My symphony

A deliberate journey

"To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury,
and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and
wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly; to
listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart; to bear all cheerfully, do all bravely, await occasion, hurry never. In a word, to
let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common.
This is to be my symphony." -- William Henry Channing

This life that I live, I have one chance to do it right. I want to leave a legacy, that my family and I lived well, loved much, enjoyed each other, tried our very best at all that was laid at our feet. That we strove to honor God in all that we set out to do. But I get waylaid at times... first by the need to "provide for my children", which is closely followed by the glitz of acquisition - more THINGS, more MONEY, bigger HOUSE, more expensive CAR. Ad nauseum. And of course, it's a vicious cycle, because one can never quench this bottomless thirst. How quickly I sink into the quicksand. Immobilized and out of control.

The aforementioned quote has been a touchstone. It reminds me that life should be a deliberate journey.

Let my life be a symphony to You, Lord.


A gift of words

I had a chance to make a hybrid album with this quote, and I sent it to my sister-in-law. I hope it uplifts you when your spirit needs a boost.

Photos of the album (I think she's received it by now):

A special day

Kodak moments
Having one more day to be languorous with your family is a great luxury - good company, good eats, a good time overall. We went camera crazy at the park, playing around with shutter speed to capture some action. Here are some of the 300 photos taken:


Look how comfortable Abigail is in the air!




Amanda the hopscotch adventuress


And of course, the action shots would not be complete without father jumping over daughter! Tsk tsk, crazy man.

Bill, the birthday boy
To a wonderful husband.father.brother-in-law.uncle.and much much more: Happy 29th birthday! :) Have a terrific year filled with adundant blessings.

A staple in our home

Forget the no-carb craze. This family loves carbs - bread, pasta, rice, potatoes. Mmmm, my mouth is watering.

Amanda and I especially love Jojos. I bet you'll get a kick out of how easy it is to make:



Ron's Famous Jojo Potatoes


1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Quarter potatoes lengthwise, then halve the pieces. Here I used Idaho potatoes, but any kind in your pantry will do. I'm going to try this with sweet potatoes some day.


2. Pull out the seasoning salt, extra virgin olive oil, and paprika. (The paprika has remnants of a previous flour fiasco)


3. Roll the potato wedges in the extra virgin olive oil.


4. Lightly cover the wedges with paprika and seasoning salt, then line them up in a glass casserole dish. Or on a cookie sheet lined with foil, which I have yet to try. Pop the dish in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes, depending on how crispy you want the Jojos. My family likes them with some crunch.


5. Take out of the oven, let them cool for five minutes.

We have them with a healthy serving of our favorite ketchup, Heinz Organic (it is free of high fructose corn syrup and, yes, organic). I purposely did not specify how many potatoes to use, because you can make as much or as little as you want.

Enjoy!

Instead of counting sheep

Amanda is like me when it comes to sleep - she tosses and turns quite a bit. So we started a fun little tradition: we pretend we go on trips. She usually likes to "visit" her relatives in Seattle or the Bay Area. Amanda chose to go to her Grandparents' home. Our description went like this:

{both lying in bed with a squirrely Abigail crawling all over us}

Me: "Okay Amanda, pack your bags. And don't forget your favorite peacock dress."
Amanda: "I have all the bags in the trunk. Did you remember your keys? (She knows me too well)"
Me: "Yes. Can't wait to eat all the goodies we packed!"
Amanda: "The traffic's not bad today, Mom."
Me: "Let's turn off at this rest stop."
Amanda: "What does that sign say?"
Me: "Snake area - caution."
Amanda: "Let's get back in the car."
Me: "Here's Riggins. And that's the Salmon River."

I try to evoke as much imagery as possible, while working on vocabulary and pretend play. She really enjoys it, and relaxes enough to let her body wind down into sweet slumber.

The next day, Amanda decided to make a map of our "trip", so she sketched one in pen.


Once I picked up my jaw from the ground, I scanned it and we colorized it in Photoshop. Here is the resultant map:


Tonight, I get to choose the trip destination. And I think it will be the Greek Isles. :grin: Where will you go with your kids today?

Bejeweled steps

"Finally, I can tell you the secret," Amanda said, as she pushed something into my hand. A folded paper and something wrapped in colored tissue. "Happy Mother's Day," she sang in a cloyingly sweet pitch.

This is what she presented me with:






Backtrack a few days: Amanda came up to me, as if taking my order, with notepad and pencil in hand, and asked, "What colors do you like?" I told her I currently like blue, green, and white. She wrote furiously, pausing only to ask me how to spell the word white. Then she scurried off and shut her bedroom door. "It's a secret! Don't come in here!"

She had asked so she could make my Mother's Day gift.

When I opened the card, she had drawn this little picture of us:


Abigail also presented me with a gift of her own. She suddenly began walking. And walking. And walking! At almost 15 months, she has finally found her wings. :grin: I now anoint myself CHASER of TODDLER.

The catch in my throat has not gone away since this spectacular Mother's Day. And I hope it never will.

Being a mother

What a powerful responsibility it is to nurture my girls. To think that what I say and do nudges their futures a certain direction... I hope with all my heart that it is a direction in which they hit their full potential. Be the best you God meant for you to be, Amanda and Abigail!



Click here for credits.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you fellow mothers! Your heart's work that you pour out to your family - it is never in vain.

In Loving Memory

Gary P. Ryska

Beloved husband.uncle.brother.soldier.friend.servant of God

You will be greatly missed.