Wednesday, December 30, 2009

London Royal Ballet

London 2009

When I look at this photo it takes my breath away because the ballarina at the front left bent over at the waist is one of my best friends in the Canaries (Spain) daughter. Teresa has gone to London to dance and dancing she is! Spectacular - Bravo for such art and grace!
Cuando miro esta foto me quita la respiración porque la bailarina a la izquirda en frente encorvada a la cintura es la hija de uno de mis mejores amigos en Canarias. Teresa se ha ido a Londrés a bailar y bailando es exactamente lo que está haciendo! Espectaculo! Bravo por tal arte y gracia.

Monday, December 28, 2009

Sacramento, California, December 2009

A bedroom makeover always requires a girl with a hat and a little photography.
Una renovacion del cuarto siempre requiere una chica con sombrero y un poco de fotografia.

Thursday, December 24, 2009

La Noche Buena

Freemont Presbyterian Church, Sacramento, California, December 2009

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Mi jardin en Sacramento, California, diciembre 2009


Ansiosa para esta noche cuando nos enroscaremos en el sofa para ver Mujercitas y dejarnos llevar a una Navidad de otro tiempo .
Looking forward to tonight when we will curl up on the couch to watch Little Women and let ourselves be carried to Christmas from another time.

Monday, December 21, 2009

Nostalgia

La Isleta, Gran Canaria, diciembre 2009


Hoy ha estado el día entero en Gran Canaria.
Today I was in Gran Canaria all day long.

Mas de un año y medio soñaba con la idea de regresar para Navidades.
I have dreamed of returning for Christmas for more than a year and a half.
Y sí, que en este momento me hace muchísima falta.
And yes, right now I really miss it.

Sunday, December 20, 2009

La Ultima Vela


The last candle of Advent will soon be lit.

*Faith * Love * Hope* Joy*
*Fe * Amor* Esperanza* Gozo*
Just one Advent Candle left
to encompass the meaning of All


*J*E*S*U*S*

El Derecho a Ser Feliz

Mi jardin en Sacramento, California, diciembre 2009

From blog friend, Tongue_In_Cheek - 4/6/09:
“My friend Annie is nearly 90 years old, she is my neighbor. We have been friends for nearly 15 years. Annie has two children. She left her husband when she was 84 years old. When the judge asked her, "Madame, you have been married for over 60 years, at your age does it really matter if you are happy or not?"Annie replied, "Everyone deserves to be happy no matter how old they are, I want to live my last days in peace." She left her husband, her garden, her childhood home, and rented a small apartment.”
Some might only understand the judge’s comment here. He has a real point. After all, we are never guaranteed a life without serious pain or suffering. Others, however, like myself, can understand her. It’s all about the shoes we’ve walked in. And maybe the details of the situation are really less important.

De mi amiga en el blog, Hablar_con_Sorno - 6-4-09:
“Mi amiga Annie casi tiene los 90 anos, es mi vecina. Llevamos una amistad de unos 15 años. Annie tiene dos hijos. Le dejó a su esposo a los 84 años. Cuando el juez le preguntó, “Señora, ya lleva mas de 60 años de casada, a su edad, que importancia realmente tiene si estás feliz o no?”
Repusó Annie, “Cada uno merece estar feliz, ni importa la edad que tiene. Yo quiero vivir mis ultimos días en paz.” Dejó a su esposo, su jardin, su casa de infancia, y alquiló un pequeño apartamento.”
Algunos solamente van a entender el comentario del juez. Es lógico. Después de todo, nadie nos guarantiza una vida libre de dolor o de sufrimiento. Otros, sin embargo, como yo, le puedo entiendo. Todo tiene que ver con haber caminado en los zapatos del otro. Y quizás los detalles de la situación tienen menos importancia.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Making the Season Bright

Colores que hacen brillar la estación,
Sacramento, California, dicembre 2009

Thursday, December 17, 2009

'Tis the Season

Sacramento, California, diciembre 2009

Some Jolly Elves just before their Junior High group's adventure/party, ""Who Killed Santa? "
Unos Enanos Risuenos antes de una reunion juvenil, una fiesta/adventura de "Quien Le Mato a Santa?"

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Bienvenido a Nuestro Mundo



Welcome to our World
Tears are falling
Hearts are breaking
How we need to hear from God
You've been promised, we've been waiting
Welcome Holy Child
Welcome Holy Child
Hope that you don't mind our manger
How I wish we would have known
But long-awaited Holy Stranger
Make Yourself at home
Please make Yourself at home
Bring Your peace into our violence
Bid our hungry souls be filled
Word now breaking Heaven's silence
Welcome to our world
Welcome to our world
Fragile finger sent to heal us
Tender brow prepared for thorn
Tiny heart whose blood will save us
Unto us is born
Unto us is born
So wrap our injured flesh around You
Breathe our air and walk our sod
Rob our sin and make us holy
Perfect Son of God
Perfect Son of God
Welcome to our world.
Chris Rice -

Monday, December 14, 2009

La Amabilidad de una Vecina

Sacramento, California, December 2009

The afternoon was dreary. Rain drops slowly dripped from around the house and cold seeped into the walls. I considered making a fire in the wood-burning stove, but had so many things to do that I just bundled up with a blanket and sat reading, grading papers and musing a bit when someone knocked at the door and I opened it to my neighbor's smiling face, a warm, "just out of the oven" loaf of her Holiday Banana Bread (with butterscotch chips and nuts,) and a lovely scented candle called Warm Vanilla Sugar. What holiday cheer she brought!

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Lutero y Yo

Bruselas/Brussels - 2009

Acabo de ver la película, Luther, después de estudiar durante toda la semana con mi hijo menor. A Martin Lutero y el impacto de su vida (histórica y espiritualmente) . Con mi consejera personal, como en la película Lutero, el tema que más tratamos y el más reciente es la hipocresia. Lutero la combatía dentro de La Iglesia. Yo la he batallado dentro de mi matrimonio. Buscaba una solución tranquila, con muchísima oración y sufrimiento durante muchos años. Durante los ultimos dos años me he atrevido hablar del abuso en casa y he luchado por la honradez y reforma en nuestro hogar. Ha sido infructuoso, en vano. Por eso, yo sufría mucho con Lutero durante este estudio y viendo la película cuando disputaba con el Diablo en soledad penosa. Clamó por la ayuda y misericordia de Dios. Entendía completamente la necesidad por el cambio y sin embargo comprendía las ramificaciones serias por lo veraz. De todas formas, no tomar ninguna decision sería inconcebible, deshonrado, imposible. Y como Lutero, quien murió de problemas intestinales al ver La Iglesia tan rajada, rasgada, me siento destripada por el divorcio.

I just finished watching Luther, after reading about the impact of his life, historically and spiritually, all week with youngest son, 12. In personal counseling, like in the film Luther, the greatest and most recent reoccurring theme is hypocrisy. Luther grappled with it in The Church - I within my marriage. With prayer and long suffering I searched for a solution for many years. Finally, during the last two I began to speak out and fought for honesty and reform in our home. It has been fruitless, in vain.
So, I suffered watching Luther tonight as he wrangled with the devil in painful solitude. He cried out to God for help and mercy. He fully understood the need for change and yet he knew that there would be serious ramifications for being truthful. Nonetheless, compromising his conscience was inconceivable, unethical, and impossible. And like Luther who died of intestinal problems as he experienced The Church torn apart, I, too, feel disemboweled by divorce.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Solitude

La soledad es el precio de la libertad - Carmen Diez de Rivera

Friday, December 4, 2009

Tower Theatre

Tower_Theatre, a thrill of a place to slip out to for a late night film. There I've viewed some of my favorites, foreign flicks like those by Almodovar, or others reverberating with social dilemma. My oldest and I took in An Education and created a forum for much discussion about deceptiveness and common foibles that lead to entrapment. A month passed and again we're off to see Precious, the story of an illiterate, abused girl who learns to triumph in the face of total adversity. We can learn so much from the experiences and trials of others, in sharing meaningful film.
El Tower Theatre, una gozada de lugar adonde escabullirse para ver una pelicula a ultima hora de la noche. Alli he visto algunas de mis favoritas, extranjeras como las de Almodovar u otras tocando algun dilema social. Mi hija mayor y yo vimos An Education, que nos dio bastante para debatir. Los temas en An Education bailaban con el engano y los errores y frustraciones que conducen al atrapamiento. Ha pasado un mes y vamos de nuevo, esta vez para ver Precioso, la historia real de una chica analfabeta, que fue abusada y la cual aprende a triunfar frente a la adversidad total. Podemos aprender muchisimo cuando compartimos las experiencias y dificultades de otros, cuando compartimos peliculas significativas

Monday, November 30, 2009

The Warmth of Advent's First Candle

La Primera Vela del Adviento es Fe

Fe es creer en lo que no se ve; y la recompensa es ver lo que uno cree/Faith is believing in what can't be seen; and the reward is seeing what one believes -San Agustín de Hipona
Fe es la fuerza de la vida/Faith is the force of life -Liev Nikolayevich Tolstoi
Fe es la virtud que nos hace sentir el calor del hogar mientras cortamos la leña/Faith is the virtue that causes us to feel the warmth of a hearth while cutting the wood -Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Poca fe bastará para llevarnos al cielo, mas una gran fe traerá el cielo hasta nosotros/A little faith is enough to carry us to heaven, but great faith will bring heaven to us- C.H. Spurgeon

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Night Escapades

"Never fear shadows. They simply mean there's a light shining somewhere nearby."
-Ruth Renkel

A photography assignment is just another excuse for

a late night adventure. . .
Now they have it right :-)

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Thanksgiving

Give Thanks
With a Grateful Heart
Give Thanks to the
Holy One

Amanecio el Dia de Accion de Dar Gracias con esta cancion
y con una sorpresa - otra tradicion americana. Que guay, gritaron los ninos,
como si hubieran ganado
el mejor premio de popularidad.
"Toilet Papering," es una actividad ridicula que nunca pasa de moda entre los jovenes (locos)- jaja- para ellos es un simbolo de amistad y buen sentido de humor.
Give Thanks because He's Given Jesus Christ His Son
La Plata Pulida

And Now, Let the Weak say I am Strong
Las Mesas Puestas

Let the Poor say I am Rich
El Pavo Recien Sacado del Horno

Because of what the Lord has done for Us. . .
Lo hizo mi cunado este anio con hierbas especiales y fruta
Give Thanks. . . .
Nos tomamos de la mano para dar las sinceras gracias
por nuestras muchisimas bendiciones
Dad Gracias de Corazon
La Mesa de los Primos

Give Thanks. . .
Uno de los pies de calabaza de Sara - hubieron varios de manzana,
de crema de chocolate y mas. Mmm..Que buenos fueron.
Dad Gracias . . .

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Homecoming


El penultimo partido de futbol americano siempre viene
accompanado con un baile especial - The Homecoming Dance.

New shoes - red, of course, for a special night out.
Lo pasaron muy bien.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Chalupa!

Además del gato Andre, Chalupa vive en nuestro zoo,
amigo especial de Marcos. Silba felizmente cada manana
cuando Marcos le lleva para afuera y cada tarde
cuando regresa a casa de nuevo a dormir en la habitacion de los chicos.
También me silba a mi porque soy tan guapa, por supuesto,
y silba aún más, cuando le llevo unos delicias como espinacas.
Besides Andre, Chalupa lives in our zoo,
a special friend of Mark's. He whistles happily every morning
when Marcos takes him outside and every afternoon
when he returns to the house again to sleep in the boys' room.
He whistles at me, too, because I'm so good looking, of course,
and even more, heehee, when I take him treats like spinach.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Free to Eat!



Just last week, 10-25-09, my home-school and blog friend, Bronwyn, was featured in the Sacramento Bee’s Health section which you can see here. It has been such a thrill to enjoy her nutritional tutelage personally, but even more so to discover her book review both online and in print! Free to Eat contains over 50 healthy recipes and is available at http://www.amazon.com/. One of my favorites so far have included White Bean Guacamole which includes beans to traditional guacamole for extra protein and fiber and plenty of cilantro. Yum! Another is Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) Breakfast Cereal. I have mixed up a Flaxseed Crunch (made with ground flaxseed, walnuts and cinnamon) to sprinkle on top.
Solo hace una semana, 25-10-09, que mi amiga de homeschooling y de aqui del blog, Bronwyn, salio en la seccion de salud del Sacramento Bee que se puede ver aqui. Ha sido absolute placer gozar de su pedagogia nutricional, pero aun mas descubrir una critica de su libro en internet y en una revista! Libre para Comer contiene mas de 50 recetas saludables y esta a la venta en www.amazon.com . Una de mis favoritas hasta ahora ha sido la de Guacamole con Judias Blancas con el guacamole tradicional para un aporte extra de proteina y fibra y mucho cilantro para dar mas gusto. Yum! Sabroso. Otra es la de Cereales de Quinoa (pronunciado quin-jua) para el Desayuno. He mezclado linaza molida, nueces, y canela para espolvorear encima.

Harvest

Monday, November 9, 2009

Regalo de Cumpleanos


My oldest son has always had a love affair with cats; Cats of any size, shape or disposition have been an irresistable attraction for years. So, when a friend offered him a kitten from his cat's new litter, we had no other choice, but to say yes this time, despite his oldest sister's allergies. Of course, this lovable ball of white fur ALWAYS stays in Ryan's room, hahaha. Welcome Andre.








Sunday, November 8, 2009

Hoy, Día Internacional de oración por la iglesia perseguida. Lee aqui. Para todos nuestros hermanos que sufren y mueren en la Africa, la Indonesia, muchos paises musulmanes, y otros lugares. Que encontremos una manera de vivir en paz el uno con el otro; con el amor, la aceptacion y nunca con violencia ni persecucion.
Today is the International Day of Prayer for the persecuted church. Read here. We pray for our brothers and sisters who suffer and are killed in Africa, Indonesia, many Arab countries, and other places. May we find a way to live in peace with one another; with love, acceptance and never with violence or persecution.
Tambien hoy recuerdo las muchas mujeres que sufren a las manos de los hombres en sus vidas(esposos, novios, padres, hermanos). Esta semana otra mujer Iraqi fue matada por su padre porque le creia demasiada cambiada, demasiada occidental.
Today I also remember the many women who suffer at the hands of the men in their lives (husbands, boyfriends, fathers, brothers).This week another young Iraqi woman was murdered by her father who thought she had changed too much, and had become too westernized.

Monday, October 26, 2009

FALL


A Season of
Change

El Otonio
La Estación de
Cambio

Monday, October 19, 2009

Storms and Scones

Las tormentas nos hacen gravitar hacia la cocina.
Storms make us gravitate toward the kitchen.

Alli encontramos el calor del horno - mis "scones" o bizcochos, esta vez con trocitos de chocolate.
There we find the oven's warmth - my scones, this time with chocolate chips.

Y la diversion de una recetas nuevas (http://markocook.blogspot.com un plato preparado especialmente por Marco, nuestro chef/cocinero extraordinaire.)
And the fun of new recipes (see Mark's blog for one especially prepared by our chef extraordinaire.)