Psalms 100:4

Week 5 - Psalms 100:4
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.

I have a lot to be thankful for. Sometimes I focus too much on the things that I don't like and I forget all the blessings I have. This week I am extra thankful for all that God provides.

Absolutely Ultimate Potato Soup

Here is my first recipe for the year. I like to make soup in January - even though it isn't cold here, it just seems appropriate. This soup was very delicious and I will be making it again...Bill loved it!

At the end of each recipe, I will give an overall score - judging taste, number of dishes dirtied, and time/effort spent making it. This recipe took me about 1.5 hours to complete (including all the peeling and chopping).

The required ingredients.

Peel and cube the potatoes.

Chop the celery and onion and garlic (I use pre-chopped garlic from a jar).

Fry the bacon in a large pot (we love bacon!).

Fry celery, onions, and garlic in reserved bacon grease.

Add potatoes and bacon, cover with chicken stock, and simmer.

Melt butter, whisk in flour, whisk in cream and herbs.

Add cream mixture to potato mixture. Blend half the soup (I used an immersion blender, but you could pour half the soup in a regular blender too).

Ladle delicious soup into bowls.

Garnish with crispy bacon, shredded cheese, and pepper. Enjoy!

Absolutely Ultimate Potato Soup (from allrecipes.com)

1 pound bacon, chopped
2 stalks celery, diced
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 cups chicken stock, or enough to cover potatoes (I didn't have chicken stock, so I used chicken bouillon cubes with about 4.5 cups of water.)
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup flour
1 cup heavy cream (I used 3/4 cup heavy cream and 1/4 cup milk)
1 teaspoon dried tarragon (I didn't have tarragon but I used thyme - I like it better)
3 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro (I didn't have fresh cilantro so I used dried)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
-In a dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until done. Remove bacon from pan, and set aside. Drain off all but 1/4 cup of the bacon grease.
-In the bacon grease remaining in the pan, saute the celery and onion until onion begins to turn clear. Add the garlic, and continue cooking for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the cubed potatoes, and toss to coat. Saute for 3 to 4 minutes. Return the bacon to the pan (I saved some for garnishing later), and add enough chicken stock to just cover the potatoes. Cover, and simmer until potatoes are tender (about 12 minutes for me).
-In a separate pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour. Cook, stirring constantly, for 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the heavy cream, tarragon and cilantro. Bring the cream mixture to a boil, and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened. Stir the cream mixture into the potato mixture. Puree about 1/2 the soup and return to the pan (I used an immersion blender and just pulsed it a few times to blend some of the soup but still leave some delicious potato chunks). Adjust seasonings to taste. (I garnished it with some crispy bacon and shredded cheese - and extra pepper!)

AND, what they don't show you on the glamorous cooking shows are all the dirty dishes. So, I thought I'd show you just how many dishes I used to make this recipe.

The dirty dishes for this potato soup.

Absolutely Ultimate Potato Soup
Taste: 5 out of 5
Dirty Dishes: 2 out of 5
Time/Effort: 2 out of 5
TOTAL: 9 out of 15

James 1:12

Week 4 - James 1:12
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

Everyone encounters trials at some point in their lives - some are big and life-changing, others are small and personal. But, they are all important...and they can all teach us something. We just have to be willing to listen and learn. And, although we often can't control our trials, we can control our attitude. My goal this week is to have the right attitude when I face the trials in my path!

January 20 - A Day In My Life

It may not be very early - but anytime you wake up to an alarm clock it's annoying! This is what I saw when I finally opened my eyes.

Bacon supervises as we get ready for work.

I enjoy a nutritious breakfast of Cocoa Puffs!!

Driving to work on a beautiful "summer" day.

Bill is careful to protect the animals on our short commute...we don't run them over or honk at them - or anything else this sign could mean.

I have this in my cubicle at work...it has become my motto. (In case you can't tell, it's a donut.)

After work, we stopped to see what the embassy was selling in their auction. A lot of furniture and computer equipment, but most of it is old or damaged. We'll probably come back tomorrow to see how much people bid.

Going to lunch. The green Volkswagen tried to cut us off...but Bill did NOT allow it. Defensive driving is very important!

Lunch at Tamburelli's. We're been here over 2 years but this was our first time.

I had chicken lasagna (although I ordered meat lasagna). It was good.

Bill had a tasty little pizza.

After lunch, we made a quick stop for groceries. This is the tiniest can of sweetened condensed milk I've ever seen. The can is so tiny and Bill is so silly!

Our groceries.

Making Key Lime Cheesecakes for a baby shower tonight. Zesting delicious limes.

While I slave away in the kitchen, Bill sleeps...

and Bacon sleeps...

and Ubi sleeps!

After all the hard work baking, I look at pictures of "our" house while Bill gets a quote for homeowner's insurance!

Time check - an obligatory part of doing "A Day In My Life" is repeated time checks!

All dressed up for the baby shower tonight...ok, not really dressed "up"! I think it's also obligatory to take a picture of myself in the mirror on these days.

I'm not sure if I'm cool enough for these shoes...we'll see how I do tonight!

Abby driving us to the baby shower - but always taking the time to pose for a picture!

Writing sweet messages and prayers for the new babies, mother and family.

Clare (it's her baby shower) leading the way through a delicious buffet of salads and soups.

The fruits of my labor - those are the Key Lime Cheesecakes I made earlier. They aren't very cute, but they tasted good!

Abby is the master of self-portrait picture taking. Unfortunately, my camera chose to focus on the table behind us.

Time check. Still at the baby shower...it was a good, long, evening!

The "tree" with all the messages and prayers for Clare and her family.

Everyone is already sleeping when I get home.

My last picture of the day is technically not even the same day. But, it's the end of my photo journal for this month.

Psalms 119:11

Week 3 - Psalms 119:11
I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

This pretty much sums up Bible memorization. We need to have verses in our heart and mind so when we are tempted, we can fight back! This is a good one to remember as I start learning new verses and I'm trying to keep them all memorized.

San Blas Trip

On Saturday, we took a day trip to the San Blas Islands - located on the Caribbean side of Panama. So, we left the Pacific side in the morning and drove across the country to enjoy a day on the sandy beach...and then we drove back. It was a long day, but it was a lot of fun. I'm so glad Jen was able to go with us...I really enjoyed hanging out on the beach. The water was beautiful and we really enjoyed ourselves (and no one was hit on the head with any coconuts!). Thanks to Bob & Shelly for leading the way. Here is the montage from our trip (my video for this month). Enjoy!

San Blas Trip from Kara Hurt on Vimeo.

Colossians 3:17

Week 2 -Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

This is another good verse to start my year with. It's a good reminder to keep my focus on pleasing God. Even when I'm not very happy with my situation or circumstances, I need to live my life in a way that glorifies Him and count my blessings.