Ingredients
Brown rice
One Pound boneless beef sirloin steak (I buy two packs of beef strips cut for fajitas)
4 cups fresh broccoli florets
Whole baby carrots to taste
One red onion (Sliced)
One (14-oz) can of beef broth
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons soy sauce
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

The night before…

• Cut your broccoli into bite-size pieces and slice your onion.

The day of…

• Cook enough brown rice for everyone to have a serving or two.
• In a large skillet covered with non-stick spray, brown your beef strips in a pan on medium-high until the beef is cooked through and the liquid reduces.
• Place the beef on a plate to the side and cover it.
• In a bowl, mix the beef broth, soy sauce, garlic powder and salt and pepper. Slowly add in the cornstarch and stir with a whisk it until well-blended.
• Pour your broth mixture into the skillet and then add in the onion, carrots and broccoli.  Cover, stir frequently and let simmer until the liquid thickens and the vegetables are steamed.
• Mix cooked beef into the vegetables and teriyaki mixture. 
• Serve over rice.

My dear friend wrote me an email about 1) obedience and 2) surrender. The letter was written and based on scripture so I couldn’t argue the point that I did need to obey and surrender to God and to others in my life. When I married, I made a commitment not just to my husband, but to God. I could just walk away from that; even if things were difficult. I had to lay these issues at the foot of the cross. Well, it took a while. The letter was dated August 2008.  In November/December that year, I remember very vividly how things got worse– the issues were stronger than ever. I couldn’t take it any more. I surrendered anything and everything I had to my God. I didn’t pray for things to change thinking that maybe this was how it was supposed to be.  After all, His word does say He has plans for us– not to harm us, but for us to prosper. I prayed for my heart to change, for me to understand what His plan was through all of this. I did obey as God told me, and I didn’t walk away from the difficult issue. The obedience and surrender at the time, well most of the time, was so hard. This wasn’t what I wanted, but I had to remember… He has a plan for me. About one month after I gave it all to God and in full faith trusted His plan, I found out I was pregnant. About one month pregnant, at that.

Not only had God answered my prayer, but He taught me so much through the process and (looking back now) I see it was all part of His big plan. My answered prayer will be three years old this year.

Finding this letter was just a reminder of so many things…

God is always there.

God is always listening.

God has a plan for me (and you).

We must obey.

We must surrender.

We must never lose faith.

Royale

Lord, we humbly come before you and ask that you please bless our friend(s) with new employment opportunities so that they can afford the essential things in life including a house to live in.  Please take their hands and guide them in the right direction- the direction that runs parallel with your perfect master plan.  We also ask that you let your presence be felt so that they remember that they do not travel across this bumpy road alone.  

In Jesus’ name we pray,

Amen

Grab a lamp… shatter it on the floor when it’s time for your son or daughter to have breakfast.  As your child screams, “na-na! na-na!,” look at your husband with puppy dog eyes.  ***Works like a charm.  May my bedroom lamp rest in peace.

Heavenly Father, we come to you humbly and pray that you will touch Kimberly and Jerry Allstun and bless them in ways much greater than their hearts can fathom.  As we encounter trials along the way, we count on you to protect us, uplift us and bring us through them. Thank you for your faithfulness.

In His Name,

Amen

Wow, doesn’t that make you feel good just to read that?  Not good because someone else’s feet stink (I’m laughing), but good because someone else isn’t rosy from every single angle?  For me, it’s easy to see my buddies’ pics of their “just because” trip to Jamaica and be a little envious since I’m struggling to come up with enough cash for a quick trip to Myrtle Beach.  But when I’m actively being envious because I want to sip tropical drinks alongside my hubs in Jamaica, I’m not focusing on the whole picture.

The truth is, we all have our highlights and lowlights.  We just don’t advertise the lowlights because they’re not fun.  I did my own status update spin on my friend’s status.  Here it is.  Here are a few of my lowlights:

I try very hard to be positive and spread sunshine. But I heard about “Facebook Envy” this morning, where some say FB only shows the best in people, causing others to feel as if their life isn’t as glamorous or successful. With that said…  trust me, my life is ordinary. I have two dogs… my third died last year, but she ruined our hardwoods in the laundry room prior to that… and we didn’t care because we love her and she couldn’t help it. I stay stressed out because my son has horrible asthma. One of my dogs had a stroke on Friday, and you can tell. When looking through flash cards, my son thinks the monkey is “daddy.” My car is super-dorky. I’m broke. I have no sense of fashion. I quit trying to lose the baby weight.

Feel better? Have a great day!

I’m going to start being a bit more transparent on the blog than I have in the past.  I don’t want Save Pray Smile to be another avenue for faux positive Facebook-esque updates.  I want the tone to be positive, but for any readers that happen across my little place in the world to see me as real.  Because I am. 

Heather

Supplies Needed
Ceramic tiles (Buy from Lowe’s or Home Depot.  They are around $.15 or $.18 each)
Scrapbook paper, cut into approximately 4×4 squares. (One page will easily be enough for four coasters or more, but it’s fun to use two coordinating prints to make a set of four coasters)
Scissors
Pencil
Mod Podge (I prefer the matte over the glossy)
Sponge brush
Sand paper
Self-adhesive felt pages
An egg crate or something to pour your Mod Podge into.

Step One:  Cut your scrapbook paper into squares that are just smaller than the tiles.  ***Make sure the scrapbook paper squares stop around a millimeter shy of the edges of the tile.  Otherwise, the paper will not adhere well to the edges of the tile.

Step Two:  Pour the mod podge into a small container like a baby food jar.  Using your sponge brush, apply a thin layer of mod podge onto one of your tiles, evenly covering the entire surface. 

Step Three:  Place a scrapbook paper square on the tile.  Gently press the paper down from the center outwards so that you smooth any air bubbles out.  (Be careful not to smooth it out too quickly, or you will press a crease into the wet paper).  Let it dry.  (This won’t take long).

Step Four:  Apply a thin layer of mod podge on top of the scrapbook paper and painting it over the sides (so all edges of the paper are covered).  Run your sponge brush over the sides of the tile to make sure that any mod podge that dripped over the sides is blended in.

Step Five:  Wait.  Let the mod podge dry thoroughly.  Give it an hour.  If you apply another coat on top of wet mod podge, it will take forever to dry.

Step Six:  Apply another coat.  Let it dry for an hour.  Apply another coat… to total six coats in all.  Afterwards, let them sit out a day so they can thoroughly dry. 

Step Seven:  Lightly sand your coaster to give it a smooth finish.

Step Eight:  What size are your tiles?  Subtract a couple of millimeters from the dimensions of your tiles (just like you did when you cut the scrapbook paper) and draw out squares that size on the back of your self-adhesive felt.   

Step Nine: Cut your felt squares out and adhere them to the bottom of your tiles.

Alllllll done!  Aren’t they cute?! 

A few variations to this idea….

(A)  Mod podge a square of cute scrapbook paper to your tile, then use it as a background for one of your child’s pics.  It’s easy.  Just mod podge the scrapbook paper square on.  Let it dry.  Then mod podge the photo on top of it.  Then add several coats of mod podge on top… letting each coat dry before applying the next.  (Such a great gift idea!)

(B) Mod podge a cute square of scrapbook paper onto your tile.  Then preserve your child’s priceless work of art forever by centering it on top of the piece of scrapbook paper and mod podging it on top.  This way, you can display their masterpieces throughout the house as coasters.

(C)  For Mommies of toddlers or children with small hands, mod podge a bright work of art from your child onto a tile.  Photocopy your child’s hand and cut it out.  Mod podge the little hand on top of the drawing.