A comment I posted on seattlepi.com

If DSHS were to actually follow the law, and even it's own guidelines, to the letter, they would have a much smaller agency. There would be far fewer children removed from their homes, so fewer foster families needed. Fewer children would be traumatized by being abruptly and uncaringly yanked away from loving parents, and so there would be less need for psychologists, counselors, and psych evals.

DSHS plays the game by their own rules...that they make up as they go along. They know their goal is to get the biggest piece of the federal pie as possible. That means they have to take more children away from good, safe, happy loving families and keep them out-of-home long enough to TPR so they then have more children for the adoption auction block.

DSHS reform? Not possible, I say. CPS does far more harm to the children that it claims to protect. It is an overpowering, insidious, nightmare of a monster that will not go back into the closet once daylight hits, but slithers out into the open wearing its disguise of peace and hope and safety, and all the sheeple either stupidly welcome it into the flock, or cautiously move to the edge of the field. The only ones who are safe are the ones who cast off their own covering of sheepskin and become mama and papa bears, willing and able to fight to the death to protect their cubs.

Am I there yet? I am some days, when this mama bear isn't locked up in a cage of depression or futility. A quote I read on another website today reads, '"I have lost a lot, forsaken so much more, that to win, at all cost now, hardly seems worth it anymore...", quote of the depressed.' This is the goal of DSHS: to tear apart families and become more powerful, and to do that they have to get every parent to the point of giving in or giving up completely, so they can lock us back up in the sheepfold or let the coyotes feed on our flesh, eating us alive.

To DSHS I say: Go away! Die already! Our country and families were far better off without you! We are not in need of your "services", which is why you feel compelled to "offer" these "services" at the point of a gun...sometimes literally, and the rest of the time with threats against our children. Only cowards and weaklings hurt children. Only terrorists kidnap children and hold them for ransom.

Abolish CPS!

My Life As It Is Right Now...and Why

I have been avoiding using this blog as a place to post about what is happening to my family, even though that was my intention in starting it. I wrote a long post here recently about it all, but have decided that it's better (i.e. safer) to not do so. Those of you who know what's going on have other places to follow the story, and at this time I have decided to leave this blog as a place for happier things.

Live Through Conscience...

This post was originally on facebook.

Please visit http://www.markmccoy.com

October 20, 2008 at 11:01 pm

"Men are like handsome race horses who first bite the bit and later like it," and even "learn to enjoy displaying their harness and prance proudly beneath their trappings." They "grow accustomed to the idea that they have always been in subjection, that their fathers lived in the same way; they will think they are obliged to suffer this evil, and will persuade themselves by example and imitation of others, finally investing those who order them around with proprietary rights, based on the idea that it has always been that way." -- Estienne De La Boetie 1546 A.D.

"Live through conscience, act through reason, submit to nature, account to the Creator" - Mark McCoy

A poem by my son

My children are attending "Friday School", which is a one-day-a-week setting for homeschoolers to join together for extra classes and activities that they might not otherwise be able to enjoy alone. My 15 year old is in a poetry class. Apparently he was one of only a few that actually completed the assignment (even the teacher didn't do it!), and he did it the night before it was due.

That one poem that I wrote a little late in the night

Gaah, this poem, it's truly a bore
This poem is harder than ones before
My head is hurting more and more

Silently, I pace the floor
Writing these lines is such a chore
Gaah, this poem, it's truly a bore

Across the room my brothers snore
I check my watch, it's almost 4:00
My head is hurting more and more

I close my eyes, they're getting sore
The urge to fall asleep, I ignore
Gaah, this poem, it's truly a bore

My nerves shout, they're in an uproar
I almost forgot what I'm writing this for
My head is hurting more and more
Gaah, this poem, it's truly a bore

by Josiah October 9, 2008

CPS Sucks

(Note: this post was originally posted on facebook, so no video posted on this blog.  If I come across it I will attach it to this post.)

October 8, 2008 at 8:19 am

"Our" not-so-wonderful "government" has done it again: another attempt at destroying my family. This time it is by arresting my husband on what I believe are false charges, merely as a harassment and intimidation attack for an attempt to expose their criminal behavior of kidnapping our baby and holding him hostage. (Look up the definitions of those federal crimes, and it fits "the state" to a "T") (its all about the video I have posted here. If you haven't watched it yet, do it!)

So now, I not only have 7 of the greatest children in the world being held hostage in Washington, I now have a new baby (that I haven't seen in over a month) and my most excellent husband being held prisoner in Oregon.

I guess that's what the whole family is: Prisoners of War.

There's a war on, people, in case you aren't aware of it. No, I'm not talking about the Middle East (does that ever stop?) or even Russia. I'm talking about the very real war here at home: the war against the family. It's a lie when they say "preserving the family" is a priority. It's not. The more they can tear us apart, the more "services" they can force on people (at the point of a gun, practically), well, that gives them more money and more power. Isn't that what makes the world go 'round? No, it's not love, like in the songs. It's all about power and control, and the more people you have under your thumb, and the more money you can extract from whatever source, the more power and control you have. It's sick.

So here I am alone, a good mom, an excellent mom and wife (I know because I've been told so!). No real hope of ever seeing my baby again, no hope of having my other children live with me (even though I have NEVER hurt them and never will!), and no hope that I can ever live a normal life with my husband.

"Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life." Proverbs 13:12

The only true hope I have in this life is the eternal, which is really what it's all about. (no, it's not the hokey pokey)

That's all for now. I have to go to work. I have to keep on, surviving day by day.

Photo Contest entry

I want to enter Costco's annual Photo Contest, and today is the deadline. (Have I ever mentioned that I'm a major procrastinator?) After looking through all the photos I've taken this past year, I think one of these two is the best (though I have LOTS that I really like). I had thought about cropping the one of my dd to a vertical shot, but I think I like it with all the water better.

Please let me know which one you think is "winning material". Thanks!






I enjoy playing around with different effects, and I really like this one that you can do in Picasa, with just a bit of color focused where you want and fading to black & white. Pretty cool, eh?

If you buy peace, you will be seen as weak. If you want peace, fight for it.
When you engage in actual fighting, if victory is long in coming, then men's weapons will grow dull and their ardor will be damped.

For My Husband

I'm going to "steal" a post from another friend:

To My Dear and Loving HusbandIf ever two were one, then surely we.

If ever man were lov'd by wife, then thee;

If ever wife was happy in a man,

Compare with me ye women if you can.

I prize thy love more than whole Mines of Gold,

Or all the riches that the East doth hold.

My love is such that Rivers cannot quench,

Nor ought but love from thee, give recompence.

Thy love is such I can no way repay,

The heavens reward thee manifold I pray.

Then while we live, in love lets so persevere,

That when we live no more, we may live ever.

This poem reminded me of another Anne Bradstreet poem that I found in a book last year, which I copied into a letter to my Dear Husband:

A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment

My head, my heart, mine eyes, my life, nay, more,
My joy, my magazine of earthly store,
If two be one, as surely thou and I,
How stayest thou there, whilst I at Ipswich lie?
So many steps, head from the heart to sever,
If but a neck, soon should we be together.
I like the Earth this season, mourn in black,
My Sun is gone so far in's zodiac,
Whom whilst I 'joyed, nor storms, nor frost I felt,
His warmth such frigid colds did cause to melt.
My chilled limbs now numbed lie forlorn;
Return; return, sweet Sol, from Capricorn;
In this dead time, alas, what can I more
Than view those fruits which through thy heat I bore?
Which sweet contentment yield me for a space,
True living pictures of their father's face.
O strange effect! now thou art southward gone,
I weary grow the tedious day so long;
But when thou northward to me shalt return,
I wish my Sun may never set, but burn
Within the Cancer of my glowing breast,
The welcome house of him my dearest guest.
Where ever, ever stay, and go not thence,
Till nature's sad decree shall call thee hence;
Flesh of thy flesh, bone of thy bone,
I here, thou there, yet but both one.

Books I've read this past year...

We've read a lot of books since last September. Usually I am the one reading, while we're driving someplace; we keep a book in the car always. Occasionally he is the one reading to me, usually at home at bedtime. And we love to check out thrift stores everywhere for more books!

I thought it would be interesting to list all finished books here, along with what we're currently reading, books we have yet to read, and ones that we still need to find (to finish a series, or we just want to read).

Terry Brooks

1. Magic Kingdom for Sale--Sold!
2. Black Unicorn
3. Wizard at Large
4. The Tangle Box
5. Witches' Brew

Orson Scott Card

1. Ender's Game
2. Speaker for the Dead
3. Xenocide
4. Children of the Mind
5. A War of Gifts
6. Ender in Exile

1. Ender's Shadow
2. Shadow of the Hegemon
3. Shadow Puppets
4. Shadow of the Giant

The Memory of Earth

Diana Gabaldon

1. Outlander
2. Dragonfly in Amber
3. Voyager

Dick Francis

1. Odds Against
2. Whip Hand
3. Come to Grief
4. Under Orders

In the Frame
Field of Thirteen
Second Wind
Dead Cert
For Kicks

Alistair Maclean
Athabasca
Floodgate
Caravan to Vaccares
Goodbye California
Partisans
San Andreas

Terry Goodkind

1. Wizard's First Rule
2. Stone of Tears
3. Blood of the Fold (Read in 2007 before Sept., but why we wanted the series)
   
4. Temple of the Winds

(Actually, my dh has downloaded all 12 of the books in this series. We think we'll put them on cd and listen to them in the car.)

Ayn Rand
Atlas Shrugged (dh has finished it; I have not. This is a "read on your own" book)
We the Living
The Fountainhead (we watched this classic movie recently)
For the New Intellectual
Anthem

Dave Barry
Big Trouble (watched this not-classic-but-funny movie recently)
Tricky Business

Mario Puzo

1. The Godfather (reading separately, when one of us is waiting in the car; we'll have to watch the movies sometime)
2. The Last Don
3. Omerta

Charles Dickens
Bleak House
A Tale of Two Cities (Dh read, I only got through the first chapter...)

Lillian Jackson Braun
The Cat Who Saw Red
The Cat Who Played Brahms
The Cat Who Played Post Office

Near or Far: Which is fairest of them all?

I wear glasses. I've worn glasses since I was about 12 or 13. I need them to help me see far away. Therefore, since I can see things up close, I am nearsighted. For some reason, people seem to get the terms "nearsighted" and "farsighted" confused, but I don't understand why. It makes perfectly logical sense to me that if you see better "far" you're farsighted, but if you see better "near" you're nearsighted. Anyway, that's not what this post is about.

I wear glasses. Oh yeah, I said that already. I did get contacts when I turned 16, and I still have some, but my eyes tend to be very dry, so if I wear them ALL DAY, or fall asleep with them in, they tend to stick to my eyeballs, and it's not very pleasant to remove them! Being pregnant and having small children for pretty much the past 17 years of my life has made me very tired, and naps are a wonderful, and sometimes unexpected, part of my day. I simply don't have time or energy to "take out my eyes" just for a nap, especially if I'm in the car.

So, despite the fact that little hands can make glasses pretty dirty, knock them off my face, and bend them, I wear glasses. The glasses I currently wear were purchased in 2004 (or was it 2003?). They are glass lenses as opposed to plastic, because glass doesn't scratch! I know, you can get "scratch-resistant coatings" for your lenses, but you know what? It doesn't really work! At least not for me. And my prescription isn't so strong that the lenses are any heavier in glass. I like my glasses, I really do. They have flexi-hinges on them, which means if they get opened too wide they don't break, which is really good when you have children who like to "borrow" your glasses.

But I really need new glasses. For the past 2 years, one of my lenses has this annoying habit of falling out, usually when I'm cleaning it. I tightened the screw. I went to Costco and had them replace the screw. We tried gluing it in place. Nothing worked. The space is stripped out, so no screw will stay in. I currently have a piece of wire running through the holes to hold them together. Sometimes, if I bend them just a bit in the wrong direction, the other lens pops out, too. Not a good thing.

So I need new glasses. Oh yeah, I already said that. I'd be happy to get another pair just like what I have, but Costco doesn't seem to have that exact style anymore. And my dh would like to see me with lenses a bit smaller than what I currently have. So, on a recent trip to Costco, I selected several frames to try on. Dh took photos of them all so that we could compare them at our leisure and make our choice. I would like to invite you all to tell me which one(s) you like the best, and also which ones you like the least. Please participate! Thanks in advance!


1)

2)

3)

4)

5)

6)

7)

8)

9)

10)

11)

12)

Quite a handful!

I know some of them look a lot alike, but really they are different. Maybe different colors or slightly different shapes on top or bottom. Leave a comment, please!

What's in a Name

Okay, I'm stealing the title of my post from my friend's blog. I don't think she'll mind. I was posting my comment and realized that it was getting way too long, so I decided to just use it as a new post over here and link to it in her comments. What she wrote about was how her children were named and why and what they mean. So I will do the same.

My firstborn was named while his dad and I were still engaged. (edit: over 4 years before he was born!) We were driving around town (So. Cal.) reading all the signs aloud. When I read the names of two cross-streets, Bryan & Culver, we both said, "what a cool name!" And that's how he got that name. He also had a friend, Brian, but we preferred the more unusual spelling. Occasionally we call him Byron or Brain, which is appropriate because he is very brainy.
Bryan: Noble, Strong, Virtuous; Hill

Culver: Dove

My next son is Josiah Jeffrey. Josiah was a name I'd had picked out since school, though I'd chosen Remington as a middle name (does that date me?) but never even suggested it in real life. The Jeffrey was for his other best friend, and we liked how they sounded together. Had to fight against my grandmother and his dad wanting to call him JJ, though! I call him my sunshine boy and would sing, "You are my sunshine" to him when I rocked him. At one time he had an extra long tie-dyed tshirt that he wore to bed. The pattern on the back looked like a sun, so I called him "sunshine b*tt". He didn't like that and started wearing the shirt backwards. I quit calling him that variation!
Josiah: The Lord saves
Jeffrey: God's peace

My third son was named by Bryan, who was almost 4 at the time (though obviously we approved the choice). He liked the names Mike and Chris (friends of ours), but when reading through baby name books, chose Aaron. So boy #3 is Aaron Michael. My nickname for him is Bug, because he was such a speed crawler, and he got into everything!
Aaron: Mountain
Michael: Who is like God?

My first daughter was named during my first pregnancy; it just took a while to use it! I made up her name, Alyna, a combination of both our middle names, Alan and Lynn. I chose the spelling because I liked how it looked with one 'n' versus two, more symmetrical. It's pronounced uh-linn-uh. Her middle name is Joy, my grandmother's middle name. She is such a joyful young lady, too! I call her my Butterfly girl because she so gracefully flits around.
Alyna = Alan: Rock + Lynn: (English) Waterfall
Joy: Joy (kind of self-explanatory, wasn't it?)

Daughter #2 has another name I chose as a youngster, Tabitha. I loved that name in Missionettes. We hadn't chosen a middle name for sure, but the hospital wanted her name before we went home. I'd wanted Catherine (or a variant spelling) so I'd have a Tabi Cat, but his step-mom's name was Kathy and he didn't want to use it. One nurse suggested Rose, and she was a beautiful rosy girl, but we went with Grace because as our only hospital baby we felt that God had been gracious to us how everything went. What's funny is when she was about 3 she started calling herself Rose or Tab-rose, and we'd never told her the story. I ended up calling her my Tabi-cat anyway, and she likes it.

Tabitha: Gazelle
Grace: (English) God's favor

Daughter #3 went a couple days without a name. I really wanted Josephine (Jo from Little Women), but he didn't like it. I started a poll amongst all the children to get their opinions. I didn't think we'd come to a definite decision until friends who called and came over told me her name was Christina Faith. Apparently her dad told his customers at the grocery store that was her name. I was slightly bummed, because it wasn't my first choice, but now I can't imagine her as anything else! I did discover shortly after that she was born on one of my fav aunt's birthdays--Josephine Virginia (who was called Jenny). If I'd known that, I would have been more insistent! When she was a baby, I started calling her Christinka when she had a smelly diaper. Then in her first play she was a skunk, so she has been referred to as Little Stinker, though really she is quite sweet!
Christina: Follower of Christ
Faith: Faith, Confidence, Belief; Faithful (another 'duh' moment)

Then I had another boy. I told his dad it was his job to name him, and he chose Adam Charles. I'm not sure the reasons behind the name Adam, but Charlie was his younger brother's name, who died while in high school. Adam hasn't acquired any nicknames yet. (edit: He says it's because he was our first son :) )

Adam: Man, Earth
Charles: Free Man

I really don't know what name(s) I would choose in the future. I think I'd let my husband make the decision again! Some names I do like are:

Caleb: Like the heart; Dog; Faithful
Nathaniel: Gift of God
Phoebe: Pure, Bright, Shining; Moon
Danica: Morning Star

Baby Names Country website has a baby name advisor, where you put in the parents' first names. It's choices based on some logarithm are:

Leonard: Brave as a lion
Elsa: Noble (Hey, Elsa was the name of the Lion in Born Free!)

Fun Health and Beauty Concoctions

I wanted to share something else I've made recently. I've been "no poo" (which means no shampoo) for over a year and a half now (maybe I'll talk about that another time), and have quit using the body washes that I loved for so many years (eliminating things with ALS and SLS in them). I was reading on my fave forum about bathing babies "naturally" and there were some really neat ideas and "recipes". I decided I wanted to try them on me!

I also got my annual beginning-of-summer miserable cold about then, and made my own chest rub, GOOT: Garlic Oil Ointment.

So here are my ingredients:

Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Organic Virgin Coconut Oil, Dead Sea Salts, Eucalyptus Essential Oil, Lavender Essential Oil, and garlic. (not pictured: baking soda)

I won't post the recipe for GOOT here, since I have the link above. EDIT:  equal parts coconut oil, olive oil, and minced garlic.  I put it in a plastic cup and have it in the refrigerator door. I get a nice whiff of garlic every time I open the fridge! I rubbed it all over my chest a couple times a day, especially at bedtime, and also on the soles of my feet with socks over it so my sheets wouldn't get smelly. I also had the beginnings of a bad canker sore in the back of my mouth and put it on that; by the next morning it didn't hurt anymore! My glands were swollen and sore just under my jaw, so I made sure to apply it there as well, and they healed up quickly, too. It's two weeks later and I still have some drainage down my throat and will get coughing fits when I lay down, but I'm sure it's partly from stopping the GOOT as well as because I had pneumonia 13 years ago, and the chest crud takes the longest to go away.

The next thing I made was bath salts:

• 1 cup Dead Sea Salt
• 3 Tablespoons Baking Soda (a drawing agent)
  
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil (you could also use almond oil)
  
• 10 drops Eucalyptus Essential Oil

I decided to crush the salt a bit first. I mixed the dry ingredients together before adding the oils and blended thoroughly. I put it in an empty marshmallow creme jar. I know--NOT healthy! But I got a box of 12 for only $1, and you can't get 12 pint jars with nice lids for anywhere close to $1! (I also use the jars for drinking glasses or storing leftovers.)

I got to take a long, wonderful bath in a friend's big garden tub, and my skin felt so soft! (No soap!) I also had my pumice stone with me, and scrubbed all the dead skin off my body while I was at it. Usually a bath with oil in it will leave the tub kind of gross, and this was no exception, BUT I had my container of baking soda with me, so as the water drained, I simply used a bit if that on a washrag and gave the tub a bath, too.

My last concoction was lotion:

• 1/2 cup Coconut Oil
• 1/8 cup Olive Oil (you could also use almond oil)
• 10 drops Lavender Essential Oil (anti-fungal and anti-bacterial)

I made this small amount so it would fit in the little squeeze bottle I bought for $0.50, and also so I didn't have too much of it if I didn't like it.

I melted the coconut oil before adding the other oils. At first I put it in the fridge, but then it was too hard to squeeze out when I wanted it. Now I keep it out, and it's liquid, but hasn't been a problem. (I might use less olive oil for another "summer" batch, so it would be a bit thicker.) It soaks quickly into the skin, and doesn't feel greasy at all. Makes a good massage oil, too, though I think I will try some other scents later for that purpose.

None of these were very expensive, though of course the initial outlay is more than you would spend on these items. But there's plenty left to make more! Here's a picture of the final products:

GOOT, Bath Salts, and Lotion

Making Kombucha

I thought I'd post on one of my latest "experiments", making kombucha. I've been keeping records on an Excel spreadsheet. There are many, many websites with information about it, so I won't bother posting a bunch here...you all know how to "google"!I did learn about it from my friends at WTM, though, and there's a bunch of great threads over there! Kombucha is a fermented beverage (though not considered alcoholic) and is healthy for you. To make it, you need a SCOBY (symbiotic culture of bacterium and yeast), or what is sometimes called a "mother" or "mushroom", though it resembles neither of those! Here's a picture of one of my SCOBYs, the underside of which developed a bubble, which is perfectly normal:



To make kombucha, you start by brewing some tea. The basic recipe is to use black tea. You need the caffeine in it for the SCOBYs benefit, so don't worry about it making you a caffeine addict. You also add regular white sugar, which is what the SCOBY "eats". Again, this is not a sugary drink, and in fact is more like sparkling apple cider if prepared correctly, and will eventually turn vinegary if left long enough. It must be "brewed" and bottled in glass containers! Each batch is finished when you like the flavor, and when the "mother" has "reproduced" a "baby" on the top of the liquid. There will be bubbles underneath it, too, which is a good indicator it's ready.

What follows is how I've made our 'bucha, and how/when I've switched from "regular" to flavored, which we prefer.

*Note: all my batches are approximately 1 gallon size*
*Note: Most are bottled in 1 quart jars; I have also used empty Sobe, wine cooler, and wine bottles with the metal screw-on lids. The smaller containers get fizzier than the jars.*

Batch 1, 3/20/08:
6 black tea bags
1.5 cups sugar
unknown qty of starter+3Tbl ACV
brewed 9 days
pretty good, like sparkling cider, esp. after sitting bottled for over a week.

Batch 2, 3/29:
same ingredients, except 1cup starter
only brewed 6 days
still tart like cider

*now have 2 containers*

Batch 3&4, 4/4:
still 6 blk tea bags
one batch 1 cup starter+2 cups sugar
other batch .5 cup starter+ 1.5 cups sugar
brewed 8 days, both very fizzy when bottled!

*note: have stuck with 1.5 cups sugar for all subsequent batches*
*note: 1 cup starter*

Decided to branch out into flavors...

Batches 5&7, 4/12 4/27:
4 black+2 Stash wild raspberry
made 2 batches this way, brewed one for 8 days, and the second got left for 19 days! We like this flavor, was very "zesty" and bubbly right from the start.

Batch 6, 4/12:
5 black tea bags + fresh ginger
brewed 8 days
I liked this flavor, was less "tart" than plain

*now have 3 containers*

Batch 8 & 9, 4/27:
another "regular" one w/ 6 black (was out of ginger)
brewed 19 days
was very fizzy with big babies!

1 black, 5 green
16 days
pretty mild, I liked it

*note: at this time I've cut back to .5 cup starter for all subsequent batches*

Batch 10, 5/21:
2 black + 4 CS wild berry zinger
8 days, was fizzy!

Batch 11 & 12, 5/21:
6 blk + ginger
2 blk + 4 CS country peach passion
brewed 14 days

Batch 13, 5/30:
4 black + 4 CS blueberry ice
brewed 15 days

Batches 14 & 15, 6/4:
2 black + 4 wild berry zinger
2 black + 4 country peach passion
brewed 13 days

Batch 16, 6/14:
2 black + 3 raspberry
I decided since it's so zippy, I'd try less of the flavor to see what results I get. Still brewing, so results are unknown today...

Batches 17 & 18, 6/17:
1 black + 4 peach
1 black + 4 blueberry
I decided to try less black since these flavors are good, but not as zippy as the raspberry and wild berry. Just started today...

The first half (?) of my batches, the jars were inside a cupboard so it was dark. I now have 3 batches going at the same time, no more room in the cupboard, so they're out in the light on top of it. It hasn't seemed to affect anything. Here's what they look like today:
(l-r: blueberry, peach, raspberry) I didn't separate the "mother" and "baby" this time, but tossed them back in together. The middle one has too much liquid for them to float on top, so it looks kind of like a giant pancake in there. Sometimes my SCOBYs sink to the bottom, but that's perfectly normal, too.

I've been brewing for longer lately, but I don't know if that's from laziness &/or forgetfulness. I have taste-tested these longer batches earlier on and dh and I decided to leave them longer. We've decided we prefer the fruity flavors, though once I get into the bigger apt I will probably get more containers and do some green and ginger again. Sometimes I mix one of these flavors with half of one of the fruity ones. I haven't tried mixing any with juice yet.

I keep the jars in a box for now, with post-it labels on top, so I don't forget which flavor each jar is. I don't bother refrigerating them, but it's okay if you do. They keep getting fizzier if left out of the fridge. We simply put ice in a glass and then strain the 'bucha into the cup. (it will start growing new "babies" while bottled, but they pretty much look like boogers, so not very appetizing to see plop into your glass...or to have slide down your throat!

(l-r: green tea, raspberry, ginger, peach, blueberry) Don't they look pretty?

The evolution of DH's hair

This isn't going to be typical of my posts (maybe), but figured I'd start with something kind of silly. My DH (dear husband) is pretty conservative, and prefers his hair and beard to be short and trimmed neatly. This is an example, taken in late September 2007:


His last haircut was in early August 2007. He's kept his beard trimmed, occasionally, but hasn't had a haircut since. I think it's some sort of rebellious phase, but harmless and kind of fun. What follows is the evolution of his hair from then until now, June 2008, 10 months of hair growth.

December 28, 2007

February 3, 2008--lots of curls! His mom was surprised at how much curl is in his hair, since she'd never seen it that long!

Feb. 15--cornrows just for fun!

About this time he decided to lighten his hair with peroxide. It's turned kind of dry, but w-a-y lighter! It's about time to shave off the beard (for summer, you know), and then the color contrast won't be so obvious!


March 27, 2008

May 11, 2008

June 9, 2008

I love making the curls show up, but he has this obsession with the hairbrush. One last photo, just for fun.
May 15, 2008