Hustle and bustle of the weekend and week :)

I had a productive weekend and a busy week thus far. Now, I must admit I am insane when it comes to cleaning out junk. My Mother taught all of us kids that throwing away is a good thing. Why hold on to clothes that don't fit, are out of style, I haven't worn in a year, so on and so forth. I don't need 30 notebooks when I only ever use one (and have had the same one for 10 years with nothing written in it). I think over the years my friends have enjoyed watching me declutter every 6 months (Kristina, Katy, Page, Katie, list goes on) and now it's Stephens turn to see me tear apart, purge and deep clean. Welcome to marriage buddy.

Now granted, he has see bits and pieces of me throwing out. He has experienced buts and pieces, but nothing to the extent of this weekend. This weekend we attacked the garage, attic, pantry, drawers in kitchen, bathrooms, closet, and bins filled with stuff I pulled from each room and made him sort through. Right now, I assume there are about 30 bags, give or take in the garage to be picked up by good will and the garbage men. All that is left, the office. :) Bless his heart, I think he was miserable the entire time (and I would be too if I were psycho about cleaning out), but he was such a trooper, never complaining and so willing to help! For celebration Saturday night, he cooked steaks, stuffed crab, green beans, black eyed peas, rolls and cake! It was so nice to relax after that hectic day!

So, now I get to the pictures above. Even after all the torture I put Stephen through, he came and surprised me for Valentine's Day with 2 dozen roses and lunch out on Tuesday! I got a phone call from him seeing if I wanted to come out and see him. Uh, yes! That night we had a low key dinner with my roomie and her bow, chicken enchiladas and awesome (If I do say so myself) chocolate cupcakes with strawberry icing and chocolate covered strawberries on top. Boo-yah!

So as my week continues, we had Marriage 101 class at church, today is my dress fitting and tomorrow is marriage license. Life will slow down soon, right? Ha. NEVER.

Happy Thurday-ing!

Oh the power of lists

Lists are great when you are an A type person, such as myself. I love it for packing, running errands, etc.

Today, I started my "What to cook when married so we don't eat cereal every night" list. I wanted food that I could make in the crock pot and a wide variety of foods that would be yummy in our tummies but not expand our waist lines either. So, if I go to the store, we can have the chicken we buy prepared in multiple fashions and still be delicious and not bland. I want to be able to freeze some of it and send it the next day to work for lunch. Obviously, I have a lot of expectations out of this "list".

So, I visited Kraft.com and Pinterest and of course Publix website to figure out some recipes that would work. I did find some not so healthy, but I'm okay with it. I enlisted the help of my friend Andrea to give me some ideas too. The list below is not all encompassing, but you get the idea. I have things for sides and desserts too, but honestly, typing it all out is a bit overwhelming and I just don't want to do it. Enjoy and let me know what you think would be a good starter addition to my repertoire.

Chicken:

Chicken Enchiladas

Chicken Chili

Chicken Parmesan

Poppy Seed Chicken

Chicken Skillet

Chicken salad

Chicken roll ups

Beef:

Hamburgers

Beef stew

Taco Soup

Pork:

Pork Tenderloin

BBQ Pork sandwich

Eggs:

Quiche

Stuffing egg bakes casserole

Breakfast for dinner (duh)

Fish:/Shrimp:

Pan seared tilapia

Chipotle orange Shrimp

Shrimp N Grits

Well, I will start trying my hand at some of these within a few weeks - 26 days and counting! The picture below is SMS with the celebration cake - we had a fun dinner of crab, steaks, veggies Saturday!

I am rather excited to begin cooking some of these. I think they will be rather tasty, agreed?

Happy Monday to you, dear reader!

Amidst the chaos

Amidst the chaos is such joy and beauty.

I was sitting here listening to a great song on Spotify (thanks British friends for introducing this to me) called You Are Our Hope. Excited to be the child of God, a sinner, cleansed by His mercy. I am so thankful. Thankful for the hard days, the wonderful days, the days that help give perspective, the days that I can't help but smile.

Comfort for weary sinners

Strength for the struggling saint

Jesus Christ has risen from the grave
Peace when the waves are pounding

When voices of hope sound faint

Jesus Christ has risen from the grave

How can grief remain when our Savior reigns?

You are our hope, You are our joy

You are our overcoming King

So we sing “Hallelujah, Jesus is alive”

Risen from death, ascended on high

Glorious by the Father’s side

So we sing “Hallelujah, Jesus is alive”

Power to fight temptation

The world and the devil’s lies

Jesus Christ has risen from the grave

Purpose in all our suffering And joy that will never die

Jesus Christ has risen from the grave

How can grief remain when our Savior reigns?

Jesus, victorious, in the heavens exalted

Jesus, give us eyes to see Your glory