Moving. Ooph. Last week, our little family made the 1,000-mile trek from our home in Missouri to our new digs in North Carolina. That meant two days of driving our caravan of vehicles, one three-car trailer filled with all our worldly possessions and four straight mornings of pre-5 o’clock wake-up calls. Thankfully, Jared’s dad helped us move our truck o’ stuff across the country, and my mom and sister came down for the week to help us set up shop. Now, with the boxes cleared and this-is-our-home feelings beginning to set in, things are starting to get back to normal — or at least as normal as can be expected after a cross-country move. Ooph. Again.
Actually, it’s been pretty fun getting everything put together so far. My handy dandy husband has been hard at work assembling all the nifty furniture we picked up at IKEA during our last stop through Atlanta (shelves to house the inordinate amount of books that will now reside in our place instead of his office and new dining room chairs that became necessary after my last standing-on-a-chair-to-reach-something-high-in-the-kitchen experience resulted in a very broken chair and my need to exercise some quick cat-like reflexes). We also put together the baby crib a few days ago (woot!), and I picked up some zippers and thread at Jo-Ann’s yesterday to get started on all the sewing rigmarole for the Bean’s room. So I’m pleasantly overwhelmed with projects, which are proving to be great distractions from the underlying homesickness that’s also floating around. I’ve said it before, but being a grownup really is tough business. If Duke conveniently relocated to my parents’ backyard, I’d probably stay there forever. Too bad those Gothic buildings are so crazy heavy.
In my continued effort to remain very grownup about this whole moving thing (a.k.a. maintain my sanity and not burden poor Jared with a blubbering pregnant wife a minute longer than I can help it), I decided that day five in the new place was high time to christen the kitchen with a friendly visit from my old pals flour and sugar. I went for an old favorite in hopes that the habitual tastes and smells would make everything else feel a bit more like home. By combining a tried-and-true recipe and the rhubarb jam I made with my grandma over the summer, I think I found just what I needed in familiar flavors and warm-and-cozy nostalgia. For now at least.
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Jam Cookies
Adapted from Real Simple (December 2009)
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 3 teaspoons vanilla
• ½ to ¾ cup jam (any flavor you like)
In a medium-sized bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
Using electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Add egg, and cream until fluffy (takes about two minutes). Add vanilla, and mix until combined. Turn mixer on low speed, gradually add dry ingredients, and mix until fully incorporated. Refrigerate dough until firm (about an hour).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a small cookie scoop, scoop tablespoon-sized spoonfuls of dough onto parchment- or Silpat-lined cookie sheet. Use your thumb to press a small rounded well into the center of each cookie, and fill the wells with jam. Bake cookies for 15 to 18 minutes, or until edges just begin to turn golden brown.
* Note: Depending on how watery your jam is, these cookies can do funny things in the oven. If your jam leans more toward the watery side, it helps to stick the fully assembled cookies in the refrigerator for a good 30 minutes prior to baking. The extra chill will help the cookies and jam hold their shape when they hit the heat of the oven.
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So that’s where we are for now. Tackling projects, decorating the digs and eating cookies as we settle in to the NC. Today’s to-dos includes the assembly of two throw pillows for the Bean’s room. Yes, that means sewing (eep!). Here’s hoping for photos of a successful completion in the very near future!
What projects are you tackling as the summer winds down? Is anyone else settling in after a move, across town or across the county? And speaking of moving, what’s your best advice for feeling at home in a brand new place?
XO,
Katrina
So good to see you posting again– it’s the total highlight to my workday:) I can’t wait to see the sewing projects! I have some curtains and pillows to tackle myself, but my BIG project of the moment is ceilings. We have old popcorn ceilings that are starting to fall out of the sky- so I’ve decided to just “peel” the popcorn down and repaint the flat ceilings. Poor Ryan, I moved in and fully took over the house in just a month. Fingers crossed we’re both successful!!!
I’m now the successful sewer of two pillows and a liner for a clothes hamper. Woo hoo! Your mom would be so proud! 🙂
Hope the popcorn removal is still going well. You know Ryan’s loving it.
Oh I hate moving. it is so hard physically and emotionally. Nothing like a batch of cookies to help you settle in. c
Yep, it’s amazing the power of a good sweet.
Yes, actually. We’re moving to Virginia Beach (your new neck of the woods!) soon. And the cookies look fabulous!
Fun! Good luck with your move! Here’s hoping you’re settled and feeling at home very soon!
Thinking of you Kat! You’re lucky to have 3 lovely companions with you on your adult life adventures! Maybe some pumpkin-y baked sweets will help too? And Miche I bet Ryan is secretly loving all that feminine energy in the house now. Hope so! ; )
Thanks, Sarah! Yep, my three companions are being good and companion-y these days. Especially the little one — she goes with me everywhere! 🙂 I’m with you on the pumpkin-y baked sweets. There’s nothing quite like pumpkin goodness to make you feel at home. Hope the school year is off to a great start!
Glad you had a safe move! We recently moved to Philadelphia and are trying to settle in and meet people. It’s hard. We hope to jump in and get involved in a church really soon. And I’ve joined a moms group. I think the key is putting yourself out there, which is really hard, at least for me. Soon you’ll have your hands pleasantly full with your daughter though! Thinking of you!
Aww, thanks, Ashley! I hope you guys are feeling happy and settled in Philly! I’m totally with you on the meeting-people-is-hard thing, especially because I’m working from home now. I keep telling Jared he needs to bring home friends, ASAP! Ha! But I think a mommy group will definitely be good once this little beany comes along. I’m so antsy for her to get here!
I’ll keep trying to put myself out there. It sounds like you’re doing way better than me at that! By the way, I checked out the photos of your new place on your blog, and it’s adorable! Especially Natalie’s room!