3 years ago

It was about 3 years ago that I decided to try and lose weight, again. It wasn't the first time I had tried. Almost 100 pounds later (100+ if you count baby Harlie weight) .. it's hard to believe... but then I always find reminders. Like these pants that I found in the garage tucked away for me to someday make a bluejean quilt. These pants aren't even the biggest ones I owned but they are the ones I had left. Sometimes I look at my jeans I wear now and think they look big.. then I saw these and it puts all things into perspective.

bridesmaids dresses

1,2,3,4 ..and one from my own wedding. Yep, I own 5 bridesmaids dresses. I have always thought I would keep them in case I have a girl/girls (or boy) that want to play dress up and lately I've thought, why? 3 of them are so big that I hope they never fit me again.. or any of my children. They are so big that even dress up would be a drag. I thought, when will I ever wear them again? I will probably keep the one from my wedding because (even to this day) I liked them so much and it's fun for memory sake. And the one I wore this last summer would still fit but what ever will I do with it? and then the other three? One of them is really not my style, one is fine but not exactly the kind of dress I would wear anywhere and the last one is really neat and not really a dress but more a very dressy black outfit... but it's from my + size days so I don't plan to wear it again, even for maternity.

So.. any idea as to what to do with the old bridesmaids dresses? Any neat way to reuse them? other than taking them to Goodwill? Maybe save one for Halloween? Have Phil dress drag? : )

brrrr.. a chilly run

Even in the cold temps I guess I am a die hard for running. Phil informed me last night that it was going to be about 0 degree's for our runs this morning. He went first and survived so then I went. I had almost all the gear on. Three shirts (one long sleeved tshirt, a thermal, and a hooded sweatshirt), two pairs of sweatpants, socks, stocking hat, gloves, and my underclothes of course. I did not have an extra pair of socks (which I rarely wear) and my spikes for icy roads. Anyways, lots of layers but I was warm and sweating by the end. But I slowed my mile by almost a minute.. yuck. I blame it on the extra layers.

Tomorrow I'm off to the pool in the morning, that will be much warmer!

and the winner is???

Today I flipped a coin and Sarah won the great prize of a book/CD combo. Thanks to Sarah and Megan for commenting on my blog... even though the rest of you didn't respond I hope everyone took a moment to thank God for all the blessing he gives each of us!

Hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving!

Christmas is coming soon so stay tuned, I'm thinking of a trivia game for you!

G-day

Yesterday was a big day for me. I tried to make gravy, yep G-day stands for Gravy Day. It's been a long time since I've tried since it's not really a talent of mine but after getting advice from a few people I was up to the challenge again. But before that I want to tell you about another day, that is Turkey Day. As some of you know one of my sisters is due to have twins in a few weeks so I thought I'd make some food for her for when the babies come. When I saw a coupon at Hy-Vee to buy a ham and get a free turkey, I couldn't refuse. So the ham was easy as it was precooked, and no bone. Slice and go. The turkey however was frozen and raw, like most turkeys. This turkey took me for a "cooking" ride. After talking to a few people and hearing "it's so easy" then I was up for the challenge. I could either bore you with all the details or I can bullet the event.. yes, it was an event.

1. Thaw the turkey - this was suppose to take 2-3 days but my turkey liked being frozen so it took 4-5 days. The original cook day was planned for the Friday after Thanksgiving but with it being frozen I decided to wait until Monday after we returned from our holiday travels.


2. Cook the turkey - this was actually pretty easy. I bought a $3 disposable roasting pan as I don't own a big one and did not want to buy one for a possible one time occasion. So I put in the turkey and some water, covered it with foil and baked at about 275 degree's for about 6 hours. I basted it off and on and checked on it but all went pretty well. I kind of had a hard time telling if it was done. I had a meat thermometer but it wasn't working so that didn't help. But they have this plastic thing in the turkey that popped out and I assumed that meant it was done. The thickest part of the turkey was done so I felt safe with the rest of it.

Taaadaaa!

1. Eat the turkey - so as I said I gave most of the meat to my sister but I did keep some for myself as I wanted to try it out in case I wanted to make it again. So the meat part is pretty easy, but then I got advice on what to do with the rest of it. Some of this might gross you out but trust me, it is really good. I took the leftover bones and simmered them in water (about 1/2 the pan) for 2 hours. Drain the leftover water into a bowl and you have homemade turkey broth, which I later made a soup. I will admit I did not eat the giblets and neck, apparently some people love these parts but I declined the delicacy. So onto the grand finale - the gravy! I took the juice out of the roasting pan and put it in a plastic container (after it cooled off) and put it in the fridge. Last night I took the fat off the top and then used the bottom jello-ish stuff to make gravy. And it turned out delish! I won't bore you with the details but if you ever make a turkey and want some ideas then let me know as I'm always happy to share.

For the first time in my life I made one of Phil's favorite meals. Opened faced sandwiches with all the fixin's. I lucked out and had some texas toast on hand, and then did a slice of turkey, a mound of tators, smothered in gravy. And some butternut squash on the side. He said it was one of the best meals I've ever cooked. Yum, yum!

My next challenge: try the same thing only with a whole chicken instead.... I'll keep you posted. Hat's off to gravy day, it was a success!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hopefully we all take a moment to thank God for all the blessing he gives us. Most of us in America have so much to be thankful for and so much we take for granted. I know we all have rough days, years, or life in general can be tough but there is always something to be grateful for. I, personally, and most people around me, have so much to be thankful for... simple things like being able to see, hear, and taste gives such joy to life; or having a very healthy family, having a job that allows me to be home during the day to take care of the kids, and even my little house that we've been trying to sell all year. I do have a blessed life and so much that I take for granted. At church on Sunday our pastor commented on being thankful for heaven... to know that God has prepared a place of eternity for us that is million times better than this life.. I know we can't see it or image what it will be like but to know God loves us so much that he has a special place just for me... I like to think of it as I have my own feather under his wing that will be my own personal cozy blanket to snuggle with and to keep me warm and toasty. So, this year, don't forget to take a moment to thank God. And for fun, let me know what special/unique thing you are most thankful for (not counting the basics like your family or home). Maybe I'll be like my friend Sarah and come up with some fun gift to send to you.... hmmm....actually I just thought of something that would be perfect. So tell me what your thankful for and I'll have a drawing sometime next week. If need be you can email me as well.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

life of the Hunt's

Remember, that stack of books I told you about a few weeks ago? Here it is. I went through my books and these made the to do list. Read or go away.. actually one (not in the picture) did get tossed once I realized it was a Jehovah Witness book. Nothing personal, but I didn't really want to give that one to Goodwill.. it went straight to the garbage. I did glance through it (Paradise Lost to Paradise Regained) and was shocked by how it disagreed with the Bible. Opening statements sounded more like Darwin than Creation. Kind of sad.. so in the garbage it went. Now I'm reading The Faith Club which I've read before.. I like it (not that I agree with all the things the Christian woman says) but I really need to read something enjoyable.. not a thinker kind of book. So I might not make it through my pile... I guess some books may get tossed just out of my desire to read a good old fiction book which is not an option in this pile. The pile must go, before I go to the library. Eeekke...

Bath time can be interesting.. this is Harlie's new hang out spot in the bathroom (at least she's not putting her hands in the toilet, one of her favorite past times when I'm not looking). And yes, she crawls up there herself. She pulls up on the back of the toilet lid/seat, then pulls up on the back of the toilet and then scoots over to the sink. For this reason, I try to keep our toilet clean. As you can see.. she LOVES her hang out spot.

I must say I love this next picture. He was so proud of himself for getting those letters and numbers stuck to the wall.

This was our summer bucket list. After hanging on our fridge all summer, I decided it was time to take the paper down. We got about 95% of it done which is great. It's so easy to look at what we didn't do but then I look at all the things we did do and I realize we did have a good summer as we did a lot of fun things. It has made for some interesting conversation as it's the first thing people see when they walk in our door. Most people look confused but then I explain it and most people love the idea (thanks Sarah!) I'm hoping to make another one for this winter which should include a few things that didn't get done this summer. Any ideas to add to the list?

Last week, in the last few warm days, we played outside. Here are the kids playing in the dirt.. we really need to get them a sand box. Maybe next spring?

Awwwee.. my kiddo's are so sweet (most of the time : )

Did I mention this was going to be a really long post? Full of pictures and golden nuggets of our life.

Leftovers anyone? (yes, that pizza actually curled up on the edges) You can't see it but the meat and cheese was all dried up. It's only a few days old, but old enough.

No thanks, we'll make our own.

Yum, Yum! A post to come on this new pita bread recipe I've been experimenting with. Tonight we made pizza with it but we've also had sandwich pockets and Phil eats it with his hummus.

And last but not least.. my new special treat for Harlie and me. Since we've pretty much given up on selling the house this year I decided I wanted this hung up (I was waiting not wanting to put more holes in the wall). Last year I asked for a quilt rack for Christmas. My dad made me this beautiful quilt rack (thanks dad!) and my mom always makes a quilt for the grandkids and she made this quilt for Harlie (thanks mom!) when she was born. I believe I've posted on it before but in case you don't remember this is a 5 generation quilt. There is material from my Great Grandma Greene, Grandma Elliott, My mom, me and now Harlie. My mom loves to sew so this is a special gift... and the quilt rack to go with it makes it perfect. I just think it looks awesome in Harlie's room.

Enough of the Hunt life.. I'm tired.. but a good day. Praise to God, for all the goodness he give us all.