sweet, considerate, little-sister types, and we want to show how much we care about your fall color nostalgia.
Going around and around on a 96-year-old, hand-carved, wooden horse — while listening to organ music play — seems pretty simple.
On the other hand, restoring these 96-year-old wooden horses and the organ was not simple or inexpensive. But the carousel is a treasured piece of Minnesota history, and many folks decided it was worth the wait and the investment.
I’m glad they did.
To read the heart-warming story of this great ride, click here.
It’s Friday! Here are my 5 favorite fall foods. Just because.
1. homemade apple pie, made from freshly picked Harlson apples and all the cinnamon you can find in a 5-mile radius…
…and made-from-scratch pie crust, mostly because I have an affinity for eating raw pie dough. It’s a strange disorder I inherited.
And now I’m gladly passing it along to my children.
We save enough dough to make the actual pie. Usually.
Mmmmm. Can you smell the cinnamon?
2. Honeycrisp apples — so sweet, so juicy, so uniquely Minnesotan!
3. Candy corn — and those cute little candy pumpkins. Yum!
4. Chex Mix — salty, crunchy, and nearly as addictive as candy corn!
5. “Simply Apple” apple juice — a new discovery this year. I don’t even like regular apple juice, but this is more like cider — only pasteurized. It is so delicious!
Here’s the recipe I use for made-from-scratch pie crust, which rolls out wonderfully when sandwiched between two sheets of generously floured wax paper, and it makes a deliciously flaky crust for nearly any pie.
Pie Crust
2 cups flour
2/3 cup shortening
1 tsp. salt
5-6 tablespoons ice water
Combine dry ingredients and use pastry cutter to mix. Add water and use fork to blend. Makes shell and top.
I goofed. This month I got so busy posting about Laurel’s expressiveness, posting photos on Facebook, posting about the Dead Sea Scrolls, and posting about the apple orchard trip that somehow I skipped blogging about our first day of school!
So without further delay, here are my lovely students at the park on the first day of school.
classy sistersLinnea turning......into a second grader! Gasp!Laurel taking off...in Pre-K!
We — and by that I mean my husband — shortened the school table and purchased new chairs for all three of us. I could not be happier sitting in any other chair. Yes indeed, I am sitting in a child-sized chair. But it is from Pottery Barn, and it fits me better than our dining room chairs, thank-you-very-much. I also booted two little desks out of the room entirely, which frees up a lot of space and makes the entire room more pleasant to occupy.
On the first day, I gave the girls some lovely new picture books by Tasha Tudor, new Ticonderoga pencils, and little round boxes of M&Ms — because doesn’t everyone deserve chocolate on a regular basis?
Oh yeah, I also gave them some of those silicone shape bracelets that are all the rage right now.
God keeps bringing Psalm 145 to my attention lately — a timely reminder to pass on to my children all that I know about the one true God.
First, as part of our homeschool curriculum this year, I purchased a fabulous new family Bible story book by Starr Meade called The Mighty Acts of God.The author’s note for parents explains that the book gets its name from Psalm 145:4. “One generation shall commend Your works to another, and shall declare Your mighty acts.”
Meade goes on to explain that the purpose of telling stories of God’s mighty acts isn’t for entertainment value or good moral examples. The purpose is to make known the wonder of God’s great character. What a great verse Psalm 145:4 is for parents and grandparents!
One way of declaring God’s mighty acts is by talking about them, and another is by writing about them. Psalm 102:18 says – “Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the LORD.”
Over Labor Day weekend, our family had the privilege of seeing the Dead Sea Scrolls at our local science museum. How amazing to see those ancient words of God that He miraculously preserved in jars inside of caves for two thousand years. What a mighty act of God! And how thankful I am for those men of long ago who obediently and diligently wrote those precious words down on scrolls so that my generation could see them and praise God!
My daughters also were quite inspired by seeing the Dead Sea Scrolls, and they were eager to create their own scrolls at home. (We just glued parchment paper to wooden dowels to create them.)
Laurel writes in her scroll.Linnea uses hieroglyph stamps on her scroll.We wrap each scroll in felt to help preserve it.our jar of scrolls
Another way to pass along truths about God is through song. And that’s actually another way God brought Psalm 145 to my attention. While my husband was leading worship music at church a few weeks ago, he found this fantastic song for a Sunday morning offertory. Our very talented friend Mia sang “The Lord is Gracious and Compassionate” beautifully. It’s one of those songs that you can’t help but sing along to, and the words are right from Scripture. Many are right from Psalm 145. Listen to this version from Vineyard Church and you’ll see what I mean:
Putting Scripture to music usually helps greatly in attempts to memorize it. So when the fall Sunday School classes kicked off at church this week, I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised to discover that my oldest daughter’s weekly memory verse comes from Psalm 145. It’s verse 9: “The LORD is good to all; He has compassion on all He has made.” She came home from class with it already memorized, thanks to that song she’d heard over and over!
What’s more, my youngest daughter and I have been studying the seven days of creation in Genesis this past week, so “all He has made” has been at the forefront of my mind. Her memory verse isn’t from Psalm 145, but it dovetails nicely into this message of God’s mighty acts. Luke 18:27 says, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” Preserving words on paper for two thousand years would be impossible for man, but it was possible with God!
So, as we dive deep into a busy new school year — teaching the next generation about God — I am thankful for the fresh encouragement in these ancient words of Psalm 145. When I am tempted to be angered by my children’s attitudes or behaviors, I cling to those words “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in love.” Lord, help me respond to my children the way You respond to Yours!
I am so thankful that God is good to all and compassionate on all He has made. I am thankful that He provides for my needs and watches over me. He is worthy of praise for ever and ever!
Psalm 145
A psalm of praise. Of David.
1[a] I will exalt you, my God the King;
I will praise your name for ever and ever.
2 Every day I will praise you
and extol your name for ever and ever.
3 Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;
his greatness no one can fathom.
4 One generation will commend your works to another;
they will tell of your mighty acts.
5 They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty,
and I will meditate on your wonderful works. [b]
6 They will tell of the power of your awesome works,
and I will proclaim your great deeds.
7 They will celebrate your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your righteousness.
8 The LORD is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.
9 The LORD is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.
10 All you have made will praise you, O LORD;
your saints will extol you.
11 They will tell of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might,
12 so that all men may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures through all generations.
The LORD is faithful to all his promises
and loving toward all he has made. [c]
14 The LORD upholds all those who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.
16 You open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing.
17 The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and loving toward all he has made.
18 The LORD is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
20 The LORD watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD.
Let every creature praise his holy name
for ever and ever.
By the way, the girls and I have been reading The Mighty Acts of God aloud, and it’s really well done. I highly recommend it.
While our oldest daughter has been quiet and reserved since Day 1, our youngest has been, well, much louder and much more expressive. On Day 1 in the nursery at the hospital, one of the nurses told me, “Wow! She’s a pistol!” We spent the next 4+ years fully realizing just what that nurse meant!
If you saw these photos last summer, you know our expressive one makes lots of faces in the backyard. Truth is, she makes lots of faces wherever she roams. Here are some that I caught at the park our first day of school.
1. If sending out invitations, hand-written and hand-delivered adds a very special touch.
2. If eating on the patio with two dolls, two female relatives and too many mosquitoes, make it short and sweet. What’s more, be especially thankful when the mosquitoes land on your doll instead of you.
Linnea: “Ha-ha! Linn keeps tricking the mosquitoes!”
3. If serving things that your 4-year-old guest particularly likes to eat, expect to discover some unexpected food allergies.
Laurel: “My Strawberry Shortcake doll is allergic to bread, so can I eat hers? Strawberry Shortcake is allergic to vanilla wafers… Strawberry Shortcake is allergic to chocolate…”
4. If hand-washing the dishes afterward, try not to break the dishes or your sister’s heart.
Mom: Careful, Laurel! Don’t toss the dishes into the sink. They are breakable.
Linnea: And especially because it’s my tea set and I would be horrified!
5. If you are hosting, keep it simple (and spontaneous) so you can embrace the precious time with your special guests.
Starlight Writer 