A VERY, VERY BIG DAY!

We are so, so excited to announce that this morning around 10:30 a.m., Titus Paul became forever ours. We have copies of the official adoption decree and we couldn't be happier. I've been smiling ever since. We opted to keep the date quiet for the same reasons that we waited to post pictures of our precious son.

It was such a pleasant surprise that we were able to finalize so quickly. With the unknowns surrounding his birth, I've been so anxious for this day to come. While we trusted that it would and it had already happened in our hearts, I think we are breathing a sigh of relief. I feel exhausted beyond belief - I think emotional exhaustion. It has been a whirlwind few months and I'm so glad that Ty is officially, legally, and forever a part of our family.

What a beautiful day. We were a little emotional at the hearing - hard to believe, right? :) Having had the privilege of being in court now for all three of our children, there is nothing like hearing the wonderful words granting your children a permanent, legal place in your family. We feel so blessed. We could never in a million years have chosen a more perfect way for our family to be formed or more perfect children for us. God has been so gracious to our family.

So please rejoice with us today! We are SO happy!

Keeping Creative Kitchens #5

It's time for another edition of Keeping Creative Kitchens! This week I want to share a new recipe we enjoyed last week. I talked about how good it was in my menu plan but I wanted to share the recipe here with a (not great :)) photo. My family loves soup and I'm always looking for new recipes. I am also interested in how to get my kids to eat more veggies and to have diversity in their diet. Soup has been hands-down one of the best ways. They are nearly always excited about it and this soup was no exception.

I found this positively reviewed recipe, created by Alton Brown, on the Food Network website. I changed a few things and put my own spin on it but I have to give the majority of credit to Brown - it was his foundation and his inspiration. So without further commentary, here it is :):

CURRIED SPLIT PEA SOUP

2 tablespoons butter
1 med. chopped onion
1/2 - 1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 Tblsp. minced fresh garlic
1 3/4 c. dried green or yellow split peas, picked over and rinsed
5 c. chicken broth (can use 4 c. broth & 1 c. water)
1 Tb. curry powder
6 pieces bacon, cooked and crumbled (opt.)
Chives for garnish (opt.)
Sour cream or yogurt for garnish (opt.)

Place the butter into a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Once melted, add the onion and a generous pinch of salt and sweat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and continue to sweat for an additional 1 to 2 minutes, making certain not to allow onions or garlic to brown.

Add the peas, chicken broth, curry powder, and bacon pieces. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook at a simmer until the peas are tender and not holding their shape any longer, approximately 45 to 50 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Using care and a stick blender, puree the soup until the desired consistency. Watch out for hot splatters.

It doesn't look very green but that's just my poor photography. :) It's not overwhelmingly curry flavored though you can definitely taste it. I think carrots would be a wonderful addition. Anyway, I served the soup with biscuits. Andrew ate the leftovers the next day and thought it was great. Patrick told me it was, "delicious." What more can a mom want? :)

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Happy Thursday, everyone! Thanks for stopping by Keeping Creative Kitchens! I'm looking forward to all your great ideas, recipes, and resources. Feel free to grab the button for your post - you don't have to know me to play along and you don't have to participate to comment or ask questions! :)

Here are just a few guidelines for participating in Keeping Creative Kitchens:
1) Leave a link to your post with Mr. Linky (I am fully aware that there will probably not be many - or any :) - participants but I think this will make participation easier!).
2) Your entry can include a new recipe (either your own creation or a new-to-you-recipe), favorite recipe, success, tablescape/centerpiece, short-cut, ingredient, tradition, book, magazine, tool or gadget, food photos, recipe website or any thing else that keeps you inspired in your kitchen.
3) Please link back here in your participating post.

Hope you have fun, meet new people, learn a few things, feel encouraged, and find inspiration as you prepare meals, care for your family, and entertain!

Fashion Help

Please someone tell me what kind of shoes to buy for the winter. I've worn out about four pairs and don't really have any cool weather shoes. I looked today to replace with one pair of black, one pair of brown, and/or one pair of casual boots and I could not figure out what works. HELP!!! Post links, describe the right style...I just don't know...I find the selection overwhelming all the while not really liking much...

Vote for the Winners!

VOTE IN THE COLUMN TO THE RIGHT!

We've chosen our top three and one honorable mention (okay, two for #3 :)) for each picture and now it's your turn! Vote on your favorite of the top three to help determine the winners! Winners will have a choice between a $5 Starbucks gift card and the cookbook, Forever Summer by: Nigella Lawson ($30 value). If one person wins more than one, than you may choose both prizes OR a $10 gift card. I'll leave the voting open until Saturday and then the winners will be posted - if you are one of the nominees, feel free to send people over to vote for you. :) Thanks to those of you who entered - I'm sorry you couldn't all win because you all made me laugh! Maybe I will make this a more frequent feature - what do you think?!

NOTE: The captions are listed in no particular order.

#1

#1 - “Who? Me? I'm pretty sure you got the wrong guy.”
#1 - "What? Do I have something on my face?"
#1 - "Mom, you think I look pretty, don't you . . . ?"

HM - #1 – “Ate what... I didn't eat anything...”

#2

#2 - "The corn dog is really the rarest of meats and should be paired with a glass of pinot noir to really release the flavor" (said in a very snooty voice)
#2 - “AHHH the bliss of on exquisitely prepared tube steak...”
#2 - “Oh... you only wish you looked this good eating a hot dog!”

HM - #2 - "Yes, I enjoy a corn dog . . . doesn't every boy?"

#3

#3 - “HEY how about a WARM washcloth for the next diaper change...”
#3 - "You're going to stick THAT, WHERE?"
#3 - "I should have told the waiter to hold the jalapenos."

HM - #3 - "Did you see my Mommy in picture #4?"
2nd HM - #3 - Titus just saw the Colts record for the first time this season.

#4

#4 - “I have three children under the age of four... so yes, this is a good hair day!”
#4 - “3 boys - no wonder my halo slipped!”
#4 - Infomercial announcer: "Great news, Ladies, in just five simple steps, you too can look like this!”

HM - #4 - What, you think I look this way naturally?

Please do take time to read the post highlighting giving opportunities below.

Giving

As we head into the holiday season, I've been wanting to highlight some organizations that I really appreciate. While we give all year, we always try to give a little extra this time of year and to find some worthy causes. I am so grateful that my parents desired to instill in us a giving spirit and every year we participated in some kind of charitable organization.

Perhaps you are looking for a way to give this year. These are all charities that we plan to make a priority and perhaps these will be causes that you might consider also.

TWO HEARTS FOR HOPE: I personally know Kim & Stacy, the two founders of this great organization. They recently were recepients of an Angels in Adoption award. They champion a cause very close to our hearts. They raise money and donations for orphanages in Kazakhstan. Two Hearts recently was granted non-profit status so your donations are tax-deductible. This Christmas season, $15 will provide a Christmas gift for a deserving child. The very best part is that the child will be taken to shop for his/her own gift. It is a rare day that a child in the orphanages of Kazakhstan are able to leave their orphanage much less to buy something for themselves. When I learned about this opportunity, tears came to my eyes. We will never forget our amazing time in Kazakhstan and we will never forget the MANY children still there waiting for their forever families.

KARAGANDA KIDS: Muriel is also a friend of mine, fellow adoptive mom, and also passionate for the orphans left behind in Kazakhstan. She is accepting undergarment donations for her OPERATION UNDERGARMENT to send for the children in Karaganda. She will collecting donations of new underwear and undershirts for children age 2-5. You can find all the information at the link.

COMPASSION INTERNATIONAL: This is an amazing organization that reaches children all over the world. When I learned about Compassion earlier this year, I knew it was an important ministry for our family to involved with. We sponsor a little boy in Ethiopia and have even exchanged letters with him. We send a monthly donation to help with his schooling and needs. And we have a few opportunities every year to send a little extra for him. The ability to identify a specific child is so meaningful. We can show our children the picture as we pray for this precious little boy. There are many children all over the world still waiting for sponsors - you can choose a child today.

SAMARITAN'S PURSE: This is a relief and evanglism ministry and one of my favorite projects they sponsor is Operation Christmas Child. They have been doing this for several years and my parents had us participate in it - we LOVED it! We made an evening of it as we shopped for our boxes and tried to stuff as many gifts as possible into them. We talked about the children we hoped would love the gifts and imagined their delight - we knew we would like the boxes! :) We have done this a few times since being married and hope to enlist our boys help this year in choosing things for the special boxes. The deadline is rapidly approaching for this project so check it out! There are donation drop-off sights around the country and many around our city so you can find a location near you.

There are always local opportunities as well - with local missions, serving or delivering holiday meals, donating toys and clothes, participating in Angel Tree, and many others. I challenge you to consider how your family might be involved not only this time of year but all year.

Do you have favorite ministries?

Quick Note

What a beautiful day!!! I took the kids to the zoo this morning and we really enjoyed it! There weren't very many people there which was awesome - C & P ran all over until they came to the baboons. We watched the baboons for a long time and they laughed so hard at the babies antics. It was such a wonderful way to spend this gorgeous, warm, fall day. I did forget my camera which made Calvin sad - he wanted me to take a picture of him petting the goat. :)

I worked on a project Saturday that has left me in quite a lot of pain. I struggle (as you may recall) with tendinitis/carpal tunnel/neck injury. So I'm praying that the pain will be relieved - I head to the doctor tomorrow.

Also, I'm working hard to update my recipe blog with many more recipes. If there is anything you would like to see included, please let me know via comment or e-mail! I'm hoping to take it under construction one of these days and see what other features would make it more user friendly.

Fall Menu Plan

Last week I planned four meals and we ate three of them - not too bad. ;) We were busy! I made the Curried Split Pea Soup and it was amazing. The kids even loved it! I'm adding it to my recipe blog with the changes I made. So here is the plan for this week:

Beef & Broccoli Noodle Stir-fry, Brown Rice, Fruit
Pizza, Vegetables, Apples w/Dip
Sweet Potato Pancakes w/Spiced Pecan & Peach Butter*, Yogurt
Butternut Squash Risotto*, Mixed Green Salad w/ Pears
Award Winning South Fork Chili, Cornbread, Salad

Hopefully, we'll be able to enjoy several nights of family meals - Andrew will probably work late a couple of nights. We also start back to hosting our highschool Bible Study this week - we can't wait! I may also make some muffins and cookies this week - we'll see how it goes!Hope you have a wonderful time around your table. Thanks to Laura for hosting!

* = new recipe

Trick-or-Treat

The boys had an awesome time trick-or-treating last night with their cousins! We don't make a big deal about Halloween but we do let the boys dress-up and go out for trick-or-treating! They wanted to be cows but the costumes didn't fit so they were cowboys instead. :) We have a $10 or less rule for costumes and we were pleased to only spend about $10 total on Calvin & Patrick's outfits since they already had some of the things!

We didn't manage to catch many smiles with the camera but there were LOTS of them. :) They did great about saying trick-or-treat and thank you (well, Patrick would say "trick-or-treating").

Calvin - tired by the end!

Patrick - so serious.

Ty - our cute spit-up puppy. :)

Trick-or-treating - they were so excited about the candy! They normally aren't allowed to have very much. :)

Heading down the street to the next house.

In their costumes.

Our three little guys. I've already explained how hard it is to get three smiling and looking at the camera. *sigh*

The Whole Family.

All the cute kids! It was so fun spending the evening (and overnight!) with cousins.

Ava - giraffe, Toby - skunk, Clayton - frog, Calvin & Patrick - cowboys, Titus - puppy

Winners & Misc.

Congrats to Amy & The Schros for winning the cookbook giveaway! I will be posting the finalists for the caption contest soon and then you can vote! We had a wonderful evening and overnight with cousins last night...I'll be posting pictures on the boys' blog soon.

I started a furniture project that has been calling to me for a few months - can't wait to show you the finished products! I'm in the organizing mood - sterilite here I come. :) I officially started Christmas shopping a couple of weeks ago - I may even wrap them soon. Bill Cosby still makes me laugh. I LOVE having three kids - I am, however, in a perpetual state of exhaustion and my house doesn't remember what clean is. :) Titus is laughing and cooing and is super social - he does not wish to be left alone for fear of missing something - it's adorable! I'm glad it's daylight savings tonight. I feel constantly blessed.