Chocolate ice cream

So, in confession recently, I was given the most erroneous... er wise advice by a priest who first laughed heartily at me. When one is sincere and sitting rather vulnerably in the hot seat as we view it, but more aptly sung about as the seat of mercy and the dispenser of God's grace erupts in a fit of laughter over your private sufferings it is morbidly humiliating. But, only for a few seconds if one is open to, perhaps another peek and view into their personal struggles.
He said and I quote "Well, if you were to get rather obsessed with chocolate ice cream for awhile and then got sick of it. Then simply stop eating it and over time the desire for it will come back..." This was not in response to any sensual or sexual reference btw. In fact, later after I recovered from his first fit of mirth he could see that I was a bit disconcerted and in his caring restrainingly held his cheeks still from guffawing over my question... "It was only by virtue of his much advanced age that I decided even to consider its value. Not that I don't trust younger priests to be the vessel of the Holy Spirit's wisdom, but this was a complex issue that I was much vexed over, his prescription was rather simple and basic for the level of my angst. However, I did exactly as he suggested and he was perfectly correct, of course. Chocolate ice cream, in form of the desire to serve my dear children in the manner of focused daily and unending education has returned and with such passion as I could not imagine it would. Thank you dear Lord for priests who have good wisdom and a sense of humor that aid in restoring my own.

Inspiration

Drove to Franklin, TN this weekend for a Writer's conference. A surprisingly, charming and bustling population center a hop and a skip south of Nashville. My very close friend, Debra, came with me and we, as always, seem to have an amazing sense of synchronicity. That is when not surrounded by all fifteen of our children (the total sum of our progeny.) Very few people in one's life are those in which hours of non-stop lively chatter can be comfortably punctuated by an hour of complete silence. If rest of body and soul is the aim and one is fortunate to find a companion of this measure beg, borrow or steal them away with you, it is most profitable. Perhaps it is the intrinsic understanding of large family mothering, hence the need for silence and mind frittering or that it is the familiarity that allows such a comforting relationship. It doesn't matter, it is the rather organic changes that occur within that reflect the value of such. The fruit born of this weekend in which time spent with two vastly different types of kindred spirits combined with metal stimulation and rest will undoubtedly ripen over time. However, before even arriving home a creative energy inspires the fulfillng of a long neglected task. God through nature has provided the most fantasaical fort on our land. It is the product of many decades, I can well imagine, of foliage overgrowth. The bushes and trees have melded and twisted into a large abode of rooms and a canopy roof with a fallen trunk serving as a lookout, there is, as unimaginable as it seems, even a thickly, gnarled vine the diameter of a small child's writst creating a perfectly formed arch as an entryway. By what means this amazing structure constructed itself is beyond me. The gift for my children is the stuff of dreams and fairies, it belongs in long forgotten bog in Northern Ireland where pixies territorially battle the faeiries and employ Shadowtail's cronies (our resident squirrel postman) to keep watch for predators... and yet it finds itself at the back of my property. So today I endeavor to clean it up and plant a flowery vine to wrap itself around the entryway arch and make it safe for the children's endless enjoyment. Why this particular impetus out of a writer's conference? Perhaps the restoration of the value of wonder!

So I am doing this workshop for our homeschooling conference coming up this weekend. The workshop is designed to teach and encourage moms who are homeschooling while managing the needs and wants of toddlers and preschoolers. They say the best way to learn something is to teach others.
In preparation for the talk I have rediscovered all the tools which I used when I had 4 children under the age of 4 and older ones I had to teach. Ironically, it has re-inspired me to use the menagerie of activities and tools which I have surreptitously collected. I used to keep a list of these posted in our schoolroom. Not just to remind me of all these wonderful items, but so that I would actually pull them out and the little ones would benefit from their use. However, I find that posted list has disappeared and I have been rediscovering resources and having a grand time with my younger ones.
Of course, many of these things even the more common ones such as playdoh and blocks with pattern cards are adaptable to some of the older kids and this has engendered alot of none video playtime with their younger siblings. So Thankful for a task which has born so much fruit.

This may be a silly to mention, but taking the silverware cage from the dishwasher and leaving it in the sink promotes filling it. I just put it back in when it's full or it's time to run the dishwasher.