Eating the Freezer

Happy new year! One of the area that I am working on is using food storage & lowering our grocery bills. I call this "Eating the Freezer." We have a big French-door refrigerator full of food & an upright freezer crammed full of food in the basement. 

Sunday night - we had our own little food hangover on Sunday. Scott & I went to Costco on Saturday afternoon & bought a bunch of junk food. We usually buy lots of produce & very little processed food. Not Saturday!!! We bought coconut shrimp, ribs, wings x 2, pizza, and pot stickers!! The wings & pizza were eaten on New Years Eve. Sunday we ate leftovers from NYE night 

Monday we had the shrimp, ribs, rice, & veggies. (balanced diet right?!) Coconut shrimp with ribs was actually a tasty combo. I spent the day digging through months of paperwork, so quick & easy won out.

Tuesday I pulled a frozen roast out of the freezer. It was late in the afternoon & the roast was grass-fed beef. (I guess we're not supposed to microwave it because the enzymes are destroyed.) It thawed a bit & I browned the roast (salt, pepper, and flour) in a pan. Then I used the pressure cooker for 40" with veggies and broth. http://www.pressurecookerdiaries.com/pressure-cooker-recipes/how-to-cook-a-roast. The recipe was pretty good but there was too much juice. 

This post is getting long. To be continued...

Dinner last night

Nothing fancy, but I guess I have been slacking off in the dinner-making department. We had pork chops from Costco, salt & pepper on the George Forman grill heated to 170. (Yes, I use a meat thermometer.) I reheated rice, steamed some broccoli in the microwave, & made a salad with baby spinach, pomegranate seeds, & cucumbers. We had leftover gravy from turkey breast the night before & leftover homemade cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving.

We were sitting around after dinner & one of the boys said, “I think I must be dreaming. DInner has been so good the last few nights & I just don’t know how long this is going to last.”

P.S. He is the same kid who woke up with a splitting sinus headache, took some medicine, & threw up the entire yummy dinner.

Nice.

And then he was nice...

This morning I called tech support & was speaking with a young man about the problem. He was being a little condescending & I told him to stop treating me like I am stupid.

He said, “Listen, it’s very early in the morning & we’ve both just gotten up.”

My reply? “Um, no, I have been up since 4 a.m. with a barfing kid!!!”

He was very nice to me after that.

Birthday Blast

When we lived in Washington, the Simons lived around the corner from our house. Barb was my very first piano teacher. She was so nice & fueled my excitement. Yesterday, I was using the "birthday clause" to play the piano instead of cooking breakfast. I was thinking, "Wow! I am so glad I can play the piano & Barb helped me learn."

After church Scott received a phone call from Keith & Barb's son, Travis. He was driving through & asked if he could stop by & see us. We were so excited to see him - he was one of the young men that Scott worked with in our church more than ten years ago.

It's hard to tell that he has aged one minute. I remembered that I had a great picture of him somewhere & found the hard copy in my "People" drawer. I am grateful for good friends & for photographs & cameras.

Chocolate cake - yummy!

While I am not happy about this birthday milestone (or my not-so-great hair day), I am very grateful to have seen the passage of time - the progression of great youth into great fathers and mothers, husbands and wives. Family & friends have kids that I knew as babies & toddlers that are serving missions and getting married & having families of their own.

After dinner, we had a fireside at church about protecting our families (internet security stuff) & then we hurried home to share cake & ice cream & cheesecake with the YSAs. It was a happy day!

Heavenly Dinner - Enchiladas, Rice, & Guacamole Salad

Yesterday, I finally felt good enough (or maybe just hungry enough) that I planned & made a delicious dinner for my family. They are such great eaters & very appreciative that I should surely do it more often. (Oh yeah, the fact that cross country is finally over has given me several more hours per day that I am not in the car!) I shredded the chicken earlier in the day & had Chris brown the tortillas.

The best Best BEST chicken enchiladas ever: http://www.kevinandamanda.com/recipes/dinner/creamy-chicken-enchiladas.html - only variation was that Chris browned Costco’s fresh tortillas & we used whole milk instead of whipped cream.

Mexican Rice with Salsa (inspired by the Food Nanny):

1 cup chopped onion (frozen)

2 cups uncooked rice (from the hodgepodge bin)

1 cup salsa

4 cups chicken broth (one box)

Garlic & salt seasoning (small twist grinder) - garlic powder & plain salt would be great too

Throw everything in rice cooker & leave until finished. The salsa was a little spicier than we planned so we added a bit of sour cream.

Hodgepodge Bin: I always have little bits & pieces at the end of the rice bags. I finally designated a canister for the bits & pieces. When we have rice, it is a mixture of jasmine, brown, white, converted, everything. When it cooks in the rice cooker (recent purchase from Costco), everything comes out nice & evenly-enough cooked.

Guacamole Salad: Heavenly!!! http://kitchenscoop.com/recipes/guacamole-salad/ . This salad is such a treat with heavy, saucy Mexican food. Delightful.

Three Things Thursday

Chris finally received credit for his time at the state cross country meet. He was #1388 & was entered in the scores as #1488. Easy solution, long & drawn out process. The school didn’t feel like it was a big deal, but Chris chased a sub-20:00 time all season & finally made it!!! Official time? 19:54. Perfect - a PR!!

Ryan earned a spot on the varsity team & was able to run at the state cross country meet. He missed out on a rite-of-passage though, PAINTING UP. It was about 40 degrees & windy & these kids are wearing paint instead of coats. Ryan loved seeing them along the course - they ran between different areas to cheer. Ryan ran a great race & got a PR.

Scott and Jared went trick-or-treating with Cody & Aydyn. They had a blast & collected A LOT of candy, enough in fact to sugar-ify an entire family for over a week. Ryan & Chris stayed home & did homework & handed out candy. Halloween is a lot more fun for the under-10 crowd.

Chris Ran STATE!!

Christopher was so happy to be able to go run at the state cross country tournament on Saturday. He had been trying to break the 20:00 mark for the entire year & was so happy to finally achieve this goal. We excitedly looked at the race results for his official time, but his score was not recorded. We are hoping the sometime soon everything will be corrected!

On Bureaucracy, Pneumonia, and Human Kindness

It has been a week since I was diagnosed with double pneumonia and pleurisy. I had already been in intense pain for another week prior. (Intense like nothing else except labor pains.) I have two antibiotics, mucinex, and pain pills. (The pain is mostly gone - Tylenol or Excedrin does the trick now.) I have been resting - a lot!!! On Sunday, I slept until 12:45 & then took another couple of naps. The rest is helping & I am definitely making strides towards getting better.

Today, I woke up and felt really good for the first time in a long time. I remembered that the car tags for the new green Honda expired last night. I didn’t want Scott or Chris to experience getting pulled over for tickets time & time again for expired tags. I didn’t have any other tasks for the day, so I decided to drive downtown, park close, & quickly take care of the chore. If you’re from anywhere else, you might be thinking that this is one-stop shopping. But we like to do things in a leisurely and infuriating manner. Go to the tax auditor & get your paperwork filled out. Next, go wait in another line to pay your money. Then, go to the DMV & wait (again) to get the sticker that says you paid your money & you’re registered. IT’S JUST THE WAY THINGS ARE. It’s a crazy system, but it’s like the bride that cut the end off the ham. It’s just the way it’s always been done. I stopped & bought a mouse for the frog on the way home (on the way, a few steps in, & on my way). One little task and I am very tired. It makes me wonder how people with chronic infirmities & disabilities maneuver this crazy system. I am grateful for the health & strength that I have taken for granted.

I really feel amazingly good. I don’t have a cough or fever or headaches. I just wheeze and rattle when I breathe occasionally. And I’m really, truly tired frequently. The house will survive - the cleaners come tomorrow! The bills will get paid, even if it takes a phone call or a yellow envelope to remind me. :)

Last week, a friend picked up the kids from school, delivered them home so I could check in on them, took Ryan to cross country, & then brought us dinner. Last weekend, another friend brought lasagna and a bag of frozen corn chowder from her freezer. On Saturday (a long day always), friends invited Scott & the boys to come over for dinner & a movie & sent home orange juice for me. Tonight, another friend brought soup and bread and cookies. Someone else offered to bring in dinner from a local Mexican restaurant. A mom from the cross country team offered to bring a meal. And a friend asked if she could come over, bring lunch, and chat. I have been sick enough times & received love & kindness from enough people, that I am not overly concerned about being able to pay back each of these sisters evenly. I hope that I can, but I know that I can pass along the love that has been shown to me. I really believe that love & kindness are a greater cure for illness than antibiotics. I am not saying that I could have kicked this bug out without antibiotics, but my heart is so much happier in knowing that people love & care about me. I am so grateful!!

Coming soon… picture posts from Key West, Halloween, & the SC state cross country meets.

Renal Colic

A few weeks ago I hurt my shoulder. I am not exactly sure what I did but I am sure the Pilates reformer had a little bit to do with it. Another week later my side started hurting next to my bra line. I thought it was just an extension of the shoulder pain. However, the pain gets better with heat and Lortab barely takes the edge off.

I went to the doctor yesterday & he suspects kidney stones.

Tuesday morning I had a CT scan of my kidney and abdomen. I am waiting to hear the results but it's 2:30 a.m. My whole side aches and is in spasms that have doubled me over. Hopefully the heating pad and pain meds will take the edge off and I will sleep again soon.

This whole episode has made me notice the impersonal nature of social networking (Facebook). Many of my friends do not know what is happening. I haven't known what to say. If you can't say anything nice, right? I have been staying home and missing a lot of things. I have started to tell people that I talk to because I am not my best self right now. I cannot remember what was said 30" ago. And I am tired.

I have been so touched by friends who have listened to me, texted encouragement, sent emails, picked up my kids, and fed me dinner. Thank you all for your prayers and love.

(Update:)
After not being able to get an appointment with my regular doctor & not receiving a phone call from the walk-in clinic where they sent me, I finally just walked in & demanded (politely) my CT results. Clear as mud but no kidney stones. I have an appointment with my regular doctor tomorrow afternoon at 3:45.

Last night, we had an adult session of stake conference. The evening session is my favorite every time!! There are very few kids (=it’s quiet!!) & not as many people.

We had a guest speaker who is a member of the quorum of the seventy. He stood up & said, “I am not going to give the talk that I prepared.” He then went on to give the most amazing, emotional, heartfelt talk that I have ever heard in my life. His subject was that there in nothing that presses on the soul that the atonement of Jesus Christ cannot cover. Sometimes, it’s easy to say, “Oh, they don’t know how bad my life is! They cannot possibly understand how horrible my life is.” He told experience after experience from his life & I realized that he knows. His wife accidentally backed the car over a son. His 14-year-old daughter ended up missing in New York City. His 17-year-old son walked away & said, “I want nothing to do with you or the church ever again.” Miracles happened and time passed and things eventually work themselves out.

And no atongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father.

It was like that. So special. So emotional. So sacred. So filled with the Spirit of the Holy Ghost. I am so glad that we were there.

The Parable of the Mouse and the Frog

For his eighth birthday, Jared received a Pacman frog from his Florida cousins. Isn’t he cute and little? He was just about the same size as his water dish. He was cute and slimy and ate crickets quickly and unexpectedly. He would occasionally hop around his 5-gallon cage. WHen fishing season was over, the gas station (not The Little Cricket) did not carry crickets and suggested worms.

Pacman continued to grow. He is about the easiest pet possible. His bark stays cleaned - he’s water-bowl trained. However, he outgrew crickets and worms and moved on to live mice. We buy them at the pet store once a week and throw them in the cage and (usually) they’re digesting within thirty seconds.

Last week, the pet store was out of “hoppers” so I bought “fuzzies”. The fuzzies are tiny baby mice that have just a little bit of hair on them. They don’t move very much & Pacman was not very interested. They were starting to look sickly so I returned them back to the pet store and bought a hopper. He was the cutest and friendliest little mouse that we have ever brought home. He stood on Pacman’s back when we first put him in the cage. He even stood on two legs as if he was going to escape.

And so they co-existed for days and days. We put a spoon with peanut butter in the cage so that the mouse wouldn’t starve to death and gave him water so he would not die of thirst (ironic). I knew that inevitably he would be gone and I was kinda okay in the whole circle of life kinda way. Last night, I found the mouse sitting well within striking distance of a lazy frog. (He just wanted to be friends!) Pacman just sat still and watched and waited. After I took the boys to school this morning, the mouse was gone. Pacman is sitting fat and happy in his cage.

This picture is not today's mouse.

It was while the mouse was sitting inches away from his eventual demise that the analogy of avoiding temptation came to me. Standing back, we all knew that the mouse would be eaten if he stayed inside the cage. Just as I know from past experience that the mouse was going to be eaten, I know that there is grave danger in drugs and alcohol, pornography, and adultery. This analogy could extend to dishonesty, reckless driving, and other dangerous behaviors. I know that this analogy could be further developed but I think you get the picture. :)

When I am trying to lose weight, I do not buy French fries and cheesecake to keep in the fridge just in case. If you are not going to drink alcohol or do drugs, you are not going to spend the majority of your time with people who are involved with drugs and alcohol. If you do not want to commit adultery, you will not spend time alone or share confidences with a member of the opposite sex. If you do not want to get caught in the trap of p*rnography, you are not going to try just once.

We put the mouse into the bad situation. He did not have a choice in the matter. We always have a choice. I have always loved the talk “Spiritual Crocodiles” by Boyd K. Packer. He says what I am trying to say very eloquently. You can read the address here. Let me know what you think.

Three Things Thursday

Before

After

Shiny gold flecks

After towards refrigerator

Even some blues and olives

Not necessarily in the order of importance or impact for our lives…

After ONE YEAR (twelve months) of searching & hunting & thinking & pondering, we picked out granite. And today it was installed. After giving so much thought to a decision, it didn't even cross my mind that I would not LOVE IT at first. When I walked in from running car-related errands & saw the new stone, I was just a wee bit disappointed. Disappointed isn't really the right word - I guess I don't deal with change very well. Our old kitchen had darker avocado-green laminate counters. It was nice but dark. Now, our kitchen is light & bright & feels much bigger. The next steps are painting, backsplash, & selling the white appliances.






Cross country practice & meets continue to dominate this season of our lives. Ryan runs on Wednesday & Saturdays, Chris runs on Tuesdays. Their times have stayed pretty consistent between 20:00 & 21:00. Saturday's meet is supposed to be flat & fast so hopefully we'll see some PR's. (PR: personal record) I do not have pictures of Chris on Tuesday's meet because I left my camera battery at home on the charger. (It never runs out so I forget, but I was certain it was getting low. Both meets were insanely hot & both meets had people pass out from the heat.

Jared tried to. He started to complain about his stomach hurting & then he said he couldn't see & then he was okay again.

Oh yeah, and did we mention that Scott's car was in a minor fender bender last week?? Chris was driving & rear-ended our friend's pickup truck. Luckily, everyone was okay except the friend's bumper & Scott's car. He has LOVED this car so much - it has been reliable, fast, with leather seats & a good stereo. There was so much damage that the insurance company declared it a total loss. Although we truly wanted to salvage the car, it would not have made sense financially with all of the damages that needed to be repaired. :( A sad day!

In related news, I have been running around A LOT!! I put gas in the van & it is already gone. I have been driving hours & hours & hours getting kids where they need to be. Luckily people from church & cross country have been helping me a lot! Our plan is to get a cheap learner car plus a nice car for Scott. (But please don't contact me if you're a car dealer.)

Abbeville XC Meet

Yesterday, Chris had a meet in Abbeville. His school is in a league with schools that are literally an hour in every direction. It is rough to make it there. In fact, yesterday we got VERY lost as we followed an address and directions to the middle of nowhere. There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth and finally we found the only 10-story building in the county. We were late - usually not a problem - but the boys ran first!!

We saw Chris running around the fence line on the first lap.



He held a good pace & finished at 21:23. He was a little disappointed with his time, but his hip has been bothering him.

Oh Shoot - Shutter Speed

The kids are back in school & have lots of activities going on. I am super dooper busy & with plenty to do. However, every single picture I've taken at the cross country meets have been blurry, overexposed, etc. & I signed up for an online photography class at jessicasprague.com.

One of the first lessons I learned in the class was about shutter speed. The shutter speed controls how fast the picture is taken. I want to take pictures of the kids jumping on the trampoline (didn't buy one yet) or into the pool (it's too cold!) or just in the air (they're at school). Here are some pictures from the archives & their shutter speeds. I have MILLIONS more that are blurry because everything was wrong.

I heard the hum of the ceiling fan & decided to take a picture & see what happened. Kinda cool.

Sick stinks!

I almost dislike being kinda sick more than being really sick. If I was really, really sick then I could go to the doctor & get fixed. Just being kinda sick stinks because they poo-poo me away & tell me that I am okay. Totally & thoroughly ready to feel better.

Granite decision - mostly final!

Finally, after a year, an internet vote, & a lot of stress, we picked out granite. The color is Delicatus White.

The guy is going to come measure & make templates on Wednesday!! The decision finally came down to light. I want a light & bright kitchen. The green has been too dark & almost everything else is too middle-of-the-road & golden. The prettiest choice would have probably been the Labrador Antiqua (dark brown with blue sparkles), but I am absolutely delighted that we’re choosing for us & not for someone else.

I especially love the travertine-colored swatches that run throughout the stone. And there are chunks of quartzite (?) that are clear & glass-like.

Finished kitchen pictures soon & little lady in blue not included.