Chicken, Kale, and Wild Rice Soup

I love soup. Especially THIS time of year. Just as the weather begins to have a bit of a chill, we are in need of something to warm our bones. Soup to the rescue!

I had a broth bowl at Panera Bread a year or so ago that I absolutely loved and wondered if I could come close to it at home. I have to admit that I never would have thought of putting kale into a soup.  So, here is what I came up with, and while it is not exactly the same it is every bit as tasty.  It can easily be adjusted for more or less soup as you go.  I wish I had a picture of it to share (I found one that I cropped... looks very similar to mine), but trust me on this one... it is delicious!

Chicken, Kale and Wild Rice Soup

• 1 to 2 boxes organic chicken (or bone) broth
• 1 to 2 qts. water
• 2-3 medium chicken breasts (fresh or frozen)
• 1/2 can mild Rotel tomatoes, drained
• 2 whole lemons
• 1/2 cup wild rice blend (I use Texmati with flaxseed, black lentils, couscous [pictured])
• Fresh kale, washed and torn into bite-sized pieces
• Greek seasoning (I use Cavender's)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Bring broth and 1 qt. water to a boil in 2 1/2 quart pot.  Add chicken breasts and cook until tender.  Remove chicken breasts and set aside to rest and cool. When chicken is cool, cut into bite-sized chunks.

Add Rotel tomatoes (if you can't get Rotel, most any petite diced tomatoes will work) to broth and reduce heat.  Zest the 2 lemons and add zest to the chicken broth.  Seed and juice the lemons, and add juice to broth.

Bring broth back to a boil.  Add Greek seasoning, salt and pepper to taste. Add rice blend, cover, and reduce heat to simmer until rice is done (appx. 15-20 minutes depending on blend).  Add chicken chunks.  Add kale pieces and simmer until tender.

Enjoy!

NOTE:  This recipe can be chicken-less... and if no chicken is available, it is also good with a whole boiled egg (this is how it was served to me at Panera). 

A Blessing for You

So, because my last post was a little on the negative side, I am posting something encouraging today.  Here is a scripture we memorized in our ladies group a while back, when we were making our way through the book of Ephesians.  I am posting it here as encouragement for you.  Always remember that you are uniquely special and dearly loved by the One who created you!  There really is no way to truly comprehend His love... and feel free to copy and use this graphic if you'd like to.  We used it to help us memorize, but use it however you'd like.

Speaking of Spinning... and Not Being Antisocial

Does social media make your head spin, or is it just me?  

Photo credit: Hali Newberry Photography

My first foray in the social media world was Facebook.  Ahhh... what a great tool for connecting with all those friends from different eras of my past.  I really do love that aspect of it.  And, now that I have a 3 month-old nephew whom I never get to see in person (seriously, have you ever seen a baseball that cute???), it is a great way for me to "virtually" watch him grow.  But, Facebook really is so here today and gone tomorrow... and even though it saves my things, I have a hard time going back and finding something my friends have posted.  When I check Facebook, one minute something is there and the next it is gone.  I think to myself, "Wait, I wanted to read that."  Have you had a conversation with someone you wish you could go back and reread? I sure have... but, the posts just keep on scrolling ...and scrolling ...and scrolling by.

Then Twitter came along, the place where you can say whatever you want to for the world to see -- or at least your followers -- in 140 characters or less.  I think we can all plainly see why this one didn't work out for me...

Next there was Pinterest... what a great concept: a great visual representation of a link that I want to save.  And, I am such a visual person that it was perfect for me.  You know, the instant recipe keeper for all those delicious looking recipes you see in images all over the internet.  

It was also a great tool for organizationally challenged people looking to improve their organizing skills (me!)  And it was the perfect spot for curating a whole bunch of loveliness in one place.  However, three years down the road half of my image links no longer work.  So that recipe I put off trying for so long still looks great in the image, I just have no idea where the recipe is.  And the organizational site went "poof!" just like my organizational skills.

And then there was Instagram.  Visual instant gratification... "Hey family and friends, look at me doing this or that right now!" ...but with no real conversation (unless you count hashtags... don't even get me started on twentyhashtagsononepicturethaticannotreadbecausetheyallruntogether!!) And again, the images just keep scrolling and scrolling.  If I want to see something from 3 weeks ago I have to 1. remember who posted it, 2. find that person's username, and 3. go look through all their images until I see it.  Too much trouble... I'd rather just move on.

Which brings me right back to where I started ever having conversations online.  I am back here hoping for some meaningful dialogue (or even monologue, should no one care to read it!) interspersed with images and links that hopefully will be more (or less) permanent.  And I am thankful that there are still a number of you who feel the same way!

Not really antisocially,

Spinning Right On Its Axis...

So, has it really been three and a half years since I last posted? It's just hard to believe that, but in some ways it seems even longer. With my children grown but not gone, I am still in a very busy stage of life.  Yet, I miss the blog world, my friends made here, and the writing and photos that go along with storytelling.  So, I am going to make a renewed effort and try to not be hard on myself when I go for (what seems like) ages between posts. I can hardly believe that when I started this blog over eight years ago, I posted every day! Whoa, I don't know how I managed that and everything else. But, realistically I know that I have too many things going on right now to post everyday... but I can post sometimes.

Since that first blog post in May 2008, so much has happened in our lives as well as in the world of technology.  We have a lot of visual "instant gratification" these days through Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and all the other social media sites.  Yet, my writer's heart longs for a space like this to just ramble on about whatever is on my heart... and for something that's not here today and gone tomorrow.  I love being able to look back at the old posts here and see what God was doing in our lives then and how far He has brought us and our families.  I am using the word "our" because as I look back at the comments, I was not doing this alone. I have tried to stay connected to a number of you by popping in every now and then to read your posts and comment (sparsely, I know.) I am thankful that some of you faithful ones are still at this blogging thing!  It just makes my world feel that it is spinning right on its axis to be able to go visit your beautiful blog homes on the web.

I am still doing art along with graphic and web design, all of which keeps me quite busy.  I am currently in the midst of a very interesting commissioned piece of art for a young man who is about to get married... the piece will be a wedding present for his bride as a remembrance of the spot where he proposed to her.  It is such fun getting to be in on secrets like that.  I just rolled out a brand new website last week for a local small business in town.  I also took on the role of president of one of our local art associations this year, which has added to my already long list of tasks.  But, it has also given me the opportunity to become immersed in the local art community, to get to know some local artists whose works I have admired, and to learn many, many things about techniques, materials, shows, etc.

For those of you still connected here, THANK YOU for not giving up on me. I have always felt like our blog community was a bit of a "small town" on the internet, as those of us with common interests found one another early on.  For now, I am jumping back into this blog with both feet!  There is so much loveliness to be shared, and I want to be a part of the sharing.  I hope to see you around this great big world (wide web)!

Blogging Friends Forever Award

I have received an award from one of my best blogging friends, Vee at A Haven for Vee. She is such an encouragement to me and has been a faithful and frequent commenter here for quite some time. I am humbled and grateful to receive this from her. Here are the rules:

1. You may only choose 5 people/blogs to give the award to...

2. Four have to be dedicated followers of your blog...

3. One has to be a new follower of your blog or live in another part of the world...

It's tough to only pick five, but I am going to play by the rules this time. I am awarding this to four of the bloggers who have been with me the longest and are still around to read and encourage. They followed me from my original Charm & Grace Blog to this wonderful and much more user friendly Blogger Cottage. And I am awarding it to one newer friend whose blog I fell in love with earlier this year and have been following.

1. Lorrie at Fabric, Paper, Thread has been a blog friend almost since I began blogging in April of 2007. She is a kindred spirit in so many ways, and she never fails to lift my spirits with her comments. I love to read about her creativity whether through writing, sewing, scrapbooking, decorating, or creating from paper.

2. Bebe's Peaches~and~Dreams blog is so beautiful and filled with such fun. Bebe is a fellow southerner and really understands some of my quirky "southern-ness." She has been such a sweetheart to stick with me for so long.

3. Barb from The French Elements is a wonderful blogger who has just given me tremendous encouragement all along the way. (I would have to say that encouragement is definitely her spiritual gift!) She is a wonderfully creative person with a heart of gold, and I am honored that she has stuck with me so long.

4. Ruth from Artful Creations is a very talented artist who also has a fantastic eye for photography. (If you haven't seen her pictures from the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park in Utah, you must get over there now!) It means so much to have a fellow artist friend take the time to encourage me by reading and commenting.

Thanks to all you ladies for following me over here from over there, for taking time to read my posts, and for leaving your beautiful and cherished words of encouragement!

5. If you haven't visited The Dutchess, then you don't know what you're missing. It is always a showcase for beautiful artwork and classic literature. And just so we're following the spirit of the rules, she just happens to live in another part of the world in the beautiful Netherlands. She has definitely become a BFF over these past months.

And I am giving Strider a "notable mention" (as I am not sure he would appreciate the whole Blogging Friends Forever thing.) He never fails to encourage and exhort us in our walk with the Lord, and his comments always mean a lot.

Best blogging blessings to you all!!

Back from Blogging Break...

I am so happy to return to blogging after a much needed break. I have been very busy since my last post with all kinds of things including a terrific family vacation that lasted most of two weeks. This was not a restful vacation, but it was extremely enjoyable and a diversion. It included both my mother and also my hubby's parents and was a challenge to plan, but it was a very special time for us.

Since returning, I have been busy washing clothes and getting back into a normal (what is normal, anyway?) routine. Our oldest son had his 17th birthday while we were away, and he is in his senior year of high school. I can hardly believe my baby will be going off to college next year. We have spent the last week trying to get things together in order for him to make application to the colleges he has interest in attending. These are wonderful milestones, but they also make mom a little sad. I am so proud of the young man he has become.


"Apple Pickin" - watercolor on cold press

As you can see, I have also been busy with artwork since our return home. The watercolor above was one I had begun earlier in August (see this post) along with the EPCOT sketch below. I have continued to work on it since returning, but it's not quite finished.

The watercolor below was such fun to work on. The colors really inspired me, and I love the balance of the heaviness of the grapes amidst the papery fragility of the grape leaves. It is called "Abundance."


"Abundance" - watercolor on cold press

I must say a big thank you to those who stopped here and asked about me during my absence... you are all precious to me. I am looking forward to making all my blog rounds again... I will probably ease back into this process so please be patient with me. I am happy to be back in the cozy cottage.