Speak The Truth

My Thoughts On Sharing - Part 1

Heads-up: This is long. You’re welcome.
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“Not feeling loved and not being loved are not the same. Jesus loved all people well. And many did not like the way he loved them.  …. Emotional blackmail happens when a person equates his or her emotional pain with another person’s failure to love. They aren’t the same. A person may love well and the beloved still feel hurt, and use the hurt to blackmail the lover into admitting guilt he or she does not have. Emotional blackmail says, ‘If I feel hurt by you, you are guilty.’ There is no defense. The hurt person has become God. His emotion has become judge and jury. Truth does not matter. All that matters is the sovereign suffering of the aggrieved. It is above question. This emotional device is a great evil. I have seen it often in my three decades of ministry and I am eager to defend people who are being wrongly indicted by it.” – John Piper

http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/gospeldrivenchurch/2015/03/23/piper-on-emotional-blackmail-in-the-church/

 I think this is such a key issue in current events today. People in the church are being held hostage by this fear of hurting other peoples’ feelings when speaking the truth. For instance, the Planned Parenthood horror show going on right now: the truth is that thousands of babies are being killed every day in the name of “choice”, in what is an utterly and completely barbaric practice. However, people don’t want to talk about it in very public settings (namely online, even in some churches) because of the anger or hurt feelings that might be stirred up. Some reasons for keeping silent online that I've heard/seen:

 “I have people in my life that I’m trying to reach and this would just make them so angry and it would damage my witness.” That is emotional black mail on *their* part; please don’t let yourself be blackmailed. We have a responsibility to speak out, to speak truth and love, and to do so publicly.  Allowing others’ negative reactions to decide what we can and can’t talk about is setting ourselves up for not being able to talk about anything. Do you speak up for biblical marriage? That makes people angry, better not do that. Do you speak up about raising children in the fear and admonition of the Lord? That makes people angry, too. But chances are you *do* speak up for things that make some people that you know angry.  So why, *why*, are you drawing the line here? Where MILLIONS of babies are being killed.  Of all the places to draw this line, this is not it. And if you can show me someplace in the bible where we are exempted from speaking truth because it will “damage our witness” I want to see it because I think that speaking out, and publicly defending those that cannot defend themselves, is *part* of our witness. Our witness cannot be damaged by itself unless it is being done poorly; then we repent of our wrong attitudes and start witnessing with the right attitudes.

  “But I talk to people in my own circle of friends about it; people know what I believe.” That’s really great, and we should all be doing that, keep up the good work! But I want to pose the questions: What about the people who don’t even know that this atrocity has been named/filmed/and released to the public? Or the people who *do* know about it, but are only hearing about it from pro-choice people? What about the people who will never see the TRUTH about this problem if it’s not shared publicly by even *one* pro-life person in their social circles? I think we have a social responsibility to share things widely and publicly in order to reach them.

 “First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.”

I would like to interject, before the end, “Then they came for the unborn, and I did not speak out—Because I was already born.”*

We do need to talk about this. A lot! Right now we have a *huge* advantage in that we can easily, quickly, and repeatedly show people what an awful terrible thing is taking place all over the country. I think we can change the tide of popular opinion with the Truth but the Truth must be seen.  I know that the posts that come out about this issue can seem harsh; killing innocents is a harsh subject. And some articles are un-necessarily harsh since we do want to be a beacon of God’s mercy for people who have suffered from the horrible lie that killing a child will make their life easier. However, being silent is not being part of the solution. If you feel that too many people are sharing in anger or harshness then you should be out there sharing in love! Seeing a thing done poorly is never an excuse to not do the thing well, yourself.

“And I want to offer a specific plea to the many who are against abortion but reluctant to add your voice. I know where you are coming from. Loud angry fundamentalism is so obnoxious and ugly, this debate is replete with fundamentalists on each side, and you don’t want to be identified with it. I understand, but this is an issue that needs every voice. Awkwardness is the newest cross to bear within our culture, and I’m asking you to embrace it in the name of justice. When a baby’s face is being cut open so that his brains can be extracted, we don’t have time for trendy social relevance. Please, if only for this cause, please be awkward with us.”
 - Tates Creek Church


 Obviously we don’t share everything we read but we can and should share wisely. We can absolutely speak the truth in love, all the time. Please, let me encourage you to show and speak the truth courageously, kindly, in love, boldly, and often.  A quote from the second link posted below (written by a post-abortive woman), “I say this to my fellow pro-life friends publishing these videos and disseminating them through media. First I say, “Don’t stop and keep going! Next I say, please take a moment each time you share these videos to also share hope. There are post abortive women watching these, and reeling from them. They are hurting… badly. I cannot stress enough these videos are pouring salt on a seeping, gaping wound that hasn’t healed.”

 I know that is seems easy for me, someone who has little to no personal experience with this, to call for more talk of it. But it’s not just me! The people who have been-there-done-these-things and repented, or experienced abortion and lived to tell about it are also using their voices to ask more people to share. Abby Johnson, a former abortion clinic worker, has a Facebook page that she uses to speak out about this evil and with every post she asks people to share more! Gianna Jessen, a woman who survived a saline abortion has gone on record asking people to share the truth (the videos and blog posts) with people. Women are writing blog posts about their experiences and *asking more people to share their stories*.  These women know what they’re talking about; are you listening to them?


Some truthful, grace-centered articles, you can share:

 http://allthingsdittmeier.com/2015/07/15/a-heart-laid-bare/

http://candlemom.blogspot.com/2015/08/missing-compassion-component.html

http://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2015/08/15441/

http://prolifephysicians.org/app/?p=59

http://www.tobyjsumpter.com/an-open-letter-to-women-whove-had-abortions/

http://fiercemarriage.com/her-story-gods-redemption-after-abortion


An article about men and women who survived being aborted:
http://healthimpactnews.com/2015/babies-who-survived-abortions-and-are-now-adults-time-for-our-voice-to-be-heard/

 An article on the cost of avoidance:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/kass/ct-kass-planned-parenthood-folo-met-0805-20150805-column.html

Tates Creek Church Post:
http://tcpca.org/2015/08/21/please-dont-let-this-die/

 Gianna Jessen’s FB page:
https://www.facebook.com/gianna.jessen?fref=nf&pnref=story

Abby Johnson’s FB page:
https://www.facebook.com/abbyjohnsonprolife?fref=ts

* (I’m not claiming this as an original thought; I’ve seen it on the internet somewhere.)

The Cry

I'm not sure where to start with this post. There are some big, big things on my mind lately and I've been itching to get them out but it's just so hard to know how to say this the right way.

 We all know about the Planned Parenthood videos that have been released. Our news feeds are filled with article after article about the horrors of abortion  (or at least one or two has skittered its way nervously across our screens) and I think this is how it should be. We are at war with Death. And I feel like these videos that have come out are a battle cry, but the thing about battle cries is that they need to be answered. (I keep seeing LOTR movie clips in my head). As the pro-life movement rallies together we need to work on our responding call. We need to be shouting down Death while at the same time shouting Life and Hope to the people caught in the fray. To shout, "Death is not the answer! Come this way; I will help you!" And not just in a broad, potentially vague, political sort of way but in a way that is hand-to-hand and deeply personal.

 So this is me; saying "Death is not the answer! Come this way; I will help you!". Ladies, girls, women, if you are facing a crisis pregnancy situation I want to help *you*. If you need an ear to listen to you, a shoulder, a meal, or a couch to take a nap on, I want to be there for you. I want to be able to speak life and hope to you; to pray for you! And if I can't help you, myself, then I want to help you find someone who can. Know that I love you as a fellow woman and life-bearer.

~Noble

Trust

FYI: This might not make sense. Work with me.

I've been going through an Advent devotional by John Piper this season, and today's reading would have knocked me over if I hadn't already been sitting down.

"“As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.” (John 17:18)

Christmas is a model for missions. Missions is a mirror of Christmas. As I, so you.

For example, danger. Christ came to his own and his own received him not. So you. They plotted against him. So you. He had no permanent home. So you. They trumped up false charges against him. So you. They whipped and mocked him. So you. He died after three years of ministry. So you.

But there is a worse danger than any of these which Jesus escaped. So you!!

In the mid-16th century Francis Xavier (1506–1552), a Catholic missionary, wrote to Father Perez of Malacca (today part of Indonesia) about the perils of his mission to China. He said,

The danger of all dangers would be to lose trust and confidence in the mercy of God. . . To distrust him would be a far more terrible thing than any physical evil which all the enemies of God put together could inflict on us, for without God’s permission neither the devils nor their human ministers could hinder us in the slightest degree.

The greatest danger a missionary faces is to distrust the mercy of God. If that danger is avoided, then all other dangers lose their sting.

God makes every dagger a scepter in our hand. As J.W. Alexander says, “Each instant of present labor is to be graciously repaid with a million ages of glory.”

Christ escaped the danger of distrust. Therefore God has highly exalted him!

Remember this Advent that Christmas is a model for missions. As I, so you. And that mission means danger. And that the greatest danger is distrusting God’s mercy. Succumb to this and all is lost. Conquer here and nothing can harm you for a million ages."

 I am sleep deprived to the Nth degree. This last while has been a repeating pattern where I get out of bed, again, go in and scoop up my screaming littlest, again, and cry quietly while I rock or feed him till he falls asleep, again. And a lot of times, while I am sitting in my chair putting my baby back to sleep I inwardly argue with and cajole God and dis-trust his mercy and goodness. I mean, the longest stretch of sleep I've had in months is around 4 hours, and that's the exception, the usual is usually closer to 1 1/2 - 2. All. Night. Long. Every. Night. For 11 months. I have never been so tired before in my life.

 And so I sit in my chair feeling broken and crushed. Doesn't God know that sleep deprivation is a form of torture?! Hasn't he read about how not getting enough sleep is exceptionally bad for your emotional, mental, and physical well being? Not getting enough sleep can literally make a person insane. It feels like a mean joke that God wants me to be an obedient human being while being deprived of the means to function at a basic level. So I dis-trust his mercy. It is so much easier to dis-trust than to believe that He loves me, cares for me, and is working this season of exhaustion for my good.

 But today's reading reminded me, I am on mission. My mission field in this house, with these people who need me, and this mission is hard. But I'm not dead yet. It is by God's mercy that breath continues to enter my lungs, and that blood continues to be pumped through my heart. That my children and my husband are all alive and here. And it is only by God's mercy that I will be able to see these mercies, to know that they *are* mercies, and be able to keep trusting in His mercy. And God and his mercy are ever-all-present. There is no getting away.

I Am Blessed (And I'm Going To Keep Talking About It)

 I'm sure lots (if not all) of you have seen that article that's making the rounds again, written by a former missionary, and published through Huffington Post about why Christians should stop saying 'blessed'. At the end of the article he says that he'd like to hear people's thoughts, and I had plenty of them.
Okay, so I'm just going to deal with this one bit at a time; there’s a *lot* going on here, most of which I heartily disagree with. (For the sake of reading, all my thoughts will be in red.) If you want to read the unsullied article first you can do that here.

I was on the phone with a good friend the other day. After covering important topics, like disparaging each other's mothers and retelling semi-factual tales from our college days, our conversation turned to the mundane.

"So, how's work going?" he asked.

For those of you who don't know, I make money by teaching leadership skills and helping people learn to get along in corporate America. My wife says it's all a clever disguise so I can get up in front of large groups and tell stories.

I plead the fifth.

I answered my buddy's question with,

"Definitely feeling blessed. Last year was the best year yet for my business. And it looks like this year will be just as busy."

The words rolled off my tongue without a second thought. Like reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or placing my usual lunch order at McDonald's.

But it was a lie.

Now, before you start taking up a collection for the "Feed the Dannemillers" fund, allow me to explain. Based on last year's quest to go twelve months without buying anything, you may have the impression that our family is subsisting on Ramen noodles and free chips and salsa at the local Mexican restaurant. Not to worry, we are not in dire straits.

Last year was the best year yet for my business.

Things are looking busy in 2014.

But that is not a blessing.
Really? How exactly do you define a blessing? I’ll look it up in the dictionary for you really fast. According to Meriam Webster the first definition of Blessing is, and I quote, “the act or word of one that blesses”. I’m pretty sure that everything under the sun, arranged and orchestrated by God, who is the one true Blesser, qualifies as a blessing, it’s all a matter of choosing to see it in that light.  

I've noticed a trend among Christians, myself included, and it troubles me. Our rote response to material windfalls is to call ourselves blessed. Like the "amen" at the end of a prayer.

"This new car is such a blessing." It is.

"Finally closed on the house. Feeling blessed." You should feel that way.

"Just got back from a mission trip. Realizing how blessed we are here in this country." We are very blessed.

On the surface, the phrase seems harmless. Faithful even. Why wouldn't I want to give God the glory for everything I have? Isn't that the right thing to do?

No. Again I say, REALLY?! I feel like there’s a SNL skit about this. Oh wait. There is. I’m actually SUPER curious where you managed to accrue this notion that we ought not to do this thing. Please point me to somewhere, anywhere, in the Bible where it says that we are *not* to give thanks and rejoice for the gifts that the Lord graciously gives to us on a daily basis. Because what I’ve read so far seems to say just the opposite.  For instance, and this is really just the first one I remember, 1 Thes. 5:16-18 “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”  See, I read “give thanks in all circumstances” and “rejoice always”, and I feel like that’s a pretty straightforward order. Give thanks. For everything. All the time.

As I reflected on my "feeling blessed" comment, two thoughts came to mind. I realize I'm splitting hairs here, creating an argument over semantics. But bear with me, because I believe it is critically important. It's one of those things we can't see because it's so culturally engrained that it has become normal.

But it has to stop. And here's why.

First, when I say that my material fortune is the result of God's blessing, it reduces The Almighty to some sort of sky-bound, wish-granting fairy who spends his days randomly bestowing cars and cash upon his followers. I am fairly certain that devout, God-fearing, Christians have been calling themselves blessed over an incredible variety of situations for a really, really long time. Acknowledging that God has, in fact, blessed us with a material thing is hardly treating him like a fairy.  A fairy gives us whatever we ask for regardless of how it will affect us or those around us, and with no plan or purpose for the granting. The same cannot, and should not, be said of God. Is he generous? Absolutely. Does his generosity often appear in the form of material things? Again, yes. Are all of the things he gives us part of a divine plan the depth and breadth of which we cannot hope to fathom? Yup! Ergo, not a fairy.

 I can't help but draw parallels to how I handed out M&M's to my own kids when they followed my directions and chose to poop in the toilet rather than in their pants. Sure, God wants us to continually seek His will, and it's for our own good. But positive reinforcement? Haha! Sorry, I don’t mean to be rude, but the Bible is full of all kinds of positive reinforcement. “Honor your father and mother, that your days may be long in the land.” Ex 20:12. What is that again? It sure looks like positive reinforcement to me.

God is not a behavioral psychologist.

Second, and more importantly, calling myself blessed because of material good fortune is just plain wrong. I beg to differ.  It’s just plain silly to *be* blessed yet deny it. How very arrogant of you. For starters, it can be offensive to the hundreds of millions of Christians in the world who live on less than $10 per day. You read that right. Hundreds of millions who receive a single-digit dollar "blessing" per day. So, we cannot rejoice in any blessing that other people do not have lest we offend them? What about kids? Children are a blessing, given by the Lord (as are ALL THINGS; including money and material possessions), to some people and yet not to others. Should the people that have been blessed with children not rejoice and thank the Lord for that blessing because (and I will give you that it is heartbreakingly sad) other people cannot have the same blessing? What about people that are wealthier than you personally. Are they supposed to walk around glumly because you don’t make as much as they do? What about people who make less than you, but still more than the people who only make less than a dollar a day? What about the people that make a dollar a day; are they allowed to rejoice even though there are definitely people who make absolutely *no* money on a given day? Who gets to set the dollar amount where rejoicing and giving thanks for blessings of the Lord becomes uncouth and hurtful? I’m pretty sure God already did, and that He set it up so that there is no income range where it's inappropriate to thank him. 

During our year in Guatemala, Gabby and I witnessed first-hand the damage done by the theology of prosperity, where faithful people scraping by to feed their families were simply told they must not be faithful enough. If they were, God would pull them out of their nightmare. Just try harder, and God will show favor. AH! Here we get to the crux of the matter. And one of the points we agree on. Prosperity Theology is a heinous, terrible, sin. And it is a shame and embarrassment to the body of Christ that such heresy is spewed out (and tolerated) on a daily basis. It’s also true that no where are we promised material blessings as a payment for every single act of obedience, but that does not negate the fact that we *are* blessed with physical things.

The problem? Nowhere in scripture are we promised worldly ease in return for our pledge of faith. In fact, the most devout saints from the Bible usually died penniless, receiving a one-way ticket to prison or death by torture. I almost agree with this statement, but it needs to be clarified. First of all, it’s probably a more accurate statement to say that a *lot*, maybe even *most* (if you’re being generous), of the saints from the Bible died penniless. Second, just because they *died* penniless does not mean they *lived* that way. Off the top of my head, Joseph of Arimathea, comes to mind. That guy had a pretty sweet tomb and those things were *not* cheap. (You might say that the Lord had blessed him over the course of his life and given him the means to purchase it [gasp of horror] for himself.) It was his. He owned it. He even planned on using it. But he held it loosely, and gave it back to God when it was time to do so.

I'll take door number three, please.

If we're looking for the definition of blessing, Jesus spells it out clearly (Matthew 5: 1-12).

1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him,

2 And He began to teach them, saying:

3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

I have a sneaking suspicion verses 12a 12b and 12c were omitted from the text. That's where the disciples responded by saying:

12a Waitest thou for one second, Lord. What about "blessed art thou comfortable," or 12b "blessed art thou which havest good jobs, a modest house in the suburbs, and a yearly vacation to the Florida Gulf Coast?"

12c And Jesus said unto them, "Apologies, my brothers, but those did not maketh the cut."

So there it is. Written in red. Plain as day. Even still, we ignore it all when we hijack the word "blessed" to make it fit neatly into our modern American ideals, creating a cosmic lottery where every sincere prayer buys us another scratch-off ticket. In the process, we stand the risk of alienating those we are hoping to bring to the faith.

Let me just stop you right there. Reading over those verses, I could not help but notice that every single item on that list an attitude, or posture of the heart. Nowhere does it say, as you would like to suggest, “Blessed are the people who don’t own anything, for they’ll be the holier saints in heaven.” It also doesn’t say, “Blessed are the people who hide their blessings under layers of guilt and sadness, for they’ll be the most joyful in heaven.”

And we have to stop playing that game.

The truth is, I have no idea why I was born where I was or why I have the opportunity I have. You’re right. You are very, very, blessed to be alive when and where you are.  It's beyond comprehension. But I certainly don't believe God has chosen me above others because of the veracity of my prayers or the depth of my faith. Point number two.  Still, if I take advantage of the opportunities set before me, a comfortable life may come my way. It's not guaranteed. That makes three. But if it does happen, I don't believe Jesus will call me blessed.

He will call me "burdened."

He will ask,

"What will you do with it?"

"Will you use it for yourself?"

"Will you use it to help?"

"Will you hold it close for comfort?"

"Will you share it?"

So many hard choices. So few easy answers. Really? (Reeaally??) This is entirely an attitude of your own devising. Instead of choosing to see your blessings as an opportunity to serve Christ and others, and instead of choosing to have a joyful heart, you see yourself as burdened. Poor, poor you. How much guilt you must carry for being so blessed .Everyone who is alive and breathing faces those questions every day. Some of us have more to consider than others but we must all consider it. It is the chief end of man to glorify God and enjoy him forever. How do we glorify God? By loving him, and doing what he commands. He commands that we be Joyful! With words of praise and thanksgiving constantly on our lips! We are to praise His unending, unsurpassed goodness all the time! We are BLESSED!

So my prayer today is that I understand my true blessing. It's not my house. Or my job. Or my standard of living. (Oh, yes, those pesky fake blessings, they do so get in the way.)

No.

My blessing is this. I know a God who gives hope to the hopeless. I know a God who loves the unlovable. I know a God who comforts the sorrowful. And I know a God who has planted this same power within me. Within all of us.  This is Gnostisism at the core, really. You only have *one* true blessing, the spiritual kind, because all the earthly blessings are fake hollow forms of the essence of the true blessing? Well, as my high-school teacher always told me, “We Ain’t No Stinkin Gnostics!” Is the fact that Jesus came, died, and reconciled us to God as our true heavenly father the ULTIMATE blessing? YES. Is it our ONLY blessing? Not by any means.

And for this blessing, may our response always be,

"Use me."

Since I had this conversation, my new response is simply, "I'm grateful." Would love to hear your thoughts. This really gets me hot under the collar here. You’re grateful? Really? For what?! Blessings, I tell you, blessings. These abundant gifts of love.
  I propose that a more accurate way to correct the issue you’re grappling with would be, instead of just ending thoughts and facebook updates with “blessed” or “grateful”, to use both. Like this: I'm am grateful to be so blessed. Or #blessed #grateful . They should go hand in hand, so let them.

The Advent of Advent!

I am being so good and not decorating for Christmas before Advent begins! But Advent festivities take a lot of prep for me, so I am starting to get myself in gear. I have my projects lined up!

-- We are making clay ornaments for our Jesse tree (starting these today, since they have to dry!). I use this baking soda & cornstarch clay recipe: http://fullofgreatideas.blogspot.com/2012/09/christmas-in-september-corn-starch-and.html

-- I want to try making these Christmas Baubles (and perhaps stringing them in a garland?): http://www.homemade-gifts-made-easy.com/make-christmas-ornaments.html#axzz1XqTHTlgP

-- I'm learning to make wreaths! Our big fir tree lost a limb so a friend of mine showed me how to wrastle the branches into wreaths with floral wire. Maybe I'll put up a picture, but the ones I have made so far are definitely a bit...oval.

-- And of course we want to make paper snowflakes and stick them up everywhere.

Have you started your Christmas decorating, or your decorating prep? What is your project list?

<3 courtney="" p="">

Another Day, Another Dinner

This week my planned dinners were:

 Monday: Pasta With Two Twists (Recipe Follows)
 Tuesday: Onion Chopped Steak with gravy, roasted potatoes, and green beans
 Wednesday: Braised Moroccan Chicken with corn and peas
 Thursday: Broiled Pork Chops with roasted Butternut Squash and peas
 Friday: Homemade Mac'N'Cheese (with leftover pork chops and peas)
 Saturday: Leftovers!

 And now, the recipe.

Pasta With Two Twists
Serves 6

1 lb short pasta
1 lb bacon, chopped into bite size pieces (You can use less, I just knew I was going to be feeding *four* hungry men (plus me and Addie) with this dinner so we'd need that much.)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 can (14.5 oz) chopped tomatoes with onion and herbs (Or, you can make your own*)
1 cup broth
1 cup smooth-style spaghetti sauce
1 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup regular sour cream
(Cheese, if desired)

1. Cook the pasta according to package directions.
2. Meanwhile, brown the bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat. When it's cooked to your desired level of crispy-ness remove from pan with slotted spoon, and set aside. Drain most of the bacon fat (save it for cooking some veggies in later on in the week!), leaving about 1-2 TBSP in the pan.
3. Add the garlic to skillet, and saute until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add the onion and cook until the onion is tender, about 3 minutes.
4. And the basil, tomatoes with their juice, spaghetti sauce, broth, and stir. Cook until the sauce comes to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until ready to serve. Add the green peas to the skillet about five minutes before serving.
5. When the pasta is done, drain it well and return to it's cooking pot. Toss the sour cream with the hot pasta until the noodles are well coated. Serve the pasta topped with sauce and cheese.

*To make your own just chop up a can of plain whole tomatoes and season with dried basil, oregano, and parsley, onion powder, and just a pinch of celery salt.

Ta da! Dinner. :)

(Also, can you tell that I'm enjoying the bacon I got on sale? It's made regular appearances since I bought it. Whoo!)

This is actually an adaptation of a recipe from my "Cheap, Fast, Good" cookbook which, I think, was one of the very first cookbooks I ever purchased after Noel and I got married. I got it from the library at one point and liked it so much that I went out and bought it. And today I discovered that the gals who wrote it now have a website! I'm excited to see their new recipes.

http://www.kitchenscoop.com/

Have a great almost-the-weekend-day, y'all.

~Noble

My Shopping Orders

Alright, I'm sure you have been holding your breath just waiting on the edge of your seat for this post. I have been  avoiding packing working hard on it all week.

First off: I always look at what’s on sale around town. I get my grocery adds in the mail on Tuesday’s (and Wednesday’s, and sometime’s Thursday’s…) and I take note of anything that’s a super-duper steal, especially meat; the other week I got pork chops for $1.29 a pound! I also go online to Safeway.com and check out their “Just4U” section, which I love. It saves me so much money! With my card specials I get $5 off $20 worth of groceries almost every other week. Also, Dave’s Killer Bread, the sprouted kind, for $3.29 a loaf about once a month. Jaw-dropping, really. (Not on sale it's $5.69. Ouch!)
   If I find something that’s at a stomping price I’ll try to plan the majority of my meals to be as inexpensive as possible so that I can stock up on the sale. Otherwise I just make whatever the heck I feel like, within reason. (As much as I feel like eating steak every night, it’s just not fiscally feasible.)

Next: P-L-A-N. I know some people go *all* out here (breakfast, snacks, lunches, more snacks, and dinners), other’s don’t do any planning; I am in the happy middle. I know what we’re eating for breakfast most days anyway (Eggs, with toast and sometimes I manage to include veggies).  I keep it simple with lunches (leftovers!). And I have a list of “grab-n-go” snack foods that I try to keep stocked (fruit, veggies, bread, cheese, yogurt, etc.). So for me, planning consists of dinners and checking the pantry and fridge to make sure we’re not out of staples.

Then the (not) hard part; shopping! Planning makes my grocery trips so easy. Or at least as easy as it can be with a two-year-old in tow. I go once a week, on Mondays. Armed with a list I get in, get what I need, and get out. One tiny trick; I go to the discount store *first*. Their stock is constantly changing, but as a general rule they have the *best* prices on bacon (all natural, raised without antibiotics, none of the –ites or –ates , for two bucks a pound last week), sometimes cheese, and canned beans (when they have them).  Then I go to Safeway and/or Top Foods, and wrap it up at the farm stand and health-food store.  Also, I usually go to the farm stand twice a week, once on Monday (my regular shopping day) and again on Thursday. I found I throw away much fewer scary looking veggies this way.

In the past I’ve done the whole “cash only” thing but I’m currently just using my debit card, which also works! 

How much I spend: Honestly, it varies. I try to just spend $50 a week, but there’s also the usual Costco trip about once a month where we spend probably $60 on food, and we bought a quarter of beef last year which worked out to about $35 per month. (So very, very worth it.) Total, we’re at about $300 a month for a family of three (about to be four).

And there you have it! What about you? Are you a super-duper planner? How often do you shop? Let me know!

Have a great Reformation Day!