Today I am grateful for...

• lovely rain outside
• a chance to make "Magic Soup" :), for my dear husband, who has been fighting a cold for the last few days. :(  [recipe here]
• John 19--- what we are studying in Bible study on Wednesday.  Jesus going to the Cross.  Heart-wrenching and intense.
• homemade whole-wheat [no knead!] bread... [recipe here]
• Pity Jane (our Kitty) who lives with us.
• Brach's "Autumn Mix" candy. Tastes like the beginning of fall, and my mom buying me some on sale at CVS (which she totally did again this year.) :)
• Income.  Thank You, Father, for providing for us... through Bud's job and through the occaisional substitute-teaching jobs that I get... that we can have some money to give back to Your Kingdom, as well as paying our bills & buying groceries so we can eat.
• Sweeeet weddings where the bride and groom just loooove Jesus and are joined together in the rich covenant of marriage!  --->We went to a beautiful one yesterday.  Congrats, Luke & Shari! <3
• The gas-burning stove & oven in our apartment--- blue flames of goodness totally make sense to me in the kitchen.
• this morning's bowl of Cocoa Puffs: breakfast of champions. :)
• The beautiful voice of singer/songwriter Adele.

 And finally... today, I am grateful for Journaling. I have been keeping journals now, for... a long time!.. and I am dearly thankful for how they allow me to look back on the story of my life, and what the Lord has done in and through me... how He's changed me... the tears I cried... the giggles I had with the Lord on our dates... in places, all over this world, that He's captivated my heart, romanced me, drawn me out of the wilderness, pulled me out of the pit...... and set my feet upon a broad place where He is there, and always with me, even until the end of the age.  Thank you, Jesus :) 

"Magic Soup"

Guaranteed to cure what ails ya.
Or at least give your whole heart a lift. :)

Cook time: 2 hours (more or less)... i'm bad at watching the clock. :(
Serves: well, in my house there are just 2 of us... so we eat it for a few days... but I'm sure it could easily serve 4-6.   ***AND I'm **really bad** about following recipes to the T... partly because half the time it's a huge waste of food if I do that (with only 2 people in the house)... so, where it works for me, to just fling stuff together in the pot and eyeball-it... i am realizing that this technique isn't the most conducive to sharing recipes with others... so please forgive me that my proportions below are kind of messed up....... i have made this soup so many times that I kind of 

Ingredients:

• extra-virgin olive oil (a couple swirls around your pot)
• 1 big onion (i'm loooving whatever i find at the farmer's market these days: big, sweet walla-wallas or candy onions or sweet spanish... whatever you can get)
• 1 lb. bag of carrots, peeled and chopped (depending on how much you want, you could even throw in another pound... perhaps I might, tonight) :)
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped 
  
• 1 whole chicken (you can roast the bird yourself OR if you're short on time, grab a cheap-o $4.99 rotisserie chicken from the front of the grocery store). :)
• a bay leaf (if you have one)
  
• salt & pepper
• about 4 pieces of crisp, cooked bacon (omgoodness I have totally found a way to cheat the system on this... the last few times I've made this soup, I buy a small bag of Bacon Pieces from the salad aisle or produce aisle... NOT bacon bits but **real bacon**.  It's out there (in case you didn't know) and SOOO worth it; so legit; no one will be able to tell when you use it in a dish like this where it isn't on center-stage).
• 2-3 regular-sized cans of whole, peeled tomatoes. OR if you have fresh, you can use some peeled, whole, fresh if you like..... I'm totally doing that today because I just harvested a bunch from our garden.
• 1-2 cans of chicken broth
• 1 box of Gnocchi (find in pasta aisle or maybe international aisle) (little Italian, potato-dough dumplings)
• a big handful of basil leaves, gently washed and chiffed (cut in a chiffonade) :) 
• lots of yummy REAL Parmeggiano-Reggiano for serving on top (SO WORTH IT!)... OR you can get Grana Padano (it's cheaper, but also a hard-cheese from Italy with that nutty bite that is *perfect* for the magic soup) :)
• crusty bread for dunking & dipping (if you want!)

Directions:
If doing your own, roast your chicken (a good rule of thumb is 20 minutes per pound at 350*F)... and if you're using a store-bought rotisserie that's FINE; just set it in the fridge & let it rest in there. :)


Get a large soup pot or cast-iron Dutch oven and heat it over medium heat with the oil.  Add the carrots and onion... cook for about 5 minutes and throw your garlic in... Toss around with veggies and cook another couple minutes... until everything smells good.  Salt and pepper this well.  Add in the bacon (4 strips if you did it yourself... and just eyeball the equivalent if you bought the Bacon Pieces from the store).  Add the tomatoes (I crush each one by hand, as they fall out of the can)... and add the chicken broth.  (*And your bay leaf if you have one).  Let this whole pot-full come to a boil....... In the meantime, while you're waiting on the bubbles.... Tear the chicken meat off the chicken and discard the bones.  When the pot is bubblin', add the chicken and gnocchi.  The gnocchi will only probably need a few minutes to cook (since it's soft to begin with)... but just follow the package directions.  

If you're making this for a husband who frequently gets stuck in the O.R. with patients (this might be me...) :)...... please note: when you add in the gnocchi, it will be **ready to serve** when the gnocchi are done.  There are few things I hate more in this world like I abhor over-cooked pasta....... Gnocchi included....... Even though with the stewy-goodness of this dish, it's okay if they get a little mushy...  BUT all this to say: you can put **everything** in *except* the gnocchi and just stick that in when you're very close to wanting this to be on the table---- I prefer it this way. :)

I also don't like to add in the chicken until toward the end, too... because I find that it falls apart and gets unnecessarily mushy if it gets put in too soon.  (it's already been cooked once by roasting... why boil the heck out of it and try to cook it again?)

When everything is done with the Magic Soup------ Serve with the chiffed basil, crusty bread, & Parm (or Grana Padano).  But seriously, do this dish justice and go out and get some REAL Italian cheese (not the "parm" from Wisconsin)... it's sooooooo beyond WORTH it. :)

bullet-point prayer list

please join me in praying for dr. bud in these next few days.  he has been working LONGGGG hours (like.... 5:30am till midnight-ish)... and even though is feels so blessed to do what he loves and learn soooo much.... he still needs lifted up to the Lord.

please pray that:

•  when first seeing a patient, he'll form a differential diagnosis in his mind
• that he'll communicate, communicate, communicate EVERYTHING to upper-level residents and attending surgeons
• that he can work quickly and efficiently
• that he the Lord will help him recall & remember everything he needs to know
• that he won't make the same mistakes twice!
• that the Lord would give him steady hands in the operating room
• that the Lord would be his STRENGTH and give him sooo much ENERGY!

 thank you for joining me in prayer---- our God is FAITHFUL!

ETSY!

just made my first purchase ever on www.etsy.com!

i have always LOVED looking around on Etsy--------- a huge portal of designers, traders, sellers, and buyers of all sorts of handmade and/or vintage goods. :)

i have a list of "favorites" that i keep going back to... and finally today made the purchase of these BEAUTIFUL little coasters!

link to the AMAZING designer's page :)

aren't they the cutest things you've ever seen?

don't they melt your heart with all things LOVELY? :)

ohhh i can't wait to see mr. darcy's proposal to elizabeth bennett sitting on my coffee table!!  :)

[extreme] couponing

ever seen the shows on tv with the "extreme couponers"?  these women (and sometimes, men!) who go into stores and buy HUNDREDS of dollars worth of groceries/toiletries/cleaning supplies/you name it... and then walk away with a whopping $5.61 bill (or some ridiculously low number). 

bud and i just caught the end of one of these shows the other day. (on tlc).

my reaction: how do they do it? how can i make that happen?

bud's reaction: these people have a problem! look at their basements! and closets! they have some kind of psychiatric issue! they have a compulsive hoarding disorder!

isn't it fun to watch tv with a doctor? :)

anyway..... as a newlywed single-income couple who's "just trying to make it," i'm alllllllllll about saving money.  however, sometimes i look at these shows or read certain money-saving blogs and i think, i could spend my whole life working on this stuff... do i really have that much time?

maybe couponing is another one of the many things that fit into the "this requires a balanced approach" box.  it seems like one of those situations where you ask yourself, what is more precious... my money?... or my time?  and we all know that either answer could work, depending on the week/month/whatever.

i think, though, that i just need to continue to trust the Lord with my money.  it's fun to cut coupons, read adds, figure out where i can get the best deals, sign up for free product giveaways, etc... but ultimately, if I'm spending more time thinking about saving money than worshiping JESUS--- the giver of our money & resources........ there is a problem.

as with everything in life... i believe couponing is a heart issue.  if my heart is to save money--- great.  if that's all backed up and supported by my continuous motive to trust the Lord-------- great.  but if saving money becomes some kind of performance-based, competitive game that i play with myself..... and spend so much time thinking about it/doing it that it becomes what i think about most... worry about most... WORSHIP..... then i need the truth and grace of my sweet Shepherd to herd me back into reality.

what about you? :)

how do you help yourself/your family save money?  are you a coupon-cutter? :)  know any good/easy/low-commitment websites that have great printable coupons?

do you see your budget as something that could really take control of you--- this whole concept of saving money and budgeting as a heart issue?

feel FREE to leave a comment----- i'd loooove to hear from you!

prepare to have your heart melted.

mmkay, this vid is totes presh. (that's an abbreve [abbreviation] for "this video is totally precious." you might have to get used to the lingo in order to continue reading this blog in future posts.) :)

anyway.  i saw this on my friend taylor's blog, and it was about all i could do not to run and post it on here.  but tuesday's post was already up, and it was about praying for bud's self-image.  as sweet as this video is, it was super-important to leave that up.  cause i wanna be praying for him.  legit.

but now that it's 12:25am and i'm still up, and it's technically not tuesday anymore... i decided it was ok to have a new post.

so here you go, get ready to SMILE from ear to ear :) :) :)

as much as I LOVE adele singing to us!!... before you watch this vid, you'll have to pause the music on the playlist to the right ------>

Oh dear Jesus, let my babies be like this someday!!!! :)

praying for his self-image

My friend Lynn is seriously God's provision for me.  I am REALLY thankful for her.

We are reading through "Power of a Praying Wife" by Stormie Omartian, and this little book is such a fantastic tool for me to learn how to pray as a wife for my husband {Bud}.  :)  The author has TONS of different things that wives can pray for their husbands-- for example: "his work," "his purpose," "his emotions," etc.  Tonight, I read through the chapter entitled "his self-image."  

I sat in my living room and prayed alone for a while, but then I remembered this blog... and I just thought, "I want to include the Body of Christ in praying for my dear, wonderful husband."  So. :)  From time to time, I will post specific prayers from chapters in the book.

Thank you for joining me in praying for my dear husband!  This prayer is a combination of my own writing & Stormie's (pg. 192 in her book). :)

Lord, I pray that Bud will find his identity in You.  Help him to understand his worth through Your eyes and by Your standards.  May he recognize the unique qualities You've placed in him and be able to appreciate them.  Enable him to see himself the way You see him, Father, for I know "The LORD looks down from heaven; He sees all the children of man; from where He sits enthroned He looks out on all the inhabitants of the earth; He who fashions the hearts of them all and observes all their deeds" (Psalm 33:13-15).  Father, You see Bud; help him know that You are a God who sees... AND who responds!  Let Bud have patience to wait on You, for as his soul waits on You-- you are "our help and our shield." (Ps. 33:20).  Give my husband ears to hear Your voice above all others, gently reminding him that it will not be his own perfection that gets him through life successfully, but it is Yours.  Remind him that You are the Shepherd, and he is a sheep; that You are the vine and he is a branch; that You are our loving Father and we are your kiddos, who can run to you and trust you with everything.  Give Bud the peace and security of knowing that he is accepted, not rejected, by You.  Free him from the self-focus and self-consciousness that can imprison his mind and emotions.  Help him to see who YOU really are so he'll know who he really is.  May his true self-image be the image of CHRIST stamped upon his soul!  In Your name I pray, Jesus--- Amen.