"LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance." Psalm 16:5-6


Ours is a story of what God can do with two silly teens, starting off with no clue;

And baby thrown in, just for good measure. We didn’t know that God would increase our treasure

With four added on in rapid succession, filling our lives with joy and hard lessons.


We’ve had our share of valleys and hills, of times of abundance, and unpaid bills.

We once thought success would bring us bliss; we’ve learned that loss does a better job of this,

As we lean on our Savior, Who always delivers, regardless of the size of our quiver.


Although we’re grateful for the times of ease, the hard times are useful for learning to please

Our Heavenly Father, learning to walk in His Truth, of which we often talk.

May the Lord help us humbly and faithfully serve, staying mindful that the next generation observes.


Prop up your feet and grab a cup of coffee or tea while I open up

The book of my life, without further ado, and narrate the musings of my heart to you.


Thursday, July 1, 2010

Eu Gosto Do Abobora Muito!


Happiness is... having a staff. All of those people who used to shake their heads and offer (unfounded) pity at my having my "hands full with all of those children" should see me now! Those days of caring for five children, birth to seven years, have paid off. Allowing them to be underfoot in the kitchen, begging for the chance to "poison test", has brought them happily into my arena, and now I can choose to kick back and let them do it all if I'd like. Hooray!

Yesterday after running errands, we returned to start dinner. I quickly cleaned a chicken and put it into the oven. That was the extent of my role in dinner prep. I should give an honorable mention to the yummy Lebanese 7-spice gifted to me by a friend in Alabama. I carefully ration this valuable ingredient, and I'm so glad to have it with me in Moz. Mixed with a few other choice ingredients, it brought salivary bliss to our mealtime experience.

The original plan was for Caelyn to make abobora/lentil soup. "Abobora" is a Portuguese word, the meaning of which is interchangeable between butternut squash and pumpkin. We are fans of different varieties of curry, and Caelyn does amazing things with a butternut, a bag of lentils, a can of coconut milk, and some curry. Sadly, we forgot to buy lentils on our errand, and we were out of coconut milk. Thankfully, my daughter is a genius in the kitchen. While I've tethered myself to my growing collection of cookbooks, Caelyn requires no such trappings. When she gets a taste in her head, her hands go to work, and a good time is had by all. Having to forego the soup, she made a lovely puree/soufflé-type item, topped with a bit of Feta (my new universal cheese option) -- a perfect accompaniment.

Our second dinner obstacle was the fact that I was also missing a key ingredient for the Naan that I had planned to make. What to do? Wheat bread is wonderful, but it's not exactly prime fare for sopping and scooping an eastern chicken and abobora ensemble. Again, my Kitchen Genius saved the moment. Why not use the delicious ginger waffles left over from the truck-load of them that Craig Grayson made for breakfast (no doubt in hopes of a repeat today)? Bravo!

Gabriela finished our meal prep with one of her amazing Greek salads, and we all lived happily ever after.
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1 comment:

  1. Sounds delicious! I love having good cooks in my family, too! If needed, try using unsweetened pancakes...maybe with a few savory ingredients in them in place of naan...we've done this (gluten free) and it works beautifully! (I've also been spurging and buying myself Feta...and rationing it, as well! LOL)

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