What the hell?

Pardon my strong language. I don't normally talk that way. At least not any more. I mean, not out loud. Not where anyone could hear me.

That's one of the many things that they Holy Spirit is cleaning up in me since I have committed to follow Christ, and accept the gift of His grace for my sorry self.

I do still appreciate a well-placed expletive in a movie. Not the gratuitous kind that are just vulgar, but take sweet little red-headed Ron Weasley. Bloody hell. Cracks me up every time.

So in the last few weeks, I have visited many doctor's offices. I've explained to each of them my symptoms, and they all agree; I'm depressed.

What the hell?

I shouldn't be depressed. I have a wonderful husband. Precious healthy children. I am fortunate to be able to stay at home with them, and be a part of every bit of their little lives. I have lovely friends. People who are beautiful on the inside and out. Why the hell am I depressed?

Hell that's why. Hell came into a perfect world and stained it forever. It came into a place where love and peace abound, and poked holes in it.

So after seeing all the doctors Blue Cross would let me, I have come to realize that none of them can help me the way the true Physician can. Hell is my problem, and only Heaven can help me. With that, I am renewing my commitment to my quiet time with Him. I have to begin my day fresh with His Word on me, so I can fight off the Hell that will come during the day.

Being human in a fallen world, there are parts of me that are really broken, and I do take medicine for it. This medicine helps restore my being to it's original state, as I was created by my Creator.

With that, I am improving every day. It's still hard, and the memories of my "blue days" are still quite fresh, and who's to say there won't be another one, but for today, I am happy.

Taco Melts

I found this recipe through a newsletter I get from Pillsbury. It sounds great.

A tender, flaky biscuit wraps around your favorite taco fillings in an easy, flavor-packed hot sandwich.
Prep Time: 40 Min
Total Time: 40 Min
Makes: 8 sandwiches
INGREDIENTS:
1 package (1 oz) Old El Paso® taco seasoning mix
2/3 cup water
1 1/2 cups Old El Paso® Thick 'n Chunky salsa
1 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef, cooked, drained
1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® refrigerated biscuits (any variety)
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese or Mexican cheese blend (4 oz)
1 cup sour cream, if desired
Grands!® Taco Melts
User Rating: full starfull starfull starfull starhalf star
DIRECTIONS:
1. Heat oven to 375°F.
2. In medium saucepan, cook taco seasoning mix, water, 1/2 cup of the salsa and cooked ground beef until thickened.
3. Press each biscuit into 6-inch round. Fill each with taco mixture and 1 tablespoon cheese. Fold dough over filling and press to seal. Place on greased cookie sheet.
4. Bake 9 to 14 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with remaining salsa, cheese and sour cream.
NUTRITION INFORMATION:
1 Sandwich: Calories 370 (Calories from Fat 180); Total Fat 20g (Saturated Fat 8g, Trans Fat 3 1/2g); Cholesterol 50mg; Sodium 1470mg; Total Carbohydrate 32g (Dietary Fiber 0g, Sugars 6g); Protein 17g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 8%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 15%; Iron 15% Exchanges: 2 Starch; 0 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 1 1/2 Medium-Fat Meat; 2 Fat Carbohydrate Choices: 2
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Doughboy Tip:
If you're watching fat grams, use reduced-fat sour cream or reduced-fat or fat-free plain yogurt instead of regular sour cream. To complete the menu, add a crisp green salad of romaine lettuce topped with fresh orange slices drizzled with your favorite reduced-fat dressing.

Mere Christianity

I won't say that I'm hooked on Facebook, but I use it a lot. It's neat keeping up with people; old and new friends, both far and near.

So recently I "friended" a former co-worker I hadn't talked to in 10 or more years. He's a He and back then he was cute. Okay, so I did have a little crush at some point. But, as we got to know each other better, the little crush fizzled. We did get to be good friends though. We can talk more later about my theory on men and women being friends.

Back to the fizzling crush. He wore black t-shirts. As much as I tried to rebel against everything I thought about black-t-shirt people, it just wouldn't stick. Did you have black-t-shirt people in your high school? They wore band t-shirts. Please don't assume that I don't love the hairbands. Oh, I do. And AC/DC rocks. But the clientele who chose to purchase and then wear band t-shirts in the 80's and 90's gave me the heebs. So anyway, thinking that I could have been wrong in my assessment of black-t-shirt people, I got to be friends with one at my first job out of college.

The guy was intelligent, funny and woefully lost. At that point in my life, I was growing in my faith, but I was not at a maturity level to be able to share much about it, and certainly not able to defend it well to a person who had spent much longer deliberately trying to disavow God.

I told him I was a Christian, but at that point in my life, I didn't know how to defend my faith well. I'm sure to him my being a Christian was akin to others being Alabama or Auburn fans.

So now fast-forward 10 years or so. Found him on facebook, as he is also friends with some other former co-workers of mine that I keep in better touch with. He still seems to be as lost as ever. Have I grown enough to be able to bear a stronger witness to him?

Gulp.

––> Talk to husband.
That's part of my theory on men and women being friends. Personally, I won't let myself have a male friend that I wouldn't want Ken to be friends with too. I do think Ken and this guy could carry on a decent conversation, though they would never cross paths in the real world. We talked for a few minutes, and I bumbled through my thoughts on this. He got sleepy and went to bed.

–––> (By the way, those little arrows are my notations for what I believe to be direct quotes from the Holy Spirit.)

––> You should suggest a book for the black-t-shirt friend to read.
––> Mere Christianity. That would be good.
––> Hello um, Em. You've never read Mere Christianity. And you made Ken clear out the bookcases in the corner of your bedroom to make room for your craft supplies, so the copy that he has is at the office.

Ken has some huge bookcases in his office that were stinking empty! Meanwhile, he's hogging a bunch of room here at home with a bunch of books that he's already read.

––> You still haven't read that book, and you can't really suggest it to someone if you haven't read it yourself. I'll show you where you can find the book online and read it there.

So He did. I read the first chapter of Mere Christianity tonight online. Here's a quote that I liked. Will share more later. thanks for listening.

If we do not believe in decent behaviour, why should we be so anxious to make excuses for not having behaved decently? The truth is, we believe in decency so much--we feel the Rule or Law pressing on us so--that we cannot bear to face the fact that we are breaking it, and consequently we try to shift the responsibility.

Drew speak

Abbbbbeeeeeeeeee! Yook.- Dearest older sister, might I call you attention to something in this general direction.

Backeyes- Those who have chosen the dark side.

Duboo- I love you

Goopy- Mickey Mouse's mystery friend.

Fuzzy- beloved blue blanket, required for all sleep and many boo-boos.

Rabby- beloved giraffe blanket

Chocky- The kind of milk he likes.

T-too- Thank you.

Issue, Mommy- Bless you Mommy.

Mommy, issue!- Help there's snot all over me.

Ty-wee- He's my buddy. His mommy calls him Tyler.

Dabis- Ty-wee's brother.

what's for dinner?

I found this website years ago, and I love it. www.kraftfoods.com. It's a great site for quick dinners, snacks and party ideas.

disney

I just love this.

Dicipline

Since last we talked, we have added two new members to our family. Meet Bambi and Bill:
Our vet suggested that a water gun might deter our kittens from jumping on the kitchen table. So, on my last venture to Wal-Mart, I sought out a hydro-weapon. Turns out they are a bit hard to find in October. Alas, I found an 8-pack for 2 bucks in the clearance section. Love a deal.

The multi-pack allowed me to plant my plastic persuasion at various places in the house. One on the mantle, two at the kitchen sink, and another on the counter with the rest buried in the backyard. Okay, not really. Well, maybe.

Anyway, the kids left their cereal bowls on the table this morning. It was too much for the for the curious little kitties to resist. I found them working on the leftovers that Abbie and Drew had left.

Bear in mind, that I hadn't had my normal two cups of coffee, chased by some diet coke to start my day. I grabbed my two pieces from the kitchen sink, and I unloaded on them. I was like a gunslinger out of an old western. Two kitties promptly scampered off the table, yet I kept shooting. I still had a target. It was only after the gun in my right had ran dry that I realized that I owed Mr. Potato Head an apology.