Yes, I Believe Time Flies

It is hard to believe that it has been over 2 months since we packed up and moved across the country.

The days have been speeding by.

With the move came some weeks of a certain "lost" feeling.

It is hard to reestablish routines and schedules after a month or so

of packing, traveling, unpacking ...

So I apologize for the lack of post

and will seek to get back to the updates and news.

I really enjoy setting up a new home.

There have been rooms to paint (to date I have done 8).

There has been furniture to place.

There have been new things to learn.

There has been the challenge of using what we have and fitting it to a new space 

with the effort of not accumulating even though for now we have a larger space 

since we don't know where we will find ourselves living at the end of this lease.

I still want to use the excess paint to freshen the garage.

This sounds odd, but it is our workout space and also acts like a covered porch when we open the garage door in the evenings.

We spend a lot of time in there and it will just cheer me to freshen it up!

I also want to refinish my dresser.

I am going to try using chalk paint which everyone builds up as so easy to use.

I'll let you know.

And in the meantime, the effort of trying to do the everyday tasks.

I have tried to keep my weekly schedule similar.

It varies a little since we changed to being a single car family again.

If I "oops" on shopping day, the day requires a 40 minute round trip to town by foot

to get the forgotten item.

Shopping day requires the extra trips to hubby's work.

But the payoff is worth it.

All in all, we save on gas.

The area is a little "puckered up" so it is nice to only need room for one vehicle.

And so today was cleaning day.

Though this home is larger,

it actually seems to be quicker to clean.

Though I miss the laminate floors,

it is definitely faster to vacuum.

And if I truly get back on my blogging schedule,

then I must leave you with a recipe today.

So here is our favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe.

I made a batch last week for hubby's coworkers.

They were a success.

Recipe credits

Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

ingredients

1 cup butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar

2 whole eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups almond flour

2.5 cups gluten-free oatmeal, put through blender or food processor

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

4.5 oz. grated semi-sweet chocolate (put the chips through a food processor)

12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup raisins (optional)

instructions

Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.

Add the eggs and vanilla, combine. 

In a separate bowl, mix together almond flour, blended oatmeal, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and grated chocolate.

Add to the butter mixture, and stir to combine.

Add chocolate chips and raisins (if you want).

Let the dough chill for at least one hour.

Bake for 9 minutes at 375 F.

A Day Late, But Right On Time

On this Friday edition of "Thankful Thursday,"

I am thankful for the faithfulness that my parents have modeled before us.

Today they celebrate 50 years of marriage.

50 years,

5 states,

8 9 houses,

4 kids,

3 dogs ...

(I think I have the numbers right, but check comments below for corrections from the family)

Oh such memories.

In a day when marriages are disposable,

I am so glad that my parents have chosen to stick-to-it.

I'm sure there were seasons of difficulty when throwing it away might have seemed easier,

but they didn't.

They continue to model,

they continue to be an example to look up to,

they continue to press on.

Thanks dad and mom!

Friday Forum: Odor Removal

Every home has a unique smell ...

some good, some bad, some just different.

Our rental home had some unique and some bad smells when we moved in.

I think many of them have been eradicated,

but we have also had the blessing of basically having open windows since we moved in.

We have cleaned, we have painted, we have cleaned the garbage disposal,

but I fear that when we have to close up we will notice the smell again.

Do you have any tried and true methods of odor removal in "new to you" homes?

Meet and Greet

This week, I am working on treats to give to our new neighbors in order to introduce ourselves.

We had 3 ideas.

One is popcorn with a tag that says

"Just poppin' in to say ... 'You have new neighbors!'"

Another was "Soda"lighted to have you for neighbors
obviously attached to some sort of soda.

The other is a small bag of candy, a tract, and an offer to help in any way that we can with a tag that says,

Hello!

We are your new neighbors!

Our address

Our names

Our phone

Our email

The Pacific North West is not known for its friendliness

(kind of the polar opposite of our southern experience),

but we sure do want to meet our neighbors

and have an opportunity to share our faith with them.

So about 1/2 of the 24 are complete.

The Rest of the Downstairs

You have seen the living room, dining room, and kitchen ...

but what about the rest of the downstairs.

Here is the half bath ...

freshly repainted.

Not quite the art I really want (because of size),
but I am trying to use what we have.

And here is the garage,

another first in our home rental and ownership.

the front has laundry,

one side has storage,

[You may notice 2 bicycles-

gifts from hubby's sister and brother-in-law as we passed through.

You may also notice the new mower - 

a battery powered toy which I am greatly enjoying.]

and the other side has the workout space

(this is the big perk).

And then the "compound"-

the reason I needed a mower.

It takes about 15 minutes to mow😃

While the "compound" wall is ugly,

it is privacy from a very major street.

It's Greek To Me and Christmas in July

While looking through a home magazine,

we saw a recipe for Greek pizza and decided it was worth a try.

No recipe is really needed - just the idea.

So we made it on Saturday.

A basic gluten-free crust for us.

Then the crust was rubbed with olive oil and herbs like oregano, basil, and thyme.

No red sauce.

Cheeses were light mozzarella (or Daiya for me) and feta.

And then lots of veggies - onions, peppers, tomatoes, and olives!

It was REALLY good!

And then today,

I decided to make a bit of Christmas in July.

Just made them round because I was in the mood for fast!

The oven has gingerbread cookies in it right now.

all ready for the oven

If interested,

check out the recipe here.

The recipe uses almond flour and natural sugar (maple syrup)

so hubby uses them as a morning snack.

Friday Forum: I Just Think Differently?

A move out of state requires an extensive church search usually.

Our situation was no different.

We have not tried the 3 closest places of worship.

We can see the Mormon building from our window,

across the street from them is the Seventh Day Adventist building,

and just 2-3 properties down is the Jehovah Witness Kingdom Hall.

But we have tried 5 churches in the area and are deciding on 2 of them.

When we began the search,

I told hubby that I would be wearing the same outfit every Sunday while we attended different churches.

Of course, he wondered, "Why?"

Do you know why?

I figured if I wore the same outfit each week,

then when we revisited a church, I would not have to remember what I had worn😄

Is it just me?

Is it a difference between men and women?

Would you do the same?

A No Brainer

On this Thankful Thursday,

it is not hard to choose something to be thankful.

I am thankful for America.

I am thankful for the freedoms that we still enjoy.

I am thankful that the founders could foresee many potential problems

and would seek to circumvent future difficulties.

I am thankful for the vast land and the variety of people in it.

I am thankful for the opportunity that I have had to spend time in many different parts of it.

I am thankful that there are still men and women who are sacrificing to maintain that freedom.

I am thankful for the families at home who are sacrificing time with their family

to help sustain the freedoms that I enjoy.

I am also thankful for the freedom that a relationship with Christ provides.

This nation is becoming a darker and darker place.

So many people are in bondage to sin,

in bondage to themselves,

in bondage.

Many even wear the chains on the outside

that match those on the inside.

I am glad that Christ has set me free from the power of sin.

No, I am not perfect,

but if I rely on His power,

I do not have to yield to the bondage of that sin.

I am thankful for extra time to spend with family today.

On that note,

the day began with a workout:

30 minutes of kickboxing and tabata, then 20 minutes of stretching.

Then a nice leisurely time of Bible study in the back yard without time restrictions of rushing to work.

A pleasant picnic-y lunch.

And then, a walk around our new town.

A walk of some 6 miles.

Don't worry, it was not without rewards.

At about mile 5,

a non-dairy "milk" shake.

Not just that, but fresh raspberry!

Wow!

It's A ....

...BOY!

Now that I have your attention.

Admit it ... I made you look.

We went to Petco today.

You see, our Betta, Romeo, was not going to be up to the cross country trip

and had to be left behind.

Today was the day to get a new Betta.

We arrived at Petco where we found that they sold Baby Bettas.

Not only are all Babies cute ...

but in this case, they are cheaper too.

So we got a Baby Betta and we will watch him grow.

When the Tables are Turned

What Fun!

We received Happy Mail today.

I have organized many packages to folks far from home,

but this time, we were on the receiving end.

Happy Mail / Housewarming fun from our church in NC.

Thank you to ALL involved ... and the proper written thanks will be on the way.

There were gluten-free treats,

cleaning products,

notes of love and encouragement,

gift cards,

a WOODWICK CANDLE (in my favorite apple scent),

and wall art (which is much appreciated since we have a lot of walls in the new place).

The encouragement is much appreciated!