Prayers Are Needed!

Trey and I went to our first Bible Study group last night at our Deacon's house. It started off really amazing with reading the verses and reflecting on them. The one in particular that we were discussing is Genesis 22: 1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18 which is about how Abraham is going to sacrifice his only son to show his devotion to God. The amount of Faith that Abraham had in God that he would slaughter is son is unfathomable.Deacon Dan received a phone call during this discussion and he heard the horrible news that his nephew and his wife had been murdered earlier in the day. His sister called to let him know. Their 2 year old son was found in the house, alive and unharmed. There are no words to describe that moment. I will forever remember it. Dan and his wife left the living room immediately in tears and our group sat in silence not knowing what happened. We continued with our discussions as best as we could and then Dan came back into the room to let everyone know what the disturbing news was. We were all in shock.

We stood, held hands, and prayed together for Deacon Dan and his family. We cried together, for this unimaginable act of violence.It was no coincidence that we were all there, memebers of his parish, discussing this reading from the Bible about Faith and devotion. God has a plan, it might not unfold the way we want it to, or we might not even know what that plan is, but God is there, working through each of us. Speaking through us in those moments of prayer and sadness. Please pray for Deacon Dan and his family for their tremendous loss. For the 2 year old baby who will never know his parents. We will never know why these things happen, but I have faith that God will save us through these situations. We cannot always be saved from them, but he will save us through the unthinkable times.

Confessions and Cookies!

Happy FAT TUESDAY!!! And oh let me tell you, it sure feels like a Fat Tuesday. Whew! I was actually very good this morning and through lunch....but then I splurged for dinner at Olive Garden, Yum!

So, I finally to see Confessions of a Shopaholic which was super cute. Not too much like the book, from what I remembered, but awesome nonetheless. Isla did a Fab job (even though I was picturing what Reese Witherspoon could have done the whole time). My sweet Hubby went with me and it was a good night!

Aren't these outfits super fun? Love it!

Oh and its also GIRL SCOUT COOKIE TIME!!!! I proudly ordered 7 boxes (not so proudly when they all arrived on my desk at work) ha! My two favorites are the Thin Mints and Tagalongs.....yumm!

Now that Lent is starting...and I am giving up Chocolate....OUCH! Here is what I will be eating for the next 40 days.....my body will thank me :)

Pounds Lost? Four. Still Baking? You Betcha!

Hey everyone, sorry its been a little while since I posted! I have been busy and under the weather which is never fun.
Since I started on my path to decrease my waist size for the upcoming wedding I have pulled out some exercise DVDs I love called Turbo Jam. For anyone who hates working out, give these a try! I do despise exercising, but Chalene makes it so much fun and the music is addicting too.
I have a blast (as much as one can when working out) and you burn tons of calories with the fast moves!

So far, I have lost 4 pounds! I am also using a website to track my food intake and calories, etc. It is www.myfooddiary.com and it has been a great tool for me. Very helpful! :)


So, you may wonder if I am still using my Domestic side since I am trying to cut calories? Of course! I have actually made three complete dinners the past two weeks and I am set to make two more this upcoming week! It has been fun, challenging, and yummy! I am trying to bake muffins on weekends so Trey and I can take them to work for breakfast during the week. I made Chocolate Chip Muffins and they are Yumtastic!


Isn't this the BEST part???!!

Mmmmmm....delish!

I also made a Taco Soup last week that was pretty good. I will have to start posting recipes on here, but you basically throw a little of everything in a pot and simmer for an hour. Then Presto! Dinner is served....or poured :)

I am making Spaghetti Pie, Goat Cheese, Chicken, and Artichoke Pizza, and Avocado Chicken this week! I will try to post the recipes later. :)

If The Dress Fits...

Trey and I are going to a Wedding in Virginia the first weekend in May and we are making a road trip out of it for our vacation! We are very excited and have been planning our hotel stays and our restaurant and entertainment stops along the way.

First things first...I need to fit into one these three dresses for the wedding! I bought these stunning beauties at White House Black Market before my wedding in 2007 and I no longer fit comfortably inside of them. So, my goal is to wear one of them to my dear friend Kaitlin's wedding in May! I have exactly 10 weeks and I have my Game Face on. The only thing in my way is the much anticipated delivery of The Girl Scout Cookies to my office in the next week or so! Of course I ordered one of every kind (I am sharing, I promise!) But I will really have to be mindful of how many calories are in each one of those cookies and write it down! :)
I am asking for thoughts and prayers on my path to success!

Little Miss Pink Lady...

Let me just say, I think it was a fabulous idea to come out with a line of pink kitchen-aid products because not only are they so cute....but they support such a wonderful cause. This is my new friend, Pink Lady. She came to me in the form of a Wedding Gift in 2007 (yes, I am ashamed to admit she has been in her box anxiously waiting for me to open her up and introduce her to some friends (The Stand Mixer, Silver Fox, and Big Red, the Food Processor, whom you have previously met) :) This is also very exciting to me because it was the ONLY pink electric kitchen gift I was allowed to register for. (Remember, The Husband has been the Chef and the sole cook in the household until very recently) So, I totally understood that he didn't want have all these girly pink utensils spread through-out the kitchen. I convinced him if I could register for the PINK mixer, then I would be more inclined to use it, at least once a month. Yeah, that obviously never happened...but the positive side is that NOW I am ready to learn! ;)
Well, today I was ready to break her out and put her little arms to good use! I had a craving for Banana Nut Muffins and I remembered I bought a box a couple of months ago. Betty Crocker...here I come!

It was quite simple, just follow the directions and mix away. That sounds easy enough, until the egg shell fell right into the center of the ingredients! I proceeded to use everything I could to fish out the intruder. Whew...that was a lot harder than I expected, it kept slipping off of the spoons and through my fingers. Finally, after a couple of minutes of curse words and panicking I got the little sucker! Pink Lady, do your thang!
I poured the mixture into the little silcone cups (then I licked that yummy batter off every square inch of those beaters and the bowl) and stuck it into the oven for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, I stuck a toothpick in the middle of a muffin (a little advice per the Hubby) and Voila!

Look how amazing those look! Do you notice something else about this picture?? Yes, you got it! My silicone cupcake tray is PINK too! Don't know how I snuck this past The Husband ;)

They turned out to be very good and moist, despite the drama with the egg shell. I am going to Kroger tomorrow and buying one of every muffin flavor! Practice makes perfect, right?

I'd Like To Introduce You Too...

Big Red: The Brand New Food Processor! It might just be my new best friend considering we hit it off the moment we met tonight. I decided to cook dinner tonight when I got home from work. I purchased items a week ago just in case I ever felt like cooking, and poof! Tonight it became a reality. I had a pretty slow day at work, and decide to make a new recipe that neither Trey or I had ever tried.
The recipe I tackled was Penne with Spinach Sauce and it contained three of my favorite items: goat cheese, cream cheese, and pasta! Perfecto! I had Trey on hand in the living room just in case I had any questions (what the heck is mincing garlic??) So, I cooked the penne pasta as directed, easy enough.

Then, I pulled out the big guns with Big Red. Trey showed me how to pull garlic cloves and crack them open. After that everything was a snap! I just slid every ingreident into the Food Processor shoot and Voila! It took only seconds! I couldn't believe how easy this meal was to prepare and how YUMMY it turned out to be....mmmmm delish!



So, with a little help from Trey (mainly just answers to my questions) I was able to prepare a semi-gourmet meal in less than 30 minutes...watch out Rachel Ray!
Did I mention it is green because of Spinich... so a little healthy mixed in with the carbs and cheesey goodness.

My sweet hubby who is my constant supporter.

Bring It On Baby Einstein!

This past weekend I went to Texas to spend some girl time with a dear friend and her precious 4 month old baby girl. We had a blast...and I came home with some much needed baby experience! (For the future...don't go getting any ideas) :)

Amber wanted to buy Aubrey this Baby Einstein Jumper and I tagged along to see what all the fuss is about Babies R Us (Now I see what the fuss is about...have you seen that place!??)
So, when we got home, we really wanted to see Aubrey in the Jumper, however, Andrew (Amber's Husband) was not yet home.
Normally, the old "un-domestic" me would have taken one look at those 5 page directions and thrown in the towel right then and there claiming an arm cramp. However, this would be perfect experience for the new me... some great training! I took every piece out of the box and found Andrew's tools in the garage and opened the first page...



I was pleasantly surprised! Amazingly, most of the directions were pretty simple! (what had I been scared of all these years?) and a lot of the parts snapped together. So, I started snapping pieces together until they created the base for the Jumper. The directions did become a little confusing...(okay, who am I kidding, VERY CONFUSING!) But, after an hour and a half, I had almost all of the pieces together! Whew! Amber helped me on the last leg when Aubrey was napping and we completed the Jumper. Honestly, I was so freakin' proud of myself I couldn't stand it! I immediately called my husband and raved about my new-found domestic skills. It felt good, really good, to have accomplished something like this, a task that normally, I would never have the guts to tackle. But I tried, and it was successful!

How can ANYONE resist that sweet little face...she was sure happy we put her new toy together.

Moral of the story...I could get used to this whole Domestic thing... is it Champagne time yet?

A Little Humor For Ya...

When I was younger, I was often offended with Blonde Jokes. (Especially in junior high school when my hormones were on crack and I was super senstitive.) I would take blonde jokes very personally and cry to my mom when they hurt my feelings. Once I grew up a little more and became comfortable with who I am, I could appreciate the humor in blonde jokes! I came across this one today in a work email and thought it was pretty darn creative and hilarious! ENJOY!

"A blonde calls her boyfriend and says, "Please come over here and help me.
I have a killer jigsaw puzzle, and I can't figure out how to get started."

Her boyfriend asks, "What is it supposed to be when it's finished?"

The blonde says, "According to the picture on the box, it's a rooster."

Her boyfriend decides to go over and help with the puzzle. She lets him in and shows him where she has the puzzle spread all over The table. He studies the pieces for a moment, then looks at the box, then turns to her and says, "First of all, no matter what we do, we're not going to be able to Assemble these pieces into anything resembling a rooster."He takes her hand and says,

"Second, I want you to relax. Let's have a nice cup of tea, and then ..." he said with a deep sigh...

"Let's put all the Corn Flakes back in the box."

The Road To Success Starts With...A Cocktail?

Hello Fellow Bloggers and Blog-Stalkers ~ (Yes, I am one of them too!)

As I venture off on my journey to becoming a true-blue Domestic Diva I want to start things off on the right foot (which definitely includes a yummy cocktail!)

I want to introduce you to me before I start pouring out my heart and soul on this blog and all the while you are wondering who the heck I am! :) So, I figured I would tell you 30 random and completely honest things about ME! Here it goes...

1. I love love love cheese and I couldn't go a single day without it! (hey, its dairy right?)

2. My husband and I have a sick addiction to rap music. Random I know!

3. I feel amazingly blessed to have such wonderful friendships and family relationships.

4. The only seafood I will eat is Mahi Mahi and Halibut.

5. I chose the song that is on my blog "Unwritten" because from the moment I heard it on the radio, I really felt I connected with the words. We are all truly "unwritten" in some way or another...no matter what has happened in life, you can always re-write where your path leads.

6. I wish I could have a Wedding every year! (It was so much fun!)

7. I think my boss is The Devil. Actually, I don't think, I know she is.

8. I love my actual job duties, but I HATE everything else that comes with it (doesn't everyone?)

9. I love that my Husband communicates with me and he loves to cook and clean! (Thus why I need to get on the bandwagon of becoming Domesticated)

10. I am in love with the color Pink...anyway I can get it! It takes me to my happy place.

11. My mother is truly one of my best friends. She is so amazing!

12. I have an irrational fear that something bad will happen to someone I love or that I will lose someone close to me.

13. I am a self-admitted Road Rager. I hate stupid drivers!

14. I despise mornings. They are the bain of my existence which explains #15

15. One of my favorite things to do is sleep! I get excited about going to bed and I could sleep for 10-15 hours straight, every night. (I hear that is bad so i try to stay at 8-10)

16. I could eat Mexican Food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (and snacks!)

17. My Dad is my Hero...and I honestly mean that in every sense of the word.

18. I love writing and I still have a pen pal that I have had for over 10 years! She came to my wedding and I am going to hers in May! (She lives in Virginia and yes, our only communication is snail mailing letters once every 1-3 months!)

19. I am a Holiday Freak! I love decorating and getting cards for holidays. I love the food, the togetherness, and the magic of the holiday season. Ahhhhh, love it!

20. I don't talk to God near as much as I should or want to. I will talk to him and pray a lot for a few weeks and then fall off for a month or two...I am constantly trying to play catchup.

21. I have always believed Shopping solves every problem! Except once shopping becomes your problem...then I don't have a solution...

22. I stand by my belief that "roughing it" or "camping" must include a cabin with a TV and bathtub. And an outlet for my cell charger.

23. I cannot stand to be hot. In the dead of summer I feel claustrophobic and nauseated when I breathe in that hot, stagnant air. Yuck!

24. Chocolate is by far the best invention ever. I'll take it in any form...candy, drinks, pies, cakes, you name it, if its chocolate, its fabulous.

25. I love washing clothes! I know, its a little weird, but there is something about it that I never mind doing...(I don't know if I should even admit this, *gasp* but I even like folding clothes!)

26.I hate working out. I am an Excuse Queen when it comes to "not having time" to workout.

27. Mac and cheese and mashed potatoes is the best meal ever. Carb-a-licious!

28. I would live on processed foods and carbs if I could. If it were healthy, I would be the President of the Processed Food Fan Club.

29. I could go to Maggie Moos daily and eat a large Cool Mint ice cream with a york peppermint patty, brownie, and fudge. MMMMMMMM!

30. I want three kids and my husband wants two...to be continued...

And there you have it! 30 random things about me. I welcome any questions! :)

Next blog I will start with my history on being the Undomestic Diva...until next time my bloggers...