In the Storm

some digital pages

 
(template by Yin)

i didn't get as many pictures as i would have liked from summer waves this past trip to jekyll island, ga. but enought to get the jist of our day.

 
(template by Yin)

everyday life. shopping excursion with Ash, the boys, and the grandbabies - and some play.

10 things on tuesday - words

 
1. Agree.

 
2. one of my most favorite verses. it changes my thoughts. changes my focus. turns things around.

 
3. remind me...

 
4. love this. want it for my bedroom. awesome words. awesome song.

 
5. i wish. (and really love the chalkboard idea for writing just any words for the day)

 
6. sad. funny. but true.

 
7. i really want this sign. the words already adorn our front door and our home (but i really love the rusticness...is that a word..of the sign)

 

8. i love c.s. lewis. and love the words. i don't know who first penned it but along the same lines 'God never meant for us to retire'. in other words, there is always work to be done...the harvest is plenty. and in other words, no one has ever 'paid their dues'. we often hear that from people as they get older. it makes me wonder 'did they get it'. hoosier man and i have a friend named Jenni who lost her husband a couple years ago now. he (they) were serving the Lord, ministering to young couples until the day he died...literally...we talked to her just this last week...she was sharing how her ministering is going...she's in her late 60's, early 70's. amazing example.

 
9. the monster at the end of the book...and you were soo scared...

love it.

read it to ian just last month.

great words. great read.

 

10. there is a story behind these words.

one thousand gifts

 
live fully. live freely. live joyfully. wherever you are at. whatever you are in the middle of. whatever you are walking into. i have just scratched the surface of ann voskamp's 'one thousand gifts'. but i am lovin' it. the book itself is a sweet gift. although not an easy read. in fact some difficult parts for understanding.

while i am a very optimistic person and i've thought i am a thankful person; and i do see God's grace. this book has reminded me to see his grace in the little things, the obscure, to look beyond the obvious. as i see God's grace how can i not live freely...if i'm in the middle of Grace. how can i not live fully...if i'm in the middle of Grace. how can i not live joyfully...if i'm in the middle of God's Grace. and God's Grace is in the midst of circumstances. so...one thousand gifts

1. coffee ready for me in the morning

2. a good nights sleep

3. the eyes of Wyatt when he's tired and sleepy from playing all day

 

4. the still innocence of my two 14-year old boys

5. the bond of father and sons

 

6. the playfulness of a father

7. two new families joining our small group

8. resolution to situations

9. conversations with other women at homeschool co-op

10. a husband who can still play

 

11. sons who love being uncles; and take that role seriously

 

12. a son who refills my coffee for me

 

Tacos

Tuesday's are Taco Tuesdays. For some reason I just didn't want to make my homemade tacos. I did make tacos though. I made these amazing Pork Tenderloin tacos with a tangy coleslaw. I also made my yummy homemade salsa. The recipe came from my favorite recipe site For the Love of Cooking. If you want to see what these flavorful, but different tacos looked like go there.

Because, we devoured ours before I could get a picture. I changed up the recipe abit to make it our own. Here it is:

Pork Tenderloin Tacos with Tangy Slaw

Adapted from For the Love of Cooking.com

1-2 tsp olive oil

1 medium Vidalia onion, sliced thin

1 pork tenderloin, cubed

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp chipotle chili powder

1 tsp oregano

Kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring often, until tender. Add the pork and spices to the onions. Stir until the pork and onions are well coated with the seasonings. Cook the pork and onions until the pork is cooked through.

Tangy Slaw:

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 tbsp canola oil

1 tsp sugar

1 bag of shredded slaw mix, with carrots

3 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

3 small green onions, sliced

Kosher salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

Combine the vinegar, canola oil, and sugar together in a bowl with a whisk. Place the cabbage mix, cilantro, and green onions together in a bowl and mix well. Add the vinaigrette to the mixture and toss until evenly coated.

Other Ingredients: Small flour tortillas, Homemade salsa, Sour Cream, Finely Shredded Mexican blend cheese

Place the cooked pork into the warmed flour tortillas and layer with the tangy slaw. Serve with a side of homemade salsa, sour cream, and Mexican cheese. Enjoy.

Thankful and a recipe

 
thankful Irene is supposed to miss us.

 
Amazing, yummy, mouth-watering jambalaya.

Slow Cooker Jambalaya

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into ½ inch cubes

2 pounds smoked sausage, sliced

1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice

1 (15 ounce) can original Rotel

3 tablespoon minced onion flakes

2 cups chicken broth

2 teaspoon dried oregano

2 teaspoon dried parsley

2 teaspoon minced garlic

2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning (I used Slap Your Mama)

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ teaspoon dried thyme

3 cups white, instant rice, cooked

In a slow cooker combine all ingredients, except the rice. Cover, and cook 3-4 hours on high, or 7-8 hours on low. Mix in cooked rice in the last 30 minutes to warm through and combine the flavors. This serves about 6-8.

Zesty Sausage Bundt

 

When Ash was here I made this amazing Zesty Sausage Bundt that I found somewhere on the internet. We served this with a Ceasar Salad for some greens. The smells were amazing when we were making and baking it. It turned out perfect and yummy!

Zesty Sausage Bundt

18 Rhodes^TM Dinner Rolls, thawed but still cold (thawed for about an hour)

½ cup butter, melted

4 teaspoon chopped thyme

2 teaspoon garlic powder

2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

4 teaspoon dried rosemary

4 teaspoon dried parsley

1 ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 pound hot Jimmy Dean sausage, cooked, crumbled, and drained

1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

2 jars of store-bought pizza sauce, or your favorite homemade marinara or pizza sauce

Flatten each dinner roll into a 4-inch circle. Place butter in a shallow bow. Combine herbs (thyme, rosemary, and parsley) and Parmesan cheese and place in another shallow bowl. Coat both sides of each dough circle with butter and then into the cheese mixture. Arrange 6 dough circles evenly in a large sprayed Bundt pan, to cover the bottom. Circles will overlap. Sprinkle half the cooked sausage over the dough. Sprinkle with half the mozzarella cheese and a teaspoon of red pepper flakes. Repeat with 6 more dough circles and remaining sausage; cheese and red pepper flakes. Add the last 6 dough circles to the top to cover sausage. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until almost double. Remove plastic wrap and bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes. Cover with foil the last 10-20 minutes to prevent burning. Remove from oven and invert onto serving platter or, just serve it out of the pan.

homeschooled

 
This week begins the addition of the co-op class assignments to our study regimen. The additional work already shows that we will definitely be spending more time completing assignments. This will mean I will need to consider some juggling. I may need to consider something like Math on M-W-F, daily Vocab, Grammar on T-Th, daily reading, T-Th History or some such. With the addition of IEW Writing, Apologia Human Anatomy, and Switched On Schoolhouse Spanish co-op classes our time is no longer our own.

Right now we begin at 8 am and I really don't want to begin earlier. The boys are in a good place where they eat then go for a walk/run. This needs to continue for their health. But I can also see us spending more time in the mornings together before they breakout on their own to complete assignments individually which in turn means more time on individual work.

I think I need to give it some time to decide before I jump in and start changing things up. I do know that I am grateful for the flexibility afforded us because we homeschool.

do not worry - one hundred forty six seconds with God

 

it is how i live my life. i just can't worry about it. it sucks the joy right out. i'm an optimist. pessimists worry. they see trouble a mile away and worry long before it gets here - even if it never does. see. joy gone. worrying just doesn't get us anywhere except loss of sleep, loss of joy, loss of a good day, loss of a smile, loss of laughter, loss of happiness. look - God tells us He's got it and to stop worrying. why do you think he'd tell us that. well. because he's got it and we need to stop worrying. what? don't you trust God? you really don't - if you worry.

hey. i got an idea. pray instead of worry. when you are done praying you have effectively given over the situation, problem, worry - whatever - to God. and may i remind you here: HE IS A BIG GOD!

 

(picture from pinterest.com)

(words: from the heart)

a little digital scrapbooking

 
i miss ian. there. i said it. while i do not miss his temper tantrums i do miss that he doesn't mind snuggling. i do miss that sometimes he just talks and talks - although mostly i still can't understand him. although. after 6 weeks i did get better. i miss his way cute lounging actions when he's watching his fav show.

 
and then there are his faces. totally attitude. totally trouble. totally raw. but totally awesome. one cool dude.

swimming

 
i swam a gruelling, awesome 1000 meters yesterday. gruelling because i haven't swam in months. awesome because it was wonderful dropping into the pool once again.