Easter weekend in my kitchen.

Gas prices and a recent unplanned trip back to see family kept Jeremy and I home for Easter this year. It's always a little sad to know that family is gathered but you aren't there (though I heard the group was smaller this year).

I spent much of my time in the kitchen this weekend. During the week I don't draw as much enjoyment from cooking, mostly because it feels quite rushed. But on weekends, I enjoy trying new recipes.

Yesterday morning after a trip to the farmer's market and grocery store, I came home and whipped up a breakfast cheesecake and a frittata. In the afternoon I cooked a pot of black beans and made a vanilla custard topped with balsamic strawberries (amazing!).

Although it was just the two of us celebrating Easter today and Jeremy was sick with a respiratory thing and therefore I attended church alone, I still wanted to make something special for our meal. The menu included: sweet potato egg cups, chicken-apple sausage, lemon roasted asparagus, and the leftover breakfast cheesecake topped with strawberries (all pictured above). I also made a batch of granola and chocolate walnut brownies made with coconut flour.

Now I'm sort of pooped! I'll be posting some of the new recipes on The Cooks Next Door throughout the next couple weeks if you're interested.

I hope you all had a blessed Easter Day!

Poetic Thought

Some beautiful words of short poetry I read yesterday. I love that these small verses contain such profound thought, both about humanity and about nature.

All those years
I had in my pocket.
I spent them,
nickel-and-dime.

You told me you couldn't see
a better day coming,
so I gave you my eyes.

The face you look out of
is never the face
your lover looks into.

I prefer the skyline
of a shelf of books.

The hay in the loft
misses the night sky,
so the old roof
leaks a few stars.

What is it the wind has lost
that she keeps looking for
under each leaf?

The butterfly
jots a note on the wind
to remind itself of something.

The patience of the spider's web
is not disturbed by dew.

All from Braided Creek: A Conversation in Poetry by Jim Harrison and Ted Kooser.

March Reading

March was a busy month of reading for me. The highlight of which was probably reading Madeleine L'Engle's Time Quintet series for the first time. Though honestly, I read so many great books!

The Guardian's of Ga'Hoole books I'm reading for a program at work. In fact I'm designing a board game for trivia questions about the books. We'll see if 4th/5th grader's can outsmart the game. :)

I checked a couple reading goals off my list this month, namely a fantasy book (read several of those!) and a science-fiction book. I also feel like Mary Beth Chapman's book, Choosing to See could count for a spiritual growth book as it was filled with reminders of God's faithfulness even in the face of enormous pain and confusion about His plan; the Chapman's story of faith following the loss of a little a daughter at five is a remarkable testament to God. Definitely worth reading.

I will draw your attention briefly to Hamlet's Blackberry by William Powers. Such a worthwhile and timely book examining our highly connected lives and what it means to live well when we're attached to everyone and everything through phones, email, social networks, etc. While I am far from the most connected person (hello, I don't even have texting on my phone!), I still found many useful thoughts to ponder and maintain perspective in a world that rarely lets us alone. There is value in being connected, but there is much value in being disconnected as well. Learning to live well while balancing these opposing ways of life is at the heart of the book. I'd highly recommend a read of this book.

Completed reading list for the month:

Guardian's of Ga'Hoole by Kathryn Lasky:
The Capture
The Journey

Time Quintet by Madeleine L'Engle:
A Wrinkle in Time
A Wind in the Door
A Swiftly Tilting Planet
Many Waters
An Acceptable Time

I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
One of Our Thursday's is Missing by Jasper Fforde
Hamlet's Blackberry by William Powers
Choosing to See by Mary Beth Chapman
The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula Le Guin
Two-Part Invention by Madeleine L'Engle

Convicted

I've been talking to God a lot lately about myself and how I fit into this world He created. What my purpose is here. How I can glorify Him. He's seemed silent, but perhaps I've not been taking the time to calm the bustle of my mind and listen to that still small voice. I know He's there and I know He listens. Sometimes, though, I wish I could have coffee with Him and ask Him questions.

I've taken to carrying my daily devotional, Tabletalk, and a small Bible around in my bag. I read it before I start work or while on a break. Maybe that's too rushed, I haven't figured it all out yet. But I appreciate those minutes of focusing. Today I felt incredibly convicted by what I read.

This is just the application portion:
We might think that we are grateful to God for what He has done for us, but if we never work to serve others, especially His people, then we must question the authenticity of our thankfulness. James 2:14-26 and other passages make it clear that Christian virtues are not mere inward thoughts and feelings but are expressed in concrete acts of love and service. Let us show forth how thankful we are to God by doing good to others.

For a while now I've felt disconnected from knowing how to be involved in serving others where I live now. I don't have the answers. But I know this is something that's been on my mind and I trust that God will show me where I can give thankfulness and glory to Him. I didn't just read those words by coincidence today; they are there as a reminder that God knows my thoughts and my needs and He has a purpose for me where I am right now.

February Reading

I'll be right up front with you and say that I read 11 books in February, but five of those books were the the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series by Jeff Kinney. Being the diary of a middle-school boy, this is certainly not something I'd normally pick up, but at work next Monday I'm helping lead a 4th/5th grade book club on that series. I will also say, the books are funny; funnier than I anticipated. For a laugh, just pick up the first book. You won't be disappointed.

The book I'd like to highlight this month is Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell. I actually started this book back in December and read it off and on (it's a hefty almost 700 pages), but my slower reading is in no part a reflection on the quality of the book. It is excellent.

Gaskell was a contemporary of the Bronte sisters. And even wrote a biography of Charlotte Bronte. She writes with depth, developing her characters through normal life circumstances. This is the second Gaskell I've read (Cranford being the other title) and I find them gentle books, but not fluffy or overly romantic.

Wives and Daughters follows the maturing years of Molly Gibson. At the start of the book she lives with her widowed doctor father. A stepmother is introduced before too long. And while she's not the "wicked stepmother" type, she is definitely a manipulative, self-centered woman. She brings along a daughter not much older than Molly. Molly is a kind-hearted girl who is trying to figure out her place with her father, her stepmother, her stepsister, and two brothers who are friends (but could they be more?).

The book wasn't filled with tragedy or comedy, though both were wielded with a gentle pen, but rather the day-to-day joys and confusions of a young girl coming-of-age.

Even if you don't pick up Wives and Daughters, I'd highly recommend you acquaint yourself with the works of Elizabeth Gaskell. And if you aren't enticed to read one, then perhaps you'll at least enjoy watching one over her novelized mini-series put out by BBC.

Without further ado, my complete February reading list:

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Greg Heffley's Journal

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid: the Last Straw

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid: the Ugly Truth all by Jeff Kinney

Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath (also children's and read for work)

The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown

52 Loaves by William Alexander

Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell

168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam

Organized Simplicity by Tsh Oxenreider

Thoughts on prayer

I plan to post my February reading list by the end of the week, but until then I wanted to share a passage from the most recent book I finished, I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith.

This is a conversation about prayer between the 17-year-old protagonist, Cassandra, and the vicar in her town.

"...Prayer's a very tricky business."
"Goodness, is it?"
"Well, for inexperienced pray-ers it sometimes is. You see, they're apt to think of God as a slot-machine. If nothing comes out they say 'I knew dashed well it was empty' -- when the whole secret of prayer is knowing the machine's full."
"But how can one know?"
"By filling it oneself."
"With faith?"
"With faith..."

Most likely the theology in this passage isn't totally sound, but I still found the analogy quite perceptive.

My Splurge

After work on Friday I dropped by Aldi. You never know what produce price surprises you'll find. It was a good day. Fresh mushrooms were $0.49 a half pound. Onions were $0.69 for three pounds. Multi-colored peppers were $1.49 for three. Roma tomatoes were $0.79 a pound. I felt like I scored! :)

(Yes, I do realize I'm talking about produce prices on my blog...what have I come to?!)

Since I'd gotten such a great deal, I decided to splurge a little and as a treat for myself and our home, I bought a small pot of lucky bamboo.

Not long after I got married, my mom gave me a bamboo plant. Two and a half years later that bamboo plant is healthy and growing like crazy. (Every time Mom sees it she exclaims over its size. I think it's gotten so big it looks sort of ridiculous in its tiny pot.) I love little spots of green in our house, so I thought another pot of bamboo would be a perfect addition to my desk.

Do you have any houseplants you particularly love?