The Bastrop Fire

I believe it has been well over a week since the wildfire started in Bastrop.  The latest reports are saying it has burned 34,000 acres, 550 homes, and killed 2 people.  It is just terrible, and they are saying it is only about 30% contained at the moment.  With the lack of rain, and the excessive heat this summer, fires are happening all over Texas, and are very scary.  I cannot believe how quickly the fire is burning on this video:

My hubby is heading to Bastrop early next week with the Response and Relief Network to help feed the the emergency workers and to pass out donations to the fire victims.  His work as a Mercy Chef will come in handy in this effort.  My heart goes out to those who have lost their homes and loved ones.

Chips and Watermelon Fizz

This weekend we actually had no plans to go anywhere, and just hung out at the house.  So, I got a bit inspired to get a little creative (with the hubbys help, of course!) in the kitchen.  Turns out, it can be a little fun when you're not under pressure!

Together we made Potato Chips (Sun-dried Tomato and Barbecue).  The barbecue recipe came from Just A Taste blog (rather tasty!), and my hubby created the Sun-dried Tomato.

The watermelon fizz recipe came from Two Tarts blog.  I used ginger ale instead soda water, and didn't use the mint ice cubes. 

The Oldest Turns 15

Today our oldest son turned 15.  Time sure flies!  We gave him an X-Box 360, which he has been wanting for quite some time.  For dinner my hubby made some pizza, and we had watermelon instead of the traditional birthday cake, since no one in our family are real cake fans.  It was a nice, relaxing day!

Spiced Apple Cookies

The past few weeks I have been baking cookies on the weekend so that the boys can take cookies to school in their lunches.  Today I decided to make some Apple Spice Cookies since we bought a bag of apples, and we rarely finish off apples before they go bad.  I think they turned out pretty good, and will more than likely make them again.  Here is the recipe from The Naptime Chef:

½ c.	shortening*
1 1/3 c.	dark brown sugar
1	egg
¼ c.	whole milk
2 ¼ c.	all-purpose flour
1 t.	baking soda
1 t.	ground cinnamon
½ t.	ground cloves
½ t.	ground nutmeg
½ t.	salt
1 c.	chopped walnuts
1 c.	unpeeled apple, finely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Beat together shortening and brown sugar until full combined. Add egg and milk and mix ingredients well.
3. In a separate bowl combine flour, soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and salt. With the mixer on low, slowly add dry ingredients, scraping down the sides as necessary, until everything is fully combined.
4. Stir chopped apple and walnuts into the batter with a wooden spoon.
5. Drop cookies by rounded teaspoonfuls about 2-inches apart on a cookie sheet lined with Silpat or parchment paper. Press the tops of the cookie down with your top two fingers so they are slightly flattened.
6. Bake for 12-14 minutes or until cookies hold their shape and are slightly browned on the edges.

Of course, you know I can't follow a recipe!  Here are the changes I made:

-I used 2/3 c light brown sugar, 2/3 c white sugar, and about 2 tsp molasses in place of the 1 1/3 c dark brown sugar.

-1% milk in place of whole milk

-1/2 c pecans in place of 1 c walnuts

-1 1/2 c apples in place of 1 c apples

I lined my cookie sheets with foil, which I have never done before, but it made clean-up easy! 

Mine turned out lighter in color than the picture from the original recipe, and I am sure that was because of my sugar of choice.

Also worth mentioning-the same recipe was posted on this blog using butter instead of shortening.  I typically would have used butter anyhow since it is so much easier to measure than shortening, but today I did stick with the shortening.

Taking A Pit Stop

Warning:  What I am about to type may be considered whiney, but I will get to a point-I promise!

I have not felt like myself for probably over a month now.  I have been under quite a bit of work-related stress for several months, and it has started to take its toll on me.  Then when my hubby left for the missions trip to Haiti corresponding with the start of back-to-school and some other issues, I went into stress overload.  The stress has caused me anxiety-and I combated that by listening to praise and worship music to keep my mind focused on the good rather than the bad and by eliminating coffee and soda from my diet (which tends to increase anxiety).  Then, one day a couple weeks ago, I had been noticing that I had been extremely thirsty and was drinking probably 2 gallons of water a day (typical for me is only about 20 ounces), and my body was itchy all over.

I did what I always do when I have symptoms pop up:  I googled it.  And I saw the one word that I had long forgotten:  eczema.  I had it in high school, but it seemed to have disappeared.  The more I read, the more that I have become convinced it must be eczema: it tends to occur when the seasons change (yup-we have been having some cooler weather the past week or so), is brought on by stress (double-yup), and pushing yourself extremely hard during exercise aggravates it as well (guilty as charged).  I tend to take hot showers on days I don’t exercise, and that is another culprit.

So I did what I knew to do:  using lotion, trying (normally unsuccessfully) not to scratch, and taking Benadryl.  I am one of those people that usually hates to take medicine, so on the rare occasion I convince myself to take it, my body is not used to it, and has a more severe reaction to it than those more accustomed to it.  So when I took the Benadryl, it caused me to become extremely tired (I blogged about the fog I have felt like I have been in the other day).  After I had enough of the exhaustion (so much, in fact, that I had to get a ride home from work one day because I didn’t feel alert enough to make my commute), I decided that I would drink coffee.  Well, the coffee did what it does-it stirred up more anxiety in me.  Are you starting to see the vicious cycle?

So, I have decided that enough is enough!  It’s time for a pit stop to get life back in control!  I have not gone on a run since Sunday, so as not to push myself too hard.  (As soon as symptoms go away, I will resume where I was at.) And in order to avoid the caffeine, I am not taking any more Benadryl (unless there is a day that I will be at the house and taking a nap is not an issue).  It has been out of my system for 24 hours now.  I took a cool shower, and used lotion to keep the itching at bay as best as I can-I plan to purchase to good lotion tonight when I get off work.  Thankfully, my itchy-factor seems to be reasonable considering no Benadryl so far.  The tiredness has mostly worn off, and my anxiety seems to be under control!  So thankful God gave me the presence of mind to take a pit stop-and praying He helps me stick with it!

Being Who You Are

Today I attended a chapel service, and Amy Farley (who is organizing the 5K I am running in October), a missionary to Africa, spoke on being who you are.  Her main scripture was 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, with emphasis on the "My grace is enough."

Amy took a moment and shared two stories with us about how she sometimes feels inadequate in what she is called to do.  I think sometimes as Christians we think we have to be perfect, and admitting our weaknesses and struggles makes it seem like we are not good enough.  It was a nice change of pace to see someone who could be transparent in her weakness, and to see how she could still overcome despite that.  She said that God uses us not just inspite of our weaknesses, but also because of our weaknesses.  She emphasized several times that the devil is a liar, and we have to choose not to believe what he says about us.  She followed up with Matthew 23:12:  "But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty."

Don't let the enemy convince you of his lies.  Believe what God says about you.  Be yourself.

Amy in Senegal:

Fog

After nearly a week of being itchy all over (I believe due to eczema), and taking benadryl somewhat regularly during that time, I feel like I have been in a fog most of the day.  I'm having trouble concentrating, and I'm moving very slowly.  I feel like I am in a fog.  I can't wait until my doctor appointment Friday!