ladybug on the tree

Because of the long weekend, we've been able to sleep in three days in a row & it's been DELIGHTFUL! With a baby bursting into our lives soon, I'm savoring the extra hours of sleep.

Yesterday we did some Christmas shopping, had a lunch date, and found a beautiful Douglas Fir to live in our home for the holidays. It smells nice and everygreen-y in our apartment now.

While Andrew was trimming the scraggly branches off the bottom of the tree, I saw this ladybug & had to take a picture of it before sending it to a new home outside (a bush; I didn't kill it).

Christmas is coming, and Ransom is coming sooner!

the lonely Thanksgiving photo

I only took one picture during the entire day of Thanksgiving. It's of our sourdough pancake breakfast. Here it is; feel free to drool!

And it was delicious, by the way. :)

11.23.10:anniversary two

As you can see from the pictures, we awoke to a dusting of snow on the ground the morning of our second wedding anniversary. It was a present! It had snowed, briefly, on our wedding day, too, so I was enchanted!

Here we are, having just discovered it. I'm still wearing my pajamas!

The snow slowed the day down & Andrew had an extra hour before he had to drive to work, so I made oatmeal on the stove (not the microwave, for once!) and we busted out the Christmas music. Chicago's Christmas album, if you're curious. :) It's a tradition in Andrew's family & has become one in our little one, too.

Here are a couple of pictures of my commute to work. I had to take a couple of pictures to get the "11/23/10" on the little digital sign up at the front of the bus. This picture is the best of the ones I took.

It was, again, enchanting to see the snow covering everything but to still see colored leaves on some of the trees. I was so thankful for the bus system this day & that I didn't have to drive on the ice. Andrew ended up heading home after trying to drive to his job that day, but an hour later things had cleared up enough for him to get to work. That's what it's like here; the snow makes a fuss in the beginning of the day & then melts with hardly any remaining snow for the next day.

The evening of our anniversary we went out to eat (thanks, Mike & Gina, for the gift card!) and had a blast! We had a coupon & ordered an appetizer & were basically full before our meals arrived so we had LOTS of leftovers to take home! It was a luxury & we had such a fun time!

Happy anniversary to us. I love you Andrew J.

Dessert Date

In anticipation of the arrival of Ransom, Andrew & I have been thinking of things we'd like to do before he comes into our lives & what we can do now together before a babysitter is needed. A week or so ago we went out to dessert to a place we had always wanted to go to but had never gotten around to it.

We had a table near the window, which I loved because we could see the trees on the street that always have twinkle lights on in the evening. Ah... :)

I had a chocolate almond torte, and there was no dairy in it! It was very nutty & delicious, the kind of dessert you take a half hour to eat in between sips of tea & conversation, which we had a lot of.Andrew had a piece of chocolate coffee cake to go with his (according to him) very good coffee.
Another sweet memory with my best friend...the fact that this sort of date doesn't happen very often makes it all the more precious.

kairos moment

Wednesday on the bus I was on my way to my doctor's appointment & I had what Madeleine L'Engle calls a kairos moment. From what I remember from Walking on Water, this sweet book she wrote about creativity & being a Christian, kairos is a moment outside of normal time, chronos. It's a moment of realization, where things seem more real, more of what they really are meant to be. This pops into my mind to explain kairos: as if for a moment the veil of the Shadowlands is taken away & a shimmer of a glimpse is permitted into the greater story being written.
On that crowded bus I was aware of the life inside of me, of the miracle that he is, and the intentional timing of God in bringing him into our lives. How thankful I am for our baby, for every movement he makes that reminds me of the MIRACLE he is!
Moments like this make me excited about living, about the story of beauty God is creating from our ashes.
After the kairos moment hit, I took some pictures of the things in my lap, wanting to remember what little interests are making up my life right now & to keep pictures of this season before Ransom comes. Wanting to remember the kairos, the particular lighting on the bus that day, etc.
By looking at what's in my lap here, and what I'm wearing, I am thinking of Laryn, the Vencills, Erin, Jessica, Moriah, mom & dad, my interest in cooking & sharing in the pleasure of old movies with AJ & our friend Tony.
I am looking forward to this business of living & to living past the Shadowlands!

Our front door

Following, is a glimpse of our front door for my dear family so they can visualize where we're bringing our baby home in a little less than a month, perhaps, if his December 18th due date is to be believed!


Bonus points to anyone who can guess what song the little bird is singing! Hint: a foreshadowing of the season to come... My family has an advantage; it's a song we sang together as a family in church one year.

bus date

Since I've been riding the bus to work, I've wanted to show AJ the route I take & have him experience it with me. So Saturday we had a bus date. We got on the bus near our home which drops us off in the heart of downtown. It was a beautiful, chilly, sunny autumn day, perfect for galavanting downtown to the farmer's market, a bakery, the library, and oh how I loved this date! Here are some pictures:

Reading Perelandra by C.S. Lewis, second of the Space trilogy about Ransom, the name we're giving our boy.

And that's it, folks.

a couple of good ones

Last weekend we went on a couples retreat with our church to Bend, Oregon. Such a pretty place! On Saturday night of the retreat we dressed up & chowed down on some soul food! Jambalaya!

And on Sunday we went to the farm with our friends Andrew & Coralie & their kids. We picked apples, chose a few pumpkins, sampled apple cider & cobbler, etc.

The charming apple picker.

Comparing sizes.

new job

Andrew has started a new line of work since the end of September. Since he graduated from college this spring he's been learning new trades. First it was concrete, and now, he's learning the tile trade. This man was not made for an office job & of course, hoping to have a home of our own some day, I'm thrilled he's learning all of these skills that might be useful later on! Here are a few pictures of a shower he helped with, early in his new tiling career.



Here, he's explaining to Tia & me what his part of the job was.



I'm so proud of him. :)

glimpse of the new home & first chance to host

Going back several weeks to when we first moved into our new apartment (end of August), I thought I'd show you some pictures. Thanks, Lizzy, for suggesting this & for helping motivate me to do it!


The living room! The banners I made in honor of Jamie's surprise birthday party are still up. They're just too festive to take down, so I've left them up.


Our piano, which we got for FREE on craigslist! It feels like a luxury to have one in our home to play whenever we like! I'm thankful to be able to practice.


The birthday girl, Jamie, about to blow out the candles.


The birthday party-ers! Jenny, Rachel, Jamie, Kaylene, Kristin, Danielle, and on the bottom, me & Becki.

In the baby's room, AJ putting the crib together. He did such a great job!

So this is just a glimpse.

this morning

this morning

satisfying time spent with Andrew before work
he helped me find answers to my questions
didn't just write me off
another reason why I love him so!

in The Descent to Hell" Charles Williams's chapter
"The Doctrine of Substituted Love"
was very good
a hopeful light
in a so far ghostly book

encountered a lady on the bus
she gave me a new outfit for the baby
it says, "heaven sent"
she seemed heaven sent to me

walking from the bus stop to work
cloudy morning, which I love
passing the holly and the ivy...
remembering four part harmony singing
with my family

seeing a grey squirrel
makes me want to revisit
Beatrix Potter's "Squirrel Nutkin"
and other friends of hers

looking forward to this weekend
a retreat with my Andrew
and plans to pick apples and admire pumpkins with friends

I pass another walker and we smile
a mona lisa smile remains on my face
after we pass

crisp, autumn air
but it makes my face warm when I get inside
the chilly air was a relief
to my warm baby incubating body!


Ecclesiastes 9:7-9 (the Message)

Seize life! Eat bread with gusto,
Drink wine with a robust heart. (juice/tea/soymilk in my pregnant case!)
Oh yes—God takes pleasure in your pleasure!
Dress festively every morning.
Don't skimp on colors and scarves.
Relish life with the spouse you love
Each and every day of your precarious life.
Each day is God's gift. It's all you get in exchange
For the hard work of staying alive.
Make the most of each one!

taking the bus

Recently we moved to a new apartment, anticipating the extra room needed with our little one arriving in December. Our first move. My regular routine of walking to & from work from our former newlywed apartment needed to be reworked since it's too far to walk now.

And so I am now a patroness of the public transportation system of our fair city, and I'm liking it! Today's even my day off & I've taken advantage of my bus pass for the purpose of running my errands to the bank, the library, the natural foods store, all conveniently located from the hub of the bus station. This small town girl feels a little more urban, let me tell you.
It's my hope that this new experience for me (some of you are probably old hands at this sort of thing) will not just offer me more time for getting some reading done as I ride to my next stop. I hope that I will be a blessing and that I'll be brave enough to take opportunities to be courteous and thankful, to be encouraging & that the Spirit of God who lives in me & delights to use even little Rachel will leak out leaving some stardust behind.

after it was over

After John & Kristin's wedding ceremony, we helped clean up a little, and as we were on our way out we said goodbye to Jim, Kristin's dad. (He & his wife Cindy heroically hosted us & lots of other people at their house over the weekend, and it was lovely.)
Jim sat down at the piano and started playing something (I want to say it was a hymn) & AJ & I paused walking down the center aisle out of the church as AJ sang along. Had to bust out the camera & remember it. It was a very "Father of the Bride" and the party's over moment.

Pike's Place Public Market

Day before our friends John & Kristin tied the knot, they & we their friends traversed to Pike's Place Public Market in Seattle to get fresh flowers for the wedding. It was my first time at Pike's and I loved it! Only forty minutes or so spent there, but it was enough to whet my appetite for a longer visit. John bought a fresh sourdough baguette and the pictures below show us consuming it. SO GOOD! I also ate a Russian pastry that had dough that was a gorgeous yellow color (was there saffron in the dough?) with cinnamon and cardamom! Eating it warm on a chilly overcast Northwest morning in the crowds of Pike's Place...ah...it was a moment for me. A foodie moment. :)

Camping

This Friday we went camping with others from our church & had a blast! I'm sorry to say it was our first camping trip being married and we're approaching two years of marriage! Being the daughter of my parents who met as counselors at a camp in Green Bay, Wisconsin, I am appaled at myself that this didn't happen sooner. However, it was lots of fun, we slept in a tent (I love tents!), our campsite was near a river, and we were well fed. (Thank you Raineys & Thomases & Sticklers & Townsends & Werners & Fultzes!) The pictures above are us with bikes that our friends Tim & Amy let us ride on. It was so fun! Another thing I haven't done in...ahem...years... And notice my belly. Twenty five weeks along & little Ransom is moving a lot!

Pearl & George

I opened my mailbox today & found a letter from my mom! Letters are my favorite.
Enclosed with the letter she sent me a picture of my grandparents, Pearl & George from the summer of 1941. I'd never seen the picture before but it is significant to me now especially because my grandma was pregnant with her first baby at the time this picture was taken. Jane was born on December 19 (the same month as the Pearl Harbor attack); our baby is due December 18 (what history makers will mark our time). It's a pleasure to be able to have this picture of my grandparents, getting a glimpse of them at this stage of their marriage on the brink of parenthood while AJ & I are at the same stage the summer before our baby is born.
My mom wrote, "You are at the same stage of pregnancy as she was--you the summer of 2010, she the summer of 1941--sixty-nine years apart. It makes you think about life--it rolls on and on controlled by God. It is beyond us..."

vox celebration

AJ, having worked and saved & also having received birthday & graduation money was able to pay cash for his ideal guitar amp. It's a Vox AC30. The Beatles used an amp like this. So does Dustin Kensrue, one of our favorite songwriter/singer/musicians. AJ likes the smooth sounds he can get out of this amp & also the distortion. This amp is a blessing & it means AJ doesn't have to borrow amps from his friends anymore & can bring his own to band practices & gigs!
Since I don't know musical hardware lingo so well as AJ or his friends, my excited response to show my gladness for this new blessing was to cook! I made up a recipe & called it "Vox International Pitas".

It starts in the sauce pan. Finely chop some garlic & saute with butter on low heat, add some oregano, and saute long enough so it smells lovely & Italian but not so long that it browns.
Place garlic & oregano into a bowl, add chopped tomato, chopped red onion, shredded carrot, and chopped mango. Mix together.
In another skillet I took some brats from Trader Joe's and cooked them. When they were cooked through, I cut them into coin shapes.Take some pita bread, cut it in half, toast it, smear hummus on the inside, insert a nice green lettuce leaf or two, and fill with some of the veggie mixture & brat "coins". Serve with lime wedges & squeeze the lime into the pita filling. Ah! It's like eating the rainbow.
I thought I'd presume to put "international" in the recipe name because flavors in this meal remind me of Italy, Mexico, Germany, and Mediterranean cuisine.

(And this is us on Memorial Day!)