Reflections From The Birthday Girl

I turned 31 on Tuesday.  And I did what any self-respecting, brand new 31 year old would do...


I baked myself a cake that looked and tasted like a giant Oreo.

It was a sweet ending to a week of special birthday celebrations!  My friends had brought me a surprise cake and spent a fun evening playing Scrabble with us, my mom threw me a delightful surprise brunch where all my girlfriends wore aprons and luscious Southern fare was served, and my husband, kids, and I spent a beautiful day at the beach.  


And actually, I did a lot of reflecting in between the celebrating on the life lessons I have learned from the ages of 20 to 30.  I pondered what insights I have gained through the good, the bad, the ugly, and the beautiful of the past decade of my life.  I could honestly write for hours about this, but I chose to narrow it down to three statements....


I do not know everything.  


When I was in college, I claimed James 1:5 and started praying for wisdom, trusting that God would indeed give it to me as the verse promises.  Through the years I have asked and seen Him grant wisdom liberally to me, and it has been invaluable as I have encountered so many interesting situations as an adult.  However, the more wisdom I gain, the more I realize how much wisdom I need.  The more I know, the more I realize how much I don't know.  The more I learn, the more I realize how much I have to learn.  At 31 I have come very far, but I have a long, long way to go.  I do not know everything.


I cannot do everything.


One of the lies that we as women often believe is that we can do it all.  Interestingly enough, as women have bought into this lie and tried to be and do everything there is more depression, dissatisfaction, and discontentment than ever before.  By nature, I am an overachiever and people pleaser.  I like to work hard and make people happy.  I like to take on a lot of roles and do my part to change the world.  Even though I grew up with a very wise dad who talked a lot about balance, I sometimes lost mine.  I would take on too much and become overwhelmed physically and emotionally.  Having kids changed a lot for me; it was when I realized how much I was responsible for their health, development, and well being that I became a better manager of my time and priorities.  I realized that I cannot be effective to mentor, lead, and care for others if I am not properly taking care of my husband and kids.  I awakened to the fact that when we try to do it all, something or someone always gives.  I have learned that sometimes busy is good, and other times busy is just busy.  And I have been amazed that as I have tried to intentionally lead a balanced life putting God and my family first, I have seen God use me as this love for them overflows into the lives of others.  In fact, I am still able to accomplish quite a bit and am better at what I do when I admit I am not superwoman and I cannot do everything.


God is everything.


He is my savior, my redeemer, my truest friend.  My comfort, my shelter, my defender.  My stability, my rock, my protector.  My first love, my next breath, my only hope.  He is the beginning and the end, the creator and sustainer of all things.  He is above all, through all, and in all.  He is the giver of abundant life on earth and eternal life in Heaven. God is everything.  


So as I blew out the birthday candles on my giant Oreo and embraced another year, I could do so joyously acknowledging that I do not know everything; I cannot do everything....

But God is everything!

Baking Cake Balls!

So, I kept hearing all this talk about cake balls, and wanted to know what was going on in the world.  I googled them and wow, this is a recent baking sensation!!  You can find site after site with cake ball recipes and variations, and some talented people out there do some unbelievably creative decorating with these!  My favorite site was http://www.bakerella.com/, a great place to browse and drool and be awestruck and inspired.


Of course I had to try these...so my daughter and I got to work one day and made our first batch.  Here is the basic cake ball recipe.  You bake a basic boxed mix cake...

After it cools a bit but while it is still somewhat warm, crumble the cake up and mix in a jar of frosting.  You can use different flavors of your choice.  I chose chocolate cake and chocolate frosting since, well, you can't go wrong there in my opinion! 

Next you roll the gooey cake/frosting mixture into balls and dip them into chocolate (since cake and frosting isn't sweet enough of course).  I used melted chocolate chips.  The dipping is the hardest part since you have to dip while it is freshly hot, before the chocolate hardens.  And at first we messed up, and our cake balls looked like cake blobs...my daughter said she felt like "I Love Lucy" (she is a fan and loves the classic job switching episode)!

This is because not all recipes I looked up said to let the cake balls harden in the refrigerator or freezer before dipping.  After I figured out this was the problem, I put the balls on some dishes lined with wax paper and let them harden before our next attempt at dipping...

And then the dipping went quite well!  As long as the chocolate was freshly melted that is...

Then we decorated them, patriotic style since this was around Memorial day.  But as you will see if you google these, the sky is the limit with decorating!

We also made some pretty sparkly ones...

These made a ton, so I handed them out and had quite a few taste-testers...and received lots of rave reviews! The chocolate/chocolate combo made them taste like truffles.  If you have never made these, you should try them - it's a messy, fun process and a delicious outcome!  They are perfect with a tall glass of cold milk.

I'm considering trying them soon with red velvet cake, cream cheese frosting, and chocolate almond bark.  If I do, I'll let you know how they turn out!

Until then, lots of love and happy baking!

Favorite Things Father's Day Lunch

My husband is an amazing husband...thoughtful, gentle, humble, kind, strong, loyal, stable, consistent, romantic, God-fearing, faithful...I could go on and on!  But one of the things I absolutely love about him is that he is a wonderful dad to our two children.  So on Father's Day I wanted to do something special for him - and I decided to make him a "favorite things" lunch.  Now, I will preface this with the fact that some of his favorite things aren't the healthiest, so you health food purists out there may not enjoy this!


But he loved it, and I suppose that's what matters!


My inspiration for this meal actually started when I saw mini Nathan's hot dogs made into pigs-in-a-blanket at our local Publix...personally, I can't stand hot dogs but my husband loves them and Nathan's are probably second on the list of the kind he loves best (first being Vienna Beef which are found in Chicago).  And he loves pigs-in-a-blanket...so this was an easy main course!

I set the table with Wrigley Field plates since the Cubs are high on the list of favorite things...

And since french fries are also among his favorite foods (I warned you this wasn't health class), I found some awesome french fry seasoning at Crate and Barrel...

As well as some red, white, and blue french fry wrappers which fit with the Cubs theme...bought some frozen Ore-Ida waffle fries and this is what they looked like when done...

When we were dating, we used to go the park and drink IBC root beers and talk for hours, so I picked up a case of those...

And even though fruit is not his favorite, I served watermelon since it fit the meal and of all fruits, he likes melons the best.

I set a special place at the table for him...

And then surprised him with one of his favorite desserts at the end of our meal!  It was while he was eating this that he said, "Babe, you gotta blog about this." 

All I did was imitate one of his restaurant faves...a giant chocolate chip cookie, baked in a small cast iron skillet, and smothered with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, and chocolate syrup...but he just thought it was the best thing!  If you have a little skillet you could do this as well, or you could bake it in a small round baking dish.  It is so easy, and extremely delicious!  The best part was it put a huge smile on my husband's face, and I was just happy to make him happy.  He gives so much to our family and I never want to take that for granted.  Happy Father's Day Jimmy!  I am gratefully loving being on this journey of life together.  

Pasta Carrabba! (Or Something Like It)

I married an Italian.  Not a tomato, olive oil, proscuitto, and olive loving Italian...a pasta loving Italian.


One of his favorite dishes is the Pasta Carrabba (minus the mushrooms) at Carrabba's.  Since I love making meals my family enjoys, I decided to make my own version for him the other day - and it put a smile on his handsome face!


Here is Pasta Carrabba, the inexpensive and easy way...


I took chicken breasts (which I had gotten on major sale at Publix for around $3) out of the freezer and let them thaw.  Then I cut them in strips and sauteed them in generous amounts of olive oil and fresh garlic. (If you are looking for a good garlic press, I am still using the one I got at a Pampered Chef wedding shower 9 years ago.  They make a good one.)  Then I took a box of Walmart brand fettucine (around 88 cents) and boiled it with some more olive oil in the water.  Meanwhile, I cooked a package of steam in the bag peas (Publix brand, bought on sale for 99 cents) in the microwave.  After the fettucine was cooked, I stirred in the chicken, the cooked peas, more fresh garlic, some parmesan cheese, and two jars of Bertolli alfredo sauce (also purchased at Walmart).  The dish is actually served with mushrooms - I left them out since my husband doesn't like them - but if you put them in, you could just sautee them in olive oil and garlic before you sautee the chicken and then add them in add the end.  And of course you could make your own alfredo sauce too, we were just in a busy week and honestly, this brand was pretty tasty.


The house smelled wonderful because of all the olive oil and garlic...and it made a huge pot.  I separated half of it to give to my parents (who always give us their leftovers) and put the other half in the fridge to heat later in the day (I made this meal early because we were in the middle of VBS week and dinnertime would be rushed).  I googled a recipe for Red Lobster type biscuits (another one of my husband's faves) and made them with Bisquick and a five Italian cheese blend instead of cheddar.  Brushed with butter and garlic powder, they were also a big hit.  


Restaurant faves made at home and on a budget.  Gotta love that!  


Prepare and Gustare!!  (Italian word for taste; enjoy; relish)

Work of Art

My five year old daughter is super creative and crafty.  She draws these fantastic pictures and comes up with these interesting creations on her own almost daily, and I just love it!  She amazes me. My three-and-a-half year old son is not as interested in such things yet...he is more apt to kick a ball with full force,  jump off of a coffee table, or bang his drums.  He does occasionally like to paint and do projects with us, but overall it's not his thing, at least not now.


That's why I thought it was the cutest thing ever when he ran up to me the other day, super excited to show me a picture he had drawn on his own.  He said it was a family of snakes, and each of the four reptiles were named after our little family.

Now, is that not the most brilliant drawing of a snake family you have ever seen in your life??  I think it's absolutely a work of art! That's my sweet boy, keeping it simple and real.  And I love it.

Good Morning Beautiful

It's late, and honestly I'm pretty tired as I write this. But as I reflect on this day my mind keeps going back to a few moments this morning that reminded me of how blessed of a girl I am.


It started when my sweet daughter came into our bedroom and climbed in our bed...as she snuggled up to me, she said, "Momma, sing 'Good Morning Beautiful.'"  She knows that when she was a tiny newborn baby, I used to sing the chorus of that country song to her each morning as I snuggled my beautiful firstborn.  This morning as  I sang her the sweet lyrics, she nestled right next to me and for a moment we were still and warm and cozy and quiet.  


Then after I had given the kids their breakfast, I started making my own coffee and oatmeal when my husband, sweaty from his workout, came into the kitchen.  As he sometimes does, he started dancing with me, our bare feet moving on the hardwood floors as the water boiled and the kids ran around.  I love dancing in the kitchen.  As we swayed back and forth, all of a sudden I felt little arms wrap around our legs, and someone else started swaying with us.


It was our son, still in his Cars pajamas.  I scooped him up and we began to dance together, his sweet arms wrapped around my neck and his soft cheek pressed against mine.  He is at an age where almost daily he tells me he is going to marry me, and I say absolutely.  As we twirled and swayed through the kitchen, my husband told him he was the only boy allowed to cut in on me, and he would accept the interruption.  I smiled.


It's funny, our lives are very imperfect.  Those precious family moments happened right before I headed out to a doctor's appointment at the women's center to follow up on my February biopsy. We are normal people who have health issues we'd prefer not to have, piles of laundry that never get folded, bills that somehow need to be paid, kids who sometimes throw temper tantrums, and grown-ups who occasionally get impatient and stressed.  We face struggles just like everyone else.  But our love is deeply rooted in Christ, and it is real and strong.  I was reminded of that this morning.  In those tender moments, I felt undeservedly blessed and very, very grateful.


And on this June morning, the lyrics to "Good Morning Beautiful" struck a chord within me.  Life is up and down.  It can be confusing and chaotic. But it's still a Good Morning Beautiful Day.  I see the beauty and the blessings.  And I am gratefully content.

My Favorite Big Fat Greek Pork Roast

The other day on my facebook status, I mentioned that my mom was making her delicious pork roast with olive oil, lemons, and garlic.  Several people commented that they wanted the recipe, and after eating it that evening and being reminded how amazingly succulent it is, I thought I'd share!

I had to ask her how she makes it because I never have actually made it, I've only eaten it....and in large amounts because it's extremely addictive!

So here's how my mom makes her Greek Pork Roast....

Take a big, fat pork loin.  Use a knife to cut slits in it, and stuff the slits with fresh garlic.  She uses a ton, like a whole half of a garlic clove.  Douse the roast generously with olive oil.  Season with salt, pepper, and oregano.  Cut up red potatoes and surround the roast with them.  Add more of that fresh garlic to the potatoes.  Season them and douse generously with olive oil.  Squeeze the juice of three lemons over the meat and potatoes.  Cook at 350 for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours.  Enjoy the aroma that fills your home as this dish cooks, and enjoy the happy dance your taste buds do when they try it.  (That was my advice, free of charge.) 
 Opa!