{Life and Pictures} Adventuring in Missouri and Other News

I was born in Hannibal, MO. For the first six months of my life, I lived in a TINY little house in Curryville, MO (about 30 minutes from Hannibal.) Mom's been wanting to go back and visit our friends there for awhile. I think she has in her head that Tyler's going to graduate, leave, and we'll never see him again. I know better :) The first time he has to do laundry, he'll come back :) But anyway, we finally made it back for a visit last weekend.

Since we moved back to Kansas when I was only six months old, I have NO memory of our friends in Curryville. It was really strange meeting people who knew me, that I didn't recognize. I heard the phrase "You have grown up!" so many times! :)

While we were there, we visited our old babysitters (and their family. Who were SO, SO nice. They let ALL seven of us stay with them. That is a seriously big undertaking!), our old house, our old neighbors, our old church, and (the big one for me!) the CAVES behind our old house. Really, there was multiple (I think 4?) caves that can be explored near there.

My dad really loved the caves, so he wanted to be able to show us all. We tracked down the owners of the land (who graciously let us walk around in their woods), geared up in orange (we were tramping through the woods during Missouri deer season.), and explored the caves.

The first one was not so pleasant. It was basically just a rock jutting out that you could crawl under. Dad lost me at "Watch out for snakes. There's rattle snakes around here. They love caves like this." If we were brave enough to get wet, we could've crawled on hands and knees through water and reached the other cave, ladder cave. However, it was under freezing, so we opted for walking to the above ground entrance of ladder cave.

This was my favorite of the two. You climb down a a 20 foot, narrow ladder (which was the same ladder my dad put in 15 years ago-scary thought?) and wiggle your way between two walls to an open passage. It was much warmer in the cave, but the air was stale. We walked a little ways, then bent double to cross under a rock ledge. (More splashing!) The rest of the cave was really easy to walk through and just amazing.

At one point, dad turned off both the headlamps. It was the most complete darkness I have ever been in. So scary/interesting.

There was one freaky part.  I was innocently looking around the cave, when I noticed all my family staring at the ceiling 1 foot above my head. My dad said, "Look above you!" I just about screamed! There was a cluster of 6 bats right above me! *shivers*

Here's some pictures of the caves:

The first cave

Climbing down in ladder cave

End of the exploration

There's a bat near the right corner

Other news from the past week:

I have new baby goats, and some kittens showed up at our house. I do not like having cats... but when they just show up, what can you do? Obviously, I have pictures of that, too ;) (I'm realizing there's a lot of pictures in this post. Sorry :( I really enjoy pictures.)

"M" in front, "And M" in the back :)

Marshmallow

O'Malley...3

Gerdy

{Journal} Re-do

In class on Tuesday, our journal assignment was: "Who would you meet if you could meet anyone?" IN class I completely blanked out. Then when people started sharing who they wrote about, my mind started working again. SO for my blog this week I'm going to re-do that journal assignment, now that I've  had time to straighten out my thoughts.

I'm very indecisive, so these so unspecific questions are extremely difficult for me. I start worrying about not choosing the right thing. I don't want to "waste" my one person! As a result, these are just a few of the people who have come to mind as I've thought it over. In no particular order,  here they are:


I would really enjoy meeting Nate Saint. Actually, any of the five missionaries or their families involved in that venture. They obviously just wanted to follow Christ and His call with their whole lives. I enjoyed every book I ever listened to about that mission. They're story, but more importantly the story of how some of their families continued to minister there is amazing. On the other side, I would like to meet the tribe they were trying to reach. Specifically the man who is alive and was involved in the attack on Palm Beach. To hear his story of how God changed his life would be so special.


I would really enjoy meeting John Bunyan. He is most famous for his book Pilgrim's Progress, but recently our church finished reading his own account of his life called Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners. He has an amazing talent for putting into words his thoughts and feelings.


I would really enjoying meeting Esther. Her story has always been one of my favorites from the Bible. When I was younger, it was mostly because it is about a princess and a kingdom, you get the point, basically everything I love in fictional stories. But as I've gotten older, I began to realize how much faith she had. She risked her life for her people, when, from  her point of view, it didn't really do much for her. The "risked her life" is something I've heard before when learning about Esther, so it sounds like old news. But when I think it over, I've got to wonder, would I have done it? If my situation seemed safe, would I risk my life for others?

Those are just a few, and once again, I'm left sitting here with a blank mind. :) Who would you like to meet?

{A Few of My Favorite Things} A Roundup

Winter. Guys, these freezing mornings make me think it's finally here. I love winter. Go ahead and call me strange. :) I don't like freezing cold, stormy days when there's nothing to do outside. BUT the snowy, cozy days outweigh the "bad" days of winter for me. Don't worry, fall brings up a VERY close second.


TAZO "Wild Sweet Orange" tea. I am not a tea fan. Not even sweet tea. I just don't like that "tea" taste. But wild sweet orange tastes more like wassail. I add a little liquid stevia to mine. It's a wonderful alternative if I want something not as sweet or filling as hot chocolate!


Waiting. I am [not so patiently] waiting for my goats to have their kids. I go out there every morning expecting new babies. I was so convinced it would be one of these cold mornings. Nope. I think maybe I should try going out their thinking "There is absolutely NOT going to be baby goats this morning." :)


Painting. I'm making my mom a burlap wall hanging as her birthday present. Artsy and crafty things aren't generally an area I excel in, which means I don't try it very often. But, with a goal in my mind, it's been fun to try an artsy project. I used this picture (from pinterest) as one of my ideas. I'll post a picture when mine is done.

Bobby pins. I saw these bobby pins on (yeah, go figure) pinterest a few days ago. I love them. I can't explain why, but I think it's just so beautiful. So are these bobby pins.

Avery sent me this picture the other day. I laughed so hard. That kid's face, and the idea, It's just perfect and so true!

This dress. If I ever have a million dollars, and need to go somewhere formal, I think I'll wear this. OR, if I EVER see this at a thrift store or garage sale, I am absolutely buying it. No question ;) Doesn't it just look like a fairy?

This guy's  amazing ideas and pictures. Oh how beautiful! God does amazing things in nature! I am so glad someone uses technology to make them all the more amazing!

Ok, last thing. Have I ever mentioned I am VERY ditzy and absent-minded? Things go in and out of my head in just a few seconds. As a result, I often have notes written on my hands. It's not a fool-proof method if I was my hands too many times. So I think I need some of these :)  Wearable sticky notes. It's better than pockets!



What has excited you/what have you loved this week?

{Family} Family

I woke up sick last night, so I got left home this morning. My family split between a workday at the Beacon Center and picking up bountiful baskets (a food co-op we've been trying). SO, it seemed like a good time to write my blog for this week. As I said, this will be one last post in my {Family} series.

First of all, my family is very competitive. (Tyler and Sam would be the slight exceptions. Tyler's competitive in a quiet way. Sam is competitive until she gets distracted with a butterfly, or a pretty flower.) We compete with each other on a day-to-day basis. By "day-to-day basis" I mean things like racing to see who can get in the shower first, or read the most books, etc. "Last one buckled in is a rotten egg" is something we hear a lot. Outside of our family, we are also competitive whenever we get the chance. Playing games, playing sports, pretty much any opportunity. :)

Board games :)

Family volleyball tournament 2012

Second, my family tends to enjoy dangerous activities. (The exception here is my mom. She DOES NOT like dangerous activities.) Some of my favorites are our zipline, where you jump off a platform in a tree and ride handle bars across the creek. It's not REALLY dangerous, just sort of :) Sledding on a truck hood in our field is also fantastic. That's only really dangerous when you try things like jumping the hood over a tree that's fallen down. We used to have a a tire swing that we could drag up a ladder, then jump off. I never got the hang of it because the tire was heavy enough, it would pull me off the ladder if I went too high. Or just playing sledding demolition derby on an icy hill. The point of that game was to knock as many people off their sleds before you reached the bottom of the hill. All of the above activities are courtesy of my dad. He knows how to have fun! ;)

Blanket swings, inside. My mom's face shows her ideas on "dangerous" activities :)

Hood sledding

All-in-all, I couldn't ask for a better family. It's easy for me to forget how blessed I am by my family and their characteristics. These blog posts have been particularly helpful in making me think through what I appreciate and learn from in each family member. It's been a great exercise in thankfulness!

Proverbs 17:17

A friend loves at all times, and a brother [family] is born for a time of adversity.

{Recipes} Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Our freezers are really, REALLY full! Between garden produce, and a huge amount of beef, it is packed. So mom's been working on cleaning it out. The new motto: "Cook with what we have" :) It's amusing to unearth things from the forgotten depths of the freezer. And you know what we dug out? Pumpkin!


I loved getting to pick and choose recipes (from pinterest, of course) that I could bake with some of the pumpkin we froze last year! I found a recipe for pumpkins snickerdoodles, and tried it, but I wasn't completely pleased with the results. I had just enough thawed pumpkin to try again! The second trial even gotten positive reviews from Tyler, my most severe critic.

Although Tyler is my most severe critic, he isn't the best. Dad is the one who gives truly helpful information on what he does or doesn't like. So dad tells me what could be done to improve the taste, and mom suggests techniques that will accomplish that goal. BUT, my dad doesn't like pumpkin. I have no idea why not. So I was on my own to improve this recipe. So far they've gotten THUMBS UP!

A note:
-I used pumpkin we had cooked and frozen. Therefore, if you used canned pumpkin, (which is often thicker) you might want to decrease the flour

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
The original idea came from The Six Sisters Blog, I adapted their recipe.

1 c. shortening
1/2 c. white sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. pumpkin puree
1 egg
4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

SEPARATE:
1/2 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
1/2 t. nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 400o and LIGHTLY spray a cookie sheet. Cream shortening, sugars, egg, pumpkin, and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg. Chill dough in the freezer for 10 minutes.  Meanwhile, mix the separate sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a small bowl. Once dough has chilled for 10 minutes, remove from freezer. Scoop the dough into about 1 inch diameter balls. Roll the balls in separate sugar mixture until evenly coated. Place on cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Flatten the top of the dough balls if you want a flatter cookie (Like the one in the picture above). Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until the edge of the cookie is firm, and the middle is just starting to become firm. Makes about 40 large cookies.