It's the small things...

Can I just tell you that I have been getting excited lately about little things? My latest and greatest discovery has by all accounts, literally changed my life! What, you ask? It is a little gadget called the Swiffer Sweeper-Vac! We have pergo floors throughout the living/dining room and kitchen so I find myself getting down on my hands and knees either with a paper towel or dust buster on a daily basis. This beautiful invention allows me to get all the dust bunnies, crumbs, dirt pieces, and random chunks of food off the floor while standing up straight! On top of the swiffer cloth, there is suction to pick up the bigger debris. The past few days I have actually looked forward to sweeping the dust bunnies up although please don't expect that to last forever. (By the way, how can 3 relatively clean people create daily dust bunnies?- I will never know)
I also just had to share this picture with you of El. I love it because it has a couple of her favorite things and is just so her with her rosy cheeks, blue eyes, and her smile that we love. She adores Elmo and can't ever seem to get enough of the book, "Boom Boom" or "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom". She is in her reading nook where we often find her when she is playing by herself and pretending to read the words to all of her favorite books. We are blessed!

To Dream Again

I can clearly remember dreaming when I was little...I used to dream that I was an Olympic jump roper (is there such a thing?), an NBA basketball player (or WNBA nowadays), a professional beach volleyball player, and a teacher (mostly because I liked to write on the chalkboard). Three of the four of these were very big dreams for a little girl but I remember how real they were in my mind back then.

When I went to college, I really started to dream about how I was going to change people's lives and the eternal impact that I longed to have. This drove me to my majors: Christian formation and ministry and Bible/Theology. From the outside looking in this might have seemed foolish because it was costing a not-so-small fortune to put me through a Christian liberal arts college. Wouldn't it be better and more practical to become a business major or something that would look good on a resume? These are questions that I struggled with because although I knew that I loved my majors, I also knew that worldly speaking they may not be the best resume builders, but I didn't really care. Somehow I was still thinking that the Lord had a purpose for my doing what I did in college.

My post-college jobs were varied. I went from data entry girl at a Chicago mortgage company to Christian College Admissions Counselor. After moving back home to Colorado I was the program director for teaching children gymnastics and motor skills, then the personal assistant to the owner of a fitness club. By the end of this time, I felt like my dreams were dying; sitting at a desk doing different mind-numbing things, washing and filling his car with gas, and getting his daily tall, triple shot americano just wasn't doing it for me. By this time I was also Ellie's mom...which is truly a dream come true!

Out-of-the-blue, last summer I was invited to an Arbonne party that one of my friends was having. I knew nothing about Arbonne except that it was skin care and I hardly ever went to those in-home parties because I was a big skeptic. I decided to go just because I needed some time out of the house. For whoever knows me at all, growing up I was about as much of a tom boy as you can get. I didn't wear makeup until I was in college, my mom did my hair for me every morning until I was a sophomore in high school, and I just didn't care about "that stuff" in general- oh if only I had a picture to post. Anyway, I didn't purchase any products from the party that day but the lady doing the party, Margaret, talked about the incredible business opportunity with Arbonne and how the Lord was using it in her life and the lives of those around her. I went home, did my own research on all aspects of this business, and jumped in! It has caused a huge amount of growth in me already and I am dreaming big dreams again. This time though, my dreams are filled with visions that the Lord has given me about this enormous piece of art that tons of people are looking at in awe and the only words I have are, "It was all the Lord, I didn't really do anything!" This is the dream of the masterpiece I see Him creating in me and through this business He has given to me.

Our new furry, red friend

It is amazing how quickly a child can take a liking to something and what once was an innocent introduction becomes a daily obsession. Let me explain...a little over a week ago, Graham and I were at Target looking for a DVD to buy El that was something different than Baby Einstein. Let me preface this by saying that we don't allow her to watch very much TV or videos, but they do come in handy from time to time.

I noticed around Christmas that there was an Elmo Christmas special and anytime she would see that commercial on TV, she would giggle, point and get really excited. We came home from Target with an Elmo's World Pets DVD, placed it in the DVD player and the rest is history.

Ellie loves Elmo. I don't know whether it is his bright red fur, funny voice, plethora of animal friends always by his side (including the faithful fish friend, Dorothy), or just his overall charm. Whatever it is, she goes over to the TV cabinet often, points up, and says, "ehmo," and we know exactly what she wants. We had to put a limit on the amount of Elmo being watched so we agreed that she could only watch it once a day...after all, that is just about all of Elmo's World that a person can handle.

Reflections on Christmas

This Christmas was a very relaxing, low-key time together. We missed seeing our family across the country but judging from our recent flights with Ellie, we decided this year it was better to stay home. We didn't have much of an agenda except to have a big Christmas dinner on the 23rd with my parents in Montrose. A couple of my dad's co-workers came to enjoy it with us. It was a great time full of wonderful food and a lively game of Balderdash. (in the picture you will notice that Ellie was not present at the table as she was napping- perfect timing, I'd say!)




Christmas Eve day we treated like Christmas day with my parents by opening presents in the morning and hanging out until we came back to Grand Junction that evening. Ellie ripped a few packages open but quickly lost interest when there was an open box in which she could get into.


The big gift of the year was my dad planning a trip and getting my mom time off from work for a 7 day cruise in Hawaii in May. My parents have never really been on a big trip together so I would say that after 34 years of marriage, it is just about time.


This year we are reminded that Christmas calls us to reflect on the fact that we are called to look forward to Christ coming again and making all things new. Sometimes it is really hard to imagine all things being brought back to perfection because this world is so far from that, but I think we get glimpses of what is to come. For me they have come in the laughter of family and friends, the beauty in my daughter's face, freshly fallen snow reflecting the light of the sun, and a beautiful sunset- just to name a few. After all, doesn't creation tell of the glory of it's Creator? What a blessing it is to bear witness to that- a glimpse of the Almighty. I think we get these everyday and we get to choose whether we see them as invitations to worship or just pass them by in the busyness of our daily routine. What if we could see our To Do list everyday as a "blessing list"? After all, isn't everyday a blessing that we have been given and every task that we are able to do also part of that? As I begin 2008, I resolve to intentionally view everyday through this true hope and Joy of Christmas... My prayer is the same for you.

Snowshoeing is F...U...N

On Friday, we decided to go up to the Grand Mesa to have a snowshoeing adventure with our dear friends, Troy and Jenna. (Jenna was about 4 days past her due date to have their baby) Over the past week it has been super cold here in GJ and Friday it was about 22 degrees here, cloudy and windy. But we decided to get out and enjoy the Colorado outdoors. Now anyone who really knows me also is aware of the fact that I go on snowshoeing trips and other outdoor adventures largely because of how happy it makes my husband. I, on the other hand, would much rather be snuggled up under a nice, warm blanket at home where the conditions are favorable and reliable.

Anyhow, after having a nice, uneventful trip up to the trail head, we got out of the car where it was below zero air temperature, colder wind chill, and blowing snow. Ellie was fine until Graham plopped her into the big pink snowsuit and subsequently into the top of the backpack. So off we went into the beautiful, snowy wild white yonder....a screaming toddler, a concerned mom, determined dad, a very sweet, concerned husband (Troy), and a full term pregnant woman who is just completely ready to have this baby (Jenna). We were quite the group trekking into the forest.

I was feeling alright as far as my temperature was concerned but El, on the other hand, wasn't amused. I attempted to wrap my scarf around the bottom of her face so that the only thing exposed were her eyes. Even that didn't squelch her unhappiness. So about 15 minutes into it, I asked Graham to turn around and I would just sit in the car with her as they ventured off. Back in the car, she calmed down (after another 30 minutes of screaming) and I attempted to entertain her for the next hour. I was exhausted and I am certain that it might be a month or so before Graham can convince me to try it again. The hot chocolate at Powderhorn ski lodge was a nice way to end the trip, if only it had a big swig of Bailey's..ahhhhhh

All in all, it was a fun day to hang out with friends and spend time together. Happy New Year! I'll be posting a Christmas blog soon too so stay tuned...

Early signs of a 'tude.

We have had a very busy last couple of weeks, explaining the lack of blogs...I know, I know the hundreds of you who read this and check back expectantly every hour of every day have been severely disappointed...for this I apologize. Now if only a few of you would comment and make me feel like my time and energy I put into this doesn't go to waste, my world would be changed! Anyhow, I don't need to kid myself into thinking that the second sentence was actually true but I would love just a couple comments...is that asking for too much? maybe

Now everyone knows that time flies but being a mother has just increased the speed by a lot. I always thought it was at least 2 years old before children started throwing their bodies to the floor and giving you dirty looks. Recently I have found that this is yet another one of my misconceptions of children. Our sweet, perfect daughter has been trying to prove that she is not so agreeable and is trying to explore her independence as of late. I must preface this to tell you that yes she is teething and yes she has been fighting a yucky cold/cough in the past couple of weeks, but I don't think that these are fully to blame. She wants to feed herself. This sounds like a wonderful idea because the end result will be that I don't have to do everything for her when it comes to meal time. However, as I give her the cup of yogurt and she proceeds to feed herself a few spoonfuls, she then gets distracted by the fact that she could put it in her mouth a lot quicker if she just dug her little hand into the cup. The painful part for me is the fact that I know who will be cleaning this up because I don't already have enough cleaning to do.
Secondly, who ever taught my child to lay down on her back, roll over quickly and throw her arms above her head because she is mad? It just cracks us up because most of the time she is quiet the whole time and just lies prone until she gets over it.
Ok, ok so young toddlers will throw fits...but whoever thought that a 17 month-old could glare at you and give you dirty looks? NOT ME! It started with her closing her eyes and looking away from me in disgust, but below you will see the way her attitude shows up in her facial expressions toward you as well. As I silently giggle, I wonder "Where did she learn that from?" Surely it was from dad...;o)I guess this is an inevitable fact of parenthood but maybe I just thought that my child was immune. I don't think that it is ever too young for a child to learn respect and kindness so I am trying to learn how to do that especially in these first stages. I will end with a picture of one of her favorite pasttimes...getting herself into small spaces. I rounded the corner to our kitchen and found that she had gotten herself into a 9 by 13 pan... she still is pretty sweet and makes me laugh.

Ode to Pumpkin Bread

One of the things I love about this time of year is the innate hunger that is put in me for a good loaf of pumpkin bread. There is just something about the making, baking, and eating of it. I feel a certain sense of joy in stirring the thick orange mush that miraculously bakes into a wonderful, fluffy final product. This year I decided to manipulate my recipe around so that it was lower fat and more healthy (although one HAS to add chocolate chips). It was so delicious that I just decided that I had to share the recipe and pictures.

This recipe yielded 3 loaves but I decided to make 2 loaves, 1 pan of normal sized muffins, and 1 pan of mini muffins. What resulted was a beautiful cornucopia of bread sizes. I have never made mini muffins before but as I was making and consuming them, I decided that someone in France invented the mini-muffin pan. Surely that is what the book, "French women don't get fat" is about. Honestly I have not read the book although I have heard it's a good read. Anyhow, my hypothesis is that they must eat mini-muffins (only one or two a day) and that is how they stay trim. However, this is not the case with the Trenda's- no we are full sized muffin type people or -gasp- 2 piece pumpkin bread eating people. The mini muffins came in very handy for Ellie Bug. She quite enjoyed their size yet still ate a couple at each sitting.
So if you are interested in having the joy of pumpkin chocolate chip bread in your life, here is the recipe with a helpful hint on perfectly formed bread and my attempt at a very artistic look at the final product:
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

• 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 cups whole wheat flour (I use Wheat Montana brand- bakes really nicely)
  
• 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  
• a handful or so of semi-sweet chocolate chips (however many you want)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease, flour, and **wax paper the bottom of three 7x3 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, applesauce water and sugars until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour into the prepared pans.
3. Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and edges are pulling away from the sides of the pan.

**From my cake decorating class I learned that a great way to keep baked goods from sticking on the bottom of pans is to cut a piece of wax paper the size of the bottom of your pan(s). You then spray your non-stick cooking spray all over the inside of the pan and then place the piece of wax paper only along the bottom. After baking, this is a completely fool-proof way to prevent the bottom of breads and cakes from sticking and being ugly. LOVE THIS! Simply take out the bread and un-peel the wax paper from the loaves.

Happy pumpkin bread making!