30 Day Photo Gratitude Challenge (1-5)

I love those "take-a- picture-a-day-and-document" type deals, so this photo challenge was right up my alley. It is an Instagram challenge, so for those of you who follow me on there, you'll be seeing it twice. Sorry. Instead of clogging up a whole blog post with 30 pictures, I decided to put it on my blog weekly. So far its been really easy and I haven't missed a day. Hopefully I can say the same for the remaining 25 days. I posted this list up on my fridge and I cross through them each day. Give me a list and I'm a happy girl.

Day 1: Favorite Food: Limes ( I couldn't pick just one and this lime was sitting out on my counter)

Day 2: Smile ( an unwilling smile)

Day 3: Happiness. (Savannah Power Yoga is my happy place)

Day 4: Leaves (Basil still counts as a leaf in my book. Cooking Cauliflower Crust Greek Pizza with Grama)

Day 5: Morning Sky. (I made myself wake up a little earlier than normal to take this pic)

 Be back next week with 6-10!

Bible Study: Long Overdue

I've had this Beth Moore bible study book for about two years now (maybe more) and have yet to finish it. It's called Beloved Disciple: The Life and Ministry of John. Its an interactive study and I've had it on my mind lately to sit down and work through a lesson. Just as life tends to go, sneaky old Satan pulls me away. Dishes need to be done, phone rings, better pack my lunch for tomorrow, let me finish looking at this ONE Pinterest board, etc...etc...you get the idea.

This past Sunday Josh and I had planned on making it to a church service, but I got sick and it ended up being a day on the couch instead. I think that was Satan's way of saying..."Oh no, she's up."

Well, tonight I had a change of plans and ended up with a night to myself. I settled in, dug out my Beth Moore book, and it was exactly what I needed. I feel refreshed and renewed. If only I could make this my routine!

My Mom

How do I love my mom, let me count the ways:

1) She is the most hard working woman I know. 

2) She makes every holiday super special by decorating the house, sending me cards in the mail, going all out on delicious meals, and putting lots of thought and effort into gift giving.

3) Back to the delicious meals...she can re-create almost anything she eats at a restaurant just by tasting it once and doing some trial and error in the kitchen. Wish I had that kind of palate!

4) Sometimes people ask us if we are sisters. Good for her, bad for me. She doesn't age and I hope those genes get passed along to me.

5) She has taught me all I know about how to be a "lady," and most times I hated her for it, but I can look back now and say that I'm thankful she did. From dating advice to writing thank you notes to table manners, she's the one who always stayed on my case.

6) I can always count on her having some kind of treat for me when I go to her house, whether it be extra toiletries she picked up for me at CVS while she was out, or a cute dress she saw at TJMaxx & thought I might like it. 

7) She keeps a clean house even though she works umpteen hours a week. As I've been on my own, I find this impossible to do... 

8) She can carry on a conversation with just about anyone. A gift I never received. 

9) Hospitality suits her. She has turned into the hostess with the mostess. 

10) She does her own nails every Sunday night without fail. It always makes her look so put together. I'm trying to do better about doing my own nails, but I usually break down and get a pedicure.  (Prime example of why I hate doing my nails. This just happened.)

I could go on... but I'll save some for next year ;) 

Today Cathlin and I made her and my grandparents a brunch. Feast your eyes! We had a Spinach and Smoked Gruyere Quiche, French Toast Souffle, Jalapeno Hash Browns, Cream Cheese Grits, Fresh Fruit, and Bacon. 

Here are the two mothers:

And the chefs with mom:

Afterwards, the chefs passed out on the couch from all their hard work! 

Clean Diet Round #3

This was the first time I've done the Clean Diet without attending weekly meetings at Savannah Power
Yoga for support. Its pretty intense, but this time I was able to succeed with the help of the Facebook Clean Group alone. This time I didn't lose quite as much weight, but still enough that I can breathe with ease in all my clothes now. The difference this time is that I'm wanting to stay on track. It helps that I did the cleanse closer to beach season so that I can see results just as its time to squeeze my butt into a bathing suit again.

My main motivation this go round is for health and a glow from the inside out for my 30's! It all starts with that you put INTO your body. For this post, I wanted to share a few of my favorite CLEAN recipes.

First of all, I could not have done it this time without Savannah Squeeze. As I write these words, I'm sipping on my Beet Blend juice. I needed a little evening detox after my Easter candy binge today. They have all kinds of raw, cold pressed juices, smoothies and also this delicious "cheese" made from cashews. I stop by each time I get a paycheck! ($$)

One of my favorite discoveries this time has been homemade dressings. This Avocado dressing has gone on salads, in wraps, and used as a dip. In the picture, I have it mixed in with some quinoa, black beans, and raw kale.

1 avocado, halved and seeded

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

1 lemon, juiced

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp honey or coconut nectar

1/4 tsp sea salt

Recipe: (Courtesy of The Naked Kitchen blog)

• 
  
• Twice, I've made this Vegan Pumpkin Bread. Very simple & yummy. I've eaten it a few times for breakfast, but mainly as a snack at school. Just enough sweet to be considered a treat. Click here for the recipe. It comes from one of my favorite food blogs, The Detoxinista.

These brown rice wraps were also a life saver. Got them at Whole Foods in the freezer section with the bread. I used them for lunch wraps, also for fish tacos, and when I'm feeling lazy, I just divide it into fourths and slap some almond butter on there.

In the morning I started with smoothies, but quickly realized that juices are my thing. Especially a good green juice on the drive to work. It clears my head, wakes me up, and helps me focus for the first few important hours of my day. Green juice is my coffee. Sometimes I re-make the Savannah Squeeze ones the best I can with the ingredients that are listed on the label with my own juicer at home. The one in the picture is a copy cat that I made and re-filled on my own.

I made this cream of asparagus soup by modifying another recipe and it turned out to be delish. Here is how to do it...

• 1 onion
• 1 carrot
• 3 stalks of celery
• 1 bunch of asparagus 
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 cup raw cashews
• 6 cups water
• sea salt and cayenne to taste
• Throw it all in a pot till veggies are soft. Pour it in the blender. Blend. Serve!

 I also ate Chicken Broccoli Cashew Stir Fry at lunch for about a week straight and never got tired of it. Cashews rank it the top 5 of my all time fave foods...no wonder I love this so much. The recipe is too long to post on here so click this link and it'll take you right to it!

(the beginning stages)

It saddens me that I never took a picture of this Black Bean Chipotle Bisque, but please, cleanse or no cleanse. Make THIS! I will continue to make it throughout  the year for sure. Best soup on the cleanse, hands down.

And finally...I got a sassy new haircut. Changes all around!

Jarred & Laura's Wedding

On our way to Atlanta for Jarred & Laura's wedding (3.29.14) Josh and I got so caught up in the ABC road sign game that we ended up in South Carolina. Totally missed the exit and didn't realize it for a good 15 minutes....yikes. After going about 20 miles out of our way, we were finally Atlanta bound.

To give some background info, I've known Jarred since high school. It was his sophomore year, my junior.....I think?? Either way, we somehow formed a friendship via AOL instant messenger.  That's what people did before Facebook. For the longest time, we pretended we didn't know each other at school (other than awkward glances when we crossed paths in the hallway). Once we finally broke the barrier and became friends in real life, we never lost touch. We went to a homecoming dance together in high school, he took me to my first Dave Matthews Band concert during the college years, I visited him in Athens a time or two....he burned me many a mix-CD, then we became adults got real jobs. As the years went on,  I noticed pictures on facebook of him with a very cute new lady friend named Laura and I had a feeling this might be someone special. She looked like a keeper. Not too long after, I got the phone call that he had proposed to her! Never in all our years did I think he would be the one getting married first, but, so it is! I was so happy to be invited to the wedding. 

I wish I had taken more pictures, but since I didn't...I may have to steal a few from Facebook. The wedding itself was very sweet and my favorite part was the reading from the Velveteen Rabbit. I have to add the excerpt because it was so appropriate and I may have to steal the idea one day (with Jarred & Laura's approval of course)

“The Skin Horse had lived longer in the nursery than any of the others. He was so old that his brown coat was bald in patches and showed the seams underneath, and most of the hairs in his tail had been pulled out to string bead necklaces. He was wise, for he had seen a long succession of mechanical toys arrive to boast and swagger, and by-and-by break their mainsprings and pass away, and he knew that they were only toys, and would never turn into anything else. For nursery magic is very strange and wonderful, and only those playthings that are old and wise and experienced like the Skin Horse understand all about it.  "What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?" "Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real." "Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit. "Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt." "Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?" "It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand." "I suppose you are real?" said the Rabbit. And then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be sensitive. But the Skin Horse only smiled. "The Boy's Uncle made me Real," he said. "That was a great many years ago; but once you are Real you can't become unreal again. It lasts for always.” ― Margery Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit

At the reception, Josh and I sat with some of Jarred's friends from high school who I happened to know as well. Also, Laura's maid of honor's family was at our table and they were such genuine, warm, and friendly people. Laura's dad gave a speech that made me and every other girl at the table tear up. Among many wonderful qualities he mentioned about both Laura and Jarred, he said that he could tell Jarred was good for his daughter by the way he paid attention to her and listened to what she had to say. That was the moment I realized how great of a fit they are for one another. I don't know Laura personally, but I've heard nothing but positive things about her. So, Jarred...you have my 110% stamp of approval! (Not that you need it...)

Thanks again for having us at your wedding! I wish you both all the happiness in the world.

Light, Reflection, Shadow

Sometimes you just need a little writing inspiration. I'm going to continue mine from Ann Voskamp's blog,  A Holy Experience, & write on one of her JoyDares. If you look at her list, I'm on #8 out of 31. Slow and steady wins the race. Pretty sure I started on these two years ago.

Number 8 says: a light that caught you, a reflection that surprised you, a shadow that fell lovely.

Light that caught you: Oh, glorious sunlight, how I have missed thee. During spring break, I warmed my bones in the sun. Bliss.

A reflection that surprised you:  In general, it always surprises me when I connect with people who I have previously judged. I'm guilty of it and I'm sure you are too. Although, every now and then a circumstance presents itself which allows you to see your reflection in others. This has happened to me a few times this year & it always reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:

"If you judge people, you have no time to love them."

 - Mother Teresa

A shadow that fell lovely: On Saturday, I was very excited because Josh finally had the day off work for the first time in what seemed like months. Weekend bike rides used to be one of our "things" but lately that has gone down the drain. Since there was finally a day with no hurried schedules, we decided to get back to it! His part of town is a little better for bike riding, so we had to transfer our bikes from my house to his house via our cars. Mind you, we both have small cars, therefore the bike's front tires were dismantled, back seats of cars were folded down and bikes we carefully shoved placed in the tight car spaces. All this to say... it was a process. After the big transfer, we ran inside to change clothes and eat a quick snack (never know how far you're gonna venture from home base...don't wanna be stranded and hungry....which is my main concern....always) I swear as soon as we opened the door, the rain started. This is where the shadow turns lovely. We went anyway. It rained harder the longer we stayed out but we had the best time. We rode around through neighborhoods and picked out which houses were our favorites, we ran into one of my 6th grade students who was also out playing in the rain with her umbrella, water was dripping off the bill of our hats, our clothes were soaked completely through, and it was great. Actually, it was lovely.

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

I'm gearing up for Clean Diet round #3. This time I will try to do it without going to the group meetings at the yoga studio, so we'll see if I can stick to it. I've already made a meal plan for the entire first week so that I don't have to put any thought into WHAT I'll be eating, but only purchasing/preparing my meals. That in itself is still plenty of work. As for now, I'm still working on polishing off my leftover Valentine's Day chocolate. Come March 19th, it's ON.

This Spring Break has been pretty relaxing, just as I intended. Most days I've stayed in bed until approximately 11 am. What would I do without my sleep? I need it more than any teenager.

My main project of the week (because there is always something) has been my coffee table re-do. I found this coffee table with perfect character at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. It's brass hardware all around the outside of the table is what sold me.

 I had plans to paint it which is what led me to one of the greatest discoveries of my life: Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I did some research and found that this chalk paint requires no sanding, no priming, just straight to the fun stuff. There were 2 roadblocks: A) Who the heck sells it in Savannah? B) Its way expensive. We're talking....$40 for a quart.

Road blocks were overcome. First of all, this sweet little studio on Whitaker Street called Lily Bay Bazaar is the only seller in Savannah.

Second of all, a little paint goes a long, LONG way, so the price is worth it. Also worth it for not having to deal with sanding & priming. While I'm raving about it, I also must add that is has no smell, it dries extremely fast, and its not drippy and gooey, therefore there is not much of a mess to clean up throughout the process. After painting, you have to apply a wax coat (wipe on, wipe off = easy breezy). The wax is also pricey, but again, you don't need much.

Here's a collage of the process. I was in the zone, but I think the whole project took about 2 hours from start to finish.

The color I used it called Duck Egg & its perfect. I may do a little distressing to maximize the shabby chic look, but for now I'm just going to keep it the way it is. The chalk paint has a way of making it looked a little distressed anyway because there is a matte finish to it and I didn't fully cover some of the rough areas. Another piece of great news... I only used 1.5 sample containers to do this whole table (2 coats) It really does last you, so don't be scared of the price.

And here's a look at the final product. I am in love. Oh! One final note: I did bite the bullet and buy an Annie Sloan paint brush for $28 because you can use the same one to apply the paint and the wax. Simply wash it with warm water and Dawn in between uses, then wipe away the excess water with a paper towel. Doesn't get much better than that!

It's not this blue in real life...its truer to the paint color in the sample containter

This could be the start of a painting addiction.