a little behind

I haven't posted in a few days so here are a few pictures to show you what we have been up to.

having some fun with daddy on saturday morning

"i love my daddy!"

hahah ian's face cracks me up!

i want to kiss those little lips!

only semi-good picture of us! love my little man

wait for it,,,

wait for it...

grumpy pants!!!!!

he loves his thumb!

online class

Job and I have been enjoying watching Dr. Bookman with Ian. We get 3 hours of Bookman every week for the next 16 weeks. This picture is a little blurry but it was just too cute.

I love Dr. Bookman.

ouch.

Ian burned his finger yesterday at work on hot steel. The proof is in the pudding.

chocolate cupcakes with creamy peanut butter frosting

So on a spur of the moment today I came up with this recipe and thought it was worth sharing.

Cupcakes:
1 box of chocolate cake (I used German chocolate but any will do)
3 eggs
1/3 c oil
1/3 c water (a little more if needed)
a scoop of ground flaxseed for good measure

Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix. I like my mix to be a little thicker because then no one will know its a boxed cake. I rarely use boxed cake because we all know that any cake is better from scratch. But in times like this - when you are franticly trying to get the house in order so you can leave and you really want chocolate cupcakes with creamy peanut butter frosting - well then, boxed is the way to go.

Now for the best part:

Creamy Peanut Butter Frosting:
1 c powdered sugar
2/3 c peanut butter
4 tsp softened butter
1 tsp vanilla
dash of salt

Place ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix till nice and creamy. Add more milk if needed. Mix some more. Add a BIG ol' bunch of it to the top of your cupcake and enjoy.

let the games begin

So this week at the Luggs, we are back into the full swing of seminary. Ian has class Monday & Wednesday nights and he is also taking an online class, which means, watching 3 hours of Doug Bookman another night of the week. (at least we REALLY like Doug Bookman) I think we are going to try Tuesday nights. So far I am liking the online class because that's one more night he is here with us. And who won't like taking a class in sweatpants while eating freshly bakeed cookies? Beats a tie and no cookies.

Last night Job was getting tired while we were trying to watch the DVD so he had some block time on the floor, and then some naked block time. :) Good times were had at the Lugg household last night.

look at that concentration 

so serious  

i love my blocks from Aunt Charissa + Uncle Randy

just too funny... 

This Friday night we have Ian's convocation. That's just a fancy word for "let the games begin." We are excited for another semester to be underway but could also use some prayer. It's always a challenge to find time to do homework and study amidst work, family time, class, Bible study on Thursday nights, youth events some Friday nights, and then just the day to day things that need to happen, like sleep and fixing the car window that broke for the 3rd time this year. :) 

All that to say, we are very excited for another semester here in NC.

Some bonus pictures... because lets be honest, the pictures are the only reason anyone comes to this blog and I don't blame you....

"hi grandma" (ian + i laughed out loud at this picture) 

all smiles in my new chair

i love M&M's

venison wacky mac

1 Tb butter

1 onion chopped

3 garlic cloves

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp parsley

1tsp basil

1 tsp thyme

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 - 1lb of ground venison

1 can of tomatoes

1/2 jar of your favorite traditional flavored spaghetti sauce

1/2 c of grated parmesan + more for topping

salt and pepper to taste (please used freshly ground pepper, its WAY better!)

1 package of Wacky Mac

Heat your pot over medium/high heat. Melt butter. Add the next 6 ingredients. Saute until the onions begin to brown. Add your white wine to deglaze your pan. Make sure to get all that brown goodness off the bottom of the pan. Add your venison and turn the heat down to medium/low. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes until your meet is tender and chopped fine. If you are using frozen meat like I was, cover for part of the time. By cooking on low heat you are helping get ride of that wild, gamey taste. Now if you like that taste, well, then I don't know what to tell you.

Next, add the tomatoes and tomato sauce. Cover and cook for 30 minutes. Make sure to stir it a few time or it will begin to stick to the bottom of the pan. I learned my lesson the hard way here, people. Then, cook for an additional 30 minutes uncovered, still stirring occasionally. During the last 30 minutes, go ahead and cook up your Wacky Mac (or whatever pasta you would like to use... Wacky Mac just adds a little more nutrition without anyone knowing.) After your sauce is all done cooking, go ahead and add the parmesan. Taste. Add salt and fresh ground pepper. Taste again. Add some more. And keep doing that till its just perfect.

Now is the fun part... Dish up your pasta and top it off with a big ol' scoop of sauce. And go ahead and use your freshly baked bread as a scoop. You won't be able to stop eating this yummy sauce! And if you are ANYTHING like me, please don't think about what you are eating. Don't watch Bambi while your are eating this. Trust me, you just don't want to do that :)

Hope you enjoy!

PS- If you want this to stretch a little farther if you're on a tight budget or have many little or not so little mouths to feed... just go ahead and add another can of tomatoes and a full jar of sauce!

mr. cranky pants

Yes, you read the title right! Mr. Cranky Paint himself abides in this house! I think we may have moved into the teething stage! (only time will tell) Job no longer sleeps through the night, is now a TERRIBLE napper, must be nursed to sleep, and is just plain cranky all day long.

I was kidding myself when I thought maybe it was just him needing to adjust back to his life and routine after 10 days of being spoiled and having absolutely no routine. We are now heading into week 2 of this and I am starting to forget what its like to have a kid who sleeps well. I'm starting to feel like I have a newborn again. We shall see how long this stage lasts. The Lord know what I can handle and apparently its more then I think I can because I just told Ian yesterday that I couldn't take another day of this. And here we are, another day, more cranky pants, and more opportunities to serve my little man. (he's just too cute not to love, even when he's been screaming at you for the last 3 hours and its now 10pm)

One day we will look back at these days with fondness, until then, we are just holding on for dear life on this crazy ride!

Is that bite for me?

Job has recently discovered the joy of food! He now wants to be eating every time we are eating. He also thinks that every bite we take is for him. As you can see in the above picture. Its so fun going through all of these changes of life with our little man. He's growing up so fast!

more on the value of domesticity

"Like the fire, the woman is expected to cook: not to excel in cooking, but to cook... the woman is expected to tell tales to the children, not original and artistic tales, but tales--better tales than would probably be told by a first-class cook... woman must be a cook, but not a competitive cook; a school mistress, but not a competitive schoolmistress; a house-decorator but not a competitive house-decorator; a dressmaker, but not a competitive dressmaker. She should have not one trade but twenty hobbies; she, unlike the man, may develop all her second bests." G.K. Chesterton, "The Emancipation of Domesticity"

the value of domesticity

"How can it be a large career to tell other people's children about the Rule of Three, and a small career to tell one's own children about the universe? How can it be broad to be the same thing to everyone, and narrow to be everything to someone? No; a woman's function is laborious, but because it is gigantic, not because it is minute. I will pity Mrs. Jones for the hugeness of her task; I will never pity her for its smallness." 
G.K. Chesterton, "The Emancipation of Domesticity"


This gets me so excited to be a stay at home mom! When thoughts of having a "career" start to seep in, this gets me excited to be here, at home, and to be the world to my little family! Thanks Chesterton for the encouragement! More from him later. 

welcome

Since I am not a writer, I decided I wanted to start a blog. Genius, some might say. I wanted a way to write down my story and share it with the few out there who might be interested. I hope to share some thoughts, pictures, stories, recipes, and maybe even some laughs with y'all as I ride this roller coaster of life with my two men, Ian (husband) and Job (5 month little man). I hope you enjoy this humble little blog. Please don't get too board reading it. :)


For now, I am off to make this blog look a little spiffier and finish up dinner; as we have company coming over in less then an hour.