Mother Knows Best

When I was in high school I was very social and very involved in choir and theatre. I loved it. I wasn't so serious about the more academic subjects and I certainly wasn't interested in homemaking skills.

I remember one day having a discussion with my mother about my need to assess my priorities. She said, in exasperation, "your husband is not going to care how well you sing or how many shows you were in! He will care how well you can cook!" Well, according to Phil, she was absolutely correct. The other day as I was making dinner (I quite enjoy cooking these days) this conversation of long ago came flooding back to my memory. I mentioned it to Phil and he confirmed that my mother (as always) was right.

Phil often mentions what great "perks" the good meals, cookies, breads, etc. are. He truly appreciates the fact that I enjoy homemaking. He thinks it is cool that I made my own wedding gown (although it ended up being a complete fiasco) and that I am using the remaining fabric from it to make our daughter's blessing dress. He likes that I crochet and even asked me to teach him (although he didn't find much satisfaction in doing it himself). Just as I'm in awe of his ability to create art out of thin air, he is in awe of my ability to "throw a meal together" (often without a recipe). He really DOESN'T care that I was in several musicals/shows in high school (except he likes to tease me about kissing Howard Bickle on stage). How did mother know?

Of course there are other things that he appreciates about me and these aren't just perks. He loves that I have a testimony of the gospel and a respect for the power of the priesthood. He loves that I enjoy children and the way I interact with them. He truly appreciates that I am interested in social and civil issues and that I like to be informed and form opinions about things that are going on in our nation and communities. He is proud of my degrees.

Although it took me a while, I'm so glad I listened to my wise mother and finally developed the skills that bring me such satisfaction and cause Phil to swell with pride about his talented wife. That mom, she's pretty smart! Here is a picture of her with my nephew, Caleb, after being drenched on the log ride at Lagoon. (isn't she cute?) :)

Lime-Cilantro Pork Tacos

Here is a recipe I tried for the first time this week and it was pretty quick and very yummy (and healthy too!). It is from the Cooking Light, June 2004 magazine.

Lime-Cilantro Pork Tacos
1 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into thin strips
1/4 t salt
1/8 t freshly ground black pepper
2 t olive oil
1 1/2 C thinly sliced onion
1 small jalapeño pepper, seeded and chipped (I actually used bell peppers)
1/2 C fat-free, less sodium chicken broth
1/2 C chopped tomato
3 T chopped cilantro
2 1/2 T fresh lime juice
8 flour tortillas

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; sprinkle pork with salt and black pepper; add oil and pork; saute 4 minutes or until browned; remove pork from pan; place in bowl.

Add onion and pepper to pan, saute 5 minutes or until tender; add broth, reduce heat, and simmer 1 minute, scraping pan to loosen browned bits; stir in tomato; simmer 2 minutes.

Return pork and accumulated juices to pan; stir in cilantro and lime juice; cook 1 minute or until pork is done.

Serve with warmed tortillas and fat-free sour cream.

Calories: 208 each taco
Fat: 6.5 grams
Protein: 15 grams
Carbs: 21.5 grams
Fiber: 1.8 grams
Cholesterol: 62.5 mg
Iron: 1.9 mg
Sodium: 284.5 mg
Calcium: 50.5 mg

It came together in about 20 minutes and was really good! Try them, you'll like them!