Week 15 - Plinth

 A plinth is the base or platform upon which a column, pedestal, statue, monument or structure rests. (Wikipedia)

A plinth huh? I had to look up what it even was! But heck, once I knew what a plinth was I still wasn't sure how I was going to take a photo of one. It's not like I'm super close to some grand museum with plinths and statues. 

I got to thinking of something that was "monumental" or something "on a pedestal" I could shoot. 

Then I walked by this. Yep, laundry is monumental and I'm always throwing baskets up on top. 

Now, to shoot it in an interesting way! 

1/100 sec., f5.3, ISO 1600

1/250, f4, ISO 1600

Next Week - Clean 

Birthday Parties for Twins; A Guest Blog from Lisa Moore

I recently received an email from a woman named Lisa Moore asking if I would be interested in a guest post. She is part of The Party Works, a party supply company, and has written other guest posts about children's birthday parties; Five Way to Encourage Good Manners at Birthday Parties and Tips for Children’s Birthday Parties That Encourage Proper Development.

My twins' birthday isn't until the end of August but we have already been talking about having their first party with friends and not just family. I have been putting off a friend birthday party for the last couple of years because there were a lot of issues, like gifts and themes, that we haven't been able to hammer out until recently. I was curious to get any suggestions I could so I asked Lisa if she could write a post focusing on birthday parties for twins, which of course could apply to triplets or other multiple siblings as well. 




Birthday Party Planning Tips for Twins by Lisa Moore 


Planning birthday parties for kids can be a headache, and planning birthday parties for twins can be even more stressful. You have to make sure each of your twins is happy and feels special at the party, and you have to make sure all the party guests are safe and happy too. Plus, you have to get the right party supplies, cake, and snacks. And you have to plan the activities for the party or reserve a spot at a kids’ party venue. Preparing for a birthday party for twins is definitely not a walk in the park. Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to make the overall party planning and party throwing easier. Here are some of them:


1. Go with a theme the twins can agree on. 


Get together and discuss possible party themes as a family. Chances are, the twins will want different party themes, especially if you have boy and girl twins. You can either spend time discussing possible themes until the twins can agree on one, or you can do something like allow one child to pick the theme this year with the promise that the other child will be able to pick the theme next year. If you’re going to throw the party away from your home at a party venue, you’ll have to go through a similar process. Let the twins discuss which party venues they like until they agree on one, or go with one child’s preference for a party venue this year and the other child’s preference next year. 


2.  Buy some extra gifts. 


Most of the party guests will know to bring two gifts, but some of them won’t. You could explicitly state that you’d like them to bring two gifts on the party invitations, but doing so might make you feel uncomfortable. Inevitably, some of the guests will only bring one gift. So, you should buy a few extra presents to have ready at the party in case this happens. That way your twins will get the same amount of gifts, and there won’t be any tears or fighting about which child got more or having to share. 


3. Do everything you can to make sure both children feel special. 


Plan out activities based on both of your children’s interests, and make sure to pay attention to both of them equally at the party. Sharing your birthday with your twin usually means you have to share the spotlight. So, make sure neither child feels any less loved than the other. Make them breakfast to eat in bed on the day of their birthday, and cook each of their favorite foods. For instance, you might serve one child pancakes, scrambled eggs, and bacon and serve the other waffles, sausage, and fruit. Spend some extra time shopping for their presents and get them things you’ll know they’ll love. There’s no better time to let your twins know how much you love them than on their birthday!


Author’s Bio: Lisa is a mom and guest post writer on the topics of motherhood, toddler care, and how to plan kids’ parties like a Mario birthday party or a party for multiples. 

Don't forget to ask about the cake!
Are you twins/triplets willing to share a cake or do they really want to have their own?

I love the idea of rotating choices of themes from one year to the next which is what my boys have agreed to do; this year pirates and next year soldiers. I don't think that would have been an option in years past but with my boys maturing they are learning to compromise. 


I don't necessarily agree with Lisa on her second point of buying extra gifts. Any mother of multiples knows that raising twins isn't cheap because there are no hand me downs and considering these economic times buying extra gifts just may not be possible. Also what if those extra gifts I buy aren't even close in value/coolness/wow factor of guests gifts? Not cool Mom! I would suggest being very specific on invitations and either 1) ask that no gifts be brought (have mom/dad/grandparents take care of that) or 2) request half the guests to bring a gift for Twin A and the other half of the guests to bring gifts for Twin B. Although twins have lived their lives sharing, sometimes it's best to avoid throwing them in an unequal situation. 


Lisa's last point is right on!! Especially as twins grow older their personalities and interests can be as different as night and day despite their living side by side. My boys don't like the same foods and though most days I tell them, "I am not a restaurant and you will eat what I put in front of you!" But birthdays are different and even if it takes a bit longer, I'm willing to show them they're special with separate meals.


Also as twins get older it is VERY important to put extra thought into their birthday/Christmas gifts. My boys could really care less what their little sister receives for gifts but they are very aware what their twin gets and how it rates compared to their own gift. I admit I have failed in gift giving in the past for my twins and there have been birthdays where one gift was obviously not as cool as the other (in my boys eyes at least.) But I'm getting better. 


The best advice I can give on birthday's for twins is sit down and talk to them and really listen to what they both want and what they feel is important. Don't overload, keep it simple and have fun! 


Thanks Lisa for some great tips. Any twin/triplet moms or dads out there with other birthday tips? I'd love to hear from you! 

Amy Morrow and The Kazembe Orphanage.

What a wonderful week last week turned out to be! Not only because it was Holy Week and Easter was yesterday, those were great, but for a couple days I was hostess to a missionary from Africa! 

I first "met" Amy Morrow a couple years ago when we stumbled upon one another's blogs. Amy, her husband and her 6 kids moved to Africa 10 years ago and now run the Kazembe Orphanage in Zambia. When she mentioned on her blog that she still had speaking dates open for her fundraising trip to the United States I immediately invited her to our little SW Kansas church. I admire everything that Amy and her husband Tom are doing at Kazembe. They aren't just housing kids to be adopted out of the country but raising a family. The 22 kids currently at Kazembe will be raised and educated together as brothers and sisters until they "leave the nest." I just think that is awesome! 

I have to admit that I have been a bundle of nerves for weeks. I was worried that no one would come to hear Amy speak or that we wouldn't raise enough money for this trip to have been worth her time. (We raised sooo much more than I expected!) I was worried that all the speaking engagements that I scheduled for Amy, two at school and one at church, would fall through. (We did have to do a lot of juggling but it all worked out.) Selfishly, I was also worried about what Amy thought of me. Talking to someone online can be very different from meeting them in person and I kind of worried she thought, in person, I was a bumbling dork...cuz, that's how I feel sometimes!

Amy, on the other hand, is warm, personable, funny and so very easy to talk to. Amy also was so very flexible! We drove through a rainstorm (YAY) for an hour on the way back from the airport and it didn't faze her. Of course she said that rain in the States is great because she doesn't have to worry about the roads being washed out like she does in Africa! I had to cancel/reschedule three different appointments I had planned for her...no problem....she just went with the flow. 

I didn't get a chance to take too many photos during her talk at our church. Taking pictures of a slide show isn't the easiest thing to do!! But she had some fabulous photos of her kids to share with us. Every year during their trips to the States the Morrow's share an update video of what they've been up to in Zambia but being new to our area she shared clips from a few of them to catch us up on her story. You can find all their videos here.http://vimeo.com/missionaryfamily . Check out their 2008 video for some AMAZING images of before and after images of their orphanage building! I can't believe they managed to renovate anything from what they started with. 

Aren't these kids adorable? With smiles like that I can tell these kids are truly loved. 

During our three hour drive from Wichita back to my home Amy and I were able to talk a lot the struggles that they face in African culture. What struck me the most was the incredibly poor education system in Zambia. A "high school" education in Zambia is less that what American students are taught by third grade. Problem solving and critical thinking skills are absent. Most adults aren't skilled at any trade and those with jobs are rarely qualified for them. As Amy and I spoke I was literally speechless; I just did not know what to say until Amy spoke and said, "Yeah, you really have to see it to believe it." A life in Zambia for a native citizen isn't something I can even begin to imagine. 

I know that all you readers know how blessed you are to be American or living in the West. But really, we have no idea what so ever how lucky we truly are to have what we have and the ability to do what we do. We have clean beds and clothes; we aren't hungry or in danger of starving (in fact most of us could do with skipping a meal now and then couldn't we?) We have the blessing of worrying more about how our kids are doing than worrying about where our next meal comes from. In Zambia they are still living for survival and don't have the time to worry about nurturing. We are so blessed with college education debt!! Yep, we are because our kids have the opportunity to be educated, truly educated with the bills to prove it, where most Zambians don't. 

Despite all the words I just wrote about Amy and her orphanage I still feel speechless. I still feel as though I was given a great gift in meeting her and hearing her story. I don't feel obligated or guilted into helping Amy and her orphanage but rather, I feel truly blessed with the opportunity to help.

 I don't always say, or type, the right words to express how I feel about things and this post is no exception. I rather feel I've bungled it up but I hope you get some sense about the work Amy and her family are accomplishing. Take a minute to check out one of her many sites, help them out a little with few dollars. If we can all do a little, great things will happen. 

Sunday Devotions - Greater love has no one....

 “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” (John 15:13).


Normally, I wouldn't repost some one else's devotion but this week Our Daily Bread had a wonderful devotion that I thought was just so perfect for Easter so here it is. 

Bill and his wife were driving through the Rocky Mountains when a near-miss with a truck caused their car to swerve off the road and plunge into the Colorado River. After scrambling out of their sinking vehicle, they frantically treaded water in the swift current. A truck driver, who had seen the accident, ran ahead along the shore and threw a rope to them. Bill swam behind his wife and pushed her to where she could grab the rope—and the man pulled her out. Bill, however, was carried downstream and didn’t survive. He had given his life for the woman he loved.

To give your life so another person can live is the ultimate proof of love. During the night that Jesus was betrayed, He told His disciples of His intention to give His life in exchange for mankind. He told them: “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” (John 15:13). And then He set the ultimate example of self-sacrifice by going to the cross.

Have you ever given any thought to the fact that Jesus did that for you—that He died in your place? In so doing, He not only proved His love for you, but He also made it possible for you to be forgiven of your sins and to have an eternal home in heaven.

Jesus told his disciples before the Cross that he had to die that he knew it would happen and it was something he wasn't going to run away from but still they didn't understand. I think even today's Christian can be just as thick! I've been raised in the church and heard the Easter story year after year but it took a couple decades until the meaning of the Cross REALLY sank in. Even now though, I sometimes wonder if I truly understand the sacrifice that Jesus made for me. 

Dear Heavenly Father, Oh what a sacrifice you gave for us...for ME! I'm so unworthy of such a gift yet it was given free of charge, without strings attached, through GRACE alone. How humbling to be loved so very much by You Lord! Help me to live my life worthy of such a gift. Amen. 

Hail!

I am still such a Kansas newbie as anyone would have been able to see on Monday night during the hailstorm. Why? All of us, DR, the kids and I were all standing on the front porch watching the hail come down. When it started I was putting Leola to bed and I stopped just to bring her and the boys outside to watch because they'd never seen it before. In the past it hail has always come after their bedtime. 

Hail, for me, is still a curiosity. In the two years we've been here I've seen hail 3 times which is just about the same number of times I saw hail in Indiana/Illinois in my 30+ years in that area. Hail is so common here that hardly anyone pays it any mind...unless you are a farmer worrying about what damage it's done to your wheat. 

The hail was falling for quite a while, probably a good five minutes. No one else was standing on their porches mesmerized by it I noticed. I was starting to get a bit worried though when the hail hitting my car sounded like a snare drum in a parade. No damage though (phew!) 

The boys were enjoying trying to catch the hail as it fell without getting hit by it, I wish I'd had video of that :) I was impressed with the size of the hail, marble size, until I started talking to my pastor about it. 

"Shoot!" he says, "I've seen hail as big as tennis balls that shattered car windshields!"

*Gulp* Really? (He's a pastor; he wouldn't lie!)

I can barely imagine golf ball size hail but tennis ball hail? I just hope I never have a picture of THAT to show you because I'm pretty sure I'd have to share some terrible car pictures as well! 

Foody Friday - Homemade Chicken Alfredo

I love homemade sauces..and I love them even more now that I'm finally learning how to make them :)

The first time I ever tried to make a cheese sauce it turned into a gigantic pot of lumpy goo. 

But I'm getting better!

 (Here's a great site with tips on how to make a cheese sauce. After reading this, I got it right the very first time!)

This Chicken Alfredo came from Chicken Recipes to Die For. Really, this one wasn't hard at all either. 

Chicken Alfredo

mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

2 large chicken breasts, cut into cubes

fettuccine pasta or egg noodles

3/4 cup cream

1/2 cup milk

5 T butter

1 T olive oil

clove of garlic, chopped

1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

1 T flour

parsley, salt and pepper

Add the olive oil and 1T butter to pan on medium heat. When pan is hot add mushrooms and sprinkle with salt, then cook for 3-4 minutes per sides until brown. While the mushrooms are cooking bring a pot of water to boil. 

Set aside mushrooms and add chopped garlic to frying pan. cook gently for about a minute, then add chicken cubes. Stir so chicken cooks on all sides. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Remove from pan and set with mushrooms. Boil the pasta in the pot. 

Add the rest of the butter to frying pan on medium to low heat and when butter has started to melt, add the cream and milk stirring continuously. Slowly sprinkle in the flour while continuing to stir. The sauce should start to thicken after about 5 minutes at which point add the Parmesan cheese and simmer gently for 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle in some salt and pepper to taste and add the chopped parsley. Stir in the cooked chicken and mushrooms to the sauce, and simmer gently until the chicken and mushrooms are warmed through. Serve on top of pasta.

DR has started requesting that I include his "star rating" on the foods. I didn't get a chance to ask how he liked it before I posted but considering he had two bowls of it for lunch today, I guess he rates it fairly well. 

My kids on the other hand.....in their eyes, sauce of any kind is tainting the pure wonder that is pasta! Eh, they'll grow out of that someday...until then they'll just have to suffer my cooking. 

Have a great weekend! 

Week 14 - Music

Sorry, I'm a bit late :) 

Week 14 - Music. Honestly, I've been occupied with other things this week and hadn't given any thought on how to shoot music. I mentioned yesterday to Amy Morrow, the missionary who's been a guest in our town the past few days that I needed to shoot Music and she pulled out an African thumb piano for me to shoot! Luckily I had some wonderful sunshine coming in the window just at that moment. 

1/50sec., f5.6, ISO 1600

a bit of editing 

1/40sec., f5.6, ISO 1600

Next week, Week 15 is Plinth.

Do you know what a plinth is? 

I admit I had to look it up!