No Dieting

Shots to the Hips...Ouch and YAY!!!

2011-07-06T05:44:00.000-07:00

I have obviously been THE worst at blogging lately. I'm so sorry. I don't know what has gotten into me. Summer has been rolling along and we have spent a lot time at the pool. My lack of blogging has been in part to my lazy self and the other is that I have been out of town. Work took me to an AMAZING place called Alys Beach, Florida and I have to say I want to retire there. And when I say retire I mean move there now and quit working and lay out until I'm that wrinkley old lady running in the morning who's skin shows just how much fun I have had in the sun over the years.

My kids birthdays were the 4th and 5th of July and we had a great time. Walker wanted to golf and Riley wanted to go to the pool. I shall share photos later (I don't have my camera with me).

Workouts have been consistant but honestly can't remember them all to post them. You probably already know what they are.
Workout Recap:
Last week: 18 mile run, 8 mile run, 5 mile run, NO upper body and NO cross training (I was out of town and working! Poo!)
This Week:
Sunday: Rest day from long run
Monday: I can't remember...duh...that's not a good sign, huh?
Tuesday: Notta (bad, bad girl!)
Wednesday: 6.5 mile run, hard upper body workout with weights

I am leaving for the beach early in the morning and the plan is to run a couple times while I'm there. Carie is going so hopfully she will force me to get up and go. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE to run...I just hate getting up to do it and lately want to stop all the way through but when I'm done I'm so happy I got up. I play mental games with myself all the time. Running at the beach is so pretty and I'm looking forward to doing it with my bestie...running by palm trees (my fav!), and then laying out the rest of the day.

The girls are each taking a friend with them Riley is taking Carie's oldest...they are besties, too) so this should be interesting (haha!). Time to go clean the car, laundry, pack, clean the house, take the alarm remote and key to our house/dog sitter, and a million other things. Hope to get recent pics up here today.

BIG NEWS: Today I go for pre-op at the hospital. Next week I am having bilateral hip injections under flouroscopy (sounds fancy). It's basically cortisone shots in my hips under x-ray. Hope this helps my stupid hip pain from my injury last November. The actual procedure only takes about 5 minutes per hip but they have to put me to sleep because a 4 inch needle sticking into my hip probably wouldn't be as fun as eating a huge bowl of fro-yo with large amounts of fresh fruit on it. Now I have to find someone to take me and pick me up and watch my kids...minor details (the Captain will be at a special thing they have going on at work). My family from Tuscan will be here so I may make the SIL do it. I have down played this to the Captain and he doesn't even realize they have to put me to sleep. I'm just going to go and do it and come home and chill. I don't want to make a big deal out of this but your prayers are appreciated. I pray this takes away my hip pain from my injury that has been plaguing me for SO long. I just want to run pain free!!!!!

Have a blessed day. I'll let you know how pre-op goes.
Jennifer

Have you ever had a procedure to alleviate pain from a running injury?
-Sadly, this injury has caused me to have several procedures. X-rays, Cat scan, MRI, cortisone injection, PT...and I'm still dealing with it!

What's your favorite beach to go to?
-I like ANY beach, and pool, and place with sunshine and palm trees.

Do you run on vacation or take advantage of the rest time and just be lazy?
-I totally play it by ear. I take my running gear everytime just in case and often am lazier than I am active. I will run this time since I am in training.

Check!

2011-07-01T07:36:00.000-07:00

It's a beautiful morning for a 20 mile run! My first ever!

~ Carie

Just so you know......

2011-06-30T19:33:00.000-07:00

We are alive! We survived the 18 mile long run last weekend! It was long, it was hard, we were tired, we were sweaty! That is the farthest I've ever ran......that is until this coming weekend when I run 20. Yikes! Wish us luck!

Out of Nothing at All....

2011-06-24T07:20:00.001-07:00

I've never claimed to be the best blogger in the world, hence the week I apparently took off. Trust me it was completely un-intentional. I have so many ideas rolling around in my crazy little brain to blog about. However, this morning you are getting none of those "good" ideas. Nope, I have decided to give you a re-cap of what I've been up to this week, because I know you are very, very interested. (OK, just go with it...)

First of all, I want to show you guys what I am so proud of....

I made scones!! These are "Vanilla Bean Mini Scones" from Sarah over at Peas and Thank You! They were so easy and so good! My two youngest helped and they ate 2 a piece as soon as they were cool! I have been a little afraid of baking in the past, but recently I have done more and more and have discovered its not as hard as it looks!

All day yesterday I was craving enchiladas big time! (Mexican food seems to be a staple in my diet) My friend Jana makes the best enchiladas and I've made her recipe many times, but didn't have all the ingredients on hand and was in no mood to go to the store! After standing in front of the pantry and fridge for what seemed like forever, I discovered the leftover Black Bean Soup that I froze a couple of days ago. As I thought of the ingredients, I realized they very closely mirrored the ingredients of the filling for Jana's enchiladas! That's when complete and total genius hit. (OK, maybe it was hunger) I thawed the soup, rinsed it in a colander, and threw it into the food processor,

Then I added one tablespoon plus one teaspoon of tomato paste.

Here's a quick little tip on tomato paste. Buy it in the tube form, if you can find it. Many recipes call for just a little and then you are stuck with over half a can and have nothing else to use it for. With the tube, you can measure out just what you need and then stick the rest in the fridge!

After adding the paste, I gave it a little whirl and came out with this:

Perfection!

Next up was the enchilada sauce. I know you can buy a can or jar of enchilada sauce that is very good. However, homemade is delicious, you know what is in it, and it is so very easy!

Easy Enchilada Sauce (makes 2.5 cups)
1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1 onion, minced fine
1/2 tsp. salt
3 tablespoons chili powder
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons sugar
2 (8 oz.) cans tomato sauce
1/2 c. water
pepper

Heat oil, add onion and salt and cook until onion is soft. Stir in next 4 ingredients, and cook for about 30 seconds. Stir in tomato sauce and water, simmer until thickened, around 5 minutes. Season with pepper to taste.

Easy, quick! I didn't have tomato sauce on hand so I subbed a can of diced tomatoes that I pureed in the food processor and omitted the water. A can of crushed tomatoes can be subbed as well, just be sure to leave out the water.

Here is the finished product!

Just so you know, your Hubby and kids may run into the kitchen while this is cooking because the smell will draw them in, neighbors may knock on the door and beg for a sample. It smells that good!

While the sauce was simmering, I took the pureed soup and spread it on tortillas, rolled them up and placed them seam side down in a baking dish I had coated with cooking spray. Then I spread a little sauce on top.

I topped them with shredded cheddar cheese (although you don't have to, but I was thinking I needed some extra protein in my diet, haha), placed them in the oven at 350 for about 15 minutes and they came out looking like this:

I can't tell you how good and easy these are and everyone in my family loves them! I only made 3 because Big Sister is at church camp (but will be home today, good thing because I miss her!) and The Golden Boy had a client dinner.
I was hankering for something sweet after I did a full on kung-fu punch on my enchilada.

Enter two cut up peaches, strawberries and Rainier cherries! I love cherry season! My favorite is the Bing, but I like the Rainier as well. Our local farm stand also had peaches and the smell was amazing and drew me in! They were so good and juicy!

This little guy thought so too and requested a bowl just like mine!

Just in case you were wondering (and you are probably not) here is my work-out re-cap for the week:

Saturday: 16 mile long run with Jennifer
Sunday: Off day that was needed ,fo sho!
Monday: 3 mile easy run (9 minute pace)
Tuesday: 30 minutes on the elliptical and lower body strength workout
Wednesday: 9 mile run
Thursday: 1 hour on the spin bike, 2 mi run at 8:24 pace
Today: Upper body workout only (a good friend that runs marathons (hello 3:20!) says that she does absolutely nothing on her lower body the day before a long run, so I'm taking that advice!)

Tomorrow is our long run and I'm doing 18 (yikes)! Hopefully I won't be in the hospital or dead and can come back here and let you know how it went!

Have a wonderful weekend! Remember, Sunday is the Lord's Day, so do yourself a favor and find a place of worship and fellowship with His own!

~Carie

Rollin'...Rollin'...Rollin' on a Foam Roller

2011-06-21T17:50:00.000-07:00

The lack of posts can only mean one things...I'm not sure what to write :( I'm working on something but it's not ready so I wondered , "Is something better than nothing?" Until that post is ready, here is a recap of my workouts.

Saturday:
Run 14 miles (with Carie...YAY!!!)
Started early (4:00am!!!) and took plenty of water breaks (I needed every one of them) so it wasn't too hot. Thank goodness!
*Side note-my hip was screaming at me afterwards...and on the right side where it WASN'T hurting since I recovered. UGH!!!!!! This scares me :-( Foam rolled like a MANIAC!

Sunday:
Happy Father's Day ~ Rest day
Foam rolled like a MANIAC..again.

Monday:
Upper body (3 sets of 10)
-bench press
-tricep pulldowns
-cable rows
-incline butterflies with weights
-50 crunches
-squats with weights
Foam rolled, yet again.
*rested my legs/hips due to achiness

Tuesday:
Run 5 miles (slow-easy on the hips)
Foam rolled.

I foam roll everyday but since my hip started giving me trouble I have spent more time on the floor on that thing than normal. Everytime someone in my family walks in the den I'm on that thing. <3 my foam roller.

I'll spare the picture because you might want dessert tonight and this could ruin your appetite but I lost yet another toenail. Two gone on on the same foot. Pretty.

Time to go eat my 3rd cupcake of the day.
Have a great night!
Jennifer

Have you ever lost a toenail? Does it happen all the time like me?
-I can't keep a toenail on the second toe.
Do you have an unusual obession with the foam roller like I do?
-Oh yeah, love it.
What do you do when an injury starts to yell at you?
-I try to listen to my body but want to continue training at the same time. It's hard to do.

Everybody's Working for the Weekend....

2011-06-17T14:25:00.000-07:00

Today started out as a little of a let down. We woke up to this:

This is the view out my back door, and as you see, its raining. Not only did it rain last night, but the wet stuff decided to settle in a stay for a while. Like until 3pm! Jennifer and I had big plans to take the kiddos to the pool today (Friday is her day off work)so that we could layout and have a gab session (and eat ruebens and swedish fish!). I was a little bummed and so were my children at first, but they made the most of a free day at home and did some of this:

"Just Dance 2" Cardio and fun? Yes, please. After dancing with them for a bit (little brother joined the group as well, but he's not into dancing like the girls :), I decided to get productive! I started the laundry and set about prepping some food for the weekend.

I pulled out some veg and prepped them so I could make this:

Jana's Most Delicious Salsa!
Then I made some of this:

Mama Peas White Bean Guacamole! Its a favorite at our house!
Then, it was lunch time, so I made these:

Pineapple Chicken Quesidillas! I found the recipe over at Hungry Mom on the Run and have been drooling over them ever since!

Here's the finished product! They were excellent!
Next, I decided that supper needed to be tended to, so I started this:

This is a picture of the second step. The first was just a bunch of black beans floating in water in a black crockpot. Somehow, the picture turned out a little boring..... haha! After a couple of hours bubbling away, this is the result:
Vegatarian Black Bean Soup! Oh my yall! This was so good! I am so glad we have a crockpot full to eat the rest of the weekend. I even added a dollop of White Bean Guacamole, HIT. THE. SPOT.! I have been searching for a good black bean soup recipe ever since Jennifer and I had a Cuban version at a local sandwich shop. This is the best I have come up with and it definately made the cut!

We also have a guest tonight,

This is Jennifer's youngest with Big Sister and Little Sister. Big Sister and R are Besties, just like their moms!

Workout Re-cap:
Wednesday - 35 minutes total body strength training
Thursday - 6.5mi run
Friday - 45 minute upper body strength training (I try not to workout my lower body at all on Fridays since I do long runs on Saturdays!)

Tomorrow Jennifer and I have our long run! I'm excited, we've not been able to run together in some time! Yay!

Since I've worked hard to prep for the weekend I think I deserve a little of this,

And look, the sun has come to say hello!

Happy Friday! ~Carie

I always feel like, somebody's watching me....

2011-06-17T12:07:00.000-07:00

Friday Workout:
30 minutes on the elliptical
Upper Body:
-bench press
-tricep pulldowns
-cable rows
-incline butterflies
-squats with weights
*skipped walking lunges with weights today because I have my long run tomorrow and the last time I fatigued my legs before my long run all I could think about was how I shouldn't have fatigued my legs before my long run.

Btw, my hip/groin felt Ahhhhmazing today! ROCKSTAR!!! Super excited about this and pray it feels as great tomorrow during my long run. The elderly man who comes into the gym every morning when I am there said today, "You are always on that thing so long you're gonna wear it out!" He's so cute! He thinks that because he spends 5 minutes on the treadmill before he moves on to the next machine. Next time I see him I hope I get up enough nerve to take his picture. HeHe ;)

Do you ever wonder if people are watching you workout? I always go the gym (our Country Club gym) really early while the family is still alseep so there is never anyone there...the way I like it. This is because I get to watch what I want to on TV, keep the lights out (it makes it hot in there), and talk to myself...out loud. Sometimes it's to comment on how cra-cra the people on the news are and other times just to convince myself to 'STAY ON THIS STINKIN' MACHINE...DON'T GET OFF...YOU WILL REGRET IT!!!" I ask this because there is a security camera in the gym (which is a welcome addition) and I always wonder if they review the tapes (yeah, I'm old...I said tapes) and laugh at me. In an effort to entertain them, just in case they do, I often make faces at the camera. In addition to making faces, I laugh at myself doing it. Please don't ask me to explain...just go with it.

Do you ever act silly just in case someone is watching?
-I do this at the gym as well as the ATM. Idk why.
What motivation do you use to keep yourself going during a hard/boring/lonely workout?
-I talk to myself, watch tv, think about my day, and pray.
Do you get super excited when you feel good when you fully expected to feel bad?
-You bet! I was PUMPED this morning about my hip!!! :)

Have a blessed day! We are being lazy around the Olive household...very L.A.Z.Y.
Jennifer

Wednesday/Thursday Workouts

2011-06-16T15:51:00.000-07:00

Wednesday Workout:
45 minutes on the elliptical
Upper Body (3 sets of 10)
-brench press
-tricep pulldowns
-cable rows
-incline butterflies
-walking lunges with weights
-squats with weights

*feelin' it today! Yay!

Thursday Workout:
Run 7 miles (1st mile...bleh...last 6 miles...yay) Pace unknown: watch stopped at 1.5 miles

Jennifer

Comfy Pants

2011-06-15T20:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I got off early so the Captain to go to a meeting. It was nice, I tried to relax, the kids played on the laptops (that's why Wednesday's post is happening on Thursday..R had mine..even though we have count them 5 computers in this house!) and we didn't have to be anywhere.

I wish I could relax more..I mean, didn't have to start dinner, Captain was gone, kids were occupied...Yeah there was a pile of this that needed to be folded and put away but when has that ever bothered me?!

So I finally thought, "Why in the world am I still in work clothes?" and I quickly changed into comfy pants! What was I waiting for? Immediately I was more relaxed and all was right in the world. Instant calmness. Why can't we wear pj pants all day in everyday life? (Yes, I know this picture is sideways...it wouldn't rotate so just tilt your head)

Don't you think we would all be more productive if we were comfy all the time. I really think I would. I mean you already have those people who wear their pj pants to Wal-Mart anyway...they may be on to something. Hmmm...no. All this comfiness (is that spelled with an i or a y or is it really a word..I like it so I'm using it) got me thinking what else makes me feel comfy. I'm not talking happy, fun, or excited...I'm talking giving me a comfortable feel.

Pizza Hut. Yes, I LOVE pizza and you can kill two birds with one stone and put on the comfy pants SO you can eat a lot of pizza.

Candles. Something about a candle burning makes me feel good. Especially when the sun goes down. Shameless Plug: my friend owns a candle company called http://www.meadowbrookcandles.com/ and the scent below is Fugi Ginger :)

Oh wait...this doean't make me comfy but it sure does make me HAPPY! Besties day at the pool! Please ignore the greasey face and veiny hands on me...the sun has obviously been my friend over the years :( but it's not anymore.

Coffee with Hazelnut creamer. Love me some coffee in the morning when I get home from working out. It warms me up and gives me much needed energy for the day because I'm the idiot who gets about 4 hours of sleep on the average and then wakes up at like 4:15 to go run/work out.

Oscar. He's so wrinkley and soft and when I sit down he snuggles next to me and makes me feel comfy, too. His paws smell like Doritos and I love it. I don't know....they just do. Ask my kids, they think so too.

(Love that close up of my foot, don't you? At least I have all of my toenails because I am known to be missing at least one at all times. I curl my second toe when running and therefore my toenail isn't my friend.)

So when I was looking for funning pictures of people in Wal-Mart to put in my post, I came upon a picture that cracked me up but then quickly realized, hey, I better not be so quick to laugh. Remember the cruise we went on in April and stopped at a hat store because my kids (and I) wanted to try on the silly hats? Well, this is a picture of W with a weiner hat on (because we have a weiner dog, you know)...and she bought it!!! Well, I bought it. Sucker!!! Worst $25.00 I've ever spent until.....

I came across the Wal-Mart guy rockin' the same hat! This made it totally worth it. I really don't know why.

www.peopleofwalmart.com

And the last picture is random but for your pure enjoyment. What in the world?!? Did the child just decide she couldn't ride E.T. style and go for the Superman instead?

What comforts you?

-I know it can't be this picture. I have more but I didn't want to totally bore you.

What do you do when you get off work early?

-Look at blogs, play with my kids, watch tv.

Do you think you would be more/less productive wearing comfy pants to work?

-More for sure!

Have a great day! Jennifer

*Excuse the overuse of the word "comfy" in this post*

Creature of Habit (or boring eater)

2011-06-15T06:15:00.001-07:00

You know those diet/healthy living blogs where the blog author chronicles every single thing she/he eats in a day? I like those blogs, I really do. However, sometimes I get tired of seeing 20 pictures of their oatmeal every single morning. I do get a lot of ideas for meals from those blogs but I have a confession to make. You won't see that from me. Here is the main reason, and I am almost embarrassed to show you all this, but here goes. I am an extreme creature of habit.
I'll allow you to check the evidence and make a ruling on your own:

This is a salad with a cut up chicken burger (purchased at Sam's, they are sooo good). I have eaten this exact same salad at least 3 times this week.

Next up, we have something that looks like breakfast, and probably was on at least one occasion,

but I'm not too proud to eat eggs, toast and salad for lunch, two days in a row.

Even when I am with Jennifer, I usually can get her to eat the same thing,

Here we have our normal Country Club Grill lunch. A vegetarian Reuben, sweet potato fries and a Greek salad (shared of course). I think we've had this three times since the summer started!

I also eat lots of frozen yogurt! I ALWAYS get the tart flavors and load my cup with fruit.

And I am a little ashamed to admit that this has been my lunch (and lunch for my kids) on more than one occasion. (OK, maybe like 6 times...)

Here is a salad I tend to repeat like crazy.

Spinach, tomatoes, cottage cheese and tuna. I love it. It loves me.

Breakfast is so predictable,

This is a bowl of mixed up cereals. Kashi Heart to Heart, Natures Path Pumpkin Flax Granola and Grape Nuts. I pour vanilla almond milk on it. Its good. I eat it a lot. I know, boring.

A big bowl of veggies for lunch.

Is anyone still reading this post?

Yogurt pancakes.

I am totally in love with them. I could eat them daily. I have eaten them every day for a week before.

Here is a twist on scrambled eggs.

And it would be exciting except I probably ate this every morning for breakfast back in April because I was on my "Jana's best Salsa" kick. Oh, that sounds good, maybe I'll make some today!

Oh, wait, this is different,

No, just another bowl of veggies.

Question of the day:

Are you a creature of habit? If so, what foods/meals do you turn to often?
Yes, I am. The evidence speaks for itself, however, this proves that I am loyal! I eat eggs and salad, a lot!

Do you like eggs? What is your favorite way to eat them? Do you put anything on them? I love eggs, and I like to cook them any way possible. I love to top scrambled eggs with salsa.

Do you like frozen yogurt? What are your favorite flavors/toppings?
I adore it. My favorite flavors are the tart ones. Currently its Original Tart swirled with Pomegranate! I am a fan of our local yogurt place on Face book so I can see the menu daily, lets just say if they have Pomegranate that day I may or may not arrange my day to be somewhere near! My favorite toppings are fruit and granola. I am not a fan of candy as toppings nor am I a fan of frozen yogurt that tastes like ice cream!

Have a wonderful day. I have big plans. To lay out at the pool and read, ALL. BY. MYSELF.!

See Ya, Carie

Maintain on the Brain

2011-06-14T15:36:00.000-07:00

I had an awesome day! Like I mentioned before, our kids are with my parents for the next few days so I have ample time to do a few things that I rarely get to do! This morning I started out my with this breakfast:

I call it yogoats. Basically its 1/3c. of old fashioned oats mixed with 1/3 c. vanilla yogurt and topped with sliced bananas and a side of caffeine! Delish! This was enjoyed on the very quiet patio whilst doing my Bible Study. Ahhhhh......

Next up, retail therapy! I had a coupon to Ann Taylor Loft! Score!

I loved this top and it was on clearance! Win!

Here is the damage I created today!

Truthfully, it looks like more than it is! The Victoria's Secret bag was all free due to a gift card I had, there is only one thing in the Anthropologie bag, there are 3 items in the Old Navy bag, all on clearance, one cardigan in the J.Crew bag (marked down to 24.00 from 70.00 woo!hoo!), the Loft bag contains 3 items, 2 that were on clearance and one that I got half price because of my coupon, and you all know what is in the Fleet Feet Bag....

Out with the old (poor things, the store clerk laughed at how worn they are...)

In with the new!!

I thought I'd model a side view! I decided to roll with Saucony this time. I have been in Brooks Adrenaline for a while now and these are supposed to be comparable.

I love the new colors! Can't wait to try them out on an actual run.

So, I received a FB message from long time No Dieting reader E.B. in Tennessee. E.B. recently had a baby and is in the process of losing the baby weight that comes with pregnancy. If you have read this blog for any period of time you know that it started out as a weight loss blog to chronicle my journey to losing the rest of my baby weight. At the time I started this blog, my baby was a little over 2 years old and I had recently discovered that I had in fact, not lost all of my weight (what? I was blissfully happy in my ignorance!). I knew I didn't want to do the typical diet (shakes ,pills, processed pre-made foods), so I set out on my journey by just counting my calories and exercising (something I was not doing before). I came across the Couch To 5k running plan in December of 2007 and began counting calories and exercising in January 2008, you can click here to start reading the entire journey. Anyhow, I took me about 4 1/2 months to lose 17 pounds and for the most part, I have kept it off for 3 years.

E.B. asked me how I have maintained that weight loss. Well, I have to tell you that I think maintaining is the hardest part. When you initially start losing weight you are excited that it is coming off and that is what motivates you to stay the course. However, it is so hard to keep on a healthy eating/exercise plan for the long term when there are so many things pulling at our time and attention. Here are some tips for maintaining. Keep in mind that what works for me, may not work for you and you have to find what keeps you focused.

Remember that it is now a lifestyle. I think too many people go into weight loss with the mindset that they will diet for a set period of time and then once the goal is reached, they can then resume normal life. I can't tell you how wrong this is. I get up every single day determined to make the right choices that are going to help maintain my weight loss. I do my best to start each day with a healthy, filling breakfast that will give my body the energy it needs to do what I gotta do! Then, as the day wears on, I do my best to follow up with good food choices for the rest of the day. If I have exercised that day I know I can allow myself a little wiggle room as to what I eat, but I do realize that this doesn't give me licence to go crazy and eat whatever I like. If its an off day as far as exercise is concerned, I know I have to be especially careful with the amount of food I eat. I am not fooled into thinking that there will ever be a time in my life that I don't view eating in this way. I have a small frame and gaining even just a little weight shows up, makes me feel uncomfortable and makes my clothes feel tight. Now, this is not to say that I don't give myself a treat! Once or twice a week I give myself a "cheat" meal (not a cheat day, this is a mistake, don't fall for it)and eat whatever I like but only for that meal. This keeps me focused and keeps me from feeling deprived. I don't write down everything I eat all day like I used to, but I don't keep a running tally in my head so that I know weather or not I am on track.

Make exercise a priority. Before I started this journey, I rarely, if ever exercised. I didn't grow up in a home where exercise was encouraged. In face, most the exercise done in my home was wrestling over the remote control! Now I know that it has to be a priority. Not so much for the weight loss anymore but for how it makes me feel. If I don't get anything else completed that day, I know that I have completed a run, cardio session or strength session and that makes me feel accomplished. I know that running is not for everyone. In fact, there are those who hate running. Thats ok, I hate step aerobics with a passion! Find what YOU love and you will be more likely to do it. Jennifer has fallen in love with biking lately, and its helped to re-hab her hip injury. I'm not a fan of biking, but I love spin class! Do you love to dance? Try Zumba or Dance Trance. My friend Jana loves Yoga and Pilates and has gained some great muscle tone from both of these. Bottom line: get up and move!

Make new goals. Initially my goal was to lose weight. Then it was to finish the Couch to 5k program, to run my first 5k, to run my first 10k, to run and half marathon, and to repeat all these things but do them better! I know that to reach these goals I am not only going to train for them, but I have to fuel my body appropriately in order to be the best runner I can be. If I fill my body with junk food, I will feel sluggish and my workouts will be terrible. You goals don't have to be running related, they can be anything. To gain more muscle tone, to be able to swim 50 laps, to do a triathlon, to climb a mountain, whatever! The point is that you should never stop making goals.

Cut yourself some slack. We all fall off the bandwagon from time to time. I have gained back and lost up to 5 of the original pounds that I lost. Its OK. The important thing is to recognize that this has happened, find out what caused it, and take the necessary steps to remedy the situation. I weigh myself about once a week and this works for me. I have a set number in my head that I want to be either at or under. However, I can usually tell by the way my clothes fit that I am eating way too much or that I am being a super-slacker when it comes to workouts. However, I don't beat myself up for gaining a few pounds or for eating way too much dessert. I start again the next day and get myself back on track. Beating yourself up will likely only get you more depressed which in turn will probably make you eat more and give you the "Well, I'm this far gone" attitude. You will cheat on your diet, you will gain back a few pounds....its OK!

Ditch the fat clothes. Its tempting after weight loss to hold onto your old clothes "just in case". Resist the urge! Buy yourself some new clothes and give the old ones away. I don't know about you but I can not afford to buy a new wardrobe once or twice a year! By getting rid of the old clothes, you have no excuse to maintain your weight loss.

And last but not least, Reward Yourself! Once you start losing weight, and achieving your goals, give yourself a non-food treat. A nice massage, dinner and a movie with friends, a new pair of shoes, a new piece of jewelry, whatever. The point is to set the goal, set the reward! Make it something you really want and you will do it. Lets say your goal is to maintain the same weight for 6 months. At the end of the six months, do something for yourself!

I hope this helps anyone struggling with the "I've lost the weight, now what?" feeling. It is a lifestyle but its one that is totally doable and totally worth it!

Tuesday Morning

2011-06-14T07:00:00.000-07:00

Good morning! As Jennifer stated earlier, we are having technical difficulties with ye old blog. Hopefully, I can work on it tonight and get the picture a little smaller! I'm thinking that a jumbo Carie is the last thing you want to see when you log in! I do like that picture of us though! It was taken last May at a 10k race. Not sure what is going on with my hand though!

Despite my kiddos being with my parents for the next couple of days I got up bright and early (because I am crazy like that) and did a super sweaty 45 minutes on the elliptical! (note to self: Call manager at the country club and beg that the temp be lowered in the gym from 74 degrees!). Since we are all about keeping you informed here at No Dieting, I will tell you that yesterday I ran 5.87 mi / 8.30 pace.

Today I have big plans......I'm going to buy new running shoes! I am currently about 150 miles over what I should have on a good pair of running shoes so today is the day! I am also in desperate need of energy gels, toe protectors (I lose toenails like nobodies business), and hopefully some socks! I also have plans to do some birthday shopping for someone you all know.....haha!

I hope to be back later today with a post especially for my good friend E.B. From Tennessee! Have a wonderful day!

Jumbo!

2011-06-14T06:22:00.000-07:00

Oh my word...I was trying to update the picture of Carie and I on our blog and now look!!! It's JUMBO! I don't know why this happen or more importantly why I can't fix this. So please excuse this while we work on it.

Monday Workout Recap
There's nothing to recap :( I had every intention of going in to get a little bit of work done and then to the gym for elliptical and upper body but when I got to work there was a bit more waiting for me than I expected so since I couldn't bail on work, I had to bail on the workout. Sad times.

Tuesday Workout Recap
Ran 5.08 miles/9:20 pace

I was up til midnight watching the last prequel of Star Wars with my kids so when 4:15am rolled around to wake up I didn't want to. There's something wrong with getting up at the crack of dawn every morning when school is out...don't you think? Me too, that's why I didn't. You think I would learn that sun+June+Alabama=STINKIN' HOT!!! That's what it was this morning at 6:15am! Gah!!!! This stinks! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE hot, summer weather but just not running in it. My pace is slower, I sweat like a man and I want to give up like 1000x every minute.

Time to take shower cause I like my family and friends.
Have a blessed day! Jennifer

I run so far away...

2011-06-13T05:26:00.000-07:00

Sunday Workout:
12 Miles/9:15 pace

There's something about Sunday morning runs that I enjoy. I don't know if it is getting a good run in and then going to church or if it's running across Wilson Dam as the sun is coming up. It's such a beautiful picture and next time I'm going to stop and actually take a picture to post. Everyone else that runs that route with me has their iPod in and can't believe I don't run with any music. That's my time to think, pray, appreciate the beauty of my surroundings and thank God for blessing me with my health so that I can run again...it just takes me away. This all sounds so mellow-dramatic but I really do get that way on this loop I run. If I think back to important points in my life I get overwhelmed at how God has blessed me through my trials (hip injury, cancer, closing my store) and my blessings (husband, kids, church, friends) and where I am now and not to fear the future because I know He will guide my path and protect me.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Have a great day! I'll be back with my Monday post.
Jennifer

Stayed Tuned

2011-06-11T21:00:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! We are having a wonderful weekend so far! Jennifer and I got to hang out at the pool yesterday and today! I call that a huge success! We did what we do best, read magazines, eat (Swedish fish, vegatarian ruebens, and salads), talk, talk, and talk some more! Our children are close so they always have a ball hanging out together!

As far as workouts go, yesterday I did a 40 minute strength workout along with 25 minutes on the elliptical. This morning I logged 6.25 hilly miles! Tomorrow is an off day for me so no workouts!

Jennifer and I have huge news to share but unfortunately we are unable to share it at this time! However, we will let the cat out of bag soon, so stay tuned!

Saturday workout recap

2011-06-11T08:02:00.000-07:00

Saturday
NOTHING!!!! Today is my rest day for my long run tomorrow so my day will consist of the following:
-Pick up my kids form their Nanny's house (they spent the night)
-Go to Target to get the kids some play shorts and another bathing suit
-Laying out by the pool consuming copieus amount of Swedish Fish with Carie & the kids
-Saturday night movie night with the Captain and kids (this is were we all pile on the couch to
watch a movie of the kids choice and I fall alseep within the first 5 minutes..remember I have a
long run tomorrow before church)

Have great Saturday! I'll be back with pics of our pool shenanigans and much more!
Jennifer

Have you seen Just Go With It starring Adam Sandler & Jennifer Anniston?
-OH MY WORD...that's sooo funny! The Captain and I watched it last night!

Have and lazy Saturday plans?
-Pooltime baby!

When do you do your long runs?
-Mine range between Saturday and Sunday in the summer.

Yes, I am a slacker...

2011-06-10T06:14:00.000-07:00

Ugh...I've droppped the ball already and didn't post Thursday's workout so here goes Thursday and Friday.

Thursday
Run 6.25 miles/9:00 min. pace
I may or may not post my time or splits because right now my concentration is to heal my hip completely while increasing my distance. I have found that some days my hip hurts more than others and I have to listen to my body so in an effort to do the smart thing, I'm not going to let myself feel pressured(by myself) by a good/fast pace.

Friday
Elliptical 30 (hard) minutes
3 sets of 10 of the following:
bench press
lat pull downs
cable rows
barbell squats
weighted lunges

Colors again...aren't you lucky? As Carie said, today is "Besties By The Pool Day" so I'm going to get my stuff together now. Plan on fun pictures of our pool shenanigans...
Have a blessed day! Jennifer

Do you have special days with your bestie?
-You know I do!
What do like to eat/drink by the pool?
-Swedish fish, WATER, Larabars (unless they melt) and salads for lunch.
Are you hard on yourself with your run times and workouts?
-I'm very hard on myself with my run times and my cycling time/distance. Not so much
about the weights (I know I'm a weakling).

Copy Cat

2011-06-09T19:32:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! I hope you all have had a wonderful Thursday! It is so hot here! The temp is already near 100 degrees every single day this week! Yikes! Trust me that's hot even for the deep south!

So, Jennifer posted yesterday that she is going to post her daily workouts here as a way to keep herself accountable! Great idea! So being the copy cat that I am, and because I think Jenn has the best ideas, I think I will do this as well! (BTW, Jenn, imitation is the best form of flattery ;)

Yesterday while sitting at the pool I ran into a girl that I know from church and some mutual friends that I don't see very often (we go to a large church that has 3 morning services). She started running last September with a mutual friend and they had originally asked to join one of my training groups (for those of you that don't know, I conducted 3 training groups last year to get women started running!) however, I was already in the middle of conducting 2 separate groups and the times were just not right for them. They decided to go it alone, but with the help and advice of a long time marathoner that they know. (They did wonderful BTW, and ran their first 5k just weeks later, followed by a 10k the next month, a 15k this past spring and then their first half marathon in April) Anyhow, after they were up and running consistently for a few months they would periodically ask me to join them. I never did because they run at night and I don't know if its how I've conditioned my body these past 3.5 years, but I simply am not a night runner! When I run at night I feel like every single ounce of food I have eaten that day is just sitting in my stomach bouncing up and down, lovely, I know! But, they were firm on their running times and I on mine so the three of us were destined to never run together! So, yesterday when I saw her she said "you will never guess what we did yesterday! We ran early in the morning and we are going to do it again tomorrow, so will you please join us?" Of course I was just as excited as she was so the three of us made plans to meet up this morning. When I got there they began to apologize in advance for their "slow pace" and how they are no good at all, newbies at best. I'm thinking this will be great since I really need a slow recovery run after the speed work I did on the treadmill the day before! Let me just tell you not to believe everyone that says they are terribly slow! These girls shocked me with how quickly they have picked up a pace that I wasn't anywhere near during my first year running! Here are the splits:

Mile 1: 9:15
Mile 2: 8:49
Mile 3: 8:58
Mile 4: 9:00
Mile 5: 9:11
Mile 6: 8:59

Slow? I think not! However, I did get a Face book message from one that said the pace was definitely faster than they normally run but that they liked it and hoped I would join them again!

So, that's all I have for today! I hope you guys have a wonderful Friday! I have big plans to hang out with Jennifer at the pool tomorrow and read magazines and eat Swedish Fish! Did you know that tomorrow is "Besties-hanging-by-the-pool-day"?

for the record

2011-06-08T06:02:00.000-07:00

Good Morning Friends! I have deicided to post my workouts daily as a way to be more accountable to myself and to develop a daily blog posting routine. I'll try to keep it short and simple :)

Wednesday
30 minutes on the elliptical
Weight training: 3 sets of 10 each
-bench press
-lat pulldowns
-incline dumbbell press
-cable rows
-barbell squats
-lunges w/weights
BONUS: Carie was there when I got there!!!!

I'm not sure why I just threw in some color there but consider that my free gift to you. Because I'm still healing from my hip injury, I'm really trying to incorporate cross training to build my core muscles. (I used to have a gym membership but sadly...no longer. Now I go to my Country Club which = smaller gym + no classes) Hopefully, my daliy workout post will keep me accountable and help get me into daily blogging habits.

Have a blessed day! Jennifer

strictly for my ninja

2011-06-07T16:11:00.000-07:00

My youngest daughter is one of those kids that switches what activity she takes every chance she gets. Her most recent is Brazilian Jujitzu. Yeah, I didn't know what that was either. It's the kind of martial arts that takes you down, chokes you and then breaks your arm. Just what you want your 9 year old to know, I know. Before you nominate me "Mother Of The Year" for letting her take this, keep in mind, I knew it wouldn't last. She quickly earned her yellow belt and decided in celebration of her accomplishment she wanted me to make this cinnamon streudal.

You know we had to eat our weight ice cream with it!

Well, the dessert wasn't the best...too bready/cakey. But we still ate it. Are you kidding me?

So while my kids went to their Nanny's house, I decided I needed to stuff my face with Shrimp Lo Mein. This portion probably should feed more than one but you know I ate the whole thing! I had a long run the next morning and decided the carbs in the noodles was exactly what my body needed for it. It hurt so good...

What up with the fortune? I mean, I wanted some legit advice, something I could get excited about.

Whatever... I don't get it.

Do your kids switch from one thing to the next?

What chinese food is your favorite? Do you carb load before long runs?

Do you save your fortune if you like what it says?

Have a great night! Jennifer

how did i miss it?...

2011-06-04T07:11:00.000-07:00

As anyone who is a runner knows, Wednesday was National Running Day. Well, I missed it. I mean I read it on everyone else's blog but never wrote about it. Maybe it was because I enjoyed reading everyone else's blog so much instead.

After coming back from a serious injury (I plan on writing a 3 part series on my journey through that...yes, I said 3 parts...it was serious stuff) I am so blessed to be able to run again. I pray for God to give me endurance before each run and to protect my hip/groin area (that's what was injured) and afterwards, no matter how good or bad my run was, I thank God for blessing me with the ablility to run again.

So, on a delayed post for National Running Day, I want to say "Thank You" to the Lord for blessing me with the ability to run, to Carie for getting me started running in the first place, and to my family for listening to me talk about my pace, how I felt during mile 11, what time I was going to get up in the morning, planning my food around the family's to get my carbs in the night before a long run, and all the other crazy things we runners do.

I am blessed to call myself a runner!

Have a great Saturday! I got my long run in and now I'm headed to the pool with the kids to meet Carie for some serious pool-time ;-)

Jennifer

2011-05-31T16:48:00.000-07:00

How can it be so hot so early in the morning? My early morning runs have turned into a sweatfest to say the least. I will spare you the sweaty pictures of myself because I know you really don' want to see them. I would actually be embarrased to post them. So I wore these compression sleeves on a recent run to see if I would feel a difference after or during the run. I really didn't but I suspect that my run wasn't long enought to see the benefits. I'm going to give it another shot with a longer run later.

(I wasn't quite sure which direction to turn this picture because either way it looked kinda funky.)

So a recent bike ride netted this sweet screen on my Garmin. Man, I love seeing stats like this. I sometimes find myself turning my watch back on throughout the day just to look at the mileage, calories burned and remind myself of the torture, I mean excitement that took place during that time. No really, I loved every second of it even though everyone next to me may have thought otherwise when I was climbing the hills.

(Yes, my arm looks as though I'm 65 years old and wrinkly. I know, I know.)

What kind of Garmin do you use? Or do you just enjoy the run without the stats?
I love my Garmin Foreruner 305 but doesn't it kinda look like it's from the 80's. I know there are newer ones out there but I just love this one. If you notice, sooo many people have this one!

Do you run in the morning or the evening? Is it crazy hot out in the mornings where you live?

Do you wear compression sleeves when you run or after or both? Do they help you? Any suggestions for maximum benefits?

Have a great evening...and I promise the next post won't take so long.

Jennifer

Did I Forget To Tell You Something???

2011-05-18T15:35:00.000-07:00

Ok, so being forgetful is a serious downfall of mine these days...well, actually it always has been but more so now for some reason...I can't remember why. After my daughter's dance class I got a letter saying I forgot to pay April's dance fees. I thought surely this isn't true...me? Forget to pay dance? Why I'm always on top of things like that! After seaching through my checkbook determined to prove someone wrong, there was March dues, a lot made out to the girls school, Pizza Hut, violin dues (HA!...I paid that one!!!) and May dues for dance but no April... Ok, so I forget sometimes. Dance recital is around the corner so now is not the time to forget! So I make a mental note to pay that next time we go to dance practice. Don't forget!!!

Another thing I forgot to do is post a picture (and super simple) recipe for that awesome Reuben I made. I told you I would post it and well, I don't forget. This sandwhich is like ooey-gooey good, dressing dripping down your hands, you need several napkins just to wipe your hands off before you can pick up your water to take a drink, don't fix this if you're trying to look all cute in front of your husband kind of good. I'm serious about this! You may not have the same love thoughts as I do about this sandwhich after you make it but then you probably made it wrong. Haha!

Legendary Reuben
Pumpernickel Bread, Sourkraut, Baby Swiss Cheese, Thousand Island Dressing
Butter bread, layer all the goods (I use a bit extra cheese) and toast in a skillet. Yep, that's it. Told you it was simple...cause that's how I roll.

Some recents eats:

THE BEST fish tacos you will EVER eat in your life!!! This is serious stuff folks! These are from a local restaurant in Key West. Wish I could remember the name...the goodness that is fish tacos caused me to have some memory loss. As you can tell, I couldnt even wait to take a bite after the picture...one is half gone already.

Bear Naked Granola (with dried cranberries), skim milk, and coffee (lots of hazelnut cream).

Yogurt Mountain!!! LOVE! Original tart with blueberries, stawberries and blackberries.

Stuffed Mushrooms from The Cheesecake Factory. Oh My Word.... :)

The wonderful bread that I ate too much of at said restaurant.

Some kind of cheesey, shrimpy goodness with toast pieces that is glorious to say the least. I can't remember the name but it's soooo good. (Do I say that about everything?)

Do you forget things often? Does it bother you or are you pretty laid back about it?

Any legendary eats lately? Or are they all legendary like mine have been?

Out of the Park Homerun!

2011-05-18T11:38:00.000-07:00

Good Afternoon! I hope that you are all having a wonderful day! My morning started off bright and early with a strength workout with none other than Jennifer! It totally kicked my heinie! Then it was home to shower and have some breakfast (Apple and cinnamon Oats and Buckwheat, recipe to come soon!), and get the big kids off to school.

I don't know if I have ever mentioned it on the blog or not, but Tuesdays are always a bit rushed and crazy around here. I am usually running around like a mad woman in a mini-van trying to get my girls to dance after school, homework, dinner, baths, bedtime! Ugh! So, to keep me from going completely over the edge, I have to cook something extra quick on Tuesdays. Enter Eggplant Parmesan! "What?" you say, "Eggplant Parmesan can not be easy!" Oh, but it is! This is not an official recipe, so I hope you will forgive me, but its so easy I really think that you don't need measurements. (PS. If you still can't figure it out send me a message and I will send you more precise instructions!)

Easy Eggplant Parmesan

2 small Egg Plants
2 eggs
Panko bread crumbs
2 TBLS. Olive Oil
1 jar Pasta sauce of your choice
Parmesan cheese
Mozzarella cheese
Heat oven to 375 degrees and coat a cookie sheet with Olive Oil. Crack two eggs into a shallow dish and whisk. Place @ 1-1.5 c. of bread crumbs into another dish. If you can use some that look worse than mine, it would make me feel much, much, better...

Next, slice your eggplants lengthwise about a 1/4 inch thick. You will need around 8 slices.

Then take your EP slices and dip them first into the egg and next into the bread crumbs making sure they are covered well.

Place in a single layer on cookie sheet and bake for about 15 minutes, then flip them over and bake for another 10. Remove from oven. I got mine done this far and then headed back to the dance studio. When I arrived home, I put about 1/3 sauce in the bottom of a small baking dish, then I layered the eggplant and cheeses (sort of like you would a lasagna. I then repeated the layers once more and ended with a little more sauce spooned on top and cheese. I increased the heat to 475 degrees and baked it for about 20 more minutes!

Oh yall, this is as good as it looks! My kiddos licked their plates and Little Sister declared it the best meal I ever made! I served it with a greens salad and garlic bread. Home run! After dinner I sent my friend Jana (who's kids WILL NOT touch anything remotely healthy) this text:

Me: I just hit a home run with dinner. Eggplant Parmesan. They licked their plates clean.
Jana: Eggplant? Seriously? I give up.
Me: I know! And little Sister asked for seconds! They are totally getting a pony!
Jana: Wanna trade?

Question of the day: What meals have you made lately that your family has loved? What day of the week is your busiest?

I plan on sharing the Oatmeal/Buckwheat recipe with you tomorrow along with some chit chat on being a Creature of Habit!

~Carie

Bullet Points

2011-05-16T15:24:00.000-07:00

Just a bit of randomness for you, because of the seven days of the week, I think Monday deserves it the most!

> I really wanted to get in a 13 mile run today, but only got a little over 9 in because my running partner was late.

> Lateness makes me crazy, I'm trying hard to get over it!

> Jennifer paid me a compliment today and Instead of just accepting it, I acted like a goober and said 'ugh, are you serious?, I look terrible!'

> I've been working very hard on just accepting compliments instead of acting like a goober when I receive them!

>Jennifer loves me even when I act like a goober.

> I just typed the word goober, three times.

> I attended the preschool graduation of my youngest child last night. I can't believe that he will start kindergarten next fall. (sigh)

> Its almost time for me to buy some new running shoes. I'm thinking of going the minimalist route. Any thoughts on this?

> While we were running we stopped off at the local kindergarten to get a sip of water, the PE class was jamming to Bon Jovi's "you give love a bad name". That's culture, Baby!

> I made a yummy vinaigrette by blending together 1 small pear, 1/4 c. Balsamic vinegar, 2 tsps. Dijon mustard, 1 clove of garlic and 1/3c. Water. So good!

> We are having unseasonably cold weather! Today's high was 65!

> We are skipping Little Brothers T-Ball game tonight because I can't bear the thought of sitting out in the cold watching a bunch
of 5 year olds pick flowers and play in the dirt, even if one of them happens to share my last name and is the cutest boy in the world.

> The self correct on my iPad has given me hours of entertainment lately. For instance, I was typing this Facebook message to a friend who is thinking of hiring a personal trainer, "He might make you do a bunch of burpees!". Apparently I typed the letter "T" instead of an "R" in the word Burpees. The message was sent before I saw the mistake so this is what she read "He might make you do a bunch of butlers!".

> Remember in my last post how I told you that anything could affect your run? Well, today it was the wind! I felt like we spent most of the time with it blowing in our faces and very little time with it at our backs! Here are our lap paces:

Mile 1: 10:02 (warm-up and I got a shin-splint!)
Mile 2: 9:13
Mile 3: 9:14
Mile 4: 9:12
Mile 5: 8:58 (here we made the turn and the wind was finally at our backs!)
Mile 6: 9:08 (we slowed down here b/c she had to take a phone call!)
Mile 7: 8:56
Mile 8: 8:41
Mile 9: 8:43

> I've got to stop worrying about my pace and get back to just enjoying a run!

So, that's all the randomness I have in me for today! I plan on being back tomorrow with a real post and maybe some info that you could actually use!

~Carie

Question of the day: How are you at accepting compliments?

HOT HOT HOT!

2011-05-13T16:44:00.001-07:00

It has been hot here lately, even for the deep South! For the last week we've had temps in the mid to high 80's! And the humidity? Fuggetaboutit! It does get hot here in May but we don't normally have temps this high until mid-June.

Yesterday, I decided to do my long run for the week after I dropped little brother off at pre-school. I thought that if I got it in I could get a little extra sleep on Saturday morning, and who doesn't love that? By the time I made it home it was around 9:30. It was already 81 degrees outside and humid, but I reasoned that I had hydrated well the day before and all morning so I thought I would be good. In addition, I was wearing my new Nathan Fuel Belt and had it loaded with Cytomax. My plan was to do 10-13 miles depending on how I felt. Mile one felt good, a nice warm-up in my neighborhood. I was listening to my ipod and felt strong. However, as I was leaving my neighborhood I felt a little nauceous but nothing major. I have felt a little queasy at the beginning of a run before, but in most cases it goes away quickly. Mile 3 rolled around and the sick feeling had settled in. At this point the feeling went from bad to worse. I did everything possible to make it go away. I took deep breaths, I slowed my pace, nothing. My legs began to feel heavy and my pace slowed considerably. The heat became unbearable. I started to walk a little and try to take deeper breaths but the humidity was making it extremely hard. I started to try to make this a mind over matter situation. I thought that I could make myself feel better and make it to the 10 mile mark if I just thought positively and slowed my pace. I really wanted to get 10 miles in but by the time mile 5 rolled around it was clear I wasn't going to get anywhere near that number. Luckily our town is layed out in a grid pattern so most of the time I can make a turn down a street or two and be less than a mile from home. Feeling sick, tired, extremely sweaty and let down, I walked into my driveway at mile 7. After I got a good look at my lap paces, I was even more sick. Here is the break-down:

Mile 1 - 9:11 (strong warm-up)
Mile 2 - 8:59
Mile 3 - 8:52
Mile 4 - 9:16 (uh oh)
Mile 5 - 9:18
Mile 6 - 10:22 (this is with some walking, I felt horrible at this point)
Mile 7 - 10:04 (I had picked up the pace a little just to get home sooner, I was in misery!)

I knew I could do better, but the heat had really gotten to me! So, this morning I knew I was going to do an easy 4 mile run. I started at 5 am before the heat took over and turned the asphalt into lava. Just to show you how heat can affect a run, here is the comparison on this mornings EASY run.

Mile 1 - 8:51
Mile 2 - 8:28
Mile 3 - 8:24
Mile 4 - 8:42 (cool down mile)

Needless to say, I felt MUCH better about this mornings run. There are so many things that can affect your runs. Heat, cold, mentral cycles, hydration, nutrition, lack of sleep, ill fitting shoes, ill fitting socks, clothing issues, you name it! Yesterday it was the heat, next week it might be something else. Although I hated the way I felt, I'm glad I got in at least 7 miles! I'm working hard on not being too hard on myself because of course there was nothing I could do yesterday about the heat. I want to run because I love to run and being hard on myself about something I had no control over is pointless.

Question of the day: How do you get through a bad workout? Do you push through, or cut it short in order to avoid injury? Are you hard on yourself for not performing at the level you know you are capable of?

Spaced Out!

2011-05-11T14:37:00.000-07:00

This short post is to apologize for the gheto spacing that my posts have had lately. I'm having majah trouble loading my images and the spacing keeps shifting on me. Just know...I'm gonna ninja kick this computer in it's rear end and I will get this straightened out soon. I'll get this spacing issued fixed...if it's the last thing I do!!! Moohahahaha! (Insert evil laugh here)

A lesson learned

2011-05-09T19:29:00.000-07:00

I decided to go out tonight and get a run in so that I wouldn't have to get up early and try to fit it into my busy day. I am normally an early morning runner, bright (dark) and early before anyone else in my home evens thinks of cracking an eye lid open. Before I started I thought this would be a relaxing short run. Wrong! I forgot to take into count that I had just eaten 1.5 hrs earlier. Yuck! Nausea hit me about 20 minutes in and even though I kept a 8.48 pace for the entire 3.5 miles, it sucked! Lesson learned, go to bed, get a good nights sleep and run on an empty stomach like you are used to!

~Carie

Marvelous Creations, Marvelous Creator

2011-05-09T08:24:00.000-07:00

Lord of all creation, of water, earth and sky,
The Heavens are your tabernacle,
Glory to the Lord on High!
God of Wonders beyond our galaxy,
You are Holy! Holy!
The Universe declares Your majesty!
You are Holy! Holy!
Lord of Heaven and Earth!

Hallelujah! To the Lord of Heaven and Earth! ~Our yard, Spring 2011

I'm out to ruin you!

2011-05-09T07:54:00.001-07:00

Good Morning! I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's day weekend! On Saturday Jennifer and I had the privilege of joining a group of ladies from our church in helping with the tornado relief efforts. We ended up spending the day working in one of the distribution centers. Jennifer (the good blogger) remembered her camera so I am going to let her tell you about our day and share some pictures with you.

I told you about my friend Jana in an earlier post. Jana is a wonderful cook and every Monday we take turns making lunch for each other for our Bible Study. On one particular Monday she made the most wonderful bean enchiladas with homemade filling and homemade enchilada sauce.(I will share that recipe soon!) I have to admit that they were so good that I totally stuffed myself! I've made them no less than 3 times since! However, the star of the show that day was Jana's homemade salsa! So, so good! This is not your typical jarred type salsa that is usually way too chunky and way too oniony (today, that is a word, go with it.). This salsa is more of a restaurant type salsa, a little thinner, with just the right amount of seasoning!

We recently took a 5 day beach trip with Jana, her husband and 3 kids. She made this salsa while we were there and after eating it the entire trip I was ruined! Guys, I am not lying when I tell you that I CAN NOT EAT JARRED SALSA ANYMORE! On top of that, restaurant salsa just pales in comparison! Make this salsa today! And while you are at it, roll on over to Peas and Thank You and nab the recipe for Mama Pea's White Bean Guacamole. (Tell her I sent you!) I've been making this recipe non-stop along with Jana's salsa and my family has been in love!

Jana's Fabulous Salsa

1 (28 oz.) can whole tomatoes with juice
2 (10 oz.) cans Ro-tel (I use mild because my kiddos eat this salsa but if you want your salsa with a little more kick feel free to add hotter varieties)
1/4 c. chopped red onion
1 clove garlic
1 whole jalapeno (I completely seed and de-vein mine to make it mild, but if you like it hot, add the entire thing!)
1/4 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/2 c. fresh cilantro
The juice of one whole lime.

Add all ingredients to blender and pulse several time until you get desired consistency. Again, I like mine on the thinner side but you can totally make yours more chunky. If you like more onion, cumin or cilantro, go for it!

Up close and personal with the salsa! You have to make it today!

Fiesta Time!

Close-up! Yall, I can't tell you how good this is!

Here is Mama Peas White Bean Guacamole, delicious!

Oh look! Some of the salsa decided to join Mama Pea's Guac! A match made in Heaven!

Someone ate the prop! Heh, Heh, Heh!

The Weekend Update

2011-05-08T14:34:00.000-07:00

**This is a repost of a repost or a repost!!!! Blogger keeps kicking my posts off!!! So...if your still interested, here is what I have been trying to post since LAST WEEKEND :( **
Happy Mother's Day!

Today has been a great day. I tried to do all things that I enjoy today because ya know...it's Mother's Day and well, I'm a mom! Early morning run by myself listening to a sermon on my iPhone. Church didn't happen this morning because the moment we got there, my daughter felt sick from the medicine she's taking so we left before it even started. Bummer. Then a four hour nap on the couch, a little tv watching and then back to church.

So my sweet kids surprised me with some special homemade cards and this tile that Riley made. Then I opened my next present to find this SWEET new Nike running outfit! LOVE cannot describe this cute outfit. I saw this outfit on a runner at a race last weekend and commented on it. Riley payed attention and told The Captain that I liked it! Yay Riley!

So this weekend Carie and I went to help out with a disaster relief group in a neighboring town. We spent the day organizing supplies so tornado victims can come and get the supplies they need from clothes, food, cleaning supplies, toiletries, etc.
On our way, we some saw some of the devestation first hand. I would love to show the pictures but Blogger isn't cooperating...Grrr... so I will cut this short.

Have you ever experienced devestation where you live? What did you do to contribute to the relief efforts?

Hope

2011-05-07T05:23:00.000-07:00

Jennifer and I are headed out this morning with a group of women from our church to help with some of the disaster relief. Please keep us in your prayers. My hope is that God will allow us in some small way to give some encouragement and hope to those who have been affected by this tragedy. We want to be Jesus to these people. Please continue to pray for the victims, again, the recovery process is expected to last a very long time.

In His Service,
Carie

Morning Glories

2011-05-05T11:56:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone is having a wonderful day! As you go throughout your day please remember the victims of the Alabama Tornadoes in your prayers. The rebuilding process is going to take a long time. If you would like to know how you can help, please see my previous post.

This morning started early for me, as most mornings do. Up at 4 for Bible Study and conversation with my Savior, run at 4:50, home at 5:45, shower. I just recently started doing some runs with a new girl. I say new but really I have known her for a long time, just never had the chance to run together. She had to be at work by 7 am, so we cut our run a little short this morning which meant my getting home a little early, which meant I had a little extra time which meant that I hoped back in to bed and took a little 20 minute nap! I hardly ever get to do that during the school year so it was a wonderful treat!

I have to say that I am very excited that the school year is winding down! I adore spending lazy days by the pool and letting the kiddos stay outside till 8 pm because its still light out! The flowers in our yard have been beautiful this spring and I hope to post pictures for you guys this weekend!

But, there are more important things to talk about today....pancakes! Who doesn't love a good pancake? Pancakes often get a bad rap because most are made with tons of white flour and sugar, then topped with copious amounts of butter and syrup! Now, there is not a thing wrong with those pancakes, but I have a healthier version that is kicked up with healthy ingredients and is the perfect pre or post run food! I can not remember where I got this recipe, but I do remember that the first time I made them was for Jennifer after one of our long Saturday runs while we were training for the County Music Half Marathon and we have both enjoyed them ever since. You can freeze the leftovers, then we you r are in need of one, take it out to thaw for 30minutes to an hour, then pop it in the toaster. Top with a little Earth Balance spread and pure Maple syrup or top them the way I do, pictured below.

Whole Wheat Pancakes
Makes 12-13 pancakes

1 c. whole wheat pastry flour (you can sub plain whole wheat flour)
2/3 c. almond mild (you can sub reg milk or nut milk of your choice)
1 egg (or flax egg substitute)
1 c. yogurt (I use vanilla flavored, but feel free to experiment, blueberry?)
2 tsp. stevia blend (or reg sugar)
2 tsp. oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt

Combine wet ingredients, then combine dry ingredients. Or vice verse.

Mix the two together.....

Heat a griddle or non stick pan over medium heat. Spray with a generous amount of cooking spray, then pour battle by 1/4c. increments onto hot surface.

*

Flip,

Pile finished pancakes onto plate, then top with natural Peanut Butter, sliced bananas and just a drizzle of agave nectar!

Yum!

I will praise You in this storm

2011-05-01T13:18:00.000-07:00

I have Bible study with my friend Jana every Monday at noon. We begin our time together with prayer and even though those prayers differ depending on who says them and what is going on in our lives that day, one of us always says "Father, we have no idea just how blessed we are. Let us never be caught with an ungrateful spirit." Never have the words "we have no idea just how blessed we are" been truer than now.

This past Wednesday April 27, an outbreak of tornadoes ravaged Alabama. Believe me when I tell you this...never has such death and destruction hit so close to home. Some of the communities that were hit the hardest are literally a 30 minute drive from my front door.

Although our community escaped with little damage (minor structural, and some trees down), the day was terrifying. The local meteorologist had warned the day before that these storms would be rough, but you never really know, do you? We sat under pitch black skies that dumped inch after inch of rain on us the entire day. Hail rained down at other times and then the winds would come. And there were sirens. All day.

The warnings started early in the morning. Four a.m. Tornado warning. The ominous siren. We got the kids up and put them in the closet that is under our staircase while the The Golden Boy and I stood in the nearby living room watching the forecast. Soon, the warning was lifted and we all retreated to our cozy beds. We sent the kids to school a few hours later but then by 9 a.m. more warnings, more rain, then hail. More sirens. I wondered what my girls were doing. The Golden Boy called to make sure I was watching the weather. I was glad Little Brother was home. I missed the rest of my family.

At 10 a.m. a break in the clouds, and what do you know? A little sunshine. I needed some things from the store so I quickly hustled Little Brother into the car and headed to Wal-Mart while things looked promising. I didn't need much, around 5 items. We made quick work of the list but just as we headed for the register the tornado sirens started again and then a voice came over the P.A. system. "Attention all Wal-Mart customers and employees. We are currently under a tornado warning. Move quickly to the center of the store." And there we were me and Little Brother and ironically, Jana and her little girl who had thought the weather looked promising enough for a quick trip to the store as well. I chided myself for not checking the weather before I left. 10 minutes later, the warning was lifted and we were permitted to check out and leave. As soon as I stepped into the parking lot, I regretted my decision to leave. The sky was darker than I had ever seen it and the clouds looked scary. I rushed Little Brother into the car along with our shopping bags and turned toward home. My thoughts were that we didn't live far and surely we could beat whatever that was home. Let me just stop here and say that after the stories I have heard this week, I will NEVER EVER THINK THOSE THOUGHTS AGAIN. Here we are on the road and the wind is blowing so hard that there are times I can barely keep the car in my lane. I started to pray out loud and from he backseat I hear "Dear Jesus, please get us home." We pull into our neighborhood and the winds are bending the smaller trees nearly in two and the larger trees are swaying. I start to pray that that is all they so, just sway. We pull into our driveway just as the worst of the rain hits. And it hits HARD. And then more hail.

Shortly after we arrived home the call came that schools were closing at one. Thank You Jesus. I quickly retrieved the remainder of my babies and got us all home safely. We remained glued to the T.V. for the next couple of hours. I made sure our shoes were all close by. The Golden Boy called and he was on his way home and wanting to know where the worst of the storms were. To my dismay they were exactly where he was traveling through at the time. We hung up so he could concentrate on driving but I prayed continuously for the next 30 minutes. When he got home I could tell from the look in his eyes that he had been a little afraid. Later that night, when the kids were asleep, he told he that he had seen one of the tornadoes in the distance.

Until 6:30 that night we were either watching the T.V. for updates, keeping the kids occupied or taking phone calls from concerned relatives. The power flickered a couple of times but never went off. We lost cell and Internet service but other than that we had been spared.

The reporters then began to deliver the bad news. As they had suspected multiple tornadoes had touched down leaving destruction and heartache in their wake. It would be the next morning till we heard the worst of it. Homes completely gone. Lives lost. Missing loved ones. Business gone taking with it the jobs of so many. To say we were spared is an understatement.

As I sit and type this 5 days later I am still struck and the magnitude of lose that is all around me. I haven't been to the scene myself but the pictures tell the story. There are people who literally have nothing. They have lost dear ones. Their homes are gone, their cars are gone. But even if they had their cars, where would they go? Their places of business are gone. There isn't a job to go to.

And as devastating as these storms were. God is still in control and there is a hope and a future if we believe in Him and trust Him. There is a reason why He allowed this to happen. We may never know why this side of Heaven. But we have to hold on to the hope that He is our Rock and our Salvation, a very present help in times of trouble.

Jennifer and I both plan on traveling to one of the hardest hit communities on Saturday in hopes of finding a way to help. Our church is collecting donations of various supplies that are to be handed out while we are there.

After reading this, I hope you come away with 2 things. 1) God was, is and always will be in control. He is there are beautiful blue skied day when you think that life couldn't get any better and He is there when the skies are dark and ominous and the winds are howling and you feel like you don't know weather your next breath will come or not. He is the great "I Am", the Alpha the Omega, the Beginning and the End. 2) Don't stay in your little bubble and feel sorry for the people of Alabama and sit and wring your hands and wish you could help. You don't have to live close to help. And let me remind you that this could just have easily happened in your back door and if it did wouldn't you hope that help would come? You can help. Here are just a few of the ways to give:

If you live near the area of Alabama that was hit by the tornadoes and would like to donate supplies,food or clothing, go to www.waff.com to find donation drop off locations.

If you don't live nearby here are 3 ways to give monetarily.

American Red Cross: www.redcross.com, click on the donation link and you will be directed to a page where you can give directly to a fund that is set up specifically to go to the Alabama tornado relief effort.

The Southern Baptist Convention is accepting donations on behalf of the North American Mission Board. www.NAMB.net or you can call 1-866-407-NAMB. You can also make a $10 donation by texting NAMBDR to the number 40579.

The Alabama State Board of Missions is heavily involved in the disaster relief. To make a donation go to www. alsbom.org.

"The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And those who know Your name will put their trust in You, For You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You." Ps. 9:9-10

"Bear one anothers burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." Gal. 6:2

I Am Thankful For...

2011-04-29T17:04:00.000-07:00

God

the Captain

my kids

ordering pizza on a Friday night

running

bible study group

my safety through the storm

pajamma pants

having "ah ha" moments that are long past due

Mamma Mia...Now That's A Pizza Pie!

2011-04-25T06:50:00.000-07:00

Good Morning! I hope everyone had a blessed Easter! Ours was wonderful...thanks for asking :) As you know, getting a decent family picture as you're runninng out the door to anywhere is usually a stressful event. Today's photo session was the total opposite...the first time worked! A family shot then one of the kids and we were out the door. Whahoo...no yelling!

I have so many recent pictures I want to share with you but it would simply be a hodge podge of pictures if I put them all on there. So as hard as it will be, I'm choosing a few of my favorites to share with you.

We recently went on a wonderful and much needed cruise for our family vacation. Six days at sea with beautiful weather just wasn't enough..yes, I'm being selfish. There is nothing like a cruise and I highly recommend them as they are the ultimate in relaxation.

Waiting for the boat to leave our port.

The Captain and I.

Pizza anyone??? A very cool hat store in Jacksonville, Florida.

The Bahamas was a super neat place and how cool is this? If I was a celebrity, maybe I could stay up there? At a hefty price of $25,000 a night with a 4 night minimum stay, I might have to have a #1 hit to pay that kind of moolah!

Well, it's time to start my day...finally. I'm being very lazy but have a major to-do list to ninja-kick! See you soon with an awesome vegetarian reuben recipe that I must say is pretty good. Vegetarian you say??? Oh yes, yes I did!

Have a great day!

Jennifer

Broken Egg Salad

2011-04-23T08:06:00.000-07:00

Step one: Boil 24 eggs to take to neighbors house to color.
Step two: Realize when they are done that you have 6 that have cracked under pressure (weak eggs) and you will have to do something with them because you were born thrifty and you will not waste 6 eggs!
Step three: Decide that you will make egg salad because you are hungry!

Broken Egg Salad

6 eggs (because that's how many cracked!)
3 TBSP. Light Mayo (the kind that is 45 calories per tbsp.)
1 TBSP. Yellow Mustard
2 TBSP. Dill Pickle Relish (or more if you want it really dilly!)

Chopped those eggs (and take out a couple of the yokes to save calories! Then, throw the eggs in a bowl with all the other ingredients and stir together.

Then, make yourself a little snack because it 3 pm and you haven't eaten since 11 and dinner is not until 6! Yum!

Next, head over to your neighbors house with your kiddos and all the other neighborhood kids (like 2000 kids!) to dye the eggs that made the cut (the strong ones!).

Say a prayer of thankfulness in your heart that He has blessed you with such great neighbors that have lots of kids and that you know they will celebrate the true meaning of Easter this weekend. (and for rice krispie treat nests topped Jelly Belly eggs)

"And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ who you have sent." John 17:3

Ch-Ch-Ch-Chia!

2011-04-22T06:56:00.000-07:00

I spent 4 hours Wednesday in this outfit:

You guessed it! I have been invited to the Royal Wedding! You had no idea I had such connections, did you? Ha! Wouldn't that be fun though?

Seriously though, I was asked to be a model in a fashion show for a local charity that runs 2 thrift stores in our community. My job was to search these thrift stores looking for an outfit or costume to wear during the fashion shoe. The rules? Anything goes! There were models dressed in beach wear, there was a bride, a lady dressed in a beautiful evening gown (it truly was gorgeous). One model showed up in a trench coat, fedora, and dark sunglasses like she was some sort of secret agent! It was a lot of fun. I actually had 3 outfits picked out. The first was a pale yellow dress that looked just like the dress that Sandy wore to the prom in "Grease". I was worried I couldn't pull off the whole Sandy look with my hair! Then there was the gorgeous 1970's style bridal gown. I wanted it so bad! However, it was way too long for me and I would have had to pay an arm and a leg to have it shortened. (and I'm a little partial to my arms and legs) Then I saw the hat! I knew I wanted it! So I decided to find a dress that would look as if I was going to the Kentucky Derby! I found the pink dress above, a 1970's handmade bridesmaid dress! It was floor length and since I knew it would be a faux pas to wear a long dress to the Derby I had a friend shorten it! The event was so much fun and the models were able to raise $15,000 for this charity!

For the past month, I've been eating this for breakfast:

It's Chia cereal and its so good for you. You can make your own at home with the following recipe:

Super Chia Cereal

3/4 c. Chia seeds
1/2 c. Hemp seeds
1 c. chopped dates
1/2 c. chopped walnuts (or nut of your choice almonds, pecans, cashews)
1/4 c. sunflower seeds (or pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)
1/2 c. dried blueberries (or dried fruit or mixture of your choice)
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. sea salt.

Mix all your ingredients together and store in a sealed container in the refrigerator to keep ingredients fresh.

You should be able to get 10-12 servings from this. There are three ways to eat this one is to mix with an equal portion of non-fat yogurt and allow to sit for 10 minutes (this allow the chia to do its thang (more on this in a minute)). The next is the mix in 3/4 c. milk or non-dairy milk of your choice, let sit for 10 minutes, then enjoy. But my favorite way to eat it is to heat 3/4 c. vanilla almond milk in the microwave for 2 minutes.

I use my 2 cup Pyrex measure because the milk bubbles up and this size keeps it from boiling over and making a mess (cause Lord knows I've got plenty of messes around here!). Mix your hot milk into your cereal, cover,

let sit for 10 minutes and enjoy!

So, why would you want to eat chia cereal? Well, lets start with the chia seeds.

Chia seeds are yes, you guessed it, the same seeds used to make the imfamous Chia pets. But what you probably didn't know is that Chia Seeds have amazing nutritional value. They have a great deal of Omega 3 fatty acid (5 grams in 2 TBSP), and as we all know Omega 3's are known to reduce inflammation and help the body fight off some of the effects of aging. Chia seeds also hold about 10 times their weight in water (which is why you let them sit for 10 minutes before eating) which is great for keeping you hydrated! They also have a good amount of antioxidants, fiber, protein and calcium. So, don't let the relation to the cheesy chia pets keep you away from this super food.

Next up we have hemp. Okay, I know your first thoughts when I listed hemp was a brightly colored leaf and some old Birkenstock wearing hippy. Right? These days though, hemp is appearing in many forms such as milk, seeds, and protein powder. It has amazing nutritional stats. Hemp contains all 20 amino acids, including the 9 essential amino acids our bodies cannot produce. It contains simple proteins that make our immunity stronger and help fend off toxins. Tests have shown that eating hemp in any form could help people suffering from immune disorders. It is the highest botanical source of essential fatty acid, with more essential fatty acids than flax or any other nut seed oil. It contains both Omega 3 and Omega 6 which is great for cardiovascular health. Its a great source of protein for vegetarians, and last but not least it is a rich source of phytonutrients, which can help protect immunity, bloodstream, tissues, cells, skin, organs and mitochondria. Umm, I think maybe we should all be eating hemp seeds!

Well if you aren't bored to tears, hang on theres more! Now, we come to dates. Recently I have fallen in love with dates! They are super sweet and very versatile in recipes. Dates have been consumed for centuries. They are digested very easily and can supply quick energy. Dates have also been known to cure intestinal issues (we shall not speak of those here). Eating dates on a regular basis has been shown to help in the growth of friendly bacteria. Dates are rich in fiber and contain calcium, sulfur, iron, potassium, phosphorous, manganese, copper, and magnesium.

Walnuts are up next! Walnuts are known to be one of the best plant sources of protein. They are rich in fiber, B vitamins, magnesium, antioxidants and Vitamin E. They also contain high amounts of Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids.

Sunflower seeds are one of those things most people don't think about. But sunflower seeds contain both B1 and B5 vitamins along with vitamin E and folate. Also present are copper, magnesium, selenium and phosphorous. If that weren't enough they also contain tryptophan which can help reduce stress, anxiety and depression. The happy seed?

Eating dried fruit is so good for you in general but I chose blueberries for their obvious nutritional superiority. Blueberries contain antioxidants and come out on top when it come to their capacity to destroy free radicals. Anthocyanins, the blue pigment found there, improve the integrity of support structures in veins and entire vascular system. Blueberries have also been shown to improve brain function and contain vitamin C, manganese, dietary fiber, and vitamin E.

Did you know that as well as giving flavor to this dish cinnamon has been shown to lower LDL cholesterol. On top of that studies have concluded that cinnamon may help people with type 2 diabetes regulate their blood sugar, and has an anti-clotting effect on blood. It could also aid in cognitive brain function and memory. Cinnamon contains manganese, fiber, iron and calcium!

Simple to prepare, and great to eat! Just don't sing that silly jingle (or paste on clay sculptures!)!

"Then God said, 'Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you." Genesis 1:29

Carie

The great "I AM"

2011-04-22T06:13:00.000-07:00

Every morning I struggle to find new and inventive ways to wake my children up so we can begin the arduous task of getting ready for school. Sometimes we have a great morning and everything just seems to flow...and other (most) mornings it is the total opposite...pure chaos (including a bit of fussing, irritation and often threats of tardiness and ending up in Saturday school..even though you have to have something like 17 tardies before that happens and we haven't had any..by the skin of our teeth). This morning I was exited to wake my kids to the tune of "Easter Weekend." Now don't get me wrong, even though they are almost 9 and 11, they still enjoy your typical egg hunt but this morning we talked about Good Friday (not Earth Day..even though it is). Now it may sound to you as though we have endless amount of time in the mornings when I just got done saying how rushed we were. We don't. But what is more important than taking a few extra minutes to talk about the Great I Am? On a day when Christ gave His life for us, how could that not be the most important thing we can talk about? So, while this weekend will be about Easter egg hunts and family gatherings (which I can't wait to share pictures of with you), this weekend is about Christ's death and resurrection and celebration of our living God!!!! I can't wait for our Easter Sunday services! It is always a blessing! Join us if you can. Carie will be there too! :)

http://www.hpbaptist.com/

So didn't I tell you that Carie was a much better cook than me? She has already posted a recipe for you. I'd like to say that my crazy week of my mother-in-law breaking her arm and taking her to surgery, a day of count them...four doctors appointments for myself and kids in one day, violin, dance, work, dinners...blah, blah, blah...contributed to my lack of recipe posting, but it wouldn't be fair because I know Carie's was just as crazy. I even missed my first night of the new Bible study I'm starting. I'm telling you, next week better be a little more calm.

I have a super cool post up my sleeve that I hopfully will be posting tonight (fingers crossed) so I will see you then. Have a blessed Good Friday!!! Remember what this weekend is all about!

Jennifer

1 Peter 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead... (NIV)

Its my Anniversary, so I made a date (cake)!

2011-04-20T06:20:00.000-07:00

Cheesy post titles not withstanding, it was my 13th wedding anniversary! We celebrated a couple of days before since it fell on a Monday and of course Golden Boy had to work, I had a busy with my job as a chauffeur, and we spent the evening doing this:

That's Little Brother up to bat at his T-Ball game!

So, in honor of my 13th wedding anniversary I made a date cake! Actually, in England they call it "Sticky Date Pudding". However, after it baked, it had the consistency of a cake, so we are going to roll with that title, ok?

Sticky Date Cake (Pudding) with Caramel Sauce

For the Cake:
1 c. chopped dates
1 tsp. baking soda
1 c. boiling water
2 eggs or flax egg substitute*
1 c. brown sugar
2 TBSP. Butter
1.5 c. self rising flour

For the sauce:
1 c. brown sugar
3/4 c. whipping cream or whipping cream substitute*
1 tsp. vanilla
2 TBsp. butter

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Place dates in a bowl, mix in baking soda and cover with boiling water.

Set date/water mixture aside and let them do their thang. The hot water will make the dates "melt".

Cream butter and sugar, then add the eggs (one at a time if using eggs) beat well, after each addition. I used the flax egg substitute because I was out of eggs. To make flax eggs mix 1 TBSP. ground flax with 3 TBSP warm water for each egg you need. I needed 2 so I used 1 TBSP. flax and 6 TBSP. water. Allow this mixture to sit for just a minute and it will get sort of gooey, with the consistency of an egg and look like this:

Because I used the flax eggs I just added the whole batch to the sugar/ butter mixture all at once.

Next, fold in flour and date mixture and pour into a greased round or square cake pan.

Now, bake the cake (pudding) at 375 degrees 30- 40 minutes, testing with a toothpick to make sure the middle is done.

Mine came out looking like this:

For the caramel sauce, I didn't have whipping cream so I googled a substitute. Don't you love technology? There really isn't anything you can't find out just by simply searching the Internet. I just googled "whipping cream substitute" and was given 3 or 4 options. I chose the low fat option. Whisk together 1 cup low fat milk (I had 1% on hand) with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Add 1 tablespoon of flour and whisk. Let this sit for just a minute. In a saucepan combine sugar, butter vanilla and 3/4 c of the whipping cream substitute. Bring to a boil, stirring, and simmer for 5 minutes.

Serve cake on a warm plate topped with warm sauce.

Oh yall, this was good! I wish I would have had some ice cream on top!

Happy Anniversary Golden Boy! To bad you don't really like dessert because this is good! (scratch that, I'm not sorry, there's more for me!) I am honored to be your wife and can't wait to see what the next 13 years will bring us!

"...(love) always protects, always trust, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails..." 1 Corinthians 13:8

And I Get By With A Little Help From My Friend...

2011-04-19T17:09:00.000-07:00

As I write my premeire blog post, I'm truly excited to share my life... the good, the bad and the ugly. Hopefully more good than bad, but as we all know life is full of all three. Not to bore you, but to simply give you a brief background so you may better understand my journey. I'm a mother of two beautiful daughters ages 8 and 10. I've been married to the "Captain" for almost 15 wonderful years and feel blessed to be his wife. I love my family, my God, church, friends, exercise and food and I hope to share all of that with you.

So along with my best friend Carie, we with share with you our daily shenanigans, our recipe triumphs and failures (Carie is a WAY better and more creative cook than I am), and so much more and we welcome your feedback. So...let us know what you would like to see more of and we'll be sure to send it your way!!!

A Little Help With the Writing

2011-04-18T08:19:00.000-07:00

So... I am not sure if anyone is reading this blog anymore, haha! But I am going to try blogging again...(I know, I know!) But, this time I will have some help. As you can see the blog description has changed. My best friend Jennifer is going to help author this blog. I hope that this will make the blog a little more diverse and will give you a little more reading material!

Jennifer is a wife, mother and runner. Like me, she does her best to follow Christ in all she does while balancing a part-time job, home, family and exercising. I hope you enjoy her posts and that you will learn as much from her as I do everyday!

Coming soon to a blog near you...

2010-06-17T05:42:00.001-07:00

I had hoped to write my all important (ha, ha) post about my new thinking on food and the like last night, but hubby challenged me to 50 sit-ups. Are you laughing? I was. Actually it all started last Sunday when he commented that he was very proud that I had stuck with the whole fitness thing for 2 1/2 years (has it been that long?). Of course, being the female that I am, I proceeded to accept his compliment but had restrictions. Oh, yes, I did. I had to point out my problem area (my stomach) and complain that I hate, hate, hate ab work but wish I could have a flatter stomach (the remains of having 3 kids in 4 years). He asked if I wanted a washboard, six pack stomach. No, I don't. I just want it flatter, if that is even possible. So he proceeds to tell me that he thinks that if he just did 50 sit-ups a day that he would have a six pack in no time. Are you laughing? I was. I told him that I thought it takes more than that. Just sit-ups? No way! You need to do crunches and different moves that work the upper and lower abs and side bends that work out your obliques. He disagrees. So to prove me wrong he has been doing 50 sit-ups every day since. Last night he said "Are you ready for your workout?" I said no, since I ran 8 miles that morning. But I couldn't back away from that challenge. So, we did 50 sit-ups. It wasn't hard. In fact, I did 60. Which made him want to do 70. I have to tell you, its going to take a lot more to get that washboard stomach.

Come Back Post #2

2010-06-15T07:57:00.000-07:00

Hello! Happy Tuesday! Are you shocked? Well, I'm not making promises that I will post more regularly but I am starting to get back into the blog thing. Ya know?

So.. today started off at the ungodly hour of 4:30! A.M. Just in case you were wondering. And, yes, I do know that for many of you 4:30 comes once a day and that is at the p.m. hour. I however, bad as I hate it, have to get up and get my workout in at this time. Its super hard to predict your day when you have 3 kids and putting it off in hopes of getting it in later in the day is a no go. Trust me. I've tried it and it doesn't work. I still live under the delusion that one day I will make it happen. What can I say I am an optimist :)

But I digress, spin kicked my booty this morning! Hot and sweaty and everything I love spin class to be. Runs, jumps, climbs (seated and standing)and lots of resistance! Spin = love!

After spin I rolled on back home and considered for a short time making a pit stop at Subway to grab breakfast. Have you seen the commercials? They make me hungry every single time! Whole Wheat English muffins, egg whites, veggies? Yum, yum, and did I mention yum? However, I was super sweaty and a little stinky so I decided that I would make my own b'fast! Good choice cause it was delish!

This would be homemade almond pineapple granola (I'm tinkering with the recipe, but when I have it just right, I will share it with you!), almond milk, half a sliced banana and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Sooooo good! Of course, if you know me, a few cups of coffee were involved in the breakfast take down as well.

I also may have had a lovely slice of this:

We have this really great farm stand less than a mile from our house that always has delicious watermelons. I also sliced up a cantaloupe but the kiddos scarfed every single piece before I could get a pic. I heart summer produce!

I mentioned in my last post that my attitude toward food has changed and the way I eat has changed as well. I'm not quite ready for that post as of yet, but I assure you that I am going to let you in on what I have been eating soon. I am, however, going to give you a few pics of yesterdays eats to give you just a taste (pun intended) of whats been going down (the hatch!).

Yesterdays b'fast! Eggs with blistered grape tomatoes, sauteed spinach and Parmesan cheese. mmmmm.....

"The Green Monster" Into the blender goes one frozen banana, 1 cup of almond milk, 1 scoop of chocolate whey protein, 1 TBLS Peanut Butter and a big ole handful of spinach. Sooooo yummy! I promise, promise, promise you don't taste the spinach!

That's all I've got for now! I'm about to go all MMA on some laundry, do some weights, and figure out what the kiddos and I will do for the rest of today! I might try my hand at some Gazpacho as well and maybe try to tune up that granola recipe! Have a wonderful Tuesday!

I don't know if you could call it a come back....

2010-06-12T08:55:00.000-07:00

Wow! I haven't posted on this blog is 5.5 months! Gone are the days that I felt I had to post something every single day...gone are the days of 20 something comments on my posts. Oh well.

A lot has happened since I last posted on this blog. I trained for and ran my second half marathon, (Where I beat my previous time by 4 minutes!)

I ran a relay with my two running partners and we won first place in the women's open division, beat my 5k PR (25.21!), I started cross training consistently, I got new, really good running shoes, I started eating a lot better, I went on lots of field trips, got highlights in my hair for the first time, went to the beach twice, celebrated 12 years of marriage (at the beach) and loved on my family!

A lot can change in a couple of months as well and I would like to share some of those changes with you guys. Most of it is the way I eat and the way I now look at food. That, however, will have to be another post...since I'm off to get my daily dose of Vitamin D at the pool with my bestie and our kiddos! Here's hoping your week end if fab!

Hiatus

2010-01-30T19:29:00.000-08:00

What? I'm allowed, right? Well....its not really a hiatus if you are blogging somewhere else. Visit me over at www.mommygetfit.blogspot.com. Yep! Psst...its not just me either! Go ahead, go on.

Hello! Hello!

2009-12-04T10:11:00.000-08:00

So, in the past, I have complained about being busy. But, you know what? I secretly like it. As long as I am doing things for my children and helping in the community and keeping the balance, I am good. What have you been up to?

My girls are both taking baton and dance right now and are loving it. Big sister had her second grade Christmas program last night that was simply ADORABLE! Tonight both girls will twirl in our town Christmas parade and on Sunday Little Sister will dance at our local Christmas marketplace! So cute! I can't wait to see my girls perform! They are definately girly girls and I love it!

It is so cold! I haven't been running as much because of it! Ugh! Lets just say that at 4:30 am the temp is a little too on the cool side for me to get motivated enough to get out from under my down comforter and get out there! I have promised myself that I will get back on it next week.

I want everyone who reads this blog to know something. I don't know if I say this enough or not...but it has been on my mind for a while to tell you all this. Being thin is not everything nor is it my ulimate goal (and it shouldn't be yours). My goal is to be as healthy as I can be. Eating right and exercising are the best ways to accomplish that. I want to be healthy for several reasons but the biggest reason is to be a good example for my children and so that I can be here for them for a very long time! My struggle with weight and health began with parents who were not a good example for my brothers and I. My parents both lead sedentary lives and are not, nor have they ever been, healthy eaters. They are both over weight and because of this have had health issues. Because of my dads struggle with weight he had a quadruple bypass one year ago. I want more for my family and more for my life. I don't want my chest cut open at age 55! I don't want my kids to wonder why mom never plays outside with them! Those of us who are mothers carry around a few extra pounds, it happens. And yes, as we age we will begin to see changes in our bodies. But ladies, I am just 33,and even though I have given birth to 3 children, I am not yet ready to give up the battle!

I am waiting for better pictures but.....

2009-11-01T08:21:00.000-08:00

Here I am with my friend Jennifer post race! Half marathon time 2:07:49! And now I have the medal to prove it!!

I did it!!

2009-10-31T14:12:00.000-07:00

I finished my first Half Marathon this morning in 2 hours 7 minutes and 49 seconds! I am so proud of myself! My goal was to finish under 2:10!! It was an amazing day! Hopefully I will have pictures soon!

This will be me in 10 days.....

2009-10-21T09:25:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of me just about to cross the finish line of a 5k last April. I am so excited about the half marathon!

It's almost here!!!!

2009-10-17T17:49:00.000-07:00

This morning I ran 10.5 miles....in 38 degree weather! It felt great! Two weeks from today I will run my very first half marathon! I am more than excited!!

Life, life, life....

2009-08-13T11:32:00.001-07:00

School is back in session and I am meeting it with a mixture of emotions. On one hand I am glad because this house becomes a disaster during the summer and all schedules get thrown out the window! On the other hand it means that my precious babies are getting older and older and closer to not needing me anymore!

I am still running, running, running! Up to something like 405 miles (I think)! I have a new Garmin Forerunner that keeps track of my mileage and I love it! Very expensive but highly worth it if you are committed to a running career! I have officially begun the 1/2 marathon training plan and am looking forward to October! I love setting goals and reaching them!

Reading has been great! I need to update my sidebar! I finally read "Gone With The Wind"! I'm not sure what took me so long but it was fabulous to say the least. Scarlett... what a character. Extremely immature! Lesson learned? You don't know what you've got till its gone! She did everything possible to push Rhett away and in the end all she wanted was....Rhett! Goodness gracious! I wanted to strangle that girl! However, you gotta love her and her "I'll think about that tomorrow" attitude! I am reading the sequel that of course was not written by Margaret Mitchell but by Alexandra Ripley. Good book but I don't like it as much as the original, naturally.

I am also reading another book "Becoming the Woman God Wants Me to Be, a 90 day guide to living the Proverbs 31 life" by Donna Partow. The introduction alone got me hooked! I am enjoying this book so much! I want to be the best wife, mother, and friend I can be while following Christ with everything I have. I love the verse in Joshua that states "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." I like to change it in my head sometimes and say "As for ME I will serve the Lord". I have a friend who is married to an unbeliever and there are times that it takes toll on her relationship with the Lord and her marriage overall. We have had many conversations about it and the underlying theme is always "you can not change someone else, but you can change yourself" You can choose to be the best wife even when your husband is not being the best husband, because God told you to. You can choose to be the best mom even when your kids are being hard to deal with, because God told you to. You can choose to follow God and do what you know is right according to His word because you know you have to! Its hard, oh it is so hard, (and I watch her struggle and I see myself struggle) but the payoff is knowing that I am serving the Lord and my reward comes from Him!

Okay, done with my sermon!

I hope you all had a wonderful summer! Keep me posted on your progress! I'd love to hear from you!

Well, I did it....

2009-06-04T10:56:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it. $50. Signed, sealed, and almost delivered. I registered for my first half marathon. Yikes! The date is October 31. Although I have plenty of time to train for it, I get butterflies in my stomach every time I think about it. So, since I'm already invested money-wise I think I have to go through with it. It will be something I can cross off my bucket list.

By the way, I got my best 5k time ever last Saturday in my hometown, no less. 26:52! Not bad for a short girl!

Just dropping in to say hi!

2009-05-13T09:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, I would first like to apologize to all of you for leaving you hanging the past couple of months. I reflected on my life and everything I was involved in and realized that my priorities were way out of whack. I decided to take an unannounced break from blogging and reading blogs. I wanted to devote any extra time that I have to my family. I want to start blogging again and I will do so when I feel like I have got everything in its proper place and order. On top of all of that, its the end of the school year and you ladies who have kids know what that means! Field trips, field days, end of the year parties. May is the new December for sure.

As far as the 500/50 challenge goes, I'm up to something like 316 miles. Crazy I know. Between the spin bike at the gym and actual running miles, I'm getting a lot done. I competed in my first 5k of the season 3 weeks ago and took 2 minutes and 10 seconds off my time from that same race last year! 28:33 was my time. I was very happy to say the least. I did another 5k last Saturday and came in at 28:30 in the pouring down rain! I have a 10k on Memorial day and another 5k the last Saturday of the month! I am so loving running right now!

For some reason Blogger will not let me upload pics! It hasn't for a while. However, if you are on Facebook you can befriend me. Drop me an email at cariepage@yahoo.com and I will give you my name on there. You can see pics from the Heart Ball, current pics of my kids, race pics, and the Junior League end of the year party!

I hope to get back to this blogging thing soon! Hang in there with me okay!

The update...

2009-02-25T05:25:00.000-08:00

Yall, I'm serious when I say that I will not volunteer for anything new next year. And I use the word "volunteer" loosely. It's more like 'get talked into doing one more thing'. This week I am wrapping up 2 major events, 3 if you count EC's research project on Sally Ride (seriously? Research in second grade. They have to know that the parents are doing all the work). The Heart Ball is this weekend and I feel like I am getting ready for the prom. Dress, tux, shoes, jewelry, nails...oh and I have to be there at 8 a.m. Saturday morning to decorate. Upward cheer leading is wrapping up this weekend. I will not coach next year. Write it down. I'm having fun but its time consuming and the parents aren't taking it seriously.

So 500/50. Well, miles are good. Exercise has been my stress relief so I'm up to 85.4 miles and still at 8 books. I knew I couldn't get into a new one right now. I plan on starting one on Sunday afternoon. After these last couple of weeks it will be sheer bliss.

So what's your story? How do you handle the craziness of life. I know that I am longing right now for my life to be simple. I want to teach my Wednesday night class at church and work with Junior League. That's my goal for next year. I hope I am able to make it happen!

Today...

2009-02-04T08:42:00.000-08:00

Its cold here. I'm sick of it. I want to go to spin class but I hate the idea of getting the little ones out. But I want to go to spin class.

I am addicted to Facebook and that's not a good thing since I don't need one more thing to occupy my time.

I haven't been reading much this week and that stinks. (maybe because I've been on Facebook!)

I got really petty this week. I know, bad. But I feel a little justified by it. It seems when you get on Facebook everyone finds you. People you haven't seen in like 15 years find you. A high school friend found me. I went to her page and looked through her photos. There were several from high school, one of which had my face blacked-out and listed my name as "the shadow". Hmphf. Oh well, we haven't stayed in contact and that's fine. But as I was looking through the rest of her photos I noticed pictures of her and other high school friends together recently. It seems they've all gained 40-50 pounds each. ( Oh and here comes the pettiness..I warned you so don't judge me!) I thought to myself "It seems shadows stay small..."

Sore doesn't even begin to explain it.....

2009-01-24T13:45:00.000-08:00

What do you get when you take an over-stressed mom who hasn't been to the gym in 3 days and mix it with an entire day without one single meeting or doctor's appt.? You get a woman who may or may not have got completely out of her mind.

The setting: 10:50 a.m. the local YMCA

Mom walks in thinking "Hooray I get to exercise today, and maybe burn off some of the weeks stress!" Then she sees the class schedule. "Oh!" she says "Core class starts in 15 minutes followed by spin class! It must be my lucky day!"

She goes to the fitness room since she has 20 minutes to kill before core class begins. The treadmill calls her name seeing as how she just loaded some fresh tunes onto her hot pink ipod, she decides this will be the best place to start her stress detox. "I'll just walk briskly for a few minutes." Soon the music is going and she just can't stop herself. Before she knows it, she's running. One mile down and she calls it quits not wanting to get herself too tired before the classes start.

Core class starts and she's lying on the mat doing simple crunches. "Not too hard." she thinks to herself. But as the minutes tick by she realizes that the simple crunches were just a warm-up for the torture the instructor has in store for the class.

Thirty minutes later she hates the instructors guts but is determined to stick around for spin class. She grabs her water bottle and gets seated on her bike to warm up. To her utter agony she realizes that the same bulldog of an instructor that taught the core class is also teaching the spin class. The instructor is muscular and well, a little masculine.

The class starts and fear rises in the the woman's chest as she realizes that the pumping rhythm of the music is hard and fast. And then with screams that would make Jillian from "The Biggest Loser" blush the instructor starts barking out commands. "Push, push, go, go, go!" "Turn up the tension!" "Don't let me see you turn the knob left! I said push!" The woman keeps up, determined to not take the walk of shame by stopping before the class ends. Forty five minutes later, the counter on the bike says 15.5 miles. The woman is exhausted , but proud that she didn't quit.

The next morning comes and well, you've read the title.

Monday!

2009-01-19T07:36:00.000-08:00

Good Morning! You guys were quite chatty over the weekend! I have to say that I am enjoying all of this fellowship with fellow runners (walkers/swimmers/cyclists) and bookworms. If you have a book you are just in love with let us know about it. I could always use a good suggestion! So in keeping with that spirit ( and because I want today to include something for everyone) I want to give you a list of some of my favorite books.

"I know This Much Is True" by Wally Lamb. My favorite book. 901 pages. I read it in 2 days. Of course it was before I had children, but still. I could not put it down. I cried, I laughed. Sheer brilliance. I also enjoyed "She's Come Undone" by Mr. Lamb as well. He has just come out with a new novel called "The Hour I First Believed" that I can't wait to read. I hope it is as good as his previous works.

"A Tree Grows In Brooklyn" by Betty Smith. Wonderful. This book was recommended to me by Junebug who is a true bookworm. She often reads more than one book at a time, something I just can't get my brain around! Anyhow, this book is about the life of a poor girl during turn-of-the-century Brooklyn. Truly inspiring and heart-breaking all at the same time.

"The Tale of Despereaux" by Kate DiCamillo. I bought this book for EC and I to read together and ended up finishing it myself in one night. Enchanting, brilliant, fantastic! Don't go see the movie though, it was horrid. EC was on the edge of her seat while I read this to her. Its about a mouse, a princess, a rat, a spoon of thread and soup. Yes, soup. Warning though, it tends to have a dark side to it and it talks about death. I would not read this to a child under the age of 7 and especially to a child who might have trouble sleeping.

"The Memory Keepers Daughter" by Kim Edwards. Rarely have I read a book where I loved each of the characters and could see each of their points of view. I understood the decisions they made even if I didn't agree with them. This book deals with the decisions you make and how the they can affect the rest of your life. The movie was terrible though.

"Nights in Rodathe" by Nicholas Sparks. After all these years and a ton of books, I am still in awe of how a man can write such a fabulous love story. This man also wrote "The Notebook" and even if you haven't read that book (I haven't either) and just seen the movie, it is hard to believe that that story was written by a man. I cried when I read Nights in Rodanthe. It is wonderful. The movie was good too and it kept very closely with the book.

Okay, so what are your favorite books and why? If you decide to post them on your blog, leave a comment and let us all know so we can read it.

And yes, I do have a menu plan but I will post that later! Kisses!

Monday, Monday

2009-01-12T13:04:00.000-08:00

Whew! Ladies I had a busy busy weekend! I've got a lot to talk about, so lets get this party started, shall we?

Saturday Hubs and I attended his nephew's wedding. They got married in one of the prettiest churches in this area. Its right next to the local university and is just so gorgeous. The ceremony was lovely, the bride radiant, and the groom, was the groom, just kidding, he looked more handsome than I could have imagined. It was really surreal seeing him all dressed up in a tux and taking his vows. He was a freshman in high school when Hubs and I started dating. The reception was at a local yacht and country club and was so much fun! We got to spend time with family that we had not seen in years. The food was so good, I really wish I could have asked for seconds, but thought that might be tacky, ya know? The band played all Mo-town music and was so good. We all dance until our feet hurt! The brides family was so much fun and I was so glad we got to meet them. Oh and guess what the father-daughter dance was to? My Girl. How perfect. I had tears in my eyes, truly, I did.

Sunday was church of course and afterward we took the kids to eat at a new restaurant. We've been trying to not eat out on Sundays and instead cook enough for dinner on Saturday night to have for leftovers on Sunday. However, my menu plan got messed up by the wedding (which I had totally forgotten about when I made the menu plan).

After lunch I took the girls to the Y so they could play while I worked out. (Did I mention that we joined the YMCA? We did). Anyhow, I decided to take the spin class for the first time. OH MY STARS! I love it. It was tough though,but that's what I need. I am very proud that my legs are just a little sore today, but my heinie is killing me! I can barely sit girls! But I can't wait to go back!

After spin class I got the girls from childcare and let them play in the kidzone for a little while. I saw a little picnic style table off to the side where a mom and her little girl were sitting. I asked her if anyone was sitting there and she said no, so I took a seat. I told her how cute her little girl was and then we just started talking, and talking, and talking. You know how a conversation begins and it just flows so easily and goes from one subject to the next seamlessly? Well, that's how this was. She has 3 kids, 2 girls and one boy (just like me!) but her boy is in the middle (and mine is the caboose, but you knew that). We talked about books, raising kids and food (all subjects near and dear to my heart) without my remembering how we even got on those subjects. Then, the subject of blogs came up. I was hesitant. Not many people that I know in real life know that I have a blog. Theres AR, JenD, Christel, JKW, Junebug, JulieW,JulieMc, my friends Mia and Laurie and that's all. I just don't tell everyone. I don't know why, but I think that some people would think I am crazy or stuck on myself or both. I gave her the blog address of Grocery Cart Challenge because we got to talking about food budgets. She said that she had totally gotten addicted to blogs and we talked about some blogs that we liked. Then she said "Do you have a blog?" I know my face got red. I thought about lying for just a second because I didn't want this potential new friend to think I was some looney toon. But honesty is the best policy, so I said "yes, do you?" And guess what? SHE HAS A BLOG! I was so relieved. She writes about food, her kids and books (but not in that order). You can go visit her here. Go visit and give her some comment love and tell her that you found her through me. But come back here, okay, cause I might get jealous! I kid, I kid. Oh, and guess what? She wants to do the 500/50 challenge. Its kismet I tell you! (although I don't believe in that!)

Okay, so its Monday, and you know what that means! Menu Plan! I have 2 roll-over items. One because my sister-in-law is in town and made a huge roast at my father-in-laws house and invited us to eat and I provide the yummy rolls and impressed everyone! The second meal rolled over because of the wedding. So here you have it! Whats on your menu? And more importantly, do you tell complete strangers that you have a blog?

Monday - Fried Rice with egg rolls
Tuesday - Leftovers
Wednesday - Meatloaf with mashed potatoes and carrots
Thursday - Leftovers
Friday - My sister -in-laws yummy vegetable soup
Saturday - Poppy seed chicken
Sunday - Leftovers

Come on, you know you want to join....

2009-01-08T05:45:00.000-08:00

So far we have 8 confirmed participants in the 500 miles/50 books challenge. I am very excited about this. I emailed someone about doing our little blinky but haven't heard back yet. If you haven't officially joined yet, just comment to this post and let me know.

So far the participants are...

JenD - Cheaper than Therapy
AR - Our little Bunch
JKW - Daily Laughs and Struggles
A.D. - The Cats Pajamas
E.B. - Healthy Living 2009
Shanna - Its Shanna...Like Banana
JulieMc - JMc x 3
And of course ME!

If you haven't been here in a couple of days let me lay the challenge out for you. Its 500 miles and 50 books this year. You can walk or run or do a combination of both! The point is to get out and get moving a little everyday. If you strive to work on the challenge everyday, that would be 1.39 miles per day, but lets face it, most of us are going to do more than that anyway. If you go over the goal, then it is just icing on the cake. 50 books? You can do this.

A lot of people ask me when I read. I have 3 kids and am involved in a variety of activities, but I make it a priority to read. I do a lot of reading after my kids go to bed at night, but I also want them to see me reading books so that they will grow up to have a love of books as well. If they are watching T.V., I will grab my book and sit in the room with them and read. I try to never be without the book I am reading. If I leave the house the book goes with me. The reason being that we live in a town that has a lot of trains. I get stuck by the train at least once a day. These aren't short trains either. So, if I get stuck at a train or a red light , I pick up the book and read. In a long line at the grocery store? Pick up your book and read (but only if it fits in your purse, right now I'm reading Eclipse, and it just doesn't fit). I had to go to the doctor Tuesday (I am currently struggling with a UTI, which is why the running part of my challenge is on hold) and waited 45 minutes in the waiting room, I had my book to keep me company. You'd be surprised at how much reading you can get done in a short amount of time. Pick easy reads if you think you just can't get through a 700 page book. Here are a few suggestions:

Marley and Me
The Shopaholic book series (these are hilarious too)
Meg Cabot books
The Joy Luck Club
What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day
Jen Lancaster Books

If you find a fairly short book, make a goal to read at least a chapter a day.

Check back for the blinky! Also, if any of you have suggestions for easy reading, put them in the comment section! Happy Day!

Inspiration

2009-01-07T05:49:00.000-08:00

It seems that a few of you are interested in my little (big) challenge. If you've been around here long enough you know that I like to give credit where credit is due. A few weeks ago I was watching "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno". The guest that night was Will Smith. Now, normally I'm not a huge Will Smith fan, but the show was on and I wasn't quite ready to go to sleep just yet so I watched. Jay mentioned something that Will had told him before about reading and running. I thought that meant reading while you are running and thought that sounded a little crazy. However Will said "Yep, I think that if you run a little and read a little everyday that you will be smart and fit." Hmmm. Great idea.

I love to run, but I think in the past I got caught up in "Oh, I have to run 6 miles every single time I run or its not worth it." But, now I'm relaxing on that and have changed my attitude to "as long as I run a little everyday, I'm doing great".

I love to read, but again, in the past, I've gotten caught up in how fast I can get through a book. But a book a week? I can totally do that.

So, I've done the math for you (cause I'm sweet like that). 500 miles a year would be 41.67 miles a month and on average if there are 30 days in a month its 1.39 miles a day (more if it Feb. and less if there are 31 days). That is a totally doable number. Don't look at the 500. Look at the 1.39 miles per day.

If you want to join my challenge, let me know by commenting on this post. I'm going to try to find someone to make us a little blinkie to put on our blogs! If you know someone who can make us a blinkie let me know.

Who's up for getting fit and smart?

Menu Plan Monday

2009-01-05T08:45:00.000-08:00

Whew! Its finally time to get back into the swing of things! I must say though, that I am not looking forward to the kids going back to school tomorrow! We've had a lot of fun and I have to admit that I have enjoyed sleeping late. But its back to the daily grind starting in the morning. Now that the holidays are over I am also looking forward to getting back to menu planning and eating better! I had panic attacks over the amount of sugar my kids have been ingesting! If you are a regular visitor to Grocery Cart Challenge you will see that I am copy-catting a lot this week. Gayle has 4 kids so I figure that its a good bet that my kids will like some of their favorites too.

Monday - Today I am making split pea soup with buttery bread machine rolls. I have never had split pea soup before so this might be a total flop, but judging by the reviews on this recipe I think it might be good. I'm excited to try it. As far as the rolls go...I'm not a bread maker. I've tried and tried to make bread. I dream of one day spending time in my kitchen kneading dough, popping it in the oven and coming out with a gorgeous loaf of bread. So far all of my bread has come out horrible. However, I did purchase a bread machine at a yard sale this past summer. The ingredients are in the machine as we speak. I am very nervous. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Tuesday - Roast Sticky Chicken with Lentil and Brown rice Casserole. We love Roast Chicken around here. This one sounded pretty easy and good. The Lentil and Brown Rice Casserole is also one I'm borrowing from Gayle. I have tried several lentil recipes lately, all with great results. Have you added lentils to your diet yet? You really should.

Wednesday - Baked Potatoes topped with chili with salad. My kids LOVE baked potatoes. Hubs and I will top ours with canned chili and the kids will have theirs with butter, sour cream and shredded cheese.

Thursday - Leftover night!

Friday - If all goes well, I will have enough chicken left from Tuesday to make Fried Rice with egg rolls. My kids love fried rice from the local Chinese restaurant so I hope this one will be just as good.

Saturday - Meatloaf with mashed potatoes and carrots. I use Christels recipe. There's a joke in there somewhere that I will let the rest of you in on some day (right Christel ;). But lets just say that Hubs LOVES meatloaf and I think he may have fallen in love with Christel about five years ago when they had us over to eat one night. So that he would love me more, I got her recipe...and have been making it that way since. (Christel, I know it was five years ago, because A was tiny and in her carrier and it was a couple of weeks into January and you still had your Christmas tree up! Oh and I won't be making a Chocolate Pie, Ha!)

Sunday - Leftovers

By the way I just finished New Moon. I do have to say that I didn't like it as much as I liked Twilight, but it was still good. Stop reading right now if you haven't read it yet, because I am about to spoil things. You can start reading again in the next paragraph..... Am I the only one who really sort of wanted Bella to kiss Jacob in the kitchen? Of course I knew she would be reunited with Edward someday and kissing Jacob would have made things complicated but I can't help but really like Jacob. Poor guy. Don't tell me any details from Eclipse or Breaking Dawn. I'm sure all of that will be cleared up. Does Jacob turn bad? Does Bella get changed? Will Jacob find someone to love him like he loves Bella? So many questions. I will be at the store today purchasing Eclipse. Oh and Hubs was going to take me see Twilight Saturday night and when we got there it was sold out...I couldn't believe it! It's been out for over a month! So instead we went to see.....

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. SO GOOD! I cried. It reminded me a lot of Forrest Gump though, which is not bad because I liked that movie too. I think this is the first time that I have truly appreciated how beautiful Cate Blanchett is. Her skin is simply gorgeous. I would definitely rank the movie as a must see!

Alrighty! That's all I have for now. I'll let you guys know how the pea soup and the rolls turn out! Whats on your menu this week?

Happy New Year!!

2009-01-02T08:21:00.000-08:00

Hello! I know that if you are here you are probably shocked to see a new post. It seems that I took a bit of a blog break, but I promise it was totally unintentional! December means busy, busy, busy around here, but as the month wore down and Christmas came and went, we enjoyed some much needed down time. So, I've been up to absolutely nothing and loving it!

Christmas was fun and Santa was good (a little too good) to the kids this year. Hubs and I managed to buy all of Christmas within our budget, and with that we were very, very pleased. We also managed to do it without using a single credit card! Woo! Hoo! We entertained several times in our home and it was so nice to be able to cook for friends and family. We've had a bumper crop of pecans from our backyard tree this year, so I got to make 4 very tasty pecan pies! By the way, do you want some pecans? I will ship them to you. You pay shipping. Seriously. Someone say yes. We are drowning in pecans!

New Years Eve was low key but fun! We were invited to our neighbors house were they made fajitas! The kids played and the adults socialized while we waited for 2009! Of course yesterday we had our traditional New Years Day food. I cooked black-eyed peas (for luck), Greens (for money), and Ham (for health). The kids love this meal and Little Sister ate her weight in Greens! I suppose she will be the richest 5 year old on the block!

We've joined a new gym. I'm excited about this because this new gym has more to offer for our entire family, including childcare, which I have never had before! I took the kids there on New Years Eve and yesterday too. They had fun in childcare and I didn't have to get up at the crack of dawn to work out! Did I mention I love the child care? I also got to run a lot this week! It feels so good to get to run after eating so much during the holidays!

Since we've had some down time this week, I've finished 2 books. The first was Marley and Me. I really liked it and found myself laughing out loud at several parts. I hope to see the movie sometime next week. The second is.....Twilight! Oh my stars! How have I gone this long without reading this book? Everyone around me has read the book. My neighbor, the other moms at school, friends at church, the teenagers at church... everyone but me. Somehow I had convinced myself that I wouldn't like it. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. I had the whole book (all 498 pages) read in 2 days. I could not put it down! I can't wait to see the movie and read book 2.

So, that's life around her in a nut shell! I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New year! By the way, did you make any resolutions? I have, but that's another post for another day!

You just won't believe it!

2008-12-12T08:10:00.000-08:00

Guess what happened here last night? We got snow!! Not just a little dusting either! We got around 2 inches! Thats a lot for around here! It was so beautiful! We let the kids go out and play in it for a little while, but being that we live in the Deep South, we don't own snow gear, so they had to come in after a few minutes and dry out. They loved it though.

I feel bad for my dad! He is stuck in a hospital bed during all this beautiful weather and he loves snow! He's like a little kid when we get snow (which is like every five years!) He's doing well though!

My dad

2008-12-11T13:30:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I just wanted to pop on here really fast to let you know that my dad came through the surgery great! He ended having a quad instead of a triple, but we are thankful that they discovered it! He has a long road of recovery ahead of him, but he is doing well. They got him up walking today and he did one entire lap around the heart floor! The doctors are very optimistic that he will make a speedy recovery! When I have more time I will tell you the entire story of how we came to find out that he even had a heart problem, it was a shock to us!

Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers!

Prayer Please

2008-12-08T13:39:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone! I know I haven't been around here much lately but trust me when I say that things have gotten so busy that they are almost overwhelming around here.

Please keep my dad in your prayers. He will be having triple-bypass surgery tomorrow morning at 6 a.m.! I will get up at 2 am to be at the hospital with the rest of my family. Please pray for safe travels for me.

Thanks.

When it rains, it pours (literally)

2008-11-07T08:38:00.000-08:00

I have two sick babies, again. All this sickness started at our house about a month and a half ago with Big Sister getting that terrible stomach virus and ending up in the ER due to dehydration. Then all 3 had strep throat. This past Tuesday little brother woke up at 3:15 a.m. with a 104 temp. We carted him to the Doc that morning to find out he has double ear infections (only the third ear infection he has ever had). Yesterday EC came home from school in tears. She said that her throat was hurting really bad and that it hurt to swallow. I looked in her throat and saw what I thought was swollen tonsils. So, this morning it was off to the Doc for the second time this week. It turns out however, that poor EC has strep throat once again! The Doc thinks that she didn't get completely over it the first time and it has returned! Poor thing! Before this recent bout with sickness, my kids has not really been sick in a LONG time! In fact, the pediatrician made the comment today that she checked our charts and said that it had been 13 months since we had brought a sick kid in (she wasn't including the infamous popcorn kernel up the nose incident). Like I said, when it rains, it pours.

Today is the Junior League Apple Annie Day! "What's that?" you say? Well, our Junior League sells apples at several local businesses to raise money for the organizations we support. You can spot an Apple Annie by the cute candy apple red tights she wears. Its a lot of fun and the community really supports it and looks forward to it. I had my beautiful red tights on when we went to the Doc this morning and a lady stopped me in the hall and said "Is today Apple Annie Day?, I have to go buy my apples!" In the 3 years I've been in league, we've had absolutely gorgeous weather for selling our apples. I've heard the horror stories of blisteringly cold wind and torrential rain. But, I thought, nah, that won't happen while I'm in league. Yeah right! Today it is very rainy and chilly here. I have to stand out in front of the post office for 4 hours and sell apples. IN THE RAIN! Good thing it is such a successful, fun fundraiser (it usually raises $20,000 or more), and its for a good cause. I just hope this sore throat I've been sporting all week doesn't get worse! Like I said, when it rains, it pours, literally!

Just my luck

2008-10-27T19:50:00.000-07:00

Today I drove over to the house where I saw the hilariously funny fall lawn decoration to take a picture for you guys...but, as soon as I got my camera out a man stepped out onto the front porch of the house and I lost my nerve! I will try again tomorrow. I'm sure if I just asked him if I could take a picture of it, he wouldn't mind!

What do you all think of the new look?

Menu Planning Monday

2008-10-27T07:52:00.000-07:00

Oh, I know all of you have been waiting on this post all weekend (cue sarcasm)! Well, here it is all bright and shiny and new for this week!

Monday : BBQ Pork Sandwiches with spicy fries (actually just sandwiches for me and Hubs, the kids don't usually eat the bread, just the filling. I'll also steam some veggies for Little Sister since you all know she's a 4 year old vegetarian!

Tuesday : Boo and Hooties Mommas Chicken. Y'all, this was so good when I made it the first time! We ate every single bite of it!

Wednesday : Leftovers

Thursday : Crock Pot Potato Chowder (I'm copying this one from Gayle over at Grocery Cart Challenge, it sounded so good!)

Friday : Leftovers

Saturday : Hubs wants to grill Chicken and Kielbasa (no complaints here!)

Sunday : Leftovers

It has gotten so cold here! This morning it was in the high 30's when we woke up! Not typical October weather for the deep south! I wanted a bowl of oatmeal and a cup of coffee pronto! The weather was very mild around here this weekend. Good thing too, since my kiddos has tons of energy they needed to burn up from being cooped up in the house all last week with strep throat! Strep throat is a nasty, nasty thing!

Be sure to pop back on here either tonight or tomorrow (not promising tonight since the girls have baton). I am going to attempt to take a picture of one of the funniest fall lawn decorations I have ever seen. It literally made me laugh out loud when I saw it!

I hope you all are having a wonderful Monday! Now, go get to work on those menu plans!

Contentment

2008-10-24T04:11:00.000-07:00

'Let your character be free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you," ' Hebrews 13:5

I'm dwelling on this verse today. I'm asking Him to make me content with the things He has given me. I think we all as human beings get into the trap of looking around us at what everyone else has and feeling sorry for ourselves or wishing we could have what they have. But, I truly think that God gives us only what we can handle.

I want my kids to see a mom who is content with being at home and raising them right now (not that that won't change in the future, staying at home that is). I want them to see that we could afford a bigger house but that we choose to stay in this one because we don't want a bigger mortgage payment and that this house meets all of our needs. I want them to see that we could go on expensive vacations every year but that we choose to go on small trips to the beach (which they love) in order to save up for the bigger trips so that we might enjoy them more because we aren't worried about the debt it is causing us.

I want them to see that we are called to live our lives differently. That we are to be in the world, but not of the world. I want them to grow up content. And the best way I can model that is to be content.

I'm am praying that God will make my heart content with what He has given me. That he will take away my desire for "more".

Labels

2008-10-21T13:53:00.000-07:00

Fifteen years ago I was 17. My life has not turned out anything like I thought it would back then. Its WAY better. However, I can't help but think of the things that I am doing now that I said I would never do. It makes me laugh, but most of all it makes me think.

I said I would never be a young bride, but I got married at 21.
I said I would never be a stay-at-home mom, but I've now been home for 7 years.
I said I would never be a young mother. I had my first child at 25.
I said I would never drive a mini-van. I currently drive a 2008 Honda Odyssey in gold. (my second van)
I said I would never be a runner. I love to run and have ran in two races this year.
I said I would never be an environmentalist. I still wouldn't call myself that, but lately I've been trying to find more ways to reduce our waste and recycle more.
I said I would never be a health nut. I do my best to serve healthy meals not only for myself but for my kids. I try to show them how to make better choices everyday.
I said I would never be a tight wad. I try to be a better steward over the money that God gives us every single day. I am now looking at it as a game. Sort of like "Beat my best deal" or "How little can I get by with today" type of thing.

I'm sure there are many more things that I am currently doing that I said I would never do. Sometimes we have to "eat crow" so to speak. Thinking about this today makes me wonder what I am missing out on because I have said "I will never...". It makes me wonder what God has in store for the rest of my life as He continually proves me wrong. (and boy, am I ever glad for that!)

What labels do you currently possess that you never thought you would?

Menu Planning Monday!

2008-10-20T10:10:00.000-07:00

Blogger won't let me post the cute little menu planning header, but if you are looking for more great menu plans, click here.

I know, I know, you've been hanging out at your computer all day just to see what the Mc family is having this week. (have I ever mentioned that I am very sarcastic at times?) Well, first things first. Two of my 3 kids (the girls) definitely have strep throat! Its still up in the air right now if Little Man has it or not. He started coughing yesterday, but not a lot. He wasn't up last night either, in fact he is the only person in our house that slept through the night! Thank goodness they are all a little sluggish today because this girl needs a nap!

So as far as the menu plan goes....

Monday - Crock Pot Chicken and Dressing with Green Beans and Stewed Potatoes (one of our all time favorite meals, this recipe is not the one I use but its pretty close!)
Tuesday - Leftovers
Wednesday - Pork with Apples and Asparagus (I have some pork chops in the freezer so I will use those instead of the pork roast, and I have some apples that need to be used up)
Thursday - Leftovers
Friday - Crock Pot White beans (cooked ALL Day) with cornbread (our kids love white beans)
Saturday - Leftovers
Sunday - Out

I have also found another fabulous blog for you guys to check out. Its called $5 dinners. Its a great place to get menu plans and ideas. She is committed to only spending $5 for dinner every night, but her blog is so much more. She posts her menu plan for the week, but also for the month (on the left sidebar). She is also a runner (!) and very committed to serving her family healthy meals with include mostly organic ingredients. We could all definitely get inspiration there! Go check it out.

Ok, so this is for JenD. She asked if I could help her better plan the weekly meals for her and her boys while her husband is out of town all week long. Jen works, has 2 boys and her husband travels during the week. She also lives right across the street from a great park and has an adorable house...but that's another post. Anyhow, Jen, and anyone else who is interested, I really and truly think the Crock Pot could serve you well. If you get your meal in there either before you leave for work in the morning, or at least do the prep work, get it into the crock, then dash home at lunch and turn it on, then you won't be stressed at 6 o'clock. If your kids won't eat leftovers, your best bet would be to find meals that do double duty. You could turn a pork roast with veggies one night into pulled pork sandwiches the next night. My kids adore poppy seed chicken, so I will often roast a chicken in the oven or crock pot, eat some the first night and the next night use the leftover chicken for the poppy seed dish. Breakfast for dinner is also a fast and easy fix for kids. Pancakes can be made in a snap along with eggs and bacon. Waffles would be a good choice as well. You can add just about anything to them to make them seem special. Waffle irons are inexpensive and are a good investment. Another kitchen tool I can't live without is my rice-cooker (I am terrible at making rice on the stove-top!). Ziploc zip n' steam bags are wonderful to make smaller portions of steamed veggies in a hurry (think steamed broccoli and carrots with low fat ranch dressing for dipping). Stuffed baked potatoes are also a good choice and you could always fill them with leftover roast beef, chicken or pork along with sour cream, cheese and butter. I encourage you to check out $5 Dinners as well. She has several dinners that do double duty. Please don't allow you to get into the rut of not eating dinner together at the table just because one member of the family isn't there. Kids need that time to re-connect with each other and with their parents. Its a good way to get them to open up and talk about their day.

Another idea is to have each night of the week be a theme. For example if its Monday its Mexican. You could whip up some super quick taco meat, re fried beans, cheese, sour cream, and other fixins (prep the night before or in the morning) and let the children fix their own tacos. Use the leftover taco meat on Tuesday to make some sort of taco pie (like Frito pie, or a Bisquick impossible pie, check out Bisquick.com). You could follow through with a theme for every night Wednesday night could be pasta night, Thursday could be chicken, Friday could be homemade pizza night. The kids would think its fun to have themes!

Two books I love are "The Dinner Doctor" and "The What Can I Bring Cookbook" both by Anne Byrn. In both books she gives suggestions for quick and easy dinners. She also gives the background stories for many of her recipes, which I appreciate! Also, if you love cake like me check out her books "The Cake Mix Doctor" and "Chocolate from the Cake Mix Doctor". Both are fabulous reads!

Well, that's all I've got for now. I have get off here and go love on my babies!

Go get to work on your menu plan!

Good Morning....

2008-10-20T06:12:00.000-07:00

Hey Ladies, I'm just checking in to tell you that today is Monday. Do you know where your menu plan is? I have one to post today put I am off to take all 3 of my kids to the doctor. Yep, all 3 are sick! This momma was up all night with them! Leave a comment and let me know if you are posting a menu plan today, or you could just let me know that you are still reading this blog despite its recent boring content, or you could tell me that I look utterly beautiful with just 2.5 hours of sleep! The choice is yours. Either way I'll post the menu plan later with linkies and everything. Pinkie Swear!

Look Fast....

2008-10-16T20:14:00.001-07:00

Look closely. Do you see it? Its a baby turning into a big boy right before your eyes. When this little guy wakes up in the morning, he will no longer be 2.

The third birthday is always the hardest for me. I know what you are thinking, "Wait till they're 10, or 16, or 21, or 26!" Yes, I know those will be as hard as if not harder than 3. But this is my reality right now.

To me, when your baby is still 2, they are still a baby. But when they are 3 it just doesn't seem like they are babies anymore. And Ladies, this IS my baby! And he will be 3 TOMORROW! And yes, he will ALWAYS be my baby, he just won't let me call him that anymore.

Breathtaking

2008-10-13T18:41:00.000-07:00

A - mischievous, funny, but sweet

C "Little Man" - All boy, with a touch of sweetness

EC - All sweetness and light

*Photos curtosy aRt photography (thanks AR!)

Randomness

2008-10-01T09:40:00.000-07:00

First I want to say "Thank You" to Cape Girl for tagging me with the "5 quirky things about you Meme". I have already done this Meme here before and I thought I might try to think up five new things but I couldn't think of any. So, if you didn't catch it the first time I posted it you can click here to read about me and all my strangeness! I'm supposed to tag 5 more people but I think most of you have done this one before, but if you haven't....Tag your it! Thanks Capegirl!

Second, I wanted to tell you all about my "Proud American". EC is in second grade and her teacher randomly gives out 2 awards. The first is the good friend award and its a little dog tag type necklace with a smiley face on the tag part. If she catches any student in her class doing something kind or being helpful to another student they get to wear the good friend award for the day. She doesn't give it out every day so its a big deal when she does. The second is called the "Proud American" award. Every morning at the school the principal comes over the loud speaker and leads the classes in the pledge to the flag and then plays the National Anthem over the speaker and all the kids sing. If Mrs. Jones (EC's teacher) catches one of her students standing extra straight and tall, with the correct hand over his or her heart (still sometimes an issue at this age!), or singing the Anthem proudly, then she might decide to give that student the Proud American Award for that day. Again, she doesn't do this every day so its a big deal. Last Thursday I decided to surprise EC and show up to have lunch for with her. When she saw me standing in the hall she ran up and said, "Look mom I'm the Proud American today" She was wearing a dog tag style necklace and the tag part had a picture of the flag on it. I said "Oh, were you standing extra tall and singing extra proudly?" "Nope" she said. Her teacher then walks up and tells me that no, its better than that. Apparently when the principal came over the loud speaker that morning the CD player that plays the music to the National Anthem wouldn't play. The students stood there waiting and waiting and after about 30-45 seconds nothing happened. Well, my sweet angel, EC, started singing acapella all by herself and by the time she got to "by the dawn's early light" all the other kids in class had joined her! Mrs. Jones awarded her the necklace on the spot and said that EC couldn't have been prouder! I was so proud that I got tears in my eyes!

On a completely different note, we are thinking about taking Little Sister and Little Brother out of Mother's Morning Out. We pay $160 a month for both of them to go 4 hours 3 times a week. It's not that we can't afford it, it's that I feel like I'm wasting my money. Little Sister's class is supposed to be Pre-K, and they do learn a lot in there but she isn't. Why? She already knows what the teacher is having to teach the other kids. Knowing all the letters of the alphabet and the sounds they make? Knows it. Writing her name? Done. Colors? Yep. Shapes? Yep. In fact, she is reading already. She won't be 5 until December and won't start kindergarten until next fall and she is already reading simple words. I feel like I'm paying $80 a month for her to go play. Hubs and I are deciding if it would be best to leave her there, or bring her home and me home school her until next fall. We are extremely torn over this! We have gone back and forth on this for about a week. Her teacher told me the other day that she can't even get some of the students to hold their pencils correctly and what sound the letter "A" makes and Little Sister is going around the room saying "Dad, D-A-D spells Dad." Does anyone else have thoughts on this?

Good news!!

2008-09-30T12:34:00.000-07:00

I took Little Sister (aka "A") back to her eye specialist today and the vision in her eye has greatly improved!! I was so nervous about going there today since we got bad news last time we went. The results in a nut shell are that 6 weeks ago her left eye was at 20/200 and her right was 20/30. Today her left eye was 20/60 and her right was 20/30!! That is a huge improvement in just 6 weeks! God is so good! We are to continue patching at the same rate we have been (8-10 hrs per day) and then go back in 6 weeks for another check. At that point the doctor will be willing to re-assess the patching and maybe scale the hours back some! Thank you so much for all your prayers! It is so good to have friends who are interceding on your behalf!

Its Menu Planning Monday!!

2008-09-29T09:39:00.000-07:00

Edited to add: For those of you who read this post earlier today, I've added the French Onion Soup recipe and a pretty cool link at the bottom! Happy Eating!

I was going to post that cute little smiley face banner from orgjunkie but I couldn't get blogger to do it right, so for now, you will just have to live without it! (I know, your day will not be complete)

We've done really good around here sticking to the plan. I am so happy to tell you all that not only are we eating better, but we are saving money as well. How could I ask for more? Using the crock pot more has been a real time saver. I'm not stressed at five o'clock! Gotta love that!

So here's the plan for the week at the Mc house. Click here for more menu plans.

Monday - Leftovers and baked potatoes. ( I slow cooked some ribs this weekend and we had plenty leftover so we will have those with some baked potatoes.)

Tuesday - Applesauce chicken with green beans and scalloped potatoes
(I have some leftover applesauce from making it in the crock pot)

Wednesday - Leftovers

Thursday - Crock pot shepard's pie

Friday - Leftovers

Saturday - Hubby grills ( he just doesn't know it yet)

Sunday - Leftovers or out to eat ( I'm leaning toward leftovers though)

Also this week I'll be making more pumpkin muffins because they were such a hit. I'm going to try to make broccoli casserole in the crock pot, and the French Onion Soup** that was in "Everyday with Rachel Ray" magazine this month. It sounds really easy and only has like 5 ingredients. I used to have a subscription but I hardly ever made any of the recipe and I was getting too many magazines as it was so I decided to cut that one out. Sorry Rach! But, I bought this months because of something listed on the cover (but I can't remember what).

Alright, so there it is! I hope you are are planning your work and working your plan this week! I look forward to seeing your menu plans! If you make one, post it and leave me a comment so I can come take a look! I'm always looking for new ideas!

French Onion Soup (Courtesy Everyday with Rachael Ray)
2 large sweet onions, thinly sliced
1 cup dry red wine
2 (14.5 oz.) cans beef broth
1 (5 oz.) bag seasoned croutons (about 2 cups)
4 thick slices Swiss cheeses (If you don't like Swiss you could always substitute provolone and both are available in sliced form at Aldi)

In a deep skillet, heat 2 tbls. extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent and softened, about 15 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Pour in the beef broth, lower the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes; season with pepper. Preheat the broiler. Divide the soup among 4 oven-proof bowls, then top each with one-quarter of the croutons and slice of cheese. Set the bowls on a rimmed baking sheet and broil until the cheese is bubbly and golden, about 1 minute.

Also, last but not least, check out one bag, five dinners. Sounds pretty easy to me!

Yumm-ola!

2008-09-28T20:29:00.000-07:00

I haven't used that term in a while (don't know where's its been?) but it is quite fitting for this recipe! Friday morning I made the most delicious pumpkin muffins and I hope you all are sitting down (and why wouldn't you be if you are using your computer) because you are not going to believe this...they are only 95 calories! I know, I'm shocked too! You can eat like 3 for breakfast! Too cool right? Anyhow this is so funny because I logged onto JKW's blog today and she had already posted the same recipe! What coincidence.

All 3 kids loved them along with Hubs too! They were a hit! I followed the directions and used the spice cake mix because the comments said that if you use white or yellow they are kind of bland and you need to add a whole bunch of stuff too it. I did however add a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice to rev up the flavor a bit per one of the suggestions and they were fabulous. I think this recipe is going into heavy rotation around here!

This weekend Hubs asked me to make him some "football food" as he calls it. On game day Saturdays he likes either chili (made last weekend), hot wings, hot wing dip *, or burgers. I didn't have everything on hand for any of those so I searched my new favorite blog for inspiration and found the crock pot Cheesy bacon dip for the little dipper! It was really good and we ate it with Fritos. It doesn't make a lot so I suggest doubling the recipe if you are making it for more than 2 people.

Also from the crock pot Lady...last weekend we tried Homemade crock pot applesauce and it was soooo good! I made it for breakfast and the kids ate almost all of it! You really should try it!

Hope you all are having a good Sunday night! Remember tomorrow is Monday, do you
know where your meal plan is?

*If you make the hot wing dip be sure to use only white meat. I thought I would use some dark mixed in once and it was too greasy, yuck. Also, only use really good quality chunky blue cheese dressing, in this recipe you can tell the difference. Oh and the hot sauce you need is Texas Pete's (or a similar brand) hot wing sauce, not just the hot sauce, there is a difference!

Guess what?

2008-09-28T13:03:00.000-07:00

I bought I new crock pot on Friday. This is so sad, and I can't believe I am admitting it, but, I was so excited! Ha! Fifteen years ago I would have totally thought that someone excited about a new crock pot was a total nerd and needed to get out more, well, now I'm the nerd. And I probably need to get out more! Anyhow, its stainless steel and red (so pretty) and it came with a free little dipper crock. That thing is so cute that I couldn't wait to use it. I even started talking to it and telling it how cute it was and EC said "Mom, its a crockpot, it can't hear you!" I made Hubs some cheesy bacon dip in it yesterday for to eat while he watched his team totally roll-over Georgia. He was a happy man I tell you.

Anyhow, I plan on being back here tomorrow morning and giving you guys my meal plan. I didn't post last week, but I still made one! And I have loads of random things I want to talk about. Hope you all are having a great weekend!

Everyone has an excuse, especially me!

2008-09-24T06:51:00.000-07:00

When I lost enough weight for people around me to notice, the natural question I got was "How did you do it?". Most of the time I just answered "Well, I just started running and watching what I ate." I would usually leave it like that because most people really didn't want me to go into the in's and out's of what I did, they didn't really want great detail, they just wanted a short and sweet answer. Believe it or not, until I lost around 10 pounds (which is when most people started to notice) not many people knew I was dieting(or not dieting :) ). I'm not one to tell people what I am doing when it comes to that sort of thing. AR knew, because we are close and only two friends that I spend a lot of time with knew. Of course Hubs knew, and I think my neighbor knew. I just didn't want a lot of people to know. Surprising I know, I have talked a lot about it on this blog, but it was because I knew most of you were having the same struggles I was. Also, I know this sounds mean, but I once knew a girl that was dieting and the minute she started whatever diet she was on at the moment, everyone knew. We would go out to eat with a group of friends and she would look at the menu and say "Well, I can't eat that, that and that." Then when everyone would get their plates she would say "Do you know how many calories that has in it?" Then if all of us decided to order a dessert to share she would just sit there with this little pouty face and not eat it, instead just having a small bite and leaving it at that. It was annoying and it got to where the people in our little group didn't want to invite her to eat because really, who wants their food scrutinized? So, I didn't want to become "that girl". I wanted to get my support from my closest friends, my Hubs, and from you guys (and you guys have been wonderful!)

So, back to my original thought (I told you, I'm a rambler, but I will eventually make it back to the point of the story). This acquaintance that goes to our church started asking me how I did it. At first I was giving her my "canned" answer. But, she kept asking so one day during a break during VBS I told her about the "Couch to 5k" running plan. She was very interested and kept asking questions about it the entire week. After VBS was over I didn't see her much (she goes to the late service and we go to the early service) until a couple of weeks ago when AWANA started back on Wednesday nights (her son is in my class). Again she started asking about what I did and asked me to print out the running plan for her and write down what I ate. I didn't do it at first because I wasn't sure she really wanted it. She asked me again two weeks ago, so I finally did it. I printed out the C25K for her and went through my food journal and wrote down some suggestions of what I ate, about how many calories a day I tried to stay at, tips such as reading labels, eating more fiber, drinking more water, laying off diet soda, and measuring food. I gave it to her last Wednesday night when she was dropping her son off and she was very excited, at first. She stood there reading over it and her expression began to change. She said she couldn't possibly give up her Diet Cokes. I told her she didn't have to but I did because I started getting stomach aches and had read some research about the affect it has on your body, and I told her about poor JKW and her kidney stones and having to go to the hospital and all (Jen, I have told everyone about you, you've become a public service announcement!). Then she said she didn't like salads unless they were loaded with cheese and drenched in dressing (I don't put cheese on my salads and I measure my dressing), and that she really doesn't like vegetables at all. Then she read about my 40-calorie-a-slice-whole-wheat-bread and made a face, of course she doesn't eat wheat bread. Other things were, she doesn't eat yogurt (okay, not everyone likes it, I know), doesn't like eggs, high fiber cereal is yuck, she doesn't really like water, and do I really measure my food? I just smiled and said that these are mearly suggestions and she can tailor the diet to her needs and likes. She asked if I really kept up with everything I eat by writing it down, she thought that was too tedious. I just stood there thinking "OK, you asked me what I did and I told you, you can use this info or not,I don't care." (of course I didn't say that) Then I suggested that if she didn't want to do what I did that she look into Weight Watchers. She said there was no way she would ever do to a meeting and that she didn't think those things really worked. (For the record I think Weight Watchers is a great program because it teaches you to eat in the real world and it teaches portion control.)

Later that night I got to thinking about what went on and what she said. I really and truly think she wanted me to give her a quick fix diet. She wanted me to say drink a shake for breakfast, eat a lean cuisine for lunch, and whatever the heck you want for dinner. She wanted me to tell her that this is all easy and that I didn't have any struggles. Sorry, that's not the case. It was hard, I did get tired of writing down what I ate, I did get tired of measuring my food and there were a lot of days that I wanted to give up on the C25K before I completed it. But was it worth it? You bet. I don't think she will do any of my suggestions. I don't even think she will do the C25K. It makes me sad. Of course the way I lost weight is not the only way to do it, but I didn't only do what I did to lose weight, I did it to get healthy and I wanted to make permanent changes in my diet and lifestyle. I'm still struggling. There are mornings that I don't want to run or go work out at the gym. There are days that I want to eat whatever I want (and some days I do). There were 2 weeks after we got back from the beach that I barely ran at all. But most days I try to stick to it. And isn't that the point? I have a bad day, well, then I do better the next. I am definitely not perfect. Have I had a diet coke since January, yes. But then I pay for it with a stomach ache. My biggest excuse is with exercising and let me tell you I have a million of them. I didn't sleep good last night, I'm on my period, or about to start my period, my allergies are acting up, I'm sore from my last workout, there were too many people at the gym when I got there. You name it, I've probably said or thought it. But to not even give it a try?

My conversation with her made me realize that excuses will keep you from your goal. They can keep you from even getting off the starting line, they will keep you from being happy. Don't believe me? Watch "The Biggest Loser" and see how excuses got the contestants to the point they are at right now. So I am making it my new mission to let go of my excuses. I want to run a half marathon but have let excuses keep me from training. I am going to find a half marathon to run and sign up for it and start training for it. I want to reach my goal and be a good example for my children. I tell my seven year old almost everyday that nothing is achieved without hard work, now I need to live it.

(soap box over, sorry!)

Super easy game day chili

2008-09-20T18:08:00.000-07:00

Hubs has been begging me to make a pot of chili ever since football season started a couple of weeks ago. The weather has been very warm around here. I just couldn't do it. Until today. The weather was down right chilly here (pun intended) this morning and we go drizzly rain most of the day which made it truly feel like fall has arrived. Just in time too. The weather was apropos with it being the first day of fall. So I thought I might share the chili recipe with you.

Just so you know this recipe is for the lazy cook and is super duper easy. I have tried to get fancy before and chopped up green peppers, onions and celery and sauteed them with my ground beef instead of using ro-tel and I have even added things like portobello mushrooms (which actually taste pretty good in it). But I ALWAYS come back to this recipe. This is the one Hubs asks for and the kids will eat it because it is mild and not too spicy. If you like spicy you can add a Little Tabasco to the pot or let the individual season their own bowls to their liking. This can also be make with ground turkey instead of beef or leave out the meat entirely and have vegetarian chili!

Super Easy Chili
1 pound lean ground beef
1 envelope mild chili seasoning (I like McCormick, but have used Chili-O)
1/4 cup water
3 cans chili beans
3 cans diced tomato's
1 can ro-tel

Cook ground beef a dutch oven until browned, drain. Return meat to pan and add seasoning packet and water. Stir. Add beans, tomatoes and Ro-tel. Stir. Cook over medium heat stirring occasionally until warmed through. Serve with Fritos, sour cream or shredded cheddar cheese.

Vegetarian Version: In a dutch oven, (or any big soup pot) mix all ingredients together except water. Cook until heated through.

(Psst. This is even better the next day!)

Better late than never!!!

2008-09-17T14:24:00.000-07:00

This is for Rachael, who right at this very moment (since it's 4:30) is probably mad at me because this is what she is supposed to be making for dinner tonight and she was counting on me to post the recipe. I have good excuses, really, I do. Yesterday was super busy day around here and Hub's nephew from California is in town and we all went out to eat with him (when I made my menu plan on Monday, I didn't know he was coming in, so that means that the leftovers from Monday are what we are eating tonight!) Then at 2 a.m. this morning the stomach virus decides to invade our home. Luckily it's not me (and really folks, I would much rather me be sick than one of my babies, but we all know that there is no one to take care of Mama when she is sick and with the terribly busy week I can not afford to be sick!), its our 7 year old. Bless her little heart, she has been so pitiful today and has wanted me to be beside her all day. So, here is the recipe and I hope Rachael sees it in time to make it for dinner!

Meia's Crock Pot Stroganoff
1.5 lbs. stew meat, cubed
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 Tbsp. onion soup mix

Mix all together and throw in crock pot until beef is done! Great over egg noodles or rice!

Monday Menu Planning!!

2008-09-15T05:24:00.000-07:00

To see other great menu plans click here.
Good Monday Morning! We have a busy week on tap here at the Mc house, so of course meal planning is a must. Once again I will be relying almost entirely on my crock-pot to do the work for me. I love knowing that there is a meal just cooking away for me and I won't do the "Oh-my-stars-what-will-I-feed-these-crazy-kids-for-dinner" dance at 5 pm! Hallelujah!

This week I am making 3 crock-pot recipes that have been recommended. Boo and Hooties Mom posted a chicken recipe that her kids love on her blog and that's what is on the menu for tonight. My good friend Meia (who reads this blog but NEVER,EVER comments (psst, Meia, click on the words 0 comments at the bottom of this post, then follow the directions)) sent me 3 recipes with my birthday card 2 weeks ago. She had read my post on using the crock-pot and being a busy mom of 4 she had a few favorites she wanted to share. Meia is a great cook and has given me many recipes that we have enjoyed over the years! A few years back she shared a recipe for "Spring Chicken Soup" and I have made it every single fall and winter at least 3-4 times.

Speaking of soup, I am so ready for the cooler weather to be here. We still have high temps of around 85 degrees here during the day. Not exactly soup weather. At least not for me. I am a weirdo when it comes to soup. I love it. However, I simply can not bring my self to make it or eat it when the weather is warm. As soon as it cools off though, I'm digging around for my favorite recipes.

Anyhow, back to the meal planning. Anyone else planning this week? I spoke with AR on Saturday night and she already had her menu planned for the next week and a half! Impressive!

Here's whats going down at the Mc House:

Monday - Boo and Hooties Mommas chicken
Tuesday - Leftovers
Wednesday - Meia's crockpot stroganoff*
Thursday - Leftovers
Friday - Meia's Oriental Chicken*
Saturday - Leftovers
Sunday - Out**

Speaking of leftovers, how does everyone feel about those? I'll tell you, when I was growing up, if you didn't eat leftovers, you didn't eat. Last weekend, my husband walked over to our neighbors house to watch the football game. We had already had dinner and the kids and I were winding down for the night with a stack of books. When he arrived he told me that the neighbors were just finishing up dinner. He said that the wife was cleaning the kitchen and he watched as she dumped a only half-eaten bowl of scalloped potatoes and 2 perfectly good steaks into the trash can. He asked "Aren't you going to save those?" the wife replied " We don't eat left-overs, ewwwww." Hubs didn't say anything else. But, he was shocked. Are we weird that we eat them? How do you guys feel about them.

*If anyone is interested in these recipes, I will post them, just let me know.
** We like to eat out on Sundays with friends from church.

She knows what she wants to eat, um, I mean be, yeah be

2008-09-08T11:41:00.000-07:00

For those of you new here (or just haven't caught on yet) I have 3 kids. 2 girls aged 7 and 4.5 and a little boy who is almost 3 (I can't talk about that right now, I might literally start weeping). Anyhow, my 4 year old doesn't eat much meat. Its not that she is all about animal rights or anything like that, she has just never been very fond of it. When she was a baby she would spit out those #3 baby foods that had meat in them. She might take a bite of two of a chicken nugget, but thats all. When she eats a cheese burger she strips off the bread, scraps the cheese off and eats it, eats just a little of the bread and MAYBE she will take a bite or two of the burger. She prefers vegetables and fruits.

Two weekends ago I told my neighbor, "You know, it won't surprise me one bit if at age 13 or so A comes to us and announces shes a vegetarian. She just doesn't really eat meat."

Last Wednesday I was in the kitchen rinsing dishes when A walks in. Here's how the conversation went.

A: Mom, I'm a vegetarian.

Me: (Thinking,"Huh, I thought I'd hear this at 13, 10 at the earliest but not 4.5.") What do you mean you're a vegetarian?

A: You know Mom, I'm a doctor that takes care of animals!

Me : (noticing little man on all fours beside her panting) No, baby, that's a Veterinarian. (laughing)

A: (hands on hips) That's what I said, stop laughing!

Then she proceeds to tell me how little man (whose doggy name is "Spot") had a hurt paw and she put medicine on it and bandaged it.

We're all just glad she knows her taste buds, I mean her mind, yeah, her mind.

Southern Movies for Southern Girls (or GRITS)

2008-09-05T06:19:00.001-07:00

There are 2 movies that come to mind when I think of "movies you gotta see if you are a girl raised in the south". Now, I'm not sayin that you wouldn't enjoy these movies had you grown up north of the Mason-Dixon, but there's just something about a movie that depicts women that talk like you. Know what I mean? For those of you who haven't met me, I've got a thick southern accent. AND.PROUD.OF.IT. A friend of mine moved here from South Florida a couple of years ago. (For those of you who don't know, most (but not all) people from southern Florida do not have the typical southern accent, they just don't) She told me recently that her biggest fear when she moved here was picking up a thick southern accent (she hasn't yet). I said "What? Are you kidding? My biggest fear is that one day Hubs company will move us up North and I'll lose mine." I guess everyone doesn't see it that way. Oh well, back to the movies.

Shag the movie - This movie is a must see! It actually came out in 1989 and quickly became a Southern Favorite. I remember watching it and wishing I lived during that time. It is set during the 60's and stars Phoebe Cates as Carson who is engaged to boring Harley Rosson. Her best friends Melaina (Bridget Fonda), Pudge (Annabeth Gish), and Luanne (Page Hannah) whisk her away for one last fling. A bad boy named Buzz makes Carson rethink her wedding plans. The best part is the clothes, the setting, and the one-liners. Clemson Girl talked about this movie on her blog recently. I didn't realize there were so many people who love it!

Steel Magnolias - Julia before she was a $20 million dollar a picture actress. I like her in the movie, but the best actress in the movie is Sally Field. She made me cry! From the accents, the red velvet Armadillo cake at Shelbys wedding (how many southern girls do I know named Shelby, like 100, seriously), to Dolly Partons One liners, this movie is to die for. I could watch a thousand times and not get tired of it. Came out in 1989.

Movies that aren't so southern but still good -
Best movie of all time (in my humble opinion)? When Harry Met Sally. Who doesn't love this movie? I heart Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan. I love the story of friendship and ultimately love. And marrying your best friend? Priceless! Oh and seriously, it came out in 1989 as well. Was that a good year for movies or what?

You've Got Mail - Meg Ryan. Tom Hanks. Enough said. Good from beginning to end.

What are your favorite girly movies???

Fear Not

2008-09-04T14:45:00.000-07:00

JKW raised a good concern in a comment on the previous post. She wrote : "Woah, CM. Did you see the calorie count on that lasagna?" Yep, I did. It said that the calories for 4 servings was 1118. I knew we would get more than four servings out of a crock pot full of lasagna. We actually had more than half left over. Rachael stated that all 6 of her family members ate it and had half left as well. Going by the numbers provided by Recipe Zaar, I figured that the entire pot of lasagna has 4472 calories. Going by what Rachael stated, a family of 6 would be able to make 2 meals off an entire pan which would be 12 servings. 4472 divided by 12 is 373 calories per serving. I also used low fat cottage cheese and I used part skim mozzarella and used only half the mozzarella. I also used lean ground beef and whole wheat pasta. Having said all that, I KNOW that the serving of lasagna I ate did not have 1118 calories in it! I also eat less lasagna than the average person because for some reason I HAVE to eat it with a big salad.

So there you have it. Eat the lasagna and enjoy it without fear.

Oh and one last thing : If you can eat one-fourth a crock pot of lasagna, I hope you are a marathon runner and run at least 13 miles a day. You would have to to work off that much food!

Menu Plannin'

2008-09-01T20:32:00.000-07:00

So, if you read yesterdays post you know that this week is an extremely busy week for me! There is lots going on during the day and in the afternoon and early evening hours, so meal planning in a necessity. Looking at what we've got in the house now, here are the meals we are having this week. Hopefully nothing crazy will happen and it will all work out this way! As most of you read, I was going to try to get Hubs to grill today, but last night our neighbor came over with a TON of left-over food from a football party they had at his house on Saturday night (party was fun, go BAMA). He insisted on leaving a ton of cheeseburgers with us so Hubs was off the hook as far as grilling was concerned! Ha!

Monday - Left-over hamburgers
Tuesday - Crock-Pot Lasagna with Garlic bread and salad
Wednesday - Leftover Lasagna
Thursday - Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken (Boneless, skinless chicken breasts and Teriyaki sauce, EASIEST RECIPE EVER) with steamed broccoli and carrots and brown rice*
Friday - Left-over Teriyaki Chicken
Saturday - Crock Pot Oniony Pork Chops with Green beans and Baked Potatoes
Sunday - Left-over pork chops

*My kids adore steamed broccoli and carrots and I don't even have to serve them with cheese sauce. I've also been making brown rice instead of white for a while now, but last week I ran out and made white instead and no one ate it. They all said it had no flavor. So, I guess its back to the healthy stuff for us. Yup, my kids are strange, they also eat rice cakes and Edamame.

So, there you have it folks now the world knows what the Mc's will be eating this week! What recipes/tools make your life easier?

Whose with me?

2008-08-31T10:51:00.000-07:00

If you haven't been here in the last couple of days, keep scrolling and read the previous post. It will give you some insight into my inspiration for this post.

I want to go the entire next week without eating out. No take-out, no hurried lunches. To do this I will have to plan. And possibly make a trip to the grocery store, but my goal is to fix what we have on hand without having to make a trip out.

Monday is a no-brainer, its labor day and Hubs is home so we will likely grill out. (actually that's my sneaky way of getting him to cook. I refuse to learn how to use the grill, and fain fear of it, Ha!) I hope to get him to grill enough so that on Tuesday night we can have leftovers since I have to take EC to Baton sign-ups, and I have a Junior League Board meeting at 6 and a regular League meeting at 7. On Wednesday morning I hope to load the crock-pot with something yummy since we have church at 6. Thursday should be a little easier but I hope that I can cook enough in the crock pot on Wednesday to have leftovers on Thursday. I can probably convince Hubs to grill again on Friday night (and hopefully have left-overs on Saturday).

Want to join me? Comment on this post and put your meal action plan on your blog! I can't wait to hear from you! I'll post my plan here on Monday morning!

Hey Good Lookin....

2008-08-30T08:19:00.000-07:00

I've been cookin up a storm lately! Blame it on that funny chick over at Crock Pot 365. She totally inspired me to get out my dusty old crock-pot and put it to good use! Before this past week my crock pot and I were just acquaintances. You know, that friend you see once or twice a year. You know their name, and maybe a few random facts about their lives, but for some reason you've never delved into a deep friendship. Well, this week the crock pot became my best friend. It was totally out of necessity people! Second grade has thrown us all for a loop at this house. EC has had around 2 hours of homework every night! Sheesh! When 5 o'clock rolled around on Monday with no dinner prepared I was stressed! So, I did what any good mom would do in my situation, I made junk for dinner. Yep, my usual "we need to have a balanced dinner, with plenty of veggies, limited carbs and some protein" self went into just plain ol' survival mode. I hated it. That night I vowed that I would never let that happen again if I could help it. I decided that the crock pot was the way to go. The main course would go in sometime in the morning or early afternoon and I could steam some veggies as sides to go with it! I am here to tell you that I cooked supper every night this week, in the crock pot! I made this, this, and this. It all got rave reviews and we all had full bellies. (sigh) and all was well in the kingdom....

Update

2008-08-21T07:53:00.000-07:00

I am so sorry it took me a few days to update you all on what went on with A at the doctors office on Monday. First of all the news was not what we were expecting. We thought we were going for a surgery consultation and came out confused and sad. We had been told by our local doctor that the eye had improved and that we could move forward on plans for surgery. The surgeon doesn't think the eye has improved much at all and she thinks that it should have improved much more than what it has. So now instead of patching 4-6 hrs per day she recommended that we patch for 8-10. This was very sad news for us. We thought that we could see a light at the end of the tunnel. This longer patching time means that A will have to wear her patch to her preschool (she goes 3 days a week for 4 hours), something she had never done before. We go back to a local doctor in 3 weeks just to "check" to see if this longer patching time has made any progress, then we will go back to the surgeon at the end of September to get her assessment. The hope is that with the aggressive patching time we can see a big improvement in a short amount of time. The surgeon hopes that at the end of 6 weeks we can scale the patching back to 4-6hrs per day. The good news is that she really believes that this aggressive patching will work so well that A may not even need surgery to correct her lazy eye.

Thank you so much for all your prayers. Please continue to pray for the healing of her eye. She is doing good with the longer patching so far but I think it is just a matter of time before it gets old. Pray for patience for her and for us during this time. I appreciate each and every one of you so much!

It will be a long day

2008-08-18T05:42:00.000-07:00

Today we are taking A (our 4.5 year old) to a big town nearby to visit an Opthomologist to talk about possible eye surgery. For those of you who haven't been privy to our private family blog I will give you the history in a nutshell.

Last summer A was diagnosed with Amblyopia (google it, I know what it is but am not good at explaining it :) along with a Strabismus. A strabismus makes the eye turn in or out. A's left eye turns in. We were told to patch the good eye for 4-6 hours per day in order to "make" her brain use the bad eye. We have been doing that for a year now. Along with patch therapy we have been going to the optometrist every 3 months to check on the progress. At first progress was slow, but this time the eye had improved greatly. We originally thought we would talk about the possibility of surgery to correct the Strabismus next summer but since her eye had done so well, her doctor is sending her now.

We are happy about this because it means the possible end to a very long year. (Getting a four year old to wear an eye patch for 4-6 hours a day is difficult) Also, this surgery could help to improve the vision in her left eye and it won't turn in any longer. I know some of you are thinking "Isn't this risky? I wouldn't let anyone touch my child's eye." Trust me, I've heard all this before and people haven't been nice about it. I've even gotten the attitude from some that maybe we are bad parents for considering this surgery. This is what I have to say about this : If your child had a major overbite and crooked teeth and you could afford braces and you knew that the braces would improve your child's self-confidence would you do it? Of course you would. We see this surgery the same way. A doesn't even realize that her eye turns in. But, what happens when she gets in school and some rude child says "What's wrong with your eye?". Kids are cruel. But I assure you that this surgery is more than cosmetic, it truly could help in the process of getting her sight to improve.

So, having said that, please pray for A today. This appointment is just a consultation, but we've been told it could last up to 3 hours. During this time they will dilate her pupils. She HATES that. The drops they use to do it sting and of course you can't see well when your pupil is dilated. Oh and then there is the problem of keeping a 4 year old entertained during a 3 hour long doctor appointment. Maybe you should pray for M and Iinstead!

Still sick

2008-08-12T18:38:00.000-07:00

When I went to the doctor last Friday I was told that I have major congestion in my sinuses and fluid in my ears (causing the dizziness). I was prescribed a decongestant and a nasal steroid. The decongestant makes me feel AWFUL. The dizziness is gone, however, now I have a full blown sinus infection (I've had so many that I pretty much diagnose myself). Which leads me to the question, why didn't they give me an anti-biotic while I was there? My doctor is out on Fridays so I had to see the nurse practitioner (I would have just waited till Monday, except that the room spinning for 24 hours straight was beginning to drive me insane), I have never seen her before. I don't think she realized the extent of my sinus troubles. So now 4 days later, I'm still feeling bad and I have to make another appointment. That sinus surgery I am so scared of is starting to look good.

Obviously I'm not running right now. And I have nothing to talk about. Which makes this blog boring.

Back but not totally...

2008-08-08T05:31:00.000-07:00

Hey there! I know you all want to see beach pics, but right now, they are still stuck inside my camera! I will get to uploading them as soon as I get over this dizziness! Yesterday I felt dizzy on and off all day. Then at around 3 right after I got home from picking EC up from school (yep, school started on Wednesday here), it got worse. The whole room felt like it was spinning. I laid down the whole rest of the night. Its no better today, so I am going to the doctor today! I can't live like this. I hope it some sort of inner ear thing!

Linky-Dinky-Doo

2008-07-24T10:58:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow the Fam and I are off to the Beach for 7 whole days of Sun and Sand! We are all so excited we can hardly stand it! Since I won't be around here to entertain you guys (I know, you are so, so, very sad) I decided to introduce you to some blogs I have discovered and because I am so sweet (and love you all so very much) I am giving you little linky's to click on! Miss me!

This girl is so funny! She made a New Years Resolution to use her Crock-Pot every single day for a year! Check out her recipes and get inspired! A Year of Crock Potting

This girl is doing the unthinkable! She is challenging herself to spend just $50 a week on groceries for her family of six! How do you feed a husband and 4 hungry kids on that little? Check it out! Grocery Cart Challenge

This girl has inspired me to make every meal beautiful (OK, inspiration is as far as I've gotten, but Rome wasn't built in a day people). She is living on a strict budget but still maintains a beautiful home and 2 very well dressed children. Check out her thrift store finds. Like Merchant Ships

This girl searches other peoples blogs for fabulous craft and home ideas! I spent like 2 hours looking at the posts on her sight! Run, don't walk to the Tip Junkie!

Want to get more organized? Go to the Org Junkie! Loads of tips on organization and keeping of the home. Org Junkie

Okay, big, huge families like the Duggars are fun, but that many kids is not for me. Neither is homeschooling. Having said that go check out the following blog just to see her header picture. Is that not the cutest family you've ever seen (aside from mine, of course)? Check out the little girl in the wellies and the dew rag! Ebeth

Want to get tips on decorating? Want some new recipes? Check out Blissfully Domestic.

This is not a new find. I used to go to this website all the time to look up recipes but somehow, I forgot about it. When I discovered "The Grocery Cart Challenge" I noticed that she was using links to this site to give you the recipes she is using. When I clicked on a few I realized that the nutritional info for almost every single recipe is on the page! No kidding! You could count fat, calories or Weight Watchers Points! Amazing! Recipe Zaar

So, that should keep you busy for the week. You all know I'll be getting up early every morning and running on the beach, right? (Bwaahaaahaaa)

See you soon!

Too Hot to Handle

2008-07-22T05:53:00.000-07:00

NO! Get your pretty little minds out of the gutter! I mean the weather, not me! There is a heat advisory for the next couple of days around here! Yesterday the temp was 102! Yikes! And here in the deep south that's not just heat people, oh no, as if it weren't enough we've got the lovely humidity to deal with! The local weatherman calls it "The Air You Can Wear" and boy is he right!

I'm busy this week (is there ever a week that I don't say that?)! I've got somewhere I've got to be everyday this week and I am working on packing for the beach! Woo!Hoo!

I did manage to squeeze in a five mile run and some time to pray and read my Bible already this morning! Yeah! I call that productive even if I don't get anything else done! So here is my To-Do list, lets see what I can get done. I'm gonna edit this list throughout the day to try and keep my self accountable.

Run (done!)
Read Bible and Pray (done!) Make blueberry pancakes for kids breakfast (done!)
Unload dishwasher (done!)
Read to kids
Work with big sister in math workbook
Make beds (done!)
Finish putting away laundry(done!)
Make lunch (done!)
Make sandwiches for picnic tomorrow
Iron (done!) Start Packing
Meal plan for beach (we can't eat out every meal)
Address and mail Thank you notes (done!)
Make dinner
Clean bathrooms (done!)
Take kids to pool
Mop kitchen

Check back to see my progress!

Talk to you soon!

100

2008-07-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

Just so you know, this is post number 100 on this blog! I wish I had something totally fab to tell you or some great little story, but not today. I am so boring right now! Ha!

I ran with the running group for the first time this morning. I met them at 5 a.m. and we did 5.5 miles. They usually do more but 2 of the girls had to dash home to get ready to be somewhere, so they cut it short today. They usually do between 7-9 miles during the week and longer runs (10-14 miles) on the weekends. Most of the girls are training for a marathon. It was fun and I will definitely do it again!

I am compiling a post on some tips for saving money, so be looking for that. By the way, if you didn't read the comments on the last post, AR mentioned that Aldi has milk for $1.99 a gallon all summer. Wal-mart will not match this price since it is unadvertised so you just have to run into Aldi to get your milk. I really like Aldi anyhow so that's no problem. I shop their produce, meat, canned goods and frozen foods sections. I haven't found anything that we did not like. Here's the scoop though. Don't expect a flashy store. Its clean and organized but they don't go out of their way to attract your attention with signs and pretty things, that's how they save you money. Make sure you have a quarter ready. You have to have one to use their carts. You put the quarter in, use your cart and when you return it you get the quarter back. Why? That's another way they save you money. They don't have to pay some cart boys to go out to the parking lot to collect the carts, they don't have to constantly replace broken carts that have gotten damaged by the weather and by cars hitting them. Also, they don't give you bags. You can buy their bags (5cents for paper, 10 cents for plastic) or bring your own. If I am going there and I know I am just getting a few items I try to take my market tote like this one, or my Land's End canvas tote. If you are shopping there and you see an empty box, grab it for your groceries. I'd say you can get away with doing around 90% of your shopping there. They have just the basics and a few specialty items.

If you are looking for inexpensive meal ideas consider looking here. A friend told me about this site. I haven't joined yet but I downloaded the sample "Fugal moms" menu and everything on there my family will eat and it was very economical.

Here's my final tip. If you are a mom, don't allow yourself to be swayed by the tastes of your children and don't become a short-order cook. Now, I'm not advocating cooking spicy foods that you know your children aren't going to like, but cook as you normally would. The rule in our house is you have to at least "try" it. The bite size has to be approved by mom and dad and they have to chew and swallow said bite. Most kids are shocked to learn that they actually do like the food on their plates if they just give it a chance. My 7, 4, and 2 year olds love broccoli, potato salad and cole-slaw. If your kids won't eat what you've fixed, too bad. I cook one meal and one meal only and if they don't want to eat it they can go to bed hungry. Trust me, this won't hurt your kids or stunt their growth. It will only take a few nights of going hungry till they learn to eat what you've fixed. Also, one big cause of kids not eating during meal time is that they are allowed to "snack" too close to time. If dinner time is at 6 p.m. at your house don't allow your kids to eat or drink anything past 4. If they are thirsty give them water. Kids filled up with juice or milk won't eat when time. If they have a snack at 3:30 or 4 there is no reason they can't wait till 6 to eat. I also don't make my kids clean their plates. They have to have at least 3 bites of everything on their plate and if they are full they can get up. If they have food left on their plates, it is wrapped up and saved for later. Now, here's the deal, if my kids come to me an hour of after dinner saying they are starving (of course they are, they didn't eat during dinner) then they are offered their leftovers. The saying in our house is "if you are too full to eat dinner, you are too full for snacks or candy". I'm telling you, just a few nights of this and your child will change their tune about meal time. And any doctor will tell you that your kids won't go hungry my missing a few meals. But you have to stick to your guns and be firm. They will try to wear you down!

Okay, sorry about getting on my soap box, but I have heard loads of complaints from friends whose kids "won't eat".

Anyhow, hope you all have a wonderful day! We are off to the pool!

Don't read this...

2008-07-16T07:28:00.000-07:00

I'm just kidding. Please read this, then leave me comments and tell me how much you love me...or don't (no, no, please do!)! Anyhow. I've got lots of topics I could talk about today, but I'm not sure I've really got the time I need to do those topics justice.

Right now whats been on my mind is saving money. I've been watching a little too much CNN (thats whats always on at the gym) and I've been very worried about the economy. We are fine right now, but what if gas goes up to $5 a gallon. It's about $3.91 here but will probably be up to $4 by the weekend. So I've been researching ways that I can save our family money. I'm trying to cut our grocery bill. I'm not getting in the car and going places like I was. I'm thinking long and hard about unnecassary purchases before I make them. I'm trying to cook at home more instead of us eating out. So, how are you saving money? Does anyone have any tips they'd like to pass along?

I'm still running....

2008-07-11T11:57:00.000-07:00

Rachael asked how the running is going and the answer is good...until this week. I had a great week last week. I was up to running 9 miles at a time and I did that 3 times that week with a 3 mile walk/run with AR when she came to visit. This week? not so much. I have only ran once and it was only 7 miles! I've just had a busy week and several late,late nights which made it impossible for me to get up early and run. I know you are thinking "Why doesn't she just run later in the day?" Well, its like 95 degrees here in the deep south right now with terrible humidity. So, I'm pretty much forced to run early in the morning. Anyhow, I have no doubt I will be ready for the half-marathon in September, its just that this week has been a bust! But, theres always next week!

Funny Little Guy

2008-07-09T12:54:00.000-07:00

Let me set the scene for you. Our little man is 2.5. He can go up to 3 days without a nap but after that it is very apparent that he needs one. Yesterday would have been the day he needed one but we were so busy it just didn't happen. We were planning on going to Chuck E Cheese's that night and he fell asleep about an hour before we were planning on leaving. So, needless to say, he didn't get his nap out. What you hear is Hubs talking to him and little man's reaction to what he is saying. Trust me, this isn't usually the reaction we get when we tell him this! Enjoy!