40 Days of Prayer

...otherwise sometimes known as Lent. I decided instead of fasting in the literal sense that I would give up caffeine for 40 days.

The whole point is that I'm sacrificing something to dedicate myself to God, and relying on him to get me through. Have I been tempted? Yep. Have I been exhausted? Yep. Have I cheated? Nope. But it's definitely not through my own power. I'm not that strong. I know it sounds dumb, but caffeine is a drug, and I was "using " it every day. It's been harder than I thought to give it up.

At a Bible study the other night, the leader said something that I can't get out of my mind. How often do I "cheat" when it comes to things God wants me to do? When I should rely on him? How often does He give me a thought and I think "that's a good idea" and never do it? How often do I use things - caffeine, TV, internet, eating, facebook (the list goes on) to distract myself from what I am missing out on? While it's good that I haven't given in to caffeine for 11 days, that's nothing compared to what I can do through Christ who strengthens me. By not relying on God in ALL things, I'm really cheating myself and others out of the full life that God has for me.

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." -Romans 12:1-2

The New Inklings

The New Inklings is a blog about religion, or the lack thereof. Each week, one of the Inklings will post about a particular topic from their perspective, be it Christian or Agnostic. Later in the week, the other will post their viewpoint on the same topic.

Discussion and learning without judgement and arguing - love it!

New Year, New Posts

I stopped blogging for a while because I had nothing to say. Good thing the blog doesn't erase from inactivity, because now I have some things to say again. I was reading old posts and I listed some highlights of 2009 looking forward to 2010. I'm a month late, but whatever, here it is...

*My first nephew, Maddox, was born

*Cleaned and organized all the closets in my house

*Switched jobs from Office Services Specialist to Nutritionist

*Learned more than I ever thought I would about breastfeeding and babies

*Started to learn Arabic, then kinda crapped out because it is HARD. Maybe in 2011 I'll get motivated again with that.

*My best friend, Carissa, moved back here

*Trip to Puerto Rico to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary

*Decided for sure we're happy without our own kids

*Got involved with the Spanish Church of the Nazarene which has been amazing all around

Wow, that was more than I expected! Of course not everything was perfect, but those are some majorly awesome things...

Reflection

"Thank you God for using a broken, sometimes rotten, sometimes horrible situation to somehow glorify You. You make everything beautiful and glorious." - My friend Laura S.

Wow. So true. Plenty of examples in my life and situations I've seen or been through. Sometimes God even uses stuff that's not rotten or horrible, but unexpected. Hanging out with my Muslim friends and seeing their dedication to God and their faith has challenged and encouraged me in my own. Reber and I are part of a Spanish-speaking church and God helps us to understand everything that he wants us to - even when the words fail, we get the message. Because of this church, he has surrounded us with friends right here in our community that live and work close to us.

I appreciate all my church experiences in the past - from Mennonite to modern to house church. God has shown me many things in each situation, through both good and not so good experiences. But we're all a work in progress, right?!

Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. - James 1:4

Sugar milk

After all the opposition, the Board of Education tabled the great chocolate milk debate. They await new federal guidelines on child nutrition.

But the discussion in Florida is far from over, Padgett said. "It's the trend of the future. It's the weight of the future."

At Pinellas Central (School), 10-year-old Hong Ho beamed when asked about her choice of white milk.

"Chocolate milk has, like, lots of fats and calories," she explained.

Friend and classmate Linh Le, also 10, shook her head as she sipped from her brown carton.

"I drink chocolate milk at school because I always drink plain milk in the morning," Linh said.

The two lifted their cartons to compare nutritional labels.

White milk: 110 calories, 12 grams of sugar. Chocolate milk: 150 calories, 26 grams of sugar.

"This has a lot of sugar!" Linh exclaimed.

"That," said Ho, "is why I don't drink chocolate milk."

See the rest of this article here.

Viva la revolucion...of food!

Jamie Oliver (the chef) has a show on ABC on Friday nights. He's taking on the American school lunch system and it's totally awesome to watch. Also, check out this blog. It's one of my new favorites - the low down and dirty on school lunches (sorry I couldn't get the link to work).

Gross, right!? Check it out...

fedupwithschoollunch.blogspot.com

Reber's Blog

My husband started a blog - check it out!

Just For Fun

Borrowed this one from my friend Laura's blog...

1. What would you like to have in your hands right now? Some lotion - they're so dry!

2. What was the last thing you ate? Stovetop (real!) p0pcorn

3. What is your favorite moment on a tv show? The whole show Important Things with Demetri Martin and when the Steelers make an awesome play

4. Have you ever ridden in a limo? yeah! To McDonald's in 4th grade for Accelerated Reader

5. How many pregnant women do you know? Not counting the hundreds of pregnant ladies on the WIC program, 4

6. Three things you did this past weekend. Went to Richmond for the Alice in Chains concert, visited a little with my dad who drove a Uhaul from Florida, visited the OneTribe store.

7. What did your family do for vacations when you were young? Long Beach, NC and Pittsburgh to see extended family

8. Do you mind if guests show up unannounced? no, we have a bunch of cool neighbors who are always stopping by

9. When will you next travel by plane? In May to Puerto Rico woohoo!!

10. What did the last text message you received say? Don't remember - I don't text!

11. When was the last time you got dressed up? Every day I get semi-dressed-up for work (blah)

12. What do you miss when you are away from home? my kitties

13. What are you completely and totally over hearing about, reading about and discussing ad naseum? the Oscars. Who gives a crap?

14. What are three things you are looking forward to? Puerto Rico la isla mas bonita, my new job, hanging out more at Our Community Place

15. What is the newest thing you own? my knee brace and crutches

16. If I do anything well it's: cook

17. Do you use a planner? I always try to at the beginning of the month but then forget to look at it!

18. What is your all time favorite tv comedy? The Cosby Show

19. What is your current obsession? Soapmaking

20. Do you balance your checkbook or wing it? Wing it (don't tell my grandpa!!) I used to balance it but it took a lot of time and I'm really careful with what I spend so it never bounces.

21. What is your favorite store bought cookie? Soft Batch Chocolate Chip

22. High school was: lame

23. Describe your dream kitchen. Don't get me started. Those pull out drawers, a nice pantry, energy efficient appliances...the list could go on.

24. What would you really like to purchase? a new pepper grinder. The fifty cent one I got from the thrift store is no good.

25. What magazines do you read? Siempre Mujer (a women's magazine in Spanish)

Pierogies!!

Here's an easy and delicious dinner!

1 lb. bulk sausage

1 or 2 boxes frozen pierogies

1-2 onions

1-2 bell peppers

Cook sausage and peppers in skillet. Add pierogies and cook until browned. This is a favorite of my house church-goers!!

Napoli and a Birthday

Happy 22nd birthday to my brother today! I loved being 22 so hopefully it's a great year for him too.

If you're ever around Harrisonburg, Napoli is a great restaurant!! It used to be Luigi's on Rt. 42. Their stuff is reasonably priced and consistently delicious! I especially love the Piatto Della Nona and the Steak and Cheese Deluxe. YUM CITY :)

"What the crap are you watching?"

That's what I said to Reber when he turned on the curling competition in the Olympics. He thought it was funny when the American and Japanese women would deliver the stone and I have to admit, it was pretty irresistible. Then we started watching it and trying to figure out what the heck they were doing and it's really interesting!!

I even read the whole Wikipedia article on it. I know, I can't even believe it myself :)