A few months ago, I decided to throw together a LEGO party for Mr. J. I always start out planning really simple parties, but no matter what I do, they end up bigger. There always seems to be life craziness that is going on around party season. When life gets intense for me, I take on more projects. It’s a fault of mine. I totally recognize this. I started prepping the things for this party the day before. That’s not a lot of time but when you’re crazy like me, you find a way to work it out! Sometimes working it out involves drawing and cutting out Lego heads until after midnight. Sometimes it also means finishing a Lego shirt, seconds before guests arrive. It’s true, I’m weird.
Anything for J.
Anything for Lego.
I wasn’t crazy on my own, though. My super awesome sister made this Lego pinata. We both saw this pin from the blog Delia Creates and knew it would be pretty perfect, especially since I haven’t noticed Target selling Lego pinatas lately.
I had plenty of Lego coloring pages printed from the Lego website. I broke out the Lego brick and Lego man molds. I decided to make chocolates for the ice cream bar with both. Super cute.
I’ve seen so many cute mason jar lids floating around, I decided to spray paint a few for the party but is colors I could use at any time really. We filled up soap bottles with Legos for the bathroom from this idea.
My amazing sister also made the Lego man banner (based in this pin from Zakka Life) which was AMAZING!
Everything worked out in the end because the birthday boy and all of his guests seemed to enjoy themselves.
What a great day celebrating an awesome 5 year-old!
 Sweet Summer.
I love you for your refreshing breezes.
Your warmth brings new life to my very favorite foods.
Berries are one of your specialties.
You do them WELL.
We are enjoying our summer days. We’ve had a few changes around here. A few weeks ago we got our very first foster care placement. It’s true!! We’ve been so thrilled to share our home and arms with a cute little snuggle-bug again. It’s been so strange to care for a newborn having NOT just given birth and NOT breastfeeding. I tell you, those two things make a world of difference! I still wake up several times a night, but I am not nearly as fatigued as I was after giving birth, while also not having the ability to walk. For those who have asked, we don’t know how long this sweet baby will be with us, but we will give her all the love we can until she goes to be with her forever family.
I am so excited to be able to do what, I believe, God intended for us all to do. There are so many kiddos in need of our love. Sometimes, we get busy with our jobs and appointments and forget about those in need of our compassion. As a wife and mother, I have made a specific choice to stay home and care for my kids. Thankfully, this also means I am able to bring other little ones into our home along the way, be they friend’s kids or strangers. I love that. Kids get shuffled around a lot these days so they need a little love. Sometimes my job is difficult, but I am SURE I am doing what God wants me to be doing right now and for that I am EXTREMELY thankful.
This IS my job.
This is my privilege.
My heart is full.
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ “
(Matthew 25: 31-40)
If you are interested in adopting a sweet child like this one, contact an agency like the one we do foster care with. They work with adoptive families nationwide for domestic as well as international adoption. Check them out!
It’s the last day of school.
Let me say that again.
IT’S THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!
While I love EVERY bit of teaching my kids, every teacher needs a break at some point, right?
It’s summertime. Can you believe it?
Here in San Diego, God has been showering my garden with sunshine-y goodness and I’ve been soaking it all in. I am so thankful to have a few sweet little strawberry patches, a large boysenberry ‘wall’, and a few blueberry and golden raspberry plants to round out our little backyard homestead of berries. I have learned so much about gardening the past several years. The more plants I grow, the more I want other people to experience the thrill of seeing God’s amazing creation, growing before their eyes. If you’ve been thinking of gardening in even a small part of your yard, check these out:
“The Backyard Homestead” and “The Urban Homestead”
These books make it super easy to find a growing style that works for you and your size of yard. Like any process, gardening is about organization and planning. The seeds pretty much cooperate with any conditions as long as they have sun, water, and food (by way of awesome soil). It’s easier than you think!
Summertime means jam to me and LOTS of it. One of my favorite smells on the entire planet is that of strawberry jam cooking on a slow summer day. There is usually music playing and I try to have friends around whenever possible. Friends make the time pass by quickly and they usually get to take some of the goods home!
Jam is also a great thing to share with…well…anyone. It can be a hostess gift, thank you present, get-well gesture, teacher’s gift, or can be shared with those neighbors you’ve been meaning to introduce yourself to for the last year.
Here’s how I make my lavender strawberry jam…
Lavender Strawberry Jam
(sources: many different recipes combined over many years of good and bad jam)
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 tsp. Pomona’s Universal Pectin (found online or at natural food stores like Whole Foods)
8 cups strawberries, hulled and cleaned
2 tsp. calcium water (from the Pomona’s box)
1/2 c. lemon juice, fresh squeezed
3 tsp. dried lavender blossoms, chopped
1. Start by boiling some water in a large pot for sterilizing your jam jars, if you’re using them. Place another pot on the stove for your lids. When the water is boiled, you will add as much water as needed to cover the lids and rings. They are sterilized separately because placing them in boiling water can melt the rubber on the lid, which is needed to seal the jar.
2. Mix the sugar and pectin in a bowl and set aside for later.
3. Crush the strawberries until you are happy with them. I like mine with a few chunks so squish yours a lot if you prefer your jam smoother. This is a GREAT thing to have kids help with. They love it!
4. Bring the strawberries to a boil, then add the lemon juice and calcium water.
5. Gradually stir the pectin and sugar mixture in with the strawberries, until combined. Add the dried lavender. Return to a boil and stir frequently so it doesn’t burn.
7. While it’s returning to a boil, lay out 1 towel for your hot jars to lay on and 1 towel for the completed jars to sit on.
8. Skim the foam, if it is present (trust me, you have to do this or it will leave a funky looking white layer on the top of your jam which resembles mold. I may or may not know that from experience). Remove sterilized jars from the water with tongs and place them on the towel. Keep water boiling.
9. Carefully fill the jars until there is a 1/4 space between the jam and the top (that space is called ‘headspace’ in the jam world :)). Wipe around the rim of the glass with a clean rag or paper towel. Use the tongs to place the lid on top and then used your fingers to screw the outer rings on. Not too tight, just finger tight.
10. Place the filled jars back in the boiling water for 10 minutes. Remove and place on the towel. In an hour, tap the lids to make sure they are tight and don’t press in. If the lids do pop in and out, then immediately place those jars in the fridge. They are still good to eat. Let the others sit still for a day and then they are ready to hand out to friends and family or store away for the winter!
For some cute canning jar labels check out the link below:
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We’re back.
Wait.
You didn’t know I was gone, but we slipped away for 6 days to Kentucky for a beautiful wedding and a visit with some very special friends. The weekend before that we had another wedding in the middle of the Mojave desert.
Fun times.
You can see some picture on my Instagram. I’m @agoldenafternoon so come find me!
God blessed our trip and made it even a little restful. Crazy, considering we were traveling with our 3 littles. We got to help out too, which is always a wonderful bonus.
Garlic.
It is wonderful. It is awesome. It is a lovely gift to its often boring friend, Mr. Chicken.
This dish begs for friends to gather and partake of it. Garlic, slowly simmering with wine into a marvelous sauce, is exactly what a group of buddies needs to just relax and enjoy each other’s company. Bread should also be involved, if possible. It’s a great dish to take someone who just had a baby (like Rebekah soon!) or someone who is ailing.
I love the way God brings people together around a table, sharing delicious food and uplifting conversation. We need those close friends around, to remind us of the joy we have in Jesus that gets paused when we feel tackled by the every day life. I’ve felt tackled recently and am so thankful for friends God has placed so carefully around, to comfort me with His promises of peace and rest. When I share a meal with these wonderful friends, it means so much more than words in an e-mail, blog comment, or text can mean. Hugs and tears are an important part of a relationship, that extend far beyond a computer or phone.
Food makes those moments happen.
So, let’s make some food so we can invite our friends over :)
Sound good?
40 Clove Garlic Chicken with a side of brussels sprouts it is. Yes, brussel sprouts. It won’t take a lot of work at all…
Start by patting dry and then browning your chicken in the butter or oil, like the little guys are exhibiting above. Medium-high heat works best to get nice coloring. Throw a little salt n’ peppa on them while you’re at it.
Saute the garlic until browned.
Mmmm. Sauted garlic.
Can You tell I love it?
Next, add the Brandy/Cognac, wine, thyme, and parsley to the pan. Bring it to a boil. Return the chicken to the pan and cook with the lid on for 45 minutes or longer. Cooking it longer will cause the garlic to soften and therefore become all the more wonderful. Once cooked, remove the chicken and then stir the flour and milk into the garlic “sauce”. Season with salt and pepper if needed. Pour some of the garlic sauce over the chicken and serve.
40 Clove Garlic Chicken
40 cloves of garlic (I always toss in a few extra)
2 T. butter or canola oil
1 whole chicken, in pieces
salt and pepper
4 T. Brandy or Cognac
1 1/2 c. white wine
1 T. thyme
1 T. parsley
3 T. Gluten-free flour (or regular)
3 T. almond milk (or whole milk/cream)
Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Apples
1 lb. brussel sprouts
1-2 apples, medium
olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
curry powder, to taste
Cut the brussels in half length-wise and slice the apples. Toss both with some olive oil and salt and pepper. Shake on a bit of curry powder if you like. It helps to balance the bitterness brussels can have sometimes. Roast at 375 for 30 minutes or until tender. Sometimes I drizzle a little maple syrup over the top, once it’s roasted, to help the littles out a bit. :)
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I love color, don’t you?
Maybe my love for it came from growing up in a house with walls painted entirely in one color…”Navajo White”. Maybe it’s just because color brings joy and peace to an otherwise loud and crazy household, which includes a fighter pilot, Peter Pan, and Fancy Nancy running around fighting pirates. Whatever the reason, color can make a huge difference in my day. Yes, this is totally why my entryway buffet table is painted a very cheery yellow. I see it, smile, and thank God he gave us eyes to see the lovely things around us.
I must confess I am one of THOSE people who is trying to eliminate food dyes wherever possible. So, we are left to play around with the colors God gives us in nature. Some we can find in our yard, some are in our spice cabinet, while some are even in our morning cuppa’ joe. Besides being better for our bodies, natural dyes are a really fun way of explaining how people colored their clothing and draperies long ago, before true chemistry arrived on the scene to create red dye #40. I love being able to describe things to my kids, like the curtains and veil in Solomon’s temple, and talk with them about how God’s people could have attained “blue and purple and scarlet yarns” (Exodus 26) using plants. Pomegranates, grapes, beets, carrots…oh…wait…we can use the same things they did to make dyes? The kids thought that was pretty awesome.
Enter: Easter eggs
We boiled several different things in water. The cabbage (1/2 head), red onion skins (3 onions), spinach (1 bag), and turmeric root (several tablespoons) all boiled individually, while the carrots and paprika (lb of carrots and a few tablespoons of paprika) were in the same pot. You should know, boiled cabbage is one of the worst smells. Ack. It’s pretty bad. For the coffee I use 2 Starbucks VIA packets so the color would be dark. I’m sure you could use a few shots of espresso as well. The pomegranate juice was straight from the bottle. The beets I chopped and let soak in water. Those guys live for staining things so it won’t take long for the water to turn blood-red.
Fill jars with enough of each liquid to cover the egg (s), but not too much that it overflows. Add vinegar to the liquids to encourage the color to bind to the shell. I tried the cabbage and pomegranate juice with and without vinegar. The pom worked fine without vinegar. With vinegar, it ended up bubbling around the egg and turning a brownish color. It does look kind-of cool, especially for my littlest who loves brown.
I labeled them with washi tape (why not?) so I could keep track of how long each had been in the dye. I left mine in for about 18 hours. It definitely requires more patience from the kids, but it’s worth it. My times are very spread out on my markings because I was working with children :) My fridge pretty much looked like a big science experiment, which is fabulous considering we do have a school here.
Here’s what we tried and the results:
If you want to take the process a step further with designs, try this option. They look pretty cool. I think I’ll do that next year or even these with vintage graphics.
Overall, I’m super excited about what we learned during the process. God makes some really amazing and vivid colors for us to work with. He certainly knows how to capture our attention and remind us how awesome He is!
Which colors do you respond to?
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