Been a While, So I'll Resurrect this Blog with a Recipe

I think the last time I wrote was last year on the Summer Solstice. We have new projects around our house this summer. One is a bathroom remodel and the other one is creating a Sophia Garden. I hope to have pictures posted soon. If anyone is actually following this blog, I just thought I'd let you know. In order to resurrect this blog I will share a recipe I cooked from "The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook" by Allissa Sergersten and Tom Malterre. This was an excellent recipe and needs to be shared.

Poached Halibut with Tomatoes and Fresh Herbs

1 to 2 lbs of Halibut
Fresh Lemon Juice
Sea salt

Olive Oil
1 small red onion
1 tsp of Italian Seasoning
2 cloves of garlic crushed
2 small zucchini (I used yellow squash for my garden)
1/2 cup of kalamata olives, pitted. (make sure you get the pitted ones, I didn't and it was a hassle to pit them myself)
14 oz can of diced tomatoes or you can dice your own. I bought the can.
1/2 cup chopped basil
2 tsp fresh oregano (which I got from my garden)
1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar to taste. (I used red wine vinegar which I already had, it was just fine)

Ask the fishmonger to skin the halibut for you. I didn't have a fish filet knife and I almost mutilated the poor fish, luckily my husband stepped in and skinned the halibut for me. Okay now for the process.

Marinate the halibut in lemon juice and sea salt for ten minutes or while you are chopping the other ingredients.

Heat the olive oil and saute red onion, add Italian Seasoning, garlic, zucchini and olives.

Move vegetables to the side of the pan and add halibut fillets; cook 3 minutes then flip. Add tomatoes, fresh basil and oregano. Cover and simmer on low until halibut is done, about ten minutes. Add a splash of sherry vinegar for taste.

I served this meal with brown rice and salad. Chardonnay compliments the meal quite nicely. If you stumble upon this blog and would like to share one of your own recipes, please do.

Thanks for reading.

Summer Solstice

It's been a while since I've written. Work and school seem to be taking up much of time, so there isn't much for blogging, much less creating sacred spaces these days. However, I did get out and weeded the rock garden today. Plants that went dormant during the winter are coming back and taking over. My hope is that the flowers will outgrow the weeds. My husband built two raised vegetable beds and he fixed one of the flower beds. I think the yard is beginning to be a place of prayer and contemplation and less like a dumping ground. There is still much to be done.

On that note, I would like to wish everyone a happy summer solstice. May we all enjoy the longer days ahead of us and along the way even get some rest and relaxation in.

In Serenity and Joy
Andrea

It Is Spring, Right? Trying to Create a Garden Despite the Elements

The one time I planted my flowers before July, the weather people in the Puget Sound Area is predicting snow/rain mix and thunder showers. I realize I planted too early, but wanted to get a head start in my garden during spring break from school. At least I only planted one small area and a few flower pots that I can bring in if it gets too cold.

Another reason I planted early; I wrote a research paper on creating my own organic garden. As an amateur gardener I found some very useful information, such as integrating certain flowers among the vegetables and berries to attract beneficial insects and repel and confuse unwanted insects. I began small and planted strawberries in a pot and integrated marigolds and allysum among the berries. I also planted geraniums and marigold along side my bare root roses to attract lady bugs in order to eat the aphids. When new information is discovered it is difficult to wait to utilize the new plan. The past two weeks I have been working and planning out what I would like my yard to look like and produce this summer.


Strawberry Planter with Marigolds


Bare Root Roses with Geraniums

I am still planning creating a sacred space in my garden for prayer and meditation. The space is almost cleared of weeds, but the juniper bush still needs to be removed and I am searching for solar fountains and religious symbols to implement amongst the flowers. I also hope to use the outdoor space for Healing and Sophia services, but that will take a while. For now I am working on a little patch at a time hoping the elements will not destroy the work I've put in so far.


The Beginnings of White Lily wed with Red Rose


Marigolds and Allysum



In Serenity and Joy
Andrea

Hope For Spring

This last week in the Northwest we were spoiled with spring like weather. Today I went out to my circular flowerbed to pull out the winter weeds and trim the dried leaves from the butterfly bush. Feeling the warmth of the sun on my back, it was great to begin digging in my garden again.

Last November I bought a St. Francis statue and placed him in my little circular garden. There is a basket for bird seed that the finches and blue jays eat from. This morning a blue jay was perched on St Francis eating out of the basket. Occasionally the bird looked into the face as if he was thanking St. Francis for the food.

February is time to look forward to the coming of spring. The days begin to lengthen and the weather warms up just a bit. There are a few spring like days as a reminder the cold dark winter months are almost behind us.

This spring I will continue work on my prayer and meditation garden. In addition my husband and I are planning an organic vegetable garden in our back yard. We will begin small and slowly build the garden up.

Here is to a hope for the spring to come!

In Serenity and Joy
Andrea

I am Still Here, Just Busy

This blog has been neglected the past two months. I did have a Christmas break, but I spent most of that time resting and spending time with my family. When I have time, I am still working on towards creating Sacred Spaces in my home and in my garden. However, these long dark cold months are spent with both work in my job and in my school.

This afternoon I had a bit of a respite from my normal routine on my to do list. I took a long nap, had one really good cup of coffee (thanks to my new French Coffee Press I received for Christmas) and I have a bit of time to write before I go to school this evening. The snow from last night still clings to the rooftops that face north, but most of the snow on the ground has melted away. The sun is setting behind the fir trees on the west side of the lake creating golden tinge as it slips to the other side of the world. I am reminded that life is circular and not linear.

I hope to set some time to work on this blog this winter season. I am taking a class, "Sustainable Environments" and I am learning quite a bit what it really means to live organically. I intend to share what I've been learning on this blog.

Until then, I wish everyone warmth this winter season.

In Serenity and Joy
Andrea

The November Curse and My Dream Bathtub

It never fails. Every November since we moved into this house seventeen and a half years ago, something major breaks down or someone in the family goes through a medical crisis. I finally admitted last year that November was not a good month for the Turner Family. Three weeks into this month nothing broke down and no one went into the hospital, so I thought maybe we could make it through this month with no catastrophes. I was wrong.

As I sit here typing, with the aroma of the roasting turkey filling the air, we have no use of the plumbing in our house. My husband got home yesterday and both bathrooms backed up, toilets, sink and bathtub. The plumber came out and my husband helped him so we wouldn't have to pay as much. We thought the problem was solved. After my son took his shower, the tub wouldn't drain. Then the toilets started to back up again. So we're waiting for the plumber to arrive this Thanksgiving day to find out what the additional problem is. Hopefully that problem won't be any longer than 75 feet into the main pipe, because that is all the warranty covers from the plumbers visit from yesterday.

There is something different this November with our current crisis. I am not pissed. In fact I feel fairly serene. When these things use to happen I would get highly annoyed. I don't know if this has to do with maturity or being where I am at spiritually, but today I realize this house is old and things tend to break down. We have the original plumbing from 1949. It is time to replace it soon. It's just a matter of being able to afford to replace the plumbing. I am perplexed why our appliances break down in November.

Perhaps this is a good thing and we'll be forced to replace the plumbing, thus maybe remodeling the bathroom that is so long overdue also. Currently our bathroom is not a place for relaxing in the bathtub with candles lit. The drain doesn't work properly, we're in a never ending fight with mold and I think one day our whole entire bathroom will disappear into the abyss due to dry rot in the floor boards. During the summer I am not as bugged by our inadequate bathroom, but now that there is more darkness, I'd love to have a proper tub that works and actually take a bath with candle light.

I need to put things into perspective. This Thanksgiving I rather deal with plumbing problems than have one of my family members in the hospital. There is an oven that works, so we can still eat the traditional turkey with all the trimmings. And I have four days off to relax and work a bit on my home creating more sacred spaces. Last week I finally found a St. Francis statue in Portland. I put the statue out in my front yard next to the bird bath and bird feeder. There is even a little basket that St. Francis is holding so I can put bird see in it. It is the little things like this that I realize that I am very blessed.

On this Thanksgiving day in the United States I wish that all have peace, serenity and joy, and that no one else is dealing with plumbing problems.

In Serenity and Joy
Andrea