Happenings this week

We had a few things going on this week. The weather was really nice...lots of sunshine, which is pretty unusual for the month of January.

Lily enjoyed the sunshine...

I made Trader Joe's chocolate croissants...the boys loved them. Michael said they were better than Starbucks.

Cam and I had eye doctor appointments. I had not gone in 12 years. I have always had better than 20/20 vision. When I turned 40, I started to have trouble seeing close up. I finally needed reading glasses. My far off vision is still better than 20/20, but my right eye has gotten bad enough to need reading glasses all of the time. Cam is really glad that his eyes have not changed...he now can go to 2 year appointments. Our glasses come in in 2 weeks.

I made chicken tostadas for dinner. They were really good.

We went to Panera Bread with Mom...and then did some shopping. Jar loves the ham and cheese quiche at Panera Bread...and of course, we all love cheese danishes.

I saw these big bowls at Bed Bath and Beyond. I told Cam that I thought they would work well for he and Jar...I could just fill them all day long with food and water. They are eating so much food lately.

We took this picture for the cousins...little Kya is obsessed with the movie Frozen.

I made shrimp cakes and arugula salad for dinner last night...it was yummy!

Michael picked up Einstein Bros Bagels for breakfast this morning. The boys love these.

Everything tastes better in a pretty glass...homemade lemonade.

Michael is left handed. I am right handed. This can cause a problem when we cook. We have both ruined dishes because of this. Because we are right and left handed, we put the pepper away differently. When one person puts it away, it ends up being wrong for the other person. We have ended up pouring from the wrong end of the pepper because of this. Finally after a couple of failed dishes, I taped the open end of the pepper so we would not make the mistake again.

I have struggled with anxiety for 13 years now. I have only been on medication for 9 months of that time. I have just figured out how to deal with it and work my way through it. A friend recommended this homeopathic product to me. I tried it when I went to the eye doctor, and it really seemed to work.

Friday's Letters

Dear Jesus:  Thank you for a lot of positive stuff regarding jobs this week.

Dear Michael:  It was nice that you got to work out of Salem twice this week.

Dear Cam:  I am really happy that you are able to finally drive your car again.

Dear Jar:  I enjoyed that really long hug this morning when you first got up.

Dear Me:  I followed my schedule all this week. I feel like I accomplished a lot.

Dear Lily:  You finally got a haircut today. You needed it so badly.

Dear Zena:  Don't worry...you have two pieces of beef fat coming to you tomorrow morning.

Dear Grocery Shopping:  We did a big grocery shopping at Trader Joe's this week. I wish we had a store close to us.

Dear Friday Night:  We had homemade mandarin orange chicken, and we watched The Flash.

Dear Trader Joe's:  I could shop at you every single day. I really love you.

Dear Mom:  We look forward to getting together this next week.

Dear Mock Cookie Dough: I made a batch of you tonight...it was pretty good.

Dear Weather:  If it stayed like it has been the past few days, I can handle the winters here.

Dear Mochi:  Oh my word! We got some of you from Trader Joe's...you are really good, but weird.

Dear Bacon:  We got some from Trader Joe's, and it was so good.

Dear Five Four Clothing:  Michael loves you...he loves the clothing that he got from you. I admit it is really nice to get clothes for him every month.

Dear The Mentalist:  We all love your show so much...it is one of our favorites. We are disappointed that it is the last season.

Jar's Braces...almost off

Jar had an orthodontist appointment today. They did a major adjustment and then put 4 rubber bands on his braces. He was in some major pain afterwards. He had to take some Advil and could only eat soft foods...like yogurt and smoothies.

He did get some great news today though...he will be getting his braces off in 8 weeks. He is super excited. He is already talking about using whitening toothpaste after he gets the braces off in March. He is such a goofball.

Trader Joe's New Finds

Today Jar had an orthodontist appointment (he found out that he gets his braces off in 8 weeks). We decided to go to Trader Joe's before his appointment. We loaded up on lots of good stuff. I love shopping there so much. Here are some of our new finds.

they had this out as a sample...it was so good

Michael and I love sushi

I've read on other blogs that these are the best

these were suggested on a blog

this was rated high on a blog as well

this will be so easy to fix and add to rice 

these are so easy to fix with some rice and veggies

Jar wanted to try these

the boys cousins had tried these

Survival Kits

--Survival Kits: Things that help you calm down--

My survival kit:

1. reading a good book
2. watching movies
3. watching TV
4. journaling
5. listening to music with my headphones
6. organizing anything
7. taking a shower
8. drinking a flavored coffee

His survival kit:

1. reading about car stuff online
2. looking for cars and campers online
3. looking for houses online
4. tinkering with cars
5. working outside
6. eating snacks
7. watching action movies
8. listening to loud music

Seasonal Prompts

Seasonal Prompts:

• Book:  The Everyday Supermodel
• TV Show:  Celebrity Apprentice and Survivor
• Color:  grey
• Drink:  peppermint tea
• Indulgence: sushi
• Excitement:  summer vacations
• Exercise:  lots of squats and Tabata workouts
• Place to Shop:  Amazon
• Seasonal Activity:  weekend at the coast
• Wish List Item:  job for Michael
• Favorite Product:  Williams Sonoma hand cream
• Dislikes:  corn on my foot
• Movies:  The Hundred Foot Journey
• Song:  "What I Know" from the God's Not Dead movie
• Music:  worship music/Taylor Swift 1989 album
• Trend to wear:  yoga pants :)
• Must-have item:  exfoliant
• Color combination:  dark grey and light grey
• Food:  sauteed chicken and kale
• Blessings:  Michael has a job...even though we don't know how long
• Outfits:  yoga pants and long sleeve shirt, with tank underneath
• Mood:  staying pretty positive, despite the circumstances
• Activities:  orthodontist and grocery shopping
• Obsession:  Steve Harvey show
• Flavor:  Wasabi

Currently in January

Currently...

• I am thinking...about how to motivate myself to get up at 6:00 a.m.
• I am thankful...for a warm house
• I am wearing...my workout clothes
• I am creating...a list of things to blog about
• I am going...to try to get up earlier tomorrow
• I am wondering...what God has up His sleeves
• I am making...a grocery list for Trader Joe's
• I am cooking...some chicken for chicken sandwiches this week
• I am looking...at Lily digging herself into the blanket
• I am playing...What I Know (on God's Not Dead movie)
• I am wasting...no more time. I am exercising daily
• I am enjoying...watching Dog with a Blog with my three boys
• I am waiting...to cut my bangs. I want to grow them out.
• I am liking...watching Ultimate Survival Alaska with Michael
• I am wondering...where Michael will work in his next job
• I am noticing...that the boys are eating so much food lately
• I am opening...the fridge to see nothing in it
• I am buying...a subscription box for Michael--Five Four Clothing
• I am reading...a book called The Everyday Supermodel by Molly Sims
• I am hoping...to lose weight. My biggest trouble is sugar.
• I am looking forward to...watching God work miracles in the next six months
• I am learning...that it is important to cleanse your liver
• I am pondering...what I should do with my hair
• I am eating...a delicious salad
• I am drinking...lots of water and dandelion tea
• I am feeling...a little sore from all of the squats I did today
• I am watching...America's Funniest Videos
• I am enjoying...my new pantry a lot
• I am praying for...God's timing on a job for Michael
• I am working on...a better way to follow my schedule
• I am needing...to be disciplined in my food choices
• I am trying...to be better about planning meals and grocery shopping
• I am discovering...that squats are my favorite exercise, and I hate lunges
• I am starting...to get sad that Cam is in his last semester
• I am listening to...everyone laugh in the living room
• I am annoyed that...it is so difficult for me to lose weight
• I am anxious about...the boys and careers for them
• The world needs...to smile more
• I believe...in loving each other
• I am wanting...for Michael to get a job closer to home
• I am remembering...that we have lived here for 8.5 years now. This is the home the boys know
• I am laughing/giggling...at the clips on America's Funniest Videos
• I see...beautiful lights on our Christmas tree (ours is still up)
• I hear...my hands clicking on the computer
• I should...get up and move around
• I write...a lot, and I love it
• I sing...to every song I hear...I love to sing
• I start...detoxing on Wednesday
• I despise...grocery shopping
• I am NOT...going to enjoy grocery shopping this week. I have a lot to get
• I am confused...about what Christians tolerate
• It's been a big challenge...to keep the boys bellies filled
• I know it's a little weird, but...I like to exercise barefoot
• I'll be one happy camper if...I never had to go to the dentist again...EVER
• I love the fact that...the boys like spending time with their cousins

Currently...

• Outside my window...it is raining really hard
• In the kitchen...I smell chocolate chip cookies baking
• Around the house...I need to mop the floor again
• One of my favorite things is...when I get everything on my schedule done
• Today...I was able to exercise quite a bit
• Tomorrow...we have a light day of school

Things I love

--I LOVE WASHI TAPE AND HERSHEY KISSES--

Favorite Songs

This song is one of my favorites because it always makes me picture our dads, grandmas, and grandpas in heaven. I know this song has been around for a while now, but I always tear up when I hear this song.



This song was written by one of the singers of the group Selah (male singer here) when his wife lost their child in childbirth. Every time I hear this song, it reminds me of our miscarriage. We truly miss that baby very much.



This song gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. It is probably my favorite song. I can listen to this over and over and over again with my Sony headphones. I love it! It is from the God's Not Dead movie...great movie by the way!

Glimpse of my Weekend

It was a very different weekend. Michael woke up on Saturday with the body aches. He was sick the whole weekend...even though he did tackle a big car project.

Lily loves her blankets. She actually fell off the couch a couple seconds later...she was too close to the edge.

I read a couple of books this weekend. 

This is the book that Cam is working on right now.

I got an Honest Box this last week...these were some new products that I got. The lemon verbena air freshener is amazing. I can't wait to try the shaving oil.

While Michael was working on Cam's car on Sunday afternoon/evening, a beautiful rainbow appeared in the sky. It was huge.

I made chocolate chip cookies for the boys. They loved them. This cookie scoop makes perfect cookies.

I keep my baking goods in a basket in the pantry. When I want to bake something, I just pull the whole basket out.

We ended the weekend by watching some of our favorite shows. Michael and I watched Ultimate Survivor Alaska and Alaska: The Last Frontier. We then watched Downton Abbey.