Friday's Fabulous Family Recipe: Southwestern Salad!

I found the recipe for this amazing meatless dish several months ago and filed it away to try at a later date.

Well, I put it at the top of the pile recently and it was a HIT!!

I did not like the name of the original recipe so I did rename it for our family.

I think our name more accurately reflects the flavors that are represented in this dish.

It is cool and refreshing to eat, and super easy to toss together.

It's also very transportable and would be easy to take to a church potluck instead of 

a box of fried chicken strips or chocolate cake!!

I also just LOVE how colorful this salad is,

and how pretty it is on your plate!

It's even better the next day because the flavors have had more time to blend!

We just love it.

I have found several children who enjoy this as well!

The recipe can be found here.

{You CAN} Teach Your Child Thursday: Free $5 gift certificate to Veritas Press

Veritas Press is a very good resource for homeschooling curriculum especially is you like the classical style of home education.
Right now, they have a special promotion going on where you can very easily sign up for a free $5 gift certificate, and then for every friend you get to sign up, you get an additional $5.
Sign up here to get your $5 gift certificate, and I'll get an extra $5 too!!

T1 Tuesdays: Illness and the Type 1 Diabetic

Last week we had a stomach virus slither it's way quietly through our house.
It was selective in who it chose to take down, but was mild thankfully enough.
It did not bring with it a fever or aches or diarrhea, nor did it strike in the dead of the night strangling it's victims in the grip of death.
It would begin simply near the break of dawn, cause a couple trips to the bathroom, and then suspend itself in less than 24 hours.
THAT, my friends, I can handle.
It's what happened to our family on this week exactly one year ago that I cringe with fear to remember and pray never returns.
You can read about that nightmare here. 

Anyway, one of the victims of this latest bout was our Type 1 Diabetic.
I always take for granted what my body just does on it's own when I'm not feeling well.
But it's different when you're sick and one of your organs is completely shut down.
When Ashlyn gets sick, an entirely different monster takes over.
It's called "ketones."
You can google the term "ketoacidosis" and get a plethora of information on what happens inside her body.
For the laymen though, it means that her body starts using the fat for energy instead of converting glucose to energy.
It results in tremendous stomach pain and usually vomiting for her.
That results in an inability to keep fluid down, so there is a build-up of ketones in her system.
It makes her feel worse.
When her ketones measure "large" {we have ketone strips that she dips in her urine for this reading}we have to give her 20% of her total amount of insulin intake for the entire day.
For example, if we add up all the insulin she takes in a day {humalog and lantus at all meals and bedtime}and the total is 73 units {for both insulins} then we give her 20% of that which would be 14.6 units.
The tricky part with that is how high her blood sugar levels are at that moment.
If she is over 250, we don't worry too much about her blood sugar dropping too low.
But this last weekend, she would have large ketones but her blood sugars would be in normal ranges.
We still have to give her that large dose of humalog to bring down the ketones, but she also has to take in some carbs so her blood sugar doesn't plummet.
That was the balancing act we were playing all weekend.
High ketones.....vomiting....normal blood sugars.....large dose of insulin.....sips of regular sprite {instead of diet}.....more vomiting.....moderate ketones.....feeling better.....low blood sugar....more sprite.....more vomiting.....and on and on.
She pricked her fingers for blood sugar testing at least 10 times on Saturday.
Never complained.
Not once.
She's my hero.
It did seem to take her a little longer to get back to feeling 100%, but then we declared her officially well yesterday mid-morning....so it wasn't bad overall.....
compared to LAST year......eeeeeek!

First birthday of the year!!

Last Thursday, January 19, 2012, we celebrated the first birthday in our family of this year.
Our youngest turned 4!!

Another free scrapbook design by Smilebox

Friday's Fabulous Family Recipe: Moroccan Vegetarian Stew

In keeping with the adventures of trying different ethnic flavors, I knew I had to try this recipe when I found it.
It did not disappoint either.
It is very fragrant and just looked so beautiful with all it's colors blending together in the pan.
Another thing I've found about experimenting with plant-based dishes is that using lots of bright colors makes the dishes so aesthetically pleasing that it just invites you to try it.
The recipe calls for potatoes, but I had some extra sweet potatoes laying around so I just used those.
That added another burst of color and I think it gave it more flavor.
Next time I'm going to add a bit more pink salt to really enhance the flavors.
Serve it over steaming hot brown basmati rice with a flavorful salad and you've got a fabulous meal!!
Find the recipe here!

Friday's Fabulous Family Recipe: Cuban Black Beans

Let me just say at the outset that this is bar none....one of THE best recipes I've come across in YEARS!
One of my "resolutions" for 2012 was to experiment with more plant-based recipes to expand my repertoire of dishes for our lunch and dinner meals.
When switching from processed food with lots of animal products in the mix, you really need to present your family with lots of different color and flavor choices so they don't get bored too easily.
I don't want them feeling deprived of all their old favorites, so I would like for them to get to try something new as often as I can find something!!

So when I found this recipe.....I knew I had to try it.
It looked really good to me.
And I wasn't disappointed.
It is so fragrant and delicious!!
The very first day I made this, my husband walked in the door from work, practically ran into the kitchen and said,  "Whoa!!  What smells so GOOD?!?"
After he actually tasted it....he told me {jokingly, of course} that if I didn't put this recipe on our regular rotation that he would divorce me!!
I have really enjoyed trying flavors that come from other ethnicities.
I'm learning that thinking outside my "comfort zone" of cooking has broadened my appreciation of other cultures and their food choices!!
We love this dish served with or over brown basmati rice with fresh sliced tomatoes or a salad!!
Find this amazing recipe........here.

**As a side note....I substituted {2-3} 15 oz. cans of black beans for the dry beans.

{You CAN} Teach Your Child Thursdays!

After homeschooling for a number of years now, I've finally started to see a pattern emerge.
In August/September, schoolwork is new, and fun, and exciting.

By December, we're all into a pretty good routine, but definitely ready for a nice long winter break.
After the holidays are over and we slide back into our routines, sometimes we're dealing with major cabin fever because of the wintry weather, and often are dealing with sickness.

By end of January/February, we start to feel like our routines are cumbersome, and the children get uncooperative and lose interest.
It's hard to want to stay with everything when the end of our school year seems so far away, yet we still have so much to do!!
I recently found an article that was really practical and helpful in combating those difficult stages of the year:

10 Ways to Make Your Homeschooling Days Easier

I completely agree that you need to be prepared and organized.

I also am a huge fan of the workbox system. 

We use it in our homeschooling, and it has revolutionized our home!!

I also agree that making quiet time for yourself is a must!!

I get up earlier now than I ever did before because it's the only time I can have quiet time to focus

on the Lord and His Word for more than 5 minute spurts!!

It gets my day started much gentler and more grounded, and reminds me right from the start that God is bigger than anything I may face that day!!

I am also a huge fan of an organized way to make your grocery lists and meal plans so you don't have to be away from the home any more than absolutely necessary!

I would love to go grocery shopping twice a month, but we lack the storage space for all we need.

So, for the moment, I shop once a week!

But that's it.

No running to the store everyday.

But you have to know in advance what you are preparing for meals this weekend and next week so you have everything on hand.

Making a menu for all 3 meals a week in advance {at least} is super helpful, and cuts down on the amount of time you need to be spending in the kitchen as well!!

Just a few simple tips for simplifying our homes that are schools as well!!