Hello, friends.

Greetings from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport!

I am on my way to Jacksonville, FL to visit with one of my dearest and loveliest friends, Nicole.  She and her husband moved to Florida some three years ago when Dan started flying with the US Navy.  “Military wife” was added to the long list of quirky things that we have in common, and I can’t wait for some overdue, quality time with her!

College snowboarding road trip to Colorado back in the day!

FOOD

In anticipation of a neglected pantry, (the hubs isn’t so inclined to cook when I’m out-of-town), I made an effort to use up the foods that will most likely go bad before my return.  This always makes for an interesting meal.  (We tend to go out of town a lot).

The qualifying food items were:

• Sweet potatoes
• Avocados
• Half a bag of spinach
• A pear
• Bell peppers
• Chicken breasts that had already been defrosted in the fridge

Luckily these are food items that are more or less staples in our home and always in our fridge or pantry, so the toss up wasn’t as random as I had anticipated.  Turning them into a meal was actually very easy.

I remembered a spaghetti squash recipe that I found in a Clean Eating magazine that used chicken and pears, so I decided to bake a spaghetti squash I had on hand, (even though I’m sure it would have lasted the week I was gone).

While it was in the oven I cooked the chicken and sautéed the pears and spinach with it.

On the side I sliced up the sweet potatoes and baked them with what time was remaining with the squash.  The avocados and bell peppers I sliced up and saved for an airport snack, (like a veggie sandwich!)

 

When everything was done, I scooped the spaghetti squash in a couple bowls, topped them with the chicken and pears, then topped it all off with a little bit of mozzarella.  (Parmesan would’ve worked great, too!)

My last meal in Illinois, for a week. ;-)

FITNESS

I would have LOVED to have gotten a workout in this morning, knowing that I would be doing a lot of sitting around while traveling…  When I woke up after 9am, however, I knew it was a no-go if I was going to pack properly and make it to my 1pm flight!  I’m bummed that I didn’t plan better for it, but it was sure nice to not wake up to an alarm clock for a change. ;-)

FAITH

I don’t know if you’ve ever done this, but when I take the time to stop and really think about the greatness of God, sometimes it really overwhelms me.  His power and love are truly too big to behold.  I was feeling this way the other day when I came across Isaiah 55:8-9 in my reading plan:

My thoughts are completely different from yours, and my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine…  -GOD

It described so well the way I was feeling towards our Creator.  It’s crazy to me to think that He knows all things, created all things, and perfectly plays out His plans for all things.  But that’s because his thoughts and ways are so different than mine, with my limited perspective, experience and understanding of the world.

QUESTION OF THE DAY

Have you ever taken a moment to dwell on God’s infinite wisdom and understanding?

See you in Jacksonville!