Friday, February 3, 2012

going green!

I've decided to get on the green smoothie train, and I am so glad I did!  (I don't plan on jumping off anytime soon!)

The end result was a tasty treat for me and Olivia at breakfast this morning.






It was delicious, packed with vitamins and minerals, and only 253 calories! 


The green color doesn't bother me like it does some people, but I hear you can add some fruit to help with the color.  However, I'm thinking if I add blueberries to it the resulting brownish color would be even worse than the green! ha.

I think I will stick to the recipe as written for now!
O got an extra spoonful of peanut butter for being so cute ;)

Click here for the recipe.   Clicking will also lead you to another one of my most recent favorite websites.  www.skinnytaste.com  

So far we have had the Sweet and Fiery Pork Tenderloin with Mango Salsa, the Crock Pot Santa Fe Chicken,  the Sweet Potato Fries, and the Chicken and Mushrooms in a Garlic White Wine Sauce.  They have all been very tasty!

Sunday is the Superbowl and I am taking Buffalo Chicken Dip as one of my contributions the party spread.  I've thought about making the Skinny version, but mine is sort of tested and well-loved, so we may just thrown healthy eating out the window that afternoon!  Besides, if I have a smoothie for breakfast and a salad for lunch then I will have plenty of calories left for the real chicken dip ;)  Now, I do like mine with celery best, so that is at least a plus!  However, eating several helpings of the dip will totally negate the celery choice!  You win some, you lose some, right?!!


Daddy and Carter snuggled on the couch
during the smoothie making!

Thursday, February 2, 2012

catching up.

I've decided I can't hide behind yet another post with only pictures!  This blog is for my thoughts, so at some point I need to get back into the swing of things and start putting them here.  I used to love sitting down in the evening and putting into words the thoughts that have been swirling about in my head that day, but things just aren't that simple.  Life is busy! Not in a "I don't have a single second to spare" sort of way, but in a "I don't really want to be on my computer in my extra time" sort of way.  I think this has several reasons. 

First, two kids has changed our house into a much busier place.  We typically have Olivia in bed by 8 and then Carter is soon to follow; however, by the time all of that is said and done I only have an hour-ish to myself in the evenings if I want to stick to my 10:00 bedtime goal.  I know I could stay up later and have more time, but I like my sleep!  Anyhow, that hour and half or so is taken up by kitchen cleaning, watching a show with Andy, my Bible study readings, a shower, etc. etc.  You get the idea. 

Second, getting an iPhone has become a game changer!  I can get my email, Facebook, Pinterest, Google Reader (for my blog stalking), and the Internet all on my phone.  There really isn't a huge need for my computer anymore, so I sit down at it less and less, which leads to less blogging. 

All of that being said, I like to blog!  Enough with the excuses!! I am going to make a concerted effort to get two or three posts done a week.  I love looking back and reading what I wrote over the past few years.  There are stories on there that I never would have remembered if I hadn't blogged about it! 

Now on to some updates.......
My ankle is only mildly better.  I can walk with just a small limp now.  The swelling is constant and the bruising goes from close to my pinkie toe all the way up onto my leg.  It is painful to wear shoes and if anyone hits it or I put too much pressure on it (e.g., if I sleep with that ankle pressed to the bed) it really hurts.  Andy wants to me to go to the doctor, but I'm giving it another week.  I am convinced that if I give it enough time, it will get better!  I don't want to go through the drama of an x-ray, etc.  I just want it to be better so I can start running/walking again. 

Olivia's bedtime boycotts have gotten fewer and far-between!  Thank you all for the advice!  Some ladies here suggested switching her to a new bed (yes, she is still in a crib!  Don't judge. She loves her bed!), but I am so glad I didn't jump to such a drastic solution.  It was, indeed, a phase and she has gone to sleep without a peep for well over a week now! 

Carter and I went to Dallas for 3.5 days over this past weekend!  It was a girls weekend with a group of my pledge sisters from college.  It was great to catch up with them and to introduce them to Carter.  Olivia and Daddy stayed home and had a grand time, too!  I was a little apprehensive (surprise, surprise) to leave her, but I knew she'd have a great time with daddy.  The original plan included me leaving both kiddos, but I'm too much of a mother hen to do that just yet!  Besides, I didn't have enough breast milk stored up for him. 

We are loving our new house!  It feels so much more like home than the other house did.  We love having an upstairs again and the kids bedrooms being across the hall from ours.  They were on the complete opposite side of the house before and we couldn't hear them without the monitor.  And, our bedroom was just off the kitchen so when I opened my eyes every morning I would see the sink full of dishes I hadn't gotten to the night before!  ugh.  This house is brighter and  just more fun ;)  I will take a video tour soon so you can all see it.  We still have a long way to go in terms of unpacking and decorating, but it will get there. 

My New Years resolution is to stay dedicated to my Bible study readings!  We are doing the Daily Walk Bible and I will have read the entire Bible by the end of the year!  I am loving it!  It's a lot like a college course because our leader really pushes us to understand and recall the information we are reading!  I can't wait to expand my biblical knowledge not only for myself,  but for our children.  I really want to be a Godly mother to them. 

My other New Years resolution is to get serious about losing this baby weight that I have been carrying around since Carter's birth!  I am happy to say that I have lost 10 pounds in the first 3 weeks!  I'm using MyFitnessPal and it has been really helpful in calorie counting!

There is the latest in our life.....Carter is awake now so I need to go feed him.  I hope everyone is having a great Thursday!

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

just like daddy...

I saw Olivia gathering up her shoes from various rooms this morning, but I didn't think anything about it.  Just now I waked by the front door and came across this.....
I paused, snapped a picture, and had a little laugh. She is two!  She is supposed to be creating chaos wherever she goes, not organizing her shoes into straight lines!  Daddy will be proud. 

wordless Wednesday!

....and we're back!  Internet is up and running (thank goodness:)

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Wordless Wednesday (attempted, at least)

So my screen went black and I think I lost what I had typed. Recap-doing this from my phone. Living at new house and loving it! No Internet or TV yet though. Working to get every last inch sanitized and cleaned. It had been quite a task! Okay so I cannot get any images uploaded. So no pictures of our sweet kiddos. So sorry! If anyone can give me some advice I will try again later today! For now, Olivia is sleeping (or jumping up and down in her crib...it's all perspective here, my friends..;) and I need to feed Carter. Till next time!

Thursday, January 19, 2012

get your toes!


Turn up the volume so you can hear Olivia at the beginning as she cheers her brother on!  "Carter, Carter, Carter" she chants! ha.