Catching Up!

A few weeks ago, we made cakes and decorated them. The boys helped with the mixer and pouring in the ingredients for our spice cake. We baked them in individual bundt pans and then made a yummy cream cheese frosting. I got out a variety of sprinkles and the boys went to work. They LOVED it and still talk about it! Here are some pictures from our fun afternoon.

Sprinkling.

Very intent - he even had a favorite one!

He dumped a whole bowl over one cake but we managed to salvage it. :)


Yep, some icing and sprinkles definitely went in the mouth!

We had a great time!

My Love Affair with Books

I set a reading goal of 35 books this year. Sadly, I'm only on #5, 6, & 7 (not counting cookbooks which would add several more). But I have tackled a couple of really long books (Suite Francaise & Poisonwood Bible) - does that count? I try to read in the evenings and manage to read maybe 10 pages before falling asleep. :) Sometimes I read during nap time or while watching the boys play outside but generally my snippets of reading are few and far between and I find I'm not a particularly fast reader these days.

As a child, I devoured books - occasionally reading as many as 3 a day during summer break. I brought home stacks of books from the library and was constantly looking for new authors. My parents gave me a book of the month club for my birthday one year and I loved it! Books were always high on my Birthday and Christmas wish list. As the years have passed, my reading has definitely slowed down (see above :)) but my love for books has not ceased as evidenced by our sagging book shelves.

My to-read reading list is huge with just books we own. And still I enjoy receiving books, going to bookstores, and drinking in the rows and rows of books at the library. I find great pleasure in scanning shelves or tables of books at garage sales, thrift stores and library book sales for that one great find!

I love opening a book for the first time - a well-written first sentence is like a proposal for an excellent read. I love the musty smell of old books and the crisp newness of never-before-opened books. I lose myself in a good story but find equal fascination with facts and human interest in non-fiction.

I long for more time and energy to turn the pages of well-loved books and to discover new ones but wouldn't trade the time with my beautiful children as I guide them down their own road of book discovery. Maybe some day they will share their parents love of books for I have not filled our shelves alone. :) And maybe they will be inspired by the stories they have read and the books they have loved.

As I watch them grow and change, barely pausing from their constant chatter and play, I know there are seasons of life. Someday, I will once again read and read and read...until then, I will content myself with the snatches here and there and work a little harder to find more time to devote to reading good books.

And the Cake Will Be...

Calvin and I had a talk this morning about his birthday coming up - we have so many family birthdays January - April that he is having a hard time understand that it will actually be his! He is so excited! And he decided on a Monster's Inc. cake. He requested chocolate and yellow and he wants it to be "around" with "sprinkles." So, one round, two-layer, sprinkled Monster's Inc. cake will be on the agenda this week. Hopefully I can find a few balloons, plates, and napkins to go with his chosen theme. Not to be outdone, Patrick has already ordered a Cars birthday. Anyone surprised? Definitely not me. :) I can't believe my babies are turning 3 this year!

MPM: 4/14-4/20

MONDAY: Crockpot Roast w/potatoes & carrots, homemade bread
TUESDAY: Vegetarian Stir-fry, Brown Rice
WEDNESDAY: White Fish w/Orange Sauce, Couscous Pilaf, Broccoli
THURSDAY: Spaghetti, Salad, Garlic Bread
FRIDAY: Pancakes, Yogurt, Fruit (just the boys)
SATURDAY: Pizza, Veggies & Dip, Fruit, Pretzels or Chips (family movie night)
SUNDAY: Grilled Brats & Hot Dogs, Macaroni & Cheese, Applesauce, Vegetable & Fruit Platters, Cake (Chocolate & Yellow per the b-day boy :)), & Ice cream

Probably one of the 1st 4 dinners won't happen due to Andrew working late but we'll see. :) For the roast, I just put the meat, potatoes, carrots, onions, and whatever herbs or seasonings sound good with salt & pepper and a little red wine, beef broth, or water in the crockpot and cook it all day. For the stir-fry, I'm using tofu and whatever vegetables I have or that look good in the store with a little soy sauce or sezchuan sauce.

We have a busy week! Calvin's birthday is actually next Monday but we are celebrating with family a day early to catch the weekend. He is very excited! I'm planning to decorate a cake but I'm undecided on the theme - oh well, I have until Saturday... :)

Warming Up!

It's warming up - finally! I'm can't wait to work out in the yard and plant the garden. And Farmer's Market season is almost here! There is nothing like the fresh vegetables and fruit that come directly to your table from local growers. I went to Trader's Point Creamery last Saturday and saw the first fresh greens! In May, they will move the market outside and change to Friday evenings. I enjoy patronizing the same market because it's given me a chance to know the various vendors a little better.

I've spent alot of time this winter thinking (and reading!) about how to be a wise steward in the area of food. So, I'm considering other ways to cut back on grocery store spending this summer in favor of buying local. My goal is to do it without spending more money overall. I'm not sure how this will work out yet but I'm really looking forward to it!

Contemplation

Lately, we've been really working to tighten our budget in order to meet some of the goals and plans we have for this year. The result? God reminding us that it is not our money but His. With two unexpected trips within 3 weeks and various other things, staying within the budget hasn't worked. Often this is stressful and disappointing to me but instead I have had a peace about it. Maybe it means we won't buy the exact vehicle we want or that we will delay our hoped-for 3rd adoption, but I'm okay with it (at least at the moment :)).

God has blessed us more than we could ever imagine with two fantastic children, a beautiful home, good jobs, and more than enough food and clothing. We even have a chance to enjoy some of the "extras" in life. It's easy for me to compare myself to others or see things as needs that really aren't - it's much harder to be content. So I find myself feeling overwhelmed with gratitude towards God's work and provision in our lives. And I know that no matter what the future holds, we are blessed and God will provide (maybe not the way I see fit but what He determines is best). And we will keep working on tightening that budget...

MPM: 4/7-4/13

Since my week actually will not be better without a menu plan, I'm breaking my blog break to post it. I love the accountability and it's just great for me to see my menu typed out. :)

MONDAY: Vegetable Soup, Applesauce, Biscuits
TUESDAY: Breakfast Bowls, Fruit
WEDNESDAY: Mexican Lasagna, Salad
THURSDAY: Pork loin, Stuffing, Potatoes, Fruit Salad
FRIDAY: Burgers on the grill, Oven Fries (Sweet potato and white potato), Grilled Asparagus, Fruit, Icecream
SATURDAY: Date Night
SUNDAY: Egg Casserole, Toast or English Muffins, Fruit

That's the plan. The breakfast bowls are carried over from this past week (we went to my parents instead) otherwise we did pretty much everything on the menu. We made double decker tacos which were amazing!

A Break

I'm going to be honest with you all, I'm struggling. It's been an overwhelming few weeks. I'm not even sure what emotions I'm feeling but I know that physically I'm feeling absolutely exhausted. I left for work this morning (we decided I should go ahead and work especially since I had CPR recertification today) and Andrew flew out around 10:30 - he will not be back until Monday afternoon. It's hard to have a weekend without him and know that he will head back to work when he gets home on Monday or on Tuesday and will need to work many hours and late nights. I kind of just want to crawl under the covers and cry.

So, I'm going to take a blog break. I need to spend some time refreshing my spirit and resting. And I need to focus on my boys who need me regardless of how I'm feeling. I'll be back. I'm not sure exactly when, probably next week sometime. And if you think about it, you can pray for this tired, overwhelmed Mom.

It's Hard to Write

We received the call this afternoon that Andrew's grandfather has gone Home. We are saddened and still grieving the loss of his grandmother exactly 3 weeks ago today. We are thankful for his life and so thankful for the time we got to spend with him just 2 1/2 weeks ago.

Please pray for the whole family as they gather again to mourn, to remember, and to rejoice. Andrew will be leaving tomorrow for the funeral. We have decided that the boys and I will remain home this time. We would appreciate prayers for wisdom as we make travel arrangements. It's all a little hard to believe and a little tough to process right now - I'm not sure it has sunk in, yet...