Friday, February 26, 2010

If Friday Were a Man


He'd be my husband,


Because I'm pretty convinced I can't live without him.


He'd be my lasting crush since Kindergarden


The one who'd chase me in kissing tag and I'd secretly like it.


Yep!


I love Friday that much.


. . .


But wait,


Everybody loves Friday!


Hmm...


Ok, so he'd probably be a celebrity,


The most coveted bachelor


Ever to grace the red carpet with his attractiveness.


Like, "Look out, Brad & Orlando!" attractiveness,


Because we all love him that much!


. . .


But then, the guys would probably hate Friday.


Jealousy, you know.


So, he'd probably have a twin sister,


Friday the female,


Equally as adored and coveted,


A regular on the cover of Vogue and such.


. . .


Yep!


I'd have posters of Friday plastered all over my walls,


And I'd squeal like a school girl whenever I saw him or heard mention of his name,


And I'd Tvoe his every appearance on Oprah and the Tonight Show,


If Friday were a man.


Because I love him,


Yes I do,


That much!


. . .


Love your Friday,
Whomever he/she may be!


Wednesday, February 24, 2010

PPP Recipe - Polynesian Chicken



Madre made this scrumptious meal last night for dinner and I had to share. It is loaded with nutrients and it tastes delicious! Thanks, cousin Heidi, for sharing this recipe!
Keep the healthy recipes coming, guys & gals.

{We had it with broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, and wild rice. Delicious combo}

Title: Polynesian Chicken

Description:
This was one of our family's favorites growing up. We like to double the sauce.

Ingredients:
6 boneless chicken breasts
Flour with a little salt to coat chicken
Green pepper—cut into chunks
Mandarin oranges--drained
Sesame Seeds
Pineapple chunks--drained

½ c. orange juice
1 T. lemon juice
¼ c. brown sugar
2 t. corn starch
1 T. soy sauce


Directions:
Coat chicken in flour/salt mixture and place in a greased baking dish. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes. In a saucepan combine brown sugar and corn starch, then add orange juice, lemon juice, & soy sauce. Stir and bring to a boil and cook until sauce thickens. Arrange pineapple, peppers & oranges over cooked chicken. Pour sauce over top & sprinkle with sesame seeds. Put back in oven for 5-10 more minutes.

Number Of Servings: 6




My nephew ate all of his! That's gotta count for something.




After dinner we went to Yogurt Stop for dessert! All of their frozen yogurt is low-fat and non-fat AND tastes delicious! Frozen yogurt is a nutritious alternative to ice cream and/or frozen custard, if you ever have that craving that you just can't get rid of without indulging (like me)!

My favorite combo is:
Fat-Free Cheesecake Frozen Yogurt + Organic Granola + Fresh Raspberries = YUM-alicious!




And again, the kids LOVE it!



Health tastes good,
I promise!


Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Reach Out

My brother sent me this story in an email today and I cried. Read it and change people's lives:


One day, when I was a freshman in high school,




I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school.




His name was Kyle.




It looked like he was carrying all of his books.




I thought to myself,




"Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday?
He must really be a nerd."




I had quite a weekend planned
(parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon),
so I shrugged my shoulders and went on.




As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him.




They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms
and tripping him so he landed in the dirt.




His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him...




He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes.




My heart went out to him.



So, I jogged over to him as he crawled around looking for his glasses,
and I saw a tear in his eye.




As I handed him his glasses, I said,
"Those guys are jerks.
They really should get lives."




He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!"




There was a big smile on his face,




It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude.




I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived.




As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before.




He said he had gone to private school before now.




I would have never hung out with a "private school kid" before.




We talked all the way home and I carried some of his books.




He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.




I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends




He said yes.




We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle,
the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same.




Monday morning came and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again.




I stopped him and said,
"Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday!"




He just laughed and handed me half the books.




Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends.




When we were seniors we began to think about college.




Kyle decided on Georgetown and I was going to Duke.




I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem.




He was going to be a doctor and I was going for business on a football scholarship.




Kyle was valedictorian of our class.




I teased him all the time about being a nerd.




He had to prepare a speech for graduation.




I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak




Graduation day, I saw Kyle.




He looked great.




He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school.




He filled out and actually looked good in glasses.




He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him.




Boy, sometimes I was jealous!




Today was one of those days.




I could see that he was nervous about his speech.




So, I smacked him on the back and said,
"Hey, big guy, you'll be great!"




He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled.




"Thanks," he said.




As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began




"Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years,




Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your friends....




I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them.




I am going to tell you a story."




I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the first day we met.




He had planned to kill himself that weekend.




He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later
and was carrying his stuff home.




He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile.




"Thankfully, I was saved.




My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable..."




I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome,
popular boy told us all about his weakest moment.




I saw his Mom and Dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile.




Not until that moment did I realize it's depth.




Never underestimate the power of your actions.




With one small gesture you can change a person's life.




For better or for worse.




God puts us all in each others lives to impact one another in some way.




Look for God in others.





My Life: The Comic Strip


Today is a new day.

And so far, mine looks a lot like this:


It will get better,

Maybe I'm just not pushing hard enough.



Monday, February 22, 2010

Naturally


Sometimes I complain.


blah.


After 22 years on this planet,
You'd think I'd learn that complaining,
Though seemingly therapeutic at times,
Has never (ever) solved a single problem for me.


Nope.
Haven't learned that yet.


Being natural is annoying
Unless you're juice.


You know,
nat·u·ral [nach-er-uhl, nach-ruhl]
1. Prone to making stupid mistakes over and over again.


I guess you could say,
I'm a natural at being natural,


Until, I remember.


Because, you know,
The reason I'm complaining in the first place is because I forgot.


It's true.
As ridiculous as it sounds,

I forgot that people in Haiti are starving,
And that some people go through life without ever dating,
And that others would die for the opportunity to go to college.

I forgot that I am blessed


And sometimes my vivid imagination runs wild with my so-called "problems,"
Turns stepping stones into stumbling blocks,
And twists my perspective into an indecipherable knot,
The kind of knot that Boy Scouts get badges for.


I have never been good at untying them either,
But I'm getting better


...I think.


I start to tug at the jumbled mess and I find blessings
In every single strand that comes untangled.

[untangling]

Oh look, there's my amazing family!

[untangling]

Hey! How 'bout that! Here's my awesome education!

[untangling]

Well, what do we have here?

[untangling]

Food.

[untangling]

Clothing.

[untangling]

Shelter.

[untangling]

Love.


Blessings that I forgot about.
Blessings that, one-by-one, restore my perspective back to its beautiful form.


I step back and take a good long look at it,


Like breathing in through my nose while sucking on a pungent mint


My mind clears.


My lungs fill like birthday balloons.


Time almost stops.


And I remember.


Madre turns on music in the kitchen,
And I hear my 3 year-old nephew sing along


I am a child of God

And He has sent me here

Has given me an earthly home

With parents kind and dear.

I am a child of God

And so my needs are great

Help me to understand His will

Before it grows to late.

I am a child of God

Rich blessings are in store

If I but learn to do His will

I'll live with Him once more.

Lead me, guide me,

Walk beside me,

Help me find the way,

Teach me all that I must do

To live with Him someday.



I remember.

I start again.

Because that's Life,

And Life is Beautiful.