Hummus and the family

I suspect that the emotions surrounding advocating for my children will never truly be a stoic experience. But I am praying that some of those intense feelings and reactions that occur within me (I have never been one for internalizing feelings, I'm more of a speak now, regret later, sort of gal :( will become less so, as I rest in the Lord.  Our oldest son has an IEP. For those of you that aren't sure what that is, it stands for Individual Education Plan, meaning Isaac has needs and issues that go beyond typical peers, his age. As a result, I must advocate for him. He has a team that meets and we discuss his needs, what services he qualifies, etc. It is an exhausting push...pull....balancing act. Bureaucracy reigns supreme in the public school system. Whines about funding, attempts to withdraw services because the child is actually gaining ground (after regressing without the needed services), are all moves that are choreographed in this dance that we do with the public school. It has been 5 years of a never ending amounts of meetings and advocating. Today was no exception. Just when you hear that your son will FINALLY get a much needed service, you hear suggestions that he may benefit in a classroom setting that would work on his social behavior. So I am trying to unwind from listening to input that I did not want and do not agree with...at all. I am not looking for the school to teach my son to be typical...or them to help me parent. I am wanting them to support him in a typical classroom so that he can be more successful....which is what he has been doing the past month....with the support now intact. It continues to be a difficult and shaky road for me. I do not yet have a team that I believe wants the best for Isaac. I still see bureaucracy and that is very difficult as a mother. Isaac will have his current support , which was my big desire. And he does happen to have the most incredible teacher that I have ever come across, so my heart is full of gratitude.

I would have never guessed that the fight in me, that I almost seem to have been born with, would actually serve a purpose in my life....to fight for my kids..... but it seems to have. That same fight is brewing within me to sustain the long journey of adoption that awaits us. My blog has been one of very impersonal post with recipes. This will no longer be how I blog.

I love food. I love nutrition. I love educating in those areas. That has come easily to me. My schooling is coming along well (in case you were wondering) and I will continue to write about food, nutrition, recipes...but I will be adding our adoption process and my motherhood tales, tying them all together,  with my faith.

If can boast of many things that seem to come easily, being a mother is NOT one of them. When the bible tells of boasting of our weaknesses because it is when we are weak, that Christ is strong, it was surely referring to Cristina's mothering. I want it to be clear that I am not very confident in this area. It does not come easily or naturally for me. It sure seems to for others, but I will boast of my weakness, because any strength in this area, surely is evidence of the invisible working through me.


This week I sent off my paperwork to the Romanian embassy in D.C.  I will then wait to hear back from Romania in regards to my Romanian citizenship. They will either reinstate it (my hope).....or I will have to jump many more hoops to reapply for that citizenship. I am praying this matter doesn't take months. In the meantime, I still have not heard back from USCIS (not so long ago it was referred to as INS) regarding my green card. I was on the phone with them this morning. It seems that my wait can be 3 1/2 months! Until the matter of my citizenship is resolved, the home-study will have to wait. I am praying I don't have to wait an exacerbate amount of time for Romania's response. So here I am typing away.



In food news. Toby and I did a veggie type cleanse last week....it was refreshing. I learned a whole bunch about my body's relationship and reaction to carbs/sugar. I have a diet with very little processed food....my baking is gluten free and made with coconut crystals (low glycerin palm sugar)....yet, I must confess, my body has a very strong reaction to any sugar, period. I have terrible cravings, as a result, and then my body is sent into an insulin roller coaster ride....I didn't realize how sensitive I am. I am the same way with caffeine. I hate the way it makes my body feel! I can barely ever tolerate it. Who knew?


I make hummus a whole lot in our house. It is a simple dip. I am hoping that at some point, my children will want to try it. But as of now, Toby and I, are the ones that enjoy it. It's a basic recipe and I really do eye ball the measurements. I blend the beans in my vita mix, but you can blend in a blender, or food processor, depending on your texture preference. 


I like to buy my grains and beans in bulk. I think it is just a better idea and it's much cheaper to make garbanzo beans from dry, than get them in a can (who knows how long they've been in a can and what has leaked in the beans), but I know we are a very busy society. I typically will soak my beans(a cups worth of dry beans) for a day or two, it makes all the difference! Why soak beans? Beans have an outer layer of indigestible sugars, tannins, phytic acid and tryspin inhibitors. This outer layer is the root cause of intestinal gas. I then will either stick them in my pressure cooker or a regular pot and boil them till they're ready (mushy)....wait till they're luke warm and then put in my vita mix


2c cooked beans (or a can of canned)
1 medium garlic clove (or two small)
1/2t of tahini (I usually put in 1/4c of sesame seeds, since my vita mix crushes em into tahini)
2T of extra virgin olive oil

1T of lemon juice or half a fresh lemon squeezed
1T of cumin
1t of turmeric
a few pieces of chopped onion
and I usually add some greens (like spinach or kale leaves)
I fill the container with water till it almost covers the beans (this really is a trial and error experience to get the right thickness you want)

I add salt as I blend...because it varies, but i start off with 1T of it....which is usually enough

add some oil and sprinkle some turmeric on top...voila!

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