Yep, it's that topic of ROMANCE again.

I just had to post this. This is my darling sister's response to my post on romance. Here it is: "Does romance die with marriage, or is it just the outward show that fizzles out and there's still something deep inside that the public doesn't see?! This is something I've been discreetly studying, ha ha! At weddings mostly. Everyone should be feeling relaxed and romantic there, right? No kids along. So I poke my husband and whisper, look! There's a couple holding hands or he's got his arm around her or they are really acting interested in what the other is saying and they have got to be at least forty years old. See? romance can thrive in a marriage! And then, I kid you not, this has happened at least 3 out of 3 times, I peer and eventually see no wedding rings, they're just a dating older couple . . . sigh. But I've come to the conclusion that when you're busy with everyday life, you still have to take time for dates to be romantic, but when you're at a wedding, you're both just keen on the good food, entertainment, seeing what everyone else is doing and wearing, and when you get home you'll sit on the couch and kick off your shoes and laugh and gaze in each other's eyes --- if the kids ain't hollerin'.
Back to me. I have been discreetly studying older couples as well...in church. If they sit miles apart, in my book, it's a sure sign of a bad case of fuddy-duddyhood settling in. Meanwhile, the couple is simply sitting far apart because someone is wearing a large hat in front of them (probably me) and they can't see the minister! But seriously, I get a case of the warm fuzzies when I see an older couple in love and showing it!!!
p.s. I love your description of why you go to weddings - good food, entertainment, and seeing what others are wearing... and in that order! Never mind that a young couple is promising love till the day they die... haha.

See, I ain't against romance!

Goodbye, Lard!""

This morning I was saying "goodbye" to Mike as he was heading out the door. I was going to say "Goodbye, darling" and then in my mind I changed it to "Goodbye, love" so when it came out of my mouth, I said: "Goodbye lard!" - a combo of the two. Mike paused, looked at me and said, "Real nice, Chubby!" I like to start the morning off laughing!

An Exciting Opportunity Coming Your Way!!!

Well, what do you think? I'm thinking about writing a book. Since I have such varied knowledge on relationships, marriage, and all of that good stuff, I thought I'd better start putting my knowledge to use. Irene is going to co-author it with me. She has a very keen interest on the subject of modesty, and she would like to write that chapter. Irene will provide all of the idealistic ramblings while I will provide a good dose of reality. Now all I need are a few case studies of various people's marriages. I'm going to need some examples of good and bad marriages. So if you would like to be a part of this exciting project, let me know. Just let me know if you marriage falls into the "good" or "bad" category. Think of what a service you'll be doing to others! I just need a title for my book. I was thinking of "When Two Hotheads Marry."

Our Little Girl

Here is Jules wearing her Sunday outfit from Aunt Lora V.G. She looks a little untidy with her sweater up and her undershirt hanging out. Mom always said I was one of the messy ones in the family with my undershirt (hempe) hanging out and one knee high up and one down... Jules is carrying the tradition on.

Dieting

Well, I'm sure I've scared any of the men that take a peep at my blog with one look at the title. Haven't you all been there? Remember the time your wife asked you if a particular dress made her look fat? Well, you hesitated for one second too long and the rest is history. Now when the subject of "dieting" comes up, a dazed look comes across your face and you ready yourself for endless days of damage control. I remember when I was young and skinny as anything, my sisters used to talk to me about how they were going to go on a diet, what clothes flattered their figures, etc, and it was so BORING! After awhile I learned to nod my head and agree with whatever they said and I vowed that I would never subject my siblings (or kids) to such topics! Instead I'm subjecting all of you! So just skip this post if it gives you heart palpitations or any other bothersome symptoms. Quite frankly, unless you are dieting yourself, all talks of diet and weight control are terribly tedious.
Mike and I are cutting back on fat intake. In fact, I have a chicken recipe that I am going to post one of these days - I even took a picture of it! The other day I made a low-fat soup using diced celery bulb, took pictures of all the steps and planned on posting it until I actually tasted it. All those pictures were for naught for the soup was rather bland. Anyway, the main thing that we are trying to cut back on is fat intake. Then I had a conversation with my sister-in-law who said I should be cutting back on sugar. This was heart-breaking to even think about. Consider: I eat two toasts every morning covered in honey, and the same thing for lunch. (I like it so much I am considering writing an ode titled: "To a Toast All Smothered in Honey". Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?) Then I have coffee twice a day with a sweet of some kind. So I am inclined to ignore the less sugar idea and focus on less fat. What do you think?

Christian Children's Literature

CURRENT Christian children's literature is important. The reason why I emphasized the word "current" is because many books that our children receive via school, church, or even books that parents purchase for them take place back in the day. There is nothing wrong with books such as Johnny the Woodchopper, or Jimmy, the Little Chimneysweep, and other stories along that vein. Many of them show the lives of children who have been delivered from Satan and who love God. Of course this is positive! But if the only books our children read take place in the 1800's, children can very easily start to believe that in order to be a christian you had to live way back then. Secondly, it may be somewhat difficult for children today to relate to a starving chimneysweep, or a poor woodchopper. Somewhat unfortunately, many of the children in these books die in the end, which could also enforce the mistaken idea that christian children die at an early age. And what child (or adult for that matter) wants to hear that??? (I realize that death was more of a reality back then for children, and so it does not mean that we should avoid these books. On the other hand, a steady diet of these types of books is probably not a good idea). I believe it is important to have a variety of christian material for your children to read! And that means investigating current (christian) writers!