Susie Homemaker

I cooked today and no one died. It was a good day. When I say "I cooked" I mean that things got real in the kitchen, so real that I even wore my apron from Anthropolgie. I was not playing around. Lately I have been so bored with the things I eat so I did what any girl would do; I went to Target and bought myself a slow cooker then I headed over to the one-and-only Pinterest to see what was cookin'...literally. I found a recipe that sounded amazing- Honey Apple Pork Tenderloin and I knew I had to make it!

Now I am not turning this into a food blog, because I'm no foodie (as you'll see from my pictures)! I just wanted to share with you a unique, and tasty, recipe that was not only super easy to make but fun too.

Here is a list of ingredients, the best part was it was easy to make 

adjustments to measurements to better fit my slow cooker "for two".

-Pork tenderloin (3-5lb)

-3 apples (depends on the size of your cooker)

-Honey (4 tsp.)

-Cinnamon (3 tsp.)

First things first, go buy yourself an apron
 because it makes the cooking experience more fun!

2. Cut the apple(s) into small thin slices and
line the bottom of the cooker with them and
then sprinkle cinnamon all over.

3. I cut my tenderloin in half to fit in my cooker.
Once you get it down to the size you need,
cut slits on the top of the meat.

4. Drizzle some of the honey into the slits
and then place some apple slices in them.

 5. Place the tenderloin in the slow cooker, and drizzle
the remainder of the honey (or more) all over the
top of the meat. Rest some more apple slices on
top then sprinkle with cinnamon all over.
Cook on low for 7 hours.

6. Enjoy! I paired my pork tenderloin with sweet tea and
cornbread along with a couple veggies.
It was flavorful and filling!!

Let me know if you try it and what other types of food you might have paired it with! Happy fall, y'all!! :)

Damaged Goods and Car Wrecks

Yesterday I got into my 4^th wreck. Shocked? You shouldn’t be. This is my fourth wreck in four years. I could be wrong but I am starting to sense a pattern here. The wreck occurred yesterday on a rainy morning and it is true what they say- people in Austin don’t know how to drive when it is raining. I hit a lady from behind after she swerved in front of me to dodge someone coming into her lane. While I understand trying to avoid hitting someone, can you please not do the same thing to someone else? Geez. I don’t know if you have ever been in a wreck, but there is a moment of stillness right before you hit someone. In that moment all I could think about was how much it was going to suck dealing with the insurance after this- such a long and annoying process. After hitting the woman and seeing her white paint all over the front on my bumper I began to grow frustrated. I was frustrated that something I have worked so hard to keep clean and new was once again damaged and wrecked.

Believe it or not, this accident got me thinking about our own self-worth and Christian image. In our weaker moments some of us like to think we are “damaged goods” when we reflect on the bad choices of our past. Who would want to marry someone like me? Someone who has been scarred damaged and hurt by past relationships. We begin to give up on our Christian walk and think that we are too far-gone for God to restore us. We make the mistake of neglecting the things in our life that keep us new and restored, such as prayer, reading the word and living in community. These things are essential to keeping us running the Race at full speed.

I like to think that God looks at me the way I look at my car. Yes my car has bumps, bruises and scratches from past wreckage but it’s not dead. Despite all of its mishaps, I will continue to get its oil changed, check the tires and go in for a tune up when needed. Just because its physical appearance has changed, I have not given up on it because it is still capable of doing what it was created to do. Much like my Christian walk. I am dirty, messy and complicated but God has not given up on me because I am still capable of doing what He created me to do.

So if your life with Christ hasn’t always been pretty and maybe it’s been scarred with a little bit of door dings along the way; don’t lose faith. God still has a lot of miles left on that Christian walk of yours.

“Create in me a new heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.” –Psalm 50:10-12 (ESV)