"spicy" chicken noodle soup

in looking ahead at what to make this week, i had odds and ends to use up, but none that fit into previously tried recipes.....and none that fit exactly into recipes i found online.  it was time to get creative!  

i had chicken stock, chicken breasts, and onions.....but no egg noodles, and no fresh veggies.  so the recipe below is adapted to make use of the pasta i had (keeping it separate from the soup until it is served, to avoid sogginess), and embracing the spicier aspect of the onions and garlic.  

we recommend!  i would not repeat this exact recipe if mike or i were sick - we would want something milder - but the spiciness added excitement to our weekly meals.  success!

"spicy" chicken noodle soup

4 cups of chicken stock
1 cup diced chicken, raw
2 large onions, sliced
1 cup frozen corn
2 T minced garlic
3 bay leaves
1/2 tsp marjoram
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp olive oil
1 box penne pasta

- sautee onions, garlic, and chicken in olive oil, until onions are clear and chicken is cooked through.
- in separate pot, cook penne pasta; drain and set aside.
- add chicken stock and spices, bring to boil, and then reduce heat and simmer for ~20 minutes.
- add corn, heat through.

serve cooked pasta directly into bowls, with the soup ladled over it. store left-overs separately.

sunshine.and.mike.

hello, you glorious and unrealistic weather!!!  thank you for being in the 80's today, and not bringing a snow storm (though, i'm sure with the way you've trained us in the past, we would just glump and say we'd expected no less)......i love your brightness!

read this verse a few weeks ago:


"...when I found him whom my soul loves. I held him, and would not let him go..."

~Song of Solomon 3:4

i wish i could say that i saw myself in those words - i aspire to hold onto mike and not let him go.  but for now, today, i love him for how he doesn't let ME go......he loves me through my distractedness, my busy plans, my temper, and my foolish mistakes.

today isn't any special anniversary, and mike hasn't done anything unusually extraordinary - and that is why i am grateful today.  i am grateful for how he loves me on the regular days, how he involves himself in my life, and asks me to be part of his world.  i am grateful for how he serves me, constantly and constantly.  i am grateful that he is a Christian, and that he wants to glorify God as my husband.

mike, i'm so grateful that you love me, and you hold onto me.  i don't deserve you, my own dearest.

(picture taken on the steps of the library of congress)

colossians 2

"See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.
And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross."
~ Colossians 2:8,13-14


i want my to-do lists to flow from these truths.
i want to do because i am alive in God, and not because it's just the norm.
i want the truth of this to give me joy and hope even when i'm tired and tired and tired.

everything wrong i've ever done, has been forgiven - i want my mind to be obsessed with the happiness of this fact.

our nook

give me no such words as cramped, or crowded, or messy - and never breathe that you are claustrophobic!  instead, i love cosy, and homey, and comforting.......a subtle adjustment, but ohhhh, so important!

we're into the new little studio apartment....i have no pictures for you yet (though the one above was too tempting not to include!), as we are still unpacking.  but i was remembering this morning, how much i loved tight spaces when i was little - just big enough that i could barely fit - their smallness somehow made them more exciting and magical to me!  i'm so glad to remember, as that is the perspective i want to have of our little nest.

tight, but enough.
small, but exciting.
challenging, and needing imaginative solutions.

southwestern quinoa salad

"southwestern" quinoa salad

2 tsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic (peeled/chopped)
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup of well-rinsed quinoa

2 chicken breasts, cut into ~3/4" cubes
1 cup water
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp red-pepper flakes (lessen to 1/8 tsp if you want no "kick")

3/4 tsp thyme
1 1/2 cup frozen corn
1 cup black beans
romaine lettuce

- heat olive oil in medium pot; add garlic and onion, and saute until the onions are clear
- add the quinoa, water,  chicken, salt, red-pepper flakes, and thyme. bring the water to a boil, then cover and reduce heat. cook for ~15 minutes, or until quinoa is tender.
- stir in corn and black beans, continue to simmer ~5 minutes, until heated through.
- serve over bed of romaine lettuce

i served this for dinner last night, and we LOVED it.  mike scraped every last morsel off his plate, and immediately said that this one should be repeated - yay!!  :-)

but, there is always tweaking - below are some ideas i have for the next time:

- make over weekend, to serve cold during week - especially during the summer

- serve with lime slices

i combined this recipe and this recipe to create the one above - check them out!

tomorrow, tomorrow!!

closets packed?  *check*
pets taken to new apartment?  *check*
under bathroom sink packed?  *check*
kitchen packed?  *check*
bathroom/kitchen deep cleaning done?  *check*

*check*  *check*  *check*  *check*  *check*  *check*  *check*  *check*  *check*

tomorrow, we move to arlington!  the packing and planning haven't gone exactly as expected, but we are so very excited and so, so blessed to have the family and friends we do, to help us with our move!!!

and now, we wait.  til tomorrow.  TOMORROW.  wait.

i can't decide if i feel more like this:

just time between us and being moved in...

or this - if my complaining spirit is taking over ;-) :

miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiike, this week takes forevvvver!!

happy friday, readers!  i hope you got to enjoy the warm weather this week, and that your weekend lasts as long as my weekdays have!  ;-)