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Emily, Melissa and I relaxing in the pool
St. Augustine, FL

On Vacation

We left Friday for Michael's sister's. We stopped at the library before we left and while Hannah and Jacob were picking out a book I thought I'd look at the audio books. The kids were not at all into the idea of listening to a book during the drive. I think they wanted to watch movies the whole way down. I finally convinced them that it would be fun. We got a Nancy Drew mystery and another mystery...but I cannot remember the author or title at the moment.

As soon as we got on the interstate I slid the 1st CD in and after a few minutes the kids....and Michael were hooked. I knew that we all would enjoy it, and I was right. We'll listen to the other audio book on the way home on Thursday.

While visiting Michael's sister, we drove around and saw the different places Michael lived growing up. We saw his old schools, places he worked and played and where he went to church. We were able to go to his church on Sunday and he was able to see a few friends from youth group.

Don't you love going to visit and you know you were planned for? I do....makes me feel special. It makes a difference when you go to someones house and they have meals planned, beds ready, and such. Doug and Christy planned wonderful meals for us. Doug grilled huge burgers and hot dogs and Christy cooked a pot roast. Both meals were delicious. We had a great time visiting and swimming in their pool. We truly enjoyed Doug and Christy's hospitality.

Now we are visiting Michael's dad and brothers. We'll leave tomorrow to go to St. Augustine and play at the beach and pool....and see the St. Augustine sights and then dash back home in time for school orientation on Friday.

Weigh Wednesday

Okay....for the 2nd week in a row, I have not lost any weight. It it not like I've only eaten fruits and vegetables and now have no idea why I haven't lost. No, it's more like I've had seconds and didn't need to...

Fat Bloggers.....we need to be losing weight, not gaining or maintaining!

This is what I am going to do this week:

• Eat only when and until I'm full
• Exercise

I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Phillipians 4:13

Salmon Patties

I intended to post this yesterday...but fell asleep on the couch. Oops.

Yesterday I ran some errands with my mom and Hannah, while Jacob and PaPa went to play pool. I forgot to marinate the chicken before I left, so decided to make the next meal on my list. Okay, so I did that...Rotini & Tuna Salad. After I made it, at 6:30pm, I realized that if we waited for it to cool in the refrigerator and be the cold salad it was intended to be we wouldn't be eating until really, really late.

Michael asked if I would like for him to take us out....so nice, wasn't it? Actually, he had just push mowed the patches that the riding lawn mower couldn't reach and was starving. I almost gave in, mostly because I was kind of tired from running errands and making one meal already. But, I decided to just make the 3rd meal on my list....Salmon Patties, Roasted Potatoes and Broccoli.

Since I didn't photograph the Turkey Stroganoff, I made sure I took a photo of the Salmon Patties.

Recipe:

1 can of drained Pink Salmon (it is fairly cheap....about $1.50 for a large can @ Publix)

2 eggs

1 sleeve of crushed saltines (I use the multi-grain)

Diced onion

Lemon Juice

Salt, Pepper, Dill

I remove the gray skin and spine (my mom does not and her's taste exactly the same....) and add to 2 beaten eggs. Crush the saltines and add to salmon. Add onions, lemon juice (eyeball it), dill and salt & pepper. Mix together; form into patties. Pan fry in a small amount of oil (I like Canola) and flip when golden and crispy. Serve with sliced lemon wedges, ketchup or dill sauce (mayo, sour cream, dill). Since they are already pan fried I don't do the dill sauce anymore, although you could do fat free sour cream and non-fat plain yogurt.

This makes about 10 patties. Even my picky eater (aka - Hannah) loves salmon patties. Michael, who does not like seafood, likes them too!

Recipe

Last night I was going to make ground turkey stroganoff, but didn't have cream of mushroom soup. Johnna gave me a really great recipe for Hamburger Stroganoff and I was just going to substitute ground turkey for the ground beef but, not only didn't I have mushroom soup, I didn't have sour cream and a few other ingredients.

However, I did have.....
Ground Turkey
French Onion Soup
Evaporated Milk
Marjoram

Okay, so I cooked the french onion soup with 1/2 can of evaporated milk. After it started to bubble I added a tablespoon of flour to some cold water and mixed, then added to the soup mixture. I continued to heat on medium until it began to bubble and then added my cooked ground turkey and some dried marjoram. I served it over Barilla Plus spaghetti with cooked carrots on the side. Everyone, including my picky eater (aka - Hannah) went back for seconds. Sorry, didn't even think to take a picture.....

For something different: Add poppy seeds to the cooked and drained pasta. Adds a little extra 'pop'....pun intended. This tip is from Johnna's mom.

Really Random Ramblings

Okay, Emily, here's my alliteration....oops, it's Saturday. I guess my post should have read, Saturday Somethings...hey, I like it.

I started trying to organize my bedroom closet yesterday. Basically, all that I accomplished yesterday was pulling everything out to my bed. Today, with Michael's help, I went through boxes and baskets of random things that were stuck, shoved, thrown, and dropped in my closet. I'm still not done, mostly because opening one thing would lead me to another and so on. I really should have taken a photo of the mess in my room! Oh well....

I also made a meal plan for the week. We're cutting it close this month with Michael's paychecks because I didn't work for 2 weeks because I was sick....and when I went in on Thursday they didn't have any work for me. So I thought I'd actually plan this week's meals, like I used to.

Anyway....here is my list of meals:
Ground Turkey Stroganoff with Carrots
Grilled Burgers with Grilled Zucchini and Squash
Grilled Italian Chicken Thighs with Pasta and Salad
Grilled Oriental Chicken Thighs over Brown Rice, Peas & Carrots
Rotini & Tuna Salad
Salmon Patties, Roasted Potatoes & Green Beans

I also thought I would include some of the blogs that I read when I get a chance.....
http://www.yvestown.com/ Love the way she decorates...

http://www.stacysbigpicture.typepad.com/ She is very creative...
Check out this at her site...loving it! http://stacysbigpicture.typepad.com/altogether_too_happy/the_boys/index.html

http://soulemama.typepad.com/soulemama/ Some neat sewing ideas

http://todayscreativeblog.blogspot.com/ This blog is great...she features a new creative blog each day.

http://twiddletails.blogspot.com/ More great sewing ideas

Okay...I have a lot more, but that is enough for now.
What other blogs do you read, other than mine, of course? ºÜº

Red

My new favorite color is red. Some people have favorite colors and they are always their favorite....not me.

My favorite color used to be blue. For decorating I liked country blue. When Michael and I got married I decorated our small apartment with country blue and rose. Remember when that was the craze? Or was it just me? I had rose colored pillows on my couch, the couch that we got from Michael's parents. I covered it with a sheet, a floral sheet. I also covered the cushion to a papason chair, remember those, with a rose colored sheet.

Our first new couch was a futon, purchased with financial aid money...what were we thinking? We thought it would be perfect because our 2nd apartment was also small and we always had family coming to visit. We ended up having that futon for almost 10 years. The original cover was a blue and cream stripe. After about 7 years I sewed a new cover for it, I loved that cover....it was blue and khaki floral. We sold that futon in a garage sale last summer.

Last year we bought our first real sofa....we shopped and shopped and I finally found one I wanted....Actually the Rowe couch I wanted was a bit pricey and would take almost a year to arrive because they were so backlogged. We decided on a cheaper and quicker version. I chose a red denim, which looks great. It's has a slipcover look.

I was putting away dishes tonight and started thinking about all the red I have now and how little blue I have. Isn't it funny to look back at old pictures and see our clothing choices or better yet, our hairstyle choices. We thought it looked great at the time, but yet, looking back it looks so wrong.

Melissa was telling me about a speaker at the conference she just went to. He had the wonderful ability to see Jesus in everyday circumstances. I've tried to do that this week and haven't been as successful as I thought I should be. I don't even know what successful in this situation means....

Anyway, while I was typing this post I started thinking about how I never stay the same. You can ask me one week if I like something and I can give you a quick response, but then after more consideration, I may change my mind. Or, a better example of my inconsistency is letting the kids get away with something one day and then yelling at them the next. Yes, I have been known to yell, it's something I'm working on.

Aren't we so glad that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8 God is truly amazing. I bet if I consistently pursued my relationship with Jesus I'd be more consistent. Yep, I love red. Red was the blood that Jesus shed for me.

Girl Scout Trip to Helen, GA

It's been a few days since I've blogged....
I've been sick, Michael's been sick....I went with Hannah's Girl Scout Troop to Georgia.
We had a really good time. We hiked to see 2 different falls...boy, was that a lot of hiking. We tubed down the Hooch...I'm too fat to tube down 6 inches of water. We ate at some really good restaurants...I love taking pictures of food. We shopped in Helen... we spent over an hour in the glass blowing shop!

Okay, is it wrong that I'm about to blog about food? My friends are blogging about their spiritual convictions and I'm blogging about food....I think that there really is something wrong with it, but I'm going to do it anyway!

We decided to eat at a restaurant called Edelweiss German Inn & Restaurant - delicious! We got all dressed up and drove to Sautee, Georgia. The restaurant closed at 9pm and we arrived at 8:15pm. There were barely any cars in the parking lot and we were a little nervous...thinking that maybe the restaurant was either (a) closed or (b) not good. Well, as it turns out it was (c) none of the above....it was WONDERFUL! We were greeted by 2 women who were dressed in German outfits and quickly led to a table for 6. The table had a beautiful tablerunner, candles and flowers. The lights were dim and the atmosphere was authentic...I'm imagining since I've never been to Germany.

After receiving our menus we scanned all the German and Bavarian entrees. The girls decided to order off the children's menu once they found out that ice cream was included. Hannah ordered coconut shrimp and fries (not German at all but she said they were the best fries ever!) I had a much harder time deciding what to order. Finally, I ordered Sauerbraten with Spatzle. This turned out to be a great choice. I have never eaten spatzle before and had to ask my friend, Johnna, what it was. The girls tried our Sauerbraten (both Johnna and I ordered the same dish) and they all loved it! Here...I'll copy and paste the description of the meal! Choice top round of beef, marinated for several days, braised and slow roasted, served Bavarian style.

Overall, the trip was a success. Each girl is going to journal about our time in Helen, GA and when they do I'll post it on our Girl Scout blog.

Now, it's back to the grind....I've been trying to play catch up with work. I only get paid when I work...and I didn't work for almost 2 weeks because I was sick and then on the GS trip.

Pause my music before watching

Weigh Wednesday - I gained 2 pounds!

Okay, so I didn't do so well this week. I could give lots of excuses...but I won't.
My mom and I are going to try and eat raw as much as possible. I'm going out of town this weekend with Hannah's Girl Scout troop so, raw may not be available...but I'm going to do my best!
I think I should break down and purchase a scale. Everytime I go to weigh in at Publix I weigh myself multiple times, before and after shopping, and each time it registers something different. Oops, was that an excuse.....

To do this week:
Eat lots of raw veggies and fruit
Buy a scale