Jessica McCarty, Author

A sea of inky blue, a sky of midnight black. Shimmering stars in the night; beckoning, calling, whispering. The deep mysterious sea, with its dark and frightening depths. The sky above, with its boundless hope of blanketing lights. Do I fall below? Or do I rise above? Do I succumb to the drowning deep; sinking, floundering, failing? Do I break free to flight; soaring, dipping, singing? Is night to be salvation, or is night to be my death? Only I can choose, as I stand between the two. To step upon the waters and choose to rise or sink, and choose to live or die. I stretch my arms, my wings reaching, feathering, fluttering. I bound and rise; lifting, soaring, flying. Wings carry me high, as I soar into that deepest night. Carry me away from pain and fright, carry me to loves bright light.

     Lately, I've felt a few times like,  Why can't I just be me?  Not that I'm not me. Sometimes I just worry about others opinions of me. What do they think of me? My husband asked me once, "Why do you care?" Why do I? I don't know. One thing I do know, I should be focused on being who God made me to be and not worrying about others opinions.      I am a typical oldest child in the sense that I like things a certain way. I like schedule and routine. I dislike the unexpected and not having a plan. I like things practical, manageable, and organized. I know, you're snoring, right? Booorrreeeddd!! So as someone who likes to follow the rules--most of the time--you would think I would feel like I could be myself. Wrong! Because I too make mistakes. And I hate it. I despise it. As if I have to be perfect (although I don't identify as a perfectionist, go figure).      I don't want to be fake or feel fake. Unfortunately, we can'...

     Confession: I hate to cook. I dislike the whole ordeal; planning the meals, buying the food, making the food, cooking the food, cleaning up after the food. Ugh! I do love to eat, though. One thing I like to eat? Potatoes!      Potatoes are great because you can buy an entire bag and get a couple of meals out of them. They're healthy (I don't care what all the haters say. God made potatoes and potatoes are good !). They do take a lot of prep with all the peeling and chopping. Aside from that, I'm a huge fan.      So I'm going to share a couple of my favorite potato recipes. Because honestly, I'm always on the hunt for something inexpensive, easy, and at least semi-healthy for dinner. And I'm certain you are, too. Cheesy Potatoes 1-2 can cheese soup or  1 can cheese sauce (such as Ragu) or 1 jar salsa con queso (yum!) 6-8 good size potatoes cubed or sliced 1 1/2 C milk 1/4 C butter Mix milk and cheese sauce. Place mixture, ...