Yay, It's the Weekend!

Ending My Lease
The time has come for me to part ways with the space I've been leasing at a shop in Bowling Green.   I was selling my items there, but was not making enough profit to justify the rent and gas it cost me to take my items up there to sell.  I will miss having space there, and it was a really neat little shop.  I wish the owner the best of luck in her future endeavors.
 
It got cold again!  Boooooo.

Lasagna & Chocolate Cupcakes

We haven't had much luck with the Weight Watchers recipes we've been trying lately.  That all changed tonight when I tweaked a Weight Watchers recipe for lasagna!  This is a great and easy recipe, although a bit time consuming.  For lasagna, though, isn't it worth the time and effort??  I haven't really ever made a real lasagna that I can remember, so for a first try, I was pretty happy with the result.  You need all of the basic ingredients, but I added ground beef and cheated by using our favorite store-bought pasta sauce.  Using fresh chopped parsley gave the lasagna a good, but not overpowering, herb flavor.  After my recipe doctoring, one serving (1/6 of the pan) was 9 points +, and a quarter of the pan was 13 points +.  Not bad!  And it could be a little lower if you use a leaner beef.

Smelled and tasted as good as it looks!

Here's a treat that I made earlier this week.  I know, chocolate cupcakes on a diet?  Well, these eliminate the calorie-laden oil and eggs.  Simply mix a 15 oz. can of pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix) and 1/4 cup of water with the cake mix of your choice.

For me, that was a no-brainer--chocolate!  The cupcakes were fluffy, slightly dense, moist, and chocolatey.  While there was just the faintest hint of pumpkin flavor, you really don't notice it.  My husband and I both agreed that they were tasty.  I am going to try a spice cake mix next with the pumpkin mixture.  I think it's going to smell like Thanksgiving soon!  Each muffin is 2 points +.

Sewing Project on the Radar
I came across an idea on Pinterest for a simple summer dress.  If I can get around to making it soon, I'll post pictures and directions on here.  Should be cute!

There are a few things on the horizon in my life right now.  Whether any of them will come to fruition, I can't say, but I'm hoping that a new season of my life will be starting soon.  However, I have no control over any of it, and I'm well aware of it.  But nothing stays the same forever: "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:...a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak" (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 6-7).  Life is unpredictable; thank God that He is the constant!

New Stuff

The Fireflies Are Back!

I'd like to take a moment to say, is there anything more relaxing than a warm summer dusk and watching the fireflies talk to each other in your backyard?  I contend not!  It seems to me that fireflies have been more scarce this year, but last night as I was reeling in the hose, they were out in full force.  I sat down in a patio chair and just enjoyed watching them blink to each other for quite a while...it's just fascinating to me that they can do that.  To me, seeing the fireflies is a quintessential summer staple.  I'm not a bug person, but I do like the fireflies and their blinking little behinds!  For some interesting facts on fireflies, check out this link.

Fireflies!

What Else Is New?

Well, I'm proud to say that we have had several projects finally completed on our house!  Our roof has been replace and looks great, our living room has been repainted and rearranged and looks great, and our new couch has been delivered and looks great.  The roof took about a day and a half, and we did have an Amish crew do the work.  Overall, they did a great job.  We decided to go with a two-tone gray shingle instead of staying with the reddish-brown shingles that were there when we bought the house, and it's a nice change.  They also re-roofed our shed out back. Over the Independence Day long weekend, my husband and I were able to repaint the living room and hallway with some deeply-discounted Sherwin-Williams paint (we bought $45 a gallon paint for $25 a gallon!) and we went back to the basics--a creamy off-white color, which looks great with the leather couch and large wall map picture from Hobby Lobby (which we purchased on clearance).  Except for the couch, it was a pretty inexpensive change, and we couldn't be happier!

New Boss

We're also going through a transition at work.  The former pastor was reappointed to a new church, and the new pastor started Friday.  I don't work on Fridays, and Monday was a holiday, so I didn't actually work with him until Tuesday...except I barely saw him.  I know what it's like to be the new person at a job--I've been that many times.  I don't think, though, that I've ever had to experience a new boss!  This will be a new experience for me, and a time of transition for everyone.  My husband has patiently reminded me a few times that I don't really work for my new boss...that I work for Him, and that God's in control of the situation.  As a person who seems to increasingly dislike changes and disruptions in my daily routine, it's difficult to handle some of the recent changes with any sort of grace.  I don't have a choice, though, and it will all work out one way or another.  I just need to continue to put my trust in Christ.

New Creative Idea

As you might have noticed, I've been pushing hard for my new website, The Sunflower Tree, to take off.  I would really like to see this become a real business for me, but I can't do it without your help.  So I ask you to take a moment, visit the site and "like" it on Facebook.  Even more helpful would be to share it on your Facebook page!  The more people that know about it, the better the chance that I'll start getting some orders.  I'm constantly creating new ideas, and I post them as quickly as I can while working around my job and housework and so on.  I'd like to say thanks again to those of you who have shared my site--I'm very grateful!

It seems as though there are a lot of changes and new things in our life lately.  There are sayings about trials and changes: "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger", "(fill in the blank) builds character", and so on.  I do believe, as many do, that God uses trials (big and small) to transform us into the creations He meant for us to be.  We need to be flexible and have faith that what He allows is for our good and His perfect will.  Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will".  2 Cor 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!", and Isa. 43:18-19 says, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.  See, I am doing a new thing!  Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?  I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland."  Perhaps the trials that God allows us to experience are His way of making a stream in the wasteland of our lives.  When we thirst for Him and His mercy, He will not only nourish us, but he will change us and cause us to grow in Him!

My New Online Store!

Okay, so I think I have everything together now!  Drumroll, please... I'm starting an online venture called "The Sunflower Tree Designs and Paper Goods".  You can see the website by clicking here.  My goal is to ultimately be a self-sustaining web store, but I need your help by telling others about it.  Please share the link with anyone you think might be interested!

To the right is one of my notepads.  I draw the designs, edit them in Photoshop, and turn them into cute little notepads.  They range in size from small enough to fit in your purse to the size you see in the photo, 5" x 8".  Most are the size of a quarter sheet of paper, though.  I'll be adding more items regularly.  I do still have my Etsy listings, but will probably not continue it after the listings expire in a few months.  

Thanks to everyone who has been kind enough to follow my blog.  I am very grateful to have such kind and caring family and friends!  And now, I'll go back to writing about what we have been up to, instead of selling things (although I'll be keeping a link to The Sunflower Tree for people who visit the site but don't know me).  Thanks again!

"Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you"--James 4:8