And then there were none...

My VERY LAST exam of pharmacy school is tomorrow. My very. last. one. I am so excited I can't even study...so I am painting my nails, making bread, doing chores, and blogging instead. Maybe I can convince my sweet husband that it is not too late to pop in an episode of Downton Abbey!

We have a fun and low-key weekend planned. Happy Hour at Avondale Wine & Cheese with some girlfriends, birthday celebrations with Cole, shagging in Mt. P, a cookout with friends, and packing for Georgia.

Tuesday marks the first day of my fourth and final year of pharmacy school. I can't believe I leave on Monday to start my first rotation at Barney's pharmacy in Augusta. I am going to miss Cole sooo much! Thankfully, this is the only away from Charleston. 

The Dillon Herald

Every once in a while my parents will bring a copy of my hometown newspaper to Charleston for Cole and me. Although we love keeping up with the Dillon happenings, we usually have a good laugh because it seems there is always a car wreck that makes the front page. Don't get me wrong...it is a great paper, but there is just not a whole lot going on sometimes in a small town. Despite the car wreck on the front page this week, I was delighted to read about my grandparents in two different articles.

Papa was invited to attend the Honor Flight to Washington, D.C. As a World War 2 veteran, he was able to see the memorials that were built in his honor. What a cool experience! He served in the US Army's 102nd Infantry Division, and was a part of the unit that met the Russian Army as the armies of both nations were moving from opposite ends of Germany, clearing out the the last of German resistance in the war. We always enjoy hearing his stories and seeing his keepsakes from the war. One of the funniest stories is of my dad as a little boy. Papa came home from work one day to find an original Nazi flag hanging in my dad's window. He had gotten into his collections, and little did my dad know what it meant at his age. It came down in a hurry! Read the entire article here. We are proud of him!

The second story is of a new Prayer Shawl ministry at Main Street United Methodist Church. Ladies in the church and community gather to knit shawls for specific women and pray for them while they make knit. My dad donated alpaca yarn to the ladies, and they made the first one for my grandmother. It is gorgeous, so sweet and special. Read more about the alpaca yarn here!

Milk versus Solid Food

I would like to attribute my lack of blogging to the alert I received that I am out of space on Picasa, but really I have just been plain busy. I am still doing school, cooking, playing, and everything else as usual, but too much of it to have time to record it all! So, as I am working out my space issue for photos, here is a post minus the usual pictures...

As BSF and Bible study comes to a close for the year, I am overwhelmed by the blessing God has given me to be in a place that presses me to press on to maturity (key word= press on...I have a long way to go)! In Hebrews, the writer calls this solid food.  He goes on to make an analogy between the physical growth of a child and the maturity of a Christian. A mature Christian should crave solid teaching that moves beyond the basic steps of faith, just like a mature child has an appetite for solid food. (We must not confuse this analogy with the one mentioned in Matthew 18:2-4 when Jesus commends having the attitude of dependency and humility of a child. It is important to hold on to this!)

Hebrews 5:13-14 "Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." and then he names the basics of faith in 6:1-2 "Therefore, let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgement."

These are the foundations of faith (and are very important!), but it doesn't stop here! There needs to be understanding of the reality of Jesus and the gospel message and application of it. This passage tells us that solid food is the teaching of deeper things beyond the basic truths above. This includes sound judgement and discernment, distinguishing good versus evil, and moving from the knowledge of truths to the application of them.

1 Peter 2:2 "Like new babies, crave spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good." -The milk (basic truths) is only a taste!

Ephesians 4:12-14 tells us the goal of the body of Christ is to "reach unity in the faith and in knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. THEN we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming."

James 2:17 "Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."

Maturity doesn't just develop on its own over time in a believer. It takes time, effort, accountability, and prayer...and in my experience, lots of it! I am thankful to have people in my life to encourage me to press on to maturity when I don't have the desire, energy, time, etc. Bible study has been a huge help in this way! This will always be a challenge and there will always be room to grow because complete maturity is only attained in the fullness of Christ. If you are a believer in the basic truths of Christ, ask yourself these questions that I am continually asking myself.

Am I living in the comfort of just drinking milk?

In which of the "milk" areas am I ready to move on to "solid food"? 

What disciplines are needed in my life to mature?

What am I actively doing right now to press on to maturity in my faith?

What blessings has God provided for me to know, share, and apply these truths?

Happy Birthday, Marian!

We are in full-swing birthday season for my family. My brother, sister, and I all have birthdays within a month of each other. See this post for my brother's birthday. Marian turned 20 on Monday, and I will be a quarter century at the end of the month. I can't believe my parents don't have teenagers anymore!

We celebrated with surprise birthday party for her at Wine and Design in Mount Pleasant. It was so fun!!

I wish I had taken a photo of the cupcakes I cooked in lieu of a cake. Two of Marian's favorite things are pineapple and carrot cake. After seeing this recipe, I decided to try combining them both into a cupcake. This kitchen experiment turned into Carrot Cake Cupcakes with a Pineapple Filling and Homemade Buttermilk Cream Cheese Frosting. Yum!

This Week's Ups and Downs

Downs
1. My car keys fell out of my book bag on Tuesday. I still can't find them...

2. I had the worst day at work ever... supposedly I caused this lady's husband to go into a severe anxiety attack by talking to him about his own anxiety medications?!? Much more to this story...but I will leave it at that.

3. I didn't have time to go on a run, so I decided to squeeze in a 20 minute exercise video in our den. I didn't put on my tennis shoes, and now I have had VERY sore calves...like hurts to walk sore calves. I should have known.

Ups
1. Kate got married on Saturday!!!
2. Cole's parents surprised me with an early birthday present...the new iPad!

3. We borrowed the second season of Downton Abbey to watch.

4. Cole's friend Jonathan drove to Charleston for a mid-week visit.

5. I am heading to a Wine and Design bachelorette party tonight.

Lemon-Orange Chiffon Cake

I have had my eye on this recipe since the March issue of Southern Living. I finally had an excuse to make it this week!

• Lemon-Orange Chiffon Cake
• 2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 5 large eggs, separated
• 3/4 cup fresh orange juice
• 3 tablespoons orange zest
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
• Lemon-Orange Buttercream Frosting (see below)
• Garnishes: edible flowers, kumquat slices

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Combine first 4 ingredients in bowl of a heavy-duty electric stand mixer. Make a well in center of flour mixture; add oil, egg yolks, and orange juice. Beat at medium-high speed 3 to 4 minutes or until smooth. Stir in zest.

2. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar at medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently fold into flour mixture. Spoon batter into 3 greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans.

3. Bake at 350° for 17 to 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks, and cool completely (about 1 hour).

4. Spread Lemon-Orange Buttercream Frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake.

Lemon-Orange Buttercream Frosting

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3 tablespoons orange zest
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 (32-oz.) package powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 5 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• 1 tablespoon additional fresh orange juice

Beat butter, orange zest, and lemon zest at medium speed with an electric mixer 1 to 2 minutes or until creamy; gradually add powdered sugar alternately with lemon juice and 5 Tbsp. fresh orange juice, beating at low speed until blended after each addition. Add up to 1 Tbsp. additional fresh orange juice, 1 tsp. at a time, until desired consistency is reached.