Hope in Tragedy and the Day to Day

                                          image credit

I had a handful of posts that I had scheduled to post this week.  In light of everything that's going on in the world, it just seemed so trivial to post about muffins or our field trips.  

With the devastating earthquake in Nepal and the rioting in Baltimore, it's been a heavy week for the world.  Although, there aren't any weeks or days that go by that don't hold tragedy.

The story goes that we all still have to put one foot in front of the other and life continues to go on.  We all still have to feed our children or go to work or fold laundry or eat a meal, whatever it is that we all do, life still calls for us. As trivial as some things may seem in light of tragedy, life still calls.

Regarding the tragedies and the atrocities in the world, some will do or give nothing.  Others will give everything!  The most important thing we can do is...

Know Our Part in the Story
May we allow our compassion, our grief or even our anger to drive us to do our part. We need to know our part in this story of life.  For many, that means pray and talk to our children about these things. Teach them. Exemplify compassion, love, and servanthood.  Prepare future generations to be and do better.

For others, that means give in some way. Money, time, resources or HOPE! 

Next week, there will be different parts to the story.  Sadly, there will be more tragedy, loss, pain, suffering and injustice.  More people in the East may continue to lose their homes or lives for living for Him. Yet, I may still post about muffins or silly trips to the beach.  That does not, however, mean I will stand by and do nothing!

"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted, He rescues those whose spirits are crushed."     ~Psalm 34:18

What is your part in this story of life?

Recipe: an alternative to microwave popcorn

Let's face it, the aroma (and taste) of microwave popcorn is amazing.  It's so quick and easy to make and has been a faithful friend at many a movie night.  Sadly, like many great snacks, it makes the list of "too good to be true" on the healthy list.

At the very least, almost all brands of popcorn are made with the bag lined with perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA).  When heated, this toxic chemical has been linked to infertility, cancer and other diseases in lab animals.  It can also stay in the human body and the environment for long periods of time. 

In our family, we love having movie nights (Among our favorites are: Little House on the Prarie, Star Wars and the new T.V. series, A.D.)  What we don't love are the toxic chemicals that come with microwave popcorn.   

Sooooo, we are very glad to have found an alternative that has an amazing taste without all of the added chemicals.

Stove Top Popcorn Recipe:

1 tsp coconut oil
1/4 c organic popping kernels
Sea Salt or Pink Himalayan Salt

Simply, add about 1tsp. of coconut oil to a pan and melt.  Pour in about 1/4c of organic kernels. Cover with a lid and wait until most of the kernels pop. Add salt to flavor. 

What's your favorite movie snack?

It's great to be back!

So....wow, it's been awhile.  I literally have not posted since spring of last year.  That's an entire year. 

I miss writing here, but life has been happening. Mostly good things, but yes, some struggles, loss, heartache and challenges as life tends to bring to all of us.

Quite honestly, amidst the busyness of life, I committed the "mortal sin" of blogging.  I stopped writing. Any blogging book or training will tell you that that is the one thing you must not do.  Well, I did it.  I will bare my soul a bit with you for a moment. As I just mentioned, I love writing and having a blog.  But.... I allowed frustration, comparision and lack of technical knowledge to keep me from doing one of the things that I love.

We all know how quickly technology develops and changes.  It's so hard to keep in the know.  There were/are so many changes and updates that I want to see happen on here that honestly, I just don't know how to do. Nor am I at a place that I can hire someone to do them (hint hint...anyone want to help a girl out?! LOL) . I got overwhelmed.  So, yes, I just walked away for awhile.  Yet, I missed it the entire time. 
 
It's so refreshing to be back here.  I never knew how much I enjoyed pouring my soul into words on a page and sharing it with friends.  Thank you for reading!  I have been completely humbled by some very sweet messages from friends saying how they enjoy my blog and asking "where I've been".  Humbling for sure!  Especially on the days when I don't even like reading it.
  
During that time, I drafted SO many blog posts in my head that I want to share.  Family updates, recipes, life events, homeschool, healthy living, etc.  So, hopefully, you will see those soon.  

I wasn't planning on starting back up with such a heavy subject, but it just so happens that today is a day that we remember our little baby that we lost in the fall of 2013. Our fifth little sweetheart would be turning 1 today. 

So, say a little prayer for our hearts as we think about the one who could have been a sweet little addition to our family. 

 

Prepping for our new addition : (

On the expected due date, after we lost baby, we wanted to dedicate some time to memoralize what the day could have been.  We decided to get some balloons. Since we weren't sure of the gender, we got different colors.  

The girls released the balloons into the air.  Then, the craziest thing happened.  Within seconds, all of the balloons were missing. Not in the sky. Not in the surrounding trees. Gone.  The only thing we could see was ONE lone PINK balloon floating high up in the sky. Given our track record of having girls, I have my deductions of what that could mean (insert sobbing).  

Lord, hold our precious baby!