Life at the Moment...

At the moment, "Home Sweet Home" doesn't feel or look like "Home Sweet Home". In fact one of us remarked tonight that it feels like we are moving!  The re-carpeting begins tomorrow morning, and we've been busily emptying filing cabinets, bookcases, and closets and making trip after trip up and down the stairs with load after load after load...  It's becoming our summer work-out program (to put a positive spin on it).  Here's what our downstairs looks like at the moment:

So if I'm a silent blogger for a time, there's a reason as this will be our life for the next 3 weeks.

A Birthday

The last week or so has been quite full with daily life and work and school with the added task of preparing for new flooring throughout the entire house beginning this Wednesday.  But in the middle of  all the hustle and bustle, we took time over the weekend to celebrate Laura's birthday!  Because we needed a quick and easy birthday dinner, we settled on sandwiches (egg salad, chicken salad, cold cuts, or gilled cheese as options), summer fruit, sliced veggies, steamed zucchini and squash from the garden, green beans, and blueberry cobbler for dessert.  And to help with clean up afterwards, we pulled out our conglomeration of paper plates and napkins from previous events and put together a blue (Laura's favorite color) and yellow theme with what we had.  It surprisingly didn't look too bad!

After I chose and plates and napkins, Kathy added the final touches:  blue and white curling ribbon, yellow M&Ms, and Reese's pieces chips (another of Laura's favorites). 

The blueberry cobbler dessert also fit the theme quite well, though I had settled on this particular dessert long before considering our decorations.  The kids had fun preparing the dessert with 35 candles and helping Mommy blow them out.

As if this wasn't enough, Laura's in-laws graciously invited us over to their home for lunch after worship on Sunday to celebrate together as families!  We had a wonderful, relaxing afternoon with them.  The kids enjoyed a tractor ride with Grandpa Turner, and we even picked apples from their trees on their property.  Their home is beautiful both inside and out, and I enjoyed snapping a few pictures of their flowers as well as some of the cutest children that I know. :)

We thank the Lord for the rich life He has blessed Laura with and look forward to seeing how He continues to use her and her family in His Kingdom.

Afternoon Tea

On Monday morning this week, I found this beautiful invitation on my desk.  I then understood why Rachael had asked me several weeks ago to take off this particular Friday from work.  An afternoon tea with Mom, my sisters, and nieces, nephew at Laura's house sounded delightful!

Rachael spent the night with the little ones at Laura's house and used this morning preparing the surprise tea.  We weren't sure what to expect but knew that great care was being taken to make it special and memorable.  And what greeted our eyes when we arrived at the Turner residence was  indeed lovely!

Placemats made by the children, tea party favors, a bouquet of flowers, cheese slices, fresh strawberries, nectarines, blueberries, blackberries, watermelon, egg salad finger sandwiches, scones, and a pot of fresh tea graced the table.  It was a welcome sight for those who had spent the morning rushing around and were quite hungry!

The flowers were so beautiful.  They had just been picked that morning from Ben & Laura's garden.

Rachael bought some special, wonderful-tasting loose tea for each of her sisters and wrapped it up in beautiful cloth and ribbon.

While final preparations were being made, I enjoyed holding our happy Hannah.  Don't you just love her up-do? :)

It was a wonderful afternoon!  With our busy lives that take us all in different directions, it's rare that we can do things together.  So we treasured this opportunity to be with everyone before the pace of life picks up even more next month.  Thanks to Rachael and Laura for planning a great day with special memories!

Calvin on Prayer

The materials for our bi-weekly book study include Treasures of Encouragement by Sharon Betters, portions from Calvin's Institutes, and selected Scripture passages that relate to the topic being discussed.  It has been a rich study, and I'm a little sad that our last meeting is next week.

A couple of weeks ago, the topic we looked at was prayer, and we all found John Calvin's writings on this particular Christian discipline to be most though-provoking and uplifting.  I thought I would share a few of my favorite quotes for encouragement as you continue to bring your requests before our God.

It is, therefore, by the benefit of prayer that we reach those riches which are laid up for us with the Heavenly Father...For having disclosed to the Lord the necessity that was pressing upon us, we even rest fully in the thought that none of our ills is hid from him who, we are convinced, has both the will and the power to take the best care of us.

...we are taught not to make any law for him [God], or impose any condition upon him, but to leave to his decision to do what he is to do, in what way, in what time, and in what place it seems good to him.

But if finally even after long waiting our senses cannot learn the benefit received from prayer, or perceive any fruit from it, still our faith will make us sure of what cannot be perceived by sense, that we have obtained what was expedient...For though all things fail us, yet God will never forsake us, who cannot disappoint the expectation and patience of his people.

So let us be as the persistent widow and not lose heart. (Luke 18:1-8)

Biking on the Monon

I spent a most relaxing afternoon on Saturday with a friend biking on the Monon Trail.  There's something about leaving your work and responsibilities and enjoying the beauty around you that is most refreshing and invigorating.  And it was a gorgeous day!  The blue skies and white, puffy clouds overhead and a peaceful environment all around made our 3 hour ride delightful.  We started at 96th Street and ended well beyond 169th Street.  We took a couple of water breaks along the way and also snapped a few pictures.

The further north we rode away from the city, the quieter and more peaceful the trail became.  The landscape also changed from neighborhoods and small businesses to countryside and fields.  

We went as far as we could until the path ended - literally!

We then re-traced our steps, riding all the way back down to 96th Street.  Since this was my first time to bike this summer, I thought I would eventually begin feeling tired, but the opposite actually happened.  The exercise actually gave me renewed energy, and I could have kept on for at least another hour had I had all day!

We ended our afternoon with a cool treat:  frozen yogurt.  It tasted exceptionally good after being out in the sun for so long.  

All in all, it was wonderful afternoon.  We hope to do it again sometime in the near future, so if you enjoy biking and want to join us, then let me know!

From the Kitchen: Tangy Tea Cookies

If you like a lemon flavor in your desserts, then you'll love this recipe!  These tangy morsels are perfect with a cup of tea.  I used lemon powder from Penzeys Spices and cornstarch rather than the suggested Hi-maize Fiber.  The decorative flowers also add a nice touch but are only for looks and not taste!

Tangy Tea Cookies
1 c. soft butter
1/2 c. confectioner's sugar
1 T. lemon or lime powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 large egg yolk
1 1/4 c. flour
3/4 c. Hi-maize Fiber OR 1/2 c. cornstarch + 1/4. flour

Beat the butter, sugar, lemon or lime powder, salt, and vanilla until soft and fluffy.  Stir in the egg yolk, then mix in the flour and Hi-maize Fiber (or cornstarch) until well blended.  Continue mixing until dough comes together.

Use a teaspoon to form into balls and place on baking sheet.  Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned on the bottom.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to wire rack.  Cool completely before glazing.

Glaze:
1/4 c. melted butter
1 T. lemon or lime powder
1 1/2 - 2 c. confectioner's sugar
3-4 tsp. water

Beat the glaze ingredients together, adjusting the consistency as needed with water or sugar.  Add a few drops of food coloring, if desired.  Spread on cooled cookies.  Top with flower, if desired.

Yield: about 4 dozen

The 4th

I need not write much for this post since the pictures tell the story!  On Saturday, I made our patriotic dessert and decorated the table with the classic red, white, and blue theme.  The toppers on the cupcakes were ones I found on sale for $0.25 last year after the holiday.  I felt pretty good about that buy, and they were fun to use!

Benjamin assumed we were going to use candles and blow them out since we were celebrating and having cupcakes.  When I told he and Essie "how old" the United States is, their eyes got big, and they both realized what a bonfire we would have on our hands if used over 200 candles!  No, we did not even try it. :)

It was still a fun celebration, though!  

Independence Day: Why Should We Celebrate?

Perhaps my most favorite vacation took place in 2009 when Dad and I visited Boston, Massachusetts for several days.  As one who loved history and devoured any book describing the events shaping the birth of our country as well as the lives of those instrumental in its founding, I had always wanted to see firsthand where it all happened and walk the streets of our Founding Fathers.  The fulfillment of this desire brought no disappointment; in fact, it forever changed how I viewed my country and all those who sacrificed their very lives for the freedoms I and millions of others enjoy today.

Memories from that vacation always surface around this time of year as we celebrate Independence Day. Seeing the sites, reading significant names on grave stones, walking in the steps of important leaders I had grown to admire and respect - it all came alive in a new way through this blitz tour.  And I came away with an even deeper understanding of what this independence meant and what it entailed for those who went before me.

I possess what my family calls a fierce loyalty for anyone and anything that I love.  And this includes my country - the United States of America, the land of my birth, "the land of the free and the home of the brave."  My patriotic spirit only increased after coming home from Boston, and my excitement for this beloved holiday is always evident in the ways I try to plan home-style celebrations. 

As we approach Independence Day this week however, something is different.  The recent decisions from our leaders in Washington have saddened and burdened my spirit.  I've asked myself over and over again, "Where are we headed, and why this?  It's so far from the truth and is destroying the very foundation those before me sacrificed so much to establish.  Why celebrate the 4th?  There's nothing left to be proud of today."

As I wrestled with these matters last week, God brought to my attention this verse from Psalm 103:

The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, 
and his kingdom rules over all.

God's throne is established and His Kingdom rules.  Those words stuck in my mind, and as I pondered them, a sense of renewed hope and a spirit of victory welled up inside of me.   Even as society today praises evil and mocks what is right, even as God and His Word are thrust aside, and even as our freedoms are slowly taken away, our God reigns supreme over all, and His Kingdom is advancing in victory over the kingdoms of men.  The battle has already been won, and on that final day, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  There is hope.  There is comfort. There is courage.  And there is something to celebrate!

The loyalty towards and love for my country still remains, and the gratitude for our Christian heritage is something that I will never cease to pass on to future generations.  But even as history continues and the patriots of old and their faith are forgotten, there's reason to rejoice.  No, not in the flag, or our nation's success, or the people who helped shape our rich legacy.  There's cause to rejoice in the King of kings and in His redemptive work which continues under His decree.

So as we come to the 4th in a couple of days, may all the fireworks, family gatherings, and patriotic observances develop in us a gratitude for what we've been given,  heartfelt praise for the One who rules over all, and humble prayer that this country will once more acknowledge God as Lord.