We're back! {Top Ten} April So Far

This has been a full month.  It has been wonderful.  I wish I had started a list of bullet points of everything that's happened in the past few weeks, so that I could put together an intelligent recap of our April.  Or at least so that I could remember things.  But I didn't, so this is the brief run-down of what we've been up to!

1.  Almost 3 weeks ago, my sweet and dear friend, Michelle, drove 800+ miles from Michigan with her boyfriend, Rob, solely to visit with us.  That is a good friend there. 

Rob, Michelle, and Lizzie, at the park

Michelle was my maid of honor in my wedding.  Whenever she gets married--which shouldn't be too far off now--she's already picked me for the position, though with the title Matron. 

Michelle & Cindy, all dressed up

We used to stay up until all hours, talking about all the things that girls talk about--school, boys, relationships, our spiritual journey, boys, and dreams for the future.  While they visited, we got our "late night" time in during the early morning, while Lizzie and Rob slept in. 

Having Michelle as a friend is like having a sister.  No matter how often we see each other, we can always pick up where we left off.  And I hope that my girls get to be such close friends, too.

2.  In preparation for having houseguests, we had to clean.  Their stay motivated us to rearrange our guest room and make it livable. 
Before:

(Yes, I do understand that the blocks and colorful toys add drama, and make it look worse than it was, but it really was that bad.  I found that I had not filed or even remotely dealt with paperwork since October.  October, people!)

After:

 3.  We ventured to the Southeastern Railway Museum.  Lizzie loves trains, more than I would expect a girl to love trains, and we are right around the corner from this surprisingly great "museum" of trains and transportation. 

 

4.  Sam has another job prospect lined up, and it starts at the beginning of next month.  It's a three-month internship contract, which we are praying will become a permanent position.  He is excited to get back on track with a construction job, since his most recent degree is in construction project management.  I am excited for him, too!  The retail place has been God's provision for us, however, it's only an interim job. I am also looking forward to the retail schedule coming to an end and having a regular work week, that starts with early mornings and early bedtimes.

5.  We went to Texas and back!  We put approximately 2500 miles on our truck, but it was worth every mile.  Along the way we stayed with friends in Hattiesburg, MS, spent several days with Sam's family in Houston, made a 24 hour trip to stay with more friends and make a cameo appearance at a home church in San Antonio, returned to Houston, then departed for Mobile, AL, for one final stay with more friends, before heading home.  

6.  While in Houston, we got to go to the zoo, which was so much fun.  We went during nap time, so even though Lizzie was slightly zombie-like, she did really love being there.  

7.  Lizzie adores her grandparents.  Both sets.  She was actually disappointed when we told her we were going home instead of going back to Yeh-Yeh and Ni-Ni's house.  

 

When we did get back home, we got to visit with my family, too.  My mom is back in town.  She'd been in California for nearly a month, helping her sister care for their mother.  Her mother is still hanging in there, so she may need to fly back out soon, but we hope that her mom will hold out until after the book launch on May 3, at least.

 

8.  I arrived at my third trimester.  There are now only 11 weeks left before my due date of July 11 (Lord willing, no more than that!).  I am feeling quite large, my ankles are feeling quite larger, and whatever energy I had in the 2nd trimester is gradually leaving.  I'm glad we got to travel together as a family of 3 this month.

9.  Lizzie is making some "big girl" transitions.  While at Sam's parents' house, she went #2 in her potty for the first time.  That was a big deal.  She hasn't done it since, but she's put forth some good effort.  We haven't put forth a huge effort to push potty training, but we are giving her opportunity to try, especially if she asks. 

As of last night, Lizzie has decided she is no longer interested in sleeping in her crib.  So, she has slept on her crib mattress on the floor - which actually means, on the floor itself - for one evening and one nap.  The going to bed process has been a bit of a struggle, but once the lights are off and the door is closed, she has stayed in her bed like a big girl!  If we can keep this up until the new baby comes, then we'll only have to get one more mattress, instead of a whole new crib set. 

10.  Easter.   Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!  That we have a resurrection and the hope of the gospel, the strength of the same Spirit who raised Christ Jesus from the dead also in us.  It is truly indescribable.

Lizzie got to experience an egg hunt for the first time.  She was a little foggy on the details until she picked up a few eggs.  Then she got the hang of it.  And as soon as she got to what was on the inside (chocolate candy! stickers! bubble gum - we didn't know about that one until she gave me a very chewed up piece), she was pretty stoked to find more!

 

Those are our highlights.  How has your April been?

Never too young to have a fashion opinion...

22 months, and this is how she wants her hair.  Gotta love having a daughter.

So I Have This Sewing Machine . . . .

Several years ago I bought this sewing machine at a garage sale. 

If I remember correctly, it came on a table, which was kind of a disaster.  The table is long gone.

It had belonged to the seller's grandmother, who used it for decades, and was only selling it because she had a new, fancier machine. 
Of course, it wouldn't take much to be newer.
But fancier?  This comes with more feet than I know what to do with.  It comes with interchangeable wheels that can be inserted to make elaborate embroidery stitches.

And it comes with the original 1963 owners manual . . .

. . . complete with well-manicured hands demonstrating how to wind the bobbin.  What else could I ask for?

Maybe something to sew!

Well, if that's all I need, perhaps this weekend's sale ($0.99 for selected Simplicity patterns!) at JoAnn's would inspire me.  Yes indeed! 

Lizzie and I ventured to the grand world of JoAnn's for almost an hour on Saturday, where I scoured the Simplicity file cabinets, and Lizzie located "fuzz" from the floor, showing me the especially big or colorful pieces of "fuzz."  Yes, I let my child play with dust bunnies, fabric shavings, and ... I don't really want to think about it.  But everyone was happy.

I came home with a receipt that said that I paid $9.45, and saved $131.64.  I love receipts that look like that.


As you can see, I selected quite an eclectic assortment of patterns.  Skirts, baby gear, toddler dresses, infant shoes, aprons, shirts, curtains.  I should have no excuse if I ever get the sewing bug and don't know where to start.
 
Upon returning home, I put Lizzie down for her nap, moved the sewing machine from the office (soon to become guest room) into the master bedroom, and proceeded to accomplish a project.

The strap that allows you to collapse the back seat in the Suburban had busted, and it needed to be re-sewn.  Sam commissioned me to fix it, and fortunately, the dear old grandmother who originally had the machine also had heavy-duty needles.  Armed with heavy duty thread, and my trusty old owners manual, I figured out how to a) wind the bobbin, b) replace the all-purpose foot with a zipper foot, c) change the needle, and d) sew nylon webbing.

Before:

After: 



I feel so accomplished.  So inspired.  So ready to create something.

Now all I need is fabric.

Coffee, Sparrows, and a Blessed Heritage

Good morning!

May I refer you to another blog today?  Follow this link to Christy LaShea Smith's blog, where she is giving away a copy of Meg Moseley's (my mom's!!) debut novel, 'When Sparrows Fall', set for release on May 3, 2011.  Leave a comment on Christy's blog and/or on her facebook page to be entered to win. 

While you're there, you can read a bit from my mom.  She is currently on the west coast with her own mom, who is in at-home hospice care.  Her words impressed me as she told of singing "Jesus Loves Me" together.  Jesus Loves Me is part of Lizzie's bedtime repertoire. She likes to sing and read about "Deesuss."

I am blessed to have a heritage of believers in my family.  Both of my parents were raised in loving, Christian homes.  My mom's side of the family can be traced through generations of proper Lutherans, as all good Danes should be.  My dad's family were kind, quiet Baptists, who taught Sunday School for decades.  In turn, my parents raised me up in 'the way I should go' and I'm so grateful.  Even on Sam's side, by the grace of God, his parents escaped Red China and sometime later came to the knowledge of salvation; instead of embracing the typical non-religion of atheism, they raised their sons in the church.

Now it's our turn.  I can't say what our girls will have when they grow up, except that we will do the best we know how to teach them to love "Deesuss" and as they grow, release them to learn to walk in faith.

When you're done visiting Christy LaShea Smith's blog, hop along with the Company Girls today. Coffee is always more fun with company, isn't it?

New Orleans Beignets

A while back I got a craving for doughnuts.  But not just any doughnuts, I wanted Krispy Kreme.  (I do love that about being pregnant; I don't have to have any reason to crave something like doughnuts.)

No, I didn't make Krispy Kreme doughnuts, but I made something else--something similar--that was amazingly delicious. 

While searching for a method for stir-frying some vegetables and tofu for dinner, I got side-tracked in The Joy of Cooking.  I found myself in the "Doughnuts, Cruelers, and Pastries" section, debating whether or not I could make beignets.

I had never eaten a beignet before in my life.  But I'd heard good things about them, so it was worth a try.  (The stir-fry?  Yeah, whatever.) I ended up using the recipe from the Joy of Cooking.  It is very simple, and uses only minimal ingredients.  The dough is essentially a sweet yeast biscuit.  Fried.

It requires a bit of advanced planning, in that you mix the dough up the day before, and let it sit in the refrigerator overnight. 



The next morning the hardest part is rolling the cold dough onto a floured surface while you wait for oil in a heavy pot to get hot enough to fry.  Even I can handle that.

One of the highlights of this experiment is how I discovered that the easiest way to cut the squares is with a pizza cutter.  Some people have biscuit cutters, but I'm not that fancy. 

It is super fun to watch them cook. They puff up while they cook, so they're almost like little doughnut balloons.  (That means fewer calories, right?  I mean, since they're mostly air . . . .)

Another highlight:  It's really no more labor-intensive than making waffles.  Of course, waffles don't involve deep frying, but can you imagine if they did?  Are the wheels turning in your head, too?  We may be on to something.

It only takes a matter of minutes for the dough to become delicious puffed fritters.  About 3 minutes for each batch.  If you're having a brunch, this would be a super impressive, and quick to serve, part of your menu.

 

Another thing I learned:  If you use a cheap candy thermometer, make sure you have it tied securely.  The string I was using rebelled and untied itself, so my thermometer went swimming in 300+ degree oil.  It took me a minute to figure out how to get it out (with tongs, then it was transferred to a big wad of paper towels).  Apparently the top of the thermometer was not meant to be submerged in oil.  Go figure.

That thermometer did sacrifice for a worthy cause.

See that section at about 2-3 o'clock?  Yeah, I ate those before I took the picture.  And then I ate several others.  They taste kind of like funnel cake.  Only, more delicious.  And you don't have to wait for the fair.

Have you ventured into trying something new?  Do tell!  Link up with Alicia's Try New Adventures, too!