Dorito salad

March 20, 2014March 20, 2014dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 Leave a comment

Last summer while visiting my cousin, the girls and I were introduced to our favorite salad. I’ve been making my own variation ever since and it’s as big a hit as ever! Thanks for the idea Becky, I took that sweet baby and made it my own and it’s pretty life changing!!! Hope you don’t mind me sharing, the world needs to know! Lol

You know the drill, gather your ingredients: you’ll need:
-bag of Doritos (Becky used regular Doritos, I typically prefer baked unless they’re nowhere to be found.
-1 lb lean ground beef
-garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, cumin, and ground red pepper (cayenne)
-shredded cheese
-plain Greek yogurt (Becky used sour cream but I always substitute yogurt for sour cream)
-salsa (I used pace because it’s what Dave had laying around already but you pick your own brand and heat)
-iceburg lettuce
-tomato
-1 can black beans (optional-they weren’t used in the original but I like them)
-corn (I use frozen sweet corn. Again this is optional, Becky didn’t use it)
-black olives (once again an optional add on)

Step 1: brown your ground beef and add seasonings (just a pinch of everything really or you could even use pre mixed taco seasoning I’m sure)

Take your corn and black beans and heat them in a small pot. While that’s simmering, take your Greek yogurt and salsa and combine them in a blender until it’s a lovely pinky peach color. You’ll want to use equal parts salsa/yogurt.

Grab your Doritos and crush them up with your hands or a fork in the bottom of your bowl and then add a nice solid layer of lettuce followed by a layer of ground beef. Add your corn/bean mixture, and drizzle your yogurt/salsa sauce over the top. Add some shredded cheese, cilantro, tomatoes, and olives and enjoy!

Easy, quick, delicious! Yummmm!

Lies Christians tell themselves (and sometimes others too)

January 16, 2014January 16, 2014dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 Leave a comment

Those of us who were raised in the church or even found our way there as adults, know that there are certain character traits that Christians are “supposed” to possess. Good Christians should be honest, fair, kind, and generous right? So, I’m gonna start by being super honest with myself (and you). Here goes, ready for it? I am NOT always honest, fair, kind, and generous! In fact, I.AM.A.LIAR! Yikes! Felt good to get that off my chest! Yep, you read that correctly, I lie to myself (and sometimes others) pretty often actually. What on earth do I mean you might be asking? Let me give you an example as to lies I often tell myself (and others). Brace yourself, you may just discover that YOU are a liar too! Yikes!

Lie #1: “I’ll pray for you.” Relax. I’m not saying this is always a lie. In fact, a good 97% of the times that I say I will pray for you, I REALLY do! But the bottom line is, I’m forgetful. Reaaaaaaaalllly forgetful. There are some days that I get so caught up in my super hectic life that I actually forget that 3% of specific prayer requests if I haven’t written them down or stopped that very second to pray. Eeeeeesh. Most of the time, I’ll see a post on Facebook or hear someone talk about the request later and want to slap myself in the face because I know I wasn’t a strong prayer warrior for that particular need.

My commitment to future honesty: When I hear or read a prayer request I will immediately stop what I am doing and pray for that need if possible.

Lie #2: “I don’t have any cash to give.” We’ve all been approached by a homeless man on the streets, a group of children asking for donations for their school or sport, or some other need. Sometimes I question the sincerity of the need and rather than opening my wallet, I just politely apologize with a generic “I’m sorry, I would, but I don’t have any cash on me”. This isn’t always a lie. In fact, I very rarely do carry cash on me but if I’m being super honest, there’s an atm on every corner and most stores have a cash back option when you’re paying with a card. More than the lack of cash though, I wonder if the person is really in need. I double even triple guess the need and if I don’t deem the person truly needy I use the no cash cop out. Last week, the girls and I were grocery shopping and a young mom approached me with her young toddler on her hip. She told me she was from a nearby town and needed some gas money to get back. I sweetly smiled and said yep, you guessed it, “I’m sorry, but I don’t have any cash”. She politely said “that’s okay, thank you anyway” and disappeared down the aisle. The truth is, I had cash. I had lots of cash actually. I had a neat little row of $100 dollar bills I had been meaning to take to the bank to deposit. If I had a $5, $10, or $20 I would have gladly handed it over but, I didn’t want to give her a whole $100! I blow $100 on stupid stuff all the time so what was wrong with giving it to someone who could have used it. But no, I questioned her motives. I asked myself if her story was true or was she planning to use the money for drugs or alcohol and even, who knows if that was even her baby. hahaha yes, I gotta laugh at myself on that last one because that’s just how paranoid and critical I have become.

My commitment to future honesty: I will carry around several $20’s for instances just like this and I will attempt to calm my over analytical thoughts about people’s stories of need. I will just open my heart and my purse and GIVE and not worry about what happens with that money once it leaves my hands.

Lie #3: “When God clearly speaks to me, I will obey.” Sometimes we pray and pray for God to reveal things to us and we swear up and down that we will do whatever it is he is asking of us without question because really, who questions GOD? Sometimes I’m guilty of hearing God’s voice loud and clear and ignoring him because I don’t like what he’s got to say. A few weeks ago, I prayed that God would show me places that he could use me. Specifically I was praying for a new church home where he might use me with the youth or on a praise team because those are the areas that have my heart to serve. But I wasn’t just praying for those things, I was praying that he would show me ways that I could better show his love to the needy and broken people I encountered on a daily basis. So first the stranded young lady at HEB then yesterday he placed another need before me and I just ignored him! I went to city hall to get a proof of residency form because I didn’t yet have a utility bill with our new address on it and needed one. As I was walking in, 3 kids in tow, a man and his son (probably about 10) held the door open for the girls and I. I took note of how polite the little boy was because in this society it’s so rare to find youth who have been taught manners and chivalry. They let us go ahead of them in line very politely even. I got the form I needed quickly and then paused to the side to read a text message while Payton tied her shoe and couldn’t help but overhear the conversation between the man and the city employee. He was asking for an extension on his water bill because it was about to be turned off. He said his wife had a new baby and he had been laid off work and he didn’t have enough money to pay the bill at this time. The employee said she could extend it until the following friday but that was the best she could do. The man looked defeated but took what he could get. At that very moment, God told me to pay the man’s water bill anonymously. I looked him over and decided that I didn’t know enough about this tattoo covered man to do such a thing. The girls and I slipped out to the parking lot and headed to the gym. Throughout my workout I couldn’t get this family out of my head. I remembered the feeling of desperation I had when T was born, just weeks old and Dave was laid off when oil crashed in 2009. I imagined what his wife must feel like. I pictured her sitting on the sofa, nursing that baby, crying, and wondering how they would provide for their children with her husband out of work. I tried to push the image out of my mind and move on about my day but it plagued me and quite obviously is still bothering me. Why didn’t I do what God told me to do? Well, I don’t have a good answer other than I questioned the circumstances. I made myself the jury and the judge and decided I needed to know why the man had lost his job, why he hadn’t yet found another, and why he couldn’t afford to pay that water bill. I wondered if he had failed a drug test and gotten fired or if he was irresponsible and couldn’t show up on time. When Dave lost his job, they tried everything in their power to keep him on. He was one of the last people from that department they laid off in fact and his layoff had nothing to do with his very strong work ethic and everything to do with there just not being enough work at the time to justify paying him. So why should it have mattered to me what this family’s circumstances were. The bottom line was, they were in need, and I am so incredibly blessed to be in a place financially that I could have helped meet their need but didn’t.

My commitment to future honesty: I’m a work in progress and it is human nature to be slightly selfish and apprehensive of giving your finances. After all, you work hard and should get a say in where that money goes right? But I will try and remember that it is not my money but God’s money and by his grace, we are so very blessed. I will listen for his voice and even when it puts me out of my comfort zone I will try my hardest to be obedient. I’m not saying I will never disobey but I’m going to make a conscious effort to practice obedience when he tells me to do something or give to someone.

Lie #4: “I’m not judging her/him/them at all, it’s not my place to judge.” Ha! Who exactly do I think I’m kidding? I’m judging ALL day long. I’m judging those Facebook posts, that language he/she used, that parent with the ill behaved child at the playground, that mom giving her baby dr. pepper, the elderly woman waiting tables, the mom who lets her little girl wear booty shorts or heels, the list goes on and on but you get the point. I’m judging all the darn time and all the while telling myself I’m not a judgmental person!

My commitment to future honesty: I’m not saying I will never judge again because I think it is in our nature to judge others when their lifestyle and choices are different than ours. But, I will say that I will stop telling myself that I’m NOT judging. I will try and recognize when I am being judgmental and remind myself that different strokes are okay for different folks. God made us all different and that’s okay. I’ll try to remember that I don’t like the feeling I get when I know someone is judging me and try my hardest not to make other people feel that way.

I lie to myself all the time and sometimes others too but I can’t lie to God. He sees my heart and he knows my actions. What lies have you been telling yourself?

The F word

December 5, 2013December 5, 2013dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 Leave a comment

We’ve all heard the expression fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me! Most of us try and live our life to that standard. We’ve got this idea that if someone does something to hurt us physically, emotionally, verbally, whatever, we should out of the kindness of our hearts give them the benefit of the doubt and extend some forgiveness but just once. If the screw up again then too bad for them because we’ve already forgiven them once right? Hate to burst your bubble kids {and my own} but WRONG!

Let’s get real honest with ourselves for a second. Have you ever sinned? Have you ever sinned more than once? Twice? More times than you can possibly count? The answer is YES, YES, YES, and YES! Often we go with our tails between our legs crying out to the Lord begging for forgiveness but other times, we just take his mercy and forgiveness for granted. We just expect him to forgive us because we know he does. We just know he extends grace and mercy repeatedly even when we don’t deserve it. Why do we know that? Because the word tells us he does! But, in classic human nature, we take the word and we twist it to meet our needs. We pick the parts we find beneficial to us out and use those but sort of paraphrase the rest. We find the “loopholes” if you will.

Matthew 6:14-15 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

I often joke saying I have a “black thumb”. Seriously, I could kill a cactus and pretty sure I have. Horticulturist I am not but last year, I thought I would try my hand at an herb garden. Nothing makes me happier than cooking with fresh herbs and it never fails I’m out of basil or rosemary in the middle of making a fabulous from scratch pasta sauce. So, I moseyed on down to my friendly local Home Depot and snagged some potted herbs and a large window planter. I didn’t do much research on the subject because the little biodegradable pots were just to be planted directly into the soil so I figured it was fool proof. I planted Rosemary, Basil, Cilantro, and Sweet Mint. I watered and cared for them for several months and they seemed to be thriving. They made delicious additions to soups, pastas, chicken, and even mojitos! Nom…nom…nom… mouth watering just thinking of it! After several months, I noticed the mint seemed to be thriving a little too well if ya know what I mean! It’s super easy to grow and maintain so it easily takes over some of the weaker herbs. After several more months, it was becoming difficult to get to my cilantro. The leaves of the mint had become intertwined with the leaves of the cilantro and it just became a lot of work to try and keep the leaves apart. Eventually the cilantro died. R.I.P Cilantro-you were my favorite herb child. When I went to remove the cilantro plant, parts of the mint started to come up as well. The mint roots were so strong that they intertwined with the roots of the cilantro plant and began to take over and defeat them! What is the moral of this little gardening tale you probably are asking? You may even be throwing your hands up yelling at your computer screen “get to the point already you dysfunctional domestic diva!!!” The point my friends is when we don’t extend forgiveness to others, it plants a seed of bitterness that only grows and thrives inside of us. It takes root and if we let it, this bitterness will thrive and take over our life and it can sometimes defeat the roots of kindness that dwell in the same place. We need to remember that we are only human and we will ALWAYS fall short of the humans that we SHOULD be. Some transgressions are easier to forgive than others but that doesn’t mean those transgressions are unforgivable.

All of that being said, there is a fine line between forgiveness and foolishness and I think we often confuse the two. The act of forgiveness doesn’t mean we have to be foolish and constantly subject ourselves to hurt. I’m not saying if your husband is repeatedly hitting you or betraying your trust that you should just say “oh no problem honey, I forgive you again” and stick around for more. Get yourself OUT of that toxic situation but don’t let the hurt become your crutch. It could be your spouse, a friend, a co-worker, an ex, a sibling or other family member, a stranger on the streets even! You say “I forgive you” and truly mean it, then move on with your merry little life! Here’s the kicker. People don’t always ask for forgiveness. They may not think they’ve even done anything wrong at all and it isn’t our job to pass judgement on their sins but it IS our job to forgive them. We must show them the exact kindness, grace, mercy, and forgiveness that our heavenly father repeatedly extends to us. If we don’t, that original hurt, that original sin committed against us by someone else can quickly morph into our own sin and become bitterness! Don’t be bitter kids. Forgive, move on, and please be kind to one another. Forgive but please don’t be foolish especially when it comes to the safety and security of yourself or your children! Forgiving someone doesn’t mean you turn a blind eye and allow hurtful behavior repeatedly. There are consequences for everyone’s actions whether that be on earth or on judgement day. The good news is, we aren’t responsible for that big ole judgement burden, just the forgiveness part.

xoxo

BBQ turkey meatloaf

October 29, 2013October 29, 2013dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 Leave a comment

Bear with me here because I just kinda made this up as I went so I didn’t take a ton of pictures because I wasn’t 100% positive if it would be worth ever making again. Ummmm… Yeah, definitely worth making again!!! ALL of my kids loved it and asked for seconds. Yep all THREE of them! Usually 1 loves it, 1 tolerates it, and 1 hates it so when I hit a home run with a meal that all 3 love I make sure to add it to the meal archives! I had some lean ground turkey in the fridge that HAD to be used today but I had no idea what I was going to do with it! I vaguely remembered someone talking about BBQ chicken something or another on fb the other day and so I thought to myself, why couldn’t I make a turkey meatloaf?!?!? The greatest part about it is it’s a quasi healthy dinner!
Preheat your oven to 425 and gather your supplies.
You’ll need:
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 egg
Oatmeal (about 3/4 cup)
BBQ sauce

I didn’t take a picture when I started but I just so happened to have another lb of ground turkey in the freezer so I brought it out for visual purposes! I’m 100% confident that you could find a healthier BBQ sauce option but this was all I had on hand thanks to my grillin’ fool of a hubby! I’m not a huge BBQ sauce fan so I wouldn’t know for sure however this sauce was darn tasty and had 70 calories per serving & 0 fat although thanks to the honey I’m sure the sugar was higher. Next take your oatmeal and toss it into a food processor or blender and blend until it’s fine like flour. You can use saltine crackers as well I’m sure just like in regular meatloaf.

In a mixing bowl, beat 1 egg and add your lean ground turkey and your oatmeal. I tossed in a little garlic and onion powder and then about 4 tbsp of BBQ sauce and mixed well. Form into a “loaf” and put in an oven safe dish. Put it in the oven and begin to smell the deliciousness almost immediately!

Ovens will differ but mine was mostly done by about 15 mins and I just squirt a little more sauce on top and spread it around before putting it back in about another 5 mins. Before I started on the loaf, I had started some brown rice and it was done about this time.

My friend Mallory also suggested a really delicious sounding broccoli recipe (I’m obsessed with broccoli!) sadly, I was out of coconut oil, I only had limes no lemons, and I didn’t have any Parmesan cheese for it like she recommended but I kinda improvised the same concept and yuuuuummmm! I’m going to have to hit up the grocery store for all those other things so I can try it the way it’s supposed to be ASAP!!! I lined a cookie pan with foil then lay the broccoli florets on top. I drizzled it with probably no more than 2 tsp of olive oil and then squeezed the juice of half a lime on top too! A sprinkle of mrs dash table blend and then I found this white cheddar popcorn seasoning in my cupboard and the label on the lid caught my eye “try me on veggies” well, okay, don’t mind if I do! So I sprinkled some of that on too and threw it in the oven too!

I sprinkled a little fat free mozzarella on the kids broccoli and then served it all up!

I added a dollop of extra BBQ sauce to the kiddos plates but left it off my own. They pretty much licked their plates clean. T didn’t eat her broccoli but she hates broccoli any way I serve it! I will DEFINITELY be making this again soon! Maybe with a baked sweet potato on the side next time! Nom nom nom!

Peach Salsa Chicken

October 14, 2013October 14, 2013dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 Leave a comment

I’m always experimenting with food. I’m pretty much never organized enough to plan a meal so I usually just improvise and throw things in a pan on a whim. It’s never steered me wrong and my experiments often lead to some favorite family meals!
Several years ago I stumbled upon this fabulous Central Market organic peach salsa at HEB. Yuuuuummmmm! It’s so ridiculously delicious! It’s the perfect blend of sweet and spicy, even my kids love it with some black corn chips. Nom… Nom… Nom! One night I needed to get some dinner on the table quickly and didn’t have a ton of groceries handy so I scrounged up some ingredients that I thought may compliment each other well and bam Peach Salsa Chicken was born. It’s one of Dave’s very favorite meals now. He requests it often!
You’ll need:
-Chicken breast depending on the size, you’ll probably need 1 small breast per serving.
-frozen corn
-1 can of black beans
-rice (I used instant white because it was all I had but we often use brown rice instead)
-1 jar of Central Market Organic Peach Salsa (I’m sure you could find a similar concoction at your local grocer)
-1 jar of regular salsa of your choice
-Garlic Powder
-Onion Powder

You’ll want to start by dicing your chicken breast into small bite sized cubes and then season with your garlic and onion powder. The amount of salsa you use will depend on the amount of chicken you’re cooking but you’ll want it to be about a 4:1 peach to regular salsa ratio.

Mix well and simmer chicken on medium heat while you make rice according to package directions for the appropriate serving size you desire. Add your corn to a small pot with a bit of water and a tablespoon of butter or margarine. When it’s almost completely done, add your black beans and stir.

Once everything is fully cooked, remove from heat and began serving in layers. Rice, then corn/bean mix, then chicken. I like to drizzle a little bit of extra salsa on top and my kids like a little sprinkle of cheese added to theirs too!

Stick a fork in me I’m done! My favorite! You can add additional spices while you cook your chicken for a little extra umph! We like to add cayenne pepper and red chili powder to make it a little spicier but I’ve also added a sprinkle of brown sugar to make it sweeter. The possibilities are endless!

My baby is 9. Yep, NINE!

October 4, 2013October 4, 2013dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 2 Comments

Last week my baby turned 9. She may be my oldest but she’ll always be my baby! Try as I might, I couldn’t keep her from growing up. I cannot wrap my head around the fact that a whole 9 years have passed since I brought this little miracle home from the hospital! I’m so proud of the little person she is becoming. She’s smart, beautiful, helpful, kind, and loves Jesus. I couldn’t ask for more in a daughter. I had her tag along on a session last week in the outfit she picked for her party because A. She’s amazing with babies and I knew the sweet 1 year old I was working with that night would love her B. It was a lovely wooded looking area that I though would compliment her outfit well. She took one of her favorite American Girl Doll’s along too!

Several weeks ago we had 12 of her favorite little ladies spend the night for a back to school bash. Everyone had a blast but I told her right then and there that we wouldn’t be having a huge party for her birthday this year since she got to do that. Her birthday weekend also fell sandwiched in between 2 trips to Dallas for the American Girl Fashion Show & rehearsal, and a Bitty Baby tea party we won through House Party. All this traveling and partying combined with school and soccer didn’t leave me much energy for another big bash. Besides, when you have 5 girl nieces and 3 daughters, you have a built in party at every family gathering! lol I told P she could invite 4 friends to join her and her cousins for a camping themed party. Poor child had such a tough time narrowing down her list. We’re so fortunate to have so many sweet girls in our lives! When all was settled, she selected 3 school friends and 1 soccer pal and we got to work on hand delivering invitations. We dipped oversized marshmallows in chocolate and sprinkles on skewers and drove around to present the invitations, pre-party snack, and a tiny little compass to all our cousins and 4 friends.

When our guests arrived, they were asked to “Register” at the camp welcome center. Here they would grab their “welcome packs” (goody bags), sign a frame for P to keep as a memory, and pay their “camp dues”. P has so much of what she wants and much more than she could ever need so instead of gifts, she asked her guests to bring their spare change to donate to one of our favorite charities. We printed out little name labels for each of our guests and used ribbon to tie them to canvas tote bags we got 2/$1 at Dollar tree. They also had a “camp journal”, mini deco tape, a cool wooden pencil, flashlight keychain, scratch off ticket, a little thank you note, and camping sticker scene activity. We got the mini flashlight keychains and sticker sheets from oriental trading. The flashlight and tape are “doll sized” which is perfect for my little AG lovers.

The girls snacked on mini pretzel dogs and cheeto puffs and drank their “bug juice”. It was lemonade that I added strawberry flavoring and green food coloring too. Then we froze plastic bugs in muffin tins to use as ice.

I had cute little chevron printed paper treat bags set up near a pink tackle box full of candy “bait” and cups full of different flavored teddy grahams and gummy bears for the girls to make their own sweet trail mixes.

Then we moved on to our table to do a few crafts and the scratch off tickets. We passed out lucky pennies and the girls got a kick out of them. The winner got a bigger backpack style “camping pack” filled with a nifty journal, flashlight, sports bottle, stickers, etc. I got all of this stuff at Michael’s in the fun finds section. Nothing I bought including the bag were over $1! After the winner got her goodies, we moved on to arts and crafts. I got these cute little peace, love, and s’mores kits at oriental trading ($6/12pk) and they were the perfect addition to a girly camping party. We also made s’more necklaces out of polymer clay. We LOVE polymer clay!

The kids also enjoyed the “fishing hole” and visited it on and off throughout the party. We got a few packages of ping pong balls at dollar tree and hot glued foam tails and magnets on them. We used dowel rods with fishing wire and a large washer on the end for fishing poles and a plastic kiddie pool I borrowed from my bestie for the pond. The girls paired up and raced to see who could catch the most fish in 1 minute. The winners got to pick a prize from the prize box (sticker sheets and more Michael’s fun finds).

After fishing, the girls all climbed into the tent we had set up with their dolls and played with the doll sized s’mores and campfire we had made before the party. We made the s’mores using polymer clay and toothpicks for doll sized skewers. The fire we made using a scrap piece of cardboard for the base. We traced LED tea lights we got at the dollar tree and cut a space out on the cardboard for them. I sent my kiddos on a scavenger hunt for small rocks and twigs and used hot glue to secure them. It was a hit! We set up the doll tent inside the real tent with some adorable doll sized sleeping bags my mother made. P had one of her dolls giving horseback riding lessons to the other dolls too! hahahaha She might be my kid!

While the girls played in the tent, Dave and I hid plastic bugs I got at dollar tree around the yard. I used a sharpie to write “winner” on 4 or 5 of the bugs before we hid them. When we were done, the girls had to find 3 bugs each. Those who found winning bugs got a prize from the prize box.

After all the fun, Dave lit the fire pit while we finished our remaining crafts and the girls got to enjoy their s’mores. We had 2 different kinds of chocolate, 2 different kinds of graham crackers, and 4 different kinds of marshmallows to choose from! It was fun watching the girls make different s’more creations. They grabbed their skewers and had a great time laughing and roasting marshmallows together. We had cupcakes earlier in the evening so I limited the girls to 2 s’mores each so they wouldn’t be bouncing off the walls for their mothers later! lol

When the s’mores were done and the moon was out we handed out glow sticks and let the girls run free in the yard with their flashlights and lanterns before it was time to go home. I have to say it was nothing super fancy, but it was by far one of my favorite parties we’ve hosted! I kinda wanna do it all over again! Hope all the girls had fun too! On top of all that, our generous friends and family raised about $100 for charity and brought P some goodies too! She got some great books, a guitar, the rainbow loom thingy she’s been dying for, and her first bow and arrow set from her grandparents. She’s dying to get to the ranch and get some lessons from Grandpa! Love my sweet girl and hope she had a great birthday! Have lots of camping themed printables I will probably upload later in case anyone is interested 🙂

In the perfect ending to a great weekend, we participated in the baby dedication at church the next morning and even better, P got baptized! What an incredible moment it was watching my Daddy baptize my daughter!

Happy to have a glass!

October 1, 2013October 1, 2013dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 2 Comments

I haven’t written in the last couple of weeks because we’ve been unbelievably busy! 3rd grade home days are whipping us and we don’t have time for much else it seems. Add soccer and gymnastics into the mix and you’re left with some seriously exhausted kiddos and their mama by the end of the week! On top of all that, we had 3 birthday parties and a soccer game last weekend and this past weekend we had a small party for P’s 9th birthday, baby dedication, and Baptism at church!

More than all the busyness though, I haven’t written because I’ve been struggling with some negativity. When I started this blog, I was making a commitment to myself and my readers for it to be a source of encouragement and positive posting. Mama taught me if I didn’t have anything nice to say, not to say anything at all so I battled with my negative inner demons alone. We’ve been hit hard the last couple of weeks with misfortunes and bad news that it’s been tough to maintain a positive attitude. First with all the fiascos of the last post and then it seemed that slowly but surely everything else began to go wrong!

We found out my mother in law’s tumor had begun to grow back and we just aren’t sure what all of it means. Waiting for weeks for test results, hoping to get her into a clinical trial, her not feeling well. The kids want to see Grandma and it’s tough for her when she’s not feeling well so it’s been a stressful situation for my father in law and everyone else involved. Then, after Dave’s blowout situation a couple of weeks ago, we had another truck mishap. Last week he called and said he hit a cow and messed his truck up pretty badly. Thank God he was okay, that big ole’ grill guard really helped block the impact of the 2,000 lb bovine but caused pretty severe damage to the truck. We were waiting on the insurance representative to contact us so we could see what the next step would be. We were pretty confident it was totaled because of the amount of damage that was done but after meeting with the insurance company yesterday, their preliminary estimates don’t point in the direction of totaled. This is a bit disappointing to us as we are concerned about the condition of the truck after so many extensive repairs. With as much as he travels, we just can’t risk him being in a vehicle that is in anything less than pristine running condition. In between all this we got a contract on our home but it fell through when the buyers were offered a promotion that included a relocation, there was a misunderstanding that lead to some family tension, one of my very best friends had to admit her 5 year old daughter to the hospital for pneumonia and I can’t be there with her, and we discovered that our oldest daughter’s severe dyslexia was really giving her some problems in school.

With all of this bad news and tension surrounding our family, I was finding it extremely difficult to be positive! But this morning, I was sitting around sulking about my bad series of misfortunes and attempting to sort through and purge some of my memos, texts, photos, etc from my phone. I stumbled upon some church notes I had taken several months ago and decided to revisit the lesson. Something my pastor said, as silly as it may have sounded at the time, stuck with me that day and made a profound effect on negative lil’ ole me. He said “are you the type of person who sees the glass as half empty or half full, or are just happy that you have a glass at all?” Wow! Certainly on my negative days, I knew I was looking at the glass as half empty when I should be looking at it as half full but here I was patting myself on the back for doing great on my “positive” days because I was viewing the glass as half full. HALF full! Let’s analyze that for a second.

Half (as defined by dictionary.com): one of two equal or approximately equal parts of a divisible whole, as an object, or unit of measurer time; a part of a whole equal or almost equal to the remainder.

So when I say my glass is half full, I’m stating that my life is equally good and equally bad. Let me review. I’ve got 3 gorgeous children, amazing parents, a handsome hard working husband, 5 beautiful nieces, 1 handsome nephew, more incredible God fearing close friends than I can count on both hands, a roof over my head, a dependable vehicle to drive, clean clothes on my back, hot coffee in my cup, too much food on my plate, clean water to drink, and an amazing, wonderful, incredibly miraculous, all-knowing God to serve and that’s not enough for my cup to be more than “half full”? I would say all that good in my life far outweighs the bad little bumps in the road. Bad things happen, they’re inevitable. Life isn’t always going to be peachy and that’s okay. I’ll cling to the good and surrender the bad to God because he knows my strength more than I do and when I run out, he gives me His. So today, I won’t see my glass as half empty, nor will I see it as half full. Today I’m just going to be happy to have a glass at all!

Proverbs 3:5 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding”

What is your glass looking like today? Running a little low? It’s okay, tomorrow is a new day and there are free refills all around! Cheers!

I washed my hair in the sink of a tire store-and other misfortunes.

September 19, 2013September 19, 2013dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 Leave a comment

Last Thursday, I woke up feeling great! I was seriously ready to take on the day! I got up to make lunches and get the girls ready for school while Dave slept in a little later before heading out for work. I did my first morning drop off and only had to take 1 kid with me so I fully enjoyed a little praise and worship with the windows down and sunroof open kinda drive home. When I got back, everyone was up and at um so I went in to make the bed because an unmade bed just irks me all day!

Any guesses as to which side of the bed is mine?!?!? Geeeeez… I don’t understand how that man sleeps!

Ah yes, that’s more like it!

Dave took T to school so after the bed was made, I moseyed on over to my Keurig to brew myself a cup of heavenly Coconut Mocha coffee in my favorite “Shhhh… Mommy’s not coherent yet” mug. I plopped myself leisurely on the sofa to snuggle with the littlest menace of the house while watching “toons”. I tried to get a picture with her but she told me “no” seems to be her favorite word these days!

We hung out watching “toons” for a bit then went into her room to do about 18 wooden puzzles and then read about 15 touch and feel books. By 10:30, little miss priss was ready for a nap! I lay her down and said “I love you” and she gave me the usual “tooooooooo” in reply. I shut the door and practically skipped to my bedroom to grab my bible. Yep, it was going to be a great day!

I opened my bible and sprawled out on the bed for my daily (okay, you caught me, more like my thrice weekly) devotional. It was actually a really good word about allowing God to guide you through the nine billion decisions you have to make a day instead of relying on your own judgement. Yep, I needed that! I’m really enjoying this “Daily wisdom for Mothers” devotional journal.

I was just wrapping up when my phone started ringing and P’s school was flashing on the caller ID. I answered assuming they needed a volunteer for something but nope. It was worse. Much worse! They informed me a child in a lower grade had a confirmed case of lice and that I needed to come inspect my child’s head with the nurse to ensure that she hadn’t become a buggy breeding ground! Lovely! I called my mother who was luckily available to come stay with the sleeping baby while I dashed off (without so much as showering mind you) to bug hunt. When I was a few blocks from the school, my phone begin to ring again. It was Dave, I figured he was calling to tell me he had made it to his rig in one piece. “I need you to call me a tow truck” were the first words out of his mouth. It seems he had a double blow out in the middle of nowhere about 2 hours from home. Thank God he was alright! The damage to the truck was minimal and he didn’t flip despite both the right tires being ripped to shreds. His fender was a little messed up and his step rail on that side was bent as well. But thank you Lord he was okay! I sat in the parking lot of the school and made some phone calls for him as his service was pretty patchy where he was. As I waited on some calls, I went into the school to see what the situation was with P. There were a couple of girls in the office and the nurse informed me that she thought she had seen a single “nit” on her head but was unsure as P has very dry scalp and it could have possibly been a flake instead. We searched and searched and never found it but thought it best to treat her just the same as a precaution. Better safe than sorry, so I brought her home with me.

Meanwhile, back on the side of the road, we had determined that a towing company could pick Dave and his truck up and tow it to the closest town’s tire shop to get him back on the road. Long story short, after quite a few phone calls back and forth, we determined the local tire shop didn’t have the correct size tires in stock so they wouldn’t be able to fix it that day. He had to get back on the road to work so this wasn’t an option. I called our local discount tire and determined that they had the correct tires in stock and ready for pick up. As luck would have it my mother was off and available to keep the kids so I could go pick up the tires and drive them 2 hours to meet Dave at the tire shop in Pecos so that they could mount them and he could be on his way. By the time I got there it was around 3:30 and Dave was on the way with the tire crew. Poor guy had spent 4.5 hours on the side of the road waiting for tires! I had a little time to kill before he got there but I was starting to panic because I hadn’t yet showered and had my hair in a tangled ponytail under a baseball cap. I was wearing athletic shorts, a t-shirt, and running shoes. Normally, this wouldn’t have been an issue but it just so happened on the crazy day that I’m running around like a nut, I have somewhere to be at 6:30! My best friend had made us a reservation weeks earlier to a dinner/painting class at a nice restaurant. So naturally, like the dysfunctional domestic diva that I am, I stopped in to the friendly local Wal-Mart in Pecos and rummaged through the racks for something suitable to wear to dinner! I snagged a black dress, a mustard yellow cardigan, some colbalt blue flats, baby wipes, a travel bottle of shampoo, mousse, and a package of elastic headbands and was on my merry little way out the door after spending a mere $32.81!!!

Once I arrived at the tire shop, I moseyed into the bathroom, locked the door behind me and slipped my new ensemble on. I used the baby wipe to “wash” my face, and then took my cap off to survey the damage. Just as I suspected there was no way in hell to spruce that rat’s nest up so I did something that I’m not quite sure that I’m proud or ashamed of… I took my tiny little travel bottle of garnier fructis out and washed my hair in the sink of a tire store. I grabbed a handful of paper towels and dried it the best that I could before scrunching it with the t-shirt I had been wearing earlier and a little mousse. Dave about fell over when I walked out in a whole new outfit with wet hair! Once in the car, I slapped on some makeup, a spritz of perfume, and hauled a$$ back to Midland! Not too shabby for a Wal-Mart makeover in a tire store huh? hahahaha

I don’t wear flats often but, I actually think these are pretty cute for $11!

I pulled up to the restaurant at 6:35 and we found our seats and joined right in with the rest of the group on our peacock painting lesson. Even though I had a crazy terrible day, it ended with friends, fun, good food, a couple of glasses of wine, and pretty peacocks.

Okay, I won’t be selling any paintings in the near future, but not too shabby for my first major painting. It was so relaxing! I’ve been trying to think of something else to paint all week!

They had a contest to see who could come up with the best name for the painting and the winner got a pair of hand painted peacock feather wine glasses so I gave it a go with “Do these feathers make my butt look big?” and wouldn’t you know I WON! Yay!

As I sit her tonight, almost a week later, testing my new wine glass out, I have to think to myself. Geeez. that was a stressful day, but all is well that ends well. They say God never gives you more than you can handle and I guess maybe that is true. Or maybe when he gives you so much to handle, he likes to toss in a happy ending to lighten the load. Whatever the case, even though 2 new tires cost me close to $1,000 and I spent half the day running around like a chicken with my head cut off, I’m grateful that His protective hand was on my husband in a scary situation. I’m also grateful for the 1 random clearance dress in all of Pecos, Texas, a fairly clean ladies room at Pecos tire, a great mom who came to my rescue on her day off, and good friends who laughed with me about my day. All in all, I would say it’s a beautiful life even when it doesn’t go the way I plan. Yep, I’ll drink to that! Cheers!

Taco wraps

September 15, 2013dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 Leave a comment

When we were off shopping for a few essentials at Albertsons last week, these ginormous burrito style 10″ tortillas caught my eye. Nope they weren’t an essential, nope they didn’t look healthy, but they sure looked like fun! So, I grabbed a package! I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with them but they were super thin in opposed to most flour tortillas so I thought they would make an excellent wrap of some sort. I was right! Mmmmm… these were so quick, easy, and delicious. They were a crowd pleaser with everyone for sure!

You know the drill! Gather your ingredients-you’ll need:

10″ tortillas or a similar wrap/bread
ground beef
frozen (or canned) corn
1 can of black beans
instant brown rice (or rice of your choice)
greek yogurt (or sour cream)
salsa
shredded cheese
Chili Powder, Comino (cumin), Ground Cayenne Red Pepper, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder (or pre-made taco seasoning if you choose)

In a small pot, begin to boil your rice according to the package directions and desired servings and add in your corn. The amount you use is entirely up to you. Simultaneously, in a large skillet, season and begin to brown your ground beef adding in the drained black beans when your meat is almost completely done. I use about 1/2 a can per 1 lb of ground beef but you can use more or less. How much seasoning you use is entirely up to you but remember, you can always add spice later but you can’t take it back! I accidentally added a bit too much red pepper and chili powder to my meat and 75% of us thought it was perfect. My 4 year old on the other hand said “Mommy, don’t get me wrong, these wraps are delicious but they make my breath spicy and my tongue burn!” lol Luckily, adding a bit more greek yogurt to hers helped tremendously and she at it all up!

When we visited my cousin in Fort Worth over the summer, she made us some taco salad with some really delicious sauce that my kids and I really loved. When I asked what was in it, I was shocked by how simple it was and have been making it since. She used equal parts sour cream and salsa to make hers but I always substitute sour cream for greek yogurt when possible as it is a little better for you. You can use either you would like. I use a small personal sized blender and scoop in equal parts of greek yogurt and chunky salsa and blend until the chunks are gone and it’s a nice pinkish-peach color.

When your meat and rice are completely cooked, remove them from heat, lay your tortilla on a plate, and begin adding everything in layers. I first added the rice/corn, then the meat/beans, I drizzled with a little sauce, and topped with some cheese.

Take the ends of your wrap and fold them over and then do the same with the sides rolling it as tightly as possible. Heat a small skillet and place your folded wrap in to crisp tortilla on both sides

Remove from skillet and cut in half to serve. They were HUGE so 1 fed both of my kiddos. I gave them blue corn chips and a spoon full of organic peach salsa. You’ll want to buy some of this at your closest HEB for a future recipe anyway! 😉

Mmmm… migitas!

September 13, 2013September 13, 2013dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013 Leave a comment

When I was a little girl my Daddy used to make the greatest breakfasts! His paps (or potatoes) were always a crowd pleaser but my favorite were always his migitas or migas as most of you have probably heard them called. Now that I’m all grown up, Daddy doesn’t make me breakfast much and I’ve never perfected his breakfast papas but I’ve learned to make the perfect migas and I’m going to share how with you if you’ve never attempted it. They’re actually super simple to make and extra delicious!

First gather all your ingredients. You’ll need

corn tortillas (I use white corn but yellow corn would be just fine too)
tomato
eggs
onion
cilantro
garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper
avocado (optional)
shredded cheese (optional)

stack your tortillas and either cut them with a knife into small squares or you can tear them with your hands if you prefer. Once they’re all cut up, put them in a skillet and drizzle oil over the top. You’ll want enough oil to coat all the pieces but not so much that they become super greasy and soggy. Obviously how much oil you use will depend on how many tortillas you used. I for instance use about 10-12 tortillas for my family of 5 and usually have leftovers. I mix the tortillas in the pan to coat them in oil but I don’t turn the burner on just yet.

You’ll then need to chop your onion, tomato, and cilantro. Once you’re done, crack your desired amount of eggs (usually about 1 per serving), into a bowl and add your onion, tomato, cilantro, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, & pepper. Whisk until mixed well and set aside. Meanwhile turn your burner on to medium heat and begin to fry your tortillas constantly mixing to ensure even cooking.

Once your tortillas are mostly cooked and a lovely golden shade, you’ll want to stir in your egg mixture. Continue mixing making sure your tortillas and eggs are nicely intertwined until your egg is fully cooked.

Once eggs are fully cooked, remove from heat and serve. My kids and I like ours with a little bit of shredded cheese sprinkled on the top and I usually serve it with sliced avocado as well. Dave doesn’t really like avocado so he usually sticks to drizzling his with salsa. See? Super simple! Are you absolutely drooling over there?!?!? I am just thinking about them! May need to repeat tomorrow, enjoy!

Diary of a Dysfunctional Domestic Diva

Whining, Dining, and Nursery Rhyming

Author: dysfunctionaldomesticdiva2013