Scott & Em

Where I've Been

2011-08-25T17:31:00.000-04:00

Wondering where I've been lately and why there haven't been any blog posts this whole summer? Read this!

Columbus with the Coffeys

2011-04-16T11:05:00.014-04:00

Last month we had a very special visit from my Aunt Terry and cousin Marianna [my mom's sister and her oldest daughter]. Marianna was in Bexley [just a few minutes from us] for an acting competition [or festival?] with her students [she's a teacher in Misissippi], so after she was finished, my Aunt Terry flew up and they stayed several days here in Columbus. It was their first time to visit us in Ohio.

We had a great time hanging out, playing games, eating delicious food, and seeing the sights in Columbus. On Monday we went to Easton for some shopping, then on Tuesday we went to the North Market, the downtown library, and the Topiary Park.

Val, this one is for you - notice the sign behind Steph in the background

Update

2011-04-14T21:25:00.004-04:00

I'm not so good at updates that are non-photo related, but for the sake of long-distance friends and family who would like to be able keep up with us better, I am going to try. Here are a few snippets of things that have been happening lately.

Scott:
+ Just recently received a promotion at work, and is enjoying it so much. I can't really explain what he does, but ask him, and he would be happy to tell you! He comes home happy after work every day. It's a blessing for him to have a job that he enjoys.

+ Was ordained last fall and is a deacon now at our church. We've been so blessed and encouraged with the support and love we've received from the body of Christ at RBC!

+ Is teaching the young singles Sunday school class at RBC on Sunday mornings. Right now we're in the midst of a chronological study through the books of the Old Testament.

+ Has had a lot of great opportunities to preach at church. You can listen to some of his sermons here.

+ Spends his spare time fixing the car, fixing or renovating the house, and spending time with Emily.

Emily:
+ Is working as a secretary at RBC [our church] part-time two days a week, in addition to doing some part-time photography work for friends and family [see some of her work here, at her new blog].

+ Is attempting to plan a garden for this spring, summer, and fall. Neither of us has planted a garden before [beyond a few pots of peppers and herbs], so it will be a challenging learning experience! If you know anything about organic gardening, she would love your input.

+ Spends her spare time taking photos, babysitting for friends, working around the house, spending time with Scott, and doing whatever she can for people in the church [organizing class events, showers, etc.].

We:
+ Are playing and singing regularly on Sunday mornings in the worship service at RBC. Scott plays the guitar and Emily, the piano.

+ Just finished our taxes! [haha, who are we kidding? this should be under the "Scott" category]

+ Are preparing to participate in our church's annual community Easter Egg Hunt this Saturday [tomorrow!]. Please pray that the storms stay away, and that we will be able to reach out to many families from our community.

+ Just enjoyed our fist grilled meal of the year al fresco on the steps of the deck last night [proof above].

+ In our spare time together, we enjoy dressing up as Bonnie & Clyde. [just kidding...that was for an April Fool's costume party we attended]

Alabama, the Beautiful [part 3]

2011-04-01T09:31:00.000-04:00

On our last night in Alabama we got everyone together in an attempt to get some good group shots. Well, some worked, some didn't. :) But that's how it goes...sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't!

Alabama, the Beautiful [part 2]

2011-03-31T08:06:00.000-04:00

While we were in Alabama, Lawson, Amanda's little boy, turned 3. He had a "Woody Bullseye" birthday party. [can I just say Toy Story is one of the most brilliant things for little boys?] Here are a few photos from the party.

[notice the cakes . . . Amanda made them herself!]

Alabama, the Beautiful [part 1]

2011-03-26T19:51:00.003-04:00

Last month I went to Alabama to visit one of my best friends from college, Amanda, and her family. I went with another best friend [and former roommate], Stacey, and her two adorable boys. Stacey lives in Louisville, so I drove to Louisville after work one day, then we made the 8-ish hour drive to Alabama the next morning.

All together I was gone about 10 days . . . it was such a nice l o n g visit. Incredibly fun and relaxing! While we were there it was beautiful [I guess now I know why the state's slogan is "Alabama, the Beautiful"] - I don't think it got below 65 degrees the whole time. So most of our time was spent playing outside.

New Year's Eve

2011-01-05T07:47:00.002-05:00

This year we spent New Year's Eve at the Tornero family's annual party (I think this was the 12th year?). This was the first year to have a theme, "black & white", and also the first year to have a live jazz band!

group shot - everyone in black & white

live band - they were great!

dancing

it was so warm outside, they had tables set up on the top deck for eating,

and on the bottom deck there were lights and a bonfire

playing a fun game called "hedbandz"

Mrs. T & Anna ringing in the New Year

watching fireworks outside at the end of the evening (or maybe I should say, the beginning of the morning)

Many thanks to the Tornero fam for such a fun, special party. After 10+ years, I can't imagine a New Year's Eve without it!

Christmas Vacation, Part 2

2010-12-29T11:43:00.000-05:00

We had a nice relaxing time once we got to Minnesota. We did a little shopping, but mostly stayed home for a lot of visiting, baby holding, cooking, and guitar hero(ing). As usual, the visit seemed too short, but we are thankful for the time we had!

Christmas Vacation, Part 1

2010-12-27T22:00:00.038-05:00

Scott & I were blessed to spend the majority of our Christmas vacation with the O'Neals in Minnesota. We were supposed to fly out last Tuesday night in time to get to Minneapolis to have dinner with the fam. Instead, we ended up not being able to get on our 5:00 flight (we fly standby since Scott's dad works for Delta, so there's always a chance that we won't be able to get on). We were re-routed through Detroit (getting us into Minneapolis at midnight), which meant more time in the airports and on the planes than we were expecting. All in all, we got there safe & sound...just a little more tired than we expected.

During our waiting time in Detroit, we walked through the colorful light tunnel that connects the terminals (which is super cool, by the way). As you walk through, the lights change colors and different sounds (and some music) are played. It was beautiful and very relaxing...I wish we could have waited there for our next flight, instead of having to sit at the gate!

Month of Thankfulness & A New Blog

2010-12-07T23:00:00.027-05:00

Many of you may remember my Month of Thankfulness last year in November. This year I wanted to do something similar, but was challenged by this blog to do more - to keep a daily record of gifts (things I'm thankful for), and ultimately, work my way to 1000 things. As Ann Voskamp says - not 1000 gifts I want, 1000 gifts I have. I decided to start a new blog for this project - one where I can continue my thankfulness list even beyond the "Thanksgiving season".

I know I could do this here, on our "family" blog, but I also know that not everyone who is interested in keeping up with us (family, friends, etc.) are interested in these sorts of posts.

Lately I've also been considering starting a photography blog, but I don't really do enough photo sessions to justify having a completely separate blog for it. So...I've decided to combine my thankfulness project, my photography, and whatever else (recipes, home stuff, etc.) on a separate blog.

Don't worry, we'll still have this blog for more family-related things. Things that grandparents and aunts and uncles want to know as they're trying to keep up with us.

If you visit my new blog (emilyoneal.blogspot.com), you'll notice that I started my Month of Thankfulness (perhaps I should re-name it my "Year of Thankfulness") back at the beginning of November. I wasn't sure if I could keep up with posting every day, or if I would even finish out the whole month, but by God's grace, I was able to! If you'd like to go back and read all my thankfulness posts in order, you'll have to go here and go to the bottom of the page to find my first day (then read backwards!).

You Wouldn't Believe . . .

2010-12-02T08:06:00.002-05:00

. . . how hard it is to get a ~~good~~ normal photo of these two.

Or maybe you would?

Steph coming in for the kill . . . Abby is trying her best to resist . . .

. . . but decides to brace for impact instead.

this was only about 2 minutes into our photo session.

Thanksgiving At the Cavies

2010-11-30T08:14:00.026-05:00

This year Scott & I stayed in Ohio for the Thanksgiving holiday. We spent the weekend with my family (the Cavies), and even spent the night on Wed, Thurs, and Fri, which made it feel like a true vacation!

Thursday morning we woke up to this . . . yum! Cinnamon rolls from Miss "Better Bread" herself!

The rest of the day we spent getting ready for dinner, looking at black Friday deals, and relaxing.

Dad's smoked turkey was delicious, as always!

Scott & I ended the night with a nice long video chat with Scott's family in Minnesota . . . we are looking forward to being with them for Christmas!

Shutterfly Christmas Cards

2010-11-18T21:39:00.001-05:00

One of my favorite things about the Christmas season is sending and receiving Christmas cards. There's just something about coming home to a mailbox full of Christmas cards that makes you feel loved.

I love to send Christmas cards, but the choices...Oh, the choices! Anyone who knows me knows that making decisions is not one of my strengths. I think this year I've narrowed it down to 4 (or so) choices from Shutterfly. They have a staggering 800+ designs to choose from! I used to be a Snapfish girl - they were my favorite for photo prints, and we used them for our Christmas cards cards last year. But after a bad customer service experience with them this year, I think my "heart" belongs to Shutterfly now. I ordered from them for the first time a few weeks ago, and was very pleased with the quality (and price) of their products.

And guess what, bloggers? Shutterfly wants to give you 50 FREE Holiday Cards. Go here for details!

But first, stay here and help me choose which ones we should get. ;) These are my favorites so far:

I like this one for the message:

this one for the design:

this one for the message, design, and simplicity of it all (but, I think six pictures is a bit much for us):

and this is just very simple and classic:

In keeping with the same topic, I've been reading about creative ways to display Christmas cards (like here), and what to do with them after the Christmas season is over. I especially love this idea of keeping them in a bundle and going back through them the next year.

October Catch-Up

2010-11-04T10:09:00.003-04:00

{trip to Lynd's Fruit Farm w/ the Cavies}
In October we made our annual trip to Lynd's Fruit Farm to pick apples, and it turned into an impromptu family photo shoot :) We had a great time, but it wasn't quite the same without Abby!

{Girls Night with the Sunday School classes}
At the beginning of the month our class hosted a Girls Night event for a few of the Sunday School classes at church. Shelli was kind enough to open her home to us, and Anna gave us a knitting lesson. We had a great turn out, and it was a fun time with sisters in Christ!

{Dinner with the Savages & a full rainbow}

Some friends from church, the Savages, had us and the Cavies over for dinner at the end of the month. It had been a rainy day, but when we got to their house the rain had stopped and there was a full rainbow in the sky! The pictures do not do it justice...it was definitely the prettiest rainbow I've ever seen...at the bottom you could make out each individual color. It was brilliant!

it was so big I couldn't get it all in one picture

{Circleville Pumpkin Show}

We made the trip down to Circleville for the annual Pumpkin Show. My (Emily) Aunt & Uncle are back from Thailand for a few months, so we went to see them and hang out with my cousins who live in Circleville. We went the night of the Parade of Bands, and got to hear the OSU band play.

... I'm just now realizing that October was such a full month for us! There will be more October to come...

Louisville Weekend

2010-10-15T10:38:00.000-04:00

This past weekend we went to Louisville to visit Abby and Jeff & Andrea, and to celebrate Abby's 20th birthday. On Saturday morning, after a delicious breakfast at Wild Eggs, a local Louisville place, we went to Huber's farm to pick apples.

Then Saturday night we celebrated Abby's birthday at Jeff & Andrea's home. Mom made red beans & rice, Andrea made carrot cake (requested by the birthday girl). We also played a rousing game of Apples to Apples, which we let the birthday girl win. ;)

On Sunday we all went to church with Jeff & Andrea, then ended the evening around the new fire pit outside the Mullins dorm (my former dorm, now Abby's home during school).

Monday morning we got up bright and early to have breakfast in the caf with Abby before she had class at 8:30, then took some family pictures out in the j-bowl.

Big thanks to Jeff & Andrea for letting us invade for the weekend, and to Abby for letting us interrupt her busy school schedule! :) We had a great time!

Engagement Photos | Brett & Sarah Grace

2010-10-13T17:42:00.002-04:00

The second photo shoot of my three-shoot week in September was for Brett & Sarah Grace, friends of ours who are getting married in December. I've known Brett since I was a young teenager - we worked together for five years, and since Brett was a good friend of my brother, he was (and still is) like a brother to me. I haven't known Sarah Grace nearly as long, but we are becoming fast friends, and I could not be more happy that Brett has chosen her to be his wife!

Newborn & Family Photos

2010-10-07T13:32:00.004-04:00

September was a busy month for me for photo shoots. I hadn't had anything for a few months, then, bam! Three shoots in one week. The first was a newborn and family shoot - one of my best friends since childhood just had her second baby, Greta Joy. It was a joy (ha ha) to photograph their sweet family.

Dear Abby,

2010-10-04T09:57:00.004-04:00

Are you ready for this?

5 days...

Minnesota Vacation

2010-09-10T09:48:00.004-04:00

We went to Minnesota for the Labor Day weekend and had a wonderful time, as usual. I can't believe that we hadn't been there since Thanksgiving last year. Where does the time go? We spent a lot of time outside, hanging out, talking, eating good food...you know, the usual! It was such a good, relaxing time with our family that we love so much!

Thank you O'Neals for having us! We can't wait to see you again soon!

Always Forgiven

2010-08-24T09:41:00.003-04:00

Just wanted to share two of my favorite worship songs from Sovereign Grace with you. I've had them on repeat all morning and they have been such a blessing to me...I hope they are to you as well!

(if you are reading this in a feed reader, the widget with the songs will not show up - you need to visit our blog!)

Always Forgiven
I don’t deserve to be Your servant
And how much less to be Your child
Anger and wrath, sure condemnation
Should be my portion, my just reward
Never have seen it, never will know it
Your loving kindness enfolds my life

All You have shown me is
Grace, love and mercy
Now and forever I am Your child
Freely You pour out
Your loving kindness
Father of grace
You welcome me in

All of the sin I have committed
Was placed upon Your righteous Son
And now You see me through His perfection
As if I’d never done any wrong
Always forgiven, always accepted
No fear of judgment before Your throne

Jesus, Thank You
The mystery of the cross I cannot comprehend
The agonies of Calvary
You the perfect Holy One, crushed Your Son
Who drank the bitter cup reserved for me

Your blood has washed away my sin
Jesus, thank You
The Father’s wrath completely satisfied
Jesus, thank You
Once Your enemy, now seated at Your table
Jesus, thank You

By Your perfect sacrifice I’ve been brought near
Your enemy You’ve made Your friend
Pouring out the riches of Your glorious grace
Your mercy and Your kindness know no end

Lover of my soul
I want to live for You

Dear Abby,

2010-08-15T17:30:00.002-04:00

We miss you.

Without you,

craft projects aren't as fun,

.
.
.
Saturdays aren't quite the same,

.
.
.
photo shoots aren't as glamorous,

.
.
.
Chick-fil-a doesn't taste as sweet,

.
.
.
getting ready for church isn't as entertaining,

.
.
.
apple picking isn't as fun,

.
.
.
naps in the hammock aren't as relaxing,

.
.
.
breaking the rules isn't quite as thrilling,

.
.
.
fireworks aren't as bright,

.
.
.
the leaves aren't as pretty,

.
.
.
the grass isn't as green,

.
.
.
and when Mom says "take a picture! put your head in that bush!" we all die a little inside because we know you aren't here to do it for us.

.
.
.

We miss your mad cooking skillz,

.
.
.
your hugs,

.
.
.
and your sweet smile.

.
.
.
We know that you are where the Lord wants you,
.
.
.
but that doesn't mean we don't still miss you lots and lots.

So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Adieu

2010-08-04T20:11:00.000-04:00

On Monday night we had the Tornero family over for a surprise goodbye party for Abby. It was lovely! We sat outside on the deck under the lights, enjoying good food and even better conversation (sharing our favorite Abby memories, among other things).

I thought to myself the next day, if the rest of summer could be filled with parties like this, I wouldn't mind the summer heat so much. (and for those of you who don't know me well, that's a pretty big admission)

Vince, sharing his many Abby memories -

Abby was a good sport and laughed at all the stories, even though many of them could have been embarrassing -

Anna telling the story of her first piano lesson with Abby. If you haven't heard it, you should ask her next time you see her. It is HILARIOUS!

So long, Chabbsy! We love you!

"...for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you."

2010-07-29T11:26:00.000-04:00

"I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart;
I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.
I will be glad and exult in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

But the Lord sits enthroned forever;
he has established his throne for justice,

and he judges the world with righteousness;
he judges the peoples with uprightness.

The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
And those who know your name put their trust in you,
for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

Sing praises to the Lord, who sits enthroned in Zion!
Tell among the peoples his deeds!"

-Psalm 9:1-2, 7-11

Marriage

2010-07-27T18:04:00.014-04:00

I just recently discovered this new song from Andrew Peterson, called "Dancing in the Minefields". It's about marriage...I think it's beautiful. A great story/example/picture of what marriage is/should be.

I also really like this quote that I found recently on a friend's blog (so I thought I'd stick it in here, since the topic is the same):
“To keep a vow, means not to keep from breaking it, but rather to devote the rest of one’s life to discovering what the vow means, and to be willing to change and to grow accordingly.”

- Mike Mason, The Mystery of Marriage

Well I was 19 you were 21
The year we got engaged
Everyone said we were much to young
But we did it anyway
We got the rings for 40 each from a pawnshop down the road
We said our vows and took the leap now 15 years ago

Chorus:
We went dancing in the minefields
We went sailing in the storm
And it was harder than we dreamed
But I believe that’s what the promise was for

Well ‘I do’ are the two most famous last words
The beginning of the end
But to lose your life for another I’ve heard is a good place to begin
Cause the only way to find your life is to lay your own life down
And I believe it’s an easy price for the life that we have found

Chorus:
And we’re dancing in the minefields
We’re went sailing in the storm
And it was harder than we dreamed
But I believe that’s what the promise was for
That’s what the promise is for

Bridge:
So when I lose my way, find me
When I lose loves chains, bind me
At the end of all my faith
to the end of all my days
when I forget my name, remind me

Cause we bear the light of the son of man
So there’s nothing left to fear
So I’ll walk with you in the shadow lands
Till the shadows disappear
Cause he promised not to leave us
And his promises are true
So in the face of this chaos baby
I can dance with you

Chorus:
So lets go dancing in the minefields
Lets go sailing in the storms
Oh lets go dancing in the minefields
And kicking down the doors
Oh lets go dancing in the minefields
And sailing in the storms
Oh this is harder than we dreamed
But I believe that’s what the promise if for
That’s what the promise is for

The Best {and Easiest} Pot Roast

2010-07-26T10:38:00.006-04:00

I'm not sure this qualifies as an actual recipe, because there are no measurements and hardly any guidelines, but here it is anyway! My mom's pot roast recipe.

Ingredients:

potatoes, carrots, onions, cut up
chuck roast, whatever size you want (as long as it fits in the crock pot)
1 can of condensed cream of mushroom soup (or the equivalent of a homemade version)
salt & pepper

Put the veggies in the bottom of the crock pot (enough to fill the bottom, maybe enough to fill your crock pot halfway?), salt & pepper.

Put your meat on top of the veggies, top it off with a few slices of onion and some extra veggies, if there is room. Pour the cream of mushroom soup on the top, then salt & pepper generously.

Turn the crock pot on low, and let it cook all day long...by dinner time you will have a delicious meal! Or, if you want it to be ready for Sunday dinner after church, put it together on Saturday evening, then turn the crock pot on (as late as you can) Saturday evening, before you go to bed. Your roast will be perfect by the time you get home from church! :)

Flowers & a Nerf Battle

2010-07-20T22:19:00.003-04:00

A few weeks ago we (Cavie girls) went to some friends house to work on a craft project together:

{we made about 30-40(?)of these paper flowers}

after the flower making party, the boys joined us for supper and a nerf gun battle.

teams for the nerf battle:

the hurricanes

the good weaponers

during the battle, the rest of us walked down to "the meadow".

we had a great time! thanks to the K family for having us over!

Father's Day

2010-07-19T16:18:00.003-04:00

Ok, here's our Father's Day post - a month and a half late! :)

Jeff came from Louisville to celebrate with us. We gave Dad a new gas grill...

...sat outside under the lights enjoying each other's company...

...and ate delicious food! (it's not a Cavie party without great food!)

{spicy baked shrimp & grilled olive tapanade stuffed pork loin}

{homemade ice cream sandwiches}

Family Reunion

2010-07-18T21:46:00.005-04:00

Scott & I went to Table Rock Lake, Missouri a few weeks ago for a family reunion with the O'Neal side of the family. It was wonderful! Hot, sticky, and wet, but wonderful. We spent our time outside - going for boat rides, tubing, swimming, fishing, and catching up with family.

Wedding Photos

2010-06-09T18:17:00.008-04:00

I had the pleasure of taking photos for Margaret Tornero & Tim Casey's wedding last month (for those of you who don't know, Margaret & I grew up together, we've been friends since we were 9).

When Margaret first approached me about doing the photos, I was a bit apprehensive, but her only guidelines for me were "simple, candid, people shots". Knowing how relaxed Margaret is, I decided to go ahead and do the job...it would be a great first wedding experience!

Everything was so relaxed, I ended up having a lot of fun with it. Scott was there with me as my second-shooter and was there to keep me calm, help me with some technical questions, and help me get some great shots. I couldn't have done it without him!

Anyway, here are some of the photos...enjoy.

p.s. I dislike that I have to say this, but given past experiences, it is necessary. Please remember that these photos are copyrighted. You may forward this link, but please don't take the photos without asking.

Scenes from Our Memorial Day Weekend

2010-06-07T21:57:00.000-04:00

In true O'Neal fashion, I'm posting these photos about a week late.

On the Saturday before Memorial Day, Scott and I drove to St. Louis to spend some time with Scott's grandma. We had a wonderful time! This is Niles, Grandma's cat. He thinks he owns the table. :)

We were only able to stay a day, so we drove back from St. Louis on Sunday...

...and saw a few rainbows (can you see it? it's faint)

...then spent Memorial Day with my family.

The bounty! Every time we have a "holiday" dinner I think it can't be topped. And I'm always proven wrong :)

For those of you who are interested, we had smoked turkey & pork, baked beans, fried okra, and cheese-stuffed bread (all homemade of course).

Happy Birthday!

2010-05-24T08:43:00.020-04:00

Happy Birthday to the best Dad ever.

Love,
Scott

Banana Bread

2010-05-20T11:18:00.010-04:00

When Scott & I first got married, banana bread was a staple in our house. We made it at least every week. And when I say we, I do mean we...Scott had to teach me how to make it. Every week we would bake enough regular whole wheat bread, banana bread, and banana pancakes to last us for a week. Then we would do it all over again the next Saturday. Obviously this was when we were renters and didn't have large home projects that took our weekends :)

Anyway, just recently I've gotten back into the routine of baking regularly, and I'm really enjoying this (new to me) banana bread recipe, so I thought I would share it with you. It's a recipe from the blog Passionate Homemaking - she makes hers as muffins, but I decided to make mine into loaves.

Banana Bread
slightly adapted from this recipe at PassionateHomemaking.com

One recipe makes enough for one standard size loaf pan, so I usually double it and make two (one to eat, and one to freeze). That way I don't have to bake quite as often.

- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 bananas, mashed
- 3/4 cup rapadura or sucanat (I have used sucanat every time and it has worked great. I also use about 1/2 cup of sweetner - 3/4 is too sweet for us everyday)
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1/3 cup butter or coconut oil, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease one standard-size loaf pan, or 12-cup muffin tin.

In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Pour batter into prepared pan/tins. Only fill the muffin tins 3/4 full, or they will overflow.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-40 minutes (bread) or 18-20 minutes (muffins), until a toothpick inserted in the center comes clean.

There is also an optional topping, which I don't usually make, but you can find it at the end of the original recipe here.

For a special treat, Scott likes to put cream cheese frosting on his (which I guess kinda defeats the purpose of all the good-for-you ingredients). But oh well...you've got to have special treats sometimes, right? For the frosting I mixed together 8oz of cream cheese, 5 Tablespoons of butter, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and 1 1/4 cups of powdered sugar.

Because Your Steadfast Love is Better Than Life...

2010-05-17T10:26:00.004-04:00

Praying today that my heart & life would echo the truth & beauty of this Psalm.
"Because your steadfast love is better than life..." - I love that.

Psalm 63

1 O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you;
my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,
beholding your power and glory.

3 Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.

4 So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.

5 My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,

6 when I remember you upon my bed,
and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

7 for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.

8 My soul clings to you;
your right hand upholds me.

9 But those who seek to destroy my life
shall go down into the depths of the earth;

10 they shall be given over to the power of the sword;
they shall be a portion for jackals.

11 But the king shall rejoice in God;
all who swear by him shall exult,
for the mouths of liars will be stopped.

Music

2010-05-17T10:05:00.001-04:00

One of my friends from Louisville has just started a great series of posts on her blog about kids & music. She was a Music Education major in college, and is now a pre-K and music teacher, so as you can imagine, she has a lot of good insight on the topic. If you're wondering how to incorporate more music in your daily life (as a part of homeschooling, or as a supplement to schooling outside the home), Christina has some great suggestions. I'm looking forward to learning more!

Here are the links to her blog posts:

Want Your Kids to Love Music?

Music for Worship: Hymns

How Music Can Tell a Story: The Ballad

And speaking of music, I have recently been enjoying this album from Fernando Ortega - The Shadow of Your Wings: Hymns and Sacred Songs. The songs on this album are all hymns or passages of scripture set to music. One of the ways I memorize best is through music, so this has been a great way for me to memorize some short passages of scripture. I think my favorite so far is "Let the Words of My Mouth (Psalm 19:14, Philippians 4:8)" After just a few plays, I realized that I knew the whole song and was able to sing along with it.

I love my sisters :)

2010-04-30T22:44:00.002-04:00

15 Years

2010-04-29T09:16:00.002-04:00

This past weekend we had a surprise church-wide 15th anniversary celebration for my parents, since this month marks their 15th year of serving at RBC.

My contribution to the night was a slide show of photos from their past 15 years in Reynoldsburg. And since some of you weren't able to be there to celebrate with us (and those of you there may not have been able to see all the photos), I thought I would post some of my favorites here on the blog. There were around 180 slides, so this is just a very small sampling of images...

Lilacs?

2010-04-23T09:56:00.006-04:00

I was pleasantly surprised to find out this spring that we have a flowering bush in the front yard (I think it's a type of Lilac). Turns out I had been pruning it at the wrong time (the fall), so we never got any blooms until this year (because I never trimmed the bushes last fall).

Aren't they beautiful? I love flowers, so it has been a treat to go out to the front yard and cut some to have inside. They are SO fragrant.

Home Improvement Tips

2010-04-22T21:38:00.002-04:00

After all we've been through remodeling this house, I think I could write a book of home improvement tips. What do you think? For example,

If you need to put up a 14 foot section of gutter, but only have one ladder, no problem! Just have your father (or father-in-law) hang out a second floor window and hold the gutter up with a shovel. It works just as well.

If your husband asks you to throw a screw driver or hammer up to him, don't do it. Carefully climb up the ladder and hand it to him. Unless you would like the tool of choice to come back down on your head (then, by all means, toss it up).

(thanks to mom for the last two pictures)

Happy Birthday

2010-04-21T10:11:00.007-04:00

Happy Birthday to my wonderful dad! I love you and appreciate you more than you know!

Happy Easter from the O'Neals!

2010-04-14T08:08:00.005-04:00

Too bad this is a week (and a half) late, eh? I have a bad habit of starting blog posts and forgetting to finish them. Oh well, we figured you wouldn't mind.

We had a wonderful resurrection celebration with our church family, decorated eggs (glitter this year, instead of dye), rested, and had a delicious steak dinner at the Cavies' house.

We hope that you all had a wonderful day rejoicing in our risen Lord!

photo by Abby

"...for all his people. He drank it all, he endured all, he suffered all; so that now for ever there are no flames of hell for them, no racks of torment; they have no eternal woes; Christ hath suffered all they ought to have suffered, and they must, they shall go free. The work was completely done by himself, without a helper."
~Charles Spurgeon

Spurgeon's Prayer: The Wonders of Calvary

2010-04-02T12:20:00.002-04:00

"Great God, there was a time when we dreaded the thought of coming near to You,
for we were guilty and You were angry with us,
but now we will praise You because Your anger is turned away and You comfort us.
Yes, and the very throne which once was a place of dread has now become the place of shelter. I flee to You to hide me.
O bring us, we pray You, now near to Yourself.
Let us bathe ourselves in communion with our God.
Blessed be the love which chose us before the world began.
We can never sufficiently adore You for Your sovereignty,
the sovereignty of love which saw us in the ruins of the Fall,
yet loved us anyway.
We also bless You, O God, as the God of our redemption,
for You have so loved us as to give even Your dear Son for us.
He gave Himself, His very life for us that He might redeem us from all iniquity and separate us unto Himself to be His peculiar people, zealous for good works.
Never can we sufficiently adore free grace and undying love.
The wonders of Calvary never cease to be wonders,
they are growing more marvelous in our esteem
as we think of Him who washed us from our sins in His own blood.
Nor can we cease to praise the God of our regeneration
who found us dead and made us live,
found us at enmity and reconciled us,
found us loving the things of this world
and lifted us out of the muck and mire of selfishness and worldliness
in the love of divine everlasting things.
All our help must come from You.
Give back to the church its love, its confidence,
its holy daring, its consecration,
its generousness, its holiness.
Give back all it ever had and give it much more.
Take every member and wash his feet, sweet Lord, most tenderly,
and set us with clean feet in a clean road,
with a clean heart to guide them, and bless us as You will in a divine fashion.
Bless us, our Father,
and let all the churches of Jesus Christ partake of care and tenderness.
Walking among the golden candlesticks trim every lamp and make every light,
even though it burns feebly now, to shine out gloriously through Your care.
Now bless the sinners. Lord, convert them.
O God, save men, save this great city, this wicked city, this slumbering dead city.
Lord, arouse it, arouse it by any means, that it may turn to its God.
Lord save sinners all the world over, and let Your precious Word be fulfilled.
And now to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost be glory forever and ever. Amen."

Good Friday

2010-04-02T08:34:00.004-04:00

"Pilate said to them, 'Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?' They all said, 'Let him be crucified!' And he said, 'Why, what evil has he done?' But they shouted all the more, 'Let him be crucified!'"

- Matthew 27:22-23

"Unless you see yourself standing there with the shrieking crowd, full of hostility and hatred for the holy and innocent Lamb of God, you don't really understand the nature and depth of your own sin or the necessity of the cross"

- C.J. Mahaney

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"‘Twas I that shed the sacred blood;
I nailed him to the tree;
I crucified the God of Christ;
I joined the mockery.

Of all the shouting multitude
I feel that I am one;
And in that din of voice rude
I recognize my own.

Around the cross the throng I see,
Mocking the Sufferer’s groan;
Yet still my voice it seems to be,
As if I mocked alone."

– Horatius Bonar (1808-1889)

Inspired by Julia

2010-03-29T09:30:00.006-04:00

Ever since Scott & I saw the movie Julie & Julia, we've been wanting to have my family over to watch it and to eat Julia Child's famous Boeuf Bourguignon. We finally did it a few weeks ago...here are a few photos from the night (all taken by Abby, my sister).

The menu was: Boeuf Bourguignon, Mashed Potatoes, Asparagus, French Bread, and for dessert - Chocolate Mousse!

It was pretty good, if I do say so myself. Thanks Julia!

all photos by Abigail Cavanaugh

Alabama

2010-03-22T13:50:00.001-04:00

Two weeks ago I had the pleasure of visiting some friends in Alabama. Amanda & T.C. were at Boyce College when I was there (in fact, they were both in my first class my first year - English 101), and we ended up living in the same apartment complex during our last two years in Louisville. It was a short three day visit, and I wish it could have been longer, but I had a wonderful time while I was there.

Lawson, their little boy.

We went to Bottega, a restaurant in Birmingham, for lunch one day - the food was a-maz-ing.

T.C. making a roast chicken from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

I'm already looking forward to another visit...hopefully sometime soon!

Free Food Week!

2010-03-22T10:07:00.006-04:00

If you're lucky enough to live near the Broad Street Chick-fil-a in Reynoldsburg, OH or Starbucks (any Starbucks, not just Reynoldsburg locations) you can score some free food this week!

photo by Abigail Cavanaugh

According to my insider information, Chick-fil-a is giving away one free breakfast item every day for a week! Here's what the list looks like:

Monday - Breakfast Burrito
Tuesday - Cinnamon Cluster
Wednesday - Biscuit & Gravy
Thursday - Chicken Minis
Friday - Chicken Biscuit
Saturday - Chicken Biscuit

photo from Starbucks.com

If you don't live in central Ohio, you can still score a free pastry at Starbucks this Tuesday. Just visit the Starbucks website and print their free pastry coupon.

The Best Wedding Sermon Ever

2010-03-05T15:55:00.003-05:00

When we tell people that we had a sermon at our wedding, they usually look at us like we have three heads. "A sermon at your wedding?" they ask. To which we reply, "yes, it was probably the best sermon we've ever heard".

We may be a little biased, but we've talked to enough people who agree with us to be able to say this with confidence and recommend it to you. It's basically a very clear presentation and celebration of the gospel. So if you enjoy sermons that celebrate the gospel, we think you'll enjoy this. It's easy to listen to and great for everyone - married, single, Christian, and non-Christian.

This is the first time I've used this free file hosting site, and as far as I can tell it's legit and it should be pretty easy for you to download the mp3. I did it myself to make sure it worked. Let me know if you have any problems.

File Hosting Online Storage Backup

Dear Husband,

2010-03-04T12:27:00.003-05:00

Sovereign Grace Music

2010-02-28T16:45:00.005-05:00

If you're looking for great worship music, Sovereign Grace Ministries is having a great sale on all of their music right now. It only lasts through today, so get it fast!

Our new favorite is Together for the Gospel Live. It's excellent, and the MP3 download is only $5 right now. I've included a sample below.

Calvin & Hobbes Snowmen

2010-02-24T08:33:00.004-05:00

With all the melting snowmen around here lately (example), I've been reminded of the Calvin & Hobbes snowmen cartoons.

click each cartoon to see a larger version.

Pancake Day

2010-02-23T09:52:00.005-05:00

Did you know that today is Pancake Day? Today (between 7am and 10pm) at IHOP you can get a free short stack of pancakes.

If you don't want to venture out, I would recommend these pancakes from Jamie Oliver. I made them last week with apples instead of pears. They're simple & delicious!

(since my apples were a little bit harder than most pears, I peeled them and didn't use the core, as he suggests you do with a pear)

Decide to Abandon Retirement as the Reward for Your Life

2010-02-15T16:20:00.002-05:00

Another great video from the folks at desiringGod.

Cades Cove

2010-02-13T21:44:00.010-05:00

Our last day in Gatlinburg, we spent the afternoon in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It was beautiful!

Mountain Harbor Inn

2010-02-11T11:37:00.011-05:00

Wednesday & Thursday night we stayed at the Mountain Harbor Inn, located about 30 minutes from the downtown Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg areas. We first stayed here during our honeymoon 4 years ago, so it was fun to go back.

I can't tell you how beautiful this place is - the pictures & video don't do it justice. Not only is the view beautiful, but when you book a room here it comes with candlelight dessert, a sunset cruise on the lake, a delicious breakfast, chocolates on your pillow...they'll even provide you with s'mores ingredients if you want to sit by the fire on the deck and roast marshmallows. To top it all off, the owners and staff are so sweet - they treat you like family.

(to really top it all off, they have amazing specials November through March. you can stay in any of their suites for the price it would cost you to stay in the Hampton Inn in Pickerington. hmmm. Pickerington, Gatlinburg.)

(nope, they're not paying me to tell you this)

Our suite - beautiful, no?

If you're ever in the Gatlinburg area, treat yourself to a night or two at The Mountain Harbor Inn - you won't be disappointed!

the Mountain Harbor Inn from Emily O'Neal on Vimeo.

Gatlinburg & Pigeon Forge

2010-02-10T09:08:00.004-05:00

On Wednesday when we ventured out of our cabin (yes, we stayed for three whole nights without leaving!), we decided to see some of the sights around downtown Galinburg & Pigeon Forge.

Our cabin was just down the road from the famous Hippensteal Inn, so we stopped on our way to Gatlinburg to take a look at the beautiful view.

playing around in downtown Gatlinburg

we had lunch here on Wednesday - a little pricey for what you get, but the food was good.

classic Pigeon Forge ;)

Wonderworks in Pigeon Forge - made you look twice, huh?

We ended our day with dinner at The Peddler, our favorite restaurant of all time. We first ate here on our honeymoon four years ago, and have been dreaming of going back ever since. They're known for their amazing salad bar (complete with smoked oysters and just about every other kind of delicious thing you would want on a salad) and fresh-cut steak (they bring the meat to the table, you choose what you want, and they cut it for you right there). It's pricey, but SO worth it. It's the best piece of meat you'll ever put in your mouth. My mouth is watering now as I think about it...

Unfortunately, we didn't get any clear pictures, but we were able to capture a bit of video (please disregard my stunned-monkey look when Scott turns the camera on me).

the peddler from Emily O'Neal on Vimeo.

A Matter of Life or Death

2010-02-04T10:03:00.011-05:00

Many of you may not know that TODAY is the last day to call your state representative and tell them that you want Senate Bill 38 - "The Ultrasound Bill" to pass. It's a bill that will require abortionists to show the mother an ultrasound before their abortion. We know that at least 25% of women will not go through with their abortion after seeing an ultrasound.

The phone number to call is 1-800-372-7181 (7am-11pm EST). It only takes a few minutes to call! **

Along the same lines, a dear friend of ours from Louisville recently put together this video for our former church about the importance of fighting for life. If you have a few extra minutes to watch, please do, and prayerfully consider how the Lord is calling you to fight for life.

Abortion: A Matter of Life or Death from Casey Cashell on Vimeo.

**edit: oops! forgot to note that this is for Kentuckians. a few places I've looked says the bill has already passed, but I've heard from people in KY who have called and said it hasn't passed yet.

Above the Clouds

2010-02-02T12:42:00.012-05:00

Scott and I spent last week in the beautiful Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee. We had a wonderful time! It was beautiful, refreshing, encouraging, relaxing, and just plain fun. The first three nights we stayed in a cabin called Above the Clouds just off the Arts & Crafts loop near Gatlinburg.

the view from the cabin...I could get used to waking up to this every morning.

we spent time sitting by the fire,

reading (Scott is reading The Silver Chair to me now),

playing games (pool, Sequence, etc.),

eating lots of delicious food,

and relaxing.

beautiful view from Emily O'Neal on Vimeo.

if anyone is interested in more information on the cabin we stayed in, we'd be happy to show you more pictures and recommend it to you!

Coupons

2010-01-21T09:48:00.013-05:00

I've never been a coupon clipper, mainly because I can usually get what we need on sale (managers special or weekly sales) or by buying the store brand (most store brands are just as good as name brands) for less than I could using name brand coupons.

However, I've been introduced to some websites that may have changed my mind. When we were in Minnesota for Thanksgiving my mother-in-law and sister-in-law were telling me about all these deals they were getting through the help of some coupon websites - $.07 for boxes of Kleenex from Walgreens, free baby wipes from Target, $.50 for an eight ounce block of Kraft cheese. Huh? Didn't sound like the couponing that I was familiar with.

What these sites do is keep track of coupons and research deals for you, telling you what goes on sale when, which coupons to stack, and where to use them. For example, this week at Target you can get Nivea body wash for FREE, if you use the coupon from your Red Plum 1/3/10 newspaper insert, along with the online Target coupon for the same product. If you get really into it, you can even make money at some stores, since most drugstores (Walgreens, CVS) offer register rewards (money that goes on your store card to be applied to your next purchase).

These sites also keep track other coupons, deals, and freebies - beyond the usual grocery store coupons - $15 off a $15 purchase at The Limited, coupon codes for free photo prints & books, etc. This week I found a coupon for a 32oz fountain drink from the BP AM/PM stores for just $.01! (as far as I can tell, you can print it as many times as you want - it doesn't expire until March 2)

There are probably hundreds of these kinds of sites out there, but my favorites are:

Hip2Save.com - Not Your Grandma's Coupon Site:

MyFrugalAdventures.com - Where Less is More:

StretchingaBuckBlog.com - Spend Wisely, Live Well:

this site is great for Central Ohioans because it is run by a local woman

A word of caution, though - often I need to remind myself that just because an item is on sale (or even free) doesn't necessarily mean that I need it. I'm the type to buy things because they're severely discounted, thinking I'll use it "sometime", but too often that "sometime" never comes. Just because I can get 5 boxes of cereal for $5 doesn't necessarily mean I need 5 boxes of cereal. So, think wisely before you spend!

I choose to look at these sites as tools to help me save more (on the things I already buy) in order to be able to give more.

What about you? Do you clip coupons or have coupon sites that you use regularly?

Childrens Books, Scary Faces, and Great Fellowship

2010-01-19T15:00:00.011-05:00

Last week we had the pleasure of getting to hang out with a family from our church. We were talking one day in church about our favorite childrens books, so Scott mentioned his favorite, Tommy at the Grocery Store. Ever since then the kids had been dying for him to read it to them.

So while we were there he read two of his favorite childrens books - Tommy at the Grocery Store and Ribtickle Town, along with a Knudsen family favorite - Edward the Emu.

Can you tell they like it? These books are great, but they really are ten times better if you can get Scott to read them to you and do the voices.

After dinner the kids took us outside to see the tree house - we had a lot of fun making scary faces in the dark.

Ok, we had lots of fun trying to make scary faces. Some didn't succeed because Scott was making them laugh.

We had a great time sharing a delicious meal, reading, and talking together. Thank you so much Knudsen fam for having us over! We can't wait to do it again.

Project 365: Sisters Edition

2010-01-08T16:11:00.006-05:00

There's a project that has been going on in the blogging & scrapbooking world(s) for several years now - it's called "Project 365". The idea is to take one picture every day for one year (if you're a blogger, you post them on a blog or on your Flickr account, if you're a scrapbooker you put them in a scrapbook and sometimes on a blog too). I thought it sounded like a fun challenge to undertake - it would give me an excuse to learn how to use my camera better, be more creative with the photos I take, and hopefully it will be a fun way to look back at 2010.

My sisters so sweetly agreed to do the project with me (ok, maybe I told them they would be doing it with me) and we have started a new blog to put the pictures on. My hope is that by making the project public we will have an incentive to keep going when it gets hard and we feel like giving up. Posts may be sporadic, but we will be taking photos every day and sharing them on the blog (hopefully) close to every day.

So without further ado, here's the blog: project365sisters.blogspot.com

Hope you enjoy seeing 2010 through our eyes!

Merry Christmas

2009-12-28T16:26:00.010-05:00

We hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas celebration! Scott & I had a great time with my family here in Ohio - we enjoyed our traditional Christmas Eve fondue, sang (sung?) together in the late Christmas Eve service (11:00PM) at RBC, then woke up late on Christmas morning to open presents and had a nice relaxing day together. We're hoping to see some of Scott's family soon so we can celebrate with them.

decorations from mom's childhood

christmas tree

thyme plant mom kept alive to flavor our cornish hens for Christmas dinner

one of my gifts

Peppermint Bark Recipe

2009-12-24T09:34:00.001-05:00

I've never been a big fan of peppermint bark. Every year at Christmas time I hear people raving about how wonderful it is, so I eat a little piece and try to make myself like it. It never works.

But then I saw this recipe: Layered Peppermint Crunch Bark.

It came recommended by a few food bloggers that I trust, so I decided to try it out. And now I'm a peppermint bark lover. Simple as that. This recipe is probably a little more work than your typical bark recipes, since it involves two types of chocolate and three layers. But it's totally worth the effort! Believe me, you'll be happy you took the extra time.

The recipe calls for "17 ounces good-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Baker's)", which I couldn't find in our local grocery store, so I just used the Nestle chips and they worked fine.

Layered Peppermint Crunch Bark
from epicurious.com

17 ounces good-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Baker's), finely chopped
30 red-and-white-striped hard peppermint candies, coarsely crushed (about 6 ounces)
7 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
6 tablespoons whipping cream
3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

Turn large baking sheet bottom side up. Cover securely with foil. Mark 12 x 9-inch rectangle on foil. Stir white chocolate in metal bowl set over saucepan of barely simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch water) until chocolate is melted and smooth and candy thermometer registers 110°F. (chocolate will feel warm to touch). Remove from over water. Pour 2/3 cup melted white chocolate onto rectangle on foil. Using icing spatula, spread chocolate to fill rectangle. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup crushed peppermints. Chill until set, about 15 minutes.

Stir bittersweet chocolate, cream and peppermint extract in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat until just melted and smooth. Cool to barely lukewarm, about 5 minutes. Pour bittersweet chocolate mixture in long lines over white chocolate rectangle. Using icing spatula, spread bittersweet chocolate in even layer. Refrigerate until very cold and firm, about 25 minutes.

Rewarm remaining white chocolate in bowl set over barely simmering water to 110°F. Working quickly, pour white chocolate over firm bittersweet chocolate layer; spread to cover. Immediately sprinkle with remaining crushed peppermints. Chill just until firm, about 20 minutes.

Lift foil with bark onto work surface; trim edges. Cut bark crosswise into 2-inch-wide strips. Using metal spatula, slide bark off foil and onto work surface. Cut each strip crosswise into 3 sections and each section diagonally into 2 triangles. (Can be made 2 weeks ahead. Chill in airtight container.) Let stand 15 minutes at room temperature before serving.

Christmas Music

2009-12-23T08:58:00.011-05:00

Need some Christmas music to keep you company while you're finishing your last minute Christmas projects? I've found several places to get music for FREE online.

First is Andrew Peterson's Behold the Lamb of God album that can be found streaming here. I found this album just a few days ago and it's quickly becoming one of my favorites.

Second is Pandora online radio. All you have to do is visit pandora.com & sign up for an account (Free) to begin streaming music. They have several set stations (two of my favorites are Classical Christmas and Peaceful Christmas), but you can also create your own custom music station by typing in an artist's name or song, then Pandora will play music similar to the artist or song you have chosen. As songs play you're given the option to give the song a "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" so the station is customized to your preferences.

Third is AccuHolidays.com, which I think has the greatest variety of Christmas music out there. This was my go-to site for Christmas music for years before I found Pandora.

Fourth is Amazon.com. Amazon has been running a promo called "25 Days of Free: A new free holiday song every day through Christmas". This one is pretty self-explanatory - so hop on over to Amazon and download some Christmas songs.

Isaiah 9:2-7

2009-12-22T08:39:00.007-05:00

"The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
on them has light shined.
You have multiplied the nation;
you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest,
as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
For the yoke of his burden,
and the staff for his shoulder,
the rod of his oppressor,
you have broken as on the day of Midian.
For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
and every garment rolled in blood will be
burned as fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government
and of peace there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this."

Budding Photographer

2009-12-21T19:39:00.006-05:00

Last month when Scott & I were in Abby's new hammock she grabbed our camera and took a few pictures of us...

(I think this picture captures us both perfectly!)

...I think we may have a budding photographer in the family! Don'tcha think?

More Gideon

2009-12-16T11:23:00.002-05:00

Who's tired of seeing pictures of our nephew?

No one?

I didn't think so :)

More from Minnesota

2009-12-11T15:34:00.004-05:00

Our Nephew is Adorable

2009-12-09T08:58:00.003-05:00

Don't you think?

Thanksgiving Photo Shoot Outtakes

2009-12-08T10:08:00.007-05:00

(for some reason, Internet Explorer doesn't handle viewing photos on Blogger as well as Firefox does - so if you're using IE and the pictures look fuzzy, just click on the photo and it will look better. that, or switch to Firefox ;))

Thankfulness, Day 8

2009-11-26T15:04:00.002-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

We are thankful for our families. We love you all so much!

the O'Neals

the Cavies

Thankfulness, Day 7

2009-11-19T10:57:00.010-05:00

I am thankful for my husband. I can't believe it has been four years!

I love you, sweetheart. Happy anniversary :)

Thankfulness, Day 6

2009-11-13T09:42:00.010-05:00

Yesterday I had the opportunity to go with my mom and sisters to the Ohio Theatre to hear the Columbus Symphony Orchestra play. It was a concert just for kids, so Mom was able to get discounted tickets through the homeschool co-op, and invited me to come along.

Because the concert was geared toward kids, they played a lot of "fun" music, like John Phillip Sousa's "Stars & Stripes Forever", John Williams' "Hedwig's Theme", and a movement from Antonín Dvořák's New World Symphony (my personal favorite).

So today I'm giving thanks to God for...

...beautiful music (and the ability to enjoy it)...

...and parents who sacrificed so much to home school me and my siblings and give us opportunities to enjoy beautiful music like this (I have many fond childhood memories of family outings to the symphony, usually on special "home school field trip" days).

Thankfulness, Day 5

2009-11-08T21:14:00.004-05:00

I'm thankful to serve a God who does not forsake his people.

Psalm 37 (ESV )

He Will Not Forsake His Saints

Of David.

1 Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass
and wither like the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;
dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as the noonday.

7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
over the man who carries out evil devices!

8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
9 For the evildoers shall be cut off,
but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.

10 In just a little while, the wicked will be no more;
though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there.
11 But the meek shall inherit the land
and delight themselves in abundant peace.

12 The wicked plots against the righteous
and gnashes his teeth at him,
13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
for he sees that his day is coming.

14 The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows
to bring down the poor and needy,
to slay those whose way is upright;
15 their sword shall enter their own heart,
and their bows shall be broken.

16 Better is the little that the righteous has
than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken,
but the Lord upholds the righteous.

18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
and their heritage will remain forever;
19 they are not put to shame in evil times;
in the days of famine they have abundance.

20 But the wicked will perish;
the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures;
they vanish—like smoke they vanish away.

21 The wicked borrows but does not pay back,
but the righteous is generous and gives;
22 for those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land,
but those cursed by him shall be cut off.

23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
when he delights in his way;
24 though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the Lord upholds his hand.

25 I have been young, and now am old,
yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
or his children begging for bread.
26 He is ever lending generously,
and his children become a blessing.

27 Turn away from evil and do good;
so shall you dwell forever.
28 For the Lord loves justice;
he will not forsake his saints.
They are preserved forever,
but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
29 The righteous shall inherit the land
and dwell upon it forever.

30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks justice.
31 The law of his God is in his heart;
his steps do not slip.

32 The wicked watches for the righteous
and seeks to put him to death.
33 The Lord will not abandon him to his power
or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.

34 Wait for the Lord and keep his way,
and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
you will look on when the wicked are cut off.

35 I have seen a wicked, ruthless man,
spreading himself like a green laurel tree.
36 But he passed away, and behold, he was no more;
though I sought him, he could not be found.

37 Mark the blameless and behold the upright,
for there is a future for the man of peace.
38 But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed;
the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

39 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
he is their stronghold in the time of trouble.
40 The Lord helps them and delivers them;
he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
because they take refuge in him.

Thankfulness, Day 4

2009-11-06T10:15:00.002-05:00

We're thankful for new friends...

After several months of praying and searching for an associate pastor, the Lord answered our prayers by bringing the Savage family to our church. We are so thankful to have them, and look forward to getting to know them better in the months to come!

Thankfulness, Day 3

2009-11-04T08:10:00.008-05:00

I'm thankful for my sweet, silly sisters...

...all of them!

Thankfulness, Day 2

2009-11-02T15:39:00.016-05:00

I'm thankful for good hymns, new and old, that point me to Christ and His cross.

One of my favorite hymns is, "My Heart is Filled With Thankfulness", by Keith & Kristyn Getty. I hope these lyrics bless you as much as they have blessed me.

My heart is filled with thankfulness to him who bore my pain
Who plumbed the depths of my disgrace and gave me life again
Who crushed my curse of sinfulness and clothed me in his light
And wrote his law of righteousness with power upon my heart.

My heart is filled with thankfulness to him who walks beside
Who floods my weaknesses and strengths and causes fear to fly
Whose every promise is enough for every step I take
Sustaining me with arms of love and crowning me with grace.

My heart is filled with thankfulness to him who reigns above
Whose wisdom is my perfect peace, whose every thought is love
For every day I have on earth is given by the King
So I will give my life, my all, to love and follow him.

A Month of Thankfulness

2009-11-02T15:35:00.011-05:00

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
- Thessalonians 5:18

Two years ago, on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, our pastor in Louisville preached a sermon entitled, Thankfulness: Soundtrack of the Christian Soul. For whatever reason, it was one of the sermons that had the most impact on my life while we were there. It helped me understand the place (and importance) of thankfulness in the Christian life - every moment of every day, no matter what.

I just listened to that sermon again today, and was re-inspired to live a more intentionally thankful life. So, this month I will be blogging about thankfulness. Mainly, I'll be sharing the things I am thankful for. I'm hoping to make it every day, but we'll see. I would love for you to join me, if you have a blog (or even if you don't!). If you want to participate, just leave me a comment & I'll post a link to your blog along with my post every day. If you don't have a blog and would like to participate, feel free to leave a comment on my posts. Or, find someone every day to share your thankfulness with.

If you decide to participate or not, please please please listen to this sermon. It's worth your time.

Don't Forget...

2009-11-02T09:24:00.003-05:00

...to vote tomorrow!

Spurgeon on Autumn

2009-10-26T10:39:00.007-04:00

“To the Christian it should be great joy, by means of the harvest, to receive an assurance of God's faithfulness. The Lord has promised that seed-time and harvest, summer and winter, shall never cease; and when you see the loaded wain carrying in the crop you may say to yourself, "God is true to his promise. Despite the dreary winter and the damp spring, autumn has come with its golden grain." Depend upon it, that as the Lord keeps this promise he will keep all the rest. All his promises are yea and amen in Christ Jesus: if he keeps his covenant to the earth, much more will he keep his covenant with his own people, whom he hath loved with an everlasting love. Go, Christian, to the mercy-seat with the promise on your lip and plead it. Be assured it is not a dead letter. Let not unbelief cause you to stammer when you mention the promise before the throne, but say it boldly—"Fulfil this word unto thy servant on which thou hast caused me to hope."

Shame upon us that we so little believe our God. The world is full of proofs of his goodness. Every rising sun, every falling shower, every revolving season certifies his faithfulness. Wherefore do we doubt him? If we never doubt him till we have cause for it we shall never know distrust again. Encouraged by the return of harvest, let us resolve in the strength of the Spirit of God that we will not waver, but will believe in the divine word and rejoice in it.”

Pictures

2009-10-20T10:07:00.004-04:00

I love having such beautiful subjects to photograph :)

We Have a Winner!

2009-10-19T09:54:00.005-04:00

And the winner is...Mrs. C (Teresa), who chose the 14" Oval Dish in Black Onyx. Congratulations!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the giveaway. It was a lot fun, maybe we'll do another one in the future.

A (Le Creuset) Giveaway!

2009-10-16T09:56:00.013-04:00

Yep, you read that right! We're having a giveaway. Just call me Pioneer Woman.

Here's the deal. The people at Cookware.com contacted us a few weeks ago about doing a giveaway. They want to give one of our sweet blog readers some Le Creuset cookware for free. Needless to say, we agreed. (as Scott likes to say, "if it's free, it's me!")

So, if you would like to participate, you could win one of the following:

this Le Creuset 9" Square Baking Dish (with bonus 5" dish) in Caribbean

or

this Le Creuset 14" Oval Dish in Black Onyx

They're both beautiful, right?

Here's how it's going to work - leave us a comment on this post with:
1. Your Name (doesn't have to be your full name).
2. Your email, so we can contact you if you win.
3. Which item you would choose (if you win) and why.

One entry per person, please. (for shipping reasons, only residents of the US and Canada are eligible)

Enjoy! I'll be back here to announce a randomly chosen winner next Monday, October 19.

-Emily

P.S. While you're waiting, go check out Cookware.com to see their great selection of of kitchen products like KitchenAid, All Clad, Rachel Ray Cookware, and Le Creuset, just to name a few!

P.P.S. Please realize that this is just for fun! This is still our family blog and will remain that way - you won't see us putting up those annoying blinky ads trying to make money. There is absolutely nothing in this for us, we just thought it would be fun to give you all a chance to win something!

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte

2009-10-15T16:19:00.004-04:00

I just found this recipe at TheKitchn.com for homemade Pumpkin Spice Lattes, and I have to say - it is delicious! I can't affirm or deny their claim that it tastes "just like Starbucks", because it has been a few years since I've had one from Starbucks. Regardless, it's delicious.

Pumpkin Spice Latte Recipe - TheKitchn.com

This recipe is definitely enough for two people - the recipe says it can be one large serving, but no matter how hard I tried, it wouldn't all fit in my xtra large mug. Also, I only used half the sugar called for in the recipe, and it was perfect for me. If you like your coffee drinks pretty sweet though, I would use both tablespoons.

Pittsburgh Pictures

2009-10-14T09:33:00.009-04:00

Last Saturday we took a day trip to Pittsburgh with my side of the fam - Mom & Dad, the girls, Jeff, and Andrea. We've been talking for almost a year now about taking a day trip to Pittsburgh so we could show Scott & Andrea our "old stomping grounds".

We started the day out with a trip up Mt. Washington on the Duquesne Incline.

the view from the top is stunning!

One of the reasons we made the trip was to visit The Original Hot Dog Shop (know locally as "The O"), a family favorite when we lived in PA. Despite their name, the Hot Dogs are just OK...we go for the fries! They're the best fries you'll ever eat.

Happy Birthday John

2009-10-06T21:06:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday John - we love you!

More From Marmon Valley

2009-10-05T09:31:00.005-04:00

The Weekend

2009-09-28T16:02:00.005-04:00

This past weekend Scott & I helped chaperone the youth fall retreat to Marmon Valley Farm. We had such a great time!

I'm not much of an animal person, but I thought these two were so cute. Just a moment before they were chasing each other, but after a bit they settled down to cuddle.

More pictures coming soon...

Peach Coffee Cake Muffins

2009-09-22T16:40:00.011-04:00

This is the first recipe I've tried from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook since receiving it as a birthday present in July. These are Peach Coffee Cake Muffins (originally called Plum Coffee Cake Muffins, but I changed the fruit to peaches because I had some that I needed to use).

This is a pretty easy muffin recipe, as far as muffin recipes go. You don't even have to wait for the butter to soften, since the recipe calls for melted butter.

I was a little disappointed that the muffins turned out looking nothing like they do in the book. If I had waited for the tops to get that dark, I'm sure the bottoms would have been as black as night. Because I couldn't wait for the tops to brown much, they are a little unappealing to look at. But really, all that matters is that they're delicious, right?

~~Plum~~ Peach Coffee Cake Muffins
from the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook

Makes 12
You can substitute an equal amount of chopped peaches or nectarines for the plums. Or use your favorite berries instead - the recipe is very versatile.

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of ground nutmeg
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup milk
3 ripe red plums (about 1 lb), pitted and cut into small chunks (I used two large peaches)

Preheat oven to 375F. Generously butter all cups of a standard 12-cup muffin tin; set aside. Combine 2 tablespoons sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon in a small bowl, set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and remaining 3/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon; set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla, and milk. Whisk in the melted butter. Using a rubber spatula, fold the egg mixture into the flour mixture until just combined.

Dividing evenly, fill each of the 12 muffin cups halfway with batter. Smooth the batter with an offset spatula. Distribute the peach pieces evenly among the cups (about 3 tablespoons per muffin), scattering them over the batter. Spoon the remaining batter on top, dividing evenly. Sprinkle tops with reserved cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Bake, rotating the pan halfway through, until the muffins are puffed and golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center of one muffin comes out clean, 16 to 18 minutes.

Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Turn out the muffins onto the rack to cool a few minutes. Serve warm.

Video: Oh, The Temptation

2009-09-18T09:03:00.003-04:00

This has absolutely nothing to do with our family, I just thought it was funny :)

Oh, The Temptation from Steve V on Vimeo.

Chat with a Silly Sister

2009-09-09T09:07:00.002-04:00

(from a g-chat with Stephanie that I meant to post last winter)

Stephanie: I'm sure mom and dad will say yes if they haven't already. But even if THEY don't, I will sacrifice myself and ride my bike over in the freezing snowing icy slippery sleeting blizzardie cold for you and get your mail.
=)

A Different Take on The President's Speech

2009-09-08T10:23:00.006-04:00

John Piper has written a few blog posts regarding President Obama's speech that will be heard today in schools across America. His take is quite different than the opinions you'll hear from conservative talk radio, and even from most conservative Christians.

The first is: I Hope My Daughter Hears the President's Speech

And the second is: I've Read the President's Speech: Amazing

They are both fairly short and well worth your time, I would say.

Happy Birthday!

2009-09-02T22:04:00.006-04:00

Happy Birthday, sweetheart.

To My Dear and Loving Husband
a poem by Anne Bradstreet

“If ever two were one then surely we.
If ever man were loved by wife, then thee;
If ever wife were happy in a man,
Compare with me, ye women, if ye can.
I prize thy love more than whole mines of gold
Or all the riches that the East doth hold.
My love is sure that rivers cannot quench,
Nor aught but love from thee give recompense.
Thy love is such I can no way repay,
The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray.
Then while we live, in love let’s so persevere
That when we live no more, we may live ever.”

Happy Birthday, Mom!

2009-08-25T21:37:00.018-04:00

This year my mom turned 50! (I don't think she would mind me saying that, since all of Facebook already knows) :)

I love my mom's outlook regarding birthdays & getting older. She says that she looks at it the way everyone in her big Italian family did - they celebrated each year, saying "She made 50!" or "He made 60!" Instead of trying to hide their age or be unhappy about turning another year older, they celebrated how many years they had lived. Shouldn't it be that way? I think so. Praise the Lord for another year!

In our family the birthday person always gets to choose the birthday meal. Mom chose Asian Noodle Salad, Grilled Chicken, Stuffed Mushrooms, and yummy bread. Really, it was mostly about the salad, but it was all SO good.

Abby and I decorated the table outside - this is probably the first time we have ever celebrated Mom's birthday outside, because it is usually extremely hot & muggy at the end of August.

Mom opening her card from Dad - I guess after all these years he knows what will make her laugh :)

For dessert Mom chose Crème brûlée.

Abby has always wanted to make crème brûlée (personally, I think it's because you have to use a torch to make it)

Not only was it dessert, it was our entertainment for the evening!

Steph wanted to get in on the kissing action, but I don't think Abby was too keen on the idea...

We love you so much, Mom! Happy Birthday!

Old Hymn

2009-08-19T17:56:00.007-04:00

Today I've been singing this old hymn over and over. It's one that we used to sing all the time at Immanuel, our church in Louisville. I prefer the newer tune than the older one that is in the Baptist Hymnal - you can listen to Jars of Clay sing it here.

On Jordan's Stormy Banks I Stand
words by Samuel Stennet, 1727-1795

On Jordan's stormy banks I stand
And cast a wishful eye
To Canaan's fair and happy land
Where my possessions lie

All o'er those wide extended plains
Shines one eternal day
There God, the Son forever reigns
And scatters night away.

I am bound, I am bound, I am bound for the Promised Land
I am bound, I am bound, I am bound for the Promised Land

No chilling wind nor poisonous breath
Can reach that healthful shore
Where sickness, sorrow, pain and death
Are felt and feared no more

I am bound, I am bound, I am bound for the Promised Land
I am bound, I am bound, I am bound for the Promised Land

When shall I see that happy place
And be forever blessed
When shall I see my Father's face
And in His bosom rest

I am bound, I am bound, I am bound for the Promised Land
I am bound, I am bound, I am bound for the Promised Land

F.Y.I.

2009-08-19T17:51:00.003-04:00

I'm pretty sure most of you know this, but just in case you were wondering, that's Scott and his mom in Spain on our blog header. It's one of my favorite pictures - I think it's so sweet.

Minnesota

2009-08-18T19:04:00.010-04:00

We've been so busy this past month, I forgot to put up more pictures from our Minnesota trip at the beginning of July!

while we were there we celebrated both Erin & Allie's birthdays - July 1 & 2

we spent some time in the pool...

we spent time on the porch, just talking...

and of course, Scott enjoyed having a brother to ~~pick on~~ play with.

on the fourth we all walked down to a park in the neighborhood to watch the fireworks...

and guess what - Gideon LOVED them! he watched in awe for most of the time.

O'Neals, we love you all and miss you so much!

Before & After, Guest Room

2009-08-15T18:20:00.008-04:00

Another room bites the dust!

Here are some before & after pics of the guest room. It's a little sparse right now (we need to hang some things on the walls), but I would much prefer a room to be sparse than to be overwhelmed with "stuff".

{Before}

{During the renovation, trying to hide those ugly beams}

In this room we replaced & painted all the trim, took down the shelves, had carpet installed, painted, re-drywalled two of the walls, put up a new door, built a new door frame, etc.

{After}

let's pretend that the blanket on the end of the bed is even. I didn't notice it was uneven until after I took the pictures.

Do you recognize the mirror in the photo above & below? Remember this mirror from the downstairs bathroom? A coat of black spray paint gave it a whole new lease on life!

Well, it's official! The O'Neal Bed & Breakfast is now open. All of you out-of-towners need to come visit us now that we have a room just for you! :)