Time for A Recipe

Time for some new recipes, it's been way too long! I haven't stopped cooking, this house loves to eat! The more I learn and experiment with cooking, the more I see how it's quickly become one of my great passions. I love to help others strive for healthier and happier lifestyles. A little back story, I was very sick for 15 years. Two years and one month ago, God used food and a major lifestyle change to completely heal my body of the illness I had for so long! It's been an amazing journey and I hope to one day take it even further and start my own business. So, with a husband in school, who eats A LOT, I have been working on recipes that he can put in a wrap and carry with him on campus.

Quinoa (prounounced keen-wah) is a fabulous and versatile grain. It's easily digestible and has a light, nutty flavor. It's has more protein (averages about 16.2%) and calcium than a quart of milk, so it gives you endurance. It's high in iron, magnesium, and potassium. It is strengthening to the kidneys and heart. With this grain, a little goes a long way! It expands to four times its volume when cooked. What's not to love.

Veggie Stuffed Quinoa

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for oiling the pan
1 red onion, chopped
1/2 pound sliced mushrooms
1 cup chopped carrots
1 red bell pepper chopped
1/2 cup chopped parsley
1 cup of chopped arugula
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 t sea salt (or to taste)
1t garlic powder
1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed and cooked according to package directions (Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup roasted almonds

Method

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally until transparent, 8 to 10 minutes.



Add mushrooms and cook until softened, 4 to 5 minutes more. Add carrots and chopped pepper, cook until just softened, then add parsley and arugula (in batches, if needed).



Let greens wilt then stir in garlic powder, salt, and cumin and cooked quinoa and toss gently to combine. Add salt, pepper and almonds and cook 1 to 2 minutes more. Set aside to let filling cool until just warm. Serve as a tasty side dish or in sprouted whole grain wraps. This made a huge pot as you can see, so it should last for a few days and lunches!

Finished dish!



Happy and healthy eating!

Adoption Update

I promise I will get the pics of the nursery up, I keep forgetting to take pictures of it finished in the daylight. It turned out awesome! So did the guest room.

We are waiting on an appeals process with our agency to decide on our adoption fee. Normally, the figure the fee by your combined earnings over the past three years, however; because Jacob is back in school, our situation has changed dramatically with living now on one income. If they give us grace, then our fee will be $7,000 lower. WOW! That's substantial. So please pray for us in that. Out total fees right now are around $37,000. We have to make a big payment before we can start the homestudy and before we can apply for our church scholarship the homestudy must be completed. Then upon final approval, another bigger payment. It's so hard to just trust, why is that? I was re-reading my post from like two posts ago and I specifically mentioned us doubting...even said with finances. Well, that was humbling to read. Because here I am, struggling to hold on. I know God can provide for what he's called us to, but it's so hard and there are so many times where I am ready to throw in the towel and give up.

I have struggled with so much these past weeks. Don't ever let anyone tell you that adoption is full of butterflies and sunshine, it's downright hard, even ugly at times. Hard.....much of the time and I am not even in the waiting yet. Let me expound. It's hard when you've waited so long and prayed so long for a child, it feels so distant and obscure. It's hard to not feel like you are "buying" a baby. It's hard to not wonder if you will have an adoption loss (a birthmother changing her mind, usually after having the baby). It's insanely hard to write a "dear birthmom" letter, telling a woman you've never met how you would be good parents to her child. It's hard to continue to submit your desire for biological children to the Lord and trust that this is the way he desires to grow your family. The list goes on and on.

Yet, I know God will provide. Today the Lord used our caseworker to deeply encourage me. Her words pierced right into my soul and I sobbed through the rest of the email and in Whole Foods. I had a feeling she was a believer...and now I have no doubts. Her words were like a blanket over me. One of those spots where you feel God deeply and feel silly for your lack of faith. Have yall been there? I have really felt alone and discouraged lately. I needed someone to speak right into my soul as she did.


God is good. He knows I need him to battle for me right now. Please keep us in your prayers as we seek to trust Jesus and have patience as we wait for his plan.

Maui-fied!

It's been a busy couple months for us, between J and his finals, me and work, adoption paperwork, painting the guest room and nursery (pics to come), and vacation! It's back to busy with summer school for J and adoption scrapbook and homestudy to start soon. Here are some pics from our trip to Maui. Seriously, one of the best vacations I've ever had! My favorite part, laying on the beach with a book in my hands, listening to the waves crashing. Sweet, beautiful music. Hawaii is one of the most beautiful places. We scored an incredible deal on a rental. Check out Vacation Rentals By Owner online if you're looking for a house to rent. We cooked most of our own food, which saved us a lot of dough! If you get the chance to go, I highly recommend it!

One of South Maui's beautiful beaches


Honolua Bay, where J snorkeled, gorgeous reef

Doesn't it just make you feel better? The water was so pretty!

Shopping in Lahaina

Lunch of veggie sushi and miso soup

One of the few places we ate out for all organic wood-fired pizza. Delicious!

Beautiful Maui sunset

One of many waterfalls on the East side

I had to put this one in, this guy, had a ice cream stand in the middle of the jungle. In real life, he had no shirt on and used his machete to dash open a coconut for us to drink the milk and then served us the best vegan coconut ice cream we've ever tasted. Wish I had another bowl now.

Our last night in Maui at an incredible restaurant.

At The Cross

What's defines me? I've been asking myself this question a lot lately. More than that realizing what doesn't define me. All my life I thought I had this real grip on the gospel and all that it is.....but lately I am realizing just how little I've really understood it down to the depths of my soul. I love Jesus, love him so much and I really seek to glorify Him with my life. But, the gospel...the gospel has been changing me. As I've struggled with sin issues and really been asking God to help "kill" those things in me, something in my soul has shifted. I've gone from beating myself up over sin, to seeing my Lord step into the gap every time and remind me, "Child, I died for that." I am so affected by His great sacrifice....more than I ever have been in my 28 years. His perfect love, taking on the wrath of God....so that I might live in eternity. One day, all who believe in Christ will stand before the throne and hear "this one's mine." Can you even try to wrap your mind around that without tears streaming down your face? It's only by His sacrifice and not by my deeds or faith, or rather lack there of.

Isaiah 51:17 talks about the "cup of wrath" that God was giving to his own Son, referring to it as the "cup of staggering."

In his book "The Cross Centered Life", CJ Mahaney discusses the scene in the Garden of Gethsemane.

"Listen again to the precious and powerful words we hear Him repeat to His Father:

'Not my will, but your will.'

Jesus is saying, 'Father, I willingly drink this cup by your command---I'll drink it all.'

And He will. He'll drink all of it, leaving not a drop. Not only will He leave nothing in that cup of wrath for us to drink....but today you and I will find ourselves with another cup in our hands. It's the cup of salvation. From this precious new cup we find ourselves drinking and drinking--drinking consistently, drinking endlessly, drinking eternally...for the cup of salvation is always full and overflowing. We can drink from this cup only because Jesus spoke those words about the other cup: 'Yet not what I will, but what you will.'

I will drink it all."

Oh what love my friends. It is the cross which defines me, defines you. The gospel. It is Christ.

Our Agency

I'm finally getting around to this post, and I am sorry for all my readers who have been '"waiting with baited breath." No, i am sure yall have been as busy as we have been. What is it about Spring that makes us run and schedule like crazy? Maybe because we were all hibernating this winter with the ridiculous cold!!

Back in March we drove to Ft. Worth to spend a day at the Gladney Center for Adoption. I wish we'd of known what we were in for. We were amazed! Gladney houses the birth moms on site, they have a beautiful facility with a gym, pool, house mom, commons with a full kitchen stocked with food, and beautiful rooms. They take such great care of these girls. We learned that the average age of these girls is early twenties. The care continues even after birth with their Next Steps Program, where the girls are helped with resumes, returning to school, and even funding for college if they so choose. They have lifetime counseling. The panel of birth moms was very eye-opening for both of us, it was nice to hear these girls talk about the process and support and the sacrifice they were making to better their child's life. I spent most of the day fighting back tears. Everyone with us had the same story, couldn't have children, and believed this was the next step for them.

We talked and planned and dreamed the whole way home. It was definitely confirmation of God's plan for us. It was neat seeing Jacob so excited about what the future holds for us. We're still in the midst of our paperwork, but making great headway. We hope to have it completed and the homestudy started within the next month.

I've been praying about God's will and asking for him to continue to lead us down His perfect path for our lives. I've seen such a change in my attitude already, I am growing so much as he removes things in me that don't look like him. It's SO hard, but so GOOD! I know opposition could come in this call to adopt.....even within our own hearts in the form of doubting that he will provide....but we are holding fast to truth. Being called to most anything always requires self-sacrifice and then comes great change in perspective. Less about us, more about Him.

The year anniversary of Grace's birthday, came and went......happened to be the day we celebrated Jacob's 30th birthday. I miss that sweet baby girl, but am thankful for the "call" on my life to go on without her and trust that this "work He's began in me, he will be faithful to complete." One day.....I'll know fully.

We picked out a lovely sage green to paint the nursery and will be starting that process slowly. We are also taking a much needed babymoon since we know we could very well have a baby within the next year (WOW!) and will also be broke for the rest of our lives! :) No, but we planned our trip to Maui in a month. Oh wow, are we excited! I cannot wait to just relax and soak up the sun and see an incredible place that I've always dreamed of seeing....even better with the love of my life!

Paperwork Smaperwork

Well, we feel in love with our agency. The orientation was awesome. And I mean awesome. God is good and I will have to put it all in another very long post.

But for now, we are buried in paperwork. It's been my status on GMail for the last two weeks and it's true. Between setting an appointment to get FBI fingerprinted and writing our autobiographies, we've been working and going to school as well. I promise.

My dear friend reminded me after everything we've been through, this is easy. She's right. We're pumped.

God is good.....back to work.

Maca-The Wonder Root

As an ode to the National Healthcare Reform passing....how about an herb bio. I heart maca! Let's talk about the benefits of this Peruvian root, shall we:


Endocrine Support-regulates the endocrine glands responsible for proper hormone balance. "Maca has been found to increase a person's energy levels, encourage growth and stimulate metabolic functions. The nutrients found in maca fuel the system and encourage hormone production."

Support the Adrenals-let's face it, if you're stressed or sick a lot, you're adrenals are and have been taxed. "Maca is an adaptogen and as such helps in maintaining the overall health of the body. Its calcium, fatty acids, and vitamins b1, b2, b12 content aids in the digestive process while its phosphorus, as well as vitamins b12 and b1 works on the nervous system. On the other hand, the alkaloid content of maca helps the body assimilate all the nutrients required by the body.

Help in Fighting Cancer-"the herb contains glucosinolate and fibers that prevent certain forms of cancer." The fatty acid of the herb helps in improving the body's immune system

Natural Pain Reliever-maca contains terpenoids and saponins which give it the power to relieve pain and act as an expectorant, sedative, and analgesic.

And probably the best reason.....

Increase Strength and Libido-the Incan warriors took the herb before battle to keep their bodies strong and ready for rigorous physical activity. It also increase libido. Hey, I am just saying.....


You can get maca in powder form which is most potent, mix with juice to take off the edge. I found that pear juice works best. It's also available in capsule form.