It's soup season. A vegetarian & non-vegitarian recipe.

Most of the cooking in our house is done by my husband. Why, because he has skills that I just do not have. There are many things that I can do in the kitchen, and a few things that I can make very well, but there are also things in the kitchen that I won't even consider, like cooking meat. Patrick loves to cook, but he would also like me to do a little more of the cooking. He grocery shops and cleans also. The cleaning is due to his compulsion. He will not sit down to eat until the kitchen is totally clean or at least very organized. I just don't work like that. I would do it, and I do help out, but he usually has everything all clean before I finish eating. A lot of the time we grocery shop as a family. It is just one of those things that we like to do together but we will also both run out individually to grab something that we need for dinner that night. 

I am in charge of all of the meal planning. There are many things that I do not eat. I am a pesco pollo vegetarian. I do not eat any red meat but I do eat chicken, turkey and fish on occasion. At the age of 11 I became a lacto vegetarian. I did not eat red meat, chicken or fish for about 15 years. I constantly have to deal with people trying to get me to eat red meat and it drives me crazy. It's never going to happen so leave me alone. So many people just don't understand vegetarianism. I am also currently living gluten free. I have been on and off gluten for the past few years and I just feel so much better when there isn't any gluten in my diet. It has been 1 month now and I'm going to do my best to continue to resist all foods with gluten. My husband has a loaf of banana bread from whole foods sitting on the counter. I wish he would eat it already so it stops staring at me. 

There are so many options out there and wonderful recipes that are both gluten free and vegetarian. It's soup season and soup is one thing that I do and I do well. This is a combination that we love that can be made vegetarian/gluten free & non-vegetarian but still gluten free for you meat eaters. 

Vegetarian/Gluten Free Version

Butternut & Vegetable Soup

Ingredients: 1.Vegetable Broth 2.Butternut Squash 3.Green Beans 4.Carrots 5.Celery 6.Spinach 7.White Beans 8. Onion, herbs & spices to your taste

Turkey Butternut Soup

Ingredients: 1.Chicken broth 2.Ground White Turkey 3.Butternut 4.Carrots 5.Celery 6.Spinach 7.Green Beans 8. Onion, herbs & spices to your taste


That's it, so simple. That isn't so much of a recipe as it is a list of ingredients. I don't measure any of this so I can't give you exact measurements but it is a great combo. My daughter (22m) loves it, both ways. We strain hers so there is very limited broth so she doesn't make a huge mess. My husband also strains his sometimes and throws it over rice which is a great way to make it a new meal with leftovers. Enjoy! Stay warm. 

Deep thoughts on Gratitude & Sadness

The hard drive in my iMac fried. I knew the day would come as it had reached what apple calls vintage status (5 years old) and it had been acting up for some time now. Blogging from my iPad or iPhone just isn't the same. I need to be in my office, at my desk during my sacred alone time with pandora radio on. There is a short window in each day when I get that sacred alone time. It's called nap time and bed time. This doesn't mean that I do not love every minute of my time with Delilah. Everyone needs some alone time each day. Its good for the soul. 

Thankfully my new iMac has arrived! I am back in my office, at my desk with pandora radio on enjoying some me time. My mind is full of thoughts as the last two weeks have been pretty eventful. During my little downtime from the blog, I received some very sweet emails, check-ins and well wishes regarding our infertility struggles. These sweet, thoughtful messages mean so much to me. I have really started to learn who I can and can not talk to about this. 

The reason why I share my story is because my situation might just help one other women not feel alone in this. I am very much aware that their are other women/couples whose infertility struggles are far more challenging then mine. I have many people in my life who are facing infertility and unsure of what the future will hold for them. I am so grateful for the women in my life who share their stories with me. Thanks to one of them, we now have a new fertility Doctor. 

I know how very blessed that we are to have Delilah in our life. If you know me personally, you know that she means the world to me. Nothing could take that away from me. Everyday I am eternally grateful that she is mine. If she is the only child that we ever have I will always feel eternally blessed. 

I could never sit here and say that I do not feel sadness over the fact that we have not been able to have another child up to this point. In some ways, trying for our 2nd and not being able to get pregnant brings on more emotion than the first time around. This time we do have one very amazing child. One very amazing child who we so desperately want to give a sibling. This baby is for all of us. I am human and I experience human emotions. I fully believe that it is ok to feel extremely blessed, eternally grateful and full of joy and still feel sadness at the same time.

A sweet message from my sweet friend Jessica