Crock Pot Balsamic Pork

This is a family favorite in my house! 

Serve it with your favorite steamed veggies and rice or quinoa OR serve it taco style with corn tortillas! YUM!

Ingredients: 

- 2 pounds boneless pork shoulder roast (sirloin roast)*

- Sea salt & black pepper to taste

- 1/2 tsp garlic powder

- 1/3 cup chicken broth, vegetable broth or water

- 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar

- 1 tablespoon honey

- 2-3 garlic cloves

- Optional - 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Directions:

1. Season pork with salt, garlic powder and red pepper flakes (if desired) and place into the slow cooker.
2.  Cut small slices into roast and push garlic cloves into the meat.
3. Mix together the broth (or water) and vinegar and pour over the pork.
4.  Drizzle honey over the top of the pork.
5. Cook 4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low
6. Once the pork is cooked and tender, remove from the slow cooker with tongs and into a serving dish. It should shred easily. Pour juice over top for delicious flavor.

*Same dish can be made with chicken. 

Farsighted Kiddos

In October we began to notice that one of our son's eyes was drifting more and more often into the center corner of his eye. At his sister's 5 year check up at the beginning of November, their doctor noticed and recommended we see a pediatric ophthalmologist as soon as possible.

It was the beginning of an on-going journey. It took a while for us to get an appointment set up for our son because there are not many pediatric ophthalmologists. We made two appointments. The first with a doctor that could get him in quickly and the second with a specialist at the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center. All of our kids' specialists have been through Mott (U of M), so this was our preference, but it would take 2 months longer in order to get in to see this doctor.

Our first appointment was in early December with a very nice, but very near retirement doctor. He was able to diagnose our son as significantly far sighted and gave us a Rx for glasses. He really didn't give us much more info than that. We headed to the eye glass store and were able to find some glasses. We found the cutest pair of kid's glasses that they could adjust to fit our little guy's big noggin. 😋 The problem occurred when the doctor's prescription was so ancient that they couldn't understand it. It took several calls to get the updated version of the prescription. At that point, we decided to have the follow up appointment with the U of M pediatric ophthalmologist instead and I am so glad we did!

For 2 months we struggled to get our little guy to wear his glasses. We didn't know if he would need bifocals, patching or it was just a struggle because he is so young. Thankfully, all of our questions and the ones we didn't even know to ask were answered by the new doctor. She is AMAZING! His prescription was right, but kids that are farsighted have a much bigger and harder adjustment to glasses than those that are nearsighted. When you are nearsighted, glasses immediately improve your vision. When you are farsighted, your eyes have worked so hard to compensate, that it takes time for the muscles to relax and allow the glasses to actually work. The doctor also recognized that at barely 2, this concept was more than we could expect to be able to explain to our son. To assist with the transition to glasses, she gave us drops that we used 1 drop, 1 time. It dilated his eyes, essentially forcing the eyes to relax allowing him to experience the vision improvement almost immediately upon putting on his glasses. Within the week that the drops lasted, he completely acclimate to his glasses and now loves wearing them.



**On a side note, we also learned that modern pediatric ophthalmology requires a specific residency, but it used to be that ophthalmologists could do a little work with pediatrics and call themselves a pediatric ophthalmologist. Our first doc actually specialized in cataract surgery, but was willing to take pediatric patients. 

Diaper Dilema

What do you do when you have a just-turned-two-year-old that is NOT ready to potty train, but regular diapers are too small? 

We have had to transition to Pull-Ups in the 4T-5T size. The problem is that making it through the night without having to wash sheets because of leaks was rapidly becoming a distant memory. Not that there is anything wrong with Pull-Ups, but this kid at night? So we needed a new solution. They were the ONLY thing that fit him!

Enter diaper booster pads. 

When it comes to bedtime or long car rides, these are a mom's best friend. Even if your little one is in regular diapers, if you are planning a trip, pick up a pack of these from Amazon! 

You may be wondering how do they work? 

Here's a picture of the actual booster.

I usually fold it in half and slide it in the front of the Pull-Up for my son seeing as that is the part of the Pull-Up that is most essential for my little boy. 😉

If you have been having diaper troubles, I hope this helps!! 

Are you tired?!

It never ceases to amaze me how GOOD God is. The way He provides exactly what we need (not more or less) when we need it. My next rotation in teaching in my church's women's bible study will be focused on Matthew 11. Without fail, God continually brings the topic/verses I will be teaching in front of me over and over and over again before I teach. This verse from Matthew 11, "Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest" is one of those verses He brings to me over, and over, and over again. In a season of life that is hectic and when I am often tired and weary of body, He reminds me that my soul can find rest, the living water, restoration when I am seeking Him. It is so easy to use the very reasons why I need to dig into the word (tired, stressed, anxious, etc...) as my reasons why I just don't have time to. But God, in his perfect grace and mercy, his lovingkindness, reminds me that he is the source for all I need. He is my rock and my salvation. He is my refuge, my fortress. He must be my priority to make all the others line up. Without Him as the foundation, my life is built on shifting sand. When the rains and storms come, and they will, what I have built on my own will wash away, but what Christ has build will be sure and steady and lasting. I named this blog "walking in His lovingkindness" as a reminder that that is where I should be. It is how I should live. It is the example I want to set for my children. It is how I find rest for my weary soul. Are you tired? Are you weary, soul-deep exhausted? There is a hope. Not many, but one sure truth. Jesus Christ through his birth, death and resurrection is our only hope for rest, true eternal rest. Being a "church person" or even claiming the title of "Christian" is not enough. Narrow is the path that leads to eternal life (Matthew 7:14).

If you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you will find rest for your weary soul.

Rest Day Strikes Again!

I am starting to notice a trend. When I set aside a day specifically for rest, Satan attacks. He attacks in ways I never imagined! God in His lovingkindness is always there when we turn to Him

Let me set the stage. My husband, whom I love and cherish and rely on as a partner in all things, has been working CRAZY hours! We really are a team and balance each other in the home and parenting. The past two weeks have been super busy for him at work meaning that he has worked less than a 12 hour day twice in the last two weeks. It also means he is home for less than an hour of our children's awake time pretty much every weekday. God has been so good in reminding me that His power is made perfect in my weakness and His grace is sufficient to carry me through each day (see previous post). Yesterday, apparently, I decided to let that fly out the window. By about 3 in the afternoon, when my daughter wanted  to play outside again and my son took what get like the shortest nap ever, my anxiety hit an all time high. Nothing happened during the day that should have sent it skyrocketing this way and it hasn't been like this in YEARS! In high school I dealt with depression and anxiety. Nothing that required a diagnosis or treatment, but that caused me to miss a lot of school with unexplained stomach aches until we discovered what the problem was and that those were a symptom of adolescent depression and anxiety. As I matured in my relationship with the Lord, recognized my perfectionist tendencies and got out of high school, my struggles with anxiety and depression have started to seem like a distant memory. Yesterday though, man did it hit hard. All I wanted was to take a nap and hide in my kids' tent the rest of the day. I forgot yesterday afternoon, despite all of the reminders God has given me over the last week, that His grace is sufficient. 

So, last night Kid #2 was in bed by the time my hubby got home and he got #1 to bed after they visited while he had dinner. He could see my stress and anxiety and sent me to take a bath and go to bed. I was so exhausted that I don't even remember falling asleep at least an hour and a half before I normally do. I was praying that God would help me remember to turn to Him tomorrow

In God's grace my son only woke up once last night (as opposed to the normal 3-4 times) and my daughter slept in her bed all night with no bad dreams. This morning when my son woke up and was cuddling and taking his bottle I opened to Matthew (what I am studying this semester at church) to read, not study, just read. In God's ever present goodness He didn't make me go far. 4 verses into the chapter I was reading  about Jesus being tempted in the wilderness (man, does that feel like where I have been this week) He replies to Satan about FOOD (my eating was way off yesterday throughout the afternoon and evening when my anxiety hit) that "Man does not live by bread alone but by the word of God". This is nothing new! I know this! I memorized this verse over and over again growing up. But, yesterday in the midst of trial, I didn't turn to the Bread of Life, I tried to do t on my own and fell flat on my face. This morning I started where I need to, in the Word, and am posting this verse on my fridge front and center so that when every temptation hits (food, anxiety, and everything else that will get thrown in with the day, I will turn to the Word of the Lord, hidden in my heart and written on the pages to do battle. This is the Lord's day, not mine.

Sufficient Grace

Today is the rest day in this program. I will most likely adjust in the coming weeks for Sunday to be my rest day, but I knew after yesterday that my body desperately needed the rest TODAY! God used today to remind me of the importance of rest.

I can get so caught up in the busyness of life that I feel like I can't rest and know I don't often get enough rest. But isn't that simply the fate of being mommy, especially to a little one that likes to wake up multiple times a night? I don't think so. Have you ever met someone that just oozes PEACE? I know I have. Even when everything is hectic, they have an aura of calm around them. One thing I do know about those people I have come across that exhibit that characteristic is that they are grounded in Christ. I know that there have been times in my life that I have been more like that and it is when I am fully relying on God, not myself. We so often have to fall to our knees and say, "I can't do it anymore" in order to find that complete reliance on God. Too often we think we can do it all, we don't need (read WANT) any help. I know I can know I need help, but I don't want to ask for it or appear to be weak, so I push on in my own power.

Today was one of those days where that smacked me in the face. This week I have been getting up earlier in order to get my workout and some Bible study time in before the kids really get going in the day. If I don't, everything happens in 5 or 10 minute increments and I feel I actually accomplished anything. So my goal was to get up early today and get some things done this morning in the time I usually workout since it is the scheduled rest day for my program.  I woke up with a crazy sore throat, a little girl that had to go to preschool with a big hangout with a bounce house (her FAVORITE) afterward and a little man that has been determined to push every boundary (and open EVERY cabinet). So, I decided to sleep a little longer. Man, did I need it. But more importantly when I recognized and acknowledged that I just couldn't do it all today I became more focused on the grace that God was giving me throughout the day.

I really hate the concept that God won't give you more than you can handle. I think He absolutely will. But, He will never give you something more than He can handle. He wants us to rely fully on Him. It is in our weakness that His strength and grace are more visible. I saw His grace through my weakness today and I hope that I can shine a light on Him and His strength and grace through my weakness. Today, I recognized and acknowledged the gift of rest, both in my kids and in myself. My son napped well, TWICE today. My daughter, who hasn't really napped more than a handful of times in over a year and half, too a nap. My grandparents invited us to dinner and came over before hand to hang with the kids and I. This was huge many times over. Before dinner is the hardest time for my son, I didn't have to make dinner, and my husband ended up being almost 2 hours late coming home from work. Had I been on my own at home, I would have been pulling my hair out by the time he got home. My mom called and wants to take my daughter on some errands and to lunch tomorrow. My trip to UPS went smoothly. Both of my kids went to bed well. I was able to soak in the bath. I had a super encouraging meeting with my Beachbody sisters. A friend is seeing the light at the end of the tunnel in a tough situation and we were able to praise God for orchestrating it all. That slight shift in perspective was exactly what I needed today. I needed to remember and meditate on the Word.

If you are a believer, I hope that this is an encouragement to you to see how God is giving you grace, peace and rest. If you don't believe, I hope this will encourage you to learn more about the true giver of rest.

Returning Home

Have you ever had that moment where you hear a quote or a verse and wonder what the context is? One of my favorite verses and the verse that we dedicated our daughter with is one of those verses that is great on its own, but takes on a whole new meaning when you read it in context. 

Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." 

Wow! It is just so powerful! The problem I have is that people use it to mean that they will get rich and have a great future. We use the word prosper in our materialistic terms and forget that God's view of prosperous is quite different than ours. 

If you continue reading the next few verses, it gives a much better perspective of what that verse means. 

Jeremiah 29:12-14 "Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the Lord, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the Lord, "and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile."

In verse 14, the Lord says He would bring back the His people from where he had banished them. He sent them to the places they wanted to return from. These verses are referring to the captivity of the Israelites after they had lost sight of following the Lord and been caught up in the world. They were distracted by the things around them and the Lord would allow them to be conquered and taken into captivity. They then repented and the Lord restored them to their lands. 

We can experience the same thing as followers of Christ. We can be caught up with the world and lose sight of Christ. When we run into hard times it is the opportunity to refocus on seeking Christ with our whole heart. We don't like to think that God may have brought us to a point of exile or allowed us to temporarily fall captive to the world. He promises that if we seek Him with everything, we will find Him and He will bring us back.

I know that it can take the hardest moments of our lives when we feel the farthest from God to help us realize that we need to seek Him with fervor and passion. That search will lead to Him and the hope and future He has planned specifically for us.