Vegan Tortilla Soup

Yesterday, I came across a recipe for vegetarian tortilla soup on the All Recipes website. I tweaked it just a bit, made it vegan and added a little more to it and it was delicious! I thought this would be a recipe worth sharing! This is my version of the recipe.

Vegan Tortilla Soup
2 Tbls. Olive Oil
1 lb. frozen onion/pepper stir fry mix
2 cloves minced garlic
3 Tbls. ground cumin
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
3 (4 oz) cans crushed green chile peppers
4 (14 oz) cans vegetable broth
1 C. frozen corn (or 1 can of corn)
1 C. cooked quinoa
salt and pepper to taste
Avocado for topping


Heat the oil in a large pot and cook the onion/pepper stir fry, garlic and cumin for 5 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Mix in the tomatoes and  chile peppers. Stir in the broth and add the cooked quinoa. Salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Serve with tortilla chips and top with avocado. You could also add vegan shredded cheese, but we didn't have any, so I didn't add cheese. It was really good and made great leftovers for lunch today! Cade really enjoyed it. Liam took 1 bite. I will someday get that child to eat a vegetable!

Vegan Tortilla Soup

Fall Turkey Craft

Today, after taking pictures, Liam and I decided to collect some leaves and get crafty! First, we made a turkey craft.

To make this craft, we had to collect the leaves first! Thankfully, our yard has an abundance of them!

Next, I cut out the pieces we would need and let Liam color them.

The pieces colored.

Next, we glue the pieces together. Liam loves anything that involves glue!

Gluing the leaves on the paper.

Here is his finished turkey craft. Despite the look on his face, he did enjoy it!

We had some leftover leaves, so he decided he just wanted to glue them on a piece of paper and make a leaf collage.

With his two completed fall crafts!

Hopefully we will have time for a few more fall crafts in the next few weeks. We both really enjoyed making these.

Fall fun with Liam

Today, I bribed Liam with donuts if he would cooperate and take some fall pictures with me. He happily agreed and actually had fun taking the pictures! That's a big deal for Liam. Usually, if the camera is out, he runs away or refuses to make eye contact. Here are some of the shots I got today!

I plan on bribing Cade with some donuts in a few days so I can get some pictures of him. :)

Afternoon in Branson

This morning, Cade and Liam's grandma called and told me she was in Branson. She invited me to bring the boys for a while after Cade got out of school and I thought that sounded like a great idea! We planned on meeting at the Landing and we beat her there, so I let them play on the playground for a while. 

 My very handsome boys!

 They LOVED playing on this bull. Liam kept calling it his pet.

He knows how to do it!

After playing on the playground, we made our way to Bass Pro. They found this old truck that apparently had a flat tire. They thought they could fix it.

Checking out the fish!

Cade made a new friend.

After Bass Pro, we went to dinner so the boys could spend a little more time with grandma. I could tell they were getting tired though, so we left as quickly as possible! On the way home, Liam said "Cade, I have to talk to you because I'm crabby and when I'm crabby, I have to talk." Sometimes their conversations crack me up!

After a fun afternoon with grandma, we got home in time for them to play with their brothers for a while before bed!

 We had a fun day! And tomorrow, Nana and Papa are coming to spend the night. They are some pretty blessed little boys to have so many people that love them!

I Can Do All Things...

Second post in one day! We went to church tonight, and what the pastor spoke about really was something I needed to hear, and I wanted to write about it before I forgot!

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philipians 4:13. Most of us know this verse. Tonight, I learned that most people actually use it out of context though. People read this and use it to say they can do whatever they want because God will give them strength. That's not what this verse is saying. What Paul is saying is that whatever situation God brings our way, we can endure it because our strength comes from Him. Also, sometimes we may pray about a situation, that God will either give us something or take something away, and He may choose not to do that. But, we can still get through that situation with God's help and with our strength coming from Him.

I'm going to be a little honest here. Some of you may know my story, some of you may know parts of it. Anyway, long story short, I was in a very difficult marriage for 7 years. I prayed so much for things to change in my marriage. For spiritual leadership in our home, for salvation, if that's what needed to happen. I prayed that my marriage would change and turn into a marriage that was pleasing to Him and a reflection of what His love is for us. Despite my prayers and doing whatever I could do to save my marriage, it ended in divorce, and I was left as a single mom to 2 little boys.

Being a single mom was very scary. I had been a stay at home mom since I found out I was pregnant with Cade. I had no income besides working a few hours at my church. Through all of that, I learned that I had to rely on God. Putting my kids in daycare was something I did not want to do. I prayed about it and felt that God wanted me to start my own in-home daycare. And, wow...He opened the doors for that so quickly! I actually had to turn a few people away because I couldn't take anymore kids. I had awesome kids and awesome parents to work with. I couldn't have asked for a better situation! So, there I was...stay at home mom turned single mom who was actually able to provide for my kids and still be at home with them every day. What a blessing!

Even with the awesome way He opened the doors for me to have the in-home daycare, money was still very tight. I look back now and have no idea how I was even able to afford food for my kids and me. I know it was totally God providing because there is no way I could have done it on my own.

Despite seeing how God was taking care of us, I was angry. I was angry that I had prayed so hard for God to save my marriage, yet it still ended in divorce. I was angry at myself for having a failed marriage and feeling as though I had failed as a wife and mom, and I was angry at God. Why did I have to be in this situation? Why was I left to feel lonely and sometimes helpless in raising 2 boys.

Now, I know why it happened. God had a much better plan, and even though 7 years of a very emotionally stressful and draining marriage and almost 2 years of being a single mom, God gave me the strength to endure those times. And, He has answered those prayers I had from my marriage. Prayers for spiritual leadership in my home and for a man who makes family a priority and makes God his number one priority. He just answered those prayers in a way I didn't expect. He answered them by sending Bryan into our lives. God knew what was better for me and for Cade and Liam. So, now, I am thankful for those hard times, because I grew as a person and God was able to work in my life in unexpected ways.

If it feels like God isn't answering your prayers the way you think He should, just know that He will provide to strength the endure whatever situation He allows you to go through. Something the pastor said tonight was that God will allow you to go through trials until He can see his reflection in you.

I'm thankful for our church and what we are learning there!

Date night!

Every Tuesday night, we go to Eureka Springs so that Cade and Liam can spend a few hours with their dad. While they are with him, Bryan and I get a date night. Unfortunately, everything is always closed when we are there. Everything in that town is closed by 7 at the latest! So, mostly our date nights have just been us walking up and down the road window shopping for 2 hours. While that may not seem exciting, it is nice to just have those few hours without kids to just spend some time together.

Bryan and I have decided it's time to get back in shape! We have started the Couch to 5K program. This is the program I used when I started running before and it got me in shape quickly. I feel like my eating has been much better lately. I've really been focusing on trying to eat vegan as much as possible. But, I know that diet isn't all it takes. We HAVE to work out if we want to see real results. We started C25K Monday night. We decided last night for our date night, we would do day 2. Instead of just walking around town, we did a workout. It was great! I think using a date night to work out is a great way to spend a date. After our run, we went to New Dehli Cafe because they have options on their menu that are vegan friendly. It's important to plan ahead when you are trying to live a healthy lifestyle. I knew early in the day that is where I wanted to eat. Otherwise, we would have gone somewhere that I most likely would not have made a healthy choice for dinner.

So, if you're looking for a fun date idea, work out together! You'll get in better shape and have fun together at the same time!

What a Weekend!

Saying that things get a little chaotic with 4 boys running around would be an understatement. Sometimes it can be a little overwhelming to say the least! But, we enjoyed some time this weekend when Bryan's parents came to visit. The kids, of course, enjoy being spoiled by their grandparents! Here are a few pictures from the weekend.

The boys

 Playing in the leaves is so much fun!

I love this picture of Liam..so carefree!

Lovin' fall! I imagine in a few more weeks, this will be even prettier! This is the view from our balcony.

Bryan and Isaac

 Cade and Granddaddy

On Saturday, Cade woke up coughing and with a fever. He also complained about his heart hurting all day. I never know if he's exaggerating, but when he was still complaining about it on Saturday night, we decided we should take him to the ER, just in case there really was something going on. It turned out he had pneumonia. I'm so glad we took him in instead of waiting! He is terrified of doctors, but the doctors were great and he was actually enjoying himself..until they broke the news that he would have to get 2 shots in a not very pleasant place. That was no fun for any of us! He also got a breathing treatment, which really made him feel better but made him SO hyper. Cade is hyper as it is...I have never seen him bouncing off the walls like he was that night! He is feeling much better now and was able to go to school today! Here is a picture of Cade as a fire-breathing dragon while he was getting his breathing treatment:

Liam and I are spending today relaxing after our very busy weekend!