Baking and R&R time "away"

Even though it's spring break... I haven't done much outside of my ordinary. I'm still reading for my classes, trying to read ahead even for them so my upcoming weeks aren't so packed, and doing my school work. Since starting graduate school, I've never gone anywhere during any of our breaks- I've always used the time to catch up on work for class or write a paper or something. This year I was going to head back to MI to visit my family, but flights were too much, so I'm going to try and go in May after the semester is over.

I've realized that baking things centers me. I like creating and baking from my head and not from a recipe- right now it has to be gluten free but I've made some killer peanut butter brownies, apple crisp (with GF oats), and I'm making honey-cinnamon almonds with coconut right now. You wouldn't know they were gluten free unless I told you. :) That's what I like about it best- not only does it make me just breathe (which tends to be important), but I can't really taste a difference from "regular".

I put in my training and mentoring contract (a class where we get to make our own syllabus and determine how we want to grow that semester) that I wanted to take a personal half-day retreat this semester. This semester I wanted to learn how to talk about the last year and somehow glorify God through it, and have it not come off like a bomb-shell to me or to the person hearing it. I took the retreat tonight, and wrote down the influential people whom the stroke has brought into my life or made our relationship stronger. You all were on the paper too :) Thanks for continuing to be faithful to me as I recover and heal in this season. Your encouragement means A LOT to me. I cried with the Lord tonight because I am so grateful to be here. Reason why still remains unknown, but I'm here and not lining up with any of the milestones that the medical community put before me. That makes me feel awesome about what has happened. Satan didn't know how stubborn I was and that I was going to fight this every step of the way. And those are my random thoughts for a Saturday night :)

Love,
Amy Christine