Friday, November 1, 2013

Paleo Vegan Pumpkin Spice Drink with a Call for Foster Parents on the Side

We are rounding out a almost a year of being a foster home, and I wanted to take a blog and write about it. I don't write too much about all the different kiddos or stituations that we are involved in, because, obviously, privacy issues. But I wanted to give it the attention that it deserves. The "it", is really just being a foster parent.

Sometimes I want to cheer people into becoming foster parents, but really, that isn't how we came about becoming ones, ourselves. I was most influenced by my family. I have an incredible cousin who showed me what a foster parent looks like. She has been a refuge and her life has been inspiring to me. I also have a beautiful sister in law, who adopted a sibling group of 5, out of the foster care system in California. These two families have influenced our decision to travel down an often scary and uncertain journey.

Let me start out by saying honestly, I am not a great mom. I loose my cool, I yell, am super impatient, and I struggle just talking nice when things don't go the way I think they should. I lean a lot on Jesus, I repent, and ask for forgiveness, throughout my day. I cry. I have often thought that I cannot be a good mother, due to my weaknesses. But the Lord has used these very weaknesses to show me His transforming power. Am I healed from any of my shortcomings? No, I still have them all....but now, now I have new life growing in me...a life that is stronger and more humble than my former self...a life that eats and drinks Christ.

So this is why I am a foster parent. Because my strength is Him. I am compelled to serve. I have rarely said no to a child/children coming into our home (I try to maintain a no kids older than my youngest biological, for everyone's safety), the reason is, because I feel like each situation comes to us from God.

Nothing has changed and challenged me more, than serving others.....serving little ones. I am amazed by this amazing gift that Toby and I have been given to have these kids in our home. It has made my kids more aware that they are not the center of the world. That some kids don't have what they take for granted (even though their mom yells, sometimes). I am blessed to see my kids step up and be kind and accept the kids that have been in our home.

Grant it, I would like to adopt. This is not the way I would have chosen to go about it (and yes, we're still going to adopt from Romania), but it is a better way  than I could have ever imagined. I am convinced that I have gotten more from the kids, than they have gotten from us. How humbled I am that they would be in our home.

We will have a full house starting Sunday.....for us, that means 6 kids total. It's the amount that I can have in my car, and a huge mental jump for me, is going to a passenger van. I have no clue how long we will have the 3....but I trust that God will work out the details. It continues to amaze me, how situations come about in our life, simply because we said and continue to say yes.

On to the Pumpkin spice ....I don't know what to call it!! It's not a latte, or smoothie, or a hot chocolate.....anyways, it's a warm fall drink, except it is finally winter in alaska...so for all my intensive purposes, it's a winter sip

Pumpkin Spice Sipping Goodness

2c of cashews
8 pitted dates
7c of water
1/2c of nutmeg, allspice, cloves
2t of cinnamon


first soak your nuts and dates about 2 hours

while your nuts are soaking (I know, I know, giggling just never gets old on the matter)

get a nice pumpkin and cut and scoop the seeds, place the two halves facing up on a cookie sheet and bake for a half hour at 350......

cut up about 2 cups (however think you want your goodness) worth of cubes from the pumpkin and place all ingredients in vitamix...or
blender...enjoy!! and really think about the impact of being a foster parent.
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