Rafa and I just got done volunteering with a bunch of other people from our church, The Rock, at the AIDS walk in Minneapolis. We cheered until our throats hurt and rang our cowbells until our knuckles bled (not even kidding!). We jumped up and down at the starting line to get people pumped up for the walk and gave about a million (almost kidding) high fives to participants as they reached the end of the 10K.

An AIDS walk is probably the last place most people would expect to see a bunch of evangelical Christians, but that’s one of the reasons why we are there.

Jesus didn’t just come to save the people with neatly packaged sins. People with public struggles need Jesus more, not less, than people who seem good on the outside and keep their sin hidden. Jesus didn’t tell Christians to only be around other Christians. He didn’t tell us to stay away from people we might not understand or even agree with. Jesus said “Go.” He said to love our neighbors as ourselves and to be a light in a dark city.

AIDS is absolutely devastating. When I think about it, the first thing that comes to my mind is death. The hope of my life is the complete opposite of death. That’s why it felt great to be there volunteering. We put smiles on the faces of hundreds of people.

We walked through five houses tonight. It really struck me how hard it must be to sell your house.
Forced to allow all your doors to be opened,
people poking in the nooks and crannies,
judging every color, carpet and crack,
questioning every spot and stain,
knowing that everyone is imagining how to get the memories of your family out.

As we drove home, I couldn’t help but peer into houses of every shape and size. I wonder if the people inside love their house? Or if they are just comfortable and love the memories they have there? I wonder if they had it all to do over again, would they buy the house again?

I can’t wait until we are inside our new house, making our own memories in the space that is just right for us.

I made a new dish tonight that is now on Gilda’s favorite foods list! It’s called the Crunchy Couscous Salad:

Ingredients:
1/2 cup dry couscous
3/4 cup water
1/2 cucumbers, thinly sliced and quartered
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
4 oz black olives
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
2 tablespoons feta cheese crumbles
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preparation:
1. In a medium saucepan, boil water and add couscous. Return to boiling, then remove pan from heat, cover, and let stand for five minutes. Fluff with a fork and let cool while preparing veggies.
2. Add cucumber, bell pepper, onion and olives to couscous.
3. Combine olive oil, vinegar, feta, basil, salt and pepper to make dressing. Mix with couscous salad.
4. Refrigerate and serve chilled. Add cooked chicken to make it a meal.

AND – We are enjoying the house hunt! We love the house in the previous post. Rafa would have been ready to write the offer letter then and there, but I want to be sure. So, we went to an open house on Sunday (hated it) and we have five more to look at this week. The Sherwood House (our name for it) is the new standard. If none of these five measure up, then we will put in an offer on the Sherwood House. It’s going to be an exciting week!

I read a verse a couple of weeks ago that I just keep thinking about: Proverbs 14:1 “A wise woman builds her home, but a foolish woman tears it down with her own hands.”

It really got me thinking about things I do to tear my house down. A bad attitude, a sense of entitlement, a lack of patience? All things that tear my house down. A cross word in itself isn’t going to tear the house Rafa and I are building down immediately, but each time I do it, I take a brick away from our foundation.

So what can I do to build our house? 1 Thessalonians 5:11 says to build each other up we need to encourage each other. Or 1 Corinthians 14:26 “…each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up.” My favorite is Colossians 3:15 “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful”

I love the Colossians verse because it really boils down the ways to be unified (aka, build the house of Soriano). Know the peace that comes from Jesus and be thankful. Know the peace and be thankful. Peace and thanks. Building a house is a big task, but I know I can follow those instructions.

Speaking of houses…

We are looking at this house this weekend!!! Our mortgage is pre-approved and this house is on short sale – this could be the literal Casa de Soriano. Please pray that God would keep opening doors for us if this is the house for us! Pray that Rafa would continue to seek wisdom.

Rafa and I love to eat. We love to cook a big meal together, get our our best serving ware, sit down at the table and eat. But with big meals come big problems if one isn’t careful. We are taking steps to make sure our love for food doesn’t overcome our love of health.

However, it’s more than health for my mother-in-law – healthy recipes are life. Since she started dialysis last fall, her doctors have been asking her to eat low-sodium, low-potassium, higher-protein and lower-carb. These restrictions, in addition to my desire to have things that are low-calorie, low-fat and high-fiber, means that I have to get creative in the kitchen.

We’ve had some great creations so far this week, if I do say so myself! Last night we had tacos. I used ground turkey instead of beef. I also made my own seasoning for the first time! I didn’t want us to eat the high sodium and MSG that comes from the stuff in packets. I mixed:

• 6 teaspoons chili powder
• 5 teaspoons paprika
• 4 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
• 2 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

The whole thing is enough to season 2-3 pounds of meat. It was very tasty and easily customizable.

Today, I made “Maryland Eastern Shore Cream of Crab Soup.” The name was complicated, but the recipe was not:

• Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large pot over moderate heat.
• Add 1 cup onion, chopped. Cook, stirring onion until it becomes soft and transparent.
• Add 1/2 pound fresh lump crab meat (I used imitation). Cook 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Add 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low.
• Combine 1 cup non-dairy creamer and 2 tablespoons cornstarch in a small bowl. Whisk until smooth.
• Add to soup and increase heat slightly, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and comes to a boil.
• Add 1/8 teaspoon dill weed, Old Bay seasoning and ground pepper. Serve!

The soup was really fast to make and tasted great. Rafa said that this soup is now on his favorite meals list, which is awesome because that is a tough list to get on! I am so happy to find recipes like this that fill our love of food but also contribute to my goals of keeping my family healthy.

I would love to hear your healthy recipes if you’re willing to share!

C’mon now, don’t be mad.

I know I haven’t written in awhile, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t thinking about you. You’re a great blog and I always have you on my mind. I think about the things I would write in you if I had time. I know you feel neglected when a week passes and I don’t use you to share my musings with our small, but loyal, audience.

It’s just that when spring hits, I can’t force myself to sit in front of the computer long enough. It’s torture when I have precious few hours between the end of work and the beginning of dusk. I have to make the time last. I have to pack it with activities that make me feel alive like the blooming flowers all around me.

What’s that? You want out too? Well, the thing is, I haven’t been just sitting around when I’m out there. I’ve been running to the river along a parkway with flowering trees. I’ve been taking a core muscle exercise class on a rooftop. I’ve been walking with my honey, hand-in-hand. I’ve been picking lilacs and wrestling with the dog.

I hope you can understand. It’s not you, it’s me. And spring. It’s spring’s fault.

God gave me some beautiful verses about discipline to meditate on this morning. I first read them thinking I would encourage a friend who is going through a work situation, but (as the Bible does) God used His word to encourage me about what He does in our lives.

Sometimes it’s hard for me to believe that the God of the Universe cares enough to help me become a better Christian. That the great “I AM” would get my attention. That the maker of the stars would guide me! And that the Father loves me as His own and gently guides me to the path of righteousness for my good and for His glory.

Pruning is not usually pleasant, but the end result is so good. Looking back on times of my life that were difficult, I can see now what God was leading me to in the end. During those times though, I certainly didn’t see the positive outcome. But God knew what would work for me – to stop me in my tracks and re-route my life for Him.

Some of my favorite verses are about discipline and how God uses it in our lives:

Hebrews 12:11 – “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”

John 15:1 – “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener…. every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” John 15:1

Proverbs 3:11 – “My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.”

When we got married, we decided to get rid of some of the more expensive hobbies we had between the two of us. I sold my motorcycle last fall and Rafa unloaded his paintball gun and gear this spring. We kept the saltwater fish tank as a hobby we could share together in our home.

Yesterday, I sold my Icon motorcycle jacket on Craig’s List. Then, we went to a house in Woodbury where a fellow reefer (saltwater fish tank affectionado) had an anemone for sale.

So – we used the jacket money towards the anemone money and ended up ahead on the day. Pretty sweet!
(Below – Not our actual anemone.)

We just came back from a beautiful weekend in Iowa. We went with no agenda and no appointments. I was really craving some time with my family that wasn’t rushed. I just wanted to be with my husband and my parents, watch baby Lily walk around, and generally hang out.

I loved running on the country roads in the early morning. Four miles on mostly gravel roads went really fast on Saturday morning. Saturday was so beautiful, we just had to go outside. We flew kits in the backyard, over Champ’s pasture and the unplowed corn fields.

We got lots of Lily time. She entertained us by making her “puppy noise” and playing with her new toys. (I had to get her some Target stuff since her dad works at a place that shall remain nameless!)

On Sunday, I had time to run about two miles before we went to Harvest Church and saw the church family I grew up with. I love what they’ve done with the place. They removed the choir loft to make room for the worship team – four vocalists, bass and acoustic guitar, and a steel drum player with an electronic drum machine! I’ve never heard their style of “Awesome God.”

We also had a nice surprise at a local repair shop. I like to get my car fixed in New Hampton whenever I can because 1) the mechanics know/trust/respect my dad, so I don’t feel like they are lying to me and 2) the prices are so much, much better. So, after driving in an unplowed alley during a Minnesota winter, my muffler lost some support and was making quite the loud banging/knocking noises.

When went to pick it up and I grabbed my checkbook. He said, “Oh, it was just a broken weld. We tacked it (the muffler) back up. No charge.” No charge?! That does not happen in Minneapolis.

I love going home.

We did a very adult thing. Rafa and I sat down with a financial advisor. It is weird to talk about “wealth management” because our bank account does not have very many zeros (not in the right places anyway).

So, the financial planners were very nice, explained their work, goals and compensation. They asked us about our budget, goals and expectations. It was all very nice, but I couldn’t shake a nagging question – are they Christians?

I want to know what you think. Is it right to trust the advice of non-Christians? Is it wise? What do you do with your “wealth?”