I Like Chocolate

Chocolate is my favorite. This makes me think of Tugce, as she seemed to get me hooked on eating more chocolate. There's just so many different flavors and kinds! Thanks for that. I send my love to you.

Anyways, I'm a big fan of chocolate. Sadly, chocolate has a lot of sugar. Actually, sugar is in pretty much everything. It's used lots of times as a flavor enhancer in processed food (along with salt). This causes our bodies to become more dependent on sugar (honestly, y'all, it's a drug). I have lots of feelings on sugar, which I think will write a post about that sometime else. 

Anyways, I'm trying to cut almost all sugar out of my diet. Not fructose (I like the fruit and fruit likes me). But yesterday, oh, yesterday, I was craving chocolate like there was no tomorrow.

There was a tomorrow. It was today. 

I should be asleep right now.

I just want to write about chocolate.

Y'all. Time out. I went to a poetry reading tonight at Arrow Coffee. I got coffee. It was awesome. It was like all my hobbies put together in one place. Thanks for going with me, Junye. I appreciate your friendship and adventurous spirit. Also, I wrote a post about poetry one time. Here's this.

Isn't it lovely? I think so.

Anyways. Oh my gosh. Brain. 

I made chocolate! I have had this random almond butter bites in the freezer for a LONG time and I've been needing to use them, as I didn't eat them...for a long...long...long time.

They were made with vanilla, almond butter, a baby bit of salt, and stevia.

I finally found something to do with them - chocolate happiness.

I melted down some coconut oil (y'all, note, I don't measure stuff. I just don't. Sorry if you want amounts) with the almond butter bites. I put in carob powder (which I got at Hy-Vee in the bulk section), cocoa, vanilla, coconut slivers (bulk section...again), chia seeds, flax seeds, and liquid stevia. I melted it all together...

...then I sprayed down a cookie sheet and spread out the random chocolate jazzy jazz thinly on the cookie sheet.

Put it in the freezer.

Then it froze, I took a knife to it, cut it into pieces. Oh, my heart is so happy! It's not super sweet (thank goodness!) and you can get your chocolate craving fix easy without the sugar.

Anyways, I'm cutting out sugar. Or trying. And I made chocolate. And I have a happy heart.

Peace.

OH. My other goal in making this was to use what I had. All the ingredients were found in my pantry - there's no point in buying something that you already have and can use.

Asking for Help? Okay...

Hi.

I don't like to ask for help.

Or for people to give me things.

I think it's something that comes from pride. Me and Jesus (well, Jesus is helping/teaching/sanctifying me) are working on that. 

Anyways. But, sometimes, just sometimes, you need to ask for help.

I think that's one of the best things that I've learned as a teacher.

It's hard, yes, but definitely worth it. I'm a big fan of asking for things that can be found around the house that people don't normally need. Like...
- broken crayons (can be used for fire starters or making new crayons)
- almost-empty candle containers (can be used for storing things and the old wax can be used for fire starters)
- random little prizes/stuffed animals (classroom prize box)
- shoeboxes (Operation Christmas Child)
- packing supplies (when you sell stuff online [see right], you need to have things to send it in)

This is not something I needed help with: I
was playing basketball like a boss with my
students, went on the side of my foot,
and ripped my shoe. I'm super cool.

- school supplies (I'm a teacher, y'all)
- coffee mugs, tea, and cocoa (Christmas presents for my students)
- advice (this is something that is very hard to ask for - you never knew what people are going to say, so that's hard)
- help (with class projects)

Those are just from the last couple of months on my book of faces account. 

I was talking to a friend the other day and she said something that surprised me. To sum it up, she said something like, "I'm really thankful that you ask for help on Facebook." This really surprised me. I asked her to expand on that, and she talked about how she believes it allows people to see that it's okay to ask for help and gives them an opportunity to help. 

I hadn't thought of that. It's okay to ask for help. And it's something that brings lots of people joy - to give help. 

So. Give people help. Ask for help. It's okay to not be able to totally take care of yourself (we all need Jesus). 

Peace.

Oh! And to all the people who have helped me, THANK YOU. I appreciate you so much.

Joy and Trees

I know, I know. I write a lot about trees. I like trees. They show me people and seem to always bring me joy in the midst of insanity. 

I was working on a couple different things today - listing more things to sell online (see the right side bar), cleaning (I failed at this miserably), watching The Office (I claim success in this area), and drinking tea (I also claim success here). I like tea - see? 

Anyways, it was the afternoon and the sun was going to go down soon. I knew that I would feel like it was a wasted day if I didn't spend time outside. So, I went outside.

It was cold.

At least for the beginning of my walk. 

Then I kept walking and it was fantastic. The weather wasn't too cold. The wind wasn't too fierce. And I found my favorite tree.

I have a sad story from this summer - I went to go climb my favorite tree and the entire area it was in was covered in poison ivy. I couldn't even go close. I just could look longingly from the distance at this tree. 

BUT TODAY WAS DIFFERENT. Today, I got to climb my tree.

My heart is so happy. I climbed the tree, sat in the tree, and contemplated life in a tree. I was thinking about a sermon that I listened to the other day that asked, "If you were doing what you were doing right now, would Jesus be pleased with you?" My answer in that tree? Yes, please. I believe He would be more than okay if He found me in a tree (finding joy in what He has made).


Jesus made trees. I praise Jesus for trees.

I would also like to make a note that trees are free entertainment that literally just pop up from the ground. They are there to make oxygen. And bring joy. And be climbed. 

And I stand firm to the idea that we were all made to live in trees.

Peace.

Psalm 1:3 - He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers.

I Love Hy-Vee (and Ice Cream Containers [Part Two])

Look! Zero the scale.

This is not a love note to a store. That's weird. There's just many things about Hy-Vee that I enjoy lots and lots. So, here we go -->

I go to Hy-Vee to mail my things. Why? Because I can't make it to the post office on time. I mail a lot. I contemplate going on the weekend, but then I end up drinking coffee on the couch and forget I'm supposed to go to the post office.

Anyways, Hy-Vee.

I like Hy-Vee. I have a friend (well, I think we're friends. He gave me some mints once. Want to learn more? Apparently I wrote about it here). He usually talks to me about teaching and laughs at my hilarious jokes because I'm a boss. Who flosses. Because teeth.

So, I mailed my mail and went on with my day. That is - I went on with my day to the BULK SECTION. I like the bulk section for many reasons: I can get what I want, I can choose the amount I want, the price is cheaper. If you want to know more? Here. Read this. I like this.

All my fancy ice cream containers WITH labels.

I FOUND OUT SOMETHING NEW AT THE HY-VEE STORE. I asked a couple weeks ago if I could bring my own packaging to save on plastic pollution. They said yes. What did I do this week?

I BROUGHT MY OWN. 

This way, I am saving on plastic pollution. As well, I am using what I have. It's so helpful! Here's your steps so you can save the world this way, too -->

1. Tare the weight of the scale. If you look to the side of the scale in the photo, you'll see a 'zero' button. This is taring the weight on the scale. This'll even it out to zero so you don't have to pay for the cost of your container.

My containers tonight - without labels. I like this look.

2. Get what you want! Fill up your container to as full as you know you will use.

3. Weigh what you got. Please make sure NOT to put the lid on - you didn't tare that, why weigh it? 

4. Put the label on the container. Now, here's a thing - tonight, when I went, I just kept the labels with me and explained what I did. They then scanned the labels (that weren't on the containers) and then my containers didn't have anything on them. Thank goodness!

5. Eat the food. Love the food. Praise God for fresh food.

That's all. Save the world. Go to Hy-Vee. Also, if you can find a way to tare the weight of the scale at Dillons, hit me up. That'd be cool.

Peace.

 PS - this isn't related, but I got my school pictures this week. I learned my eyes squint when I smile AND I'm really good at looking confused. Awkward. Take a look and giggle with me.

FREE THE FOOD (oh, no, I meant free food...)

I got free food last week. I'm a big fan of free food. Let me clarify...

At school, we are able to have new fruits and veggies be tried a couple times a week. So far this year, we have tried dragonfruit, oranges, beets, and more. We have been in school for a long time, but obviously I don't remember.

BUT LAST WEEK WE GOT ORANGE BELL PEPPERS.

Apparently, as I learned, my students don't like orange bell peppers.

So. I took them home.

And they hung out in an old ice cream container for five days. Ice cream container? Yeah, wrote a post on that. Here.

Here! My lovely tacos.

I found them tonight as I was craving tacos to eat for dinner. Tacos are my favorite. They make my heart happy. Unfortunately, I didn't have all the ingredients.

...or so I thought.

I found the peppers and sautéed them with half an onion! I put a baby bit of salt and tiny bit of butter with them. Then I cooked a couple tortillas and make tacos! 

Kind of tacos. 

Good enough tacos.

Lovely tacos.

Also, there's a The Office episode about tacos when Nellie doesn't know how to eat a taco. Here. I found it for you.

I put some parmesan on the veggies and then maybe some rice vinegar because I felt like it and this was literally the best dinner I've had today.

Anyways, I don't follow recipes (except to make toothpaste) and it always (well, almost always) turns out lovely.

Happy Monday. 

Eat the food in your fridge.

Peace.

My Teeth Are Gritty Clean

My mom and I made toothpaste tonight. It's like the coolest stuff ever. 

Here's some ingredients! Just two weren't pictured:
water and salt.

I've been wanting to do this for quite some time, but I haven't had the ingredients. Turns out, my mom did! So, here's the ingredients for when you JOYFULLY make your own toothpaste:

- bentonite clay
- distilled/boiled water
- tea tree oil
- liquid stevia
- peppermint, lemon, or orange essential oils (this is your flavoring!)
- pinch of salt

Now, like any cool kid, I'm going to paste the link for the instructions because I don't want to retype anything that anyone else has done. That's silly. HERE. CHECK THIS OUT WITH THEIR COOL PICTURES.

Here's my toothpaste! Soon after
brushing my teeth, I put it in a jar. It
looks classy now.

One of my favorite parts about this (besides being all natural!) is that it has a cost breakdown at the bottom. This toothpaste breaks down to being 61 cents per ounce, whereas regular toothpaste (depending on what that is for you) is about 90 cents per ounce. So that's saving something right there!

Also, it's super fun. I'm thankful that my teeth can be cleaned naturally without lots of random chemicals and things that we don't recognize. This toothpaste has only six ingredients - all of which can be recognized! 

My mom decided that it would be wise to compare the amount of ingredients in this homemade toothpaste versus a non-homemade (or one commonly used) toothpaste. She' getting it now...

...oh, here she is with two tubes of toothpaste.

With Tom's toothpaste (anti plaque and whitening), there are 10 ingredients. I can recognize most of those ingredients, which brings me joy because then I know what is being put in my body.

With Crest complete (multi-benefit), it apparently has one active ingredient: sodium fluoride. Makes me wonder a couple things, but this mainly - why are you not listing your ingredients? What are you HIDING?

As I've been sitting here with my teeth cleaned for at least an hour, they still feel smooth and clean. My mouth is happy. And (to add a little random note that doesn't happen to many people, but seems to happen to me) my mouth isn't numb.

Thank goodness.

Want to know more reasons to switch to natural? Check this out.

Don't believe me? Check this out about fluoride. 

Go care for your teeth naturally. 

Peace.

Too Messed Up To Donate

The average American throws away 65 pounds of clothing a year. YOU. HAVE. GOT. TO. BE. KIDDING. ME. Want to learn more? Here's a good article. 

Go do your thing - go help the world.

So, I have clothes. I've been working at getting rid of them (by donating and selling [look right sidebar]), but I have some that I can't donate for other people to use. They. Have. Holes.

Or stains.

Or both (because I'm super talented).

But anyways, I've been looking for places that I can donate my random jeans with holes and my shirts with stains. I found a company that'll take my jeans, but I have to mail them in. THIS COMPANY IS AWESOME, THOUGH. It recycles old jeans into insulation for houses that are being built. It's called Blue Jeans Go Green. Check it out. 

Anyways, I had also seen online that Goodwill will sometimes, at some locations, will recycle fabric that has been donated that cannot be sold due to their condition. When they recycle it, it may turn into new clothes or be used for a sustainable, practical purpose.

So yesterday I called Goodwill in Manhattan to see if they would take my clothes that are past the point of no return. THEY TAKE THEM. I am so excited! Now I don't have any reason to throw clothes in the trash. What a help to the environment and other people!

That's all.

Don't throw your clothes away - that's dumb.

Peace.

People

Go love some people today.

People are people. 

All people are worthy of love and respect. All people.

God made all of us unique and with purpose. 

We were made for relationship. With God. With people. We were made to serve and love each other. In short, we were made to glorify God.

Not hurt. Not belittle.

Love.

People are people. 

People mess up. People are messy. People are broken. And, though, people were made to love, we can't do that on our own. We need Jesus. We're continually broken and can't fix ourselves. That's not our job - we can't fix each other (and we really can't fix ourselves).

People are people. 

I don't have much to say, but I wanted to say that. I think if we have an attitude of respect and love for each other, it can make a HUGE difference. Buy someone coffee and hear their story. Go on a walk, enjoy the sunlight, and smile at someone. 

Love people. Respect people. Get over yourself. Kindly.

Peace.

Cabinets and Coffee Cups

I cleaned out my cabinets on Wednesday evening. Well, tried. I watched a video (this video - it rocked my world). I know, I know. It won't happen to each person that watches that video will have a reaction, but I seemed to. I've wrote about this before, but I want to clean out the items that I have in order to be able to quickly move if I need to. 

Or maybe even not quickly move, but just not have to have a ton of stuff if I ever move. Life note - I don't like moving. Like really don't. I think that's for a couple reasons, but the biggest one is that I don't like coming to terms with how much stuff I have.

Because, let's get real: it's really just stuff.

And there's no eternal value to stuff.

It's just stuff.

Anyways, watching videos about decluttering and cleaning out and minimalism helps me get rid of things and get away from a materialistic view on life. And things. Because things don't make you joyful - that's what Jesus does.

Anyways, watched the video. Had Bible study. Talked to one of the girls in my study about her needing things for apartment. Mentioned I had extra things. After study, I got to clean out cabinets to help her out.

Now, I really like coffee. People know that. A lot. So, an easy gift for people to give has been coffee cups. But I also like to buy coffee cups.

Put those two things together and what do you get? A cabinet simply full of coffee cups.

Yikes.

But I got to clean them out! I took out each cup, looked at it, and asked if it gave me joy. If it didn't? Bye. If it did? Hi.

Seemed simple - and it was. I'm thankful! I feel like one area at a time, things will leave. 

Note, also. I'm not a hoarder. I want to be wise with what I have been given and what I need.

My mom used to have a note on the fridge that said, " 

Have nothing in your home that you don't deem useful or beautiful." I think that's a good life philosophy. 

It sustains my brain. It sustains my ability to serve. It also helps sustain other people.

That's the goal.

Peace.