Brrrrr . . . it’s chilly out. I shouldn’t complain. I saw on the news that our friends on the east coast and mid-west are getting HAMMERED with winter weather. Honestly, it’s not quite light out yet, but when I took Moose out it seemed pretty clear and very crisp, so I bet it’s going to be a pretty day! I’m not sure whether that will make it better or worse to be at work . . . at least I have a window.
Verse of the Day
O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done marvelous things, things planned long ago.
Thoughts on the Verse of the Day
God’s actions are not reactions to current situations, but part of his long-term plan to bring redemption. Yes, he has done marvelous things: he took the evil intent of a mob who cried “Crucify him” and turned it into an opportunity to fulfill the prophets and redeem us. He is perfect in faithfulness and has done marvelous things.
Food for Thought
Have you ever had one of those dreams that haunts you into the days after you’ve had it? I’ve been having some disturbing dreams lately, and I don’t want to go into what they are, but they’ve had me waking up in tears more than once over the last few weeks and it makes me wonder why? I’ve checked with the person they are about, and they are OK, so now I wonder if I’m worrying for nothing, or am I being prepared for something? And if I’m being prepared for something, how am I going to handle it if it happens? Oooh, too much thinking so early in the morning.
Dentists Day – I have spent my whole life not liking going to the dentist. I’m sure I didn’t like it because as a child the dentist we had was pretty frightening and he consistently hurt me. It never a thought that going to the dentist WOULDN’T be scary or could be better. It was what it was. Timed moved on and I lucked out by finding a dentist who was amazing. I loved him, I loved his wife, I didn’t have any fear when I went to see him. Sadly, he passed away a few years ago and I was back in the market for a new dentist, and though I saw one for a couple of procedures, he turned out to be pretty awful, with the experience being unpleasant and expensive. Being in the process of getting an implant, I needed to find a new dentist quickly, and was referred by a good friend to an oral surgeon near here who fixed the mess up that the old didn’t did with my bone graft, and who knew my childhood dentist by reputation. His words stunned me. He said “Oh, you’re a *********** survivor.” Wow. That says it all, doesn’t it? In turn, he referred me to the dentist I am seeing now and, so far it’s going pretty well. And a bonus is that he has the most comfortable chairs I’ve ever sat in at the dentist. Score! Show some appreciation to your dentist today, or at least the next time you go see him/her. It has to be somewhat discouraging to be in a profession that scares and is dreaded almost universally.
National Dress Day – This day was started by designer Ashley Lauren as a way to relive and celebrate happy dress memories. Apparently certain dresses hold powerful emotion for women, such as proms, interviews, weddings, etc. OK, I can see that. She says that the stories behind the dresses make this day special. I can honestly say, except for the dress I wore when I married my 2nd husband, I don’t have any awesome dress memories. It just wasn’t something that I thought about. I did have an awesome suit with a skirt that I hung on to just in case I ever managed to get thin enough to wear it again – though I’m not holding my breath.
Unique Name Day – I have a somewhat unique name – at least it’s not a name you hear every day. My daughter for YEARS was the only Krianne anywhere. I just did a google search and was actually surprised to find three, including her. I figured it was just a matter of time. Unique names have their ups and downs though. On the good side, you are set apart from other names and being mistaken for someone else isn’t common. On the bad side, you can never, ever find anything that has a name stitched, printed or carved on it, with your name (You know, like vacation t-shirts, little license plates for bikes, etc.) unless they are special ordered. Where’s the fun in that? If you go to the beach you’d like to find something right then and there to take home. When she was in grade school she tried to get the other kids to call her by her middle name – which is Jade (also not common when she was born), but they weren’t cooperative. She would cry -“Why did you give me a weird name???” with tears streaming down her face. The teachers always mispronounced it, the other kids called her Crayon. It was ugly there for a little while. But she grew up and the name grew on her and everyone else – though most of us shortened it to Kri (kree) for normal conversation. I never could figure out why it was so hard? I mean, how many people mispronouce BRIANNE? It’s just a switch of 1 single letter to make KRIANNE, but doggone if it confounded most people! Today, if your name is unusual, celebrate it! Be happy that your parents thought outside the box – at least for this one day.
This Day in History –
1950 – Silly putty is invented.
1981 – Well known and loved Walter Cronkite signs off as anchorman off the CBS Evening News.
Food Celebration of the Day –
National Frozen Food Day – Today we celebrate all of those delicious foods and snacks that are hanging out in your freezers. The invention of the freezer definitely makes our lives easier and we can shop ahead when we find sales, but the methods and techniques of preparing and freezing foods is what makes them look and taste great. Clarence Birdseye kept vegetables outside while living in Canada, where they would instantly freeze. When they thawed out he noticed that they tasted fresh. His method of quick-freezing revolutionized the food industry. Can you imagine if he hadn’t? I make a lot of our meals from scratch, but there are definitely ingredients that I appreciate from the freezer for simplicity and speed. Here are some really delicious ideas from the folks at www.food.com/food-holidays to get you started on something for tonight’s dinner!
All-in-One Broccoli Macaroni & Cheese
Meatloaf Pie
Banana Berry Smoothie
Lighter Spicy GarlicShrimp
Mediterranean Chicken Paella
Creamy Chicken Casserole
National Oreo Cookie Day – Today is the 106th anniversary of the day Oreo cookies went on sale for the first time. It may surprise you that the chocolate and cream cookie has changed very little in its long life, the only thing really changing being a little a bit of variation in the design that is printed on the chocolate cookie on the outside. Nobody really knows the story behind how the Oreo got its name, but there are definitely theories about it. No matter where it got the name, the Oreo was still the best-selling cookie of the 20th century, with over 362 billion sold since March 6, 1912. We didn’t get that many store-bought cookies when I was growing up. Mom would usually bake them fresh for us, but once in awhile she’d bring home a package of them, and once in awhile they would be Oreos. (Dad preferred other sorts of cookies, so Oreos were pretty rare in our house.) The goal, as it is for a lot of folks, is to open up the cookie wafer, leaving the creamy part unmarked, eat the creamy center, THEN eat the cookies. It made them last longer and was fun! If you are an Oreo fan, I suggest stopping off and picking up a package today. If you are eating low carb, there are recipes out there for cookies that are similar to the Oreo. I printed up one but haven’t had the time to try it yet. Here’s the recipe, just in case you are interested in giving it a shot. Enjoy!
I’ve been doing pretty well getting out the door early enough not to have to feel rushed, and it’s been nice to get down the hill ahead of the Prius I usually get stuck behind that thinks getting even remotely close to the speed limit is not a good thing. If I want to do that again, I need to run! God bless you and I’ll see you tomorrow!
www.brownielocks.com www.holidayinsights.com www.foodimentary.com www.thenibble.com www.verseoftheday.com