It'll All Work Out

Hello all! I hope you're having a great week, and if not, I hope something in this blog makes you smile, so that your week gets better.

What's New

I had to take my cats to the vet this week. One had blood in his stool (youngest) and the other has been licking the fur off his hind legs (oldest). Too much information? I hope not.

For the youngest, we're all pretty sure it was just a change of diet and constipation. He's fine.

For the oldest, the vet took some blood samples to test, but was pretty sure it was allergies, so gave him an allergy shot. The blood work came back, and there's nothing wrong with him, which is good news. Also, after the allergy shot, the hair on his back legs is growing back and the sores he'd made by licking so much are healing up. He also, is now fine.

So, it was quite the stressful week, for more reasons than this, but it's all working out.

Testament Talk

Speaking of things working out, with everything that went on this week, I was reminded, that through it all, God is always with us. His mercy endures forever, and his love abounds, and His timing is perfect. Things don't always happen when we want them to, but if it's meant to be, if it's His will, it will work out when it's meant to. So, we shouldn't give up. We can just keep our focus on God and trust that He'll handle it. We can just rest, knowing that He'll take care of us.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” - Matthew 11:28-30

What's Cookin'

Our recipe this week is one I got a long time ago. I can't remember where, as the Internet wasn't as big when I first made it, but I found it online today. One day, I needed a really quick and delicious dip for a party, so I turned to this one. Simple, quick, delicious cheese dip. It makes 2.5 cups, so it's good for small parties. You can always double the recipe for larger parties.

Velveeta Salsa Dip

1 lb. (16 ounces) Velveeta Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut up

1 cup Thick ‘N chunky salsa

First, mix the Velveeta and salsa in medium microwaveable bowl.  Microwave on HIGH 5 minutes or until Velveeta is melted, stirring after 3 minutes. Then serve hot with assorted cut up vegetables, Ritz Toasted chips, or tortilla chips.

That's all you need to make a delicious dip. I know it isn't very healthy, but I feel it's okay to indulge every once in a while, especially for parties.

Book Nook

The book I want to talk about this week is Martha's Vineyard: Isle of Dreams by Susan Branch. It's inspiring, with recipes and pictures and a great story of travel and rediscovering yourself.

It's a memoir of a woman who leaves her home, her friends, and her family after a divorce, and moves to the other side of the United States to "find herself." She ends up falling in love with Martha's Vineyard, and decides to stay. She tells her adventures very well, and keeps readers engaged with funny stories, pictures, and recipes. Delicious recipes.

She also has a blog. If you like this book or any of her other books, you should check out her blog too. She shares great stories, recipes, tips for homemaking, and, of course, pictures!

Film Watch


As I'm currently watching Heartland, I'll recommend that. It's the story of a multi-generational family living on the family ranch (Heartland), in Canada. Amy Fleming works with horses the way her mother taught her, using a unique style that gets her a lot of recognition, and brings many clients with troubled horses to her "clinics." While the story is mainly about her and the horses, it also focuses on the whole family, her grandpa, her sister, and her father, who add a lot of drama and different situations to the story.

I'm currently on season 8, so it's hard to find stuff to say that won't be a huge spoiler. If you like family dramas, horses, rodeos, or ranches, you'll probably like this show.

As I sit watching Heartland, I'm reminded of how much I love the countryside. I'm reminded of the vast, open spaces that exist in the world, and how few and far between they seem now. I'm reminded that even though I don't have far to go to hike in the mountains, it's not the same in this urban environment, and sometimes this show makes me miss the rural places where I grew up, and even makes me think fondly on the farm we had when I was a pre-teen.

Weekly Reflection

Overall, this week was pretty stressful, but I survived. God took care of me, and reminded me that there was less reason to stress than I originally thought. I'm so glad that I can turn to Him when things are going great, or when they're going wrong. My life would be so much more stressful without Him.

I need to get back to my knitting now. I'm trying to make a scarf, and it's harder than I thought, mostly because it has to be so long. Still, I can do it!

I hope you got something from my blog today, but even if you didn't, thanks for reading to the end. I hope you all have a great weekend!

New Growth

Hello all! I hope you've had a splendid week! Today's title is just in time for Spring!

What's New

I guess there hasn't been a lot of new stuff going on lately. I've been reading lots of books, working, going to church, and watching movies, just like always.

One new thing about the blog: I was going to try to post every week, but with the new format of the blog, I don't think it will be possible. So, I'm just going to post when I can. Hopefully, I'll be able to post every two weeks, but I can't promise that. 

I am still planning to post on Fridays, so look for new posts then. 

One thing I want to share this week is this quote: "Everyone had to grow into themselves before they could offer anything." - Susan Branch, Martha's Vineyard: Isle of Dreams

Testament Talk

And with that quote, I'm going to go straight into Testament Talk.

Now, you may be thinking "What does that quote have to do with the Bible?" but hear me out.

We have a lot to offer God. Each of us. No matter how young, or incapable we seem, God can always use us. But sometimes we aren't ready. Sometimes we can't serve as other people serve because we aren't at their level. We may always have a different purpose from other people. And we have to grow into ourselves first. That doesn't mean we can't serve God along the way, but sometimes it takes awhile for us to grow into ourselves and only once we do can we truly fulfill our life's dream, our passion, and only then can God use us for our true purpose.

So, don't think that you're too young to accomplish something. Don't think that you'll never do something. Keep dreaming. Give your dreams to God, and serve Him all the while, accumulating experience, and growing into the person He knows you can be. Then, once you grow into yourself, once you reach the place you need to be to achieve your dream, I'm sure you'll look back and see that you really accomplished a lot along the way, including dreams you weren't even sure you had at the time.


With that said, I'll leave you with this verse: 1Timothy 4:12 - "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity."


What's Cookin'

I really enjoy learning about different cultures and that especially includes the food. Since I'm learning Japanese, I find myself often curious about Japanese culture and food. I found this recipe online for Rice Balls, and it turned out pretty well, although no one in my family really liked the seaweed (nori), but that could be because I got the wrong kind too.

If you like rice, or have been interested in finding a recipe to make rice balls (onigiri) then I recommend this recipe.
Book Nook

I finally read Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, and I have to say I'm just blown away! I read the Great Illustrated Classics version as a child, and then read Little Men, and was baffled that the writing styles were so different. Well, now I know why! So now I've read the original, full story, and it's just as good as I hoped it would be. 

The story of the four March sisters and their trials and lessons as they grow from "little women" to full-fledged women, is at times comical, heartwarming, sad, and inspiring. I loved every peek into their lives as they grew, persevered, succeeded, failed, fell in love, and had grand adventures.

This is a must-read, I think, for anyone.

Film Watch

This week's film recommendation is Courageous, starring Ken Bevel and Alex Kendrick.

I've been thinking a lot lately about police officers and my heart goes out to the ones who are truly in their jobs to help people. They put their lives on the line to protect, and get very little thanks for it.

What I particularly like about this movie is the way they portray the trials and temptations of police officers and how, in any situation, leaning on God can bring not only comfort, but a renewed sense of purpose.

Weekly Reflection

The past few weeks had their ups and downs, but I've never been more grateful that our God is merciful, and that His love sustains us no matter what. I've had an enjoyable few weeks, filled with books, knitting, movies, and all the usual things, as well as some unusual ones.