Grateful Prayer | Thankful Heart

catching up with family

By Lorraine

Spring days ~ busy days!
April was filled with lots a family activities and get together’s!

 The son of our cousin, Caroline, was married in a lovely wedding.
Caroline, with her family including the newlyweds, Dan & Abbey 
(photo taken from facebook. Tyler Boye Photography)

As is so popular now, they had a photo booth situated in an obscure corner. All I can say is that my sister, John and I got some of the funniest pics ever!  So silly, that Carol made me promise never to share on any social media! Just imagine, John in the center with a crazy hat and over-sized glasses with basically the same expression in every photo and my sister and I making every goofy face we could possibly think of. Oh, my! Each time I look at the photos, I crack up all over again!
(photo taken from Stephanie’s facebook page)
Then there was a christening for our cousin Karen’s grandson, baby Mark.
 Together again with Carol, her daughter, Christine, John and I. Later noticed the framed photo on Karen’s mantle. It is of our daughter, Erin when she was just three year old performing flower girl responsibilities in Karen’s wedding. Such sweet memories!
 There were random, every day moments too.  I caught this scene of, Erin, Jared and Abbey studying in the family room.  Erin is completing her master’s degree, Jared is a high school Junior and Abbey is studying digital animation.

Noah and I went to breakfast one morning and later we did some cooking together.

I even got a pic from Erin as she drove through center city the other day and saw the old Divine Lorraine Hotel. 

 We had a trip to The Pop Shoppe with the kids, celebrated our dear friend’s 91st birthday during Bible study and peeked in as the kids helped Aunt Abbey create a 5-little monkeys video for a class assignment.
Noah went to work with PopPop and learned about nuclear engineering. 
Jared was inducted into his schools Technology Society.
pics with his proud mom and PopPop
Each day that passes, each achievement obtained, each celebration shared, each difficulty acknowledged, each experience learned, each encouraging smile, each laughter and giggle, each conversation, each hug and embrace are all gifts.
“We pray for the big things and forget to give thanks for the ordinary,
small (and yet really not small) gifts.” 
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Gratitude paints little smiley faces on everything it touches.” 
Richelle E. Goodrich
Smile Anyway: Quotes, Verse, & Grumblings for Every Day of the Year

Family Moments

By Lorraine

Jill came down from upstate New York to participate in The Love Run Philadelphia Half Marathon with her twin sister and a good friend, Megan.
in front of the Philadelphia Art Museum

 Jamie and Jill before the run on a brisk morning
Finished!
 The boys stayed at Jamie’s house and the girls stayed at my house. After making the bunny cake, they dyed Easter Eggs…
 experimented with the colors…
and techniques…
 admired their creations…
 then promptly decided to eat their masterpieces!
 someone liked them…
 someone didn’t
I went to my computer for a time while the girls played all about the house.  I heard them scampering in and out of the garage, upstairs and down. They yelled to me they were playing dress-up.  This is what I found! Quite an able crew, don’t you think!
 Then popcorn and a movie before bed
after all that baking and cleaning it’s hard for wee ones to stay awake
 Earlier this month, our oldest grandson was inducted into the Latin Honor Society. After the ceremony, we had a fun dinner at a nearby restaurant.
{ah, how I love this young man}

Make-Ahead Breakfast Burritos

By Lorraine

I wanted to send my daughter and family and their sweet friends off with a hearty breakfast before their long drive home but I didn’t want to waste moments in the kitchen that could be spent enjoying their visit. A make-ahead breakfast helped out.

Jill, Brad and kids along with their good friends and their three sons drove here from upstate New York, spent the night, then flew to Florida for their dream vacation at Disney. After their return flight, they all stayed over again. Because they are not able to get (real) Philly cheese steaks and pizza at home, their request was to get take-out for dinner from our favorite restaurant. It took a trek through eight-inches of fresh snow and freezing temperatures to pick up three pizza’s and ten cheese steaks to fill up the twenty-four people gathered together.
Breakfast the next morning included Breakfast Burritos, Blueberry Boy Bait cake and Baked Oatmeal. 
The Breakfast Burritos, made the day before, were stacked in a dish, covered with plastic wrap and placed in the refrigerator.  At serving time, I removed the plastic wrap and warmed them in the microwave at 60% power until heated through.

Leftover burritos were wrapped individually and placed in the freezer. Directions below for reheating instructions.

Make-Ahead Breakfast Burritos
source: Taste of Home

PRINT RECIPE

Ingredients
 
1 pound Jimmy Dean® Premium Pork Sausage Roll
1-1/2 cups frozen cubed hash brown potatoes
1/4 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced green or red pepper
4 eggs, lightly beaten
12 flour tortillas (8 inches), warmed
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Picante sauce or salsa (optional)
sour cream (optional)

Directions
In a large skillet, cook sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add the potatoes, onion and pepper; cook and stir for 6-8 minutes or until tender. Add eggs; cook and stir until set.

Spoon filling off center on each tortilla. Sprinkle with cheese. Fold sides and ends over filling and roll up. Serve with picante sauce or salsa and sour cream, if desired.

To freeze and reheat burritos: Wrap each burrito in waxed paper and foil. Freeze for up to 1 month. To use, remove foil and waxed paper. Place one burrito on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave on high for 2 to 2-1/4 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165°, turning burrito over once. Let stand for 20 seconds.
Yield: 12 burritos.

Blueberry Boy Bait  is a yummy cake any time and it also freezes well. I baked one the day before and refrigerated. Here is the link for the Blueberry Boy Bait recipe.
I didn’t make the Baked Oatmeal ahead but did gather the ingredients together for quicker preparation in the morning.  Here is the link for the Baked Oatmeal recipe. 
After a long drive, a week of non-stop vacation, running and playing with cousins, the kids spent some less physical time on their devices as the grown-ups chatted. No doubt this generation is connected, comfortable and capable using technology! 
After breakfast, they were off on the last leg of their journey.  They arrived home safe and sound but not quite ready for…

i am chloe

By Lorraine

can you guess i am
2
by
my antics
my expressions
my spontaneity
my elfish behavior

We went to our daughter’s house Saturday morning to watch the kids while she ran in the Philadelphia 5k Rocky Balboa race
chloe was perfectly 2-years-old
she pulled on an over-sized skirt  
plucked a princess crown on her noggin
and went about the business of being 2
I had the joy of capturing some of her magical moments
the princess and her pop-pop
being sweet
being coy
letting PopPop kiss her cheek
(oh, who can resist those soft cheeks)
being resolute in a stare-down
being vocal about a sibling offence 
being aggrieved
 raider has a special attachment to chloe
she shares her food with him
but only if she wants  
 each child… so unique… overflowing with personality and individual talents 
jammie clad… climbing cherub… crafty keri… chocolate faced… chapped lips…
photobomer…chillin’ sisters… quiet play…
hanging out at their house is truly delightful 
and their mom (with  a friend) braved the chilly morning temps to run a race.  she did it in 9 min 7 sec miles with a 28:22 finish.
what . a . champ!

Grandmom Elsie’s Graham Cracker Pie

By Lorraine

Foods from childhood can evoke wonderful memories not just because we love the taste but also because it is associated with special people or events.  Do you have a favorite dessert from your childhood?

My husband remembers his grandmom Elsie making Graham Cracker Pie for nearly every backyard cookout.  It is really a humble pie of creamy vanilla pudding poured into a pre-baked graham cracker crust.  Often times the pie is topped with meringue so the unused egg whites aren’t wasted. Grandmon preferred lightly sweetened whipped cream sprinkled with additional graham cracker crumbs.
Elsie Rebekah 
I imagine Grandmom Elsie baked lots of pies in her day as she and her husband raised eight children.
John (on right with baby on his shoulders), his brother on left with Grandmom Elsie and Grandpop.
Here she is holding my twin babies (her great-grandchildren) as she told me of her own twin sons born many years prior.
Grandmom Elsie’s
Graham Cracker Pie
GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST
1 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs 
1/4 cup sugar 
1/3 cup butter, melted
In a bowl, mix crumbs, sugar and butter together.  If desired, reserve 2 to 3 tablespoons crumb mixture for topping. Using the back of a fork or the bottom of a measuring cup, press remaining mixture firmly and evenly against the bottom and side of pie pan. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes. Cool

VANILLA CREAM FILLING 
2/3 cup sugar 
1/4 cup cornstarch 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
3 cups milk 
4 egg yolks, slightly beaten 
2 tablespoons butter, softened 
1 tablespoon +1 teaspoon vanilla
whipped cream for topping finished pie
Stir together, sugar, cornstarch and salt in sauce pan. Blend milk and egg yolks; gradually stir into sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils.  Boil and stir one minute. Remove from heat; blend in butter and vanilla. Immediately pour into baked pie shell; press plastic wrap on to filling. Chill pie thoroughly, at least two hours.
When pie is completely cool, top with whipped cream. Sprinkle with remaining graham cracker crumbs. Refrigerate any unused portion.

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