Recipes

While trying out a funnel cake recipe (see below) in my cast iron this evening, I was thinking to myself (as I often do) about the whys and hows of being a unique mama to my unique children. Every human being is just a bit different from all the others, and no matter how much we tend to group and re-group ourselves for the purposes of belonging or collecting data, we will always be amazingly unique individuals with our own special journeys. The recipe that follows is something I created while standing at the stove tonight. While it may not apply to all, I feel it follows certain patterns that if we pay attention, are fairly common amongst families.


Recipe for encouraging rebellion in your children’s hearts:
1 part rules (hold the reason)
2 parts hypocrisy
1/2 a slice of disrespecting their personal space
1 part passive disapproval of their changing personality
Sprinkle on responsibilities, making sure to withhold the appropriate privileges.
Pour quickly into a hot (hormonal) pan, and hold over the fire until it breaks or causes damage to your home.


Have you seen this in your life? Perhaps there are other “recipes” you are familiar with, maybe even ones that produce something more positive. I’d be ever so grateful if you would share them with me in the comments below.  Last, but not least, here is the funnel cake recipe I pulled from the Food Network website, which lists Robert Irvine as its author.

Funnel Cake with Powdered Sugar
Ingredients: 1 liter canola oil, 3 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 3 eggs, 2 cups milk, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, for dusting
Directions: Heat oil in deep-fryer to 350 degrees F (I used a deep cast iron pan). Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Whisk in eggs and milk. Pour 1/2 cup batter through funnel into hot oil, moving in a circular motion as you do so, to make each spiral-shaped funnel cake. Fry each spiral of batter until golden brown, about 2 or 3 minutes. Remove with tongs and lay on paper toweling to absorb oil (I spread paper napkins under a cooling rack). Transfer to a plate and sprinkle with powdered sugar through a sieve onto top of hot dough. Serve immediately. Here is a collage of one of mine as it cooked.

VRae

Good Morning

Praise and glory to God alone, I am not only able, but also willing, to wake up with my husband each morning, a good two hours or more before the kidlets rise. This time has become precious to me over the past weeks, as I am able to accomplish things that are important to me, in a way that I am comfortable doing. Today is fast becoming a typical morning: Wake at 0500, shower and dress by 0530, get J-Dub his breakfast while he gets his things together for work, chat for a few before he leaves, Bible study/devotional/prayer, read a section of a book, set up for the day’s activities, and if I’m super lucky I will have finished an entire cup off coffee by this point.

Now about that devotional. I use the YouVersion app on my phone, which is simply loaded with all manner of devotionals, though one must take care that what they are studying through is biblical. I am currently going through the Made to Crave: a 21-Day Challenge devotions, though I haven’t read the book by Lysa TerKeurst (www.madetocrave.org). If you are tempted to overeat, or really over-do anything that is good in moderation, I encourage you to check out the materials. Something that stood out to me this morning was the question of how often I have given into a short-term desire that worked against a long-term goal. This thought goes so much further than eating too much junk. How often do we act on impulse? How often do we cause our own setbacks due to our unwillingness to tell ourselves “no”, and pray for help to focus on that which is superior to instant gratification?! Please leave a note below, I welcome you to share your point of view.