Living In The Future

One of my closest girlfriends, Lindsay and I, along with our children, usually go away together for a week or two during the summer.  This summer the plans to get away just didn't work out, so we created a "Stay-Cation" and did several sleep overs at each others homes and had a calendar of events filled with fun-packed days and a variety of activities that kept us busy all week long.   At the end of the week, her fabulous husband (and my super, duper friend-in-law) Jason kept our five children (well, THEIR three and MY two... this is NOT an episode of "sister wives") all day long on Saturday while Linds and I cropped the day (and night!) away at the local scrapbook store.

During our scrapbook stay-cation day, we had dinner out at a local Asian diner called Pei Wei.  Have you ever been?   It's fabulous!  (And they provide gluten free options for my girl, Linds!)  While waiting for our food we were walking to the soda machine and noticed it was different from the last time we scrapped and dined on Asian cuisine.  Different as in SERIOUSLY COOL!   It looked like it could have been derived directly from a Jetson's episode.   It has a touch screen and about a million options of soda, lemonade and tea.  I might be exaggerating a tad about the million options, but it did have quite the variety.  More than your average 8-option selection.  For example, you have a hankering for Sprite... so you touch the Sprite logo.  Then about 10-12 different flavored Sprite options are available for the choosing... diet Sprite, Sprite Zero, Raspberry Sprite, Strawberry Sprite, Orange Sprite, Grape Sprite, Root Beer Sprite... okay, I'm joking about the Root Beer Sprite, but you get the idea.  Options previously UNKNOWN to us were now available for the choosing.  Right at our fingertips!! 

We played with it for awhile before I decided I MUST take a picture of us with our Jetson-esque discovery.  (For the scrapbook of our Stay-Cation adventures, OF COURSE!)

And with all those choices in front of me, I still decided on which soda???  Any guesses??

Crockpot Sesame Chicken

It's Recipe Review Thursday again...  I missed last week.  Actually, I CHOSE not to post last week.  I made this recipe with last week in mind but was so heavily disappointed I just could not bring myself to write about it. 

I had such HIGH HOPES for this recipe.  When I first pinned it on Pinterest, it garnered 6877 repins, 804 "likes", and 13 comments from friends and strangers alike.  It is by far, my most popular "pin".  With that many people interested in trying the same recipe I thought for sure this meal would be a huge hit!  I was expecting an "out of the park home run" and what I ended up with was a disappointing foul ball.   (Can you tell I'm ready for baseball play off season??  Go, Tigers!)

Here is the original link - and below are the recipe instructions.

Crockpot Sesame Chicken

2 1bs. skinless, boneless chicken thighs.
1/2 c. low sodium soy sauce
1/3 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1 Tbsp. ketchup
1 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds

Place chicken thighs in the slow cooker. Whisk together remaining ingredients in a bowl and pour over chicken.Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours or on high 3 or 4. Serves 4 - 6.

 

Review:
Now that photo is from the orignal post... I am not going to post my photo, but please trust me that it does not look at all similar, except for the rice. In fact, the rice was the best part of this meal. I have recently purchased a rice machine and I will never go back to the typcial rice-in-a-minute box type of rice. The real stuff in the massive bag from Costco is amazing - fluffy, not sticky... tender, but not slimy... delish, delish, delish!! The chicken, sadly, ended up tasting like soy sauce - all salt, and zero flavor.  I saved the leftovers with hopes of slicing the chicken up and revamping for a stir fry mixed with fresh veggies, but sadly could not bring myself to serve that salty chicken again.  There was no saving it once it sat overnight in the fridge.

Kid Review:
O: How many bites do I have to actually eat?
E: May I have only rice please?

Next week will be something new, and hopefully much, MUCH better.  If anyone has a similar recipe that is supposed to turn out like the photo above, I'd be willing to try again.  :-)
 

Chocolate Cheesecake Pie

Okay - back to school means back to blogging.  Hopefully. Probably. At least a little more consistently.  We'll see...

Recipe Review Thursday is back...  and with something seriously decadent and super easy!

Back in July I hosted a BBQ with my ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship) friends and I had signed up to bring a dessert.  However, I'd forgotten that I'd commited to a dessert and was scrambling at the last minute trying to figure out something to make with what I already had on hand.  Google to the rescue!  I typed in a few "staple" ingredients I always had on hand and then scoured the options.  Then came Pinterest... and I searched there.  VOILA!  Discovery revealed the recipe for this Chocolate Cheesecake Pie, and because it was from "Taste of Home" I trusted it would be divine.  I was not disappointed!

Ingredients:
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups milk chocolate chips, melted and cooled
1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 graham cracker crust (9 inches)
Chocolate dessert decorations, optional

Directions
In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Beat in melted chocolate. Fold in whipped topping. Spoon into crust. Chill until ready to serve. Garnish with chocolate decorations if desired. Yield: 6-8 servings.

 

Review:
This recipe is just as simple to make as it reads.  I didn't have a pie crust on hand, so I made my own.  It crumbled a bit, but it didn't distract from the deliciousness of this treat.  It was creamy, chocolaty, and cool - perfect for the hot summer day we devoured it.  I didn't have chocolate garnish, nor did I feel like making any, so I served fresh raspberries instead.  The berries were a beautiful contrast of tartness to the sweetness of the pie.  The flavors blended perfectly.  It also serves more than 6-8; it is so rich it easily serves 10, possibly 12.  (I used a standard 10" pie plate).

I will make this again... after all, I need a reason to perfect that crumbly crust!  

Kid Review:
O: Can I have another piece, please?
E:  I could eat that whole thing up, it's so GOOD!

So... I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, it!!! (Just like I thought I would!)

Guess what???   I LOVE BEING A HOME SCHOOL MOMMY!!! 

Okay.... so I know it's only the first day.  And I know that there are going to be days that I won't love it as much (if at all...).  But today was a GOOD day.

It began with morning snuggles.... at 8am!  In years past, when my kids attended a local school, morning snuggles were a privilege reserved only for snow days, sick days, and summer vacation days.  But today - the FIRST day of (home)school - we had morning snuggle time.  It didn't slip my consciousness that it was happening at the exact time the local school was beginning their day.  I silently thanked God that I was able to spend some quality time WITH my children in the morning instead of rushing them out of their beds before they were ready to rise.... instead of rushing them out the door with barely a breakfast inside them because they weren't up long enough to even BE hungry yet.... instead of a heart (mine) breaking in two.  Yes - that's right.  This is the FIRST first day of school this mommy has NOT had a broken heart. 

After our morning snuggles we took our traditional "first day of school" photos.  Then I decided we should begin a tradition of the "first day of school breakfast".  So we did - and I treated them out.  Yumm!  The kids toasted the beginning of their day with chocolate milk with their meal.  Not a bad start to the day.  I also was able to get the traditional "picture with their teacher" shot... only ONE of those this year!  And then I capped it off with some "learning in action" shots. 

*** (Disclaimer about the photos: for some reason my oldest child is in a stage where it is NOT at all "cool" to smile for any photo.  This is the best I could get out of him.  He will grow out of this, right??   RIGHT???)

**sigh** from one contented Momma.... AKA "Teacher".   Have I mentioned that I LOVE that?!?

Stress Cleaner turned... Stress Crafter??

I admit it, I am a "stress cleaner".   When I am stressed out, I have the ability to transform my home into a museum.  It would pass Mary Poppins' "white glove" test.   Since my home is currently on the market (any takers for a super cute, updated 3 bedroom ranch with finished basement?? Anyone??) it's in a state of perpetual cleanliness.  Just ask my kids - they'll tell you I'm not giving an inch where clutter is concerned.   I've been feeling a bit stressed out the past couple of days - nothing major, just dealing with a few of life's curve balls.  You know the kind I'm talking about... you think you're headed in one direction and WHAM!  Out of nowhere, you're hit with something you didn't put in your day planner.  It's not a comfortable situation for us "type-A" people, but with God's perfect grace and mercy, I'm learning to deal with it. 

Since the house is clean, what is a God-loving, stressed-out, type-A, girl supposed to do?   Movies don't distract - I often find my mind wanders too much and I discover I have no idea what's happening in the plot and all I've accomplished in my mind is borrowing trouble for things that haven't happened.  Yet.  ;-)   Books don't distract (I was shocked, too!) - and I find I'm re-reading the same paragraph over and over.  I trust that Isaiah 26:3 is true, and I have learned to keep myself busy so my mind doesn't wander where it shouldn't.   My house may revolt against me some day now that I have discovered that I am indeed a "stress crafter"... I can see the bathrooms getting less attention and scrapbooking receiving MORE.

After all my Excel planning for homeschooling this fall, it was nearly time to print schedules, attendance sheets, note pages, and curriculum plans.  But these ugly, old, wrinkled binder dividers from long-since-passed financial analysis days looked too sad to use for my super-fun homeschool planner!  All that time I'd spent at the computer deserved something PRETTY to organize it!!

 

But don't these scrapbook papers look super fresh and inviting??

 

 

 

Add some adhesive, and VOILA!!!   Pretty new binder dividers!!  (And all the while I was praying over my stress, praising over my stress - thanks to K-Love, and being productive).   Win-Win-Win!

 



 

If you haven't heard from me in a few days, check under the piles of scrapbook paper and adhesive.  Bring Diet Wild Cherry Pepsi and chocolate - I'll need some bribing to come out. 

How Great!?!?

Do you want to know how great MY GOD IS? 

I have been filing some paperwork away and could not find ONE document I knew had to be there.  I flipped through the pile many times, each one more slowly than the time before because, as I said, it HAD to be THERE.  No where else.  There was no need for it to be any where else.

The anxiety began to build...

Anyone who knows me, knows that calling me an "organized person" is a bit of an understatement.  Now don't misunderstand, I live in my home just as much as the next person... my home is not a museum... but there is a place for practically everything and even in the "piles of daily life" I can typically put my finger on what I'm looking for in a matter a minutes, if not seconds.  Yes, organized I am.

So, the anxiety builds... WHERE is THAT document?

A friend calls, interrupting my search.  She can tell I'm flustered.  I explain my predicament.  We chat for a few minutes about the next days plans, and she promises to grab her family and pray for swift finding of the very important, very lost document.

I walk into another room of my home and begin to go through another set of documents that should not yield successful results of discovering the lost document... the lost document does not belong in this pile.  Why would it be here?   But discovery occurred... and much praising His name began!  I called my friend back, not three minutes after we'd ended our previous conversation to share with her the news.  Rejoicing His name in numbers multiplies JOY.

This song erupted from my heart and flowed out of my lips. How Great - Chris Tomlin

How GREAT is our God?   Greater than even this simple reminder... that a lost document can be found.  In minutes.  Yes, He is THAT great.

The Birds

No, I'm not talking about an Alfred Hitchcock movie in this post... 


Back in May while I was cutting the grass I accidentally, very lightly, "tapped" the gutter downspout with the mower.  The support holding it to the house gave way, accelerated my annoyance (already high because I was tired and I was cutting the grass which is NOT my favorite chore) and I didn't even care about the gutter so much and I just kept cutting the grass with it literally hanging in mid-air. The WHOLE time.


When I'd finished I asked my fabulous (really, they are) children to then help me sweep and put the clippings bags back behind the house.  After I had all grass cutting tools put away I finally decided to check out the annoying gutter downspout which, by the way, I was fairly certain broke away on purpose to make my annoyance level rise.   You have to look out for those gutters - they have minds of their own.   I grabbed a landscaping stone to hold annoying gutter in place until I could figure out how to fix it permanently.  (And it has been fixed by now, thanks Mr. Mike!)


Much to my dismay, this is what I came across.

Look closely at the the top of the nest.

Now, I knew that nest was perched there on top of the annoying gutter, but I thought all bird activity had long ago ceased.  Boy, did I feel sick over this discovery!  I made a few frantic phone calls - and NO ONE I KNEW WAS HOME!  (I apologize to my friends the Richter's for the weepy, very girlish sounding frantic voicemail I left... thank you for still being my friend).   After all the phones of my friends went to voicemail, I prayed.  (Now WHY didn't I do that FIRST?!!?  Sheesh!)  

My main issue with picking the baby birds up was that I was afraid the mother (who was crying at me the ENTIRE TIME from the neighbor's roof top WITH A worm in her mouth even) wouldn't come back to them if she smelled me on her babies.  Isn't that what you learn in grade school??  She was definitely NOT helping my anxiety level with all her crying!  Then I remembered that I had just purchased some new gardening gloves - THAT VERY MORNING! (Praise God for Costco and packages of things I don't know I need until I see them!)


I ran to the garage, grabbed the massive ladder and some fresh gloves.  

These birds were soooo small.  They were not even strong enough to lift their own heads up and they barely had any feathers.  Where their "ears" were (actually just flaps) the skin was still translucent.  I was in awe of how special these little creatures were.   Now, my tears were much different than the franctic ones left on voicemails all across town...  they were sheer amazement of how wonderful God had protected them from the fall off the roof top gutter, protected them from my NOT hitting them with my lawn mower, and protected them from the length of stay they had on the ground while I took my sweet, annoying, time doing finishing my chores.  

Owen and Evie are watching me respond to these creatures, a point that is not far from my mind any minute of the day, but I was so actuely aware of their soaking in this moment.  They wanted to examine each bird and make sure each one was breathing.  This teaching moment was not lost on me (Praise the Lord for His goodness in THAT!) and I was able to show them how "just fine" the babies were and explain how God loves these little birds as much as He loves us.  He created them, and He created us.  He loves His creation and to Him it brings glory. 


After we'd done our due diligence of ensuring each bird was breathing fine and had no broken "limbs", we prayed over them, I fixed the gutter (temporarily), and returned them to their "home". 

And we waited... would the mother come back to "mother" them?  Or would she abandon them as I had feared...

SHE CAME BACK!!! God IS good!!

"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows."  (Matthew 10:29-31 ESV)