the truth about martha

I only believe in eating really good food.

Preferably the kind someone makes for me.

Like a personal chef, perhaps.

Andrew and I have talked about this quite a bit. I've made it perfectly clear that I don't ask for much, but if I were to ask for something, it would be a private chef.

I don't need a maid though. I'm not high maintenance.

And yet..Christmas after Christmas the packages under the tree indicate that there is no chef in sight.

Doesn't Santa care?

I mean, I'm a busy gal. Who has time for cleaning, cooking, schooling, mothering, and shopping? I have to cut something out or I'll go crazy.

Also I know we all think that Martha Stewart is the "ultimate crafter-cooker-baker-cleaner-lady" in all the land, but I'm pretty sure she just comes up with recipes and then hands them over to her chef.

I can do that too, Martha. Except they are usually other people's recipes and I just have to hand them to myself since my private chef is nowhere to be found.

Not as much fun...no. No it's not.

BUT

we do have to eat around here and as always, mexican food has been calling my name.

So the other day I made these tacos.  And I'm no Martha (ahem Martha's CHEF), but they were pretty fab if I do say so myself.

savory chicken tacos  (courtesy of Smith's)  
prep: 5 min
total time: 25 min
serves: 6                             

4 medium chicken breasts cooked and shredded
1 package frozen steamable white rice
1 can fire roasted tomatoes
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup frozen sweet corn
1 cup shredded cheese
1 jar verde enchilada sauce
1 package crunchy taco shells

1 avocado (optional)
4 oz sour cream (optional)

directions:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray 13x9 baking dish with cooking spray.
Mix all ingredients except taco shells, avocado, and sour cream in a large bowl. Spread evenly into baking dish.
Bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes or until bubbling.
Let stand 5 minutes.
Spoon mixture into taco shells.
Add sour cream and avocado if you so choose.


If you need me I will be perusing Craigslist for a private chef that wants to work for free and is not a psycho.

Enjoy!

if you love me at all..

 I have exciting news.


Pregnant? 


Nope.


Moving?


Nope.


This post was nominated as "Most Inspiring"?


YES!


"i will and i can" is basically everything I want this blog to be about.


Most blogs have some kind of focus, but for months and months I couldn't decide what mine was.  Although I do know exactly what my blog is NOT.


*You won't find me twirling in pretty dresses so you know how fashion saavy I am. I break fashion rules daily, because I basically have no fashion rules. I wear what I want when I want.

* I won't be making a million tiny snowmen out of old diaper wipe cases or whatever other crafty items you crafty people use.


*It's unlikely that you'll be cooking up some recipe I've concocted on a whim, because I'm Pioneer Woman's long lost little sister. I'm a decent cook, but nooo PW if you know what I'm saying.


However.


I do know a thing or two about life.

*Trying to figure out how to laugh when all I want to do is cry.


*Training myself to have a positive attitude when being negative nancy is so much more fun (ok, not really)


*Looking for the good in everything and everyone..still working hard on this one.


*Becoming the kind of girl that faces challenges with her chin up, not afraid to do hard things.


*Occasionally making fun of Twilight and other things I think are ridiculous.


SO. If you agree that we need a little more laughter in life and motivation to do hard things then:


1.  Read "i will and i can"


2.  Go to "A Peek at Karen's World: And the finalists are..."


3.  Vote for me under "Most inspiring post"!


4.  Leave a comment so that someday when I'm ridiculously rich and I want to take people on a cruise I will know who is most deserving :)


Cheers!

a few of my favorite things

Whew. So glad that's over.

Ellie's First birthday? Check.

Host Thanksgiving at my house? Check. 

Celebrate 2 year anniversary, find mustard nail polish, and take family pictures? Check, check, check! 

The day has finally arrived. The day when all the people that complain about Christmas music being played too early can no longer have their way, because Christmas is right around the corner.  

Oh yeah. 

You can bet that's all I'm listening to.  

 Move over J.Groban...there's a new favorite in town. 

Have you heard this c.d yet? SO.good.

His voice is like butter...Paula Dean must love him too.

In other news...

We have local channels back on our t.v which really means about 4 decent channels and 15 spanish channels. So we're becoming bilingual around here.

That's exciting.

 Look at my little track star all ready to brave the Black Friday crowds. And while our friends fought the good fight for Wii's and X-Boxes, we are happy to say that none were pepper-sprayed or badly injured.

 I'm on the hunt for some boots for Ellie.

 The problem is that she has wide, fat feet. They are indeed the cutest little feet in all the land. But shoemakers don't really factor in "cute" when they're making little kid boots apparently.

We love her barefoot anyway.

Here's what I'm loving right now..

 My rust colored leggings.

 My new mustard nail polish.

The Christmas tree in my living room.

 Refined Sugar Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies!

 Running in the cold..feels so good!


What are you loving right now?

the worth of your soul

I think it's time we stop letting the world decide our worth.

When we learn to love ourselves I think we'll understand how to love others more fully.

 

Forget the criticism. Especially if you are your worst critic.

Start by thinking about all the good you have within you.

 You are amazing.

 

So much of life is wasted worrying about things that don't really matter.

 

Life is meant to be enjoyed, not just endured.

Start today.

"and they'll feast feast feast feast!"

 

We celebrated Thanksgiving this year in style..hope yours was fabulous too!

guilt free thanksgiving favorites

I have a love/hate relationship with Thanksgiving.


I loooove it, because I think that grateful people are the happiest people and everyone is encouraged to be nothing, but grateful on this holiday. I also love all the traditional Thanksgiving food..who doesn't?!


Buuuuuuttt...I hate how awful I feel after eating too much. Especially when I've eaten too much of food that really isn't even close to being good for me. Unless you count Pumpkin Pie as healthy, because it has Pumpkin, which is a vegetable (right?) and vegetables are healthy.


So let's be honest here.

celebrate good times..c'mon!

Can I just say that I have the most bombdiggity husband in all the land?

For the reals..

Our Anniversary falls on Thanksgiving this year, so we decided to celebrate a little early. Andrew volunteered to make the event unforgettable. And so it was.

This is not our bedroom. This is our living that has been converted into a hotel room.

Yes that's right. Andrew went to all the trouble of moving our kingsize bed from our bedroom to the living room. Perfectly positioned in front of our television. We are very into luxury, obviously.

Paris, Paris I love you so

If you can believe my luck...I'm going to be spending this Christmas in Paris!

The most exciting place I've ever spent the holidays is in a country house in the middle of the prairie in Cheyenne Wyoming.

So as you can imagine...I'm a bit excited.

two years and counting..

This morning I asked Andrew if our anniversary this year was going to be exciting.

It falls on Thanksgiving day, but since we're hosting Thanksgiving at our house we won't be going anywhere. And we are actually celebrating it tomorrow night instead of Thursday.

And I have school that night.

Proof that our second anniversary is destined to be lame.

So when I asked him this his response was pretty much the exact reason why I married him.

brittany's baby shower!

Who doesn't love a good party?

a twilight mystery

I realize this has the potential to lose a lot of friends and offend probably every woman on the planet.

But that's just a risk I'm willing to take.

Because there are a few things happening these days that I just don't understand.

So please. Help me if you will...

Understand why:

This guy

is the dreamy "Edward Cullen" that women drool over?

and how does

hidden truths about sugar

                                          
                                                           The Facts:
When it comes to sugar it may be hard to hide from it, but you can definitely run!

One of the sneakiest truths about processed, refined sugar is that it can be found in even the least suspecting foods. 

We all know that foods like cookies, cakes, and muffins are laden with sugar, but have you considered BBQ sauce or Pasta?

The trick is to never assume that just because it's a non-sugary item that it doesn't contain sugar.  ALWAYS check Nutrition labels so you know exactly what you're eating.

I've mentioned before that it's best to keep your sugar intake as low as possible. If you are eating sugar regularly, keeping it below 15 grams of sugar is best. F.Y.I- 4 grams of sugar = one tsp of granulated sugar.

Maybe that doesn't sound like a lot, but many times when we're counting our sugar intake we only consider the sweet foods like ice cream and donuts. Hidden sugars are one of the easiest ways to miscount how much sugar you're actually eating. Companies tend to market towards the "appearance" of healthy, when in reality they are knowlingly misleading consumers. Putting good food into your body takes effort!

little lady on a bug

For her first birthday Elle's grandparents decided she needed some wheels.

Dad taking her for a ride.

 

"I totally got this Dad!"

Finally an upgrade from that stroller..

Little Miss Independent.

Confessions of Obsessions..

I'm kind of o.c.d about some things.

Like I have to brush my teeth at least 3 times a day and when I do I always brush them twice. And floss. It's like a religion to me. Because the feeling of dirty teeth is gross and we all know it.

And I can't stand touching things in public. Door handles, shopping carts, Redbox...

I just have this creepy feeling that someone that touched that thing right before me totally went to the bathroom and did not wash their hands. And now I probably have a disease. Ew. I'm grossed out just thinking about it.

But it turns out I'm not the only one that has obsessions of the unusual kind.

Last night at hair school, my instructor who is pregnant, kept spraying Pinesol into the air. Just a little whiff every now and then. I even caught her going into the break room to wipe down the tables with it just so she could smell it.  She then told us that her husband showed her recently that if she puts Pinesol into the water in the back of the toilet, the aroma will be in the air everytime she flushes.

Hilarious.

This obviously opened up a discussion or rather, confessional, for everyone else in the room. Although I was laughing too hard to admit anything.

Because one of my favorite girls then admitted that she loves dirt. Everytime she sees it or smells it she wants to eat it. And in the most serious of tones she said that with all the construction going on around town, sometimes she just wants to roll her car window down and stick her tongue out into the wind.

Oh I love her with all my heart.

It just goes to show that we all have a little crazy in us..and I'm alright with that. At least I'm with friends..

What are you obsessed with these days?

Elle turns One!

Your little hands

Wrapped around my finger

And it's so quiet in the world tonight

Your little eyelids flutter 'cause you're dreaming

So I tuck you in, turn on your favorite nightlight

To you everything is funny

You got nothing to regret

I'd give all I have honey

If you could stay like that

Oh Darling

Don't you ever grow up

Don't you ever grow up

Just stay this little.

Happiest Birthday wishes to our sweet baby Ellie! You are the sweetest babe in all the land! We love you!