B+C+B+C+B+C: Neighborly, part 2

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Neighborly, part 2

I've posted about our neighbors a few times before.... they're awesome. Tom and Debra are from Burmingham and have a home next to us as their "western retreat." They refer to themselves as Brianna's surrogate grandparents. Sadly, they went back to Alabama for the winter.... dang snowbirds. When I found out they were leaving in just a few days, I blurted out, "well then you two have to come over tomorrow night for dessert and games!" I must have forgot that I'm not good at making desserts. At least I didn't say DINNER.... then I'd really be in trouble. So I did what I always do when I need kitchen help - called mom. She walked me through a fabulous recipe for "apple pie in a bag." It was awesome - so easy and yummi. Brianna helped me slice all the apples in my cuisinart (love that machine):

Our neighbors were quite impressed when I pulled the big brown grocery bag out of the oven and cut it open to reveal our pie:

It was a tad overdone - as you can see - a little too brown on top. But that made the homemade PEAR icecream melt quite nicely over it. I made that little treat in my Vitamix.

We also invited the neighbors next to the Browns - Doug and Dorothy. They are a really sweet couple, both working still, and have reputation for the nicest yard in the neighborhood. Doug helps me with our sprinklers, since I am likely to kill off our entire landscape if left to manage it solo. After dessert we played "Chat Pack" - a question game my mom gave us. It's one of those un-game type activities... no scoring or rules... just random, interesting questions. With the right company, it creates some hilarious conversations.

7 comments:

Anderson Family said...: You are so good at this blogging thing! Hey it may have been a little over done but by the looks of it, i think it must have been yummy!; November 8, 2009 at 2:53 PM
Amy Hunter said...: Well well you are turning into a regular domestic diva, Becky homecky! I wish I was your neighbor.; November 8, 2009 at 4:12 PM
Crystal and Jordan said...: so fun!!; November 9, 2009 at 6:47 AM
DeAnne said...: That is so cute. I love how you're hangin with the older folk. I bet they love it too. You might have to post that recipe, ya know. Sounds interesting! and oooo you have a vitamix? just heard about those.; November 9, 2009 at 7:12 AM
Debbie said...: Doing the "neighborly thing" is becoming a lost art. Good for you!; November 9, 2009 at 5:14 PM
summer said...: You are an angel! I love the apple pie in a bag - post the recipe please! Also, I am loving the neighborly thing here as well - we are noticing that so many people just want others to notice and care about them...and there are times where we find the very best of friends in the most unlikely of places.

I wish you lived out here by me so we could be Ward Missionaries together! Keep doing what you are, others could use a little (some a BIG) nudge to remember how to be kind and gracious to others! :); November 10, 2009 at 7:14 PM
Mandy said...: Um, don't you know it's rude to talk about (and show pictures of) food and NOT share the recipe! :) I'd love the recipe for both the pie AND ice cream (I have a vitamix too). Thanks!

Looks like you had a bunch of fun!; November 28, 2009 at 8:21 AM

Quotes I want to remember

"The Lord knows our bearing capacity, both as to coping and to comprehending, and He will not give us more to bear than we can manage at the moment, though to us it may seem otherwise. Just as no temptations will come to us from which we cannot escape or which we cannot bear, we will not be given more trials than we can sustain."
- Neal A. Maxwell

"It is a fundamental truth that the responsibilities of motherhood cannot be successfully delegated. No, not to day-care centers, not to schools, not to nurseries, not to babysitters. We become enamored with men's theories such as the idea of preschool training outside the home for young children. Not only does this put added pressure on the budget, but it places young children in an environment away from mother's influence."
-Ezra Taft Benson

“Perhaps there has never been a time when we had greater need to pray and to teach our family members to pray. Prayer is a defense against temptation. It is through earnest and heartfelt prayer that we can receive the needed blessings and the support required to make our way in this sometimes difficult and challenging journey we call mortality.”
-Thomas S. Monson

“Live the gospel as conspicuously as you can. Keep the covenants your children know you have made. And bear your testimony! Don’t just assume your children will somehow get the drift of your beliefs on their own.
-Jeffrey R. Holland

"We hold in our arms the rising generation. They come to this earth with important responsibilities and great spiritual capacities. We cannot be casual in how we prepare them. Our challenge as parents and teachers is not to create a spiritual core in their souls but rather to fan the flame of their spiritual core already aglow with the fire of their premortal faith."
-Neil L. Andersen

"Certainly there are times when getting the family together to read the scriptures does not stack up as a spiritual experience worthy of a journal entry. But we must not be deterred. There are special times when the spirit of a son or daughter is just right and the power of these great scriptures goes down into their heart like fire. As we honor our Heavenly Father in our homes, He will honor our efforts."
-Neil L. Andersen

President Hinckley admonished both men and women to be nurturers. He said, ‘How much more beautiful would be the society in which we live if every father . . . and . . . mother regarded [their] children . . . as gifts from the God of heaven . . . and brought them up with true affection in the wisdom and admonition of the Lord.’ ”
-Susan W. Tanner

"Children are like trees. When they are young, their lives can be shaped and directed, usually with ever so little effort. Said the writer of Proverbs, 'Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it' (22:6). That training finds its roots in the home. There will be little of help from other sources. Do not depend on government to help in this darkening situation. Barbara Bush, wife of former U.S. president George Bush, spoke wisely: 'Your success as a family, our success as society, depends not on what happens at the White House, but on what happens inside your house.' "
-Gordon B. Hinckley

“I give counsel to husbands and wives. Pray for the love which allows you to see the good in your companion. Pray for the love that makes weaknesses and mistakes seem small. Pray for the love to make your companion’s joy your own. Pray for the love to want to lessen the load and soften the sorrows of your companion.”
-Henry B. Eyring

“Reverent behavior is not a natural tendency for most children. It is a quality that is taught by parents and leaders through example and training. But remember, if reverence is rooted in love, so is the teaching of it. Harshness in our training begets resentment, not reverence.”
-Margaret S. Lifferth

"There is no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique. Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children. What matters is that a mother loves her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else."
- M. Russell Ballard

“As parents, we should remember that our lives may be the book from the family library which the children most treasure. Are our examples worthy of emulation? Do we live in such a way that a son or a daughter may say, ‘I want to follow my dad,’ or ‘I want to be like my mother’?”
-Thomas S. Monson

“Security for our families comes from learning self-control, avoiding the excesses of this world, and being temperate in all things.”
-Kent D. Watson

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Neighborly, part 2

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