Tuesday, March 02, 2010

welcome, femina readers!



come on in! it's raining, but not in here. are you hungry? we'll whip something up in a jiffy. are you tired? put your feet up in our best leather chair. tell us your tale. we're good listeners.

and while you spin and weave, let me pour you something hot. a pot of tea? coming right up. i highly recommend the apricot. coffee? we'll pour you the best. joe will tell you what ethiopian farm it came from, how many minutes it was roasted, and whether to expect notes of blueberry or chocolate.

Monday, February 22, 2010

things are looking up



yes, joe had giardia for almost four months before we found out. i know, looks like pure irresponsibility. but it's because his symptoms would improve a bit and we would be hopeful. and it's because we lean toward natural medicine, and usually we can cure many things. but at last he regressed just too far, and we thought it best to consult the doc. he didn't really have one, and that was part of why i think we held off so long. not having a good doc you love kinda makes you not want to go (any of you feel that way besides me?). but anyhoo, after bloodwork and stool and urine samples, all was ruled out except a blaring case of giardia. where in the world did he get that?, we asked ourselves. we got questions like, "have you gone hiking in the amazon recently?" and so forth. um, nope. but, we truly rejoice in the Lord, who gave us a diagnosis and has healed joe! his energy has returned and he's eating like a champ again, even back on some yummy glutenous things like BREAD (which he's loving and i'm totally jealous of). i'm hoping to see our scale report the prodigal return of some of his missing 30 pounds.

my health seems to be directly tied to how much i stress over joe. :) during these four months, my candida has returned in all it's unwelcome glory (as well as a few pounds). this is a bummer indeed, but i know what i need to do to get rid of it. it just means doing it. it means a diet of veggies and protein. i feel so, so well when i am on it, but it's not fun when things like rice and potatoes and crackers and peanut butter and bananas and chocolate chip cookies and whipped cream start popping up in my imagination...or appearing on dining tables. oh well. the truth of "running the race with endurance" in this life of spiritual warfare is nicely microcosmed here.

but, things are looking up. i don't want to say that my happiness is dependent on my circumstances (though i we as adam's progeny are severely prone to it, but thanks be to God!), but what IS dependent on my circumstances is my stress level. :) a chronically sick husband did not help. but right now, though i sit here with a head cold and ear infection, my spirits are lifted. stress has been greatly dissipated. my husband (having recovered so beautifully) has loaded the dishwasher, started the laundry, made the bed, swept the house, cleaned the yard, scrubbed the stovetop, and lovingly attended to my every passing fancy (including tincturing drops into my ears). and it's only 10:30 am. :) not only that, all my shades are open and the sun is pouring in. and to top it off (and this is what REALLY put me over the happiness edge), my lemon tree has lemons on it! little teeny baby ones. this lemon tree was, i thought, a lemon. but, it can't fool me anymore - it's fruit is showing. i am happy. :)

as i couldn't drag myself to church yesterday, i did some deep study in the Word (on, you'll never guess...fear. ha!) and what a deeply-needed feeding it was. afterward, i listened to a sermon by our former pastor, and this, let me tell you was SO encouraging. he was proclaiming that, the God who numbers the stars and gives the galaxies pet names is the same one Who leads you like a tender shepherd, gives you good gifts like a loving father, and knows every hair on your head. oh, not to mention that He also gave Himself to keep you. so, for those who, like me, struggle with remembering God's intentions of love and goodness toward you even in His sovereign ability to give you hard providences, listen to it. it's found here. it's called "Theology and Doxology".

Friday, January 01, 2010

2009: the highlights

january: joe got macdaddy

february: kat visited (last one to visit our old apt)

valentines day


march: our first house!


april: hofmans and family reunion TX!


may: joe's bday

june: peterson summer train ride

house warming!

july: our first garden

summer feast

the atwoods visit

august: our 6th anniversary

september: Coffee Cat farmer's market debut

we discover figs and brussel sprouts (put together!)

october: reformation feast

joe gets in the paper

november: first thanksgiving at our house

december: last shot of the year
what a year!! and what an amazing one. Lord, thank you.

incidentally, i just realized that my first post of 2010 was my 300th. fun!

Thursday, December 31, 2009

on happy new year and boxes of metal

it's 12:05 am, and joe's been alseep since 9pm. i've made my bed on the couch. year 2010 for us begins with the stomach flu: seperate sleeping quarters, two highly disinfected toilets, and a pot of chicken broth. it's been quite a sicky holiday for us this year (3 stomach virae for joe and a mean bronchial thing for me), but we have seen the Lord's lovingkindness to us throughout, and we rely on His healing hand on us as we enter the new year.

between washing and re-washing bedsheets and administering ice chips, we have managed to celebrate the Lord's advent and birth in great joy. we are so grateful for the majestic, brilliant, paradoxical, weighty story that Christ has written for us and this world - He has created, loved, and saved us. we are His, only. thank you, Lord Christ. we love you.

tonight, as i was tending to my weary husband, i was all of a sudden incredibly grateful for our home - namely, the machines in it. i had to do several loads of laundry tonight. a year ago, i was trudging up a hill through the rain to launder our clothes in a set of metal boxes that weren't mine. this evening, i stepped into my hallway to be greeted by two bright merry maids winking at me. they are efficient, indeed. they're quiet. they're big. but, the best part of all, they sing. it's a seriously well-written melodic line too! upon finishing their work, it comes dancing down the hallway, soudning all chipper that it just did your laundry for you. i wish i had that attitude whenever i wash stuff. joe and i've subconsciously committed the jingle to memory already...we found ourselves whistling it polyphonically in the car the other night.

the other machine i am thankful for is my dishwasher. i had so many dirty dishes tonight, many of them nasty. and there i was, stuffing nastiness into a box and closing the door. and miraculously, when i open the door again, i will have loveliness.

and then i stuffed a pot into the oven, a panini onto the grill, and a DVD into a blu-ray player - all metal boxes doing crazy amazing stuff. i mean, what in the world?? after a few trialsome weeks for the Carlson household, i was overcome. i leant, in tears, over our dinner (well, broth for joe) and thanked our gracious Father for these new, eager machines. sometimes, i have felt overhelmed with the hedonism of our culture, and i worry that our home is an extention of it. but tonight, i was grateful. and then i remembered that's why the Lord delights to give - because we delight in Him.

on that thought, happy new year, everyone!

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

the joy of the Lord is our strength: a Merry Christmas




in our new house for Christmas, with a prime rib dinner from our awesome oven.



i surprised mom with framing her baby pics, and joe suprised me with grandma.

argileness

spiffy boys

my nephews!

Christmas at mom and dad's - thank you for such a lovely time!

rare family pic!

daisy and dad. this looks like something that will become a tradition. dog and red suspenders.


Christmas night (joe's fighting a persistent stomach flu here and doesn't realize it, poor guy)



Wednesday, December 23, 2009

getting ready


(that's my toothbrush, if anyone wonders)

Thursday, December 17, 2009

platoon