First ever pumpkin carvings

Posted on November 1, 2011 by Barbara Harper

We never carved pumpkins until this year. It wasn’t something I grew up with — I don’t think my husband did, either. Then when my kids were very young I was perhaps over concerned about the evil origins of things — it’s something we heard and read a lot about back then. And though I do think it’s cause for consideration, on the other hand, if it’s a tradition that has moved away from its origins and no one connects it with that today, then by and large I don’t think it is a problem, though of course everyone must wrestle with his or own own conscience in these matters. But I think in general when people see carved pumpkins, they think, “Oh, how cute!” rather than, “I wonder what nefarious reasons people first had for doing such a thing.”

Anyway, no one ever really brought up the idea or asked to carve pumpkins until this year. One of my favorite comments of the evening was when Jim teased Mittu, saying, “All these years of having boys, I never had to carve pumpkins, but I get one girl….”

Here are a few pictures from the evening:

Getting started:

Jason scooping out pumpkin goo:

Jason pretending to eat pumpkin goo:

Yuck! I had heard pumpkin innards were pretty gross, and I can confirm the truth of it. I never knew how bad they smelled, though. It smelled like…someone was having digestive discomforts of various sorts. Jason wondered where anyone ever got the idea of making pies out of these. I said probably someone who was hungry and didn’t want to eat them as is and tried to figure out a way to make them palatable by adding lots of sugar and spices.

I’ve heard roasted pumpkin seeds are good and should have tried that since we had them there, but I just wasn’t inspired to. I’m not much of a seed eater in general.

The inside of a pumpkin before scraping:

The inside of a pumpkin after scraping:

They had bought a little kit that had various carving tools, scarpers, and some patterns.

Jim got his pattern from that: Jason and Mittu got theirs online.

Jim’s pumpkin:

Jason’s pumpkin without the light…

…And with the light:

Mittu’s pumpkin:

Recognize them? 🙂

Mittu also painted one for Grandma:

Final products on the porch:

Jesse didn’t do one — he was off playing computer games. I hadn’t planned to do one, but near the end I was kind of wishing I had. I have a few small ones I am trying to decide whether to paint or just to enjoy as they are. I don’t know if we’ll make this an annual event, but it was a fun evening.

We ended up not getting any trick-or-treaters. I knew we wouldn’t get many — there are only a few children on our street. But it was kind of disappointing not to get any. I missed seeing the little kids dressed up and excited. But I am glad to get away from the Halloween in our old house, where people brought kids in from I don’t know where, and you could hardly inch your car through the streets because there were so many people, and you could run through a fortune in candy in a very short time. That was ridiculous. But it would have been nice to have a few come by. I did see one little Snow White in the grocery store and one child in a purple cape and hat (queen, maybe?) at Grandma’s assisted living place. Jason and Mittu stopped by the mall to see some of the kids dressed up there and then came over. It was a fun evening, but I’ll know not to buy candy next year, or at least a lot less!

Scenes from Grandma’s Birthday and July 4th

Posted on July 5, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Grandma’s birthday was Saturday:

She called the balloon “My buddy.” 🙂

We spent the 4th at Jason and Mittu’s playing tennis and eating, then saw some fireworks in a nearby town.

I even took a few swings — and landed a couple of them over the net!

A very busy but very enjoyable long weekend!

The Week In Words: Fourth of July Edition

Posted on July 4, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Welcome to The Week In Words, where we share quotes from the last week’s reading. If something you read this past week inspired you, caused you to laugh, cry, think, dream, or just resonated with you in some way, please share it with us, attributing it to its source, which can be a book, newspaper, blog, Facebook — anything that you read. More information is here.

I wasn’t sure if anyone would be here for the Week In Words or not today, but I figured I’d go ahead and have it for whoever might be here.

I’ve posted this before, but it is one of my favorite Independence Day quotes:

From John Adams’ famous letter of July 3, 1776, in which he wrote to his wife Abigail what his thoughts were about celebrating the Independence Day, with his original spellings:

The Second Day of July 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.

You will think me transported with Enthusiasm but I am not. I am well aware of the Toil and Blood and Treasure, that it will cost Us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that the End is more than worth all the Means. And that Posterity will tryumph in that Days Transaction, even altho We should rue it, which I trust in God We shall not.

Enjoy your “Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations” today!

Also, a stanza from “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee” stood out to me yesterday as we sang it at church:

Our fathers’ God, to Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing;
Long may our land be bright
With freedom’s holy light;
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God, our King.

If you’ve read anything that particularly spoke to you that you’d like to share, please either list it in the comments below or write a post on your blog and then put the link to that post (not your general blog link) in Mr. Linky below. I do ask that only family-friendly quotes be included.

I hope you’ll visit some of the other participants as well and glean some great thoughts to ponder. And don’t forget to leave a comment here, even if you don’t have any quotes to share!

Honoring the Fathers In My Life

Posted on June 19, 2011 by Barbara Harper

My father passed away several years ago, but I want to honor his memory. He did not come to know the Lord until 6 years before he died, and though he had a lot of problems, I honor the position the Lord gave him as my father. He did love me in his own way and tried to do right as he knew it. One of the major things he taught me was to have respect for those in authority.

I want to honor my step-father. I honestly had problems with the idea of a step-father having any say in my activities when I was 15. I have written here and there that after I became a Christian, God had to teach me that honoring and obeying my parents was a matter of obedience to Him regardless of whether they were Christians or were doing what I thought best. After that I wondered how a step-father fit into the picture. Then one day I realized that Jesus had a step-father — Joseph. The Bible says Jesus was subject to both Mary and Joseph, even when they didn’t understand him (Luke 2:50-51). Over the years I have come to greatly respect my step-father as a steady, dependable man who cares for his family, is an extremely hard worker, and would do anything in the world to help those he cares about.

I wrote earlier about my “spiritual mom,” Mrs. C, and the godly influence she was in my life. Mr. C was a shining example of a Christian father to me, and I am so glad the Lord brought them into my life.

I honor my husband as a caring, thoughtful, sweet, fun, loving companion and father to our boys.

And I honor my heavenly Father who gave me life, loves me dearly, brought me to a saving belief in Christ, speaks to me through His Word, shows me His love and care in a hundreds of ways every day.

Here are a few other Father’s Day posts from the archives:

Dad’s Famous Sayings

Favorite Father’s Day poems here and here

Jokes for Father’s Day

Favorite quotes about fathers

Fathers and sons, good and bad

Paul Harvey on Fathers

A couple of memes about dads

From Rob at ivman, a job decription for dads that is both funny and poignant.

Flag Day

Posted on June 14, 2011 by Barbara Harper

June 14 is Flag Day. I’ve been sad to see a regard for this symbol of our country declining over the years. Maybe we’re too far removed from the days of waiting, hoping, praying through the night to see if “the flag was still there.” I think we take our freedoms too much for granted. No, we don’t “worship” the flag, but we honor it and what it symbolizes and those who fought for it so we might be free.

I posted this once before but it is a good reminder:

I Am Old Glory

I Am Old Glory: For more than ten score years I have been the banner of hope and freedom for generation after generation of Americans.

Born amid the first flames of America’s fight for freedom, I am the symbol of a country that has grown from a little group of thirteen colonies to a united nation of fifty sovereign states.

Planted firmly on the high pinnacle of American Faith my gently fluttering folds have proved an inspiration to untold millions.

Men have followed me into battle with unwavering courage.

They have looked upon me as a symbol of national unity.

They have prayed that they and their fellow citizens might continue to enjoy the life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, which have been granted to every American as the heritage of free men.

So long as men love liberty more than life itself; so long as they treasure the priceless privileges bought with the blood of our forefathers; so long as the principles of truth, justice and charity for all remain deeply rooted in human hearts, I shall continue to be the enduring banner of the United States of America.

Originally written by Master Sergeant Percy Webb, USMC.

Friday’s Fave Five

Posted on May 13, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Welcome to Friday’s Fave Five, hosted by Susanne at Living to Tell the Story, in which we can share five of our favorite things from the last week. This has been a wonderful exercise in looking for and appreciating the good things God blesses us with. Click on the button to learn more, then go to Susanne’s to read others’ faves and link up your own.

I had a wonderful Mother’s Day. I always appreciate my family’s efforts in making it a special day. As I’ve mentioned before, it’s been nice to be able to Skype Jeremy so he is included in these special days. Here are a few highlights of the day:

1. Mother’s Day dinner. Or feast, I should say. I love that the family all pitches in together to make dinner on Mother’s Day and then to clean up afterward. Jim grilled his wonderful burgers and sausages, Jesse shucked corn on the cob, we had potato salad and baked beans, and Mittu made:

2. Mother’s Day Cake.

It was a chocolate fudge cake with peanut butter icing and fudge sauce drizzled over the top with bits of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups on top.

It was very good! It was also very sweet and rich! We could only eat small pieces of it at a time. But it was good!

3. New books! I’ve finished one already and will review it next week.

4. Hanging plants. We used to hang plants by our patio of our old house, and I’d been lamenting (inwardly — I don’t think I had said anything out loud) about having no place to put any here. But my husband put hooks up outside these windows and I saw the plants there when I opened the blinds on Sunday.

5. An encouraging Mother’ Day message. Mother’s Day sermons can be inspiring, but sometimes the ideal Mother is presented in such a way that the bar is raised so high that moms often feel discouraged. But our pastor gave a message from Romans 5:5b: “the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” Believing mothers can love as they ought to because God has shed His love abroad in us. It reminded me of II Peter 1:3-4: “According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” I can remember being astounded when that verse first dawned on me.

Hope you have a great weekend! Ours will be busy — Jesse has a Junior-Senior banquet tonight, our church has a Mother-Daughter luncheon tomorrow, and we have out-of-town company coming on Sunday. I’d better get busy!

Thankful for the Moms in my life

Posted on May 8, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I am thankful for my mom and the love and care she showed for me all her life, for her generosity, for long phone calls and laughter and the ability to talk about almost everything. I miss her sorely but hope to see her in heaven some day.

I am thankful for my husband’s mother, for her loving and thoughtful raising of her son into the fine man I married, for her acceptance of me into her family, for her cheerfulness industriousness, love of books, and generally happy demeanor.

I am thankful for my mother’s mother, who died when I was about four: I have very little memory of her, but I’m told that when I asked questions about her medical equipment, my mother tried to “hush” me, but my grandmother patiently and matter-of-factly explained it to me.

I am thankful for my father’s mother, who took me on road trips and had me over to spend the night often. I have fond memories of staying up late reading in the two different beds in her bedroom.

I am happy for Mrs. C., who took me under her wing during my college and early adult years and showed me an wonderful example of a warm, kind, loving, Christian wife, mother, and homemaker and who still keeps in touch with me all these years later and sends me subscriptions of Victoria magazine.

I am thankful for “Aunt Sylvia,” my mom’s best friend, who never married or had children of her own but always brought us Christmas presents and was always kind to us.

I am thankful for Aunt Bobbye, my mother’s sister, though she washed my mouth out with soap once when I said something, not realizing it was a bad word. 🙂 I am thankful for her zany sense of humor and for her love and care and continued interest throughout my life.

I am thankful for my dear friend, Valorie, and the many walks and talks and excursions to breakfast at restaurants that let kids eat free when our kids were small, but I especially appreciate her loving attitude and interest in others.

I am thankful for Mrs. M. and the wise advice she gave me once while working on a bulletin board together about not dreading the teen years of my children and not expecting them to be rebellious.

I am thankful for my dear friend Carol and her warmth and genuine interest in others, for working together in various aspects at church and school and long talks and lunches.

I am thankful for godly pastor’s wives I’ve had and their sweet spirit and godly counsel.

I am thankful for so many women who “mothered” me in some way or who were examples to me and made me a better mother.

Happy Mother’s Day to you all!

Friday’s Fave Five

Posted on April 29, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I was just thinking that since we skipped FFF last week for Good Friday, I’d have two weeks of faves to choose from — but I can’t remember the week before last! Isn’t that sad?

But on to this week’s faves:

1. Easter. Though in a sense we remember Christ’s death and resurrection every week, there is just something special about Easter morning church services. Our church here just has one longer service on Easter morning with no evening service. The sermon, special music, and communion service all worked together to fill my heart with joy and worship and appreciation anew for what Jesus did for us.

And then Easter dinner is another fave part of the day. A local grocery store sells a brown sugar-glazed spiral-sliced ham that we like every bit as much as the more expensive name brands. Plus we had cheesy potatoes and I think a salad, and Chocolate Dream Pie for dessert. I had been looking for an old recipe I had for French Silk Pie that I hadn’t used in a long time, but was dismayed to see it contained raw eggs, as did every online recipe I could find of it. I just couldn’t make myself do that, but while looking around I saw a recipe in my files for Dream Pie. I didn’t know they even still made those Dream Whip packets, but they do. My husband said he liked the pie better than the frozen kind I sometimes buy. Oh, and we had Resurrection Rolls with Easter breakfast.

My husband doesn’t like not having an evening service, especially on holidays when it seems we should be doing more and not less to commemorate them, but I have to say I loved taking a nap without setting the alarm clock and having a leisurely evening.

I could have made my whole FFF about Easter. But here are a few others faves, and I’ll try to keep them shorter:

2. An annual physical is NOT a favorite, but getting it over with is. I had been thinking about putting off til summer but finally decided to just get it done.

3. Comments. A lot of blog friends were taking blog breaks last week, and even those who were around were understandably busy getting ready for the holiday. But going about four days with no comments at all was really lonely. It was good to have some people come back by this week.

4. Red Lobster. We don’t all go out to eat often due to the expense, but one day it was just three of us at home and Jim had a gift card for Red Lobster, so we went. We hadn’t been there in months, and it was really good!

5. Irises and azaleas. In the continuing unfolding of spring, these have been the newest contributors around town. I’m used to seeing azaleas, but I’m not used to seeing so many homes with irises in their yards. So pretty!

And I am abundantly thankful for safety during the awful weather this week. I forgot to mention in my post about tornadoes and thunderstorms that Jason and Mittu were driving through severe storms in Arkansas on their way back to TN from a visit in OK earlier in the week. When you see footage of the storms and the massive destruction, you realize there is really no defense against that kind of thing. My heart goes out to those affected by the storms this week.

Happy Resurrection Day!

Posted on April 24, 2011 by Barbara Harper

Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. John 11:25.

The strife is o’er, the battle done;
The victory of life is won;
The song of triumph has begun:
Alleluia!

The powers of death have done their worst;
But Christ their legions hath dispersed;
Let shouts of holy joy outburst:
Alleluia!

The three sad days are quickly sped;
He rises glorious from the dead;
All glory to our risen Head!
Alleluia!

He closed the yawning gates of hell;
The bars from heaven’s high portals fell;
Let hymns of praise His triumphs tell!
Alleluia!

Lord, by the stripes which wounded Thee,
From death’s dread sting Thy servants free,
That we may live, and sing to Thee:
Alleluia!

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

~ Author Unknown

May you have a wonderful joyous, blessed Easter remembering the resurrection of our Lord and Savior!

That Day at Calvary

Posted on April 22, 2011 by Barbara Harper

I stood one day at Calvary,
Where Jesus bled and died.
I never knew He loved me so;
For me He was crucified.
And as I stood there in my sin,
His love reached down to me;
And, oh, the shame that filled my soul,
That day at Calvary.

I knelt one day at Calvary,
My eyes were filled with tears,
To think such love I had refused
Throughout these wasted years;
And as I knelt I heard Him say,
“I did it all for thee”;
And, oh, the love that filled my soul,
That day at Calvary.

I prayed one day at Calvary,
“I’m Thine forevermore;
Forgive me, Lord, for all my sin,
My lost estate restore,”
And as I prayed, to me He gave
Salvation full and free;
And, oh, the peace that filled my soul
That day at Calvary.

~ Walt Huntley

(You can hear a snippet of this by going to this site and clicking on “That Day at Calvary.” I tried to find it on Youtube but only found a different song by the same name that was jazzier and didn’t seem to fit the words.)