Christmas in India!

Merry Christmas!(a little late!)
Our Christmas was great! We stayed up until midnight...dancing to worship techno music(can't wait to share that video), talking with the girls and giving them gifts. I have never seen people more greatful for gifts that most Americans would consider junk. It was so humbling. For 30 girls, we spent 3,000 rupees, which is about $60. For 30 people! I am still blown away by that. It is so little, but the girls are forever changed by it. Christmas day was awesome because we had Chinese food(so I ate, yay!) and I was so blessed by the girls and the staff, as many people gave us gifts. I have lots of stories that go with this day, and I don't want to share them all now!

Thank you for being faithful in prayer. My health is good, and I have just been very careful about food and not getting sick! We went sight seeing in Kolkata..Mother Teresa's house, some Ghandi monument and this huge momument for Queen Victoria. We visited a local market where I bought all of my presents to take home. and then we visited the other side of Kolkata...this huge, beautiful mall, with things I can't even afford. Such a contrast. We had more chinese food and some pasta...which makes me happy. :) I am feeling refreshed and I am missing the girls...tomorrow afternoon we will go back to start our last week in Daksin Barashat.
Please pray for:
-good sleep at night, I wish I could describe these beds lol
- a girl at the school named Sanu. She is one of the few girls in the school who refuses Jesus. Her and i have become very close this week. Pray that I can help her realize who her Savior is, despite her muslim beliefs.
-Safety in traveling to and from Kolkata and the school.
-All of us and the staff, who have been passing around a cold.
You are all the best! Thanks for reading! :)

The Indian Experience

Wow. It has been a whirlwind of a few days. Everything is great, but India is nothing like I expected. Which isn't good or bad.

The air pollution is really affecting my health, so please be praying for that! Oh and I haven't really eaten in 4 days...pray for that too. :)

I have been SO blessed already. Everything is great and the people are awesome! Thank you to everyone who is praying. Can't wait to blog about everything! Love and miss you!

India

Tomorrow(Saturday) I leave for a 2 week missions trip to Kolkata, India. I will be going by myself(I know, I know) and working at an orphanage that is home to 300 children. I am SO excited about this opportunity. I realized today, that I have never had to trust God more in my life. There are a lot of unknowns and this trip will test my flexibility and faith, I'm sure of it. All I know is that after a 21 hr flight, 2 missionaries will be picking me up at the airport, and my journey will begin!

Thanks to everyone who has already been praying...If you want to join in, here's some things you can pray for too!

1) I'm sick :( pray it goes away quickly!

2) That I'll be able to rest on the plane

3) That I don't have any problems with customs...I can't tell them I'm doing missionary work.

4) That I am safe, and for comfort for my mom :)

5)That I will be able to touch the lives of as many of those kids as possible!

6) That I will be a blessing to the women who run the orphanage.

7) and most importantly (haha) I won't get sick, and I can handle the food!

I love you all, and thanks for praying! Talk to you in 2 weeks!

Recipe of the Week #4

Another fun night of dinner! This was super simple and really yummy. Annette brought homemade pazookie(huge cookie with ice cream) for dessert. So much for the healthy factor... ;)

Chicken Tostadas

• 1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cooked
• 3 cups shredded romaine lettuce
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
• 6 (6 inch) flour tortillas
• 6 tablespoons fat free sour cream
• 6 cups salsa
• 6 tablespoons shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions

1. In a large bowl combine the chicken, lettuce, green bell pepper, tomatoes and onions. Mix together and set aside.
2. Heat tortillas by placing them in a large dry skillet over medium high heat and turning once until golden and puffy.
3. To Assemble Tostadas: Place a tortilla on a plate, top with some of the chicken mixture and garnish with sour cream, salsa and cheese. Repeat with all tortillas.

Changes...

So, as previously mentioned, my friend Rachel and I are training for a triathalon. Right now, we are on a running program and in February, we will switch to training for all 3 things! It has been fun to spend so much time with Rachel.

While I have been training, I have decided to make a lot of changes in the rest of my life. I want the triathalon to be easier for me. So about a month ago I changed my diet and already started feeling better. Since that went so well, I kept going..haha. Now, I've given up Starbucks(except for iced tea) and alcohol.(The Starbucks being more of a big deal than the other one.) So far it hasn't been that bad...and it is definitely much better for me!! It's also awesome because I'm saving money. :)

Then, last week, due to something that happened in my personal life (and because I was already in the spirit of making changes) I gave up facebook. I know...crazy. Ok, so it was only 3 days...but it was an awesome 3 days. I used all that time I usually spend on the computer to read my bible, pray and spend time with my roommates. It made me realize that I need to cut back on the time I spend on it. It is a fun way to keep in touch, but I waste a lot of time on it when I could be doing a lot of other things. It was a great time with God, even if everyone on facebook did mock me. :)

Is there anything in your life you can give up for awhile to better your life or to spend more time with God?

Recipe of the Week #3

So far I'm doing well on my plan for trying a new recipe every week. It has been fun to learn new recipes, but my favorite part is the people who come over to eat it with me! This challenge has been a fun way to connect with friends. Here's recipe #3(and grandma...I eat a lot of chicken, sorry. :) I got to share this with my brother, Brittany and the Marchessault family! It was a hit. Enjoy!

Mushroom and Swiss Chicken

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 2 cloves crushed garlic
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon Cajun-style seasoning
• 1 cup chopped green onion
• 1 (8 ounce) package sliced fresh mushrooms
• 4 slices Swiss cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Combine oil and garlic in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Add chicken breasts and coat well with the oil and garlic. Sprinkle with the vinegar and Cajun seasoning.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.
4. Remove chicken from oven and cover with green onion and mushrooms; then add a few more sprinkles of oil and vinegar and return dish to oven for 15 to 20 minutes more. Remove from oven and immediately place 1 slice of cheese on top of each chicken breast; cheese will melt. Serve immediately.

Home for Thanksgiving

I had a great week visiting family and friends during my Thanksgiving Break! I am so thankful for all of these people. I am so blessed, I can't even describe it. It will be SO weird to not be home for Christmas...


I drove to Pasadena on Saturday, and spent the night with my friend Rachel. It was so fun to catch up. The next morning I headed to San Diego. I had breakfast with Missy, a best friend from high school, and then I did my triathalon training. All of that finished just in time for the BIG Chargers/Broncos game. We killed them, it was awesome. :) Grandma went home crying....

On Monday, I drove up to the OC to see my other family. It was so great to catch up with K and T and to hang out with the boys. It had been way too long. I miss all of them, a lot. We played lots of Settlers, had mini meatloafs and our tradition of sushi lunch! It was a really fun time with some of my favorite people on the planet!

The rest of the week consisted of shopping, relaxing, running and Thanksgiving festivities. I love that we get to have tons of people over to our house. It makes me happy! It was fun to hang out with the grandmas and my cousins, who I never see. It was especially fun to watch the Raiders lose. haha. In the evening, I went to my dad's for a second Thanksgiving. It was great to see them, also.

On Black Friday, grandma and I went out shopping, but not til noon when it wasn't as bad. The rest of the weekend was family time. We all saw The Blind Side(go see it! sooo good.) and on Sunday, I got to go to my first home Chargers game! It was seriously the highlight of the week. The game was not close at all, we won 43-14...but it was SO fun. I also didn't feel like I was going to die, like at the Raiders game. :) One of my closest friends from high school, Kathleen came, and it was so fun to catch up with her! My bro and his gf, Brittany also came. It was an all around great time!
Thanks to everyone who made this week great!!! The next few weeks are sooo busy. My brother comes to visit this weekend, Christmas parties, Disneyland for my birthday, more parties, and then India!! I'll keep you all posted.