Things seem to be in working order with my computer. I don't know what happened, but it powered up last night and Ryan even Skyped with his dad today with no problems. I can commence with school work. (awww...) I hope the driver issue with Nvidia and my computer has been resolved forever.
I have not come up with any other recipes with my endless supply of beans. We ate at Friday's last night and had leftovers tonight. Perhaps the pantry challenge will be altered. There is no way I'm having beans for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert with a side of soup every day. I will get creative and use up what I don't really want to eat. Don't get me wrong, I like beans, just not everyday. A lot of the food I have in the pantry came from the food bank. I'm not big on buying canned fruits and veggies because frozen ones are closer to fresh and healthy. I didn't realize how much I would rather make a meal of something else (if I have something else available). I really thought that everything that I have on hand can be used up without too many trips to the grocery store. Perhaps I'm right about that. I will take some time to reevaluate what I have and challenge myself to using up what's lurking on the shelves.
I know it's after Valentine's Day, but we had an assignment, didn't we? We had 5 days to come up with 5 ways to love our enemies (well, I guess we had a little more time than that...). Here are my five things (read if you have your list already):
- Change the way I speak about them.
- Watch my attitude when dealing with them.
- Show patience.
- Pray for them.
- Try not to keep record of wrongdoings.
Onto the explanation! Okay, when thinking about an enemy, I can't help but think of my ex-husband. I will not go into the details of our marriage, divorce, and current communication issues, but I will explain a bit where I'm coming from.
- Changing the way I speak about the person is a good first step toward showing respect. I have to admit, this one isn't really that hard for me to do (what's hard is when I'm talking directly to the person!) Even though your enemy may be someone who doesn't have or show any respect for you, it is up to you to "be the bigger person" and just be plain ol' decent when you're talking about them to others. This probably won't change the way you feel about them, but you will be able to keep a clear conscious while being a good example to others (especially your children, if you have any).
- Watching my attitude, huh? More than anyone else I know in this world, my ex is really good at getting under my skin (and I let him?!). Even when I try to keep emotions out and just be plain and say what needs to be said, it can come across as attitude (happens more often in email than in person). What's difficult to do is keep a positive attitude when you are received with negativity. I don't typically lose patience that easily, but with him...I do... Which brings me to my next point...
- Showing patience is really important. It can help keep you from ever developing the attitude. Being patient doesn't mean sitting back and not doing anything at all. It means understanding that clearing up any situation could take some time. Regardless of that time it may take, don't lose your cool and try to keep working toward a resolution.
- Praying for those you love, or even strangers, is a lot easier to do than praying for someone you don't get along with. When it comes to praying for that difficult person in my life, I don't really always know what to ask for (I can't say that I try to think about the person, either). I would never ask for death and doom, but at the same time, I would really not have to deal with something (or someone) so difficult. Can you feel me on that one? Part of being a mature, responsible adult is facing difficulties. It's important to pray for yourself to be able to show love to that person along with things that would benefit that person. Be it wellness or repentance, when you pray for someone because you truly care for them (even if you don't like them), that's the ultimate way you can love them.
- Try not to keep record of wrongdoings. This one is tricky. Especially if you are constantly being pestered (or have court hearings coming up). The main thing is to try not to hang onto what was done in the past (if it has nothing to do with right now). I don't really have issues with this with anyone, but (you guess it) my ex-husband. For several years now, I have been dealing with things that led to my divorce as well as things that have been going on since then. With court hearings scattered through the years, lies, and confusion, it's been hard to determine what exactly are we dealing with and in what time frame does it belong. I can't help but think that it may be a while before any of that stuff will lose relevancy. It can take a while to get over hurt, but dwelling on what they did to you will not help you grow or move forward (or deal with them properly).
This list is just 5 things. Now for the assignment! At the end of next week, take a look back on how you dealt with your "enemy." Did you stick to any of the 5 ideas you came up with? How about with someone that you wouldn't consider an "enemy"? I'll have to revisit this one myself...There are 2 emails that I have been holding off responding to because they really got me going. When I do respond (and believe me, I will) I will work to keep the love in it, even if what I have to say won't be welcomed (or understood as love).
What is easier than showing love? Just about everything sometimes! What's easier than that? This recipe for my corn flake chicken! You know you liked that transition!
You'll need some chicken pieces (you can use bone-in or boneless parts). This time when I made it, I used boneless thighs. You'll need to season your flour. I used salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and parsley flakes. You can use whatever seasonings you like. Remember, that because the chicken will have an outer layer of corn flakes, your seasonings will be sort of toned down a bit. Taste your seasoned flour before you start coating chicken and adjust accordingly.
After you have coated your chicken in the seasoned flour, beat an egg or two and dip in your chicken. Get it covered pretty well (while not losing your flour).
Last in the preparations is coating the chicken in broken corn flakes! It's up to you how fine you want your corn flake crumbs. I usually like to crush them by hand so there are a lot of different sized flakes, but chopping them in a food processor or leaving them whole works fine, too.
Your oven should be preheated to something too hot for you to touch...like 350 or 400 degrees (fahrenheit, of course!). Place your chicken in the oven covered for as long as you like. I usually keep it in for an hour...for good measure. Be sure to uncover your chicken when it's done and cook for an additional 10 - 15 minutes to ensure the crust is nice and crispy. You will have crispy but very juicy chicken.
I'm sorry for not having a picture of the final product. I was so happy to sit down and eat! We had macaroni and cheese and fresh salad with homemade sesame ginger dressing. For dessert, mango peach cobbler (I doubled the quick fruit cobbler recipe from More-With-Less cookbook) with homemade pink vanilla ice cream (it was Valentine's day).
It is waaay past my bedtime. I'm not doing homework, so I should really get some sleep!
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