Lemon-Cream Cheese Cupcakes

Yesterday was a rainy and very gloomy May 1st. However, my day got brighter when I got to spend the afternoon with my good friend, Hannah, and her sweet little Tucker. We watched movies, did nails, played with the baby, and mostly importantly, made some ROCKIN' cupcakes! Several friends have asked me about this recipe, so here it is. (Thanks for typing it out for me, Hannah!)...

Lemon-Cream Cheese Cupcakes

1 pkg. (2 layer size) white cake mix

1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) Jello lemon flavor instant pudding

1 cup water

4 egg whites

2 Tbsp. Oil

1 pkg. Cream cheese (softened)

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter (softened)

2 tbsp. Lemon juice

1 pkg. (16 oz) powdered sugar

Heat oven 350F. Beat the first 5 ingredients in bowl with mixer (batter will be thick). Spoon into 24 muffin cups. Bake 21 to 24 minutes. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Remove and finish cooling. For icing: Beat cream cheese, butter, and juice. Gradually add sugar. Beat on low until smooth. Spread on cupcakes. *Optional: add lemon zest to the icing.

{I found the recipe at http://www.kraftrecipes.com}

Enjoy! We sure did!

{These are our happy faces after tasting the first batch!}

{Here is sweet Tucker. He is getting so big. He is learning to sit up on his own!}

I had such a fun day with Tucker and his mom! :)

Waiting

Waiting in line at the grocery store. Waiting to board a plane. Waiting in line for the bathroom. Waiting to read a blog from a friend who hasn't posted in months (sorry). Waiting to meet the person you're going to spend the rest of your life with. Waiting to hear from the doctor if the cancer has spread. Waiting to see where and how God wants to use you. Is there anyone that you know who actually likes waiting?

I have several friends who feel as if they are in a "waiting period" in their lives right now. Myself included. We are just not sure where God wants to take us next in life or how He wants to use us to bring glory to Himself. Sometimes it's an uneasy feeling. For those of you who know me well, you know that God often speaks to me through music. Well, I found a song - and by "found" I mean that it fell into my lap last week in a cd from a friend. It's call "Waiting Here For You" by Christy Nockels.

{Lyrics}

"If faith can move the mountains
Let the mountains move
We come with expectation
Waiting here for you, I’m waiting here for you

You’re the Lord of all creation
And still you know my heart
The Author of Salvation
You’ve loved us from the start

CHORUS
Waiting here for You
With our hands lifted high in praise
And it's You we adore
Singing Alleluia

You are everything You’ve promised
Your faithfulness is true
And we're desperate for Your presence
All we need is You

CHORUS

Singing Alleluia
Alleluia, singing alleluia, alleluia

CHORUS

Waiting here for you
With our hands lifted high in praise
And it's You we adore
We're singing Alleluia

I'm singing Alleluia
Waiting here for you
With our hands lifted high in praise
And it's You we adore
Singing Alleluia
Singing Alleluia"

{Follow the link below to listen to the song.}

http://youtu.be/e2B3NB3zA9Y

So here is my declaration: It doesn't matter how long I wait to hear from God. I will worship while I am waiting. I will lift my hands high in praise to Him. I will wait with expectation and anticipation. I will continue to seek after Him. I will love Him more and more everyday. Because He is still the Lord of all Creation and he knows MY heart. He still sits on His throne. And NOTHING takes him by surprise. He has made me who I am and He will continue to guide me with each step I take.

No Plan "B"

Being a commuter (for 11 years now) and typically a very busy girl, I obviously spend lots of time in the car. Most mornings I thoroughly enjoy my commute. Don't get me wrong, I have never been one to hop right out of bed when the alarm goes off and begin whistling a merry tune. I usually hit the snooze button at least two or three times. However, as soon as I actally get up, I enjoy the quietness of the morning. But as soon as I get in the car, it's MUSIC time!!! No matter what it is - the radio, a cd, or my ipod - it's LOUD! Music is a HUGE part of my life. God speaks volumes to me through music (no pun inteded).



I absolutely love to sing in the car! It's a rare thing for me to turn the music off. I only do it occasionally - if I have some big thinking to do. And there have been difficult and painful seasons in my life when I couldn't sing. Times when all I could do was let the music heal me. I've spent my share of mornings in the car shedding tears. Tears of heartache and pain. Tears of brokeness for myself and for others. But luckily, those are only seasons, and God always leads us out of the darkness into His wonderful light!



Recently, I've come across a new song by Manafest called "No Plan 'B'" - from his latest album, "Chase". I still haven't discoverd exactly what it is about this song that I like so much. It's one of those songs that I just can't turn up loud enough! I like the lyrics, the beat, the hook. Everything! I found the "official" video on YouTube; however, I actually like the radio mix better, but was unable to find it. Check it out and let me know what you think...






Not only do I thoroughly enjoy the "sound" of the song, but also the lyrics remind me that God has a purpose for me - a 'Plan A'. It doesn't matter how many times I screw up, I never lose His purposes for my life! I have a destiny, and I've got to stick to the plan! There is no 'Plan B'!

{lyrics}

Verse:

I drop in with my face to the wind
Spin 180 for the win
But I can't find my feet it's like I lost the beat
Mid air and there's no plan B's
Hit the streets,

Look before I leap again,
Skeleton filled with Adrenalin
How can I know that I got what it takes?
When I've come so far, through the rain
Bear the pain

Makes no difference now
Face myself or get taken out
One more time got to live this loud
Back to the wall no turning around)

CHORUS:

It's too late It's my fate
I can't turn around
There's no fear, in the mirror
To hold me down
I'm too far, from the start
Now I'm in too deep

I've got to stick to the plan
Cause there's "no Plan B"

No turning back (No plan B)
There's no other path, (No plan B)

And I know that this road is my destiny
I've got to stick to the plan
Cause there's no plan B


Bridge:
All I know is I can't turn back, all I know is I can't turn back
Got to leave it in the past, got to leave it in the past.
All I know is I can't turn back, all I know is I can't turn back
Got to leave it in the past, got to leave it in the past.

Cause this is the only road I've ever known,
there's no way that I could start again, Again

Chorus Repeats

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

For those who know me well, you know that I typically run 100 mph in 100 different directions. I have decided that it's hereditary, and I get it from my dad. I've recently had several blog ideas floating around in my head and have had ZERO time to even write any of them down, much less actually blog about them. (Sometimes it's tough having no margin in your life.) However, I was not going to skip this one!

Today is my dad's birthday. He would have been 59 years old. (Wow. That's sound weird to me for some reason.) He fought cancer for over six years - he even kicked cancer's tail a few times. However, he lost his battle on Sunday, March 4, 2007, at 1:00 in the morning. He was the most wonderful man that I've ever known. I know that many girls would say that about their daddies, but he was truly amazing! Dad always loved a good party. He was a "more-the-merrier" type of person. I guess that's where I get it from! He never expected big, expensive gifts because he was more than satisfied with a bag of Twizzlers and/or gummy bears. They were his favorite!

As I sit here, staring at his picture next to my computer, I'm thinking about all the things he's missing. He didn't get to walk my sister down the aisle on her wedding day, nor will he get to walk me down the aisle on my wedding day - someday. He'll never get to hold Spencer or any of his future grandkids. And man, he would SO be loving this church planting gig! My friend, LaRissa, once said that he was a church planter before any of us even knew what church planting was! That was just the kind of man that he was - meeting people where they were and taking Jesus to them. He didn't wait for them to walk through the doors of a church building. He taught people how to BE the church.

There are so many people in my life now who never got to meet him, and I know that the older I get, that will be more and more of a reality. After my dad passed away, one of my dearest friends, Liz, reminded me that Jesus accomplished everything on earth that God needed him to in 33 years before dying on the cross. And my dad, although we thought he was too young to die, accomplished everything on earth that God needed him to in 55 years. And even though it makes me sad, I know he's with Jesus. And that's the BEST birthday gift.

Daddy, I miss you and I love you. More than you'll ever know!

Running Away

Have you ever wanted to run away? Maybe you had a bad day or a rough week. Or maybe a terrible month or even a year... Did you just want to escape? Well, I'm going to. For the first time ever, I'm running away. The car is packed and I'm about to head out with a close friend of mine. Several girlfriends wanted to come with me (and I love them so much for it) but they were unable to get away. My life has been crazy for the past several months, and I'm desperately seeking some peace and rest. I desire to be still and quite for long periods of time so that I can listen. I'm listening for what's next. Where does God want to take me? My prayer is that when I hear from Him, I will be willing to follow His calling for my life.

I recently went to an unbelievable Sanctus Real concert with Leeland and The Afters. I absolutely love Sanctus Real's music. Their lyrics of their songs speak to me like few others do. Two of their songs have really been on my heart lately: "I'm Not Alright" and "Whatever You're Doing"...

I would appreciate any prayers you can offer up as I am quiet and still for the next few days, searching for God's will for my life.

Breathe

Several weeks ago, I was asked to lead worship for the HBC ladies conference. I, of course, asked my favorite piano player and close friend, LaRissa, to lead with me. I was told that the theme for the conference was "Generations". Kind of a broad topic. Wasn't really sure which direction to go, but we met together a few times to plan and practice the set. Now you have to realize that when I sit on LaRissa's piano bench with her, time no longer exists. We typically get completely lost not only in worship, but also in conversation, ideas, songwriting, etc. It's not uncommon for us to spend hours - usually into the late hours of the night - together on that piano bench. That night we prayed through some songs and put together a great set:

Mighty to Save

The More I Seek You (Kari Jobe)

Lead Me to the Cross

Blessed Redeemer (Casting Crowns)

Amazing Grace/My Chains Are Gone

Not a God (Billy & Cindy Foote)

Revelation Song

However, each time we met together, we kept coming back to Open the Eyes of My Heart. LaRissa said that over the past few weeks, each time I would text her a question about the set or getting together to practice, that song would come on the radio or come to her mind. So we camped out on that song for a while late one night on her piano bench. We decided to start the set with that song, but I wanted it to be different. I didn't just want to sing the words. I wanted the lyrics to truly be the desparate cry of our hearts! So when we began the set at the conference this past Saturday morning, I talked a lot about baggage. We've all got it. We're worried about something. Nervous about a our finances. Anxious about the future. Concerned about a broken relationship. I asked them to very literally lay it all down at our Father's feet. We spent a few moments praying for one another - asking our Savior for strength to lay our burdens down and to earnestly seek Him, even if only for a little while as we spent a few hours together. As they were praying over each other, LaRissa began to play as I prayed the lyrics over them:

"Open the eyes of my heart, Lord

Open the eyes of my heart.

I want to see You. I want to see You.

To see You high and lifted up,

Shining in the light of Your glory.

Pour out Your power and love

As we sing 'Holy, Holy, Holy'

We want to see You!"

I have sang (and led) this song countless times, but this time something was different. As I read the lyrics over and over again as we sang and prayed through them, I couldn't help but smile. I think that I forget, too often, just how mighty my God is. He is all-powerful. He desires nothing more than to shower me with His love. He constantly has angels surrounding Him singing His praises. They're singing, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the LORD God Almighty, who was and is and is to come." He has always been mighty, He is full of power, and He will always be in control! I sometimes forget that He is "unchageable, unshakeable, unstoppable" (Not a God) and that no matter what is going on my life or in our world, nothing will ever shake Him. Nothing ever takes Him by surprise.

I chose to lead Kari Jobe's new song The More I Seek You not only because it is one of my new favorites, but because of it's simple message: "The more I seek You, the more I find You. The more I find You, the more I love You." The chorus is what really gets me though:

"I wanna sit at Your feet, drink from the cup in Your hand,

Lay back against You and breathe, feel Your heart beat.

This love is so deep, it's more than I can stand.

I melt in Your peace, it's overwelming."

What absolutely beautiful lyrics - "Lay back against You and breathe". Just saying the words brings me comfort. I am such an incredibly busy girl. I am constantly on the go. I am often frazzled and don't take enough time for myself. Don't get me wrong, my world may seem crazy at times, but I absolutely love my life. It doesn't matter how nuts life seems for the time, those lyrics portray to me a picture of laying back against the chest of my heavenly father, breathing deeply, and just sitting with Him for a while. Forgetting about the madness, the craziness, and the baggage, and just breathing. What a comfort.

We had an incredibly beautiful time together at the women's conference. What a priviledge it was to lead those beautiful ladies to the throne. I know that LaRissa and I both enjoyed sitting at our Savior's feet with them.

Baby Daylie

I recently had a photo shoot with one of my new

favorite girls - sweet baby Daylie! She is such a precious girl! We set up in her nursery and had a great time together. She had just eaten, so she was a happy girl with a very full belly - you can really tell in a few of the photos! She was so much fun to watch as she discovered her hands. She was almost a month old when I took her photos, but she was already pushing up with her arms. We had quite a time getting her to lay on her belly with her feet and legs tucked underneath her. She is one strong little girl! Here are a few of my favorites --->