Monday Minute Memories, January 30, 2012

Out in Blogland several bloggers do a Friday’s Favorite Five where they name five favorite things about the past week. Or Wordless Wednesdays where they just show pictures of the past week. Here I am introducing my own version of a once a week blog called, “Monday Minute Memories” of memories of my past week.

1. Action Packed Movie. I must admit that I am not a huge fan of action packed movies, but the rest of my crew are, so every once in a while I get dragged into watching an action packed movie. I think I may have used up all my testosterone up as a tomboy way back in the day, when all I cared about was anything round, that I could throw, catch or hit. Speaking of testosterone reminds me of Shark Week on Animal Planet which we watched while on vacation last year at the beach, probably not the best idea! But did you know that sharks have the highest serum testosterone levels than any species on the planet, with bull sharks having the highest? No, I don’t have ADHD, I call it mind mapping…back to the movie I was forced to watch, even the name shouts MAN MOVIE...Real Steel. It’s about big robots, smashing metal in a UFC style competition. Yes, I really stretched myself. Surprisingly it was a fairly good movie. There were certainly “educational moments” as in my opinion there are with all movies. MY review of educational moments…while it was violent, metal smashing metal, and there were some tight fitting clothes and disrespectful attitude; there was still a human story of reconciliation between a father and a son and the realization that as a father he wants to do and be better. It was a nice reminder that the most important things in life aren’t always things….or in this case robots and a big win…but family.

2. Youth Teacher Planning Meeting. We spend a good portion of Saturday afternoon planning some upcoming activities and events for our youth at the church. Let’s see…pizza…red Kool-Aid…pizza….red Kool-Aid….throw in some outrageously fun events and we were done. I did try two new recipes, one from Pinterest (Crockpot Italian Chicken) and the other (Chicken Parmesan) from a trusted recipe site (SkinnyTaste) that have not proven wrong yet. I know it is stupid to try something new when you have people coming over, so I probably won’t do that again; I was stressed about what if it doesn’t turn out right. So I did a backup plan of pizza. After all, eating pizza and drinking red Kool-Aid are a prerequisite to working with the youth. I highly recommend both. That is the recipes and working with the youth. On my Pinterest Boards, I have a board of recipes, these are the ones I want to try and I have a board of recipes I’ve tried and are good. Both of these have moved to that board. My new culinary out is "pinterest made me do it!"

3. Sock Blessings. Let’s just say the past three and half years have been the most stressful time of my career. Work has been difficult to say the least. I won’t get into details, but I recently received an “eviction notice” from my office on the second floor to a new office on the first floor, which I love. So it wasn’t really an eviction notice, just my humorous way of dealing with the move and it was all for good reasons too, other than my exercise. Not much of a change, I still have an office with a window, just not a view of the pond and the cute ducklings. To tell you the truth I laugh about it, simply because God is teaching me to be content in whatever state “or office” I am in. So even if I would have been moved to a cubicle, life would still be good, because I have a job and I love my job. The blessing part? One of the ladies in the new area where I sit came in to my office last week and commented to me that she noticed how hard I work. I said, “thank you it is nice to be noticed. It is because of that reason (and I pointed to a scripture I have hanging on my wall in my office) is the reason I work hard.” The scripture? “Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for me.” Col. 3:23. My big sis gave it to me and it is a great reminder, it has given me encouragement through these hard years and helped me keep my perspective straight. Even though it wasn’t a big accolade, it was appreciated and I know it was orchestrated by my Heavenly Father to bless my socks off.

4. WeightWatchers. 3.4 pounds this week! I left the My FitnessPal because one pound a week for me was not cutting it. I was used to see 2 pounds or more a week with WW; so I am back on the path to get back to my healthy BMI. I’m just thankful I haven’t gained all 30 pounds back that I lost in 2008. I am a big fan of WW. I have tried at least a hundred different diets over my lifespan, but I don’t look at all those times as failures, but a hundred ways that didn’t work for me, in other words an education. To me, keeping the right perspective about failure is important. I like what Margaret Thatcher said, “You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.” For me, WW works, but it is more than just WW but a battle with my mind and flesh. I am determined that my belly will not be my God. (Phillipians 3:18-20)

5. No Spend January. Have you heard of this? I know someone who took the challenge and you can read about her family’s “No Spend January” journey at Just A Little Happy. Ours was more of a Quit Eating Out Too Much January. Our goal was to eat out only one time a week. I am happy to say we’ve accomplished that. I know for some that is a lot, but for us we had fallen back into the convenience of eating out two to three meals a week. Eating out is expensive and not that nutritious. As I look back over the month, we have said no many times to eating out requests, , actually we have said, "I said no, quit asking!" I am happy to report everyone is still alive. Let’s see if we can keep it up!

Happy Monday Everyone, enjoy your week and remember He is faithful!

Monday Minute Memories, January 23, 2012

Out in Blogland several bloggers do a Friday’s Favorite Five where they name five favorite things about the past week. Or Wordless Wednesdays where they just show pictures of the past week. Here I am introducing my own version of a once a week blog called, “Monday Minute Memories”. A bit late this week and a bit boring of a week!

1. Family Room. I love our family room. I love the color. I really love that our names are on the wall. Yes, I painted our names on the wall in our family room. I think it is funny that people always ask in shock, “Did you really paint your names on the wall?” I am not sure why it is shocking that I have our names on our wall but, I’ve always wanted to do it. So when we first purchased this house it was one of the first things we did. I love that we have an elliptical and recumbent bike in there as well because misery loves company. This past week we were all sitting on the watching television, when a commercial came on for The Vow. Darya said, I want to see that! I asked what is it? She said, “The Voe” Jayden busted up laughing and said, “It the Vow! Wow!” Public school education at it’s finest.

2. My Fitness Pal. Well this past week I did lose 1.8 which was decent, but still not the same loss I was seeing with WeightWatchers (WW). I went back to WW on Monday. My Fitness Pal is based primarily on calories, while you can monitor your fat, protein and carbs – it is primarily based on calories. WW points take into account fat, carbs, fiber and protein.

3. Pinterest. Like Facebook is an evil, time thief, but I must say tangible things have come from this addiction. It’s like a tsunami of ideas in every aspect of life. Pinterest is like an organized, online Smashbook. It makes strange food combinations seem normal. Have you ever tried French toast made from pork rinds? I have and it is actually pretty good. If you are in a cooking slump and tired of the "What's for dinner?" then you need to visit Pinterest. This week I tried three new recipes I found on Pinterest that sounded nasty but were actually delicious and a healthier alternative for me. First, the Monster Smoothie, I am happy to report it was yummy and chockfull of spinach, 4 cups! There are a lot of green monster smoothie recipes out there, but we tried Iowa Girl Eats she claims it is her secret diet weapon. Three out of 4 of us gave it two thumbs up and that is because it tastes like a banana smoothie and one in our family doesn’t like bananas. Second, Cauliflower Pizza. surprisingly also very tasty! Everyone liked this one. We tried the one listed on Eat. Drink. Smile. It calls for a whole egg, but I am wondering if egg beaters would work too. I will have to try next time. Third, zucchini chips, which I was accused of referring to as “fried pickles” while they were tasty, they were too time consuming to make and they shrunk to almost nothing! Next time I will stick with the zucchini sticks.

My cauliflower "grained up"

The cauliflower crust before the toppings. You can see my edges got too brown.
So I just cut the edges off.

Pizza complete with the toppings. Best way to eat cauliflower in my opinion.
Plus, cauliflower has a ton of nutritional and health benefits over the typically pizza crust.

4. Smashbook. I am loving the Smashbook! This week’s entry focuses on things that make me laugh out loud. One thing is a body slimming shirt for men. When I read the advertising I can’t help but laugh that I actually wanted a career in advertising; as I am pretty sure these are the things I would get stuck advertising. Look stunning! Flatten your belly! Uniquely designed firming panels to trim and tighten that bulging beer gut so you look like you have a firm and fit six-pack abdomen instantly…then pass out from the amount of compression required to hold that gut in! See why I switched fields? Do guys really buy and wear those?

5. Sleepover. The College & Career girls at church sponsored a sleepover for the youth girls. Being the food pusher I am I offered to make breakfast for them. One replied and said, “it’s okay we were just going to buy them donuts” then another replied, “you were going to make us breakfast?” I replied, “I offered” the next message…”we accept!” So I made big, fluffy biscuits, creamy sausage milk gravy, delicious crunchy hashbrowns, complete with Darryl’s famous scrambled eggs. Don’t you love all the adjectives?  It sounded like it was a total success.

Happy Monday, family and friends.

Phone Stacking, Strange Addictions & Smashbooks

Out in Blogland several bloggers do a Friday’s Favorite Five where they name five favorite things about the past week. Or Wordless Wednesdays where they just show pictures of the past week. Here I am introducing my own version of a once a week blog called, “Monday Minute Memories”. Will you join me in posting on Mondays some of your memories from the past week? It’s a great way to get out of your blog-slump and start posting again. Let me know if you do, I’d love to read them!

1. Phone Stacking. Have you heard about this new game? I first heard about it this past week.  You’ve seen the dinner tables, especially those of families, who each have their phones out with the glow of their phones reflecting on their faces. The new dinner game is designed to put good company ahead of technology. The rules? Once everyone is seated (or has ordered – determined ahead of time), the phones are placed face down on the table. If you are feeling really adventurous you can stack them like in the photo. The first person to flip over their phone loses the game and pays for the entire bill. If the bill comes before anyone has flipped over their phone everybody is declared a winner and pays for their own meal. In the rare event more than one person flips over their phones at the same time, then they split the bill. Finally, you can’t mess with anyone else’s phones. I am game!

2. My Fitness Pal. While I only lost one pound this past week, I think I may have figured out the system. In Weightwatchers when I stay on plan I typically lose about 2-3 pounds a week. I am changing up things a bit, looking at the balance of my day differently and we will see if I net a higher loss tomorrow at weigh in. Hoping the youth night didn’t sabotage me, although I did pump out some push-ups, played some friendly basketball and volleyball I am hoping those activities burned a gazillion calories that I ate in pizza. I did manage to eat NO desert! Big deal for me.

3. One Thousand Gifts. I am continuing through Ann Voskamp’s book, at this rate I should be finished by Christmas 2012. It is a slow read for me and an even slower learn as my faithful husband reminded me this past week with his three letter response when I texted him that “10 minutes after leaving home and I’m still in Moore”…”car wreck”….oh, I probably should clarify to him…”not mine”. His text back simply said, “ptl”. Those three little letters, which I know and we got to teach the meaning of to the youth this week. Is “praise the Lord”, yes I know give thanks in all things, even car wrecks that delay you 10 minutes into work on a Wednesday. The day I try my best to get to the office early, so I can leave early, to arrive home early, to make dinner for my family before church. Yes, praise the Lord for delays, who knows what it delayed me from and it could have been me in a wreck instead of the one who delayed me. It is not just giving thanks in the microscopic good things, but in all things I am reminded, the good, the bad and the ugly. I need the right perspective. I know I am pitiful. What a silly, trivial complaint. I am supposed to be learning like Paul to be content. I need my daily outlook to match my eternal outcome, to look past the superficial worries, delays, or issues that cause me to complain and realize two of the holy callings I have and that is to give thanks in all things and to be content. Lord help me.

4. Intolerance. Lactose. This past week Darya and I went to another doctor’s visit in search of answers to why she cannot exercise, run or exert herself without getting 6 to 8 hours of “bend-you-over” stomach cramping, followed by vomiting and then fatigue. The GI doctor told us that her enzymes indicating lactose intolerance were pretty high, he would categorize her between moderate to severe. Since her last visit 4 months ago she had gained 9 pounds. He said he was more concerned with her developing insulin resistance. I know from working the health field that prevention of diabetes includes diet and exercise. We are working on the diet and she saw a loss last week, she wants to play organized soccer, basketball and volleyball at school so bad. I told her to start slow working out on our recumbent bike and build up. She worked out for a short time the day after our visit but could feel the painful stomach symptoms coming on. The good news is she can tell when it is going to happen and can stop, then the pain isn’t as bad. She did have pain through the night, but not the knock you down in bed followed by the vomiting pain. She also says she gets a taste of blood in her mouth. It seems like we’ve been to every specialist out there and now we have hit a dead end. What we have found out is that she is lactose intolerant, has a cross-fused ectopic kidney and a narrowing of her celiac vein. Please join us in prayer to the Great Physician to heal her.

4. Smashbook. After seeing a friend’s new-fangled – freshly factory-made Smashbook, I thought how cheesy mine looked. I do like it but I like hers better! I actually like it because I don’t have to apply scrapbook paper to the schoolbook notebook paper in mine to make it look smashing. So I grabbed my Michaels coupon and headed over and got Darya and me one. Darya has already started hers and I am hoping to get to mine today. So much to do and so little time to do it all.

My Cheezy Smashbook, outside

The Official Smashbook

Every page has different papers. This one reminds me of my grandpa because
he would always say, "don't sit there like a knot on a log."

5. Strange Addiction. I have a marvelous update to share this glorious day! Jayden's strange addiction of jumping and hitting the ceiling fan chains has been cured!! My husband did a needle-nose intervention on the chains. I told Darryl just don’t make them so short I can’t reach them. I think it is funny, because Brandon did the same thing. He was always jumping up trying to reach something. When Brandon graduated from ceiling fan chains to top of doors all I heard all day was thud….thud….thud.

Happy Monday, family and friends.

Monday Minute Memories Jan 9, 2012

Out in Blogland several bloggers do a Friday’s Favorite Five where they name five favorite things about the past week. Or Wordless Wednesdays where they just show pictures of the past week, which I take a lot of pictures, but how boring to see the pictures in my 365 Facebook Album and here, so I am introducing my own version of an once a week blog called, “Monday Minute Memories”. Will you join me in posting on Mondays some of your memories from the past week? It’s a great way to get out of your blog-slump and start posting again. Let me know if you do, I’d love to read them!

1. Starting My Fitness Pal. Which means it is a new year. What is so magical about January 1 that makes all of us want to start new things? Whatever it is I like it! Or as I heard in my staff meeting today…Winning!! I like beginning new things, because it reminds me of the truth that with God He makes all things new and for those of us who are in Christ, the old has passed away, behold the new has come! If it proves effective, I will be cancelling my online WeightWatchers subscription. So far, I like it, especially since it is F.R.E.E.

2. New color and cut. Compliments of a Chad Burton Groupon. I must confess it was a much needed service too. I know one of life's happy, temporary frivolousness. So temporary that I need about 6 more of those Groupons.

3. High School Basketball. Westmoore to be specific. This past weekend we went to support one of our youth in a basketball tournament which brought back all those memories of high school and a grateful moment that I am no longer in High School. The One Thousand Gifts book is training me to give thanks even for those seemingly microscopic items, because if we miss all the minute parts, the little things, then we miss the whole. The games were exciting and we had a great time.

4. Grandbabies. Love her. We may have a bias evaluation, but we think she is pretty darn smart. Jayden said, “Mom, I think she is as smart as a three-year-old.” This visit she enjoyed putting coins in a piggy bank. Not the Fisher-Price coins that are the size of a small saucer but actual coins.

5. Z-paks. So thankful for these meds. All last week, I fought off a yucky cold. Friday, I gave in, waved the white flag and proceeded to the doctor, today I am feeling back at 100 percent.

6. Sunday PM Nursery @ Church. I have decided the PM stands for “Priceless Minutes” not only because time with God’s little children is not only an investment in their lives, but in mine as well. No wonder Jesus instructed us not to hinder the children for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Their little minds are so pure and innocent. This past Sunday night we only had three little girls, two of them were playing house together and my teenage daughter was in the midst of them. The other little girl and Jayden were building an airplane with Legos. I thought this will be a great time to cut out my coupons from the Sunday paper. When I pulled the coupons out two of the little homemaker girls came over to see what I was doing. One little girl with her beautiful smile asked, “What are you doing? Cutting coupons?” I smiled at her correct observation and replied, “Yes. Does your mom cut coupons too?” She smiled back and very proudly said, “Yes!” Then the other girl who did not appear to be paying attention and was busy building with her Legos said, “My mom doesn’t cut coupons. She cuts potatoes!”

Happy Monday, family and friends!

Gifts in January

I begin hearing and seeing the book One Thousand Gifts – A Dare to LIVE FULLY Right Where You Are by Ann Voskamp pop up on some of the Christian bloggers I read; but most of them were very vague in giving a full review. One blogger even said “I started it ages ago but put it down because I found it difficult to read in terms of simple reading comprehension.” This came from a blogger who I respect much of and has read Pilgrim’s Progress several times, which for me was a difficult read, so much that I did the same thing with Pilgrim’s Progress that she did with One Thousand Gifts, I put it down. Only to pick it up and try again, put it down, pick it up, put it down and given up.  Another blogger said, “Her words are strung together with the strength of a spider web and as delicately as the veins in a butterfly wing.” So I became intrigued by the vague and mixed reviews of One Thousand Gifts, especially since it spend 22 weeks on the New York Times Best-seller’s list, that the words had been translated into six languages, that a reader in Iraq would read it and give their life to Jesus.

I am not here to give a full review of this book, because I am just wading into the pages. That is a creative way to say I am a sloooow reader. Ask my husband, he will tell you. I don’t like to think about it as being a sloooow reader, but a reader who savors…taste…enjoys the words. Doesn’t that sound better than you are a sloooow reader? It certainly does to me and that is why I am a sloooow reader. I enjoy reading and meditating on the things written on paper, pondering in my mind the meanings of the words and the applications to my life. Sure, I am jealous of those of you who can do this at lightning fast speed, but I can’t. Let’s just say if I ate the way I read, I would probably be skinny.

The book title in itself intrigued me…One Thousand Gifts! Who wouldn’t want 1,000 gifts?

The book begins with the author’s entrance into the world and her memory of her little sister being ran over by a truck with phrases and words like “vernix-creased” and “grave’s precipice “. I must admit it took me longer than normal to get in to this book, probably because I had to keep looking up words. So far, it is a very real raw look at her life and journey from being “snapped shut to grace” to living fully in His grace through eucharisteo. Eucharisteo. It means thanksgiving. At its root it means grace and its derivative is joy. The author peels back through layers of scriptures (Luke 22:19; 1 Corin. 11:23-24, 26; John 11:41; Matt 11:20-21, 23 and Luke 17:15-19) to find several meanings and purposes to thanksgiving. Go read and see.
My favorite is the story of the 10 lepers. You know it. Only one came back to give Jesus thanks for healing them of leprosy. Ann questions, if Jesus had already healed them, then what did Jesus mean when he told the one that came back “Your faith has made you well?” She digs deeper to discover the Young’s Literal Translation that “your faith has saved you”. It is sozo in Greek. In our words, it is salvation. There is so much there I had to stop and savor that! As my previous Sunday School teacher would say, “chew on that cud”.

May I share one more nugget with you that I loved? “Thanksgiving is the evidence of our acceptance of whatever He gives. Thanksgiving is the manifestation of our Yes! To His grace.”

You see 1,000 gifts, we see as what we will receive, but in truth we have already received, we just need to open our eyes, be aware, and watchful to behold the gifts we have…not the gifts we want. Isn’t it human nature to think that gifts are things we are going to get instead of thinking of gifts as what we already have? I've already been challenged just through the first three chapters to live full of eucharisteo.

The Long Lost Posts of 2011

Yes, I wimped out of blogging the entire month of December.

It’s been a long while since I’ve visited the pages of this blog, so long I had to go look up my password, but if it counts I have thought about blogging often. Now that the busyness of Christmas and the New Year is over, the empty pages are calling my fingers. I don’t know if there is any merit in looking back on those half-baked posts that I started but didn’t finish, but I do think I will mention a few that I don’t want to forget.

Like the terrifying night when my nine year old son ran away from home at 10 pm at night, but thankfully the police found him safely, but to our shock it was approximately four miles away from our home. Scary.

The day God physically confirmed in my heart, mind and soul that my husband and I are truly one flesh.

The joy of watching God using my husband to minister to the youth and college/career kids at our church. I know what a gem I have in him, now others are seeing the heart he has for God too.

Youth & College/Career Christmas Party

The day I learned that my dad has melanoma and myeloma cancer.

The excitement of Darya’s science fair project being selected for districts which I failed to get a picture of her with her board. Bad...bad...momma!

Not all condiments are created equal

My annual Black Friday shopping experience this year with Terri, Brittany and her sister Mindi, and finishing up 12 hours later with my sister Gaye and Jennifer. I know you are really sad that I didn't give you all my black belt shopping tips, maybe next year.

Ready to take on the crowds!

Waiting for the BX to open

At this point Jennifer was holding me up.

Also, I should also point out I failed at my “attitude of gratitude” blog experience by only making 19 out of my 30 posts. That's what happens when you have lots of cooking and baking to do, family meals to attend, homework to help with, gifts to wrap, band concerts, church activities, light shows to see, birthdays to celebrate, etc....etc....life to live.

Finally, I witnessed the ending of a breaking and entering during broad daylight in our neighborhood, complete with a police chase and all that it lacked was the recording of it for prime time TV.

There were other things, not major life changing things, but random things that made me want to blog. Like ketchup. Or reflecting on how life would have been different in my family if my Uncle Felix would have lived a longer life. But life happens. Blogs don’t get written. But God remains faithful.

In October 2010 I begin blogging and finished with 23 blogs. This past year I managed 77 blogs. So as I raise my shot of Nyquil for this annoying cough…here is to a new year of blogging! Cheers!