Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Prayer Warrior Mom by Marla Alupoaicei


 I have read a lot of books on prayer.  I have even read a few on moms praying for their kids. I recently had an opportunity to read Prayer Warrior Mom which is more than a book about praying for your kids.  Marla Alupoaicei does talk about praying for your kids, but she also gives lots of helpful advice in parenting. I loved her suggestion on figuring out what your child's name means and then praying accordingly.  She recommends a book called The Name Book by Dorothy Astoria which provides meanings of names and a relevant 
Scripture that you can pray for a child with that name. Marla also discusses when it is necessary to get help (like if you are struggling with depression), how to hold your kids loosely and entrust them to God, and how to model grace and forgiveness to them. At the end of each chapter there is a prayer, a list of scriptures that apply to the chapter's topic and discussion questions.  I enjoyed reading her book because even though it was on praying for your kids it was broader in scope.

Thomas Nelson has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book in order to review it.  I am not required to give a positive review.  All my opinions are my own.

Monday, June 17, 2013

I Will Tell of All Your Deeds

But as for me, it is good to be near God.
    I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge;
    I will tell of all your deeds.  Psalm 73:28


{3,496-3,512}

-This quote: "All is grace--because God's transfiguring all things for His glory.--Ann Voskamp
-Learning of how far our God will go to redeem us.
-Feeling unloved and then God pouring out His love on me through the words and deeds of others.  He just dumped on the love!!
-Twenty-one years of marriage
-Wild roses along the path I walk
-Walking with a friend
-Time at a coffee shop
-Interacting with the very sweet owner of that coffee shop
-A new purse and wallet made by a friend  (She has awesome products.  Check out her Facebook page!)



-Planning for the upcoming school year.


-Getting my haircut
-Warm weather
-New Spanish students for the summer
-Time to work on my college class and also plan my Spanish lessons for the coming fall
-Tim getting a lot of projects done around the house
-A chance for Noah to go camping with a friend
-Baby robins hatched this week!!!




Friday, June 14, 2013

Gideon: The Bible Study



Weaknesses stink, and showing them is even worse.  At least that is what we think. But what if our weaknesses were God's way of humbling us, stripping us down to what is important?  What if our weaknesses lead us to Christ?

For years I have hated the fact that I live with anxiety.  I would anything to be that bold, in-your-face kind of person.  I love any person or character from a story that can go boldly through whatever stands in their way.  But I am not that person...no matter how much I hope to be.  In the past few years, God has been teaching me that my weakness is there for a reason.  It is to keep me in line with Him.  It is to there so that I remain humble.  It is there so that I will know beyond a shadow of a doubt that when the victory comes it is HIS.

This summer I am doing Priscilla Shirer's study on Gideon. You know the one...the fearful, scaredy-cat of a man that was threshing wheat in a wine press all because he was afraid of the Midianites.  The one who when the angel of the Lord appeared gave him the greeting of "Mighty Warrior".  Gideon was acting like anything but a mighty warrior.  It is interesting that God saw him as such because he is also the one that needed to test God with a fleece and needed to hear a dream of encouragement to go forward into battle.  Yet, many times the way we see ourselves is not how God sees us.  We fixate on our weaknesses.  God fixates on how His strength can show through our weaknesses.

I am about halfway through the study and have already gleaned so much!  Here are a few tidbits:

{Those sentences in quotes are Priscilla's words.  The rest are my thoughts}

Some boast in their relationships and connections, but I will boast in the Lord.

"Today's difficulties are often the result of yesterday's disobedience."

We all play a part in God's redemptive story.

"God is still faithful to us even when we are faithless. God's faithfulness does not signify God's approval."

"Behavior doesn't determine identity."  {Love that one!!}

Life's shadows can distort reality.

I am loving getting to know this "mighty warrior" better and seeing how my weaknesses are a tool in the hand of a strong God.


Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Freezer Smoothies



I love smoothies, but would rarely make them simply because I dislike pulling out the individual ingredients and cleaning the blender at the end. For awhile now, I have been making "freezer smoothies", an idea I got from Not Your Mother's Make-Ahead and Freeze Cookbook .  I basically buy my smoothie ingredients in bulk, bring them all home, and start blending.  Then I put the blend in these containers and then freeze.  To serve, I set them on the counter for awhile (30 minutes maybe??) or you can nuke them in the microwave for a few seconds on half power.

Here are some blends that we have enjoyed. I have to admit that I don't follow exact amounts with these.  I just add ingredients, blend, and taste test them.

 NOTE: All the juices  are added in concentrate form.  I let the concentrate thaw a bit and then start making the smoothies.  Using it in juice form gives less flavor. 

Berries and Bananas
Vanilla yogurt
Strawberries
Bananas
Orange juice (remember...in concentrate form)
Honey or agave (optional)

Berry Orange
Vanilla yogurt
Strawberries
Apple Cherry juice
Honey or agave (optional)

Here are some other options that I would like to try in the near future...

Cherry Vanilla
Vanilla Yogurt
Frozen cherries
Apple Cherry juice
Honey or agave (optional)

Pineapple
Vanilla yogurt
Diced Pineapple
Pineapple juice
Banana

Raspberry Chocolate
Vanilla yogurt
Cocoa powder (you won't need a lot of this!)
Raspberries
Banana
Honey or agave (optional)

Pumpkin Pie 
Pumpkin puree
Vanilla yogurt
Pumpkin pie spice
Banana
Honey or agave
 

Monday, June 10, 2013

Gratitude is the Antidote...

Gratitude is the antidote for despair and festering unhappiness.

{3,478-3,495}

-The ability and chance to train the staff of a local summer camp on the curriculum that they will be teaching


-Relying on God completely
-Praise music
-Friends that can fill in the gap when I can't be there for my kids
-II Chronicles 20:12 {Love that verse!}
-Zucchini blossoms

-Pollen (means "life" even though it makes me sneeze)
-Learning from the life of Gideon
-Great Spanish lesson with a little girl
-The way God heals
-Rainy days
-Time to get my classwork done
-Gideon in the greenhouse (Love doing my Bible study here!)
-

-At least three eggs in the nest in our backyard

-No, I take that back.  There are FIVE eggs.

-Freezer meals done
-Smoothies
-A friend dropping off a book
-Rain holding off until the game was done

 

Friday, June 7, 2013

Meals for June

Here's what is on the menu for June:



ONE POT WONDER TOMATO BASIL PASTA
{Found at Apron Strings}
Serves 4 to 6 as an entree
12 ounces linguine pasta
1 can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes with liquid ( I used zesty red pepper flavor)
1 large sweet onion, cut in julienne strips
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves
2 large sprigs basil, chopped
4 1/2 cups vegetable broth (regular broth and NOT low sodium)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Parmesan cheese for garnish
Place pasta, tomatoes, onion, garlic, basil, in a large stock pot. Pour in vegetable broth. Sprinkle on top the pepper flakes and oregano. Drizzle top with oil.
Cover pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a low simmer and keep covered and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes or so. Cook until almost all liquid has evaporated – I left about an inch of liquid in the bottom of the pot – but you can reduce as desired .
Season to taste with salt and pepper , stirring pasta several times to distribute the liquid in the bottom of the pot. Serve garnished with parmesan cheese.

{NOTE: This really won't be a freezer meal.  More like having the ingredients on hand and throwing it together at the last minute.}


Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas
Ingredients
  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
  • 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
  • 2 tsp chili powder
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • ½ tsp garlic powder
  • ½ tsp dried oregano
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chilies
  • 1 medium onion, sliced
  • 1 large bell pepper, seeded and sliced (I use half a green and half a red)
  • 12 flour tortillas
  • Toppings such as cheese, sour cream, and guacamole – if desired
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place chicken strips in a greased 13×9 baking dish.
  2. In a small bowl combine the oil, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, dried oregano, and salt
  3. Drizzle the spice mixture over the chicken and stir to coat.
  4. Next add the tomatoes, peppers, and onions to the dish and stir to combine.
  5. Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Serve on tortillas with desired toppings.

Million Dollar Spaghetti
  • 7 oz. pkg. thin spaghetti noodles
  • 1 tsp. butter
  • 1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 tsp. minced green pepper
  • 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
  • 1/4 c. sour cream
  • 8 oz. cottage cheese
  • 1/3 c. onion
  • 2 tsp. melted butter
  • 8 oz. can tomato sauce
  • 1. Cook spaghetti noodles and drain. Saute beef in butter until brown, then add onions, green peppers, salt, pepper and tomato sauce. Remove from heat.

  • 2.Combine cheeses and sour cream.

  • 3. Using a 2 quart casserole dish, spread half of spaghetti noodles, cover with cheese and then cover with meat sauce and add remaining noodles to the top.

  • 4. Pour melted butter over spaghetti noodles then spread remaining meat sauce over the top.

  • 5. Bake at 325-350 for about 30 minutes.

    Crock Pot Bacon Ranch Chicken
    Ingredients:
    2 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled (can use turkey bacon)
    1 tsp minced garlic
    1 (1 oz) packet dry ranch dressing mix
    1 (10.75 oz) can 98% fat-free condensed cream of chicken soup
    1 cup sour cream (fat-free works great)
    1 lb. chicken breasts (can be frozen or defrosted)
    8 oz. of your favorite pasta, cooked
    Directions:
    Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray and place chicken in the crock pot.
    Mix the bacon, garlic, ranch dressing mix, soup, and sour cream together and pour over the top of the chicken. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6 hours. Shred chicken with two forks. Cook pasta as directed on package and serve chicken over pasta.
    {NOTE: I may modify this recipe as I don't like chicken that has been cooked in a crockpot. I may just make the sauce and freeze it to put over pasta later.}

    Sweet Citrus Grilled Chicken
    2 large chicken breasts pounded to 1/2 inch thick
    1/4 cup olive oil
    1/4 cup lime juice
    1 TBS lemon juice
    2 TBS honey
    1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional)
    2 tsp lemon pepper
    1 tsp kosher salt
    1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
    Place all ingredients in a ziplock bag, seal and shake well. Place in the fridge to marinade for al least 4-5 hours, preferably overnight.
    Remove chicken from bag and discard marinade. Preheat grill to medium and grill chicken for 15-20 minutes or until no longer pink.

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Learning Numbers 1-20 (Book Recommendation)

Teaching numbers can be hard for the younger set.  Once they master up to twenty it gets easier. I recently used Un Alce, Veinte Ratones to review numbers 1-20 with one of my young Spanish students.  It worked out better than I had hoped!  Here's what I did:



First I read the story to her.  She was already familiar with the numbers and could count easily from one to twenty, but she is still working on identifying numbers that are out of order and just recognizing which numbers are what.  It's one thing to be able to count out loud.  It is another thing to be able to see a number and recognize what it is. So after reading the story to her I pulled out some number cards, put them in order and had her count 1 through 20 with the cards.


I then randomly picked a page and had her count the animals on that page.  She then had to look at the number on the page and find that same number on one of the number cards and hand it to me.


We did every page randomly until I had collected all the number cards from her.  I was amazed that she didn't get bored yet in the process she was counting over and over again and also working on recognizing the way numbers are written.



This book is also available in English under the title One Moose, Twenty Mice.  So if you home school your kids or your child is in school this would be a great book to work with them on recognizing their numbers and practicing counting!

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