A New Brother

Mr. and Mrs. Josh Maki!

 August 19th was an absolutely wonderful day;

the day my sister-in-law Hannah became the wife of Josh Maki, thus making him our new brother!

They are perfect for each other.  I love the verse they chose for their wedding programs:

I will praise thee for ever,

because thou hast done it...

Psalm 52:9

   

Adoration

 She was a gorgeous bride, he a handsome groom, and the wedding was so beautiful.

And they are so happy!

:)

 I loved being a bridesmaid for the very first time!

It included several firsts; first manicure and pedicure, first makeup, and first styled hair-do. 

I felt like a princess!

And the dresses and flowers were so pretty.

Sisters!

 It was so fun to see family and friends again.  It was just sad that Papa wasn't there.

The Miller siblings and Mama

I'm so glad we were able to be a part of their special day.

Marriage is such a wonderful gift from God.

Welcome to the family, Josh, and best wishes to the newlyweds as you begin your new life together!

(Thanks to my sisters who took these pictures!)

Bridal Party

Coming Soon...

There will be an avalanche of posts soon!  There's much to share. :)  Stay tuned.

Excitement is in the Air!

Next week is going to be a very busy, very full, very exciting week!  My sister-in-law (one of Josh's sisters) is getting married Friday evening, and both Josh and I are in the wedding!  This is my first time being a bridesmaid, and I am so excited!  We will be seeing lots of family and friends, helping with wedding prep, attending the pre-wedding festivities, spending some time at the lake...but before all that, I need to get back to my not-so-favorite task of packing.  See you later. :)

photo credit

Eight Months!

Today my baby is 8 months old!

He sports three teeth, does a fast army crawl over the floor, 

runs all over the house in his walker,

sits by himself if put in a sitting position, 

puts everything in his mouth, cries loudly, eats food,

wakes once or twice at night, babbles happily, loves attention,

makes messes and grows fast!

We love him dearly.

Our littlest sweetie

Pictured with big brother while we were out for a walk!

Where's the Counter?

Thank God for dirty dishes,

They have a tale to tell.

While others may go hungry,

We're eating very well.

With home and health and happiness,

I should not want to fuss.

For by this stack of evidence,

God's been good to us!

-Author Unknown

Today before cleaning

Today after cleaning

Just Peachy

  

 Mmmm.....

Plump. Juicy. Ripe. Sweet. Dripping. 

It's peach season, and South Carolina peaches are delicious! 

After we finish the half bushel of peaches we have right now, we will have eaten our way through just over a bushel of peaches this summer!  We have been eating them fresh--plain, sliced over granola, pureed in smoothies, as we prefer fresh over canned.

And enjoying a bowlful of peaches and Breyer's natural vanilla ice cream on the sofa with my sweetie in the evening is such a treat! 

Fruit is so much better in season than out of season.  It reminds me of the this verse,

A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: 

and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!

Proverbs 15:23

  

Words spoken in the right way at the right time (in due season) do much to encourage and strengthen others. Words spoken in the wrong way or at the wrong time (out of season) can discourage or deeply hurt, even if that was not the speaker's intent.  I know I often struggle with using tact.  

Let's strive to have sweet speech!  

photo credit 

Make-Ahead Breakfast

A few months ago, I had run out of honey which our 'normal' granola recipe calls for, so I decided to try this recipe I found online that uses sugar for sweetener.  After tweaking the original recipe, we like it so much that it is now our new 'normal' granola recipe!  One batch provides many quick and easy breakfasts for our family.

Cinnamon Granola

8 cups rolled oats

2 cups flaked unsweetened coconut

1-1/4 cups light brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup raisins 

1/4 cup cornmeal 

1-1/2 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

1 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup water

2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. salt 
 

• In a large mixing bowl, combine first seven ingredients.
• Melt butter and add water, vanilla and salt.
• Pour liquid mixture over dry ingredients, stirring to coat.
• Bake in a large pan(s) at 325 degrees for 20 minutes, stirring once during that time.
• Cool and store in airtight container or ziploc bag.

              -Adapted from Cinnamon Crunch Granola at Tammy's Recipes

Contentment

Bloom where you are planted.

-Unknown

photo credit

Smoky Mountain Trip

In Cades Cove

Last Thursday we went to the Blue Ridge Mountains north of Gatlinburg, Tennessee for a quick (one-night) family trip.  I'm very thankful for the opportunity a trip provides to get out of our routine,  take a step back to analyze things we're doing or not doing and then resolve to make changes where we need to change.  Also, we got to spend time with Daddy away from his books and work!  Blessing 1 had a couple difficult times with car sickness on our trip with all the curvy mountain roads.  Poor guy--he ended up with his lunch all over him and his car seat with his first episode.  We rented a cute, cozy cabin up in the mountains, and besides having some fun family time just relaxing there, we also drove through the towns of Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sieverville (definitely a tourist-trap and vacation area!), ate a meal at a farmhouse restaurant, and enjoyed the scenic drive through Cades Cove, a beautiful preserve known for its mountain wildlife.  We saw some deer up close, but no bears like we'd hoped to see!
 

Inside our cabin

It's upside-down!  WonderWorks--one of the many tourist attractions in Pigeon Forge, TN  We didn't go inside, but it's quite the eye-catching sight just driving by.