My Friend, Amy.

March 2, 2015 by Quin Leave a Comment

Amy Elizabeth Hild.

September 9th, 1987 – February 25th, 2015

Amy Elizabeth Hild

I’ve known Amy’s full name for well over 10 years, and I’ve never forgotten it. She used to doodle it in her math notebook all.the.time. She’d put fancy designs around her name and play around with different lettering. She’d occasionally get called out for drawing, rather than looking at the board. Amy later became a graphic designer.
It was apparent that this was her passion and gift, even as a kid. How cool is that?

Amy was a year younger than me in high school, but we were in the same math class. I’ve never been more grateful for my lack of math skills and dependence on a calculator. It meant I got to spend an entire school year sitting next to Amy in Mr. Perry’s class at Clear Lake High School.

She was fun, she was honest, and she was beautiful. She explained math to me in a way I could understand. If I was stuck, she helped me, without judgment. She did everything without judgment.

I never had any reason to be upset with her. I can remember one particular day when she gave me a picture of
herself. Rather than the normal crappy school pictures this was a beautiful portrait that her parents took her to have
done. She talked about singing in church and I remember thinking “Is there anything you DON’T do?” I may have even said that out loud. It didn’t make me jealous, but made me admire her even more. She had so much talent, and she inspired me.

Last Wednesday was much like any other snowy day in Iowa. We slacked a little on our traditional schooling and instead made tags to attach to a stack of sleds we bought to give away.

The kids were making their Random Act of Kindness tags as I supervised, taking pictures to blog about the experience.

They made a list of who they wanted to give them to, prayed over the list and for the people, and then went out delivering. Before I knew it they were having a little sledding party on the hill across the street.

Afterwards the kids and a neighbor mom ended up here, for treats and hot chocolate. I silently praised God for our neighborhood, and all the love and community we’ve found here.

I was distracted doing real life, and not checking my phone. I love those moments.

We were living our day like a perfect tribute to Amy, before we even knew she was gone. Amy was a good deeds do-er. Yes, I made that phrase up, but it really does describe her.

After everyone left here I cleaned up and took a seat on the couch to “veg out” with my phone (it happens). One of the first things I read on Facebook was this:

I yelled out a big “NO, NO, NO, NOT AMY!”

I worried that this was a mistake and felt bad about how it must have worried her family before they found out she was fine. I sat like this for quite a while, before I realized how NOT FINE I was. I was in absolute denial. And I stayed that way, until this morning, when my husband and I attended Amy’s Celebration of Life.

I needed the closure, I needed the community. I am so thankful for all the people who were there, banned together in support for Amy’s family.

My heart ached for her fiancé, but by the end of the service, it just rejoiced. He found Jesus through Amy. How lucky he was to be so close to her and to spend all the days together that they did. I think of all the experiences they had, and I just smile. Amy was an advocate for Jesus. Her life was lived on purpose, with purpose.

Her funeral was so large that, I kid you not, there were parking attendants directing traffic in the parking lot!
There was a room for overflow because the sanctuary was full, despite the staff/volunteers bringing in extra chairs, multiple times. I mean WOW! I can only hope to have a funeral where so many people come together to show support to my family, after I’ve passed.

Today as I sat down to start writing this I looked back at Amy and I’s Facebook messages to each other, dating way back to 2008. I had forgotten all we’d been through and all we had talked about. Now that she’s gone I can clearly see why we had some of those conversations when we did, even though at the time they didn’t seem like they would be so life changing. They were. For her and I both. Amy didn’t use social media as a mask, it was a tool to her. She was just as genuine online as she was in person. She was a one of a kind.

I am forever grateful for getting to meet Amy Elizabeth Hild while she was on this Earth. I’m grateful I was able to call her a friend, and I am grateful I was touched by her passionate spirit. She taught me so much more than just some
silly math facts (sorry, Mr. Perry!).

Amy’s Obituary

Amy’s Blog

Memories For My Baby Girl: Daddy Twirls You Around the Kitchen

February 20, 2015 by Quin Leave a Comment

My memory may fail me at some point. I know this, because it has before. This little blog is not only my place to encourage others, but to chronicle my thoughts and store my memories, in case I ever forget these sweet moments. I have no idea how long my posts will stay on the internet. It’s my hope that someday my children can see these and know they were so very cherished.

This Thankful Thursday is dedicated to my amazing husband. He does so much to help me keep this house running smooth, clothes on our backs, and food in our bellies. I thank him for those things, although I don’t say it nearly enough.

The thing I want to thank him for today though, is dancing with our daughters and rocking around the kitchen with our son.

I’m blessed to have a fun husband, even if sometimes that means I feel inadequate for being the party pooper.

They really would listen to music and dance all night if I weren’t here to stop them and call for bed time.

Our youngest loves to shout “let’s dance!” in the bathtub with her duckies. She then giggles and twirls them, or stirs the water to make the little plastic duckies dance. The ducks are dressed as a bride and groom (a gift from my brother and sister-in-law around the time of their wedding).

Even more special is when that same little girl runs into the kitchen and asks her daddy to dance.

“Dance?” She says with a smile and her hand held out high to meet his.

And even more special than THAT will be the day he twirls her around the dance floor at her wedding reception. We’re in no hurry, and I’ll savor each day between now and then. I am still greatly looking forward to that day though.

You see, these moments are special and great, and I love every bit of it. You know what though? I know there is far greater to come. What a great promise to believe in.

Greater things are yet to come.

The Ball Player’s Passion

January 27, 2015 by Quin 1 Comment

I hope I never forget the way he carries his hooded sweatshirts around on his head, when he doesn’t want to wear them.

Today he teared up because although we have a ramp on our front stairs, we don’t have one for the basement stairs. This means his best friend who is in a wheel chair right now (broken leg) can come over, but can’t play down in his room. He wishes we never built this stupid house and feels all sorts of angry. He questioned why we designed the house how we did. Eventually we talked through it, and came to a resolution. This boy has passion like no other boy I’ve seen before.

He is a crazy wild 7 year old with a huge heart.

I see his compassion. I can appreciate the feelings my boy feels, and even more so I appreciate that he shares them with me.

He’s the first on the scene when a friend gets hurt, and doesn’t waste time in getting them care. He is a do-er.
This boy has my whole heart.
This boy is The Ball Player.

How To Make Homemade Almond Milk -Recipe

January 10, 2015 by Quin Leave a Comment

Today I’m going to share with you a super simple DIY Homemade Almond Milk Recipe.

All you really need for this is Almonds and Water. If you want to sweeten it up a bit and add a
little more flavor you can add a Pitted Date, a pinch of salt, and a small splash of vanilla.

Let’s get started!

Soak 1 C. of almonds in 4 C. of water overnight.

Your water will turn a funky color and you’ll wonder if it’s still okay to use. Yes, it is.

Strain off the water the almonds have been soaking in.

You end up with these nice beautiful plump looking almonds.

In a blender or food processor add your plump almonds (you can pull the skin off first if you’d like), and 4 C. of water. If you chose to add the date, vanilla, and salt, now is the time. I did add those for this batch, that’s why the water is the color it is.

Turn it on and wait about a minute. It doesn’t take too long at all to see the magic happening.

Strain the almond meal from the almond milk. I had a small cry over some spilt milk, but we kept going anyway. At this point you can use the back of a spoon to push some extra liquid through the strainer. Thanks to my hubby for that creative thinking! We got probably another half cup of almond milk from his trick! Which is about how much we poured out on the counter!

Then just pour the milk into a jar and put it in the fridge!

Easy right? Now quit spending so much on store bought almond milk that can be full of fillers/processed junk. Remember just because a label says “natural” doesn’t mean it’s actually natural. You can totally make this!

The leftover almonds, called the almond meal are still very much edible. I put ours in a covered container the fridge overnight because I didn’t feel like doing anything with them right away.

Today I toasted the almond meal on a pan in the oven at 425 for about 5-10 minutes. You can sprinkle it over just about anything; flavored or plain yogurts, oatmeal, hmm, maybe even some homemade ice cream…

FYI– I’ve read you can keep homemade almond milk in the fridge about 3 days. I don’t imagine it’ll last that long around here, especially because I love to blend up frozen coffee cubes and almond milk for a tasty midafternoon treat quite often.

Baked French Toast

January 8, 2015 by Quin Leave a Comment

Once in a while I realize we have an abundance of bread in the house. With three kids and a husband who eat sandwiches each week this this doesn’t happen often, but when it does, I know just how to use it up!

Baked French Toast!

Top 2 reasons why I bake my French toast vs. making it the traditional way:

1. It takes so long to make traditional french toast for a big family.

2. When I bake it, the whole thing is ready at once. We can all sit down and enjoy hot food together.

That’s it, those are my only reasons.

Now I’m sure I don’t need a disclaimer here, but if you’re wondering, this is NOT a healthy mama kind of meal, as many of my recipes have been. It is one that my family loves, and that I delight in serving for brunch or breakfast when we have company for those meals.

It warms the soul, fills the belly, and leaves everyone smiling. You’ve gotta keep some recipes like that in with your arsenal of kitchen tricks. It’s in the housewife’s rule book. Sorry, I can’t remember the page number, but I’m sure it’s in there. Hey, where is my copy of that book anyway? ha!

I compiled this recipe a few years ago, after trying a few others and not quite finding “the one”.

Since we’ve been eating healthier and cut way back on our sugar, I’ve found this Baked French Toast to almost be too sweet. BUT be warned, if you try to cut almost all of the brown sugar out and serve it to your honest friends who eat a typical American diet on the daily, you’ll quickly realize you need to put the sugar BACK in when serving to company. Alright, you’ve been warned- nothing more I can do for you but tell you to just enjoy this. You can eat healthy again in 3 hours, deal?

It’s good y’all. Real good. I promise you!

::Preheat your oven to 350 degrees:: & lets get started! (if you’re impatient like I am, scroll to the bottom for the printable version).

First, you melt the butter and brown sugar.

Cook it low & slow, so it doesn’t burn, and because it makes the clean up easier

It’ll begin to look like this.

Spread that mixture in a 9×13 pan & add a layer of bread over it.

Mix up your milk, eggs, and vanilla.

Get it good and soupy like.

Pour part of that over the first layer of bread.

Add another layer of bread.

Pour the rest of the milk/egg/vanilla mixture on the top of
it all.

Layering & soaking the bread is the trick here.

Cover the top of your pan with foil.

Bake it for 45 minutes!

(remove the foil for about the last 15 minutes, to help it brown up a bit).

Here are some things you can do while you wait for this yummy goodness to
cook:

Unload the dishwasher

Or commission a kid to do it. 🙂

Kindly ask that same kid to get the dishes ready.

Stare at the oven about a hundred times. Glance more often as the aroma fills the house and you wonder if the eggs are still raw, or if you could just snatch one tiny little bite.

Admire your kids coloring so well together. Then gently scold the youngest for laying on the table and the oldest for sitting in the high chair! haha.

When it’s time to dish up, flip each piece of French toast
upside down on the plates. It looks more
impressive that way. Enjoy!

The condensed version- AKA- The part where you can print and stash in your kitchen cupboard.

The Cars Are Taking Over! #boymomprobs

January 7, 2015 by Quin Leave a Comment

The Tooth Fairy left 5 new Hot Wheels cars here this week.
This rekindled The Ball Player’s love of toy cars. So he brought them ALL upstairs to play with today.
I don’t know if this collage of pictures better illustrates how boys play vs. how girls play, or first born vs.middle child. Either way, they did have a lot of fun together while the baby napped.

Side note: With the special Thirty One ran last month we ordered a few red junior duffle bags for “organizing”, well concealing, some of our toys. I think the boy will be quite pleased when those arrive and he no longer needs to use this hot pink large utility tote! 😉 I’ll be happy to have my favorite grocery tote back!
If you’re curious, the final count was 157 cars! & I’m sure there are some more in the baby’s room, but I’m not letting anyone go in there to check while she’s sleeping.
I have been asked why I still buy these when he has so many already. The answer is, it’s something we already own, so there’s no problem finding a place for it when a new one comes in the house. He knows right where to put them.
Also he loves them, and I’m sure one day he will play with these same cars with his children, just as his dad plays with him. And yes, some of these cars are almost 30 yrs old.
Hot Wheels and Matchbox never go out of style.
#boymomma

Enjoy the Journey, Heaven Awaits

December 31, 2014 by Quin Leave a Comment

For Christmas we gave the baby a stroller for her own babies. It took her less than a week to figure out she fits in her new dolly stroller. Oh boy.
The last doll stroller we had (about 10yrs ago) was held together with massive amounts of duct tape by the end of its life (well, its life here. Believe it or not, a kind grandma bought it on our garage sale, for her grandbabies to play with). I imagine this one will be in the same shape within a matter of time.
You see, even though I know it won’t last forever, or even a long time, this stroller is worth it, for the experience. For the lessons it teaches, and the compassion & confidence it creates.
She’s changing as a little mommy, as she uses this stroller. She’s independently taking her baby on walks across the house, saying ‘so long’ to us, and confidently going on her way, stopping every few feet to check on her “sweetie”.
I pray each of you have times in your life that you go for what you want, even though you know it won’t last forever. Experience life.
Experience the joys, even knowing the end may not be your ideal ending (covered in duct tape, heart ache, whatever it may be).
Life is worth living. Just as our old doll stroller had a life with that kind grandma, after it left here, there is life after our lives here on Earth.
Smile.
Enjoy the journey.
Heaven awaits.

Recipe: Warm Coconut Cream Cheese Goo

December 4, 2014 by Quin Leave a Comment

I <3 warm satisfying sweets on cold wintery days.

This has been my go-to when I’m craving something nectarous & savory.

In a skillet, warm these things together until you can easily stir them up (don’t worry about measurements, just use your own judgment):
Shredded Coconut
Cream Cheese
Almond Flour

Peanut Butter
Chocolate Chips

A little water
Oatmeal- I don’t usually add this, unless I share with the kids, then I throw it in to bulk it up.

Does it look totally gross? You betcha. But TRUST ME, it tastes AMAAAAAZING. How could you go wrong with coconut and chocolate? You just can’t!

{Sneak Peak} DIY Hot Cocoa Stand for Family Pictures

December 2, 2014 by Quin Leave a Comment

This post contains affiliate links that you can read about HERE.

{Sneak Peak} I’m crazy excited about this hot cocoa stand my hubby built, for our family photo shoot. The best part is that when I asked him to make it, he.didn’t.even.try.to.talk.me.out.of.it!

Folks, he’s learning! haha

I pulled the idea off of Pinterest. There were so many cute ones to choose from, but this is what we came up with. We sort of used this design {click here} from Ana White to get us started. Really you could make this just about any way you’d like.

We had a majority of this lumber leftover from other projects, so the cost was minimal. I picked up most of the accessories from the dollar store or used things we had on hand already. We spent a grand total of about $30 to pull this off.

Now, that’s not including the new coats I picked up. But hey, I had coupons at one store and used Cartwheel at the other! Honestly us 3 girls really needed nice dress coats anyway.

On Thanksgiving we got the stand out to give it a trial run. All the cousins loved playing with it. My super styling SIL & my momma helped me finalize our coordinating warm outfits. Outdoor family photos in Iowa are pretty rare during the winter, but us crazies gave it a try anyway!

The actual photo-shoot day was super fun! We had a young photographer and her mom (my friend) pose us, laugh with {and probably at us}, and capture some great memories that we’ll have for a lifetime!

Here are my tips for pulling off an outdoor family photo session like this in the coooold winter:

1. DRESS WARM. Hats and gloves kind of warm, okay?

2. Let the kids play. Relax mama, the shots of them playing were the best.

3. Ask the kids how they want to pose. You’ll be surprised -or not- but their personality really comes out when they are free to move how they wish.

4. Bribe them with cookies…. then take more pictures!

I’ve been so excited to share some of these with you! I’m glad I finally had a minute to sit down and compile these scribbles! I hope you enjoyed the pictures, I know I sure did!

Behind the Scenes Photos:

You can accessorize this stand how ever you’d like. We filled our beverage dispenser with hot (actually cold) cocoa.

If you don’t have a Beverage Dispenser yet, I suggest you get one! We love ours for when we are hosting company, either big groups or small. We usually just put water in it with lemon and mint leaves. The presentation is beautiful! I bought one, and we received one as a gift; which was perfect because now we have one for upstairs and downstairs during parties! Little kids LOVE them; keep a towel handy!

Delicious and Easy Pumpkin Dump Cake Recipe

November 26, 2014 by Quin Leave a Comment

This is right before it went in the oven- when I realized it didn’t have the sugar!

Pumpkin Dump Cake Recipe

Ingredients:

1 box cake mix (yellow or spice)

1 (15oz) can Pumpkin

1 (12oz) can Evaporated Milk

3 Eggs

1 C . Sugar (white or brown)

1 tsp. Cinnamon

½ tsp. Salt

1 ½ C. Pecans or Almonds- Chopped

1-2 Sticks of Butter- Melted

Mix the pumpkin, evap. milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, &
salt together.

Pour that creamy mixture into a 9×13 cake pan.

Sprinkle the cake mix over the top.

Drizzle butter over the cake mix.

Sprinkle nuts over the whole she-bang.

Bake at 350* for 50-55 minutes.

This recipe is pretty fool-proof. This is good, since I don’t always read every
step. Like today, when I completely left the sugar out of one pan. My dad is diabetic; I could say I did it on purpose and just serve it to everyone else with a scoop of ice cream.