A New Part of the Journey

You guys!!!!  Today I went live on my NEW WEBSITE! It's not perfect.  Actually, it doesn't look much different than this blog.  YET.  But it will.  And I have great things in store!!  Come see me at www.kendracutsinger.com.  I hope you will join me in the journey!

Life Lessons From The Garden

Last week, I came home from a surprise trip with my husband to find that weeds and grass had COMPLETELY overtaken my garden.  As I started to pull the weeds and try to reclaim my garden, I mulled over the many lessons I could potential learn from this scenario that I now found myself in.  I settled on two and thought I would share them with you!

Lesson #1: Don't put off until  tomorrow what you need to do today.  

Now, I know that this is not an original thought.  I am not the first to learn this lesson.  Nor will I be the last.  And this is most definitely not the first time that I have had to learn this lesson.  A couple of weeks ago, I had been putting off some major weeding in my garden because I thought I would have time later.  Then I was whisked away on a surprise trip ~ which I'm NOT complaining about ~ and the opportunity I thought I would have 'later' never came.  I came back to triple the work, and after several days of working in the morning and evening (and with the help of my boys), I've managed to reclaim about half of the garden.  

Lesson #2: What might be considered good on the one hand might not be so good on the other.  

What am I talking about?? Well, it all depends on perspective. I want grass to grow in my lawn. However, the minute that the grass starts to grow in my garden it becomes my nemesis and I am constantly doing battle with it.  Grass is wanted and considered good while growing in my lawn.  But that same good thing, in a different set of circumstances, is no longer considered good. 

What do either of these lessons have to do with you? I encourage  you to do some self examination and ask yourself a few questions.  One, what are the 'weeds' in your life?  Are there things in your life that are or were good things, but are perhaps choking out the BEST things in your life? I've found that there are often seasons of life, of friendship, and of activity.  What might have once been a fruitful area of life may not be anymore.  And, secondly, what are you putting off until tomorrow that should be done today? I'm not necessarily talking about work ~ what about relationships? Who do you need to reach out to today? Who has been on your mind, but you just haven't taken the time to make that phone call or send that message?

The opportunities could pass, the BEST could get choked out by the good, and then you might look back and wish that you had done something differently.  Now, I know that hindsight is always 20/20.  And none of us are going to perfectly lead the life that we hope for and dream of.  But let's embrace to opportunity that we have TODAY to work hard and love well!

Blessings to you~Kendra

Blue Apron: Why I love it...and why it's not for me

     Recently, a sweet friend of mine, who has used Blue Apron meal services for awhile, asked if I would like to try it out for free. Apparently, after using their meal services for awhile, you can receive "free meals" to give to a friend.   Never being one to turn down good food, or the opportunity to cook something new, I was game! It was very easy to set up an account and schedule my first delivery. I did choose to do a 2 person menu, for the sake of keeping my trial run completely free.  (If I had chosen a 4 person family menu, then I would have had to pay extra.)

     In just over a week, this super fun box was delivered! When I opened it up, there were my three recipes for the week, along with some extra information on one of the ingredients, and prepackaged, well-labeled ingredients for each meal.  I have to admit, I was impressed with the packing, and for their system on keeping the food, which included uncooked meat, appropriately cold and fresh. 

     The first meal I cooked was this Roasted Chicken & Verjus Pan Sauce with Mashed Potatoes, Mushrooms, and Kale. I absolutely loved the full color recipes with a 'fun fact' about a component of the meal, plus step by step instructions on how to prepare the meal.  Even someone with a very limited knowledge on food prep could prepare a gourmet meal following these recipes!

     The finished product turned out much like the pictures on the recipe card, which is always fun! I do need to work on my food photography skills, though! The meal was tasty, with the exception that the potatoes were a bit dry and could have used some more butter or milk.  

     The second meal that I cooked was this Green Shakshuka with Eight Ball Squash and Spiced Pita Chips! I had been wanting to try a traditional shakshuka, which is usually based on a red sauce and served for breakfast. This recipe used tomatillos instead of regular tomatoes, which gave it the green color, and also a little extra zip. To say that I was excited to try this recipe out would be an understatement! Once again, the recipe was very easy to follow.  And though this one was a bit more involved, the end result was worth the effort! OH MY GOODNESS!! It was delicious!! 

     My picture isn't quite a pretty as the one on the recipe card, but don't let looks fool you.  This was amazing! We dipped the Spiced Pita Chips into the Shakshuka and ate it that way.  Yum! A side note about the Za'atar spice.  I've cooked with Za'atar before, but the mix that came with this recipe was so much better than what I had previously used.  I might just have to find something similar to it!! 

     I was out of town when my husband cooked the third meal, so I have no pictures and I did not personally try it.  He said that it was good, so I'll trust him on that one.  :)

     I love Blue Apron's mission, which is to make incredible home cooking available to everyone.  So many people have never really learned to cook.  This meal service makes it completely possible to learn how to cook, to experience new tastes, and to bring back something that I am passionate about, which is to sit down together as a family, or with friends, to share a meal at home.

      I personally love to cook and to try new recipes and cooking techniques.  And, as a family, we eat most of our meals at home.  So, I'm always looking for ways to incorporate different tastes and experiences into our eating habits.  I'm also up for trying new ways to plan our meals out for the week.  From this standpoint, Blue Apron did not disappoint.  Why, then, is it not for me? For no other reason than my food budget.  For the cost of three weekly meals through Blue Apron for my family of four, I can get a good portion of my groceries for the entire week.  

     That said, I can think of so many reasons why you should try out Blue Apron! If you are wanting to learn more about the basics of cooking, then this is definitely something that you need to try out. If you enjoy trying new foods, but don't want to pay to go out to eat, this could definitely be an option for you. I would even say that this would make a great gift for someone who loves to cook, or for newlyweds just starting out. If you are curious, it's worth a shot! Try something new today!!

Note: Blue Apron offers wine pairings with it's meals, which would be nice for learning more about wines and how to pair them well with meals.  They also have a marketplace, where you can buy the essentials for your kitchen.  

*I received no compensation of any kind for this review. It is my personal opinion. 

The Tuesday Review: Go For NO!

 A good friend of mine recently lent me the book, Go For No! And I am SO grateful! I don't know about you, but "NO" has always been a hard word for me to hear.  And fear of failure has been crippling to me at times. Now that I'm in a business where I get the response of "NO" often, and the sense of failure looms at times, I've had to overcome some major fears and expectations when it comes to this word.  

If you are wanting to overcome your fears of failure, or better yet, COMPLETELY SHIFT YOUR PERSPECTIVE on failure, then this is the book for you! The principles in this short, easy to read book, apply to all aspects of life --not just business-- and I HIGHLY recommend it to you! 

If I'm going to fail, I want to fail in BIG ways, while pursuing BIG DREAMS! 

Blessings~ Kendra

Listen

     

     I don't know about you, but I need a wisdom that doesn't come from me.  I need insight and discernment that can only come from God.  The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 2 that "...the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us."  I need understanding that can only come from the Spirit! 

     Sometimes this understanding and insight comes specifically through the scriptures, God's inspired word. Other times it comes through prayer and time spent alone in quiet with God.  And it even comes through the gentle admonishment from a friend or trusted loved one.  Over the years, I've noticed that for me personally, when God really wants to get my attention about something, a certain theme or word will come up continually, in all different areas of my life.  Over the past week or two, this has been happening.  A very specific word keeps coming up in my life.

A Day in the Life

     No two days are quite the same for us.  Part of that has to do with the fact that we educate at home. But sometimes, that's just how life goes. I thought it would be fun to pick a day to document throughout and just see what happens.  *As a side note, I'm always taking pictures.  Before smart phones, I almost always had my 'nice' camera around my neck.  These days, I don't feel like I take as many 'good' quality images as I used to.  But I do capture things that I never used to, and there is a fun sense of whimsy that comes with using my phone to take pictures. :)

     My day usually starts early, with prayer and study time.  And then it's time to let Rox dog, our Labrador, out.  She usually stays close to me while it's still dark, but once it gets light out, she makes sure to remind me to take care of her. :)

For Freedom

     If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, then you might have seen my post yesterday about how these past couple of days of the IF:Equip I Believe study over on the IF:Gathering App and at www.ifequip.com are pivotal to my faith.  All that I believe when it comes to my faith rests on whether or not I believe that Jesus, who became God in the Flesh, came to earth, lived a sinless life among us, was crucified for my sins, died, was raised to life again on the third day, lives today, and is coming back one day! If I don't believe this core truth, then my faith is dead.  Pointless. Paul says it best in 1 Corinthians 15:17, "And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins." But thankfully, THANKFULLY!!!, Christ has indeed been raised from the dead.  I am eternally grateful! Literally!!

Thoughts on the Trinity

     I've been thinking about the Trinity -- God in the three Persons of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit -- and how my belief in this 3 in 1 God informs my faith and life.  In the Bible, God is always referred to as ONE God.  And I BELIEVE that He is the ONE, TRUE God.  Yet, He also shows himself to be three different, unique persons, each with certain characteristics and qualities. How do I begin to grasp this concept, to wrap my head around something -- Someone -- that I clearly do not fully understand?

The Tuesday Review: Moving Mountains

     Life has a funny way of bringing unexpected gifts.  Moving Mountains was one of those completely unexpected gifts--one that met me right where I was and came at the perfect moment.  I had intended to highlight another book this week, which I'm sure that I will come back to another week. But for the moment I'm going to lean into the unexpected and share this life changing book with you.  (To say that it 'fell' into my Amazon cart and was accidentally ordered and shipped to my door wouldn't be far from the truth!)

     What do you do when you want to get better at something? You practice, right? Well, what if you need to learn a whole new way of practicing? Then what?  I would propose that you find a teacher or mentor who can show you a different way. When it comes to prayer, and becoming more effective at prayer, I have finally came to a point where I recognize the need to be shown a completely different way of interceding on behalf of others.  I want to pray with more CONFIDENCE, with more POWER, and with more AWARENESS.

     Moving Mountains by John Eldredge has been the perfect book to open my eyes to the possibilities available when it comes to prayer.  If YOU are ready to be a more effective prayer warrior, than READ THIS BOOK.  And, after you read it, come back over here and share your takeaways! I would love to know what you learned!

Blessings ~ Kendra

The Week In Pictures - March 20th

     This week was spring break for us.  I was SO ready for it and had big plans for all of the things that I was going to accomplish.  And almost none of my 'list' got done. Looking back, I now realize that I had completely unrealistic expectations of how the week was going to go.  Ha. Funny how things work that way sometimes.  All in all, it was a good week, though. We stuck close to home and enjoyed time with friends and explored new places. 

     Spring has definitely sprung here in Oklahoma.  We enjoyed beautiful weather the first part of the week.  The cold has come back for a few days, though--seems like it happens this way EVERY year--and scarf weather is not quite past us!

The Week in Pictures

     This past week was a full week of school, exploring, and being challenged to live a life of LOVE! The boys and I started the week off visiting the park that we used to live behind.  Though I do love where we are now, I miss the big park with it's walking trail and open spaces.  The boys had a blast hunting for crayfish after a spring rain, while I walked the trail and tried to capture spring with some pictures! 

What's On The Book "Roll"

     I was in Dallas this past weekend for a Rodan + Fields Training Event!  While I was there, I had the privilege and blessing to catch up with some good friends, host an event of my own, and visit The Branch, our church when we lived in Texas.  I also stopped by my all-time favorite bookstore, Half Price Books.  There is not much better than hunting for a good book or two, and finding unexpected treasures while on the hunt!  

Philippians 4:8

     This verse has been on my heart so much this week.  I don't know about you, but I often struggle to keep my thoughts focused on these kinds of thoughts...good thoughts...encouraging thoughts.  I struggle with worry, frustration, impatience, anger. I've also noticed that my boys struggle with the same things as well.  One of the joys, and difficulties if I'm being honest, of homeschooling, is that you get to spend a WHOLE lot more time with your kids.  Sometimes this is awesome.  Sometimes this is NOT.  Walking through character building opportunities, seemingly ALL THE TIME, can wear on a person.  And, when you realize that some of those habits that your kids have MIGHT have come from you in some form or fashion, it makes it all the more fun disheartening.

     This is where the Word of God comes in.  Starting this spring, we renewed our commitment to reading the Bible together.  It only takes a few minutes.  We try to talk about what we have read.  And we ask the Holy Spirit to help us understand what we read and apply it to our lives.  Beginning our day with God always helps the day to go better! 

     And in an effort to 'write' more of God's word on our hearts, we have also started memorizing one scripture a week.  Simple, I know. Why we haven't been doing it lately? I guess we just weren't being intentional. Philippians 4:8 is this weeks scripture.  What a beautiful, challenging, centering scripture! I hope it is a blessing to you today! 

~Kendra

With Great Expectation - Thoughts on IF:Gathering 2016

    I love orchids.  Years ago, when we lived in Florida, I had a dozen or two hanging in the oak tree in our backyard.  I just couldn't get enough of them!  I still can't.  But I now live in Oklahoma, and our weather isn't quite as conducive to leaving orchids outside year round.  So, I now have one orchid in my kitchen windowsill. One orchid that hasn't been in bloom for almost a year.  One orchid that is now putting on buds and will eventually bloom again soon!  And I CAN. NOT. WAIT. I wait in great expectation as day after day passes and it gets closer to that inevitable day!

     This is the SAME feeling I had leading up to the IF:Gathering.  I was so EXPECTANT.  So EXCITED.  So READY.  As the weekend grew closer, I saw the buds of excitement growing in other women.  And over the course of this past weekend, I saw the beginning of beautiful blooms.  Women chasing after God.  Women allowing the love of Jesus into their lives.  Women DECIDING to take that next step in their lives that would put them on the path to walking WITH GOD, not just living for God. And not to overuse the word...but IT WAS BEAUTIFUL!

Ready for the IF:Gathering!!

   
     Three years ago, before the IF:Gathering first started, I remember trying to figure out what exactly IF was.  I would mention it to friends, but then wouldn't really know what to say except that they needed to be there.  No one could really explain it, not even those who had the vision for it, because it had never happened before.
     Fast forward to 2016.  After attending once, hosting once, and getting ready to host for a second time, I have an answer.  To me, the IF:Gathering is all about women in community with one another, being unified, learning from one another, lifting each other up, meeting Jesus for the first time, being released from bondage to walk a life of FREEDOM.  It is women being equipped and encouraged to walk out their faith, their gifts, their callings, no matter how big or small in the eyes of the world...RIGHT WHERE THEY ARE! 
     IF is SO much more than that, but if you asked me today, that would be my answer.  What does that mean for you? It means, find an IF:Local near you!  And Go.  It's not too late. Don't worry about whether you know anyone or not.  God will do his God thing and bring friends and connection right where you are.  Be Brave.  Have the courage to live the life that unfolds before you.  (NOTE: That last line is not original to me...if you haven't read "The Wilderking Trilogy" by Jonathan Rogers, you should!)
     If you are not able to attend an IF:Local, then do all you can to watch it live from home this weekend! Comment below and I will send you the live link tomorrow (Friday 2/5).

Blessings to you, friends! ~Kendra

*If you are in the Tulsa, OK area, join us at IF:South Tulsa!  There is still room!

The Tuesday Review: A Child's Book of Character Building

     The book I am reviewing today is very special to me.  There are actually two books in the series A Child's Book of Character Building: Growing Up in God's World - At Home, At School, At Play, Book 1 and Book 2, by Ron and Rebekah Coriell.  This series had been recommended to me by a good friend several years ago when we were just starting our homeschool journey.  When the boys were younger (age 3-7), we went through this series at least twice.  And I feel that I need to add...you DO NOT have to homeschool your children in order to use and enjoy this series!  It only takes 5 minutes a day to read through the scripture and short stories. 

      For each character trait highlighted, the authors share a very simple and easy to understand definition of that trait, a story from the bible that relates to that specific character trait, and then short stories from home, school, and play that help the child to recognize and put into practice each trait.  We would take a week to look at each character trait, reading a different story each day. 

      I have fond memories of reading these stories to the boys and then talking about them throughout the week.  If you are looking for a character building series for your younger children, I highly recommend that you check out THIS BOOK! 

    What character building books and/or series have you used and enjoyed?  I would love to hear your suggestions!  And, if you know of a good series for older boys (9-12), please share!  I'm always on the hunt for good books!

The Tuesday Review: Thing Explainer - Complicated Stuff in Simple Words

What a fun book that I get to share with you tonight!!  The boys received Thing Explainer: Complicated Stuff In Simple Words by Randall Munroe as a Christmas gift this past year.  This book is incredibly unique in it's approach.  The author, Randall Munroe, uses only the 1,000 most commonly used words in the English language, along with simple drawings, to explain many potentially difficult things to explain.  I love it!  And the boys love it!  They have giggled so much at the clever, silly, and often hilarious use of wording.  AND, more importantly, they have been interested in learning more about subjects that they haven't necessarily expressed interest in before.  Win-Win!
Check out this book!  You won't regret it!  And you might just really enjoy it!!

Three Months with Rodan+Fields!

A picture really is worth a thousand words!  This picture represents SO much to me!  To you, it may just be a package delivered and waiting to be opened.  To me, though, it represents OPPORTUNITY!

The opportunity to...

...work and grow my own business.  

...contribute financially to my family.

...work towards my goals.

...have a flexible schedule.

...homeschool my boys and work at the same time.

 ...make new friends.

...reconnect with old friends.

...be challenged to grow personally and professionally.

...find FREEDOM...

...and HAVE A BLAST!!

This package gift is Rodan + Fields!  

I am SO glad I chose to take a risk and say yes to R+F!  

Has it been easy? No. Has it been worth it? YES! 

My ONLY regret is that I didn't jump in sooner.

We are only going to grow!  And as we expand globally, the possibilities really are endless!

Join me in this journey!  Because life, and business, are better done together! 

If you have even an ounce of curiosity, let's talk. 

JOIN MY TEAM!

My January Stitch Fix...What a FUN gift!!

     It's no secret that I love Stitch Fix!  I love the convenience, the variety and quality of the clothes, and that I DON'T HAVE TO SHOP! Now, I know that many of you love to shop, and sometimes I do enjoy a good browse.  But honestly, I just do not want to spend what little spare time I have going shopping, trying things on, wondering what's in style, and questioning every single thing I pick out. (And personally, I would rather pay a little bit more for my clothes, own less of them, but like and wear everything that I have.)

      So, you can imagine my DELIGHT when I got Stitch Fix gift cards for Christmas and my birthday this year!!  My wonderful parents and my amazing in-laws BOTH got me 'The Gift of Style' this year!  And it was one of the best gifts EVER! 

Check out this cute little box that some of my Stitch Fix credit came in!  Isn't it spiffy??

The Tuesday Review: The Best Yes

While travelling over Christmas break, I finally had the time to pick up The Best Yes by Lysa Terkeurst!  It did NOT disappoint!  I think we could all use a little more wisdom and discernment amidst the chaos of endless demands placed on us these days.  This book met me in the perfect place, a place of many decisions and demands on my time, a place of trying to discern the best path to choose, what to say yes to and what to say no to.  It was encouraging and challenging at the same time.  Because I'm not perfect at the yes's and no's...but am in the process of learning how to know which is which.  I've had to say a couple of hard No's recently, when my heart screamed Yes, and my head said No Way.  Was it easy? Of course not.  But relief followed, knowing that it meant I was opening up room for my best yes's! I encourage you to check out The Best Yes!  It could be the catalyst to a whole new way of decision making! ~Kendra

On The Edge

     I don't know about you, but one of my favorite -not favorite- places to be is at the edge of my comfort zone.  Sounds like a conflict, right? It's a catch 22 for sure.  See, I enjoy a good challenge, and I'm always in pursuit of growing and learning.  But it's hard to hover on that edge.  It can be scary.  Even intimidating. And you never really know what will be waiting for you on the other side.  Will it be Success? Failure? Nothing???
      Regardless of the outcome, if nothing changes then, well, nothing changes.  So, I hover.  I stay a bit uncomfortable. I do hard (to me) things.  And hope. That in the end, it matters. Because I believe that it DOES matter!
      What about you? Are you pursuing things in your life that take you to the edge of your comfort zone and beyond? I would love to hear about them! Leave me a comment...that way I'll know I'm not alone in this journey!  Blessings~Kendra

Let's Talk Goals!

Let's talk goals for a few minutes!  What are your goals for the coming year?  What do you hope to achieve?  Are there some changes you would like to make?  Areas of your life you would like to improve?  Do you struggle with making those goals happen?  I do.  In fact, I could be the perfect example of what happens you set goals but don't actually take the time to write them down and schedule them into your life.  

You see, I set a goal back in September of 2015 to blog every day in October of 2015 to get back into the habit of blogging and writing.  And I did.  I wrote it down.  I scheduled it in.  I made it happen.  Even when things got crazy insane with the start of my Rodan + Fields business! But at the end of the month, I was honestly tired.  And rightly so. I took a break.  And didn't really set any new goals or reasonable expectations of myself moving forward.  So what happened?? My newly established habit went away.  And if you look at my consistency over the past 2 months...well, there hasn't been any.  Now, I may have GREAT ideas.  And goals.  But with NO PLAN, things aren't going to work out too well!

So, where do we go from this point? It's NEVER too late to set goals. To make a plan.  To start working towards your dreams and the things you want to achieve in life.  It doesn't need to be January 1.  Or the beginning of the school year.  Just start where you are at.  Right now.  To help you get started, here is a GREAT article by Michael Hyatt, called The Beginners Guide to Goal Setting! I encourage you to check it out!  Here's to your our BEST YEAR YET!