20thirteen

Before you read any farther (or is it further? English majors, help me out here...) you should head over to read Jami Nato's post about New Years and goals and what not. Because she says exactly what we're all thinking and is hilarious. And honestly, it's a great post. Read this. Now.

I always enjoy sitting down and setting goals for myself for the coming year, mostly because there's nothing else to do right now, since Christmas is over and it's still cold outside and such. (hahahaha. that was a good joke.) I don't "get" resolving to do less of this or that; but I do like the idea of shifting focus back to where it belongs and setting goals for myself to work towards. I think this in itself results in doing less of the unfavorable activities and more of the good ones. What are your goals for the coming year? 

Here's a story before I lay my goals out for you. I know you're so so interested in hearing them, but seriously, there's an entire thought process that went into this. I was running on the treadmill Friday morning, in a total 6inthemorningnewsweetgymnewtreadmilloldtunesontheMP3player euphoria when a song came on my old Walkman Bean. 

got in 2005, still running strong...unlike my 4 year old other music player, which shall remain nameless

(anyone else ever have one of those?) I used to have AMAZING taste in music, I must say. Lately I pick one song and play it repeatedly until I can hear it even in silence. So...there's this part in Switchfoot's song, "Gone," that says 

"She said he said live like no tomorrow, 
Every moment that we borrow
Brings us one step closer to the edge 
Where's your treasure, where's your hope
If you get the world and lose your soul."

And I thought to myself "Holy moosenuts!  It's so so true! Pin all the things!!!!!!!!" We all want to be squeaky clean, uber-organized,  fit and trim, happy fashionistas with soft, shiny, perfectly-highlighted hair floating along day to day in a constant state of namaste and using our spare time to create our own little trendy design photos of our pets and children that we hang in super sophisticated patterns along an accent wall in our Pier 1 equivalent dining room. 

But what does any of that get us? New shiny stuff? Accolades and praise? Inner peace? If we conquer the world and lose ourselves in the process, we have lost. If we gather every treasure in the world and have no relationship with the Lord, and poor relationships with our family, we have nothing. I could be cleaner and more organized and use my time more wisely, and I could eat better and decorate my home to create a more comfortable mood. But it wouldn't really matter. I can also be a stronger wife, more helpful daughter and sister, a more involved aunt, a more frequent dog walker, a daily witness for Christ, and I could read my Bible more. These things are more important than eating habits, workout frequencies, and home organization.

Without further ado, here's my list:

(A repeat from last year) 1. detoxify my life. I worked on this from the outside in last year and have realized it only works by starting from inside my mind. Refusing negative thoughts, not dwelling on things that are worrisome or stressful (my job has consumed many a weekend with worry or migraines or exhaustion), and not being so darn competitive all the time. All of these activities are toxic and waste precious time and energy. P.S. God does not care how quickly I finish my degree, or if my body fat percentage is lower than someone else's. B. schedule time to spend with the Lord every day. Each and every single day. c. Show love, and quiet anger. "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." ~Proverbs 15:1 and most importantly, 4. Be a light in the darkness. This was the focus of the Christmas Eve service at Church for All Nations and it is still echoing in my heart. The world has turned ugly. Horrifying events have us all living in suspicion and fear and blame. I refuse. It is better to a light a candle than to curse the darkness.

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” ~John 8:15

This munchkin can light up any room. His first word was "light,"
 which speaks volumes to his personality and his joyful spirit. 

Silent Night

It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

Gluten Free Sugar Cookies for Christmas

Just in time for Christmas...complete with a tie-dye dove ;)

Gluten Free Sugar Cookies

(that taste surprisingly like the REAL DEAL!)

Beat 2 1/2 sticks of butter at room temperature (if you have lactose issues, I cannot verify if a substitute for the butter works...let me know if you try it!) together with 1 cup of sugar and a pinch of salt. Beat together until it's super duper fluffy. (several minutes) Then beat in 3 large eggs and 1 tsp vanilla and 1 tsp lemon zest or lemon juice. In a separate bowl, mix together 3 cups of this gluten free french bread and pizza crust mix. (Not the entire package) with 1 1/4 tsp of xanthan gum. Then slowly add the dry mixture to the wet until you get a typical sugar cookie dough consistency and chill the dough. Then roll out and use any gluten free flour to dust your working surface, cut your shapes and bake at 350 until the edges turn golden brown. Chilling the dough is super important. Your dough needs to be cold when you roll it out or you can feel it turn to mush. If you've cooked with gluten free stuff before, you know how easy it is to end up with glue instead of pasta, crust, or cookies. Also, a bag of xanthan gum is expensive. Invest the $11 once and you'll have enough xanthan gum to last you for quite awhile...don't let the price scare you into leaving it out. It's a key ingredient. 

I can has a Santa cookie?

For that shiny, easy to work with Royal Icing, beat 4 oz egg whites together with 1 tsp vanilla until frothy, 

frothy like this

Then add powdered sugar until you get a sticky, slightly runny frosting consistency. If you don't think to yourself "geesh, I've added a boat load of powdered sugar," you haven't added enough. Divide that up and add food coloring as desired. Use right away or store in an airtight container for about up to three days.

 Next time, I'll post the recipe for these cupcakes I made for my Dad's birthday.

I call them Charlie Browns

What's your favorite Christmas treat?

And then, we'll snuggle!

Can I start by saying I'm so glad to be back to regular again? I guess I can, because it's my blog. Anyways... since our trip to Nebraska, I haven't felt good. I didn't pay attention to what I was eating, I intentionally contaminated myself before the the trip, then ate whatever was available during the trip, and then felt so bad by the time we got back home I kept intentionally contaminating myself again and again because I "already felt bad...might as well eat whatever I want!!!!" Wrong. Do not think this way, people! Do not be like me!!!

I've discussed before how I don't have medical guarantee that I'm intolerant/allergic/diseased. But what I do have is knowledge I've gained from reading (gasp!) about nutrition and celiac disease...like, a lot. I also have my personal experiences and reactions I've experienced through my short life. SO....after three weeks of being itchy, splotchy, depressed, stressed, sleepy, sad, enraged, inflamed, and irritated...I still refuse to get scoped (you know sometimes they don't wash those things?) and came to the realization that we should not need a medical diagnosis as a reason to eat real food. I know what real food does in my body and I know what not so great food does in my body.....I don't need somebody to give me permission to avoid certain foods. I'm thankful I don't have serious medical issues, but the last three weeks have been such a frustrating experience. I finally went to the doctor to get some skin relief, steroid cream or prednisone or something, and this doc was seriously scrolling through her smart phone for answers. I give her credit for listening and taking an interest....but seriously? I can google my own answers on my own time from the comfort of my own home, and it is much more sanitary.

That was a bit of a tangent.           On to the point of this post......

1) thank you, Lord, for progress and relief. And for my loving husband who watched me scratch, listened to me whine, let me cry it out a few times, and helped me re-focus my energy towards healing. And for my family who listened and cared :)
2) It snowed!!!!! Finally!!!!

Lucy was stoked.

I was stoked too, now I'm in the Christmas mood!!!

I made these fancy Santa belly wrappers for a couple gifts for co-workers.  I like 'em!

And my loves settled in for their long winter's nap

while I enjoyed some home made cocoa in my Lions mug. PS- Go Lions!!!!!!

Last night I did the unthinkable.....

...I left the house in a dress! HUH?? Me??? yup.

but I just love my boots! and wanted to wear these new tights :)

And since I consumed more than my fair share of sugar this weekend, I can't wait to go put these to good use tomorrow!!!!

Yep, a heart rate monitor/GPS distance tracker and a new protein supplement that's free from corn, soy, wheat, milk, gluten, and sugar. My husband rocks :)

What are your goals for this week?

I've got big plans....

1) Get to the a.m. spin class twice (this is big. it requires leaving the house at 415...a.m.)

2) Paleo. All week. I did it 4 days last week, I know I can do it all week this week. (the VFW dinner Friday night - chicken cordon bleu, a roll, and au gratin potatoes- left me inhaling a chocolate bar for dinner...which I later found out contained malt. I should have just eaten the stinkin' chicken!)

3) Detox bath- get this crud OUT of my body!!!!!!

4) Get the Christmas cards sent!

5) Clean out the dryer vent. ( I have to be a domestic warrior sometime)

Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

~Romans 12:12