Mardi Gras and Lent

Happy Mardi Gras!  Get all fatty today and celebrate.  I'm not celebrating just because it's Fat Tuesday, but I'm celebrating because I am looking forward to the next 40 days that we call Lent and the coming celebration of Christ's death and resurrection.



What is Lent?  Many people who celebrate it or use it to "give something up," don't really even know why, and many people who don't celebrate it think it's a silly ritual.  When I was very young, I thought it was just about giving up something you like to earn brownie points with God.  As I was going through catechism, my pastor explained that it was about using these 40 days to reflect on what Christ has done for us, laying his life down for our sins so that we can know God eternally.

Many people add in special times of reading, reflection, and prayer leading up to Christmas, when we celebrate the birth of Jesus.  How much more then should we celebrate in the time leading up to Resurrection Day, when Jesus said, "Finished!" When the blood of Christ was accepted as a substitutionary sacrifice, a propitiation, for all our sins for all time.  Hallelujah, He is risen!

As we reflect on the things above and prepare our hearts for Easter, the resurrection day, sometimes we give up things up that might distract us.  Sometimes we give up things we love because so we can be reminded to depend on God as our greatest source of joy on this Earth.  Some people don't give anything up per say, but add in more time reading their Bibles or praying.

A few days ago, I felt that maybe I was supposed to give up Facebook for Lent.  No, God, you surely wouldn't want me to do that, right?  The more I think about it, the more certain I feel that I am supposed to, no matter how tough it will be.  I don't even know if I have the self-discipline to do it, but I will depend on God for that too.

Some people might think I'm ridiculous.  It might be true, but I know I spend way more time on there than any person should.  I really do want this season of Lent to be about more than ritual.  I want to focus on the meaning behind the ritual and I desperately want to draw near to the Lord in prayer and his word.

I'll still be blogging and tweeting.  I haven't gone that crazy, haha.  I hope that you, too, will find time in the next 6 weeks to focus your heart on God's finished work.

How are you celebrating Lent?  How can I pray for you?

Visitors

On Saturday, my mom and stepdad, Dan, came down for the afternoon.  It was a very quick visit - just long enough to greet Watson and go to lunch.  It was so nice to see them and so nice to be taken out to eat!


Kyle had the splendid idea to take them to The Fountain on Locust, one of our favorite places.  It was a big hit.  The food was really good, as always, and the desserts were even better.  Gotta love that homemade hot fudge.

It was a fun little afternoon.  Even though it was short, it really worked out great for all of us since Kyle and I are so busy.  Plus, I get to see all of my family again this coming weekend while Kyle is in Peoria for the annual Bass mens' pilgrimage to the IHSA Boys State Basketball Tournament.

A Little Slice of Pye (sneak peek)

Sunday afternoon, I had the amazing privilege of doing a little photo shoot for my friend, Jillian Pye.  She needed pictures of the clothes and accessories for the new spring line of A Little Slice of Pye.  It was pretty exciting for Jillian, the models (Josie and Sharon), and me!  These are just a few of my favorites.  The rest are Jillian's to share at her discretion.  I'll post more once she gets a look.



I had certainly never done anything like this before.  In the past I have photographed family, friends, pets, and landscapes, but a staged shoot? No way.



I was so nervous, and I had serious butterflies leading up to the time of the shoot, but once we got rolling, it was much easier.  By the time the shoot was over, we were all exhausted, sweaty, and starving, but I know everyone had fun.

Then, oh THEN, I started editing.  My WORD, I was hooked.  The editing was maybe my favorite part.  I have no idea if my edits are really any good, but I sure had fun doing it.  I have no formal training in either photography, or in using photoshop.  It takes me forever to do simple things, but it makes me so happy just tinkering around.

Now that I've dipped my toes in the water, I could so take this little hobby of mine to the next level.  I know that photographers are a dime a dozen these days, and I know that highly-trained, highly-paid photographers tend to disapprove when hobbyists turn into cheap, for-hire photographers, but Kyle and I are broke, you see, and any little job I could get would help us out big time.  So, for my friends who are real pros, I'm sorry.

That being said, anyone need pictures taken?

Pasta Fagioli

Every time I make this soup, people beg me for the recipe.  I've made about a hundred different versions and it never comes out exactly the same, but it's always good.

I made it tonight for dinner with the covenant members of our church.  Even though I left out several ingredients and substituted some others, it was still good.  I also took some major shortcuts due to time contraints.  I just think you can't go wrong with this soup.

Here's the recipe I've adapted over the last few years:

Pasta Fagioli      From the kitchen of Chelsea Bass
1 lb ground beef
1 small onion, diced (1 cup)
1 large carrot, julienned (1 cup)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes
1 15 oz can red kidney beans (with liquid)
1 15 oz can great northern beans (with liquid)
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1 12 oz can V-8 juice
1 T white vinegar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp thyme
Dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
1/2 lb (1/2 pkg.) ditalini pasta

1. Brown the ground beef in a large sauce pan or pot over medium heat. Drain off most of the fat.
2. Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic and sauté for 10 minutes.
3. Add remaining ingredients, except pasta, and simmer for 1 hour.
4. About 50 minutes into simmer time, cook the pasta in 1 1/2 to 2 quarts of boiling water over high heat. Cook for 10 minutes or just until pasta is al dente, or slightly tough. Drain.
5. Add the pasta to the large pot of soup. Simmer for 5-10 minutes

Makes 8 servings

Printable Recipe

A spattering of thoughts and daydreams

I often have the urge to blog about every thought that comes to my mind.  Lucky for blog readers, there's now this thing called Twitter (maybe you've heard of it?), which allows me to spill the contents of my scattered mind, moderately guilt-free.  Still, though, there are some thoughts I pretty much cannot resist sharing.  None of them are significant enough to merit their own post, so this is what you get.  Randomness.

• Every day I bring a snack to class with me and try to wait as long as I can to eat it.  Today I lasted 7 minutes.  That's the record.
• Our church is growing like a beautiful weed rooted in the Gospel.  I love the people of August Gate dearly.  We are continually growing and challenged in our own faith, and I pray that more will be blessed in the same way.  
• I haven't seen a single member of my family since Christmas.  You'd think I lived more than an hour and a half away.  Sadly, school has interfered. 
• I've been averaging 5-6 hours of sleep per night.  This is partly the demands of school, and partly my insomnia, which intensifies with stress.
• Two more of my non-runner classmates jumped on the C25K bandwagon with me.  We're going to have a lot of fun crossing the Susan G. Komen finish line together. 
• I often daydream about what I would do if I could quit school and start a different life.  My choice lately would be to move back home to the family farm.  In my dreams, I start my own organic farming business (with the help of expert growers and livestock raisers, Dad, Grandpa, and Grandma) and also use the farm as a location for my booming photography business.  In my head, this is very successful and I am very happy.  I get to work with my family, live on the prairie, be outdoors, use my hands, get dirty, be creative, and bring new life and purpose to our old, dying farm.  This sounds so good.  Why am I in grad school again? *sigh*

This is the east porch at my dad's house on the farm (Grandma and Grandpa J. live up the hill).  Daddy built me this porch swing before I left for college so I'd always have a peaceful spot to come home to.  Lord willing, it will someday hang on my own front porch.  This is maybe my favorite place to be in the whole world.  It over looks his beautiful, luscious, 2-acre yard, my favorite tree on the planet, and miles of open plains.  It's so quiet.  So peaceful.  I feel really teary and homesick as I write this.  I better stop before I lose it.