Blessings

The Lord has blessed me and my family in so very many ways. I have had the joy of being a mother to the most amazing children, and I wouldn't give that up for anything in the world. God's Word says in Psalm 127:3 Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. Children are a reward from God! What better earthly gift could He give us than our precious children?

When I have bad days and the stresses of every day life get to me, these beautiful children bring immense joy back into my life! As you can see by their faces in this picture, they are happy, they are always happy! They are upstairs laughing and playing as I type, a sound that is like music to me!

I have also been blessed with an amazing husband, who I know loves me more than he loves his paintball gun! That is a LOT! He has given me the opportunity to be a stay home mom for the past 3 1/2 years and I am so thankful that I took it. Being home with the kids has allowed me to build a much stronger bond with them and to see them grow and learn every step of the way. Because of an understanding and loving husband I have had the chance to raise my children the way I want them to be raised. My husband is a wonderful father, and has worked his fingers to the bone at times to provide a wonderful life for us. Even though we don't have fancy things I have never felt as if we've had to go without...I have everything I could ever want!

Thank you, Jesus, for all of your many wonderful blessings!

Cinnamon Pancakes

The kids have been asking to have 'breakfast for dinner' the past few weeks. We used to do this often because it is everyone's favorite food....except mine. I would much rather have cereal and fruit for breakfast, but they want eggs and pancakes and bacon. Most of the time my husband wants biscuits and sausage gravy, but I will only make this once in a blue moon and I don't eat the stuff! So last night I finally gave in and made some bacon in the oven, eggs, biscuits (sans gravy) for my hubby and cinnamon pancakes for the kids. (I ate brown rice and peas....and it was delicious!)
I've included my version of cinnamon pancakes, but it would be just as easy to get some whole grain pancake mix and add to it. The kids absolutely LOVED them, and what's great is they don't even need syrup. I used the one leftover we had to make a cinnamon pancake peanut butter sandwich for Carson's lunch since it is hard sometimes to come up with new things for a gluten free child.

I used:
1 1/2 C gluten free flour mix-(brown rice and tapioca rice)
Xantham gum
1 egg
1 T oil
1-2 t gluten free vanilla
2 t cinnamon

I also sprinkled cinnamon on one side after I poured them on the griddle. The kids have always loved pancakes, but they don't get them too often so it's a treat when they do. They kept telling me they HAD to have the recipe. Carson even told me he wanted to marry me because of my delicious pancakes.

I think Braeden is going to be the cook in the family, but I really want all of the kids to at least start learning the basics now like I did when I was their age. I also attended culinary school years ago and Braeden actually remembers that and thinks it is the coolest thing ever! We all cook together often, but there are still some things they are unable to do. At least they are showing an interest!

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

Saturday afternoon I had the privelege of attending a celebration of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb with the lovely ladies of our amazing church. The festivities started with a delicious meal of meat, veggies and salad...and of course some desserts (I did not partake of the sweets!) Lunch was followed by a gift exchange and some amuzing entertainment by some female members of our drama team.
After the entertainment there was an activity in which flowers were passed around and each lady was to take a petal off of the flower and tell why they KNOW God loves them (instead of 'he loves me, he loves me not'...) As the flowers were passed around each woman stood to tell her story of what God has done to show His undying love, I was overwhelmed by each story that was told.
I felt like weeping as each lady stood, most cried as they spoke of the marvelous things that God has done in their lives. A bond was formed yesterday as we each shared some very special and personal times in our lives!

I will never forget what my pastor's wife said as she stood to testify. As she was looking around the room she couldn't help but notice how we are all so different in our own unique way. God made us individually and that is why she knows that we are all loved. He intricately formed us to be completely different from one another...but yet our testimonies revealed that we are all very much alike.
The bond that was formed yesterday will not soon be broken, I ask that you will all help me to pray for this kind of unity in our churches everywhere!

Secret green chicken nuggets

I have discovered through my reading a way to add greens to your child's diet secretly! This is just one of the few recipes I have found using a green vegetable puree that is virtually undetectable by children...and hey, it's better than nothing! I will post a few more later, but these are great for starters.

1 c bread or cracker crumbs, we use crushed gf pretzels and tortilla chips
1 tbs grated parmesan
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp onion powder
1 c broccoli puree
1 lg egg, lightly beaten
1# chicken breast cut into small chunks
½ tsp salt
Cooking spray
1 tbs olive oil

In bowl combine breadcrumbs, cheese and spices. Mix well. In shallow bowl, mix puree and egg, set next to crumbs. Sprinkle chicken with salt, dip into egg mix, then toss in crumbs-coat completely. Coat skillet with cooking spray, heat over med-high, When skillet is hot, add oil, place chicken in skillet--don’t overcrowd pan Cook 3-4 min per side, turn and cook till cooked thru and crisp all over (4-5 min longer)

These are incredible! There is a hint of broccoli flavor, but nothing overpowering. I have made these omitting the paprika and onion powder and they are still great. Mike, Hannah, Carson and I devour these, Braeden just thinks they are okay. You can also do these in the oven since fried is a no-no to many.