Beans and Rice

Three straight days of eating only beans and rice for the Prairie Ridge Challenge is complete. Many different thoughts have gone through my head in the past three days. One was why on earth am I doing this (that went through my head a lot). But, I think since Eric and I were doing this together, we didn’t want to let the other down and we’re always up for a good competition. I am not sure my heart was always in the right place during the past few days- at times, I was more excited about the weight loss aspect, then I was about what I was hoping to experience.

What did I experience? A couple of things like a new found appreciation for the hungry and a HUGE reminder to myself on how God has truly blessed us. In the past, I have been a little hard hearted when it came to the hungry- mostly because it didn’t really affect me (selfish I know). Something someone wrote on the discussion pages of the beans and rice challenge really hit home to me. We always see the children of poverty, but I never thought about the parents- sending their kids to bed hungry every night, what a horrible feeling that must be. I take for granted lots of things and my hope is that I will remember this challenge and be more thankful for everything that God has given us.

One thing I did not gain was a new love for pinto beans. After 9 meals of them, (well actually 8, because I thought I might puke if I ate another bean and stuck with just rice) I am not sure if I will ever be able to eat another pinto bean in my life! Breakfast never tasted so good then it did this morning and it was cereal and a banana! Life is all about perspective :)

A Celebration of Hope: Beans and Rice Challenge

Our church gave us a challenge (read below) of eating beans and rice for 3 days and use our "grocery money" to donate to an ophanage in Honduras. Eric and I are giving it a try. I am a half a day into it- I miss my Diet Pepsi, I want some food that taste, but I am already humbled to realize how good I got it. I have never been without, I really don't know what hunger is. We realize we could donate our "grocery money" and still eat, but so far (I am only 2 meals into out of 9) I already have more empathy for the hungry. I am not confident I will make it, but it has made me think- I will let you know on Thursday how we did.


From our church website:
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat…” Matthew 25: 35.
We live in a land of plenty. Despite economic events of the past year, most of us still have a place to live, a car to drive, and food to eat. And that’s just the beginning. We’ve got computers and cell phones, back yards and barbecues, closets near capacity, and store after store ready to sell us more.That changes our perspective.Surrounded by abundance, housing becomes a matter of status, not shelter. Clothes are deemed unusable because of style, not wear. Water flows freely in long hot showers or summer slip-n-slides. Food becomes entertainment, consumed as a backdrop to social gatherings.But there are many places in our world where morsels of food and sips of water are a matter of life or death. Every day, hunger claims the lives of 16,000 children. That’s one child every five seconds.Ministerios de Fe Vida Nueva which means Ministries of Faith and New Life in Azacualpa, Honduras, battles this reality everyday. In addition to the 20+ kids that live in the home, they provide a noon meal, Monday through Friday for 50 additional children from the nearby poverty-stricken city of Azacualpa. For many of these kids this is the only meal they receive in a day. The children’s home runs this feeding program on $400 a month – that’s $8 per child.You can help bring a glimpse of hope and the tangible gift of food to these children!What can we do?The Rice and Beans Project is a chance to get a new perspective on poverty, a chance to experience hunger in a way we don’t normally encounter in our daily lives. This goal is for the experience to be simple, tangible, and bring us into a better understanding of the complex issue of global poverty.For three days in February, we will trade in our plentiful meals for a diet of rice, beans and water – approximately 700 calories per day – and donate our grocery money to fund the Ministries of Faith and New Life feeding program. We could fund this life-giving project for a full year!As part of this experience, we will also receive some short devotions to encourage us at each mealtime. Through these devotions and the encouragement of one another, it is also our hope that as a church we can grow deeper in our awareness of the 1.2 billion people in our world who are truly hungry. God cares deeply for His people who are in need! In Deuteronomy 10:18, the word of God says, “He administers justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing.”

Tae Kwon Do

A few weeks ago Zach and I were at the YMCA. I had promised Zach that after my exercise class I would play basketball with him, but in the gym they were practicing taekwondo instead. Zach wanted to stay and watch. After watching for quite awhile, he began to ask me if he could join. Eric had taken him to watch in the past- just to see if it would be something he would be interested in, but that class was loud and very strict- didn't seem like it would be the right fit. I sat and watched the first class at the ymca and was very impressed with the leaders- very kind, helpful and really wanting everyone to succeed. I was also very happy when the instructor tells Zach and the other kids- they don't do their Tae Kwon Do moves on anyone unless they are in danger.

He loves it! I love seeing the smile on his face and how quickly he is catching on. I am sure it won't be long and Cale will want to join him, Cale has been making up his own "kwon do" moves.

These pictures may make you cringe if you are not used to kids jumping on the furniture. I do try and remind the boys that this is most likely not allowed at most people's house. However, at our house, with two boys with bouncy beans in their bottoms, I would be yelling all the time- the living room is their play land for the 9 months of winter we seem to be having.