Yep, you read the title right. I found a great recipe for meatloaf and only changed one thing-the seasoning packet. I didn't have Onion Soup mix so I substituted McCormicks Meatloaf Seasoning Packet).
It comes in perfect portion sizes, so that you don't mysteriously "forget" about eating that second piece of meatloaf (only 6 points/muffin).
Since I put the recipe in muffin tins, the cooking time only required about 30 minutes as opposed to a regular meatloaf of about two hours. I had so much left overs, I was able to freeze two whole batches for future meals. This was perfect for me since cooking is NOT my favorite thing to do.
I also tried a batch on my parents. And you have to know that both loved it, especially my dad. So this recipe works with everyone in the family including granddads : )
Wish I had googled Yoga Hatha before going. I thought I was in for a very relaxing gym class. No way! It was hard work. It's a strength building yoga. And after doing all those plank type yoga moves, my abs were so sore the next day.
This class was great but I would recommend not doing any other classes if you plan on trying it. Big mistake for me. After busting my butt in Cycle, I decided to try this. Definitely required a lot more energy than I had left. What did I discover about myself? That I'm not as flexible as I thought I was. People three times my age could move their arms, back and legs much further than I could. The best part of the class came at the end.
As we were all laying on our backs, the instructor told us to put our hands on our stomach if we would like some adjustments. I was like, "Ummm...ok. Don't know what that means but I'll give it a shot."
With my eyes closed and listening to the sound of peaceful music, she came over and put her hands on my shoulders/back and gently massaged my shoulders. It lasted like five seconds and when she left I was thinking, "Now how come the whole class couldn't have been like that?"
Tips:
1) They have mats and blocks at the gym but next time I'll bring my own mat. I was a little weirded out with having my face laying where someone else's feet had previously been.
2) Don't come to Yoga with a lot of mind chatter. Leave your worries at the door because all the poses will require a lot of concentration. And if you're not fully engaged you won't be able to handle the moves.
The wind was cold and my hair haphazardly blew across my face. I breathed in and exhaled quickly. I had decided to walk and clear my head; figuring the cold air would be just what I needed. A vulture overhead was catching thermals and flying in circles through the white cloudy sky. It seemed even he knew the snow was coming and was using these last few moments to play outside, like I was.
I heard these words come through my ear piece,
"I am the Lord your God, I go before you now I stand beside you, I'm all around you Though you feel I'm far away, I'm closer than your breath I am with you, more than you know."
The words were comforting and made me think about what MY heaven will be like. I say, MY heaven because I really do believe heaven will be what you want it to be. Your heaven may be on streets of gold and through pearly gates but my heaven will be in a tranquil field surrounded by beautiful trees on all sides.
A few years ago, I had a comforting dream that I was in heaven but heaven didn't look like what other people had taught me.
"Is this really heaven?" I thought. I was on the tallest mountain surrounded by lush green forests and soft grass. No one was around. It was just me and the Lord. And I remember feeling peace because that's exactly how I wanted it to be.
You may wonder why I'm talking about heaven. To some, it might be a little creepy to talk about the afterlife. And yes, even for me its hard to type my thoughts out. But I think we need to remember that this life we are living now is only temporary. There are a lot of good moments we experience here on earth but there are also a lot of hard moments. The good moments are to remind us that heaven will be full of JOY and the hard moments are to remind us that we are mortal and can only survive if we fully rely on God.
We all have hard moments in our life that we can remember. Sometimes, they seem to RAIN down on us with absolutely no break in between. For some, it might be the death of a loved one, for others it might be the experience of a traumatic event and even for others maybe a loss of control in every aspect of our life. Whatever your hard moment was, I think it's important to know that the ache will always be there. The panic will creep up on you years later and you will wonder why you're still not "over" it. It's in moments like these, that we must fully rely on God. We must not doubt that our Lord is with us but that HE has his fatherly hand on our shoulder the whole way through...even till the end.
My hard moment...not nearly as tough as other's moments...but waking up from surgery and being told I had cancer. With no one there to share my sadness, I cried alone as the thought of dieing swept over my whole being.
My good moment...getting the phone call that I was misdiagnosed. And after celebrating this good news, vowing to make something positive happen from such a terrible experience.
The song, Holding On, by Jamie Grace began playing as I finished up my walk and suddenly cold rain drops began falling on my face. The vulture was still flying in circles over my head and I thanked God for reminding me that there is still JOY in the RAIN.
All the signs of life They’re all around me with every heartbeat I feel so alive, I am joy and sadness, Peace and madness If only I can fight just a little longer I know It’s gonna make me stronger
I just keep holding on to what I believe Oh, I believe in you Give me the strength to fight And the heart to believe When it’s hard to believe in you.
My family has been trying to eat healthier, so I've been trying some Weight Watchers recipes that met the approval of a baby (who spits everything out), a two year old (who thinks Fruit Snacks is it's own food group), a picky husband (who will try anything once but wont "retry" later if he doesn't like it) and a lazy cook (me). So if all of us eat it, it's a winner. Here's one I thought you'd enjoy.
1 spray(s) cooking spray
8 medium uncooked carrot(s), julienned
6 cup(s) uncooked parsnip(s), julienned
1 Tbsp fresh thyme, minced (or to taste)
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper, freshly ground (or to taste)
1 Tbsp olive oil
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Coat a shallow nonstick roasting pan or baking sheet
with cooking spray.
Place vegetables on prepared pan; sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper.
Drizzle with oil; toss to coat. Roast for 20 minutes; flip vegetables and roast
until vegetables start to caramelize, about 10 to 20 minutes more. Yields about
2/3 cup per serving. *3 points*
Tips
The parsnips are a beast to cut, so make sure you have a really good knife.
If you're like me, you don't know what a parsnip is. I found them next to the carrots. They look like carrots but white.
"Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
O what a foretaste of glory divine.
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
born of his Spirit, washed in his blood."
That morning, I caught myself quietly singing as I did another load of dishes. "Yes, another load," I thought rolling my eyes. Baby Boy had been up until 2 am with a fever. I remembered holding him in the midnight hours and his sad little eyes just staring up at me. It was as if he was saying, "Thank you Momma for staying up with me." The Hubs had slept with him from 2-5:30 to give me a little bit of sleep. I was too tired to do anything productive... so I just sang while I worked.
"How did that song just randomly pop into my head?" I thought. Sometimes, I feel like God gives us songs from our past to help us cope with the current situations in our life.
It brought back easy memories of childhood. I was raised in a Seventh Day Adventist Church nestled in the heart of eastern Kentucky. I remember frequently singing this song with the small congregation. Everyone would sing in their comforting bluegrass tones songs like Blessed Assurance and The Old Rugged Cross. Sometimes, as kids, my sister and I would try to sing as awful as we could-snickering under our breath. But little did I know how much of an impact that song would have on me today.
"This is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long;
this is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long."
God never said our lives would easy. In fact, the truth is that our lives will always be a struggle. Just look at Genesis 3:16-19 when God speaks to Adam and Eve.
To the woman he said,
“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”
To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’
“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”
So women will have painful childbirth and men will work by the sweat of their brow.Nothing about that is easy.
For the first time in my life, I am seeing these verses in a new light and it has humbled me. Inwardly, I'm having a struggle feeling of value in the home. Sometimes, I feel as though I'm caught in a dense forest and the forest just keeps growing. Here's my issue: I don't feel valued and respected for being a mom.
I can't tell you how many times people have said to me, "I wish I had the luxury to stay at home all day." Wait a minute. Did she really just say that? Or, "Are you just a stay at home mom?" I always graciously answer their statements and questions. But my shoulders hang a little lower and I feel oh so inadequate. I suppose most stay-at-home moms feel this way at times.
So I've been venting to my mother about this and she said, "Kim, the only one you have to answer to is God." And she was right. In the end, the only person I need to strive to please is my Heavenly Father. But I still desire an, "Atta-Girl" every once in awhile. I've spent my entire life working hard in school and getting honors in undergraduate and graduate school. All those compliments encouraged me so much. But now--nothing.
Truthfully, this job can be lonely and I find it hard to fit in with most moms. Mostly because I've learned since having kids, it's best not to judge. And if you didn't already know, most moms judge each other's mothering ability. For one, I don't really care if you choose to breastfeed, bottle feed or pump. It doesn't matter to me if you choose to use the cry-it-out method or another sleep method. I don't think watching the Disney Channel will scar your kids morals for life. And to top it off, I don't give one hill of beans whether you choose to feed your kids organic carrots, protein bars or--oh no don't say it...candy! We are all just trying to SURVIVE.
In reality, the only thing that matters to me is whether or not your kids are loved and not neglected. That's my hearts desire! Not to achieve the best mommy award or most accomplished in activities outside of mommyhood (home parties, junior league, MOPS, etc). But just-do you love your kids? Do you spend time with them? Or are you playing on your phone? Do you feed your kids? Do you choose not to abuse your kids? You see, these are the things that really matter!
So where am I going with all this venting? To say that... I don't have an answer.
I want people to say, "Wow! What patience you have. How awesome you are to give so much to your husband and family." But really, that will probably never happen.
I want my kids to know I love 'em. And I think they do know :)
I guess after writing all this out, I've come to the realization that it's not about ME! I'm not supposed to do this job for awards and compliments. I'm supposed to do this job for THEM. I'm supposed to sacrificially give of myself...it's the best example of Jesus Christ for my little ones. I guess after having my little pitty party, I've had a bit of a epiphany.
I'll close with a quick story about Baby Girl...
"Momma," she cried in terror!
"What is it?!" I said as we were strolling down the streets of a cool retro type town.
"Make it stop!"
"Make what stop?" I asked puzzled.
And then the wind blew and she cried out again. Ohhh, so she was scared of the wind.
"Oh baby, it's the just the wind. You know what's so special about the wind? It's God's gift to you. Every time it blows, God is saying," I'm here Baby Girl. I'll take care of you."
That seemed to momentarily calm her down.
A few days later and another strong gust of wind blew. The Hubs was with us as we walked into a store. Baby Girl cried and I said, "Tell daddy what the wind means, Baby Girl."
"God is in the we-ind, daddy!" Her voice sounded so southern-like mine.
He looked at me so surprised and quickly smiled a proud smile at me. Inwardly, I was smiling too because I knew I had done my "job." If The Hubs was so proud of me, then certainly God thought I was a Rock Star!
"You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. "For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.'
Yep, you read the title right. I found a great recipe for meatloaf and only changed one thing-the seasoning packet. I didn't have Onion Soup mix so I substituted McCormicks Meatloaf Seasoning Packet).
