I Zested a Lemon with a...

I have been staying at my parents' house more often lately. This means more kitchen gadgets and counter space and therefore, more cooking! I am trying to explore cooking as an additional creative outlet for me and have been enjoying it.

After a trip to the store (maybe a couple), I was ready to create. Until I realized I still didn't have everything I needed.

I wanted to zest a lemon. 

I had the lemon. 

But I didn't have a zester. 

(I may or may not know what a zester is or looks like, but it seems like one of those things you would know if you saw. )

I wasn't about to run out to the store again, so I looked around for something that would work. A knife seemed dangerous. So I put the knife away. And then...

I saw it. My solution. 

The Cheese Grater.

Zesting. Grating. 

Sounds pretty close to me. 

And close enough it was... I zested the lemon with a cheese grater.

Fast forward. Next day. Baking cookies. (Another one of those things in the English language that doesn't make sense... why do we say we bake COOKies? Anyway...)

I wanted to make circle sugar cookie cut outs. 

Dough? check. 

Preheated oven? check. 

Rolling pin?.. um... 

Circle cookie cutter?.. um...

(I do have a vague memory of possibly breaking the rolling pin handles off. Oops.)

Again, not about to go back to the store. So here was what I found around the kitchen as my solution.

Rolling pin- Round glass. 

Cookie cutter- round tupperware lip.

Doubling up the kitchen gadgets' functions worked quite well. Come back later to see what I created after all this!


Have you ever used anything around the house for something it wasn't made for? How did it work? Any other ideas of what I could have used?

Summer's Like the Weekend... Happy Saturday!

I don’t know about you, but June flew by! I don’t even know where it went. I started getting stressed/frustrated/mad/worried that it’s already July and I haven’t done anywhere close to all the stuff I wanted to do this summer. My summer bucket list is still quite long…

But even though it’s already July… It’s also only July. And the way I see it, summer is kind of like the weekend. 3 months. 3 days.

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June is like Friday. Super pumped that school is over, ready to have fun and relax. We have the whole weekend/summer ahead and tons of stuff we want to do. Maybe a little more free time and lots of possibilities.

July is like Saturday. Still relaxed. Maybe a mixture of productivity and fun. You know you have stuff you need or want to do, but you also know you have another day.

August is Sunday. The day a lot of people say, “Oh crap! Work/School is tomorrow and I still have a ton to do!” August is potential freak out month….

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But it’s only July. It’s not freak out time yet. So be mindful of the things you want to get done. But remember to have fun and relax. It’s not freak out time yet.

Enjoy your Saturday!

IT’S ALSO STUDENT DISCOUNT MONTH AT JOANN FABRICS!! I’VE BEEN COUNTING THE DAYS! 20% OFF YOUR ENTIRE PURCHASE WITH A VALID STUDENT ID!

Fashion Tips from a 5-Year Old: Belts!

Today my niece gave me a fashion tip:

 

 

Now I don't know if I agree with the ALWAYS part, but it is some decent advice and can produce some pretty cute outfits. Honestly, "belting" used to intimidate me. One of those things that looks cute on other people and on Pinterest, but that I could never pull off myself. But I have since gotten braver with the belt trend and here are a few cute outfit inspirations I found...

from La Vie Petite

I love the jacket with this one!

from Cape Cod Collegiate

So simple. So cute! Love the scarf and the maroon top!

from LOFT

 A belt can add a pop of color!

from TeenagersPosts tumblr

My personal favorite! Summery and comfy. Brown belts are so versatile!

Which is your favorite?

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made: From Textbook Answer to Deeply Rooted Truth

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” –Psalm 139

This verse is prominent in writing and discussions about a woman’s worth. Many women know this verse by heart. Some are truly comforted by the truth it reveals. But for me, I didn’t exactly know what “fearfully” and “wonderfully” meant. I knew this was the “textbook” answer to my questions about my worth, but what is it those words so readily retrievable in my mind actually mean? How can they affect the way I live and view myself?

With this combination of curiosity, confusion, and potential comfort, I decided to look into the meaning and truth of these words.

I do believe we have a Maker. Though I have questioned this in the past, the complexity of human life, to me, is beyond the capabilities of chance. So I know I was made. But what is this “fearfully” and “wonderfully” business?

Here’s what I have found in the dictionary and my heart as I explored and expressed this through art:

Fearfully. I always thought fear was a negative thing. Scared. Frightened. Afraid. Timid. Anxious. But an alternate definition of fearful is this: “full of awe or reverence.” Not only are we to fear the Lord, but when He made us, He was (and is!) full of awe and reverence for us. He admires His work in us. This is amazing to me. We were created with heartfelt interest and respect. The Lord has a lot on His plate, but He still takes interest in us!

Wonderfully. Now this one has a positive connotation. But what exactly does it mean beyond really good? What I found is this: We were created as unique, marvelous, and set apart individuals. We are not mass-produced. Every detail of us is planned. We are complex, yet complete.

Here are my final thoughts. We are known and loved. We weren’t created and then forgotten. We have a Maker who takes continual interest in us. We were created to give praise, honor, and worship to Him.

Although I need a constant reminder of these words and their meanings, they are no longer just a textbook answer, but a solid truth in my life.

This personally created visual reminder hangs on my wall, right next to this gem, sent to me by Wonderfully Made with the purchase of a book.

What does “fearfully and wonderfully made” mean to you? Are there any truths that you want to look into more deeply?

Untangling the Knot of Perfectionsim

I am not sure who reads this blog or who can relate. But I am a big perfectionist. Pretty much anyone who knows me knows that. But it’s also something I am trying to change. While perfection sometimes has a positive connotation, perfectionism can become deeply rooted in the way one thinks and lives, and causes them to strive to meet impossibly high standards- usually self imposed. As we know, perfection is unattainable, so as standards aren’t met, they continue to strive, and grow increasingly frustrated.

I write this in the third person but it is something that rings deeply true for me.

The past few weeks have been filled with a new job, starting a summer class, beginning my senior honors project, and realizing that graduation is fast approaching. This, of course means scary decisions about grad school, careers, and life. And as fear taps my shoulder, the perfectionist response is to try harder. Strive more.

This makes me think of tangled jewelry: tightly wound, knotted chains. That might seem random but bear with me… I picture a mess like this:

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Or this...

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I think it is safe to say that most women (and maybe men, to avoid stereotypes!) have encountered a tangled chain or two in their life. Usually when you are in a hurry, of course.

Trying to untangle the chains sometimes leads to pulling tighter- because the harder you work at the “problem” the faster it will be solved. Right? In this case, wrong. Pulling on the chains makes it worse, tightens the knot, and increases the tangle.  When you let the chains relax and work on one section at a time, the knot loosens. The necklace comes free.

I am beginning to see and believe that striving doesn’t fix the problem at all. It just makes it worse. I’m not saying it’s bad to have goals and expectations for yourself. I think they are somewhat essential.  But it is also essential to make sure they are reasonable. Are the expectations driven by what you really value or are they driven by habit?

To my fellow perfectionists, when your world starts to feel chaotic, act opposite to the tendency to try harder and strive higher. Relax, work on small areas at a time. Loosen the knot; don’t make it worse.

Now, some other advice I am trying to embrace:

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Can you relate to any of this? Do you believe that a problem can be solved by actually trying less?