Grilled Creole Shrimp Packets

These are a great, beautiful summer side dish!! I found this recipe in my Weight Watchers Savoring Summer Cookbook. I prepared them ahead of time, which is always nice in the summer, and we went out and came back and just had to pop these on the grill. Our indoor grill over the stovetop, that is! I'm so glad we decided that we wanted to try a certain sandwich at a fast food restaurant on the way home, though, because these packets were hardly a main course. I think they may have been a little better if they were cooked a little longer, or perhaps on an outdoor grill.
The flavors were fresh, easy to make, and always a plus to be able to make them ahead of time! So what are we waiting for? Let's get cooking! You will need:



Grilled Creole Shrimp Packets
Weight Watchers Savoring Summer

1 small red pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 small green pepper, seeded and finely chopped
2 ripe plum tomatoes, finely chopped
3 scallions, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves or 1/4 tsp. dried
Pinch salt
Pinch cayenne
4 teaspoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 bay leaves, broken in half

1. Preheat the grill to medium or prepare a medium fire. Lightly spray 4 (18 inch) squares of heavy-duty foil with nonstick spray.
2. Combine the bell peppers, tomatoes, scallions, garlic, thyme, salt, and cayenne in a medium bowl.

3. Place 1 foil sheet on a work surface. Spoon one-fourth of the vegetable mixture in the center of the foil; top with 1 teaspoon of the butter. Place about 5 shrimp and 1/2 bay leaf on top; lightly spray with nonstick spray. To close the packet, bring 2 opposite sides of the foil up to meet in the center; fold the edges over twice to make a tight seal. Double fold the open sides to seal the packet. Repeat.

4. Place the packets on the grill rack. Grill just until the shrimp is opaque throughout, about 8 minutes. Carefully transfer the packets to a cutting board using a spatula. Cut the packets open in the center, being careful to avoid the steam. Discard the bay leaves; transfer the contents of each packet to a plate.

So again, let me reiterate that these were not super filling like a main course. So I would suggest making them for an appetizer for a summer gathering, as a snack, a light, summer lunch or as a side dish to accompany those grilled burgers or steaks (yummy!). You could even make them ahead of time and take them with you when you go camping!

Don't you just love cooking with fresh, summer ingredients?

Passion for Music

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I love music. I always have. I grew up in a pretty musical family, with my dad being a huge lover of music. When he was younger, he toured around with his band for a year, playing drums and doing leads. When I was in high school, he was in a band and did gigs at parties and events. He also made it into the top 3 to almost be the President of the Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. He is pretty much a Rock 'n Roll historian. He now plays drums at his church, is the main worship leader, and helps do lead on vocals. He is pretty much the most awesome dad ever. But that's besides the point.

(Briana singing at her final concert)

My sister, Briana, has always loved music and played instruments, sang in choirs, and just finished her degree in music therapy. She did an amazing classical music concert for her degree at Cleveland State; it was fantastic!! Music flows through her veins, too.
All this to say, I have always loved music, and have always been a part of it. I have played instruments (flute, piano, guitar), sang in choir for countless years in elementary school, junior high, high school, and college, sang on worship teams for church, led worship for home groups, and did special music with my sister when I was a kid at church. I have lots of other hobbies, but music has always been something that was a part of me. In college I sang with the Women's Concert Choir for 4 years, and it was amazing. 50 women's voices, all synced together singing praise music to God, traveling together all over the country and overseas, and working really hard to know the music. They were some of the best years of my life.

(Miss these girls terribly!!)

It has been hard to be as much a part of music since becoming a mom. Having babies is so demanding on your time that it's hard to commit to anything and make schedules work together. I have done a little music, here and there, but not too much. I miss it. A lot.
Since moving down to Oklahoma, Tad has gotten involved in singing worship at his parents church. He loves it. I have since gotten involved in the worship team and am practicing playing guitar with them just during our practices. I don't think I'm the best vocalist, or the most amazing musician, or the best at harmonies. I just know I love music. And however I can be a part of it, it fills me. It is a part of who I am, and I love it.
So, I hope that with the schedules of my kids, the babysitting, and all that goes with being a mom can all coordinate with me staying involved with the worship team. It is awesome to use your voice to sing praises to God , to help lead other people in worship, and to be a part of a team that works together towards the same goal of sounding good and glorifying the Father!
And of course, it makes me think of my dad, who is so involved in his worship team back home in Ohio. I miss him, it makes me feel a part of what he's doing, and it makes me anxious for him to come down and visit us!!
I love you, Dad! Thanks for instilling in me a love for music, a passion for sticking with it, for teaching me harmony, and for always encouraging me in my pursuit of music. You have always been my biggest fan, from videotaping every choir concert, to traveling to see WCC perform, to recording me singing in the studio, to letting me play tambourine while you practiced your band songs in the game room. I have loved being a part of music with you, and hopefully one day we can do music together. I know that's your wish!!

Salsa Fresca

I love, love, love food with lots of fresh ingredients. The problem is, when you are shopping for them, you have to make sure you use up those ingredients before they go bad!! But the food with fresh produce, especially in the summer when everything is in season, and not super expensive, is delicious!! I got this recipe for Salsa Fresca out of a Rachael Ray Magazine a long time ago, and have been making it ever since. In fact, this is a base recipe that is similar to pico de gallo, and could be used for many different things, and the magazine has several recipes that use this base of salsa. Tasty!! I did make the chicken salsa soup with it, and it was divine!! So, you might want to make a double batch and see what else you can use it for!! It might even be a nice, light summer meal for those hot, sticky nights when you don't feel like eating!!



Salsa Fresca
Rachael Ray Magazine

1 cup packed coarsely chopped cilantro
2 cloves garlic
1/2 onion, coarsely chopped
1 jalapeno chile, halved lengthwise
2 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes (7 or 8), cored and quartered
Juice of 1 lime
Salt

1. Using a food processor, pulse the cilantro and garlic together for 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides, add the onion and jalapeno and pulse until finely chopped; transfer to a medium bowl.

2. Working in batches, add the tomatoes to the food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add to the cilantro mixture. Stir in the lime juice; season with salt.

Uhhh, chips please!!

Happy Summer!!!

Maddy and Night Terrors

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Madelynn has been struggling with night terrors for about a year and a half to two years now. At first, we didn't know what was going on, or what she was experiencing. From time to time, she would wake up crying, and she wouldn't be consoled by us, or comforted, or calmed down until it seemed that the episode was over. I would usually sit in her room on her bed and wait until it was over, but she didn't want to be held, and she didn't really respond when I tried to talk to her. Over time, I would try different things like asking her to open her eyes (usually they are open already, though), bringing her out into the living room and waking her up a little (which does help occasionally, seems to snap her out of it), putting some water on her face to try to wake her up, trying to distract her by getting her some water to drink or talking to her about something that she is interested in. At times, most of these things worked at some point. But there seems to be no formula for getting these episodes to stop.
I eventually read up a little on these episodes and realized that they were probably what they call night terrors. They are different from nightmares in that the child doesn't remember them the next morning, it's not necessarily associated with a dream, and you can't console the child. For a really informative article, click here. Now, most of the articles say that night terrors are associated with fear. Maddy usually doesn't seem scared, she just cries a lot and seems sad about something but won't stop with anything I do or try.
It seemed that the night terrors stopped for awhile, but lately they have come back pretty frequently. Over the time that she has had them, we have noticed that her being over-exhausted plus going to bed too late will usually equal a night terror. And at times they are violent. Sometimes she will kick and hit and sometimes I have left her in her room with one (usually when she is just crying) and I have had her snap out of it herself and then walk into my room after a few minutes. Like I said, with hers, there has never been a hard and fast formula to getting rid of them.
One of the worst ones was when we went to Disney in September. The day we went to Magic Kingdom, she had a short nap in the stroller, but other than that, had a long, exhausting day, and got to bed at around 10 pm. She had about 4 night terrors that night, or more. She was kicking and screaming and our hotel neighbors were hitting the wall. We knew it was because she was exhausted. But it's hard to know what to do.
So this blog post isn't necessarily a way to cure night terrors, or even get your child to stop it once it starts, but rather some camaraderie with parents who have experienced the same thing, some websites to check out to read more on the subject, and a question asking who has experienced these with their children, and if they have found anything that has helped. Hopefully you haven't had these with your kids, but if you have, the articles say that it is much more common in children (though still rare) than in adults, and they will most likely outgrow it by adolescence. Also, Maddy's night terrors almost always occur about 90 minutes to 2 hours after she goes to bed, and never occur after 2 or 230am. For the most part. There are some interesting facts that go along with these episodes and some might even say to wake them 15 minutes prior to the terror to prevent it from happening. But read up on that and make your own judgement!! Read more on night terrors here and here.
For us, we just know that we have to have Maddy in bed between 830 and 9 at the very latest. I tell her that's her "pumpkin time" and she has been telling people that she has bad dreams at 9:00. People don't have a clue what she is talking about! I'm also going to try to keep a sleep diary and to have a more relaxing bedtime routine (as suggested by one of the websites.) Any more advice is welcome, as always!!

Chocolate Trifle

Let's just say: Death By Chocolate. I have slowly realized how much of a chocoholic I am lately. I crave not just sweets but chocolate!! This dessert is the perfect combination of chocolates too: chocolate pudding, brownies, chocolate shavings, with whipped cream in between...yum!
I first made this several years ago to bring to a potluck dinner, and it was a big hit! The only thing I often forget is that it is suppose to refrigerate 8 hours before serving. But I think 4 hours, or even 2 hours would suffice. It's really just making the layers all evenly cold, nothing more. I would even eat it as soon as it was assembled. But don't tell anyone!!
This is yet again another recipe from allrecipes.com. So I will provide the link, and also the recipe here on the blog. Make this for your next dinner party, and you will be sure to impress! If it makes it to the dinner party and you don't eat it all beforehand!

Chocolate Trifle
Allrecipes.com

1 (19.8 oz) pkg. brownie mix
1 (3.9 oz) package instant chocolate pudding mix
1/2 cup water
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (8 oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 (12 oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 (1.5 oz) bar chocolate candy

1. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions and cool completely. Cut into 1 inch squares.
2. In a large bowl, combine pudding mix, water, and sweetened condensed milk. Mix until smooth, then fold in 8 ounces whipped topping until no streaks remain.
3. In a trifle bowl or glass serving dish, place half of the brownies, half of the pudding mixture and half of the 12 ounce container of whipped topping. Repeat layers. Shave chocolate onto top layer for garnish. Refrigerate 8 hours before serving.


You really won't be able to resist this dessert. In fact, every time I make it, I make little, tiny bowls of the brownies, pudding mixture, and whipped topping to enjoy before I serve it. It really is decadent. And scrumptious. And whatever other words mean drooling, tasty goodness!!
And as always, enjoy!!

Tragedy: A Special Time to Point our Kids to God

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Click here for the video of the fire
Click here to read news article
Although many of you have heard via Facebook, not all of you have heard that our church, Calvary Chapel of Enid, Oklahoma burned down this past Thursday. It was an old building, and there were some renovations being done to it with a torch, and once the fire started, it was out of control within minutes. They are counting it a total loss, with only some things that could be recovered. The building will have to be demolished, and we will have to build somewhere else, or purchase another building.
Although this is sad news, and devastated many people in our congregation, we still serve a God who is in control!! The cool thing about all this is that I have gotten to talk to my 4 year old daughter, Maddy, about some pretty important things lately. Luckily, this is a tragedy without the loss of life, so even though we are sad that we lost our church building, our church body is still intact!! Our Pastor gave a beautiful message on Sunday, when we met at another location as we were hosted by another gracious church, reminding us that the church body is fine, strong, alive, and well!! Our building got destroyed, but the church is fine!!
Throughout the course of us finding out about the church, driving by the burning church as they were trying to put out the fire (it took hours and hours to put the fire out), and getting phone calls, Maddy was right there, taking it all in. It's interesting how a 4 year old's mind works. You can see the wheels in their head turning. I have to admit that the wheels in my head might have started turning in a negative way in lieu of what happened. But I found it strengthening my faith to have to simplify things and talk to Maddy about it all in simple, easy-to-understand terms. It was really encouraging to talk to her about how God is in control, that the fire didn't take Him by surprise, that the actual church is the people and not the building, and that God is going to take care of us and provide for us.
I know that people face real tragedy with loss of life and things much more grievous than a building burning down. But this is what we are dealing with now, and it was neat to be able to give perspective and hope to a 4 year old who was shaken by her first real encounter with something tragic and real to her.
Maddy was concerned about where we were gonna get extra money for a new building, if the "bench" that all the kids sat on was still there, if her class got burned, if the toys in her new class would be different, and more questions. It's definitely interesting to go through things with young children, because your concerns get minimized to a very simple level, and you have to help them learn how to think with a godly perspective and to help them understand what is going on and how to cope with it. It's a huge, daunting responsibility, but awesome as well! It helps you, as an adult, to think through the situation in a healthy, positive way. It really helped me to think positive and look towards God instead of worrying and being negative about it!!
This is just another example of how motherhood is a ministry. We have the privilege of getting down on our kids levels and showing them how to walk through life, but not only that, we get to share with them how they're not alone!! We can teach them how to have hope and faith at a very young age. And those moments remind us how much our roles count!! Keep pressing on and show your kids that God is on our side, and how that fits into their daily lives!!

God is our refuge and strength and ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. Psalm 46:1-3, 10.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!! It is totally random that I happened to have a Mexican recipe that I had made, and that it is Cinco de Mayo!! And it is an awesome recipe, not quite authentic Mexican, but certainly good to feed the family! They will never know it's not authentic! Well, at least we will tell ourselves that! It is a great summer meal that is light and has fresh ingredients on top, and you can certainly add as many fresh ingredients as your palette desires! You can also make this ahead, and add the fresh ingredients when you are ready to eat it. So, here's the recipe, chicas!

Mexican Pizza
allrecipes.com

2 (8 oz.) cans refrigerated crescent rolls
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup sour cream
1 pound ground beef
1 (1.25 oz) package taco seasoning
1 (2.25 oz) can sliced ripe olives, drained (I omit these for my portion, but Tad loves them!)
1 medium tomato, chopped
3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded lettuce

1. Unroll crescent roll dough and place in an ungreased 15 in. by 10 in. by 1 in. baking pan. Flatten dough to fit the pan, sealing seams and perforations. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown; cool. In a small bowl, blend cream cheese and sour cream with a wire whisk; spread over crust. Chill 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a skillet, brown beef; drain. Stir in taco seasoning. Add water according to package directions and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spread over cream cheese layer. Top with olives, tomato, cheese, and lettuce. Cut into serving-size pieces. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

So, how easy is that? You can make the whole thing ahead of time and prep it, or cut up the fresh ingredients and add them when you are ready to serve it. You could even serve it in small pieces as an appetizer at a summer event or potluck. It's really good! You could even add scallions or fresh cut up onions, jalapenos, different cheeses, salsa, guacamole, pico de gallo, sour cream, the possibilities are endless!! Enjoy!