Favorite Friday

My favorite for yesterday is a movie I want to add to my family's collection, which I'm very picky about. It's been a while since I've seen it, but it made a pretty big impression on me.

Foodie Blog

http://www.smellslikehome.wordpress.com/

Need some awesome yumminess to serve guests or give as holiday gifts? Go no further than the latest link I have just added to Places I Go. Check out the Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake... that's what I plan to try first.

Music for All

My Pick of the Week Wednesday: The Baby Grands

Their name gives you a clue as to the wit they posess and they use it in every single Jack Johnsonesque song. Somehow, this alternative rock trio from Atlanta makes songs about the alphabet and Pluto something any parent might enjoy singing along with in the car with no shame. This wonderfully relaxing, playfully written music will make you want to pop in The Baby Grands even when you're sans baby.

You can sample their music on their MySpace page here http://www.myspace.com/thebabygrands

Favorite Friday

This is my favorite for last Friday:
The vegan cookies made by the Alternative Baking Company.


Yes, vegan. I am no where near, nor am I interested in becoming, nor do I even have the pleasure of knowing a vegan. I don't recycle. I use aerosol cans and harsh chemical cleaners. I don't buy organic (mostly) and I don't make my own deodorant. I do cloth diaper and eat these vegan cookies, though. I eat them because they are addictively good and I feel safe eating one. I don't obsess over the ingredients in the things I eat, but it's nice every once in a while to know that the little nagging thought "What's really in this?" doesn't even have to be in the back corner of your brain somewhere. And did I mention they're yummy? My favorite one is the Pumpkin Spice, but I just tried the Chocolate Peppermint today and, boy, is it good too! There's not a video to post for this one, unless I just take one of myself slowly biting into one of these soft, chewy delights with sensuous music playing in the background... but I'm too tired to do that.
And by the way, you can get them at Whole Foods and other natural food stores or just buy yourself a case right off their website (which I just found out when grabbing the cookie monster logo for this post) http://www.alternativebaking.com/index.cfm

Advancements

Eden found a bag with a tupperware and a spoon in it lying on the floor next to the desk. I didn't even know it was there, but she found it and began playing with it. She's still playing with it.
She doesn't know how to eat with utensils yet, but she's obviously demonstrating that she's ready to try. She's gently dipping the spoon into the tupperware and bringing it to her mouth. It's so cute because she's not even putting the spoon in her mouth, she's just mimicking the action. She opens her mouth and brings the spoon up and then closes her mouth like she got a big bite just before the spoon gets there. Cute!

By the way, she has also begun to walk just a few steps at a time. She and I were watching TV, because that's about all the energy I have most days, and I had turned on college dance team national championships. She made the sign for "dance" and was very enthralled with it. She kept saying "uh-oh" every time the dancers would do a flip or go to the floor. She wouldn't believe that they were doing it on purpose. :) As we continued to watch, she stood up, using my knees as support. She stood there for just a minute and then lifted her hands off my knees and took several wobbly steps toward the TV. The dancing had inspired her!

Just in Case...

Just in case you don't know or don't remember, the address for my other blog is www.twoinmycup.blogspot.com. That's where all the preggo updates will be, so if you're curious, that's where you'll find the info!

Notes on a Sermon

I've been wanting to share some insights I wrote in my journal during a sermon by a man named John Ragsdale. Our church partners with he and his family in their ministry. He's a songwriter/worship leader/preacher, which is an interesting combination and a bit of a tough one to swallow. After worship (after we had all done the "greet your neighbor" thing and sat) and before he started preaching, he began singing. He started the background music and vocals from his laptop right on stage and began belting. I was into it for one song, but then he kept going and all of a sudden, I was uncomfortable. Are we worshiping again, or is this a concert?
You would think I would have absolutely no issues with performances geared toward worship in a church setting, but I do. I myself have performed many times a choreographed dance when all eyes were on me (a performance) as a means to share my love of God and lead the congregation to worship Him through my movements. I know there are folks out there who struggle with that. I don't... but I do struggle with singing performances... at least, extended singing performances, like a mini concert, in a Sunday morning setting.
As I write, I'm picking apart my own thoughts. What about Christian artists who give concerts? That's fine. It's a different venue. So the church building isn't the right venue? No, it's not that. It's the fact that it's happening when there's supposed to be a sermon. So Sunday morning church should be completely scripted the same way every week? God can't reach people except through a sermon?
Obviously, my discomfort is illogical, but, none the less, it is there.
That wasn't what was written in my journal... :) Once he began speaking, he had some really thought provoking things to say that jolted me out of my raised-in-church, yes-I-know-the-chapter-and-verse, hold-on-a-sec-and-I'll-tell-you-the-Greek-word-for-that upbringing I had. It's wonderful, wonderful to know so many of the MVV's (most valuable verses) by the time you're 10, but that also allows complacency in how you process them as an adult. Same goes for popular words no one but Christians use: grace, mercy, abundance.
Abundance is what I wanted to touch on. I've always claimed abundance. While I would be praying for "life and that more abundantly" (John 10:10) I was imagining health and money. Life to me meant health, living, thriving. Abundance sounded like money. Of course, I knew I would need to use it wisely to bless others... Anyway, John Ragsdale offered another perspective on abundant life that I really enjoyed.
He said an abundant life won't look like the world. An abundant life is one where you have an amazing marriage that's still solid after decades. An abundant life is one where you have raised kids that love God and love each other and are sharing that love with the world. An abundant life is one where you are leaving a legacy of faith, not only with your children, but also with friends who know He's real because of you.
That's good stuff. That's something to aspire to. That's something to seek God for. The world can have health and money, but it's only through God that your relationships can be complete, and your legacy can be lasting.

Mojito MMmmmm!

Just in case you don't know, the address of My Cup Runneth Over is http://www.twoinmycup.blogspot.com/. Check it out for preggo updates.





My pick of the week for cool stuff I have or would like to have one day is:


The Spoiled Mama Mojito Mama Sugar Scrub 4oz. -$12

I have this in my shower right now and I am loving every minute of that yummy mojito goodness. I thought the aroma would just be minty, but it's more than mint, it's mojito. As a fan of the drink and the smell, I'm impressed by the authenticity. Four ounces is really a sad amount and it makes me use it very sparingly, but maybe that makes me savor the experience too. I think when I've scraped the last sugar crystal from the container, I'll have to save my pennies for the 14 oz.

You can find this and other yummy products to spoil Mama, Daddy and baby here: www.thespoiledmama.com

The Announcement

I get to start writing on my other blog again! Yes, My Cup Runeth Over is back in business. I'm so very glad I named it that because it's really been true, no matter what. I've continued to enjoy Eden over these past few months and really can't imagine having a baby in June (the due month of my angel baby.) I thought I was going to have Eden potty-trained and in a toddler bed by the time the new one came, and that's a pretty preposterous thought. I've come to my senses a bit, learned to take things more as they come and learned to just relax in God's timing.

Here's the proof everyone! Daddy and Eden are thrilled, of course.

Font Fun

I want to start posting something I find cool or interesting once a week. I'm giving myself some more structure in my blog, because I'm just not posting as often as I would like. I tend to need structure. Maybe it's that creativity seems to walk hand-in-hand with laziness in me, I don't know.

Here's my cool find for this week: http://www.yourfonts.com/

I've made two using this program. I don't know how to get them here on Blogger to show you, but one looks pretty much like my writing, although wonkier when it's typed because of the different height I wrote the letters in the little boxes (you'll see what I'm talking about on the site), and another that I named a "kids" font. It turned out super cute.

Pics from the Park

This was Eden's first time as a toddler at the

park. A friend was nice enough to take some really great pics for us to remember it by.