Hey, all! I got home not too long ago from lunch with my friend, Emily. We planned on eating at Thundercloud Subs with our boys, but we made a last minute change and went to the Cheesecake Factory. What a treat for us two moms to enjoy a tasty lunch and cheesecake (of course!) with some good little boys, who enjoyed playing outside in the dirt just prior to our meal. If I was quick enough, I would have taken a picture of the boys crawling together; Parker (1.5 years old) reverted back to crawling to play with Brennan and encourage him along. It was awesome!

I brought home a piece of cheesecake for Matt, but I have yet to determine if I’ll actually share that bit of information with him. If he reads this before tonight, then I’ll let him have it. But if somehow that cheesecake gets left in the fridge through the night, well, too bad, babe. <grin>

I just have a few, fun random links and quotes to mention to you that you might find interesting.

I’ve immensely enjoyed some of Pioneer Woman’s recipes lately. They’re simple and yummy. If you’re in the mood for a filling soup to warm your innards, look no further than her Simple, Hearty Chicken and Rice Soup (the only thing I omitted was the food coloring). I’ve also tried her pot roast, which was simple and so good. The meat was very tender and flavorful. It was delightfully aromatic as well. Brennan was most keen on the carrots in the pot roast and absolutely loves the chicken and rice soup.

My dear neighbor has made these pretzel treats for us for some Christmas goodies, and I am IN LOVE! Last year, I ate the entire bag she gave us before Matt got home from work. Do you see a trend here? He either tattled on me or I confessed my addiction to those suckers (I don’t remember which it was) because she sweetly made us more! This year, I made sure Matt got a couple. Literally. They were gone the same night she gave them to us though. I have since made some for gifts and yes, for me to munch on occasionally, too. They are amazing. And terrifyingly addicting! Are you all making any Christmas treats that you love?

I know it may seem like I just emerged from a cave, but I recently discovered Pandora, the live music stream radio through the Internet. I have a whole new slew of Christmas music to listen to! Do you all have any favorite stations you listen to?

I mentioned in my last post about the Advent readings we’re going through as a family. Last Tuesday, the theme of the Scripture verses (Isaiah 13:9-14; Matthew 24:27-32; Revelation 6:1-3, 12-17) was “The Coming of the Lord”. Along with the verses was a quote from Dietrich Bonheoffer's The Coming of Jesus in our Midst. It was stirring and thought-provoking, definitely worth pondering:

We have been so accustomed to the idea of divine love and of God’s coming at Christmas that we no longer feel the shiver of fear that God’s coming should arouse in us. We are indifferent to the message, taking only the pleasant and agreeable out of it and forgetting the serious aspect, that the God of the world draws near to the people of our little earth and lays claim to us. The coming of God is truly not only glad tidings, but first of all frightening news for everyone who has a conscience…Only when we have felt the terror of the matter can we recognize the incomparable kindness. God comes into the very midst of evil and of death and judges the evil in us and in the world. And by judging us God cleanses and sanctifies us, comes to us with grace and love. God makes us happy as only children can be happy. God wants always to be with us, wherever we may be—in our sin, in our suffering and death. We are no longer alone; God is with us.

Ok, I need to start keeping a running list of random musings so I’m not relying on my increasingly unreliable memory. But this will have to suffice for now. We’re headed out for a walk with Miss Molly, and for fun, I think I’ll put her Christmas jingle bell collar on. She might hate me forever for it, though.