February 2012

So... since we are playing catch up here is our February update as well.

The first weekend of February we got hit overnight with a huge snow storm. Our friends in the mountains around 50 inches of snow in about 24 hours. At our house, just at the base of the foothills we had around 18.

Poor Moose - he needed a haircut SO bad. The unfortunate part was that haircut came the day before the storm. We love that Heidi cuts his hair to save on cash but did not love how cold Moose was. Still shivering with fleece boots, a sweater, and a jacket on. Thank goodness it is starting to melt and warm up around here quickly!

Heidi also had a conference that same weekend in south Denver so Kevin got to play Taxi cab to three ladies so they could attend! Tastefully Simple on Tour is a mini conference that reveals the new product line for Spring and Summer. The weekend was so much and we are grateful to the Ford Explorer we own and Kevin of course!

February has been an exciting month for Tastefully Simple. Along with the conference we both participated in a nine day Garden and Home Show. My Business Sponsor/Coach has been working a booth at this show for the past 9 years. It was great to learn the ins and outs from both Bonnie and Crystal. The show was amazing and worth every minute of our time and money that we invested. It really helped jump start the business for the unveiling of our Spring/Summer products. Make sure to check out Heidi's Tastefully Simple Website to learn more about her company and the product line itself.

Kevin continues to be busy with work. We are grateful for the flexible schedules we have and the many lunches and evenings we have together. Living close to Kevin's family in Fort Collins allows us to see them from time to time and that has been a highlight for both of us.

Kevin is most looking forward to a date night at Rodizio Grill - Brazilian Steak House with unlimited servings of meat. There goes Heidi's goal towards moving the family to Vegans...sigh. However, Kevin has earned this as a late Valentine's Day Gift. Forever grateful for your hardwork and support in the start up of a new business adventure!

January 2012

Wow, it is almost March and we are of course behind on our blog by almost TWO months now. We did keep meaning to update but well we didn't...

Let's back track and talk about January for a minute.

We had an overall chill month. Heidi went from working 30 hours at the preschool she has been employed at for 3 years to 10 hours a week. She is with the 4 and 5 year olds in the preschool 2 room and it has been a great change for her both classroom and hour wise. Tastefully Simple has taken off in full force. January was a great time of adjustment to working from home and is grateful to have her home office space. On nice days it allows for walks with Moose and chats with the neighbors.

Kevin has been busy with work. The computer world never slows down it seems and we love that part of the business. Wednesdays are a favorite for both of us as Heidi joins him for lunch!

We have enjoyed time with friends; both our neighbors and great church friends. Our small group is studying Romans and it has been so powerful for us to be in the Word and memorizing scripture together. The friendships we have gained throughout the past couple years are so valuable in our current lives.

We had the opportunity to attend The Elephant Room this year.  James MacDonald, one of the founders of Harvest Bible Chapel, hosted the event.  The Elephant Room is a time when 7 pastors get together and just talk about issues in they are facing in the church and as pastors.  The idea is that we, Christians, all believe in the same God and the truth of the Bible, yet sometimes there are some differences.  If we are a family, we should get together and talk like family.  For more information, check out their website, http://www.theelephantroom.com/ or you can read more on Kevin's blog http://kgunnit.blogspot.com/2012/02/elephant-room-thoughts-quotes-remarks.html.

At the end of January we enjoyed our annual trip to Breckenridge. This was our 5th year to attend the Budweiser International Snow Sculpture Championship Viewing. We saw so many great sculptures, snowshoed, walked the town, and of course ate Happy Hour at our favorite local bar - Whale's Tail.

Up and Running in 2012

As you can see we haven't been using our family blog this past year. Heidi started to focus more on her cooking blog: Homemade and Dairy Free Kitchen. Kevin forgot to focus on any of it. :)

In August of 2011 we joined the launch team for a new church plant called Harvest Bible Chapel. Through this new church we became part of a small group that has been such a huge blessing in our life.

The last couple months of 2011 we focused on our Vision; both for our marriage and individually. It became really powerful for us as we entered in

to a new year. Neither one of us are big new year resolution people; but sitting down together and looking at our long term and short term vision for 2012 was really beneficial. Several items came out of this process for us but one of them being starting back up on our family blog.

We plan to update once a month on our family adventures and the areas God is teaching and testing us in. It holds excitement to see what will come of 2012. Feel free to join us in this adventure by the following ways:

* On the Right Hand Side ----> enter your email address for an update every month when we post.

* Also on the Right Hand Side ----> if you already blog or are connected to Google you can follow us through that link.

* OR just check back!

Don't forget to check out Heidi's Cooking blog - she posts weekly!

Homemade and Dairy Free Kitchen.

For technology or theology related content, check out Kevin's blog Kevin's Blog of Technology, Theology, and More.  

Happy New Year!

New Blog.

Heidi started a new blog for the new year. No we won't have a new blog with every new year but it was time to move her cooking and dairy-free adventures to a new space.

Homemade and Dairy Free Kitchen - Check it out!

So visit us here to see family updates and events in the Gunn Family Life and visit Heidi's new blog for all the delicious recipes and meals we will be enjoying in 2011!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Friday: What's Cooking In The Kitchen...

I am torn between baking and being outside today. It is the second half of November AND 60 degrees! I love Colorado and today is a great reminder, not that we needed it, as to why we love where we live!

I did make some awesome Granola this week though that I wanted to post. This recipe is adapted from a cookbook called Skinny Bitch In The Kitch.

Gunn Family Granola:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees

2 cups oats - heat in oven till lightly toasted (about 10 mins)

mix together - 1 cup sliced almonds, 1/2 cup shred coconut, 1/4 tsp. fine sea salt, 1/3 cup flax seed

wisk together - 1/4 cup maple syrup, 3 TBS agave, 2 TBS grape seed oil

Stir all together and bake on a cookie sheet for 20 mins. Add dried fruit (apples, cranberries, raisins, etc) and let cool.

I ate this with yogurt on Thursday morning and it was Fantastic!

Ok seriously headed outside with my puppy! Enjoy your weekend!

Vegan.

I know there have been some questions about whether Kevin and I are going Vegan. AND after my last post there were even more questions.

Kevin answered "NO"

Heidi answered "kinda, but not really"

So not to confuse any of you more I will get straight to the point. For the past year of my life every time I ate I was miserable. I would have horrible stomach pains for at least two hours after every meal. We were really frustrated and decided to try an elimination diet to figure out if it was gluten, dairy, sugar, salt, etc. After 6 months of elimination diets we narrowed it down to dairy. In October I spent the entire month to the best of my ability staying completely off dairy/lactose. I felt amazing for the first time in 8 months!

I began to pick the brains of some educated friends and do some of my own extensive research. I spent hours on the internet, in the library, and with the dairy department at our local Whole Foods! They were great, by the way. :)

Our goal for 2010 was to figure out my stomach issues. We had a lot of success. I am un-officially lactose intolerant and we know my body does not break down the sugar when I consume any dairy products. Taking a dairy enzyme helps but the best solution we have found is to cut it completely out. This is where the term "vegan" plays a large key. Dairy is such a huge substance in our culture that it is contained in so many products. When an item is marked "vegan" it means that the product does not contain any animal by product. This is a safe and healthy way for us to determine if I can have it or not. So in our household we use the term "vegan" often, but not fully by the definition.

Our goal for 2011 is to visit a holistic doctor and become officially diagnosed. One of the women at our church who just moved here from IL with our church plant happens to be a holistic doctor who will be working Boulder. We know we found a perfect fit for me to see her and we are excited about the testing and information she can provide for us in our research.

As we come upon our almost one year mark of this journey I have LEARNED so much and am GRATEFUL for my health and knowledge regarding lactose intolerance and vegan diets.

So don't get scared away by our recipes that we post just because it says Vegan BECAUSE

... you HAVE to try that Vegan Chocolate Cake recipe... It is A M A Z I N G!

Friday: What's Cooking In The Kitchen...

Finally back again! I have taken a bit of a break... not from the cooking and being in the kitchen

but rather just from blogging.

Since I last posted Kevin and I have enjoyed a trip to New Mexico to see some of our best friends and enjoy the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta (hot air balloons). Turns out our trip to Snowmass to see the balloons was just a small taste; because in New Mexico we saw over 200!!! It was magical and beautiful and overall a wonderful trip.

My parents came to visit in mid October. Dad was here just for a weekend and mom stayed with us for two and half weeks. We made lots of great food and had fun at the Molly Brown House, Coors Tour, Painted Platter and lots of other adventures. She worked hard in our kitchen too; making cinnamon rolls and cooking down and freezing three giant pumpkins!

Thanks Mom!

Speaking of pumpkin... I tried a new recipe today. In our house we LOVE hummus so here is my recipe for an attempt to make pumpkin hummus.

Pumpkin Hummus

• 1 3/4 cups dry garbanzo beans
• 1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
• 1 TBS lemon juice
• 1/3 cup tahini paste
• 2 cloves garlic
• salt to taste
• • 
    
• • I just throw it all in the food processor and then add a little water to get the right consistency. I was hoping that it wouldn't be too overpowered with the pumpkin and tahini paste always makes me nervous but...
  • • It turned out perfect!

We are also meeting up with friends tomorrow (saturday) for a double date at the Painted Platter (paint your own pottery place). When we are done we are planning to eat dinner and play some games here at the house. I'll be placing Vegan Chili in the crockpot before we leave in the morning and for dessert making Vegan Chocolate Cake.

Vegan Chocolate Cake

INGREDIENTS:

• 1-1/2 cups unbleached flour
• 3/4 cup sugar or other sweetener
• 1/2 tsp. Salt
• 1 tsp. Baking soda
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1 cup cold water

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cocoa powder in a bowl and stir with a fork until mixed. Make a well in the center and add the vanilla, oil, vinegar, and water. Stir with a fork until well mixed. Pour into a 9x9-inch baking dish (or cupcake pan), and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool completely, then frost with Chocolate Cream Frosting

Chocolate Cream Frosting

Makes enough for one 9-inch cake or 8 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 tablespoon softened margarine (Earth Balance)
• 1-1/3 cups powdered sugar
• 1/3 cup cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2-4 tablespoons water

INSTRUCTIONS:

Cream the margarine in a small bowl then add the sugar, cocoa, vanilla, and enough water to make a thick but spreadable frosting.

YUM! Can't wait to try this... the batter was good :) So now you might be wondering why everything is vegan... NO, we did not go Vegan but close. I will post more on this later this week because this is already overly long! Watch for that post!

Enjoy your weekend!