Where Does The Time Go?

It is almost Mother's Day. I can hardly believe that I have been a mom for 2 years already!

I have been thinking about birthday party ideas lately. MAK is turning 2 in about a month! I can hardly believe it! My heart overflows with love for him (most of the time). I cannot imagine life without him.

It is getting close to summer vacation. We will say our goodbyes to a wonderful exchange student who stayed with us this school year. It was a great experience, and we will miss her.

Father's day is going to come quickly. I have a wonderful husband who is a great father to MAK. God has truly blessed me when he brought Kevin into my life!

Before I know it, my sister will be here! We will take family vacations, and I will be celebrating another birthday. Where does the time go?

Rest and Reading

This past weekend we went up to Crystal Mountain Resort for a mini-vacation. On Friday, Kevin and I went wine tasting before the grandparents brought MAK up with them. It was great to spend time together. We went to 6 different wineries on both the Leelanau Peninsula and Old Mission Peninsula (3 on each). We tasted at 4 of those 6, and we enjoyed the views.

I have been doing a lot of reading (to Kevin's disappointment). I read The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society for book club. It was a great read, and I loved the humor in it. It was about an author who goes to the Channel Island of Guernsey because she started correspondence with the Society there. She hopes to write about their experiences during the war. It is set during post WWII. 

I also read The Uglies by Scott Westerfeld for book club. It is a teen science fiction book about society in the future. It was a great book so I read the other books in the series. Pretties is the second book, and Specials is the third book. I also read Extras which is set about 3 years after the first 3 books. I didn't like that book as much, but it did a good job of showing how things changed after the first 3 books. 

      

These pictures were taken from http://scottwesterfeld.com/books/uglies/ 

I have also read The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. It was different than what I expected based on the reviews of friends and family who read it. I liked the mystery in it since I really like to read that genre. I am going to read the other 2 books in the series as well. I will have to let you know what I think of them all when I am done.

Before I Forget

The other day right after MAK's nap, I walked in to get him up, and he told me this story (as best as I can remember now)

MAK: turtle - cry (holding his stuffed Yerdle the Turtle)

Me: Why did the turtle cry?

MAK: turtle - fall down - right there - bump - cry - kiss (he kisses the turtle) - all better!

Me: That's so nice MAK! (as my heart melts at his thoughtfulness)

MAK: teddy bear - nap (he lays his teddy bear down and covers it with his blanket)

Me: We better let the teddy bear sleep. Let's quietly go out of the room.

MAK (whispering): OK

Recently Completed Projects

I have been wanting to mention my completed crochet projects for a while. I actually had to put this on my to-do list.


I made a pair of gloves/mittens (of course I finished them just in time for "summer" :-/) They are gloves with fingers only part way up and a flap to make them mittens. I had started them in white the winter of '10-'11, but then I undid them all the way this past winter because I forgot where I was in the pattern. I then restarted them in purple as you see them here.

I made a basket to hold MAK's play kitchen toys. We still have to work on keeping them in the basket when we are done playing :)

I made flowers that could be attached to accessories with safety pins. These are the first 2 I have made. I have some other patterns I would like to try, but those are not completed yet.

(sorry the lighting is funny - the one on the left is a variegated blue)

Yummy

I have been making some yummy new recipes thanks to Pinterest! Here are some of them:

I made this chocolate chip cookie dough brownie recipe for a potluck. I didn't have time to put the bars in the individual cups like the site suggests, and it worked just fine. I had one square left, and I think that it is because it is hard for people to take the last piece. Next time I make this, I may change up the recipe a bit by combining what this recipe calls for and some other brownie and cookie recipes I have.

      

(the picture is taken from the site where I received the recipe)

(this is a picture of what I made another time - 

I added whipped topping before I put more chocolate chips on top, and I left off the chocolate drizzle)

I made this cake recipe with this whipped frosting to have with the gals for crochet night. I put the flower on because I felt it needed a little decoration. This cake was also in celebration/memory of T's twins.

I made this pudding dessert for small group last week. I changed the recipe a little though. I used almonds in the crust, and I shaved my own chocolate for the topping.

Last night, I made this honey sesame chicken for dinner. I was very proud of myself for not being so exact in my measurements. I felt like a chef. I love to bake so I often find myself measuring everything exactly out. It is hard for me to transition to cooking where it is more of what tastes good and you can eyeball many measurements. I will definitely be making this recipe again!

Cute Sayings

I was subbing in a kindergarten class the other day, and they were drawing some pictures. One of the students drew an interesting picture. When I asked what the picture was about, the student said, "That is me with squiggly arms and a walking house." I wanted to giggle, but thought better of it. I told the student that it was a very creative drawing instead.

I have been enjoying all the new words and phrases MAK has been saying. I love the way that he says guitar, elbow, snow, and bless you. He is becoming so independent! Yet, this morning when I picked him up from nursery (I was at Coffee Break at church), he yelled out "Mommy!" It was so precious. Of course, he immediately wanted to go find Daddy and his guitar.

Recent Recipes

On Tuesday, I made Chilaquiles Casserole. I had made it a few times before, but I was reminded that I enjoy it. It also helps that it is fairly healthy. Kevin and I like to put a dollop of sour cream with it sometimes. I think the sour cream helps me survive when I make it a little more spicy since I definitely have Dutch taste buds.

Today I made Blueberry Coffee Cake from blueberries I picked this summer. It was delicious with a cup of coffee! I got the recipe from "Turnin' Over Recipes" cookbook produced by Hudsonville Christian School's Mothers' Club.


Blueberry Coffee Cake By Sherry Meyer
Serves 6-8


3/4 c. sugar                              1/2 t. salt
1/4 c. shortening                      1 1/2 c. blueberries
1 egg                                         2 T. sugar
1 t. vanilla
3/4 c. milk                                  Topping:
1 3/4 c. plus 2 T. flour               2 T. sugar
3 t. baking powder                   1/2 t. cinnamon


Cream sugar, shortening, egg, and vanilla. Add milk and blend well. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together and add to creamed mixture. Stir only until all flour is moistened. Spread half of batter in bottom of greased 8 inch square pan. Spread blueberries over batter and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons sugar. Cover with remaining batter and sprinkle on topping. Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes.