the beginning of paleo

Grain-free, Paleo Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups almond flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 6 Tbsp agave nectar
• 4 1/2 Tbsp ghee or coconut oil
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups fresh blueberries
• sliced almonds, optional
• sprinkle of cinnamon, optional

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees (F). Line a 12 cup muffin tin or grease pan.
2. combine almond flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
3. in another medium bowl, mix eggs, agave nectar, melted ghee/coconut oil, and vanilla extract.
4. fold almond flour mixture into egg mixture. fold blueberries into mixture.
5. fill each of the muffin liners about 3/4 way. Sprinkle with sliced almonds & a little cinnamon.
6. Bake for 20 minutes. Immediately let them cool on a wire rack (they will get greasy if you leave them in the pan).
7. try not to eat them all in one sitting!

bests

The familias came into town this weekend, and I got to see my little brother for the first time since May! He has been in Haiti this summer interning with Mission of Hope. It has been awesome hearing stories, laughing, and spending quality time together with the fam! Friday night we had a belated birthday dinner for my madre at here and had some froyo for dessert!

 I am so thankful for :
    1. siblings that pursue a relationship with the Lord
    2. siblings that are best friends
    3. a family that loves to LAUGH.

 I was also able to recharge Thursday evening by finishing my door project while listening to them. It has one of my fav quotes/aha-moments from Kisses from Katie about the way we should live life when we are transformed by the gospel. I am so thankful for books that give me awesome pictures for life! Being able to recharge was much needed and a sweet way to go into a great weekend with the fam...

Saturday morning we hung out at the Bentonville Farmer's Market... and maybe might have made a pit-stop at Crepes Paulette! We recommend: the classic, the blueberries/banana, & the strawberry/nutella crepes :)

Andrew is now moved in & set for his Junior year at the University of Arkansas! Elaine & Chrissy start their junior & 8th grade years tomorrow morning. This weekend was a perfect start to all of our next years... who knows what adventures will come for all of us this year :)

b-ville with a side of mustache

the past couple of weeks I have laughed, cried, met tons of awesome peoples, gotten sweet time with the Lord, *almost* settled into my apartment, found new food loves, started-broken-and re-started the Whole30, survived my first spin class, & changed my license from TX to AR (wierd). 

waiting in the DMV... party over here

i'm sort of obsessed with mint... so I painted a door for my one bare wall in the apartment

food love discovery = Ginger Snap Larabar... like Christmas in your mouth

meeting & getting to know new people is pretty high up on my list of favorite things to do! i ran into the new Bentonville mustache store and met an awesome mother-daughter combo that just moved here from Phoenix. on saturday i was invited to dinner with some key B-ville families and got to know 5 rockstar families. i met up with a few leaders here & here just hearing about their lives and why they love student ministries. i'm so excited for another week of setting roots down in this little town that is stealing my heart a day at a time.

exploding

ok, after a little over a week of living in Bentonville, I can officially say I love it here! It has been so cool to see God's faithfulness in my job all week! He has taught me that He knows me better than I even know myself (duh, He told you that in Psalm 139 & in Matthew). He has given me even more glimpses of WHY He has called me to this job. One of the ways He's done this is through a couple of books I am reading, Kisses from Katie & When Helping Hurts.

Both of these books talk about the ministry of reconiliation, of restoring to right relationship with God. One of my fav parts in Kisses from Katie is when one of her sweet daughters asks her if when the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of her she will explode. To that Katie answered, "No!' I proclaimed as the children and I headed to the Nile River for a few of them to be baptized that day. Then I thought about it a bit more. 'Yes, if Jesus comes to live in your heart, you will explode.'"

Then she goes on the explain... "That is exactly what we should do if Jesus comes to live inside our hearts. We will explode with love, with compassion, with hurt for those who are hurting, and with joy for those who rejoice. We will explode with a desire to be more, to be better, to be close to the One who made us." How AMAZING is that?!

So, here's to exploding more each day to be close to the One who made me, to love others, be compassionate, hurt for the hurting, and help people recognize what Jesus is already doing in their lives!