Changing my perspective of time...

I am generally a creative person. I am passionate about cooking, trying new recipes, writing and often dabbling into photography. I would definitely say I am at my happiest when I have the time to do those things. It's funny because I thought being a stay-at-home mom would grant me the free time necessary to create and quickly learned that was not the case! Don't get me wrong being a wife and mom is the most fulfilling experience in the world for me, it's just when I don't always get a chance to create it makes me a little sad and moodier. 

Some days that special time I have to create comes easier and other days my time is limited. I'm actually thanking God as I type this because Lydia is playing by herself and not demanding me to pick her up! A big turn around indeed. I was dealing with a needy chub over the last couple of weeks, and by the time she would go down for a nap, I'd have to prepare dinner or was too exhausted to tap into creativity which made me feel discouraged. However it helps when I remind myself that I'm doing a good thing by placing my family first and my passions second. No I can't do everything all at once, but I can do everything I desire to do in increments. Having this perspective has really changed my attitude when my time is limited and it is key in surviving the epic burn outs that come from being a stay-at-home mom!

As a Christian, I depend on Christ for everything, including my time and without Him I doubt my perspective would be positive when I'm burnt out. Through Him I am a more patient, industrious and kind woman, He even gives me a peace of mind when time isn't by my side. I am learning that I have to pray for myself to find that special time and wholeheartedly trust that God will open a window for me. I am also learning as a wife, it's okay to ask for help when I'm feeling exhausted and that I'm not being selfish if I ask for alone time to create. It's what makes me a happier wife and mom after all. The scripture above is one that I'm holding onto when I am feeling especially burnt out. “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He guards all his bones; Not one of them is broken.” -Psalm 34:17-20 

I have to say I feel a lot better writing what’s been on my mind lately, and I am slowly working myself back into writing more content!

Lydia Renee's First Birthday Party!

Just a small collection of photos from Lydia's first birthday party. While I didn't quite capture every detail on my camera (I somehow forgot to photograph lunch and another banner, whoops!), I am glad I have these pictures to look back on! I'm super grateful for all the help my family handed to bring this party to life and also keeping me sane. Michael helped with the decorations, the cake bunting banner, and made that beautiful flower garland! I made slow roasted pulled pork. I had it cooking throughout the night and before we went to bed, I made Michael pray that it would cook thoroughly before the guests arrived! Thankfully it was perfect, and there was more than enough food to go around.

Mom made chicken empanadas, bacalao salad, a big pot of yellow rice, and salad. She also made those darling brown paper goody bags filled with double chocolate macadamia cookies, sesame cookies and my chocolate dipped coco's. Mom W. made adorable bunny deviled eggs that were also incredibly delicious! I put out some homemade chex mix, a cheeseboard with crackers, some of mom W's jalapeno jelly (so good!) and my brother-in-law's girlfriend made a tasty enchilada dip. For dessert, I had baked yellow layered cake with  chocolate sour cream frosting and vegan dirt cake served with dye-free gummy worms, and of course cafe con leche. Leftovers for days!

The birthday girl slept a little during her party and was initially confused/cranky from the large crowd of people but she eventually adapted, and was enjoying herself! I can't believe she is already one years old. The first 12 months have been such a fun ride and we look forward to new adventures with our daughter, and many more birthdays!

23 things for 2016

Cheers and an abundance of praise to another year of good health, happy memories, blessings and delicious food! I picked 23 things because I'm 23 years old. So here's my list of 23 realistic goals:

1. Memorize scriptures; I have a few favorites but want to add more to my memory to fall back on for encouragement, praise, peace of mind and strength.

2. Pray more; whether it is for praise, family, my congregation or big things that are going on in our country, I need to be praying more.

3. Commit more time to studying the bible; whether it’s in a group setting or on my own time.

This past year, I wrote a short list of things that trigger my anxiety and rated them on a scale of 1-10; 1 being very mild anxiety and 10 being “!!!!” anxiety. I got the tip when I was searching “how to overcome anxiety” and found it to be extremely resourceful. I decided the two that I wanted to overcome this year had to do with everyday encounters.

4.Get over my fear of calling people (that aren’t family) first, and not feeling like it is the scariest thing in the world.

5. Saying what’s on my mind (within context, of course), share my ideas with others and do it all without the fear of sounding stupid. And if I do sound stupid to them, then oh well! I may think I’m going to die from embarrassment but I haven't died from it yet.

“The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. In cooking you've got to have a what-the-hell attitude.” –Julia Child

6. Hone my knifing skills… Relearn how to debone chicken, segment citrus, filet a fish, etc. 

7. Improve my pie/pastry and cake decorating abilities; I got the taste down, but presentation is where I lack and want to practice.  

8.Try to make more foods from scratch. Pasta, bread, stocks, and maybe even goat’s milk yogurt and ricotta cheese just to name a few...

9. Invest and use a kitchen scale for more accurate baking measurements.

10. Learn the basics of building delicious cocktails.

11. Throw dinner party or two! 

12. Take more pictures because there is no such thing as taking too many, and I did't take that many in 2015.

13. Develop recipes, perfect them and post them on this blog with confidence.

14.Create something lovely out of all the wine corks we’ve collected over the course of a year.

15. Learn a new creative skill. Perhaps sewing, pottery, or dancing? Decisions, decisions.

16. Seek out a hobby that Michael, Lydia and I can all do together. And also go on more dates with Michael, and be more present with each other.

17. Walk the Miss Zoe more. Poor thing is getting fat again.

18. Paint and decorate Lydia’s bedroom, and successfully wean her out of our room, have her sleep in the crib, peacefully and without force. Tell me, am I being overly ambitious with this one?

19. Organize the cabinets, closets and dressers. Make this the year be the year, I don't lose any important papers because they are neatly put away in their proper place! 

20.  Similar to the one above, organize the abyss  basement, get rid of the things we truly don't need and then figure out what we can do with the space.

21. Visit my grandparents in Puerto Rico sometime in the spring or summer.

22. Start a garden behind the shed in our backyard, know my plants and treat them with much love.

23. Create new traditions with Michael and Lydia for next Thanksgiving and Christmas. 

I'm feeling more inspired already!!

PS: Those are Michael's beautiful shelves in the photo above, and yes I am obsessed with them.

Pumpkin Chai Snickerdoodles

This recipe adapted from a year of cozy's chewy chai snickerdoodles (which I think you all should check it out if you haven't already!)

ingredients:

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon cardamom

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 ½ cup sugar

2/3 cup coconut oil, slightly melted

¾ cup pumpkin puree

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

topping:
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of cardamom

directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, allspice and pepper.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, add the sugar, pumpkin puree, vanilla extract and coconut oil. Beat until

In the bowl of your electric mixer, add the sugar, pumpkin puree and coconut oil. Beat until combined and smooth, 1-2 minutes. Add the flour in two additions, scraping down the sides with spatula if needed and beating until just combined.

Mix together the topping ingredients in a bowl. Using a cookie scoop, divide the dough into 36 equal pieces, rolling each into a smooth bowl. Roll each cookie ball into topping and place it on a baking sheet, keeping the cookies about 2 inches apart. Use the bottom of a drinking glass to gently press the cookie balls into flattened pieces of dough.

Bake the cookies for 11 to 12 minutes. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to completely cool before serving.

...stay tuned for my dairy-free pumpkin chai snickerdoodle ice cream recipe that uses these cookies!