Blog Peer Pressure

Blog peer pressure - it's a very real thing. You know what I mean. When you haven't blogged in awhile (because you're too busy) it comes on. You start to imagine all your friends out there visiting your blog and thinking to themselves (in disappointment), "Nothing new...again." It's painful. It's humiliating. I can't handle it any longer!

But, the truth is, life has been a whirlwind. So, I thought I'd redeem myself by summarizing the last 6 weeks.

May 28- June 1 Camping in Yosemite
Hiked to Nevada Falls, in preparation for hiking Half Dome next year. I say this with fear and trepidation. Campsite fees: $80. Gas bill to get there: $300. Ouch. Great food and fellowship in one of the most gorgeous places on earth!

June 8-11 Camping in San Clemente
Had a tire blowout with the trailer on the way down, resulting in $4000 damage to the trailer -flying shrapnel hit side of trailer. Yes, we have insurance. Todd Brooks lost his swim shorts bodysurfing. Todd Brooks lost his wedding ring bodysurfing. It was overcast the whole time but the sun came out just as we were packing up to go. Trailer has been at Mike Thompson R.V. shop since then for repairs. Got new Rainbow sandals at the outlet there. The Bagel Shack rocks!

June 13-15 Resolved Conference in Palm Springs
Great perk of being the wife and kids of an Elder at Grace: free Resolved with reserved front row seating- Nice. Temp in Palm Springs: 115 degrees. Awesome teaching on heaven (John Mac, Randy Alcorn, C.J. Mahaney, Rick Holland) and music by the Resolved band, now known as Enfield. What a privilege!

June 28-July 1 Juniors Camp in Angeles Forest
Nine 6th graders for 3 days. Felt like the mother of nine-tuplets. Killed hundreds of mosquitos in the cabin and ate lots of hydrogenated food. Sleep total for 3 days: 10 hours. (Had to make an exception to my no caffeine consumption habit with daily bottled Starbucks frapps.) Praising the Lord for the opportunity for our whole family to go and serve. A joy to watch our kids love serving. Tom Patton did a great job teaching and we pray hearts were changed!

July 3-6 Camping in Big Bear
Borrowed DeShong's toy hauler which provided incredible lake views! Pontoon boat, jet ski, lots of fishing and 4th of July fireworks show. Very relaxing - caught up on my sleep. Peach cobbler on the barbecue - Yum-O.

Well, it was all great, but pretty near sent me over the edge.

So, now we're home for a bit and I'm loving it. For awhile there, it was a pattern of Trader Joe's, pack, travel, unpack, laundry, Trader Joe's again... yesterday when I was at the checkout the checker guy at the next checkstand looked at me funny and then asked "Weren't you just here a few days ago buying another big load?" "Yes." was my embarrassed response. Him: "That food's all gone?" Me: "Yep." Him: "Wow."

To add to the chaos, we've also been in the midst of construction here for a few weeks as well. The back wall of our house (dining room/family room wall that faces the backyard) was quite a mess, to say the least. To be honest, that side of our house was literally ready to collapse if we didn't do something about it. We had to have the entire wall torn out and propped up so Roy Chacon's crew could rebuild it. We got all new windows and doors as well. We found out that our big floor to ceiling windows were not even tempered glass. Not good around a pool - I am surprised that they haven't shattered by being slammed into with basketballs and other pool items or small children running around the pool when they shouldn't be. We also found out that we had live termites when they tore out all the wood. That's not yummy. Very thankful that we could get this done. We are hibernating in half the house while they work.

I've been so busy and I've really missed cooking. I seriously cannot think of the last meal I made! All my fruit trees are ripe - tons of plums, peaches and apples that I long to make into pies and cobblers. And, unfortunately, no time for the usual making of jam. Tomorrow though, we are having some of Rich's colleagues over for dinner so I am going to make my favorite - Vanilla Peach Pie. I'm doing my standard summer menu for a group:

BBQ Ribs and Chicken with my yummy table mop sauce
Corn on the cob with basil-butter
Caesar Salad
Pasta Caprese Salad (pasta, fresh mozz., fresh basil, diced cherry tomatoes, vinaigrette)
Fruit Salad
Bread Sticks (TJ's)

It's a great menu because I can get some of the items out of the way the day before. Today I made the Caesar dressing, boiled the pasta for the salad, and made the barbecue sauce.

I have to say that I really do make some fine ribs. Costco sells great baby backs and I season them with a little s & p and wrap them in foil packets (cut the ribs into sections first) on cookie sheets. I bake them at 250 degrees for 2 1/2 hours, then I grill them, basting them with my barbecue mop sauce. They turn out so tender and yummy. My sauce is easy: 3/4 c. ketchup, 1 c. bottled hickory barbecue sauce, 1/3 c. orange juice, 2 T. soy sauce, and cayenne powder to your liking. Simmer for awhile- best made the day before. It's my favorite. Tip on the chicken too: Brown it on the grill, then cook in the oven to doneness. That way you don't get chicken jerky on the outside, raw inside. And, you aren't barbecuing as your guests are walking in (dangerous - that is when you burn food.)

So, there, hopefully I've redeemed myself. Happy Summer everyone!

Tag I'm It

Recently my friend my friend Julie tagged me to reveal six unremarkable quirks about myself, so here goes:

1. I get very fearful if I don’t have a lip balm on me 24/7. And it has to be Carmex brand mint or cherry flavor (I accept no substitutes). Ditto with Neutrogena Hand Cream.

2. I am always experiencing a food obsession of some sort. Currently, it is Trader Joe’s frozen mocha pops. I must have one every day or something bad will probably happen to me.

3. I don't do caffeine. (exception: what is in my Trader Joe’s mocha pop, of course!) When people find this out, they are like "Why NOT??" so I figured this qualified as a quirk.

4. While I am a health nut, I am also a candy freak. My house overflows with dishes of all kinds. Some of my favorites: Hot Tamales, Rolo, Almond Joy, 100,000 grand, Butterfinger, Peanut Butter M& M’s, and anything sour and chewy.

5. Aspartame totally freaks me out. I will not even chew gum if it has it in it. I am very vocal about it too. It should totally be banned.

6. I secretly desire to stop coloring my hair and go gray. I admire young women who can do it. I'm not quite ready yet though...

Now, I get to tag six fellow bloggers- I pick Suzanne, Emma, Nancy, Myra, Savannah, and Beckie. (It was a stretch for me to find 6 fellow bloggers!) Tell me your quirks!

Here are the rules:

* Link the person who tagged you
* Mention the rules in your blog.
* Tell about six unremarkable quirks of yours.
* Tag six bloggers by linking them. (They shall be "it")

Have fun!

Happy Birthday Emma & Austin!

Today, June 25, is a very special day in our family because Emma, and Austin, my sister's oldest son, were both born today! Isn't that funny that two sisters would have a child born on the same day? And also, June 25th is also our parents' anniversary. This year, Emma is turning 15 and Austin is 11! Happy birthday to two of my favorite people!! Above are two pictures that pretty much represent these two people and the way you'll find them...Emma with her camera and Austin with the hugest grin!

Now for a little gushing on Emma for her birthday...

Dear Emms,

Happy birthday to my baby! I love so many things about you. You are a wonderful girl...sweet, thoughtful, tenderhearted, loving, funny...but most of all I have to say I just love your company! I love to hang out with you and live life with you. I love to see you developing into a young woman with a heart for God. You are responsive to God's word, and love to serve and be around God's people. You are a joy and a gift to me.

Well, I wish you a wonderful day today, doing some of your favorite things: getting a mani-pedi, going out to lunch and shopping with Kait, and dinner at CPK! Enjoy!

I love you!

Mom

The appliance curse

I don’t know what it is about me and appliances. Recently, I blogged about my washing machine being on its way out at the ripe old age of 4. And, now, the latest casualty is our kitchen refrigerator. It was almost 5 years old when it died last Friday evening. Now, I say that it died, but it really could just be in need of a $5 part. I’ll never know. We decided that we would not call in an expert in this time because we know the routine:

1. Call the appliance repairman to get an appointment.

2. Wait 3 or 4 days for the earliest appointment.

3. Drop everything and stay home an entire day waiting for the repairman who has said he’ll be there “between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.” (which involves penning the dogs all day and leaving the electric gate open).

4. At 5:59 p.m., the repairman arrives.

5. He spends about 3 minutes looking at the appliance.

6. He gives me a quote for repair and the price is about the same as the purchase price of the item (if not more).

7. I tell him not to repair the appliance.

8. He charges me $75 for his helpful information.

9. I go and buy a new appliance.

So, we just decided to cut out steps 1-8 this time. Much simpler. The end result is always the same so why aggravate yourself. My sweet and understanding husband took me over to Lowe’s at the first possibly opportunity to get a new one and he even let me pick it out. Happy wife indeed.

So, the refrigerator arrives this morning. It doesn’t fit. That’s right, it’s ¼” too tall. UGH. Rich measured and remeasured the floor model at the store, but it still didn't fit. I just think that when my house was built in 1937 that nobody could have imagined such monster refrigerators and made the openings too small. So, I’m on the phone with Rich and he’s saying “it will fit" and the delivery man in my kitchen is saying, “no, it doesn’t.” I'm in the middle wondering what to do. So, I tell the delivery man to leave the refrigerator in my breakfast nook and my husband will make it fit when he gets home, thank you.

So, Rich is spending his evening cutting down the cabinet above to squeeze this baby in.

But, I am truly thankful. On Thursday and Friday, I purchased close to $800 worth of perishable food for Kiara Tyler’s memorial service Saturday. I put it all in the garage refrigerator (which I’d like to point out is a cheaper and older refrigerator than the inside one, and I bought it used). All I lost in the house were some breads and not more than $40 worth of misc. groceries. It would have been devastating to have lost all that food outside. So I am thankful that it was the inside fridge that died, and not the outside one!

I am also thankful that we were able to get a replacement so quickly. I am thankful for my husband who is working diligently to get it taken care of right now, even though he probably had other plans for this evening. And, I am indeed thankful for Lowe’s next day free delivery!

Emma's blog has changed...

You can now find Emma's blog at http://www.emmaleighphotography.blogspot.com/

So much blogging to do...so little time

There is much to blog about - San Clemente and the trailer "mishaps", the Resolved Conference, and most importantly, the recent homegoing of little Kiara Tyler. However, we have not been home much and this is a busy week helping with the reception for the memorial service, so for now, I direct you to my sister's blog for some sweet thoughts on Kiara.

On a lighter note, I just had to post this video that Drew filmed and directed, while we were in Yosemite. Keep in mind that it's all supposed to be satirical...they are poking fun at this song and it's "cheesiness" or as Rich would say, it's a "Jesus is my boyfriend" song! Enjoy!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=fibPEr095_8

Be sure to click on "watch this in high quality" before viewing, and be sure to stick around for the credits...

San Clemente

We're heading to San Clemente this Sunday afternoon with our dear friends, the Brooks. We've been friends and camping buddies for a long time! So, for this week's "Way back When" Wednesday, I thought it fitting to post some old camping photos I found from the summers of '96 and '97. Too cute!


Billy Brooks



Courtney and Diane



T.J. and Emma (after PB & J?)



Katherine and Emma (notice that they are just sitting in the dirt)



L to R: Drew, Katherine, Courtney, Billy, T.J., Emma, Brady



Drew hasn't changed a bit - always snack bag in hand



Rich and I



Emma celebrating 4th of July



Emma waiting for a shower



Drew looking rather pooped out


Drew and Brady poppin' wheelies



Emma and Katherine obediently napping on the beach



Todd and Billy



The gang at the campsite



Brady and Drew just havin' fun on the beach

Summer salads

Here are a couple of my newest creations in the salad department. They are perfect for summer lunches or dinners.

Enjoy!


Berries & Greens Salad

4 main dish servings

16 cups mixed salad greens
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (I use the rotisserie chicken from Costco)
2 cups mixed fresh berries (strawberries- sliced, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries)
2 avocados, diced
½ cup walnuts or pecans, chopped,

Dressing:

6 T. extra-virgin olive oil
2 T. Dijon mustard
3 T. orange juice or cider vinegar
1 T. sugar or honey
fresh pepper

Whisk all ingredients together, adjust to taste if necessary with more oil or vinegar.

Distribute salad greens onto 4 dinner-size plates. Top in the following order: chicken, berries, avocado, and nuts. Drizzle dressing over and serve.

Note: Citrus segments (grapefruit or orange) work well in place of the berries.



Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

Serves 4-6 as side dish

Salad:

1 eggplant
2 zucchini
2 red or orange bell peppers
½ large red onion
6 T. olive oil
½ lb. orzo pasta or any kind of pasta
1 4 oz. package crumbled feta cheese or diced fresh mozzarella cheese
handful of kalamata olives, optional

Vinaigrette:
Whisk together:
½ c. olive oil
¼ cup red wine vinegar
1 heaping tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
1 clove fresh garlic, if desired

Prepare vegetables for grilling: cut eggplant lengthwise into 1/2" slices, cut each zucchini lengthwise into 1/3" slices, cut each bell pepper into quarters (discarding seeds and center), and slice red onion into ½” thick slices. Season 6 T. olive oil with a little salt, pepper or lemon pepper, and dried herbs (I use herbes de Provence). Brush vegetables all over with the olive oil mixture, and grill on high until you see some nice grill marks (turn veggies frequently). Chop veggies into dice (Can be done a few days in advance).

Cook pasta al dente. Drain and cool a bit, then toss with veggies, feta cheese, and vinaigrette. Top with olives. Cover and chill several hours. When serving, taste and add a splash more vinegar or oil if it is too dry.

You can easily double this recipe, or add other ingredients to salad if desired: fresh herbs, cubed roasted chicken breast, chopped artichoke hearts, sundried tomatoes, toasted pine nuts, or whatever you like!

Maria Chapman's Memorial Service

I wanted to share an exerpt from an email we received from Rick and Kari Dempsey after they returned from the memorial service for little Maria Chapman last Saturday:


Thanks for all your prayers for the Chapman family. They certainly have felt the love of God over the past few days from all those who have lifted them up in prayer during this unimaginably difficult time.Kari and I are flying back to LA as I write after an amazing two days in Nashville. This was life changing. The name of the Lord was exalted in ways that we could never retell. We are in awe at His grace, compassion and mercy. Little Maria's life, although short, has already moved mightily in peoples lives to bring Him glory.

Last night the entire family stood in the church as a long line of friends and acquaintances greeted them, hugged them, cried with them and loved on them. The Chapman family and Steven's ministry has obviously impacted so many. They stood there for more than 4 hours before one of the pastors finally stopped it and had hundreds still remaining in line just sit down and then Steven apologetically, but so graciously addressed the entire group.

At the funeral, both Michael W. Smith and Matt Redman helped lead everyone in worship. Matt led us in a song we often sing that he wrote, "Blessed Be the Name of the Lord." It was amazing to watch the Chapman family sing with loud voices as they hugged one another, "He gives and takes away. He gives and takes away. My heart will choose to say, 'Lord, blessed be your name.'" This song will never be the same to me personally.

We worshipped and sang for 30-minutes. And then the Chapman's celebrated Maria by sharing stories and talking about her for almost an hour and a half, praising God for her life and acknowledging that she was safe in the arms of Jesus. All the while pictures of Maria flashed on two big screens behind the stage - her little white casket at the foot of the stage. She was buried in the "flower girl" dress she was going to wear in Emily's upcoming wedding.

Jeff Moore sang Steven's song "With Hope" which Steven wrote for a family years ago, going through the same type of tragedy. All of Maria's little friends came forward and placed a flower at the foot of the casket while Jeff sang.

The Chapmans are unwaivering in their love for Christ and doing well. Their entire family was a display of faith in practice at the most difficult time of their lives. No one in the family wore shoes, because the veil had been lifted for Maria. They were on "Holy Ground" and God's presence was felt.

Caleb (19) said in his prayer, "while we've always been excited about Heaven, it seems so much more real now...and gets us that much more excited to be there ourselves someday. So we'll live life on Earth as if each day counts until we get there.". He also said that although they are "confused" they've never been so sure about Christ and His saving grace. Caleb likened this to one of those abstract pictures that when you're up close, you can't see what it is, but as you step back, you start to see what the artist wants you to see. He said, "And this is a big picture, so we may have to stand waaayyy back."... but we will see what the Artist has designed and what the picture is.He has his dad's wisdom - well beyond his years.

Emily Chapman (22) just got engaged and said that after the proposal, Maria was the only one who asked, "What did you say?". Maria asked it multiple times. (Of course Emily said "yes" to her future husband). But Emily addressed the 3000+ crowd and turned Maria's question back to everyone listening in regards to their answer to Christ's proposal to each of us,. "What did you say?". Powerful under these circumstances. The good news of the Gospel was presented four times throughout the ceremony by the family.

Steven was a rock and just gave all the glory to God. The model of a humble, Godly man. I'm so proud to call him a friend. His humility and appreciation for everyone there, which was a testament to his character and his sincere faith and love for his God and His son, Jesus Christ. As he hugged and cried with Kari and I, he just kept reminding us that "Heaven is real."

Steven shared that after the accident, in the hospital, he held Maria's lifeless body and cried out to God. He cried out, asking to somehow see some kind of sign that she was going to be okay...to see that she was going to be safe. When they got home that night, they found the last picture Maria drew on that Wednesday afternoon on her little art table (she loved to draw!). It was a flower and a butterfly and folded in half like a card. When Steven opened the card up, she had written one word on the inside - a word he didn't even know she knew how to spell. It was "See." A simple answer to his cry to 'see' that she was safe.

Please keep praying for them. They are worn out, sad and yet rejoicing in the Lord.

All in all God was glorified. Praise Him for His sovereign ways.

Rick (and Kari)

"We can grieve with hope"

The Chapman Family - Maria is sitting on Steven's lap

These are the words of a Steven Curtis Chapman song that have been resonating in my mind since I got the heartbreaking news Wednesday evening that his youngest daughter, Maria, had been accidentally struck and killed by the family vehicle her teenage brother was backing out of the driveway at their home. Maria had just turned 5 and was the Chapman’s third adopted daughter from China. Steven and his wife Mary Beth had already adopted two orphan girls and thought they were done until Steven met Maria on one of his many trips to an orphanage in China. There was a mutual admiration and special bond that formed between him and this little girl and soon the Chapmans were convinced that Maria was meant to be part of their family and brought her into their loving fold. These lyrics “we can grieve with hope” refer to the way that Christians view death of one of God’s children. In 1 Thess.4:13 Paul tells us not to be uninformed in the matter of those who have died, and exhorts us not to “grieve as those who have no hope.” As Christians, we have the distinct hope of knowing that those who have died in Christ are in heaven and that we will see them again someday. In Maria’s case, the bible also makes it very clear that little children have a special provision to go to heaven, should they die too young to have been put their trust in Christ. So we do grieve, for this is indeed heartbreaking, but we can grieve with hope. Praise God.

As I read the headlines yesterday, “tragic accident” was often reporters’ phrase of choice. Yes, it was an accident in the sense that it was obviously not intentional or desired to happen, but that is merely the way we as human beings think. We wish with all our hearts that this had not happened! But, this is not the mind of God. There are no accidents in His economy. Not one. Everything that happens was perfectly planned by Him before the foundation of the earth and is for our good and His glory. The word tragic carries an implication that something was a mistake. Again, God doesn’t make mistakes so we must train our minds to view matters the way God does when these types of situations present themselves.

“It’s time for letting go of all of our ‘if onlys’, cause we don’t have a time machine. And even if we did, would we even want to use it – would we really want to go change everything?”

These lyrics come from a recent song of Steven’s, and is certainly applicable here as well. If only Maria hadn’t been where she was. If only her brother had seen her when he backed out the car. If only she were still in China... If only, if only, if only...then this wouldn't have happened. The reality is, God wanted Maria's life to end on May 21, 2008, and planned the circumstances in which it was to happen. Her being in the driveway was actually a divine appointment. That was the means He used to bring her into His loving, heavenly arms. We should rejoice that God’s perfect will was done and we must agree with all our hearts that God, and He alone, is the only one wise and worthy enough to plan the events of our lives.

Well, we of course we know all this, but oh, how my heart aches for the Chapmans right now. We had the opportunity to meet Steven, Mary Beth, Caleb and Will Franklin in New York last month. They are very special people. Having lost Brady, I can certainly know to some extent how they are feeling right now – but also having to deal with their teenage son and all he must be going through is going to be difficult. He is just a teenager – but I pray that God would grant this boy the spiritual maturity and firmness in his faith beyond his years to be able to deal with this. There would obviously be a huge sense of guilt and personal responsibility added to him in addition to the already deep grief and sadness over the loss of his little sister. I pray for Steven and Mary Beth that God would grant them great wisdom in helping their son understand God’s sovereignty and purpose. May they love their son deeply, lead him rightly, and may he know the type of peace, love, and forgiveness that only comes from knowing Christ.

Steven’s music has been a great benediction in my life, and I now pray that all the many lyrics he has composed from God’s word will come back to his own heart and minister directly to him. I believe that God has prepared him for this and I am actually excited to see the way God is going to use this in his life and music. He is obviously in a position where the world is watching him go through this, and there is great potential, I believe, for God to strengthen the worldwide church through this, as well as bring many to salvation through Steven’s testimony of God’s grace and love in the midst of such deep suffering. May the brief but special little life of Maria Sue Chapman be used to bring great glory to God. Though I know she has undoubtedly already made a huge mark on the Chapmans in the short time they had her, I think still much of the impact of her life lies yet to be fulfilled in them, as well as in all of us.

For more, you can visit http://www.stevencurtischapman.com/

From Steven's song, Much of You:

I want to make much of You, Jesus

I want to make much of Your love

I want to live today to give You the praise

That You alone are so worthy of

I want to make much of Your mercy

I want to make much of Your cross

I give You my life

Take it and let it be used

To make much of You