Don't mind if I do!

Philippians 4:19 "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." This verse is such a good reminder of the sovereignty of our awesome God. No matter what stresses, deficits, or unknowns you are facing in your life, whether it be related to your job, your relationships, your future, the Lord will meet your needs. It does not say that He will meet only some of those needs and the rest you just have to figure out on your own, nor does it tack on "if you are good/smart/nice enough" to the end, for that is where grace comes into play. My God will meet ALL of your needs. It might look a little different than the image you had in your mind but I guarantee it will be better than what you could have pictured, for His ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts {Isaiah 55:8-9}. What can He who has everything, for He created everything, do with those glorious riches He so abundantly possesses? He graciously blesses His children and meets every need they have, not because we have done anything at all to deserve it, but because we accept that free gift of grace and offer Him our broken little selves. And the Lord redeems us, makes us clean and beautiful in His sight and meets every need so that our lives may bring Him glory and honor. Thank you Lord for the many needs that I have. Thank you for my brokenness and utter dependence on You, for only You can fill up what I lack. For only You can redeem. For only You can save.

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To begin this post, I thought I'd share three reasons why I love my husband {Don't roll your eyes just yet!} Aside from actual, serious reasons why I chose to be with this guy for the rest of my life, here are a couple situations that have arisen recently that remind me just how much I love 'im.

Reason #1

These are the sweet potatoes he picked out for dinner one night last week. How the heck are these puppies ever going to cook at the same rate and be done at the same time? The only response he could give...

was laughter.

Reason #2

A couple days before my birthday this year my husband went to Target to pick out some birthday wrapping paper. He returned successfully and explained that he had gotten some wrapping paper on clearance. Ooh baby now that is speaking my love language right there! Then, as he began to bring out the gifts from the "no go zone" in his study, I realized that the clearance wrapping paper in question was "I <3 One Direction" paper. Which ran out before he had a chance to wrap all of the gifts so he used the leftover Christmas paper. And yes, that is brown packing paper in lieu of tissue paper in the gift bags.

Reason #3

I don't have a picture to accompany this reason just a conversation that took place a couple weeks ago. As we were driving along, ruminating on resolutions for the new year, I mentioned that maybe my resolution should be to wake up and get ready for the day more often {aka put on real pants more frequently and regularly, rather than staying in my oh-so-sexy assorted sweatpants until I absolutely had to, only to put on my "nice" sweatpants - plain black ones that are appropriate to be worn in public.}

His response:

"That sounds like a lot of laundry."

I knew I picked a good one!

Speaking of good ones, I thought I'd share a new recipe we tried, courtesy {again} of Ina Garten from her cookbook Barefoot Contessa at Home. This omelet was absolutely awesome - perfect for dinner on breakfast night or a brunch - and easy! It starts off in the skillet and finishes in the oven. One pan to clean? Sold. No attempting to flip an omelet only to get frustrated and violently "scramble" the eggs instead? Double sold. And no, I don't speak from experience...

Omelet for Two

From: Barefoot Contessa at Home

What you need...

1/4 pound  good thick-cut bacon

1 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 cup medium-diced Yukon Gold potato

1/2 cup chopped yellow onion

1 Tbsp minced jalapeno pepper

5 extra-large eggs

2 Tbsp milk or cream

1 tsp kosher salt

*Far be it from me that I should correct the Contessa but I think next time I'd use less than a teaspoon of salt. James and I both ended up with some bites at the end that were super salty.

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts

4 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, diced, plus grated cheese for garnish

What to do...

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cut the bacon crosswise into 1-inch pieces. Cook the bacon in an 8-inch ovenproof saute pan over medium-low heat for 5 to 7 minutes until browned. Drain the bacon on paper towels and discard 

the fat from the pan.

3. Add the butter to the pan, then add the potato and yellow onion. Cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, tossing occasionally, until the onion starts to brown and the potato is tender but firm.

4. Add the jalapeno pepper and cook for 30 seconds.

5. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl beat the eggs, milk, salt and pepper together with a fork. Stir in the scallions and diced Cheddar.

6. When the potato is cooked, add the bacon to the pan and pour over the egg mixture. Place the pan in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until the omelet puffs and the eggs are almost cooked in the center. Sprinkle with a handful of grated Cheddar and bake for another minute.

Serve hot directly from the pan and enjoy!

P.S. Does anyone else automatically say "Omelet for two? Don't mind if I do!" in their heads when reading the name of this dish. Preferably in a poorly-imitated French accent. Just me? That's cool.

Finally, this post brought to you by "Kitties Who Will Lay On Anything You Put On The Floor"...

...including mirrors.