hands of love...

Okay, I (Amy) PROMISE this will not turn into a food blog. I swear. Boy, that would be the biggest joke in the history of the world! Yes, it's no secret that just a few short months ago, my culinary "expertise" was uh, slightly lacking. I didn't even know how to use a garlic press, people. (laugh away...) And now I'm cooking meals that are gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, egg-free, yeast-free, & practically sugar-free!?

But I promise this won't turn into that. First of all, I follow some food blogs. And those people can REALLY photograph food, can't they?? I mean, it's incredible how perfectly scrumptious their food looks & is presented SO well. My food pictures? Slap it on a plate, hold it up to the window for better lighting (if you're lucky) and hope the picture's in focus. :) ha! Evidence that I'm probably not ready to host my own Food Network tv show... :)

But leave it to your daughter's hair, eyelashes, & eyebrows falling out, and realizing you've got a serious malabsorption problem on your hand which is leading to all kinds of deficiencies and food intolerances & an immune system that is totally out-of-whack, and isn't it true you'll do anything & become anything for the one you love? And in my case, I'm quickly learning the art of allergy-free cooking. Cooking for health.

And to my sweet Caroline-- one day I hope and pray that you will read all of these posts not to laugh at how bald your head was or what kind of food you had to endure when things were at their worst, but I hope you'll see that
in every picture,
in every meal,
and in every word
you were extremely loved.

God blessed our family SOOOO much when He brought you to us, and He knows what He's doing through all of this, even though we don't. His hand is on you, sweet girl. I must remember that. You are mine, but ultimately, you are His.

Prepared for you this week with hands of love...


lamb chop, fresh local green beans (just snap 'em & boil in water for 5-6 minutes & top with salt & pepper), & carrots


Zucchini muffins! (made with quinoa flour-- "KEEN-wah"-- I know. Sounds wierd. I had never heard of the stuff before this, either.)


Beef vegetable soup with a side of butternut squash topped with our dairy-free & soy-free cheese! (so yummy!)

And my crowning achievement of the week...


PIZZA! (and she LOVED it! yay!) Seriously, this was a super-proud moment and probably up there in the list of achievements in my life. Who'dda thought I could make an allergy-free pizza!? And I can't believe how easy it was to make the dough for the crust (3 minutes with quinoa flour & a few other ingredients) and how yummy it tasted, even without tomato sauce! (used olive oil instead)

Alright. Enough of the food stuff. Can't help it, though-- it's so consuming! (ha ha No pun intended.) :)