Our family lives on a budget. That means that sometimes simple things like buying granola bars, needs to go. It isn’t that they are costly over time, but we already buy bulk at Costco, so we might as well make our own and save some cents. Plus, I want clean ingredients and to be able to control sugar content.
After looking at numerous recipes, I found one that with a few tweaks was perfect. You can add anything you want to it, but we keep it pretty simple. Ingredients: 2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal 1/2 cup oat flour (oatmeal that’s pulsed in blender or food processor until rough flour) 1/4 tsp baking soda Less than 1/4 tsp pink salt 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted 1/4 cup honey 1/4 cup real maple syrup, or sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract Optional: 1 tbsp chia seeds 1 tbsp flax seeds top with dark chocolate chips Instructions: 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper, allowing 2 flaps to overhang. 2. Mix oat flour, oats, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. If adding chia seeds or flax seeds, do so now, mix. 3. Melt coconut oil. Add honey + syrup (sugar) + vanilla. Pour into oat mixture. Stir until well coated. Spread evenly into the pan. Press down firmly. Top with chocolate chips, if desired. 4. Bake for 20 minutes. They are done when they are golden and smell like honey. Cool for 10 minutes, then lift parchment paper by flaps and remove from pan. Cut into 8 bars. Refrigerate to cool completely before wrapping. (I use snack size ziploc bags.) They firm up as they cool. *Note: syrup makes them more crumbly but I just love the flavor so much.
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“With God are wisdom and might; he has counsel and understanding.
If he tears down, none can rebuild; if he shuts a man in, none can open. If he withholds the waters, they dry up; if he sends them out, they overwhelm the land.” Job 12:13-15 I'm in the middle of some crazy transitions. I'm ending some chapters of my life and starting a lot of brand new ones. I'm feeling uncertain. I'm even feeling a little bit like a failure, but I'm also feeling like I've been equipped for something really special. (More on this in the weeks to come.) I'll be honest, its hard when you want your life to be a certain way and God has different plans. We tend to think we know best and forget that God can do more amazing things than we can even fathom. So, when I read this out loud at church this past Sunday, it hit me. If God doesn't want something for me, there is nothing I can do to make it happen. I cannot beat God. On the flip side, if God wants something to happen for me, He overwhelms. So, I'm going to choose to trust Him and faithfully go where He calls me, even if that's away from something He tore down or towards something He is blessing.
I’ m starting two businesses.
Did your jaw just drop? Mine did when God made it clear to me. I kept praying because I thought surely I wasn't listening right. I reached out to mentors and friends to help me wade through this decision, but it became really clear that yes, God was telling me to start TWO businesses. The first business is something I said I would never do. The second is starting something completely unexpected. Many of you know that I've been in quite a season of pruning and equipping. It's almost felt like a holding pattern, but it's been so obvious that God is working on my heart. I've been praying that I would honor Him with my life, that I wouldn't get caught up in the the world's definition of success, and that I would stay faithful to where He's called me even when I'm impatient. I've also been praying for MORE faith in Him, to trust Him completely, to be obedient when He calls, and y'all, He called. For starters, I'm stepping away from a company I worked with for the past 4 years. It feels a little like a breakup where we just grew apart. It also is leaving me with wonderful friends, skills, and invaluable life lessons. Now for the first business... Victory Life. I've been a personal trainer for 5 years and I always swore I would never make my own fitness program, because what would make me different from everyone else? Well, I know now. I'm making a faith and fitness program, with realistic expectations, multiple calendar options to fit any lifestyle, but most importantly with daily devotional content, prayer, and loving support that is grounded in Jesus. I'm hoping to launch in March/April of 2018 and I couldn't be more excited. Not two days after Victory Life became a reality in my heart, God showed me another business opportunity, and can I be real? I had a really hard time with this one. You see, it's network marketing. And we all say "ughhhhh". ;) Most of you know that the previous company I worked with was network marketing, but that I said NO to the opportunity for over 4 years. I have a really hard time with spammy, salesy, pushy MLMs. Don't we all? Not to mention the fact that I was stepping away from one network marketing company to another... I was terrified people would judge me. But, it's where God is calling me and it's a realllllllly good opportunity. Other than prayer, these are the things that convinced me. 1. It's the ONLY hair care company like it. That means no competition. 2. It's less than 3 years old, which means VERY little market saturation. We all know that person who got in early with such-and-such company and are doing fabulously, right? This is that opportunity. 3. It's non-toxic, naturally based, vegan, cruelty free, no harmful chemicals, no parabens, the list goes on. It's essential oil based and it WORKS. Oily hair? It balances your natural oils. Dry, hair that breaks? It revitalizes the strands and your hair grows. They even have a product that heals 100% of split ends. Blonde look brassy? They have something for that too. 4. They don't spam people. In fact, they encourage us to not post pics of the products, not to mention the name and to only have ear-to-ear conversations. That also means there aren't a million social media pages to manage. It's less content to create. Less opportunity to annoy your friends and family. Less stress doing too much work for too little pay. 5. They give bonuses early on, not just once you hit a certain rank. If you work hard and you hit milestones, you get paid extra. Plain and simple and the goals are completely doable. 6. No minimums, no inventory, no monthly fees, and no parties! I don't really need to explain this do I? 7. Amazing training that works! They give you a proven, specific way to run your business. No guess work needed. So, basically, it was about as good of an opportunity I could find that fit into me keeping my priorities. God, my family, serving others (Victory Life) and making money to provide for my family and invest in Victory Life. God made it clear this is where I'm supposed to be. The kicker is that since I've joined as a Market Partner, I've had more conversations about Jesus than ever before. Me stepping out in obedience is encouraging others and I'm so thankful God is using me in this way. The team I'm a part of is HUGE on working their business God's way and keeping Him first. I love it! I have no idea where these two businesses will take me, but I do know that God will get the glory and He has something for me here. If you feel like He may have something for you here too, send me a message and let's talk. You know me... there is never any pressure, just information. :) Thank you to everyone who watched my recent announcement video and has encouraged me along the way. Love you! If you haven't seen it, check it out below. |
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