A New Year and a New Abnormal...

So come January 1st 2013 I received about a dozen or so emails from different blogs I read, homeschooling sites, websites, etc about New Year's resolutions, new plans, fresh starts, and rethinking things....I guess everyone does it.  Everyone I know to some extent uses the turn of the year to rethink their spiritual life, plans, goals, exercise routine, homeschooling schedule, curriculum, etc.  It's natural and I'm o.k. with that even though in the past I've thought it was stupid.  So the past week or so I've been thinking about just those things....I've done my 20 minute shower (John would say 30) time to think on such things, late nights up reading, and have bought several items to "help" with my NEW goals!  A lot of times we think the external things can fix us...a new wardrobe, a new book, a new diet, a new plan.  So my first goal is to quit looking at the external and work on the internal more....more time with my Bible in hand.

Along those lines is my concern for my children's hearts...their own spiritual well being.  I've found two really good daily devotions that I'm working through with them.  So far so good...the one Emily is using is actually a mother/daughter devotion so it spawns conversation between the two of us which is good.

Next up is reading.  I turn the TV on many times when John isn't here for background noise.  Half the time I don't even watch the show.  I really really want to read more.  I've got a couple of books that I'm in the middle of now and I'm determined to finish.  I also printed out cute little reading logs for not only the kids but ME TOO!  I have my books in a basket where we will read every night as well as a family...We've done SOOOO much better since homeschooling but I want to do even better!

Another goal is to instill more confidence in my children while schooling...we've changed Emily's math program, found some books that J.D. really loves to read although they weren't my first pick and no matter how long it takes us....we will do hard things and learn to be thankful for new and difficult tasks

FUN!  I can be a pretty serious person lacking joy and pure fun in living....I can get real wound up about things which you will understand in the next little section...so in an attempt to be fun and creative my friend and I are cooking through the Pioneer Woman Cookbook (previous posts).

Next up my health...so once again I will try to do something with this extra weight.  Kind of ironic coming after the last paragraph...life is so maddening sometimes!  I have eaten terrible the past two months.  I know I have extra weight and I know I can do better...enough said.  It's my thorn and I'm putting what is behind me in the past and moving forward!

Now this is even more ironic....while cooking through the Pioneer Woman Cookbook...I'm going to do a fast of a sort..stick with me here....

Enters this book...

The same crazy friend that is cooking with me also mentioned this book to me last week.  I bought it after reading the synopsis online because I was totally fascinated...and now I'm wrecked (thanks Francis Chan for that word)....It's basically about the waste, greed, overindulgence, and so on in America.  The author is hilarious.  She's a pastor's wife, lives in Texas, and has 5 kids.  The book is her diary of her experiment in detoxing herself from the stuff that clouds our houses, minds, and souls.  The experiment takes about 8 months.  Her purpose was to fast in 7 different areas of waste and over indulgence in her life.  It's hysterical, raw, real, and very entertaining but oh so convicting.  The book is not the how to to do this yourself, it isn't a Bible Study or a guide...it's just her story.  It got me thinking though and well I'm in!  I've always been intrigued with fasting and have tried to some extent.  If not food, then in media.  It's a little contrived or gimmicky...I agree but also very fascinating...what if we really did without some and what would it make us realize, who would we go to, what would we do with what we find out about ourselves.  The categories are as follows: food, waste, clothes, media, stress, possessions, and shopping.  Get this...pick 7 foods to eat for 30 days...that's it!  Did you know that if you make over $35,000 a year you are in the top 4% of wealth in the entire WORLD!  I have no idea what all this means going on inside my head...but I'm up for a challenge, a kick in the butt, a new abnormal (like homeschooling my kids, drinking kefir, and backyard chickens wasn't enough), a thought provoking journey...if it makes us a little more grateful and a little less wasteful then I like a little gimmick.  It's a huge undertaking.  I'm scared to death.  And I might be grouchy next week living on no caffeine but here's to a crazy start to the new year!  Oh and I told 6 of my closest friends about the book so they can be as miserable as me....and guess what?  They all want to do an experiment of their own:)  Gotta love my friends!  So this year you will also be hearing of my journey with the 7 experiment.....my friends and I will be recording our experiment on a book club site to encourage one another and hold each other accountable.  Everyone's experiment will look a little different, led (hopefully) by the Holy Spirit in an effort to get rid of the waste and junk in our life for these 8 months in order to make room for more of the Holy Spirit..I'm not sure I totally even get it yet but I will let you know more when I do.

This is one of the 7 foods I will be eating over the next 30 days....Happy Happy Joy Joy:)

Saw this sign at Target for $5 yesterday...if it had had So Blessed instead of So Lucky I might have bought it....but I still thought it was fitting:)

Chicken Tacos

This week's recipe list includes PW's chicken tacos...Sadly, Taco Bell and Old El' Paso have ruined my children...

These tacos were amazing and my kids said they were "o.k." SAD!   I cooked chicken in spices and green chilis. Stuffed corn tortillas with the chicken mixture and fried them....topped them with cheese, sour cream, lettuce, hot sauce, and tomato.  Thank goodness John LOVED them!  We've tried corn tortillas before and hated them...duh they weren't fried!  You gotta fry a corn tortilla...then it tastes just like those crispy hard tacos at restaurants!

Only comment that John made other than "Awesome" was that the chicken pieces could be smaller...note to self next time:)  

Pioneer Woman and Me

So for the next YEAR you will be hearing from me about my adventures in cooking through the Pioneer Woman Cookbook!  Aren't you excited!  I love something to look forward too...I love a new program:)  My kids and hubby roll their eyes because I've always got a new plan!  My good friend received the cookbook for Christmas and we had the thought to cook through it in a year...there are 100 recipes.  Seems doable if you cook two per week.  I like food...I like to cook and I like a goal!  We are going to take turns picking which two recipes...give each other the menu on Thursday and we have the next week to cook the two recipes....we both have blogs so it will be fun!  I loved reading her blog today on her first two recipes.  We also both like The Pioneer Woman...she home schools, has a ranch, and she has red hair!

Up first was the Ranch Chicken and Roasted Cauliflower~My friend is making notes on sticky notes in her book so she can remember tricks, hints, how it turned out...she is also making a list of "wish" items for her kitchen as she goes.  I like these ideas and had not thought about them.  I made up a little scoring spreadsheet and am getting the family involved....they get to grade me on presentation, taste, how well it was cooked and would they eat it again.  So expect lots of pictures of food:)  On a side note but related....I had this idea because way back in 2009 I watched a cute little movie called Julie and Julia about how a blog writer at her wits end and depressed with her cubicle job decided to use her love of cooking to cook through the Julia Child's cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  We watched the movie together today just to get us excited...it really is a cute movie.  I wonder if The Pioneer Woman would like to know what we are doing:)?

 One of my favorite pans is this grill pan...John grills a lot but when he isn't around it gets the job done!

 Family gave it a thumbs up...I got all 4's and 5's!

This project will be very funny when you read the next post...oh my poor family:)  Stay tuned!

New Year's Eve

In my effort to be a "fun mom" I found yet another idea on Pinterest...I bought 7 balloons and while the nice Publix man was very patient, I stuffed each balloon with a surprise activity on a sheet of paper before he blew the balloons up with helium.  Starting at 6 pm before Daddy was off to work, we popped a balloon on the hour and did whatever the piece of paper said.  The kids were so excited....and it made the night go by really fast.  After watching last year's New Year's Even Party on TV, I decided that that wasn't for us...I would allow the kids to see the ball "drop" but we would do other stuff up until midnight.  We watched some old black and white episodes of Abbott and Costello, we played a game, we watched Dolphin Tale, and played with our New Year's Eve guests...Ms. B, Baby D, and dog Sassy!  I was a little sad that John wouldn't be around on New Year's but it ended up being a very nice evening!

Christmas Night

My mom really wanted my brother to have some "Southern" home cooked Christmas dinner food while he was in Tallahassee...so we did the whole turkey, squash casserole, dressing, sweet potato souffle, pies, peas,etc.  It was delicious! We had a very relaxing late Christmas evening...

Nee Naw and Pop Pop gave Emily a Vera Bradley Hipster purse and wallet...and it just so happens that her and Nee Naw have the same taste in patterns!

The boys digging in

The greatest grandparent present of all is the handmade wooden horse family that my dad built.  My girls are especially into horses and Molly had made one of our benches at home into a horse...but it has no face..She is really good at pretending though and jumps up on it and rides it and does jumps and races...so cute.  Well she doesn't have to ride the faceless horse anymore...Pop Pop fixed the kids up with FOUR horses....with heads and faces and a tail and reigns.  They are the cutest most sturdy things ever!

They were sitting on their porch around the Christmas tree....a huge surprise for the kids!

My Dad needs to get a booth at Market Days!