Catch Up via Photo

Welcome back!  It has indeed been awhile, which means I have a lot of pictures that need sharing!  Enjoy...

I think I could stare at this all day long and be perfectly content.



They have a good spot.

 

One of three (they left us two) fire pits that will be enjoyed often (along with some s'mores, I'm sure)





Jaida getting the stick in her swimming hole





The leaves are changing!





This should be included in every Saturday afternoon, if you ask me



We have about a dozen wild turkeys that regularly make their way through our yard, along with some deer...the wildlife is so fun to watch!



Good morning, sunshine!



The happy family :)



The giant windows are my favorite



Jaida is stoked to finally have a yard to run in!



And now to go a little farther back to our SoNo days...I still want to go take more pictures around that sweet-looking little historic town...



Our walking trail by the harbor on a perfectly blue day...





There is really nothing more beautiful than when Spring starts blooming around here...



And while were at it, just a few more from our anniversary weekend in the City :) ....

Though it was no TexMex, we enjoyed some delicious Mexican food

Perfect weather for walkin the streets...

Breakfast outside our hotel...

a delicious end to a stellar weekend with my love :)

God has been too good to us!  We look forward to having you up to the new place to share in His goodness ;)

Sabotage

"Enemy-occupied territory - that is what this world is. Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in a great campaign of sabotage. When you go to church you are really listening-in to the secret wireless from our friends: that is why the enemy is so anxious to prevent us from going."
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Guest Post!

As I sit on a plane headed back to Houston I am looking at several pictures of our trip to visit youngest son Adam and daughter Kelley. I love to take photographs, hoping that out of ever 100, I'll have around five that are worth the cramping of my fingers and the gyrations I put myself and my subjects through. i just noticed that although my intentions were to get that "worthy-of-enlargement" shot, my favorite frames were of people, especially the two that mean so much to Roger and I. (though I also have several poses of our grand-dog Jaida, who is always in some kind of hilarious non-motion position).

What do I see in these photos, besides wonderful memories? The things that a Mother is well qualified to store in her heart for all the days to come...the love of our children for each other, the love they have for us, the excitement of adventure in new places (and the palette-pleasers in those places), careers that promise a future and deep friendships, a home that is warm and inviting, a church where worship of the Lord is our common ground...and did I mention the landscape??? God is here.

I Corinthians 13:4-7 teaches us that love is patient, kind, never envies, boasts, or is proud. It is not rude or self-seeking, not easily angered nor keeps record of wrongs. Love protects, trusts, always hopes, and perseveres. I have witnessed these Biblical truths in our children over our time together this week...bringing me a fresh perspective in the lives of Adam and Kelley. They are more than "in a good place"; they are exactly where God wants them to be...how great is that??? How hard it has been to live apart from them, yet joy abounds from the realization that miles are only miles. Our hearts (that are home to Lord Jesus) bind us closely, and eternally.

Conclusion? Go to Connecticut, see our children as often as we can and be grateful for and in awe of the work the Lord is doing in the lives of those we love...

Until we meet again...

thanks to our guest-blogger, Beth Ellis! we loved having you two here!

At the Cross...

[Of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane] Why was he trembling in that garden, weeping and full of anguish? We can rest assured that he was not a coward about to face Roman soldiers. Instead he was a Savior about to endure divine wrath.

Listen to his words: "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me." The "cup" is not a reference to a wooden cross; it is a reference to divine judgment. It is the cup of God's wrath.

This is what Jesus is recoiling from in the garden. All God's holy wrath and hatred toward sin and sinners, stored up since the beginning of the world, is about to be poured out on him, and he is sweating blood at the thought of it.

What happened at the Cross was not primarily about nails being thrust into Jesus' hands and feet but about the wrath due your sin and my sin being thrust upon his soul. In that holy moment, all the righteous wrath and justice of God due us came rushing down like a torrent on Christ himself. Some say, "God looked down and could not bear to see the suffering that the soldiers were inflicting on Jesus, so he turned away." But this is not true. God turned away because he could not bear to see your sin and my sin on his Son.

One preacher described it as if you and I were standing a short hundred yards away from a dam of water ten thousand miles high and ten thousand miles wide. All of a sudden that dam was breached, and a torrential flood of water came crashing toward us. Right before it reached our feet, the ground in front of us opened up and swallowed it all. At the Cross, Christ drank the full cup of the wrath of God, and when he had downed the last drop, he turned the cup over and cried out, "It is finished."

This is the gospel. The just and loving Creator of the universe has looked upon hopelessly sinful people and sent his Son, God in the flesh, to bear his wrath against sin on the cross and to show his power over sin in the Resurrection so that all who trust in him will be reconciled to God forever.

- an excerpt Radical, by David Platt

Happy Birthday, Dad!

...belated birthday, that is. I have been a terrible blog updater! A few weeks ago, Adam and I were able to enjoy another visit from Mom and Dad Samu, this time for Dad's birthday! We had a great time exploring our surroundings, hanging out in the City, and just enjoying the company of family.
We went into NYC on a beautifully sunny (but still a little chilly) day, and decided to make Central Park our first stop, since we only caught it at night last time. The food trucks parked on the Green made for a perfect little lunch.
Then, after taking in the beautiful surroundings of the park and wishing we could go
bouldering on all the sweet rocks (ok, maybe that was just me) we made our way through the City. We had to make a stop at FAO Schwarz to see if anything caught our eye for our little and brand new (!)nephews, but a certain someone else got a little more joy out of it than we all anticipated. Adam gave new meaning to the phrase, "like a kid in a candy store." With teddy bears as big as he is and a ginormous selection of the freshest sour gummies around, I'd say he was a
happy camper.














Next we made our way into a hat store, where our studly men strutted their stuff, and then headed towards an old pizza spot my dad had seen on TV. Patsy's Pizzeria: a New York original, producing giant, fresh, coal-fired pizzas. It was delicious, and we had no problem scarfing it down after our day of walking.

This cake, on the other hand, we did not have as much room for. For Dad's birthday we got dinner at one of our favorite Indian spots in Stamford, Tawa. Unfortunately there were no awkward belly dancers this time, but we did enjoy some delicious food, and managed to save room for homemade German chocolate cake.

Happy Birthday, Dad! So glad you guys came!

(!) And on the birthday note, congratulations to Chad and Lindsay!! We are so stoked for the arrival of our new nephew, Asher!

Butternut Squash Pizza

Adam and I are big fans of homemade pizza (who isn't?) and we claim to make a pretty mean one. We usually just focus on a crispy, slow-rise thin crust, and then pile it as high as possible with fresh veggies (along with some sausage, peperoni, and cheese for Adam). However, every once in awhile we focus in on some specific flavor combinations, and while different, they do not disappoint!

This one stemmed from my recent desire to make better use of my awesome cookbooks, instead of just reading through them like a good novel. We added the shrimp, mushrooms, and dressing of the arugula to make it a little more hearty, and it turned out delicious!

Butternut Squash Pizza
adapted from Williams-Sonoma New Healthy Kitchen

1 your favorite pizza dough recipe
1/2 medium butternut squash, chopped into 1/2" cubes
4 tsp olive oil
2 tsp thyme
3-4 oz soft goat cheese
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 lb. shrimp, peeled and cleaned
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cups baby arugula
1 tsp balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400. Toss chopped squash with a little oil, salt, pepper, and about 2/3 of the thyme. Spread out on a baking sheet and roast for about 15 minutes, or until fork-tender and starting to brown. While this roasts, toss the shrimp with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and the rest of the thyme. Set aside.
Once the squash is finished, raise oven temperature to 500. Roll out your dough and place on a pizza stone or crisper that has been dusted with cornmeal. Drizzle dough with a little bit of oil and spread it across in a thin layer. Dot with pieces of squash and goat cheese. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake until crust is starting to brown, about 10 minutes, then pull out and scatter the shrimp on. Return to the oven until crust is crispy and shrimp are cooked through, about 6 more minutes.
Dress arugula with vinegar, salt, pepper, and a little drizzle of oil. Top pizza and enjoy!!

Apple Spice Cake

From the kitchen of... I have been in super "I want to bake something" mode lately, as I'm sure Adam can attest to. Maybe it is because I recently got a sweet stand mixer. Maybe because my students have been on winter break the past week, and therefore life is moving a little slower, thus giving my inner baker the chance to emerge. Whatever the reason, it brings me joy.

After rummaging around through several cookbooks (more joy), I decided upon this apple spice cake. It seemed like a good wintry dessert that wasn't going to get the kitchen too terribly messy. Plus, the bulk of the cake is deliciously spiced apples, so it falls in the relatively healthy dessert category (my favorite)!

Spiced Apple Cake
adapted from Williams-Sonoma's desserts: new healthy kitchen

3 green apples, cored and thinly sliced
1 C granulated sugar
1/2 C butter, melted
1 egg
1 1/4 C flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C golden raisins (which I didn't have)
2 T granulated sugar mixed with
1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325. Butter an 8-inch round cake pan. Whisk sugar and butter together, then add egg and continue. Stir in 2/3 of apples. Sift together flour, spices, and salt. Add to wet ingredients along with raisins, stirring until just blended. Pour into pan and smooth top. Arrange remaining apples in a pattern on

top, pressing gently down. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake until golden and springy to touch, about 50 minutes. Let cake stand 10 minutes, then turn out and let cool completely.

Excellent with a dusting of powdered sugar, warmed with a scoop of fro-yo, or all by itself!