Our Story {Part 5} MOVING

-MOVING-

If you missed parts 1-4 you can find them here

I remember when my parents told me that we were moving and just sitting there thinking that I must be in some horrible nightmare and surely I would wake up soon.  But it wasn't a nightmare...it was real.  My world was crashing down around me and I could do nothing about it.  My Dad's job was three hours away from our house and he was staying in a little apartment during the week and was only home on the weekends.  It was so exhausting for him and my mom, that they felt it was best for our family to move closer to his job. 

 I was a missionary kid growing up and had spent years and years thinking that I would one day be moving away to Argentina and not coming back until I was 18.  I hated the thought of leaving all of my friends for that long.  But, after one year of language school in Mexico, my parents made the very difficult decision to come off the mission field due to some things that were happening in our family.  They believed it was the best thing for us not to be missionaries any longer.  So, when we came home when I was 11, I thought that we would be in my home town forever.  Now, once again, I felt like my whole world was being thrown upside down and it was pretty much unbearable. 

I went to school and told Nathan.  We both just sat there and looked at each other in silence.  Neither of us really knew what to say.  I just felt like my heart was being torn out of my body and I knew that nobody would understand the pain I was feeling.  No one believed that two 13 year olds could care so much for each other. 

My parents decided to pull my brother Matt and me out of school a few weeks before we moved.  I remember being so angry with them for doing that.  It didn't make any sense to me why they wouldn't let me spend the last four weeks before we moved at the school I loved so much, but that was what they thought best and that is what happened.  They did let us go to all the basketball games and such that were held at the school before we moved.  I know I talked to Nathan on the phone a few times in those few weeks and saw him a few times at games and an ODACS competition, but most of our conversations are a blur to me.  We spent most of our time at the games just trying to forget that I was leaving in a few weeks.  We tried to laugh and talk like everything was normal.  

*I'll share something very personal...I debated for a long time on whether to share this part or not but it's kind of a big part of our story because it's so meaningful to me.  We had our first kiss before I moved.  And while I won't go into any of the specifics because again...it is very personal, having Nathan be my first kiss was always so incredibly special to me.  I know we were young...way too young to be kissing, and I hope that none of my children are kissing at such a young age...but this is how our story went and it's very special to me. 

Two nights before my family moved, there was a basketball game and my Dad had my brother take me so that I could see Nathan one last time and tell him goodbye.  That night went by so fast.  It felt like I blinked and it was all over.  I can not tell you one single thing we talked about, but I can remember feeling like I was dying inside.  At the end of the night, Nathan walked with me and my brother out to our van.  We hugged so tightly and I cried so hard.  I felt like my heart was going to burst right out of my chest.  He opened the door for me and we said our final goodbye.  As we drove away I remember holding my hand up against the window (it was probably very dramatic, but then again 13 year old girls are known to be so! :) 

I didn't say anything the whole way home.  I just cried.  Then two days later the moving truck came, we loaded everything up, and we left...

To be continued...

Sugar Free & Grain Free Peach Cobbler

I love peaches.  I love them plain, in ice-cream, in oatmeal...pretty much peaches are amazing.  And since peaches have been on sale for $.99 a pound at Kroger the past few weeks, we've been eating a lot of them.  Alanna calls them "bapples" because apparently every fruit is an apple or "bapple" as she calls them.  Liam has no problem eating 1 or 2 for a snack within a few minutes.  Ruy has been a little on the picky side about them but finally came around tonight when we ate them with dinner and said they were delicious.  

Tomorrow morning we are heading out early to hang out with some friends at the zoo.  Morning time  is busy enough without us trying to be out the door by 9:15, so I decided to make our breakfast for in the morning tonight.  It makes it SO much easier when I don't have to get up and cook anything and then wash all of the dishes I had to bake in.  We don't eat cereal, pop-tarts, Bisquick, etc. so all of our breakfasts are made from scratch.  It can make mornings more challenging but I just really really really try to always plan ahead and know what will be eating the next morning.  Menu planning is crucial for me.  I always double or triple batches when I make pancakes, waffles, or muffins so that I can easily just grab some out of the freezer and heat them up in the microwave for a quick, easy, healthy breakfast.  

So since we are heading out early, I went on Pinterest looking for a yummy breakfast for us tomorrow.  I had planned on making oatmeal but really wanted to try something new.  And I've been craving Peach Cobbler like crazy.  It's one of my favorites but all the flour and sugar in it bothers me so bad.  I came across this recipe and decided to give it a try.  I read all of the comments and decided to make a few changes based on what others had said, what ingredients I had, and what I thought would work best for our family.  

Here are the changes I made:

The original ingredients & my changes are highlighted.

• 2 cups peaches; peeled, pitted and sliced (I used 5 cups of peaches which was 8 whole peaches)
• ¼ cup filtered water (I used 3/4 cup of water)
• 4 tablespoons butter  or coconut oil (I used butter)
• ¾ cup almond flour  (I used 3/4 cup of homemade almond flour & 1/4 cup golden flax-seed)
• 1 egg
• ¾ cup full-fat coconut milk or heavy cream (I used heavy cream)
• ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons raw honey  (I used 2 tablespoons of the Trim Healthy Mama Sweet Blend)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• cinnamon and nutmeg, for topping (I used cinnamon and a little apple pie spice)
• full-fat coconut milk, heavy cream or ice cream for topping

I followed the instructions exactly as she did, except I cooked mine in an 11x14 dish for 45 minutes.  

 Before going into the oven. 

When it came out of the oven, the "crust" was still a little soft but I tried it with a little bit of low carb vanilla ice cream (I eat this vary rarely since I don't like to eat Splenda) and it tastes so delicious!  I'm thinking that the "crust" will harden up while it sits in the frig tonight, but even if it doesn't, it's very good as it is.  I'm so happy to have found a peach cobbler recipe that I can eat and give to my kids to eat, totally guilt free! 

*Update:  We had this for breakfast this morning (6-24-15) after it had sat in the frig all night.  The "crust" did harden up more like I thought it would and all three of my kids loved it!  Liam especially loved it and has literally asked me to make it again all.day.long.  We ate the whole pan for breakfast but since it actually wasn't very expensive to make, I'm sure this will be a common breakfast/dessert in our family during the Summer when peaches are on sale :) 

Father's Day

Nathan got home from his missions trip to Mexico at 3:15AM Sunday morning.  I was having a really hard time sleeping while waiting for him to get home.  It was storming really bad and I knew he would be so tired so I was having a hard time relaxing and sleeping.  I was awake when he got home, and Nathan and I didn't get to bed after he got home until 4AM.  I got up at 7AM and then Alanna and Liam jumped on Nathan at 8:30AM.  They were SO happy to have him home.  We went to church and then met up with Nathan's parents for lunch.  

{Since several people asked:} 

Alanna's dress/ Baby Gap (bought at a consignment store)

Alanna's shoes/ Target...can be bought here

My Dress/ Shift Dress from Target...can be bought here

Nathan's parents are so sweet and so good with the kids.  We love spending time with them and are so thankful they are only 1.5 hours from us.  We can easily meet up half way on a short notice (like Sunday) and spend a few fun hours together.  

I'm so thankful that we had Nathan home for Father's Day this year, as he is usually working at the Fire Station on Father's Day.  It was a very nice day and I felt very blessed.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup & Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread

I had plans of making a crock pot broccoli cheddar soup for dinner tonight but I got very distracted by all the cleaning I was doing this morning and then went out to run some errands and then completely forgot about putting the food in the crock pot before I left.  At least I didn't forget to start the bread machine this morning for the whole wheat bread I wanted to make for the kids.  Well, 3:30pm came around and I figured I'd better find a recipe for some soup before Alanna woke up and was starving, crying, clingy and making it very hard to get any cooking done.  

I went on Pinterest (my favorite) and found a great basic recipe.  It was almost completely on plan with Trim Healthy Mama which was even better.  I just made a few changes and there it was... a delicious THM Broccoli Cheddar Soup.  If you don't know what Trim Healthy Mama is I strongly encourage you to check out there website here and also this awesome review here.  

So here it is {THM - S} Broccoli Cheddar Soup 

Ingredients

1. 1 Cup Frozen or Fresh Chopped Onions
2. 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
3. 1 (12-14oz) Package Frozen Steamable Broccoli
4. 1 teaspoon Parsley (optional)
5. 1 teaspoons Garlic Powder
6. 1/4 teaspoon Ground Pepper
7. 3 Cups Chicken Broth
8. 1 Cup Almond Milk (If you don't follow THM, you can use milk)
9. 1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream (optional but I loved how creamy it made the soup)
10. 3 Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
11. 1 teaspoon Glucomannan (This is for thickening.  If you don't follow THM just use corn starch)

Instructions

1. Heat oil in a 3.5 quart pot over medium/high heat. Add onions and saute for 3 minutes. Stir in parsley, garlic powder and pepper. Steam broccoli in microwave according to package instructions. Add broccoli and chicken broth.Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium low.
2. In a large bowl, toss shredded cheese with glucommannan until evenly coated. Set aside.
3.  Mash, puree or leave broccoli chunky. (I left mine chunky) Stir in milk and cheese. Cook for at least 10 minutes while stirring frequently. (I cooked mine on medium/low for about 30 minutes just to let it warm up and for the seasonings to set in some) Salt and pepper to taste.
4. Serve in a bowl or mug.  

*I served this with homemade whole wheat bread.  This bread is not on plan with THM but I was out of my sprouted whole wheat flour so I ate the bread that I am now making for my kids.  And while not "on plan" it's still very healthy so I didn't feel bad for having one slice.

My kids LOVED this soup.  My daughter (19 months) had two bowls of it.  This is definitely a new family favorite that I'll be making a lot.  

You can find the recipe I used for the Whole Wheat Bread here.   I followed her directions exactly and it tasted so good.  My kids all loved it.  I am not buying store bought bread for my kids any more so this is the recipe I plan on using for their weekly bread.  I will probably have to make 1-2 loaves of this a week for them.  

I make a Sprouted Whole Wheat Bread for my husband and I since it is THM approved.  The flour is way more expensive than regular whole wheat flour and since my kids don't have to have the sprouted whole wheat flour, I'm going to be making the other kind of bread for them, and continue to make this recipe for my husband and me.  You can find the recipe for the Sprouted Whole Wheat Flour here.  This bread is an {E} if you are following THM.  I buy the flour off of Amazon.  They run sales on this flour so I try to buy it when it goes on sale for $10-$14 a bag. 

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did!!! 

22 Weeks

June 17, 2015

Weeks pregnant: 22
Weight gained: 26 pounds
 Gender:  It's a BOY!!! We're so excited about adding another sweet snuggly little boy to our family.
Maternity clothes:  I've been finding lots of great dresses at Target this Summer.  They aren't maternity but they are fitting me great and are so comfortable. 
Sleep:  Sleeping pretty good right now.
Best moment in the past two weeks:  Finding out the gender of the baby and a surprise visit from my sister Selina!  I wasn't expecting to see her again until possibly April of next year so when she called to say she was in town for a few days, I was so happy.  We got to spend an entire day together with all our kids.  She has eight kids and our kids are all like best friends :)
Worst moment in the past two weeks:  Missing my husband pretty bad.  He's been in Mexico on a missions trip since last Friday.  And while I'm SO happy he got to go share Jesus with the Mexican people, I am really really missing him right now. 
Miss anything:  Being able to function in the Summer heat.  It's been close to 100 degrees almost every day the past week and I'm not going to lie.... I'm not handling it very well.  I get exhausted and dizzy within a few minutes of being outside.  So unless I'm near some water, I'd rather just be inside in the AC. 
Movement:  Yes, all the time now.  He especially likes to start moving around 10pm every night. 
Cravings:  No cravings right now. 
 Queasy or sick:  I've been getting very dizzy from the heat.  These almost 100 degree days are killing me, especially when I have to take all the kids grocery shopping with me.  I'm pretty much done for the rest of the day after a grocery shopping trip.
Looking forward to:  Nathan coming home on Sunday!!!

Ruy's Last Baseball Game & Team Party

Ruy had his last baseball game of the season last week.  They lost the game, but they played so hard and I was so proud of Ruy.  Besides all the rain we had, it was a really great season.  

Sunday we had church...

.... then went home for a short while for Alanna to get a nap before Ruy's team party.  And to eat a few popsicles. 

Then it was time for the team party!  Ruy's coach had the team party at his house.  Normally, we always go to Cici's but he wanted to have a cookout at his house.  It was the best team party we've ever had.  They had a big back yard with a play house, a trampoline, a huge sandbox, and two water-slides.  All three of my kids had so much fun.  I had planned on leaving around 4:30pm but ended up not leaving till after 5:30pm and was the last one to leave!  I really appreciated the coach and his wife having everyone over though because usually it's kind of stressful trying to keep my little ones occupied for that long of a time at Cici's but at the coach's house...they all three were almost in tears when it was time to go :) 

They were all worn out after such a fun day and all crashed pretty hard.  I was pretty exhausted myself, but in a good way.  It was a great way to end the weekend.  I hope everyone else had a great weekend as well! 

Nathan's Mission Trip To Mexico

My husband some years ago, felt God calling him to short term missions trips.  He's been to Brazil four times, Bosnia, Haiti, China, and now he left last night for Mexico. He'll be gone until Sunday, Father's Day and I will miss him greatly.  But I am so excited for the work he will be a part of in Mexico this week.  

We spent yesterday helping him pack and playing around the house.  

 

Then we went to Brusters for ice-cream before he headed to meet up with the team to go to the airport. 

This morning Alanna walked around looking everywhere for "Daddy".  She looked in our bed, in our shower, out the front door.  She loves her Daddy and hates it when he is gone. 

Every time Nathan goes on a missions trips, he leaves letters for us.  The boys love it.  They were pretty excited to open his letters to us this morning.  The first letter was hidden on our mantel.  Liam got to open the first envelope today.  

 Nathan also wrote a story for the kids this time.  Each day, he put a little more of the story in each envelope.  Ruy really loved that part.  I think it's so special that he does this for them.  I've saved all the letters he's written on his missions trips and I know years from now, the kids will love looking back at them.  

I took the kids to the Children's Museum today, but we went to the largest one in our area per Ruy's request.  The kids all had a great time. Ruy was off running around having too much fun for me to get any pictures of him.   Liam spent a good majority of the time playing with this wheelbarrow. 

We were out most of the day so the kids and myself were very exhausted by the time we got home.  We have another busy day tomorrow but it's going to be fun.  

I hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday!!!