Marvelous Meatballs!

This meatball recipe is AWESOME! Enjoy!

Mix together with your hands:
2 lbs grassfed ground beef
1 lbs of pork sausage
chopped celery, onions, and carrots
3 organic eggs
1/2 cup almond meal (I just ground almonds, its cheaper)
lots of oregano, garlic powder, cracked black pepper, and a little cayenne
small drizzle of honey

Form into meatballs and cover the bottom of a crock pot. You may have to stack. Plus, I make them huge! LOL!

For the sauce:
1 16 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
handful of fresh torn basil
5-6 coarsely chopped garlic cloves
pinch of sea salt
pepper to taste

Cover meatballs with sauce and cook all day on low. These are great the day after for lunch! I love mine on a bag a organic broccoli. Yes, I eat an entire bag!

A Home School Day

Homeschool is not only about learning...but having FUN!!!! The past few weeks have been a ball as they have learned so many new skills in addition to traditional academics. The girls learned to can food, put together their own cookbooks, and arrange flowers. Mason spent time in WI salmon fishing with Grandpa Starmer learning fishy type things (I obviously don't like fishing or eating fish! LOL). He also learned how to tear out and replace carpet at our church and other 'handy-man' projects. Homeschooling is just so fun!! As you can see, we don't need fancy toys or electronics. Meredith has found fun in paper bowls and straws. I'm still trying to figure it out what it is exactly but I love her imagination!!

Barbells for Boobs

Saturday, November 6th, I will be sporting a flood of pink in honor of a special friend in OK. My dear sister in Christ, Angie Myers, is a breast cancer survivor!! Every year I remember her journey and praise God for her health and recovery even though we are miles apart. After all, there was a time when her support during my health crisis was so appreciated. This is really the leaset I can do! So, Angie, this one is for you!!!

The workout for Barbells for Boobs is amazing "Grace" which consists of 30 reps of Clean & Jerk at 135# for men and 95# for women. Though a short workout (roughly 3 minutes for advanced athletes), these three mintues of grueling work will respresent your 3 years since your journey. I'm so thankful you have been surrounded with an amazing husband, kids, family, and church family. You are so dearly loved and I can't wait to honor you!! Love you Angie!!


**If anyone is interested in sponsoring me for this workout, email me at angiestarmer@yahoo.com

For more information, www.barbellsforboob.com

All Dressed Up

This is such a precious picture to me as these were my first CrossFit workout partners!! Connie was one of very first clients!! Missy, my SIL, promoted CrossFit more than anyone else I know!! Thank you ladies for supporting me over the years! You are both my inspiration!! What a great night to regather and help celebrate the first CrossFit Iowa wedding! Congrats to Carlos and Tiffany!

Pinecone Fire Starters

The Starmer kids have officially launched their own business!! Mason, Meredith, and Madelyn spent numerous hours inside Grandma and Grandpa Starmer's garage preparing for the "Big Day" that took place Saturday, September 25th at the Tractor/Craft show held at our church. The kids set up their own table and kindly explained to potential customers at Martensdale Community Church how to use these natural fire starters. Our family prayed over their business for many days. Though that morning they were somewhat discouraged by the rainy weather, God blessed them with great sales!!

After collecting tubs full of pinecones, each one was brushed clean before being dipped into hot wax. A wick was applied and then redipped to adhere it to the cone. Once the waxed dried, the kids built small wooden crates (with help and guidance of Grandpa!) to store them in. They also recycled and decorated old baskets with colored ribbon. A handmade price tag was carefully attached prior to assembling their display. For 3 hours they manned the table and politely interacted with those strolling by their area.

This has been such a great experience for them outside of typical acedemic homeschool activities. They have learned the value of hard work, relating and communicating with people, being a good steward of earnings, and most importantly giving back to our great God. They are amazing kids. I can't imagine how pleased God must be! A HUGE thank you to my wonderful inlaws for overseeing this project. Tim and I are very blessed to have such wonderful Christian role models for our children!

Proverbs 16:3 "Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed."

Quick Salmon Patties

Ever have those nights where you just don't feel like doing much for dinner? ABSOLUTELY!! If you haven't, I know you are lying or you the Proverbs 31 women that I have yet to meet!! Well, this week has been great but has left me a little more tired than usual in the evenings to keep up on my regular menu plans. I wasn't feeling all that hungry but I knew I still needed to eat and feed the family. This was a great solution for those more 'lazy' nights. This gave us plenty of time to enjoy dinner together and keep to our season premier schedule for NCIS.

Salmon Patties
3 oz canned salmon, drained
2 organic egg whites
1/4 cup oats (not instant and preferrably organic)
1/4 chopped onion
seasonings of choice
**I tripled this recipe for my family.

Beat eggs in bowl and mix all other ingredients together. Combine eggs with salmon mixture and form into patties to grill on an electric skillet with olive oil. These will fall apart if you try and use the regular grill. The smaller the patty the better though I did manage to use our hamburger press. I also added did 1/2 oatmeal and 1/2 almond flour instead of all oatmeal but you can do as you choose. Serve this with lots of fresh veggies....(as you can see I skipped that and did fruit). A great blend of protein, fat, and carbs. I did let my kids eat these on low carb whole wheat buns. This would also taste great on a bed of lettuce or spinach. Be creative! Top with all the fixings you would with a great burger!!

Let the School Year Begin!!

I can hardly believe that this will be my 8th year of home schooling my children! It has been an interesting adventure to say the least! Each year I think, "This year I will figure it out." I'm still saying that each passing school year. However, I feel so blessed to have this opportunity to train them to be respectable, intelligent, and honorable servants in society for God's glory. The privilege I have to witness them grow into young adults is priceless. I know not every family has felt the calling to do so but, I thank God he has provided perfect circumstances for us to educate in a loving, safe, and most importantly an atmosphere of TRUTH!

So as we begin another year, I still get excited about traditional school supply shopping, new backpacks, and lunch sacks. Heck, I even by myself new stuff! (This year it was a new bag with a lap top cover..whoot!) I still remember how exciting it was so have new stuff!! As things hit clearance we stock up and 'play' with our bargain findings by organizing...sometimes over and over. What can I say. I am a true nerd and organizing freak.

This year we are schooling in our kitchen as we lost our home school room in the basement due to flooding a couple years ago. I have taken the old pantry and turned into a home school closet stocked with all the supplies and books we need for the year. I love a challenge to make something work and so far, this has been great!!

The higher shelving is reserved for extra supplies (stockpile) for future use. This makes it easy for me to distinguish what I use more frequently. I will not be climbing shelves on a daily basis! No thank you! The middle shelves store binders and supplies that we do use most days and are clearly labeled. I also stocked an old spice rack on the interior part of the closet door with small items like hole punchers, small dictionary/thesaurus, and extra erasers when you need something fast.

Wednesday, September 1st was our first official day of school and we are off to a great start. Now, we are enjoying the holiday weekend and great weather. Tuesday will be here soon and we will be 'organized' and ready to go! Happy school year!

30 Ways to Pray for our Children

So, I didn't get this post up when I said I would..Sorry!! There has been much development in the Starmer household. But, I will get to that later in future posts.

I received this prayer list on my home school loop that I thought was worth printing off and posting... 30 Ways to Pray for our Children. This is something that I will be starting this next week as school starts. There shouldn't be a day that goes by that we don't lift them up to God. After all, they are his children and not ours.

1. That they will trust in the Lord Jesus as their Savior and be examples to others.
2. That they will love the Lord with all their heart, soul, and strength.
3. That they will become wise and view life, people, and circumstances as God does.
4. That they will be humble and glorify God.
5. That they would be obedient, respectful and loyal to parents and authority.
6. That they would have a deep hunger and thirst for God.
7. They their hearts would be fertile and ready to accept truth.
8. That they would experience God's perfect love, forgiveness, and acceptance.
9. That they would learn to fear the Lord by knowing he is just.
10. That they would trust the Lord and not fear.
11. That they would be protected for the evil one. (spiritual, emotional, and physical)
12. That they would be caught when guilty.
13. That they would exercise self control and yield to God's expectations.
14. That when convicted they will clear their conscience.
15. That they would be disciplined daily to God's Word.
16. That they would joyfully accept all unchangeable things about themselves.
17. That they would understand their position in the Lord Jesus.
18. That they would desire the right friends and be protected from the wrong ones.
19. That they would not tolerate sin to enjoy passing pleasure.
20. That they will not allow bitterness and selfishness to remain in their heart.
21. That their thoughts and bodies be kept pure.
22. That they would have a hatred for sin and submit to God.
23. That they will find their God-given mate and be kept pure till marriage.
24. That they will be free from love of money and a good steward of finances.
25. That they would boldly share their faith.
26. That they will have a purpose bigger than their occupation or marriage.
27. That they will have a vision for a life of service, ministry, or missions.
28. That they would view suffering as God's vehicle to blessing to build character.
29. That satan would not have territory in their life/soul and construct strongholds.
30. That they will always remember the values of their Godly heritage and not depart from it.

(Taken from www.thestillwellgang.blogspot.com)

Pics of CP Shake

These are the pictures of the Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Shake Recipe that I posted. For some reason I couldn't get additional pictures to post...I'm still a little slow at this blogging thing!!

Check the blog tommorrow for 30 ways to pray for your children!!

Shakin' it in Pitkin, CO

What a BLAST! We just returned from an amazing vacation in Colorado! Our family (along with about 16 others) challenged the Rockies on ATV's for 6 days (over 250 miles and reaching over 12,000 feet) in Pitkin, CO. The beauty of it is just breathtaking...how could you not think of our Creator!?! With a full day of riding each day, breakfast for me was a Peanut Butter Chocolate Protein Shake. It was perfectly balanced (though not as ideal as 'real' food) to keep me going until lunch which was what we could fit in a backpack. There was no chance to cook until dinner so this kept me full, satisfied, and energized for the day. If you are short on time in the morning (yeah, never right?), this may be a tasty trick!

Angie's famous Choc./Peanut Butter Protein Shake:
1 cup of lite coconut milk (canned, you can buy at Hy-Vee or Target) or organic milk
1 scoop of protein powder (I use a whey Gluten-Free product from Hy-Vee in either Choc.Peanut Butter, Milk Chocolate, or Vanilla Carmel flavor)
2 TBS Lite Hersey Syrup
2-3 tsp. of Organic Peanut Butter
1 1/2 -2 cups ice (depending on preferred consistancy)
Put ingredients in order into blender and blend away!!

This gives you at least 22-30g of Protein, is low in carb and has good fat...And GOOD!!!

Dry Rub Burgers

Here is what the Starmers' had for dinner tonight!
Dry Rub Burgers were a hit!

1 1/2 T of chili powder
2 1/4 tsp. of paprika
1 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. caynenne pepper
1/4 tsp. ground white pepper (I used black)
2 1/2 pounds of grass fed ground beef
sea salt to taste

Mix all dry rub ingredients together and generously rub on both sides of hamburger patties. Grill or pan fry till done.

I enjoyed these patties on a bed of chopped steamed organic broccoli (yep, I ate a whole bag to myself!) with diced organic tomatoes and a few sliced slivered raw almonds. It was awesome! The kids still eat burgers on low carb buns and had steamed corn as well from our garden. I'm not a huge corn fan but I will serve anything to my family that comes from the ground!

FYI - Costco sells economy size bags of Organic Frozen Broccoli for about $6!! What a deal!

This recipe was taken from everdaypaleo.com. Though I am not a firm Paleo believer, they do have many great recipes to mess with!

Enjoy!

The Start of a New Adventure!!

Well, 'blogging' is a whole new concept for me! This will be an adventure in of itself!!

Why a personal blog?

The Starmer household is full of events, enthusiasm, experiences, and adventure. Our life is never dull as we have embarked on numberous endeavors to grow our family in spirit and in strength. So, why not share it! Life is full of opportunities to give, share, and learn. It is my prayer that some of our experiences can be used to influence others (or perhaps to learn from our mistakes!) for the Glory of God!

What is my purpose?

1. There is much going on in my life as Mrs. Starmer and I will soon be going at life as a single mom. My best friend, husband, and biggest fan will soon be leaving for a tour in Afganistan for 2 yrs! It is my hope that this way he will feel very connected to all that is happening here at home and just how we are going to 'pass the time.'

2. I am a gal that wears many hats (aren't we all??). I love being a homeschool mom, cooking, and physical training. I plan on trying to encourage others with tips and helps for being a Proverbs woman (oh, what a standard!!) You can never get enough ideas, training tips, or recipes. Oh, how I love to eat!

3. For my own personal benefit because I hate to journal. LOL!