Part of the tree

The past few days I have been doing a lot of cooking, as I'm sure you have too! Getting ready for Thanksgiving has been a big job, one my mom used to do when we lived in CA. Now that we live here in WA, the job falls to me to make a nice Thanksgiving for my family.
Wednesday was "baking day" for the girls and I. We made the cornbread for stuffing, tried our hand at a new recipe for whole wheat rolls, and the most impressive thing for me was that I actually attempted and successfully baked an apple pie! I have never done that before!
This morning was consumed by getting the turkey ready, and making the homemade cornbread stuffing. The stuffing was my grandmother's recipe and I have been enjoying it for 40 plus years! Usually, as I said, my mom does the stuffing, and pies, but this year (and last) I have tackled these items. As I was baking the cornbread, cutting the apples for the pie and stuffing the turkey, I couldn't help reflecting on the many years past that I have seen my own mom do these same things. In fact, as I saw my own hands mashing, rolling, kneading, it seemed as if my hands had suddenly become my mom's. How many times have I seen her doing these same tasks? The mundane actions took on a special meaning this year as I remembered my mom's love and care over my life, and saw it being passed down to my girls. I couldn't help but wonder how many women in my family tree did these same things for the holidays? How long had our family been making apple pies and cornbread stuffing? The exact food items aren't really important, I guess, but it is the continuity that binds our family together over many generations. I am glad to be a part of this heritage and sense of tradition. I love including my girls in these things too, knowing that someday they will look back on these tasks with fondness.
I am so thankful that my mom took the time each year to make our Thanksgiving special, and to spend time with me passing down this heritage.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Yada, yada, yada..............

Hello friends!!
Uugghhh, I am such a failure as a blogger! Part of my lack of blogging is due to the fact that I'm not sure that anyone cares about my day to day life that much! It's not that exciting, trust me! Also, I try to hold out for the nuggets of wisdom that I find periodically, and share those!
So, since I have neglected my poor little blog for so long, I thought I would give you all a general update on the D'Angelo family!
Well, as most of you know we are settling in to life here in WA. The most shocking thing for me about moving is that..............I LOVE it here! I never thought that would be the case. Secondly, I thought I would hate the weather and it turns out that it really hasn't been an issue for me. These days we are loving the beginning of Spring, all the trees are blossoming, the flowers are blooming and the sun is shining. It is beautiful! Seriously, when you don't have sun everyday, you truly treasure the sunny, warm days. They mean so much more when you don't take them for granted.
Our most exciting news is that we bought a house! This is kind of scary for us, given the fact that we will now own TWO houses! But, to make all you poor CA residents go green with envy, I have to give the stats............3200 sq feet, 5 bedrooms and 3.5 baths plus a bonus room, HUGE yard and of course brand new. So, in CA you would be looking at about $650K at least, right? Not in WA!!! This beautiful WA house is ours for less than half that price!!! So, we are excited and will move in mid-July. The house is close to our church and friends, and a little closer to Michael's work, so it is perfect! The girls will have a connected "suite" with their own bathroom and I will get a huge school room!
Speaking of school, we are just finishing Sheridan's kindergarten year! This has been such a great experience for all of us! Sheridan has learned to read, finished kindergarten math, and done tons of reading! The day that she read for the first time, I had tears in my eyes! What a blessing for me to be able to witness those eventful days in her life! This year has really emphasized to us that homeschooling is the right choice for our family. I remember one day when it was snowing, the girls and I were bundled up eating breakfast and we saw our neighbors walking their kids to the school bus. I was so glad in that moment that because we homeschool we can take our time, stay at home and be together!
As for my little Jordan, she is doing well too! I had an awful realization recently though......although she now knows how to skip count by 5's (thanks to listening in on her sister's Math U See lessons!)I realized that she doesn't know all her shapes or numbers! Ooopppsss!! Guess I forgot all that! It was so easy to teach Sheridan all of those things, she had my undivided attention for 3 years! So, that is something I need to get going on! But, we are so proud of Jordan as she was asked in March to join the Junior Elite team at gymnastics! Although she is only 3, she seems to be very talented in gymnastics! She was very excited because this class has "no boys"!!!! She now goes twice a week and loves it!
The other thing we love about WA is our church!!!! We have found such a wonderful church! This was another issue when we moved for me, I didn't want to leave our church in CA. Who knew that God would provide such a wonderful church family for us in WA! We recently became members and have joined a weekly small group. I am starting to teach the 3-4 year old class two Sundays a month and they have just asked us to lead a small group! Also, there is a large group of homeschoolers there and we get together once a week for P.E. for the kids. What a blessing!
So my friends, this is probably way more than you wanted to know about us, but there you go! We are surviving and thriving here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest!!!

Lies, lies, lies yeah!

"I'm not special!" "I'm not pretty!" "You don't love me!" Lies. Lies. Lies!
The past few months my 6 year old has been the victim of many lies whispered in her mind by Satan! Satan you say???? Yep! What does Genesis tell us about the master of lies? "Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field that the Lord God had made."
We were shopping for shoes for Jordan for church. Once we found a pair, and went to purchase them Sheridan says "I'm not special because I'm not getting new shoes." This was the first of many similar statements we were to hear for the next few months. If Jordan is dressing up and singing, Sheridan says "I'm not pretty." If we are playing a game of memory and Jordan is winning Sheridan says "I'm not special!" If I hug and kiss Jordan Sheridan says "You don't love me." Michael and I have wrestled with this issue with Sheridan for months! We have discussed it, prayed about it and talked about it with close Christian friends. How much is her true feelings and how much is manipulation? She genuinely seems distressed over these statements! My heart was sad for her!
God is so good because once I had prayed about it for a while, He gave me a way to deal with it!! I realized that Sheridan is believing the lies of Satan just as Eve did so long ago in the garden! He is whispering these thoughts in her mind and then these thoughts produce his desired effect in the form of anger. So, what to do?
First, I discussed this with Sheridan. We talked about Eve and the lies of Satan. We talked about how Satan uses the same tactics with all of us! Lies are his number one technique and we so easily believe them! They can be subtle too, a fleeting thought or feeling.
Once we had discussed it, we pointed out to Sheridan that this was what Satan was doing to her. We armed her with verses that describe her worth and "specialness" to God. We continue to affirm her worth to us, and we point out to her what Satan is doing in the moments it is happening. Sometimes, she is able to see what is happening and "fight" off the lies. Other times she falls prey to the whispers of the evil one.
It isn't perfect, but it is teaching Sheridan that the way to fight off Satan is using God's word and truths. What a valuable lesson!
Today, Jordan had dressed up as a princess and was floating around singing. Sheridan says to me "mommy, Satan was lying to me and saying that I wasn't pretty cause Jordan looks so pretty. But, I told him to flee and said to myself "God loves me" and "I am special"!!! What progress!! A 6 year old is more aware of the tactics of Satan than some adults! Thank you Lord!
So, what lies is Satan whispering to you?