In the Storm

#100dayproject | 092

#100dayproject | 030

 

All About Me | The Story of This Meal

Today I am sharing the story of this meal...

This kitchen has always been my domain but when my SI joint flared up to the point that standing for long periods of time was impossible (and by long periods I mean more than a couple of minutes), the kitchen was the last place I wanted to be. Not because I hated cooking, but because I hated the pain that ensued because the cooking I love to do takes time. After physical therapy - and losing some weight - because let’s be honest here, the weight was a contributing factor - I gradually made my way back into the kitchen getting more and more aggressive with my culinary feats. At the same time (it’s amazing how God works that all out) John and Jarrod’s time outside of the home, between work and college, meant they were not available for food preparations, let alone cooking. Thus, the entire meal, from start to finish fell back to me.

Thankfully, I have been in a place, physically, to do this. It has even meant I can put a meal like homemade egg noodles and chicken soup, with homemade bread, back on the menu on a chilly day. And, it means I can bake the bread without racing to a chair to sit down for relief from pain because there isn’t any pain. It means I can pull the chicken and chop all of the vegetables and get the stock pot to bubbling with the scents of freshly minced garlic and thyme and sage and celery and onions. It means I can make a homemade batch of egg noodles and get them to drying. And, I can go and sit down for a spell only because it isn’t time to cut the noodles and plop them in the pot, and not because of pain. But, it has also meant that I don’t hesitate or have to coordinate with John and Jarrod for help, if someone needs a meal taken to them. Because I can do it all on my own. I can prepare their meal, go and drop it off, and then come home and even prepare our meal without skipping a beat. For someone who adores cooking, to have gone through a long, too long, season of physically not being able to spend the time in the kitchen, because of the pain, now that I can - again - I am beyond excited - and so blessed!

This page is created digitally and it is two, 6 x 8 pages. I chose 6 x 8 for these pages as opposed to my recent 8.5 x 11 creations because these pages will be added to my All About Me album that I began in 2018 and continued into 2019. I used Ali Edwards' Story kit EAT and her latest digital FOODIE Collection kit.

Just Write | Sundays

Sunday's are busy. Except for, maybe, an hour or two in the afternoon, our Sunday's are pretty much non-stop. It isn't truly a day of rest. But it is a day of worship to God. It is a day of offering ourselves in service to others. It is a day for eating a meal together with family. It is a day for opening our home and fellowshipping with others. It is a day given to God.

 

Just Write | Green

This project is becoming a favorite. Ali Edwards' Just Write is a word prompt-based course. She sends out two word prompts a month, writes up her take on the word, and offers a plethora of ideas and inspiration how that word might lead you to write.

Words can be curious. Often triggers, if you will, into memories. Other people in the class share on a private Facebook account have shared their stories which have inspired my stories, even. I decided, finally, to stick with one template as a home for each story. Then I simply write.

Sometimes I set a timer and hand write on paper my story. Other times, most often, I simply sit at the computer and write my story in Photoshop Elements.

 

All About Me 2019 | I Will Survive

I won't say everything but I can share testimony.

Yesterday I stepped outside and noticed on the gardenia bush a single flourishing bloom that had popped up on the otherwise barren bush. Somehow it was surviving the blistering sun of southeast Georgia in, even, the hottest part of summer. I wondered how it was surviving the scorching heat. Resilience? That song ‘I Will Survive’ by Gloria Gaynor from the late 1970’s played in my head. Out of nowhere, or maybe simply in response to that lone gardenia surviving, the Holy Spirit pricked my spirit reminding me it has been one year since my world was rocked on its very foundations and I didn’t know how, or if, I would survive. But here it is. One year later. And I am, indeed, surviving. Through the scorching heat of excruciating pain, out of the blistering fire of shame, I am not only surviving - but thriving. My heart, no, our hearts, are mending. Our relationship, still with struggles, tattered and torn yet, is on the mend. I am a living, breathing, surviving, and thriving ‘But God’ testimony.

All About Me 2019 | Book Club

Our Between the Covers book club held the second meeting last Monday and it was a resounding success. We came together to discuss our FIRST book club selection, The Alice Network by Kate Quinn. After a short time of fellowship, dessert, a delectable Southern Caramel Cake I had baked that afternoon, and coffee, we began a lengthy and compelling discussion of The Alice Network. Everyone participated and contributed without a conversation intermission.

I had great trepidation leading up to the meeting, but I prayed fervently for a successful book club, and by the end of the meeting I was giddy. It seemed to be a resounding success. The last few minutes of the night we reviewed the selection of 6 books I had chosen for September's book club reading. It truly was a difficult choice but we all agreed upon Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens with the caveat that several of the books from the list would make it into offerings for October.

All About Me 2019 | She Wears

In the Craft the Story Facebook group I am a member of we have been participating in an August challenge scrap as a way to get more of our stories told. I haven't completed all of the challenges but one I did finish is the challenge to use circles in repetition on your page. Another was to include a series of selfies and another was to include details in your journaling.

With this She Wears page I fulfilled all of those requirements. I took a selfie each day of what I was wearing and included those selfie's in circles, adding digital circle embellishments and chipboard. Then I listed 'details' I noticed from my endeavor of capturing what I wore that week. It was an interesting and revealing exercise.

1. I didn’t realize it until I snapped a picture a day for 7 days that I wear a lot of blue, unintentionally really, because I am more a fall or warm colors person.

2. I often grab the same outfits every week with few changes - and a closet full of other clothes left - hanging.

3. It’s time for some changes: wear some of the clothes I rarely wear and if I don’t like them give them away. But, maybe I’ll find a new favorite. I succumbed to the same 'ole and bought a few new tops and have added them to my what to wear rotation.

4. One of the most comfortable outfits is a pair of tan capris and a soft blue top with aztec embroidary on the front. I wear it every Tuesday. I’m not sure why. It is something that makes me go - hum? I am dreading the day when that top wears out.

5. A new favorite top is a silky smooth black top that hangs on me amazingly. It has a gold zipper, and gold accoutrements. I purchased it on a whim from Roz & Ali. In fact, I love the top so much and how it fits me I ordered a salmon color of the same, because peach and salmon colors are in that warm family of colors that I love and I think look good on me.

All About Me 2019 | In My Bag

This bag. I’m not sure if I will ever get tired of it. I love the color of the leather and I love the size, truly - and surprisingly. My friend Melinda is a Noonday Ambassador and I love the business practices of Noonday and often buy their jewelry. This purse has been on my dream list - on the ‘dream’ list because of the price point. But, when another friend hosted a Noonday trunk show with all of Melinda’s proceeds going towards her mission trip to India with Rahab’s Rope, I knew it was the perfect time to spend the extra money for this bag! Because - it was for a good cause!

I knew when I bought this bag it was big and anything I would carry inside would get lost if I didn’t come up with a system to preclude having to hunt for something at the bottom of the bag. From JOYN, another fair trade company, and with exceptional business practices empowering women artisan accessories with hand-stamped designs, I purchased a large and small pouch. I received a She Reads Truth pouch for free with a purchase which I use for miscellaneous stuff. I have a purple pouch handmade in India which Melinda brought back for me from her mission trip as a thank you gift for supporting her. I picked up the blue design pouch at JAARS from my mission trip this past summer, made by fair trade artisan’s JAARS seeks to support.

What’s in my bag? In the JOYN wallet: one credit card, library card, driver’s license, military identification, bills and change. Large JOYN pouch is for tissues, pads, coupons, and other miscellaneous papers. In the small JOYN pouch I keep a few hygiene items such as toothpaste, toothbrush, nail file and clippers, roll on perfume. My Thailand pouch is a pencil case. My India purple pouch is for my hearing aids (when I need to take them out and I’m not at home) and extra hearing aid batteries because my hearing aids go through batteries weekly but it is always at different days of the week. The tennis ball, thankfully is light weight, is for getting rid of headaches due to pinched nerves. I learned this from my months of physical therapy and I don't leave hope without it. I received a Bath & Body Works gift card for serving with the Sunshine Girls, two books (because I never know what I’m in the mood for, my grocery list, Monkfruit packets, and my access badge for work. And, a checkbook, because I'm still very old school!

All About Me 2019 | Small Stories

I have written a few small stories, some might say - silly stories. Because, why would I write about that? I keep coming back to the same answer. It's my story. Each one of those small, possibly insignificant to someone, is a part of my story as a whole. I try to be true to myself when I write all about me stories because I would hope that if - should - someone else reads my stories they might be able to garner a sense of me, of who I am.

NEW  |   Me, @55; Me, the overcomer; Me, the working wife; Me, the finding a new me; Me, growing and becoming whole. Barbara’s Salon and Spa. My stylist has been Robin for more years than I can remember. In June 2019, when I desperately needed a change to my hair that was getting way to long and very dissatisfying. I wanted something brave, something fresh. I thought maybe a perm since I’d had those when I was young, but instead I went with very short - for summer.

Sometimes what I write about are super hard stories, challenging, the knocks in life that try and break us. And, then, other times it is simply about food. The how, the why, the what, of food. If I look back a year from now - because I know I won't remember this - what will I see? Especially, if what was then (now) somehow impacts now (then). I remind myself: this is my story. Honestly, I'll call it like I see it.

Breakfast of Champions  |  When Jeff and I went to Charleston in May, we ate a hip diner and I had the special, Spinach Quiche with a side of arugula. It was fabulous! So much so that I couldn’t get it out of my mind. So...      Since May I have been making a spinach quiche, Paula Deen’s recipe, or a variation of it, over the weekend and prepping my breakfasts for the week ahead. Of course, I’ve been bringing along a serving of arugula. I make a Keto friendly dressing, add some shaved Parmesan and enjoy a delightful breakfast every morning, whether at work or at home. Jul ‘19

Sometimes the story is simply a why and a what. Like why in the world am I telling a story about the book The Lieutenants by W.E.B. Griffin. Well, it started because I went to work with not enough books. On the bookshelf at work was the series, the Brotherhood of War. The series is Jeff's favorite book series. Click. Connections. Click. I've read other series' by Griffin and loved them. Click. Why not?

First of Many  |  When Jeff woke up with a pinched nerve in his neck and he needed it massaged it meant the rest of the morning before leaving for work was rushed. I didn’t even have time to pack a breakfast or lunch. And, I forgot a book to read. After getting to work and checking the weather I knew I would have a lot of time on my hands. The ATC guys had recently purged all of their books from the bookshelf in the break room, but I wondered if maybe they’d kept a few, just because. Score! W.E.B. Griffin’s old and first- ever book series, the Brotherhood of War was, surprisingly, still on the shelf. I have read several of Griffin’s military, historical, fiction novels, but never this series. Jeff has read every single one of his books and I know this is one of his favorite series. While having to taking only one weather observation an hour under near clear skies, I began The Lieutenants and was hooked in the first chapter.