Bible study

I was reminded last night of how much I love my friends at Bible Study! Each girl is so giving, loving, and compassionate. I love to see how each one of us is growing from week to week, making progress in our relationships with Christ.  These women are eager to lift each other up in prayer, and I am so thankful to have people like that in my lives. This study could not have had better timing in my life because I desperately needed Godly women around me. I am sooo thankful for these women! I couldn't have asked for anything better!

yard updates

flowering crabapple











view behind the pear tree



















pear tree









one of my pots











new bird feeder  :)













crabapple











tulips, finally bloomed!














tulips

expanding our horizons

Matt and I have been trying to eat a bit healthier lately. We recently saw an article about the 10 healthiest foods, and some of the items on it were watercress, dandelion greens, spinach, kale, and beans. I feel like we eat a lot of vegetables as is, but I figured I could add a few of these in here and there.

I made split pea soup yesterday and added some kale and leeks-delicious! It's too bad Matt thinks he has developed an allergy to split peas. Seriously. His throat got all itchy and mouth got numb after one bite. He took some benadryl and did a test later on in the day. He ate some kale alone-nothing. Had no leeks anymore, so no test there. And ate two more bites of the soup, bam! Same thing. Lame. Now I will be eating split pea soup for awhile, and that is with freezing half!

I was perousing the web today and came across this recipe on the front page! http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen/recipes/salads/sesame-kale-salad/  It was delicious! I didn't have any roasted red pepper, but I did add turkey, watercress, and some goat cheese. The kale was very filling, and the sesame seeds added great flavor.
1 pound Kale Leaves, Once Tough Stems And Ribs Have Been Removed

2 whole Large Roasted Piquillo Or Red Pepper, Cut Into Thin Bite-size Strips
3 Tablespoons Toasted Sesame Seeds
¼ cups Rice Wine Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons Toasted Sesame Oil
MIX it all up and enjoy!


On a side note, I do most of my grocery shopping at Fred Meyer. Lately they have had these turkey tenderloins on sale. There are two of them per package, and marinated in different flavors, on sale 2/$10. Matt and I share one tenderloin for dinner, and save the other for the next day. They are extremely easy to make and are SO moist every time! It makes life easy for us when Matt makes dinner.

I was on standby today for work, and did not get called in!! Woot woot! It was sooo nice out today so I enjoyed every second of my freedom. Although, I got a ton of stuff done: two loads of laundry, swept and mopped the kitchen and pantry floor, washed my sheets, vacuumed, went for a run/walk, chatted with the neighbors, and washed my car!

Big Changes

No, I am not pregnant. Let's just get that one out of the way.

For the last three years, we've been blessed with a steady income between the two of us. Between Matt working for a large law firm and me working for a hospital, we were happy and comfortable. Things always happen when you get too comfortable, right? I personally like being comfortable and routine. Despite our "safe" personalities, Matt has always talked about practicing law with his good friend, Loren, from law school. For three years, I said "no." "This is too risky." "We need to save money for our future." In the meantime, Loren started up a law firm of his own outside of Vancouver, Wa. Another partner, Jeff, has since joined and the practice has grown. In January during a visit to Vancouver, Loren and Jeff had made up a proposed budget and timeline of what it would look like if Matt joined them in March. Nothing like a little persuasion, right? :)

With a lot of prayer, anxiety, planning, and preparation, Matt has officially joined Joner Lindberg Baker PLLC on April 1. We are NOT moving to Vancouver (yay!). Matt is opening an office here in Snoqualmie. And until he finds some office space, he is working from home. I LOVE having him home more often, but I am finding myself trying to stay busy so that I don't appear like a major slacker on my days off. Little did I know, he was doing the same thing. :) Actually, he has been extremely productive, working much harder than I thought he would. The Lord never fails to show me when I'm wrong.

So, needless to say, we are nervous about the risk this change brings, but also very excited about the opportunity to build a business in our own hometown. Matt has already been busy networking with the people in this town. He has joined the Chanber of Commerce, and has already received some business! He is going to be mainly working on business, real estate, and estate planning law.

I am so proud of Matt and all that he has done in the past few months. I am surprised at my response to this whole thing, but I am loving every minute of it. I love knowing that Matt is happy and encouraged. God has done some major work in our lives in the past year, and I am so thankful for it. He has blessed us with so much in our lives, and I am so excited to see what He has in store for us in the next year!