Christmas and Holiday Time

So this is the first year that we were able to make and decorate Christmas cookies that were allergy and intolerance-free. This recipe or  try these vegan cutout cookies.

This is the first year I was able to have an open house for new neighbours.

This is the first year that I received more Christmas cards from the UK than the USA.  

This is the first year that we have a two year old and I am not pregnant!

Lots to be thankful for.  My heart is full.

Have you taken a moment to breathe?  Have you taken a moment to just be quiet?

I was able to read One Morning in Maine to little Jennifer today, and she loved it, savoring every picture.  

When was the last time you stopped and just enjoyed the children? Or if you don't have children, when was the last time you called a friend just to say, I love you and I'm glad you're in my life?

Boxing Day traditions started today. 

Boxing Day Bacon and Egg Breakfast

Boxing Day Bath (for me! a rare occurrence)

Boxing Day Building (Lego! and just today, a remote control car that had to be built from scratch)

Boxing Day Bible (certainly should be first in the list)

Boxing Day Breathing (essential oils help with this)

Happy New Year 2015!!

Another Birthday, Another chance to eat cake!

 We started off the day at 6am, so that Daddy could be part of the celebrating.  David is 7 today, and we're so thankful for him.  To help him not get too focussed on himself, the other children were each given an UNbirthday present.  Even Jenny, who is 2 1/2 got into the action helping her big sister open some girlie Mega Blocks. (similar to Lego)  Inbetween school subjects, we had a cake and ice cream eating fest, which you can only do in homeschooling!
He asked for a Ninja cake, with a  tornado on top.  There were Ninja figures, and there was a mess of frosting, but it ended up looking more like a volcano than a tornado.  Hey-ho, he was happy!
We baked this!
You all need to try this cake.  So easy, so delicious! And the frosting, well, that was the kid's favourite part.
Some powdered sugar (about 180 g), some margarine/coconut oil (about 125 g), 1 tsp. Vanilla, HAND MIX, until you think your arm will fall off, then presto--- smooth, yummy, melt in your mouth sweetness. I give all credit to this lovely lady at Azelia's kitchen.
Chocolate Icing recipe.
Forgive my lack of postings recently-- we have had a tough start to the year, with several illnesses.  I have realized my limitations, and am trying to better balanced with this new self-knowledge.  Here's to a bright 2015, and many more vegan gluten free CAKES!

Play Dough Sculpture

 Valerie dreams of being a sculptor.  Her Art during school time today consisted of lovingly crafting this mermaid and hair bow. 

She said the hair bow was big enough to fit in Jenny's hair. But then she quickly added "Of course not REALLY, Mom, but it's the right size."

Security

What makes you feel secure?  To know that your house has good locks on the doors and windows?  To know that when you put the key in the ignition, your car will start?  To know who loves you?
I think my children feel secure when I get cozy with them.  When I hug them and tell them not only that I love them, but I like them.

 Some days and weeks are hard.  Sometimes the mornings feel like a battleground, especially if any one of the children is short on sleep.  I admit that sometimes I do not enjoy my children.  When I am tired, I feel like I am tolerating them til I can put them in bed at night.  But if I keep my distance when my child throws a screaming tantrum, what does that say about my love for them? It says, "I'll love you when you behave like I want you to."   If I am most carefree when they're in bed, and they do not see me laugh and smile at them, I am withholding some of myself from them.

For one of my children, she feels secure when she knows what is going to happen.  She likes to know what we are going to eat and when. She likes to have her outfit picked out well before she actually needs to be dressed.  I think part of her desire to feel secure plays out in her desire to have control. Ever since she was tiny, I spent every waking moment making sure I knew where she was, what she was doing, and how she was feeling (if I could figure that out!). Now I realize I gradually have to loosen my control and teach her how to be okay with things not going as planned. Trouble is, I'm not even sure I've learned how to be that way! 

For the boys, they feel secure when they know they have food and lots of hugs . They don't like to be rushed and feel secure when I am calm and cheerful. 

For my toddler, security means I carry her as often as possible, and I lie down next to her for a few minutes before she goes to sleep.

 I'm glad growing up doesn't happen overnight. And I'm even more glad that there is Grace.

Renewed Vision

A few weeks ago, Mat and I were able to attend the Reliv Europe conference at Disneyland Paris. No, we did not see Mickey! I was asked to share my story with 1,000 very enthusiastic people from the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, France and the UK. 

My husband stood beside me as I told how 10 years ago I was too tired to contemplate climbing a mountain with him. Every day was a mountain, with migraine headaches, constant allergy symptoms, and a list of 15 foods I had to avoid. Within three months of drinking Reliv shakes, my health was totally transformed. I was able to climb a 12,000 foot snow pass with Mat, and I got choked up remem-bering what a big deal that was.  

Another highlight of the conference was the launch of a new product: Lunasin capsules. Reliv has always had powdered nutrition that feeds the body at the cell level, and now it has capsules containing Lunasin, the concentrated soy peptide that has now been proven to lower cholesterol, improve immunity, and reduce inflammation. Both of our dads struggle with their high cholesterol and had fathers who died of heart attacks. It is so encouraging to have something which offers hope of breaking this cycle.

I decided to start taking some capsules at the conference and was amazed to see my back pain, which started up during the past few months of stress and strain, disappear in just two days. I had been limping for weeks before, and even the chiropractor had not  been able to alleviate my discomfort.

Since the conference, I've been encouraged to start working consistently again, which means putting in an hour a day on the phone, sharing the company and products that have changed our lives so much. It's fun to see the kids take ownership too, as we paint a vision of where this business will take our family. While at Disneyland my husband was "drawn" into the Lego shop, and we invested in a set of "Reliv Legos," which the children play with while I work to make others aware of these life-changing products.

Chilly Weather Soup and Cornbread

Sometimes you just want a comforting soup and cornbread, and autumn in England certainly creates the need! This soup recipe was amazing and the only changes I made were using dairy-free margarine and coconut oil instead of butter. It was beautifully creamy. And everyone except our texture-phobic Jimmy loved it. 

This cornbread recipe is adapted from an old Mennonite cookbook called "More with Less"

Basic Cornbread
Combine the following dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl:

1 C. gluten-free flour
1 C. cornmeal
4 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
3T. brown sugar
1/2 t. xanthan gum

Make a well and add:

1 C. soy milk or coconut milk

1/4 C. oil

2 eggs (flax eggs work well here)

Spread (mix will be thick) into 8x8 pan, and bake at 375 degrees for 25 min.

Best eaten warm!

Moving...again!

This will be our seventh move in six years and although I am reeling a bit, I thought it might be good to share a system we are using that is helping everybody stay sane (at least where the packing is concerned!).

Mat, my husband, has named it the Jenga shelf system. 2"x28" wood pieces support sheets of plywood and the boxes slide into the temporary shelves. The shelving packs compactly and assembles quickly as boxes are unloaded from the moving truck. In the new house, this whole system is reused until gradually we have everything unpacked. While at our house here in Manchester, some boxes were never unpacked, so the shelves served as storage support.

All the boxes are numbered and coordinate with a master spreadsheet that is categorised. For instance, 2-K1 is Move number 2, kitchen box 1. Move number 1 was from Newcastle to Manchester just nine months ago.

Above is a screen shot of one page of the master spreadsheet.  This is such a help when you really need something, but don't want to unpack all the kitchen boxes to find it! This is also a great system for loft or garage storage when you want to keep things packed for a while.

I won't be doing much blogging for the next several weeks as our move is early next month and homeschooling and life must continue regardless of packing and unpacking. Stay tuned for pictures from our new location! You wouldn't waste a prayer on us if we come to mind in the next few weeks.