Update

If every title of the blog has to be "Update" clearly I'm not using the blog very often. But, life continues, nonetheless.

November was a glorious month, as it always is. We celebrated our birthdays and had a lovely time stuffing ourselves to the gills during multiple Thanksgiving celebrations. Andy got to experience Spring Mill State Park's Thanksgiving dinner, which was beautiful and delicious, and we got to eat lots of my mom's yummy fried chicken while at my sister's house that weekend, too.

December is going very quickly - how can it be nearly Christmas already?! We're excited to see family in Kentucky and spend more time with our amazing godson, Colton. When I get pictures uploaded to the computer, I'll be sure to have a special blog just about our first time with C.

Lot's of stuff is on the horizon for the Crowes. As plans come together, we'll be sure to share.

"Rejoice in the Lord always."

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:4-7

I've been trying to think of a way to blog about Andy's situation with Sofa Mart but have struggled with what and how much to share. Instead of going into the details, here's a summary - Nearly two weeks ago, Andy resigned from his position as store manager after becoming the scapegoat for a situation and being wrongfully accused of something that he would never, under any circumstances, ever do. Andy went to work that day knowing corporate was showing up and resigned before the store closed that evening. I was waiting for him at a friend's house and, after showing up earlier than expected, which of course signaled to me that something was wrong, he took me outside to fill me in on what happened. I had been on pins and needles all day and was absolutely devastated as Andy described the day's events.

Even though we were both in shock and very, very sad about what had just happened, God stepped in immediately to calm our fears. A few weeks ago, right after Andy's annual review went terribly, he had begun talking with this guy from church, Todd, about possible job opportunities. Immediately after telling me the news, Andy called Todd to see if the two of them could meet the next morning to discuss any more possible job opportunities. As Andy and Todd were talking, Todd asked us to come to church, where the monthly all-church prayer meeting was going on, so people could pray for us. I really, really didn't want to go, because I'm terrible at crying and being vulnerable in front of other people, but I knew Andy needed the support so we went, and I'm so glad we did. When we arrived, Todd, who works for a temporary employment agency, said that there was a factory position open (through Christmas, maybe) that Andy could start Monday morning. Todd also mentioned a sales position available that Andy could submit his resume for. We were absolutely stunned. In no way did Andy or I ever expect that walking into the church, less than one hour since Andy had left Sofa Mart, would result in a job opportunity that would enable Andy to avoid any kind of lag in employment. Of course, because of Andy's character and commitment to providing for his family, he didn't hesitate to graciously accept the position. After our conversation, Todd asked if we'd like members of the church family to come into the pastor's office to pray for us. I deferred to Andy, again because I hate showing others my vulnerability. Andy said it would be fine and within a few minutes, the office was packed and we were surrounded by people praying to God on our behalf. The love we felt from near strangers was simply overwhelming. When they were finished, we walked out of the church, hand in hand, praising our Lord for His provisions.

It has been amazing to have our eyes opened to so many things in such a short amount of time! Personally, I'm thankful to God for providing a husband who didn't think twice when offered a factory worker position, after running a multi-million dollar retail operation for the last year. I know men and women who would have said, "I'm sorry, but I'm going to sit at home and wait for something better than that to come along." But not Andy. He takes his role as provider of our family very seriously and I thank God continuously for placing that kind of character in Andy, and for providing him as a husband to me. I'm also thankful that Andy is currently working a schedule that allows him to be home in the evenings and on weekends! Last weekend was our first weekend together at home in nearly 2 years. Being with a company that only allows their managers 3 weekends off a year and weekly schedules which include 13 hour days 5+ days each week, we had gotten used to a very different kind of schedule. It's an understatement to say that I'm enjoying having him home much more often right now.

Despite the anger over the situation and the moments of fear about what lies ahead, Andy and I are both thankful that he now has opportunities for a different job. We had been talking for some time about how family-UNfriendly this position was and Andy had been suffering from incredible stress usually daily and always weekly since assuming the store manager position in March. Though he may not currently be in a position that he desires to hold until retirement, we're both unbelievably thankful for an income to contribute to our household and I know that Andy's very, very thankful for the reduced daily stress he currently endures.

As we go into the holiday season, I'm thankful at the prospect of having Andy with me as I travel around Indiana and Kentucky to see family. That was another thing that Andy missed out on, working for Sofa Mart. While we've both really enjoyed relocating to Indiana, I've had many opportunities to see my family and friends but that always meant leaving Andy behind to work. It's amazing to know that this Thanksgiving and Christmas will be our first back in Indiana and, God willing, we'll be able to enjoy the holidays together and won't have to try and coordinate around Andy being back in TH to work the big retail days following Thanksgiving and Christmas.

We're also so very thankful for all of the support of our family and friends. I'm especially thankful of the hope and positive attitudes that we've witnessed as we've called people to tell the of the news. It's a wonderful reminder that our jobs do not define us. To be honest, I was afraid that, when I told people what happened, they would be devastated in the way Andy and I both were; instead, folks have been so great to encourage Andy that something better is just around the corner. People see exactly what I see in Andy - an incredible work ethic, a great personality, and a willingness to learn. I am faithful that God will provide and am excited to see what comes along next for him.

Finally, I'm thankful for a God that never leaves us. Through all of this, not only have I felt closer to Andy, but I have felt closer to God. He continues to provide a strength and hope that I could not get anywhere in this world.

The only way I can think to end this post is where I began...

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:4-7

I'm Detoxing from Facebook

My name is Ashleigh and I'm a Facebook addict.

A few months ago I started to notice that Facebook was negatively affecting my life. Even typing that sentence is an embarrassing indication of how attached to Facebook I had become. I started noticing that, more often than not, I was annoyed, saddened, angry, jealous, etc. as I read my "friends" statuses. Perhaps even more frightening, I discovered that I couldn't do consistent hours of work without taking a "Facebook break." So, as an experiment, I decided to "give up" Facebook for the month of October. Here's what I've discovered so far (it's Oct. 4, mind you)

1. The world continues...in fact, the majority of my "friends" on FB haven't even noticed I'm gone.

2. I am, indeed, addicted. On October 1, a Saturday spent at home, I had to consciously stop myself from checking FB. On Sunday I snuck onto FB for a few minutes, just to get a fix. At work on Monday, I accidentally went to FB when opening up a browser.

3. I am more productive. First and foremost, FB serves as a delicious procrastination tool for me. One less thing for me to procrastinate with = one more thing OFF my To Do list.

4. FB is so ingrained in our culture, it's terrifying. Last night I was talking to a dear friend, who actually had noticed I was off FB and we began talking about how something will happen in our lives and immediately we think to ourselves or share with those we're with "that's totally a FB status." WTH?

5. I don't think social media is bad, or evil, or of the devil.

I'll probably go back to FB in November, but with some important perspective. Or maybe I'll give up FB, blogging, the Internet, and civilization for good and live on a farm with goats and teach yoga. Consider all of that TBD...

Updates

Well, my last post was August 20 and now it's Sept. 28. Sounds a lot like the journal I keep at home. Apparently I am allergic to consistency, as I fail to be consistent in anything I do. I always come back to whatever I set out to do, which is nice, but for whatever reason the idea of doing something daily, weekly, monthly, etc. just seems unattainable. Nonetheless, here are our updates:

August ended nicely with the start of school. This semester I'm teaching a university skills course and also auditing a graduate level career counseling class in hopes of teaching the freshman seminar we require of our Exploratory Studies students. September has really just flown by. Labor Day weekend I spent time with my mom and Trent in KY. The next weekend, Andy and I stole away to St. Louis for a Cardinals/Braves game and time with old friends. The following weekend I headed east to celebrate my sister's birthday, and last weekend my dad and stepmom came up for a visit. Thankfully this weekend I don't have any plans and I aim to keep it that way. Really, that's not true. I always have plans. I am a professional planner, though I don't actually get paid for it. My plans are to not travel, and that's good enough for me.

Speaking of planning and traveling, Andy and I just booked our first cruise! Despite my sister raving about the cruises she's been on before and hearing from all sorts of people that cruises are the most economical vacations, we've always been hesitant. Of course my hesitation lies in the fact that I don't want to be eaten my sharks or have to swim to shore when the boat sinks. Andy and I both wonder if we'll freak out a bit when there's nothing but ocean surrounding us. However, last night, we took the plunge and booked! We're going in March and are traveling with my sister and brother-in-law. They've been on two cruises before, so they will be our tour guides of sorts. We're going to Belize and Mexico and will be sailing for 5 days. While I'm still a bit nervous about the whole being in the middle of the ocean thing, I'm really excited to get away with my love. Though we've done some small vacations since we've been married, the last big vacation we took was our honeymoon. 2009 was for Andy finishing school. 2010 was a total ruckus in more ways than one. 2011 we relocated. 2012 is supposedly when the world is ending, so it's as good a time as any to take a vacation. And so the preparation begins. First task...passports.

We're really looking forward to October. Fall is such an incredibly magical time for me and we both really enjoy what I affectionately refer to as "hoodie weather." I'm excited to throw two baby showers, visit a dear friend, and be visited by a dear friend. Not to mention tis the season of all things pumpkin!

Until next time...

Crowe Garden Continues

The 2011 Crowe Garden continues! We've had a couple of great harvests in the last few week:

Unfortunately we did have a theft, as our watermelon, which I had been lovingly tending for weeks in anticipation for Andy to eat was taken right out from under us :-(. Theft is really common at community gardens, so you just have to get used to it, but it's so sad to see our hard work taken by strangers. Definitely something to consider as I'm thinking about participating in the garden next year.

We're currently in the market for summer squash recipes, so if you have any, let us know!

The Summer of the Blueberry

This past July my sister and I (my brother-in-law came this time too) renewed a delighted pasttime and headed to Michigan to visit our aunt and uncle. WE used to do this on a more regular basis but of course, as we've grown up we've not been back as much as we'd like to. Of course, July is the BEST month to go, because the blueberries are ripe for the pick'. And did we pick.

We got to Michigan on Thursday evening and were there for a long weekend. On Friday morning, we decided to go pick blueberries. When we got there, we decided it would be a good idea to get three 1-gallon buckets to tie around our waists (very stylist and VERY practical) along with a larger bucket to maximize our blueberry collecting. Even though we had just experienced incredibly hot July temperatures, that morning was overcast and breezy and it was just lovely blueberry picking weather. We get started. We fill our little buckets once. We dump our little buckets into the big bucket. We fill our little buckets again. We dump our little buckets back into our big buckets. We start to fill our little buckets a third time. Then the gentle overcast sky turns to threatening rain clouds. Other guests leave the blueberry bushes. We keep picking. Aubrei says "maybe the rain will pass right over us." Then I say "you hear that roar? That's probably the rain coming over those trees." Then it started pouring. We grabbed our big bucket (okay, we made Dan grab it), we covered our little buckets with our shirts to avoid the rain and we headed for the garage. We realized quickly that the garage was too far away, so we ducked under some trees. The canopy held the rain water off. For about 45 seconds. Then we were soaked and had no choice but to run back to the garage, giggling the whole way and determined not to lose a signal berry from our harvest. Back at the garage, along with the other guests who had come in BEFORE the rain, we stood in line to get our berries weighed, pay, and go home.

We came home with 33 POUNDS of blueberries, which translated to about 16lbs a piece for the Teters and Crowes:

So far I have only made the Blueberry Boy Bait Cake, glazed blueberry breakfast rolls, and LOTS of blueberry smoothies, but I have plans to make muffins to freeze, pancakes to freeze, more smoothies, another boy bait cake, and whatever other blueberry recipes I come across. Suggestions wanted!

Great article

I recently read this article in Relevant Magazine and found it to be really interesting. While I don't think there is any inherently wrong with "hip" churches, I do agree that community is the basis of the church and everyone should feel welcomed, loved, and able to trust when they walk into a church. Hope you enjoy!

Christina's delicious dessert

The one and only Christina Ramsey made this dessert for an RLC function years ago and I begged her for the recipe but this weekend was the first time I've ever tried it. It was delicious and super easy to make :-)

6 cups frozen mixed berries - about two bags

1/2 cup sugar

1 TBSP corn starch

Double batch of Bisquick

3/4 cup sugar for top of dessert

Make the double batch of Bisquick according to directions, but add 3 more TBSP milk. Put berries and 1/2 cup sugar in pot on stove on medium heat. Add 1 TBSP cornstarch and bring to a boil, then move back down to medium for 6-8 minutes. Place the berries in a 10X12 or 9X13 pan. Drop Bisquick mixture onto berries by the spoonful. Sprinkle 3/4 cup sugar over topping. Bake according to Bisquick instructions (I had to back about 20 minutes on 450 degrees). I served it warm with ice cream on the side. So scrumptious! The only thing I would do different next time...I might try to roll the dough out so it lays over the berries better resembling a crust. But dropping them on worked just fine!

Garden Lesson #3 - water BEFORE you try to pull the weeds/grass!

The garden is coming along. I just refuse to give up, even though it's more work than I ever could have imagined. I'm about zucchini-ed out, having eaten them roasted, fried, sauted, baked in bread, etc. so I'm excited that the garden is about to start producing some other stuff - watermelon, a butternut squash, cucumbers, tomatoes and I just planted some hot salsa peppers and bush beans...we'll see if they take!

Anyway, onto the next gardening lesson...and this one is a real gem - if you have a lot of weeds to deal with, your efforts to pull those suckers out will NOT be in vain if you water the area first and then come back to it later that evening or the next day. Case in point - my garden, which is covered in grass anywhere plants aren't growing (it's NOT Johnson grass, by the way...but still an annoying grass that needs to be dug out to be properly removed). Yesterday I went to dig and lay straw and as I was working my way around the perimeter one of the garden volunteers came up and said "you didn't water; water now and pull tomorrow." (He's a really nice guy, originally from Ghana, so he can sound brief and rude but is actually very nice and helpful!) so I did that and then returned this morning and was able to get LOTS of the grass out with much less effort. I still had to dig, beat the top soil off and throw into a growing pile, but it was most definitely worth it to water first. Also, since the grass isn't Johnson grass, I can let it dry and then use it for mulch. Another plus. I can't stress it enough, by the way, that mulching will safe you MANY hours of weeding. DO IT! Just let the grass dry first.

Here's proof that the garden is still growing! The picture below is of my two new pepper plants.

There is a watermelon hiding in those leaves!

Here's a picture of the east side of my garden, with my new straw in a place and a yellow squash plant that is trying to crawl away :-)

Here's my harvest for the day...three yellow squash and a cucumber.

Here's a full shot of my garden, from the north side. By bush beans are planted in the far right corner...right now it just looks like dirt, haha.

Gardening Lesson #2: Weeds

That mound in front of my lettuce is a huge pile of weeds.

Weed

-noun
1. a valueless plant growing wild, espeically one that growns on cultivated ground to the exclusion or injury of the desired crop.
2. any undesirable or troublesome plant, especially one that growns profusely where it is not wanted: The Crowe garden was COVERED in weeds.

Johnson grass
-noun
1. a sorghum, Sorghum halepense, that spreads by creeping rhizomes, grown for fodder.
2. Ashleigh's personal nemesis.

Important sublesson #1 - weeds do not operate on my schedule.

The first time I went to the garden after a good rain and after we had gotten everything planted, it looked like a front lawn with a few vegetable plants. It was COVERED in grass. So I began pulling the grass/weeds out and soon had a substantial pile, was exhausted, and called it a day. The next morning, our Master Gardener emailed the group, introducing me to my personal nemesis, Johnson Grass. To get rid of JG you have to dig it up, because every time you break a root, a new plant starts growing. So, imagine digging up your front lawn, one clump of grass at a time. That was in May and I'm STILL digging out JG. It has totally taken over the areas of my garden where I didn't plant anything and I spend the majority of my weeding time removing JG from around the plants. In fact, the JG has gotten so big and strong on the border of my garden that I'm going to buy clippers and just clip it down and dig it out slowly each time I visit the garden. It's just too much to do in one or two visits. The roots are so strong you have to put ALL of your might into pulling the big ones out. And if you don't get the roots, your effort is in vain because it just comes back stronger than ever.

Important sublesson #2 - Weeds laugh at the concept of perfection. I have resolved myself to the idea that some weeds will co-exist in my garden.

As I've said before, our Master Gardener is really helpful in providing information, particularly to new gardeners. In May, she mentioned the concept of mulching. Of course, I put that email in the "Community Garden" folder and went about my business.

Important sublesson #3 - Listen to the Master Gardener.

After spending ours pulling weeds/grass I remembered the MG's email about mulching and shamelessly reached out to parents, friends, co-workers, asking for their (untreated) grass clippings. Luckily my Dad came through and supplied me with three big bags full of grass. Once I layed that down on the garden, it was like a new plot. Turns out, mulching REALLY does help choke out the weeds. Not the Johnson Grass, but the regular, run of the mill weeds. Which means I have more time and energy to fighting the bully that is JG. Seriously, people...mulching (you can use pine needles, lawn clippings, hay, etc.) has been my BIGGEST novice gardening victory to date. That and talking to the plants. I swear they grow when I give them some loving encouragement.

Gardening Lesson #1: A "small" plot is still a lot of work

It's Opening Day at the garden and they are having a little "meet and greet" and I am pumped. The Master Gardener shows me my plot (like the first day of school, I had already scoped the scene out on my own but wanted 100% confirmation before digging). I had requested the smallest size available, 10ftX10ft because Andy doesn't eat many vegetables so I was only going to be growing for about 1.5 adults. We can't get started on our plots Opening Day because it has been raining for what seems like weeks and it's freezing cold.

Two weeks go by and it's still raining. Mom and Trent come up to help me get started but the rain keeps us from planting. M&T both notice immediately that the plot is larger than 10X10 and Trent estimates it at closer to 20X8. Mom provides me with a lovely map and we wonder around a local nursery that weekend, looking for plants to include in our Crowe Garden 2011. Then, Mom and Trent leave me with their shovel and I'm on my own...

When the rain finally clears I decide to get started. I drag my shovel to the plot, slide my work gloves on and get movin'. As in breaking up all of the dirt. Our plots were all tilled at the beginning of the season but with a month of rain, the dirt is certainly compacted and not ready for planting. So I dig. And turn. And dig. And turn. And dig. And turn until my hands are full of blisters. Luckily I did get the entire space turned over before I had to throw the shovel down in disgust. The next day, I excitedly go buy some arugula, spinach, brussel sprouts, and lettuce with hopes of keeping them alive at home until it is warm enough to plant.

Then more rain.

The spinach doesn't make it. Neither does the arugula. Some lettuce dies too. The brussel sprouts hang on.

Finally, it's time to plant. Andy and I go to the garden. He is the official map reader. I am the official planter. By this time we also have zucchini and squash, cucumbers, a watermelon, and three tomato plants. We arrive. The plot has these strange things sprouting that, when pulled, look sort of like red, horizontal carrots. I did them up and plant. It's a huge accomplishment and I am excited. Andy perks up when I mention that we need to water. He becomes to official watering man.

The next time I go to the garden (usually I go on the weekends) there are a lot of...weeds. Which brings me to my next lesson: weeds.

Strawberry Summer Cake

You MUST try this recipe! It was a huge hit and very satisfying for me to make "homemade" (no box mix for this!).

Credit to www.smittenkitchen.com, by the way. I did not create this on my own.

6 TBSP unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup plus 2 TBSP sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1lb strawberries, halved and hulled

Preheat oven to 350. Butter a deep pie plate or a 9 inch cake pan. I don't have a deep pie plate but the cake pan worked fine. The recipes says NOT to try it in a regular pie plate...not deep enough...will overflow...don't lose any of this precious cake!

Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl. In a larger bowl, beat butter and 1 cup sugar until pale and fluffy with an electric mixer, about three minutes. I couldn't ever get my butter to look "fluffy" but the cake came out right anyway. Mix in egg, milk, and vanilla until just combined. Add dry mixture gradually, mixing until just smooth.

Pour into baking dish. Arrange strawberries, cut side down, on top of b atter, as closely as possible in a single layer. Strawberries will definitely cover entire cake and you may have a few that overlap. Not a problem! Sprinkle remaining 2 TBSP sugar over berries.

Bake cake for ten minutes at 350 then reduce heat to 325 and back for 50-60 minutes. Cake will be golden brown and no batter will come out on tester. Let cool (or rip piece off immediately). We sprinkled powdered sugar on individual slices as we ate the cake. In two days. Don't judge.

And the baking begins...

New goal: Learn to bake. From scratch. Yes, no more commerically prepared products.

Obstacles: 1. I've always been terrified of baking. 2. I don't have a stand mixer.

However, Andy and I are cutting the processed foods out of our diets, but that doesn't mean that we have to give up the occasional yummy baked good. And I happen to know an incredible baker (AKA my stepdad, Trent) who I'm sure would be more than willing to lend advice if asked. So...

Strategies for overcoming obstacles: 1. "the only way to finish is to start" (stolen from some t-shirt I saw on the internet) and 2. I have arms and hands and bowls and utensils and really I don't need another stinkin' kitchen appliance. But...maybe if I'm good and if our new apartment has enough counter space to house the thing, Santa or the Turkey fairy (my birthday is in November) will gift me a stand mixer later this year. Anyhow, I'm starting with these two recipes, both found on my new favorite website Smitten Kitchen, not to be confused with Smitten Kitten, which I will NOT hyperlink and which I accidentally typed in when I tried to go to Smitten KiTCHen and um, wow. NOT the site I was looking for...

My first two made-from-scratch cakes will be:

Strawberry Summer Cake and Blueberry Boy Bait

I'll probably start with the strawberry one because Andy loves strawberries more than blueberries. Also, I will be going to the land of blueberries in July (Michigan) and plan to come home with a trunk full of the berries. Thus, I will have the perfect excuse to bake the second cake.

I'll be sure to take pictures and share my trials and errors :-).

Jillian Michael's book

I just finished Jillian Michael's Master Your Metabolism: The 3 Diet Secrets to Naturally Balancing Your Hormons for a Hot and Healthy Body! and really enjoyed it. No, it doesn't give any new secrets for getting a "hot body". I've been reading diet and nutrition books for years now, so the basic - eat good food and exercise theme didn't blow my mind. What I did find very interesting, however, is the information on endocrine distruptors and all of the crazy stuff inside the things we live in and around, eat, drink, breathe, etc. In some ways the information was overwhelming and terrifying but in others, it was really interesting and informatives. For those interested in learning ways in which to live cleaner, greener, healthier, longer lives, check out the book!

Taco Bake

I created this (okay..."create" meaning I didn't utilize a recipe. I realize I am not the first to do this) last night and it was a HIT! So scrumptious that I am actually excited about the leftovers (I am known in my household as the leftover snob)!

1 lb ground turkey -prepared per instructions on back of taco seasoning packet
1 4 oz can green chilies - added to browned turkey
1 can fat free refried beans - "loosened" up and heated through with olive oil and garlic
About 6 hard taco shells
About 12 oz (I know...it's kind of a lot but I LOVE cheese)
Lettuce, salsa, sour cream - you know, the taco's usual suspects toppings

Once the meat is prepared and the beans are spreadable, I broke the taco shells in half and layered them on the bottom of a small casserole dish. Then half the meat, then half the beans, then half the cheese. Then another layer of shells, the rest of the meat, the rest of the beans, the rest of the cheese :-). Deliciously simple! Baked it in the oven for about 20 minutes, long enough for the cheese to melt and the juices to soften the taco shells. Hot out of the oven I topped each serving with lettuce, salsa, and sour cream. It was delightful! And so, so easy. What more could you ask for in dinner - quick, simple, YUMMY! I didn't take any pictures but it was basically an orange colored casserole. :-)

We couldn't resist another move

Maybe we are going to become those people that move every few months just for kicks. I'm currently lining up boxes to move to our 6th apartment since May 2010 :-). I swear we're not running from the law!

A few weeks ago I posted about how we were going to start house shopping. About 1.5 weeks later, we stopped house shopping. Instead, we've weighed our options and decided that this is not the time for us to buy our first home. After some initial disappointment we quickly thanked God for His hand in our situation and decided to upgrade to a larger apartment within our current complex. While Andy, Spike, and I certainly love each other and while we certainly love the opportunity to turn our living room into the guest bedroom for when family and friends visit, a one bedroom is just a liiiiiiiiiiiiiitle bit too small for this family.

We never got around to decorating the apartment we live in now, so I'm excited to do that in the new one. Once we have everything in place I'll be sure to share a few pictures :-).

Wish us luck! I'm convinced this will be the best move yet, because we've hired movers! Yes, we're only going 0.5 miles down the road, but I'm telling you, it's going to be worth it. No more scrapped knuckles as we push furniture through doorways, or smashed feet as we drop boxes in the wrong places, or sore backs as we forget to lift with our knees, and most importantly, no raised voices shouting "it needs to go into the truck THIS way!" Hired movers = an investment in the longevity of our lovely, happy marriage!

Delicious Energy Bites - Try it!

I stumbled upon this recipe from Oh She Glows today and made it tonight and it is DELICIOUS! It was really pretty easy, though I had never made a "flax egg" before (flax seed and water mixed together - a vegan alternative to egg). The finished product was so delicious that I had a hard time wrapping them up for snacks at work. But, I managed!

Also, I learned an important lesson today. Wax paper and parchment paper do not act exactly the same in the oven. In fact, wax paper may catch fire in your oven. Luckily, I'll pulled it out before flames appeared...

Fruit and Nut Energy Bites (from Oh She Glows website)

Chewy, crunchy, delicate, and sweet. Packed with walnuts and dried fruit, these all natural energy bites will have you buzzing along in no time. They can easily be adapted with other dried fruits, nuts, and spices and would be perfect for outdoor Fall and Winter activities.

Adapted from Joy of Baking.

Ingredients:
1/3 cup whole-grain Kamut flour (or all-purpose, whole wheat, etc) - I used all purpose
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup Sucanat or light brown sugar
1 1/2 cups toasted walnuts (can also use pecans, hazelnuts or almonds), chopped - I used almonds because that's what I had in the house
1/2 cup dried cherries or cranberries - I used raisins instead, because I had those around

12 Medjool dates (approx 1 cup chopped dates), pits removed and chopped (or figs, and/or prunes) - I didn't put any dates/figs/prunes in
1 cup dried apricots, cut into bite size pieces - I used cranberries instead
1 flax egg (1 tbsp ground flax + 3 tbsp water) - this is cool!
1 tbsp almond milk - I used regular milk
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions: Preheat oven to 325F. Line a square pan (8 or 9 inch) with parchment paper across both sides for easy lifting. In a small bowl mix together the flax egg and set aside.

Chop and toast the walnuts for 8-9 minutes at 325F. Remove from oven and set aside. Toasting the nuts really brings out the flavour so you don’t want to skip this step.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the walnuts and dried fruit. Make sure the nuts and dried fruit are all coated with the flour mixture.

Mix the vanilla into the flax egg after it has thickened up after about 10 minutes.

Add the flax egg mixture and the 1 tbsp almond milk to the fruit and nut mixture and mix well.

Spread into the pan, pressing with fingers to even it out. I used a pastry roller too.

Bake for about 33-35 minutes at 325For until golden in colour. Remove from pan and allow to cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Now transfer back into the pan and placein freezer to set for 10 minutes. Remove from pan once again and allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Now slice the bites up with a sharp knife. Makes 16-20 bites depending on how large you make them. I made them smaller as they are very dense energy wise.

I love this recipe because it's so adaptable! Use whatever nuts you like, whatever dried fruit you have around or prefer, etc. It smells absolutely delicious when it's baking because of the cinnamon and vanilla and tastes absolutely divine! Because I was an idiot and thought I could use wax paper in the oven (hey, everyone is allowed a stupid moment now and then) I had to transfer it quickly (read: before a fire began/midway through baking) to another baking dish and didn't have a small one, so actually finished baking it on the jelly roll pan. It kept its form while baking but when I went to transfer it to the cooling rack it started to crumble. I did manage to get it back into the square pan to go in the freezer and then it regained its shape a bit and I was able to cut the bites into little squares when it was all said and done. Next time, I'll use parchment paper and the whole thing should be much easier! (Though all the crumblies sure did taste good as I "cleaned up" hehehe)

Humility and Marriage

I thought this article was really great. I love getting the Marriage Memos from FamilyLife and thought this one was especially good, so I wanted to share. I love my marriage and will do anything to fight for its success. However, I also continue to learn that marriage is an incredibly complicated thing that takes work. When Andy and I were preparing to marry, we were blessed to have people in our lives that were honest about the good things and the difficult things that come with marriage. Often I'm afraid that young couples aren't prepared or equipped to navigate all that comes along with marriage. I think it's incredibly important for young men and women thinking of getting married to really figure out what they are getting in to, so they can be well-prepared. In order for young couples to know what they are really getting in to, other, more experienced couples must be willing to be open and honest about their marriage. That's one of the reasons why I thought this article was so great. A woman who has been married for years and works for a Christian organization had the courage to disclose that not only are there arguments and "fights" in her marriage, but she and her husband argue about the same things over and over again. I admire the author's humility and am reassured that we aren' the only couple that experiences topic repeats when it comes to arguments.

"When Conflict Keeps Popping Up"

By Barbara Rainey

Do you know that unwinnable “Whack a Mole” game at your local kids’ pizza place—the one where the machine pops up plastic moles and your mission is to beat them back down as fast as they pop up? Conflicts in marriage are like that game; they keep popping up even when you don’t want to play anymore.Recently my husband and I were in another unwanted skirmish in our marriage. Same topic, same emotions, round gazillion! I’ve been disappointed many times that our issues are not resolved cleanly. They aren’t black and white.Over the decades of our marriage, our repeated disagreements have settled into several categories: parenting values, decision making, money, sex, and travel. Victory, a conditional one, was declared in only one of these: parenting, and that was simply because time ran out. The others demand ongoing engagement. Your own recurring marital battles may be over finances, in-laws, jobs, or other situations. No two marriages battle the same combination of issues. Yet there are similar patterns.The “we’re traveling too much” conflict was the one that caught us once again last week.My husband’s mother affectionately called her son a “road runner” after the cute cartoon character that was off in a flash everywhere he went. I thought it was sweet. I should have paid attention to the truth she was speaking. Not that it would have changed my decision to marry him. But his road-runner enthusiasm for travel, adventure, discovery, and conquering enemy territory has caused more ongoing stress and conflict in our marriage than any of the other areas I mentioned earlier. (By the way, I love to be home.)Our recent conflict began when I realized we were over-committed. Again. Somehow the schedule monster had eaten up more days than we realized and suddenly we were facing the enemy of miscommunication with no escape. Feelings of mistrust, lack of protection, lack of support, and anxiety resurfaced as we confronted the fact that I need more time at home than he does, but he needs me to go with him, and support him, and do life with him. Neither is wrong. It’s what we do with the clash of those colossal differences that matters.Like peeling an onionAt the core of this conflict, and at the core of any other recurring conflict, is fear. For me it’s fear that I am not really valued for what is important to me. If I perceive that Dennis is constantly scheduling us to the brink, pushing me to my limits, then I come to believe he hasn’t heard me, that he doesn’t get it, and therefore that he doesn’t love me. At the same time, if I refuse to adapt, to grow, to risk the stress of following him, then he perceives that I haven’t heard what he needs, that I don’t get it, and therefore I don’t really care about him as a person. Rather than declaring victory, it’s like peeling the layers of an onion. Each time we clash over this issue, and others, we are in different circumstances in our lives. I needed margins for different reasons 20 years ago when I was parenting full time. He needed my partnership for different reasons, too. Each conversation can peel another layer off our individual coverings so that we can see ourselves and our spouses more clearly than we did before. Our perceptions of ourselves and of each other are vastly flawed. We forget that most of the time.So while I don’t believe we declared victory this time, that we’ll never argue or disagree over travel ever again, I do believe we peeled away another layer. I see more clearly that I need to work on my attitude about following my husband, that I need to rejoice that my husband wants me with him, and that I should trust God with this situation that He has given me for my good.During a recent snow storm, our office building closed for the day. Dennis and I decided to enjoy every minute of the glittering snow-covered day, so we donned our winter gear and went hiking in the woods. On the way back, which was all uphill, I paused to catch my breath. As we stood there panting, my husband said to me, “I’m not going to push you anymore.” It had nothing to do with the travel issues, but I realized in that promise that he had heard my words to him. He allowed me to be who I was in that moment—needing a pause in the action when he didn’t. Next time you are chopping an onion, remember that those layers represent more than a pungent cooking ingredient. To the one who perseveres in marriage, each layer pulled back takes you closer to the heart. Though often accompanied by tears, as happens with onions, the progress made is satisfying. © Copyright 2011 by FamilyLife.

House Hunting Tips, Anyone?!

Andy and I are preparing to enter into the house hunting process. So far we have:

1. Gotten the mortgage pre-approval package from the bank
2. Looked at Realtor.com every week for three months
3. Spent Sunday mornings eating donuts while driving by properties
4. Asked colleagues about neighborhoods to avoid
5. Attended one open house

We continue to pray that God will lead us to the house He has chosen for us. We keep talking about making a list of what we want in a house, but we've yet to do that...maybe this weekend. Any other suggestions from our friends and family who have purchased homes is VERY welcomed!

Love this new recipe

I've probably mentioned it before and it's probably no surprise to any other busy person, but the crockpot continues to be an all star in my kitchen. This week we tried a lovely shredded beef tacos recipe and Oh. My. Goodness was it delicious and SO SO easy! The only thing I would have done differently was use low sodium beef broth because the boullion cube I did use made the beef pretty salty. But it was still delicious. We have leftovers so I'm thinking of making some hashbrowns, warming up the shredded beef and layering the beef on top of the potatoes and underneath a fried egg. If it's good, I'll let you know! By the way, the blog They Call Me Old Fashioned is a great blog in general. Consider following it!

Trips, Tulips, and Heat Waves

Oh, Indiana weather, how I love thee. This week alone the weather has gone from beautiful spring to rainy fall/winter and now we're currently experiencing the muggy 80 degree weather of early summer. It's no wonder I suffer frequently from sinus headaches. I also realized last night as I was telling Andy about the weather forecast for today that I am indeed my father's daughter. After moving off campus and receiving glorious heating and cooling bills in the mail, I informed Andy last night that yes, it's going to be 80 degrees on Sunday and yes, I REFUSE to turn the air conditioning on in April. My poor husband. We'll see how badly the weather deteriorates our marriage foundation and then we'll re-evaluate... We must share the hellacious trip that was Andy going to San Antonio for work last week. Last Monday he left TH at 3:30 a.m. to catch a flight out of Indianapolis at 6:25 a.m. When he got there, he was informed that his flight was canceled due to mechanical troubles. Now, while I'm sure Andy was thrilled that the airline had taken necessary precautions to not fly him around on a broken plane, that's sure not a great way to start out a trip. Sidenote - Andy and I are HORRIBLE fliers. We. Hate. It. I love airports and love traveling, but if I could just be instantly transported from location to location in a "beam me up, Scottie" sorta way, that would save several days of worrying/sleepless nights/needing to call family and make final goodbyes every time I'm going on a trip... After chatting with several folks Andy was able to get on another flight that morning and made it to San Antonio, eventually. When he landed he did mention that it was the worst flight of his life, but at least he was back on the ground. He had a good time in training but by Friday was ready to be back home. And I was ready for him to be back home. And Spike understood that if Andy didn't come home soon, his beautiful dog life might be in danger. Andy was scheduled to fly out at 5 p.m. on Friday. He finally got to leave around 8:30 p.m., of course causing him to miss his connection in Chicago with no hope of getting another flight to Indy until the next afternoon or even Sunday morning. Instead, he (or his company or the two of them in collaboration) decided he would rent a car and drive to Indy, get his vehicle from the airport and make the trip back to TH...so he could be in town to go to work the next day. He finally walked in the door at 6:30 a.m. on Saturday and went to work at 10 a.m after being awake for nearly 27 hours straight. To top that off, he will then put in 12 straight days because his new assistant manager has the week off to make his move to TH. Andy is, to say the least, a VERY hard worker. Thank you, God, for providing our family with such a wonderful man... In other news, the tulips are blooming all around town and it is absolutely gorgeous. I have a soft spot in my heart for tulips and I can't seem to pass one without smiling a bit. I can't wait to have a home where I can line our walkway with beautiful tulips! And speaking of plants, next Saturday is the opening day at the TH Community Garden! I was able to secure a plot there this year and canNOT way to get started planting! It will be my first garden (my parents have been avid gardeners for a long time now...I remember what seemed to be a HUGE garden every summer when I was growing up) and I cannot wait to start cooking with things that I actually grew! I'm hoping my mom can come up to help me. She has already drawn me a map of where things should go and I've bought a few plants already (brussel sprouts, lettuce, arugula, and spinach). I'll be sure to take pictures throughout the whole planting/growing/harvesting/cooking process. Hopefully the pictures will progress from empty plot to bountiful garden but like I said before...it's my first garden. There's no proof that the green thumb was passed down. If I have months of pictures that look exactly the same because everything is dying I won't post...hehe.

Fake Out Dessert

I wish I were a fabulous baker. Unfortunately, I'm not...yet. In the meantime, I love to make great "fake out" desserts. Sweet treats that are delicious but do not take any level of skill to prepare. My latest is what I'm calling an Out of the Trifle Bowl Trifle.

Ingredients:

1 angel food cake loaf

1 package strawberries (thinly sliced and put in a bowl with some sugar to sweeten)

heavy whipping cream

vanilla extract

confectioners sugar

For the whipped cream, just pour the container of heavy whipping cream in a bowl, with some confectioners sugar and vanilla extract and with electric beaters, beat on high until you get delicious whipped cream.

Cut the angel food cake loaf into three even sections and drizzle each section with a bit of vanilla extract. Then layer away! On the bottom layer I did whipped cream, strawberries, whipped cream and then put the second layer of cake on. Same layering on the second layer and then topped that with the top of the angel food cake loaf. I put it in the freezer for a bit to set, because the filling was falling out of the sides. It may not be the most beautiful thing you've ever seen, but it was DELICIOUS!

God's Plans Are Always Bigger

I wanted to write this blog last week, after Andy and I had decided that we were going to pursue membership at a chruch we've been visiting in Terre Haute. I'm glad I waited, because God has even bigger things for us to share about... As Andy and I have settled into life in Terre Haute, IN we've had numerous opportunities to look at each other and say "yep, God brought us here for a reason." But wait...I should back up... During the fall semester I was looking for jobs one evening while Andy was with me in Cedar Falls and came across a job posting for an academic advisor at ISU. It wasn't unusual that I was looking at job postings - I used to do that often because I wanted to gain the skills I would need for future positions, as my former job was not a job I would have until retirement. I had also just been rehired at UNI for a temporary, 1 year position, so I was doing what I do best...I was making future plans. I was checking out academic advisor positions closer to our families and happened to come across a posting at IU in Bloomington, IN, only 30 minutes from my hometown. After reading the description to Andy and talking about the pros and cons of applying for a position at that time of the year I continued on with my purusing of job descriptions and came across the ISU description. After more talk and prayer I decided to apply. Just deciding to apply was difficult enough, because I had just returned to UNI and was not comfortable with the idea of having to leave a position sooner than anticipated. But, I also knew that in a few months my position at UNI would be up and we knew that we wanted to get closer to home with our next move (God willing). To my surprise, I received interview offers for both positions. They originally wanted me to interview on the same day, believe it or not, but I managed to spread the interviews over two separate days. I went to ISU first and enjoyed the interview but didn't feel confident in my chances for moving further along in their process. As I drove back to Iowa after the interview I was disappointed but still excited about interviewing with IU. Within a couple of days I had received a job offer from ISU! Because I knew I had another interview to attend, I asked for the weekend to consider the offer. Looking back I know God was hitting His palm to His forehead or shaking His fist at me. Here He had laid His perfect plan and I needed some time to think about it! Oh, the audacity. A few days later I drove back to Indiana for the IU interview. I thought the interview day went really well, I felt really comfortable with the group, and they even allowed me to share in their office's Thanksgiving feast (my interview was the Tuesday before Thanksgiving). During that meal the director of the program introduced me to others as "our new academic advisor" with a chuckle. I thought I would hear about an offer the next day. I drove back to Iowa that evening excited about the ability to move back to IN but I was also nervous because I had not anticipated having to tell my current supervisor, colleagues, and staff that I was leaving early. The next day I heard from IU that they were pursuing the other candidate. I was totally thrown for a loop. Because of how I felt the interview went, I was totally surprised that an offer didn't come through. But, again, looking back, it was because God was shouting "Ashleigh! I've already worked this out!" So I called Andy and we decided that we would take some time to decide on the ISU job. We had to crunch the numbers and we had to figure out if we could go without any promise of Andy having a job. Luckily he was told that he could step down from assistant manager and be a salesperson at the Terre Haute Sofa Mart. When that current assistant manager got promoted, Andy would step back up into that role. My sister and brother-in-law came to CR for Thanksgiving and we talked about what to do about the job offer ALL weekend. Poor Aubrei and Dan! I also called both my parents and Andy and I weighed the pros and cons over and over and over again. After they left, I took all day Sunday praying to God that He would lead us to the right decision. By that evening, we had decided to take the plunge and move to Indiana... The next month was a whirlwind! I had to resign (again) from my position at UNI, Andy was trying to figure out what was happening with Sofa Mart in TH, we had to pack up our CF apartment AND CR apartment, we had to find an apartment in TH, etc. For the first two weeks after deciding to take the job, we hadn't heard anything from the people at Sofa Mart, so Andy decided to call one Friday evening. After a few minutes on the phone, Andy was offered the assistant manager position - the former manager had just resigned and the folks in TH thought Andy was the best candidate for the position. With one phone call, Andy had gone from taking a step down with the company to making a lateral move. When Andy called to tell me I got chills...during that phone call we took the time to thank God for working that out for us. Shortly after Andy's job worked out, we were approved for our new apartment in TH. My stepbrother lives in TH and had told us about his apartment complex. Again, God had worked things out. There was an apartment available in the complex for us to move on December 30! We were so thankful because we didn't have the time to come to TH to house hunt. So on December 29 I finished my last day of work at UNI, went to CR to finish packing our apartment, and we moved the next morning at 6 a.m. When we arrived the next day in TH, Aubrei and Dan came and helped us unload the truck. The next day (New Year's Eve) my mom and Trent came to help us unpack the apartment. That Monday (four days later) both Andy and I started our new jobs. It was absolutely amazing that we had so much help with the move. AM helped us move stuff out of the CF apartment, Andy's aunt and mom drove all the way to Iowa to help us pack and then followed us to TH driving one of our vehicles; we had a great friend drive down from CF to help Andy with the heavy stuff, etc. There is absolutely no way that we would have been able to do the move without everyone. In early January we started our jobs and immediately felt more at home then we ever did in Cedar Rapids. We settled into our jobs and started hunting for a new church home. Quickly we found a church where both Andy and I, on separate visits, felt that the sermon was created directly for us and just felt God's presence in that church. THAT is why I had originally wanted to write the blog, to talk about God leading us to a wonderful church. But, He had yet another blessing up his sleeve... About two weeks ago Andy heard that his boss was putting in for a transfer to another Sofa Mart store. We were SHOCKED because we didn't think that it would happen so quickly. Andy did know when he took the job that there was a chance that his boss was planning to leave sooner rather than later for another store and when that happened, Andy would be considered for the store manager position. But we had no idea that such an opportunity would come barely 3 months after our move. After a grueling week that felt like 10 years, Andy received a call on Thursday afternoon --- HE WAS THE NEW STORE MANAGER!!!!!!!!!!!!!! During that phone call, we again took time to thank God for His blessings and faithfulness. The promotion came last Thursday. Since then, we've been on cloud nine. It's been so amazing to see God working in our lives and to reap the benefits of obedience. The decision to move to TH was not easy but we felt that God had opened the door and it was our duty to step out in faith. Even once we made the decision, the heavens didn't part and angels didn't start singing. Yes, we were relieved to have made a decision but we were worried that things wouldn't work out. But, God can do great things and He has done great things for us! We went from living in two separate towns in August, seeing each other on the weekends, to being MUCH closer to our family with jobs we love and an opportunity to put down roots. Every day we are overwhelmed by all God has given us and everything He worked out for all of this to happen. Give praise to the Lord, proclaim His name; make known among the nations what He has done. - 1 Chronicles 16:8.

"Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." Ephesians 4:29-5:2

This year I'm using Lent as an opportunity to "give up" gossiping/talking negatively about other people and situations. When I told Andy he said "you can't give that up for Lent. That's just something you're supposed to NOT do anyway...". Yes, I know. After having reflected on the meaning of Lent and in an effort to become more Christ-like and with God's grace revealing that this is an area I need to work on, here's where I landed. What's always so humbling about God is that after choosing this for myself (as if I really did it on my own, haha), I was reading something that I thought was unrelated to my Lent decision and the scripture above was included in the article. It struck me immediately.

Thank you, Lord, for showing us the way and always providing all the tools we need.

I love documentaries

I just finished The Future of Food, a documentary with a lot of information on genetically modified foods. While I appreciate the information, this type of documentary often sends me into a panic, because the problem seems so big and out of my hands that I'm usually hopeless for positive change. Or I'm so overwhelmed by where to start that I'm paralyzed. Nonetheless, I wanted to list it on my blog, because I though it was good. I hyperlinked the title, so click it to visit the movie's site.

Totally intrigued by a new book...

So I'm anxiously awaiting the library to call me and tell me that my reserved copy of Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats is in. I've been reading about the book online (do NOT go to the nourishing cook blog...it covers your computer in malware!!) and am really excited to have the actual book in my hands. Anyone heard of it? Love it? Despise it?

Pictures from the ice storm

A few posts ago I mentioned our big February ice storm. Below are pictures to prove it!

We thought it would be helpful to thaw our cars out. First we had to get INTO our cars...tactics used: hip-bounce into side of vehicle; butter knife; punching

The pictures don't give the ice justice. It was at least 1/2 inch thick. You don't think 1/2 an inch means much until everything outside is covered in it.

While I was busy breaking into the cars and breaking the cars out of their ice imprisonment, Andy was creating art pieces.

Our last name, in case you forgot.

All the broken pieces of ice came from our cars.

The grass was covered. When I walked on it, it didn't always break. Imagine poor Spike!

I'm so in love with this recipe!

Since I'm quite sure that my family is sick of me talking about freakin' Hoppin' John's, I thought I'd blog about it, instead.

I haven't put any recipes or posts about cooking up lately, but had to share this super-duper amazing thing. We were at my dad's for New Years Day and he insisted on making "Hoppin' John's" to ensure we all had a great 2011. I was skeptical. Then, I tried it and immediately fell in love. Here's the Bill Weddle version:

1 15 oz can blackeye peas, rinshed and drained
1 medium onion
1 red bell pepper
3 cups rice
1/2 cup water or stock
garlic, salt, and pepper

Dice the onion and pepper and saute with garlic, salt, and pepper until onions are translucent. Start rice. Throw peas into onion/pepper mix and stir. Throw in 1/2 cup water or stock. Simmer. Before rice is done, through peas/peppers/onions mixture right into the rice. Let the rice finish cooking.

I know, it sounds simple. And, it may sound gross. But I guarantee you that it is delicious. Not to mention totally versatile and the poster child for how to spread a buck. The batch makes at least 12 1/2 cup servings. I eat it cold with my lunches, though heated up is delicious too. I've thrown turkey meat right on top and then put it in the microwave for a meal. I'm even thinking of frying it up with an egg for my own fried rice. It's so economical and so delicious! I. Cannot. Get. Enough.

If I figure out anything else to do with it, I'll let you know!

Spike + afternoon yoga = Giggle Yoga

So Spike and I were enjoying a lovely, lazy Sunday afternoon. I'd been reading Love in the Time of Cholera, which I was quickly falling in love with and Spike had been laying peacefully in my lap. About 45 minutes before Andy should be getting off work, I said to myself "wouldn't some afternoon yoga be nice before I finish making dinner?" I've been doing Gaiam's AM/PM Yoga for ten years now and have, for years, avoided the afternoon yoga portion, because I find it much more demanding than the morning routine. So, just the fact that I was willing to put in the afternoon DVD was strange. Who knew what would come next...

Typically I do yoga in the mornings, when the rest of my household is fast asleep. In the mornings when Spike would rise with me, I learned quickly that if I wanted to do morning yoga, I'd have to put him back in the bedroom because he was always instantly attracted to my yoga mat. The second I roll it out, he's laying on it, as if pulled to its center by the cosmos. This afternoon was no exception. As I sat, cross legged, with my palms together in the center of my chest, centering myself for the yoga practice, I felt my chest opening up and opened my eyes just the slightest to see Spike's face inches from my own, with his toy in my lap. The first giggle. Followed by "No, Spike. This is not play time." As I moved into downward facing dog, I looked to my left to see another downward facing dog (Spike's favorite yogi pose). The second giggle. As I moved into gate pose, I straddled Spike with my left leg, as he's decided that the left two-thirds of my mat was the perfect place to take a break. Another giggle. While in triangle pose, feeling my back open up and saying to myself "man, it's been a while..." I looked down to see Spike wiggling into the center of my mat, on his back, so that my hands were in the perfect place to give him a quick belly rub. The giggling continued. As I laid on my back, arms to my sides, legs crossed, listening to the instructor say "these next poses will usher you into deep relaxation" I opened my eyes after feeling Spike's paw on my chest, and then saw Spike, again, inches from my face with his toy on my chest. As I'm supposed to be relaxing, I had to quickly shield myself from Spike's maniacal toy tirade, as he shook his toy side to side ferociously. All I could do was giggle. Finally, as I straightened my legs and felt what the instructor considered the deepest relaxation of the practice, Spike settled down and curled up right between my relaxed arm and torso. After yet another giggle, I asked him "so now you're relaxed?!"

I thank God for Spike, because he's a tool for teaching me patience. And if I ever had the mind to set up a video camera during yoga with Spike, I'd thank Spike and God for giving me a scenario that was sure to win thousands of dollars of America's Funniest Home Videos.

The title of the article is "Act Now or Kiss Your Organics Good-Bye!" from Food Democracy Now! website.

http://www.fooddemocracynow.org/blog/2011/jan/20/act-now-or-kiss-your-organics-good-bye/

Ice Storm 2011

The Crowes have very interesting luck when it comes to winter weather. When we moved to UNI, we kept telling everyone that we were excited to see snow, complaining that we never got enough where we were living. Everyone gave us funny looks, but we shrugged them off. Then the first winter came and people politely said "oh, we haven't had winter THIS bad in years!" Then the second winter came and people said "wow, we're just having really rough winters!" And then the third winter came and as people tried to make excuses we just said "we know, we know. Unusually bad winters. Yea right."

So then we take jobs in Terre Haute and start in January (winter). We're telling everyone we know that we're excited to move south and that we are tired of terrible winters. And then people at work start talking about a storm that's coming. That was Monday afternoon. Tuesday and Wednesday I didn't see anyone at work, because I wasn't at work, because a massive ice storm came through on Monday evening and the university closed for the first time in something like 20 years. It was the worst winter weather I had ever seen. At one point 90% of Terre Haute was without power and by the end of the storm the local news stations were saying that Vigo County (where we live) was the worst county in the state affected by the storm! Luckily we only lost power for a little while in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. On Tuesday, in an effort to avoid having to chip two days worth of ice off our cars should we have to work on Wednesday, we started up the vehicles. They ran for over 30 minutes before we could begin scraping. The parking lots literally look like ice skating rinks.

Moral of the story: stop talking about how we're just going to LOVE this new area's winter weather to your family, friends, new colleagues, etc. Just keep quiet and hope for the best.

Budgeting templates

If you're looking for budget templates, I really like the FREE forms available from Dave Ramsey's website. We use the "Money Cash Flow Planning" form, but if you're new to budgeting, I suggest the "Quickie Budget" first, until you get your feet wet with the idea of budgeting. We like these forms because it forces us to put a dollar amount to everything and encourages a zero-based budget - every dollar is assigned to something.

All credit for the budgeting forms goes to Dave Ramsey, not me (hope it's okay to link and suggest other peoples stuff on my own blog...).

Also, just as another plug, I made laundry detergent on Oct. 3 and am still on the same batch. That's at least 75 loads of laundry and I bet there's another 25 loads in that bucket. DO IT! You can get more information on cost and get the recipe by reading our Oct. 3 post. I found the recipe on the Duggar's website. Someone did ask about using this recipe in high efficiency washers. Unfortunately, I don't know the answer to that question...but Google might! :-).

Also, another financial win - this week our local grocery store (which I'm totally in love with, but that's beside the point) is having a sale of frozen vegetables - 10 packages for $10. So, of course I ran over and grabbed ten bags. Each bag will probably feed us three times, so that's roughly $0.33 a serving (actually, $0.17, since "us" = 2). That also means that I just got 30 servings of dinner veggies for $10. Hello, entire month worth of dinner vegetables! I will admit that we don't eat a large serving of veggies with dinner, so my portions are pretty frugal. But, even if each bag fed us twice, that's still $0.25 a serving and 20 servings of vegetables. Not bad, huh? Especially since we prefer frozen over canned any day. Okay, enough talk about frozen vegetables for cryin' out loud...

Life in Terre Haute

21 days ago we packed a moving van (thanks to Scott C. Ronda L. and Claudia P.) and prepared to head to Indiana early the next day. We arrived in Terre Haute by the middle of the afternoon and were met by my sister and brother-in-law, who thankfully, helped us unload the moving van. The next day they left and my mom and stepdad joined us to help unpack the apartment. The following day (New Years Day) Andy, Spike and I headed home to Bedford to have Christmas with my dad and stepmom. Those were, to say the least, a busy few days.

Andy and I both started our new jobs on January 3 and are happy to report that, so far, we love them! I am really enjoying my time as an academic advisor and am enjoying the opportunity for hands-on learning (e.g. I learn as I work through stuff with students). I also really like the people that I work with and appreciate the relaxed atmosphere. Andy is enjoying his new job, too and is adjusting nicely. Spike has yet to start looking for a job, but we're hopeful he will find his motivation any day now.

Although we haven't had much time to explore Terre Haute, we like the city so far. Our apartment is in a nice location, giving us quick access to both ends of town. We're just down the road from an interstate and shopping area and I am about 15 minutes from campus (20 minutes, if I get stopped by one of the traffic lights that seem to occur every 10 ft. or so...)

By far, the best perk of moving has been our proximity to family. While it was fun and exciting to move to Iowa, we didn't understand then how important it was to be close to family. Now we have a new appreciation :-). It's so lovely to be able to take a day to see our parents, friends, siblings, etc. without having to worry about trying to plan a full-fledged vacation. What a blessing!

Once we get unpacked all the way and get some decorating done, we'll post a few shots of our new place.

With love,
Ashleigh and Andy