Having the Husband at Home

This might sound crazy, but after 6 years of marriage, 2 kids, and one on the way, I still adore my husband and wish he could be home all the time. I just don't get that he has to be at work full-time, or more to make ends meet, and be away from us so much!! Growing up, I just accepted that this is what all families did, what all husbands/fathers did. But with being a wife to a man I am totally in love with, I just don't accept it!
I know, I know. I'm crazy. Of course he has to go and work so that we can have money so that we can support our family and I am so blessed that I don't have to work so that I can stay home with my precious kiddos! I get that! I'm just saying, if I had it my way, I would keep him home!
Tad's 30th birthday is coming up, and for his birthday, he wanted to take a crazy hiking/camping trip with his brothers and a guy from our church. They took about 3 days and went to Texas and went hiking, swimming, running, and camping. They had a blast! I am so glad he went and had such a good time!
But it was hard for me. Tad hasn't ever been away since we have gotten married! I have gone away with the kids to Ohio numerous times to visit my family. But we have never been the ones to be left. It wasn't so much that I couldn't handle the kids for the long weekend. I just missed him and was worried about him and his long drive. And I'm not used to being away from him for days on end with almost no communication!
But alas! He is home, safe and sound! It makes me appreciate my time with him so much more. And even though he is back to work, and I miss him again, I am so glad that he is only at work and not in another state with no cell phone reception!!
So, to end this rambling of a blog post, I will just say that I am so in love with Tad, and am grateful for every minute I get to spend with him! I'm so glad that I married someone who I can't stand to be away from, and not the other way around! Love you, baby!

A New House and a Valentine's Recipe

I'm so sorry I haven't been blogging lately!! It has been a crazy week!!! As you can see, we finally got a house!! It's a rental, but it will do for now!! It is a 3 bedroom, 1 1/2 bath, with a 1 car garage and a backyard!! Anyone from anywhere else would think a backyard would be a given, but coming from Chicago life, a backyard is a definite plus!! And a huge reason we wanted to move down to Oklahoma. Maddy will have her own backyard to run around in!!
We have moved some of our stuff in, and will continue to move the rest of our stuff in this week and get settled in!! I will post pictures as soon as I can!!
On a different note, I meant to post my Valentine's gift for Tad!! The other reason I haven't been blogging is because our camera screen broke, making it difficult to take pictures and impossible to view them. To be continued. Hopefully we can get a new camera sometime. So sorry I fell out of the blogging world for a whole week!!
So, back to Valentine's Day. I'm sure a lot of you have heard of bakerella.com. One of her main recipes is for cake balls, which are pretty much little balls of cake covered in chocolate. And let me tell you, they are to die for!!
This is what I originally wanted to make for Tad for V-day. But then I realized that I have never worked with fondant by myself, I'm not a cake-maker, and figured that experimenting with cake balls first would be enough of a new thing to try. They were delicious!!
The recipe is so easy!!!

Red Velvet Cake Balls
bakerella.com

1 box red velvet cake mix (cook as directed on box for 13 by 9 cake)
1 can cream cheese frosting (16 0z)
1 package chocolate bark (regular or white chocolate)
wax paper

1. After the cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble it into a large bowl.
2. Mix thoroughly with 1 can cream cheese frosting. (Use fingers or a sturdy spoon)
3. Roll mixture into quarter size balls and lay on cookie sheet. (It should make 45 to 50. You can use your hands to roll them, or a mini-sized ice cream scooper.)
4. Chill for several hours. (You can put them in the freezer to make this go faster.)
5. Melt the chocolate according to the package directions in the microwave. (Melting a few pieces at a time will help the chocolate not to become too firm to work with.)
6. Roll balls in chocolate and lay on wax paper until firm. (You can use a spoon to dip them in chocolate and then tap off the extra.)

Make these for your sweetie sometime and score some extra points!!! They are really good and really decadent!! They are easy, have few ingredients, and look impressive!! They do take some time since you have to make the cake, wait for it to cool, form the balls, let them cool for several hours, and then dip them in chocolate. So make sure you plan for 1/2 to a whole day to make them. I also cut up walnuts, and used red sprinkles and black icing to make some creative toppings. You can do other things to jazz these up too. Just check out her website for more creative ideas with cake balls!!
I was so glad to make these for my sweetie for Valentine's Day!! They were a nice treat when he came home from work late on Monday night!! Love you, Tad!! Thanks for the special Valentine's Day!!

5 Years and Counting

July 30, 2005

I love this guy so much!! Happy 5 year Anniversary, babe!!

Tad and I met at Moody Bible Institute our freshman year in 2002. We were friends right from the start and served in ministry in Cabrini Green together and were on the same brother/sister floor at Moody. We started going to the same church, and the hour and a half commute there helped us to get to know each other quite well. Though we came from very different backgrounds, we hit it off right away. I'm so glad that we really developed our friendship that first year instead of rushing into a relationship. It got to the point where we were very comfortable together; we were friends before we pursued a relationship.


My cousin, Emily, came to visit me at Moody, and I had to go pick her up from the train station, so I asked Tad if he would come with me (I am still not good at navigating those things!). He subsequently asked if I would like to go on a date with him before we picked her up. So he knew I liked Italian food and researched to find one of the best little authentic Italian restaurants in Chicago. We dressed up, and I can still remember him leaning over the desk on the ground floor of my dorm waiting for me to come down. After we ate dinner, we got on the train, and he told me that was his first date!! I was completely taken back!! It was the sweetest thing and I could hardly believe I was his first date!!
From there, we didn't start "dating." We mostly hung out in groups, at church functions, in ministry for Moody, or on our bro/sis floor outings. It wasn't until that summer that we officially started dating.
Tad and I are complete stark opposites. We still laugh that God put us together, but we really balance each other out. Tad- listener. Steph - talker. Tad - peacemaker. Steph - fighter. Tad - sports. Steph - academics. Tad - homeschool. Steph - public and private school. Tad - big family. Steph - small family. Tad - lived all over the world. Steph - northeast Ohio. Tad - spontaneous. Steph - planner. Anyways, you get the picture!!
Our common interests right off the bat were that we wanted to be in ministry overseas, and we wanted a big family. We both ended up graduating from Moody with degrees in International Ministries, and hope to one day be living overseas doing some kind of ministry.
Our marriage has not been without its hardships, either. Our first year we were still in school, in choir, on exec for choir, and I got pregnant 4 months into our marriage. That summer, Tad worked 2 jobs and I barely saw him. Finally, I gave birth to our beautiful daughter, Madelynn. Tragically, 12 days later, Tad's brother was killed in a car accident with 3 of his friends. It was probably the best and worst time of Tad's life, and it was definitely hard on our marriage for the next couple years. I didn't know what it was like to lose a sibling. He didn't know how to talk about it. Nevertheless, we made it through.
There were some rough years in there, but looking back over this last year, we have really grown together, deeper and stronger in our relationship. In December of 2009, we welcomed our first son, Judah Paul, into the world. He is such a joy, and we love being a little family of 4!!
I never used to understand how people said, "I love you more today than the day I married you" until now. I loved Tad when we were dating. I loved him when I said, "I do." I loved him after our first baby was born, and after his brother died. But over these last 5 years, and 8 years since we have known each other, our love has deepened. I love him so much. I can't imagine spending my life with someone else. I still can't get enough of him. I count down the hours until he comes home from work. We text all through his shifts at work. We love spending time together as a family, and as a couple.
Tad, you are the love of my life. Thank you for making me a better person, for pushing me to do better, and for loving me unconditionally, no matter how bad I screw up. Thank you for not fighting, yelling, or being unkind. You are a kind, gentle spirit, and I hope to learn that from you. You are an amazing father to our children, and they absolutely adore you. I am so happy with you as my best friend and soul mate for life. I cherish your wisdom, see you growing as a man, and love you more than ever. Happy first 5 years!!