Strawbernut Ice Cream

Good Tuesday morning!

The Gallery Pics this morning are courtesy of the Zac Brown Band. Well, actually, they are the photos I took of Hannah and Roxie before they left for the Zac Brown Band concert Friday night. They are rockin' those cowgirl hats, aren't they? (But with a humidity level at nearly 100%, we just used them for the pics, and then left them in the car. I believe professional photographers call them "props.")

PANIC ATTACKS - Well, this has definitely been "Panic Attack Week" for me. Last night I couldn't even sleep... and I can ALWAYS sleep. (I love that about me. I think I'll have to put that on my list of "Physical Attributes I Like About Myself." I'm a sleeper!)

This morning, I got up and Googled the correlation between Panic Attacks and Menopause. (Yes, from now on "Menopause" will be capitalized on the blog... like it's a person or a country or something.) I stopped Googling symptoms over a year ago because it really made things worse for me. However, after a "Sleepless in Seattle" type night last night, I told Mikie what I was going to do (so I would be held accountable), and I looked up two websites.

Guess what? There is a HUGE correlation between the two. It is unexplained, but Panic Attacks and Menopause go hand-in-hand in many women... especially women who are already prone to having the attacks. Eureka!

You would think those facts would make me feel better, but alas, another symptom of Panic Attacks is NOT feeling better... even when faced with the facts.

I am also almost 100% sure the book Kim (my walking buddy) and I continue to read (Calm My Anxious Heart) is helping to escalate the attacks. Unlike any other illness or disorder, Generalized Panic Disorder does NOT get better by talking about it. Venting, being honest and upfront tend to aggravate the symptoms. However, it makes me angry enough I refuse to be silent. There has to be a way to desensitize myself from this insidious (great word, by the way), joy-sucking condition which has been my constant companion for three and half years now. I just haven't figured it out yet.

I did want to share some insights I gained from this week's chapter though. Let it be known, I DID enjoy Chapter 7 very, very much. It has "The Enchanting Belinda" written ALL over it!

It was about writing your very own life purpose statement. It gave FOUR very specific ways to do this. I love that! I don't like vague suggestions... "You should really write a life purpose statement, you know?" Always, always TELL ME HOW!

Of course, out of the four specific ways to write the life purpose statement, I immediately connected with one girl, sort of connected with another girl, and did not care for the last two girls' way of doing it AT all. It's okay. We don't think similarly. (I was just lucky Girl Number One thought the same way I did!)

This is the definition of a faulty focus... "Many women today are nearsighted, not in their eyesight but in their life focus. They don't know why they're here or where they're going. They drift like a ship without a rudder. Dr Swenson says that aimlessness is common. 'Americans are notoriously shortsighted. We live in a state of myopic mania that blurs the future. The horizon is never visible in the middle of the dust storm. But we must have a vision that extends beyond tomorrow. Living only week to week is like a dot-to-dot life.'"

It doesn't sound very fulfilling does it? I didn't think so either. (Fun fact for you... I was reading this in the eye doctor's office yesterday waiting while Josh had an appointment. Coincidence... perhaps!)

I'm sorry, but other than Randomness and the regular summer stuff I'll be sharing this week, I want to talk a little more about the life purpose statement... so I guess that will be our Topic of the Week. Well, that and the fact I think I had my very first hot flash last night. (I'll be calling some friends today to see if I have self-diagnosed myself correctly.) It could be a very long week on A Simple Life.

I would like to share a verse I loved in this chapter (and will be repeating over and over and over today). "Live life, then, with a due sense of responsibility, not as women who do not know the meaning and purpose of life but as those who do. Make the best use of your time, despite all the evils of these days. Don't be vague but grasp firmly what you know to be the will of the Lord." Ephesians 5:15-17.

I especially love, "Don't be vague." I do not like vague. I never have. I never will.

Avoid the heavy stuff, if you must, but do NOT skip the following recipe. That would be a horrible, horrible mistake.

Strawbernut Ice Cream

This recipe was given to me by my friend, Evelyn Crenshaw. Evelyn got the recipe from her Mom, Pat Moore, who in turn received the recipe from her sister, Carolyn Hinkle. (See how I NEVER take the credit for things I had nothing to do with?)

You will need the following:

1 can sweet condensed milk
1 can evaporated milk
2 cups sugar
2 or 3 cups strawberries
1 banana
1 cup pecans
8 ounce Cool Whip
Enough milk to fill container

1. Blend and chop the strawberries, banana and pecans.

2. Mix everything together before putting in ice cream freezer.

3. Add milk to Fill Line in ice cream freezer.

4. Follow manufacturer's instructions.

Evelyn insists this is good stuff, and I have to admit, I am intrigued. It looks like a Strawbernut kind of week over at the Faulkner Five household. Oh, and she said you could use peaches instead of strawberries, too. (We'll just call that Peachnut Ice Cream.)

Have a terrific Tuesday. Enjoy this day the Lord has given you, be kind to others, plan something with your family and have pizza for dinner tonight. After all, it's summertime and the living is supposed to be SO much easier!

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting and Slightly Warm Belinda