Scripture Sunday

“But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”- 1 Samuel 16:7

GIVEAWAY WINNER

Using Random.org, our winner is............ (drum roll please...)

"The Wades"

Please check out their blog here:

http://jeremyandamywade.blogspot.com/

Congratulations!!! :D

Northwestern Irony

Hehehe... I had a funny thought today. It's ironic that I live in the Northwest with who I am. I hate coffee. I hate sea food. And I HATE rain and cold. But I really can't escape either of these things in my daily life because of where I live. How funny! :D

Well, our trip to the park was very nice. I had a great long talk with Marina, Nevaeh's mother. It was great to have a connection with another woman. She's about ten years, give or take, older than me, but we had a really great talk. It's nice. I honestly don't have a lot of good close friends any more, now that I'm out of school. The friends I have made in recent years have all been at college (who I don't see any more) or at church. It's a good feeling to have some new friends.

Well, I hope that everyone has had a great day! I just realized today is the last day of my contest! I'll choose the winner tomorrow--give it a couple extra hours. ;)

My Week O' Break

Thanks for my contest, I've been taking the week off from blogging. I usually spend my day writing short stories. I love it. It's my secret passion. I should share some of what I'm writing sometime. =) But for now, it's after ten .... almost ten thirty in the morning. I'm exhausted. Anna had another one of those rough nights where sleep is not a prerogative. Good for her lol. On the other hand, mommy could use a hot shower in coffee... not that I drink coffee, I just bathe in it from time to time... I was thinking the other day, I have a lot of food aversions. Ever stop and think about stuff you like or don't like? If I put it on paper, I'm a pretty picky eater. I don't like beef, pork, sea food of any kind, coffee, strong tea... OK, OK, I'm going off on a tangent... It's the exhaustion. I blame that. Anyhow, Anna and I are going to the park soon with a lady from our church and her daughter, Nevaeh. Nevaeh is almost exactly a year older than Anna and she's smart as a whip, very sweet, big blue eyes. I love the girl, honestly. So, we're off to do that. Fascinating, huh? Just a little update on our lives. I'll have to post some of my short story sometime soon. :)

Secure 2 Me Giveaway

GIVEAWAY CLOSED!!!!!!!!

(What'd I tell you? Silky goodness!)

(Anna wanted to pose with it... don't worry, I didn't let her tear it out of the package... I'll leave that job to your little one...)

Thank you Secure2Me! This product is simply amazing. Coming from the Great Northwest, where windy cold weather is as common as breathing oxygen, I'm in love with this product! I can't tell you how many times Anna, my little dd, has kicked off blankets into the mud on our walks! Lucky, lucky, lucky YOU! I've got one to give away! No more kicked off blankets!

Clips On & Stays On

Secure2Me Blanket is the first and only blanket that clips on and stays on. No need for any other hardware or ties.

Stays put with ease
Each corner features a finger-friendly clip that quickly and easily attaches to any fabric with one hand.

Grows with your child
Designed to fit your newborn to preschooler in all your baby gear for many years of use.

Comfortable
Your baby will crave the cuddle-soft fabrics and unique blanket shape provides the perfect fit.

Durable
Crafted from only the highest-quality fabrics and triple surged to stand up well in your washing machine and with the toughest of toddlers.

Machine washable
Easily kept clean with periodic washes.

The Secure2Me blanket is so adorable. The one I have to give away is not only adorable, but it's enviously adorable. It's a silky red Asian material... GORGEOUS!

Be sure to check out the Secure2Me Blog!!!

Go to this site for more Bloggy Giveaways! There's a Carnival Going On! Hundreds of chances to win!!!

Sweet JC Penney Sale!

Did anybody else take advantage of this sale? They had so many girls clothes (and boys clothes) there! Anna came away with at least 6 skirts, three or four onesies, 6 or more shirts, all for 1.97 each! Score!!! And all were so adorable!

I got two bras, 5.00 each. Boy do I feel busty in those things, though, lol. They have quite a bit of padding. I think they make me at least a B-Cup. hahaha!

DH got a shirt. It looks very nice on him.

Let me tell you, this is the way to dress your kids... wait for the awesome sales. Target is always having sales on their clothing as well (usually on Mondays and especially after big holidays). All of Anna's shoes have been bought there on sale for 2.78 a pair.

Anyhow, had to share the love...

Thank you, JC Penney!!!

Scripture Sunday

“[God Disciplines His Sons] Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
- Hebrews 12:1

FFF: Friends

Here are a few photos of Anna's little friends:
(((PICTURES REMOVED BY AUTHOR))

My 20 Month Old

Here's a photo I snapped today of my 20 Month Old Daughter!!!

Scripture Sunday

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”- 1 John 1:7

It's After Midnight...

Anna is 20 Months Old!!!

Printer Giveaway @ 7 Dogs & a Baby

Seven Dogs and a Baby is giving away a A536 photo printer (I'm honestly not too sure what that means... but hey, it's a free printer if you win! I'm psyched!) You can edit your photos and print them out at your own convenience... I like that. I've been dying for a photo printer for some time. So if you'd like to sign up for the giveaway, just click here!

20 Months Tomorrow!

It's such a big step in so many ways... to see my baby turning twenty months old. She won't be __teen months old or any of that any more. She's growing closer to being two years old. I won't have a baby for long. It's sad and wonderful all at once. I love seeing her learn new things. The biggest reward is seeing her personality develop. She's funny, she's silly, she's adventurous. She loves to sing and dance. She loves Spongebob and babies. She's such a doll. Right now she's sitting and watching The Backyardigans with a red bucket hat on her head that she put on herself. =) She's so cute!!! Oh I love my girl!

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ah! Desserts! So... do vegans miss out on the most simple of earth's pleasures? These Vegan Cookies sure do look pretty normal... with the exception of the flax eggs... that's a little odd ROFL!
Oh, sorry if this seems so random. My interests change so quickly some times.
Once again, I'm not vegan, but I'm quite curious in how vegans eat now! Maybe you have been? I mean, it can't be easy to avoid dairy products and meat products...

The best vegan chocolate chip cookies I've ever created. Seriously. Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Use the amount of butter called for if you want a slightly chunky cookie. A little more for a thin and very crispy cookie. Includes recipe for a healthy and fun vegan egg substitute!

• 2 1/3 cups unbleached white flour (you can use 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 unbleached white too)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup non-dairy butter (preferably non-hydrogenated too)(2 sticks)
• 1 scant cup organic cane sugar, or other granulated sugar
• 1 scant cup organic powdered sugar
• 2 flax eggs (recipe below)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 12 ounces non-dairy chocolate chips
*Flax Eggs*
• 1/3 cup flax seeds
• 1 cup water

1. To make the flax eggs: Grind flax seeds in a blender or food processor. Slowly add water and blend until it produces a gooey mixture. This makes 6 flax "eggs". Refrigerate unused flax eggs in refrigerator for up to 6 days. (Be sure to clean out blender immediately!)

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3. Sift together flour and baking soda, set aside. Beat together butter and both sugars. Beat in egg replacer (6 Tbsp flax goo = 2 eggs) and vanilla. Add flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips.

4. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 13 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove cookies to racks to cool completely -- they'll firm up considerably.

Yield: 2 dozen

Variations:

• Add chopped macadamias or walnuts

Mama's thoughts: They certainly look normal. And I would think that they would taste pretty normal. I've had carob chips before, and they actually taste like the real thing.... maybe a little more sugary, though. What do you think?

Vegan Pizza

NO I am not a vegan, but lately I've been thinking... how in the world do vegans eat??? I mean, it seems that everything is made with cheese, eggs, or milk. No fast food... that's for sure... I bet you'd maintain a healthy weight, too... hmmm... maybe I should consider it? Nah... too lazy to cook every single meal hahaa!

So... without further ado.. Vegan Pizza

Topping

1 tin chopped tomatoes

1 or more cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 small onion

3 tbsp. tomato purée

1 tsp. rosemary

1 tsp. Sage

2 oz. hard vegan cheese (e.g. Scheese, Cheezley etc.)

Your choice of toppings. I recommend: sliced mushrooms, peppers, sweetcorn, olives, artichoke hearts, smoky tofu, vegan meat substitutes such as Cheatin' Ham.

Fry onion until soft and garlic. Add tomatoes, herbs and purée and cook for a few minutes. Add a handful of wholemeal flour if you want to make the sauce thicker.

Spread the sauce over the pizza base. Add toppings and cover with cheese.

Leave the pizza to stand in a warm place for 15 minutes whilst pre-heating the oven.

Bake at Gas Mark 9 / 250 °C / 470 °F for 15-20 minu

You can buy ready made pizza bases but that's cheating...It takes a long time to make this pizza, but it's worth it. The measures below are enough for a 12 inch pizza.

Pizza Base

1 lb (450g) plain 85% wholemeal flour
1 sachet dried yeast (wouldn't that not be a vegan ingredient? aren't yeast live creatures? hmm)
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
6 fl oz (150 ml) warm water

Put all the ingredients into a bowl and mix into a dough. Add more water or oil if necessary. Knead for 5 minutes to get air into the dough. Put into a bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Put into a bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Leave to rise for about half an hour while you make the topping.

Punch down the dough, roll out into a circle on a baking sheet or pizza dish.

Topping

1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 or more cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 small onion
3 tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp rosemary
1 tsp sage

2 oz hard vegan cheese (eg Scheeze, Cheezley, etc.)
Your choice of toppings. I recommend: sliced mushrooms, peppers, sweetcorn, olives, artichoke hearts, smoky tofu, vegan meat substitutes such as Cheatin' Ham.

Fry onion until soft and garlic. Add tomatoes, herbs, and puree and cook for a few minutes. Add a handful of wholemeal flour if you want to make the sauce thicker.

Spread the sauce over the pizza base. Add toppings and cover with cheese. Leave the pizza to stand in a warm place for 15 minutes whilst pre-heating the oven.

Bake at 475 for 15-20 minutes.
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Mama's thoughts: I'm surprised at how NORMAL this recipe seemed! The only things that are really 'substituted' are the vegan cheese and the vegan meat. I'm honestly not a big meat eater. I hate beef, seafood of any kind, shell fish, crab... all that... I'm also not fond of pork... so it really wouldn't be too abnormal of a meal. The only thing I'd really miss is cheese. I do love cheese. But from what I've heard, some vegan cheeses are quite tasty... What do you think?