On Temptation: The First Week of Lent

Duccio, "The Temptation on the Mount"

"The tempter is clever: he does not direct us immediately toward evil but toward a false good, making us believe that power and things that satiate primary needs are what is most real. In this manner God becomes secondary; he is reduced to a means, he becomes unreal, he no longer counts, he disappears. In the final analysis, faith is what is at stake in temptations because God is at stake. In the decisive moments of life and, in fact, in every moment of life, we are faced with a choice: do we want to follow the “I” or God? Do we want to follow individual interest or rather the true Good, that which is really good?"

~Pope Benedict XVI, On the First Sunday of Lent, February 17th, 2013

Grocery Bag

Happy President's Day!  Here is our dinner plan for the week.  

Day One

Sweet potato tortilla pie by Didi Emmons

with salsas, cilantro spinach salad and oranges

A wonderful gluten-free recipe well-suited for dinner with guests

Photo by Happily Ever Johnson

Day Two

Parmesan chicken tenders from Everyday Food Magazine

with roasted cauliflower and brown rice pilaf

Photo and recipe from MarthaStewart.com

Day Three

Call Night Mac'roni & Cheese 

with spinach salad and homemade bread sticks

A cozy weeknight staple

Day Four

Corn chowder from Food & Wine Magazine

with homemade rolls and apple slices

Photo and recipe from Food and Wine

Day Five

Bourbon tofu from Food.com

with basmati rice and steamed green peas

This is originally a chicken recipe that works wonderfully with tofu for a meatless main dish.

Photo and recipe from Food.com

Happy Valentine's Day!

In high school and college, Valentine's Day was my favorite holiday.  I loved sweetheart candy, giving and receiving cards from others, and most of all, the color pink.

Valentine's Day has long since been replaced as my favorite holiday, but I can still relate to my kids' excitement and anticipation for today.  Our day will call for sprinkles on cereal for breakfast, special heart-shaped sandwiches for lunch, and heart-shaped brownies and whipped cream for dessert after dinner.   We have been busy for the past week, making valentines for friends and classmates and valentine boxes to collect cards during school parties.

G-Bear's valentine box

E-Bear's valentine box

A friend once asked me why I like Valentine's day so much, and my response was, "because it is a day for handing out tokens of love, which is appropriate, because love isn't love until it's given away."  You can spare me the sensationalized, sexualized hype of consumerist America over Valentine's day.  But, I appreciate the chance today affords me to teach my kids that sharing little acts of charity like handmade cards and thoughtful notes can truly make others feel special.

Yes, we made our valentines this year.  This is not because I have any artistic talent.   I simply calculated how much time it would take to get three kids in and out of Target on the weekend and compared that with the supplies I already had in our art cabinet.  The art cabinet won.  I was so proud of how diligently both G-Bear and E-Bear worked on their valentines.  G-Bear made cards with mini-muffin wrapper flowers.  The "flowers" pull off to reveal hidden cinnamon candies!  So fun.

G-Bear's valentines this year

E-Bear made lollypop flowers with our mini-muffin wrappers and wrote his name on each green "leaf" label.  Way to go, buddy!

E-Bear's valentines this year

The time we spent making valentines together will tie as my favorite part of today.  My other favorite memory will be how T called E-Bear on my phone on his way home from work to ask him for his help.  T honked the horn when he arrived home, and the boys ran out to help him as he brought in surprises.  T brought a big bouquet of red roses for me (always special, because I never got red roses from him until we got engaged), and E-Bear and Buddy Bear presented G-Bear with a big mixed bouquet.   G-Bear loved every minute of helping me arrange her flowers in a vase.  Talk about making two girls feel loved.

Happy Valentine's Day from all of us in Happily Ever Johnson Land.

Lent Preparations 2013

"Yet even now," declares the Lord,

"Return to me with all your heart, 

with fasting and weeping and morning;

and rend your hearts and not your garments."

Now return to the Lord your God,

for He is gracious and compassionate,

slow to anger and abounding in loving kindness

and relenting of evil.

~Joel 2:12-13

Lent has arrived.  For the past week or so, I have been working on a plan to help us embrace this Lenten season as a family.  Like Advent, Lent offers us a special opportunity to focus as a community on our relationship with God and our love for our neighbor.   I have found that within our own family, Lent has become a very special and meaningful season, one to which I (almost) look forward. :)

Our Lent preparations from 2011 and 2012 helped lay the foundation for my plan this year.  As I look back over our preparations of previous years, I am able to appreciate not only how much my kids have grown, but how much I have grown too!  Of course, I also see plenty of ways that we can continue to improve.

The three pillars of the season of Lent are prayer, fasting and giving.  Each of our Lenten undertakings is aimed at helping our children, our whole family, embrace these themes in a personal and age appropriate way.

Prayer

~Prayer garland:  Our prayer chain is now in it's third year, and is one of my favorite ways to "decorate" our house for Easter.  Each day, the kids are given a chance to offer up a prayer for someone or something, and I write their prayers on a slip of paper.  Over the course of Lent's 40 days, we link our prayer papers together in a chain that decorates our windows.  As Holy Week approaches, the visible evidence of our prayers for others is the perfect decoration for Easter.

~Christmas card prayers:  Remember all those Christmas cards we received during December?  As recommended by a friend, this year I have saved them.  Each day, as part of our prayer time, we will pull out a few cards and pray for our friends or family members that sent them.  Since most Christmas cards we receive include pictures, this is a wonderful way to help my children personalize and remember the people for whom we are praying.  Plus, who doesn't like finding another use for all those gorgeous cards?

~Story time: In Lent our story time takes on a special theme.  This year, we will be reading stories from our Jesus Storybook Bible leading up to Easter Sunday.  We'll alternate those stories with a book of children's prayers, Really Woolly Bedtime Prayers.  After each story, we can add a stone to our Jesus Stepping Stone activity, inspired by Equipping Catholic Families.

This great Stepping Stones of Jesus Lent activity can be found at
Equipping Catholic Families.  

Fasting

~Food giving box: We have many opportunities to give to those less fortunate during Lent.  T and I observe the Church's Lenten call to fasting and abstinence, but our children are young to do this, and I don't expect them to miss meat during our Friday meals.  Still, I want them to learn the importance of meaningful fasting in other ways.  On Fridays and other days of communal fasting, the children get to choose a box of food from our pantry to add to our Lent food giving box.  Then, on Sundays or days at school when there is a request for food donations, the kids get to take a piece of food out of their giving box to bring to share.  I hope this is a way to help them personalize part of the heart behind fasting.

Giving

~Jar of Beans: The kids have been asking about our Bean Jar for months!  It is arguably our most beloved tradition during Lent.  An idea originally inspired by an old edition of Family Fun Magazine, our Bean Jar appears each Ash Wednesday, full of dried black beans, along with a nearby basket.  Each time one of us does a good deed or something nice to or for another, he or she gets to go to the jar and move a dried bean from the jar to the basket.  I remind the kids that on Easter morning, when Jesus Is Risen, the dried beans will be replaced with jellybeans, representing the new creation we become through Christ: the old is gone and the new has come!  (2 Cor 5:17) Each year, our basket has been full of jellybeans on Easter.  We're hoping for a similar bounty this year :)

Our bean basket on Easter morning a few years ago.

May this Lenten season be full blessings and growth!  Through all our special preparations, may God help us to love others more and give us a greater desire to be united to Him.

Grocery Bag

This week includes Marti Gras, Ash Wednesday, Valentine's Day, the first Friday of Lent and G-Bear's 100th day of school.  That is a lot for one week!  Our meal plan will help keep us on track.  Here are my ideas for the dinner.

Day One

Mexican Spaghetti from Food.com

with napa cabbage cilantro salad

Photo and recipe from Food.com

Day Two

Crockpot chicken from Finding Joy in My Kitchen

with roasted vegetables and couscous

Photo and recipe from Finding Joy in My Kitchen

Day Three

Wild mushroom and lentil cottage pie from Cooking Light Magazine

with homemade bread

Photo and recipe from MyRecipes.com

Day Four

Pesto tortellini 

with strawberries and steamed broccoli

Day Five

Moroccan chickpea chili from Cooking Light Magazine

with homemade bread and broccoli slaw salad

Photo and recipe from MyRecipes.com

Blessings on your kitchen this week!

No ordinary fairy wings

Today, during playtime, I found E-Bear riffling through our dress-up drawer.

"Mom, I REALLY need the fairy wings."

Hmmmm.  I wasn't quite sure what to make of this novel inspiration.  E-Bear is not particularly interested in Tinkerbell or her buddies. G-Bear wasn't around to blame for coercion tactics.  Who was this new fairy, impressive enough to spark such urgency and imagination?

I went back to sorting the mail.

**CRASH**MASH**VROOOOOOOOM***

A large, winged creature exploded through the room.

Then came the clarifying announcement:

"Make way for the pteranodon!!"

Of course it was a pteranodon!  What else are fairy wings good for? 

Grocery Bag

We're off to tackle another week!  Here are our plans for dinner.

Day One

Sweet and spicy chili from Food.com

with steamed corn and sweet potato fries

Photo and recipe from Food.com

Day Two

Barley risotto with mushrooms from Fine Cooking Magazine

with roasted carrots

Photo and recipe from Fine Cooking

Day Three

Cauliflower and cheddar soup from Everyday Food Magazine

with homemade bread and steamed peas

Photo and recipe from MarthaStewart.com

Day Four

Pizza margarita from Finding Joy in My Kitchen

with mixed green salad and apple slices

Photo and recipe from Finding Joy in My Kitchen

Day Five

Lentils from Kate in the Kitchen

with basmati rice and roasted brussels sprouts

Photo and recipe from Kate in the Kitchen

Blessings on your kitchen this week!

Overheard in the house, January 2013 Edition

Overheard in the kitchen, after the bechemel sauce has boiled over onto the stove, as Queen B is about to loose it:

E-Bear: "Mom, are you feeling mad?  Remember what you are supposed to do:

(musical tune from "Daniel Tiger") 'When you feel so mad that you want to ROAR,

take a deep breath,' AHHH, HAAAAA, 'and count to four.'

Overheard in Buddy Bear's room as G-Bear and E-Bear go to wake him up:

Buddy Bear:  "Hi!!"

G-Bear: "Good morning, Buddy Bear.  How did you sleep?"

Buddy Bear: "Geee." (Good.)

E-Bear: "Do you want a book?"

Buddy Bear: "SSSSSSssss." (Yes.)

G-Bear: "Which one do you want?"

Buddy Bear: "Toot Toooooooot!"

G-Bear: "Your Thomas book?  Okay, here it is!"

Overheard in the kitchen as Buddy Bear comes in from the living room:

Buddy Bear:  "MaMA!"

Me: "Yes, Buddy Bear?"

Buddy Bear, tugging at my arm: "MaMa, Uh-oh."

Me: "Oh, dear.  You better show me what happened."


Overheard in the car, commenting on the color of our house:
E-Bear: "Dad, I like green houses.  I don't like skin-colored houses."


Overheard at the dinner table while sharing riddles with Auntie K (who is expecting twins):
Auntie K: "I have a riddle for you.  What has four hands, four feet, and is very, very full."
G-Bear:  "A cow?"
Auntie K (glancing at her belly):  "No, but good guess."


Overheard in the bathroom at bedtime:
Buddy Bear, running into the bathroom:  "MaMa!  Elmo!"
Me: "Okay, Buddy Bear, here is your Elmo toothbrush."
Buddy Bear, jumping up and down and reaching for the toothpaste drawer:  "MaMa!  Too TOO!"
Me, smiling:  "Okay, Buddy, here is your Thomas toothpaste."

Happily Ever,

Queen B

Afternoons with GG

One of my resolutions this year was to spend one afternoon each week with the kids at my grandmother's house.

My grandmother is 91.  

She has always been, and continues to be, a very impressive women in my eyes.

But these days, it is hard for GG to get out of the house.

Hence, my resolution to bring the chaos to her on a weekly basis.

Thursdays have become our day to spend the afternoon with GG.

I pick the kids up from school,

we pick up some lunch,

(this is a huge treat for us, something that gets the kids really excited, 

and probably makes the afternoon feasible for me)

and head over to GG's.

On Thursdays, E-Bear and G-Bear bring home all their weekly work and projects from school,

so we have a lot to show and tell.

I let Buddy Bear bring a special book or toy along so that he doesn't feel left out.  

He loves to show things to other people.

Everyone takes great pride in presenting their work to GG.

G-Bear reads GG a story or a few sight words that she has practiced at school while I set out lunch.

Then, we feast on our lunch treats, always with a special dessert.

GG might not eat much these days, but she always eats dessert.

Next, it is story time.

GG's eyesight isn't very good, so this is an activity from our day that I know we can all enjoy together.  

My backpack is full to the brim with books.

Because we are with GG, we have an extra long story time on Thursdays.

Today we enjoyed:

The Hungry Caterpillar

A chapter from On the Banks of Plum Creek

The story of St. George and the Dragon, from The Children's Book of Virtues

Snowmen at Night

and a chapter from our Jesus Storybook Bible about Jesus' baptism.

By the time we leave for Buddy Bear's nap, I am quite sure we have exhausted GG too :)

No, I only kid.  GG is an eager participant.  She makes us promise to come back next week.

Last year, on the occasion of GG's 90th birthday, my brother offered a toast.  

He titled it, "Things I Learned From My 90 Year Old Grandma."

It went something like this:

Grandma's 90th Birthday - July 2011

Things I Learned From My 90 Year Old Grandma...

1.) Nothing ever gets past your grandma.  No matter how smart you think you are, she has at least 65 years of experience on you.  She will always find out when you have misbehaved.

2.) Your grandmother will always keep a secret.  No matter what dirt she has on you, she will keep it between the two of you.  Don't forget to thank her for that.  Your parents would kill you if they knew what she knew.

3.) Stay active.  Your life will stay full and vibrant if you get up everyday and push your body. *Remember this especially on the days that you don't want to.

4.) Age Gracefully.  Getting old is not for wussies.  I will always remember being 11 years old and arguing with my grandma.  My family was changing and I was not happy.  She looked me in the eye and said, "Growing up is not for wussies.  You look for the good, and on to the next."  As things in my life continue to change, I remember my grandma's words.  "Look for the good, and on to the next."

With each passing Thursday afternoon, I am thanking God that my children have this time with their great grandmother.  I am hoping that a few of the great things she taught me will rub off on them.

Warm Winter Hearts

Here in Minnesota, the temperature is below zero.  

It will stay that way for most of the week.

On Monday, in honor of MLK day, G-Bear had no school.  I love the winter school holidays, and I look forward to them with great anticipation.  So, I was determined to let neither the temperature nor cabin fever spoil our extra day together.  

I have found that when winter arrives, it pays to have a few activities saved up,

as well as the right expectations.

We started the day prepared: I had set up our play tents in the basement,
which the children greeted with shrieks of joy after breakfast.

By the time morning snack rolled around, however, we needed a new activity:
paper bag puppets!

Our paper bag puppet project taught us many things.
1.  It is important to read directions, even if you are going to choose to ignore them out of creativity.
2.  Fussing is not allowed at the art table (this is not a new rule, by the way).  If one person fusses, others have to shout to be heard above the fussing, and soon everyone is shouting and crabby.
3.  Buddy Bear loves glue sticks.  He would prefer to remove the glue stick top again and again to put glue stick glue on any and every surface, just to experiment.
4. This project works best when Buddy Bear and Mom use the glue stick together.
5.  Stickers are also lots of fun.

A few toddler tantrums and a lot of hard work later, we had three beautiful paper bag puppets.
The lion (Buddy Bear),
the frog (E-Bear)
and the elephant (G-Bear).

Now, it was time to make lunch.  The kids wanted to build a house (just like Pa Ingalls!) in the living room.  Being the creativity squelcher that I am, I pointed out that we had already built two "houses" in the basement, and plus, we didn't have enough wood and blankets for a house in the living room.

Thankfully, the kids settled for building a theater for their puppets instead.

After construction, we enjoyed lunch together, and then it was time for the puppet show.

G-Bear and E-Bear were kind enough to invite all the stuffed animals and dolls to watch.

Buddy Bear and I were also invited to join the audience.

The performance, plot and puppeteers were all wonderful.

There were many rounds of applause, bows, and encores at the end.

Which brought us to.... Buddy Bear's nap time
(can you believe we were only to nap time by this point?).

Which caused me to pause and reflect for a moment.
These days can be exhausting.  Some days I feel like I haven't "accomplished" anything.  The combination of these two feelings, one physical and one emotional, can be very discouraging.  But, as I snuggled my Buddy to read him his story, I had a moment to reflect on what a treasure this day really was.  My storytime snuggling and puppeteer watching days are numbered, folks.  When I look back on my life, these days are going to be a brief blip on the screen, overwhelmed by a sea of other days devoted to many other tasks and pursuits.  In the moment, these days can feel long. There are so many moments of discipline, behavior, and routine that are either unpleasant, mundane or require greater selflessness on my part.  But in reality, these days are short.  And, as a friend recently reminded me, our sense of worldly accomplishment is horribly skewed.   If I am watchful, there are countless other moments each day when E-Bear responds to a frustration with a practiced response, Buddy Bear performs a new skill that we have labored to teach, and G-Bear offers to help her brothers in a coached way.  In each of these moments, I could take time marvel in my children's growth, their precious personhood, and the mark I am able to make on their lives during this brief childhood.

 I returned downstairs to find G-Bear and E-Bear in the kitchen with the Playdough.
They had all our new dough and tools (remember, I said, it pays to have a few winter activities saved up) out and ready to go.   For the next two hours, while Buddy Bear napped, our kitchen counter became a pasture for countless farm animals and their babies, complete with a cardboard box barn (thanks, Mom!) and duplo farm fences.  Thank you, Lord, for playdough and the creative process.
We had a blast.

When Buddy Bear woke up, his siblings were delighted to involve him in a game of "Grocer and Customer."  The shrieks of laughter that erupted from the living room were my bonus as I finished making dinner.  Then, T brought home blondie bar mix.  Is there any wonder that he forever remains my Prince Charming?  We enjoyed the special dessert after a special dinner at the end of our special day together.

In sum, it is cold outside, but our hearts are warm.
Thank you, Lord, for the roof over our heads,
the fleeting days of childhood,
and these precious days together.