Glimpses of Life...the Grossmans

Seriously Ridiculous

2009-06-14T22:11:00.013-05:00

My husband frequently chides me for my overuse of the word ridiculous...but seriously...I LOVE the word ridiculous. Oh, and did I mention that I also love the word seriously? My thanks goes out to Drs. Grey, Stevens, O'Malley, Karev, Yang, and Torres for assisting in the forming of that ridiculous habit (watch 1 episode of Grey's Anatomy and see if you don't become attached to the word yourself). Anyways...back to my obsession with ridiculous. The reason I am so fond of the word is because I find it to be amazingly descriptive. There are so many situations which the word ridiculous so perfectly describes. To demonstrate, while cleaning this afternoon I took some photos of some seriously ridiculous situations in my own home! Enjoy!

Exhibit A

The current state of my refrigerator is ridiculous. There is taco sauce on the top shelf (that's not where it belongs). There is a carton of strawberries on the second shelf, strawberries in a white pyrex bowl on the third shelf, and strawberries in a plastic baggy on the fourth shelf. There is a pizza box on the fourth shelf that hasn't been touched in days...something tells me the pizza isn't even good anymore. And don't even get me started on this...

I think it is ridiculous how many condiments have found their way into the shelves of my refrigerator door. Do we seriously need all of these? I could die over that bottle of French's yellow mustard that is haphazardly laying on its side. And why aren't the taco sauce from shelf one and the salsa from shelf four in the door? Oh that's right, because there's no room in the inn! Seriously ridiculous I tell you!

Exhibit B

My pantry...not so ridiculous right? It is actually fairly well organized and I am generally happy with it's appearance. But sadly, it is the contents of my pantry that I find...you guessed it...ridiculous!

Seriously? What business do a pair of DINKS (double income, no kids) have with not 1, not 2, not 3, FOUR boxes of Kraft Mac & Cheese? Well here's a clue...there were 5 boxes of the stuff and now there are 4, and I didn't eat any of it. So either one of our mice hijacked a box, or my other half consumed it. What can I say, he loves the stuff! Ridiculous (sorry, I couldn't help myself)!

Exhibit C

A couple of years ago, my mom gave me this great green basket that goes really well in our family room. This afternoon I glanced over at said green basket...

...and realized that it was being taken over by a sea of magazines...

So I decided to try to sort through this ridiculous mess.

Hmmm...I seriously wonder whose little hands placed this guy in there.

I quickly determined that I was ridiculous to think that I could sort through this mess in one afternoon. I am inclined to throw all of these away, but I know there are bits and pieces of valuable information in each of these magazines. I did throw one, small, pitiful stack away - but I plan to return to these one day soon to tear out the valuable tidbits. In the meantime, they are now neatly stacked back in the green basket.

Finally, just so you don't think I am ridiculous, I'm out to prove that the use of these word can often be positive. This dessert, affectionately named "Berry Surprise" by my husband, is seriously and ridiculously delicious!

Coming Soon...I Hope

2009-05-09T12:47:00.003-05:00

It has been on my mind for a long time now that I want to start a new blog. I feel like I have sort of gotten my feet wet to the whole blog experience with this blog...BUT...if you know me you know that I follow A LOT of blogs. A lot of AMAZING blogs. And I say that they are amazing not only because they look amazing with pictures, and buttons, and gadgets, and music, and...well you get the point. I think they are amazing because of the people who write them and the stories they share. I follow blogs of people I have never met and people who are most assuredly unaware of the fact that I follow their blogs. People in Wisconsin, California, Arkansas, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Florida, Kansas, Michigan, Indiana, and the list goes on. All of these people have something to share, and while they may have started in sharing with their inner circle of family and friends, we all know that over the internet it is quite easy to share on a different level. Unfortunately, with the good comes the bad and the ugly, and we read and see a lot of horrible and inappropriate things over the internet and on TV. BUT...that's why I love the blogs I follow. They are clean and fun and a chance for people to share everything from recipes and funny stories to Scripture and prayer requests. So...the point of this post is to tell you that I am craving a new blog. A fresh start. Something with a little more piz-azz and something that I will enjoy updating and sharing with others.

On that note...if any of you blog gurus out there have tips for creating a great blog (backgrounds, music, favorite gadgets, etc.)...please do share! I am an eager and willing student. It may take me a while to get this thing off the ground...or rather onto your screen...but I am trying to get the creative juices flowing.

In the meantime...we hope you are all doing well. Virginia, as always, is beautiful right now. Life is busy. Adam just returned from a 6-day study intensive held in Windsor, Ontario for his CFA exam. The exam is the first Saturday in June. He is taking Level III this year, and if he passes the test he will officially be a Chartered Financial Analyst. He has put 6 years of hard work into this...please pray that he feels calm as he heads into the test. I am so proud of him for his determination. We won't know until the middle of August whether or not he has passed, but we always love the time after he takes the test to relax and take it easy for a while. Well, Adam is mowing the lawn and there is laundry to be folded. So...I'm off!

Long overdue...

2009-04-15T17:11:00.002-05:00

I know that we are LONG overdue for an update, but Adam got me an iMac for my birthday, and we still haven't had the time or energy to figure out how to get all of our photos (or my iTunes for that matter...gggrrrrr!) from the old computer to my new computer. If only life would slow down for a few hours so we could get this accomplished! Anyways, I promise that when we get everything transitioned over I will post something interesting. Hope you are all doing well.

Big Trip to the Big Apple

2008-12-10T20:03:00.006-05:00

November brought a first for me...my first trip to New York City! I consider myself a well-traveled individual, at least within the United States, but I had never been to NYC. My best friend and roommate from my senior year of college, Lauren, has lived in NYC since we graduated. She is getting married in January and I am her matron of honor (matron?!?). So I decided to head to New York and throw her a shower. It was a whirlwind weekend, but so much fun. I don't get to see Lauren often so while being in New York was a treat, it was even more wonderful to have some face-to-face time with her.

The shower was at Alice's Tea Cup, a well-known tea room in NYC. Much to my surprise, this is one of Lauren's favorite places. I Googled "Bridal Shower New York City" and found this place. I booked it, but didn't give Lauren any details until the night before the shower. She was sure that I had asked one of her friends where she would want to have a shower. I was thrilled that she was so excited and that I had chosen wisely!

As Lauren puts it...Alice's Tea Cup is the "girliest place in the world."

In addition to many varieties of delicious tea, we were presented with 5 of these 3-tiered stands full of scones, finger sandiwches, cakes, cookies, mousse, etc. There were 10 girls present so you can about imagine how much food we took home. It was amazingly good. We ate until we all felt ill. Lauren and I had to go back to her apartment to take Advil and a nap!

On Saturday night we went and saw the musical Spring Awakening.

(Lauren and I outside the theater)

It was a fun-filled weekend. We walked all over the city (SoHo, West Village, Central Park, 5th Avenue, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Bryant Park...whew!). I may not have been there long, but I was able to see so much. I can't wait to go back to see more of the sites.

Lake Lure, NC

2008-12-10T19:58:00.003-05:00

In October we drove to Lake Lure, NC to spend a long weekend with Adam's family. We love being in the mountains and it was so fun to catch up with Adam's parents, Jeff, and Kelleigh. The picture above is of Kelleigh and Connie on top of Chimney Rock, overlooking Lake Lure. The girls decided to go for a hike and the boys stayed at home! Although Adam and Doug will tell you that they took their own hike on the, shall we say "road less travelled." They both came back with war wounds from that excursion. Another great fall weekend!

Fall 2008

2008-12-10T19:13:00.015-05:00

Adam and I kicked the fall off by visiting Carter Mountain Orchard, just outside of Charlottesville. It was a beautiful day and the views overlooking Charlottesville were amazing. On just the other side of the mountain from the orchard is Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's home.

Does Adam look exciting to pick apples or what?

Yum! These are the apples we came away with. They were delicious! I honestly couldn't believe how much better they tasted than store bought apples. The other highlight of the orchard for me were the cider doughnuts they sold. They reminded me of the doughnuts I used to get as a kid at the Auburn Fair. So good! It made me wish I could sit at Grandma Rufner's kitchen table and share one with her just one last time! Adam and I definitely want to make apple-picking at the Carter Mountain Orchard a fall tradition. It will be fun to take our kids there someday.

After hiking the mountainside to pick our apples, Adam and I decided to eat at Michie Tavern (pronounced Mickey). Located at the base of Carter Mountain and a short distance from the entrance to Monticello, Michie Tavern (ca. 1784) is a well-known historic site.

Adam displays the classic southern fare we dined on...cornbread, bisquits, mashed potatoes, fried chicken, pulled barbeque pork, green beans, black-eyed peas (which he tried for the first time and did not like...neither do I). We both stayed away from the stewed tomatoes...yuck! Because it is all-you-can-eat, Adam went back for seconds. By the time our waiter asked us if we wanted fresh peach cobbler, we were both so full we had to decline.

Later on in October Adam and I invited our small group from church over to carve pumpkins. I hadn't carved a pumpkin in years. It was fun and our pumpkin looked great!

(Adam took the picture above, sorry for the bluriness!)

Adam pulling the "guts" out of our pumpkin. I was happy to let him do that part.

Our pumpkin!

Can you tell we chose the easiest design? The pumpkin on the left is an owl and the one on the right is a spider and its web. Next year maybe we'll try something a little trickier!

Cannon Beach, OR ~ Haystock Rock

2008-07-15T21:49:00.006-05:00

(This picture is out of order...I hate it when Blogger does this. Does anyone know how to format picture order on Blogger? If so, please share!)
Another gorgeous picture of the Oregon coast.

Our rental car....JUST KIDDING!!!

Before we left, Adam suggested that for our last day in Oregon we rent a convertible. We had planned to head to the coast for our last day of sightseeing so I thought the idea was perfect. So, Sunday night we picked up our little convertible and headed out to the coast...with our fleeces on, the seat warmers going, and the heat cranked! We weren't going to let some chilly temps keep us from taking full advantage of the open air ride. Even though we were freezing! On Monday morning we drove across the Columbia River from Astoria, OR to Washington. So now Adam can say he's been to Washington too (for all of 20 minutes)! We then headed down the coast to Cannon Beach.

Adam's first views and steps into the Pacific Ocean. We weren't sure which was colder...our bare feet in the snow of Mt. Hood or in the water of the Pacific.

Haystack Rock!!! As a child of the '80s I am a huge fan of the movie The Goonies. One of the things Cannon Beach is most famous for is Haystock Rock and its other surrounding rock formations. While I knew these rocks from The Goonies we were delighted to find out that the tide pools around these rocks are amazing! We were also able to look through telescopes and see puffins and several other types of birds that make their homes on the rocks. No one has been on top of Haystack in 40 years so as not to disturb the natural habitat. The rock stands 235 feet above the sand. I was bummed that it was cloudy this morning, but it was low tide so we were able to get up close to the rock and walk among the tide pools.

(This picture of Haystack was taken later in the day when the sun had come out, but notice that the tide had come in and covered the tide pools we had walked among that morning)

Look familiar Goonies fans? Nicole...I would have died to have you there with me!

Two starfish hanging out on a rock in the tide pool. These rocks were covered with layer upon layer of mussels. We also saw fish, crabs, and other wildlife.

This guy is HUGE!

That about wraps up our trip to Oregon. We had a wonderful time and only wish we had a few more days to keep exploring. By the way, you may have noticed that we appear to be wearing the same clothes each day of our trip. We (me especially) were ill-prepared for the cool temps a great deal of the time in Oregon...especially near Mt. Hood and that morning on the beach. So, Adam is always in his orange fleece and me in the only long-sleeve item of clothing i brought. Trust me, the next time we head that way we will be much more prepared...right Adam?

Multnomah Falls & the International Rose Test Garden

2008-07-15T21:39:00.004-05:00

This is Multnomah Falls, the second largest waterfall in the United States. Notice the bridge that crosses over the upper pool. In 1995 a wedding party was standing on that bridge when a natural rock slide from the upper fall occured. 20 members of the wedding party received minor injuries from flying rock...including the groom who was hit in a rather "unfortunate" location. Too funny!

We also had a change to visit the International Rose Test Garden in Portland. These roses reminded me of the ones used for our wedding. This place was amazing. I have never seen so many varieties of roses in my life. We were amazed to learn that the whole garden is tended to by 1 full-time gardener (I imagine that's a dream job) and 2 summer volunteers.

Mt. Hood

2008-07-15T21:34:00.003-05:00

Just two more pictures as we drove around Mt. Hood towards the Columbia River Gorge. These views were so amazing. While in Oregon we saw Mt. Hood, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Adams, Mt. St. Helens, and even Mt. Ranier (from the airplane). So beautiful! It might rain a lot in Washington and Oregon, but I would imagine these views on a clear day make it all worth it. Adam and I kept wondering if people become "immune" to the beauty of the scenery.

Timberline Lodge ~ Day 2

2008-07-15T21:20:00.003-05:00

On Sunday we were able to head back up to the Timberline Lodge. For the first time since we had arrived in Oregon the weather was clear...and Mt. Hood was no longer "supposedly" there. GORGEOUS! Another first for us...riding up a ski lift and romping through the snow in shorts and sandals...Brrrr!!

Notice that we are above the clouds in the distance.

The peak of Mt. Hood

A picture of Mt. Jefferson in the distance.

Fritz, Chris Higgins, and Adam with the peak in the distance.

Fritz and Adam headed up the ski lift (Fritz was also in our wedding and we once again had the pleasure of hearing him sing at Matt & Kelly's wedding).

It's amazing that the day before I stood in a very similar location by the Timberline and all my camera could capture was gray clouds and no mountain! The views were spectacular from up there...and on top of the great views a kid wearing a powder blue leisure suit exited the ski lift behind us and went skiing on down the mountain. Too funny!

Timberline Lodge

2008-07-15T21:08:00.003-05:00

I imagine that most of you have seen the movie The Shining (think REDRUM...that oughta jog your memory). To our delight, Timberline Lodge, which was used for the outside shots in The Shining was located 6 miles up the mountain from our resort in Gov't. Camp. While Adam was tending to his best man duties on Saturday, I travelled up the mountain with some friends. Unfortunately, it was extremely cloudy/foggy and the ski lift was closed, but I did get some fun shots of the lodge itself.

The building is quite old and was built by the WPA (Works Progress Administration). It was completed in 1937. For more great pics, go to www.timberlinelodge.com .

The artwork and carvings in the lodge were beautiful. This is just one examble on a staircase.

When we went back to the lodge on Sunday in better weather (more pictures next post) Adam couldn't resist getting his hands on the "Here's Johnny" axe. Scary!

Wedding ~ Mazama Lodge ~ Government Camp, OR

2008-07-15T20:46:00.004-05:00

Matt & Kelly's wedding was held at the Mazama Lodge, just outside Camp Government, OR. Located on the side of Mt. Hood, Mazama is used as a ski school in the fall/winter/spring and is also a possible launch site for hikers who aim to climb to the top. I wish I had actually taken a picture of the lodge, but it is your typical Alpine structure with porches on both sides and on both stories. The whole setting was quite beautiful. The ceremony was held outside and had the sky been clear, we would have been able to see the peak of Mt. Hood between the trees above where Matt & Kelly stood.

Adam looked surprisingly great in his brown linen pants and linen shirt. As for that Patagonia fleece...it came in as a handy lap blanket for me during the ceremony. Did I mention that each time I was at Mazama Lodge (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) the temp. was the same - 50 degrees...brrrr! My blood has definitely thinned! When we make the 5 minute trip back down to Gov't Camp, the temp would always be 5-8 degrees warmer. Note: the dress I was wearing is that somewhat blousy style that is "in" right now...imagine my embarassment when Matt's grandmother said to me, in front of 10 or so people, "Rachel..." (in that grandmotherly, knowing voice)..."You're pregnant." The first thing that flashed through my mind was me sitting and talking to Grandma the day before...WITH A BEER IN MY HAND! I cleared up the misunderstanding right away. I think she may have felt worse than I did :)

Matt and Kelly grew herbs in their apartment (tons of them!) and used those as part of the centerpieces. The tables looked beautiful. The Bartow clan (Matt's family) were forced to help Matt purchase pub glasses for each place setting by visiting multiple brewpubs in the days leading up to the wedding. What a sacrifice! Portland is well-known for its local brewpubs. One of the best parts of the wedding is that all of the food and beverages served were all from Oregon. This included wine, beer, fruits and berries for the 15+ homemade pies that Matt's mom and sister made for the reception, vegetables, etc. AMAZING! Those pies were to-die-for good!

Adam and the happy groom!

Matt & Kelly's Wedding - Portland, OR

2008-07-15T20:29:00.010-05:00

The Newlyweds!!

Adam and I were thrilled when we (1) learned that our best man and Adam's dear friend Matt Bartow announced he had finally proposed to his girlfriend Kelly (that was 2 years ago already!) and (2) when they announced they would be hosting the wedding festivities near their new hometown of Portland, OR. In April Adam made it as far as the Rocky Mountains in Vail, CO for Matt's bachelor party/weekend. That was the furthest west Adam had ever travelled within the U.S. We were both excited to head to Oregon for Adam's first trip to the West coast. We crammed a lot of fun into our 4-day trip and best of all were blessed to share in the celebration of Matt and Kelly's marriage. I can't possibly share all of the pictures we took, but I hope the next few posts give you guys an idea of the fun and beautiful scenery we experienced.

North Carolina - June 2007

2008-04-30T20:03:00.014-05:00

The Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC

Doesn't everyone's staircase look like this? Wow!

Adam and me at the top of Clingman's Dome. No...not a flattering picture of either of us, but it was hard work getting up there! It was cool and cloudy at the top, but the views were still breathtaking.

Check out Elijah...he's all ready for a hike!

I love this picture of Ethan (left) and Jed (right) together at the Nantahala Outdoor Center. The boys did so well together that week. I know they got on one another's nerves at times, but it was great to watch them experience things together and play and laugh together. I love my nephews!!!

As I took this picture in Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, I was standing with my head straight back. Gorgeous!

Happy 1st Birthday Levi Michael (who is now almost 2!)

The waterfalls outside of Highlands, NC

A view from just outside of the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest

Honestly, is there anything more beautiful than God's creation? So many times it takes my breath away. Last June, Adam and I set out to spend a week in Bryson City, NC with my parents, my sister and her family, and my brother and his family. We rented a 6 bedroom, 3 story cabin just outside of Bryson City in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Our cabin overlooked Lake Fontana and provided us with beautiful surroundings. We had an amazing time and experienced so much that there is no way I can share it all with you. Even sitting here and thinking about this trip almost a year later makes me want to cry. I would love to go back to the time again. Here are just a few highlights from our amazing trip...

We celebrated Levi Rufner's 1st birthday, spent time in Bryson City and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, climbed to the top of Clingmans Dome - the highest peak in the Smoky Mountains, visited the quaint town of Highlands and the gorgeous nearby waterfalls, went tubing down Deep Creek, visited the Nantahala Outdoor Center. One highlight of the trip for Adam and me was the day the two of us visited the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest. When my brother, David, gave the message at our wedding, he read a poem called "Trees" that was written by Joyce Kilmer. Mr. Kilmer served in World War I and the forest is dedicated to him. The forest is full of trees (obviously) some of which are over 300 years old. The tallest tulip poplars are over 100 feet tall and 20 feet in circumference. It was so beautiful. The highlight of that day was when my dear husband asked me where the tulips were...it is so appropriate that the brilliant man I married didn't realize that the tulips that blossom in spring do not come from tulip poplars. Those moments are some of the most endearing with Adam...what a funny guy I married.

After an amazing, fun-filled 6 days it was time for us to all go our seperate ways. Because Adam and I had the shortest distance to drive, we decided to make a pit-stop and visit the Biltmore Estate on the way home. It was the perfect end to our trip. The house and grounds are absolutely unbelievable. If you ever have a chance to go, please do. The Biltmore was one of the most state-of-the-art homes of its time. One more funny about Adam...as we were leaving the Biltmore Estate we decided to take a tour of the winery and do a wine-tasting. After we had completed the tour went went up to the wine-tasting room and were asked to present our IDs. After shuffling through his wallet several times, Adam couldn't find his so we had to forego the wine-tasting. Ethan and Jed had been found playing with Adam's wallet a few days before, so Adam was convinced they had lost his license somewhere in our sprawling cabin. He had to eat his words however when we found his license at home that night...he hadn't had it all week!

A Year in Review...

2008-04-30T19:54:00.003-05:00

I am ashamed to say that it has been over a year since I afforded any attention to this blog. Trust me, it is not for lack of want or even time, just sheer laziness. Many times Adam and I feel as if "nothing" is going on in our lives, at least nothing so exciting that it is worth sharing, but the truth is the Lord blesses us daily and we have much we would love to share with you all. We miss our friends and family so much and don't always do the best job at keeping in touch with all of the amazing people that have crossed through the paths God has placed before us. It is our sincere hope that you will continue to stop by our blog on occassion to see what is going on. In the meantime...here are some glimpses into just a few of the blessings we have experienced in the past year. As I said before, there are so many that I should be able to fill a few posts and hopefully bring you up to speed. Some of these posts may be a little more bias towards some of the things I have done, but Adam and our camera are not friends which leaves me with very few pictures of some of the things he has experienced. Anyways, we hope you enjoy visiting our blog once again.

Love,

Rachel and Adam

6.3 Miles Later

2007-04-07T00:43:00.000-05:00

Aren't these images flattering? NOT AT ALL...but at least I have a good excuse. Last Saturday Adam and I ran in the 8th Annual Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K in Richmond. This is a 6.3 mile run along the historic Monument Avenue in Richmond. Monument Avenue is flanked by gorgeous old homes and you guessed it...monuments! This is the largest participatory sporting event in Virginia and the second largest 10K in the country. People and bands line the streets and while I didn't know if I could run the whole thing, everyone cheering and the great music made for an adrenaline rush that took me the whole way. It is amazing to say that I ran with 25,000 other people. So fun! The pictures are hilarious - I look like I am in great amounts of pain, but in reality I felt great the whole way through. For my first race ever I didn't do too bad and clocked in at 1:11:07. The winner ran it in 28:29 (WOW!). I am officially addicted to these races and hope to get in at least one more this year. Next year I hope to run this particular race in 55-57 minutes. Hopefully we will get Adam's pictures soon and I will post those as well (I beat him by 5 minutes, but who's counting?).

Emily Elizabeth

2007-02-21T17:57:00.000-05:00

In November I mentioned that I had hosted a baby shower for our friend Chrissy. Well, we are happy to announce that Emily Elizabeth was born on December 28th and thought y'all might like to see a few pics of her. She is precious and we are extremely blessed to be her godparents.

Pictures: Emily gives Chrissy a Valentine's Day kiss, Adam and I with Emily at her baptism, Emily in her faux suede boots...too cute!, and Emily dressed for her first Valentine's day.

Man vs. Beast...meet Matty

2007-02-19T21:15:00.000-05:00

Meet Matty...our friend Caitlin's 7-month-old, 65 lb., chocolate lab. Caitlin dropped Matty off on Saturday morning at 7:00 and by 7:30 we were second-guessing our decision to watch Matty for a week while Caitlin is on a cruise. The first 36 hours were a little rough, but I think we are getting the hanging of things and have managed to get this big "little" guy under control. We have certainly had some humorous moments with him. Adam has been bugging me for years about getting a dog. He grew up with a yellow lab and I grew up with a 7 lb. miniautre dachshund (I should know how to spell that, but oh well), so the size/type of our future dog has always been a source of tension. But, no more! On Saturday afternoon I asked Adam if he still wanted a dog and he said emphatically, "No!" On Sunday morning after Matty had torn a hole in Adam's nice winter coat, Adam turned to me and uttered words I never thought I would hear, "You know, Rachel, we just might be cat people." Today I ran some errands and received a call from Adam. He told me there was good news and bad news...the bad: Matty ate Adam's Crocs (rubber shoes he wears while doing yardwork)...the good: Adam found a nearby fenced-in baseball diamond for Matty to run wild in. He really is a sweet dog, we are just not used to having our house commandeered by such a large puppy full of energy.

No other big news. We have both been busy with work and church activities. I know it can't compare to the midwest, but the weather here has been unusually cold. We are looking forward to warmer temps soon. We are also both planning on running in Richmond's Monument Avenue 10k on March 31st and still have a lot of training to do. Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying 2007. It is already going so fast.

Finally, a big Happy Birthday shout-out to our nephew Jed. He turns 3 on Wednesday! I can't believe how time flies. We can't wait to see Jed and family in June. Love you Jed!

Our Christmas Wonderland

2006-12-18T23:07:00.000-05:00

Our Demdaco Willow Tree Nativity...I love it and had to include a picture.

I had to take this picture without a flash because the lights are so bright that if I take the picture with a flash, it looks like there is a flood light on in the room.

A blurry shot of our outside lights (the Christmas tree is so bright, it looks like the living room is on fire if you look through the two windows on the left!) Merry Christmas!
(And Happy Birthday tomorrow Chrissy!)

Stollen...I did it!!!

2006-12-17T19:56:00.000-05:00

The Before Picture...check out all of that butter!

Kneading the dough...and yes, it's just easier to do on the floor.

The pictures are out of order somehow, but this is my favorite loaf!

Rise yeast, rise! (another picture out of order, not sure why it does this)

The finished product!

First off...I apologize that the pictures come before the explanation...the formatting of this blog confuses me! I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are experiencing the joy of the Christmas season. It has been too long since I updated the blog, so I am going to try to add several new posts in the next week. We are in full gear here in Richmond preparing for Christmas and today the baking began! Every year my Grandpa Schlecht and my mom have made a traditional German bread called Stollen. I have observed my mom making Stollen many, many times. Two years ago I had the pleasure of assisting my brother, David, in making it. Last year my sister, Anna, and I had a go at it. I have had such wonderful teachers that I figured this year it was my turn to tackle the task alone. Other than dropping about 1 cup of the golden raisins on the kitchen floor, everything went rather smoothly (by the way, I did not use those raisins). My yeast even rose on the first try. It is also my family's tradition that we not "break the bread" until Christmas Eve...although I think a few of us may have cheated on that rule from time to time. We'll let you know how they taste.

Chrissy's Baby Shower

2006-11-21T19:16:00.000-05:00

On Sunday I had the pleasure of throwing a Baby Shower for our dear friend Chrissy. I was a little nervous as I had never thrown any type of shower before, but I think the day went off without a hitch. Adam found escape from the festivities by hanging out with our Pastor Bean and the wonderful Bean boys. We girls had a great time eating, playing games, and most importantly celebrating Chrissy and God's gift of her almost-here baby girl. Chrissy is due around the beginning of the year. To our delight, Adam and I were also asked on Sunday night to be the baby's godparents. We can't wait to meet "Emily" and know what a blessing from God she will be to her family.

Other notes from the weekend include us buying our first turkey (we got a little over zealous and bought a 22 pounder) and buying our first big Christmas tree. We'll let you know how the turkey turns out and will hopefully get the tree up by next weekend. I am sure we'll be back soon with more updates...

Until then, we hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Smorgasbord

2006-11-16T20:21:00.000-05:00

Another picture of the house...this time with a lawn (way to go Adam!), new shrubs (the shrubs our builder planted quickly died), and our fabulous red door. When I took this picture last Saturday it was 80 degrees outside!

Instead of purchasing gifts for Adam's parents for Mother's and Father's Day, they asked that we buy some nice plants for our house. This is a picture of our new Flowering Plum Tree. We can't wait to see it bloom in the spring, and it looks great on the side of the house. You can also see in the background the drainage pipe that Adam has been working on to keep the side of our lawn dry.

Our nephew Ethan has had the privilege of seeing Adam frequently and has come to love his visits. Here I captured a quiet moment they shared watching cartoons one Saturday morning. They are each sipping their morning beverage of choice.

This has got to be one of the most humorous pictures I have taken. Here's the story...when we moved into our house we inherited Anna and Garry's lawnmower. Since they live outside of D.C. now in a townhouse, they have had no use of this mower in 2 years. When we finally had the opportunity to mow our lawn, this is what happened. As embarassed as I was to have Adam mowing amidst a cloud of smoke, I knew it would only take a few minutes for him to quickly mow our front yard. I ran inside long enough to grab the camera, snapped a few pictures, and prayed that no one would drive by and see this pathetic situation. The good news is that a nice man in Sears was able to tell Adam exactly what he needed to do to restore the mower, and it has worked great ever since.

Veteran's Day

2006-11-13T20:09:00.000-05:00

In honor of Veteran's Day this past weekend, I thought I would post this picture of the 788th Dillon Crew, the Carpetbagger crew that my grandfather flew with during WWII. My grandfather, Max B. Rufner, is the first person on the left in the front row. Thanks dad for bringing this picture to my attention!

PIPPIN

2006-11-06T15:43:00.000-05:00

A few weekends ago Adam and I made a quick trip up to Wilmington, DE to see one of my best friends (and college roommate...kudos to her for putting up with me), Lauren Marshall. Lauren is currently touring with the national tour of Stephen Schwartz's Pippin. Although we talk often, I had not seen Lauren in two years. We had such a wonderful time and are immensely proud of all she has accomplished. Other than sitting in a packed theatre that smelled of AquaNet and moth balls (no offense to anyone who uses either product) we had a blast watching the performance. We were also able to spend time with her before and in between her two shows that day. Check out the picture I took of her at dinner! We were able to spend more time together if she didn't completely take off her make-up, so she left some of it on. What a hoot! No shame, right Lauren? Love you!

Nephews, Newer Nephew, Newest Nephew

2006-11-06T15:24:00.000-05:00

If you know me at all, you know that I am probably one of the proudest aunts that walked the earth. I think certain friends and co-workers think I may be too proud, but how could I not? Look at these faces! The first is a picture of our "newer" nephew, Levi, born in June. The second is a picture of our "newest" nephews, Elijah, born November 3rd. The third is our nephew Ethan, born in April 2004 (brother to Elijah). And last but not least, or first nephew, Jed, born in February 2004 (brother to Levi). We are certainly blessed by these 4 little guys!

Please forgive any formatting errors on these posts...I am still learning how to use this thing! Have a great day.

Following the Lead

2006-11-05T22:41:00.000-05:00

Hello friends and family! If you are reading this, Congratulations! You have found our new blog. We hope to keep everyone more up-to-date with what is going in our lives in Richmond. Enjoy!

(These pictures are of Adam and me in Nags Head, NC last year to celebrate our 1 year anniversary. There is also a picture of our house taken last spring. We have since put in new shrubs, painted the front door red, successfully grown a lush green lawn, and put in the driveway...I will post an updated picture soon.)