(picture to come)

1 bag of frozen swedish meatballs

1 packet of McCormick brown gravy mix

beef broth

1 cup sour cream

parsley

I made the gravy like the packet instructed but instead of 1 cup of water I used 1 cup of beef broth.  Then I put everything in the crock pot together and cooked on high for 3-4 hours.  I added some more beef broth during the cooking if it looked like it needed more.

I hosted a bow tie themed baby shower for my friend Gracen and her adorable little Quentin.

Jelly Beans in the shower theme colors.

Bow tie napkins. I found the idea on Pinterest.

Pom Poms… another Pinterest inspiration.

Mason jars as glasses with fun colored straws! More Pinterest!

Bow tie pin favors. Yup, I found it on Pinterest!

Q is all tuckered out!

Miss Gracen, the guest of honor!

Here is the entire album. 

 

I made this quilt for my friend’s new little baby.  It’s only the 2nd actual quilt that I have made. I love the way it turned out, although I would make it a little smaller next time and use a different batting that would make the quilt more cuddly.  I still am not very confident in the actual quilting or binding processes, but I guess the more I do it, the better I will get!

My inspiration:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the quilt I made:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is Gracen opening her quilt:

On Friday Amanda, Megan and I (along with their kiddlets) headed out to the strawberry patch!! View the whole album here.

 

Our friends, Amy and BJ, welcomed baby number 2 yesterday.

Lila Ray was born at 8:01 am on April 11th.  She was 6 pounds 15 oz and 19.5 inches long!

Congratulations Amy and BJ, and big brother Levi!

 

Today I finished reading a GREAT book.  If you know me well, you know I’m not much of a reader, so finishing a book is a big deal!  Don’t get me wrong, I want to read, it just doesn’t find a priority in my life. I more or less have the hobby of buying books, not reading books!! But this year I wanted to change that!  I have a stack of 6 books that I want to read this year.  I guess you can say it is my goal for 2012 or my New Year’s resolution. I know 6 isn’t an impressive number, but I needed to have an attainable goal, and since I just shared my lack of time spent reading, 6 is stretching me, but doable! I just finished book #1.  Now, I know we are 4 months into the new year so the fact that I am just now finishing a book doesn’t sound impressive, but in my defense, I didn’t set my goal until March (yes, I’m a little behind!), so I am doing good, but I will have to step it up a little!

Anyway, on to the book review!

The book I just finished reading is called When Will my Life Not Suck? by Ramon Presson. I know the title is a little shocking, but lets face it, who hasn’t uttered those words, even if is was just to themselves? I saw this book on the book table at our church and the title caught my eye. I was reluctant to have people see me reading it for fear that they would think I was ungrateful for the blessings that God has given me. So, I must say for all to know, my life doesn’t suck.  God has blessed me tremendously beyond what I could ask or think.  That being said, I, just like many, struggle with contentment with what the Lord has not allowed in my life, or has taken away from my life.

Quoted from the back cover:

“Personal crises and disappointments have led many to the pessimistic conclusion that “my life sucks.” But underneath the contemporary slang are serious questions: Will life ever be better than this? Is this as good as it gets? Author Ramon Presson, a marriage and family counselor, answers those questions by intersecting his own life experiences with a study of the apostle Paul’s life to show how hope and joy are possible even when life disappoints. Full of practical suggestions for living with purpose and meaning in the middle of significant struggles, this book is an honest and hopeful treatment of human suffering from someone who has personally lived it and counseled others through the wilderness.”

This book was AWESOME!!  I am going to read it again and again for years to come!! It was rebuking, encouraging, and helpful for dealing with a particular area of my life that causes me to be discontent and to question God.  It was a quick and easy read, and I found myself not wanting to put it down. One of the biggest lessons learned from this book for me is found on page 8. Presson says, “I’ve had to confront the fact that I have mentally written a job description for God. I’ve had expectations of God that had nothing to do with reality, and that create dilemmas for me when I think God is falling down on the job.” Often times, I get so frustrated that God isn’t working according to my plan and this quote was just the kick in the pants I needed to remind me that I am NOT in charge!  The most encouraging and helpful passage to me from this book is on page 87. It’s long, but I will share it with you in case it is something that you need to hear too.

“Whatever our loss and however deep our grief, eventually we come to some kind of crossroads that requires us to make a tough decision. While not denying my hurt or thinking that I must some how simply get over it, I nevertheless face a choice. I can erect a monument here in the place of loss and grief and say, “This is where my life stopped and will permanently be buried.” Or, I can erect a marker and say, “This is where my pain has been felt and my deepest questions of have gone unanswered. But with my hurt still with me, I will choose to live.  I hope to find meaningful reasons to live even more fully than before, though I honestly cannot yet see or even imagine what that will look like. With God’s help, I’ll take a step today and another tomorrow in hopes that such a meaningful life really exists past the bend in the road, far up ahead.”

If you have read this book, I’d love to hear your thoughts on it!

Last weekend we took a trip out to Charlottesville to visit Monticello, the estate of Thomas Jefferson.  We took Molly along and she enjoyed the adventure!  She was a great traveler on the 2 hour car ride there and back! The day was perfect and Monticello was beautiful!

During my mom’s visit, we took a trip to Georgetown Cupcake, the famous cupcake shop of TLC’s DC Cupcake.  The cupcakes were WONDERFUL!! The trick to avoiding the long line is to go during the week! We only waited about 5-10 minutes!  Or you can order your cupcakes the day before on their website and just walk in and pay… no waiting in line!

First 4 photos courtesy of my mom.

 

This year we introduced our parents to the Cherry Blossoms in DC.  This was the 100th year celebration!  Peter’s parents came down just as the trees were starting to bloom.  Then my mom came down to visit the following weekend when the trees were at their peak!

As always, the blossoms were beautiful!!

On Friday we went to the Super Pet Expo and took along with us our puppy Molly. We meet a lot of nice dogs and enjoyed some fun entertainment and got lots of free samples of yummy treats (for Molly!) We also found some awesome new pet items!  Here is a list of our favorite (Molly’s opinion is included!) Super Pet Expo finds:

First and foremost: A moose antler chew from Acadia Antlers

Molly LOVES this and will sit and chew on it for hours! It’s natural and safe, so we love it too!

Here is Molly enjoying her moose antler

Second: A Freedom No-Pull Harness

Third: Micro-chipped

We were excited to be able to get Molly micro-chipped for a fraction of the regular price! Pender Vet was offering this service for only $35!

Fourth: The Pet Top 

In addition to all the fun gadgets and gizmos we found, Molly also enjoyed taking a short agility lesson:

Molly’s Agility Lesson from Peter Beninate on Vimeo.