The Thick of It

How deep the Father's love for us. How vast beyond all measure. That He should give His only Son. And make a wretch His treasure...

Do you know this song? It's playing in my head as I type this. How Deep the Father's Love For Us.

 

Without going into any great detail, I must say that it has been an interesting year. Stressful. Life's challenges never seem to let up. Just when I think we might be through the worst of it, another obstacle presents itself. Faith is tested. Patience is stretched and perseverance becomes the only way to proceed. And through it all, God is faithful to provide a peace that passes all understanding and a joy that is unspeakable.

He draws me closer. And because I know the wonder of being close to the Father, I thank Him for allowing the trials.

Dear sweet friend, if you are in the thick of it, don't let go of the faith. I promise you God is the only thing that will make sense of the struggle. Maybe not immediately, but down the road. You will see His goodness. He is faithful. He loves you.

Sunny Windy Weather Walk

One of my favorite things to do as a family is walk. This week we had some beautiful walking days. Pure blue skies...
It was a little windy I admit. But I know I'd be in big trouble if ever I complained about that. I'll take sunny windy weather over snow and cold any day.
 I did some thrifting last weekend and was thrilled to find a five for fifteen deal on clothes. When I thrift shop I rarely find five items in one place that I like enough to buy, but I figured I'd scour the racks with a deal like that. After all, if I only liked four of the five items, four for fifteen bucks was still a fantastic price to me. Even three for fifteen didn't seem too bad. But wouldn't ya know it? God blessed me with five adorable items. Each $3.00 apiece. The heart sweater above is one of my five. I ultimately would love to style it with red skinnies and a fun patterned collared shirt underneath. But alas, I kinda like it this way too. What do you think?  

 Sweater - Thrifted 

Top - Herbergers 

Leggings - Express 

Boots - I can't remember (ages old) 
Sunglasses - Hubby's

Scarf - Handmade (by me) 

Linking up with The Pleated Poppy, Monday Mingle, and Watch Out for the Woestman's. 

Thursday, Verse Day

My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. 

He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence, I shall not be moved.

Psalm 62:5-6  

I think I could sit and ponder that thought for hours and hours, "...my expectation is from him." What an incredibly beautiful image of waiting on God. Oh to have such an utter confidence in Him and the fact that He will indeed show up. And while we wait for Him to act on our behalf we have the comfort of knowing that He is with us as our rock. He is our salvation. Through all our struggle we have Him as our defense. We will not be moved or shaken. He gives us peace while we wait.

Let me go soak in that for awhile.

Happy Thursday, Verse Day dear reader.
 
I hope you find yourself waiting on God today and if you don't know Him, I hope you'll seek Him. There is truly nothing better than being in a relationship with the Heavenly Father.

Altogether Quite Happy

I found these old photos in my computer archives today and thought they were too much fun to pass by. In fact, they tell a lovely little story about us. 

Once upon a time, there was me and you.  

For the most part we got along. Laughing and being altogether quite happy.  Except for my occasional short fuse...  

To which you would lovingly respond with a bigger smile than before... And tell me you love me... Forever and ever. 

p.s. Spending today being overwhelmed with gratitude for the loved ones in my life. And praying for those in Boston going through loss. May the Lord comfort them deeply with His unfailing love.

Eating with a Plan

I'm realizing lately that I've been eating without a plan.
 I jump into meal prep mode ten minutes before I'm ready to eat. At this point I'm so hungry that health and nutrition are no longer a priority. Speed and ease come first. Budget is always factored in but only in the sense that I will buy the cheapest fastest thing. Which is never really the cheapest...

So this week I made a plan. It took me about an hour to lay it out and write up my grocery list. (In the future I think I can get it down to a half hour). 

I decided on three meals for each day starting with Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Come midweek I will reassess and plan out Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I've scheduled my grocery shopping for Saturdays and Wednesdays. And Sunday is our day of rest which means minimal to no cooking...

Sunday

Breakfast: Cold Cereal

Lunch: Trader Joe's Picnic

Dinner: Frozen Pizza (add veggies on top)

Monday

Breakfast: Banana Peach Smoothie (with Spinach)

Lunch: Avacado Salad with Heirloom Tomatoes

Dinner: Asparagus, Indonesian Peanut Chicken

Tuesday

Breakfast: Eggs on Spinach

Lunch: Black Bean Salad

Dinner: Baby Bok Choy with Cashews

Wednesday

Breakfast: Oatmeal & Raisins

Lunch: Celery, Blue Cheese & Hazelnut Salad

Dinner: Brussel Sprouts, Spaghetti

I've linked the recipes to their original sources. All of them, with the exception of the Indonesian Peanut Chicken, are from Simply Recipes. The ones that don't have a link are just my own informal concoctions. Nothing fancy.

What's your meal planning process? Does it work well for you? I'd love to hear it!