What's Cookin?

On the menu this upcoming week is CILANTRO LIME SHRIMP. This is my first time trying this recipe and I can't wait to eat it! I found this recipe on http://www.skinnytaste.com

This is a weight watchers meal and has 4 points per 6 oz serving.

Cilantro Lime Shrimp
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 6 oz • Points: 4 pts
Calories: 197.3 • Fat: 4.1g • Protein: 35.9 g • Carb: 2.4 g • Fiber: 0.1 g

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 lb shrimp, shelled and deviened
• 6 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 lime
• salt and pepper

Heat a large frying pan on medium-high heat. Add oil to the pan, when hot add shrimp. Season with salt and pepper. When the shrimp is cooked on one side, about 2 minutes, turn over and add garlic. Sauté another minute or two until shrimp is cooked, careful not to overcook. Remove from heat. Squeeze lime all over shrimp andtoss with cilantro. Serve hot.

Remember: Shrimp is packed with protein, low on calories, and a quick-fix!

Happy BIrthday Printable

My friend Mary's birthday is tomorrow and I was about to pull out a card from my stash and then decided....hmmm...I bet I could find a cute printable that would suit her perfectly! I clicked on How About Orange Blog and it led me to Hey Susy Blog. There, I found this cute, yet simple, birthday card. Happy Birthday Mary!!!

Click on the link below to download. Enjoy and have a Happy Friday!

http://susanconnordesign.typepad.com/heysusy/2010/08/many-happy-returns-free-printable-birthday-card-.html

Download PDF of Free printable birthday card for 8.5 x 11 by clicking here

Bethany Dillon

One of my favorite Christian artists is Bethany Dillon. She has the smoothest, sweetest voice and has such lyrical songs that will stop you dead in your tracks. I have this song, Stop and Listen downloaded on ITUNES and I played it tonite and thought the message was perfect for this CRAZY BACK TO SCHOOL time. This morning before school I decided to meditate and listen to God. Once you get quiet, stop, and listen, it is amazing what you can learn about yourself. This song says so much in just a few lines. I hope you can stop and listen for moments throughout your day. Great things can happen.

ENJOY ( Remember to turn off my player at the bottom of my page)!

Creating an In-Home Library

It is no secret that I love books. Walking in a bookstore or library is like therapy to me.

As my husband and I were dreaming about our new home a few weeks ago, we discussed the formal dining room. In our new home, it would be located to the left of our front door. We also have a breakfast nook and a bar to eat at. We think the nook and the bar will have plenty of seating, so we started talking about turning the dining room into a library.....ahhhhh...this sounded dreamy to me.

I long to have a home for all of my books (instead of stuffed in a box in the closet). A place to wind down and kick back. A place to relax.

Here is a picture of an awesome library....What do you think?



What I love about this:

1. I love the glass shelving.

2. I love the chair--such a cozy spot

3. I love the window treatments

4. I love the natural light that you would have while reading

One issue: There needs to be another chair for Mr. Noles!

Have a great day everyone.

Any ideas about an at-home library are greatly appreciated!

Be Still....

We read in the bible to "Be still and know that I am God." This verse is so beautiful and it calms me down every time I hear it. I wish at times I could live it out in my day to day life.

I read so much about meditating and have longed to work it into my daily routine. I just haven't figured this out yet.

I love reading Gwyneth Paltrow's newsletter on http://www.goop.com. This is a section about meditating and I found a piece that I think is doable:

To experience a taste of this luminosity, try sitting quietly in an upright posture. It could be in a chair or on the sofa or cross-legged on the floor. Keep your back straight. Or lie down if you would rather. Let your eyes gently close. And just listen. Listen to the sounds and the silence that surround you. Let the sounds come and go as they wish without choosing one over another. Try to listen to the entire sound, noticing when your mind identifies it as whatever it is: a car horn, the refrigerator, the heat coming on, children’s voices, the dog, or nothing. Don’t let your identification of the sound stop you from listening. Simply note the thought and return to the bare sounds, to the act of listening. If your mind wanders, as it will, bring your attention back to the sounds. It might be after a moment or two, or it might be after a whole cascade of thoughts, it doesn’t matter. At some point you will realize, “Oh, I’m not listening, I’m thinking,” and at that point you can return attention to the sounds. Treat your mind the way you would a young child who doesn’t know any better. Be gentle but firm. Meditation means bringing your mind back when you notice it has wandered, it’s not about keeping your mind from wandering in the first place. You will notice that you instinctively prefer some sounds over others - don’t let this influence your listening. Just observe the liking or the not liking but don’t let it control you. Listen to everything, the way you would listen to music.

Once your body is in a relaxed state, you can use this time to pray, recite scripture, or just listen to what God has to say.

Peace.

Keep my Heart Alive

I bought the new Sanctus Real CD, Pieces of A Real Heart, and have been blasting it in my car the past few days. All of the songs are powered up with great messages and bits of wisdom from life. One of my favorite songs on the cd is Keep My Heart Alive. The song begins with the lyrics:

I’m so tired of politics

And all this bad news

I’m so tired of chasing the moment

Instead of chasing You

The rest of the song is a cry-out to God to keep our hearts alive in this dark world. This song reminds me of this verse:

My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart

and my portion forever.

Psalm 73:25,26 (NIV)

How can I give God my heart today? How can I chase Him?

How can I show the creator, I love Him?

What's Cookin?

My husband and I both enjoy cooking. Because we have traveled so much this summer we have had little time to play in the kitchen. This past week we decided to cook each nite.

On the menu tonite is:

Baked Ziti

Greek Salad

And Fresh Focaccia Bread

Truett Cathy, owner of Chick-Fil-A once said, "Food is essential to life. Therefore, make it good."

I couldn't agree more! What's cookin' in your kitchen???

A lotus grows in the mud...

A few years ago I listened to Goldie's Hawns audiobook, A Lotus Grows in the Mud. This story highlighted the good and bad parts of her life. She wrote her memoir to remind us that each of us goes through transitions and transformations and the important thing is that we acknowledge them and learn from them. The title came from a spiritual quote that a Nechung Oracle gave her. This is the quote.

The lotus is the most beautiful flower, whose petals open one by one. But it will only grow in the mud. In order to grow and gain wisdom, first you must have the mud --- the obstacles of life and its suffering. ... The mud speaks of the common ground that humans share, no matter what our stations in life. ... Whether we have it all or we have nothing, we are all faced with the same obstacles: sadness, loss, illness, dying and death. If we are to strive as human beings to gain more wisdom, more kindness and more compassion, we must have the intention to grow as a lotus and open each petal one by one".

I think this is beautiful and true. May we always remember what has brought us to now and be thankful to God for bringing us through it. I found these pretty earrings on Etsy that reminds me that the messy parts of life bring us to the most beautiful

Have a blessed weekend everyone!

I've got a question for you....

We ate at Zoe's kitchen last nite and I heard this awesome song playing on the radio and fell in love with it. I hit Shazaam on my Iphone and found out that it was the song "Question" by the Old 97's.

I like this song for a few different reasons....

1. I like the words

2. The beat just made me happy

3. I love how their voices sound!!

It reminded me of all the questions I have answered in life that have brought me to "now"

I've said yes to moving to NC. I've said yes to a job at Rankin. I've said yes to going on a date with Daniel. And I said yes to the question "Will you Marry Me?'

It's crazy to think that if I would have said no to any of those, I would not be sitting right here right now.

On that note....what have you said "yes" to that has brought you to now?

Listen to this sweet song and remember to scroll to the bottom of the my page to pause my media player.

Enjoy!

Home Sweet Home

My husband and I are in the process of selling our first home. We are praying daily that the right person will come along! We are also looking to build in a neighborhood right next to ours. Of course our minds go a mile a minute about what we want in our new home. One small request I put in was for a Bedroom Makeup Vanity. I had a brass vanity when I was in Middle School and High School and absolutely loved it! Although I am not a fan of brass anymore, I am still on the lookout for a contemporary style vanity. Here are a couple of pictures I have found that I am considering.

Vanity tables date back to the early 1900's. The vanity become a focal point in bedrooms of Hollywood movie sets.Because of this, maybe I need to be sure to add a little vintage tough to the vanity. Cute perfume bottle or powder shaker. I remember my granny had a vanity and would sit and do her makeup. She always put on so much blush. She liked it. My granny always reminded the ladies of the family that "Pretty is as Pretty Does" So true sweet Granny!

Anyways: Here's to the Vanity!

Take a Walk....

I reference Dr. Oz's book You on Diet frequently. It always reminds me of the value of walking. He believes that walking everyday is essential and is as important as daily sleep. How many of us would ever give up a night of sleep. Yeah right! Setting a goal of 30 minutes a day will give your body just that amount of exercise it needs.

I started a little walking plan with a friend and I am hoping it can become a habit in my life. It always helps to have someone right beside you, pushing you to keep going.

Here are some small steps to help stick to your BIG goals....

1. Make a reasonable/doable goal

2. Get in your face-- write yourself notes to remind you to work hard!

3. Seek out positive people

4. Aim for "No Slips" for 4 weeks. This will help establish a pattern.

Below is my FAVORITE SONG to run and walk to. The beat is perfect!

What is it? Where does it come from? Most importantly, How do we KEEP it?

I have no problem getting motivated. Staying that way is the struggle. For instance, let's consider getting healthy. For me, I will work so hard for 2-3 weeks and then bam... something happens and motivation goes on vacation!

According to Lifehack.com it is important to make the motivation processfun!

A simple approach is to start working on any task from asking yourself a few questions:

• How can I enjoy this task?
• What can I do to make this task fun for myself and possibly for others?
• How can I make this work the best part of my day?

This theory seems reasonable. Worth Trying. Here is a little motivation tip for you that has worked well for me!

TRUST YOUR CRAZY IDEAS

Happy Monday.

Here I am to Worship

I love my church. Every Sunday I walk away wanting to be a better person. This past Sunday our sermon was on 1 John 3. The message was about putting your words into action and serving the Lord with all that you are. Finding ways to spread God's love it what HE expects of His world. During the week I enjoy my quiet time. Sometimes I read my Bible, other times I will do a devotion, or listen to Chip Ingram speak. Worship and Serving doesn't end on Sundays. Worship is a part of our everyday living. I saw this picture below and it reminded me of all the ways we can serve and worship our Good GOD! How do you worship?

WAYS To WORSHIP and SERVE God:

1. Pray aloud with my husband

2. Read great books like: Living on the Edge- By Chip Ingram

2. Listen to 106.9 and KLOVE while getting ready (very uplifting way to start the day)

3. Light a candle while doing the dishes and thanking God for all his blessings

4. Through showing kindness to others.

5. Singing great songs.

Have a blessed day!