caregiving Archives - Page 6 of 8

This is another post that was originally written for mariasmind.com. It has been slightly revised for clarity and refreshed with new images.

Rest when you’re weary. Refresh and renew yourself, your body, your mind, your spirit. Then get back to work. – Ralph Marston

Mental habits, well-worn patterns in our way of thinking and managing our lives, whether helpful or not, can become so ingrained that we do not always recognize how they affect us, until something happens that discombobulates us, upsets our apple cart. If the routines contribute something positive to our lives, whether it is some form of exercise, nurturing friendships or pastimes we enjoy, that is wonderful. Sometimes, however, it takes a kind, well-timed word to make us realize that our lives are out of whack. Although it can be hard to do, sometimes we must confront our misalignment when it begins to affect our sleep, our relationships, our overall state of mind. What to do?!

I often think about muffins because making them has become part of my weekly routine. I try to fit in making a batch two – three times a week. I first began making them at least 30 years ago, along with loaves and cakes. Now I don’t have time for the others, and I don’t need the calories, so muffins are my baking focus. They are a quick, reasonably healthy snack for my sons and my mother, they don’t take long to prepare, and they freeze very well: doing the bird thing. I usually have a variety in the freezer.

Lately, for some recipes, I’ve been chopping up a handful of dried cranberries and tossing them in at the end. Big hit with my sons and my mother, so it’s a keeper. Finally, as you can see from the photo, I increasingly sacrifice quantity for quality. I like to see and eat tall, rounded muffin tops.

If you want to know how I get my muffins to look like this, let me know and I will post about my strategies developed over the years. – Maria

Tag: caregiving (Page 6 of 8)

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