For Today... August 18, 2008

Outside my Window...a neglected yard calling to me…

I am thinking...about how wonderful it is to have a fresh start on Monday.

I am thankful for...my husband, his loving leadership. He always helps me to feel calm about all of the work to do and to figure out what my priorities are.

From the kitchen...nothing today, but tomorrow we plan to try out a wedding cake flavor. Perhaps Apricot Brandy Pound Cake with Ambrosia cream.

I am wearing...long denim jumper with buttons and embroidery all over it - a Christmas gift from my Mom, and bare feet with my hair up in a clip…haven’t put on makeup yet.

I am reading... Love that Lasts; Where Marriage Meets Grace by the Ricuccis and Plaited Glory

I am hoping...That we get our work done today, Monday is always too full of things to do!

I am hearing...The Youngers listening to an audio book while they fold laundry - Jack Plank Tells Tales by Natalie Babbit

I am creating...a new library cataloging system for the church library and finishing up the quilting on the wedding quilt for my cousin (who got married LAST MONTH!)

Around the house... Cleaning up the mess left from a busy weekend. Laundry, Laundry & More Laundry! This week we are doing housework projects, catching up on ironing, cleaning out the linen closet, etc.

One of my favorite things... Baking…I’m looking forward to meeting with my sons fiance’ to talk about wedding cake plans.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week... Oops! I already mentioned that in around the house. We are going to do “light school” until after the wedding so that we can get a lot of different projects done…I’m just too distracted to do the “thinking work” of teaching class.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you..

Go on over to Simple Woman's blog and add your own daybook entry.

Little Ones in Church, a link.

One of the things our church has sought to do is include the little ones in the service. We treat them as though they belong with us, because they do. We used to have a full-fledged Sunday school or children’s church during the “adult” service way back when, but over the years it has fallen out of use. The parents wanted to keep the children with them rather than send them off to their own service.
Read the rest at Nancy Wilson's blog Femina

Tips on Homeschooling Preschoolers...

Sorry that I have been MIA.
Things are very busy here, as we are finishing up the last few weeks of our school year and plan for the next.
I found this little list while cleaning up files on my computer. Hope it encourages someone.

Tips for Homeschooling Preschoolers
by Margaret Doskey

#1 Get thee to a parenting class! The most important thing is to raise our children in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. I highly recommend the materials from Family Ministries- “Child Training Tips” by Reb Bradley comes in book, tapes, or video-terrific resource.

#2 Train him to sit still, quiet and unoccupied. Other words, self-control.

#3 Read aloud, Read aloud, Read aloud! “Honey for a Child’s Heart” by Gladys Hunt. And as an aside, television & video, being a passive medium has been proven to impair language skills, limit it severely!

#4 Talk,, Talk, Talk! Explain what you are doing, tell how God made everything, count, sing, ask questions, use proper English.

#5 Mom & Dad- Pray, Read & Pray! Various homeschool books:

"When You Rise Up" by R.C. Sproul, Jr.

“Home Grown Kids” by Raymond Moore

“Homeschooling, the Right Choice” by Chris Klicka

“ For the Children’s Sake” Susan Schaeffer Macaulay

“ What’s a Daughter to Do?” tape by Doug Phillips of Vision forum

“ Homeschooling with a Meek & Quiet Spirit” by Terri Maxwell

“ Dumbing Us Down; the hidden curriculum behind compulsive education” by John T. Gatto

“ Clergy in the Classroom” by David Noeble

#7 Teach her to read in little bits (5 min.) at a time, knowing the alphabet is not necessary and some say actually causes confusion… Ask, “do you want to take a nap now, or do some reading practice?” “Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons” by Engelmann & Haddox & Bruner

#8 Math, count, observe. Cuisenaire Rods along with the activity cards.

#9 Writing Readiness- Ready Writer workbook

#10 “Doing School” Rod & Staff Preschool workbooks

#11 Memorize, memorize, memorize! Kids this age are sponges (how quick do they memorize commercial jingles?). Put it to music and they will learn it. Scripture tapes (Steve Green), Catechism (Judy Rogers), Science, history, French & Latin vocabulary. Play the same Scripture CD over and over at Bedtime for a month. Record a tape of things you want her to learn (birth date, address, family mantra, etc.), use it as a timer for an activity.

Homeschooling in the news...

A Secular Newspaper in Mississippi has this to say in an article...

"Methinks American middle-class people are uncomfortable around the home schooled for the same reason the alcoholic is uneasy around the teetotaler. Their very existence represents a rejection of our values, and an indictment of our lifestyles. Those families are willing to render unto Caesar the things that Caesar’s be, but they draw the line at their children. Those of us who have put our trust in the secular state (and effectively surrendered our children to it) recognize this act of defiance as a rejection of our values, and we reject them in return. "

Read the whole article here.

Thanks to Stacy at Sacred Calling for the heads up!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

What is it about summer months that make everyday life so busy? We planned to continue school as we always do right on through the summer but the last couple of weeks have been crazy and we are doing well if we get the basic seat work in!

The big news is that our oldest son has gotten engaged to the most lovely young lady. We are all very excited and are working on making a wedding happen the last weekend in October.
I have been putting off posting because I wanted to write something brilliant about courtship and about young ladies who are dedicating their lives to serving others...what a blessing they are. But I'm so busy that words fail me.

Meanwhile, let me just say that it is an amazing blessing to have the two of them continue to seek counsel from their parents and to ask us to do a study on marriage with them! I'm amazed at God's goodness to us, when we have so often been so unfaithful!
The Garden from Doug Wilson's book Her Hand in Marriage

That Ol' Moloch Box!

Television

The most important thing we've learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER
letThem near your television set --
Or better still, just don't install
The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we've been,
We've watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out.
(Last week in someone's place we saw
A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit
Until they're hypnotized by it,
Until they're absolutely drunk
With all that shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash the dishes in the sink --
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSE IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULLAND BLIND
HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND
A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK -- HE ONLY SEES!
'All right!' you'll cry. 'All right!'you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?
'How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
We'll say it very loud and slow:
THEY ... USED ... TO ... READ!
They'd READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more.
Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic tales
Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales
And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching 'round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be?
Good gracious, it's Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter
With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland,
And Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and-
Just How The Camel Got His Hump,
And How the Monkey Lost His Rump,
And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There's Mr. Rat and Mr. Mole-
Oh, books, what books they used to know,
Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books,
Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks-
Fear not, because we promise you
That, in about a week or two
Of having nothing else to do,
They'll now begin to feel the need
Of having something to read.
And once they start --
oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy
That fills their hearts.
They'll grow so keen
They'll wonder what they'd ever seen
In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid
Will love you more for what you did.
Roald Dahl

Return to Meal-Time Sanity

I have been noticing something lately... some of my kids have grown picky. I believe that for one, it is the side-effect of having more grocery money at my disposal; not having to stick to simpler foods… mostly though, I believe the reason is lack of vigilance on my part. In my experience, the answer to this is a sort of meal-time boot camp. No more choices, just thankfulness. (How often does God have to deal with us, thus?)

There was a time when the task of meal planning was much saner in this household. I’m being nostalgic and going back to the way it was, at least to the degree that I’m able.

We are going to have our breakfasts planned according to the routine of the day.

For instance on Monday, we “hit the floor running”, it is the day that we have extra mess around the house after the festivities of the Lord’s Day, we usually have laundry piled up because we didn’t do any on Saturday and Sunday, and it is the day that we have a standing appointment in the afternoon – piano lessons.

So, on Monday, breakfast is easy, and you must get it yourself - Mom is busy! The kids can choose between cereal, toast, any designated leftovers in the fridge or make themselves an egg, as long as they clean up the mess!

Monday lunch is also about speed and ease, usually grilled cheese. The rest of the week, we will have soup made from “must-goes”, fresh bread and fruit.

So here is what my morning meal plan looks like:

Breakfast: Each day, Kephir Smoothies &

Monday (our crazy day): Catch as catch can!
Tuesday : Oatmeal and bacon
Wednesday: Pancakes or Brown Rice Waffles and sausage
Thursday: Grits and ham
Friday: French Toast & sausage
Saturday: (Grocery shopping early in the morning) Muffins
Sunday: Muffins or other baked goodies, breakfast casserole
(There are some of us who must have protein at breakfast.)

Lunches will be soup, bread & fruit. If the soup runs out, or we have to eat on the run, we will have tortilla wraps or sandwiches.

I’m hoping that going back to this plan will result in healthier attitudes at the table. I’m also hoping that as prices go up, it will make things easier on our budget.

On my list of "want to reads"

Reasons to win souls from the book Unashamed by Floyd McElveen: Found in the review of that book at Discerning Reader.

Because our Lord and Savior commanded us to
Because those who die without Christ are eternally lost
Because nothing pleases God more
Because winning souls brings great joy to our lives
Because winning souls results in changed lives
Because the sacrifice of Christ demands that we win others to Him
Because redeemed individuals bring glory to the Lord
Because winning souls demonstrates the power of God
Because winning souls demonstrates the purpose of God
Because we are grateful
Because of love
Because there is rejoicing in heaven
Because of the promise of heaven
Because of the reality of hell – McElveen makes no bones about the reality of hell; if God and heaven are eternal, then hell must be eternal too.
Because of Jesus Himself – “Jesus is what makes heaven a place of incomparable glory and joy.”

Check out the other great book reviews there!

First Simple Woman's Daybook Entry

http://thesimplewoman.blogspot.com/

FOR TODAY: Monday, May 12, 2008 ...
Outside My Window... it's a chilly cloudy day, the branches in our old oaks are whipping around.

I am thinking... about how much I need to get my pictures into albums.

I am thankful for... my hardworking menfolk, Steven has just arrived home, Gaelan has just left for his shift as a police officer, and hubby is finishing up his day at the shipyard.

From the kitchen... Chili that Shayna made in the crocpot, she's about to make cornbread, there's potato sourdough bread rising on the counter.

I am wearing... a long denim skirt, pale green t-shirt, a beige, multi-colored flecked cable cardigan and green socks, hair's in a pony-tail.

I am creating... a scrap quilt for a cousin's upcoming wedding.

I am going... to change my shirt when I'm done and touch up my make-up before Conrad gets home. (I'm not planning on leaving the house until Wednesday.)

I am reading... The Compleat Gentleman by Brad Miner and Mossflower by Brian Jaques to the kids.

I am hoping... for Gaelan to have a good night, and that God will grant him the desires of his heart.

I am hearing... Wind in the trees and the children talking while they fold laundry.

Around the house... School's done, chores are mostly done, it's pretty quiet.

One of my favorite things... My new crocpot...I got the kind with the gasket and clamps to keep it from spilling. I have retired my old ones which were limping along missing various necessary parts.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: I'm hoping to work on Shayna's hair more, we've been taking out her locs...hard sore-head work, that! I would like to get a third of that quilt pieced this week!

Here is picture thought I am sharing..."How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!" Psalm 133:1

Gaelan and Isaac actually goofing off, but a good picture none-the-less!

How To Help Your Grieving Friend

I wanted to put a link to this great series so that I could refer to it again. It looks to be very good. Found through Nancy Wilson's blog (also very good!).

Bitty Booties

I made these Bitty Booties for Moya Mommy's baby shower. I found them fun to make, and really like how they turned out. Take a look at the flicker photos of all of the possibilities.

Comment on the Bulgogi recipe...

This recipe is SPICY! Lisa tells me that beef bulgogi is not supposed to be spicy. We had this just the other day and all decided that we would have enjoyed it with a little less kick. So, the next time I make it, I'm going to use only 1/2 tsp. of red pepper flakes.

Anna at Pleasant View Schoolhouse wrote an encouraging post entitled "Lessons from Vintage Fiction". Here's a little taste:
"Vintage fiction has been my treasure trove for figuring out how to put together a homemaking life. Old housekeeping manuals will give you out-dated specifics about how to iron or polish the silver the way it was done in the thirties or forties, but it's the mentioned-in-passing daily routine that fascinates me so deeply. Here's what I have learned about a domestic life, courtesy of Grace Livingston Hill, L.M. Montgomery, and their ilk:Homemakers have work to do. They get up early and make breakfast, since someone in the family needs sustenance before catching the trolley for a long day at the office. Homemakers have a plan for each day's special tasks. There's really no time to sit around; running a home is a demanding undertaking."

Go and read the rest.

A Favorite Recipe

A dear friend, Lisa brought this wonderful dish to our house, cooked it, showed us how to eat it and shared it with us on the evening I came home from surgery. What a special blessing it was! She sells it at her store, so I couldn't get her recipe, but this is one that I've adapted. If you come to my house, you are likely to be served Bulgogi...Yum!

Bulgogi (Korean Beef BBQ)

2 lbs. beef- sliced thin, across the grain and into strips
4 Tbs soy sauce
2 Tbs. brown sugar
2 Tbs. dark sesame oil
6 cloves garlic, peeled & crushed
2 tsp. grated fresh ginger - or 1 tsp dried, ground
2 Tbs saki or dry sherry
2 tsp. red pepper flakes
toasted sesame seeds (~ 2 tsp.)

1. Combine all ingredients except beef in a large bowl. Whisk together. Add meat and marinate atleast 30 minutes.
2. Cook the meat over med. high heat on a stove top grill. Heat grill first, making it very hot. Brush w/peanut oil. Cook meat 1-2 minutes on each side browning nicely. ---I've also fried it or just thrown it into the crocpot. We actually prefer it in the crocpot on low ~5hours.

Serve with sticky rice and leaf lettuce.

Here is how you eat it. Put a small pile of the meat and a small pile of the rice onto your plate. Take several lettuce leaves and put a small forkful of both the rice and meat on the lettuce leaf. Roll up into a little package and then stuff the whole thing into your mouth! Once the novelty has worn off, just cut up the lettuce on your plate with the rice and meat and just eat it.

Favorite Everyday Things

Tooth & Gums Tonic...I'm addicted to the stuff!

It has wonderful ingredients such as Echinacea,

Gotu Kola, Peppermint Oil, Red Thyme, Cinnamon Bark, Eucalyptus,

& Lavender.

Arbonne NutriMin C cleanser, toner & moisturizer

Bath & Body Works Orange Ginger Body Lotion

Bare Minerals makeup

Amy Knapp's Family Organizer

Post-It Notes - I use the pad on the bottom, it's lined.

I use it to keep my To Do list for the day in my organizer

and to jot down notes for school.

Why Family Revival and Discipleship Is A Critical Tool in God-Blessed Evangelism

Unrighteousness is always the result of ungodliness, and the only hope of getting back any measure of righteousness into life is to have a revival of godliness. That is precisely what the apostle is saying to the Ephesians and to ourselves. The best and the most moral periods in the history of this country, and every other country, have always been those periods which have followed mighty religious awakenings. This problem of lawlessness and lack of discipline, the problem of children and of youth, was just not present 50 years ago as it is today. Why? Because the great tradition of the Evangelical Awakening of the 18th century was still operating. But as that has gone, these terrible moral and social problems are coming back, as the apostle teaches us, and as they have always come back throughout the running centuries.

Present conditions therefore demand that we should look at the apostle’s statement. I believe that Christian parents and children, Christian families, have a unique opportunity of witnessing to the world at this present time by just being different. We can be true evangelists by showing this discipline, this law and order, this true relationship between parents and children. We may be the means under God’s hand of bringing many to a knowledge of the Truth. Let us therefore think of it in that way.

-David Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Prayer #1: That the Lord would save the souls of all of our children early in life, and that none would be lost.
Prayer #2: That our children would be faithful covenant-keepers with the God of their fathers.
Prayer #3: That God would send blessed, well-suited, Christ-loving spouses to our progeny, and that there would be no divorce for 200 years.
Prayer #4: That our children would continue to home educate their own children, following the Biblical/Hebrew model for discipleship.
Prayer #5: That God would bless the wombs of our daughters and daughters-in-law, with a multitude of covenant-keeping children, who will be mighty in the land.
Prayer #6: That God would bless and make fruitful the dominion labors of the family in all of its generations.
Prayer #7: That our children will honor their fathers and mothers, and be faithful to the godly and applicable visions their fathers give to them.

From Strategic Insights into A Multi-Generational Vision of Victory, Presented by Doug Phillips at the 200 Year Plan: A Practicum on Multi-Generational Faithfulness

Taken from Doug's Blog

A friend and I were just talking about this on Monday. We were discussing "goals" that we have for our families. I specifically mentioned that I pray that my children would have a "generational vision of faithfulness" and that they would continue to homeschool and be open to having as many children as the Lord would bless them with. I realized I sounded like good ol' Doug Philips and well, there you go!

(I've started my Estrogen Replacement Therapy and though I'm excited to be working to get rid of all of the symptoms I've been experiencing, my headaches are back in full force. My Dr. said that since I'm apparently very sensitive to the hormone levels in my body it may take some time before we have the right balance to be headache free and lesson my other symptoms. Thank you for your prayers.)

More Christina Rossetti

WHY? \
Lord, if I love Thee and Thou lovest me,
Why need I any more these toilsome days;
Why should I not run singing up Thy ways
Straight into heaven, to rest myself with Thee?
What need remains of death-pang yet to be,
If all my soul is quickened in Thy praise;
If all my heart loves Thee, what need the amaze,
Struggle and dimness of an agony?--
Bride whom I love, if thou too lovest Me,
Thou needs must choose My Likeness for thy dower:
So wilt thou toil in patience, and abide
Hungering and thirsting for that blessed hour
When I My Likeness shall behold in thee,
And thou therein shalt waken satisfied.

I had planned to post something for Good News Thursday, but couldn't think of any that is of broader interest than our own home front. There is one thing. A little girl at our church fell last Sunday and scraped her elbow. It got infected and her mother took her to the E.R. on Tuesday. The Dr. said that if they had waited another day or two they are not sure that they would have been able to save her. She was in the hospital for two days as they tried to get the right combination of antibiotics to work. Please thank God with me that she is home, now. Also, both her parents have pneumonia, now! We've got young people over there helping out with the household and meals are taken care of. Please pray that the "G" family gets some rest! Thanks!

Gearing up for the big move...

Not away from my home, but IN my home. We have decided to flip the library and living room.

The library is currently housed in the larger room. The living room is in what was supposed to be the dining room in my 60s era ranch style home. We are committed to having Bible studies here starting in April and sitting around our dining room table as we have for parenting classes just isn't going to work.

I love moving furniture around, it allows for a good, thorough cleaning. My boys, well, not so much! Steven very carefully measured the rooms for me and drew a diagram so that I would be sure where everything would go. I have actually made little paper patterns for my furniture (12 bookcases in those two rooms) and am sure... I think! :)

So, next I need to plan what we move in what order, since it will take a few days. I will be purging bookshelves, a painful (and usually unproductive) task and cleaning books. What is it that Don Aslett says about maintaining stuff? Well, I'm sure that he didn't mean books!

I'm looking for a desk for Conrad to put in the library. He really needs a place to study other than on our bed. He has piles of books all around the walls in there that he is either currently studying or planning to study. I am hoping to incorporate an office for him in the future library. My Dad always had a study.

Well, I survived yesterday,as I always do. I didn't manage to do any laundry. Gael and I were talking last night and realized that Tuesday and Thursdays have become big laundry days around here. Monday and Friday are just too busy for anything more than a little ironing (not even that on Mondays). I took my little room patterns with me to piano and did that there while I was waiting for Shayna to finish her lesson. We got all of our schoolwork done (number one priority) and the house cleaned up (number two) but I only made one of my phone calls and didn't get to the church library catalog.

Today will be much better. I have bread rising and laundry in the washer. We will get schoolwork and chores done and basically just keep working on all the things that need doing. Tonight is a session meeting which all of my menfolk attend. Shayna and I are going to friends' house to teach them to do ribbon embroidery. I'm sure that we will have tea.

I'm having a terrible time staying on my diet...I am finding that I'm just too busy with the urgent. I sent Conrad to work with regular ol' spaghetti and meatballs. Oh well! I'll just keep trying. Conrad says not to get discouraged, but I am. Sigh!

Well we are off to study the Phoenicians! Have a good day!

Today's focus: Laundry! Deskwork

What's for dinner?: Hotdog Casserole for the kids. Chicken breast for Conrad and me. Salad, fruit, fresh potato sourdough bread.

Today, I'm thankful for: New beginnings...I know, I know, I could count how many times I've said that on this blog! For the robins in my yard. For my hardworking menfolk. For my daughter, my companion in domesticity. For the curriculum we are using this year, it has a been a blessing to have someone else do the research.

Today I'm praying for: The peace of Christ to reign in our hearts, with thankfulness. Collosians 3:15. For the guys, that they would find favor in the eyes of their employers, and that they would accomplish the work set out for them. For the girls, that we would have the "law of kindness on our tongues".

To Do list:
Clean up the downstairs...it's a terrible mess - 1.5 hours

Laundry - haven't done any since Thursday - total actual hands on 2 hours, that includes some ironing

Lessons - my share about 2 hours, that's teaching, grading and recordkeeping

Paperwork - menu planning for the week, going over the church library 1 hour total

Cooking - easy stuff today, 1 hour total, only because Conrad and I are dieting, that takes extra work

Phone calls - I have to make 5, at 10 minutes each (and knowing I'll go over) I'll give that an hour

Piano lessons - out of the house for 1.5 hours, I do get some studying done, for about 20 minutes of that

Library - an hour if I'm business like and don't linger

And all of this needs to be done before the evening when we try really hard to maintain a routine of family devotions, quiet study time and read aloud time with whoever is at home at the time.

I hate starting the day out knowing I'm not going to get everything done no matter how hard I try. I realized today too, that I have dropped the habit of looking over the coming day's work the night before. I could have started a few things ahead and would have been more energetic about getting out of bed if I'd thought about it ahead! Sigh!

So, this is the total of my computer time today. Have a good week! It definitely gets better! :)

Good Friday

"BEHOLD THE MAN!"
by Christina Rossetti

Shall Christ hang on the Cross, and we not look?
Heaven, earth, and hell stood gazing at the first,
While Christ for long-cursed man was counted cursed;
Christ, God and Man, Whom God the Father strook
And shamed and sifted and one while forsook:--
Cry shame upon our bodies we have nursed
In sweets, our souls in pride, our spirits immersed
In wilfulness, our steps run all acrook.
Cry shame upon us! for He bore our shame
In agony, and we look on at ease
With neither hearts on flame nor cheeks on flame:
What hast thou, what have I, to do with peace?
Not to send peace but send a sword He came,
And fire and fasts and tearful night-watches.