MOPS Freezer Meal Morning

Our MOPS freezer meal morning was a whole lot of work but a whole lot of fun! I spoke on the power of the family dinner table....

Holly played Rachel Ray, doing a demo meal and chatting coherently at the same time...

Lots of chicken recipe samples were tasted by the Moms...

And our tablescapes survived the admiration of many pre-schoolers! What was I thinking, using Sweethearts candy to embellish one of the tabletops at 9AM? Sorry Moms!

Now to plan out a freezer-meal prep night for those brave souls who requested one! Oh my poor kitchen!

Extreme Makeover

It was time for this boy to have a grown up bedroom, replacing the school-bus yellow walls that he wanted so badly when the Pink Victorian first became ours.

Our crew loves to tell the story of how I came to be driving in a homemade trashbag skirt after a disastrous yellow paint spill. I was working alone on the finishing touches of the room before we had even moved in. I lost my balance and a considerable flood of latex pearl finish saturated my jeans. We had nothing at the house yet for me to change into so I was forced to be resourceful and make the most of a construction grade black trash bag that I found in the basement. It seemed like something Lucy and Ethel would have done. I had no idea that the story would be part of my legacy. I half expect it to be told at my funeral!

Anyway, on his birthday, without his knowing, his sneaky family planned an Extreme Makeover Bedroom Edition!

We had to work FAST!

Upon his return home he found a gift-wrapped doorway with a "MOVE THAT BUS" poster. Hours of team effort resulted in one of our best-executed surprises!

So glad he liked the end result because there was no turning back!

Sure to be another great family story...

Not Below Freezing!

I am way too bleary-eyed to be posting much, and have hours to go before sleep will be allowed, but for a fun reason: Tomorrow morning, bright and early, my sister-in-law and I are joining forces to bring some creative meal planning and tablescape ideas to our MOPS group.

Basically we will be doing our best impersonations of the amazing Gretchen of Savorysecrets.blogspot.com, with a little Martha Stewart and Rachael Ray mixed in.

We will be demonstrating and serving samples of Gretchen's Garlic Parmesan Encrusted Chicken, Cranberry Chicken With Wild Rice, and Phyllo-Wrapped Chicken.

It was our hope to have Gretchen be our guest speaker herself, but she has something else cooking at the moment....twin babies!! A little bedrest is in order to keep those two buns in the oven for as long as they need to be.

In the meantime, check out her blog and learn how to order her wonderful self-published cookbook featuring dozens of her delicious make-ahead recipes!

More photos and recipes to follow after MOPS tomorrow. In the meantime, here is a freezer meal standard and some related linkies to inspire us to stock our freezers.



Roast Sticky Chicken


4 tsp salt

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp white pepper

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 large roasting chicken - as big as you can find

1 cup chopped onion

In a small bowl, thoroughly combine all the spices. Remove giblets from chicken, clean the cavity well and pat dry with paper towels. Rub the spice mixture into the chicken, both inside and out, making sure it is evenly distributed and down deep into the skin. Place in a resealable plastic bag, seal and freeze. Label the bag with the weight of the chicken (so you will know how long to cook it) and the date.Thaw chicken in refrigerator. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stuff cavity with onions, and place in a shallow baking pan. Roast, uncovered, for 2-2 1/2 hrs or about 20-25 min./lb.After the first hour, baste chicken occasionally with pan juices. The pan juices will start to caramelize on the bottom of pan and the chicken will turn golden brown. Let chicken rest about 10 minutes before carving.

Tips on freezing:
http://allrecipes.com/howto/freezing-foods-a-real-time-saver/detail.aspx
http://www.realfood4realpeople.com/freeze.html

from the Super Suppers website:
Q. What is the best way to defrost my entrées?The proper way to defrost any frozen food is to store it in your refrigerator for 24 - 48 hours so it can thoroughly defrost. Defrosting food by leaving it on the kitchen counter at room temperature has the advantage of speed, but it also has the disadvantage of allowing for bacteria and spoilage, so we do not recommend this method. We do not recommend defrosting in the microwave, but this is only second-best and should be done with care. Over-microwaving can cause the edges of the food to overcook.Most entrees can cook just a bit longer if they’re frozen or partially frozen. Cooking instructions are printed on the food labels.Q. How long can a thawed entrée stay in the refrigerator?Completely thawed seafood dishes should be stored in the refrigerator no longer than 24 hours before cooking. Other completely thawed entrées can be stored up to 2 days.Q. How long can an entrée stay frozen?We recommend no longer than 2 months.

Facebook group: OAMC Freezer Supper Swappers
http://www.thedinnersolution.com/ (software to help with meal planning)
http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/freezer-friendly-foods (recipes)
http://www.bulkfreezercooking.com/ (recipes)
http://onceamonthmom.com/cooking/recipes/ (recipes and tips)
http://makeaheadmeals.blogspot.com/ (recipes and tips)


Enjoy!

Perfect Pitstop

After a quick stop for sleep at the home of some dear folks in Indiana, we turned south and made our way toward Wichita, by way of Hallmark's Crowne Plaza in Kansas City.

A walk in a fountain and comfort food delivered to our table via model train were just what was needed to refresh us for the final leg of our trip that day.

Little did we know that the adventure had only begun! Read on!

So About That Road Trip...

On a sunny Sunday morning in late July, we packed 6 humans, as many duffle bags, and a number of iPods into our poor Honda Odyssey and waved goodbye to The Banker before a 14 hour drive to Indianapolis. The boy upon the shoulders was the only one genuinely smiling for the camera...he just knew that he was going to ride a horse when we got to New Mexico, and that was enough for him!
It was already clear that this trip would be a step of faith. We only knew that we would have the honor to serve people whose experience and heritage was very different from our own.
A couple of things for sure; the unexpected was a certainty, and whatever we had forgotten to pack could definitely be found at one of the dozens of Walmarts we would pass along the way. Thank you Lord for Walmart.

Meanwhile...

Oh Dear. What a lot has changed since that last fateful post. That is the reason for the great lapse in blogging. There was no shortage of pictures and stories to share, just my inability to process it all into incremental posts.
I had expected that our time out West might be challenging, but little did I know that it would be so defining; a foreshadowing of so many alterations in my thinking about transparency, commitment, and the definition of ministry itself. (Disclaimer: The Banker and I, as well as our brood, are intact and thriving. Don't mistake these vague terms for anything else that could be written between the lines, please.)
So enough with the procrastination. The pictures and stories will make their way here by and by.
Patience.
The tail end of the book of John, chapter 21 beckoned to me as I examined the ways in which Jesus Himself responded to conflict. Poor Peter was so prone to conflict and I love what Jesus did with that confounded man in this instance. It would seem that this was the first time that the two had a one-on-one since Peter's most glaring offense of a triple denial of his acquaintance with the Lord just before His crucifixion. I am struck that the Offended does not declare the offense. He does not demand to be recognized. He does not lay down terms of reinstatement. Nor does He seem to resent Peter's companions for associating with him.
Instead He makes them breakfast.
A little background.
Peter had it in his head to go fishing. His four buddies seem to have invited themselves to go along. After fishing all night long, they had not one fish to show for their efforts.
It was then, after their frustration and disappointment, that Jesus intervened. He called to them from the shore, "Friends, haven't you any fish?". I like that He had them speak their circumstance to Him. "No", they answered.
He tells them to cast their nets over to the other side of the boat and they will find fish. Were they tempted to question the unrecognized Lord's reasoning? To shift all of the weight of their efforts must have seemed useless.
But what other options did they have?
Of course they were soon struggling to haul in 153 large fish, and without the help of impetuous Peter who lept overboard when he finally got that it was Jesus calling to them.
Here I have to pause and wonder why Peter was so eager to get to the One he had terribly offended. I can only conclude that Jesus had demonstrated to Peter that He was an approachable and tender shepherd.
When he landed on shore ahead of the others, Peter found not only an understanding old friend, but a hot breakfast.
This just slays me. They found a fire of burning coals with fish on it and some bread. He hadn't just picked up bagels and coffee on His way to intercept Peter.
Burning coals.
How long might He have coaxed a fire into full flame just to produce glowing coals on which to bake bread for His traitorous friend?
Did He knead the dough Himself with His nail-scarred hands?
Did any of them see that even the fish which they had contributed to the meal were of His Providence?
And then He tends to Peter. No citation of the offense. Peter was not disqualified. Just a question, repeated three times to reveal Peter's own heart to him.
"Do you love me?". And the firm instructions. "Feed my lambs... Take care of my sheep.... Feed my sheep....follow me."
Those were his marching orders. Get back to work. No time to be lost.
And my heart smiles to know that even after all of this, faulty Peter still had the gall to ask the Lord questions about somebody else's business.
Patience.
The end of the story is there for all to read.
So thankful that at the end of all of this world, we shall find ourselves together once again.
Patience.

Westward Ho!

Most of us are leaving within 40 minutes for a loooooooooong drive to the Navajo reservation in New Mexico where we will have a Vacation Bible School for the children and help with service projects along with our youth group! Prayer for this great adventure would be so appreciated! Stay tuned for glimpses of our journey....

Duggar Papparazzi

My friend Patty, who could have a reality show of her own, introduced us to another one of my she-roes, Michelle Duggar and some of her children. Patty and her husband have many many children, some they've birthed and some they have adopted. Our I. once mistook them for the Duggars because their family is so large. In church this morning I had to shush him and stop him from staring at the family sitting behind Patty's. Again he said it was the Duggars. I impatiently chided him that not every large family is the Duggars and to pay attention to the sermon. Ooops. It really was the Duggars.

I thanked Michelle for her encouraging example as a mom and my friend Cynthia mentioned that Michelle's cheerful countenance never seems to change, regardless of the situation. Now THAT is worth emulating. I think I'll try it tomorrow and see if I can make it throught the morning cheerfully.

All A-Twitter

The other night at the Sanctus Real concert I was telling a couple of young friends who were so impressed with my backstage-accessing abilities that the photo would appear on my really lame blog as soon as I got a minute to upload it. It shocks some people of that generation that I have no desire to have a Facebook or get on Twitter. A few have even taken it as a personal challenge to bring me into those realities and it may just be a matter of time before they succeed.
Those young'uns really have no idea how unworthy of journaling much of my daily routine is. Here is a sample of the goings-on thus far this morning:

Sometime before 7AM:
Scratch The Banker's back
- reach for my glasses
-stumble to the laundry and toss a load in
-go to the third floor to search for The Banker's t-shirts which must have been delivered with someone else's laundry to the wrong room
- go down to the kitchen to set up tea water
-carry stuff downstairs on the way
-let Sadie the dog outside
-open the dishwasher to empty it
- realize that the dishwasher failed to run in the night and reset it
-let Sadie back in
-carry stuff on stairs up
- talk to the Banker about who should/should not go to camp this summer
-carry stuff on stairs down
-take out some breakfast
- visit with our paint guy for a few minutes and threaten to cry if some of the Pink Victorian's aging coat is not properly cared for
- the threat works and he will bring his guy around to discuss the matter
- notice the clogged powder room toilet
-stop on the way up to get the plunger to give an empassioned lecture on bicycle helmet safety to the 14 year old
- he concedes
-carry stuff upstairs
-get plunger
- carry stuff downstairs
-plunge toilet
-who DID this???
- wake up more people with sweet voice and back-scratching
- no response
- dire warnings to GET UP!!
- get my salad and iced tea and go to desk
- mental note to vaccuum soon
- quick prayer
- pullout the bills
- bring up the emails
-girlfriend engaged!!!
-Praise Be!
- determine not to get overwhelmed by all there is to get done
- Read the book of Judges chapter 5
- a couple of my favorite Bible chicks there
- Deborah and Jael
- gutsy mamas for God-
-Deborah was looking out for willing volunteers- Preach it Girl!
-Jael did the messy but necessary thing that only she could/would do
-mental note to disinfect the plunger
- Poor Sisera's mama
- Expecting great things of her boy-
-"March on my soul, be strong!"
- pray some more
- snuggle the half awake 4 year old who wields the guilts by asking "Remember Mommy when I was 3 and you made me pancakes EVERYDAY?"
- low blow
- pray some more
- off to find the pancake mix
- 8:18 AM.

Really Abby, does this have Twit potential?
Enjoy your wonderful beautiful everyday life! Wouldn't trade mine.