The Mothership

”So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.“ ‭‭James‬ ‭1‬:‭21‬ ‭NLT‬‬ What word has God planted in your heart that has the power to save your soul? A friend of my called me the threader. My family is interconnected through threads. What they pickup from me will determine if they are able to bend and flex or if they will be tight with tension. If my stress and angst is known, then my threads are taut and unable to be flexible. But if I am looking for the peace in all situations, my threads are able to move freely, and yet with intention. Depending on circumstances, my husband or I or even a child help keep the peace. We talk a lot about “keeping the peace” not with the intent to people please. But with the thought of how can we come to each interaction, love the person well, with a lens of boundaries that helps keep the peace in our hearts? Peace is always accessible,

This dish is so easy. It took a total of less than 1 hour to put together, bake, and cool off so you can eat it. If you use regular pasta - I would bake it for an extra 5 minutes. My mom passed this recipe on to me and I doctored it a bit.  Ingredients: 1 - 16oz box of pasta (I used Chickpea pasta) 3 cups of water 16 oz. Of frozen meatballs (I used meatless) Sprinkle of salt 1 - 24 oz jar of pasta sauce 5 oz. Spinach Parmesan cheese 2 cups of mozzarella  Fresh Basil or parsley for the top of the dish Recipe : Turn oven to 450.  Spray a 13x9 dish.  Place noodles, water, meatballs, salt, spinach and just a sprinkle of Parmesan into the dish. Give it a good toss to make sure everything is incorporated.  Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Be sure to give a good stir about every 10 minutes.  Take out and sprinkle on the two cups of mozzarella cheese. Bake an additional 5 minutes, uncovered.  Take out and let sit for at least 5 minutes. Sprinkle some torn fresh parsley or basil o

Very tasty and makes a lot so you can freeze for later or give to others.  I usually use a 13x9 and two foil 8x8 pans for freezing when I make this and there is still filling left over which is good for putting on top of salads or giving to little ones:) You can also use a 7x11 and 3 foil containers.  When cooking the chicken, I usually cook it in a crockpot on low that morning with a little salt and a minced clove of garlic and just a little water so that it's easy to shred and prepared for when I come home to make the rest. Or you can bake the chicken at 350 for 30 minutes seasoned with garlic powder and salt. Then shred with two forks after its baked This is not super spicy but you can make it hotter if you like. Just add things like diced jalepenos or Tabasco sauce to the chicken filling.  The tortillas: I use white or yellow corn tortillas. They are smaller than the normal taco tortillas. I have tried wheat tortillas and they just don't hold up as well. They ended

  This is one of those wonderful one pot easy prep meals. No chopping! I made a less lactose version because someone in our family has a sensitivity. Use full lactose items if you feel so inclined Ingredients: 2 lbs. uncooked chicken 1 - 32oz. chicken or vegetable broth 1 - 28 oz. can green enchilada sauce  Salt & Pepper to taste 1 - 14oz. can of corn, drained 1 - 14oz drained & rinsed can of white beans 2 cups shredded Monterey jack cheese 1/4 cup whole milk 3/4 cup almond milk (Or use all whole milk) 1 cup of soy yogurt (or green yogurt or sour cream) 2 oz. cream cheese or cream cheese alternative (cubed and softened) 4 oz. green salsa verde chopped white onion chopped cilantro  tortilla chips ***You could top with chopped avocado. Recipe: In a crockpot add the chicken, broth, and enchilada sauce, Salt & Pepper. Cook on low for 7 hours. Shred the chicken. Add the beans and corn. Stir Add the cheese, milks, yogurt, cream cheese and salsa to the crockpot. Stir as you add th

Sometimes there is nothing I can say or do to help you. Vastly different from the prelude of the season of parenting is where we remain now. Before you’d simply run to me with open arms when you were hurt, weren’t sure of the safety around you or uneasy of emotions that billowed inside. Now I stand here, ready to catch you as you fall, but it seems to me you feel less inclined to share. What stands in your way, baby girl? What keeps you from falling?  And then, just as the wind changes, with my arms outstretched and tired from the endurance of patience, you land ever so softly. As you get older, you have all the words, but for some reason your silence is the loudest. So for now, in this season, I will stand waiting, even annoyingly nudging you, because this is my calling. My roots are grounded deep so that I can sustain the impact. Saddened is my helping heart not be able to fix everything and make it all better, but blessed is my heart to hold the honor of being the constant s

My kids and I went apple picking with some friends and came home with soo many apples. I don't even know all the kinds because the kids were lke squirrels hopping from one row of apple trees to the next. My kids eat apples at an alarming rate so they each brought home a full 2 pound bag. I wanted to make something that the kids would enjoy and settled on this. I added protein powder to it, because, I figured if my kids are gonna eat baked goods, it might as well have an extra boost to it. When you see that you have to peel, core and chop the apples, don't be scared. Take your potato peeler and get rid of the peel. Cut around the core, and then chop the flesh. I only covered this with half walnuts because SOMEBODY doesn’t enjoy the texture. Super easy - no apple corer needed. This recipe has the fiber, the protein, and the carbs! Enjoy! Ingredients: 3 pounds of apples, peeled, cored and chopped juice from 1/2 a lemon 3 teaspoons of cinnamon 1/2 cup of granulated sugar 1 tablespo

My sister and I used to hit up the China Buffet quite frequently as children with our grandparents on a Friday night. Now that my kids are so much older and mature (ha!) I thought maybe they would try it! This recipe makes a lot - perfect for a crowd. If you only want enough for 2 adults to have dinner and leftovers I would definitely halve this. I felt like this recipe was a little less salty and not so heavy in sauce, which I prefer. You CAN saute in broth instead of oil if you feel like you want it even healthier. Also - if you wanted to make it vegetarian, some pan seared tofu would be super tasty! ***TIP! Be sure and have all the ingredients prepped and ready to go BEFORE you begin sauteing. This food cooks quickly and can easily burn if you are trying to chop as you go. Enjoy! Ingredients: 2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced 2 egg white 4 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons of cornstarch divided use 1  - 32oz chicken broth 3 teaspoons of sugar 2 Tablespoons of soy

My nephew joined me one afternoon and I thought, “I bet he’d like muffins.” I wanted to use pumpkin because Tia the season, but I wanted to see if I could lessen the amount of granulated sugar and pack with some protein. So I experimented! Below is the reaping of the experiment. Ingredients:  makes more than 24 regular sized muffins (half the amounts if you’d rather less) 1/2 cup white flour 1/2 cup protein powder (I used chocolate) 2 cups whole wheat flour 2 tsp. Baking soda 3 tsp. Ground cinnamon 3 tsp. Pumpkin pie spice  1/2 tsp. Ground ginger 1/2 tsp salt 3 ripe bananas, peeled and mashed 1/2 cup brown sugar  1 cup oil (whatever cooking oil you like) 1 can pumpkin purée  1/2 cup milk (any milk and possibly might need more) 1&1/2 cups pecans, chopped (or walnuts) 1 bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips Recipe: Preheat oven to 425 degrees ferenhiet and either spray your muffin tin or Place muffin liners.  In a large bowl, whisk: flour, protein powder, spices, salt and baking soda. Se

This was not hard to prepare. And honestly, I’m always looking for a new appetizer or fun was to eat a side. These were tasty and didn’t take too much time to prepare. I RECOMMEND making these before the rest of your meal because the potatoes have to boil and then bake. These were so good we couldn’t stop eating them! You figure about one potato per person (8 wedges) Ingredients: 7-8 potatoes (red or golden), sliced into wedges Water Salt 1/4 cup avocado oil 1 tsp garlic powder 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 1/2 tsp dried oregano  1 Tbsp of fresh chopped parsley  Salt, & Pepper 1/2 cup Mayo (we used veganaise) 1 Tbsp mustard 1/2 Tbsp honey 1/2 oz lemon juice  1/2 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp parsley, chopped 1/4 tsp oregano Pepper Recipe: ***pots/utensils to gather: cutting board& chopping knife, large pot for potatoes 1 large cookie sheet covered in tin foil, strainer, large bowl for tossing potatoes, small prep bowl for potato seasoning mixture, small bowl for mixing dipping sauce. Fil

Things I’m secure in because now I’m 40… Unsolicited advice for those of you wanting to be entertained: Vulnerability and honesty go hand in hand for me. If you aren’t ready for both of those things from me…maybe turn and run because I can’t escape them.  I like alone time. Not for long, but I now know how necessary it is for my well-being. Those of you that know me know how far I’ve come.   No longer is my focus a low number on the scale, but e xercise and strength is important to me and my longevity. So is eating ice cream.   I like black coffee. It makes me think of all the times I said I would never drink it to my grandmother and how grown up I am now.   Stretching is now an everyday practice. All the triangle poses, warrior poses and hip flexor relaxers are integral to the success of the day. Keeping my marriage spicey is a priority. And in order for that to happen there needs to be connection. He is my best friend but we’ve worked at it and we certainly aren’t perfect.  

These are not your average nachos. I love trying new dishes and wanted something easy that transferred well to a crowd. It stayed fairly well hot and still tasted great even after it cooled down. Chopping was also a minimum. Add more mayo if you want the spread to go further. You of course add or subtract whatever! Don't forget the forks so you can grab the bits that fall between the cracks. Ingredients 1 bag of tortilla chips (I used white corn chips) 2 & 1/2 cups of shredded Monterrey Jack cheese saute oil 1 large bag of frozen corn (about 3 cups) or 3 fresh ears of corn cut off the cob.   salt pepper 2 garlic cloves minced paprika 1 jalapeno, diced with seeds removed (or 1 tsp from a jar of diced jalapeño) 3 or 4 limes 1/3 cup sour cream 1/4 cup. mayonnaise crumbled Cotija Cheese (mine came in a 2 cup bag) 2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro Recipe: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large skillet heat saute oil over high heat. Add corn to the skillet and stir. Season with salt,

  If you love Lemon here is your soup. It was very filling, easy to make, and made plenty for my family. I am not a huge fan of chickpeas and I barely noticed them in the soup. ***I served this with corn bread Ingredients: Olive oil (or whatever your cooking oil is) 1 onion, diced 4 large carrots, peeled, halved and sliced 5 celery stalks 6 garlic cloves, minced 1 tsp. dried thyme pepper 1 tsp rosemary 12 cups of vegetable broth, + 2 cups of water 2 can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained (some can are labeled garbanzo beans) 2 bay leaves 1 cup of orzo pasta or more juice from 2 lemons lemon zest from 1 lemon 1/3 cup tahini  A handful of kale or spinach fresh parsley or dill (Optional and as a garnish - but I really think it takes it the extra step in goodness). Recipe: Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and celery. Saute for about 5 minutes. Then add the minced garlic and saute for about 1 minute more until the veggies are soft. Add the thyme, a bit of pepper an

“Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; He is my God and I trust him.” Psalm 91:1-2 A new book, a pedicure, going for a run, hiking, or just sitting on your own are all very restful activities that I have enjoyed and are only a glimpse of restful ideas. When I think of rest, I am cuddled onto a porch with a blanket fully relaxed and unencumbered with stress reading a book or just sipping a hot drink, or maybe margarita if it’s evening. We all have unique ways of resting. In order for our minds and bodies to fully rest we have to feel secure. I know when my child is feeling insecure there is angst and distress with little ability to fully calm. When you can’t find peace and rest where do you look? The scripture above suggests that when we take the opportunity to invite Him into our lives we then LIVE in his shelter.  As people walk, you notice the shadow they cast.

My quiet morning begins with my subtle alarm. As I place my feet on the floor and smell the aroma of delayed brew coffee (BEST THING EVER) I can hear the pit-pat on the window as rain falls. To quote my friend's momma, "The weather is so appropriate for today." Bleak, gloomy, and just uninviting. As I go about my morning routine of quiet time before the kids get up I reflect on Good Friday. I went through my devotionals they all intertwined somehow. Each devotional was different and only one was Easter themed. I usually read and bookmark verses that stand out to me and then after I read, I write down the verses and reflect. As I begin that portion, little footsteps come down the hall...one by one.  My moment of solitude isn't so solitaire, but still sweet. After saying their good morning pleasantries, and doling out kisses and hugs because it's a new day, they each find their space on the couch...keeping a careful eye on the level of mommy's coffee...too

This reciepe was a base taken from a blog, Cookin Canuck.  Thank you for the inspiration! I have been very intimidated by my insta pot. And Ironically I have felt rushed! Rushed into an appliance I didn't have time to work or figure out. Well, this quarantine has given me the space to be more "instant" - another irony I know. This recipe I made with homemade chicken broth. If you decide to do this, omit all the other salt besides the first salting of veggies because the broth will probably be salty enough. Of course always taste to see if it needs more salt. Omit the kale or mushrooms if you're not a fan, but they are some good for you foods. The leeks are similar to onions, but a step up in doing more for your body. You can omit these too. *****IF YOU DECIDE TO PUT LEEKs in the recipe...you need to cut into cross-section slices and then soak in water. Separate each layer of the leek by just pushing through them with your fingers. Then drain and lay out on a paper

During our church service on Sunday, we were praying for those that have been awakened at the revival in Kentucky. If you haven't heard about the revival happening on Asbury's College Campus - let this be your notice. It is entirely student led and this revival has certainly begun to brew things. New and old are coming together and focusing on Him. The only fruit of this gathering is peace and a tangible presence. We prayed for the revival to spread with those that came from far away and take with them what they received to deposit in their communities. We prayed that minds and hearts be awakened to the presence of God and that people feel the desire never to leave the presence.  Sometimes while I worship, God will give me pictures like in a movie. I saw a threaded needle standing straight up and down, slow motion spinning, but the thread was running out. Usually the pictures are encouraging in some form. But, a needle running out of thread seems very dramatic and hopeless.

Have you ever noticed that when something is missing or lacking or empty, it is the absence of it's presence that you even knew it was supposed to be there in the first place? The absence makes you miss it. When I can't find my scissors because someone took them without asking, it was the fact that they are missing, that I became frustrated they were missing. When a grocery item, like my salt & vinegar chips, are missing from the grocery - for the hundredth time - it is their lack of being there that I even knew I NEEDED them so much. When my son says, "I'm not hungry," but his behavior indicates otherwise, it is the lack of self control that reminds me I forgot to make lunch. When no one says thank you for the ways that you cared for them, it is the absence of the thank you that made you believe you even needed their affirmations in the first place.  It is not until "we can't find..." that we realize we are lacking. Going through life, realizing