menu planning.

In a desperate attempt to save myself from that panicked feeling that comes from wondering what to do for dinner every day around 4pm when the kids are going nuts, I have been organizing my recipe files. My plan is to create 10 master menu PDFs with 10 dinner meals and a corresponding shopping list to keep in my kitchen binder. Each menu should get us through about two weeks of meals. My plan is to just rotate through the ten menus throughout the year and make changes as needed. I'll have to supplement the shopping list with pantry staples and breakfast and lunch items, etc. Really, though we eat mostly the same things for breakfast and lunch, so that part of the menu doesn't change.

I'm also making dividers for each set of recipes in each menus for my recipe holder and paper clip the recipes to the menu divider they belong in, so all I have to do is pull out that set of recipes when I start a new menu. I used the dividers from old photo storage boxes that I had lying around, which I cut to size and covered with some lovely black and white patterned scrapbook paper I had left over from some sort of project {the paper clips are from Walmart I think...} I plan to make dividers just for breakfast and dessert recipes, and probably also side dishes, appetizers, beverages etc.

It's going to be a lot of work at the outset, but I'm just quick printing the recipes that I want and resisting the OCD temptation to write them all on matching recipe cards.

I did, however, design my own recipe cards inspired by these and these {drooling}, just for kicks and giggles...so maybe someday all the recipes will all be on matching cards. Hey, a girl can dream.

Here's the menu PDF as an example and a link to print my recipe cards...
Menu 1

Recipe Card Spoon and Fork

table for five...or ten.

I have been curiously absent from my blog for over a month.

There are several reasons for that, which I won't go into. Mostly, life has just been crazy busy.

Not that it's any better now...I just have something to post about.

It recently occurred to me that, very soon, we will have five people eating at our table (Noah is still in the high chair at the moment...but not for long), and we have a table that only seats four.

I have also found that I don't invite people over much because there's nowhere for them to sit down and eat.

All these things led me to scour the internet in search of farmhouse tables...and discover very quickly that we could not afford one.

But in my searching, I found this blog and these plans for a farmhouse table loosely based on a Restoration Hardware farmhouse table that I have loved from the moment I first saw it.

I casually mentioned to Mr. Gardner that I really wanted a new farmhouse table and I had found some "really easy" plans online...the next day he said he was going to make it for me.

"Now?" I asked, incredulously.

"Would you like me to wait a few years?" He replied.

"Um, no. Now is great!"

I really wanted to use reclaimed wood, but it turns out that reclaimed wood is REALLY expensive and hard to find...so we went with plain old pine. Mr. Gardner and his good friend built the table in just under two days.

And then it sat there for about a week. Truth be told, I was afraid to stain it.

I didn't really want it to look TOO polished because, after all, it is a farmhouse table. I wanted it to look like it had some history. So we did some distressing with random tools. My favorite distressing marks actually came from a bent-up dog comb.

Several of the blogs and websites that had instructions for creating a distressed finish on furniture recommended starting off with a layer of whitewash stain. So we used a stain called Pickled Oak as our base stain.

We followed this with a sanding sealer (which the man at the paint store highly recommended...maybe because it was $16 a quart). Then we sanded the table lightly with a fine grit sandpaper

Then it was the moment of truth. We decided on a walnut stain and tentatively began applying it to the table with rags...and it looked good!

I loved the results after the first coat, but wanted it a little darker, so we did one more coat of stain before finishing the process with Varnish.

And this is how it turned out.

The table looks absolutely amazing. I still can't believe that we made it. And I just love having a big family table to gather at for meals, visiting, studying and fellowship...although it barely fits in our dining room! We figured it could easily seat ten, and up to fourteen in a pinch with a few benches.

So now, I just need some benches...

I'm trying to decide between these three styles, all from the same website as the table plans:

#1

#2

#3

I'm leaning toward the storage bench...storage is always good.

a love story {part 8}

Ten years ago today, on July 22, 2000 I began the greatest adventure of my life with the man who completes me in every way. I will treasure the memories of that day until I take my last breath. But I will also treasure the many other memories that we have made together since that day. I'm so thankful for these last 10 years, and am looking forward to the rest of our adventure...

Here are a few of our wedding photographs...thanks for reading our Love Story!

a love story {part 7}

Up to this point, I have been covering our courtship in a fairly detailed manner, spending 6 posts on about 6 months.

That, my dear friends, is all about to change. So hang on, because this post is going to cover an entire year and a half.

So, where did we leave off?

Oh, yes. We had just gotten engaged.

I think we did make it home for curfew that night, but just barely. My roommates were all in bed by the time I walked in the door, and in my excitement I ran into through the apartment turning on lights and woke them all up to tell them the news and show them my ring. I'm sure I scared them out of their senses. But they were excited too, when they realized what the heck was going on. Best. Roomies. Ever.

Shout out to all you girls, I know you're reading this...

At first, we were planning to marry that summer. But as you know, that did not happen because if it had, it would be my eleventh anniversary, and I would not be writing this. There were a lot of reasons we decided to wait, and the whole story is quite long and probably pretty boring...

So here is what you need to know...

Kevin graduated in May and went back to Lincoln, Nebraska (his hometown) for the Summer to work. He had decided that he was going to spend the next school year in China with his mom and stepdad, who were doing missions work there.

I went home to Idaho for the Summer to work, as well. But I got to fly out to Lincoln for about a week or so around my birthday to spend time with Kevin and his family.

Right after he picked me up from the airport he took me to a restaurant with one of those great photo booths and we got these pictures...

I love those things. Maybe we'll find one this week for anniversary pictures...

As the Summer drew to a close, we both went back to Pensacola, me to go back to college, and Kevin to catch his flight to China. It probably goes without saying that I was dreading his departure. I really didn't know how I was going to make it through 9 months without him. But I also knew that if our relationship could survive a 9 month overseas separation, it could probably survive just about anything.

I cried the entire day he left. In fact, I remember having to pull over as I was leaving the airport because I was sobbing so hard I couldn't see.

But gradually the ache in my heart became more bearable, and I gradually settled back into the college routine and determined that I was going to enjoy my last year of school and the great girls I lived with.

Plus, I had a wedding to plan to keep me distracted.

We e-mailed almost every day. And then we discovered this cutting edge thing called instant messaging. All five of the girls in our apartment shared one desktop and we had dial up internet, so as you can imagine, it really wasn't really "instant" messaging. But it was something. We had one 15 minute phone conversation in those 9 months and it was heavenly.

I did a lot of growing up that year. I was only 19 and I hadn't really had a chance to be on my own yet. It was a good year, and by the time Kevin came back the next May, I felt like I was a little wiser.

My mortarboard at graduation only contributed to the feeling of wisdom...

It was so good to have him back, even if it was just for a few weeks as we said goodbye to all our college friends in Pensacola and packed up our belongings to head back to our respective hometowns.

Kevin was scheduled to drive back out to Idaho a few weeks before our wedding day which was rapidly approaching...

To be continued...

a love story {part 6}

Kevin left a few days after Christmas to go back to Pensacola, and I followed a few days later. I moved out of the dorms and into an apartment with a group of wonderful new roommates. Kevin moved into the same complex about 2 buildings down with a group of great guys. So conveniently, we got to see each other a LOT.

I knew it was only a matter of time before he popped the question. We had talked about it, and even looked at a few rings on a date at the mall. I ventured to guess out loud that he might do it on Valentine's Day. That was a mistake.

"How did you know?" he asked, incredulous.

Silly boy.

Our One Month Anniversary arrived and I fully expected that we would spend some time together to celebrate (what is it with us women and stupid dates, anyway?) I gave him a cheesy construction paper card I had made in honor of the momentous occasion. "Cool, thanks!" he said, "I'm going to go hang out with the guys today, OK babe? You and I can hang out when we get back."

Ummm...

What could I say? I tried not to look too disappointed as I reluctantly agreed. I mean, I didn't want to force him into anything.

So, dejected, I went home and started stewing. Hang out with the guys?! On our One Month Anniversary?! How could he?! (I know, that sounds so unbelievably petty right now.)

This continued for most of the day, and the later it got, the more ticked I was. He FINALLY knocked on my door at around 9:30, I think, and excitedly asked if I'd like to go for a drive. Mind you, our curfew was at 11pm, sharp. I said yes, but I was still a little put-out that he had only saved an hour or so for ME...on our One Month Anniversary.

So off we went. We drove...and drove...and drove. I remember getting more and more agitated as it got closer and closer to curfew. Did he not know what time it was? We were going to be late for curfew...and who know what would happen then! I mean, we already had a reputation from the whole "4:31 Club" affair.

Finally he pulled over on a completely deserted road in the middle of nowhere, parked the car, and excitedly came around to open my door.

"We're getting out here?" I said.

"Yeah, I want to show you something!"

I may or may not have had a moment of panic just then wondering if I had inadvertently fallen in love with some sort of psychopath.

He grabbed my hand and dragged me through some trees and brush until we arrived, breathless, on a sandy beach.

It was beautiful. We were, in fact, on a secluded beach in Perdido Key and across the bay there were hundreds of lights reflecting on the still water. It was perfectly quiet and we were the only souls around.

"This is one of my favorite spots," he said.

I could see why.

What happened next is still a little bit of a mystery...mostly because it was so dark. I looked over at Kevin, and it appeared to me that he was preparing to pick me up and, I assumed, toss me in the water. So, I, of course, began protesting and tried to turn and run.

He caught my hand, and it was then that I realized he was kneeling in front of me. And I could see, with the little light there was, that he had something in his hand that was reflecting the lights from the bay.

"Jenny, will you marry me?"

I screamed. And then I said yes. And then we laughed and hugged and kissed, and tried to get the ring on my finger in the dark without dropping it in the sand.

It was quite late by this point, so we hurried back to the car, where I got my first good look at the beautiful ring he had SPENT THE WHOLE DAY SHOPPING FOR with the guys.

Yeah. I felt pretty awful. And I told him so. And, of course, he thought nothing of it because that's just how wonderful he is.

He had picked out a round, half-carat solitaire set in white gold, with the date 1-18-99 engraved inside...our One Month Anniversary.

to be continued...

a love story {part 5}

It was time for Kevin to meet the parents.

At some point late in the semester, he had concocted a plan to get out to Idaho for Christmas. It involved tagging along with a friend from Pensacola to Dallas, a short flight from Dallas to Salt Lake City, and a bus ride from Salt Lake City to Idaho Falls, where I was to pick him up and drive him three hours to my hometown (yes, my parents live in the middle of nowhere).

I figured if he was willing to go through this travel gauntlet, he must really like me.

Now, I feel I must explain something. His intention for making the trip was actually to ask my father if he could marry me, which sounds a little frightening considering the fact that we had been dating all of a few days. But we had agreed that we did not want to date one another, in the traditional, casual sense, that is. (We did, of course, want to go on dates.) We had agreed that a courtship was probably a better option...kind of an all or nothing approach. So he wanted to meet my father from the beginning to obtain his permission to not only date me, but marry me....eventually. He was making his intentions very clear.

Very Jane Austen-ish. Love it.

So anyway. There I was, sitting at the greyhound bus stop in Idaho Falls, with three of my very good friends who had agreed to come with me to pick up this guy I had somehow snagged in Florida. At long last his bus pulled in, and there he was, in my state, just 3 hours from my house. It was fairly surreal, actually. Up to this point I had two separate lives and they were about to collide.

I have a picture someone took of me as he walked up, but I just cannot post it because I look like I'm in excruciating pain because of the ridiculously cheesy grin on my face...It's the worst picture of me. Ever.

Miraculously we made it home through a nasty snowstorm. Probably because I made one of my friends drive home so I could snuggle with my hunky boyfriend. Nice friend, I am.

(OMG is that a scrunchie?! That is sooo 1990s...)

After we dropped everyone off, we headed home. The introductions went off without a hitch, and he didn't turn around and run out the door. Success!

Now, I must say that I love my family, dearly. But we all know that each family has their own...um...peculiarities, which remain hidden until that fateful time when an outsider wants to join it. That's probably why meeting the family is such a big step...and why there are so many romantic comedies about it.

He fit in perfectly. He's got a knack for adaptation, let me tell you...

My brothers even liked him.

He hadn't brought a winter hat with him, so I think my mom pulled out this one for him to wear on his various outdoor excursions into the Idaho wilderness. I was slightly mortified.

(And yes, he's cooking for the family...)

He wore it with pride the whole trip. Even when we went snowboarding together.

What a guy.

He got "the talk" out of the way fairly quickly. He and my dad locked themselves in the office and didn't come out for hours. Meanwhile, I was dying a thousand deaths. Turns out, they got the business settled within the first 20 minutes, and then just sat there chatting.

My dad said yes, by the way.

Soon after, my parents pulled out the nice China, made a lovely dinner, and read a beautiful blessing they had written to us by candlelight. We had them read it at our wedding.

Did I mention that I love my family?

I do.

To be continued...

a love story {part 4}

4:31 pm December 18, 1998 finally arrived.

Someone took a picture of Kevin walking to his car after class to pick me up.

I'm sure I looked about the same.

The truth is although I was really excited, I was a little nervous, too. This was actually my first real date. Ever. I had no idea where he was taking me, and we were going from being good friends to dating. Actually, any anxiety probably stemmed more from wondering if I was going to get my first kiss...

He picked me up at my dorm not long after class got out. He gave me a single red rose as he walked me to the car and opened my door for me (he's always been good at that, being a sweet Southern boy at heart). I remember being breathless with anticipation.

We drove along the Gulf for about 30 minutes to Orange Beach, Alabama. I don't remember much about our conversation, except that it flowed easily. Everything was just the same as it had been...only better. We could relax and enjoy one another's company. I can't tell you what a relief it was...like taking a deep breath after you've been underwater too long.

He took me to dinner at a romantic oceanfront restaurant called The Outrigger. The entire wall we were sitting by was made of glass and had ocean waves crashing against it throughout our meal. It was amazing. In typical Jen fashion, I can only remember what I had for dessert...a decadent almond cheesecake.

No, not the whole thing.

And he drank coffee for dessert, which I disliked at the time. This was the beginning of the end of disliking coffee for me, because my husband is a Coffee Gourmet.

{I don't know if I've ever told you this Love, but thanks for introducing me to coffee.}

After dinner, as we drove back towards Pensacola, he took my hand and held it. I won't try to describe the effect this had on me, because, honestly, there are no words for it. I will say this, though: In a culture that often rushes headlong into physical intimacy at the first opportunity, there's something to be said about the power of a little restraint and self-control.

And no, he didn't kiss me...not yet.

He pulled over at a beach, and we took a walk along the Gulf together. At one point we stopped and sat down, he draped his arms around my neck and he pulled me back against his chest. And we sat there listening to the sound of the Ocean...for minutes...hours...I don't really know.

I found out later, that he had asked his friend Dave (who is an amazing musician) to meet us at the beach to sing me a song Kevin had written for me. But Dave was waiting for us at a different beach (this was before cell phones and texting were commonplace. Gosh, that makes me feel old.)

And then he took me home.

As soon as we pulled up to the dorms, a bunch of friends who, I guess, had just been waiting for us to get back jumped in the backseat...

And that...was our first date.

To be continued...