Rockstars


We are really going to miss these two. 


Devin and Jessica joined our small group Bible Study about two years ago, and their move to Chicago marks what feels like the end of an era. 

We and they were the last of a small group that began four years ago when Zade and two guy friends started meeting for accountability the season before they all wed.  Once hitched, the wives got to join in the fun! 

Through this small group we've shared meals and "the hope to which we have been called" (Ephesians 1:18) with six fantastic couples who've moved in and out of our group along their journey following Christ.

Betsy and Ryan - a joyous couple who blessed our lives with their wisdom. 

Amy and Chip - an artistic couple passionate about truth. 

 Brent and Danielle - an athletic pair who knew how to be real. 

Chris and Jana - our go-to couple for questions about politics who demonstrated care through being active listeners. 

Dan and Darlene - a sincere, adventurous couple who have the cutest boys ON THE PLANET. 

I am so thankful to God for the way He placed these couples in our lives. We've laughed and sorrowed together. They've prayed with me, and cared for me, during the hardest period of my life.   

The official end of our small group causes me to look ahead in anticipation of our next step in life! 

We had Devin and Jessica over for a goodbye dinner this week. Because they are moving to Chicago, we grilled up some beef franks and served Chicago-style dogs! 


How do the Chicagoans like it? Drug through the garden! On a poppy seed bun add a beef frank, peppers, pickles, relish, yellow mustard, tomatoes, onions, and celery salt! 


Some fun facts about Devin and Jessica:

1. They were BOTH drummers in bands....we like to call them our rockstar friends.

2. Jessica is a MASTER couponer. She has shown me shelves of noodles and laundry detergent that she has managed to get for free. I am constantly amazed. 

3. Devin is passionate about theology. He speaks Zade's language. They have forever long conversations including words like Molinism, cessationism, dispensationalism, Christian hedonism, soteriology, and the like.

 

Goodbye dear friends! Keep rockin.

Eating Bugs


I ate a bug.

If we're counting, I actually ate three...two mealworms and one chocolate covered cricket. 

Last weekend we partook in an annual spring festivity - where bug munching is blase. You may recall that last year we competed in a little cricket spitting. 

This year I swallowed.




Any takers?


April showers proved true, but that didn't keep us away!


We sampled the local honey. 


 

And made friends with the fuzzy babes.

Spring, you are full of merriment. 

Twist Me A Crown of Wind-Flowers













"Twist me a crown of wind-flowers;
that I may fly away 

To hear the singers at their song,
And players at their play.


















Put on your crown of wind-flower:
But wither would you go?



Beyond the surging of the sea
and the storms that blow.



Alas! Your crown of wind-flowers
Can never make you fly: 

I twist them in a crown to-day,
And to-night they die."



- Twist Me a Crown
Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830-94)

Seventh Brother



This past weekend my youngest brother Stephen played a "townsfolk" suitor in his high school's musical production of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. He competes with the "brother" Benjamin Pontipee for Dorcas' hand and sadly does not prevail. 

He kind-of had the suavest dance moves on the stage. What was Dorcas thinking? Your loss girl. Your loss.

Have you every seen this 1954 film rendition? My family holds a special affinity for the story because we have seven children in our family. Growing up, my sisters and I watched this movie over and over again, each pretending to be one of the "brides" and Stephen, whether he acknowledged it or not, was assigned the youngest Pontipee brother Gideon.

There is a part in the film where Gideon, after hearing the cry of his newborn nephew, marvels "I'm an Uncle" and faints. EVERY TIME we watched the movie as kids we would stand up during this part, mimic Gideon, and faint. Every time. Family tradition. Funny how things like that get perpetuated.

{These guys look pretty happy for just being passed over for some scroungy backwoodsman}

 
Look at that stud-muffin. 

Polar Bear Visitor



This little polar bear stopped by our home to rest after his long traverse from the Arctic. 

He commenced his expedition to Michigan two weeks ago on the night Luke Adam was born. He knows he was made to be best-of-friends with Luke and the long journey was made short dreaming up the adventures they will spend together. He got a little turned around on his way to Michigan (that's what happens when you ask a moose for directions) and ended up further south than anticipated. 

 When he heard that we are cousins to the Luke he asked if he could bunk a couple of nights with us before trekking the rest of the way. 

He's partial to a frigid climate. So, we fixed a bed for him where he'd feel most at home. 





 Luke, we can't wait to meet you! 

Bulletin Board Makeover


A little over-the-weekend project for the kitchen. 



I've been storing the two vintage strawberry trays since I bartered them down to $2.50 a pair the summer before last (a proud garage sale moment). 


Stumbling upon this picture finally helped me decide how to use them. 


I knew I'd need more trays, so with a little e-bay hunting I happened upon the gingham set of ten. 

So perfect. 


A sweet and simple way to display photos of dear friends, little notes, and dental appointment reminders. Egh, better to forget that last one. 

Admirable Combinations: Giraffe Gingerbread + A Blossom in the Desert


I decided to begin a new "series" on this blog called "admirable combinations" where I highlight a scrumptious treat and book I'm savoring at present. The title is inspired by C.S. Lewis' quote "eating and reading are two pleasure that combine admirably." Oh that Clive, he's so quotable.

The first in this series are giraffe gingerbread cookies and A Blossom in the Desert: Reflections of Faith in the Art of Lilias Trotter.

The so-cute-you-feel-bad-about-biting-their-heads-off giraffe gingerbread cookies were made by our friend Charlene as a treat for Zade's birthday. She left them hung in a white paper bag on our doorknob - a fun surprise to come home to! 

A Blossom in the Desert is a compilation of Lilia Trotter's sketches and paintings paired with writing excerpts from her diaries, journals, and out-of-print books. 

She is truly one of my heroes of the faith. Her humility and submission to God kindles my soul. If we have a daughter I hope to name her "Lilias." 

Below is an excerpt from her "Lesson of the Buttercup"...



"Look at this buttercup as it begins to learn its new lesson. 

The little hands of the calyx clasp tightly in the bud round the beautiful petals; in the young flower their grasp grows more elastic - loosening somewhat in the daytime, but keeping the power of contracting, able to close in again during a rainstorm, or when night comes on. But see the central flower, which has reached its maturity. The calyx hands have unclasped utterly now - they have folded themselves back, past all power of closing again upon the petals, leaving the golden crown free to float away when God's time comes. 

Have we learned the buttercup's lesson yet? Are our hands off the very blossom of our life? Are all things - even the treasures that He has sanctified - held loosely, ready to be parted with, without a struggle, when He asks for them?" - Lilias Trotter in A Blossom in the Dessert

Zade's Birthday: Two are Better Than One

Zade and I observed the passing of thirty to thirty one years by asking off our respective works and spending a restful, unpretentious day together. 

The theme for this birthday was "two are better than one" from this passage of Scripture.

The decor.....



A little drawing of the two of us holding hands. 

The gift.....



Since purchasing our X-box console a few months ago Zade and I have affirmed the need for another controller so we can spend date nights nerding-out together once in a while. I snagged this one off Craigslist from a plump, sweet-looking high school boy with a mouth full of braces. We made the trade-off at a movie theater. It seemed fitting.


The cake.....



I tried - and failed miserably in my domesticity- to make this cake from Sweetapolita. My salted caramel swiss buttercream filling was a sweet, frothy mess - the consistency of cottage cheese. Yes, that bad. I threw it out and opted for a favorite chocolate standby. Ladies from our church let me borrow their six inch pans - so kind - the size is so darling. 


 

"Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow." - Ecclesiastes 4:9,10

Thank you Zade for being by my side to lift me when I fall.