Goooooood Morning Michigan! Yep, I said that in my head in the best morning radio broadcasting voice I could muster up at 5:30 a.m.! I think I might be crazy for getting up this early when my 6 month old is still sound asleep, but.. I'm willing to risk that.
I think I am going to start a new plan to help me stay more on top of things in our home. Phil gets up SO early. All this month he is up by around 4:30-45 every morning, only to work a super long day (yesterday he wasn't home until after 8:00 p.m.) come home, try and de-stress a little and then go to bed only to do it again the next day. Thankfully, he is getting off 1/2 days every other day, but that's besides the point. I'm so thankful for him and the hard work and long hours that he is putting in. Made me think... there never is a lack of things that I could be doing around here. Usually I just try and cram whatever I can in while Giuliana is sleeping or playing really quietly, like you saw yesterday in my picture. Why not get up when Phil does and, number one, start my day off right? With God! (yes, I know, genius idea huh?) I have been under the thought until now that I would sneak it in during one of her naps or usually before bed. Not so much.. Besides, starting my day off WITH Him is my goal for this year. Not ending it with Him.
My point in mentioning it on here is that I'm hoping to help myself stay accountable. Maybe get up, blog and spend time with the One who gave me this day. Made me think of this book that I got for Giuliana a while back. It's one of my favorite childhood songs, so you can imagine my excitement when I found this book at Family Christian! Rise and Shine and give God the glory GLORY! Rise and Shine and give God the glory GLORY, Rise and Shine and give God the glory GLORY, children of the Lord!
Now I may not get a blog done every morning, because my other point to getting up early is to get a head start on my house cleaning for the day, but I'll see. I would like to, but that part may have to wait until that evening or later in the day at least. We shall see friends, we shall see! :)
Anyways.... enough talk, and more action.
~Be a Blessing to someone today~, they'll wonder what's wrong with you! :)
Peace, Love and Giving Glory,
Linz
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
p52 week 1!
Hello Friends!
Well, I'm tackling two of my resolutions today in this post! Go me! :) More blogging and more pictures!
I'm taking part in p52! One of our photographers has put it together!
It's a weekly picture challenge for the year. We are given a subject and taking a picture from that week toward that subject. Interpreted however you like. Should be fun to see everyone's artistic side come out. I'm going to try it! May not be great at being creative all of the time, but I'm determined to make it as good as I can. I'm anxious to see what I'm capable of as well.
My first picture here was taking with my iPhone because it was at my disposal quickly and wanted to get a picture posted, but I will be taking the other ones with my "real" camera! :)
Please join if you'd like. Should be fun!! (link in above!)
Here is my picture for week #1: RESOLUTION
Well, I'm tackling two of my resolutions today in this post! Go me! :) More blogging and more pictures!
I'm taking part in p52! One of our photographers has put it together!
It's a weekly picture challenge for the year. We are given a subject and taking a picture from that week toward that subject. Interpreted however you like. Should be fun to see everyone's artistic side come out. I'm going to try it! May not be great at being creative all of the time, but I'm determined to make it as good as I can. I'm anxious to see what I'm capable of as well.
My first picture here was taking with my iPhone because it was at my disposal quickly and wanted to get a picture posted, but I will be taking the other ones with my "real" camera! :)
Please join if you'd like. Should be fun!! (link in above!)
Here is my picture for week #1: RESOLUTION
*~Peace, Love, and Resolution~*
-Linz
Sunday, January 8, 2012
New Look for a New Year!
Hey Friends!
Well, it's that time. The time that we talk about our resolutions and how we are hoping to keep them... Or how we have failed miserably at them already. I've done a little of both.
My resolutions for the new year:
#1: Pray for my daughter and husband daily.
#2: Spend time with God first, go about my day second.
#3: Eat CLEAN.
#4: Lose 15 lbs. (yes, I know, isn't that everyone's??)
#5: Take more pictures.
#6: Declutter my house, one day at a time!
#7: Drink more water, NO SODA!
The list could go on and on, but I'm beginning to feel overwhelmed by just writing these few.
So far the verdict isn't amazing.. one that I have kept with fully is no soda! Woohoo, go me! It's an accomplishment, let me tell ya. 1 week+ in, and I am feeling good. Already done around 5 lbs! (the 15 is on top of that!)
The first two are obvious ones.. I believe prayer should start in the home. If we can't pray for the people we love the most, how can we pray for anyone else.. and why is daily prayer time so hard? Hmmph. I'm excited to get better in this area.
Daily time with the Lord, beyond prayer is so important as well. Again, as cliché as it sounds, we should love the God the most and if we can't spend time with Him showing him our love and devotion, how can I properly show that to my family. Proverbs 31 woman... that is my goal. "We should be the type of woman that when our feet hit the ground the devil says.. 'oh crap, she's up'!"
Eating clean. I haven't done great at this so far. With beginning the year with boy scout popcorn staring at me... plus my obsessive craving for oreos.. I'm working on this one. (can I remind you though about the soda that I HAVEN'T drank!) ;) Anyways.. Eating clean to me can have different meanings to each. My feeling about is this:
Unhealthy food seems complicated to me.. look at the label. Can you really pronounce anything in it? If people ask you what is in it, do you say.. "I don't know, but it's really good!" I've been there.. still do, but I'm trying.
Eating Clean to me is just a matter of:
~Knowing what's in the foods that you eat,
~Eating no red meat (lots of fat!),
~Trying out new veggies that I haven't liked or haven't had before and incorporating them into our meals the best I can,
~Three simple words, (Baked not Fried)! :)
~Water, water, water!!!
I'm excited to see what new meals this year brings to us.. I am anxious to start preparing healthier meals for my family. If I can better at this blogging thing this year, I'll have to share some of my new try-out meals with you all! :)
* oh! that's another resolution. BLOG MORE! ;)
Oh, next, Lose 15 lbs...... I don't think I need to go on. Except I am thinking of trying "Insanity"...... I'll report back if I do!
Taking more pictures. I think I've taken my fair share, and I think I'm getting better, but I really want to take more pictures in general! Phil and I don't have a ton of pictures together over the past few years.. how sad is that? lol. We just don't carry a camera around with us, and if I have the camera, it's pointed at my little nugget of a daughter (WHICH is perfectly fine!), but Momma and Daddy aren't going to have any pictures to accompany all of those that she'll have. I want to take more of her too. Capturing any-and every-thing! She is already growing up so fast. 7 months already on the 28th! WHOA!. where did my newborn go?
Declutting my house. I found a great thing on Pinterest about decluttering your house in a year, 1 day at a time. It is awesome. Really breaks things down for you! Even the top of your dresser, it breaks it down in like 3 days. The left side of the dresser top one day, the middle the next and the right side the next day! crazy... but when you break it down like that you are more likely to tackle something like decluttering in general. it somehow seems less overwhelming!
Last but certainly not least.. Water. I don't love it. I craved it while I was pregnant (ICE EVEN in it, which if you know me at all, that's strange!), but now I could take it or leave it. I would much rather have the enemy (soda!). ha! BUT I'm sticking it to the can on this one! I've ventured into La Croix territory, and while I hated the first sip that I tried.. I've been adding Mio to it, and it's turning out not to be too shabby. We'll see. I'm not 100% sold yet ;)
Well.. this post is getting super long and by now you're probably wondering why you started reading this incredibly long ramble of a post in the first place. I promise you, I'll try and pull my scattered thoughts together for a future post.
Take Care Friends!!
*~Peace, Love and a New Me~* :)
Well, it's that time. The time that we talk about our resolutions and how we are hoping to keep them... Or how we have failed miserably at them already. I've done a little of both.
My resolutions for the new year:
#1: Pray for my daughter and husband daily.
#2: Spend time with God first, go about my day second.
#3: Eat CLEAN.
#4: Lose 15 lbs. (yes, I know, isn't that everyone's??)
#5: Take more pictures.
#6: Declutter my house, one day at a time!
#7: Drink more water, NO SODA!
The list could go on and on, but I'm beginning to feel overwhelmed by just writing these few.
So far the verdict isn't amazing.. one that I have kept with fully is no soda! Woohoo, go me! It's an accomplishment, let me tell ya. 1 week+ in, and I am feeling good. Already done around 5 lbs! (the 15 is on top of that!)
The first two are obvious ones.. I believe prayer should start in the home. If we can't pray for the people we love the most, how can we pray for anyone else.. and why is daily prayer time so hard? Hmmph. I'm excited to get better in this area.
Daily time with the Lord, beyond prayer is so important as well. Again, as cliché as it sounds, we should love the God the most and if we can't spend time with Him showing him our love and devotion, how can I properly show that to my family. Proverbs 31 woman... that is my goal. "We should be the type of woman that when our feet hit the ground the devil says.. 'oh crap, she's up'!"
Eating clean. I haven't done great at this so far. With beginning the year with boy scout popcorn staring at me... plus my obsessive craving for oreos.. I'm working on this one. (can I remind you though about the soda that I HAVEN'T drank!) ;) Anyways.. Eating clean to me can have different meanings to each. My feeling about is this:
Unhealthy food seems complicated to me.. look at the label. Can you really pronounce anything in it? If people ask you what is in it, do you say.. "I don't know, but it's really good!" I've been there.. still do, but I'm trying.
Eating Clean to me is just a matter of:
~Knowing what's in the foods that you eat,
~Eating no red meat (lots of fat!),
~Trying out new veggies that I haven't liked or haven't had before and incorporating them into our meals the best I can,
~Three simple words, (Baked not Fried)! :)
~Water, water, water!!!
I'm excited to see what new meals this year brings to us.. I am anxious to start preparing healthier meals for my family. If I can better at this blogging thing this year, I'll have to share some of my new try-out meals with you all! :)
* oh! that's another resolution. BLOG MORE! ;)
Oh, next, Lose 15 lbs...... I don't think I need to go on. Except I am thinking of trying "Insanity"...... I'll report back if I do!
Taking more pictures. I think I've taken my fair share, and I think I'm getting better, but I really want to take more pictures in general! Phil and I don't have a ton of pictures together over the past few years.. how sad is that? lol. We just don't carry a camera around with us, and if I have the camera, it's pointed at my little nugget of a daughter (WHICH is perfectly fine!), but Momma and Daddy aren't going to have any pictures to accompany all of those that she'll have. I want to take more of her too. Capturing any-and every-thing! She is already growing up so fast. 7 months already on the 28th! WHOA!. where did my newborn go?
Declutting my house. I found a great thing on Pinterest about decluttering your house in a year, 1 day at a time. It is awesome. Really breaks things down for you! Even the top of your dresser, it breaks it down in like 3 days. The left side of the dresser top one day, the middle the next and the right side the next day! crazy... but when you break it down like that you are more likely to tackle something like decluttering in general. it somehow seems less overwhelming!
Last but certainly not least.. Water. I don't love it. I craved it while I was pregnant (ICE EVEN in it, which if you know me at all, that's strange!), but now I could take it or leave it. I would much rather have the enemy (soda!). ha! BUT I'm sticking it to the can on this one! I've ventured into La Croix territory, and while I hated the first sip that I tried.. I've been adding Mio to it, and it's turning out not to be too shabby. We'll see. I'm not 100% sold yet ;)
Well.. this post is getting super long and by now you're probably wondering why you started reading this incredibly long ramble of a post in the first place. I promise you, I'll try and pull my scattered thoughts together for a future post.
Take Care Friends!!
*~Peace, Love and a New Me~* :)
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
* The Reason for the Season *
This morning was our first Christmas as a family of 3. It was so much fun!
I got Giuliana up, gave her a big bowl of oatmeal and rice cereal, took some pictures of her in front of the tree and Daddy joined us for the fun morning to begin! :)
While watching the videos back I have come to the conclusion that I say "Woooooooooow" way too much to her.. ha. and have an overbearing "baby voice"... haha. I will cherish the Christmas morning videos of her forever.
We started with her stocking. As she pulled the things out (with a little help from Mommy bringing them to the top) she enjoyed sticking every single one of them in her mouth! :) Good thing "santa" knows good things for babies that they can chew on ;). She particularly loved the Little Cabbage Patch doll dressed up in the monkey outfit! First little giggle/cough (yes, she kind of coughs to giggle occasionally) of the morning! :) We opened present after present and she had a lot of fun. Daddy helped her open a few, then Mommy.
The most precious gift came last. She was SOOO excited about it. It just melted my heart, because it was the Veggie Tales Nativity that I got her.
I know she doesn't know the TRUE meaning of Christmas yet, or any meaning at all besides a more than normal quantity of things to put in her mouth, but the fact that she got the most excited about a scene depicting the birth of our Lord made my heart smile! **Video is on my facebook**
Enjoy, and may you all have a wonderfully blessed Christmas with your families as we celebrate the birth of Jesus!
I got Giuliana up, gave her a big bowl of oatmeal and rice cereal, took some pictures of her in front of the tree and Daddy joined us for the fun morning to begin! :)
While watching the videos back I have come to the conclusion that I say "Woooooooooow" way too much to her.. ha. and have an overbearing "baby voice"... haha. I will cherish the Christmas morning videos of her forever.
We started with her stocking. As she pulled the things out (with a little help from Mommy bringing them to the top) she enjoyed sticking every single one of them in her mouth! :) Good thing "santa" knows good things for babies that they can chew on ;). She particularly loved the Little Cabbage Patch doll dressed up in the monkey outfit! First little giggle/cough (yes, she kind of coughs to giggle occasionally) of the morning! :) We opened present after present and she had a lot of fun. Daddy helped her open a few, then Mommy.
The most precious gift came last. She was SOOO excited about it. It just melted my heart, because it was the Veggie Tales Nativity that I got her.
I know she doesn't know the TRUE meaning of Christmas yet, or any meaning at all besides a more than normal quantity of things to put in her mouth, but the fact that she got the most excited about a scene depicting the birth of our Lord made my heart smile! **Video is on my facebook**
Enjoy, and may you all have a wonderfully blessed Christmas with your families as we celebrate the birth of Jesus!
Monday, December 19, 2011
Silver Bells..
Tomorrow is Christmas morning at our house here in Michigan :).
I'm so excited! Excited to watch Giuliana as she opens her presents. Excited to watch her little face as she tears the wrapping paper that she will most likely try to eat instead of looking for what is inside of it. :)
God is good.
All my life I have dreamed of this. Being a mommy, and waking up with our kids on Christmas morning. Showing them with gifts, telling them about the true gift. The gift of Jesus Christ born to us in a humble place, a place not fit for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. A place where our Savior was born to a loving mother who anxiously await for HIS appearance as any mommy would.
As a mother now the song "Mary did you know" has so much incredible meaning. more than ever before.
How amazing to know that as the song says.. "when you kissed your little baby, you kissed the face of God". Powerful.
I can only sit and imagine that first Christmas what Mary and Joseph must have been feeling. Sitting and looking into the face their King.
As we marvel at our TRUE gift of Christmas tomorrow we are excited to share it with our other precious little gift from God, Giuliana Noelle.
Mommy and Daddy love you G!
Merry Christmas Peanut! <3
I'm so excited! Excited to watch Giuliana as she opens her presents. Excited to watch her little face as she tears the wrapping paper that she will most likely try to eat instead of looking for what is inside of it. :)
God is good.
All my life I have dreamed of this. Being a mommy, and waking up with our kids on Christmas morning. Showing them with gifts, telling them about the true gift. The gift of Jesus Christ born to us in a humble place, a place not fit for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. A place where our Savior was born to a loving mother who anxiously await for HIS appearance as any mommy would.
As a mother now the song "Mary did you know" has so much incredible meaning. more than ever before.
How amazing to know that as the song says.. "when you kissed your little baby, you kissed the face of God". Powerful.
I can only sit and imagine that first Christmas what Mary and Joseph must have been feeling. Sitting and looking into the face their King.
As we marvel at our TRUE gift of Christmas tomorrow we are excited to share it with our other precious little gift from God, Giuliana Noelle.
Mommy and Daddy love you G!
Merry Christmas Peanut! <3
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
*French Breakfast Puffs*
Hi guys!
One more recipe for the night and then I'm out. Just made this favorite of mine and thought I would share with you. If you haven't had these before you are seriously missing out! :) So pour yourself a glass of milk and get ready for some warm doughnut-like goodness! :)
French Breakfast Puffs
Muffins:
-1 c. sugar
-1/3 c. butter
-3 eggs
-3 c. flour
-3 tsp. baking powder
-1 tsp. salt
-1 c. milk
Cinnamon-Sugar Mixture:
-1/2 stick butter
-1/2 c. sugar
-1 tsp. cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350'.
Cream together the butter and sugar until mixed well.
Break up egg yolks in separate bowl and mix together with butter and sugar for 2-3 minutes.
In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.
Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture alternating with milk. Starting with dry and ending with milk. (3 intervals)
Line muffin tins with paper liners and fill 2/3 full with mixture.
Bake: 20-25 minutes.
(The first dozen I baked for 25 minutes, second for 23 1/2 minutes. ) Depending on your oven. Insert a toothpick and when it comes out clean, its done!
Melt 1/2 stick of butter in one bowl and mix cinnamon and sugar in another.
Right away when puffs come out of the oven dip top completely in the melted butter and then in cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Here are a couple pictures of mine. They aren't perfect because, I have to admit, I was in a hurry to eat one of them. :)
Hope you love them as much as I do! :)
One more recipe for the night and then I'm out. Just made this favorite of mine and thought I would share with you. If you haven't had these before you are seriously missing out! :) So pour yourself a glass of milk and get ready for some warm doughnut-like goodness! :)
French Breakfast Puffs
Muffins:
-1 c. sugar
-1/3 c. butter
-3 eggs
-3 c. flour
-3 tsp. baking powder
-1 tsp. salt
-1 c. milk
Cinnamon-Sugar Mixture:
-1/2 stick butter
-1/2 c. sugar
-1 tsp. cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350'.
Cream together the butter and sugar until mixed well.
Break up egg yolks in separate bowl and mix together with butter and sugar for 2-3 minutes.
In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.
Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture alternating with milk. Starting with dry and ending with milk. (3 intervals)
Line muffin tins with paper liners and fill 2/3 full with mixture.
Bake: 20-25 minutes.
(The first dozen I baked for 25 minutes, second for 23 1/2 minutes. ) Depending on your oven. Insert a toothpick and when it comes out clean, its done!
Melt 1/2 stick of butter in one bowl and mix cinnamon and sugar in another.
Right away when puffs come out of the oven dip top completely in the melted butter and then in cinnamon-sugar mixture.
Here are a couple pictures of mine. They aren't perfect because, I have to admit, I was in a hurry to eat one of them. :)
Hope you love them as much as I do! :)
~Mongolian Goodness~
So, upon request here is the recipe that I made tonight for Phil and my dinner. Mongolian Beef.
Couple critiques that I would make with the recipe..
*I'd say use maybe 1/2 the brown sugar that they say too. It was almost a little too sweet, and I like sweet chinese better than savory.
*More onions. I even added 3 instead of 2 and it could have still used more.
*More garlic. I am a big garlic lover, and can't say that I tasted a whole lot of it in this recipe.
Beyond that... Phenom. Love it. I hope you all enjoy! Let me know how you like it.
**Mongolian Beef**
Ingredients:
-2 tsp. vegetable oil
-1/2 tsp. ginger; minced
-1 T. garlic; chopped
-1/2 c. soy sauce
-1/2 c. water
-3/4 c. dark brown sugar
-vegetable oil, for frying: (about 1 cup)
-1 lb. flank steak
-1/4 c. carnstarch
-2 large green onions.
Make sauce by hearing 2 tsp. oil in small saucepan over med/low heat. Don't let oil get too hot.
Add ginger and garlic to hot oil. Immediately add soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches.
Dissolve brown sugar in the sauce, raise the heat to medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat.
Slick flank stead into thin slices, or thin bite sized pieces about 1/4'' thick. (depending if you like strips or pieces you can do either, I did strips)
Dip steaks into cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to meat. shake off extra and set aside for 10 minutes to allow the cornstarch to stick to the meat.
While beef sits, heat 1 c. oil in either a wok or skillet. (if you use a skillet you may have to add more oil so that the meat is mostly covered with the oil, since the sides of a wok are curved, 1 c. should be enough for that type of pan) Heat oil over medium heat until hot, but not smoking.
Add beef to the hot oil and saute for just a couple minutes until the beef begins to darken on the edges.
Stir the meat around a bit to ensure an even cook.
After a couple minutes remove the meat from the pan and pour remaining oil out.
Return pan to the heat, return meat to pan, and cook an additional 1 minute.
Add thickened soy sauce mixture to the meat. Cook for 1 minute while stirring.
Add green onions. Cook for 1 minute to warm onions through.
((My recipe says at this point to remove the meat mixture from the pan and leave remaining sauce behind, but we like our sauce in this house, so I just took my skillet straight to the table and we dished our plates directly from it. There is a LOT of sauce left. You could also just separate the meat from it and put the sauce in a separate bowl to spoon over the top.))
**This recipe would also be good with chicken breasts if you like that better than red meat. You're choice.
Enjoy!! :)
Peace, Love, and BEEF (it's what's for dinner) :)
Linz
Couple critiques that I would make with the recipe..
*I'd say use maybe 1/2 the brown sugar that they say too. It was almost a little too sweet, and I like sweet chinese better than savory.
*More onions. I even added 3 instead of 2 and it could have still used more.
*More garlic. I am a big garlic lover, and can't say that I tasted a whole lot of it in this recipe.
Beyond that... Phenom. Love it. I hope you all enjoy! Let me know how you like it.
**Mongolian Beef**
Ingredients:
-2 tsp. vegetable oil
-1/2 tsp. ginger; minced
-1 T. garlic; chopped
-1/2 c. soy sauce
-1/2 c. water
-3/4 c. dark brown sugar
-vegetable oil, for frying: (about 1 cup)
-1 lb. flank steak
-1/4 c. carnstarch
-2 large green onions.
Make sauce by hearing 2 tsp. oil in small saucepan over med/low heat. Don't let oil get too hot.
Add ginger and garlic to hot oil. Immediately add soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches.
Dissolve brown sugar in the sauce, raise the heat to medium and boil the sauce for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat.
Slick flank stead into thin slices, or thin bite sized pieces about 1/4'' thick. (depending if you like strips or pieces you can do either, I did strips)
Dip steaks into cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to meat. shake off extra and set aside for 10 minutes to allow the cornstarch to stick to the meat.
While beef sits, heat 1 c. oil in either a wok or skillet. (if you use a skillet you may have to add more oil so that the meat is mostly covered with the oil, since the sides of a wok are curved, 1 c. should be enough for that type of pan) Heat oil over medium heat until hot, but not smoking.
Add beef to the hot oil and saute for just a couple minutes until the beef begins to darken on the edges.
Stir the meat around a bit to ensure an even cook.
After a couple minutes remove the meat from the pan and pour remaining oil out.
Return pan to the heat, return meat to pan, and cook an additional 1 minute.
Add thickened soy sauce mixture to the meat. Cook for 1 minute while stirring.
Add green onions. Cook for 1 minute to warm onions through.
((My recipe says at this point to remove the meat mixture from the pan and leave remaining sauce behind, but we like our sauce in this house, so I just took my skillet straight to the table and we dished our plates directly from it. There is a LOT of sauce left. You could also just separate the meat from it and put the sauce in a separate bowl to spoon over the top.))
**This recipe would also be good with chicken breasts if you like that better than red meat. You're choice.
Enjoy!! :)
Peace, Love, and BEEF (it's what's for dinner) :)
Linz
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