How-To Guide: DIY Wooden Sign

Psalm 5:11 "But let all who take refuge in You be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread Your protection over them, that those who love Your name may rejoice in You." While I sit here in my safe, protected little bubble I think about all the Christian missionaries around the world who live in constant danger while spreading Christ's light and the life-saving Good News to the darkness. I think about those who are persecuted and killed because of their faith. I think about the fighting and wars that have reigned in areas for centuries. It is so easy to become so content in our safe space and so immune to the hardships and struggles of those around the world. I just pray this psalm over them, that God's protection be spread over all who love His wonderful name, spread to all who rejoice and take refuge in our mighty Creator. Praise the Lord for His goodness and love. Praise the Lord for each person risking their lives for the sake of the Kingdom and the Gospel.

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Well the nursery is finished except for just one teeny tiny little detail, such as the crib...which won't be delivered until a couple weeks after my due date. But not to fear, backup plan B is in effect. As I was working on a collage wall over the rocking chair, I just kept commenting to myself, Angelo, James, but mainly to myself {don't judge, some of my best conversations take place that way} that it was missing....something. You know those times when it just irks you every time you look at it? You just know it needs one more finishing touch? Anyone else that obsessive out there? Moving on.

After searching high and low at TJ Maxx and Homegoods, which failed to come through for me for the first time ever, I decided to forgo the store-bought decor and create my own. Which means I had to do it right then-that minute-no time to waste. These moments always occur on a Sunday when the beloved Hobby Lobby is closed. And so my impatient and immediate desire to start a new project had to wait. In the meantime, I scoured Pinterest and assorted blogs to find exactly what I wanted to make. Little did I know that this project, originally intended to take an afternoon or two, took about a week altogether. Not what I expected, but a learning experience nonetheless. And now I pass that learning on to you, in hopes that if you desire to make a wooden sign you have success on the first try on the first day rather than the tenth try by the end of the week, by presenting.... 

"My Guide to a DIY Wooden Sign"

1. Decide to make a wooden sign. Overestimate your ability and shoot for the stars, aiming to create a sign with an incredibly long quote.

2. Go to Lowe's or Home Depot and purchase a cheap wooden board. Debate with yourself over the size and type of wood for so long that an old man standing in the board aisle {who knows exactly what he's doing} comments about the project you {who does not know exactly what she's doing} are trying to accomplish.

3. Take the decided-upon board home and realize it is too long for the space on your collage wall.

4. Sweetly ask husband to cut said board to the correct size. Now. No I mean right now. This. Cannot. Wait.

5. Paint background a nice cream color and let dry. Begin to stencil a damask pattern on top of the cream with a light pink. Realize the light pink is way too light and bright. Hold it up to the other items on the wall and notice that it does not go at all. Paint over the damask pattern 

and let dry.

6. Stencil a damask pattern on top of the cream with a light taupe. Fall in love with it. Discover the awesome trick of using a Mr. Clean magic eraser to distress the paint instead of sand paper. Bask in this accomplishment. Paint over taupe damask with a thin coat of cream to really get a cool distressed vintage look. Feel so proud of this paint job that you consider hanging just a board with a pattern on the wall. 

7. Begin the task of lettering your quote onto the board. Find the quote {in this case, I aspired to writing "Let her sleep for when she wakes, she will move mountains"}. Print out the quote in a fun font off your computer. Hand write the quote painstakingly carefully with pencil, copying the font exactly. Feel as though this will be the best DIY project ever.

8. Drive to Hobby Lobby and purchase paint pens in light pink and gray {not silver...take special note of this. Specifically do not buy the pen that says "silver", but choose the gray one instead}. Spend way too long debating in the aisle of HobLob, calling and texting your sister so many times you feel you may actually be stalking her. Drive home, ready and excited to trace those perfectly written words.

9. Follow directions on the pen {shake well, depress tip until paint starts flowing}. Trace over a word in pink. Notice that the paint is not flowing freely and instead looks like you tried to write with a dried out marker. Make that a dried out highlighter because the pink is waaayyyy brighter than the label indicated. Trace over the paint again before it has a chance to dry, making it look worse rather than better. Call sister to vent.

10. While waiting for the pink to dry, begin to trace the other words in gray. Notice that the gray paint pen is so metallic that it looks like silver. Notice that when you hold it up on the wall, it catches and reflects the light so much that you can't read what it says. Also notice that it too does not flow smoothly. Comment to husband that this paint pen is extremely metallic, only to have him comment back, "That's because you bought a silver paint pen". Momentarily explode as you shove the pen in his face and adamantly shout that you did NOT buy a silver pen, you made sure it was NOT silver, and you specifically bought a GRAY pen. Have husband laugh at your intensity while shaking his head 

and walking away.

11. Before the silver gray paint even dries, flip the board over and begin, once again, to paint the background cream. Pull out that stinkin' damask pattern and begin, once again, to stencil the stinkin' pattern all over the board, this time with pink. Use the magical Mr. Clean eraser to distress up the board {at least by this time you are a pro at the background technique}. Look up other ways to letter a sign. Find a DIY post on a blog about printing words backwards on regular paper with a regular printer, taping them ink-side down onto the piece of wood, then "burning" them into the wood by dampening them with water and rubbing them with the cap of a marker. See photographic evidence of this technique on the blog and know deep in your bones that this will work and 

this will be amazing. 

12. Decide that the quote was way too lofty of a goal and choose instead a three-word phrase.

13. Print out the phrase backwards and follow the water "burning" directions to a T. Remove wet paper and notice that it did not do anything. Not a single thing. Laugh at this point and how ridiculous this project has become.

14. Decide to use the printer and good ol' Modge Podge. Print out the phrase in black ink and cut out each individual letter. Lay them out on the board and have a very good feeling that this will work and this will be amazing. As you lay them out on the board and hold it up to the collage wall as best you can without the letters falling off, notice that the black stands out more than anything else on the wall. Decide to paint the letters gray. Why not just print them out in gray ink? That would have been a good idea...prior to the fact that you would have to cut out each letter again. Dab some gray paint on each letter and decide you like that better than gray ink because it gives a cooler textured effect {or at least justify the added step like that}.

15. Before gluing, make sure the letters are centered on the board, begin very careful and particular in the beginning then just eyeball it by the end. Dab modge podge on the back of each letter and press it onto the board. Without realizing it, glue each word slightly lower than the previous board. Realize it when it's all said and done, and decide to call it "rustic". Be amazed at how well the modge podge bonds the paper to the painted wood and wonder why you didn't do this is in the first place. Dream of all the possibilities of wooden signs {one for every holiday, every sports team, etc.} now that you know the easiest way to do it.

16. Hang the sign, feel very satisfied with the finished product, wash your hands of the matter, and call it a day. Or week.

I did not pose Angelo like that. I swear.

Next order of business...muffins! {Did not have a good transition into that one, sorry}. I promise these do not have nearly as many steps as the sign, not to fret. I found a recipe via Pinterest for lemon berry muffins using frozen berries, which we keep in the freezer for smoothies. The original recipe called for lemon extract and butter extract in the batter, which I omitted and replaced with the zest and juice of one fresh lemon. In addition to the delicious streusel-y topping the original recipe called for a lemon glaze. I decided to forgo the powdered sugar-lemon juice glaze, especially since it had the lemon juice in the muffin, and save us some calories. Actually, I did it to justify eating these for breakfast, mid-morning snack, and late-afternoon snack. Oh yeah, and dessert. Moist, fluffy, lemony, buttery, fruity....I could go on and on. If only they lasted more than three days in our house I would go eat one now. 

Adapted from: myfairbaking.blogspot.com

What you need....

For the muffins:

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp vegetable oil 

{if I had applesauce on hand I think I'd do half oil-half applesauce}

1 tsp vanilla

Zest and juice of 1 whole lemon

1 1/2 cups flour + a little extra to sprinkle on berries

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup mixed frozen berries

{I used blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries}

For the streusel topping:

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup old-fashioned oats

1/4 brown sugar

4 Tbsp cold butter

What to do....

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a muffin tin with liners or spray with cooking spray.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, oil, vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon zest. 

3. In a separate large bowl, sift together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. Slowly and gently stir in the wet ingredients until mixed. 

4. Toss the berries with a tablespoon or so of flour until coated so they do not sink when baked in the batter. Gently and quickly stir them into the batter.

5. Spoon batter evenly into the muffin tin {mine made 12 muffins exactly}. Mix together the crumble ingredients and cut in the cold butter. Sprinkle generously all over the muffins and press down slightly. 

6. Bake for 15-18 minutes {mine took 18} or until the tops are golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack.

These are best eaten warm and often :)

Need a cookie?

Isaiah 55:10 "As the rain and snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is My word that goes out from My mouth: It will not return to Me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it." Praise God that He has a desire and a purpose for everything and that nothing can stand against one word He speaks. If you are in need of encouragement, trust in the Lord's goodness toward His children, His sovereign plan for your life, and the love that He is speaking over you today!

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Well, speaking of rain and snow coming down from heaven, we survived the epic ice storm of 2014. The icicles grew to be at least...3.5 inches long. The ice and snow covered at least....a few patches of grass. But as the freezing rain lashed against the windows and the sub-freezing temperatures kept me in my fuzzy pajamas for two days straight {lucky James} one thing remained - I am so very thankful to live in the South.

Last weekend a situation occurred that was even more terrifying than the icy bridges and roads around here. {Even our mailbox was frozen...now that is somethin'}. We ran out of something sweet. In this household, that is a situation in need of immediate rectification. Not a problem, I told my husband, I'll just make some cookies....only to discover a measly handful of chocolate chips remaining in a near-empty bag shoved in the back of the pantry. In this household, cookies need chocolate like the flowers need the rain. Like Sarah needs to change out of her fuzzy pajamas. Not a problem, I told myself, and pulled some unsweetened baker's chocolate out of the cabinet and a recipe for peanut butter cookies and, throwing caution to the wind, decided to {try} to make up my own cookie recipe. Out of the recesses of my mind {yes, it's a scary place sometimes} came these cookies. Double chocolate because I threw in the baker's chocolate and the meager amount of chocolate chips I described earlier. I also decided to throw in some chopped pecans, mainly because they were there. And miracle of miracles they turned out to be yummy! Just the right amount of chewy chocolatey-peanut buttery goodness. If you have peanut butter chips lying around I think they would put these right over the top.

Double Chocolate Peanut Butter

Pecan Cookies

What you need...

2 ounces unsweetened baker's chocolate, melted

1 stick of butter, room temperature

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup chocolate chips {or more if desired}

1/2 cup pecans

What to do....

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and peanut butter on medium high for 1 minute. Add the melted baker's chocolate and beat until well mixed.

3. Add brown sugar and granulated sugar and beat at medium-high for another minute. Add egg and vanilla and mix until smooth.

4. Add flour, baking soda, and salt on low speed until thoroughly combined. Mix in the chocolate chips and pecans. The batter will be thick but very soft.

5. Drop by small spoonfuls on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are golden brown {mine took 12 minutes}. Let cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes then transfer to cooling rack. Chill dough in the fridge in between baking batches.

Who needs a cookie today?

Stay warm my friends.

Deuteronomy 31:8 "The Lord Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." I thought I'd share this worship song that I am currently, slightly, obsessed with. I pray the words offer refreshment and encouragement to you today and that no matter what you may be facing, you stand firm in the awesome promise of our Lord Almighty. Praise and glory to God that He will never leave us or forsake us!

"In Your Presence" by Elevation Worship

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As I sit on the couch and type this I just need you to know....there are icicles hanging off of the truck in the driveway. ICICLES. IN FLORIDA. Now I'm not complaining, lest all northern folk be tempted to roll their eyes, but I'm just in awe. Who knew Florida could even produce such a thing as icicles? The only ice I foresaw in Florida was in my margarita on the rocks. {Obviously I was not nine months preggo in this vision}. 

Also, I hope everyone read that title with the Dos Equis man's Spanish accent.

Anyways, since even the southern states are experiencing their fair share of winter weather, here's a delicious recipe to warm you up! Best enjoyed on the couch with a blanket and something good to watch on TV*.

*Not part of the original recipe, that was my addition. 

I was first drawn to this recipe because it had several ingredients also found in one of our favorite meals, Mexican stuffed sweet potatoes. Never would I have though about putting sweet potatoes in a chili but oh my goodness is it divine. The texture and flavor of this dish is absolutely incredible! So much so that I was pretty much embarrassing myself with the sounds coming out of my mouth as I was shoveling in spoonfuls. Luckily James is a guy so he a.) didn't notice. and b.) was distracted by whatever we were watching on tv. And the best news...the leftovers were just as good the next day! I halved this recipe but kept the original amount of jalapeno - still not super spicy so if you want to kick it up a notch I'd add more jalapenos!

Healthy Jalapeno Sweet Potato Chili

From: pinchofyum.com

What you need...

1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts

5 cups chicken broth

1 onion, minced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 jalapeno, minced

2 Tbsp butter or olive oil {I did one tbsp of each}

2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced (about 4 cups)

2 14-oz. cans fire roasted tomatoes, undrained

1 14-oz. can black beans, drained

3 Tbsp ground flaxmeal 

{I omitted because I didn't have it...and didn't want to buy it for such a small amount. I thought the chili was thick enough without it!}

Cilantro and cotija cheese for topping 

{we topped ours with shredded Cheddar - I think any cheese will do!}

What to do....

1. Poach the chicken by bringing the chicken broth to a rolling boil and add the raw chicken breasts. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the chicken continue to cook in the broth for another 20 minutes. Remove the chicken, let it cool and shred with forks. Reserve 2 cups of the broth.

2. Heat the butter in a large soup pot over medium high heat. Add the onion, garlic, and jalapeno and saute until tender. Add the chili powder, salt, and sweet potatoes. Saute until the sweet potatoes 

are lightly browned.

3. Add the fire roasted tomatoes, black beans, shredded chicken, and reserved broth. Stir and cover with a tight fitting lid. Keep over medium heat for 45 minutes without stirring {if you have a nonstick pot. If it is not nonstick, then stir it periodically and add some water to prevent sticking}.

4. After 45 minutes, most of the liquid should be gone from the pot. Add two cups of water {or less if needed} and stir to combine. Add the flax {if using} and stir again.

5. Season with salt and pepper and serve topped with cheese. Enjoy and stay warm!

Don't mind if I do!

Philippians 4:19 "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." This verse is such a good reminder of the sovereignty of our awesome God. No matter what stresses, deficits, or unknowns you are facing in your life, whether it be related to your job, your relationships, your future, the Lord will meet your needs. It does not say that He will meet only some of those needs and the rest you just have to figure out on your own, nor does it tack on "if you are good/smart/nice enough" to the end, for that is where grace comes into play. My God will meet ALL of your needs. It might look a little different than the image you had in your mind but I guarantee it will be better than what you could have pictured, for His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts {Isaiah 55:8-9}. What can He who has everything, for He created everything, do with those glorious riches He so abundantly possesses? He graciously blesses His children and meets every need they have, not because we have done anything at all to deserve it, but because we accept that free gift of grace and offer Him our broken little selves. And the Lord redeems us, makes us clean and beautiful in His sight and meets every need so that our lives may bring Him glory and honor. Thank you Lord for the many needs that I have. Thank you for my brokenness and utter dependence on You, for only You can fill up what I lack. For only You can redeem. For only You can save.

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To begin this post, I thought I'd share three reasons why I love my husband {Don't roll your eyes just yet!} Aside from actual, serious reasons why I chose to be with this guy for the rest of my life, here are a couple situations that have arisen recently that remind me just how much I love 'im.

Reason #1

These are the sweet potatoes he picked out for dinner one night last week. How the heck are these puppies ever going to cook at the same rate and be done at the same time? The only response he could give...

was laughter.

Reason #2

A couple days before my birthday this year my husband went to Target to pick out some birthday wrapping paper. He returned successfully and explained that he had gotten some wrapping paper on clearance. Ooh baby now that is speaking my love language right there! Then, as he began to bring out the gifts from the "no go zone" in his study, I realized that the clearance wrapping paper in question was "I <3 One Direction" paper. Which ran out before he had a chance to wrap all of the gifts so he used the leftover Christmas paper. And yes, that is brown packing paper in lieu of tissue paper in the gift bags.

Reason #3

I don't have a picture to accompany this reason just a conversation that took place a couple weeks ago. As we were driving along, ruminating on resolutions for the new year, I mentioned that maybe my resolution should be to wake up and get ready for the day more often {aka put on real pants more frequently and regularly, rather than staying in my oh-so-sexy assorted sweatpants until I absolutely had to, only to put on my "nice" sweatpants - plain black ones that are appropriate to be worn in public.}

His response:

"That sounds like a lot of laundry."

I knew I picked a good one!

Speaking of good ones, I thought I'd share a new recipe we tried, courtesy {again} of Ina Garten from her cookbook Barefoot Contessa at Home. This omelet was absolutely awesome - perfect for dinner on breakfast night or a brunch - and easy! It starts off in the skillet and finishes in the oven. One pan to clean? Sold. No attempting to flip an omelet only to get frustrated and violently "scramble" the eggs instead? Double sold. And no, I don't speak from experience...

Omelet for Two

From: Barefoot Contessa at Home

What you need...

1/4 pound  good thick-cut bacon

1 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 cup medium-diced Yukon Gold potato

1/2 cup chopped yellow onion

1 Tbsp minced jalapeno pepper

5 extra-large eggs

2 Tbsp milk or cream

1 tsp kosher salt

*Far be it from me that I should correct the Contessa but I think next time I'd use less than a teaspoon of salt. James and I both ended up with some bites at the end that were super salty.

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts

4 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, diced, plus grated cheese for garnish

What to do...

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cut the bacon crosswise into 1-inch pieces. Cook the bacon in an 8-inch ovenproof saute pan over medium-low heat for 5 to 7 minutes until browned. Drain the bacon on paper towels and discard 

the fat from the pan.

3. Add the butter to the pan, then add the potato and yellow onion. Cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, tossing occasionally, until the onion starts to brown and the potato is tender but firm.

4. Add the jalapeno pepper and cook for 30 seconds.

5. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl beat the eggs, milk, salt and pepper together with a fork. Stir in the scallions and diced Cheddar.

6. When the potato is cooked, add the bacon to the pan and pour over the egg mixture. Place the pan in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until the omelet puffs and the eggs are almost cooked in the center. Sprinkle with a handful of grated Cheddar and bake for another minute.

Serve hot directly from the pan and enjoy!

P.S. Does anyone else automatically say "Omelet for two? Don't mind if I do!" in their heads when reading the name of this dish. Preferably in a poorly-imitated French accent. Just me? That's cool.

Finally, this post brought to you by "Kitties Who Will Lay On Anything You Put On The Floor"...

...including mirrors.

This & That

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: "Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." For a while now I have considered Jeremiah 29:11-13 to be my "life verse". However, as a new year begins, I really feel a strong call to focus 2014 around this verse in 1 Thessalonians. The Bible can be clear to me at times, while other times I need a much more studied and educated person to explain passages and ideas. However, nothing is more explicit than the phrase "this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" and I need no further explanation of what God would have me do. As 2014 begins and we face a year of many, many changes {hello, parenthood!} I am going to daily remind myself to be full of the joy of knowing the Lord and His great love. I am going to pray constantly, continually, and consistently, not just during my morning quiet times but throughout each day. I am going to pray for the people I meet briefly, for those I have known my whole life, and for those I will never meet. And I am going to give the Father the thanks and praise He deserves for everything, the good and the not-so-good. Because when you thank Him for the hard times and hope in His goodness no matter what, your faith is increased and blessed, simple as that. So here's to a new year and a new "year verse"!

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Hey there. Remember me? The girl that used to post somewhat regularly? The girl that used to try new recipes and share them? That girl turned into this girl...

Husband: What are we having for dinner?

This girl: I don't know. I guess I could just make....{crickets}...ummm...pasta? Oh wait, we're out of milk, cheese, tomatoes, and anything that could vaguely be turned into a sauce. Or we could have a whatever night.

PB&Js all around.

Well with the new year comes a renewed sense of drive to actually cook! And meal plan. For the next 5 weeks or so until baby girl makes her debut in the world. Then it's back to "whatever nights". But in the meantime I am striving to formulate a plan for the upcoming week and trying out some new recipes {and trying out our new camera before she gets here}.

And so I stumbled upon this gem of a cornbread recipe thanks to another great Christmas present...the Barefoot Contessa's cookbook! To anyone starting off the new year with healthy eating habits, this may not be the recipe for you. But in my humble opinion, cornbread was never designed to be "light". If you're gonna do cornbread, you go all the way. And that is exactly what this recipe does.

One more thing...this makes a ton. I originally planned to halve or third it or something, forgot that I had ever made such a plan, and baked the entire batch. Then proceeded to run a gallon baggie full of chunks of cornbread over to my neighbors house {in the cold mind you...who knew Florida could get in the 20s during the day??}. Then proceeded to eat a piece everyday. And still have a normal size batch beckoning me.

Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread

From: Barefoot Contessa at Home

What you need...

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal

1/4 cup sugar

2 Tbsp baking powder

2 tsp kosher salt

2 cups milk

3 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 pound {2 sticks} unsalted butter, melted, plus extra to grease the pan

8 oz extra-sharp Cheddar, grated, divided

1/3 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts, plus extra for garnish {3 scallions}

3 Tbsp seeded and minced fresh jalapeno peppers {2 to 3 peppers}

*Side story: After experiencing the excruciating pain of an allergic reaction to fresh jalapeno peppers, I chopped these with baggies sealed awkwardly over my hands. 

Much to the amusement of my husband.

What to do...

1. Combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. 

2. In a separate bowl, combine the milk, eggs, and butter {let your butter cool so you don't end up with scrambled eggs!}

3. With a wooden spoon, stir the wet ingredients into the dry until most of the lumps are dissolved. Don't overmix! Mix in 2 cups of the grated Cheddar, the scallions, and jalapenos, and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13x2-inch baking pan.

5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top, and sprinkle with the remaining cheese and extra scallions. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

You gotta eat these warm - there is just no other way to do it!

Ooh yeah baby...

We served these beauties up with some grilled bbq chicken and baked beans. Worth every buttery bite :) 

So apparently this whole "nesting" thing is a legit problem disease thing. I have become that girl. What did I absolutely have to get done this morning before I could breathe easily? Scrub the laundry room. Never in my life have I ever cared if the room where dirty things go to get clean is actually clean! But this morning, everything about that room was just.so.wrong. How could I possibly bring a child into this world with the shelves piled high with dust and stray cat food on the floor? My husband, after laughing at me of course, asked if there were any pills to make my nesting last even after she is here. 

Another task on my to-do-before-baby-gets-here list: practice with our new camera {still have yet to come up with a good name to christen her with....the camera not the baby}. Perfect test subject - Angelo during a nap.

Just look at that face...who couldn't love a face like that?

To those who say they don't like cats...they haven't met the right one...

Uh oh. I better stop. The cat lady in me is about to get out.

I'm off to go clean something else. And possibly start packing for the hospital aka continue making a list of what to pack. All you pros - what is something you wish you had brought?

Happy Thursday! Show someone God's love today :)

Mud.

This morning as I was doing my quiet time and reading my Bible, I came across this story in John. A story I'd read many times before, this morning it jumped out at me from the pages and stuck in my mind. I found myself going back and rereading it just for the calm, joy, and reassurance it gave me. 

"As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, 'Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' 'Neither this man nor his parents sinned,' said Jesus, 'but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.'" Jesus proceeds to restore this blind beggar's sight with a little bit of spit and dirt. 

This morning I just want to encourage anyone who feels like they are in a hopeless situation, maybe even as hopeless as being blind from birth and reduced to begging every day to hopefully gain enough from passersby to merely survive. God did not give you that situation as a punishment for some sin or another, for our God is not punitive. He is Love. He gives us trials and challenges as a way for His glory and magnificent work to be displayed in our lives, for His goodness to be revealed and His truth spread to those around us. And the truth is this: if you are still breathing (which I hope is the case if you are reading this right now!) God is not finished with you yet. Trust in His power and His solution might be as simple as some good ol' fashioned spit. For in God's hands, even mud is a powerful thing. Praise God.

Well, I am taking full advantage of this actual-fall weather while we are still in Virginia, snapping a pic of every fall leaf or tree I come across and baking anything that involves pumpkin or cinnamon. And Baby Barnacle is a fan of the fall deliciousness as well. (Side note...I really don't know what I'm going to do when she is born and I can no longer call her Barnacle...it has such a ring to it!) I sense a fellow fall fanatic in the making! Speaking of Barnacle, I just can't help but share this pic. I had a 3D ultrasound the other week and the technology just blew my mind. My favorite picture of all....her sweet little profile between an arm (on the right) and her foot (on the right). I think we may have a dancer on our hands! And considering she engages in some sort of baby tae bo class each night, I'd say that's a safe bet. 

Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his might heavens....

Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with tambourine and dancing....

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Psalm 150

Pumpkin Coffee Cake

From: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2013/09/22/iced-pumpkin-coffee-cake/

Crumb Topping:

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup cold unsalted butter

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

Pumpkin Coffee Cake:

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 cup pure pumpkin puree

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1/4 cup milk

Vanilla Glaze:

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1-2 Tbsp pumpkin spice coffee creamer or milk (I used milk)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x9 baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Make the crumb topping first: In a small bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry cutter or fork. Mix until crumbly and set aside.

3. For the cake: Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice together in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk the pumpkin puree, brown sugar, oil, maple syrup, and milk until combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined (it will be thick!) Pour the batter into the baking dish and spread evenly. Sprinkle the crumb topping evenly on the top and press gently into the batter. Bake for 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

4. Make the glaze: Whisk the confectioners' sugar and 1 Tbsp of the creamer or milk until smooth. Add more creamer or milk to thin, if desired. Drizzle over the cake. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

Believe me when I say this cake is out-of-this-world! Next time I want to try doing half oil-half applesauce to keep it moist but make the nutritional content *slightly* better. We had it for breakfast the first morning then proceeded to eat it as dessert each night after. Plus some bites in between....like maybe every time someone walked past the dish...

Next pumpkin recipe.....muffins! Baby is all for fall breakfast treats!

Pumpkin Streusel Muffins

Adapted from: http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/pumpkin-cinnamon-streusel-muffins/

*This recipe originally called for a brown sugar-cinnamon filling of 1 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 tsp of cinnamon. While I am always a fan of more brown sugar, after reading the recipe I decided to omit this. I am actually glad I did as these muffins are already very sweet and might be a little too sugary with the 

additional filling! Disclaimer over.

Muffins:

1 3/4 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 Tbsp cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp nutmeg 

(I used pumpkin pie spice instead since I'm not a huge nutmeg person)

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup canola oil

1/3 cup water

1 cup canned pumpkin

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

Streusel topping:

1 1/4 cup oats

1 Tbsp flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Dash of nutmeg

6 Tbsp cold butter, cut into cubes

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two muffin tins with cooking spray or paper liners. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, water, pumpkin, eggs, and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth and combined.

4. Slowly stir in the flour mixture. Mix until ingredients are combined.

5. For the streusel topping: In a small bowl, combine oats, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix in the butter with your hands until crumbly. 

6. Fill the muffin cups with the batter and top each one with streusel topping.

7. Bake for 17-20 minutes or until the toothpick test comes out clean. Cool muffins on a wire rack. Enjoy!

And last but not least, the Franken-treats. While these do not contain any sort of pumpkin ingredient they are quintessential Halloween-y (anyone else giggle when making the word "Halloween" into an adjective? Just me? Okay cool.) Inspired by Pinterest of course and super easy, although slightly time consuming, these really don't even need detailed step-by-step directions. Here's pretty much the gist of it...

Franken-treats

What you'll need....

Recipe for classic Rice Krispie treats - butter, marshmallows, Rice Krispies, and green food coloring

Melted chocolate chips for the hair, smile, and pupils

White chocolate chips (unmelted) for the eyes

Toothpicks and mini marshmallows for the bolts

Cute paper straws from Target, Michael's, or other craft store

Pretty simple and almost too cute to eat....sorry Frank, I said almost :)

Happy Halloween everybody!

Hello, old friend.

Mark 10:43-45 "Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." What a humbling reminder! I tried to keep this verse present in my mind and centered in my attitude as I went about today. Try adopting this attitude while doing mundane, ordinary tasks, for example while battling the crowds at the grocery store (I speak from experience...). I promise it will change the way you see those around you!

September 4, 2013. The day an old lover walked back into my life. The day I said, "Hello, old friend" as I once again enjoyed this relationship filled with warmth and love. The day Starbucks brought back the Pumpkin Spice Latte. This day signifies the return of Fall Spirit, no matter what the thermometer might read or the weathermen might predict. I happened to be in Austin, TX for this grand annual event where the high that day was a crisp 102 degrees. And yet we sipped on, wiping away those beads of sweat with determination and confidence! We even developed a new term...."sweatering".

sweatering [swet/er/eeng]
verb
1. The act of sweating in a sweater in the beginning of September because you really want it to be fall but it's still 100 degrees.

My fall spirit is out in full blast and I am quickly becoming my obsessive self with anything remotely reminding me of this fresh season. Fall scented Febreze candle? Why yes, I picked one up today. Chai tea latte with breakfast? Fall in a cup, I always say. And since we enjoyed a nice day in the 70's today, albeit 90 degrees is just lurking around the corner for tomorrow, a pumpkin recipe was a must for my day of fall. With "Apples and spice" burning cheerfully away, I whipped up this {healthy} pumpkin bread recipe, dreaming of patterned scarves, riding boots (never to actually be worn on a horse), rotund little pumpkins, and trees with leaves aglow.

**This is the doubled recipe since it originally called for 7 ounces of pumpkin and I didn't want to waste or have to store leftover Libby's so I made two loaves - one plain and one with chocolate chips for the hubby. Oh darn, more bread to eat. How will we ever stand it? :)

Pumpkin Bread

From: http://www.itbakesmehappy.com/2012/07/pumpkin-bread.html

1 can {15 oz} pumpkin

2 eggs

2/3 cup applesauce

1/2 cup water

1 cup honey

1 cup brown sugar

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. cloves

1/4 tsp. ginger

Optional:

2/3 cup dried cranberries and/or 1/2  cup chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare two loaf pans with cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine pumpkin, eggs, applesauce, water, sugar, and honey. In a separate bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined. Fold in the cranberries and chocolate chips (if using). Spread batter in the loaf pans and bake for 45-50 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Although a tad early, I must say it...

Happy fall, y'all!