More nutritious lunch choices

So the good news is that we're not eating as much mac 'n cheese these days. The bad news is that now Isaac is basically subsisting on Peanut Butter and Fluff sandwiches. Peanut butter and FLUFF! I'm embarrassed to even type it.
I'm not exactly sure how it happened except that I remember walking through the grocery store one day (I think while I was still pregnant) and seeing the fluff and remembering it from my days in daycare (where the only other things that I remember ingesting were oreos and kool-aid... in case you wondered why I don't send my kids to daycare!) and I wanted some. But I didn't buy any that day. In fact I didn't buy any for weeks even though it's right next to the peanut butter (which we buy every week) and the craving wouldn't go away. Finally I caved in and bought some for a treat, resolving not to let Isaac have any. Which lasted for exactly 2 seconds after he asked for a bite. So now he's eating "P-Fuff" for breakfast and lunch most days and would probably want it for dinner, you know, if he would actually eat dinner. One day he even finished his sandwich and then, while I was busy with Grace, he ate most of mine! Isaac! Ate almost 2 whole sandwiches! What do they put in that stuff anyway? Marshmallows and CRACK?! Maybe I should start slipping some broccoli in there between the fluff and the bread. Hmmm.....
Anyway, we will close on the house on Monday IF everything goes right between now and then. So stay tuned!

Can I get an AMEN!?

"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it." 1 Timothy 6:6-7 (NIV)

I was talking to a friend last night (in order to protect the innocent from association with my blog we'll just call her Friend A) about another friend (Friend B of course) and how Friend A thinks that Friend B looks up to me or maybe even is a little bit jealous of me. This sounded very improbable to me since in addition to having a family (which is about the only Earthly thing I have) Friend B has a new car, a college degree, her own home, lots of things that I know are very important to her that I don't have. I listened patiently (as patiently as I know how; I once even let 10 seconds worth of silence go by without breaking in) as Friend A and Hubby (who totally understood where she was coming from) tried to explain to me that it is because I am happy and have what I want in life even if it's not the same as what Friend B's has. While I think that Friend A and Hubby were on the right track, after thinking it through this morning, I think that they weren't quite putting the whole puzzle together for me. I mean, I don't care if a person is the absolute happiest person in the whole world! If they don't have a family there is no way that I'm going to envy them even if they have everything else a person could have (and I am seriously prone to jealousy!) because a family is what is important to me. I don't think that Friend B could envy me for the things I have when I don't even have the things that are important to her.
I think perhaps that what I have that she wants (even though she doesn't realize it) is true contentment. And I'm no expert but I think that true contentment is can only come from God. I KNOW that in my case, it is from Him alone! Here's an example. A few years ago I was going through a time of wanting my own home SO badly. I was definitely coveting but I don't think that adequately describes how I felt. I wanted it so bad I could TASTE it, so to speak. I had been working toward it for a long time and out of the blue a friend of mine called me to tell me that she'd bought a house (and she had not been working towards it the way I had). When I heard the news, it made me physically sick. The bitterness I felt was like poison. So I avoided her. And avoided and avoided until I couldn't avoid anymore. The time came when I had to go see the house. I didn't know how on Earth I was going to be able to walk into that house and be happy for her when the very thought still made my stomach sink. Well, the day came and as I was driving to her house I was hoping so hard that the road would take me into a city, would take me to a house that was nice but not at all what I would want, so that maybe I could somehow be happy for her. I was also praying. The entire drive I never stopped. It's a good thing too because the road was taking me out into the breathtakingly gorgeous countryside. I was praying over and over for God to take my envy away but as I pulled up to my dream house, it was still sitting like a lump in my stomach. I walked into my friends amazing new house and the envy suddenly disappeared. She gave me a tour and I was able to sincerely compliment her home without even the threat of tears. If I have ever witnessed a miracle, that was it!
All this is not to say that I'm perfect or that I never get jealous anymore. Like I said, it is something that has always been a big struggle for me. In fact, right now we are in the process of trying to buy a house and I have been praying all morning because I'm having a really hard time not obsessing (please pray for me!). I guess what I'm saying though is that it makes all the difference in the world to know that I can be happy with what I have no matter how little it is, if I will just give it to God. True contentment is GOD-GIVEN and I am SO BLESSED to have a God who will give it to me when I ask!
Anyway, I hope you were blessed by my little foray into theology today.
Even if you weren't I know I really needed the reminder!
Have a wonderful weekend!