Comforting Thoughts

The passage of time is a fact of life.  Great times pass.  People are always reminding one another to cherish the moment, seize the day, enjoy the little ones and their messes...   


Well, yesterday I looked at Baby H. lying on his changing table, fat and perfect, wearing only his diaper, holding onto his feet with both hands, smiling in his wonderful six month old way, and I started to cry! 

I am a little embarrassed to admit it.  It was a combination of gratitude for the beauty of the moment, and utter grief that I couldn't hold onto these moments-- he's growing up every day, so fast, so fast, so fast!  In the middle of my tears, suddenly, a thought came to me:  A.J. was six months old once, and so was C.E.  What if A.J. was still six months old, instead of the adorable 8 year old who ate breakfast wearing his brand new blue cub scout shirt this morning for the first time?  Would I trade my 8 year old for the 6 month old version of himself, and miss out on that?  Would I trade my 13 year old beautiful daughter for a younger version?  Of course not!  I love seeing them in each stage.  I look forward to their futures, excitedly.  I just don't want to be left out of them.  I don't want them to move away and forget that they have a doting mother on this earth!


Well, then I had another thought.  Doesn't it say in the scriptures that with God, all things are present?


I looked it up, and yes.  There are many scriptures that say that God has all things present before him at all times.  That gave me hope.  He will give us the same blessing, I am sure.  That means that in some way, somehow, we will be conscious of our beautiful present, past, and future, all at once, some day, in God's kingdom.  That is a HUGE blessing.  I am so excited about that.  I can't think of any superpower I'd rather have than the ability to keep the joyful parts of my life with me, in detail, consciously, always before me.


So, for the record, here are the scriptures, in case anyone wants to look at them more closely:

1 Corinthians 3:22

Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours;Doctrine and Covenants 38:2The same which knoweth all things, for all things are present before mine eyes;


Doctrine and Covenants 130: 6-7
The angels do not reside on a planet like this earth; but they reside in the presence of God, on a globe like a sea of glass and fire, where all things for their glory are manifest, past, present, and future, and are continually before the Lord.

Doctrine and Covenants 76:59

Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.

Mormon 8:35

Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing.

My Little Pumpkin

I took these pumpkin photos when Baby H. was only 3 months old.  Now he's 6 months old and the hat is too small, but I love these pictures and wanted them up.

Heart - Healthy Cooking

LOVE AND BUTTER

Look at that baby's happy, chubby face!  It's incredible to me that this five month old, 21-pound bundle of love and butter has never eaten anything but his Mamma's milk.  Speaking of love and butter, last night I said to D.H. that I've finally, a month and a half past the New Year, decided what my New Year's Resolution will be: healthier cooking.



Here are things I've made for dinner that my family likes:

1. meatballs and potatoes,
2. meatloaf,
3. marinated steaks,
4. beef roast,
5. enchiladas,
6. tacos,
7. spaghetti, 
8. fish and potatoes,
9. stir fry and rice,
10. barbeque chicken,
11. Hawaiian haystacks,
12. fresh ravioli,
13. pasta primavera with shrimp and mushrooms,
14. broccoli beef and rice,
15. home-made sub sandwiches,
16. chicken pot pie,
17. pancakes with jam,
18. chili and cornbread,
19. yam curry with brown rice. 

Out of these 19 dishes, there are 8 that are meat-heavy.  Most could be recreated with less meat, with a mixture of meat and beans, or with no meat and only beans, or with zero meat.  I could make chicken pot pie without the chicken, just with broth and veggies.  I could make vegetarian tacos, spaghetti, stir fry, haystacks, ravioli, chili, curry, bbq.  I just don't think of it.

This late resolution is inspired by the fact that many of our friends and relatives have had heart attacks or near-heart attacks, high cholesterol reports, and other physical scares that are said to be diet-and-exercise-related. 

The responsibility of cooking better, for the bodies and lives of my family members (and me) scares me.  My family is so dear.  And food is one way we show love.  But are high-fat, high-sugar, low-nutrition treats a loving gift-- in the long run? 

An occasional "bulla" or brownie is okay, but too much of our family's diet has too much fat, too much meat, and too much sugar.  I need to educate myself and begin to use more vegetables and more whole grains than I do.

I am thinking about what we eat here.  On the good side, we usually have a spinach salad, at almost every dinner.  On the bad side, we usually have dessert, at almost every dinner.  We also have nutrition-free snacks in the house, like crackers, candy, ice cream, etc., which we eat more often than we eat the apples and grapefruits we keep in the fridge.  How to refocus?  I think it will take a little creativity and some work.

My friend, J.H., said she dramatically dropped cholesterol points a year after she dramatically dropped meat out of her family's dinners (except for her husband's).  She read a book called the China Diet that convinced her to do it.  She says now she uses veggies and grains and eggs like crazy, and rations one pound of ground beef per two meals for her seven-person family.

She and another friend of hers started a healthy cooking club recently.  I was invited to my first one, coincidentally, today.  It was inspiring!  We learned how to make homemade yogurt and healthy quiche, berry breakfast bake, oat-wheat pancakes, and more.  When I try out the recipes that I got there, on the family, I will post them here.  I also just checked out the recipes at the Mayo Clinic's website and bought ingredients to try their heart-healthy dishes.  I will report whether they are yummy, and whether my family likes them.

I do have a lot of meat in my freezer right now, because I live in the friendliest town on earth.  (When I moved here three years ago, I was stunned at the friendliness!  People just come, bearing gifts, as if it's Christmas most of the year.  One neighbor brings us Alaskan salmon, fresh from Alaska, and rainbow trout, fresh from the local lakes, from his fishing expeditions.  Another neighbor often shovels others' snow, secretly.  Another one brings zucchini bread.)

Well, one of my neighbor friends came over the other day with at least thirty pounds of extra lean, grass-fed, home grown beef, frozen ground beef, and wouldn't accept a penny for it.  She'd just gotten a whole cow and didn't have room in the freezer.  This is lean, good meat, and I mean to make it last until summer with my new, less-meat resolution.