A Reflective Post On All The Changes

I suppose its the turning of another birthday and the end of the year approaching that has made me somewhat reflective this last wee while. 

There is no denying that there have been some HUGE changes in my life this year, and the truth is, they were long over due. Loosing my Dad in January 2009 and giving birth to Oscar in February 2009, loosing my Grandma in April 2010, loosing our baby Ellie Rose in April 2012 and almost loosing my Mum in October 2012 have marked out  life altering events which were completely outwith my control (Oscar was planned of course, but how he came, when he came and who he would turn out to be were all unknowns). 

I think it was time for me to seek out control over my own life and to try and make sense of the tumultuous highs of joy and depths of sorrow that most of us feel in our lifetimes.

I knew that 'faith' was something I had craved, although I was to find that I had already a considerable amount of faith un-exercised within me. I never for a moment predicted my faith leading me to the LDS church, or how far reaching into my life these changes would be.

This isn't another post about how great my church is (although it is great). I really just wanted to talk about the mundane but often highlighted elements of being a Latter Day Saint.

Food And Drink

7 And, again, ^astrong drinks are not for the belly, but for the washing of your bodies.

The thing that most people know about us, no tea, coffee, or alcohol. This was probably the one thing I had to give up. I very very rarely drank coffee, and when I did it was more milk and sugar than coffee, but I did drink (brown) tea every day, about 4 to 6 cups I would guess at. I thought this was going to be a hard one for me, but then a new church friend put me on to Redbush Tea (or Rooibos Tea), which is an acceptable alternative to brown or green tea. The first time I tasted it, I wasn't sure, but now, I don't even think about it, and in fact I am so used to the taste that I have wondered on a couple of occasions if Duncan has given me 'normal' tea by accident (we keep some for guests who are not in the church). Of course we also have a huge choice of herbal teas, all acceptable in the church and the often joked about Mormon 'tell', hot chocolate.

As for giving up the booze, well its not been an issue either. I had a glass of wine with dinner (ironically), on Easter Sunday and that was my last drop. To be totally honest, Duncan and I did our fair share (and probably then some) of drinking when we first met in the 1990's when he was a musician and I was an art student. Having Oscar changed all of that for us. We had to be seen by fertility specialists to get pregnant with Oscar, and so I was off alcohol from long before my pregnancy. Since we opted to co-sleep, alcohol was also a no no, and that being the case (after 6 to 7 years of very occasional drinking), it has had no impact on my life at all.

On the food front, the Doctrine also has some wisdom to impart.

12 Yea, ^aflesh also of ^bbeasts and of the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used ^csparingly;

Well, again, we were pretty much with this one already.  I don't think I will ever be vegetarian or vegan, but long before joining the church I would have periods of no meat consumption, because basically I don't believe its particularly healthy to stuff ourselves silly with it (imagine my surprise to read the Lord agreed with me, or is that the other way round haha). 

Dress Code

" Some Latter-day Saints may feel that modesty is a tradition of the Church or that it has evolved from conservative, puritanical behavior. Modesty is not just cultural. Modesty is a gospel principle that applies to people of all cultures and ages. In fact, modesty is fundamental to being worthy of the Spirit. To be modest is to be humble, and being humble invites the Spirit to be with us. "

I have been told often that my dress sense is a bit weird. My corporate working sister told me she would never wear clothes like mine (in a non offensive way), and an old boss of mine said she suspected I was 'arty'. The old adage, some things will never change applies in principle here. I am a bit of a hippy who has a liking for black eyeliner and a bit of glitter. Modesty in practical terms (as taught to our youth, and asked to be a lifelong standard), means (for women, men have their own standards), skirts knee length or longer, tops with sleeves (short or capped are fine, just not strappy), and not low cut or showing the midriff.  Trousers are fine apart from at church or temple visits and all clothing should not be too loud or alluding to non-conformity or rebellion. 

I guess that might be a tall order for the young teens in the church, and I expect that some of the kids test the boundaries just as much as teenage non members test their own (parental or societal) boundaries. Being totally open and honest, I think that my weight and my perception of self imposes far more restrictions on what I think I can and cant wear than the church ever could. I try hard not to be down on myself when it comes to how I look, but I cant seem to help it, and so it spills over into what I think I can or should wear.

I don't have any body piercings any more although at one time I did have 7 not including my ears (you can figure that out on your own). They were all taken out years ago before Oscar was born. I do have 2 tattoos, with no plans to remove them, because honestly, I like them. I can live with it that I wont get another one though, and since there was 12 years between the 1st and the 2nd its hardly a compulsion needing to be curbed.

Smoking

8 And again, tobacco is not for the ^abody, neither for the belly, and is not good for man, but is an herb for bruises and all sick cattle, to be used with judgment and skill.

I am the most annoying ex-smoker ever. I smell it at 100 miles away and it makes me want to throw up. I smoked on and off (mostly on) from the age of 16, and I finally quit when I was 38, over 6 years ago. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do and so I am glad I had already faced that hurdle when it came to joining the church.

Am I putting you off the church with the 'rules'? The truth is, these things are directly from our Father In Heaven, they are His standards, not the 'church's' standards.

Really, He is saying, be healthy and look after your body.in the way it deserves. I have no problem with that.

The irony is not lost on me that by conforming I am actually making myself (and my family) 'different' from the majority of people. I don't expect it will be plain sailing all the way, it never is. 

How I really want to end this post is by saying these 3 things -

1.  .I might be different, but I am still the same. In fact I am the same but better, not a better person, but I feel better, happier, more peaceful, more fulfilled, more full of joy.
2. I don't judge you because you are not the same as me. It took me 43 years to get to this place, and if you are in your happy place, I salute you, wherever that place may be.
3. The love I have for my Savior far out weighs anything I have had to give up. My heart is so full I can sometimes scarcely believe it. Its not a fair trade, often I feel that I should be giving so much more.

Valerie

xxx

Little Wooden Decorations

These are now for sale in my Etsy shop.
Rustic Wooden Decorations. One side will have a letter of your choice and the other side will be one of the 3 designs of your choice, a tree, a star/peace on earth or a reindeer. Each piece of wood is hand burned to order. The wood is untreated and hung on string (although you may varnish this yourself). Very unusual and each piece is one of a kind.
Vary slightly in sizes 3.5cm to 4.5cm.

ETSY SHOP LINK

Vegetarian Dinners

Monday

CREAMY PESTO PASTA

2-3 cups pasta
1-2 tblspoon of strong pesto
100ml or less of single cream
One head of broccoli
Handful of mushrooms
Handful of spinach
Salt pepper
Feel free to add any other veg!
Method

Cook the pasta, add the broccoli in the same pan about 5 mins before the pasta is ready (saves on dishes)
in a pan fry the mushrooms, when they are cooked add pesto and a dash of cream- (to taste)
add spinach 
drain pasta and broccoli
add the pasta and broccoli to the pan
season 

mix and serve!

This was so, so, easy to make and very tasty, exactly what you need for a cold Monday night in December.

Valerie

xxx

Vegi Meals

As promised on Friday, here are the recipes for our first 2 days of vegetarian dinners.

Saturday
CHICKPEA AND SQUASH CURRY

1  red onion, diced
1 garlic clove crushed and chopped
1 can coconut milk
1 can chickpeas
500g pumpkin, chopped into chunks
2 tbsp. curry powder (tikka or garam masala)
1 tbsp. chilli powder (or more depending on how you like it)
1 tbsp. ground ginger
Method

1) fry the onions for 10 minutes until soft on a medium heat, then add the garlic and all the spices and cook for another couple of mins
2) then add the chickpeas and coconut milk.
3) finally add the pumpkin, mix together, cover with a lid and cook on a low heat for around an hour or until the pumpkin is soft and cooked.
4) check the spice of the curry, if you find it too spicy add some yogurt or add more spices.
5) once cooked, serve with rice, naan breads or poppadum's.

This was really nice, although we had ours with naan bread and chips instead of rice, because I knew we would be having rice the next day.

Sunday
VEGETABLE CHILLI

1/2 each of a red yellow and green pepper
2 carrots finely diced
2 onions finely diced
2 celery stalks finely diced
1 whole fresh red chilli de seeded and chopped
1 courgette finely diced
1 tin red kidney beans
1 tin canelleni or haricot beans
2 tins good quality chopped tomatoes
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp hot chilli powder
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp cumin
400ml water (rinsed around in the empty tomato tins)
2 cloves finely diced or minced garlic
Method

1. Fry all raw vegetables and onions in a large pan in a little oil for ten mins on a medium heat until soft. 
2. Add the garlic and fresh chilli. 
3. Next add the cinnamon cumin and chilli powder and fry for one more min. 
4. Add the drained and rinsed cans of beans and chopped tomatoes and water. Season with salt and pepper.
5.   Simmer for one to two hours on a fairly low heat until thick and delicious.
6. Stir every twenty mins to ensure it doesn't stick and burn on the bottom. 
7. Serve over rice or a jacket potato or with some nacho's.

I added a bit of tomato puree to mine and I also made double the quantities here because there were 4 of us plus 3 missionaries for dinner. This made a huge batch and there were plenty leftovers. We had nachos, rice, sour cream and crusty bread with it, and it was delicious.

And speaking of missionaries, we are saying goodbye to another missionary this week. Elder Jones is off to Paisley for Christmas (at least). We have had great fun getting to know Elder Jones, he is quite an interesting young man from Vegas, USA, but who learnt to speak Mandarin for his mission so he could teach the Gospel to Chinese people living in Scotland and Ireland.

Safe travels Elder Jones, we hope to see you again before you leave for the US.

Valerie

xxx

  

A Mostly Vegetarian Post

Every so often I decide to have a period of abstinence from meat (and poultry and fish). I have seen a pattern over the past few years that come spring, I stop eating meat for quite a few weeks. I wonder if it is ancient instincts kicking in and my body is telling me I can let up on (animal) fat storing because the winter is over and the crops are coming up. Its not too far fetched.
In preparation for Christmas I am going to be having a meat free week next week. A little body cleanser if you will. Significantly upping my vegetable and grain intake always makes me feel healthier and lighter. I thought I might post up my evening meal recipes each day and let you know how it went.

Yesterday was an absolutely bitter day (we had 130mph winds in the night, followed by torrential rain, sleet, hailstones and snow), so when I saw VIX'S soup recipe I decided to get in the mood for a vegetarian week by making a big pot of vegi soup.

11b sweet potatoes (peeled & chopped) - Vix used parsnips, but we used sweet potatoes

1 large white onion (chopped)

2 large cooking apples (peeled & chopped)

2 tsp Madras curry powder

2 crushed cloves of garlic

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 litre vegetable stock

1cm of finely grated ginger

• Soften the apples, and onion in oil, taking care not to colour
• Add the garlic and spices and ginger and cook for 2 minutes
• Add the sweet potatoes
• Carefully pour in the stock, stirring until the soup starts to boil
• Turn down heat, pop a lid on the saucepan & simmer for 30 mins (or until sweet potatoes are soft)
• Remove pan from the heat, liquidise, season to taste
• We also added some cream

  Naturally enough, we also polished off some left over birthday cake, because we wouldn't want to enter our 'healthy week' with cake left over (although the missionaries did bring me a giant box of Dairy Milk that I would take about a week to finish lol)

Here are the recipes I have planned and shopped for, for the coming week.

• Saturday 7th December - CHICKPEA AND SQUASH CURRY
• Sunday 8th December -  VEGETABLE CHILI followed by FRUIT CRUMBLE
• Monday 9th December -  CREAMY PESTO PASTA
• Tuesday 10th December -  EASY CHEESY VEG PITTA
• Wednesday 11th December - CHICKPEA BURGERS
• Thursday 12th December - CHEESE & LEEK SKINS
• Friday 13th December - MUSHROOM & JALAPENOS WRAPS

Sounds good right? Lets hope it tastes good (or I may have to break out the emergency hot-dogs for Oscar).

Have A Wonderful Weekend

Valerie

xxx

Yarn Along

READING

A friend gave me this book for my birthday, and although I wont have time to knit from it until after Christmas, it gives me something to look forward to (Duncan also got me a Debbie Bliss pattern book).

This book is for beginners and intermediates and has some lovely patterns, I am looking forward to getting started. AMAZON LINK

KNITTING

Another SNAPPY HAT for the missionaries (Christmas), this time in James C Brett MONSOON, this colour way is S4 in the link.

For a 70% acrylic 30% wool yarn I think this is really great. Obviously the Mirasol Sulka is fantastic for knitting these hats (SEE HERE) but it is not cheap to buy, and so I am happy with this blend as a cheaper alternative.

I actually made one last week in this yarn (colour way S3 in the link), and gave it to Duncan as part of his anniversary gift, and he said last night that it was very cosy. 

Joining in with GINNY and friends for Yarn Along

Valerie

xxx

Birthday

Surrounded

There is an unusually high number of churches in the small place that we live. I have not actually counted how many, and Google didn't throw up an immediate answer, but I can think of 8 off the top of my head. The population here is roughly 13,000, so that seems like a lot of churches to me.

We can see 3 churches just from our cottage alone, none of which are actually MY church, (which is a bus ride away), but I still like having church buildings close by. They are infinitely more interesting than offices or chinese take-aways.

My Church - Bingham Tce Dundee - source

I tried going to a church close to where I live, but they didn't work for me. Have I ever told you how I joined THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER DAY SAINTS? Well, I tried the Baptist Church (twice), I tried the Protestant Church (several times over several years), and I tried the Catholic Church (a few times), and they just did not sit right with me. I knew that my desire to live a more Christ like life was growing and growing, but it had to fit. It didn't have to be easy (and it isn't, sometimes it is really hard), but the Doctrine had to be compatible with the small handful of beliefs that I held in my heart.

The internet is a wonderful source of information, but it is also filled with a lot of untruths, half baked truths and things with just enough truth to make you believe it. There is as much correct information about Mormonism as there is untruths on the internet. So I went to the Latter Day Saint Website and I requested a Missionary visit HERE. I figured that if they could tell me their basic beliefs then I could decide whether to accept or reject them.

One of the first things we talked about is children under 8. Having lost a baby girl in pregnancy, it was a big thing for me to hear that unlike some other faiths, Latter Day Saints believe that all babies and children go straight to heaven regardless of baptism. In our church, we believe that children under 8 cannot be held fully accountable and therefore cannot be classed as sinners or unclean. Its a big stumbling block for me with regards to the Christian faiths who believe we are born with sin. Oscar will be baptised at age 8, if he so chooses, I didn't have to choose this for him at a few weeks old because I was afraid he would go to Hell if I don't get it done. 

Another thing we talked about is the Trinity. When the missionaries asked me how I thought of the Trinity I told them I thought of 3 separate beings, and they were enthusiastic about my answer. Some other faiths believe that God The Father, Jesus The Son and The Holy Spirit are 3 within one, a single being. I couldn't reconcile this in my head. I couldn't help but see them as 3 separate beings with 3 separate purposes but of course beautifully linked.

Well, my lessons with the Missionaries continued and each time we came to one of my 'things' I found that I already believed what the Church believed. It was a weird thing for me, since I came from a Catholic Father and a Protestant mother. I can only assume then, that my understanding and beliefs came directly from my Father in Heaven, since my earthy parents avoided most religious instruction because of their different backgrounds.

I had to follow my heart and I guess that's really true for all of us. I am not trying to tell anyone they are wrong, its not my place to do that, but I knew that what I had found in churches up until that point  seemed wrong to me.

I have said goodbye to the first 2 missionaries who became such good friends over the course of my lessons, but we still keep in touch. A 3rd missionary came to replace the missionary who baptised me, and he, Elder Tinsley has been carrying on my teachings all through the summer . Well, the Lord must have decided I didn't need him any more, and so we also said our goodbye's yesterday. I will miss him terribly, and Oscar cried about him leaving and said 'but I love him so much'. 

As I have loved you,

Love one another.

This new commandment:

Love one another.

By this shall men know

Ye are my disciples,

If ye have love

One to another.

We Love You Elder Tinsley, Thank you for teaching us the Gospel

Valerie

xxx