Real Simple pt. 2

If you haven't noticed yet I'm a pretty big fan of the magazine Real Simple.  Not only does it talk about EVERYTHING from recipes to fashion to organizing, but it provides wonderful things on their website to print out!  Such as this: the ultimate to do list.  I already have a copy in my planner.  I love organizing so anything that is cute and makes it easier for me is wonderful.

Also, I loved their "if you have five minutes . . ." article.  There are numerous times when I know I only have 5 minutes before I have to run out the door to do something, so I end up checking facebook one more time because I don't think that is enough time to accomplish anything.  What's ironic is that the tasks on their list are tasks I always say to myself "I really should do that" but feel like I never have enough time to do it.  The sense of accomplishment is far worth the 5 minutes well spent.

Here are my favorites:

1. Pitch 3 old items from the refrigerator
2. Untangle a necklace
3. Check your voicemail ( I am SO bad at not checking voicemails)
4. Move some random files on your computer desktop to correct folders
5. Test pens or makers and toss the dead ones
6. Pick up 5 things and put them where they belong
7. Clear off the top of the refrigerator
8. Remove gum wrappers, receipts, and ATM slips from your purse
9. Write a thank you note that you've been putting off
10. Throw out all expired coupons

I feel better already :)

Link updates!

These links below have been sparking my interest lately . . . .

This definitely made me think about how much I have been given.

I absolutely LOVED all of these ideas!!  Next year I really want to do the vase with the branches :)

The letters in that frame were adorable.  If we had more room in our small apt I would totally do something like that!

I really wish Daniel liked mushrooms.  These sound sooooo good.

This sermon got me thinking last week.

Happy Monday!!!  Christmas is almost here!

How cute is this?!

So I'll be the first to admit that I can be a pretty good Facebook stalker.  I guess my thinking is that if people make it public knowledge, then I don't feel so bad looking at it!

That being said, I found this video (don't worry- it's not completely random.  A friend of mine commented on it and it showed up in my newsfeed- so that's how I found it haha)  Anyway, I thought it was SUPER cute and it made me wish that we had a "videographer" (I don't know the official terminology!) at my wedding.  How fun would it be to look back at a video like this of your wedding day?  Pictures are great, but this is just so cute.  It makes me want to go hug Dan :)

Kitchen Table Counseling

I always get very drained from textbooks.  I truly believed in college that if I was reading about something (other than business) that I really enjoyed I would be able to stay more focused and not end up asleep after 3 pages.  But, now that I'm in seminary, I realized nothing has changed.  For some reason that academic writing that uses big words, long sentences, and philosophical ideas is VERY difficult for me to process. I wish that I could pick up any D.A. Carson book and plow through it like I did Bittersweet by Shauna Niequist but unfortunately I can't.  This was really difficult for me to swallow when I got to seminary.  I had lots of friends at Miami who were wonderful at debating Calvinism and Arminianism, and asked very deep questions about the existence of God, the problem of evil, and evolution, and I desperately wanted that.  It was more prideful than anything- not to know God deeper, but for people to view me as that smart-intellectual type.  Let's just say the Lord did a great work in my heart during my Apologetics class in the summer of '09 and I have come to realize that I was not created to be the next female Alvin Plantinga.  I've realized that I'm not as academic/ insightful as I desperately wanted to be, but that I'm gifted in other areas. 

Anyway, this is leading to my discussion of the recent book that I finished, Kitchen Table Counseling.  I have to admit, most of my counseling books aren't super philosophical, but they're still academic textbooks.  What I love about this book is that it is practical, useful, and tells lots of stories about Muriel and Shelly's experiences meeting with women going through various things in their life.  They break down what it looks like to counsel women, even if you're not a counselor.  We are going to have friends that approach us everyday needing guidance and I want to be prepared to give them Biblical, truth filled advice, which I know is life changing.  The authors give useful advice for how to talk with women going through depression, grief, thoughts of divorce, singleness, and worth.  It's neat how God places books in your life at the right time- my brother, Jon, bought me this book in college and I never picked it up until a couple weeks ago, but it was something I really needed right now in my life.  I have a pretty big book list for Christmas (even though I know I won't get all of them) but Christmas break is when we do a lot of traveling and I have plenty of time to catch up on reading books that I really want to read even though I can't during classes.  I'll keep you updated about the next one :)

Christmas is in the air

This weekend it really started to "feel" like Christmas for me.  Not only does being home in Hudson remind me of Christmas (because that is where we spend every Christmas), but I started thinking on our long drive home today what really makes it feel like Christmas for me.  Why was it that a week ago when I put up our small tree in our apartment that it still didn't feel like Christmas for me?  I think it's so interesting that everyone has different things that remind them of Christmas.  Like the red Starbucks Christmas cup or their N'Sync Christmas CD (both favorites of mine :).  I always enjoy discovering what makes it feel like Christmas for other people.  Here are mine:

1. Snow.  To be exact- Lake Erie lake effect snow.  As you can see from my pictures below my hometown got blasted this past week and they expect to get 16 to 20 inches more by Wednesday!  I always joke with Dan that there is no way people in Florida know what Christmas is really about because they don't get snow (for those of you who don't know Dan used to live in Florida lol)
2. Amy Grant & Michael Bolton.  It's not Christmas until I hear at least one song from their Christmas albums!
3. Peppermint Mocha's.  Dan loves these and I try to save my favorite minty beverages for this time of the year.  I feel it is totally worth it to splurge on these while Christmas shopping!
4. Hudson Community Chapel's Christmas concert.  I don't get to see it every year, but this past weekend we did and it brought back so many memories of past Christmas'.
5. And lastly, finals.  Yep, since I work at a college and still take classes, that tension and stress in the air leading up to the week of finals reminds me that Christmas is so close.  I think that's what makes finishing them so satisfying- I can focus 100% on Christmas festivities when I am finally DONE. Which, as of 8:09 tonight I am officially done.  Woo hoo!

Below are some pictures that remind me of Christmas!

My favorite soup!

I have always LOVED Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana soup, and this past Fall when we went to Pymatuning, Dan's cousin's wife, Elisha, brought some with her! I swear I get the best recipes from these family reunions (the other one being the Buffalo Dip!).  So I asked her for the recipe and made it, and absolutely love it- and Dan likes it, too!!  (But soup doesn't really fill him up- so it doesn't count for dinner lol)    If you're interested- here's the recipe!  I'm no chef by any means, so basically what I'm trying to say is it is pretty easy to make :)

Zuppa Toscana Soup

1 pkg of bulk sausage (I used hot and loved it, but the recipe calls for mild)
4 slices of bacon cut into pieces (I used "real" bacon bit pieces and that worked, too)
1 1/4 teaspoons of crushed red pepper
1 large onion
1 tablespoon of minced garlic

5 cans (13.75 oz) of chicken broth

6 potatoes, thinly sliced

1 cup of heavy cream

A bunch of Kale

1.  Cook the sausage, red pepper flakes, onion, garlic, and bacon until crumbly, browned and no longer pink.  Drain. (Be sure to use a bigger pot for this)
2.  Pour the chicken broth in the bacon/ sausage mixture and bring to a boil over high heat.  Add the potatoes, and boil until fork tender (about 20 min).  Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the cream and heat through.  Mix the Kale in before serving.

Yet another reality check

It shouldn't startle me when I come across a verse that meets me exactly where I am.  After all the Word is living and active, a double edged sword that pierces our soul and discerns the thoughts and intentions of our heart (Hebrews 4)- that in and of itself is something worth blogging about, but that's another day.  So remember a couple days ago when I said I was stressed about Christmas and even bitter that other people had their Christmas decorations up?  Well the Lord since then has been using His Word to convict me about my ranting and raving- getting so caught up in the non essentials of Christmas and making those a priority over Him.  I mean, even on our Christmas cards we put "our hope is that this Christmas would be about Him and not about the gifts, parties, and decorating!"

In my Tuesday Bible study we have come to Luke 10 with the famous Mary and Martha passage. It reads:

 ³⁸Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. ³⁹And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. ⁴⁰But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me." ⁴¹But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary.  Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her."

So when Dan had to get his tires fixed this weekend, I sat in the car and memorized this verse.  It's amazing how when you memorize something new things stand out:

• Martha was so distracted with serving that she missed an opportunity to spend time with Jesus.
• Martha had Jesus' character wrong- she went up to Him expecting Him to be upset that her sister wasn't helping her and expecting Him to tell Mary to help her.
• Martha was so caught up in her little world- she was alone and doing ALL the work.  Can't you just see Martha muttering under her breath how there was so much to do and Mary was just sitting doing nothing?  Maybe because I've been there that her attitude resonates so much with me....
• Mary chose to sit at Jesus' feet.
• Martha was anxious and troubled about many things- but one thing was necessary (Definition of necessary: absolutely essential).

I feel like the Christmas season is very similar to Jesus' visit to Mary and Martha.  There are a lot of things to do, yet Jesus is so close to us- everywhere we hear Christmas songs proclaiming His glory: "Be near me Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay close by me forever and love me I pray" "Come and behold Him," and so many more.  Jesus is right here and we have a choice- to busy ourselves and get distracted with the many things that come with this time of the year, or we can choose to do what is absolutely essential this Christmas: sitting at Jesus' feet and listening to Him.  Let's learn from Martha and Mary and make it a priority to choose the better portion.

Snow!

It's the first day of the season that it has really snowed in Chicago!  Remember a couple weeks ago we hit an awful snow storm in South Bend and I was disappointed because I was hoping that the first time I saw snow was when I woke up on a Saturday morning and downtown A Heights would be covered? Well, I got my wish today!

Dan and I went shopping yesterday and after watching this video I couldn't help but think how great it would have been to see this in person!

Top 10 moments of Thanksgiving Break!

1. Hitting NO traffic in Chicago!! We left around 8 on Tuesday and got in eaaarrrllly in the morning, but didn't hit any traffic on Sunday either! Woo hoo!
2. Staying up until 2 and 3 a.m. every night, and not having to wake up for anything
3. A new running route. It is amazing how a fresh running route, even in 30 degree weather makes running enjoyable!  (even if it is on streets I've ran on before!)
4. Getting to skype with Doug! Even though he couldn't be with us it was nice to "see" him!
5. Playing games with my family. You know you have a lot of free time when you bust out the board games. Love it.
6. Having time to finish my "Kitchen Table Counselors" book! I loved that I had plenty of time to read!
7. We got to see BOTH sides of the family in PA on Thanksgiving. It was wonderful :)
8. Playing Wii Dance! Definitely entertaining for those of us who are NOT natural dancers.
9. Getting to spend time with my old Youth Pastor Heidi and her husband, AND getting to see my old Bible Study leader Jenny! I was so encouraged by them!
10. Lastly, it was so great to spend time with my high school friends!  I miss them so much and forgot how hard they make me laugh lol

Here are some pics from the week:




Me and Gram!

 

My mom and dad





Jon and Jay

  

Dan playing Wii dance!

 

More Wii dance

  

My cousin Becky and mom rockin in out lol

 

Crazy pic!

  

Cousins



Celebrating Lucine's birthday!