4th of July From Two Continents
This was our 4th of July last year; eating horse steak and mashed potatoes on our window in Mongolia. Kim was pregnant and we were packing up to surprise our family and friends with an early return.
This was our 4th of July this year; fireworks in (cloudy) Seattle, surrounded by good friends. Kim is pregnant again - now officially in the third trimester!
It’s amazing how much things can change in only a year. We’re thankful for God’s goodness and faithfulness, and for the people He has put around us. We’ve been blessed by great family, friends, and communities in California, Mongolia, and now Seattle. If you’re in one of those places and one of those people, thank you.
Here’s our little girl at 21 weeks. She’s already singing or talking.
Easter & New Life
Happy (almost) Easter everyone!
Easter is the time we celebrate life - as Christians it’s the time we celebrate the gift of eternal life through Jesus’ victory over satan, sin, and death. It is when we celebrate the exchange of life for death and freedom for sin. It’s fitting then that we make this announcement at Easter time.
We’re twelve and a half weeks pregnant! As many of you know, when we came home from Mongolia last July we were pregnant, but unfortunately the pregnancy ended shortly after we arrived. We’re thankful that God is faithful and answered prayer and gave us another baby. We got to hear the heart beat this week and know that it is due around October first.
As things progress we’ll post pictures and updates for you.
Around us, Kim’s brother also just had his second, a girl. And, in my department of 12 guys at work, there are 5 pregnant couples. There’s a lot of life to be thankful for celebrated this Easter.
Thank you for your love, support, and prayers and we hope you’ll celebrate this new life with us.
Love,
Nick, Kim, Baby B, (and Clive, the one sitting very still and wearing the ridiculous ears)
If you like to cook, please see below. :)
One of the greatest things about my husband, is the amount of ideas he generates. I mean, it is nonstop. The best part is that I get to help execute many of them.
His new one: Share recipes on my blog.
So alas, another idea conquered. My hope is to post one recipe and photo of the finished product per week. Today, I am giving you bagels (thanks Marina for the recipe!) One fantastic trait of bagels is their versatility. Toast or broil with some added seasonings to your hearts content. We have put cinnamon and sugar on them, used them for turkey sandwiches with a little mayo & mustard, and also toasted with garlic oil to eat with pasta. So, without further ado, here is your recipe for this week:
Homemade BagelsIngredients:
- 1 1/2 C warm water
- 2-3 T active dry yeast
- 2 T sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 4 C flour
- 1 T oil
Process:
- Put warm water and yeast in a large bowl- allow to sit 5 minutes or until frothy.
- Mix the rest of the ingredients into the bowl until soft and well kneaded. The dough should be smooth and soft- sometimes you have to knead a while.
- Let rise until doubled~ approx 1 hour.
- Punch dough down and form bagels. Roll them into balls and using your forefinger, poke and twirl an opening in the center of the bagel. Don’t make the bagels super large because they will rise again.
- Dust the bottom of the bagels and let them rise another 30-45 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Boil another large pot of water- if you want to make your bagels slightly more sweet, add about 1/3 c of syrup or brown sugar.
- Boil the bagels for 45 seconds on each side.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown and slightly crispy.
(via kimbogardusphotography)
Another great pic from my wife.
(via kimbogardusphotography)
This is the lake a few blocks from our house and our friends Jonathan and Marielle from Mongolia (via Portland & France).
