Paleo Plus - Chicken Chili

One of the challenges of eating well is feeding your family. As you start out eating paleo, you may not yet have your family on board or you may not be able to afford feeding everyone so much fresh food. My current solution is to cook a main portion of my food in common with my family and supplement as necessary for the rest of my family.

I used this recipe from Everyday Paleo, but I made a few modifications to make it fit my life.

First, I put 1.5 lbs of frozen chicken thighs and one can of tomatoes and green chiles along with about 4 cups of water into my crockpot. I turned it on high for 5 hours. This step cooked my chicken as well as making my chicken broth in the recipe. For the adult members of the family, this was my only modification. The result is a deliciously spicy soup. If you choose not to eat it with avocado, you'll definitely need something else to fill you up. This soup brings the flavor, but you'll need a side to be satisfied.

My kids are learning to like spicy things, but, in the main, they are wimps. So when I removed the chicken thighs from the crockpot, I reserved some de-boned meat for them. I served their meat with some Kerrygold Cheddar Cheese and gluten-free tortilla chips. I could have easily made nachos or something similar.

I love that there was no extra work involved, and everyone ate happily.

My Best Parenting Tips (for now)

So I am currently enjoying time off from work, and more time with my children. By God's grace, there are things that we've done well as parents; although I don't claim that ANY of these tips or ideas originated with me, but since others might find them useful, I wanted to share them.

Here are my favorite things we're doing with our kids at their current age level:

Alex is 8 years old. This stage of parenting is challenging because it's about character development. Since he's reading well, we've started having him read a children's Bible every morning before he does anything else. We're praying that the habit continues throughout his life.

Jason and Alex share a love for games. We only allow our kids to play video games once they're 7 years old; we want to make sure a love for reading is established first. Alex is allowed to play video games on Saturdays and Mondays (Jason's day off). So far, this has worked very well for our family.

Sunday afternoons Jason plays board games with the kids. We've already seen the benefits in Alex's reasoning skills and math skills. If you don't like the idea of competing against your kids, check out cooperative games like Castle Panic, Forbidden Island, and Escape: The Curse of the Temple.

Lauren is 5 years old. Her main parenting challenge at the moment is dealing appropriately with emotions. She has not responded to discipline in the same ways as Alex so we've had to change up our routine. We've begun a habit of praying with her when she faces temptation, and she feels free to come tell us because she knows we're on her team. Praise the LORD! We're still working on developing her communication so that she can control her anger without lashing out verbally. And yes, all of this is a very convicting and sanctifying process in our hearts as well. Check out this video for more teaching on parenting. We love Paul Tripp!

I'll echo the board game comment here as well. Lauren is motivated to learn to read so that she can play more games! Her addition skills have improved dramatically along the way as well. Games also allow kids (and adults) to practice patience, grace, and love as they win or lose. King of Tokyo is a great game for this age.

One more quick note about Lauren. Her interests and giftedness appear to be more artistic, and so to love her is to provide opportunities for her to enjoy those interests and gifts. She is happiest in a world of music, dance, cooking, painting, drawing, coloring, and just creating. 

Olivia is two years old. At this stage, our main goal is to keep her busy, fed, and rested. :) So my main idea for two year olds is to invite them to participate in life with you. We let Liv sit on the counter or stand on a stool while I cook. She throws clothes in the washer that I hand to her. She sorts clean cloth diapers into piles and puts them away in the drawer. I ask her to entertain the baby for a minute while I finish a task. She can find and bring to me most things in the house. 

Of course toddlers also throw tantrums and have bad attitudes. Our main way of dealing with fussing and whining is to send her to her bed until she can control her emotions and speak normally. Of course sometimes further discipline is needed, but most times teaching her to handle her frustration and disappointments is the main goal. Also if the underlying issue is exhaustion, sending your toddler to bed could  lead to an early nap, as Liv has done many times.

You may think that two is too young for games, but I spent a long time this morning playing Memory with Liv. We play it with the cards face up, and she makes matches. The experience is teaching her to find things, discriminate visually, use her dexterity (picking cards off table requires fine motor skills), increase patience, and build confidence. If you are looking for another game for this age range, I'd recommend Chicken Cha Cha Cha. 

Emily is 9 months old. My favorite parenting tips for her age is to begin room time with siblings. Room time is when the kids go and play in their room together in the afternoon after lunch. It's a part of our daily routine. For a baby like Em, just place an exersaucer or pack n' play into the room where the older kids are playing. Please note: I don't recommend leaving a baby in a room with zero supervision. The room in which the kids play has french doors, and I can hear perfectly if not see everything. I think she lasted 5 minutes the first day. Now she spends 15-20 minutes with them. It's a great break for me, and a wonderful way to build her ability to play and be happy with her siblings.

The other tips are for moms. As babies get older, a common issue for nursing moms is that the baby might stop nursing and prefer baby food. The tip is to establish a routine of nursing first. When the baby is hungry, nurse. Then, only if the baby still seems hungry, offer baby food. Along with feeding the baby, this is a great age to start using baby signs. We stick with the basics, more and all done. Here's a great resource if you want to expand your baby sign vocabulary. Babies can definitely sign earlier, but I always forget to use it until around this age. 

I hope you found this helpful, and of course, feel free to let me know what some of your favorite parenting ideas are!

Merry Christmas from the Daltons

Note: It's been several years since we've sent out Christmas cards. We'd like to get back into the tradition, so if you'd like a card next year, let us know and we'll add your address to our 2013 Christmas card list. This year, we decided to do a blog post instead.

Merry Christmas! 2012 has been a year of blessing and change for our family. We're thankful for God's leading in our lives, and for His provision of jobs, house, family, and health.

In December 2011, Jason graduated from Reformed Theological Seminary with a Masters of Divinity degree. Just a few weeks later, we jetted off to Welches, OR to visit a small church to see if God would have us minister there. In May 2012, Jason was ordained and installed as a minister in the Presbyterian Church of America (picture above is from his installation service at Evergreen Presbyterian). The next weekend, he was able to officiate at the wedding of some very dear friends. Because of the generosity of our friends, family, and our church family at Pear Orchard Presbyterian, we were able to move in June to Oregon. Jason is now the pastor of Mt. Hood Community Church. We are so thankful for this opportunity and pray that God will bless His church through Jason's ministry.

Our family welcomed Emily Grace Dalton on March 17, 2012. After her maternity leave, Elizabeth transitioned to part-time work with Kaplan. She is now solely teaching online for work, though she instructs at Dalton Academy in person. :) Elizabeth is also helping the church by teaching children's church and organizing Women in the Church activities and ministries. 

Alex turned eight years old in December 2012. He is currently a yellow belt in taekwondo and a second grader at Dalton Academy. He is a voracious reader as well as an excellent older brother. His favorite books of 2012 were the Ranger's Apprentice series by John Flanagan. He reports his favorite school subject is History; we use the Story of the World curriculum.

Lauren turned five years old in July 2012. She enjoys being old enough to play board games with Alex and Jason. This fall she played soccer, but she has just begun taking taekwondo classes and plans to continue those in the new year. Lauren is a kindergartner at Dalton Academy; she loves to paint, color, and draw.

Olivia turned two years old in February 2012. She loves books, especially Margaret Wise Brown and Sandra Boyton, and anything with bears. Olivia enjoys dancing and coloring as well as being a big helper around the house. 

Emily is excited to celebrate her first Christmas at the age of 9 months. She is crawling and pulling up to standing. She has only two bottom teeth, but she may receive her two front teeth in time for Christmas!


And that's the Dalton family update! Here are some more pictures for you to enjoy:

Drinking Coffee without Dairy

One of the tough changes to make if you do a Whole30 challenge or decide to go dairy-free for various reasons is what to do with your coffee. If you're like me, part of the pleasure of coffee is the creamy flavor of half and half or cream. If you decide to go dairy free, I have used a couple different approaches.

First there is the simplest: drink black coffee. I have done this in a pinch, but most of us will find this an unsatisfactory solution. It's hard to go cold turkey to plain coffee. If you don't enjoy black coffee, I have a couple other suggestions as well.

The easiest transition will be to use coconut cream. It's pricey but incredibly delicious. You want the good stuff from Aroy-D, a Thai company. Amazon sells it in large packs. I pour a carton into glass jars and shake well. You'll get a nice stiff cream from whipping this, and it's naturally sweet from the coconut flavor, but not cloyingly sweet. It's a nice treat.

What I've been doing recently is a third alternative. I've been adding a few tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa (full of great antioxidants) and some maple syrup to cut the bitterness, just a teaspoon or two. It's not that much sugar overall, and maple syrup is my favorite natural sweetener. It's a nice mocha flavor and a great treat for this time of year.

If you'd like more ideas for dairy free creamers, here's a list of recipes that call for coconut milk and use date paste for sweetener. Enjoy exploring the world of dairy-free coffee treats!

Abide with Me

Yes, we're still here and doing well. Life can sweep away the time to blog, but I have been clinging to this song this afternoon, and wanted to share it.

Abide With Me 

Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord with me abide.
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.

Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

Not a brief glance I beg, a passing word;
But as Thou dwell’st with Thy disciples, Lord,
Familiar, condescending, patient, free.
Come not to sojourn, but abide with me.

Come not in terrors, as the King of kings,
But kind and good, with healing in Thy wings,
Tears for all woes, a heart for every plea—
Come, Friend of sinners, and thus bide with me.

Thou on my head in early youth didst smile;
And, though rebellious and perverse meanwhile,
Thou hast not left me, oft as I left Thee,
On to the close, O Lord, abide with me.

I need Thy presence every passing hour.
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter’s power?
Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me.

I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness.
Where is death’s sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.

Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.
Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

Sunday HYMN 10/14/12

I Heard The Voice Of Jesus Say 

I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Come unto Me and rest;
Lay down, thou weary one, lay down Thy head upon My breast.”
I came to Jesus as I was, weary and worn and sad;
I found in Him a resting place, and He has made me glad.

I heard the voice of Jesus say, “Behold, I freely give
The living water; thirsty one, stoop down, and drink, and live.”
I came to Jesus, and I drank of that life giving stream;
My thirst was quenched, my soul revived, and now I live in Him.

I heard the voice of Jesus say, “I am this dark world’s Light;
Look unto Me, thy morn shall rise, and all thy day be bright.”
I looked to Jesus, and I found in Him my Star, my Sun;
And in that light of life I’ll walk, till traveling days are done.

thredUP Haul

Last spring I ordered a Clean Out bag from thredUP. I filled it up with name brand boys clothes that Alex had outgrown. A few weeks later, I received an email telling me how much money thredUP was giving me for the clothes. It was really just as simple as that! Now that they had added the money to my account I could choose to cash out, making the transaction just like consigning clothes, or I could use the money on other items for sale, which also happens a lot when I consign clothes. :)

So just a few days ago, I ordered some lovely clothes for Lauren and Olivia. To appreciate these pictures, you need to know that my girls will wear these clothes every day. For some kids, these clothes would be Sunday only, but for my girls, they are good for everything but hiking. Seriously. Don't look at me! I don't dress like this. Also please note that all these clothes are in AMAZING condition. None of them has any signs of wear or pilling.

Here's the first dress on Olivia. It's a 4T by Savannah and cost $4.49.

Yes, she's the cutest 2 yr old in the world. And no, she's not for sale!

Here's a 4T zippered hoodie dress from Gymboree. It was $9.49. Something similar at Gymboree is on sale for $40!

The embroidery is really sweet.

Lauren is growing too fast to count on cousin hand-me-downs so I picked up 3 dresses for her.

Here is her favorite: It's a size 7 Mossimo sweater dress that cost $8.99.

She is so lovely and grown up looking!

Here is my favorite: It's also a size 7 from Mossimo that cost $8.99.

We'll probably pair this with tights or leggings, but the colors look amazing with her blue eyes.

The final dress is from Gymboree. It's a size 7 black turtleneck dress with pink ballet slippers and crowns in the embroidery. It was $13.50.

The prices are for your information, but I didn't spend any money out of pocket for these great outfits!