Happy Easter!!!

If you should care (Lori, you're required to care) - here are our Easter pictures.

I didn't realize until the night before Easter that the reason I had to buy whipping cream for the cheesecake was because I had to MAKE MY OWN whipped cream for the top. Have you people never heard of Cool Whip? But since I'd already invested in the whipping cream - I let Mom teach me how to make it. Here I am with my first ever homemade whipped cream. Paula Deen would have been so proud.

My two desserts. On the left - peanut butter eggs (since Dad doesn't eat mocha cheesecake). On the right - the mocha cheesecake WITH the homemade whipped cream.

Mom's funny. She put together this fruit tray and then put a business card for the fancy fruit trays on it. I thought it was pretty funny.

The Easter dress - and I should have fixed the belt so it was straight! This is the version WITH the cami underneath - not the hoochie mama version it would have been without it!

Here's what happens when no one wants to be in front for the family photo. I thought kneeling was the answer. Um - perhaps not? I really do have legs!!!

So here was the fixed version. Yes, I am the tallest person in my family, thankyouverymuch. Don't tell mom the dirty dishes are in the picture. I promised her they wouldn't be. :D

Bits for Sunday, April 12, 2009

Happy Easter!

Today has been a very full day in Bekahland – and also in Bekah’s tummy! Our family has the wonderful tendency to have far too much food for holidays. I love it so. And since the dress did zip for church today – I was free to enjoy once church had ended. For those of you who were praying for my (extreme) anxiety over reading in church – and more specifically reading that one sentence in Aramaic – I’d like to report it went well. I have no idea what I may have actually said in Aramaic, but I said something.

My day began with a sunrise service. I wanted to mention that since evil DST has moved our sunrise to such a late hour, a sunrise service SHOULD now start at 8 in the morning. But apparently the traditional 6 still stands. So at 5, my alarm began its blaring and my cats began their glaring.

The service was an Easter Pageant service. I think many of you know that for most of my life, I was in the Marion Easter Pageant. A few years ago, they stopped having the Pageant, mostly because the building was in such bad shape. Easter has never quite seemed the same without the weeks of rehearsal leading up to Easter – and then the performances during Easter week. This year a group of people organized a service to show the taping of the Pageant done the year before it ended. I figured watching it at six in the morning was as close to being in it at six in the morning as I was going to get, so I went.

Every time I watch it, I see something new. And what I saw today really struck me – which is especially amazing, considering the pre-dawn hour.

One of the groups in the Pageant was called the Wealthy Family. In many ways, they had the best part of the entire Pageant. They always had the best costumes (trend setters of the tunic world) and entered with great fanfare. Literally. (Men carrying HUGE fans walked before and behind them.) They pranced through with their treasure boxes and huge fruit platter (fake fruit, but I heard once that they hid snacks inside it to eat during the performance) and even a real dog. They paraded from the entrance to a large alcove at the edge of the stage where they got to lounge on padded seats. Once they made their entrance, they were basically done until they left – so they could just sit and watch the entire Pageant from their better than front row seat.

The part I played required me to exit the stage prior to the end of the performance, so I never saw the very end until the taping was released. And it was in those final moments of the Pageant that I saw something new today.

The Pageant ends with the women discovering the empty tomb and running to tell the disciples – and everyone else – that Jesus is alive! For pageantry purposes, all the people who comprised the inhabitants of Jerusalem were to “wake up” from their sleeping positions on the floor (and let me tell you – at six a.m., I wasn’t always pretending with that sleep business) and walk past the empty tomb to promptly exit stage left (or right).

I was always so nervous about making sure I pushed through the masses and past the tomb in the allotted time frame – which was not long – that I never paid much attention to anything else that happened.

This morning I watched as the masses (myself included) pushed forward and squeezed into the tiny backstage areas – and from the middle of the masses, I watched the Wealthy Family emerge. They packed up their treasure chests and fruit tray and dog and walked right back out the way they came in – leaving behind the people pausing to peek inside the empty tomb.

I don’t know if that was purposeful scripting or simply a way to get the lavish props offstage without smooshing them, but this morning it was powerful to me. The Wealthy Family had it all. They had the costumes we all wished for as we fussed and tugged at our hand-me-downs with holes. While we scrambled to get to our next location on cue, they reclined against pillows and ate hidden treats from underneath the piles of fake fruit. As we stood on tiptoe to see over the tall men in front during some of the scenes, they just shifted a bit and watched with ease.

And when the tomb was empty – the tomb that sat just feet from their perch – they packed up their stuff and left the way they came. They gathered their finery about them and walked away from the greatest miracle.

The Day Before Easter...

...began with rehearsal at church for tomorrow's service. As previously mentioned, I am one of the Scripture readers and I regret to report my Aramaic is no better today than it was the day I received the script. Jesus' last words might sound much more like Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious than what He actually said.

Following rehearsal, I had to make yet another trip to Wal-Mart. Today's purpose was two-fold. 1) I had a whole list of things to buy yesterday, but had to turn around and leave because there were no carts and one of the items on the list was cat food. I was not lugging a 20 pound bag of cat food (and other treasures) around the Wal-Mart. 2) After trying on my Easter dress last night just to make sure it did still fit, I discovered it was much more hoochie mama than I remembered. I had to find something to go underneath it so as not to bring great sacrilege to the morning worship service.

Following THAT, I went to my "nephew" Liam's birthday party. Here is the card I made for him. I made this last week during my friend Angi's crafting party. Used her Cricut. Pretty fun!

After the party, I immediately hit WalGreens to develop the party pictures so I can scrap them tonight. When I went back to pick them up, they said my order had been lost. I was unbelievably calm about the inconvenience and ended up getting them for half price (sweet!).

I tried a new recipe - which will probably find its way onto here eventually. I also made my first from scratch cheesecake (for Easter dinner tomorrow) and a new set of Peanut Butter eggs.

I'm now pooped and in need of pink nail polish to match the Easter ensemble, so I'm going to go watch the very last Love Comes Softly movie, scrap the party, and redo my nails!

Good Friday

My sister wrote in an email this morning something about not quite seeing the correlation between Jesus dying on the cross and our chance to sleep in on today's holiday...and truly that was just about the first time I remembered the significance of this day.

I got caught up in the joy of a long weekend and the hunt for a pink purse to go with that crazy dress we all hope still fits come Sunday...and I mentally sailed right on by the entire point of this day.

Jesus didn't get to sleep in on Good Friday. He didn't get to drive through the rain to Starbucks to indulge in coffee and catch up with a friend. He didn't relax in a living room and tickle tiny baby feet. He didn't visit every store in a six mile radius looking for a pink purse. His problems were far greater than no carts in the WalMart and cat food on the shopping list. He didn't take a nap under a fleece blanket and wake up just in time for chicken fried rice and a fortune cookie.

And while all those things made it a good Friday for me (well, except the never ending WalMart hassles) - I slowed down this evening to actually think about Good Friday and what it meant to Someone Who loved me more than I can comprehend.

Tonight on my way to chicken fried rice and fortune cookie land, I drove past the Marion Coliseum, where I many Good Friday nights in the Easter Pageant. Tonight the Coliseum didn't have a line of people outside waiting to get in. It had teenagers in shorts and T-shirts running toward it on their way to play basketball...or lift weights...or swim.

Good Friday and Easter aren't quite the same since the Pageant stopped. I miss it. I miss the sense of humble thanksgiving it brought to my springtime. But as I looked at albums of it online tonight, I found this picture, which reminded me of the moment I always found that lump in my throat.

I always stood very near Jesus (we called him the Christus in the Pageant) at this point in the Pageant. I could feel the floor shake with his steps. I could see the crowd in the distance still shaking their fists...and I could see Peter kneeling in shame. And as I hid my face in my hands and tried to breathe through the hot air of stage lights, I always found myself in awe of the Sacrifice.

The Judges and I Part Ways

I knew it had to come sometime. Apparently tonight was the night. I must need new ears because on all songs but one, we were obviously listening to different performances.

Danny - This is the one and only time the judges and I agreed. I thought he was amazing. I loved how he started out on the slow soft side of things and ended the song on the fast and fun side. I think he is not only a great singer but a fantastic entertainer and I just love him! GO DANNY!!!!!!

Kris - I was annoyed by the gaggle of girls that surrounded him - because I couldn't see him. I thought the song was cool and fun, but the judges didn't really seem to care for it or his rendition or anything else. I did think Randy had a good point (for everyone, not just for Kris) about remembering to not let the song do the owning. The competition is for the singer, not the song. But I thought he did a better job than they gave him credit for.

Lil - I thought this week was her best look so far. Loved the outfit, loved the hair. I thought (for the first time all season) both fit her very well. I loved the song and thought it fit her better than anything she'd sung so far - and then the judges ripped her apart. I thought it was kind of mean of the camera people to zone in SO CLOSE on her face when she was so close to tears.

Anoop - I didn't even remember that he had overreacted to Kara's comment last week but it was nice of him to apologize. I didn't love the beginning of his song this week - I thought he was reaching for notes throughout - and I thought the whole song was forgettable - and then the judges LOVED IT. I can't win.

Scott - Ooh!! No piano!! I was glad to see him away from it - just for a change of pace, but I did not like him with the guitar - and I agreed with Paula about the acoustic thing. I think he should have just plain worked on the singing. I loved the song, I thought he sounded great - and then of course, the judges didn't like it.

Allison - I did not like the song, but I thought she sounded amazing as she always does. I just thought the song didn't suit her - but then the judges loved it. Sigh. I loved watching Allison's mom react to her critique. CUTE. Did anyone else think the judges were trying to buy her some votes by talking her up a lot? I'm not saying she doesn't deserve the votes; she totally does. But since she's been in the bottom 3 so much, do you think they're trying to bump her out of there so they don't have to worry about using the save?

Matt - WOW. That was a Matt we've not seen for a while and I thought he was amazing. Really great. What cracked me up the most was his video at the beginning. When he talked about being in the church musical Angels Aware? I KNOW THAT ONE!!! And in fact, when they showed the clip, I still remembered the lines. Sad, I'm sure, but true. That musical had some great songs in it. It's how I learned the Ten Commandments and I still sing that song to remember which commandment goes with which number.

Adam - Still scares me a bit - but obviously very good. I will admit I was SHOCKED that Simon gave him a standing ovation. That is unheard of - and I wasn't sure it was quite THAT good - but I was still glad for him. I think he is a great performer.

Bottom 3? Probably Scott - Lil and Anoop? Not sure who will get the boot. If that really is the bottom 3, I have no idea who has the biggest fan base to save them.

Stuff and Things

Just doing a little cleanup work here in Bits World. I updated my blog list - and if you used to be on it and aren't now - it's not that I don't like you. It's that you stopped updating! If you rejoin blogger world, let me know and I'll put you right back on the list.

I also changed the name of my list - because I'm truly not buddies with everyone and I didn't want to claim to know more people than I really do. I just listed a bunch of blogs I love to read. And there's a couple more I want to add as soon as I track down the addresses again!

Oh - and in VERY exciting news - "I" participated in a bracket over on Phats' blog and apparently "I" won!!! Unfortunately I cannot take full (okay any) credit. Miss Kristin was my true source of information, so she gets the credit. THANKS KRISTIN!!!!!!!

Okay - I must go run if I'm going to do that and get home in time for Idol. :)

Bits for Sunday, April 12, 2009

In my office, I have a copy of the bestselling (how??) book Who Moved My Cheese. I’ve never actually read the book, but I have seen the movie. (If you know the book at all, you will understand the extreme disturbance of that sentence.) According to the Wikipedia summary, the book is “a motivational book by Spencer Johnson written in the style of a parable. It describes change in one’s work and life, and four typical reactions to said change with two mice, two ‘little people,’ and their hunts for cheese.”

I love cheese. Real life cheese. Not parable cheese. And my reaction to both real life cheese and parable cheese is not “Who moved my cheese?” but rather, “Put down the cheese. Step away from the cheese. DON’T TOUCH THE CHEESE!!!!”

Life in Bekahland has undergone some interesting (and I use that word very loosely) changes in the past couple of weeks. My friend and co-worker Rachel is on maternity leave and I miss her terribly. When I went to see her and meet the baby, I told her I think I got her post-partum depression because every time I think about how her absence changes work, I cry.

Friendships change – and some change so much that they’re never again what they once were, and that is always hard for me. I try to welcome it because I know that the loss or change on this hand might bring about new opportunities on the other hand. But I still don’t like it.

So in the midst of being stretched and pushed and pulled and trying to hunt the stupid missing cheese that has probably just completely left the state…I hold firm to my stance of not asking who moved the cheese. Just step away from the cheese, please.

Today has been a rainy day here in the great state of Indiana. It didn’t start out that way. I awoke to the promise of sunshine (since evil DST has delayed sunrise from its appropriate hour, I currently get up BEFORE the sun – but I could tell it was on its way) and a warmer morning than I expected. I fixed a for real breakfast, drank extra coffee, donned one of the summer collection dresses – and my sunglasses – and headed to church in the warmth and the light.

When I came out of church, it was raining, windy and cold. And it has stayed that way ever since. I have spent much of the day strolling through the house wearing a much-too-large fleece blanket in a cape-like fashion. It is, after all, April, and I refuse to turn on the heat.

As I stood in the kitchen, making my lunch, I noticed the bird bath in the backyard was completely full – almost spilling over into last year’s dead flowers beneath it. I muttered, “When the bird bath is full, it’s time to stop raining.”

Later in the day, that sentence came back to my mind. How many times has my life felt as full as that bird bath? How many times has the flood of grief or pain or moved cheese seemed to overtake my life and I hastily inform God that it’s time to stop because I have reached my saturation point?

Today it didn’t stop raining. And even six or so hours later, the bird bath hasn’t quite overflowed. I guess it can hold more water than I thought.

And maybe my life can handle more missing cheese than I think.

Even so – this is a verse I have come to love in these days of kidnapped co-jack. Normally I’m an NIV-only sort of girl, but this verse from the New Living Translation is stated so beautifully: You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book. Psalm 56:8.

God knows where my missing cheese is hiding. He sees my overflowing bird bath. He doesn’t miss a thing.

Joni

Joni Eareckson Tada was on campus this week - being inducted into the Society of World Changers at IWU. I couldn't go to the induction ceremony because it's been a busy week in my office, but I did get a chance to watch the streaming of it as it happened.

I have tremendous respect for her and the life she has lived since she broke her neck as a teenager. I'm sure I wouldn't have nearly the grace and dignity that she has. I heard one of the people who met her while she was on campus say that she is just a lovely person...and she certainly does seem to be.

When I was in 5th grade, we had to do "living" book reports. We had to become a character from the book and give the report from that character's perspective. I read Joni's autobiography for my report, so for the official report, I sat in a wheelchair and wore a little contraption on my arm. (In her book, she talked about how she feeds herself with a spoon hooked into an arm brace.)

So I dug up this picture from waaaaaaaaaaay back in the fifth grade.

The Top Nine

GUESS WHAT!?!?!? A whole week without knowing a single song. Can you even imagine it? (Please note the sarcasm.)

Here are my thoughts from tonight....

Anoop: Sorry. Didn't like it. He talked about increasing the energy of his song - but I sure didn't get an increased energy level out of that. I didn't think it fit him at all - and in fact, he scared me a bit as he sang. I was with Simon. It was a mess.

Megan: I might just have to stop commenting on her entirely because they are always the same. I don't get her sound. I don't get how she's good. Every time she sings, it's painful for me, and I was glad at least the judges agreed so I know I wasn't completely off base. I'm also becoming annoyed with her call for "her fans" to vote for her. No one else talks about their fans.

Danny: The closest I got to knowing a song tonight was having heard of the artist. LOL. I do like Rascal Flatts - or however it's spelled - and I thought he did a really good job. I was surprised the judges liked it as much as they did. I figured they'd find something wrong with it - but hey, who am I to complain? I'm a HUGE Danny fan, so if they're going to call it the best of the night - OKAY BY ME!!! I did agree that this is when the night "really" began.

Allison: How is it that Allison (and Daughtry and David Cook) can make me like rock music when in real life I just don't like it at all? I thought she was amazing (as always) and I'm just blown away by how great she is when she is so stinkin' young! I did not quite understand why so much time was spent picking apart her clothing choices. Yeah they were a little out there, but I've certainly seen worse on others!

Scott: WOW. I could not believe how much better he sounded this week than EVER EVER before!! I thought his voice had a purity to it I'd never heard and I was thrilled for him. Good, good job, Scott! I'd written down that it was his personal best - and then the judges said that very thing!

Matt: I have to admit, I did not love the song and I still don't love him. I wish I did. I wished I really liked his voice, but I just can't get into it - at least not compared to the others around him. I think he pushed it way too far by trying the rock edge. It's not him.

Lil: I do like the hair better this week. I thought she sounded some better than before, but like Matt, I'm just not a Lil fan. I wish I liked her better - and I SO appreciated her not arguing as much this week. But I just don't love her. :(

Adam: He is unarguably good. I didn't like him QUITE as much as last week, but I think this week he hit more on who HE really is. He wasn't so ridiculously out there as he was that one horrible week. He wasn't as charming as last week when he won me over. But I think that middle ground is truly where he belongs, and he is great at what he does.

Kris: I hated it that putting away dishes distracted me from what was apparently the performance of his lifetime. :( I thought it was good - but I didn't realize it was THAT good until they all started gushing. I am also a huge Kris fan, so I'm glad it was so amazing.

Bottom 3? Ummmmm Megan better be in there somewhere. My personal bottom 3 would be Megan, Matt, and Anoop with Megan going home.

What I Learned This Weekend

Kids don't sleep until 11 on Saturdays.

Okay so I knew going into the sleepover at Aunt Bekah's that my chances of getting a proper Saturday rest were....none. But I did at least hope they'd make it until 9. Um...close. 7:55. IN THE MORNING.

I had my "niece" and "nephew" over for a sleepover. It was her third one at my house and his first ever. They did so great and we had so much fun - Easter egg hunts and stamping and coloring and watching movies and eating popcorn and chasing the HIGHLY unamused cats and all sorts of things.

Here's a picture of a perfect kid moment: quietly sitting on the couch watching a movie. He was INTO it. He was watching Cars, or as he calls it, "Lightning Cokeen." (McQueen). I was in the fat char across the room just watching him love the movie and after a while he gathered up all his stuff, scooted down off the couch and came running to me announcing he was ready to snuggle. Kids are GREAT.


And you know you are brave when you will let a six year old give you a bright pink manicure...just hours before you have to make a public appearance. LOL. She did a pretty good job actually, and I just peeled off the superfluous polish after it dried. She was so cute all weekend - wanting to make it extra special for her brother, since it was his first ever sleepover away from his parents. I love that little nurturing side of her.

But my favorite moment of the whole weekend was this:

We camped out on the living room floor, and when way too early in the morning arrived on Saturday, Liam snuggled up next to me, patted my arm, and said, "I love you, Aunt Bekah." I just smiled - because if you have to wake up before 11 on a Saturday, you might as well wake up to words of love, right?

I turned to look at Savannah, and she smiled sweetly at me and said, "Do you want to smell my morning breath?" Then she proceeded to HAAAAAAAAAAAAA right in my face.

Bits for Sunday, March 29, 2009

Yesterday was one of the most dreaded days of my year. Easter dress shopping. I’ve written about it before…about my utter disdain of shopping for a dress in general. Skirts and tops are fine, because then I can mix and match. But the whole dress thing doesn’t work out so well for me. I’m too many different sizes all plopped on one body. But I’m a firm believer that Easter (much like a wedding) is cause for a dress. And until I can convince myself otherwise, I have the yearly torture of finding such an outfit.

To make matters worse, two of three stores in the world where I have had good luck in finding a dress…closed. At least in my town. Since yesterday was NOT the day before Easter, and since I had about five unclaimed hours, I drove to Kokomo to begin the great dress hunt of 2009.

About three stores into my search, I found myself hidden behind a clearance rack. Loved the prices. Loved some of the dresses – if I’d been planning to go to prom. And while I pushed dresses aside in search of a hidden treasure – I heard a guy about my age talking to his wife. She said to him, “Do you like this dress?” His response: “Honestly, my first thought? Lucille Ball.” I cracked up. When I went dress shopping a year or two ago, that was my exact sentiment…all the dresses looked like they came straight from the set of I Love Lucy.

I should have taken that overheard conversation as an omen about my hours (and stores) to come.

I think I’d been to five stores before I even dared to enter a fitting room. Fitting room is a misnomer. Cram yourself into something that clings in all the wrong places and rip it while trying to take it off and simultaneously hate your M&M addiction room might be a better description. However, I do see how the sign might be out of control.

I left that store (no purchase, in case you weren’t sure) and went to Kohl’s. As I wandered the aisles looking for ANY dress at all, Daniel Powter’s Bad Day song came on the radio. Oh how appropriate. Especially when he got to the line “The camera don’t lie” and I spat back at the non-dress rack nearby, “Neither does a mirror.”

As I walked out of that store, my Mom called to check on my progress. I said, “I bought an alarm clock.” She said, “Well that might look kind of funny on Easter morning.”

In utter desperation, I went to the Dress Barn. I have strolled through the Dress Barn before, but my rummage sale price mentality and their sticker price reality don’t match, so I’ve never made a purchase. Yesterday I didn’t care if it cost half my savings.

The very nice worker bee lady met me at the door and asked how I was doing. I just rolled my eyes and informed her this was my 37th store and I was running out of patience. She asked what occasion I was shopping for and I said, “Just Easter. Should be no big deal, right?” She eagerly showed me an array of dresses like I’d not seen all day.

As I made my way toward some cute, springy looking ones, I saw a woman browsing and (sorry, judgmental party of one!) my immediate thought was “WOW. That is not an attractive woman.” Then I got closer and my next thought was “Wow! That is not a woman!” He wore a lovely spring skirt and carried a purse…and browsed through the Easter dresses. And right about then, he asked what kind of dress I was looking for.

I’m sorry – I know this falls under all sorts of stuff I’ve been studying about loving my neighbor and not showing favoritism. Really, I do know that. But trying to talk to a person wearing both lipstick and a five o’clock shadow – after three hours of not finding a dress – was not going to work for me. I yanked my phone out of my pocket and called my Mom. She (very confused, poor mama) sat and listened to me carry on a fake conversation with her until he moved away and I could explain my predicament.

I took five dresses to the “fitting” room. I bought the one that zipped with the least resistance. Who am I kidding? I bought the one that zipped. Period. While paying, I told the worker bee lady that my plan B was to wear my bathing suit and towel to church on Easter Sunday. She told me there were lots of cute bathing suits – and towels – out there, so that could have worked. I told her I’m scheduled to read Scripture on Easter Sunday morning and I just didn’t think the church was ready for that.

She said, “Well, you could mess up and no one would notice!”

If I gain even one ounce between now and Easter, that dress is NOT going to zip. So I’m keeping her point in mind just in case.

Focus on the Baby

I told my friend Rachel that I would NOT come to meet her baby after working out because I'm tired of having my picture taken in workout clothes. Unfortunately my pride has taken yet another beating, because I went to meet the baby after working out - AND after crying off my makeup. Lovely. So really...focus on the baby.

I love meeting new little babies and this one was LITTLE. I'd seen pictures of her before, and she looked much bigger in the pictures than she is in real life. She's cute. For real cute. Not "ohhhhh what a cute baby....don't strike me with lightening for lying...." cute. And she has a good little grip too, for being under a week old!

Hey I Knew Some Songs!!!

I actually knew three (I think) whole songs tonight! I was so excited! I had to BOOK IT home from church to watch, since the pre-empting (which I am very bitter about and we will not discuss) took place and this got moved to tonight. I am waiting for the show to end so I can go back and watch the first two, but in the meantime, I'll comment on the rest.

Matt: Not too bad. I think maybe better than some of his earlier ones - but I still don't think he's as good as some of the other guys. I think it's good that he went first because had he gone after some of the later ones - might have been rough. The judges called him a front runner but I guess I've not been quite convinced yet.

Kris: Well I think Kris is great and that song was perfect for him. (Incidentally - knew this one too.) Anyway, he's a cutie, he's comfortable in what he wants to sing and I was a huge fan of this one!!

Scott: This is one of the songs I knew! Can't Hurry Love. (Boy isn't THAT the truth. Oh, sorry. I digress.) Anyway, I actually really loved his rendition - but the judges didn't all agree. I was on Kara's side that an up-tempo song from Scott was much needed. This was my favorite one from him so far, but I did not have a lot of company on that opinion from the judges. Was it at this point that Paula crawled under the table? That had me scared for just a minute.

Megan: Okay here's my thing with Megan. She is my Carly of this season. I just can't get into her style and, in fact, she confuses me. The whole time she sang, I thought "Is she even hitting the notes?" but I half expected the judges to praise the daylights out of her performance. I was thrilled to find out I was right and it really was a train wreck. Her voice drivees me nuts. I do think she is stunningly beautiful, but as with Carly - the excessive tattoos paired with an elegant look just doesn't work.

Anoop: I liked last week better from Anoop. I didn't think I liked SO much falsetto from him. Simon cleared it up for me in his comments - Anoop did look kind of bored and asleep while he sang. I thought he did okay as far as the notes and the technicality, but I didn't connect with it at all.

Michael: Church it up? I've never heard a song described that way, but okay. I thought he was better than the judges gave him credit for. I actually liked it better than last week because I could understand the words. Still - I think he's bottom 3 this week. I hope to goodness he survives past Megan, but I'm worried for him.

Lil: This is the first week I've liked her song (maybe because I knew it?). I am a bit worried she's going to get a little Jennifer Hudsonish on me. She has just a bit of attitude and while she managed to keep her opinions to herself a bit more this week than she did last week - I am not sure that the Jennifer side of her is gone.

Adam: Christina, are you ready? I LOVED HIM. He was my favorite performance of the night (assuming the 2 I have yet to watch here in a second don't top his). I was a bit worried the judges would be rough on him for so drastically changing his look - I remember times in the past when they've been upset with people for doing that. But I thought he looked INCREDIBLY handsome all cleaned up and he didn't scare me nearly so much. He can SING. No doubt about that.

Danny: I thought he was very entertaining and engaging - but why didn't he do those lines like he said he was going to? I think he has a lot of good potential not only as a singer but as an entertainer. Some of these people are good singers but their concerts wouldn't be much fun. Can't say that for Danny!

Allison: I didn't like her song until the end when she got so powerful and then she shot straight to second place after Adam. I thought she was amazing - she had NO place in the bottom 3 last time and she better not be there this time.

Bottom 3? Well two of them need to be Michael and Megan. I'm a tiny bit worried for Scott and Anoop too. I want Megan to go home but worry it will be Michael.

One Tired Little Girl

I made a point, when DST began, to work hard each evening so I could be ready for bed by a decent hour and hopefully get more sleep. And I did well...until this week.

This week all the chores and all the work hit at once. And this is the second night in a row I'll be crawling into bed later than I like...which will definitely be obvious when the alarm goes off in the morning.

I do love the feeling of accomplishment that comes from a day of hard work followed by an evening of hard work. But I do NOT love the worn out mess I am by bedtime!

I tried a new recipe tonight, so if it turns out well, it'll show up on here eventually. And as soon as I have a spare minute or three, I'll post the next one I have waiting in the wings.

In the meantime - hope all of you are having a good week!

Bits for Sunday, March 22, 2009

As “good old 14A” says, “Welcome sweet springtime, we greet thee in song.” That means nothing to you if you are not a fan of the Andy Griffith Show. If you are a fan, then please know Barney and I sound much alike on that particular song, so I’ll just allow you to read the words on the screen and not have an audio rendition.

I’ve loved these sunny days…and in honor of the first day of spring, I have completely shut off the heat in my house and have pulled out the cute summer skirts. Never mind that I’m wearing a jacket and a fleece blanket over them right now as I write to you. I’ll happily do that just to have spring present and accounted for.

Yesterday I worked hard on spring cleaning…getting through about half the house and half the closet switch. I’ll just have to work extra hard this week to finish those projects.

The cats love sitting in the open window – although during my Sunday afternoon nap, I remembered the down side of open windows. Sirens become much louder! But the fresh air is welcome in the stuffy rooms, so I’ll deal with the sirens.

I told you last week about my retreat and my adventures entering and exiting the top bunk of my bed. I’m happy to report that this week I’ve had a chance to journal…at long last…and it has been wonderful to get thoughts out of my head and onto the paper. Of course that freed up brain space for other things to take up residence and leave me in multiple states of confusion, but at least it provides variety.

So many people have asked me what I learned while I was gone and some things were so big that it’s hard to condense them into words. I’m still contemplating them and trying to soak up every last bit of what God intended them to be for me.

But one lesson was more of a “kicker” – and that is what I want to share with you today. My friend Kari and I are studying the book of James. We’re crawling through it one section at a time, and right before I left, we discussed the first part of chapter two, which is about favoritism. (If you’ve not read it in a while, check out verses 1-13.)

We talked about how easy it is for us to categorize people around us – those we really want to associate with (if they would lower themselves to spending time with us), and those who might want to associate with us (obviously!) but we’re not so eager to rush their direction. James specifically talks about those who show up dressed well and those who might be What Not to Wear candidates. He wasn’t just talking about the dreadfully out of fashion. He was also talking about those who might wear filthy clothing. Dirty, smelly people.

I don’t think Kari and I are the only ones in the world to not push people out of the way to be able to sit next to a “shabbily clothed” person. It’s just our nature to want to spend time with those who fit in well with us. Or if we’re extra fortunate – people who are even better than we are, and we might become better just by association.

Fresh out of this study…after however many pages of notes on how to NOT show favoritism in the body of believers…I landed in a room full of women and found familiar thoughts running through my head. Who had the nicest clothes? Who had great hair? Who seemed to have a fun personality? Can I sit by those people?

Did I learn NOTHING?

God made sure I learned something. Without going into too many details, just let me say that the people I might have not rushed toward, had I been given a chance to choose my path, ended up being the people who taught me the most. The people who had great hearts for the Lord. The people who showed genuine faith and care. The people who took risks beyond what I was willing to take. The people who reached out in friendship – though they could have been having thoughts similar to mine – about me!

Humbled would be a good word to describe how I felt as I rode back home at the end of the weekend. I saw faces flash through my mind and I was sorry I was so quick to judge on appearance. I was sorry I hadn’t taken the time to get to know them first – to see their beautiful hearts. I was sorry I lost even a moment of enjoying them because I was so busy judging.

That lesson has not been far from my mind all week – and hopefully I’ll learn it quickly and not have to spend too much time in favoritism boot camp.

Spring (Cleaning) Fever

I took the last two afternoons off work in hopes that being up and about for work in the morning would spur me on to hard work at home in the afternoon.

As it turned out, it spurred me right into two lovely afternoon naps. Oh well. The best laid plans, right?

But these last two days (minus one rain shower yesterday) have been SO PRETTY and I think I have officially diagnosed myself with spring fever. More specifically...spring cleaning fever.

I've been on the go much of March, and as a result, my cleaning has been sporadic. The bright sunshine and open windows and doors have been wonderfully refreshing...and a spotlight on the cleaning that so needs to occur.

I love spring cleaning. I love bringing out the Easter decorations and the bright flowers (the fake kind that I can't kill). I love rearranging the furniture, putting away the fleece sheets in favor of the regular ones. I love exchanging the space heater for a fan. I love, love, LOVE bringing out the summer clothes and putting away the bulky coats.

I love thinking ahead to planting the flowers I'm likely to kill, and for five minutes, I even love the thought of mowing the grass. (Then, of course, comes the first attempt at starting the mower after it sat all winter and my disdain returns.)

And while I'm never a fan of rain, yesterday reminded me I do love the smell of a spring rain. Tomorrow is the first official day of spring, and in celebration, I plan to have a closet-switching party tomorrow night. (I know - I have the funnest Friday nights. Try not to be jealous, okay?)

So happy spring (a few hours early) - and here's to happy cleaning!

The Top Eleven...

...sang tonight. Country night. That's code for my one chance all season to know a song. :) At least until they do Southern Gospel night. Then I'll clean right up on songs. Here's what I thought - can't wait to hear your perspectives. And for those of you who so long to participate in water cooler talk around the cubes in the office...but can't because you didn't watch...you can at least sound informed. :)

Michael - Oh bless his precious little heart, I think he might be in trouble tonight. I didn't know the song - think I might have been able to like the song - but I was totally with Simon. Even with the captions on, I couldn't understand a word he was saying. And I didn't think country was really his thing. Paula said it suited him, but I thought he looked and sounded like he was forcing it to fit. Simon called it clumsy, and I thought that was a good description.

Allison - Just love this girl. I really do hope she stays for a long time. I thought she blended country with her rocker sound really well. Those two don't always blend well and I was nervous for her, but she made it work and once again, I thought she looked very at home on that stage. And hey- she got a "dope" from Randy.

Kris - I had goose bumps before he was out of the first sentence. I l-o-v-e-d it. I think it may have been one of my top two favorite songs of the night. Thank you, Simon, for leaving the issue of his wife out of this one. I got nervous he'd bring that up again since Kris sang a love song. But apparently Simon was too distracted by how GREAT the song was to bring that back into discussion.

Lil - CRACKED me up how Simon kept calling her Little. That was hysterical. This was the first song of the night I knew, and I wish I hadn't...maybe then I would have liked it better. Once again I had to agree with Simon (what is up with all this agreeing with him?). It did sound like she was at a wedding singing a song she didn't like. And I was very annoyed that she kept trying to defend herself...not so much because she wanted to make her point...but because she kept interrupting them. I hate interrupting.

Adam - Well I struggled with him last week because he scared me. But Tammy at my work just loved him to death, and Christina loved him too, so this week I went into his song determined to start over. Um, I think I need to start over again. Parts of it were kind of good, but mostly it reminded me of that sidekick singer in The Wedding Singer. Was his name George? I don't know - it did NOT work for me. However, I think he's got a strong enough fan base to stay, so I'm not going to worry about it.

Scott - I actually agreed with Paula on this one. I like Scott a lot - both his vocal talent and his piano talent are very very good. But I wish he'd ditch the piano too, because he is starting to sound the same every time. The song wasn't bad...wasn't my favorite of the night. I think he was playing it too safe. ALTHOUGH - I did like his comeback line to Paula after she told him the piano was separating him from the audience. He said they could move it closer. Good one!

Alexis - I'm pretty sure Brooke White sang this song last year and though I was a DIEHARD Brooke fan, I think Alexis did this one better. Until she sang that song, I didn't realize how much she looks like Brooke - if she had the long hair to match. I thought she did well, but I agreed with Kara that maybe Before He Cheats would have fit her style better. I think she'll be okay though.

Danny - I was so scared for Danny singing that song. That was pretty risky, I thought. He did a pretty good job of not copying it just the way Carrie did it, but there were some notes that just DID NOT go well. The second half was definitely better than the first.

Anoop - MUCH MUCH MUCH better than last week. I thought he was really good and I was so glad for him that he received great feedback. I was proud of him for listening and applying what they said last week rather than just whining about it. That shows good character. He won some points with me on that one.

Megan - At this point in the night, the judges and I parted ways for good. I hated the dress and I did not like the sound of her voice at all. In some ways I would have preferred the high school talent show Rockin' Robin sound back. Then of course I had to feel bad for feeling that way when I heard she had the flu. Okay, so I'll cut her some slack. But I am still not a fan. :(

Matt - Apparently at this point in the show, I was too frustrated by my not-going-well scrapbook page that I was multi-tasking, because I have little to no impression of the song at all, but the judges totally raved. So I won't even try to figure this one out. The scrapbook page went okay, thought.

Who goes home? Well based on performance, it should be Adam. But I'm going to say Michael.

Yes, I Know...This is A Day Late

No, I was not kidnapped by the Marion Mafia. Yes, this is the first time in however many years I've been doing this that Bits has been a day late. A dollar short many times, I'm sure, but never a day late.

Welcome to the land of Bekah learning to be flexible. And what an exercise it has been!

This weekend I was given the opportunity to go on a retreat. Not a standard church retreat where all the women run from home screaming with joy at the freedom ahead...and then spend hours eating chocolate and giggling together. Not a standard Bekah retreat of checking into a hotel room for some rest and quality time with a journal and the Bible. This was very different from any kind of retreat I've been on before, and truthfully, my mind has not yet had enough down time to process all that happened.

I've not had time to journal since Wednesday, which is nearly like fasting for me. In fact, I'm barely able to wait long enough to get home and rip the journals out of the backpack to start writing. If I'm smart, I'll contend with the unpacked suitcase and the bedding strewn across the living room first. But then - who knows if I'll be smart!?!? Probably not.

I left for my retreat at 4:30 on Thursday and got home at 10 last night. I gave the heartiest hello I could muster to the cats, called my Mama and headed straight for my precious, huge, wonderful, fleece sheet covered bed. There I conked out and slept without moving until the alarm so rudely interrputed today.

Hence, no timely Bits for you.

I don't want to say too much about the retreat just yet - the God part of it anyway - because I am still thinking and unraveling all that took place.

But for those who need a "Bekahland" moment - I offer you the following.

I knew the retreat was being held at a church campground, and I anticipated that the sleeping arrangements would be large rooms filled with bunk beds. And that's exactly what we had. We were assigned a location, and all the lower bunks were filled. Four of us were assigned upper bunks. Two of them were up against a wall. I was not so fortunate.

My bed was a tiny metal island surrounded by a cement sea. And by tiny, I mean that the sleeping bag was wider than the bed. No rails on the bed. And not only that...no non-athletic way of climbing up to the top. The end didn't have rails. No ladder, no chair. Just me and my no-upper-body-strength. I could FEEL the comedy in my future.

The first bedtime approached and I eyed that bed with a sick feeling. I glanced around to find I had a little audience waiting to see just how I planned to go about getting into that bed. I don't blame them. I'd have done the same. So I took a deep breath, stepped up on the mattress of the lower bunk, threw my arms across the bed and started pulling while trying to maneuver a tae bo kick move with my leg. For those of you who are I Love Lucy fans...just think of the ballet episode. Not far from the truth. After giving the audience QUITE a show, I landed in the bed and managed to get inside the borrowed sleeping bag. Only then did I realize this was a sleeping bag that was rather slippery on the outside. I could only imagine sliding slowly off the bed in my sleep. What a story for my funeral. "She fell out of bed."

Knowing that I was stuck up there in that bunk also gave me the kid-in-a-snowsuit syndrome. But there was NO room for potty breaks, so I put that thought out of my mind.

I set about trying to go to sleep, but alas - no TV. No fan. Two essentials to my winding down process. I didn't even have a clock to know how late it was getting.

What I did have was snoring. I was SHOCKED. Aren't men supposed to be the big time snorers? I expected a snoring duet or maybe a trio. This was a CHOIR! So there I was...on my back (which I never do, but I was afraid if I turned on my side, I'd fall right out of bed), staring at the very near ceiling, listening to the snoring, wondering if I'd ever sleep...

...and I won't kid about this part, because it wasn't funny at all. It was quite scary actually. One of the other ladies became ill in the night and long story short, we were all up for much of the night sitting by and praying, since we didn't know what to do for her.

After the second round of her sickness came, I gave up on ever actually sleeping and determined to get out of bed. I stuck my head over the side (while hanging on for dear life) to see if the bottom bunk lady was awake. She was, so I informed her I would be attempting to exit the bed at that time.

I scooted the sleeping bag out of the way for safety reasons, assumed a surfboard position across the bed and started to scoot down the side. My jammie pant legs caught on the mattress and slid up, up, up my leg while I slid down, down, down the side.

Hey, once you start a show, you gotta finish it.

Let the record show, I did not get back in THAT bed the rest of the weekend.

So there you have a taste of my weekend...and I must now go work off some of the food they fed me!

Kaegan's Birthday: Part 2

I called home last night and said to my parents, "Have you ever tried to have a photo shoot with an 8 year old cat? They hadn't.

I didn't reccomend it.

I was trying to get a picture WITH him, but you have to understand he is not a cuddly cat. He does not like being held. So anytime I need a picture with him, I have to wait until he's in a patient mood - sitting somewhere for a while, and then I have to just slide up next to him and start taking pictures.

So here's the attempt. I said, "Look up!" (as if he would know what that meant). Apparently he actually does - but I MEANT look at the camera....

So that's him looking up and me laughing about it.

Here he is playing with his new catnip toy.

More playing. I had to keep Braeya away from this part too or she would have stolen it. Oh lovely - my dresser drawer is open. SUPER!!!

FINALLY. A decent picture.

Guess Who Has a Birthday Today??

NOT me.

But Kaegan turns eight today.

Here is the birthday boy himself during the lunch hour celebration. He kindly took a break from watching grass blow to have a photo taken.

I accidentally put these pictures on backwards - woops! Here he is ENJOYING one of his birthday gifts. He wanted more....but he'll have to wait until this evening to get more treats. I had to keep Braeya away during this part because she would have pushed him right out of the way - no regard for it being his holiday.

Here he is sniffing into the gift bag containing treats mentioned above.

When I wished him a happy birthday first thing this morning, he seemed less than impressed, but I thought it was nice of Braeya to give him a little birthday kiss so early in the day.

Bowing to Peer Pressure

I wasn't going to watch Idol this season. But after some complaints along the line of missing out on water cooler talk of it here, I caved and watched the first night. So here are my thoughts. If you hate Idol and all things television (you know who you are) - please come back because I will have other thoughts on other days. PROMISE.

Please note that since I've been so busy watching the Bachelor try to figure out who he really loves and all the Biggest Losers melt away the pounds...I've not seen much of the competition since the early auditions. So most of these people were brand new to me tonight.

Michael Jackson songs? As usual - a category I know little about. So the songs were new for me, too.

Lil - Hey, a song I actually knew! I thought she was a great start to the night - she looked really comfortable on the stage and seemed confident in who she is. I thought she did a good job with the song, although I agreed with Simon that the second half was better than the first. I also agreed with Simon on the outfit - it did not work for me.

Scott - I remember him from auditions and do recall crying over him that very first week. I didn't love the song, but I thought he did a good job singing AND playing it. He played the daylights out of that thing and he'd only just learned it this week!

Danny - I remember him (and also cried over his story) from auditions week. I loved the look, and I really loved how he engaged the crowd. He's a good people person. The song itself was weird, but I thought he did a good job and I want him to stay around for a good long time.

Michael - I liked the song - never would have pegged it for a Michael Jackson song. But I thought he lost the tune in the middle and it seemed to me he was just singing it at the crowd rather than bringing them into it like Danny did. But it was okay.

Jasmine - Given that she's only 17, I thought the song seemed kind of old on her - and the judges thought so too. I love it when I match up with them! I do think she has a great voice, though.

Kris - He is a cutie - and I can't believe he's only been married 5 months and is now away doing this! That's got to be tough. Non-musically related - I thought the judges were way out of line for promoting the cuteness and especially saying he should have hidden the wife for a while. From the look on her face after that comment, I'd say she didn't love it either! But back to singing - he was really fun and connected well with the audience.

Allison - I couldn't believe she is only 16! She has tons of confidence in who she is and in being on that stage. I kinda liked her voice. Why do I always end up really liking the rockers when I don't even like that kind of music?

Anoop - Uh oh, Anoop! I think he could be in trouble tonight. He was a wild card pick, right? And he didn't do an amazing job - although I'm not sure it was as bad as the judges said. I think he could be really good though, so I hope he's got enough to pull him through to next week.

Jorge - I didn't love the song and I didn't love the performance. I think he could be in trouble this week too. I don't remember him from auditions - and I didn't see him in the top 36 - so I don't know if this was an accurate show of his skill...or not.

Megan - She kind of reminds me of Carly from last season. I know the Rockin' Robin song and didn't think she did a great job with it. Simon said she was clumsy and awkward, and I'd agree with that. I was thinking high school talent show.

Adam - And THIS is where I didn't even remotely meet up with the judges. He was better than I thought he was going to be, although I remained a bit scared for most of his song. But I did NOT get why Paula was crying and shaking - and then he was crying back. It kind of exhausted me.

Matt - When I first saw him, I thought - whoa that guy looks like Justin Timberlake! And then the judges mentioned that later, so I'm sure he'll love that constant comparison. I liked the song and the piano with it - good, I thought.

Alexis - Hey, I used to have that hair! The cut, not the color. I didn't like the outfit AT ALL. But, much like Allison, I think she knows who she is as a singer and she did a good job on the stage.

Two go home tomorrow, right? I'd say just based on tonight - Anoop and Jorge.

Game Night

Here are a couple of pictures from game night. Please excuse the hair. It had been at a track meet all day. :)

Here I am with my Wii Mii. Please do take note of the record score listed on the screen. Thankyouverymuch.

This was the second round, I think. We missed my first actual use of the Wii.

And here she is! The winner (sinner, I first typed - no no no!) of Aggravation!

Bits for Sunday, March 8, 2009

Though March has only been around for a week, it has already been a month of firsts in Bekahland.

This past Friday and Saturday, I worked my first track meet. Allow me to rephrase. I entered the IWU indoor track facility for the first time. I breathed track meet air for the first time. I ran a stop watch for the first time. And I worked my first track meet.

How did this come about, you ask? It came about because I still haven’t learned the word “No.” My friend Eric, who is in charge of indoor track meet events, called to tell me IWU was hosting a two day high school meet and he needed backup timers for the races. Normally the school’s athletes do that for him, but they were all on spring break. I felt bad, so I agreed and then spent a week and a half wondering what in the world I’d gotten myself into.

I won’t lie – I almost threw up for the first three races. I was petrified of ruining someone’s life by messing up – or entirely missing – a time, but the other timers patiently reminded me I was just backup. The official time was captured by very state of the art camera equipment – which was fun to watch.

I learned a lot during that two day event. I learned the names of the races and mostly what they entailed. I learned that some uniforms are really not flattering – even on the skinniest person. I learned how to run a stopwatch. I learned that the officials are simply amazing – able to keep track of the lap number of 20 runners while carrying on conversations with each other, shooing lurkers away from the finish line, and eating a piece of pizza. I learned that when the officials are as good as ours were in moving the events along, timers don’t get bathroom breaks. I learned how to run the lap counter – and also learned how to eagerly give that task right back to someone who dared to leave for a bathroom break. And I learned that 5 ½ hours of sitting on an aluminum bleacher leaves you unable to sit at all the next day…and the next.

After leaving my second day of four by eights and two by fours…oh wait, that’s lumber…I moved on to my next new experience.

The Wii.

I knew it would happen. I knew the moment I played my first game, I would be an addict. And it happened just as I thought it might. I went to a game night with my high school buddies. This was our first game night ever that didn’t include a couple hours of Dutch Blitz. In fact, other than a round of Aggravation (which I won, thankyouverymuch) that we played while waiting for dinner to cook, we played nothing else but Wii bowling the entire night.

You must understand something.

I am a horrible bowler.

I was a slightly mediocre bowler until college, when I took a bowling class and promptly cut my score in half. I supposedly gained great form, but I didn’t see the point if it cut down my ability to actually hit the stupid pins. My professor – wonderful, wonderful man – gave me a B. GAVE me the B. Kind, kind man.

But I was better at Wii bowling. Perhaps it was because a remote is much easier to handle than a ball. At least I didn’t have to worry about breaking a nail this time! We played for 2 or 3 hours and would have played longer, but I had to get up for church this morning and also – in case you forgot – the time changed. We won’t even go there.

But it has been confirmed…I want a Wii. Who knows – maybe in the land of virtual sports, I might stand a much better chance than I do in real life!

Just for Skyepuppy

Skyepuppy - I found my pictures of the Arch. Both the ones I took of the actual Arch and those taken from inside through the tiny windows. Allow me to say that I flunked each and every one of your photography lessons with those photos. They shall one day be scrapbooked (I'm still working on year four of my kid-life, so I have a ways to go) - but they shall not appear on here for you. But if you do want "what NOT to do" photos for your page, I have zillions.

Anyway, here is the picture in the elevator. That's my Dad sporting the festive hat. He has always worn those hats for as long as I've ever known him - until recently when he has taken up baseball caps part time. Baseball caps that say things like "Don't forget my senior discount."

Anyway, please note I wore my St. Louis Arch shirt TO the Arch. As I recall, that was a specific plan in my 9 year old head. As for the rest of it - well, it's just head to toe ROUGH. Ahh the awkward years.

Oh and I have no idea who the man is that I'm talking to. I must not have been listening in the NEVER TALK TO STRANGERS movie we no doubt saw in school.

Why Bekah Doesn't Work Out At Lunch

I hate everything about working out at lunch. I hate unassembling my look partway through the day - and worse than that I hate crawling back into it when I'm done. I hate dragging all the workout paraphernalia to work, adding yet one MORE bag to the daily luggage. And of course there is the issue of potential sweat during work hours - so unattractive. All of this is not to mention how very seriously I take my designated food intake hours, so to give that up for the sake of burning calories does not amuse me.

However, life is sometimes about compromise and this is such a week. It is our spring break (we do it more to welcome the thought of a someday spring than to actually enjoy an existing spring) so students are gone and the buildings have the "break" hours. This means the gym closes very early and if I am unable to work out immediately following work for any reason...I either have to work out on my lunch hour or work out at home. Normally I just opt to work out at home, but the elliptical is issue-laden at the moment, so I must use the gym or else.

Today was the first day I needed to use the gym at lunch, and may I just say: comedy of errors.

I decided to change my clothes in the bathroom in my own office building before walking over so I didn’t have to traipse over in my heels. I went into the bathroom and someone was in the handicap stall, so I had to use one of the regular size ones. I crammed in there with my coat and my backpack only to discover the floors were soaking wet from being mopped. That meant no laying my clothes on the floor and I had no idea how I was going to go about changing shoes and socks without getting wet feet. And because our toilets are automatic sensor flushers....it flushed on me three times just while I was changing clothes. Thankfully no one was in there by that point - because I knew they'd be wondering what was happening down in stall one!

I finally got changed and went to the gym only to discover that with my t shirt and warm up pants, I was sporting my lovely chunky cross choker. I frisbee-tossed it onto my bag after the first lap.

Did my walking without much incident and got ready to go to the car so I could go get my food – when I realized that today is the one day of my whole life that I didn’t put my keys in my coat pocket when I got to work. They were up in the office. So as I half-ran down the sidewalk, I calling work to see if the student worker could find my keys and then throw them over the balcony to me. I caught the keys, ran back to the car, went to the gas station to get my food and realized there were ENTIRELY too many choices. I finally picked out a sammich and chips and went back to work. I got my clothes changed back and was lugging my bag of food, drink, backpack, and coat out of the bathroom when I realized my pant leg was tucked inside my sock. Oh how attractive.

I fixed that and slid into the office only 5 minutes late. Not bad!

Bits for Sunday, March 1, 2009

One of my friends has “SNS.” Sunday Night Syndrome. Hits her every Sunday about 5 p.m. and lasts until she pulls into the parking lot Monday morning. I’ve warned her that next week it will get worse. Yes, in case you are unaware, this is our last blissful weekend of time as it should be. Next week – you can kiss a whole hour of sleep BYE-BYE. I warned those in my pew this morning that ugly Bekah could emerge next week. I thought it only fair.

I have SNS combined with SNR – the Sunday Night Rush. I can have a perfectly calm and collected weekend and when Sunday night arrives…as I’m trying desperately to claim the few last precious minutes of rest…I suddenly realize I’m not at all prepared for the week.

Just now I sat with the day planner, trying to get the month in order (love doing that at the first of each month) – and more specifically my week. What chores must be done on which day? What food must be prepared on what day? Which days must I exercise and which one can be the free day? How do the must-see TV shows overlap each other and which ones will I choose to watch over the others? Which days must I pack a lunch? Pack the workout clothes? Go to work early? Stay at work late? Go to bed early only to stare at the ceiling until the normal falling-asleep-time?

Where will I sneak in the writing? The scrapping? The card making? The laundry? And of course, each day must be lovingly packed with time for emergencies. Like, for instance, cleaning up the bathroom after the cat falls into the toilet and shakes water everywhere. (Not that this happened yesterday or anything like that.)

And in the middle of all this, Lent began. I thought about giving up Daylight Savings and choosing to stay on real time, but I wasn’t sure how I’d manage to make that work among those who cave to it. In years past, I’ve given up things like pop, dessert, a meal…usually something food related. This year I decided to give up…nothing.

I’d learned that the self-sacrifice of things I loved so much served as a great diet…a great discipline…a great story for the weekly Bits…but very little spiritual growth came out of it. And that is one of the main purposes I even participated in the first place.

This year at our Ash Wednesday service at church, the pastor handed out little Lent devotion books written by Henri Nouwen. You don’t really forget a name like that, and since I semi-recognize it, I must have read his work somewhere before. But since I can’t remember where, I’m just enjoying the things he has to say. And the second day was very important to me.

I believe I mentioned last week that in our Sunday School class, we talked about the Proverbs 31 Woman. That prompted me to revisit a book I’d read on the subject. For several lunch hours this week, I perused the pages of the book I read 3 or 4 years ago. I read the things I’d underlined and the notes I’d made in the margins. I read the “on a scale from 1-10, I’m a…” measurements I’d made for myself in various topics.

And something very exciting happened.

I saw some growth.

Funny how separating yourself from something for that length of time will bring so much perspective. I saw areas where I’d really struggled – and while I may not be struggle-free now – I’ve made some pretty significant improvements.

And that was what I immediately thought of when I read day two in the devotion book. He says, “Because life is very small, you can never see it happening…Growth is too gentle, too tender…It is small and begs for constant care and protection. If you are committed to always saying ‘yes’ to life, you are going to have to become a person who chooses it when it is hidden.”

That gentle, tender, immeasurable-in-the-moment growth can be marked…after a time of waiting. The giving up of things didn’t make me grow. It was the embracing of life, the diligence to push forward when I was tired or had Sunday Night Syndrome or Sunday Night Rush. It was the willingness to find the hidden and allow it to live and thrive.

Croutons

It's probably part of the OCD - I hate serving too much store-bought stuff to my company. One evening, last summer, I promised to make dinner for my friends Tom and Olivia. They're college students, so obviously they're not too picky about non-campus food. But I wanted to make a good impression and felt guilty that I was dumping prepared salad out of a bag to serve as part of the meal. Add to that the pre-shredded cheese, the imitation bacon bits, and I started to feel like they were just getting the same thing they'd get in the dining hall!

So I set out in search of a good crouton recipe. I love croutons, but I hate the ones you buy in the store because they almost break your teeth when you bite down on them!! I knew I could find something easier on the jaw AND something that would make me feel like I'd actually spent some time on that salad!
I found this recipe on the bestsimplerecipes.com site - which is the website for the Taste of Home/Simple and Delicious etc. magazines. I made the croutons and did not bring home even one of them that evening. What we didn't use on our salads, we ate just for fun - like they were chips! Since Olivia loved them so much, I always make sure I serve salad if she's going to be a guest. She told me last time I made them that I could just make a batch of these for her birthday - and skip shopping for anything.

The Recipe:

1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 1/2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
5 slices of bread cubed

Combine the butter, seasoning, and garlic powder. Add bread cubes and toss to coat. Bake at 325 for 15-20 minutes.


I use wheat bread for my every day bread, so that's always what I have on hand. I think the croutons taste just as good made out of wheat as they do out of white, but you can use whatever you have on hand. If the bread is not super fresh, it will cube better.

I mix up the butter, Italian seasoning, and garlic in a bowl. I just melt the butter in the microwave and then add the other two things to it.

I cut the bread a couple of slices at a time to save time.

You can make the cubes however large you like. I make mine about an inch square - because I prefer them bigger than the ones that come in the bags at the store.

I pour the butter over the spread of bread - that way I can control how much goes where and 5 cubes of bread don't end up soaking up all the good stuff.

I spend a little bit of time mixing the bread around to try to make sure every cube has SOMETHING on it. Granted, some are still going to be the "good" croutons with more butter and seasoning, but I can usually get the whole batch pretty saturated with the flavoring.

I spread out the croutons on a smaller size cookie sheet. I also shuffle them around on the sheet once or twice during the baking process to keep them from burning and to more evenly bake them.

Here's the finished product! Nicely browned croutons. I just store them in an airtight container until they're gone!

Card Night!

MAKING cards, that is. Not playing them. :)

This little group gets together every couple of months to cook together...or make jewelry...or make cards...or whatever else we decide to do, I guess!

You know that little game people play before a meal...the one where you stick your thumbs up and don't have to pray out loud? Well apparently there's a similar game for who gets to be in the back of the picture. Look who lost!!

The girls perusing all the card samples, trying to get ideas before they started creating....

Rachel made a "You Grow Girl!" card for someone who is having a baby...and then she used her own baby as the display table! :)

Amanda's super cute glam girl card.

Amber's precious card for her brand new nephew.

Me? No time to make cards - but I was writing one!! :)