A Smattering of Thought

I have been a terrible blogger!   In fact, I've been a terrible Twitterer as well (is that even a word?!)   I guess this just means I've been having too much fun with family and friends throughout the summer months rather than trying to post it for all to see/read. So, what have YOU been doing this summer?   Did you enjoy each sticky s'more, crackling bon-fire, infant giggle, toddler tickle war, annoying mosquito bite or were you too busy looking for the perfectly poised instagram shot to post for all to see?!

A long hallway... Many doors... A variety of choices... Can I put my ear to the door to determine what could be on the other side? What if I lie down and look under the door, will it help me choose? Do I feel...    Restless?    Scared?    Confident? Or am I standing in the middle of the hall like this picture with my arms raised high to worship the One who placed me in the hall? In all honesty, I may be in the hallway a long time.  That time-frame is not determined by me.  The options behind each door are evasive and unknown, and there is a part of me that does not care.   If my heart is focused on worshiping and surrendering to my God and Savior,  does it really matter what's on the other side?  My response to the joys/pains/struggles/victories that are behind each door will be determined by my attitude while I stand on the outside. What about you?  How will you spend your time in the hallway?

...the new look of Sarabella's! So excited about this new logo!! I am already starting to dream about how to design a storefront {someday}!   Now is the fun {and tasty} task of perfecting my product , trying new recipes  and branding !  My love for Italy will certainly make its way into several aspects of my branding, especially with fun, delicious combinations. Some signature flavors will be: Cannoli Tiramisu Carmel Macchiato Limoncello Stracciatella Bacio

Still trying to figure out how to actual register the name and a myriad of other details, but now I have a name! Now the orders should start flowing in, right?!

Single circles. Intersecting circles. Combined circles. Circles have been on my mind for a few weeks. {No, my life is not running in circles, although I feel that way at times.}  We recently had a women’s conference at our church that used circles as its focal point as a picture of the beginning of revival…the individual.  If we want to see change in the world around us, we had better be willing to be the first changed.  Hard.  Painful.  Freeing.  Scary. This first step is so important regardless of the pain it may cause.  See, we are not supposed to stay the same as we were a year ago…we are called to grow, change.  To be transformed by God through the renewing of our mind found (Romans 12:2).  This transformation is unlike the caterpillar turning into a butterfly, it requires work, effort, tears, and surrender.  However, unlike the caterpillar, we are not alone in our cocoon waiting for transformation.  Whew!...

I never really thought myself to be a prideful person, until I read the following at a conference this past weekend.   Yikes! Look over this long list and evaluate yourself.   Then, do not sit and wallow in your pride or ignore your pride; surrender and seek the Lord to become broken.  In the end, everything we do should be for His honor and glory, not our own. P roud people focus on the failures of others. Broken people are overwhelmed with a sense of their own spiritual need. Proud people have a critical, fault-finding spirit; they look at everyone else’s faults with a microscope but their own with a telescope. Broken people are compassionate; they forgive much because they know how much they have been forgiven. Proud people are self-righteous; they look down on others. Broken people esteem all others better than themselves. Proud people have an independent, self-sufficient spirit. Broken people have a dependent spirit; they recognize their need for ot...

This past month has been a lot of fun trying new recipes, perfecting technique and enjoying some creative moments!  I am slowing putting together my favorite flavors and recipes.   I have just begun to get the word out about making cupcakes for others and February turned into a very fun-filled month.   My first creative project was some ninja cupcakes.    Since I am not familiar with what they look like, Google Images helped me find a great example which seemed fairly easy to execute. The cake itself seemed a little more dense that I would have liked, but the flavor was delicious, as only  sticks of butter can do.  The frosting was a simple cream cheese frosting and didn't hold its shape as well as I'd like. I used a small writing tip for the blue frosting and a small petal tip for the black frosting to make it look like strips of fabric. The next project was for another family at my church whose son was having a...

Life around us swirls with activity.  If you were to stand on a busy sidewalk in the middle of Chicago you would feel the rush of busyness.  The crush of people and the quickness of their pace will literally blow your hair back. Always something to do, somewhere to go, someone to visit/help, some organization to volunteer with, a blog to write, a craft to make, exercise, shopping, coffee dates, Bible study, church activities, school functions, etc.   Life is busy .  Striving to maintain a household is busy enough without having to add more (and I only have one person to take care of).  Many of these activities are worthy, important and necessary, however, there comes a time with a line in the sand needs to be drawn.  This little word with power has slowly crept back into my vocabulary has given me freedom again.  It is not lengthy and will certainly not gain you many points on Scrabble or Words with Friends, but it is equally liberating and scary. ...

I wonder what it would look like to work in my very own bakery?   Would I really walk through the day on a cloud of flour dust, breathing in the wonderful aroma of warm almond or would I stumble over scattered pots and mixing bowls in an attempt to beat the angry buzzer on the oven before my red velvet cupcakes turned to a deep maroon? {phone rings and brings me back to reality}   Hmm...maybe one day.   However, if you are in the area and need some homemade cupcakes, let me know! I don't fancy myself an expert pasty chef and fondant/gum paste are not my friends, but a good, moist cake with buttery frosting I can do! Here is a sample of some things I have created.   On this blistery cold day, a little sugar might brighten our mood!

Have you ever wondered at the vastness of our galaxy?   Have you wondered how big the earth is in comparison to its surroundings?   Louie Giglio did an amazing job with the video below.  If you have not seen this video, please take time to watch it.  If you have children, bring them in and watch it together. How Great is Our God by Louie Giglio WOW!  I mean really WOW!   Did you feel as insignificant I as did?  We are this small blip on a golf ball in the vastness of the galaxy, and yet this amazing, Creator God made us in His image.  He made us with the intention of a relationship.  He thought about us, we were not created by accident or chance or mishap, it was intentional.   Though I cognitively know this, my sinfulness takes over and I think He does not care, does not listen or is not aware of my trials.  Oh how wrong I am.  Louie closes with a passage from Isaiah, read it below.   ...

It is hard to believe that 20 years have passed since I escaped graduated high school.  Many study halls & algebra classes were spent daydreaming about what my life would look like as “an adult”.  A beautiful house with a white picket fence, a handful of impeccably dressed and well-behaved children frolicking on the lush green grass while my hot handsome husband brings  me a glass of lemonade while I blissfully lounge on the hammock during a warm spring day {ignoring the mound of laundry and dinner burning in the oven}.   Ahh…this is the life! Okay, so maybe not reality, but it was a daydream!  Most teen girls envision themselves married with a family, or at least I did.  I certainly did not picture my life single and living on my own.  Each of these pictures can be electrifyingly freeing or devastatingly hindering.  Neither one is picture perfect.  Neither one is better than the other one.  As I look at my prese...