Into His Nature

This was in My Utmost for His Highest today... particularly applicable for my life at the moment :)

"We must continually keep our soul open to the fact of God’s creative purpose, and never confuse or cloud it with our own intentions. If we do, God will have to force our intentions aside no matter how much it may hurt. A missionary is created for the purpose of being God’s servant, one in whom God is glorified. Once we realize that it is through the salvation of Jesus Christ that we are made perfectly fit for the purpose of God, we will understand why Jesus Christ is so strict and relentless in His demands. He demands absolute righteousness from His servants, because He has put into them the very nature of God.

Beware lest you forget God’s purpose for your life."

Blog Freebie - Recycling Button

Just a cute picture from our trip I thought I would make into a button for all your blogging recyclers out there :) Enjoy!

The Groove

Trav's dad, Allen, is visiting right now, so we went on a road trip to Thessaloniki, Meteora, and then took a ferry over to Thassos. Then on the way home we stopped by Philippi. It was really fun, but it totally threw off the groove we had gotten into as far as ministry and homeschooling. You know what I mean, right? You have a groove that you get into so you and your kids know what to expect each day. So I'm trying to reestablish that. Ksena is 6 letters away from knowing the entire alphabet, and then we can start the reading curriculum :D I'm really excited about that and so is she, which makes me even more excited!! I cannot wait for her to read me a book instead of the other way around. Even if it is comprised completely of "at" words ;)

We are also going to be adding language classes on top of everything else, for Travis and I. After spending a lot of time speaking in horribly broken Greek the last week (ie. "Are there a toilet?"), I am so excited!! I cannot wait to speak Greek. Not that I'm anxious or I'm putting a timeline on myself, but I just look forward to the day that I can speak in Greek fluently. I know that day may be years away, but I trust that someday it will come if I work hard and study. I really haven't ever been in the position where I was learning a foreign language that I could use on a day to day basis. When I studied Italian and Ancient Greek in college, there wasn't that opportunity. So yeah, I'm going into this optomistic. How I feel after we actually start might be different, lol, but I'm going to try to keep a positive attitude.

Here is a picture from the ferry to the island with Kati. She didn't really like the wind, but she smiled for this picture anyway, little trooper!

Kati Bati and I on the ferry to Thassos.

And article is coming out on SER today about not trying to cram everything into one trip because you will get cranky and tired (speaking from experience, yes!)... lol. So yeah, more about the road trip will probably appear on that site. I want to plan out the next three months of posts. It was Trav's idea, and I really like it. I need to find some kind of groove for the SER blog as well. But, all in God's perfect timing.

Hope you are all doing well, and if not, that the Lord is your Rock of mercy and grace! Love, Kristin

He said, "Come"

Nectarine Jam

I made nectarine jam yesterday, and it turned out really yummy. So yummy in fact, that I wanted to share the recipe with you! So here we go, another complete accident gone right :) One of my favorite things about nectarines is that they are sweet and tart all at the same time. That is why I put the minimal amount of sugar, so the jam would still be tart, just like the fruit normally is. I like my jam to be really smooth, but you could always shorten the time in the blender or food processor if you want it to be more chunky. This recipe makes one medium sized jar. You can always double or triple it for more, but you are going to need a big pot!

Nectarine Jam
Ingredients
- 8 Medium Nectarines (about 1 kilo or 2.2 lbs)
- 1 and 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1 pack of Fruit Gel (25 grams) or other Pectin

Directions
- Wash and pit all of the nectarines and cut them into fourths.
- Put all of the nectarine pieces into a food processor or blender and blend until it is purred (if you are using a blender you might need to use something to press the nectarines down initially... like a wooden spoon, but then they will all blend together).
- Run half of the blended nectarines though a strainer (this is for texture purposes, since all of the seed are already out)
- Add the strained mixture and unstrained mixture together in a medium pan and mix in 1 and 3/4s cup of sugar with a wooden spoon.
- Put the pot on medium to medium low heat and stir continually for about 40 minutes (or until mixture reaches 225 degrees F... 107 degrees C). You want the mixture to be boiling when you stop stirring it.
- Add pectin pack and cook for 10 to 15 more minutes.

Tada, your nectarine jam is finished, now you can jar it all professional like for storage, or you can just put in a jar and throw it in the refrigerator if you are planning on eating it right away.

Bad News Bears

One of my best friends is in the hospital with her little one year old for a seriously serious problem that no one knew was going on in her little body. I feel so helpless!! I remember what it was like to hold Ksena while they were putting an IV in her and the look she gave me that said, "How could you let them do this to me, Mommy?"

With that in mind I looked for something to do today that would ease my mind for a few minutes and saw the kilo of nectarines sitting on my counter waiting to be made into jam. I know nectarines are not the first fruit choice when making jam, but I love the taste of nectarines, and when I took the first bite of biscuit with the jam on it I thought, "Mmmm tastes like summer." It turned out just sweet enough and a bit tart, exactly what I wanted.

Last week I also made grape jam for my husband because he was feeling homesick for it. When you live in a different culture and country, you don't just get homesick for family (although that is the number one thing, of course). You get homesick for food that triggers fond memories of growing up in the United States. And since you can't go out and buy grape jam at the grocery store, you have to make it. So I did. It was my first time making jam, and I put it on top of some homemade english muffins.

Homemade goodness :)

So I'm praying for my friend and her family, and baking things (notice a theme here)... I know God is in control. It's just been one of those bummy days today.

But the girls just walked into our room with books on their heads, singing the alphabet song cracking up... I love these girls!! They always know how to cheer me up!

New Things & Good Things

First of all, thank you for all of your prayers for my friend Kim. In the post below you will find a note her husband wrote to let everyone know that the surgery went well and baby Cruz was born healthy and handsome :)


Today marked the end of my first week as a homeschooling mom. I am doing 4 lessons a week with Ksena because I am going to try to find a play date partner for her once a week. So far she can count to ten, and knows the alphabet (reading and writing) up to the the letter, "G." I count these as huge accomplishments.

image via {weheartit.com}

As I was watching her complete her handwriting worksheets today I couldn't help but notice how big she has gotten. She's not a toddler anymore, and she's definitely not a baby. Sigh. I do miss those days of her asking for "cook cooks" and "chocolate lalo" (cookies and chocolate milk), but I am amazed by the girl she has become. She understands so much, and even more heart warming, she loves Jesus. When she sees the evil villains on Disney movies she always says, "She doesn't have Jesus in her heart, mommy." For a four year old to understand that actions show whether or not we are walking closely with Jesus is amazing, and it also makes me want to be more careful that MY actions reflect the love of Christ.


On another note, tomorrow we are going to Ikea to purchase a light bulb (a rather large one) because one in our living room is out and there will be Bible Study on Tuesday, so we need both lights working. While we are there we are hoping to find something good in the "As-is" section that can be transformed into a kitchen cart. We both want something that is high enough, and that we can put a marble slab on. Since we make so many baked things, like bread, pizza dough, and cookies, it would be an amazing surface for us to knead on.


I have to admit that it wasn't until we moved to Athens that we started making so many things from scratch, but it's so much cheaper! Plus it is yummy.


We hung out with Frank and Suzie today for the first time since we left Greece, and it was really fun seeing them! They even brought me a special surprise so now I can make my own cappuccinos, score! Thanks guys! Tomorrow morning I know what awaits me :)


Look out for a SER post tomorrow that is quite controversial, but I couldn't avoid it any longer. It is titled, "Should I Use A Car Seat On An Airplane For My Child Under 2?" Long title, yes... I may shorten it a bit, but you get the gist.


Hope everyone has a good weekend, and God bless!