Celebrating Advent...

A view of my Advent wreath from the top! I"ll use this later to explain how to make one.

It turned out pretty well!

This year, we're celebrating Advent. I didn't grow up celebrating Advent, or any other type of Christmasy tradition, so I've been learning a lot this year. David celebrated when he was a child, so this was something he'd been missing since we've been married.
For those of you who don't know (like me) or need a refresher, The Advent Wreath has five candles, three are purple, one is pink (or rose), and one is white. The four non-white candles are placed in a wreath of evergreens or an ornamented wreath. One candle is lit each Sunday in Advent, (this year, that Sunday is December 3) with the pink candle being lit on the third Sunday (Gaudette Sunday) in Advent. When the candles from the previous weeks are relit, it's symbolic of the arrival of Christ bringing light into darkness. The traditional color of the purple came from when the tone for Advent was penance, just like Lent. The Prophecy Candle is the first candle lit. It reminds us of the prophets who foretold Christ's birth, especially Isaiah. This candle is also called the "hope" candle. The Bethlehem Candle, symbolic of the Christ Child's cradle, is second. This candle is also called the "love" candle. The Shepherd's Candle is third. This pink or rose-colored candle typifies the act of sharing Christ. Pink symbolizes the Advent Rose, a time to pause in this season to Rejoice in the Lord. This candle is lit on Gaudette Sunday. Gaudette means "rejoice". This candle is also called the "joy" candle. The Angel's Candle is the fourth one. It is the candle of love and final coming. This candle is also called the "peace" candle. The Christ candle, colored white and sometimes larger than the rest, is placed in the center of the wreath. It's traditionally lit on Christmas Eve.

When I started looking for an Advent wreath for us, I found out pretty early that they can be expensive. So I made my own, using a tutorial from a blog that's now shut down, so I can't link to it. I started out with a plain wreath from Michael's. It was about $2.00 on sale. I put it on top of a flat mirror, also from Michael's, also about $2.00. You could also set your wreath on a pretty platter or glass plate that you already have. Just make sure that the wreath is the right size to go over the plate. I decided that I wanted to use tall tapered candles in my wreath, so I bought 5 glass candleholders for $1 a piece at Ikea. If you wanted to use smaller candles, you could just get some cheap votive holders at Walmart. Again, you may have candlesticks on hand that you could use. I didn't; ours are in storage, so I bought some.

To decorate my wreath, I asked my parents for some pine cones from the yard at home. I also bought a berry "pick" at Michaels for $1. I cut up the berries and interspersed them in my wreath, and I used some floral picks from Michael's to secure the pine cones. You can find those in the flower arranging section, and I think they were $2 for 20 or so in a package. You can decorate your wreath any way that you want with any materials that float your boat. You can find purple and pink tapered candles at Michael's; I tried Walmart, but they didn't have any. I think they were $1 a piece, too. So, let's add it up.
I spent $12 total on my wreath, not including the $5 for candles that I'll have to replace year after year. Not too shabby! If you already have a nice plate or candlesticks that you can use, that would cut your cost a little more.

It has been a struggle for me to figure out how to honor Christ in the Christmas season. My home church growing up (no, it was not Jehovah's Witness) didn't celebrate Christmas, and my family didn't either. The reasoning was that Jesus was not born on Dec. 25. Dec. 25 was actually the time of the Roman Winter Solstice. The ancient Romans would give presents and decorate evergreen trees to celebrate this festival. When the Emperor Constantine became a Christian, he decided that he would turn this festival into a celebration of Christ's birth, in effect, attempting to "Christianize" it.
It's been thousands of years since then, and I'm not sure how well he succeeded. I've walked through 6 aisles of Christmas decorations at Hobby Lobby before finally finding the small 1/3 of an aisle devoted to manger scenes. I've seen plenty of posts and comments from other bloggers who are trying to figure out how to glorify Christ in the middle of what is often an American commercial holiday devoid of Christian meaning.

So it's been tough for me. I married a Christian, who, like most, celebrated Christmas growing up. He had the tree and the tinsel and the presents and the whole 9 yards, and he has missed it during the time since we've been married. I haven't felt comfortable with any of that, and he's been gracious enough not to ask me to provide those things for him. I appreciate his sensitivity.

At the same time, I have slowly changed in my attitude toward Christmas. I have realized that it's a good thing to be thankful and to celebrate Christ's birth whenever and wherever I think about it. Christmas is as good a time as any to do that, and it's better in some ways because there are plenty of concerts and other events that glorify Christ and celebrate His coming. There are lots of easy reminders within Christian culture that focus solely on Christ at this time of year, and I don't want to opt out of those good things just because there is a lot of non-Christ honoring stuff out there.

So I've been slowly trying to figure out what would be a help to our family in honoring Christ at this time of year and what would be a hindrance to me, especially given my background. Giving gifts at Christmas is not something that I'm comfortable with because of how commercialized our Christmas culture is, and I have a hard time imagining a Christmas tree in our house. But manger scenes and Advent wreaths seem to serve a purpose in honoring Christ and focusing on Him and Him alone at this time of year, so I'm exploring integrating them into our home and family.

I am not saying that those of you out there who have a tree and presents and all the glitz and glitter of Christmas are bad. I know this could be a controversial topic for many. All I'm saying is that, for me, all of that is a distraction from Christ's birth. Christ's birth and cultural Christmas are very separated in my mind, and I know that that's not typical for most people. I also, think, though, that I have a unique perspective that is helpful at this time of year. I don't worry so much about doing the traditional Christmas things that stress out many people because I've never done them. Since we didn't have Christmas, I'm not tempted to spend lots of time and money on things that aren't part of celebrating Christ's birth. I am starting from a clean slate with Christmas, and I like that. The emotional pulls of nonessentials aren't there as much for me, so I feel some freedom in how to build in appropriate and Christ honoring traditions into the holiday.

I like where I am in all this (some days), and I am joyful about celebrating Christmas this year in a whole new way. I've never had Advent before, so I feel like I'm approaching it as a child, with that kind of childlike wonder. It won't always be this new and fresh to me, so I'm relishing that. Come, Lord Jesus, come into my new celebrating of Christmas. Show me how to glorify you and take joy in your journey to us as a lowly Babe. I just want to honor you.

The whirlwind that was Thanksgiving 2006...

David and I, Thanksgiving 2006, and baby Seth at 31 weeks.

Mom and Dad with cousin Ian. He's explaining something to her, and Dad is fiddling with the oldies channel on Aunt Judy's cable. He loved listening to his old favorites. =)

Cousin Kim and Aunt Judy cleaning up in her home. We stayed at her new townhouse, and she hosted this year. I love her townhouse; it's cozy and has a nice layout.

A slightly out of focus picture of David and cousin Keith cleaning up after Thanksgiving dinner. We've got some tall men in the family, can you tell?

The bridal party. There's Tim and his lovely bride, Lauren. Isn't she beautiful? We're so happy for them.

David, Tim's younger sister, Betsy, and another groomsman, Rob. Isn't David handsome in a tux?

We're still catching our breath around here from Thanksgiving! We've never been quite so busy at a holiday. It was completely nutty. We went to BWI to pick up David's mom and dad on Thanksgiving morning, and we drove from there straight to Richmond to have Thanksgiving dinner with Keith, Kim, Ian, and Aunt Judy. David's Aunt Judy (Dad's sister), is a fixture at all family events, and whenever we can get together with David's first cousin and his family, we definitely do. They came from Harrisonburg for the holiday. So we fought traffic to Richmond and got there in time for naps and then a big dinner. Ukrops and Aunt Judy know how to cook! I'm glad she got some help feeding all of us. Keith only brought 4 pumpkin pies, and they were great. I have to get his recipe. Plenty of cards were played, as is true at any of David's family gatherings. On Friday, David and I headed out to Newport News after lunch to pick up his tux for Tim Mattson's wedding. Diana, Bill, and Judy followed later to check into their condo that they'd gotten for the weekend in Williamsburg. We all met up again at the rehearsal dinner that night, and then it was late to bed for everybody, especially David. We forgot to tell him which bedroom I was in, so when he came in at 2:00 a.m. from the bachelor party, I heard the door open, and a tentative, "Honey?" He got it right the first time. The next day, we had to be at the church around lunchtime, and then it was straight from wedding to reception. Diana and Bill left before we did, since David needed to stay and attend to essential groomsman duties like decorating the car. It had "Need instructions...Virgins on board" on one side. Not sure who's idea that was. The next morning, Aunt Judy was scheduled to speak on missions at a church in Richmond, and Bill and Diana went with her back to Richmond early. David and I went to church at his old church in Newport News. I was able to see the place where he went to youth group in high school, and he took me by their old house and school in Poquoson. Then we fought traffic back to DC. It was a long day, and we got back pretty late in the evening. We did enjoy the time in the car talking, though. Bill, Diana, and Judy went from Richmond to our apartment, and they got here a little before we did. The next morning, the crew went to oral arguments at the Supreme Court, and I stayed home and packed them a lunch for when they came back. Bill and Diana ate in the car on the way back to the airport. Whew! With all the wedding stuff, we didn't get a lot of time with relatives this year. It wasn't a traditional Thanksgiving, that's for sure. But it was good in it's own way. We wouldn't have missed being in Tim's wedding for the world. We are so excited about his marriage to Lauren because we know that they will build a strong family based on Christ, and that's thrilling to imagine. It was a joy to celebrate with them. And this year, God probably knew that I didn't need a normal Thanksgiving. It was harder on me to do the traditional Thanksgiving things than I'd expected it to be. I struggled some with fear because I lost our little one at this time last year. Being away from a family home setting and the normal hanging out was probably better for me. It was a nice distraction to be at the wedding and answering questions from friends about the baby. It made this pregnancy seem more real and safe. Overall, it was nuts, but it was a great Thanksgiving. I won't soon forget it. We have been blessed.

Pecan pie and pregnancy =)

I've got my very first pecan pie ever in the oven. It was amazingly easy. The thing I love about Thanksgiving pies is how easy they are. What other holiday has pies that you basically just dump and stir without having to chop or dice or anything like that? I love pumpkin pie more than pecan, but David doesn't think it's Thanksgiving without pecan pie, so there ya have it. It smells wonderful. It's a gross, cold, windy, rainy day outside, and I'm glad I'm inside, doing a mountain of laundry in my pj's and baking pie. I had my 31 week doctor's appointment this morning, so I had to get out in the mess then. I'm going to a really nice practice in Fair Oaks, about 35 minutes from here. So far, I'm looking like a model pregnant person. All of my numbers are "right on the button," according to the doctor today. My glucose reading is smack dab in the middle of normal, I'm measuring dead on for how big I'm supposed to be right now, etc. Seth is being very cooperative at letting them hear his heartbeat, and his little heart is pumping away at the rate it should. I've gained 22 lb. total since they first weighed me at 12 weeks. I'm loving that, and I'm well aware that it's my genetics talking and not because I've been such a fantastically healthy eater. =) It's so nice to be so normal! And I don't really have that far to go anymore. It's really stunning to think about that. I could have this baby in less than 2 months, and it feels like it's going to fly by. We'll be so busy with the holidays and everything associated with them. I can't think about delivery too much right now or I might start panicking. I want to be a mom, but I'm also a little scared about all the daunting responsibilities that come with that. I still feel too good, I guess, so I'm willing for this pregnancy to keep going a while longer and let him get nice and well cooked. =) Tomorrow, we're picking up David's parents at the airport in Baltimore and driving to Richmond to have Thanksgiving with David's Aunt Judy and cousins Keith, Kim, and Ian. It's going to be a nutty weekend, since we have a wedding for a good friend this Saturday in Williamsburg. David is in the wedding party, and I'm tagging along. Tell ya all about it when I get back. Happy Thanksgiving, all!

Giving thanks this year...

I adore Thanksgiving. It is my absolute favorite holiday. I love the pumpkin pie, the turkey, the fall decorations, the colors, the incredible smells. You name it; I love it. My family had an atypical view about Christmas, and I'll share that later for any that are interested, so that meant that Thanksgiving was the main holiday for me. I love the whole purpose behind it. It seems to me that Americans, and the middle class of the 21st century in general, don't take much time to be thankful for anything. We're a very consumer driven society, and I am certainly not exempt. I'm just as big a part of the free market economic system as anyone else, and that means it's all about service, specifically others serving me. I get cranky if my internet provider doesn't have me online in seconds, I expect that my fast food comes in less than 5 minutes, etc. I expect a lot, and I don't stop to think very often that I'm taking hundreds of small gifts for granted every single day. Especially in today's world, the need for a day of Thanksgiving is a dire need. We desperately need to slow down and thank God and others for the bounty that we enjoy. It might just keep us from being quite so whiny and impatient. Hmm, maybe we should have a day of Thanksgiving every week, not just once a year. =) So in the spirit of all that, I thought I'd make a list of some of the things, big and little, that I'm thankful for this year.

-Salvation- thank you, Jesus, for giving me eternal life
-My amazing husband, my best friend, and our ability to laugh and share together every day.
-My little boy- ok, I've got to go into detail about this one. I am so incredibly thankful for my son. Whenever I think about the miracle of his little life, I am overwhelmed with gratefulness to God for giving me something I never thought I would have. I am so thankful for my miracle pregnancy. This is my most precious gift this Thanksgiving. We have walked through such darkness in the past three years, and I praise God that that time seems to be over. Father, what a blessing you have given me! I am grateful beyond words.
-A loving, supportive extended family that I enjoy spending time with when we can.
- A new home with new friends and a new church family
-Feeling pretty settled into all that unbelievably quickly- hey, that's a big deal for me!
- A once in a lifetime job for David that he really enjoys.
-My cozy, tiny apartment in the sky- I really love all 705 sq. feet of it!
- My incredibly comfortable bed, courtesy of Mamie.
- Hot tea and a warm blanket on a cold day.
- Chocolate in all it's wonderful forms.
- Dr. Pepper! The nectar of the gods. =)
- Books, glorious books! Reading a good, new book is like meeting a new friend.
- Making things with my hands. Seth is getting a crocheted afghan that Mommy prayed over as she made it.
- The joy of cooking comfort food for family and friends.
- Bubble baths- oh, how I miss them. =)
- Playing spades.
- Connecting with a good friend on a deeper level over coffee. Thanks, Catherine, for giving me that lately.
- Old friends who come to visit. Thanks, Sarah. And you apply for the above thanks as well. =)
- New things to enjoy- Messiah at the Washington National Cathedral, Max's Best Ice Cream, La Madeleine, Trader Joe's, Noodles and Company, etc.
- A fresh insight into God's word.

I could go on and on, but you get the picture. I'm grateful. God has blessed us with so much, and I want to remember that this Thanksgiving. We have more than we could ever ask or imagine. Jesus, thank you.

Thanksgiving Proclamation...

I saw this posted online at another blog, and I loved it, so I thought I'd share it here. This is George Washington's Thanksgiving proclamation, issued the first year he was president. Even though there had been Thanksgiving celebrations in America before then, this was the first mention or endorsement of it by the national government. I thought the wording was an inspiring testimony to this founding father in the goodness and all powerful providence of our Creator. Can you imagine a modern president getting away with a public proclamation like this? I can't. Here it is:

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and assign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed;-- for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish Constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;-- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge;-- and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also, that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions;-- to enable us all, whether in publick or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us); and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine.
(signed) G. Washington

We're naming him...

Good morning, all. I woke up this morning with a wiggly baby in my tummy. His favorite times to do baby gymnastics are at night and in the morning. These days, he gets the hiccups, and they make me smile. When I felt him waking up this morning, I thought about our ultrasound more than 10 weeks ago. It's the only one we'll get, unless I develop some sort of complication. I have a really vivid visual memory, so I remember the rooms and the screen and what we all looked like. It's kind of fun to visualize it all again. I remember my shock at finding out I was having a little boy. Now I'm totally used to the idea, so used to the idea, that we've had a name for him for weeks now. At first, I wasn't sure if we'd keep it. You're afraid to be too sure about these things sometimes. I thought, "This is really important. I should at least be willing to think about it and reconsider." So I did, and David did, but nothing better showed itself. It's an awesome and weird responsibility to name another human being. You're going to be giving them the handle they'll be called by for the rest of their lives, and depending on how well you do it, they could be in for years of embarrassed smiles. My prime example of this is Gov. Hogg who named his girls Ima and Ura. 'Nuf said. We'd had a girl name picked out for ages, but when we found out this baby is a boy, we had nothing on the drawing board for him. It was then that I found out that the criteria for boy names is quite different than the criteria for girl names, at least in the eyes of my husband. Apparently, he believed that the best, perhaps the only, names for boys were biblical names. I was stunned. I guess I shouldn't have been, since he likes his own biblical name. I didn't want something really frequently used, but I also didn't want something really different. The Bible offers some unique naming challenges here. I didn't want to have to choose between Matthew and Melchisidek. =) Well, he decided he was willing to compromise, and so did I. We hunted through name books and wrote down a list of names we were both willing to consider. But the name we ultimately came up with didn't come from the books. We have a friend with this name, and it fit both of our requirements. So, he shall be called...Seth David. We both wanted his name to mean something good, and Seth means "appointed." We wanted a name that would wear well in all circumstances, and with a name like Seth, you can either be a corporate litigator or a rock star. I didn't want anything you could nickname. It's a Biblical name to boot! Eve's third son was named Seth, and Jesus comes from his line. And a friend read me a blurb from a baby name book that made the name more meaningful for me. Eve had Seth after she'd lost Abel. In the 18th and 19th centuries, many couples would name a baby Seth if they had it after they'd lost a child. This doesn't feel morbid to me; it's a subtle reminder to me of the baby we lost last year at this time. He won't be forgotten. The middle name was a no brainer for me. I wanted to name my son after the man I hope he will always emulate. I want him to grow up to be a man like my husband, a strong man who follows the Lord and lives for Him in what he says and does. There is no man that I respect more than my David, and I want to honor him by giving our son his name. I'm glad he let me do it. So there ya have it, folks. Some may like it, some may hate it. That's inevitable. But for good or ill, this child has already been marked for life. Now, only a couple of months to go before I can give him the full name treatment when he gives me a stinky diaper! =)

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake...

My mom and her friend, Denise, are visiting us this weekend. My mom is a tireless tourist. Our family vacations were always educational, and she could wear out the entire family with multiple historic sites in one day. We'd be panting and ready to hit the hotel pool, and she'd want to see another Indian burial mound. I knew what I'd be in for, so I sent the two of them off with a marked Metro map earlier today. I haven't heard from them; we'll see if they ever make it back. =) At this point, my pregnancy weight gain has been putting some pressure on a plantar wart I've had on my foot forever with no problems 'til now, so I'm not enjoying doing tons of touring. I've been happily reading and preparing a nice meal for them for when they come in. The "I've got to cook for you" excuse was a nice one today. I've got a roast in the crockpot, the rolls are coming off the dough cycle, and I just popped a cake in the oven. I've had some requests for this recipe, and it's a super easy fall one, so I thought I'd share it while I have the card out. Here goes:

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake

1 pkg. (18.25 oz.) plain yellow cake mix (Duncan Hines or another brand without pudding in the mix)
1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin
1/4 c. water
2 large eggs
2 t. pumpkin pie spice
2 t. baking soda
1 c. semisweet chocolate chips
1 c. finely chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350, and spray a 12 c. Bundt pan with cooking oil. Dump all ingredients except chocolate chips and pecans in a large bowl and beat until well combined. Add chips and nuts and beat slowly to combine. Pour in Bundt pan and bake for about 42-46 minutes, until a knife comes out clean. Easy peasy! Enjoy!

The tinkle of crystal...

Last night, David and I attended a black tie dinner put on by a conservative lawyer's organization. It was their national convention, and this dinner was the gala event to kick it off. Supreme Court clerks got to go for free, and who am I to pass up a free steak dinner? =) So we went. I put on my maternity finery for the second time, feeling like I got my money's worth out of it at least, and David changed into his tux at work. I met him at the Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro stop so we could ride over to the hotel together. It was funny to be standing by myself in the Metro at rush hour, a pregnant woman in formal wear. I got a lot of looks, but I think it all became clear to everyone when I met up with a man in a tuxedo and patent leather shoes. I think an older woman behind us got a kick out of it when we met up and exchanged kisses, and I got a belly pat from David. It felt like one of those unique, fleeting moments that you don't share every day. So we rode over together and joined the crowd at the cocktail hour. Most places, if black tie optional is on the invitation, I think that 90% of the men there will be wearing a suit and tie. That's not the way of things in DC. It was a Thursday night, and 95% of the men were wearing tuxes, and just about every woman I saw had on an evening gown or nice cocktail dress. The ballroom was impressive. There were 1,400 people there sitting at 140 tables. There were beautiful rose centerpieces, candles, a complicated and beautiful place setting, and a 5 course dinner, including palate cleansing sherbet between courses. It was a dazzling sight to this girl from small town NC. And we knew so many people there! It was surprising. There were friends from law school days, friends from Birmingham, friends from when David clerked on the DC circuit. We had thought we'd only know the other clerks and their spouses, but we were wrong. The world suddenly seemed a lot smaller. The speakers poked fun at themselves and the organization with the kind of dry, intelligent wit that seems to be a trademark of legal beagles in the Beltway. A couple of Supreme Court justices were honored. As we sat there and listened, I realized once again what a rarefied world this is that I'm moving in at the moment. I am not used to formalwear and crystal. I'm much more of a jeans and funky t-shirt gal. I love people to feel comfortable in my home, and to me, that means homemade soup, cornbread, and board games. I am moving outside of my comfort zone, learning a different language and a different way of relating. I'm learning to be a different me, just as sincere hopefully, just as Christlike, but more able to converse with a wider variety of people of a wider variety of backgrounds. I wonder how God wants to use these new skills in my life. I wonder what all the crystal and candlelight is about. I wonder what He wants me to learn from these experiences. It certainly isn't that He wants me to get used to opulence, and I certainly don't want to get spoiled with free filet mignon. Maybe it's to learn how to be His light and His fragrance in places I wouldn't have expected? We often think of how important it is to be His light in third world countries or to our next door neighbors. But how often do we think about how much His fragrance is needed in fancier settings? I know I haven't thought much about it, but I'm in them now temporarily, so perhaps I should. Hmmm. Wherever I go, whether it's wearing blue jeans or black silk, I want to learn to spread His light.

Lainey Madison...

I just got some adorable pictures from my friend, Paula. I couldn't figure out how to post them on my blog from the email, so if anybody has any ideas, please let me know. But anyway, I thought I'd at least do a birth announcement. Lainey Madison Morgan was born on Nov. 1 at 12:06 p.m. She weighed 7 lb., 2 oz. and was 19 inches long. I agree with Paula that she does look a lot like her big brother when he was born. And she has a full head of dark hair. She's beautiful, Paula. I can't wait to meet her in person. And I'm so thankful to God for another miracle for you. His bounty is so great to those of us who thought we'd never give birth to children. Give her a kiss for me.

Freezer meals, part 2

I've gotten a lot of traffic on my post about Let's Dish, so I thought I'd do a follow up. Realizing that they are a little more pricey than I'd like, I ordered a freezer cookbook from Amazon, and it came in the mail recently. I ordered a book called "Don't Panic- Dinner's in the Freezer: Great-Tasting Meals You Can Make Ahead" by Susie Martinez, Vanda Howell, and Bonnie Garcia. My method for picking this book basically had to do with reading reader reviews on Amazon.com of several freezer cookbooks. Many of the readers said this was their favorite, so I bought it used from a Amazon marketplace seller. I haven't had a chance to try any of them, yet, but I have gone through and put check marks by several that I'd like to try. Most of the recipes use what I like to call the "marinate and freeze method." You make up some sort of sauce, and you freeze meat in that. You may have to do some amount of cooking before you freeze as well. The recipes give you the regular portioned ingredients and servings, and then they give you the amounts to double or triple it beside that. It looks pretty easy. I'm personally looking forward to trying the orange glazed beef lettuce wraps, the beef chimichangas, and the chicken in raspberry sauce. I was hoping for a few more casserole style dishes, but that doesn't seem to be a hallmark of their freezer cooking, though they do have some that include flour tortilla wraps, including breakfast burritos. They also had a section of pastas and soups, so if you like those, they're there. I'll try some of these recipes after the Thanksgiving holiday and let you know how it goes. I'm also going to try to keep track of how much I spent on the meals to figure out how cheaply I managed to do it. And if you try your hand at freezer cooking, let me know how it goes!

Visiting with Amy and Clifton...

Our friends, Amy and Clifton, came to visit this past weekend. We wanted to make sure they got a chance to come up before the baby comes, and as time seems to be running out with all the holidays coming up, this was a good weekend. Amy and I have been friends since college. We did a Bible study together early in our friendship, and we were roommates during my junior year. I had far too many roommates, 5 in 4 years of college, and Amy was my favorite one. We got to spend the most time together, so that makes her the frontrunner between her and Amanda. (But I do love you, Amanda!) I always had somebody to go to the cafeteria with, even if the food was usually less than desirable. =) Amy and I had lots of good talks that year. She has always led me closer to Christ by her words and deeds. We were both figuring out guy relationships that year, and we were able to give each other godly counsel. That's a great gift. After we graduated from college, Amy and I still visited, though we went our separate ways. She moved from Greensboro to Raleigh after finishing her M.A. in Music at UNC-G. About that time, I got an email from an old friend, Clifton. We go way back; we've been friends through 4-H since high school, and we were 4-H state officers together in college. Anyway, he was looking for a date to a law school dance at Campbell, and Amy immediately came to my mind. The rest is history! They are perfect for each other, and I was so excited to be in their wedding. This is my one great match-making success, so I relish it thoroughly. Keeping up with both of them has gotten a little easier for me since they share one address now. =) It's inspiring to see all the ways that they serve the Lord together in their daily life. I know that they honor Him with their marriage. David and Clifton have definitely hit it off. They're both competitive lawyers, and I think they would've spent the whole weekend beating each other at Risk if we would've let them. They roomed together in Raleigh when David took the NC bar exam, since Clifton was taking it at the same time. David gives Clifton credit for passing, since he gave him the background knowledge to answer a particularly tough question when they were studying together the night before. This weekend was full of girl time for me and Amy and guy time for the boys, with a little couples time thrown in. Amy and I went to Ikea on a shopping spree, and she sampled the Swedish cuisine with me in the snack bar. They make great Swedish meatballs! =) We were a little sad to see them go on Sunday morning. Old friends are the best, aren't they?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KELLI!!!

Today is Kelli Bragdon's birthday! She's my sister-in-law, the wife of my husband's brother (keeping that straight? =) They have 3 adorable girls, and they're living the seminary life in Texas. I hope you're having a wonderful day, Kelli! Oh, and if you want to check out her blog, she's at www.bragdonclan.blogspot.com. Hugs and kisses to you and all!

The perfect Christian life

I was talking with a couple of friends of mine several weeks ago, and the conversation turned to Christianity and church and related topics, etc. These are old friends from law school that we've caught up with again since moving to this area, and it's been years since we've discussed Christianity with either of them. In the course of the conversation, one of my friends said something about like this: "I've only known a couple of people that I think really lead the Christian life." He then went on to name them and describe what he thought it was about them that made his assertion true. He didn't name me and David. And it stung a little, I must admit. I want to be the light of Christ to a watching world, and like all Christians, I hope that others will see my pathetic and feeble efforts and take notice, hopefully to see Christ and not just me. But now back to the conversation I was having. My friend's description of what made his friends people who truly lived the Christian life seemed to largely have to do with their generosity to others. They were the kind of people who would give others the shirts off their backs. He had good examples of their selfless kindness. These people put most of us more selfish Christians to shame, and that's a good thing. We should be thinking more about giving to others and less about meeting our own needs and wants. Christ commands us to show love to others as an expression of love to him. "...but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us."-1 John 4:12. There are a million verses like this one. There are a ton of reminders of the command to show fruit in our Christian lives. We are supposed to live as Jesus lived, and if we're not, we're going to be asked if we really believe if there isn't some smidgen of evidence in our lives to prove that Christ has transformed us. "Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."- James 2:17. As I was getting in my car later, mulling over what he'd said and my own selfishness and lack of witness, this thought hit me: Thank God that Christianity is not about how good I am. It's about how good God is. This does not excuse me from clear commands to live like Christ. But it does change the focus of things entirely. If others are looking at me and trying to decide based on my life whether or not to follow Christ, they're not going to do it. I may be able to live a pretty good life for awhile, but eventually, they're going to see my sin, and they won't want to emulate that. Thank God that they aren't supposed to be emulating me! And thank God that I don't have to constantly worry about that. For years, I did worry about it. I worried that my non-Christian father was looking at my sin and seeing nothing in Christianity to interest him. And since I lived with him every day, he saw a lot of sin in my life. As I grew in my faith, though, I began to put down that self imposed burden. Because it's not about me; it's all about Him. I am so thankful that Christianity is not a religion that insists that you have to rack up a certain number of goodness points before you can go to heaven. It isn't about keeping track of all the good deeds that you can tally up on your scoreboard. Good deeds in and of themselves are not going to get anyone to heaven. They're great, but they're not distinctively Christian. Anyone of any religion can pour out their life in service to others, feeding the poor, caring for the needy, giving away all their money. You don't have to be a Christian to live what others might call a "Christian life," depending on how they're defining it. All these good deads, though, will not get them into heaven, because that's not how we get there. What a relief that is! We get there only through faith in Jesus Christ, and that's great news for those of us who know that our good deeds tally is woefully off. We can't make ourselves righteous anyway, even by the number of saintly deeds done by Mother Theresa. "This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus...Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded."- Romans 3:22-24,27. See, even the most selfless person that ever lived has sinned against God. That person needs a savior as much as those of us less outwardly virtuous because God is completely holy (and would we want that any other way?), and He can't have any sin in his presence, so he sent the perfect, sinless sacrifice to wipe out the sins of all of us. Christ's sacrifice is how we get into the presence of God, that and that alone. And I'm so unspeakably thankful for that. That is what inspires me with the love of my Savior that makes me want to live like Him. That is what encourages me to let him pick me up when I'm sitting in the dust of my utter failure to do so. I can strive to walk in his ways, but I'm so glad that He alone carries me to God. So I'm glad for conversations like the one I had with my friend. They remind me of so many things, and they get me thinking about the One who died for me so that I wouldn't have to live a perfect Christian life.

Something new I'm excited about...

We had a nice weekend, low key, David doing a lot of working, but that was ok. On Saturday, I did something new and fun! I went with our friends Jenny and Sean to Let'sDish in Bethesda. If you've never heard of this place or concept, it's super cool. I love the idea. Basically, you go in to the store and they have everything set up for you to package up meals to freeze. You put on an apron and a head scarf (they're actually cute), and then you go to different meal prep stations where they have everything out and chopped for you. They have all the measuring spoons and directions and packaging there. You just follow the directions, and in 10 minutes, you have a homemade freezer meal in a bag. You slap a sticker with prep directions on that baby, initial it, and toss it in your freezer space, and you move on to the next one. And the best part is that they clean up behind you! Clean up is the thing I hate most about cooking. Jenny had signed up for an 8 meal package, but since each meal has 6 servings, she split up her meals into 16 meals total. They had easy directions for doing this on each station. I think they had about 12 meal choices, and the choices change every month. She just picked out her favorites, and we customized them to the Richardson family tastes. They're not big onion fans, so we added less onion than called for, etc. The options were definitely mouth watering. There was this moroccan tagine chicken with cous cous that looked delicious and some sort of chicken with cranberry chutney thing I would've liked to have tried. Now for the down side. I came home and told David about it, and he figured out that each meal for us would cost somewhere between $10-12. I know that the dinners I already make probably cost half of that because I'm already a little obsessive about making cheap, homemade meals. It was a disappointing discovery. But...when we have a new baby, and I'm exhausted, spending the money to do this might be a cost savings if I'm tempted to order take out or get fast food a lot. So what did Ellen do? Last night when I couldn't sleep for some reason (it's probably Baby's fault), I got online and found some cookbooks on Amazon that tell you how to do the same thing at home. It'll probably be a lot more work, but it might give me some new freezer recipe ideas to try, and I can keep better track of what I'm spending per meal and customize ingredients. I ordered one, and I'll let you know how it goes if I try it. But anyway, I enjoyed the feeling of satisfaction of seeing all those hours of meal prep in the kitchen melting away in a pile of plastic bags when I did this with Jenny. It was really satisfying, even if they weren't my meals. =) If you've been thinking about doing this, I recommend trying it. It's fun!

A rumbly in my tummy...

This morning I thought I'd tell you about my favorite thing about pregnancy. I'm far enough along now, 28 weeks, the beginning of my third trimester, that I think I finally have some experience with this pregnancy thing. I enjoy feeling my stomach tighten after I eat a bunch at this point because it's still neat and not too uncomfortable. I enjoy seeing my big tummy under my favorite apron in the mirror opposite our kitchen when I'm cooking. I like the way I look in maternity clothes, most of them anyway. There are some things I haven't enjoyed so much about pregnancy, like waking up to go to the bathroom all the time and backaches and having trouble getting comfy and getting my bras to fit (bra extenders are an amazing thing though). But those things have really not been bad, just mildly annoying at times. I really can't complain. With all the good and the mildly annoying, though, there is one thing I really love about being pregnant. I love to wake up every morning and feel him waking up with me. I wake up, and he gives me some nice kicks or rolls around, and I feel like he's telling me "Good morning, Mommy!" I smile, and I feel so at peace. I love it. It's the most amazing thing, and it's impossible to describe to David, really. He just wants the baby to come out so he can play with him. I, however, am happy for the baby to stay in a little longer at this point. I know that I'll miss having him so close to my heart. This is the closest that we'll ever be, him and me, and I want to savor all of it. One day soon, he will be outside of me in a big, wide world, and that big, wide world and the very big God that rules it will tug him away from me in all sorts of directions. That's as it should be; I know we can't keep our children with us forever. But for now, I want to appreciate the miracle of holding him this close. I love you, big boy, and I'm glad that God has given me this special time with you.

Still life...

I've decided to post some "still lifes" on this blog. =) At this point, we have a few little things we've collected for Baby, and I was looking for a way to clear out drawers, so I put some up on top of David's/Baby's dresser. It looked suprisingly good to me, so I guess I'll leave it this way for awhile. I couldn't resist the bead tree at Target, and I got some board books at a consignment sale. The teddy bear is courtesy of Paula, and my mom gave me some baby keys. I love baby keys. They give me warm fuzzies. And you can see the little man's profile in his 20 week ultrasound on the left. I think he's awfully cute to be so young.

These are the contents of my baby shower in a box from Paula Morgan. She picked out soo many cute things for the little guy. We are overwhelmed with the generosity of Mike and Paula.

Here's the very first pumpkin I've ever carved. I drew on the cat face, and David carved it out. Then I went to town on the back and sides with different sized electric drill bits. It was so much fun! I don't think that we're going to be traditional Halloween celebrators, but that's no reason not to partake in fall fun. I love fall fun!