Happy 19th to us!

Hello August 3rd!!
Today is the anniversary of my wedding day.
Oh, yes....
the day of my wedding.
Not exactly the stuff fairy tales are made of.
If you don't know what I am talking about then refer to My Wedding Day Chapter One,
Chapter Two,
Chapter Three,
Chapter Four,
and finally Chapter Five.
You will hopefully laugh, but you will definitely cringe!!!

We have had so much fun relating this story over and over again to unsuspecting listeners! I think it is best done tag team style with my husband and I filling in the parts of the story we like the best.
I should have taken my wedding day shenanigans as a warning of how real life can be!!
Crazy, filled with mishaps, unpredictable (like the wind), out of tune, and drag you through the dirt wearying.
Man oh man...if that was all there was to it, no one would stay married.

But real life is also filled with sunshine,
and gifts generously given,
and friends to laugh and cry with you,
and family who has to love you,
and contracts signed,
and flowers and tulle and wedding cake,
and catch in your throat joy filled moments of wonder,
and commitments to love another person until parted by death.

Who can stand that much happiness in one day, let alone a lifetime of it?

Marriage can be an insane balance of wind and sunshine.
And that is okay, because one prepares you for the other, while the other helps you survive the one.
Does that even make sense??
Oh, good grief...I have been sitting here typing and backspacing for a good 45 minutes.

I just can't seem to find the words to tell you about how crazy hard maintaining a good marriage is, while on the other hand how amazing it is to have a partner who sustains your life in such a way that defies comprehension.


1 Corinthians 13:4-6
4Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous ; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly ; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth

Marriage lasts because we choose to put into practice these very principles.
Both of us!!
Okay, I gotta go. This marriage has also provided me with three children, who make concentration a bit of a stretch.

Fungus and slugs make my day!

I have this plant on my desk upstairs.
I like having a bit of life and green there.
I hope it grows to be large on amazing!
I looked over and noticed this morning a tiny little mushroom there sharing the soil.

Do you see it there close to the rim?

Yes, that has been the most exciting part of my day so far.
A fungus amungus!

That, and finally getting to the last two of what has turned out to be 11 loads of laundry these past three days.

Oh, and for the first time in 6 days I didn't see the very large, very black slug while on my walk this morning. I was kinda bummed, it was a very impressive slug!!

I also took the time to read my 13 year old son's blog which seems to be about war type games??!!?? I have no idea what he is talking about, but it seems very informative if you happen to be into that type of thing.
I am not, but will continue to read and attempt to decipher, cause I am cool like that.

I think I may be slightly allergic to poblano peppers. I am gonna eat the last piece of one for my lunch today and decide after that.

I gave my dog a bath. I enjoy that almost as much as I enjoy walking her.
Almost!!

Here is a burning question for you...Is the color periwinkle more blue or more purple?

Aren't you glad you took the time to come to my blog today?

Yogurt and Crunch

I came here today to whine about how much I am still in the throws of hating the whole dog walking thing, how it makes me sweat like a 12 year old, how I have shin splints from walking without stretching enough, how she isn't all that much better behaved yet and that I am absolutely not gonna give up on this.

But I really don't want to bother you with all of that so instead let's talk about a little something around here that we lovingly call "Yogurt and Crunch".

I wanted an alternative to the light yogurt scenario that I was meeting at the grocery store and got to exploring my options.
First of all those cute little individual serving containers are expensive and if that isn't reason enough to search further, then just take a moment to engage in the long list of ingredients.

For instance, a certain Light Strawberry Yogurt:
Cultured Pasteurized Grade A Nonfat Milk, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Strawberries, Modified Corn Starch, Whey Protein Concentrate, Kosher Gelatin, Citric Acid, Tricalcium Phosphate, Aspartame, Potassium Sorbate Added to Maintain Freshness, Natural Flavor, Red No. 40, Vitamin A Acetate, Vitamin D3.

Now compare that to this guy...
Dannon Low-fat yogurt: Grade A low fat milk, pectin (which is just a plant derived thickener)

Huge difference!

Now, come on folks, I know that plain old yogurt is tart, and frankly not tasty on its own.
Don't despair, I have a solution for that.
Simply bring in a scant teaspoon of natural jam and a squirt of local honey to solve this issue.

Give that a good stir and voila', there you have sweetened flavored yogurt!!
After making this bowl this morning I found that I had just a bit too much jam.
You will find the combo that suits you best.

Now to bump this up to worth your time! Add your choice of fruit for the day.



I chose strawberries today, but any type of berry type fruit works just great.

Someday soon I am going to learn how to make my own granola, but today isn't that day.
So in the meantime I use an organic, I can read and recognize all the ingredients, type of granola. This is the "crunch" that makes this whole thing worth eating.

I'd say this is probably 1/2 cup fruit to 1/3 cup granola.

Give it all a good stir...

and enjoy your creation.
This is way less expensive and YOU control what goes in it!!
I like that.
I think you will too.

Recipe for Paella

I have a dear friend who is just older than me.
Why do I have to go and say she is older than me?
Well, first of all, because it is true and second of all because our relationship is such that it feels like I have an older sister in my life.
She keeps me on track and gives me guidance and prays for me. She pushes me to be better than I think I can be, and loves my kids. She is gracious and kind and a wonderful example of a servant minded christian woman. See just like a sister!
And while I love all of those things about her, what really draws us together is food.

We are both avid foodies!
She is way farther along in her food journey than I am, simply due to life experiences! I can assure you she wasn't almost 40 before figuring out a pizza crust recipe!!
I am always amazed and inspired by her kitchen prowess.
She sent me a recipe over email the other day and I asked, and got permission to share it here with you.
While I have not yet made this particular dish myself (yet), I have absolute confidence in the result.

Paella (printable)
Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoons dried oregano
salt and black pepper to taste
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 2 inch pieces (or leftover sausage, pork or chicken that is cooked or fresh uncooked shrimp)
1 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup uncooked basmati white rice
1 small can tomato sauce or 2 chopped fresh tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1 3/4 cups chicken stock (or water)
1 lemon, zested
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 Spanish onion, chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1 rib celery, chopped

Directions:
In a medium plastic bag, mix together 1 tablespoons olive oil, paprika, oregano, and salt and pepper. Stir in chicken pieces to coat. Cover, and refrigerate.

Heat 1 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet or paella pan over medium heat. Stir in onion, celery, garlic, red pepper, paprika and red pepper flakes. Cook till soft.
Add rice, stirring to coat rice with oil, about 3 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce or tomatoes, bay leaf, chicken stock, and lemon zest.
Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to medium low. Simmer 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoons olive oil in a separate skillet over medium heat.
Stir in marinated chicken; cook 5 minutes.
Add to rice pan last 5 minutes of cooking. (If using cooked sausage, pork or chicken, stir them into rice pan just to reheat. If using fresh shrimp, add in time to cook through without overcooking.)
You want a brown crust on the bottom of the paella pan. The last few minutes of cooking when all ingredients are in the pan, cook with the lid off and turn up the heat to get that brown crusty rice which is the treat of a good Paella.

Have a great weekend!!

A Heart-y confession

After watching a few episodes of The Dog Whisperer the other day, I decided to read one of his books to gain some more whisperer wisdom.
What is it about his manner and way that makes dogs want to obey his every command sometimes even without words!?!

So I picked up one on his books and used our travel time back and forth to San Antonio to learn some tricks and get some motivation.
He is adamant that exercise is the main element in achieving this state of mind in ones dog!
Exercise
Heavy sigh!!
Whining to commence in
3

2

1

Exercise, why did it have to be exercise!!
It makes you sweaty, and your muscles hurt and you get shin splints and it takes time out of your day and, and, and etc.
I have been avoiding exercise on and off for a good year now and you want me to walk my dog every day.
Every day!!!
EVERY DAY!!!



I had a little panic attack, my husband told me to start breathing again and then I started thinking....
Here comes confession time.
I am going to include numbers and everything...don't hate me for that! I think it is important for making my point.

deep breath in and out

About a year and a half ago I was very content with my weight. In fact I was in the appropriate weight for my height range and had been for years.
Okay so I was at the very top of that range, but was very okay with that.
Hey, I have three children and had successfully lost all of my excess "baby weight" each time, returning to what I thought was my perfect size!
I was happy in the 178-182 area wearing a size 14-16.

Oh boy, did I just type that right here for all the world to read.
Yes, I did and I am not gonna take it back.
It is important for what I want to say today.
So is this next part.

So, back to a year and a half ago.
I changed our diet a bit, truly committing at this point to more healthy choices.
And, I started to exercise consistently 3 times a week with my goal to be more heart healthy and fit.
In the meantime, miracle of miracles, this (not unwanted) weight began to come off.
I was amazed.
I was motivated.
I was feeling wonderful and looking better and better.
5 pounds, 10 pounds, 15 pounds....I was melting away to nothing.

Okay not really.
I am 6 foot tall, that would be pretty hard to do.
I got to the point where I was 163 and thought I had reached my summit.
I stayed there for about 3 weeks, then it began again.
I got down to 158, 157, 156.
And then I started to get nervous.
Was it ever gonna stop coming off?
Was I going to just keep losing and losing?
I became irrational and quit, cold turkey, my exercise routine.

I started this routine to have a healthier heart, and in the meantime I started to lose weight.
It was a wonderful unexpected bonus, but it got me totally distracted from my main goal of being more heart healthy.
I truly had myself convinced that if I kept at it there would never be an end to the loosing.
Irrational, ridiculous, wrong.

So here I sit a year later, right around 158...and I can't make it up the stairs without getting a little winded.
Ridiculous!
Wrong!
Sure I "look" good, but what true benefit is that to me if I am gasping for breath after mild exertion. It makes all of that weight loss about nothing more than vanity. There I said it!!
I have the appearance of being healthy and fit because of weight loss, but I know it is a sham. A disguise to convince you of my wellness.

I want to be well, not just look well.
This takes commitment and effort on my part, which I have not been willing to give.

I had already decided a few weeks ago somewhere deep in the hidden depths of myself that I would begin a new exercise regime and was contemplating what it would be, while successfully avoiding it all together.

I can tell you right now that my choice would not have been taking a 30 minute walk each day!!!

The truth is, I probably need a 30 minute walk each day.
I am very motivated by the needs of others and am much more likely to get this done for my little dog, than for myself. So, Shelby and I will walk. My heart needs it, my whole body needs it!

As they say...a win win situation.
I am thankful for this push over the edge to get me moving again. To get me past my irrational excuses and back to reality!

I hope this confession gets you motivated to thinking about your goals.
I hope you will think about getting more heart healthy.
I hope that you will forgive me for confessing my weight. Uggghhhh!
I hope you will ignore my incessant whining about having to walk my dog everyday.
Cause good for me or not, I simply must whine about something!!

A tip for you

Ahhh the Alamo!
Such a wonder of Texas history so easily accessible when visiting San Antonio.

Which by the way, is where I was for the past 2 days.
My husband and I took off for a quick trip there to attend the TSACF...
or was it the STCAF,
or it could have been the TSCAF.

Oh, not that it matters really, let's say it was a high school all star football game which my sweet husband was requested to attend.
It was a good excuse for the two of us to go on an overnight date!
With three kids about, there really aren't many chances for that, so we jumped at the opportunity.

In case you don't personally know me, and are just a random passerby, or a reader referred by a friend, there is something you must know about me.

I, like many others I know and jaunt about with, love a good deal.
I am more likely to do without something I really really want than to pay full price for it.
There does come a rare opportunity to work a deal and get both the item in want and the "high" from knowing I saved money in the mean time. Like the Coldwater Creek jacket I scored the other day for a mere $15.00 instead of the selling price of $79.99.
Just thinking about that makes my heart flutter a bit.

You might by this time be wondering, "Just what does this have to do with San Antonio?"
Well, hang on I am gonna tell ya.

I knew that my husband and I would be eating out this whole trip.
This was not a pack a sandwich kind of trip, it was a romantic get away (with a football game thrown in) kind of trip, which we had specifically set aside money for.
However, me being me, I had to find a deal to make all that eating out easier to swallow.
Not that I don't enjoy eating out. I do! It is the spending money that I am not crazy about.

This is where we get to the meat of this post.
My husband is always in charge of choosing our hotel and he does a bang up job searching for unique historic places and not just the Motel 6 down the road.
Once he makes his choice, it is then my turn to visit Restaurant.com.
This is a website which sells "discount certificates" from participating restaurants.
You simply type in the zip code of the area where you wish to eat, then modify your search based on distance and cuisine!!
It is a neat way to try new restaurants, especially if you know you are going to be eating out anyway.
For instance you can purchase a $25.00 off the purchase of $50.00 certificate for a listed price of $10.00.
But, there is always a coupon code available to bring that price down even further.

Come on...you know about coupon codes don't you.
Always, always search for a coupon code before you buy anything online!
Just go to your google bar and type in the particular place "restaurant.com" followed by "coupon code".
The internet is filled with sites that track these codes and make them available.
For instance, at the time of this post, I googled and there I found a coupon code of "tasty" to plug in before your purchase at restaurant.com to save 70% off of your total purchase.

I like to watch the trends and purchase from this site when there is and 80% off code bringing my purchase price down to a measly $2.00. Yes, $2.00 to save $25.00.
There are other savings amounts as well, depending on the restaurant and how fancy it may be. Anywhere from 10-100.
Be sure before you purchase that you read all the fine print very carefully.
When is it available for use?
What is the minimum you must spend?
Does it include lunch, or just dinner?
How many entrees must be ordered?
Look for things like that, read it and read it again to be sure you are getting what you think you are getting.

I have used this particular service for eating out in my home town as well as when we are traveling. I have only had one incident where a restaurant I purchase a certificate from had closed. I immediately got a notice from the website with a "credit" to be used toward another certificate of my choice.
I have had gone to some places and thought, boy I sure am glad I didn't pay full price for that!!!
I have gone to other places, I probably never would have gone to otherwise and had amazing food!!
Some months I look and don't find anywhere at all that I would consider eating, and other times there have been offers from some of my favorite places.
So, it is touch and go, but isn't life in general that way?

So, check it out. It could be that you have an occasion to eat out, and may get to go to a place fancier than you would have considered because of the deal.
Or, maybe it causes you to try Mongolian stir fry, or sushi, or that little Mexican place that you drive by and wonder about.

You may just hit pay dirt, and you will have me to thank!!!
Oh, and be sure to always pay your server based on the full ticket price, cause anything else would just be rude!

No account tidbits

Since my photo transferring problem is still in effect, and I don't want to deal with the issues today, and I don't want to write another food entry without the joy of photos, I have chosen to amuse you with more random thoughts.

Consider yourself forewarned!

We have baby ninja snails! Oh boy! Just how prolific are snails anyway?
I saw one this morning that was the size of that O up there in oh boy.
And two yesterday that were the size of a fingernail.
Hmmmmm I think this deserves some investigation.
Not by me, mind you.
I am not digging around for snails, ICK!!

I came across this Starbucks Natural Fusions Coffee in my grocery store the other day. It is the real deal, no artificial flavor cinnamon coffee.
Since I had a coupon...and it was on sale, I picked up a bag. YUM!! I had another coupon, so I hit another sale! Coffee is a two-fer...an absolute staple, and an everyday treat. Why not have coffee you really enjoy?

I honestly can't tell the difference between HD and regular TV, sorry!
Maybe if I saw them side by side??
Yes...I think then I could.
I think.

I am making a double batch of homemade wheat tortillas today which calls for a whole lotta rolling!!
I am glad my middle son is such a good sous chef here lately!

Still pondering what to do with those pablanos.
I don't want to waste them on something not fantastic.
This is really quite silly seeing as how I can get more, and it is not like they are crazy expensive or anything.
Sigh...what to do, what to do.

I have been carrying my dog up and down the stairs this week because she is not supposed to climb them.
Never thought I would be "that" person!

I am trying to decided if I should mop my floor before or after my company today.
I must tell you I am leaning toward after!

I love the simple goodness of pencil perfection.
A Dixon Ticonderoga tri-write fits the bill.


The warm wonderful familiarity of the classic #2 yellow pencil combined with the modern twist of three sided comfort.
And, to top it of...literally...the delicate pink eraser which never smears or gums up.
And the green! Oh, the green!
The shiny clover green used in both the labeling and where the three stripes join the pencil to the eraser!
Love, true love in a pencil.

I have been greasing the pole of my bird feeder with coconut oil, and find myself wickedly fascinated by watching the pesky squirrels make a jump for it, then slide down while gripping tightly!! They spend a good amount of time in contemplation on just how to beat this particular road block to their feeding frenzy.

My Lemon Thyme and Orange Mint have tripled in size since I planted them. I know, I know...I simply must take the time to google uses for them.
For now, I am just enjoying how gorgeous they look just outside my back door falsely accusing me of being a master gardener by their growth and glory.

I came across a recipe for Snickerdoodle Blondies while surfing yesterday.
My oldest son happened by the computer at that very moment; fortuitous for him I think.
Strange sounds began to emit from his throat and belly.
Growling, yearning, feed me sounds.


I think a fresh box of crayons is a sight to behold. All of those crisp edges waiting for you to draw them from the box and round them off with use.
I believe if I were presented with a new box of crayons everyday, I would simply have to color. The temptation to see them go from pristine to lovingly used would be too much to bear.


Somewhere around here is a box which has my CD's in it.

It feels pretty much impossible and improbable that I will ever be able to appropriately thank God for all that he has blessed me with. I am sure gonna give it my best shot though.

Have a great weekend!!