Weddings - Regrets and Recommendations

I've been married 3 times. (or perhaps more accurately, I've had 3 weddings to the same man). My husband's job is wedding photographer so let's just say I know a little bit about weddings.

Yesterday while we celebrated our anniversary weekend (yes, I get a whole weekend bc I had a lot of weddings), I began to confess some regrets I have about our wedding(s). *don't worry, I don't regret the groom!*

I began to mention that I wish I would have hired a DJ or remembered to ask for a bustle so our wedding coordinator wouldn't have to literally sew the dress onto my hip in the middle of the reception. How I wouldn't have had alcohol on the plane (alcohol + altitude = yuck) or how we would have remembered to have someone save us some cake (no cake!! 4 years later we're still upset!). He mentioned that he would have spell checked the cake to make sure my name was spelled correctly.

But then it dawned on me, these - while not ideal "pinterest" memories - these are some of my favorite moments. I love laughing about "that time when my wedding dress caught on fire" or "when the drunk mariachi man threatened to punch you in the face". "Remember when..." has become a favorite anniversary game and those picture-perfect-pinterest details really would have stolen years of laughter from us.


So with that being said, here is my advice for those planning a wedding:

- INVEST. Yes, I know, wedding stuff is super expensive and overpriced. But a good DJ will make people dance and laugh and join in. An ipod does not. Similarly, a ood photographer will be sure to capture ALL of those favorite moments for later reflection. A "friend with a camera" may have to leave early and you may only get 50 or so photos (most of the backs of people's heads or blurry).

- EAT. You never know if it will be your only bite.

- ENJOY. I wish we wouldn't have raced out. I wish we would have taken more time with our friends to laugh, to dance, and to take it all in. Forget your schedule. Forget the traditions. Forget the honeymoon. You will only get 1 wedding day (well, unless you're me), so take your time to enjoy.

Fences

Our culture tells us to "do what feels good". "As long as it makes you happy" has become a mantra many use to justify all sorts of things. And the problem with this is my dog.

Yes, my dog.

You see, we rescued our dog from a shelter. We brought her into our home and have loved her (ridiculously so) for years. With us, her masters, she has never wanted for anything. We have put fences around the backyard - limits, boundaries - setting where she can go and where she cannot. This fence is for her own good. For her protection.

In her little mind, however, these boundaries are restraining her freedom. So she works hard to break through it. Sometimes with outside help (I'm looking at you neighbor's dog), sometimes all by herself. When she gets what she wants, she thinks she's free, and she begins to run throughout the neighborhood.

In streets.
In dirty canals.
In backyards of others.
Crossing paths of cars, strangers, and unknown dogs.

As her masters, we know the dangers. This is why we put up boundaries, for her protection. And she, in her "freedom", has put herself at the mercy of the world - which as a neighbor pointed out "is not going to end well".

So we wake up frantically, we leave work in a hurry, we leave before dinner is served and we chase after her. We bike and walk and drive around, calling her name until we are hoarse. We are committed to bringing her home. We pursue her.

When she is found, there is joy. We bring her home. She hangs her head low. Grateful but ashamed. She's hesitant to come through the door because she is covered in mud, fleas (thanks again neighbor dog), and she stinks. But we coax her, give her water, clean her, make her like new again.

And we fix what is broken.

***

You see, the problem with my dog doing whatever she wants is that it is sometimes outside of the boundaries we, her wiser masters, have placed around her. The problem with doing what "feels good" is that it is a false sense of freedom, riddled with dangers that she cannot possibly comprehend.

True freedom is here, inside the fence.
Where we are loved and cared for.
So let us look to our Good Master today and everyday.
Let us thank Him for rescuing us and inviting us into His family.
Let us thank Him for pursuing us, calling after us, and cleansing us when we mess up.
And let us sit at the feet of our Good Master, content just to spend time in His lap instead of pursuing our own self.

Meet the Teacher

Parents, you see the teacher on the last day of school. A few months later, you see them again for Meet the Teacher - you say hello, you fill out some papers, and the school year begins.

But we teachers know there's a lot more to it.

You see, when June comes, we have SOOOO much to do (no, we don't start partying right away) - some teachers even stay an extra couple of days at school to work. Quietly. At my school we cannot leave anything on any shelves, countertops, or desktops - so I just throw everything wherever I can. Yes, I understand this makes a mess for me again in August, but really can it get any worse than this?

Yes, believe it or not custodians move all that carefully organized furniture over the summer. And teachers are left to their own devices to move it all back. And if you have back problems like me, let's just say it isn't easy...

All summer we think, we Pinterest, we plan, we set personal goals - teachers are rarely happy with "exactly like last year" (and I'd be concerned of anyone who is!). We are always going to change things. Sometimes that will mean throwing out all the RED in our room and making it blue. And pretty.

And sometimes that means going to our chiropractor and having him say "what in the WORLD have you been doing to yourself?" while he proceeds to adjust our fingers, wrist, forearms, elbows, shoulders, neck, etc, etc, etc...because we've busted up our body making our room "cute".

Teachers meet as a team over the summer - we plan, we organize, we improve. We go to trainings. Then we make our rooms, plans, and work space reflect all those changes. We know your children will rip things off the walls, break things, write on surfaces they shouldn't, etc - but we are optimistic as we staple away.

We take things home to clean, to wash, to stain remove. We bring our own cleaner from home to scrub. We clorox wipe away because, let's be honest, the custodians didn't get all those germs. And we want a fresh start.

We update old documents, print them on cleverly colored paper so you don't get confused. We write lots of instructions that you'll never read, because apparently we don't grow out of not reading/following directions. Nevertheless, we, with high hopes, cleverly lay out all the information and documents you need with care. We place name tents, use powerpoints and to-do lists as well as verbal reminders to help you.

We get our class lists and nervously write your children's names on things (although I'm learning not to do that until AFTER meeting your kids because they all have oh so clever nicknames). We dress up. We put on makeup after months of not caring.

We stand anxiously at our doors, praying for a good class to learn with, teach, and laugh with. We hope that you'll be kind to us, respect us as professionals, and will work with us to do what's best for your children.

We hear the footsteps and voices echo down the hallways...

after months of preparation,
you're coming.

Happy Meet the Teacher night!

For You

This week someone lashed out at me.

But the problem wasn't me. 

The problem wasn't the person offending me. 

The problem was the hurt in their heart. 

Upon recognizing this, I told them "I'm sorry for those hurts that you have been carrying around with you. But I want you to know that I am FOR you, I am on your side."

And everything dissolved. 

I hadn't changed anything - I was powerless to do so.
I hadn't convinced them their hurts weren't important or said any magic words to "make it all okay". 

But just the idea of someone being FOR us, on our side, not perceived as an enemy but as an ally brought peace, brought understanding, brought a calmness, a rush of relief, a hope to forget the memories of what has wronged us, and a freedom to walk forward.

To you who are feeling broken - 

to you who are feeling hurt - 

to you who are feeling betrayed or wronged or dismissed

GOD is FOR you.
GOD is WITH you. 

GOD is on your side. 

Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Let this bring you peace - you are heard by the Creator of the Universe. 

Let this bring you relief - you are not alone, He will defend you.

Let this bring you freedom - He who watches over you will not ever leave you. 

Romans 8:31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 

Chipotle BBQ Chicken

Do yourself a favor right now.

Go to your kitchen and get your crockpot out. Pour a little water on the bottom.

Chop an onion and put it on the bottom with a clove of garlic. Add some chicken breasts on top. Sprinkle paprika, red peppers, and chili powder on top.

Pour a can of chipotle sauce (or 3-4 full chipotles) and a tablespoon of bbq sauce on top.

Add 4 halved tomatoes, chopped cilantro, and a halved chili pepper (if you want more spice).

Cook all day - then add a little lime juice before serving it to yourself for dinner, dessert, and a midnight snack.

You're welcome. 

Penny & Sparrow

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows...

Although not musically gifted, I am a lover of music. Profound lyrics + perfect melodies is like a warm chocolate chip cookie for my soul - so obviously Penny & Sparrow are my new obsession. 

For those who don't know - they are from Austin and they are a.m.a.z.i.n.g.

The first song I ever heard put me in tears and had me realizing how much I love my husband. It's a beautiful picture of marriage. "because I've seen you and I know you and I'm not going anywhere"

Cue the repeat button for months. 

But I found myself singing this one, surprised at how his voice fully captures the longing, struggle, and joy of following the Lord. 

Cue the weird looks in the hallway as I sang "I'm a creature for your love" all day at work

Add in a little "I hate to make you bleed - unless it leaves you limping homeward. In the end you'll see I'm Just and just as Loving" -- which stirs my affections for the Lord in a refreshing way. 

Cue the nerdy lyric obsession that nobody understands. 

And then, just when I think I can't get more excited - I found out this week that they've had a new album out for a month. How was I not personally notified of this ?!?

So obviously I've listened to this album non-stop and all I have to say is --

Rattle Lyrics

Cue the oh-so-absent prayer time. 

Thank you Penny & Sparrow. You've put into words what my heart has felt for many years. So we labor on...

Army of Love

For those who don't know my story, I worked in Mexico City for a project of Compassion International, loving on kids and teaching them. I loved those kids for 2 years but often felt very alone out there - Jesus was the only one with me, the only one who saw, the only one who helped me out there.

It felt lonely.
It felt isolated.
At times it felt hopeless.

But God is the God of the hopeless. and the Isolated. and the Lonely. and the poor and humble in spirit. He was there before me and I prayed prayed prayed that He would continue to be there after me.

And he has been - through Compassion and through my Mexican family God has continued to love on my sponsored kiddo, Eduardo.

We had asked my mother-in-law once to deliver something to Eduardo - which is a loooong 2.5 hour drive. She went and her heart moved her to action. She has since - for the past 4 years - visited Eduardo and his family regularly. She has bought jackets, shoes, school supplies, food, toys, etc. She has mended his little sister's clothes and given him hugs when family issues have made him upset. She has gone above and beyond lavishing love on him (just as God does with us!!!).

And the Lord has continued. As she continued to love, she began to share prayer requests with her close women friends. Their hearts opened and donations of clothes and toys began to come in. My mother-in-law began to visit more, more gifts in hand for other neighborhood kids.

As they have continued to pray, the Lord has created an army of love to march into this dark, dusty, and isolated place. 2 weeks ago, these friends and believers organized an event for Children's Day in Mexico. For a day, this usually bleak area bloomed into a clown show, face painting, cake and fresh food for 200 kids, new toys and the Gospel of Jesus.

Above and beyond what was asked or required. 
Simply through love, obedience, and prayer. 
A forgiven heart compelled to show grace and love to others. 

So much more than I could have imagined during my days there - now an army of love marches in. 

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! 1 John 3:1

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Eph 3:20-21

God is good

I've found myself uttering these 3 words a lot lately -- "God is good".

We both walked away from a car accident - God is good.
Car is drivable - God is good.
Lots of work for our business - God is good.
Babies were born - God is good.
Tornadoes were avoided - God is good.
House and cars are safe from hail - God is good.

And while true, God IS good, these 3 words are not actually what I want to say. What I mean to say is "this is good for me", "this is comfortable", "this makes things easy for me", "this is what I wanted to happen", "this makes me feel good". It just sounds nice and spiritual to say it all the first way.

So it's time to stop saying "God is good" - not because it isn't true - but because it is dangerous to keep using it in this context. It leads one to interpret that BECAUSE this good thing happened the way I want it to be, I believe that God is good. And this, my friends, is a dangerous spiritual spiral. Because then when bad things happen, I will have conditioned myself to think that He is not good.

When the truth is -
when my vertebrae go back to their painful place - God is still good.
when we have no car - God is still good.
when there is no work - God is still good.
when babies die - God is still good.
when natural disasters strike those we love - God is still good.
when hail destroys material (and expensive) things - God is still good.

So I will stop saying that God is good just because something occurred as I had hoped.

I will choose to say "God is merciful" because that reminds me of my place with a Holy, Powerful, All-Seeing God and that I am spared unfortunate things only by His mercy.

Chickity-China Chinese Chicken

I think the first gluten-free restaurant breakdown I ever had was in a Chinese restaurant. I didn't think I could eat much from the menu and so we were asking all the typical gf questions. The poor Asian waiter couldn't answer any of my questions so he kept running back and forth between the kitchen. It was clear that the messages were getting crossed so we asked to speak to the cook directly. It all made sense then - we were speaking English to the Asian-language-speaking waiter who was trying to communicate with the Spanish-speaking chef... hilarious.

ANYway, soy sauce and flour brought me to tears - what in the WORLD can i eat? and why is Chinese being taken away from me?!?

So now, when I watch sitcoms and they're all sitting with takeout and chopsticks, and we're took broke to indulge in a $20 GF Pei Wei meal for 2 - I whip up this favorite favorite meal here in the Elizalde casa.

( This post is just me acting out this AMAZING recipe - http://www.bigoven.com/recipe/201809/Bourbon-Street-Chicken )

First, I like to chop all my veggies - broccoli is in the original recipe and I add lots of bell peppers and onions.

Then cube the chicken & pop in the pan with some olive oil.

I like to steam the broccoli in my own Elizalde way - the rice cooking in the pot, colander to let the steam in to cook the broccoli and cover. We're nothing if not efficient over here. Watch out when you move it - I've spilled this weird steaming tower a few times ;)

Take the broccoli off when it looks beautiful and bright green!

Then I mix the sauce ingredients all together - make sure you use GLUTEN-FREE soy sauce & corn starch (not all corn starch is gf!). Also, I put in LOTS of red pepper flakes to give it more of a "kick" and a little less soy sauce, per comments on the original recipe's website.

Pour over the chicken (when cooked) and reserve a little sauce for the rice if you want :) Wash a few dishes while you're waiting.

Meanwhile, saute your peppers & onions in a little olive oil (or coconut oil). Pour in a big bowl with the broccoli!

Simmer the chicken, mix it in, and serve!

(I know you're thinking, WOW she must have a BIG family to cook all of that! And while I do double the recipe, there's only 2 of us and I'll be shocked if the leftovers last more than 24 hours in the fridge. I don't know how families of 6 do it!)

Happy Tummy!

This week is National Eating Disorder Awareness week and for all of you who are trying to remember that food is NOT an enemy and calories=energy for your body to live, grow, and move - I have a gluten-free meal for YOU!

Tinga is a favorite in the Elizalde casa - so here is the recipe!

Step one - put some chicken breasts with a little water in the crockpot on LOW. I know you're a busy working lady (or gentleman) so the crockpot (and crockpot liner!) is your friend! When you get home from work, pull out the chicken and shred it.

Take the chicken broth from the crockpot and put in a blender with a few tomatoes, a medium-sized clove of garlic, and some salt&pepper. Blend tomato mixture.

Meanwhile, cut lots and lots of onions into rings and saute in a large pot. (this pot was about 1/2 full of onions before they break down)

When onions are ready, pour tomato mixture in with the onions and add a can of Chipotle. Either kind will work (even the ChiLpotle haha) but if you do the individual peppers you'll want to only use 2-3 and put them in the blender with the tomatoes. Otherwise, just dump the whole salsa kind in there :)

Add the chicken and mix. If it doesn't seem like there's much liquid, you can add another 1/2c-1c of water. Then float some cilantro and 1 whole chile pepper, reduce heat and cover. Simmer for anytime between 30-45 minutes.

Enjoy on top of tostadas or chips. (I always add lime juice, but J tells me that's not Mexican. So consider lime juice the delicious Tex-Mex version)

And of course, remember food is your FRIEND, not your enemy! Happy healthy eating everyone!

You are my Master and I love You

You may recognize this quote for the fabulous movie Up! which is how we celebrated Valentine's Day (seriously have you ever cried so hard at the first 10 minutes of a movie?) But if you live under a rock, this is a quote from Doug the dog, and he's hilarious.

If you have a dog, you KNOW what I'm talking about - chances are you talk to your dog as if they were human and imagine them talking back. "You are my master and I love you!" I converse daily with my girl and this morning I realized how much I could learn from my pup about living with my Master.

Look to your Master for guidance

Trust your Master; He knows the way to go. He can see more than you; He is big and you are so small. He will lead you along the right path.

Crawl into your Master's embrace

He has so much affection to give just because He loves you. You don't have to be perfect or do something to earn it - just crawl into His lap as often as you want!

There's joy just being in the presence of your Master

In your Master's presence, the dullness of the day fades away and there is an explosion of celebration just because HE IS WITH YOU. It doesn't matter if you talk, if treats are handed out, or if you just sit quietly together - nothing can change the JOY of just being with your Master.

Trust Your Master to provide what you need

You may need to sit, stay, or wait, but your Master will give you what is good for you when it's the right time!

Your Master will discipline you

You're not perfect and you will make mistakes. Nothing is hidden from your Master - He knows and sees it all. Sometimes your Master will be kind and forgiving. Sometimes you will be disciplined. It might even hurt. But this is still always for your good.

Your Master is a Safe Place

When the world gets loud and scary, run to your Master. The loud and scary parts may not disappear, but you'll be with your Master and there is comfort there.

You may not always like it

Sometimes your Master will ask you (or make you) do something that you don't want to do. You might want to abandon ship and run away - but typically that just makes more of a mess. Instead, trust that your Master has a reason for the uncomfortable and trust that you are still in His hands throughout the whole process. 

Walk daily

Lift your eyes. Keep them on your Master. Walk like He does. Trust that He's got you.

Whew

I remembered my password to this blog.

*whew*

new post soon.

Kindergarten Hunger Games

The past few entries have been heavy. So today, when a friend made a silly comment about how Kindergarten is like Hunger Games, I thought "that sounds like fun"...

So here you go - 10 Ways that Kindergarten is like the Hunger Games

10. They're always trying to take their clothes off: I had a kiddo once who got so "hot" that he kept stripping down to his undergarments and we had to have the conversation about "please don't take off your pants at school". It took several days before he got the message.

9. There's rebellion: come on, they're 5, are you really surprised they don't want to stop playing computer when I've asked them to stop?

8. There's a lot of kissing: I remember saying my 1st week of Kinder "there is no kissing in kindergarten!"... I was wrong.

7. There's a lot of running: whether it's to get to specials on time, to stop a kinder from putting something in their mouth, to get a ball that's in the street before it rolls even further away, or to stop scissors from cutting a girls' hair - kinder teachers are always on alert and quick on their feet (and usually in slow-motion shouting the word "noooooo").

6. You laugh when people mention painting: let's be honest, we all laughed a little when Peeta's defense strategy was painting. And I do the same when people suggest that kinder is just "painting all day" - ha. ha. ha.

5. Every player is different: just as Katniss sizes up each of her opponents, each kinder teacher has no idea what she's getting each year. Meet the Teacher Night is, therefore, a night of sizing up the new bunch - who's sweet, who's going to be a handful, who's going to make you laugh, and who's going to give you gray hair.

4. There's a lot of blood: paper cuts, knee scrapes, nose bleeds, and even head-wound-blood if you're lucky (yay me!)

3. Conflict. Conflict. Conflict: Ms. Collins can write 3 books on it and she just made it up - us kinder teachers can write our own books based on real life. So. much. drama.

2. Alliances are made (and broken) every day: teachers must always be vigilant to know who's friends with who, who's mad with who, and who will kill each other if they're in the same table group.

Which brings me to
#1 Way That Kindergarten is Like the Hunger Games

Despite the conflict, blood, danger, & drama - you love it like a guilty pleasure.