I'm Detoxing

My hubby and I just spent last weekend at a Masonic function.  It's a group that we get together with every four months or so.  We have a group of about eight that we really enjoy spending time with while at these events.  I got to wear a nice dress and the hubs wore a tuxedo so it was fun just seeing ourselves all spiffied up for once!

We ate and drank a lot of good stuff so I thought I'd try a detox that I'd read about on It Sux To Be Fat.  I love that blog and she has great recipes for sweets, which call me like crazy!

Here's the recipe she had on her site.  I just went to Wal-mart and bought the ingredients, which were super inexpensive and easy to find. 

Arden’s Garden 2 Day Detox

Yield: 2 Gallons

Serving Size: 8 oz

Ingredients

• 48 oz fresh grapefruit juice
• 32 oz fresh orange juice
• 16 oz fresh lemon juice
• 160 oz quality steam-distilled water
• Empty 1 gal. jug for mixing
• Funnel (optional)

Directions

1. Mix together for each gallon (128 oz): 24 oz. fresh grapefruit juice, 16 oz. fresh orange juice, 8 oz. fresh lemon juice and 80 oz. distilled water.
2. Drink 8 oz. every hour until the total 128 oz. have been consumed – and that is it! No food.

I'm on Hour 5 - It's 1pm right now and I started at about 8:30am.  My stomach has been growling quite a bit in the last hour but it's really not unbearable.  I actually like the juice.  It's not very sweet and pretty tart, but tasty. 

We'll see how I do tonight, which is my snacking time.  Night time boredom kills me! 

A friend of mine told me to also get the book, The Healing Code.  She's lost about 30 pounds just going through the mediations in the book.  I'm thinking about downloading it on my phone, but I'm cheap and it's $12.  I'll be ticked if I don't read it and could have bought something with that money instead.

I must really need to lose weight because I'm passing up a Masonic dinner tonight with Italian Beef sandwiches shipped from Chicago.  I love those things. 

Chicken Crescent Roll Casserole and A 3 Year Anniversary

Yesterday I tried the best recipe.
 I mean awesome, finger licking good recipe. It's the ultimate in comfort food - I found it on the Tastebook website from a lady named Kristin. http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/1881796-Chicken-Crescent-Roll-Casserole

It's super rich and filling and would be perfect on a cold winter day!  But summer works too! Trust me!

Cheesy Chicken Crescent Roll Casserole
2 (8 ounce) cans Pillsbury Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of chicken soup, undiluted
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese or swiss cheese (or any cheese of choice)
1/2 cup 18% table cream (or use whipping cream)

FILLING 4 ounces cream cheese (very soft)
4 tablespoons butter (very soft but not melted)
1/2-1 teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
1/3 cup onion, finely chopped (can use green onions)
2 large cooked chicken breasts, finely chopped (or use about 2 cups, can use cooked turkey)
1/2-3/4 cup finely grated cheddar cheese
1/2 teaspoon seasoning salt (or use 1/2 teaspoon white salt or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (or to taste)
2-4 tablespoons mayonnaise or whipping cream
1-2 cup grated cheddar cheese (for topping)

directions

1. Set oven to 350°F.
2. Butter a casserole dish (any size to hold crescent rolls).
3. In a saucepan, mix half and half cream, 3/4 cup grated cheese (can use more cheese if desired) and undiluted chicken soup (can season with black pepper if desired).
4. Heat just until the cheese melts (do not boil).
5. For the filling --- (make certain that the cream cheese and butter are very soft) in a bowl, mix the soft cream cheese with butter until very smooth, then add in garlic powder (if using).
6. Add in the chopped chicken, onion and cheddar cheese; mix well until combined.
7. Add in 2 tablespoons whipping cream or mayonnaise; mix to combine (add in a little more if the mixture seems too dry).
8. Season with seasoned salt or white and black pepper to taste.
9. Unroll the crescent rolls.
10. Place 1 heaping tablespoon chicken mixture (or a little more) on top of each crescent triangle, then roll up starting at the thicker end.
11. Drizzle a small amount of soup mixture on the bottom of the dish.
12. Then place the crescent rolls seam-side down on top of the creamed mixture in the casserole.
13. Drizzle the remaining sauce on top (you don’t have to use the full amount of cream sauce, just use as much as desired) and sprinkle with 1 cup (or more) grated cheese, or amount desired.
14. Bake for about 30 minutes.


I made some ratatouille also.  My neighbor brought by some zucchini, yellow squash, onions and a bunch of tomatoes.  I just sauteed it all together with some olive oil and italian spices and ate it for lunch everyday last week.  You can't get healthier than sauteed veggies for lunch!

Notice my beautiful Paula Deen saute pan has been bent.  That's what happens when you drop it on the tile floor after hand washing it.  Ugh.   I could have died!  I just got that pan for Christmas too.

It still works, it's just not pretty anymore.

July 11th was our 3 year wedding anniversary.  We all went to Lone Star steakhouse, our favorite.  The boys went with us because, as they said, they got married that day too!  Ha!  They just didn't want to miss out on some yummy steak to eat!

We don't do huge things for our anniversary typically.  We're the type that we tend to celebrate everyday so we don't really feel the need to make a big to-do about it.  Maybe on a big year like 5, we'll go on a honeymoon finally-haha!

4th of July Fun

We had the best fourth of July this year. We invited a bunch of friends over and had a lot of family over, including my mom, who needed to get of the house. She had a terrific time watching the boys shoot their fireworks.

We kept the menu simple this year, only grilling hot dogs and hamburgers. I also made shish-k-bobs with a white wine and herb marinade that were out of this world. We has two kinds of potato salad, coleslaw, chips and six different pies. Our friend Marilyn made sangria that was so good. I'm becoming a big fan of sangria. It's so refreshing but can also be very dangerous since I can't taste the alcohol in it.

We live in the best spot for our towns fireworks display. We live right next to the airport where they shoot off fireworks, our house is literally 400 yards from the airport and the fireworks go off right over our house. It's the best seat in town and our front yard is facing the perfect way to see them. We set up canopies so it's not too hot when we first go outside and the suns still up. It's perfect!

We always have such a fun time when we have all of our family and friends over. It's still funny to me that we live in such a small town that every parent and sibling my husband has lives within three miles of us. Isn't that the cutest thing?!

The boys loved their fireworks this year. They've finally reached the age that I let them light their own fireworks. They are very safe when doing it. They know I'm a complete freak about safety and fire. They actually had one firework that their uncle bought them and I swear it was like an atomic bomb went off in front of the house. So loud!

My youngest thought it was funny to punt the sparkler and watch it fly across the street. I guess boys will be boys!

Summer Pride

Summer conditioning has started for the 8th grader, which means I have to get up every morning and take him at 6:30 so he can go practice running and working on his agility. I don't mind it that much but isn't this supposed to be summer? Aren't I supposed to be able to sleep in now that I'm not working. The funny thing is the high schoolers get to practice at night why can't we just practice at night why do they make the middle school moms have to get up at 6 o'clock in the morning in the summer to take the kids to practice I think it's pretty silly.

The amazing thing is my son really loves it. He loves running and conditioning and loves trying to beat the last record in the 40 meters. I'm hoping the football coaches are noticing how fast he is and he'll get to play more in football.

I've also got a cold and that's no good since the LMFAO concert is tomorrow night. I'm not missing it for anything!

I Write The Songs...

Last night we saw my favorite artist in concert...Barry Manilow.
I know, I know. Not very hip or cool of me but I can't help it, I'm a diehard Fanilow!

We took the hubby's parents and ate at a yummy Mexican restaurant downtown. Everyone in the restaurant was at least 35 years old so we knew they were all going to see my man.

This was probably the 9th time I'd seen him in concert and he didn't disappoint. He is a true talent and has the most incredible voice.

I Need A Vacation

Restoration is still in the process at my Moms. We are waiting on the FEMA Adjuster to show up tomorrow to let us know what they will cover. I really hope they will cover the work that the restoration company has already done or my Mom will freak out. She can't handle stress now that she has Parkinsons and any type of situation makes her cry. It's really sad but it's the reality of Parkinsons. I forgot to mention that we have a new member of our family. A Boston Terrier. We named him Boomer. I know, really original for Sooner fans. He was dumped by a horrible man right outside of our house. My husband was sitting in the office working and watched the man do it, then the dog run after the truck all the way down the street. My hubby was horrified and brought the dog into our house and he's been a member of the family ever since. After I posted a picture of him on Facebook, a 7th grader in my sons school actually told my son that it was her dog but we could have it. Her Dad didn't like him so he dumped him. WHO DOES THAT????!!!! The vet said he's around 5 years old and he's so sweet and perfectly trained. That's the strange part. We haven't had to teach him anything. He already knows it. I'm just glad he found a good home!

Great Flood of 2012

Sunday night the weathermen mentioned that storms might form and we were under a Severe Thunderstorm Watch. The chances of rain were 30%. I went to bed about 11pm when I heard it starting to rain pretty heavy outside. I was excited because it was good sleeping weather. I ended up not going to sleep so I looked at the radar on my phone and Pinterest. I noticed that the storms weren't moving away from our area and just seemed to be back building on top of themselves. The lightening and thunder were very intense. I finally fell asleep about 12:30 and slept for a while until the phone rang at 2:15am. It was my Mom and she told my hubby that she woke up and smelled something sulphur smelling in her house. She said she walked into the kitchen and there was water on the floor. We immediately jumped up and drove to her house, or attempted to at least. The roads were all flooding and had rushing water on them. This was one of the worst rainstorms I'd ever seen. When we got to her house, I wasn't sure if we could pull into her driveway, the rain was making a river in her yard. My Mom has a small creek beside her house that has never, in 17 years, come close to the house. We couldn't see grass in her yard, only water. We walked in the house and this is what we saw. We were stunned and the sulphur smell was horrible. It smelled almost like sewer and a burning smell combined. We called the fire department and asked them to come make sure we didn't have a fire in the house. They got there and checked everything out. When the fire chief arrived, he told me, "If the house isn't burning, we have to go. We are so busy." Luckily, everything was ok, just flooded. They turned off the breaker, which I would never have thought to do. The kitchen, laundry room, garage, dining room, and the back part of the living room were all flooded. It was so sad for my Mom, who has Parkinsons Disease and doesn't handle stress very well at all. We just locked up the house and took her to ours to sleep for the rest of the night. The restoration company we called came out the next morning early and started pulling everything up. I guess now my Mom will get new carpet, tile, paint and baseboards. It will seem like a new home. That's the only thing I can think of to make this seem ok. Thank God for FEMA Flood Insurance.

Sunday full of nothing

I feel like I've done nothing today. I've done laundry and that's about the most I've accomplished. See what happens when they have a Real Housewives reunion?!

I washed the comforters on our bed and that's been on my to-do list for a while. There's nothing like sleeping on a completely clean bed, especially when we have a Boxer and a Beagle that sleep on our feet every night.

I called and checked on my Mom this morning, as usual. I told her I'd spent the night before on the computer researching more Parkinson's Disease websites. I try to explain to my Mom about what's going on with her since this is a new diagnosis. She's having a very hard time understanding the disease and what's going on with her. I feel bad that she just can't understand what's going on. She constantly tells me that her brain isn't talking to her body for some reason.

I have a day filled with taking her to another doctor tomorrow. Those days always wear her out so much. I hope it's an easy day for us.

We need to have her feeling good next Friday because we have Barry Manilow tickets. We're so excited!!! I've seen him a ton of times and he's awesome!!!

Summertime, Summertime!

School let out a week ago and the boys have been loving it! Well, to be honest, I've heard a few "I'm bored!" comments.

H is upset because his buddy Seth is moving 2 hours away in July. I've tried to get them together as many times as possible before he loves.

We went to Bass Pro Shop in Broken Arrow last Wednesday. Seth had given H a gift certificate for his birthday and H wanted to use it. We had fun walking around looking at H's favorite things, anything fishing, and the boats were fun to walk around in.

We plan on getting together a couple more times before Seth moves, I hope they keep in touch with us. H would like that.

Other than shopping, T has spent his time hanging out with friends playing Playstation and H has gone to the pond near our house and fished every chance he's gotten.

Happy Memorial Day

I always think of my brother and his sacrifices on Memorial Day. He's a Retired Army Colonel and I've always admired his commitment to this country and protecting our freedom. Think of the thousands who have sacrificed so that we may enjoy our freedom each and everyday.

Conference Track Meet

Yesterday we went to the Metro Lakes Conference track meet in Tahlequah. T (my 7th grader) qualified for conference in the 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, 4 x 1 relay and 4 x 4 relay. This is our first year in track and T loves it. More than loves it, he's obsessed. It's all he thinks about day and night. I actually never thought track would be a sport he liked. I never hung out with track people and I sure didn't run track. The amazing thing is, it's funny how much you start to like a sport when you have a child that does well in it. T did great in the conference meet. He didn't win any metals but he and his relay team came in 5th or 6th. T really enjoys watching all of the older guys and how fast they run. Some of those boys are simply amazing! I love watching them! They run like a jaguar or something. We had fun at the meet also because we got to sit with a bunch of friends that were there. That always makes a 12 hour track meet a little more bearable!

Valentine's Day

Our Valentine's Day was great. Mr. H and I gave the kids their candy and cards when they woke up, then Allie the Boxer gave the boys their card with a Best Buy gift card to share with Dad. Mr. H and I exchanged cards, he bought me a really sweet one!
After work, we went to pick up Nana and bring her over for dinner. We had bar-b-que from a great restaurant here in town and it was delish! We gave Nana a huge heart box filled with Russell Stover candies and a sweet card. I think she enjoyed visiting and getting out of the house. My mother-in-law even stopped by for a visit!
Valentine's was a nice, quiet evening which is exactly how we like it.

Good Stuff

Since I've been home a lot with my Mom, I've been on Pinterest and blog reading a lot. 

I've definitely come up with a few things that I really, really want (hubby-are you reading this???????????) Didn't mean to put that many question marks but my sweet husband spilled Coke in our keyboard so it gets stuck, and I thought it was rather appropriate!  Here's the list of the things I just must have in the near future:

1.  Project Life by Becky Higgins-A simplified scrapbook kit.  I don't have time for those complicated scrapbook layouts anymore.

(copied from Becky Higgins website)

The point is this: You can use Project Life however you want.

I can't emphasize this enough: Project Life is meant to SIMPLIFY the process of memory-keeping. If you use it at the most basic level, you are more likely to succeed in "keeping up" - if that's your goal - and you'll still have an amazing album. For inspiration on keeping it simple, please be sure to see THIS blog post.
Yes, of course you can get creative if you'd like. Many people love adding their own flair with extra embellishments, etc. We love to share inspiration and ideas. In fact, we have a whole Creative Team that is full of talented women who regularly share their amazing Project Life pages. By the way, we'd love to see more from guys and kids - trust me!
However you make this system work for you, the Core Kit has everything you need: The title cards are intended to label your layouts. The journaling cards allow you to write notes & memories to accompany your photos. The bi-fold cards are for when you have more to write. The filler cards are designed to be placed in the 3x4 pocket where you don't have a journaling card. The arrow stickers and day + number stickers are all included to label and identify journaling that accompanies the photos.

Keep it simple or get creative or maybe a little of both. This is your life, your style, your approach... your Project Life.

2.  Erin Condren planner

3.  Urban Decay - Naked Palette II - the first Naked Palette was the single best palette of eyeshadow I have ever used in my life!  I cannot wait to see this next palette of colors!

I've also found a great etsy site with the cutest home decor products....jennasuedesign.etsy.com. - Adorable!

Also this site on Etsy-Oldnewagain

You can customize your state!

I also found a great smoothie recipe for the boys smoothies in the morning.  We have to very careful what the oldest drinks before school in the morning since he has off-season football first hour.  We don't want to encourage any first hour puking while running.  This smoothie works out great because it's filling but also on the light side.

Oatmeal Smoothie-PreventionRD.com

1 cup ice

1 cup frozen raspberries

1/2 plain 0% Fage Greek yogurt

1/2 cup instant oatmeal

1 banana

1 tbsp honey

1 cup of milk, we use 2%

260 calories, 2 g fat, 51.5g carbs, 7.5g fiber, 12.5 protein

Pot Roast and a Dust Storm

This has been the strangest day for January 22nd.  First of all, it's about 65 degrees outside with a 20-30 mile an hour wind.  It sounds so strange outside on our back porch.  The wind keeps whipping through the fan blades on our outdoor fan, making it whistle.  It's so creepy sounding, especially when I'm enjoying my new favorite show, Finding Bigfoot. Ha!

The wind actually blew a wind storm into our area and it looks foggy, dirty, strange outside.  I'm really surprised it hasn't messed with the 10 year olds asthma.  We even saw it block out the sun and the boys were just sitting in wonder at how odd it looked.

It was a lazy Sunday so I whipped out the trusty Crockpot and a roast I had in the freezer.  I completely ad-libbed the recipe since I never follow a recipe for pot roast.  It turned out terrific.  Here's the recipe:

Pot Roast - Serves 6

5 lb pot roast
1 small can of tomato sauce
Montreal Steak Seasoning - 1 tbsp
Montreal Burger Seasoning - 1 tbsp
1 cup of chicken broth

Just let it cook all day and add more seasoning if you think it needs it at the end of the day.  The tomato sauce makes a great gravy.  We served ours over mashed potatoes.

To change the subject, my Mom has been set up with a Home Healthcare Nurse (which is what she used to be) and a Physical Therapist.  The PT is going to work on her movement and help her with her walking so maybe she doesn't fall anymore.  The home health nurse went through my Mom's medicine and told me that the doctors in Atlanta had started her on a medicine for Parkinsons Disease.  The symptoms seem like what she's going through.  I actually found another Parkinsonian type disease that sounds even more like what's going on with her.  It's Multiple System Atrophy and she has every symptom.  I'm going to mention it to her doctor tomorrow.

This is all so confusing and stressful but I'm trying my hardest to be helpful to her and make her feel like everything is going to be ok.  I'm not sure it's going to be but I don't think my Mom knows that yet.

Feeling Better

My Mom came back home yesterday and is now safe and sound at her house.  I think she's so thrilled to be home.  Unfortunately, my sister turned into the most disappointing person I've ever known and I just have zero respect for her.  At one point, I considered driving 12 hours overnight just to go rescue my Mom from her. She treated my Mom in a way that I'll never be able to forget.

I felt a relief when I knew my Mom was back home, maybe it's a control thing, maybe just a daughter thing.

I called the Doctor and he's already sent a home health nurse and physical therapist to help us.  I think that will give me some stress relief. 

I'm still going to take care of my Mom but it's nice to have some help.  I don't feel so alone in the task.