Danielle's Brain Bits

Traffic and Women's Rights

2012-01-18T14:20:00.000-05:00

Every day I leave my house right around 8:15 AM. It takes me - on a normal day - about 30 minutes to get to work and since I have to arrive by 9:00, leaving at 8:15 gives me a 15 minute "traffic buffer" just incase I hit any snags.

Because you know, it's Eastern Massachusetts and I work "heading towards Boston". That's enough said.

As I leave my house, I can see the highway I have to get on so I am able to see what the flow of traffic looks like in the direction I'm headed. Typically speaking, it's flowing relatively freely though I can expect a slowdown one exit down due to solar glare in the winter.Today: I looked up and saw a tractor trailer. It wasn't moving. I looked closer and realized there were lots of cars. None of them were moving either. So I tried to be all slick and take the backroads to another spot to get on the highway. Those cars weren't moving either.

To make a very long story short... what usually takes me 30-35 minutes took me 1 hour and 10 minutes to accomplish from garage to parking lot. That's about twice as long as normal, and the "traffic buffer" that would normally suffice in the event of one snag (which isn't abnormal) turned out to be absolutely fruitless.

Here's where I learned a lesson in perspective today.

As I sat in my car constantly refreshing Google Maps for traffic updates and seeing nothing but red to blood red at seemingly every turn, I could feel my blood pressure rising. I was going to be late for work, I have a meeting, why am I not moving, this is so boring, I've already heard this song, why is @MassDOT not tweeting what's going on (I wasn't moving, believe me - I didn't look while I was driving), etc. etc. etc.

Then I looked over and realized something: hundreds of other cars were in the same position I was in. Everyone out on the road this morning was stuck in horrible traffic. It occurred to me that with that many people in traffic, there would be a good chance that not only would most of us be pretty late for work - it's entirely possible that someone stuck in that traffic might have been given a warning not to be late anymore or their job was on the line. And maybe today was the day that person left super early so they wouldn't be late, a day to make a fresh start - only to be met with traffic that doubled their commute time.

I said a quick prayer for that person - who I'm sure existed - that their boss be reasonable and understanding.

My brain didn't stop there. I suddenly felt this bizarre sense of solidarity - we were all in the traffic club! We were all in that mess together! All for one and one for all! Here here! This solidarity among my fellow drivers was reinforced when I realized that no one seemed to be doing that "my schedule is more important than yours" move to fly down the breakdown lane. See! We're all a traffic team!

Or something.

Last night I was purging my office to get rid of things so that we can consolidate to one office and make room for Baby Boy. As I was purging I came across my "thank you" copy of "The Vagina Monologues" that I received as being part of the performance when it was produced at UMass Lowell. If you've ever seen or heard of it, then you know that the premise of the entire thing is to bring awareness to women's issues not only in the US but in all parts of the world. It is meant to celebrate the beauty of women and unite us all globally to stand up for what is right. Performances are often sponsored by women's rights groups who fight for women to have the same freedoms in other parts of the world as they do in the US.

I remember this one monologue about what it was like to live under a burqa, and another about a woman who suffered from female circumcision and rape at the hands of soldiers in her own country. As I sat in traffic this morning, these stories came into my mind and took up space in my heart. Here I was letting my heartrate and frustration level rise because I was sitting in traffic, being inconvenienced... when really the fact that I was sitting in traffic would be considered a blessing by many women around the world.

Think about it - what led me to be sitting in the traffic in the first place? I was able to get a good education, put myself through college, choose whatever job I wanted, wear whatever clothes I picked out this morning, drive myself to work, choose what path to take - and at the end of the whole thing, arrived safely to be treated by my male peers with respect and viewed as an equal.

Without that sort of cultural surrounding - I wouldn't have been sitting in traffic this morning. Suddenly, the traffic didn't seem like a huge bother anymore.

Don't get me wrong - sitting in traffic is definitely an inconvenience, and is doubly annoying when my husband is home before me at night and I'd rather be spending time with him than sitting behind the back-end of a garbage truck staring at its taillights. It's not the traffic that I'm grateful for, especially when you consider that most traffic is caused by the misfortune of another driver. That's not it at all.

What I'm grateful for - and am actually incredibly thankful for - is that I've been blessed enough to be able to be a woman in the United States of America. A place where I can literally be who I want to be, can chase my dreams, believe in the God I choose to believe in, can be treated as an equal in the eyes of everyone.

The next time you're sitting in traffic... take a deep breath, and think about how you got to that point in the first place. If you're anything like me, it'll make the ride a lot less painful.

2012 - It's Gonna Rock

2012-01-02T10:00:00.004-05:00

I decided that I'm not going to start off this post by lamenting over all the things that I didn't accomplish from my goals list in 2011. All that accomplishes is about 10 minutes of frustration and disappointment in myself - and quite frankly, I don't think that sort of attitude is a good way to start off a new year. Instead, I am going to share with you a list of things that I did accomplish last year and then share with you some things that I would like to accomplish this year.

So what happened in 2011? Here's a short list of some things that I am excited about over the last year:

I was able to read more books than I had in 2010; according to Goodreads, I completed 17 books during 2011. Right now I have 3 more in process, so I am glad that I was able to focus more on one of my favorite passtimes over the last 12 months.
Steve and I have done a much better job at keeping God at the center of our marriage than keeping ourselves there. The fruits of this have been amazing; we feel closer, conflict is much easier to handle, and we feel a more genuine sense of optimism & excitement about the future of our marriage as a result.
My prayer life has gotten stronger and I have gotten more comfortable with opening up to God in conversation. This is something that has been a huge struggle for me in my faith, and truthfully the book "Mystically Wired" helped me change my perspective on prayer.
My running improved! I reached a point where while outside I was able to go longer between "walking periods" which was very exciting to me. Of course my "speed" was still just about a jog, but I was excited to need to take less walking breaks. That, however, got put on the backburner because...
We're having a baby! In September we found out that we'll be expecting our first little one, and in December we found out that our little one is going to be a little boy. We're super excited and so far the pregnancy & baby have been going quite well. (The pregnancy put my running endeavors on hold per doctor's orders... but it's worth it!)

Now we're in 2012, and I am excited to set some goals for the year that I know have a good chance of being accomplished. Why? Because I am determined this year. This year my goals are not being set out of obligation or some sense of "this is something I should do; this year's goals are in place because I want to accomplish these things. Period.

Goal Number One - Read the whole Bible: This year, our church is going through the narrative of the Bible from start to finish over the course of 12 months. As part of this, they have shared a reading plan that gets you through the Bible over the course of the year. In the past, I've set Bible reading goals only to fall flat on my face because I don't take the step of setting up some sort of way to hold myself accountable. Because our whole church community is reading on the same plan (or at least has the option to), it will serve to keep me on track during the course of the year. I am excited about this endeavor and know that I can see it through to the end.

Goal Number Two - Successful Breastfeeding: I am excited to meet our little boy and welcome him into our family - along with all that entails. Yes, even the poopy diapers. One of the things that I am super excited about is nursing him and being able to provide him the nutrition that he needs from my own... person. I know that breastfeeding is hard work and it doesn't work for every person, but I am more than willing and determined to do everything I can to make it work. I have been praying that he not have digestive or latching issues, and will be signing up for a breastfeeding class that's offered at the hospital we will be delivering at. I also have had several women offer their expertise that I trust and value their opinions/advice, so I think that I have a great framework in place to be successful in this endeavor once our little man gets here.

Little Man at 18 weeks, 3 days. Isn't he a cutie!

Goal Number Three - Read More Books: In 2011, I was able to complete 17 books before the year was out. This year, I'd like to go back to my middle school days and hit the 20+ book club. I really don't see any reason that this goal cannot be achieved, but hey - you never know. I have a slew of books and a library card that are just aching to be read and/or used, plus I'm already off to a great start with 3 books in process. I LOVE reading, and hope that we can set a good example of how awesome reading is to our little one once he gets here.

Goal Number Four - One 5K Race in the Fall: I am blessed to have a husband who encourages me in my running endeavors... and who also finds the value in everyone having time to themselves to do the things that will help them relieve stress. Once our little guy arrives and the doctor has cleared me to start jogging again, I can't wait to start to get back into the groove of it. My ultimate goal is to run in another 5K - either the same one I did before or one closer to home - and beat my last time of... whatever it was. Basically less than 38 minutes start to finish. I know that with Steve's support this is something that I can definitely achieve and I am excited about it.

There they are - my goals for 2012! I'm excited about these and I have a fantastic feeling about 2012 - I know it's going to be a great year.

What goals do you have for 2012?

Do you have a system in place to achieve the things you want to achieve?

Christmas Love

2011-12-25T10:55:00.002-05:00

As I lay in bed this morning, I remembered Christmases as a kid. Memories of getting up, gathering around the tree opening our stockings while our parents had their morning coffee flooded through my mind.

I remember the laughter, helping my siblings with their stocking stuffers, coloring in our coloring books, eating sweet breads together for breakfast while sipping on milk & juice. I remember watching the pile of presents under the tree for the ones that I had wrapped weeks before to surface so that I could watch people open what I had given them. Memories of smiles, laughter, tears of heartfelt thanks from gifts we gave each other that showed each other love.

I couldn't tell you half - or more - of what I wrote on my obligatory "Santa Lists" as a kid. The only thing I exactly remember getting for Christmas from a list I wrote was my 10-speed bike when I was 11... and that was because I have fond memories of the many bike rides I took on it in the years until my friends got cars. I remember in college I got the board game "Guesstures", and that night while playing with my siblings I have an amazing memory of my mother laughing hysterically when we had to act out "Nose Droppings" before the time ran out.

Christmas - for me - has never been about the stuff. It's been about family, it's been about making each other smile, it's been about laughter and joy.

This Christmas I woke up to the feeling of little tiny feet and hands poking me from the inside and a husband who rolled over and put his arm around me while he got his last few moments of sleep. A light snow has been falling around my house all morning creating the perfect atmosphere for a calm, peaceful Christmas. I enjoyed pastry and a stocking exchange with Steve while listening to Christmas music... just like I did on Christmas morning as a kid. I am waiting patiently for my in-laws to arrive for Christmas dinner, looking around thinking of what Christmas will be like next year with our 7-month old(ish) son.

Christmas is not about the material stuff. It's about the heart stuff... it's about the gifts that God has given us. Remember - this holiday started with the most wonderful Gift that He has ever provided: His son... the "dawn of redeeming grace"... the promise of redemption that we may have a relationship with God.

As you go into the days after Christmas, I encourage each of you out there to avoid the question "What did you get for Christmas?" or "What did Santa bring you?" when you see your friends and family. Ask them instead how their Christmas was, what memory will they cherish the most from this Christmas, what did they appreciate most about their holiday. If anyone asks you what you got, respond with the intangibles. The memories, the love, the blessings that you find throughout your day.

Keep those things close to your heart, remember that God loves you and the gifts of love - starting with the gift He gave us on the original Christmas day of His son, Jesus - are the most beautiful gifts you will receive this year.

Merry Christmas.

That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”

Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.

After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them. (Luke 2:8-20)

Top Five: Christmas Songs for 2011

2011-12-15T16:54:00.003-05:00

Every Christmas, I find that there are a handful of songs that I could listen to over and over again. "Dominic the Christmas Donkey" is NEVER one of those songs, but over the years tunes like "Last Christmas", "All I Want for Christmas is You", "Jingle Bell Rock", and "Holly Jolly Christmas" have crossed the list. This year, there are - as always - a few songs that I find I can't get enough of. Some of them are repeats from previous years, others are new to the addiction list this year. I thought that this year I would share my favorite Christmas songs of the season with you.

Danielle's Top 5 Christmas Songs for 2011

"White Christmas" - The Drifters: AAAAAAAH!!! That might be something that comes to mind for a lot of you when you hear this song. Why? Because it was made famous in the original "Home Alone" film, and ended with Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) smacking aftershave on his face and screaming into the mirror. With all the versions of "White Christmas" that are out there, this has always been one that every year gets me dancing around while I put up the Christmas ornaments.

"Believe" - Josh Groban: Confession - I am infatuated with Josh Groban's voice. There. I said it. Don't you feel better knowing that I have openly put that out there? I do. Phew! Anyways... this song found during the end credits of The Polar Express is a beautiful, beautiful one - especially during the Christmas season when there is so much to turn our hearts towards and believe in. The spirit of the season can arguably be summed up when one listens to the lyrics of this song closely, "You've got everything you need if you just believe..." (OK... so really that's applicable at MORE than Christmas... but still...)

"God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" - Barenaked Ladies ft. Sarah McLachlan: I'm not sure if it's true or not, but I heard once that this super fun recording of this song was a fluke. The story that I heard was that BNL and Sarah were hanging out at Christmas time, decided to jam and record it, and this song was the end result. Whether or not that's true - I have no idea. What I do know is that the end result of this collaboration is a fun version of this song that is fantastic for Christmas car driving singing, dancing around the house, and Christmas cookie baking.

"O Holy Night" - Tracy Chapman: This is another song that has a lot of versions out there, and I actually spent a good amount of time in the car the other day debating with myself whether I liked Tracy Chapman's or Josh Groban's version of this song better. I landed on Tracy's version for a couple of reasons. The first is that I feel like her voice is incredibly calming which lends an air of serenity to the song that's appropriate - I think - to the holy birth of a babe in a stable. The second is that I love the simplicity of the guitar in this version. It compliments Tracy's voice perfectly.

"Little Drummer Boy" - Bob Seger: Steve LOVES the "Little Drummer Boy" in just about every version, though his favorite is the one by Jars of Clay. Me? I like the song generally speaking, but my favorite is the version sung by Bob Seger. I think it's a combination of the strong percussion in the song with the rock edge of the overall music with Seger's rough voice that draw me to this song. It FEELS like a song about a drummer to me more than other versions (for example: a choir version doesn't really scream "drummer boy" to me).

There are lots of other songs out there that I enjoy, but these 5 are ones that will get my hand reaching to turn up the volume on the radio when they come on (if not dancing and singing along). Christmas music is such a huge part of the atmosphere during this time of year that it's tough not to have a few favorites.

What songs help to get you in the Christmas Spirit?

What makes you rock around the Christmas Tree or belt a few lines out in the car or shower?

Seek, Listen, Rely

2011-12-09T16:14:00.001-05:00

Every so often in the midst of the hustle of the day, I will come across something that gives me pause. Rarely does it happen twice... and so when it does, I really like to make sure I pause and reflect.

Today I was spending some time during lunch catching up on one of my favorite blogs - Fit This Girl - and I was excited to see her reference one of my favorite verses, Jeremiah 29:11.

"For I know the plans I have for you", says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope."

However... unlike almost every other time I've seen or referenced that verse, Mary went on to cite the next two verses. Reading the three verses together for some reason struck me, and I have not been able to stop thinking of them as one entity since:

"For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me." (Jeremiah 29:11-13, NLT)

God has a GOOD plan. God wants to hear us. God wants us to find Him.

Let's play with that arrangement a bit: God wants us to find Him. He has a GOOD plan for us. He wants to hear us.

Let's take this one step further: God wants ME to find Him. He has a GOOD plan for ME. He wants to hear ME.

He loves each and every one of us, He wants us to know that He wants nothing but the best - the VERY BEST - for each of us. His plans for us ARE those very best. But He wants to hear the deepest desires of our souls; maybe those stirrings we are feeling are ones that He has placed here. Maybe they are ones He wants us to push past so that we can see the even BETTER things that He has in store. Maybe - because He has given us free will - what's on our hearts fits into His plan and He hadn't considered it yet. God changes His mind sometimes, so we need to talk to Him.

He has told us that He will listen - right there, in Jeremiah 29:12.

But... He cannot listen if we do not seek Him out. With all of our heart. ALL of our heart.

Not that fraction of our heart that we set aside for Him to hear during desperate prayers. Not that portion of ourselves that we give in to worship during Sunday mornings in the church rows.

ALL of our heart. In the good times. In the indifferent times. In order for Him to hear us, we need to find Him. We need to seek Him out with ALL of our heart, ALL of the time.

So what gets in the way? If He has GOOD plans for us, if He wants to hear us - what stops us from seeking out God?

Fast forward to a couple of hours later. Max Lucado offered this bit of insight via Twitter:

Big EGO= Edging God Out. Small EGO= Exalting God Only.

Thanks, Max, for offering some insight into the answer to my question.

What stops us from seeking out God? Our lack of willingness to rely on Him.

If we seek out God with all of our hearts, it's admitting that we cannot do it alone. In a world and a culture where self-reliance is not only the norm but is encouraged as a strong character trait, admitting that we cannot achieve greatness on our own - admitting that greatness is not necessarily ours for the establishing, but rather is part of God's plans for us - can be seen as a sign of weakness.

I argue that it takes more courage to step forward and admit that you need help or cannot do something alone than it does to stay in your place and try to do everything yourself.

If we shrink our egos - we will open ourselves up to allow someone to help.

If we shrink our egos - we will become more willing to admit that God's plan is better than our own.

If we shrink our egos - we will find more room for the courage to seek Him out.

When we seek Him out wholeheartedly - He will listen. He will guide. And His plan for our lives will be played out in big, giant, amazing ways that we never could have imagined on our own.

If only we would take the step to shrink our egos and let in the courage to see Him - imagine what He could do with each of our lives in this crazy, broken world.

Let's take the steps to work to shrink our egos.

It's Time to Play the Music...

2011-12-08T15:10:00.001-05:00

**Disclaimer: I'm going to try not to issue any spoilers in this post, but just in case I slip you are officially warned that there MAY BE a spoiler in the words below.**

Steve and I are incredibly picky about what movies we will or won't fork over the admission price of a ticket for. The reality is that we have a decent home theater system, a Blu-Ray player and a Netflix subscription - so there's really not a ton of need for us to be putting money into the price of a movie ticket. Having said that, once in a while a movie will come out that will get one or both of us incredibly jazzed to see on the big screen. Usually these movies will be one of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" films or a highly anticipated comic book flick (you should see Steve's eyes light up when he sees the preview for "The Dark Knight Rises" that's coming out in May 2012). It has to be something that will really sound and look fantastic in the theater in order for us to fork over the ticket cost - and we are rarely disappointed.

Such was the case last night when we headed to Chunky's Cinema & Pub to catch "The Muppets". When we first heard that the movie was coming out, as big fans of Muppet movies we knew we would try to make an effort to get to the theater to see it; when Steve found out that it had a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes - an extreme rarity, and now down to a 97% rating since its debut - that changed it from "try" to "do - there is no try" to get to the theater for it.

We arrived at Chunky's, ordered our food, enjoyed conversation over our dinner, ordered some popcorn, and then settled in as the lights dimmed for previews and the highly anticipated feature. It starts off with an opening number in Smalltown, USA complete with dancing, Muppets, singing, and happiness. Is it campy? Sure. Would you expect less from a Muppet movie? Absolutely not; the opening definitely helped the viewer to get reacquainted with the Muppet franchise and to establish a sense of nostalgia essential to getting the full enjoyment of the film. When the main characters Walter, Gary, and Mary head to LA and find themselves appealing to Kermit to "get the gang back together", you know that awesomeness is on its way. This is only confirmed when, after being asked how they'll accomplish getting everyone together, Kermit looks at the camera and says "Didn't you see the first movie? We drive!".

With celebrity cameos from Jack Black, Jon Krasinski, Whoopi Goldberg, Neil Patrick Harris, and many others - this movie holds true to the original "Muppet Show" concept and Muppet movie genre as any successful re-birthing of a franchise should. Fozzie's bad jokes make you cringe, the geezers in the balcony are still at it picking on the Muppet crew, and Kermit's eternal optimism inspires not only the characters in the film but those in the audience as well. At different points of the movie I found myself laughing, tapping my toes, and invariably smiling. If you enjoyed any of the Muppet movies - especially the first one - I highly recommend making the effort to get out and see this movie. The sense of nostalgia that it invokes is worth spending the money on a ticket and the time in the theater.

Before I close... I should make a confession. There is a point in the movie where the original Muppet Show theme song is performed. I not only sang it... I danced in my chair. I chair danced. There, I said it.

"It's the most sensational, inspirational, celebrational, Muppetational..."

Anyways... if you've got a soft spot in your heart for the Muppets, see this movie. You won't regret it.

Book Review: "Sabbath"

2011-12-03T09:10:00.001-05:00

When I say the word "Sabbath" to you, what do you think of?

I know growing up, when I thought of people who celebrated the Sabbath I thought of stuffy families who got all dressed up and went to Mass (I grew up in a heavily Catholic area). After Mass they would go for a drive or sit at home and read, have a family dinner, pray together for AT LEAST an hour, and go to bed. It didn't seem terribly celebratory to me, so my Sundays (when I thought people took Sabbath) were spent watching football, spending time with family, sometimes going to a Color Guard practice or hanging out with friends.

I spent my Sundays doing things that I took joy in doing.

In Dan Allender's book "Sabbath", he takes the idea of a boring old Sabbath and turns it on its head. The Sabbath - as the Lord designed it for us to be - is a gift to us that we are to enjoy, savor, and cherish. In the midst of our hustle & bustle, overachieving world, we are given this beautiful gift of a Sabbath to relax and take joy in the wonderful blessings we have in our lives. It is to be a day of delight, play, enjoyment, and a taking in of the beauty in our worlds. Through the pages, Allender explains that the Sabbath looks different for every person but that at its core it should be composed of the things that bring us joy and delight.

Reading this book really helped me to understand not only the purpose of the Sabbath, but also assisted in helping me realize how incredibly wonderful the day can be for each of us. Because "Sabbath rest is not an option, it is a commandment", it is important that we understand and really put into practice the things that go into our lives & weeks to make up this day. God has provided me with so many wonderful resources and things that it is wrong for me to allow the business and busyness of my life to get in the way of this wonderful gift. What are the things that bring me joy? What can I do to take pieces of the other six days and get ready to prepare for the Sabbath? How can I inspire my family and friends to do the same? What is God doing in my life right now... and yesterday... and the day before... and coming up... that gives cause for joy and celebration?

I appreciate the words in Allender's book more than I thought I would when I got it and cracked it open to dive in. I think that this book is worth a second read, the next time with a highlighter and a pen to take notes and write reminders to myself. There are so many ways that God has blessed me in my life, it is a shame that I am not properly and consistently taking a gift that is so important He made it a commandment and giving it the attention and respect that it needs. The Sabbath is a day that deserves - no, needs - me to devote more time & effort in preparing and partaking in it.

If you've ever wondered WHAT the Sabbath is and HOW you can incorporate it into your life - this is definitely a book you should get your hands on. In fact, if you do get your hands on it and want to discuss it with me - let me know that too. I would love to hear your thoughts and the efforts you put forward to hold the Sabbath holy in your own life.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Annual Post of Gratitude

2011-11-23T10:21:00.001-05:00

Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and while this year I have found myself just generally more grateful for the blessings in my life - Thanksgiving is definitely a time to be intentional about that gratitude. After all, giving thanks for the abundance and blessing in our lives is the whole reason that the holiday was established in the first place (even though our culture would have us believe that it's about turkey & football).

"But Thanksgiving is more than eating, Chuck. You heard what Linus was saying out there. Those early Pilgrims were thankful for what had happened to them, and we should be thankful, too. We should just be thankful for being together. I think that's what they mean by 'Thanksgiving,' Charlie Brown." - Marcie from the Peanuts gang

So... what are some of the things that I am thankful for in 2011?

I am thankful for grace... When you allow grace to become a driving force in your life, it is amazing what can happen in your relationships with others. For example, a little while ago Steve came to me to talk about something that he knew would bother me but that had to be addressed. Under normal circumstances, I would have freaked out and let my emotions get the better of me. How dare I not be taken into consideration! How dare he not put me first! But I looked at Steve and saw someone who was humbling himself and coming to his wife in a step of healing and hope. Selfishness and anger would have just damaged our marriage if I had reacted so poorly; to react without grace would have made Steve think that he could not come to me to discuss things that need to be discussed. I intentionally allowed grace to rule my actions... and the result was understanding, discussion, healing, and love. That is just one example of how I have seen grace transform a situation from something potentially awful to something potentially beautiful. I am thankful for grace.

I am thankful for access to great healthcare... I think that in the US, decent healthcare is something that we can easily take for granted. However, being pregnant has given me a renewed gratitude for the level of healthcare that we have in our country. At nine weeks, I called our OB and left a message with the nurse because of some symptoms we were having. After a brief conversation, they brought me in for an emergency appointment, examined me, discussed what they saw, answered our questions, and issued instructions. Things were fine - but any time I've had a question or concern I can just call up and they are there to respond. There are so many countries in this world that do not have this easy access to good healthcare... and we should not take it for granted. Not for one second. And if able, I would encourage you to find an organization that provides healthcare to less fortunate regions of the world and support them with financial resources, supplies, or your time.

I am thankful for my wonderful husband... The other night after getting back from signing our will/health care proxy/power of attorney papers and then finishing the update on our family finances, Steve looked at me and said "See? Didn't I tell you I would take care of you?". I looked back at him and said "I married you because I knew you would". Let me make this clear - it's not just our finances where he takes care of me. Steve is there every time I have a success to cheer me on, a failure to help me see how to improve, a bandaid when I cut myself (usually cutting veggies...), and to catch me when I fall (usually quite literally). He listens to me talk through things, holds me when I cry, laughs at my stupid jokes, is willing to work through both of our shortcomings, and tries to protect me from things he knows will hurt. Now... he's not perfect, and neither am I. There's no such thing as a perfect person. But he's pretty darn good to have as a husband and best friend; we could lose all of our "stuff" and money tomorrow... and we'd still have each other, and he would still take care of me. I am grateful for him every day.

I am thankful for our Little Person... As of today, I am 16 weeks and 5 days pregnant. Not a day passes that I am not incredibly grateful that God has blessed us with a child and that I pray for our child to continue to grow and be healthy. It is absolutely insane to think that Steve and I are going to be parents, and it's crazier to think that God is trusting US with the duties of parenting. I am so thankful for the opportunity to love on this Little Person, help them to learn the ways of the world, and just grow our little family. I love the moments when Steve gets close to my growing little bump and starts talking to him/her... "Hi, Baby!". It is such an amazing time for us right now, and I am cherishing every moment of it.

Those are just some of the highlights of the things that I'm grateful for this year. There are others, of course, but I only have so much room in a blog post.

What about you? What are you thankful for this Thanksgiving? Make sure to take the time and reflect on the blessings in your life this weekend!!!

"Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." - 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NLT)

It's Been a While...

2011-11-09T15:46:00.000-05:00

I realized this morning in the shower that it has been quite a while since I posted on my primary blog.

Why is that?

Well... it certainly wasn't that I didn't have anything to say. In fact, I had quite a bit to say. It's just that I wasn't saying much of it out loud. And it was hard to do that. So I just avoided it all together.

You see... the thing is: We're pregnant! Last week we released the information publicly as any modern-day couple would by posting the ultrasound picture on Facebook. It certainly was an easy way to get the word out and an exciting way to get lots of encouragement at once. In fact, even as an outside observer to other people's lives on Facebook, I love celebratory announcements. Pregnancies, engagements, promotions, weddings... if it's worth celebrating, I love when people are bold enough to put it out there and invite others to cheer alongside them.

Celebration is good.

At any rate, as of today I am 14 weeks, 5 days pregnant with our Little Person and I wanted to share with you a few of the things that pregnancy has taught me (so far... I have a long way to go and much more to learn). Some of these things I knew and pregnancy just made real, others I'm learning as I go.

Little Person at 9 weeks, 3 days old.
You can't tell from the picture, but he/she was a tiny dancer the day this was taken too.

Grace is Essential: When people find out that you're pregnant, they immediately get excited. When are you due, how are you feeling (with dirty looks or "you're so lucky") when you haven't gotten sick, are you finding out the gender... all sorts of typical questions. At that point in the conversation once the basics have been reported and excitement has been established, either the conversation continues in a normal fashion or some sort of borderline inappropriate behavior happens. Sometimes this takes the form of an unwelcomed stomach rub, uninvited pregnancy advice (that doesn't apply to your pregnancy), or an order about what you should or should not be doing.

Here's the thing - people do these things because they care. Responding in a face-ripping manner cuts their heart. If something that someone does in their care and excitement bothers me, then I need to have grace with them. I need to calmly explain why it bothers me, politely ask them not to do it again, and express my gratitude for their excitement.

Confession here is that this is totally against my sarcastic nature, but I recognize that and am working towards the graceful response rather than the snarky, cutting response. Pray for me.

Patience is Required: I want to meet my baby NOW. I want to feel his or her soft skin and fuzzy baby hair and yes - even change the first diaper. However, God has designed us so that the miracle of life takes up to 40 weeks to happen. This means that I do not get to meet my baby now - if I do, the baby is not in a good place and of course I do not want that to happen. And so, I must be patient. I wait patiently for the first kick, the next doctor's appointment, and that magical moment when I give birth to our Little Person sometime next spring. I rest in God's plan for pregnancy and know He designed it this way for a reason. Besides, if I can't be patient now - how am I ever going to manage parenting?

Husbands are Amazing: Not that I didn't already appreciate Steve, but there's something about having his wife pregnant that has transformed something in him. Maybe it's because I'm carrying our child, but he is really shining as a partner in the marriage since we found out we're pregnant. In listening to other wives talk about how their husbands were, I know that this is not a unique thing to just Steve. Husbands are wonderful; they are strength when we fall apart, they are a hand to squeeze when things hurt, and above all they want the absolute best for you and the child you are carrying. Steve has been to every doctor's appointment we've had (even relatively inconsequential ones), has jumped at opportunities to do every small thing related to baby, serves me at any opportunity, watches out to make sure I'm taking care of myself, and even took the initiative in getting us pregnancy books. He is my partner, lover, best friend, companion... he is amazing.

BFFs - Jamaica 2011

Reliance on God: Nothing in my life has taught me about the importance of relying on God the way that pregnancy has. I can fool myself in all sorts of areas that I can solely rely on me; financial success, reaching goals, and gaining knowledge and wisdom are just a few of the areas where I can make myself believe that I am completely in control. In those areas I can think that I earn my money (rather than God blessing me with resources), that I create my own destiny (rather than trusting in God's plan for my life), and that I can seek and gain wisdom & knowledge (with any guidance from the Holy Spirit) all by my onesies. However - only God can grow, develop, and perfect the little miracle that is growing inside of me right now. Are there things I can do to assist because the folks that God has gifted with medical knowledge have done the research and know the "right things" for pregnant ladies to do? Sure. But at the end of the day, Little Person is in the hands of God right now. He is knitting our Little Person as I type this (Psalm 139:13-16).

I know I have a long way to go before Little Person arrives and several milestones to hit, but I feel incredibly blessed with the lessons that I have already taken from this experience. Before we became pregnant, I was just excited to have our first child. But now that we are - I am excited at the experiences and growth that come along with being a parent, start to finish.

Scents of Fall

2011-09-16T10:17:00.000-04:00

Last year I talked a bit about what I love about the fall in a general sense, but this year I want to tell you a bit about one of the other things I love about the fall - and those are the beautiful smells that start to abound this time of year. Every season has its share of odors, and fall is one that has some of the most distinct and memory-invoking.

Cinnamon & Spice: Whether it's in cider, pumpkin spice lattes, or warm apple crisps - one of the things that happens in the fall is that the smell of cinnamon, nutmeg, and other similar spices can be met in many of the kitchens or restaurants you walk into. There's something about looking out over the changing trees, holding a cup of warm mulled cider in your hands, and letting the scents of cinnamon mixed with apple blanket you in comfort.

Leaves: Remember when you were a kid and you'd waddle through a pile of leaves? First of all - I have no idea why we did this as kids, as the pass-time seems a bit silly at this point. I can't tell you how many pairs of tights I ruined trudging through leaf piles. Either way - even to this day there's something pleasant that I find about the smell that is kicked up when a pile of leaves is rustled. It's like nature's own fall scratch-n-sniff sticker.

Apples: This is the time of year when people who live in an area that has access to it begin to flock to the apple orchards and pick their own apples. If you go to a GOOD orchard, they let you eat the apples as you pick them so you know if you want to gather more from that area of the orchard or not. As people pluck the apples and take a few bites - they end up on the ground around the bases of the trees. When this happens, what you get is a general scent of apple throughout the area... not that you wouldn't anyways because, you know, it's an orchard - but that adds to it for sure.

Friday Night: Popcorn, Hot Chocolate & Sweat Trifecta: Go to a high school football game and you'll know what I mean by this bizarre mix of scents. I haven't experienced this in many years, but just thinking of it reminds me of going to games both as a regular student and as a member of the marching band all 4 years of high school. Some Fridays, there's not much I can think of that would be more enjoyable than heading back to Nicholson Field in Methuen and catching a game... just for old time's sake.

Thanksgiving: Turkey in the oven, cornbread stuffing with sage, simmering fresh cranberry sauce, cider in the Crockpot... there are few more comforting things I can think of than the way a home smells the day of Thanksgiving. Thinking of the crisp chill in the air every year with the warmth of food and family inside our home is a beautiful picture on my heart. In fact, right now I'm thinking about it and I just want to pop a turkey in the oven over the weekend for the sake of having this smell in my house.

Now for the ulterior motive to this post... to tell you about a GIVEAWAY I heard about... one of the blogs I follow - Fashion Meets Food - is having a giveaway of 2 sets of Bath & Body Works candles in their fall scent line up! Since fall is one of my favorite seasons... ok, definitely my favorite season... I had to a) enter this contest myself and b) share it with my few readers out there so that you could try to get these candles as well.

To enter - just leave a comment on the post (link below) telling the author which set you would prefer and what your favorite part about the fall is. For extra entries, you can follow her blog and/or tweet/blog/post about her giveaway on Facebook. Super easy to enter this contest to get some fantastic fall smells for your home!

CLICK HERE TO HEAD TO THE CONTEST!!!

On Love & Freeze Pops

2011-09-09T13:54:00.000-04:00

I remember being young, running around in the hot summer heat, and finding respite in a tube of frozen flavored sugar water. My mom would cut the top off with a pair of scissors and hand it to me. I would sit in front of a fan or the window and enjoy my freeze-pop. I would chomp on the ice, suck the cold "juice" from the tube when it was gone, and appreciate every second of coolness that the frozen tube of goodness would provide.

We didn't have air conditioning... this was how we found a bit of a cool breeze on a hot summer day.

One day last week I was driving to work and needed a break from the baseball talk that was on the radio, so I switched over to NPR. There I heard David Boeri reporting on the hot conditions of a Cambridge jail. The jail - which is designed to hold 160 - is currently home to over 400 inmates who are waiting for trial to find out what their fate will be. The jails in the state of Massachusetts are notoriously falling apart and overcrowded, and as anyone knows when you get too many people crammed into one place - it is rare that anything good comes from that.

Add to that a lack of air conditioning during some of the hottest days of the year, as well as the presumed short-fuses that many criminals tend to have - and what you have on your hands is a potential for disaster.

Unless... unless you remember that these are human beings being kept within the overcrowded walls of the jail. Human beings who are overheating and anxious as they have no idea what the fate of the next months or years of their lives will be. Human beings with families that they are likely stressed about whether or not they'll ever see again. Human beings that may be living with the guilt of their crimes.

Human beings who, at their core, want nothing more than compassion and love just like the rest of us.

So when you come to this realization, what do you do with it? Do you ignore it and write these people off as mere criminals who should rot in the cells and suffer with their emotions & heat? If you are one of the officers of this facility, do you ignore it... or do you listen to the strings being pulled on your heart and offer an ounce of compassion?

In this case... they chose compassion.

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Matthew 25:35-40

If you've never had a freeze pop, it really is a quick way to boost your sugar level and cool off for a few minutes when you're drained in hot, disgusting weather. And they are incredibly inexpensive - as the folks in the story mention, they are about $0.03/each. These little tubes of sugar water can be incredibly refreshing when you think that the heat will never end. I don't know what it was that inspired the prison worker who's idea this was to hand these out, but whatever the inspiration it clearly was one with heart behind it. I don't know the prison worker's religious standing, but we can certainly look at his simple actions as an act of what Jesus has called us to... compassion, love for one another, and a heart for those in our society who have been outcast - in this case because of their actions.

But all 400-odd prisoners are God's children. They may have strayed, but they still belong to Him and in each of them - He is there.

I think back to those sweat-drenching summer days, trying to find the article of clothing that would best keep me cool to wear that day and hoping there were freeze pops on-hand someplace to give me a bit of respite. I would like to think that maybe the worker's inspiration came from a memory similar to mine, and maybe in those few moments while they're chomping on sugar ice for a bit of a cool down the inmates can close their eyes and have similar nostalgic moments. I picture a group of 5 or 6 inmates, sitting near a fan or window, eyes closed, freeze pop tube to their lips, finding those brief moments of respite from the heat.

And maybe for the first time in a long time feeling like someone cares enough about them to notice how they're feeling. Cares enough to reach out and even with a simple gesture acknowledge that even though they are caged... they are still God's children, they are still loved.

In the simple act of a freeze-pop, these inmates are able to experience a bit of love & heaven in an otherwise hellish atmosphere.

“...it’s a nice gesture — it says that ‘We care that you’re hot, cool you down for a few minutes,’ you know, they don’t have to do this. They treat you good here. They treat you like human beings.” - Robert Asarian, prisoner - one year away from trial

Click here to read the whole story - At the Middlesex Jail, Simple Gestures Help Keep the Peace

Hard Work?

2011-08-26T17:06:00.000-04:00

Three years ago this month, I weighed 225.6 lbs and felt terrible. I was lethargic, didn't enjoy physical activity (but was reminiscent of when I did as a kid), and ate too much food - too much of which was poor quality.

Three years ago this month, Steve and I made a commitment to change our health & our lifestyle. I now reside in the 145-149 range, 75-80 lbs lighter than I used to be. I ran in a 5K last year and hope to do at least one more this fall. My blood sugar levels have stabilized and neither Steve nor I have any cholesterol issues any longer. I dropped from a size 20 in denial (I wore an 18 out of protest) to a size 10, sometimes an 8 depending on the article of clothing. Three years later - I'm still not at the ideal weight that my doctors would like to see me at ultimately, but I keep working at it even though I am at a plateau and my doctors are generally pleased with where my health is at. Steve and I feel fantastic.

A question we're commonly asked: What's your secret? How did you do it?

In the age of the obesity epidemic & millions of quick-fix/short-cuts to losing weight, we decided to give it a whirl the old-fashioned way and see if doctors were full of crap or not. We changed our diet habits and started to exercise. As the pounds started to melt off, we celebrated small milestones (200! 175! 150! Holy crap I weigh less and look better than I did in high school!) and kept plugging along. We've been through periods of counting every. single. calorie that has gone into our bodies and now know the secrets to resetting our bodies after a vacation. We go to the gym 5 days/week at least and just recently bought bikes to get out and ride after work and on the weekends. Through commitment and hard work, our lifestyle has completely changed - completely for the better.

So why am I telling you this?

Recently our good friend John gave his first sermon and in it he talked about faith. I was pumped for him; he serves in the youth ministry alongside us and I knew his energy would lend for a great message that morning. In the middle of his sermon, he started talking about today's Western Culture looking for immediate fixes and how when people want to lose weight there are those who will work for it with diet & exercise, and then there are those who will sit on the couch watching TV using one of those contraptions that are supposed to give you a six-pack while you do nothing.

Then he said this statement that has stuck with me since Sunday:

"Jesus is NOT an 'Ab Zapper'!"

This has stuck with me all week because it felt like God had grabbed my head and pointed it up at John at that exact moment. I realized with that statement that too often I approach my relationship with Jesus much as our culture tends to approach dieting. I have my salvation, I rest in that... but maybe too comfortably. I don't always follow the spiritual disciplines the way I should... sometimes I forget to rely on Jesus as the leader in my life and instead trust myself. Sometimes I am not good at communicating with Him through prayer, and I'm going to openly admit here and now that I am terrible about keeping up with my scripture readings.

I need to be approaching my relationship with Jesus with the same drive, desire, and discipline as I approached weight loss. Until I have the same habit-changes in my spiritual life that I now have with my weight change lifestyle, I need to be engaging in habit-changing behaviors that point me on the path that gets me closer to Jesus. And like I was able to have Steve as a partner when things got tough in weight loss, I look to him to encourage me in my spiritual disciplines as well - and vice versa. At the end of the day, I will not see the kind of deep relationship with Jesus that I know in my heart that I long for if I do not chase after it hard all the time.

At the end of the day, I have no good answer to the question "why haven't I been as disciplined in my spiritual journey as I was in my weight loss journey?". I have only myself to blame for that, I know what it takes to have hard work & perseverance pay off in a big way. I need to stop facing my relationship with Jesus like most of America faces the prospect of attaining a healthy lifestyle. After all, spiritual health is a big part of total health - arguably THE biggest.

Respite

2011-08-12T07:17:00.001-04:00

I'm not sure if any of you have heard - but President Obama is going on vacation next week. He'll be taking what seems to be becoming an annual summer stay on Martha's Vineyard with his wife and kids.

And if you've heard about that, you've probably also heard about the folks who are all up in arms because the President is taking a vacation while the economy is in the tank and markets are in flux and unemployment is high.

Now... I normally try to avoid teetering on politics on the blog, and really what I'm about to say isn't all that political. It's a bit more pragmatic than it is political.

I'll touch briefly on the economy before I get to my real point. A couple of weeks ago Steve and I went to a baseball game wearing non-descript T-shirts and jeans. If you didn't hear us cheering, you never would have known that we were there to see the Red Sox play. So after some deliberation, we decided to go ahead and get ourselves Red Sox caps (queue Kenny Chesney music...) to the tune of $50 total. Steve posted a picture on Facebook & Twitter of us in our new caps with a comment of why the heck did we just spend $50 on Red Sox caps.

Doing our part for the economy and Red Sox Nation.

Within minutes he received a comment from a friend of ours reminding us that we're Americans and the economy needs us to spend money in order to be stimulated. Economies are stimulated when money - real money, not lots of credit card usage - is spent by those who are able to spend it. President Obama (like all presidents before him) makes a substantial salary for running one of the most powerful nations in the world; if he wants to spend $50,000 of his money to rent a beach house - please, by all means - let the man stimulate the economy.

Now... onto the bigger point I want to make. This one goes out to all those critics who are saying that President Obama shouldn't be taking a vacation "right now, when everything is a mess". All due respect - you're wrong.

Yesterday I was waiting for my coffee to be dispensed out of the company Keurig when I noticed that the President was speaking on TV. The first thing I noticed is that he - like other Presidents before him - seems to have aged during his time in office. He looked tired and his hair had greyed. Being the President of the United States of America is one of the hardest, most taxing jobs in the world. Personal politics and beliefs aside - whoever is in this position is looking into the face of at least 4 years of some of the hardest work they're ever going to have to do. Looking at Barack Obama's face yesterday and seeing that gray hair, I could tell that the job is starting to take its toll on him just like it had on those who came before.

And yes... I've heard the reports of how much this is going to cost taxpayers in Secret Service costs and blah blah blah. I get it. That's partially my money too - so to that I say please, spend the money to give Mr. President a break and let him recharge his batteries, read books on leadership or whatever, spend time with his family, and rest. The reality is that he's not going to solve all the world's (or country's) economy problems overnight AND if this new committee whose focus is to come up with solutions comes up with something amazing - I'm sure the President will set up an office to review what they come up with and either comment back or sign it or whatever. When you're the "Leader of the Free World", even vacation doesn't mean you get to completely disconnect.

And let's not forget that tourists will buy anything - which means that Obama's vacation will further put money into the economy in apparent T-Shirt sales.

This morning I read a commentary about this whole thing and wanted to share this one excerpt with you that I think sums up and helps to drive home what I'm getting at:

But former Clinton spokesman Mike McCurry says that every president needs a break from the confines of the White House.

"We do need to let these guys have vacations and do some reading and thinking outside the box," he said.

What's more, keeping a sizeable crew of aides nearby is critical, he said. "Remember Clinton's trip to Martha's Vineyard in August 1998 when we ended up trying to decapitate bin Laden with a cruise missile strike? That's why the 'entourage' has to accommodate all aspects of the presidency, even on vacation. You never know what might happen..."

There is one other thing... taking a break is so important to how we're wired and how we're created that God requires it of us. Let me explain briefly.

When God created the heavens and the earth, the fish in the sea, the birds on the land, and then capped the whole thing off by creating man & woman - He took a break. All of that creation was a lot of hard work to have to accomplish, and He had a lot more work to do so he took a step back and recharged His batteries. We are created in His image... when we have done a lot of work and have a lot more to do, it's important for us to take a step back and recharge our batteries too. He has designed us to need to do this periodically, and so I appreciate that Mr. Obama is willing to make a point to take a vacation every year. It's setting a positive example for our country - step back, recharge, enjoy the blessings you have in your family and in your life. Do you need to go to the Vineyard - no. You can go in your own backyard with a grill and some suntan lotion. You can take a day at the beach. But for crying out loud - take a break. Your brain, your body, your outlook needs it. You are designed that way by God as a child of His created in His image.

So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation. (Genesis 2:3, ESV)

And let's not forget that He even gave it to Moses as part of the 10 Commandments - you know, incase His example of taking a break wasn't enough that He had to put it in writing for us.

Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. (Exodus 20:8-11)

You were designed by God to workworkworkworkwork and then REST. And so was President Obama. He's one of God's children too. Let him be and let him do what God designed him and requires us to do.

Mr. President - enjoy your vacation. If you can, try to get over to Back Door Donuts and have a fritter for me.

On Letting God

2011-08-04T14:09:00.001-04:00

There's a problem that I face every time a loved one's personal crisis bubbles to the surface: I want to fix it.

It is in the very nature of who I am as a person. Some people are people pleasers, some are peace keepers, some are instigators. Me... I'm a fixer. When there's a problem I want everyone to see what their part in the issue is and fix it for themselves and the people they're affecting.

Over the years I have learned that this isn't necessarily the healthiest of traits to have. It can lead to a lot of undue personal stress, codependency issues, conflict, and butt-in-ski syndrome. When I discovered the person I am in Christ and began to uncover the path that God has set for me, I realized that this isn't something to be ignored either. I can use this desire to fix to be an encouragement or soundboard for reasonable advice when requested.

So where is the balance?

Recently I confided in a friend about some issues that have bubbled to the surface in our family. This is one of those friends who, when you're in her presence, you just FEEL Jesus. You know that God has in her plan to be an encourager, a reminder of Him, and an ambassador of His love within five minutes of being in her presence. So it was no surprise to me that when I confided in her that her almost immediate response boiled down to a reminder of the things that were important for me to remember.

Encourage, don't enable. Support, set up boundaries. Love, don't try to change.

The balance on the tightrope of a sticky situation is tricky for someone who is a fixer, this is something I have learned over the years. I have learned to listen to God in the midst of the chaos to be that voice of reason to guide me and coach me through the balancing act.

"You cannot change them, leave that to Me..." with a gentle nudge on my elbow to come back to the center.

"You cannot be in the middle, it won't leave room for Me..." with an encouraging pull back to the balance of the rope.

If I do not listen to God, if I do not slow down and let Him do His work... I can fracture relationships, compromise my own health (both mental and physical), and downplay or neglect the importance of His role in the chaos.

I cannot fix everything. He can. And let's not forget that just because I want something fixed does not mean that it is necessarily in God's plan. If it is - I still cannot fix it. There are two things that I cannot ever control: God and others.

Why not?

Because He gave us free will. And He is in ultimate control. I can pray for people to feel His presence, to listen to His guidance, to know that He loves them, for Him to move in their lives and bring them to a positive place.

But I cannot control them, I cannot control Him. I can only control myself, my actions, and the degree to which I turn down the volume of the chaos around me and listen for His voice. We've all heard the saying that we need to "let go and let God": for me this is much easier said than done. But I know that when I do... when I step aside and pass the tools to God and let Him do the fixing... things always work out better in the end because they work out according to His plan and not mine.

And in the long run, it's His plan that's the better one anyways and His handiwork that can do amazing things in people's hearts to heal, nurture, and grow.

A Tale of Love and Chefs

2011-07-29T16:29:00.000-04:00

"So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

(John 13:34-35, NLT)

Hi. My name is Danielle and I love competitive cooking shows on Food Network.

No, really. My favorite is the show "Chopped" hosted by Ted Allen. If you've never seen it, the basic premise is that 4 chefs who are fantastic at what they do compete to win $10,000 by cooking 3 dishes (appetizer, entree, dessert) using mystery ingredients and the pantry & fridge that are in the kitchen. The producers do a fantastic job of making sure you get a good picture of the personalities of the chefs, which is great so that you can make a good decision of who to cheer for.

Steve and I's all-time favorite "Chopped" champion was Madison Cowan, who actually ended up winning $50,000 on a massive "Chopped Champions" tournament. He's a Jamaican/British/American dude with a fantastic attitude towards food - he feels like it needs to speak to and come from your soul - and an amazing story of overcoming odds to do amazing things for himself and his young daughter. When he won the first time before progressing on to "Chopped Champions", he beat a Christian fellow named Lance who is the head chef for "Camp in the Woods" - a Christian camp in New York State.

Madison Cowan in his first appearance on "Chopped". Start at about 6:00 to see his dessert battle with Chef Lance.

Chef Lance has also turned out to be another one of Steve & I's favorite chefs to have appeared on "Chopped" since we've been watching it because of his super-positive attitude and his boldness in professing his faith on a nationally televised cable program. This week we pulled up the latest & greatest episode of "Chopped" on our DVR to find ourselves greeted with a special edition of the show: "Chopped: Redemption".

Food Network brought back some of their almost-winners to compete for a second chance at becoming a "Chopped" champion for one episode. As soon as I saw the lead-in bumper (is that the right phrase?), I said to Steve: "Oh! It's that Christian camp guy!"... and we knew immediately who we were cheering for to win (especially after one of the other dudes had a huge attitude problem... he got cut immediately).

As the show progressed, the clips that highlighted Chef Lance always showed him talking about his faith. How he tries to show grace in everything he does because he's been given such beautiful, undeserved grace by God. How he used to be a huge jerk before he found his faith. How he draws on God for strength & inspiration in the kitchen. And in the last round - it came down to Chef Lance and Chef Yoanne; a sweet, French chef who was hoping to win the money to be able to go to France and spend some time with her grandmother who had basically raised her, taught her to cook, and was an important part of her life.

The two chefs whipped up their desserts and presented them to the judges for the final decision on the grand prize. Here's the end result:

I'll admit, I shed a couple of tears at this moving ending to a relatively ordinary cooking game show. It was so awesome to see genuine care and love in action... and there are two things that you don't see in this clip that make this even more moving:

1. Earlier in the show, Chef Lance comments to her about how he was moved to hear the story of how her grandmother had taken care of her.
2. During the second round, Chef Yoanne had slipped, fell, and dropped a pan of scalding hot potatoes on both her legs and one hand. This meant that she pushed through the dessert round in a lot of pain, but with a deep determination to push through and try to win so she could see her grandmother.

To be honest - even though Chef Lance was the guy we were cheering for, we were certain that he didn't win. But in the end - he not only won, but was able to publicly display unsolicited love and generosity towards this woman he had just met that day to help her get to see her grandmother. To not only do it, but to be bold enough to do it in a way that made it known that he was working so hard to live out his life in a way that honors the way that God calls us to live... it was an amazing, rare thing to see.

Thank you, Chef Lance, for showing us that not all reality TV has to be terrible... sometimes it can show us the amazing hearts that God has designed us to have.

12 New Things - Sushi

2011-07-15T12:53:00.001-04:00

Those of you who read my blog regularly might remember that I had joined the 12 New Things challenge last year and checked three things off of my list (covering chairs, making my own black bean burgers, and snorkeling). Those of you who are good at math are thinking right now that three does not equal twelve.

You're right - it equals three. Good job.

Anyways, in full disclosure the challenge fizzled out across the board. The originator openly admitted her life was incredibly crazy and she couldn't keep up; truth be told, I just lost track. So now my "12 New Things" list is still in action, it's just significantly slower going than was originally intended.

Now that the confessions are out of the way... I am pleased to announce that I can finally check one off the list (that I had actually been putting off for a lot longer than the existence of the list): I tried sushi.

When Steve and I went to Martha's Vineyard, we had originally wanted to have dinner our first night at the Offshore Ale Company because the idea of a fun, pub dinner appealed to us. We arrived, discovered they had a 45-minute wait, put our name in - and looked elsewhere to see if we could find something else. After a check on Yelp, we decided to walk a couple of blocks over to the Lookout Tavern. They got great reviews... including rave reviews about their sushi.

I looked at Steve. We agreed. It was time for me to try the raw slimy stuff.

To start, I have to say that I loved the atmosphere of Lookout Tavern. It's seat yourself, super laid back, has a chill bar-ish atmosphere without being loud & obnoxious. The place breeds friendly, social contact among its patrons; we sat next to a group of women who were out for dinner & drinks that were pleasant to talk with. Not only that - but the waitstaff were fantastic. Our waiter was personable, offered up great suggestions, was prompt and attentive. We really enjoyed our visit and all the food was great. Plus, they served Magner's Hard Cider which is an automatic win in my book.

Mmmmm... Magners...

But enough about that. I know you're chomping at the bit, wondering about my first foray into the world of sushi.

After perusing their relatively extensive sushi menu and resisting the temptation to fall back upon tempura (which is fried and therefore not entirely sushi in my opinion), we decided to get two rolls to share. We ordered a spicy tuna roll and a yellowfin crunchy roll; somewhere in the back of my head I heard an old college friend's voice telling me that tuna was probably the right way to go when I finally did try sushi, so that was part of what drove the decision. It came out quickly, I took a deep breath, and followed the soy-sauce dipping instructions of my handsome companion. Without further delay... I popped the first spicy tuna roll in my mouth and took my first taste of raw-fish sushi.

Open wide! And don't mock my terrible chopsticks technique.

What happened next was almost like a scene out of a 1980's Life cereal commercial with me as the Mikey character: I liked it! Danielle liked it!

I really, really enjoyed every bite of the sushi that we got. The spicy tuna was quite good, but the yellowfin crunchy roll was my favorite. What made it crunchy were breadcrumbs around the outside and a small bite of apple rolled in with the fish & avocado. The flavors were so good that I had to resist the temptation to steal some of Steve's 4 pieces that he had for himself. The most impressive part in my opinion? I was enjoying the sushi so much that I didn't want to taint the taste of it with anymore soy sauce. I ate it in its raw, naked state until the last piece of my share of the sushi was gone.

And I wanted more... but we had a chicken sandwich coming that we were going to share and we also had our excursion to Back Door Donuts to take into consideration. Alas, no more sushi for me that night. The good news though - especially for Steve who loves food adventures - is that I've opened up a whole new level of the game of food for myself. With so many friends that love to go out for sushi, I no longer have to be the wet blanket who whines and says "waaah... but I don't liiiike sushi..."

Because I do. I like sushi, and want to try more of it.

Dentists...

2011-07-13T14:57:00.000-04:00

"Dentists tell you not to pick at your teeth with any sharp, metal objects. Then you sit in their chair... and the first thing they pick up is a sharp, metal hook." - Bill Cosby

I once heard a statistic that among professions, the highest suicide rate was with those who are dentists. Now, I have no idea how true that is - but I suppose it makes some sense when you think about it. How many other professions do people say they have to go to an appointment for with such audible groans, heavy complaints, and verbal hatred? There are very few; even a major mechanical issue with your car or an emergency doctor's visit produces an eye roll or heavy sigh at worst with most people.

Me? There are definitely places I'd rather be than in the dentist's chair. At least until something happened to my perspective and thinking yesterday.

When I went to my intake appointment at our new dentist, my stomach sank when she told me that I had 13 surfaces that needed to be filled or watched. My last dentist had already done 9, and so these were either repeat offenders or new ones. I'm a known case of needing either high-dosage novocaine or multiple shots of the stuff, so not only would the drilling need to commence but so would the hours of facial numbness.

Lovely.

After my first round of fillings I fought the urge to put off making the second appointment for the next round. I was a good girl and went ahead to make it. Besides, there was a spot in between two teeth that was bothering me when I flossed that my dentist promised would be involved in the next round of fillings.

A few weeks passed, and the time came for me to head in for round two of the drill and fill. I left work at 3:45 and for the first time in a while didn't feel anywhere near as nervous as I had in the past. When I arrived at the dentist and the secretary told me that my secondary insurance (through Steve's work) had covered the balance of my last round of fillings, my nervousness completely dissipated. As I sat in the waiting room staring at the news before it was my turn in the chair, I pondered on where that well-known nervousness had gone.

As I watched on the news about a car fire that happened on my route home not long after I had driven by (which would have made me late for my appointment), God spoke to my heart: "I took it. You don't need that nervousness, you are blessed with this opportunity."

Now... I know what you're thinking. Blessed with the opportunity to go to the dentist and get drills and needles stuck into my face? Yeah, right.

But just think about this for a moment: there are people all over the world who have no means to prevent cavities, gingivitis, or other oral ailments. Toothbrushes, toothpaste, floss, mouthwash, tongue scrapers are all foreign objects to hundreds of thousands of people in developing countries. When their teeth inevitably begin to decay there aren't any means of treatment readily accessible to them which means that either the teeth they have will rot and fall out of their head OR they could develop an infection that if it spread or went untreated could become lethal.

Can you imagine getting a simple cavity that could kill you?

Our students just got back on Saturday from a 6-day missions trip to Nassau, Bahamas where they served alongside 35-ish other students & leaders from other area churches to help fix-up an HIV/AIDS residential camp. While they were able to use the gifts of their health, strength, resources, and abilities to help rebuild this camp for the residents, they received a wonderful gift from God of being able to see what true, unabashed faith in Him really looks like. One of our leaders and a dear friend of mine Elyse who went on the trip has been posting a daily journal of their experience, and she put it this way:

All of the residents have a unbreakable faith and a spiritual wealth amidst their conditions, maybe even because of their conditions. And I fear I will never know it. The worst part is, I wouldn’t trade what I have for what they have, and it makes me feel like I am missing the mark. In many ways they have a richness that I will never know.

Let me just tell you that even though I did not go on the trip and very likely was not even close to affected by the trip as the way those who DID go were, I can tell you that hearing the stories of how people were moved by God's work there has been a forceful perspective and great inspiration for me over the last few days. This dental business has been just one of those ways that I've seen this take shape.

I am a woman in a country where I can basically do and be whatever I want to do and be. I live in a part of the world where I can work hard, draw a paycheck, receive access to incredible medical care AND insurance where I actually pay for very little of it. I can have access to food whenever I want it - and oh, by the way, I pay to belong to a part of a farm where someone else does all the work and I reap the benefits. I don't need to walk for miles to get water that I only HOPE is clean - I merely have to turn on my faucet.

Forget what my paycheck says - I am ridiculously blessed just by virtue of being an American citizen with all the opportunity that comes along with that.

Blessings are gifts from God because He loves us and none of the resources that I have are mine because I deserve them: they are mine because they are a gift. Dental Insurance is a GIFT. Access to clean dental care to prevent rot & infection is a GIFT. Everything that God has provided me with is a gift - if I don't use it with a joyful heart and make the best of it... that probably breaks his heart knowing that there are other children of His who do not have what I have who would not take any of it for granted.

And so, yesterday as the numbness wore off in my face and I began to feel a dull ache in the three back teeth where I had been drilled, filled, and sent on my way - my heart became chock-full of gratefulness. For God has blessed me with more than I ever could have asked for and definitely more than I can ever possibly need... and for some reason, He decided that a gentle reminder about going to the dentist was going to be how He reminded me of this.

Go 'Round Back

2011-06-30T13:22:00.000-04:00

Steve and I are planners by nature, so of course when we knew we had a weekend coming up in Martha's Vineyard we needed to make sure we mapped out places we were going to eat. While looking through Yelp and a couple of travel books for recommended places, Steve stumbled upon this place called "Back Door Donuts".

Before I go any further, if you don't know then you should know that my husband has a weakness for baked goods. Delicious warm cookies or donuts are a huge temptation for him, and that weakness is multiplied exponentially when the words "apple fritter" or "cannoli" are involved.

So imagine the reaction when, while looking through Yelp reviews of "Back Door Donuts", that Steve had when more than one reviewer left comments that the apple fritters served at this establishment were "orgasmic". I do believe there was eye-popping and excited pointing at my laptop that had I not immediately typed furiously onto the keyboard and added it to the list we were compiling, I'm pretty sure Steve might have exploded like the old Starburst commercials. Needless to say - we were going to Back Door Donuts.

After a shared dinner at The Lookout in Oak Bluffs, we made our way over to BDD. We had checked at the front counter earlier in the day (the store is actually called "Martha's Vineyard Gourmet Bakery") and knew 7:30 PM was the magical time that they started to serve donuts & pastries. What we didn't know was where to find them; we could smell them, but didn't know where to go to get them. The nice lady at the counter told us to follow the building and head around to the back - and that we'd know where to go from there. She wasn't kidding - when we got to the back of the building, there was quite a line already formed waiting for the deliciousness.

Steve stepped out of line to snap this. You can see me across from the lady in the white t-shirt. I'm wearing a blue sweatshirt, glasses, and have a lighter blue purse handle.

I will say this about standing in a line like this: there's a feeling that comes along with. A feeling of coolness, a feeling of being in the "in-club", those who KNOW things. This isn't the kind of place that you stumble on while walking through downtown Oak Bluffs; you won't see the line while strolling by shops and restaurants because the back door is nestled between the back of a small mom & pop grocer and the small strip of shops the bakery's front is in. Basically - in order to find this place you have to KNOW about it before getting to it somehow.

After about a 10-minute wait in line, we were at the window. We ordered an apple-fritter each and shared a glazed donut. After hearing me order an apple fritter, Steve pointed at a monstrosity and commented that I should have gotten the cinnamon bun... what he didn't realize that we soon discovered is that the plate-sized object he pointed at was the famed apple fritter itself. It was seriously the size of a salad plate, was warm and gooey (but not TOO gooey), and had a smattering of fresh cinnamon apples across the top. Frankly, it looked closer to a loaf of apple monkey bread than an apple fritter... and also looked delicious, which made us excited to dig in.

Fritter sitting on Steve's lap waiting to be eaten. It's freaking huge.

We got about halfway through this beast before we had to take a break; thankfully, Steve had run into the front of the bakery and got us some waters to help wash it down. It was SO good. It was warm, sticky without making you filthy and gross feeling, had what could be the perfect amount of cinnamon, wasn't greasy but yet almost melted in your mouth. What I loved about this fritter over others is that instead of that jellied apple goo, they actually put fresh chopped apples tossed in cinnamon sugar on top. It was the perfect "garnish" to this giant, delicious fried cake. Needless to say that even after sharing dinner and purposely leaving room for this puppy, we were both incredibly full.

But the question is: was it worth it? Absolutely. We made sure that others who were walking by smelling our delicious fritters knew exactly where they could get them. One couple saw us eating them, assumed we got them from the bakery, and when the wife went inside I told the husband to get her out of there and go around to the back. He ran in after her and off they went. It was awesome helping others to be "in the know", spreading the word about the amazingness that is Back Door Donuts.

Sounds of the Vineyard

2011-06-28T14:25:00.000-04:00

Last weekend, Steve and I took a 3-day trip down to Martha's Vineyard as a late anniversary weekend. We had lots of good food, saw a lot of cool things, made an inventory of what we would want to do if we came again. One of the things we want to make sure we set time aside to see if we go to the Vineyard again I just had to share with you in the event you're planning to head down there at all this summer.

Friday night as we were recovering from our food hangover from Back Door Donuts (which will have its own post dedicated to it soon), we were walking back to our hotel past St. Andrew's Church in Edgartown when Steve paused and commented that he thought it was weird to have church services so late. There was music and lights coming through the stained glass windows and it sounded GOOD. We wandered over to the wide-open doors of the church because we wanted to see for ourselves what was going on - and we found something we wished we'd known about sooner.

In the front of the room were 8 or 10 college-aged young men singing A-Capella for a crowd of about 30-50 people. They were snapping their fingers, smiling, and as only would be seen on the Vineyard were dressed in untucked blue button-down shirts, solid colored ties (each guy had a different color), khaki shorts, and no shoes. That's right - a preppy A-Capella group which we found out were appropriately named The Vineyard Sound.

We happened to come at just the right time for the end of the song "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" and let me tell you - the guy singing lead on that had so much energy and soul that you could not help but get energized with him as each word passed out of his lungs. Outside the church sanctuary stood a simple folding table with a cash box open for accepting cash and a few stacks of CD's letting everyone know that the beautiful voices coming out of the church were those of the Vineyard Sound.

Vineyard Sound is exactly what it looks like - a group of college-aged young men who sing A-Capella on Martha's Vineyard. They arrive on the island in early June, practice heavily all summer and perform around the island in various venues. If you are on the Vineyard at all this summer, make sure to check their performance schedule ahead of time and plan on stopping in to one of their shows. I know that we wish we had known about them sooner - trust me, you won't regret it. Steve and I both agree that these guys could easily be in the same league as Straight No Chaser.

Here are some YouTube videos of their performances... kind of a "Try Before You Buy" so you don't just have to take my word for it.

The 2011 Vineyard Sound performing "Southern Cross".

The 2008 Vineyard Sound performing "Signed, Sealed, Delivered". The 2011 VS are the guys we saw sing this - they were just as good, and better live.

I Don't Do Mice...

2011-06-22T12:32:00.000-04:00

"I hear rustling... like... going through bags..."

Yesterday we discovered we had a mouse invade our kitchen. Previously we knew that they had infiltrated our attic and have caught several since we moved in last year, but not before yesterday had any made their way into the rest of the house. Steve had picked up 2 bags of toasted coconut marshmallows to make Rice Krispie treats with, opened a bag to try one, scrunched it closed, left to do a quick errand - and came back to find that 2 of them had made their way half-nibbled out onto the counter complete with a gift of a dropping from the mallow-thief.

Let me make one thing abundantly clear: I don't do mice. Steve knows this. When this happened, he reacted fast and perfectly. He upped the number of traps in the attic from 7 to 10 and we now have 4 or 5 "safe" traps in the kitchen. Mice are not allowed in my house unless I buy one from a pet store and keep it in an aquarium.

So last night at about 11:00 we were wrapping up a conversation and getting ready to head to bed when I heard it. The unmistakable sound of plastic bags being rustled around. I stiffened, pointed at the door, and announced what I heard. "I hear rustling... like... going through bags..."

Steve immediately stood and responded to my obvious concern. The memory of the bunches of spiders I have killed for him over the years came running to his mind (maybe not, I just imagine it that way) and he got into action. He's the man of the house, we had an invader, and it was unacceptable to him to have this unwanted visitor laying claim to his snacks (and spooking his wife). He headed down the stairs and I heard him stop moving so that he could stand and listen for movement. The door to the pantry opened and then I heard silence, like one of those pregnant pauses in an uncomfortable conversation.

"Uh.... this is awkward."

"What's awkward?"

"I'm staring at him. And he's staring at me."

(Knowing we had clean traps downstairs, I assumed he meant that this was happening through the plastic of the trap.) "So? Get rid of him."

"Yeah... he's not in the trap."

Our intruder had managed to climb up to the top shelf in our pantry and Steve was engaged in an old-school "Who blinks first" staring contest with the vermin. Busted.

To make the next part of the story incredibly short, he managed to trap him on the floor of our pantry, capture him, and eliminate the problem. While Steve was outside finishing the task, I went to work to sort through and get rid of any food product that had been compromised with mouse cooties. 3 bags of chips that I'd mouse-proofed, our Odwalla bars, cereal, hot chocolate... everything seemed clear. Then I saw what I thought were more awful droppings fall to the floor.

A second glance made my stomach drop. That pesky stupid vermin had chosen - of all the delicious things in my pantry - to make his snack of choice our bag of Minnesota Wild Rice. A bag of rice that Steve had brought back with him from his trip to Minneapolis last year that I was hoping to use to make a delicious creation with our CSA this summer. Farm-fresh veggies and wild rice... doesn't that sound like a comforting meal? I thought so too.

No pun intended... but that rat bastard.

Steve came upstairs and asked what the damage was. I pointed at the rice and we both vented in frustration because the wild rice that he especially was looking forward to eating was now tainted and could no longer be consumed."Why," I asked, "of all the things in our pantry did the stupid mouse choose our freaking wild rice? OF ALL THINGS?"

Steve looked at me like he was about to state the obvious. "He's a mouse. They like whole grain."

That wasn't good enough, so I pressed harder. "Then why not the granola bars or the high fiber cereal or the oatmeal?"

Steve paused, then looked at me, shrugged, and said matter of factly:

"Mice eat organic."

Top 5: Summer Reading Suggestions

2011-06-21T13:59:00.000-04:00

I LOVE to read. If there's anything I wish it's that I wish I had more time to do, it's read and read and read. I have always enjoyed burying myself in a book for as long as I can remember - which isn't surprising considering I learned to read at a very young age. It would drive my mom nuts sometimes when I was a kid because on a summer day I would often rather be curled up in a chair in front of a window with a book and the summer breeze than outside playing in the park. And - since today is the first day of summer, I thought it would be appropriate to throw some suggestions for summer reading out there for consideration.

So - I submit to you for consideration my...

Top 5 Summer Reading Suggestions

I'm going to throw a disclaimer out there before I dive in that I recognize that most of my choices are a lot deeper in thought than what most people choose to/prefer to read over the summer. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it) I tend to gravitate towards the kinds of books that make me reflect or challenge me to think on another level. That said... now I'll get started on my list for reals.

The Shack by William Paul Young: I read this book on our Jamaican vacation last year after it was recommended to me by a few different people. Basic synopsis (and I won't explain how it gets there because it will spoil the plot) is that this guy ends up getting an opportunity to spend a weekend in the woods in this old shack with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. What happens to this man, what he discovers, and how the author examines the Holy Trilogy and how we interact with It are absolutely incredible. This was absolutely one of the most powerful books I have ever read and is one that should be read alongside someone you can bounce your thoughts & ideas off of as you go through it. One warning for moms: I've been told by moms that they've either had a hard time reading this book or avoid it because of what they've heard about the story: essentially the main character loses his youngest daughter in a kidnapping while he was dealing with another crisis. (Link to book on Amazon: Click Here)

A Bend in the Road by Nicholas Sparks: This book I admittedly did not read during the summer; I actually read it at the gym over the winter but when I finished it knew that it could have served as a fantastic beach read. It's a Nicholas Sparks book, so you know it's going to be a good romance story from the get-go (checkmark in the beach-read column). The male character is a man who finds himself as a single dad after his wife passes away, and the female character is a single woman who just moved to town and happens to be the teacher of the male character's son. That's all you need to know - anything else is a giant spoiler. I blew threw this book in about 6 sessions of 35 minutes on the recumbent bike and enjoyed it thoroughly. Definitely a great beach or hammock read. (Link to book on Amazon: Click Here)

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert: To put it simply: this is the story of the author's search to find herself after her bitter divorce funded by her publisher after she pitched the idea to them - and she admits this in the opening chapters. She decides to go around the world in search of personal joy, love, and spirituality. The book is a fantastic way to live vicariously through someone else without ever leaving your beach chair, couch, or porch swing. My favorite part of the book that will forever stick in my memory and has since changed the way I try new foods (at least!) is her description of eating and enjoying pizza while on a tour deep in the heart of Italy. I have not seen the movie yet and truthfully I am afraid that the movie didn't do the book justice and that's what I'll find out by watching it. If you haven't seen the movie yet - read the book first. It's 352 pages of the kind of adventure that a woman only dreams about. (Link to book on Amazon: Click Here)

Chocolate: A Bittersweet Saga of Dark and Light by Mort Rosenblum: I read this book a couple of years ago and absolutely fell in love with it. I got it as a random library book, totally unsure of what to expect. What I got was an author who seemingly loves two things: good food and rich history. The book is an account of what would happen if you were to tour the world seeking out the best chocolate, the stories of the chocolatiers, the history behind the origins of chocolate as we know it, and why it is so valued. It is beautifully written and easy to get wrapped up in as you follow this journalist's journey around the world on his quest to learn all he can about chocolate. Are you a chocolate lover who also happens to think history is neat? Read this book this summer. (Link to book on Amazon: Click Here)

The Kite Runner by Khaled Houssaini: I am fully assuming that at this point - most people have read this book or have at least heard of it. This was an absolutely moving story about two young boys from different social classes growing up in Afghanistan. It is a wonderful story about friendship through adversity and is also a great snapshot of what life is like for these two different boys from different classes in a very turbulent area of the world. I could not put this book down when I was reading it and is honestly one of the few books-turned-movie that I have not only been excited to see but was pleased when I saw how well it turned out. If you enjoy what I'll call relatively accurate cultural fiction at all - this is definitely a book to get your hands on. (Link to book on Amazon: Click Here)

There are lots of other books that I could recommend to you that I've read that would make fantastic summer reads, but these are 5 of my absolute favorites that I think are almost "must-reads". There are few books that I would read over again; all of these books are ones that I could see myself giving a second pass to. If you choose any of these - let me know what you think!

Do you have any books that you'd recommend to others?

What are your thoughts on this list?

What's on your "to-read" list this summer?

To Keep or Not to Keep...

2011-06-17T16:30:00.001-04:00

When I was a tween and teenager, I collected troll dolls. You remember them? They had these goofy smiling faces, big noses, various outfits, and multi-colored hair. I thought they were just the cutest darned things. I got them in my stocking at Christmas, my Nana would always give me some as random gifts and at Christmas, and I would get one every so often with money I earned shoveling snow. Eventually I had so many that my stepdad painted a 6' plank white, threw it on some brackets and gave me a shelf to display them in my bedroom. I had one that had a tropical-print bikini top, a yarn "grass" skirt, and bright pink hair. That one was my favorite.

I can't believe I was able to find a picture of this thing... thank you internet!

Time passed and it was time for me to pack up my room and decide what had to get put away until I got home from college. Press-dried color guard flowers displayed in rinsed clean Snapple bottles were discarded, books were donated to the library, and the trolls were packed in a box to be put in the basement. More time passed, I finished college, my parents decided to move to Tennessee and the boxes in the basement needed attention.

It was time to decide: what got put in smaller boxes and stored at my grandparents' house until I was married and in a house - and what got sold at the yard sale. Trophies, medals, my baby book, my first Bible, pictures, autograph books with messages from friends, and a Sesame Street memory book made the cut. It was pretty difficult for me to do, but after much hemming & hawing - I decided to part ways with my beloved troll collection.

The trolls were sold for $0.25/each at the side of the road along with old VHS tapes, clothes, and read books. My favorite one was one of the first to go. What I sold for $0.25 can now be purchased on eBay for $29.99.

That last part is irrelevant, more just a point of interest.

I was thinking of this because I am coming up to a point in my life where I may have to make that decision again. In my office I have managed to collect several bears from various states & places we've been. This is all well and good... except that if God decides that children are in His plan for us at any point in time, one or both of our offices are going to need to be consolidated & cleaned out. Lots of stuff will be sold, donated, or otherwise disposed of.

I've already decided that when the time comes, the state bears will be fallen to the same fate as the trolls (save the one I got in Jamaica on our honeymoon).

The reality is that these things don't matter. I remember when Steve's grandmother was selling her house in Andover and downsizing to a condo in an active adult community, she kept telling him at her yard sale: "They're just things. They don't matter". The trolls, the bears... they are just things. They don't matter.

Do I remember all of the trolls that I had or how I got each one? No. What do I remember about the bedroom from my teenage years? I remember getting ready for school and belting out Alanis Morrisette and Green Day songs (and consequently getting asked to turn down my music most days). I remember laughing hysterically with friends at slumber parties. I remember my girlfriend Laura doing my make-up for my junior prom while we waited for my date to arrive. I remember braiding my little sisters' hair and playing games with my brother. I remember late-night phone conversations with some of my closest friends talking about life, whispering and stifling laughter so that I wouldn't wake people up.

The bears are going to be easier to let go of than the trolls were when and if the time comes. Why? Because that room is going to be for my child to be able to make his or her own memories. Their own slumber parties, getting ready for their own proms, blaring their own music that I in turn will tell them to turn down, and spending their own time learning to navigate through life.

The bears, the trolls... Grams was right: those are just things. Keeping them in a box until some magical time when I can sell them at an inflated price on eBay to someone else who likes things isn't going to better my life. What made and continues to make my life better are the moments that make me smile, laugh, cry, learn, and grow.

Keep that in mind the next time you're cleaning out a closet or a room and feel that pull on your heartstrings to keep something that will only collect dust. I will too.

"Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be." (Matthew 6:19-21)

Next Track Please...

2011-06-15T15:40:00.000-04:00

All day long I've had random music pop into my head at relatively random times. I've got no idea why or where these songs came from because they have literally nothing to do with each other. Let me give the run down of the weirdness of music from today.

This morning before I left to go to the gym while brushing my teeth. I found myself singing "...promise me son not to do the things I've done..." Now, you may be thinking "What the HECK is that song?" or if you're like me and have this bizarre eclectic mix of songs in your head... you know that it's Kenny Rogers' "Coward of the County". The question you may be thinking right now may be "Why did you think of that song while brushing your teeth?" to which I say: Right, like I know the answer.

Don't mind the weird cartoon. The sound quality was decent.

Then I went to the gym. Everything was fine... I watched the end of "Boy Meets World" and an episode of "What I Like About You" while workin' it on the arc trainer. As I was heading back to the locker room to shower, I almost dropped my water and my phone. I caught both (to which a passing trainer noted "Nice save!") and continued on my merry way when all of a sudden... "...we used to walk along the river...".

Seriously, Brain? Richard Marx? "Hazard"? At the gym?

This is apparently what I think of when I fill up my water bottle and then almost drop it on the ground. Also, at least I found the real video for this one.

I thought I was free and clear of songs popping into my head at random times until about a half an hour ago. I was hanging up the phone with a colleague talking about invoices - yes, invoices - and the system not co-operating with us when all of a sudden I start singing to myself. What this time? "You make everything glorious... and I am Yours..." At least this time it was something a bit more uplifting and you know... SOMETHING I HAVE HEARD RECENTLY.

I love this song, and it didn't freak me out when it popped into my head.

I'm not entirely sure why it is exactly that I decided this warranted a blog posting. Maybe because I needed to share with everyone the bit of crazy I experienced today? Maybe to throw a few songs over the wall that you either haven't heard or haven't heard in a while? No idea. But there it is - the randomness that is, apparently, the iPod shuffle inside my head.

Has this ever happened to you?

What's the most random song you've had stuck in your head?

4 Years Later...

2011-06-09T07:35:00.000-04:00

I woke up this morning, looked out the window, and saw gray skies. I rolled over and gently touched the shoulder of the man that, 4 years ago today, I made a vow in front of God, friends, and family to commit to for the rest of my earthly life.

And that morning I woke up and saw gray skies too.

I don't remember a ton about the morning before our wedding ceremony except the pressure surrounding me to make a decision: in or out. Where would the ceremony be held? The skies were gray, mist was already falling. I needed to make a call so that the staff would know where to set up the chairs.

I'd love to tell you that I was a calm, cool bride when asked to make this decision. CLEARLY I knew the right answer since we chose our venue partially because it had a spectacular back-up location in the event of rain. CLEARLY when I started to think of my grandmother who would be in a wheelchair and my father who has balance issues and my mother-in-law who had recently had life-saving abdominal surgery and was still shaky on her feet I knew the right answer. CLEARLY I told them, without batting an eye to bring the whole thing inside.

Clearly.

Or not. What really happened was I panicked. Steve wasn't there with me to make the decision. I was convinced he'd be upset about bringing it in. I begged someone to let me talk to him on the phone, and all of my bridesmaids AND both mothers stood around trying to convince me that Steve would stand by my decision - I'm the bride, I'm the one there, I needed to make a call. I begged someone to let me get to a computer where I could see a radar. My mom brought me outside and showed me the mist. 9:45 - decision time - clicked closer. Finally my mom saw I needed reassurance - and SHE called Steve for me.

WE decided to bring it in... my mom as conduit, WE decided to bring it in. Was I still nervous about whether or not Steve would be upset we were inside? Sure. Was it ridiculous and as soon as I turned the corner with my stepdad holding my arm did I feel better because I saw Steve's face smiling at me with the biggest smile I'd ever seen? Absolutely.

Rain can't stop a beautiful day from happening...

See... the thing is, Steve's not just that guy I married. He's my best friend. He's my partner in crime, literally my other half. We don't make any decision without each other... well... any life-affecting decision. Any job decision. Plans. Etc. I can make it through the grocery store just fine on my own, I'm talking about the big stuff. When we have to travel for work, sometimes we feel lost for a few days while the other is gone. None of this is in an unhealthy way - we definitely manage without the other if we need to without freaking out - but rather, it's what I believe God's design for marriage was meant to be. Two become one.

We work through the hard times together with support and grace and we celebrate the happy times with smiles and laughter. Together.

It's amazing to me how intertwined two people's lives can be. Not a day goes by that I don't feel that our marriage is getting stronger, that God is growing us in ways we haven't been able and won't be able to imagine. As we look to the future, I can't wait to be old and gray alongside of Steve.

So it's fitting that it's raining on our anniversary. It's a gentle reminder that we are here for each other to weather the storms, hold each other tight, celebrate the beauty in our life, and cherish the love and deep friendship we share. To quote the song my mom sang during our reception: "Let it rain - the sun shines in my soul...".

I love you, Steve. Happy Anniversary. God certainly blessed the road that brought us together.

Mission Cookbook: Chicken Piccata

2011-05-31T22:30:00.001-04:00

Quite some time ago (I mean like... 3 years?) I gave Steve a coupon that allowed him to choose whatever meal he wanted and I would cook it. He chose chicken piccata over angel hair pasta with fresh green beans. Time passed... like... 3 years... and I finally got around to cooking it.

Like... 3 months ago. And I'm just now posting it. GO ME.

At any rate - without any further delay - I present to you...

Mission Cookbook: Chicken Piccata

Part of the reason I never got around to cooking this was (I think) a subconscious avoidance. The truth is that I'm not a giant fan of overly-tangy-citrus flavors when they're cooked in my food. I don't mind them in a lemonade or some sort of sweet flavor, but when it comes to savory dishes I tend to avoid it. I'm the chick that never EVER squeezes the lemon over her seafood. The rest of it was that we were trying to lose weight, and buttery, saucy, dredged chicken over starchy pasta isn't really diet friendly. Once we hit goal - it was time for me to get past my citrus issue and get to cooking!

We scoured the cookbooks we have in-house and decided on the version of the recipe featured in our Cooking with Mickey cookbook. Say what you want about the kitchy-ness of Disney, they make some DARNED good food; if you don't believe me, I can give you a list of places I'll demand you try in order to prove you wrong. At any rate, I gathered my ingredients and got to work.

First things first: I must give yet another shout-out to my Le Creuset Dutch Oven. This thing is freaking amazing. I use it constantly when I'm cooking for things as simple as mashed potatoes to all sorts of complicated dishes... like chicken piccata. Check out this live-action shot of the dredged chicken frying away in the Le Creuset. It is seriously my favorite piece of kitchen equipment ever.

Can I even begin to tell you how awesome it is to deglaze this pot and get all the brown bits up? Once I hit the pan with the white wine and chicken stock it came right up - not an ounce of flavor was missed. Also, I was surprised at how simple it was to make the piccata. I was envisioning some super complicated process of sauce making and it wasn't bad at all. Truthfully, making the dish was pretty fun!

Now for the taste: I am pleased to announce (mostly for myself) that while the flavor was definitely distinctly lemon, it wasn't so bad that I wanted to pucker my face off and ignore the dish. Truthfully, it was quite good. The recipe in the book also allowed the chicken to maintain its moisture and it was one of the best chicken dishes I've ever had in my home. The angel hair pasta was the perfect choice to pair with the delicate nature of the chicken & sauce, and any green vegetable with a sweetness to it (think peas or green beans) are a wonderful compliment as well.

When I told Steve I was finally writing this post, he said "Oh THAT? That was fantastic!" so I think that it won over my main food critic as well. I would definitely make this dish again; I think that it's one that is great for an inside date night (which is what we had it for) or having another couple over for dinner. If anyone has this cookbook and has thought about the recipe - don't think anymore. Just make it. It's simple and delicious.

Open Door Policy

2011-05-27T17:01:00.001-04:00

I love inviting people into my home.

I was reminded of this today when I read a post over at the (in)Courage blog called "Confessions of a Hospitality Hater". The very first line really struck me; the author (Heather) wrote:

"Why do I often close my doors, staying hidden behind the excuses: The children are loud, the house is a mess, the food is basic, and growing up my family never had anyone over?"

Why did this opening line particularly strike me? Because I am so very much the exact opposite of that. Show up unexpected at my door? It's fine, just give me a second to brush my hair and throw on some deodorant so I don't stink. Then be prepared for me to offer you drinks, popcorn, leftovers, a seat on our couch, porch, deck... doesn't matter to me. I might "apologize" for a messy floor, a couple of dishes in the sink, or the fact that I forgot to clean the bathroom this week... but truthfully?

I'm glad you're here. Or there. Whatever the right word is.

If you are closer to the personality of Heather of "Confessions of a Hospitality Hater", I wanted to encourage you a bit. God does call us to be hospitable and keep our doors open to our neighbors. In the mentioned post, she mentions checking on the verses below:

"Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You've lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.

"Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:13-16, The Message

The last two sentences - "Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others you'll prompt people to open up with God..." - that's really what being hospitable is all about, isn't it? There is an old saying that everyone has heard: "Home is where the heart is" and it is SO incredibly true. When you let someone into your home, you are opening up your heart to them as well. You are most comfortable in your own home, even when there is a complete stranger or a new friend there. There is something so incredibly intimate about having someone over for even something so simple as a cup of tea.

Anyways - I love having people over and I recognize that not everyone is completely comfortable or knows how to be prepared to be hospitable even if they want to be. So... inspired by the "Confessions of a Hospitality Hater" post, I wanted to submit of my own tips. Some of these are sort of repeats of Heather's worded differently - but the message is still there;

- Always have a good stock of drinks on-hand. You can always order pizza, subs, or Chinese food if people are hungry, but drinks are difficult to get on short notice. My husband and I always have seltzer and water in the fridge and tea and coffee ready to brew.

- Try to keep something quick to make up on-hand. Some people keep frozen cookie dough, I keep popcorn that I can make in the air-popper. Heather mentions that the food you serve does NOT need to be complicated and I can't stress that enough either. Remember - people are there for you and your company, not your food.

- Don't worry if your house is not in perfect condition and do NOT apologize for it. Every time I've been in someone else's house I always think it's incredibly cleaner than mine and they think it's the messiest house ever. As long as you have a place for your guests to sit - even if you have to move toys or yesterday's newspaper - you're golden.

- Feeling stressed? Frazzled? Have company coming over or wanting to invite someone over? Go into your bathroom, take 3-5 slow, deep breaths. You have no idea how much this act of opening your lungs calms your soul and opens your heart. It's truly one of the best releases ever and a trick I've used a few times myself before people have come over for a visit if I've been in a bad place.

God put us on this planet to love one another, and opening our homes is an incredibly simple way that we can do this. Once love and friendship is in our homes, it's difficult for it to find its way out. So many memories are made with friends, family, and other guests that come through our homes that will make you laugh, cry, or smile in the years to come. Believe me when I tell you that it is so worth it when you open your doors to people to come in and hang out in your home and your heart.

So go ahead - take a deep breath, put a 12-pack of soda in your fridge, and invite someone over. And next time you're in my neck of the woods - stop by and say hi.

Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay.

1 Peter 4:9, NLT

Book Review: "Max on Life"

2011-05-25T17:10:00.001-04:00

OK - how many Christians out there have a million questions about living life as Jesus calls us to live while taking into consideration all of life's complications, caveats, nuances, joys, sorrows, etc?

Great - now that your hands are up, let me tell you about Max Lucado's book "Max on Life" because my guess is that it will come in handy for you as you work through those questions. Max and his team receive in hundreds or even thousands of questions via email, personal letter, conversations - you name it - about this crazy life and what Scripture says about how to live, how to decide what to do in certain situation, how to navigate relationships, and dozens of other things that you probably haven't even thought of. The book highlights just about 200 different questions that Max has encountered over the years and cover topics from navigating your kids to divorce to faith struggles to heaven and hell.

Overall, the book is fantastic. Max Lucado has a way of taking Scripture and making it applicable to our lives anyways, but taking people's questions and pulling up specific verses or stories that are relevant to the topic he's addressing make it that much more translatable to our every day lives. The way that the book is set up lets you either read it cover to cover or easily search for that specific question that your heart is yearning to have answered. The book is really a miniature encyclopedia that covers so many of the questions that new Christians, seasoned Christians, or people just looking to exploring their faith may have and are afraid to ask.

The book is incredibly encouraging; at the end of the book, Lucado leaves his readers with the most important thing anyone seeking answers could ask for - HOPE. He reminds his readers again and again and again with every answer that God loves us, that He sent His son to die for us, and no matter what your situation is there is hope to be found in that redemption. As if that level of encouragement isn't enough, he then speaks to anyone out there in his audience who may dabble in writing in any way, shape, or form. If there's a way that Max can encourage his readers with his life experience and wisdom - he does it in this book. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has questions regarding their faith in Christ; odds are Max has an encouraging, hope-filled response for you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Macho Man & Memories

2011-05-20T14:38:00.001-04:00

I normally wouldn't feature a celebrity's death as a blog post, but I noticed on someone's Google talk status this afternoon that Randy "Macho Man" Savage died today. No, I didn't know the guy. From what I read he was a decent fellow and my hearts and prayers go out to his wife & family - especially to his wife who was in the car with him when he died.

Like I said, I didn't know the guy. And by "the guy" I mean Randall Poffo (his real name) because let's face it: wrestlers are actors. We don't know their lives outside the screen typically speaking, and so - I didn't know him, just his character. They give a lot of their bodies to give entertainment to their audience, and Randy Savage was one of a dying breed (in my opinion) who weren't just muscle and actually had a goofy character. The wrestlers of that time knew the genre was ridiculous and hammed it up quite a bit with their characters.

Wait... here's where confession time comes in, right? I grew up in a home where we watched wrestling. I actually enjoyed it well into my college years and my college pals and I even gave each other nicknames that were spin-offs of wrestlers' names. Me? I was The Rack. No, don't ask. It's better off that way. But we did - we watched "Monday Night Raw" every week until it started to get crappy. When did that happen (and yes, I know some of you are thinking it was always crappy)? Early in the 2000's. Things started to be less goofy & more sex/sexy. It made it crappy. It was right around when Mick Foley left, actually.

Mick Foley in a typical pose.

Mick Foley is probably my favorite wrestler of all time because he didn't mess around, he's a family man, and it was more than a job for him. It was a passion. Don't believe me - read both of his autobiographies. They're entertaining for sure and if nothing else show the heart of a man who was pursuing his passion and providing for his family at the same time. Great reads, especially the first one - "Have a Nice Day". One of the greatest matches of all time was Mick Foley and the Undertaker - Hell in a Cell. And actually... well... you know what, read the book. It's in there.

Anyways - Randy Savage. Most people know him from the "Slim Jim" commercials. But I remember being a little kid sitting around our lunch on a Saturday afternoon before going outside to play, hovered around a little black & white TV watching the Macho Man, Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake, Bret Hart, and the like. I remember my mom making us popcorn for us on the nights we didn't have school the next day and wrestling came on. She hated/hates it - but got a kick out of us kids goofing around watching it with my stepdad. When it became apparent that my brother & I used to get into the plot lines (yes, there are plot lines... they're about as deep as a typical afternoon soap opera, but there are plot lines), my parents would record any of the Pay Per Views they would spring for.

Here's the thing - and here's why I'm posting this. In the summer of 1991, I was almost 11 and my brother was 8. This was at the height of my childhood wrestling fandom, as it were. We had been following the plot of Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth (who ended up marrying in real life well before this all happened and ended up divorced a year later... anyways) and desperately wanted to watch SummerSlam that year.

Why? Because he was going to propose. Seriously, guys. And they were going to have a wrestling wedding. We begged and begged - and my parents ordered the Pay Per View and taped it for us - yes, I said taped. Like on VHS. We didn't have DVR's back in "those days". The next night after dinner we were allowed to throw in the tape and watch the entire thing unfold. And... well... really you have to watch it to see (and really, it's only 30 seconds, just watch):

So for WEEKS... maybe even MONTHS or YEARS... it was quoted in our house. "ELIZABETH? ELIZABETH? WILL YOU MARRRRRY ME?" in that Macho Man voice of his. In fact, every once in a while it'll pop up in the back of my head and I'll chuckle to myself. The memories of an 8-year-old Jim Cochrane walking around the house saying it just crack me up to think about.We would take Barbie dolls and re-enact it with his Macho Man doll and then follow it up with ridiculous doll wrestling matches with Barbie-Elizabeth cheering them on.

At any rate... I know I can't be the only one out there with great memories around ridiculous things like wrestling matches on TV. Just sayin'.

So Mr. Poffo - thanks for the memories, the ridiculous outfits, and whatever else you added to the wrestling entertainment industry. I hope that your friends & family have many fond memories of your time here on earth. Rest in peace.

Did They?

2011-05-17T14:38:00.001-04:00

Last week I traveled out to the Mid-West area for a customer conference for work. Whenever I travel alone, I always try to strike up conversations with people so as to not become bored or look like a stuck-up hermit. Besides that, you never know what you can glean from another person in terms of what an area is like, a good place to get some food, or maybe that person just needed to talk.

I had three conversations last week with people that left me wondering... did they?

The first was at dinner at a restaurant called Mangia Mangia in Downtown Kalamazoo. I was enjoying some vegetable-type dish and some rustic bread to soak up the sauce while playing "Words with Friends" on my phone. At the table next to me were three women who were enjoying some appetizers and drinks before heading out to a movie.

I overheard that one of them would be heading to Walt Disney World the following week for work and that they would be spending some time in Downtown Disney. Because I wanted to write a Yelp review for the place was eating, I had my notebook handy so I tore a piece of paper out and wrote down the information for my favorite place there - Raglan Road. Before they left, I excused myself into their conversation to pass the information along to her. She seemed genuinely excited, and both she and her co-worker/friend agreed that their other co-worker who would be going on the trip would be "pumped" about going there.

So I wonder... did they end up going? Did they enjoy it?

The second was in my taxi-cab on the way to the airport. I've never had a friendly cab driver, so when the fellow who picked me up was nice I took the opportunity to strike up a conversation. In the course of that conversation, I found out that he used to work for the railroad repairing and testing the rails to ensure they were safe for trains to travel on. The problem was that it took him away from his son, so he left that line of work and somehow ended up driving taxi cabs. He has two 2-year degrees - one in culinary arts and one in welding. He'd like to be using his welding degree, but the one job he's been able to find posted did not pay what the degree is worth and was for a company that clearly did not take pride in their product.

I asked if he'd checked a local aerospace company (our customer that I was in town for the conference for) to see if they had any opportunities for a welder with that high-level of credential. I know this company takes a lot of pride in what they do, so they probably would pay good money for a good welder. He seemed like he was interested and appreciated the idea, even mentioning that he would check it out. When I wrote down my email address so that he could email me the receipt from my cab fare charge, I added a note in parentheses to make sure to check them out. When I left the cab, he shook my hand and thanked me for the conversation - something a cab driver has never done.

So I wonder - did he end up checking out that company for welding jobs? If he did, will it work out?

The last one was while I was waiting for my connecting flight back to Boston at O'Hare in Chicago. Across from me sat a woman and her son - probably about the same age as my mom and me - engaged in conversation. At one point she stopped and asked me if I'd ever been to Boston, to which I replied that I grew up in the area just about 30 minutes north. She asked what the best place to get seafood was, where the "Cheers bar" was, and what they should do with only 3 days in the city - they had never been.

I texted my husband and between the two of us I gave them a whole bunch of suggestions of places they could go to or try; they were staying at the Seaport Harbor Hotel, so they were in a good position for walking around the city and exploring. We got on the plane, they were 2 rows behind me so as I got off the plane I told them that I wished they had a good time and they thanked me for all the tips.

So as I walked down the jetway I wondered - did they find "good seafood"? Did they enjoy the Boston that I love so much?

I don't know the answers to these questions, but I am grateful for the fact that I was given the opportunity to reach out to people. Maybe the tips I gave the people traveling to Florida or Boston were helpful in finding a good place to eat or hang out, and maybe the taxi driver reached out to the company I told him about and he'll be able to get work welding like he wants to do. Maybe I made a difference, maybe I didn't, who knows.

What I do know is that in talking to people like that, it's a small way that I can spread some love and kindness in the world. Don't be shy - next time you're out in the world by yourself, chat with the person in line behind you, offer to hold a door for a person or carry their groceries, talk to the person next to you in the doctor's office or restaurant waiting area.

You never know whose life you'll touch.

Knit One...

2011-05-16T15:19:00.000-04:00

I'm having one of those seasons where I really feel like God is trying to drill something into my head. For the last couple of weeks, I feel like no matter where I turn, the following verses keep appearing:

¹³ For you created my inmost being;
   you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
   your works are wonderful,
   I know that full well.

- Psalm 139:13-14

Sitting in Financial Peace University last week for our last class: there it was, out of Dave Ramsey's mouth, with an added visual of a grandmother sitting in a chair knitting or crocheting.

Looking over some of the things I've lost track of in my Google reader: there it was as a Bible Gateway verse of the day.

Youth group? It was in the notes of the message that Elyse delivered last week (and I'm sure in her message as well, but I had to miss group for a business trip).

I'll admit... I have no idea why this is seeming to become a theme in my life right now, this bit of scripture. All I know is that it keeps appearing recently... and I have a feeling it won't be quitting any time soon. Again - I have no idea why God is pressing me towards these verses, but I know what I need to do with them.

Last year I was at a Living Proof Ministries event and Beth Moore talked to the room full of 2500 women about what it means to cherish. What it means to be treasuring things in our hearts and keeping them close to us. Beth highlighted two times specifically when Mary observed a situation and treasured it and held it close to her heart, both in Luke chapter 2.

But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.

(Luke 2:19, after the shepherds spread word of Jesus' birth.)

Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart.

(Luke 2:51, after Jesus is found as a teenager in the temple after his parents had been looking for Him for 3 days)

Did Mary know why she needed to treasure these things? No. She just knew her Son was special.

Did Mary treasure them and keep them close to her anyways? Were the meaning of these things revealed as time progressed? Absolutely - on both counts.

I have no idea why God is sending me these verses that David wrote so long ago. I have no idea why they are present in my life right now, at this time, while the events and things that are going on are going on. But I know they're there. I feel that these words' presence is incredibly intentional.

So I pray that God will reveal His plan for me in His time. I pray that I can keep these words close. I file them away in my treasure file, along with a few other moments that I've felt that nudging about. I pray I'll have patience while whatever it is that He's got going on works out.

I've never liked waiting for surprises.

I trust in His will for me, I trust that He will reveal His plan. His beautiful and wonderfully made plan for beautiful and wonderfully made me.

Pilate: Powerful, Pragmatic Pawn of Providence

2011-05-16T12:36:00.002-04:00

About a month or so ago, I shared some thoughts* I had while reading through the scripture regarding Pilate's condemnation of Jesus. Today I was going through my Google reader and was struck by this post from the Desiring God Blog. It's an "imagine if" type of entry reflecting on what a conversation between Pilate and Procula might have been like after the crucifixion. I encourage you to read through it and share your thoughts either on the page of the post or in my comments below.

Pilate: Powerful, Pragmatic Pawn of Providence

How would you have felt if you were Pilate when he heard the news of Christ's rising from the grave?

*For Reference:

- In Pilate's Shoes, Part 1
- In Pilate's Shoes, Part 2

The WINNER!

2011-05-10T12:13:00.000-04:00

I apologize for not reporting back sooner and letting you all know how the fundraising went for our youth group. Have you ever had one of those life seasons where things are incredibly busy and before you know it... a whole bunch of time goes by? That's about where I'm at right now.

At any rate - I don't know if it was a function of my blog post or other publicity about the fundraising site, but our group was able to raise $2,035 of the $12,500 needed for the trip via the online fundraising tool which is just absolutely amazing. If you read this post and donated - I want to thank you so much from the bottom of my heart and the other leaders' hearts and our students' hearts. Your generosity means the world to us.

That said... we did have one person who left a comment - Paul! I've talked with Paul who will get his choice of the prizes that were donated, and as soon as he decides he'll be getting his goodies.

Having said that... yes, Paul won the giveaway, but at the end of the day he's not the only winner. Our students who have less financial burden on the trip because of the generosity of a few people are winners. Our leaders who will get to go to the Bahamas and experience leading students on a missions trip are winners. The people who are living day in and day out at All Saints Camp that will benefit from the good of our team and the other teams working with Next Step Ministries - they are the REAL winners.

So... THANK YOU for your support. It has been absolutely amazing to see how God has used His people to provide for this trip. It's abundantly clear that this is in His will for our students to experience.

A GIVEAWAY to Help Our Youth Group

2011-04-25T22:32:00.000-04:00

Picture a place that is so hot you sweat immediately when you get out of the shower. The bathroom floor is cracked and you reach to grab a dirty, used towel to dry off. When you get the energy to step outside, you see a neighbor struggling to get his wheelchair up the destroyed pathway to the clinic and on either side of him are rows of decrepit, one bedroom cabins full of your neighbors who, like you, have been out casted because they have HIV/AIDS. This place exists, and this summer a team of students from our youth group accompanied by 2 leaders will join up with another area church to go there and help them rebuild.

On July 3, 2011 - these students will board a plane and head to Nassau, Bahamas for 6 days to team up with Next Step Ministries to help rebuild All Saints Camp. This is a former leper colony turned refuge for patients living with HIV/AIDS that are outcasts from their community. They will demolish the old and rebuild the new, building sidewalks, walls,houses, and engaging in general repair work to give the people of that community the quality of life that they need and deserve. Not only that, but they will get opportunity to get to know the residents of the Camp during down time and hear their stories. The experience of this week for our students is one that can leave them with changed hearts. The trip will change lives - not just those lives that they will touch in Nassau at All Saints Camp, but their own lives will be forever changed as well.

Needless to say, our students have worked their hearts out fundraising to be able to attend this trip. With a goal of paying for all 10 students in mind - the team set out in faith and prayer to raise $12,500. This would include their fees to Next Step Ministries for the trip as well as round-trip airfare from Boston, MA to Nassau, Bahamas.

As of our last count - the students had raised $9,500.

With 5 days left in online fundraising, I'm asking you dear reader to help our students reach their goal of $12,500 and am offering a 3-winner giveaway as an incentive for you to donate.

First things first... the PRIZES!

One winner will receive a batch of Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies made by yours truly (20-24 homemade cookies):

Steve says these are the best cookies he's ever eaten. You should donate so you can win some!

A second winner will receive a batch of Homemade Marshmallows made by my dear friend over at Fleur de Lis Catering:

My friend's homemade marshmallows. Her cooking is amazing - donate so you can enter to win these fluffy treats!

And last but not least, a third winner will win a signed copy of the book "Can You Feel My Tears?" and the CD "Body and Soul" from Lauri Merrow.

Yes, I'm biased, but these are both great. If you don't believe me, click the links above to find out for yourself. Donate to win them both!!!

HOW TO ENTER AND WIN (Up to 3 entries per person):

Step One: Go to our team's fundraising website and make a donation of $10 or more. Please choose either Elyse Emery or John Emery when making your donation (you have to choose a team member - these are our team leaders, so they'll be able to keep track of who's donating). CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE FUNDRAISING PAGE

Step Two: Leave a comment letting me know that you donated to the team. All donations will be verified with Elyse & John prior to the drawing. YOU MUST ENTER IN THIS FASHION IN ORDER TO GAIN ADDITIONAL ENTRIES IN STEP THREE.

Step Three: To win up to 2 additional entries, tweet about this giveaway or share on Facebook using the sharing buttons at the bottom of this post. Leave a comment letting me know that you shared the giveaway.

The giveaway will run until Midnight on April 30, 2011 which is when the donations will close on the site. Three winners will be drawn and notified and I will post the results no later than Midnight on May 2, 2011.

Remember - even if you don't win a prize, you win anyways because you're helping a fantastic cause! Please consider donating to our team and helping them reach our goal - and if you can't donate, please share this page to get the word out!

AND ONE MORE TIME - CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE FUNDRAISING PAGE!

Sin Hurts (from "Our Daily Bread")

2011-04-22T09:51:00.000-04:00

Because today is Good Friday, I wanted to share with you a devotional that was passed around at work today. Try to imagine what happened to Jesus on the Cross as we take this weekend to celebrate the beautiful, amazing grace of God through the gift of His Son.

He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sin of many. —Isaiah 53:12

Sooner or later we all feel the painful effects of sin. Sometimes it’s the weight of our own sin and the shame and embarrassment of having failed miserably. At other times, it’s the load of someone else’s sin that weighs us down—someone who betrayed, deceived, abandoned, ridiculed, cheated, or made a fool of us.

Think about a time when the weight of that guilt or pain was so heavy that you couldn’t pull yourself out of bed. Now try to imagine the heaviness of the combined grief that everyone’s sin has caused your family, your church, your neighborhood. Add to that all the suffering sin has caused everyone in your city, state, nation, and the world. Now try to imagine the accumulated grief that sin has caused throughout the centuries since creation.

Is it any wonder that the weight of all this sin began squeezing the life out of Jesus on the night He was called to bear it? (Matt. 26:36-44). The next day, even His beloved Father would forsake Him. No other suffering can compare.

Sin put Jesus to the ultimate test. But His love endured it, His strength bore it, and His power overcame it. Thanks to Jesus’ death and resurrection, we know beyond a doubt that sin will not and cannot win.

— by Julie Ackerman Link

Is God aloof from human pain
That ravages our mortal frame?
Oh, no, Christ felt our agony
When sin and death He overcame! —D. De Haan

Source: Our Daily Bread

In Pilate's Shoes (Continued)

2011-04-21T09:47:00.000-04:00

So... a few additional thoughts to my below post about being in Pilate's shoes.

I want to kind of clarify my thought process a bit. I think that thanking Pilate was absolutely hasty and a gut reaction to a thought process that for the first time I had actually processed verbally on... paper? Sort of? Anyways... as a commenter noted, if we thank Pilate we have to thank Judas - which is a totally fair argument. An offline discussion on the topic has helped me to further see that clearly and I appreciate that conversation. Pilate & Judas were tools and - to the commenter Jeff's point - were corrupt people whose heart conditions were made apparent by how they took part in delivering Jesus to his ultimate fate.

In fact - I love these words that the person in my offline conversation used to sum everything up: "What I'm saying is that the horror of what Pilate did does not in any way deserve gratitude, REGARDLESS of what God did with it. That's the miracle of Jesus. He can take EVIL and CORRUPTION and turn it into peace and justice."

So I retract my gratitude towards Pilate in this instance, but - I still wonder every time I read the passages below what it must have been like to be Pilate. I don't know how much he knew about Jesus to that point, but the text makes it seem like not much. The crowds tell him "This man claims he's the Son of God!" - and that makes him PAUSE. Then he asks Jesus "Who ARE you?"... THIS is the part I always get hung up on. This part of the story ALWAYS makes me pause and think - wait... he didn't know who he was sentencing?

I see in this moment, in this text, the same person I was in the infancy of my faith. Only... I didn't have Jesus right in front of me. Trying to decide if He should live or die. Knowing in my gut that He was innocent but the "proof" that the crowd showing me otherwise... I do NOT envy that. Here is Pilate, the seed of his faith being planted by being faced with an innocent Jesus... and feeling pressure to make a decision that he knows is wrong. KNOWS.

Or maybe I did have Jesus right in front of me the whole time. Maybe we all do... and then at that moment when we're faced with Him we say "Wait... Who ARE you??". Just like Pilate did. What decision we make from there - that's up to us. Pilate's choice... right, wrong, or indifferent... it was the choice he made.

So I don't know... but what I do know is that like I said - I retract my thank-you. Why?

Because I shouldn't be thanking Pilate. I should be thanking God for it being His will that Jesus die on the cross - PERIOD.

No one else. Just God.

Dear God... I thank you for your Son. I thank you for giving us scripture that we can discuss to help us find You and help us to build our faith and see our own flaws. I pray that I can continue to dive into Your word and see how you tie everything together from our broken selves to make amazing things. I thank you for the people you've surrounded me with who are there to help me talk and think through things. I pray that never stops - I never want to stop seeking your truth. I pray these things in Jesus' name... AMEN.

In Pilate's Shoes

2011-04-21T07:22:00.002-04:00

Then Pilate had Jesus flogged with a lead-tipped whip. The soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they put a purple robe on him. “Hail! King of the Jews!” they mocked, as they slapped him across the face.

Pilate went outside again and said to the people, “I am going to bring him out to you now, but understand clearly that I find him not guilty.” Then Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said, “Look, here is the man!”

When they saw him, the leading priests and Temple guards began shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” “Take him yourselves and crucify him,” Pilate said. “I find him not guilty.”

The Jewish leaders replied, “By our law he ought to die because he called himself the Son of God.”

When Pilate heard this, he was more frightened than ever. He took Jesus back into the headquarters again and asked him, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave no answer. “Why don’t you talk to me?” Pilate demanded. “Don’t you realize that I have the power to release you or crucify you?”

Then Jesus said, “You would have no power over me at all unless it were given to you from above. So the one who handed me over to you has the greater sin.”

Then Pilate tried to release him, but the Jewish leaders shouted, “If you release this man, you are no ‘friend of Caesar.' Anyone who declares himself a king is a rebel against Caesar.”

When they said this, Pilate brought Jesus out to them again. Then Pilate sat down on the judgment seat on the platform that is called the Stone Pavement. It was now about noon on the day of preparation for the Passover. And Pilate said to the people, “Look, here is your king!”

“Away with him,” they yelled. “Away with him! Crucify him!”

“What? Crucify your king?” Pilate asked.

“We have no king but Caesar,” the leading priests shouted back.

Then Pilate turned Jesus over to them to be crucified.

- John 19:1-16 (NLT)

Whenever I've read or heard these verses, I have wondered what it must have been like to be Pilate. To see before him this man who claimed to be the Son of God. To feel that pull to believe Him. To look into the face of Jesus and know that it would be your hand to seal His fate.

Somewhere, deep down, a sinking feeling in his stomach. His position meant that he needed to remain loyal to Caesar and to release Jesus would have compromised his authority and loyalty. To know that he had no choice - that Jesus, this beaten, worn man at his feet who seemed resigned to his fate - had to be crucified.

I imagine what it must have been like to be Pilate. In that sort of conflicted place - knowing in his soul that Jesus was without guilt. Never had a more innocent, clean man been at his feet to have their sentence determined. That He had done nothing wrong, yet was about to be condemned to the worst possible death in the history of human existence. And knowing deep down there was little he could do about it... the laws of the day had bound him to his decision.

Not wanting to do it himself, he released Jesus to the crowd that surrounded him and allowed them to make the final call. I just picture Pilate collapsing in his chair, defeated, deflated, a feeling of guilt on his shoulders that he condemned an innocent man. I picture him not sleeping for days.

Pilate - please know that you did the right thing. You followed the will of God. Had you saved Jesus, the rest of us would not be saved. I thank you... I do not envy the position that you had, but I thank you. I hope that you were privy to the events of the days after Jesus' death... I hope you heard of His Resurrection, the days that he walked alongside his disciples after that, and His Ascension to the throne.

I hope, Pilate, that the sinking feeling you had in that moment as the crowds chanted for Jesus' condemnation... I hope that in the days that followed it dissipated. I hope that you were able to feel what countless others have felt since - the freedom of the cross that Jesus' sacrifice has afforded us. It was for you too. You, too, Pilate, were forgiven.

Note: Upon further thought and discussion, I flushed this thought process out a bit more and retracted my thank-you to Pilate. See that entry here: http://daniellesbrainbits.blogspot.com/2011/04/in-pilates-shoes-continued.html

Bite-Sized Snackers

2011-04-20T06:49:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, I decided that I wanted to try my hand at making a savory mini-muffin. I have no idea what inspired me to do this, maybe it was the half of a red-bell pepper that was leftover in the vegetable drawer and maybe it was a craving for a snack. Either way, I whipped up a quick snack for Steve & I that was pretty good and easy to make.

Savory 2-Bite Snackers

(Makes 1 dozen mini-muffins)

Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/4 cup finely chopped sweet onion
- 1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
- 1 tsp minced garlic (from a jar - I'm really high-class)
- 1/8 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup shredded asiago OR shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese (AKA "Shaky Cheese" that you put on pasta)
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp water
- 1/2 tsp dried basil

Batter never looks appetizing, does it? At least not unless it's cookies. Or brownies.

Method:
- Preheat oven to 350 and coat a mini-muffin pan with cooking spray.
- Combine first 8 ingredients in a medium mixing bowl (flour through salt).
- Add the egg and fold into dry ingredients until combined.
- Add the cheese and combine into mixture.
- Add EVOO, water, and basil and combine into batter.
- Distribute batter evenly in the 12 "cups" of the mini-muffin pan.
- Cook in 350 degree oven until toothpick comes out clean (about 9-12 minutes).
- Serve with warm spaghetti sauce for dipping.

Warm from the oven.

These are really tasty and can be addicting (there, I warned you). When I made them, the first thing that Steve noticed about them is that they almost taste like they have cornmeal in them. I think that's a combination of the whole wheat flour and the grated parmesan cheese, but it's a really cool texture.

Ready to eat!

Dipping them in the warm spaghetti sauce (we use Trader Joe's Tomato Basil marinara) adds a great extra flavor to the snack. Give these a try - if you don't have a mini-muffin pan, you might be able to make a dozen "cookies" out of them as well. I haven't tried that yet, but if you do - let me know how it works out!

And the Wind Blows...

2011-04-12T07:18:00.000-04:00

When it begins to get warm outside, one of the things that Steve and I love to do is open the windows and begin to let that air work the winter stale out of the house. Steve opened the window in our bedroom last night before bed because it was still relatively warm and we needed to release the humidity from the bath I had taken anyways. As we lay in bed getting ready to drift to sleep, one of the last things Steve said to me was "Wow... it's really quiet outside". There was no wind, no rain, only the sound of crickets came drifting up to our ears through the window. Stillness, quiet. It was relaxing and a soothing sound to fall asleep to; it was almost like a natural lullaby.

A few hours passed, and I was woken by the sound of a howling, whipping wind. I listened as the wind shook the gutters outside my window, listened as the leaves that never fell from the trees last fall hung on for dear life, and every so often the wind chimes on my neighbor's front porch would clang together and send their notes into the night. It was enough of a difference to wake me up from a relatively sound sleep and hold me captive.

I could have gotten up and shut the window. I could have blocked out the noise and gone right back to sleep. Steve continued in his restful slumber, unmindful of the cacophony that was happening right outside and coming in through the open window. So I continued to lay there, listening. I felt compelled to. As I was listening, I felt these words upon my heart:

"Be still and know that I am God."

I lay there listening to the wind knowing that there was no risk of danger of trees falling. The window screen was not going to suddenly fall into the middle of the bedroom and nothing was going to be knocked over by a strong gust coming in and blowing over our stuff. Steve continued to lay there not knowing the show that God was putting on right outside our window. I listened further to the gusty air blowing around, listened as the wind chimes sounded again.

"Be still and know that I am God."

The words continued to be felt on my heart. I listened to that wind and the leaves and the wind chimes and the whistles of the air as it blew by the window and gutters and let it lull me back to sleep. God was there with each passing breeze, each gust that blew. He was in the soft undertones of the breath of my husband next to me and He was the one knocking the wind chimes together. The song was beautiful that had woken me from my sleep. I lay still and took comfort in the fact that God was there - God IS here. There will be winds, there will be storms... but God is my refuge and ever present strength.

I lay still, I felt His presence, I drifted back to sleep. When I woke, the wind had stopped - and the voice on the alarm clock radio advised that it would be back as the day went on. I looked outside and saw the leaves on our neighbor's willow tree shift... and smiled.

Sloppy Wet Kiss? Really?

2011-04-07T13:46:00.001-04:00

One of my favorite worship songs is "He Loves Us". The version I am most familiar with is the version that is performed by the David Crowder band. I love at the end when you just belt it out... "He loves us! Oh how he loves us!". It's a really powerful song, at least for me, and I really enjoy it when our worship team brings it to our services. One of the lines in that version of the song that really is a romantic metaphor that I can get into is the line "So heaven meets earth like an unforeseen kiss...". Pretty metaphor, right?

Recently Jon Acuff - writer of "Stuff Christians Like" which is pretty darned amusing - had a guest poster who talked about the words "Sloppy Wet Kiss" in the song. Now, when I first read it I thought he was just being funny. I didn't realize (uncultured Christian that I am) that there actually is a version that talks about heaven meeting earth like a sloppy wet kiss. I heard it today, and it really just... hit me the wrong way.

Now... I don't care about the actual words "sloppy wet kiss" in a worship song. If that's how the writer of the song feels about heaven meeting earth - power to him. For me... I mean... sloppy wet kiss? That makes me think of an absolutely terrible kisser who slobbers all over your face or a dog that bounds across the room and licks your face everywhere. There's nothing at all romantic - to me - about a sloppy wet kiss. Nasty. When I think about how much God loves me, the last thing I want to think about is nasty, disgusting salive all over my face. I'd prefer God NOT love me like a sloppy wet kiss. Romantic, pretty, unforeseen kiss - sure. But not sloppy bad kisser dog slobber.

What are your thoughts? Here are both versions so that you can compare:

David Crowder Band version

John Mark McMillan version

A Thanks to the Anonymous Giver

2011-04-05T11:02:00.000-04:00

Right around Christmastime, I started to receive monthly deliveries of Reader's Digest magazine. At first I tried to remember if I signed up or not, and after deciding that no - I did not sign myself up for this - I posted a "status" on Facebook to see if anyone would volunteer the information that they had signed me up for the subscription. Whoever this person was had definitely signed ME up - the magazines are coming addressed to me - and I'm assuming had some knowledge that Reader's Digest is one of my all-time favorite magazines. This letter is a response to that person's gift.

Dear Giver of the RD Subscription,

I would like to extend to you a sincere thank-you for the subscription you sent me for Reader's Digest. This is a magazine that I have enjoyed reading for at least 20 years but never brought myself to actually go out and get a subscription. My parents and grandparents were subscribers, so I was able to enjoy the articles, quips, tips, and humor through the copies that could be found most often in their bathrooms and living rooms.

2 of the issues I've gotten - I'm slow to read, but I do read them cover-to-cover. Love this magazine!

My favorite parts to read have always been the stories of how people's lives have been positively changed and impacted or how people from all walks of life have reached out to change the world. For example, in one of the issues this year (the one with the smiling bacon on the front) the woman behind the mosque/community faith center near Ground Zero was featured. Reading her story was amazing; hearing someone out there who just genuinely wants to bring God's love to the world no matter their faith was incredibly inspiring. I remember reading stories in RD growing up about people who have overcome amazing odds to do great things; RD has always brought stories like that to the forefront and I have always enjoyed them.

But you, gift giver, are also an inspiration. To send someone the gift of a magazine subscription that they genuinely enjoy and keeping yourself anonymous means that you really and truly just wanted to do something nice for someone. I have now gotten 3 or 4 issues delivered to my mailbox of this treasure-filled magazine and each time I am reminded that there is someone out there touching people's lives and looking for NO recognition for it. The subscription is a simple RAK - Random Act of Kindness. Imagine if we all operated like you - just doing random things to make people smile. Imagine if that became our modus operandi in each of our every day lives.

Forget the insurance - imagine if we all did small things to make a difference?

So to whoever you are, thank you for the gift. I truly appreciate it, and not just for the entertainment value. I appreciate the sentiment behind it, I appreciate the anonymity, and I hope that I (and anyone who reads this letter) are continually inspired to do random things to make people smile - without looking for a thank-you.

Love,
Danielle

Commuting - A Perspective

2011-03-30T11:39:00.000-04:00

When Steve and I were house-hunting, we didn't take my commute to and from work into account for a few reasons. One of these reasons is that I don't mind commuting. It allows me some time to myself, some time to people watch, some time to unwind before I get home. This morning I realized that there are lots of things that cross my mind and think about and I observe or do while I'm gallivanting back and forth to the place I spend a third of my weekly existence. I thought it could be fun to share a few of them with you. Maybe you can relate.

(After scratching the inside of my nose) "Wow... that guy in the plumbing truck totally just saw me doing that. And he's on the phone telling his friend. Great. Good thing I'm married or I'd feel awkward right now because a decent looking guy saw me pick my nose."

Once when I had my old Buick I was driving to work with the windows down (the A/C didn't work that well). Stuck in dead-stop traffic, I made the most of it. I turned up my Alanis Morrisette CD and started singing along to the music. I looked over to my right, and an older couple whose windows were also down had caught me in the act. They smiled, waved, and I was glad to see that someone appreciated my ability to have fun in traffic.

"This is a lot of traffic. I'm guessing there's a massacre of a car wreck up ahead." (A few minutes later...) "Nope... nope. Just a tiny bumper bump. Move along people."

I see more BMW's broken down on the side of the road than any other "luxury" car on a regular basis. Why do people buy these things again?

Of all the things that have changed on this interstate over the years, it's good to see they still haven't taken down the "Jesus Saves" signs. There's something reassuring about that daily reminder.

Someone added that bottom sign sometime in 2009 or 2010. It disappeared after a few months, but the "Jesus Saves" sign is still posted on either side of the highway in the same area on an electric pole - and has been for ages.

I wonder if anyone else just wants to get home so they can have a hug after the day they had. I wonder if anyone here that doesn't have someone wishes they had someone to hug. I wonder if they saw that sign back there.

Those clouds are pretty dark... looks like a thunderstorm. Wait... why the crap is it SNOWING???

Why is it when I've got plenty of time to get to work there's no traffic at all... but when I'm either running late or JUST have enough time: I don't move.

It's a nice feeling to arrive safely to your destination.

Instead...

2011-03-24T07:37:00.001-04:00

For those who don't know, Starbucks has these free songs that you can download. You just get the little cards from the store, go to iTunes, enter in the code and download them.

Truthfully - a lot of them have sucked. But there have been a couple that I've absolutely fallen in love with. One of them I wanted to share with you because I love the positive attitude behind it. Instead of the bad - look at the good. Check it out - and maybe today instead of being sad... be happy.

Instead of feeling bad
Be glad you got somewhere to go
Instead of feeling sad
Be happy you're not all alone
Instead of feeling low
Get high on everything you love
Instead of wastin' time
Feel good 'bout what you are dreaming of

Instead of trying to win something you never understood
Just play the game you know eventually you will you both look good

It's silly to pretend to have something you don't own
Just let her be a woman and you'll be her man

Instead of feelin' broke
Buck up and get yourself in the black
Instead of losing hope
Touch up the things that feel out of whack
Instead of being old
Be young because you know you are
Instead of feeling cold
Let sunshine into your heart

Instead of acting crazy chasing things that make you mad
Keep your heart ahead, it'll lead you back to what you have
With every step you are closer to the place you need to be
It's up to you to let her love you sweetly

Instead of acting crazy chasing things that make you mad
Just keep your heart ahead, it'll lead you back to what you have
With every step you are closer to the place you need to be
But it's up to you to let her love you sweetly

Instead of feeling bad
Be glad you got someone to love
Instead of feeling sad
Be happy there's a god above
Instead of feeling 'lone
Remember you are never on your own
Instead of feeling sad
Be happy that she's there at home
She's waitin' for by the phone
So be glad she all your own

Top 5 - Looking Ahead

2011-03-18T10:12:00.001-04:00

The folks on the radio this morning said that there's going to be a freak day of just about 70 degrees today before it heads back into our seasonal normal temperature of the 40s over the weekend. These brief glimpses of spring that we tend to get in March in New England make me excited for blooming flowers, budding branches, disappearance of snow, birds chirping... Spring is one of my favorite seasons. So with that, I can't help but think about the

Top 5 Things I'm Looking Forward to

With Spring's Arrival

Running Outside: Last year I shared with you my new-found enjoyment of running. While I don't mind running on the treadmill and have been seeing improvement in that area, I need to get outside where the pavement doesn't help propel me forward and the fresh air fills up my lungs. I'm excited for consistently nice weather so that I can get out there and let the rubber of my soles meet the road instead of the rotating belt of a treadmill.

View Larger Map

Lake Quannapowitt - Where I ran my first 5K!

Steve Grilling: Yes, I know that a lot of hearty New Englanders will grill all winter. But... Steve and I are not fans of hanging around outside in the cold, so when the weather gets that chill in the air we move inside and the cooking takes place over the gas of our stove rather than the grill. Spring's arrival means that Steve starts to get the grilling "itch", and now that we have a house he's already looking for times when it won't be freezing and he can start grilling. Since it saves money on the gas bill, gives me a break from after-work cooking, and makes Steve happy - I love when grill-time hits. (Plus - it's freaking delicious!!!)

Steve's inaugural grilling at our house - 2010. Complete with beer.

Our Garden: Last year we moved into our house in July which means that we missed half of a season (roughly) of what the flowers in our garden do in terms of blooming or what they are. I'm excited to start this year off as the snow melts and the first leaves & buds start to appear on the bushes and stems of the garden. I'm looking forward to more time with our irises before they're out of season, the purple blanket flowers in the backyard, and being able to spend more time with roses and lilies in full bloom.

Can't wait for areas like this one to start coming into bud & bloom!

4-40 Drives Home From Work: I believe that in the past I've shared with you my guilty pleasure of singing in the car, and the spring is my absolute favorite time to do that. Yesterday with temperatures in the 60's I dropped the front 2 windows, blasted some tunes, sang along with them, and yes - even car danced a bit. Sorry, but when Shaggy & Josey Wales start singing "Sweet Jamaica" I'm forced to extreme measures. For those of you who saw me on route 3 dancing while waiting to get through the traffic to the Drum Hill Rotary yesterday - you're just jealous you don't have as much fun in the car as I do.

Don't even say you wouldn't be dancing too. I won't believe you.

Closer to Summer: Summers now that we've moved have changed, and I'm actually looking forward to it now more than ever. I can't wait for summer evenings on the deck enjoying dinner & drinks with Steve, friends and family who come over, and the birds that fly around our neighborhood. Weekends out in the garden with the sun beating down on us, getting my hands dirty and just enjoying keeping up with everything out there. Sunday mornings on the front porch enjoying my coffee. Home improvement projects that I'll get to work on side-by-side with Steve, enjoying each other's company as well as knocking some things off the "punch list". Participating in my very first CSA from a farm right here in our town - Bear Hill Farm. There is so much that I am looking forward to this summer - so many little things that are just going to be a ton of fun - that I am excited about it.

Are you excited for spring?What are you excited about?

It All Comes Down To This

2011-03-17T10:21:00.000-04:00

Growing up in our family we had only one rule: Love, honor, and respect your mother. That was it. My stepdad was pretty darned clear about that with us kids. And when it boiled down to it - it's amazing how many things that a child/teenager does wrong can fall into this category. Skip class? You weren't respecting the hard work your mother does to provide you the opportunity to go to school. Fight with siblings? You were breaking Mom's heart. Talk back? Well, that's not loving & respecting Mom, is it? It hurts her when you talk to her like that.

Above all else, we had to love Mom. At the end of the day that was easy because Mom's awesome. She's loving, she's fun, she's genuine, and she's full of grace for her kids. And believe me when I tell you we've each screwed up pretty well and don't deserve the grace she gives us sometimes.

Me & my mom - getting pedicures together - Fall 2010

Today I was reading Matthew 22:37-40, and you see Jesus essentially giving us the same instruction about our relationship with God as my stepdad gave us for our relationship with our mom (which... I guess I should thank my parents for some sort of life lesson here...):

Jesus replied, “'You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40)

Greatest command of all the commands? Love God with your everything. Without abandon. With your heart, soul, mind, & strength - Love God. Second? Love each other, presumably in as close to the same fashion as possible. We're created in God's image - each of us - so I think that in order to show God our love, we MUST love each other. It's a very tangible way to arrive at fulfilling the first greatest command.

And when you think about it - when Jesus says that the "entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments" - it makes a ton of sense. If we're loving God first and loving each other second, we will choose actions, words, and deeds that will esteem these two things. The rest will fall in place. We are called to LOVE - if we strive towards LOVE in all that we do - if we put God and loving God first - imagine what the world would be like.

Imagine what our relationship with God could be like.

I know that when I let go and loved, honored, and respected my mom - she became one of my best friends. If we do the same with God - love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind, & strength - and love others without abandon... imagine what could happen.

Imagine.

Giveaway Alert at Town & Country Prep!

2011-03-04T07:54:00.000-05:00

One of my oldest friends Kristin recently renewed her blogging aspirations and started up a "Town and Country Prep" blog. I enjoy reading her posts; in them she talks about preppy fashion, some of her trips (she recently talked about a trip to Foxwoods), reading, and other things that she loves to do and see. One of my favorite posts she's written so far was a recap of a trip to the outlet stores where she showcased her Ralph Lauren items that she snagged - including one of their cable knit sweaters. I agreed with her assessment of the cable quality; one of my favorite cardigans is my Ralph Lauren black cable knit hoodie that I snagged at TJ Maxx.

At any rate - the reason I am sharing this with you (besides shamelessly trying to get an old friend some new readers), is that she has posted that she's hit double-digit followers AND in celebration of that is having her very first giveaway! She'll be giving away a notepad from Three Designing Women from a steal she got over at One King's Lane - and of course I'm entering this fabulous contest, because I have an problem with stationary. I love it. That's my problem.

I went over and checked out the goods over at Three Designing Women, and I have to say the designs are VERY pretty. I love a lot of them, but got excited to see that they do have some blue & chocolate patterns. Check out these patterns I found!

Notecard Pattern - the center is so you can add your personalized stamp.

Isn't this notepad gorgeous?

THEY SELL BOOKMARKS! I love bookmarks.

Anyways - if you love stationary and want a chance to get some fo' free from a company whose product looks super pretty: this is the contest you want to enter. Head on over to Kristin's blog and put your name in the hat!

Link Recap:
Kristin's Contest (enter until 3/9): CLICK HERE
Three Designing Women (because their stuff looks purty, even if you don't win): CLICK HERE
One King's Lane (deals on homegoods, gourmet food, stationary, and more!): CLICK HERE

Book Review: Love & War

2011-03-03T07:04:00.000-05:00

After reading their book "Captivating" and really getting a lot out of it, I was excited to dive into the "Love and War Devotional" by John & Stasi Eldridge with my husband. I knew that they would be able to impart a lot of wisdom and encouragement through their writing, and I was not disappointed.

The devotional begins with an introduction explaining the purpose of the book and detailing out the plan. The "plan" is a reading plan of 5 days of devotionals that close out with an "exercise" for you as a couple to participate in and lasts for 8 weeks. The devotionals were short, engaging, and spoke honestly about where room for God is in our marriages. Each devotional began and closed with a brief, applicable passage from scripture and also included a prayer asking God to speak into your marriage in a way that is in line with the devotional of the day.

The closing exercise is usually discussion-based, but can sometimes take the form of an action that you can perform for your spouse. These are meant to help you work on deepening your relationship and expressing your love for each other in tangible ways. The exercises were well explained and easy to do, which is good - especially since we were reading through our devotional at the end of the day and would need to remember it the next day or be able to engage in deep conversation at bedtime.

Overall we enjoyed going through this devotional together and now that we've finished I feel like a part of our nightly routine is missing. For us it was the first devotional we went through as a couple and I think that because John & Stasi write so honestly (a few times they reference their own struggles in marriage) it makes these devotionals easy to read and relate to. We often found that the devotional of the day was immediately applicable to what was going on in our marriage at that time. I enjoyed this enough that I would read through it again after a period of time (say, same time next year or something) so that it becomes fresh again; it will always be applicable.

I definitely recommend this to any couple who is looking for a basic devotional to read through together. It was easy to read, immediately applicable, and just about any couple that has a desire for continuous improvement and growth in their marriage would be able to relate to this devotional.

*Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Waterbrook Multnomah Blogging for Books book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”*

The Fruits of Idle Hands - Part 2

2011-03-02T06:43:00.000-05:00

As I mentioned in my last post - on Sunday in a fit of borderline boredom I went nuts creating and cooking. The results were the previously posted apple-cranberry spice cake and the recipe in the post you're currently reading - carrot soup. Both of these were smash hits with the husband, which made me a bit excited since I was flying by the seat of my pants making things I'd never made anything similar to before. In fact, the carrot soup was such a hit that this morning Steve looked at me and said "When are we making carrot soup again? Any answer other than '10 minutes from now' is unacceptable."

Clearly he was joking (we decided on this weekend to prepare for 2 nights of dinners next week). Anyways - I'll get on with it:

Danielle's Carrot Soup

(Makes 4 servings)

Yummy soup - but Chef Anne Burrell would yell at me for messy bowls.

Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oils
- 4 cups chopped raw carrots
- 1 cup chopped red onions
- 1.5 cups vegetable stock
- 1.5 cups water
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp ginger garlic paste
- 2 tsp dried basil
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1/2 tsp curry powder

Method:
- In a medium sized pot, heat the EVOO over medium-high heat.
- Add the carrots & onions and saute for about 5-7 minutes until onions begin to become opaque/translucent.
- Add the vegetable stock & water and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and allow to simmer for another 5 minutes or until carrots are fork-tender.
- Add remaining ingredients, stirring until they are fully combined. Allow to simmer for another 1-2 minutes or so to allow flavors to intermingle.
- Remove from heat and let cool for about 5 minutes.
- Pour all ingredients in blender and blend until completely pureed. If it seems a bit thick, add 1/4 cup water and blend again. Note - this should be a thicker soup, we found our perfect consistency to be kind of the same as a thicker tomato bisque would be.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate for future use.

As with any soup, there are things that you can add in to this. We've tested out both some Trader Joe's apple chicken sausage on one night and peas on another night. The peas - I thought - were a perfect addition to the soup, whereas the sausage seemed kind of out of place. We also served this with naan on the side and it was a perfect compliment to the dish. It's a great way to warm your core and I think can easily fall into the "comfort food" category.

Man... I love to cook.

Incase you're interested - the nutrition information for this recipe can be found here: Nutrition Information.

Side note - the sub-moral of the story is that all the watching of cooking shows in my life is seemingly paying off. I'm apparently learning through osmosis what flavor profiles go well together as well as some basics of how to do things.

The Fruits of Idle Hands - Part One

2011-02-27T21:32:00.001-05:00

After a full day yesterday of serving at a local homeless drop-in center and catching up with the housework & laundry we'd fallen behind on, Steve and I decided to lay-low today and just spend some time with each other. For the most part we did (the exception being a way-too-delayed visit to my grandmother), and around 6:00 PM I was hit with a wave of being bored.

I wasn't much feeling like conversation so I didn't call anyone. I wasn't much feeling like emailing or reading (I'd already done both). Facebook just causes further boredom. There's only so much web-surfing one can do before they lose their mind.

So... what did I do?

I opened my refrigerator and pantry. I looked at what I had on-hand. And I got to work creating some tasty treats. The first thing I created was...

Apple-Cranberry Spice Cake

Ingredients:

DRY:
- 2 cups flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- 1 rounded tsp cinnamon
- ½ cup dried cranberries
WET:
- ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
- ⅔ cup sugar
- ½ cup butter (1 stick), melted
- ½ cup almond milk
- 1 apple, diced

Method:

- Preheat oven to 350 & grease 8x8 baking dish

- Combine dry ingredients in medium sized bowl (I used a fork)

- Combine wet ingredients in smaller bowl (I used a spoon)

- Add wet ingredients into the dry ingredients bowl, and combine by folding with a spatula

- Pour batter into baking dish and spread evenly across the pan

- Bake for about 40 minutes (until toothpick comes out clean).

Now... if I'm going to be honest as I was pouring the batter into the baking dish, my fear was that the cake was going to come out rather dense. This was not at all the case - it was rather a light cake considering the consistency of the batter. It was quite tasty and unfortunately for my diet quite addicting. Steve and I had a hard time stopping ourselves for going back and forth for more starting with the initial taste test to our actual serving time. This ended up becoming our dinner - which was fine because we ate enough of it to be a meal!

I think we might have had too much cake...

Tomorrow I'll share with you the other dish that I created - my version of carrot soup!

Smells Like Curry Spirit

2011-02-24T14:12:00.000-05:00

When you're married to a guy who loves to eat all sorts of food, you end up trying different things and figuring out how the heck you can manage to eat similar foods at home. Cookbooks can teach you basics, but what I've learned is that there's nothing quite so fun as taking what you learn in cookbooks and cooking shows and making your own recipes from the things you've taken into your gray matter. I find that more and more I end up using my pots & pans as my canvas and the food in my stores as my paints. What happens when I get to creating?

All sorts of things. Some of them that I end up writing down later - like my latest kitchen creation that I'd like to share with you.

Danielle's Vegetable Curry

(Makes about 8 servings)

Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 4 cups red potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 2 cups red onion, chopped
- 4 whole carrots, peeled & chopped
- 2 cups red bell peppers, chopped
- 2 tsp minced garlic (I cheat and get mine from a jar.)
- 1 cup shitaki mushrooms, chopped
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1 cup frozen green beans
- 4 cups baby spinach
- 2 cups vegetable (or chicken) broth
- 1/4 cup coconut cream (AKA cream of coconut - I use Goya.)
- 1/4 cup almond or soy milk
- 2 tsp curry powder (I use Spice Islands)
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- Salt & pepper, to taste

Method:
- In large stock pot, heat olive oil over medium-high heat.
- Add and saute potatoes for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add onions, carrots, peppers, and garlic. Saute for another 5-7 minutes until potatoes and carrots begin to get fork-tender.
- Add mushrooms and saute for another 2-3 minutes until they begin to brown.
- Add broth and bring to simmer.
- Add frozen peas, corn, and green beans. Allow to simmer for another 2 minutes.
- Add curry powder, cumin, salt & pepper. Stir to incorporate.
- Add coconut cream and almond milk. Allow to simmer for 8-10 minutes.
- Add baby spinach and carefully combine it into the pot to allow it to wilt.
- Remove from heat. Serve with jasmine rice and garlic naan (or eat it alone, which is what we've been doing for lunches this week).

If you like your sauce to be a little bit thinner, you can add 1/2 to 1 cup of water to thin it out. We've been eating it this week for our lunches and it's been an awesome flavorful way to have a mid-day meal. A healthy way too - one serving packs almost 6 grams of fiber and just over 7 grams of protein, and it's a great way to get some extra veggies into your diet. If you fancy a bit more protein, toss in a cup or two of chopped chicken breast or add some chickpeas. I haven't tried them in there yet, but I'm sure either addition would be super tasty!

Having never made a "curry" before, I was excited about how it turned out and I have a feeling that this will be making repeat performances several times going forward. Play with it and make it yours! It's an easy, delicious, healthy meal - if you make it, I hope you enjoy it as much as we have!

Considering the Cost

2011-02-18T07:24:00.000-05:00

Last weekend I was visited by our local Mary Kay representative for an in-home skincare "lesson" (read: sales pitch). I listened and tried out several products and paid attention to what the MK Lady told me about skin care products, took mental notes, and then braced myself as she prepared to tell me the cost of everything.

The facial skin care set: $90. $125 if I wanted the uber-set. The stupendous hand care set that I fell in love with: $34 (comparable with Bath & Body Works Prices). Puffy eye gel that I can put in the fridge and put on my eye-puffs whenever I cry or am overtired or have sneezed too much: $15 (not too bad). My brain: Still stuck on "Wait... $90 for freaking face wash and moisturizer? For serious?"

It was nice... but... $90? Really?

Now, those of you who use MK or Clinique or Lancome or Estee Lauder or other comparable makeup on a regular basis are probably thinking: Yes. Duh. Pay attention, Danielle. It's the price of beauty and delayed wrinkles. But please understand: I buy $5 face wash from Trader Joe's and 2-packs of Olay Complete facial moisturizer at Sam's Club for less than $30. So to ask me to switch from my inexpensive, seems to be working routine to a $90 set of products that 5 hours later made my face itch... I am unconvinced of the value in doing so. That's a $55 difference from my current routine.

I really and truly had to consider the cost before I could determine whether or not to hit the "buy" button.

Sitting in church the next day singing "Amazing Grace", I realized that was not the first time in my life I'd been presented with leaving my old way of doing things for a new one and had to consider the cost of doing so. When my heart first began to open up enough to let Jesus in and let Him change me, I had to consider the cost too.

Following Jesus meant life would change completely. Sacrifices would happen. The people surrounding you change. How you approach your job and simple things like driving changes. How you spend a Thursday night changes. My marriage is affected. I could keep going on and on and on... but a lot of things changed when I began to place my trust in Jesus as the leader of my life.

And while almost 5 years later I can see how all of these changes have been good and have had positive outcomes... I cannot help but take pause and realize that the cost was huge. The initial investment has changed my life and has called me to make further investments in Jesus' calling and God's will for my life. It has challenged me to reach outside of myself further, has made me aware of my brokenness and my need to changes areas of my life, to sacrifice my time and resources so that others may be blessed and know that God loves them as well.

The benefits of my investments so far have been huge. A stronger relationship with my husband. Deeper friendships. Stronger bonds with family members. Tangible answers to prayer. The ability to see where God is working in my life. Things that before I may have treated superficially or overlooked I see with different eyes. I can see His hand in areas I never would have before getting to know Him better.

Are you thinking about where Jesus will fit in your life? I urge you to consider the cost and think over the benefits. Like any good cosmetics saleswoman would say - I can't guarantee that all results will be equal, but I can tell you that anyone who has let Jesus change their heart that I've met has been thrilled with the results. Are you willing to let Him do that for you?

One day when large groups of people were walking along with him, Jesus turned and told them, ""Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sisters—yes, even one's own self!—can't be my disciple. Anyone who won't shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can't be my disciple.

Is there anyone here who, planning to build a new house, doesn't first sit down and figure the cost so you'll know if you can complete it? If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you're going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you: 'He started something he couldn't finish.'

Or can you imagine a king going into battle against another king without first deciding whether it is possible with his ten thousand troops to face the twenty thousand troops of the other? And if he decides he can't, won't he send an emissary and work out a truce?

Simply put, if you're not willing to take what is dearest to you, whether plans or people, and kiss it good-bye, you can't be my disciple.

"Salt is excellent. But if the salt goes flat, it's useless, good for nothing.

"Are you listening to this? Really listening?"

Luke 14":25-35 (The Message)

Top 5 - Favorite Guster Tunes

2011-02-17T06:44:00.000-05:00

Maybe it's because I still haven't gotten over the buzz from seeing them live back in September, but I've had Guster songs in the back of my head recently. I'll randomly start singing one when I walk around the house, and get a bit excited when I hear them pop up on my Pandora streaming music at work. If you've not ever heard of Guster - in my humble opinion you're missing out. In fact - for those of you who haven't heard their music before, take the time to watch the below. You'll enjoy it.

Danielle's Top 5 Guster Tunes

(in no particular order)

Demons: This is probably one of the songs I've caught myself singing the most recently. My guess as to why is that it was one of the songs that they performed when I saw them, and it's been stuck in my inner-brain playlist since then. I guess there are worse things, right?

Center of Attention: This song is one of my favorite songs to belt out in the car. A few years ago, I got a cool bonus when we saw the Barenaked Ladies and Adam Gardner came out and joined BNL in singing this song. I believe this was also played in September, but I wouldn't guarantee that. That could be wishful, made-up memories.

Mona Lisa: This is one that never made it to the radio, but it's one of those songs that when I'm down somehow singing it is like venting and I start feeling better. My favorite line from the chorus is "I used to sit and watch the pouring rain..." - for some reason that always hits... something. You know? Maybe not. Either way - awesome song.

Scars & Stitches: And here we have a song that for a while was quoted in my profiles across the intertubes. "I don't mind falling down and scraping up my knees, scars & stitches always fade and only strengthen me." Self-explanatory, and a great attitude to have towards the bumps & bruises life will bring. Pick up, learn, move forward with a positive attitude.

Do You Love Me?: This song is newer, but I think it's super fun. It's bouncy, catchy, and for some reason makes me want summer to be here. Probably because I'll buy it on the iTunes, burn it to a CD, and blast it with the windows open. "I wanna find out what it means... do you looooooove me?" Fun times!

Those are my 5 favorite Guster tunes, though I have to admit there were a few that I had to waffle on... "Amsterdam", "Happier", and "Stay With Me Jesus" were also on the list. Search for those on YouTube if you're interested in hearing more Guster.

If you're a Guster fan - what are your favorites? If you haven't heard Guster before and are a music fan - have I sparked your interest?

Sept! Siete! Seven!

2011-02-15T07:16:00.000-05:00

As I was reading through the blogs on my Google Reader, I discovered that one of my oldest friends Kristin over at Town and Country Prep tagged me for the "7 Things Blog Award". First of all - THANKS to Kristin for the tag and second of all - if you haven't seen Kristin's blog, take a pop over and check her out. She's a really cool person and so far her posts (her blog is relatively new and she just came down with the flu - poor thing!) have been great!

Now... on to the who point of this post which is 7 things about MOI!

1. I love reading and will read just about anything from any genre. I have a propensity to read multiple books at a time and will often take way too long to get through them as a result. Right now as you can see in my sidebar - I'm reading 5 books. Ridiculous! But they're all good and I'll likely finish all of them.

2. I am acrophobic (acrophobia = fear of heights) but only in so far as thinking that if I am not properly protected from high-up that I will fall and get incredibly hurt. So for example: I can easily go to the tall tourist attractions or fly in a plane without issue. However, I cannot climb scaling walls without panicking and have been known to have a bit of anxiety getting on the Tower of Terror at Disney's Hollywood Studios. Tree climbing? Hot air balloon rides? Getting too close to a canyon/mountain edge? Forget about it. Ain't happenin'.

3. I discovered my faith and started to follow Jesus Christ in mid/late 2006. As a result I've discovered what a hot mess I am and have realized that through Him I can work on a lot of what's broken - it's amazing what the power of God's grace can do to a person's life. It's also changed my perspective on the world as a whole, which has been incredibly powerful as well.

4. I have a BA in Psychology that I paid for the bulk of myself through various loans and payment plans. I feel like I value my education more because I did work so hard to pay for school; I know myself and if it had been paid for by primarily other sources, I don't think I would have appreciated the education and experience as much. Also - it made the help I did get all the more meaningful because I couldn't depend on it, so it became a very meaningful gift rather than something I would depend on and potentially take it for granted.

5. Aside from my husband, my best friend is my Mom. I feel incredibly blessed to say that because not many people have the relationship with their mother like I have with mine. One of the best birthday gifts I got last year was an entire weekend with just my mom (she turned 50 and I turned 30 last year). Quality time with her is always a huge blessing!

6. I have always loved cooking shows; I have memories of sitting on my Papa Cochrane's bed next to him as a small child watching "Yan Can Cook", "The Frugal Gourmet" and Julia Child on PBS. He would watch it with his headphones on, but unplug them when I came in so I could watch too. BUT - my guilty pleasure is almost any "Food Network" competitive type show. Think "Iron Chef", "Cupcake Wars", or "Worst Cooks in America". My favorite - "Chopped". I'm more than a little giddy about "Chopped: All Stars" coming up in March. There. I said it.

7. If being a housewife could pay the bills, I would do it in a heartbeat. I pray that when we have kids that I am able to be a stay-at-home mom. There's something incredibly satisfying to me about being able to provide that for my family. The days that I am able to get everything in order in the house and then cook a good meal for Steve & I are usually the days that I feel the most fulfilled.

So - those are my 7 things about me. I have almost fulfilled my requirements... but NOW I, in turn, have to tag 3 people... so without further adieu:

Mags over at Ms. Maggie Moo Talks 2 U: A friend of mine who writes a few times a week about her life in a fun and engaging style. Definitely check her out - she's got a huge blog following which I think attests to the quality of her blog.

Laura over at GreenThings: My good friend Laura who writes primarily about food and gardening. She's posted some really good looking comfort-food recipes recently, so definitely check her out!

Kimberly over at Kimberblog!: Another good friend of mine who recently moved to China. She's a really neat person who writes about her Chinese experience as well as crafting, vegan/vegetarian cooking, and other cool stuff.

There you have it! 7 things and 3 people tagged - mission accomplished. Thanks to Kristin for tagging me for the 7 Things Blog Award!

Restaurant Review: Epcot's Via Napoli

2011-02-05T22:50:00.000-05:00

Each year on our annual Disney trip, we like to try out different restaurants that we haven't tried before. Since it had opened since our last visit and the reviews we'd been reading had been coming out pretty positive, we decided to have dinner at Via Napoli. The restaurant (or "ristorante", as it were) is located in the back of the Italy pavilion in Epcot's World Showcase.

After reading several rave reviews about the service, food, and beverages - I was excited to sit down and try it out. We had spent the day eating "around the world", and we were ending our gustatory adventure with dinner at Via Napoli (which would also check Italy off of our list). We checked in and within 5 minutes were ushered to our table which was situated in a "back patio" area of the restaurant. This area was indoors, but was decorated like a covered outdoor patio complete with cement floors. The environment was really well done, which made getting settled at our table relatively easy.

Not only was this visit at the end of our day, it was also the last day of our vacation which meant we were used to the high quality of Disney food and service throughout the WDW Resort. Having said that - we waited quite a while before anyone came to fill our water glasses and take our drink orders. By the time the waiter came and took our drink orders, we were ready to order our meals as well. Adding to at least my husband's frustration was the fact that they were out of artichokes - which meant that all of the pizzas he had picked out for himself weren't able to be ordered. Thankfully, he does enjoy pepperoni pizza so he just joined in with the one that our friends had ordered. With that - the waiter was off to get our drinks and bring us some bread & oil.

For my drink, I ordered the vodka lemon drop. I wasn't really in the mood for wine, and the refreshing crispness of lemon sounded just about perfect. I was not at all disappointed when the drink was delivered. It was definitely refreshing, was ice cold and not at all watered down. I made sure to nurse this delicious libation throughout dinner because I'm sure it was deceptive in its non-alcoholic tastiness. Our friend Laura ordered a bellini, and the boys split a pitcher of the Italian beer (made specially for the American restaurant - talk about knowing your audience).

Via Napoli Lemon Drop


Beer!

Bread & oil - tasty, but pretty standard really.

Soon enough after enjoying some bread and booze, the pizza came out. The first thing that struck me was that everything looked delicious... and the size of the pepperoni pizza that came out to our table. I don't remember what the word for it was on the menu (the online ones I could find called it a "half-meter" - the menu did not say that) - but the darned thing was HUGE.

Gigantic Pepperoni Pizza... for three? Maybe times ten...

I had ordered the Pizza Margherita because every review I had read about Via Napoli raved about it. People had said they were expecting one thing but then got this awesome pizza that was surprisingly tastier than they thought it would be. I will say that when it was placed in front of me - it certainly looked like it was going to live up to its reputation. The sauce looked good, the mozzarella was melted perfectly, and the basil was in good proportion to the cheese and looked fresh. I was ready to dig in.

Looks good enough to eat!

I picked up my first piece and was ready for that wonderful thin crust crispiness that I have grown to love on my pizza... and was met with a relatively soggy center crust. The sauce was warm, the cheese was tasty and the perfect consistency, and the basil lent that subtle hint of flavor that brought the flavors all together. But my crust... the beautiful picturesque crust... was a huge let-down. Because I enjoyed the overall taste and the outer crust was cooked perfectly - I did eat the whole individual order that I had requested. However - I was totally let down by the bottom layer of crust and knew, in that moment, that there was a huge difference between me and the people who had written the numerous reviews I had read singing the praises of this pizza.

They clearly did not grow up in New England.

There's something about growing up in a heavily populated Italian-American area of the country that lends itself to great pizza existing in plentiful amounts. This means that to be competitive, pizzerias must perfect their craft and get the crust perfect. Even on a thin crust pizza, the base crust has to be crispy in order to sustain the sauce and cheese and inevitable grease that develops when the cheese & toppings are cooked. Since thin-crust style pizzerias are seemingly on every corner up here and the biggest players are Pizzeria Regina, Sal's, and Papa Gino's - all known for their great crust, near-perfect sauce and all some of my favorite places to get a slice or two - I know what I like in pizza. And a huge requirement for me is a perfectly crisp non-burned crust that can hold up to the goods on top of it.

Via Napoli, unfortunately, fell short in this area.

After we ate, Steve confessed that the folks on the WDW Today podcast - who are mostly from New England or the Northeast - also had the same feedback on the pizza. He just felt bad because I was so excited to try it that he felt badly when he heard it... so he didn't mention it. I'm glad he didn't because if nothing else, reading about this pizza did get me in the door of the restaurant. I did truly like the atmosphere, the menu had tons of selection and yummy-looking food, the drinks were delicious, the toppings were spot-on, and once our waiter came over he was attentive the rest of the time we were there. All of those things in mind - I would absolutely consider eating there again on a future visit to the park.

I would just NOT order the pizza in any "flavor". It's not worth my money to get floppy crust. Not even from Walt Disney World.

Review: Mystically Wired

2011-01-14T23:09:00.001-05:00

I recently read the book "Mystically Wired" by Ken Wilson and was pleasantly surprised. It's not often that you are able to find a book that takes prayer and makes it something completely approachable. Prayer is something that most people are intimidated by, so by making it approachable Wilson does something powerful for millions of people looking to get closer to God.

Wilson breaks the book into what I think are two basic sections: how God wired us to pray and relate to him, and then how we can actually go about doing that. The way that he breaks this down is key I think - first understand how it works, then understand how to make it work. Since this is a basic approach to most things that we encounter and tackle in our daily lives, it makes coming to God in prayer a completely realistic thing for someone who may have previously been nervous, intimidated, or just avoided prayer thinking it's too hard. By demonstrating that we're all wired to pray, explaining that we're all uniquely wired, and giving several practical ways to step into the shallow end of the "prayer pool", Wilson removes the barriers that most people have to engaging with God in prayer.

I was truly amazed by how incredibly practical this book was. There were several points at which I agreed with the author, appreciated his challenges, and felt encouraged to take simple steps to come to God in prayer. As someone who found my faith relatively recently, prayer is not always something that comes naturally to me. What Wilson does that I really appreciated was recognize that a lot of people are coming from this position of discomfort and present ways to get past and challenge those barriers. The thing that Wilson does that I found really handy was that he not only give several steps and tools with which to approach God in prayer; at the end of the book he provides an appendix of 10 steps for the reader to use as an easy reference. A month from now I won't remember every single thing that he spelled out in the book, but having an appendix certainly helps with that issue.

Something that may turn a person off to this book is that in the first chapter or two he heavily references the mystics in his discussion of how we are wired to pray. A lot of people may be turned off by this, but I would encourage anyone deciding to read this book to be patient with Wilson as his points are incredibly relevant if you hear him out with an open mind. I personally don't have any problem with the concept of mystics and mysticism, but I understand where this may be a put-off to some.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for practical tools and understanding when it comes to prayer. Again - I caution that some may be turned off by the first chapter or two, but I encourage anyone who gets this book to seriously get past that and hear out the author. His points are valid, they make sense, and the fact he offers simple things that we can do to become more engaged in prayer on increasingly deep levels is great. The reviews on the back of the book all basically state that this was the best book on prayer that they had ever read - and on a lot of levels I would agree. If you struggle with prayer or are just looking to explore new/deeper areas of prayer - get your hands on this book.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Calm Your Fears - The Yogurt's Fine

2011-01-06T11:20:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I happened to notice that someone on Twitter had retweeted about a contest that Chobani was having where the winner(s) could get a case of free yogurt. All a person had to do was follow Chobani on Twitter and retweet the contest - and the person was entered. Simple enough. I clicked the "Follow" button on their profile and retweeted about the contest. Boom. Entered.

An hour or two later I got a direct message from the folks at Chobani letting me know that I had won and to please email them at the address provided with my mailing address and my favorite flavor of Chobani. Sweet!

Excited because that's about $12 worth of my favorite Greek-style yogurt for free - I immediately emailed them with my address, let them know that I love the pomegranate (which has full seeds in it, delicious) and that the blueberry is a close second favorite. Then I asked them a very important question... How the heck do you ship yogurt?

They emailed me back to let me know they'd send me a case of yogurt with both flavors (score!) and to rest easy - they ship yogurt all the time. It would ship out on January 5 and arrive at my house on January 6. I knew I would be working that day from home, so I felt better knowing that a case of yogurt wouldn't be hanging out on my front porch all day getting gross. What I didn't know is that there was no way in heck that yogurt would have gone bad. The box arrived today as promised... and what I found made me realize that yes, the fine folks at Chobani know exactly what they're doing when it comes to shipping yogurt.

The box that arrived on my doorstep was significantly larger than I was expecting and contained a styrofoam cooler that was equally as large.

Picture taken next to fridge for a bit of perspective on the size of the box.

Now... we've all eaten yogurt. 12 containers of yogurt is not that large. I went ahead and opened the cooler and inside that I discovered how exactly it is that Chobani keeps their yogurt cold when they ship it to you overnight. Every ounce of empty space was loaded with styrofoam packing peanuts, and there were 8 reusable long-lasting ice packs inside as well. I could definitely feel the cold air emanating from the cooler as I removed the packing material to get to the yogurt that I knew had to be buried in there somewhere.

I felt like the dad in "A Christmas Story" digging through this box. My very own "Major Award".

8 ice packs - totally reusable, I might add. These will come in handy.

Once I finally was able to dig through and remove all of the ice packs from the cooler, I laid my hands on the case of yogurt that was buried deep inside. The case contained 6 blueberry and 6 pomegranate yogurts - all nice and cold and waiting to be placed in their temporary home in my refrigerator. Temporary because at some point these are all going to end up in an Athanas stomach.

There were so many packing peanuts they got inside the case too. Packing peanuts everywhere.

So if you ever find yourself in a situation where a company is going to overnight ship you something rather perishable and they reassure you that they know what they're doing - there's a good chance that they do. I think that's the bottom line. That, and I have 12 of my favorite yogurts in my fridge that I'm super pumped about. Because they're going to be yummy. And they were free.

**Disclaimer: I was in no way compensated to write this post. I am writing this of my own volition because I was seriously impressed with the way Chobani shipped this yogurt. They are not paying me in any form - money, more free yogurt, lawn care, etc. - for writing this post. If they had shipped it terribly, I would have told you about that too. Consumer education and all.

Using Leftovers: "Boiled Dinner" Risotto

2011-01-02T19:32:00.000-05:00

Growing up in New England, I am very familiar with the phrase "Boiled Dinner". This meal usually consists of a ham or corned beef boiled with potatoes, carrots, onions, and cabbage - at least that's what it was in my house growing up. It wasn't unusual for us to have boiled dinners a few times over the course of the winter growing up in my house, and some of my fondest Sunday dinner memories surround these meals.

Staring at a seemingly endless pile of leftover ham from Christmas, I decided that I would use some of it in a risotto dish. While wandering the produce section at my local grocery store yesterday, I came up with the idea of creating a "Boiled Dinner" risotto using some of my favorite ingredients from a typical New England boiled dinner. The results were absolutely delicious, so I will share them with you.

"Boiled Dinner" Risotto (Serves 8)

Ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons of light olive oil, divided
- 1.5 medium or 1 large sweet onion, chopped
- 2 carrots, peeled & chopped
- 2 red potatoes, washed & chopped
- 1/2 small/medium head of cabbage, cut into 2" long x 0.5" wide strips (roughly)
- 1.5 tsp crushed garlic
- 2 cups leftover ham, chopped
- 2 cups Arborio rice
- 6 cups stock (I used chicken)
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1.5 oz (or 1/2 cup) shredded/grated Asiago Cheese
- Cinnamon, sage, nutmeg, rosemary, and fresh ground pepper (about 2-3 dashes each... just enough, but not too much)

Method:
- In a large pot, heat 2 tbsp olive oil.
- Add in onions & carrots. Sauté for about 2-3 minutes.
- Add red potatoes & the other 2 tbsp olive oil. Sauté for about 2-3 more minutes.
- In a separate pot, combine stock, water, and cider vinegar. Put heat on medium to bring up to a warm temperature - liquid should be steaming but not bubbling.
- Add cabbage & ham. Sauté for about 2-3 more minutes. (At this point, I also added about 1/4 cup water to help de-glaze the pan as there was some brown starting to appear at the bottom.)

- Add garlic & rice. Sauté for about 2 more minutes.
- Ladle enough of the liquid over the rice to cover it. Stir and bring up to a simmer, stirring occasionally.

- As the liquid becomes absorbed, add 1-2 more ladles of liquid until the rice becomes al-dente and the risotto begins to appear to have a creamy texture/look.
- Before adding the last ladle or two of liquid, add the 2 tbsp of brown sugar and all spices to the mixture. Stir until combined.
- Once the last of the liquid has been added and has been absorbed, stir in the Asiago cheese until it is combined. Serve in bowls, feeds up to 8.

This is basically what the finished product should look like.

When I served this up to Steve and our friend John, it was better received than I had anticipated. Steve is not much of a cabbage person so I wasn't sure how he'd like the cabbage in the mix, but he went for seconds - so it wasn't bad to be in there! We have about 4 servings left so I'm looking forward to having this for another meal or two.

One variation on this that I will throw out there. The cider vinegar combined with the brown sugar & cinnamon lend this dish to have a slightly tart & sweet flavor. If you're not a fan of vinegar tastes, I would recommend not adding the vinegar to the liquid and instead substituting in 1/2 cup of apple juice or apple cider. I think that it would keep that sweetness to the flavor but take away the tartness of the vinegar.

If you try this out, leave a comment and let me know. I will say this for anyone who's never made risotto - I think that it can be intimidating because you don't want to overcook it. However, it is incredibly easy to do once you know what you're doing. The key - I've found - is to make sure you're ready to stand over the pot, stirring in the liquid and keeping a watchful eye for when it has been absorbed by the rice so you know when to add more. Risotto is an interactive meal to prepare and can be fun to watch it transform into a pile of sauteed stuff into a delicious creamy rice dish.

Enjoy!

Setting the Bar for 2011

2011-01-01T19:39:00.000-05:00

Today is the first day of the new year, and I am excited to say that I spent it with Steve setting up our budget and then having a day-date pilgrimage to Foxboro to hang out at Patriot Place. It was indeed a great start to the year.

The last few days I've been wondering what exactly it is that I want to accomplish this year, and truthfully I've been a bit stumped. This morning as I stood in my office I realized that there are 4 things that I want to do and getting them down in a written form is a good first step in getting going with them. In no particular order of importance, here are the things that I want to accomplish sometime in the next 365 days.

1. Finish the "Afghan of Doom". I taught myself to crochet about 8 or 9 years ago and it was right about that time that I bought a bunch of yarn and decided I was going to make myself an afghan using nothing but double crochet stitches and an "H" hook. To this day I have still not finished that blasted afghan and I'm pretty sure I haven't set a stitch into the thing in over a year. Rather than have an unfinished project continue to take up space in my closet, I'm going to finish the thing before the year is out. Period. This goal is non-negotiable. I'm tired of the doubt I have in my heart and mind that the blasted thing will ever be done - it must happen.

You're mine this year, Afghan of Doom. Be prepared to be completed.

2. Study at least one book of the Bible per month start to finish. As I mentioned in my post re-capping my 2010 goals, I did not complete this goal this year. I did end the year having spent more time in God's word than ever before and really enjoyed the time I spent studying scripture. What I did learn through this (besides not having a plan and not setting aside time being key factors to incompletion), is that there are several books of the Bible that I definitely want to dive into and spend time in. Among these are Isaiah, Jeremiah, Acts, Revelation (to name a few)... I really think that if I plot out at least one book to read and study per month, that will be significantly more attainable for me than trying to read the whole book in a year on my own. I know my own limits, I know how I spend my time, it's best to take a moderate step on this and surprise myself later rather than a huge leap.

3. Read at least 15 books before the year is through. Last year I set out to read more than I did in 2009, and I increased my total from 4 books read in 2009 to 13 books read in 2010. This year I'd like to read at least 15 books; considering I used to be an absolutely voracious reader and I love reading - this one is one I think I can achieve.

These poor books just want to be read... don't they look sad and lonely?

4. Run in two 5K races and achieve progressively better times. I ran in my first 5K race in 2010, and I loved it. I have grown to really enjoy running and can feel myself getting stronger and being able to run longer. Having said that, this year I'd love to be able to run in at least 2 races and improve my time with each one. My first time was 37:48, so I think that's something I can definitely succeed in as well.

Four seems to be a good number for me, so I'm going to keep it to this list for things that I want to accomplish this year. I'm excited about them. Now if you'll excuse me... I have a cup of tea, a pile of yarn and a crochet hook in the other room waiting to be paid attention to. Might as well get right down to work!

Happy New Year, Everyone!

2010 Goal Recap - How'd I Do?

2010-12-30T12:16:00.000-05:00

At the beginning of the year, I set some goals for myself. The year progressed and a lot of things happened in the Athanas household this year:

We bought a house that we absolutely love.
I hit a huge weight loss milestone - even in the midst of the holiday season.
Steve was able to travel for business twice, which he loves.
I started to use my cookbooks more and blogged about it.
We sent our fish to a better home where they could be better taken care of and we gave our 90-gallon tank away to a single mom who wanted to set one up for her child.
Steve and I both experienced rebuilding/healing of relationships in our immediate families, which has been pretty cool.
God answered our prayers for additional volunteers for the youth ministry more than we ever could imagine - we'll end 2010 with a staff of 8!

Home Sweet Home - Athanas Homestead, Est. 2010

There are lots of other things that were of note in 2010, but those are the things that immediately are coming to mind as I reflect on the year. However - this post is not about those awesome things. It's about how I did on my goals. Our friend John said once that when you set goals, transparency in goals is important - so I'll be honest as I go through each of these and let you know how I did without any fluff.

1. I set out to read the entire Bible in a year: Well... if this were a complete pass/fail - I would absolutely fail. I did not read entire Bible this year. Having said that - I will say that just setting this goal at all did draw me to God's word more than I ever have been drawn in the past. I spent more time reading scripture this year than I ever have, and in fact got so caught up in Psalms one morning recently that I lost track of time and was late for work! I think that there are two things that did not happen that would have made this goal a complete success that I will definitely keep in mind for next time.

I did not set out with a plan. With all the reading plans out there to read the entire Bible in a year, do you think I looked at ANY of them? Nope. Not a one. If I decide to reset this goal - this is one thing I would definitely make sure I had in place.
I did not set aside time each day to read scripture. Without proper time, no goal can ever be achieved.

Again - I don't consider this goal completely missed as I did spend significantly more time in God's word than I ever had before. That in and of itself makes me feel that something was accomplished here.

Almost... but not quite...

2. I thought that maybe, just maybe, I would finish more crochet projects in 2010. Yeah right sure. I'm not even going to attempt to bring some positive spin to this - I did NOT complete more crochet projects this year than last. However - if I play my cards right - there's a very decent shot that I will complete a larger project I've been working on for a while for a gift before the year is out. Stay tuned... I'll let you know. I can't reveal it quite yet because, well, it's a gift.

3. Read and complete more books! This one I definitely did, and I'm psyched about it. Two of my favorite passtimes/hobbies are reading and crocheting; reading has been since I was a small child. According to my Goodreads tally, I completed a total of 13 books this year. That's 9 more than I completed last year, so I really kicked this goal's butt. Very excited about that! My favorites that I read were "Snowflower and the Secret Fan", "The Shack", "The Vertical Self", and "Before Green Gables". I'm wondering if I can beat 13 books for next year... do I toy with fate and reset this goal for 2011?

4. Participate in and Complete a 5K race: Well... any of you who know me and/or read this blog know that I did this one in November. I ran in my first 5K with my friend Laura and completed the race in 37 minutes and 48 seconds. I was so pumped. I also closed out the year with a great milestone for myself this morning on the treadmill - I was able to jog for 38 out of 45 minutes I spent on the machine, and completed the 5K portion of my workout in just about 36 minutes. Considering how boring running on a treadmill can be, I was pretty pumped about this. I'm giving all the credit to my new running pants I got at TJMaxx last night.

Finished! Check one off the list...

So - I would give myself about a 75% on the year, which is better than most people do with their annual goals. I'm excited to think about and establish goals for 2011 - I have a really good feeling about next year!

What about you? What goals did you achieve this year? What are you thinking for 2011?

Mission Cookbook: COOKIES!!!

2010-12-28T07:09:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I have partaken in a bit of cookbook-cooking, so when it was time to bake my Christmas cookies I busted out the old "New Better Homes and Gardens" cookbook to select what tasty treats I would bake up for the holiday. The problem with baking cookies is that when you are trying to pick out what to make - they all sound so stinking good. I landed on fudgy cappuccino cookies, lemon-pistachio biscotti, and traditional fudge as the recipes I would snag from the book. A trip to the store to gather up the ingredients I was missing for the task and I was ready to go!

Because the fudgy cappuccino cookie batter needed to chill for 3 hours, I made that first. The main ingredients for that were unsweetened cocoa, instant coffee granules, sugar, and flour. I whipped up the batter making sure to follow the instructions carefully, covered the bowl with tin foil and popped it in the fridge.

Lick the batter for the cappuccino cookies? Heck yeah I did!

Next I got to work on the fudge. I got the ingredients measured out, in the pan, turned the pan on to heat... and discovered that my candy thermometer was busted. Devastating. This meant that for my first go at traditional fudge I would need to trust a timer and since I'm not an expert at candy making - the missing of the candy thermometer would turn out to be a bit of a bummer.


Boiling fudge mixture.

Fudge post-boiling with butter & vanilla added.

I followed the directions as best as I could without the thermometer, but as I mentioned this one piece of equipment being missing turned out to be a bit of a bummer. When the timer went off after I added the butter & vanilla, I returned to the fudge to discover that it had already set. Since the directions explicitly stated to NOT stir initially but wait until the temperature had dropped to stir in the butter & vanilla - this meant that I had fudge with a topping of butter. Not good. I turned the heat on to try and re-liquify the fudge, but this did not work out too well either - it made the consistency grainy. The butter was incorporated though, so I removed it and placed it in the pie pan to set. What I ended up with is more like the best tasting fudgy sugar cubes you'll ever eat rather than delicious fudge.

Mmmm... crumbly fudge.

After my disappointment with the fudge, Santa Steve felt bad and left me a new candy thermometer in my stocking so I can try it again. I was appreciative of this - especially since the new thermometer isn't encased in glass, so there is much less chance of breakage.

I didn't get any process shots of the lemon-pistachio biscotti because truthfully I forgot, but I have to say that I love making biscotti. It's incredibly easy to make and even though it's a bit time consuming (biscotti basically means twice-baked cookies) it's well worth it in the end. The ones I made were drizzled with a homemade lemon icing at the end as well - so good.

Lemon-pistachio biscotti with lemon icing - waiting for the icing to set.

My favorite cookie of the bunch turned out to be the fudgy cappuccino cookies. To quote Steve, these guys are "spot on". They're dropped in sugar before baking and they are just absolutely delicious. I could seriously eat a plate of these by myself, but I was wise enough to realize this after trying one when they came out of the oven and made sure to give some of them away in the cookie gifts.

And the winner is...

Baking Christmas cookies is always a fun project to do, and finding recipes that you really enjoy both eating and baking make a huge difference. I know that these cookies will probably be in my permanent rotation of Christmas baking, they were quite tasty.

What kinds of cookies do you like baking at Christmas time?

Doesn't Anyone Know????

2010-12-23T07:40:00.001-05:00

As I've kind of navigated this Christmas season, I've noticed that there are a lot of people who are desperately seeking that "Christmas Spirit". That sense of joy that we're just "supposed to get" the moment we plug in the lights on our tree. For many this year that sense of jumping joy just hasn't struck some people yet - at least if my Facebook news feed is any indication.

With this lack of Christmas joy this year, I've been putting a lot of thought into what the "Christmas Spirit" is "supposed" to be. Every year I make sure to watch the "Charlie Brown Christmas" special when it comes on, and I have to admit that as an adult I have a totally different take on all things Charlie Brown. You don't realize it as a kid watching the old Schultz-created cartoons, but the dialogue in Charlie Brown episodes is incredibly mature and adult. As a kid I watched that special and thought: Yay! Christmas play! Yay! Jesus is born! Yay! They decorated the ugly tree!

But now I have a different perspective; the entire special is a reminder to each and every one of us that Christmas is not about the plays, the perfect Christmas tree, or a stuff-filled list to Santa Claus.

No matter where you land in your faith, there is one thing that cannot be denied: Without Jesus, there never would have been a Christmas. It's in the word - CHRISTmas. Even before I was solid in my faith I realized this. But our culture has turned away from that and turned instead towards finding the perfect gifts, making sure that our parties go off without a hitch, and creating more stress than God EVER wants us to have in our lives. In fact - throughout the Bible we're told NOT to worry, NOT to stress, and that through Him all things are possible.

And every year, through the hustle and bustle of Christmas preparations, ABC runs this aged Christmas special featuring the Peanuts gang. Not only do they run it, but they run it twice. It's like they realize that we need a reminder of why we celebrate Christmas. We wait with bated breath every year for the climax when Linus calmly tells Charlie Brown what exactly Christmas is after his outburst.

"Doesn't anyone know what Christmas is all about?!?!"

Last week we wrapped up a series with our youth group about the gifts that the Magi brought to Jesus. Steve wrapped it up with a talk on myrrh and what it means and why it was there. He landed on this point: if Jesus was just a regular rabbi, there would be no Christmas. We don't celebrate Christmas because He was born and because He taught the folks in the Middle East all sorts of cool things. We celebrate Christmas because of what happened on Easter.

So... unto us a Son was born. A Son who would die so that we could have a relationship with God again, in spite of our brokenness and our faults. That is where we should be looking for our joy, and more that likely if we stop long enough in looking there - we'll find that Christmas spirit we're looking for.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

God also gifted us with Josh Groban's voice. Here he sings "O Holy Night" - my favorite version of this song.

The First of Many

2010-12-10T07:37:00.000-05:00

When Steve and I were house hunting, I would always make sure to talk to my mom about houses we were considering putting an offer on. During these conversations, she would always ask me the same question.

"Do you know where the Christmas tree is going to go?"

This, apparently, is one of the key indicators in finding the right house. For us, it was the Christmas tree and our China cabinet that we inherited from Steve's grandmother - but none the less, the Christmas tree became a factor in our house search. When we found this house and took our first tour, we knew immediately where the tree and china cabinet would go (this, of course, did not stop my indecisive woman nature to change my mind and eventually end up at the same place we said both would go in the first place).

Right around the end of October, Steve and I had settled in and our house finally started to feel like home. I think it was the moment we came here after our vacation that it really sunk in for me; when we got upstairs and put our bags down, it had that "aaaah" feeling of home. Decorating the house for Christmas made it even further feel like home. It wasn't that feeling that we'd had in our first and second apartments of just putting decorations up wherever. No, this year there was planning and much more thought and care put into decking our halls with our own touches. We made this house our home for Christmas, and even though we toyed with the idea of doing something other than being in our new home for Christmas this year - once we looked around at everything, we knew that we wanted to spend our first Christmas in our new home IN our new home.

Here are some of the shots of what our place looks like, all decked out for Christmas:

Bienvenue! Welcome to our home!

Our foyer trimmed with "pine" garland.

Our tree and the stockings "hung by the chimney with care".

We put candles in our windows.

A couple of shots from our kitchen.

I wanted to share this with you because for some reason decorating our home for Christmas put a stamp on something for me. I'm - we're - settled. Growing up we moved around a lot, but I remember when my parents bought their last house in Methuen in my sophomore year of high school. That first Christmas I knew in my heart that was going to be home for a while - and it was home for me until my parents moved to Tennessee and it was time for me to start my life with Steve in 2005 (even though that was still a time of transition because of college). I did the math once, and I think that if you count the moves in college, I moved on average once every 2 years from 1985 til 2005.

But now I'm actually settled, and I don't feel like I'm going to constantly be in transition. We're married, we're hoping to start a family here, we've already had people to dinner here and laughter and love have already echoed off of our walls. Feeling settled and having roots is an amazing feeling for me, and for some reason being in our first home solidified that for me. I know we won't necessarily live here forever, but we will for a while - and there's a lot to feel blessed about and to be grateful for in that knowledge.

Now, I know that a home is not defined by what your four walls are... but for a girl who did a lot of moving around at a young age and had a lot of uncertainty surrounding some parts of her life for a time... well, truthfully, no words can express fully how it feels to be settled. To know that your marriage will last, to know that you're not going anywhere for a while - it's truly an amazing feeling.

I don't take it for granted. I thank God every day for the blessings He's given me in my husband, our marriage, and the home we've been given - He has shown me that He indeed provides, and He is good.

Oh - and I know where our Christmas tree will always stand as long as this house is our home.

New Home - 2010

Blink Blink Blink

2010-12-08T14:10:00.001-05:00

In August 2008, I weight 225.6 pounds.

For as long as I could remember, my doctors told me that I needed to lose weight. The physicals and bloodwork I had in 2007 and 2008 indicated that my weight was starting to effect my health - insulin resistance was setting in and my "good" cholesterol was out of balance.

When I got married in 2007, I knew I couldn't continue to be heavy forever. I wanted to be able to run around after our kids and didn't want to be the butt of too many "your mom's so fat that..." jokes as they got older.

So, after a bit of discussion, Steve and I decided to set out on a journey together to change our lifestyles. Right before Labor Day in August of 2008, we resolved to get our weights down to a healthier level. We started off by spending a few months eating less, then after our first 10-15 pounds were shed we got gym memberships and started exercise. We worked with our doctors to set goals for our weights, and both my PCP and OB/GYN advised that I should be between 135-145 to be "healthy" for my body.

This was not going to be easy, I knew it from the beginning.

I have been through streaks of weight loss, vacation weight gains, plateaus, sinus issues that prevented me from exercising, stress eating battles... you name it. For the last 6 months or so, I have been in the plateau of my life. I was convinced my body would not let me drop below 153-155 pounds, no matter what I did.

All along the way on this journey, I knew that if I could just get to 150 I could make it to the end. 150 pounds would mean that I was in the homestretch before I hit the top of my goal range. I could get very excited at 150 pounds, it would mean that the goal was seriously attainable.

But still that stupid plateau persisted. 153-155 pound range, no matter what I did. No matter how hard I exercised or skipped out on office cake when it appeared.

Oh yeah - and the holiday season with all of its parties and ridiculousness just started, by the by.

This morning I got on the scale and blinked. I got on again because I didn't believe it the first time. Still not believing it - I got on and off again.

Third time - no change. The scale was not lying or having a malfunction.

150.0. On the button. Three times in a row. I had to take a picture to capture the moment.

Two years and almost 3 months later, I hit the magic number I was waiting for.

And now... I'm in the final lap of the race. Come on, goal range!

The Strength of Mary

2010-12-02T07:24:00.000-05:00

The other night Steve and I watched our first Christmas movie of the season - "The Nativity Story". I absolutely love this movie and every time we watch it something different strikes me about the story. It's kind of similar to what people say about scripture meaning something different and being fresh every time you read it - only, in this case it's a theatrical adaptation of scripture and not the scripture itself.

This year as we watched the film, there were a few things that hit chords with me. The biggest thing that has gotten into my brain and made me reflect quite heavily is the strength and bravery that Mary had throughout the entire story of Jesus' conception and birth.

But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be calledthe Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Luke 1:26-38

Can you imagine how scared Mary was to be standing before this angel being told that she was going to carry the Son of God? Not only had she been tapped for potentially the greatest task ever to have been given by God of all time - she had not yet been married to Joseph for a full 12 months. At the time, brides and grooms were to be separated for a full year to allow the bride time to prepare for marriage; sexual relations were not allowed until the wedding night and were an integral part of the wedding celebration. To become pregnant before this time was up could subject her to stoning at the worst and criticism and ostracism at the least.

But Mary had faith in God. Regardless of how scared she very likely was, she continually stood in the face of her critics knowing that God had her back. This is the type of faith that we should strive to have - total, complete trust that God does indeed have a will for each of us and that he wants us to have a hope and future. (Hello... Jeremiah 29:11 anyone? I love that verse...)

Mary's strength and courage not only gave her the ability to stand in the face of family and villagers who surely looked down upon her, but it gave her what she needed for the long journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem at the time of the census. I've not been pregnant yet, BUT - I have lots of friends and family who have been. It does not look comfortable at all and I've heard tell that things like long car rides and plane rides can be downright torturous for the woman with child. Now, for those of you who have been pregnant and seen the movie: Has your heart gone out to poor Mary who has set out on a several days journey propped up on the back of a donkey? Why did she do this when she could have stayed home with her family during the census? Being as it was still in the 12-month period, this was certainly an option for her.

If you've seen the movie, her reason is simple: "Joseph is my husband." Ladies - here is another area in which Mary is an inspiration for us. She is an Ephesians 5:22 woman (as my friend Jamie would say); these four simple words show a loving submission to her husband. It didn't matter that she was super preggo and could have stayed nice and comfortable with her own family - without even blinking, she hopped up on the donkey and hit the road with her husband. She trusted and had faith that he would take care of her on their journey AND that God would protect and provide for them; clearly she was right since he got her all the way to Bethlehem seemingly without incident. She was led by the father and the Father of her child and let them do so with full and complete trust and faith.

Now let's get to the part that really blows my mind as a woman. Again - I've not been pregnant, I've yet to have children, but I know lots of people who have. A phenomenon I've noticed among parents - especially new ones - is an immediate protection of their children. A lot of parents are hesitant to let others hold their babies or bring them out places where there might be dangers or let others even touch their new kiddos. I am sure that with my first child I will have one or more of these same things and further I think that this is TOTALLY normal.

Mary... well... if you've seen the movie, you've seen the interaction with her and the shepherd who has come to see the newborn king. As he leans in to see the baby, he hesitantly reaches his hand out to touch him - probably thinking that this woman was not going to let him (a nasty, dirty, lonely shepherd) touch her brand new baby. Is this how beautiful Mary reacts? Does she give him a rotten look and pull her baby in closer to her bosom?

Heck no! Mary recognizes that this child - this beautiful, amazing child - that she has been carrying around for the last 9 months is NOT HERS! It is God's child. It is the Son of Man. This child - this child is a gift for everyone. And (at least in the film) she tells the shepherd this: "He is for all mankind. Everyone has a gift." The look on the actor who portrayed the shepherd's face is absolutely beautiful; he does a fantastic job of portraying what I can only imagine all of the shepherds who arrived there that evening felt. Tears of joy, faces of awe, staring down at this strong, courageous woman and the baby who would grow to become our Messiah.

Man oh man.

Mary is an amazing picture of who we should try to be as women. It's like she took Proverbs 31 and made it hers... God saw this, and God knew Mary's heart was true to Him. I pray that I can grow to be more like Mary; to have the courage and fortitude to trust in God and His will regardless of the circumstances. Thank you, Mary, for your example.

Hail Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed is your soul among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Top 5 Christmas Movies

2010-11-29T12:38:00.001-05:00

The Athanas home is ready for the Christmas season. Pandora has been set to Christmas music, the tree is up, wreaths have been purchased (one from the local Boy Scouts that will be delivered later this week), and the house has been decorated. The only thing left to do is pop some popcorn and entertain ourselves with some of our favorite Christmas movies. What do Steve and I love to watch around the holidays? Well... here are my

Top 5 Favorite Christmas Movies

A Christmas Story: Who doesn't love this movie? Who didn't want a Red Rider BB Gun as a kid as a result of this movie, even if for just a second? This is one of the most classic, most quotable Christmas movies of all time. If you've never seen it don't worry - TBS plays it for 24 hours every Christmas, so you can certainly catch it if you've got basic cable. If not - check your local library and put a reserve on it. You'll laugh and you'll become nostalgic... it's that kind of movie.

One of my favorite scenes - If you've never seen the movie, don't watch it. It's kind of a spoiler.

The Nativity Story: This is a more recent film that came out a few years ago. It documents the story of Mary & Joseph relatively closely to how it is relayed in the Bible and is really a beautiful film. There aren't any subtitles, and the woman they cast to play Mary does an amazing job. A must see if you're looking for a film to help you refocus on the reason for the season (as it were).

The trailer for "The Nativity Story"

Love Actually: I love a good romantic comedy, and I also love a good romantic comedy starring Hugh Grant. This is a heart-warming story (or really... interrelated stories) with lots of British Accents, hilarity, and a drunken singer who sings a terrible song that becomes a hit. This is a fantastic movie for cuddling up on the couch with a glass of wine and a big bowl of popcorn with your significant other on a chilly winter evening.

The trailer for "Love Actually"

The Polar Express: A movie based on the children's book of the same title, the story behind the film is a great parable for faith and believing. Tom Hanks does an awesome job as the Dad/Conductor/Bum/Santa, and if you read the book as a child you'll agree that the artwork is spot-on. We saw this in the theaters and made sure to buy it the next Christmas season. Such a great film.

Embedding was disabled by request, but my one of my favorite parts of the movie is the "Hot Chocolate" number. You can view it by clicking here.

It's a Wonderful Life: This movie actually does have a ranking in our household - number one. This is a great movie that reminds us about giving, the joys of living a life for others, and how we can have an impact on the people around us. I seriously cry at the end of this movie every year. We watch this one as close to Christmas as we can since it's our favorite and it's the only one of our movies that we make sure to save as a date-night film. If you've never seen this movie - you MUST.

The scene where George Bailey gives his speech in the boardroom - great glimpse into his character.

That rounds out the movies that are on my must-see list every year. I will say that there are a few others that I get excited to see around this time of year - "Elf", "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation", "A Christmas Carol" with Patrick Stewart, and "A Muppet Christmas Carol" are a few of them. For whatever it's worth, Steve contends that "Die Hard" is also a Christmas movie... I'm not so sure about that, but we'll probably watch it anyways.

"Good Morning Love..."

2010-11-22T15:08:00.003-05:00

When we moved to our new town, one of the first things that we did was to go ahead and get library cards. I have always loved the library for a variety of reasons and was very excited to be getting back into the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium (MVLC). Library networks make getting all sorts of media - books, CD's, DVDs - for free incredibly accessible.

One of my absolute favorite things to do with my library card is take advantage of the selection of music available. I love to listen to all different things and experience different kinds of music. I've always said that I have quite a crazy taste of music (if you don't believe me, check out my Pandora profile) and so the library is a great way for me to sample different artists, compliations, and genres.

During my last trip to the library I took out 4 CD's:

John Legend - "Evolver"
The "Walk the Line" soundtrack
Black Eyed Peas - "Monkey Business"
A CD of ocean noises

I have to say that my favorite of this particular round was the John Legend CD. I am strongly considering renewing it and maybe getting myself a copy at some point. The songs are fantastic, his voice is so smooth, and the piano/jazz musical sounds of the disc are just really great to listen to on the drive home from work. Talk about unwinding.

I wanted to share with you my favorite song on the CD - "Good Morning". It reminds me of those weekend mornings when Steve & I wake up, the sun is coming through the blinds, and getting out of bed is difficult. Listen, enjoy, and if you're married - be inspired. This song just makes you want to cuddle, I'm warning you.