Monthly Archives: August 2012

My Simple Summer Kitchen

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One of my favorite dinners to make during the late summer is margarita pizza. It’s easy, delicious and cheap.

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This time of year, the tomato and basil plants both overflow with ripe, yummy goodness.

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I like to use roughly chopped basil, but theBOY prefers to combine finely chopped basil, olive oil, salt and pepper, then brush the mixture onto the pizza crust. {I use the Betty Crocker pizza crust mix that just require a 1/2 cup hot water.}

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I just do it the easy way most of the time – drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt onto the crust, then add the tomatoes, basil and fresh mozzarella {shredded works, too}!

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Bake at 350 degrees for around 15 minutes and enjoy!

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What are your simple summer kitchen favorites?

Project WriteItDown :: Week Three

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Project Write It Down

A few pictures from readers…20120825-050823.jpg

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How did the third week of Project WriteItDown go?

You can’t imagine how much I enjoy seeing your pictures tagged with #WriteItDown2012 on Twitter and Instagram. I hope the pages in your journals are filling up with all kinds of things you want to remember.

I also happen to know that several of you are going through some big stuff. Life change, life loss, struggling to keep the family together.

My prayer for you – the friends I know well and the new friends who have emailed me out of the blue – is that by the end of this little experiment, you’ll read through your journal by the glow of Christmas lights and discover that even when life is hard…when it just plain sucks…God is faithful to give you good gifts along the way.

The strength to make it through another day.

Joy in the little things.

A grateful heart.

If you haven’t written yet this week yet, do it now! Set a timer for five minutes and just write. Remember, don’t over-think it.

(New to Project WriteItDown? Learn more about Project WriteItDown and join us on Twitter using #WriteItDown2012.)

Link Love :: August 24

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Welcome to another Link Love. I did not have much time to find links that I loved this week, but here goes…

First, a confession. I don’t like to cook. Oh? You already knew that? Well, I do like this post because it has some good ideas for minimizing the time spent in the kitchen.

Next, a little Pinspiration. This is presently my motto. I will let you know when it changes.

 

And finally, this. A friend posted this video on Facebook this week. This woman can hear a baby cry and know what he or she needs/wants. I found it rather interesting. I’d love to hear your thoughts…

(Don’t forget to WriteItDown this weekend! I know I wouldn’t have made the time to write this week if it wasn’t for all of you doing this along with me!)

Project WriteItDown :: Week Two

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Project Write It DownWe’re two weeks into Project WriteItDown now! How’s it going?

If you haven’t written yet this week yet, do it now! Set a timer for five minutes and just write. Remember, don’t over-think it.

(New to Project WriteItDown? Learn more about Project WriteItDown and join us on Twitter using #WriteItDown2012.)

Did you struggle with anything in particular this week?

What to write down?
Remembering to write?
Finding the time to write?

Or has it been an easy practice for you to write?

Keep it up! Eighteen more weeks of this and we’ll all end up with a Christmas treasure.

Kid Love

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A picture taken by bigSIS. She’s a natural, don’t you think??

I’m changing things up a bit and trading this week’s Link Love for a little Kid Love.

I hope this puts a little smile on your face today…

bigSIS says “I have a butt crack” when she means I have a wedge. And it makes me laugh every. single. time.

Yep, that’s the kind of mom I am. She knows she’s saying it mixed up, but I think she likes seeing me try not to laugh when I correct her.

This week I heard her in another room saying “Call Peck’s mobile!” She had my iPhone and Peck is one of her imaginary friends. Siri was seriously confused.

And lilBRO…

On Wednesday the doctor asked if he could wave yet. OOPS. We hadn’t worked on that. Well, by Thursday night he was waving like a pro. Turns out, you just have to ask him to do it…

I hope you have a beautiful, joy-filled weekend!

Have any kid love to share with me? Leave a comment and tell me what the kids in your life are saying/doing that makes you smile!

The Comfort Zone

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I keep running into Pins/blog posts/tweets with this theme of really living by getting out of your comfort zone.

Well, I like my comfort zone thank you very much.

It’s hard enough for me to get out of my pajamas, let alone my comfort zone.

I imagine the people jumping on this bandwagon must be mountain-climbing, sky-diving, thrill-seeking adventurers.

That’s not me. I’m the one who sat in the car with the hot chocolate in high school until the crazy sled riders were ready for it.

No matter how I look at it…I’m not a risk taker…or daredevil…or step-out-of-my-comfort-zoner.

Source: google.com via Dannette on Pinterest

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But here’s the thing: For those of us who like to have both feet on the ground…a detailed plan for our day, week, life…

Getting out of the comfort zone…your comfort zone…is less about doing the risky, daring, dangerous thing and more about letting go of the comfort of your perceived control over life.

Being comfortable doesn’t take faith.

Being comfortable doesn’t take courage.

No glory is found in the comfortable.

If you only stick to situations you can control 100%…the comfortable ones…then yeah, maybe you’re not really living.

An artist can’t impact the world by staying in the comfort zone.

Advances in medical research don’t happen because researchers choose comfort.

My daughter doesn’t grow up believing she can change the world if she has a mom who prefers the comfortable.

My son doesn’t grow up with a desire to help people a world away who desperately need help when his dad chooses to stay in his comfort zone.

My friends aren’t blessed by our friendship if I only stick to the comfortable topics.

So the next time I have the chance to choose between comfort and the uncontrollable…the thing that might rock the boat…I’ll try to choose the boat rocking. At the very least, I’ll make some bigger waves.

And big waves can be fun for those standing on the shore.

How are you at the uncomfortable things…?

Project WriteItDown :: Week One {+ A Winner}

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Project Write It Down

 

 

 

 

So? How did week one go?

Judging by the number of conversations I had and pictures of pens, paper and real handwritten words I saw, I think you’re all off to a great start.

I love seeing those pictures and hearing about how you’re doing, so keep them coming!

(New to Project WriteItDown? You can learn more about Project WriteItDown and join us on Twitter using #WriteItDown2012.)

If you haven’t started yet, do it now! Set a timer for five minutes and just write. Don’t over-think it.

Still need a little help getting started? Try this…

Write about something that happened this week that you never want to forget.
Today we sent lilBRO crawling into bigSIS’ room to wake her up from her nap. Her sweet reaction surprised me. She didn’t seem to think it strange at all that her 9 month old brother was in her room. She slowly woke up (as usual), tossed him her stuffed bunny to play with and then climbed out of bed ever so carefully so she didn’t step on him. They began playing together, all while we watched in from behind her door.

Write about what you’re most thankful for right now.
Clean sheets. That’s what I’m thankful for this very minute.

Write about what you want to do better next week.
I need to be better at enjoying the current thing without ruining it with planning, thinking, obsessing over the next thing. That’s what I want to do better this week. Lord, help me!

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And now to announce the winner from this weekend’s giveaway…if you were one of the nine who left a comment, your odds were pretty good.

I had some technical difficulties with my usual random number generator, so I picked a winner the old-fashioned way…with a little help from theBOY.

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And the lucky winner is…

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When I went back to see who left comment number three, I saw that it was the very lucky (understatement?) Melissa! Congrats, Melissa. You’re going to love your Sassy set of note cards from Jenze.

Thank you, Jenna, for your generosity!!!

 

So, really. Tell me how you did this first week of Project WriteItDown? Did you crack open your journal? Did you struggle at all?

Link Love :: August 10 {plus a Giveaway!}

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This week has been interesting to say the least. I’m going to blame the late night Olympics because that seems reasonable…right?

Anyway, I did find a couple of things worth sharing…

I discovered Sevenly a couple of weeks ago, and I’m pretty happy I did. Sevenly sells clothes/bags and then gives a bunch of the money to the charity of the week. Each week the featured artwork is changed to reflect the charity they are supporting. Neat idea. Neat art. Even neater…they’ve supported one of my favorite charities a couple of times in the past – Feed My Starving Children.

This pretty printable makes me want to learn U.S. geography all over again. I almost won the states and capitals bee in elementary school, you know.

Source: mrprintables.com via theGirl on Pinterest

I got some Jenze goodness in the mail this week! I love the combo pack of cards. I was so excited when she announced on the Jenze Facebook page that she added them to the shop. I scooped a pack right up!

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I love Jenze, but I love Jenna of Jenze even more. Do you know how awesome she is? When I asked her if I could include her in this week’s Link Love, she offered to give away a pack of goodies to one of YOU!!

Jenna is so sweet that she’s letting you choose what you’ll win if selected! So to enter, just visit the Jenze shop and pick your favorite pack of cards. Let me know which one you want to win in the comments. Easy!

Enter to win until midnight Saturday (08/11) night. I’ll announce the winner Sunday evening after I check on how your project #WriteItDown is going!

Thanks, Jenna!

Good luck, everyone! Have a beautiful weekend.

~Sarah

Oh, the Irony…

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Do you remember this quote?

“The simple act of paying attention can take you a long way.”

Not even 24 hours after quoting the brilliant Keanu Reeves {insert sarcasm if you haven’t already} this happened…

I left my office in pursuit of an iced coffee. I happened to be having a semi-serious text conversation with a friend at the time.

On the way, I decided to stop at the restroom. I slipped through the door and stopped to finish the current text (because I may walk and text but I do not text while in the stall).

Out of the corner of my eye I saw something white and shiny. Several white, shiny things, actually.

Can you guess what they were?

Urinals. A row of them.

So, yeah.

“The simple act of paying attention can take you a long way.”

Please, have a laugh at my expense. I sure did.

Ready to Write?

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I have my new notebook and I’m ready to go!! I’m excited so many of you are joining in Project #WriteItDown!

It’s not too late to jump in! If you’re curious, you can quickly catch up. Plus, I’ve added free printables below!

Now…for those getting ready to put pen to paper this week, some thoughts…

“The simple act of paying attention can take you a long way.”

- Keanu Reeves

Yes, I just quoted Mr. Reeves. I cant believe it either. But it’s true! So this week, just enjoy life and when something happens that makes you think I should write that down – do it!!

And if next Sunday comes around and your paper is still blank? Find a quiet spot and set a timer for 10 minutes. Think about your week and write what’s worth remembering. If nothing comes to mind, just jot down a few things you’re thankful for!

What kinds of things do you plan to write about?

I’ve decided to start a journal for myself. I have one for each kid, one for theBOY, one for vacations…but this one will just be mine. I’ll write down all the things I want to remember instead of the things I want someone else to know. So excited!

Did you gather your supplies? Let’s go!

Edited: OOPS!! I got so excited, I forgot to post the #WriteItDown printables! I put together a couple of options as an alternative to buying a new notebook or using an old one. Just click on the image or link below to save and print several blank pages….then fill with you’re writing!

WriteItDown Printable

WriteItDown Notebook Paper Printable