<     “Obedience to God’s word and his commandments are summed up in the greatest commandments, to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself.  One of my friends told me that during times when it is difficult to know how to respond to her children, she stops and think about how she would want the Lord to respond to her and, indeed, how He has responded in times past.”  Listen here for this week’s podcast entitled “One Anothering Mothering, Part Two.”

   “You see, Jesus set the tone for all of us regarding the importance of children in His kingdom, in His order of life….Another time I made the mistake of winking at a little boy sitting across the aisle from me during worhsip.  He smiled at me and tried to wink back but his father intervened and grabbed the inside of the little boy’s thigh, pinching it….What if that had been the little boy’s mother?  Would the father thought it alright to exact a similar punishment on her, squeezing her thigh, causing enough pain that it would bring her to tears?”   Listen here for this week’s podcast entitled One Anothering Mothering, Part One.

September 7 ~  thatmom’s History of Patriarchy and Patriocentricity in the Homeschooling Community
September 14 ~ The Problem with Hyper-patriarchy and Patriocentricity ~ Interview with Don Veinot (part one)
September 21 ~ The Problem with Hyper-patriarchy and Patriocentricity ~ Interview with Don Veinot (part two)
September 28 ~ Practical Aspects of Patriarchy and Patriocentricity (part one)~ Spunky Homeschool Mom, Karen Braun shares her own testimony.

I don’t necessarily agree with everything in all of these books and the list certainly isn’t exhaustive or in any particular order.  Nonetheless, they have inspired me, as a mom, as a wife, as a woman, and as a Christian.

The Valley of Vision (Puritan prayers)
Through Gates of Splendor (Elisabeth Elliott)
Children are Wet Cement (Anne Ortlund)
Hints on Child Training (H. Clay Trumball)
Real Christianity (William Wilberforce)
Heartfelt Discipline (Clay Clarkson)
Churches that Abuse (Ron Entroth)
Edges of His Ways (Amy Carmichael)
The Bruised Reed (Richard Sibbes)
Are Women Human? (Dorothy Sayers)
Mama Made the Difference (T.D. Jakes)
Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln (James C. Humes)
Men and Women in the Church (Sarah Sumner)
A Lifting Up for the Downcast (William Bridge)
In the Face of God (Michael Horton)
Blue Like Jazz (Donald Miller)
A Christian Manifesto (Francis A. Schaeffer)
When Life and Beliefs Collide (Carolyn Custis James)
Women Helping Women (Fitzpatrick and Cornish)
Spiritual Mothering (Susan Hunt)
Uncle Tom’s Cabin (Harriet Beecher Stowe)
Favorite Poems Old and New (Helen Ferris)
Farmer Boy (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
The Bread Baker’s Apprentice (Reinhart)
The Pilgrim’s Progress (Bunyon)
The Way Home (Mary Pride)
The Hiding Place (Corrie Ten Boom)
Any number of biographies of:
Gladys Alyward
Betty Greene
Jonathan and Rosalind Goforth
Hudson Taylor
George Mueller
Adoniram Judson
William Carey
Amy Carmichael
William Wilberforce
 

I love to look through those small paperback cookbooklets at the checkout line in the grocery store.  I have found some amazing recipes in them, especially the ones that feature bake-off or state fair prize winners.  A couple weeks ago I bought one that featured pies and found this recipe, which my family pronounced the very best apple pie I had ever made.  It was the Pillsbury Bake-off winner for 1996 and was created by a woman named Lola Nebel from Cambridge, Minnesota.  So, with that recommendation, how can you not try it?

Brown Butter Creamy Apple Pie

Crust:

single crust for one pie

Filling:

1/4 c. butter
1/2 c. white sugar
1 egg
2 TBS. flour
1 tsp. vanilla
3 large Granny Smith apples, about 2 lbs., peeled and cut into wedges (I used Braeburn apples and they were wonderful)

Streusel:

1/2 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 c. butter
(I added a little more cinnamon and 1/2 tsp. nutmeg)

Topping:

1/2 c. whipping cream
1TBS. powdered sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. vanilla

(Lola used this topping but I served mine plain. However, next time I will heat each slice for a few seconds in the microwave and serve with vanilla ice cream.)

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Place pie crust in 9 inch glass pie plate.  In saucepan, heat 1/4 cup butter over medium heat, stirring constantly, until melted and lightly browned. Cool completely, about 15 minutes.

In small bowl, beat 1/2 cup granulated sugar and the egg with wire whisk until light and fluffy,.  Stir in 2 TBS flour and 1 tsp. vanilla.  With wire whisk, beat in cooled butter.  Pour into crust-lined pie plate.  Arrange apple wedges on top.

In medium bowl, mix all streusel ingredients except butter.  With pastry blender or fork, cut in 1/4 c. butter until mixture looks like coarse crumbs.  Sprinkle over apples, press lightly. 

Bake 20 minutes.  Reduce oven to 350 degress and bake another 40-50 minutes until apples are tender and crust is lightly brown.  Cool at least 1 1/2 hours. 

In small bowl, beat whiping cearm until soft peaks form.  Add remaining topping ingredients, beat until stiff and spoon over pie when serving.

sip a strawberry lemonade under a tree in the yard
take a nap in a hammock
try on the expensive make-up at the counter in the mall
sit in the library with a stack of magazines
take a cooking class
take a ballroom dancing class
walk around the block alone
sip hot chocolate
watch a “chick” flick
crochet a new scarf
call an old friend
listen to Pavarotti
join a group that interests just you…for me it was Toastmasters
learn a new song on the piano or guitar
go alone to Wal-Mart and don’t buy paper products
have a pedicure
sit on the porch and count the kinds of birds you hear singing
curl up on the couch with your cat
have lunch with a friend and don’t talk about school
take a picnic for one and a good book to the park
hire someone to clean your bathroom, even just once
ride a bike to the nearest coffee shop
light candles in your bathroom and soak in a full tub
stir up an avocado face mask and apply it liberally
watch an entire season of a favorite TV show on DVD
sleep on a feather bed
sleep under a down comforter
put a fresh flower on your nightstand
plant tulip bulbs to enjoy next spring
get a massage
sew something fun using Amy Butler fabric
make a new Christmas decoration for your home
invite a couple friends over for a Jane Austen marathon
join or start a book club
watch the documentary Planet Earth
read a travel book on a favorite country

  “Not long ago, I read an admonishment to mothers that said we ought not to fall into the world’s trap of wanting just “me” time.  We were told that the life of motherhood is one of self-sacrifice and self-denial.  I believe every mother already knows this and has known it from the time the strip turned pink!  But, I would contend that one cannot truly have a life of giving to others unless one sets aside time just to relax, rejuvenate, and reflect and even sometimes doing so all alone…..Listen here to this week’s podcast entitled “The Homeschool Mom Refuge.”

Don Veinot has, once again, precisely articulated some of the problems with “patriarchy” and “patriocentricity.”  Check out his blog article today. 

Don will be my guest for two podcasts to be aired on September 14and 21.  We recorded them this week and I know homeschooling families will really want to hear what he has to say. 

In the meantime, check out his website and the journal archives that have much good information on a variety of topics, including Bill Gothard and his influence within the homeschooling community.

“If we were to sit down and list all the areas of study we have done because of elderly parents and their needs, we would have many things to include…mapping it out would create a unit study that could, and did, last more than one decade…..” Listen here for this week’s podcast entitled “Homeschoolers and Caring for Aging Parents.”

Once we begin school again, we will also be having breakfast as a family on a more regular basis. I put this basic recipe together when all the children were still at home and I could barely keep the jar filled. It has become a favorite late night snack and I like it best with nuts and fresh fruit or spooned on top of yogurt.

42 oz. container old-fashioned oats (2 lbs. 10 oz.)
14 oz. shredded coconut
1 ½ cups honey
1 ½ cups vegetable oil (I use canola)
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. almond extract

In large container, mix together oats and coconut.  In glass measuring cup, heat together oil and honey for about 5 minutes on high in microwave and then add vanilla and almonds extracts.  Pour over dry mixture and mix well.  Spread on 2 large greased cookie sheets and bake in 225 degree oven for 3 hours, stirring several times.  Allow to get golden but not brown.  Turn off oven and cool for half an hour in oven.  Cool completely on counter and place in covered container.  Makes about 20 cups basic granola.

When cool, add walnuts, dried cherries, apricots, cranberries, or apples, raisins, almonds, or whatever favorite granola ingredients your family prefers.  I usually keep the goodies separate because some of my children are “granola purists.”