Movie Night Take 2

I sat on the couch and enjoyed another movie break, this one I recommend!

The flick of the night, "Fireproof." It reminded me of an after-school-special with great perspective, real life interest and a challenge to raise your living standard.

I understand that many churches are offering a full study series based on the movie principle (Love Dare). I'm not one to sign up for such and do believe the movie alone was enough for me to grasp the challenge, however, I can see the importance and encourage others to 'go all the way' with the concept.

***
Thanksgiving for the true love God offers freely and expects us to do so in the same way.

Movie Night Take 1

It has been FOREVER since I sat down to watch a movie and surprisingly last night I had both kids in bed by 8:30pm so I sat down on the couch and watched "Because I Said So" with Dianne Keaton and Mandy Moore. (I know it is an old flick, but I have been super busy with little ones and taking time for a movie isn't something I do. If I have the time I'm on the computer, reading or cleaning. ... I digress.) While I enjoyed watching the cast; Dianne is a classic, Mandy was enjoyable and the man Mandy ended up with in the plot - I don't know his name, oh he was nice to watch! I felt he was a new Matthew McConaughey; I found the story line to be extremely poor. If it weren't for the cast, I would have turned it off 1/3 of the way through. Never the less, it was nice to have a couch potato movie event and I hope to do more of the same while David is away.

Coming Attractions to my big screen (not new releases, but still new to me):

• Nights in Rodanthe
• The Way We Were (a classic that I've never seen)
• Evening
• Fireproof
• Wild Hogs
• The Bucket List

***

Thanksgiving for bed time routines, finally established, and prayer that they aren't interrupted now that I've given attention to them! *grin*

Odds and Ends

Like my brain these days, this is going to be a post full of scattered tid-bits...

• This past weekend I brought in to my home priceless, heirloom, treasures from my maternal grandparents. My Papa (grandfather) passed a few years ago and this past December my Mama (grandmother) - both I must add led their lives with extreme dignity, without any known regret and full of love for family and friends; their passings were each, thank the amazing Lord, peaceful, dignified and experiences I believe you would pray to have if you had a choice short of passing in your sleep. For the 31 years of my life, at least one and sometimes two or three holidays a year were spent around their dining room table and now, I have the honor of continuing the tradition in my home, I am now the holder of their table and matching hutch as well as a wood cabinet piece made by my great grandfather. I am touched in so many ways with this furniture. Not only does it completely match the wood pieces already in my home and fit our needs (a family table, a large piece of furniture to store odds and ends (the hutch), and a new found pantry (my use for the little cabinet), it adds inexpressible warmth to our living space. It is as if all of the love, friendship, memories...experienced in my grandparents' home have soaked in the wood fibers of the furniture and now I can feel them in my home. Also soaked in the wood is the aroma of their home; another unexplainable that has just always been 'Mama's house smell.' I walk past the pieces and I am transformed to their home. How I wish I could bottle "Mama's house" so I can always be with them. I pray that the smell stays in the wood forever!
• Who knew just how much 'homier' a room could feel with the addition of window treatment?! I have always admired others' windows but never wanted to spend the money or had the vision for dressing my own. That has changed over the past few weeks. I have found great deals on very simple curtains and have 'just done it' and how pleased I am with the results. With the exception of one room, I have found great pleasure in adding a simple 'throw' over the windows in my home. Just a little change makes a huge difference, especially when you are trying to escape the winter cabin fever blues!
• A complete stranger made an interesting statement upon seeing my children and I at the library. He rambled off the number of children, grandchildren and great grandchildren in his linage and topped off the listing with, "Grandchildren, and great grandchildren, are the rewards you receive for not killing your children."
• Just one day in to a month venture of David being away on work, I have downed three-fourths a package of creme cookies. Can we say emotional eater? I'll just allow this one pack and then get back on the wagon.
• Joyce Meyer described the life of an eagle...AMAZING! The development of the individual eagle, the courtship of the male and female, the mate for life commitment...I'm going to study the life cycle to learn more for the Bible says we shall mount up like eagles. More to come... .

Children are sleeping, Momma is beyond exhausted...must sign off. *grin*

***

Thanksgiving for family and home - the shelter, comfort and love I know I am so blessed to have and never take for granted - all are blessings from God.

Study Notes

My reading of the Word has been hit and miss over the past several weeks due to the lack of alone time, however, I have had very encouraging and spirit led moments watching a few tv programs and through casual conversation with others walking with purpose.

Though somewhat random, I share with you two bullet points from my study journal jotted down while watching two famous encouragers studying and proclaiming the Word.

• "Doubt is a cancer growth in the spirit that must be cut out by the scalpel of faith. Doubting is a chronic condition of the mind. It cripples people and makes them do nothing." Jesse Duplantis
• "Fear begins with a thought. We CAN control our thoughts and it is our responsibility to do so! Interrupt negative thought patterns with the Word of God voiced. ... The mind must be renewed with The Word. ... Peace is a blessing from God! A peaceful life begins with a peaceful mind. Don't wish for peace; MAKE it happen with Purpose! Make peace a priority!" Joyce Meyer

I'll likely share more of my revelations on the said notes when I have a moment to really ponder them further and have like time to blog. I pray sharing them in brief is enough to be an encouraging word for you in due season.

***

Thanksgiving for the Lord's constant direction and encouragement found in the every day.

Easy Chicken - Delicious

It's nothing revolutionary, creative or profound - but it is delicious and EASY!

I poured Ken's Steak House Lite Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing over boneless, skinless chicken in the crock pot; turned the pot on low for 6 hours and wallah...delicious, tender chicken served with green beans and a baked potato - also delicious; simply rinse potato, shake table salt all over it, poke holes and place in the microwave until tender (reminded me of Outback Steakhouse's fabulous potato).

***

Thanksgiving given for the fact that dinner doesn't have to be made from scratch, difficult or created out of multiple ingredients to be nutritious, delicious and good for the family.

Vertically Challenged

It only increased my height by one foot but that one foot takes on an important perspective considering that most everyone I know walks around naturally one foot taller than I.

Hayden carries around a step stool most everywhere lately and it was last placed in our family room which is where I, for whatever reason, stepped upon it and was immediately faced with one of my biggest pet peeves, DUST! Oh My Goodness! I SO have to remember to take the stool around with me when I clean for it is a WHOLE new world just one vertical foot up! I'll leave it at that.

***
Thanksgiving for the perfect height God has made me; though I may be a bit vertically challenged, I'm blessed to be an able body!

Flip Flop

I KNEW it was going to happen.

My mommy voice has been on high alert for a week. I ignored it. Left the room for 2 seconds. Heard a thud. Anticipated seeing Hayden on the floor...entered the room, only to find...Adelyn in the floor!

When I left the room she was sitting in her crib playing with a doll. She had just started holding on to the crib side rail to sit and play. And as of this exact moment, she has learned to pull up with more force and ... flip flop herself OUT of the crib (yes, mattress was still up and crib side rail down) and on to the floor!

Thankfully, the floor is carpeted and little Miss Adelyn is tough as nails. As I scooped her up she cried a bit (more shocked and upset than hurt), I held her tight, all the while putting the side rail in the UP position!

Just moments later, I placed her back in the crib (side rail UP) and she pulled to stand for the first time!

And then, up on all fours getting ready to crawl!

***

Thanksgiving for God's perfect engineering; little ones can take a thump and keep on going!

OOOOOOoooooooooooooooooooo CHOCOLATE

"Chocolate...chocolate...I need chocolate..."

The demand for chocolate continues, even after I've downed a few hand fulls of dk. choc. M&M's and drank a rich and delicious glass of milk filled with chocolate syrup. ... So what is there left to do?... I take the plunge and just do it... I take out a little spoon, fill it up with chocolate syrup and take it down! A liquid, straight-up fix for my addiction! *grin*

The best part...my husband rounds the corner just as I'm getting in to the grove! He takes one look at me and says, "How many have you done?" ... Like it is a complete drug fix. *LOL*

I was BUSTED! Caught chocolate handed!!!!

***
Thanksgiving for CHOCOLATE!

Sleigh Riding

The phone rings at 10am. Hayden runs to grab the phone and brings it to me. The conversation begins, "Has Hayden been able to sleigh ride and play in the snow??? The weather report says it will be melting away today. I'll take him out in it if he wants to play!"

Of course the person I'm talking with is my dad, AKA Pa; who else would be concerned about little Hayden and his ability to play in the snow?!

I pull out an 18-month snow suit, never been worn, from a 'to give-away' pile in the garage and find that it fits 32 month old Hayden like a glove! PERFECT - "he's ready to play in the snow Pa," I respond to my dad's asking, and with the excitement of a child, Hayden's Pa took off running through his house gathering his snow gear and in 20 minutes he was at our door step giving Hayden, yet another, first experience!

FYI: Discussing the snow suit situation with a wise 'been there' friend, I learned a valuable tip...do NOT get rid of snow suits or snow boots! They can be handed down to the next child! ~especially in my circumstance, a boy to a girl - the colors are suited well in this scenario.

***

Thanksgiving for the unmeasurable love of a grandparent and blessings for Hayden's Pa.

Fun Times in the House

Hayden is already pulling Adelyn around, doing big brother fun stuff and she LOVES it! *grin*

Another Mother's Blog Poem to Share

Surfing blogs and more blogs, I have happened upon http://beki-prose-ac.blogspot.com/ and found an interesting woman sharing her life in prose. Though I enjoyed many, and encourage you to click and read them for yourself, I just HAD to share the following...


Monday, July 28, 2008

Ode to a Weary Mother

Oh weary mother,
Don't give up!
Keep persevering,
Your time's not up!
I know it's hard,
This job you do.
The hours are long,
the accolades few.
Your strength grows thin
at the end of each day.
You try your best
to keep frustration at bay.
Sometimes the attitudes
are too much to bear.
There is so much whining,
It's just not fair!
Just trudge along, soldier,
don't give up the fight.
Keep on teaching them
what's wrong and what's right.
Keep on answering
all of their WHY's.
Keep on encouraging
all of their tries.
Don't give into weariness,
these days have a number!
Don't think of the hours
you have lost in slumber!
Your time will come
to sleep till dawn...
For before too long,
they will be gone.
There will be no more whining,
and no more fights,
no more deciding
who's wrong and who's right.
No more saying
"Because I said so!"
No more time
to watch them grow.
The job is tiresome!
But the rewards are great!
Your dedication can help
to determine their fate.

All credit for this work given to the Prose-ac blogger!

***
Thanksgiving for the amazing outlet technology has brought to mothers, women, people, all over the world! It is a blessing to see that around the globe there is a commonality among us all.

Soup Is On!

I cooked up a delicious soup and have to share...I give you my version of a recipe I located, you know my style, I take a method and do my own thing with whatever is in the cabinet and freezer...

Gnocchi Soup with Chicken and Veggies

Ingredients:
· 32 oz chicken broth
· Garlic powder – a few shakes
· 3 tablespoons of butter
· 1 teaspoon of sugar
· 1 bag of California frozen veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots)
· 16 oz box of potato gnocchi (thaw if you have frozen style)
· ¼ can of peas
· 2 -3 grilled chicken breasts; cut into small pieces
· Black pepper – to taste
· Dried celery flakes – a few shakes; or 1 thinly sliced fresh rib
· Seasoning salt – to taste
· Parmesan cheese – a few shakes of the imitation version or a hunk of fresh
· ¼ fresh onion – thinly sliced
· Parsley – garnish on top

Method:
Put chicken broth, garlic, butter and sugar in a large saucepan over medium-low heat, bring it to a simmer, and cook, uncovered for about 2 minutes. Add the frozen veggies and celery and continue to simmer for a minute. Bring to a full boil, stir in gnocchi and, cooking until the gnocchi are al dente, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in peas and chicken and turn to a very low simmer to heat chicken then remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste; stir in Parmesan cheese; top with touch of parsley.

Suggested side: hot ham and cheese melt sandwich

Yummy for the Tummy! This one is going in my rotation for at least one night a month!

***
Thanksgiving for a kitchen that is always cookin' and a new found enjoyment for doing so.

UGH...parenting...

It us an UGH parenting day for me.


For the past several days I feel frustration from and towards Hayden. I know it's a lot because we are stuck indoors day after day and we are both needing a change; but that requires getting dressed by a decent hour in the day and extra energy to get something accomplished outside of our routine. ***I'll prayerfully come up with a change of pace within the next few days to get us out of this...but until then I blog about my day...***


Every other sentence out of my mouth today was, "HAYDEN, if you don't stop, I'm going to spank you." - I always follow through with this warning so therefore, every other action was a spanking. Every other sentence from this one was, "STOP IT Hayden!" Sometimes changed up with, "NOW Hayden!" ... of course with each exclamation I was faced with a toddler doing the exact opposite on purpose. This behavior infuriates me to no end and that is the issue. I HAVE to learn to be more level headed and face him with calm, swift, constant discipline that is less yelling and off hand behavior on my part - mainly because it isn't working too well, or I'll say that it is getting old on both of our parts, another reason, because it's not the way I want to parent and lastly, it is just plain wearing.


I'm not saying that I expect parenting to be easy. I'm not saying that I don't believe in spanking for correction. I'm not saying that I don't enjoy discipline - I mean this in a very loving way for the Bible tells that even God, a loving Father, disciplines wrong behavior. I'm just saying that I KNOW that my quick, yelling, manic response to his toddler (expected) behavior is NOT correct and I need some better parenting knowledge to tell myself when faced with the next TT (toddler tantrum) for a TT should not result in an AT (adult tantrum).


So, I've addressed the issue, recognized and posted my incorrect behavior and now I need to hear from the sages out there who have wisdom to share.


***
Thanksgiving for the love and forgiveness of a little one and for the love and forgiveness of the Lord God who WILL bring correction and change to those who call on Him.

Justification Condemnation

Oh I'm really having a lesson this evening.

A lesson in justification and how 'justifying' something that I know is wrong to be ok doesn't make it right.

It's an odd 'place' to learn such lesson, but it really is sinking in to me so it's the right season and time regardless of the situation. Maybe my experience will mean something to you as well.

Let me explain.

For the past 13 years, I have been conscious of my dietary decisions. Along the years I have cut down on fast food, changed menu selections, adjusted grocery shopping and just been more aware of what I take in due to the fact that high cholesterol and heart disease runs in the family genes and quit frankly, in my jeans...it is a fact that my LDL count and over all blood cholesterol count are not healthy.

I started years ago with changing my mindset about how much I 'LOVE' cheese. I used to really devour dishes such as Chilli's conqueso dip. I won't deny that it is delicious, but I will deny myself the ability to indulge. Along this same line, I will never order an item such as a bloomin' onion from Outback, again, I note that I do like the taste, but hold the order for me.

Said decisions began to carry over to my cooking. I NEVER deep fry anything. All items are baked, and I don't miss any of the grease, that is a for sure fact! And in recent years I've learned more about various oils and have gone completely to EVOO (as Rachael Ray says). Do to David's high blood pressure, I'm more aware of sodium intake and have adjusted cooking methods to accommodate in that area as well. I rarely salt anything when cooking and have removed the shaker from our table. I have replaced cooking with salt to flavoring with herbs, spices and 'not salt' salt seasonings. Again, no loss to the traditional sodium or food flavoring.

In the most recent years, I have begun to change menu options in my kitchen. Much of this comes from the prompting of David. (I bring mention to the fact that after learning of his high blood pressure and realizing the impact of dietary decisions, David has eaten turkey and provolone sandwiches on whole wheat bread with Doritos for his work lunch for 3 YEARS running! And much to his surprise and lesson to all, he has completely adjusted to doing so and is completely full each and every day with no desire for anything different.) As mentioned in a recent blog, I haven't purchased red meat for at least 2 years - we have replaced ground beef with ground turkey and all other dishes are prepared using chicken. Oh wait, we have on occasion prepared hamburgers for cook outs as well as hot dogs (which will figure in to the point I'm getting to by the time I stop rambling here) and on occasion we have grilled a low fat steak option.

When it comes to snacking around the house, we have completely stopped purchase of all Little Debbie products and the like. We will indulge at times on homemade cookies, sometimes ice cream (always a low fat option) and an occasional pie and daily I take in a granola bar or dark chocolate M&M's. (Snacking on the "good stuff" like candy bars and Oreos is an issue with me when I visit my mom and dad though. I won't hide the facts - I can't say no to them, YET, hence the reason I don't have such items in my house.)

Getting closer to the point of this entry...my most recent learned health fact, taught to me from my aunt whom was informed by her cardiologist following TWO heart procedures (done within 2 months of each other) to fix blockages; when it comes to saturated fat, we should not have more than 5 mg a day!!!! At least that is the current medical advise. I have known for years to be mindful of saturated fat counts and have watched them, but not knowing the total amount for a day should be only FIVE!

Alright...so, I'm really watching my current choices to see just how they fit in to the saturated fat guideline. With mentioned choices, most items are extremely low and some at zero...but others, I'm needing to make more changes and find healthier options.

Now to the point...finally, right...this weekend David and I decided we were going to have a little Super Bowl party, just us, but still, we were going to be in the 'party' state of mind with our evening food choices. So immediately we think crock pot BBQ meatballs, little ham/cheese sandwiches and chips. Without even a second thought or a glance at the nutrition labels, all of these items landed in my shopping buggy, crossed the check out, were prepared in my kitchen, ingested and THEN, AFTER in the body, I took a look at the label. I started with and ended with looking at the meatballs alone. I was SICKENED. I wanted to pump them out of my system. Completely felt like an abuser serving such items to my family. OH MY GOODNESS...a serving size of the meatballs (before being prepared with sauce) is a measly 5 balls! And DOUBLE WHAMMY, OMG...the saturated fat in that amount...FIFTY-FIVE mg!!!!! That's ELEVEN DAYS worth of saturated fat in FIVE balls! And we ingested at least 10 each! OMG! I can't even bring myself to calculate the math on this intake alone. Not to mention ham, cheese and chips with them.

SO...the condemnation comes from my choice to justify the purchase, preparation and intake by saying, "It's a party. This is fun. Food makes the festivity. We don't ever eat these things. This one time won't hurt. I know the choices aren't 'good' for us, but I'll ignore the rules and do it anyway because this is what we know as party food." And looking now at the line-up, I realize even more how one poor choice and justification led to a whole string of the same.

Obviously, I'm having a really hard time with the choice now. But thankfully, I'm taking it all in and stocking my mind with the way I feel about the choice to 'justify wrong behavior.' I will store this experience and learn the lesson that justifying wrong behavior never makes anything right; even when it is food choice.

***
Thanksgiving for the ability to see and learn life lessons in the every day. May each day bring new awareness and lead to right behavior in all areas of daily living. For right choices bring peace and joy.