Life is either a great adventure or nothing.

Those are Helen Keller's words, not mine.

So many times I find quotes that I agree with so much that I am inspired to share them. Today is one of those days, I reckon.

I don't suppose I really have any deep thoughts to go along with it, and this is the first time I have "blogged" in months... but it is a start, right?

I simply want to treat life as a precious gift and adventure, because that is what it truly is. Every single day. Every single moment. Every single breath.

A gift.

A possibility for adventure.

Or....nothing at all.

Well hello there, Springtime.

I had intentions of writing or posting recipes or pictures at least once a week here and have totally NOT done that. Hopefully I can find the motivation, time, and topics to get moving here. Although it might be presumptuous of me to think many people would want to read it. HA!

This year has been flying by. I started a new job in January, so adjusting to that taking three days of my week, as well as doing all the stuff I was doing before as a full-time SAHM (kid and dog-raising, cooking, shopping, cleaning, bill paying, laundry, fulfilling my online "job" quotas each month, etc), well... I have been feeling a little fried. I am richly blessed, I know that, but sometimes I get overwhelmed and lose too much sleep and don't handle it terribly well. I need to learn to just breathe and take a chill pill.... Because as my friend Kenna says "Life happens on the way to the circus."

So.. I guess this post is about how I feel like a slacker, but maybe spending a little time slacking is a GOOD thing. It seems like everyone is in a hurry all the time and it rubs off on me, making me cranky, short tempered, and just generally cantankerous. I don't WANT to be the person cussing in my car on the way to work because there is a fender bender. I don't want to be the person huffing and puffing at the lady in line with 500 coupons while I only have two items and really want to get home to make dinner. I need to stop and realize that THIS IS MY LIFE. I only have one. Every moment counts. How I act, react, and interact is important and rushing through things and wishing time away is just not what I should be doing. I need to stop and just be in the moments I am presented with, take what I can from it, learn from it (or even use it as a teachable moment). God is constantly trying to teach me lessons and open my eyes. Some days I "get it", some days, not so much... Saturdays are a great "slacker" day for Dawson and me. (Too bad John has to work every Saturday of the world or he would be a part of it as well.) We go to the farmer's market, shop around in the Factory, visit our artist friends, grab lunch, and just take our time being spontaneous and NOT in a hurry. It is peaceful, and sometimes we do nothing "productive", but relaxing, enjoying each other's company, connecting with cool people, and slacking on things that we "should" be doing sure feels wonderfully productive to me. :)

I am a rambler, I know it. I am NOT a writer, but I like to think and put down words occasionally. My thoughts seem to be all over the place lately, so I will just try to make a point of coming here when I feel I want to put something down that someone else might care to read. Today is a crazy stormy day, I am thankful to be safe at home with my boy and my dogs while the thunder rolls outside. Life is good.

Peace.

Let it snow.

December 12 and it is snowing in middle Tennessee! Has been all day, pretty much. I love it. I know a lot of people are complaining about it, and the possibility that they may be inconvenienced because of the road conditions or school cancellations, but I am having different thoughts.

I am thinking back to my childhood in Michigan and the wonder and excitement that came with a blanket of fresh, clean snow on the ground. It was magical and so peaceful, not dreadful. We didn't roll our eyes about the lines at the store, or the fact that we might have to live on whatever we had in the pantry or fridge for a day or two until it was a bit safer to get out and about.... we just ate it up and made the best of it. Layering on our long johns, snowpants, coats, hats, gloves, and boots lined with plastic bags to keep our feet dry, we would run squealing and laughing into the snow for hours, coming in for a break here and there where Mom would have hot cocoa with lots of marshmallows waiting for us. We would warm our noses and toes, and head right back out into the Winter Wonderland. I miss those days.

My son was already outside once this morning, wishing more snow was on the ground, and hoping for maybe enough to make a snowman. Looks like he is getting his wish, because there is a bit more accumulated and it is still coming down. Oh, he just bundled up and headed back out to play.

Hmmmm.... now where are my snow pants?

11 years ago today, I became a mom.

My baby turned 11 today.

Monday, September 20, 1999, I was so incredibly excited and nervous. I had no concept of what it truly meant to become a MOTHER. Holding that little boy in my arms for the first time was the most surreal experience ever. I MADE a person. I was so happy and so incredibly terrified at the same time. I was responsible for another human life. Like, totally and completely responsible for nurturing, feeding, teaching, protecting, and caring for this little creature. Beginning the journey into motherhood was something I had no idea about and I have made many mistakes along the way. I have also done a lot of things right, I think, because my son is growing to be a caring, smart, humorous, compassionate, and very interesting young man. I am still learning, as is he, and I so look forward to what the future brings. I love you, Dawson. Thanks for making me a mommy.

Gonna try something new. FOOD! :)

My blog has been neglected since I started it a few months ago. Possibly from lack of motivation and lack of creativity. I am not incredibly creative, but I was told by someone yesterday that I AM creative as far as food goes, and I kind of agree. Over the years I have started being very careful and conscious of what my family eats, and especially what I eat, since now I can no longer have gluten. I get a lot of honest questions from friends and family about what I CAN eat, and how I manage to make meals that are gluten free, as well as vegetarian (although I do eat fish occasionally). I also get a lot of questions about just healthy eating in general, what to avoid, what new things to try, etc. So... that said, I am going to try to do a weekly recipe, and share pictures and recipes. Some may be my very own inventions, some may belong to others (and I will give credit) and some may be modified from some recipes or meals I have tried or would like to create. Hopefully it will give my friends and family some good ideas and a little glimpse into my kitchen. :)

Here goes! I made this recipe the other day and was VERY pleased with it. (Keep in mind, I am not a measuring kind of gal when I cook, it makes it hard to be creative when I am fooling around with measuring cups and spoons. I just tend to eyeball things and they always turn out great, but I will give estimated amounts for people that freak out without measurements. haha)

Sunshine Burger stuffed peppers:

Ingredients: olive oil, onions, mushrooms, zucchini, tomatoes, spinach, and garlic. Crumbled (thawed) Sunshine burgers (I used 2 of their breakfast patties, but you can used any type of meat substitute you want). I used about 1/4 cup of onion, 1/2 cup mushroom, 1/2 cup zucchini, 1/2-3/4 cup tomato, (all diced) and two cloves of fresh pressed garlic.

Heat oil in pan over medium heat, add veggies and cook through, adding garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Add in Sunshine burger last and mix together and immediately stuff peppers. I used two whole yellow peppers (4 halves) but this could easily be doubled or tripled to feed lots of people and you can use any kind of peppers you like to make the dish really colorful! Fresh tomato juice from your tomatoes over the tops of the peppers will help keep them moist. Put into preheated 350 oven and cover with foil, bake for about 50 mins. If you want to add cheese, remove foil and add cheese for last 10 minutes of baking.

Alrighty then. Enjoy! :)

"Real" friends.

I have many times heard people say that you cannot have "real" friends on the internet, and even that trying to make friends is dangerous and stupid. Well, I beg to differ. I have been incredibly blessed to be a part of a circle of awesome ladies on a website called Cafemom for quite a while now. The friendships I have made there are indeed very, very real. We share with each other on a daily basis laughter, tears, celebrations, failures, fears, daydreams, loss, and so much more. These women have become incredibly dear to me, and anyone that tells me you cannot make "real" friendships over the miles communicating via the world wide web, well, you can kiss my grits. :) I know what is true, and these women are VERY real.

Last weekend I was lucky enough to host many of these women in my home, who came to visit from all over the country; WA, MN, ME, CT, MO, AL, FL, and east TN. Several of our group were not able to come, and we definitely felt the void, but we made the very best of our time together and took tons of pictures to share. We plan to make this a yearly event, with different locations each year. I cannot even begin to express how great the weekend was, and how much fun it was to finally meet in person and hug them, meet their children, and just laugh and visit together. We made so many memories and I cannot wait until next year so we can do it all over again. Love you girls!!!!

It. Is. Hot.

Have I mentioned I don't DO 100 degrees very well?

Well, I don't. I am apparently a delicate flower than wilts in anything over 75 degrees.

OK, I am not THAT fragile, but summertime in TN is darn near unbearable. I could very well become nocturnal between June and September. Walking outside and being immediately soaking wet and sticky is just not my thing. Now don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the green grass and trees, the blooming flowers, and the sunshine. I just have a hard time wanting to spend any extended (more than 3 minutes) amount of time outside in the humidity and scorching heat. It drains the life out of me and makes me wanna smack somebody's granny. OK, enough of my whining.

So anyway, other than the ungodly heat, summer is going well. :)

The road trip west was wonderful, we have spent a lot of quality family time together, and we are looking forward to more adventures before school starts back up. Mini Cooper sales have picked up for John, thank God, and I have been picking up a few pet sitting jobs here and there, much to my delight. Nothing I enjoy more than getting to spend time with adorable critters and make a few extra bucks for a rainy day.

Dawson and I have resumed our Saturday tradition of going to the Franklin Farmer's Market for goodies. He makes a beeline for the stand in the middle that sells fruit tea by the cup while asking to pet every dog he sees (takes after someone I know). Today we saw a gorgeous Doberman Pinscher and I was the one that asked to pet her, she was so sweet. Dawson always drags me over to the home made kettle corn stand to buy a medium (he begs for the large) bag to bring home so he can sneak it upstairs and pig out when I am not looking. This week I didn't have any luck finding good tomatoes, but I know there will be plenty in the coming weeks. I am looking forward to making some salsa and sauces and salads. yum. If you don't go to your local market, I suggest you start. It is a really fun weekly trip, and a great way to support your local farmers and get some healthy and safe food. I picked up an antler for Cooper to chew on, there is a lady there that has them in all sizes, and they are great for recreational chewing and don't stink, stain, or splinter, and a good sized one will last Cooper for months. The lady also gives a free tennis ball with every antler purchase.

Well, enough of my rambling. I hope that everyone is having a good summer so far. More soon. :)