One of My All Time Favorite Meals

I've been eating this all my life. It was a staple in my house growing up.

Fideo actually means noodle in Spanish. Yes, it's pasta. No, it's not whole wheat. But y'all pasta gets a bad rap. It's low fat, has almost no sugar, and the entire box only has 540 calories. No one is ever going to convince me to drop pasta from my diet. Never . . . as long as I live. Anyway, it comes in boxes (although you can buy it in bags too), and it costs about $.20 a box. How's that for cooking on a budget? And depending on what I add, a whole box can feed all three of us with a little left over. There are tons of recipes for Fideo, and I'm pretty sure that everyone makes it just a little bit different than anyone else. So, I thought I'd share the love and give y'all my recipe.

I like to start by cutting up whatever vegetables I'm going to put in. Tonight it was:

1 large yellow squash

half of a purple onion 

half of an orange bell pepper 

1 jalapeno

half a bag of fresh spinach.  

I then take half a tablespoon to a tablespoon of olive oil (I don't measure . . . just eyeball it) and heat it in a large saute pan or skillet. Once it's hot I dump in all the veggies and the noodles (minus the spinach at this point). It is very important that you don't add any liquid yet. Stir it around until the noodles are slightly brown. If you don't stir it, it may burn. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Next, I put in this. I am convinced that Rotel is the answer to every problem in the world. Do you want world peace? Just add Rotel. So go ahead dump in the whole can. This is also the point at which I add the spinach. Then give it a stir, and add enough water to cover both the noodles and the vegetables.

Bring the liquid to a boil then reduce the heat to medium. Let it simmer for around 10 minutes or until the noodles are tender. It's also important that you avoid stirring while it's simmering so that the noodles don't get gummy. Finally, salt and pepper to taste.

And here is the final product. It's easy, it's simple, and it's delicious. What more could you ask for?

The great thing about this recipe is that it can be adjusted for whoever's eating it. Andrew loves it, but I usually avoid the jalapenos and Rotel when he's eating. Instead I'll do fresh tomatoes and more spinach, onions, and peppers. You can also add meat if you like. 

So there you have it. One of the my absolutely favorite meals of all time.

Would You Like Some Cheese With That?

Y'all I'm falling apart.

First of all, I'm (still) limping everywhere. I'm about to break down and get my ankle x-rayed, but I don't want to. I don't want to go to the doctor because the doctor is going to tell me to rest. And that's just frustrating so instead I'll limp around in denial. At least I can do the elliptical without any pain. And I can grocery shop. I use the cart like a walker. It's super cool.

As if that wasn't enough, I broke off part of my back tooth. I don't think it's bad. I'm hoping it's just a big chip and not something that needs a crown. But I'm going to the dentist on Monday to find out. Wish me luck.

I'm telling you I'm falling apart.

And while I'm whining . . .

T-ball is going to be the death of me! Some rocket scientists (a.k.a. our Little League Board) have decided that we should start playing by the rules of baseball with umpires, outs, keeping score, etc. People are you serious?!? Have you ever tried explaining the rules of baseball to a four year. Virtual impossibility. I see tears in my future. Lot's of tears. Oh and we "get" to have a t-ball tournament to end the season in May. Okay, really, forget the tournament. I'm over it . . . I don't even care anymore.

Last night I tweeted that they (they meaning Gap and Banana Republic) should make pants for girls with muscles. All of my capris are loose in the waist and tight in the legs right down to my calves. Yes my legs have gained some muscle, but come on they're not huge. On the other hand I'm not a stick. C'mon we need clothes for women with curves.

Because you endured all that whining, you now get to see these pictures showing you a little bit of how our t-ball games play out . . . lucky you . . .

 Please don't ask . . . I have no clue.

Hmmm . . . maybe my legs are bigger than I thought . . .

He seriously can't see a thing. Apparently that's not important in baseball.

See how actively involved we are in the game???

Look dude, you'd better pay attention.

And now you get the gist of how our games go . . . I'll stop torturing you. Please don't stop reading my blog forever. ;)

The Lost Post

Yesterday, I did a post. It wasn't anything earth shattering, but it was a post none-the-less. Then I got a little click happy and deleted it. It really annoyed me. It wasn't that it was anything spectacular. It's just that I took the time to write it, and then I managed to somehow delete it. So if you read it, great, and if you didn't, you're not missing much . . . except a picture of my new yellow jeans . . . which are very 1980s . . .

I think I may have a stress fracture in my ankle foot area. At first I thought I just maybe sprained it, but it's still hurting pretty bad. Looks like I won't be running for a while. We'll see . . .

Oh and don't tell me to go to the doctor. I'll go if it doesn't get better in a few weeks, but I don't really have the time off from work. And it's not swollen or tender to the touch so I could be just being dramatic. Which is highly probable for me. ;)

I'm starting to get fruits and veggies from the garden. My jalapeno and tomato plants are doing really well. Which is great since I eat more tomatoes and jalapenos than any other human being on the face of the Earth. My strawberry plants are doing well too, but the stupid birds keep stealing my strawberries. I'm about to declare war on those stinkin' birds.

That's about all I know today . . . except, today I'm wearing green pants. Maybe, I've gone overboard on this whole colored pants phase. Hopefully, it lasts more than 3 months.

Settled in the One and Only

1 Peter 5:10
But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

This was the verse of the day yesterday on my Bible app on my phone. It comes from a fabulous passage of scripture which talks about casting your cares upon God. If you haven't read ever it, or if you need a refresher, I encourage to look it up.

Yesterday, when I read this verse something jumped out to me that I've never really paid much attention to in the past. Isn't it amazing how scripture does that? It really is alive and while it's unchanging, you can read the same passage or verse a thousand times and it can have a different meaning every single time depending on where you are in your life at that moment.

Yesterday, when I read it, the last two words hit me in a way they never have before. I've read this scripture so many times, but when I went back and read it again, I actually asked myself, "Does it really say settle you?". I mean we all want to be perfected, established, and strengthened, but when I read those words "settle you" . . .  I mean how amazing is that? To be settled . . . not settling for less, but being settled. To me being settled brings a picture of being content and at peace wherever you are. It brings a picture of being calm and at rest in a good way. It brings a picture of being confident in the One who can do what we can't do.

I think it's amazing how God works in our lives. He knows exactly what we need and when we need it. He knows what we are and are not ready for. And if we let Him, He will settle us.

On Dieting and Body Image

I wrote this post out of frustration with some things I had to deal with this morning. It is in no way my intention to offend anyone. I almost didn't post it, but then decided to just in case anyone has any thoughts.

This morning at school I found out that at least a couple of my girls are basically "dieting" to lose weight. First off, they don't need to lose weight. And second, how sad is it that fourth graders are even concerned about diets and weight loss? It breaks my heart that these girls are concerned about their body image at nine and ten years old. It's pathetic that as a culture we project the need to be "skinny" on our young girls.

It got me thinking about dieting in general, and how I've changed my overall way of thinking. When I was younger (high school and college younger . . . not nine or ten years old younger) I used to diet (even though I didn't need to). I would count calories or portions or only eat certain things. Now that I'm slightly older (and hopefully) wiser, I don't like diets of any sort. I think they send horrible messages to our kids. I just don't get them. Why can't we just eat healthier? Eating lean proteins (fish, chicken, and on occasion lean beef), lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, avoiding highly processed foods (lots of lunchmeat, frozen meals, prepackaged meals, and pre-prepared meals, etc.) and sodas, and drinking lots of water should lead to a healthy body. This is how I feed my family most days of the week. I want to teach my children to love good food. I don't want them to think of eating as a bunch of dos and don'ts. I want to them to make healthy choices because they love healthy food. I'm not bragging. I'm trying to make a point.

Do we ever have a treat? Yes. I also don't want to go overboard the other way and be a food nazi. Sometimes, I grab a Lean Cuisine for lunch because I just don't have time to prepare an elaborate healthy lunch, and as a family, we love ice cream. We also go out to eat once or twice per week, and while I try to order healthy "stuff" off the menu, sometimes I splurge. And Patrick . . . well I have no control over what he eats for lunch, and he's not as much of a fan of fruits and veggies as I am. But when we eat at home, and we do at least five nights a week, I try to make sure that I cook healthy well balanced meals.

I also think about exercise differently than I did even five years ago. I used to work out to lose weight. Now I work out to be healthy and strong. While toning up is an added benefit of working out (and one I won't complain about), I really don't care if I lose weight. I like the way it makes me feel. I like knowing that I'm setting a good example. I do it because it makes me feel better, mentally and physically.

I've been stewing over this since I spent fifteen minutes of this morning trying to explain to a very confused little girl that starving herself is not a good idea. I said all that to say this, we spend so much of our lives trying to teach our children to be confident in who they are and how God made them, but when we don't set a good example ourselves I think we fall short. I think that's why I am so against dieting. I think it sends the wrong message to our kids . . . especially our girls. It says, "I need to be skinny to be happy" rather than saying "I want to eat right and exercise so that I'm healthy".

I hope I didn't offend anyone . . . once again, it certainly wasn't my intention. You all know that I sometimes use this blog to sort out my thoughts and feeling. Which is exactly what I'm doing here. Had I not dealt with this issue this morning you probably wouldn't have been so fortunate as to read this discombobulated rambling post. I do, however, think that a unit on being truly healthy and taking care of your body may be coming up in Mrs. Davis's classroom very soon.

Thank you for listening. I am now stepping down off my soap box.

Random Catch Ups

I was without email for about 24 hours. I flipped out. I felt lost, naked, exposed . . . okay, it was just really irritating. It was my fault completely. I went to log in yesterday, and it didn't work. So I tried over and over and over again. Then I changed my password three . . . yes three . . . times. Then yahoo locked me out of my email for at least 24 hours. I can't imagine why?!? At the end of the 24 hours I had to correctly answer my secret questions . . . which I never remember my answers to . . . I got them right. I'm back in my email. Hallelujah!

I've been running almost everyday. Last Sunday I did 5.16 miles in 53 minutes and 19 seconds. If it seems like I'm bragging it's because I am. I mean y'all, I was so shocked. I'm almost 31. I'm getting up there. ;)So yes, I'm gonna brag a bit. But really, I love that I'm running again. I haven't run like this since before Andrew was born. It's so addicting. The only problem is that it makes me hungry. I'm starving! All! The! Time!

I sort of redid Andrew's room in dinosaur stuff. He is currently obsessed with dinosaurs, and I searched high and low to find the perfect stuff for his room. You know how you have the picture in your head of exactly what you want but no one in all of the 6 or 7 billion (or however many) people on this Earth have created it yet? How is that even possible? In the end, they had the perfect set at Target. So I guess, someone out there is a creative genius much like myself. Why I didn't start there I'll never know. Pictures to come in the near future.

I think we've decided that we are going to rename our little girl when she comes home. I know this is extremely controversial, and there are pros and cons both ways. Just so you know, I'm not asking for opinions on this. It's a personal decision, and we've decided as a family. Sorry if that's rude, but I don't want emails and comments about how wrong I am to change her name. Name meanings are very important to me, and so we put a lot of thought into what we want to name our children. Maybe I'll share the name soon. Maybe I'll wait and keep y'all in suspense. ;)

Well that's about it on the random catch up post. Hope your week is going great. It's almost over folks. Yay!

Our Weekend

I know. It's Tuesday, and I'm just now getting around to posting about our weekend. We have been crazy busy, and I'm not even remotely exaggerating.

Last Friday, Patrick and I went with Andrew's school on a field trip to the Austin Zoo. The Austin Zoo isn't really a zoo but more of a rescue facility for large, wild animals. Some of them have been mistreated or abused. Some of been acquired through illegal means and brought into the United States, and some just need a home. Anyway, it's a small zoo, but great for field trips. The kids really had fun.

Felines meaning very large tigers. Don't you know that would be an unpleasant experience.

I love small children . . . I would like to eat one for dinner . . . 

This beautiful display of plumage was followed by some . . . ummm . . . peacock . . . hmmm . . . how to put this gently . . . mating rituals where the male peacock bopped the female on the head and then . . . well use your imagination. One of the moms was like "Well, what's going on there?". I asked her if she needed to me to explain. At which point she said, "Oh my gosh! Let's go boys." Andrew still thinks they were fighting and wants to go back. Patrick then spent the next thirty minutes with his iPhone poised to video in case it happened again . . . it didn't . . . he's so weird.

Simba here was ticked off. It didn't help that 30 noisy children were a few feet away but just out of reach. I don't think I've ever been this close to a lion before, and I've never seen one quite so angry (you know because I interact with lions on a daily basis, and generally speaking they're calm, cool, and collected animals). Which brings up something else. I've concluded that the only difference between domestic and wild cats is their size, and if given the opportunity and ability, our cat would eat us for dinner, lick his chops, and go to sleep on our pillows. 

Feeding time for the tigers. Patrick was disappointed because they didn't put all the food in one spot and let them fight for it. Maybe we don't belong at a rescue zoo.

After the field trip we came home because we had a t-ball game Friday night (and because we were tired), and another one Saturday afternoon. I think I spent more hours at the baseball fields last week than I did anywhere else. We had concession stands one night and games three nights. Thankfully, this week is much slower.

Hope everyone is having a great week so far. I'm off to wash Andrew's baseball uniform . . .  again. :)

Adoption Update (of sorts)

Hey everyone! Hope you had a great weekend.

A reader left a comment on my last post asking about the adoption and mentioned that I haven't updated the timeline in a long time. I realized that I haven't, and the truth is, I haven't because there isn't really anything to update.

We've started our home study update so we are doing some paperwork although not nearly as much as we had to do last spring. I will add that to the timeline here shortly. This summer we have to redo our fingerprints for USCIS, and then we will continue to wait.

It's hard to believe that it has been over a year since we started. In the beginning, there was lots to tell you about, but when you're waiting there just isn't much to say. Which is one of the reasons why I changed the name of the blog. We are definitely still "Waiting for Bulgaria", but life still continues while you wait.

Our agency did receive a referral for a five year old last week. That was really exciting because it seems like there haven't been many referrals here lately. Bulgaria has been going through some political transitions, and it really slowed things down. Politics are politics no matter what country you're from . . . Hopefully, things will start to pick up soon.

One thing that does happen while we wait is that we continue to collect things for our little girl. I know it seems crazy to some, but when I (or my sister or my sisters-in-law) see something cute we've been known to grab it. My sister and I have even bought clothes which I know is a little weird because we have no idea what size our little girl will be. We tend to trend toward the 3T/4T size assuming that she'll be small and grow into them. And if for some reason they never fit, I'm sure we can find someone who needs them ;). Here are a few of the treasures we've collected.

These first two pictures are of things I've picked up. I showed you the quilt I bought for her bedroom last year, and this is the sham that matches the quilt. The little owls are bookends. Also, my hometown hosts the Watermelon Thump every summer. So my little girl will have to represent in her watermelon dresses.

The next three pictures are things my sister, Sarah, has grabbed. She's worse than I am by far.

These are from my sister-in-law, Crystal, and family. Isn't that little zebra the cutest? (and I honestly, can't remember if she gave me the little pink owl or if I bought it . . . I'm losing my mind, but I know with absolute certainty that she gave me the zebra and the green owl . . . at least I think I'm certain . . . )

And this antique doll rocker is from my sister-in-law Sally and niece Chloe. It's absolutely beautiful and perfect for a little girl's room.

I know to some people it may seem silly that we've already started collecting "stuff", but it's not about the stuff. It's about what it represents. It represents a little girl who is already loved and part of our family. It represents the fact that both of our families have openly embraced the fact that we are adopting. Not a single person in our families questioned it. Everyone was on board and excited from the word go. They have no idea what that means to us.

Until our little girl comes home will continue to collect things that we think will bring her joy and remind us that though the wait may be long one day she'll be home forever.

A Conversation

A conversation between Patrick and Andrew. Andrew: Whay does wise mean? Patrick: Well, I guess it means smart. Andrew: I think it also means nice and soft. Patrick: No it doesn't. It means smart. Andrew: I think you're wrong. It means nice and soft. Typical day in the life in our household.

Easter Weekend and A Few T-Ball Pics

We had a very busy Easter weekend, and this post is going to be full of pics. Friday, we did laundry and then had a birthday party. On Saturday we spent the day at a nearby park with Sarah and Anthony. Sunday morning we had church (of course, I have no pictures of us in our Easter best), and then we headed to my parents' where we ate way too much (I'm just emerging from my food coma) and hunted eggs. Monday night we had our third t-ball game. I'm not kidding when I say that it feels like our 33rd. This is just a very busy week, and I'm a little grumpy about it. I'll live.

And the pictures are in reverse order . . . I'm way too tired to fix it . . . I'll live.

T-Ball and Baseball . . . Monday Night

Fake cough . . . because no one is looking at me.

Still being ignored . . . I'm not liking this.

I finally got Mom's attention . . . now she must take my picture because "I'm so handsome".

Move it or lose it Dad (and by "it" I mean your head).

Tiny little uniform for a tiny little four year old.

Anthony pitching . . . his game was much more serious.

No laughing and playing for the big boys.

Hunting Eggs  . . . Sunday Afternoon

Anthony didn't really want to hunt eggs . . . he's nine which means he's extremely cool . . . Andrew's four which means he could care less about being cool.

Day at the Park . . . Saturday (for a very long time)

My sister and my nephew . . . so sweet (for about 10 seconds ;)).

We rode (paddled?) the paddle boats. Snakes kept popping their little creepy heads out the water. It gave me the heebie geebies (that's not even remotely spelled right).

Haha . . . look what happens when you sit in the mud . . . for three adults we found this way too funny.