From Eva's Kitchen 2

Last night, Tyler (my hubby) left on a little training trip to Lincoln for a few days. Since it was just the kids and I, we did some fun stuff. One of which was making play dough. This is an easy recipe and smells so good because of the kool-aid! My kids love it. Isaac is playing with grape play dough as I write this. Enjoy & happy playing! Don't forget to sit down with the kids...you'll enjoy it too!

Home Made Play dough

2 cups flour
2 TBS salt
2 TBS alum
1 pkg Kool-aid (any flavor)
1 cup boiling water
2 TBS vegetable oil

mix dry ingredients in bowl. Microwave water until boiling & add oil. Stir water/oil mixture into dry ingredients. Mix. Dump onto hard surface and kneed until firm.

(one tip is to choose good Alum-like the McCormick brand..for some reason the cheaper brands can make the play dough really sticky)


For those of you who are wondering what else we did for fun...we made strawberry milkshakes, watched an hour long Elmo movie together and then had a "slumber party" on the living room floor with sleeping bags. Tyler looked at me a little funny when I told him Isaac was having a "slumber party". That's what happens when you have to stay home with the girls!

True Spirituality

I like to read. I'm often reading more than one book at a time. Right now, I'm making my way through True Spirituality by Francis A. Schaeffer. I'm only on the third chapter, but so far it has proven to be very thought-provoking. At this point, he is discussing the ressurected Christ. A quote ,"It was the same body, raised, and glorified; not in some far off place, but there, in space, time, and history." He is speaking of when Jesus appeared with the disciples after his ressurection. It just becomes more real to me when I sit and think about the fact that Jesus had his same body, just glorified, that he is one day going to return and I along with every man, am going to "see him" in this world with my own eyes. I long for the day...I hope you do too.

From Eva's Kitchen I

Just for fun, I thought I'd start sharing a recipe a week for those of you who like to make yummy food in your kitchens. I enjoy cooking, though sometimes it can be challenging with a three year old and a one year old! I'll make sure to include the reference if I know where it came from.

One of my favorite fall and winter dishes is soup. Nothing beats hot soup and warm bread when the temperature is freezing!


Auntie M's White Chili (Lincoln Berean Cookbook 2004)
1 T. butter or oil
2 small onions, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 (4 oz) can green chilies
2-4 tsp. ground cumin
4 c. chicken broth
4 c. cooked chicken, diced or shredded
3-4 cans white beans (any combo of great northern, navy, garbanzo, & butter beans)
2 c. Monterey Jack cheese
sour cream
chopped jalapenos

Sauté onion in butter. Add garlic, chilies and cumin. In soup pot, combine broth, chicken, beans, and sautéed vegetables. Heat to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15-30 minutes. Add cheese. Do NOT BOIL. Just before serving, garnish with sour cream and jalapeños.

Cowboy Bread (my mother's recipe)
1 pkg yeast
3 cups flour
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup luke warm water
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup scalded milk, slightly cooled

Dissolve yeast in water. Cream together butter, sugars, eggs, and salt. Add milk and yeast mixture. Stir in flour by hand (do not knead). Cover and let rest in warm place for 15 minutes. Put into an 8" cast iron skillet. Pat smooth. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Happy Cookin'.

A New Year, Another Chance

Since I'm am a dreamer, I always look forward to the start of a new year. There is so much opportunity that a new year holds. I like to dream about what could be. However, many times when I come to the end of that "New Year", I'm disappointed that those dreams never became reality. A person can dream and dream and dream but nothing will happen if nothing is done. For a dream to come true, you have to have an end goal with actual defined steps to achieving that goal. What is it going to take for that conception in your mind to turn into reality? The difficulty for me comes into play here. I don't like the daily grind. I love to envision the goal but really struggle with staying the course. It takes discipline. It takes accountability. Most of all though, you have to really want whatever the end result is, and you always have to be willing to sacrifice to get there.

Well, it's a new year again. Since I'm turning 30 this week and living my life with vision this year...I wanted my first blog of 2008 to set the stage for what my family is focusing on this year. As I stated in an earlier post, we are on the road to becoming debt-free. Since college, I've learned a lot of hard lessons and one is that I really do not like being a slave to the lender! It really holds you back from being free to serve God however he leads. Having the resources he has provided tied up in credit cards or student loans or cars or even mortgages keeps us committed to something and tied down. It has taken me learning this over and over again to get to the point where I really want the end goal. I really want to be debt-free.

We already have steps to get to the end goal. Actually, we've been on a budget for 6 years. We took a Crown Financial Ministries course during our engagement and have lived with a budget since then. What we haven't done is sacrificed very much to reach our end goal. So this year is all about sacrifice. It is about saying no to things we don't need, places we'd like to go, restaurants we'd love to visit, in general...sacrificing whatever goes beyond a necessity to a want. Believe me, just saying this makes me cringe inside and want to start making my list of exceptions. But, no, I really want this and I have to continually remind myself that I want to be debt-free way more than I want that non-fat white chocolate mocha from Starbucks! However, gift cards for birthdays and holidays are always appreciated!

I will be posting our progresses, failures, and victories for you during the year. I'm a pretty open book and I share things with the purpose of encouraging you or challenging you to grow. I think it is a lot easier to gain wisdom from listening and sharing with others than it is from making mistakes and having to live with the consequences. With that said, if anyone has any really great ideas for cutting costs, saving money, or free forms of entertainment, I'm all ears. I love to research other blogs for ideas so I will share the really good ones that I come across. One great financial resource is Dave Ramsey. He shoots it to you straight. I like to listen to his radio program and hear stories of other people who are sacrificing to become debt-free.

Happy New Year. I hope you reach your goals.

Rest

My kids and I finished our Christmas shopping today. As I was watching all the bustling about it reminded me of how many people are just extremely busy. A while back I made it a rule that I would always leave "free-time" in my life. Something you probably will never hear me say is "I'm so busy". I don't think we can be open to God, growing, and enjoying the life he gave us if we never stop.

So in honor of rest today...two of my favorite things are coffee and journaling.

Recipe:

Low Fat Coffee Shake

1 cup skim milk

1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1 TBS instant coffee

1 1/2 tablespoons nonfat powdered milk

Put all ingredients in a blender, cover, and blend until smooth and foamy. Serve in a tall glass over ice.



"Whatever coaxes us out of hiding, to write, record, and express, is a revolutionary act. It says that we believe our lives count: our lives do count." -SARK


Directed Journaling Ideas:

-write a list of special people in your life, what are some ways you can celebrate their presence in your life?
-what are you doing when you are most happy or content and time flies by?
-write about your mother's beauty, send her a letter.
-what are you jealous of?

Remember to REST during this "busy" time. The Savior has come, celebrate Him.

turning thirty

Next month is my 30th birthday. The age thing isn't really getting to me. I've actually kind of looked forward to the thirties. Something about them always seemed so grown up to me. I think that is the part I'm struggling with...I don't really feel grown up. I'm married (6 years this Saturday) and have two children...I've graduated from college, worked a full-time job...yet I still don't feel grown up. I think maturity comes slower for some of us. As I look back over my life I have great memories. I've always had lots of fun, met great people, gone on adventures. I had a fun childhood. It was busy. A camp kids life is never dull. However, something still lacks. Until recently, I was still trying to search for it in activities and people. Well...I've spent the last 10 months in a new town. I don't know very many people and I'm not really involved. It has been a great time to process and listen to God. One huge observation I've made is that in the past I didn't devote enough time and energy to building character. There are areas that should have been given care in my teens and twenties that got ignored. I can't blame my upbringing or circumstances. I am fully accountable for what God has given me. Most of my difficulty comes back to living life without focus. If you don't know what the goal is or where you are going you don't get anywhere.


I think I've just begun to stop fighting against God and accept his role for me. You know, to be honest, I've been rebellious my entire life. Part of it is my personality, I tend to be a bit fiery and energetic. But mostly, it's a choice.

Lately, I've been pursuing God's desire for me as a wife and mother. It may be completely contrary to the world. I may have to overcome some stereotypes that I have in my mind. But I've come to this from God's word...

Before all else, I am:
(1) To be a helper, companion, and wife to my husband (this was the purpose of the very first woman... she was created because it was not good for man to be alone, see 1 Cor. 11:9)
(2) To be a mother (he built it into our very bodies!)
(3) To teach other women how to do these things (Titus 2:3-5)

So in my thirties...I want to be more focused. It is my goal to excel at those three things. I want to stand before God someday and hear Him say "well done". I want to know that I did not waste the time, talent, and treasures that He has entrusted to me. I want to bring him glory as his creation. I know where to start...I have no excuses... I must be diligent.

"no paybacks"

I spend most weekend nights at my part-time job serving (at a restaurant). It is an interesting environment. I'm definitely "in the world but not of it". It has given me the opportunity this year to really grapple with what it means to be a Christ follower and really love people. I know I stand out there as different. Sometimes I take some heat for that. Especially when crude jokes don't make me laugh or I walk away. The comments like "prude" remind me of high school. People that can't handle someone being different than them so they resort to name-calling. I'm mature enough to rise above that now but what do I do with it? Do I smart off right back? Believe me, I'm really good at that. I wouldn't miss a beat. Sarcasm is in my genes. That's the easy road. The even easier road is to leave the environment. Find a new job where I don't have to deal with it, run away and hide in nice loving environments and only "love" my friends, those who love and understand me. The fact is, God calls us to much more than that. He calls us to be his hands and feet. How? I look to Christ, he gave his life for a bunch of sinners who called him names and much worse.
It just so happened that I had a difficult evening at work last Saturday. Difficult in the sense of dealing with some unkind comments. I went to church with my family on Sunday and the title of the sermon was "No paybacks in the Kingdom" based on Matthew 5:38-48. In verse 39 Jesus own words are "Do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also." In those days it was an insult to slap someone. I've been insulted, I'm just supposed to take it and offer my other cheek. Not only that in verses 43-44 Jesus says, "You have heard that it was said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.." Honestly, I cannot do this on my own. But through Christ I find the ability to love those who I feel at times hate me, for no real reason, except that they see Christ in me. I ask God to go with me each and every time I go to work. He always meets me there. Maybe in someone with a kind word, maybe through my customers who are friendly and tip well, but I always make it through. I'm bringing a light into a place that is dark and for the most part hopeless. Believe me, most of my co-workers will not step foot in a church. I must be the church to them. I'm called to love them and minister to them, not judge them. No Paybacks.