Venti!!!

Vente is muy bueno, mi mano!

I have no idea if that is anywhere near proper English.  Or Spanish.  Here's how this started:

Out of the clear blue, I had an absolute epiphany!  It has always bothered me that when you order at Starbucks, a "tall" is a small, a "grande" (which to me means very big) is a medium, and a "venti" is a large.  Too much to keep straight!  Until it occurred to me that vente is 20 in Spanish, so venti must be 20 in Italian, which then is easy to assume a venti is a 20-ounce drink!  Ta-da!!!  I was so thrilled with myself when I figured that out.  And Brad just shook his head and tried to act happy for me.  I had to go away to a quiet beach to figure that out.

So, here's where the randomness begins to make sense.  Today is our 20th wedding anniversary!  TWENTY!  I cannot believe 20 years has gone by since I stood in that church and pledged my life-long devotion to this man.  I meant every word I said that day, and  I've done my best to live them out.

Brad, you know I'm crazy about you.  I love you so deeply, and I like you so much.  We know each other so much better than we did when we married, and I still like you.  I'd still choose you.  You are still my favorite person to be with.  My best friend.  You make me laugh like no one else.  You laugh at with me more than anyone else.  You protect me.  You calm me.  You support me.  You encourage me.  You challenge me.  You have held me through some deep trials, and you've led me well.  Your love is such a gift to me.  It is proof that our God restores, redeems, and provides.  You make me proud.

Twenty years have already gone by.  It's already going too fast.  I'm so thankful we have so many more ahead of us.  I will always choose to love you.  Thank you for loving me, thank you for choosing me, and thank you for the absolute assurance that we are forever.

I've said it before, but this is a good time to repeat it:  I will love you as long as we both shall live...and then forever.

A List

Just a list for today.  Each of these items could be a very lengthy post with agonizing detail and description.  But, due to #8, I'm simply going to get straight to the point and make a list.  I do love me a list.

1.  I had my first Pumpkin Spice Latte a few days ago.  Mmm.

2.  Starbucks has their Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate back on the menu.  Mmmm.

3.  A Mommy I admire hugely and has faced a heartache we aren't ever meant to face has a plan for the future that is going to make me a very happy girl.  And when the time is right I'm probably going to talk about it.  A lot.

4.  The Seahawks were a joy to behold on Sunday.  Loved it.

5.  Choreographing a cheer dance makes my head hurt.  And my hamstrings.  But mostly my head.

6.  I love my job.

7.  First graders crack me up.  Oh, the joy they bring without even trying!

8.  I bought a very large white board calendar last year and just hung it up this weekend.  Every kid has a different color marker.  Every kid activity is on the calendar.  My kids looked at it after I put everything on there and said, "Wow.  That's a lot of stuff for you to do."  From the mouths of babes.  Validation.

9.  Brad received a big 'ole pat on the back at work last week.  I love when that man is acknowledged for what he so quietly and consistently does every day.

10.  I love the coolness of the evenings, needing to grab a blanket when I sit down, and needing to burrow into the covers when I crawl into bed to read.  Cozy, cozy.

11.  I don't know what I was dreaming, but I woke Brad up at 4:30 this morning and asked him what was burning.  I'm sure I'll be questioned about that this evening.  I have no answer.

12.  After much searching, I finally found a muffin top pan and I can't wait to make cookies in it.  I'm sure I will follow-up with more on that later.

13.  It bothers me that the spell-check wants me to change "Seahawks" to "squawks".  That is just wrong.

14.  I have nothing else.

Monday Menu ~ Make Ahead Muffin Melts

Here's a new gem in my arsenal for feeding hungry kids!  Again, this tastes so much better than it looks.  You have to give it a try and listen to the taste buds.  They will be singing a happy tune!

I made these for the first week of school.  Offer them up with a wedge of melon and mouths will be happy and tummies will stay full!  You can make the topping up and keep it in your refrigerator, then just assemble and broil these guys right before you eat.  That may be my favorite thing about them.  I am NOT a morning person, so the more I can do on auto-pilot the better.  Whether you are a morning person or not, I hope you can give them a try!

Make-Ahead Muffin Melts

(from The Pioneer Woman, of course)

12 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and chopped

2 cups grated cheese (cheddar or cheddar jack)

1 cup mayonnaise

12 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1 TBSP Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

3 dashes Worcestershire Sauce

6 whole English muffins, split

Combine all ingredients together, folding gently to combine.  Cover and store in the refrigerator.  Spread of English muffin halves and broil for 3-5 minutes or until hot and bubbly.  Serve immediately.

This made way more topping than I needed for 6 English muffins, so I must have not used quite as much.  But it makes gobs.  You could easily half this recipe if you don't need it to go as far.  A full batch made it onto 12 English muffins in my house, and I wasn't being stingy with the topping!

A Very Special Delivery

Yesterday I received a very special delivery.  I do believe it is the very best thing that the Fed-Ex man has ever delivered to my door.  Love.  In.  A.  Box. 

Let me set the stage, if I might.

It was the morning of my 41st birthday.  Welcome, 41.  We're going to be good together.  I slept crummy the night before, my heart heavy with the heaviness of my child's heart.  So I started my day feeling very drowsy.  Once the kids were all off to school, I took a brief nap before I started getting ready for work.  Not nearly enough, but I was thankful for the time I did get.  I got some laundry going.  I baked a batch of mini banana muffins to freeze for school lunches.  I got dinner for the evening done so all we had to do was heat-n-eat before we headed out to the football game in the evening.  Way more productive than I prefer to be on my birthday, but that's the way life rolls sometimes.  And I really considered my weekend away with Brad enough celebration to carry me through a birthday, so it was all good.  I then took a quick shower to get ready for work and came out of my room just in time to hear the doorbell ring...

For the last few months, the only deliveries via the Fed Ex or UPS men have been either cheer uniforms or computer pieces of some sort.  To my utter delight, this box was PINK!! I immediately spotted the words "Georgetown Cupcake" on the side.  Nuh-uh!!  No way!!  I spun it around and checked the shipping label, and, sure enough, this was truly from Georgetown Cupcake!! 

this is the shipping box ~ isn't it pretty?!

Are you with me?  There is a show on TLC called "DC Cupcakes".  If there is ever a show on with the word cupcake in it, I watch it.  I devour it.  So when my sweet friend moved to DC, I gave her some time to catch her breath and then asked if she had been to the cupcake shop the show is based on.  Yes, she has.  Yes, she loved it.  Yes, I was drooling a bit as she described it.

So, now you must be with me.  She, together with her parents, had these cupcakes shipped to me for my birthday!  I really cannot describe the joy this has brought to my heart, my mouth, and my tummy.  I was all alone when the box arrived, and it was so beautiful and special to me that I actually took a picture of each stage of the opening.  Now you get to share my joy.

after opening the shipping box, a tightly wrapped insulating bag

then the sweet card. "To you who is as sweet as her tooth" made me smile...

then, opening the insulated bag, there are these two iced gel packs

then, the inner box, tied with a bow

And then, the center of the package reveals the core of the beauty.  One of the most beautiful sights to behold:

may I introduce to you to (from top row, left to right) the chocolate with chocolate ganache, the coconut, the key lime, the chocolate mint, the peanut butter chocolate, the salted caramel, and the precious additional chocolate peanut butter

As of this writing, I have eaten two of the chocolate peanut butter.  They are divine.  It is a rich chocolate cupcake with smooth and creamy peanut butter frosting, and then when you bite into it you find a most delicious chocolate goo of some kind that just completely sent me over the edge.  In a good way, of course.  The caramel is so good.  So rich that the roof of my mouth felt that sugar-rush burn that I'm so fond of.  I only ate a couple bites of that and forced Brad to finish it.  Poor guy.  The rest are soon to be sampled.  One daughter is a little downcast that I refuse to share the last chocolate peanut butter.  She thinks I'm kidding.  I'm not.

I can't wait to watch this show soon and see some more of the behind the scenes of where my cupcakes came from.  I love them.  They love me.  A perfect way to celebrate 41!

Hope you got a little joy from my joy.  If you ever swing into DC, make a point of getting yourself a fabulous cupcake.  (This is a perfect place to insert a political statement.  I'm choosing not to.  Just wanted you to appreciate my restraint.)

Have a sweet Saturday...

Sweetness

Next week, as impossible as this is for me to believe, Brad and will celebrate our 20 year anniversary.  I just can't believe that.  20 years??  That's 2 decades.  Wow.  Yeah, we got married young.  But still.  TWENTY years?

Last year we started talking about what to do for this big milestone.  We had a lot of very grand ideas, but none that matched our budget.  Then, as I talked about in an earlier post, time became a huge frustration as we realized that our calendar was ridiculously full this fall.

But, with a little juggling and shuffling and releasing, we found a way to clear Labor Day weekend.  Brad is the one who juggled and shuffled and released.  And then he arranged.  Everything.  With the help of some kind gals at work, he found an amazing place in Cannon Beach on the Oregon Coast.  One of my very, very favorite places.  Then he made arrangements for the kids.  Then he told me about it a couple weeks ago.  Then I helped smooth out the crazy kid schedules so it wouldn't be too crazy.  And then Friday came and we were off for what would prove to be something better than we could have ever planned for...

I even have conflicted feelings about putting all this on here, because that involves some kind of acceptance that it's over.  And I'm notoriously slow to accept things I don't like.

I went to this place with zero expectations.  Zero.  Just so happy to get away with Brad...I didn't give a single thought to the weather or uncontrollable things that I wanted it to be.  There is no bad weather at the beach.  A storm on the Oregon Coast is fabulous...no weather would have made it a bad trip.  But, let me tell you...the Lord graced us with some weather that blew us away.  I still cannot believe how perfect it was.  Bright blue skies.  Warm sun.  NO wind!  I am not a fan of wind.  Especially when there is sand.  I have never seen so little wind at the beach as we did this weekend.  Except for our last morning there, there was really no wind.  Obviously, I cannot even believe it myself.  It was simply glorious.

The room?  Amazing.

The view of Haystack Rock?  Beautiful.

The sunsets?  Breathtaking.

This place provides "an endless supply of cookies" in the lobby.  That's my kind of place.  One of the gals at the front desk knew all that about me from talking to Brad before we arrived, so she put together this little box of cookies for us to take to our room one evening. 

One morning at breakfast, I was dishing up some oatmeal and complimented one of the chefs on the amazing smell coming from the kitchen.  "Coconut?"  I asked.  "Yes, we just baked coconut/golden raisin cookies."  Literally before I finished dressing my oatmeal, he appeared with a small plate with three warm cookies for me.  (And, for the record, I'm not a "raisin in my cookie" kind of girl.  But these were soooo good.  I'm going to try to replicate them.)

Every afternoon, they host a complimentary wine/cheese hour in their "library room" that overlooks the ocean.  We were never there during the time, choosing to instead be out walking the beach in the glorious (no wind) sun.

Then in the evening they have night caps available in that same room.  Brad brought those up to our room...because I wasn't remotely interested in being social with anyone other than Brad.  And the chef.  But mostly Brad.

I took many baths.  One of them in particular?  Best.  Bath.  Ever. 

We slept to the sound of the ocean.  We woke to the sound of seagulls.  We ate when we were hungry.  Very little thinking involved.  Lots of conversation.  Lots of reminiscing.  He even took me shopping for my early birthday present.  And we walked the beach.  For miles and miles each day.

On Sunday, we walked for an hour and a half and came upon this little gem near Hug Point.  We were completely alone for almost 2 hours, with the brief exception of one couple that walked through.  Totally alone on the beach in beautiful weather for almost two hours?  You can't plan something like that.  It was not lost on us that we were having a day that we would remember forever.  Felt like a little kiss from heaven...

this is our little private beach.  the dot is me.  Brad took this with his cell phone because we didn't even bring our camera that day!!

Sweet memories added to a very sweet life.  Interesting insight into an interesting life.  Overwhelming appreciation for that life and the man I'm blessed to share it with.

I will never forget it...

Perfectly Mixed

This last-born of mine is quite the unique child.  They all are, I know.  But the blend that makes up Beth is really something special.

Usually when I make chocolate chip cookies (stay with me, here) I follow my favorite recipe and know exactly what I'm adding.  Sometimes, though, I get a wild hair and start adding in extra things.  Sometimes different nuts.  Sometimes different types of chocolate.  Sometimes pudding.  Sometimes chopped up candy bars.  Whatever I'm in the mood for or curious about.  I think the Lord had a head full of wild hairs the day He made Beth.  I believe He must have been quite pleased with Himself as He took His standard recipe and then started adding a little of this and a little of that.

A little extra curiosity.  A little scoop of creativity.  An extra heaping tablespoon of an adventurous spirit.  Stubborn determination?  "Yes!  In fact, she's going to need that in extra doses, so I'm going to double that!"  Tenacity?  Oh, yes.  And then I think He cranked up the blue scale when He colored her eyes, just to make sure the cute factor was there.  And He pinked the cheeks a little extra rosy, too.  Made that girl beautiful, He did. Then He added an overload of tenderness and adoration for those she loves.  And He took that brain and wired it in the most amazing way.  It's wired perfectly to keep up with and understand her curiosity.  And then some.  And just for kicks, He thought He'd make her a little extra tall.  And make her love dirt.  That girl loves dirt.  Perfect for her sense of adventure and exploration.  And I think He sealed all that together (the eggs of the recipe, if you will) with a sticky-sweet love.  This girl is slow to warm-up, but deep in her love.  Once you are her friend...oooh, does she love you. 

Now this beautifully mixed creation has grown slowly into her girlhood.  Being comfortable, shoot, being dirty, has always been preferable to being cute.  She has now been scooting more to the side of being cute.  Which is both a delight, as I'm not taking this child into public looking like we were crying out for help, and a challenge, as I now have two girls to please in the "how do I look???" department.  The child that would not keep a hair band in her hair for anything now wants her hair "just right". 

Anyway, today has been a day full of all those ingredients that make Beth Beth.  She found the PERFECT Converse shoes for school today.  Perfectly Beth at age 9.  A little touch of girlie with a lot of kickin' comfort.

And then, I walk in to my kitchen to load the dishwasher for the 112th time today, and see this:

One of her best buddies gave her this rubber dinosaur at cheer practice last night, and Beth wanted to see if it would grow bigger in a cup of water.  And what mother doesn't want to grab a cup off the counter and have a little dinosaur smile up at her?  The gift that keeps on giving.  Thanks, Grace.

This picture was taken a couple weeks after her accident, Brad's first day back at work.  I sent this picture to him, simply titled "She's back!"  It sums her up perfectly.

SO Beth!  Lace sleeved, flower-dotted t-shirt, covered in dirt!  That's my girl.

She's a little of this and a little of that.  And perfectly mixed.

A Beautiful Girl...

...just became even more beautiful with the addition of some expensive jewelry!