Surprisingly Yummy Pasta

  I have a recipe on my Monthly Menu Planner that is called "Farfalle Al Salmone" & I was wanting to make that, but didn't have any smoked salmon, so I found a recipe & added my own touch, & it is SURPRISINGLY very good!!  I didn't know if it was going to be all that good.  I thought that the tuna was going to be too "fishy" tasting for my kids, but they didn't even know it had tuna in it!  BONUS!!!  My 3 yr old had SECONDS & my 6 yr old ate ALL his!  So here you go, hope you like it!!

Alfredo Tuna Pasta

8 oz. pasta noodles

(I used angel hair, whole wheat spaghetti)

1 (6 oz) can tuna - drained

1 (15 oz) frozen peas

1 (16 oz) jar of Alfredo sauce

1 tsp. minced garlic

1 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. dried basil

shredded Parmesan cheese to top

~ Combine tuna, peas, sauce, & seasonings in pan. 
Stir together & heat over medium-low heat. 

Stirring often so it doesn't burn.  Cook pasta, drain & add to sauce. 

Top each dish with shredded Parmesan.  Serve with garlic bread & salad.

Let me know how it turns out for you!!

The 5 Love Languages

    After having my first child, almost 7 years ago, I remember there was a time when it felt like my husband & I weren’t close & communicating very well anymore.  Things had changed.  I was busy taking care of our new addition to the family, trying to recover from a c-section, & was very sleep deprived . . . like all new parents are, & he was trying to get used to it all & the fact that I wasn’t available all the time like I was before.  I knew I had to do something to get us back on track.  When our son was about 6-9 months old, I confided in a friend & she told me about a book by Dr. Chapman “The 5 Love Languages”.  It is an AMAZING book!  It has REALLY opened my husband & my eyes.  We both now know & understand how the other person feels loved. 

  Many people feel loved in different ways.  Dr. Chapman says everyone has a primary love language.  He identifies the 5 love languages as (1) words of affirmation, (2) quality time, (3) receiving gifts, (4) acts of service, & (5) physical touch.  Here is a brief summary to describe each language:

Words of Affirmation – If this is your love language, then compliments & words of positive affirmations mean the world to you.  May include receiving notes, cards, or phone calls where expressions of love, appreciation & encouragement are given. 

Quality Time – This person likes spending full undivided time together.  Nothing says “I love you” like really being there, with the TV off, fork & knife down, chores & other distraction put on hold.  This makes them feel special & loved.

Receiving Gifts – This is not to be confused as being “materialistic”.  The person with this love language, the receiver of the gift, feels the most loved from the thoughtfulness & effort behind the gift.  The gift or gesture shows that they were thought of & cared for.  These tangible gifts may be a flower, a note, a candy bar, a favorite soda pop drink or money to spend on whatever they want.

Acts of Service - If this is your love language then anything that eases the burden & responsibility from you is an act of service.  Such things as doing the dishes, vacuuming, making dinner, doing laundry, or other duties can all be expressions of love  The words this person likes to hear the most are, “Let me do that for you.”

Physical Touch – This language isn’t all about the bedroom.  A person with this love language is, not surprisingly, very touchy.  They like hugs, snuggling on the couch, a pat on the back, holding hands, a kiss, thoughtful touches on the arm, shoulder or face are all ways to show love.

  What is your love language?  You can feel loved by more than just one way, so you may have a primary & secondary love language.  One way to determine your love language is by looking at what YOU do, the most, for the OTHER person.  Chances are that you’re doing what you would like the other to do for you.  Once your spouse & you know what each other’s love languages are, then it will be easier to communicate & show love to each other.  It may be hard to do some of these things, but that’s what marriage & relationships are all about.  Trying to make each other feel loved, needed, & wanted.  I’ve used this quote before, but I think it explains love perfectly:

“Love is not just a feeling.  Love is an action.  Love is a choice.  When an action doesn’t come naturally it is an even greater gift of love.” By Laura M. Brotherson

  I know that my relationship got a lot better when we started thinking about each others love languages & then actually doing more of the actions that the other person wanted & needed.  I hope this can help someone out there, because I know it helped me!

Let's Get the Love Back

 

  Remember when you first met your husband, wife or partner, & that feeling you felt deep inside you?  The butterflies in your stomach, your heart felt like it was going to beat out of your chest & you felt like nothing else in the world mattered but you two.  Then REAL life happens . . . work, bills, kids, keeping up on the house & so on.  Well that fire that you felt inside at one point in your lives, can start to burn out after awhile & that's ok!  It’s normal!  A relationship takes commitment & some work, but you can make it fun work!  I have been there!  Where it seems like you will never feel those feelings again like you did before.  I thought to myself, “I have another 60 plus years with this man, so I better get to figuring this thing out!”  That’s when I decided to do some research & get ideas on how to keep my love alive & get that fire started back up again. 

  There are many things you can do to get back, & keep, that spark in your relationship, (which I will be adding different ideas in other posts), but this is one idea I came across that will bring you & your partner closer.  Both people in the relationship, make a list of 10 things that most make you feel loved & cared about.  Be specific, positive & descriptive.  Write what you want, instead of what you don’t want, & how much of what you want & when you want it.  Be as specific as possible, so that your partner can be successful at loving you.  Think of things that make you feel truly loved & cared for.  Start each sentence like this, "I feel loved when . . .”  Some examples might be “I feel loved when . . . you kiss me & tell me you love me each time you leave the house” or . . . “the house & kids are clean when I get home from work”

  Many people may find that what their partner needs & wants the most, may seem difficult for them to do.  Love is not always easy.  Sometimes love requires doing things you don’t want to do or don’t like to do, but knowing that there is a reason behind it.  I love these words; “Love is not just a feeling.  Love is an action.  Love is a choice.  When an action doesn’t come naturally it is an even greater gift of love.” By Laura M. Brotherson

  When you're both finished, share with each other what you both wrote.  BOTH of you commit to do at least one thing every day that makes your partner feel loved.  Try it for awhile, then get back together & talk about how things went & maybe change your lists up a bit. I got this idea from the book, “And They Were Not Ashamed” by Laura M. Brotherson, CFLE.  This book also has many other ideas to strengthen your marriage.  It was turned out really well when my husband & I did this activity.  It really gets you thinking about the other person, instead of yourself. 

  Let me know how this turns out for you & your relationship!  Can't wait to hear from you all!! 

My Vegetable Beef Soup Recipe

 
  It's my favorite time of year, Fall!  The leaves are changing, the air is getting crisper, & my time in the kitchen gets to be longer!!  Love it!  All I wanted to do today was make home made Vegetable Beef soup, because I had a lot of rolls I needed to use up & you can only use them to dip in soup;)  LOL  I threw some stuff together & it turned out DELICIOUS!!!!  So here it is:

Andrea's Vegetable Beef Soup

1 lb. ground beef

2 stalks chopped celery

1 med. chopped onion

2 cloves minced garlic

1 pkg. frozen mixed vegetables

1 can diced tomatoes

2 c. cubed potatoes

3 c. beef broth

salt & pepper to taste

garlic salt (a few shakes)

bay leaves, a few shakes

1/4 tsp. marjoram (if you don't have it, that's ok...it will still be good:)

1/2 tsp. thyme leaves (also, if you don't have it, don't use it)

~Brown ground beef, drain.  Sauté celery, onion & garlic with beef until celery is tender.  Add all the other ingredients to meat & simmer for 1 hour.  Serve with rolls:)

   There ya' go!  Sorry I don't have exact measurements on some of the seasonings, but that's how I cook.  My rule of thumb is, start with a little bit & you can always add more.

The Therapy of Cleaning

  How many of you have that junk drawer, cluttered closet, or the “catch all” place in your home?  Or do you ever look at your baseboards, walls, light fixtures or ceiling fans & think how they need a good cleaning?  I know I have a couple different places that tend to get over cluttered & things that need some extra special attention.  I always tell myself that I'll get to it later.  Then later becomes days, weeks & months.  Well, yesterday I decided to clean at least one or two different places that have been driving me nuts.  I ended up cleaning & organizing four places & it felt GREAT!!  It is so funny how when you de-clutter & organize your living space, you feel so much better about things.  I think I’ve come across a good therapy technique for anyone who is feeling down or over stressed.  J

 

  So here’s what I'm doing.  I’m making a list of the things that are driving me nuts, then I'm starting at the top & working my way down.  What a perfect way to have your house feel & look, extra clean & ready for the Holiday's!!  I'm so excited!!  Take one time a week that you clean one place that has been bugging you.  It always seems so overwhelming to do these kinds of tasks, but not when you do one or two things a week.  It could be your bedroom closet, the hall closet, the kitchen counter, the kids’ closet or room (but make sure they help:), the junk drawer, the kitchen cupboards, or the desk in your office.  Whatever it is, just commit to doing one place a week.  It could also be deep cleaning things, like wiping down base boards, washing blinds, windows, washing light fixtures or dusting ceiling fans.  Those are things that I see & want to do, but it seems I never have time for.  The hardest part is actually getting started, but once you do, you will probably be able to do a few a week!  So make the commitment now!!  Are you excited?  Can you just see you sparkling, clutter free home?  Can you feel the stress lift from your shoulders?  Can you feel the self confidence & pride in your work?  So. . .who's with me?  My day will be every Wednesday or Friday around 1 pm.  Which day are you picking?  It will make us all feel so much happier & less stressed!  I know we can do this!!  I want to hear how you are feeling after your successes, so keep us updatedJ  Happy De-Cluttering & Cleaning!!

The Unspoken

  I decide to write this, because I know that there are a lot of other women, & men, out there that have had a miscarriage in their family, but no one ever talks about it.  That leaves the woman feeling inadequate, alone, sad & scared.  I wanted to shed some light on my personal experience so that maybe someone out there can have hope, love & forgiveness within themselves.  This is my story:


  I told my husband, Shay, that if we weren't pregnant by the end of August, then we'd wait until the following year to try again.  I did not want another newborn baby during the winter.  I already had 2 babies that had RSV (a really bad cold that affects babies & 1 of mine was hospitalized for it) & that was enough.  Within 2 weeks we were pregnant!  That was not normal for me.  I'm not a very fertile Myrtle.  We both were so excited!  This would be our 3rd child & the due date was May 28th, three days after my birthday.  PERFECT!!  It was all planned out.  We told everyone right before we left for the Elk hunt, which is the first part of October.  Everyone was so happy & excited for us. 
 
  Out of the city & headed to the mountains we went.  With the trailer in tow, two smiling kids & one VERY happy & excited husband.  We set up camp, mingled with our other camper/hunting friends & was enjoying the beauty of the great outdoors & the clean crisp air.  We had been there a few days now & having so much fun.  Me sipping on my green tea's & enjoying the peacefulness of it all.  Shay decided to take a ride up the road to see if he could see any Elk.  After he had been gone for awhile I decided to take my little Abigail for a short 4-wheeler ride.  We weren't that far from camp & I wasn't going that fast, when I started to feel some cramping in my lower abdomen.  I turned around & headed back to camp.  I went into the bathroom & there was blood. 
 
  Here I am, at Elk camp, with a bunch of manly men in camo & beards, my husband was gone, & I had Abigail with me.  Thank God there was another female friend, Carlene, there with her family.  I put Abby in the truck, walked over to Carlene, with tears in my eyes, & asked her to tell Shay I had to run down to the ER because I was bleeding.  With fear in her eyes & quickness in her tone, she told me to go lay down in the camp trailer while she went up the road to find Shay.  I heard her telling one of the other men to get Abby out of the truck & heard her take off on the 4-wheeler up the road.  Within minutes they were back.  I was laying on the bed, tears rolling down my face, when Shay came in & asked if I was ok.  I simply said, "I need to go to the ER.  I think I'm having a miscarriage."  He hugged me & told me everything was going to be ok, then put Abby in the truck, while I climbed in myself.  Our kind hunting buddies said they would watch our son, Callen, while we were gone.   
 
  We arrived at the hospital, settled into a room, then I was wheeled down to have an ultrasound done.  The ultrasound technician was very sweet as I lay there on the table, with tears still coming down my face.  I could see it in her eyes that she was desperately trying to find a heart beat.  She then typed in “NFHB”.  It didn’t take me long to figure out that meant “No Fetal Heartbeat”.  Now the tears were really flowing.  I got back to the room & Shay could see the news in my eyes.  The doctor & nurse came in & confirmed the bad news. 
 
  Maybe I shouldn’t have drank those green tea’s or had coffee.  Maybe I shouldn’t have taken Abby on that short 4-wheeler ride.  Maybe I should have lost some weight before I got pregnant.  Maybe. . .we’re not suppose to have any more kids.  All these things were going through my mind & I know that that doctor & nurse were suppose to be there for me.  As I asked why this had happened to me & what could I have done to prevent this, the doctor reassures me that there was nothing I could have done to prevent this.  He continued to tell me that God made our bodies perfectly & that my body knew that this baby wasn’t growing correctly, so it got rid of it on it’s own.  He then told me a personal story about his wife had 2 miscarriages & they have 3 children.  The nurse then continued to tell me that she had one after her second child & that it happens a lot more than people think.  People just don’t discuss it.  We gathered up our belongings & headed back up the canyon to camp.  It was a very long & quiet ride.  Me sobing quietly & Shay holding my hand. 

  The next day was Abby’s 1^st birthday.  We put on our happy faces, cute birthday hats, & opened some presents.  We  celebrated the birth of our first baby girl.  Later on, I drove up the canyon, to where I got cell phone service & made a few calls to break the bad news to my mom & a few close friends.  I asked them to spread the word, because I didn’t want to be asked how I was feeling or even talk about any of it.  This was 2 years ago next week.  I have talked about it a little with some of my closest friends & family, but this is the first I have truly spoken about it. 

  After I had my miscarriage I was so hurt & upset for quite a long time.  I thought I never wanted to get pregnant again because I didn’t know if I could ever go through this kind of pain again.  I felt like my husband blamed me & that I lost one of his children.  Which was totally wrong!  He never blamed me. . . .I blamed me!  I was always wondering what I could have done to prevent it, or what I did to cause it.  I knew in theory that it wasn’t my fault, but it didn’t help the pain.  After time & a lot of prayer, I started feeling better about things.  That's when I came to the conclusion that it's not our plan. . .it's God's plan!

My Weekly/Cleaning Schedule

  Did you ever have Saturday cleaning days, when you were younger, that took ALL day long?  I did & I remember working almost all day Saturday, then when you were done, you were so tired to even go play.  That's why I knew, as an adult, that I did NOT want Saturday cleaning days.  I never realized how GREAT schedules are, until I made one for me & my family.  I get more done & the kids seem to act a bit better when I use a schedule.  Do I stick to it ALL the time?  No, but I do try to make sure my cleaning gets done, so that I have the weekends off with my family.  I also have a few tricks to make cleaning a little easier.  Like these things:

* Most people get overwhelmed with the thought of cleaning their entire home at one time.  That is why I divide it into sections & clean an area a day, Monday thru Friday, so I can have the weekends free.

* Never leave a room without taking something with you.  Put it where it belongs, so you don't waste time later looking for it.

* Learn to multitask.  If you are heading in the direction of the laundry room, take some dirty clothes or towels with you.  Going to get the mail?  Take the garbage out.

* Clean up your dishes after every meal.  Instruct each family member to rinse & put away their own dishes.  This goes for cups, glasses, utensils & other dishes used throughout the day.

* Use a plastic grocery bag to scrub your tub.  Yes, you read it right.  A plastic grocery bag to clean your tub!!  Put your comet, or whatever tub cleaner you use, on the tub, get a white plastic grocery bag, turn it inside out so that the print is on the inside, place your hand in it, & start scrubbing.  It works better than a scrub brush or anything else I've ever used!  AMAZING!!

*When you get done washing your face every night, which I know you all are doing, use your washcloth to wipe down the toilet & floor area.  BUT make sure that cloth goes right into the laundry & use clorox to wash them;)  If you keep up on your toilet, then it's not such a huge, gross task when it comes time to clean.  

* Always keep your bathroom sink & counter area free from clutter, hair, make-up, toothpaste, or whatever else.  It takes just a few moments to rinse the sink & put stuff away before you leave the bathroom.


PLEASE let us all know your tricks on cleaning & schedules.  Thanks & happy scheduling:)



Weekly Schedule