this moment

Inspired by Soulemama:

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

this moment

Inspired by Soulemama:

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

this moment

Inspired by Soulemama:

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. 

p.s. notice the box of panda puffs?  my daughters believe the recycling bin is their own personal toy box ;)

For Every Meal!

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have discovered the most satisfying veggie burger, ever.  

EVER.  

they taste much better than they look, I promise

This veggie burger is dairy free, soy free AND gluten free.  Do you know how difficult it is to find recipes like that?  We are just figuring this little fact out.  Due to some hidden allergy symptoms, we took dairy out of Z's diet around Thanksgiving.  We took soy out around that time too.  We just recently removed gluten as well.  The dairy and soy were so much easier to eliminate than gluten!  But we are navigating through all the information, little by little.  Thankfully, we have some great friends that are dairy/soy/gluten free and have been such a wonderful resource through all this allergy stuff.  

Anyways.

These burgers took about 2 hours for me to make.  Yup, 2 hours.  I really doubt it would take you that long, though.  The recipe says it takes about 60 minutes.  I'm pretty sure that having an almost 18 month old strapped to my back added an extra 30 minutes.  Especially since she has a new found love of pulling my hair and scratching my ears.  Oh, and the 4 year old asking me questions like "Mom, why is the moon made out of brown, stinky cheese?" probably added another 30 minutes.  So, if you don't have an 18 month old and a 4 year old I'm sure these would be a breeze to put together ;)

The 2 hours was worth it though.  Up until now, I have had trouble finding a veggie burger recipe that I would want to make again.  The end result didn't justify all the prep and work involved. Plus, there are some pretty good pre-packaged options.  It just wasn't worth it to make them from scratch.  But this one, oh, this burger.  Friends, it's full of flavor and not at all dry.  It stayed together really well and tasted amazing between two slices of Udi's whole grain bread with some organic ketchup and mustard.  

The thing that sealed the deal for me was when my aforementioned 4 year old declared, "Mom, this is really yummo!  You should make these burgers for every meal!".  The only other time she has uttered these words was when I made this winner. Now, this is the same 4 year old who we have to spend 45 minutes convincing to take 4 bites of her supper each and every night.  The same 4 year old who refuses to try anything new.  She even ate the burger completely on its own, no bread!  It's really that good.  

So while I may not be making this for every meal, it will show up on our dinner table again.  

this...

...is what I needed to read today.

Lent is not a pass/fail endeavor – it’s not a test, but rather a mystical means of healing and enlightenment I’d be very, very foolish not to take advantage of. The work of fasting won’t make God love me more - I’m very thankful to already, no matter what I do or don’t do, be loved by Him unconditionally. On my prayerful days, my forgetful days, my relapse days, my exhausted days, He is forgiving and full of grace. It will however affect the quality and fruitfulness of my day-to-day life here on earth. Waking up to a soul that’s been tended to feels tranquil and meaningful. I’m more generous, hospitable, courageous, patient, when I’m a good and faithful steward of my spiritual blessings.

                                                                                            --Molly Sabourin

(read the rest of the post here or listen to the podcast here)

this moment

Inspired by Soulemama:

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.