Insta-Recipes 2.0

Here's another round of recipes I've posted to Instagram!

I have been loving some flavored tea!  My favorite combination for the last few months has been brewing two bags of black tea with two to four (yes, four!) bags of peach tea.  Leave the peach tea bags in, and the flavor will get stronger the longer it sits.

A Beautiful Mess did it again with a spring roll recipe and dipping sauce that is oh, so good!

Smoothie: banana, cashew milk, almond butter…mmm mmm

Roast some chickpeas and then toss in vanilla, cinnamon, and pinch of sugar

Cut a head of lettuce into quarters for each serving.  Add purple onion, tomatoes, strawberries, avocado, Mini Babybel cheese, vinegrette, and leftover brussells sprout salad if you have any ;)

Banana Berry Butter Smoothie: banana, strawberries, cashew milk, almond butter

Okay, okay….here's one more from A Beautiful Mess.  This spaghetti squash stir fry is soooo good!

I love a good veggie recipe if you have any to share!

*Insta-recipe posts are inspired by dishes I throw together and post on my personal Instagram account.

Blue Kite Update

When I closed Blue Kite Boutique in mid-August of last year, I had no real idea of what would become of it down the road.  I originally thought I would go to all online sales after taking a few months of maternity leave.  I planned on selling clothes and my handmade items along with a few other handmade items from vendors that I worked with at the store.  This was the plan.  It’s what seemed logical and desirable at the time.

My daughter was born in October, and from that day forward (really much earlier than that), I knew I had made the right decision to stay home with her.  I have not missed my store one bit, and I think that’s confirmation that I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing.  I loved having a store, but I did not love working almost every single weekend for two years.  My husband and I finally have Saturdays together again (that don’t include him sitting at a counter eating lunch in between helping customers).  I think it is so crucial for us to have that time again, especially now that we have a daughter.

I have to be honest in that I never planned on having a brick and mortar store.  My original plan for Blue Kite was much different.  The store thing came to be along the way, and I’m so glad it did.  I learned so much, met so many people, and was able to experience the fun adventure of having my own store.  I still have a dream for what could be with Blue Kite.  My original idea is still in the back of my head, waiting for the right time if that time should ever come.  I’m learning to never say never to what might be and to not write plans in concrete.

When I was praying over what direction to go with the store legally, financially, and physically, it all pointed to me resting for awhile.  If you’ve never owned a business, let me let you in on a little secret-- the government requires a lot of taxes out of you!  In order to just keep the business open, I have to pay yearly taxes to a few different government offices.  That’s required even if I don’t sell a single penny’s worth!  I couldn’t justify working and selling enough just to pay those taxes every year.  There are so many other legal and financial requirements I won’t bore you with that helped me make the decision not to continue the business for now.

I’m not sad not to have the store.  Being at home with my baby and having more time with my husband is the best thing ever.  My only sadness was coming from feeling like I might disappoint others or seem like I was giving up.  I had to come to a realization that it doesn’t matter what others think as long as I’m doing what God is telling me to do, what my husband and I feel like is best for our family, and what gives me peace (all of that falls into place when you listen to what God says).  I struggled with making an announcement, because what if I change my mind in a year or so?  Well, we’ll take that road when we get there.  I really couldn’t take the plunge to tell everyone my decision until I saw a video (you can view at the bottom of this post) of Joanna Gaines (from HGTV) telling her story.  It was such a familiar feeling!  Now, I’m not saying I think I’m going to have the fame and TV show and all that she has!  What I’m saying if that we never know what the future holds.  I might have a store again someday.  I might just spend the rest of my days working at home, and that sounds just as fantastic!

Thank you for being so supportive for the two years the store was open.  I am amazed at the friendships that were made.  Through your giving at the store, you helped raise money to help people all over the world and here at home.  You also helped me and my family live a dream for two years.  Colin and I thank you so much and hope you’ll say hi if we see you around town!

Love, Marla

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Insta-Recipes

I love to cook and have been trying lots of new recipes lately.  I post some of them on my Instagram account, recipes I come up with and some from other people.  My account is private to family and close friends.  With so much of my life out there for all to see (here, twitter, etc.), it's the one place I've decided to keep private right now.

Every once in awhile I'll share a few pics from my account.  Here are some now!

My take on Tropical Smoothie's veggie hummus wrap

• Sabra roasted red pepper hummus all over tortilla of choice
• Sliced purple/red onion
• Sliced tomato
• Sliced cucumber
• 1/4 avocado, sliced and drizzled with lemon and lime juice
• Shredded carrots
• Salsa (optional-- put it on my husband's but not on mine)
• Cilantro

Sweet & Tart Smoothie

• Frozen mango
• Frozen raspberries
• Unsweetened original cashew milk

Avocado Tuna

I never like tuna and couldn't make myself eat it no matter how hard I tried.  One day my sister-in-law told me to try it with avocado, and now I eat tuna all the time!

• 1 can of white albacore tuna
• 1/2 avocado
• salt, cajun seasoning (optional)
• Dash of lemon juice and lime juice

Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Stuffed Strawberry Shake

• Chocolate almond milk
• Unsweetened original cashew milk
• Peanut butter
• Frozen strawberries

Warm Brussels Sprout Salad with Homemade Dressing

This recipe is from A Beautiful Mess.  Colin LOVED it!  We heard a report that you could lose a pound a week eating brussels sprouts-- bring on the sprouts!

I made two changes:

• Double the dressing recipe and cook 3 lbs. of sprouts (instead of 1 lb.)
• Stick the cooked sprouts/berries under broil for a few minutes in the oven, stir every minute or so

What recipes do you love?