Stepping out of my comfort zone

One of the things I've been whining about a LOT to my poor hubby is how I miss good Bible study.  I participated in several rounds through another local church, but then the program/schedule/leaders changed.  I took part in one led by a very dear lady in our church, but I found the material extremely basic and I was left longing for more...

I chatted with a friend who has led several studies, but due to some very difficult circumstances she's unable to commit to anything else right now.

Hubby asks whether I've prayed about leading one myself.

Ummmm.

I don't do that.

I just like to go to ones that others are leading and talk too much.

See, I don't really feel like I've been called in that area.

Oh, wait, but I *do* have a minor in Biblical studies AND I definitely felt the Holy Spirit leading me out of my last "post."

Please stand by while I tell God that it's not a good idea.

Throughout random conversations this summer, three different people made comments about how I would be a good Bible Study leader.

Cue our pastor talking about launching a congregation-wide initiative of small groups, and encouraging us all to pray about our roles.

Guess what?

I'm leading a Bible study.

I'm a bit scared.

We're doing an inductive study on Philippians, which has always been my favorite book.  I find it fascinating that Paul - while imprisoned - is writing to a group of people to tell them to focus on the good stuff and REJOICE.  And also tell them that God will get them through whatever (FYI: Philippians 4:13 isn't a peppy cheer).  I need to be reminded about many of the teachings in this epistle.

Five ladies signed up yesterday: I know 1 well, 1 so-so, and had never met the other 3.

We'll do another round of sign-ups this coming Sunday, and then we're kicking things off on September 19.

Yep, I'm being s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d.  That's always uncomfortable, but I really am excited to see how God works through this!

Friday Funny (or some sarcasm at the very least)

These are my cell phone cases.  Being the klutz I am a protective case is not optional -- but mine is a somewhat unusual model so the cases aren't common.  I tracked down these two on Amazon, and while they weren't the style I would generally be drawn to, I figured I could live with them.  The one of the left is the one that I had on my phone when we went to PA this summer.  It's kind of hard to tell from the photo, but those silver and black bumps are each faceted, and the base is silver glitter.  When I pull it from my purse/pocket in TX, I get comments like, "Ooh, I love that!" and, "Where did you get it?!"  When I pulled it out in PA, I was subject to lots of giggles and comments like, "Wow, now THAT is a Texas phone!"  Yes, it's true that I've probably adapted to my new locale more than I realize ;)  Anyway, my blingy zebra case had a small clip break off, so it's gone to the big trash can in the sky and I've moved on to the multicolor cheetah.  Not sure whether it's an improvement or not.

- . - . -

And finally, another update from the crazy world of the online yard sale. Someone recently moved here and shared this photo with the accompanying comments: "I'm very talented can do any makeup type up to black smokey eyes go neutral makeup. Makeup looks very very professional and If u want fake eyelashes will do them just for $3 more." and then later added: " If u have curly hair I can scrunch hair realy good."

I added the eye pasties to obscure the individual's identity.  Let's just say that I will be not be utilizing her services.  I'm not joking when I say this is a standard "day" look, though.  

Funny story:  June, 2010, I dropped the kiddos off for a morning VBS program and went to Merle Norman for a mini-makeover (it was free, and I needed foundation).  I specifically told the make-up technician that I wanted a very simple day look with MINIMAL makeup.  I must have repeated this 3-4 times: I described myself as low maintenance, that I didn't want someone to look at me and immediately notice that I was wearing makeup, etc.  Well, she went to work; I did not have my glasses on so couldn't really see what she was doing, but it seemed that she was putting on an awful lot of product.  I questioned her, and she assured me that it looked great - she finished up  and presented me with a mirror.  I did not know whether to laugh or cry -- I felt like a clown with heavy eyeliner, glittery shadow, doll cheeks, noticeable lipliner... the works.  The lady who'd applied it was genuinely shocked when I told her I didn't like anything about it (other than the foundation, LOL)  I purchased that one tube, went home and scrubbed at my face for almost ten minutes.  I used three different makeup removers and STILL felt like I had gunk around my eyes.

Oh, the joys!!

First Day of School!

It's official: I now have a third and fifth grader.  As in my "baby" is in his last year of grade school.  Gah!!!

The last two pics have A's best friend (her Mom starts work before school, so she drops her here and then I take the trio off to the hallowed halls of education.  As you can see from the last picture, they're excited to kick off this next chapter ;)

D also lost another tooth the night before school started.  Yep, our boy isn't exactly little anymore...

Summer winding down

School starts Monday - I'm experiencing the normal mix of sadness and jubilation to be returning my children to the care of our school district for several hours each day.  Yesterday was the "meet the teacher" morning at school.  Don't know much about D's teacher, but she likes structure (yeah!!), plus he'll be with another teacher have the day, as they team teach in 5th grade.  A got the "yelling" teacher that she wasn't particularly excited about, so we'll see how that goes.

Trying to wrap up a few projects this weekend; we were hoping to go to the beach, but thunderstorms put a damper on that plan.  One of D's friends is moving to Honduras (parents will be teaching at a mission school), but thankfully the boys were able to hang out for several hours over Thursday and Friday.

I have a bunch of stuff running through my head, and hopefully with the kids back in school I'll have more time to post my riveting brain spillage.

In the meantime, I'll leave you with yet another fine offering from our local yardsale site.  It's an "antique" cabinet. and can be yours for the amazing price of $200.  It's truly a very special antique to have smoked glass doors with magnetic closures... Seriously, do people even know what the word antique means?  Earlier this week, a different person was selling an antique Miracle Whip cooler.  First off, if it's PLASTIC, then I can pretty much guarantee it's not an antique, people!  And a bonus hint for selling vintage gems: don't try to sell it for twice what it's going for as a "buy it now" on eBay.  Sheesh.

French Dip Sandwiches (Crock pot)

3-4 lb chuck roast
1 can french onion soup
2 cups reduced sodium beef broth
1 c dried mushrooms + 1 c hot water
1 large onion sliced


Trim fat from roast. Brown on both sides (wiht a Tb or 2 of olive oil). Once browned, place in crock pot along with soup, broth, and mushrooms if desired. Saute onions in the pan you used for the roast with the same oil/drippings, then place on top of roast. Cook on high for 6 hours. Shred meat and place on rolls, then top with cheese of your choice (hubby & I like provolone, kids like American)

Shortcut cheesy veggies: Dump together 16 oz frozen California blend and a bag of cheesy veggies (Green Giant & Bird's Eye each have their own version).  Heat on stove top or microwave until heated through.Still plenty of cheesy goodness to satisfy the kids :)

This officially concludes the transferring of recipes (for full explanation, see HERE). Seriously, I promise this is not a cooking blog!

Hot Wing Pizza

Combine shredded precooked chicken*, bottled hot wing sauce - dump onto a premade crust and add cheese. If you let your kids help, then your pizza may end up very, very cheesy like this one Add a salad and call everyone for dinner!

*I usually snatch up chicken thighs when they're marked down on expiration day, then come home and bake up a whole bunch, then break down into 1 lb bags and freeze

Crockpot Gyros

Used this recipe. 

I made them with ground lamb & chicken. Decent flavor, but meat was kind of dry. Also needs a bit more salt either with the tzatziki or the meat.