7 QT's: Facial Hair and Food...Because They Go Together SO Nicely

1) A few of my hometown friends have expressed their concern over my husband's cartoon likeness. They are wondering why his beard always looks like a 5 o'clock shadow.
Here's a side by side that I put together from the archives.

 Dan doesn't seem to mind the cartoon of himself, which he calls "slimming". haha. But..I don't know. I can see how the cartoon makes him look like he has a shadow/acne/measles. There are several possibilities here. Maybe I should fine tune it a little.

2) I can't believe summer is just about over. My kids are particularly sad about the end of the swimming/kiddie pool season, and so am I.
 Are you the kind of mom that gets right in the kiddie pool with the kids? I do, even though I know it's chock full o' urine. Ain't no shame in my game, honey. I try my hardest to look a dignified woman in her 30's just taking a leisurely swim in a foot of water/etc.

3) The baby is teething somethin fierce over here. Last night she woke up screaming and crying and no amount of nursing was helping. Finally I brought her down to the living room, and you know what she did? She smiled and played happily on the floor for over an hour. I smiled (sort of) and tried my best to play along.

What fun we had! I died on the floor while she joyfully crawled over my carcass again and again.

4) Did you happen to read about this wolf attack in Northern Minnesota the other day?

 Time for me to scratch Minnesota from my list of Places To See Before I Die! My Gentle Voice is going back into full gear this week.

Peace is flowing like a river. Flowing over me and me.

Noah Graham, the teen who was attacked, was camping with his church friends when a wolf attacked him out of the clear blue.
  Noah said he was up late talking to his girlfriend when the wolf came out of nowhere and attacked. He says: “I was leaning back, kind of on my elbows, and we were talking, and I was looking her right in the eyes." The wolf then clamped his jaw onto the back of Noah's head and wouldn't let go. Noah literally had to reach behind himself to unclamp the wolf's jaw and jerk his own head out of the wolf's mouth.
Here's my favorite part of the article:
Graham's girlfriend fled to her Jeep, while two other members of the camping party slept through all the screaming, kicking and fighting, he said.
Ah, "Greater love hath no man than this,than to lay down one's life for a friend."
Dude.. Noah.  It's time to find some new pals.

5) I have a question for all my gardening peoples out there.
 This year,we started lasagna gardening. It's a super easy method that produces amazing results.
We have this 40 ft long garden that the preious owners put in, but it was mainly filled with ground cover that would look really gross by mid July every summer. So we started turning it over into an organic veggie garden (SEE? I really do like organic food. I just don't preach about it).
We've only turned over a little of it so far. We planted 14 tomato plants and two pumpkin plants, and so far things are looking fantastic. My problem and my question: Some of the limbs on my tomato plants are growing out of the sides of the cages instead of the tops. I guess maybe I was suppossed to push them through earlier on...are you following me or does this just sound confusing? Anyway, two of the plants were falling over, and I just used twist ties to secure them to the cages and stand them straight up, but I'm not sure how sturdy that is. Got any tips???

Ok, for some reason the marker I used for the unripe tomatoes looks more blue than green.

6) This story really blows me away. It's about 9 women - called the 9 Nanas - who used some pretty sweet stealth moves to perform acts of charity for their community. And for 30 years, they were the only ones who knew about it. It's just awesome. Look at these ladies, reaching out in love to those in need! Last week in her 7 Quick Takes, Simcha Fisher mentioned Antoinette Tuff and said, "Wondering about what the “feminine genius” looks like in action?  Here you go." So very, very true. I am thinking these 9 ladies are another fine example of that "feminine genius".

 You know, it makes me think of how God can inspire us in so many creative kinds of ways as women and men. We tend to think inside the box...but I really believe that Jesus wants us to dig deep, be creative and use our unique gifts and talents to bring some more humanity to this world we live in.  We're so good at being cold and aloof. But we're waaaay better at being warm and generous and nurturing and connected...sometimes we just need a little push.
 So use your creativity and your quirkiness for God, I say! Take a tip from the 9 nanas.

7) You want an awesome, delicious, amazing healthy dinner idea??? I have a great one for you! It's become my favorite meal, it's super easy and cheap to make, and EVEN THE KIDS LOVE IT!!!!
Check it out: Salsa Verde Chicken Tostadas from Skinnytaste. She always makes THE BEST food!
I could eat like....so many of these.
Linking up with Jen and Co. for 7 Quick Takes! Head there for more:)


I love you, food. You are so beautiful. You are a pretty, pretty, pretty beautiful food.