Whip it Up Wednesday

I have to go to a potluck Friday, so I'm cruising my healthy meal planning sites and was reminded of this delicious salad I made for Easter. It's Cucumber Pineapple Salad...so light and refreshing. You can cut down on the sugar even more, I think. Like half of that would work. Now to find the strawberry poppyseed one.

Serves 4

Ingredients
1/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons water
1 cup fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
1 carrot, peeled and julienne
1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion (I'd also cut this in half...they all got picked out anyway)
4 cups torn salad greens
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted

Directions

In a heavy saucepan, bring the sugar, vinegar and water to a boil. Stir constantly until reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and place in the refrigerator until cool. Add the pineapple. Cover and return to the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Add the cucumbers, carrots and red onions to the pineapple mixture. Toss well.
To serve, divide the salad greens among the plates. Top with the pineapple mixture and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

And here are a couple of cards I'm VERY proud of!! I learned how to make shape cards on my Design Studio. These are both from Create a Critter and done completely from scraps.

13 Thursday

I'm going to be chilling at my desk today, so I thought I'd do a desk themed blog. I'm cutting out 250 lightbulb doorhangers for our church...needed this Sunday!! Crazy...

13 things that are around my desk:

1. Bears notepad

2. Pier One coffee cup with tea and peppermint creamer

3. Jacked up blackberry still waiting for my trackball

4. light blue CM pen

5. labelmaker

6. insurance forms waiting to be submitted (forgot the website to download them from!)

7. Quote rolodex with tons of quotes to be put in there

8. cricut

9. camera

10. timer to keep me on task for computer (read: Facebook) time

11. gratitude journal

12. Project Life 2010 Scrapbook

13. bowl with yummy waffles

Whip it up Wednesday

So this is usually a recipe but today, I whipped up some cards. I used Give a Hoot for the Owl one and Create a Critter cricut cartridges for the prince charming one. Embossed the crown and stickled the heart.

Marriage Monday

Paul and I seem to be at a place we can both live with. We are enjoying each other's company alot more than in the past 5 years; we forgive and move on quickly (good thing after that Mother's Day thing!! LOL) and we can talk about things without having fights.

Case in point...he's being very attentive...flowers, cards, dates. I love every minute of them. And yet, little intimacy. Lots of I like you moments but nothing of what is going on in his life or his heart. So I talked to him about it again, for about the 10th time this month, and asked him what's going on. He listened. He responded. Now to see if he acts.

We went to see Robin Hood last night. GREAT movie!! It's worth full price, especially if you're a history lover like me. Two and a half hours of history. I'll definitely see it again. It was great to just be walking in the mall and decide to see what time movies were and be able to go...

He kissed me in church yesterday. And I let him. Maybe we are finding our way back. I pray we are, and honestly, fear that we aren't. That this is just a blip and things will go back. For today, I choose to reject fear and go with faith. Healing is happening. And healing takes time.

Finish It Friday

Today is SUCH a finishing day!! Got my explosion box figured out; it looks like this... This isn't the one I did but I'm on a finishing roll and don't want to stop for pix...I like that I can make them now. Something that's been on my list for a few years to learn. So easy!!
Finished loading up and organizing pix too. 248 off to CVS for the 12 cent sale.
Finished my laminating project for Brian.
Finished our small group study too.

Now off to finish laundry and dusting and call it a very successful finish it Friday!!
Had an epiphany today...I stay up late and when I go to bed, Paul almost always wakes up and we have a conversation. He's already going to bed late to spend more time with me. I think it's selfish of me to stay up late and make him even more sleep deprived. It was different when he'd sleep through me coming to bed. Different when we weren't talking at all. Different when we were living separate lives under the same roof. But i want to do my part. And my part for this area is to go to bed earlier. I hope I remember come bed time!! LOL

Thoughtful Thursday

Today is Thursday, right? I've been thinking alot...about relationships.
I've been watching, kinda from a distance emotionally, as my marriage seems to be becoming something other than what it used to be. Getting notes from my husband saying he appreciates me, but then being treated pretty crappy on Mother's Day. Having a meltdown about it.  Then, acting as if none of that happened, yesterday he comes home with a movie and was going to make me dinner (but I'd already eaten). Left me a note today saying he appreciates me more and more each day. So why do I have such a hard time believing it? How long will it be before I do?
People change; I know that. I know I have. And I know there are those in my life who don't see it. But I know I have. My heart is different. I'm at peace, most of the time. I'm more compassionate than I used to be; more patient with others not changing than I used to be. I think somewhere along the line I realized whether others do what they need to do, or choose health or kindness, that doesn't change the mandate on my life. Or free me from the choice of kindness or harshness, acceptance or rejection.
And at the same time, there are people in my life who AREN'T in my life. For good reason. Toxic doesn't begin to describe it. Chris said yesterday, when he was here picking up boxes, that his friend was a really toxic relationship for him. I thought it interesting that he saw that. I think it will be interesting to see what happens with that in the long run...without a doubt, Chris is right. But will he follow through by limiting this guys presence in his life? Time will tell.
Seems like there's been alot of clarity lately in that area; toxic relationships. Sad to see in in the next generation (sounding like a geezer to myself!!) and I wish I had seen it earlier in my life, but I guess I had to get whooped by life a bit to recognize and own that I can walk away.
My two biggest walk-aways have been my mom and sister. They are eerily similar in how they relate to others and the world and it does the same damage with both generations. Why they think attacking/retreating thinking things are better because they aren't screeching/attacking/self-pity because there isn't a relationship/apology/attacking will work, is beyond me. It used to exhaust me; frustrate me; make me a little crazy trying to get them to see.
Then the watershed moments happened and I got it that things were never going to change; and as much as I chose to protect my kids from abuse by not allowing them near my abuser, I choose to protect myself now. I don't know if I'll regret it later, but I know I'm a much more peaceful person without their chaos in my life. I feel sorry for my mom; she really doesn't see what her emotional and verbal abuses do to those around her. She is truly oblivious to the damage that she has done and continues to do to those in her life...all while saying how much she misses us.
My sister, is a different story. She gets vicious. Cruel almost beyond being able to heal from it. Then tells us all how wonderful she is and how the people in her life would tell us how proud they are of her; what a good person she is. All within a verbal attack that sends me reeling. No longer directed at me because I don't give her access to my life; but it's awful to watch. And getting the veiled, smackdown comments that are clearly directed at me but said to others. It's heartbreaking...somewhere along the line I quit being furiously angry about it and now I'm just sad.
What would I do if I had the relationship with my kids they have with theirs? My siblings talk to my mom (those that do) with dread and out of obligation. That is not how God intended it. I don't think either of my nieces talk to my sister. What if my kids cut me out of their life? Would I stubbornly insist I was a good mom? Or would I live in the denial and refusal to even ask the questions necessary to get to the truth?
And on days like this, I see the scar within myself that my family of origin has left...insecurity, wondering if I'm as crazy as they are, as detached from reality as they are. Maybe I'm NOT the person I think I am. Maybe I am toxic too. Maybe. Maybe.
So that's what I've been thinking today...

Whip it up Wednesday

So I was trying to whip up an explosion box and am totally confused...which led me to think about dinner...which led me to this yummo recipe I was going to make for the youth group girls on Monday, which led to THAT being postponed till Monday of this coming up week...but here's the recipe!!

Healthy Chow Mein

1 pound lean pork sliced into thin strips or 1 lb ground turkey

1 tablespoon canola oil
1/2 cup sliced celery
1 bunch washed green onion, sliced including tops
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced

3 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms

1 package frozen oriental style vegetables, defrosted

1 can of bean sprouts

anything else you want to throw in

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth

3 cups cooked hot brown rice

2 tablespoons flax seed, optional

In large skillet heat canola oil, add meat (brown turkey first if you're using turkey), celery, green onion, and red bell pepper. Cook and stir until onion is soft. Add soy sauce, chicken broth, mushrooms, oriental vegetables and ground ginger. Cover and simmer five minutes. In small bowl mix 1/4 cup chicken broth with cornstarch and add to skillet. Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Allow to boil one minute or until mixture begins to thicken.

Serve over hot brown rice. for chow mein or whole wheat spaghetti noodles for lomein. Sprinkle each serving with a pinch of flax seed, if desired.

Serve with a side of spring rolls for healthy yummy or egg rolls for the less healthy crowd!!
Number of Servings: 4-6