6 Years Ago…

6 yrs ago yesterday I sang “How Beautiful” in church.

When I got to my chair after the song, I realized I was sitting in front of the guy I’d been quietly noticing at church.

His name was M.

We talked for 2 minutes after the service.

He thought he’d messed up.

I thought I messed up.

That night I went to a party and told my friends I thought I’d messed up.

When I got home I saw I had an e-mail in my in-box.

I thought it was junk.

I almost deleted it.

~shudder~

Something inside told me not to, so I clicked it open.

It was from M.

I freaked out.

The next morning I was home sick from work but I watched “Anne of Avonlea”.

It was one of my all-time favorite romantic movies.

I watched it because I was in a romantic mood —

Somehow I knew life would never be the same.

And it wouldn’t be. 🙂

Happy Anniversary of Our First Conversation and E-Mail, Sweetie!!! I’m so glad you talked to me!!!

(note: this time of year holds many random and obscure anniversaries of our relationship. Seriously, I drive him batty by remembering each and every one.
Still, I will not stop. 🙂

2 Family Pictures

The first one is probably “technically” ideal — all eyes on the camera, everyone looking nice, behaving, etc.

The second one probably captures the reality of our life a bit more accurately, though:

🙂

It might be a crazy life, but it’s our life…wait, what?!

(in all seriousness, though, these pics were part of a wonderful series of pictures my sister Katie took of our family! We just got the CD of photos and I’m thrilled with them. I’ll share more later. My sissy is so darn gifted!)

Mmmmm….Black Bean & Barley Burritos

The other night I whipped up another one of our favorite meals: Black Bean & Barley Burritos. My friend Sara brought them to us as a meal after S was born, and I immediately knew I’d need the recipe!

I like them because:

• They’re easy to make

• They don’t have a “heavy” feel to them like most burritos do. They’re filling, yet light.

• They’re healthy

• My toddler likes them (I usually just serve him a plate of the inside mixture, sans almonds)

• Most of the ingredients are dry or canned (long shelf life — I can buy extra and save for later)…and the  ones that aren’t are ingredients I’d probably have on hand anyway. So they’re a great “in a pinch” meal.

• They’re just yummy!

Try them! I know you’ll like them. 🙂

Black Bean & Barley Burritos

1/2 cup pearled barley
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, minced
1/3 cup chopped almonds (if you buy them raw, be sure to toast them)
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, grated
8″ tortillas (preferably whole wheat)
salsa or guac or both

1. Cook barley in a 3-quart pot w/ 2 cups water. Takes 45-50 minutes.
2. After water is absorbed and barley is ready, add black beans and cilantro.
3. Add chopped almonds — I usually pull a cup of the mixture out for my toddler BEFORE adding the almonds.
4. Add grated cheese. You can also add cheese to the tortillas as you roll them up
5. Take a tortilla and place 1/4 to 1/3 cup of mixture in the tortilla.  Roll up and place on a cookie sheet.
6. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
7. Serve with salsa & sour cream over the top (they’re fairly plain without) (peach & mango salsa is my favorite!)

Pray for My Friend

Today my friend Bethany is heavy on my heart. She is a precious old friend of mine — a roommate and kindred spirit at the camp we used to work at. A true woman of God. I’ve been so happy to keep in touch with her over the years. She and her husband, Dave, have been longing and praying for a baby for years. They signed up with an adoption agency, and have spent the past several months eagerly preparing for the arrival of a baby boy…showers were thrown, she left her job to stay home, Dave built a crib, the nursery was all ready to go.

On Friday the baby boy was born. Sunday afternoon, at the very last minute, the birthparents changed their mind. Bethany and Dave had one hour to spend with the baby before they had to head home.

I can’t imagine what they are going through right now, and I won’t even try.  I just know they need prayer, as does the little baby they had to leave behind. I keep thinking of more and more implications of this turn of events, and my heart just breaks for them more and more. Will you join me in praying for this precious couple?

Things I Love: Grocery Delivery

OK, so earlier today I Tweeted/Facebooked that I had just placed my grocery order and had spent only $57 on $108 worth of groceries . Not surprisingly, I received a lot of responses, most of which boiled down to one of these two questions:

1. “How did you score such a great deal?”

2. “What do you mean you ORDERED your groceries?!”.

So I thought I’d scribble out a quick blog to explain!

For several months now I’ve been ordering my groceries from a place called Coborn’s Delivers, and I LOVE it. I simply log-in to the website, place my order, and a big yellow truck delivers it to our door the next evening. Done. No trips to the grocery store. No navigating the narrow aisles while people obliviously block the aisle with their carts as they slowly make their selections. No staring aimlessly at row after row of canned tomato products. No bagging it all up, loading it into the car, unloading it from the car, etc. (Can you tell I’m not a fan of grocery shopping?). The delivery fee is $5 — and the deliverymen don’t accept tips (which the conveniently spell out on their website!).

The prices and selection, on the whole, are comparable to what you would find in a typical grocery store (with a few exceptions). They also offer lots of incentives and special deals to watch for, and they accept regular coupons. Also, I’ve found it easier to watch my money, as I am much less likely to impulse-buy, and I can keep track of my total as it tallies up in the sidebar while I shop. If I see it getting to high, I can always adjust accordingly.

Seriously, I used to think it was kind of wimpy to order groceries (I’ll admit it!), but you know what? Since I’ve  had tiny little kids of my own, this has made my life SO much less stressful. Truly! It’s one less errand I have to run, leaving me more time to spend with my family instead of stressing out over what to feed them!  In my book, that’s a good thing.

Oh, and to those who wondered how I scored such a  great deal on my bill today, I must confess it was kind of a fluke — I’m not THAT good of a bargain finder. Coborn’s simply has some awesome coupons going this month. On top of that, I randomly discovered at check-out that I had $40 of credit coming to me from Coborn’s from a long-ago promotion! I’d totally forgotten about it. So, between the coupons and the credit, I saved me a pretty penny today. 🙂

OK, hope that answers your questions! What about you? Have you tried grocery delivery? Has it worked for you?

p.s. reading over this, I totally sound like a Coborn’s spokesperson! I promise I’m not (though if they’d like to pay me, I’m game… :)).

I’m with Sharon on This One…

Finding Quiet in the Chaos: How do YOU do it?

My house has become increasingly chaotic over the last couple of years. Don’t get me wrong — the chaos is beautiful and so, so, SO much fun — but I confess my time spent in the Bible and in real, focused prayer have faltered…errr…OK, actually, the truth is I’ve NEVER been super disciplined in this area, and this recent increase in chaos hasn’t made it any easier.

I’ve been reassured that  “God understands where you are at in this season of your life”…and while I know this is true and that his grace is sufficient, I also know that my need for Him  has not diminished, and that my need for Him has only INCREASED. (It’s hard to pour into little lives when the pitcher’s empty!). I’m starting to see that I need to get creative. I can’t wait for 15 minute stretches of quiet to sit down, read my Bible and pray, because I don’t always get it. I’m thinking, however, that maybe I could be more intentional and “thinking outside the box” about seeking God throughout my day.

Does this make any sense? I’m not even sure. I’m just typing (I’m kind of liking this new “scribbling” approach to blogging.). Anyway, what I want to know is, especially if you are a mommy, what do YOU do to seek Him? How do you stay connected to Him even in the midst of your chaos? What does that look like for you? I’d love to hear your ideas & thoughts!

Mmmmm: Taco Soup

My boys’ favorite meal is taco soup. I’m making some right now. Here’s how you can do it, too:

2 # ground beef, browned

2 c frozen corn

2 cans black beans, drained/rinsed

2 cans diced tomatoes

2 packets ranch dressing

2 packets taco seasoning

4 c water

Put all of these things in a crockpot.

Set the crockpot to “high” for 3-4 hours.

Serve topped with shredded cheese, tortilla chips and sour cream.

Finally (the very best part…) Eat half of it tonight and freeze the rest for another meal!

Yum-o!

(Thanks to Bethany R. for the recipe from so long ago! :))

List: My Memories of The Metrodome

I’m probably one of the only Minnesotans who is truly sad to see the Twins leave the Metrodome. What can I say…I’m hopelessly sentimental. Here are some of my Dome memories:

1. My first game there: April 28, 1988, Twins vs. Tigers (how ironic). This was the first time I set foot in the dome (why it took 9 years I’m not sure). I’ll never forget how vast it looked! This is also where I got my first homer hankie.

2. Dome Dogs — especially when they came wrapped in the foil. I’d unwrap it, lather it up with ketchup, mustard, relish and onions, then wrap it back up so it got all mushed together before I’d eat it. Yummm. I’m not a big hot dog person, but I loooove me a Dome Dog.

3. Twins 91 world series (viewed from the TV). Watching Kirby make that amazing catch in game 6 and watching Dan Gladden run home in game 7. I jumped up & down. Nothing will ever beat that.

4. Going to a 14 inning game on July 4, 1992 with the Molines & Littles. Stayed for the whole thing. Twins won. Monica & I nicknamed Chuck Knoblauch “Chuckie” (original).

5. Countless evening games with my family on “Twins family night”…sitting in the upper deck in front of the Jumbo-tron.

6. The first time I sat in the lower deck — in season ticket seats, to boot. I went with my friend Julia in 8th grade and we sat a few rows in on the 3rd baseline. They played the Oakland A’s.

7. Twinsfest.

8. The windy door and my hat flying off the first time I walked out of it.

9. Bob Casey.

10. Pondering life while staring at the scoreboard.

…crossing my fingers for one final World Series win at the Dome (how awesome would THAT be?!)…