Leaves Are Falling

So, this area of the country still doesn't really feel like "home", but it's just absolutely gorgeous up here. Trees are just beginning to turn and our neighbor's tree is dropping little orange leaves onto our yard this morning. Most everything else is still green and the temps are amazing (70s). It's pretty humid though. I've been learning more about this area and one thing I've learned is that the Capitol is literally a swamp. The Capitol building used to sit on the edge of the Potomac, and they filled it in with dirt to make DC. Crazy. No wonder there are so many mosquitoes here!

Anyway, the fall-ish weather motivated me to try some cooler weather recipes:

• Cheesy Bread in a Pumpkin (mentioned in the previous post - our guests asked for the recipe so they must've liked it - score!)
• Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili
• Crock Pot Calico Beans (I loved this one, but I'm a girl who loves her meat and beans)
•  S'mores Brownies (combining two of my favorite things!)

Up next on the agenda:

• Crock Pot Italian Cream Cheese Chicken 
• Pizza Casserole 
• Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup (so excited to use this in my recipe for Chicken Broccoli Casserole)
• Rice and Veggie Stir Fry with chicken

Looking for:

• Baking recipes that call for pumpkin! Leave a comment if you have a good one!

More randomness:

I guess the morning-after a rainy evening combined with severe lack of sleep due to a toddler who is getting at least two molars (still waiting for them to erupt!) combined with singing the first hymn (Abide With Me) in our homemade hymnbook (that's in alphabetical order...I was too tired to even turn pages this morning, apparently) has got me in a mellow mood. But I'm loving the reminder that truly man's only lasting hope in this life is in God and in Christ, and I love how the final verse reorders my heart to look to heaven in anticipation of being with Christ.

Abide with me fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens, Lord, with me abide
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.

Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day
Earth's joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

I need Thy presence ev'ry passing hour;
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter's pow'r?
Who like Thyself my guide and stay can be?
Thro' cloud and sunshine, O abide with me!

I fear no foe with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight and tears no bitterness;
Where is death's sting? Where grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.

Reveal Thyself before my closing eyes
Shine thro' the gloom and point me to the skies;
Heav'n's morning breaks and earth's vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

-Henry Lyte 

Update: The Crock Pot Italian Cream Cheese Chicken was really good! It is very, very rich. I almost couldn't finish my portion it was so rich! My husband said this one's going "in the rotation", though sparingly, as its richness makes it an indulgent dinner. Perfect for a nice Italian themed dinner night with your hubby or with company over. 

Snip, Snip and a Recipe

Yesterday, Bram had a little makeover. He started out looking like this:

 He had some cute little curls in back, but as you can see in the first picture, the strands by his ears were long and straight and crazy looking. 

 So, I did a little of this.

 And he ended up looking like this!

Pictured here playing with the woodpecker knocker on the bathroom door...stay tuned, this knocker will appear in Episode 2 of Abode Aberrations.

I'm pretty relieved that my first trim with hair scissors went well. I cut Jon's hair every month with an electric clipper, but I figured the buzzing would freak a toddler out. So we opted for hair scissors. He looks a little older now, and maybe he won't be mistaken as "such a cute, little girl" in the grocery store anymore. 

Oh, and since fall is definitely here in D.C., I'm trying this cheese fondue in a pumpkin recipe tonight. I bought a sugar pumpkin recently and have been excited about roasting it. I'll let you know how it turns out. I'm using Swiss cheese instead of the Gruyere called for. Thanks to my friend Whitney for pointing me to the recipe.

Photo credit: blog.streaminggourmet.com

Sleep, Elusive Sleep

Yep. This screenshot was taken a mere 2 seconds ago from my phone. As many of you know, our Lil' Bundle has never been one to sleep "like a baby". He was up and down and up and down tonight until around 1am I decided to give him a snack and rock him to sleep once and for all (famous last words). Hope with me that he is asleep for good tonight! Thank You Lord for the promise of eternal rest with Christ one day, and, thank You tomorrow for coffee.

Bram's Favorite Things - 13 months

A list...in random order

1. Board books - chewing on them (we call him our Little Goat), turning the pages, having stories read to him

2. Crawling - he finally figured out how to crawl on his hands and knees (versus the army crawl). It only took 12.5 months to "click". This guy does things in his own time, that's for sure.

3. Walking while holding onto one of Mama or Dada's hands

4. Trying to get the silverware out of the open dishwasher

5. Getting ash on his hands in the fireplace...he conveniently chooses to do this when I am in the restroom

6. Mama's car keys (this probably ranks #1!)

7. Taking each piece out of his puzzle and dropping them one by one onto the floor

8. Eating magazines and other paper advertisements...and yes, I did say eating

9. Eating/unrolling the toilet paper

10. Spilling water out of his cup and wiping it all over his tray

11. Babbling - saying Mama, Dada, and lots of random combinations of sounds; he sometimes will mimic us and that's fun! Just like his Mama, though, we have a hard time coercing him to do anything he doesn't want to do, so sometimes when we babble at him we just get the Blank Stare

12. Looking at himself in the mirror - he seriously lights up at his own reflection

13. Seeing dogs, anywhere - cue high pitched squeal

14. Putting sticks, leaves, dirt, and acorns into his mouth

15. His Mama - he's totally a mama's boy, and I'll just be honest, I love it. Well, if I'm being really honest here, I love it unless it's the middle of the night and he only wants me. Which is every night. Sigh.

Does that sound like a little boy toddler to you? It does to me! He's seriously a mess, and we love him.

 Bram somehow manages to twist around (strapped in) in the cart.

He just has to see what I'm seeing as we shop, apparently.

 My perfectly happy little contortionist.

 Abram's new friend, Mason, turned one last week and we got to go to his party.

 He loved his cake!

There are lots of little boys right around Abram's age at church.

Somehow we got most of the babies at the party to sit down for a quick pic.

A Preference For Red?

Earlier this week, our family of three ate at Olive Garden for dinner and made excellent use of gift cards. I was giving Bram beans out of my Minestrone soup as we waited for our entrees to arrive. Funny thing, though, he consistently ate all the kidney beans first and only after they were gone (either in his tummy or under the highchair) did he move on to the (pinto?) other beans. It's fun to watch him make even the smallest decisions like that. Maybe the red beans looked more interesting.

We've also discovered a park down the street where Abram bravely climbed up some steps and into a tunnel. Most of the time we are at the park he looks mildly terrified of the other kids (see the photo above...blogging from my phone means all the pictures show up before the text). He smiles occasionally when he locks eyes with a friendly girl (second photo).

And I might as well continue sharing hymns with you. In my head this morning is "Arise My Soul, Arise". Maybe it will encourage you like it has me.

Arise my soul, arise,
Shake off thy guilty fears;
The bleeding sacrifice
In my behalf appears.
Before the throne my Surety stands,
Before the throne my Surety stands;
My name is written on His hands.

Five bleeding wounds He bears,
Received on Calvary;
They pour effectual prayers,
They strongly plead for me:
"Forgive him, oh, forgive", they cry,
"Forgive him, oh, forgive", they cry,
"Nor let that ransomed sinner die."

The Father hears Him pray,
His dear Anointed One;
He cannot turn away,
The presence of His Son;
His Spirit answers to the blood,
His Spirit answers to the blood,
And tells me I am born of God.

My God is reconciled,
His pardoning voice I hear;
He owns me for His child,
I can no longer fear.
With confidence I now draw nigh,
With confidence I now draw nigh,
And "Father, Abba, Father!" cry.

Grace Upon Grace

On Sunday our pastor Mark, in preaching through John 1, charged the church body to spend time reflecting on the ways we have seen God's grace become evident in our lives. This would really serve not to extol ourselves for any kind of supposed good works but really magnify what God has done  and in response, in thankfulness, to praise Him for it. My husband and I were able to take some time last night and reflect on God's grace to us this past year. Some of the things we thought of were weighty, like how God has lifted our minds more often to spiritual things as we've been through more trial this year than in past years. He's enabled us to long for the day Christ will return and we will dwell with Him. Some of the things were more lighthearted, like being thankful for a blender (see previous post). It was a good time of reflection and proved to be a kind of rest for our souls.

On the theme of rest and specifically, that heavenly rest that all believers one day will enjoy with Christ, I leave you with another hymn that's new to me, but that I'm loving right now: Hark, I Hear the Harps Eternal.

Hark! I hear the harps eternal
Ringing on the farther shore,
As I near those swollen waters
With their deep and solemn roar.

And my soul, though stained with sorrow
Fading as the light of day,
Passes swiftly o'er those waters
To that city far away.

Some have crossed before us safely
To that land of perfect rest;
Can you hear them singing faintly
In the mansions of the blest?

Mighty Jesus, bear us over
There to kneel before Thy throne;
May we join Thy saints forever,
Praising Thee, and Thee alone.

Hallelujah, hallelujah,
Hallelujah, praise the Lamb!
Hallelujah, hallelujah,
Glory to the Great I AM!

I'm linking up with the Heavenly Homemakers series, Gratituesday. Feel free to join in the fun by leaving a comment about how God is working in your life! If you want to officially join in the fun, blog about it and link up with the Heavenly Homemaker at the link below.

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

Blender Battles

Last week, I tried using our blender to blend up the tomato basil soup I had been cooking on the stove. I was going to treat my blender delicately because I knew the plastic base was cracked. I ladled soup in, pressed blend, so far, so good. I ever so gently grasped the glass and barely lifted up, hoping all the pieces would stay in tact. Whoosh! To my great dismay, hot soup spilled out the bottom of the glass blender - the plastic base had gotten stuck in the base/motor area. To my greater dismay, the soup went all over our stove top because I was using that outlet on the stove (which I photographed for you in my Abode Aberrations post). Hot, aromatic, tasty, perfect soup all over everywhere, wasted, gone forever, a hand with pink skin and a filthy kitchen. Mad. Lord, why do we have a broken blender? Lord, why don't we have a food processor? Lord, why don't we have money to have a good food processor? Lord, why did You ordain this soup would be wasted that was supposed to last two dinners? I was the picture of gratefulness.

About an hour later, the half of the soup that never made it to the blender sat cold in the pot. I suggested (no, whined) to my hubby if he would ask the neighbors if we could borrow a blender. That's how we met Bill and Gloria. Thanks, Lord, You helped me look outside myself and look to my neighbors. They are unbelievers and we hope we can share the Gospel with them. They adore our son. They gave us this blender, which they hadn't touched in ten years, they said. They are lonely and not in the best health. They seemed so thankful for the loaf of bread we gave them in return, and I'm thinking, hey wait! Thankful for the bread? You just parted with your blender!

Please pray that we would be able to be a light to Bill and Gloria and that we could introduce them to the True Bread from heaven, the Maker and Giver of all things (including blenders), the Lord of all Creation who is coming soon, Jesus Christ.

Lo, He comes, with clouds descending
Once for favoured sinners slain!
Thousand thousand saints attending
Swell the triumph of His train:
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah!
Jesus now shall ever reign.

Every eye shall now behold Him
Robed in dreadful majesty;
Those who set at nought and sold Him,
Pierced and nailed Him to the tree,
Deeply wailing, deeply wailing, deeply wailing
Shall the great Messiah see.

Now redemption, long expected,
See in solemn pomp appear!
All His saints by man rejected,
Now shall meet Him in the air:
Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah!
See the day of God appear!

Yea, Amen! Let all adore Thee,
High on Thine eternal throne!
Saviour, take the power and glory;
Claim the kingdom for Thine own:
O come quickly, O come quickly! O come quickly!
Hallelujah! Come, Lord, come!

-John Cennick, alt. by Charles Wesley

Train Board

Have you noticed I tend to go in blog 'spurts'? It seems I go through spurts of inspiration and then times of busyness/survival in daily life and it probably shows on this blog. My general
goal is to just blog whenever I can and keep it short so I'm not overwhelmed. The hubby and I saw a project online we're both excited about for A. Maybe for his 2nd birthday or 2.5 year old Christmas? It's creating a fixed train board out of those wooden design-it-yourself train tracks (like Melissa and Doug brand) for toddlers. This project was explained in a detailed tutorial from my favorite home design and DIY blog. After reading through it, it seems feasible. I guess we've got 1-2 years to get it done!

"Funky Kitchen" Free EBook

I write mostly to tell you that my favorite homemaker blogger is giving away free copies of her ebook "Do The Funky Kitchen" today only. I only just downloaded it and already learned something about how to keep my kitchen better organized and more functional. The specific tip was to clean out the fridge weekly before heading to the grocery store so it's all ready to be refilled when you come home. Why have I never done this? I always clean it out after I come home with groceries, which causes me to have to drop everything (including the new groceries) and clean out the fridge just so I can put the new stuff in there. Which causes issues if A needs to be changed or fed or put down right then, too. Nice! I love tips on functionality. I love efficiency.

Now, speaking of kitchen functionality tips, I have one of my own to share. I read it originally on a blog somewhere but I literally think about it every day. Wanna hear it? Here it is: start the dishwasher to run after lunch (or if you hand wash dishes, wash them all after lunch). Then, before you prepare dinner, or maybe after you stick the casserole in the oven, empty the dishwasher/put away all the dishes. Then, you don't have the issue of "Wow, what are we eating on for dinner?", "Gee, we can't load all of our dinner dishes because the dishwasher is overflowing" or, "Wow, I need to make breakfast but there are dishes everywhere and the dishwasher needs to be emptied". My issue was that I would typically run the washer after dinner. But then I'd leave the kitchen for the night and wake up already behind for the day because my dishwasher would need to be emptied right after breakfast (when I'm trying to clean up from breakfast). This way I can work on dinner and get the kitchen ready for evening/morning efficiency at the same time. Maybe this tip can help you, too! If you have any kitchen efficiency/functionality tips - do share. I love comments (and tips!).

Chasing My Days Away

I'll give you one little reason why I haven't gotten to blogging lately. That's right - chasing the cutest little boy you've ever seen. His increasing mobility (though not quite brave enough to walk alone) combined with his love for my iPhone (therefore it stays tucked away all day) and lack of long naps lately = busy mama. We also hosted Aunt Sarah for a week as she was on her way to NY to sight see and friends see.

We've had a great couple of weeks, so I plan on sharing highlights next post. Other than some pictures of A, I thought I'd share a verse of a hymn we sang at church this weekend that I can't get outta my head.

From "Here Is Love" by William Rees:

On the mount of crucifixion,
Fountains opened deep and wide;
Through the floodgates of God's mercy
Flowed a vast and gracious tide.
Grace and love, like mighty rivers,
Poured incessant from above,
Heaven's peace and perfect justice
Kissed a guilty world in love.