i <3 apple

as of this past friday, zach and i are now proud and excited owners of these babies!

 

a couple weeks ago some wonderful friends of ours (who live in pasadena) called and said that they are upgrading their current iphones (that are less than a year old) and were wondering if we would be interested in their old ones?  also, they already have a family plan with 4 numbers, so we could just assign their 2 unused numbers to the old phones and share the bill, leaving NO startup cost for a new plan, etc. for us!  we said YES!

until this point i could never justify getting an iphone.  i thought they were pretty, and pretty awesome, but it wasn’t worth the money to me to own a smartphone since i sit in front of a computer and phone all day long.  for the money it would cost, it just wasn’t worth it.  that is, until now. 

because of the amazing generosity and thoughtfulness of our friends, we were given gently used iphones for FREE, and our portion of the bill each month will be $50 LESS than what we were paying before!  we priced out the cost of breaking our contract with verizon, and it is TOTALLY worth it.  the monthly savings will make up for the termination fee within a couple months!

needless to say, we are stoked.  the original plan had been to get the phones from our friends when we arrived in pasadena tomorrow, but knowing how utterly thrilled i was about this whole thing, my husband had them ship us the phones last week to surprise me!!  and then he told me to have a relaxing, spoiled day on saturday hanging on the couch in my PJ’s, playing with my new toy, and working on my digital wedding album project.  aaawww, i loves him! 

and on top of that, he let me pick out the CUTEST case on sunday at the mall.  isn’t it darling??

i’ve had a blast linking up my email and calendar and facebook, not to mention the apps! 

• current favorite app: the grocery list app i discovered (with the ability to create personalized categories, which makes me so happy because i’m ridiculously geeky like that)
• most addicting app: words with friends (mini scrabble game you can play with other iphone users; if you’re interested in playing, my username is cabesa_roja)
• most excited about using in the future app: ESV Bible – you can add notes to specific verses/passages!
• most handy app: either southwest airlines or BofA
• most excited about using NOW app: amazon kindle – i just downloaded a ton of free books i can’t wait to read
• my favorite “just for fun” app: MyStarbucks – i can save all my favorite drinks PLUS all my friend’s favorite drinks

and can i just say that i pretty much love all things apple?  we were in the apple store the other day asking about a few things and not only are the people in there awesome, but i was noticing how fabulous their design and layouts are for EVERYTHING – store layout, device design, sign placement, etc.  plus, i noticed that it is very “clean” feeling – and not just when it comes to dust and clutter.  their advertisements and images look like normal people, families, friends, etc.  i love how they aren’t relying on sexuality for their appeal.  and of course, i think their products are outstanding.  what can i say?  i’m an apple fan!

PS – if you didn’t receive an email/text/fb msg with our new phone numbers and need/would like them, let me know via xanga or fb and i’ll send them to you.

“SO! a needle pulling threeeaaad!”

i have rediscovered a love of sewing!  i am currently in the middle of
sewing a bridesmaid’s dress for a wedding i am in at the end of
october.  it’s  a fairly simple pattern, since it’s the first article of
clothing i have sewn in years.

i’m essentially sewing the turquoise one on the far right, except
without the sheer overlay.  the fabric is a rusty-reddish-orangish, with
a pretty shimmer to the fabric!  my mom is very kindly coaching me
through the process since i’m pretty new at this and still learning some
of the terminology and how to follow a pattern.

my goal is to finish the dress by the end of august.  i’m about 80% of the way done so i think i’m going to make my goal!

now that i have something of a sewing bug, i was inspired to randomly
just try something on my own.  i had a cute pillowcase (yes, a
PILLOWCASE) that i had originally thought to turn into a simple skirt. 
but, in a burst of inspiration, i became convinced i could actually
create a cute, drawstring top out of it.  so a couple weeks ago i made
it a sunday afternoon project.  i have to say – i am quite pleased with
the results!
(sorry the pic isn’t awesome – was using my cell phone)

i’ll post pictures of the dress once i’m finished with it!  aahhh sewing is so fun!

funny videos

i parodies so much.  they crack me up.  i so appreciate other people’s creativity to take something and put a new/funny/redemptive spin on it. 

i came across this video today and it had me cracking up!
(it’s a parody of the song “all the single ladies” by Beyonce.  if you want, just watch the first minute or so of the original to get a feel for the song – it makes the parody version all the funnier)

anita renfroe has some really funny other parodies too.  check out:
[a more real] love story (parody of taylor swift’s song “love story”)
Mom-isms
and
You Raise Me Up

it’s all about what you can’t see

zach and i have started reading books on heaven.  we were inspired by the series our church is going through on revelation.  he’s reading the full book Heaven, and i’m reading the bit-sized-pieces version, 50 Days of Heaven. i find that i do better reading deeper/study books when i read in small doses, and particularly when i read as part of my morning devotions.  but the bigger book is divided into tons of sections and topics so i’m sure i’ll at least dip into that one sometime too. 

i was so provoked and encouraged by a few short selections i read this morning and wanted to share them.  i’m really good and seeing exactly what is around me… and sometimes only that.  but life isn’t about what you see right here and now.  it’s all about what you can’t see.

In 1952, Florence Chadwick stepped into the waters of the Pacific Ocean off Catalina Island, California, determined to swim to the mainland.  An experienced swimmer, she had already been the first woman to swim the English Channel both ways.

The weather that day was foggy and chilly; Florence could hardly see the boats accompanying her.  Still, she swam steadily for fifteen hours.  When she begged to be taken out of the water along the way, her mother, in a boat alongside, told her that she was close and that she could make it.  Finally, physically and emotionally exhausted, Florence stopped swimming and was pulled out.  It wasn’t until she was aboard the boat that she discovered the shore was less than half a mile away.  At a news conference the next day, she said, “All I could see was the fog… I think if I could have seen the shore, I would have made it.” (Randy Alcorn, 50 Days of Heaven)

so good.  reminded me of Hebrews 12:1-2: 
Therefore, since we
are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside
every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with
endurance the race that is set before us, looking
to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that
was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated
at the right hand of the throne of God.

Perspective is key.

I also enjoyed this other tidbit:
“No Christian should be pessimistic.  We should be true realists – focused on the reality that we serve a sovereign and gracious God.  Because of the reality of Christ’s atoning sacrifice and his promises, biblical realism is optimism.” (Randy Alcorn, 50 Days of Heaven

Christian optimism isn’t just a stoic and candidly plastered smile on our faces that we force through gritted teeth while saying, “oh I’m fine.  God is sovereign.”  it’s a longing for heaven, a glimpse of the shore, a hope in Christ that helps alleviate some of the pain of this life and presses us on toward the next.

must-share recipes

i personally have really enjoyed when my friends post recipes they have enjoyed.  so thought i would contribute a few winners for you all to enjoy.  🙂

many people avoid enjoying fettucini alfredo because of it’s high fat content with the butter, oil, cream, etc. well, mom has a recipe that is much less fatty and still super yummy!  after making it tonight for zach and remembering how delicious it was, i figured i would share it with you all.

chicken fettucini alfredo

2-4 lbs of chicken, cut into smallish pieces (cubes, strips, whatever you like)
1 T olive oil
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
1 cup milk
1 cup chicken broth
3 T flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 8oz pkg cream cheese
1 pkg frozen broccoli
1 pkg noodles

on stovetop, begin boiling noodles.  in separate pan, cook chicken, onion and garlic in olive oil.  add all the rest of the ingredients (except for the broccoli) and stir and simmer until creamy and bubbly.

when the noodles are almost cooked, add frozen broccoli and cook for 3-5 minutes or until broccoli is tender.  drain and serve with the sauce!

yep, it’s that easy. 

and for dessert?  my friend callie shared this recipe for Molten Chocolate Cake on her blog.  as soon as i looked at the recipe my first thought was “OHMYGOSH WHERE IS THE PRINT BUTTON??”  i made it that night after dinner and they were SOOO delicious.  and seriously SO easy.  it took all of like, 20 minutes from start to finish and they turned out PERFECTLY.  i was thrilled.  and of course, had to share with you all as well. 

enjoy!

zach and i had a fabulous time visiting the extended boomsma side of the family in holland, michigan a few weeks back. 

i
think we would have enjoyed our first flight together more had we not
been in the very back row of a rear-engine plane.  yikes.

now, i am a very low maintenance and easy-going traveler, but even i was
sorely tempted to complain about the constant rattle that gave me a
headache by the end of the flight.  not to mention having zero view out
the window. 
see where the cylindrical turbo prop things are?  see that little
window on the other side of the emergency exit door?  our seats were
right BEHIND that window.  so although we had a “window seat,”  all you
could see was blue metal when you looked out.  i was kinda bummed. 
thank goodness for The Bourne Ultimatum dvd and our headphones that made
the flight go by much faster. 

we spent the days hanging with
family, driving back and forth from Uncle Rick & Aunt Elly’s house
(where we were staying) and Grandma and Grandpa Boomsma’s house (where
there rest of the Boomsma clan was staying). 

as you may already
know, holland, michigan is where a very large number of dutch
immigrants settled in the states.  the city is full of dutch culture and
it’s so much fun!  wooden shoes, delft porcelain, windmills, dutch
words and tulips (although we didn’t get to see many tulips since it was
july…)! 

uncle rick owns Vander Veen’s – The Dutch Store.  naturally, we had to go visit!

The Dutch Store has tons of delft porcelain…

… dutch food…

…and fuzzy slippers that look like dutch wooden shoes!  (that i, of course, HAD to get)

we
also got some dutch soup mixes and sauces, de ruijter chocolate
sprinkles, a delft mug, and delft salt & pepper shakers.  and
grandma sent us home with a pretty little candy dish, candles and a tea
towel with a dutch proverb on it.  we couldn’t experience all that fun
dutch-ness and not take some of it home with us, now could we?

one
day we went to see Big Red – an old lighthouse on the coast of lake
michigan.  it was a bit hot and humid, but the coast was beautiful!

hanging on the pier… this picture pairing cracks me up:
what i was taking….                                                                      

what courtney was taking…. 

(pc: courtney boomsma)
 

we
also attended ben & kristi’s wedding.  ben is zach’s cousin – uncle
rick and aunt elly’s son (picture of the couple totally swiped from
kristi’s fb):

(pretty
much from here on out, all the pictures posted were taken by courtney. 
i’m awful enough as it is at remembering to take pictures on any
vacation, but when i’m with someone who is actually GOOD at taking
pictures, my picture-taking-laziness knows no bounds.  shameful, i
know.  and yet here you are, enjoying them…)

we loved spending
time with grandma and grandpa boomsma.  they immigrated here from the
province of friesland, the netherlands and have some great stories (ask
grandma about smashing pie in her co-worker’s face).  plus they still
have a fair bit of the dutch accent, which is so fun to listen to!  i
have so much respect for their hard work (grandpa worked 3 jobs for
awhile when they first lived here) and patience and determination in the
face of hardship, persecution and struggle, not to mention a
significant language barrier.  they are amazing.  and very cute.  and
very funny.    what delightful grandparents they are! 
 

courtney took this picture of zach and i at the wedding and simply HAD to post it because it’s my new favorite:

we visited this place called Dutch Village that was full of shops with neat dutch foods and souvenirs…

by
far the coolest thing there was the candle shop.  they dip a base
candle in many layers of various colors and then, while the wax is still
soft, handcarve them to make the designs.  it was so impressive and
beautiful! (see the ones hanging on the wall to the right?)

the
last full day we had in michigan we went to the beach at kirk park
(lake michigan coast).  i had gotten a wicked sunburn the day before
(stupid overcast skies that STILL let the sun through even though it
doesn’t FEEL like it.  even just 30 minutes and i come out looking like a
lobster.  sigh.), so i camped out underneath an umbrella most of the
time.

zach attempted to fly a kite and i attempted to help him.  he was marginally successful.  🙂

we
loved our time in michigan!  seeing the family and enjoying the green
landscape and thunderstorms.  celebrating with ben and kristi at their
wedding.  sleeping in and enjoying slow-paced days.  learning more about
my husband’s family’s dutch roots.