Learning About Ssalli

It is quite strange to me that I can love this girl I have never met. There is something about praying for a person every day that makes my heart grow enough to make plenty of room for Ssalli, and I dare say my whole family feels at least a little bit the same way.

Let me tell you how we came to start praying for Ssalli (pronounced like Sally). When Will was in second grade, he wrote a letter to Santa asking for chickens for orphans in Uganda. He had heard me talking about the mission work of Parental Care Ministries (PCM) since our MOPS group was getting involved in some of their fund-raising. Santa arranged for some of our PCM friends to help deliver the chickens when they were in Uganda and they were kind enough to send back some pictures for us to share with Will.

 

I printed several of the pictures, but my eyes always stopped and lingered on this one, in particular.

This beautiful smile captivated me. Many families decide to sponsor a child, then flip through the pictures and names until God shows them the child they should sponsor. I've read many of the PCM blog stories of individuals who went on a PCM mission trip praying to find the child who needed their support. Ours was a bit different: I saw this smile and searched through every single one of the photos until I found it again. I was thrilled to see she was available to sponsor! I quickly emailed PCM and asked if the child in the chicken picture was Ssalli, and after a few calls and emails across the globe, we learned it WAS the same young lady!

 

PCM sponsorship is still new to us, and though we had sent two care packages with the groups traveling from Texas to Uganda, I wanted to make sure she really was getting them. One of my friends from MOPS headed out with PCM a few weeks ago, and I asked if she could try to get a current picture of Ssalli for us. Kathryn had quite the surprise for us! Not only did she meet Ssalli and give her some hugs for us, but she spent an entire day with Ssalli and about twenty other children on a safari. She took many photos to share with us, she got to talk to Ssalli and tell her a bit more about us, too. When Kathryn returned to Texas, she invited the kids over to hear more about Ssalli. Most of what I know about Ssalli is what we learned from Kathryn (thank you SO much, Kathryn!!)

The PCM crew took several crafts to do with the children, and Ssalli made the necklace in the photo above. She really wanted Kathryn to bring it back for the kids, but since she only had one, Kathryn convinced her to keep it and send a photo back instead (so our four kids wouldn't fight about it.) Ssalli did send back some pictures she colored and some letters she wrote. She has such a kind heart and was willing to share it all with us. Speaking of a kind heart, Kathryn shared that after the safari, one man took all the kids to a restaurant and bought soda for each of them. They passed out the bottles but ran out before everyone had one. Most of the children held their special treat tightly, not wanting to give it up, but without any hesitation, Ssalli handed hers to a younger boy sitting next to her. Some adults went down the street to get a few more sodas, so everyone did get one, but it was so sweet for her to give hers up.

When Kathryn was talking to Ssalli about us, she quickly learned that Ssalli didn't quite understand our names. Some of the letters Ssalli sent back had most of our names: Sarah, Allen, Meddie/Maddie, Ben, and Jon. In one letter, it had the name Kaiser, and I was a bit confused about why she didn't include Will. Though I had mentioned him by name in several letters, Ssalli didn't understand that Will was a name; she only knew it as an English verb (I will see you. Will you please help?) I've made the mental note to refer to him as William from now on, but when she writes to Kaiser, we know that means Will.

My kids all enjoyed hearing about Ssalli and seeing pictures, but they were quickly drawn to all the toys in the other room. I sat with Kathryn and learned more about Ssalli, more about PCM, more about what it is like to go on a mission trip there. I already had some ideas about going, but with a friend's encouragement, I'm now really excited and serious about it. One of these days I may post a picture of me hugging this sweet Ssalli.

For more information on sponsoring a child through Parental Care Ministries, visit http://www.pcmonline.org/orphans.php.

Seven: Ten Days Later

The finish line for this first round is nearly in sight.... I suppose it IS in sight, since my menu for the week has been planned, and I am planning on dinner out on Friday (February 1st)! The last week and a half has not been too bad. I won't say it has been easy, but I feel powerful -- I know I have the will power to get through January with just my seven foods. I feel like God has been in control all month, but I spent the first few days thinking I was, and wearing myself out.

This weekend, we changed the experiment a bit. We = my family! Allen had the great idea that he and the kids should eat my seven foods for the weekend. The intent was for all of them to get a "taste" of what I've been doing. They not only tasted the foods, but they tasted the temptations to go to the pantry for something different, and they tasted a bit more of how blessed we are to have so many great choices on a daily basis.

Saturday morning, we all had oatmeal, scrambled eggs, and apples for breakfast. The kids thought the oatmeal tasted a bit weird without honey, but since breakfast was not too different that what they normally have, it didn't seem to matter much. Lunch was deli turkey, raw spinach, apples, and avocado. Ben and I had some oatmeal with our lunch, but again, it wasn't that different than normal, but they DID all miss their normal Saturday PB&J. Dinner was sliced smoked turkey, sweet potatoes, sauteed spinach, avocado and apples for dessert. Though we have had baked sweet potatoes with dinner several times this month, they are still quite a hit with all three boys. Maddie doesn't eat them, though. The kids fussed that they didn't get Halloween candy for dessert, but they were happy with four flavors of apples. Sunday was much the same, but with a little bit more fussing. I was really interested to see how the kids would all handle Sunday school snacks, but I didn't say anything to them, deciding it wasn't a big enough deal to mention. Poor Allen -- I could feel his will being challenged as our Sunday school class celebrated a birthday with a Snickers ice cream cake -- Snickers icecream bars being his all time favorite frozen treat. But, he sat next to me and passed up the treat. When we got Will from his class, he was pouting when he said his class had brownies... but he willingly passed up the treat. Ben, Maddie, and Jon's teacher saw me in the hall as we were on our way to get them. She quickly explained that when they had snack, all three kids insisted they couldn't eat what the kids were having because those foods weren't allowed. She offered applesauce, and they said they wouldn't eat the sugar. The teacher further explained that it was UNsweetened and asked if they could eat that. Maddie had quite the reply, "Yes! Apples are allowed, but you'll need to keep the sauce." The teacher explained that apple sauce was just apples but it was cooked apples that get soft. (Yes, my kids HAVE had applesauce, just not many times.) I was so proud of all five of them for sticking to the experiment! The kids also told us the Sunday school lesson was about the Israelites complaining about their food in the wilderness, so it was interesting to see how they made the connection to this project.

Tonight, we talked at dinner about what everyone thought or learned about this weekend with limited food options. All the kids discovered they really like cooked spinach -- we usually have it as a salad. All of them really like oatmeal with salt and pepper; Allen said it tastes like grits, but I didn't try it yet. The boys all asked that I make sweet potatoes more often, and all four kids like the sweet potato skins (plain, not attached to the potato.) Allen discovered a perfect avocado is quite tasty, and I discovered how supportive my family can be of my crazy experiment (I felt loved!)

Third Derby: Silver Speedster

Will had his Cub Scout Pinewood Derby today. The first year he participated, he was a first-grader with two parents enthusiastic about the event. Last year, Allen and Will started working on the car at the beginning of January and worked on it about three weeks. This year is the third year, and I can't tell if we just are not as excited or if we are just too busy doing more important things, but this one was a two-week project. As with last year, Allen helped Will shape the car like Will's sketch, but -- unlike the first year -- Will has taken over most of the paint job and decorations. He named the car Silver Speedster. He was so proud of his silver car this year, that he was pretty certain he would at least get a trophy for style. What he didn't realize at the time was that at least two of the dads in his den of ten boys paint full-size cars for a living. With only a spray paint bottle, a few brushes, and Sharpies, his car didn't really have a fair chance against the airbrushed beauties those two friends brought. Will DID get an award for having the most patriotic car of the entire pack, though, so he did come home with a smile... and another car to put on the shelf.

As tough as it was to get his car carved and finished in time, I'm already putting a note on the calendar for next Thanksgiving. We will have at least three cars for the boys to complete since Jon and Ben will likely be scouts next year. I figure maybe we can get a head start on some of the shaping when we visit either of the grandfathers (with great tools) that can help a bit more than the saw and chisel we have been using.

Seven: Day 17

Last night was tough. I was trying to keep the kids playing outside because the weather was pretty (trying by telling them to play outside or do laundry before playing inside.) The younger three kept wanting to come in and were frustrated with me for not letting them go ride bikes with Will and his friends. They did eventually stay and play outside (and had fun) but they made it clear they weren't happy about it. I started thinking about dinner and, having planned turkey leftovers for all of us, I realized all the kids would be grumpy about dinner being turkey again. We have only had it once this week unless you count the two nights of turkey soup; they didn't realize that the sloppy joes had ground turkey, so I'm not counting that one, either. Once I realized the kids would all complain about dinner, I really hit the tough part.

I realized how sick I am of turkey, how much I don't like the way spinach makes my teeth feel, how sickeningly sweet orange potatoes are, how sulfury eggs smell, how slimy oatmeal has been, how bland and mushy avocados are, and how tired I am of washing and slicing and coring apples because they hurt my teeth when I eat them whole. I thought about how tired I am of scrubbing oatmeal and eggs from all the bowls and pans three times a day. In my frustration with all of my menu, I still remembered WHY I was doing this and I realized I didn't want to give up, but I chose to eat my foods grumpily (yes, I chose to.) It was much easier to be grouchy than to pray at that moment.

Allen came to the menu rescue since he needed to stop by the store anyway. The kids were happy with taco nachos, and I had scrambled eggs with spinach and avocado. He even picked up a few things I was missing from the pantry to make tonight's meal -- I wonder if they'll notice turkey in their pot pie? I am really glad I'm past the half way point, and it is interesting to me to see how this project is progressing. Today, my quiet Bible time was awesome and I've had so much time to reflect on God's words. I think the negativity that hit at dinner time was Satan trying to get hold again.

When Allen and I were sitting together watching a show, my tummy was rumbling. I was hungry -- but not hungry enough to force down more turkey. We were waiting for one of our favorite shows to come on, but in the meantime, we were watching "How do they do that?" -- unfortunately, they were making English toffees with chocolate and pecans. We didn't realize how tasty they looked until my tummy growled, but then Allen switched the channel. Right away, a commercial came on the new channel with beautiful pasta dishes that Olive Garden has this month (grumble, grumble) with all-you-can-eat fresh salad and warm breadsticks, so Allen switched the channel to football. On the football show, a player was speaking in front of an ad for Dunkin Donuts (grumble) that made me remember how much I wish their was a Dunkin  Donuts here because I love their Boston creme donuts even though I always get a tummy ache when I eat them. Channel switch is often automatically to Food Network, but thankfully Allen tries to remember not to do that when I'm in the room. All evening I was reminded of the foods I'm missing, and I couldn't help but dream a little bit about what I might eat on February 1st. As I think about a medium-rare filet mignon and a loaded baked potato, its hard not to think about a bit of salad dressing on a salad with lots of veggies. I continue to think about fresh yeast rolls, a minty Hershey kiss, Samoas and Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies, creamy Greek yogurt, gyros, fajitas, a margarita, and my mind just keeps going and going and going. Then I remember which foods give me tummy aches, so I try to figure out how to spread several flavors over all the month of February. Then I remember I would still have tummy aches, so I think about keeping the seven foods in February... or at least staying close to them. Then I remember self-control is something I do have and I can use it at will.

Last night I had a dream that I was doing Seven, and having a tough day. In my dream, I cheated and had a spoonful of coffee. As I rolled the bittersweet warmth in my mouth, I was happy for just a moment until I realized what I had done. Then I was so disappointed in myself for giving up. When I woke up, I realized it was just the dream I needed to keep me going. Yes -- I AM tired of these foods, but I am trusting God to get me through them. Today, I am CHOOSING to be thankful for my food, for my choices, for my health, for my new-found energy, for my jeans getting bigger each day, for the many nutritious foods I can offer my children, for my creativity with these foods... but most of all, I am thankful for what God is doing in my heart and mind.

Seven: Week Two

The second week of Seven has come and gone rather quickly. I suppose it is a good thing that I don't have a comment about every day, but, on the other hand, does that mean it is too easy? Thinking about food is not consuming me all the time like it did the first several days. I am doing well without coffee, and I even seem to have a decent amount of energy all day.... maybe not ALL day, but I don't have the same "I'm about to pass out from exhaustion" feeling around 3:00 each afternoon that I had before. I haven't had any tummy aches in two weeks, and that is an awesome thing! ... if only I knew which of the other foods had been causing them. I suspected wheat or dairy products, but I need to add sugar, beans, nuts, coffee and more to the list, too.

I've gotten a bit more creative and figured out a decent pancake that I can use as bread for a turkey sandwich or roll up with veggies inside. I made something odd -- making egg whites really foamy, then folding in sweet potatoes -- I suppose it was souffle-ish, but in a cupcake liner, it is more like a sweet orange cloud. Today, I discovered that freeze-dried apples are just the crunch I've been searching for... but they make me really thirsty.

Spiritually, I feel like I am making progress. If nothing else, I am praying much more than before. I wake up and pray. I pray in the shower. I pray when I make Allen's coffee... as I inhale the scent and drink my hot water. I pray when I'm hungry, which does happen frequently. I pray when I just don't want to look at another piece of turkey, no matter how much my tummy is rumbling for food. I pray when I pass the dessert around the table. I pray when I'm making the kids' snack and almost accidentally pop a goldfish cracker in my mouth. These are some of the times I catch myself talking to God.

I am still holding tight to the fruits of the Spirit scripture. Though it has taken me twenty-plus years, I finally can list all nine without a struggle -- love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. What I'm really enjoying is noticing that those fruit ARE part of my life, part of me, and, either some are just now starting to grow, or I've never noticed them before. I can thank God for the self-control I've had the last two-weeks. Yesterday, I listened to Ben rant about homework for two hours and I didn't yell back. That sort of patience, needed right before dinner with a tired six-year old, comes only from God. Either way, I consider it progress that I notice what He is doing.

I've had others on my heart a lot. One day, I caught myself saying, "I'm staaaarving!" just to look up a picture of Ssali we have in our kitchen. Ssali is a 13-year old girl in Uganda who we pray for daily. Now, I'm not saying that she is starving, but I'm saying her sweet smile reminds me that I have a whole lot more choices than many in this world. Her picture in my kitchen reminds me that she might eat the same thing every day, and that an apple is a sweet treat for many children in the world.  Her picture reminds me that some people are lucky to get even one meal a day. In those humbling moments, I think of many I've never met who don't have my luxuries. Her picture reminds me that, in fact, I am NOT starving... just unhappy and a bit uncomfortable. I am working on turning my hunger pangs toward God... I want to be constantly craving Him... Craving uncomfortably and insatiably... as in I just can't get enough.

As it is today, food-wise, I have no complaints.

Seven: Week One

Day 1 - Today I started re-reading 7, and I also wrote my description of the project. I remember chuckling about being irritated that Jen Hatmaker started off the food experiment chapter complaining that she didn't get her daily coffee... haha...ha... The joke was on me. Though I started reducing my caffeine intake at Christmas, I wasn't as prepared as I hoped I'd be. Maybe it was because I was up late on New Year's Eve playing board games till almost one (three to four hours after my normal bedtime,) but I was miserable most of the day. I had a mild headache and it was cold and rainy all day, so I didn't ever feel great. My meals went okay -- for breakfast I had a spinach and turkey omelet with an apple. For my mid-morning snack, I had some oatmeal; lunch was spinach, deli turkey, apple, and half an avocado all fixed as a naked salad (I miss my homemade vinaigrette.) I had another apple mid-afternoon just trying to get my body a bit of a sugar boost to help with my headache -- it didn't work. Dinner was tasty -- smoked Greenburg turkey, sweet potato, and steamed spinach, while the family had the turkey, sweet potatoes, spinach salad, and stuffing. I drank hot water all day long just trying warm up and to hydrate to make my head quit hurting. Today was not any fun, but I prayed a lot ... often with frustration. It was a victorious day, though! Tomorrow, something will need to change.

Day 2 - This went so much better than the first day. When I woke up, I stayed in bed until I had prayed and read a few devotionals from my Made to Crave book. That helped me a lot! It started my day with the proper focus -- God, not coffee... my new morning mantra. Instead of saying, "My day can start as soon as I get my coffee," I'll start with God... first thing, before my feet hit the floor, I won't even have to wait the brew time. Allen went back to work today, so I kept it very low key with the kids so I wouldn't have much added stress. Instead of thinking about how I'll make it through another 30 days with this diet, I am choosing to focus on one day at a time. I called Ema this afternoon when the headache started. We are both cranky with our limited selections, but we were more cheerful after discussing it. Today was successful. I'm ready for tomorrow.

Day 3 - I woke up craving fruit. Not just any fruit... but anything but apples or avocados. I woke up thinking about sweet oranges, pineapples, grapefruits, grapes, bananas, mango, strawberries... mmmmm. I stayed in bed until I read some devotions. What a surprise that the first scripture was about even better fruits:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. ~Galatians 5:22-23a

I definitely needed that one at that moment, and I read it several times today. (Though, by the end of the day, I had run out of gentleness and patience, as I felt like the kids used up all the peace with their lack of self-control.) The day went pretty well food-wise. I didn't get a headache, so I think my body is almost used to no caffeine. I was fairly bored with food today and often hungry, but for no apparent reason since I felt like I was eating enough and drinking plenty of water. This evening, I really wanted something crunchy, so I experimented trying to make some oatmeal-cookie-type crisps. The second round ended up with the edges of the thin cookies crunchy, but I need to work on the recipe a bit more. (I used rolled oats and oat bran, grated apple and its juice, an egg, and sweet potato for some added sweetness.) The "cookies" turned out decent... sort of like a breakfast type cookie without as much sweetness as a regular cookie. It was good, but I still need to figure out how to get crunch, and the apples haven't been what I'm after.

Day 4 - Today went well. I didn't crave much, and when I did, I reminded myself to crave the fruits of the Spirit. I did get some apple juice (100%, so still "approved") and add it to some of my hot cups of water. It was tea-like, then, and a nice change. I picked up three more types of apples, and I think the Pinks are my new favorite this season -- sweet and tangy, but a bit more punch than the honeycrisps have been. Tonight, all of us ate smoked turkey and spinach fritata. The family had fruit salad, and I just had the apple. All the kids ate seconds or thirds and asked for more... I'll have to put it on the menu again. It is nice not having to make different dinners for them and me. Overall, this one was a great day for seven.

Day 5 - Food wise, life is much easier now that I've been starting the day with scripture and devotions. Unfortunately, I woke up with sore shoulders and eventually I ended up with a headache that had me really wanting some caffeine. I settled for some Motrin, but I'm still waiting for some relief. Even though I realized how often I turned to foods for comfort, it is taking this experiment for me to identify even more of the wrong times I do so. Previously, I don't think I realized that when I get headaches, I head for coffee or a Coke. Tonight, the family is eating one of my favorite left-over turkey dishes; turkey Devonshire is an open-faced turkey sandwich on toast with bacon and tomato and a really awesomely delicious homemade cheese sauce over the top. I'll be having my turkey on spinach with some of those zesty apples and avocado.... yes, again. I think I may be sick of turkey by the end of January, but I will have to have one last bite in February with some of that Devonshire sauce.

Day 6 - If I didn't even think about blogging how the day went, it must have gone well... right? I really don't remember much, but our Sunday school class lesson was speaking right to me. We were talking about being too comfortable and how we (like the Old Testament Israelites) tend to forget about God when everything is going well. Sometimes, it is important to make yourself uncomfortable to reconnect with Him. I still miss my coffee, but now my mornings start with prayer and reading... that's how I'm reconnecting with discomfort.

Day 7 - Will went back to school today, the three others played well all day. Not too bad of a way to ease back into routines. Food-wise, the challenges that were mountains are small hills the last few days. A few times I really have wanted a Hershey Kiss, but the hardest times are when I'm cooking for everyone else (I'm used to tasting and adjusting, rather than using a recipe.)  I've come up with a few desperate recipes when I'm wanting something other than my plain-seven. I made something that reminded me of Stouffer's spinach souffle (whipped egg whites, lots of spinach, half an avocado, pinch of salt and pepper) and sort of a crunchy cookie that worked well as a snack through out the day (oats, sweet potato, grated apple, egg). Maybe I'll come up with something else soon. Tomorrow will be my next big challenge since there is always brunch before Bible study, but what an awesome fruit I've learned self-control is!!

Nine Months of Waiting

Who knew it would take so long? This tooth has been wiggling since April last year -- nine months of looseness! Each time it seemed almost ready to come out, it would hang on and we would forget about it. Ben's adult tooth is almost all the way up behind it, so I think it stayed in so long because his tongue wasn't able to reach it to wiggle it constantly. It did finally come out this afternoon, I think it had something to do with someone running into him, but the stories change quickly when there is the slightest bit of blood. Ben came downstairs crying because he was bleeding, but once he was reminded that the tooth fairy would be visiting, he was quite excited.

This is what I get for saying, "Smile, Ben!"