Read this

This woman and two of her kids were in Theater 9 when the Aurora, Colorado shooting happened; please read this.

http://aminiatureclaypot.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/so-you-still-think-god-is-a-merciful-god/

Random Ramblings for Jason

Our good friend, Jason, left this note on my facebook a few minutes ago:

"So, your last blog was a week ago and the last 2 were from Insanity. Am I to believe that the Insanity/House combo has driven you 2 to the funny farm? Hope all is going well. Praying for you guys."

So here's a blog about nothing in particular - but we're still here. We're still alive - woohoo! I have not been great about being consistent with Insanity. I'm ok with this. It's mainly to get me active again since the billion degree weather keeps me from going on walks at the lake now and so I consequently do nothing. On the days where my schedule isn't crazy I do it (so I've done it like 3 times). I'm still sore, so I guess that's good.

We ARE moving in a couple weeks! I'll post a picture when the chaos dies down.  And, if you know me, moving means that I am currently stressed out, overwhelmed, emotional and in a constant state of just wanting to go to bed and sleep all day. There's a lot left to do - we have no one on board (as of yet) to help move because we have to move on a weekday. It'll all work out - I just hate the chaos of moving, but I'm happy that this will be the last move in a long time.

We have paint options picked out for the main rooms and the kitchen! :) I'm excited - I'm getting my yellow kitchen because my Hubster Lovester is fantastic!

I have officially watched all 5 seasons of Daria. I don't know what this says about me. Please don't judge me.

I'm also experimenting with "freezer meals". Have a number of recipes to post - this will probably happen after the move.

It was 109 degrees today and I didn't think it was that bad.


Oh? Did I mention I got a job at MAC?

So here's to chaos and emotions and a permanent place to live! WoohoO!! Thank you Jesus!!
Sara

Day 2: Insanity

Today, I'm sore. Muscles I didn't know I possess hurt. It's good - in that my body is going to be toned and I will be healthy and (hopefully) not feel like I'm going to die going up the stairs... but that might be the fact that it's generally over 100* now.

I say I did about 1/3 of Max Interval Circuit, but the Hubster says that I did 50%, if not more/about the same as the people in the video. I think I'm going to trust him on that - since he watched me and I'm too hard on myself.

I did not appreciate anyone's encouragement today. Shaun T. was very obnoxious, telling me to do things I was currently doing and Anthony, well, he was sitting on the couch telling me to tighten my core and other things and it was early and I was grumpy and I was annoyed. But that is the exact kind of encouragement I need - even if it makes me want to punch a wall because I'm physically exhausted.

Oh - and my wrists can't hold my body weight at the moment - so I did a LOT of jogging, squats, punching the air to make up for it. My legs hurt, but they're gonna be toned. woot.

I promise I won't post on EVERY day I do insanity... but seriously Shaun T.? You don't even do half of it - so stop telling me to do more.

Insanity. Day 1. I'm going to die.

I do not believe that Shaun T. is there for me like he says. I don't appreciate his peppiness. I spent most of the time saying things like "are you kidding me?... NO... just no... he just said 10 seconds now he said 15! Liar!... screw you Shaun T.  you are NOT my friend... aghhhh". So Shaun T., I'm sorry for yelling at you through the TV. It's not fair that you can't defend yourself, but seriously - seriously? I'm digging as deep as I can, you're reminders to dig deeper are not helpful.

I'm gonna die. Plain and simple. The Insanity DVDs Anthony has been using belong to a friend, so right now he only has month two - so I started on month two, max interval plyo. gah.

I did much better than I anticipated doing, I did about half of it (which I think is impressive due to my lack of physical activity apart from climbing 3 flights of stairs multiple times daily). I only almost puked once. My muscles gave out a few times and left me laying on the floor.  But the absolute best part is that I have my own personal cheerleader and "spotter". I would not have gotten past the warm-up if he hadn't been encouraging me.

The fact that no one in the video gets through the whole thing is not encouraging, but I don't feel as bad for taking frequent breaks. Ah shoot... I have to go up and down the stairs today. Thanks for almost killing me Shaun T., I'll appreciate it later - just not tomorrow or the day after that.


Here's to the inability to move tomorrow,
Sara

Recipes: Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup

The other day when I made "Hurry-Up Chicken Pot Pie", I discovered that we didn't have any cream of chicken soup and since I was already in the middle of making dinner, I resorted to the internet for help.

I came across Buns in my Oven which had a very simple Cream of Chicken Soup recipe that is healthier than what you can buy in the store.

Here it is:

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon flour
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup milk
• salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. When melted, whisk in the flour and continue whisking until smooth and bubbly. Remove from the heat and slowly whisk in the chicken broth and milk. Return to the heat and bring to a gentle boil, whisking constantly, until the soup thickens. Add salt and pepper to taste. Substitute this for one can of cream of chicken soup.

Super simple and very yummy - and I think this is one of the reasons why I loved the Chicken Pot Pie the other day!

Enjoy,
Sara

Recipe: Hurry-Up Chicken Pot Pie

In an attempt to actually be productive with the things I see on Pinterest - I am making at least 1 "Pinterest" recipe a week and since I'm always looking for a yummy chicken pot pie recipe (mainly because the crust is usually way too salty for me), this is what I decided to make:

"Hurry-Up Chicken Pot Pie" from Food Network

Mmm - SO yummy, but I had to add my own little variation to it. 

Ingredients

• 2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast - seasoned with garlic powder (a significant amount) and Italian seasoning
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup thinly sliced carrots (depending on how much you like veggies - I added more)
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup frozen green peas (I added more)
• 10.75 oz homemade cream of chicken soup (recipe to come)
• 1 cup chicken broth
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 cups instant biscuit mix (plus a little extra)
• 1 cup milk (plus a little extra)
• 1 stick melted butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a greased 2-quart casserole, layer the chicken, carrots, and peas.

Mix the soup, chicken broth, and season with salt and pepper.

Pour over the layers. 
Stir together the biscuit mix and milk - it will be thick, and pour this over the casserole.

Drizzle butter over the topping. Bake until the topping is golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes.

Enjoy the deliciousness! We didn't have anyone over for dinner when I made this. We ate a little less than half of it and had the rest for left overs the next day...at left overs generally last a bit longer than that when we have them! I highly suggest seasoning your chicken with garlic powder before you make it. Yummy!

-S

We don't have a house yet

We don't have a house yet, but this is starting....

We have 26 boxes packed so far; and just like clock work I'm beginning to feel overwhelmed. I hate boxes. Boxes are temporary. Boxes just kinda suck. BUT, this time it's not going to be another move to a temporary place, it's going to be OUR HOUSE. A long term place. We won't have to move in 6 months or a year! And this is awesome.


HOWEVER - we do not have a house yet. We have an accepted offer. An accepted offer is not a sure thing. PLEASE, if you are reading this, PLEASE be praying that the appraisal will come out close to our offer. Please, please, please!  (oh, and for me to not get anxiety about this...I'm doing pretty good so far, thank you Jesus - but we're not done yet).


Thank you & lots of loves,
Sara

Today is the day...

"This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it." - Psalm 118:24

This is the day the Lord has also made for us to find out about what house we will be buying. I am excited. I am nervous. And, as much as I hate yo admit it, I have anxiety. I should be calm. I should be calm and cool and collected. It's difficult when such a huge decision is coming up to be so calm; difficult not impossible. So how do I deal with stressful situations and what helps ease any anxiety I  feel?

•Prayer
•Dwelling on God's promise
•The comfort in knowing that God is in control and that He is sovereign

Already my heart is at ease - just by writing this, I can feel God's hand upon me and the anxiety I was feeling is lessening. It's mashed up with excitement and nerves, but I am comforted in knowing that God knows how it's going to pan out.

So here we are, three-ish weeks into house hunting and waiting to find out what we got accepted on. Our plan was to start looking for a house in August, but God's plan was different; better. At the moment, it looks like God's plan is that we'll have a house in August.

We will have to see what happens, but we will have a better idea this afternoon.  no matter what happens, we will rejoice because Hod is in control.

Here's to trusting in God in the midst of a gargantuan decision,
 -S

God's Blessings

This time a year ago, we were beginning to pack up our things to move out to Arizona. Next month we will be Arizona residents for 1 year. Next month we may have a house and I am thankful and blown away by God's blessings on us since moving out here.

So here's to a chaotic few months of paperwork and boxes and (probably) less frequent posts,
-Sara

House Hunting

We have now entered into the chaotic part of house hunting. We will hopefully have good news at the end of this week.  So check back then! :)