Saturday Morning

This morning I woke up to the snow scene that I had hoped for. (well, I would have liked a few more inches, but I'm very happy with our 2-3.) White mounds over the hills at our house and on our street. It is always fun to wake up and look out the window and see that it is SO BRIGHT outside... then you know that the snow is covering everything!
To me, it looks like Christmas. The time when we celebrate the coming of Christ our Lord. Everything has a touch of white...of purity, just as God's Son purifies us.

Snow Update

The snow is coming down in such large, beautiful flakes. A picture can't do it justice...

This is the view looking out our front door.

It's becoming a lovely white blanket. In this shot you can see how quickly the snow is falling. We already took Cali outside and played in the 1.5-2 inches that have fallen already. She had a blast. We were all running around and we couldn't help but laugh at the fact that Cali kept smashing her face down in the snow and eating as much as she could. It will be fun to see how much snow we have in the morning! I'm hoping for several more inches!

Unexpected Snow Day

Last night, Brett and I took part in the Christmas concert at our Church. It was a special evening! Travis Cottrell, Cindy Morgan, and Shawn Groves sang some wonderful songs. During the second half of the concert Westover's choir joined in on quite a few songs. We felt very privileged that we had so much support from our family members. David and Des drove all the way down to NC just to see the concert. (Thank you so much for coming!) We were also very excited to have my parents and grandparents come too!

We were really looking forward to spending time with David and Des this weekend... but due to the somewhat unexpected winter storm, they had to leave early to insure that they would not get snowed in down here, and they may even get more snow in VA than we will get here. Even though our time with them was short, we really enjoyed getting to see them!

That's right. We are currently about 3 hours into the "wintery mix" that should continue until late tomorrow night. It started as sleet and then the snow started shortly after. They are calling for 2-6 inches. May not sound like much if you are from up north (or west in Kansas), but around here, that's enough to shut everything down for a day. I guess this year we are getting our Christmas snow. I can't remember getting snow this close to Christmas!

I am excited about the prospect of winter weather... but for some reason it isn't as fun when you are adult. Don't get me wrong, the snow is fun, but it seems to cause more complications now that I'm a working American. (welcome to the real world of responsibility) You don't just get a free day when it snows... it costs you vacation time. I don't mean to complain, it's just a change of perspective that has happened over the last 3 years.

With that being said, I do LOVE snow! Even if it costs vacation time. We hardly get any, so I'll take what I can get. So, that's why I am blogging in the middle of the day today. After sliding 2 times while going very slow on hwy220, and seeing how bad the sleet/ice was sticking to the road... I decided that it wasn't safe for me to drive without 4-wheel drive, so it was time to go on home.

We'll keep you updated and take pictures. The snow is really starting to come down and the sleet is diminishing.

The holidays are here!

Our holiday season kicked off with a trip to see David and Des. We made wonderful meals, saw Blindside (AMAZING MOVIE), and just spent time catching up with one another!

We celebrated Thanksgiving Day in Asheboro with my side of the family this year. There were about 14 of us there... Brett and I were in charge of making a Turkey Cranberry Wreath and the Green Bean Casserole. YUM!!! Unfortunately, when it was time to go home, I went to get the plate with TCW hoping for leftovers, but there weren't any. So I guess they liked it!

Afterwards, Brett and I hosted the First Annual Cousins' After Party. That's right, we came back to our house and brought 5 cousins with us! My cousin Lindsay bunked with me, the 3 boys were on a pull out bed and an air mattress, Kyhli was in the guest bedroom, and Brett volunteered to take the couch. (such a good sport... but don't let him fool you... he sleeps very well on the couch and sometimes he likes to sleep there just for the fun of it... but still he was wonderful about having everyone over) It was a huge bonding experience for all of us. We're really spread out in age... 11 to 24. We played a really fun game for a while, then enjoyed a "make your own" ice cream sunday bar, and then we watched part of Elf to kick off the holiday season. The funny part was that half of us were asleep by the time that we were 30 minutes into the movie. So, we decided to call it quits and we went to bed. The next morning, Brett made pancakes for everyone because I had to go to work early.

The hustle and bustle continued the following week. On Monday night, Brett took the GRE. On Tuesday night we provided music for Family Night which is an annual memorial service hosted by Hospice of Randolph County to remember the patients and families that we have served. About 200 people came and it was a lovely service. We provided the music before the service... "How You Live" by Point of Grace, "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus, "The River" and "You're Not Alone" by Meredith Andrews. All great songs... you should check them out!

On Wednesday, we had our first choir practice at church. We're going to take part in the special Christmas Concert this year that takes place in a couple of weeks. One of the fun parts is that David and Des, my Mom and Dad, and my Grandparents are going to come to the concert! It will be really special to have people there!

Guess who flew in from HK? Yep, Amanda came into town on Thursday night! I was thrilled to see her... and her adorable baby bump! She was in town for her best friend's wedding. Their friendship began in pre-school and they have continued to be wonderful friends over all of these years.

We've mentioned several things about our landscaping project over the past few months. It has taken the majority of our strength, time, and effort. We're ALMOST finished.... how exciting!?! I promise that pictures will be up soon!

More updates to come...

Yummy food!

It has been a long time since we've blogged about the recipes that we've tried. Here are two recipes that we were really pleased with! The first was inspired by an amazing Indian restaurant that we went to in Hong Kong. Just the thought of the restaurant makes my mouth water... yes, it was really THAT good! (thanks Amanda!)

I was so surprised to see that our local grocery store had Naan (Indian flatbread). It is the perfect compliment to any Indian meal!

Indian-Spiced Chicken with Tomato Chutney (from MyRecipes.com)

• CHUTNEY:
• 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup chopped shallots (WE USED SWEET WHITE ONION)
• 1 teaspoon minced seeded serrano chile (WE LEFT THE CHILE OUT)
• 1/4 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 cup coarsely chopped seeded tomato
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 
  CHICKEN:
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Cooking spray

Preparation

To prepare chutney, heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and serrano; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add ginger and garlic; cook 30 seconds, stirring frequently. Add tomato, vinegar, sugar, mustard seeds, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Uncover and simmer 5 minutes or until mixture is thick. Set aside, and keep warm.

Prepare grill.

To prepare chicken, heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add coriander, curry, cumin, and black pepper; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Brush mixture evenly on both sides of chicken; sprinkle evenly with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Place chicken on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 4 minutes on each side or until chicken is done. Serve chutney over chicken.

This recipe came from my mind... in combination with a few tips that I saw on an episode of Giada DeLaurentis' show Everyday Italian. Above you will see Parmesan Crusted Salmon served with Parmesan Orzo and Asparagus. (asparagus with parmesan...only kidding) This was the first time that I cooked using REAL parmesan cheese from Parma, Italy brought to me by my local grocer in Randleman meaning it may not be the best, but whatever...it was worth the splurge in cost to get the real thing.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 egg mixed with a little water

1/2 cup bread crumbs (add 1/4 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. parsley, 1/4 tsp. pepper)

2 - 6oz. Salmon filets

Set grill at medium - high heat. Wash fish. No need to remove skin as it is easier to do so once it is cooked. Pull out 2 plates and one bowl. Spread parmesan in first plate. Place egg/water mixture in bowl beside the first plate. Put bread crumb mixture in 2nd plate. Take each salmon filet and coat with cheese, then coat with egg mixture, and then fully coat with bread crumbs. Repeat with 2nd filet. Grill for 8-10 minutes until fully cooked and flaky.

Enjoy!

A Promise

Sometimes we can get so caught up in day-to-day life that we get disconnected from the promises of God that are all around us.  A little while back, Brett and I arrived home and saw this breathtaking view as we stood in our driveway. As far as our eyes could see there was a beautiful double rainbow.  We watched it until it faded... about 5 minutes later.  So sad to see it go...

Erin's Wedding

Here are a couple of pictures from Erin's wedding.  It was the perfect night for a wedding!  The ceremony took place by the lake and then the reception was in a beautiful building overlooking the lake.  This is a group shot right after the wedding.  

A quick picture with the gorgeous bride! 

I love this one...Brett and I were busting a move on the dance floor and the photographer captured it.  It was so much fun!  

It was such a special wedding we were honored to be a part of it!