Beautiful Thing ~ week # 24

It was Gerards' birthday today; who officially joined our family in June 2010.  We have had so many wonderful moment together since then. 

Krystle had planned a wonderful surprise birthday party for him.  Hosting a backyard BBQ, with some outdoor games, inviting alot of their friends and made him a scrumptiious cake which he shared with everyone...

Happy Birthday Gerard! We are blessed to have you in our family!

What was your beautiful thing this week?

Blessings

A Gift

Have you ever laid in bed, and thought back over your week and groaned at the lack of a busy schedule with a nothing to-do list each day? And you think ~ why did I bother to even get out of bed?  Even though I am not super busy through the week, by the end of it, I am simply exhausted and overwhelmed.

But, God gave me a gift this week. One He knew I needed…

I am an avid reader, it’s one of my vices.  I usually have several book from my local Library lying around. 

But due to a myriad of different circumstances, I found myself without a Library book, leaving me to re-read one from my own bookshelf. Now don’t get me wrong, I obviously liked these books good enough to buy them and add them to my collection, but honestly once a book has been read, how interesting can it be to read it again. And yet, rather than sit around and stare into space, I decided to pick up a book off my shelf and give it a go.

Neither the title, nor the author of the book are really important, it’s the message that I needed to read/hear. The author did a remarkable job. Throughout the story, we read of several opportunities for the characters to rely on God for their needs, and God continually came through for them. She liberally sprinkles clues in the form of biblical quotations and while the plot was predictable, this story really spoke to my inner heart. Sure it’s a fiction story and the author can make “anything” happen, but, I was left with a wonderful feeling inside when I read the last word. This book helped to remind me that with Christ “all things are possible.”

I don’t know about you, but I find it easy to forget that God is interested and concerned about everything in my life. I tend to dismiss some things in my life as petty, shying away from bringing them to God in prayer. Sure, I’m feeling a bit tired but often it never occurs to me to pray about it.

So it comes down to a bit of a trust issue. Do I trust what God has told me that He is my Father and wants me to come to Him for every daily need. He promises to help me, to be my Healer and Provider, helping me sort out my responsibilities and restoring me in my weariness.

Many times I get overwhelmed with life and forget how big our God is! God is always there to comfort us and reminding us to seek Him at all times in the good and bad.

“The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.”

Psalm 23:1 {New Living Translation {NLT}}



Blessings

A Reminder

From my daily devotional {Jesus Calling ~ Sarah Young} we read:

“I love you regardless of how well you are performing. Sometimes you feel uneasy, wondering if you are doing enough to be worthy of My Love. No matter how exemplary your behaviour, the answer to that question will always be no. Your performance and My Love are totally different issues, which you need to sort out. I love you with an everlasting Love that flows out from eternity without limits or conditions. I have clothed you in My robe of righteousness, and this is an eternal transaction: Nothing and no one can reverse it. Therefore your accomplishment as a Christian has no bearing on My Love for you. Even your ability to assess how well you are doing on a given day is flawed. Your limited human perspective and the condition of your body, with its mercurial variations, distort your evaluations.
Bring your performance anxiety to Me, and receive in its place My unfailing love. Try to stay conscious of My loving Presence with you in all you do, and I will direct your steps.”

The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying:

“I have loved you with an everlasting love;
I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.

~ Jeremiah 31:3 {New International Version {NIV}} 

I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

~ Isaiah 61:10 {New International Version {NIV}} 

Let your face shine on your servant;
save me in your unfailing love.

~ Psalm 31:16 {New International Version {NIV}} 

Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
and his wonderful deeds for mankind.

~ Psalm 107:8 {New International Version {NIV}}

I needed this reminder today…

Blessings

mhmm monday

Perhaps my favourite recipe website these ladies come up with the best dinner ideas. I suggest you give it a try!

Balsamic Mushroom Chicken with Angel Hair Pasta

Ingredients:
20 large white button mushrooms
2 tablespoons butter
4 cloves garlic
2 large chicken breasts, cut in half lengthwise to make 4 pieces.
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 pound / 225 grams angel hair pasta
fresh broccoli
 
Directions:
Slice button mushrooms and add to pan along with the butter and garlic cloves. Stir occasionally on medium heat until the liquids begin to release from mushrooms and then turn mushrooms to medium low and allow to simmer until the liquid has cooked away and the mushrooms have browned. Once the garlic cloves have softened, smash them with a fork. Remove mushrooms and garlic to a bowl and set aside.
Add chicken breasts and along with oil to the pan and turn heat to medium. Sear on each side until all sides have browned. (About 10 minutes)
Bring water to boil in a large pot for the pasta. Add 1 teaspoon salt.
Add balsamic vinegar, oregano, cream and chicken broth to the chicken and cover with a lid for a few minutes until the chicken is no longer pink at the thickest part.
Add the pasta to the pot and stir for 2 minutes until softened. Drain and add to the chicken pan.
Stir until all the liquid has absorbed into the pasta. The pasta should be cooked through but if all the liquid has absorbed and the pasta is still too firm add a bit more chicken broth and continue to stir until it has cooked through.
Arrange steamed broccoli on top of the dish and serve.
Enjoy!

Blessings

Beautiful Thing ~ week # 23

As I sat and glanced over my calendar looking for my beautiful thing for this week, I was stumped. I kept going over each day trying to remember the events of the day, but sadly the calendar was lacking with any commitments leaving me with a feeling of emptiness…. Sure, sure, we mowed the lawn, worked up the flowerbeds, washed the clothes, made some meals, took the dog for a walk, mowed the lawn, again, did some more laundry, and of course we continued to eat throughout the whole week, but those don’t really qualify for a “blogworthy” beautiful things post.

Do they? Or do they?!?

Too often, I want the beautiful things blogpost to be something, well, beautiful…

Sometimes even the simplest of gestures can remind us of the most important things in life.  Like on Monday, when our son stopped by in the middle of a busy work day, just to say hey, take a break and enjoy an ice cream treat with his mom.

Family is a such blessing.  Now and again we need moments like these to appreciate our loved ones and celebrate the relationships we have.

What was your beautiful thing this week?

Blessings

Scattered

It’s a journey really...this business of writing. For me, it started out as a way to help me process everything that continually runs through my mind {and I only share a portion of it} and perhaps to take me a little more out of my comfort zone. Writing for me has become a great stress reliever. It helps me think things through better and give a clearer perspective. I think I’ve always loved to write.

These days though, my thoughts are scattered all over the place and I've several post ideas floating around. And it’s good for me to write them down {as scattered as they are} rather than trying to keep everything filed in my head. That way I can work on several posts and can always go back at a later date ~ add more to it {if needed}, refine it to get it ready to be published, or simply delete it. Blogging is a great outlet for my thoughts, ideas and creativity.

But,

have you ever sat down in front of the keyboard, and couldn’t seem to string a coherent sentence together to save your life? Or worse, you kept starting only to get a paragraph into things, and hate what you’d written so you simply highlighted the entire batch of words and hit the delete key?

Sometimes you run out of words.

As someone who likes to write, it is somewhat paralyzing to me when I think I have nothing to write. You always want to have something to say. But what happens when you run out of words? What happens when you reach with all of your might to find your voice? What happens when the words simply don’t come, and the voice is mute?

Life feels REALLY HARD right now, feeling completely lacking in resources, energy, or even perspective?

It’s not the end of the world, and I know that. 

These past few days weeks I seem to be sinking… life gets on top of me and I feel like it’s all too much. Times when I wonder where to get the strength from.

How to keep going?
What the future holds?!?

And then I remember…

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” {New International Version {NIV}}

Blessings

mhmm monday

Cupcakes so soft and fluffy… no-one will ever guess they're low-fat! This website showcases many healthier versions of our favourite desserts and with my dietary restrictions, these are just some the treats I still enjoy.

Skinny Vanilla Cupcakes

(makes 9-10 cupcakes)
Ingredients:
1 cup spelt flour, or white flour, or Arrowhead Mills gf mix (140g)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ener g powder, or 1 tbs ground flaxmeal
4 tbsp xylitol or sugar (54g)
2 Nunatural stevia packets (or 2 extra tbsp sugar)
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup plain or vanilla yogurt of choice (Silk or SoDelicious both work) (230g)
1/4 cup milk of choice (60g)
3 tbsp coconut or veg oil (can omit, but the cupcakes will be a bit gummy) (36g)
add 1/2 tsp xanthan gum if using the gf mix

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F, and grease muffin tins. Combine all wet ingredients with the energ or flax, and stir vigorously. In a separate bowl, combine all remaining dry ingredients, and mix very well. Pour wet into dry, and mix until just combined (don’t overmix). Cook 18-20 minutes, then let sit at least 10 before removing from muffin tins.
Enjoy!

Blessings