Little Cooks in the Kitchen

Last night I was reading a few of my favorite Psalms.  I started with Psalm 40.  I don’t know why it’s a favorite except that I read it to my Nana while she lay in her bed in the nursing home in the last days of her life.  I even read it from the same Bible, which my grandfather was so kind to give me for Christmas.  It was nice to read from because it’s larger print.  Have I mentioned that I suddenly need reading glasses?  Anyway…

I skipped over to Psalm 139.  I was supposed to be memorizing it with the other 95,000 people that read this blog.  Well.  I made it through the first 4 verses.  I know.  Impressive…

Last night I kept reading after verse 4, trying to decide whether to try to memorize the rest even though I’m about 20 days behind on the “schedule”.  I couldn’t get past verse 5.

You hem me in - behind and before;  you have laid your hand upon me.

Maybe I got stuck because when I hear the word “hem” I think clothing.  It’s not really a “Bible” word.  I did a little looking, into the Hebrew and stuff.  The root of the word means “to confine”.  I also found rephrasing of the verse in a commentary:  “You so guide me with your hand, that I can turn no way, but where you appoint me.”

What if you allowed God to guide you in such a way that you could not turn anyway but where he lead?

Honestly, I have no idea why we continue to put this thing up.

When we put it up, it said 42 days.  Then we changed it to 23 days.  And when we had people here for Advent the other night, we realized we hadn’t changed it, so we changed it to 19 days, which is what it still says.

There are 14 days until Christmas.  I think our reindeer is lazy.  Seriously, when is this thing going to start doing his job and counting down for us?

We have big news in our family.  Something exciting!  Something that will mean a transition for all of us.  Something that will require sacrifices but will also bring blessings…No, I’m not pregnant.  (I’m sure a few of you were sweating!)

Ricky started a new job today.  He has taken a position at our church and he’s really excited.

I’ve always said I’d never be married to a pastor.  I grew up with family members that were pastors.  My dad was on staff at a few churches.  I’ve seen the frustrations and sacrifices required to work in full-time ministry.  You might not know this about me, but I don’t like frustrations.  I don’t like sacrifices either.  So I’m sure you can imagine - I was pleased as pie when I met and fell in love with Ricky.  He had a heart for ministry but a paycheck from corporate America.  However, over the years, the heart for ministry has grown and the paycheck from corporate America has become less and less fulfilling.  So…God did what God does.  He opened a door that only He could open at the exact right time and voila!  I’m married to a pastor.  His title I think is “Spiritual Formation Pastor” so I really am a “pastors wife”. 

Apparently God did not hear me the 87 times I made the prediction that I wouldn’t be married to a pastor.  So now, I have to be nice to people in the grocery store and never give someone a dirty look in the parking lot.  I can’t be caught reading tabloids in the grocery store (although I do think our Pastor’s wife might read the occasional US Weekly.)  I’m going to have to always speak in sweet, low tones to my kids and gaze longingly at my husband - well, at least the gazing won’t be hard…

All kidding aside, it’s a great fit for Ricky and I’m am so proud of him and SO excited for him.  The church is fortunate to have him in that role and he is fortunate to be in that role.  I really think it will be a win-win for everyone.

I, however, am going to be more careful about the sweeping predictions I make about how I think my life will turn out.  I always said, I’d never home-school my children.  Apparently God didn’t hear the 148 times I said that, because he has really laid it on my heart in a way I can’t ignore.  I am still dragging my feet on that one though, hoping he’ll change his mind.  I’m also wondering if he has heard the 297 times I’ve said we aren’t planning on having any more kids.  I think I’ll quit saying it - for good measure.

I know.  Two posts back to back.  Those of you that have been keeping up with my blog for the last year and a half - don’t faint!  So here’s the conversation that Garrett and I just had after he got out of time-out for yelling no at me:

Garrett: Mommy, I’m sorry I had to raise my voice at you. I’m really sorry.
Me: I forgive you. Garrett, you have been very disrespectful lately. What should Mommy and Daddy and you do about that?
Garrett: (Looking me right in the eyes - very seriously) Mommy - we need to have a bigger feast.
Me: A bigger feast?
Garrett: Yes. And another table with chairs.
Me: What?
Garrett: And we need some more chairs for the Cars table because it has a rip in it. That’s all. (Turns around and walks out of the room)

Huh?

I love Christmas!  I think this is the most exciting time of the year!  I would also love to do a good blog post on all of our plans for Christmas this year, including opening our house up to other families and sharing the Advent celebration together, which we did last night.  (Aunt Beth - are you cringing at my grammar/run-on sentences yet?)  But, I don’t have time for that since no one at my house took a nap today.  No One.  So, I’ll just do a short post with a picture.

As part of our Advent celebration, we’ll be building a nativity scene.  Last night, we set up the stable and let the kids throw straw all over my floor sprinkle hay around the stable.  After about 5 or 6 little ones made a gigantic mess (and had a blast doing it!) I decided that I was going to be bagging up the stray/hay each week, I mean, we don’t live in a barn…

Anyway, back to my “short post with a picture”, when Ricky got the stable to set back up on the table, it had a new addition (it’s supposed to be empty - we build it gradually adding animals and then characters, etc).  You might call it a renovation.  A kitchen renovation:

I guess someone just got done making Christmas cookies since the oven door is open…

I just bought some shoes.  For $5.00.  TWO pair.

 No, I didn’t go to Goodwill.  I went to www.50000shoes.com.  You too can purchase 2 pair of shoes for $5.00.  That is FOUR shoes for $5.00.  What do they look like?  I have no idea, but that’s ok.  You see, they aren’t for me.  They are for someone who has no shoes.  Think about that.  No shoes.  NADA.  Cold toes.  Cut up soles.

Go.  Now.  Buy a pair TWO PAIR of shoes for $5.00.  Then tell everyone you know to do the same.  The goal is to raise 50,000 pairs of shoes in 50 days.  It’s easy.  It’s inexpensive.  It’s cool.

For the price of a coffee drink, you can give shoes to TWO people.  You can warm their toes and bless their souls!

OK, I just wrote a long entry that could be entitled “The Real Bridge to Nowhere”.  In an attempt to write a post on how important I think the issue of abortion is, I just kept going on and on and on and…well you get the picture.  So I’ll cut to the chase.

I can not reconcile the thought of being a Christian and voting for a candidate that is the most pro-choice candidates we’ve ever had.  For Christians, abortion is one election issue that I believe should trump any other.  I make this statement of Christians only because I believe as Christ followers, we are called to live our lives, make our decisions and yes, even vote in accordance to what God teaches us through His Word.  

Before I go any further though, I want to be very clear  - I am in no way questioning the faith or salvation of Christian Obama supporters.  That is not my place and we all have issues where our faith and actions do not match up.  I’m just confused.

I can understand the battle of public personae - if you had to invite one of the candidates over to hang out with, I can understand why someone would choose Obama, he seems more amicable and friendly.  I can even see how some might think he’s exciting and charismatic.  I can see that people are tired of the war in Iraq and think the outcome of that will be different.  I can see that some people are in favor of more (or some would argue - total) government intervention in our health care system.  I can see how some people would want a change and believe that the Republicans are to blame for the problems we face.  I understand that some think that taxing the rich and large corporations and spreading the wealth around seems like a good idea.  I know that a move toward socialism doesn’t bother some people.  It bothers me, but that is not the point of this post…

The Bible is clear about who creates life (Genesis 1:1, Psalm 139:13-16, Isaiah 49:1-5).  The first way we are introduced to God, is as creator.  In the Bible and in our own lives when we ourselves are created. 

When you make abortion an issue of choice, you remove God from the creation process.  ONLY God, decides when a life will be created.  We do not get to decide that.  When conception happens, God has decided.  When abortion happens, man has stepped in and destroyed a life that God has formed.  God is the author of life.  He is the creator.  We are blessed that he allows us any part in the process. 

I have never heard any Scriptural foundation supporting abortion and know that people that vote for and support pro-choice candidates either agree with abortion or decide to overlook that issue because the other issues are more important to them.  If you agree with abortion, I would challenge you to spend some time with that issue and God.  Talk to Him about it.  Ask Him to reveal to you what He says in His Word about life.  If you are overlooking that issue because there are some that you deem more important (i.e. the economy, healthcare or the war in Iraq), I would also challenge you to really seek God on that.  It is easy to overlook something that is not in line with God’s teachings in order to gain something we want more.  Often single people do it when they date non-Christians.  It’s not uncommon for someone to drink in front of someone that they know has a problem with alcohol.  People, other than myself of course, do it when they go to Target and keep piling up the purchases they can’t afford on their credit card.  The issue of what we as a country will do with human life says a lot about what we believe to be God’s role in our society.  Are we going to let Him be God - or do we think we would do better?

Phew.  Ok, deep breath.  Maybe I need to revisit the term “cut to the chase”!  I hope this comes across in the spirit in which it was intended.  I have been deeply burdened about this particular issue.  About a month ago, I saw a quote from a Christian minister that said “I don’t agree with ANYTHING the Republicans stand for.” and I thought, the Republicans are generally pro-life.  Are we so far off base that even our ministers aren’t placing a high value on life?  It was at this point, I began to be burdened.  I became even more so upon hearing some of the statements that Senator Obama has made about abortion.  (There are so many that concern me - I won’t list them here, in the interest of keeping this short…err uh shorter.  Feel free to ask what they are if you’d like to know.)

I’m always a little hesitant to post on abortion because there are many women who have had them (estimates are about 1/3 of women in the US have an abortion by the age of 40)and I would never want to send a message of judgement toward those women.  Our God is BIG and gracious and forgives all our sins.  Please, if you have had an abortion, know that I don’t judge you, I do believe God forgives and you are a precious child to Him and He loves you!

I have had more than a handful of friends in my lifetime tell me that they have had an abortion.  ALL of them are pro-life now.  Even Roe from Roe v Wade is now a pro-life advocate.  If you haven’t done research on abortion, the facts may surprise you.  Learn about the higher cancer rates, future fertility issues, future emotional issues for women who have abortions.  Learn what partial-birth abortion is (if you can stand to) so you know what they are talking about.  If you don’t know exactly what Barack Obama’s stance is on it, you can watch it HERE or if you’d rather read the transcript, you can do that HERE.  But most importantly, learn what God says about it.

I’d love to hear from you, if you are voting for Obama.  I don’t want the comments section to get ugly, so consider this a warning - if your comment is ugly - regardless of what side you fall on, I’ll delete it.  I do want us to try to glorify God through this, even if it is just a little blog post!  If you don’t want to leave a comment, but would like to respond,  feel free to email me using the “Contact Me” link.

I’ve had several requests for my whole wheat pumpkin waffle recipe, so here you go:

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
 2 cups Whole wheat flour
 1/4 cup agave nectar
 1 tablespoon baking powder
 1 teaspoon cinnamon
 1/2 teaspoon salt
 2 eggs
 1 1/2 cups milk
 4 tablespoons butter, melted
 1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1. Preheat waffle iron.

2. In a medium-size mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, melted butter, agave nectar and pumpkin. Pour the wet ingredients over the flour mixture and stir just until combined.

3. Coat the preheated waffle iron with cooking spray. Pour the waffle batter onto the center of each section of the iron.

4. Cook the waffles for about 4 to 5 minutes or until they are crispy and light brown. (Read the manufacturer’s directions for details about how long you should cook the waffles in your particular waffle iron.) Serve immediately with maple syrup and butter or freeze. Serves 4 (whatever that means!)

The original recipe called for all-purpose flour and sugar instead of whole wheat flour and agave nectar. I thought the substitutions worked great and that makes it a really healthy breakfast. I even forgot the eggs and they worked fine. Waffles are so forgiving!  By the way, you can buy agave nectar at most major supermarkets if you don’t have a Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s or something around you.  Just look in the “Organic” section.

I’d suggest using freshly ground flour if possible. It is SO much tastier. If you’re like me and not ready to drop the moula on grain and a grain grinder, you can go to Great Harvest and buy some freshly ground flour if you have a Great Harvest around you.

I also made a double batch (that’s 4 eggs I forgot if you’re counting…) and froze them.  We now have our own “convenience food”.  They freeze GREAT!  Garrett doesn’t really like that his waffles aren’t round anymore, but he still eats them!

Dear Gracie,

You are not a baby anymore.  I’m not sure how I missed it, but you slipped right from the baby stage into the little girl stage.  Sure, you still wear diapers and cling to your “blankie”.  You can’t go 30 minutes without sucking on your paci.  But you are growing up. 

You proudly proclaim “I did it!” and say “Come on” or “Watcha doin’?”  You’re starting to talk a lot and we can understand most of what you say - when the paci isn’t in your mouth!  You can color and paint like a big girl.  You hold the crayon or paintbrush just like you’re supposed to.

Your “Mommy” senses are kicking in.  You are so loving toward your baby dolls and you love pushing them around in the stroller.  You also try to share your food and drinks with them when you think they’re thirsty or hungry - even though you won’t share with anyone else!

You love to go outside.  You love to swing and play in the water.  You love balls and you are a fast runner.  You also love to dance to music.  I love to watch you when you are having fun.  You squeal with delight and your laugh makes me happy.

I love seeing you with your Daddy.  You are such a Daddy’s girl.  You light up when you see him.  When he’s been home for a few days and has to go back to work, you mope around the house looking for him for a few hours.

You know what you like and can be a very stubborn and determined girl.  You are not easily persuaded.  You are very cooperative and well-behaved at preschool and church.  Your teachers always go on and on about how wonderful you are.

And you are wonderful.  You are beautiful on the inside and the outside.  I am so proud of you and I’m so glad I get to be your Mommy!

I love you!

Mommy

Last night we made Fruit Roll-ups.  They are yummy!  I have had some requests for the recipe.  OK people,  hold on to your hat because this, is an easy one.  (OK, I can’t believe I actually said “hold on to your hat!”  I’m rollin’ old school today folks, next thing you know, I’ll be saying, “Jiminy cricket!”  Anyway, I digress…

In an effort to start getting rid of the HFCS (High fructose corn syrup) and other unhealthy things in our diet, I started looking for an alternative to Fruit snacks.  And since the healthy organic fruit snacks are a little, ok, a lot pricey.  I decided to try to make my own.  Here is the recipe:

2 cups of fruit (I used strawberries)
2T Honey
1T Lemon juice

I’m sure fresh fruit is the tastiest, but I used frozen strawberries.  I got them because they were the cheapest way to get non-pesticide strawberries.  I just thawed them out.  Threw everything in the blender, pureed it, then poured it into a sieve to get the seeds out (Garrett is funny about seeds.)  I then spread it out on parchment paper and put it in the oven.

The oven was on 170 degrees.  The recipe called for I think 140, but 170 is the lowest ours will go.  I cracked open the door and left it in there for several hours (I think about 3 1/2 hours.)  You take it out when it isn’t sticky anymore.

Roll it up while it’s still warm.  Then cut it with clean kitchen scissors. (These would be the ones that you haven’t used for raw meat packages….)  Then you get this:

YUM.  Healthy treats!  OK, gotta run ice the cupcakes I just made!  (One healthy step at a time - It’s Gracie’s birthday tomorrow!)