Wisdom from Ruthie Thune and Some Spectacular Spring Salad Standby's.
I recently went to a Veritas Ladies gathering.
For those of you who don't know, we are now involved in a new church plant in Iowa City. Veritas Church. We couldn't be more excited with what God is doing there, as well as what God is doing in our family. Not an easy choice or transition, but God is certainly using Veritas and blessing us in our journey there. Exciting!
Anyway....
While at this ladies mini conference I was challenged in several areas. First, our speaker Ruthie Thune spoke on becoming a woman of influence. What I most took away from the day, was that I need to be intentional. The idea that influence is not merely something you primarily do, it is the effect of who you are in what you do. I need to be intentional about how I influence. Mainly my kids, but beyond that, our staff kids, our family, our friends etc. Ruthie gave the example of checking myself before you leave home. We all do that, or we should :) Colossians 3:12-17
As you examine yourself a woman of influence affirms her identity. vs. 12 says I am chosen of God, holy, and dearly loved. A woman of influence also checks out her new wardrobe. Vs. 12-13 explains the different garments. Compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forbearance, and forgiveness. These are the main areas that I need to be intentional. A woman of influence adopts a new attitude as she looks at herself. vs. 14-15 says that we need to put on an attitude of love, peace, and thankfulness. A woman of influence also uses a mirror. vs. 16 our mirror is the word of Christ. The Bible. God's word is a cleansing agent, a light to find the sin I am hiding. And finally a woman of influence pursues a new goal. vs 17 I need to honor Jesus in my life, even the mundane everyday things that I don't think really benefits anyone. God can use all things to bring glory to him.
I loved this whole day so much. It was a great time of worship and meeting new people.
Secondly, I was also challenged to blog about some food. I know that there are a million food blogs out there but, I don't know.... My kids eat everything I make. That's probably good right?
Well, anyway. Here are some seriously scrumptious salads that happen to be standard fare in this house come spring. I wish I could take credit for them, but alas.... my Mother-in-law is the bomb.com when it comes to food. I make some changes, but for the most part, they are standard Debbie.
Chicken Salad (feeds 7 with few leftovers)
4-5 chicken breasts, cooked and seasoned with pepper and garlic salt, and then either shredded or cut into chunks
2 bunches of grapes
4-5 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 of an onion, chopped.
2-3 bunches of broccoli, just the florets
1 package of bacon pieces
1/2-3/4 bottle of ranch dressing, I like Hidden Valley.
Chop everything up, throw it in a bowl, and then mix in the dressing as you wish. I like to top off the salad with cashews. You would be surprised how much flavor this adds to the salad. I do serve the cashews on the side, as they tend to get soggy if they are mixed in with the salad. Great on croissants, or just by itself.
Shoestring Salad (feeds 7 with few leftovers)
4 cans of tuna
4-5 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 of an onion, chopped
2-3 bunches of broccoli, just florets
1 package of shredded carrots
1/2-3/4 bottle of ranch dressing, again, I like Hidden Valley
Shoestring Potato's
Chop everything up and mix in drained tuna, and ranch dressing to taste. Serve with a topping of Shoestring Potato's. Again, if you mix the shoestrings in with the salad they get soggy. Great just as it is.
Fruit Salad (
Strawberries 1-2 packages
Grapes, 2 bunches
Apples, 2 (I like Braeburn)
3-4 stalks of celery, chopped
Chopped Pecans
Dried Cranberries or cherries
Chop fruit into bite size pieces. Add pecans, celery, and dried cranberries or cherries. Mix all together. Coat with cream cheese dressing
Cream Cheese Dressing
1 Package cream cheese
1-2 cups powdered sugar (depending o how sweet you want it)
1-2 T Lemon juice
Half and Half
Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, and lemon juice until combined, then add the half and half until it is somewhat runny. I know... sounds gross, but you don't want the cream cheese goodness to be the star here.... the fruit is the star! Add the cream cheese dressing to the fruit salad and stir until the dressing covers all of the fruit. You will be surprised how the celery adds to it. Don't be frightened.
Hope you are brave enough to give these a try. If not, call me. I will talk you into it!
For those of you who don't know, we are now involved in a new church plant in Iowa City. Veritas Church. We couldn't be more excited with what God is doing there, as well as what God is doing in our family. Not an easy choice or transition, but God is certainly using Veritas and blessing us in our journey there. Exciting!
Anyway....
While at this ladies mini conference I was challenged in several areas. First, our speaker Ruthie Thune spoke on becoming a woman of influence. What I most took away from the day, was that I need to be intentional. The idea that influence is not merely something you primarily do, it is the effect of who you are in what you do. I need to be intentional about how I influence. Mainly my kids, but beyond that, our staff kids, our family, our friends etc. Ruthie gave the example of checking myself before you leave home. We all do that, or we should :) Colossians 3:12-17
As you examine yourself a woman of influence affirms her identity. vs. 12 says I am chosen of God, holy, and dearly loved. A woman of influence also checks out her new wardrobe. Vs. 12-13 explains the different garments. Compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forbearance, and forgiveness. These are the main areas that I need to be intentional. A woman of influence adopts a new attitude as she looks at herself. vs. 14-15 says that we need to put on an attitude of love, peace, and thankfulness. A woman of influence also uses a mirror. vs. 16 our mirror is the word of Christ. The Bible. God's word is a cleansing agent, a light to find the sin I am hiding. And finally a woman of influence pursues a new goal. vs 17 I need to honor Jesus in my life, even the mundane everyday things that I don't think really benefits anyone. God can use all things to bring glory to him.
I loved this whole day so much. It was a great time of worship and meeting new people.
Secondly, I was also challenged to blog about some food. I know that there are a million food blogs out there but, I don't know.... My kids eat everything I make. That's probably good right?
Well, anyway. Here are some seriously scrumptious salads that happen to be standard fare in this house come spring. I wish I could take credit for them, but alas.... my Mother-in-law is the bomb.com when it comes to food. I make some changes, but for the most part, they are standard Debbie.
Chicken Salad (feeds 7 with few leftovers)
4-5 chicken breasts, cooked and seasoned with pepper and garlic salt, and then either shredded or cut into chunks
2 bunches of grapes
4-5 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 of an onion, chopped.
2-3 bunches of broccoli, just the florets
1 package of bacon pieces
1/2-3/4 bottle of ranch dressing, I like Hidden Valley.
Chop everything up, throw it in a bowl, and then mix in the dressing as you wish. I like to top off the salad with cashews. You would be surprised how much flavor this adds to the salad. I do serve the cashews on the side, as they tend to get soggy if they are mixed in with the salad. Great on croissants, or just by itself.
Shoestring Salad (feeds 7 with few leftovers)
4 cans of tuna
4-5 stalks of celery, chopped
1/2 of an onion, chopped
2-3 bunches of broccoli, just florets
1 package of shredded carrots
1/2-3/4 bottle of ranch dressing, again, I like Hidden Valley
Shoestring Potato's
Chop everything up and mix in drained tuna, and ranch dressing to taste. Serve with a topping of Shoestring Potato's. Again, if you mix the shoestrings in with the salad they get soggy. Great just as it is.
Fruit Salad (
Strawberries 1-2 packages
Grapes, 2 bunches
Apples, 2 (I like Braeburn)
3-4 stalks of celery, chopped
Chopped Pecans
Dried Cranberries or cherries
Chop fruit into bite size pieces. Add pecans, celery, and dried cranberries or cherries. Mix all together. Coat with cream cheese dressing
Cream Cheese Dressing
1 Package cream cheese
1-2 cups powdered sugar (depending o how sweet you want it)
1-2 T Lemon juice
Half and Half
Mix cream cheese, powdered sugar, and lemon juice until combined, then add the half and half until it is somewhat runny. I know... sounds gross, but you don't want the cream cheese goodness to be the star here.... the fruit is the star! Add the cream cheese dressing to the fruit salad and stir until the dressing covers all of the fruit. You will be surprised how the celery adds to it. Don't be frightened.
Hope you are brave enough to give these a try. If not, call me. I will talk you into it!
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