A few favorite things

I'm sitting here waiting on the edge of my seat for the Office to start. Along with the rest of the nation, I've waited four long years for the wedding of Jim and Pam. And after tonight's episode, I will wait no more. :)

So, in hopes of making this next hour go more quickly, I'm going to blog. And since nothing particular is coming to mind, I'm just going to write about some of my favorite things right now.

1. College Park Church

Before we moved to Indianapolis, Brian and I asked the Lord to direct us to the church body where He wanted us. And direct us He did. I'm not sure if a prayer of ours has ever been answered so quickly!

While we were preparing to move, a friend from Wichita introduced us to one of his college buddies who now lives in Indy. This guy teaches Sunday School at College Park, so he invited us to come check it out. After visiting once, we were blown away. We didn't even bother visiting any other churches.

We're now involved in a small group, and I'm doing a weekly women's Bible study on Hebrews. If you are craving some solid, practical teaching, straight from Scripture, I'd encourage you to check out Pastor Mark's podcasts. He's currently preaching through Matthew. Every Sunday when we leave church, our ears literally ring with truth and conviction. And his messages stick with us. FOR THE ENTIRE WEEK, and usually even longer. :) How rare is that?

This church, and the people in it, have been SUCH a blessing to us. Thank you, Lord, for hearing us and for providing.

2. MacGourmet

My thoughtful sister, Lesley, gave this program to me for Christmas last year. It's basically a digital recipe box that allows me to store, organize and categorize all of my recipes. And it makes my life so much easier!

I REALLY dislike wasting food. MacGourmet has an easy solution. For instance: I had to buy buttermilk to make red velvet cupcakes for my friend's birthday last week. I have 1/4 gallon of buttermilk left. So... I search MacGourmet for any of my recipes containing buttermilk, and I find that if I want to use the remainder up, I can either make Spiced Pumpkin Waffles, Classic Biscuits or Raspberry Spoon Bread. Mmmhmmmm....

This program also quickly imports recipes from my favorite foodie sites. All at the click of a button. I don't have to type a word. (I do have to manually enter anything that is in a cookbook, but that's ok with me.)

And for any iphone users out there, it even syncs my recipes to my phone so I have them with me when I go to the store!

I've really just scratched the surface - the capabilities of this program are truly amazing, and a must for anyone who loves to cook! If you're at all interested, you can download a free demo from the site (you do have to have a mac computer to use it).

3. Knock Knock notepads

When Lesley visited me a few months ago, we took a trip to the mall. Our first stop was Anthropologie. Sigh. While she was in the dressing room trying on ridiculously adorable clothes, I was perusing the sales tables (I don't even bother trying on what I know I can't afford!) I came across the cutest little pad made by a company called Knock Knock. It's a weekly menu planner called "What To Eat."

I had always attempted to plan our menus for the week, but I kept the plan in my head. So sometimes, often times, I would forget what the plan was. And that would usually result in a Lean Cuisine for my sweet husband. :)

This ingenious little pad allows me to put in writing my meal schedule for seven whole days. Then I don't have to think about it again. And the best part is, now I only have to go to the grocery store once a week!

I just ordered Knock Knock's "All Out Of" to use for my grocery list, and I'm already seriously loving it.

*You can find these products online for a cheaper price. I found mine on Amazon for $2.50 less than they were at Anthropologie!

4. what difference do it make?

This book is the sequel, sort of, to "same kind of different of me." Many of you have probably read "same kind" and if you did and liked it, I would highly recommend Ron and Denver's latest publication. It's a collection of stories from people whose lives were changed by reading "same kind."

I first heard about this book from Emily Alexander a couple of weeks ago. Their family's beautiful story of adoption is featured in it, along with many other poignant messages of hope and healing. I'm about halfway through and can hardly put it down.

5. Pumpkin Spice Coffee-mate Creamer

No better way to wake up on a crisp fall morning than to a pumpkin-spice flavored cup of joe! This seasonal creamer is only available October through December, and it is oh so delicious.

Ok, looks like the time has finally come! Off to watch Jim and Pam get hitched!!!