Archive for the 'Pure Sunshine' Category
September 20, 2008 @ 4:35 pm | Filed under: Family, Pure Sunshine
It’s no secret that Mike and I both like to cook.
Our favorite weekend eating place is our very own kitchen. That’s generally how we unwind from the week and get our weekend off to a relaxing start; meet in the kitchen and work side-by-side to prepare our Friday night dinners in.
Last night we decided to shake things up a bit. Let our competitive spirits come out and play for a bit.
We did the Wilder version of Throwdown with Bobby Flay.
Our challenge: to take our choice of fish and prepare an entre and a side.
Mike chose halibut and created a fabulous southwestern-style halibut filet with an unbelievably delicious pineapple/orange relish to go on top. He paired this with grilled corn-on-the-cob and it was…amazing! Of course, I’m a spicy girl who loves all things tangy and HOT! And this southwest dish provided lots of BOTH!
I chose salmon and let it soak in kosher salt and a heavy pepper marinade before cooking. With it, I made a smashed new potato dish that had english peas, pearl onions, and lemon zest.
The two dishes, though vastly different, came together so nicely in our kitchen. The aroma was amazing, and the end result - SO good!
We’ve decided to make this a monthly event. We’ll keep you posted on our next ‘challenge!’
August 26, 2008 @ 5:49 pm | Filed under: It's a Girl Thing, Pure Sunshine, Soul Food
Madie on Thunder
Bailey on Cowboy
“The true way to render ourselves happy is to love our work and find in it our pleasure.” - Francoise de Motteville
They say that when you love what you do, it’s not really work. At least it doesn’t feel like work. Instead there is a deep satisfaction that comes from diving head first into our passions, overlooking the hours of hard work, the occasional “dirty” job, and the huge learning curves we sometimes have to navigate.
I began to think about this several weeks ago when Madie, age 8, and - a few weeks later, Bailey, age 10, attended horse camp. Both girls have loved horses…well, since forever. They chose books about horses. They like t-shirts with horses printed on them. They played “horses” while other little girls played Barbies.
They really, really claimed to love horses.
What sets these two apart from many other kids their age who also make the same claim is that they have now proven that they truly DO love horses. While other kids love the idea of horses, these two love the horses.
They’ve proven it.
They have learned to feed the horses. (Who knew horses like peppermints?) They’ve tirelessly brushed the manes and rubbed a cool down after a ride. And while the other kids at horse camp enjoyed an hour of free play after lunch, Madie and Bailey both elected to remain behind and muck the stalls.
They really love horses.
Not just the idea. They love the reality.
As I think about my life and the things that I am passionate about, I can’t help but think about this horse camp. I think as long as I have these pictures handy, they may always serve as a reminder to me to only carefully pursue the things that are worth all the hard work to bring to reality.
I don’t want to merely love the idea of something.
I want to really, really love that something.
July 21, 2008 @ 3:03 pm | Filed under: Family, Pure Sunshine
My niece, Madie, has loved horses just about all her life. She likes play horses, movies about horses, clothing with pictures of horses on them…You name it. If a horse is involved, Madie is sure to be interested.
So it was so much fun to go to the Capricorn Equestrian center on Friday and watch her ride an actual horse! She attended a day camp here all week long and loved it.
The grand finale of the Friday afternoon event was seeing Madie win a blue ribbon for FIRST PLACE in her equestrian class!
I think it’s official now. We now have our first horsewoman in the family.
And what a cute one she is!
June 27, 2008 @ 4:53 pm | Filed under: Family, Pure Sunshine
A smile is worth a million dreams,
And laughter a thousand heartbeats
Lifting the spirits and chasing the blues away
With every smile a chance to open doors to laughter
An elevator ride up through the clouds
Where dreams can come true
and heartbeats erase the blues.
–JoJo Bean
aunts, Family, laughter, nieces
June 21, 2008 @ 5:39 pm | Filed under: Family, Pure Sunshine
The kids at Carter’s Kindergarten graduation. Notice who scored the cap afterwards…!
Congratulations, Carter! Pops and Nana are so proud of you!
Family, grandchildren, kindergarten graduation
June 15, 2008 @ 1:35 pm | Filed under: Family, Pure Sunshine
God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The warmth of a summer sun,
The calm of a quiet sea,
The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagle’s flight,
The joy of a morning in spring,
The faith of a mustard seed,
The patience of eternity,
The depth of a family need,
Then God combined these qualities,
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so, He called it … Dad
Family, Father's day poem, grandchildren
May 21, 2008 @ 10:13 am | Filed under: Family, Pure Sunshine
kids, summertime memories, swimming, Wordless Wednesday
April 29, 2008 @ 2:02 pm | Filed under: Pure Sunshine, Soul Food
I wish I could bottle days like yesterday and save them for weeks when it has rained one too many days, or when outside temperatures are simply too hot to handle. Yesterday was about as close to perfect as weather gets around here. And - since this part of Texas has only about 4.5 days like this one - I did my best to soak it all up and tried hard to not stay holed up in my office.
Normally, by this time each year, I’ve already planted flowers and have even managed to kill off a few of the weaker, unhealthier ones. I’m sure plants in all the metroplex nurseries are breathing a huge sigh of relief, thinking that I must have forgotten planting season this year and that they are, surely, most safe.
But yesterday was the day. On Saturday I had turned the beds, tilled the soil, and added fresh mulch. Days like yesterday make me forget about my penchant for horticulture homicides. I walked the aisles of the nursery and carefully picked out the heartiest varieties that I could find, in the brightest and cheeriest colors that I could find.
Back home, with my hands and knees in the dirt, I found myself feeling such peace and a sense of well-being. I am somewhat of an eternal optimist, I guess. The flower bed in front of me was not that much unlike the flower bed of my life. Sometimes the things and people that I nurture in my life don’t do so well. I do my best to water and to nourish and to encourage and to care for them. But sometimes maybe it’s my timing, or my lack of understanding of the real needs, or maybe it’s just the climate around us - but sometimes these buds within my care begin to wilt or turn brown or fade.
What has always amazed me about plants is their ability to bounce back when focused care is placed on them. Water them at the roots, remove the weeds whose own mission is to entangle and destroy, and nourish them with vitamins. And then the real miracle - proper exposure to the sun. The sun melds all of the care and the result is beauty.
It’s not always a quick work. Sometimes it takes days of dedication and devotion and consistent care. Sometimes the results are not quite what we expected; sometimes they even exceed our expectations. Beauty in nature - there is nothing quite like it.
I think about my kids and my friends and the many people that I love and care for. I do my best to provide what they need to flourish and do well, but sometimes I get busy and I miss things. Sometimes I think I’m doing a fairly good job of caring for them, only to realize that some missing nutrients are causing them to wilt before my very eyes.
These are the times when that focused care is most important, I guess. Real heart-to-heart conversations, time spent just hanging together, listening… And then the real miracle - proper exposure to The Son. He melds all of the care that we put into the people we love and the result is beauty.
It’s not always a quick work, and I’m having to remind myself of this quite often these days. Sometimes it takes a lot of dedication, and devotion, and care that is not always the easiest to give. My hope - my prayer - is that the results that will eventually be garnered will NOT be quite what I’m expecting.
I have faith that they will be even better than what my mind can imagine.
Beauty in the people we care about - there is NOTHING better.
May 14, 2007 @ 6:44 am | Filed under: Friends, Pure Sunshine
I had a birthday two weeks ago.
When I walked into the restaurant that night, I was clueless. Truly. We had swung by the new house to pick up mail and I had just opened the sweet card and gift from Dawn (I miss you, girl!), and was still very emotional from that. It was almost eight o’clock, we were tired from a long day, and I thought dinner was sure to be a quiet time with Mike and Jorge.
So when my eyes fell on a rather great-looking group of people, enjoying chips and salsa and laughing, it took just a moment for everything to register. Then Cheryl grinned that grin that I just love, Bonnie yelled "Surprise!" and Rochelle pulled out the chair next to her for me to have a seat.
I needed one too. These gals, my best friends, had gathered our spouses AND our children for a special sit-down dinner together. Those of you who have an active family, complete with teens, know that getting the family together on a Monday night for dinner takes special talent within itself. And yet, these women pulled FOUR families together in one spot, on one night. The memory of it still brings tears to my eyes. Yes, it was THAT special to me.
See, these people mean everything to me. They know my heart, and I know theirs. They are my conscious during decision-making times, they are my laughter when it’s raining in my soul, they are my tears when life leaves me parched, and they always, ALWAYS point me to Jesus. The gift of friendship that I have with this group of people is proof-positive of God’s great love for me.
So the dinner alone was gift enough for a lifetime. And the story could end here and I could just stop and wipe the tears and enjoy the sweet memory of that night and know that I’ve shared a great friendship story with you.
But then you wouldn’t know about…The Wallet. So this post is really for those of you who’ve emailed, wanting to know what I meant when I mentioned The Wallet.
At the end of dinner, they reached beneath the table and pulled out a HUGE box. Big people, really big. And decorated, no less, in pinks and brown - my favorite color combo - it was a totally girly gift box and something they knew I’d love. So much so that I quickly forgave them for also attaching printed adjectives describing me (in fonts large enough for nearby tables to read and appreciate, I might add!) such as "DC Addict!"
Inside the box was a host of wonderful things, carefully and individually wrapped, each one making me laugh or cry and sometimes a bit of both at the same time. But when I came to last box, at the very bottom, I sensed everyone at the table begin to shift in anticipation. Even the men, who’d been having an animated conversation at the other end of the table, were suddenly very interested in this girly box of mine.
I slid open the box and pulled out something long and slender, wrapped in…Coach logo paper! That’s right, it was the wallet that matched The Bag. Even now, two weeks later, I grin every single time I open my purse and see it tucked inside. They got me. They really got me this time. I do believe that this rivals only the Sonic prank from last fall.
IC group - I love you! You guys are the true gift. The gift that keeps on giving all year long, with your love, your laughter, and your wonderful way with friendship. No gift is ever, EVER needed for me to feel your care, but The Wallet will forever and always be a tangible reminder of your place in my heart and life.
Thank you.
March 27, 2007 @ 3:04 pm | Filed under: Friends, It's a Girl Thing, Pure Sunshine
The proposal for Finding Faith is sealed in an envelope and will be dropped off at Post Net on my way home this afternoon. (I would pause here to do a little happy dance except I’m sitting in the library at school and that would draw WAY too much attention my direction:) In a few short days it will find its way to the desks of my publishers while I wait to hear if it is a story they desire to represent.
There is something that feels so extraordinary about sliding those freshly printed sheets of manuscript inside an 9×11 manilla envelope and preparing it for the mail. While the manuscript is still not complete, this is the point in the process where I can draw my first deep breath and take a brief moment to relax. Inside this envelope is the proposal and sample chapters, the equivalent of my heart and soul and the complete vision that I carry for this story.
For the next few, brief days the story is more or less out of my hands as I wait to hear the verdict. The story has crystalized in my heart and mind and - for me - the most excruciating part of the process is just about over. While I wait to hear back I will work intensively to finish the remaining chapters and then begin the satisfying process of layering in more emotion, conflict, and spiritual threads throughout the story.
But first…(drumroll, please)
I’m off for a girl’s-only weekend with my friends!
After I complete three exams (count ‘em - THREE - how on earth did THAT happen?) on Thursday morning, I will finally be free to hit the highway around noon. We will be attending a ladies retreat a few hours drive from here and we’ll be sharing, laughing, eating, crying, and worshiping, (in no particular order) during our time away. I always come home with my soul rejuvenated, my mind refreshed, and my heart overflowing with the beauty of friendship.
The above picture is of me and my roommates. These are the women who feel the heartbeat of my life. They uphold me in prayer, make me laugh until I cry, and always, always, always challenge me to be a better person. I thought I had great friends as a little girl but these women have revolutionized the whole meaning of friendship for me.
Of course, it helps that when I suggest an authentic Irish dinner for St. Patrick’s Day, they jump on board with energy and enthusiasm! Despite the fact that none of us knew the definition of "authentic Irish food." Regardless that not a one of us had ever attempted such culinary wonders in the kitchen before. And - for the record - the meal was a complete hit - delicious, prepared to perfection, and enjoyed by all.
The best part was the process though. Just moving around the kitchen together - reading recipes, seasoning the lamb, boiling the potatoes for the colcannon, stirring the braised root vegetables, and baking Bonnie’s scrumptious carrot cake. Occasionally we’d bump into one another, getting in each other’s way and fumbling for various pots and pans, but laughing and joking the entire time.
There are some things that money just can’t buy.
One of them is friendships like these.
Another is the peace that comes with sealing a small segment of your dream in an envelope and sending it on its way with a whispered prayer.
Today, I’m thankful for both.
