One Green Gift

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.      

James 1:17 

As my sneakers hit the path this early August morning, the clouds of dust that rose from each step I took reminded me that although it was cool at 6:45 am it would soon climb to be in the mid 90's. Dry. Dusty. Hot. I am tired. of. Summer.

*SIGH*

I decide to inspire myself and turn my attitude into gratitude on this new day and pull out my iPhone to try to capture a few signs of fall.

I see leaves on the ground but know they have just given up trying to stay green and have fallen because they are tired of summer too.

I also begin my morning conversation with God. I thank him for a new day, the beauty I am walking in, pray for my family and friends… but as usual, I am so easily distracted. By the edge of the pond, I see hints of fall, yellow wildflowers and fat cattails at waters edge, sunflowers nodding their happy heads.

Oh yes Lord… now where was I?… I talk and talk some more trying to pause every now and then and listen, but the talking; it is always easier than listening. Then familiar thoughts start swarming around my head like flies…

Who am I that He would hear me? Maybe He isn't listening because you aren't listening…

What have you done for Him lately anyway? Maybe He doesn't even see you. You are insignificant in His Grand Scheme of things…

*SIGH*

I stop at a young tree that is holding a nest I had spotted weeks ago, knowing that it was going to end up on my porch, nestled into the seat of a child size chair.

Today is the day.

I make my way through the tall grass, trying not to think about ticks or snakes and lean on the tree until I can reach the sweet little abode and gently lift it out.

I head back up the hill to the path and smile because there are leaves in the nest, they are just brown ones, but is that not what I was looking for? "Funny" I say to myself as I begin to lift them out one at a time. Then…

WHAT???!!!

To my delight I came face to face with this little green fellow! As I stood there in that moment, I felt that if I turned around, I would see Jesus standing behind me smiling...

"Surprise!

" I hear you. I see you. I love you."

My heart was filled with child like joy as I stood there in wonder, at this frog, in MY nest! We looked at one another for quite some time, this little green fella and I, then I gently set him in the grass knowing he would be happier here than my front porch. Every time I walk in my front door, I have a little reminder that I am loved.

Just the way I am.

See, I have engraved you on the palm of my hands.

Isaiah 49:16

Blueberry Blackberry Shortcake

Blueberry Blackberry Shortcake

This shortcake is so easy and always a hit!

Got the recipe out of an old cooking light magazine (July 2004) been making it every summer for 8 years, which of course means, it's a keeper!

Best made with fresh berries so this is the month to make it.

Shortcakes

(if you are pinched for time, use Bisquick shortcake recipe, add lemon rind, hard to beat)

2 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 Tbls grated lemon peel

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp.baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces

1/2 cup buttermilk

Cooking spray

1 tsp. water

1 large egg white, lightly beaten

2 tsps sugar

Filling

3 cups fresh blueberries divided

1/2 cup sugar

2 Tbls. fresh lemon juice

2 tsps. cornstarch

2 cups fresh blackberries

freshly whipped cream

Preheat oven to 400.

To prepare shortcakes: Combine flour and next 5 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Cut in chilled butter with a pastry blender until it resembles coarse meal.

Add buttermilk, stir just until moist.

Turn dough out onto lightly floured board, knead lightly 4 times.

Pat into 1/2 inch thickness; cut with 3 inch biscuit cutter to make 8 rounds.

Place rounds 2 inches apart on greased baking sheet.

Combine water and egg white brush over tops of rounds and sprinkle evenly with sugar.

Bake at 400 for 12 or 13 minutes. Remove and cool on wire rack.

To prepare filling: Combine 1 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup sugar, juice and cornstarch in small saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes or until slightly thick.

Place in a large bowl; add remaining 2 cups blueberries and blackberries, stirring to coat.

Cover and chill.

To serve, cut rounds in half, spoon filling on bottom half, top with real whipped cream, and place top half over all.

* ( I have made this using 2 cups frozen Blueberries, 1 cup fresh

and 1 cup frozen blackberries 1 cup fresh. It is the fresh berries that make it so beautiful on the plate!)

Linked at: Hope in Every Season, Home Sweet Home, Think Tank Thursday

Spanish Rice

Spanish Rice

Fresh and easy!

1 large green pepper, coarsely chopped

1 large tomato coarsely chopped

1 medium onion coarsely chopped

2 Tbls butter

2 cups cooked rice

1/3 cup water

salt and pepper to taste

Cook vegetables in hot butter till crisp/tender

Stir in cooked rice, water salt and pepper

( I like to add a little cilantro )

Heat through stirring occasionally

Cilantro Chicken

Cilantro Chicken

Another tasty EASY favorite!

1 small onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped ( I use a big tsp of chopped jar garlic )

 2 Tbls butter

2 Tbls vegatable oil

4 boneless chicken breasts, cubed or sliced (your preference)

2 Tbls snipped cilantro

Cook and stir onion and garlic in butter and oil in a 10 inch skillet until onion is tender.

Add chicken, cook and stir over medium high heat about 5 minutes.

Stir in Cilantro.

Pour pan juices over chicken to serve.

Serve over rice, in your favorite flour or corn shell with shredded letuce and other taco trimmings, or as a lettuce wrap.

Squeezed fresh lemon is a nice touch too.

 We like it with Spanish Rice on the side.

What's to Love About Summer

Being a person who loves to grow things, Summer is of course the frosting on the cake of all my hard labor.

Digging  in the dirt, cheering my little plants on, protecting them from frost, too much rain, too much sun, and rotten bugs and slugs who think my main purpose was to supply them with a salad bar, has once again paid off.  It simply amazes me that beautiful flowers with hundreds of different colors come up out of dirt! And food? How wonderful we can grow our own if circumstances allow!

As many people are finally realizing, homegrown and locally grown are the way to go, our country and our kids would be in a lot better shape if we could get this into everyone's  head!

I have to admit though..the flowers are what thrill me the most, pairing plants with colors that play off each other,colors,textures, to me its  like painting in slow motion.

 (It is always nice to have extra help with the watering.)

Of course there are other favorite things in summer.

Popsicles

  

Little Plastic Pools filled with little Sunbeams 

 

Bare Tootsies

Trips to the beach

Stars from the Sea

Yes, indeed. There is much to love about summer.

However

By the time the Black eyed Susan's are in full bloom come August

I have had enough of the 90 degree heat.

My plants are now lucky if they get a bucket of water thrown on them.

 I no longer have my coffee at six a.m. while dumping salt on the doomed slugs who have not quite made it back under their rocks.

 And my joy of daily dead heading has well..died.

My sweet one hundred tomato plant is proving itself worthy of its name..my husband finds them topping salads, stir fry..everything but his Cheerios's.

The Zucchini...??  Well, it seems to be making its own Miracle Grow and does not care if I show up or not. At this point there is no stopping it!

So this time of year...what I love about summer is...

Sunrise

Sunset

Yup. I can almost smell that first loaf of Pumpkin bread. I am ready for my favorite Season of all.

Autumn!

How about all of you?

Thank you Lord, for allowing me another Season of Summer and listening to all my ramblings while tending it. I like meeting with you there!

Ecclesiastes 3:1

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.

Happy Anniversary Justin And Brittany

HAPPY 8th ANNIVERSARY

JUSTIN AND BRITTANY

These two met at Bible College and soon announced to their families they had found their soul mate and wanted to get married!

As we all know..wedding rehearsals can be stressful..:) especially when its 103 degrees out!

But of course the wedding was beautiful and their love for one another was evident to all !

They continue to grow in their love and commitment to God, to each other and they have also grown...

a most beautiful family!

(including of course one more little angel who is not in the picture)

Congratulations!

You are loved and wished many more years of joy and adventure in your life together!

 

Quinoa Salad

Quinoa Salad

3 Tbls. olive oil

1 cup Quinoa (rinsed/drained)

1 can chicken or vegetable broth

1/4 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp salt

2 Tbls. lime juice

1/8 tsp pepper

1 can black beans rinsed/drained (Bushes brand by far the best!)

1 can cut corn (rinsed) or fresh corn cut off cob is great!

1 large Roma tomato ( diced)

11/2 cups green pepper( diced)

2 green onions (chopped)

3 Tbls. cilantro (chopped)

2 Tbls. parsley (optional)

For nights when its too darn hot to cook!

" I am NOT turning on that stove!!!"

Heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil in Skillet, add Quinoa. Cook stirring often for 5 minutes until brown.

Add broth, cumin,and salt. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer (covered) for 15 minutes, or until all liquid is absorbed. Let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with fork.

Combine in a small bowl remaining 2 Tablespoons olive oil, lime juice, pepper. Stir into Quinoa.

Add remaining ingredients. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Great to make day before!

You can add more tomato, peppers and cumin to taste!

Quinoa is Beautiful

Health benefits are amazing! If you haven't included it in your diet yet, google it!

You can buy it in bulk, I buy regular and red, mix it up and keep it in a mason jar!



Hair

 My thoughts lately, often seem to turn to hair. Umm..in all honesty… I think a LOT of a woman's time is spent thinking about hair. Even when we are little girls.. from the time our moms can capture that little sprout of wisp in a pink sparkly band and shoot it straight up off the tops of our heads (a.k.a. water fountain pony tail) or those of you who glued tiny ribbons to little girl heads who were born with as much hair as an egg ( how DO you make them stick??) Little girls and Mommies alike… we have a thing for Hair!

I was born with a ton of hair and by the time I was five it was so long I could sit on it. I remember my mom sitting me on the washing machine and twisting the long strands around her finger while it was wet, then I would bounce around with ringlets for days… just like that!

My long braids provided much entertainment as I would run across the playground lickety split, from sweaty, freckle faced little boys who like to pull them.

    In the sixth grade, I cut it to my shoulders. I wanted it to turn under just so, you know… like the girl in Teen Magazine. No matter what I did there were waves and bumps and although I slept carefully with Dippity Do and Scotch tape across my bangs… I could NOT get my hair to do what I wanted it to.

And THAT is the story of our Hair Obsession is it not? If it's blond, it's not quite the right blond, if it's dark we want it light. If it's curly, we want it straight, if it's straight we so badly wish it was curly...

This is my daughter, Hannah… her hair does this naturally but what did she do all through High School?… That's right… smoke floated out of the bathroom from the flat iron several times a day.

I would say the first half of our lives we try to make our hair to do what it is not meant to do and be colors it was never meant to be.

This hair style I forced upon my wavy feather light hair about 8 years ago. I insisted upon it I loved it.(that flat iron IS amazing!!)

And see that glow of light on the top of my head?… NO…  that is not a halo. That is God's way of highlighting the exact area of my head where I would pull out hair as I straightened it… that would never return... (at least not on my head) so began my quest to repair damage already done.

Now then, as if this isn't stressful enough knowing the phrase you used with your kids all those years ("I'm gonna PULL my HAIR out!!") has come true, at no ones fault but your own. Your focus on hair problems takes a very interesting turn...

Illustration

Sitting in the car eating hamburgers, my husband looks over at me and says.."Oh! Hold still… you have a hair." ...OUCH!! That HURT!! "Oh… I didn't know it was attached..." 

With wide eyed terror, I grabbed my chin and looked at him; I'm still not sure who was more horrified… him or me!

This memorable event was nearly 10 years ago… let's just say, things have progressed.

Now, I spend a lot of time in a love/hate relationship...

with my magnifying mirror. Talk about horrified!

One word.

TWEEZERMAN

google it. get one. grin and bear it.

 So I guess, our hair hasn't really left us… just re-located.

Love your hair..

and maybe once in awhile… let it do its thing, what ever that is.

Like our little mop-top Eli says

"Baby I was BORN this way!"

Pushcart Spaghetti

                 
                               

PUSHCART SPAGHETTI

THIS IS AN OLD FAV OF MINE. NO MEAT, EASY PREP, AND IT IS DELISH!

28 oz can tomatoes

                   

1 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped

3 large garlic cloves chopped (I just put in a couple T. jarred chopped garlic)

5 T. extra virgin olive oil             

1 pound dry spaghetti

Fresh grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and Pepper

IN A SKILLET OVER MEDIUM HEAT, BRING TOMATOES, BASIL, GARLIC, AND 3 TBLS. OLIVE OIL TO SIMMER AND COOK UNTIL THE TOMATOES REACH A SAUCE LIKE CONSISTENCY, AT LEAST 25 MINUTES. SEASON WITH SALT AND PEPPER.

COOK SPAGHETTI TO AL DENTE. DRAIN.

POUR REMAINING 2 TBLS. OLIVE OIL IN HEAT PROOF BOWL THAT HAS BEEN HEATED IN 2OO DEGREE OVEN. TOSS DRAINED PASTA IN OIL.

(I HAVE SKIPPED THIS OUT OF PURE "THIS IS COMPLETELY UNNECCESARY' ATTITUDE..IT IS MUCH BETTER WITH IT :) )

POUR THE BEAUTIFUL SAUCE OVER THE PASTA AND TOSS. PLATE UP AND SPRINKLE WITH FRESH PARM AND FRESH PARSLEY IS NICE TOO!

                             

MEATLESS MONDAY…YES WE CAN!      

            

BECAUSE SERIOUSLY…WHO DOES NOT LOVE PASGETTI??!!!

Shared at: Weekend Potluck, Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Monday Meal Plan, Mouth Watering Mondays, Better Mom Monday, Menu Plan Monday,  Homemaking Party