Fall, Pt 6...the key to a good Autumn

So, I realized this should really have been my first post, as it is the most important, and yes, I am serious...

"You've got to take the good with the bad, smile with the sad, love what you've got, and remember what you had. Always forgive, but never forget. Learn from mistakes, but never regret."

I think this is actually a great quote for the start of all seasons, because it really applies to every day life, and it's good to remember it sometimes...

Also...

Live every day like it's your last.

Not in the cheesy way, or the spend-all-your-money-and-get-really-really-drunk way either...more like "This could be my LAST DAY EVER ON THIS WORLD..."  Do you really want someones last memory of you to be you storming out in anger, or calling them a name???  Yeah, I didn't think so...

Yup. 

That's it...those words of wisdom you've been waiting for all your life.  Very deep.  

Yes, I'm very tired...how did you guess? :)  But still...it's not just a joke--really try it, if only for a day.

~Toothy

So, depending on how this post looks tomorrow (oops...this!) morning, i may just delete it... :)

Phantom!! On Broadway!!

So...whilst in NY, I want and...saw Phantom on Broadway!!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!

Sorry.  The excitement just hit me suddenly :)  It's the longest running show in Broadway History, and for good reason!!

They have a rule about taking pictures during the show, so we don't have any, but I did nab a few off the internet...

                                                            The classic playbill...

                             The Phantom takes Christine to his lair for the first time...

           This scene was so cool...the boat was on a track, so it looked like it was really moving!!

The song Masquerade I had never heard it before, but it was so cool!!

Everything was great!! I dressed up and went with my dad...the line was crazy...it curled all the way around the block, but luckily, we didn't have to wait in it!! (the tickets the courtesy of a friend with connections, and they allowed us to just sneak in without waiting :) and then afterwards we went out to a bar in SoHo with one of my dad's best friends and his girlfriend...I got to hear stories from when my dad was in Law School, and how he met my mom, from someone else's point of view...tons of fun!

Happy Birthday Margaret!!!!!!!

It's Margaret's sweet 16 on today!!! (September 28 is today)

Happy birthday Margaret!! 
Here are some of the favorites:

Margaret, me, and Rachel in the wind at  Lorien :) 

Getting off the inner tube. We had been tubing at 50 miles an hour!
Margaret and I flew off the tube of course when the boat hit 50 miles.
(Margaret, do you remember the buddy system thing we had
if one of us started to fall off? I am laughing right now about it!)

Teaching Preschool  =D

After our first year of Pine Hills: Me, Rachel, and Margaret

One of my favorites :) (don't you dare take a picture!!!)

\

WE LOVE YOU MARGARET!!!!  HAPPY SWEET 16!!

Love,

Nina & Rachel

Beautiful Pictures!!!!

First of all, these pictures are from National Geographic...for anyone to look at....so I'm not plagiarizing. :)

(Btw, Check out Simply Beautiful Photographs from the library if you want to be utterly amazed. :)

So dramatic... =)

:-O 

Hang on--I gotcha!!!

everybody's got a water buffalo, yours is fast but mine is slow....

I just liked these pics, so I posted them! (by now, you might have figured out that I'm very random. :P
~Nina

Beautiful Church

My parents and I went to Sacred Heart Major Seminary for a bible conference, and my mom and I managed to sneak into the church part of the building to see it. It is a seminary church so there are a bunch of alters along the sides of it so all of the different priests who teach there can celebrate mass.

The alters on the sides :)

The tabernacle was beautiful, with an icon of the last supper above it. 

I don't know what the gray thing is at the bottom--happened when I was
downloading. :P

An overall picture:

A belated Introduction to...Rachel and Nina!

Rachel's Favorite....by Nina
Saying: "True storry!"
Movie: anything with Colin Firth or some other cute boy.
~Nina


Nina's favorite...by Rachel
Story: Twwooo Reeeeed Eeeeeeyes
Saying: "I'm 25% Irish" :P
Movie: Something I've declared I didn't like...
~Rachel

So yes, not the most organized and wonderful post in the world, but it gives you an idea... :)

Fall pt 4...Fall reads

One of my favorite parts of Fall as I've gotten older is curling with a good book with a cup of hot cocoa, so for this post, and what is better than reading a good book??  Reading a series of then so it can go on even longer!!   I thought I'd suggest some of my favorite series' for reading this Fall, and you can decide whether or not to read them.

First off...a series of retold fairy tales  for teenage girls, fabulously done by Regina Doman..

~Shadow of the Bear (Snow White and Rose Red...I love this one!)
~Black as Night (Snow White...a little slow, but interesting, too)
~Waking Rose (Rose Red...my favorite by far!!)
~Midnight dancers (The twelve Dancing Princesses...it gets pretty intense near the end so watch out!!)
~Alex O'Donnell and the Forty Cyber-thieves (Ali-Baba and the Forty thieves)

Next up, a slightly younger read, but still lots of fun, written by Shannon Hale...

~Goose Girl (based on the story The Goose Girl...surprise!)
~Enna Burning
~River Secrets (hilarious and lots of fun!)
~Forrest Born

Another light (and incredibly cheesy) set of stories by Ally Carter...these are about an all-girls spy academy, and basically a time filler for when you have nothing to do...they are a lot of fun but I must warn you they are pretty cheesy, as you might guess by their titles... :)

~I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You
~Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy~Don't Judge a Girl By Her Cover ~Only the Good Spy Young~Out of Sight, Out of Time

A favorite of mine is by Megan Whalen Turner, and absolutely stupendous!!  I can't really describe it, but it's totally worth reading!!

~The Thief (A little bit blah, but it introduces the characters...you can skip if it's too boring...)

~The Queen of Attolia (Sooooooo good!! I love this book!!)

~The King of Attolia (it takes a little to warm up, but when it does...!!!!!!)

Why cant I find a picture anywhere????? Oh well.  You should still read them...possibly one of my favorite series' ever...

And last but not least, written by Trenton Lee Stewart...I didn't find these too amazing, but I know a lot of people who did...maybe you will too!

~The Mysterious Benedict Society

~The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey

~The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoners Dilemma

~The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict (a prequel)

I hope you get a chance to pick up at least a few of these books this Fall!

What are some of your favorite series??  I am always looking for more to add to my list!

~Rachel

Oh. and The Lord of the Rings is good too.  But you already know that :)

Happy National pancake Day!!!

I realize it's already late in the day, but maybe you can have them for dinner??  Why not...it only comes around once a year! :D

                                                            

YUM!  I hope you take advantage of this delicious day!!

~Toothy and Toothless

Fall pt 3

So...I am going to do this the wimpy way, and go the easiest way out...for today, I will just say one of my favorite things about Fall is how great it feels to cozy up in your blanket and go to sleep :)

                   people have been doing it for ages, I see no reason why the tradition should stop...

Enjoy the bliss of a beautiful bed!!
~Rachel

Fall pt 2...accessories!!

I just love accessories!! jewelry, scarves, tights, headbands...anything that gives your outfit that finishing touch!

Colored Tights!!

I just got a few pairs of these colored tights the other day, and am loving them! They're so much fun to wear...

Target $5

Many much scarves!! :)

scarves are so cool...they add that pop of color to complete your outfit!

                                                  youtube is great for styling tutorials...

                         

Fall Jewelry!!
 

Fall jewelry is so much fun, and comes in the best colors!! Lots of gold, turquoise orange, red, and other bright colors!!

Boots and shoes!!  Great for a finishing touch (and they're pretty important to your outfit too :)

                                         

Go out and be dazzled by Fall!

~Rachel

Welcome to Fall Pt 1...yummy foods :)

So, for part one of our fall pieces, I thought I'd go with food, since it's the safest choice, as I handle it ALL THE TIME...have I mentioned I'm one of eight yet?  Well, now I have.  Anyhoo, I thought today I would start out with something delicious and incredibly easy, perfect for a chilly autumn evening.

**note: I got this from zomyummy.com, and DO NOT OWN THE RECIPE... sorry, that's just for the Internet police :))


Cheesy herbed popovers...YUM!

These can be made in a plain old mini-muffin pan...no hoity-toity popover pans for me! :)

1. First, in a larger bowl, mix the milk, eggs, flour, 2 tbsp (30 grams) melted butter, salt, pepper and the herbs.

2. Then add the cheese, mix to combine and place the bowl in the fridge for about one hour. I love the sharp cheddar, but any cheese works...)

3. After one hour, preheat the oven to 425 F (220 C) with the rack in the upper third (!).

4. Melt the remaining butter (2 tablespoons – 30 grams) and use it to butter the mini muffin cups.

5. Place the muffin pan in the oven and heat it until the butter sizzles (about 2 minutes).

 7. Pop the pan in the oven again and bake for about 15 minutes or until puffed and golden brown.

And there you have it!! These are really simple to make, but look impressive, and taste amazing!

I hope you enjoy!

Rachel

My dog caught a mole

I always wondered what a mole looked like. Well, now I don't have to. Two days ago, Gypsy, my dog, caught a mole. I was sitting outside reading when Gypsy jumps about two feet in the air. Then she nosedives into the ground and then jumps up again, looking slightly flustered and embarrassed. Then I see a little black thing jump into the air, making little squealing noises, so then I know it's not just my psychotic dog. I run over to stop Gypsy from killing it, and this is what it turned out to be:   A MOLE!!!

The mole had NO EYES!!!! NO EYES!!!! It had
very soft fur though...has anyone thought about
making mole coats?!?!

Auuuughhh!! It was more than a little bit creepy, but definitely kinda cool too...
~Nina

Amazin' Songs For Fall

As Gua-- I mean Rachel-- noticed, fall is here!!!!
I am always inspired by fall and by the beauty it brings. I decided to post some of my favorite Christian songs for fall (and in general). So, here goes!!

After All by the David crowder band...the chorus reminds me of Narnia. It is SOOO Beautiful!! (Thank you Ruth for playing this at Life Teen!)
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4452I4veIY0&feature=player_detailpage

Restless by Audrey Assad
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuhYZrn4flo&feature=player_detailpage

What Love Really Means by JJ Heller. This might be my favorite song of all time...
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqWf-XehllA&feature=player_detailpage

In Christ Alone. Just watch it.
     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ApS9W26eDs&feature=player_detailpage

Over and out,
~Nina

Fall is here!

I am so excited for the Autumn season this year!! fall is my favorite season, mainly because of the beautiful colors and weather, but also of course, the food...oh, and did I mention my birthday??  :)  

So....inspired by a favorite blog of mine, A  Beautiful Mess (check it out!! http://www.abeautifulmess.com/) I am doing a week long session on Fall: yummy foods, fun colors, fall crafts...I don't really know yet, but I guess I'll figure it out as I go :)

I'll see if I can get *a friend* to help, and do a few guest blogs along the way, but no guarantees...

Have a beautiful, beautiful Saturday!
Rachel

Nothing much...

Just what is possibly one of the best scenes in the history of awesomeness... :D
*Stop rolling your eyes Nina...

~Rachel

Confession...

So...I don't know about you, but for a very long time, (and still occasionally) I was afraid to go to confession because, let's face it, who wants to spill all the worst things you've ever done to some guy in a box?

Well, really when you think about it, it isn't just "some guy in a box" but more, as my mom described it some years ago, a direct line to God's telephone...you're on one end, He's on the other, and then the priest is just the ear/mouthpiece to help you talk to him...who also happens to have the power to absolve you from your sins :)

Hello? Oh hey God! It's me, Rachel?

Really, I'm posting this because just last week in NY, I was sitting I mass, listening to the homily, and the priest said a couple things that really helped my way of thinking towards confession.   First off, priests don't go around remembering every sin they hear...they're not going to go around thinking, "Oh, there's Rachel...I can't believe that scumbag ate the last piece of the chocolate cake without leaving any for her mom...". Yes, Priests have more important thing to do than sitting around judging people...

He also used an inspiring analogy for confession I had never heard before...he said to think of it as a spiraling staircase...each time we confess our sins, we go up one spiral...they all look the same to us, but each time we get closer and closer, until, ultimately, we reach Heaven.

Last, but not least, he ended up reminding us "Don't be discouraged when you come to us confessing the same sins over and over...it would be a lot worse if each time you came in with a different set of mortal sins!"  That one made me laugh... :)

Thank you Fr. Patrick for helping me conquer my fear of confessionals, and I hope, you readers, that I've been at least sort of clear, and not just muddled up your brain! :)

~Rachel

Second Breakfast...come one, come all!

I think this will explain itself rather well...I do so hope you can make it :)



~Rachel

End of Summer :(

Fall is here!!! I don't know if I'm happy or sad. No more basking in the sun, diving into the lake, lazing on the front porch, reading light fun books, and no more carefree days. But, I'm still looking forward to going apple picking, trick-or-treating, eating pizza with all the girls on Mondays at HSC, going mushroom hunting, doing homework at night next to the fireplace.

I know I'm definitely gonna miss this past summer. It's been so good. Here are some of my favorite memories of this past summa:

Canoe rides with Dad.
<3

Eating outside on the deck--always a favorite. Listening to the birds,
watching the hummingbirds come up to the flowers on our deck,
hearing the random yell of a kid going by our house, watching the
crazy antics of my one-year-old brother.

Campfires!!! 

Swimming......

Service Team for Pine Hills.
It was amazing!!!! :D:D:D:D:D:D
I felt like I could sleep for a year after that. :)

I remember just walking along a wheat field, and then seeing 

a family of sandhill cranes, chirping at me.

Talk about sweet little things God puts in your day 

:)

Family reunion with my cousins (some that I hadn't seen for years).
we rented a mansion on Lake Erie for a week
and managed to fit all 35 of us! 

NYC!! Part 1

So yesterday was my birthday... (Happy Birthday to Me :) which means....I'm in New York!!  Yup...my dad took me up to Midtown NY for the week, so I could hang out with him, and see a different side of the US...  So far it's been pretty awesome, and, just because I'm mean (and bored :), I'll give you a quick rundown of the past few days...

Day 1: Sunday~ We arrived mid afternoon, and just toured around by our hotel, conveniently placed in the middle of everything...

                                             Me by some random and awesome display :)

                                                                  A cool building...

                             Tiffany's...one of the most famous jewelry companies in the world (!)

Day 2: Monday~I hung out with my godmother, going first to Chinatown, and then to the largest Macy's ever built (also I think the largest store in the world!)

                                                            NINE STORIES TALL!!

                                                          Their sign on the building :)

                                          Chinatown was filled with little stores like this!!

                                                                and signs like this...
Oh, and we also stopped at a Buddhist temple, just to see what it was like :)

Day 3: Tuesday (my birthday!)
We took the subway to the Bronx to meet an old friend of my moms (who is now a priest) , and see the business he started, called Goods of Conscience.  We went up with my dad's entire class, and overall it was pretty awesome...it was actually someone else's birthday too, so that was fun!  Afterwards, we went o=to a really cool pizza place (Nina, you would have loved it...everyone was speaking Italian :)  **no pictures, sorry!

And still more too come!

~Rachel