I will seek you in the morning

This morning I was blessed to wake up early, the baby nursed and went back to sleep, and everyone else was still sleeping, so I had some quiet time to myself. I used that opportunity to make a cup of coffee and have a short quiet time with God. It wasn't anything long or intensive, but it was a little bit of encouragement from God's word to start my day off right!

In yesterday's sermon, the elder who was preaching encouraged everyone to find some time every day to read God's word. He spoke from personal experience, saying when he didn't start his day with scripture, he found himself walking in the flesh and not the spirit of God.

My impromptu devotional time this morning has inspired me to make more of an effort to rise before the kids to get in my quiet time in the morning. Lamentations 3:23 says "His mercies are new every morning" and I want to dwell on God's mercies every morning before I start my day. Not for my glory, but because He is worthy!

I found a wonderful resource for busy moms (and busy women who are not moms!)

http://shereadstruth.com/

Every day this website gives a brief reading plan and an accompanying devotional. And it isn't trite or shallow. The devotionals speak truth to my heart and challenge my thinking. I have been so encouraged by what I have read on SheReadsTruth that I want to share this resource with everyone! Praise God for inspiring these women to come together and form this great resource for Christians all around the world!

Menu Plan Monday - May 20

Here is our menu plan for this week:

Monday: Chicken fajita bites

Tuesday: Steak, crash hot potatoes, and roasted brussels sprouts

Wednesday: Chicken fried rice

Thursday: Baked tilapia, lemon pepper pasta (from Trader Joe's), green beans

Friday: Chili and cornbread

Little Pancakes

Yesterday morning I made cocoa-banana pancakes for breakfast using this recipe. I added about 1/4 cup of sugar to the pancakes, because I don't serve them with syrup (pancakes are messy enough without syrup in our house : ). They were delicious! And there were leftover pancakes that I froze for easy breakfasts : )

I started out making normal-sized pancakes, but switched to making tiny pancakes. I have always been fascinated by things that are smaller than normal, and these itty bitty pancakes were so cute and fun! I thought they tasted better too because they ended up being more done in the middle. And Titus loved them! He was losing interest in the normal-sized pancakes, but when I made these little baby pancakes he gobbled them up : ) This was an easy way to make regular food more fun and kid-friendly. I am so glad I made this culinary discovery!

Time flies!

Well my baby is now 7 months old and has 5 teeth! Caleb is the joy of our lives (along with his brother Titus!) His smiles are plentiful and are bestowed on friends, family, and random strangers at the grocery store : ) He isn't showing any signs of crawling or rolling around, which I am very thankful for! Having 1 child on the move keeps me busy enough ; ) Poor Caleb, we are all so busy chasing after Titus that we forget to take pictures of him : (  I am really trying to be intentional about taking pictures of him because I want to document all his cute little baby stages!

Here is a sampling of the pitiful amount of pictures I have taken of Caleb:

Caleb on Christmas morning with some of his presents

Tummy time! (Love the whale on his butt)

Titus doing "tummy time" with Caleb : p

Chilling in the Boppy

Exersaucer - I love this thing!

Holding hands - so sweet!

I love these boys so much!

Kitchen Tip Tuesday: Peeling Hard-boiled Eggs

Look at me posting two days in a row! I might just make this blogging thing work ; )

Today I am sharing a tip that has revolutionized my life. I no longer live in fear of spending hours peeling eggs, only to end up with patchy, ugly looking eggs. Seriously though, am I the only person who has not heard of this tip and has been a miserable failure at peeling hard-boiled eggs?

It is so simple, but this really does the trick. First, crack the egg all over and carefully start peeling away a little bit of the eggshell. Then, slide a spoon in between the egg and shell, so the bowl of the spoon is cradling the egg. Use that to break the seal between the egg and its shell, and the eggshell will detach easily. As long as the peeling is started correctly (ie. without little bits of the egg white attached to the peel), the spoon will do the rest of the work for you : )

I hope I explained this all clearly! I wanted to take a picture yesterday when I was peeling eggs, but my camera battery was dead, and I don't have a way to get pictures from my phone to my computer (it is just a regular non-smart phone).

Find more helpful kitchen tips at Tammy's Kitchen Tip Tuesday!

Menu Plan Monday - April 1

This is really what we are eating this week. No April Fools here!

Monday - Enchiladas verde and corn

Tuesday - Shepherd's pie (with leftover lamb, so yes Sarah, it is actually SHEPHERD'S pie : )

Wednesday - Baked salmon, roasted carrots and potatoes

Thursday - Chili and corn muffins

Friday - Chicken Teriyaki, rice, and green beans

In my kitchen - January 11

I am starting a new series (I think that is what it is called) that I may or may not do regularly. I cook and bake a lot, and I am always inspired by reading about what other bloggers are making, so I thought I would return the favor and post about what I am cooking right now. I don't have any pictures to go along with this post because I know myself, and if I have to post pictures, it will never get done. Maybe someday when I get a full night's sleep and the boy's nap times align I will put up a picture or two. But until then, you will just have to imagine what the deliciousness looks like (or make it yourself ; )

In my kitchen today I am:

- Cooking black beans - I don't use a recipe, I just soak some beans overnight, drain off the soaking water, cover with fresh water, bring to a boil, and cook on medium for 1-2 hours until the beans are tender. Then I add salt until they taste delicious : ) I will use these beans in our dinner tonight, and the leftovers will either go in the freezer or be part of lunches this coming week.

- Making olive oil granola - This is the best granola ever! (In my opinion : ) It has a lot of flavor, and seems like it is probably pretty healthy too. I didn't have dried apricots or pistachios, so I left them out. And I added some ground flax seed and substituted dried coconut for the coconut chips.  Otherwise, I pretty much followed the recipe. It smells awesome, and I hope it tastes great too!