Popcorn for Breakfast?

Last night Derek worked until 1 AM at the theater. Well, I meant to wait up for him but fell asleep instead. So this morning I roll over, and smell a whiff of...popcorn! I opened my eyes to see this sitting in our room:

Yes, that's a lot of popcorn. Apparently he had two bags but dropped one of at his family's house. My question is, how in the world are we going to even eat half of this?!? Well, I guess I know what I'm having for breakfast!

May 2012 Update

This month flew by and has been so full.

Derek finished up school the second week of May, and promptly went out and started filling out applications. One of the places he stopped by was the local movie theater, and he asked for the manager to give his application in. She thanked him but told him that they were not hiring. He hadn't expected much so he just said that he was unemployed, looking for a job, and a hard worker. She responded by saying "Well...I have a few free minutes--do you want to interview?" He walked out with a job. God provided again in a surprising way but we are thankful. There have been no problems about our conviction to not work on the Lord's Day, and he enjoys the people and the busyness of the job. 

The middle of May was a little rough for me as I caught a stomach flu bug that was going around the family that I work for. I got sick Sunday night and was absolutely miserable until late Monday night and was exhausted and weak all Tuesday. Those kind of sicknesses are awful but I'm glad they are short-lived. Derek was sweet and made trips to the store for Vernors and popsicles and listened to me complain (I'm afraid I wasn't the most patient person through this).

Last week we got to see my sister graduate from High School! My mother-in-law runs a homeschool program that provides co-op classes, sports, and a commencement ceremony for homeschool graduates. There were 26  graduates this year. The ceremony includes special music from the graduates and Allison and her friend Lindsay sang a beautiful and fitting song called "Every Road." They did a great job.  We are so proud of Allison! She has worked hard at the tech center cosmetology school and graduates High School as a licensed cosmetologist (we definitely benefit from this!). Congratulations, Allison, and all the graduates and their parents--it's definitely a joint accomplishment! 

This month is also my brother Evan's birthday and we got to celebrate it with my Pake and Beppe in town for graduation weekend! It was so nice to spend time with family. Evan is now 12, and its been so fun to see him grow up and talk about his interests. His favorite gift was a rifle from my dad and they are practicing how to use it safely :o). 

This week we've been house/bird-sitting for a friend and enjoyed a little break from our normal, even though we still had to go to work. It was was nice just to relax and enjoy a change of scenery. And Derek liked making friends with the bird...he liked to get him out often and talk to him and let him stand on his shoulder. 

June promises to be a busy month for us as well, with a trip to Cedar Point, open-houses and bridal-shower planning and a whole bunch of other things! We are enjoying the warmer weather and the beginning of the summer season so much! We hope all of you are doing well!

Searching for Beauty

Life feels full when I pause to search for beauty. All too often, that search is forgotten is the shuffle of busy that fills up my days, weeks, months.

My senses dull and my stomach forgets the fiery ache in my belly when I glimpse wonder of God's creativity in the sights, tastes, smells, sound, feels, words, relationships, and itch to put inspiration or thankfulness in action.

I clearly remember moments as a child, when life was slower, where I paused, looked up from a page of words and almost gasped at the longing to see the sights the character was experiencing. Those moments...laying on a picnic table and gazing into endless blue and content to soak up the joy of those minutes and hear the hum of bugs in summer evening, the sparkle of diamonds on white snow with one blemish--rabbit tracks trailing to the woods, and the blinding brilliance of light catching trees after an ice storm, stooping low to peek at the shimmering white coals among the orange and yellow bonfire sending sparks into the black sky, sticky fingers from gooey, golden marshmallows roasted while conversing with family, twisting back in my seat along the bumpy dirt road--with hair flying in my face and mouth--to catch a glimpse of the purple streaked yellow sky deepening to a dark blue. I remember reading a book that described the trees against a watercolor sunset sky as black lace, and feeling that familiar burn in my belly as I knew exactly what they meant.

When you pause, put down that smart phone, and savor a moment you notice the light streaming over a pile of pebbles, you hear the song of birds blending in the wind, and you feel the grit in your sandals. When you stop worrying about the next thing, you slow down time and take a mental snapshot of family laughing around the table, the taste of a homecooked meal in your mouth, the feel of bubbles and dishes in the sink, the child banging on piano keys, and joy springs into your heart.

Life should never be to busy to fill the soul with beauty. This is an attitude, not an appointment. I need to stop waiting for "enough" time to start appreciating loveliness, to get inspired, to create. No matter where I am or how busy I am, there is beauty to be found in the world and events my Creator has placed me in. It fills me with peace to stop and notice the ways He blesses me and fills my longing for creativity with the beauty of life hidden amid the busy events and to-do lists and chores. It reflects His creative character when I get inspiration and express it in the midst of everyday life, even in small or unnoticed ways.  

Today, I pause to think (simply think for the sake of reflection, not accomplishment...something that should be done more often)... and I realize that this is one of the characteristics I want my life to be about...never to be too busy to find joy in God's moment by moment gifts, to search for the inexhaustible riches of beauty He has put in my everyday life, and to pass the fullness of beauty on to others--to help them hunt for and see the joy too, and praise God because of it.




  

A New Computer

Hello there!

Surprised to see me writing here again? Me too.

Obviously, this blogging thing has been really hit and miss for me. In part because I just haven't gotten around to it, in part because we've been sharing the laptop and since Derek is taking college courses online, during the semester I have avoided blogging so he can use the computer whenever.

But, we've been blessed to have gotten a new (to-us) computer so now while he's working at school and I can do my own thing--which I hope will include more faithful blogging.

We want to keep family updated on the things going on in our life, especially those that live a distance from us. Also, I think this blogging habit would be nice to have when we eventually move away to a seminary, Lord-willing.

And of course, I look forward to this place as a journal of my personal growth as a wife and homemaker, to write bits and pieces of things I want to remember for the future/what I am learning/am sorta getting the hang of, because it is just good sometimes to think things through in writing (and for me-list making!!). I hope it might encourage others, too.

So do you guys want a life update?

Not much has been going on here...we feel like we are just coming up to breathe after a busy season of basketball coaching, getting involved in our new church, more school, and work. I am so looking forward to a summer of refocusing and growing and moving forward to be more intentional in life, and I know Derek is too.

I am still babysitting part-time for a family with a little boy and girl. They keep me on my toes and I always have a funny story to share. Yesterday we were watching How to Train Your Dragon, and got to ending part where Astrid kisses Hiccup. Luke (5) threw his hands up to shield his eyes and awkwardly gasped, "Oh my gosh--they just got married!" Today, he spilled some cheese curls on the floor and Faith (2) rushed over to pick them up and started singing "Clean up, clean up, everybody clean it up!" Too funny. At bedtime she sang "Jesus Loves Me" along with me. So precious. 

Right now Derek is finishing up his final week  of school and then anticipating a break (from school anyways!) for the next couple months. First on his to-do list is find a job! Please pray that he would be able to find a good job that pays decently, is ok with him not working on Sundays, and will be more long term (we are hoping not to be looking for another job in a few months like in the past due to seasonal layoffs).

Looking forward to keeping this place updated regularly in the future!

Dinner at Eight: Sweetheart Date

A few weeks ago I stumbled across Rebekah's blog and her effort to be intentional in her marriage by dating her husband after the kids are in bed. She calls it dinner at eight and she and her friend Andi have several posts giving fun ideas but most of all encouraging spending quality time with our husbands.

Well, Derek and I have no kids yet but it is not always feasible to go out on a date with our budget. So often, we  opt to spend the evening in. But there's no reason why that can't be a date! It's easy to just throw on pajamas and watch a movie together (and that is lots of fun) but sometimes it's nice to make the evening special even though we're at home. 

This February the Dinner at Eight theme was Sweetheart. I can't say I put any thought or effort into this date but it was an enjoyable time. My parents gave us two steaks for Valentine's Day which was such a blessing! I had wanted to have a special dinner since I knew we would not be going out, but the groceries kind of piled up and I chose to have more practical items that we normally use instead of spending half the budget on a fancy dinner. So when we got these steaks I was so excited! We could have an extra special meal after all. 

I didn't get home from work until about 6:30 and when I got there, Derek had been so sweet and put a tablecloth on the table, lit candles, and was in dress clothes scrubbing dirty dishes! He left me a nice note and ordered me to change into something nice for dinner. 

He went outside to grill the steaks and I quickly threw together a yummy side dish of asparagus and pasta. We had Empire Biscuits (a sugar cookie sandwich with raspberry icing in the middle) for dessert. Everything was delicious and we enjoyed each other's company and conversation! This was definitely fun and I hope to have many more date nights in. 

I'm including the recipes for the steak marinade, asparagus pasta dish, and cookies we had for dessert. Each recipe is a winner! You should definitely try them out!

Poor Man’s Steak  (I just used the marinade part of this recipe since we obviously had much nicer steaks!)                           

½ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup soy sauce

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

1 Tbsp. Worchestershire sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

¼ tsp. onion powder

2 lbs. boneless chuck steak  

In large Ziploc bag, combine first seven ingredients. Add the beef; seal bag and turn to coat. Refrigerate 8 hours or overnight. Drain and discard marinade. Grill, covered, over medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing. 

Spicy Pasta with Asparagus  (Adjust red pepper flakes to suit your taste buds)                      

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes

2-3 dashes hot sauce

¼ cup olive oil

1 Tbsp. butter

1 lb. fresh asparagus, cut into 1 ½ inch pieces

Salt to taste

¼ tsp. pepper

½ tsp. pepper

¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

½ lb. penne or farfalle pasta

In a skillet, cook garlic, red pepper flakes and hot sauce in oil and butter for 2-3 minutes. Add asparagus, salt and pepper, sauté until asparagus in crisp tender, about 8-10 minutes. Add Parmesan cheese, mix well. Pour over hot pasta and toss to coat. Can top with grilled chicken to make a meal. Serve immediately. 

Empire Biscuits   (A Scottish cookie that our family loves to make. Definitely worth the effort!)                        

Cream:

1 stick butter

½ cup sugar

Beat in:

1 egg

In a separate bowl,, sift together:

1 ½ cup flour

¼ tsp baking soda

½ tsp cream of tartar

Pinch of salt

Add to creamed mixture and mix well. Roll out and cut as desired. Bake in 300 degree oven depending on how brown you want them. Put together with raspberry jam in the middle and icing on top. Put a small piece of maraschino cherry in the center of the icing. Don’t gobble them all up at once.

Icing:

1 cup powdered sugar

¼ tsp. almond extract

2 tsp. corn syrup or more if you want thinner

2 tsp. milk

Back to the drawing board...

Drawing is something that I'll never stop doing. Even when it's been a busy season in my life and it falls by the wayside, I know that I'll pick it up sometime just because I love expressing creativity in that way! This summer I've done various projects and started to ease back into art, which just inspires me to do more! A couple weeks ago I decided to do a last minute project (very typical for me) as a shower gift for a friend and her sweet baby. I worked the next day, then ran to the store, picked up a frame, came home and framed the drawing, and made it to the shower only 15 minutes late!  Haha. Since I had started drawing the night before at like 9 pm, I just stuck to a less finished pencil drawing, and am pretty pleased with the results! It felt good to put pencil to paper again.

Dutch Pannekoeken (Pancakes)

My mom's side of the family is Dutch and so we have a lot of stories, traditions, and recipes that have been handed down. My "Pake" (Grandpa) immigrated when he was a child, and when he was an adult, took his family to Bonaire, which is a Caribbean island which is owned by the Netherlands. They were Trans World Radio missionaries there, so my mom grew up and learned how to speak the language and has since tried to pass a lot of the heritage down to her own family. I love the heritage that I have inherited, and especially this delicious but simple recipe for Dutch Pannekoeken, or pancakes.

This isn't what American's would think of as a pancake...it is more like a thick crepe, and it is much larger than our fluffy pancakes. You can drizzle it with a thick "koekenstroop" (syrup) that is more like molasses than our maple syrup. There are many Pannekoeken Huizen in Holland; restaurants where they serve this dish. There are lots and lots of toppings and combinations you can order for your pancake--almost how we treat pizza in America! This version is how my mom taught me to make pannekoeken, and our favorite salty/sweet topping combination: ham, cheese, and apples.

The ingredients for the pancake are flour, sugar, eggs, milk, salt and vegetable oil.

 The measurements are different depending on how many pancakes you want to make. 

Keep in mind, these pancakes are pretty filling. 

2 adults: 1 c. flour, 1 1/2 c. milk, 2 eggs, 2 Tbsp. sugar, 1 Tbsp. oil, 1/8 tsp. salt

4 adults: 2 c. flour, 3 c. milk, 4 eggs, 4 Tbsp. sugar, 2 Tbsp. oil, 1/4 tsp. salt

5 adults: 2 1/2 c. flour, 3 1/2 c. milk, 5 eggs, 5 Tbsp. sugar, 2 1/2 Tbsp. oil, 1/2 tsp. salt

6 adults: 3 c. flour, 4 c. milk, 6 eggs, 6 Tbsp. sugar, 2 Tbsp. oil, 1 scant tsp. salt

You  just mix all the ingredients together in no particular order and whisk it so there are no lumps. 

You can put your hubby to work on that...and if he's stilling willing to help, 

have him grate some cheese after that:

Take slices of deli or leftover ham, and cut into squares. 

Slice a couple apples and set out the grated cheese, ham, and apples out on the counter, ready to go. 

Next, heat a skillet to medium-high and melt a little bit of butter in it, sliding the butter around to coat the bottom. Then pour a scoop of the pancake mixture into the bottom, almost like a crepe, although you don't want it that thin. I use a little less than 1 cup of batter for my pan. 

Now you put all the toppings you want on it, in this case we're using ham and apples. 

Wait until the batter starts to set and the edges start to lift up from the pan, showing that it's cooked. Slide your spatula underneath the pancake, and flip the whole thing over! This might take a bit of practice but it is not as hard as it looks. And don't worry if it folds over, just straighten it out flat and it will be fine. 

The top should be golden brown like this:

Just sprinkle a handful of cheese on top...

...and place a lid on the pan to help the cheese melt evenly.

Derek kept peeking...he was impatient! When the cheese has melted, the underside should be cooked by then and you just slide it off onto a plate. 

This is the syrup we used...it's not quite exactly the same thing that my mom buys at a Dutch store in Canada, but this was at a nearby Amish store and it is very similar. I always pour some into a pitcher and heat it up for a few seconds in the microwave so it's not quite so thick to pour. If you only have maple syrup, just use that! 

After that,  just dig in and enjoy your Dutch pannekoeken! The only downside to this recipe is you can only make one at a time, and if you have a bunch of hungry people they will have to wait for their turn. But this is a really very simple recipe with ingredients that I almost always have on hand. It's fast and filling for a weeknight--one of those dishes that are good for breakfast, lunch or dinner!

Mmm...cheesy and syrupy on top....

With ham and apple in each bite. Delicious! 

We hope you enjoy this family favorite!  

I'm linking up to Homemaker by Choice's blog hop...check it out!