Wednesday, September 19, 2012

September Foodie Spirit

One thing that's great about being back in the cities is the plethora of Farmer's Markets & variety of grocery stores. This last Saturday instead of going to the Farmer's Market we finally made our way over to Trader Joe's. If you've never been to a Trader Joe's it is a must! I love the small market feel. When I first moved to St. Paul in 2009 I lived only 10min from the closest Trader Joe's and now living at the seminary it's more like 20min - unless you get stuck in light rail construction traffic & there's no way to turn around, then it's more like 30! Trader Joe's has almost just as good as stuff as the Farmer's Market. We love the Farmer's Markets because of the amounts of fresh produce we can get for such a low cost. Being back at the seminary we also have the availability to have a piece of community garden. However, Z & I know little about gardening, it's been very dry, & the temps are dropping here in Minnesnowda. So maybe come Spring we'll get some ambition & dig into the dirt. Till then we'll keep supporting our local farmers.

Since the school year has started our lives have been a mixture of balancing schedules, trying lots of new recipes, and remembering how to be full-time students.

Some of the new recipes you can find on my ever growing Pinterest boards! We've tried breakfast bars, overnight refrigerator oatmeal, oatmeal muffins, sautéed mushrooms, guacamole...and have hopes to try so many more!

Last night we had a meeting with other seniors approaching graduation & life thereafter to learn about all the important forms we get to fill out before the holidays. It's exciting to think about the future & where we may land, but also terrifying having no idea where that actually will be. Even if we request certain areas does not mean we will receive a call (or two calls hopefully) to live and work in that space. We must trust in the faith instilled in us by the Holy Spirit!

So my questions of today are:

What are some yummy foods you've tried recently?
&
Where is the Spirit calling you?

I know, a pretty basic question and one you might not have words to express. I love the mystery & the challenge!

As the Apostle Paul wrote to the people of Thessalonica, "We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he has chosen you, because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake" (NRSV 1st Thessalonians 1:2-5).

You are loved and appreciated, and the Holy Spirit has filled you to eat well & follow your convictions with the stories of our resurrected Lord. Ok, Paul doesn't say anything about eating well, but a good meal is a Spiritual thing. So explore the produce of Fall, check out your local Farmer's Markets, dwell in the Word of God, & dream about the future!

Happy Wednesday!


Sunday, September 2, 2012

Home Sweet Home

After much moving around over the last 9 years (since graduating high-school) we are back in the Twin Cities for one final year of graduate school. Then who knows where we'll move to. I'm hoping next year's move will be a little more permanent and to a little more spacious dwelling space. For the time being though we are thankful to be where we are.

Our time in the Northwoods came to a close a few weeks ago and while it was sad to say g'bye it was good to be moving forward. I told Z, now we have a bunch of extended family members with lake houses we can visit! What a challenging year we had & who knows what lies ahead.

We have been on the run ever since we moved back. Surprising right? Ok, not so much, I know if you read my blog that you know we're on the go at a pretty fast rate a whole lot of the time. We started back at our student jobs, have been meeting all sorts of new people and reuniting with good friends as we all return from across the country. We even threw in a trip to the DC area for our niece & God-daughter's baptism! What a joyous occasion to be a part of. The Holy Spirit is a powerful presence when we stop & acknowledge it.

Tonight we made homemade cookies and invited some friends over to catch up. Much laughter was shared by all. The weekend is a time of relaxation before the semester starts up on Tuesday. Enjoy some photos of the fun we've had over the last couple of weeks.

Happy September!

our new Ikea sofa & the crew that helped us put it together

Z & J in the Capital

J & J

EJ!
MN State Fair