Worth the Worry?

Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?  And if worry can't accomplish a little thing like that, what's the use of worrying over bigger things?...  Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and He will give you everything you need.  Luke 12:25-26, 31

"Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?"

That's an interesting question!  Let's see... an average life span is eighty years so that computes to 42,076,800 minutes.  If my worries were able to add one minute to my life - making it 42,076,801 minutes - would they have been productive??  Probably not.  Especially if I ended up with ulcers, which might actually shorten my life and would make it less pleasant.  Jesus instructs me to trust Him, and He promises that if I do, He will give me everything that I need.  Now that's productive!

Taken from The One Year Mini for Mom's  - Ellen Banks Elwell

Things I learned this weekend

• Mia and Owen have amazing memories
• It's impossible for M&O to get enough swimming
• Dubuque has lots of fun places for kids to explore and play
• Mulligans can be speedy
• Time with friends is good for the soul
• The combination of a head cold and pregnancy can make one feel like a half-dead fly you find at the beginning of winter
• Mia can be a daredevil and Owen can be cautious
• "There is no time when we are more like God than when we give to others.  Generosity opens our hearts as well as the hearts of the people that receive from us."

Blogging Blues & Cookies

You may have noticed the blog entries had tapered off....  well my theory is....this little baby "B" is sucking all my creative, memory, thinking cells right out.  Hopefully he'll pop out a genius!  Since I've reached the hopefully over half way point (19 weeks) he seems to be only taking about half... So we're back in business...


While Mia was in school my little helper Owen and I made these:

Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies
1 cup Butter
½ cup Sugar
1 cup Packed Light Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoon Vanilla
1 teaspoon Salt
8 ounces Semi-sweet Chocolate, Melted And Cooled
2 whole Eggs, Cold
2 cups Flour
½ cups Cocoa Powder
2 teaspoons Baking Soda
1 bag Peanut Butter Chips
Instructions
Heat the oven to 350 F
With a mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until creamy but not fluffy. Add the vanilla, salt, and melted chocolate and beat on medium-low speed until thoroughly incorporated. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Combine the flour, cocoa powder, and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. Add the peanut butter chips and mix to distribute evenly.


Scoop the dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto the prepared sheet pans. Bake for 10 to 11 minutes, or until the cookies are puffed and just set at the edges. Do not over-bake. Cool on the pan for five minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.



Note:  Originally this recipe called for 2 bags of peanut butter chips which would have made them even more delicious but after reading this article over at Kammy's Korner, I was convicted and only used one!!

Teddy Bears

Mia's favorite team is the "Teddy Bears" 

Little Owey Joey back in 2007

GO BEARS!

Finding Beauty in Winter

A few weeks ago, winter seemed oppressive, with large amounts of snow falling weekly and no end in sight!  If winter kept up at that rate our house would be buried!  Then the sun came out and a thaw happened and half our snow disappeared.  A few blades of grass are poking out of the snow now.  Mia is sure it's a sign of summer.  She hasn't quit dreaming of swimming and Yogi Bear's.

 I wish it was a sign of summer but winter is here for a while I'm afraid.  

While it is, we'll make the best of it and find beauty in winter...

Photos © The Brandt Family