Today

Some days I think that having kids is the coolest thing I have ever done.

Today is one of those days. 

Yep...this is a good one

Love this spinach dip. This dip was shared with me by Julie almost 3 years ago and it has been my go-to dip ever since. And I feel like its healthy. I mean, it has spinach and artichokes and no mayo (which most spinach and artichoke dips have) Although, I do believe the brick of cream cheese and Parmesan cheese may not be the most heart healthy.
Anyway we had it this weekend and I was reminded of the beauty that this dip and a chip can produce. LOVE it!
Enjoy

Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip

6oz Chopped Artichoke Hearts

½ c frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1package cream cheese

½ cup Parmesan Cheese

½ tsp salt

½ tsp Red Pepper Flakes

1/8 tsp pepper

1/8 tsp garlic powder

Boil artichoke hearts and spinach in one cup of water over medium heat until tender( you don’t really have to do this…I never do. I just drain them and add them to the mix); drain. Warm cream cheese in microwave. Mix drained artichoke mixture to cream cheese and add remaining ingredients. Serve Warm

Makes about 3 cups

A little song about desperation...

remember good ol' chuck woolery. those were the good days. 

My sister had a friend in Boston who lets just say was not the most attractive(or best smelling) person you have ever met. I mean, I have nothing against a little individuality when it comes to dress - but I think when it comes to showers or clean underpants indivuality is very overrated. He fancied himself a musician and liked to sing about his love troubles (which considering the state of his hygiene isn't too surprising to anyone, is it folks?) One of his songs and my personal favorites was titled, "A Little Song About Desperation." Lovely, no?


So in honor of him and his song I have decided to add a few of my favorite lines from some rather desperate fellas in the world of online dating.
 Let me clarify. I am not online dating. Repeat: IT IS NOT HAPPENING. However, Lynsey and I( who sometimes like a good laugh in the evenings) decided to set up an account and - well, as they say in the movies - the rest is history.
So without further ado I am now presenting my top 10 most hilarious/desperate/concerning messages -
(Grammer has been untouched...)

• "I dot have a car. I dot have a job. But I could do your dishes and listen to you whenever you are sad. Can I plese be your boyfriend?"
• "Read all of Moses & Abraham tonight...I promise you you will enjoy... pray before hand for the spirit to instill the strength of the words within you...tell me how it goes"
• "the only thing your eyes haven't told me is your name" (my eyes didn't need to tell him that - it was already on the dang profile...)
• “This is my wish for you: Comfort on difficult days, smiles when sadness intrudes, Chocolate MilkShake to follow the clouds, laughter to kiss your lips, sunsets to warm your heart, hugs when spirits sag, beauty for your eyes to see, friendships to brighten your being, faith so that you can believe, confidence for when you doubt, courage to know yourself, patience to accept the truth, Love to complete your life.”
• "Is youre smile always so cheesy". (ouch...that definitely won me over.)
• " You must be from Pearl Harbor, because baby you’re da bomb." (no I am not joking...this actually happened)
• Can I just say you're Babilicious! (the answer to that question is no. no you may not say that...)
• "Where you hiding your wings?" (really? I think I got that one at 14)
• "I see you graduated, i thought you got your beauty degree before you left the pre earth life???"
• How YOU dooooin?
• "You're hotter than my daughter." (yes, this one came from a more "mature" gentleman. )

WATCH THIS...PLEASE. AND YOU CAN THANK ME LATER.

All this she learned on a toilet...

Read this today. And not only did I laugh out loud....but I was inspired to be a bit gentler with me..

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson

This book is great. I loved it. I laughed out loud several times, stayed up until unholy hours finishing it and find myself thinking of the characters all morning (this is always a sign of a really good book in my opinion). However, I must say I almost quit the thing. I started it and maybe I am shallow but was really disturbed by the ages of the main characters. They are old widow/widowers and it really was hard for me to get past the idea the love interests in a book need to be young and fresh. (don't judge me and my shallow ways)

However, this book was a gem. I loved the message - clever writing -dry humor- and most of all I loved that these characters had the depth and story that can only come from someone a little more seasoned. This book made be detest obnoxious whippersnappers like myself and excited for the golden years when things really start to get fun!!

From Publishers Weekly:

In her charming debut novel, Simonson tells the tale of Maj. Ernest Pettigrew, an honor-bound Englishman and widower, and the very embodiment of duty and pride. As the novel opens, the major is mourning the loss of his younger brother, Bertie, and attempting to get his hands on Bertie's antique Churchill shotgun—part of a set that the boys' father split between them, but which Bertie's widow doesn't want to hand over. While the major is eager to reunite the pair for tradition's sake, his son, Roger, has plans to sell the heirloom set to a collector for a tidy sum. As he frets over the guns, the major's friendship with Jasmina Ali—the Pakistani widow of the local food shop owner—takes a turn unexpected by the major (but not by readers). The author's dense, descriptive prose wraps around the reader like a comforting cloak, eventually taking on true page-turner urgency as Simonson nudges the major and Jasmina further along and dangles possibilities about the fate of the major's beloved firearms. This is a vastly enjoyable traipse through the English countryside and the long-held traditions of the British aristocracy.

The Distant Hours

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton 

I read "The Forgotten Garden" by Kate Morton a few years ago and really liked it. And so....last Thanksgiving when I was stuck in an airport with nothing to read I bought this. And it took me months to finish. Not because its too long - because long doesn't slow me down....I mean, this is the girl who read Harry Potter 7 in 24 hours. If I want to finish something I will (even if that means I do is sans shower or food). This book just took me FOREVER to really get into. Its a book with a whole lot of talking/wondering/thinking/pondering/ruminating/dreaming/meditating....you get the point and not a whole lot of action.
However, it is a very good book. A beautifully written book. Just not one that you should expect a lot of quick answers and movement. If you go into it with that in mind - I think the time put into it pays off greatly at the end with a very satisfying twist ending and a lot of mysteries solved.

From Publishers Weekly:
A letter posted in 1941 finally reaches its destination in 1992 with powerful repercussions for Edie Burchill, a London book editor, in this enthralling romantic thriller from Australian author Morton (The Forgotten Garden). At crumbling Milderhurst Castle live elderly twins Persephone and Seraphina and their younger half-sister, Juniper, the three eccentric spinster daughters of the late Raymond Blythe, author of The True History of the Mud Man, a children's classic Edie adores. Juniper addressed the letter to Meredith, Edie's mother, then a young teen evacuated to Milderhurst during the Blitz. Edie, who's later invited to write an introduction to a reprint of Raymond's masterpiece, visits the seedily alluring castle in search of answers. Why was her mother so shattered by the contents of a letter sent 51 years earlier? And what happened to soldier Thomas Cavill, Juniper's long-missing fiancé and Meredith's former teacher? Despite the many competing narratives, the answers will stun readers.

Sneaking a Peek.

Patience is a virtue...or at least I was told that many many times as a child.

I have a very bad habit. And in customary blogging fashion I am about to announce it to the world. I read the ending of a book first. I never start out intending to do it. I firmly tell myself, "Not this time, Andrea. You are going to be STRONG!" And then there would be a car crash or a wizards duel or a heart break so devastating that I am sure I will not live to read the ending....150 more pages, are you kidding me?? And so I would skip to the end. I'd peek. I would read enough to put my mind at ease. But the thing is - knowing the ending killed the magic.

In 2007 this all ended for me. I received the final book in the Harry Potter series - I was dying to know how it was going to end. Would Harry live? Would Voldermort - I mean, "He-Who-Must-Not-Be Named" be conquered? Would Ron finally grow up and ask Hermoine out?? And although I wanted to Peek...I didn't. I had waited far too long to ruin this. I was going to enjoy this book the way it was meant to be - cover to cover. In order.

Sometimes, especially lately, I have been wishing I could sneak a peek. Just get a little glimpse of how this whole thing called my life is gonna turn out. Get some PEACE over the worries we all have "Will my kids be okay...will I?" "Will I find love?"  "Will this Arizona sun give me wrinkles( I am joking....well, mostly)

However, as I was contemplating my wish to "read ahead" I was reminded of a little thing called faith.

Do I believe what I've professed to believe? Do I really believe He will do all He's promised to do? 

This is a question that is hypothetically easy to answer. But I have found its a lot harder when you are facing life. You know, those moments when pain or fear or uncertainty are banging at your door.

When you lose a child or pregnancy or house or job or marriage or parent. Loss makes you question. 

When you are betrayed or hurt or alone or abandoned or tired or weary or attacked or sick. Pain makes you question.
 

And for me  the answer to that question is YES.

I absolutely believe, I know. The promises are sure. That I will have a complete family. Alone will not last forever. That my children will be okay. Their pain will not last forever. That I will be guided and comforted...now and always. 

And so then comes in the faith. The turning the reins of my life over.  Not worrying about what will happen...because faith and fear can NEVER coexist. Because deep down inside - I already know the answer. I really do. So this is a book I don't need to read ahead in. Its a book with a perfect author. With a perfect plan.