Category Archives: Family

Seasonal Organization and Leftover Pot Roast

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You’ve heard of spring cleaning? It would seem I get hit with ‘spring cleaning’ at every season. Granted, I’m not a super anal person about cleaning/organizing. I am becoming increasingly more-so the longer I’m married to Ryan, but for me, anything beyond the daily/weekly maintenance is considered “deep cleaning”. It probably has something to do with having to go through the kids clothes every season. It struck me as odd the other day how I no longer pack away seasonal clothes for myself. I wear more or less the same stuff all year long, minus sweaters & tank tops (though the latter are often layered in winter). Anyhow, those pesky kids & their growing. I have been feeling that seasonal organizational pull again lately. I have been plotting to spend a day throwing out organizing the kids toys again. Toys, especially cheap cluttery unused ones seem to procreate in their bins. …and don’t get me started on the mounds of drawings I have started hoarding.

Anyhow, so far the only ‘deep cleaning’ I’ve accomplished lately was organizing the toppling piles of food in our deep freezer. I had a list written in dry erase marker directly on the freezer last spring. It was a great way to keep track of what was in there and update easily. However, I discovered it does NOT wipe off very well. Sigh. Live & Learn. At least I didn’t do it to the one in the kitchen! During this weekend’s freezer revamp, I discovered 4 2cup containers of leftover pot roast I had no idea was in there! However, the only things I know how to do with it are BBQ sandwiches and burritos/enchiladas/quesadillas. That’s all well & good, but 4 containers! I wanted something new. I spent far too much time googling the subject of leftover pot roast and found a very simple casserole recipe that looked as though it might be accepted by the family. I cooked it up, changing it here & there of course, and viola….yummy comfort foodie type leftovers dish! Granted Grace refused to eat it (she’s picky about that sort of thing and italian food. Even pizza when she’s not seated in front of the tv while eating it. Go figure). I thought it was a hit with Asher as he gobbled it up with zero complaints or faces. However, it was apparently more my threatening death before dinner began than the deliciousness of the food. I served it for lunch today. He complained. I expressed frustration that he seemed to like it the other night. “I just ate it because you told me to.” I can’t win. But they don’t count. Ryan? I don’t remember much being said about it that night, but he took leftovers in for work the next day for lunch. Anything ‘lunch-worthy’ for him = massive success in my book.

Ok, I’ll stop my babbling. I found the recipe Here on cooks.com. Here’s my version:

LEFTOVER ROAST BEEF CASSEROLE 

2 c. Leftover Roast (will work w/any animal I think)
1 onion, sliced & chopped thin (saute)
2 celery stalks sliced thin (saute)
1 carrot sliced thin (saute)
1 +/- cups mushroom cream sauce (cream of mushroom soup is the original recipe)
1/3 c. heavy whipping cream
Milk as needed
3 c. potatoes, sliced (i sliced in my food processor, so they were very thin)
3/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Saute the vegetables. Mix meat, veggies, mushroom sauce, cream, potatoes in a large bowl. Add milk until it seems moist enough (sorry! i have no idea how much i added. I did not make it at all soupy, but…wet.). Pour into casserole dish. Sprinkle cheese over the top. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Cream Sauce Recipe (this is altered a small bit from what i ‘usually do’ since it’s for beef & using what I have on hand & what i thought would taste good in this dish:

3 TBS Beef Tallow (or butter or coconut oil)
1lb sliced mushrooms
3TBS flour of your choice (I used millet. I have not found an SCD way to thicken a sauce. sigh)
black pepper
salt
paprika
chili powder
1.5 cups beef broth
1.5 cups heavy cream (or more broth if you want casein-free)
(garlic)

1. melt fat in a sauce pan
2. add mushrooms, salt, pepper, paprika, chili powder; cook until mushrooms release moisture & liquid evaporates, approx. 6-10min. (actually I think it was closer to 15min but who’s paying attention?)
3. add flour (and garlic), cook for one minute, stirring constantly…remember jenn who is jealous of your garlic.
4. 1/2 cup at a time, stir in beef stock & bring to a simmer, stirring constantly.
5. add cream/additional stock and reduce heat to medium. Simmer until sauce is thickened and reduced (says reduce to 3.5 cups but i have no idea how you’d know it’s reduced to 3.5 cups..), about 12min.

Read and Share Toddler Bible Review

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About a month ago I signed up to be a book reviewer for Thomas Nelson. At the time there weren’t many titles I was interested in reviewing, so I decided to grab the Read and Share Toddler Bible since we are always on the lookout for good kids Bibles.

Now, the book says that it is for ages 1-4, but I often felt that it was WAY below my 3 and 4 years olds. The stories were really short and the language was very basic. Perhaps this was exaggerated by the fact that we’ve been reading The Jesus Storybook Bible to both our kids since they were born, and it is neither short nor basic in its language.

In all, my biggest problem is that with the Read and Share Toddler Bible I kept feeling like something was missing. After thinking about it, I think that what I miss is the over arching story of the Bible. In the Read and Share Toddler Bible every story is its own neat little unit that teaches a point. The garden teaches us what happens when we disobey. Jacob and Esau teach us to be kind to siblings. Moses leading the people out of Egypt teaches us to trust God. Daniel in the lions den teaches us to pray. And Jesus dies on a cross “…so that when we do wrong, we can be forgiven.”

Now, none of that is “bad” or “wrong.” But where is the gospel? Where is man lost in his sin and in need of being reconciled to a holy God? Where is the fellowship that is broken in the garden? Where is the promised seed that flows through Jacob? Where is the promise land that points to Jesus? And where is the savior that doesn’t just die so we can be forgive, but to satisfy the justice and righteousness of the God we have sinned against?

The Read and Share Toddler Bible never seems to leave “Bible stories” and actually get to the Bible. Perhaps the author assumed that the parents would simply make the jump and connections where needed. Whatever the case, I always left our reading time with this book wishing it was something more.

In the end, I can’t recommend this toddler Bible. Right now, our go-to Bibles for the kids are The Jesus Storybook Bible and The Big Picture Story Bible. Both of these have set the bar for toddler and children’s Bibles very high as they both help point your children to Jesus and the Cross, not simply for forgiveness, but because as Sally Lloyd Jones so perfectly states, “Every story whispers His name.” Sadly, the Read and Share Toddler Bible didn’t live up to the standard they have set.

First Dentist Trip

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I should’ve brought the camera. This just occurred to me as I started to type, that it seems incomplete w/o a pic (not that i have yet learned how to get a stinkin picture into a post w/o blowing up the site). Anyhow, Asher and Grace both had their first ever dentist visit today. Over the years I’ve heard different folks (pediatricians, other parents, 2 dentists) give different ages when kids ‘should’ start going to the dentist. According to the one we went to today it’s apparently 1 year. Sheesh. In THAT case Asher WAY behind. The only reason I even made the appointment was because I’ve been noticing Grace’s teeth have gotten pretty yellow and it was a yellow i could scrape off. I got a bit concerned about plaque or something, plus with the crooked crowding I didn’t know if that was extra reason for concern. So I basically made the appointment for her & figured Asher might as well go too.

We went to a super close by pediatric dentist. I made the appointment a week ago, so we’ve been talking about it a lot the past week. Hyping it up. Talking about what they do, how they clean the teeth, about the special toothbrush that’s loud & tickles ect. ect. I meant to pick up a book from the library on going to the dentist but forgot until the day of so we had to settle for one about going to the doctor for a well check (will come in handy for Grace’s 3 year check next month). Apparently it ‘worked’. Both kids were excited about going. When we got there the waiting room had some awesome toys including a fun playhouse with a working doorbell and some wooden tinker toys (that Asher immediately turned into many swords, while Grace played ‘neighbors over for dinner’ with another little girl). They were called back together and were in basically the same room separated by a half wall (partition?) so i stood in the middle where they could both see me. Not that they ever cared to, they were too busy watching cartoons on the tv on the ceiling (unfort. it was sponge bob they were watching. That’s on the black list in this house), with little headphones & sunglasses on. Grace had a short moment of panic when they moved the electric chair into position after she climbed up on it, but was quickly put at ease.

They were both rock stars. Not the slightest bit of apprehension, very happy to open and shut their mouths as directed. In fact they both had x-rays done. The staff and dentist all oohed and aahhed over Grace, claiming she may be the youngest patient they’ve ever had willing to do the x-ray. They said most 3 year olds on their first visit won’t even sit on the chair without coaxing. When they put the first bite wing in place she spit it out b/c it pinched (it pinches me too so I was surprised she did it), but the hygienist gently asked if she would try again explaining why they were doing it (looking for ‘sugar bugs’) and that it would be super fast. Grace sighed and said, “Ok, I will be brave”. That girl cracks me up. After both sides were done she shouted to me, “Mom! I did a super good job and I was very brave!” (this was before anyone told her as such). The best was that any time anyone walked near her she opened her mouth wide, even after the exam was over and she was sitting up. Asher was pretty ho hum, old hat about the whole thing until the actual brushing part. He REALLY liked the bubble gum flavoring. He did NOT like the lack of star wars toothbrush options when he got to choose a brush on the way out (and I quote, “There seems to be a lot of princesses and not Star Wars or Superheros. But I really want Star Wars because that’s my best one.” He had to settle for Cars. The only ‘boy’ option).

Neither had cavities, though both apparently have spots between the same molars that are potential issues so it was stressed we floss nightly. He also mentioned the fact that they will both need braces when they’re older. I expected it for Grace, but Asher’s teeth are perfectly straight & the boy has himself a big mouth. According to the dentist the fact that his teeth are very tight together means he won’t have enough room for the bigger ones or something, that there will be crowding. Guess we’ll see. Certainly have time before we need to be worrying about braces. Oh & the staining on Grace’s teeth? Came right off with the cleaning. The hygienist said green leafy vegetables and a diet high in iron tend to stain the teeth like that. Oh. So the bi-weekly runs of liver pate and bowls of steamed chard for lunch? Yeah. Not a bad thing, just a thing.

The dentist also HIGHLY recommended a $150 toothbrush for them (the oral b triumph…apparently the same one that He uses himself, apparently upgraded to it from the sonicare & likes it a ton more. It has a small head so it’s great for kids). Of course I had no idea the cost when he was telling me about it. I checked one out at target on our way home (when i was buying floss and a trashcan for their bathroom) and had a bit of sticker shock. We’ll have to see about that.

So there you have the main recap of the First Ever Burns Kids Dentist Trip.

3 year old Princess

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I’ve been writing this post in my head all day, but haven’t had a chance to sit and do it.  …and now of course my brain is in a total fog and I’m exhausted.  But I couldn’t let the day slide away without sharing a few thoughts about my favorite little girl named Grace.

Her smile is sunshine in our house, as is her giggle.

Her facial expressions and dramatic storytelling keep us in stitches.

We might occasionally complain about the non-stop flow of words pouring out of her mouth, but 1) she comes by it honestly & 2) I do LOVE getting to know what goes on in her amazing little brain.

She has taught me that the old adage “each kid is different” is true. There is in fact no ‘one size fits all’ in parenting.

She is a constant reminder that in all I do and all I aim to be, I need God’s undeserved mercy towards me. I need His help. I need His Grace.  Not only that, but it’s all I NEED.  And I can’t ‘add anything to it’.  I can’t earn it, and I don’t deserve it.  Much like the sweet little girl with no middle name that graces my day with kisses and hugs and giggles and singing.

I love you “super”, Grace Burns, and I love that I get to watch you grow up more & more each day.

Putting my Library Obsession to work

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My husband has officially worn off on me.  I have a new blog.  libraryday.com

Growing up I was a book worm.  Any free chance I got I pulled out a book.  I remember in 5th grade having ‘reading time’ for I think 15 minutes or so between english and history.  I repeatedly got in trouble for not putting my book away when history started.  It wasn’t because I was rebellious. I literally had no idea class had started.  I was that absorbed in the book.  In fact the main thing i occasionally find myself pining for in regards to pre-children days are lazy saturdays (especially in the winter) spent reading.  The ENTIRE day. I would sometimes read more than one book in a saturday.  Anyhow, in regards to my love of reading, I also loved the library.  I was always looking for something new to read, and the library was a never-ending free source to tap my obsession.  For the summers of grades 3-8 my sisters and I took up residence at the neighborhood pool.  We would literally spend the entire day there almost every day of the summer.  At least that’s what I remember.  That pool had a library pretty much across the street from it.  I remember heading over there armed with a backpack during the ‘adult swim’ to return to the pool backpack stuffed to the gills.  Ok, so I didn’t read many classics…I’m pretty sure I read every Sweet Valley High ever in print.  I do remember checking a book out on animal CPR once though…

Anyhow, fast forward to me with children.  I have been taking Asher to the library since he was a newborn in a carseat carrier.  However, there was a period, once he became mobile that I stopped, and seemed to all but forget the library.  It for some reason escaped my memory that it could be a place for kids.  Then I heard a friend mention something about library ‘storytime’ when Asher was about 18 months old and I was inspired.  Then I attempted to go.  Storytime was fun, but beyond that I was SO overwhelmed by the options, and trying to find things while also trying to keep him from tearing the place apart (did I mention I was about 9mo pregnant too?) I fled in terror.  I immediately emailed a friend of mine who (at the time) had 4 kids and I knew she took them regularly.  They always had a stack of library books floating around their house.

“How do you choose? How do you decide while also keeping your children from taking every book off the shelf or wandering off?”  Ect. Ect.   I clear forgot how to use the library too.  In true Rebekah fashion, she gave me great advice and indirectly caused me to fall into a new and ‘worthy’ obsession.  Library Day.

My friend suggested a few things such as, reading the book, “Honey for a Child’s Heart”, and browsing their book suggestions for a jumping off point.  Then when you find books you like, check out others from that same author.  I believe there was some mention of admitting to being ‘that mother’ who had kids dancing on tables while she browsed shelves.  The best tip for library trips with young children was utilizing internet resources such as “putting books on hold”.  I do this weekly.  I sometimes have 7 books on hold at a time.  If i hear about a good book, or read one and want to try another by the same author, I don’t even bother with getting it myself.  I go straight to the website & put it on hold.  That way, if nothing else, we will be able to go pick up our holds and be on our chaotic way.  Speaking of which, I should probably bake some cookies for the librarians.

With the advent of this weekly adventure (we’ve gone pretty much religiously once a week for almost 3 years now), came a new found love for children’s books.  I really do LOVE children’s books.  I don’t read much in the way of adult fiction anymore (though I do enjoy audio books to listen to while working on mindless chores), I read children’s books anywhere from 1-4 times a day.  A normal trip to the library brings home 20+ books.  We don’t always finish all of them, and  2 have gone missing (both eventually found…and I finally devised a system where the library books have their own special bookshelf in the living room), and it’s not rare to only like 5 or 10 of the 20, but when we find ones we like, I can’t help but talk (or type) about them.   This brings me (finally) to the point of this post.  I had the inkling of an idea and Ryan grabbed it and ran with it.  A few days later he presented me with: libraryday.com

On this snazzy little blog it is my intention to tell you about children’s books that we’ve found on our “library days” and want other people to read.  In an effort to make it something I will update regularly (weekly as a matter of fact), I promise not to ramble like i do here. Quick little book recommendations.  An outlet to share the gems we find each week.  I intend to add Asher & Grace’s thoughts when they offer them as well, but I’ll keep mine short & sweet (or short anyway).  Or so I intend…ha.

Logos Company Picnic

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On Saturday the Burns family (and the 170+ employees of Logos and their families) headed out to Hovander Park for the annual Logos company picnic. It was an afternoon of food, fun, friends, and more food. From the climbing wall to, to bouncy house, to the sadistic bungee run, we all had a an absolutely wonderful afternoon. Thanks Logos!

Below is a slide show from the day. You can also view the pics on flickr.

http://www.flickr.com/apps/slideshow/show.swf?v=71649

I Don’t Like Berries

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I’m not sure what it is, but I’ve never liked berries. I think it is a texture thing, but not really sure.

Despite my dislike, we went and picked about 17 pounds of raspberries this afternoon. In case you didn’t know, Whatcom county (the county we live in) produces about 75% of the United State’s raspberries. Cool, huh?

So, it was a lot of fun and I managed to snap some really good pics. Click the picture below to see the sideshow on flickr.

Asher and the Raspberries

Delayed Response-tion

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I mentioned more than once while on vacation about a month ago, that I had intentioned to write a “what i learned during my lent fast” post.  Figured it was probably so long overdue or so long since i put real thought to it that it would fall into the “mental compost” blog pile…with the one about how I once saw myself as the ‘bride’ in Hosea and am still brought to (happy) tears when i remember Ryan’s response (during early engagement…when he still had an easy ‘out’) to my divulging the shady past that was my-life-before-you-knew-me-and-ok-some-when-you-did…and many more that i’m sure your better off not hearing, mostly about food probably.  Anyhow, a friend of mine emailed me recently, asking about ‘how I found our church’ (or something like that).  She knew there were no step by step or one size fits all instructions, but it’s always nice to hear how it fares with others.  I shared my opinions on how i feel similarly to ‘finding a church’ as i do to ‘finding a spouse’.  A loose analogy, but it works for me.   I’ll leave it at that for now.

Anyhow, you may recall, for lent, for the first time since…I’m not sure when….I participated in that I ‘gave up’ parts of the social media aspect of the internet (i believe it became even more ‘specialized’ toward the end…as in…i was lame & not hard-core about it).  Basically I did not read my feed reader (i.e. other people’s blogs)..least i don’t think i did…did not twitter (think i cheated there too) & did not visit any forums.  Most noteably the traditional foodie forum where I hold the austere title of “moderator”.  I was true to the last one.  I discovered a few things.  Such as: I thought I would have a slew of ‘free time’ to pursue things like…oh…meditation on scriptures?  However, it would seem I was instead usurping time spent at the lunch & breakfast table with my kids…or time while they napped, that i should have been doing chores or prepping dinner so that I could play with them more when they were awake…ect.  Yeah.  Bring on the mama guilt!  ugh.

But there was more.  If I’ve talked to you in person I have probably mentioned that I had approx. 2.5 friends in my 9 months in florida.  ..and I didn’t have opportunity to spend a lot of time with said friends..though it started increasing just before we moved away.  In part I look back appreciatively to the Providential hand i was dealt….being apparently destined to leave….I’m not sure I could suffer again the heartache i felt when leaving Richmond VA.  The first place I have vivid memory of friends that were women and legitimately, intrinsicly MY friends.  Not born of an aquiantence via a ‘boy’ (i.e. making friends through newly acquired boyfriends, as was my MO in high school/college).  They filled a role in my life I realized I had spent most of my life trying to make a boy fill.  I’m sure Ryan is grateful for the discovery.  His nights are free from chatter about cloth diapers, the virtues of pastured animals (ok..mostly..), and ideas on efficiently yet lovingly running a household..among other less savory subjects (he jokes that if i’m left alone with only women discussion of birth control always just ‘comes up’ somehow).  Not to mention that said ‘Virginia friends’ and I had our kids together.  I mean..not TOGETHER…but ya know…they’re similar ages (& mostly genders too).  I had roots.  Don’t get me wrong.  There was no arm twisting on Ryan’s part.  The Army Brat in me flew the coop with fervor.  Always excited about the next new adventure.   I am grateful for everwhere I’ve been, everyone I’ve met and everything those people and places God used to shape who i am.  However, after i eventually get chickens, perhaps someone should suggest I just dye my hair when I announce whatever new plan I hatch after that one.  I can’t help it. I seem programmed for a need for change every few years.

So, here I am, months into the newest locale…a few aquiantences – with some bright prospects on ‘real’ friends on the horizon – under my belt.  Yet still feeling like i’ve hit that socially awkward wall.  I’m putting myself out there.  I talk to people at the park, I chit chat at library story hour. I go to womanly activity things hosted by women from church.  And. I. feel. like. a. dork.  but lonely?  maybe. I don’t know.  Enter “not forums”.  Ouch.  I LOVE the internet. I enjoy ‘social media’. Especially as one who’s family is dotted across the US (ok mostly dotted across the east coast, with one sibling in Illinios, which I’ve come to realize I don’t know where that’s categorized).  I twitter with the idea that my main audience are the kids’ grandparents, peering in across the continent.  Even as an Army Brat brownie (never made it to a full-fledged girl-scout), being trained with the song “make new friends, but keep the old…” I never kept in touch via snail mail.  I kept in touch with 2 people.  Only because both those people put fort the main effort and put up with my months of no response.  Eventually even they apparently decided i wasn’t putting in my share.  I get easily sucked into my own little bubble of ‘here and now’ and can’t be bothered to write and send a letter (or a blog post it would seem).  However, just after our move to Florida it had – unbeknownst to me – become a crutch of sorts.  The foodie blog in particular.  What drew me in initially was trying to figure out what the heck was wrong with my son’s intenstines.  But it became deeper.  Then, as I slowly moved from wandering novice to seeming ‘expert’ (ok, perhaps not expert….’know it all’ perhaps?)…well, somewhere in there I found a family.  As quack as it sounds.  In fact when I realized we were moving here to Washington, I took note of the women on this forum who live in the area.  And I’m happy to say I’ve had one of them over for dinner since we moved here.  So it’s not ALL cloak and dagger anyway.  But it was pulling me away from REAL life.  It was stunting my availability…desire…to really reach out to the inconvenience of figuring out how to fit into other people’s lives.  How to make friends.  Again. Enter the ‘fast’.

I thought it would be a time of being reminded of who God is by the study of his word and hours of naptimes spent deep in prayer.  Instead, I mostly felt lonely…disconnected… and compelled to pick up the…gasp..phone.  It was during lent that I began to spend purposeful time with the women here that I’m becoming more and more connected to.  I am a social creature.  Granted, I don’t like a lot of hubub, playdates, and appointments.  But I like to chat with some girls.  it’s more than that though.  I crave community.  I need eyes outside my own nuclear family to peer in and remind me of things like, “well…did you pray about it?” or, “you know that’s normal, right?”.  People who along with my own family, that I can take a deep breath and stop sucking in my stomach around (not entirely analogy).  Praise the Lord that he pressed upon my heart to ‘unplug’.  I did not find Him in the way I was expecting.  But I found Him in the way he tends to work…people.  His people.