Brown Rice Bento Balls

I have been re-reading Sugar Blues by William Dufty. Sugar has an interesting and disturbing history. Dufty says science shows that sugar affects humans much like a drug. Sugar is a cause of many physical and mental illnesses. It is a fascinating read, if you are into such things. He gives examples of how to "kick the habit". I found it refreshing to have a few practical ways to eat sugar-free, instead of having half the book devoted to recipes that I can get out of any cookbook. Many new mainstream pseudoscience nutrition/diet books have gone this half information/half recipe route, and I feel like most of those are a waste of money or time at the library. This book is not! I tried out the brown rice ball idea. Dufty says he makes them for picnics or road trips, as they keep well. I am making mine for lunches and snacks for myself, as well as Beau and the children.
I bought these "umeboshi plums" (salted preserved plums) from the Asian market on White Lane. I got about 30 for $7.99 and the clerk was very helpful. I still can't pronounce "umeboshi" correctly, though.

I made a huge pot of brown jasmine rice from Trader Joes and cooked the rice until it was relatively dry and sticky. I used an ice cream scoop to scoop out the hot rice.


I put a big square piece of Saran Wrap inside a small teacup and scooped the rice inside. I pushed two umeboshi plums into the center and then I twisted up the plastic wrap and made a ball with the rice. The salted plums are supposed to preserve and flavor the rice. Beau is going to get to take these to work with him for a snack instead of the healthy but sugar-filled breakfast bars he has been eating. I hope my family likes them!

A New NIckname

Yesterday we were praying at breakfast and I asked Jackson what he was thankful for.

"For my Daddy".

I teared up a little and continued praying. Then Jackson interrupted me and said, "And for Pop and Connie and Grandma Joey and Papa Eggs and Becca and..."

Papa Eggs?

We visit my parents about twice a month and my dad loves to cook us breakfast. Jackson knows that Papa will cook him eggs when we arrive and so he has named my dad Papa Eggs. I like it. : ) At least there will be no more Papa/Pop confusion.

It's Raining

I love:

-My children

-Being a stay-at-home mom

-Hot coffee with honey

-The rain

-Scripture that encourages me

-Talking on the phone with my husband about the nuances of spiritual gifts

Thank you, God, for this morning! I am filing it away in my memory. It is all to His glory.

Save Handmade!

Parents are outraged and discouraged at this proposed piece of legislation, referred to as the CSPIA. Read Brandy's post here.

Please go here and sign the petition.

Go here for all the information you need.

Save handmade!

Priorities

"In light of eternity, what are my priorities?"

This is the question I will be asking myself many times over the next few days as I study God's Word and try again to work on my character. At least I am learning to ask God to change me instead of trying to do it myself!

Priorities are a necessity for every mother. There are many things to do and not many hours in a day to do them. Many mothers are type-A personalities, myself included. These mommies especially need to let go of some periphery tasks, especially those done with the motive of looking good to others. I am realizing that I need to do less and simply spend more time nurturing my children and my husband. That is my job, after all. I have been thinking about others' reflections on childhood. None of my friends remember how clean their homes were or how often their mothers exercised. They remember if their mother was nurturing and kind or if she was angry and bitter. Yikes!

The book I am studying Scripture with encouraged me to think about this question while meditating on Psalm 63 (the person of God), Psalm 77 (the works of God), and the Psalm 1 (the words of God).

* * *

A priority for me is being progressively more attuned to the strengths and interests of my children so I can begin to help them learn practical skills for life. As I ponder homeschooling Jackson and Rebecca and any successive children, I want to cultivate in them a love of learning. That is the primary draw of homeschooling for this mommy. At home, we can spend time creating depth of knowledge in key areas, not simply covering a wide area of useless topics.

I had a good friend bring up in conversation the notion that colleges and universities are losing their appeal because of the astronomical costs of education. It is simply not cost-effective to get an education at a university in this economy, which is rapidly approaching socialism. Instead of making higher education cheaper for those who are driven, our government spends our money on free condoms and abortions at planned parenthood, free school lunches for kids on high welfare checks, and cheap morning-after pills from your neighborhood pharmacy. Unless one is independently wealthy, going to a 4-year university for a mediocre job does not make sense.

At least this is my take on the subject. I went to university through the generosity of my parents for the first year. I then worked two jobs and my husband worked his tail off at one full-time job to pay for the remaining years at a cheaper university, by God's grace.

So I brought up this idea at another couple's home while we were over for dinner. They are considerably older and wiser, and she is in education. The talk over swapping dreams of college for dreams of trade school or an apprenticeship did not go over well. But this woman has put over 30 years of her life into prepping young minds for college, so we changed subjects. : )

Then, we received Beau's February 2nd issue of Forbes and I read an interesting article entitled "The Great College Con: High Cost, Low Value".

The author, Kathy Kristof, discusses the illusion that many high school graduates and their parents believe: that is is wise to obtain school loans. Most people cannot afford $20-40,000 each year for school. So most will apply and receive government loans. Those loans must be paid back, with interest. So Mr. In-Debt College Student meets and marries Ms. In-Debt College Student and suddenly two young people have $120,000 in school debt to pay off, together. How romantic. That makes for a stable, low-stress marriage.

Kristof says that "the average law grad owes $100,000 in student debt..."the average borrower went $19,000 into debt for a diploma in 2004".

Here is more:

"The risks are hefty. Half of student entering college never earn a degree. Six in ten African-Americans depart without one. 'Hundreds of thousands of young people leave our higher education system unsuccessfully, burdened with large student loans that must be repaid, but without the benefit of the wage a college degree provides', warned a 2004 Education Trust study."

It is not cost-effective to pursue a law degree or an M.D. degree unless you can pay for it yourself, it seems. The article is quite long and involves many case studies, and my children just got up for the morning! But I will be educating them with goals of trade school or apprenticeship, so they can spend their time doing something that interests them and does not set them up for financial failure later in life.

Summer's Shoot

My good friend Summer loves to dabble in all things creative. She caters and does makeup for special events. She went to design school and is about to enroll in culinary school. She is going to school currently as well to obtain a degree in radiology, and her day job is working with Alzheimer's patients, doing in-home care. Whew! She is taking photography lessons currently and asked to use my kids as subjects, so we went to the park and spent a good hour trying to get a few decent pictures. Toddlers are not willing and workable models, so I was pleasantly surprised that she got some really good pictures. Bonus for me: free 11x14 prints after she gets her "A".