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Category: my darling John

these are days to remember

these are days to remember

Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass on a summer day listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is hardly a waste of time.
-john lubbock
Recently my days have been full of …… rest. At the ends of them I feel so unaccomplished, so lazy, idle and behind. But at the end of each one my dear and encouraging husband reminds me that I have been busy – God and I have been making a baby. It is far more important that anything else I could be doing!
Happy Birthday Darling!!!

Happy Birthday Darling!!!

the brand new birthday banner (very fresh, as in, made today …)

breakfast in bed

I am thoroughly convinced that I have been blessed with the best husband in the world. Really. He has come home and cooked dinner when I haven’t been feeling well, sent me off to take a bath, and then asked if there was anything else he could do for me. He patiently waits at the doorway of the women’s dressing room, and doesn’t mention it if “nothing works”. He makes sure to tell me he thinks I’m beautiful, especially when I am feeling particularly “un-beautiful”. I could go on and on, but I need to get the cake frosted. So I’ll get to the point. Today is John’s birthday, and I am terribly grateful for (and in love with) him.

Happy birthday, Baby. I love you.

yesterday

yesterday

The herbs that John bought for me in the beginning of May were starting to crowd the tomato, so I split them up.

And because we were just about out of bread, and I really didn’t feel like asking John to go out again, I made some. Rosemary Raisin.

6 to 6 1/2 cups flour
2 pkg. (1 1/2 tbsp) active dry yeast
2 1/2 cups milk
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp butter (I used olive oil)
2 tsp salt
1 egg yolk
1 1/2 cups dark or golden raisins
4 tsp dried crushed rosemary
1 egg white
1 tbsp milk

In a large mixing bowl combine 3 cups of flour and the yeast; set aside.
In a medium saucepan heat and stir together the 2 1/2 cups milk, the sugar, butter, and salt until warm and butter almost melts. Add milk mixture to the flour mixture, stir. Add egg yolk, stir until combined.
Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping the bowl. Beat on high for 3 minutes more. Sprinkle with raisins and rosemary. Using a wooden spoon, stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can.
Knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic, about 6 to 8 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl, turning once to grease surface. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 to 60 minutes.
Punch down the dough. Divide dough in half. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Lightly grease two loaf pans; shape each half of the dough into a ball and place in prepared pans. Cover and let rise until nearly double, about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375. For the glaze, combine the egg white with the remaining milk; brush lightly over the surface of the dough.
Bake about 40 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Cover loosely with foil to prevent over browning during the last ten minutes of baking, if necessary. Remove from pans immediately.

For dinner John barbecued some steak which he had marinated with a bit of balsamic vinegar and a shake of seasoned salt (one of the best simple marinades we’ve done yet), and I defrosted some peas in the microwave and topped them with blu cheese. A simple, yet extremely delicious and satisfying meal.

my husband’s day off

my husband’s day off

As of 2:00 pm yesterday, I am officially Elizabeth Ruth Smillie. Mhmm. Not only am I married to John (which I have been for just over a month now!), I also legally share his name (!).
All because we downloaded a form from the Social Security website, found their office, took a number, and waited for close to two hours (and were treated to Access Hollywood and Days of Our Lives). The people watching aspect was quite entertaining. So were the commercials in between the agonizing instalments of “Days”. Did you know that SunnyD has orange-strawberry juice now? Looks yummy. Also, just so you know, good mothers buy their children Juicy Juice boxes. I think I’ll be a good mother, but what if I run out of Juicy Juice? Oh dear.
Then our number was called. “Would number F44 please come to window 4? Number F44 please.”
The actual process only took about 7 minutes.
The man was rather friendly (he even told us where to go to get an Ohio driver’s license!).
And then we left.

We had our dinner in Eden park. It was a gorgeous evening, just the right mixture of warmth and wind. As the sun was setting there was a rainbow in the cloud directly above us. After the sun went down it got a bit chilly, so we enjoyed it for awhile …. then home and early to bed!

2008-05-13 picnic in Eden park
dinner guests

dinner guests

Evan, Sarah, Leah, Elizabeth and Esther stopped by for the evening yesterday. It was awesome to have people over!
We took them to church with us (we went last night because John had to work today) and stopped to pick up groceries on the way home. John BBQed some burgers and hot dogs (he is really starting to enjoy the charcoal grill!), and I made up some guacamole. John and I decided that we really enjoy having our family over. Mhmm.
The girls gave us a housewarming gift!

Oh, as they were about to leave I remembered that I had a cheesecake in the refrigerator that I had made up the day before (just because I felt like it). So they decided to stay a moment longer to partake. The recipe looked rather mundane, and the cheesecake itself rather resembled a wheel of Brie cheese, but once you bit into it (with some blueberry coulis on top), it was heavenly!
Sour Cream Cheesecake
Joy of Cooking
Crush or grind fine:
1 1/2 cups graham crackers
Stir into the crumbs until well blended:
1/4 to 1/2 cups powdered sugar (if substituting granulated, use 1/4 cup)
6 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp cinnamon
Pat into a 9″ springform pan. Chill.
Mix well, then pour into the crust:
2 well beaten eggs
3/4 lb. soft cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp lemon juice or 1/2 tsp vanilla (I used vanilla)
1/2 tsp salt
Bake about 20 minutes in a preheated 375 oven. Remove from oven and dust the top with cinnamon.
Let cool to room temperature.
Mix well and pour over the cake:
1 1/2 cups thick cultured sour cream
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
Bake about 5 minutes in a 425 oven to glaze the cheesecake. Let it cool, then refrigerate from 6 to 12 hours before serving.
Blueberry Coulis
Cook’s Illustrated, May/June 2003
12 oz fresh or frozen thawed blueberries
5 (scant) tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
2 tsp lemon juice
In a medium saucepan, bring berries, 1/4 cup water, sugar, cinnamon and salt to bare simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally; cook until sugar has dissolved and berries are heated through, about 1 minute longer.
(I skipped this next step) Transfer mixture to blender or food prcessor; puree until smooth, about 20 seconds. Strain through a very fine-mesh strainer , pressing and stirring to extract as mush seedless puree as possible.
Stir in lemon juice.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, as least 1 hour.
things I’ve done since I’ve been married

things I’ve done since I’ve been married

  • been called “ma’am – and it was by an adult, too!
  • done 12 loads of laundry
  • met the demo ladies and John’s regional supervisors at Sam’s Club
  • learned to sleep through the night while sharing a bed – it took a week and a half, though.
  • made cookies and bread without a mixer
  • decided I need to get a mixer
  • met the mail lady – her name is Beth
  • watched the director’s commentary on most of my movies – I leave it playing in the background while I do other things (such as laundry) just for the white noise
  • decided that I REALLY do not like the sound of ambulance sirens
  • began looking for a house in a quiet neighborhood
  • unpacked my sewing machine
  • bought thread for the sewing machine
  • found out that the Michael’s in this neighborhood has a pathetic thread selection – Walmart has a better one, but it’s still rather lame
  • used 3 quarts of Coffee Mate creamer
  • bought furniture at Ikea
  • decided we need to find a house near Ikea
  • begun to like Ohio
  • begun to feel at home in Cincinnati
  • watched the River in the rain
  • cut John’s hair
  • blogged in my underwear

*pictures intentionally not provided

You fill up my senses like a night in a forest,
like the mountains in springtime,
like a walk in the rain, like a storm in the desert,
like a sleepy blue ocean.
You fill up my senses, come fill me again.

Come let me love you, let me give my life to you,
let me drown in your laughter, let me die in your arms.
Let me lay down beside you, let me always be with you.
Come let me love you, come love me again.

– “you fill up my senses”, by john denver