To say that I have been somewhat frustrated with the long hours and weekend catch-up of paperwork would be an understatement. How do I not have this job be top priority in my life? I feel like every week I ask myself this question, do some deep introspection, and make plans for the next week to be more scheduled, to have a stricter routine, and to be more intentional with the Hubster. Every week I feel like I fail. Something falls out of balance and I am left at my Heavenly Father’s feet humbled, broken, and in need of His grace. And His grace comes.
2 Corinthians 12:9 (ESV)
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient
for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all
the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Remember when I told you that the Hubster was hired on staff at our Church? Well, back in November he was ordained!! Our lead pastor, Scott, used to call him "sort of a pastor around here," but now he is officially a 'Staff Pastor' at High Rock Church. Here are some pics of the ordination.
He also just preached his first sermon this past Sunday (Dec 30th) on the importance of resolving to be 'Rooted in Christ' rather than superficial resolutions that add no merit to our lives. If you'd like to check it out the sermon is posted here. He will also be preaching this coming Sunday to follow this teaching on Resolutions.
We, also, said "Good-bye" to another small group member... Sade finished her degrees and headed back to Atlanta, GA where she is from. She will be missed and continually loved. Here's the group pic to send her off! Of course, we had to get a little crazy, too. 
And, if you hadn't noticed, we got a Christmas tree!! This may not seem like a big deal to you, but to Team Eckhardt, it's pretty BIG!! This is our first REAL tree we've gotten for Christmas! Every year we intend to get one and it never happens... Until this year! Or, I should say, until 2012 since we are into a New Year already! Crazy... Anyway, back to Christmas. Here are some of the Christmas decor that we put up.
Oh yeah, we got SNOW!!!
And here is the Hubster and I at our family's Christmas in Ohio! We had a whirlwind of Christmases last week! We even were able to host the Hubster's family for Christmas in our house this past weekend. We felt very blessed to have space to accommodate everyone who came.
I made some recipes that I had used before as well a new one. The fam all seemed satisfied and enjoyed the dishes, so I thought I would share them on here for you to maybe try, too!
This first recipe that I am showing you comes from a Taste of Home, Light & Tasty cookbook of Annual Recipes 2008. I had received this cookbook as a gift at my bridal shower, and I have made quite a few recipes from it~ the Hubster has loved practically every one!! Since I've discovered Pinterest I have not gone back to this cookbook much, but I'm glad I did for this dish! Very light and refreshing, yet filled with protein.
Santa Fe Salad
Prep/Total Time: 30min Yield: 10 Servings
2-1/2 cups cut fresh green beans
1 cup minced fresh cilantro
1/4 cup fat-free sour cream
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-1/2 tsp ground cummin
1/4 tsp salt
Dash of cayenne pepper
2 cups frozen corn, thawed
1 can (15oz) pinto beans, rinsed & drained
1 can (15oz) black beans, rinsed & drained
1 small sweet red pepper, finely chopped
1 small red onion, chopped
1 can (4oz) chopped green chilies
1 can (2-1/4 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained
1/2 cup shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese
- Place green beans in a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to boil; cover and cook for 3-5min. or until crisp-tender. Drain and immediately place beans in ice water. Drain and pat dry.
- For dressing, in a small bowl, combine the cilantro, sour cream, lime juice, vinegar, garlic, cummin, salt and cayenne. In a large bowl, combine the green beans, corn, pinto beans, black beans, red pepper, onion, chilies, and olives. Add cheese and dressing; toss gently to coat. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
Nutrition facts: 3/4 cup equals 151 calories, 2g fat (1g saturated fat), 5g cholesterol, 374mg sodium, 26g carbohydrate, 6g fiber, 8g protein. Diabetic Exchange: 1-1/2 starch, 1/2 fat.
This was taken directly from the cookbook stated earlier. Now, for the way I modified this recipe for family...
I did not use the green beans, fresh cilantro, green chilies, or the cheddar cheese. And here is my reasoning... I actually attempted to buy canned green beans for the recipe, but when I opened the can I realized they were not "crisp" enough for the effect this recipe calls for. I made this the morning family was coming and did not have time to go to the store to get some, so I opted out on the green beans all together. I did not put the fresh cilantro in because the store was out of fresh cilantro when I had gone shopping earlier in the week (no joke), so I used roughly 2 tablespoons of dried cilantro to replace it. I did not put in green chilies because I totally spaced and forgot to put them on my grocery list! Oops!
By the time I had added all of the other ingredients I realized that this salad tasted more like salsa without the green beans and cheddar cheese, so I added some chips to a platter and it became a bean dip/salsa! Family LOVED it and did not even realize certain pieces of the recipe were missing. This time improvising was on my side!!
Here was our table "spread of goodies" to curb hunger before our Christmas dinner.
Baked Ziti
The link to the recipe is here.
The only thing I changed in this recipe is that I used whole wheat penne for noodles, and ground turkey rather than ground beef. It is so good, and we still have so many leftovers after serving 8 people! We also served it with fresh salad and garlic toast.
Slow Cooker Cinnamon-Raisin Bread Pudding
This recipe was new. I found it on Pinterest and pinned the recipe here. I tried this because I love bread pudding and slow cookers. (And the pic to the left was before I cooked it).
There were various reviews with this recipe & I decided to use 9 slices of bread rather than 12-14 it called for. I also cooked it on low for 4 1/2 hours rather than on high for 3 or so as it calls for. This was mostly a convenient factor for me, though. I wanted it ready to eat by morning and did not want to have to get up to make it! Ha! So I turned it on late at night before going to bed, after playing fun games with the fam, and left a note for my father-in-law to turn it to warm when he got up (knowing that he was an early riser). It worked out!! He turned it to warm around 5am. However, it still seemed a little dark for me. My sister-in-law commented that she enjoyed hers with a little milk! There you go! Let me know what you think if you try it!
Now Christmas is over. Family left around 1pm on New Year's Eve and we were pretty tired... We stayed home in our PJs playing games and watching old classic films (7 Wives for 7 Brothers). And then I went to bed around 10:30pm!! So crazy! But I was so tired.. Happy New Year everyone!
Crazy how fast time flies. It seems like not that long ago when we were celebrating 2012. It was a year ago that I had decided to start a blog. It's been quite a year of saying good-bye to some of our closest friends, graduating with my masters, Michael becoming a pastor, and so much more... Through it all, God has been MY CONSTANT. Through years past He remains MY CONSTANT. In fact, this is something He has been speaking to my heart recently, reminding me that He has been there through my happiest times, my darkest times, and all of the in between. He whispers, also, that He's not going anywhere, He's made His mind up, and He's going to remain CONSTANT with me. This brings my heart comfort in so many ways.
It also reminds me of when I first started my masters program the fall of 2010. I was walking back to my car on campus after a night class and my heart felt uncertain. No one really knew me in my program; they didn't know my passionate love for my Savior. As I walked to my car and feeling alone, I felt the Holy Spirit speak to my heart saying,
"Know who you are, Rebekah. Other people you come in contact with may not know all that you've experienced, but you do- you carry them with you." I had written this in a journal from that time, and had turned back to it recently. God has recently been showing me how He not only knows what I have experienced, but that He knows what's ahead for me as well. I have often had a picture of Jesus in front of me, leading me down a small path in the woods, my hand in His. Every now and then He'll look back and smile, knowing what's ahead. I am unable, from my position following Jesus, to see what is ahead. So I fix my eyes on Jesus. His smile brings me peace, His hand brings me comfort.
Whatever 2013 has in store for me and my family, He will remain my CONSTANT.
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