Month: August 2023

Posted in Uplifting

The Last Time

Posted on by junebugphx
gray double bell clock
Photo by Moose Photos on Pexels.com

I was scrolling through Facebook, yes, I do that a lot but as I was scrolling, I stopped and looked at a post of a very high and fast roller-coaster wow did it look incredibly fun! As I looked at the post, I realized something that brought a tear to my eyes. I thought when was the last time I went on one? I used to love those rides!

I know it was a while ago, my kids were teens. It was our last real vacation together. I look back now realizing it was our last time together before growing and moving on. I think if I would have know that was our last one I would have relished it more. Maybe less complaining of my feet hurting or the heat and a little more enjoyment of the fact I had my teens happy to just be with me. We did enjoy the roller-coasters until the very end when we had to file out of the park with the last few remaining people as they closed for the day. With laughter filling the air as we walked to the car talking of our favorite things that happened or even at the long lines we waited in. We all had fun but didn’t realize it for what it was. For me it was the last time to ride on a roller-coaster and for my kids it was the last of their carefree childhood

But

That’s just it we all have our last times, we all have the last hug or hand holding, the last time to tuck a little one in. The last time we see or kiss a loved one. The last day of work, or favorite pass time or maybe the last time we get to enjoy eating a favorite dish. It is never marked with fireworks or a goodbye party, instead it is always done in such a quiet way you didn’t know it was the last time until looking back.

Maybe because our last times are always in such a quiet way, we should make the most of each small little thing we do every day because you never know if it is your last time. The passage in Psalms says it best.

Psalm 90:10&12 (NIV translation)

10)  Our days may come to seventy years,
or eighty, if our strength endures.
yet the best of them are but trouble and sorrow,
for they quickly pass, and we fly away.

12)  Teach us to number our days,
that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

Posted in essential oils, Recipes

Coco/Peppermint Fudgsicles

Posted on by junebugphx

I was reading Young Livings recipes on cooking with essential oils and found this great recipe. The only thing I changed was I used raw honey but they turned out wonderful and on this downward stretch of summer with temps still staying pretty hot these are the perfect thing to cool you down.

So easy and things most of us have on hand, it only takes a little patience to wait as they set up.

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Coco/Peppermint Fudgsicles
1 14 oz can of coconut milk

1/3 cup of Coco powder

2 Tablespoon of coconut oil

2 Tablespoon of raw honey

1-2 drops of peppermint essential oil.
Pour into molds, place in freezer for about 3 hours to set up.

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Posted in Uplifting

Crabgrass

Posted on by junebugphx

Crabgrass

Named after the crab from the ocean because it has many stems. It holds up well to foot traffic, can grow in cracks of concrete and is drought tolerant. Just to name a few of the reasons this is such a hardy plant/weed. There are a few different kinds but they all infiltrate and permeate your entire yard.

I remember when I worked in the office for my in-law’s lawn business, we would have so many customers calling for help to get rid of crabgrass after they had tried everything to get rid of it. Most were willing to pay any price just to get rid of it.

I always wondered what the problem was and when I asked my ex-father in-law he would just laugh and act like he couldn’t believe I didn’t see the problem. So, I went along and scheduled many jobs for the people who wanted to get rid of it. You can’t just pull on one patch and think you are good; no, you have to go through your entire yard and pull all of it or it just comes back. The jobs were big and even required a backhoe and fresh fill dirt. After they dug up the whole yard going deep to make sure they got all the roots they would put fresh dirt in then would plant the desired grass, plant or sod making a definite transformation for the better, but the homeowner wasn’t off the hock they had to be on top of it to make sure their yard stayed nice and crabgrass free.

I know I should probably write a book about life lessons from the garden because there are great examples in your yard/garden. I am often amazed at how nature is right in front of us to give those lessons, if we noted them.

Just like the homeowner that bought a house with someone else’s crabgrass problem, we can be born into someone else’s hurts and their pain then it becomes ours. We inherit the pain. Just like my children had grown up for most of their life in a violent house with an alcoholic father they now have the hurt given to them because their dad had pain he didn’t know how to deal with. All he felt was pain so what else could he have given?

Or the pain that is given to a child who is molested, a person that is raped or beaten. I could go on with the pain that is given out to innocent people.

They say the people who hurt people hurt the most themselves is so true. It is because of that crabgrass pain that can be the most difficult to deal with. It is someone else’s pain that became ours. I know that without help that pain won’t really go away, we need to call for help, get some heavy equipment so to speak so we can do a total removal because if we don’t it only looks like it’s gone but it’s still there just waiting for the new season so it can germinate and grow stronger if we don’t do the hard very labor-intensive task of uprooting it all.

I am thankful for people who are there to help us deal with our pain. I think God works through these wonderful souls. He is there just waiting to help take care of our crabgrass.

He is only a prayer away and will do the heavy backhoe work replacing the old with the new making a transformation for the better a new and wonderful crabgrass free life.

Psalm 34:18 The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.

Posted in Recipes

One Pot Lasagna

Posted on by junebugphx

I was hungry for lasagna but didn’t want the work or to make my air conditioning work harder by turning on the oven, plus I needed to go to the store.

Left with the desire for lasagna and not much to make it with I chose to come up with a one pot on the stove lasagna. I had three noodles, small can of tomato sauce and stewed tomatoes and it gets better one lonely zucchini that I needed to use up. So with a handful of ingredients this is what I came up with.

Not only did I have my dinner in about 30 minutes but left overs too. This made about a serving for four but when you are cooking for one and like left overs like I do it works out great.

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One Pot Lasagna:

1 or 2 Tablespoons of diced garlic

One small onion chopped or diced ( I used purple because I already had it chopped)

4 small sweet peppers chopped

1 small zucchini cut in bite sized pieces (  I did bite sized and grated 1/4 of the zucchini )

3 lasagna noodles broken up

1 8 oz can of tomato sauce

1 14.5 oz can of stewed tomatoes

Hand full of mozzarella cheese

Per your taste dried oregano, parsley, marjoram, salt and pepper

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In sauce pan sauté onion, garlic, zucchini pieces, sweet peppers until the onions is almost transparent. add stewed tomatoes and sauce then if you have some of your zucchini grated add it at this time with your cheese. Stir and simmer as you add your broken noodles

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After you add the broken noodles keep heat to a low simmer and add a lid. This should take about 20 minutes to cook but could be a few minutes longer depending on the noodles.

I like mine with a lot of sauce so I placed it in a bowl with bread and topped with parmesan, and Ooh so good.

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Posted in Recipes

The Dark

Posted on by junebugphx
black sand dunes
Photo by Adrien Olichon on Pexels.com

This year to celebrate Earth Day my oldest grandson and I went to the store for garden supplies. Now, it’s not the first time he has helped me with working in the garden or the yard, but it was the first time he would help plant seeds. He has always helped after the seeds have grown to a plant, sure transplanting is fun, but Saturday was a learning experience for both of us.

As, we started to plant the seeds that one day will turn into our food he marveled at the thought that the little seeds he held in his hands will grow into the different kinds of fruit and vegetables, we had great discussions on it but when I explained we had to keep the little seeds in a warm dark place his mind was blown! He wondered how they could grow without sun, and that’s when I said most growing happens in the dark. The little seed needs the dark to use the stored energy supply in its own cells to grow and that only can happen when it’s in the dark soil, because when the seed is in the light soil then it only uses half of its stored energy supply to start growing.

Now it has been a LONG time since I was in grande school earth science, but he got the short and simple answer. We finished planting our seeds and moved on to the flower beds to plant a full-sized flower, but as he did, I thought back on how the most important growing in the dark doesn’t stop with germination of seeds for the garden. We need the dark of night to get our rem sleep and when that doesn’t happen, so many health problems arise, but what if it is also true with spirit/soul?

We need the dark or also known as the difficult times in our life to grow as people. It’s definitely not the most pleasant place to be. Who wants to have the job loss, health crisis, children rebelling, death of a loved one or a spouse leaving but it is in those exact places we can grow into better people, it’s at those times in our life we can stay in the dark and end up worse than when the tragic event happened or grow. Sure, during those dark times you may need the energy supply of someone else. Someone you can lean on someone that will give you their energy supply until you can get to that above ground stage.

I find that friends, family, and therapist are all so good during the dark times, but as helpful as those people are and needed the energy source, I need most is from the one who can see in the dark, the one who knows just how long I will be in there and knows what is happing after the dark days are over, the one who made me. God is and always will be the energy source that can get you through to the other side of the dark and into the light. So, you can bloom and be just what you were created to be.

Psalm 34:17-18

17 When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears
    and delivers them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
    and saves the crushed in spirit.

Exodus 14:14

14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.

Posted in Recipes

Black Bean, Quinoa and Eggplant Tacos

Posted on by junebugphx

I know, another taco recipe that has black beans in it, but I love to grill my marinated eggplant for these tacos, and this is defiantly the season for BBQ. The grilled eggplant seems to work so nicely with the black bean and quinoa plus grilling white corn tortillas at the end to warm them as well gives this a nice char making this a nice summer grilled taco that perhaps you can do for your next BBQ for something different.

Eggplant has some great health benefits like having a lot of soluble fiber and the right kind of carbohydrates so that it aids in maintaining your blood sugar at a healthy level as well as stabilizing your iron and removing access amounts so that you have healthy amounts. This great vegetable is also so good for your brain, heart, and overall health because it has phytonutrients which are helpful for keeping the cell membrane protected, they act as antioxidants and most of us have heard of how great they are.

Next having lean protein form the black beans and quinoa plus all the nutrients from them this little taco packs a punch that is so needed especially when we are running low on taking care of ourselves because of all the extra activities that we do in the summer.

Now, let’s get to the recipes!

For the marinate think 3-1 ratio with your oil to vinegar. The amounts are up to you depending on the amount of eggplant you are using and always season per your taste.

Eggplant washed, peeled and sliced into small strips

Olive oil

Rice Vinegar

Garlic diced and minced

The following seasoning will give a nice southwest flavor to the eggplant.

Red chili powder, ground cumin, onion powder and finally just a pinch of cayenne pepper.

Mix the above ingredients in a zip lock bag or container that has a lid. Let eggplant set in marinate for at least 6 hours.

While the eggplant is marinating cook your choice of quinoa per package directions.

I use canned or freshly cooked black beans depending on what I have on hand. Place black beans in foil next take cooked quinoa and put on top of beans then add 3-4 garlic cloves that are diced and a handful of green onions diced placing both on top with a splash of lime juice. Fold the foil so that it is completely closed because this will go on the side of the grill to stay warm as you cook your eggplant.

On hot BBQ grill place marinated eggplant, cook until it looks cooked and you have nice grill marks.

As you are cooking eggplant lightly grease both sides of white corn tortillas with your choice of oil (I like to use coconut or avocado oil) then when the eggplant is half done start placing your tortillas on the grill. This won’t take long, and you will want to put the tortillas in foil to keep warm if you don’t have a tortilla warmer.

When the eggplant is done. Assemble your taco using the quinoa and black beans as your base then place eggplant on top.

I like to add avocado/guacamole, green onion, tomatoes/salsa, queso fresco and plane Greek yogurt on top. Then enjoy your taco. This meal is great when camping or just a BBQ with minimum clean up.

Posted in Uplifting

Baggage

Posted on by junebugphx

I haven’t had a good vacation in a long time. In fact, the only time I have been traveling any distance this year is for my Oncologist or to say goodbye to loved ones, but I have been blessed with short mini day trips so there is that and I feel so fortunate to have those day trips. I just would love for a chance to go and see new places without having to check into a doctor or see some of my favorite spots would be so much fun for me. Not only the destination but the getting there is just as wonderful.

Perhaps it’s my wanting to go on a trip that got me thinking.

Let’s say I have won a trip to the lovely country of Italy; I have never gone and wow I would love to go! So, now that I won this trip I need to pack because a cab will be here soon to pick me up. I pack everything I can think of. When the cab comes, I bring all my baggage with me. The driver looks at me like I am crazy bring bag after bag but since I have never gone to Italy, I decide to pack heavy for those just in case scenario come up.

I get to the airport to check in ALL of my bags. I hand them over one at a time, the person behind the counter tells me I have to pay a large amount if I intend to bring it all with me. I feel upset thinking of course I want all of it but the cost of it is getting in the way of my free trip. I go through my bags one at a time. I take out items that don’t make sense to bring to an Italian getaway, but I want them, I had them for every other trip why not now? Who knows you might need a big balky sweater?  The person is waiting for me to decide if it’s worth bring all my extra baggage.

Now it’s easy to see that no you don’t need balky sweaters for a summer in Italy, but we do that in life, don’t we? I have really been working through how much of my baggage of my past am I willing to pay for so I can take it with me to a new wonderful place of today. Am I willing to leave baggage that is of no use so I can move forward? Yes, I am and what’s so great is I don’t have to go through all of my bags alone. I have someone to help me. I have the one who can see what’s a head and what in my past I need to leave because it has no use for me today but weigh me down. God is always with me to help me go through these bags so I can be free to enjoy my todays. Isaiah 43:18
“Do not call to mind the former things or ponder things of the past. Philippians 3:13-14 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus