Photo-Op

Below is a picture that I'm so glad I got to capture. We celebrated Cade's birthday at Cotton Patch Cafe on Friday and I got a great picture of 5 men who love each other very much. I can't wait to get it framed.

All in this picture:

Great-Grandfather, Great-Grandsons, Grandfather, Grandsons, Fathers, Sons, Uncle, Nephews, Brothers

Sprinkles Surprise

My husband surprised me Saturday with a gift straight to my heart (and stomach). I'm sure I've only said a couple hundred times lately that I loved Sprinkles cupcakes and Saturday afternoon Brian had me close my eyes and put my hands out and he sat the box of wonderfulness in my hands!

We each had one Saturday and one yesterday. I was very happy! Thank you Brian for the sweet treat!

ps. I did not put these cupcakes in my Livestrong calorie counter and I didn't care. I enjoyed every last bite. :)

Livestrong.com

Happy Friday! I wanted to share a website that has really helped me this year. It's Livestrong.com. It provides daily information on food, health and gives lots of great info on every part of your life. It also has The Daily Plate which has thousands of foods for you to see how much calories, fat, carbs, sodium, etc... that each food has. It has just given me a better understanding of what all is in the food I have been eating and the food I am eating now.

I also had Brian download the Livestrong.com Iphone App so if we are somewhere and I'm deciding what to eat, I can just pull up The Daily Plate on his phone and see the nutritional information (sometimes I care not to see the calorie count though and enjoy my meal...haha)

This is just a picture - not of my information :)

I like food and I'm an emotional eater...that's a fact. But I'm really happy that I've learned a lot by just using this website. Hopefully, it will be information that stays with me a long time. Being Healthy is the goal!

Happy Birthday Cade Brian!!!

This day in history Cade Brian Estes was born, February 4th, 2003. I remember it like it was yesterday. Not just because Cade was born but I remember when Rob came out and told me his middle name was going to be Brian. ( Yes, I did cry when I found out) Now that he is growing up I can see that we are a lot alike. Well for one you can look at him and me and see the similarities. We can both always eat, we both want to be like our BIG brothers. The list goes on and on. But I hope he grows up to be great Christian man.

Here are a few of my favorite photos of Cade.

Cade, Amanda and I love you so much and we hope you have a great 7th birthday!

Simple Pleasures

I'll be honest...I'm feeling blah today. There's just a lot of questions going on in my head right now and it's a little overwhelming and I'm letting it get to me today. It's so easy to say I'll give it to God and then to actually do it. We say "God it's in your hands" and then we worry and try to continue to control the situation. Not cool. So, I know what I need to do and just give it all to the Creator of all things.

All that said, I was looking at Kelly's Korner today and saw her post on Simple Pleasures and it made me just appreciate the little things in life. God has blessed Brian and I with shelter, food, warmth from the cold, water, and so so so much more so it's nice to look at the simple things we appreciate. Here are some of my simple pleasures:

Warm Chocolate Chip Cookie right out of the oven

Hearing my husband walk in the door after a long day at work

A Hug

A Text/Email just to say Hello

Driving to church on Sunday morning with my husband

My Heated Throw

Cards in the mail

Sunsets

Talking to my Parents

Snuggling with Brian

Sprinkles Red Velvet Cupcakes

Ice (there's usually no snow) Day so I can Work from Home

Sitting in the Car Wash

Hearing my nieces and nephews laugh

Reading Blogs & My Blog Comments :)

Knowing I can pray anytime, anywhere, any place

Where I Want To Be

I wish I was here today:

Please take me here...to the sun and the crystal blue water.

I desperately need it. NOW.

A Few of my New Favorite Things

Ok so I've been of those people that said "I need to eat better and workout more" and then do it for a day or two and then go back to my old ways... but not this time. I've really tried in the last month to eat better. I would love to lose weight while doing it but I'm really wanting just to become a healthier eater. Don't get me wrong, I love cheese, chocolate and sugar so it hasn't been easy walking by the cake that's been in our break room at work. I know we can have it all in moderation but at this point, I'll just pass by because one bite in and I'll eat the whole thing ;) So I've just started making better substitutions for what I was eating here and there and here are some of my new favorite foods:

I like vegetables but I will eat more if they do have a little cheese on them. This side is a lot better than the sides I had been eating and they taste good.

Parmesan Crusted Chicken - my new favorite dinner. Boneless Skinless chicken breast with ShakenBake Parmesan Crusted Seasoning and I'm good to go.

Orowheat Whole Grain Whole Wheat English Muffins

I've been eating a muffin with fat free cream cheese for breakfast and I love it

Love this cheese! I eat a wedge of this Laughing Cow cheese with Reduced Fat Wheat Thins and it is a wonderful snack!

Now for the chocolate!

At first I thought these wouldn't taste very good but now I eat them up they are so good!

Brian and I both love the Skinny Cow Ice Cream Sandwiches

So that's where I'm at...taking one day at a time. This is just a sampling of the new food I'm trying and finding I enjoy. I'm eating more fruits and veggies and working out (every day if possible, even if it is only for 30 mins). I'm not perfect and will enjoy comfort food now in then but I'm eating a lot better than I did. Brian and I are on this journey together and we look forward to a healthier 2010!

What are some of your favorite healthy foods/snacks?