Baby Sieh #3

Caleb and I are thrilled to announce that our family will be expanding by (another) sweet baby this November! Due date is November 20! We will have our hands full but know this is the Lord's will for our family and we're trusting Him...we are VERY excited!

Elly and Cameron are excited to be big siblings too...they are best pals now so I can't even imagine the fun they will have with a third musketeer!

Here is an ultrasound picture of our precious one at 9 weeks. Amazing!


Thank you for sharing in our excitement and for your love and prayers!!

Psalm 127:3-4: "Sons are a heritage from the LORD, children a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one's youth."

Sister's First Prom

Tonight was my littlest sister Sonya's first prom! She is only a sophomore, but got invited to a neighboring school's prom, so got to do the dress, hair, etc.

Isn't she gorgeous????! Her stunning blue dress and pinned up hair. (And the outside beauty doesn't even hold a candle to what's on the inside!) My little Sonya. It seems like just yesterday I was babysitting her and cutting her food up into little bites...*sniffle*

I have lots of sibling love going on today. My brother Jay blessed me and watched Cameron this afternoon so Elly and I could watch the NCU Women's track meet, and preparations are in full swing for Laura's wedding, coming SO SOON...I couldn't be more excited!

Congrats, sister, on your first prom! Aren't siblings the greatest? :)

More Easter

Sieh cousins ready to hunt eggs!
Jocelyn, Ashley, Elly, Malachi & Cameron.

Mema helps Elly find some eggs, too!
(While slacker Mom stays on deck and takes pictures.)

Malachi and Cameron on the hunt!

Look at my loot!
The fact that the eggs look like soccer balls, footballs & basketballs is far more exciting to me than the treats inside...

Our niece Jocelyn who got her tonsils out the week before Easter! :(
She was a trooper and posed like a ballerina for the camera!

Silly Elly knowing she's being cute... :)

Somehow my camera didn't make it out for the egg dyeing festivities at Grandpa & Grandma Beichley's, but Cameron was pretty excited about the eggs changing colors, especially the purple ones! We had a wonderful Easter, Papa Sieh dedicated Elly at church on Sunday and both sets of grandparents were able to be there and share in her special day!

Dressed And Pressed...

...and looking at the camera! Not smiling, but we'll take what we can get, right? My sweet Elly Mariah (11 months) and Cameron Christian (2 years) in their Easter best.


More Easter pics coming soon!

Candy Nostalgia

I'm really not much of a candy eater anymore, but back in middle and high school I was a bit of a junkie. For some reason, today I was thinking about a few of the candies I used to enjoy. I searched around the web for them, and they're completely extinct. Couldn't even Google a picture. So, I want to share them with you and see if anyone remembers them with me (if I could just have one more taste...) :)

Fizzy Bottle Caps: These were made by Wonka candy, and were definitely a vital part of my late elementary and middle school years. I think I got them EVERY time the little league softball bus stopped at a gas station on the way home from a hot, mid-afternoon game. Sure, they still have the regular old Bottle Caps, but once you've had the fizzy kind (I mean, it's like taking a bite of a glass of Coke or Strawberry Soda!) they're just a cheap imitation. These would throw me back to 12 years old instantly, I'm sure of it!

Ocean Spray Waves: These may not have been well-liked or well-known by many of you...but they were an absolute staple during my eighth grade year (1995-ish). They were similar to the idea of Jolly Ranchers, but made with fruit juice, and came in three flavors: Cran-Raspberry, Cran-Grape, and Cran-Strawberry. Cran-Grape was my favorite. They were individually wrapped in little white sleeves and the thought of them still makes my mouth water!

I've always been a cranberry juice fanatic, and these were just the ticket for someone like me - a balance between tart and sweet. Just lasted long enough in your mouth. Yum. I'd buy these if they were ever to be made again! (Hey Ocean Spray...maybe I'd buy enough to make it worth your while...)

Starburst Fruit Twists: Moving on to high school...I had many-a-supper at the local Casey's gas station during my h.s. career as I navigated from xc/basketball/track practice to play/speech/whatever practice later in the evening. These meals usually consisted of a greasy piece of pizza and a bag of Starburst Fruit Twists (licorice). I've always been a fan of good ol' Twizzlers, but these were even more wonderful. The bag had all four original flavors (orange, lemon, strawberry, and cherry), only in licorice form. Same setup as standard licorice, same colors as your standard Starburst. Strawberry and lemon were my favorites.

I don't really know how to describe this delicacy...except that it was somehow "lighter" than regular licorice and more satisfying than it's square, chewy sister. Hmmmm. You could count me in for a few packages of this if it came out again, too. I've never gotten into Starburst's other spin-offs...lollipops, jellybeans...fruit twists were the ultimate.

Nowadays, I'm much more of a chocolate girl...but revisiting my candy-loving days has given me a hankering for some of these zero-nutrition, sugar-loaded goodies. Are you searching for or missing any sweets from your childhood? What gives you candy nostalgia?

Meat-Free Monday

Here's another meatless winner in our house, and I got it from Rachael Ray's daytime show! Get the recipe directly from her website here. I was pregnant with Cameron when I discovered this one, and I've tweaked it all kinds of different ways. I've added fresh mushrooms, fresh lemon juice and zest, wilted spinach, shallots, and used dried basil more times than not. I've used whole-wheat thin spaghetti and a few other pastas. I also usually add garlic salt at the end instead of plain salt (but I'm a garlic fanatic).

This is easy to make with meat as well...I've included shrimp (fantastic) and baked skinless chicken breasts to make hubs happy. Enjoy!

Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes

Ingredients

• 1 pound pasta cavatappi or orecchiette
• Salt
• 2 pints grape tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• A few drizzles of extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 20 leaves fresh basil, roughly chopped or torn
• 1 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Preparation

Preheat oven 425°F.

Place a large pot filled with water over high heat and bring up to a boil to cook the pasta. Once boiling, add some salt and the pasta, and cook until al dente according to package directions. Reserve about a 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid before draining the pasta.

While the water is coming up to a boil to cook the pasta, place the tomatoes on a cookie sheet and grate the garlic over them.

Drizzle with some EVOO and season with some salt and pepper. Transfer cookie sheet to the oven and roast tomatoes for 8-10 minutes or until the tomatoes start to burst. Remove from the oven, discard the garlic cloves and transfer roasted tomatoes to a large serving bowl. Add the reserved pasta water and, with a potato masher or a fork, lightly smash the tomatoes.

Add basil, drained pasta and Parmigiano cheese and toss to coat.

Toss to combine, taste and re-season with some salt and pepper then serve.

Back In Action

Sorry for my absence. Two weekends ago, I was privileged to stand up at my friend Leesha's (we played basketball together at NCU) wedding in Wisconsin. The day after we got home from that trip, Caleb flew to Ohio for work and took my beloved computer with him!! Last weekend, my parents visited...so we've been on the go/computerless for much of the past two weeks.

Here's the kicker - I forgot my camera on the wedding trip! It was such a beautiful wedding, simple and full of love. Leesha was stunning, and I had a blast getting to know my fellow bridesmaids (what a great group of ladies)! I'm Facebook stalking waiting for more pictures to surface...but here's what I've found so far:

Brenda, Leesha, me and a sick-of-the-carseat Miss Ells.

The best husband. Ever.

Such a gorgeous bride and sweet flower girl, Faith.

Blurry and far away - but this is the whole wedding party!

I love you, Leesh!
What an honor to stand up with you and celebrate your big day!