family

Sisterhood of the Traveling…BB Cream?

April 24, 2018 by Rachel

I have five younger sisters (yes, FIVE), of which I am proudly the oldest and tallest. {Someone has to be higher up in order to be looking out for everyone all the time.} If our faces didn’t look so similar, I might be inclined to believe the story that I was adopted (specifically, found on the side of the road), since they are all miniatures wearing ridiculously small shoes while I’ve been clomping around in size 10’s and towering over everyone like a giraffe since age 12.

Remember that movie about a magical pair of jeans which fit four different friends perfectly? We have our very own version of that, a sort of connecting thread.

Due to our height, and general body shape differences we have three camps: Very Petite Sister, All the Other Sisters, and Me. No one can wear my shoes or clothes. I can wear their stuff only if it is giant-sized. However, there are two things which us Oldest 5 love and use frequently. And these two things we can share and share alike.

Sisters at the beach

Oldest 5 took Dad on a surprise trip to the beach. l-r: Naomi, Esther, Mara, Me, Keturah*

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Easter Dinner Menu {Version 03/18}

March 31, 2018 by Rachel

Every year Easter weekend looks different for us. In recent years we’ve had some variety-traveled to visit family, shared a meal with church friends who graciously invited us into their home, hosted our own extended family gathering, or kept it simple with just our group of five.

I rarely dye eggs. My interest level in that is a 0.5 at best. I may plan our spring outfits in advance, or, more likely, survey closets the day before and wonder if I can pull off a new, fresh spring look with whatever we have and minimal effort. I love Resurrection Sunday and all it represents; I’m ambivalent about everything else. {Or lazy. You could also say that.}

I do care about FELLOWSHIP and FOOD, and this year I get to host a smallish family dinner, which is perfect.

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Letter 33 {Wedding, Donuts}

March 26, 2018 by Rachel

Dear Candace,

Thursday, March 22:

I’m writing to you from Indy, where spring has been welcomed with fluffy snow and strong winds. Naomi’s wedding on Saturday will probably feature temps below freezing and more precipitation. Remember that proverb about March?

In like a lion, out like a lamb.

False. OPPOSITE.

However, this is not dampening our spirits in the least and we are enjoying every minute of preparation and time spent together this week! Many important tasks have already been accomplished, such as last-minute shoe shopping for certain unnamed member of the family, the purchase of chalkboards from Michael’s, flower petal accumulation (for the send-off), getting our nails done, and eating of Thai food.

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My Morning Routine {Version 03.18}

March 20, 2018 by Rachel

This post contains affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase after clicking through one of my links, I may receive a {very small} commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting this blog! It means the world and a beautiful sunrise to me.

Anyone who knows me well knows I’m not and never have been an early morning person. {And to my brothers-in-law who came knocking on our trailer door before 9am those first few years I was a young bride and mother, no I have not forgiven you.}

I’ve always regularly needed at least 8 hours of sleep, and when my babies were little I needed at least 10! I used to wonder if I was missing out on some sort of holiness game-up, in which rising before dawn would not only improve my productivity but more importantly, my spirituality. Like, didn’t the Proverbs 31 woman get up while it was still dark? I always thought that if I had servant girls, they’d be making ME breakfast, not the other way around.

What I really want to wake up to every morning.

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5 Things I’ve Been Working on in March

March 17, 2018 by Rachel

You know I love a good list! Here are my top 5 focus areas for March….

∇ Getting up early. It’s hard for me to find space during a busy day of homemaking & homeschooling to have my own quiet and writing time. This past week I’ve been getting up between 5-5:30 am which is rather brutal for me. I’m not really a morning person OR a night owl-I’m a sleep person! However, I’m really appreciating the quiet and stillness of our small house during those hours before everyone starts the day. Not only am I getting myself all put-together and ready, I’m making the time for meditation, prayer, journaling, and writing. I’m willing to sacrifice some sleep to make it happen, but it’s not easy for me! As part of my devotions, I’m using my friend Ruth’s lovely book, GraceLaced-Discovering Timeless Truths Through Seasons of the Heart.

∇ One-on-one reading time with my youngest, Drew. I’m reading aloud A Wrinkle in Time to everyone, which we all enjoy so much, but Drew has long requested permission to finish the Harry Potter series (up till now I’ve only allowed him to read the first few books) and this is a way we can enjoy them together and I can help him process through the last and most difficult books. We just started Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and usually read together snuggled on the couch with a good cup of tea or in my bed with a fluffy blanket before nights out.

∇ Exercising and being more active in general. Along with rising early during these dark winter and early spring days, being outside in the cold isn’t my favorite! I’d much rather be glued to a leather coffee shop chair reading the hours away. As I mentioned in this post, I’ve been doing yoga 2-3 times weekly and now I’m being purposeful about adding in more activity in general. Even little things like parking at the far end of the Target parking lot so I can get some extra walking in! I am becoming an Exercise Person and shocking myself at the change.

∇ Saying “yes” more to my kids. Sometimes I feel like I say “no” more than is necessary, so I’m trying to stop and ask myself: How much does {fill in the blank} really matter in the big picture? Is it worth saying no, and if so, why? What will saying yes mean for my child? Saying yes has meant more time spent with friends as our schedule allows, letting them listen to the music of their choice as long as it fits within our family values (which means I’ve heard a lot more rap lately, ha!), deciding their own haircuts and styles, and making creative messes in the kitchen and around the house.

∇ Self-care. Everybody is talking about it these days; it’s a topic on trend and honestly, one I find a lot of value in and enjoy discussing. For me this has included working with a functional medicine doctor, consistently taking my list of prescribed supplements in order to address some deficits in my health, focusing on getting enough sleep, drinking more water, and in general engaging in things that feed my soul (this ties in with the first thing on my list!). Also, dark chocolate because #life.

Here is my last list of 5 things I’ve been working on. What about you? Anything on your list for this month?

Photo by Silvia Agrasar on Unsplash

Letter 26 {Blackberries + Nostalgia}

July 8, 2017 by Rachel

Dear Candace,

July is in full-swing and with it some familiar heat and humidity, but it’s still such a beautiful summer!

Blackberries. With July comes memories of blackberry picking as a child and all the scrumptious treats first my mom, and then my sister and myself, would prepare; namely: jam, cobblers, and best of all PIE. Blackberry pie is my jam. The butter to my bread. It’s only contender is peach pie with warm cinnamon sauce. But in July, there can be no other pie except the humble yet remarkable blackberry.

In the early nineties, before cell-phones and helicopter parenting, Mom would drop Mara and I off at a nearby conservation area. We were given a wagon, buckets, water, and instructions to be at the rendezvous point at a specific time. Then we were left alone, trudging through the wilderness, to a familiar patch of wild, thorn-encased blackberries sharing space with poison ivy.

It’s remarkable we didn’t meet our demise in those lonely woods, by wild animal or serial killer hiker. One hot July afternoon, Mara began to feel the twinges of heat exhaustion so I laid her out in the shade and kept right on picking. There are sacrifices to be made for blackberry pie, you know. I would often get poison ivy on my face from those outings, turning into an oozing, puffy spectacle known as Cauliflower Girl. The boys were mad about me in those days.*

We’ve been traveling deep in the Ozarks for Hosanna’s horsemanship lessons, to a little farm nestled by a creek and woods. It’s a lovely drive through rich green countryside, and I’m never exactly sure what the speed limit is, though farm trucks and motorcyclists pass me regularly on corkscrew roads. We drive by old white farmhouses, garden patches, fields of corn, and homemade signs that say things like WE HAVE WORMS.

During our recent visit to the horse farm, the owners graciously led us to their blackberry patch to pick the biggest, sweetest, juiciest berries I’ve ever seen! True story. Those blackberries were the epitome of everything a blackberry should be. Three times larger than my thumb, one berry filled your mouth with its juicy goodness. While Hosanna was working with the horses, Drew and I stained our fingers and mouths roaming through the bushes. In short order we picked enough berries for a pie, which became my one fixation. No matter how tired I was, or how many dishes and chores needed to be done, we must! have! pie! Back at home that evening, I quickly put together a homemade crust** and filled it high with the glossy berries. Pie for dessert, pie for breakfast the next morning; that’s how July is done! Until peaches are in season, I’m quite content in my current relationship with Missouri’s obsidian jewels.

Thinking now of blackberry wine,

~Rachel

*There were no boys. Mad or otherwise.

**I must be out of practice! It was not the best crust, being a bit chewy and rather a poor representation of the large amount of pies I’ve made in my lifetime. Such things keep me humble.

Letter 25

Letter 27

Letter 24 {Scotch Eggs & Life Contemplation}

June 25, 2017 by Rachel

Dear Candace,

The weekend is lazy, breezy and bright. June’s last parting gift, a reprieve from summer heat. I’m loving this Missouri spring and summer! One never can tell with Missouri.

Last weekend’s camping adventure was a delight. Specifically, camping in CABINS and not in tents or hammocks IN THE RAIN. I could get used to that kind of camping! Your breakfast of Scotch eggs was so delicious. The perfect marriage of breakfast food staples: eggs and sausage. I want them in my life more. Crispy spheres of perfection.

As I reflect on the past week, two things stand out. The importance of relationships, and the brevity of life. We hosted a few visits from family and friends at our home here in STL, and mis-mashed between those was a car accident.

The boys were driving with one of the aunts to a nearby park when their car was rear-ended. Tom and I were able to quickly arrive at the scene, even before police did, and found everyone shaken but unhurt. Drew was in the backseat. I have to stop myself from letting my mind consider all the “what ifs”…our time isn’t in our hands, and I can’t live in fear. The “what ifs” are in God’s hands. We know this, but when something like a car accident happens or cancer is diagnosed our focus becomes more narrow, more exact. Suddenly we see everything which had formerly been overlooked or not given its proper attention… the feel of warm summer, freckles on a child’s nose, being present in a moment, the full gift of life being lived.

The boys have been checked out and both received chiropractic treatments which were helpful. Then I started developing neck pain and tension with a side of massive headaches, because clearly I wanted it to be all about me. I have some thick muscle-relief salve which I applied on Thursday and am still trying to wash out of my hair. It’s very hard for me to be glamorous these days.

I am currently reading: Hatching Twitter: A True Story of Money, Power, Friendship, and Betrayal. I’m a fairly new Twitter user, tweeting in stops and starts, but always mesmerized when I scroll through my feed. That 140 character limit is BRILLIANT! It’s all so very succinct and clever. Foodie bloggers, spiritual leaders, politicians, comedians, authors, that one guy with the big family I met once who likes to #humblebrag, it’s all remarkably out there in the world, in 140 characters. It feels less cluttered than Facebook to me, which is probably why I gravitate to it more. The book delves into the people and stories behind the startup of what is now a world-wide phenomenon.

Yes, I did once tweet a message I meant to text Tom. Since I discovered this months after the fact, I could only be grateful no one really reads my tweets plus it was mundane and appropriate for all audiences. One must be very careful which platform one’s 140 characters land on.

#love

Rachel

Letter 23

Letter 25

This letter contains affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase after clicking through one of my links, I will receive a {very small} commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting this blog! It means the world and a stack of letters to me.

Letter 22 {June Cheers}

June 9, 2017 by Rachel

Dear Candace,

This will be a shorty because I forgot to start writing to you until now and now is late. Now is past my bedtime. Now I am yawning and my feet are sore from being on them all day and my body is achy in a plum-wore-out way. I’m happy with all this, though, because it was a good day! I was able to pull off a surprise birthday party for Tom at the farm with the help of family. Seven of his eight siblings were here! Plus spouses and childrens…it was a full house. I arranged furniture out on the deck and added lights, candles, tables, music…as close to Hobbiton one can get in the Ozark woods. It was a delight to watch the children play and enjoy visiting with everyone on a beautiful June evening.

Reminder to self: treasure these remaining June evening-they only come once a year!

Also I am now a year older. Wuut!

June Bugs,

Rachel

P.S. Oh-I started reading the book you gave me. “The Foundling” is unlike any story I’ve heard and it’s quite remarkable. It’s true and sad and hopeful and all the things one wishes for in a June read.

Letter 21

Letter 23

Letter 21 {Firetrucks & Ancestors}

June 2, 2017 by Rachel

Dear Candace,

I just love sitting outside and being warm. I’d rather be warm or even hot and sticky over freezing cold any old day. If I moved up north I bet my life expectancy would shorten. I don’t think my ancestors were Vikings. I imagine they were pasty European fellows living out their life inside as weavers and then writers or clerks while their hardy neighbors left to explore new continents. It was hard for them, my ancestors who lived in cold regions. As the cold seeped into their bones, the more melancholy became their poetry. By degrees they moved south to gentler climates, as they had the strength. The wives were happier, the babies less spindly. They survived.

I’m sitting out on the front porch now, and was enjoying a warm evening blessed with the usual night sounds, all quiet and still {thinking fondly of my ancestors}, when my reveries were interrupted by the sound of a monstrous fire truck coming down the road. The sirens weren’t on, but the rumble of the truck and flashing lights surely woke up the whole neighborhood (including my children) as it backed carefully down our dead-end street in order to make an easy exit later. I could see no fire nor smell smoke. The fireflies alone illuminated the dark. {see what I did there} Apparently a neighbor had a small backyard fire which was called in. Tom and I could barely talk above the noise of the truck. I looked at it with envy. It probably has more square space than my house. And so well-organized and shiny clean.

I’m jealous of a fire truck.

The truck is gone now, the street back to it’s peaceful repose. I am soon to bed and early to rise. The children and I are leaving at 3:30 am to head to Indy in time for my brother’s graduation party! My St. Louis sisters are coming with, so we can all be bleary eyed and sharing coffee together.

I was going to write you stuff but then I forgot everything when that blasted red truck came down the road.

Caleb is off to camp this weekend, after the graduation, and packing a child for 9 days away without the ability to do laundry is no small feat. Being the procrastinators we are (argh), I made a mad trip to Kohl’s with Caleb and Tom took him to Wal-Mart. He’ll just have to make do. I’m sure he can fashion shorts out of foliage if necessary. He has a bottle to filter water, and there will be plenty of protein bugs. I’m sure he’ll survive one way or the other.

I just hope he listens to me and remembers to put on sunscreen. {Wonders: did we pack sunscreen?}

And all the hipsters say-#weekendvibes

~Rachel

Letter 20

Letter 22

Letter 20 {Turmeric Milk & Horse Sneezes}

May 26, 2017 by Rachel

Dear Candace,

How is this Letter 20? Where have the last 20 weeks gone? June is almost here!*

Most evenings I make creamy, golden turmeric milk for the family about an hour before bedtime. It’s perfect on chilly evenings, but even with the increasing heat and humidity everyone still likes it served up hot! We sip our warm, comforting drink as a way of winding down before lights out. I’ve been trying to work on our evening and bedtime routines, and Pinterest promises me that not only will the health benefits of turmeric give us long life and super-powers, but it will also naturally encourage deep and restful sleep. Bottoms up!

The children and I visited a farm yesterday, where Hosanna had her first natural horsemanship lesson. The horses were beautiful and friendly, running up to us like eager dogs when we first arrived and stood at the gate, watching them. While Hosanna spent time with the horses, the boys roamed a nearby creek. It was so sunny and relaxing; we all enjoyed being outdoors. At one point I was sneezed on by a curious horse companion, who spray-painted my shirt with green splatters.

Afterwards I cleaned up and went out to dinner with my sisters, barely keeping my eyes open while slurping down a huge bowl of ramen. The ramen craze has hit St. Louis and it is a good one-perfectly delicious comfort food. The sisters pointed out that I did, indeed, get a wee bit sunburned. I don’t know how-I was covered in stuff. Meanwhile the teacher of the class looked fresh and brown when we left, even though she’d spent most of the day outdoors with the horses and I, barely two hours there, ended up burned, horse-sneezed and limp-haired. I guess somebody has to be the weak white one.

This weekend my plans are to rest, organize things, and make good food. And read-always read.

Have a good one!

Love,

Rachel

*In case you didn’t realize.

Letter 19

Letter 21