Chunky Spiced Apple and Oat Muffins

Chunky Spiced Apple and Oat Muffins

(adapted from Oat Applesauce Muffins at allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:
1 c. rolled oats 
1 c. buttermilk
1 c. flour (I used all-purpose, but whole wheat would be ideal)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. Trader Joe's Chunky Spiced Apples (or regular applesauce)
1 egg


Directions: 
1. Place oats in a small bowl, pour in buttermilk.  Let sit for two hours at room temperature.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Grease 12 muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.
3. In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda and brown sugar.  Stir in oat/buttermilk mixture, spiced apples, and egg; mix well.  Pour batter into prepared muffin cups.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of muffin comes out clean.

My Fair...Frankenstein?

I was seen at an audition today.

And as cheese-ball as it may sound to a lot of you, in the words of my dear mother, "Praise the Lord!"

My alarm goes off at 6:15, and for a moment, I wonder why I do this on my day off.  I'm out the door by 7:30, and with the help of a couple audition buddies and a lot of text messages, I sign up for four auditions.  Three of them are planned: two Maine regional theatre seasons and a production of My Fair Lady.  The fourth is just by accident.  My friend, Alissa, puts me on the list of a non-Equity tour of the new Mel Brooks musical, Young Frankenstein.  Sure.  Why not, right?  

As luck would have it, it ends up being the only call of the four that actually see non-Equity actors today.  So on a whim, I gratefully sing my 16 bars of the first funny thing I could think of: "If I Were A Bell" from Guys and Dolls.  Who gives a rip whether it's "right" for the audition?  I realize I'm probably not wearing the right dress, either, because, frankly, I'd hoped to sing for My Fair Lady.  But what the heck!  I'm having a ball.  I actually get to sing for the first time in a long time.  The people behind the table are super nice and responsive.  And as I walk out, the nice guy at the door quips, "That was my favorite version of that number I've heard in a long time."  Terrific.  No invitation to come back for the dance call tomorrow, but you know what?  It's still a great end to the day.  Even if it has taken me nine hours and four subway trains to get here.

To everyone who's been praying for a little break in the waves, thanks.  I came up for air today.  Good to go for another two thousand miles. :)

Love you all. xoxo

Gotham half-marathon-ing and apartment hunting

Hey, everyone!  Just a brief update on the major details of my life right now:


I ran 9.53 miles today without stopping, a feat I would have heretofore considered impossible.  If you haven't heard, I am running a half-marathon on April 2.  The New York 13.1 is in just two weeks, and I've been training hard and raising monetary support to help World Vision build wells in Africa.  My goal is $650.  Every dollar counts, and your support helps me to run even when I don't want to (serious!), so please give if you can.  You can make a tax-deductible donation here.  Special thanks to Luis, Bernie, the Hatfields, and Mama for their early show of support. :) You guys rock.


Laura and I are still looking for an apartment and navigating the messy, paperwork-logged swamp that is the New York real estate market.  Prayers for patience, lessened stress, and providence would be SO wonderful.


The audition scene is rough now.  Some days are long, and some are short, but I'm not being seen either way.  I'm going to keep my chin up and keep on keepin' on.  Just know that I probably won't have exciting news on that front until competition with the union lessons up a little (hopefully this summer when more folks are out of town).


God continues to be so good in my life.  He has brought wonderful friends--old and new--into my life, and I've had a bit of breathing space lately to step back from nannying, get out of the city, and even vacation a little.  I visited Vermont for the first time earlier this month.  I also have a jaunt to Washington, D.C. planned for next weekend and a trip to Maine (planned on a whim!) scheduled for next month.


I love you guys.  Thanks so much for keeping up with me.  Your love, encouraging words, prayers, and positive thoughts are a huge support, and I don't take them for granted!

Hopefully, I'll have more exciting news for you soon.  In the meantime, enjoy the start of spring.  I can already see things starting to brighten up here, literally and figuratively. :) 

Love.

The world is not flat.

And I have not fallen off the edge.  Promise. :)


It's been since before Christmas that I last updated my blog, and I know many of you have been waiting for me to reappear.  So here I am!


Christmas and January were very busy for me with flights all over the country in all kinds of weather.  Thankfully, I got out of New York just a few days before the massive Boxing Day Blizzard, as it is now called.  I went from New York to Phoenix to Seattle to Phoenix to Kona (Hawaii) to Phoenix and back to New York.  And all in just one month.  That's a lot of time spent at 33,000 feet, folks!  If you're friends with me on Facebook, you can check out all the photos here.  


The newest development here on the home front is that I'm now apartment shopping.  One of my best (and oldest) friends in the world just moved to New York, and we're looking for an apartment together.  The family I work for is selling their apartment--and, consequently, my studio apartment--and will close the deal on May 1.  So Laura and I are on the hunt for a place either here in Manhattan or in Brooklyn.  Ideally, we'd love to be out of here and into our new place by the middle of next month.  Prayers and advice and good vibes are much appreciated! :)

With a big move on our horizon, I have been grateful--albeit exhausted--for lots of work hours.  Last week, especially, was mostly work and sleep for me.  But it's good for the bank account!  In the world of all things theatre, not much has happened in the last few months.  The industry really slows down during the winter, and things are just starting to pick up.  I've been to a few auditions and seen for a couple, but so far, there's nothing major to report.

Another exciting bit of life has to do with my new church home.  I started going to City Grace in September, and I love it there.  I adore the good and beautiful music the worship team puts together each week, the people are terrific, the preaching is solid and engaging--both spiritually and intellectually--and I have really begun to feel at home there, especially in the last few weeks.  One of my pastors, Pete, invited me to join a small group reading through The Good and Beautiful Life by James Bryan Smith.  I love it, and meeting with the group has not only helped me connect better and deeper with new friends from church, it has helped me to ponder the week's sermon all week long.  We're reading the book in conjunction with the sermon series on The Sermon on the Mount, and for the first time, what I hear on Sunday morning stays fresh on my heart long past Sunday night.  So thanks to Pete and Ben and Steve for making it all happen.  You guys rock. :) 


I'll try to post some photos to this blog later, but right now my internet is acting up, and things are super slow. So check back soon! :) 


Thanks for reading, everyone.  Happy (belated) Valentine's Day.  Love you lots. :)

Let your heart be light

"Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.  More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us."

Romans 5:1-5 (ESV)

Merry Christmas, wherever you are this season.  May your heart truly be light in the joy and peace of Christ's coming, even in the midst of pain and struggle.  You are not alone (you never have been), and you can make it through this.