Renovation

I don't change my hairstyle often (okay, ever). I don't rearrange my living room or repaint walls often either. I do, however, enjoy changing things up on the blog on occasion, as you may have noticed.

Something about the old look just wasn't working for me. So I changed it up with technical help from this site. [I thought I should give credit to them for walking me step by step through how to edit HTML and all that fun stuff.]

If you blog and ever want to renovate, just Google whatever you're looking for. Chances are, someone else out there has done whatever it is you want to do, and will hold your hand and help you through the process.

I started with a basic new template in Blogger, Minima Ochre; from there the kind person (people?) at Three Column Blogger walked me through making it three columns, respacing my margins, etc.

Enjoy the new look and the friendly face of my sweet little Bug greeting you when you stop by!

Wise Words

"Infinite, and an infant. Eternal, and yet born of a woman. Almighty, and yet hanging on a woman’s breast. Supporting a universe, and yet needing to be carried in a mother’s arms. King of angels, and yet the reputed son of Joseph. Heir of all things, and yet the carpenter’s despised son. Oh, the wonder of Christmas."
~ Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Baking Day - The Goods

Even though I did what you should not do on a baking day, my freezer is nicely stocked with the fruits of yesterday's labor.

I have wanted to do bulk cooking since I first heard of the concept of "once a month cooking" and bought a book to that effect, appropriately titled, Once-A-Month Cooking. There are many other cookbooks and blogs out there dedicated to this concept, but this one gave me the idea.

My friend, Sabrina, inspired me to actually try it and we're planning on getting together soon for a tag team baking day. (Speaking of Sabrina, you should go here when you get a chance and read her article about money and Christmas on page 16. Very timely and wise words.)

SO, yesterday I did a trial run on my own. I cooked a turkey the night before and got it ready to go. My mom told me how to roast the bird, and I followed her directions (except for remembering to take the livers and extras out).

The 13lbs of turkey meat yielded the following:

*Turkey in the fridge to eat on for a few days
*Filling for 1 meal of Turkey Packets (modified from Once-A-Month Cooking, pg 96) - 3 oz. cream cheese + 2 TBSP milk + 2 cups diced turkey + diced onion; I'll thaw it and spoon it into crescent rolls, making little "packets," which will then be baked. My friend Courtney is actually responsible for me knowing this recipe - using chicken - and it is one of our very favorites in the winter!
*Filling for 2 turkey pot pies (turkey + cream of chicken soup); I will add in mixed veggies when I thaw and add that to a double pie crust to bake.
*2 cups of shredded turkey with onions for turkey salad; I'll add grapes and miracle whip when I'm ready to use it for lunches.
*2 cups plain shredded turkey for random recipes.
*18 cups of turkey broth for 2 or 3 batches of turkey noodle soup. This is a great way to use ALL of the turkey and she gives great step by step instructions.

All of that from one turkey!

I also had one large can of Libby's pumpkin that went a long way. From that I made:

*2 dozen of Erin's @ $5 Dinners pumpkin chocolate chip muffins (some for now, some for later)
*1 batch of Erin's pumpkin pancakes (yields about 16 pancakes)
*Four pumpkin soft pretzels for Matt, since I had leftover pumpkin puree

One of my new favorite dessert recipes that is super duper easy is Yummy Bars of Goodness: one box of yellow cake mix, one bag of chocolate chips, 2 eggs, and 1/2 cup of vegetable oil. Mix it all up and spread it in a 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, depending on how gooey or done you like them. That recipe is courtesy of the Carlisle family, so blame them when you gain 10 lbs. :)

Don't worry, we won't eat turkey every day for the next month. Or pumpkin. We'll mix it up and throw in other things, but it will be oh-so-nice to have something quick to fix on days when chasing a toddler doesn't allow much prep time.

Baking Day - The What Not to Do Edition

Today I embarked upon my first Baking Day, something I've aspired to for some time. I bought a turkey Thanksgiving week for dirt cheap and decided it was time to bust out the bird and cook it. I wanted to bake some holiday goodies, but also some breakfast things that we could pull out of the freezer and heat.

Even though I'm sharing that I baked today, this is the official "What not to do" edition. Here are a few things NOT to do if planning a baking day yourself.

*Do not procrastinate (even if you do have a teething baby boy who had his 15 month vaccinations and is more than a little crabby) putting together a grocery list.

*Maybe I should suggest, do not try to do a baking day if you have a teething baby boy who had his 15 month vaccinations and is more than a little crabby - unless, of course, your other half is a champ daddy and is willing to keep the wee one entertained for the day (like mine did).

*Building upon that first one - or maybe backtracking - do not procrastinate clipping coupons, thus growing a ginormous pile that makes you wilt inside to look at. This will make the grocery list part much harder and maybe make you hyperventilate a little.

*Most importantly, if you do procrastinate, consider rescheduling aforementioned baking day, instead of staying up until midnight clipping coupons and making a grocery list. You'll need your rest.

*Do not enter into baking day without a detailed plan of action and list of things to bake. (Didn't do that either, you guessed it. I made it up as I went along and it wasn't a complete disaster, but not really wise either.)

*Do not begin baking day with a messy sink and a messier fridge (that houses ALL of your freezer containers and plasticware). Take it from me.

*Do not begin baking a 13 lb turkey at 6 pm. You'll be up at midnight (right after finishing your list) picking turkey off the bone and dealing with bird carcass.

*Along with that, do not forget to remove the livers and extra parts in the little packet up top. In other words, remember what your mother tells you. (Don't worry, Mom, I remembered to take the neck out!!)

*Do not try to do your grocery shopping the morning of baking day either. Your tootsies will be hurting before you even start standing in the same place chopping up 13 lbs of turkey.

Lest you think that my first baking day was a complete failure, I did end up with a few dozen pumpkin chocolate chip muffins, a batch of pumpkin pancakes, four soft pumpkin pretzels for the mister, a batch of Yummy Bars of Goodness for the Ugly Sweater Party tomorrow, and six or seven different meals from the turkey, not including the massive pot of broth for turkey noodle soup still brewing.

I'll post tomorrow a better glimpse of what I made and the recipes with links or details; I just had to post what not to do, so next time maybe I won't...making the next baking day even better.

More Reminders

Earlier this week I shared here how I am decorating with purpose this Christmas, in order that we might be reminded of Jesus' birth and God's gifts to us throughout the advent season.

One obvious thing I did not share in that post is our Christmas tree. Even though we scaled way down this year and bought a pre-lit skinny tree for half price at Hobby Lobby, I piled all my favorite ornaments on anyway.

Here are a few of my favorites:

I love this reminder of our precious Bug - a wonderful gift to us. And my, how he has grown!

If you haven't checked out 5 Million Minus 1, you have permission to leave, go there and buy an ornament like the one above. It will be one of your favorites too, because you'll know that in buying it you brought a few orphans a little closer to their mama and daddy.
This is my favorite ornament. It has the words to "Jesus loves the little children," with many children in their traditional national dress. "Red, yellow, black, and white - they are precious in His sight!" One day all the nations, tribes, and tongues will gather around His throne to worship Him alone.

Scattered throughout the house I also have several things with simple words that remind us of what Christmas is about. The simple box above, for example, simply says 'Joy'...as in, "Joy to the world!"
Matt's mom bought me these sweet angels the first Christmas we were married, along with many of my other decorations and ornaments. I am so thankful to have them, not only because of what they say. They also remind me of her, and the gift that she was to me. They remind that even though the Lord gives, He also takes away...but blessed be the Name of the LORD.

Finally, I'm even being more intentional with the wrapping this year.

Sunday morning the Bug wandered up to a gift bag with a picture of the nativity on it, pointed to the bag, and said, "Jzeeessshh." There's no sweeter reminder than that.

Reminders

This Christmas season I want our home and decorations to reflect the truth of the Incarnation, to remind all who enter and us every day that God sent his Son to rescue us and give us hope.

I'm putting a $1 yard sale find to use as an advent candle holder. My plan was to spray paint it black, but for now it is fine as is. Each night we are attempting to light a candle, sing a song, and read a Bible story that reminds us to anticipate Jesus. We will continue lighting an additional candle each week up until Christmas day, when all the candles will be lit. It reminds us that Jesus is the light of the world. The Bug oohs and ahhs over the flickering light every time we light it - so we're taking that as a sign that he loves this new family tradition so far!

I looked and looked for stockings to replace the ones I somehow lost. I didn't find any I liked, so I decided to bust out the sewing machine and DIM (do it myself). I went ahead and made four (Jack gets one this year, I guess), and two still need to be finished; but I'm satisfied with the results. I found some cute cartoonish fabric of the nativity and put that to use, so that even our stockings remind us of how God fills us each day with good gifts, be they large or small.

No reminder of Christ's birth would be complete without a nativity. We are blessed to have this beautiful soap stone (?) set from West Africa, courtesy of the Phillips hailing from Ayerou, Niger. I love this little set because it reminds me of them and reminds me to pray for the precious Songhai people that Mark and Parker serve there.

Our little makeshift Jesse Tree reminds us of Isaiah 11:1: "A shoot will spring forth from the stump of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots." Jesus, of course, was and is that branch, sent as promised by the prophets. Our tree is a symbol to us of our adoption into the family of God - that by Jesus we have been grafted into the tree and have become a part of Abraham's family and are heirs of God's promised salvation if we believe.

I'll share a few more ways we are reminding ourselves of God's Gift to us later in the week, but for today I am thankful for visible symbols of his love.

And...since I did actually finish a crafty project that I started (the stockings), I'm linking up to Kimba's DIY Day @ A Soft Place to Land.

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus

If you're looking for reading material this Christmas season, Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus might be just the thing. I'm ordering it so that we can use it during devotions for the Advent season. It's an anthology with contributions from the sermons and writings of Augustine, Martin Luther, Charles Spurgeon, Jonathan Edwards, R.C. Sproul, and John Piper - just to name a few!

I'm also still reading Treasuring God in our Traditions by Noel Piper, and gleaning some Christmas tradition counsel from her.

Although we always remember that "Jesus is the reason for the season," I long for this Christmas to truly reflect our belief that this time of joy and anticipation every year is really/totally/absolutely about the ultimate Gift - Emmanuel, God with us - Jesus, the one and only.

In the coming days and weeks I'll be sharing how our family traditions are developing, and how we are celebrating the coming of King Jesus this year.