Well-Seasoned Sundays #6

Celebrate with me!!!

June 26, 2022

I have some AMAZING news!!! This email will be a little link happy. Why? Because I am celebrating reaching my goal…early I might add…of 100 posts on my blog, Seasoned with Joy!!! My goal was October, but I have been so inspired by all the seasonal fun and delicious foods that I want to share with you. Can I just say as a mom that there is no greater thrill than having your kids peruse your blog? Even my teenage son called and asked, “Mom, what is the recipe for the Celebration Steak?…oh wait, I can check out your blog. Thanks, mom.” 

Excitedly, I have entered the kitchen on many occasions this year to find my kids on my blog with their favorite recipes open as they are busy cooking away. They are so proud of their mom. And you know what? So am I. Reaching a goal is a huge feat in life and it takes courage. These accomplishments need to be celebrated. I think we may just have to make Fish Tacos with Citrus Slaw topped with Beckamole polished off with a Homemade Hot Fudge Sundae for dessert. My favorites! That is my kind of celebration: eating amazing food with my favorite peeps. Thanks for celebrating with me, Favorites. Click away and let me know what you think of my 100 posts (take your time, of course). 

Book I Am Reading:

Revelation of Royalty by Bill Winston

Quote I Am Pondering:

 “You were never designed to live in an environment you did not create. Words of faith are the tools God gives us to design our futures! It is the main way we as believers get things done on the earth. Before we decree, we must first see. We cannot legislate what we have not looked upon within our spirits, because everything that manifests externally begins as an internally perceived reality…everything is created twice…Where are the things that God speaks into existence before He speaks them? The answer is, they are in God. When He speaks them, He manifests them externally…Jesus said, ‘The kingdom of God is within you’ (Luke 17:21). It is inside us, but it is not meant to stay inside of us! We speak it forth, and the kingdom manifests in the earth.” Bill Winston, Revelation of Royalty pp. 54-55 

This is not a “name it and claim it’, but rather speaking words in agreement with the Word of God (as it is in Heaven). Angels recognize the word of God and get to work when they hear His word. Just like royals have servants to do their bidding, so too do we have ministering spirits sent to do our bidding when what we speak aligns with heaven’s voice.

The more we understand who we are (our identity) and that we were created in the image of God, the more we will manifest our true selves as ambassadors of heaven on earth. I want to get this truth in me above all else. This truth is what Jesus went to the cross for. He went to restore us to our rightful place as heirs of the kingdom. We are royalty. We are kings and queens. We were created in the image of God and commissioned to rule and reign and take dominion of the earth (Genesis 1:26-28). This blows my mind. 

Products I Am EnJOYing:

Viori Hidden Waterfall Shampoo and Conditioner Bars with Bamboo Holder. This set comes with a shampoo and conditioner bar, as well as a bamboo holder. You will need to purchase another bamboo holder if you want one for each bar. I have been using these bars for a few years now and LOVE them. Not only do they last FOREVER, but Viori is a sustainable, natural product that is easy to use, smells amazing, and the price is just right! Check it out. 

What We Are Eating:

We have been busy eating yummy seasonal foods. Each week I place my local farm, home delivery Market Wagon order with fresh cream for Homemade Ice-Cream, corn on the cob, summer squash, peaches, and of course heirloom tomatoes. Summer heirlooms are magnificent, sliced with fresh basil chiffonade, drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and finished off with fresh ground pepper and my favorite Maldon Salt Flakes. Summer on a plate! 

I love the flavors of summer because they are simple and fresh and full of flavor. Herbs are abounding, so of course, we are eating a lot of Pesto. Not only is it delicious on pasta or grilled chicken, but fun as a sauce on Homemade Pizza (which we are also eating a lot of). Every Friday night is Homemade Pizza night, and I have the best dough and sauce recipes!!! 

Popsicles are also in abundance around these parts. Nothing says summer like a Strawberries & Cream Patriot Pop or a Healthy Chocolate Fudge Pop. Don’t forget to add a splash of pizzaz to your backyard parties with my Summer Sunshine Shrub which is the perfect way to kick your thirst, add some probiotics to your belly, as well as incorporate some healing summer herbs into your diet. It does take a few days to prepare because it is a fermented beverage so check it out! 

How We Are Playing:

In this hot Tennessee sun, we spend our afternoons cooling off at the creek, picking fresh blueberries from the neighbor’s bush (with permission, of course), and of course working our way through the 50 Ways to Savor the Summer Season with Family. On really hot days the kids either enJOY making homemade Scentsational Playdough, doing crafts like Rainbow Loom or building Legos, or watching a favorite movie with a bowl of Popcorn with a Pop. 

Keeping kids occupied, yet giving them enough time to develop creativity with the help of boredom, takes that perfect summer balance. Why not organize a Scavenger Hunt with some family friends, or practice gratitude by painting Stones of Remembrance together? Summer is a great time for read-alouds on a picnic blanket under the trees and just plain family bonding time. Get to know those kiddos around you every day. They are only here for a fleeting moment. 

Ways We Can Love:

There are so many ways to show the people around you that you love them. In our home, one of the ways I love to show the kiddos I love them is with my Lavender Fairy Pillow Spray. Every week, when we strip the beds down and wash the sheets, I sneak in and spray the pillows with my Lavender Fairy Pillow Spray. At bedtime, they snuggle in and smile, “The lavender fairy has been here,” they say. I want them to have strong olfactory memories of home. Whenever they smell lavender, I want them to feel loved, hugged, and tucked in tight for the rest of their lives. 

Living Holistically:

I have several recipes new to my blog that are perfect for summer. I know I have previously mentioned my Love Your Lips Nourishing Lip Balm, but it is great for the summer months. My daughter even called me the other day from work desperate for some lip balm. She had forgotten hers at home. Because we just happened to be out, and I just happened to have a tube in my purse, we saved her life…or her lips actually.

I also have a wonderful Homemade Calming Baby Powder recipe which we affectionately call “Doot Doot” in our home. Even though we no longer have babies crawling underfoot, we still like to baby ourselves right out of the bath, as well as use it to free ourselves from irritating sand at the beach. Baby powder works like magic to remove sand. It smells amazing too!

Lastly, summer is a time I go light on makeup. I pretty much get by with my favorite homemade All Natural Face Powder, mascara, and a little lip gloss and I am good to go. My All Natural Face Powder is made from ingredients most likely already in your kitchen. Natural enough to eat…not that you would want to, but you could.

I don’t like to put anything on my body that I wouldn’t actually eat, especially with the skin being our largest organ of the body. The fewer toxins we introduce into our body, the more optimally our bodies will perform for us. So, on that note, I will leave you with one last link to click. Check out one of my first posts, Cutting Costs & Detoxifying Your Laundry Room. There is a crazy good laundry soap recipe included that is great on the pocketbook as well as safe for your body and clothes. 

That’s it for this Well-Seasoned Sunday. Thanks again for celebrating with me Peeps. I would love your response, what things you are interested in knowing, and what lights you up… let’s keep the conversation going!

Rebecca

Remember…

In everything you do -eat, play, and, love- may it always be Seasoned with Joy!