Beach week

 First of all I need to apologize for my blogging absence.  I really have no good excuse besides just being really busy with work and all the fun activities that come along with summer.  Speaking of summer fun, Greg and I recently spent a week at the beach with his family in Isle of Palms.  It was a relaxing week filled with lazy mornings and sunset bocce ball.
  I had such a fun week with all of Greg's family.  His sister is planning her wedding in the fall and I got the chance to go wedding dress shopping with her.  She is going to be a beautiful bride!  One of the funniest moments was trying to paddleboard.  When we watched other people stand up on the board it looked so easy.  Greg and I tried to do it and it was much more difficult than I thought.  I tried again and again to stand up and would always end up with a mouth full of salt water. Of course we had to do the family pictures with the coordinating attire of white and blue.  I've gotta say the pictures really did turn out well without everyone looking too matchy (at least I think so?).

  I am so blessed with family.  Not only did I grow up in a God-centered and loving family but I also married into one as well.  There is such a connection that I have with our family that is so special and makes me cherish the times I get to spend with them.  I love holidays for this very reason.  Even though I haven't been a part of Greg's family for long, I still feel so comfortable around all them.  It helps too that they're all so welcoming.  My family used to always do a huge beach week at my grandparents in Ocean Isle.  My dad is one of eight so we had to rent a few houses to fit everyone.  With cousins getting older, marriages and babies we've haven't been able to keep it an annual event.  This week with his family was a lot like the beach vacations I love having and remember growing up.  Hopefully it will be the first of many to come!!

Thunderstorms

 This past weekend the weather was beautiful.  It would fluctuate between sunny and overcast so we didn't fall over in a heat stroke when we were doing yard work. Yesterday was especially nice. June knew it too.  She was acting restless all afternoon so I finally decided it was time to take her on a walk (after she chewed through my pen and started laying on the book I was reading in my lap). 

We were walking down the street and this is how the sky looked.  I knew I had to take a picture so I used my phone since its all I had with me.  It never actually stormed but there were these thunder clouds that would leave me staring at the sky. I love thunderstorms.  I love the cool feel there is in the air as it rolls in and the scent of the rain coming.  Growing up we would sit on the porch on the lake and watch the storms.  We would see the lightening and try to count when the thunder came to see how close the storm was.  Thunderstorms remind me that there's something so much bigger than us and we're totally out of control of it.  They show God's power and I stand in awe of it. 

My favorites in the kitchen

I was doing dishes and cleaning the kitchen this morning and noticed how much I love this little bowl.  Its one of those items that's the perfect size and fits just right by the sink (you know what I mean...we all have that random thing).  I also like that it doesn't look dirty or dingy regardless that every thing that's in it kind of is.  I love the color.  It reminds me of a dish my grandma would have.  Its my little antique by the sink (what's wrong with me?). 

My other kitchen favorite is this spoon holder.  It took me forever to find something I liked.  I had all this credit at bed bath and beyond after we got married and couldn't find anything.  My mom had this colorful utensil holder that I remember growing up.  After seeing hers, I wanted something that would look decorative in our kitchen.  I finally found this shabby chic jar which is exactly what I was looking for.  I had a cookie jar that matched it.  To my dismay, I dropped it one day when I was cleaning the counters and it broke into tiny pieces all over the floor.  It was pretty traumatic at the time.  Greg was very sweet helping me clean up the mess and my sadness:)  June tried to help too by eating all the broken cookies on the floor. 

Now I've got to find a replacement cookie jar that can stand up to the kitchen sink bowl and utensil holder.

A Good Read...

I've been trying to read more lately.  (One of my excuses for already getting slack on blogging.)  I just finished two books, the first one is N.T. Wright's "Scripture and the Authority of God".  This book is deep but very interesting.  I'll warn you, its not one of those books you can read in front of the TV or while half way checking your email.  Wright makes a lot of interesting points throughout his book with the main theme being on God's authority and how it is exercised through scripture (hence the title).

Wright explains that Scripture's authority is a derivative or delegated authority, for all authority truly belongs to God.  Wright sees Scripture as God's unfinished story in which we are to act out the final scene, which requires an active participation and not a passive reception of the Word of God, which is all too common among Christians.  

Wright talks about our "experience" being where we stand as we hear God's word and know His love which is different from "God's authority" in our lives.  This is explained further by this analogy used.

                 We could put it like this. "Experience" is what grows

                 by itself in the garden. "Authority" is what happens 

                 when the gardener wants to affirm the goodness 

                 of the genuine flowers and vegetables by uprooting 

                 the weeds in order to let beauty and fruitfulness 

                 triumph over chaos, thorns and thistles.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to gain a deeper understanding on the bible as a whole and our role as followers and image bearers of Christ.  It may not be the easiest read but it is well worth it.  I liked that is wasn't too long either:)

Four Wheelin'

This past weekend Greg and I did a 5k mud run.  We had to have a team of four so we got Greg's sister and boyfriend to join us.  We also had to have a team name...4 Wheelin'.  I really didn't know what I was getting myself into when we decided to do this run.  I knew that I could run that far but I wasn't sure about all the mud and everything.  Despite the bruises and body aches I feel now, it was a lot of fun.  They had 32 different obstacles we had to do.  The last one was carrying your team mate across the finish line.

We had a lot of fun doing the race and spending the weekend with Heather and Chip.  Heather and I were both a little nervous about being able to do all the obstacles but we did really well.  It did help that we had guys to pull us over walls and through tires.  There was a group of four girls who went before us and I'm still wondering how they got through the all the obstacles. 

Did I mention that we had to run through mud?!  We were so muddy that we just through all our clothes away after we finished.  It took a couple of showers to finally feel clean.  The water was really cold!

Can I have some?

This is June waiting patiently and desperately for my mom to share her food.  She is so stinking cute when she stands there that I can't help but give her something.  The other day she wanted what I was having so bad.  I was eating grapes.  I know you're not supposed to give dogs grapes but it was really worth it to give her one.  She could not keep the grape in her mouth.  She kept slinging it around all over the room trying to chew it.    It almost became a game to her.  She started barking at the grape and would try and pounce on it.  We've decided she's the brightest of dogs. 

The other thing I love about June is her furry legs.  She looks like a woolly mammoth, especially her feet.  We dog sat one of our friends' dogs this weekend and after seeing June around the other dog I realized just how furry she is!  I'm sure she needs a haircut for the summer but she's so darn cute.  She's a magnet for pine needles in the backyard.  She gets a pine needle stuck to her behind the instant she walks outside.  I also noticed by having a white dog play with June this weekend that her dark brown fur hides the dirt she gets on her paws.  I kept seeing how dirty the other dog was and realized that June is too I just never noticed.  I'm going to continue to tell myself that June's paws are just wet from being outside but not dirty.  I keeps me from mopping the hardwood floors every day!

Jenny's cupcakes

My sister, Jenny, was in town visiting last week.  She has discovered her new talent and favorite pastime, making cupcakes!  These cupcakes are delicious and I'm not just saying that because my sister made them.  My husband took some to work to share and they were almost gone within the first hour. The one I posted is chocolate with peanut butter frosting.  She also made espresso and spice cupcakes.  I keep thinking, "how did you come up with that?"  She could open a cup cake shop with how good these cupcakes look and taste.  The funny thing is that I think she had as much fun coming up with ways to transport these cupcakes as she did making the actually cupcake.  She made cupcake trays with cardboard and plastic cups so they wouldn't get smashed.  The crazy thing is they actually looked good!

My sister is one of the most creative people I know.  She's one of those people that could see anything and figure out how to do it whether its baking, gardening or arts and crafts (I'm still a better cook than her:).  When we were growning up I would always go to her when I had a school project.  She's always my go to person for any creative project I have.  It is frustrating sometimes because she is so artistic and creative and I'm not.  I decided I wanted to start a scrapbook and it looked pretty good.  Then, my sister decided she wanted start scrapbooking too. She ruined my scrapbook because her's looked so much better. I've learned over my 28 years that's just the way it is and some things will never change (I really didn't mean to quote Bruce Hornsby but it just fit).

I'm trying to convince Jenny that now she needs to make a carrot cake cupcake like the carrot cake cookie I had from Trader Joes. Mmmmm.

Did I plant that?

This morning I woke up to a very welcome greeting from June, like it had been forever since she's seen me (isn't it funny how dogs do that?)  We went straight to the back yard so she could take care of business. It was raining and things always look greener in the rain, so I really noticed how well my herbs were doing. I do not have a green thumb like my mom or sister, so to see how well they're doing made me smile! Greg's dad has grown this giant orchid that looks too good to be real.... really, I thought it was fake until I saw him watering it, while I can't even keep a fern alive.  So the herbs are one of the first things that I haven't killed in the past year, and I probably haven't gotten into gardening because of all my previous failures.  This herb pot may be the confidence I need to keep going. I've got to give my husband some credit.  He was the one who said my old herb pot was way too small and picked out this one.  I just don't have an eye for these things...thanks Greg.

Well, I love to cook, especially with fresh herbs. They really make dishes taste better.  Dried herbs will suffice, and can get me through the winter, but everything is better fresh.  I'm still experimenting with what I can grow. So far I have chives, parsley, rosemary, and oregano. The chives starting growing purple flowers when the weather warmed up...  I didn't even know they did that.  I'm saving the bare spot next to the chives  for basil.  Surprisingly, June hasn't tried to eat the plants... like she has with all the other flowers in the yard!  Now my mission is to find some recipes with parsley and chives because they're taking over in that pot.  Any ideas??

One year anniversary

This morning my sweet husband surprised me with this necklace!  Our one year anniversary is this Sunday.

The funny thing (or not so funny) is that last night I did not think my husband was so sweet. We had a typical fight that was really over nothing, but I wasn't going to let him off the hook (I hate admitting this but its true).  Therefore, I did what I always do when I'm mad... give him the silent treatment.

My father-in-law once told us that its so much better to discuss issues when you're both rested.  I don't necessarily agree in going to bed angry, but I've learned that that sometimes this is true!  So, this morning we finally talked and I realized (asI always do) how insignificant our augment was. I'm very slowly learning that it's not worth it to fight over the small stuff.  When we were in marriage counseling my pastor said marriage means that you both give 100% not 50:50. If I always did this in my marriage it would save us both from a lot of upset and disagreement.

Greg was, of course, the first to apologize.  He then surprised me with this necklace. He wanted me to have it so I could wear it for the weekend. (He may have also picked today just to make sure he was really out of the doghouse.)  I've got to say, I love him so much!

Princeton

My parents used to live right outside of New York City until they recently moved back home. I would visit them often, and it was so fun because we would always go into the city and shop (of course!). We also visited Princeton which was just down the road from them. While my best friend and I were recently visiting we decided to tour the campus. It's so beautiful. If you ever get the opportunity to see Princeton you absolutely should. There's so much architecture and history to see. As we were walking around the campus my friend looked up at this dorm room window. We were both fascinated with all the books in the window. We tried to decide if this person read all these books for study? leisure? or are the books just there for the dramatic effect... so people like me will stare into their window in awe of all their academic endeavors. Either way we thought it was a really cool picture.
For whatever reason this scene makes me happy. I have actually framed this picture in my house. Maybe  because it brings back good memories of a fun weekend I had with my friend and family, or it could be that I somehow wish I could be as as studious and read all those books. (I'm afraid I'd probably fall asleep before I finished). Now, I'm wondering which books I'd want to spend all this time reading?!

Carrot cake cookie!

I was at Trader Joe's and decided to try these cookies. I've seen them there a few times and wondered if they were any good. I decided to give them a try. I'm being totally honest when I say these cookies are amazing! If you like carrot cake you will love this cookie. The actual cookie taste like carrot cake and then it has a cream cheese icing filling that melts in your mouth. Normally I don't like cookies with an icing filling if its too sweet but its just right with this one. I feel like one of those chefs on a cooking show who tastes the food and keeps saying "mmmm" and "this is fabulous". I'm always jealous when I watch those people on tv because I want to try the food too.

Have you ever tasted something and it reminds you of something you ate growing up? Or you would eat something and it tastes like something your mom would make? Well, this cookie reminds me of carrot cake that my mom would make. Maybe that's why I like them so much. Its funny how you grow fond of things that you had growing up and it brings back childhood memories. Its as though we want to revert back to those times of being a kid with kool-aid and fruit roll ups (or maybe that's just me?).

When my husband got home I made him try one. He thought they were pretty good too. I think it was all he ate for lunch today. My goal now is to figure out how to make them myself!

June LOVES the lake

My husband and I spent this past weekend at my parent's lake house. Here is our dog, June, and her reaction when arrived. I love this picture. It captures the sheer joy and happiness that she has almost all the time. The only time she isn't happy is when I won't let her play with another dog. I only say "no" because I fear our neighbors will think I'm crazy letting our dog loose in their backyard. She gave me the saddest look this morning when I would not let her go into our neighbor's yard to play with their rottweiler. June, I promise it was for your own good.

My husband surprised me with June, a cockapoo, for my birthday several months ago. At first I was a little nervous about sharing our newly built and decorated home with a puppy. I quickly got over that and have fallen in love with her... and so have my parents. I never thought of my dad as a dog lover but he's definitely become one. He and my mom spoil her as if she were their grandchild. I can only imagine what it will be like when we have kids!

We haven't had many issues with her being in our home, although we put her in her crate at night and while we are at work. June is almost seven months old, so Greg and I finally decided to allow her to roam the kitchen while we gone, hoping she would be okay. The first day she did great. The second day she peed on the floor... no big deal, we just wiped it up. Unfortunately, yesterday she chewed a puppy pad into tiny pieces and gnawed on the floor molding in the corner of the kitchen exposing the unfinished wood. I was okay, but my husband is still trying to get over it. Her cuteness is about the only thing that kept him from throwing her out. Sorry June, it's back to the crate.

June has never met a stranger. She must sniff and greet everyone she meets. In my opinion, she's a great example for how I want to be. OK, that sounded really weird. I have no desire to sniff people. However, I would like to be as excited about meeting people and saying hello as she is. When I'm at work I so often look down or act too busy to say hello to customers. I am a pharmacist at a very busy retail store so a lot of time I am really busy but I never want to be too busy for people. Before I had a dog I had friends tell me they're so great because they love you unconditionally. Why can't I be that way too? I know this probably sounds so crazy that my dog is convicting me of being unfriendly to people. Sometimes I can be a little crazy so I'll accept it.

June is one of the many blessings that I have in my life. I smile as I sit here and watch her dig a whole in the back yard (sorry Greg) and then get distracted by a butterfly. She's another reason why I have so much joy in my life.