Mango Power Bars

So, last Saturday Savanna and I, and Chloe got to go and see the new movie Divergent!!

Many of you know that this is based of a novel written by Veronica Roth a couple years ago, if you didn't, now you do! Chloe just recently introduced the books to me, and I've read the first one (Divergent) and I'm waiting to read the next two! 

Okay, now to my topic.

Today you get a recipe! (i'm sorry about the lack of pictures... Mom and I ate it all up before Savanna could get out her camera. They really did look good:) 

Mom and I  have recently been collecting some more grain free recipes, or just higher-in -protein-than-in-starch recipes. In my search, I came across several recipes for power bars. These are either in the form of little balls, or in bars. The recipes all boiled down to just a few key ingredients. (I'll bold them in the recipe) I substituted a few things that we don't have in out kitchen, so it's more likely that you'll have these ingredients too!  

Also: I just wanted to try out blogging about food, so this isn't going to turn out to be a food blog:) 

Okay, so these bars are great for a high-protein snack, and can be super energizing for  an after work-out snack. They don't have any processed sugar, and are obviously Gluten-free and Dairy-free:) 

Mango Power Bars

1 c. Blanched almond flour

1 TBSP. Unsweetened coconut flakes

2 TBSP.  Flaxmeal(If you want to make this thoroughly gluten-free, use gluten-free flaxmeal that was produced in a certified gluten-free facility.)

2 TBSP. Coconut sugar

1/2 tsp. Baking soda

1 tsp. honey

1/4 tsp. Sea salt

2 eggs

1/2 c. Mango (you can play around with this one, I would suggest that you use a fruit that it more squishy, and has more moisture:) 

1/2 c. Chocolate chips (If you don't want processed sugar, don't use these:) I don't know exactly how it would taste if you used it, since I didn't, but go ahead and try!)

Preheat oven to 350º

Combine the dry ingredients together. (Except for chocolate chips) Blend together. 

Stir the two eggs together so that the yoke is mixed in with the white, and add to the dry ingredients. Add the honey.

Cut your mango(or other fruit) into small bite sized pieces. Mix the fruit and chocolate chips into the batter, and spread into an oiled 8x8 pan. Let bake about 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

 Eat right away, or freeze it for later! 

Thanks again for reading:)

~Avery

Lies of The World

                   This week has been a battle inside my head!! God has really been revealing how many lies I have allowed to rest under the surface. I don't know they are there, but by my reactions to circumstances showed that something was there! I spent some time just listening to God pull up each lie one by one, kinda like carrots:) Here are some of the lies I thought might be applicable to all y'all, and even if they seem really silly, I'd invite you just to evaluate if you really do believe the lie, deep down inside.
             What the World says about you:
               
                   • You'll be happy if you're 'skinny'
                   • You have to look photoshopped to be 'noticed'
                   • To be noticed means to inspire jealousy or awe in others
                   • You are worth as much as your appearance
                   • Flaunting yourself is the only way to get attention
                   • Intelligence only matters if you are beautiful too
                   • Your life is for your pleasure
                   • You can be as mean as you want, as long as you're nice to whoever matters
                   • Your worth comes from other people's affirmation
                   • You have to dress like ( ), and act like ( ) to be 'okay'
                   • Being popular makes you feel content
                   • Patience is overrated, everything needs to be fast or it's worthless

(This could go on and on, but I don't want you to be overwhelmed!)

Have you noticed a theme in these? I didn't, until just now! Here is the lie that sums all of these up:

You need the attention of others. Your goal should be to get attention. 

Whew. I don't know about you, but this sure caught me off guard. I'm pretty sure that you've wanted  attention at least once! But let's try and find the root of this 'attention need'. Why do we thirst for attention so much? We think that attention=value. It doesn't. What does God say about your value?

    What God says about you: (and your value:)  

              • You are not someone to be measured
              • Your worth lies in Me, and I never fail
              • What you look like on the outside matters nothing to Me in comparison to the spiritual beauty inside of you
              • Inspire hope and joy in others, not jealousy
              • Praise Me with your beauty
              • Your life belongs to Me, it is not yours to waste
              • I love to spend time with you
              • Fill your mind with things that are pleasing and perfect
              • Your beauty cannot be measured by someone else's standard

Worship God, your creator!! He loves you more than you could ever hope to imagine!

~Avery


                 

Choosing Joy

Father Daughter Dance, 2012

Savanna turned eighteen this week! I can't help remembering when she turned sixteen, after the last Father Daughter Banquet, I though the world was ending because she was so old! Now she's an adult!

Anyway, on to the subject.

Joy is a decision, joy is a battle. Joy is a conscious choice every morning. Joy takes the strength of God, and you willing to go along! When I wake up in the morning, and my mind unconsciously runs through everything I have to do in the day, where I have to go, and how much time I have to do it all, joy does not bubble out of me. Sometimes, I let the joy go, I don't try and find it. Trust me, I'm sure you all know those are how you make days go badly. Joy is not something that you have to wait for to find. (I'm not speaking literally, that was mostly figural) If I want to embrace joy, I've got to stretch my sleepy self a few feet to reach for my bible, and read. I'll be honest, sometimes I don't find anything groundbreaking.
I don't fall to my knees praying and worshipping. But when I acknowledge the presence of God inside me, I am able to choose to fight off anything that would hinder me, and choose to rejoice in my day.
Sometimes I don't hold on to the joy, and that is when I get grumpy, and my siblings walk a wide circle around me:) But be encouraged! Even if you've gone the whole day ignoring God's gift of life itself, He's always waiting for you to turn around and ask him to guide you!

This subject didn't go on for very long, so I guess you guys get an excerpt from Mermaid's Tears!

This is part of the scene where she is convinced to turn into a mermaid:P

               I close my eyes and remember, all the cold nights, all the hunger, despair. I remember how much the people of the town have hurt me, how much they abused me with their words.  I think of how I’ll never be loved, how I’ll never find anyone who could love me. I want the tears to come, but my eyes are just stinging. I squeeze my eyes, and I feel one tear fall. The mermaid catches the tear and blows on it, causing it to whirl up from her hand, glowing like a pearl. She stares at in in admiration, and holds the oyster shell up to it. The tear solidifies and drops into the shell.. It looks just like a pearl should, dully glowing pink and blue at the same time.  She pushes the oyster into my hand.

                        “Whatever you do, don’t let go. This is your life.”

 She pulls the fish up and slits its neck with her teeth. She spreads the blood on my feet, then puts her hands on my eyes and slides them down to my temples, using the blood to create a pattern. She continues the pattern on the side of my face and my neck. Slick, wet blood itches my neck. She is massaging the pattern into my face with her hard thumbs. It hurts, oh it doesn't, shouldn't feel real. With her shriek, pain tingles and swirls up my face, plowing through my legs. Agony. Why am I alive? Something pulls me into the water.

Maybe some more will come later:) 

~Avery