A hike, some dogs, and some toes

It all started off yesterday with an amazing hike (and workout!) on North Mountain with Kellie Cannon. She's an awesome hiking partner. :) But as some of you well know, I am afraid of heights. I'm okay with going up the mountain, but going down? That's another story. That's why I'm in love with the paved part that North Mountain offers. It's so awesome for people like me! Kellie takes pity on me and hikes with me on the paved part. haha! It was so beautiful up on the top...God has created some pretty amazing things!

Then had some einsteins for breakfast, they always have amazing food.

So this week and next week Billy and I are watching my parent's dog, Abby, who is a 10 yr old lab (at our house). She's getting to the point where she just wants to hang out all day, and not do a whole lot. WELL...with Zoe now at the house too (our 3 month old lab-ish puppy), Abby doesn't get too much sleep. Zoe likes to nip at her legs, neck, ears...anything she wants pretty much. It's quite hilarious how much she plays with Abby, and Abby seems to like it most of the time. And then there are the times when they sleep during the day that Zoe can't part with Abby and has to be laying on her. Almost like a mom! :) Here's a picture of them, sometimes pictures are worth a 1000 words!

Isn't she so cute?? That's Zoe's duckie in her mouth...her little pet, she doesn't go anywhere without it! It'll definitely be quite the week with both of them! I guess it's getting us prepared for things down the road...maybe kids? Oh dear! :) Unfortunately, Zoe has a stress incontinence issue...when she is doing something naughty Billy or I will go after her and when we catch her she usually pees because she is afraid. Kind of odd actually - hope we break that habit!

Another thing I did yesterday was do my own pedicure! I've gotten quite good at doing flowers on toes. I've done quite a few of my friends toes too, and even if you think it's gross that I touch feet, I guess God has gifted me with feet tolerance. haha And I'm kind of used to things like feet considering I'm in nursing school. Anyway...it was my first time doing a french tip...here's a picture, sorry about you people who don't like feet! What do you guys think? I'll be more than happy to do yours too! (for a price :D )

cute right??

Overall, it was a good day yesterday. Had to meet with a school friend to do a project, school is an every day thing in my life. It doesn't even matter if I have class that day!

Hope all is well with you all...

A good day

Had a nice relaxing day today...went to the gym and ran a few miles, then took my sister out to lunch for her birthday, then went grocery shopping (not my favorite thing to do but still...needed some food in the house!), taught a couple piano lessons, and vegged! It was a good day...but not going to happen again for a while. :)

Sometimes I ask Billy how his day went, like today, and he usually says "good", like he did today. And then I ask how his meetings went, and he again says, "good", and then I ask him specifically how they went and what happened, and then again he says "nothing really happened". lol Are all guys like that? Come on! I want specifics!! He eventually went on to tell me about this day with details - that's what I want! haha

Here's a recipe that I have tried...and it's delicious! Something unique and healthy.

Healthy Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I've had lettuce wraps tons of times in restaurants, but I've never tried to make them myself. After trying lettuce wraps at so many restaurants, I'm happy to say that these were JUST as good as the ones you would order!

Ingredients:

Sauce:
• 6 t. hoisin sauce
• 4 t. soy sauce
• 2 t. sesame oil
• 4 t. white wine vinegar
• fresh ground black pepper

Filling:
• 2 t. olive oil
• 1 t. minced garlic
• ½ t. grated fresh ginger
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 lb. ground turkey
• 2 cups mixed vegetables (We used mushrooms, carrots, red pepper and onion)
• ½ green apple, finely chopped

Wraps:
• lettuce leaves (washed and separated)
• shredded carrots for topping
• rice noodles (optional for topping)

Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a small bowl and mix.

To make the filling, heat a skillet on high heat with cooking oil. When the pan is hot, add garlic, ginger and green onions to the pan. Stir fry for a few seconds, just until fragrant.

Add the ground turkey and break into small pieces. Cook until almost cooked through.

Add the vegetables to the pan and cook for 1-2 minutes.

Mix in the sauce and cook for about 1 minute until thickened slightly. Add the apples to the pan and toss to coat.

Remove the pan from heat.

Serve the filling in lettuce “cups” and top with shredded carrots and rice noodles.

Make sure to have extra napkins...it's very messy! But VERY good!

Happy eating!

Monday...busiest day of the week!

Why is monday always the busiest day of the week? It seems like the weekend comes and goes, and then everyone needs monday to start their engines again. What do you think? But truly, mondays are the craziest days I have. Not to mention that I was in the crazy house today! Psych clinical was busy and went quickly, even though it's not my thing. Good thing God has equipped us with different talents and abilities, or we'd all be doing the same thing and in the same career!

Anyway, here's another fall craft that I found that I actually have the equipment already but haven't done yet. Maybe for one of my free days this semester....tell me what you think! :) Just know that it's not my idea. :) The credit goes to Amanda at The Hand Me Down House...

"I found this set of candlesticks at the thrift store for $2.99 each:"

"I cleaned them off, took my trusty can of spray paint and gave them a few shiny coats. :) "

The second step was to take some fall floral leaves and put them in the candle holder. I used some that I happened to find at the thrift store for $.99 -- but you KNOW the Dollar Store has TONS of cute fall leaves, too -- they're all over the place!

"I wrapped several ends together and bound them with a rubber-band. Then I put them into the candle holder and put little pieces of newspaper around them to hold the leaves in place in the candle holder."

" What do you think??? I just can't say no to a quick and inexpensive project -- so I think they're pretty cute. :) "

A new week...

Well today was a great Sunday...another day playing and worshipping at AZ Hills. We are learning about "guardrails", where we need boundaries in our lives to protect us from the sins that could damage us and bring us down the wrong path. Each Sunday is on a different "guardrail". Looking forward to the next weeks on this series! Go to azhills.com if you want to listen to the sermons! I have a crazy week ahead of me...praying that it goes by quickly!

Here's another creative project that you can do for any fall decorations that you're putting up! I give this credit to Alisa on The Sweet Life!

These are the easiest fall decor you'll ever make....promise.

They are so popular, we did them more than once. There are several variations of these floating around, but I thought I would share what I have found to work the best.

This is what you will need for each pumpkin:

1 roll of toilet paper

1 fat quarter of fabric {approx 22"x18"}

1 sheet of newspaper or tissue paper 1 stick about 4-5" long

1 12" piece of ribbon

Find a hard surface to work on. Lay out your fabric, wrong side up and then lay your sheet of paper on top of that. Place your tp roll in the middle.

Next you will use the palm of your hand and push straight down to squish your tp roll. {This way it won't look like a roll of tp you wrapped in fabric when your done.}

Grab the corners of the paper and bring them to the middle and tuck into the center of the tp roll. Make sure to tuck the shorter sides in under the longer corners so it is all secure, but please don't worry about it being perfect.

Next you will do the same thing with the fabric. Bring the shorter sides up first and work them into the middle and then bring up the corners to tuck in, gathering all the way around so that all ends get tucked in. It won't be perfect, but that is ok. Each one will look different in shape and fluff. You can even use a half empty roll to make a smaller one like my orange one in the first picture.

See? not so perfect, but pretty cute.

Last thing is to shove your stick right down in the middle and tie a bow around it. The stick should fit pretty snuggly, but you can hot glue it if you want.

I'm too lazy to heat up my glue gun if it isn't absolutely necessary so mine is not glued. {Plus, if I glue it then I can't unwrap it and use that roll of tp in an emergency....you can really never be too prepared}

These are super inexpensive so you can make lots and use them all over the house.

Happy crafting and let fall begin!!

Craft!

This is a fantastic inexpensive craft/art project you can do. These projects are for people like me who like cheap things that look awesome! I give all of this credit to www.frugallifeproject.com
Cool Dollar Store Wall Art!

"I love all the wall tiles you find these days. They inspired me to make some of my own and it was super duper simple and inexpensive! This is the finished project. Let me show you how I did it!"

"I found these canvases at Dollar Tree. They aren't really my style - but for a dollar each, I knew they soon would be! If you can't find these exact canvases, look for small wood plaques - those would work for this project as well. They will probably have some less than attractive paintings on them, but just ignore that and envision what they will look like after using your creative touch!"

"I spray pained the edges brown. Black would work well also."

"Then, I cut pieces of scrapbook paper the same size as the canvas. Using regular glue (because that's what I had), I glued the paper to the canvas and smoothed out the top using a credit card."

"I sanded the edges to create a smoother surface and then finished each canvas off with a spray coat of crystal clear enamel."

"I used these Command Damage-Free Hangers - which I love! I didn't feel like putting a ton of holes in the wall. Plus, these make it VERY easy to reposition - or change the artwork in a few months."

What do you guys think???

Dylan!

From last year....

To this year.

This is my brother Erik, sister-in-law Michelle, and their son Dylan. Isn't Dylan so cute?? He's a looker! God has given my family strength to get through this past year with his treatment and recovery...what a joy this little guy is! www.prayfordylan.com

The start of many...

This is my first time writing on a blog, and I needed a place to share the happenings of our lives. With Billy and me leaving Palmcroft to start a new music ministry at Arizona Hills Church, starting my last semester of nursing school, and trying to be the wife my husband needs during this time, you could say that emotions are flying high. Stress is an every day experience, and it's only doable with the support from our friends and family, and by the strength of God.

We led our first worship set at AZ Hills this past sunday, and it was great! Billy and I love playing and worshipping together, so it was wonderful. God blessed us with each other...We met wonderful people, some new, some familiar, but all were loving and supportive and excited to have us! Sundays start early for us: get there at 7am, set up sound, instruments, equipment, props, tables, papers, you name it it's set up. The church brings in their own sound system too, and so there are new things that go along with that. There are new people to work with, new people to meet every week, and new people worship along side with! AZ Hills is looking forward to us bringing new music and new experiences. We're excited in this new transition, to see how God will use and work in us!

We were blessed with an abundance of gratitude and love from our Palmcroft family on Sunday night at a reception that was for us. Encouraging words, hugs, and tears were all a part of that night, and we couldn't have been more blessed. We can't thank everyone enough with how much support and encouragement you have been to us over the many years. We love you all and will see you soon enough!

This new semester of nursing school, (and my last!), is a killer. Stress up to wazoo, papers, tests, clinical, and more projects due almost every week. You'd think I'd be used to it by now, but it always hits me over the head with a sledge hammer. The first couple weeks go by, and then when the first test comes, it always kicks my butt and reminds me how hard nursing school is. Here's an example of the crazy schedule I get to have: getting up at 4:30am on a Monday morning to do a clinical shift at County in Mesa with psych patients. I would not be doing this voluntarily. Seriously though, I think I am going crazy in this psych portion of school. How ironic is that! I am looking forward to getting to the ICU and ED portion of my semester once the psych portion is done, and hopefully I pass and graduate in December.

We just celebrated my nephew Dylan's 1 year leukemia free party on September 11! September 11 has a completely different meaning now for our family, and God has used little Dylan to show us how powerful and mighty He is. Dylan is only 1 1/2 years old, and to think of how much his little body went through is overwhelming, yet God knew what would happen and His glory has been shown through it all! If you want to follow Dylan and my family's journey...go to www.prayfordylan.com

I'll be posting more for sure, but we shall see how much I can do with all the business of life thrown into the mix.