Foodies

         We consider ourselves to be "Foodies." The definition of a foodie is as following, "a person keenly interested in food, especially in eating or cooking." (taken from dictionary.com) Now according to this definition I think most of us would classify as a foodie as I'm not sure what else you would enjoy doing with food besides cooking it and eating it. I will elaborate on this definition and say that Tim and I have acquired the joyful hobby of cooking together. It is something that we look forward to despite having to work on our over-eagerness and control issues while in a tiny kitchen together! Sometimes the financial budget does not always allow for the most extravagant creations, but food is fun. One of our new found favorites that we just recently made for our parents is stuffed bell peppers. It can be made as the main event in your meal or as a tasty side.

This beautiful green bell pepper happened to be a side dish to barbecued tri-tip! We stuffed the bell peppers with a mixture of  couscous (cooked before hand), mozzarella cheese, chopped bell-peppers and onions and covered the top with a layer of mozzarella cheese. Pop it in the oven at 375-400 degrees for about 20 minutes or until the top is beautifully browned. Enjoy!

This next dish was our first attempt at stuffed bell peppers and they were our main entree. We used yellow and orange bell peppers, halved them and set aside. In this mixture we combined shredded chicken (cooked), couscous, chopped bell peppers, onions, and mushrooms, and shredded cheeses. I believe we used a mixture of cheddar and mozzarella cheese, but you can use whatever kind suits your taste buds! Again pop them in the oven to bake until they are heated through and the cheese is golden brown.
I hope you enjoy these as much as we do!

Being Crucified

        I recently had the pleasure of visiting my sister down in Palm Springs. The only unpleasant thing about traveling there would be the lovely, small plane that it takes to get there and back! That combined with the storms hitting California and I was no longer in my comfort zone. For some odd reason, with age, flying has become less of an adventure and more of a risky maneuver for me.....ah, and there it is unveiled....yet another trust issue God gets to work on. I probably should fly more often as I don't think I have ever prayed so consistently and diligently about anything and everything for 2 straight hours!
The day approached for me to fly home and of course it was quite the blustery day. So once again I got to pass another test of trusting in God when my nature seems to shout "run away or die!" The flight was rather bumpy for the entire two hours and several times my stomach was jumping all over the place. I had a handful of moments where I performed what I am going to call the 'mom reflex' - something is alerting (in this case, a tiny plane bouncing around in thunderhead clouds) and instantly your hands fly out to the side of wherever you are and holds on or braces for dear life! But God is SO good and He decided to bless me while I was on this 2 hour journey. Beside me, He sat a fellow believer and Jesus-lover with which I talked to from before take-off and after landing. Not only was this a welcomed distraction from the turbulence but we opened up and shared our lives with each other, encouraged one another, and stated that we would lift each other's needs up to the Lord. She said something to me that I think was beautiful and worth sharing with you. As she was talking to me about her four children, her husband, and her faith that encompassed them all, she made the following comment: "I didn't realize how human I was until I started having kids." Through all the challenges she faced of raising her kids she saw areas of her flesh coming out that she didn't know existed. She now counts it as a blessing as she said her kids are constantly crucifying her flesh and bringing her to her knees.  I can relate to what she is saying.  I myself have thought about how after I got married I saw different ways my flesh could roar its ugly head.  Sometimes I was shocked with just how selfish I was or the thoughts and words that would fly through me and sometimes out of me! These are things that I have identified as things that needing to be put to death! Isn't the purpose of trials and tribulations in our life just that?? To be refined, to be purified so that we can be more Christ-like? Our flesh/sin must be crucified on that cross so that we can be sanctified for His glory.
             I hope this serves as encouragement to you. For you moms out there who are exhausted  and feel you are at the end of your rope or who lost your control today: Allow your flesh to be crucified and HE will supply you with all you need while molding you to be more like Him. Being crucified will be painful, but to be further refined for Him is worth it.

Verse of the Moment

"Because of your partnership in the gospel
from the first day until now, being confident of this,
that He who began a good work in you
will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
Philippians 1:5-6