Satisfied

This post is part of my 29 Days of Giving Campaign.  You can see the rest of the posts in this series here.

Most days, I cook just for the purpose of getting food on the table.  Breakfast is rushed, trying to get all of us out the door on time.  Lunch may be leftovers if I'm lucky.  Many days it would hardly constitute lunch: a few crackers with cheese, an apple, a bowl of cereal.  Dinner is better, but my family likes what they like.  Experimental dishes or recipes that involve long periods of attention are best left for weekends, not the weeknight dinner rush.

I can go like this for a bit, and then the urge to cook for pure pleasure becomes overwhelming.  Yesterday was one of those days.  I made myself a real lunch, sauteed spinach with poached eggs.  I prepared a barbecued brisket and homemade mac and cheese for dinner.  It still wasn't enough.  After the kids were in bed I went on a pumpkin baking frenzy, making pumpkin pie bars for playgroup today and pumpkin rice pudding (my ultimate comfort food) for me.  

And then I was finally satisfied.  And very, very full.  

Today I Gave:  I had a few pumpkin bars left after playgroup.  They were delicious, like pumpkin pie without the crust.  I could have easily downed the last few myself for "lunch."  Instead, I wrapped them up nicely in some parchment paper and put them in a little bag with a bow.  When the dad from the family we carpool with dropped Elena off today, I sent them home with him.  Enjoy, I said.  Have a lovely weekend.

Today I Received:  A most humbling phone call.   The pastor from our church called and said he'd seen the blog.  He found my writing "delightful," and he was so glad to see me participating in the 29 Days of Giving Campaign in full spirit.  He asked if he could mention a few of my stories in his sermon this Sunday!  Oh my.  It's a very large church, so I'm both terribly excited and a little bit queasy.