Weekend Wrap-Up

today, i got to sit beside my husband in church.

i know, not very earth-shattering news,

but, in our line of work

{church ministry}

it is a bit different from our norm.

{it was so nice}

to hear my husband's voice singing next to me

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

but, even though most Sunday morning's i'm found trying to find someone to sit next to,

it's so, so, so worth it.

however, i will enjoy the once-a-year mornings that we can ride together.

sing together.

worship together.

 

matt, the absolute love of my life, and myself.

a moment of honesty

{this post deviates a bit from my norm here on my blog...

i'm a bit hesitant, honestly, to share it.

but, I've been reading a couple of other blogs of pastor's wives and their honesty and glimpses into ministry are so refreshing and interesting. so, I thought I'd share a bit of our minsitry life with you.

even though I'm tempted to just hit "delete post" right.this.second. eek!}

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six years ago my husband graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary 

with a masters of theology.

one of my favorite pictures of Matt and myself, taken on his graduation weekend.  Dallas, May, 2005.

{and for the record? we absolutely loved Dallas. 

loved the educaction and the experiences. seriously.

Miss Dallas life, but definitely am a midwestern girl at heart 

and am happy to be back home again}.

we have served in full-time church ministry since then.

Through {just} six years of ministry, I have learned a lot. 

we have learned a lot. for the better and for the worse.

the position of "pastor's wife" can be a hard one, but also a really, really rewarding one.

I have lots and lots I could share, but today, I'm going to say one thing.  

one thing that you could do that could really encourage the pastor's wife of the church you attend.

{sit by her.}

seriously. that easy.

I may be the only pastor's wife that feels like this, but for me, 

it's kinda awkward to figure out where to sit.

{I know, seriously, this sound so small and insignificant. 

it's not. trust me}.

I walk into the sanctuary on a Sunday morning, 

{or even for special meetings, dinners, events}

saying hi to as many people as I can, making an effort to greet as many people as I can

{but then, at some point, I gotta sit.}

if I sit by the same person every week I feel like I'm going to play favorites.

sometimes I feel like I'll interrupt people's families or friends or groups if I sit down next to them.

 if I sit by myself I feel like people are going think I'm cold or isolating.

seriously, this whole where-to-sit issue?

i'm sure i over-analyze it.

but also? for me, at least?

it can feel really, really awkward.

{to be super honest for a moment? sometimes I seriously make a point of getting a last-minute-cup-of-coffee just to be able to sneak in the back and avoid this whole issue}.

So, this Sunday?

sit by your pastor's wife during church.

it will make her feel more normal.

less isolated. less like the odd-man-out.

i promise.

and then? tell me if you do. 

and I'll say thank-you on her behalf.

Another Pancake Night!

Saturday night

usually means pancake night in our household.

cheap, easy, fast.

which is completely what our family needs as we head into Sunday morning!

Tonight was pancake night, blueberry style.

One of my favorite pancake tips?

I usually have my own "pancake mix" ready-to-go.

When I measure dry ingredients out to make a batch of pancakes,

I'll measure the same ingredients into 2 or 3 other bowls.

then dump the extra bowls into ziploc baggies and label them.

That way, on nights like tonight, when we're even more busy than normal

and the kids are more tired and need more attention 

and my house is a lego explosion so I can barely walk through the kitchen

all I have to do is dump the bag out, add the milk, egg, butter,

and cook.

{I happened to run out of baking powder when I made this - I do usually add all of the dry ingredients together!}

For some reason, having the dry ingredients pre-mixed makes the whole process way simpler.

{I do this for muffins, too! my own muffin mix!}

I haven't bought Bisquick or other pancake mix in years

because of this tip my mom taught me.

hope it helps you, too!

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notice the blog name change?
more about that tomorrow.

Rachel Ray's Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes

I've mentioned before how much these 2 love pancakes.
Seriously. They love them.

 so, Saturday evenings are usually pancake evenings in our house!

you see, our Saturday evenings are probably a bit different than most.

{I'm usually ironing clothes, finding pants, picking out hair bows, tracking down hair bows, figuring out which shirt to wear with what skirt, making sure the kids are as calm as possible to try to avoid a Saturday night ER visit -we came close to that a few weeks ago with a mouth and coffee table incident!- and making sure I know where my keys are.}

{seriously, I've almost been late to church because I couldn't find keys. It's nuts. I know.}

So, the last thing I want to do is worry about breakfast on Sunday morning!

Thus, Saturday night pancakes = Sunday morning leftovers.

My latest favorite recipe is Rachael Ray's Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes.

Sweet and moist! Super yummy. 

And the pink Gracie monster?

As grant {sometimes not so} affectionately calls her?

She's the picky eater in our household, and she ate these pancakes for 3 meals in a row.

Hey, it's oats, milk, and banana.

Decently healthy, right?

You try them and let me know what you think.

And hope your Saturday evening goes smoother than ours invariably is,

even with my attempts at calmness!

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Rachael Ray's Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes:

1 cup old fashioned oats

1 cup flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3/4 cup sour cream

{I used light sour cream with no issues!}

3/4 cup milk

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 really ripe bananas, mashed up

1/2 stick butter (1/4 cup), melted

Mix dry ingredients, the first 7, in a bowl. In a another bowl, mix the wet ingredients, the next 4. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry until just combined, then fold in the mashed up bananas and the raisins. Stir in the melted butter. 

Heat a griddle over medium heat and brush with additional melted butter. Cook pancakes, each about 1/3 cup, until bubbles form on the top, then turn. Cakes will cook in about 2 minutes on each side. Keep pancakes tented with foil as they come off the griddle to keep them hot. Serve with drizzled honey or maple syrup over the top.

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Enjoy!!