Traveling...again

I'm in Missouri visiting family. Thus far, we've seen 10 out of 12 aunts and uncles, and 18 (I think) out of 25 cousins... and that's just my mom's side of the family! Last night, another nephew was born and now I can't wait to get home to PA to snuggle the newborn goodness. :)

We visited Silver Dollar City which is definitely my favorite amusement park ever (I don't do rides...I got to spend time with friends and eat food :). We visited a church we've been to many, many times and saw lots of friends, old and new. And just to make it confusing, the Wilhites were also visiting the same church, so there were two African missionaries. (As a side note, we keep running in to the Wilhites and getting to spend more time with them. After many goodbyes and re-hellos, Debrianna (7?) exasperatingly said to me, "You keep telling me you won't see me until we both go back to Africa, but you keep showing back up!")

Later this week, we're headed to Kansas to see my dad's side of the family. Interestingly enough, the most enjoyable and frustrating thing about this whole trip has been the lack of internet and cell phone signal. It's a blessing and a curse. :)

{Wishlist} Airstream Travel Trailer

As my brother and I prepare for a little road trip (well, it's a long distance trip in a short amount of time), I've been thinking of how fun it would be to have a little Airstream Travel Trailer. I've always loved Airstreams...though they sort of look like toasters on wheels.

The question is...would I rather have a cute little vintage one... fixed up with candy-striped curtains & camp dishes... (I think a vintage truck would be a must to pull it.)

Or a brand-spanking new one, designed with modern & minimalist themes?

Either way, they are a bit out of my price-range, so if someone gave me one...no matter the condition or age.... I don't think I would complain. As long as it didn't look like this. Although that would be pretty cool, too.

Key Lime Pie

It's amazing... and the meringue just made it awesome! :) I really like the addition of coconut to the graham cracker crust.

From this recipe. For those of you who care, it's made with farm-fresh cream and eggs, raw sugar...and that's about all that's healthy. Now that I've made it, I'm curious as to what you could substitute for sweetened condensed milk...and how hard it is to make your own graham crackers... More testing to come, I'm sure. :)

Antiquing in Green

My friend April and I share a love of vintage and antiques, so we did a bit of browsing in some of the antique malls in the area while she was here. We have similar interests that help us appreciate what the other finds, yet they are just different enough that we rarely want to buy the same item. :)

So here are a few little things that suited my fancy, but it wasn't until I got them all home and unwrapped that I noticed the common theme.

In honor of all the green, I did what was really the only sensible solution: today I donned my new green apron and baked a Key Lime Pie. It smells amazing...and I can't wait until it cools off enough that I can finish the meringue (you can't have key lime pie without meringue) and have a slice!

One Evening in a Corn Field

Driving home this evening, my attention was captivated by the beautiful moon rising over the corn fields, perfectly framed between two mountains and backdropped by a brilliant blue that I someday wish to find in a paint chip. I was instantly upset with myself for deciding to leave the camera at home, when I had almost brought it with me but changed my mind at the last instant. I pulled over on a deserted road and tried to take some pictures with my phone, but it just wasn't enough. How I wish I could have captured that beautiful scene... but then I thought, "I fancy myself to be some kind of a writer, and if I can't describe this, then I can't describe anything!" So here I will try to describe it to you, and I hope you will feel as if you were sitting in the car right beside me. Although as beautiful as words can be (and as much as I can be addicted to them), there really is nothing like being there... God obviously did it best the first time around. :)

It is that almost magical time of day we describe as twilight. The sun is setting beyond the horizon, leaving in his wake a stream of intense pinks, oranges, and reds. With an almost audible sigh and a brilliant flash of the last sunbeam, he releases his last toe-hold on the rim of the earth and slips below the surface. There, just beyond the mountain, rises the yellowed slice of moon. All around him and reflected from the line of clouds hovering above the earth, the sky is a beautiful blue, almost a turquoise, like the color of water along a Caribbean shore. Subtly, almost deceptively, the color deepens upward, eventually giving in to a deep, deep blue, so far and so dark you almost feel you could see forever in it. Piercings of stars begin to show through, twinkling their welcome to the coming of night, anchoring the deepness of that eternal blue.

The gentle moon beams and leftover refractions from the sun meet each other in the corn field in which I sit. Though the sky is mostly dark now, still everything in the field seems clear, leaves glinting reflection like sentries on guard, rustling softly by a breeze I think I wish more than feel. I sit in my car with windows down and breathe in twilight. It smells like corn... fresh dirt turned under... manure... and humidity. Heavy air presses in on my lungs, the edges of everything are hazed with the water in the air.

It is then I notice what seems at first complete silence, but soon realize is only the absence of human activity to which I am accustomed. Slowly, my ears adjust to what sounds there are - a cacophony of living things. It reminds me of an orchestra tuning up before a big performance. For it is at this time that the day and the night creatures meet - daytime animals finding their resting place for the evening, and nocturnal animals coming to stretch. All around me is rustling and scamping, chirping and calling, breathing and sighing.

I wish I could stay much longer to watch the moon, to see how he changes the color of the sky as he glides across through his evening orbit. But homeward bound I must be, leaving that enchanted field behind.

Still Packing...

...and stacking up our dreams and brick-a-brack... and I think we will be up until the day we leave! :)

The Heart Mender

Andy Andrews is an incredible author and speaker. I recently listened to the audio version of The Heart Mender and so enjoyed the history included in the book & the gripping story line that made me want to devour the book in one sitting. (Or one walk, rather... since I listened to it on my iPod.) Hands-down the best thing I've 'read' this year!

The Week (Partially) in Pictures

My friend April is here for the week. She actually came up north to visit her sister in MD and attend Anne's wedding this Saturday. But it's been two years since we've seen each other and since I'm headed off to Africa for an indefinite amount of time and she's headed off to Thailand for a year or so, we wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to spend some time together. We met in January of 2007 through a mutual missionary friend, and shared an apartment in Bangkok for almost six months. You could say we became pretty good friends. :)

Monday we went canoeing down the Delaware River. It was fun, but there were way too many people who had the same idea. (And can you say HOT?? We broke heat records right and left here in PA this week.)

Tuesday & Wednesday we did little things around the Lehigh Valley - shopping, antiquing, visiting little coffee shops - in between my work and other duties around church.

Thursday we took a day trip to Philadelphia, visiting Reading Terminal Market, the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Great Essentials exhibit, the Todd & Bishop White houses, and the new Cleopatra exhibit at Franklin Institute.

I just love looking at all the architecture in Philadelphia... beautiful old houses, cobblestone streets. I greatly enjoyed the tours of the Todd & Bishop White houses... one of the touristy things I haven't previously done in Philly. :) I particularly loved this floor and this bed in the Bishop White house... definitely saving these pics for 'someday' inspiration. (Someday being when I have the freedom to redecorate again!)

And now we are off to the weekend, full of wedding activities. Looking forward to the next couple days and all they hold. :) 

Malted Chocolate Ice Cream Sandwiches

I made some malted chocolate chip cookies the other day (my SIL's recipe), but substituted all butter and they turned out very crispy and crumbly. Actually, it was more than just crumbly, because they were almost melt-in-your-mouth consistency. Pretty good, if I do say so myself.

However, I ended up with a large container of these cookies and I hate being a temptation to my dad (who eats basically no sugar or flour), so I needed to do something with the cookies sitting out in plain sight. 

So I did what any sensible chocoholic would do and made them into ice cream sandwiches, using the best ice cream we had on hand, which was chocolate peanut butter cup. Wednesday night I scooped soft ice cream onto cookies, smashed them together and individually wrapped each one, lining them up in the freezer.

I'm still not sure if I helped or multiplied the temptation, but they sure are good...especially in the middle of a hot, summer afternoon!

So Shall We Ever

From this month's Grace & Honor:

"...and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
(1Thessalonians 4:17)

A simple phrase, no long words and easy to understand on the surface. But a complex phrase, full of deep meaning with incomprehensible truth. 

And so shall - These words provide a contrast from what has come before to what is to come after. They bridge the gap between what has just happened to what will be forever. Before it was sorrow, earthly life, saying goodbye and sending others away. But with the bridging of the gap, we are united with our Lord, and so shall we ever be with Him. 

We - How mind-boggling to think that we should be called the sons of God; that we who have such a past should be given the promise of such a future! 

Ever - What is forever? It is hard for my finite mind fixed on its grid of time to understand just what forever means. It is never-ending; it is never-changing. This situation in which we will be spans into the future forever, and ever, and ever... 

Be with - The very words 'be with' speak of friendship, companionship, relationship. It is more than just a master/servant or king/slave. He is the Friend of Sinners and we shall be with Him forever!

The Lord - The Almighty, the King of all, yet the Lover of Souls and the One we shall be with for fellowship and worship.

And so shall we ever be with the Lord!

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This tribute to Mrs. Jackie Wyatt brought tears to my eyes. I too have been influenced by Mrs. Jackie's sweet spirit and have often been entertained and cared for in her home. What an encouragement she is to so many people!