Autumn Scripture Art

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October Freebie: Leaf Counting, Colors & Adding Game

The concept of numbers can be very abstract for children ... at least, I had always read this but teaching a preschooler to count and number recognition has proved it for me!  So, I like to design and I like to teach, which means I love designing teaching printables for my little one.  It's fall and I love incorporating the seasons (even when teaching preschool math), therefore I made a Leaf Counting, Colors & Adding Game.

I printed and laminated the game sheet last night, and this morning we scavenged the backyard for pebbles to use with the game.  I designed two sheets - one for PreK/Kinder and one for 1st/2nd.  It's essentially three games on one sheet and you can customize the games to suit your learner's level of number know-how.  You can do the Adding Game (shown in picture), Color Game or Adding Game, and the first sheet is 1-10 while the second sheet is 11-20.  It's really fun and great practice for young learners!  Snag a copy of each sheet below, then print, laminate and have fun!

Sriracha-cha: Poser Thai Peanut Noodles & LowCal Spring Rolls

Courtesy of Google Shopping & Breadenfish Media

What does Sriracha sauce, broccoli slaw, rice vermicelli, peanut butter, bean sprouts, spaghetti noodles,  soy sauce, jicama, rice vinegar, spring roll wrappers, sesame seed oil, an apple and a lime have in common?  They are all in my world renown, low calorie, kid friendly dinner ... not sure about the "world renown", but my family and friends REALLY like it!  My good friend Emily, creator and writer of Running Like A Mother blog, and I even had a spring roll wrapping party this week and got to munch on the goods with our kiddos.  Emily steamed edamame that we ate on the side for extra protein and nutrition.  It was probably the most flavorful meal I had all week!

Courtesy of runninglikeamother.com

Here's what you need to make Poser Thai Peanut Noodles and LowCal Spring Rolls:

~ Shopping List ~

Fresh Ingredients

1 lime or lime juice concentrate
1 tbsp garlic paste (or 2-3 garlic cloves, crushed into paste)
1 bag Dole broccoli slaw
1/2 cup bean sprouts, fresh or canned
1/2 cup Dole carrot shreds
1 Gala or Fuji apple, peeled and cut into spears
1/2 Jicama, peeled and sliced (optional)
1 - 12 oz bag Spring Roll Wrappers

Pantry Ingredients

1 tbsp Sriracha sauce (or to taste)
1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
3/4 cup rice vinegar
1/2 tsp sesame seed oil
1/2 cup peanut butter (or more!)
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp ginger powder
4 oz Rice Vermicelli noodles (also known as cellophane noodles)
8 oz Whole Wheat Spaghetti noodles


LowCal Spring Rolls
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 28 min
Yields 12-14 Rolls

1) Heat oil in a frying pan on medium-high, then toss 1/3 cup broccoli slaw, carrot shreds and bean sprouts in to quickly stir-fry.  Don't overcook - make sure it stays crunchy!  2) Use instructions on the bag of vermicelli to prep the noodles (usually involves soaking the noodles in warm water.)  3) Add 1/4 cups rice vinegar, 3 tbsp soy sauce and 1/2 tbsp garlic paste to the frying pan.  Stir and turn heat to low-medium.  4) Stir prepped noodles into frying pan and turn off heat.  5) Prep your spring roll wrappers per package instructions, set your oven on 400 degrees, and spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray.  6) Now the rolling of the spring rolls!  Place a small amount of the veggie/noodle mix onto the spring roll wrapper and fold away.  Secure the seams with a paste made of 1 tbsp water and 1 tbsp flour.  Optional: brush each roll with a little olive oil. (See folding instructions below.)  7) Once you fill your baking sheet, place rolls in the preheated oven for 15 minutes.  After 15 minutes, turn the rolls and leave in for another 10-12 minutes or until browned on both sides.  8) Serve hot and dip in sweet & sour sauce or my Thai Cucumber Sauce (see recipe below).

Watch to learn how to wrap your spring rolls, but bake instead of fry :D

Poser Thai Peanut Noodles

Prep Time: 15 min

Chill Time: 30 min

Yields 6-8 servings

1) Prep spaghetti noodles per package instructions for al-dente, drain immediately after cooked.  2) Mix the dressing in a small bowl: 1/2 cup rice vinegar, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup peanut butter (or more if you like a thicker dressing), 2 tbsp brown sugar, 1/2 tsp ginger powder, 2 tbsp boiling spaghetti noodle water, 1/2 tbsp garlic paste, 1/2 tbsp sriracha sauce, and 1/2 tsp sesame seed oil.  3) Peel your apple and  jicama, cutting both it into bit-size spears.  Place spears in a large bowl and toss in about 1/4 cup lime juice, which will preserve their color and crunch.  4) Add the rest of the broccoli slaw (a little over 1 cup), jicama spears and whole wheat spaghetti noodles.  5) Toss everything in the peanut sauce really well.  6) Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes and serve chilled .... kids LOVE it!

Thai Cucumber Sauce
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1/2 clear corn syrup
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Sriracha sauce (or to taste)
1/2 cucumber, peeled and diced
Heat vinegar and salt in a saucepan until boiling.  Stir in syrup and boil for 2-3 minutes.  Remove from heat, stir in Sriracha sauce and pour over diced cucumber.  Place in fridge 30-45 minutes.  Serve chilled.

July Freebie Download

My friend Emily, blogger of Running Like A Mother, and I have been putting our creative heads together to make a printable party packet for an upcoming baby shower she is hosting.  As I worked on it today, I started to feel overwhelmed with all the plans and ideas I have been dreaming up for it.  My brain started feeling like a balloon: the more I blew it up, the closer it got to either popping or instantaneously blowing-out from all the pressure.  I immediately thought, "Oh no!  I don't want to spend my day chasing this project around in circles and find myself at square one."  So, I started praying and asking the Lord to focus my mind and place before me the most important tasks.  As I prayed, I started remember all the verses that inspire me towards ingenuity, time management and wisdom.  Then I felt inspired to use the project artwork to create a Prayer Plaque to print and put up in my office as a constant reminder.  When I look at it, it makes me so happy!  Plus, it reminds me to keep on task and to seek the Lord for wisdom!  Friends: click, print, enjoy, and be inspired!

May Freebie: Mother's Day 2013 Print

Framed art is the perfect gift for Mother's Day.  I outlined my daughter's hand and pulled it into Adobe Illustrator to make this printout.  I added the poem "Mother" by George Wiseman (tweaking the verbiage a bit ... I think he was a Deist, but I'm not ;)  When I printed this, I scaled it to fit a 4x6 frame.  However, you can print it in the original size (an 8.5x11) or scale it to fit a 5x7.  Click here to pull up the image in your browser and right-click or pull it onto your desktop to save!  Happy Mother's Day!!!

44 Prophecies About Jesus Christ

Image found on thedivineevidence.com

So I lost track of time and wasn't able to write up my post regarding the Old Testament prophecies of Christ's birth, life, death, resurrection, and return.  However I found an article that outlines 44 accounts of prophecy about Jesus Christ in chart form by About.com's Mary Fairchild.  It's really cool!  Definitely check it out!

But here are some prophetic scriptures in the Old Testament that blow me away:

Jesus' Betrayal Prophesied

Zechariah 11:12-13 "I told them, “If you think it best, give me my pay; but if not, keep it.” So they paid me thirty pieces of silver.  And the Lord said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—the handsome price at which they valued me! So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them to the potter at the house of the Lord."

Fulfilled in Luke 22:47-48 and Matthew 26:14-16

Jesus' Death

Isaiah 53:4-7  

⁴ 

"Surely he took up our pain

    and bore our suffering,

yet we considered him punished by God,

    stricken by him, and afflicted.

⁵ 

But he was pierced for our transgressions,

    he was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that brought us peace was on him,

    and by his wounds we are healed.

⁶ 

We all, like sheep, have gone astray,

    each of us has turned to our own way;

and the Lord has laid on him

    the iniquity of us all."

Fulfillment in scripture is found in Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, and John 19.

Jesus' Resuxrrection

Psalm 49:15

But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.

Fulfillment in the scripture is in Matthew 28, Luke 24, John 20, and Mark 16.