Reclaiming the kitchen

Today I reclaimed my kitchen. We have completed homeschooling for the year, and so I am moving out all of the educational materials from my kitchen. Before anyone gets too worked up thinking I am keeping educational materials away from my kids - it's quite the contrary, I'm relocating them into a hall closet to make the coloring pages, markers, crayons, scissors, etc, easier to access for the kids, now that they are old enough to use these items without making a mess.

By claiming my kitchen back, I feel inspired to spend some time menu planning. I'll keep you posted...

Making my comeback!

Well, here we are well into May and it's been months upon months since I've felt comfortable talking about weight loss and body image. Stress is a terrible thing - I've had sleep issues, weight gain issues, and all sorts of yuckiness that accompany the out of control feeling of way to much pressure and not enough coping mechanisms put into place.

In February, I peaked at 155lbs. Which is only 10 lbs away from my delivery weight with all of my kiddos. Ouch, for me, that's a lot of weight.

Yesterday, I jumped on the scale for a very successful weigh-in of 141lbs, which is still alot when you're 5ft 4inches.

I'm going for another 16 lbs by the end of this summer.

I have a work pool-party scheduled for Memorial day weekend (May 30th), which is pretty much my worst nightmare ever. EVER.

Beginners Sabbath School Room

I cannot take full credit for how adorable this classroom is. I only re-arranged the furniture, the fantastic paintings on the walls were there when I took the position as co-coordinator for the year. As the kids come in, they get greeted by whoever we assign as "secretary". Each child gets a name tag clipped on. I firmly believe that by calling kids by their name, we really engage them into what's going on.

This is not a drop-off class. Parents are required to attend with their children. This makes it difficult at times because parents can get a little chatty.

My little helper being silly!

The classroom chairs are arranged in a square, but the front edge has no chairs. There is a felt board on the wall, a table for props, the easel and birthday chair. The songs and lesson are written on huge cards and placed in the flip top easel. I have to continually encourage the parents to help sing.

There's a shot of the temple and the blue felt board. Notice the memory verse on the felt board. I've got to find a creative way to hang up our memory verses though-out the room.

This is such a great room to teach in. First we do a song service to warm the kids up. Then we do the routine songs - ringing bells, tick tock sticks, Bible Book song, and have opening prayer. Then we do the interactive lesson. During today's lesson, the kids clapped out their memory verse, took turns rocking their baby in the cradles, placed families up on the felt board, jumped around and "grew" to a growing song, pretended to be the "people" in the Joash story - bringing offering to the temple, and then "painting" the temple with giant paint brushes. Then we sang This Little Light of Mine, while snack was being handed out. Everyone eats their snack sitting on the floor, listening to the story of Joash (or whoever we are studying that month). Then when snack and story are over, the kids go to the round tables and do the craft that has been set out for them. The three year olds love to color, cut and paste everything in sight.

It's going to be a super fun year!

Welcoming the little ones at church

This year I am co-leading our 3 year old classroom at church. The class is scheduled to start at 10, but inevitably there are at least half of the parents that can't seem to get there until 10 minutes after class has started. Our Children and Women ministry pastor suggested that back when she taught the class years ago there was a short song service to welcome kids as they were coming into the classroom. This means that class "starts" at 10 minutes after now, to make up for the late stragglers.To create an interactive song service, I took the top 10 songs that the 3 year olds are familiar with . This in itself was a difficult task to undertake, because there are some great songs like Father Abraham, that are fun movement songs, but too long for a short song service, and there are some songs like Our God is an Awesome God that my 3 year old knows, but purely because an older sibling (or two) might have taught it to him.

Our songs are:
If You're Happy and You Know It
Head, Shoulders, Knees, Toes
This Little Light of Mine
Happy, Happy, Home
My God is to Great
I'm in the Lord's Army
Jesus Loves Me
Peace Like a River

And a few others that have slipped my mind.
The little wooden shape is hot-glued onto a craft stick. On the back of the craft stick I wrote the name of a song in black marker. I have the flower pot lined with tissue paper and then filled with marbles (left over from our old fishtank, thoroughly cleaned). The marbles make it easy to stick 4 or 5 sticks into the planter. Once there are five or so kids in the classroom, I let one child pull out a stick and we sing the song. I was nervous because this is not a drop-off class, the parents actually stay with the kids in this class. It worked out great and the kids loved singing a bit to warm up before starting the lesson.

Week 1 challenge: where did those calories come from?

I belong to Weight Watchers. I read the message boards, but I don't quite put in all of my foods lately. A big part of that is because since my husband got sick, I tend to do a LOT of comfort eating. Or I tend to think a bite here or there doesn't count. Yikes, I was really wrong on that last one - yesterday I ate 4 Oreo cookies and when I plugged the points in, it "cost" me more than my regular lunch.

Anyhow, on the WW boards, there are weekly challenges named super-cute things. Most people scroll through the board and find their "clique" and chat with them via a string of threads. I confessed to my friend, Amber, this week that I need to focus on finding more real life friends that can give me real life hugs when times are tough, versus cyber-friends. I still enjoy the cyber-friends that I have, but I need to have some balance with some face-to-face friend time, too. Does that make sense? Therefore, I read a bunch on the boards, but I don't really jump into any one group.

I get support from my Mommy-friends that have kids in my kids' classes at church (where we will be heading in about an hour). We've been issuing little challenges every once in a while. I thought I would share them here for anyone else that's interested. All of our challenges are related to health. A few weeks ago, there was a challenge put out there to take the pressure off of "the scale" and put the control back on being healthy. You'll notice the ticker is gone off my site - because the constant visual reminder that I'm not where I want to be was really weighing me down. I put the scale a way for a bit and then pulled it out again this morning. My last recorded weight some time last month was 150 pounds (my goal is to be 125, I'm 5 ft, 3in). My weight this morning is 147.2 pounds. It is what it is, and I'll still weigh every once in a while because I am an objective data kind of person, but I've gotten over the obsession of jumping on the scale every time I pee. :)

This week's challenge is directly a result of my 4 cookie Oreo binge. I wouldn't really call 4 cookies a binge, but if you knew how many points they were - I could have gorged myself on some vegetables. With no further ado - this week's challenge: watch out for sneaky calories. I plan to write down in my new health journal (aka, spiral notebook found in unpacking this week!) all of the condiments that I use this week - mayo, salad dressing, butter - etc. All those tiny things that either I add or anyone else cooking adds to the food - I'd like to research how many points I'm spending, but also the real side of food - the sodium, fat side. And come up with some healthier alternatives.

My deepest fear

I'm cleaning out some areas of our home office , tidying up and sorting through papers. I came across a crinkled paper in one of my old loose leaf notebooks from my college days in the mid-90's. I can remember the day one of my nursing teachers handed it out for worship. It makes me stop and think about my life every time I read it:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our Light, not our Darkness, that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are you NOT to be?
You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world.
There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.
We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone.
And as we let our own Light shine, we unconsciously give permission to let other people do the same.
As we are liberated from our own fear, our own presence automatically liberates others.

- Nelson Mandela, 1994 Inaugural Speech

4th of July Flag Cake

Joshua saw a picture of an American Flag cake on the cover of a magazine last week and decided that we needed to make one for the 4th of July.

We used angel food cake for the cake itself.

Cool whip for the frosting.

He counted out the 50 blueberries.

And tried very hard to make 13 stripes alternating strawberries with no stawberries.

BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

This is my super-fast dinner, with help from the crockpot.

In the morning, toss a few frozen chicken breasts into the crockpot with a bottle or two of BBQ sauce. By the time you get home, dinner is made. Take two forks and shred the chicken. And voila! Dinner is made.

Don't forget to pick up some fresh bread from Publix on the way home.

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

For Bill's birthday today, I made a carrot cake with cream cheese icing from scratch. I didn't get a picture of the cake, so here is a picture snapped while Daniel was napping and his attack dinosaur was standing guard.

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Ingredients:

4 eggs

3/4 cups vegetable oil

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

3 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose baking flour

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 tsp ground cinnamon

3 cups grated carrots

1/2 cup applesauce

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1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour cake pans.

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2. In mixer, beat together eggs, oil, sugars, vanilla, applesauce. In seperate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Add dry mix to wet mix in mixer. Fold in carrots, pour into pan.

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3. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes.

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4. To make frosting: In mixer, 1 stick butter, 1 block cream cheese, 1 tsp vanilla and 4 cups powdered sugar - mix until frosting is desired consistancy.

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Yummy!!!

Lunch Guests Menu

Today we had Mom and Bill over for lunch. Bill's 65th birthday is today. It's hot, hot, hot and with Bill's health, his appetite is really poor. Bill is also very sensitive to smells, so I didn't want to cook anything "smelly" - good or bad.

Today's lunch fare:

Sandwiches!!

Seriously, what a great plan for a non-messy lunch for when we are having guests! We had fresh baked bread from Publix, 2 different deli meats, 3 different cheeses, sliced tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, mustards, mayo - and anything else one could want on a sandwich. The easy-peasy part of this is that most of these things are normal items from our refrigerator anyway! The huge sandwich making bar was a great hit. Paired with some chopped fresh fruit, and baked tortilla chips - everyone was happy!

While this seems like such an easy solution, it was really eye-opening for us. We've been wanting to introduce ourselves to visitors at church and invite them to lunch at our house after church. However, it's always really hard to figure out what strangers would want to eat for lunch. But we're thinking this sandwich making bar just might be a step in the right direction! How do you do a quick lunch for guests on short notice?

Hot summer night dinner and yogurt woes

It's a hot, steamy, stormy night. I didn't really want to fire up the stove, and it was too stormy to grill out. A bento-type meal was in order!

Tonight's main fare:
Peanut butter cracker sandwiches
Yogurt
Chopped fruit

With a big glass of ice water

My concern is this: I've spent way too much time reading the yogurt labels lately. Yogurt is really high in sugar. I don't want to do Light or any other low-sugar yogurt, because then the sugar is replaced with a chemical alternative sugar substance, and I'm even less of a fan of sugar substitutes than I am of pure sugar. I've tried Greek yogurt, and honestly, I'm not a fan - it actually makes me gag to even think about it.

I'm considering making my own yogurt. Anyone else try this? I'm gonna need some tips!

Taking time to reflect

I haven't posted on our family blog or this blog for probably the longest hiatus since I've begun blogging. I just needed some time to really think about if I wanted to continue blogging. I get very afraid of the written word. Since this is only one dimension of communication, I worry that my words could be read in a way that gives them a different meaning than what I had intended.

I had taken a bit of a break to really think about what was going on in my life and to prioritize. As I've shared, my step-father is very seriously ill. He's doing great all things considered and is planning to come over to our house on next Sunday for his 65th birthday.

I'm also 6 months into my new full-time job and I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed at the large amount of responsibility. I can now admit that after the first 2 months into my position, I really enjoyed spending quite a bit of time with the upper management of this large healthcare institution. I started to think that was the direction that I should move in. I even met with a few college recruiters to consider an MBA, which is the next logical step for me for leadership in healthcare. However, it's such a big decision, I couldn't do it without lots and lots of prayer and reflection. I've had some really large nudging in the other direction, showing me that middle and upper management is not my calling. I enjoy my job, and I'm consistently told that I'm doing a good job, but I can't put my finger on what doesn't feel right - there's something there that I just know that this is just a stepping stone launching me to something completely different. So, after some serious consideration, I'm hoping to have my application to the Frontier School of Nursing complete by the end of July. I'm planning to obtain my Masters in Nursing with an emphasis as a Family Nurse Practitioner. I'm not linking to the school's website, but if you have time, check it out - the history behind it is fantastic and I'm really excited about the school. Nearly two years ago one of my best friends was trying to talk me into going to the school with her, I wasn't able to go because I had not finished my Bachelor's degree yet. She's now almost through and I am so excited for her.

Hubby and I have started going to our friends' house for Bible study on Friday nights. Last Friday night we took the motorcycle and it was a fun ride over there. It's a great group - the host family and our family are in our early thirties and three other couples are young dating college couples. I know it sounds crazy, but I feel like the more turmoil my life is in, the closer I feel to God. And because He knows my every feeling right now, I'm finding it really hard to offer even the most benign "thank You for our food" type prayers without feeling teary. It's really hard to explain.

Anywho - this is what's happening with us and why I've been absent. I've decided to continue to blog because it's a great outlet. But I've also decided that my days of trying to keep a daily record of what the kids are doing - yeah, that's pretty much over. I need to spend more time living in my life, and less time typing about it. :)

Fresh Fruit Crepes

All I can say is, "yummy!".

Last week for dinner one exceptionally hot night, I made fresh fruit crepes. I have to admit that I actually purchased my crepes from the grocery store, instead of making them from scratch, even though it's super-easy to make crepes, I've just been on over-drive lately with being so busy.

Ingredients:

1 package of crepes

assortment of chopped fresh fruit

yogurt

granola

I let the kids help me put these together. Basically, just pile the fruit in the middle of the crepe, dollop with yogurt and sprinkle with about 1/2 cup of granola over the top. I used Kashi cereal since we were fresh out of granola. Which reminds me that I need to post my recipe for granola - it's super easy and super yummy.

Tuna Patties

Ingredients:

1 large can of tuna, packed in water, drained
1 box of Stove Top Stuffing prepared
1 lg egg
1 chopped onion
1 chopped celery

1. Smoosh all the ingredients together into little patties.

2. Cook over med-high heat until cooked through and crispy on the outside.

Yummy!!

Cold Tortellini Salad

Ingredients:
Tortellini - cooked and cooled
Whatever else is in the fridge :)

Tonight I added:
Cherry tomatoes
Chopped broccoli
Chopped red and yellow peppers
1/2 can of garbanzo beans
1 chopped cucumber
1 small can chopped olives


There really aren't any directions - just mix it all together in a pretty bowl. Set on table with a few different salad dressings. My oldest likes Lite Italian. The middle likes Ranch. The youngest likes Mustard Honey (or Honey Mustard, for the over 3 crowd!).

Strawberry Banana Ice Pops!

This weekend, I made some strawberry banana smoothies - but I excluded the greek yogurt this time - so it was just strawberries, bananas, orange juice and ice. Yummy! The best thing about making smoothies is the leftovers! I pour our leftovers into our ice-pop makers.

We've got a few different types of ice-pop makers. Some folks advocate using a paper cup and popcycle stick, but I'd rather use something re-usable, and with a smaller serving size. So one of My Favorite Things this week is my ice-pop maker. I get to give the kids wholesome Popsicles.

Breakfasts are getting better!

A while back I asked for and got some great suggestions for breakfast foods. I've been allowing the kids to help me make breakfast on a one-to-one basis. This morning, Megan and I made toasted half-bagel peanut butter and banana sandwiches with gian strawberries on the side. The kids had Bubble Juice to drink. Yummy!

Bubble Juice AKA Omega-3 Supplement

My tip for getting the kids to take their Omega supplement is to mix it in their orange juice to make Bubble Juice.

Egg burritos- make mine Buzz Lightyear!

Now that the kids are out of school for the summer and I don't have to rush out the door in the morning to sit in the drop-off lane, I've been making a warm breakfast. I forgot how good it feels to start my day with something other than a banana and a Luna bar in the minivan on my way to work.

We purchase our eggs in the 18 count boxes because of our family size. Shortly after Easter, I came across these eggs with Disney Characters already stamped on them. After checking them out, I decided to give them a try. After all, it adds fun to whoever is helping me when they get to pick the eggs.

So Daniel loved helping pick an egg for each person earlier last week when we were making egg burritos.

Ingredients:

Eggs

Shredded Cheese

Whatever chopped veggies are laying around (we usually have a bunch in the fridge)

Whole Wheat tortillas

1. Scramble eggs, in the last minute or so, toss in the chopped veggies - I like 'em to stay a bit on the crunchy side.

2. Warm tortilla for a few minutes (I just keep the toaster oven on low and pop the tortillas in and out as needed).

3. Pile in center of tortilla some scrambled egg/veggie mix, sprinkle with some cheese, wrap and enjoy!

We keep a little salsa and sour cream on the table for dipping if needed.

I really need to make some and freeze them for mornings that I need to get to work early. We also have this for BFD some nights.

Pizza yumminess

I just thought I'd throw out a brag that my husband makes the best home made pizza ever. He makes the dough from scratch - but he won't let me have his super-secret recipe. Although, it totally cracks me up when he calls me at work to ask if we need anything else from the store because he's out of King Arthur Bread Flour. He's going to be a great Mr. Mom come July when he's finally done with his service in the Coast Guard.

He makes bread dough at least once a week, and a huge batch of it at that! We probably eat pizza at least once, but mostly twice a week. He takes the kids to the store and has them help pick toppings. They've come home with different colored peppers, banana peppers, olives, mushrooms, turkey pepperoni (which I'm not a big fan of any pepperoni, but they are), roma tomatoes and some fun speciality cheeses. I'm not sure if we'll ever order delivery pizza again!