chickens with 80's hair

Around here we like our chickens. 

The fresh eggs we get daily makes it so worth the care and attention you have to give them.

I see a Phyllis Diller look-alike in these Polish chickens. I'm probably showing my age with that reference.

This here chubby one is the rooster, an Araucana.
He likes the ladies. For the past week or so we've been incubating a number of eggs to hatch new chicks.

Just thought I'd catch you up on some of the animals here at the Busse Homestead. There's a good chance I might post about one of our cats who is quite the porker. I like to call him Fatso and he might have a little complex at this point.

Oh, and if you read my blog, I do appreciate some comment love. :-)

My cousin's husband's brother would become my husband

Life sometimes keeps me from doing Part 2 posts, wiping dust bunnies under furniture, staying on top of the laundry, and other such things.

I told you I would finish my love story and so I am. Ideally that would have happened on Valentine's Day, but another post was written in its stead. At least it was still about LOVE. If you want to read Part 1, go here.

So where was I? 

On July 2, 1993, my head and heart would get the attention of a midwestern gentleman and my life would be forever changed. God can change things in you and your life in a moment, when you are going about your business, not expecting it. 

When I got out of my 1989 Plymouth Colt (I thought that little car was so cool), donned in my black blazer, body suit, and a black hat, Jill greeted me with a big hug, a beautiful smile, and an announcement. She told me that Tim's brother was just there and she wanted me to meet him. She said he would be returning a little later to join us for lunch. I listened half-heartedly, though I know somewhere deep down inside of me I had to be jumping for joy. After all, I was consistently wondering in those days who I would marry one day. I clearly remember driving in the Quad Cities and I was in a left turn lane. A guy pulled up next to me and I quietly asked, "Lord, could it be him?" Sometimes I asked when I was at the gym or at work. I wanted to know. I know that sounds desperate, but it felt normal to wonder. I was about 26 at the time. 

(My sister-in-law & cousin, Jill) 

We went into the house and prepared for Jill's brothers and sisters to arrive. It was a hot July day and we were having a barbecue and would be playing volleyball afterwards. After a short while, he showed up. Tim's brother, Shawn, and his friend, Jeff, came to the barbecue then I met him. 

He was such a nice guy, very kind, and a gentleman. I think he brought Jeff along for moral support. I thought only girls did that. He was a little shy, but he was comfortable being at Tim and Jill's house. After we ate, we played volleyball. Shawn was on the opposing team. I'm not sure which team won, but I had fun looking through the net at this fella. He was so handsome, had the bluest eyes, was tall, tan, and a college student. He had a future ahead of him. By the end of this day, I was smitten. I kept talking about him with Jill. Do you think he talked to Jeff about me? 

After everyone left, Jill and I talked and talked. We are never at a loss for words with each other. She is absolutely one of my very best friends. I began to plan the next time I could visit Indiana. Mind you, I hadn't visited my cousins in over a year and now I was planning my second visit within 2 weeks. I wanted an opportunity to see Shawn again. I was drawn to him, but we lived 4 hours away from Purdue University and even further from his home town which was a  6 hour drive.

As a little time went by, we began writing to each other. Then we started to make phone calls that would last an hour or more. He came to visit me in Davenport and it didn't take long before we started to fall in love. Our long conversations over the phone got even longer. Being in a long distance relationship meant we got to know each other through our talks. 

I brought him to church with me. Though he grew up going to church, Shawn would tell you that God used me to draw him to Jesus in a personal way. God gets the glory for that I assure you. I was a baby Christian myself, but I knew that I wanted a Godly husband, one that knew and served the Lord. God had a plan for Shawn Busse and I had no idea that I would be instrumental in seeing His plan come to fruition.

And about 4 months after that hot summer day's visit with a small town boy from Indiana, he got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife. And 7 months after that, on May 29, 1994, we professed our love before God, our family, and friends, and said, "I do." Forever.

Shawn is my best friend, my lover, my confidante, the father of our 5 beautiful blessings, and an amazing man of God. 

Cheddar Chowder & Bretzel Rolls

I'm not entirely sure why the post below was never put up, but since I found it, here goes...

A couple of nights ago I went through all of the recipes that I print off, and I print a lot!, and then put them in page protectors into a binder. Doing that was really helpful and it put me in the mood to make some things I haven't in awhile. That brings me to the meal of the day... :)

The "Bretzel Rolls" or rolls that taste just like a pretzel were inspired by our trip to Austria & Germany two years ago. My hubby scouted around the little town that we were staying in and found a sweet little bakery. They had the freshest, most delicious rolls and pastries. The roll we all loved was the one that tasted like a pretzel. Naturally I had to find a similar recipe so that I can try to replicate it. I found it and my husband set out to make it.

 Don't they look divine? :-)

That all happened when we flew back to England. Fast forward to now with us back in Michigan and me organizing my recipe binder. I decided to try my hand this time at baking them and they were a sure hit! Along with that I made a chowder that we haven't eaten for awhile. So it pays to go through your recipes. Here is a link for the rolls. and I am including the other recipe in case you are interested.

I couldn't find any photos for the chowder, which I know I have, but trust me, it's really good. Enjoy!

Bretzel Roll Recipe

Cheddar Chowder

1/2 cup onion, diced

1 cup carrots, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

2 cups potatoes, chopped

2 cups water

2 cups ham, diced (or bacon)

(Cheese Sauce)

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup flour

2 cups milk

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Dice, chop and cube onion, carrots, celery and potatoes.

Add onion, carrots, celery, potatoes and water to a large soup pot.  Bring to a boil and cook for approximately 10 minutes, until veggies are tender.

Melt the butter in a saucepan.  Add the flour and whisk until combined (it will form a paste).  Slowly stir in the milk until combined, then add the shredded cheddar cheese - stir until melted (over medium heat)

When the cheese is melted, pour cheese sauce into pot with the cooked vegetables (and the boiling water).  Stir until combined.

Happy Valentine's Day :-)

 Shawn had to go away on business this week. Instead of waiting until he gets home on Thursday, he decided to give me my Valentine present on Sunday night. 

He gave me a gorgeous plant, called a "Cyclamen" with beautiful red flowers.

He blessed me with not one, but two boxes of chocolates because I always share with the kids. They get their own chocolates, but they love to have some of mine.

The gift that you see above the chocolates is a nicely wrapped package containing all of the past Valentine cards and notes from the past 18 years that we have given to each other. 

He wrote in my card that he hopes I enjoy the trip down memory lane. What a sweet and romantic gift. I love it! 

In this picture I was looking at our engagement picture that Shawn placed on the top of the stack of cards. I had some big hair that resembled the 80's even though it was the early 90's when he proposed. Was hair still big at that time, or was I stuck in my younger days?

After reading a few I decided to wait until Shawn returns for us to read them together. We have a date night planned at the end of the week.

You wanna laugh at something? My husband is all the way in Kalamazoo for his work this week. It's 30 miles away from here! I find it funny that he couldn't sleep in his own bed each night because of the kind of conference it is. They have work dinners and team-building activities each evening. I miss him whenever he is away.

As I was showering and getting ready this morning, the children surprised me with pink, heart-shaped pancakes. We added some cherry preserves and whipped cream on top. Yum!

I think they did a fantastic job! 

I love having 6 Valentines. They are each special and dearly loved.

I made them a cake and they all received a box of chocolates.

I hope you had a wonderful Valentine's day. xoxo

meet my cousin's husband's brother

On one unsuspecting summer day back in July of 1993 I met a most amazing man. He was a young man in college studying to be a Food Scientist at Purdue University. I was a new doctor in the chiropractic field, a Palmer graduate.

He had not graduated yet. He was in the throws of his education at Purdue; I was a Jersey girl living in Iowa and practicing in Illinois. The last thought on his mind was a long-distance relationship. The first thought on my mind was, "I wonder who God has for me" back in those days and I certainly didn't think it was a college student from Indiana. I wasn't expecting to meet anyone that day.

All I expected was to have a fun-filled weekend with Jill and her family. You see, Jill is the cousin I grew up seeing on rare occasions when she came to visit New Jersey with her mom and some siblings. When I was in my teens I would go to family reunions in that far-off place called Indiana that was so unfamiliar to me. I grew up in an apartment in a one square mile town called Hoboken. She grew up with corn fields all around her. We said words like "water" and "coffee" with completely different dialects. Mine sounded more like "cauffee" and "wauta" and hers was, well, Midwestern sounding. She had beautiful, long blonde hair and smelled so pretty. She was like a big sister to me that loved me unconditionally. I have 4 wonderful big sisters and she would be the 5th. I truly looked up to her.

On that particular day, God must have whispered something in her ear very unexpectedly. He must have given her a boldness to ask her husband's brother to stick around because her cousin, me, would be pulling up after a long drive from Iowa and she wanted him to meet me. She must have liked playing cupid.   

And if you want to hear more about my love story, you'll have to stay tuned this week. It's the perfect story for the week of Valentine's day, wouldn't ya say?

Oh, what a catch!