Coming back...coffee punch made me write

Well friends, it's been a long time since I've written, and wouldn't you know that coffee punch is what finally dragged me out of my non-writing slump.

Before I share the recipe with you, let me catch you up on the past couple of months in our lives. Maybe someday I'll be brave enough to actually write something meaningful about all of these things. For now, I'll share a teeny tiny glimpse into where I've been. And then I'll share a recipe that you will want to make tonight.

In May I found out I was pregnant...we were shocked, but so thrilled. At my 8 week appointment we learned that our baby no longer had a heartbeat. This was devastating. My third miscarriage. It is a terrible thing to lose a baby. A lonely, heart-wrenching, horrible loss to experience. My mom flew out to be with me during the worst of it, and I was so glad to have her here. A week later my dad came, and we enjoyed a week of touristy fun around Colorado Springs. Sometime during that week our sweet boy turned 1. I cannot believe it has been a year since Truett joined our family. And almost a year since we walked through his heart surgery. Apart from a fading scar, you'd never guess that our happy, silly, active little boy was ever sick. God is so good. We celebrated with a splash party. It was a perfect day. Last week, our beautiful Colorado mountains caught on fire. On Tuesday the fire crept down into our city, and so many families lost their homes. We've had friends evacuated and friends lose everything. We had a family staying with us for a few days. It was so hard to wait and watch as over 300 homes burned to the ground. I cannot imagine what the next days and weeks will hold for the families who've lost so much. It's been a difficult week for our little city. I am so glad to serve a God who is very much in control, even when things around us seem to be falling apart.

Which brings me to today. Strangely, on Tuesday night as so many were fleeing their homes, I was hosting a baby shower for a dear friend. If I'm honest, it seems a little trivial to share a recipe for coffee punch in light of all that's happened in our lives recently. But, this is where I'm starting. I just don't have the energy to write much more on real life stuff. I hope you understand.

I adapted a few recipes I had, and this is what I came up with. It is delicious and was a huge hit...hence the sharing. It's worth it, trust me.

Coffee Punch

4 cups of strong (cannot emphasize the 'strong' part enough!) coffee...I used my French Press and let it steep for several extra minutes
10 teaspoons of Swiss Mocha
1/2 pint of original creamer
1/2 pint of flavored creamer (I used Coffeemate Italian Sweet Creme)
1 quart of whole milk
2 teaspoons of vanilla

1. While the coffee is still hot, mix it together with the Swiss Mocha
2. Combine coffee mixture with rest of ingredients, mix well, and freeze
3. Thaw to a slush and enjoy

*If you prefer a sweeter taste, you could add 1/2 cup of sugar in with the coffee and Swiss Mocha.
**I doubled this recipe for the shower.

It's good to finally be back. Hopefully you'll hear from me again soon...happy weekend to you!

This weekend

Brett's been away this weekend at a men's retreat for our church. The kids and I have had a bit of a rough time alone. Both of them got sick mid-week and their illnesses have been lingering much too long for my liking. I never like being apart from Brett. This weekend I have been especially thankful that I'm not a single mom or a mom with a husband that travels. I have a few friends who are military wives, and I have an entirely new appreciation for the sacrifice made by our military families. When the kids are healthy, we really miss Brett when he's gone. When the kids are sick, it is awful to be alone.

The bad things about the weekend: lots of middle-of-the-night wake-ups, dreaded nebulizer treatments for Truett, cancelled movie-night with a friend, and missing Brett.

The good things about this weekend: enjoying some moments of quiet while the kids play together, snuggles, movies at home with the kids, and ice-cream.

And to top off our weekend-of-not-so-much-fun...this is what we woke up to this morning! SNOW! All over the pretty pink buds on the peach trees and the rest of spring's early blooms. Colorado weather is such a tease...yesterday we were wearing t-shirts!
I still have some catching up to do on the blog...maybe this week I'll get around to posting about some recent projects and fun things we've been up to. Happy Sunday! {It's a very HAPPY SUNDAY for us...Brett comes home in just a couple of hours!}

Happy Easter!

We had a lovely time celebrating the resurrection of Jesus this weekend. I'm hoping to post a more detailed account later in the week. For now, here's my two gems all ready for church. Brett and I both sang in the choir, so we left the house at 6:50 am. It was an Easter gift to capture such a sweet picture of these two so early in the morning. We enjoyed a beautiful day with friends and family. I was thankful to share this day {and every day!} with Maren, Truett and Brett. They are the most amazing gifts...after a risen Savior, of course!

Checking in

I wanted to pop in to say that I haven't forgotten about my little blog! We've just had a very busy month with things going on that have kept me away from the computer. I've got several fun things to share and some great pictures to post, but for now, Truett will have to hold you over.

He's getting so big...standing up all the time, waving, clapping and playing other 'baby games'. He and Maren are becoming fast friends and Brett and I realize each day how blessed we are to call Maren and Truett our children. God is so good!
We've got company coming to visit from Michigan this week, so I'll likely not get around to another post for a week or so. I hope you're enjoying your spring!

Taking one a day

This is the month...I'm doing it!
Find out more here.

Happy March!

Leap

With it being February 29, a day that only comes around once every 4 years, I figured I should document a little something.
This is what my days are like lately...hanging out with these two, and not a whole lot else. {Hence the more infrequent blogging.} I know these days with both of them home with me all-day-every-day are numbered, so I'm soaking them up. I don't even want to think how much will change before we see this date again.

Truett at eight months

I am not feeling ready for my baby to not be a baby anymore. Try as I may to prevent the inevitable...it's happening right before my eyes. Truett is growing up.

Our little boy makes friends everywhere he goes. He is so smiley and content. He's never once cried when I've dropped him off in a nursery.

Truett's two bottom teeth have arrived. We've transitioned to more table foods recently. Avocado, grapes, and turkey are early favorites. Thankfully, he's not a picky eater. Although he doesn't like bananas...what kid doesn't like bananas?

Maren is thrilled with Truett's increasing levels of interaction with us. He loves to play peak-a-boo, so-big and other mimicking games. He's started to wave and 'talk' more, which has also been fun.

We're so thankful for our little man and the joy he brings to our family. It is a gift to be called to parent him!