Tonight's thoughts

I'm hiding. Both of my kids are crying, and I'm done with crying for the day. I needed a little peace, so I escaped to my bedroom upstairs with my laptop, shut the door, and started writing. I have so much I want to write . . . I don't know where to begin. Should I write separate posts? Put all my thoughts down in one, like a journal? I just don't know. (20 minutes later . . . the house is quiet. I heard James put Miriam to bed. She cried for a minute, but now there's peace. Ah, I love that sound. The sound of nothing. It's so beautiful.)

Judah's exhausted. He has a huge play-dough mess in the dining room that he needs to clean up before he does anything else, and he's pulling every stall-tactic imaginable. At least he's not hungry. He and Miriam shared some chicken Italian sausage soup tonight from The Turnip Truck. They devoured it. It had big chunks of potatos, peas, lima beans, onions, okra in a chicken-stock base. Creamy, salty goodness. Perfect for a chilly, rainy night.

Late this afternoon, I made juice for the kids to tide them over until James got home with supper, which was the soup. (We get pints of soup for $3.99 with our $20 gift certificates that we purchased through www.NashvilleOriginals.com at 40% off.) The first juice I made was simply two pieces of fruit: an orange and a mango blended to juicy perfection. So sweet and delicous. I drank most of it. Miriam came into the kitchen wanting to share, so I offered her some. She finished it off.

The next juice I made was simply three or four clementines blended into a sweet, orange drink. Judah said, "It tastes like honey! It's like drinking honey!" He asked for some more, so I made another clementine drink that he shared with his sister. I get so much satisfaction knowing that they have all kinds of fresh nutrients being pumped through their little bodies. How can fresh clementines, an orange, and a mango compare to a box of juice that was, weeks ago, processed and pasteurized (cooked to death) and shipped from hundreds of miles away--after being turned into juice so that all the remaining nutrients could die before consumption, leaving mostly sugary water. Granted, my fruit was shipped from hundreds (and maybe even thousands) of miles away, however, it was still intact when it reached my kitchen. I didn't boil it to death so I could drink it in a couple weeks. I just peeled it and blended it and within minutes, it was guzzled by three members of my family.

Do we have pasteurized juice in our house? Yes. Do the kids drink it? Yes. Do I dilute it? Yes. Do I think it has any nutritional value? Yes. It helps to keep them hydrated. And that's critical.

I just heard the little princess. I should probably check on her. Guess this means another post is coming tonight!

James just walked in the door. He said that Miriam fell asleep on his chest; it was so sweet. The noise she made happened during her transition to her crib. I asked MH (Mr. Honey) what Judah was doing, but he doesn't know. I'm guessing he's asleep downstairs in the dining room. Yep. Fast asleep on the extra bed downstairs. It's only 7:39 and the kids are both OUT! Woo Hoo!!!