New Shoes

Yes, I'm blogging about shoes. I like these THAT much. lol Aren't they cute? (Thanks Loni!)

For the last several years all I have had as far as shoes have gone has been a pair of everyday tennies and a couple of different church shoes (one brown, one black.... oooooo adventurous I know...) So when I saw these they were a "must try on" (not "must have" cause I totally don't get killing your feet and getting blisters for a pair of shoes... now for a fit body, that's different!). So I tried them on and shuffled like a little ancient Chinese women (darn those things stores use to hook a pair of shoes together!) around the store for a couple of seconds and decided... "Yup, these are mine" even though I didn't know if I owned anything I could wear them with.

Turns out I have one shirt I can wear them with, and I wore it to church today... just so I could wear the shoes.

Now I just need to find some cute burgundy jewelery to make them go with more "stuff"!

Met With the Trainer This Morning...

and all we did was go over stats.... boring...

I was hoping we would work my butt off and get a good whiny "I'm so picked on" post in today, but alas we had to go over asinine crap important numbers... like, ohhh my current weight and what my BMI is etc etc. While I know that the information is needed, I have the drive to get in shape NOW, and honestly I'm worried that the lazy more relaxed me will grab me by the throat and say "WTH!" overcome my drive to change.

I have gone to work out four days this week at O'darkthirty in the morning (you know, before Goober has to get up for school) which in turn makes me get in bed earlier... It's actually really nice. No, really, it's nice. I have a whole hour to work on ME... without being pestered for anything. It's amazing :) And I get to watch the news, which is almost nirvana for me, since I'm kind of a news junky.

In the past I have made working out to be such a huge deal in my head, such torture, that I talk myself out of doing it. Besides who needs to be in shape anyways? Well, unless you want to be happier, be able to keep up with your kids, be more confident, and feel good about yourself that is...

So apparently next Tuesday is when I get my butt worked off.... hopefully :) Until then I'll get my lazy bum out of bed early and spend time with my new best friend... ice cream the eliptical.... oooooooo ahhhhhhhh

The nature of God in relation to women.

Soooo... on a religious note...

I have been doing a lot of soul searching lately and have pondered a few things that have some effect on my view of religion. What that effect is, has yet to be known. A big part of that is the nature of God (what better place to start?) and the idea of the Devine Feminine.

First off, I do not feel that as a women I am any less or any more than any man in God's eyes simply because I am a woman. If I were it would be inherently unjust and if God is unjust he simply cannot be God etc etc etc. That being said, apples and oranges and all that jazz. I understand that men and women are different and hard to compare...  they are very unique. Though I don't think it's hard to tell when a person or an organization has a preference for one over the other.

I feel that if God is in fact male he needs to have a female counterpart to allow him to understand his female creations. How else would an exclusively male god empathize with childbirth or the emotional struggle that many women have when they cannot carry a child to term? I have to keep in mind that the term "God" is not a gendered term, it is a station that does not indicate gender. Much like "teacher" or "CEO". For this reason when I am asked to pray in public I refer to my god as simply "God" to acknowledge that many in attendance may view God as male, but also to not feel as though I'm being untrue to myself in referring to God in the exclusively male form.

As an LDS person I have been taught predominately to pray and think of God as a male ie "Heavenly Father" ... I don't think it could get much clearer! :) But it is considered part of the LDS faith that we have a female part to our "eternal family" if you will. I think that many downplay this within the Faith. In fact I was saddened by the limited acknowledgment of Her in the new Gospel Principles handbook, especially in regard to the lesson titled "Our Eternal Family". In reading it I felt as though the majority of the lesson was about a single father. Yes, I will acknowledge that it did say "heavenly parents" twice so she wasn't completely excluded. i'm thankful for that. At other times I have noticed that within the limited acknowledgment that is within the Church this divine feminine is not capitalized ei Heavenly Father and heavenly mother. I don't know if this is just a holdover from the past ie polygamy and the acceptance of many wives, or if it is an oversight. (I hope for the later, I admittedly have issues with the concept of Polygamy but that is a whole other post in itself )

Anyhow, I found an article recently that absolutely enthralled me. It is written from an LDS perspective and takes into account Hebrew translations of the bible etc... and it also comes at the idea from a scholarly angle, which I appreciate, but often goes above my head! So if you are interested here is a link to it.

I will be healthy... I WILL... ummm hopefully

Ok, so over the weekend I got myself a gym membership. Mostly because I have no room in our abode to put a treadmill. But I figured if I was getting a gym membership I might as well make SURE this works. Soooooo I got myself some training sessions too.

Ok, the things about this is... what time during the day works best? I mean, really? If I didn't have the kids to worry about I would do it in the morning about mmmm nine-ish. But that doesn't work cause Jer isn't home and Missy is quite often still in bed. So... that makes me have to choose morning or evening. Cause lets face it, I'm not a huge fan of dishing out money so someone can watch my kids while I exercise.

So, I thought... evening!  That will work! Then I remembered last time....

I kept exercising nightly for .... ummm.... all of about a day. Ya. Sad.

Sooooo that leaves morning. I was already getting up at 6:45 to get a shower and Goober up and off for school... so that means I'll have to get up EARLIER. Training sessions take about an hour, I can have Jer get Goober up, but Jer also needs to get ready for the day.... So that means I have to be AT the gym at 6am. SIX. Which means actually getting up at about 5:45. Which in turn means I have to go to bed earlier.

I aimed for 9pm bedtime last night. Aimed being a good word because I actually GOT to bed at about 10 - 10:30 cause Jer and I started talking religion at about 9ish. lol. Well.... 10 is better than 11 or 12... right?

My alarm went off this morning and I very nearly turned it off. Then I thought... "Pay for a sitter or get up now?" Ya... get up now won. Don't ask me how. lol.

So this morning I exercised for an hour, came home got a shower, got Goobers lunch made and him sent out the door, all while talking "Feminism" with Jer before tell him he was going to be late for work and shoving him towards his car.

Not a bad start for the day. :) I actually already feel the difference.... isn't that odd? I don't know why I make exercising out to be such a beast... it's not so bad. Weeeeeeeeeellll... I guess I will REALLY know if it's bad or not come Friday and my first training session. But until then, high hopes! :)

Must. Go. Shopping.

Ok, I don't know about you... but as I take care of my kids and all the miriad of other things a mom does I tend to forget that sometimes I need things too.

It has been a long time since I actually went shopping with the intent of getting clothes for ME. Not the kids, not Jer, not quickly grabbing something that will "do". Actually actively shopping for cute stuff for ME.

Now I find myself in a bind. I look in my closet and think... "Meh. Nothing cute." I have things that have potential to be cute but many of them don't fit quite right because a) I grabbed them and didn't try them on in the store because my kids were with me and Me in a Dressing Room + Kids is not a fun picture... or b) I'm overweight. And then there is the issue that the few things I thought were cute got worn all the time and aren't cute anymore due to a) being worn out or b) being out of style.

... and then there is the added problem of cost. Cute clothes are expensive. Especially when your size lands right between "regular size" and "plus size" ... I feel lucky to find something that fits... let alone fits right.

So there is the problem all laid out.

My question... how do I fix it without breaking the bank... because seriously? I could chuck most of the clothes in my closet and SOOOOO not miss them...

Unfortunately, that would leave me NEKED.

My Husband is better than YOURS! HA!

Ok... so maybe he is just what is best for me!

Jer and I got married quick... and young... and we are DANG lucky to have gotten it right! We picked the right people to marry. US! :)

I'm so glad I have him... he is a huge dork, which I love! He is cheesy and corny and always has me rolling my eyes and saying "You're funny..." He likes to take things people say in the way they didn't intend it just to throw them for a loop, makes me think and use my brain.

He cooks, he cleans, he changes diapers, he hugs me and pretends (really well, I might add) that I still have the body I had when we got married. He has good discussions with me about the pros and cons of things, understands when I don't agree with him, has never EVER called me names (nor have I ever done that... character assassination is simply not allowed in our house).

What I find most amazing is that he's even okay with me going to other churches and checking them out... he doesn't see it as an affront to him, he understands that some things have to be learned on ones own....and this from a man that has spent his whole life as an active member of one church.

Our marriage is based upon love, trust, and respect. I have never doubted his love for me, have always trusted him... even to the extent that if something seemed suspicious I would always give him the benefit of the doubt. He always tells me things he fears might look bad before I ever have an opportunity to ask. We respect each others opinions and ideas and understand we are individuals working together, not working to become each other.

I love this man, and wouldn't trade him if my life depended on it.

Angela's Awesome Enchiladas

Got this recipe from Allrecipes.com I think it turned out great. Haven't met anyone who doesn't like them yet... and I've fed them to the missionaries (3 young men admittedly from the US) and the extended family. :)

Ingredients:
2 lbs skinless, boneless chicken breast meat - cut into chunks.
1 (10.75 ounces) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 & 1/4 cups sour cream
1/4 tsp chili powder
1 Tbsp butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies, drained
1 (1.25 ounce) package mild taco seasoning mix
1 bunch green onions, chopped, divided
1 cup water
1 tsp lime juice
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
5 (12 inch) flour tortillas
3 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded, divided
1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 (6 ounce) can sliced black olives

a) Place Chicken in a large pot and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until chicken pieces are no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Shred chicken by placing two forks back to back and pulling meat apart (or by putting in the Cuisinart lol) Set the shredded chicken aside. Meanwhile, combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and chili powder in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, then turn off the heat and cover to keep warm.
b) Heat Butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the shredded chicken, chopped green chilies, taco seasoning, half of the bunch of chopped green onion, and water. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the lime juice, onion powder, and garlic powder; simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
c) Preheat over to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Stir 1 cup of the soup mixture into the skillet with the chicken mixture. Spread the remaining soup mixture on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
d) Fill each tortilla with chicken mixture. Sprinkle Cheddar cheese over the chicken filling before folding the tortillas, reserving half of the shredded cheese for topping the enchiladas. Fold tortillas over the filling and place seam-side down in the prepared pan.
e) Pour enchilada sauce evenly over the enchiladas. Cover with the remaining 1 1/2 cups of cheddar cheese. Sprinkle the reserved chopped green onions and the sliced olives on top of the cheese. Bake in the preheated oven until filling is heated through and the cheese is melted and bubbling, about 25 minutes.

ENJOY!