A Time of Rest is Coming

It's less than one week now until our family jumps on an airplane to travel to the place we have been dreaming of taking our girls for over 6 years. . .words can't even express how excited and full of anticipation I am.

Check out Kevin's blog for more info on WHY Vietnam and WHY now.
http://kevincolon.blogspot.com/2010/10/time-of-rest-part-1.html

And make sure you keep checking our blogs from now through November. We will be overseas November 3-18. Then the rest of the month is going to be spent in the mountains and celebrating the beginning of the holiday season.

Can't wait to share it all with you.

Pumpkin Pie. . .w/spinach (Shhhhhhhhh!)

No spinach flavor at all. . .really. . .I promise. Just cover it with whip cream if you can't handle looking at the green. :-)

1 15oz can organic pumpkin
1+ cups fresh organic spinach processed into very tiny pieces (use food processor)
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp sea salt (or other salt)
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk (I use fat free)
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 9" deep dish pie shell

Mix pumpkin and spices
Add remaining fillings
Pour into pour into pie shell
Bake at 425 for 15 minutes
reduce to 350 and cook additional 30-40 minutes until cooked thoroughly

My Favorite Muffin Recipe

Here's a yummy recipe that I adapted to be healthier and yummier. Try it and enjoy! (They freeze great, too!)

Amy’s Super Healthy Zucchini Muffins
Ingredients
• 3 cups grated fresh zucchini (can be less if you have less)
• 2/3 canned pumpkin or natural unsweetened applesauce
• 1 ¼ cup clover honey heated in microwave for 1 min. to thin out
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• Pinch salt
• 3 cups wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons milled flax (optional)
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup walnuts (optional)
Method
You don't need a mixer for this recipe.
1 Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). In a large bowl combine the heated honey, eggs, and vanilla. Stir in the grated zucchini and then the pumpkin or applesauce. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the zucchini mixture and mix in. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Stir these dry ingredients into the zucchini mixture. Stir in walnut in using.
2 Coat each muffin cup in your muffin pan with a olive oil spray. Use a spoon to distribute the muffin dough equally among the cups, filling the cups up completely. Bake on the middle rack until muffins are golden brown, and the top of the muffins bounce back when you press on them, about 20-22 minutes. Don’t overcook! Test with a long toothpick or a thin bamboo skewer to make sure the center of the muffins are done. Set on wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from the tin let cool another 20 minutes.

A Day of Sabbath with Gran and Pop

Last week we had so much fun including my parents into our Sabbath journey. It was so much more than just a family showing their inlaws a good time in Boulder. Take a look. . .


We started the day once again at our favorite breakfast spot, The Original Pancake House. Can't beat it!

Then together we went to the hardware store, the grocery store, the spice store and the candy store. We did all of these things not because we had any specific reason for going. . .but just because. . .we stopped and tasted coffee beans, ate almonds, smelled flowers, enjoyed candy, smelled spices, walked slowly and basked in the sunshine of a perfect fall day. . .just because.









Then we finished the afternoon with a trip to the Humane Society. NO - not because we adopted a dog! No, no, no. Claire just loves it - so we went.

But I have to say that coming home was probably the best part. It was about a 25 minute discussion around our kitchen table that made the day complete. Each girl was asked to find a verse in the Bible, share it with everyone and then tell why they liked it so much. And then they wanted Gran and Pop to do the same thing. What a joy it was to listen to grandparents reading scripture to their grandkids and then taking time to teach them and share their hearts about why God's Word meant so much to them. It was priceless - another moment I'm so glad I didn't miss.

Thanks, God! You never, ever, ever disappoint. I love how we are together learning how to enjoy you.

Moments Almost Missed 10/4/10

Okay, so I have to be honest. I didn't come home from this day of Sabbath with an overwhelming feeling of "Wow!" It was a good family day. We did some fun family things like going to the zoo and visiting Bass Pro Shop to look at the fish and climb on the boats. We ate some tasty BBQ, had some laughs and called it a day. It was fun. But it wasn't a "wow" kind of God day. I wasn't upset about it. Not at all. But it felt like we didn't do our best to experience God through it all. It made me long to do better next time. It reminded me to be more present, more available to the unexpected moments God might be wanting to share with us. It made me wonder if we missed something He was trying to show us. . .something more.

But to my surprise, this time, it was almost as if the "after party" was where God's presence chose to become very clear to me. It was tonight when I noticed it. . .God's hand all over our not so "wow" day, captured in photographs. . .

Sister's genuinely enjoying being sisters


A mom surrounded by her 3 healthy, happy daughters


Claire and Emma breaking through their fears and feeding the birds


Preteen Emma loving on her daddy


Giant smiles


A boost from big sister



Girls joyfully playing ring-around-the-rosy in the rain without a worry in the world



Basking in their country roots, running here and there, remembering their times in KY riding 4 wheelers and going out on the boat

You see, I just learned a good lesson tonight. It really was a "Wow!" day. It was a "wow" day because we were together, we were a family, we are healthy and blessed. There is joy in every moment. . .if you just take the time to look for it.

Emma said she saw God that day in the baby giraffes. Claire said she saw him in the rescued sea lion without a tail. We all agreed He was there as they ran and giggled in the rain. Yes, another "wow" God day after all. I'm glad I didn't miss it.