because i've been thinking on this....

and maybe you'd like to read it, too?  ann's words on relationship that challenge and encourage.

and a whisper from me....i'll be back here soon, Lord-willing. it's my desire!

love to you.

i need it spelled out on my arm (and a coupon code for you)

i feel naked....

if i leave home without the reminder on my wrist.

my wide cuff because i'm shallow and so easily forget that He goes with me.

that i'm sheltered.

always and forever.

that in Him, there is safety and calm.

that my heart is bound to my Maker's even if my temporal feelings are screaming at me otherwise.

ok, so, yes, i also love being reminded of my friend, becky, the cuffs' talented maker, the girl God dropped into my lap who felt like a soulmate that weekend once upon a time. we're far in distance but she's never far from my heart (or wrist, ha)!

miss becky has limited her cuff-making to 10 days at the beginning of every month. you know what that means, right? today's the day. it's the 1st! she is generously offering my readers 15% off their orders. awesome. just use coupon code "megan15" at checkout.
here's her shop....dream away about what you need reminding of.

happy may, y'all. it was blissfully sunny and 80 degrees here today! ahhhhhh

praying you're showered with His peace this week,

M

said the swallow to the dove...

today,

be still and know,

He cares.

the snail and my blog

"By perseverance the snail reached the ark."

~ Charles H. Spurgeon

this little california snail made us smile so. the way he twisted and contorted to move sooooo slowly was awesome.

he just kept on going no matter the obstacle. no matter how slow the progress seemed.

a good lesson for us all.

i suppose i should expound with a personal story BUT i only have a moment and

i wanted to say that...

instagram has eaten my blog. 

 i've discovered such joy in relationships over there that i'm finding it JUST SO HARD to invest time here. you know, right(?), that i've always struggled with what to type out, what to share. the words never flow naturally. the photos and the creativity, yes. but, words? not so much. that's why instagram is the perfect place for visually-minded me! also, i've opened a little instashop there and that plus etsy & everything else in life is keeping me running (at a distinctly UN-snail-like pace). i'm loving it! SO, that's why this blog has been so quiet.  are you on instagram and i don't know it? find me, would you??! just search "contentedsparrow" because i'd love to connect with you there.

p.s. all that said, i DO have things on my mind and heart that i'd like to share.

and i will. eventually.

thanks for sticking with me.

hope your week is lovely!

time for a recipe: grandma's sour cream-almond pound cake

if you're trying to stick to your diet, i suggest you move right along past this post.  this is a diet-buster for sure.  if you like buttery-almond goodness, that is!

happy was the day when mom or grandma would make this cake.  my brother and i had a peculiar way of enjoying it....squished up into little pound cake balls.  a pre-cursor to cake pops! and when mom let me lick the beaters (always), i was in batter heaven.  ohhhhhh, the batter.  i consider myself somewhat of a batter and dough connoisseur and this one is tops.  :)

what makes this recipe different than your average DRY pound cake is the sour cream that adds the desperately needed moisture and the beaten egg whites that add a bit of fluff to the cake.  but the star of the show is the almond extract.  you really must like almond to appreciate this recipe.  theoretically, you could swap out vanilla for the almond but it just wouldn't be as special in my opinion.

something you'll want to note.  my personal preference is to slightly underbake the cake.  but i like most everything underbaked.  i like it doughy and very moist.  the picture below is when it was hot from the oven and you can tell in the top photo that it dropped quite a bit as it cooled.  that's because i underbaked it by ten minutes.  perfect for us but you may prefer a fully-baked cake and it's still good that way, too.

Let me know if you end up making it and what you think!  Ours lasted less than 48 hours. :)

p.s. it felt good to tap out words here again. xo, megan