Music Monday

It's time for this week's music recommendations!
I hope you'll share some of your favorites as a comment at the end of the post.
I love your suggestions.

This week, I discovered The Drums.
Are you familiar?
Here are my favorites so far:
I Don't Know How to Love

What You Were

Here are some other favorites from other bands....
Somebody that I Used to Know by Gotya
Apologies by Grace Potter and The Nocturnals
GO! by Common

My very favorite song right now:
Settle Down by Kimbra
(LOVE her style and crazy dance movies...the video is pretty interesting, too!)
Two Weeks/Head Over Heels (to covers) by Kimbra and her band
Side note: Kimbra, let's be friends! Call me!




PS: Over the weekend,
I was featured in the Minneapolis StarTribune.
A special welcome to new blog readers!
Glad to have you here!

A Life of Faith: Poetry

I've saved most of my college literature books.
Last night I sat down with one of my gigantic British literature anthologies.
I was feeling bad about all the dust it had been collecting.

As I started flipping through the pages,
I remembered how spiritually meaningful it has been to me to read poetry.
Maybe that's why I ended up an English Literature major.
In the midst of a wonderful, busy college life,
I'd find time each day to curl up in my favorite spot on the 3rd floor of the Wartburg College library. It was there that I fell in love with words.

Here's one poem I love and re-encountered last night:

Loveliest of Trees
by A.E. Housman

Loveliest of trees, the cherry now,
Is hung with bloom along the bough,
And stands about the woodland ride
Wearing white for Eastertide.

Now, of my threescore years and then,
Twenty will not come again,
And take from seventy springs a score,
It only leaves me fifty more.

And since to look at things in bloom
Fifty springs are little room
About the woodlands I will go
To see the cherry hung with snow.


What poems/authors inspire you?

Out & About: Quarry Hill

For this week's Out and About, my mom and I went to Quarry Hill.
It's my favorite Rochester park. Great hiking. Great nature center.
In the future, I'm really hoping to rent some cross country skis there. I've never done that before, and it sounds so fun.

If you are new to the blog today and found your way here through the
Minneapolis StarTribune interview: Welcome! Glad to have you!
My daily fashion post can be found over at Diary of a Pastoral Fashionista.

It was lovely to soak in the sights and sounds at the park.
It was also nice to make a little time for one of my favorite past times: silly pictures.

There are all kinds of critters at Quarry Hill.
If you HAD to choose,
would you rather be a snake, a spider, a buffalo, or a fish?

Word of the Week: Mug

Wonderful friends, thank you for taking time to read this blog! You inspire me each and every day. I was interviewed yesterday about the blog, and it really reminded me of how thankful I am for those of you who have been journeying with me these last 3 years. Thank you for sticking with me (to those who have been readers for awhile). And "welcome" to those who are newer to "The Lady Pastor"!

It was so fun to put together today's post. Thank you for contributing mug photos. It was a delight to see what you all drink out of each day.

Laura

Anna

Anna

Barb

Jen

Mike

April

Trudy

Trudy

Pam

Pete

Pete

Pete

Pete

Kari

Kari

Kari

Kari

Kari

Kari

Dan

Heidi

Heidi

Amy

Carol

Emily

And now for next Friday's word. The word is sunrise!

Maybe you already have a great sunrise photo you'd like to share; that's great.

If you don't yet have a sunrise picture, your assignment this week is: watch the sunrise and take a picture of it this week. You can use your cell phone or a regular camera. And as you watch the sunrise (either from the warmth of your house or from outside): soak in the wonder of it all!

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful this week for....

-A Fit Bit from my beloved brother!

-Applebee's with Mom

-Cookbooks

-Technology

-Great, honest friends

-Words

-Apples

-Shoes
-Confirmation time
-Music
-A great Friday night concert at Mt. Olive
-Practicing piano
-Laughing at work
-Downton Abbey (such a great BBC show!)


What are you thankful for this week?
Share a few of your highlights!

Diary of a Pastoral Fashionista

Time for some fashion-smashion.

But first....

And now, this week's outfit.

Necklace: Herbergers/Tights: QVC Fleecey Tights/Dress: Modcloth/Black Shirt: GAP/Shoes: O & B

What is your favorite accessory?
This question if for both boys and gals!

Cookin' It Up: Apples

Get ready for some apple fun!
Apples are one of my favorite foods.

(This week's recipe is from Hungry Girl: 200 Under 200)

(The ingredients. I actually found all these gems in my cupboard! Yahoo!
The recipe calls for granola bars, but I just used packaged granola.)

Pre-cooked">

(Pre-microwave cookin')

(The finished product! With a little yogurt on top!)

This recipe turned out quite well!
I'd leave out the Splenda - or just use one pack.
If you are anti-artificial sweetener, you could also use maple syrup,
and that would be yummy.
This recipe was SO easy!
You just mix all the ingredients (except the granola) and microwave for 2 minutes!
Then you let it cool and stir in the granola.



What is your favorite kind of apple?
I love to try new varieties!