Update for the Welker's

Summer is coming to an end and I realized this blog has fallin off the face of the earth.  I would say the big reason is that I am jugglin a a lot of balls in the air. This one fell.

Vivi: is starting dance classes this month for her second year at BAC.  She got her ears pierced. She turned four and apparently knows how to do everything herself.  She loves to sing loud and proud.  She still is my big reader.  She starts Pre K this month. She is going to the private Lutheran school in town. I am so excited to see her in that environment but I will miss our morning together. I love her so much and I will miss having her all to myslef. Dress up is a really cool game to play except when we are being a lion and all we do is run around scaring our sister and the cat.  Vivi has glasses now. She went on her first float trip with our youth group. She loves water this summer. To her board games are the coolest.

Jason: has kept a beautiful yard all summer. He loves working on the yard. He laid half our yard with sod this spring and it looks awesome. Our yard by the way is a 1/2 acre so you can imagine how long that took.  He baptized 4 young ladies this month and that was so cool to be a part of. They came to Christ at summer camp.  Jason and I got away for our 8th anniversary to Saint Louis. Enjoyed a Brazilian dinner, walking holding hands, and shopping for some fall clothing since we both have lost 40 pounds. Still have 10 more to go but it feels great to be healthier. Hard work but worth it.  You can find Jason wrestiling with the girls, playing hide and go seek, bath time splashing and laughin withe girls every night, and grilling up some Indian food his new favorite.

Sophia: is soooo funny.  She is a dancing machine. She as all her own moves. She loves animals. Her stuff dog Tissue goes everywhere she goes.  She likes playing outside with bubbles. She does not like the water. Hopefully next year we will.  Sophie likes to be a parrot to Vivi anything she says Sophie says. Dangerous! Everyone loves Sophia's little blonde curls. People have to stop and touch it for real. Sophie is my little bug killer. She is so brave in my eyes. I am glad someone in this house can catch bugs, pick them up with their bare hands and get rid of it.  Sophie and the rest of us went to a Stay Vacation in St. Louis this summer. We enjoyed the zoo, magic house, chick fil a and playing in the pool. OK we know Sophie did not like the pool part but she got in anyway.  Some of her favorite foods are tortilla pizza, carbs, and ice cream.  She enjoys pointing out any baby she sees. Then we have to stop and say hi.  SHe is good at making fake food in her kitchen especially coffee.

Well that is an update! I have no idea who read this but at least I know I have some memories recorded. Check out my facebook for pictures of all the adventures mentioned.

I Love Fall!!!

makes it all worth while

Jason calls me to tell me this sweet story.

Jason: Vivi tomorrow we are going to the pumpkin patch with Max

Vivi:  and Gigi and Pappy?

Jason:  Yep

VIvi:  Max is my best friend. So is Gigi.

Jason:  What about Daddy?

Vivi:  yes
Jason:  What about Mommy?

VIvi: No way.  Mommy is my Hero.

Tear... so sweet. I love that girl. I pray that God will protect our relationship in years to come because we are so alike in personality and I know that can be dangerous. Thank you God for those cute moments. I guess I better get a cape.

That's a funny shaped hole

WARNING:  (I am not here to debate religious views. I just had a moment where my heart was breaking for someone I love and I wanted to share. I am not a fancy writer. I have bad grammar and spelling. If you can get passed all that read on)

Do you have someone in your life that is never never satisfied? Everything is everyone else's fault.  This friend or family member can’t seem to figure out the peace you have and where the blessings are coming from. They get mean sometimes jealous. You try and try again to share what the cure for their pain but they don’t want it.They just want the cure and make it easy nothing you have to work at. QUICK FIX.  

God has given each of us a God shaped hole in our heart. We all take turns trying to fill it with other things.  Grass is always greener on the other side mentality.  Money wanting more money comparing money money.  The perfect man or women in our lives would make that hole feel better, right?  I am a people pleaser and no matter how hard I try I can’t make everyone happy. So how can anyone expect another human to fulfill them? Body Image, one I sometimes let get in my way of the true view. This person who hates life...is mad at me and I think sometimes hates me. I have found the cure to the hole.  

Drum roll please:   The cure to a hole in the heart is to go back to the one who created it and let them patch you up.

Gods will for our lives...the BIG Question every person struggles with is simple. Not simple to live but simple to say.  In the bible it says, 2 Corinthians 5:14-15  New Living Translation (NLT)

14 Either way, Christ’s love controls us.[a] Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.[b] 15 He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.

I know it sounds really deep. The fact that Jesus died for me and for you, that kind of love should compel us to no longer live for ourselves. So all the crap we try to jam in our heart and soul that isn’t for the Lord is just getting in the way of our true happiness.  Our purpose after excepting the gift of eternal life with Jesus Christ is to please God in our words and deeds.  Jason and I do our best to make choices that reflect Gods wisdom he gave us in his word the Bible and do it with a joyful heart.

Amy Welker is not perfect! I have to ask for moment by moment forgiveness for all the selfish things I do or think but I have a God that loved me so much he forgives me and wants me anyway. Not for a little while, but for eternity.

I love unperfected people.  I want them to be in on my secret.

.....So all you imperfect people step out of your weighted down lives caring heavy hearts full of junk and do some cleaning. Suck the junk out of your heart and start asking God to fill you up again. You will feel better and the world will be a better place for you. Not perfect but better. 

Back to School

It took me awhile to get back into the swing of school but once we are doing it I love it. Sophie colored for the first time. She liked taking the crayons out of the box and putting them back in.

 I colored with her.

 First picture.

 Vivi played a game I made for her. It is a race to run to the bag. Pull out an object. Stick it to the correct color sheet. It gets them running and thinking.

 picking the card and getting ready to run

 Sticking them on the sheet

 Sophia played with a muffin tin and balls. She used her hand eye coordination to get them in the Kitty Can.  The balls are different sizes so some are easy to grab and some are hard. Soon we can start taking colors and counting.

 Vivi likes to play with pipe cleaners.  She would weave them in and out the grill pan.

 We talked about the different seasons. The next season is fall and how the leaves are changing colors. So we made our leaf change colors too.

 The last thing we did today was Farm. It is used to help learn colors, counting skills, sorting skills, and patterns. Sophi learned her animal sounds as she threw them in the bag. Vivi sorted the colors and learned how to see a pattern.

Dinner Plan #1

For dinner tonight we had some yummy Gumbo over rice made by my friend Lynn. She had such a big batch that she gave us a sample of it. Very tasty. For our veggies I steamed some asparagus from Costco. I used Tony Roma's cajan seasoning, parmesan cheese and a little butter spread. Delicious! Vivi requested corn on the cob. The girls love it. So I made that and this new Pinterest recipe. This recipe was good. I did it without the onion in hopes Vivi would eat it. Both the kids liked them.

Zucchini Bites

Recipe adapted: The Naptime Chef

yields: 12 mini muffins

1 cups zucchini, grated

1 egg (1 large egg equals 3-4 tbsp when whisked together)

1/4 yellow onion, diced

1/4 cup cheese (cheddar or Parmesan work the best)

1/4 cup bread crumbs - I used Italian style

Salt and Pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Spray a mini-muffin tin with non-stick spray, set aside.

2. Grate the zucchini and then place in a dish towel to squeeze out the excess water- like when using frozen spinach; if you skip this part, the middle of the zucchini tots will be really soggy while the outside gets crispy and no one wants that.

3. In a bowl combine, the egg, onion, cheese, bread crumbs, zucchini, salt and pepper.

4. Using a spoon or a cookie scoop, fill the muffin cups to the top. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the top is browned and set.

Some Tips  from others:

>Egg Allergy? Try an egg-replacement product or a mixture of 3 tbsp water to 1 tbsp ground chia or flax seed (it will look gelatinous) and let it sit for 10 minutes before adding into the recipe.   

> Gluten Free? Try almond flour, coconut flour, cooked cauliflower, potato flakes, Corn Chex cereals (g.f), or cooked Quinoa. 

>Flavors: Like I do with any recipe I make, I adjust the ingredients to what I have on hand and what I prefer. You can add fresh herbs, use a different (or even dairy free) cheese, keep the skins on or peel the zucchini, add a bit of heat with red pepper flakes ,or even mix in bacon which on reader did. 

>No mini muffin tin? Some have just placed the mixture onto a baking sheet which has worked okay, but you can use a regular muffin tin. If using a regular muffin tin, fill the mixture to 1/2 full or a little less and press down using your fingers or a tbsp measure. Bake for 18-22 minutes and broil to get the tops crispy.

>Salt: Salt helps draw out the moisture in foods which can help in this recipe. After grating your zucchini and placing it in a towel, sprinkle with salt, and let it sit for 10 minutes or so to draw the excess moisture out. Squeeze the towel really good to get as much of the moisture as you can out of the zucchini. 

>Freezing: I have not tried freezing these so I can't say how they will exactly turn out, but here it goes. Sometimes with zucchini that has been cooked, frozen, and reheated it can tend to be squishy so you have have to turn the broiler on for a few minutes.  

1. I would bake the zucchini tots first before freezing since freezing may change how much moisture the zucchini holds and can result in a mushy tot. Let the tots cool completely before storing in a freezer bag. To heat, you could place each tot on a baking sheet or back into the mini muffin tin to bake at 400F until hot and switch to broil to remove any excess moisture. -Again I have not tried this so I can't guarantee how this will work. If you do freeze and successfully reheat these, let me know what you did so I can give y'all the right information. 

Journey to Springfield

Before we could go I had a fun time taking pictures of my kiddos. I got a new throw to use in photo shoots and of course they wanted to try it out first. Here is the link to those pictures.


http://clicktakeapik.blogspot.com/2012/09/baby-burritos_8032.html

The girls loved hanging out with their grandparents. Bounce house time, fun meals, movies, and just hanging out on the floor reading books.

Jason and I got to catch up with old friends. Our friend from Brazil was in town, Murilo. I got to get a massage to help with my headaches. Shopping was fun with my friend Paula. Sushi talk with Tara Jean. All around great weekend.

Oh update on my health, I was diagnosed with chronic migraines. I am trying the natural route to treat it first. Walking, lots of water, two kinds of vitamins, and no caffeine and fake sugars.  I am giving it 12 weeks to see how that does.

Potato Basil Soup

My cousin Sarah is getting married and I wanted to make something special to take to her shower.   This soup is perfect for a raining day and a nice ladies brunch. The key is to use fresh herbs and I add some italian grinder for extra flavor.  I love this recipe because you do not use any cream but you get that cream feel. I like a more chunky soup so I blend half the batch in a blender and slightly mash the other half. This is the recipe I start with:

Potato Basil Soup
created by: Best loved recipes of all time
Need:
1/2 cup Wesson Vegetable Oil
3 cups of celery chopped
1 1/2 cups of onion = to small onion
1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic
4 cups of Chicken broth
You can use any kind of potato but I like 15 Honey Golds
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
1/4 teaspoon of italian grinder

extra flair grated fontina cheese

In a large saucepan, heat your oil until hot; saute the celery, onion, and garlic until tender.  Stir in chicken broth, potato, parsley, basil, and pepper. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer covered for 20 mins or until the potato are tender.  Pour half the mixture into blender; puree until smooth.  Set aside.  Pour remaining soup in the blender until you coarsely chopped it. Combine the mixtures. Ladle into bowls and enjoy.

Makes 8 cups
Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 20 mins

This soup reheats really well.  This is a family favorite. From my house to yours Enjoy!

Uplifting

I love the service we get to do in this lifetime. I don't like calling it work.  Aren't we all called to serve God in everything we do. So I feel if I say the word work I am not enjoying myself and that I am doing it all with my own strength and God is not involved. If I say I serve as a youth minister, photographer, mom and wife, it includes God in my day by day moments and reminds me why I do what I do. Everything we do should be in spirit and in truth. I needed that reminder. Even when I am exercising I am improving Gods temple.  God let me capture this moment on camera and I cant take my eyes off of it. It is on my desktop and I am excited to share it with facebook.  Look at these strong young women praising the heavenly father. Thanking God for all he has done for us. Excited and filled with anticipation of a new building and new kids in the youth group.  The three rays of son makes me think of the trinity and the power it holds. The cross on the side of the beams reminds me that Christ had to be set apart here on earth to fulfill Gods plan but he returns to heaven to give the salvation we all need. I can't wait to take this picture and have it made into a poster on the wall of the new youth room.