Search Results for: round up

Joyner Park

January 13, 2010 by HappyGoStuckey 4 Comments

So, instead of continuing the job search, Lance and I have decided to stay here.

Yep, you heard me.

The Stuckeys are puttin’ down roots. Deep tree roots.. like the ones under a pecan tree. Much like the trees in the beautiful Pecan GROVE— right here in our own little town!!!

Our sweet little WF recently opened a beautiful little park full of paved walking trails and….

a PECAN GROVE.

Little known fact about me: I heart Pecan trees. When we take our seasonal pilgrimages to Eastman to visit the Fam, I spend much of the “drive around” time with my face pressed up against the car window, practically drooling over the beautiful Pecan Trees. Whether you say it Pee-Can or Pee-Cahn, they are fab-u-lous.

I mean, just look. Bea-U-tiful.

If you live anywhere around here, you should go. Preferably on a day when it’s a bit warmer outside and you happen to have a pot of chili waiting on you when you get home… but still, go!

Oh yeah, by the way. We are still looking for a job. As much as I would love to put roots down (ha! ha!) just because of a pretty new park, it’s probably not the right thing to do.

Sooooo… all that to say two things:

1. Go to the Park pictured here… or a park of your choosing…. or just find some wilderness nearby and take several deep breaths. You will be glad you did.

2. Please pray for us.We would appreciate it.

A glimpse of our little family Christmas

January 9, 2010 by HappyGoStuckey 1 Comment

Since we were traveling during Christmas, we had a little family Christmas celebration a couple of nights before we went out of town.
Mr. S made this amazing, (literally-we thought about it for dayyyyys) Steak Au Poivre. I’m so mad at myself that I did not take a photo of the delicious dinner.Then we read the Christmas Story from Luke 2 around the tree and opened a few gifts. This year, we gave Lu the “Say please Tea Set” and a cute floppy dog which she all but fell in love with in the store. Both were a huge hit; although the paper and tissue proved to be where the real excitement was. Big Surprise.

It took us a few days to share our Christmas memories, but here they are!

It’s beginning to look alot like Christmas…

December 8, 2009 by HappyGoStuckey 3 Comments

Tonight I took a little time to notice some of our Christmas decorations. As I did, I was reminded of the past several Christmases Mr. S and I have shared together. I love when small details on the tree or in our home jog a certain sentimental memory. They remind me of the joy we have shared over the past few years and the many ways that God has been ever faithful to us. They remind me of various and sometimes humorous memories of the last few years that we have shared together. Last year, after Christmas, we were blessed to be able to purchase a large pre-lit tree at 60% off and so this year, we have enjoyed the way it swallows our cozy living room. We have added a few more ornaments but it’s still pretty open in areas. I like that. It reminds me that our family still has much growth ahead of us. Hopefully year by year we will add a few more ornaments, and a few more memories and a few more remembrances of how God is ever beside us, guiding our steps and blessing us beyond measure. In the mean time, here are a few of my favorite memory producing ornaments.

This picture was taken the first Christmas we were dating. I remember we spent about 12 days visiting both of our families in Georgia and Florida. At the end of that trip, when we didn’t hate the sight of each other– we knew we might be in it for the long haul. I guess it’s apparent what I wished for that Christmas!

This beautiful nativity ornament was given to me last Christmas by Linda, my co-worker and friend. This ornament is so special to me because it is a simple and poignant reminder of the reason behind all of our joy at Christmas. In addition, this ornament will always remind me of a special time in my life when God so richly blessed me with a workplace full of wise and God-fearing, God-honoring women. They continue to encourage me in my walk and as a wife and mom and I am so blessed by them.

This ornament was from our first Christmas together as Mr. and Mrs. S. It was a special and memorable Christmas and we still laugh about some of our “1st Christmas” memories.

This is my favorite Christmas decoration. My first full nativity which my sweet husband has helped me collect. I cannot wait to teach Lu all about the Meaning of Christmas with the help of this beautiful visual aid. Although, I might add that next year it will be a bit “higher” off the ground. Away from little hands. 🙂

My Littlest Christmas Decoration and Her amazing Daddy.

I LOVE that we now have 3 stockings to hang.

~~We may not have thought we would still live here.~~ We definitely did not think we would still be living here by this time this year. We certainly did not expect to be in such a place of uncertainty. We are still praying every day that the Lord would continue to direct our paths and make His way clear to us. It took me a little longer to embrace “unpacking Christmas” this year as I was hoping we would have to turn right around and pack it up. I got over that as soon as I realized what I was missing by missing what was happening now. We still do not know the future— Not even the immediate future. But I do not intend to ruin this wonderful, celebratory time of year with my deferred hope. I fully intend to embrace the JOY of my Savior’s Birth with everything that is in me. I know without a doubt that I will never forget THIS Christmas as long as I live.

Cozy Dinner Times Two!

December 5, 2009 by HappyGoStuckey 4 Comments

It is during this time of the year that I find myself looking to make filling meals that are warm, comforting and full of good healthy ingredients. It also happens that during this time in our life, (enter one smallish income for 3 people) I find myself looking to stretch our grocery bill into as many meals as possible. It really makes my day when I can stretch one meal into two or more- (other than just eating leftovers, which is always nice.)

Last night, I made this recipe for a slow-cooker beef stew. If you enjoy cozy meals such as this, I would certainly recommend giving it a try. A few things you should know, the recipe calls for 4 lbs. of bottom round. That is a lot of meat— so for Mr. S and I, I used about 1.35 lbs. of cubed stew meat. It still made plenty and it was not too meat heavy as some stews can be. We prefer a lot of vegetables. Another observation, the recipe calls for baby carrots. Baby carrots are fine and definitely convenient. We have taken to buying a large bag of whole organic carrots because we get WAY more per pound, they last much longer in the fridge since they are unpeeled (we’re talking weeks here) and we tend to think the taste is just sweeter and more “carrot-ey” (Yes, I have coined a new word.) One other disclaimer, the recipe calls for a cup of red wine. Obviously, the alcohol cooks out, but if you choose not to use the wine, you could try beef broth.. however I would add at least a small amount of red wine or red cooking wine, because the flavor is really unmistakable.The resulting dish was really good and warmed us from the inside out on a chilly rainy night.

On to meal #2:
Long ago, my mother taught me that beef stew or soup makes an excellent Meat Pie a couple days later. Just thicken or thin the sauce to your desired consistency, place in a casserole dish and cover with a piecrust. Seal the edges and bake until golden brown and bubbly. Tip: try adding a small sprinkling of fresh or dried Thyme or Rosemary to your crust before rolling it out. Beautiful and Savory! If you are short on time, you can certainly use a roll-out pie crust, or even top your beef stew with biscuit-dough. Either one would make excellent use of leftovers and give your family the feeling of an entirely different Supper. Especially if you wait a day in between! You could also accomplish this same concept by topping leftover chili with cornbread and baking. Yum!

This is just a simple technique that I use from time to time and I thought I would share.

What are some creative ways you get double or even triple duty out of your leftovers?

A childhood favorite revisited

August 31, 2009 by HappyGoStuckey 1 Comment

When I was five years old, my family was invited to pick blueberries at a private farm belonging to a friend of my dad. Apparently, it was a banner year for their blueberries and so we were told to pick as many as we could eat or freeze. They provided us with 10 and 15 gallon buckets and we went to picking. As you can imagine, this was a huge treat as we were a family of 7 and fresh blueberries just were not in the weekly budget. We picked, and picked and picked until we were blue in the face, and fingers I might add. Then the entire family entourage schlepped home to properly deal with this great unexpected blessing. Many of the berries went into the freezer— so many in fact that we had blueberry cobbler, blueberry pie, blueberry pancakes and blueberry muffins for several years. I am not exaggerating. We lived on blueberries. Oh, and deer meat. So in truth, we lived on blueberries and bambi burgers. But that’s a blog post for another day.

Ten years later, when my parents moved to the house they currently live in a bit farther out of town, my Dad took up gardening. From then on, he was lovingly referred to by my Mother as “Mr. Green Jeans” because everything he planted grew and grew very well. He decided to try his hand at blueberry bushes and they grew very well. Thus, we were reunited with the sweet little antioxidant. Of course, back then no one mentioned how full of antioxidants and nutrients blueberries were—they just stuck them in muffins and called it a day. My mom, not wanting to let a good berry go to waste, furthered her talent of berry-goodness and often made the most divine blueberry muffins ever. Seriously good, I’m tellin’ ya. I have recently tried my hand at her recipe, (complete with melted butter. Sigh.) and they just aren’t the same. Maybe because my feet now touch the ground when I eat them. Who knows? Never the less, I still love them whenever I go home — provided my “mommy” makes them. There are times when I want desperately to re-create my Mom’s recipes… see: the apple pie incident. And then there are others when I feel the need to branch out. Last night was one such occasion.

Lance and I decided to have brinner (Breakfast for Dinner) and I got to work making a frittata. Crustless Quiche-type thing filled with veggies. (Recipe to follow.) Try it with your own combination of fillings. You’ll like it. I also wanted to make a healthier version of the famed blueberry muffin. I was thinking somewhere along the lines of…oatmeal… whole wheat flour… juicy berries. I consulted Joy the Baker, whose blog I thoroughly enjoy reading. She had an Oatmeal Applesauce Blueberry muffin recipe. And can I just say that she has yet to let me down? Oh, my. They were amazing. So amazing that I plan to make them for the Queen of Blueberry Muffins this weekend when she comes to visit us! I’m that confident in them! I cannot take credit for Joy’s recipe as it is hers and her alone—but I would like to direct your attention to her pretty little blog and encourage you to try the recipe. You’ll be glad you did. Even better, you won’t be mentally kicking yourself all day for indulging as they are full of healthy ingredients and not full of butter. What are your favorite “breakfast for dinner” ideas? Do tell!

Frittata

You will need a non-stick 12 inch skillet with Tbsp. of Olive oil. Heat until oil is smoking. Preheat Oven to 350 degrees.

Sautee 8 oz. Mushrooms and 3 tbsp. of minced shallots until fragrant and browning. Add one diced tomato, and 8 julienned basil leaves and cook until tender and water has nearly evaporated. Remove from heat. (You can use any combination of sautéed vegetables that you like, only be careful that they are not giving off too much liquid.) Crumbled bacon; cubed or sliced ham; or thinly sliced leftover steak would also be great. Experiment!

In a bowl beat 7 eggs, add 2 tbsp. of half and half or milk and fresh ground salt and pepper. Pour egg mixture over the veggies and top with 2oz. crumbled feta or other cheese (cheddar and swiss are also great.) Gently shake skillet so eggs incorporate to the bottom of the veggies evenly.

Place skillet in 350’ oven for 15 minutes or until puffy and cooked throughout. Garnish with fresh herbs or scallions and serve in wedges.

Another long cooking post…

August 9, 2009 by HappyGoStuckey 6 Comments

Boeuf Bourguignon.

That is the dish I laboriously prepared for dinner this evening. Carefully selected ingredients. Several hours in the kitchen. Several more hours of waiting with bated breath on my “French Beef Stew” produced a dish so divine, so unequivocal to “American” Beef Stew that I had to laugh at the thought of how I previously made Beef Stew. (My slow-cooker and a McCormick packet.) Although it warmed us from the inside out on many a cold or rainy night, that quasi-beef stew has and will forever pale in comparison to Julia Child’s Boeuf Bourguignon. What prompted me to attempt such a feat? A movie.

Last night, Mr. S and I were blessed to be able to go to the movies while our good friends kept Little Lu. I had been dying to see Julie & Julia, which parallels the life of Julia Child to the year long culinary experiment of Julie Powell. It was a feel-good movie and I laughed out loud several times. I highly recommend it. (And for all you wives, my husband laughed several times as well and really seemed to enjoy it. It’s not very often that there is a movie with certain chick flick qualities that we BOTH enjoy… but, I digress.) At one point in the movie, Julie makes Julia’s Bouef Bourguinon and it looked so absolutely yummy, that I felt the need to return to my culinary fundamentals. I found something very therapeutic in this 3 page recipe from Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. This being my first weekend as a working mother, I enjoy the irony of cooking a meal that takes 15 steps instead of 3. Let me be very clear, I say this not to boast that I will be cooking every meal from such a book.

Not so much.

I haven’t the time nor the energy to make every dinner a cooking extravaganza– especially not right now. But there is something to be said for taking the time. For example, I have a close friend who very seldom buys any convenience grocery items. She cooks delicious meals from a few simple and tasty ingredients. She has a wonderful talent of stretching a few dollars into a gourmet meal. Sometimes elaborate, sometimes comfort food, but they are always full of love and warmth. She and I have often joked about some of the “convenience items” that are available and what a rip off they can be. For example, tonight I noticed pre-seasoned, cooked taco meat at the grocery store. (Wow. Is it that hard to add taco seasoning to ground beef? Sorry, soapbox.) Never the less, there are many nights during the week when I need to be able to whip up dinner in under 30 minutes…. but sometimes, you just need to remind yourself that you can cook without any convenience foods. You can prepare a meal the “long” way. Today was such a day.

A few minutes into the process of carefully searing the chunks of perfectly marbled meat in my giant Turquoise Le Creuset, I began to appreciate Julia’s gusto for excellent cooking. She did not learn to cook out of necessity but out of a love of food and love for her husband, and in an impossibly tiny kitchen. The last of which concerns me most. Somewhere between slicing perfectly uniform onions and learning a far better way to sautee mushrooms, I found enjoyment in being able to successfully prepare classic cuisine for my husband regardless of how busy life has recently become or how little time I seem to have these days.

My point in writing these ramblings?

1. Everyone should have a creative outlet. No matter how busy they are or how crazy life becomes.

2. Try something challenging once in a while. Even if you fail miserably, you’ll be glad you stretched yourself a bit.

3. Even in a tiny kitchen with 7 square feet of counter space, a 5 inch deep sink, and an oven that is 50 degrees off and with lopsided burners– God provides amazing blessings of encouragment. Though I do not look forward to another 5 days away from my little girl, we have all three had a wonderful weekend together and I personally, feel energized and refreshed.

P.S. Our dinner took so long, we ate at 9pm. Ha! It was worth it though!

And the days fly by…

July 9, 2009 by HappyGoStuckey 3 Comments

Where is the time going?

Yes, I realize it’s filled with diapers and feedings and laundry and diapers and feedings and cuddling and hugging and consoling and playing and diapers and more feedings and kisses and little baby coos and sounds and bright, melt-your-heart smiles. But seriously, where is the time going? I feel like the daily calendar pages are flying off at warp speed– forcing me to face the facts. I only have a few more weeks at home. August 3rd, that’s the day. Now, before I get all weepy and force you to either feel sorry for me or wish I would toughen up a bit, let me say that I have known this was coming and I am as okay with it as I can be expected to be. God gives grace and strength one day at a time. He has and He will.

Many of you that have been alongside us during this journey are aware that we have been praying and searching and waiting on the Lord’s timing concerning a job for Lance. We have always held firm to the knowledge that God will provide. God will provide. That’s what we told ourselves and told others when questioned. Well, it came to our realization a couple of months before Lu was born, that for the time being, He HAD provided (for the time being.) I have a wonderful job at SEBTS with amazing insurance, a great boss, and some of the best co-workers ever. When we realized the time was approaching to make a decision about our immediate future, Lance and I decided it was best for me to continue to work for a while until He is able to find a position. This was a terribly difficult decision for both of us. He and I would both love for me to be the one at home with Lucy– and hopefully, that will happen someday soon. But until then, this is where we are. I would appreciate your prayers for me as I go back to work soon and for Lance as he stays home to take care of our precious girl. We’ll make it and we will all be just fine.

Okay, now that I have all that stiff upper lip stuff out of the way, can I just say that I am aching at the thought at leaving her? Pure honesty. The past 6 weeks have flown by. I am loving every minute of being Lucy’s mom- I never knew how full my heart could be with love for my husband and daughter. Lance takes such amazing care of both of us and I’m convinced he is the best dad ever. There are few things as sweet as looking down at your sleeping child and seeing traces of the man you love all over her peaceful face. And the smell of her perfectly round head is nearly intoxicating. I am so grateful to be mother and wife to these two.

But I digress.
For the past month and a half, I have ignored the impending end of maternity leave in the very fashion of Miss Scarlett O’hara herself. “I’ll think about it tuh-morrahh.” And now that we are within the last few weeks, I cannot ignore it any longer. So, I have decided to admit that I am a bit clingy. Definitely struggling with putting her down during the day. I will admit that there are mornings when I just hold her and let her sleep in my arms for hours on end. Not because I don’t have “things to do” but because this is temporary, and no amount of scrubbing tile or folding laundry will I miss in a few weeks when I sit back at my desk, sifting through a thousand emails. Oh no. It’s her I will miss. It’s the mornings I will miss the most. But, all of that aside, we are really enjoying these last few weeks. Have I said how much I love being a mom? Or is that dead obvious from my sappy blog post?

Thank you all for your prayers and for sharing in this wonderful and crazy time as we await the Lord’s direction for our future. We so want to be in the next stage of life and serving in a church some where. Lance has been so diligent in sending countless resumes in every direction– but as frustrating as waiting can be– we know that we are right where God wants us today and in His perfect timing, He will move us. We are trying to live every day honoring Him with our confident trust in His faithfulness. He has always been faithful to provide and direct and we know He is today. And He will be tomorrow.

And now, a little something to make you smile–