I’ve been really snacky all weekend. Yes, “snacky” is a real word. Just ask my college roommates. Thankfully I was also in a baking mood this weekend. My latest finds turned out pretty good so I had to share:
http://www.cheekykitchen.com/2011/11/pumpkin-banana-bread.html
ok, this pumpkin banana bread seemed like a strange mix at first, but the more of it I ate, the more I liked it. I might make some more this week because I’ve just been addicted to pumpkin this fall. Instead of using the pumpkin pie spice like in the recipe, I just put in ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon and some vanilla. It worked out just fine. I also did ½ regular fIour, ½ gluten free, just so I didn’t feel quite so guilty eating a lot of bread. Between us girls and our mom, we’ve decided that going gluten-free can pretty much solve any of life’s problems. And not even kidding… I think it might be true.
I also didn’t have the ingredients for the icing on hand, but hopefully next time I will. I LOVE this bread.
http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1915,148191-249202,00.html
This afternoon I made this delicious crab meat dip. Yumm it’s fantastic. I didn’t put any shallots in like it said to, partly because I’m not sure I like them but mostly because I still can’t find half of what I’m looking for in the grocery store here in Johnson City. This dip + tortilla chips= nice gluten-free snack. Perfect for Sunday after church.
It really has been a good weekend off work. But I was just thinking on the way home from church this morning that I think I’ve been in a little bit of slump this past couple of weeks. Maybe because it’s gotten a little colder outside (really though… this is Tennessee. It’s not actually that cold, people.) Maybe it’s because even though work has been going well and I’m learning so much, it’s exhausting. Or maybe a lot of it is because I simply just miss home. I miss my family, my friends, Lake Michigan... even school. Just everything really. And even though it’s so good that I have a lot going on here, it’s frustrating to not have time to keep up with everyone at home like I want to. And it's still just so hard to have changed pretty much everything about my life all at once. I still wonder sometimes if Jenny and I are crazy for doing this. But I think when it comes down to it, I’ve just started getting into the swing of things here and life has become… not comfortable… but “routine” I guess would be the word. I don’t want to go off into some big long rant here, so I’ll try to keep it short. But I was reading the devotion for the day from My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers and the entry for today had everything to do with this. He says that “the evangelical message ought always lead a man to act. The paralysis of refusing to act leaves a man exactly where he was before; when once he acts, he is never the same” I can’t let myself get into enough of a routine where it starts to feel like I’m just going through the motions of life. As Oswald Chambers says, “immediately I precipitate myself over into an act, that second I live; all the rest is existence. The moments when I truly live are the moments when I act with my whole will.” That is, when I act on what I truly believe the Lord is willing me to do. It’s only through paying attention to His voice through the little moments as much as the big decisions that we’re able to first of all, live according to His will and also really feel alive. I don’t know about you… but I don’t like when life gets so routine and predictable. I want God to surprise me with the plans He has for me because I’ve learned over the past couple of years that they’re by far better than anything I can come up with. But in order for that to happen, I have to be willing to listen and more importantly, act. When we truly listen and act on what God is saying, life is ALWAYS exciting. The crazy whirlwind of moving and settling in here is passed. Now it's time to dig in and figure out what God wants now that he has me here.
“The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” John 3:8
I think that’s pretty exciting.
Ok, who's hungry? It's snack time again.
wishing I was here. So many good memories :)
-Megan
