Easter Feasting

I felt it was appropriate that I spent my SECOND Easter in the UK at Cambridge. You see, my first one was in Oxford, that O so fateful Easter when I met my husband for the very first time. I didn't know that at the time of course. I just enjoyed talking to Daniel's best friend and then went on to have a lovely visit in England with Brooke. But here we are, two years later, and we are spending our lives in this country. So, to have our second Easter together at the other great institution that makes up the term "Oxbridge" was rather poetic. And the weather seemed to agree with us.
It was gloriously warm--so warm, that Brooke and I went barefoot most of the time and I got my first sunburn. Do explain to me how England can get up to 78 F in APRIL, while back in the Northwest, people are just happy to see sunshine? Hmmm? I don't quite get these weather things. Maybe it's global warming. Ha! :) Of course, I blame global warming for most of the daffy political things that happen too, so maybe it's not. Maybe it's just God being generous with fantastic weather at the most important church event of the year.
We punted on the river Cam (again appropriate as we punted the Isis in Oxford two years ago) and toured various Cambridge institutions. We went to Ely Cathedral for Maundy Thursday and I was staggered again by the glorious architecture all over this small island. AND I accomplished perfect macarons for Easter! Yes, due largely to Brooke's convection oven, small little buttons of joy came out perfectly and we devoured them in a shameful manner for tea on Easter Sunday.
We had roast lamb, I got to wear my first Easter hat since 12 years old (by golly, someone's got to bring hat's back and when is a better time than Easter??? No answer? That's what I thought. :)) colored brown eggs for the first time, and we celebrated the resurrection of our Lord in style among English and American friends. So here are some glimpses of our magnificent time in Cambridge!

inside the lovely grounds of Ridley Hall

Someone decides to be as cute as possible

Loving the punting

We let the guys do all the work

Brooke making good things

and with the final product

Aren't those just lovely? We had so much fun seeing the way the brown shell affected the color

My beauties

Daniel made this pavlova!

After church in the garden. Mark got a new tie, I got a new hat! :)

Macarons: ALMOST ecstasy :)

So, batch three was so bad, I couldn't even face posting pictures. However, I was more than obscurely pleased to discover today that my oven is badly off base. We called in a professional who informed me it is indeed 30 degrees higher than its stated temperature. Given this bit of information, I am quite pleased to present batch number FOUR which I made yesterday and literally sat in front of the oven to watch so as to ensure quality. They were a smidge too sticky inside, but that is due to this oven business and you wouldn't know they stuck a bit unless I told you. Which I just did. So I will make ONE more batch next week to see if I can do this consistently. I also switched the recipe I used and I like this one more as it seems to produce a sturdier and smoother cookie. So without further ado, I give you batch four:

See the little crumbly looking part at the bottom of each one? That is called a 'foot' and is EXACTLY what a  proper macaron should do. :) Also that beautiful smooth shiny top is what a proper macaron should do. I almost kissed the tray. :)

And this is how the French serve them--in sandwich form. 

Macarons: The agony and the ecstasy

So in my quest for the right macaroon recipe and tips, I came across this blog which I LOVED! There are so many inspiring ideas and creative things that she does, so I thought I would share the link. I think my sister, Kathryn, will particularly like this. :)  Here it is: giverslog.com. And also, here are the results of my second macaroon trial. Still not perfect, but that's why we practice. I discovered that I need to reduce my oven temperature a bit (it gets too hot and hates me) and move the rack down one to avoid the slight browning which is great in meringues, but not in macarons. They definitely have a smoother top and formed the right 'skin', but because I didn't have a plain round nozzle, they did crack and aren't pastry shop smooth. But there is promise for them to be with the right nozzle!! (which I shall get this weekend) The flavor is still great and I messed around with the filling and frankly came up with something decadently fabulous!! (I won't tell you how much butter and cream I whipped, but it was WORTH it.) I have also discovered how much I love almond flavor and I messed around with color combos and I think I'll go with this. Next week: Batch three in ocean green and blue! :)

See the one at the far bottom right? Almost perfect. :)

Flowers and Food!

I can tell that Spring Fever is upon me. I have this deep urge to clean the house REALLY thoroughly, I want flowers consistently and I am trying new recipes and looking for 'springy' foods. So, I have begun what some term 'spring cleaning', but mine actually involves spring cleaning, spring cooking, spring shopping and spring fitness. That last one is important if I'm going to be making all the things I want to make! And I've got a good start on some of these categories. I spent a good part of Saturday vacuuming weird and wonderful cracks and crannies throughout the house as part of my regular clean. Mark and I made an epic journey to buy our first cordless drill so we could hang newly framed pictures and I had to buy a few spring decorating touches as well as several organizer boxes the other day!

In the cooking department, I have made round one of French macaroons and intend on at least two more attempts before I tackle them 'for real' at the Newman's for Easter. :) And because my husband likes them, I made stuffed peppers for dinner the other night. A great spring dish and I can have it too, because I substituted portabello mushrooms for some of the peppers. Necessity is the mother of invention... So I thought I'd share a few pics of what I've been up to!

 

Adventures in England Part Two: The colors of spring!!

Hello again Hobbes, Madeline, Amara, and Asa! We are all in the season of spring now, but it looks VERY different for us doesn't it? Hobbes and Madeline can go barefoot now and they have some beautiful flowers blooming. But Amara and Asa are still getting some snow, and their flowers are just peaking out from under their dirt covers. Over here in England, Uncle Mark and Aunt Carolyn are enjoying lots and lots of beautiful flowers. It isn't as warm here as it is for Hobbes and Madeline, but it is very similar to Cannon Beach. Do you remember Cannon Beach Hobbes and Madeline? It has a very big rock in the ocean and you like to draw in the sand and chase the waves. But it also has lots of beautiful flowers even though it isn't very warm. But it is near the ocean just like England and so it has lots of water and the flowers like that. 

I thought I would show you all what our spring looks like over here. I get to see these flowers every day!

I would love to have this many daffodils in my garden!

This made me think of magnolia trees in the South! I think it is an English cousin

This would be very pretty in Madeline or Amara's hair don't you think?

These are some sort of apple blossom.

This is a very BRIGHT flower--what color is it? 

I needed to have some spring INSIDE the house too!

These are in flower boxes in the city

While these were growing in a flower box outside someone's house

And this is what a daffodil looks like if you are a bug on the ground looking up!

Musings on the Marvels of Modern Technology

I wanted to post this while I was in the U.S. but sadly, when I went to do it, my folks' computer went on the fritz--which I found ironic given that this was my title. :) So, I am back in the UK and writing from here.
I had a very short jaunt to Moscow to surprise my folks and go to the Logos 30th anniversary benefit concert. Mark and I found this really great ticket several months ago and decided that it would be great not only for me to visit, but to make it a surprise. Naturally, I needed to rope Naphtali and Kathryn into it to help me out and to make a long story short, I ended up in Moscow in time to walk into my parents' house for dinner.
Can you imagine making a trip like this 50 years ago? Or 100? 50 years ago would have taken a VERY long time and it wouldn't have been as comfortable. 100 years ago, I would have taken a boat and the time for travel would have been at least a week on each side of the visit. And don't get me started on how expensive it would have been!!
In this era, I flew over in what was essentially one day (heading west). And I must say it didn't feel as though I had crossed the Atlantic to be there. It felt more like I had driven down from Spokane as I used to for weekends. And I started pondering why I felt like that.
I think part of the answer is modern technology such as skype. Now I can see my family as  I chat, with the background of their homes and it feels as though I am there in a way. Of course it's not as great as being able to hug them or sit around a dinner table together, but it's lovely to see the kids and have them talk to me. I wondered if Asa (who skypes with me regularly) would make the connection that I'm the same person who lives in the computer. Well he did! And so did Amara. In fact, when I walked in the first thing she said was "Hi Carin! Mark?" She already knows that we are associated you see. :) Asa went one further and promptly walked into my dad's study and pointed to his closed laptop saying, "Mark?" Yes Asa, Mark and I do live in the computer. :) But it was lovely that my two year old niece and nephew are already able to know us even though we're thousands of miles apart.
So, I may gripe about technology from time to time. Most of you know I believe computers are evil beings that hate me. But on occasion they are wonderful, such as when booking plane tickets or talking to loved ones. Because suddenly the world is a much smaller place, and England doesn't feel an ocean away, but more like I'm down the street from my family.
So I thought I should put that in writing! :)

Legacies

Nine years ago today, on a cool but lovely sunny day, much like this one, my grandfather left the 'shadowlands'. Then, it was a Saturday morning and I awoke to an early call from my father to give me the news that Grandpa Garfield's term was over and his holidays had begun. How well C.S. Lewis was able to voice the feelings and thoughts so many of us have! Then as now, I shed tears of grief and hope at the same time. The idea of lamenting in hope seems strange to the unbeliever, but as we have been learning in church recently, the Old Testament prophets were experts in it. Grief for the destruction of Israel, and hope in the coming Savior.
Every March 2nd since then, I think about my grandpa's life, rather than his death. It seems that God likes to give me sunny days to mark this anniversary and I am grateful. The beauty of that day was amazing; I went down to the water (I was living in Seattle at the time) and just sat looking at Puget Sound for an hour or more, with the white dome of Mt. Rainier rising behind me and the green mountains of the Olympics before me.
We Garfield grandchildren have never been to Disneyland. And I don't think any of us regret that. Our vacations were nearly always spent in Portland, Oregon, visiting our grandparents. These trips included cousins, coffee, the beach, the zoo, the city and love. Such an overused word. But it's the best one. I don't mean syrupy love with kittens playing in the flowers or something. I mean love that can only come from lives that have been fermented in it for decades. That love flowed from Grandpa and Grandma Garfield into their children and their children's children. It cemented our family in Christ.
Now, seperated by a few blocks, a few states, or a few thousand miles (!!) we still feel that bond. I don't just refer to my own siblings and I. We still love the cousins we shared these grandparents with and keep in touch with them as well. Someday, I hope we'll have the Bob Garfield family reunion.
My grandfather was the best Christian man I knew. He raised a son to be like him, and he raised a son to be like him as well. I have been blessed to see three generations of God's promises and am watching the small number fours being nurtured in the admonition of the Lord as well. God willing, I will have my own to give this legacy to.
It's been nine years since I heard my grandpa's defining greeting "Hello friends!" but I can still hear it whenever I think of him and I think all of us-- his wife, his children and grandchildren--will hear it again when we join him in glory.
I still miss him. I wish he could have seen all our weddings and children. Maybe he does. I'm delighted that Grandma did and I know she misses him most of all.
But today is the day that the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it! Because his life isn't over and we'll see him again.
I love you Grandpa.