Crock Pot Tuesday ~ White Chicken Chili

I absolutely love to cook in the Crock Pot. There is something about throwing it all together in the morning and cooking all day that brings a little bit of joy to my life! The best part is when 6pm rolls around, dinner is usually ready without too much effort. It also makes the house smell good all day long!

 It seems as though Tuesday ends up being the day of the week that I use the Crock Pot the most. So, recently I have been referring to Tuesday as Crock Pot Tuesday.

Today, I have White Chicken Chili in my Crock Pot. This has been one of our favorites around here for several years.

I found this recipe in the Fix it And Forget It Cookbook, but I did change it up just a little. This recipe makes up a very large batch that does fill up my 6-7 quart Crock Pot.

White Chicken Chili  

Ingredients:

4-6 Whole Skinless Chicken Breasts cooked cut into chunks ( I boil mine) 

2 chopped onions

4 garlic cloves, minced

4 (4oz) cans chopped green chilies

2 (4 oz) cans of diced jalapeno peppers

4 tsp Ground Cumin

3 tsp Dried Oregano

1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper

1 tsp Salt

6 ( 1 Pound ) Cans of Navy Beans, Undrained

1 Can of Chicken broth

Directions:

While Chicken is boiling, I mix everything into the Crock Pot except the Chicken Broth. When Chicken is ready I stir it in and then add the Chicken Broth. Cook on High for 4-6 hours.

I usually make up a batch of cornbread to serve along with it. Some of us stir in a little bit of shredded cheese into our chili. Some prefer Mozzarella and some use Colby Jack. We also enjoy a dollop of sour cream and some tortilla chips to dip in the chili.

While this would be perfect on a very cold winter evening, we also enjoy it the rest of the year as well. It is so easy to prepare and is very yummy!

Enjoy!

 

Wordless Wednesday

Anna, Luke,Micah and Samuel at the Pinewood Derby 2012!

 

You Are My Refuge

Have you ever heard something over and over again and you were pretty sure you knew what was meant by it and all of sudden it becomes very real to you?

I was raised in a Christian home and grew up in the Church. Believing in God and trusting Him and His Word came pretty easy for me. Let me say here, that I am not perfect and I haven't always done everything right, but thank the Lord for His Mercy and Grace!

Anyway, I would hear God's Truths over and over again.  Things that I would hear presented many times and in many different ways, and really I feel like I started taking some for granted. Then all of sudden, something would click with me and it became very real to me.

This happened to me on Sunday. While at Church, we were singing the song "I lift My Hands" by Chris Tomlin. This song really ministered to me. It starts out saying, "Be Still There is a Healer, His Love is Deeper than the Sea." Just that part is so amazing in itself! We all need God's Healing in our lives and then His love for us cannot be measured. He loves us unconditionally, you know, like no matter what we do or say, He Loves Us, Period!

The part of the song that really became real for me yesterday was where it says "You are my Refuge You are my Strength."

Like I said, I have heard this over and over again in my lifetime.You know the scripture Psalm 91:2:

I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress,  my God, in whom I trust.”


I knew in my heart that I could always run to Him. But something about singing this yesterday made it come alive for me. I could actually picture running into His arms. I really felt His Presence and I felt like He was holding me. It was such a Blessing to know that He is my shelter! He will hold me and keep me protected from the worries and cares of this world.

Here is the definition of refuge from the Merriam Webster Online Dictionary:

: shelter or protection from danger or distress 

: a place that provides shelter or protection

: something to which one has recourse in difficulty

I don't know about you, but I need protection from danger or distress. God is waiting with His Arms Held Wide Open to be that shelter for us! 


I am so thankful to have such a loving God that is always there for me and loves me no matter what! His Arms Offer that Shelter that we need from the difficulties that life can throw us. 


I pray that you also will trust Him to be your Refuge as well!

Enjoy!

 

Wordless Wednesday

A Little Bit of Easter 2012

 

Show Us Your Life: Mom Of Boys

Mother Karen has seven sons, seven sons has Mother Karen...

Welcome to you who are visiting from Kelly's Korner!  I am Karen and I am mom to 10 living children total! Seven which happen to be boys!

Today Kelly is having a link up on Mom's of Boys. I think I qualify since I have seven! I just happen to have three girls as well!

Let me introduce you to my sons.

Jeremy is our oldest at 25

Jeremy recently visiting with my Mom

Tim is second at 23. He has been married to Naomi since January 2010.

Tim and Naomi

Josh comes in 3rd at 20. He just recently got engaged to Jillian. A June 2013 Wedding is planned.

Josh and Jillian on Easter 2012

So you can see, my three oldest are boys! Next came two girls. Rebekah and Victoria.

Matthew is next in line at 14.

Matthew on Easter 2012

Up next is Samuel at 12.

Samuel on Easter 2012

After Samuel we had a little break from boys and had another girl, Anna.

Then came Luke who is now 8.

Luke on Easter 2012

And Coming in last, but most definitely not least is Micah at age 6!

Micah on Easter 2012

Being a mom to boys can be challenging, but it is also a joy! It is fun to see life from their perspective. It is also so sweet how much they love their Mom! I wouldn't trade that for anything in the world!

 

Wordless Wednesday

The other day as I was taking a walk with some of the children, this wild turkey came running out in front of us!

 

Our Trip to the Creation Museum ~ October 2011

I have missed blogging through the past several months. I had pictures ready and waiting to be posted to a blog post, so now I am trying to catch up. So here is the first post playing catch up!

In October I took several of the children to the Creation Museum. It was a beautiful, warm, Fall day.

We tried to make the most out of our trip and see as much as we could.We walked through the whole museum and saw most of the movies and visited the planetarium. We enjoyed walking through the beautiful gardens and the petting zoo. We were quite tired when we were finished.

This first picture is of Samuel, standing in front of Adam in the Garden, with some animals.

Samuel

 

I believe that the dinosaur display was a favorite of most of the boys.

These silly boys decided they had to have a break while walking through the museum.

Samuel, Matthew and Luke

We stopped for a lunch break at the Noah's Cafe.

Micah, Matthew, Luke, Anna, Rebekah, and Samuel

I love the beautiful Fall Colors. We walked around for quite a long time.

We saw this pretty little guy on our walk to the petting zoo.

The four youngest enjoyed the petting zoo quite a bit. This guy was very eager to be fed!

I thought this guy was quite pretty.

Micah was trying to feed this guy but he was a little intimidated by him!

Micah

This is a Zedonk.

This is a Zorse.

Meet Gomer. The kids enjoyed having a ride on him!.

Anna and Gomer

Luke and Gomer

Micah and Gomer

Samuel and Gomer

While walking through the Gardens we encountered this bridge. The kids had a lot of fun going back and forth. I personally was glad to get off!

Luke and Anna

Micah, Luke and Matthew

Luke, Micah and Samuel

After walking around for quite some time in the warm weather, we found this gazebo and enjoyed the shade as well as the fish we were able to feed.

Micah and Luke

Micah

I pretty much had to pry Luke and Micah away from the Fish!

And this is as we were leaving and were pretty worn out!

Samuel, Micah, Rebekah, Luke, Matthew and Anna

We had a wonderful day at the Creation Museum! Now I would love to see the Spring foliage.I know it must be beautiful!