Beaches, Bread and Books: what I'm thankful for this week

Hello friend!

Come in, grab a cuppa! For myself, I have a delicious mug of camomile and spiced apple in front of me. It's a favourite.

As I've said, I've been making plans for this blog and this post is the first step towards implementing them. The goal is to post a blog talking about what I'm thanking God for each week. I can't promise to post every single week to begin with, but I'll definitely post once a fortnight. As well as that, I will slowly start building up the regularity with which I post about other things. But that's for another time.

For now: what am I thanking God for this week?

First of all, this week had been a mostly good week, so there is actually an awful lot that I'm thankful for. I'll try to keep the words short and have lots of pictures.

Some dear friends of mine were away on holiday for most of the week. They had asked me to look after their animals while they were gone, which was a privilege. It was wonderful to start each day by visiting their house; interacting with their animals; exploring their garden; and spending time reading, writing and praying.

I was also able to spend some time with family this week. I visited my parents and youngest sister on Monday and on Tuesday my grandparents came to see me. We headed to the beach, enjoyed a delicious meal and wonderfully warm weather for a stroll along the beach!

I was also able to bake some bread, cook a nice dinner to share with friends and organise my journals - it was a productive couple of days, which I'm so thankful for!

Other joys included spending more time in my own garden and discovery delights like a bird bathing in a rain filled wheelbarrow; a cheeky cockatoo stealing our lemons; roses fallen to the ground; and just lying on my back watching the clouds through the trees.

And I would be remiss if I didn't mention the way my week started on Sunday and ended last night: stretched out on a blanket, eating chocolate and chatting with friends about anything and everything. And the joys of welcoming home two dear housemates who have both been away for far too long! Welcome home, loves :)

So what about you, dear reader? What are you grateful for this week? Let me know in the comments below!

With love (and tea),
Laura Dee

A Beautiful Mess

There's  a  pool  of  egg  white  on  the  stovetop,  a  sprinkling  of  icing  sugar  covering  the  bench  top,  Friand  mixture  splatters  pretty  much  everywhere,  chocolate  stains  on  my  apron,  cheesecake  mixture  on  a  shopping  bag,  a  stack  of  dishes  in  the  sink  and  my  hands  are  stained  raspberry  red.

You  could  say  it  is  a  bit  of  a  mess.

But  for  some  reason,  I  don't  seem  to  mind.

It  isn't  bothering  me  that  there  is  a  mess  there  for  me  to  clean  up.

In  fact,  the  mess  seems  almost  beautiful.

Perhaps  because  it  seems  worth  it  when  I  think  of  the  Raspberry  Cheesecake  Brownies  cooling  on  the  bench  and  the  Mini  Raspberry  Friands  due  to  go  into  the  oven.

And  of  the  friends  coming  over  tonight  and  how  much  they  are  going  to  enjoy  eating  the  foods  I've  made  3  hours,  2  trips  to  the  shop  and  1  messy  kitchen  later  (and  at  least  1  load  of  dishes  already  done,  courtesy  of  Dad).

And  it  occurs  to  me  that  there  have  been  times  when  the  kitchen  has  been  less  messy  and  I've  been  more  stressed  about  it.  For  a  second  I  wonder  why.

Then  I  realize:

those  times  when  a  small  splatter  of  egg  stressed  me  out,  or  a  dash  of  flour  has  me  rushing  for  the  cloth,  or  the  sizzling  of  water  hitting  a  hot  ring  has  me  rubbing  my  forehead  anxiously,  have  been  the  times  when  I've  been  so  focused  on  the  process  of  cooking,  on  the  process  of  cleaning  that  I've  lost  sight  of  just  what  it  is  I'm  cooking,  and  just  why  it  is  I'm  cooking  it.

When  I've  forgotten  the  big  picture  and  been  caught  up  in  the  minute,  that's  when  I've  gotten  the  most  stressed.

And  suddenly  I  realize  that  I'm  not  just  thinking  about  the  cooking,  I'm  thinking  about  all  of  my  life.

When  I've  forgotten  what  God has  done  for  me,  when  I've  taken  my  eyes  off  of  God's  promises,  when  I've  overlooked  God's  glory  those  are  the  times  when  my  pain  has  overwhelmed  me.  When  I've  stressed  the  most.  When  I've  hated  myself  the  most.

Because  I've  forgotten  the  big  picture  and  been  caught  up  in  the  minute.

And  the  minute  only  matters  if  you  see  God  in it.

If  you  see  His  Greatness  and  His  Grace.

And  they  say  it's  not  the  destination  that  matters,  but  the  journey.

But  I  don't  think  that's  true.

It's  the  destination  that  makes  the  journey  worth  while.

What  does  it  matter  what  lessons  we  learn,  what  mistakes  we  make,  what  things  we  see,  what  we  experience,  if  we  never  arrive  anywhere?

If  it  doesn't  actually  go  towards  anything?

And  just  focusing  on  the  journey,  well,  it  bogs  you  down  and  stresses  you  out  and  you  can  forget  why  you  ever  started  on  it  and  give  up,  and  then  never  reach  the  destination.

And  you  miss  out.

You  miss  out  big  time.

Because  when  you  journey  with  God,  it's  not  about  the  journey.  It's  about  who  He  makes  you,  where  He's  taking  you,  and  who  He  is.

And  contrary  to  the  "it's  the  journey,  not  the  destination"  mentality,  Paul  urges  us  to  fix  our  eyes  on  the  prize,  to  run  the  race,  to  fight  the  good  fight  and  to  never  give  up.  And  Peter  and  John,  well,  they  urge  us  to  keep  growing,  keep  moving,  because  where  we're  moving  too,  who  we're  moving  to  is  worth  all  the  pain,  all  the  agony,  all  the  mess.

It's  not  the  journey  that  matters,  it's  the  destination.  Because  the  destination  gives  the  journey  meaning,  and  the  journey  leads  to  the  destination.

And  the  mess  is  beautiful  not  because  of  any  beauty  it  inherently  has,  but  because  the  mess  is  part  of  something  bigger.  Something  better.

Thanksgiving #47 - Puffs of florr, egg spills, and yummy goodness

So,  yesterday  afternoon,  after  I  finished  my  exam,  I  came  home  via  the  shops,  grabbing  some  cake  mixes  and  some  eggs.

I  was  so  excited!  After  a  week  of  stressing  and  exams,  I  was  going  to  spend  my  afternoon  doing  one  of  the  things  I  love  most  -  baking!

I  love  it  so  much.

I  love  measuring  ingredients,  I  love  mixing  ingredients,  I  love  "taste-testing"  the  mixture,  I  love  putting  the  mixture  into  whatever  cooking  container  is  necessary  to  bake  it  in,  sliding  it  into  the  oven,    waiting  while  the  house  slowly  fills  of  the  delicious  smells  of  whatever  is  baking,  and  then  eating  a  little  bit  of  whatever  was  baked  just  after  it  has  come  out  of  the  oven.

Most  of  all,  I  love  sharing  what  I  have  baked  with  other  people  and  watching  their  reactions  of  enjoyment  and  delight.

And,  yesterday,  I  had  the  joy  of  baking  25  strawberry  cupcakes  in  order  to  share  later  today  at  the  wedding  of  some  very  dear  friends  of  mine.

I  had  so  much  fun.

And  I  realized,  I  am  so  grateful  that  I  am  able  to  cook.

First  of  all,  I  am  grateful  that  I  personally  have  the  capability  of  preparing  good  food  for  people  to  enjoy.

I  am  grateful  that  I  have  the  wide  range  of  ingredients  at  my  disposal  that  I  do.

I  am  grateful  for  packet  mixes,  because  they  mean  I  can  still  bake  even  if  I  don't  have  hours  to  spend  on  it.

I  am  so  very  thankful  for  my  nose  and  sense  of  smell,  and  for  my  tastebuds,  because  it  means  I  can  enjoy  the  smell  and  taste  of  my  food.

And  I  am  very  grateful  that  God  decided  food  should  smell  and  taste  good.

And  sure,  baking  can  make  a  mess.  Especially  when  a  complicated  recipe  is  in  use.

Sure  the  bench  can  end  up  covered  with  drops  of  eggs,  puffs  of  flour,  spills  of  sugar,  splashes  of  melted  chocolate,  smears  of  margarine  and  eggshells.  And  sure  my  hands  can  get  stick  and  my  cheek  caked  with  a  but  of  dough  and  my  clothes  covered with  floor.

But  somehow,  the  fun  and  delight  of  baking  for  others  makes  all  that  mess  not  only  unimportant  but  a  joy  -  even  if  I  do  whine  about having  to  clean  it  up!

And  so,  today,  with  Christmas  on  the  47th  day  from  now,  I  just  want  to  take  a  moment  to  thank  God  for  baking  and baked  goods.

And  keep  an  eye  out  for  news  and  celebrations  of the  wedding!!