Marital Advice in the Scriptures

As proper and happy marriage has been one of my goals since childhood, I have often asked the question, "Why isn't there more guidance for couples and marriage in the holy scriptures?"

Well, yesterday I had an insight which is neither original nor unique. Yet, it answered my question. The answer is:

"All of scripture is marital guidance."

Which I take to mean, all true principles found in God's word also apply to happy marriage. Let me give you an example.

Take the scripture, "I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ." Romans 1:16

Personal meaning might be something like I am not afraid to be a Christian in public places. As in, I am not afraid to pray over my food in a restaurant, or I am not afraid to be honest in situations where it is unpopular, or I am proud to know my Lord.

But, as marriage guidance it might mean that You and Your spouse should not be embarrassed to have Christ in your home. You're not embarrassed to read the Bible together. You're not embarrassed to have His picture on your wall.

So, now I see that the scriptures can be likened unto a couple as well as unto an individual. Wow!

There is a plethora of marriage advice in there!

The Jury is In

Well, I only got one vote emailed in. It was to make my next major goal Learning Spanish, which I am doing a (very) little.

Anyway, in spite of minimal poll results, I have decided what my next "major" pursuit will be, and it turns out it didn't make the original list. (See last post.)

It could generally be termed Health.

My new health goal includes the following:

First, learning how to eat well on my current budget and with my current family

Also first, tweaking my personal fitness level.

Second, learning more about food.

And, eventually: Growing more of our own food, Using some all around good supplements, Learning how to preserve food, using food storage, learning about relationship between diet and female hormone-related mood-swings, etc.

Our current family project is to take on Dr. Weil's program called 8 weeks to optimum health. (Check out the book at your library!)

We're trying to successfully do "one week" every month. So, for 4 weeks, we'll be trying to master Week One of his program.

Optimum Health sounds exactly like what I'm looking for, and most of what he says is extremely intuitive and makes common sense. I'll let you know as we progress.

Speaking of week one, I better go take some Vitamin C!

Summer Days

Well, my days of teaching Seminary are at an end.

It is a wonderful time for me. I'm able to do things I didn't have time for before, for example take a shower. I actually responded to an email this morning. I have time that is disgressionary! It is so cool! I've just joined a gym, and I've been to 4 workout classes already. (More on that in another post.)

Now, I'm trying to decide which personal area I want to set goals in. Let's have a vote!

I could start working on:

Scrapbooking (finish my wedding album for starters...)
Learning Spanish
Social dancing
Playing the Piano
Playing the Violin
Singing lessons

What do you think? email me at royal.spamcan@gmail.com

Actually, that's royal's junk mail address, but he forwards everything to me!

We love you all!

Apples to Tomatoes

Sienna hasn't been as talkative a child as Grace was. And we've never minded that. But, recently her language and vocabulary have exploded.

She was calling everything that looked edible and round an apple. (pronounced " 'a-poo" with accent on the a as in apple.)

And, we are growing several tomato bushes in the garden. They have been loaded with green tomatoes for awhile. So, every day (for months) in the garden, Sienna would touch a green tomato and say, "A-poo". I would say to Sienna, "No, baby, that is a tomato." And, then one turned red. And I would say, "It is a tomato, Sienna".

Last week, she found a ripe strawberry on our single strawberry plant. I waited for the usually "A-poo". She looked up and squealed, "Tomano!" (pronounced like tomato). Now everything red is a tomano. I'd say that is definite progress!

Blueberry Merry

Well, if you carefully read a post I made months ago, You know I planted 3 blueberry bushes this spring. I've wanted to plant fruit for years, and I have always been too afraid to do it. Well, I did it! and this morning, we picked our first batch of ripe berries. We got about 15!

We had a problem with disappearing berries for awhile. We would get a berry almost ripe, and then it would suddenly vanish. Royal suggested we use netting. So, we made some pretty primitive nets for the bushes. The next day, I found a surprise in my net! A live bird caught himself in the netting! I freed the bird on the condition he tell all his friends that if they don't stay away from my berries, they won't get off so lucky! It worked! The birds have stayed out of the netting since then, and our berries have stayed on the bushes!

We got a picture, but I don't have it yet.

PS: my beloved canon just broke. Don't buy canon. I should have listened to the Jungheims and bought Nikon. Anyway, pictures are harder to get now. So, sorry if they are less frequently posted.

A Call for Quick, Simple Recipes

Dear Readers,

I'm looking for Quick, simple recipes that you use commonly. Please email them to royal.spamcan (at symbol) gmail.com

Here's one of my favorite, from the box:

Sea Shells Con Broccoli (From Mueller's pasta box)

16oz Pasta Sea Shells
4-8 cups fresh chopped broccoli florets, uncooked
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
4 cloves garlic, minced or 1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tbsp dried rosemary
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped fine
1/4 cup white grape juice concentrate
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

-Cook sea shells according to package directions, adding broccoli tha last 2 minutes of cooking itme
-Drain cover and set aside
-Heat oil in large skillet, add garlic, basil, rosemary, and tomatoes. Cook 2 minutes.
-Add juice and reduce by 1/2. Add broth.
-Toss in broccoli and sea shells, stir until heated through.
-Add cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.


The way I changed it was,

I do not add broccoli to pasta,
Instead, I add broccoli with garlic, etc, to hot oil. I stir fry for 2-3 min, then add juice and broth.
Then I simmer broccoli with other ingredients for 2-4 minutes.

Also, I didn't have sundried tomatoes. I just added fresh tomatoes.


This recipe is DELICIOUS!! PLEASE send me more! royal.spamcan@gmail.com

Garden Harvest

Today we harvested the first fruits of our garden. Our small garden has grown very well this year. It yielded 1 medium sized tomato, 1 not quite ripe blueberry, and one small okra pod (a favorite of mine). We are, of course, expecting much more in the weeks to come, but this was a tasty start. I fried up the okra and ate it myself, and we all shared slices of the tomato. Elizabeth was surprised at the deep red throughout the flesh. She's used to store-bought tomatoes, picked before ripe--while they're still green, I think. Grace didn't want to share the tomato as it came from "her tomato plant." I also sampled a Nasturtium leaf (tastes like radish).

As I planted six or so okra plants, and as they produce ripe pods every two days, I imagine we'll have plenty of okra to share with the neighbors.

Cheers from the wonderland,
Royal

The Bath Girlfriend

Seven more days of seminary... and I mean days of class.

Wow! The end is in sight!

This morning I was letting Sienna out of her high chair after breakfast when I said, "You need a bath, Girlfriend!"

Her hair was characteristically stiff and pointing stiffly in every direction.

Just then, Grace asked me, "Who will be the bath girlfriend?"

The Tightwads are Back (Via a threat to our cush job)

For those of you who didn't previously enjoy our family newsletter, we ran a regular column about things you can do to squeeze more out of your money. We call it our Tightwad tidbit, and I'm including one below.

We've been quite comfortable with our Dave Ramsey cash budget for 2 years now. But, the Union at Royal's workplace is threatening his job. (He refuses to join the Union or sign anything agreeing to support the Union.) So, he has been threatened twice now that he will be fired- soon.

On that note, our tightwad tendencies came rushing back in, and our budget suddenly got a LOT more modest. We are saving all excess cash for the ominous unemployment on the horizon.

Just at the right moment, my Mom shared a recipe with me that we have found delicious and infinitely more palatable than oatmeal. (My girls love oatmeal sweetened with jam, but I would rather skip breakfast than eat it.) I hope this little blessing can come in handy for you, too. It really tastes good, inspite of being cheap and healthful. Go figure!

The TMM Tightwad TIdbit for 2007 #1

Cheap and delicious breakfast (actually pleases picky eater Mom, 1 yr old, 4 yr old, and Big Daddy)

1/2 cup *cracked wheat berries
Just under 1 Cup Water
2 Tbsp light brown sugar

1. Add water and wheat to bowl.
2. Microwave for 2-3 minutes. Watch, it will "grow" over the edge like oatmeal.
3. Stir and leave in microwave to thicken. Approx. 3 minutes, or enough time to do your daughter's hair and brush your teeth, or empty your dishwasher, or load your dishwasher, etc.
4. Stir in brown sugar, and feed to family when cool enough to eat. I usually find after the thickening period, that it is cool enough. This yields one serving. If I make four servings, I sometimes still don't get any after the girls are done eating. (My girls really have appetites.)


*Cracked wheat: how do you get it?

As a mormon, we buy wheat berries in 100 lb bags for dirt cheap from the local Bishop's storehouse (because we like to have food on hand for emergencies). I'm talking about $0.25/lb dirt cheap. If you are non-mormon, email me and I'll try to hook you up with a local "provider". You can buy wheat from health food stores, but it is usually at about %500 markup.

*Cracked wheat: how do you crack it?

Take wheat berries and put them through a hand mill (hand crank wheat grinder) at a very coarse setting. It is about half way between whole wheat berries and flour. The wheat berries should look like they are cut into thirds or so.

You can also put them in a blender and experiment with the amount of time.

I think some electric wheat grinders also have very coarse settings that would work.

Everyone is a Farmer

As we read the scripture Genesis 1:26-27 yesterday morning, Grace asked what dominion means. I told her, "It is being in charge of something." So, Adam had dominion from God over the "fish of the sea, and the fowl of the air, and the cattle, and every creeping thing which creepeth upon the earth."

Grace's face lit up. "So, Adam was a farmer!"

"Exactly!", I said, delighted. And added,"All men have dominion over these things, Grace. That means we're all farmers in a small way."

Grace's face lit up again. "Everyone is a farmer?"

"Right!"

"So, Daddy is a farmer, and Sienna is a little farmer!"

"Right!"

Then we sang the Primary song from Grace's Sunday school, "Follow the prophet" to the following words:

Adam was a Farmer,
First one that we know.
In a Place called Eden
he helped things to grow.
Adam served the Lord
by following his ways.
We are his descendants
in the latter days.

This morning, Grace caught me off guard when she said,"Sienna is a little farmer."

Until I remembered how we are all farmers, taking care of God's creation.

For the Love of Binki

Well, twenty months old and hopelessly attached to that plug. What else can I tell you?

We've decided this next weekend, we will break the addiction... except for sleeping times. We've been warming her up to the idea. But, right now Sienna is refusing to go without a binki. She is exercising her whining muscles in preparation for the battle.


Our war plan follows: put up all the plugs except one, which will be literally tied to Crib slats. Wait for several days until constant toddler irritation recedes.


Any other helpful ideas?

You HAVE to go see Meet the Robinsons 3d

Well, we got to see Meet the Robinsons last Friday. It was 3d, and it was cool. Definitely 4 thumbs up from us. Almost as cool as the free polarized shades. Well, judge for yourself.

And, Royal's a lot taller than me.

Maxims to Live By

You might call this post "Mantras to Live By" instead, as I repeat some of these sayings to myself when I'm facing a hard decision. But that's getting ahead of the story.

One of my grandfathers, whom I'm partly named after, died Tuesday before last. I saw my brother Roy at the funeral. We talked a lot and I told him how one time I was running from a punishment at home and he ran after me and essentially said, "If you run, it only makes it worse." Now this phrase, recycled, has become a mantra of mine, "You can't run from your problems. It only makes them worse." I used to recite it when I felt like chickening out. That saying helped make a man of me, so thank you, Roy. I'll always remember that moment; it changed my life for the better.

There have been other words spoken to me that seemed to have the ring of truth in them, and that I've remembered (or forgotten) in various forms. Here's a list of things I've recited at difficult moments, sayings I heard and liked, and one or two just silly things:

Talent is nice, but it's the ones that stick with it that succeed. - John Jennings, my junior high art teacher. I turned it into, "If I never give up, I'll eventually succeed at art."

You will never regret doing the right thing. (In the long term, at least. On the short term sometimes I'm not so sure.)

In the end, you will be exactly who you choose to be and you will receive exactly what you really wanted.

There's always kinks in the hose. (I came up with this metaphor. It's a euphemism for another common phrase I've heard.)

If aliens invaded right now, wielding only a giant magnet, they would win.

I don't have to wait for someone to ask for my help. I can just go and help.

First they ignore you. Then they laugh at you. Then they fight you. Then you win. - Ghandi

The way we treat everyone around us is very important. The most important thing, in fact.

No matter what you do, sometimes you will hurt people. (I realized this after dating a girl just to be nice, only to find she thought I wanted to marry her. So I stopped dating her. Seems no matter what I'd have done, I would have ended up hurting her. Which leads to another mantra . . . )

Never, ever date someone just to be nice.

Sometimes, even if it's not your fault or you didn't mean to, you just have to say, "Sorry". - From an Ensign or New Era article

That's like nailing jello to the wall.

If you don't forgive, you can't be happy.

I must exercise.

No matter how complicated or difficult a thing is, if you practice it enough, you can do it. (one of the few useful things I learned playing video games.)

With great power comes great responsibility. - Stan Lee, creator of Spiderman via my stepdad.

Doing the right thing for the wrong reason is good, because at least you are doing your duty. And eventually, your heart may change and then you'll be doing the right things for the right reasons.

We're all brothers and sisters. Every last one of us.

Everyone, everyone, EVERY ONE experiences terrible pain in life. (From my mission after speaking to thousands and thousands of people.)

It's not where you are that matters, but in which direction you're heading. -A youth sunday school lesson. I cannot remember who taught it to me. Far better to be in the pit of despair climbing out than on top of great hieghts falling down.

Well, that's about all I can dig up from the root-filled corners of my mental garden. But I believe all these sayings and live by them. (Watch out for giant magnets!)

-Royal

Shiny = Fancy

I get the privilege to see my Mom today in Warner Robbins. She's usually in Lexington, KY, but currently visiting my brother's home.

He's got 3 cute kids, and the toys to prove it. My two girls couldn't imagine a more engaging play place. So, I'm enjoying a rare respite from toddler boredom. (Its a disease that comes at intervals. The main symptoms are a toddler climbing on and/or destroying more that one valued family heirloom every five minutes or so. The other main symptom is a mother wrapping up a day at home with the kids by going to bed at 7PM on drugs and crying herself to sleep.) Yeah, we've been suffering from an acute case of toddler boredom and teething this past week.

And now, my blogging is occasionally interrupted with Grace's joyful voice,

"Look, Mom, its a mixer!"

"Isn't this pipe fancy?"

"Ooooh, isn't this fancy?"

I'll take it!

Royal's new blog away from this blog

Royal has been a little industrious lately... here's the link to his personal compilation of instructables.... or in other words, detailed how-tos.

http://www.instructables.com/member/royalestel/