When Life Gives You Lemons....

I cannot express how blessed Tom and I are to have both been accepted into doctoral programs, especially so early in our lives. Real life dreams coming true right here people! But we were tossed a big ole sour lemon when we realized that we would be attending schools in different parts of the country. Living apart isn't exactly ideal for a newly married couple, but these are the cards that we were dealt and we're making the situation work the best way that we know how. 

Being in a long distance relationship isn't easy and we definitely get some interesting reactions from others to our situtation. We receive a ton of support which we appreciate so very much. Then there are people that feel the need to tell me about their own failed long distance relationships. Others simply say that they could never do it, which I can of course understand. But then again, it also makes me feel a little sad for them because that just means that they've never met anyone worth waiting for. I would wait 100 years just to spend a day with my Tom. While being apart is not fun, the distance has made our relationship stronger in a lot of ways, but a big part of this comes from putting in the additional time and effort it takes to keep things going. For instance, Tom has a big project due date approaching and I know that he has been feeling really stressed and anxious about it. If I were there with him, I could simply give him a big hug and tell him everything was going to be fine. But I'm not there, so I had to find another way to support him. My solution was this care package... it was my way of sending a little encouragement. It's a reminder that even the most sour of lemons can be manipulated into something wonderful.

What's in the Care Package?
 I love how this package came together! I filled a box with yellow paper filling and some fun lemon themed goodies. 

a Lemon Zester-Tom loves to cook and has been wanting one of these for his kitchen 

Old Fashioned Lemon Drops 

LemonHeads 

Homemade Lemon Cookies 

a Personalized Card

I couldn't find a lemon themed card anywhere. I even checked online at some of my favorite stationary stores, but nothing. Then it occurred to me that I should just make one myself. Using supplies I already had on hand, that's exactly what I did.

When Life Gives You Lemons...Bake Lemon Cookies

It would be cruel to not share this recipe for the most delicious Lemon Crinkle Cookies that I included in Tom's care package. I get glowing reviews every time I make these-they are so delicious! I wish I could take complete credit for this recipe, but my version is actually adapted from here

 via

Ingredients: 

2 cups flour 

2 tsp baking powder 

1/2 tsp salt 

10tbsp softened butter 

1 cup sugar 

1 tbsp lemon zest 

1 large egg 

a large egg yolk 

1½ tbsp lemon juice 

3/4 tsp lemon extract 

1/2 tsp vanilla extract 

yellow food coloring 

1/3 cup powdered sugar 

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 350. Mix dry ingredients together..flour, baking powder, salt 

Cream butter, sugar, and lemon zest together. 

Mix in egg and then egg yolk.

Add lemon juice, lemon extract, vanilla extract, and yellow food coloring. 

On low speed, slowly add in dry ingredients. 

Scoop cookie dough balls ~1½ tbsp and roll to coat in the powdered sugar. 

Transfer to baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes. 

Enjoy! 

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