Ten Years of Service.

It was 18 summers ago, in a children's camp in the middle of no where Russia, that God called me to be a nurse.

I say called because I NEVER wanted to be a nurse.  That was my sister's dream and definitely NOT mine.

But 10 days in a country so removed from my own and a God who would not leave me alone,

chipped away at my heart......

&

Yesterday I received this in the mail.

Hard to believe that 10 years ago I was 22 years old starting my career as a nurse.

I remember thinking....I will be 32 in ten years.

I remember wondering if I would still be working in a hospital, if I would be married, if I would have children......

And here I am 10 years later: married, a mom of 3 & still a nurse at the same hospital.

My career has changed a lot in 10 years. 

Where God has allowed me to go....I never dreamed possible.

I have learned a lot about God, myself, life, death, medicine and people over the last 10 years.

I often get asked, "How do you do what you do?"

And to that I reply, "I love pediatrics.  Sometimes it is a sad place, but for every 1 that we usher into Heaven, 

10 go home better than when they entered our doors".

And that is the TRUTH.  

But of course what I do has changed a lot since these

three are now mine.

I do what I do because I know that nothing is worth more than your children's health.

And if these three ever found their way to the hospital I would want someone to 

give them the same care they would give their very own.

That's my daily goal: care for other people's children the way I would care for my very own!

I am fortunate to work part time and be compensated well.

I am fortunate that my children are well cared for during my absence and never miss a beat.

I am fortunate that God allows me to be a part of something greater than myself.

You see this card doesn't say, "Celebrating your Career"

It says "Celebrating Your Service"

My career allows me to SERVE in a capacity much bigger than my own.

Some days are SUPER HARD with more responsibility than one human being should

hold on their shoulders.  Some days are just down right frustrating.  Some days are more

physically demanding than I ever knew possible as a nursing student all those years ago.

On those days I cling a little bit harder to these words.......

1 Corinthians 10:31

So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God

This week I enter back into caring for others in a hospital setting.

I have enjoyed 12 sweet weeks at home with my babies.

My house will soon be filled with: 

 Crock Pot Dinners

 &

 

Bottle Prep and Cleaning

Is there an area in your life 

that needs to hear and be challenged by

1 Corinthians 10:31?

The Weekend Project

 

This weekend a new life was celebrated in my home.

We pulled out the china and silverware and honored a sweet friend

and her baby girl to be.

I spent the afternoon with hands in a sink full of bubbles thinking.....

Often china and silver seem like a frivolous thing to own.  

You may use it a few times a year, if that. 

{Especially when your home is full of little people}.

But china and silver have a past story, a present story, and a future story.

I have a buffet stacked full of china.

China that belonged to my dad's mom.

China that belonged to my dad's grandmother.  

{He can't remember it never being in her home}.

China that was given to me as wedding gifts.

With each piece that I washed, my mind was filled with precious memories of my Granny Jewell.  

I remembered her beautiful smile.  I could hear her giggly laughter.

 I couldn't help but miss her greatly and remember my best days with her.

With each piece that I washed, my mind was filled with memories of my wedding showers.

I remembered vivid details of the love that was bestowed upon me as a bride 

waiting in anticipation to marry her groom.

I remembered the person who gave me each piece.

And as I washed, I prayed for them and for their families.

With each piece that I washed old and new, 

I gave thanks for my mom who taught me that some celebrations in life are worth china and silver.  

With each piece that I washed old and new, 

I gave thanks for the generosity that was given to me through these pieces.  

With each piece that I washed old, I thought about the celebrations of generations past.  

With each piece that I washed old and new,  

I thought about celebrations of our present: marriages, babies, family.....

With each piece that I washed old and new, 

I thought about celebrations of our future: graduations, marriages, grandchildren, showers.....

These pieces of china and silver are not so frivolous.  They hold deep meaning.

And while I may not use them as often as I should, 

they hold deep history, memory and thankfulness to me.

I hope my children will set their tables with china and silver

, as they host celebrations of their own,

 and remember their past, present, and future story.

Thanks mom!

Why The Teal Egg?

I titled this blog The Teal Egg because God proved to me HIS LIMITLESS POWER through life in a tiny teal egg.  Every time I see a teal egg, I am reminded of what God brought me through personally and how gracious and gentle He has been with me in proving Himself over and over again to me.

To read more of this special story please click on these two links:


Limited in my ability to carry life part I

Limited in my ability to carry life part II



I started this blog last October as a 31 day writing challenge through The Nester.  I wrote for 31 Days on the topic "I am Limited. He is Limitless".  You can scroll back through my archives and read all 31 days.  

I enjoy writing.  I personally love written word.  Perhaps that is why this blog has become such a good outlet for me as a follower, wife, mom, nurse, friend..... I know at times it can just be a conglomeration of a lot of stuff but I truly do enjoy it! 

If you read it, I am humbled.  If you are challenged, I am too.  If you are encouraged, I am blessed.  If you learn something, it's because someone greater than me spoke.  I pray God will continue to grow me and push me through written word here at the Teal Egg and allow us to have fun with DIY projects, recipes, tips, book reviews, giveaways.....or whatever the post may bring.  

Thanks for taking the time to read The Teal Egg.

One of my 7 goals and Organization

One of my summer reading list books was 7.  It challenged me in several ways.  You can read my review of 7 here.  

 ::My 7 Waste Goal:: Buy a larger trash can for our recycle items.

I purchased this trash can from IKEA

I used my Cricut to cut white vinyl letters for the Recycle Bin.

We have a small recycle bin in our garage provided by our county.

We always fill it up overflowing.

My sink was always full of recycle items.  At the end of the day

I would gather it all up and take it out to the garage.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This new bin
*sits at one end of our island.

*has a flip lid

*keeps me from stacking recycle stuff in the sink

*saves me trips to the garage

*I can put this bin right out on the curb and they will empty it because it says RECYCLE!

*has come in so handy 

*our 2 and 3 year old are learning to recycle

*it has made recycling even easier for our family

Linking this post to: athoughtfulplace.blog.com

Steak Recipe

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
A few months ago we purchased meat from a company that services our neighborhood.  It was a great idea knowing that we would soon have a newborn in our house and grabbing meat out of the freezer would be convenient.

We have a cut of beef (Round Steak) that I really did not know how to fix.  I knew that my husband would not eat Salisbury Steak.  I had to search for someway to cook this meat and use it.  I looked up steak recipes on allrecipes.com

I settled on this one.....

Thyme-Rubbed Steaks with Sauteed Mushrooms

I mainly chose this recipe because I had all of the ingredients in my cabinet and fridge.  These days I do not make little trips to the store for ingredients.  With three kids in tote, I try and get everything I need in one shopping trip.  Sometimes two.  

2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp grond black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 lb steak cut 3/4 in thick (your choice of cut)
1 (8oz) package of sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup minced shalot
2 T butter
2 T red wine
1T vegetable oil 
Salt and pepper to taste

1. In a small bowl, mix together the paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and thyme. Sprinkle onto each side of the steaks, pressing in so it adheres. Set aside.
2. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shallots; cook and stir for about 1 minute. Add the mushrooms, and cook for a few more minutes, until tender. Stir in the red wine, and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
3. Heat the oil in a separate skillet over medium-high heat. Fry steaks for 5 to 7 minutes per side, or to your desired degree of doneness. Remove to a plate and let rest for a few minutes. Top with mushrooms and serve.

Here is how it turned out in our house.  And, everyone loved it!  SCORE!

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The Weekend Project

I have decided to try and use Mondays on the blog to highlight...

>>>>>>>The Weekend Project<<<<<<

I have several projects that I would like to complete.

Some are large and some are small.

Some will take several weekends and

some will just take a few minutes or hours.

>>>>>>The Weekend Project<<<<<<

I hope to use as a way to keep me on track and knock out my projects

 out one by one.

Our son's 2nd birthday was last month and I made paper chain garland to decorate 

our chalkboard 

and our mantel

I wanted something that was a little different from the triangle buntings or banners.

And something that looked a little more masculine, if you will.

So I made paper chain garland.

Over the weekend I took all of that garland and instead of throwing it away

I hung it from the ceiling in our playroom.

I thought it would add a nice touch of color to the beige walls.

I also made some felt garland and wrapped it around a very plain white lampshade.

I think it ties in nicely to the paper chains and circle garland as well as

the alphabet print that my sister gave me.

{I took a few of these pictures tonight (sorry they are so dark)

But it was the only time today that I had to snap a few photos.

And the playroom is a wreck right now but you should know.....

this house is RARELY picture perfect!}
 

I am hoping to make or purchase a large wall clock for this wall.

And surround it with various styles of letters to make up the alphabet.

But that is for another...... 

>>>>>>Weekend Project<<<<<<

  

InstaFriday

This week The Teal Egg joined Instagram 

so what better way to celebrate than linking up InstaFriday with Life Rearranged.

Last weekend I worked on a "weekend project" that involved colorful paper chains....

{left over from our son's 2nd birthday}

and some felt puffs....

and some circle garland.

I am still scrubbing my hands from sticky spray adhesive.

{I will be posting more about this weekend project on Monday}

I told you are computer could not hold any more photos.

So I spent the last 2 weeks saving our photos

and then my husband backed them up to a new external 

 we purchased just for pictures.

Now that was an undertaking and I WILL never let it get like that again!

I posted a DIY tutorial on how I made these horizontal striped curtains.

I could not be more pleased with how they look in our new house.

And yes......I have started working out again after baby #3.

I wrote a post on My Favorite Workouts 

and tried to give you my best run down on a few workouts 

that have been popular over the last several years. 

And because I love reasoning behind

Ann Voskamp's 1000 Gifts,

 I am taking her August 30 day challenge #joydare

I hope you have a great weekend.

See you Monday for

{The Weekend Project}