Tag Archives: kids

Breakfast or Snack: Apple Oat Muffins

14 Mar

Twice in one week for a Karen's Cookbook recipe.

Friday afternoons and evenings tend to be chock full of after school activities for us, between dance classes and Daisy meetings. Therefore, I often try to choose that day if possible, to make a pretty solid after school snack for the kids, one that will last them until 7:45 when we usually get to eat dinner on Friday nights. Last week when I pulled out Karen’s Cookbook for the Taco Bake recipe, I flipped through it and saw her Apple Oat Muffins recipe and knew that’d be a perfect-and almost healthy-snack for that Friday afternoon. I even, gasp….threw in raisins instead of adding in chocolate chips the way I normally would. They were delicious, even though Alex picked out all the raisins, wondering what on earth those foreign objects were, since they neither looked nor tasted like a chocolate chip. The recipe is simple and I know you’ll love it!

You will love these super-moist muffins!

APPLE OAT MUFFINS
INGREDIENTS

1 cup flour

3 tsp. baking powder

1/4 cup shortening (I used 1/4 cup butter after looking up a substitution for shortening on the internet.)

1 cup quick oats

1 egg

1 cup milk

1/2 cup brown sugar

2-4 apples peeled and sliced

Cinnamon sugar for the tops (I have a shaker of this mix, so I sprinkled that on top.)

(raisins or craisins or chocolate chips are all good add-ins if you’re interested)

DIRECTIONS

Mix flour, baking powder and cut in shortening til coarse crumbs form.

Stir in oats.

Combine eggs, milk, and brown sugar, beat well.

Add dry ingredients and apples.

Spoon into baking cups and top with cinnamon & sugar

Bake at 425 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

The kids can always tell when they get home, if I've baked them a treat, and on this particular day, my house had a delicious smell. They knew right away that something good was in store for them!

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Bakerella’s Black Bottom Cupcakes

9 Mar

Bananas, cream cheese, chocolate. Seriously, could anything be better?

Did you ever just have one of those memories of something you ate in your childhood, but never had again? First of all, I have memories of things I’ve eaten, probably every day. But, things I’ve never had again but still remember? Not as often.

When I was younger my mom used to make these fabulous black bottom cream cheese brownies. They had chocolate chips in them. They were mouth-wateringly (is that a word?) delicious. My mouth is watering right now and all I’ve got is my bagel for lunch to satisfy it.

Anyways…I follow this blog, Bakerella, and in fact, she just announced this week that one of her recipes will be featured in the April Women’s Day Magazine. One day on her blog she posted these yummy looking Black Bottom Cupcakes, and just the photos on her blog made me want to make them THAT DAY, never mind the fact that they reminded me of my mom’s black bottom brownies of my youth.

So I did. I made them that very day.

They were SO GOOD.

And healthy! Yup, they have THREE bananas in them. That makes them in the fruits food group in my opinion.

After I made them, I passed the recipe along to my mom and she said, “Those remind me of the black bottom brownies I used to make.”

ME TOO!!

And now, I have her brownie recipe as well. I’ll make them soon and post that one too. Bonus.

In the meantime, here is the recipe for Bakerella’s Black Bottom Cupcakes. One thing to note: It says it made 18, but I ended up with 12. Twelve very large muffin-like brownie cupcakes. I think my muffin tin is too big. Other than that, they were quick and easy. Delicious, definitely a keeper, according to my family.

Now, my photos aren’t as amazing looking as hers, so definitely go over and see her recipe post too, so you can see what I mean.

Black Bottom Cupcakes

Two batters, two bowls.

Cream Cheese Mixture
 8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 small banana, pureed
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 oz. semisweet chocolate chips

Chocolate Mixture
 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large bananas, pureed
1/3 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

For the cream cheese mixture:

  • Beat cream cheese and sugar until nice and fluffy.
  • Add banana, egg and vanilla and mix together until combined.
  • Stir in chocolate chips and set aside.

I used my Pampered Chef scoop to do the chocolate batter.

For the chocolate mixture:

  • Sift together flour, cocoa, sugar, soda and salt using a wire whisk.
  • Add bananas, oil and vanilla and mix together on low until combined.
  • Use a large scoop to fill cupcake liners with batter.
  • Repeat topping the cupcake batter with the cream cheese mixture.

Bake for about 30 minutes or until done.

Makes about 18 cupcakes.

Recipe adapted from Great American Favorite Brand Name Cookbook, 1993.

See...mine were kinda large by the end! And of course, everyone had to fight over who would get the biggest one with all the chocolate chips from the bottom left corner.

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Cauliflower Au Gratin

8 Mar

Cauliflower AuGratin got four thumbs up this week. It was a recipe I found on Pinterest.

I have had Cauliflower Au Gratin before but I have never made it myself. I’ve never even thought of making it until I happened upon it while perusing Pinterest last week. As I’ve said before, I’m always on the lookout for new things to try, new ways to have “the same old thing.” I thought to myself, “Well, they like mac and cheese,” and figured I’d try this. That’s Mom logic for you.

Funny thing is, I was almost right. Overall, everyone except Alex loved it. Alex had peas though, so everyone was happy.

Here’s the recipe, straight from “Point-less Meals,”  the blog that I pinned on Pinterest. I did have to make some adjustments because of what I did or did not have in my house at the time I made it. I’ve noted them.

INGREDIENTS

serves 12 ( 4 points + )

3 pkgs. ( 16 oz each ) frozen cauliflower (I used a head of fresh, could’ve used two or three though.)
1 large onion, chopped (I used half a large onion.)
⅓ c. butter, cubed
⅓ c. flour
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. ground mustard
¼ tsp. pepper
2 c. skim milk (I had 1%)
½ c. grated Parmesan cheese

Topping:
½ c. whole wheat soft bread crumbs (I used plain bread crumbs)
2 T. butter, melted
¼ tsp. paprika
DIRECTIONS

Cook cauliflower in a Dutch oven with a little water; drain. (I steamed mine.)

Place cauliflower in the bottom of a 13 x 9 dish coated with cooking spray.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt butter. Add onions and cook until tender. Stir in flour, mustard, salt and pepper.

Gradually add milk, stirring and cooking until thickened. Remove from heat; add Parmesan cheese. Stir until blended.

Spread cheese mixture over cauliflower.

Mix bread crumbs with butter and paprika. Sprinkle over cheese mixture.

Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

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Purim 101

7 Mar

When I heard that these cookies could be made with chocolate chips as a filling, I knew I had to try them.

What’s Purim, you ask?

Well, at least that’s what I asked when my friend Pam said that I should include a Purim recipe on my blog for the upcoming Jewish holiday.

Not being Jewish, I had not even heard of Purim and definitely not of a cookie recipe to go with it. I asked Pam for an explanation and within a day or so, she sent me one, along with the recipe. It looked pretty easy and it said that you could use chocolate chips in it, so in my mind that meant I had to at least try it out so that I could include it on my blog in time for Purim. I figured that if the recipe was a keeper, I’d celebrate Purim every year!

Well, it wasn’t *exactly* a keeper, but if you watch TLC’s “Four Weddings,” where they rate the weddings on several different benchmarks, I’d say the overall score was a 7 out of 10. It was a very simple recipe, didn’t use a ton of utensils or bakeware (always good for someone without a dishwasher,) the batter was yummy and the cookies got all thumbs up from my kids. But, they didn’t come out looking “just like the picture,” when I Googled “Purim Cookies.” They didn’t hold their shape very well. Later when I re-read the recipe it said you could freeze them prior to baking them to get them to hold their shape when baking. I should’ve read more carefully, but even still I don’t think I would have taken the time to do the extra step, at least not without trying it out first.

Here’s what Pam sent me regarding the holiday:

Jewish Year 5772: sunset March 7, 2012 – nightfall March 8, 2012
The story of Purim is told in the Biblical book of Esther. The heroes of the story are Esther, a beautiful young Jewish woman living in Persia, and her cousin Mordecai, who raised her as if she were his daughter. Esther was taken to the house of Ahasuerus, King of Persia, to become part of his harem. King Ahasuerus loved Esther more than his other women and made Esther queen, but the king did not know that Esther was a Jew, because Mordecai told her not to reveal her identity.
The villain of the story is Haman, an arrogant, egotistical advisor to the king. Haman hated Mordecai because Mordecai refused to bow down to Haman, so Haman plotted to destroy the Jewish people. In a speech that is all too familiar to Jews, Haman told the king, “There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your realm. Their laws are different from those of every other people’s, and they do not observe the king’s laws; therefore it is not befitting the king to tolerate them.” Esther 3:8. The king gave the fate of the Jewish people to Haman, to do as he pleased to them. Haman planned to exterminate all of the Jews.

Strawberry filled

Mordecai persuaded Esther to speak to the king on behalf of the Jewish people. This was a dangerous thing for Esther to do, because anyone who came into the king’s presence without being summoned could be put to death, and she had not been summoned. Esther fasted for three days to prepare herself, then went into the king. He welcomed her. Later, she told him of Haman’s plot against her people. The Jewish people were saved, and Haman and his ten sons were hanged on the gallows that had been prepared for Mordecai.

And here is the recipe she sent:

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups butter or margarine, softened
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 6 tablespoons orange juice
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 (12 ounce) can poppyseed filling (people use raspberry or apricot jam, or even chocolate chips)

Refrigerate batter at least two hours.

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the orange juice and vanilla. Mix in the baking powder, then gradually stir in the flour until the dough forms a ball. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. I like to do mine overnight.
  2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
  3. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into 3 inch circles using a cookie cutter or drinking glass. Place circles on the prepared cookie sheets. Spoon 1 teaspoon of filling onto the center of each circle. (Any more and it will ooze out) Pinch the sides of each circle to form a triangle, covering as much of the filling as possible. The cookies may be frozen on the cookie sheets if desired to help retain their shape while cooking.
  4. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until light golden brown. These are best undercooked slightly. Cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

    Chocolate chip, blackberry, strawberry and apricot filled cookies.

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Chicken A La King

6 Mar

Thick, rich, creamy...all my favorite things!

This recipe is probably sooooo not healthy, but it’s really soooo delicious. It’s one that I got out of my “Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook” a few years back. I distinctly remember wanting to make something new and different that day and trying to find a recipe that I actually had everything for. This was that recipe. It’s really very good. Most of the time I make the “Cheesy Chicken A La King” version, which is listed below. I love Swiss Cheese and the combination of the Swiss and the Sherry is just amazing. It says to serve it on toast points, but I do my usual bed of rice or egg noodles. At least if you do egg noodles and someone doesn’t like the chicken, they’ve got pasta.

All the ingredients laid out, except the mushrooms.

CHICKEN A LA KING

Ingredients:

 1/4 cup margarine or butter

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms or one four ounce can of stemps and pieces, drained (I use fresh)

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1 3/4 cups milk

1 cup chicken broth

2 cups cubed cooked chicken or turkey

1/4 cup chopped pimiento (I don’t use this)

2 tablesppons dry sherry (optional but I always use it)

8 toast points or 4 baked patty shells (I use white rice or buttered egg noodles instead)

You'll be able to tell when the sauce is ready, it starts out very thin and then thickens.

Directions:

 In a saucepan melt margarine.

If using fresh mushrooms add mushrooms and cook til tender.

Stir in flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Add milk and chicken broth all at once.

Cook and stir til thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 1 minute more.

Add canned mushrooms if using.

Stir in chicken or turkey and pimiento and if desired, dry sherry.

Heat through and spoon atop toast points.

I always serve over rice or over egg noodles rather than toast.

Alternative: CHEESY CHICKEN A LA KING 

Prepare as above except add 1 cup shredded American or swiss cheese to the thickened mixture before adding the chicken or turkey and stir til cheese melts.

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Nature vs. Nurture and Alex’s List

5 Mar

Our youngest....

When you have a child, one of the first things you notice is how different life is, how different you yourself become. When you have more than one kid, you realize again how different life is, how different you are, and now, how different they each are from each other.

As most of you know, we have three daughters, no boys, and it always amazes me how different they each are, how individual they are despite the fact that we “raise them all the same.”

I’m amazed at who is daring, who is nurturing, who is cautious. Although they may each have indicators of being all of those things, they each have their strengths, weaknesses, and differences. It’s kind of like a science experiment, watching them grow.

As much as we both love to cook, we are strong supporters of the theory that we are not a restaurant, we are not short order cooks and therefore, we only make one meal per night. For the most part, all the kids like at least some part of each meal and if they are still hungry there’s always fruit, yogurt, cheese or cereal if needed. This seems to work out fine for the most part.

However, there’s Alex. Our lefty, our brown-eyed girl, our youngest daughter, our cutie-patootie. She’s always been the one to go off the beaten path, even when she was a baby. For the most part, she hates meat, almost all meats. Every now and again she’ll eat a bbq rib or a meatball, overall she seems to like ground beef and they all love fish. But chicken, or “the other chicken: pork,” or steak, cubed beef, no no and no again. She’s been this way since she started solid foods. We’ve always said she’s our little vegetarian, even though technically she does eat some meat, so yes we do realize she’s not *really* a vegetarian.

One night last week after dinner, when again she did not eat the meat (but had cheese instead) I called her over to me and said that I was beginning to worry because it seemed like she never really liked anything we ate for dinner, and that I was running out of ideas for things to make that she would like. After I said that she looked up at me with her big brown eyes, and she looked sad, like she was in trouble, even though she wasn’t. I instantly felt bad. She said to me, “Mommy, tomorrow I’m going to make you a list of all the things I like because there are more things I DO like than things I DON’T like.”

I love her. I could just eat her up.

Sure enough, the next day she came home from school, did her homework, and asked me for a sheet of loose leaf paper so that she could make me her list. It was so stinkin’ cute, I just had to share it here. I’ve translated it, although I put her original spelling first. I know that she’s left some things off of both lists, and I’m not so sure it helps me with planning out my meals a ton, but we did indeed have “spgety with met ball” for dinner that night.

She does like pizza...

ALEX’S LIST:

I Don’t Like…
corn
chickin   (chicken)
lefstovermacarone   (leftover macaroni)
star berry Jilly    (strawberry jelly)
opukot Jilly    (apricot jelly)
I Like….
frot          (fruit)
pee’s        (peas)
Frinch tost      (french toast)
walfle       (waffle)
pan  cake’s    (pancakes)
maciches     (mac and cheese)
pissa      (pizza)
spgety with met ball    (spaghetti with meatballs)
grild chees     (grilled cheese)
jicinagits    (chicken nuggets)
backin    (bacon)
saled    (salad)

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Donut Maker Update

2 Mar
Babyckaes Donut Maker

My new toy!

Back in January I posted on my blog about our New Year’s Eve Donut Wars. At the time we’d just received our Babycakes Donut Maker and it was our very first time using it. Now that we’ve had it a couple of months, I thought I’d put out a quick update letting you know what we’ve tried since then.

First of all, I am still a huge fan of the donut maker. It’s so much fun to use. To date we have used it three more times since that first time.

We used it in January with a pumpkin spice donut mix that my mother-in-law brought with her when she visited. Before making them that time though, we went to AC Moore and I bought a pastry bag with a tip to use when filling the donut wells. MUCH easier than using a ziploc bag. Caroline has become a pro at filling the wells. I use that time to make the frosting so that we can frost them while they’re slightly warm.

Everyone had their own donuts to frost, their own bowl of frosting and their own spoon.

The next time we used it was for a triple playdate after school. Once the word about us having a donut maker got out, “everyone” wanted to come over and try it out. I decided to bite the bullet and let each kid have one friend over after school all in one day. We’d make the donuts and let the six kids frost them. So later on in January that’s what we did. Although I wasn’t sure if it’d be too much for me to keep organized, it worked out fine. I mixed up the batter and while Caroline filled the wells, her friend helped me make the frosting (a double batch of frosting seems to be enough for all the donuts that one recipe yields.) Then when we were ready to frost, I gave each girl a plate, four donuts to frost, and a bowl of frosting with a spoon. They could do whatever they wanted with their four but couldn’t share with each other (I didn’t want to share germs if they’d been licking their spoons, fingers etc.) I put a common area in the center of the table for sprinkles and decorations. It worked out great. They could then eat their donuts when they were done, or save them to take home, or whatever they wished. It worked out great.

The kids like being able to decorate their donuts however they want to. I try to have plenty of sprinkles out.

Another thing I did differently for the playdate this time from other times, was I used the recipe that came in the box for the Sour Cream Donuts rather than a cake mix, and the recipe for their Chocolate Frosting instead of a tub of frosting. Both were very, very good and easy to make. It made the donuts truly taste like donuts, rather than like cupcakes, which is what happens if you use a cake mix. Both work fine, but if you’re looking for that donut taste, definitely try out their recipes.

Separate work stations for each kid seems to work out great; no cross contamination!

The next time we used it was for a cousins sleepover. We had one of our cousins sleep over during February Vacation Week and we thought it would be fun to make donuts with her for our movie night, and we were right, it was fun!

I used the exact same two recipes and did it the same way, with Caroline filling the wells while I made the frosting. I still kept it to four donuts per kid and we had more leftover, which I sent home with our cousin for her brothers.

Overall, we’ve really enjoyed the Babycakes Donut Maker! We’ve got Alex’s birthday coming up soon and she’s already said that she’d like donuts instead of cupcakes this year, so I’ll take it out again for that, if not sooner. I’m also anxious to try out the other recipes in their booklet. There’s a chocolate donut recipe, a maple donut recipe as well as vanilla glaze and maple glaze frosting recipes. Grandma Rose loves maple glazed donuts so we might just surprise her one day with some.

Now…if I could just get the Babycakes Cake Pop Maker……:)

Here are a couple of other “finished product” photos from our donut making experiences.

The "after" shot.

If you run out of or don't like frosting, there's always powdered sugar on top which is yummy!

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Food on the Table: A new website and a new pork chop recipe

1 Mar

We tried out a new pork chop recipe at our house recently.

We have a tough time with pork chops in our house. Don doesn’t love them, Alex hates almost all meat including “the other chicken, the pork kind,” and the other two kids sometimes love them and sometimes hate them. I personally love them. I try to make them on nights it’s just the girls and me, and I try to find new ways to make them all the time.

This most recent recipe was one that I got from a new website that’s out there now called Food on the Table.

The website allows you to search recipes, create meal plans, and will even make your list and search the local grocery stores for sales on the items on your list. It’s a comprehensive website.

They allow you to create a meal plan with up to three recipes per week for free. So far I have tried two of my three recipes. I liked this one and didn’t like the other one. I will be trying more recipes though.

This recipe is supposed to be for the grill, but since it’s winter and we are currently out of propane for our outdoor grill, we broiled inside instead.

I personally liked this recipe quite a bit. Don seemed to like it, for as much as he likes pork chops, and the kids gave it mixed reviews. Alex still hates meat.

If you try it, let me know what you think. And, if you try out Food on the Table, let me know what you think of that also.

GRILLED HONEY GARLIC PORK CHOPS

INGREDIENTS

1/3 cup ketchup

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup soy sauce (it says to make gluten free, use wheat free tamari.)

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 five to six ounce pork chops

salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS

Combine ketchup, honey, soy sauce and garlic. Set aside.

Lightly season pork with salt and pepper.

Brush each chop with sauce to coat.

Grill chops on grill, basting with sauce often for about 5 minutes on each side or until meat is cooked through.

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Chicken Bundles

28 Feb
Chicken bundles

You can stuff the chicken with just about anything you'd like. On this particular night I stuffed half with broccoli and half with spinach.

Back when I was a college student, I lived in a house with my friend Karen for a year. Because we were renting a full house, we had a full kitchen and we did lots of cooking. Correction: she did lots of cooking. I got several of my best recipes that I still use today, from her. When we moved out of our house at the end of that school year, she gave me a cookbook she’d made with some of my favorite recipes from her in it. Today’s recipe is one of those recipes that I got from Karen, and of course like all my favorite recipes, it’s super easy and super delicious.

The official name of it is Chicken Asparagus Bundles, but we have made them with either asparagus or broccoli or spinach and all have been great. It’s a fast recipe and when I made it last week after not having made it for a long, long time, it got five thumbs up here; a minor miracle. Even Alex, my meat-hater-since-birth, loved it. We served it with couscous that night, and a Caesar Salad on the side. On that particular night I split the bundles so that half contained broccoli and half contained spinach. Normally when we buy our frozen broccoli we buy Broccoli Florets. On one of our trips recently we accidentally bought Broccoli Cuts, which I hate because it’s almost all stems and very few florets (despite the package picture). This recipe was perfect for the cuts because I picked out all the florets to stuff half of the chicken bundles with, threw out all the stems, and then used frozen cut spinach for the rest of the chicken.

(As a total aside, this same cream cheese used here is fabulous for making stuffed mushrooms. Try it some day! Just stuff them, bake them, and eat them!)

Ingredients for Chicken Bundles

It was when I saw the cream cheese at Aldi's that I remembered this long-forgotten recipe. I hadn't made it in so long and I couldn't wait to make it!

INGREDIENTS

6 boneless chicken breast halves (I use chicken tenders.)

1 eight ounce container soft cream cheese with chives and onions

18 fresh asparagus stalks steamed until crisp tender OR thawed frozen broccoli OR thawed frozen cut leaf spinach. (I nuke the broccoli and/or the spinach to partially thaw them before stuffing the chicken.)

Butter

Paprika

Ready to go into the oven!

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Flatten breast halves to even thickness with mallet. (I don’t need to do that for the tenders.)

Trim asparagus stems to 4 inches, if using asparagus. If not, prepare the broccoli and/or the spinach.

Spread each breast half with about 2 Tablespoons of cream cheese. (Or spread about 1 Tablespoon onto a tender.)

Place your chosen veggies inside and wrap as shown here, forming a roll.

Place rolls seam-side down in a buttered baking  dish.

Place a small pat of butter on top of each bundle.
Bake 45 minutes, baste with pan drippings after 30 minutes.

To serve, spoon any melted cheese in pan over rolls, sprinkle with paprika. (I never sprinkle with paprika.)

Cooked and ready to serve. Enjoy!

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Lenten Sacrifices: what gives?

27 Feb

What to give up for Lent?

Last Wednesday was the start of Lent for our family and for many of our friends. It means that the Easter holiday is in just forty short days. Forty days to prepare yourself, however you choose to do so.

For many people, myself included, the big question is always “What should I give up for Lent this year?”

Last week, when I was in a particularly flippant and cynical mood, I posted on Facebook, saying that there wasn’t a whole lot to give up, and that as far as my beloved chocolate chips, well I just couldn’t go there. Not this year.

We live a pretty frugal lifestyle right now, so we sacrifice so much it seems, already. We only buy what we absolutely need, we only go out when we have freebies if at all possible, and we have given up pretty much everything, for just a short while longer. But, it leaves not a whole lot left to give up.

Or so I thought.

I was surprised though, my kids all chose something to give up, even though none of them are 14 so really, by the church’s rules, they don’t have to give up anything. We do abide by the no meat on Friday rule as a family though, so I guess it shouldn’t surprise me a whole lot that they wanted to partake in this part of Lent as well. Even if they don’t make it the whole 40 days with their sacrifices, I’m proud of them for trying.

And then came the question….

“Well Mommy, what are *you* giving up for Lent?”

BAM!!

There it was.

How could I not give something up for Lent if they all were? One was even giving up computer time. Gasp…I could never.

But I went back to that Facebook post from last week and re-read some of the answers that were there, this time I was in a more serious mood, less joking than I was when I originally posted, and I really began to consider them one by one, except Barbara’s who said to give up Facebook. Nope.

I liked the one from Dolores’ priest, who said to try to complain less. I don’t think I complain a lot, but then if you ask my family, it’s really all I do, in their opinion. 🙂 I guess I could try that one.

But there were several others that I liked also, people whose priests suggested adding positivity to your life by trying to do a particular something more often, something good, something positive. I liked that.

Another friend said their priest suggested trying to do something that’s hard to do normally, something that takes extra effort, whether it is being nice to someone you don’t like a lot, or something like that. Also a possibility.

We too, went to church on Ash Wednesday and our deacon said something I found interesting as well, he mentioned that you might start praying for someone who needs it, and you might not even know that person personally, but you might know of them and know they need the extra prayers, so you could add that into your day.  Very thought provoking idea.

However, one thing stuck out most from all the friendly comments and suggestions. Dolores’ priest said, “and if you fall off the wagon, get right back on and try again.”

I guess I liked that piece of advice the most because in my mind, no one is perfect. No one is successful every time, but it’s the thought and the effort that counts.

During this time of Lent, I think it’s more about taking the time to think and reflect and make the effort to work on something, whether you’re giving it up or adding it in. It is about making yourself a better person, or at least trying to be a better person. I know we all try to live our lives to be the best we can be, but I also know that for me personally, there’s always room for improvement. And who knows, it only takes three weeks to form a good habit or something like that, so if we do end up being successful for forty days, then maybe the new good habit or whatever change we make, will stick for the long term.

And that, a true Lenten lesson, was my takeaway from what originally started out as a flippant Facebook post. Think, reflect, try hard and then try harder.

And if at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.

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