Mountain Musings

Testing Testing ...

Well, it's been so long since we posted, Typepad doesn't even recognize us! The previous entry isn't accepting comments for some reason. I have all the right buttons clicked and have reposted the entry several times (apologies for those on Bloglines who keep seeing the post below reappear).

Comment here (if this works) for any thoughts on Thursday Thirteen's entry. Thanks!

~Deb

Thursday Thirteen

13 Things That Have Kept Us Busy Instead of Blogging

After being away recently, it seems everything has piled up--inside and outside. Everything needs attention! Lots going on lately, so this post will serve as an up date.

1. Over the weekend we enjoyed grilling out and celebrating Micah's birthday. Elizabeth brought the cake, and Hannah made the cherry ice cream.*

2. Tom has been busy in training classes in Richmond this week for his job. We have certainly missed being with him each evening.

3. Jonathan started his summer job at Dynamic Aviation on Monday, so we've seen very little of him. He'll be working on five special planes for the Department of Defense during his time there. He seems to enjoy the work but comes home weary after a long day inside the nose of the plane.

4. Summer classes also began this week for Jonathan--two three-hour evening classes. He rushes home from the airport to grab a quick meal before heading to the local college for the streaming video and televised classes piped in from ODU. No wonder his blog has been awfully silent!

5. Sarah spent an afternoon in the kitchen baking "Home on the Range" cookies from her Chocolate Chocolate cookbook, and she also made some yummy buckeyes.

6. Hannah, Jonathan, and Sarah have been working on phase 2 of the Jamestown 400 trying to decipher the new clue this week.

7. Hannah has been sewing flannel squares together on a baby quilt similar to the one Sarah finished not long ago. She'll post pictures soon. And Sarah has been crocheting a Simply Stripes baby blanket for her hope chest.

8. Hannah completed staking the peas she planted earlier in the season with supports and wire for climbing, and she also repotted all of her flower seedlings.

9. Tom started, and I finished tilling the garden plot since he's been away. It's not completely weeded and still needs rows raked out, but hopefully by next week Hannah can begin planting some summer veggies without fear of frost.

10. Flower planting time! Earlier this week we had night temps down to 36 degrees, so I'm glad I waited to buy annuals for the hanging baskets and my pots and watering cans on the front steps. This morning I'll hopefully finish planting them all. I always plant begonias, geraniums, and scarlet sage (all bright reds). This year I'm including wave petunias, vinca, and a caladium. And maybe red verbena, if I can find it.

11. Yesterday Hannah and I attended Viette's Under the Old Apple Tree lecture on Herbs for the Kitchen and Garden--lots of handouts with recipes and interesting tips. It was well worth our time. We currently have cilantro and spearmint planted, and we received recommendations for spicy globe basil and pineapple sage (which attracts hummingbirds and butterflies and has beautiful red blossoms in autumn). We don't have an official herb garden but were inspired to start one!

12. After discovering more and more plants nibbled to the quick, I bought some Liquid Fence. The picture to the left shows the poor coral bells which were looking so beautiful! I'll let you know if this product really works. (I'm sure my family hopes it does so they won't have to listen to me moan and groan about the rabbits and my poor destroyed plants again this year!)

13. Besides the usual household chores of laundry, meal-planning, cooking, and cleaning, I've been wading through a backlog of two-week's worth of newspapers, catalogs, and snail mail that accummulated while I was away...along with 323 emails and 548 unread blog posts! I am still trying to find the end of the tunnel!

Tomorrow a 7-scoop dump truck load of mulch is being delivered, so you know what I'll be doing next instead of blogging--playing with my pitchfork and babying many sore muscles! :) We hope everyone has a great Mothers' Day Weekend.

(By the way, for those of you praying for my friend, Joyce, she is much weaker and is now on oxygen; I'm awaiting additional word.)

~Deb

*ice cream recipe follows

After being away recently, it seems everything has piled up--inside and outside. Everything needs attention! Lots going on lately, so this post will serve as an up date.

1. Over the weekend we enjoyed grilling out and celebrating Micah's birthday. Elizabeth brought the cake, and Hannah made the cherry ice cream.*

2. Tom has been busy in training classes in Richmond this week for his job. We have certainly missed being with him each evening.

3. Jonathan started his summer job at Dynamic Aviation on Monday, so we've seen very little of him. He'll be working on five special planes for the Department of Defense during his time there. He seems to enjoy the work but comes home weary after a long day inside the nose of the plane.

4. Summer classes also began this week for Jonathan--two three-hour evening classes. He rushes home from the airport to grab a quick meal before heading to the local college for the streaming video and televised classes piped in from ODU. No wonder his blog has been awfully silent!

5. Sarah spent an afternoon in the kitchen baking "Home on the Range" cookies from her Chocolate Chocolate cookbook, and she also made some yummy buckeyes.

6. Hannah, Jonathan, and Sarah have been working on phase 2 of the Jamestown 400 trying to decipher the new clue this week.

7. Hannah has been sewing flannel squares together on a baby quilt similar to the one Sarah finished not long ago. She'll post pictures soon. And Sarah has been crocheting a Simply Stripes baby blanket for her hope chest.

8. Hannah completed staking the peas she planted earlier in the season with supports and wire for climbing, and she also repotted all of her flower seedlings.

9. Tom started, and I finished tilling the garden plot since he's been away. It's not completely weeded and still needs rows raked out, but hopefully by next week Hannah can begin planting some summer veggies without fear of frost.

10. Flower planting time! Earlier this week we had night temps down to 36 degrees, so I'm glad I waited to buy annuals for the hanging baskets and my pots and watering cans on the front steps. This morning I'll hopefully finish planting them all. I always plant begonias, geraniums, and scarlet sage (all bright reds). This year I'm including wave petunias, vinca, and a caladium. And maybe red verbena, if I can find it.

11. Yesterday Hannah and I attended Viette's Under the Old Apple Tree lecture on Herbs for the Kitchen and Garden--lots of handouts with recipes and interesting tips. It was well worth our time. We currently have cilantro and spearmint planted, and we received recommendations for spicy globe basil and pineapple sage (which attracts hummingbirds and butterflies and has beautiful red blossoms in autumn). We don't have an official herb garden but were inspired to start one!

12. After discovering more and more plants nibbled to the quick, I bought some Liquid Fence. The picture to the left shows the poor coral bells which were looking so beautiful! I'll let you know if this product really works. (I'm sure my family hopes it does so they won't have to listen to me moan and groan about the rabbits and my poor destroyed plants again this year!)

13. Besides the usual household chores of laundry, meal-planning, cooking, and cleaning, I've been wading through a backlog of two-week's worth of newspapers, catalogs, and snail mail that accummulated while I was away...along with 323 emails and 548 unread blog posts! I am still trying to find the end of the tunnel!

Tomorrow a 7-scoop dump truck load of mulch is being delivered, so you know what I'll be doing next instead of blogging--playing with my pitchfork and babying many sore muscles! :) We hope everyone has a great Mothers' Day Weekend.

(By the way, for those of you praying for my friend, Joyce, she is much weaker and is now on oxygen; I'm awaiting additional word.)

~Deb

*ice cream recipe follows

Thursday Thirteen

13 "Poetic" Phrases Written on the Side of our Fridge

Often we invite friends over to visit to have a meal with us. Invariably while they're here, someone will notice all the Magnetic Poetry words arranged on the side of our fridge.

Just in case you're not acquainted with Magnetic Poetry, according to Wikipedia, "Magnetic Poetry is a line of novelty products invented in 1993 by Dave Kapell which features small magnetic tiles printed with single words or fragments that can be adhered to a magnetic metal surface (typically a refrigerator door or file cabinet) and arranged to form phrases, sentences, or entire poems. There are basic kits of tiles with everyday words and special kits with more esoteric words."

Who can resist looking through the varied combinations and adding their own whimsical statement? (Pictured to the left is Ben Serven trying his hand at creating a sentence when his family visited last summer.)

Below are 13 interesting tidbits on our fridge made from the Christian version of the kit and a freebie general version of the Magnetic Poetry blocks we have.

1. deliver scripture through voice to friends
2. I like being beautiful, unique, and humble
3. ask loud brother to always whisper
4. every wine song is evil
5. have mercy on trumpet
6. real mountain men drink blood
7. help give strength by learning of good fresh bread
8. God created everything and will heal us
9. cry me holy water
10. I never could embrace fish body
11. I hope father has a good happy moment with gifts and presents
12. see that man's life and rejoice
13. he be full of faith

So...come on over and leave your creativity on our fridge! :)

~Deb

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen Blogs I've Read Lately That Might Not Be On Our Sidebar

1. Beth's Bountiful Blessings blog is having a 100th post give-away! Head over and put your name in the hat. I discovered Beth recently when a friend of hers posted a link to her Candy Bar Cake recipe.
2. Amy, a pastor's wife and homeschooling mom (and friend of Beth above), at Ponderings from Picket Fence Cottage (don't you love the name of her blog?) is a fairly new discovery, and I've enjoyed reading her variety of posts and checking out her recipes.
3. And when you're feeling like everything has gone wrong...the Wilhoite Prayer Blog will let you know you're pretty blessed after all. Amy's been given two months to live--unless her current treatment puts her into remission. Say a prayer for her, her husband, and young son.
4. The Moeller Family Prayer Basket link was just shared with me this weekend - the mom has ovarian cancer, and her family is asking for prayer. I'm just becoming acquainted with Colleen, and as it turns out, the daughter in this family is friends with Amy Wilhoite (see #3 above).
5. Keziah, A Woman Who Fears the Lord, is a doctor in Scotland who's looking for a job. Here's a link to her missions trip to Peru--very interesting.
6. Christine's blog, Fruit in Season, is brand new to me. She just started a series of posts titled Marriage Mondays and is one of the writers at Christian Women Online.
7. Visionary Daughters Anna Sofia and Elizabeth Botkin's post on "The Remarkable Influence of Sisters on Brothers" includes an interesting testimony, "Am I My Brother's Confidant."
8. G.P. of Fish Creek House - INNside Innkeeping writes about her bed and breakfast in Montana: her guests, the ins and outs of being an innkeeper, her horse, and her famous breakfast recipes. If we ever visit her state, I sure would love to make some Montana memories at Fish Creek House!
9. The Purl Bee - if you're into knitting, crocheting, or sewing, this blog has many instructional tutorials on the sidebar. Check out the latest post on collecting buttons and displaying them on various shapes like this shamrock.
10. I was first introduced to Heather Bailey over at Hello, My Name is Heather when someone posted a link to "her studio." Check it out and drool. Isn't it wonderful?? I could create a lot of neat stuff in a place like that! She's also posted some informative tutorials on: her favorite knot, how to make yo-yos, and binding a quilt (which I followed for the birdhouse wall hanging last month).
11. Anna at Pleasant View Schoolhouse is a creative homeschooling mom of five who writes about her love of all things domestic. I've been reading her blog for a couple of months and enjoy her photography and crafts. Several bloggers I know have tried her yummy Schoolhouse Coffee Cake.
12. A Place of Quiet Rest (...near to the heart of God) is a very peaceful and enjoyable blog. I found Heather when she wrote a chocolate meme, and although I didn't participate it was neat to think what my answers would be to all her chocolatey questions.
13. I've been reading Rachel's blog, Element of De-tale, for quite a while now, and somehow I failed to list her on the sidebar. Rachel, a homeschooling mom, is Dawn's (4:53 a.m.) daughter and inherited her mom's crafty genes! Her recipes and craft productions are wonderful!

For any readers not acquainted with how to keep up with when blogs have been updated, I use Bloglines. It's a free service that lets you know when any blog you subscribe to has a new post so you don't have to keep checking. It's a real time saver!

Well, it looks like I need to update my blogroll and include a few more blogs. So many blogs and so little time to do them justice! Even though I don't need another one...do you have a blog you would recommend that I might not know about?

~Deb

Gimme That Old Time Virginny!

   

Lydia over at Renewed Day by Day recently wrote a meme detailing ten interesting facts about her home state of Kansas. She tagged the Mountain Musings gang to write about our state: Virginia. Since this is Thursday and since Virginia has even more than ten things that make her a wonderful state, we decided to make this our Thursday Thirteen post. :)

1) Virginia, the 10th of the original 13 colonies, was named for the "virgin queen" of England, Queen Elizabeth I. Virginia's nickname is the "Old Dominion." Jonathan attends Old Dominion University--but not in Norfolk where it's located but here at home through online classes.

2) Virginia is often referred to as the "Mother of Presidents." Eight presidents have been born in Virginia: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, and Woodrow Wilson. We have visited seven of the eight Presidents' homes during our homeschooling years--lots of history here!

3) Virginia is also known as the "Mother of States." From the Virginia territory, all or part of eight states were created: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. So if any of you readers are from the above mentioned states, count yourself blessed to have once been a part of Virginia! :)

4) The state motto is "Sic semper tyrannis" which means "thus always to tyrants." John Wilkes Booth leaped off the balcony and onto the stage and shouted these words after he assassinated President Abraham Lincoln.

5) Over 1/2 of the battles fought in the Civil War were fought in Virginia--over 2,200 of the 4,000. The Girotti females are almost certain that at one time or another they've been on every one of the 2,200; for some reason, the Girotti males are entranced with battlefields!

6) Williamsburg's newspaper, The Virginia Gazette, has been publishing since 1736. It is American's oldest non-daily paper. Williamsburg was also the setting for the first theater in the United States in 1716.

7) The First Permanent English Colony was founded in Jamestown in 1607, and the 400th Anniversary will take place there this year. (Does anyone plan to go? Does anyone want to visit us while you're in our lovely state? We're only 3+ hours from Jamestown.) Twelve years after the founding, Virginia's Berkeley Plantation was the site of the First Thanksgiving in America in 1619.

8) Seeing as Micah is studying to be a doctor, this interesting fact stood out to us. The nation's first rescue squad, the Roanoke Life Saving and First Aid Crew, was founded in 1928 in Roanoke, Virginia. At the age of 9, Julian Stanley Wise saw two men drown and resolved to become a life saver. His story and the history of emergency medical services (EMS) are told at the To The Rescue Museum.

9) Are you familiar with the Pony Penning on Chincoteague Island? Wild ponies have roamed free there for centuries. Penning was an annual event in the 1700's. In 1946 Marguerite Henry wrote Misty of Chincoteague and made Pony Penning internationally famous. Tom and I spent part of our honeymoon on Chincoteague Island in 1980, but we don't remember seeing any of the famous ponies.

10) With a vertical drop of 1,200 feet in one-half mile, Crabtree Falls (which all of us hiked but Mom) is the state's highest cascading waterfall. These falls were often mentioned on the 1970's television program, The Waltons', which was set in Virginia.

11) The state song that Deb grew up learning and singing in grade school, "Carry Me Back to Old Virginny," was retired in 1997 because some people found the lyrics racially offensive. One suggestion for a replacement was "Shenandoah," but some people say that this song doesn't even mention Virginia but instead mentions Missouri! Another argument: Shenandoah is only one region (although we at Mountain Musings feel it's the best region!), and the state song should logically include the whole commonwealth. So we don't have a state song until a new one is picked.

12) Hymns in Virginia: Singers Glen near Harrisonburg is the birthplace of Southern gospel music. In 1832 Joseph Funk opened a Mennonite Publishing House and printed Genuine Church Music, the country's oldest hymnal still in use.

13) Virginia's famous bumper sticker and slogan, "Virginia is for Lovers" was adopted in 1969. If you're a lover of mountains and valleys, museums and history, and living life at its best, then Virginia is a wonderful state to be! We've lived in six Virginia cities over the years: Hampton, Newport News, Richmond, Charlottesville, Williamsburg, and currently the Shenandoah Valley.  We're very thankful to have experienced many areas of our great state!

Susan, An Old-Fashioned Girl, was tagged and has her Georgia facts posted. Keep checking for The Serven Clan's posting...a California family who moved to Missouri last year. We're wondering which state they will pick! If anyone else would like to participate, please do! We'd love to read facts about your state!

~The Mountain Musings Gang

Thursday Thirteen

13 Random Thoughts on a Thursday

1. We are thoroughly enjoying our new c-o-l-d refrigerator! Who knew we needed one that badly?! It doesn't look exactly like the one above because the freezer is at the bottom, and I love it!
2. Our new oven-ditto! Wonderful baked goodies we've enjoyed this week: more donuts and strawberry cheesecake! Sarah outdid herself!
3. Church this past Sunday was a very refreshing time. There were 61 folks crowded into the living room at the gathering in Gum Spring. The weather was beautiful enough to eat outside on the deck, and the ladies enjoyed giving a surprise baby shower for one of the moms-to-be. It was a great time of fellowship.
4. Monday's MLK holiday was enjoyable with Tom off work. He and I enjoyed a lunch date together at one of my favorites: R.T.'s.
5. The weather the mid-west has been having is due to hit Virginia today. I don't like driving when it's icy, but today it's necessary.
6. The girls and I will drive the 2 hours to Richmond early this morning, weather permitting, to take my aunt to the doctor again for x-rays. The girls will clean her apartment top to bottom while we're in the doctor's office and grocery store.
7. Tom has a meeting and another function to attend in Richmond today also. We'll be in the same city, but our paths won't cross. At least if I have trouble I can call him.
8. Jonathan's distance learning classes are going well. Last night he was right down the road at the local college in a classroom by himself watching the live video taking place in Norfolk at ODU. The professor called on him; Jonathan pushed a button and answered correctly into a microphone at his desk, and students in Norfolk and all over Virginia heard his answer! Isn't technology amazing?
9. I miss my friend Dorothy who isn't in Virginia anymore but far away in Mississippi. Our paths definitely won't cross, but through blogging maybe the distance will seem closer than it is.
10. I might get to see my friend Chris this weekend--yay! Lord willing, we'll get to attend her church in Newport News on Sunday.
11. Drs. Jacob & Rosie, a medical missionary couple from India, will be visiting their supporting churches this week while they're in the States.
12. Micah is finishing up his neurology rotation at a hospital in Roanoke tomorrow, so he will be back in time to travel with us. He will enjoy seeing Dr. Jacob again, too, since it's been four summers since he spent some time with their family in India.
13. Just wondering how Ghirardelli brownies will taste in that new oven...

~Deb

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen Christmas Traditions in our Family

1. Tree-trimming: we always put our tree up the day after Thanksgiving. During Friday afternoon the guys lift the heavy boxes from the garage and bring them inside for the evening's activities. It is a fun time being together as a family decorating and getting the house festive.
2. Another family tradition is our trim-the-tree party which we wrote about here. We serve orange danish rolls, hot chocolate, and hot apple cider.
3. Some of the decorations that we place outside include Baby Jesus in a manger and three small wisemen flags that lead guests down our sidewalk to the Babe and our front door. The larger flag we display says Celebrate Christ, and another is a scenic picture of Mary & Joseph.
4. Our inside table decorations include four block style ceramic bear ornaments that spell out N-O-E-L--at least for a short while they spell out N-O-E-L. Both Micah and Jonathan have a tradition of rearranging the ornaments to spell out various words like L-O-N-E or L-E-O-N at all times of the day, which isn't fun for certain other members of the family, namely, the females who live here who are constantly re-spelling N-O-E-L correctly! :)
5. Christmas cards: We enjoy keeping in touch with friends at Christmas and always enjoy hearing news of their families as well. Hannah is in charge of placing all the cards we receive around the foyer garland to add to the festive decorations.
6. We pick a certain night to ride around once during the season to look at Christmas lights at other houses. Unfortunately, more often than not we've always settled on a night when it's raining to go see lights through rain-splattered van windows. But it's almost become a tradition, so it's fun no matter what the weather!
7. Two musical performances we attend--the local college's Messiah concert which we wrote about here and Lessons & Carols at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Charlottesville, which takes place this coming weekend. We've attended Lessons & Carols yearly even when we've not lived close by and had to travel a long distance. And our tradition is to go get ice cream after Lessons & Carols before heading home, no matter how cold the night. This year we're hoping Micah and Elizabeth will get to join us.
8. All the relatives come to our house to celebrate Christmas, so we're never out on Christmas Eve or Day running around visiting--because we're already all together. It's especially nice if we have a white Christmas, but unfortunately the weather doesn't always follow tradition in Virginia.
9. Our special meal is on Christmas Eve, and we usually serve lots of our favorites foods. This year the main dish will probably be chicken along with lots of side dishes--we haven't come up with the exact menu yet.
10. On Christmas Eve, for as long as I can remember, the kids have performed a Christmas program. They select specific poems, readings, songs, and musical arrangements to present to everyone as we all gather in the living room after supper. In the early years, they dressed the parts of Joseph, Mary, a shepherd, and an angel, and Tom headed up the singing and read the Scripture of the Christmas account. In later years, my sister helped coordinate the program for all the relatives who look forward to it each Christmas. For the past several years Jonathan has produced a typed program so everyone will have an idea what songs and instrumentals are being sung and played--it's gotten more and more sophisticated as the years have gone by. So far this year, I haven't heard any practicing going on. I hope no one has forgotten!
11. Christmas Day arrives at a decent hour at our house--maybe 8-ish. Hot sausage biscuits and pineapple will once again be staples for our Christmas morning breakfast, along with a variety of muffins.
12. The gift opening takes a l-o-n-g time because our tradition is to open gifts individually so everyone can see and enjoy what the other family members have received. Ooh...aah...thank you!
13. Christmas lunch is a loaded buffet with tons of choices of finger foods. We sit around in the afternoon and enjoy conversation with each other, talk to Tom's Connecticut relatives and wish them a Merry Christmas, bundle up and go out in the snow if we're blessed enough to have a white Christmas, and nap....zzzz.

Those are some of our family's traditions...mostly plain and simple. The best part is just being together celebrating the birth of our Saviour.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."   ~ Isaiah 9:6

~Deb

Thursday Thirteen--Thankfulness

Lydia over at her blog Renewed Day by Day recently began posting on Thursdays about the things she's thankful for and extended an invitation to other bloggers to do the same. You can read about the guidelines here and read her current entry here. She'll also be posting links of other bloggers who are writing for Thursdays of Thankfulness. I decided to participate this week by jotting down:

13 Things For Which I'm Thankful

1. ...that we live in a free country and have the privilege to vote as we did earlier this week.
2. ...for the blessing to be able to worship our Lord in freedom without hiding in fear.
3. ...for the Bible and those who gave their lives that we might have it to read.
4. ...for a husband who rises early and heads in to work day after day to provide for his family.
5. ...for a husband who is faithful, diligent, and a hard worker who's well known for his integrity.
6. ...for weekends, vacations, and holidays off to relax with each other.
7. ...for children who love the Lord and want to live to serve Him.
8. ...for a warm comfortable home to enjoy life in and to use for hospitality.
9. ...for friends who visit our home and encourage us with their presence.
10. ...for the blessing of being a homemaker. Tuesday's 15 hours at the polls reminded me that I love being home with the family and making this a haven for them to return to.
11. ...for good refreshing sleep in my own bed after a long tiring day.
12. ...for good health and for doctors and hospitals when we do get sick.
13. ...for answered prayers this week for my mom's situation.

...and for many more than these. If you'd like to join Lydia in writing about things you are thankful for, head over to her blog and share your link.

Also around the blogosphere, other bloggers are making lists of One Thousand Gifts. Ann over at Holy Experience starts her list here and continues here. Her list is up to 201, and she has some really neat things on it--check it out if you have a chance. Thanks to my friend, Cindi, at Cindi's Sewing (who has her own list of 120 gifts up) for directing me to Ann's blog.

~Deb

Thursday Thirteen

 

13 Catalogs in my Mailbox - 'Tis the Season!

1. Christian Book Distributors - lots of great books for Christmas giving.
2. The Vermont Country Store - practical and hard to find gifts. We've been very satisfied with products received from this company.
3. Southern Supreme Gourmet Specialties - you may think you don't like fruitcake, but you've not had fruitcake until you've tasted Southern Supreme fruitcake. Delicious!  We love going to craft shows and seeing the Southern Supreme booth set up with their free samples. They have delicious nuts, chocolate, and pepper jellies, too.
4. Gooseberry Patch - my kind of country items including cookbooks, jars, candles, etc. I've ordered several times from this company, and the customer service has been excellent.
5. The Country House - lots of quality country items: curtains, stars, samplers. My favorite items in this catalog are the wooden plaques with various sayings. This one would be perfect for Sarah if it were only half-price: "There is nothing like staying home for real comfort" ~Jane Austen
6. Boden - never heard of this clothing catalog until I saw it mentioned on someone's blog. My copy just arrived yesterday so I've yet to check it out.
7. Lands' End - clothing catalog - The Necessary-Knits pages are the first place I turn when a new catalog arrives.
8. L. L. Bean - reliable quality clothing every time we've ordered.
9. LANG - beautiful folk art calendars, note cards, address books, recipe cards/boxes, huge selection of Christmas cards.
10. The Urban Homemaker - bread machines, grain mills, books, dedicated to teaching "old-fashioned skills for contemporary people."
11. Library & Educational Services - wholesale Christian books and videos available to homeschool parents, teachers, pastors, and church workers; however, not available to the general public. We've used L&E for years and couldn't be more pleased with the discount prices. (Example: L&E price for G. A. Henty hardcover books is $12.97!)
12. Soundforth - quality music by the Soundforth singers (BJU-Press). This catalog really gets dog-eared and marked up around our house!
13. Majesty Music - home of all the Patch the Pirate Adventure CD's and other quality music by Ron Hamilton and others. My wish list usually includes something from Majesty Music.

I enjoy shopping by catalog and online, but I also don't mind braving the crowds (when there's a good sale)! And my closet has already become a hiding place for some goodies after a few secret shopping trips and UPS deliveries. Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? Or do you wait until after Thanksgiving? Or are you a Christmas Eve shopper? What type of shopper are you?

~Deb

Thursday Thirteen

13 Of My Favorite Games!

1. Pit! I love this game - especially when it gets really loud. I've gotten rather hoarse from playing it sometimes. :)
2. Scattergories This is a good game to pull out anytime, with 2 people or a crowd.
3. Taboo It can be hard to come up with good descriptions of the words without saying the taboo words. I've been known to say, "It's a thing...that's a thingy, that's a thing." :)
4. Password This is the traditional game to play with my dad's side of the family when they visit.
5. Trivial Pursuit Always fun to come up with answers to all the trivia questions - history and wild card are my two favorite categories.
6. Guesstures Great to play with a big group! We've had some hilarious moments while playing this one. :)
7. Pictionary This is a family favorite that Mom especially likes, and she gets rather competitive. ;)
8. Tribond It can be interesting trying to come up with the way that 3 words are related. Some words seem like they CAN'T have anything in common.
9. Clue The classic detective game - I don't win very often, but it's still fun.
10. Balderdash This is the one that is SO funny when Mom plays. You can always tell which definition she wrote!
11. Phase 10 We were first introduced to this game by a friend, and I had to get it for Jonathan on his next birthday.
12. Rook My granny is the Rook expert, and we always have to play when she comes.
13. Spoons A great party or group game...it's always fun when everybody suddenly dives for the spoons!

What are some of the games that you enjoy playing?

~Sarah