Grace

“I do not at all understand the mystery of grace -

only that it meets us where we are, but does not leave us where it found us.”

-Anne Lamott

Cleaning tip...

So I have found a great new way to clean the inside of the microwave. I had heard of the steam trick for cleaning the microwave- but I was dubious ;) Tried it at work this week and it worked amazingly well (and trust me - that was one DIRTY microwave!!!)

So here's what you do:

Fill a microwave safe bowl with 2-4 cups of water (small microwaves will be ok with 2 cups but larger ones would benefit from 4 cups.) If you have lemons in the house, add a half of lemon to the water- this is a great use for lemons that are getting old! Microwave on high until water boils (depending on your microwave this could be anywhere from 3-6 mins.) Leave door shut and let sit for 5 mins. Discard water and lemon.

The steam will loosen dirt on the inside of the microwave and the mess will wipe off with little effort. This will also loosen any spills on the glass tray- but I usually place the glass plate in the dishwasher whenever I have a spill- so that is generally not as much of an issue.

Happy Microwaving!

Little Ava is 2 months old!

To my little Ava...

Tomorrow you are two months old! You are changing everyday and I hate that I miss seeing all your new tricks! Know that even though we don't see you all the time - we love you very much and think that you are beautiful, amazing and perfect!

Love- Aunt Becki, Uncle Mitch & Jake Dog

Happy Fall...

Today is the first day of fall and despite the fact it going to be nearly 90 degrees here I am very excited! Since I no longer spend my summers at the beach and traveling (yay for the real world, right!) I have declared a new favorite season - fall! I love the weather, the ever-changing brilliant colors outside and the warmth and coziness that comes from yummy fall inspired cooking! I was hesitant in admitting that fall is my new favorite season because one little thought constantly sits in the back of my brain throughout fall - Winter is coming. Winter in Ohio is dreadful, not because we have massive amounts of snow or anything like that, in fact that would be better. Toni Morrison really says it best,

"Winter in Ohio was especially rough if you had an appetite for color."

(from 'Beloved' - a must read if you haven't already!) Winter in Ohio is just month after month of grey overcast sky - so depressing. Yes, winter brings Christmas and cherished time with family and friends and the occasional snow day off from work, but mostly it's just cold and grey. But nature is cyclical and spring always arrives offering an exhilarating sense of new life and color to our world.


So for now...here's to crisp fall days, crunchy leaves underfoot, and a warm mug of cider!

Welcome...

Welcome to my blog! I realized today that I am far too opinionated to not be sharing my thoughts with the world. And just like that...a blog was born!