Happy Halloween!

These are my 3 Spooks. It is kinda funny, Reagan and Jake have had no desire to dress up in years. This year they had a blast picking out and trying on their costumes. See Pippi, the magician, in the middle? Yes - I understand - I didn't realize Pippi was a magician either - but our horizons have all been broadened! Lizzie decided she would be a magician weeks ago - that is her handy dandy Magic Kit in her hands - beware though, if you buy one for your child you may be forced to watch HOURS of "made up" magic that actually appears nothing like actual magic. Yes, she refuses to read the actual instructions and just does the tricks how she sees fit. Yes, she is my child, so I really have no room to complain... BUT back to Pippi, when we were shopping for Reagan and Jake last night she found this Pippi wig, and since she LOVES Pippi and magic - Pippi the Magician was born!



Years ago when Reagan and Jake were just getting old enough to start understanding things - like Halloween and Santa Claus - I got very confused within myself. I even went so far as to go through a spell of thinking maybe we should not even have Santa in our home, as I thought maybe he was stealing all the attention away from Christ. For sure Halloween must be of the Devil - right?? This phase didn't' last very long - thank goodness for my kids, but especially my in-laws who were walking around with their jaws hanging open in shock. They had already thought I was off my rocker and an unacceptable bride to their precious baby - now they had actual proof!



Seriously though, I had a discussion with a dear friend the other day. She was feeling torn about Halloween. She had many Christian friends telling her if you did ANYTHING - even a church carnival - that she was being "worldly". One year Halloween was on a Wednesday - when a friend found out I would be taking my kids trick or treating in place of our usual church activities-he said, "I will be at church being holy." My comment, "Do you think I have to be at church to be holy?" He said, "Absolutely." BTW I rarely see or talk to that man anymore! :)

Here is what finally opened my eyes - God is so much bigger than all this petty judgement that Christians put on each other and the world. The bible says that God sees our heart. So, He knows we are just out to have fun and are not secretly in our heart serving Satan! As humans I think it is easy to put God in a box and assume that is where he functions. He is SO much bigger than we can even imagine. We have always had fun on Halloween - Santa still makes an appearance on Christmas Eve - and my kids all have a heart for the Lord. They desire to be in church and they each have a personal walk with Christ. So, we will be having a blast tonight - and if someone chooses to abstain because they believe it is the right thing for them - I do not judge them - all I ask is they do not judge me either. It is, after all, between me and God.

6 days!!

6 days until the election!! I am excited for a new turn for our country - but mostly will just be glad when I won't be recieving 15 emails a day that we are all doomed - some if Obama wins, some if McCain wins - depending on who is sending it.

We will obviously not all be happy on Nov 4th, but you know what - we will all live thru it! Either way it will not be the end of the world for any of us. We all hope this is a time that our country does turn around and begin to change in a positive way for generations to come. If all Americans, including the media, could put as much effort into the things that unify us as we do the things that divide us - who knows how far we could go - together.

Sexual Exposure Chart

I had never seen this before...I am kinda in the dark ages - I admit that - but this surprised me! The number on the left is how many people you have had sex with, the number on the right is how many people you are actually exposed to - considering the people they have been with. Glad my number is still only 1!!!!!!!!!!!!

Volunteering

My best friend, Julie, and I are starting a new adventure. I must admit, it was the furthest thing from both of our minds a few weeks ago - but sometimes God works quickly! :) To tell you the truth, I guess I have never really volunteered anywhere before. Sure, I have helped with different church type things, but this is really my first real community volunteer experience. When I was a teenager I went to Teen Court for a traffic violation and was sentenced to like 5 hours of community service. I went to a day care for underprivileged kids. It was very sad. I remember that about an hour before they were all to be picked up we fed them all again, even though they had lunch a few hours before. We fed them another complete meal and the lady running the place told me that was because many of them would not be fed again until they arrived the next morning and had breakfast at the center. I admit I lived a pretty privileged and sheltered life and that surprised me. Sure, I had been on mission trips to Mexico and seen the poverty there - but this was America after all!! So, my 16 year old eyes were opened a little bit. Point being, this was not a volunteer experience, as I was sentenced to serve and did not choose it.

So, here I am to Julie and I. We really don't know what we will be doing, but due to many different circumstances that keep popping up it feels like we are led to do this. I didn't know what to expect - would they be radical, legalistic in their beliefs? It was so far from that. In fact, as a volunteer I must sign a contract that states I will NOT try to influence a girls decision about her choice - it is just that - her choice. The purpose is to give girls in a scary position of finding themselves pregnant the information they need to make an informed decision. They need to know there are choices out there. It is also in the contract that religion can not be forced or pushed, but also be open to share and pray with clients if they want that. They very much want to love people where they are - no judgement about their choices that led up to the pregnancy or their choice about abortion, adoption, or keeping the baby or whatever. I liked the approach very much. I believe that Jesus is like this. He loves us exactly where we are. So many Christians tend to forget that.

My Grandma was advised to have an abortion - my mom was placenta previa and in those days there was not the technology there is today. My Grandma said absolutely not and carried my mom almost to full term. She and mom both survived, although my mom died several times in those first few days - but was brought back to life. I am very grateful for my Grandma's choice - otherwise I would not be here, nor would my kids. Kind of an odd thing to thing about, isn't it?

Grateful

It has been a good day. Nothing extraordinary happened, it has just been a really good day. I feel grateful.

Wonderful things I have been blessed to be a part of:

- A friend of Sean's that no longer has knee pain or hay fever

- A new friend that is an older lady that told me today she can go up and down stairs without pain for the first time in a long time. She also has increased energy, enough so much that she was babysitting her 3 small grandchildren! yea!

- A friend no longer suffering from headaches or migraines

- A lady able to leave home without her inhaler for the first time in a long time

From just increased energy to an actual total life change - WHAT A PRIVILEGE to be a small part of it all! Yes - I am grateful.

Liberated!!

We have been reading the Ramona series by Beverly Cleary. It has been fun, but the books are weird due to being written in the 50's and 60's. They have the normal stuff in there from books of that day - when people are happy, they are gay, etc...

When Lizzie and I read aloud together each day sometimes Jake will be in the room doing other work. He is a little eavesdropper really. If we are reading something he finds funny he will actually come over and join us. Well, the other day we were reading Ramona the Brave and the mom is telling Ramona and Beezus (Ramona's big sis) that she has gotten a job. Beezus immediately exclaimed, "Mom, you are going to be liberated!". Jake and I were rolling in the floor laughing and Lizzie didn't get it. Try to explain that to a 6 year old - it was an interesting conversation!

Well, ever since that day, when I am doing anything from making dinner to leaving for a Reliv appointment - Jake will ask, "Are you gonna be liberated?" or "Are you liberated?" or any variable you can think of with liberated in the sentence. It is kinda funny at this point, but getting old fast I must admit to you. I can not admit to Jake it is irritating or he will be relentless. He is a teenage boy after all, looking for any amunition to irritate a family member.

I find it interesting that in the 50's a woman was liberated if she worked outside the home and now it is the majority of women. I guess I have seen both worlds. I loved being a Dental Hygienist - but never more than being with my kids. Reagan crawled for the first time and took her first steps at the baby sitter's house while I was at work. I cried over that. I do not think there is anything wrong with women that want to have careers. I just know for me, I LOVE being with my kids. Can I be honest - I don't really feel the need to be liberated. Maybe because I have a choice. I have the greatest job in the world and I do it when I want and around my kids. Maybe if I felt I was forced to be home or forced to be at work either way I would want liberation? I guess in one way I have found a way to liberate myself and be home and work when I want. It seems like the best of both worlds to me.

Liberated...the word still kinda cracks me up!

Lazy Day

So, yesterday I blogged about how busy I was...today is LAZY DAY!! Let's see, what does Lizzie call a day like today? OH - a stay home day!!! YEA!!!!!!! We are both in our jammies right now with no plans of changing yet.

YEA!!

We are doing school in our jammies and just enjoying each other and loving the down time! Here's hoping you all have as good a Friday as we are planning on! Well, off to read about Ramona the Pest - I love that girl! These books are great - but odd in ways as well... I will blog about them later when I have more time!

Busy

Today is a busy day. I will be honest, we home school and I work from home, so honestly there is very little of that getting up and out early for us around here. Thursday is a busy day for us usually. Jake has piano, then he has his choir. This fall Jake and Reagan joined the adult choir at church and somehow talked me into it as well. I am still not sure how that happened...but we get home on Thursdays about 9pm. OK - I know many of you are up earlier than me and home later than me on a regular basis - I am not seeking your sympathy, don't worry - but you do have mine. :)

Today we had to be out of the house by 8am - that is very early for us Grabbe people - well excluding Sean, who purposefully will set appointments for himself at 8am in order to get up and at 'em. That is very foreign to my understanding. I don't get why someone would choose to do that to themselves??? I LOVE it if I can stay in my Jammies 1/2 the day, or on the rare occasion I don't' have to go anywhere ALL day long!!! But this is about today, I was up at 6:30, had everyone dressed and out the door by 8, and we will not be back home until about 9pm tonight. To top it off we did a road trip last night to Helena and got home about 11:45pm. I am tired...did I mention that I am tired?

By the way, I am tired, but I am also HAPPY!! Oh so happy, because I can have a day where I can go all day and not have to worry about whether I will actually make it. When my health was so compromised it was very hard to make any plans because I never knew how I would feel the next day, much less ten minutes from now. It was hard. So, yes - I AM TIRED - but oh so glad I have the chance to be tired!!

"Never give up, never surrender" and all that...

Cheeseburger Cheating

In this photo on the right Lizzie has just stuffed a fourth of a cheeseburger in Jake's mouth as he was talking... read the dialog below for the entire scoop:

As we were walking into Old Chicago:
Mom: "Lizzie, please order something other than a cheeseburger because you only ever eat one bite of that thing."

Lizzie: "OK, Mom"

Waitress arrives, taking orders, gets to Lizzie.
Lizzie: "Cheeseburger and french fries, please."
Waitress: "OK, sweetie, and if you eat the whole thing I will bring you ice cream on the house!"
Snickers from all at the table over 6 years old.
Lizzie: "OK!"

20 Minutes later: As waitress sees hamburger cut in 1/2 and only 1/4th eaten. "Tell you what, sweetie, if you finish that bite (points to the 1/4th of burger) I will get your ice cream!"
Within 2 seconds of the waitress turning around, Jake leans forward to say something, "Moooo" The word was never finished...quick as lightening Lizzie had grasp the 1/4 piece and shoved the entire thing in Jake's mouth!!!!!!! Needless to say we were all astounded! Mostly Jake, as Sean and I were practically falling out of our seats laughing.

Guess what? Lizzie ate every drop of that ice cream. And her brother still loves her anyway...

The Toothless Wonder

Lizzie lost another tooth. She was very excited!! Please ignore the toilet in the background. :)

She is missing 3 teeth at the moment.

I hope some start coming in before anymore fall out! She is so cute with no teeth though!

Jake - Nat Geographic

It is probably easier to give a short explanation here than replying to each comment. Jake was chosen basically because someone we know - knows someone - that knows someone that was assisting these guys while shooting at Montana State University. We got a call on Wednesday asking if Jake was available on thurs. We were told that he would just be playing scales. They requested a high schooler. Once we arrived for shooting - they were running an hour and a half late, by the way, then we found out Jake was the only piano player and there were no scales involved. They wanted something classical and then for him to break it up into chords as well. Jake has only taken piano for a year - so it was a challenge, but he did beautifully.

Thursday we found out it was a film about viruses. We originally were told that Jake would play scales and a college student would be playing a more advanced piece. I do NOT know the details and will probably explain this inaccurately, but this is how I understood it. They will use the sequencing of the chords to the song as a way to show the progression of the viruses? Guess we will all have to watch and see how it works. I am sure Jake's shot will be 10 seconds or something. It will be on the actual National Geographic channel supposedly sometime in December. That is all the information I have for now! Thanks for caring enough to be interested!!

Expectations

Some one dear to me has pointed out an interesting fact. I say fact because I think he really is onto something. He said, "You know one of your best qualities and one of your biggest downfalls is that you expect the best from people?". I asked for further explaination and it was pointed out to me that I always look for the very best in people. Now, that was a few days ago and I have been digesting and now have a few thoughts. Some people probably know what they are going to say before they begin writing it down. Writing actually helps me to process things and figure out what I am thinking and feeling.


You know the old saying: "Hurt me once, shame on you, Hurt me twice, shame on me"? Something like that anyway...well, I think of it often. Why? You might ask, because I have unreal expectations of people. I can have a person in my life that hurts me and then next time I encounter them, do I expect hurt again? NO! I am actually shocked when I end up hurt again. Hence the downfall my friend pointed out. I will be shocked each and everytime this same person does something hurtful. I have unrealistic expectations - that somehow miraculously this asshole will suddenly have a bit of tact.


The flip side is that I feel all people have an inherent potential to be the best they can be. I have actually watched people evolve into great leaders, people that were far from that when I first met them. It is an amazing thing to observe. The thing I forget is the most important aspect of expecting a change in people. The truth is that I am out of the equation really. For change to occur, change must be desired. A person must desire a change for themselves and that is the beginning of change.


I am not sure what I will do with this observation. I do not want to expect bad things from people. I want to keep believing that people are inherently good. At the same time I want to protect myself from being hurt. I think for now I will take those few people that seem to be like a poison to me and compartmentalize them as toxic and set healthy boundaries for myself.

Thanks for putting up with my ramblings...any thoughts?

Jake - National Geographic

Jake's hands will be on a National Geographic show in December. We don't know the exact date, but I am sure this proud mama will pass it along when it gets closer. It is a show about viruses in Yellowstone National Park. They wanted to demonstrate how the chords on a piano progress into an actual song. I don't get the entire connection, but comparing it to how viruses grow and evolve. This is the sound guy in the floor and the producer explaining to Jake exactly what they want him to do.

This is how the takes looked...too bad it is blurry! They darkened the entire room and spotlighted his hands as he played. The camera man stayed inches away from his hands. Jake was originally told he would just play a scale, but once we got there they added a whole song and then broke the song into chords... he was very nervous, but did well under pressure. They were very kind to him and just neat people in general. It was a fun experience. So - watch for "Jake's Hands" on a television set near you soon!!

Dark Times

My teens hate this picture, so don't tell them I posted it for all the world to see. I love this picture because they are both laughing hysterically. Even though Reagan is just living next door, we don't see her everyday. In this picture, Jake, Lizzie and I had just returned from the grocery store and brought Reagan some stuff. We dropped it off and she ran out to get it. You should see Lizzie when she sees her sister - she loves her very much. I think I expected that - that this transition would be hard for Lizzie. Jake is the one that surprises me. He LOVES his "big" sister and doesn't mind showing it. She has really been his best friend all his life. It really is sweet, don't you think?

Back to the big smiles - I LOVE seeing those smiles because our family went through some really rough years. When I became physically ill, I also suffered with some major emotional stuff. I had never been anxious or depressed before, but I was both - in a severe way! Some days my husband would pry my hands off of his shirt and run out the door to head to work. Those days I would just curl up on the couch in a fetal position and cry. I was a mess. See those two smiling faces in the picture? I can assure you that those faces were heavy with fear, worry, and concern those days. They carried so much more at their young ages than they should have had to. I know that they turned out fine, do not harbor any more anger about it (due to years of therapy) and families do just come together and get through stuff when they have to. I also know I didn't choose it or desire to be a burden to them. All that said, I don't know that all the guilt will ever totally go away. I just regret they were forced to grow up so fast, forced to take on the responsibility for their baby sister and their mother at times.

So, that is why a picture of these two laughing so hard they look silly will always be a beautiful picture for me. Smile and laugh Reagan and Jake - you deserve it and so much more!

I Voted Today

Well, it is done. I filled in my ballot and mailed it today. I thought it was very fitting as soon as I finished sealing the envelope I turned around and Little Miss Sunshine was sitting on the stairs behind me. She does this every morning - sneaks down quietly and sits on the steps and waits for me to notice her. She always has this precious smile, too.

It seemed very fitting for her to be sitting there because I had just placed my vote for her. Sure, I do it for all of us, but mostly for my kids. I do not want my kids to have spend their entire lives trying to fix things we are messing up now. I want them to look back and be grateful that we made good decisions that will positively affect their lives and the lives of their children.

I voted today so that she can remain smiling all of her life.

Pickles

I LOVE pickles! The story is told by my mom that as soon as I could walk, the pickles were kept on the bottom shelf of the fridge with the lid off and I just helped myself. I am not sure why, but pickles are like an entire food group to me. I made pickles this year for the first time in years. Before I was sick, I always pickled. Well, not always, I had a dear friend teach me how to pickle a few years after moving to Montana. So, pickling was a favorite fall affair for several years, then I got sick and was just barely surviving and pickling was far from my mind. I would have never had the energy. So, here is a picture of my first batch of pickles in years. To me it is more than just pickles - although I must admit they are DELICIOUS - they symbolize how far I have come. I am doing things I never thought possible again - I am so grateful!!

For Shelley

Shelley asked for some pictures - so here they are. Look at these poor little Pansies!


"Wait a minute here! It isn't even the middle of October yet, God!"

You didn't think you would get by without at least one picture of Lizzie, did you?

This may look like the moon, but it is the sun trying to peek through!!

View off the front deck

View off the back deck

Poor little Chica!!

We got less snow than they did in town, which is unusual. It will all be gone in a few days, I am sure. The prediction is 60 degrees by Wednesday - YEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was not ready...

I was not ready. I thought I was ready...but now that the snow has been coming down for about 24 hours straight I have discovered I was definitely not ready. The weird thing is that I love winter. It is my favorite season. It just seems like fall barely arrived and we were thrust right into a big winter storm. It is hard to adjust from 60 degrees to 15 in one day. It is cold you guys... not just cold, it is butt - ugly cold!

Thanks for letting me complain, and whine, and gripe... I needed that!

Chica - Poor Thing

So here is little Chica, barely sticking her head out of the covers. I mentioned briefly yesterday that we had our first snow. It is still snowing, we are suppose to get about 8 inches down here in the valley and about 30 up in the mountains. Chica is not thrilled.

You should see her in the spring when the weather starts having intermittent warm and sunny days. She heads out the door with her tail wagging so hard her entire back end is moving with it. No tail wagging today. She knows what this first white spell means. She walked out last night with her head hanging low, did her business, and ran back inside as quick as dogly possible.

When it is warm, we joke that it is the weather of her people. So, what is winter to her? Torture I suppose - so we have learned, the hard way I might add, to watch for lumps in the bed - she burrows her way down under the covers and remains there as much as possible. She emerges quickly if she hears a rattle of any sort of wrapper - food is a good motivator - how sad when I am only opening a package of batteries. She only emerged for this picture because I called her name - about 10 times. Then once the picture was taken and she figured out I had only summoned her for my own measly amusement, she retreated back down into her warm safe haven.

Yes, Chica, it is only fall, but you are right, it will be a long white winter. You poor thing! But spring will return in about 6 or 7 months and you can once again wiggle your entire butt in glee!

5 Things You May not Know about Me

This is inspired my Jen over at Unglazed http://unglazed.blogspot.com/ . I attempted a link - Shelly is trying to help me...we will see if it worked!

Five things you may not know about me:

1) I am a Dental Hygienist by profession. Well, RETIRED Dental Hygienist. I cleaned teeth for 11 years and enjoyed it very much. I love people, so I enjoyed the people anyway. I never enjoyed the drama that always goes on in offices with lots of women working together.

2) I always wanted to live on a farm and have 6 kids. I live on 2 acres and have 3 kids. This is perfect for me - sometimes it is good to NOT get what we wish for. Growing up, I always just wanted to be a mom. I don't even really know why. It was not like my parents taught us a woman's place is home or anything like that. I just always had a deep desire for it.

3) I love to be with my kids - yes even the teenagers! I have lots of friends who LOVE when school returns so they can send their kids back for 8 hours a day. I have my moments, don't get me wrong, when I need some peace and quiet. Overall though, I think my kids are fabulous people and I truly enjoy them.

4) All the curtains in my house where sewn by my dear Grandma Mary. The kids joke that 50 years from now when they are all out of style they will still hang here just cuz Grandma made them for me - possibly true.

5) I love to bake during the first snow. All those years of living with friends, then living in a 2 bedroom apartment with 5 of us while we built our log home I dreamed of being in my log kitchen looking out the window and baking in my warm house. That is why at 10pm last night I was making Toffee Bars and Chocolate Chip cookies. It feels like a dream come true, every fall, and I hope the magic of it never leaves. I also hope it inspires me to remember all those out there right now cold and lonely. May God deliver them as well.

I Love my Light Plates, too!

Living Room - with my beautiful Model - Lizzie!

This is inspired by Shelley over at Building a Log Cabin. I would put the link here, but I have never been able to figure out how to do that! Anyway, Shelley loves her switch plates, as she well should, cuz they are fabulous! Here are mine:

Lizzie's Bedroom - Cinderella's Pumpkin

Lizzie's Door - Tinkerbell - she was following me around and also eating her toast!

OK - So, this is not a light switch - it is a papertowel holder, BUT I like it!

Bear - Guest Bath
Master Bathroom - One day, when the cabinets are finished, this
cowboy won't have to hide behind this shelf anymore!

Elk - Dining Room

Horse - Master Bedroom (Model Lizzie with her toast again)

Moose - Entry Hall

Lizzie's One Liners

Lizzie has been pretty funny lately so I thought I would pass a few of her one liners on:

1) Last night as I was folding laundry she walked in just as I was folding Jake's unmentionables. She said, "EEEEEEWWWWWW I would never touch boy panties!" Let's hope she holds that belief for a long time to come.

2) Today trying on shoes, her right foot was about a size 3 and her left foot was about a 2 1/2. After trying on about 20 pairs of shoes she exclaimed, "I think there is something wrong with my feet!"

3) After said shoe shopping adventure, I got in the car and said, "I am exhausted! Are you tired, Lizzie?" Her reply, " I am not pescotted, I am going home to play Wii."

4) When we pulled up in front of Staples for a notebook for Jake a voice from the backseat said:
"Why are we at S-T-A-P- pause Cish - E - S??" Next time you are at staples notice that the L is a staple so it has a curve at the top. She didn't know what letter it was, but it looked Cish to her!

I could go on and on - Thank you God for our little surprise, even if I did cry when I found out I was pregnant with her. I am glad that His ways are not our ways and things that seem bad in the beginning can turn out to be the biggest blessings of our lives!!!

Good Day

It's been a good day. The day started with prayer with my dear friend, Julie. We prayed for over an hour, and I swear ya'll it seemed like 20 minutes tops! Time just flew by!! So, I frantically got off the phone thinking I was already way behind, but guess what? I got more done by 1pm than I ever usually do on a regular day! So, I guess once I got my priorities straight it all just fell into place after all!

I used to dread Mondays. That is one advantage to loving your job - Mondays are just as fabulous as any other day.

I hope you all had as fulfilling day as I did. I feel tired, but it is a good tired. The kind of tired a person feels when you feel you have done your best for now.... OH - I will leave you with a quote I heard this weekend which is now one of my favorites!

"I do not pray for success, I ask for faithfulness." Mother Teresa

Box City

Last night we slept in a box. There were almost 100 people that all slept at "box city". It was a fund raiser for Family Promise. Family Promise is an amazing opportunity that helps homeless families get back on their feet. It was a priviledge to be a part of it. Here are some pictures. The band was a hoot and invited people to sing! It was a blast!


Lizzie and Laura with the box they slept in - Nice Paint Job!

Sean lounging in our home away from home. Of course, Chica was there! When we came
home and sat down at our table we felt so priveledged that tonight we won't be
out there sleeping again. So sad that there are others without that option.

I LOVE my purple sleeping bag!
Sean singing "bye bye Miss American Pie"!!! shocking! and there was no
alcohol involved!

Lizzie and Laura singing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"!!!
We love our box! Notice in the background - those people brought a table, chairs, and even a recliner from home!! They had it all cleaned up and loaded before we ever got up this morning! They were out of there before 7am...silly industrious morning people - I just don't get it!

Donut holes!!
Peek a boo, girls! This was their peep hole from inside their box!

Lizzie Doing Dishes

Last night Lizzie begged to do the dishes. Well, why not?? She got tired about 1/2 way thru, probably from all that scrubbing she did on items that didn't really need to be scrubbed. But hey - it was a nice gesture anyway. Besides all of that - I don't remember Reagan or Jake ever wanting to even give any type of chore a try! I did have to mop after she was finished, lest one of us slip and fall in the vast amount of water that ended up on the floor, even so, I hope she wants to do dishes again another day - it is one of my least favorite chores!

That is her easy bake oven in the forefront of the picture - yes, she even cooks! So what if it is only enough for each person so get a one inch by one inch size piece - it is still cake! Serving sizes for small people - or dieters! Hey, I think I am onto something - If I only eat desserts that come from the easy bake oven cut into fourths... That is a lot fewer calories!!