Halupki "stuffed cabbage"

Halupki

Ingredients:
2/3 c water 1 lb. ground beef
1/3 cup uncooked white rice 1/4 cup chopped onion
8 cabbage leaves 1 egg, beaten
1 tsp salt 1 can condensed tomato soup
1/4 tsp black pepper

Directions:
1. In a medium saucepan, bring water to a boil, add rice and stir, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes

2. Bring a large saucepan of water to boil, salted, add cabbage leaves and cook for 2-4 minutes or until softened, drain

3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine beef, 1 cup cooked rice, onion, egg, salt, pepper, along with 2 tblsp tomato soup. Mix thoroughly.

4. divide beef mixture among cabbage leaves, roll and secure with toothpicks.

5. In large skillet over medium heat, place cabbage rolls in and pour remaining tomato soup over top. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 40 min., stirring and basting with liquid often.

A Mother's Prayer

Oh give me patience when tiny hands

Tug at me with their small demands.

And give me gentle & smiling eyes;

Keep my lips from sharp replies.

And let not fatigue, confusion or noise

Obscure my vision of life's fleeting joys.

So when years later and my house is still-

No bitter memories its room may fill.

~author unknown

Grrr! Grrr!


It is a gorgeous Saturday!

A Saturday that I would love to be spending outside in my flower garden preparing it for winter. I find myself, however, in a crabby mood stuck in my house making sure a punishment is being followed.

My kids are anything but cooperative on this gorgeous day. Brenna has spent most of her morning in her room upset (and being punished for not obeying!) because she witnessed the throwing away of dead flowers that our beloved neighbor, Ms. Donna, gave to her. The more I tried to explain to my 5 year old why the flowers had to go and that new ones would be growing in their place in the spring - the LOUDER she screamed and refused to listen. Ethan who is in and out of the house, chooses his "in" times to agitate his sister and make her mood, ever so pleasant!!

As I listened to her in her room (she has now been set "free") sending me a message of frustration (and exhaustion from what I feel a week of ALL DAY KINDERGARTEN can easily do to a child - Grrr! don't get me started...that's a whole other topic!) I could not help but think that her screaming and crying would make for a GREAT backdrop/sound effect for a spook house!

I decided to have some brief "mommy time" and get on the blog! I am so glad that I did! As I scrolled down through older posts I came upon one that has really calmed my frustrations, selfishness, and what I have felt as failures today (on more than one level).

I first want to apologize to YOU SARAH, and to the other moms that have written blogs or commented on what was written! It is 100% my loss. Wow. What amazing things I have missed for not taking a few minutes to read this blog!

Wendy G, I know you related to this blog too! I did. I know know that all of us feel this way on more than one occasion! Sarah I hope you don't mind the re-posting!


Failed

I make plans for myself and my family. Sometimes those plans are verbalized. Often they are unwritten subtleties, unconscious expectations.

These are my enemies-these silent objectives.

They taunt me when unmet. They use names like unworthy and inadequate. On occasion they whip out the really powerful adjectives to titles I already claim: bad mother, loser wife.

Unspoken goals have powerful voices.

All too often I agree. I add my own label: failure. I claim that name for myself, worrying that my husband is disappointed and angry and that my children are being scarred beyond recognition. I carry that weight with me day in and day out till I can no longer stand under the burden.

I cry.

I seek out my husband asking if I am the failure I believe I am. I don't believe his answer. I ask if he is disappointed in me, angry with my performance. I don't believe his answer. I question my mothering listing all the times I could have done things differently. I don't believe his answer.

I pray that this burden be lifted, that I be forgiven for being less that everything, that I be made a wife and a mother worthy of these dear ones in my family.

And I read:

Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy comes from God.

2 Corinthians 3:5

And He speaks.

And I rest assured that in spite of my shortcomings, in spite of my weaknesses, in spite of my inadequacy, He will care for my family. For He loves them more than I ever could. He created them just as He created me. He knows that we together are but dust. In His love for all of us--husband, wife, children--He will make me adequate for this call to motherhood.

~This blog was written by Sarah and original posted in April of 2009.

Dreams & Nightmares…and Imagination!

My youngest, Ethan 3, has been experiencing nightmares lately. Not fun.
Last night his crying sent my heart in full panic mode! I rushed to his room to see his arms fully extended waiting for me and I when I got to him he squeezed me so hard and just cried and cried.
“What’s wrong buddy?”
More crying. No answer.
“Ethan why are you crying?”
More crying. No answer.
“Did you have a scary dream?”
Even as his up and down motion of the head confirmed my suspicion, I still do not think he understands what is going on with dreams. So, if he can’t even comprehend (which lets face it, it’s a hard thing for even an adult to understand) it, how can mommy explain it and then fix it?
I dislike nightmares very much. The unconscious mind of children should be a happy place!
I have prayed with him when this happens and that does seem to help. We pray for dreams filled with footballs, puppies playing, racecars, balloons, and pizza!
The one good thing about nightmares in a child is that they are, forgotten by morning. It’s only in adulthood that they stick with you longer! However, I have begun to wonder if those cranky dreams make for a cranky little boy? Hmmmmm? Will I ever know any of these answers?

What is so amazing about the imagination of a child, however, is the pure power of it! Conscious or unconscious, the imagination is a wonderful thing! You cannot tell your child that what they are doing is just “pretend.” When their imagination is working on overtime you better prepare yourself to “step only on the island (carpet) so you won’t sunk” or watch what or who your try to toss in the garbage “NO don’t throw the princess away! (a Kleenex tied with a string!)”

Ethan woke up in the wee hours Thursday morning calling for me. Another nightmare? I didn’t hear fear in his voice. Down the stairs I go and as soon as I reach his room, he begins to tell me all about this really tall and really cool bean stock.
“I think you had a dream buddy!”
He replied very sleepily, “NO it’s real mommy. I will show you.”
“Okay Ethan. Where is it?”
When he didn’t respond I looked down to see that he had fallen back asleep. A few hours later when it was time to ACTUALLY wake up, I had forgotten about the bean stock and I thought he had to.
We were walking out of our front door to take Brenna to school and Ethan stops and looks down our little road. I could not help but notice the very confused look on his face and watched him adjust his head as if to get a better view.
“What do you see Ethan?”
“Mommy!! The bean stock is GONE!” He explains pointing.
“Oh!”
“It was right there on the road mommy. It was really big and tall.”
I waited to see what reason he would come up with for the “disappearance” of the bean stock.
“Some one must have moved it.” He concluded.
Obviously.
As I was loading him in the car, I said, “Maybe the bean stock was just your imagination?”
He looked up at me thought for a minute put on his cutest face managed a little giggle and said, “Yeah, it was just my magination mommy.”
As I closed the car door and went to walk around the car, I glanced back to see his face pressed against the glass and his eyes searching!
I just love imagination!