on life, and settling in.

it's the most interesting feeling, having your own place.
if i must be honest, i love it.
it's fun. the details. the mundane. the every day.
they're our towels.

it's our kitchen sink.
our laundry to do.
(two loads desperately need to be done right now.)
our coffee maker that brewed fresh, hot, yummy coffee this morning.
our front porch.
(it could use a rocking chair or love seat of some kind...maybe craigslist will let something out of the woodwork again. hah.)

our couch.

our entertainment center that we put hard work and concentration and teamwork into, one night from 10:30pm to 2:30am.
our budget to sketch out and write up.
our rent to be paid (and what a great deal do we have!! so blessed.).
our dresser.

our mirrors and awesome leather chair that i found while rummaging with lady friends back in wisconsin. :)

our coffee mugs. (great gifts from awesome friends, used all the time, if you would believe that. ;))

our milk glass bud vase from my grammy who passed on in june 2011.

our at-home date nights late on sunday nights with a movie and caesar salad kit from wally's.
(p.s. i love you is one of those films that i watch 2 or 3 times a year and it gives me a whole new appreciation for life and loved ones. just because. these humans are so precious to me.)

friday and saturday night, while justin worked, i had rachel over for one night, and anna for the other night.

we talked and talked and watched a movie before sleep. the next morning, i made them coffee in my kitchen. poured them coffee into my collected (or gift-given) mugs. 
it's pretty fantastic to be able to have sisters over for a night of quality time and coffee in the morning.
i like it a lot. ;)

after-dinner walks out here in southern illinois are amazing.
no doubt about it.
i used to live in a small town, about 10k. i could see sunsets, but not like this. 
friday night i think it was, justin and i took a walk alone on the country road. all the way up to the stop sign like we always did over the past almost-2-years. we stopped and stared at the sunset. hugged and talked about how we couldn't remember the last time we'd done this together. the past how many months were too busy to randomly take a walk.
i believe after-dinner walks are some of the best things to have in your life. it's pondering time, whether you have good, lovely things to think and talk about, or hard, frustrating things.

and i can't believe,  that I'm your man,
and i get to kiss you baby just because i can.
whatever comes our way, ah we'll see it through...
[michael buble]

all in all, we're loving the challenge and joy that is marriage.
i'm just so glad we're in this crazy life journey together.
♥

chocolate and whipped cream = awesomeness.

so, the past few days i've been wanting french silk pie like nothing else.
i was thinking about it one day, and suddenly i couldn't stop thinking about it.
one of my favorite uncles brings french silk pie from baker's square to every christmas and easter; that's how it's become my favorite, and even been introduced into my life.
ah.
:)
before today, i had never gotten around to making it.
but this afternoon . . . mhmmm, i decided; after i cooked up the sweet/buttery carrots and had a pesto-chicken-lettuce wrap for dinner [with dad, anna, caleb and rach; along with some epic, hilarious conversation about the future] . . .

i made this crust from betty crocker:

for pastry:

1 cup Gold Medal® all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon shortening / or butter

2 to 3 tablespoons cold water

i made the filling from this recipe, by jenna at eat, live, run but a side note –i doubled it, because she makes it halfway full…i prefer full pies:

for filling:

2 oz unsweetened chocolate

1 stick butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

my favorite part of making this? 

eh....making the crust dough flat and spread out by my floury hands was really fun because i couldn't for the life of me find our rolling pin. :P 

and....the final stage of whipping the filling. oh my, that part is beautiful to watch. :) 

rach insisted on taking pictures of me . . . the person so psyched to make the dessert she was telling everyone about as something that 'you know where that goes...' because of the calories. lol.

though...i may have whipped the whipping cream just a wee bit past the perfection mark....

i have a feeling it'll taste fine. ;) juuuust fine. :) :)

see? good but not perfect. :)

who else loves french silk pie?

if it's not in your top favorite desserts, what is your list made up of??

reminiscing summer 2011.

i'm way back in august 2011 now, backing up pictures.
it reminds me that i didn't get to take pictures at the josh groban concert. :(

sad day. i had forgotten.

oh, the height issue i have.
i hate heights. especially with concrete.

wow. life was so different how many months ago.
it's all so good though. :)

and just a few days later, august 12...up north.

coffee and milk.

i love that film, the shop around the corner.
still have yet to see its later counterpart, you've got mail.

dang. living on the river was awesome for that half of a week.

i try to be funny.

bonfires at sunset time by the river = gorgeous.

cave point. ♥ that place.

ah, up north. peninsulas are exciting places. especially in the off-season, when all the people you see are shop people and grandparent-aged people who live up there.
which is fine with me.
it's gorgeous up there, and it helps that the places aren't clogged with tourists when we go, so we can enjoy it more.

yay for summery van reflection portraits. hah.

the book that took me forever to read.

that was a fun night. the weather couldn't be better; our family walked up and down the water as the sun set....
it was awesome. :)

♥

there's something about being by the water. golly.

♥ sisters.

at a coffee shop named, simply, drink coffee.

a long bike ride back to the campgrounds with the family....

august 30...getting near the end. little jillian. wow, her face. :)

waiting for everyone else to be ready to get out of there.
that ledge is where a daddy long leg met me. *shudder*

ohhhh man, we're too fun.
it's great sharing a bed with rach. super mucho fun to tent with the brothers while the rest of the family camps in the trailer.
we read till we're tired, we laugh and talk and fall asleep to the sound of the outdoors. sometimes, if it's not overcast, we leave the top tarp piece open so just a thin screen separates us from the wide open sky. you wake up to weird bugs sitting on the screen and the early morning sun shining in the nearest wall.
it's...amazing.
:)
well, that's all the mountain i'll post for summer '11 right now. hah.