The Whole Kitchen Caboodle!!

Today was our Kitchen Caboodle show...also the show in which we learned that my multi-tasking skills fall JUST short of turning on mics, running the board, talking AND reading. It was a comical start to the day's program, to say the least. Take a listen if you missed it!

Anyway, I started a new party segment on our show today. Every month on Kitchen Caboodle, I'll bring you some new party theme ideas. The one I talked about today was based on a little project I did last year called Pancakes with the Princess. So much fun to invite my friends over and enjoy time with them - and FOOD!!! Here are some pictures from my Pancakes with the Princess adventures:

This is when I took the adventure on the road...went to spend Thanksgiving weekend at my sister's house out of state, and one night I cooked pancakes for dinner. She was just happy I volunteered for kitchen duty! (And I wanted to figure out how to bring that flat-top stove home on the airplane!)

 Another time I took it on the road was when I wanted to give my office at my former job one last Bekah cooking hurrah. I made pancakes for the entire office during my last week there. As you can see, counter space was at a premium and I was feeling a bit frazzled. Attractive, no?

 At my home...a much more TOGETHER pancake presentation...this is the cinnamon swirl recipe, the Amish breakfast casserole (recipe cut in half) and the Orange Julius recipe. YUM.

 Drinking an Orange Julius with my girl, Savannah! (She's one of my honorary nieces.)

 My first ever time to host...complete with scrambled eggs, sausage patties, orange slices, and little snowmen donut holes/milk. It was fun.

So many great ideas for pancake/PJ parties; I pinned those ideas on our Pinterest board for this show.

And if you didn't get to hear it, listen on the archives to check out our interviews with Lia Huber from The Nourish Network, Wayne Shive from Best Boy and Company, and Marcia Crawford, author of The Care and Feeding of the Almost Adult. Plus - Lynne had some fun takes on the old grilled cheese sammich!

ANNOUNCING......

What do you take when you combine a little....

 (Bekah)

...and a little...

 (Lynne)

...say...every...

 (Thursday)?

THIS!!!!!



Oh yes! It's true!! Starting Thursday, September 6th, Lynne and I will spend every Thursday chatting with each other and with you! We'll share stories and answer questions and let you know what God is teaching us and you wanna know a secret?

There's likely to be a LOT of laughter.

It's what we do.

Please join us? We think you'll have fun!!

Christmas in...August!

Hellooooooooooooooo!

Did you catch today's show? Oh my goodness; we had so much FUN! Today (in case you're not sure) marks 125 days until CHRISTMAS! So as a service to you, we decided to give you a head start on some great Christmas ideas. Things you might want to know about for gifts.

You can catch a full list here on our Pinterest board for today's show, but here are some highlights:

* Do you like to read? SO MANY fun books are new this fall...just for the Christmas season. Amish fiction, Advent readings, some Max Lucado, some Liz Curtis Higgs...great stuff out there!

* Know someone getting married? Joe Rondoletto from iSpy Media joined us on the show to talk about the (brand BRAND new) PhotoOpp Bride Edition. Oh my goodness. Such a cool product. Remember the disposable cameras on tables at weddings? This replaces that. It's an app that allows your guests to take and share photos at your wedding. You won't believe how easy it is! (Seriously!) Would make a great gift!

* Need a couple of stocking stuffers? The One Trip Grip and the Plug Out Plug organizer are two handy little gadgets that can make your grocery hauling and energy saving lives much easier. And they're extremely affordable. (That's always handy in a stocking stuffer. Personally, I usually ask for a $100 Starbucks card...but I digress.) (And I was kidding.)

* Can you believe it's time to think about Christmas card photos? Yes it is. Time to think about scheduling the all important photo shoot so you can prepare to order the cards...and Loving Life Visions photographer Jessica Green has some fantastic tips for you!

125 days, people!!!! 125 days!!!! Let's make it the best Christmas ever...shall we?

And speaking of Christmas...

...I'm so excited that David Phelps is bringing his Christmas tour to Fort Wayne the week before Christmas! :)

Dreams and Such

This past Saturday, our intern, Anna, and I spent the morning at the Fort Wayne Zoo...meeting the families that came through and watching kids (and kids at heart) spin the prize wheel to win a little something fun. We had an absolutely gorgeous day - not hot, not cold, not windy, not humid - just gorgeous. Here's Anna:

 It was interesting to me to watch the families file through with kids of all ages...and probably because I'm a people person, it made me wonder about their stories. Women who were uncomfortably pregnant walked around anyway, all for the sheer delight on the face of their first little one in the stroller. Grandparents held tightly to the hands of grandchildren, making memories those kids are likely to keep for all time. Young parents...old parents...adoptive parents...biological parents...groups of parents bringing kids for a play date...parents and case workers of those with physical and developmental challenges...teenagers and young adults on dates...

It was a four hour tour of who-knows-what-kind-of-dreams filing past the table, some nodding our way and moving ahead and others stopping to have some fun.

Dreams.

The stuff that caused these two (who just happen to be my parents) to stand at an altar 58 years ago today and pledge forever together...

...and still be together 58 years later...

Dreams.

The stuff that burned in the hearts of today's guests...authors, who dreamed up stories and illustrations and committed them to paper and screen so they could be passed on to those of us who love to read.

One of our authors today was Katherine Paterson, who years ago wrote the book Bridge to Terabithia. I read that book in elementary school and loved it so much that my friend Amber and I created our own little worlds, which we named Carapithia and Farapithia (based on the first letters of our last names) and in those little imaginary worlds, we made dreams too.

When I called Katherine last week to confirm today's interview, I said to her, "I just want you to know how much I loved Bridge to Terabithia..."

I was on the phone with a dream-maker. Someone whose words allowed me the courage to create a dream.

Do dreams come true?

Not usually like you imagine them. They probably haven't for most of the people who filed past Anna, the prize wheel, and me on Saturday. They haven't always for my parents. And Amber and I live in a real world, not in our paradise of Carapithia and Farapithia...but you know what?

God does some amazing things with a heart that dreams. He molds those dreams to fit His and when He brings a dream to pass, it's wildly amazing.

Beyond all we could ask or imagine, in fact.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

Ephesians 3:20-21



Some Friday Fun...

Happy Friday, Mid-Morning friends!! Today I just have some miscellany for you...

Super Summer Sticker Stops. Did any of you get to see Lynne yesterday? She was in Bluffton with Amy, Scott, and Anna...on one of the coldest, rainiest days we've had all summer! Lynne and I are polar opposites on temps. I can't get cold enough and she can't get warm enough. (Don't you wish you shared OUR office?) Anyway. Despite the icky weather, she had a great time!!

I'll be at the Super Summer Sticker Stop this coming Tuesday (August 21) from 2-6 p.m. at the Walmart on Maysville Road here in Fort Wayne. If you can stop by, I'd love to meet you! We'll also be collecting some items for the Red Cross - terry washcloths, 7 and 5 inch unbreakable combs, and small crayon packs. These will be added to emergency packs donated to families who lose their possessions in a disaster.

In Case You've Had Some Health Questions...This has been a healthy little week here on Mid-Morning! Dr. Ann Kulze was with us on Tuesday with general nutrition information. In case you're new to our program, Dr. Ann is with us every month, so if you have nutrition questions, you can send them in to us via email and we'll ask her! Yesterday, Dr. Angela LaSalle joined us to talk about hormones and how they affect your health...and today we welcomed Dr. Severinac, a plastic surgeon, to talk about preventative skin care. Too many good tips and points to mention in those interviews, so check out the archives (click on the links provided here to get to the archive of each show) to listen to their wisdom!

Next week...we have our Author! Author! show on Monday (six author interviews!), Dr. Mitch Kruse will pay us a visit, we have a REALLY fun need-to-know-now-before-it-gets-too-close-to-Christmas show planned, and Dr. Jason Rosenberg, a headache specialist will answer your questions! Hang out with us from 10-11 a.m. Eastern next week?

And last but not least....want to laugh at me? Found this picture taken in June of 1989...from a church camp I attended. Here's the photo:

Here's the conversation I had with a (to be unnamed) co-worker:

Me: See that girl in the blue? The one that looks ready to kill someone?

Her: That's a GIRL???

Me: That's ME.

Her: Oh! I'm so sorry! You're so pretty...now.

CRACK me up. Praise God we don't stay in the fifth grade, amen?

Savvy, Sassy, and Single

We've gotten some emails from dear, sweet single ladies whose hearts just ache. They ache to be chosen, to be loved, to feel like they fit in with life in general...and you know what? I get it.

I had my first crush at age four...on my very handsome (no, really! He was!) and very in-high-school neighbor. This year marks 30 years since that crush. He's still very handsome...but he's also not the one God planned for me. That doesn't mean I have lost the desire to one day be married. It just means the journey from my creation to the creation of my marriage is much longer than I ever thought it would be from that four-year-old-isn't-that-neighbor-dreamy perspective!

Michelle McKinney Hammond gets that. She's in her 50's and while she's never been married, she's also never let that society-imposed stigma keep her from being savvy, sassy, and simply delightful.

I had the privilege of hearing her speak last year at the Extraordinary Women conference here in Fort Wayne, and I loved her words, her wisdom, her humor, and her sweet spirit. (Took this picture from my perch...)

She has a couple of new books: A Woman's Gotta Do What a Woman's Gotta Do (a study of the ever-daunting Proverbs 31 woman) and How to Be Happy Where You Are (a study of contentment based on the biblical account of the Shunamite woman). And this morning I wished I would have been multi-tasking-talented enough to interview AND engineer AND absorb every word AND journal her great quotes as she spoke with Lynne and me. I'm going to have to go back and listen to the show in full to write in my journal some of the nuggets of wisdom.

The bottom line is...the whole hurt of singleness is a detail. The desire (or sometimes flat out ache) I have to be married and share life with a husband is the same desire (or flat out ache) some women have to be able to carry a child...or adopt...or go a full day without debilitating pain...or accomplish a lifelong dream...or...or...or...

If you're aching for fulfillment of a dream and a deep heart desire...perhaps one you've had since age four...check out her interview with Lynne and me today and let your heart be encouraged by her words.

And to get you started, a few of my favorite nuggets from How to Be Happy Where You Are

* "In God's economy of time, a day is as a thousand, and He has all the time in the world to work out His purposes in us and through us."

* "God also waits to see if the thing you desire will become a god to you or if He will remain the God in your life."

* "There comes a time when we have to decide we mean business with God. When we take hold of the altar and refuse to let go."

* "We have no idea what is going on in the realm of the principalities that war against God's plan for us."

Michelle, thanks for sharing your heart with us! And thanks for letting the Lord speak through you to encourage hurting hearts.

Motherhood

This morning, Lynne interviewed Leslie Wilson, who is one of the contributors to a gift book called A Scrapbook of Motherhood Firsts. It's a collection of stories, traditions, recipes, wisdom, tips, quotes, verses, and much more...to help new mothers transition into the most wonderful and challenging role they'll ever know.

I'm not a mom. (Unless you count my cat...and I'm going to guess most of you aren't going to let me count her...and truthfully I won't fight you on that. She's pretty low maintenance.) But I have a mom...and if you listen to Mid-Morning very often, you probably hear me talk about her. I like to tell stories on her and ask forgiveness later. :)

Thought you might like to meet her today:

Obviously that was from Christmas...and she would KILL me if she knew I posted a picture in which she was barefoot and I was in the highest heels I own. (She doesn't relish being the shortest family member. I, on the other hand, relish a good hair day and a good pair of heels allowing me to be the TALLEST family member.) So let's just not mention this part to her, okay?

I've mentioned this on the air before, but I was a bit of a surprise to my parents. (Read: total unexpected shock.) Mom was probably mostly ready for a nap for much of my childhood, but she did a great job jumping in and making it fun for me. She encouraged me to use my imagination (something she no doubt later wished she'd dialed down JUST a bit) and taught me great life principles from an early age.

To be honest, I can't imagine how much work it would be to have a baby and take on the responsibility of raising him or her to not only be a good and kind person...but to know and love the Lord. I have a great admiration for moms and the hard work they do every day - from getting them on a schedule as a baby...to potty training...to playing taxi...to beginning to set them free to be themselves...to stepping back entirely and letting them become the people God wove them to be.

Blessings to you mothers...my own included!!

Throat Lumps

Our lovely Sheryl Glancy has been out of the office this week, and today I filled in for her on the phones during Mid-Morning. Our show today was about prodigals, and as I answered calls I noticed...

...that each caller squeezed out a pain-filled question around a lump in the throat.

To know that we have loved ones who have chosen not to pursue our Abba...hurts us in the deepest place.

We want to fix everything. We want an instant solution. We want to pull their wounded hearts into our hands and soothe and repair the brokenness found there.

But we can't. No amount of sheer willpower on our end will fix anything.

The good news?

He's not done with your prodigal. His loving Father's heart hasn't lost sight of that soul you love so much.

And as our guest, Carol Barnier, said in her book, Engaging Today's Prodigal, "God is able to make something good come of this situation, and not just for your prodigal."

Oh yes. And she also said, "God can even make something beautiful out of those scars."

So, to you sweet callers whose strained voices spoke around a lump in the throat, and to those of you whose hearts ached so badly you couldn't even call, know this today:

...the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes on behalf of the saints according to God's will.

~ Romans 8:26-27 NET ~



So don't give up interceding for the prodigals in your life. Know that the Holy Spirit is interceding for you as you intercede for them. And know that He's not absent from this deep hurt that encompasses you. He's there and working, even if you can't see.

And may I offer this as well? Last year, Lynne interviewed James Banks, who also wrote a great book about prodigals, called Prayers for Prodigals. Carol was a prodigal child who came home to the love of the Lord, and James parented two prodigal children. Let the wisdom they each learned on their respective journeys encourage you!

And if you're just flat out hurting today from the weight of it all...if you wonder if you have the courage for this journey, read this lovely blog post by Bonnie Gray. It spoke to me in ways I can't explain.

A Little Miscellany

Did you catch today's Mid-Morning? Master Gardener Ricky Kemery joined us in the studio to chat about how plants have been impacted by this year's heat and drought. Plants at my house look about the same as they do every year:

 Aren't you glad you're not a plant at my house??

Anyway. Ricky had some great advice, so if you're wondering about plants, check out the archive of that show.

I pinned this to our We Like It Wednesday Pinterest board a couple of weeks ago, but since I can still talk about it for a few more days, I think I'll mention it again. I made this cake (yep, this one is really mine...based on a pin I found) and took it to the lake the night of the Olympic opening ceremonies. Some friends of mine have a cottage up there and invited me up for the weekend (let me think...YES PLEASE!!!!) so I figured the very least I could do was arrive with food! They loved it.

 And as Lynne and I discussed on today's show...I have a bit of an addiction to Essie nail polish. I made a small pilgrimage down the polish aisle this week...you know...just to see...if there was anything I neeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeded. And see that little bottle to the far right? Yep. Bought it. I am planning to go to my first-ever-in-my-whole-life Colts game this fall, so I figured I should start practicing my nail art.

 And these things have NOTHING to do with Mid-Morning...but I think there's great value in life's simple pleasures, so I wanted to share them with you. You have a weekend coming up...take a few minutes (or a whole day if you have it!) and just enjoy something. Be thankful for the small things.

For example.

When was the last time you laid on a blanket in the grass and watched the clouds roll by overhead? I hadn't done that in...well...can't tell you how long. But I did it last Saturday and it was pure bliss.

For example.

I'm thankful I'm not a rhino. Turns out they have a 16 month gestation period and give birth to 140 pound babies. Oh how thankful I am to be a human girl!!

 For example.

I took a back road to work this week so I could enjoy this stunning sunrise. I pulled the car over to the side, rolled down the window, and gave thanks. One of my 1000 gifts. Many thousands of gifts found in many thousands of sunrises.

 For example.

Last night I tried a new recipe. No-fry fried ice cream. Oh. My. Dear. People. Have you ever had fried ice cream at a restaurant? I haven't in probably almost 15 years. But that lovely taste of warm, honey-cinnamon crispy crust around cold ice cream...oh yum.

But as you can imagine, I'm not really good at playing with fried foods. (Lack of coordination leads to dangerous cooking when hot oil is involved.) So I found this recipe for a non-fried version. Heavenly.

So why not give it a try? Take a minute this weekend to ENJOY?

Hurts and the Healer

Yesterday was Dr. David Hawkins' monthly visit to Mid-Morning. Lynne mentioned at the start of the show that it's such a privilege to have him join us every month...and to have all the other amazing guests we welcome regularly...because it gives you a chance, for just one hour, to reach out to people who have such wisdom on so many topics.

And you know what we've learned from your calls and emails and letters?

We serve a hurting group. So many of you have such huge life-aches going on right now. You carry burdens that push you down and hold you there, and our hearts break with yours as you call and write to share your hurt.

Dr. Hawkins specializes in relationships of all kinds...and as a girl whose own heart was badly broken two years ago, I have to wonder...is there any hurt deeper than a relationship hurt? To be confused or abandoned or betrayed by someone - anyone - you trusted enough to attach the word love to...is a deep, deep heart wound.

I get that. Lynne gets that. We've hurt, too.

If that's you today...if you're one of our listening family members who can't find the breath to get out of bed today because of a heart-wound caused by a broken relationship, know that you are loved. God has not stopped seeing you.

You keep track of all my sorrows.
    You have collected all my tears in your bottle.
    You have recorded each one in your book.

Psalm 56:8 NLT

He sees you. He caught every single tear in His hand. Even those that soaked into your pillow in the middle of the night.

Here are links to a few of Dr. Hawkins' past visits to Mid-Morning if you need some relationship hope today:

Struggling with handling your divorce?  Is pleasing others hurting you?  Has your love relationship ended?  Has social networking brought about an affair in your world? Overrun by emotion in your relationships? Does your marriage need saved? Struggling with an abusive relationship? Affected by emotional infidelity?

You can listen or download any of those shows by clicking on the link. Listen and be encouraged that He sees. The Healer wants to collide with your hurt.