Changes... the good, the bad.. well ya know?

Change... I'm not talking about the nickels, dimes, and quarters found in the crevices of your sofa! I'm talking change -- moving away from the path you are on and setting out in a different direction. The change that makes us uncomfortable because we are shifting out of our comfort zone. I think the sign below is how many of us envision change....

BUT, we should embrace change! I've made some big changes in my life over the past 3 years - food and fitness are the biggies! I'll be talk more about them soon. For now, let's quit our "stinkin' thinkin'" that change is too hard and not good for us. The reality is CHANGE IS GOOD and our BODIES DESERVE THE BEST!

Unexpected Rain & Deer

My normal routine on Monday, Wednesday, Friday is wake up at 5:15am and meet a dear friend for 3 miles. We started the routine in mid October. Intially, we did 2 miles on Wednesday & Friday. Around the holidays, we added the extra day and mileage. We are kinda like the post office - rain, sleet, hail, snow, and freezing temps have not stopped us until TODAY! We started out this AM and about 3 houses down from mine we heard some rumblings in the woods -- next thing we know 5 deer dart across the road in front of us! Needless to say, we were now AWAKE! About a block or so later, it's starts drizzling and then raining - BUMMER! Neither of us were prepared with an umbrella or head cover, so we decided to turn around. I'm guessing we got about a mile in which is better than nothing. I need to try really hard to make it to Zumba tonight!

Weight Watcher Recipe - Pimento Cheese

I jotted down this recipe from our Weight Watcher meeting last Saturday. I think pimento cheese is a southern thing, but it certainly is delicious. I made this last Sunday and it was yummy. It's creamy and has a slight sweetness to it. Pimento Cheese

1. 2 lb. Light Velveeta


2. 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar


3. 1/2 c. Splenda


4. 8 oz diced pimentos


5. 1 c. Kraft mayo (I used Duke's light mayo)

First of all, I decided to half the recipe since the Light Velveeta comes in a 1lb. box. I recommend placing the cheese in the freezer for about 30 minutes prior to shredding (trust me!). Now for the easy part - SHRED Velveeta and mix with remaining ingredients. Refrigerate. 1 TBS = 1 WW Points+

Weekly Menu

As a society, we seem to always fall short on time. I can certainly attest - there don't seem to be enough hours in the day. As a full-time mom, wife, employee and student - I'm always looking for ways to streamline our life and make it more organized as well as efficient. Recently I came across the blog, 5 Meals in One Hour. I requested her free trial. This afternoon, I spent an hour assembling meals for the week. Instructions and assembly were EASY! I'll update this post as we try the recipes this week.

• Saturday: Steak & Blue Cheese Salad with Hash Brown Casserole *I used steak leftover from a meal earlier in the week. After dinner, my fellas were requesting brownies. I didn't have a box mix on-hand, so we made these delicious brownies from scratch. YUMM! AND, we had the leftover Hashbrown Casserole with brunch on Sunday.



• Sunday: Sour Cream Noodle Bake with salad & French Bread



• Monday: Mini Honey Mustard Meat Loaves with Mashed Potatoes & Steamed Corn(5Dinners) *Review - I would rate 4.5 out of 5 stars. I think the meat mixture could use some of the honey mustard/ketchup topping. I LOVE that it is a Weight Watcher friendly recipe. :)



• Tuesday: Crispy Pork Chops with vegetables & applesauce (5Dinners) *Review - Let me first say - I am not repeat NOT a big fan of pork chops. I know they are the "other white meat" - but they're not my fav. However, I would totally give these Crispy Pork Chops 5 out of 5 stars. I think the Panko crumbs helped give them a "crunch" that refreshed my palate! And another plus - it's Weight Watcher friendly too. :)



• Wednesday: Chicken & Broccoli Bake with Brown Rice (5Dinners) *Review - Another winner! It would be very tempting to use 2 cans of soup (instead of 1) in this recipe, but one was just enough. I had one serving of the bake over brown rice. 4.5 out of 5 stars! And, if you're wondering -- yes, it is Weight Watcher friendly too. :)



• Thursday: Chicken Caesar Salad Pitas (5Dinners) *Review - Superhusband enjoyed this - he actually had the salad (no pita) and added a little parm cheese. We used the "lite" version of caesar salad too! I have class late on Thursday, so I packed some of the chicken-broccoli bake leftovers. Of course, all my classmates wanted to know when I had time to cook. Hehe!



• Friday: Shredded Beef Tacos (5Dinners) *Review - Normally, I use lean ground beef when we have tacos, so this was a change for us. I modified just a bit for sodium content and used Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime instead of a taco season packet. Next time, I'll add a bit more. Other than that, I rate this recipe 4 out of 5 stars!

Update!

Since my last post was January 2010, I'm fairly confident I don't have any "regular" blog followers. I didn't realize it had been "that" long! Anyway, we are still around and I'm hoping to take a fresh start with the blog. I've been contemplating deactivating my Facebook account for sometime. I really do enjoy surfing FB, but it is a time suck and distraction for me. I don't really have a lot of time to waste as a full-time mom, wife, student, and employee. :) So, this morning I took the plunge and deactivated it. I'm hoping to use the blog as my daily outlet for ramblings on life. I enjoy reading other's blogs and their journeys with home organization, cleaning, healthy eating and exercise - so you can bet those will be some familiar topics here as well!

Speaking of cleaning, I've discovered Shaklee products. I kept reading about them and didn't know if they were all they were cracked up to be. I decided to spend a little extra money (that over time would save us money on cleaning products) and see if they really worked. I can honestly say thus far I'm quite pleased. If you would like to read more, click over to Bowl Full of Lemons.

This week, I'm trying a new timesaver - 5 Dinners in 1 Hour. She offers a free trial menu, so I figured why not! I'll be assembling our meals tomorrow afternoon. Michelle offers the recipe; assembly & cooking instructions; as well as your shopping list. Sounds easy right?! The challenge for me will be modifying the recipes here and there to stay within Super-Husband's daily sodium range and Weight Watcher range, but I think we can do this!

If you have a Lowes Foods in your area, I highly recommend their shopping service, LowesFoodsToGo . You place your order online, select your pick-up time, and viola! Your order is ready. And if you're a couponer, no worries -- they will take your coupons at pick-up and apply the credit to your next order. I don't do this every week, but some weeks I'm pushed for time or life happens and it is a huge stress relief. I can place the order before I leave for work and Super-Husband or myself with pick it up on the way home.

Speaking of Super-Husband, health-wise he is doing quite well. 2009 & 2010 were challenging in so many ways - but God was with us every single step of the way. I won't go into all the details but God is good! Super-husband's is able to compensate very well considering the weakness of his heart and he doesn't let it slow him down. He is "living life". God used a particular situation this past summer to show me He was and has been in control. :) Funny, how I've known for years but often try to control a situation. Anyway, once God got my attention and I let go and let God do His thing -- my stress has been quite diminished and I'm living my faith in Him instead of being His bratty child tring to control a situation. :)

Wow! I'm rambling here -- I better save some for next time or I won't have anything to talk about. :)

Goals for 2010

I'm really not very good at this bloggin' thing - so it's probably a good thing I don't have any faithful readers. :) I thought I would post some of my goals here for 2010 - admittedly, they are completely random in some ways - but it's just who I am!

1 - Become more fit. In 2009, I completed a 5K training program. My goal was to run the entire 5K, but I ended up doing walk/run intervals. I really would like to "become a runner" - I don't know why - it's just something I want to do. I hope to complete 2 - 5K's in 2010.

Need some inspiration -- check out this blog - http://freshfoodiefitness.blogspot.com/2010/01/blogging-jogging-entry-2.html . The video is my 5K training coach - Stacie Battjes. I have nothing but great things to say about her and Fleet Feet.

2 - I'm going green with my clothing. Stay with me. I really enjoy digging and come across an unexpected find. Well, I've ran across two blogs since January that have inspired me to only buy clothing from consignment shops, thrift shops or Goodwill. There will be some exceptions to the rule as noted in one of the blogs.

• Undergarments and shoes will be bought brand new from a store.
• Same with bathing suits.
• If I get a gift card to a store I can buy clothes with the gift card.

Check out these two blogs for great finds:
http://paulsbride.blogspot.com/2009/12/thrift-store-shopping-spree-and-new.html
http://beautyandbedlam.com/category/frugal-fashionista/

3 - Cook more. I love to cook (but hate the clean-up!)... I hope to try new recipes and expand my horizons. For money reasons, we don't eat out that much - so I do find myself in the kitchen quite a bit.

4 - Get my learn on! Last year was an incredible journey starting school again - I'm excited to start spring semester in February. May I toot my own horn? I had a 4.0 GPA for fall semester -- not bad for a working mom eh? Here's hoping for a for a few more 4.0's!!

5 - ENJOY LIFE --- take advantages of all the precious memories and times made with my family and friends!

Happy New Year!

It's hard to believe another year has come and gone. They warned me this would happy as I got older. 2009 was filled with lots of ups and downs. In January, I registered for Spring Semester at Salem College. One of biggest regrets in life is not finishing my degree. I decided it was finally time - I was tired of talking about it and took the plunge. It has been one of the best decisions of the year. Unfortunately, the same night I was at orientation - Superhusband found out he lost his job. This was heart-breaking for me because he had tired for two years to get the job - finally got it in July 2008. However, due to his heart attack - he was unable to hold a CDL license (even though he wasn't actually using it to drive - but to test people). Anyway, the governer had put a hiring freeze out at that time, so there was nowhere other position for him to move into. Unemployment was a nightmare (it took nearly 3 months before he received it), so I was extremely thankful we had some savings built up.

In May, he got a job at a local hospital. The department he was working in was actually a smaller department underneath mine - but our work didn't overlap at all. There was rumors that they were not going to hire for the position, but they did. In November, they let him go at the end of his probationary period --- another whammie. (Ironically, they have since not posted or hired for the job.) Anyway, I know everything happens for a reason. We are prayerful that something will come open (soon!) in 2010 for him. He has lots of applications/resumes out - he has received some rejection letters (which at least lets us know the job has been filled or he wasn't fully qualified).

Despite the stresses of finances and job losses, we have been abundantly blessed. I am so thankful for my family and friends. The name of my blog - "Faith, Family and Friends" - truly states what my life is about without these I don't know where I would be. Superhusband did receive good news from his cardiologist --- he does not need a defibrilator and his heart pumping function has increased to 40%. Superson is now in 2nd grade (where is my baby!)... joined Cub Scouts this fall (and loves it)... started Upward Basketball this month.

In 2010, I'm hoping to take control of things I can and let go of things I can't. I've turned to food with all the stress of the past couple of months and that is one area that I CAN control. I started journaling my food January 1st --- this always seems to help me. I'd love to lose 20 lbs by summer. In general - I want to be a better Christian, wife, mother, and friend. Regardless of what 2010 holds for our family, I know who holds 2010 and all my trust and faith is in Him.