Our Saturday Evening....

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and let your glory be over all of the earth. Psalm 108:5

I used that verse as an opening simply because I liked it. It reminds me that God's glory does shine around the earth. This weekend is when we are celebrating His Son's miraculous rising from the dead after he died for all of our sins.

Earlier this week, we had invited our friends Gary and Carla over for dinner. Fortunately, they graciously accepted our invitation. We don't get together with them often. Marc has known them for many years now, and I have gotten to know them through Marc. Gary and Marc have run together every Tuesday and Thursday morning, assuming they're not injured or sick. They also don't run in stormy weather, but they DO faithfully run in snow, ice, and extreme cold. Gary teaches Chemistry at our local liberal arts college, and Carla is a teacher in the local school district. Gary also is a part of the investment club that Marc and some other of you bloggers' husbands are in.

Neither Gary nor Carla had seen Luke since he was probably around a month old. So, he definitely had changed in their eyes. Carla commented several times about how much he looks like Marc -- like many of you also say.

Here's a cute photo of Carla showing Luke various pictures in one of his books. Luke watched intently.



For dinner, we had chicken fajitas. I didn't take a photo of the "fajita making process," but I did capture a simple photo of the colorful peppers I used in the fajitas -- I LOVE colorful vegetables (Marc probably doesn't really care too much if the veggies are colorful or not). We are definitely onion lovers in this household, so I added quite a bit of onion to the fajita mixture.



This may sound a bit strange, but to go with the fajitas (a Mexican dish), I made an Asian salad -- the oriental salad that is famous in my family. Watch soon for a post with the recipe -- probably within the next week or so.

I'll leave you in suspense with the recipe and process, but here's a final photo.



**If you've ever been in a Community Life Group (small group) with us or have ever been to our home for dinner, you've probably had it. I make it often because it's such a favorite. But, like I said earlier, watch for a near future post with the recipe.

To finish off dinner, we ate Angel Food Cake and mixed berries. Yum!!!!

Then, we had what I would call meaningful conversation among the four of us -- after Luke went to bed. Marc and I love "fellowshipping" with other believers. What a wonderful evening!

I'll end this post with a really wonderful photo of Carla and Luke.

Two Separate Opinions....

Have you ever had a situation where you literally have two opinions? The two opinions were completely on the opposite end of the spectrum.

Well, this blog will demonstrate two different opinions of mine. Please allow me to explain.

This past Friday night, when Marc was staying in a cabin at Kanopolis State Park before his 50-mile run, I watched a movie that I had received via "Netflix."

The movie was....



If you can't see on the photo, it's called "The Magdalene Sisters."

Here are my two opinions.

Opinion #1: I actually do NOT recommend it. Here's a synopsis, straight off of "Netflix."

This unflinching drama charts several years in the young lives of four "fallen women" who were rejected by their families and abandoned to the mercy of the Catholic Church in 1960s Ireland. While women's liberation sweeps the globe, these women are stripped of their liberty and dignity and condemned to indefinite servitude in The Magdalene Laundries, so that they may atone for their "sins."

It's very disturbing in many parts. It was hard to watch in parts. I actually can't believe it's based on a true story. At the end of the movie, it said that the last "asylum" (as they're called in the movie) actually didn't even close until 1996. These women were beaten, worked as slave labor, made to stand naked in front of all the other women in the asylum for comparison of body parts, etc. All of this went on because these women committed what we would call moral sins. They were rejected by their families. They were made (as the description of the movie says) to atone for their sins by living in these asylums.

Opinion #2 (remember, complete opposite opinion as #1): It was a good thing to watch in that it was a FANTASTIC reminder of Easter and the meaning of Easter.

The Easter holiday is FUNDAMENTAL to Christianity. It's when Christ died on the cross for our sins and then rose again -- in human form.

This movie is a display of how even if our families reject us because of a sin committed, if society rejects us because of a sin committed, or if anybody else rejects us because of a sin committed, we're ultimately, 100% forgiven by God the Father. He gave His one and only son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins. Then, Jesus rose again.

Isn't that what Easter is all about?

It's so interesting that while many businesses shut down for Easter, many others stay open as if life moves on. Easter, because it is so fundamental to the Christian faith, is, in my opinion, the most important day of the year. But, so many "move on" as if Easter wasn't important or what it stands for (Christ rising) didn't happen.

If you haven't accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, won't you do so today? Jesus is so very patient with us, but He so very much wants us to trust Him.

Here are a few great verses that are a part of this weekend and ultimately all year.

That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left hte sins committed beforehand unpunished. Romans 3:23-25

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

Happy Birthday Joel....

I'm a bit ashamed that I didn't get this post done last night or earlier today. But, today, April 8, is my brother's birthday. He turned 31 today.

He's my one and only sibling -- two years, one month, and eight days younger than me.

He's a staunch conservative when it comes to politics. He enjoys hunting. He manages the DQ I work at, and yes, we can work together. He's a wonderful father to two girls -- Grace and Natalie. His wife's name is Amber. We're different in a lot of ways, but in some ways, we can be similar (for example -- many times, our sense of humor is the same).

He doesn't look anything like me. In fact, most of the time, people don't realize we're even brother and sister. One time, when I was in college, we went and had some photos taken together at JC Penney. When we first arrived, the photographer asked us if these were engagement photos. Joel responded EXTREMELY quickly, "NO!" But, we do have the same set of biological parents, and we were raised by those same parents :)

So, Happy 31st Birthday Joel!

Here's a photo of Joel, holding Luke in the hospital about 12 hours after he was born. Luke was his first nephew!

College Basketball....

Last night, Marc and I (Luke was sleeping the entire time) held a small party to watch the NCAA Tournament Final -- North Carolina vs. Michigan State.

We had invited some others as well, but those others had other things going on or were sick. So, it was us, Allen and Debby, and Joel and Kendall. Little Lily also joined us. I hope she wasn't too lonely hanging out with only adults with no other kids around.

First, a photo of the guys watching the game. The game wasn't too exciting as North Carolina was ahead the entire time and ultimately did win comfortably. It's a good thing we all know each other fairly well so we always had good conversation going on.



And, Kendall, Debby, and I sat near each other to also always keep conversation going.



Lily was contented and awake for part of the game. Then, she fell asleep in her daddy's arms. How precious!



And, what would a college basketball gathering be without food? Of course, we had plenty -- especially considering there were only a mere six adults and a 3-month old.



If you look just behind the "Pepsi," you'll notice a pie plate that's only 1/2 full of food. That was my "Hot Bacon and Swiss Dip." It's very yummy! So, I'll share the recipe.

Hot Bacon and Swiss Dip

1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/2 C. Mayonnaise
1 Cup Grated Swiss Cheese
2 Tbsp. Chopped Green Onion
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/2 C. Crushed Ritz Crackers, plus more for dipping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, swiss cheese, and green onion; Mix well.

Transfer mixture to a baking dish (I use a pie plate). Top with bacon and crushed Ritz crackers. Bake 15-20 minutes or until bubbly. Serve with more Ritz crackers.

Enjoy!

Rockin' K....

In my previous post, I mentioned that Marc was running in a 50 Mile (yep, 50 Miles) race today. Well, despite the wind, Luke and I made it to the race this afternoon to watch Marc finish.

Luke and I left home around 3:30 this afternoon and went here....



Yep, Kanopolis State Park, right here in the great state of Kansas -- in Ellsworth County for all of you locals.

This race is called "Rockin' K" for a simple reason -- it follows the Rockin' K trail in the park. It's been an annual event for a number of years. It's always the first full weekend in April. There are two separate events -- a marathon (roughly 26.2 miles) and a 50-miler. Our friends, Phil & Stacy, direct this race.

If you've never been to a trail race, please don't compare it to a regular road race that you might have completed in the past. These races aren't clean (quite a bit of dirt and mud), and generally, they're in the middle of nowhere. Though I have been to a number of them now with Marc, they're still a stretch for me as I'm definitely a "city girl."

This is why they're a bit of a stretch....



Understand why????

The race starts and ends in the same spot -- near the Corral Shelter in the state park. Here's what the primitive shelter looks like. It does have fireplace which does provide nice warmth.



This is the road the runners take off on. They do run on road for a very short distance -- less than a mile. The rest of the race until the very end is ALL trail. So, from the shelter, this is the road we spectators look at to see when our runner is coming in when they finish.



Today, on one of the windiest days of the year, Marc finished running the entire 50 miles in 11 hours and 47 minutes. Wow!

Just before he crossed the finish line, I handed Luke over to him. So, Luke got to finish with him. We later told Luke he better appreciate today. It's not very often you get to cross a finish line without doing anything :)

If you look very closely on the right side of the photo, you can see the actual white finish line -- again, fairly primitive but it certainly works.



Luke wasn't quite sure what to think. He didn't at all cry (he was with his Daddy), but he certainly didn't know what was going on.

Marc said that even though it wasn't his best time ever, it was his "best race" because Luke was with him across the finishing line.

Here's a photo of Luke with our friend Stacy -- one of the directors of the race.



And, here's a photo of Luke with Jamie -- Phil & Stacy's daughter.



After Luke and I knew Marc was O.K. (not passing out or anything), we left. It was getting quite late. Luke was asleep fairly quickly after we left the race. It was, overall, a late night for him as he went to bed over an hour past his normal bedtime.

On the way home, I noticed in my rearview mirror a BEAUTIFUL Kansas sunset. So, while Luke was already asleep, I pulled over on a side road, and I snapped a photo. And people say Kansas isn't very pretty.



And, before I sign off here, Marc did apologize to me for the whole alarm clock thing (see previous post). I'll keep you all posted as to what "payment" I will get. Thanks to those of you who made suggestions.

Tootles....

Help! I need your comments, please....

Those of you who know me know that I do love my dear husband, Marc, so very much. I do my very best to respect him at all times. I do my best (and am always working to constantly improve) to be a Godly wife.

As most of you know, Marc does quite a bit of running. In fact, today, he's doing his best to accomplish a 50-mile race -- one he's done many times. So today, Luke and I are doing a lot of praying that he does well and stays in one piece. Assuming it doesn't rain where the race is going on (there's a chance), Luke and I will be heading up there to watch Marc finish.

But, despite Marc's "wonderfulness," there's one thing he does occasionally that is oh so very trying on my patience. This doesn't happen often, but when it does, I do get a bit annoyed.

Marc has a very complex alarm clock (we have separate alarm clocks). Here are a couple of photos.





It's one of those alarm clocks with two separate alarms. It has many buttons, and as you can see from the second photo, some of the buttons are even hidden.

Marc gets up very early, often times to run -- including Saturdays. So, when Marc is out of town (which isn't often), I enjoy sleeping in a bit because I don't hear his alarm clock. However, in the past, when he's been out of town, he's accidentally left on his alarm clock thereby waking me up. In my 1/2 asleep state, I find it difficult to turn his alarm off. I have even in the past, in frustration at 5:30 in the morning in a 1/2 asleep state, just simply unplugged his alarm clock when it's gone off. Then, he has to reset it when he gets home :)

Now, we have a bigger bed, and the outlet is way behind the bed. It's more difficult for me to simply unplug.

Last night, Marc was not home. He spent the night in a cabin in the state park where he's now running in the race. Last night, I was looking forward to sleeping in a bit since Marc's alarm would not be going off so early (Luke tends to sleep in until 8:00 A.M.).

You know where this is headed....

Yep, 6:00 A.M. this morning, his alarm went off. I wanted to scream, but I refrained since Luke was asleep across the hall. I got up, and I managed to turn off the alarm. But, by then, I was somewhat awake.

I layed back down and tried to doze off. Wouldn't you know it? About 10 minutes late, his SECOND alarm went off (remember his fancy alarm clock). Oh, by this time, I was really frustrated. I once again got up and figured out how to turn his alarm off (keep in mind that to turn this alarm clock off both times, I had to turn a light on -- waking me up even more). This time, however, I turned the radio alarm volume way down.

I picked up my pillow and went to the living room for hopefully a couple more hours of sleep.

I was awake for a good hour. Finally, I fell asleep but not really in a deep state of quality sleep. Around 8:00, I heard Luke on the monitor, so it was then time to get up. So, my morning of sleeping in was completely disturbed by Marc's alarm clock, not a CHILD.

Am I whining here? Or, am I asking too much to simply have the alarm turned off?

Like I said at the beginning of the post, I LOVE my husband dearly. Marc and I don't want to play "you owe me" type of game in our marriage.

But, this time, I do think he might owe me something...

Here's where I need your comments -- what am I owed?

Backrub
Foot Massage
Dinner Cooked For Me

??????

You help me decide. I'd appreciate any and all thoughts and comments :)

And yes, I will forgive him!!!!!!!

Tortilla Roll-Ups....

Here's a recipe for you all...super simple, kid-friendly, can be made up early for refrigeration and baked when needed, OR can be made and frozen and then thawed and baked when needed :)

1 lb. Hamburger
1 C. Chopped Onion
2 1/2 C. Spaghetti sauce (your choice on brand or kind)
1 1/2 C. cottage cheese
2 1/2 C. Shredded Cheese (your choice on kind)
Flour Tortillas (we use the "fajita" size, so I use 10 of them)



First, you brown the hamburger and onion. I also add pepper and onion powder for flavoring. Marc and I both REALLY like onion, and Marc REALLY likes pepper.



Then, you transfer the hamburger and onion to a mixing bowl. From there, add the cottage cheese, 1 1/2 C. of the cheese, and 1 1/2 C. spaghetti sauce.



Next, stir it all together.



Next, spoon filling evenly among 10 flour tortillas (less tortillas is you use bigger ones). Place them in a greased or sprayed 9 X 13 pan.



When I made these the other day, I actually divided the 10 tortillas into two different 9 x 9 pans. One pan was for us, and another pan was for a couple in our small group to eat after a medical treatment.

Here's what they looked like at this point.



Lastly, pour the remaining spaghetti sauce, and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Here's what the finished product looks like just before baking.



Cover with foil. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Remove foil. Bake 5-10 more minutes or until bubbly. Enjoy!

** Note #1 -- This recipe actually came from my 7th grade Home Ec class. I've always liked it.

** Note #2 -- Except for when I'm baking, I am a "dumper" type of cooker. In other words, I rarely measure things out. So, the measurements on this recipe are very much estimated. Please feel free to add or subtract any ingredient you deem necessary. I know that, in 7th grade, I would've precisely measured all of this out. Now, my cooking has "matured." I probably have the exact recipe somewhere, but I'm not going to look for it. I'll find it when I'm old, probably.