Roadside attractions- Minnesotans style

This is so Minnesotan, it makes me laugh. 

I'm hoping to visit some soon.

:)Amy

Full Circle: A True Fairytale

This article was just published in my neighborhood newspaper.  It's been good to remember other seasons and adventures.

Once upon a time, a 16 year old girl named Amy was invited by her friend to host Christie, a 16 year old from Guatemala.  Amy’s parents said yes and Christie lived in their home for 12 weeks, changing their lives forever.  Amy’s family had so much fun with Christie that they invited Alitza to come and stay for a school year.  Amy eventually journeyed to Guatemala and reunited with both her friends.  She also lived with three families in Costa Rica and another in Nicaragua.  She lived with a Hispanic family and an African American family in Chicago and with a family in the Sikh community in Vancouver.  She attended Hmong festivals and a Sikh wedding, an auspicious Chinese birthday in Costa Rica and a church service in the mountains of Guatemala.  She rode packed mini vans and super speed buses on hairpin curves.  She paddled across tropical rivers to a rainforest “farm” and harvested bananas with a machete and oranges with her own hands under the eye of a bull.  She studied Islam for year, touring a mosque and receiving hospitality over tea from a Muslim family.  As she journeyed, when the people heard she was a teacher, she received offers from two communities to build her a school and a home if she would come and teach their daughters to read.  She went home and studied teaching English as a Second Language, determined to only teach people who wanted to learn.  She welcomed children and families from Russia and the Republic of Georgia and Nepal and people of no land and no country at all.  Later she taught adults from Somalia and the Sudan and Ivory Coast and Laos.  For some she had the honor of being their first teacher ever, teaching them to read and to write their names as mothers and grandmothers.  She married and moved into an exciting neighborhood in South Minneapolis where she could raise her kids among people from all over the world.  Then one spring, she heard that 15 French kids wanted to come and visit Minneapolis.  She wanted to share the richness she’d enjoyed with her kids and her community.  Coming full circle from host sister and traveler to welcoming mother, she accepted the challenge to find 15 families who want to open their homes and their hearts like her family had all those years before. 

You have the chance to join this story and become a host family for a French boy or girl age 14-17, from July 9-30, 2011.  The kids are coming for an immersion experience in English and American culture and want to join in with whatever their host family is doing this summer- chores, daily routines, church, bike riding, grilling, park trips-whatever a Minneapolis family is about.  My mom and I are planning activities for them on Tuesdays and Thursdays including Youth Farm, Lake Calhoun, Mall of America, and more.  Painter Park is our central meeting place for orientation, the Welcome Ice Cream Social, the adventures, and Goodbye Potluck. 

Write yourself into the story and contact:

Amy Reisdorf,

Job update

Good news!  After several months, the long awaited full-time position for Tim at A&P Construction starts Monday.  He's already begun visiting sites and is adjusting to the new work pace.  He was hired over several insiders and I'm particularly proud of him for his conscientious, hard work as a consultant these last couple years which are now paying off.

I am recruiting host families for French exchange students and my group size just doubled on Monday.  I'm out 3-4 nights/week doing home visits.  The plan for July when the kids are here is coming together nicely and I'm expecting a good summer.

I also just accepted a job as the food buyer for Youth Farm, Anjali's favorite program.  I will be responsible to order and deliver food for 600 meals/week during the 8 week program.  My minivan is going to be put to good use. 

We're wrapping up homeschool in May and are looking forward to a change of pace.

A bit of craziness

This last 5 days has been action-packed.  Highlights, if I can rightly call them that, include:

Thursday- having a flat tire
Friday- Mark has stomach flu and furnace goes out and stays out
Monday- Anjali has stomach flu

Tire's fixed.
Mark feels fine after 3 bad hours.
Furnace scheduled to be fixed today.
Anjali on mend.

I used to pack my life tight and be crazed by the unexpected but I'm learning.  I hadn't overscheduled, I changed the plans I had, and I'm tired with my humor intact- not crazed.

Today is Mark and Anjali Day

Today, Anjali and Mark were superstars.  I had a job interview and they played stunningly well throughout.  We shoe-shopped and they each liked the first pair.  The van, which Tim calls Traveler, got a flat tire, and the kids waited for 1 1/2 hours through all the attempts at repair.  Then Mark sat patiently while I got my haircut. 
Superstars.

I wished I had my camera today when both of them were sitting on the steps of the house adjacent to Traveler, balloons on strings from the Shoe Zoo tied to their wrists, pink and blue straining in the breeze while the kids sat in the sunshine.  Beautiful.

Thanks, Mark.  Thanks, Anjali.  I'm very proud of you both!

Transitions

We are making lots of changes these days. 

First, our old computer was on the fritz so I was delayed in blogging lately.  I'm finally getting all my logins and passwords back in order so we should be back in action here.

Second, Tim's jobs are still in transition.  He was going to start March 1, then April 1, and is still working under the old system at A&P until he gets the word.  Also, his Saturdays at Fed Ex have been routinely running 12 hours and he finally was just given permission to train in some help.  He started training another guy yesterday and hopefully should be able to reduce his Saturday work load.  We are very grateful that he still has jobs.

Third, I got a part-time job coordinating home stays for French exchange students this summer.  After a rocky start recruiting, things are well underway.  My mom is going to be my assistant which is great, especially since she's more organized and more knowledgeable than I am.  We're planning lots of fun outings and I'm really enjoying my time with prospective host families.  Interesting bunch. 

Fourth, Youth Farm starts again this week.  Anjali loves this group and this is her top priority for the summer. She's anticipating starting garden clean-up and cooking classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  What a fabulous group and since I really can't afford to volunteer again this year, I'm trying for a paid position.  I've applied for a 10/hr/week position for the summer working as the food buyer for them and hope to get a call to interview.   

Fifth, homeschool is shifting a bit.  My mom has kindly agreed to teach Anjali writing as she will be retiring from public school teaching this June.  Mark is doing math with Tim, Starfall phonics on the computer, and lots of stories with me.  We're guessing he might start learning to read this summer or fall.  I'm hoping to finish the homeschool year by the end of May. 

We'll keep you posted!

Amy's new job

This afternoon I accepted a part-time position as a Homestay Coordinator from now through the end of July.  A group of 15 French students and a chaperon will be coming to Minneapolis in July.  I am looking for 16 host families and two back-ups who would like to host a French teen for 3 weeks.  I'll be doing training, planning outings and parties, and working with interesting families and teens.  This should be fun!

If you're interested in being a host family or know someone who might, here's the website for Compass USA.

The Onion Newspaper

Saw this headline in the local satire newspaper, The Onion, last week and it cracked me up.  Wanted to share it with you.

Nation Somehow Shocked by Human Nature Again

Check it out for a good laugh!

Inspiration

We've been reading and watching movies about the Revolutionary War this month- very, very inspiring. 

Anjali recommends:

Liberty Kids, Netflix, 40 episodes following kids from the Boston Tea Party to the end of the war

Young Patriots: Inspiring Stories of the American Revolution by Marcella Fisher Anderson and Elizabeth Weiss Vollstadt.  It's a series of stories about kids who helped to win the Revolution- a great read and discussion starter.

Heroines of the American Revolution: America's Founding Mothers by Diane Solcox-Jarret.  Marvelous stories about women heroes in the Revolutionary War like Mary Lindley Murray the woman who stopped the British Army with a tea party.  Amy was extremely moved, too, especially since I'd never heard of these women before.



Amy recommends:
Washington's Lady by Nancy Moser, historical fiction of Martha Washington's life

And slightly off topic, yet nonetheless inspiring and relevant
 Biography of Robert E Lee and The End of the Civil War, Netflix

Amy's jaw- it's over!

I am happy to report that I went to the oral surgeon yesterday and from everything we can see, feel, and culture, it looks like he got the infection and this whole thing is over.  On the top right you can see my former cyst.  I'm very grateful and quite tired, too.

Amy's oral surgery

On Monday February 7 at 9:30 a.m. I will be going in for oral surgery.  I have an infected cyst ballooning into my sinus above where two infected molars used to reside until recently.  I am currently on my 6th course of antibiotics in 6 months which should hold everything until then.  I am pleased to say that I got my top choice of surgeon and team and I am really looking forward to finishing this. 

Based on the symptoms which increase when I'm off antibiotics and then lessen when I'm on, I'm guessing this has been a cause for 12 years or more of my chronic head and neck pain as well as digestive issues.  I am so very, very glad to be finishing this before my 40th birthday on 2/14.

Two bits of hard won wisdom-
If you are an Eldridge- please note that all of Grampa Ernest Eldridge's molars had 5 roots!  If you have a root canal, be sure that they check for 5th roots since I also had at least one which sat infected for 12 years setting this whole mess in motion.

Second, if you have unexplained health problems, think teeth.  I can't believe how many other things I tried over the years from neurological exams and an MRI to food allergies and gall stones but never once considered that it might be related to either teeth or sinuses. One 2 minute CT scan told all. 

Please keep me in prayer as God brings me to mind.

Tim and the dishwasher

This is a long overdue thank you blog.  Our dishwasher died this fall and Tim bargain shopped, getting us a great new one, saving even more by installing it himself.  It works great!  Even pots and pans.  I've got an extra hour a day since I'm not organizing the kids to help wash and hand dry everything.  Thanks Tim!  Good work!

Mark's joke

Mark: Mom, what do you call an animal with a trunk and an X on it's head?

Mom:  What?

Mark:  An X-ephant.  It's the same word- L-ephant and X-ephant.  See?

Loving winter- snowshoeing

Anjali, Mark, and I all went snowshoeing for the first time today.  Love it!  We went to Botteneau Park in NE Mpls and had a wonderful naturalist named Kristy all to ourselves for an hour of playing outside.  We made the first footprints in last night's new snow, climbed ice piles, found helicopter seeds, and watched the clouds float by in the blue, blue sky laying on a picnic table.  So easy to do which is a pleasant surprise after trying skiing and skating many years ago. 
So, if anyone wants to go float around Wirth Park, looking for tracks and birds, let us know.  We're all there.

In the news

Recently, we've all been in the news.
Anjali's photo was in the Star Tribune with an article about Christmas church attendance.  She's right in the middle.  That's our girl!  Thanks to those who contacted us to let us know and to those who sent copies.

We were all mentioned this month in an article on our neighborhood newspaper, the Lyndale News. 
It's fun to be famous.

Community Voices

by Aryca Myers
Photo Courtesy of Amy Reisdorf
When talking with Amy about neighborhood issues and LNA in particular, it is hard not to get swept up in the enthusiasm and excitement that she puts forth. “LNA is the nervous system of the neighborhood, you hold the center and put a lot of faith in us, showing us that we can do it!” As I talked with Amy about her involvement with Lyndale, I was so intrigued with her take on the work and LNA’s position within the community.
A resident of Lyndale for 12 years, Amy has been involved in the neighborhood in some capacity for just as long. Coming from a rural town to the city 12 years ago, she was amazed at the sense of community present in Lyndale. She loves it here because, “there is a bit of quirkiness in our neighborhood, and I like that fact that my daughter is happy to just be her. Despite crushing conformity, kids can be who they are, there is room for people to find their own interest, style. There is room for different flowers in the garden, you don’t all have to be yellow tulips!”
Her first activity was a gardening beautification project that her neighbor had written up as a mini-grant. Through some citizen advocacy that worked, Amy was able to see democracy in action and was shown that what she did mattered. She was part of the campaign to upgrade Painter Park.
After being knocked from the top of the list to the bottom in terms of getting improvements, community members fought back and won! Painter Park was put back at the top of the list and improvements were made. Amy recalls that she thought, “Oh my goodness, we can actually get stuff done!” Since then she has been involved as a reviewer for the LPF, done surveys, picked up trash, hosted a Wall Dogs artist, and of course volunteered at Youth Farm Market Project (YFMP), which is her favorite program of the year. “They are able to surf the chaos in a really healthy way, to transform that chaos into an upbeat, safe place while capturing the energy of the neighborhood and channeling it in a positive way.”
Amy, her husband Tim, and children Anjali and Mark are all involved in neighborhood activities and volunteering in their own ways. During the past snowstorm Tim spent about five hours outside helping neighbors get shoveled out and freeing stuck cars. Anjali, a big fan of National Night Out will be hosting the party for their block with some YFMP friends this coming fall while Mark is a big fan of cutting out paper airplanes and taking part in the Leonardo’s art classes while his mother is at neighborhood meetings.
During Litter Outta Lyndale, Amy and the kids came to help pick up trash, and thanks to Martha who brought some delicious cinnamon rolls, their motivation propelled them to clean both sides of two blocks! A considerable feat being that Mark is just four years old. It is stories like this that remind me of how big an impact you can have on someone by doing something kind and generous.
However, it hasn’t always been so rosy, and over the years the Reisdorfs have considered moving out of Lyndale for a “bland but safe” existence in the ‘burbs. “There can be some really crappy things about city living. Some of the irritations can get to you...but there is so much positive going on here, this zest, liveliness, something to stay excited for.” They have decided to stay in Lyndale for now, and talking to Amy about her decision, you can see that she is truly happy with the choice her family made. And we’re just as happy to have her and her family still in the neighborhood!
Aside from her love of reading, yoga, and square dancing with the family (“it’s a hoot!”), Amy has been creating art over the past 30 years chronicling her healing journey with pieces that commemorate people and events that have made an impact in her life. For her 40th birthday she will display her works online in a show titled, “Amy’s Collected Works.” Look for more details in the coming months for her online exhibition.

Mark's wit

The other day, Mark asked for a glass of milk and I lost focus and handed him a glass of water instead. He got the frustrated set to his jaw, and I braced myself for an angry outburst.

However, he redirected himself, looked me in the eye and said, "Mama, you zigged when you were 'posed to zag." We both laughed and he got his glass of milk with a smile.