A couple of weeks ago I found out that the ladies’ ministry at my church is going to have a cookie contest. It is really more than just a contest, it is a luncheon, but at the luncheon there will be a cookie contest. Then the cookies are delivered to teachers at a local school. We are giving back to our community with something pleasant like Valentine cookies.

Now I am a regular attending member of our church, and also I like to go to ladies’ fellowships. No, I actually straight up NEED to go to them because I have not put forth much effort into getting myself connected here. I need to do more, but I admit I groaned at the cookie part.

Why did I groan at the cookie part?

Well, it is simple. I just do not have a pretty valentine go-to cookie recipe. I do love baking, but making things pretty is a skill I do not possess. It does not come naturally to me, for sure. So I set out on a mission.

Mission: Find cookie recipes, try a few out, and let my family choose one that will not be a total embarrassment to take to the ladies’ fellowship.

I had the best of intentions. Winning is not the goal. That is ridiculous. Simply not embarrassing myself, that’s the goal. I went to Pinterest, and I built the most beautiful of Valentine’s Day cookie boards. You see, pinning things, that I am very good at. In fact, if you would like to see my idea board, just click here. You’ll love it.

Then a week ago, I finally got around to trying out one of the recipes. I tried this one:

That looks delicious, right? They are too, but you wouldn’t believe how much trouble making these was, due to life circumstances, and then in the end, only around 7 of the 24 even got eaten.

Let me tell you what happened.

First, I ground the Oreos and mixed them with the cream cheese, per the instructions. I was ever-so-careful to have all of the ingredients that I needed. Then I flattened them out into a baking pan, all nice and neat and placed them in the freezer to set.

That’s when I realized my heart-shaped cookie cutters were a casualty of this past summer’s move. I searched everywhere: inside, outside, downstairs, upstairs, every single cabinet, every single box, every single drawer. There was no rock unturned, no crevice unchecked, but there were absolutely zero heart cookie cutters. I found Christmas ones and ghost ones, but no hearts. Disappointedly, I moved the pan of chocolate dough from the freezer to the refrigerator.

The next day, I went by the grocery store. I figured I would just buy some cutters there. Valentine’s day is near. Surely they will have them. They did not.

Finally, Alan said, “Just order some on Amazon!” So I did. I ordered these. They were a very good deal. Here is an Amazon ad for them:

They came in the mail two days later, and I ever-so-excitedly cut out my hearts, melted down about 3 bags of chocolate chips, and dipped to my heart’s content. Some of them fell apart, but some didn’t. I actually had a fairly successful looking batch. The kids came home and were pleased.

I took a ton of pictures throughout the process because I expected the whole thing to flop, and then I would write a Nailed it/Failed It Valentine edition, so you could all laugh with me, but then they turned out pretty good.

As for flavor, they were insanely sweet, especially with the white chocolate. The boys and I all agreed they were actually too sweet, so even if what was about to happen had not happened, this would not be the recipe to use for the church cookie competition. (The semi-sweet chocolate did taste much better.) We decided this is more of a candy than a cookie, and also it is a lot of work.

The Problem

No, it was not a chocolate problem, per se. It was more of a health in food services type issue. You see, as the day wore on, it became increasingly apparent that I had a scratchy throat and a runny nose. I was extra careful to wash my hands while working on these. I had no idea what was coming.

The boys came home from school, except for Caleb, as he was home sick. They all tasted the desserts, but we did not have much appetite, and these were so sweet. No one ate many. Then somewhere around six o’clock, I began to figure out that I was getting sick. Meanwhile, John David was whiny, whiny, whiny, about every little thing, which is not like him.

Finally, Alan arrived home and infused some even-keeled sanity to the situation, as only a healthy person surrounded by the flu can do. He took everyone’s temperature. John David had a high, actual fever. Mine was barely there, but I had the chills terribly. We went to bed and didn’t really get up until three days later.

And the hearts? Everyone was afraid to eat the flu-ridden hearts. They were thrown into the trashcan.

All that work, wasted. So much money I spent on Oreos, cookie cutters, cream cheese, and chocolate to melt, for nought. All that time and energy, and for what? For nothing.

As my fever broke a few days ago, and I started to emerge from the flu stupor of last week, I thought about those hearts and it reminded me of life in general. We all have work we pour ourselves into, and we all have good reasons for the work that we do. But in the end, only the eternal work survives. Only some of our work matters to other souls and to God himself. How much of our work will all be for nothing, will simply end up at the bottom of a trash can, rotting at the dump, or burning in a fire?

If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, his workmanship will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as if through the flames.

1 Corinthians 3: 12-15

I am not saying we shouldn’t do the kind of work that won’t last. Things like cooking and cleaning have their own kind of reward in this present life, but there are also bigger things, more important work that we should be doing.

Eternal Work

Last week, Daniel and John David, our youngest two sons, asked to be baptized. They have always believed in Jesus, and a couple of months ago they prayed asking Jesus to be their Savior. It is just a simple prayer, telling God, “I do believe in Jesus, and I know that I am a sinner, and I want Jesus to forgive me and save me and be the Lord of my life.” Daniel has actually prayed the prayer a few times, as many children do as they figure out their faith.

Getting baptized loomed bigger to them though because they were afraid to go forward and talk to a pastor, who they do not even know, and ask him to baptize them. But they did it, and we are so proud of them.

Teaching our children feels like work that lasts. That is work that survives. influencing the life of a child, there is nothing better than that.

Of course, leading your children is just one example. There are so many kinds of work with eternal significance, work that brings glory to God, leads people to Jesus, and helps people in a lasting way.

I do not have some amazing call to action here. I just have a trash can of beautiful, disease-ridden cookies, serving as a reminder that not all work will survive. Do not neglect or look down on the most important work.

P.S. I still need a good Valentine cookie recipe…

The post The Cookie Fiasco: All That Work for Nothing appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

Super easy 10 minute meals are all I have time for lately. Have you ever had a phase like that?

This week I had to stay off my feet. I had plantar fasciitis in a mild, I-can-handle-this version for 4 months. A little over a week ago, it turned into big, fat roaring don’t-you-dare-take-a-step-on-these-feet plantar fasciitis. It hurt! I did go and see a doctor about it. He gave me some anti-inflammatory medicine, and he told me to stay off of my feet for a week to let them recover. So that’s what I’m doing.

Meanwhile, if I didn’t do something about dinner I was afraid my husband would feed everyone pizza every night, so I tried to be creative. Most of these meals are all probably things you already know how to do. All six of these meals are so easy you might even be able to get your older children to make them for you.

Here are the 10 minute meals that I made this week.

Night 1: Ramen Noodles and Canned Bread Sticks

We ate the chicken flavored Ramen noodles. I boiled 4 bags of these to feed 6 people, and there were no leftovers. These were a HUGE hit. The boys said, “Mom is the best cook ever!”

I also popped open a can of Pillsbury bread sticks, added Parmesan cheese, olive oil, garlic salt, and basil to them, and those things cook in only 10 minutes too.

Night 2: Crockpot BBQ Chicken, canned green beans, and instant mashed potatoes

Don’t let anyone mom-shame you about these convenient foods. Make them. My bet is it’s still way healthier than fast food.

For the chicken, I slow-cooked chicken breasts with a stick of butter all day long. About 15 minutes before dinner time, I squeeze in a bottle of BBQ sauce and stir it around and let it warm back up for 15 minutes. Serve with convenient vegetables.

I do add a touch more butter than the instant potatoes recipe calls for on the box. I am from Alabama, after all. For the green beans, I only use salt and pepper, and everyone likes them except for 1 kid. 5 out of 6 is a win.

Night 3: Hot dogs, frozen french fries, and canned fruit

For the canned fruit, our family is a big fan of mandarin oranges. I might as well be serving chocolate cake, they love it so much.

Night 4: Grilled Cheese and/or Chicken Nuggets with Applesauce or Peas

Two of my children dislike grilled cheese sandwiches, so for those two I heated up frozen chicken nuggets in the microwave, on a plate with a large helping of applesauce or peas. I have one that’s allergic to peas, so they can’t all eat them. The others happily eat the canned green sweet peas. Cinnamon applesauce is also a huge hit at our house.

Night 5: Spicy Chicken in the crock pot

Literally just put all of this in the slow cooker or instant pot together:

-3 chicken breasts

-1 jar of salsa

-2 cans of DRAINED black beans

-sprinkle in some cumin or taco seasoning for added flavor

-At the end, sprinkle on 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese. (Or you can use 2 cans of Campbell’s Nacho cheese soup if gluten is not an issue for you.)

I used to have a video for this spicy chicken on Facebook. You can imagine my dismay to realize I accidentally deleted it. Alan was off work on Friday, so he made spicy chicken for us.

It is very simple. It’s just chicken, salsa, black beans, and 2 cans of Campbell’s Nacho Cheese soup, all cooked together in the crock pot.

IServe this chicken with lots of tortilla chips or make it into a taco salad like I did in the photo above.

Now that I am gluten free, I cannot use this soup. Instead, I substitute in two cups of shredded cheddar at the end.

Night 6: Frozen Pizza

No explanation needed there, eh? I didn’t say this was earth-shattering, only that these things can all be made quickly and easily, without having to end up at McDonald’s!

(When you order from Amazon ads on my site, I do collect advertising fees.)

Here are a few more 10 Minute or less meals that we enjoy:

-Instant Maple and Brown Sugar Oatmeal

They even make gluten free boxes now that you can find at select stores.

-Quick Grits

I’m telling you they are delicious. Follow the directions on the container. Then add half a stick of butter (to a pan for four people) and plenty of salt and pepper. Cheese is also a yummy add on for grits.

-Egg Sandwiches

I’m talking just scrambled eggs with pepper on them between two slices of bread. I love it.

-Panera Soups from the grocery store deli section.

When you are in too much pain to stand at the stove, these are a life saver. Just heat them up. Use any kind of pre-made soup you like. It will still be way cheaper than eating out.

-This delicious slow cooker roast only has like 4 ingredients.

I used to love this one so much. Now I cannot make it because it isn’t gluten free unless you happen to have gluten free cream of mushroom soup.

-You can use frozen grilled chicken with a bagged salad to create a quick salad.

These are all easy ways to avoid the drive through or an expensive restaurant bill. Before long, this phase where you are injured or so short on time will pass and you can make more culinary masterpieces.

But hard times call for easy meals you can make in 10 minutes. It just does. Food does not have to be complicated to be good.

The post 10 Minute Meals for When You’re Injured, Over-Scheduled, or Just Plain Tired appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

Have any of you watched The Great British Baking Competition on Netflix?

It may not sound like much, but it is addictive. Alan even watched it with me sometimes. I’ve seen every single episode of all the seasons, so we don’t watch it anymore, but I watched it around the clock last year.

On the show, there are 2 judges. Well, really there’s 3. For the first few years you have Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood. Then for the last few seasons you have Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith. I enjoy them all, of course.

So you can imagine my excitement when I discovered this gem while shopping at Target!

Yes!!!! I DO want to bake with Mary Berry! I DO I DO I DO! So much. I was supposed to be Christmas shopping, but that book went straight home with me, and I’ve already baked around 7 different things.

I cannot share the recipes with you. Obviously, that’d be copyright infringement, but I will tell you a little about what I’ve made from the book so far.

Oh, there are several different categories of things to bake in this book: breakfast fare, cakes, puddings, cookies, pies, British favorites, etc.

I have this weird OCD-like quirk though.

I have to read every book from cover to cover. That means I cannot simply get a new cook book and skip around in it. No. Instead, I must forge straight through from first recipe to last in trying them out. And if the first few recipes don’t turn out well. It also means I will toss the book and not ever bake the things in the back.

Yes, I do realize this makes no sense at all. Why not just choose what I want to make most and make that thing? Well, now see, the reason is simple. I spend as little time in a day making decisions as possible. Even my clothes are kept in an order so that I don’t have to decide what to wear everyday. Okay, enough about me….

Here are a few things I baked from chapter 1: Breakfasts.

Yes, most of them turned out well, so I am continuing on in baking my way through this book. Yay!

#1. The first thing I made was a baked oatmeal dish called flapjacks.

These would’ve been delicious……IF they hadn’t completely stuck to the pan. I watched YouTube videos of other people making them too, so I’d have a clue as to what they were, and still…not enough grease on the pan led to disaster.

Best advice: parchment paper next time.

Sorry I didn’t get a photo! I’m bad about forgetting, especially when I fail. Ha!

#2. My Personal Favorite: French Pancakes

No, I’d never heard of it either, but the instructions were very clear. I gotta say, of all the things I’ve made from this book, this one was my favorite by far. These are DELICIOUS. There’s no other word for it.

The only thing about mine were that it was supposed to be made in 3 inch muffin cups, and I don’t have a muffin pan that size, so ours were extra small, but that’s okay. They still tasted the same.

#3. Blueberry & Vanilla Muffins

These were the sweetest, yummiest muffins ever. I called them cupcake muffins.

#4. White Chocolate & Strawberry Muffins

No photo of these. Sorry! These were not popular at our house with the kids because they have jam in the middle, which I think is actually their saving grace. Mine were overcooked and dry, so they were a disappointment. I now realize that my oven works a little faster than Mary Berry’s.

#5. Double Chocolate Muffins

Again I forgot to take photos, but at least the kids did eat these without any coercion. Big surprise, eh? They’ll eat anything chocolate.

#6. Zucchini Loaf

I didn’t bother trying to feed this to the boys because I only ate one bite. It was SO dry! My super-fast oven strikes again. Plus, maybe I drained the zucchini too much.

Alan, on the other hand, seemed to like it and ate half of the loaf by himself!

#7. I skipped the Date and Walnut loaf because I had no dates in my pantry.

#8. I skipped the Fruity Banana Bread because I was also out of bananas.

#9. Apricot & Cherry Loaf Cakes

I LOVED this. First, I feel healthy because it has dried apricots as well as cherries. Second, it’s just yumm-o.

Alan liked the zucchini one better. The boys are so finicky about trying new things like fruity breads that I didn’t even bother them with offering these last two breads. The apricot and cherry loaves make 2 loaves, so I froze one for later.

And I must confess, I ate half of one of them by myself…in one sitting. Apricots are so good! Plus, Alan chopped them up super tiny for me, so it isn’t overwhelming at all.

#10. Next Up: Danish Pastries

This is what I’m planning to make next!! I’m shaking in my black flat shoes over these. I’ve never made anything like this before. Feel free to send any tips you may have!

“The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:

The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:

The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.”

Numbers 6:24-26

The post My Attempt at Baking with Mary Berry appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

I have tried several recipes in my quest to make delicious-melt-in-your-mouth rolls from scratch. They were all utter failures…..until this one! I found this gem in one of those church cookbooks, and even I was not able to mess it up. Hurray! Here is the recipe, and at the bottom of the recipe there is a printable version. Happy baking!

Best Yet Yeast Rolls

Original Recipe by Sara T. Drummond

Ingredients:

2 pks. Dry yeast               

½c warm water                     

2 lg. eggs                      

1 c. warm water                

½c. shortening (I used coconut oil.)

1 c. sugar

2 tsp. salt

4 ½ c. all-purpose flour

Soft butter

Directions:

Dissolve yeast in ½cup warm water. Let stand 10 minutes.

Beat eggs and add to the eggs the following: dissolved yeast, 1 cup warm water, shortening, sugar, and salt.

Beat until smooth on medium speed of mixer for about 2 minutes. With a wooden spoon, scrape down sides of the bowl.

Beat in ½of the flour to make a soft dough, using mixer. Add the rest of the flour with wooden spoon to make a soft dough.

Cover and let rise to double in volume, about 1 hour.

Punch down and cover.

Refrigerate overnight.

About 1 ½hours before baking, take out the desired amount. Knead on floured cloth or parchment paper for about 10 minutes, then roll ½inch thick and cut out rolls with cutter. 

Place on greased cookie sheet. Let rise until double in size. Bake at 400 for 12-15 minutes or until brown.

I personally like to print the recipes, with no photos between, so click here for the printable recipe.

The post How to Bake Yummy Yeast Rolls appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

Lion around at the zoo

A few weeks ago, I was grocery shopping alone at the Commissary.

It’s funny. When I was pregnant, strangers in stores always talked to me.

“You’re so….big. Are you having twins?”

Oh, how I loved those little chats…Then when the boys were babies, people still talked to us, but these days we’re just regular old people. I don’t get comments unless I take all 4 of them out together. Then of course, no one can believe they are all boys. (Ha! I can’t believe it either. It’s okay.)

So now when people talk to me in the grocery store, it’s usually a man who is grocery shopping but doesn’t know what he’s doing and wants help.

I was 80% of my way through the store, my cart was 70% full, and I had just turned down the bread aisle. Only there are apparently two bread aisles because regular sandwich bread wasn’t on this aisle at all, which left me lingering and searching for longer than usual because this is yet another side effect of moving all the time. You don’t know where anything is.

An airman in his mid-twenties (I’m guessing), started talking to me. He asked something like, “How’re you this fine day?”

This caught me off guard. It’s a little unusual, right? We just shop. We don’t shoot the breeze with random people standing by the hot dog buns.

By the way, when I’m nervous/uncomfortable, I tend to laugh. It’s an annoying habit that may sometimes send the wrong message, but I have very little control over it.

So I laughed a little and said, “I’m fine.”

But I’m standing there thinking, “Is this guy trying to talk to me?” Ha! Sometimes in my head I’m still 28 and cute…I forget that I actually look like a mother of four nearing 40…

He kept talking.

“So what’s a good thing to cook? I mean, I like to, but I don’t know what to make. I need ideas,” he pointed towards my cart full of vegetables, cheese, and breads and such, “and you seem to know.”

Oh!! This young man is actually wanting meal ideas from me?

He isn’t just trying to talk to me. I did a completely terrible job of thinking up cooking suggestions for him on the spot. See my mind was wiped clean as I realized that I am now the motherly lady you ask for kitchen tips…

I guess my bubble was burst, but hey. I’m going to redeem myself here. Would YOU like some cooking ideas? I have nothing earth shattering to offer, but here’s a sample of what has been cooking in my kitchen this summer.

How I actually serve lunch. That’s ham, fruit, and apple bread.

That is…this is my cooking plan aside from frozen pizza, hot dogs, sandwiches, and fruit trays because we have honestly mostly eaten exactly that.

Chicken Noodle Soup, like this recipe.

During our 2 years in Georgia, Joshua raved on and on about Mrs. Bowers’s (a local friend’s) chicken noodle soup, so I tried to make it as much like hers as I could!

I guess my cooking is still highly influenced by our time in Georgia because one of my other summer projects was this cake I saw by our Georgia friend, Julie. Hers was a little bigger, which I wasn’t quite ready for that level of baking, so I did a 4 layer version of the red, white, and blue cake for July 4th.

Yes, I photographed it while it was still in the freezer…which is why I will never be a food blogger. And don’t laugh at my melting blue rosettes. It was my first try, so I was pleased as punch.

Want to make a swirly cake like this? Well, you just need a TON, TON, TON, that’s 3 tons, of buttercream frosting, food dye, and some boxed cake mixes because oh yes, I definitely make my cakes from a boxed mix. I figure there’s no shame. That’s just pre-measured flour and sugar and directions, really.

Here’s a link to the YouTube video I watched to learn how to make the buttercream swirlies. Oh my bad, they call them rosettes:

Here’s my menu plan from last week:

I number my cookbooks, and this month I’m using book #16. Does that sound strange?

Ok. I know that looks like I’m planning to bake a lot of sweets, but in my defense, the kids are home all day and we do that for fun together. We will never actually bake 2 desserts in one week, but I dream big.

The apple bread was a huge hit with Alan and Daniel. The mug was a lovely gift from Jennings.

I couldn’t find another one online that was exactly like the one I made, so here’s the recipe for it.

Printable Apple Bread Recipe

Apple Bread

3 eggs, slightly beaten

2 Cups sugar

1 Cup Vegetable Oil (I used canola.)

1 Tablespoon vanilla

3 Cups All-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

4 Cups cored, peeled, and chopped apples

Topping:

2 Tablespoon sugar

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325, and chop up your apples. Set apples aside.

Stir together the eggs, sugar, oil, and vanilla until ingredients are well mixed. Combine flour, baking soda, and cinnamon and stir into liquid ingredients until just evenly mixed.

Stir in apples.

Divide between 2 greased loaf pans.

Combine sugar and cinnamon for topping. Sprinkle over tops of loaves.

Bake 1 hour and 10 minutes.  I like to set the timer for more like 1 hour, stick a fork in it to check for doneness. If fork comes out clean, your bread is done. If it comes out doughy, bake 10 minutes longer.

I got this recipe from a church recipe collection: Roanoke First Baptist Church Covered Dish, page 192. This recipe was from Virginia Yarbrough, and I altered it to omit pecans for our nut allergy kid.

******************

Maybe next week I will work on my food photography skills, but hungry boys get quite impatient, so I make no promises.

Happy summer!!

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The post What I’m Cooking This Summer (& Chatty Stories at the Supermarket) appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

I love watching my boys play ball.

Having my kids home all day cracks me up. I mean literally, by 5:30, when my husband gets home, I’m a little cracked in the head.

But I love it. I do.

What do you do on the lazy days of Spring break? Well, for any parent who decides to stay home with the kiddos during their week off of school, these are definitely not lazy days. Duh, right?

But it’s still fun. I cooked 3 meals yesterday. Do you think anyone will notice if I only “cook” 2 today?

Daniel helped me make last night’s dinner. He even helped come up with a recipe.

“Mom, can we have a bowl of carrots for dinner?”

“Um, well…”

“And bwocowi! Bwocowi and carwats for supper. Nothing else.”

“Um, well…we do need to have some kind of meat. Chicken, maybe?”

“No. How about if you put the meat in with the bwocowi and the carwots, all in 1 big bowl?”

“Hmmm. Yes, that sounds good. How about this sausage?”

“Yes! Yes.”

helping me bake his cake….Actually, at this point he was lickin’ the bowl.

So Daniel and I made a delicious dinner that, believe it or not, was heartily consumed by all SIX residents of the House of Tiny Men.  Here’s the recipe. Alan made me write it down.

So I typed it out for you to print for yourself.

Just click on the link below to download and print the recipe.

Daniel’s Sort of Gazpacho

Okay, it may not be that pretty, but I promise it was yummy. Even my picky eaters did eat it, believe it or not.

——————————–

Daniel tries to hang out with the neighborhood boys, who are all 2 to 3 years older than he is. They are Caleb’s age, and as far as they are concerned, Daniel is just Caleb’s little brother. Daniel has been persona non grata to them.

I told Caleb he was going to have to tell them we can’t play if they can’t include Daniel.

Yesterday I sent them out to play, and I asked Caleb later how it went.

“Oh, I told ’em, ‘If you guys can’t accept the little guy, I’m going to turn you into rotten flesh.”

!!!!!??????

“Ew, Caleb! What does that even mean???”

“It’s from Minecraft.”

“What did they say?”

Caleb made a face that looked sort of like this          8 /

Nothing more was said. So no one said anything unwelcoming to Daniel. Raising boys is apparently not for the easily offended or overly refined….

__________________________

The leprechaun came to John David’s class. I asked him who the leprechaun was. He said, “Jesus!” I couldn’t help it. I busted out laughing before I tried to explain Jesus isn’t the leprechaun.

It’s been a fun week so far. Lots of driveway basketball, Lego Star Wars video games, and popcorn eating has taken place.

Caleb’s genius plan for spring break was announced on Day 1:

“Let’s make a rest schedule for this week.”

I laughed, but he appears to be sticking to it.

JD loves playing with the magnet letters he got from my friend Amy. Also, JD loves pajamas. He changes back into his pjs the moment he re-enters the house. Sometimes, when I’m going somewhere in the afternoon, I don’t even have time to change him for the 3rd time that day and he picks up his big bros in his pjs.

People probably think I never dress him. hehehe

Hope y’all had a great week too!

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The post Spring Break Part II: Funny Stuff They Said with Daniel’s Recipe Printable appeared first on Stories of Our Boys.

I was all excited to buy “Georgia peaches” now that I live down here, but look. These aren’t actually from Georgia. 🙁 Apparently, peach season is over already. I missed it!

This week I have two cardiology appointments. The one yesterday was fairly easy, and all went smoothly. John David, my faithful sidekick, tagged along for that one. I think he fully entertained the cardiac floor of the hospital. My favorite part was the bit he did with the crayons. See, I brought a brand new box of 24 crayons along. New crayons interest people more than old ones.

My sidekick…..He’s not distracting at all…But he can entertain a cardiology office like no other.

JD enjoyed the crayons very much, but I’m not sure that he actually did any coloring. The door to my appointment room had a large gap between it and the floor. John David found it delightfully fun to roll each of his crayons, one-by-one, under the door and out into the hallway. I stopped him at first, but then I was trying to give the doctor my full attention, so when he eventually resumed his game, I didn’t even notice really.

When I finally opened the door and fetched all the crayons, there were nurses giggling in the hallway. When I got onto the elevator, the elderly gentleman behind us said, “Well, we all know you had a good time at the doctor’s office,” to little John David. John David was wearing his Lightning McQueen back-pack, and he looked ridiculously adorable. He just looked up at all the people who kept talking to him with his little straight, serious face. This is definitely not the toddler you have to worry about running off with strangers.

I asked the man, “Oh, did you see the crayons rolling out into the hallway?”
“Oh, yeah,” the gentleman replied with a smile. “Is this your first?”
“Oh, no, my fourth.”
“What! Gracious! You don’t look old enough to have four! But then you don’t act like he’s your first. First time parents are, you know, different, more anxious and restrictive.”
Haaaa!!! Yep, true, and we’ve all been there.

So the heart problem lives on. I see my electrophysiologist today. It’s all sort of embarrassing when all of my health problems start coming out. Maybe I’ll just keep my mouth shut today about all the other non-heart symptoms that I have. I’m glad I didn’t yesterday though because that doc actually understood my hip problem and referred me to a local orthopedic surgeon, but don’t worry, I’m not hoping to have surgery.

What I actually want to tell you all is what a difference eating better has made for me. You know that whole, “You are what you eat?” slogan?? Well, it’s true. I hate it, but it’s true. The last few days, I’ve just re-embraced the fact that I need LOTS of sleep, and I can’t handle wheat, and I feel like a living human again, instead of a dying one, like I felt the last week.

Out for a walk with my work-out partner, JD

See, moving to the South from California was exciting and also bad, or really just I was the one that was bad. I wanted to eat buttermilk biscuits, fried chicken, and pie, pie pie!!!! I decided to pretend like I don’t have a problem with gluten for a while.

Until it caught up with me, and I was back in the hurt locker. So now I’m back to behaving, and I feel better. Eat better. Feel better.

I’ve been getting in more exercise too. I felt too poorly to do much of it last week. Who knew? Food, sleep, and exercise: three things I never realized would be so important for the rest of my life.

That’s why I’m such a fan of Justin Cox’s Kettle Bell Burn program. (You can check it out here.) He teaches the importance of a balanced diet, 8 hours of sleep per night, staying hydrated, 20 mins. of exercise per day, and taking vitamins.

I recently noticed that his current promotion is a free 5-day course on nutrition, so I just wanted to call your attention to that and urge you to sign up.

His regular exercise program is only $30/month, and it’s awesome, but if you’re still on the fence, the free 5-day course is a good starting place.

What, your gym doesn’t have a china cabinet?

When it comes to exercise, arm day is my favorite. I always actually do the whole work-out on arm day. You have to understand. I was never an athlete. I don’t even feel ashamed when I quit. I’m like, “Eh, this is heavy, or I’m out of breath. Time for a nice little rest.” No shame.

Case in point: Yesterday Caleb came into the kitchen asking Joshua to play ball with him. Joshua refused. Joshua was in the kitchen snacking. (Peas. Joshua eats whole cans of peas for a snack. We are baffled and pleased).

So I volunteered. Caleb kind of looked unsure, “Sigh. Okay, but I mean Mom can’t really catch or throw, but….Just so you know, Mom, there ARE bugs out here, and it is hot. I’ll get you a glove.”

(I complain about sweat, gnats, and bugs on the regular.)

9. Wow. It took my children only 9 years to surpass me in athletic skills. Nice. 

Now don’t be mad at Caleb. He was very sweet to me out there. He has played with me before, so he knows that half of my pitches will go over his head or five feet away from him, and I can’t throw very far. And I don’t really care. Sports are not my thing.

My sons say that P.E. is their favorite class. Can you imagine??? Well, I certainly can’t. I even found a way in high school to not have to take any P.E. at all. 🙂

Nutrition and exercise suddenly became so important to me after it actually turned my illness around. I was the queen of having two granola bars and a Coke for lunch, so this epiphany that if you want to feel good, you have to eat good was a truly rude awakening. (Yes, I know that’s bad grammar, but it’s catchy, you see. Eat good, feel good……Eat well, feel well doesn’t have the same ring to me, but we could also use that.)

I want you all to feel better too.

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Let me know if you decide to give kbburn.com a try, so we can cheer each other on.

Eat better. Feel better.

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