Friday, May 29, 2009

Summer Time

Well, the girls are home, and I'm BUSY. I feel like I'm running around like a chicken with her head cut off.
Deborah had her birthday on Memorial day! She's 6. Her daddy took her to Walmart and bought her a little cheap camera and she's been taking pictures of everything- cats, dolls, ponies, family, her hand. She's lovin' it. I'm glad it's digital and we're not paying to print the pictures! ;)
Beth and I have been at Farmer's Market 2 Wednesdays and a Saturday. Around 3;30 last Saturday we all started getting antsy about the black nasty clouds blowing in. Most of the vendors started packing up a few minutes early. Just as the 4 o'clock time hit, we were deluged. A heavy rainfall dumped on us, and almost blew the tent next to us away. The potter next to us had taken her weights off and then started packing up her stuff. Ooops... Her tent lifted up off the ground about 3 feet, and two of us dove to help her.
So far, Farmer's Market has been slow. We've sold a handful of items and would like to sell more! But, we've already had a lot of people say they'll be back- Hope they actually do come back... ;)
We had very hot temperatures last week- 80's, which is hot for May up here. And this week it's been rain, rain, rain. The ground needs it, I know, but I'd love for it to be sunny and nice.
Anyway, I probably won't be getting much blogging done this summer, but I never know... :)
Happy Summer!

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Blue Like Jazz



Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller

I recently read this book- I've had several friends recommend it to me, and when I'd pick it up in the store it just seemed incredibly wishy-washy... Too hip for itself. An attempt to make Christianity cool. And I was like, money vs. book I don't think I'll like. So, I passed on the book... Then, a friend loaned it to me and I read it.

(Yes, that should tell you where my priorities were. I wasn't willing to spend the money on trying out the book, 'cuz I only buy books I know will be good. And most of the time I buy books I've already read & know I'll re-read, or books by authors I love. I don't spend money on books I'm not sure of.)

I wasn't really interested in trying this book. I picked it up a couple of times and caught bits about smoking pot, having a thing for Canadian girls, or a cartoon about Don Astronaut circling the earth. Blech. Trust me, I don't have time to read books that aren't good... I've got kids to catch and tame, beads to string, dinners to make... But friends whose opinions I respect liked it... I kind of decided it must be a guy book, just something I wasn't gonna get or enjoy.

But then my small group leader loaned it to me. And I read it. And I liked it. I related to Miller's descriptions of questioning the church. I appreciated his honesty. I got his struggle with selfishness, and liked that he talked about it openly. (I think most of us get the whole selfish thing, but just don't want to talk about it, and he just GOES for it, and is almost TMI with how his selfishness runs his life.)

Here's a selection from his book:

My most recent faith struggle is not one of intellect. I don't really do that anymore. Sooner or later you just figure out there are some guys who don't believe in God and they can prove He doesn't exist, and some other guys who do believe in God and they can prove He does exist, and the argument stopped being about God a long time ago and now it's about who is smarter, and honestly I don't care. I don't believe I will ever walk away from God for intellectual reasons. Who knows anything anyway? If I walk away from Him, and please pray that I never do, I will walk away for social reasons, identity reasons, deep emotional reasons, the same reasons that any of us do anything.

My friend Julie Canlis from Seattle has this beautiful mother named Rachel who is small and petite and always remembers my name when I come for a visit. One morning I was sitting at the counter in the kitchen talking to Rachel about love and marriage, and she was gleaming about her husband a little, and I told her in one of those rare momemts of vulnerability that I was scared to get married because I thought my wife might fall out of love with me, suddenly after seeing a movie or reading a book or seeing me naked. You never know what might trigger these things. Rachel looked at me through the steam that was coming off her coffee and said, very wisely and comfortingly, that when a relationship is right, it is no more possible to wake up and want out of the marriage than it is to wake up and stop believing in God. What is, is what is, she said.

And that's when I realized that believing in God is as much like falling in love as it is like making a decision. Love is both something that happens to you and something you decide upon. And so I bring up that story about Julie's mom not because I want to talk about love, but because I want to talk some about belief. I have come to think that belief is something that happens to us too. Sure, there is some data involved, but mostly it is the deep, deep conviction, like what Julie's mom feels about her husband, this idea that life is about this thing, and it really isn't an option for it to be about something else.

From Blue Like Jazz, by Donald Miller

So, I relate to this guy. And it's okay with me if you don't like the book. I didn't like every bit of it, and I found some of it kind of whiny... As a mom, I found myself wanting to say to this guy, 'get over it, and grow up' a couple of times; however, as a Christian who finds herself quite perplexed by some of the choices the 'church' has made, and disturbed by the face we paint on for the disillusioned world, I get where he's coming from.

Blue Like Jazz is worth the time. It may not change you, but it might make you feel like you're not alone... There are people out there who are just as confused as you are about the church and the Christian faith.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Waiting to be a Bead Star

I forgot to say this- I won't know how I've done in the Bead Star contest until mid June. And I'm such an impatient person! Hard for me to wait that long. And not know anything. =)

2 out of 2,000

I got a chance to go look at the Bead Star site again last night, and discovered they had over 2,000 entries for this contest. They chose a total of 180 (20 in each category) as finalists. And I had 2 out of that selected! I feel good about just getting chosen out of that many entries, even if I don't win.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Bead Star Finalist!!!

2 of my pieces made it to the finals!!!
I'm jumping up and down! And kind of giggling.

We went to Farmer's Market today and had a TERRIBLE day. We didn't sell a single thing- either of us. Yuck. I hate days like that. Even one thing would have paid my mom for watching the girls...
So, I came home and was pretty much a walking zombie. Tired, 'cuz I didn't sleep well. Sad 'cuz I didn't sell anything. We ate dinner and Jake took the girls for an 'adventure' (a walk down towards the river) After getting the girls to bed, I dawdled around and got to bed.
And laying there I realized, it's the 16th! They'll have posted the finalists!
I dashed down here and checked. And I've got two items that made it to the finals!!! That does not mean I'll win anything, but it's very exciting.
My Mermaid's necklace made the finals in the seed beads category, and my Tangerine Jublie made the finals in the plastics! Woo-hoo!!!!

Monday, May 11, 2009

Old Love

Oh the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away.
George Eliot

Star Trek

For those of you who don't know, I consider myself a Trekkie.
I've seen all the episodes of the original Star Trek more than once, and know a shocking amount of trivia about the episodes. I'm not one of the Trekkies who can explain every bit of the technical aspects of the Star Trek universe. I loved the characters, and their relationships.
I read the novelizations of the episodes. I read and still own about 50 of the first novels. I loved this universe and still read some of the books. I loved the cartoon, and have seen every episode and I've read & own those novelizations.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Next Generation, but wouldn't classify myself as a Trekker (that's the people who prefer The Next Generation or one of the later model- Deep Space Nine, Voyager, or Generations).
I am a Trekkie. I always loved the interplay between the original characters- Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, Chekov, Sulu, Scotty, Nurse Chapel... And the aliens. And the red shirts.

I saw the new movie today with Jake. I loved it. And I absolutely hated it. I'm not going to give anything away for those of you who haven't seen it yet and want to, but they broke my heart.
I appreciated the story line, and the idea of going back in time and changing things. This opens up wonderful new adventure possibilities, and I know they are drawing in new fans with the retelling of the originals.
And, I loved the movie. I enjoyed the story line. I loved the re-visioning of the characters. But some of what they did was devastating to my Trekkie heart...

Saturday, May 09, 2009

Farmer's Market

Beth & I did NOT go to Farmer's Market today. There were many very good reasons, but the one I'm most pleased with is that the wind is blowing and it's raining. With an ear infection I had NO business being out in the wind and rain.
Here's the connection for the TVFM page: http://www.tvfmarket.com/
I expect we'll be there this Wednesday, depending on the weather. We generally don't go if it's windy and rainy, 'cuz it's bad for the jewelry and it's bad for the sisters. ;)

Grandchildren of Margrete & Jakob J. Sirevaag; and the Durett family

My husband is Norwegian, if you haven't figured that out yet... In fact, he is the son of a man who immigrated from Norway in his twenties and married a lovely Norwegian lady he met in Chicago. Jake remembers them having conversations in Norwegian so that the kids couldn't understand them.
Actually, Jake lived in Norway for about a year when he was 4 or 5, and he spoke Norwegian fluently. He doesn't remember anything but basics and silly phrases now, like "you smell like an outhouse", the sort of thing a kid would remember.
Anyway, Jake's dad was one of thirteen, and many of those thirteen had other children. So even though he's never met most of them, Jake's got many, many cousins. And most of them live in Norway. Here's something fun. Jake told me there's a town in Southern Norway called Sirevaag (actually it's Sirevog with two little dots over the o), that one of his great-great-greats used to own, and probably gambled away.
I've done a google search on my name, Rebecca Sirevaag, and discovered that there are probably only a couple of us in the world. Just guessing, but Jake is probably related to them... One is a scientist or doctor. I can't tell for sure, because all of the articles and web pages she's listed on are in Norwegian. I've also found a very young Rebecca Sirevaag on FB, and I'm pretty sure she's not the scientist/doctor, although I could be wrong. Again, her page description was all in Norwegian.
My family is just as large, and probably just as confusing as Jake's since my grandmother was one of 12 children, nine of which survived, married and had around 5 children each. My mom has about 48 cousins, and I have well over 100 cousins. My grammy was a Durett- a French Huguenot family who fled France during the Catholic Reign of Terror. (The Huguenots believed that the Bible should be translated into the French language so that everyone could read it. They also believed God gives salvation as a gift, not a reward based on rituals or behavior.) The Duretts ended up in the U.S., and my grammy actually remembered coming across the U.S. in a covered wagon.

Thursday, May 07, 2009

April 7

God, Thank you for my sister!
Today is her birthday. Thank you for her friendship and loyalty, her silliness and all the memories.
I pray that you would give her the mind of Christ. Increase her creativity and ability to accomplish what she wants. I pray that you would fill her with your spirit, and guide her choices. Grant her wisdom and grace, and let her know beyond a shadow of a doubt the depth and width of your love for her. May she have a glimmering of the strength and power of your self-sacrificing and inescapable love.
God, help me with my girls. Show them how much you love them. Please let them choose you, and want you. May I be the mom they need.
Help Deborah with her temper.
Help Abigail with her independence.
I pray that Jake would have a blessed day- a peaceful day off work. Be in his mind and heart and on his lips.
Grant that my mom would have a painless day and the ability to do what she needs and wants.
Lord, hold Alana in your hand. Keep her baby safe. Give her doctor wisdom and insight.
Continue your healing in Susan & Jason.

Skimbleshanks, the Railway Cat

I woke up this morning singing, 'Skimbleshanks, the Railway Cat, the Cat of the Railway Train.'
Yikes.
Is this good or bad??

Lost Photos

I spent about an hour working on pictures of some of my new jewelry, downloading & editing, trimming and culling.
And I just lost all the pictures. I have no idea what I did, or if they're really completely gone. I'm too upset to deal with it.
Arrrgh! I don't know what I did! I was trying to rename the folder, 'cuz my stupid program only lets me keep them filed under dates and I HATE that. And somehow I clicked once too many times, or hit a wrong button. I've never done this with a whole folder of edited and ready-to-go pictures...

Wednesday, May 06, 2009

Step By Step

Oh, God, You are my God,
And I will ever praise You.
Oh God, You are my God,
And I will ever praise You.
And I will seek You in the morning,
And I will learn to walk in Your ways,
And step by step You'll lead me,
And I will follow You all of my days.
written by Rich Mullins

Prayer for May 6th
God, please strengthen and fill me today. I'm so tired and still sick. I'm so tired of being sick. Heal my body and my spirit. Thank you for your grace and healing power. Please give me your creativity to solve problems, to get things done, and to be a mom.
God, lift up and strengthen Jake today. Fill him with your Spirit and empower him to do your will and desire. Please be on his tongue and mind today.
God, bring healing to Beth. Christ, fill her mind and give her clarity and creativity.
Thank you for the gift of my mother. Please bring peace to her heart and healing to her body.
Hold Susan & Jason in your arms. Sing their song over them loudly enough for them to hear, so that their hearts can heal. I pray that you would grant them the gift of a baby.
Help Deborah learn self-control.
Help Abigail learn obedience before she gets hurt badly.
May I be the mommy they both need, so they can walk in your steps.

My clipboard

I'm almost done with my clipboard! And I'm very pleased. I'm not entirely done, but I'm not sure what else I'm going to do... I'm working on layers of mod podge now. Beth just told me I need to do at least 4 coats of it to protect and seal the papers in... Is that true??? I was surprised. I thought 2 was enough, but she generally knows way more than me about craft type stuff.
I'm looking forward to enjoying my lovely craft piece in the grocery store. ;)



Clipboards

Yup, I'm still having fun with the clipboards! ;)
I know it's not art. I know not a single one of these is done.
But I'm having fun.
And I'm learning. I had no idea how LONG doing collage work like this took...
Good grief. The layering thing takes FOREVER.
You've got to wait for everything to dry before you can go on to the next layer. And when I'm finally done with the layering, I've got to let each coat of mod podge dry before I can paint another coat on. And Beth seems to think I should have at least 4 coats of mod podge.. Is that true? Do I really need that many???

I've got five different clipboards going right now.


First- the green & turquoise with blue flowers.


Next the green & blue geometry piece.


Third, and my second favorite, the orange & turquoise paisley piece.



Finally the yellow sunflower clipboard.
So, I can at least say that I'm having a lot of fun... And discovering all sorts of interesting tidbits about glue, scissors, and ribbon.
I bought most of the paper and supplies while I was on vicadin for my surgery, and my favorite part of that was me congratulating myself in the store for my good taste.... I may actually think most of the time that I've got good taste. I suspect most people think they have good taste, or at least think they like what they like. But I was in there actually saying things to myself like, 'Wow! Becca look at how nice those things look together! You are really good at this!!'
At least I wasn't saying it out loud. Just in my head.
Something I probably wouldn't have been saying to myself unless under the influence of good drugs...

Sunday, May 03, 2009

Deborah's Music Concert

Yup, that's my big girl there... Right in the middle wearing the denim jumper, the long sleeve pink shirt and glasses.
She got to play the xylophone! And was very good at it! She keeps very good timing, always has. She's the one who rode around in my tummy the year I was playing djembe so much of the time.
The lighting was horrid! Nasty yellow gym lights. And most of the kids look like little zombie monsters in the first photo, but isn't my daughter darling! ;)



Our Backyard

It's May 3rd. Do you know where your snow is?
I do! It's in our backyard.

Bike Ride

Jake pulled out the bikes! We got to go on a good bike ride last night...
Boy, am I out of shape!! 2 surgeries, not being able to walk, not sleeping and an ear infection do not make for a girl with stamina!
I LOVE my tricycle... I never learned to ride a regular bike, but Jake wanted me to be able to go on excursions with everybody. So he got me that last summer. It's wonderful! I can't go as fast as his Schwinn 'cuz it's only one speed, but I'm biking! Woo-hoo!
I buckle Deborah into my little bike basket and we're off! ;) Soon, we're hoping that she'll ride her own bike and we can tuck a lunch or something fun into my basket.



Saturday, May 02, 2009

Entries for Bead Star

Here are my entries for the Bead Star contest. I'm pleased with most of the pictures. ;) We'll see how it goes.

Sadly, I entered 3 of my pictures before realizing that there was a request for ALL of the necklace to show. Ooops. So, three of my pieces (and the three I think most likely to have done well) will probably not qualify. Oh. Well.

I should have read all the instructions before taking the pictures. Duh.

My family and I had fun coming up with fancy/silly/absurd names for all the pieces, and I hope you have fun reading them.
Tangerine Jubilee

Entered into the Plastics category
Onyx Geometry

Entered into the stones category



A Mermaid's Dream

Entered into the seed beads category
(See how the whole piece doesn't show? I should have had the clasp and dangle showing in back...)



Forget-Me-Nots

Entered into the Hearts category (Isn't that silly? I don't know why they have a hearts category. I think it sponsors something... Anyway, you're supposed to use heart shaped beads or images in your work.)




Dragon's Flame

Entered into the metal/ wire category
(Another piece where the clasp isn't showing...)





Halcyon Breeze

Entered into the glass category
(the last piece not completely showing...)



Berries on the Vine

Entered into the Pearls category







A Monarch's Kiss

Entered into the Swarovski Crystals category