Hope and Healing for Moms

As requested, my recipe for chicken curry! Easy crockpot curried chicken Serves 6-8 Ingredients: -One large yellow onion, diced -Two large chicken breasts, diced. (I sear mine on the grill, although this step can be skipped) -1 small can  Red curry paste of your choice (to taste, about a quarter to a half cup) -1 regular sized can unsweetened coconut milk or coconut cream -optional: three medium zucchini, chopped and sautéed Place curry paste in the bottom of crockpot. Slowly whisk in coconut milk, blending spices smoothly. Combine remaining ingredients in crockpot. Cook on low 4–6 hours. Add zucchini at the end. Fluffy red quinoa: Ingredients: -2 cups red quinoa, rinsed  -2 tablespoons coconut oil -4 cups hot chicken or vegetable stock -garlic powder to taste In medium sauce pan, heat coconut oil over medium high heat. Add quinoa, toasting while stirring constantly for 3–5 minutes. Slowly add hot stock, stirring constantly, until all is incorporated.  Bring to boil,...

Not much time to talk today, or recently honestly because it's been busy around here with a huge garage sale. We are getting back on our feet and getting back to our normal routine, including the all important meal prep day. This week's new offerings: lean veggie – infused meatloaf, chicken stew baby food, and marinated chicken breast. Out of the freezer I pulled the second batch of the Southwest chicken chili I made a couple of weeks ago. I will put half of the meatloaf mixture into the freezer for a future week. That way we never get bored , but when I make a batch it does double duty!

Okay, so last nights dinner of gluten-free penne pasta, turkey meatballs, and no sugar added marinara sauce spiced up with caramelized onions and fresh basil over a bed of sautéed Italian spice green beans was amazing. Yes, I recognize that the previous sentence contained awful grammar; please don't post the YouTube video of weird Al Jankovich's  "I hate these word crimes" :-) (must plug for the video that we cracked up at while we ate dinner) It's so interesting, because I put what seemed like a reasonable portion in front of us without actually measuring. At the end of the meal, I had a quarter of my food left and wished I had only eaten half; Robert ate his entire plate and regretted it. We are's changing so well! Little by little, we are becoming a healthy family. It was amazing to have all of that food in the refrigerator as well, because when I came to packing for lunches today it was so simple! We were actually able to leave the house by 7:30 AM so that...

Ok, not exactly but just about!! We are doing really well on portion control in our house, and yay- in lost 2 lbs this week!! This is even after an entire week of missing my Zumba classes because Christian has a specialized swim course that goes straight through the middle of my workout schedule for a 10 day period. In total since having Chloe, I am down a little over 20 pounds! I must say that it was not until we began a serious choice to focus on getting proper nutrition and controlling our portions that the weight really started to drop. After a couple of hours of cooking, including making a huge dinner to portion up for future lunches this week, we now have in our refrigerator:  Four  premade salads. Four pre-portioned servings of gluten-free penne with turkey meatballs and marinara. Six portions of organic sautéed green beans with sautéed red bell pepper, slivered toasted almonds, and fresh herbs. Four portions of pan roasted winter vegetables with curry. Eight ripe...

Within the past year, God has really been helping me to take a genuine inventory of my emotional life. This is a topic that tends to have two polar reactions: The first is my favorite, intense interest and embracing of the deep conversation. The second makes it difficult to feel safe talking about it, and tends to be avoidance or in rare cases hostility. Even though this is the case, I want to talk a little bit about that topic here.  I have always been a very self-analytical and a somewhat perfectionistic person, tending to hold myself to basically impossible standards and by proxy expecting the same from others. While I do consider myself to be very self-aware, I also have come to see that I have glaring blind spots as well. Unfortunately, I also now realize that this has made me quite judgmental in the past. The hard part is coming out of that but seeing the aftermath and the bridges that I have burned. It is a lonely place to come out of, but thanks be to God who has broug...

Happy Wednesday! I'm glad that I started this blog out calling it the nutrition reset. That was apropos for the first couple of weeks. However, for the duration when I talk about nutrition lifestyle or exercise will just call it the healthy habit :-) As I post, I am with the kids getting ready to go to the beach. I went to Zumba this morning, did housework, and wasn't afraid to make plans to do another activity! This may not sound phenomenal to some, but for me it is an enormous change. Even before I went through my recent physical difficulties following my two pregnancies, I have long suffered from exhaustion and fatigue. I never was diagnosed but probably had chronic fatigue syndrome. Most likely in my case, it is due to my poor nutrition and lack of exercise. I have a few things working against me, including a slow metabolism and a genetic predisposition toward a larger and heavier body, but those are not the reason for my challenges. In truth, I actually have always strugg...

As promised, here is the recipe for my southwest chicken chili :-) 1 tbsp olive, avocado or coconut oil 1 lg yellow onion, diced 1/2 batch cooked black beans, drained (or 2 cans drained)  4 cans diced tomatoes  4 ears roasted corn (or 1 can drained)  1 large roasted chicken, minus the breast, diced (I saved the breast for salads) 1 pkg McCormick White Chili spice (even though this is not a white chili, I wanted this flavor profile) 1 tbsp garlic powder  1 tbsp smoked paprika 1/4 c balsamic or white balsamic vinegar In a heavy pot, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the diced onion, stirring occasionally and cooking until slightly browned. Add the chicken, beans, and spices; stir continuously while cooking for three minutes. Add the cans of tomatoes. Bring to a medium boil, continue cooking for five minutes stirring occasionally. At this point, you could put the entire mixture into your crockpot. It would be a little full, so just fill it as high as it goes and s...

While talking over today's Oswald Chambers My Utmost for His Highest devotional with Robert at breakfast, it occurred to me that while it is true that we were not expected to use our abilities to fulfill the purposes of God in and of themselves, we are indeed  called to shine. Perhaps the problem comes when we believe that we are to be in the spotlight – meaning by contrast that all others must be shrouded in darkness in order for us to shine.  God is an artist, and we are the outworking of his internal and intrinsic beauty.  I have long been terrified to shine. I have been accused of trying to hog the spotlight, had my motives questioned, and spent the past 40 years in self-doubt. I want this to be the last year that I worry about whether or not I doubt myself, or listen to the criticisms of others.  Someone I love once told me that I will never succeed because I will never do the work it takes to succeed. Because of that, I have lived under a shroud of fear. N...

Here is my roasted chicken recipe. I hope you enjoy! I use it for several different applications throughout the week. I love having large quantities of prepared foods ready so that I am not tempted to snack or drive through somewhere! Roasted chicken: Preheat convection oven to 300° or conventional oven to 325°  1 or 2 large roasting chickens 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil or sesame oil 1/4 cup balsamic, rice wine, or other high-quality vinegar (Optional: 1/2 cup white wine) Thyme, smoked paprika, fresh garlic or garlic powder, or other savory spices on hand In roasting pan, Place chicken breast side down. This may be unconventional, but provides the juiciest chicken breast! Rub chicken beneath the skin with herbs and spices. Whisk together oil, vinegar, and white wine. Brush or use basting tube to inject half of this marinade between the skin and the meat. Roast for 45 minutes. Use basting brush or tube to baste chicken for the remaining time needed to bring internal tem...

Happy weekend :-) Our family enjoyed our time together this weekend, including a trip to the gym on Saturday and lots of healthy activities. Robert and I have really done well as a team eating by the 21 Day Fix plan throughout the last couple of weeks. My prayer is that we will continue to be just that, a team. We have had a couple of treats this weekend, including a brownie type concoction made with Shakeology and peanut butter that wasn't too bad and satisfied that chewy  craving. We will do another little treat this evening made with sugar-free fudgesicles, peanut butter and lite Cool Whip that while slightly high in the calorie department is much better than the Ben & Jerry's  peanut butter cup ice cream I got addicted to this spring! Other than that, we have been eating plenty of vegetables, fruits, and lean proteins. My theory that I need to eat the same way that I feed my kids is helping me to think through this reset! I am very picky about what I allow them to eat,...

I think I had a personal milestone today. I went to the gym for Zumba class, but it was canceled. I had just checked both children into the kids' club, and the worker let me know that the class was canceled because the instructor called in sick.  Tempted.  Tempted to check the kids back out and go home, tempted to leave them in there and go sit in the hot tub, tempted to "stretch" for an hour. Instead, I decided to walk on the treadmill for at least five minutes. 30 minutes later, I had burned about 200 calories. I even did some running! With my heart rate up and a decent runners high spurring me forward, I continued on and did a little bit of lifting hoping to work some strength into my slowly recovering hip and lower back. I ended up doing a full hour of cardio, Weightlifting, and good yoga stretching! Wow, do I feel good! I probably need  more walk/running like today at least once or twice a week. I adore Zumba, but it continues to stress the weak parts ...