Graduation Celebration - Caelen

Ok, I must admit that at first I was kind of nervous about Caelen's graduation, but it ended up being fantastic. . . although it did make me kind of antsy when the rain clouds rolled in and we got a thorough drenching fifteen minutes before all of the guests were supposed to arrive.  God knew exactly what he was doing though, and everything cooled off right before the party got started :D

I am so proud of the young lady that Caelen has become.  It took a lot of nerve for her to get up in front of a hundred people and give her speech, but she did it (very well, I might add), and made us all proud.  

I thought this was neat - Men from each phase of Caelen's life got up to challenge and encourage her to be bold and courageous in this new page of her life.  

 . . . And then Caelen had to give a brief speech on what she planned to do now that her high school education was over. . . although she was extremely nervous, it was fantabulous!  :)

God blessed me with a beautiful sister (both inside and out) that I am so thankful for.
{for more photos from the graduation, visit my photography blog: Bloom Photography}

Easy and Quick Blueberries/Blackberries Muffins Recipe

It's one of those rainy, wet days when your dog is looking pitifully at you, on the other side of the door, 

when you feel like curling up with a book in a cozy little nook somewhere, 

and waking your little bro up to go pick blackberries in the pouring rain way out in the pasture . . . 

one of those kind of days, you know???

~ ~ ~

With all of these soggy blackberries that Ben and I collected, I have decided to make my favorite muffin recipe this morning.  It is from a Kid's Recipe Book that Caelen got when she turned 10, but I guess that's why I like this recipe so much . . . because it is simple and tastes SO GOOD!!!  =D

Recipe for blueberry/blackberry muffins:

Ingredients:

1/2 stick (1 stick) butter

2 cups all-purpose flour (I use 1 cup white, and 1 cup wholewheat just to make it more healthy)

1/2 cup sugar

1 Tbl baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup milk

1 egg

3/4 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup blueberries (of course, I used blackberries, and the muffins were great!)

Directions:

1.  Put butter in the microwave until completely melted.  Set aside.

2.  Preheat oven to 375 F and put paper liners into 12 muffin cups (or you can spray down the muffin pan with non-stick spray)

3.  In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Mix well.

4.  In a small mixing bowl, combine the milk, egg, and vanilla.  Using the same fork, beat until well blended. 

5.  Add the milk mixture, melted butter, and blueberries (or blackberries) into the flour mixture.  Using a spatula, stir gently until the ingredients are just blended.  

6.  Spoon equal amounts of the batter into the muffin cups.  

7.  Bake the muffins until they are golden and have risen nicely, 18-20 minutes.  Remove from oven and place it on the cooling rack.

Makes 12 muffins.

Enjoy!