Today

Today- I began composting.
Today- I lovingly steamed and pureed fresh organic snap peas, only to have them unceremoniously spewed out by my unimpressed baby (even mixing in applesauce would not convince her).
Tomorrow- we'll stick to applesauce.
Today- I made my husband beef jerky.
Today- I designed a logo for said husband's new business.
Today- I shopped for houseplants.
Tomorrow- I'll pot said plants.
Today- I cooked three meals, finished a book, made phone calls, worked on plans for the garden, took care of two babies, showered, boxed up fall decorations (don't ask), made two separate to-do lists (and a packing list), played with Rory, added six things to the get-rid-of pile, took out the recycling, made the bed, drank a cup of coffee, did the dishes three times, earned a few swagbucks, and updated this blog.
Tomorrow- Repeat. With a few variations.

But really, I love love love being a housewife and mom. I think I get more satisfaction from these duties than the most prestigious job in the world could offer me. Even though I'm tired, sore, and annoyed that Rory doesn't like peas, I'll chalk it all up to another good day!

Reflections on Good-byes

There are times when we turn our backs in the kitchen and someone whisks the soup to the dining room before we can finish seasoning it; we’re left dumbfounded, gripping the spices in our hands and knowing the soup is good but could have been better. These are the moments when our intentions cease to matter and become “what-could-have-beens.” There is a temporary end to every relationship this side of Heaven, and so often these ends are frayed and dangling- “But I never…” “But we didn’t…..”. God said, “Done.” And it was. Left to mull over the “if onlys,” it is too easy to question the goodness of God- because it’s either that or questioning our own. How many times was brusqueness offered instead of kindness? Disinterest instead of care?

My grandma left this world on Sunday. It was a day I’d been expecting for years, the death of my first grandparent. She had been ill, but it happened much sooner than we all expected. She lived in another state, but was always such a presence in the lives of all her grandchildren. I am so grateful     looking back at the quarter century we spent together with precious few regrets. I intended to call her Saturday but bumped it to Sunday’s to-do list, and though I lost that one chance to say “I love you,” I made it a point to call often. We never did go to Paris together (something she had spoken of to me many times), but I was always more interested in Spain anyway, though I never had the heart to tell her that. No, there are very few regrets, and quite a few lovely memories. Grandma saw me married (she thought Blake was quite cute, and openly (if not tactfully) hoped that our baby would get his hair genes). She held my first child. Was I ready for this day? Not at all.  But our Lord is as sovereign as he is good, and anything I would have told Grandma that last almost-phone call can surely wait the short sweet time until I see her again.

An Aussie Shower

Marti F. and I planned an awesome Outback themed shower for our friend Samantha and her new baby Hannah! Sam lived Down Under for five years, so we determined an Australia theme was the way to go; it had its challenges, but we were up to it! I think the Outback would make an adorable nursery theme too, by the way... Here are some pictures!

We served breakfast "joey pouches"

Also on the menu: "curried cuckaburra salad"

Some guests, along with koala balloons and kangaroo paper chains

Koala "bear claw" pastries

We put kiwis in the punch to make it Australian, although I think really it's more of a New Zealand thing.

Sam's sister holding Hannah, and Sam in her "G'day" shirt!

My mother in law made this little platypus!

My Funny Valentine...

I love Valentine's Day. I love any excuse to celebrate my hubbycakes and our mutual commitment and affection. Generally we go all out, meaning the day will include some sort of special meal (probably take out BBQ from Satchmos this year) and of course, gifts! I'm super excited to give him his awesome present, but I can't say what it is here since he periodically checks this blog. So, here are a couple ideas for really cool Valentine's gifts for those of you who are (wealthy) procrastinators:

Personalized Tree Stump Cookies! 
I saw these on Etsy, and since I've always loved the initials-carved-into-a-tree-trunk romanticalness, I think they're just super!

 

And from the same seller, mustache cookies! Even men who do not themselves sport facial hair seem to have an innate fascination with it, so these mustache cookies would cry "I understand and appreciate your manly heart!" to your guy:

And since I'm on a browsing Etsy kick this morning, what guy wouldn't love these:

A gift that nods at a passion for sailing and books? I think yes!

And, just in case he surprises you with a fancy dinner out, you can present him with one of these nautical-inspired ties:

I think travel mugs are generally pretty girly, so how about sending him out the door with his morning coffee in one of these masculine receptacles ? They're hand carved out of ash and maple, and the seller offers other varieties!

Perhaps you've found some inspiration here today! Or maybe you've had Valentine's Day taken care of for weeks. How are you going to celebrate (or not) this year?

A Coffee Caper

A strange and amusing thing happened today. It began at Christmas when my husband gifted me a lime green Keurig one cup coffee maker, which I adored from the moment I set eyes on (and continue to adore every morning when I drink from its goodness). I love having a cup or two in the morning, but it seems so silly to go through the effort of brewing a pot when I'm the only one home, and then the leftovers sit there for days and days and get gross- I always hold out for someone to drink them, and nobody ever does; the mini Keurig has been perfect. The only downside to my darling machine is that (until Blake bought it a mini filter for ground coffee) it takes little coffee pod things, called "K-Cups," which could "roast" our budget if we were to consume too many a day (while not exactly "grounds" for divorce, it could cause Blake to regret his thoughtful gift).We found them for the best price at Amazon, and I ordered enough to last a couple months. I waited all day last Friday for the delivery, to no avail. By Saturday I was frustrated, so I checked the order status and found that they had indeed been delivered, and "left at the front desk." There's no way on earth dropping a package on our porch could be considered "left at the front desk," so I emailed the mix up to Amazon and they replied that my K-Cups were likely gone forever and they would send some more right away. End of story.
Until this morning.... the doorbell rang and to my shock, a uniformed police officer stood there, patrol car in the driveway. She peered at me: "Are you Brittany Bowen?" Gulp. I confessed that I was, and she smiled and presented me with a cardboard box. "This was delivered to the station last Friday. By the time we had investigated it for explosives and contaminants it was too late to bring it to you. So here you are!" I guess if you want your lost mail returned to you, better pray it ends up at the police station, by one means or another!

Help Meet?

I love relationship books, really I do. So, a couple of months ago, my darling husband selected this book from my Amazon wish list as a surprise gift for me. He chose this one because we both had heard it is rather controversial, even among believers, and, frankly, we wondered what all the fuss was about. Well, now I understand.

 Here is my take so far:
I'm about half way through the book (despite the fact that I am a fast reader and did I mention I love relationship books?, it has been grueling simply getting this far). Despite the mixed reviews, I fully expected to like the book, and to hopefully glean some applications for my own marriage. But truthfully, I'm really not enjoying it, and not because it's convicting or boring (it's been neither of those things). First and foremost I'm finding the writing style abrasive to the point of rudeness- there's something to be said about speaking the truth in love; Ms. Pearl instead comes across as arrogant, brusque, and provocative; I can almost imagine her scowling and waggling her finger in the reader's face. This is regretful since much of what she has to say seems scripturaly sound, truthful, and thought provoking (particularly helpful is the section on the different types of men: command-man, visionary, and steady). In this case, however, the means trump the message, and I'm finding it's just not worth it. I know that ultimately the style in which a book is written is not as important as its content, but when the reader finds herself fuming not over what the author is saying but how the author says it, there's a bit of a problem.

While there are other things I dislike about the book (such as all of her examples of what a perfect wife she is and the almost outlandish letters she includes), one thing that left me completely incredulous occurred in chapter 13: Ms. Pearl narrates the experience of a girl who impetuously married a guy who at one point in their marriage tried to stab her (and their unborn child) to death. The author commended the girl for staying with her husband, who eventually repented and adored her and they lived happily ever after or whatever. I suppose I have a hard time believing that Ms. Pearl applauded the girl for her actions (granted, it apparently  all turned out okay in the end) when not only was she putting her life at risk in staying with her husband, but also those of their three children! Maybe if it were just her, but I do not think it's okay that she stayed with an extremely violent, aggressive, drunk when her children were endangered, and the author seems to think this makes her an exemplary wife (wife, maybe, but I sure wouldn't give her the mother of the year award- good grief). Ms. Pearl did not council the woman to stay (she told her either to leave him once and for all or to commit to try to win him back), but she obviously thought the girl made the right choice.

Anyway, I'm going to plow through the rest of the book (I'll write another review when I finish)- I think it may be getting better now that she's starting on the practical tips on creating a particular home environment and the like.

While I have some issues with this book, I know some of you have read it and feel quite differently than I; some of you even found it life changing, and I want to be sensitive to that.

What do you think of the book? Love it? Loathe it? On the fence? I'd love to hear your opinions...

Blue Spruce

I am a tree girl. I just simply prefer trees to shrubs and bushes. Of all the trees in the world, my very favorite is the blue spruce:

Really, I don't know if there's anything more satisfying than a well-formed blue spruce. They do a wonder for my soul. And, it's really, really entertaining to say "blue spruce" multiple times in a row, in a kind of low voice: "blue spruce, blue spruce, blue spruce, blue spruce!" Yep, kind of sounds like "Bruce Bruce." Try it next time you're feeling blue!

A Delicious Update

We Bowens have been eating well the last couple of weeks. Are are a few culinary highlights:

Meatball subs for our Young Marrieds Group: they turned out well and were entirely satisfying!

One of our favorite chicken recipes, also from The Taste of Home.

Yesterday I finally cooked our Thanksgiving turkey...turkeys are intimidating, but it turned out really well! Blake and I celebrated by having turkey-pepperjack sandwiches on sourdough; they were fabulous. Today I had my all time favorite sandwich, turkey, havarti, cranberry, and romaine. I'm making homemade turkey stock and we're having turkey-sausage gumbo for dinner tonight, per Blake's request, which is something new for me (gumbo, not listening to Blake).

I also made some homemade salsa verde today with some Mexicany ingredients from our last bountiful baskets (tomatillos, garlic, onion, tomato, lime juice, and cilantro). I'll slow cook it with a pork roast on Wednesday!

Finally, I leave you with these little masterpieces: maple cupcakes, with maple butter cream frosting and candied bacon on top. They were unbelievably good, if I do say so myself. I know the whole bacon dessert thing is very trendy right now, but it seemed a perfect sweet-salty combo to try out for a Bible study snack. I thought people would be suspicious of them, but instead they embraced them with gusto. I'll definitely be making them again!
I got the cupcake recipe here, the frosting here, and to make the candied bacon, I just sprinkled the bacon with brown sugar before baking.

A Tiny, Little Secret

I have an embarrassing confession (no, not the fact that without fail I rely on the spell checker for help with"embarrassing"). This secret is much worse. Okay, here it comes: I have a strange fascination with the Miss America pageant. And Miss Universe. No, I don't watch them play out on TV. I actually don't follow them at all. But I love to go to their web page and read the contestant profiles. I don't know why, but reading their responses to the interview questions (and of course seeing what evening gown they chose) can captivate me for a good hour or more. Maybe I'm looking for a spark of transparency among the predictable answers. Maybe I'm trying to imagine what different circumstances influenced each girl as she decided that this was worth pursuing. Maybe the cynic in me is assuming that the winners are all but chosen before the event takes place, and I wonder if the flawless faces peering at me from under their moody, lowered lids have fooled themselves to thinking they have a chance. Or, maybe I'm just captivated by the glamor and sparkle.

If I were a sociologist, maybe I would study these things. Or maybe I would study the crazies like myself who occasionally succumb to their allure.

While I'm at it, I'll admit to another guilty pleasure: going to a website like People.com the day after a big awards ceremony (is that what they're called? Last night was the Golden Globes) and clicking through the gallery of the best dressed actresses. I just love to see the beautiful gowns (and turn up my nose at the horrid ones). Apparently brooches are the adornment of choice this year- who would have guessed?

These actions puzzle my dear husband, and I can't explain myself to him. Maybe it's like him checking insurance quotes for cars we'll probably never be able to afford; I'll never be 5'10, and I'll likely never again have the occasion to wear an impossibly beautiful gown or have my words scrutinized by the world, but....I don't know. I can't explain it.

Tired- check. Grumpy- check. Uninspired- check. Yep, it's time for the weekend.
Blake worked long hours almost everyday this week, and he has to work half days both Saturday and Sunday. I need a good novel to read.

Here are some things that are aggravating me today:

1. The rug in front of the sink will not lie flat and I trip over it at least 4,289 times a day.
2. I'm not sure if the verb should be "lie" or "lay" in number one.
3. I ate too much maple butter cream frosting and now my teeth hurt.
4. Speaking of teeth, I have a toothache and I don't want to call the dentist because I know he'll hurt me.
5. It has been 50 degrees and sunny and the rest of the country is getting lovely storms.
6. I have worn just about everything in my closet today and each thing looked dumber than the last.
7. I had to pick out all the little slimeys from the package of lettuce- disgusting.

But because I'm vowing to try to improve my disposition, here are some happy thoughts:

1. Date night with Blake last Wednesday to Cafe Ole, one of my favorites!
2. Rory got her first tooth! I think that's a good thing anyway...
3. My sister is coming to visit soon!
4. I have comfy new slippers.
5. Some good friends shared some great news.
6. Did I mention it's almost the weekend?