Chick N Salad (Vegan)

This day began at 0345 with an international conference call....and then I had another conference meeting via Skype with the presidents of PWOC in Japan and Guam.  I fell asleep and woke up just in time to fix an early dinner of soup and sandwiches... I decided it would be a good time to try Mock Tuna Salad from Happy Herbivore. I've heard rave reports...but I didn't have kelp...and discovered I really like other seasonings she didn't use....so this morphed...it DID work well in a wrap for me while the others had pastrami sandwiches with their soup. The wrap didn't photo as well. ::snort:: 

15 oz can of chick peas - drained and rinsed
2 celery stalks
2 T pickle relish
1 T onion flakes - or chop a small onion
1 T nutritional yeast 
1T soy sauce
3 T vegan mayo
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 T Dijon mustard
Curry powder  - whatever
Old Bay seasoning - I go by sight
Pepper to taste

Mash chick peas or pulse a few times in a processor (don't want hummus so don't puree). 

Chop or shred celery and add to chick peas. 

Add remaining ingredients. Adjust seasonings to taste. 

Note Lindsay's Mock Tuna adds 1/2 tsp kelp, omits mustard, curry and Old Bay. I've been missing Halibut and Chicken Salad so I now have an idea of how to make a cholesterol free substitute. 

Today's lunch - 1 1/2 C Romaine; 1/2 Chick N Salad - wrap! Yum.

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Daniel's Delight

This has become my go to meal. I often eat it alone...but if I want more than veggies I put it  over rice, pasta or tonight a 1/2 a baked potato. I often sprinkle cashews on top and nutritional yeast. Tonight I added  pinto beans from my newly defrosted freezer.  This recipe comes from The Happy Herbivore Cookbook and was originally titled Buddha's Delight. I LOVE this cookbook.

Says it serves 4 - serves 1 or 2 around here as written! 

Ingredients: 
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 C thinly sliced carrots
1 C finely cut/shredded cabbage
1/2 C Cauliflower florets
1 red bell pepper
1 green bell pepper
2 T soy sauce
2 T raw sugar
2 C cooked rice

Directions:
Cook onion and garlic over high heat in 1/4 C water (water saute).

When onion is translucent, add remaining veggies.

Reduce heat to medium and cook until veggies are cooked but still crisp - 10 - 15 min.

Mix soy sauce and sugar together, pour over veggies, stir to coat.

Cook another 5 min and serve over rice, pasta, potato or plain.

As you can tell - I  use the veggies I have on hand...Mushrooms, broccoli, snap peas...yummy. Double the sauce if you have way more veggies than listed above.  

Nutritional info: Calories 179; Calories from Fat 10; Total Fat 1.1 g; Cholesterol 0; Total Carbohydrate 38.5; Dietary Fiber 4.5 g, Sugars 11.2g; Protein 4.2g.

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

A Word for the New Year

Every year, in schools across Japan, students are encouraged to pick a "word" for the year. This would be their hope, wish, prayer for the upcoming year. 

They also learn calligraphy from kindergarten....sometime early in a New Year the two concepts merge...and they calligraphy their word for the year on a little plaque to frame. 

 The kids picked a word and then we practiced, practiced, practiced and painted our words.....

Hero

Love

I mostly experienced the equivalent of "red ink." ::grin::  I quickly learned that an individual writing style is not appreciated....I loved the practice of looking for balance, relaxing, calming yourself and going for it....but I had so much fun creating that much of my writing doesn't look like real words.....this was one of my best shots....which I insisted I wanted to keep to remind me of Akikosan!

Dream - sort of ::snort:: 

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Prepare Your Heart

Kokoro no junnbi wo shitte kudasai - こころのじゅんびをしってください

I heard Kim, a college friend, use this phrase with her child. She said we don't really have an English equivalent, but it generally conveys the idea to, "prepare your heart".....and she used it to to tell her daughter it was nearing time to say goodbye. Google translates it as, "Please know the preparation of the heart." I have no surprising news to share...but I'm thinking.  Ryu, Kim's husband, says it is said before sharing shocking or surprising news.

The concept, if not the exact wording, has stuck with me. Prepare your heart. Three little words. Prepare your heart to hear from God. Prepare your heart to learn. Prepare your heart to worship. Prepare your heart to obey. Prepare your heart to surrender.  Prepare your heart for change. Prepare your heart to love. Prepare your heart to hear surprising/shocking news. In a year when God has graced us with Acts 2:17 as  a prayer verse - I'm preparing my heart to hear new dreams which may be surprising or shocking.

And I knew - there would come a day when we would need to prepare our hearts to say goodbye. We are now six months from leaving a country we love. I know we love EVERY assignment (well, we were split on one of those assignments but I love every location). This is different. Our roots have gone deep. As we walked out of the airport in Tokyo, I felt I was "home."  Apart from God, it is unlikely we will "visit" this childhood home of our children again.  We have lived through great happy adventures and incredibly traumatic, heart-breaking experiences while living in Japan. We have grown. We don't want to leave. I relate to the Catholic priest who said, "Bury my bones here..." and did in fact get his wish in 2011.

I've left other homes like this and not gone back - Liberia and the Philippines.

I know I have to prepare my heart and the hearts of my kids for this leave taking. It's bigger than moving from Montana to Texas. I'm just not sure how.

And so, confronted with deep thoughts, I did what I do...I tackled a project. I defrosted the freezer.

It's now a thing of beauty, milk crates full of meat, veggies, fruit, sauces and bread items...it will be helpful to start eating up our stock.

I'm no closer to knowing how to prepare my heart...but He impressed on us in 2013 to Live Courageously...and we will.

These few things I know from growing up as a Third Culture Kid and being a Third Culture Wife:

• It is vital I stay close to God - my quiet time is a priority
• I must carve margin in our schedule to visit the places we love
• I must fully live these next few months with dear friends
• I will not unplug until the very last day - this hurts - but the pain is a mark of having loved well....I will continue to mentor, continue to serve, continue to live and create connections and trust Him to be there when the pain of goodbyes arrive - as it will. 
• I will find reasons every day to thank God for the gracious gift of this extra year in Japan. 

I would love to hear how those of you who have moved from here, or other overseas locations, prepared your heartsr how you wish you would have.

•  What can I do to help this be an easier transition for the children? For us?  
• How can we live the next six months fully engaged, while preparing our heart for the leave-taking that is surely approaching? 
• Are there things you wish you had done or brought from Japan with you? 
• Do you have any tips to share with us? 

My preparation partner

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Bring it On!

We rocked it today! School - not a problem. We read, we laughed, we zipped through some math and lots of Japanese things....Zander realized he KNOWS his Explode the Code and finished this book....the Hobbit built lots of confidence!  I'll have him finish the series but I predict he is done with the last 3 books within two months. 

Michael went in to work. During a staff meeting to plan the upcoming exercise it was realized he'd be working 11 p.m. - 7 a.m. from Wed - infinity and won't get his day off....so he got this afternoon off. It was a surprise to see him home. 

He took a bit of a nap while we finished school. I've agreed Zander can read 30 min a day of Hobbit to me in place of the readers which are boring him to death. I'll check and be sure we're covering the basics but I see no need for him to finish I See Sam. 

After school we headed to Swan Park to sled. Our 4 wheel drive proved its value as  Michael fought to keep moving forward  and on the road (not in a farmer's field). The pick up truck ahead of us was not so successful. 

The spots are our kids

Zander didn't like the flying ice

Zander had a thing for trying new routes

On this hill you gather speed, go over the little mound and end up in an obstacle course of play structures if you don't stop rather quickly. 

Note Arielle's arms covering Nolan's EYES.....

Yep - right under the slide.....

Winter walk to see the swans

On the way home Michael detoured to the ocean. We love the ocean! 

The kids discovered the little ramps were great for sledding.

After dinner, Arielle worked on Chemistry. I prepared  for the kiddos at Bible Study tomorrow, and Michael and the younger three saved yet another houseful of victims in Flash Point.

I tell you we ROCKED it. School done, family time enjoyed, dinner done, ministry prepped and even time for an evening game. We've got this - on Day 1. ::snort:: 

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Holding on to Vacation

I want to hold on tonight as long as possible. Tomorrow begins the "routine" again....school, MOPS, PWOC...and more I'm sure. 

Guess who fell asleep and couldn't be revived? Guess who missed the evening service? Moi....me. ::blush::

Sunday night means ice cream in our home - has for as long as I can remember being married to Michael. ::snort:: Which means YONANA for me (and Arielle and even Nolan)...yum....it was a TREAT. 

One last game of Flash Point before we officially declare Christmas over (though it ended last night).  Note that IS how Michael plays games. ::wink:: 

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Cozy Weekend

Yuuki is my soul mate! She understands how to survive cold winters - and it doesn't included building igloos in the common area! 

Lunch - mine, all mine - lest you worry I'm not eating enough

A new warning that my laptop is doing strange and wonderful things...but I restored the system and all is working again...for a bit longer. I don't want to give up my trusty side kick!

Michael went to work - a person can get much more done at work on a Saturday. The older two had a bowling party.   We searched for one last gift....

Thus ended the Christmas season....and decorations will have to come down tomorrow as today is simply too busy for projects.... though we did go buy some sleds. I tried to talk the kids into THIS.....

They thought it hilarious that I wanted this sled and made several comments about a rocking chair on runners. Stacia now says they should have bought this for me.  That's my gal!

Choosing Joy!
©2012 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...