A Celebration of Hope!

1 Corinthians 13:13 tells us: "Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love."

A year ago today Kieth and I were at Kootenai Medical Center in Coeur d'Alene Idaho. It was not the trip that we had anticipated having with our baby girl. At 25 weeks gestation, I delivered Hope Catherine Finkbeiner at 5:45am though she was already in God's loving arms. Saying hello and goodbye to your beautiful baby in the same day is not something anyone can prepare for, and is not something a person can understand until they find themselves placed in that situation. But through it all, God has given us his promised PEACE! What a blessing! Even tonight, as I spoke with a friend who is going through cancer treatment, God showed me a glimpse of His greatness and the blessings that can be shared through our difficult experiences. His plan is so much greater than anything I'll ever understand. Over the past year, I've learned that trusting in Him and trying to follow His plan for us is so much more peaceful and rewarding than anything I could create myself! I will never forget the sorrow and pain of losing my daughter, nor will she ever be replaced with the new life growing inside me, but I am reminded of God's grace and His blessing of another child. I look forward to seeing how life has changed by Hope's birthday next year! With God, there is Hope!

Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings

I was flipping through one of my slow cooker cookbooks today and found this recipe. It is now officially "what's for dinner." :) It's in the crock pot and is smelling delicious! It was super easy so I thought I'd share. I made a few modifications to this recipe, such as fat free cream soups and sea salt instead of kosher, so we'll see how it turns out!

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 medium carrots, cut into 1 inch slices
2 ribs celery, sliced
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 16 oz can buttermilk biscuits
1/2 cup frozen green peas

Place the chicken pieces, carrots, celery, soups, broth, garlic powder, thyme, salt, and pepper in a 3 quart crock pot and mix to combine thoroughly. Cut five of the buttermilk biscuits into quarters. Add to the chicken mixture and lightly combine. Cover; cook on low 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours. Fifteen minutes prior to serving, bake the remaining biscuits as directed. Add the peas to the chicken and dumplings about 2 minutes before serving, or until warmed through. To serve, spoon the chicken and dumplings into individual bowls and top each serving with a warm biscuit. Ladle additional sauce over the top, if desired.

16 week appointment!

Today I had a checkup for the baby, and even though I've had two ultrasounds already, the appointments still make me nervous. I have to just pray on my drive over the hill that God will give me peace through the appointment no matter what happens, and he always does. God is good! Everything is looking good they tell me. The heartbeat was strong and fast, between 155-160 bpm, and measuring right on track. I'm starting to get a pretty good baby bump so pictures are going to start showing up on here soon! I'm ready to look pregnant instead of just chubby. :)