Fresh. Local. Social.

My Three Favorite Things.

Hello — We love 732 Social. Not only is the atmosphere amazing but the prohibition era drinks are unique, hand crafted, original & classic cocktails! Need I say more? This is my pick for places to go & have a memorable time. Eat & drink the night away!

-Molly

Ward Eight--Adam's Choice of the Night.

 

A Witness of True Love

About three weeks ago, I had the priviledge of being a witness of true love.

My parents called me to tell me heartbreaking news, they had just been told that our closest family friend, Bill, had gone to the hospital thinking that he was having heart problems, but was told that he has terminal brain cancer. I immediately started crying not only because of the news that “Mr. Bill” was given, but because he did not know the sweetest name I know, JESUS.

Mr. Bill has always been a part of our family, along with his girlfriend Miss Janice. When I was around 10 or 11 years old, an 80 ft. tree fell on our house, by God’s grace no one in my family was hurt, and Mr. Bill came to our rescue. He pretty much rebuilt our entire home. Mr. Bill has a true gift, that is such a reflection of Christ, he is a carpenter.

Mr. Bill and Miss Janice have been engaged for 21 years…yes i know, 21 YEARS. The first thing they wanted to do when they heard the news was get MARRIED. They had planned to get married the next day at 4 o’clock in the chapel at the hospital. Well as to no surprise at all, God had better plans. As soon as the hospital staff got wind that the two of them wanted to be married, they decided they were going to do everything they could to make this the most special day of there lives. (I have always respected the nursing profession above all others, so many of my dear friends are nurses, but this experience made me truly love what nursing is really about-loving and caring for people.)

The wedding was the most beautiful wedding I have ever been too and I know I will ever go to. Miss Janice wore blue scrubs, a veil made out of gauze, and was without a doubt the most beautiful bride I have ever seen. The nurses provided Mr. Bill with his own boutonniere, Miss Janice with a beautiful bouquet, a singer for the wedding, an entire reception filled with music, centerpieces, cake, and the sweetest atmosphere that truly showed the newlyweds how loved they are. So many gathered to rejoice with the couple! The staff even decorated there hospital room and turned it into their own Honeymoon Suite, complete with hanging palm trees, hula skirts, and lays. It was the most beautiful day…

Though all of these things were so wonderful, the best part of the entire day took place after the wedding ceremony. I was asked to read scripture at the wedding and after seeking God’s guidance I felt lead to talk about the true, unconditional, and eternal love of Christ–agape love.

I read this passage from Romans 5:7-9

“Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

My parents have been sharing the good news with Mr. Bill for years, and his heart has been hard towards it. But not that day. The Holy Spirit used these words in Romans to penetrate the deepest part of Mr. Bill’s heart. At the reception Mr. Bill told me that He was ready to accept Christ as Lord and Savior! I have prayed for this day since I was a little girl….God’s faithfulness to His people is unfathomable at times. I feel so undeserving to have witnessed this incredible love story between Mr. Bill and Miss Janice, but most of all between Jesus Christ and Mr. Bill. Since this day Mr. Bill has been daily growing in his faith and his love for God grows deeper and deeper daily…He is looking forward to meeting His Savior and having a second wedding…

Romans 19:6-9 proclaims,

^“Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come,  and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.  Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”

Being a believer gives us so much hope and so much to look forward to in eternity. If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Savior, invite him into your life, pick up your cross, and follow him. He loves you dearly.

Tears that didn’t flow…

I knew as I said good-bye to the sweet faces of you dear girls that I would ache later.  I knew that when I shut my door and watched you all drive away from my house my heart would not adequately hurt for my loss, but now it feels deeply.  I am alone, the adrenaline has worn off and life is continuing on, but you all need to know how much I treasure the past 8 weeks.  How undeserving I am of the tears that were shed over my departure, mine didn’t come that night, but they are on their way.

It is too much to be loved how you girls have loved me and I am grateful everyday that I get to experience such a moving presence as friendship and sisterhood…Love you girls more than I can say.  You are the best GROUP any girl could ask for.

It’s A Wonderful Life!

 

My Sweet Little Family!

I just got back from an amazing trip in Colorado with sweet friends & family & even though the skiing was incredible I couldn’t get over the gorgeous views! The first day was so bright & blue & then the rest of the week turned into winter wonderland full of snow-covered evergreens & grey mountains. On the plane home I became increasingly tired of reading Harry Potter, listening to my iPod, reading the New York Times, then listening to my iPod some more … so I decided to reflect on my year.

At first I didn’t know where to start because I honestly couldn’t think of what I had done in 2010 & I knew it wasn’t anything like backpacking through Europe for 42 days or going to Zambia to help orphans…so I decided to begin with the fact that I turned 22 & little did I know back in January that this was going to be a crazy & different year.  In March we decided to get Kola, our precious Australian shepherd mutt, she turned out to be the best idea we’ve ever had & our lives are happier because of her.

Kola Bear! She's the best!

In the midst of getting a new dog I began to rapidly change. I was in my last semester of undergrad & I decided to take all of these anthropology & humanities courses that opened my mind to a whole new way of life. After graduation in May I fully realized that I was a new person. One of my new qualities is that I became a locavore. “What is a locavore? “ you may ask — well it’s fairly simple, you make the life choice to do all things local. The food may be grown in home gardens or grown by local commercial groups interested in keeping the environment as clean as possible and selling food close to where it is grown (grasshoppers is a great example of this & it is based in Louisville). Farmers’ Markets play a role in efforts to eat what is local & Louisville has so many choices that it would be absurd not to go to at least one in a season plus it is an amazing way to meet people in your community & get connected to those who share similar beliefs about food.

I took this picture over the summer at the Woodland Farm event for Edible Louisville Magazine! Eat local!

With my new attitude about Louisville & all things local we decided to go house shopping! At first I was desperate for an old fixer-upper & it had to be close if not on Frankfort Ave. So we searched & searched & all the homes I wanted were either impossibly run down or too expensive so I decided to take a backseat & let Ben do the shopping. He of course found a house in one day. It was perfect, not even half a mile away from Frankfort Ave. but it was secluded enough that we didn’t feel suffocated, and the yard was amazing. When we walked through the house for the first time & saw the polished hardwood floors we knew it was ours. We bought it in June & have been making little improvements here & there. Ben built a gorgeous wooden fence that wraps around our yard so perfectly. I made other improvements to the home such as painting every room (thank you to all those who helped), painting the entire outside of our home, & refinishing our kitchen cabinets & countertops (unfortunately I decided to do that while Ben was in finals & he wasn’t too happy).

With graduation comes weddings! I thought “yeah my friends are going to get married after college” but I never expected it to be in the same year. I was in four weddings & went to so many I lost count after twelve. Three of those beautiful weddings were to my dearest and best friends who are also co-authors of this blog. Each wedding was so unique & beautiful that I felt incredibly honored to be apart of them all. Love is a powerful thing & every time I heard my best friends say their vows I remembered why I got married & why I am so blessed to have a family (and now a home) that is so full of love & passion.

In the middle of all these weddings we decided to get another dog. I know what your thinking “that’s nuts”?! But we knew it was a perfect decision for our family. We wanted Kola to have a playmate & we knew that we couldn’t let this huge yard go to waste. So we decided to get a Weimaraner in October & Ryder has been the perfect fit into our crazy family. After getting all of these dogs we became obsessed with animals so we decided to get two chickens, Posie & Mommy, they were so easy that we got two more. We realize we should own land but for now we are happy with our urban farm.

 

Ryder Gray! He is just precious!

Ben with Posie & Mommy!

Other things I remember doing in 2010 include: giving blood for the fourth time, watching Ben sail his first boat which turned out to be a hilarious & wild experience, running the mini-marathon, going to a lot of weddings, celebrating three years of blissful marriage, I went to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota & changed, painted a lot (mostly walls), went to Chattanooga for the first time, got better at cooking, went hiking in Big South Fork, worked for four almost five companies,  & karate chopped Ben through our wall.

Ben Sailing!

 

The Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota! Classic tree in the back!

 

Ben & Ryder hiking in Big South Fork

Yes I karate chopped Ben through our wall! He started it (heheh)! We were chasing each other around the house, the usual, tickling, acting Asian, & karate chopping one another. I was literally getting in my last chop when Ben lost his balance & fell through our living room wall! I had to walk away because I couldn’t believe that there was a giant gapping hole in my new freshly painted wall! Luckily Ben is crafty & re-drywalled the huge hole in a day. It was the perfect thing to end our crazy year.

Thanks for reading,

~Molly R.

A day in the life!

Home for the Holidays

Any of you who know my mom, know that Christmas is a BIG deal in the Thompson household. In fact, Christmas in the Thompson home does not just start and stop in December. It begins November 1st and “The Decor” does not come down for another 4-6 months. I LOVE it that way, and wouldn’t change a thing about it! It’s all I have ever known…

As newlyweds, Jonathan and I have been all about starting our own traditions (as you saw from my last post). So we have done all sorts of things this month to be in the Christmas Spirit….

Going to get our FIRST Christmas Tree!

Our FIRST snowball fight and picture with Gracie and her amazing snowman!

 

Our Gingerbread House!

 

Right after we decorated our tree, the BEST Night! (Yes, I am wearing a Christmas onesie, and Yes, my husband loved it!)

Our Tree!

Our nativity scene that my Dad bought us in Israel!

My DIY wreath, all thanks to Carol Anne's great instructions!

This month has been full of listening to our favorite Christmas Classics, watching Christmas movies like Elf to get us in the spirit, baking tons and tons, like peppermint brittle, oreo balls, and pumpkin spice cake (thanks to Molly’s amazing recipe). We have had a blast celebrating our first December with each other as newlyweds…everything in life is sweeter! I have much to be thankful for, but most of all I am thankful for the Reason for this Season, Jesus.

Happy Christmas, as they would say at Hogwarts!

Chelsea

DIY Christmas Wreath

After decorating my house in Kentucky over Thanksgiving, I decided I needed to bring the Christmas cheer back to Birmingham. But money is not something I have an abundance of. I spotted a wreath similar to this one at an antique store in Birmingham. Loving all things burlap the fabric immediately caught my eye, but after glancing at the price tag I knew this adorable item won’t be entering my house for the holidays. Until 5 seconds later I realized, “Hello Carol Anne, You could make this with one hand tied behind your back blindfolded.” So I decided to give it a whirl, and put my own spin on it. The wreath in the store was tied with a beautiful satin ribbon, but I decided to add a more festive feel with glass ball ornaments.

Supplies: 1 yard burlap, Foam wreath form, Fishing line for securing ornaments

Directions: Cut one piece of burlap in a 2 inch wide long strip and wrap tightly around the wreath form. Cut smaller strips 1 inch wide and 18 inches long and tie around wreath, making sure each knot touches the previous. Go wild with ribbons, ornaments or berries!

A Whole New World

Every day I wake up at 5:00 am. I am NOT a morning person, so 3 cups of coffee is the norm.  I get in my car and drive 25 minutes through downtown Birmingham to reach my final destination… Tarrant, AL.  Tarrant is no Middletown, KY or Anchorage, KY.  Tarrant is a place where 6:30am drug busts are normal, where drive by shootings happen so often recess is often cancelled, and where parents are non – existant in childrens lives.  I walk everyday into my room and pray for strength from the Lord, because trust me, these kids ware me down. I have days where I feel incredible, my students perform well and they show appreciation.  I see days where I see my kids finding pride in themselves and finding something to be proud of. I also have days where students get in my face and call me a B*** and sometimes even try to hurt me.

 

You see… nothing is normal for my students.  I think back when I was in sixth grade. My parents fed me dinner, invested in my life, checked my homework and cared for my moral and spiritual growth. I was more concerned about which “Sak” purse I was going to wear and how many “Power Bead” bracelets I could have.  My students have parents that are in jail, drug dealers, child abusers, or working three jobs and never home.  98% of my school is on “Free or reduced lunch.” My students look forward to food stamp day.  My students pronounce “Street” like “Screet”, “girl” like “guh” and “four” like “fuh.”

 

Yes, my students are sometimes dysfunctional, moody, and selfish… but I love them. Who isn’t all those things??? I was telling  Andrew at church the other day… I would love nothing more than to see one of my students baptised and a firm believer in the Lord. You see… I can offer my students hope, but only earthly hope. I try to encourage them to finish school, work a job and try hard.  I tell them life is hard but if you believe in yourself you can succeed. The problem is…. we should NEVER believe in ourselves. Our hope and our future is in the LORD JESUS CHRIST who has called us by NAME to worship him because he died for our salvation.   How do you tell your students that when it is illegal to talk about it at school?

So… There are some glimpses into my life.  I have so much to be thankful for. Jesus is my Savior, Andrew is my superman 🙂

 

Peace.Love.Thugs.

A Tribute to My Girls

This blog has turned into the best space for me to share stories and irrelevant obscurities of my days(Taylor Swift sighting) and after the other postings I have realized that right now I am the shallow, slightly heartless contributor to this blog.  Nonetheless, I found this song and DIED, it is hysterical and all I could think of was the Group and my role as the girl who puts songs like the one I’m about to put up on it.  Anyways, I thought of my beautiful friends…You all ARE GORGEOUS…It’s almost unfair how beautiful you girls are and well quite frankly I am honored to be a part of lives so beautifully lived.  Enough with that, here is the song…

Only Prettier

-Carlis-

A NEW TRADITION

Yesterday morning when I looked out of my bedroom window, I thought that I was in a dream because Louisville looked like a Winter Wonderland. Jonathan and I decided that it was the perfect day to begin our Christmas decorating… Both Jonathan and I LOVE our family traditions, but in this new season of our lives we have loved starting our new Slevin family traditions…

Our first Christmas tradition that we started was to go on a hunt for our very first real Christmas tree (I have never had a real Christmas tree, due to my allergies, so this was quite a new experience for me ). I am so thankful because we got the most beautiful tree for our little apartment and on a lighter note, my nose has been completely unaffected by this piece of nature now living with us ha…

After singing Christmas carols and dancing in our family room to some of our favorites, we decided to make our very own Gingerbread house! So we got together colorful candies and brewed our hot cocoa and began the art of icing…Though we were not anticipating this “new tradition” taking 3 hours of our night, we had a fabulous time…I learned that Jonathan is quite a perfectionist when it comes to building these cute little homes…I’m not sure if I have ever seen him so focused. But as always, there is absolutely no one else that I would rather have done it with…

As we were finishing up our Gingerbread home, and hot glueing..I mean using the icing to put the home together, it made me think how we had decorated all of the outside, yet the inside was hollow. Isn’t life like that sometimes, don’t we all go through times where we spend so much time decorating the outside of ourselves, but spend little to no time letting our sweet Jesus decorate the inside of our hearts and minds. This morning as I read My Utmost For His Highest, by Oswald Chambers he said,

“The grace of God is absolute and limitless, and the work of salvation through Jesus is complete and finished forever. I am not being saved-I am saved. Salvation is eternal as God’s throne, but I must put to work or use what God has placed within me. ‘To work out my own Salvation’-Phil 2:12.”

So as this new season of life begins,…my prayer is that our Slevin families newest tradition will be to not get caught up in the decorating, gifts, or how others perceive us, but that our newest tradition will be completely focused on letting Jesus shape us and mold us into the men and women that He who is able has created us to be, so that we can not just make a difference, but that through him we can change the world.

God bless to all,

Chelsea

Our Gingerbread home!

Let Heaven & Nature Sing

It’s snowing today which is not only an amazing view from my bedroom window but it also gets me so excited for the Christmas season. As you all know, I wasn’t really a normal kid growing up, I never anticipated Christmas or cared much for the holiday at all. Then I got married… Ben thinks about Christmas all year round which at first was annoying, then utterly amusing, & now his attitude towards the beloved season has completely swept me away. It’s only December 2^nd & Jingle Bells are jingling in my head & I already told a stranger “Merry Christmas”. To my surprise I’ve changed, which is really weird to admit because I am the most hard-headed person I know & I resist new things with everything in me but now as I prepare to spend the fourth Christmas as a Roberson I see how love can change the most stubborn souls.

Of course presents are fun but food is the real meaning of Christmas right (That is if you don’t count the celebration of the birth of Jesus or the amazing time spent with loved ones!)? I guess what I’m trying to say is that food is the best ‘tangible’ part of Christmas for me. For Thanksgiving I made this lovely Pumpkin Spiced Cake & I think it tasted more spiced than it did pumpkin so it will officially be incorporated into my Christmas dinner unless I find a better recipe in the next 23 days. I found the recipe on Epicurious.com & for the record it has changed my cooking life! I discovered the website in June when my neighbor, Tomese, who writes the seasonal menu articles for the magazine edible Louisville (one of my many employers) and cooks better than any gourmet chef with ingredients found in her very own backyard garden, recommended it. Obviously I was desperate to obtain all of her knowledge & wisdom so I daily asked her cooking/gardening questions. After she won a blue ribbon for her delightful red velvet cake at the Kentucky State Fair I was bound & determined to discover her secret. She then proceeded to tell me about Epicurious! It is an amazing website that has a variety of recipes for all occasions & cooking abilities (eg: I cook like a pro vs. I can barely cook).  Since then I have given my best efforts in the kitchen in everything from Baked Salmon, Lamb Gyros, Homemade Mashed Potatoes, Ben’s Favorite Chili,  to Tomese’s Red Velvet Cake, my Thanksgiving Pumpkin Spiced Cake, a S’mores Chocolate Pie, & a few other tasty delights. For all of you iPhone users, YES there is an app for it and that is what I use every time.

~ Molly.

Spiced Pumpkin Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

Cake

Butter for coating cake pans, at room temperature

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting the pan

2 cups granulated sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

3 large eggs, beaten (local eggs are a must!)

1 cup canola or vegetable oil

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups canned unsweetened pumpkin purée

1 cup lightly packed sweetened flaked coconut

3/4 cup canned crushed pineapple (do not drain)

1/3 cup dried currants (I used my homemade raisins & they were exceptional)

I threw in a dash or two of some pumpkin pie spice!

Cream Cheese Frosting

2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, at room temperature

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 tablespoons canned unsweetened pumpkin purée

1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preparation:

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Butter two 9-inch diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch sides. Line the bottom of each pan with a circle of parchment paper. Butter the parchment paper. Sprinkle the pans with flour, tap the pans to evenly distribute the flour, and then shake off the excess flour. Set aside.

To make the cake, in a large bowl, sift together the 2 cups flour, the granulated sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and cloves. In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, oil, and vanilla. In another medium bowl, combine the pumpkin purée, coconut, crushed pineapple, and currants.

Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. Add the pumpkin mixture and stir just until combined. Divide the batter between the prepared pans, spreading it evenly. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean. Transfer to wire racks and let cool in the pans for 15 minutes. Run a table knife around the edge of the pans to loosen the cakes. Invert the cakes onto the racks and peel off the parchment paper. Let cool completely before frosting the cakes.

To make the frosting, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on medium speed for about 3 minutes until smooth. Add the butter and beat for about 2 minutes until combined. Add the pumpkin purée and beat until incorporated, about 1 minute. Add the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla and beat for about 3 minutes until fluffy. (Really beat it because it is so good when it is light!)

Place 1 cake layer on a cake plate or platter. Using an offset spatula, spread half of the frosting over the top of the first cake layer. Spread the frosting right to the edge of the top without frosting the sides of the cake. Carefully place the second cake on top, lining up the edges. Spread the remaining frosting over the top of the cake without frosting the sides. Swirl the frosting to decorate the top. Refrigerate the cake to set the frosting. Remove from the refrigerator 30 to 40 minutes before serving.

Do Ahead:

The cake can be made up to 2 days in advance. Refrigerate until cold, and then carefully cover with plastic wrap. The cake can also be wrapped tightly and frozen for up to 1 month. Let thaw in the refrigerator, about 12 hours.

The Red Velvet Cake I made back in July!