1.25.2010

Veggie Tales!

Well, as some of you know I am testing the waters of a vegetarian lifestyle. Feelings thus far:

Yummy
Happy
GAG
Excited
Gross

Mostly, I'm loving this. I have had so really great food and I have had things that will NEVER set foot in this apartment again.

What have I been loving:

Fresh EVERYTHING (Berries Mostly)
Greek Yogurt
HONEY
Strawberries on my Salads
Edamame Hummus
Carrot juice
Naan bread
Mushrooms...I knew this but I have a new appreciation for them now
Leeks...more than just an onion
Butternut Squash

Not so much:

Soy Milk...No thank you. I can only drink whole milk. End of discussion.
fresh Tomatoes...I am getting better with them if they are cooked but raw tomatoes make me wanna throw up in my mouth a little bit.
Tofu on its own...like cooking it in a skillet as if it were chicken. I can do it in something like stir fry or soup.
Eggplant. Not sure what to say. I didn't hate it...But I didn't love it.
hmmm...that's it.

Living this way has caused me to branch out and try SO many new things. Using veggies as the focal point instead of typical meats is challenging. Making it satisfying and enjoyable is REALLY challenging. I think for the most part I have been doing pretty darn good. Here is a little breakdown:

Breakfasts:
Greek yogurt w/ Grape Nuts, Honey & Banana
Fresh Berries & banana
Toast w/Nutella
Oatmeal
Cereal & a banana(I get crazy bad leg cramps...like crazy cause my foot will actually draw inward...gross I know. So I have to get lots of potassium everyday)
I always have a Boost right when I first get up. Its a good source of protein and helps me get going!

Snacks:
Kashi Bar
Berries w/ Greek yogurt
Greek yogurt & Honey
Veggies & Ranch
Edamame Hummus & Pita chips
Naan bread w/melted mozzarella

Lunchs:
Veggie Sandwiches
Salads...loaded with lots of goodies
Frozen dinners
Leftovers from previous dinners

Dinners:
Portobello & Leek Soup...SO GOOD!
Portobello Burgers...Tasty
Eggplant Parm...Good
Butternut Stew...Yummy
Stir fry w/ Tofu...Great way to use tofu as a protein
Cheese Ravioli....Who doesn't love ravioli
Spinach Ravioli in a Butternut sauce...YUM
With most of my dinners I had a salad or a veggie side and some fruit for dessert. I usually had some type of bread to.

So that's what I have been eating for a little over a week now. I did cave and have some sweet. Only to save my sanity, of course, and I didn't go over board or anything. I didn't exercise like I wanted to either...whats new about that. But all and all I think I did OK. My main goal was to not eat meat and I haven't! The End.

PS. I want a BIG JUICY STEAK!!! Maybe for my birthday...which is in 10 days!

1.21.2010

Going Veggie!

As most of you know, Will is away, and that means I must have something to obsess over to keep me occupied. The last time he was away I had lots to do to prepare for our Disney Vaca. This time I am working on compiling new recipes and changing the way we eat and live. This will be easier to do while Will is gone...I can get into a routine, experiment with new recipes and he will fall right in to what I have been doing. Will is easy to cook for...feed him when he is hungry and not a minute later and he is happy. Content not important. There are some things that he loves- the occasional steak, sushi, stuffed bell peppers, pizza, chili and a few others. As long as I throw these things out there I am pretty much free to cook how and what I want and he will happily eat. it. up. Anyway, for the next several days I am going to channel my energy and culinary talents into being something of a vegetarian. Pork and beef, while I love them, sometimes they upset my tummy. I have also done some research on eating for your blood type and As should be vegetarians. My plan is to eat NO MEAT for the next several days. I will still eat eggs and fish. I am also trying to cut out the sweets...this will probably kill me...miss me when I am gone. So, I am open to recipe suggestions. I started today by sleeping in (I have the day off work) and then making a tasty brunch. I found this idea on Lauren's blog. She is also cutting out the sugar and eating veggie also. My version is a bit different...only slightly. OK. Here is Brunch!

1. Naan bread topped with slices of fresh mozzarella
2. Add thinly sliced roma tomatoes...yes I said tomatoes. I know this is as shocking as a Republican Senator in Massachusetts but its true!



3. Lightly drizzle with olive oil and season to taste
4. Toast till cheese is bubbly



5. While the naan bread is getting toasty, the cheese is getting melty, tomatoes roasty...scramble up some eggs
6. Slice an avocado



7. Plate your tasty, roasty, melty, naan bread
8. Top it all off with the sliced avocado



Ta-da!!




I LOVED this!! Even the tomatoes! I will definitely be making this again. Thanks Lauren.

1.19.2010

Sometimes I think I'm Weird

...because I can not eat fruit loops. If you love Fruit Loops STOP READING RIGHT NOW! If you have a weak tummy STOP READING RIGHT NOW! If you already think I'm crazy...proceed...this will validate what you already know to be true. Moving on. The smell makes me GAG. For real. For the longest I couldn't figure out why the smell repulsed me so. I mean...Its Fruit Loops. How can they smell bad??? Anyway, Will and I were in Target (only one of my FAVORITE places ever in the history of the world) when it occurred to me that I needed to potty. Occurred to me as in "I didn't need to pee and now I am 'bout to wet myself"...I lack the early warning system that most of you lucky people take for granted. ANYWAY, I head to the potty and upon opening the door I remember the ONE thing that I dislike about Target....the bathrooms are ALWAYS GROSS!! AnYWaY, I gotta go and there is nothing I can do about so proceed to enter and take care of biznass. You are concerned that I may never get to the point...What does this have to do with Fruit Loops. I'm gettin' there. OK. You know how most public restrooms have those overwhelming air fresheners?? So you walk in and smell bodily fluids + Hawaiian Breeze which = Urine Breeze with a touch of Coconut. Well, to me, the overwhelming air freshener of choice at Target smells EXACTLY like Fruit Loops. So when I smell Fruit Loops I really smell Urine doused Fruit Loops. The End.

PS. Please still be my friend.


1.15.2010

Peeing on a Stick...

You can stop right there if you want. I won't blame you. Really. Oh? You are brave. Going to stick around to see how this turns out, eh??

Will and I want a baby. This is not a secret but also not something we talk about to much. Well..."We" like "He and I" talk about it all the time. Just not too much with other people. Anyway, I am impatient and that is no way to be when baby making is involved. When we first started "trying" (I say like "this" because if you are doing the deed then, technically, you are trying) I got a bit crazy. You see, even though I knew that it wasn't going to be easy for us to get pregnant, I secretly hoped that a few months would do it. I have some conditions that I fear will make this a long hard road. This will be our trial. Our life together thus far has been so easy. We have the ideal story...

Boy meets Girl.
Boy and Girl date, then Boy proposes and Girl says YES!
Boy and Girl get married!
Boy and Girl get along very well and are able to peacefully
(for the most part) merge their 2 lives together.
Now Boy and Girl want some little boys and girls....
Insert Road Block Here.

Ok. I know what some of you are thinking. "Is she being serious? It took us years to have kids." or "Wow. They haven't even been married that long." maybe even "Get a life, sweetheart."
I won't be addressing any of those thoughts. One of the reasons that write this blog is to put my feelings out there. To share what I am feeling right now. Right now I am a bit frustrated. I am starting to feel kinda pathetically loserish too. You know why??

Who pees on a stick if they are 5 minutes late? Me
Who will again pee on a stick the very next day? oh that would still be Me
Who can pretty much convince themselves that they have ALL the early signs of pregnancy? Me, myself and I
Who stays up till all hours of the night googling, "I am 6 days late and HPT is negative. Could I still be pregnant?"? (head hung down in shame) Me...wow that one was hard to admit.

See. Now you are thinking that I am pretty lame too. I know that good things come to those who wait. I know that the Lord has a plan for each of us. I know that I need to learn to have more faith and patience. I know, oh I know. I am working on it. Will keeps me grounded. It is a full time job for him. Poor guy. Anyway, I'm not depressed or anything. I just kinda, sorta thought I was and I am not. I do wanna say that I love our life together. I love that it is just us and that we get to do so many things together. I love that there are no bed times, no schedules, and a life full of spontaneity. We just know that we are ready to share our love with a little one... Ok. Thanks for listening.

Love, Hugs & Kisses,

Kimberly

1.12.2010

You've got Mail!

I haven't done this in a while. I sorta forgot that I love doing these. I think letters in my head all the time...sometimes I tweet/facebook them, if it is appropriate. If you would like to read previous letter-posts please click here and here.....oh and here.


Dear Dishes,
Do yourselves. Seriously. I know that Will usually takes care of you and I love him for it…but he isn’t here and I just don’t wanna. If you could put yourselves away too, I would love you forever.
Love,
Mrs. Lazy

Dear Laundry,
Why don’t you just go on and join Dishes.
Yours Truly,
Mrs. Slacker

Dear Oreo,
This is getting ridiculous. We can’t keep seeing each other. Our time together was magical. I know we have been together for awhile so this is going to be a hard break-up. I have decided to ease my pain by seeing your brother…please don’t be angry. Reduced Fat is just better for me right now. He isn’t as good as you and I will always be thinking of you when we are together. You will always have a place in my heart and someday you and I may be able to get together with Whole Milk again. Please try to understand that this is what I need right now.
Please still love me,
Mrs. Trying to be healthy

Dear Lady that passed gas walking by me in CVS,

Look. You are at a pharmacy. I get that you might not feel well. What I don't get ...Is why you walked pass me. The place was empty. You had plenty of other options. Next time...find an empty isle to crop dust. Please and thank you.

The Chick that nearly passed out because of the smell of your flatulence

Dear Yellow Purse that I bought at Kohls,

I love you. I love that you were 70% off...so basically, FREE!

Love,
Very Happy Shopper

Dear People that have been reading and commenting on this blog,

You make me feel awesome. Like I am kinda cool or something. Thank you for that. Also, thank you for clicking the FOLLOW button. This too makes me feel validated. They love me. They really love me...all 10 of them!!

Love,
Your Internet BFF

That is all for now. Don't you worry your pretty little head...there will be more.

1.11.2010

Thankful.

Wow. I am the luckiest lady. I just wanted to say how thankful I am for all of my beautiful friends and family.

The Ones I Don't See Anymore (not by choice, Obviously!)
The New Ones That I Have Made
The Bloggy/Twitter Ones(Some of you fall in to the afore mentioned categories)

You are all so supportive. I appreciate all of your comments/texts/phone calls/tweets/facebook messages...wow that was a mouthful. Seriously, though it feels good to know that so many of you care. Will appreciates it too. He even left you all a little message...

Will said...
I know you’re courageous Kim, its you’re courage that gives me strength to leave when I don’t want to. I can’t imagine being able to even step out the door if you weren’t so strong and loving. I'm thankful for the Lord providing you with such wonderful friends that can help you through this. @ Kim’s friends, Thank you so much for supporting her while I’m away, It makes it easier for me to do my job when I know that Kim is cared when I’m not there. God Bless!

See...he loves y'all too!

Also, I noticed that I have a few new followers. I started this blog when we got married and moved so that our families could see what we were doing and to give updates. I never thought this blog would be so personal. It is like a journal. I also didn't intend on reading so many other blogs...I have sorta become obsessed. I follow tons of blogs now and have met some really fabulous people. Go on over to my side bar and check who I have been reading. Here are a few of my favey faves:

Heather- She is one BFFs from high school and she is hilarious...she has the best kid stories EVER and she totally tells it like it is!

Amy- is the sister-in-law to a high school BFF! She probably has no idea who I am but I totally stalk her blog. It is all about desserts!!

http://turleybenson.blogspot.com/- She is one of my new BFFs. If this were an ceremony...she would win...drum roll please...Best All Around! She is funny but she is very real.

Lynn- I have recently started following her blog. She is beautiful and so talented! If we can get back to Texas I will be begging her to take my picture for sure. I you are in the Dallas area you should check her out!

Alexandria- She is funny, fabulous, friendly and basically wins at life. I am not even kidding. Her courage and honesty make me LOVE her. She as so has a craft blog. You will die. Seriously.

http://trainstutusandtwizzlers.wordpress.com/- she is a new BFF that I made through BFF Ashlee. Her words move...sometimes to tears. She is also wildly funny!

There are tons more but some of them are private and my not want a ton of attention drawn to their blog.
This might make me a weirdo...but blogging and reading others is very therapeutic. I enjoy all of your funny stories, pictures of where you go, pictures and funny stories about your kiddos, and I can relate to you when you struggle. I love that if I write about something that bothers me I have all of these people that validate my feelings...even when I am being crazy! Validation...isn't that all we women want anyway?? There is no judgement in the blog world. Please don't take this to mean that I love my real life friends less, this all directed at you guys too. I love all of you! Anyway, that is all. I just wanted to thank y'all for being so flippin cool.


1.09.2010

Emotional

Alarm.
Yawn.
Stretch.
Hug.
Kiss.
K- Hold me just a little longer.
W- You got it baby girl.
This is so familiar. We have done this before.
We get dressed quietly.
It is time to leave. We ride in the car and make silly small talk.
He holds my hand. We glance and each other.
Both of us have some sort of liquid puddling in the corners of our eyes.
The sunrise in Boston is breathtaking...for 2 reasons.
1. This city truly is beautiful especially in the early weekend hours.
Its quiet and the pace is slow.
2. This sunrise would be our last together for a while.
Car is parked and the bags are unloaded.
Standing out in the cold...this is when we finally start talking.
K- I love you.
W- I know baby. I love you too.
K- Please come back to me.
W- I will.
K- sniffs
W- Take care of yourself.
K- I will...not as well as you but I will make it.
Hugs.
Kisses.
Hugs.
W- Drive safe.
K- I will.
W- Go on get in the car before you freeze.
Tears stream down my face on the drive home.
I hate myself sometimes.
Why must I be so dramatic???
It is just for a short time.
He will be home soon.

1.08.2010

He's Leaving...

Not on a jet plane.
I am not supposed to disclose to much info here on the world wide web. I can talk about it as long as I'm vague and follow the rules...yeah, there are rules and I think that they are stupid. Apparently it has something to do with National Security....Whatev. Anyway, it is that time again. Yet another deployment is upon us. It is just for a few weeks so I know I shouldn't whine. It could be worse and is worse for other wives. I try to keep that in mind when I am being a big baby. Alas, it does not make me any less of a baby. He isn't even gone yet and cried most of the night...which just make him feel bad for something that he can't control. I don't know what my deal is. I thought I was over this. Or at least better. I guess you never get over being separated from the ones you love. UGH.

Well, I have to speak at church on Sunday...any guesses on the topic? Courage.


Yeah. Like- "What do they got that I ain't got?" "Courage." Is someone trying to send me a message??? Courage has come up some many times in the last few weeks. Last Sunday someone share their Testimony in church and they spoke about it. I am in an email convo with some twitter/blog friends and few of them are showing some true courage by searching and trying to have a relationship with God. It is the new theme for the Young Women this year...It is everywhere. Ok. I can take a hint...I need to be more courageous.

1.07.2010

Failure to Lunch.

No. Not "Launch"...I did intend to write "Lunch".
Ugh. I was starving...sitting at my desk. Ready to chew off a finger to tide me over.
Gross? Why, yes...but, really I was hungry.
Finally! I came up stairs to eat (yes I work at the same apartment complex that I live in).
I looked in the fridge, pantry, then the freeze. I chose a frozen dinner from the freezer.
I heated, I stirred, I heated some more and took a bite...
Gross!
I tossed it in the trash.
Repeat the above.
At this point I am hungry AND pissed.
When I am hungry I have been told that I can be a bit grouchy...

Anyway, this story doesn't end in tragedy.
I look in the fridge again and found 2 boiled eggs.
I sliced, I salted, I peppered and I took a bite...
VICTORY!!!
I grabbed a slice of bread and I toasted,
I slathered it with Nutella and I took a bite...
WIN!!
And just like that lunch went from being a disaster to delightful!
Thank you Will for boiling eggs and thank you Nutella for saving the day.
Oh! I also still have all my fingers...for now.

1.04.2010

Yeah, I know...

I'm certain that you are all "Christmased" out but I have to do a Christmas post...this blog is sorta my journal so I must document everything (even if its 2 weeks late)! Anyway, this Christmas was so great! I wish I had been a better photograph. Some of the pictures aren't very good quality and some are from my phone...what I am saying is- I am not a professional so don't make fun!

To get ourselves in the Holiday Spirit, we went Downtown for the Tree Lighting in the Boston Commons and then meandered over to Faneuil Hall to check out the lights and the tree there. Boston looks so beautiful this time of year. Dusted in glittery white snow, draped with sparkling white lights, and each of the parks decorated to the nines!


One of my favorite things about Christmas is decorating the Apartment! I love going to get the tree and getting out all the decorations. There is something beautiful about coming home at night and snuggling on the couch by the light of the tree. We had a great time picking out the tree...it even started snowing when we arrived at the farm!

Decorating the tree was more fun this year...Will let me go a little crazy and buy more decorations! Also. we had some special new ornaments. My sister bought us one from Sea World in San Antonio(this is where Will proposed), we bought a big Mickey and a Minnie while we were at Disney World and a star for the top..also from Disney! Side note: There was ridiculous amount of "That's what she said" jokes through out the decorating process...reason #16,456 Why Will wins at life!



The Brrr Y'all snowman was another gift from my sister...Amanda also wins at life

Being on our own for Christmas has given us the opportunity to start so many new traditions and make so many special memories! We miss our families so much during the Holidays...but when you are 2,000 miles away and you only get a few days off, there isn't much that can be done about it. Anyway, pictured below is our Christmas Eve Gingerbread house! Lasts years was a COMPLETE failure...I really think that we improved! I also baked and decorated cookies to hand out to our friends!

This is us in our new pjs...these were supposed to be the Christmas Eve gifts. I worked Will and convinced him to let us open a gift the Sunday before Christmas and with out talking about prior to...we both gave each other pjs!
We went a bit crazy in the gift giving department this year...compared to last year anyway. We worked really hard on our budget this year and saved like mad people for Disney. However, we didn't spend what we had set aside for Vaca so that rolled over to the Christmas fund. We are aware that the responsible thing to do would have been to leave the money in savings...sometimes we are irresponsible.
Gift Break Down:
Lots of movies, lots of games (as we have multiple game systems...we are such children), a roaster and homemade roux from my Mama and Daddy, Zunes (like and itouch only BETTER!), care package full of goodies from Will's Mom and Dad, Gift card from Ryan, Katie & the kiddos (Will's brother), April (my sister)and Deon made us the super fabulous wooden Santa and tree scene, Amanda (another sister) sent me a pretty plate for entertaining and she sent Will Microsoft points, Will bought me a new CHI Turbo (it has the auto off feature...one less thing for him to have to check everyday), these really awesome spa booties and neck wrap that can be heated, my stocking was stuffed with tons of my favorite goodies, Santa filled Will's stocking as well, he also got a R/C helicopter, a giant box of popcorn from costco, cds, etc, etc!
So, Santa was really nice to us and we were pretty nice to each other...now we have to buckle down and be responsible....right after we conquer that next world on Super Mario...

If we are around for the Holidays we spend them with some of the other couples that live in our building. We are all in the same boat...far away from home! They really help us make the holidays special. After opening gifts, having breakfast with Ethan & Laura (they live just down the hall), playing with our toys, and going to see "Sherlock Holmes" we had a nice Christmas dinner with our friends! I baked rolls, made a banana pudding, we also brought apples with a cream cheese dip! Oh, and in true "Kimberly" fashion we were late and everyone was STARVING!
This last pic is for Will's Mom! She sent these adorable aprons that I forced Will to wear every time we were in the kitchen!
There is so much more that I could write about but I have already passed up "blog post" and I'm knocking on the door of "epic novel"! So, alas, I must stop now! We hope you all enjoyed your holidays!

Love, Hugs & Kisses-
Kim & Will