32 Things: Happy (Belated) Birthday to the McPreacher

On Tuesday, the McPreacher turned 32.

We just had a simple celebration, but the McPreacher likes things simple, so it was perfect.

I surprised him by inviting two of his best friends, Brady and Alden to come to dinner. They hid in the garage with silly string and accosted Neil when he went out to get me some "sour cream" I needed out of the fridge. "Sour cream" is in quotes because there really was no sour cream. I am stealth, yo.

After scaring the blazes out of McPreachy, they came inside and we enjoyed a birthday dinner of steak, garlic mashed potatoes (best, recipe ever!), Caesar salad and bread. It was a simple, man-pleasing meal, and the men were mighty pleased.

They we enjoyed birthday cake and just being together. The cake Mcpreachy chose from the birthday cake book this year was called "Ambrosia Cake." It basically a coconut cake with an orange/pineapple filling. He chose it because he LOVES ambrosia salad, and though there was not much of an ambros-esque quality to the cake, it was still delicious.

So, without further ado, I would like to present 32 things I love about my husband in honor of his 32nd Birthday:

1. I love that he is *slightly* nerdy. It warms my heart and makes my pulse race. There is nothing foxier than a hot, nerdy man. Come to Mama, professor.


2. I love how dependable and trustworthy he is. My husband is a man you can always count on.


3. I love that he makes decisions based on what is right rather than how he feels. That makes one of us. :0)


4. He is slow to speak and quick to listen.


5. He is the wisest person I know. I value his advice more that anyone else's.


6. He is so easy going about stuff around the house, and that is such a blessing to a Mama of young kids. He is totally fine with eating cereal for dinner and doesn't care if our house gets messy.


7. He never whines or complains.


8. He makes me laugh.


9. He loves me for who I am, and doesn't expect me to be someone else. He even humors me during my frequent song and dance routines!


10. He always puts our family first, despite the demands of being a pastor.


11. Given the choice between tasks and playing with the kids, he almost always chooses playtime. I admire and envy this quality. :0)


12. He is so wise with our money and provides so well for our family.


13. He is easy to please and appreciates simplicity.


14. He is a deep-thinker and helps me to look at things more critically.


15. He is amazing with directions. He can instinctively and immediately figure his way around a new place.


16. He has an amazing work ethic.


17. He is gifted at saying things that are hard to hear with honesty and graciousness.


18. He is an amazing teacher. I feel blessed to have him as my pastor.


19. He is a man of honor and integrity.


20. He is an AMAZING father and is intentional about his role as a parent.


21. He has great taste in music.


22. He over-researches everything, and I think it is so cute... er... manly.


23. He is such an affectionate, romantic husband. He never ceases to make me feel loved and special.


24. He makes great Swedish pancakes. :0)
    
25. He respects and empowers me as a mother.


26. He seeks my advice and takes my opinions seriously.


27. He's a great gift-giver! He always picks out thoughtful, creative gifts.


28. He is fiercely loyal. Do not mess with someone he loves.


29. He is passionate, and that passion drives everything he does.


30. Even though logic is most important to him, he often humors my need for doing it the 'fun and pretty' way instead of the logical way.


31. He is a visionary, and I am inspired and motivated by his dreams, goals and big-picture perspective.


32. He is a godly man, and I am SOOOOOOOOO blessed to be married to him.

I love you, husband o' mine. Like I always say, I'd be lost without you.

Happy Birthday!

10 Years Ago...

... I married the love of my life.

Happy 10th Anniversary to my wonderful, thoughtful, honorable, endearingly nerdy, logic-loving, pancake-making, problem-solving, sermon-preaching, penny-pinching, rule-breaking, over-researching, makes-me-laugh, loves-me-unconditionally, hot stud of a man.

You are the most amazing husband, and I'd be lost without you.

McPreachy and Mount Vernon: A Saga

Yesterday was McPreachy's birthday. So, in keeping with our birthday tradition, he got to pick the menu for his birthday dinner AND he got to pick any cake he wanted out of one of my favorite cookbooks, The Cake Mix Doctor.

This birthday-cake-picking-and-making-tradition is SO exciting for Bennett. He's been talking about making Daddy's birthday cake for weeks.

The cake McPreachy picked: Mount Vernon Cake.

(2nd row from the bottom, 3rd cake from the left)

If you are currently asking yourself what in the world Mount Vernon cake is, then you are not alone. Bennett and I also scratched our heads inquisitively when we heard the verdict.

It turns out that Mount Vernon Cake is a dense, white cake iced with marshmallow frosting and layered with... you guessed it... homemade cherry filling. Is it all coming together for you now? George Washington... cherry tree... Mount Vernon... Get it?

Leave it to Mr. Academia to pick a historically significant cake. My husband is a very learned man, and he doesn't make even trivial decisions lightly.

And speaking of Mount Vernon, here are some pics from our trip with the Varelas to this hallowed landmark some 4 years ago. I was pregnant with Bennett at the time.

Yep. I pretended to chop down the cherry tree whilst in the cherry tree garden. Yep, I sure did.

All in all, the cake was pretty darn delish! George Washington would have been proud.

Here's a pic of the poor sucker after we hacked away at it. (Get it? Cherry tree... hacked away...)

And here's Mallie... just because she's cute.

For his birthday dinner, McPreachy asked me to make enchiladas, rice and beans. Here's the recipe I used for the enchiladas and here's the recipe for the rice. They are both AWESOME recipes!

Though it was a simple day, I think we made McPreachy's birthday really special.

Happy Birthday, husband o' mine! I love you. I adore you. I'd be lost without you.

Valentine's Day: A Pictorial Montage

Today:

Because I don't feel like writing a lot and spellchecking...

...because I am the worst blogger ever and haven't posted in a gazillion years...

...AND just because it's Wednesday, I'm hereby presenting you with a pictorial journey into Valentine's Day in the McPreachy house. Use it wisely.

Our little "Love Jar" we use to write things we love about each other during the month and then read them on Valentine's Day:

Our school time theme for February: LOVE!

Bennett and I made these little "Bear Hug" bags for his friends. They are filled with gummi bears and teddy grahams.

Old-school-magnet-love-poetry... on the fridge. (McPreachy is a wonderful fridge poet.)

Candy Cane Heart Lollipops!

Heart-shaped Rice Krispie Treats:

This is a craft we made at MOPS... Flower Lollipop Valentines! So cute, fun and easy!

For the McPreacher:

For Bennett:

Valentine's Books:

Happy Valentine's Day, lovebirds!

Cookie Day: All That and a Bag of Chocolate Chips!

Today was Cookie Day! As previously mentioned, My Mom and I have Cookie Day every December, and as the name suggests, it is a day where we make loads and loads and LOADS of cookies to give to our friends and neighbors (and of course, devour ourselves).

Here I am with some of our delicious, delectable creations. Please forgive my makeup-less, sweatshirt-clad appearance. Just keepin' it real. We don't dress up much around these parts when it's cookie day.

Here is my rediculously messy kitchen, in the throws of Cookie Day. Again, just keepin' it real...

This year we made several different types o' cookie goodness. We made:

• Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Pecan Sandies (a Cheryl L. West super-secret recipe... well, not really, I just don't feel like typing it in right now.)
• Icebox Shortbread (we made two different types: chocolate chip and orange-cranberry. YUM!)
• Gigantic Ginger-Molasses Cookies
• Vanilla Bean Snowmen
• Apricot Almond Snickerdoodles

These Snickerdoodles were actually made for our annual church bake-off last night, and they won in the cookie category! The were really good!!! Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 3/4 c. chopped almonds, toasted
• 3 c. flour
• 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 c. sugar + 1/4 c sugar for the topping
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp. almond extract
• 3/4 c. dried apricots, chopped
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves

Directions:

1. Whisk together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
2. Using a hand mixer on medium speed, cream together butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy (5 minutes).
3. Add eggs and almond extract to butter mixture and blend until incorporated.
4. Add half of the flour mixture, beating on low until combined. Add remaining flour, beating only until just incorporated.
5. Fold almonds and apricots into the dough until evenly distributed.
6. Mix together 1/4 c. of sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves in a shallow bowl or plate.
7. Shape dough into 1.5 inch balls. Roll the dough into sugar/spice mixture.
8. Transfer cookies to greased cookie sheets and bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes, until cookies are lightly browned. Cool completely and enjoy!

Another part of this year's cookie day fun was making a gingerbread house with Bennett. My dad and McPreachy did this fun project with Benny while my Mom and I were in the kitchen baking away!

We used a gingerbread house of the pre-baked variety, and it worked great. Why go to all that trouble baking the house, when decorating is really the fun part? At least that's the way I see it!

Here are the fun and delicious candy decorations.

Here's Benny-boy overseeing the construction of the house.

In all honesty, Bennett was much more excited about trying to eat all the candy decorations than he was about actually decorating the house. But he did have a lot of fun. After he got bored with it, McPreachy finished decorating it himself.

Here are a few shots of the finished product. Come along, kiddie-winkies... I'll give you the tour.

Here's the side of the house, where little graham cracker bunnies just love to frolic and play amongst the gumdrop tulips.

Here's the other side of the house. Question: What in the world is that little white swirly-swoop on top o' the lollipop? It scares me a little, as do the frosting "wigs" our gingerbread poeple are wearing. Methinks McPreachy got a little craaaazy with the frosting.

Here's the front door of our Casa de Gingerbread. Notice the very Sistine-Chapel-esque rose window above the front door (McPreachy is very cultured).

Merry Christmas, Cookie Lovers!

I Love You a Bushel and a Peck: Apple Pickin'

As a part of September's apple theme, McPreachy and I took the kids apple pickin' on Monday!

Here's Bennett on the way there:

We drove to Julian, a quaint, old town surrounded by U-pick apple orchards. First we ate lunch (and apple pie, of course) in one of Julian's fine eateries.

Mmmm.... apple pie... delicious

Mallory is such a sweetie-pie (Hah! Get it?!)

Bennett was excited about the boot-shaped water glasses.

I love my precious boy and his little puppy-dog eyes!

Then it was off to Peacefield Orchard where we picked a peck and a half! (say that fives times fast!)

Doesn't Mallory look like a nun with the blanket over her head like that?! It was very sunny, and we can't have our princess getting too much sun!

Apple pickin' (notice that I refuse to say "picking"... it must be said with a twang!) was especially fun for Bennett because for the last week or so I have been teaching him about Johnny Appleseed. He was so excited to pick apples just like Johnny.

Benny Appleseed

Mallie even joined in the fun!

Here's Bennett hugging the sweet man who owned the orchard. They were fast friends.

Our booty:

Johnny Appleseed Jr. couldn't wait to dig in!