First Leaf of Fall!

Yesterday afternoon, we found the first leaf turning for fall! It was just tinted with red on the edge late yesterday and today is nearly half red. We are so excited!
 

Since Stephen is three this year as we head into fall, he is loving watching for the signs of the season change. He and Auntie have also been studying about the seasons of the year, which I'm sure has a lot to do with it too.

We also added a new plant to our plant family yesterday. Meet George:

We are pretty excited for the opportunity to watch him grow indoors this winter. The plants we planted this spring are entering the end of their zenith, so we are keeping our eyes open for ones to keep inside. This particular plant was on discount, and therefore has no label of what type of plant he is (hence the name George).

BUN UPDATE:
I ended up cooking them in a cast iron skillet. The texture of the buns was really good; I was surprised at how good. Originally I thought they were almost bland, but Darling and Stephen liked them alot. By my second one :-) I agreed. Darling and I both think a frosting with nuts and/or raisins would be the perfect end to the buns. Additionally, when we make them again, I think I'm going to melt butter in the skillet, then coat the bottom with raisins (the original recipe called for one raisin per bun). I would recommend if you do use a cast iron skillet to serve it with a confectioners sugar frosting and serve it 'in skillet' as it makes a great presentation:

Boxcar Children "Secret Code Buns"

As I said previously, we read a book on the way to Darling's work every morning and we have been going through the Boxcar children series rapidly. On Tuesday, when Stephen and I got home, we used a Brioche Bun recipe to make our 'secret' buns, but we finished 'Snowbound' book #13 today! So now that we knew 'Tom's secret recipe' (or most of it, anyway), we had to try our hand at it!

The recipe, as translated on page 95 of the book, is:
1 Cup Milk
1/4 Cup butter
1/4 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 yeast cake
1/4 cup water
1 egg
?
3 Cups Flour
raisins
Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

Since Stephen and I have been baking bread 2-3 times a week for about a month now, we had some idea how it should go, so we added these alterations to fill in the missing blanks:
Heated the milk with the butter til butter was melted. Increased the sugar to 1/2 tsp (cuz 1/4 tsp just seemed ridiculously low!). Used warm water to dissolve the yeast, sugar and salt in. Added the egg to the yeast mixture then the milk mixture then the flour. We kneaded it for about 4 minutes (Stephen is really good at this). We set it to rise for 1 hour (which they are doing right now).

Now all that was left was what to fill in the '?' which represented the secret ingredient (never disclosed in the book). So we chose cinnamon and 1 tsp brown sugar.

I have been reading the series off and on since I was a child and this particular book is my favorite. That said, I'm not sure any buns could live up to any expectation I may have (not to mention, did the author, Gertrude Chandler Warner, make this recipe up? Is it even a real recipe? Dare I hope, it is her grandmother's time worn recipe that will knock my socks off?) Tune in tomorrow to find out!

Summer is Coming to an End

Just as soon as it seems to be here, summer seems to be coming to end. We are merely one month from terrible wildfires raging at our back doors, but God has been so gracious to send rain to soothe the burned ground.

Darling, Stephen & I planted 4 window boxes of flower at the beginning of summer; we did so last year and we loved watching Stephen watch plants grow. The flower boxes have been a great pleasure to us for the last 2 months. But now with summer coming to an end, I am seeking to find several plants to raise indoors. I am amazed at the joy and peace God grants me when I see green things growing.

Last week Darling bought me some gladiolas. I realized as he brought them through the door with a big smile on his face that: 1) God has granted me the kindest, most wonderful man in the world as my best friend and husband, and, 2) that I had not ever watched gladiolas bloom. I have had the giddiness of a child watching the peach blossoms bloom and become bigger every day. Simply by being themselves, they remind me to take joy in each day. I love what Jesus says when he refers to some lilies he is passing by. To his friends he says, "Consider the lilies of the field; they do toil or spin but they are more beautiful than Solomon in all his riches. Since God clothes the flowers of the field - which are here today and tomorrow are gone - how much more will He clothe you?" [Luke 12:22-32]

As Jesus does so often, he says many things in one phrase. There are many lessons, I believe, to be learned from this one moment. But one that I am learning -even now- is: 'Watch the flowers and learn of my nature. Flowers grow, bloom and fall to create seeds for next season. I care for each and every stalk. I am even more intimately aware of you, your needs and what life you may give when you seem to fall. There is no seed that falls to the ground without new life coming from it. The same and even more I will give to you.'

Pavlova & Hamburger Buns

2 days ago I made 'Pavlova' for dessert. It's an Australian/New Zealand dish named after the ballerina Anna Pavlova. It is a crispy meringue topped with fresh whipped cream and strawberries. It makes an INCREDIBLE appearance and the taste is great too.

 

I personally found this one a little too sweet, but Darling & Jax thought it was perfect. The recipe said it served 12, but we cut 6 large slices and ate half of it. I highly recommend it; it's not as hard as it looks. I used a recipe from allrecipes.com. I use alot of egg whites in my cooking and therefore buy the cartons of egg whites from the store. After 4 years (!) I have finally found out why, why, why they don't firm up when used in meringues. In small print located on the side of the carton it says the egg whites are pasterized during packaging and are therefore, not suitable for meringues. Better late than never, I guess :-)

Darling, Stephen & I read a new 'Boxcar Children' book on the way to Darling's work every morning. Right now we are reading 'The Snowbound Mystery' (my personal favorite, by the way). In the book the 4 children interface with an excellent baker whose speciality is buns. Well, what more inspiration do we need than that? Stephen and I dropped Darling off at work and headed home to make buns. We used this recipe: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2009/07/light-brioche-burger-buns/ and could not be more pleased! I love homemade bread, but typically it's not my absolute favorite for a sandwich. This one is an exception! It was perfect by itself with butter and it was perfect with hamburgers (our lunch). It too, was surprisingly easy to make (for bread).

Let's Remember Joy

There is pain in every life. Some appear to have more than others, but every life experiences pain. It's a part of this life, that's just it. Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world." In Revelation, we are told over and over again that the one who overcomes this short life and its pain will have an eternity of peace, joy and God's love.

My family has had its share of pain, both personally and vicariously through our friends and family. There is always pain. But I believe we can have joy too. Joy in the midst of suffering and pain.

I am writing this blog to remind myself - and others - that there is joy amidst all this great turmoil, especially as it seems to be getting worse the world-over. So let's enjoy the 'normal' days; the special days and yes, the hard days. Because the end of it all is to, strangely, bring us closer to the Love of God.