I don’t know about y’all, but I for one am completely in love with Jessi’s theme for November, In the Thick of It. As a working mom, wife, leader, writer and overall sinful perfectionist I find myself in the thick of it daily, working hard for myself and then realizing, daily, that God’s grace is what I need more than anything.
Lately I have resorted to dealing with stress and anxiety via snacking constantly, sleeping instead of exercising, and otherwise not taking care of myself well. I’m not proud to admit it, but I know I’m not alone in these tendencies. I know there are other mommas out there trying to make it all work and sometimes we just feel like we deserve to eat something for all of our hard work.
First of all, this notion is certainly true at times, we do deserve to give ourselves a little reward for working hard and loving well. But the problem comes when I choose to “treat” myself to something that does NOT do my body good and leaves me anxious or tired or unhealthy at the end of it. That’s no treat, and I know it.
I’m working on redefining the treat for myself. A treat should be something that I don’t always have, but I also believe that a treat should also help me to feel better after eating it. Not sick or bogged down, but energetic and ready to keep working and playing. Something that helps me rather than hurts. Something that ultimately brings me closer to God.
This silky soup is so easy to throw together. It has a truly luxurious texture that I find only comes from making your own pumpkin puree (it’s seriously so easy – the canned stuff has nothing on this recipe!). I suggest making a large batch and storing it in the fridge for a fresh batch of soup whenever you want. The crisp apple is a great texture, and the toasted pecans add some great healthy fat and protein as well.
I hope you guys can enjoy this soup as a way of treating yourself well. Rewarding ourselves in the thick of it doesn’t have to be complicated and it can be good for us. Y’all enjoy!
Even though I don’t have any children yet, I definitely hear where you are coming from…too often I am so bogged down with life that I make the wrong choices with eating or workouts but justify it by saying, “I deserve it.” I need to realize that I deserve to treat myself well and make myself the best I can be!
On a separate note…this soup looks amazing! The texture! 😉
Heather, I know exactly what you mean about eating something because you “deserve it.” And you know what? You DO deserve it, but that doesn’t mean that it’s the right reward! I love your reminder to think about what will bring us energy. This soup is all kinds of beauty in a bowl. You had me at “silky” 🙂
This post comes at such a perfect time – I’ve been bogging myself down with too many late nites/unhealthy snacks and meals/overall over-extending myself lately. Sometimes you need to slow down, sit down and treat yourself to something rejuvenating. Plus, I was just looking for a pumpkin soup recipe. 😉
Amen girl. And every day is different. Honestly today I ate terribly EXCEPT for this soup at lunch – but that’s life. And tomorrow’s a new day, right?!
LOVE that definition of “treating” yourself!! Not sure how society started equating treats with an excuse to ultimately hurt ourselves or backslide, but you’re right – that’s NOT a treat. This soup, on the other hand… 😉