My Song, My Strength

Recipe | Creamy Cucumber and Tomato Salad

2018-07-25T13:31:00.000-04:00

Do you have a bunch of tomatoes on your hands? This recipe is so simple and refreshing, I just love it! Especially this time of year when I get all my vegetables and fruits fresh from our local farms.

What you need...

Ingredients:

1 Cucumber

1 Large Tomato

1/2 of Small Red Onion

1/2 TBL of Lemon Juice

1 tsp Garlic Powder

1 tsp Dill Weed

2 TBL Light Sour Cream

2 TBL Ranch Dressing

Salt & Pepper (to taste)

1/2 Jalapeños (optional)

Directions:

Cut up your cucumber in quarter's, Slice your red onion thinly in quarter's, and cut your tomato into bit size chunks (also add in small diced jalapeños if you wish). I do recommend scooping out the seeds and "guts" of your tomato, as this will make your salad have more liquid if you don't.

Next, add your garlic powder, dill weed, salt and pepper. As well as your sour cream, lemon juice and Ranch dressing. Mix it all together and serve!

It really is so quick and easy, and ultimately a crowd pleaser with how light and refreshing it is! Let me know if you make it and what you think! Enjoy!

His Unfailing Love Vs. Man's Insufficient Love

2018-07-17T13:44:00.000-04:00

Today I was reminded of God's love for me. Yes, I haven't really forgotten that and it is something I can easily say, "God loves me". But to truly know and understand His love for us means all the more, and will deepen your relationship with Him. There is depth to God's love-- so wide and big that we as humans could never understand or fathom.

When you think about God's love never leaving you nor forsaking you, do you believe it? Like, really really believe it? Even in those darkest hours, in those lonely and scary moments, God is with you. He was there and will always be there.

Nothing you can do or say will change God's love for you. He chose you to be here on this Earth, in this time, at the exact place you are now. You have purpose, you weren't just created by accident or by random. He chose you and is so in love with you-- always was (before you were created) and always will be.

It can sometimes be hard to believe all that, right? Because we are so used to man's love. One moment someone loves you, the next they hate you. People so easily cut other people out of their lives, that they once had loved.

I heard TD Jakes once say, "People fall in and out of love, like they fall in and out of their clothes. People fall in and out of love, like people fall in and out of bed".

It's hard for us to trust in love...because really, man's love is not guaranteed. And that's scary.

You have to have faith in God's love for you. He will NEVER leave you nor forsake you. He will NEVER not love you or fall out of love with you. He will NEVER abandon you.

I'm so glad that God's love is nothing compared to man's love, aren't you? Man will always fail us, not meet our expectations and leave us disappointed. The same cannot be said about God.

Hello Again. I've Missed You.

2018-07-10T19:03:00.000-04:00

Wow, so I have not blogged at all in the year 2018. Moments throughout the year I would think of my blog and say to myself that I wanted to write again, but just never made it a priority.

Do you have something you like to do that helps you de-stress and just feel better? Maybe it's going to the gym, going for a walk, reading a relaxing book or sitting on your deck sipping a glass of wine. Lately, I have started going to the gym 3-4 times a week and it has been so rewarding in many ways. I'm really enjoying it and look forward to the times that I get to go. But one of my go-to methods of trying to relax (besides cuddling up and reading a good book) is writing. I haven't done that in quite some time. Writing, to me, is just a way to express yourself and you can easily erase or delete something that you want to word better or just keep out. It's soothing to me. Whether anyone reads my posts, letters or comments....that's another thing! hah

A lot has happened already this year, and we're only half way through. It has been scary stuff like loved ones battling diseases, and marriages coming to an end. I won't be going to into specific details within this post, but as time goes on and I feel ready to share certain things, you'll be the first to read them.

So long for now, but I promise it won't be that long!

How Big is Jesus in Your Life?

2017-09-26T15:42:00.000-04:00

If you started reading this post before watching the music video above, please take a few minutes to listen to it and read the lyrics!

Yesterday morning I was driving home from taking my husband to the train station. It had been an early morning-- I had to wake the kids up an hour earlier than they're used to so we could make it to the train station on time. With my kids in the car quiet and driving those country back roads, I was tired and all I had on my mind was "get home, make coffee, start the school day". All the sudden, a song came on the radio that I've heard countless times. This time, however, I actually was listening to the words, and they soaked into me.

I started reflecting on my view of Jesus, and my relationship with him. The past few months have been a struggle for me. I can't say that any one thing has taken me away from reading my Bible, praying and living completely for God. I think I just started going through the motions of everyday life and started to take my focus off of Him and more on me. I've been questioning different things, beliefs I was taught growing up, and ones I have been introduced to over the last year and just started becoming confused and frustrated with not having black and white answer to different theological questions I had. I don't really want to get into that with this post, but my point is, instead of digging into the Word and seeking God to find truth, I kinda just went into limbo and didn't care or do anything with my walk with God.

This turned into not even thinking about Jesus on ~~some~~ most days. When I would think about Him, I brought Him, down to my level, or at least to a lower level that He already deserves to be much higher at. And why? My whole life I have been "a Christian" and know how powerful God is. Yet, I easily forget His place in this world and in Heaven. To me, this shouldn't even happen in my walk with God. Okay, so the human nature in me is selfish and doesn't fully comprehend the authority God has over me and life? That's not a good enough excuse. In fact, no excuse is acceptable to minimize Jesus and His authority. Jesus is King. I'm tired of putting Him in a box that I designed, limiting Him in my life. Going to Him only when I really need Him and not actually having a meaningful friendship with Him. Thinking that I know better than Him and that I can do life on my own.

I've made Jesus small in my life. I have forgotten that He is King of the world and of me. The good news is that He has forgiven me for doing so. I don't deserve His love and forgiveness, yet He offers it over and over and over and over again. If you're reading this and you can relate at all, just know that you too can be forgiven and there is no waiting period or process that you need to go through to put Jesus back in His rightful place in your life. Don't wait to go Him, He is waiting with open arms for you.

Learning to Forgive Myself

2017-09-12T18:48:00.000-04:00

This week has been our first week where the kids are really back to school and are doing normal full days of work. Today was a little longer than usual as we had some extra school work to get done and my son saw that maybe mommy could use some help with some things around the house. All on his own, he decided to dust off the bookshelf, set the table for dinner and then clean up the dishes off the table when we were done eating dinner. I could really tell he was trying hard and was so proud of himself. As I sat down on the couch, I saw him drop a plate and heard it fall on the floor. It was a plate that had already had a hairline crack in it, so I figured it had broken.

Immediately my son looked up at me and had fear in his eyes. He started apologizing right away at least 3 times and was about to start crying until I slowly got up, smiled at him and said, "no big deal buddy, it happens. You were just trying to help clean up and I'm thankful for your help. By the way, what made you want to help out extra tonight?". He replied, "I wanted to help with everything so that you don't have to do everything by yourself".

I told him thank you and off he went on his way to do little 5 year old boy things like play with his trucks and pretend to fly around the house. As I started rinsing off the dishes to put them in the dishwasher, I replayed the incident and saw my son's face of fear and sadness. I knew why he felt that way. He thought wrath and punishment was going to be lashed out onto him. He thought I was going to start yelling and make a big scene. Over a plate.

I struggled with depression and anger for quite a time in the past, and sadly, my family got the brunt of all of it. Being quick to anger, quick to lash out with the tongue, that was the old me. A me that I never want to be again, but will not forget because it helps prevent me from becoming that false identity. That brings me to all the bad feelings I feel about my old self and carrying that with me. I get so mad when I think about all the years I wasted pushing my family away from me and teaching my kids that to get angry with actions that I said and did was okay. It really put a wedge between my 9 year old daughter and I, and something I am still working on to build and strengthen our relationship. To reassure her that I love her and that she is important to me. I do not want my kids to fear me....I want their respect and love, but fear, no. It's been close to a year that I have really started making changes in my mood and actions. It takes work to not respond with anger, and to be gentle and kind with responses. I hope over time I can continue to forgive myself for not being the best mother that I could have been and that my kids and I can keep growing and becoming closer and closer.

Stress: How to Overcome It

2017-02-19T16:48:00.000-05:00

Do you ever feel you are too stressed? There are some days where I just feel the stress of my day and life overwhelming me. As a stay-at-home, I think our lives are expected to be peachy keen and there should be no struggles. After all, we get to stay in our pajamas all day, lounge and binge watch tv shows, right? WRONG!! I know every stay-at-home mom's situation is different, but I think we all have a lot on our plates, plus we're raising little ones who sometimes fight us and can be quite a challenge to handle.

I personally have two children, one is 8 years old and the other turns 5 years old in May. My oldest is "homeschooled" by attending a public charter cyber school so we have school work to accomplish Monday-Friday, plus I am currently a part-time online student working towards my bachelors in Psychology: Christian Counseling. On top of school for my daughter and I, I of course have household duties to keep our home clean and in check, laundry to do, and I'm always taking one of the kids to a doctor's, dentist, allergist or some other type of appointment. Grocery shopping, pharmacy pick-up and attending church are also weekly trips I take. Cooking (and doing the dishes- blah) is something I do 2-3 times a day, that's just fact. I love cooking and actually consider it one of my favorite times of the day. On top of all of my motherly and wifely duties, I also carve out time each day to spend in the word and in prayer, and oh, did I mention that we recently rescued a stray cat (Thor) so now I'm taking care of him and two little hamsters that he likes to tease?

Out of all of my duties, raising my kids is the most important to me. I want to teach them how to live a life Christ will be pleased with, help them discover and strengthen their God-given talents/gifts, proper manners, and how to treat one another and anyone they come into contact with. It's hard raising kids, let's be honest. There are some days where I have said I think my life would be easier if I worked outside the home and the kids went to school and day care. Those days are rough. Those days are the days that overall make me stronger in the end.

My husband has told me on many occasions, that his co-worker women have mentioned to him how jealous they are of ME because I get to stay home and raise my kids at home without having to worry of finances. That they wish they could be with their kids more and be the ones raising them, not some nanny or daycare worker. The truth is, I wouldn't trade my life or position as a stay-at-home mom for anything! Even though there are rough days, there are more days where I feel blessed and happy.

Back to what I was saying, kids do not always make it easy for parents, especially if they know which buttons to push and when to push them. They can give an attitude or be defiant and it makes you so crazy. Then you have to deal with discipline and it can sometimes ruin your day. Stress. You just feel so stressed out that you are counting down the hours until their bedtime so that you can finally kick back and have some peace and quiet. Well, hopefully most of your days do not go that way, but we all have them.

I say all of this to give you a pretty good picture of my life, so that you can see how the stress quickly adds and builds up. Okay. So we established that as stay-at-home mom's we get stressed out. But now let's talk about how to deal with and handle that stress. What are some ways that you calm your body and mind down to de-stress from the day you had?

I personally love reading. Yeah, I'm a book worm. I'm always reading. For one, I read several books per class I take. On top of that I'm always reading a good fiction book and sometimes even non-fiction on top of that. Needless to say, there is always a book laying around in our sitting room and/or on my nightstand. Another way I like to de-stress is by cooking or baking. It really is kind of like time to myself (unless I have the kids helping me) and I really enjoy it. I also like taking walks, especially with the weather warming up like it has been recently. Exercising in general is a great way to lower stress. Recently, I've taken up cross stitching. It is something my grandma used to do and what my mom still does today. I like to carry out the family tradition and I find it rather fun and relaxing!

More than anything, I like to spend quiet time reading my Bible, playing the keyboard and singing worship songs, and spending time in prayer. There is nothing like being in God's presence and you don't need to go to church to find Him. He wants us to seek Him daily, spend time with Him and love Him. He wants to restore us with joy and happiness and take away the stress, sadness and any fears that we face each day. He's our comforter and friend and sometimes you just need a really good friend to dump your burdens and stresses on and unload and retell the stresses of your day to. He wants to hear from you and spend time with you, and He's the best friend, counselor and father to turn to when you're feeling miserable about your day, a certain situation or whatever.

So next time you're feeling stressed and overwhelmed, just stop and take a deep breath and tell the father that you need Him. You need Him to help you through your day and to help keep you sane haha. He's got your back; you can always count on Him!

So tell me, what are some of the ways your de-stress?

O Be Careful Little Eyes What You See

2017-02-01T12:50:00.001-05:00

Have you heard that children's song? If not, it goes a little something like this...

"O be careful little eyes what you see
O be careful little eyes what you see
There's a Father up above And He's looking down in love
So, be careful little eyes what you see"

It continues to say be careful little ears what you hear, be careful little hands what you do, be careful little feet where you go and be careful little mouth what you say. This song is for children, but how many of us know that we can and should apply this song to our own selves? My mouth used to get me in a lot of trouble, and sometimes it still does. But what I want to focus on today, is being careful what I see.

For a long time, the TV was my idol. I pretty much counted down the minutes to 8PM every night because I knew the kids would be in bed and my favorite TV shows would be on. Yes, I had a favorite show for 8PM, 9PM and 10PM Monday through Friday. I had the schedule memorized and fully anticipated each show. Whether it was reality TV or a series, I loved my shows. Can TV be an addiction? Shows make you feel good, laugh, experience suspense and sometimes it's just fun to watch drama unfold before you and you're not one being involved in it, no consequences at all. Or are there?

Matthew 6:22 says, "The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light".

Have you ever heard the expression of having the eyes of Jesus? As Christians, we should be striving to be more and more like Jesus each day. When we think about Jesus and what He would be spending His time doing here on Earth, I highly doubt it would be lounging on the couch watching reality TV or any TV for that matter. Time is precious, He would be out on the streets with the broken hearted and hurting.

*So that brings me to another question, are we spending our time wisely and using all the time given to us to do what God created us to do? That's a whole other blog post in itself.

Back to watching TV. What changed for me? Why did I stop watching TV for the most part? (Side note, yes I do have a few clean shows that I still do enjoy, but find myself watching 3-4 hours of tv each week-- and that might even be pushing it).
Well, honestly, it was something my husband asked me. It hit me to my core and finally opened my eyes.

He asked "How can you sit there, watch that junk and enjoy it? It's the very thing that God hates and Christ died for" (referring to the sin involved in the shows).

Yeah, it really was like a wake-up call in my soul. My husband was right. I was enjoying watching sinful behavior and language, thought it was funny and it's the very thing Christ died for. Nothing about what I was watching or spending my time doing was holy. Nothing about it was bringing more lost souls into His kingdom. Nothing about it was strengthening my relationship with Christ.

Want to think even deeper and get smacked even harder? As a Christian, Holy Spirit lives inside of me. I was forcing Holy Spirit to watch what I was watching, sinful actions, lifestyles and language. How much He must have hated that. Ugh, terrible doesn't even compare to how I feel when thinking about doing that to Him.

So to wrap things up, I just want you to really evaluate yourself and think about all the TV shows and movies you spend time watching. Are those shows filled with sin or are they glorifying God? How are you spending your down time? Getting closer and more intimate with God, sharing His love with others, or wasting it by watching and enjoying worldly sinful actions that your God hates?

O be careful little eyes what you see...

When You Feel Like God's Not There Through Life's Storms

2017-01-12T11:48:00.004-05:00

Sometimes, our faith can become tested, all throughout life really. A lot of times I find that life circumstances or events are what makes us as humans question our faith. For some, sickness, tragedies, job loss, etc. will increase our faith in God and draw us closer to Him. But what about those who start to deter from God or lose a little or all of their faith in Him? The typical answer to life's tragedies and sin around us is, "we live in a fallen world". What if that statement is just not enough for those really hurting and not understanding why everything is falling apart in their life? I mean yes, we live in a world of sin and sometimes events happen in our lives that really throw us a curveball, ones that we just can't understand. And then as Christians, we cry out to God and ask Him repeatedly to please heal us, our broken hearts, our sickened bodies, our financial situations, etc. Weeks, and then months go by and things are either getting worse or staying the same and you just don't feel like God is listening to you, nor helping you at all. Where is the healing? Where is God? Why can't you feel His presence anymore? Has he deserted you and left you to fend for yourself?

I see hurting people all around me. You can see it in their eyes, in their body movements and in the way they speak. I think sometimes people think that when you're a Christian you should have everything figured out and life should be just peachy and you should have no problems. Or when you have problems that you should always carry a smile on your face and work through them with joy. That's not always easy or the case. We are humans after all and we are full of different emotions and thoughts.

Christians go through storms too. Christians can hurt and have their faith tested. So what makes it different for Christians to get through those storms? The answer is simple I guess... God. We have an anchor in Christ and can stand firm and confident with peace that surpasses all understanding. We just need to remember to turn to Him and let Him carry us through those storms. Psalm 23:4 says, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me" (NKJV). God doesn't say He will detour your way out of the valley, but rather that He is with you in the valley. He's going to stay with you, guide you and comfort you through that storm.

God is in control of all things. His sovereignty means that He does not always do what we want, and He allows circumstances to happen even if we don't want them to. As humans, we tend to doubt. When we doubt God that means we think we know better, and that's just not the case. According to Mark M. Yarbrough at Christianity Today, "Our affliction is purposeful and passing, and although we may not be able to understand it, we must cling to God's goodness and follow the pattern of his Son". We have to put our whole trust in God and know that He is in control and that He will will be our comforter and friend through all life's circumstances and storms. Maybe healing is not in the plan, not until we part from this world and are forever in His presence in Heaven. We have to be okay with that, because He knows and is in control. His ways are better than ours.

1 Peter 4:19 says, "Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator" (NKJV). Continue to pray and ask for healing if it is in His will. Ask for increased joy and to continue to be used by Him daily to make an impact on others lives. Ask to help your focus to be on the lost, co-workers, family members and friends around you and off of yourself. We are here but for a short period of time and each day presents opportunities to share the Gospel with others. As you are being used by Him, are in His word everyday, worship him (in your car, at home, in your prayer closet, etc.), and take the focus off of you, I think you'll ultimately be happier because you'll be drenched in His peace, love and mercy and will experience true joy.

God is there with you. He's here. He will never leave you. He is the same as yesterday, today and forever and loves you more than human words could ever express. Don't turn from Him or doubt Him or lose an ounce of faith in Him. He will walk with you through the storm and no matter the outcome, you have a testimony, a story to share with others to help them through their storm.

Classic Macaroni Salad | Recipe

2016-08-15T11:00:00.001-04:00

Have you been enjoying your summer? I can't believe that it's nearly coming to an end and that school will be starting in two weeks for us!

Over the summertime we like to attend cookouts (or some of you may call them barbecue's), I mean, who doesn't!? When attending a cookout, family reunion or another fun summer event with food, I like to eat macaroni salad. Now, my husband is weird with cold salads-- he will only eat them if there is no veggies (besides carrot and celery) and fruit in them. I don't think he likes the texture of them with being mixed in with cold noodles.

I personally LOVE Amish macaroni salad, with bell peppers and that creamy overall style. My grandma has a really yummy and easy recipe of macaroni salad that is so good and always a hit! It doesn't have bell peppers, so even my husband loves it (because I do not add the onion).

**The following recipe is made with 1 pound of noodles. The pictures featured in this post are only showing half of this recipe. I think cutting this recipe in half is perfect for a smaller gathering, feeding up to 15 people.

Ingredients:

1 pound elbow macaroni noodles (cooked according to package instructions, drained)

8 hard boiled eggs

3 medium sized carrots (peeled and finely diced)

1 medium onion, minced (optional)

3 stalks celery, finely chopped

Dressing:

2 1/2 cups Miracle Whip (you're going to get a different flavor if you use mayonnaise)

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup yellow mustard

3/4 cup milk

2 tablespoons of white vinegar

Directions:

Cook macaroni noodles according to the package instructions, drain and rinse with cold water. Place noodles in a medium-large sized mixing bowl. Chop up your hard boiled eggs into small pieces, and chop up your carrots, onion and celery. I like to use my blender and pulse blend the carrots and celery to get a small fine chop (I would do this with the onion as well. If you like bigger pieces, you can always cut them to the size you prefer). Add your eggs, carrot, celery and onion to the bowl of noodles. In a separate mixing bowl, mix all of your "dressing" ingredients together, blend well. Once well blended, add your dressing to the noodle-veggie mixture. Fold in with a spoon and mix well. Refrigerate right away.

As the macaroni salad sits in the fridge, it will become more thick/dry. You can always add in a little more Miracle Whip a tablespoon at at time if you would like, but I never had do this because we always end up eating it within a few days. I know not everyone likes black ground pepper, so I personally only add salt and pepper to my personal portion instead of adding it to the whole dish-- that's up to you!

So simple and delicious! Enjoy!

Overcoming Depression {Part 3}: Discovering/Remembering Your Identity

2016-08-10T12:40:00.000-04:00

Welcome to part 3 of my mini blog series: Overcoming Depression. A couple weeks ago I shared with you my personal story on struggling with depression. If you haven't read it yet, feel free to jump over here and read it. Part 2 is all about Renewing Your Mind, have you had a chance to read it yet?
Today is Part 3, which I titled Discovering/Remembering Your Identity. I titled it this way because some of us have never really discovered our true identity, and some of us have, but lost sight of it along the way. I am one of those who had discovered my identity, but "lost it". I had to re-identitify myself.

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, the word identity means "who someone is : the name of a person". Our identity is more than just our name-- I go by Megan, Mommy, and a few pet names from my husband. My name doesn't fully identify me however. Who am I? Well I'm a wife, mom, daughter, sister, friend, but most importantly I'm a chosen daughter of the King!

Do you ever wonder about your existence? Why am I here on Earth? Out of all the possibilities a different human could have been made during that moment YOU were conceived with all those millions of your father's spermies coming at your mother's egg...yeah sorry that seems a little weird to read, more weird for me to type! But seriously, you were created out of millions of different options-- you're one in a million!

God tells us in His word that "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you" (Jeremiah 1:5 NKJV). God not only knew he was going to create you before you were even a thought, know what you would look like, know your passions and dreams and give you a divine purpose, but he KNEW you before you were even conceived. Plus, he sanctified you. What does sanctified mean? It means to be set apart or declare as holy. He literally CHOSE you to have existence, to have a purpose here on Earth and most importantly to be loved by Him and to have a relationship with Him. Doesn't that just give you a new hope and a huge feeling of being loved? I know for me, it is definitely eye opening and gives me a big feeling of purpose, destiny and ultimately joy and peace. The creator of the universe has specifically chosen me, thought about me and decided to know me before I was even conceived. That's a deep deep love, don't you think?

One of my favorite Psalms David wrote is Psalms 139. If you have a minute, you can read the whole thing here, but below is a few verses about God's love for us, even before we were born.

Psalms 139: 13-18 (NKJV)
For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.
My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I awake, I am still with You.

Your true identity is in Christ. You are God's child (Romans 8:14) and it's proven again and again in His word.

Ephesians 1: 4-5 says "Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will" (NKJV). Before God even created the world, he chose YOU to live in it and to be apart of His love story. He chose you to have relationship with Him, for you to be His daughter/son before he even created the sun and moon. Pretty special, right? And I just want to throw this in, out of all the beautiful things God has created, sunrises, mountains, oceans, planets, unique animals, YOU are His masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10 NLT). He is most happy with creating you.

I hope you are starting to piece together your true identity. It's in God. You are His child (John 1:12) and He chose to create you and have a relationship with you long before the foundations of the Earth. You have a great purpose, and once you discover or remember that, I know you will feel the greatest joy, peace and love and will defeat depression. The thief (Satan) comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10). He wants to steal your joy, kill your dreams and destroy your mind. Don't let him! Jesus already defeated him. He came that He may bring you life, and for you to have it in more abundance! Declare your identity in Christ today and start overcoming depression and start living your purpose, with a joyful heart and mind!

Chicken Salisbury Steaks | Recipe

2016-08-04T18:02:00.000-04:00

This recipe is so delicious and easy to make, plus it can be used with either ground beef, turkey or chicken. This is a family recipe, so you'll find it under my Family Recipes tab, where you'll find other great recipes! I grew up with my mom always making it with ground beef. I typically use a lean ground turkey when I make it, but one day I decided to use ground chicken because I had it on hand. It turned out great! This meal is great served with potatoes (we loved mashed) and a vegetable.

Ingredients:
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1- 1 1/2 Lb ground chicken (or beef or turkey)
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/3 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black ground pepper
1/2 tsp garlic
1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning
1-2 TLB Olive Oil or Cooking Spray for Pan

Directions:
Combine 1/4 cup soup with ground chicken (or beef/turkey), bread crumbs, egg, onion, salt, pepper and seasonings. Mix thoroughly. Shape into 6 patties for about 1 lb of meat, or 8 patties for 1 1/2 lbs of meat. In a preheated skillet over medium heat, add 1-2 TLB olive oil. Place your meat patties into the skillet, cooking thoroughly on each side until the meat is cooked through. OR you can bake them in a greased shallow baking pan at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Spoon of any excess fat.
Meanwhile, combine remaining soup with water and pour over fully cooked patties. On the stovetop in skillet, cook for another few minutes so the gravy gets hot, or if you baked it, bake for an additional 10 minutes.

I personally prefer to make my salisbury steaks in the skillet, because I like that crisp outside that a frying pan will give. 1 lb of meat is enough for a family of 4, but even though we're a family of 4 I still end up making this recipe with 1 1/2 lbs of meat because we are big eaters and enjoy left overs!

Overcoming Depression {Part 2}: Renewing Your Mind

2016-08-03T12:53:00.000-04:00

Welcome to part 2 of my mini blog series: Overcoming Depression. Last week I shared with you my personal story on struggling with depression. If you haven't read it yet, feel free to jump over here and read it.

So today I want to talk more in depth on how I personally overcame depression and how I am free from those chains. Part 2 is titled "Renewing Your Mind". Now to do this, it isn't a one-time decision and you automatically are free and have a new mind set. Instead, it's a daily decision that you have to choose to make-- in your life you have choices. You may not always get to choose what happens in your life, for instance tragedies, getting laid off your job or becoming ill, but you do have the choice on your outlook on those circumstances and life in general. Renewing your mind involves making daily decisions to think positive and hope-filled thoughts towards everything in life. How do you get to deciding that you even want to think positively when it's hard enough to get out of bed every morning and even have the drive to live?

You need to take action and authority back in your life. You need to want to have a happier healthier life and know that getting to that is not as hard as you may think-- it's not impossible. Me thinking that all I'm good for anymore was to give birth to my two kids and see that they have purpose and that they live it out, is me giving authority to defeat, depression and accepting that I have lost my identity. Once I remembered my identity in God (not only a mother, but a worshipper and servant to help others in many different ways), I got back authority over my life, and I handed it to God to take control. Thinking positive thoughts is important...

This wasn't exactly easy for me. To be honest, my first thoughts on bad situations that come at me are usually negative.

Proverbs 12:25 says, "Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad" (NKJV).

It took me time, to daily make those changes to "punch back" with a positive thought and good words right after thinking a negative thought. The more positive thoughts I thought, the more it became natural to me. Don't get me wrong, I'm still human and have feelings and thoughts that I sometimes don't want to have, but this is where I pray and seek God for help. With His help, I'm able to overcome any negative thoughts that go through my head, no matter how big my problem(s) seem to be.

Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (NKJV).

This brings me to sharing with you that once I made the choice to give all of myself to Christ, was the only way I was going to experience true joy. How can I say that when I have a wonderful husband, 2 beautiful kids and a comfortable life, don't they give me joy? Of course they do, but without Christ and having a real relationship with Him, there will always be "something" missing and that's Him. God is our creator and created us to have a relationship with us all. Jesus is His son who not only gave His life for us (rose again and is alive forever), but He desires us to know Him in the fullest way. I believe true and pure joy comes from Him-- once you understand what He did for you, you'll realize there is no greater love you'll ever find on this earth or anywhere. This is the biggest component of overcoming depression. He will walk beside you through life and carry you when you need to be carried, freeing you from all pain, sadness, fears, addictions, etc. if you just give it all to Him. He wants you to give it all to Him by the way.

1 Peter 5:7 says, "casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you" (NKJV).

We're not strong enough to carry everything on ourselves, but Jesus is our savior, deliverer and hero, and He will wipe that away from you if you just tell Him to take it and make the daily decision to keep pressing forward.

Psalm 18:2 says, "The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold (NKJV).

Praying daily to God, waking up every morning and asking Him for strength and to think positive thoughts throughout the day to get through your day is very important. I also encourage you to read the Bible because it is His love letter to us. Look in the mirror while you're getting ready and tell yourself that you are loved by the King, and that you love yourself (even if you're thinking right now that you don't love yourself-- in a short amount of time I believe you'll feel differently). Tell yourself that you are blessed, you are strong-minded, you are valuable, you have a great purpose in this life and that you are beautiful. Remember, a good word makes your heart glad! You could even write little 3x5 note cards and tape them to your bathroom mirror, beside your bed, in your car, wherever.

Words have a lot of power. Stop thinking negative, hopeless and defeated thoughts and start thinking positive, good, hope-fillled thoughts. Give all your cares to God and give Him authority over your life so you can start overcoming depression and start living the life He created you for. You are valuable, you are blessed, you are strong-minded and you have great purpose in this life. Start living the life you were meant for!

This mini blog series will continue next week with Part 3. I hope you'll come back to read more!

Overcoming Depression {Part 1}: My Story

2016-07-27T12:04:00.000-04:00

Thanks for stopping by and joining me in this journey of telling my story of how I have struggled with depression in the past, how I overcame it and how to live a joyful life. Since this is my first post in this "series", please bare with me as I get personal with my story. I hope to be open and honest and at the same time not all over the place so that you are able to follow along easily. I also hope to be a light and encouragement to anyone whom may be going through depression currently.

I have dealt with and struggled with depression at several different times in my life. The first time I really struggled with it was when I was 17. I was truly clinically depressed-- I was seeing a psychiatrist, on antidepressants and for a brief time was suicidal. What brought it on? A boy. I thought at the time that I fell in love with him. I gave him everything-- my heart, soul, body, mind...practically everything. It's almost like he owned me, that's how much I gave him control of me. He ended up dumping me and that's when I "lost it". At first I was living a hysterical life believing I couldn't live anymore without him. I went to extreme depths to try to win him back and when that didn't work I just didn't want to live anymore. Kinda silly, right? Well now looking back I realize I was little dramatic maybe, but I can't change my past. I was suicidal. I was searching ways to die in an easy way that wouldn't be hard to go through with. I remember nights when my mom would lay on the floor next to my bed because she was terrified I was going to go through with committing suicide. She would lay there, praying for me, hoping and pleading with God to give me the will to live. I hated her for it-- I just wanted to die and be gone...have the pain be gone.

After a little while, I couldn't hide the fact from myself that I did love my family and friends and couldn't hurt them by killing myself. I made the decision to live for them, not me. I continued counseling and taking my medications and over the next few months slowly started feeling happy and was just getting through each day. What really helped me was going off to a Christian college (that wasn't an easy decision either-- but I knew deep within my core that I should go there and hoped that maybe it wasn't too late to rekindle my relationship with God and thought going to that college would help me). Turns out it did. I started remembering who I was (in God) and freely worshiping Him, reading my Bible, hanging out with Christian friends who lifted me up and prayed with me and just was in a healthy and loving environment. I also met my husband in the first semester in college and fell head over heals for him... real love. Our love story is for another post though ;)

You may not know this, but I got married at age 19 (I had just turned 19 years old 2 weeks prior to be exact). It was of course the best decision I have ever made besides dedicating my life to Christ of course. Being in love, married young and on your own together at a young age will bring its challenges. It's not for everyone-- there are big obstacles and challenges that you'll go through together that will either make your marriage stronger or I guess break it. For my husband and I, we obviously overcame them as this September will be 9 years that we've been married!

The second time I struggled with depression was after I had my first child. I was a few weeks shy of turning 20 when I had my daughter. So, I was a young mom that felt alone a lot because my husband was a car salesman at the time and worked many long hours and would get home late every night. He was and still is an amazing daddy, but I still went through postpartum depression which is not that uncommon for women.

The third and hopefully final time I dealt with depression I'll say was the year 2014. It started off terrible by being deeply hurt by "Christian" friends who were more like family to me. A few months later my grandmother unexpectedly died (too young). Those were the two major things I was going through along with other minor stuff not worth mentioning. I slowly started gaining weight because I'm an emotional eater, wanted to sleep all the time, neglected my daughter's education some days and just was a shell of a person walking around. It was scary for my husband and I'm sure frustrating because I was also an angry person. I became a hermit-- I didn't want to leave our home unless it was to go out to eat because food was my enjoyment to be quite honest. So here I am again, older now with a husband and 2 kids and just not having the real will to live. I wasn't suicidal, but I didn't have the will or energy to want to live. I felt hopeless and like I had no purpose. I convinced myself that the only reason I was created by God was so that I could give birth to my two kids and that they were going to have a great purpose and destiny. After pulling teeth so to speak, I went to my family doctor and got back on antidepressants which helped me a lot. This was last summer in 2015.

I think this is a good spot to leave off. Next post I will share with you in more detail how I overcame depression within this last year.

Short Update & Sneak Peak of Upcoming Blog Series

2016-07-25T11:12:00.004-04:00

A lot has happened in my life since I last posted-- I wanted to be more consistent with blogging and had every intention to, but then it just didn't happen. This summer has been so full and busy, and I'm loving every minute of it. The most major event in my life was that I had a breast reduction done. I'm not quite sure if I want to blog about my experience with it (I haven't decided yet), but I will tell you that my life has majorly changed for the better and I am healing quite nicely. To be back pain free and be able to wear tops/dresses that I've never been able to wear before have been so great and I wish I could have done this surgery sooner.

Over the next few weeks I want to get real personal and talk about something you might not always feel open to talking about with others. I think a good amount of women struggle with depression or anxiety at different times in their life. Whether an event happened in their life that brought it on like a death in the family, postpartum depression after having a baby, or it just slowly happened over time because you are not where you want to be in life and you didn't even realize it was happening.
I'll be sharing with you my story and past struggles with depression, as well as how to overcome it. It's not something you can make go away with a snap of the fingers-- it's a journey and process and everyone's journey is different. That's not to discourage you if you are currently struggling with depression or anxiety. I hope to be an encouragement and help to those who may (or may not be and just happened to stumble across this post) seeking it. You CAN defeat depression and anxiety and DO NOT have to live day to day feeling hopeless. You CAN have and feel real joy and happiness deep within your core. Come back soon to see how!

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Learning to Hold Your Tongue {Part 2}

2016-05-22T12:16:00.000-04:00

It's been a couple of months since I have last blogged. I guess I kinda felt like I needed a break from blogging, but now I feel refreshed and I am going to try to start being more consistent again!

Since I last blogged, I have been continuing to learn how to hold my tongue and to watch what I say. It's been hard, and I have failed many times these past couple of months. I'm a work in progress and thank goodness for God's grace and forgiveness (and my family's). Anyhow, this morning my husband and I watched Joel Osteen preach. I think you either like the guy or you don't, but in my opinion I really like listening to his sermons and believe in him and his ministry. Guess what he preached on? Yup! How to tame the tongue. He really got into it and made both my husband I really think even deeper with the meaning and importance of taming your tongue.

What mostly comes out of your mouth? Do you speak blessings, encouragement that lifts others around you up, positive influential messages, or do you speak condemnation, curses and negative messages against and/or towards others? All of us will be accountable one day for not only the sinful actions we have made in our lives, but also for all the foul, idol and sinful things that came out of our mouths. Sometimes it's hard to hold back from speaking your feelings out against someone. We're emotional human beings that really have a lot to say most times. But the best thing you can do is really think about what you want to say before you say it, so that you have no regrets later on. Taking a 30 second moment to really think about what words would be best said, that won't tear down or cause turmoil against the person you're speaking too is going to take some discipline, but it is something we can each work towards and accomplish. We're human. We'll make mistakes and not always "get it right". With God's help, we can take each day, hard situation and uncomfortable conversation with others and be able to only speak truth in a loving and Godly way.

You can't be responsible for anyone's actions, thoughts or words against you. You are only responsible for yourself. You are in control of what comes out of your mouth and how you handle yourself. It's not always easy to remain controlled in thought, but you can learn how to control and tame your tongue. Even with those closest around you who unfortunately sometimes hurt you the most. You can be the bigger person by remaining controlled tempered, spoken and sometimes even silent. Doing that doesn't make you weak, it really does show strength, which I believe can only come from God and with His help.

Learning to Hold Your Tongue

2016-03-17T11:01:00.000-04:00

The saying is kind of silly isn't it? But in essence, it means to remain silent. Like me, do you find yourself in situations where if you spoke your mind it would just end up getting you into trouble? I'm an emotional person, I tend to react right away and sometimes it can be pretty intense. Not extreme, I don't think, but definitely a little over the top which I am and have been working on. As I have grown over the years, I have found that not reacting right away and taking the situation to prayer and council with my heavenly father and loved ones (usually my husband and my mom), it helps me to handle the situation much better. If not, I would end up saying something I either regretted or I would just get myself really worked up with anger or sometimes sadness.

About our tongues:
With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh (James 3: 9-12 NKJV).

It makes sense, doesn't it? The mouth can be a sharp weapon if you allow it to be so-- either for evil or for blessing/up lifting. This week, my husband and I have been studying the book of James in the Bible together, and this particular passage really hit home with me, which is why I'm writing this post. A spring cannot produce both salt and fresh water, so our mouths should also not produce cursing and blessing. As Christians, we need to strive to be Christ-like and speak as He would speak. This is not always easy, after all we are mere human, however we should be making it a daily challenge to be like and speak like Christ. I believe the more you work on it and pray for God's strength and guidance to do so, it will become easier and easier and just a part of who you are (you won't have to try as hard, so to speak).

I don't want loved ones and even strangers to look at me and be confused on who I am. I want to speak more blessings and uplifting positive messages than spending time cursing people and being angry at them. I want to produce only fresh water from the spring of my mouth, not bitter. So in the those moments I find myself off guard to a rude comment being made about me, or any other confrontation coming my way, I am working on holding my tongue (being silent), taking it to prayer and speaking only truth and love. Will you too? Let's build one another up and hold each other accountable in love. Let's hold our tongues!

Creamy Cheesy Broccoli Soup | The Best Tasting & Easiest Recipe Ever!

2016-02-03T18:32:00.000-05:00

Are you looking for the best broccoli cheese soup? Congratulations, you have found it! This soup is hands down the best broccoli cheese soup we have ever had-- my mom has been making this soup for as long as I can remember and is always requested by my husband quite often, year round. It's super easy to make and will for sure impress your family, friends and dinner guests!

Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Chopped Onion
1 Tbsp Margarine
2 Cups of Milk
8 oz Cream cheese, cubed
3/4 lb Velveeta cheese, cubed
10 oz chopped fine broccoli, cooked & drained (food processor or blender)
1/4 tsp nutmeg
dash of pepper

Directions:
In a 2 qt sauce pan (5 qt if doubled), cook onion in margarine until tender. Be careful not to burn. With heat on medium, add milk, cubed cream cheese and stir until melted. Add remaining ingredients; heat thoroughly, stirring occasionally.

I like to grab a bag of frozen broccoli florets that you can steam in the bag, in the microwave. Then once that has cooked, add the broccoli to my food processor so that I get a very creamy and fine soup. If you like broccoli chunks in your soup, you can of course pulse the food processor or chop the broccoli yourself.

This has been one of my family's favorite soups for many many years! It's a very creamy and dreamy soup, perfect for lunch or dinner! It's a great soup to take to loved ones who may need a meal given to them (they just had a baby, had surgery, etc.). Be prepared to share this recipe with anyone who eats this soup, it's going to be a winner and is highly loved by all! Let us know if you make it and what you think!

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I'm Going to Stop Stressing Over Daily Routines

2016-02-02T11:48:00.000-05:00

Throughout my whole life, I feel that I always had a routine and a certain schedule. Whether it be a weekly routine (cleaning and doing laundry on certain days of the week, attending church on Sundays and Wednesday nights, going to softball practice and piano lessons), or it being a daily routine (gotta do x, y, z at certain times in a certain order). I think I just function better with a routine, and even pushed that onto my kids. I was so strict with my kids' schedules and routines when they were babies. For example, I wouldn't miss nap time and kept it the same each day. Over the past couple of years, I've noticed that if an activity is done out of order or at a different time in the day, my oldest child realizes it and says "It's not time," or "That's not how we do things". Notice how before, I just said "I think I just function better with a routine".

Recently I started thinking about it and our daily routines more...are my daily routines affecting my relationship with God in any way? Am I so set in my daily activities, that I don't allow for God to show me things, speak to me or surprise me with teaching me something new at a random point in my day, just because it isn't my devotional time? Am I so wrapped up in myself and "my ways" of doing things, that I'm hindering the depth of my relationship with God? While we all have room to grow throughout our whole lives and Christian walk, I'm wondering if my growth could be deeper, bigger and stronger if I maybe just stop stressing with the routines.

Stepping aside and telling God, take control of my day, speak to me and teach me something new at any point in my day is ultimately including Him in my life 24/7 and not just 30-60 minutes a day. He shouldn't be put in a time frame and have restrictions on Him anyway, because that is holding myself back from Him. I'm learning to be more flexible and are already starting to see the fruits and benefits from it. Yes, I think schedules are not a bad thing and routines are fine, but in my relationship with God, I want it to continue to grow and expand and for me personally I know I need to be more open to having the spirit lead my days-- and that just may mess up my schedule, but I think only good can come from that when God is leading. It will bring me more freedom and release me from any chains (restrictions) that are holding me back from Him and by being used by Him. It's refreshing to let go of the routines and exciting to see what happens throughout my day each day.

What do you think, do you think your daily routines may be putting any limitations on your relationship or growth with God?

Game Day Homemade Chicken Meatballs with a Sweet Hot BBQ Sauce

2016-02-01T11:08:00.000-05:00

The Superbowl is quickly approaching, and if you're looking for game day foods to serve at your Superbowl party, your guests will love these homemade chicken meatballs! You can add any sauce you would like with them (prepared bbq sauce) or you can make the sauce we used. If you're not a fan of ketchup, you may want to use a different bbq sauce!

Recipe makes 17-18 golf sized meatballs

Ingredients:

{Meatballs}

1 lb ground chicken

1/2 cup chopped onion OR 2tsp dried onion seasoning

1/2 cup quick oatmeal oats

1/4 cup bread crumbs (I used homemade breadcrumbs with my food processor)

1 egg

1/2 cup of milk

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp Italian seasoning

{Sauce}

2/3 cup ketchup

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 Tbsp hot mustard (I used Hickory Farms Sweet Hot Mustard)

Directions:

In a bowl, combine all meatball ingredients listed and mix well. If you think the mixture is not wet enough, add a splash more of milk; if it's too wet, add a little more bread crumbs. Make golf-sized meatballs and place them in your crock pot (sprayed with Pam). Next, in a small bowl, mix all of the sauce ingredients well (or you can use your favorite store-bought bbq). Spoon the sauce over the meatballs and cook on low heat for 4 hours, or until your meatballs are done. You can also bake these in the oven, I'd say at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until they are done.

Let us know if you make this recipe and what you think of it! Enjoy!

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Olive Garden Chicken and Gnocchi Soup | Copycat Recipe

2016-01-26T17:39:00.003-05:00

One of my favorite soups ever is Olive Garden's chicken and gnocchi soup. We don't get there quite as often, but when we do, I usually always end up with a bowl of their creamy and delicious chicen and gnocchi soup. I recently decided to make this soup at home for the first time, and I cannot believe how easy it was to make, plus how much it tasted just like Olive Garden's. My husband was so pleased and impressed and agrees, it's just like Olive Garden's! Read below for the recipe and make sure you read on how you can make the creaminess thicker or thinner to your liking.

The following recipe makes 6-8 bowls servings

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
3/4 cups diced onion
3/4 cup thinly diced carrots
1/2 cup thinly diced celery
2 Tbsp garlic powder
2 Tbsp flour
3 cups chicken stock (have extra on hand)
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups cooked chicken breast meat, shredded or cubed (I boil my chicken in salted water until done)
1 lb bag potato gnocchi
1/2 bag of 1 pound frozen spinach (remove the stems)
1 1/2 Tbsp basil
salt and pepper, to taste
grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:

In a 5 quart dutch oven pot, melt 3 Tbsp of butter with your olive oil on medium heat. Once butter has melted, add your chopped onion and thinly diced carrots and celery with your garlic powder, basil and a few dashes of salt, mixing every now and then. Sauté your vegetables until they are soft. Next, add 1 more Tbsp of butter. Once melted, add your flour and mix gently until there are no lumps. Add 1 cup of chicken broth, mixing to make sure no lumps form. Let simmer for a few minutes to thicken. Once you have a nice creamy texture with no lumps, add 2 more cups of chicken broth, and your milk (I used 2%) and heavy cream.

Add your cooked chicken breast that you shredded or cubed, to the pot and simmer for 20 minutes. You can also use dark meat, or both white and dark meat-- whichever chicken you prefer!

Meanwhile, cook your gnocchi according to its manufacturer's directions, and set aside. For the spinach, I used frozen spinach, but you can also feel free to use fresh spinach (anywhere from 3-4 cups, raw). I placed half a bag of frozen spinach in a microwavable steamer with 2-3 Tbsp of water (I was disappointed to see stems in the bag, so picked out most of the stems as I didn't want them in the soup) and steamed the spinach until it was nice and soft.

After your soup has simmered for 20 minutes, add the gnocchi and spinach to the pot and simmer some more, while adding salt, pepper and more garlic powder to taste. Now, you can make the creaminess of the soup as thick or as thin as you want. All you have to do is add more chicken broth if you want it thinner. Once you get just the right amount of salt and garlic flavor you like, this soup is just like Olive Garden's!

Please tell us if you make this recipe and what you think! I am even more in love with this soup, now that I know how easy it is to make, and that I can make it in the convenience of my own home when I'm craving it! Delicious and such a big hit!

How To Make Monkey Bread in a Spring Form (Cheesecake) Pan | + A Recipe

2016-01-24T10:58:00.001-05:00

I recently wanted to make homemade monkey bread, but do not own a bundt pan and so I had to improvise. I decided that using my spring form pan was maybe an option and came up with a way to make it work! You'll need a spring form pan, tin foil, an oven proof ceramic coffee mug or glass mason jar or clean empty food can, and a cookie sheet to place the spring from pan on.

To set up your spring form pan to make monkey bread, you'll need to cover the inside of it generously with cooking spray. You'll also want to cover the bottom of the pan with tin foil, going up the edges, because butter will leak out otherwise. Place your coffee mug/mason jar or clean empty food can in the middle of the pan and spray the outside of it (so your monkey bread doesn't stick to your mug). Lastly, place your pan on a cookie sheet to catch any butter that may still find it's way out.

Since this was my first time making monkey bread, I wanted to follow an easy recipe. I found this one in my daughter's cookbook, The Disney Princess Cookbook by Disney Enterprises, Inc.

Ingredients:

3 cups of flour

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup cold butter

1 1/4 cup milk

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

6 Tbsp melted butter

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and salt. With a table knife, cut the cold butter into small pieces and use your fingertips to pinch the butter into the flour mixture until the lumps of butter are about the size of peas. Then stir in the milk.

Place the dough onto a floured surface and knead it for about 5 seconds. Make sure you flour your hands (the dough is sticky) and pull off pieces of the dough and shape them into 2 1/2 - 3 dozen small golf sized balls.

Mix the brown sugar, white sugar and cinnamon together in a small mixing bowl.

In another small bowl, melt your 6 Tbsp of butter. One at a time, dip the dough balls into the melted butter, then roll them into the sugar/cinnamon mixture and place them in your spring form pan-- stacking the balls on top of one another until the pan is full.

Bake in a preheated oven of 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes, taking out the coffee mug the last 5-10 minutes by using a pot holder. Use a tooth pick to check outer and inner dough balls to see if it comes out clean, if so, it's done. Set bread aside to cool for 10 minutes.

Using a spatula, gently loosen the outer sides of the bread from the pan. Place a round serving dish on top of the pan, and securely flip them, then slowly lift your spring form pan off the plate and release the monkey bread. Let it cool for a little bit longer. Serve warm. Enjoy!

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The Pros and Cons of Cyber Schooling

2016-01-20T11:54:00.000-05:00

As you may know, my oldest child is in second grade and since she started school (Kindergarten), our daughter has "attended" a cyber school at home. This being the third year of cyber schooling, I thought I would gather a list of pros and cons and share them with you. Keep in mind, this is from my personal experience and can only be based off of early elementary school. I can't say the same experience and pros and cons would be the same for intermediate school and high school.

A little background as to why we chose to cyber school:
The original reasoning behind our decision to cyber school, was because our daughter has a severe peanut allergy. While more and more schools are becoming more cautious and aware of food allergies, we still felt uncomfortable not being near our daughter for 7-8 hours of the day where she is still in a cafeteria with peanut butter and there is a higher risk of her having an anaphylactic reaction (even if she would be a separate food allergy table away from peanuts). Her allergy is rather severe and we have noticed on a few occasions that she reacts to peanut dust when it's in the air even (airborne). Not to mention contact from another child who ate peanut butter at lunch and tried kissing our daughter, or even touched her without washing their hands, she would react (hives, eczema, breathing issues etc.). As time went on, we also feel it best to have our children in a Christian environment as much as possible. My husband and I both attended public school, but boy have times changed. Kids these days our constantly cursing, and talking about "grown up" things that I didn't even learn about until I was much much older. We agree that we want our children to learn and to have their education taught to them in our home.

So since my husband and I were on the same page of keeping our kids home for school, I started looking into options when my oldest was 4 years old. I was intimated to do full blown homeschool. There are so many curriculum options, and I was unfamiliar with how to record how many hours of school work was being done each week to prove to the state she was meeting the requirements. I quickly came across cyber schooling, and thought the whole concept was perfect for our family. After researching several different schools in our state, I decided on a public charter cyber school.

Pros on public cyber schooling:

Laptop, printer (with ink), school curriculum (including text books, science and math tools, and reading books) are included at no cost. I'm not sure if this is the case for all public cyber schools, but this is how our school does it.
Internet reimbursement- Our school also sends us an internet reimbursement check twice a year, to pay for our internet which is obviously needed to cyber school.
K12 curriculum- this also could vary depending on the school.
Certified teachers- Your child will have their own teacher and you will be their "learning coach" (this is what our school calls it). My daughter is taught Math, Language Arts (this year for 2nd grade it's Literature and Comprehension, Writing Skills and Spelling), Science and History in an online class. Note- not all cyber schools have teachers.

Online classes- webcams are used so your child can see their teacher and other students, they also get to talk to each other and use a white board on the screen, and chat area. Lessons/classes are recorded so parents can view them or your child can if they couldn't make it to class.

Flexible schedule- As my daughter's learning coach, I teach her her other subjects that are not taught by her teacher-- art, music, handwriting, vocabulary and I am responsible to teach her 1-2 lessons of history and science each week. I also work with her on her "hands on" work sheets. Not all work is done on the laptop, there are work sheets and projects too.
All required hours of schooling for our state our easily recorded. I enter the amount of time we spent on each lesson on the online school, and it's all recorded-- so easy!
Tech support- our school has their own tech support team that I can call if we are having any issues. I may have called them 3 times in the past 2 1/2 years.
School Outings- Our school loves having the students meet each other and get together. Every Friday they have a school outing (field trip) that are optional and are all around the state (we live in PA).
My daughter has classmates who are friends, that she talks to and sees (on the webcam) each school day.
Our school still has a homecoming dance, prom and graduation ceremony for high school students.
Able to keep your child in a safe environment away from influences of drugs, sex (yes, I knew of students in high school who would have sex in the stairwells during classes), physical fights, and bullying (although cyber bullying is always out there).

Cons on public cyber schooling:

The biggest con in my opinion is you are at the mercy of your internet provider. If you are having a bad connection because of weather, then you can't log on to access live classes and even online work that is done through the online school (K12 for us).
My daughter doesn't get to physically be in a classroom with her classmates/friends. While she has met her teacher in person at a Welcome Back School Picnic, she has never met any of her friends in person. The only way to do so is if they go to an outing or if I plan it out with their parents. I am not aware of any classmates living in our county (however there is not a listing, I would have to ask the teacher and invading privacy is not something I would want to overstep). I'm sure older students who have Facebook and cell phones can much easier be in contact with classmates outside of live classes.
Possibility for more distractions at home-- if you as the parent are not keeping an eye on your child and making sure their work is getting done, they can easily get distracted with web-surfing, watching tv, playing video games, playing with toys, etc.
Not all cyber schools offer teachers-- some cyber schools you as the parent are teaching completely on your own, so your child would miss out on the teacher-student interaction.

Cyber school is not for every child, just like homeschooling and going to a public or private school is not for every child. You need to decide what is best for your family and child and go with it. I sometimes get frowned upon for having my daughter in cyber school. I don't think it's very well known about, and just like homeschooling, some people think we are keeping our daughter out of society and are limiting her social skills and such, which is NOT the case. I'm happy with the decision to cyber school, at least for now. Who knows, I may look into a Christian curriculum and decide to homeschool all on my own one day, especially since I have the support to do so from family and friends, but for now we're going to keep doing what we're doing.

Thank You God for Grandparents, They are So Special

2016-01-17T21:07:00.000-05:00

Grandparents hold a special place in any grandchild's heart. I was blessed to have 4 wonderful grandparents growing up-- my family has always been close, and it helped that we all lived within 10 minutes of each other. My family saw my grandparents frequently growing up, and I loved it. I loved going over to their houses and spending time with them, making memories and also hearing stories of their childhood and family from when they were little. I think I asked to sleep over at their houses on the weekends quite often, and would be the happiest when they said yes and included me in their weekend plans. Whether it was to go grocery shopping, do Saturday cleanings of the house or even to go out to dinner or go play bingo, I loved sleeping over at my grandparents houses.

I find myself telling my husband and children stories and memories I have of my grandparents all the time. I honestly could talk hours about them each-- they each have made an impact on my life and have helped shape me into the woman I am today. For that, I am grateful that I had and still have grandparents who want to be in and apart of my life-- I know that's the not the case for every grandchild out there.

It saddens me that I only have two grandparents left here on Earth. I know I will one day meet up with the other two that have already passed in Heaven, and what a joyous day that will be. It's hard losing a grandparent, especially when you had a unique and close bond with them. I can't image how hard it was for each of my parents losing a parent, even though I witnessed how hard it was for them. I know how much it hurt my heart and I can only image the day I lose one of my parents or in-laws (ahhh I don't want that to ever happen). I wish my kids could have spent more time with each of my grandparents who passed. I fear that my oldest won't remember either of them in time, which again saddens me. Maybe that's why I talk about my grandparents and memories I have of them often with my kids, especially my oldest.

Family has always been very important to me. Now that I am an adult and live over an hour away from my grandparents, it's harder to see them as often as I would like to. I try to keep tabs (haha) on them by asking my parents how they're doing and thank goodness for modern technology of Facebook and phones. I'm so blessed to have grandparents (and other extended family) who were active in and a huge part of my life from the time I was born until now. Like I said before, I know that's not the case for everyone, so I feel all the more blessed to have a close knit family. It's important for me to incorporate that importance and value to my kids and their lives. They can't get enough of their 5 grandparents and even their great-grandparents, and that just warms my heart!

I thank God for grandparents, for lots of reasons, but most of all for the love that they provide their grandchildren, that can only come for a grandparent.

Flamingo Valentine's Day Craft for Kids

2016-01-15T14:32:00.000-05:00

It's already mid-January, and before you know it, Valentine's Day will be here! My kids love doing crafts and recently received a huge art bin full of fun craft supplies for Christmas, so I wanted to come up with a fun craft to make that had a Valentine's Day theme. This flamingo Valentine's Day crafts is so easy to make and doesn't require a ton of art supplies. Plus, your child will have fun making it!

Supplies you'll need:

Construction paper

Pipe Cleaners

Googly Eyes

Scotch Tape

Glue

Feathers

Black Marker

First, you'll cut out a heart from a piece of construction paper. Then choose one pipe cleaner and tape it to the back of the top left side of the flamingo. This will be the neck and head, so bend it accordingly. I found that taping on the pipe cleaners was more sturdy than using just glue.

Then choose one more pipe cleaner and cut it in half. Tape them to the backside of the bottom of the heart to be the flamingo's legs, and bend them like mine shown in the first picture above.

Next, glue or tape on a feather to the back top right side of the heart flamingo.

Cut out a small beak, making sure it has a curve, and color in the end with a black marker. Glue the beak onto the end of pipe cleaner. Lastly, glue on a googly eye.

And there you have it, a cute Valentine Flamingo! Easy right? My daughter loved making this craft!

Simple Hummus without Tahini

2016-01-13T13:07:00.000-05:00

My family loves eating hummus! It's one of our go-to snacks, paired with carrots, pita or pita crackers. I started making my own hummus recently and quickly realized this was going to save us money compared to buying store bought hummus. Plus, it's fun for my 7 year old daughter to help me make (she actually made some all by herself with me observing).

This recipe does not include Tahini which most hummus may contain. What is Tahini? It's a Middle Eastern paste or sauce made from ground sesame seeds. Now I have skipped using Tahini simply for two reasons: 1, it's not an ingredient I ever have on hand. Second, and the more important reason of the two, our daughter has a severe peanut allergy and her allergist wants her to avoid eating sesame. This way our daughter can enjoy eating hummus too, which she happens to LOVE! You can of course add Tahini to this recipe if you enjoy that sesame seed flavor in your hummus.

This recipe will make about 2 cups of hummus.

Ingredients:
(1) 15.5 oz can of garbanzo beans
1/4 cup olive oil (see note below about reducing this in half for lower calories)
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 - 1/2 tsp garlic powder (use less or more depending on your love of garlic flavor)
1/4 tsp salt

**Note: For lower calories, use 2 Tbsp olive oil and 2 Tbsp water instead of 1/4 cup olive oil.
Original recipe is 27 calories per Tablespoon. Using 1/2 the olive oil and replacing with water brings the calories down to 19 per Tablespoon.

Directions:
Drain, rinse and drain again your garbanzo beans. Put all ingredients into a food processor. Mix until texture is smooth.

I use a Ninja (style- Kitchen System Pulse) for a food processor. I probably blend the hummus for about a minute, making sure I get the perfect creamy texture. You can salt to taste, I usually end up adding a shake or two more, and I also love the flavor of garlic and lemon so I add a little bit more of each of those. You really can add as little or as much of the garlic powder, lemon juice and salt as you want.

So how easy is this recipe? It's so simple and very inexpensive compared to store bought hummus. Plus it's delicious! We can't get enough of it. It's a great recipe to have little chefs do on their own if you have a daughter or son showing interest in learning to cook or help out in the kitchen. Just make sure they are extra careful using the food processor as sharp blades are involved.

Enjoy! Let us know if you try this recipe and what you think!

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