Mochi Fest

Whenever our relatives come visit from Maui, they bring mochi and manju from Homemade Bakery. Al-la-la it is so delicious. WELL, Jordan is visiting and neglected to bring it! So, on a slow Saturday morning I got the idea of trying to copy our favorite bakery with these weird delicacies. I have made various mochi lots, but never filled with red bean paste - this was my goal for today.

The internet is an awesome place - I had ideas, but could not find how to do them anywhere. After reading many blogs, and tried making the soft mochi with red bean paste inside. However, I didn't want to do it the long-suffering old-fashioned way. SO, I did them in a mini muffin pan. This is how it looked right out of pan...
After dusting with potato starch....NEXT, I added a few eggs to batter, and placed them in a regular size muffin pan. These are Joseph's favorite, although he does not understand why in the world I would put food coloring in them.
Since I was on a roll, I thought, Hmm...I wonder what the difference between manju and mochi is - manju is wheat flour and mochi sweet rice flour. I did it! They actually look pretty close to Homemade Bakery too. We DID determine that the Canola oil I used had too much flavor in it - causing the manju to "taste like my mom's fried Talapia" ( which we figured out was the oil taste)
Last but not least I tried the pan kind, layering the red bean paste in it - which was very difficult to spread on warm layers. I have to improve on this one somehow. It is VERY delicious, but tough to handle. This is before the dusting - post-dusting they are beautiful but too soft.
I may have to do it the old fashioned way, but who ever has a whole day for this kind of thing?

Dances With Wolves/Singing With Whales

I cannot help but think how beautiful it is that Jordan sings with whales...I mean, WITH whales - IN the water with them. Super cool.

Dejavu

A friend of mine went through a divorce 3 years ago. Thankfully, they had no children. They parted ways because he had an affair, left her for another woman, and told her his new woman is way better than she is.

For the last 3 years, her ex has repeatedly attacked her, threatened her, told her how great his life is without her, etc.

At times, he wanted to meet with her over coffee, just to talk. He always told her that he is sorry for hurting her, but that he is a stronger person for it. He kept repeating to her some mumble jumbo that he would do it all over again. (My friend did not feel any need to meet for coffee.) THIS struck a chord with me for sure - if he says he wouldn't change the way his life went, wouldn't change a thing: then she needs to stay far away from him.

The fighting over property has been mild, yet constant. As recent as 3 months ago, he threatened to call the police on her for something that he lost in his moving around.

WELL, this week she got a wedding invitation from him! Really?

We had a long talk. Bottom line is that she is happy he has found a new family - but it will be without her in his life. She is free from wanting him back - he left her, and now that he is getting married my friend feels a certain freedom. She is more fully released from having to deal with him...in good or bad. This is a finality for her to move on and be healed.

Boundaries are OK and are healthy. Sometimes you have to move on in life without people who were a part of your life, however big or small.

There is such thing as Necessary Endings.

Super eery how I can relate to her story....NOT with my husband though. He has always been faithful.

God bless her. She has a brand new start in life and she is going to be great.

SNOWBQ

I am on a roll. One liners. YES. I coined a new term I have NEVER heard before:

SNOWBQ

- this is a barbecue in the snow. Yes. We had one tonight.

Every Friday Night

Yes oh yes - I am going to go every Friday night to this....well, at least every Friday night in February, March, April and May :)

Click to enlarge pic:

This Cannot Be!

Our last of five children, my tom boy - Julianne Grace, (the short asian-ish-looking one) is becoming a beautiful young lady! (OK OK she IS sticking her tongue out - I see that). Daddy Joseph is not handling it well - AT ALL. She had a party (high school!) to go to - the theme was to wear black and white. Daddy was HORRIFIED when she did not wear her BLACK AND WHITE BASKETBALL JERSEY!!! I mean, really, REALLY, she HAD a perfect black and white to wear!

But no, she got this adorable black and white outfit out. Oh man oh man...we are not ready for this. Brother Jaron and his "friend" Andrea said "SHE LOOKS LIKE KIM KARDASHIAN!" THIS put Daddy Joseph OVER the edge again - he exclaimed "I don't know WHY she didn't just wear her cool black and white jersey!!!!!"

I must say - at 15, she has the SWEETEST heart and most precious love and gratitude for life. Almighty, most sovereign God, please keep her close to your heart.

Yup

New family activity on the horizon. We have a trip planned when Jordan will be home from Maui. We need to rub his face in some snow to remind him of his roots.

Paleo Diet

Julianne and her friend, who does Crossfit, were going to do the Paleo Diet, which is also nicknamed the Cave Man Diet. It is an eating challenge to eat as the cave men ate.

They were excited to do this for the health benefits, since they both workout a lot.

They started Monday.

Monday - they caved in.

Tuesday - they caved in.

Julianne ate Panda Express and Kaley are Taco Time. Julianne said "Hey! There were Asian cave men too!"

I renamed it "Man you Caved" diet.

Moved to Tears at the Piano

This song, along with beautiful, loving voices raising praise to God moved me to tears as I played piano this first day of 2012.

Words by Ho­ra­ti­us Bo­nar, 1842. Bo­nar wrote these words while su­per­in­tend­ent of the Sun­day school at the Church of St. James, Leith. It was one of the first hymns he wrote, and the on­ly one he com­posed spe­ci­fic­al­ly for his Sun­day school stu­dents. It was sung for the first time on New Year’s Day, 1843. Bo­nar pub­lished it in his Songs for the Wil­der­ness the fol­low­ing year.
A few more years shall roll,
A few more seasons come,
And we shall be with those that rest
Asleep within the tomb;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that great day.

Refrain

O wash me in Thy precious blood,
And take my sins away.

A few more suns shall set
O’er these dark hills of time,
And we shall be where suns are not
A far serener clime:
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that blest day.

Refrain

A few more storms shall beat
On this wild rocky shore,
And we shall be where tempests cease,
And surges swell no more;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that calm day.

Refrain

A few more struggles here,
A few more partings o’er,
A few more toils, a few more tears,
And we shall weep no more:
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that bright day.

Refrain

A few more Sabbaths here
Shall cheer us on our way,
And we shall reach the endless rest,
Th’eternal Sabbath day;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that sweet day.

Refrain

’Tis but a little while,
And He shall come again
Who died that we might live, who lives
That we with Him may reign;
Then, O my Lord, prepare
My soul for that glad day.

Refrain

(If interested in hearing the tune in Midi, my leastfavoriteformofmusicbutgivesyoutheidea - you can go to: http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/f/e/fewmorey.htm)