I’ve been thinking a lot about kindness since our little study of Cinderella last week. It’s a theme that came up again Peter Pan over the weekend, and it’s a theme that seems to pop up in a number of the stories we’ll be looking at over the next few weeks.
Earlier today, a friend commented on my post saying that if he “had to choose one character trait to instil in (his) children, it would be kindness”.
I agree completely.
But how do we do that in this day and age where it seems that the more competitive you are at something, the better you are as a human; if you’re out to win at all costs, what room is there for kindness?
For now, the Husband and I can model kindness to our kids in how we treat each other, how we treat them, and how we treat others. And I can only hope that the lessons the kids learn from watching us now, and from our talks about the power that can flow from being a kind person, will last them into their teen years . . . . and beyond.
Now, while I’m on the subject of kindness, I practiced some kindness towards myself yesterday. As much as I wanted a less hectic after-school schedule this year, it seems like we’re getting home even later from programs and lessons than ever before. Family dinners are important to the Husband and I – we both grew up eating as a family each night – and prepared meals from the grocery store don’t exactly fit into our health-ier eating plan. Which means I’m finding myself having to get more delft at menu planning, grocery shopping, and meal preparation.
This week, I accepted that we don’t get home from the little one’s dance classes until about 5:45. We generally eat at 6. Which leaves me 15 minutes to get a meal on the table . . . So, thanks to a little inspiration from a friend, yesterday morning saw me bringing out the crockpot and “making” dinner at 7 in the morning. When we ran in the door at 5:45, all I had to do was get the broccoli steaming (I had it prepped and ready on the stove) and we were ready to eat at 6. Perfection!!!
Everyone enjoyed this dish. It is basically pork tenderloin with homemade applesauce all cooked in one pot! I served it with a side of broccoli – next time I might serve it over pureed cauliflower. It would be good with mashed sweet potato too!
Slow Cooker Pork Tenderloin with Apples
Ingredients
2 pork tenderloins of approximately the same size
2 cups bone broth (aka chicken stock – I use my own, but you could use a low-sodium store bought stock)
4 apples peeled and cored (you could leave the peels on if you are short on time)
1 onion sliced
Salt and Pepper
Directions
- Use a bit of butter/olive oil/coconut oil to grease the bottom of the crockpot
- Put the sliced onions in the bottom of the crockpot
- Lay the 2 pork tenderloins on top of the onions.
- Throw the apples in over top and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Pour the broth over the pork.
- Put the lid on and simmer the pork for about 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high.
nancyhotson 
Nancy, I remember your Husband having a picture in his bedroom which moved on to his apartment and then into his condo & finally in your home. It said ‘it’s nice to be important but more important to be nice’ (kind). That pork recipe sounds wonderful and as I am still without a stove, I will be using it in my crockpot tomorrow.
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