What a great idea.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jane-fonda/community-based-doulas-a_b_226678.html

Hungry? Try this…

A while ago, I decided that I didn’t like store brand salsa. While on a shopping trip I looked at the ingredients and found a comaprable recipe that I thought would be easy enough to make. Sure enough, after one try our family was hooked. I make this salsa every weekend now, and eat it with chips, as toppings for burritos, and as an addition to morning scrambled eggs and cheese. The best part is of making this salsa is knowing that all the ingredients are fresh, and there are no preservatives or additives to ruin the taste.

It really is very easy to prepare; you just need about an hour to cut up all the veggies.

Here is what you need to start:                                                                 Ingredients:

8 tomatoes                           2 limes

4 tomatillos                         cilantro

1 red chile pepper                salt

1 jalapeno pepper                crushed red chile peppers

1/2 red pepper

1/2 yellow pepper (not pictured)

1 red onion

Step one is obviously washing all your veggies really well before chopping them. The tomatoes are self explanatory and they take the largest chunk of time. However, not every one may be familiar with tomatillos. They have a flaky outer layer, similar to an onion. Simply peel the flaky outer layer off, and wash the veggie inside. When purchasing, look for one whose flaky skin is loose. After it is peeled and washed, chop as you would a tomato.

Also, for those of you not familiar with chopping chile and jalapeno peppers: the seeds and juice are can sting your skin, especially if you have any little cuts on your hands. Use caution, and don’t let the seeds get under your nails. Trust me, it’s not fun! I usually wash my hands really well when I am finished with the peppers, as well as the cutting board.

For those of you who like the spicy side of life in your food, feel free to add more than one jalapeno pepper.

Continue chopping your veggies, and when you have finished, give them a good stir. Add a little salt (around 2 teaspoons) and some crushed red chile peppers (to taste).

For the last step, slice two limes and squeeze the juice over your chopped veggies. Stir from time to time while juicing for best flavor.

Once you are done juicing, give the salsa a good stir, and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving (overnight is best). This is a great summer appetizer for guests, and it’s especially nice since it can be prepared a day in advance. If you are looking to make a smaller amount to start with, just simply cut your ingredient amount in half. The best part of this recipe is creating it and making it your own. Not a big fan of cilantro? Skip it. Like green peppers better? Add ‘em in. It’s totally up to you and your little taste buds. I hope those of you who have tried my salsa like, it, and will encourage others to give it a try.

Let me know if you try it, and what you think! Enjoy your salsa.

New news and updated blog

Hey folks. I’m not sure if there are still people out there who will read my blog, but I am once again making an attempt at keeping up with it. The good news is that there are a lot of exciting things going on in my life, and I have a que of things to discuss already. I’m actually having a hard time deciding on what to talk about first.

Mainly, the good news is that we are expecting a new baby boy in early October, and I am currently not taking classes! On the other hand, Tarver is working some pretty long days, and is taking more than a full load of classes. This leaves Xander and I with quite a lot of time on our hands. So, with that explaination, here are a few of the things that I plan on writing about.

1. Food.

My friends seem to enjoy my cooking and baking, so I’ve decided to be more proactive about taking pictures and blogging while I am in the kitchen, with the hope of inspiring those of you that may or may not be likely to get in the kitchen yourselves. Maybe I’ll just end up with people over to eat more often, and that’s okay too.

2. Baby Stuff.

There are a number of things that I feel I want/need the second time around, especially now that I realize what baby stuff  is ridiculous and what kinds of things make a Mom’s life a little more livable, especially the first few months. So, I am compiling a wish list for my readers to pick through. Tell me what you have used and loved/hated, think I am nuts for wanting, and/or just want to ask a question about or recommend.

Also, we have finally fully committed to cloth diapering, so I am sure there will be some blogging about that.

3. Books.

Thanks to no classes right now (I can not tell you how wonderful that is, especially for Xander) I have a lot of time to read. My current sci-fi/fantasy series is the Sword of Truth, by Terry Goodkind, and my “keep me sane/hopefully not screw up my kid too badly” book is Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child, by John Gottman. I’ll hopefully be writing about these in the near future.

4. Life Stuff.

So this is just a general catergory that will range from events, outings, weekend plans, theology and spiritual matters, to family stuff (and believe me, there is a lot floating around my head about that these days).

5. Crafty Things:

Right now I am making burp cloths for baby, so I’ll probably take some pictures of the process.

I am sure there will be other things thrown into the mix, but at least this time I feel like I have the time to blog, and a road map for when I feel a little bit of a drought.

However, right now, I feel as though I might not make it through the night if I do not get some chocolate peanut butter ice cream and the next 2 DVD’s of the show Felicity.

Blast From the Past

I was looking for an old book this morning and I stumbled across something I wrote in 1995 my eyes have not seen since:

My Top Favorite Songs of 1995!

I thought would post it here for your enjoyment, and my humiliation.

They don’t seem to be in any particular order:

Waterfalls by TLC

This Is How We Do It by Montell Jordan

Run-Around by Blues Traveler

I Can Love You Like That by All-4-One

Hold My Hand by Hootie & The Blowfish

I Believe by Blessid Union Of Souls

Strong Enough by Sheryl Crow

Only Wanna Be With You by Hootie & The Blowfish

You Don’t Know How It Feels by Tom Petty

The Best of What’s Around by Dave Matthews Band

What Would You Say by Dave Matthews Band

Ants Marching by Dave Matthews Band

Home Run by Geoff Moore and the Distance

Love Song for a Savior by Jars of Clay

Shine by Newsboys

In the Light by DC Talk

I Will Be Here by Stephen Curtis Chapman

The Great Divide by Point of Grace

Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Deep Blue Something

The World I Know by Collective Soul

What I am doing for Christmas 2008.

What if this year, it was about something more than money, consumerism, obligational gift-giving, and ugly sweaters?

What are you willing to give? Time, money, creativeness? Are you ready to make life about more than your small community of friends and family?

Jesus cared about the WORLD when he was here on earth, and his Father still does today. So should we.

Watch this, and be inspired this coming Christmas season.

Well, here we go….

People never cease to amaze me in their differences of opinion, specifically, Christians. I have Christian friends with tears in their eyes, rejoicing over Obama’s victory. And yet, I have other Christian friends crippled with fear at the thought of an Obama-led Country. What is causing this stark difference? Seriously, that is a question for the blog world. How did we get here? What do YOU think, regardless of your faith, or lack there of?

I think some of the cause needs to be placed on the media, specifically Fox News. Let me be clean in saying that getting all your news from one source is never a good idea. Remember in school, when you were writing a report, and your teacher made you have 5 to 10 different sources, which probably annoyed you? Same principle here, folks. I feel like this should go without saying, but consult more than one source (an unbiased one) first, before spouting off false information. To those of you who are in positions of authority, such as pastors, teachers, leaders in social circles or those that have high-traffic blogs, this is especially important for you. One off-handed emotionally charged comment can be misconstrued and cause numerous problems.

That being said, I would like to applaud Anderson Cooper, for his unbiased and compelling news reporting. Sir, you are in a league of your own.

I am happy Obama won. I think it’s a wonderful thing that he will support a ban on late-term abortions that includes a condition for life and death circumstances of the mother. I also think its an incredible thing that he is concerned about educating women about other choices besides abortion, such as adoption. This is a huge issue for me, being that I am adopted. Here is the deal: To all those that supported John McCain because of his pro-life stance, now is the time for you to act. Show Barack Obama that you care just as much as he does about educating and supporting women, which is the best thing we can do to reduce the number of abortions. Abortion is not the best option for any unwanted child. Volunteer at a crisis pregnancy center, take the classes in your state to become a legal foster parent.  When we educate women on their choices outside of abortion, there will be a lot more babies and children in an already crowded foster care system. Those of you that can, please, seriously consider this. At the very least, know who to contact in the event that someone you know may be struggling with an uwanted pregnancy.

Obama sees that George Bush, who is pro-life, has not been able to rid our country of abortion, and he knows he will not be able to either, by simply saying abortion is wrong. Hear me, please: I do not condone abortion. However, I think Obama is going about the process of significantly reducing them in the right way, and he needs our help.

For those of you who saw the Body World Exhibit this past year, you know there is no question that a mere 6 week old living being inside a womb looks like a baby. You saw it with your own eyes, there is know denying that.

I say all this because as I woke up this morning and checked my email, I saw numerous fellow brothers and sisters in Christ fearing for our country. Fearing that God has turned his back on our country, afraid of what the future holds. Some even continue to berate and degrade Obama and his family for the color of their skin, or his middle name, or his father’s nationality. Others question his sincerity over his faith in Christ. This is not the spirit of unification that Christ calls us to under our authorities that he has placed before us.

We are commanded by the words of Paul in 1 Timothy 2:1-2, to pray for Obama, and any leaders that make discisions which imapact our world. Aditionally, we are commaned by God in Romans 13:7 to respect those who deserve our respect.

Obama made some pretty big promises last night, and admittedly, that makes me a little nervous. However, I am willing to do my part in making this country a better place for my son to grow up in, and I am proud to be able to tell him one day that although he may not remember it, he watched with a room full of people who love him, that  on November 4, 2008, the United States of America elected it’s first African-American President in our nation’s history.

Welcome to a new day in America. I am happy to be here with you.

What am I 100% over the moon excited for?

That’s right, boys and girls. November 21st is just  a few short weeks away. For those of you who have been living in a cave for the last few months, the Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer, has been transformed to an on screen experience that fans of Meyer’s books should not miss. I am encouraged that Meyer herself had a hand in the movie making process, to make sure things stayed true to the story line.

For your viewing pleasure, here is the final trailer for book one of the Saga: Twilight:

My little Harry Potter

We had a great time last night at Kennedy School with what felt like 1,000 other people! It was packed, but once you got past the craziness it was a good time. We saw the Krizs’, who were dressed up as a family of Jedi’s, and Luke and Mary brought Sam, dressed as a little lamb. Zach and Tiffany brought Nolan as well, and he was a little monkey. Buhler and Steve joined us to see the fun, and we all had dinner, which was crazy with three kiddos, but they all did great. Thanks to Steve and Buhler for hanging out smashed in the corner of the booth while we all ate.

And here is my little Harry:

“Hope.”

Kind of an overused phrase these days, isn’t it? It’s like going to the same amusement park 30 days in a row. By the 5th day, you’ve been on all the rides, and have won all the carnival animals and fish you can handle. What gives you hope? I’m talking about the real kind. The thoughts that your family could actually have a home some day, with lots of acres and bees and llamas and goats? The aspiration to become President of the United States? Obviously some see that as a means to bring hope, and I am one of the millions who dream of a leader that is capable of instilling hope in the hearts of a country, uniting us as a nation. Some people are hoping for a spouse, a child, a place to rest their head tonight with a decent meal. A lot of people are hoping their 401k’s will still be there when they need them!

What do I hope for, you ask?

A chance at making this world a better place. How am I going to accomplish that insurmountable task? Through this:

This wonderful little boy is gifted with the potential to impact those around him by simply being a loving man someday. All I have to do now is teach him how to love.

So what gives me hope?

Living in this place, knowing I have a safe atmosphere to raise a family:

Having wonderful friends who share their lives with us:

Knowing that the life I choose to search after has purpose and promise:

“The spiritual life is a continual discovery of God in new and unexpected places. These discoveries are sometimes most profitable when we find him in something we had tended to overlook and even despise. Then the awakening is purer and its effect more keen, because he was so close at hand and we neglected him.”          ~Thomas Merton

My hope is found today in the promise of searching for God in places unexpected, and passing that love onto my son.

Have a great Saturday. We are going to the pumpkin patch!

Things I have been obsessed with.

Truth be told blog readers, there have been several other things keeping me from writing to you outside of class work. Here is a list, in no particular order.

1. Politics. A lot of my internetting these days has been on websites ranging from CNN, Daily Show and Colbert, to Anderson 360, but never FOX News.

2. Thanks to Katie Alpert, I started reading the Twilight Saga. I have now read Twilight twice, New Moon and Eclipse once, and I am on my third trip through Breaking Dawn. I’ve even read the partial of Midnight Sun on Meyer’s website. Call it what you will, obsessive, I know. You haven’t heard the worst part. I even have a Twilight Calendar and keychain. Yes, I know I am not 17, and no, I do not care how silly you think I am.

3. Buffy. Well, since I was on the whole vampire kick with Twilight, I figured I’d check out all the Buffy hype. It’s a good show, and Joss Whedon is a creative mastermind. However, I really am just watching for the relational aspect between the characters, and not so much the vampire story line. As it stands, I am in Season 5.

4 Facebook. For some reason, I feel the need to check status updates at least 5 times a day.

5. Walks. This is a good thing to be obsessed with. Xander and I have taken hour long walks through our new neighborhood every sunny day since moving two weeks ago. I love our neighborhood.

6. Bones. I started watching it on a recommendation from a friend, and I am glad I did. The relationship between Bones and Booth always gives me much to discuss.

7. And finally, Heroes. Which I have to go watch this instant, because Tarver is sitting across the room, staring at me, wating for me to finish my post. See, we watch on Tuesday nights since getting rid of cable. Thank goodness for streaming shows on the internet.