I have the wisest friends. I'm forever grateful for and love all of my friends, but lately there have been so many examples of how much they love me in return.
I was feeling like a loser for only making it a week and a half at McDonald's. Ian can handle so much work and never complain. He's going to school, being a TA, working two jobs, and donating plasma. And doing homework.
I was reminded that there are people that thrive in the workplace and those that do better making their home a clean and spiritual safe haven. I love working at the daycare; it gives my day purpose. But the rest of my time I want to be making our home a place of refuge for him when he comes home from school and work. I don't want him to worry about if his clothes are clean or if there is food to eat or dishes to eat them on.
Another friend wrote in her own blog, "it is ok to prefer being in someone's presence, and to be sad in the lack of that presence. I don't NEED him, he doesn't NEED me. But I prefer him, and I will continue to prefer his presence forever."
I have been so sad (even more so when I was working at McD's) that I couldn't just have 10 minutes to hold him. I very much need physical touch to know everything is going to be OK. It has made us evaluate how we spend our time together. We get caught up in playing on our phones or zoning out to Netflix before we head to bed. I'm not going to lie, we still are doing those things. But we are spending time just talking to each other before we pick our show.
I prefer Ian always. I know he prefers me. I'm so grateful he is so hard working. He is always going to take such wonderful care of our family. I am a whole person, but Ian fills in the gaps I didn't know I have. I believe I do the same for him. This is why we are meant to be together.
Friday, April 24, 2015
Everything has a season
Saturday, February 7, 2015
Downsizing
It was our Valentine's day date today... Paying a deposit on a new apartment. Five years ago we spent Valentine's day planning our wedding, three weeks after we met. Today we spent our day planning the next 6-12 months of our lives before moving on to bigger and better things.
Ian and I have had some extremely blessed years together. We've been blessed with each other and with friends and family and jobs that have given us all the things we need and want. But now Ian's company is closing down so we are reorganizing our lives. Moving to a smaller apartment, looking for new work, and getting rid of excess baggage (in the form of furniture and stuff).
We've been blessed throughout every step of this journey, especially in the last two weeks since we've found stuff out.
While I'm writing this I'm laying on my queen size bed we've switched out from our king. The new place has 2 bedrooms... A small one and a very small one haha. We've been blessed with an extra bedroom that had held this extra bed. It's not the most comfortable but it will fit in the new place and we didn't need to buy it. I know (hope) because today we took newspapers and measured out our furniture and then laid out the paper and plotted our space. I'm so glad Ian went along with that idea today. It really helped me see what I needed to get rid of and realize what's really important.
We also bought new couches last summer because we felt like we had some permanence in our lives. Because we actually spent money on them we felt we have to move them to the new place. We are going to be cozy, but they'll fit.
I've got friends coming to pick up our old furniture and make it their own. I've got friends coming to help us move. I've still got my job and Ian still has his for the time being.
I really dislike change but I couldn't be happier than having Ian by my side. I know it could be so much worse but I'm grateful it's not.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
New Hobbies
Friday, August 31, 2012
social media
(This is feeling very dramatic, sorry haha)
I decided the only real way to stay off Facebook was to delete it. So one morning I clicked "deactivate" and went on my jolly way. It wasn't too bad, mostly because work was busy. Then on vacation I was okay, but kinda felt like I was really leaving my friends out. I actually was doing something interesting and no one was there to know! Sure, I use Google+ but I think I have 2 friends (not including Ian haha) that use it! So happy day for them!
I've thought about all my friends that don't use Facebook. They have hobbies. Or kids. Or both. I don't. I work. I'm at a great place in life that I can be a workaholic. We don't have kids, we both have great jobs, and we both have our own ways to get to work without relaying each other. Both of us are workaholics! But I don't have an exactly exciting job to tell the world about. Okay, that's a lie. I really love my job but picture-less posts are boring (If you're even still reading this, sorry.) And I don't want to put pictures of the kids on the internet.
I know I could post on here, but really, I know no one thinks my life is that interesting. I need a hobby ASAP!! So yeah, I'll post when something interesting happens or when I try a new recipe!
Vegas baby!
Our last meal from the vacation. A little bit of death by chocolate!
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Clif Bars
1 cup uncooked quick-cooking oats
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed (flaxseed meal)
½ cup dried coconut or ¼ cup finely chopped dried fruit (e.g., raisins, dried cranberries, dried cherries, etc.) and ¼ cup finely chopped nuts or seeds
1/2 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Optional: 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Combine the syrup and nut butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring until melted and well-blended (alternatively microwave in small microwave-safe bowl 30-60 seconds until melted). Stir in vanilla until blended.
Pour nut butter mixture over cereal mixture, stirring until coated (use a wooden spoon at first, then get your hands in it. It will be sticky, but this way you can really coat everything. Just scrape off your hands when you're done). Press mixture firmly into an 8-inch square pan (lined with parchment paper) using a large square of wax paper (really tamp it down). Cool in pan on a wire rack and chill at least 30 minutes to help it set. Cut into 12 bars. (Wrap bars tightly in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator).
Spiced Muffins
I adapted it from a recipe found here: Spiced Yogurt Muffins
Ingredients:
2 C all-purpose flour
1 C light brown sugar
1 TBSP baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp allspice
2 large eggs
1 1/4 C vanilla yogurt
4 TBSP butter, melted
1/4 C cinnamon applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
Preheat the oven to 375°. Line 24 muffin cups with paper or foil liners (sprayed with cooking spray) or thick coating of shortening. In a food processor, combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and pulse to blend; transfer to a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, yogurt, butter, applesauce and vanilla. Fold the yogurt mixture into the dry ingredients until just blended.Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake for 18 minutes, until the muffins are springy; let cool in the pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.
These were so yummy!! And the shortening (I didn't have the paper so I experimented) gave the outside a nice crunch without the burnt taste! And they pulled away from the edges so well that I was able to just lift them out of the pan! The middle is spongy and it's so tasty!! Just look how yummy they are!
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Burrito Filling
Burrito Filling
8 chicken tenderloins
1 can cream of chicken + 1 can water
1 onion, chopped
1 can Rotel sauce (it's new to me, but it seems like just pureed rotel)
1 1/2 cups rice
2 cups water
1 can Rotel tomatoes with green chilis
1 can each pinto and black beans, drained and rinsed
Put the chicken, cream of chicken and water, onion, rotel sauce in the crockpot on high for 3 hours. Add the rice and 2 cups of water and the whole tomatoes. Just before the rice is done add the beans so they warm up.
Put all this on a warm tortilla with a dollop of sour cream.
Die and go to heaven.
Enjoy :)
Saturday, February 18, 2012
If I blogged more I wouldn't have to title this "Catching Up"...
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Curves
Since I've started college I've had a big gut. I was consistently asked when my baby was due and I'd laugh on the outside but obviously I wasn't too happy with it. My weight would go up and down, but I always stayed pretty consistent in my size. I was compact in my weight (the scale always showed a lot more than I looked). But after I got engaged I kept getting fluffier. Ian and I both lived and home so many of our dates involved eating out. My wedding dress fit perfectly when I got it but I had to do the slim-fast diet the week before the wedding to make sure it still fit when I came back from Florida. In October, I went to put on the dress I wore to the first valentines dance Ian and I attended. I also wore that dress home from the temple after we got sealed. It had been getting progressively tighter on me until in October I couldn't wear it. I cried and cried and cried. I threw it in the trash and put on some very stretchy skirt and top and cried at church. I realized then it was time to get my act together.
That Monday I started looking up gyms in town. Everything was really expensive and I knew I could go on campus for free, but I didn't want to go there. There are too many people there. And I don't tan so the unlimited tanning offers at World Gym was pointless, and anytime gym wouldn't return my phone call so poo-poo on them. But Curves, that seemed really good. And they offered me like a month free!
I went in on Wednesday and got the tour and did the weighing and measuring, but my anxiety got the best of me and my stomach was not up to a work out. Especially after the weigh-in. I went back on Friday and met my favorite woman ever: Cookie. "I'm the only cookie left in your life Beth." She has been my angel in more ways than one. She has never let me slack, she has pushed me further than I thought, and she is always congratulatory when I make even the slightest achievement.
After the first week I knew I was going to sign up for the year, but I didn't want to tell them because I was worried they'd end my free month early haha! I paid upfront for the entire year because I didn't want something like money to make me have to decide--gym this month or food? I knew we had it all right then, so why not get rid of the worry.
I need to get all my measurements written down but I've lost 14 pounds and tons of inches. I started in a 10/12, L or XL (dresses were even bigger than that) and I now comfortably wear 3/4 pants and medium tops. The girls aren't going anywhere so I can't go too small there haha. I tried on a dress at the Gap yesterday that was an 8 that almost fit (didn't quite zip at the top) but I'm not discouraged. Dresses are really hard to fit on me because I'm like an upside down pear, or triangle or whatever (my top is bigger than the bottom half, because my lady friends haha) so I have to get a bigger size. But it's still smaller than I have worn before. And it's all about fabric too. Some fabrics just aren't made for stretching to fit that last little zip.
Sometimes...
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Turkey hair clips
What you need:
Fall colored silk flowers (I used 2 and got 4 turkeys out of it)
brown felt
orange felt
eye balls (I like these tiny black eyes better than the googly eyes)
hair combs (my local craft store sells them for a quarter a piece, but if you have old ones you can recycle)
hot glue gun
The how-to:
Remove the stem from the flowers, then the plastic "caps" found at the base that helps hold it together.
Remove each layer of petal and sort by size/color
Cut the layers in half
Start layering petals together to make your feathered tail, attaching each layer with hot glue
Free hand a turkey body out of the felt and attach him to the petals at both the bum and the head, otherwise the "heavy" eyes make him droopy.
Attach eyes and a nose
Glue turkey onto comb with curved side up--that way he faces out when you wear him in your FABULOUS hair!
If you don't want to wear a turkey on your head, you can glue them to napkin rings, place cards, or whatever. They're very simple!!
I found the link from where I got the idea, so click here if you need step by step pictures!
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Friends!!
We did pumpkins, did henna art, went out to eat (too much haha) and took pictures together! We've just had a really good, relaxing time.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
BBQ Pork Chinese style (Char Siu)
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Spicy Chicken with Peanut Sauce
http://somanyspices.blogspot.com/2011/09/spicy-chicken-in-peanut-sauce.html
Get over there and read all the delicious recipes, and cook them! I hope you enjoy them all!
Monday, September 12, 2011
"Back to school...
We have made so many great things for our classroom (with so much being purchased at back to school bargain prices!) and it's only been a week!
Here is our awesome class tree. We had a paper one that a certain student loved to rip off the wall daily so we messed him up and painted it. He ran over the day it was painted and said "Oh! No rip!" (he's almost 4, but has the verbal skills of a younger child.) Now he sits at the bottom and looks at the acorns we have decorated our tree...almost like he's plotting how to get them down.
We've not got an owl I drew sitting on the branch. He was in the knot on the tree, but that was too low. Now he's watching class from the tree. And we move him around so the kids come in from school and have to go find the owl. It's adorable.
We are doing a lot of coloring activities now too so tonight while I waited for the laundry to finish I sat here and sharpened every colored pencil. Thank heavens for electric sharpeners! Now the kids can actually use the pencils. Novel idea, I know :)
Ian's started school today too. He really liked it which is awesome. I got him a desk this semester too so he's even more excited about that! Sad but true haha. He loves having a place he can put his computer and printer and papers that doesn't have to get cleaned up when company comes or when we want to have dinner at the table! I love it too. Between the desk, the gazelle, and the tv set up for a wii back in the second bedroom, it's a good thing we don't have a kid yet! I'm not sure where one would go! (Obviously we'd rearrange/get rid of stuff but it's funny to think of just putting a bassinet on top of the desk haha)
I hope you are all enjoying back to school time! Good luck to you!
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Pulled Pork Sandwiches
I called all my friends because it was short notice and put it up on facebook.
This morning at 5 am I placed an onion I had chopped the night before, a pork shoulder roast (fat side up) that I had liberally salted and peppered, and a cup of soda in the crock pot and put it on high.
Around nine I added another 1/2 cup or so of soda. At about 12:30 (after church and inviting some more friends!) I pulled the biggest fat chunks off and started shredding the meat. It came apart with tongs and I left the bone in. I hear it has more flavor that way.
At 4 I pulled the bone out and added a bottle of honey bbq sauce. I've kept it on high this whole time, but turned it down to low when I added the sauce. It was amazing tasting before the sauce, but I love sloppy pulled pork.
I had another bottle of sauce for when it was served which was nice because it gave everyone the opportunity to make it even messier!! Ian had brought home some macaroni salad and potato salad, so it was a full meal! I also made my chewy lemon cookies again. I figured it was a nice flavor balance with that!
Recipe
1 pork shoulder roast
1-2 cups of coca-cola (any soda will work, it just has to be regular, no diet)
1 yellow onion, diced
salt and pepper
1 bottle of favorite bbq sauce
Lay the onions on the bottom of the crock pot and then put in the meat fat side up. Pour one cup of soda over the meat and put the crock pot on high. Let cook 4 hours and add more soda. Cook another 3 hours and shred meat. 4 hours later add the bbq sauce and put on low or warm until you are ready to serve.
Total 11+ hours
It was so much fun having people over today. And now that I'm going to start posting to this blog (go check it out!!) I'm going to be having even more recipes. A friend started it and it's going to be awesome! I can't wait to get cooking, though most of mine will probably be on the weekends, that's the easiest for me to have time to try new things!