Favorite places: Amos

Going to try a little series about my favorite places.  These posts will pop up every once in a while, i.e., they will not come one right after another.

First up: AMOS!  Amos is my absolute favorite place to be.  Please enjoy some pictures from "the early years."

I love him so much.

First few weeks of dating, 2008

Crazy spaghetti dinner party, with root beer floats and boyfriend head, 2008

At Hart Park, 2008

Santa Monica, 2008

GO Sunday recap

Thank you to those of you who prayed for me and for GO Sunday!  I think it was a really good event!  Now we just need to maintain the momentum we gained yesterday; we don't want missions to be pushed to the back of our church's mind.

It was a good Sunday!  It was a little stressful when one missionary family overslept their alarm and showed up late to set-up; when our pastor rushed by us saying "Compress! Compress!  Compress!" right before we were going to speak a second time; and when the congregation failed to understand Rachel when she said, "greet one another" (they sat and stared at us...awkward!).  Oh dear!  We'll just look back and laugh, I guess!

Some people signed up to pray for individual missionaries, and a few of the children's Sunday School classes were taken outside to learn about our missionaries.  One of the Sunday School teachers remarked that even she didn't know about all our missionaries.  Our newest elder, Nigel, bought Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot for his sixth grade daughter, a book that she asked for; that alone made my day!

Thank you for praying for the weather, too!  The wind only started up right before the end of the third service!  We are very thankful that God granted us favor with the weather. :)

Now it's Monday, and I'm taking the day off.  Time to drink chai, listen to The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie, and later, return some library books and read Through Gates of Splendor myself.

Recipe: Ginger Chicken Rice Bowl

I made this on Tuesday and really liked it.  I initially made it with noodles, but I think it would have been better over rice.  This recipe includes the adjustments I did make (cabbage, orange juice, pepper flakes, etc.) and should have made (rice, cashews, etc.).  I hope you like it!

My Ginger Chicken Noodle Bowl dinner...pretty good...made it in 25 mintues!

Ginger Chicken Rice Bowl

General idea taken from Lovely Little Snippets
Serves two

Brown and white rice, cooked

Sauce *Disclaimer: These measurements are approximate*
1/4 cup Soyaki sauce from Trader Joe's
1/8 cup soy sauce
1/4 tsp sesame seed oil
2 pinches red pepper flakes
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup orange juice (NOT concentrate)
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1 chicken breast, chopped in bite-size pieces

1 tbsp corn starch
1-2 tbsp cold water
1 tbsp soy sauce

2 green onions, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, chopped (any color; I used yellow)
3/4 cup cabbage, chopped
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped

Directions
Start the rice.
Mix the sauce ingredients in a skillet, heat to boiling.
Add the chicken, stir, reduce heat to medium, stir, cover.
Meanwhile, thoroughly mix the corn starch with the cold water and soy sauce.
When the chicken is cooked, stir in the corn starch mixture and cook sauce and chicken over low heat until thickened.
Add the vegetables.  Stir.  Replace the cover to steam the vegetables.  Stir, taste, adjust seasonings, and serve over brown and white rice.

More Variations
- Steam some fresh zucchini and serve on top of the chicken and noodles (don't stir the zucchini into the chicken or it will take on the flavor of the sauce and turn mushy).
- Stir some cashews  into the chicken mixture, right before serving.
- Serve with noodles instead.  Mix the noodles with a little Soyaki before topping with the chicken mixture.

GO Sunday

Most of you know that I'm a substitute teacher, but how many of you know or remember that I'm also the missions coordinator at my church?!  I started my job back in February, and it's been a little crazy so far.  This Sunday is our first annual Missions, or GO, Sunday.

Some of the things I've done so far...

-ordered balloons

-bought picture frames

-returned picture frames

-bought more picture frames

-bought picture frame stands

-bought bright cardstock

-ordered prayer cards

-ordered prayer cards

-ordered prayer cards

-ordered more prayer cards

-arranged meetings

-attended meetings

-e-mailed many, many, many people

-printed pictures for the frames

-designed maps for the frames

-ordered books

-ordered kids' books

-ordered a suggestion box

-ordered squishy world globe balls

-ordered bookmarks

-printed support sheets

-printed instructions

-printed diagrams

-typed up innumerable documents

-used highliters

-talked to lots of people

-given written directions

-given verbal explanations of the written directions

-designated tasks

-etc.

I still need to...

-print prayer brochures

-figure out how to keep the frames on the frame stands

-receive, review, and suggest edits to a missions video

-create slides for Sunday

-write scripts for those of us speaking in church

-attend a few more meetings

-talk to our church ministry assistant about logistics

-receive all the prayer cards!

-buy a few tablecloths

-clear up confusion about Sunday morning responsibilities

-label the rest of the books

-make sure that certain announcements are included in the slides and the bulletin

-etc.

We only have six days to go, and hopefully the rest of my to do list will be finished by then!  Please pray that our church will get involved in supporting our missionaries through prayer and communication, that it won't rain on Sunday, and that it won't be windy!

Thanks to Rachel for designing all of our media!

Nineteen and counting...

The other day I had eighteen nineteen (I missed one at first) books and audiobooks and one movie grouped around our coffee table.  The coffee table serves as the library book bookcase.

Books from four different library systems

Soon after I look this picture, I returned four books and picked up another three or four. :)

I found a jackpot at the library a few days ago!  I got ten books for $2.50!

American Girl books for $.25 each!

A few days before I found a Marguerite Henry book and a Virginia Lee Burton book, which prompted me to check out a few more Burton books (see above).  Each were $0.25, I think.

Brighty and Katy

And finally, a few weeks ago we found the following at Goodwill, for about $15.00.

Thrift store finds

Chester Cricket's New Home wasn't that great, but the rest are okay.

From these posts it probably seems like I spend all my time at the library or Goodwill...not quite, but close! ;)  Our friends Tim and Shaunna like to go thrift store shopping too, so we might go with them sometime; should be an adventure.