Chicken Parmesan

I have a cookbook called Miss Daisy Cooks Light-Keeping the Taste and Losing the Fat in Southern Cooking. I've modified her recipe a bit but this has become a regular meal in our house. Its easy and its low fat/low cal.
Chop 1/2 medium onion and 1/2 green bell pepper.
Saute in skillet in olive oil until tender. Remove
Spray nonstick spray and cook 3 skinless boneless chicken breast in skillet- turning until fully cooked.
Add onion and bell pepper to skillet
1 clove garlic
In a small bowl combine
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 can tomato sauce (small can)
1 can diced tomatoes (14.5 oz)
Pour the mixture over the chicken. Cover and cook over low heat for 20-25 minutes
Uncover, sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese and cover for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
We put it over pasta in our house and serve.

Worn

I'm feeling very worn these days. Its not a physical tiredness although sometimes it can be. Its more of an emotional fatigue. Do you ever feel that some days it seems as if all you do is fend off attacks? Attacks coming from those sometimes you hold most dear? I even feel like I attack myself. I know I can be my own worst enemy at times.
I have struggled the past few weeks not to be defensive. I so have a tendency to make everything about me when I'm feeling worn down. Its easy to get your feelings hurt when you think everything is about you. My perception changes and instead of viewing things with a loving heart I start to see them with an accusatory one. I hear myself in conversations, questioning every thing or bringing up oppositional points just for the sake of argument.
It usually takes me a while to see what I'm doing- denial can be a powerful thing. Inevitably, my eyes are opened to my behavior and that's when I know to look inward. While the attacks may be real or perceived, the reason for my knee jerk reaction to them has nothing to do with the person who made them and everything to do with my uneasy spirit.
I am wrestling with what I need to do in my life. I spent most of 2006 and the early part of 2007 taking care of my mother and it was a crazy season in my life. It left little time for anything else (and I don't mean that negatively- I'd do it again all over). Next month it will have been a year since her passing and I still haven't figured out what I need to be doing with my time now. I did decide that this would be a healthier year for me physically. But for some reason focusing on myself feels for lack of a better word selfish. Logically I know its not but it does feel that way for me.
In the past few weeks I've had several people say things to me that have really hit deep. Things that I typically would have allowed to roll off my shoulders but because I am questioning myself, particularly my role right now, I could feel the tension and defensiveness rising with each hit. I saw someone last week that I went to high school with and haven't seen probably since graduation. She asked me what I was doing now and I told her I was a stay at home mom. Her first comment to that was, "Didn't you go to college?" followed by "But you were so smart in school." I've had other conversations with various people these last few weeks as well. Someone told me a story about a mother- it was a good story but it ended with, "Oh but its not like she works."
I don't buy in to the whole your job defines you or your education defines you. And I know I have been right where God wanted me to be. I prayed like crazy after I had Avery on what I should do- stay home or go back to work. I was blessed to be able to decide between the two. I felt with certainty that God was calling me to be home and throughout the years that has been reinforced many times- none more blatantly than when my mother became ill. Because I was a stay at home mom I was able to bring her to my house and care for her. I am eternally thankful for that opportunity.
I know that not every mother is afforded that opportunity- that choice. I also believe that God calls some of us to careers.
Ok- so here I am, anger welling up inside me to the point where I'm having a conversation with myself out loud. Aidan is looking at me like I've lost my mind. "I work-- oh I work! And I'm still intelligent and I went to college. Just who does she..." Stop.
And there it is... their comments aren't bothering me because of what they said but because of how I'm feeling right now. I'm feeling unsure, unsettled. I don't know any longer what God is calling me to do. I'm not certain right now that this is where I should be. I love being home with my boys. I continue to pray about whether or not I am where He wants me to be and I'm doing what He wants me to do. I have a tendency to get comfortable and to stay where I am because of comfort.
If you're reading this please, please pray for me. I know that prayer is powerful. I pray to see with clarity the path that God has for me. I pray that when He does reveal that to me that I see it clearly and follow Him no matter what. I pray that I can stop being so selfish-- very little is about me.

Old Photographs

One of my favorite things to do is to look at pictures, especially really old ones. Now my mom was about as good of a scrapbooker as I am. It was no surprise to find boxes and boxes of old photographs when I was cleaning out my mom's house. I brought them home with me and from time to time love to look back through them. These boxes are pictures from my dad's Navy days, ones from my parents early years of marriage, and early family photos of the four of us (my mom, dad, brother, and me).

This is my dad and mom. I know for certain that this was my mom's senior high school picture. Because there was no date on the picture of my dad, I can't be sure but I can say it was probably made before they married. Now weren't they a good lookin' pair? :)

And don't you just love the story a picture can tell? My parents were never publicly affectionate. I can't tell you that I ever saw them hug or hold hands. They were married for 28 years before my dad passed and I can assure you I never saw that kind of affection. Look at these two pictures! How cute are they- looking all in love and cuddly!! I love it!

My parents adopted my brother, Robert when he was six months old in 1969 and then adopted me when I was two months old in 1971. I can say this because I had a huge baby- Avery weighed almost 29 pounds when he was a year old. Look at my brother in the red- he's (to use a word from Aidan's vocabulary) hugongous!

Referring back to pictures telling a story, I love this one of my granny and grandaddy Wright (my mom's parents) and Granny Grunt (I don't know why we called her that- my mom's grandmother). You can't help but notice there's some history here. My Granny Grunt was not always the biggest fan of the man who married her daughter- Grandaddy Wright. Even though this was the case, I never knew until my mom told me years and years down the road. They were very civil to each other- even if their facial expressions in pictures gave them away. :)

Here's my bother and me with our daddy. He left home at an early age and joined the Navy so he always sported a crew cut. He was very loving and very stern. He was one of those daddies who could just give you "the look" and you got yourself straight real quick. He was a man of few words but when he spoke he meant it. These pictures make me smile because I loved sitting on my daddy's lap. I did it even when I was in college- I did up until he got too sick for me to do it. There was safety and comfort in that lap.

Here's our 1972 (I think it was a '72) Ford Pinto Stationwagon- it was dark green and we had that car till it fell apart literally. My dad won that car through his work, Greyhound Bus Lines. He was a ticket agent and they had put agents names in a drawing if they sold a certain quota. And there's me with my guitar I got from Santa one Christmas. I really love this picture now because if you look closely you'll see my tongue sticking out while I'm concentrating on playing it. Aidan does the same thing when he's concentrating on something.

The last pictures that I came across was from when my dad's brother and his family came to visit from Texas. We went to Opryland. My dad's favorite ride at Opryland was the Flume Zoom- he called it the log ride. Here's my dad, me, and my cousin Kim coming down the big hill. I had to include the picture of us on the train at Opryland too. The train is the ONLY ride my mom would get on. :)

I hope that my boys will look back fondly at pictures of our family and friends and let the good memories come washing over them.

The Presidential Candidate Match Game

Check out the Candidate Match Game on USAToday.com. You answer multiple choice questions regarding hot topic issues like immigration, national healthcare, and the war in Iraq. Based on the answers you provide, the quiz shows you the top three presidential candidates you are most aligned with.

Slow N Easy Chili

1 pound ground beef (I use turkey)
1- 28 ounce can diced tomatoes
1- 15 ounce can chili beans, undrained
1- 10.75 ounce can condensed tomato soup, undiluted
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium green bell pepper chopped
2- 1.25 ounce packages chili seasoning mix (I use McCormicks)

Saute onion and pepper in olive oil until tender. Brown beef. Put in crockpot. Combine all other ingredients in crockpot and mix well. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, stirring occasionally.

The Shack

The mailman just delivered my copy! I can't wait to get the boys in bed tonight and start reading!! My boys may go to bed at 6pm!! Just kidding. :)

Playing Games

Do you guys like to play card and board games with your kids? Jim and I love it! We were big game players even before we had children. We have played games with Avery since he was old enough to sit down and watch. Its by far his favorite thing to do- not only does he love playing the actual games but he really loves the family time we have when we do it. Aidan is the same. He's been playing with all of us since he was born. :)
We love Hi Ho Cherrio, Candyland, Sorry-- all those great games that we grew up playing. We also love the Cranium line of games- Balloon Lagoon and Hullabaloo are two of our favorites. We like card games as well. The boys have always loved UNO, Old Maid, and Go Fish. Our friends Lori and Melissa (ok girls if you had a blog here's where I could link to it- hint, hint)got the boys some great card games for Christmas- Monster Maker and CHOMP. We love the Gamewright card games and have had several of them for a while- CHOMP is one we just got for Christmas but we also have Wig Out and There's a Moose in The House. Fun, fun!!
We are always in the market for new games. Do you have some that are your favorites to play with the kids? I'd love to hear from you!

Who Wants Some Snow?

I do!
I was so hoping to wake up to it this morning. Yes, I am one of those people who gets her hopes up when the weather guy(I watch Jeff Ray on channel 2) even slightly mentions the possibility of snow even though our weather people's records of prediction are not very high.
I grew up in Middle Tennessee and growing up, we always had at least a couple of good snows a year. Now if you're from Duluth, what I consider a good snow and what you do I'm certain is very different. We would get at least 3 or more inches a couple of times during the winter. I remember sledding with the neighbor kids- we had an awesome hill on our road. The snowball fights were so much fun- we had kids from two streets over who would come to join in on the action.
I want to do that stuff with the boys. I know they would really get into sledding. But, other than the snow we got 5 or so years ago (do you remember that one- it hit quickly and was not really predicted), we haven't really had anything- at least anything you can really play in. Avery was about 18 months old when we had that big snow and I remember bundling him up and taking him out to play and he still remembers it. At the beginning of every winter, he asks if we'll have enough snow this year to build a snowman.
It snowed (really big flakes) a few days after New Years and it was so funny. I had been in the shower and it wasn't snowing when I went back to get in. I came out to find both boys glued to the back door window, begging to go out and play in it. It didn't even really stick but they so badly wanted to play in snow they were willing to take what they got. (Here's a pic of them out in it)
So here at the Waters house we are praying for some snow!

8 Things About My Boys

Carrie tagged me to write 8 things about my boys. They are both so different so I think I'll do them separately.

Avery
1. Is compassionate and giving to the Nth degree. (Last week he gave away all his snacks to some of his classmates because they forgot theirs)
2. LOVES to read. (I love this because I loved to read as a child and still do- just don't have as much time to do it now)
3. Can argue a point and wear you down. :)
4. Has such a great sense of humor (he's very shy but once he gets to know you really opens up and this comes out in a great way)
5. Is a rule follower
6. Wants to be an engineer like his dad.
7. Wears his heart on his sleeve like his mom. :)
8. Is a really fast runner.

Aidan
1. Loves his brother fiercely and would do anything for him.
2. Loves to sing and does it all the time
3. Marches to the beat of his own drum and likes it that way
4. LOVES little girls- especially Adeline. :)
5. Sticks his tongue out when he's really concentrating on something
6. Is very affectionate
7. Will try anything once
8. Could eat pizza three times a day every day of the week

I'm tagging Meredith, Sarah, and Lisa.

Sharing Recipes

I borrowed this idea from Christin and Ashley. They shared some great recipes that I'm looking forward to trying out. I thought I'd pass one on too.

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

1 roll of pillsbury pizza dough (cook as directed on the package)

3 boneless skinless breast of chicken cooked and shredded or diced

3/4 cup barbecue sauce

3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 450

After you have cooked pizza crust as directed on the package, cover crust with barbecue sauce.

Sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese

Put chicken on top of cheese.

Bake 7 to 12 minutes or until cheese is melted.

You can add diced purple onions for more flavor as a topping. I do that if my kids aren't going to eat it. This is one of the very few things that everyone in my house will eat.

I also use more than 3/4 cup barbecue sauce and probably more shredded cheese too- you can do your own desired amount. If you want to make it easier, you can purchase prebaked pizza crust and precooked chicken.

Raise Your Hand If You're Sure

I'm not so sure my deodorant is doing it's job full strength lately. Ok- maybe this is too much information (sorry) but I thought who better to get some advice and suggestions from than a bunch of women who I hope use deodorant. LOL! I have been strictly a Secret girl as far back as I can remember. I've always loved it and its always worked. My issue that I'm having now with it is that apparently it does stop any kind of body odor when I sweat but its not keeping me dry. I wouldn't want to raise my hand if I felt I were sweating for fear of the dreaded wet spot under the arms. Anybody used anything other than Secret and been pleased?

Also, is there really a deodorant that doesn't leave that icky white stuff on your clothes? I know they always advertise that there is and they make people wear their shirts inside out on those commercials to prove it. Secret "invisible" solid still leaves that white stuff on my clothes.

I know if you've read this far you're thinking right about now what kind of life do I have that I've just blogged about deoderant. :)

Just One of Those Things You Can't Believe You Did

Mornings are crazy in our house- packing lunches, getting everyone ready, teeth brushed, breakfast, backpacks, homework, and getting out the door by a certain time. Sometimes I feel like by the time I step out of the door, I've done a full days work already! It doesn't help that I have two of the biggest (and I don't even know if this is a word and if it is if I'm even spelling it correctly) dawdlers to ever grace the planet. How can it take 15 minutes to get from the front door of our house into our car and ready to pull out of the driveway??

Last week I got us all ready, Avery out the door to the bus and Aidan ready to walk out the door with me. I had to take food to MOPS so I had a hot casserole dish that required I carry it with both hands. So here Aidan and I go- Aidan with nothing and me with a backpack on my back, a lunch box, my purse, car keys, and a hot casserole dish out the front door to get in the car. I drop Aidan off at Mothers Day Out and I head to MOPS. I have a nice relaxing couple of hours with a great group of ladies. Hop in my car and head home. As I'm pulling down my street I notice my front door is open- wide open! My first thought is, "Someone has broken in my house!!" I park the car in the driveway and call my husband on my cell phone. I tell him that our front door is wide open. He says, "Well don't go in." and I tell him I have to because I don't want to call the police if there isn't anyone in there right now. So, I tell him if I don't call him back in 5 minutes then he needs to call the police. I walk in and start looking around. I notice that the computer we haven't hooked up yet is still in the front room and at this point I think if someone had broken in then they definitely would have taken that first. But, I'm still a bit nervous. I call my husband back to tell him I'm in the house and there doesn't appear to be anything missing. I keep him on the phone while I walk and check under every bed, in every closet and in the bathrooms. Nothing and no one and nothing is missing. Then as I'm walking back to close the front door the memory of my morning comes back. I remember thinking while I was standing at the front door loaded down like a pack mule with a hot casserole in hand, "I'll put Aidan in the car along with all the other stuff and then come back and close the door." Can you believe that I left the front door wide open from 8:45am-12:30pm!!! And no one came in not even a stray dog or wild animal!! I am so thankful that everything was all right and I have to tell you that I feel like I live in a pretty safe neighborhood! :)

Get Out Of That Pit -- Beth Moore

I am loving this book! I just wanted to share some of the things she has talked about. Its chapter six, titled- The Three Steps Out of Your Pit. The three steps are-

• cry out


• confess


• consent

I wish I could type this entire chapter in this entry but I'll just give you some of the things I have found eye opening.

"God wants everything you've got. Uncontested priority. Every egg in one basket. All your weight on one limb. This very moment He has His fingers on your chin, saying, "Right here, Child. Look right here. Don't look right or left. Stare straight into My face. I am your Deliverer. There is none like Me."

"His (God's) refusal to bend to our will may at first seem uncompassionate in light of all we've endured, but He's pushing for the best thing that will ever happen to us. God will never be codependent with you. He will never pat your broken back and say, "Who could blame you for all of this?" He wants you up on your feet, living abundantly, profoundly, effectively.

"Conviction is a hand delivered invitation to meet with God, and confession is an RSVP with immediate arrival."

"The conversation God began through conviction doesn't end with our response of confession. It continues with God telling us through His word that He forgives us and completes the process in our appropriate and freeing response of grateful acceptance."

"In our Christian circles, we constantly talk about putting our past behind us. That's not good enough. Its too easy for us to turn around and pick it up again. We want our past behind God's back. That way we'll have to go through God to get back to it."

I Believe...

I copied this from an e-mail sent from Meredith.

I believe -. . . That just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do.
I believe - That we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.
I believe - That no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.
I believe - That true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.
I believe - That you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.
I believe - That it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.
I believe - That you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.
I believe - That you can keep going long after you think you can't.
I believe - That we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.
I believe - That either you control your attitude or it controls you.
I believe - That heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.
I believe - That money is a lousy way of keeping score.
I believe - That my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time.
I believe - That sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down, will be the ones to help you get back up.
I believe - That sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.
I believe - That maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.
I believe - That it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others.Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.
I believe - That no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your grief.
I believe - That our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.
I believe - That you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change your life. Forever.
I believe - Two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.
I believe - That your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.
I believe - That even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you - you will find the strength to help.
I believe - That credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.
I believe - That the people you care about most in life are taken from you too soon.
What lies behind us and what lies before us, are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.

PAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm not the most physically fit person. I exercise- just not as regularly as I would like to. And apparently judging by this step fusion class I took at the Y yesterday not nearly as intensely as I should! :) Oh My Goodness!!! I got out of bed this morning and my legs were screaming, "No!! No!!! Don't move us!! We hurt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I was thinking I'd try some classes at the Y and then on days I couldn't get to the Y do my elliptical here at home but I'm not sure I can even step up on to the elliptical. :)

I only found the step fusion class on Monday mornings- I think they may have it in the evenings but I really do need to do mornings. Does anyone have any other suggestions of classes at the Y they offer in the mornings? I would obviously as this post suggests need beginners whatever it is- ha!

Clean House

Just so you know- that picture is not my house- just got it off common search. :)Have you seen this show? Its on the Style network- I think. I LOVE it. If you haven't seen it, the premise of the show is that people write in asking for this team of people to come and help them clear their clutter and redecorate their home. Once the team comes in to your home, you have to be willing to part with your clutter and sometimes with some valuable things. They take your stuff, set up a yard sale and double whatever money your stuff makes in the sale. They use that money to re-do some rooms in your home.

Now, when I say "clutter"-- these homes are crazy with it! Most of them you can't even see a clean spot on the floor in most rooms-- just stuff piled up and everywhere.

My house is not like that-- well- the part you can see- ha! What I would LOVE is for Trish- she's the "yard sale diva" but she's also this amazing organizer- to come and do my closets, cabinets, under my sink, etc.

I mean my kitchen cabinets are all- everyone like a stacked locker- open at your own risk- you never know what's going to fall on you. And my closets- we have NO storage space in our house so our closets are our storage- you can just imagine. And our garage- well how sad is it that we can't even park one of our cars in a two car garage.

Now clutter drives me crazy- typically I can't function well in an environment that is cluttered. But, if I can't see it- it doesn't bother me as much-- that is until I have to open a cabinet or a closet door.

I'm not a sentimental person when it comes to stuff so I don't have a problem parting with things- I don't mind tossing stuff in the trash. What I apparently do have issues with is organization. :) That's where that Trish women could sure help me out!

Anybody got any good advice or helpful organizational tips for me? Anybody want to write in to Clean House and nominate my house- LOL :)

Forgiveness

We were challenged in our MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group to focus on one word for the upcoming new year. I have read so many inciteful posts from ladies (Sarah, Ashley, Carrie) and was really inspired to do this. Its a bit overwhelming for me to pick one word- there are so many areas in my life I need to work on. This past year has been a struggle for me both emotionally and spiritually. Looking back it feels like a year where I just went through the motions.
My word for 2008 is forgiveness. Every year Jim takes the boys out shopping and he lets them pick out a gift for me. I always laugh at him because most times, he just lets them pick whatever they want, not really steering them toward something I might actually like.:) But its always sweet to see what the boys choose. This year my sweet Avery picked out a book for me. Jim said he walked over picked it up and said this is what he wanted to get mommy. That book is, "Get Out of that Pit" by Beth Moore.
Ok- we all know that Beth Moore is phenomenal but I don't need a book about getting out of a pit. That's what I was thinking as I unwrapped it, as I put it on the book shelf and last night as I pulled it off the shelf and began reading. And guess what? I need a book about getting out of a pit.
In the first few chapters she talks about forgiveness. Forgiving those who hurt you whether intentional or not as well as forgiving yourself. And we all know that forgiving yourself is so much more difficult. Beth Moore had some very powerful things to say about forgiveness.

• Its a tough thing to do, but we've got to forgive, even- no ESPECIALLY - those who don't care to be forgiven.
• I thought forgiving... would make what happened all right. But, to be sure, it didn't. Still isn't. What I didn't understand about forgiveness was that it would make ME all right.
• When we won't forgive, the people we often want to be around the least because they've hurt us so badly are the very people we take with us emotionally everywhere we go. (WOW!)

My one word is forgiveness. Starting with myself. Not just saying it but really willing it- doing it.

I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put trust in the Lord.

Psalm 40:1-3

Our Version of the Hallmark Musical Cards- Happy B-day Dennis!