A Healthier Apple Crisp

Yum! Yum! I made this with apples from the orchard across from our church.

Ingredients:
6 c. apples, peeled and diced (about 6 medium apples)
1/4 c. frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 c. oats
1/4 c. whole wheat flour
1/3 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. butter, softened
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger (I left this out)
Reduced-fat vanilla ice cream, if desired (left this out too)

To Make:
1. Preheat oven to 375. Spray 8x8 baking dish. In medium bowl, mix apples, apple juice concentrate, and 1/2 tsp cinnamon. Spread in baking dish.
2. In same bowl, mix remaining ingredients until crumbly. Sprinkle over apples.
3. Bake uncovered 25-30 minutes or until apples are tender and topping is golden brown. (serve with ice cream, if desired)

Braden's Apple Fest Run

The Apple Fest is over and done but here are a few photos of Braden competing in the 1-mile run.

Tastes Great, Looks Gross

I bought this Green Plant juice at Trader Joe's several months ago. (yes, I know I'm way behind in my blogging! Stacie keeps reminding me..... even though she hasn't blogged on her page in almost a year!) I had bought a small bottle of green juice before that I liked. Liked. Not loved. But that is because I don't like most juices. This is strong in the apple and banana flavors. I'm an orange juice girl.
So anyway, it is mostly fruit juices but the "green" comes from the green veggies added. Honestly you cannot taste the veggies! I promise! BUT..... you can see the color they turn the juice. And this is where I got stuck. The first time I bought the juice, it was a single serving bottle so I drank right from the container. This was a 64oz. bottle. No drinking from the container! I poured some into a clear blue bottle and headed to work. While it tasted good, I couldn't forget how it looked being poured into the bottle!
So, Braden ended up drinking the rest of it! He loves juice. He just never watched me pour it into the bottle. When he ran out, he would ask me to refill it for him!

And being from Trader Joe's, you know it is a great, all natural choice!

Strange Squirrel

I was walking into the kitchen last week when something outside caught my eye. This squirrel was just laying there, all sprawled out. Not sure why, but I grabbed my camera real quick before he got scared away. The first picture seems to be focused on the dirty window. The second is after he army-crawled to the edge of the concrete. Right after I took the picture, he ran up the tree. (Sorry. I have nothing else going on that I can post about!)

The Latest Braden Quote

"If there was a prize for being the best looking, I would get it!"

Humble, I know. We were talking about the Renaissance Program at school that does fun things throughout the year to reward students for good grades/behavior.
I think that his brain fires erratically in the mornings! But oh how I love that kid!

No Photos

Because I have not taken any pictures lately, I thought I would post about the shame I felt earlier this week.... I needed to put some gas in the car. (The light came on just as I pulled into the garage and I didn't want to deal with it in the morning when I was trying to get Braden to school.) I also had some bills to take to the post office. I didn't want to go alone, but Braden wouldn't go along to run those errands. Which meant I would have to bribe him or go solo! Then I remembered that he had a coupon for a free ice cream cone with purchase from McDonald's.

But you have to understand how much I HATE McDonald's! I view them as the center of all fast food evil! And I will not allow my family to eat there. (Although I recently found out one member was! Grrr!)

Just so we're all up to speed: I HATE McDONALD'S!!!

But it was just a small cone. And though its not decaf, they have sweet tea, which would be the "with purchase" that would not cause us to eat any of the evil. So Braden came with me and since it was about 5pm and the drive-thru was packed, I parked and made Braden run in.
Insert shame and embarrassment here. It seemed like he was in there forever. And as I sat in the car I found myself looking around nervously, hoping no one I knew saw me parked there. And the longer it took him, the more anxious I became! It was awful!! Awful! Awful!
And now you know!

Braden's Quote of the Day

This morning, Braden told me that I needed to get ready to leave. I was ready! I just had to slip on my flip-flops, which were by the door, and grab my purse, which was on the way to the door. I told him that he was the one that needed to finished getting ready and that he could probably do that faster if he put down the MP3 player. Braden's reply: he needed the MP3 to get "in the groove for school."

Who can argue with that logic? Rock on, Bray! Rock on!

First Day of Middle School

Braden started school yesterday.... finally! (The end of summer sure makes me long for year-round school.) Last week, they had a sixth grade orientation to go over things and allow the kids to tour the building and practice opening lockers. And it sounds like the first day was more orientation. Nevertheless, it seems Braden was awake more than he was asleep the night before! When Jon and I went to bed at 10pm, Braden was still awake in his room. When I got up around 4am (just to go to the bathroom, not to start my day), he was on the couch. He was down there awake when Jon got up at 4:30. And he was laying there awake when I got up a little after 6am. Excited? Anxious? He said no.

This year's first day of school pictures were taken at the end of the school day. In the drama of him not sleeping, and then making sure we were ready on time to pick up Dylan, and getting the boys to school "early," I totally forgot to take his picture! And this is the first year that I didn't pick out a nice-looking outfit for the first day.
So..... I dropped the boys off in the morning and then they rode the shuttle bus to the fifth grade building after school. Sounds like he had a good day and he got more sleep last night!

Jerky!

Braden came home from Texas with a bag or two of beef jerky. (Thanks Grandma! Cause Mom doesn't buy meat from the store anymore.) The other night, he was munching on his jerky while watching TV.
Dallas LOVES jerky! Sometimes she begs quietly in front of people. Other times, she prefers to use the aerial attack method shown below.

Sitting in a relaxed manner which would lead you to believe she's just hanging out.

But then Braden decided to taunt her by turning his head and making eye contact. (Never make eye contact with Dallas unless you plan on sharing your food!)

And finally, she goes in for the kill! (I think she managed to steal from him twice.) It should also be noted that she is willing to take your fingers off if it's something she really loves.

Jon's New Hat

Jon finally used his Father's Day gift card to Dick's Sporting Goods! He settled on a hat he can wear when coaching. It's Columbia and has some sort of UV fabric. AND.... the black band around the top is mesh! He's super excited. (He wore it in the car on our way home :)

More All-Star Game Photos

1st Annual All-Star Game

Thursday night, Braden played in a little league all-star game. Here are just a few pictures of him before the game.
The night started off with a home run derby. (Braden didn't enter. He's had a rough year hitting the ball.) Below are Caleb, Braden, and Nick, in the outfield, during the derby. He chews on his glove and it REALLY grosses me out! Braden and Nick (who is 9-10 months older than Braden).

Look at those long legs!

Captains getting instructions from the umpire.

(I'll post more pictures later. It is now time for lunch. When Jon gets back from 7-on-7, we are headed to Ohio City for Braden's wiffleball games and Jon's softball games. -- Wonder how long I'll last in this heat!)

11:15 Smoothie

Braden is in the kitchen making himself a very late breakfast smoothie. I said something about it being lunchtime. His reply:

"Smoothies are like sausage and ribs! Good anytime!"

A Little Dallas

I think the warmer weather is making her act funny. I have more, but here are just a few for today.

Laying with Jon after he came home from a softball game. She looks quite comfortable!

I'm not sure how this was comfortable, but she was like this for a few minutes.

Trying to mooch some ice cream off of Jon. She waits patiently hoping you'll feel sorry for her.

And this isn't a photo of Braden reading a book. Its of the dog who found where I put the fleece blankets now that summer has arrived.

I tossed the pillows that no longer match behind the chair in case someone (Jon) needs them too. Dallas lays back there a lot now that's she's found them!

And one of her sleeping on the couch.

Sleepy Guy

Apparently, growing 1.5 inches in less than 2 months is hard work!

Baptism Sunday (June 13, 2010)

And one Jon took of Stacie. I just love this picture! She looks so happy :)

For those that were not able to attend and for my memory, here's what I read on stage:

(Opened with little joke about my glasses being back at my seat and how it made them all look fuzzy which helped with my nerves. Hahaha)

I actually have been baptized before. As an infant I was baptized at the Methodist church my family attended. But that was a statement of my family's beliefs, not my own. And when I was in sixth grade, I went through conformation classes for several weeks to become a member of the church. Again, that was something I did for my family. I gained nothing from those experiences.

I believed in God. I believed in Jesus. But I didn't view them as present and active in my life. I feel like we went to church most Sundays to visit them. -- Kind of like going to visit a relative.

Looking back, despite the baptism and conformation classes, I know I was not a believer. For years, I walked in darkness with the world. Making mistakes. Compromises. Searching for something that was missing in my life.

And then, while in college, I found one of those missing somethings. (Insert a choked up voice) He would eventually become my husband, but before that, he would point me to my salvation.

As we grew closer, Jon not only constantly demonstrated unconditional love, he also began to share his faith with me. Before long, I couldn't get enough. I would bombard him with question after question -- and he patiently answered each one.

Since accepting Christ, I've grown so much! God has truly blessed me through the people He's brought into my life. Our family's love and prayers have given such strength. -- Our high school LifeGroup - over the past two years, I've not only learned from them, but they've also given me confidence. As a parent who constantly sees the world telling my son it's o.k. to compromise, they've given me a glimpse. I can see what's possible for him. I just have to keep pressing on and praying until he gets there. So to my high school kids.... you're amazing! I love you so much!

Being surrounded by others who are actively walking with the Lord has been a blessing as well. Since coming to LifeHouse, I joined an awesome women's small group. And we recently joined an amazing adult LifeGroup. (Insert side note about how awesome our group is and inviting others who are thinking of joining a group to check us out. Also, as I plugged our group, insert cheers from the LifeGroup members in attendance.)

I've been involved at all of the different churches we gone to since college but I don't think I've felt as comfortable and as excepted as I have since coming to LifeHouse. So thank you all for that. And a huge thank you to everyone who has been praying for all of us. I really hate to be the center of attention. But I feel like I needed to put that aside for a few minutes and publicly state that I am in love with an awesome God and Jesus is my Savior!!

24 Hour Mohawk

It was actually less than 24hrs before he had me shave it off. (It would have been closer to 12 hrs, but I told him I wasn't doing it before we left for church.) On Saturday, Braden asked Daddy to give him a mohawk. He had asked me a few days earlier, but I told him to talk to Jon. There was no way I could shave a straight line! Above: Jon just getting started. Below: Most of his left side done.

Above: I love this shot! Jon is so focused and Braden is still having a good time. Below: what the back looked like finished. Most people at church thought it looked cool. I'm not sure if Braden didn't like it or didn't like the attention. He said he just decided he didn't want it. So.... it's gone now! I prefer his head bald but Jon was sad to see the mohawk go.

A Little Dallas

On Dallas' birthday, she decided she'd had enough of one of her toys!

And laying on Dad's pillow after he had moved to grab the laptop.