Friday, December 31, 2010

Getting ready to welcome in the New Year

Think it is going to be a low key kind of day and night! I couldn't be happier about that. Getting geared up to start tackling my New Year's resolutions.

Easy to start January out with sending cards to family and friends for birthday's, there's only 1! LOVE IT!!!

Starting a 3mo Paleo challenge on the 4th (whew, get a few more days in to adjust to the thought), that will take care of the inside. Posting my beginning photo tomorrow...yikes!

REALLY have got to get going on my walk with the Lord, thinking that doing a devotional of one of the bible in a year plans may be the answer to what I'm looking for.

Have my calendar all ready to go for the new year! Already have my school schedule written in there along with my work schedule!

Think I'm ready to face 2011! Guess it doesn't really matter, it's coming whether I want it to or not, might as well be ready.

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Merry Christmas

Christmas was wonderful! We are truly blessed by so many that love us. It was nice to be able to share the day with so many of our loved ones.

Jason got to go on a scavenger hunt for his gift this year...





After he received the shirt he was off to find the rest and this is the end result:




A Sigsaur P250 9mm! And of course it wouldn't be complete without having some time at the range, so there was also a prepaid card for "Trigger Time" (just happens to be the name of the shooting range as well)

The girls got just about everything they asked for and have been enjoying all that they have. I need to ask them what their favorite gift was that they received. I really haven't decided what my favorite was....Jason played a mean trick on me...lol...the new ipod nano comes in a box that looks VERY similar to that of a ring box which is what I asked for! I love my nano though ;)



I was laughing so hard that I was crying. You have to understand that when he proposed to me, INSIDE the ring box was batteries and I had just finished saying, "This better not be batteries" before I opened the present. The nano is getting lots of use though! My other favorite present was my Coach purse!




I'm guessing that Morgan's fav present was her camera! She has NO idea!!



Madyson's was probably her Pandora bracelet that Mimi got her, while I don't have a pic of her opening that, I did get a pic of her opening a charm to add to her bracelet!




And Meredith's would have to be Just Dance 2 for the Wii!!!




Even with all the spoiling this year in receiving gifts, I am a proud momma that can confidently say that the girls understand and appreciate that it is not about the receiving of gifts, but rather celebrating the reason that we even have CHRISTmas! Jason and I are very lucky parents!!!

Friday, December 24, 2010

Merry Christmas Eve

We started out the day on a quite note (didn't necessarily stay that way), I got up and went to breakfast with Jason and "the boys". That's right I CRASHED BREAKFAST!!! Nothing like CFA biscuit @ 7am...YUMMM! "THE BOYS" went on to play racquetball while I ventured into Wal-Mart to tend to some last minute details (that I confess, I nearly forgot about). Frantic phone call from Jason saying that I may need to come look at his nose as it may be broke...he decided that it was okay to continue to play and then come home. Meanwhile, I went ahead and got ready anticipating an early departure for Dahlonega....with a detour at NGMC along the way.

So as anticipated when Jason got home with some of "the boys" I determined that yes, indeed his nose is broke and needs surgi-glue for the open wound on the bridge of his nose. Miraculously we were in and out of the ED in under 2 hours!! WAHOOOO that is quite a feat all on it's own!

Just a minor hiccup in the day really and we are thankful for that, truely! Of course the teasing that will go on between him and "the boys" will be relentless, but all in good fun. I confess that I'm a little jealous that they are all still such really good friends after so many years (upwards of 15 years).

We made it to Dahlonega only 22min late ;) It was great to be able to walk in and immediately start eating some YUMMMMYYYYY food. We had ham (and a ham it was, something like 30lbs), mashed potatoes, biscuits, coleslaw, deviled eggs, and I believe cranberries were there as well. All very good. Got to start bringing a veggie to the table whenever we all get together. I guess it's because I'm concious of what we eat all the time that lately I've noticed that we always have a high carb meal while we are there. Nonetheless, dinner was delish.

Present time, present time, open it up and see what's inside! The kids love to see what they have gotten (of course), but they enjoy seeing what everyone else got as well and seeing the reactions fo what we got for everyone as well. Morgan received the rug, and chair she asked for (truthfully she probably got something else too, I just haven't seen it). Madyson received her Pandora bracelet and is EXTREMELY happy (she almost cried) she also got a Vera Bradley wallet. Meredith got her sewing machine and some sewing materials, she is thrilled. LOL...I'm not even sure what Jason opened, we did it a little different this year where everyone opened their presents at the same time...a little chaotic, but it worked. I received some workout clothes and pjs!!!

We had a great visit with Mimi, Pappy, Adrianne, Brent, Hunter, and Tucker...but we had to get home to tend to Isabelle who was very hungry when we got home. And just in time to make cookies for Santa! Yippeee, who doesn't like cookies for Santa...apparently Jason and Madyson! They both boycotted my cookies that I made tonight. No biggie, more for me...I mean Santa!

All in all a great day full of memories! That is what it is all about.

Thursday, December 23, 2010

12 days of Christmas

I have a whole new meaning behind that pharse, "12 days of Christmas" and I promise it does not include a partridge and a pear tree! That was the name of the workout I did yesterday. Doing that with some already very sore shoulders made for one painful night trying to sleep! Today's workout was much better....easier on the shoulders. The 12 days of Christmas workout consisted of: 1 overhead squat (22lbs), 2 pushups, 3push presses (22lbs), 4 goblet squats (30 lbs), 5 dips, 6 kettle ball swings (30lbs), 7 box jumps, 8 walking lunges, 9 wall balls (10lbs), 10 pull-ups (banded), 11 sit ups, 12 burpees. All done as if you were singing the traditional Christmas carole!

Thinking of taking pictures of my progress starting in January. So I guess January will be somewhat of a baseline photo. January is when I'm tackling the nutrition aspect of getting healthy. Trying very hard not to call it a resolution. But I will be visiting the scale (ick, really not wanting to)and I guess to make it "real" I'll post the progression here. No worries, no pics of me scanlty dressed (that would just be bad). On some level I think I'm afraid to lose weight as weird as that sounds. I don't want to have to go spend the money on new clothes, but I did ask for the next size down in clothes for Christmas so I should be set for a while. Hopefully by the end of January I'll be able to get into them ;)

A workout buddy and I are starting a food journal and are going to hold each other accountable in that area as well as showing up for our torture sessions. I'm really hoping to get past some of the "hang-ups" that I have that always seem to de-rail my efforts.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Could Neuropathy after a workout be a good thing?

I'm not sure! But I'm pretty sure I'm experiencing it this morning after my workout. It was a killer workout, which is really nothing new. Today's workout was a 20 min ARAMP (I think that is what it is called) as many rounds of 5 pullups, 10 ringdips, and 15 overhead squats. I was able to get 6 rounds in the 20 min. I struggled a lot with the overhead squats, which is what I think has caused the neuropathy now. Just on the left side, more specifically to the my thumb.

Today is a day at home with the girls being on break without Jason being at home and with nothing really planned.....mistake! Pretty sure they are concaucting a plan to drive me crazy. I will devise a plan for tomorrow, I can promise that. Can't imagine why, but they are not enjoying doing their chores. Oh well! Some things have to be done whether we want to do them or not.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

New goals?

Not sure if these are goals or not, but that is what I am going to call them :)In no particular order, just a few things that I need to be better at.

1. I am going to stay organized this next semester with my school calendar/studies along with staying on top of the girls school calendar/studies

2. I am going to send birthday cards to family and friends this year. (Be sure to send your address if I don't have it)

3. I am going to be more active in my walk with God (he's been dragging me alongside rather than me walking lately).

4. I am going NOT going to be on the board for BANS this next year.

5. I am going to start treating my body better with what I put into it. I really need to eat better and commit to eating better. Guess it's time to match the inside to the work I've been doing to the outside!

More to come, I'm sure

Monday, August 16, 2010

Grocery Shopping again! and more

You know for someone who doesn't like to grocery shop I sure have been doing it an aweful lot lately. Today's grocery trip went much faster than last weeks as far as the actual trip itself....preparing for it still took HOURS!!! BUT, it was worth it. Spent $149.09 and saved $83.33. LOVE saving money. I am determined to "beat the game"...one of these days it WILL happen.

So dinner for the last couple of nights has been very interesting to say the least.

We had Cheesy Stuffed Shells on Saturday..it received a 1 out of 3 kid approval rating. The rest of us thoroughly enjoyed it. I can't take full credit for it though, found the recipe in the "Best Loved" edition.

1 container (16oz) low fat cottage cheese (I substituted with ricotta)
1 pkg (10oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well drained
1 cup 2% milk shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
1/4 c grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp Italian seasoning
10 jumbo pasta shells, cooked, drained
1 jar (26oz) spaghetti sauce
1 large tomato, chopped

To make it:
Heat oven to 400*F. Mix cottage cheese (or ricotta), spinach, 1/2 cup mozzarella, parmesan and seasoning; spoon into shells.

Mix sauce and tomatoes; spoon half into 13x9-inch baking dish. Add filled shells; top with remaining sauce. Cover

Bake 25min or until heated through. Top with remining mozzarella; bake, uncovered, 2min or until melted.

Very easy to make and really delish!


The girls have been protesting having chicken pot pie for the better part of 2 weeks. It's something that has been on the menu and been replaced a couple of times. With the latest time being yesterday...gotta have chicken to actually make it! Go figure. BK to the rescue!!

I'd rate this 1.5 out of 3 kids for approval and that may be a stretch! I'm giving it this rating because they ALL ate it, they may not have liked it, but they did eat it. This is another Kraft recipe.

Cheesy Chicken Pot Pie

3 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 pkg (16oz) frozen vegetable blend
1/2 lb (8oz) Velveeta pasteurized perpared cheese product, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 can (10 3/4oz) reduced-sodium condensed cream of chicken soup
1 can (8oz) refrigerated crescent dinner rolls

To make it:

Heat oven to 375*F

Combine first 4 ingredients in 13x9-ince baking dish

Unroll dough; place over chicken mixture.

Bake 20 to 25min or until crust is golden brown.

Healthy Living: save 40 calories and 5grams of total fat per serving by preparing with Velveeta 2%, ff cream of chicken, and reduced fat crescent rolls.

All in all a very good dish...would be perfect for the Fall/Winter...a good comfort dish. For us moms in a hurry this is one you can prepare ahead of time and throw in the over....but being the slacker that I am, it didn't take that long to throw together. I combined all of the other ingredients while the chicken was cooking.