French toast for the whole family

Easy....easy....yum yum breakfast for the whole family!! Today I woke up with the overwhelming urge to make French toast for my family, so I did! Even my little one loved it, success! Here's the recipe....

You'll need:

4 slices of bread

2 eggs

1 cup of almond milk (I find that almond milk is better than regular milk because it has the perfect amount of extra sweetness)

3-4 dashes of cinnamon

3-4 dashes of sugar 

1 tbsp of vanilla

Whisk all ingredients & dip each side of the bread for 20-30 seconds no more or it'll get soggy and hard to pick up.

Cook each side well, set on a plate, top with slices of banana, sprinkle with powdered sugar and drizzle some syrup.

(Of course the little one didn't get syrup or powdered sugar on hers; she got to enjoy the bananas with french toast & boy did she eat it all up!) 

Enjoy the Yumminess!

What are you wearing today?

Many of you know that I recently moved to Missouri. This season has been such a blessing. So much change has occurred in the last few months though. I feel like water is being poured into my hands and I'm struggling to just hold it all together. But God.....He is good. He always has a way of shining His light on everything and making it work together perfectly, but then again, I guess that's just His nature. We can't out give Him, we can't out do Him, He just is amazing in His supreme Godliness. I have really learned to love Him all over again. I feel like I have gotten a new perspective and although things are not how I think they should be or how I would like for them to be, I am learning to be thankful for who He is and that He is taking excellent care of me. Each day is a struggle as I want to be selfish and say God give me this or that and I would just be a little happier, but that's not the case. He knows what I need and when I need it. I'm learning....slowly, but I am.
One of the things that I feel God has been tugging at my heart is staying away from the negativity of gossip, trash talk and ugliness that I see in people. I want to be a person of inspiration not of negativity and bitterness. I used to be terrible at this, hurting people with my words, not caring about their feelings and all for what? To prove that I was better? Well, now I am learning the value of kindness and how rare it really is. My pastor says that we become like the 5 people that we hang out with most, so who is influencing me? Gosh, that can be a scary thought. But God is opening my eyes to things and the more He does, the more painful it seems.
I'm building my life scriptures, ones that I will stand on and build my character on. One of them is Colossians 3:12
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

Now that is a bit humbling. These are the garments that I need to wear...EVERY SINGLE DAY! Really, just reading the whole chapter will humble and scare you at the same time. Mean people are everywhere even within us at times and I have been there, I've been that mean person, but now I am fighting to change, that old self is gone and never returning {I'm speaking in faith}! I don't want to be that person anymore. I want to shine with God's love. I really believe that He sees that in me and is helping me. I think that the biggest motivator to change for the better is the simple fact that my daughter is watching me and even though she is young, she is still being shaped by everything that I say and do. If I want her to be a kind hearted, genuine person that speaks kindness & life into people, then she has to see that in me! No exceptions, no games.

What are you wearing today? Kindness & compassion or bitterness & ugliness? Humility & gentleness or pride & rage? Let Him work on your inside today.

Always Praise!
xoxo

Always Praise!

Can I spill my guts for a minute? 

Life has been going by pretty swiftly and sometimes I'm ok with that but mostly it just scares me. I guess because seeing my daughter grow so quickly makes me feel anxious about the future and about what's to come. Then I also have this list of "need to accomplish or need to get done ASAP" which is really just a number of things that I have pressured myself into getting done because I need to feel successful. I'm guessing that it's not a bad thing but I stress myself out over it constantly. Maybe everyone goes through this at some point or maybe it's something that happens to stay at home moms....it's a feeling that we must make it all count. Reality is that if my daughter is healthy, doing well, growing well, the house is clean & everyone is fed...then at the end of the day that is a success. I am just learning to be ok with that. 

This picture always reminds me to stop and rejoice. 

It's necessary for both me and God. I need to learn to rest in Him, be still in Him and trust that I am exactly where I need to be in life....nothing more & nothing less.

When I rejoice in Him I am thanking Him for every bit of my life and I am expressing my extreme gratitude. That helps me to see all the good that He is doing and has done, so it builds my faith, excites me for the future, gives me peace at the moment & strength to go on. If that isn't enough for me today then I don't know what is.

Are you tired, weary, stressed, burdened, in need of some positivity???

Stop for a minute, thank God for His goodness & remember some of the things that He has already done, prayers that He has already answered......I promise that with that moment of reflection your strength will be renewed again.

It brings light to Isaiah 40:28-31

Do you not know?
    Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
    and his understanding no one can fathom.
29 He gives strength to the weary
    and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
    and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the Lord
    will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not grow weary,
    they will walk and not be faint.

There is ALWAYS a reason to give thanks, to rejoice, to Praise! 

Always Praise has become my new saying...I need to hear it.

Selah.

!Blessings & Love! 

10 things about me {inspired by IG}

Yesterday, on IG I shared 10 things about me so why not share here too?! 

Here goes:

❶ I prefer cold coffee over hot! 

❷ I am an obsessive photo taker...but really! I love playing around with pictures & editing them to eventually put it in an album. 

❸ I'm a psychotic list maker, for real, I makes lists for everything in my life. 

❹ I have so many goals, passions, and creative ideas that sometimes I overwhelm myself and don't know where to start.

❺ I really love to cook and experiment with all kinds of foods & I usually try to make 2 new recipes a week, one food & one sweet treat, it's just a personal goal of mine.

❻ Singing is my absolute passion! I write songs but am so self critical that I barely have enough nerve to show my husband what I have because it's so personal.

❼ I am not confrontational at all, I am usually the peacemaker of the bunch so I get terribly annoyed by mean people who think that they are nice. Every time I see "meanness" acted out I begin to pray for myself and ask God to clean out my heart to show me if I am like that in any way at all. I try to live by Colossians 3:12 

❽I danced tap, jazz, ballet & hip hop when I was younger and I loved it!

❾ I was a nominee for homecoming queen while in high school, I didn't care that I didn't win b/c just being nominated was thrilling. 

❿I enjoy blogging/writing a lot and even if no one reads it I enjoy letting my thoughts free...that alone inspires me to keep doing it.

Play along and enjoy! 

Baby food making: plums!

I have really enjoyed making fresh and delicious foods for my daughter. Then watching her enjoy it is so rewarding...that's the nerdy little momma within me! He..he..he I don't care though, I'm just excited to have a wonderful, healthy baby girl. This recipe was so simple. I got some organic plums and peeled, steamed, then pureed them. For half of the batch I added some steamed apples and made a plum-applesauce combo. Oh my! Zariah really loved it. Refrigerate enough for 2-3 days then freeze the rest and there you go....easy peasy CHEAP baby food, done. 

Baby food making: Ratatouille!

Easy...easy...easy! A meal for mommy & baby (BONUS!)

You'll need:

1/4 cup of olive oil

1 can of diced tomatoes (or whole tomatoes)

1 eggplant

1 medium onion

1-2 zucchini

1-2 yellow squash

1-2 red or yellow bell peppers

1 tablespoon of garlic 

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

Add your favorite herbs (fresh or dry) I used pepper, sage, oregano and basil.  

Directions:

In a crock pot add the olive oil and the can of tomatoes, cook on high while you peel and chop all of the veggies into cubes (easier for baby to eat when it's chopped up smaller). 

Add in all the veggies then splash in the red wine vinegar and top with all of your herbs, mix and let it cook on high for about 3 hours. Done!

For baby: puree, if needed, or baby can eat it just like that if they prefer. 

For mommy & family: serve and enjoy!

It's so yummy and healthy, I personally did not think that it needed any salt. The tomatoes gave it such great flavor. Hope you'll try and enjoy it. 

[I had forgotten to take a picture of it when it was cooked fresh, this picture above was leftovers the next day and I added a turkey burger patty that I had just to change it up a bit. Another idea, add some fresh quinoa to it and YUMMO!!]

Lovely day

I enjoy nature...because, after all, it's God's creation...it's so relaxing to get lost in too. This picture above was taken while visiting a friend. I just love their part of town because it almost feels like I'm in Puerto Rico, oh the beauty of the island! The best thing about moving to a new place is that there is SO much loveliness to be discovered. I have truly enjoyed getting lost in the middle of nowhere and just finding a new beautiful place. Here are some lovely pictures from around town. 

(Some new & some old but all are lovely!)

(I think my daughter may have taken this picture!)

Easy Caramel frappe

Of course I love me some frappes but they get expensive on a regular.

So what's a gal on a budget to do?

Make them at home. I found that instant coffee is a perfect quick fix.

What will you need?

-your favorite instant coffee

-6 oz of hot water

-caramel syrup, sugar or your favorite sweetener (ie: agave, sweet condensed milk)

- COLD milk

-whipped topping

1. Mix one packet of instant coffee with 6 oz of hot water.
2. Add in your sugars or preferred sweeteners, I like to add caramel syrup or even sweet condensed milk to taste and add in your desired amount of COLD milk then top with whipped cream and dazzle with some more caramel syrup on top [I love CARAMEL syrup and tend to get carried away].
3. Add some ice if you want to make it colder....That's it!
4. Easy and done in under 5 minutes.
5. Enjoy it!

Additional tips: 

-I usually have frozen ice cubes of coffee that I will throw into the mix so it doesn't get watered down with the ice.

-You can use already made cold coffee to add to the mix to make it colder instead of using ice also adds to the flavor.

-Keep it simple and yummy, if it's too complicated then its no fun.

Ted Drewes!

         

OH my yum! Just a quick share and shout out to Ted Drewes frozen custard. I have never even had anything like this stuff before but this is sooooo worth it! When in St. Louis this place is a must visit. This is one of St. Louis' specialties and once you taste it you will know why ;)
You're welcome, ha!
xoxox...Have a lovely day...xoxox

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