falling in love with WI

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I'd wind up living pretty much in the middle of metro suburbia when I dreamed about raising a family someday. Especially when I fell in love with a guy who only wanted to talk about mountains, 3rd world countries and places like Tibet. So it's kind of funny that we winded up where we are now. My husband loves teaching at TEDS and we both thoroughly believe that it was a divine appointment that moved us here. I remember the first time we drove around looking for homes (after living on 2 acres in beautiful rural Michigan and where all of our church community literally lived within a 5 mile radius of each other) here in the burbs and we knew family life was going to be an adjustment. Now, four years later we still find heartpangs for places like Alaska & Africa but we are blessed to have made Wisconsin a home and especially blessed by the friends and community we've established here. Earlier this month we were able to slip away as a family and do a fall camping trip to Devil's Lake state park near the Wisconsin Dells. It was one of the most beautiful camping weekends we've experienced and as we drove home our hearts were grateful for our new "homeland".

Playing football with Dad at the campsite. The boys are in love with football...what is it with Josiah?...it is all or nothing with that kid. First he was obsessed with trains, then dinosaurs, then wild animals, and now football. The other night I had to read an entire book about the Seattle Seahawks to this boy. And twenty times a day he asks me "What's your favorite NFL team, mom?", only to be followed up by "What's your favorite college football team?" I have very limited knowledge (not to mention lack of desire to learn more) about football...but then again I have learned quite a bit about carnivorous animals over the past few years. I suspect I'll learn a bit more about football...
One of the beauties of having a larger family is the ability to have lots of helpers...like when Isaac wanted to play in the back of the suburban at our campsite. Josiah happily obliged him...and especially enjoyed cleaning up (make that eating) the bag of chips Isaac had dumped out. Josiah is wearing his coonskin hat (prized possession) with which he wants to be Davy Crockett for Halloween this year.Cole helps Maddie organize her beautiful leaf collection.In the parking lot getting ready to head out for a hike. Isaac was very excited that he was "free" on this trip due to the fact we forgot to bring the backpack carrier for him.
The four kids in front of the infamous "balanced rock." The pictures made it look huge but when you got up close it wasn't even as tall as Tom or I. The hike there was beautiful, though, a reminder that the journey is the destination sometimes.

"Mr. I-Can-Do-It-ALL-by-Myself!"

More to come...

Chicken Continental

Okay, I think up to this point most of the recipes I've shared have been desserts (and I wonder why I struggle with my weight?) but I am excited to share a main course this time around. I love this recipe for many reasons. First it is from my dear friend Jill (does anyone else love recipes more because they come from someone you love or is that just me?), second it uses instant rice so it cooks in 30 minutes (move over Rachel Ray) and most importantly it is delicious! It is comfort food to the core.

4 boneless chicken breasts
1/3 c. butter (I use half olive oil, half butter to keep butter from burning)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 T. grated onion
dash pepper
1 T. chopped parsley
1 t. salt
1/2 t. celery flakes
1/8 t. thyme
1 1/3 c. water
1 1/3 c. instant rice

Roll chicken in flour; brown in butter. Remove chicken. Stir soup, seasonings and water into drippings. Cook and stir to a boil. Spread instant rice in 1 3/4 quart shallow casserole. Pour all but 1/3 cup soup over rice. Stir to moisten. Top with chicken and rest of soup. Bake, covered at 375 for 30 minutes or until tender (I usually bake mine a little longer provided I have the time).

lickin' the brownie bowl

Precariously perched to get a piece of the action(lack of pants due to I think just getting up from nap)...

Aw man, who needs a spoon!

pictures

Cole turned 8 at the beginning of last month. It was a low key night at home (our favorite kind) with a visit from Grandma to make the day extra special. Nana & Gramps will be happy to read that his favorite dinner, and request for his birthday meal, was finger steaks. He also had soccer practice that evening and the entire family has really enjoyed cheering for him at his weekly games.A picture on the couch before we opened presents...we took this exact pose last year. Really neat to note the changes of the kids from year to year. You can compare by looking at this post from last year. There was a small piece of cake leftover that Maddie had a glorious time decorating to the hilt. She pulled out sprinkles of every hue and season (ummm....wonder how old some of those are?)
The following pics were taken just this weekend as we are beginning to enjoy the fall colors (unfortunately due to taking these at dusk the leaves don't really show up). Isaac continues to be a hoot to try to photograph. I think some of the passerbys in the park were amused by our efforts...they were all childless couples with enormous cameras simply out photographing the leaves themselves and enjoying the stillness of the woods. We hoped they enjoyed our commotion because any thoughts of "stillness" were quickly shattered by our presence.
Isaac's body stance and facial expression in the following picture pretty much sums up his philosophy about posed pictures.
And lastly, a picture of our four kiddos who were balancing mom on the teeter-totter in this shot. I finally have been returning to the gym with some semblance of discipline again. While it is exciting to be down close to 10 lbs.....it's still a struggle knowing your taking off the same weight you'd previously lost last year. I guess that's where I'm at, though. Truly acknowledging for me it will always be a struggle...but one that I hope I always struggle to stay at battle with. Anyways the kids enjoyed trying to counterbalance mom's weight. The look on their face of sheer delight just begged me to lift the camera and try to capture. I'm really trying to take those pictures in my mind every day. These days of childhood are slipping by way too quickly....but I'm so thankful for the journey through them together.

For those of you in need of a picture fix....this post should oblige you.

my favorite time of the year

Oh my words...is it a beautiful day or what? I love waking up to a chill in the air that makes you want to snuggle under the covers...until you hear the patter of little feet that lets you know someone has crawled out of his bed AGAIN at some ungodly hour in the morning (saturdays never stop him). But then there is the reality of a husband who gets up first to take care of said child. There is also the dawning reality that the sky is brilliantly blue (was it ever more so?), the air is crisp, the leaves are dawning a bright yellow...who would want to be indoors today? The beauty in decay...maybe a lesson that death is not the final victor?

refuge

O Lord,
Whose power is infinite and wisdom infallible,
Order things that they may neither hinder, nor discourage me,
nor prove obstacles to the progress of thy cause;
Stand between me and all strife, that no evil befall,
no sin corrupt my gifts, zeal, attainments:
May I follow duty and not any foolish device of my own;
Permit me not to labour at work which thou wilt not bless,
that I may serve thee without disgrace or debt;
Let me dwell in thy most secret place under thy shadow,
where is safe impenetrable protection from
the arrow that flieth by day,
the pestilence that walketh in darkness,
the strife of tongues,
the malice of ill-will,
the hurt of unkind talk,
the snares of company,
the perils of youth,
the temptations of middle life,
the mournings of old age,
the fear of death.
I am entirely dependent upon thee for support, counsel, consolation,
Uphold me by thy free Spirit,
and may I not think it enough to be preserved from falling,
but may I always go forward,
always abounding in the work thou givest me to do.
Strengthen me by thy Spirit in my inner self
for every purpose of my Christian life.

All my jewels I give to the shadow of the safety that is in thee--
my name anew in Christ,
my body, soul, talents, character,
my success, husband (I changed this one word), children, friends, work,
my preset, my future, my end.
Take them, they are thine, and I am thine, now and for ever.

I found this taped into the front of Tom's Bible last week. I was looking for a NIV Bible...interesting to note Tom carries a children's version NIV Bible...and came across this. It is based on Psalm 91 and something I really needed to read and remember.

pumpkin chip cookies

2 c. canned (plain) pumpkin
2 c. sugar
1 c. oil
2 eggs
4 c. flour
4 t. baking powder
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. salt
2 t. baking soda dissolved in 2 t. milk
2 t. vanilla
8-16 oz. chocolate chips, depending on how chocolatey you want them to be (I usually go with 8 oz. because my kids are hyper enough without a double dose)

Stir together pumpkin, sugar, oil, and eggs.
Stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
Add flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture, along with dissolved baking soda.
Stir in vanilla, chips, and nuts.
Drop walnut-sized cookies onto greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes.
Yields: 4-5 dozen

Thanks to Melissa F. for giving me this recipe 2 years ago!

If you ever need a quick thank-you gift for teachers, volunteers you can whip up a batch of these cookies and add a quick note of "thanks for chippin' in" with the recipe on the back.

I am an auntie again!

Pictured here is my brother-in-law, Robb, my sister-in-law, Julie (Tom's sis) and precious new bundle from heaven...Claire Anne (notice with an "e")! Go here to see more beautiful pictures and better yet leave a comment of congrats!

big boy

just sweet

...the unplanned moments of life.

summer baking

Okay, I know it's probably too hot for some of you to even want to attempt turning on the oven, but around here we've had delightful weather. After reading the "moneysavingmom" write about making a peach pie in which her preschool daughter cut shapes to create the top layer, I was inspired to try baking a peach pie. I tried linking to this post--it was part of her "making your home a haven" series on her other blog--but I am getting a virus alert every time I go there. Josiah was actually my helper when we baked and he wanted to try the lattice as he's done lattice work in art class and thought it was quite cool to see it done on a pie. I've baked pies for quite a while but I really haven't made summer pies, utilizing any of the fresh fruits of the season. Well, this one turned out so well I decided to share. And by the way, what ever happened to the sharing of recipes?? Last year, when I began blogging it seemed like a lot of people were sharing the goods. Lately, I haven't seen any. Just wanted to say...I for one, love getting new ideas, especially from friends I know are awesome cooks but I live too far away from you all to ever swap ideas. I decided to label my recipe posts so that it will be easier to find them later.


My mother-in-law's never fail pie crust
She is one of the greatest cooks of ALL time!...I'm always grateful for her recipes and all the memories we've made cooking together throughout the years.

2 c. flour
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. baking powder
1 c. shortening

Crump with pastry blender. Put in 1/2 c. cold water, enough to moisten.


Peach Pie
taken from the Joy of Cooking, a gift from my mom last Christmas that I continually use

2 and a half pound of peaches ( I used 5-6 c.)
1/2 c. sugar
3 T. flour
3 T. lemon juice
(1/4 t. almond extract)

Pour filling into crust and dot with 2-3 T. butter.

Bake at 400 for 25 minutes then down to 350 for 40 minutes~your oven may be different, basically bake until crust is browned to your liking and until the juices bubble through the lattice.

Sears--a good place for back to school shopping?

Tom is out west this week working with his Dad (we tried to squeeze in the suitcases but with 4 kids it was a little snug). Well, the boys spent a night at Aunt Amy's in downtown Chicago this week. Yesterday Maddie, Isaac and I rode the train in to pick them up. What a blessing that turned out to be as we made it in SO quickly with no worries about traffic. Our only "problem" was that Cole's sandal totally split apart on the way home (I know, the story many, many mothers of boys could tell). Seeing as the public Metra is definitely NOT the place you want to have your son go barefoot, he made it home quite fine with his sole flopping in the breeze. We even stopped to play at a new park (Bowen Park on Sheridan in Waukegan) that I highly recommend to all my local friends--so fun for both younger and older kids! But I digress, as I drove home I realized that even though we were a bit wearisome I really had to stop and find Cole some shoes as those were the ONLY pair he had. Then a lightbulb went off in my head...hadn't we bought those at Sears? And come to think of it, yes, I even had the receipt. You see the beauty of Sears is that if you are a Kidvantage member (free club that earns you discount coupons) you can return any defective item for a replacement item. In the winter, Josiah's coat zipper broke twice within the same season (boys....*smile*) and they happily replaced it both times, without a receipt. Now with the sandals, we are at the end of the season and so they were sold out, but they gave me a full refund of the original price which ended up with us being able to purchase new athletic shoes for the fall without paying a dime.

So, if you don't already think about shopping at Sears...and you also have active little boys...it might just pay off in the future.