Friday (Re) focus - I'm Thankful for....

Monday I challenged us to make a list of the things we are thankful for this week. I asked you to record every little thing. I tried to myself, but this list is severely lacking.

Here's my terribly crooked list   (in no particular order)

I am thankful for:

Salvation                                                        Biscuits and Gravy                          Birthdays
Jesus                                                               Marriage                                          Christian Kirkpatrick
Scripture                                                         Coffee                                              The Youth Group at Pearson 
Izzy Williams                                                 Flavored Creamer                            Being in Ministry  
Brian Williams                                               NOBTS                                            Thomas Colbert
Calvin Williams                                             Mission Lab                                     Anti Depressants
Tayler Sears                                                    Fresh air                                           Milk glass  
America                                                          the ocean                                          Mercury glass    
Waterfalls                                                       Hot tubs                                           Josie Alston
Music                                                             Melaney Myers                               History                          
my voice                                                         Books                                              lists
John Schweinfurth                                          Blogger                                           Police Officers                                       
our house                                                        Community Bank                            Fire Fighters
our vehicles                                                     Cumberland Presbyterian                Teachers                                  
our jobs                                                            Matt James                                      Sharon Swift Hutchinson
My parents (all 4)                                            Hostess snack cakes                        Bill Van Sant
Annette                                                             Post it notes                                     Camille Woodbury                             
My siblings                                                     Jenny Edwards                                Ice Cream
Nieces and nephews                                        Gel Glitter Pens                               Having Cancer (and not having it)
GREAT niece and nephew                               Journals                                            Earnie Thomas
Grandparents                                                    Snow                                                UMMC
Growing up in a small town                             Matt and Laurie Jones                     Church Family          
Amanda Ferguson                                            Pumpkins                                          changing seasons
Terry and Dick Orgel                                       Fruit                                                  Trees                                                    
Kristin and Kathryn                                         Salad                                                 Pinterest
The College Sunday School class                   Francis Chann                                   Words       
Pearson Baptist                                                Pancakes                                           Friendship                            
Amy "George"                                                Coker Creek Tennessee                    Brownies
Sissy "Shore"                                                   Perfume                                            Smart Phones
Becky "Whitber"                                             Alarm Clocks                                   Books
Greg Miller                                                     You Tube                                          Nail Polish
Our Military                                                     Pauline Corban                                  Sarena Gambino                                   
Si  Williams                                                     Babies                                               Hope Bell Brown
Waterfalls                                                        Little Debbie Cakes                          Modern Medicine
the "new" rug in the living room                     Movies                                               Perfume
Graci Lou Burkes                                            People who write amazing things      Great smelling soap
Madi Perkins                                                   sunsets                                               Time with Calvin 
Chuck Nichlson                                              Birds                                                  Encouragement                                  
David Hughes                                                 Summer                                             Life lessons
Jason Crowe                                                    Cool Breezes                                     Colors                                    
Olivia, Peyton, Stacy, Tashia,                         Jewelry                                              The desire to paint
Mary Elizabeth, Shellie and Laura                 Make up                                             Sushi
Tim, Bill, Wyman, Greg and Freddie             Hairspray                                           Earbuds
Rich Dixon                                                      Central heat and A/C                         Motherhood
Rain                                                                 Genetics                                             Weddings
Thatch Shauf                                                   Sight                                                  Funerals
Tom Sikes                                                        Hearing                                             Independence
My Fit Bit                                                        Touch                                                Freedom
Perry Sandifer                                                Forgiveness                                        Bear Williams
Audible                                                          Smiles                                                 Wisdom                                         
Sweet Potatoes                                              sunshine                                               Hindsight
Brocolli                                                          Mexican food                                     Tattoos
Brussels Sprouts                                             Crockpot                                           Dentists
Cauliflower                                                     Hugs                                                 Recipes
Plain Wavy Lays Potato Chips                       Online Shopping                               Indoor Plumbing                           
Green Onion dip                                             Memories                                         Washer and dryer
Bobby Meeks                                                  understanding                                  Anniversaries  
The Internet                                                     Amazon                                           Quiet Moments  
Email                                                               Michaels                                            Connection
Social Media                                                   creativity                                            Separation
Yanni                                                                Pandora                                             my hands
Jim Brickman                                                   Fire                                                    Shoes
Kevin Kern                                                       Thunderstorms                                  Clothes
Paul Cardell                                                     Hobby Lobby                                     Peace
                                                           
                                                                        
                                                          
Now then, Before we leave this, let's do one more thing... let's tell those included on this list that we are thankful for them AND WHY! (That sounded like a great idea until I realized how long my list is...but you may be more diligent than I am about such things.)

Share the Joy!!!!!

Much love and big hugs!
K

Thursday Thoughts on... Thankfulness

As the week has progressed, I have been increasingly thoughtful about the things I am thankful for.

I've mentioned more than once that I love waterfalls... but have I expressed gratitude for them? I am truly thankful for them. They fill me with joy and peacefulness. I am enthralled by their beauty and awestruck by their power. If I had a list of favorite places, sitting at the foot of a waterfall would be among those at the top of the list.

I am thankful for the colors of nature. The contrast of blue ocean against sand or blue sky against snow are beautiful to me, as are the varying hues within a flower or stormy sky. It is amazing to me that God chose to fill our world with so much beauty.

I am thankful for music and for those who are gifted to compose it. It is comforting or exciting to connect with someone through the lyrics of a song... to believe that another has experienced what is in my heart. However, even more delightful to me is to connect with a composition that has no words. To be swept away on the notes, emotion drawn from melody and harmony...that is what i truly love. To FEEL music... yes, for this I am truly thankful.

I'm thankful for all sorts of people for all sorts of reasons. There are people  for whom I am specifically thankful. There are others who have passed through my life in various seasons for some designated period of time and, whether I felt at the moment that my life was better or worse for knowing them, looking back over my life, I see where they all contributed to the woman I am today  and for that I am thankful.

I'm thankful for the many ways God has seen fit to bless me and am not blind to His hand working in my life.

It is both comforting and terrifying to know that the creator of the universe knows my name; that He moved heaven and earth so that I could be reconciled to Him. This is what I am most thankful for. My relationship with Christ and a future with Him for all eternity makes everything else pale and empty by comparison. It would be enough to know Jesus... more than enough. To realize that God not only gave me Jesus but also all the things that make this life magical is almost too much to comprehend.


Just my thoughts,
K

Wednesday Weekly Recipes - Meal Prep Tips

Below are 20 "Meal Prep Tips Worth Stealing" so I stole them. These are not "my" tips. I got them here. I want my weekly meals to look like this. It makes my heart happy. So clean and organized. So so so organized. Yes.. I want this.

Besides, I have realized that, unless I do some sort of meal prep I am never (or at least am RARELY) going to have anything decent to eat for lunch. I never claim to be a quick learner. While I have a knack for becoming obsessed with things others rarely consider, I am fairly oblivious to the things that most people seem to notice. For example... it is difficult to truly have control over what I eat if I do not prepare the food myself. I know.. I know.. this is not news to anyone else. I may have even written these very words before...but if I did.. I quickly forgot.

Anyway, I think this is something I must do permanently. I HAVE prepped my meals before. This truly is NOT new to me. I did not succeed in making this a permanent lifestyle change and I think it is because I was not fully prepared and certainly not committed to making it work.

This time, I am going to follow the tips below and set aside time Sunday afternoon to cook for the week.

So, here's to trying again...

1. Invest in the right containers.“Proper food storage containers [allow you to] re-heat your meals and eat from them — and they last forever. I purchase glass containers that allow me to portion-size my meals easily. Additionally, I have varying shapes and sizes of containers for salads and snacks like yogurt and fruit, and zip-lock bags for dry snacks.”

2. Get in on the Mason Jar trend.“I’m all about canning jars for meal prepping! They work for salads, soup, oatmeal, smoothies — almost anything. They are dishwasher- and microwave-safe, water-tight and sturdy as can be. I use plastic caps on mine, which are easier to clean and keep track of than the standard two-part preserving lids.”

3. Make sure your lids match.“Buy the same brand of containers. [It] may seem trivial, but it will save time when trying to package your meals up. Matching lids can be a pain if you have three different types of containers

4. Nail down a system for collecting new recipes.“I’ll often screenshot recipes I find online throughout the week on my phone so I have a bunch of healthy recipe ideas saved to my camera roll to choose from when it’s time to sit down and do some meal planning. When I have a little more time, I love sitting down with a few cookbooks and a cup of coffee on Sunday mornings to search for recipe inspiration

6. Go crazy with the spices.“[One of my] secrets is to prep things that I like to eat, and add spices and flavors…If you don’t like what you’re eating, your diet plan will not be sustainable.”

 7. Make a detailed shopping list.“I like to keep things simple… I use the “Notes” app on my iPhone to keep a running list of ingredients I need. As soon as I notice I am running out of a staple ingredient like dried rice or chopped garlic, I’ll put it right on the list so that I remember to buy it at next week’s grocery trip…I try to keep my list in order of where I’ll find in in the grocery store — produce, meat, dairy — so that my trip to the store is quick and efficient. ”

8. Make your kitchen a meal prepping machine.“I pull in a foldable table, a cart [and] get my second toaster oven and other appliances out from the closet. I get equipped with my apron, I put on my headphones, and I try to…meal prep for the week faster than I did last week. Within four to five hours, I can prepare food for six days… This would be impossible if I didn’t employ the strategy of turning my kitchen into a factory when meal prep time comes around.”

9. Stock up on meal prep staples.“I keep my pantry and freezer stocked with quick go-to items. Here’s what I always try to have on hand. Freezer: frozen fruits and veggies (less expensive and lasts much longer), frozen brown rice or quinoa (quicker cooking and no pan to wash!), frozen shrimp or salmon (defrosts quickly). Pantry: Plain oatmeal, beans, diced tomatoes, salsa, chicken or veggie broth.”

10. Pretty up your meals.“It’s one thing to have a delicious meal; it’s another to have a ‘good looking,’ delicious meal. Many times people will prepare a meal, or two, or five, but the reality is that by the third day or so that meal might not look that appealing anymore. For me, the kitchen tool that has helped change this is the cast iron grill pan. Whether you’re cooking chicken, steak, burgers, or even a sandwich, pressing it on to that pan to create grill marks makes a world of difference. Best part about it is, it can be used indoors and you’ll still get the beautiful grill marks without having to go outside and turn on the grill when it’s 10 below. Try it!” 

11. Utilize the weekend.“Get your meal prepping done during the weekend so you’ve got meals for the beginning of [each] week. This has helped me in getting organized!”

12. Set a timer (and stick to it).“Meal prepping can seem so overwhelming, and if you aren’t careful, you can spend a whole day prepping food. I’m a believer that you should keep your meal-prep sessions short. I set a timer for two hours on Sunday mornings. I get done as much as I can in those two hours, and then I go enjoy my weekend happy that I’ve prepared myself for the upcoming week. You’d be amazed at what you can get done in that time!” 

13. Learn to multitask.“When people are first starting to food prep, they tend to focus on doing one thing at a time, which is fine, but it often takes a lot longer for them to get their food prep done and it can be discouraging. Once you’ve done it a few times and start to get comfortable, using multiple parts of your kitchen at once is a game changer. I almost always have something baking in the oven, something cooking on the stove, something in the crockpot and am working on something at the counter all at the same time. This allows you to get more done in a shorter period of time!”

14. Put technology to work for you.“I use an app such as MyFitnessPal, [which makes] it really easy to record recipes and meals so that I can recall them and reuse them again in future meal preps. I can just [modify] a few ingredients and I have a new recipe with all the macros, etcetera, already calculated”

15. Bust out your slow cooker.“I use my CrockPot a TON! It does the cooking for you. It even cooks while you sleep

16. Implement time-saving strategies.“I try to keep a few home-made frozen meals on hand at all times in case I’m having a really busy week and won’t have time to cook. Something like soup or vegetable chili will freeze and reheat really well, and saves a lot of time on really busy days.”

 17. Cut corners.Buy veggies pre-cut. Even though it costs a bit more at first, you may find you waste less and spend less time in the kitchen.”

 18. Shake things up.“Eat different meals at different times every day! Some people get frustrated and think that they have to eat the same thing every day, all day. This is hardly the case! Think outside of the box. Your traditional breakfast or early day meal does NOT always have to be eggs and oatmeal… Plan your meals according to your personal goals

19. Savor your kitchen time.“Like most Americans, I spend most of my work day at my desk. I try to think of my time spent cooking as a way to relax and get out from behind a screen for a bit. I know we’re all busy and have a lot of demands pulling it us in a lot of directions, but I try to enjoy my time spent cooking… it’s my “me time”.”

20. Embrace your freedom.“Meal prepping isn’t just about eating healthy or improving the look of your body; it’s about freedom. When you meal prep for days in advance, you are free from having to make any sort of decision regarding what to eat for that time. You don’t have to determine where or when you’ll get food, you just have it. This saves psychic resources that can be put towards doing other things that are important to you, like focusing on a relationship, a career, your work or training. You no longer have to make decisions about food or focus on it; it’s been taken care of, now work and play and be free of the burden of hunger and the decision making process that comes with it!”

Do you Prep your meals? Any tips you want to share?

Big hugs!

K

Tuesday Tips and Tricks - 100 acts of kindness

In keeping with my promise to myself to love the heck out of everything this year, Tuesday's Tips and Tricks will be dedicated to my effort to complete 100 acts of kindness. I'd HOPED that this would keep this idea in the front of my mind and MAYBE make my little part of the world a better place... and maybe it has....or maybe it will. All I know is that I still owe my office cookies and breakfast (in my defense, the new year diets have dampened my excitement over this) and... well... Can't I just be NICE to people and call it a day? hahah
I'll continue to post these... just in case anyone else needs ideas, but please do not for one minute think that I am accomplishing 3 a week. As much as I would love to change the world, truth is, some days I consider it a win if i make it to work on time with all (or even most of) my make up on. So, as with many things in my life, the idea of 100 acts of kindness in 2019 is changing just a bit... I'm going to keep adding to the list, but will do them as opportunity arises.

Make sense?



This weeks acts...

10. compliment a stranger
11. pay for the person behind you in the drive thru
12. praise a child to their parents where the child can hear it


Much love and big hugs!
K

Monday Motivation

The key to jump starting Joy in the heart is to confess thanks with the lips!
It is hard to be glum when we are thanking God and others for every little thing.

How many things can you be thankful for this week?
Make a list!
I'll do the same. I'll publish it Friday.
You can share yours too!

Much love and big hugs!
K