18 years...

18 years.  Where did those years go?  18 years ago today I certainly was NOT thinking about graduation.  My baby was 4 months old and I was a young mom excited about the future and what it would hold for this little baby of mine.  18 years later.. This afternoon I watched that "baby" walk up on a stage and accept his High School Diploma.  18 years of celebrations, trials, laughter, tears, frustration, pride, and all the those other emotions I'm forgetting about.

I remember people telling me to hold on to him, these years go by so fast.  I didn't believe them.  18 years is such a long time to a young, 22-year-old mom.  18 years went by in the blink of an eye to this 40-year-old mom.  Can't I hang on to that little boy for just a little bit longer?  No.  I need to let him fly.  I need to let him feel the wind under his wings and maybe even hop around like the little robin that Mike and Rachael saw yesterday in the backyard.  It's mama was chirping encouragement, but was letting it stretch it's wings and learn to fly on it's own.  It's hard watching your baby leave the nest, but I know he's ready.  Fly, Tyler!  Stretch your wings and soar!

God never you more then you can handle...

You know, one saying that I have come to hate is "God never gives you more then what you can handle."  On the outside, it seems like something nice to say to someone who is going through difficult times.  It's one of those bits of advice that I know I have been guilty of giving in the past, but after the last year or so, it's now out of my repertoire of words to say to a person going through a trying time.  You see, I challenge you to find, in the Bible, where it says that.  God has never told someone that.  Look at Job, Moses, David, Solomon.  Look at Peter, Paul, or any of the other apostles that died or were persecuted for their faith.  God does give us more then we can handle, but He then expects us to lean on Him for strength.  He alone gives us the strength to get through the trials that this life throws at us.

The last 18 months or so have been very difficult ones for our family.  It has been a time in the desert trying to desperately follow and listen to what God wants us to do and not hearing a whole lot from Him. I have felt His presence in my life, but not a whole lot of guidance.  It's been one of those periods in my life when everything has been picked up and shaken up and I've been throwing myself at God screaming, "Why have you done this to ME!  Can't you see how it has upset MY family?  What do you want ME to do?  How can I fix it?"

Well, no wonder God was quiet.  I was making it all about me.  Just like a little child.  Yes, I was hurt terribly.  Yes, because of what happened, my husband and my children were affected.  There was nothing I could do.  Nothing I could do to fix it and go back to how things were. I was too busy trying to hear what I wanted God to say rather than actually listening to what He was telling me.  Psalms 46:10 tells us to "Be still and know that I am God."  I wasn't being still.  I was restless, I was angry, and I wanted answers.

I think we're on the healing side of things now.  Things are settling into a new normal.  We have a new church family that we're trying to figure out where we fit.  There are still outbursts and sadness, but when I look back at what happened, I can see God's loving Hands in it.  I am still sad when I think back on the series of events, but I'm not angry anymore.  God has shown me why He allowed what to happen, happen and I am at peace with that.

I know God has a plan for my life.  He knew me before I was born (Jeremiah 1:5),  He knows the number of hairs on my head (Matthew 10:30), He will guide me (Proverbs 3:5-6, Psalm 37:4-7) and most of all, He loves me (John 3:16, Romans 5:5, Psalm 33:18-22)!

When one flies the coop...

Well, I haven't kept up with this like I had intended to.  Isn't that life?  It just gets ahead of you and everything else falls to the wayside.

So I'm feeling a little sad and just a bit weepy.  Why?  One of my chicks flew the coop earlier this week sooner then we had been expecting.  I'm missing him and realizing that when he comes home, it will be for a visit, not to stay.  Don't get me wrong!  I'm happy for him and pray success and happiness for him.  I look forward to his visit homes and am glad that he is stretching his wings and learning to fly.

What happened, you ask? Well, there has been discourse in our house lately with him.  He's a senior and has had a bad case of senioritis.  We've been on his case about finding a job for the summer and he's just been haphazardly looking with a lot of outside, what shall we call it?  Motivation that didn't seem to come from him!  So last weekend, we hear through the grape-vine that a camp that is about 40 minutes from our house was getting a bit desperate for some male counselors. This perked Tyler up.  He LOVES camp, it was always a highlight of his summer and was sad that he wouldn't be going this year.  Now the camp we've sent our kids to for years is about 4 hours from here and this one is much closer, but still a Christian camp.  He jumped on it. Made the call Tuesday afternoon after school, got his application and references sent out the same day and got a call on Wednesday for a phone interview Thursday.  By Thursday some of his references had gotten returned (oh, the speed of doing things on-line!) and between his glowing references and his interview he got hired on the spot to be a counselor, barring a bad background check.

I took him to camp on Friday afternoon when he finished his very last day of High School.  No time to really process he was leaving.  Just a whirlwind of getting last minute supplies and getting him there.  I dropped him and all his gear off at the cabin he'll be staying in and awkwardly waved goodbye to him as he was walking away.  No hug, no.. well.. he was nervous, excited and forgot about hugging his old mom.

Now I realize that he'll be home a few weekends here and there between now and when camp ends on August 17.  He'll be busy with friends, packing up his room, getting ready for college.  College move-in is August 21.

So here I sit.. my chicks are growing.  I hold on to them as long as I can, but they struggle and fight against my embraces.  They want to grow up.  They want to fly and who can blame them?  That's what God created them to do.  I do rejoice in that.  I rejoice in their independence but I mourn just a little bit in the loss of their presence in our home.

Trying something new...

Wow!  I never realized what a hit my chicken sandwiches were going to be.  I just put them out on Pinterest as a lark and it took off like wildfire!  Thank you for all the wonderful comments.  They really are great sandwiches and we probably have them about twice a month when it's grilling weather! Maybe I should start sharing  more things that I make!

Here's what I made for dinner Monday night.  I was in the mood for a casserole and found this one in 365:No Repeats by Rachael Ray.  I adapted it to work with what I had on hand it was delicious! I'll try to post the recipe as I made it.

Rachael Ray's Southwestern Chili Con Queso Pasta Bake
1 pound penne rigate (ridged penne)
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 tablespoon ground cumin (1 palmful)
1 tablespoon roasted ground coriander (1 palmful)

2 tablespoons chili powder (2 palmfuls)
Coarse black pepper
1 large yellow onion, chopped
3-5 garlic cloves, chopped (we really like garlic so I put in more, the recipe calls for 3)
1 jalepeño
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (2 palmfuls)
2 cups milk
3/4 pound cheddar cheese (about 2 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves (a generous handful), chopped
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves (a few handfuls) chopped
1 14-ounce can diced fire-roasted tomatoes

Preheat the broiler to high and position the rack 8 inches from the heat.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Salt the boiling water and cook the pasta until slightly undercooked--a little chewy at the center.

While the water is coming to a boil, preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the hamburger.  When the hamburger is almost finished, but still a little pink, throw in the garlic, jalepeño, and onions and finish cooking until the burger is browned and the onion is translucent.  Drain the grease from the skillet and mix in the cumin, coriander and chili powder.  Take off the heat or turn heat down low.

In a medium sauce pot (and you can do this while you're browning the hamburger), melt the butter and add the flour to it.  Cook for 1 to 2 minutes over moderate heat and then whisk in the milk. When the milk comes to a bubble, stir in the cheese, cilantro and parsley with a wooden spoon.  When the cheese has melted, stir in the tomatoes.

Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and add it back into the large pot.  Add the contents of the hamburger and all of the Cheddar sauce, and stir to combine.  Transfer to a baking dish, sprinkle with a bit more cheese if you wish, and place under the broiler to lightly brown.

It says it makes 4 servings, but with a salad, can easily feed 6!  It was another hit in our house!  I also think it would do well in a crockpot to take to a potluck.  Just add a bit more milk to the cheese mixture so it doesn't get too dried out.  I'm going to try it for the next potluck we have and we usually have plenty of potlucks throughout the year!

Oh.. and do you want pictures?  I hope so, because I took a couple!

Just a little slice of heaven!

It's Tuesday morning and I'm sitting here drinking my big 'ole cup of coffee and enjoying the peace and quiet of an empty/sleeping house.  The boys are all gone to school, Mike's at work and as a rare treat, Rachael is still snoozing.

Again, I have a huge list of things to do and I won't bore you with the details, but I can't help but enjoy this little bit of peace.  I have the window behind me open and the robins are singing as the cool, fresh, Spring air fills my house.  In the distance, I can hear the hum of the traffic on the highway, but it's peaceful and I don't get that too often.

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of peace in such a hectic life.  Thank you for sleeping children and a quiet house.  It's little things like this that are so precious sometimes.  Thank you for coffee, Lord, and a chance to marvel at what you have created!

Our favorite sandwiches ever!

So last week, with the beautiful weather we've been having here in Southern Minnesota, I decided to make our most favorite sandwiches ever! Mike found the recipe in a magazine and asked me to make them and they've been in regular rotation ever since.  So I'm going to share and hope that whoever stumbles upon this little blog and decides to try them likes them just as much as we do!

Grilled Teriyaki Pineapple Chicken Sandwiches

I'm not going to give specific amounts because you can adapt it to however you need to make to suit your needs

Boneless, skinless chicken breast

pineapple slices (in rings)

Swiss cheese slices

thinly sliced red onion

Teriyaki sauce

crusty buns

Marinate your chicken breasts in the teriyaki sauce for at least an hour.

I like using fresh pineapple and slicing it in nice, thick rings.  You can use canned rings, but the fresh is so much better!

Next you want to slice your red onion nice and thin! If you slice it too thick, it's going to be too overpowering on the sandwich when you start to assemble it.

Now you want to assemble everything you need to go out to the grill so you can have it all close at hand as you put things together.

Put the chicken on the grill and and flip it over midway through the grilling process.

When you flip the chicken, it's time to grill the pineapple.  By caramelizing the slices, it really brings out the natural sweetness of the pineapple. You only have to grill it for a couple of minutes per side.

When the pineapple is done, take it off the grill and toast the buns.  While the buns are toasting, go ahead and put the onion on the chicken breasts of those who like onion.  Our kids pass on the onion, but Mike and I love it and I always make extra sandwiches for lunch the next day!

When the buns are nice and toasty, take them off the grill and spread the chicken out a bit so you can melt the cheese.  Mmm... melty, Swiss goodness!

Finally, when the cheese is nice and melty, transfer the breasts onto the buns and top each with a slice of the grilled pineapple.  The combination of all the flavors is amazing!  If you want a bit of heat on your sandwich, you can add fresh or pickled jalepeño slices.  Mike likes it like that, but I love it just like this.  Of course, Rachael wanted to be added in, so here she is posing with the finished sandwiches!

Hope your family enjoys these as much as we do!

Procrastinating

Sitting here today with lots to do.  Didn't go to church today, Nathan, my 14-year-old is home sick and miserable and I didn't want to let him stay home by himself. He's not sick often so he's camped out on the couch, buried in a mountain of blankets watching those dumb teen shows on Disney.  Poor guy!  I'm procrastinating though.  Got lots of things to do, but just don't have the gumption to start it.

• Organizing
• vacuuming
• clean the kitchen
• sweep and mop
• budget planning
• laundry (does this one EVER end??)
• get dressed
• the list goes on and on and on....

But here I sit.  I've checked Facebook, had my cup of coffee and tell myself to get going.  Alright, then.. here I go!  We'll see how much I get done today :)