Time to Pause & Reflect: Thanksgiving!

As we enter the Season of busyness.....it should be a time to pause and reflect and BE THANKFUL for the things in our lives! I very much dislike way busy our lives have become and it is sooooooo important to STOP and reflect on what we are Thankful for! I encourage you to reflect daily on things you are thankful for and you will see how wonderful it is to remember these memories!

One thing I love is pulling out decorations for the Holidays and remember who gave them to us or where we bought them! And I love looking in magazines and getting ideas how to display them or get ideas for the kids to make things.......and I have already expressed my LOVE of Pinterest and I got some Thanksgiving ideas to inspire us......Make some things with the kids and reflect on the being "Thankful"! Today me and the kids are going to make a Bunting Banner for the Mantel and decorate for Thanksgiving!!!!

Our Pastor last week gave us a new word: SELAH; to pause and reflect.....I LOVE this! I encourage you to PAUSE and REFLECT as we enter into the Seasons of Celebrating!!!!!!

Fall/Thanksgiving Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette

I got this recipe off www.allrecipes.com and I have used this for alot of our Thanksgiving Dinners. And I wanted to share with you as well! With so many foods being so heavy and filling during this time of the year, I wanted to share some lighter, healthy versions to be on your table this year! Especially since my hubby and I are on a MAJOR DIET during the Holidays this year......we need to mix things up for the Holidays.....in the cooking dept!!!

Green Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette:

Ingredients

1 cup sliced almonds
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh cranberries
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons water

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
4 ounces crumbled blue cheese
1 pound mixed salad greens

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Arrange almonds in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast in oven for 5 minutes, or until nuts begin to brown.
In a blender or food processor, combine the vinegar, oil, cranberries, mustard, garlic, salt, pepper, and water. Process until smooth.
In a large bowl, toss the almonds, onion, blue cheese, and greens with the vinegar mixture until evenly coated.

Servings Per Recipe: 8

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 218

Total Fat: 19.2g
Cholesterol: 11mg
Sodium: 405mg
Total Carbs: 6.2g
Dietary Fiber: 2.7g
Protein: 6.5g

Life on our little pad!

I wanted to share some things going on around the house. First off David's Kindergarten class has been learning about seeds and growing veggies from seeds! And one of the things they learned how to do was grow carrots from cut carrot tops so we did that this morning. (see pix below) I started a my CRAZY HcG diet again with Kevin and I have lost 12 pds already! YIPPPPPEEEEE for me! Put an organic chicken in the stock pot and making some stock for soups and things.

I wanted to share my muffin recipe again since its comfort food time, and this is a base recipe, you add whatever veggie or fruit to it for your taste!

3 eggs
3/4 cup oil
1 3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla
3 tsp of cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of baking soda
3 cups of whole flour

things I add to mine: 2 cups of shredded zucchini, 3 mashed bananas, 2 cups of pumpkin puree.....possibilities are endless!!!!!

Makes 24 muffins Bake @ 350 degrees for 30 minutes or 1 hour for bread ( see pix below)

Also I had to add alittle humor from Splash and Olivia.....both my crazy chickens are nesting in my lavender pot.......My little girls provide me with alot of entertainment!!!!

Also I took a soldering class last night from my girlfriend Kimberly Snowden and I had so much fun....and learned alot! Im making these for Christmas presents.....For a handmade Christmas!

OMG I love Pinterest........

My mind is FLOODED with ideas from every angle of life......whoever created Pinterest is a GENIUS! Instead of searching all over the freaking web....we have one spot to gather inspiration for everything and everyone in our lives! Here is alittle inspiration I found today! ENJOY