"We have never been called to define God, we have been called to behold Him." - Abraham Joshua Heschel

Moment in Time Photography - Blog

January 09, 2011

Bittersweet (and a recipe too)

It's been a week. Good, bad, a roller coaster of ups and downs.

It always seems funny to me, that there are certain things you wait for and then, when they come, you realize that you aren't sure you wanted it, because it means that there is a new stage in your life and the life of your kids.

Owen potty trained himself this week! I put him in underwear on Monday and by Saturday he had been over 24 hours without an accident (even at nap and overnight). I am so excited and proud of my littlest.

Yet, I am sad. There are no longer babies in the house, these precious kids of mine are growing up, rather quickly, and I didn't realize that I wasn't quite ready for that!! There are still unopened packages of diapers stacked next to packages of wipes and I walk past them and think that that's it.

Anthony is no longer a *little* boy. He has changed so much in the past 6 months and he has most definitely made the transition from little boy to boy. Sometimes I forget that 6 is still little, that although he is getting bigger and smart, that he is still a little kid. And there are days when I expect to much from my oldest - and all I can do on those days is tell him I'm sorry and pray that God uses it for good. That is part of what has made this past week hard. Anthony and I have been butting heads pretty constantly.

Alexandra is my little spitfire and she always will be. But at 4 she longs to be so much older than she is, she strives to do things on her own that she isn't capable of yet is unwilling to let me tell her the things she CAN do on her own! The start of school for her this year has been wonderful. She needed that in her days and her teacher is AMAZING! This child of mine comes home beaming and then opens her mouth to speak and I am shocked by the things she is learning (in a good way) from J.K. I didn't get a chance to work a lot with her before school (not in the way I did with Anthony) on her letters and numbers and printing of her name and short words. And she is just thriving with her teacher who expects much but is so very kind.

Owen, he will always be the family clown! It makes me sad that he is growing up so quickly yet I love watching who he is becoming, watching his personality develop. I am so thankful that potty training went so well. It truly is nothing I did. He was just really ready, that and the first time he had a poop accident I threw him in the shower to clean him off (which he hates!...but that was the end up wanting to go in his underwear!)

Thankful for these 3 kids of mine. Working through the being done with babies (part of me still would like one more), letting God work in me and trusting that He has so many wonderful plans for me, for my family. That More than anything, God knows my heart, my dreams, the desires I have, for He put them there and if they are not from God, if they are desires from a different motivation, then I will willingly lay them down for what He has in store for me.

And dinner tonight? (in the slow cooker of course). . .
I love the website Allrecipes.com because as long as I choose a recipe that is 4 stars or higher, it almost always tastes good! Occasionally I tweak it a little after making it the first time but not often. AND, if you become a member (free) you can save your favourites in a recipe box on the site and always find what you're looking for (because if you're like me, I print off a recipe, make it, my family likes it and I end up misplacing the paper that had the recipe on it!)

Anyway, dinner tonight: (I'll have to post what I think after we eat it)

Slow Cooker Mole-Style Pulled Pork


edited to add:*so, its not bad. Personally I would put it on a pannini bun rather than tortilla (there's a lot of juice) and then I would top with pickled jalapenos and a sharp cheese (like swiss or provolone) as the pork itself is more savory and needs that *kick* of something. (Frank's Hot Sauce, or something a long those lines would probably work too)*

INGREDIENTS:
1 (10.5 ounce) can Campbell's®
Condensed French Onion Soup
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (4 pound) boneless pork shoulder roast
2 tablespoons semi-sweet chocolate
pieces
12 (8 inch) flour tortillas, warmed
6 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
DIRECTIONS:
1.Stir the soup, water, chili powder, brown sugar, cumin and cinnamon in a 6-quart slow cooker. Add the pork and turn to coat.
2.Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 9 hours or until the pork is fork-tender. Remove the pork to a cutting board. Using 2 forks, shred the pork. Add the chocolate to the cooker and stir until melted. Return the pork to the cooker.
3.Place about 1/2 cup pork mixture onto half of each tortilla. Top with the tomatoes and cilantro. Fold the tortillas over the filling.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2011 Allrecipes.comPrinted from Allrecipes.com 1/9/2011

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