Book #1 - "Calm My Anxious Heart"

My sister helped me to solve the dilemma of which book I should start with! This is actually her book and I think I've had it in my possession for almost a year? Oops... I actually finished this about a week ago and immediately started on my second book, but this is actually the first opportunity I've had to sit down and write a review on it.
The title instantly appealed to me. I am, by nature and by unfortunate habits, an extremely anxious person. I love being in control - some call it bossy! - and I have to know what my plans are well in advance. Certain people in my life are helping me to realize that certain spontaneity is good and fun, and I am gradually beginning to allow some spontaneity to creep into my life. :)
I need to give a bit of background info on the author as that makes a big difference when you read the book! Her name is Linda Dillow. For 17 years, her and her husband were missionaries in various places in Europe and Asia, they now reside in the USA. At the beginning of each of the 12 chapters, there is a page-long story from her time overseas that helps to emphasize her point in that chapter - the stories are all very interesting and most are quite sobering. In fact, her dedication states, "To the women in Eastern Europe who lived contentment before me."
At first glance (and due to the title), I thought this book was just about conquering anxiety. But Dillow makes a very interesting connection between contentment and anxiety; we can have wonderful peace when we are content with what has been given us. The first part of the book deals with contentment and her first chapter is aptly titled "My Journey to Contentment". Contentment is something that needs constant work. It is a conscious desire and choice - we must CHOOSE to be content. She then deals with the following aspects:
- Content with Circumstances
- Content to be Me
- Content with My Role
- Content in Relationships.
Dillow then address the enemy of contentment - greed. This chapter is suitably called "Never Enough", which is followed by the topic of our focus and purpose in life and how vital it is that our focus is correct, otherwise our entire life is thrown off. May my focus in life be truly Christ - He is all I need!
She continues on with the anxiety part of the book - addressing worry and how our faith needs to be secure and well-grounded to ease our worries, fears and anxieties. The final three chapters deal with the same topic but she has split them into a triplet:
- Trusting God with the "What Ifs"
- Trusting God with the "If Onlys"
- Trusting God with the "Whys"

This book is very personal for several reasons. One, the author uses many personal situations and experiences, very often baring her soul and heart. Two, the style that she has written it feels that she is sitting across the table from you, sincerely talking to you. Three, once you have read this book, your ideas about contentment and anxiety will radically change and it makes you more determined to be content with everything you have and to worry less! Four, it became a very personal book for me (so much so that I now have to buy my own copy soon!) as each and every point she raised directly challenged me.
The timing when I read this book was perfect. I read it in 1 week and at the end of this week, lay an obstacle that I had to face and overcome. It consisted of one of my worst fears. At the beginning of the week, I came very VERY close to accepting defeat and letting the obstacle/challenge win. It was affecting my eating and sleeping habits even! I was so thankful I read this book when I did! By the end of the week, I knew I could rely on power and strength far greater than my own, that God is already in my tomorrows, that I must not let this beat me and that indeed "worry is like a rocking chair; it will give you something to do but it won't get you anywhere." There were SO many quotes, points and stories from this book that I enjoyed so much and I ended up writing them down - I took that paper with me when it was time to do battle with my fears and that paper is now kept in my purse for whenever anxiety overcomes me. I'll let you read the book and enjoy it yourself :) I'll leave you with the 'formula' that Dillow makes:
Problem: Living by Feelings - we live by our feeling and what we can see.
RESULT: An anxious heart.
Solution: Living by Faith - we must live by trusting God for what we can't see.
RESULT: A calm heart.

I strongly, strongly recommend this book! Very challenging, very readable (it also includes a 12-week Bible study) and for anyone who has struggled with contentment, worry or anxiety (no matter the degree) this book is, in essence, a balm to your anxious heart. Comments are welcome below :)

Books, Books, Books!

I know, I know...it's been a very long time since I've blogged! But in this new year, it will be different. I have compiled a list of 20 books which are in my possession and which I wish to read - some for the first time, others I have read before. With each book that I read on this list, I am going to aim to do a short review about it. The review will not be geared to persuade others to read that book (although if that happens, that's fantastic!) but I'm hoping that if I know I have to do a review, I'll pay more attention to what I'm reading.
Here are some reasons why I'm setting out to do this:
- Since leaving school, I have mostly done easy, pleasure reading - nothing too challenging or deep. I've missed reading some of the great literary works or books with strong arguments and themes and so I'm excited to read "deep" stuff again.
- Doing these reviews will encourage me to blog on a more regular basis. I am not going to set out a specific time (like every second Tuesday or something) because I don't want there to be that kind of pressure - otherwise I'll be reading faster than I want to be! But it will be more regular than last year!
- I have some books in my possession which I have borrowed from people for quite some time now (sorry, Mike!) and I'm hoping that this will "force" me to make time to read them, so I can give them back.
- It will force me out of my comfort zone, when it comes to reading. Let's face it. Most of the time, it's far easier to pick up a book that you can read, just to have something to read than to read something which may change your way of thinking or cause you to peel back the layers which the author has created.
- By stating all of this and my goals, it will keep me accountable to follow through with it!

On my list for the year are 20 books. Some are literary masterpieces, others are about historical events, others are more topical and some are meant to challenge. Here is the list, and the order they are listed is not necessarily the order in which I will read them.

1. Passion and Purity - Elisabeth Elliot
2. Calm My Anxious Heart - Linda Dillow
3. Short Stories - Charles Dickens
4. War & Peace - Leo Tolstoy
5. 50 Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die - John Piper
6. The Truth War - John MacArthur
7. Last of the Few  - Max Arthur
8. Becoming a Woman of Extraordinary Faith - Julie Clinton
9. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
10. Let Me Be A Woman - Elisabeth Elliot
11. A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
12. Hitler: A Short Biography - A.N. Wilson
13. Desiring God - John Piper
14. Joyfully at Home - Jasmine Baucham
15. Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
16. Where is God when it hurts? - Philip Yancey
17. The Hidden Life of Prayer - David McIntyre
18. Don't Waste Your Life - John Piper
19. A Man Called Intrepid - William Stevenson
20. The Caravanserai: Collection of Poems - I.Y. Ewan

I'm excited to start this and I'm hoping that you will keep me accountable and maybe read some of them yourself! Stay tuned for the first review. Happy Reading :)

Prison Rodeo

Anyone know what a prison rodeo is? I certainly didn't! I am now working in the Justice department and when I read this article...it blew me away. I won't say anymore as it speaks for itself but please read and let me know your thoughts!

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/prison-rodeo-133417071.html

Meeting Justin Trudeau!

He was stopping off at Portage and so I thought, "Why not?" So my brother-in-law and I went to hear and meet him!

Also met Jon Gerrard (Leader of the MB Liberal Party)

 A very interesting time and exciting atmosphere! Wonder what April 14th will bring?

Easy-Pleasing Meatloaf & Rice :)

As my other recipe post mentioned...the kitchen scares me. It really does. So when my Mom asked me to cook supper tonight, I somewhat panicked. But then she gave me this recipe and it is a new favorite of mine as it is SO easy! So so so easy. Plus I hate the fiddly necessity of cooking the meat....yeah, this one you don't have to!

Meatloaf:

2 large eggs, beaten
2 lbs. lean ground beef
1 package of Stove Top stuffing (chicken)
1 cup of water
1/4 cup of BBQ sauce

-Preheat oven to 375 F. In a small bowl, beat eggs lightly with a fork.
-Place ground beef, stuffing mix, water eggs and BBQ sauce in bowl.
-Mix all ingredients with spoon until just blended
-Put mixture into greased 9x13 pan, shaping it to fit the pan, smoothing it out.
-Top meatloaf with more BBQ sauce
-Bake 1 hour, or until cooked.

THAT'S IT!!! SO EASY! Wait till you see how easy the rice recipe is below!

Rice:
1 cup of regular rice
1 3/4 cups of water
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp. margarine

Place in cooking dish. Cover with lid. Cook at 350 F for 50 minutes....DONE!

The smells are heavenly, the taste is scrumptious and as I say...SO easy!

The Facts of Me :)

I was inspired by another friend's blog to do a post like this! Please leave me some fun facts about you in the comments section below :)

Fact: I abhor coffee and all forms of it! Love the smell, hate the taste! Tea is the only way to go :)

Fact: The day before a new month starts, I cannot resist peeking and flipping ahead to the next month on the calendar to see what picture I have to look forward to :)

Fact: RIGHT before I fall asleep, I swap from lying on my right side to lying on my left side and that is how I wake up too!

Fact: I LOVE old TV shows such as "I Love Lucy", "Dick Van Dyke Show" etc. The humor is fantastic!

Fact: I love being British :) I am still not a Canadian citizen even though I have lived here 12 years and I will never give up my British citizenship either! I love all things British too - accents, food, clothes...

Fact: I am an extreme neat freak. So much so that, no matter how tired I am, I cannot go to bed with a messy room.

Fact: Tying in with the fact above, I absolutely cannot lie in a bed, or fall asleep, if the sheets are wrinkly and I can feel it with my feet. That's sad, I know.

Fact: I hate feet. I know, I know, I have feet too. I hate people's feet touching me. Ewww....

Fact:  I really despise mushrooms. Taste, smell, texture - the whole works! Nasty things...

Fact: Unfortuantely, I tend to be a pessimist (as seen in the above 2 facts). I always think 'worse case scenario' which causes me to worry way more than is necessary!

Fact: My best friend is an optimist and I love her for it and I love the influence she has had on the above fact :)

Fact: I love old, pretty books :) I love reading the classics - Jane Eyre, for example, but only if it is a classy book!

Fact: I have completed my 3 year B.A. degree at Brandon University, majoring in English and having a double minor in History and Political Science. I have applied for the 2 year Education program and we'll see what happens!

Fact: I love quotes! I have a journal which is especially for quotes which have influenced me, made me think or made me laugh, and I am always on the lookout for more!

Fact: I am a very proud aunty to 5 beautiful nieces and 1 handsome nephew! They have enriched my life in so many ways.

Fact: Favorite Disney movie? The Aristocats. Favorite war movie? The Man who Never Was. Favorite musical? Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Favorite Chick Flick? Anything with Hugh Grant (see above fact re. British accents :) ), or Sandra Bullock - she's hilarious!

Fact: I never saw myself as having a blog - what would I write about? - yet here I am :)

YOUR TURN!!!

Ham & Potato Chowder with Crunchy Drop Biscuits :)

So time for a recipe post! My mom is away for a few days right now and so it just Dad and I. Unfortunately, I am not a chef. You can't even stretch that word so it fits me! Sad to say, my Dad is a far superior cook than I. But tonight I thought I would give him a break and try something. I am always scared stiff that something terrible will go wrong - I do wish I had more confidence in the kitchen! Anyways. So before my mom left she left me this super easy recipe (super easy for her maybe...) but I am proud of how it turned out, my Dad loved it, we had leftovers, so it all turned outin the end!

Ham & Potato Chowder:

2 cups water
2 cups diced, uncooked, unpeeled potatoes
1 cup diced, uncooked carrots
1/2 cup of diced celery
1/4 cup of diced onion
1 tsp of salt
1/4 tsp of pepper


Combine these ingredients in large pan, bring to boil and let simmer for 10-12 minutes.

1/4 cup flour
2 cups of milk
2 cups of grated cheese

Mix flour and milk together in separate saucepan. Stir until thickens. Add cheese and ham (tinned ham). Stir until combined. Serve with the following biscuit recipe :)

Crunchy Drop Biscuits

3 cups flour
2 tbsp. sugar
5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup margarine

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and margarine. In a separate bowl, beat 1 egg, then add to mixture. Then add 1 cup milk. Stir lightly to mix. The batter should be sticky, if it's not then stir in 11 tbsp of milk.
Drop by tablespoons on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 450 F. Serve hot with butter. Serves 15-20 biscuits.

NOTE: Mix batter while chowder vegetables are simmering, then put them in the oven for 10 minutes, when there is 5 minutes left, then turn flour/milk saucepan on. That way, everything should be ready at the same time :) I halved the recipe for Dad and I and there was more than enough as it is very filling. Also, depending on how 'cheesy' you like things, you can alter the quantity, same with the ham!

Here is the pot with the veggies simmering - the smell is yummy!

 My camera doesn't take very good food pictures! Trust me, it tastes way better than it looks!

The biscuits!

 And...leftovers! Both can be put in the freezer but I think we're keeping the biscuits out for a late-night snack with jam :)