Gluten-Free Flour Blends

January 16, 2017February 10, 2017 - The Country Wife Leave a comment

In an attempt to try out some gluten-free (GF) baking recipes, I’ve been exploring GF flour blends. Ok, if I’m being honest, after reading a bit about some digestive issues I was suffering from I decided that maybe gluten was having an impact on my intestinal tract. So, in a confident, “I’m going to get healthy” moment I splurged and bought a gigantic bag of coconut flour from Sam’s Club…thinking it would work for a straight up 1-to-1 switch out for all-purpose flour. No, nope, not really. Unless you are going for super-flat and sawdust grit in your recipes. Just sayin’.

Needless to say this massive fail on my part definitely got me thinking that maybe eating healthy sweets just isn’t meant to taste good. So I shoved the coconut flour to the back of my cabinet after a few disappointing recipe attempts and went back to my usual ingredients.

Choosing Stillness: 10 Tips for Slowing Down

January 2, 2017May 3, 2018 - The Country Wife 4 Comments

Stillness is absolutely a choice. I know, that can be hard to hear. But it’s true. Stillness is a choice that can seem obstinate and far away, even unattainable and it is definitely easier said than done, like for real. But still a choice nonetheless. I can say this, because I’ve been on the crazy train of hectic schedules and full calendars and I’ve made the choice to get off and be still. I did it, and you can too.

Perhaps, stillness is appealing to you…foreign and new, enticing you to try to figure it out. There was a time when I was absolutely overcome by my overloaded commitments and my soul sincerely yearned for stillness. Maybe you’ve been there. Maybe you are there. Trust me, coming from the other side, stillness is achievable and oh, so worth the effort.

Learning to Live Simply

November 21, 2016February 10, 2017 - The Country Wife Leave a comment

Let me just state it bluntly: I had to get used to frugality. Saving instead of spending was a fairly natural mindset for me, but in a career that paid me well and increased my salary with each consecutive year, convenience buys were worth it and price tags weren’t all that important.

And then the shift…

How to Walk Away from a Career…in Search of your True Calling {Part 2}

November 14, 2016February 10, 2017 - The Country Wife Leave a comment

Well, in Part 1 of this post, I filled you in on a bit of my backstory. I shared how I felt I got a little swept up in the motion of things during my college years and ended up in a career I never envisioned for myself. And how, ultimately, remaining in that unfulfilling career led to much misery and unrest on my part.

That brings us to today’s post, Part 2 of How to Walk Away from a Career…in Search of Your True Calling.

How to Walk Away from a Career…in Search of your True Calling {Part 1}

November 7, 2016February 10, 2017 - The Country Wife Leave a comment

One day, while in the midst of my professional career at the moment, I had an epiphany. What was I doing? I mean, really? How did I get here? This is so not what I had envisioned for myself.

Fast-forward to today, and…this is more like it. I mean, if I’m being honest, I didn’t exactly envision the life of blogger for myself either, but I’m content where I’m at and I’m fulfilled, so I know I’m headed in the right direction and am certainly not as lost as I was in that moment not so many years ago.