Monday, September 9, 2019

39 Things I've Learned About Myself

Yesterday, I turned 39! I thought it would be fun to share 39 things I have learned about myself over the years!


1. I'm an early riser.

2. I prefer the beach to the mountains (but I love the mountains too)!

3. I love having a big family.


4. I'm very goal oriented. I love to set a goal, plan how I'm going to reach it, and go after it!

5. I'm not a naturally organized person, but once I get a system or plan in place for a certain area, I can stay organized.

6. I work well under pressure.

7. Chris is my favorite person, and I love spending time with him.


8. I love to laugh. I love to be around people who make me laugh.

9. When I feel stressed, I like quiet.

10. Reading God's Word not only draws me closer to Him, but takes the focus off me and places it on Him, lessening anxiety and worry in my life.

11. I feel the best when I eat clean.

12. If I could go back and pick a college major today, I would pick something completely different.

13. My life as mom, has brought me more joy than I ever knew was possible. It's a hard job, but also rewarding.



14. I have more time than I think I do, I've been finding this by staying off my phone.

15. Being creative brings me joy.

16. I love to read, but would pick doing something with my hands/being creative to fill my free time nine times out of ten.

17. I like to mow the grass. Random. I don't mind it at all. Maybe it's the instant gratification of the nice neat rows of a manicured lawn as you go up and down each row. Now that I have boys that are old enough to help with this chore, I make sure I allow them enough mowing time 😂.

18. Chipolte is one of my favorite places to eat.

19. I love a classic, tailored style of clothing.

20. I love to learn new things.

21. I love to run. I found this completely on my own. I would take off from my house with my walkman back in junior high and high school. I never come home from a run disappointed that I went. I love to run long distances. Short races don't do it for me, half marathon (13.1 miles) is where it's at (about to run my 12th in October). I would love to run at least one full marathon, maybe before I turn 40!

22. When something is bothering me, I tend to hold it in. Chris has to often pull it out of me.

23. My favorite quick snack is hummus. Thankfully, two of my boys love it too!

24. I love all the seasons. There is something amazing about experiencing 4 seasons. You never get tired of any one season.

25. Jesus has to be the one I turn to.

26. I'm destined to be surrounded by boys. I have two brothers (who are both great by the way), and always wanted a sister. I now have five boys! We got a puppy last Christmas, and I was sure we would pick a girl dog, but picked a male goldendoodle puppy. See always surround by boys 💙💙💙💙💙💙💙!

27. I don't like change. The older I get, the more I see that change is hard for me.

28. I love Hallmark movies ❤️.

29. I would pick a pedicure over a manicure any day. They last longer.

30. I don't like waste. If the boys get an apple out to eat, I hate finding an apple with one bite out of it.

31. I'm old school in many ways. I still love to write with pen and paper. I have a paper planner. In a day and age where most people text. I still enjoy a good phone call with a friend, especially if we need to catch up on life.

32. I love photography.

33. I don't like conflict. I avoid it at all cost.

34. I prefer deep cleaning to surface cleaning (weird, I know).

35. I enjoy a good game of badminton or whiffle ball in the backyard.

36. I love a good deal!

37. I run on spark water! I haven't had soda pop in almost 2 years!

38. I don't like my calendar to be jam packed with activity. I like to have margin built in. I love nights at home. A slow weekend is my favorite!

39.  Growing old hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be. 10 years ago, I thought I was the perfect age, 29. Old enough people start to take you seriously, but still young. I'm 39 and I don't feel a day older than I did back then. The difference however comes that I feel more comfortable in my skin. I'm not as worried about what other people think of me. I want to look at each new year as a blessing!

I'm praying year 39 will be as great as the last 38. Here's to another great year of growth, happiness, and growing closer to Christ as I serve Him.

Friday, September 6, 2019

Five Things Friday-September 6

It's Friday! Yay! This week was a short and quick one. I hope you enjoyed an extra day off from your regular schedule.  Let's jump right into five things from me on this Friday.

{one}
Serving at City Union Mission on Labor Day. We took the boys down to City Union Mission and served lunch. It's great to live to bless, and good to help instill that from an early age in our kids. It's important to get outside of the four walls of your home and get your kids serving those in need. It helps them develop compassion and kindness toward others.  I'll be honest a couple of my kids weren't too pleased at the thought of giving up part of their day off school. But, I think they would all tell you that they enjoyed serving and I was proud of each one of them for jumping in serve. If you are looking for a way to serve as a family, give City Union Mission a call!





{two}
A Very Brady Renovation. I could not be more excited for this new HGTV show. HGTV is renovating the Brady house. You know the one, the front of the house they always showed from the outside, but it wasn't really the actually inside. Well, HGTV bought the home and is turning it into the actual Brady house, down to the very last detail. The actors who played the Brady kids are each helping renovate a different room in the house on each episode. I LOVE this concept! I told Chris the other day that I grew up watching all the reruns of this show and could not love it more. I would be surprised if I haven't seen every episode. We decided we need to start watching The Brady Bunch with the boys, it is such a good, clean show. First episode airs Monday, September 9 at 8:00 pm central time.



{three}
Birthday Weekend! My birthday is Sunday! I've always been a birthday person. My birthday falls on a very busy Sunday this year, so it might feel a bit different. None the less, I'm thankful for the blessing of another year of life. I used to not enjoy turning another year older, until I finally realized age is just a number. I feel just as good, if not better, at almost 39 as I did at 29, so just live every day to the fullest. Take good care of yourself, eat well and exercise, and then age really is just a number. There is something great about the mid to upper 30's, you start to feel comfortable in your own skin. A natural confidence begins to exude from you, because you've lived life and have some wisdom. I'm coming at you with open arms 39, it's going to be a great year, I just know it!

{four}
Loaded Bacon Burger Bowl-Paleo Running Momma does it again! Chris and I are on a little Whole 30 reset, no big deal, we eat clean a lot of the time, so it's not a very drastic change. However, over the summer, with vacation, and the boys home, and all the fun summer treats, a few old habits slipped back in. September is the perfect time for a little reset! I've said it before, Paleo Running Momma is one of my go to Whole 30 recipe sources and all my kids ate their entire dinner when I made this meal this week. So, I had to share it with you, find it HERE. Healthy and kid approved! Make it this weekend!


{five} 

Grout Cleaning Solution. I've received feedback that several of you tried the trick I shared a few weeks ago about my dishwasher revelation. I'm so glad that it is working for so many of you! Well, I'm back to share a new cleaning solution I discovered this week. I have some light colored grout in my bathroom. I've tried a few different products to clean the grout and have not had any success. I came across the simplest cleaning recipe for grout the other day, 1 part vinegar to 1 part water. I had nothing to lose so I mixed it up, not really thinking it would work, it seemed too easy 😂. I applied it to the grout, let it soak for a few minutes, and then used a scrub brush, and I was amazed at the finished product. I could actually see the difference as I was scrubbing. It doesn't smell the best while you are cleaning (hello, vinegar), but for clean grout I can take one for the team!

In case you missed it this week:


Do you have any life hack or cleaning tips and tricks to share? I would love to hear yours in the comments section. Have a wonderful Friday and enjoy your weekend!

Tuesday, September 3, 2019

Lunch Box Ideas for Kids-Part 2

Today, I'm back with part two of lunch box ideas for kids. It's imperative to keep things exciting in the lunch box if you want your child to finish their lunch everyday! My goal for my kids lunch is to help them properly refuel their body, so they are can better concentrate and focus on their studies, setting them up for success in the classroom. It's really important to me to find foods to add to their lunch that are somewhat healthy and they enjoy. The best way I've found to do this is to keep a running list of items that my kids like, anytime I try something different and it's a success, I add it to the list. This gives me a great list to refer to when I'm creating my grocery list and it sets me up for a successful school year. Here are five more ideas I've been sending in my boys lunch that have been winners!

1. Bagel with cream cheese. Strawberries and yogurt.

 2. Ham and Cheese Wrap, applesauce, carrots, and animal crackers. I spread ranch dressing on a tortilla and added a layer of ham and cheese. You could modify the meat and toppings to create new wrap ideas to keep things exciting. These animal crackers from Aldi are the best, they have such a great lemony favor.


3. Cheese (or chicken and cheese) quesadilla. I made the quesadilla on my stove top. It only took a few minutes. You can wrap the quesadillas in foil after you cut to keep it warm longer. Sour cream and salsa for dipping. Chips and salsa.  I keep my box of go-gurts in the freezer, add it to the lunchbox and it's the perfect temperature by lunch time.


4. Pasta (spaghetti with sauce or fettuccini alfredo), applesauce, breadstick, and dessert (optional). Don't forget to utilize leftovers! Pasta is the perfect meal when you have leftovers, to reheat and enjoy again. Simply warm your thermos by boiling water and placing in the thermos for at least five minutes to get the thermos hot. Dump water out and place re-heated pasta inside.



5. Ham, strawberries and blueberries, yogurt, and mini banana chocolate chip muffins. These banana chocolate chip muffins are a huge hit with my kids. If I don't want them to disappear quickly, make them when no one is around! You can also make a double batch and put some in the freezer to use at another time.

For five more lunch box ideas check out, Lunch Box Ideas for Kids-Part 1. What other lunch ideas do you have to keep kids lunch box selections fresh and exciting?

Grocery List:

bagels
cream cheese
yogurt
animal crackers
carrots
tortillas
ham
cheese
ranch dressing
applesauce
shredded cheese
tortilla chips
salsa
sour cream (optional)
chocolate chips
drinks
any snack/dessert items

various fruit:
strawberries
blueberries
ripe bananas (for muffins)