Marriage - as God designed it

Male and Female. 

There is no question they are different. Physically and emotional, God has made each sex uniquely opposites. Your gender has been given to you by God and, I believe, by no accident but for a divine purpose on this earth. And in our humanness, we can become upset by the opposite-ness of the opposite sex. It can drive us crazy trying to figure out just why exactly they (the opposite sex) do what they do. But we were made opposites so that we may become ONE when we are married. This is how God designed it.  And still, we fight against the maleness and femaleness that God has given to us. 

Women - Stop! 

Stop trying to do everyone's job. Do you think you will lose your independence and voice if you become a submissive wife as God said to be? Do you desire to follow the plan God made for your marriage? We need to let go of the reigns and give them to our husbands so they can lead the family, as God designed them to. We are not doing the job as the wife and mother that God gave us to do if we are trying to control the reigns which God did not give us to control. This doesn't mean that you lose your independence, opinion or voice and it doesn't mean you are to be walked all over or abused either. To be the head of the house and the family, they (husbands, fathers) are ultimately responsible to God for all God gave them. That is as God designed it for them. God called on Adam, not Eve, when they were in the garden and had eaten the fruit they were told not to. Adam was responsible for what his family did.

Men - Step up! 

God made you to be the head of your family and the example of Christs love to them. Take the reigns but be humble enough to ask for help from your wife, your helper. 

The man God gave to me and I, his helper in this life.

God, 

I pray that we would reflect you and your love by being what you designed us to be and not fighting it or being scared of it. I pray that we would be able to speak openly to our spouse about where we could improve in our own roles in our marriages. I pray we would listen intently and react with truth AND grace. I lift up all marriages to you and pray that you would heal the wounded and broken ones and that they might all be centered on you and bring you glory. In Jesus' name, Amen!

California Turkey Burgers

This is one of my favorite burger recipes. Probably because it has cilantro in it but also because it is a light burger, perfect for a summer evening barbecue. Add some rosemary & garlic fries, a bowl of fresh fruit or a light salad as a side dish. Try it out and let me know what you think. I think you will like it! Recipe from the Favorite Brand Name Grilling cookbook.











1 pound ground turkey
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
1/3 cup plain dry bread crumbs
3 tbsp's yellow mustard
1 egg, beaten
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 red or yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into rings
Monterey Jack cheese slices
4 hamburger buns

Love the smell of fresh cut cilantro! These are going to be good!

Combine turkey, cilantro, bread crumbs, mustard, egg, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Shape into 4 patties, pressing firmly. Place patties on oiled grid. Grill over medium/high heat about 15 minutes, until no longer pink in the center. Top with cheese during last few minutes of grilling. Grill bell pepper rings 2 minutes. To serve, place burgers on buns and top with pepper rings. We like ours with some olive oil mayo. 

Yummy! Enjoy!

Birthday Card Collage Posters

As I was cleaning the girls room a while back, I noticed a large pile of cards tucked away in a basket. Cards given to her at birth and birthdays that I didn't want to toss. Letting them pile up, however, was no good either. 


Soooo......... 

I went to the dollar store and bought two white poster boards. When I got back home, I sat down with the white boards, some glue and all those cards and got to work. I didn't use all of the cards; some I cut down and some I toss because they were duplicates. I overlaid  many of them to get in as many as I could. I also glued them shut so they weren't all flying open when I hung it.

When they were finished and dry, I clipped them up on the kids' Dignitet curtain wires that we bought from Ikea. They are perfect for displaying the kids' artwork. (And mommy's in this case!) What I really love about this project is that we can all enjoy the cards instead of having them hidden away and they add wonderful color and joy to the kids' rooms.  
  

And, bonus, none of the cards have come unglued and they have been hanging up for about six months. What do you think about this project? What have you done with your kids' cards from over the years?

Anticipating Spring

 The sun has been peaking out from behind the clouds more and more lately. 

It has me anticipating Spring's arrival and the garden that I will be planting soon.  

As I plan out my planting calendar, I am remembering last years great harvest. 

Lettuce, basil, carrots, radishes, peas, bush beans, basil, mint, strawberries, and tomatoes. 

So many wonderful tomatoes. 

This year I plan to add a few things too. Kale, cilantro, parsley, spinach, cucumbers, bell peppers, and onions. 

So I wonder.......

Do you plant a garden? 

What are you anticipating with Spring's coming? 

Bulk Spices meet Mini Containers

Yesterday, as I ran my errands, I went to my favorite local health food store, Chuck's Produce, and they had their bulk spices on sale for 30% off. I jumped at the opportunity and stocked up on a few spices that I am out off. I love getting my spices this way because most spices I don't use up a whole bottle worth before the suggested throw out time. This Food Network article states pre-ground spices should be replaced about every six months, which is what I try to stick to. 

Spices hand bagged from the bulk section of my local grocery store. 

 
 My next stop was the dollar store. I was looking for party supplies when I spotted this package of ten mini storage containers. Light bulb moment! Before, I have kept my spices in the bags I bought them in but they lose their flavor faster because the bags are not air tight. The spices smell up my cupboard which is also no good but these.... These are perfect! Small, clear, and stackable so they don't take up too much room. 

Showing their size compared to a normal size spice bottle.

First step before adding the spices, hand wash and dry all the containers. Then, I transferred all the spices from the bags to the containers. I hand wrote the labels and taped them to the front as I went along. (If I only had a label gun, the things I could do!) I put them in the cupboard and I am so happy how little of space they take and how perfectly easy they are to read and find, I think I will be switching most of my spices to these wonderful little containers. Oh, the possibilities!   

So, what was going to be just another day of errands, turned into a wonderfully organized spice cabinet update. I can't wait to get to cooking something spice-tacular! I wonder what else I could organize with these great little containers.....

Random Photo: The Man on the Balcony

                                                                                

As my mom and I wandered the streets of Montmartre in a Sunday afternoon in Paris, I saw this man on a balcony talking on the phone. It was a beautiful and intriguing sight to me. I secretly snapped a photo of this mysterious and wonderful scene. Who is he talking to? What are they talking about? Some exciting adventure they are going on....... Making dinner plans with his loved one....... Offering advice to a hurting friend...... or, and the more probable one of all, Mundane, everyday business. Whatever the conversation subject, I love photos like this that get the imagination going. One click saved this moment in time that will forever make me wonder, who is this mysterious man on the balcony and what was he conversing about? 

Praying for the Lead

What is on my mind today? Leadership. 

Define what a leader is? ~ A leader is a person who rules, guides, or inspires others; head. 

whoa 

That is a BIG job, an important job. 

And if someone is going to lead my life direction, I want to make sure I've got the right person on the job. Really, there is only one person for that job in my life. Jesus Christ. He is the head of this house. He is who rules over this persons life. He guides it and is what inspires me. Jesus said to his disciples, "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. ²⁵ For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. ²⁶ What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?²⁷ For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done." (Matthew 16:24-27)

My life is his. My soul is his. And on a day like today, when the 'leader of the free world' is sworn into office, I am going to pray that our leader chooses God's will for his life. I am going to pray that our leader chooses Jesus Christ to guide him and to be the head of his house. 

Today, I am praying about leadership. What are you praying about today?