Sarah Joy Albrecht

If you ask Leah what she wants to be when she grows up, she’ll still tell you she wants to be an assassin.

Recently, on the xBox360, Tom and the boys have been playing Assassin’s Creed II.In it, Ezio, the assassin, has a poisoned blade he uses to poke targets. They die moments later, after he is long gone.

While I was making Elise Bauer’s Pork Mango Picadillo this evening, Leah snuck up on me and pricked me with her homemade poisoned blade, fashioned by Aiden out of masking tape and a chopstick. “Tsss!” she hissed, and then ran into the other room announcing, “Hey guys, I poisoned mom and she will be dying soon!”

To which, I screamed, grasping at my throat and falling to the floor, “HEY! Who is going to cook for you… aaaaaaaaaahhh!!! I’m dying!!!!!”

Apparently the promise of not killing me only applied to being mauled to death by tigers.

If it wasn’t for her bringing me back to life with her kisses, I’d still be dead and you wouldn’t be reading this. (Nope. Still dead. See? I can only open one eye!)

As she sat at my table eating her scrumptious dinner, poison blade still attached, she declared, “”Mom, the aliens in Mars Attacks said (alien voice and all) “‘We come in peace, we come in peace.’ But, they KILLED everyone so they’re LIARS!”

She’ll be different, of course.

She will only tell the truth as she kills people.

“I am Assassin’s Creed II,” Leah said, non-nonchalantly pointing to her contraption with her fork, as if I hadn’t noticed or remembered what it felt like to be poisoned.

“Even assassins need to eat their dinner,” I said as seriously as possible, hoping she didn’t notice me snickering into my armpit! I didn’t have to remind her twice, though. It was gone.

She wanted seconds.

So, I’ve eaten two plates of Pork Mango Picadillo… um… and a few bites right from the pot. Make this and you may just have some interesting dinner conversation, like we did. Then, stop over to Simply Recipes and tell Elise how amazing she is! You can also follow her (personal tweets) on Twitter @simplyrecipes and again at @recipeupdates (recipe feed).

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The Black Obi by Okada Saburosuke

Oh the rush of unexpectedly being smitten by beauty!

I had bought some new drinking glasses at the Daiso 100 ¥ Shop. Daiso provides scraps of newspaper, on worktables placed at the end of the cash register aisles, so that breakables can be wrapped for safe transport.

I picked up a handful of scraps and began to cover each glass and tuck them into my shopping bag.

The sad, frustrating truth is that I cannot read Japanese. The many vertical characters on the newspapers’ pages blurred together into mysterious meaninglessness.

When I glanced down at the stack of paper to grab a fresh sheet, I found this lovely young woman staring up at me! There were few photos printed on the paper scraps that day, and so the contrast – this beauty standing out amongst the rows of gibberish – was especially striking. The painting, in art’s universal language, was something I could understand. I tucked the scrap into my purse for safe keeping.

This morning, I had brunch with my friends Sonia and Miyo and, as I went to retrieve a pen, I felt the saved newspaper in my purse and excitedly showed Miyo. She translated it for me.

I learned that the 1915 painting is called “The Black Obi” and it was painted by Okada Saburosuke. His style was heavily influenced by Kuroda Seiki, whose real name was Kuroda Kiyoteru. Seiki went to Paris as a young man, where he lived in an artist colony that included several Americans. He even studied English. Such things are difficult to comprehend, as I tend to forget that Japanese were in the US prior to World War II.

(Once before, this very thought really got to me after watching Letters from Iwo Jima, where Ken Watanabe’s character, General Kuribayashi, speaks of his life in California before the war and how he socialized with actors, and even received silver pistol as a gift, but then returned home when the war broke out to fight for Japan.)

One of the thing I love about The Black Obi is that it is the first time I’ve ever seen a Japanese woman in the context of an Impressionistic painting. It is exquisitely surreal as if she was cut from elsewhere and affixed to a Monet or a Renoir.

Such talent!

Seeing this painting made me wonder — Would this style of art would have continued in Japan if history’s course had been different?

More on Japanese art history can be found here.

I have a lot on my mind at the moment and not enough time to write down my thoughts!

Here are some random tidbits :

As of the last day of May, 2010, I am no longer in my 20s.

This week, I decided to color my hair not just for the sake of something new and wild (like pink highlights) but to color gray! I used an awesome organic haircolor called Organic Color Systems which I found through my friend Robyn at Shear Miracles.

One of my conversations with fellow blogger Megan Dunham at HalfPintHouse was quoted at World Magazine online!

Our time in Japan is just about up! I will miss the karate dojo where my children and I have been practicing Shotokan karate, the lush green plant life, our close proximity to the sea, and the peaceful lifestyle of not having to lock our doors. Details forthcoming as they solidify.

Currently, I am…

-Working on my full accreditation through the Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth… over 100 essay questions!

-Eagerly awaiting the arrival of our Veritas Press homeschooling curriculum for the 2010-2011 school year! Micah is officially starting school this year, although we’ve been working on his reading and math skills these past two years ;)

-Preparing for our upcoming month-long home leave to the US, just a few weeks away!

-Researching housing made out of storage containers (We are considering building our own house when we move back to the US!)

Check out these links on storage container housing:

The Cordell House – Numen Development (Model we like best so far!)

Shipping Container Housing Guide

Qwik House

Intermodal Steel Building Units and Container Homes

ContainerHome.Info

ZeroHouse.net

What do you think? Could you live in a house built of shipping containers? Why does or doesn’t it appeal to you? What features would you want included in your home?

… and now, I will fall into my bed and hopefully sleep through the night without anyone tearfully sleep-walking into my room or mistaking my stack of cloth grocery bags in the foyer for a potty!

Pregnant!!! by DDanzig via Flickr

This past week, I commented on What I Want, a post at There Is No Wealth But Life about expectations and parenting. The post began, “When I say that I do not want to be a stay at home mother, it is because I want something else…” and it drew me in.

At the end of her post, Rae (Twitter @nowealthbutlife ) asked, “What do you want? If you are already a parent, how has reality changed your plans and dreams?”

Rae asked if she may use the comment as a guest post.

I said yes.

An excerpt:

I found out I was pregnant in the midst of big deadlines at work at the bank. I didn’t even tell my husband I had bought the test. Why should I? It would be negative anyway.

I took it after work, still wearing my snappy navy dress suit and classic leather heels.

My expensive woolen executive armor didn’t shield me from the truth in the urine.

You can find the rest of the guest post as well as Rae’s thought-provoking blog here.

How would you have answered Rae’s question?

Asahi’s Green Cola is made without artificial coloring or flavoring…. but does contain high fructose corn syrup.

What does it taste like? Watch the review at http://www.youtube.com/user/yuckypeas#p/u/0/qTYEr9_xjWo Please subscribe to my YouTube channel to be the first to see my videos :)

Click HERE to View on YouTube …. and subscribe to my channel, YuckyPeas!

Last-of-the-Batter Turned Crêpe Monster!

This weekend, we had a lovely brunch together. Everyone helped to make Banana Nutella Crêpes. While we worked, in true homeschooler fashion, we talked about Henry Ford, assembly lines and efficiency. We also passed around the Cthulhu Crêpe Monster – the result of the last slosh of batter in the pan that seemed to take on a personality of its own.

(Banana Nutella Crêpes served with a delicious Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier make for a well-balanced breakfast!)

Favorite Classic Crêpe Batter Recipe

1 C milk
4 eggs
1 C flour
1/2 TSP salt
1 1/2 TB melted butter

Mix until smooth.
Let rest for 30 minutes (this is the key!) before use.

Dessert Crêpe Batter: Prepare Classic Crêpe Batter and add 2 TB sugar and 2 TB liqueur.

Chocolate Crêpe Batter: Prepare Dessert Crêpe Batter with flour reduced to 3/4 C and add 3TB cocoa powder.

Thomas Slices Bananas

Micah Places Bananas on a Thin Layer of Nutella

Tabitha's on Nutella duty

The Crêpe Tasters

Aiden is Attacked by the Crêpe Monster

The Bitter End by ·Insomnia· (via Flickr)

Next time you think what you’re doing isn’t a that big of a deal, consider that Adam and Eve’s sin was eating fruit.

It hit me pretty hard today that, what I thought was being gracious by overlooking small offenses, was seriously enabling sinful behavior in our home. In fact, because I’ve let the little things slide, I now have quite a mess on my hands.

It’s easy to rationalize that some sins are just little boo–boos, but the reality is that sneaking video games when you’ve been told not to play them during school time is just as damning in God’s eyes as murdering someone. The earthly consequences are drastically different, but the eternal consequences are morbidly the same. My habit of overlooking has been misleading my children to think otherwise.

The more I thought about it, I realized that the sin of all sins, the one that cursed us humans, was, by our standards, seemingly benign and easily rationalized. God didn’t mandate, “Whatever you do, don’t build a spaceship!” Instead, He made a rule that was easy to break. Adam and Eve were told not to eat fruit! (Genesis 2:15-17)

Therefore, it is pretty much impossible for us to say, “It’s not fair! My my sin wasn’t as bad as Adam’s and Eve’s!” By the smallest of sins being the worst of sins, no one can ever say that they are without sin. (Romans 5:12-20 ; 1 John 1:5-10)

I am humbled, thankful, and, regarding my tiny little parenting boo–boo, stand quite corrected.

Danger: Raven by Giant Ginkgo (via Flickr)

Mommy-blogosphere is a twitter today with the release of Miley Cyrus’ new music video, “Can’t Be Tamed”.

In it, Cyrus looks like a raven who forgot to get dressed for the day. (Do ravens even wear pants?) She sings about her intentions while dancing on the poles of her birdcage.

Many parents have daughters who have grown up with Cyrus’ alter-ego, Hannah Montana. Perplexed over how to explain this change to their daughters, they are afraid they may have to tell them that they are no longer permitted to listen to their beloved singer because she is not who she used to be.

In the words of Soraya Roberts of the NYDailyNews,

“Writhing in a large nest within a giant birdcage, the 17-year-old pop star, wearing S&M-style gear, looks provocatively at the camera complaining that she feels like a specimen.

She proceeds to engage in some raunchy pole dancing, her plunging body-hugging black bodice, complete with expansive bird wings (the curator in the video says she is a member of the extinct species Avian Cyrus), leaving little to the imagination.”

The article is accompanied by this poll:

“Do you think Miley Cyrus’ new video is too saucy for a 17-year-old?

Yes, where are her parents?!
No, she’s almost an adult.
Who’s Hannah Montana?

The emphasized concern, of course, is that feathered Cyrus is not legally an adult.

As a millionaire who makes her own decisions about most of her life, however, she is essentially living as an adult, proving that Americans still hold age as a standard for maturity vs. self-reliance or life experience.

It is an especially interesting double standard, given that many Americans are at peace with sending 18 year old men off to war. Teens shooting “bad guys” in the head is okay, but it is shocking when Cyrus wears a black corset that provides more coverage than most women wear at the beach.

Frankly, Cyrus’ video portrays exactly the kind of behavior I’d expect from a woman struggling to handle the massive amount of attention from strange men in her life. She is trying express her own sexuality, but is attempting (poorly) to tell them they can’t touch her unless it is on her terms.

It’s easy to do our part by clicking on,”Where are her parents?” to vote our outrage. How often, though, with our own children do we discuss sex? This video is just one more example of why we must discuss it with our daughters, while they are still young. Should we allow just any man to touch us? How does Cyrus’ message mesh with her actions? Are her words consistent with her suggestive behavior? Why do we wear modest swimsuits, anyway?

When we think that people under 21 (yes, even Christians) do not have sexual desires, we kid ourselves. Realistically, it is parents who are embarrassed to talk to anyone younger than 21 about sex. Kids talk about sex all the time, at the level that they understand. Even young children know something’s going on between their parents, which is why they get flustered when their parents are kissing or holding hands in public. They have a feeling that it is somehow connected to things private.

The truth is, “Should a 17 year old express sexual feelings?” is the wrong question to be asking. Instead, we need to broaden our perspective and ask, “What should people, including adults and teens, do with sexual feelings?”

For starters, sex is a good thing; a gift from God.

However, it is for people who are married.

Instead of pretending sexuality and birdcages don’t exist, parents who have seen Cyrus’ new video have an opportunity to talk to their children about it in the context of thinking critically about everything they do.

From the food we eat to the entertainment we buy, we need to constantly be challenging ourselves and our children to check our hearts and actions against the true standard, God’s Holy Word.

In this YouTube clip, I discuss both the positive and negative aspects of the anti-supermom trend and what it means for women. While the focus in recent years has been on becoming a domestic diva, some moms are proudly headed in the opposite direction. Here, I offer some analysis as well as a few thoughts to help women find their identity and maintain their voice in the crowd.

Love Tattoo by Denise Wells (via Flickr)

It amazes me how people get miffed about religious passion yet will do anything for love.

If you can’t shut up about how much you love your significant other, imagine what it’s like trying to shut up about someone who loved you so much that they gave their life for yours?!

Why are Christians so passionate? (Or, negatively stated, “zealous” or “pushy” ?)

Because they are motivated by and responding to Christ’s love:

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” – John 3:16

“By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.” – 1 John 4:9

“By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.” Psalm 48:9

“Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.” Psalm 136

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5

“But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.” – Ephesians 2:4

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” – Romans 8:35-39

“Let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” – 1 John 4

“To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.” Revelation 1:5-7

“But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” – Titus 3:3-5

John Audubon - Common Blue Bird (sic)

This is how I tweet links on Twitter :

I chose this format for tweeting links because it conveys the necessary information in a clean, minimalistic way.

Because Twitter highlights links in blue, the eyes skip the link and focus on the title.

Follow me — and let me know if you’d like for me to follow you back!