Fall Photos

In the interest of catching up the blog, I'm posting all our family's pre-Christmas photos that I finally pulled off my phone.  Some are from Thanksgiving, but most are just little happenings that have occurred here and there.

My dad and little Clara.

 

Nathan's mom and Clara.

Grandparents are sweet. :)

What else do you do with tomato cages after you pull the plants up?

This boy loves his sisters.  He is a very sweet and loving big brother (most of the time!).  I am thankful for his tender heart.

The butternut squash growing in my garden.

Clara, working on getting those hands to her mouth.

Look at the intensity on her face!

According to Jane, this is the only way to travel (this is in her car seat on the way to Waco).

Noah's class took a field trip to Hermann Park.  He and Jane are feeding the ducks here, but it looks more like he's preaching a sermon. :)

This is Jane and her little friend, Ryann.  Actually, Ryann is Noah's friend, but Jane loves her and looks up to her, and she was more than thrilled to get to ride on the train next to her and the other big girls.

In early December, my parents invited us to go camping with them in Huntsville State Park.  My dad brought his canoe, which ended up being one of the highlights of the trip for pretty much everyone.  They even got their favorite site, which is larger and more secluded than many of the others and has a spot on the lake from which you can launch the canoe.  

In this picture, Nathan's in the back, I'm in the front, and Noah's in the middle.  The kids loved going out in the canoe.

Uncle Andrew even came out for the day and had some steaks with us.

I love this picture of Noah.  What a happy face.

He said his favorite things about camping were canoeing and eating s'mores.

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The only other big thing that's happened in the last week or so is that Nathan and I celebrated our ninth anniversary.  Next year we'll make it big, but for this year, we just went on a little date.  We had intended to go out for a nice dinner at the hotel where we spent our wedding night in downtown Houston (The Lancaster), but since we'd both been sick and didn't really feel like eating a big, expensive dinner, we went to a movie, instead.  The scale of the date doesn't matter so much; I'm thankful that he's my husband, and that's what matters!
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And that pretty much catches you up!

Thoughts

It seems that just about everyone's thoughts and prayers are directed towards the town of Newtown, CT in light of Friday's events.  As for me, my thoughts have been turned there daily since it happened.

Sometime during the day on Friday, Nathan texted me that there had been a horrible massacre at a school in Connecticut.  It wasn't until hours later that I turned the news on, and my jaw dropped when they said it was in Newtown, because I know people there.

About five years ago, when I was running my Arbonne business, I had a team in and around Newtown.  I used to drive down there from Boston to meet with them every so often, and based on my experiences in that area of Connecticut, I would always tell Nathan, "I love Connecticut!  It's so pretty!"  And, indeed, it is.  The town of Newtown is particularly lovely.  There's a view of idyllic foliage from just about everywhere.  It feels peaceful.  It is certainly affluent (the real estate is outrageous).  And it's very quaint.

One couple I know there is Stephanie and Will, and they've been in the forefront of my thoughts, because Will is a police officer in Newtown, and I believe he was one of the first responders.  I remember him as being very tall, muscular, and capable--everything you'd want a cop to be--and both he and Stephanie are strong Christians, as well.  I have no doubt he is a fine policeman, and my thoughts and prayers are especially with him right now as he deals with the personal repercussions of this horrible tragedy, which are probably even more profound since he and Stephanie have a small child.

I thank God that Will is safe and will continue praying for him and Stephanie in the coming weeks.  I can't imagine that they would not need comfort and support, and I am sure that they and all of Newtown appreciate your prayers, too.

Overheard at Our House This Morning

Jane: Call me princess.
Nathan: Okay.  Do you have a prince yet?
Jane: Noah.
Noah (from the other room): I'm not going to dance!
Jane: So you're not going to the ball with me?
Noah: I just don't like to dance.

Three Months Old!

My Clara was three months old on December 7!  (Can you tell there's a difference in my posting habits since baby #3 arrived?  There was a time when I'd have had this post up on the 7th.)

She's a sweetie.  Check out her new video.



There really couldn't be a more ideal baby.  She goes to sleep when she's supposed to and with little effort from me (hugely different from Noah and Jane as babies), eats when she's supposed to, and only cries when she needs something.  One of her cutest idiosyncrasies is that she relishes stretching when I change her diaper: she throws those arms above her head, sticks those legs straight out, pushes her chin up, and her arches back so that her round little belly sticks up.  Clara tolerates Noah and Jane's limited ideas of personal space and loves it when they play with her.  She really does just love to be engaged.  Her favorite thing on this earth right now is to chat with you, as you can see from the video.  Her face just lights up when you make eye contact with her and start talking.  Already, I can tell that she is very loving.  And terribly loveable.

Jane Quotes

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One day, Jane called me "Lauren."  As in, "Lauren, can I sit in the front seat?"

I explained that other grown-ups call me "Lauren," but since she is my little girl, she is supposed to call me "Mommy, Mom, Mama, or even Mother." 

For some reason, she really took to "Mother" for the day, and it was so dear.  "Mudder, can I have some juice?" "Watch me dance, Mudder!"  I actually really liked it.

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Me: Jane, when are you going to start using the potty?
J: On Saturday.

Well, okay then.

Beans and Greens Soup with Sweet Potatoes

Let's talk healthy.

Let's talk cleaning out the pantry.

Because those were my two goals with this soup.  And since it turned out well, I thought I'd write the recipe up right here so I can refer to it again and so you guys can have it, if you like.

Beans and Greens Soup with Sweet Potatoes

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 tablespoons tomato paste
3 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 lbs. sweet potatoes, peeled and cut in 1/2" cubes
1 bunch of kale, ribs removed and cut into small pieces (I used a bag of prechopped kale from Trader Joe's)
1 can cannellini beans
1/4 cup black lentils (optional)
6 cups chicken broth
1 sprig rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoons salt

In a large pot over medium heat, add the olive oil, tomato paste, and onion.  Saute for 5 minutes, or until the onions begin to soften.  Add the garlic and sweet potatoes and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes, until the sweet potatoes begin to soften.  Add the kale, cannellini beans, lentils, broth, rosemary, and bay leaves, and bring to a low boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and the lentils are soft.  Add 1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste.

I think this would also be good with one or two slices of bacon cooked in the pan beforehand so the veggies are cooked in the bacon fat.

Enjoy!