Change (Five Minute Friday)

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1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking. 2. Link back here and invite others to join in. 3. And then absolutely, no ifs, ands or buts about it, you need to visit the person who linked up before you & encourage them in their comments. Seriously. That is, like, the rule. And the fun. And the heart of this community..

Oh and Ahem, if you would take pity and turn off comment verification, it would make leaving some love on your post that much easier for folks!

OK, are you ready? Please give us your best five minutes on:::

Change…

Go:

These past weeks have been in flux . . . flux is–I’m not sure what but you use it in soldering–adding t to the metal to make it flow.  I am the metal and I NEED something added to me to make me flow on some days.  I think the Tinman was just fine being stuck there.  Because when you are stuck there is no change, but it is boring.

This month has blessed us with tons of change:  kids going to middle school, kids returning to preschool, kids at home being taught some character building first, life skills second and reading and math later, birthdays, the pool closing.

We are also mourning on this final day of August–my Mom passed 10 years ago yesterday and I thought I was fine in the days leading up but yesterday was hard.  We are mourning the end of summer yet embrace the change of the seasons.   I’m still trying to understand that kids grow up and the baby that I so prayed for isn’t a baby anymore.

The kids are changing, my husband is changing and I’m changing all into this little tribe.  I didn’t expect that but I like it.

STOP.

Top Ten Make-Ahead-Meals

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I love to cook and I really love to have biggish get togethers with friends and family.  Since we moved I’ve been a little slow to get back into the swing of it–one of my goals for 2013 is to have more dinners with friends.

Here is my top ten list of dinner ideas to feed a crew:

  1. Baked Potato Bar.  I love this because everything can be prepped ahead of time and can meet a wide range of dietary restrictions.
  2. Taco Bar.  Again almost everything can be prepped in advance.
  3. French Toast Bake.  I use the recipe from Great Harvest Bread Company.
  4. Egg Bake.  I make the Egg Bake in the crock pot and it turns out very well.
  5. Macaroni and Cheese in the crock pot paired with Applesauce (in a crock pot).
  6. Chili–I make two different kinds and then have a million different kinds of crackers and shredded cheese, and a couple of types of bread for the people who like to dunk (that would be me).
  7. BBQ and Watermelon–simple but I think several watermelons and all different kinds of BBQ on a table is beautiful.  I love the colors and the smells–the coolness of the watermelon and the spicy of the sauce.
  8. Lasagna–a ton of work to make a really good one but when I make lasagna I really make 5 and freeze them.  I serve this with a few different kinds of green salad–so the base is the same but the toppings are all different–so you look like you’ve been working for days but really–NOT.  I also make homemade bread–it could be “real” or frozen bread dough–it is all good.
  9. BLT.  This is another do ahead but who doesn’t love a great BLT?  I’m a fan of coleslaw with my BLT but any cold salads would work.
  10. Quesadillas–I like the build your own option–different cheeses, mushrooms, every different pepper you can find, different beans, chicken, beef, shrimp . . . this is my favorite.

We play with our food quite a bit in our house.  I want my kids to have fun figuring out new things and playing with new recipes and ideas.  They do have to eat what they create–I do have some limits.

Ultimate Recipe Swap

St. Theresa’s Prayer vs. Balance

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Today I struggled with balance.  I had a great day being a Mom, homeschooling, picking our own food to can in an effort to eat more natural healthy foods, taking kids to soccer, doctor appointments, dinner and now getting ready for bed.  I like the phrase “I’m going to retire for the evening”, it gives me hope that one day I just might catch up.   I want to retire and dabble . . . not exactly but I’m too young to retire but feeling to old to have two days like this in a row.  But it was an awesome day–I’d rather go to bed exhausted with my kids smiling than anything else!

I had an incredible day but still felt like I should have done more!  Today was non-stop.  I know I’ve already said that but it was like crazy non-stop!  (I’ll stop saying it now because I’m annoying myself)  Then I found this prayer–in my old house I had it on the inside of the cupboard that I opened everyday–giving me many opportunities to stop and read . . . today I want to share it with you.

May today there be peace within.    (Ok, I did not feel the peace today.)

May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be. (If God meant that I would be in my minivan–than I can trust that.)

May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith. (I did forget today–note to self work on that for tomorrow.)

May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.  (I totally did that today!!!  Score 1 for me.)

May you be content knowing you are a child of God.  (I did feel like a child today–which always makes me feel closer to God when I can break things down into the simplest terms.)

Let his presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing dance, praise and love.  (I am so working with my soul lately . . . work in progress.)

It is there for each and every one of us.  (I’m sharing–although I have had some envy issues the last couple of days–not proud of that . . .maybe another post.  So I am sharing–but not with everyone–that does not make my soul sing . . . ugghhh–note to self–keep working.)

I’ll be linking this up to these wonderful blogs:

Works for Me Wednesday
Women in the Word Wednesday
Living Well Wednesday
Unwrapping His Promises
God Bumps and God-Incidences
Whatever Wednesday
Walk with Him Wednesdays

Thought Provoking Thursday
Thoughtful Thursday
Thankful Thursday
Proverbs 31 Thursday
Life in Bloom
Thrive at Home Thursday