My Great Thing!

One more trip - - - can't even tell you how excited I am that after April Jeremy won't be making monthly trips to Seattle for class. Don't get me wrong - ReTrain has been a blessing beyond belief for us as a family and for Jeremy is his training for ministry. When Jeremy received a full scholarship to ReTrain, I had no idea the impacts it would have on us as a family. It has been wonderful. It has been exciting to see him learn a lot, be challenged by the gospel, meet people who have become friends as well as mentors, and to watch the impact that ReTrain has had on how Jeremy ministers first and foremost to us as a family and then to the community around us. I love it! I would recommend it to anyone whose husband is in ministry. The rewards are HUGE - - - but sacrifice is involved. It has not been an easy 8 months. Every month Jeremy goes to Seattle - sometimes for a three day trip and sometimes for a week. It is a challenge to be a mom of two kids on my own during those times and I have a little girl who misses her daddy a great deal. It is also a sacrifice during the month as well. Jeremy has about 1,000 pages to read after each class and typically about a 15 - 20 page paper to write - so all of that on top of ministry/work and family - it is a challenge.

I have been learning over the last 8 months in some big ways more and more that God's plans are perfect, his timing is perfect, that this life isn't mine and that my trust and dependance on him must increase. I wish I could share all that has happened in the last 8 months - it is quite amazing the circumstances and situations God has taken us through. But in each one I have seen God's care, grace and provision in our lives.

It has been good for me in so many ways to learn to sacrifice over the last 8 months. We have so much and really deserve so little. I am thankful for the opportunity God gave us with Jeremy attending ReTrain - - - - - it really has "re-trained" us in gospel thinking and helped us grow as a family. I am thankful for a husband who loves Christ above all things and is passionate about growing in the knowledge and grace of Christ. Jeremy really is my Great thing that God blessed me with beyond belief! He has worked hard and done well in his classes. He has been diligent in study and done his best to not let it take time from our family. He has ministered to us as a family in a whole new way. I am so proud of him!

I am eagerly anticipating our trip together to Seattle for our 6th anniversary as well as his graduation! So he makes one more trip in April, none in May and then we go together in June - I can't wait! I am excited about school being done (I chuckle as I write that because Jeremy loves learning so somehow I think school will always be in the picture in some way - lol) and having my great thing here with me more! Thankful for ReTrain and God's work through it - - and excited to have the one I love so much back home!

Cooking Under Pressure?????

A year and a half ago, my friend and I found a kitchen essential the day after Thanksgiving - a pressure cooker! We had been told that a pressure cooker was a kitchen "must have" and of course when there was an amazing deal on one we were up at 3:00 a.m. and ready to make the purchase. We were so excited that not only did we get up at 3:00 a.m. to get the great deal but we then proceeded to wait a year and a half before even using it! That is slightly embarrassing to admit to - waiting a year and a half to use something that was a "must have."

Well, I first must tell you that I was a little on the scared side to use it - what if it blew up and exploded all over me and my kitchen?????? So my friend Christine and I (yes, she is the other happy shopper who bought one!) decided that while our husbands were away we would get together and finally try out this pressure cooker thing - you know - find out if it was a "must have." A cookbook called "Cooking Under Pressure" had been recommended to me (you can get a great deal on it at Amazon). And yes, I had gotten the cookbook a year and a half ago as well! We set out to choose a recipe. Coq Au Vin it was! We didn't even know how to pronounce it until after dinner last night.

So we began prepping the meal. Not only was it fun to cook together but it was nice to split the cost (we didn't choose the cheapest recipe in the book) and I also figured at least if it blew up we would be in this thing together! It was so much easier than we could have imagined! Browned the bacon, browned the chicken, sauteed the veggies and then made the meal all in one pot - - amazing! What was more amazing was that it was cooked in 10 minutes! The best part - nothing blew up! The meal turned out perfectly and we can't wait to make it for our husbands! So we had Coq Au Vin, mashed potatoes and steamed asparagus. Quite a meal!

So will I be using my pressure cooker again - YES!!!!!!!!! It really is a kitchen must have!!!!!!! I give credit to Cecile D. She is a kitchen genius and has had a huge impact on my planning and cooking! Often times I feel like I am cooking "under pressure" with not much time - working and wanting to maximize time with my family. The pressure cooker has changed my cooking life! The thought of making a pot roast in 40 minutes is exciting to me! Now I know how the Iron Chefs get those meals done in one hour! Last year my discovery of great crockpot meals made a huge difference in my cooking - this year - the Pressure Cooker! All of you who don't have one - it is a MUST - trust me! And now I have to admit - we did almost turn and run when we did the "Quick Pressure Release" and it made a scary sound - - - but I will be doing it again - VERY soon!