Did you see how grown up my first baby is? I can’t believe it.
I watch him lug two heavy hampers all through the house to the washing machine — without any reminder from me, simply because he saw the chore magnet and remembered — and I can’t believe he’s that tall and strong and able.
And I can’t believe I’m making chore charts. I can’t believe that I’ve already begun the process of working myself out of a job (well, at least one job!)
Weird. Very weird.
Thinking about:
— “For I am convinced…” (Romans 8.38)
— “…we overwhelmingly conquer.” (Romans 8.37)
— “Happy is the people…” (Psalm 144.5)
— About joy. About living out Good News. And how it boils down to this conviction — this being convinced — of God’s love. How that sense of being convinced needs to be my first response to life’s situations.
There are so many ups and downs — that’s just the way life is. But living Good News means that somehow my “downs” are framed by this joy, happiness, conquering, and conviction.
And I think that first response needs to be learned every day, a discipline of the soul. It won’t just appear on the day when my world gets turned upside down. My feet need to already be familiar with this Rock. I need to be well-practiced at choosing joy, being persuaded, living happy.
— Thinking that there’s a lot to all this. It’s a lot of work. And my soul isn’t always very responsive to disciplines. (Well, it is responsive. Digging in your heels and increasing your scowl is a response, I guess.)
— About how I’d rather be convinced of God’s love for me than sulk in my corner about how tired I am. Doesn’t that just sound much more fun? (God’s ideas are always the best ones, I tell ya.)
This little chunk from Romans 12 has been in my scripture memorization rotation for the last few months. Each time it comes up for review, I am challenged and inspired:
Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor;
Not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord,
Rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer,
Contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.
I love this cookbook.
It is exactly what it says: simple suppers. I need to remember simple suppers, as I tend to get carried away.
It’s easier to keep things simple when they are this yummy.
You should at least get this from your library. Of course, that comes with a warning: my library’s copy sat on my kitchen counter for the maximum number of weeks, and then I just bought my own. Who doesn’t need a staple cookbook that inspires you to try new flavors, keep things simple, and maintain a healthy diet?
Plus, it has all the basic recipes one could ever need (vinaigrettes, pesto, hummus, chutney…), AND it includes a complete list of their “pantry staples”. (Some dishes include lots of fresh stuff, but some are all pantry items. Can you say practical??) And every recipe ends with a menu suggestion — sides, salads, desserts, grains, etc.
Pasta dishes, soups, creative bean dishes, salads, desserts, and mouth-watering pictures. GO FOR IT!!
(Heads-up: This is written for a pescatarian diet and is a bit tofu-heavy. It doesn’t deter me; I just substitute chicken! And who knows, maybe one day I’ll actually like the stuff. Ick.)
A few new things have shown up around here this week. Not too many brand new things, really, but new to me! Every once in awhile — and I mean a great while — we’ll come upon a garage sale that is a gold mine. Last Saturday was one such sale. And then a great find turned up on craigslist, which my Ryan faithfully keeps his eye on for me. As if that’s not enough, a box of new diapering goodies came. Wow! That’s one fun week!
So I took a few pictures. They’re sort of really horrible photographs, but I had to post them anyway because, well, because I’m dying for my mom and sisters to see this stuff!
(click through)