Let My Life Be the Proof

Food Friday: Potato Wedges with Spicy Chipotle Sauce

2013-04-19T07:14:00.000-07:00

With all this warm weather we've been having lately, it's been feeling like a great time to get back outside and fire up the grill (before it gets unbearably hot and all we want to do is sit inside where we have cold air). So last night, we did just that. We opened up the French doors in the kitchen that lead to the porch, turned on some old country music we could dance around to, and while little man laughed at our horrible renditions of some of Alabama’s and King George’s greatest songs, my husband put some chicken on the grill while I put together some potato wedges with this great sauce.

It’s pretty perfect for this time of year because it goes with just about all kinds of grilling foods, but it’s especially great with the taste of Sweet Baby Ray’s barbeque sauce. Though, to be honest, I think everything goes with Sweet Baby Ray’s because it’s delicious.

Anyway, without further ado, here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

3 medium potatoes
Season packet for potatoes (you can find this in the produce aisle, but use your own blend of seasonings if you prefer)
1 tablespoon oil
1 tablespoon Ranch dressing
3 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 tablespoon chipotle chili powder
1/8 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1/8 tablespoon salt
1/8 tablespoon garlic power

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
After scrubbing potatoes, slice in half length-wise and then cut into wedges (you should have about 4 or 5 wedges per half).
Combine wedges with season packet and oil, and lay on baking sheet.
Bake for about 20 mintutes, flip potatoes over, then bake another 20 minutes.
While potatoes are baking, combine the remainder of ingredients in a small bowl, and refrigerate until ready to serve.

We ate these with bbq chicken, but as I said before, they really go great with anything grilled. And if you have leftovers that you want to reheat, these are a lot better microwaved than regular french fries are (though I'd still suggesting baking them for a few minutes so they don't get mushy).

This Child Can Face Uncertain Days

2013-04-17T08:21:00.002-07:00

Some days, the world feels like it just plain sucks. There are tragedies happening around every corner, and crazy people who would love for the rest of us to live in fear. After the bombing in Boston a couple days ago, yesterday was punctuated with text alerts from my alma mater informing me of multiple fires in campus buildings (the last count I had heard was 9), and today I stumbled across a news report of a doctor on trial for doing horrible things to babies.

It can be a scary world. I have a few friends who are talking about conspiracy theories, and while I don’t agree with their theories, I understand where they’re coming from. It’s so much more comforting to think that terrible things happen because people in positions of power are trying to keep those positions. That idea implies that there is a reason for these tragedies. It’s a lot easier to think about these things, and to live without fear when we believe that there is a reason behind the madness. When we find an alternative to the belief that danger could wait around every turn and we are powerless to prevent it, that’s something we want to hold onto. It’s so much more comforting!

The hard truth though is that there is no good reason that these tragedies are happening, other than the fact that some people are just twisted, sick individuals. Anything could happen to us, at any time. That’s a really scary idea, but especially since I’ve become a parent. The thought that something could happen to my perfect little boy is terrifying. After the shootings at Sandy Hook, of course I imagined my son in that school. I see him in the 8 year old boy whose life was taken in Boston. I see him everywhere, and it’s scary.

After he was first born, I went through a period of time when all I wanted was to take him back into my womb and keep him safe from the world. I don’t want him to see the bad things and people in the world, and possibly be a victim of one of those bad people. But really, if I were to keep him from the world, he’d miss out on seeing all the good things too. A quote from Mr. Rodgers has been going around the internet the past few days, and I think it’s really relevant. He said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”

In the face of tragedy, there are those who rush to help, and there are more of them than there are people committing these senseless acts of violence. Rather than get depressed by the news, find those helpers, or better yet, be a helper yourself. God created this world, He created man, and He called them both good. That leads me to believe that the world and the people in it are inherently good, even when there are those who would do evil and have us believe that there is only evil left. God created this world for us, and He intends to do us good and not harm all the days of our lives.

My faith is in Him, so even when I’m afraid for my son and the things that he’ll have to see and experience, I trust in the Lord’s plan. Have you heard the song Because He Lives? A woman at my church mentioned it to me on Sunday, and it’s been speaking to me all week, and describes what I’m feeling perfectly, so I’ll leave you with the lyrics that have really hit home to me:

How sweet to hold

A newborn baby
And feel the pride
And joy he gives
But greater still
The calm assurance
This child can face
Uncertain days
Because He lives.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4M-zwE33zHA

Food Friday: Beef & Broccoli

2013-04-14T09:01:00.001-07:00

I know, I know. It's actually Sunday. But I spent all day on Friday with my husband and then all day yesterday with my cousin and our family at her bridal shower! So, since today is the first day I've really had to sit down at the computer, I guess it's really a food Sunday, but it's a pretty good one!

This is my go-to recipe for when I bring people food, because it's pretty easy, yummy, and it's different from the usual things you get when people bring you food. This past week, I brought it over to my friends who just brought their GORGEOUS new baby girl home from the hospital.

Ingredients:

1 pound boneless beef chuck roast, sliced into thin strips (or ground beef)
1 cup beef consumme
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 package broccoli

Directions:

Brown meat, drain, and return to pan
Mix together beef consumme, soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, garlic, and cornstarch in seperate bowl
Pour mixture over beef, mix in broccoli, and let simmer together until broccoli is warm.

I usually serve this with rice, and all together, it's one of my favorite dishes! I hope yall enjoy it!

Snips, snails, and puppy dog tails are cute too!

2013-04-10T06:27:00.001-07:00

Didn't I just get done talking about how excited I was for spring? I'm pretty sure that was just within the past month, and already it feels like SUMMER! Is Virginia's weather bi-polar, or what? Today it's supposed to get up into the nineties! 90 degree weather?? Holy tamole! I think I was just complaining last week that it was unseasonably cold for April, and now it's unseasonably hot! I should just stop being surprised by anything the weather does in this state and accept it as just being how Virginia is. If I don't like the weather outside, I'll wait a minute or two. It'll change.

I knew this warm weather was coming though, so while I was out earlier this week, I tried to find some shorts for little man since all he really has are pants. I say tried because shopping for cute clothes for a little boy is next to impossible. It was the same story when I tried to find him an Easter outfit. And before that, a Christmas outfit. There were tables and tables full to bursting with clothes for little girls, and they were all adorable! But when I went hunting for the tables with little boy clothes......it was like searching for Big Foot. I guess manufacturers think that boys don't care about their clothes, so they just don't bother making a whole heck of a lot for them, but my boy is still little, which means I'm the one picking out his clothes. And I LOVE dressing him in cute clothes!

I did eventually find two pairs of little shorts that were halfway decent, but I'm still disappointed in the lack of selection. My little boy is adorable, and I want to be able to dress him in the same way without having to pay a million dollars for custom baby clothes (because it seems silly to me to spend a ton of money on something he'll grow out of in a couple months)!

Is it because little boys are made of snips, snails, and puppy dog tails? Those things aren't as sweet as sugar, spice, and everything nice, so mommies of little boys, like me, are faced with tables and racks full of onesies with crude text about breast-feeding and who even knows what else. Nothing I would put my son in, that is for sure! So, step your game up clothing companies! I'll be here, waiting for something worthy of my son's cuteness for me to buy him.

My favorite outfit for little man- it was a gift from his Granny. (I know the hat doesn't match, but it was sunny outside, and I love him in that hat!)

Iron Sharpens Iron

2013-04-08T08:42:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday yall!! Did you have as beautiful a weekend as I did?? The weather was beyond gorgeous yesterday, and we were lucky enough to be able to spend some of it outdoors enjoying it. And after that, we had a couple friends over for dinner, and while the boys grilled outside, we got to leave the doors and windows open to let that beautiful weather in the house!

That time we spent yesterday evening sounds pretty simple right- a cookout with friends? Well, it should have been, but it really got me thinking about some more complicated things. I've been thinking a alot about what my husband and I will want to do when it comes time to send little man to school in a few years. I know it's a couple years away, but I want to start thinking about it now, because there is a lot involved in the decision: to home school, or not to home school?

I've really been leaning towards homeschooling the past several weeks. I keep hearing more things that bother me about school, and even more positive things about homeschooling, and I'd almost made my mind up that I want to homeschool, but last night changed that in a big way.

My husband grew up in the area where we live now, and it's a pretty small town. The people we had over last night were his best friend since childhood, and his girlfriend. I say childhood, but really, I should say babyhood, because they've been friends since they were about two years old. And the fact that they're in their mid-twenties now and still spending time together is awesome. He was there when we all went to prom together in high school, at graduation, at our wedding, and at the hospital when we had our son. And for a million other moments before I met either of them. It's a friendship that has literally lasted a lifetime, and you just don't see that anywhere. But in this area, it's not really uncommon. As much good as homeschooling would do little man, I don't want to deny him the opportunity to have that kind of friendship.

Romans 12:10 "Love one another with brotherly affection."
Proverbs 17:17 "A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity."
Proverbs 27:17 "Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another."
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up."

And there are more verses like these that talk about the importance of friendship. Obviously, none of this is to say that homeschool kids don't have friends, because I know a lot who do. But the kind of relationship that I've seen over the past nine years between these men, and that was shown to me again last night, is something that I think kids in the school system have a better opportunity to find because they spend more time together and share a lot more of their lives with one another. I want my son to have a friendship like this one, where it's still going strong almost a quarter of a century after it began, and there's no reason to believe that it won't last another couple quarter centuries more.

Food Friday: Chicken Noodle

2013-04-05T06:06:00.001-07:00

Did you think last week's honey apple pork loin was easy? Wait until you see this Friday's recipe! We had a friend and her son over for a playdate with little man yesterday evening along with two of my husband's sisters, and then we all had dinner after the babies played for a little bit. Rather than being distracted the whole time they were here with fixing dinner, I figured I'd do another crockpot dinner so I could just put everything together before they got here and then be free to enjoy time with everyone. So I made what is probably the easiest meal in the history of all food: chicken noodle.

I didn't call it chicken noodle soup, because it's not really a soup. It's exactly what it's called. Just chicken and noodles. It's incredibly simple, but it's one of my personal favorites, and not just because it takes about a minute to fix. My husband, little man, and I all really like it (and it seemed like everyone else did last night too)!

Ingredients:

3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup butter (sliced up)
42 ounces chicken broth
24 ounces egg noodles

Directions:

Combine all ingredients except noodles in crockpot. Let cook on low for 8 hours.
Shred chicken, add egg noodles, and stir together. Let sit for another hour.

2 steps, basically no work, and at the end of the day, you have a yummy dinner that will satisfy even picky eaters. This makes a pretty good amount too, so you'll have leftovers and be set for lunch the next day. We fed 5 adults and little man, a lot of us had seconds, and I still have some leftover for my lunch today! Yall enjoy!

Couponing for Dummies (and the not-so-dumb!)

2013-04-03T06:50:00.000-07:00

I’ve been putting up pictures and deals I’ve gotten couponing, and I’ve started having a lot of people asking me questions about it, so I figured I’d give yall another coupon post!

Before I start giving yall any advice about coupons, let me brag for just a second about the deal I just scored. 120 Yoplait yogurts for a grand total of………………$1.45. AND on top of that, the store gave me a $2 catalina. So, basically, I was paid 55 cents for taking 120 yogurts!! I know what you’re probably thinking: What the heck will she do with 120 yogurts?? They’ll all go bad! But not so! Did you know that you can freeze yogurt?? I just found out recently, so when I found this deal, I stocked up since little man eats yogurt for breakfast every morning. Now I’m set for all his breakfasts for the next 4 months!!

So, now you’re probably wondering how I did it. Well, you’re in luck, because here’s the part where I stop bragging and get down to business. It’s a pretty simple concept though. You’ve seen before where I talked about getting my coupons organized. That part is tedious and takes HOURS, but that’s really just the first step. After that, what you need to do is HOLD YOUR COUPONS. I know -- it’s tempting when you see that you need vegetables for dinner tonight, and you have a $1 off coupon. But just say no!! Don’t use that coupon yet!! Hold onto it until the vegetables you use often go on sale. Then, when the prices are even lower than usual, you can stock up.

That’s the big secret! That’s all there is to it! You just have to decide to change the way you shop. Rather than buying one or two things when they go on sale, or when you have coupons, you wait until you have both, and then you buy a TON and store it. That way, you’re catching the deals, and you’re set until it goes on sale again. I’ll use my yogurt example above because it’s such an awesome one. Here’s how I worked it:

I bought my usual 4 newspapers, clipped my coupons, and filed them away. Among those coupons were coupons for Yoplait yogurt. So I had 4 coupons for 50 cents off 8 yogurts, and 4 coupons for 40 cents off 6 yogurts. Rather than using them right away (which I could have done because I just told you how often we eat yogurt), I held onto them. This past week, Food Lion had The Big Deal, where a lot of different items were on sale. Yoplait yogurt included. Through that sale, if I bought 30 items, I got $15 off my purchase. With yogurt on sale for 60 cents apiece, when I bought 30 of them, it took me from a cost of $18 (before tax) to $3. Then I used my coupons, and that took me down to negative numbers. That means that after tax, my cost was -$0.10. Food Lion’s policy is to not give you any money if your coupons are worth more than the item, but my cashier thought I was awesome and gave me the dime anyway (I knew I shouldn’t get it, so I put it in the donation jar on the counter). On top of that, the coupon machine in the store printed out a $2 catalina, which means I now had an additional $2 to spend at Food Lion on my next purchase. So, I turned around and did the same thing the next day. I printed off all the Yoplait coupons offline I could find, and ended the week having done the deal 4 times. Because I eventually ran out of coupons, I had to pay $1.45 yesterday, but I still got a $2 catalina back, so it’s like I was paid 55 cents for those 120 yogurts!!!

That’s how easy it is! It takes a long time to comb through the circulars every week and even longer to clip and file all those coupons. And then I still have to do the math to figure out which deals and coupons are worth it. I probably spend as much if not more time each week couponing than at my actual job. It’s a lot of work. But it’s not really hard work once you get the hang of it. I’m certainly no math whiz, but I figured it out. If I can do it, you can do it too! And if you need help, as I've mentioned before, The Krazy Coupon Lady is a great resource. Buy the book. It's WELL worth the $20 you'll spend, and when you walk out the grcoery store door with a haul like mine pictured below, you'll feel AWESOME. Happy couponing!

This haul was worth over $200. I only paid $80 of that!! (You can see my first 30 yogurts in there with everything else)

If He brings you to it, He'll bring you through it

2013-04-02T06:19:00.001-07:00

Good morning yall!! I’m so sorry there was no post yesterday…ok that’s a total and complete LIE. I’m not sorry even a little bit, because instead of sitting at my computer, I took little man, met up with Cathy and James and their little man, and went outside to enjoy the first really pretty spring day of the year. And when I say pretty, I mean it was a B-E-A-U-T-ful day!!! We took full advantage of it too! It was kind of stinky because my husband was working on the ambulance and couldn’t enjoy it with us, but it was still a good time!

I’m also not sorry because the topic of my post changed dramatically. My intention was to write about Easter Sunday because Easter is really the most significant day of the year. It’s always incredibly emotional – I can’t get through an Easter service (or really even that part of the gospels) without sobbing.

But really, I don’t have anything new or different to say about Easter. It’s powerful, and an incredibly meaningful experience every year, and I feel my relationship with Christ grow every time I think about what He did for me…but I think that’s the same thing any Christian would say. So, rather than talk about that today, I’d like to talk about something that I’ve known for awhile, but really hit home to me yesterday: the importance of the attitude we live by.

A young woman about my age recently found out that she’s having a baby! This isn’t the same woman I was talking about in my recent post, but as you can imagine, I had a similar reaction because, well, I love babies. This young woman isn’t exactly in what you might call an ideal situation, but she’s pretty excited too (again because, well, BABY!!). On top of that, she got some news yesterday that is going to make her situation even more difficult. But let me tell you, I was just blown away by her attitude. It would have been so easy for her to be negative; it’s a lot of hard things happening all at once. But she refuses.

And that’s all there is to it. She chose to be positive, and that changes everything. When you refuse to let negative things bring you down, you are making the choice to refuse to admit defeat. It’s not ignoring that things are going to be hard, but rather embracing the challenge, and rising to meet it. And I firmly believe that’s half the battle won right there. When you make the choice to live with a positive attitude, you’re strengthening yourself and not giving your situation power over you.

I go back to the Bible for everything because that’s where I find truth in how to live, and in this case, I can’t help but think of Job. Everything that could have gone wrong for him did. Nothing could possibly be as bad as the struggles he was faced with. Struggle is too minor a word for what he went through. That poor man went through the wringer, and then some. But his attitude never wavered. He acknowledged that things were hard and he wanted them to be easier, but he maintained his positive attitude. In Job 13:15-16, he says, “Though he slay me, yet will I hope in him…Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverance.” And he was absolutely right. He stayed positive, put his trust in the Lord, and he was brought through it. We’re told in Job 42:12 that “The Lord blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the former part.”

Things happen for a reason, and that reason is all to His good. And we know it is all to our good too, because the Lord speaks to us in Jeremiah 29:11: “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”

So there’s really no reason to be negative. We already know the end of the story! We know that everything works for the good, even if it’s hard to find the good in a hard situation. That’s not to say that we sit back and let God handle everything, because as I’ve mentioned before, the Bible tells us in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “

The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” We have to do some work, and a lot of the time, it’s going to be hard work. No one ever said that life was easy. But if we put in that hard work, and maintain our positivity, there’s nothing we can’t make it through.

I'm going to end with the lyrics to Chris August's song, "He Said."

So your life feels like it don't make sense
And you think to yourself, 'I'm a good person'
So why do these things keep happening?
Why you gotta deal with them?

You may be knocked down now
but don't forget what He said, He said

(Chorus) I won't give you more, more then you can take
and I might let you bend, but I won't let you break
and No-o-o-o-o, I'll never ever let you go-o-o-o-o
Don't you forget what He said

Who you are ain't what your going through
So don't let it get the best of you
Cause God knows everything you need,
so you ain't gotta worry

You may be knocked down now
but just believe what He said, He said

(Chorus)

Don't fear when you go through the fire
Hang on when it's down to the wire
Stand tall and remember what He said

I won't give you more, more then you can take
and I might let you bend, but I won't let you break...

(Chorus)

And now here is my little man looking ADORABLE in his Easter outfit! Do you love it?? I love it!

Food Friday: Honey Apple Porkloin

2013-03-29T06:18:00.001-07:00

Today's Food Friday is an incredibly quick and easy way to get dinner on the table. And a major plus? It's a crockpot recipe, so you can just put it on in the morning, walk away from it, and come home to a delicious dinner! And when I say quick, I mean QUICK. This takes maybe 10 minutes to put together. Right? That's awesome.

Ingredients:

Pork loin
3 sliced Red Delicious apples
Honey (No measurement, because this is really to your taste)
2 tablespoons cinnamon

Directions:

Lay the apple slices from two of the apples in the bottom of the crock pot
Sprinkle with 1 tblspn cinnamon
Cut slits in the pork loin and drizzle honey into slits. Then place apple slices in slits
Place the pork loin in the crock pot and drizzle more honey over the top.
Cover with remaining apples, sprinkle remaining cinnamon on top, and let cook on low for 7 hours

Easy peasy, amirght? And an added plus? Your house will smell phenomenal all day while it cooks!

Don't Pass on Passover

2013-03-28T05:42:00.001-07:00

As I’m sure a lot of you know, Monday was the beginning of Passover, and this year, I was blessed to be able to enjoy the occasion with my fantastic church family.

I’m sure a lot of yall are wondering Um, Passover? I thought this girl was Christian! Is she Jewish? Did I miss something here?? No, you haven’t missed anything! I am Christian, but this year, my church, in conjunction with the Jews for Jesus ministry, hosted a Passover meal, which I was incredibly excited about. When I was a kid, I had a book called All of a Kind Family about a family of young Jewish girls growing up in New York during the turn of the century, and this book included a lot about traditional Jewish holidays. It was pretty detailed, so I had a lot of information that I wouldn't have had otherwise. It was certainly enough to get me really interested in Passover, so when my church announced that we would be celebrating Passover this year with a traditional Jewish man leading it, I was really excited!

The man who came to our church to lead us in the Passover meal was incredible. He was a man who grew up in a Jewish home, became an atheist, developed a relationship with Christ, and now works with Jews for Jesus in which he ministers to Jews and works to bring them to a saving knowledge of Christ. His testimony was incredibly powerful, and it just blew me away. After sharing his testimony with us, he went on to begin the Passover celebration. He didn't just go through the dinner, but actually talked us through everything, and explained the significance of each symbolic part. That was interesting enough, but then he did something that I hadn't expected. He started talking about how Passover should be important to us as Christians.

As he talked about the symbols of Passover, he would show us how each symbol points to Jesus. For example, we’ll look at the z’roa, or shank bone. In a traditional Jewish home, the z'roa represents the lambs that God spoke to Moses of. He told Moses in Exodus 12:6-7, “Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the door frames of the houses where they eat the lambs.” He then explained the necessity of the blood in Exodus 12:12-13 and said, “On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.”

You can look closer at the z’roa though, and see how that same symbol also points to Jesus, who is called the Lamb of God (John 1:29). Does the symbolism sound familiar? It should, because when the Lamb of God died on the cross, He did so knowing that He was creating a way for death to pass over us, bringing us redemption and everlasting life, so long as we accepted His sacrifice for us.

In addition to the symbols of Passover pointing to Christ, the man leading our Passover service made the very good point that Christ Himself celebrated Passover. How can we not celebrate something that Jesus found important enough to make time for when He knew He was preparing to take on death? And on top of that, the celebration honors Him and His sacrifice! I had never even considered that Passover could be a celebration for a Gentile like me! But celebrating this year has my husband and me firmly convinced that Passover is for us, and it’s just as important for our family to celebrate every year as Easter or Christmas. I’m so thankful for the opportunity that I was presented with by my church this year to learn more about Passover, and discover how important it truly is.

If you're interested in learning more about Passover, please click here, watch the video, and see if you agree!

The Little Red Henley

2013-03-25T06:58:00.000-07:00

Good morning yall!! This Monday, we can actually call it a good morning because of the snow! I might not be a fan, especially since it’s almost April and it should be warm, but all this snow has let out all the schools and cancelled work for a lot of people, so even if I still have to go to work, I know most of yall are enjoying the day! And even I got to go in a little late, so that’s extra time I got to spend with my son!

Having a day off is always nice, though I've learned that once I graduated from college, there’s really no such thing as a day off anymore. With a house, husband, and child to take care of (2 children if you count my husband!), there are a million things to do in day, and since I've started couponing, there are even more things to do! It’s a great money saver, but as I've said before, it’s also hugely time-consuming, taking hours every week to clip, sort, and file the coupons, and then to go through and match up the coupons to the sales of the week.

The rest of it is just sort of mindless work that I can do while I watch Revenge (did anyone else catch last night’s episode by the way??? Ah I can’t wait for next week!), but this last part, matching the coupons to sales, is hard, and it makes me really glad that my parents instilled the value of hard work in me. As I said before when I was talking about couponing, it was my friend Jennifer who got me hooked on it, and she’s a really great help when it comes to it. She’s pretty sharp, and it seems to come pretty easily to her, and she’s offered to give me as much help as I need.

But I don’t just ask her every week what coupons she used with which sale, and then go out and copy her. Honestly, I think I probably could. She wants to help me with this, she’s gone out of her way to help me learn, and she’s offered up the deals that she gets. But, I think if I were just to copy her it would be taking advantage of a new friend. And besides that, it would be lazy of me, and leave me totally dependent on her. Dependence is only detrimental in the long run. What if, when she has her second child, she doesn't have time anymore? I’d be lost if all I did was copy her! I'd rather have the knowledge and ability to things for myself.

The Bible tells us in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat,” meaning that if you aren't willing to put in the time and effort required for something, you don’t get to reap the benefits. My husband offered to take my coupons and stop by the store on his way home from work, and I told him, “No sir!” I put in all the hard work organizing everything and finding the deals- by golly I was going to get to have the fun of spending the money (or in that case, getting the store to pay me for taking items! That was a good day). My husband was actually trying to be helpful rather than just trying to enjoy the benefit of my hard work, but you can see my point I’m sure. I'd rather be the little red hen who gets to eat the bread than the pup who was too lazy to help harvest the wheat! I'll keep on keeping on, even if it is difficult, because I want to be able to have the fun of knowing that I'm earning what I get. Instead of being the little red hen from the story, I'm the little red Henley! (Am I red? Well, maybe not. The little blonde Henley? Is that better? It sounded like a cute analogy when I got started anyway.)

Food Friday: Coffee Cake

2013-03-22T08:09:00.003-07:00

Hey yall!! With the reemergence of the blog, I'm bringing back my Food Fridays!! Today, I want to give you the recipe for a delicious coffee cake that I recently made for my church's dessert auction. It's quick, easy, and scrumptious!

Ingredients for Cake:

1 and 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
1/4 to 1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
2/3 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Ingredients for Streusel:

1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions for Cake:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease 9 inch baking pan.
Cream together butter and sugar.
In a separate bowl, mix together dry ingredients.
Beat egg, milk, and vanilla into butter and sugar, then gradually add in dry mixture.
Pour into pan (should be thick), top with streusel, and bake for 25 minutes.

Directions for Streusel:

Combine sugar, flour, and butter until crumbly.
Add cinnamon and blend until just-mixed.

And that's all there is to it!! Like I said, it's quick and easy, and it's one of my favorites! Enjoy!

Guest Blogger: A Rose Among Weeds

2013-03-21T06:35:00.001-07:00

Hey yall!! Today is a special day- we welcome guest blogger Danyelle Ellett to the blog!! Dany was my roommate in college, is still among my best friends, and a woman of great strength. I count myself lucky to have her in my life. And we have her today here to talk about the best thing the two of us share: relationships!

Hi, my name is Danyelle, a near and dear friend of Brittany and the Henley family. I was so very inspired by Brittany, the author of this blog, that when she asked if I would like to do guest blogs, I jumped at the chance. I’ve always been able to draw encouragement, spiritual guidance, and sound advice from her and so I was beyond proud when I found out she was sharing her testimony with the world, and humbled when she included me. At first I wasn’t sure what I’d write about but as I thought about what conflicts we face as woman of faith I began thinking of something that all woman at times struggle with and an area I’ve been beyond blessed in; friendship.

Relationships of all types are very much like gardens. We plant the seed of friendship. We tend to it with sunny dispositions, enriching conversation, and the downpour of understanding and affection. It takes time to grow your garden. It takes time, patience, and care. When it blooms, we benefit from its glory and beauty. If we’ve tended our garden right, we know that no matter what stormy troubles lie ahead, or frosty misunderstandings that may be had, your garden will bloom again and thrive. The Bible has a lot to say in the way of plant to relationship metaphors, and in the spirit of spring I felt it a fitting way to describe how we are the company we keep. A lot of times people will spend time on their gardens, work and toil to grow them, but then be surprised at what they reap. For instance, if I plant stink weed among my daisies, why am I then surprised when the stink weed grows and thrives under my attention? I was the one letting those weeds into my garden, allowing my attention to be placed towards an unsavory plant -- a weed that may even harm the good plants I’d cultivated. If that happens, I’m a person with a garden filled with dead daisies and a grip of stink weed. I am a stink weed farmer and am seen as such because I allowed myself to grow that plant.

It is the same with friendships. We are the company we keep. Your friends are seeds in your life. The people you interact with are all seeds. Some of them are strong, kind, and sweet; like a lily. Others may seem well-meaning and helpful, but in time become burdensome in their negativity; like a dandelion. If you pick up seeds that are not right for your garden, seeds that do not enhance the beauty of your life, and then you further commit to spending your time and efforts on said seeds, do not be surprised when your garden is filled with weeds instead of flowers. 1 Corinthians 15:13 says, “Do not be deceived, bad company ruins good morals.” We all are held accountable for the company we keep; for the garden we tend. Why continue to spend your time sweating in toil only to produce a weed, when you can put your efforts into a garden that gives back to you herbs and vegetables that sustain you in your times of need as well. We should be striving to find people to surround ourselves with from who we can grow, benefit, and blossom. Proverbs 13:20 says, “Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.”

In this time of the spring when you are cleaning away the clutter of last year, take time to evaluate and the clutter of your garden. If someone isn’t benefiting your life, then let that weed go. He may only be taking up time better spent with God, family, and good friends. I’ve been a weed before and it took someone cutting me out of his life to realize that I didn’t want to be a weed anymore, nor did I want others that were not positive around me anymore, so I no longer abide by it. I am now happy, have wonderful friends, and His love. Frankly, that sounds like a perfect garden to me.

An example of a beautiful garden! In order of left to right: Amber, Laura, me, and Danyelle. This was taken last year when the 4 of us were able to get together for the first time since college graduation (Please be aware that I was almost 8 months pregnant, I wasn't just fat!)

Time For Some Spring Cleaning

2013-03-20T06:16:00.000-07:00

Happy spring yall! Well, it may not feel like spring just yet, but that’s ok. The season has started and soon the weather will catch on that it’s supposed to be warm. I’m excited for skirts, dresses, and flip-flops again! Besides comfortable clothes, spring also signifies a clean start and new beginnings, so what better way to start off spring than with a self-image overhaul?

I’m going to start the conversation where my own self-image overhaul began; my baby! “A baby changes everything.” That’s what everyone says, and I think saying it is pretty much stating the obvious. I knew that once I had my baby, my whole world would be changed. I was fully prepared to not sleep for the next few years, eat a hot meal, wear makeup, or have time to clean the house. Thankfully, our little man has been pretty easy-going, so I’ve gotten to do all of those things pretty regularly. I have yet to feel as exhausted as I imagined I would.

Even though a lot of things stayed the same, my life did change in some pretty big ways, but I was totally unprepared for one of the biggest changes of all. I never thought I would feel as confident being a parent, and a person, as I do. I wasn't exactly nervous about bringing the baby home. To be honest, I was more nervous about labor (which turned out to be a totally unnecessary worry because I ended up needing a C-section). But babies? I didn't really see what there was to be nervous about. I’d been around babies my whole life. I knew I would know how to change his diaper, dress him, feed him, etc. I knew I had all those essentials down.

But what about all the little things? All the books, blogs, articles, and websites out there are filled with information about what to do, and what not to do. And that would have been helpful…had it not all been contradicting information. Reading it all was overwhelming and started making me nervous, where I hadn't been before. So, rather than confuse myself and worry that I was going to do everything wrong, I was able to keep my sanity and gain my confidence because I ignored it all. And that turned out to be the best decision I could have made!

For example: Should I breast-feed, or give him formula? The “Nipple Nazis” (as my son’s pediatrician affectionately referred to them) would argue that “Breast is best.” Then other women would argue that they formula-fed, and their kids turned out just as well as breast-fed babies. What none of the books or other baby resources told me was that there is a secret third option -- bottle feeding expressed milk. I’d been breast-feeding for two weeks and growing increasingly frustrated. The baby wasn't latching very well most of the time, and whenever he did, it was uncomfortable. Little man and I were both miserable, when the idea hit me. Why couldn't I just pump and feed him with a bottle? He would still get the benefits that breast milk offers, but feedings would be so much happier for both of us! None of the books, doctors, or lactation consultants even mentioned it to me as a possible option, and in fact, when I told my son’s pediatrician that was our plan, he discouraged it (probably thinking that I’d grow frustrated with a pump). Despite that, almost eight months later, little man is still getting breast milk from a bottle, and life is MUCH easier.

A second example: When should I start introducing allergenic foods? Doctors and scientists have said that it’s important to wait X amount of time before introducing foods like peanuts, dairy, etc. due to allergies. That never made sense to me. How can kids build up a tolerance to something if they’re never exposed to it? Well, it turns out my question was valid because now science is saying exactly what I always thought; it’s better to introduce kids to allergenic foods early on.

Between the dreaded Mommy Wars, conflicting scientific studies, and well-meaning relatives who did it a certain way, is it any wonder that moms today are so nervous about having babies? With all the people who think they know what you should do better than you, is it any wonder that so many people have so little confidence in their decisions? So I have all my advice summed up in one word: RELAX.

I’m not saying that doctors, scientists, or your in-laws never know what they’re talking about. I’m sure they all know a lot more than I do. But science and someone else’s experience can only tell us so much, and I think it’s important to use parental instinct and personal intuition to bridge the gaps. Sticking with the parenting example, when you’re a parent, you know your child, and the people coming up with those studies have never even met him. Every child is created differently, and you are uniquely made to provide for his needs. You generally know what’s best for him, and what works best for you and your child might not be the best way for me and mine. Doctors say to lay your baby to sleep on his back. Well, mine was flipping himself pretty early on to lay on his stomach. Did I stress over it? No, because I ignored the books and did things the way my son needed.

So, take a couple deep breaths, let the Mommy Wars fall beneath you where they belong, and have confidence in yourself. No matter what stage of life you’re at, you can take this concept and apply it to your own life. Have confidence in your decisions. A great Biblical example is Noah. Can you imagine what people were probably saying about him, and to him, while he built his ark? And what about Elizabeth? She raised John the Baptist differently. Even his name was unconventional, because his name was not taken from a relative. Can you imagine what people had to say about that? History is full of people who went on to do great things because they didn't do things "the right way." Why should we be any different?

There have always been naysayers who thought they knew better, but if we can relax, and recognize that we’re being guided by that still, small voice, no one else’s voices matter. So overhaul your self-image and work on gaining some self-confidence. And then go out confidently and enjoy the beautiful weather we have coming!

Little man out with his cousin yesterday enjoying the weather! They had a great time being pulled in the wagon by "Granky."

Coupon Craziness

2013-03-18T12:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday yall! Haha, yea right. No Monday is happy. Sunday is my absolute favorite day of the week, and I hate to see the end of it. I always like Sunday because Sunday means my husband is usually home with me (unless it's the one Sunday a month he's at the fire station which stinks), we get to go to church, we usually see some family, and Revenge comes on TV!! More recently though, I've been given another reason to love Sunday. The Sunday newspaper comes out, and with it comes...COUPONS!!!

A little while back, a friend of mine, Jennifer, started couponing and got me interested. So, I bought a book called, Pick Another Checkout Lane, Honey and it really piqued my interest. I read it twice in two days, and decided Hey, I really think I can do this! I had always thought that the math required looked too complicated for me, and that clipping all those coupons was just too time-consuming. Now, I won't lie; it is some complicated math, and clipping coupons is time-consuming. It literally takes me hours to get through everything. I'm glad I have a big kitchen table, because I use the whole thing in my process:

Stack of papers- I get 4 of the Washington Post

All the coupon inserts pulled out of the papers; papers are set to the side, with the comics and weekly circulars saved to be read later.

Stacks of identical inserts so I can clip 4 of the same coupon at a time

Coupons clipped and sorted by category

Coupons sorted into their categories in The Binder.

The Binder with the hundreds of coupons, organized neatly into thirty-some different categories so I can find them quickly while I'm out shopping.

Looks tedious, right? Yea, that's because it is. But the amount of money you can save is totally worth it. When I walked out of Target with my first haul, I felt like a million bucks. I bought $84.33 worth of stuff for only $23.03. That's...drumroll please... 73% savings yall!!!!

This might sound silly, but when I figured up the math and realized what my savings would be, I cried. I just think it's incredible that I can do something to save my little family so much money. If I can keep this up, I'll literally be saving our family thousands of dollars this year. That's thousands with a big giant capital S. Even one thousand would mean a lot to us. We're young, we have a child, and we have a mortgage. We're able to take care of each other and pay our bills, but we have a very strict budget and we don't spend any money we can avoid spending. That little extra wiggle room that my couponing gives us allows us to start budgeting for a new car (mine has almost a quarter of a million miles on it), saving for college for our son, or paying off our house payment sooner. Knowing that I'm doing something to get us there feels amazing.

On top of that, I know it's another small step I'm taking in becoming a Proverbs 31 wife. "A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life...she provides food for her family...she sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night...When it snows, she has no fear for her household..." Becoming that wife of noble character is a tall order; there's a lot involved in becoming like her. But couponing allows me to build up our stockpile so we have plenty even if times get tough, save us money, and take care of my husband and son like that wife of noble character does.

Who knew?!? Coupons can get us food to fill us physically, and can at the same time, help fill me with the Holy Spirit and help me in my walk with Him. Yes, it's a lot of hard work, but yes, it's absolutely worth it! If you're interested in getting started, check out this site and start learning about it!! Good luck!!

Back At It!

2013-03-15T08:50:00.000-07:00

Hey yall! Long time no see! I've been gone awhile due to some massive life changes; getting pregnant, having a baby, etc., but I'm back now, and do I have a lot to tell you today!

If you're Facebook friends with me, you've already seen me talk about this a little today, but I figured I could get into some more detail here, and I think it's a good way to get started writing again since this is something I feel so passionately about. The topic? One of my favorites: babies!!

Last night, I got some exciting baby news- a girl I know is expecting!! I'm not close with this girl. To be totally honest, I don't actually know that we've met outside the world of social media. So I'm probably more excited than I should be. But....babies!

Even when people I'm not close with, or really even know at all, have baby news, I get really excited for them. My baby was among the best things to ever happen to me, and I love seeing other people get to experience that. Being pregnant was physically uncomfortable, but emotionally incredible, and life only gets better at the end of those incredible 9 months. I love my baby so much; I literally can't get enough of him. Sometimes, when I'm putting him down at night, he'll fall asleep in my arms before I even put him in his crib, and I'll just hold him a little longer (and by a little longer, I mean I just held him and watched him sleep for a half hour last night).

I don't like it when people say, "Here, I'll take him and give you a break." I don't need a break, and I'd really rather just keep him, but thanks. If you want to hold him, I'll share, but I'll do so grudgingly, and I will take him back the second I get the opportunity. I think I've accidentally offended some people in the past with this attitude. Let me promise you; it's nothing against you.

I was told when I was 17 that I'd probably be unable to conceive. I was devastated, but I prayed for that little baby for the next several years. Then, when I did conceive (after trying for just a couple weeks- this is why I don't believe doctors!), I was told that his heartbeat was slow, and his chances didn't look very good. So, they monitored me closely for my first two months of pregnancy until it seemed like everything would be alright. I carried him for 9 months during which I got to feel him move and respond to my voice. I cried when I finally got to hold him on the operating table (he was a C-section baby because he was breach), and I didn't let go. Seriously. He only went to the nursery when they had to take him to be weighed. Other than that, I was holding him. The nurses tried to get me to put him down at night, but I refused. I was holding my baby, and I knew he was safe with me. He wasn't going anywhere.

Now, almost 8 months later, I only let go when I absolutely have to, because I know the time isn't far off where I'll have to let him go. He'll go to school in a couple years, he'll go to friends' houses to play, he'll go on travels with his grandparents, and eventually he'll find the woman I'm praying for him for, and go start a new life with her. So I will take all the time I can with him now. No parent has ever looked back and thought, "Wow, I really wish I'd held him less, given him less kisses, and whispered 'I love you' less." If you don't like my parenting style, sorry, not sorry. I make no apology for it, and I won't change it. I plan on giving him all the love I have. I'll let go when the day comes that I have to, but today is not that day.

Every baby is special and every mother/child bond is different, but each is the same in that they all come from the same place that originates with love. I'm so happy when I hear about another little life coming, because I know how much love is about to be added into this world that desperately needs it. In every little baby, and every "I love you" that a mother whispers to her baby, God's light shines through, and that is a beautiful thing.

The First Time I Got To Hold My Baby Boy

Food Friday! Homemade Pizza

2011-12-02T09:12:00.000-08:00

When I use my cookbooks for something, I almost always wind up distracted from what I was originally looking for, and I wind up finding something else that I get really excited to make. This happened when I was making cinnamon buns. All I was trying to do was find the recipe to make the cinnamon buns, but I came across a recipe for homemade pizza that got me incredibly excited. So I bookmarked the page to come back to, and I had the chance this past week to make it! The recipe as it is written in the book makes 3 pizzas, but I only wanted to make 2, so I cut it down by a third. However, I'll write it here as it's written in the book so you can portion it as you need.

Ingredients for Dough:

4 and 1/4 cups bread flour
1 envelope instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 and 3/4 cups warm water

Ingredients for Sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (28 ounces) tomato sauce

Toppings:

3 cups mozzarella cheese
whatever else you like on pizza!

Directions:

In medium bowl, combine dry dough ingredients, then mix in oil and water. Stir with wooden spoon until dough is shaggy.
Gently knead dough into a large ball.
Lightly oil large bowl, transfer dough into large bowl, cover, and let stand until dough has risen to about twice it's original size.
Divide dough into thirds and transfer individually onto lightly floured counter. Knead each piece of dough into a ball, transfer back to bowl, cover, and let rise again, for about twenty minutes.
While dough is rising, in medium saucepan heat tomato sauce. Stir in garlic and olive oil, cover, and let simmer.
Take each dough ball individually from bowl, transfer to lightly floured parchment paper, and knead into circle, working from center outward.
Ladle sauce onto dough, moving ladle in circular motion, working from center outward. Leave about 1/2 inch around edge without sauce for crust.
Top with mozzarella cheese, and any other pizza toppings you like, then transfer dough from parchment paper to aluminum foil lined pan. Bake at 500 degrees for 8-12 minutes, then remove from oven, let cool, and serve.

With all the rising time, this recipe takes awhile to make, but it's not very hard, and the rising can be sped up by putting in a warm place (I put it on the stovetop with the oven on). I like how Domino's crust has a garlic taste to it, so before baking the pizzas, I mixed some garlic powder, salt, and oil together, then brushed it over the crust. The result? It turned out tasting, in my husband's words, "Even better than DiGiorno!"

Turkey Day!

2011-11-28T10:25:00.000-08:00

This was my first year celebrating Thanksgiving as a married person and as a college graduate, so it was also my first Thanksgiving with my church (I've been at school for the past several years at this time so I couldn't go until this year) and my husband's family. So, rather than the usual 2 Thanksgiving dinners that I go to with my family, this year I went to 5! And even though there were so many, and the people at all of them were different, they were all pretty much the same.

There was a big mish-mosh of family, a TON of delicious food, and even more laughter. I really love the holidays because of all the family-time there is, and even though sometimes going from place to place can be a little tiring, it's well worth it. We got to see my mom's family, my dad's family, my mother-in-law's, and my father-in-law's. Some of those people we don't really get to see very often at all, so it's a real blessing to have times like this when we get to see everyone.

On the right is my mom's legendary pumpkin cheesecake- you don't understand delicious if you haven't tried it.

And after all the dinners were over and we were happily exhausted from running around all week, Chris and I went home, laid in bed, and watched A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. I remain firmly convinced that Charlie Brown should be a staple in everyone's holiday activities, so I wanted to start off our marriage the right way by having it present in our very first year of holidays!

Food Friday! Chocolate Chip Cookies

2011-11-25T17:29:00.000-08:00

First and foremost, happy Thanksgiving yall!!! I've had such a wonderful Thanksgiving so far (it's still not over- we have another dinner tomorrow) and you'll hear all about it on Monday, but I'd just like to take a second to say how thankful I am. A lot of people play the game where you go around the table and say what you're thankful for, but I've never done that, mainly because I just have too much! There is literally not one thing in my life that I would change, and I thank God everyday for EVERYTHING he has blessed me with. I could never list it all out, but I'll give it a shot to list my top 3.

(1) More than anything, I am thankful for my relationship with God. Every relationship with Him starts with His call for you, and I am so thankful that He called to me. I love the peace that His love brings, and how great it feels being in His presence. It's really just overwhelming. But in a good way. And I am thankful for how much my church does to strengthen my relationship with Him. I cannot imagine a better pastor or a better church family to belong to.

(2) I am thankful to live in the United States of America. Regardless of what I think about what's going on in politics, or who is sitting in the White House, this country allows me freedoms that I wouldn't be allowed in any other country, and I am thankful for it. I have been living the American Dream for pretty much my whole life, and I am thankful for all the advantages that this country has given me. And when I say that I'm thankful for this country, that obviously extends to all our warriors. I am so thankful for everything they do to keep this country free.

(3) The members of my family are the most important people in my life. My husband, my parents, my brother, and all of my extended family and in-laws are all just incredible people, and I love them all SO much. There are so many of them, and each one of them is a separate blessing in a different way in my life, and they have no idea how much I love them all, or how thankful I am to have them all.

With ALL of that being said, I'll go ahead and give you my cookie recipe, which I brought to my church's Thanksgiving dinner this past week. I also made corn pudding for another Thanksgiving this past week, and if you want it, you can find that recipe here.

Ingredients:

2 & 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter (softened)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2 cups chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.
Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips.
Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

These cookies are incredibly easy to make and everyone always loves them- I left church with an empty plate!

Where A Kid Can Be A Kid

2011-11-21T10:40:00.000-08:00

As I've said before, I firmly believe that the holiday season begins in September with my birthday. However, the rest of the world seems to disagree, and is just starting to catch up to me. Now, there can be a general consensus that the holiday season has officially begun!!! Let's all take a second to give a great big cheer!!!! But wait!! There's no time for that- it's the holiday season, so now we have a million things to do!

Luckily for me, this week's million things were mostly focused on kids, which is always fun (and anyone who disagrees can go be a Scrooge elsewhere)! It began with my usual Wednesday night in Mission Friends. My husband's aunt and I are the leaders for the group, and she always has THE most creative, fun ideas for things for the kids to do. This week, due to the up-coming Thanksgiving holiday, she brought in an activity where the kids made little turkeys. Each feather on the turkeys lists a different thing each child is thankful for, and they turned out so cute!!

After this fun day, I got to spend time with kids again over the weekend, when my cousin Libby turned 2! We all went to Chuck E. Cheese's to celebrate, and it was just a great time. Libby in particular seemed to have a ball. She played the games,

played with her cousins,

rode the rides,

and opened about a hundred presents.

She and the other kids had a great time! And then, so did the big kids. Here's one of my sisters at the bottom of the slide- you know, the one you slide down to get out of the play structure. She, along with another of our sisters, and several cousins (all over the age of 14 by the way) all went in to play. (Side note, the picture is blurry because she was in the process of being run over by an unrelated child coming down the slide.)

It really was a lot of fun to watch them all having so much fun, especially Libby celebrating her birthday!

Then last night, we went to church for the annual Thanksgiving dinner, after which we spent time working with the shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Now, I know I've mentioned this before, but in case you don't know what that is, I talk about it here, or you can get more information about it here. Basically, it's a really great way of helping out children in need at Christmastime with basic necessities as well as toys. Even though I don't think anymore churches are collecting boxes, you can still send in money to help, as it costs $7 per box to ship them. Anyway, after dinner, we all pitched in to load the boxes into the cars of the volunteers who are taking them to Charlotte, N.C. in a couple weeks. As we loaded them into the vehicles (and yes, that's plural- we had so many that they wouldn't all fit in one!) we had them counted, and we wound up with almost 400 boxes! That's about 400 children who will get much-needed items and a happy holiday, which is just so exciting!! Here's one of the SUVs filled to bursting with the boxes!

It was an incredibly joy-filled week, with so much time spent with children, or working to help children, and I had a really great time. And then, my weekend was ended even more joyously- one of my friends is expecting!!!! Now, I won't give names because she and her husband are waiting to tell most people, but I'm too excited!!! I had such a wonderful, blessed week spending time with kids, and now there is another kid who will soon be in the world!!

God is good!!!!!!!

Food Friday! Cinnamon Buns

2011-11-18T08:33:00.000-08:00

Everyone always loves going to their grandma's house, and my brother and I (and our cousins) are no exception. We LOVE our grandma for a million reasons, but mostly just because she's awesome. And you better believe that the awesome she is everyday carries over into her cooking. Just like my mom, everything my grandma makes is delicious. The women in our family are pretty terrific at everything kitchen-related. It's got to be a genetic family thing or something, because it's all of them. And besides their better-than-delicious everyday cooking, they all have something they make exceptionally well. For my mom, it's her pumpkin cheesecake. Great-grandma's was sugar cookies. And my grandma's is cinnamon buns.

Even though she has them waiting for us almost every time we go to her house, everyone always gets excited about them because they're seriously that good. We all sit in the kitchen and take up space and talk over each other while eating them. I've gotten to associate good feelings with kitchens because so much of the time I've spent in them has been so great, especially at my grandma's with all the cousins, uncles, aunts, my parents and brother, and those delicious cinnamon buns.

The last time we were there, I asked her for the recipe so I could try making them, because Chris and I like to eat cinnamon buns for breakfast before church on Sundays. She told me it was in a cook book, which she'd given me for our wedding, so this past weekend I looked up the recipe and tried it out!

Ingredients for Dough:

2 & 1/2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 & 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 & 1/4 cups buttermilk
6 tablespoons melted butter

Ingredients for Filling:

3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon melted butter

Ingredients for Icing:

2 tablespoons cream cheese
2 tablespoons buttermilk
1 cup confectioner's sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease round 8x8 pan and set aside
Combine the filling's sugars, spices, and salt in small bowl, then stir in melted butter and set aside.
Whisk the dough's flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in large bowl.
Whisk buttermilk and 2 tablespoons melted butter in small bowl. Add liquid to dry ingredients and stir with wooden spoon until liquid is absorbed. Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface and knead until just smooth.
Pat dough into 9x12 inch rectangle, then brush with 2 tablespoons melted butter. Sprinkle evenly with filling, leaving 1/2 inch border. Press filling into dough.
Starting at long side, roll dough to form a tight log. Pinch seam to seal.
Roll log seam-side down and cut into 8 even pieces.
Place rolls in pan, brush with 2 tablespoons butter, and bake 23-25 minutes, or until golden brown.
Remove buns from pan and place on metal rack to cool.
While buns are cooling, whisk together cream cheese and buttermilk in large bowl. Mix in confectioner's sugar, and whisk until smooth. When buns are cool, cover with icing.

After making these, I realized how much time and energy goes into them. These are not easy or quick to make, and the fact that my grandma makes them almost every time we go see her really makes me realize how much she cares about us (not that I didn't already know that my grandma loves us- she only tells us all the time!). The amount of effort she puts into everything she does for us goes way above and beyond grandmotherly duty, and I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful person in my life. I love you Grandma!

Happy Birthday Chris!

2011-11-14T11:06:00.000-08:00

Today is November 14th, and for all of you who aren't aware, this is an incredibly important day, and has been since 1988. Why, you ask? Today is my husband's birthday! As the Lord dictates, "...the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything" (NIV Ephesians 5:23-24). As he was set forth in the Bible to be, my husband is the most important person in my life, so, on his birthday, I'd like to dedicate a post specifically to him!

Chris, you are such an incredibly wonderful man, as a husband, as a follower of Christ, and as a friend. You are caring to all those around you, dedicated to our relationship, and most importantly, dedicated to your relationship with the Lord. I love seeing your passion for all those you love and how that is reflected in everything you do. I appreciate how hard you work for everything, and am particularly thankful for how hard you worked in bringing me to a relationship with God. I thank Him everyday for blessing me with you and I'm thankful that you were created for me! I love you so much Christopher!! Happy birthday!!!!!!

One day old

All dressed up for Christmas!

Wrestling Champ!

Big kill!

With Dad after duck hunting

10th grade right before we started dating

Our senior prom

College

Captain's Ball at college

Engagement photo

Our wedding day!

Honeymoon!

Food Friday! World's Best Brownies

2011-11-11T08:45:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned on Monday's post, I, along with many other women from my church, helped put together boxes for Operation Christmas Child this past Sunday! I just realized though, that I didn't really explain what that is! So, if you haven't heard of it, Operation Christmas Child is a program where different churches (or anyone who's interested for that matter) put together shoe-boxes that they stuff with all sorts of goodies. Hard candy, toys, school supplies, clothes, basic toiletries, etc. are all packed into the boxes. The boxes are shipped off to different, impoverished countries where they are distributed to needy children. I heard a story when we were packing about one little boy who was so excited to get a toothbrush in his box, because until then he'd been sharing a toothbrush with his father. Who was HIV+.

This story, and the many more I heard about these kids, was just really heart-breaking, and it made me so thankful to be in a position where I'm able to do something to help, and I'm even more thankful to be a part of a community that is so giving. As I mentioned in my other post, we put about 180 boxes together to be shipped, and it's really great knowing that we're able to help so many kids! If you're interested in being a part of this, please check out this link to help!

While we were packing, one of the women bought pizza for everyone (since it was lunchtime when we were doing it), another woman made pumpkin squares, and I made brownies! This is literally the BEST brownie recipe ever, and is SO worth the time it takes for the clean-up afterwards.

Ingredients:

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
6 tablespoons butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease 8x8 pan.
In a small saucepan on the stove top, melt the butter. Slowly stir in chocolate until smooth.
Remove from heat and mix in eggs and sugar.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix in chocolate mixture until smooth.
Pour mixture into pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

I didn't for the ones I brought this week because I ran out of time, but I usually top my brownies with a homemade frosting for extra yumminess!

It's A Family Tradition!

2011-11-07T11:12:00.000-08:00

There are few things in my life that are more important than my family, so I was incredibly excited to be able to spend all day Saturday with them to celebrate my youngest cousin's 3rd birthday. My parents, grandma, uncles, aunts, and cousins all live in different states from each other, so it's difficult to be able to get together very often. Even still we couldn't all be there on Saturday- my brother had to stay at school, my husband couldn't get off work, and one of my aunts was sick, but everyone else was able to be there! And let me tell you, we get a little crazy when we're all together. In perfect birthday tradition (for my family anyway), the adults acted like children:

We all sang incredibly loudly, off-key, and horribly when it came time to blow out the candles (there are no pictures of us doing this because I was singing just as loudly and horribly as everyone else during this time, so instead I'll give you an adorable picture of my little cousin blowing out his candles instead):

And there was a piñata (which we all still get on our birthdays even after we're long past the normal age for them):

I couldn't love my family more if I tried. We may have some strange birthday traditions, but we have a blast every time we get together, and I wouldn't trade any of it for anything. Here is me with my cousins, an honorary cousin (a cousin's boyfriend), and my brother (who I cropped into the photo because I didn't want to leave him out):

THEN, on top of the wonderful time I had with my family on Saturday, yesterday I got to spend time with some of my husband's family! We go to the same church as his granny, so I got to spend time with her while we packed boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Our women's group packed about 180 shoe boxes to be mailed away, which is just awesome, and I pray that the boxes we packed will go to the children who can best use them!

After such an exciting and enjoyable weekend, Chris and I went to have dinner over at his uncle's house, where we got to enjoy breakfast-for-dinner and more family time. WHAT a family-filled weekend it was!! God has blessed me richly and reminded me of all my blessings this weekend with so much time with the family I love so much!

Food Friday! Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

2011-11-04T15:03:00.000-07:00

Chris and I have been trying to eat healthier since we've been married because we ate so much bad-for-us food while in college. The cafeterias had Taco Tuesdays and Wing Wednesdays, in addition to an abundance of horribly delicious Oreo pies, cheeseburgers, pizza, etc. It was all very good, but VERY unhealthy. There was healthy food available on campus too, but that was only if you felt like eating fruit that was bruised beyond recognition, meat that tasted the same regardless of whether it was chicken or beef, or vegetables that were so slathered in butter that you couldn't really even count them as being a healthy option.

So, for the last several months, in an effort to be healthier, we've been eating a lot of chicken and fish for dinner. Since we've been eating a lot of the same foods, I've been trying to find different recipes so we have some variety in our dinners, and it's not a chore to eat good foods. I don't want to be thinking Ugghh, not this again! when it gets to be dinner-time. This recipe for tilapia is a favorite in our house, and is a great way to spice up fish! Full credit for this one goes to my mom, who finds (or invents) the best recipes ever. Watching her cook every night as I was growing up is the reason I cook every night, and I feel lucky if my food comes out half as well as hers!

Ingredients:

Several fillets of tilapia (I use 5 or 6)
2 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons creole seasoning

Directions:

In a small bowl, beat eggs.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, cheese, and creole seasoning. Salt and pepper to taste.
Brush fish with egg wash, then toss in flour mixture.
Coat bottom of pan with oil, wait for it to heat, then fry fish, about 3 minutes on each side.

When she makes this, my mom adds coconut, which offsets the spiciness nicely, and makes a great sweet/spicy combination. The only reason I don't include it is because Chris doesn't like the texture of coconut. However, if you do, just mix in 1/4 cup shredded coconut to the flour mixture!

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Food Friday! Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

Don't fear when you go through the fire
Hang on when it's down to the wire
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I won't give you more, more then you can take
and I might let you bend, but I won't let you break...