I saw a funny card yesterday.  The front of the card showed a woman talking to the reader of the card.  She said, “It’s your birthday, but don’t worry, I won’t ask you how old you are.”  Then you open the card and it says, “How much do you weigh?”  =)

Of course, we would NEVER ask a friend how much they weigh, but if you knew you had to jump on the scales in front of your friend on a weekly basis in an effort for you to both lose weight, don’t you think you’d be a bit more disciplined?

In a recent post of a favorite magazine (Better Homes and Gardens), they talked about the New Year’s resolutions some may have made, such as weight loss or exercise.  The encouragement of the writer was to find someone to whom you could be accountable.  After all, if you know that someone else is going to be waiting for you at the bottom of the hill in your subdivision, you’ll be much more motivated to lace up your walking shoes.

Accountability is good advice.  It’s good in your spiritual life too.  Paul encouraged the Philippians in chapter 3 to mark them which walk so as you have us for an example.  He encourages them to follow his example to follow Christ, but to avoid them who are the enemies of the cross of Christ.

One way to follow Paul’s example, is to have a godly friend who will point you towards the right goals.  Lone Ranger Christians get lonely along the path of doing right.  They stand there in their “unlaced shoes, staring at a plate of donuts.”  Spiritual discipline is the last thing from their mind.  But for someone who has an accountability partner, they can ask the necessary questions to keep you on the spiritual jogging path.

What might you and a friend ask each other?  Consider:

These questions aren’t asked in an effort to be as rude as the woman on the card I saw, but in humility, we might need to ask someone to help us stay disciplined.  If we care enough to get a partner for our physical health, we understand even more the need for accountability in our spiritual life.

P.S. Hope your birthday is free of rude cards!  =)

Do you have someone that holds you accountable?  How does that work for you?

With love,

Silliness is sometimes the best ingredient in family fun.  I was recently reminded of a silly thing our Alli and her daddy would do every single day when she was in elementary school.

They had a name that they would lovingly call one another – it was Buster.  Then it got to be a game to see who could call the other person a Buster before the other.  They would creep out of bed, looking for one another, hiding, sneeking, and creeping around doors and hallways so they could jump out and YELL,

Pitchfork religion.  Ever heard of it?  It happens when someone hears preaching – let’s say on gossip, and they think of  Mrs. So-and-So, who is “the biggest gossip in town.”  The tendency is to think, “She sure needs to hear this message!” forgetting that her last phone conversation included talking about her neighbors who had just moved in.  In Pitchfork religion the application of the preaching is always for someone else, because, after all, it’s sure easier to see everyone else’s sins as worse than our own.

When Joshua, the great warrior of the Lord was dying, he gave commands to the children of Israel.  One directive was,

2 tsp vegetable oil
2 tsp butter
1 Cup chopped onion
1 Cup Green pepper, chopped
2 Garlic cloves, minced
8 Cups Frozen Hash browns, thawed
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 ounces diced ham
3/4 shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Heat oil and butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion; cook 5 minutes. Add bell pepper and garlic; cook 3 minutes. Add potatoes, salt, pepper, and ham; cook 16 minutes or until potatoes are golden brown, stirring occasionally. Top with cheese; cook 2 minutes or until cheese melts.

Now, on to dessert…

My husband could be a Cookie Monster.  In the day, he would devour a package of cookies in a sitting.  No more.  Now he’s far more conscious of how long it takes to remove the pounds!  But he does indulge in a single cookie with great delight.  One of his favorites is a soft sugar cookie with icing- the kind you see in the bakery section of the grocery store.  When I saw a recipe on Pinterest for Perfect Frosted Sugar Cookies, I knew he would love it if I made those for him.  I was right! =)

After I baked them, I put them in a freezer bag and popped them into the freezer.  When he wants a cookie, he just pulls one out and pops it into the microwave for a few seconds.  He says they’re every bit as good as the one at the bakery!  All they need is a glass of milk!

This recipe says it makes 1 dozen cookies, but those are huge. I made mine normal size and got a little more than 2 dozen.

• 2 1/2 cups cake flour
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup salted butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup all vegetable shortening (unflavored), at room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg white
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• 1 recipe Vanilla Frosting, recipe follows
Vanilla Frosting
• 1/3 cup salted butter, at room temperature
• 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 – 3 Tbsp half-and-half – or milk
• food coloring, optional

• Sift flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt into a large bowl, then whisk it just a few times, set aside. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, on medium speed, whip together butter, shortening and sugar until very pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scrapping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add in egg and mix until combine, then add egg white, vanilla and almond extract and mix until combine. With mixer running, slowly add in dry ingredients and mix just until combine. Transfer dough to an airtight container and refrigerate 2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 during the last 10 minutes of refrigeration.
• Scoop dough out an even 1/4 cup at a time (If you want BIG cookies)  and roll into a ball. Place dough ball on a lightly floured surface, sprinkle top lightly with flour, then using something flat and smooth (such as the storage container lid), press and evenly flatten dough to 1/2″ thick (so you should have about a 2 2/3″ – 2 3/4 ” circular cookie). Transfer flattened dough to a Silpat or buttered cookie sheet and repeat process with remaining dough (you’ll have to use 2 cookie sheets). Bake in preheated oven 9 – 11 minutes. Allow to cool 5 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool. Cool completely then frost with Vanilla Frosting (note that frosting begins to set quickly so if you are adding sprinkles, sprinkle each cookie immediately after frosting it, don’t frost the whole batch of cookies then try to sprinkle them because the sprinkles wont stick).
Vanilla Frosting
• Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer, whip until frosting is smooth and fluffy. Mix in food coloring if desired 

What is your fella’s favorite treat?  

From my parsonage kitchen,

                                            
Another great thing to make for the freezer is Waffles.  Bake them up, then let them cool.  Place in freezer bags with waxed paper in between layers.

                                              
Money Saving Mom posted a recipe for frozen biscuit dough.  I’m anxious to try them!

Do you freeze something I haven’t mentioned?

Be refreshed,