We went to a birthday party today; it was so much fun to get to spend time with some friends that we haven’t seen in a while, but it also brought to mind how easily friends can become disconnected just because they don’t see each other on a regular basis. Several of the people at the party were from a Sunday School class that we grew out of once it got too big, so we haven’t had the face-to-face encounter each week that we used to, and as a result, we’ve grown somewhat distant. It reminds me that sometimes when we step away from our comfort zone, we end up losing contact with those who stayed. What it also brought to mind, however, is how blessed we are to have the new circle of friends that we’ve acquired since taking our step of faith, and, while it was much easier to be in a group of ready-made-friends which never required us to pursue new friendships, we’re probably in a much better place with how much we’ve grown through the painful process. It seems that the periods of greatest growth are often born from the times of greatest pain.

On a totally unrelated note, I’ve spent the past half hour making “ham and cheese pinwheels” for my office party that we’re having tomorrow for Saint Patty’s Day. My recipe is as follows:

• 10 flour tortillas
• 2 or 3 large cucumbers
• 2 8 oz containers of chive cream cheese
• 1 large pack of deli ham (thicker slices)

I slice the cucumber long-ways and remove the seeds….the rest is simple: Spread some cheese on the tortilla, add a couple of pieces of the ham, put a strip of cucumber at one end and start rolling. I usually refrigerate them overnight and then slice into small “rolled” discs. Great party appetizer.

I’m going to do a raw food detox this week; I bought the veggies today and I’m going to go ahead and plan out my menus (I did get some protein powder and will probably have an egg each morning and some brown rice with dinner). I’m just ready to clean out my system and I liked the way I felt when I was on the raw food detox the last time (but had to stop unexpectedly because my dad went into the hospital unexpectedly).

Otherwise, I just need to get my teeth cleaning over with on Tuesday and I’ll be good to go and ready to face the week!!