Shifting Gears

I've decided that it's time to shift gears in my blogging world.  After almost a year of silence, I'll be moving my blog experience to focus more on my life from the perspective of being a minister's wife.  So, if you'd like up to date recipes, rants, raves, and anything else fun that starts with an "r"...check me out at http://wifeoftherev.blogspot.com See ya there!

Elizabeth's Chicken Lasagna

Alright, alright after many years of requests I'm giving out my favorite lasagna recipe. It's loosely based on a recipe I received from the mom of my husband's high school friends. This is a basic recipe and you can of course add different favors based on what you like. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
3-4 chicken breasts skinned and trimmed
1 box of oven ready lasagna noodles
2-3 jars of Alfredo sauce
Oregano
Garlic
Basil
1 block of cream cheese (I usually use fat free)
1/2 stick of butter
Mozzarella cheese

Boil chicken in a sauce pan of water until done through and easily pulls apart.
Shred chicken, dump water, put chicken back in sauce pan.
Add 2-3 jars of Alfredo sauce (I use 1 creamy, and 2 three cheese)
Add oregano, basil, and garlic til you like the way it tastes.
Spray 9x13 with pam and put down 1 layer of oven ready lasagna noodles.
When sauce is warm, spread some over the noodles.
On top of the sauce I put 12 small chunks of cream cheese (3 rows).
In between the rows of cream cheese I put 2 small slivers of butter or margarine. Then I top with mozzarella cheese.
Repeat for 4 layers making the top layer extra cheesy!
Cover the pan with foil and bake for 45 minutes.
Take the foil off, bake for another 15 minutes let cool some (about 10 minutes) before cutting and serving. This is actually the perfect time to set the table or get a salad thrown together.

Bubba Shirts

About two months ago it was time for Little Miss to move into her big girl bed. She really struggled with the transition waking up in the middle of the night every night for the first time in 2 years. Mr. Man and I were at our wits end because this was so out of the ordinary.

In the meantime Little Miss discovered the joy of putting on her brother's clothes. She would giggle and scream with joy once she got his shirts on...so pleased with herself. Little Man had outgrown some of his undershirts and so we decided to give Little Miss the old shirts.

So, I slapped some bows on the old white t-shirts and cinched up the shirt to make it fit better and look cute...now Little Miss will only sleep in her "bubba shirts" and the best part is that the first night she slept in her bubba shirt, she slept through the night again and has seemed to sleep much better since then!

Make It Rain Bows at The Color Run 2012

It's official. My first 5k is over and what a rush of emotions. What started as a challenge to myself ended in a car ride of tears home remembering the real reason that I run.

Let me start by telling everyone to start with that after 6ish months of running, I still HATE it 90% of the time. I started working out last August because my brother convinced me that joining a gym was a good idea. After losing 80 pounds over the past four years I had plateaued at a weight of 149 lbs and so I caved to the peer pressure and joined the gym in hopes of losing the final 19 pounds to achieve my dream weight. At some point I started to run. I remember feeling so accomplished when I finished a long stretch of running and enjoying the feeling of working my body the way it's intended to be worked but it was hard to run and boring and I don't know that I'll ever shake the feeling that I'd rather be doing anything except running.

So around February I got a Facebook post from my brother's friend telling me that I should do the color run with her and her friends. I checked it out and thought I had plenty of time to be well trained so I signed up under the team name Make It Rain Bows (which I loved and thought was super creative)! I was so excited and scared. I was not a person who ran races yet here I was setting a goal of running a 5k.

And so yesterday was it. I woke up around 4am so nervous that I couldn't go back to sleep, left my house at 4:45 to pick up my brother and made the hour and a half drive to Tulsa. We arrived, hooked up with our teams and waited for the start. My team found a spot in the middle of the pack and waited as wave after wave of groups of a thousand left for their run.

I wish I could say I ran the entire thing but I can't. I barely made it to the first color marker at 1km. I wanted to quit so bad and walk the entire thing but my now dear friend Jessica May kept cheering me on and telling me I could do it. She had more faith in me than I did. We paused to get doused in colors every kilometer along with getting water every kilometer but the stopping made it okay and ridiculously fun! The clouds of color floating in the air gave me hope that we could keep going.

As we got more tired our running spurts became shorter until the last kilometer. We decided to run the last kilometer and finish strong and we did. We ran the last kilometer and it was indeed uphill! Jessica's faith in me had restored my faith in myself and even though I didn't want to be running I kept going with a friend by my side. We celebrated in a cloud of multiple colors, high fives, and congratulations. 

On my solitary drive home I couldn't stop smiling. I had done it. I had completed a race. I began thinking about how I didn't have anything I needed to work towards now and how I wanted to quit running and then this thought slipped into my mind..."this isn't for you." i thought for a moment because if i wasn't running for myself who was I running for. I had forgotten why I had truly decided to change my life from my eating habits to my activity level. I wasn't doing this for me to lose weight or start racing or to prove to other people that I'm not fat and lazy any more; I changed for my kids.

I never want my children to worry about my health. I never want them thinking that I could die early from diabetes, heart disease, or any other obesity related illness. I never want them to struggle with their weight. I never want them being made fun of for their weight or having an obesity related illness at an early age or at any age for that matter. And so I changed for them. I quit eating fried foods, I quit eating enough food for three people, I educated myself in everything nutritional I could, I started eating foods I hate all for my children. I have strayed this year and today I remembered how important my lifestyle change is. My children are more important than anything! Thank you Color Run for reminding me of that. My children are the reason I run!

Children, Pray Today: Day 123

Dear God, we appreciate all the things you give us but most of all we value who you make us to be. Guide us to be the people you hope we become. In Jesus' name, amen.

Children, Pray Today: Day 122

Dear God, help me behave at school so I can get a sno-cone....and Legos. Help my teacher because sometimes we act crazy and she's real tired. Amen.

Yep, that's a little man special!

Princess, or Not?

Once upon a time there was a little girl and nobody knew if she was a princess or not. Let's see what you think.

Emma played in dirt...she did not practice tea time! Do you think Emma was a princess?

Emma wore shorts and t-shirts...she did not wear dresses! Do you think Emma was a princess?

Emma wore a cowboy hat...not a crown! Do you think Emma was a princess?

Emma sang as loud as she could...she did not use her inside voice! Do you think Emma was a princess?

Emma was very bossy...she did not ask politely! Do you think Emma was a princess?

Emma played with every child...she did not just play with princes and princesses! Do you think Emma was a princess?

So what do you think? Was Emma a princess or not?

Of course she was! Every girl is a princess!