Chocolate, A Girl's Best Friend (or at least one of them)

I came across this recipe when searching for a new muffin recipe and I must say these are my new favorite muffins! I am definitely a fan! I just have to say how much I love spelt flour, too. It rises like regular flour and doesn't taste "healthy" like whole wheat flour does, but it doesn't bother the digestive system, either, which is perfect for me! I even used spelt flour in a chocolate chip cookie recipe recently and served them to guests and nobody could tell! JACKPOT (as my brother-in-law, Art, would say)! Here's the muffin recipe:

Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 cup white sugar
3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup chocolate chips
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 tbsp. white sugar
2 tbsp. brown sugar

1. Heat oven to 400F.
2. In a medium bowl, combine first 5 ingredients. In a small bowl, combine next 3 ingredients. Mix altogether.
3. Fill muffin cups + sprinkle each muffin with a combination of the 2 tbsp. white sugar and 2 tbsp. brown sugar.
4. Bake 20 min.

They are pretty sweet, so if you want them less sweet, then just don't sprinkle them with sugar. I LOVE sugar, so I use a combination of organic cane sugar which is a bit healthier and white sugar. Sugar + chocolate = wonderfulness!

Fun Stuff

We had another busy and wonderful week-end!  On Friday, the kids + I met a bunch of friends + their kids at a park for a picnic lunch.  It was warm, sunny, and although we were kind of busy with the kids, we did get some visiting in! 

Then, we went home so Blake could have a nap.  After he woke up + Jared got home from work, we got ready and went to a fair.  My Mom spent most of the evening with Kiera at an area where they had big bouncy castles + slides, so we just had Blake to look after.  He was happy in his stroller almost the WHOLE evening, which I thought was a miracle!  I guess there was enough to see that he wasn't bored.

We had SO much food and it was fantastic!  Chicken wings, pork on a bun, farmer sausage burgers, ice cream, glazed donuts, popcorn (Jared + Blake had some but I didn't), mini donuts, jumbo freezies, fries, watermelon, and probably more food that I'm not thinking of!  We spent the evening with various friends who we ran into there and just totally enjoyed every part of the evening.  We saw this show which was really cool:

Jared went on a couple of rides with some friends and if I wasn’t pregnant, I probably would have gone on this one with him:

Here’s Blake groovin’ to the music

 

We stayed for the fireworks, which I LOVED and the kids really enjoyed them, too. I was very impressed! Just when I thought they were ending, they kept going and going!  

 

Kiera stayed at my parents’ house for night and she saw the parade the next day and got to go on rides!  I had a practice in the afternoon for a voice recital I was playing piano at the next day.  After that, my Mom brought Kiera back, I quickly bathed the kids, and then Jared + I went to a young adult’s bbq (a group of us from church) while my Mom babysat our kids.  After the bbq (which consisted of amazing hamburgers, steaks, salads, and watermelon), we had a few friends over and played games ‘til after midnight.

The next morning, I had to be at church for 8:00 a.m. for worship practice.  After church, we relaxed at home and then I went and played at the voice recital.  It went well and I got paid pretty good money to play piano, so that was a blessing!  I was completely exhausted by the end of the week-end, but it was worth it!

My Grandma

My Grandma (my Mom’s Mom) is very sick in the hospital right now.  We think she might be nearing the end of her life here on earth.  She’s 91 years old, turning 92 if she makes it ‘til the end of July.  She was in the hospital for about a month from March-April, then got better and went back home, and ended up in the hospital again in the middle of May.  I couldn’t see her for a few weeks because I’m pregnant and she had an infectious virus that causes diarrhea.  Others could see her as long as they put on a gown and gloves.  Apparently that infection is gone now, so I should go see her again.  It’s hard for me, mostly because she is SOOOO hard of hearing which makes conversations extremely difficult.  I’m really not that close with her as she has always been old to me (she was 65 years old when I was born) and has been hard of hearing for as long as I can remember.  The only other family member who has died was my Grandpa (her husband) who died at the age of 80 when I was 2 years old, so I don’t remember him.  At the same time, it’s still sad to see her suffering and to see the impact on my Mom and her siblings.  I was hit with a bit of pregnancy insomnia again on Saturday night at about 3 a.m., so I was praying for my Grandma when God spoke 2 lines of a song to me which I knew were for her.  The lines were:

“From life’s first cry to final breath

Jesus commands my destiny.”

I couldn’t remember the name of the song, so I googled it and it’s from “In Christ Alone.”  I printed out the words in big bold font and highlighted those 2 lines, so my Mom was going to give her the song and sing it to her.  I hope she was able to understand and that it blessed her. 

She said she wants to die, which she has never said before.  She’s also never been this sick.  She already told some of the family that she wants “It Is Well With My Soul” sung at her funeral, which would be very fitting.  I love that song.  My Grandma is a prayer warrior, so my Mom mentioned that we will be losing a prayer warrior.  I told my Mom, “I want to raise up more prayer warriors,” and that is one of my heart’s desires as a mother. 

It’s a strange thought to me that my baby will soon be taking their very first breath while my Grandma could soon be taking her very last breath here on earth.  They’re at opposite ends of life.  I want her to be able to meet 2 more great grandchildren here as my sister, brother-in-law, and daughter will be coming here in August shortly after my due date, but I don’t want her to have to suffer all summer if that would be the case.  We’ll see what happens.  Whatever happens, this is a picture I will ALWAYS cherish, taken at her 90th birthday party.

She has lived a full, fruitful life and several generations are experiencing the blessings from her many, many prayers.  Every single member of the family is walking with Jesus and I pray that continues!  What a legacy she is leaving!  I hope and pray the same will be said of me.  Grandma, you will be missed.

La-la-la-lasagna

I’ve now had a couple of people ask me for this recipe since I put it in one of my Facebook statuses recently.  It is one of my favorites, even though I can’t eat too much of it because of the pasta sauce. :(  Oh well! 

Slow Cooker Lasagna

1 lb. ground beef

1 jar pasta sauce

1 15 oz. container of ricotta cheese (I just use cottage cheese)

1 pkg (7 oz) mozzarella cheese (I sometimes use cheddar instead)

1/4 cup parmesan cheese, divided

1 egg

1 tsp. garlic

2 tbsp. parsley

6 lasagna noodles, uncooked

 

Brown meat.  Stir in pasta sauce. 

Mix ricotta, 1.5 cups mozzarella, 2 tbsp. parmesan, egg, garlic, and parsley separately.

Spoon 1 cup meat sauce into slow cooker, top with layers of half each of the noodles + cheese mixture.  Cover with 2 cups meat sauce.  Top with remaining noodles, cheese mixture, and meat sauce.

Cover + cook on low 4-6 hours (I do 6 hours).  Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella + parmesan cheeses + cover for 10 min.

I can’t seem to make a really great lasagna in a pan, as the edges of the noodles usually end up crispy, so I MUCH prefer this recipe.  It’s the best slow cooker lasagna I’ve ever had and my family loves it, too!  It’s a winner!

A Great Week-end

“The more I count these blessings, the more I realize that they really are not the product of my own efforts. They are truly gifts of grace from God above. It’s incredible to open my eyes to them week after week. And humbling. That I should be graced with such wonders? Me… whose heart is weak and black, yet covered with much mercy. How great is Your unfailing love, Lord God of all!” ~Sharaya Crossan

We had a wonderful, busy week-end!  Here are some of the things I’m thankful for over the past week-end:

746. Kiera sharing a toy without being asked to

747. Spaghetti

748. That the weather cleared up and got sunny + hot during our outdoor family gathering yesterday at the park

749. Playing a really fun German game at games night on Friday called 6nimmt!

750. Letting go + letting Blake play in mud puddles yesterday at the park.  I decided clothes are meant to be worn + get dirty and they can always be washed.  He was spattered from head to toe!

751. The new dresser + lamp in the baby room

752. When Kiera wants to hold my hand, which is very often compared to a year ago :)

753. Taking the kids to McDonald’s after supper on Saturday and all sharing a large chocolate milkshake and an apple pie + a peach pie

754. Watching Kiera conquer fears + have fun climbing through tunnels + going down slides by herself

755. The kids’ kitchen center

756. When they announce in church that it’s time for Sunday School…our kids are usually very antsy and need to go by that point!

757. Blueberry applesauce

758. Green Beaver sunscreen…the natural sunscreen I bought for my kids that doesn’t have harmful chemicals, doesn’t give them rashes like other sunscreens, and it works!

759. This face (this was taken last October)

760. Sitting outside in the sunshine in the backyard by myself and reading a book yesterday afternoon while the kids were napping

30 Weeks!

Today, I am 30 weeks pregnant, so I am 75% done this pregnancy! I have felt SOOOO great my whole pregnancy, minus the digestion issues in the winter. I did my glucose test 2 weeks ago and I'm really happy I heard nothing, which means everything is good. With Blake, it was borderline for gestational diabetes, so then I had to take the test again and thankfully the results were good the 2nd time. I am starting to feel like it's getting closer to the end. Gaining 25+ pounds in the past 5 months and carrying it all out in front is starting to feel uncomfortable. It's hard to stand in one spot for more than a few minutes because of the pressure of all that weight, but I'm still managing during praise + worship practices and Sunday mornings. I think it's good that it gets uncomfortable at the end because then I just want the baby out, regardless of the pain I have to go through to get the baby out. I'm REALLY praying for a good labor + delivery this time, as my past 2 experiences haven't been great. The healing process after has always been at least 6 weeks because of the tearing, so I'm also praying I won't tear this time. I had never heard of a perineal massage until last September, so I'm hoping and praying that will help me to not tear this time. My friend tried it and she had a 10 lb. baby at home with a midwife with no tearing!

We still need to do some things to get everything ready. Right now, all of Blake's clothes are in the baby room closet because his closet has cardboard walls inside covered with wallpaper (no joke) and there's only a very short little bar in there. My uncle is going to come and redo the closet so that it will be usable and then I can wash baby clothes and hang them up. Also, there is only a bed in the baby room and 2 cribs in Blake's room (I know that doesn't make sense), so we have to put the bed in Blake's room and the unused crib in the baby room. I am having the same doula again as I had with Blake. She is just wonderful! We met with her once in May and we'll meet with her one more time before I go into labor.

I went to a bonfire last week-end and my friend's sister-in-law asked me, "Is this your 1st?" I said, "Nope, my 3rd." She said, "GOOD FOR YOU!!" People laughed and I said, "Ya, I've actually gotten that before. Good for you, you made it past 2!" There seems to be this line where 1 or 2 kids is normal, but 3 or more is a lot. It's kind of funny. 3 kids means we'll be outnumbered, but I hope and pray it will be a smooth transition. 10 more weeks(ish)...the countdown is on and we are EXCITED!!

Scones

Yesterday, I tried this new recipe for breakfast. They turned out great, so I figured I would share the recipe. I posted a picture in yesterday's thankful list if you want to see what they look like.

Lemon Blueberry Scones

2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup butter, chilled
1 cup fresh blueberries
3/4 cup half + half cream (I just used rice milk)
1 egg
I added almost a tbsp. of Lemon Chiffon Epicure dip mix to make them lemony, but the original recipe doesn't have any lemon in it.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Cut butter into mixture of flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add blueberries and toss to mix.

In separate bowl beat together cream and egg, and slowly pour into dry ingredients, stirring with rubber scraper until dough forms (you may need to add extra cream to get the right consistency). Knead just until it comes together, 3 or 4 times. Don't overhandle.

Divide dough in half. On lightly floured board, shape each half into a 6-inch round. Cut into 6 wedges.

Bake on ungreased sheet about 20 minutes at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Serve warm!!

I was wondering if I should eat them with my pinkies up and Jared suggested I should also have them with tea. I guess that would be the "proper" thing to do! :)