attitude shmatitude.....

Remember, a good attitude produces good results, a fair attitude fair results, a poor attitude poor results. We each shape our own life, and the shape of it is determined largely by our attitude."

--M. Russell Ballard

Not so long ago I posted about my "gallon challenge".  Needless to say it has been challenging for me.  Especially to my attitude.  My Martha attitude that says everything should be just so.  Almost perfect even.  The list made, neatly of course, and on pretty paper.  All the little check marks in a row to show myself just how efficient I have been. 

So far it hasn't been working out so well for me. 

I have needed an attitude adjustment.  Coming across this quote from Elder Ballard reminded me.  I have a good attitude towards many of lifes challenges.  Hope even.  But with this gallon challenge my attitude had been fair to poor.  No wonder I have been discouraged.  I needed this reminder. 

stolen thoughts.....

"Think about your particular assignment at this time in your life. It may be to get an education, it may be to rear children, it may be to be a grandparent, it may be to care for and relieve the suffering of someone you love, it may be to do a job in the most excellent way possible, it may be to support someone who has a difficult assignment of their own. Our assignments are varied and they change from time to time. Don't take them lightly. Give them your full heart and energy. Do them with enthusiasm. Do whatever you have to do this week with your whole heart and soul. To do less than this will leave you with an empty feeling."

--Marjorie Pay Hinckley

 

Blind Baking.....part three in a series

Blind Baking : the process of baking a pie crust without the filling

"Sometimes, when you're dealing with a fragile dough, it will collapse in spite of your best intentions. For this reason, some pie crusts and tart shells must be baked before the filling is added.  The best method is to line the tart pan or pie plate with the rolled-out dough and place it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.  When you are ready to bake, prick the crust in several spots with a fork, line the pie plate or tart shell with foil or parchment paper, and fill it with rice or dried beans.  Bake as directed, than carefully remove the foil and the beans - the shell will have retained its form because of them.  I like seeing how a substance that weighs heavily can, in the end, be lifted; I like the feel of the beans, like trouble that slips through your fingers.  Most of all, I like the proof in the pastry: it is the things we have to bear that shape us".

* from Jodi Picoult

Handle With Care

Personalities are like pastry. 

Some are flaky. 

Some tough. 

Some you wouldn't want to meet again. 

Some you just can't get enough of. 

No two people quite exactly the same. 

Although we are all created in His image, it is lifes lessons that shape us.  Lessons learned from parents.  teachers.  friends.  mistakes.

Things that weigh us down are truly helping us to form.

I need to remember this. 

*get the recipe here

Folding.....part two in a series

Folding: a gentle process in which one mixture is added to another, using a large metal spoon or spatula.

"Most of the time when you talk aobut folding, it involves an edge. You fold laundry, you fold notes inhalf.  With batter, it's different: you bring two diverse substances together, but that space between them doesn't completely disappear - a mixture that's been folded the right way is light, airy, the parts still getting to know each other.

It's a combination on the cusp, as one mixture yields to the other. Think of a bad hand of poker, of an argument, of any situation where one party simply gives in".

*from Jodi Picoult

Handle With Care

Our family is like this.  Folded together.  His. Hers.  Two diverse families folded together by us.  There have been edges, some rougher than others.  Different parenting styles, bedtimes, rules, expectations.  Some defensiveness.  Many discussions.  Fortunately through the years no large spoons or spatulas have been used as diciplinary devices - yet.  Twelve years later the space still hasn't disappeared between the kids.  One who is a loner.  Four who are on their own.  Two who are sorta like twins.  For how young they were when our families combined none of them really joined forces.  An invisible line remains.  Maybe that line is loyalty to "the other parent".  Maybe they are still getting to know each other and will combine as adults when they have children of their own.  All in all our family hasn't folded together quite the way I had thought.  Ultimately I have been the one to fold, to give in.  Mostly my expectations.....life is not bad.  But, it is not what I had imagined either, and finally I am okay with that.  But I am still holding out (just a little bit) for that perfect combination.

*find the recipe here

Tempering...first in a series

Tempering: to heat slowly and gradually.

"Most of the time when we talk about a temper, we mean a quickness to anger. In cooking, though, tempering is about making something stronger by taking your time. You temper eggs by adding a hot liquid in small increments. The idea is to raise their temperature without causing them to curdle. The result is a stirred custard that can be used as a dessert sauce or incorporated into a dessert.

Here's something interesting: the consistency of the finished product has nothing to do with the type of liquid used to heat it. The more eggs you use, the thicker and richer the final product will be.

Or in other words, it's the substance you've got when you start that determines the outcome".

 * from Jodi Picoult

Handle With Care

Marriage is like tempering.

Two different people. 

Two personalaties. 

Combined.
A little at a time.
Slowly.
Day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute.
Strengthening each other.

My marriage is like this.  With an exception.  We are more alike than different.  Which means less tempering has been required.  We combined (at least the two of us) rather effortlessly.  Less arguments.  Not many fights.  Really.  I hope and pray that we are made stronger, over time and thru trials.  Unlike making a custard we haven't been able to choose how "hot" our trials are, what they will be or when they will come.  But we have endured (more than our share in my opinion).  What we have now almost 12 years later is sweet.  A perfect custard to savor together.  Because we started with the right ingredients in the beginning.......

*find the recipe here

shining moments....

Sometimes life feels this way.

I love this quote by Anna Quindlen.

Elder M. Russell Ballard quoted her in my favorite talk -

"Author Anna Quindlen reminds us not to rush past the fleeting moments. {or the so called basket-head mother syndrome} She said: “The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make. . . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less”(Loud and Clear [2004], 10–11).

What have I missed out on because I was so busy looking forward? Right now I'm not sure, I'm trying to recall. There always seems to be so much has happening I find it difficult to remember. Blogging helps. I wish I had started sooner, but later must be better than never!

I am working on living in the moment, enjoying the little things, slowly but surely I will get there.