Easy Jambalaya

This is a rather simple recipe for Jambalaya. This is a dish that we've both tired to make, without much success, but I was surprised at how well this came out.

1 lb sausage (andouille if you are able to find it - you probably can't if you don't live in Louisiana)
-this is not breakfast sausage-
1/2 lb. shrimp (uncooked)
1 large white onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
4 teas. minced garlic
2 C. chicken broth
1 can original Rotel
a pinch of saffron threads
1/4 teas. salt
1/2 teas. pepper
1/2 teas. cayenne pepper
1 C. uncooked rice

Heat approx. 1 Tbs. olive oil in large sauce pan. Slice sausage and brown. Add onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic and saute. When the vegetables are soft, add chicken broth, Rotel, saffron, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Bring to a simmer and add rice and shrimp. Place lid on pot and reduce heat, let simmer for 20 minutes or until rice is tender.

The City Museum

Last night, we went to the City Museum in St. Louis. We had a lot of fun, although it was a hassle getting there. I'm not really interested in going into the city on a Friday night again until I-64 is reopened. We will go on Saturdays when the traffic is not bad.

This is an albino turtle that they had in the aquarium.

A two story slide that you can go down. We both went.

There was a fish tank where you could get a "manicure" from a doctor fish. It felt strange. And I felt like I smelled like fish the rest of the night. James was a better sport about it than I was. It didn't hurt at all, but it was a little creepy.

A chambered nautilus. It was floating at the surface of the water, so the top half is just a reflection. This was the first time I had seen a live one.

Happy Mardi Gras!

We had a Mardi Gras party on Saturday. It was a lot of fun. We had a houseful of about 15 adults and 5 kids - mostly our neighbors and some friends from church. James made red beans and rice and gumbo, and I made spinach dip, crawfish dip, & coleslaw. We got two king cakes from a local bakery, and they were pretty good. Not as good as Ambrosia's in Baton Rouge, but good. We hoped to have homemade pralines, but I tried 3 times and James tired twice. We have successfully made them several times in the past, but we couldn't make it happen Saturday. All I ended up with was a bunch of burnt sugar and hot pecans. James got a batch that tasted OK, but they we not the right color at all. Pralines are supposed to be a light brown color, but these we the color of dark chocolate. I was afraid to serve them, so I threw them out. We didn't take many pictures at the party. James was busy bartending most of the night, and I was trying to make the rounds and make sure I got the chance to speak with everyone. So, here are some pictures of our decorations.

Front Door

Foyer

Foyer again. This picture is out of focus, but you get the idea.

Kitchen island

Fireplace

Dinning room

Kitchen table

Window Treatments

I finally got the window treatments for the dinning room an foyer finished. It's not that it took months and months to make them, there was just something else that took up my time. We had a party last Saturday for Mardi Gras. (Yes, we are homesick.) That was what prompted me to get them finished. The photo above is of the dinning room. There are two windows in there that are on the same wall and about 3 or 4 feet apart. There is a painting hanging in between them. I couldn't get a good pic of both windows. They have the same swag on them. I spent the better part of two days on these.

This photo is of a window in our foyer. This only took a couple of hours. James' mom gave me this fabric. It is an interesting oriental print. She used the same fabric, except with a black background to reupholster 2 love seats at her house.

The weather up here

Of things that I've missed about Baton Rouge, the weather has not typically been one of them. However, I enjoyed it this time of year. It usually didn't rain much, and it was starting to look a little like spring. Some of my bulbs would be starting to come out now, and it was not very cold. (It was never very cold anyway.)

I'm ready for spring, but we're supposed to have snow Monday. My skin is really dry from the cold weather. One day I got to work and noticed that one of my knuckles was bleeding, not because I had cut my hand, but because my skin had cracked. I'm not wearing my contacts as much because they get dried out from the wind and become uncomfortable. My lips were chapped so badly a few weeks ago that regular lip balm wasn't helping. I used Mary Kay Cosmetic's Extra Emollient Night Cream on my lips before I went to bed, and that did the trick. (The night cream is about as think as ointment is you're not familiar with the product. And no, it was not meant to be used as lip balm.)

Enough complaining. I love spring. It is so full of hope, new flowers, new baby birds, green grass, the outdoors come back to life after the dead of winter. It renews my hope of the New Earth.

In the meantime, I keep reminding how unpleasant it is to be without power in the summer because a hurricane has wiped out the electricity everywhere south of Alexandria and how it is not fun to have half of New Orleans in your town because New Orleans has become an extension of Lake Pontchartrain. Winter or hurricanes. . .I'd definitely rather have winter. I think we might have to have a King Cake shipped up here though!

Art for the Bedroom

I had three photos that I took in Louisiana enlarged and framed. We hung them in one of our guest bedrooms. Readers familiar with sights around South Louisiana might recognize them. The one on the left is the St. Louis Cathedral, the middle one is Oak Alley plantation, and the 3rd is the oak trees at Oak Alley. We have a watercolor of the catherdal hanging up downstairs that we bought from one of the artists at Jackson Square shortly after we got married. If you haven't been to Jackson Square, it is a must see when in New Orleans. The church is beautiful, and there is an outdoor artists colony - which made it back after Katrina and and as interesting as ever.

A new book

My parents gave me this book for Christmas. I've really enjoyed it so far. This is the second one of Gary Thomas' (no relation) what I've read. The first was Sacred Marriage. James and I read that book together, and it was really helpful. There were discussion questions that corresponded with each chapter at the end of the book.

Sacred Influence is the second book for Christian wives that I've read, and I prefer it over the first one I picked up. I read The Excellent Wife once while I was in pharmacy school and again after I had a full time job. I know Martha Peace's book has had a very positive impact on a lot of women, and I'm thankful for that. It just didn't speak to me. She hammers down the importance of keeping a home and not working outside of the home so that you can be the ever ready helpmate for your husband. Both times I read the book, I was at a place in life I couldn't be a stay at home wife. I was in professional school the first time, and the second time I was working full time so James could go to grad school. She's definitely biblical; I just didn't have time in my life for her suggestions about making sure the house is tidy before you leave for the day.

Sacred Influence is a different kind of book. You don't have to be living the idealistic stay-at-home-mom life to have it touch your heart. Thomas speaks of the condition of your heart, and reminds you that you are a fallen sinner and so is your husband and that your marriage is tied and bound by the grace of God.

Here's an excerpt:

A good marriage doesn't happen by accident, and a good marriage isn't maintained by accident. I've never written a book by accident, and you can't build a business by accident. These endeavors require deliberate choices and much perseverance. When you start acting instead of merely wishing, when you begin taking initiative instead of simply feeling sorry for yourself, you become an active woman, and active women mirror the active God who made them.

I know many of us find it easy to pray for the "small matters" of life - safe travels, good rest, good weather for our vacations, but sometime we fail to pray for big things of life - our spouse's walk with God, wisdom in sharing our faith, and the endurance to be faithful to carry out the tasks of ministry that God has given us.