a smattering.

well i won't even bother trying to catch up on everything since the last time i posted, there's certainly no time for that. the days are still packed, with work soaking up a fat 11 hours tuesday through friday. it always seems so much more chilly when i'm scraping ice off my car at 6 in the morning in the dark. i've devised a new breakfast and i'm quite enjoying it- old fashioned oatmeal with peanut butter and cinnamon. it's like eating a cookie, seriously. and it's nice and warm to gobble up before i jump in my 30 degree car, or to eat at the stoplights from a thermos on my way to work. i have quite the routine down these days.

and yet i still manage to find time to cook once a week at least. i've been borrowing cookbooks from the library- giada de laurentis' pasta for every occasion, ina garten's back to basics, and martha stewart's great food fast. they all have some great stuff in them, i'm considering actually purchasing one of the three. this past week i made a blue cheese alfredo sauce that i had over whole wheat penne with sauteed mushrooms and onions.

the week before it was a veggie pasta bake. and this week i'm making salmon corn chowder. last week i also managed to bake up some pumpkin bread and some killer mint brownies, they might as well be fudge. it's a good thing they're about gone, i can't keep my hands off of them. (community group is always a great excuse to bake up a treat). i also have 4 very brown bananas hanging out on my countertop...banana bread is next on the list. i promised my friend jill at work that i would bring her some. that was going to be tonight's treat, but susie and i ended up cooking dinner for our neighbors across the street (turkey meatloaf was my contribution, cheesy potatoes was susie's). we're headed over there as soon as the potatoes are done.

i've also been renting books on cd from the library, which makes the drive go by much more quickly. next on the list: sense and sensibility by jane austen.

the weekend before last i got to go to a seminar put on by my church on marriage and family. it's not as wierd as it sounds, there were plenty of single people there. we'll take all the biblical advice we can get on things such as that! it was a day full of great information. now i'm not married, but here are some of the highlights that i picked up on from a single gal's point of view:

-women often get a negative vibe from the biblical word "helper." the speaker pointed out that when you need help, you go to someone strong, someone you can trust, someone who can help you. it's the same idea: women are helpers to their husbands in the strongest sense of the word.
-there is a reason for romance. it is the ultimate reality- it is the way the Lord pursues and loves us. through our marriages, the gospel is proclaimed.
-men are always asking the questions "am i man enough for this?" while women ask "do you really like me?" when both respective parts are answering that question for their partner on a regular basis, it is a life-giving relationship, full of freedom.
-everything of worth is costly, and everything good takes time and effort.

i took at least 4 pages of notes, so to condense down to 4 points is hardly doing it justice. if you're curious, check it out on http://www.marshillchurch.org/. for more of mark's preaching on the matter, check out this page: http://blog.marshillchurch.org/2010/12/14/how-to-honor-your-wife/. good stuff.

we had a long lunch break during the seminar, which can be summed up in one photo:

berry cobbler a'la'mode.

and i'll leave you with that.