Buh-bye January ... You came and went oh so fast!

WWHHOOAA! Where oh where did January go?
Seriously people, I blinked and it's the 31st?!!??

So much done this month and still 11 more to go ... weeeeee!!!

In this month we ~ celebrated the New Year on the slopes in Tahoe with amazing friends. Went to work and school every day with no sicknesses - WOOT! Hosted a fantastic game night :: Loaded Questions - Play it! Survived 5 days/nights of softball per week - Hubber loves being head coach.  Started and completed our first team fundraiser - Tamales. 205 dozen tamales sold to be exact - HOLLA! Thanks Team!  Added another listing to my belt - Who has a real estate question?  Wished some great pals a Happy Birthday.  Found and purchased a couple vintage items - boy oh boy this is exciting! Started my first knitting project of 2011. It's for my mom and she's going to love them.  And finally, we attended the Pig Bowl, tail gate and everything. It was a great time!  This was a great month.

Now let's see what February has for us.

some tips {health & life}

Hello Peeps.  I wanted to share some tips with you today.

Pretty fitting for a Thursday don'tcha think? Thursday Tip Day.

(real quick, I made this. Cute huh?)

The following tips have helped me better myself and I am proud of what I have accomplished. It feels pretty good to wake up happy and go to bed just as happy.  So, I thought I would share with you what has worked for me in hopes that you too can be happy.

This is a forever work in progress but these small easy things have helped me get started.  Seeing my results so far keep me motivated to stay on the right path. 

{Health} If you've been a follower of this blog you know I have been working towards a healthier lifestyle; eating better and exercising more.  It's really just that easy.

#1 ~ Eat less. Move more.

#2 ~ Do yoga stretches, sit-ups and push-ups for at least 7 minutes each

        morning. Thank you Dr. Oz.

#3 ~ Have at least one veggie with dinner - start with the veggie.

#4 ~ Portion control. This is tuff to get used to. Just stick with it.

#5 ~ Drink at least 32 oz of water a day. Add fresh fruit if you need to.

#6 ~ Drink at least 2 cups of green tea a day.

#7 ~ Try not to stress as much. I maintain my 'it could be worse' thinking

        anytime something challenging comes my way.

{Life} I love my life. It's complete with family, friends & challenges and triumphs.  I truly believe every thing happens for a reason.  I call the good 'blessings' and the bad 'experience'.  I don't hold grudges and I am not judgemental - anymore. :o) I've grown up.

#8 ~ Laugh often. Seriously. On top of being a feel good moment you can 

        actually burn calories.

#9 ~ repeat Try not to stress as much. I maintain my 'it could be worse'  

        thinking anytime something challenging comes my way.

#10 ~ Keep a tidy home.  If you work all day the last thing you want to do is

          sit in a dirty house.  Don't feel like you need to mass clean every day. 

          Do a few things a couple times a week.

#11 ~ Be confident. Don't worry what others think. Just be yourself.

#12 ~ Make time for family and friends.  A good get-together always get me

          laughing. :o) GAME NIGHTS are good.

#13 ~ Take $ from each paycheck and set it aside for a rainy day. We all can 

          do this if we focus.

#14 ~ Have a filing system for your bills by due date. This is good for us.

#15 ~ Share how your day went with your loved ones and ask about theirs.

          Every day.

#16 ~ Prioritze and Organize.

#17 ~ Communication is key.

Well that's it for now. Nothing too elaborate or complicated. 

Have a great day!  

What's on your plate? K is for Kabobs

My favorite things about kabobs are: 1)you can customize them to your liking; 2)they are so easy to do; 3)for this time of year they are perfect to take to a super bowl party (in my opinion).

So lets get crackin'!

You will need:

1 cup Italian salad dressing, divided

2 pounds jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined ->please. 

2 large onions

16 large fresh mushrooms ->I skip the fungus. Replace with artichoke  

   hearts. Now we're talking! 

2 large green peppers, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

16 cherry tomatoes

What you'll do: 

1) In a large resealable plastic bag, combine 1/2 cup salad dressing and shrimp. Cut each onion into eight wedges. In another large resealable plastic bag, combine the vegetables and remaining dressing. Seal bags and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 2 hours, turning occasionally.

2) Drain and discard marinade. On eight metal or soaked wooden skewers, alternately thread the shrimp and vegetables. Grill kabobs, covered, over medium heat for 3 minutes on each side or until shrimp turn pink.

Mmm ... So delicious! Have fun and enjoy!

a couple tid bits

Hello Monday! Even though you came a little too quickly I am still thankful my peepers opened yet another day.  I am healthy.  We are healthy. 

Speaking of healthy, how do you keep the sickies away? I am not a huge fan of medicine mostly because I don't like how it makes me feel so tired, even the daytime stuff.  I will go to the doctor and take medicine as an absolute last resort.  My daily sicky blocker is green tea.  I swear by the stuff.  Seriously, I drink at least 2 cups a day at work whether I am feeling yucky or not.  In the winter I drink it warm. In the summer I drink it cold.  If I have a sweet tooth I'll add a splenda.  Mmm ... drinking a cup right now actually.  

I have made it through Hubber being sick twice and multiple co-workers, whom I have contact with every day, passing the germs around this winter season.  Aside from my scratchy throat in the morning I am feeling great!  See, this is why I swear by the stuff.

On to the next: Once a month we have game night with 3 other couples.  We take turns hosting and this month we were the hosts.  You know what this means? I cleaned my house so good. It's so sparkly. Ahhh, I love a sparkling clean home.  While I was cleaning I had the t.v. on (of course). I like to clean with background noise.  On this day I was looking for something to listen too/watch and I came across Pit Bulls & Parolees on Animal Planet, it was a marathon. WOW! That lady, Tia, is an amazing being.  She rescues pit bulls and hires parolees.  What is your initial thought when you hear that combo? I can bet yours is the same as mine was, then I watched the show and now I'm hooked.  Yes, one more show added to the DVR - dang it! Check out her web site here.  You'll be impressed.

Lastly: Sunday I stayed home from practice to do laundry. I am glad I did because I put a big dent in our rapidly growing pile.  I am wondering how 3 people dirty so many clothes so fast??!?  Anyhoo, just a few more loads then I will be done - until the next day. HA! Oh and I have to put the clean clothes away that are still in our suitcase from our New Year's trip to Tahoe. Whoops ... did I just type that?  Geesh darn it.

I hope you all had a productive weekend too. Tootles

Be My Guest! Blogging with Lizzy

Hello Peeps!

As I mentioned before I am setting up a new blog site. I am so very excited about this project.  With the new blog comes new stuff - YAY!  (who doesn't like stuff?) One of which I want to start a wee bit early because I am just so geesh darn excited about it! hee hee hee Like now! Ok, so here we go ...

Lizzy is looking for guest bloggers! That's right peeps, I want to hear from you and I want you to be heard ... he hem ... read.  So pull up a chair, get cozy and scribble down what you want your post to be about.  Write it up and send it to me via email (lizzylep@gmail.com). Include photos, links, etc. Once I get your article I will send you back a few questions - YAY for Q & As! :O) Once we have the full article then I'll post it. Woot! It's as easy as that. So let's get started!

  
~ Do you create, craft, sew, saw, clean, clean green, garden, cook, raise farm animals, always recycle, only eat/drink organic, etc?

~ Are you a busy mom, a not so busy mom, always working, finding ways to save money, a creative shopper, a photographer, a scary driver ->this is not me :o), trying something new, etc?

~ Do you have a hobby that you love and when you tell people your hobby they say, "YOOOU {dot dot dot}?" Like for me, I knit and I love to knit. When I tell people I knit they say, "YOOOU knit?!" 

You get what I am getting at right? So, I am looking for you. Nothing elaborate so don't stress. This should be a fun way for you to share what you do; what your passion is.  Who knows, there may be someone out there who doesn't know how to do or start something.  For example: start a garden but really wants to do it {me! me! me!}.  Reading your guest blog could help them out.

weeeeeee ... I'm excited and I hope you are too!

What's on your plate? {it's mouth-watering}

J is for JAMBALAYA ... Yummy!

I love this stuff!

Here ya go ...

[Prep Time: 25 Min] [Cook Time: 10 Min] [Ready In: 35 Min] [approx. 8 servings]

You'll need all of this good-ness:
1 lb fully cooked kielbasa or smoked Polish sausage, cut into 1/2-inch slices
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons butter
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/2 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
Hot cooked rice


You'll do:
In a Dutch oven or large saucepan, saute the sausage, chicken, onion, celery, green pepper and garlic in butter until chicken is browned.

Stir in the tomatoes, tomato paste and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 6-8 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink.

Stir in shrimp; cover and simmer for 4 minutes or until shrimp turn pink.

Serve over rice if desired; or cool, cover and freeze for up to 2 months.
 
Some notes:

Nutritional Analysis: 1 cup (prepared with turkey sausage and reduced-fat butter; calculated without rice) equals 220 calories, 6 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 101 mg cholesterol, 675 mg sodium, 16 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber, 24 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 1 starch.

I told ya, it's mouth-watering. :o)

Starter week done ... Every day left to go.

Hello! Hello! Hello!

Happy back to the grind day! That is if you had MLK day off yesterday.

I did for the most part.  Just had an easy breezy listing appointment
with a nice couple. It's a short sale and really the best thing for them to do.
Beautiful house. Excellent El Dorado Hills neighborhood. Available Feb. 1st.(contact me with ?s)

Anyhoo ...
As posted last Thursday I have incoporated the Dr. Oz 7 minute stretches
into my mornings.  Week 1 complete and I'm looking forward to every
morning forever and ever. Ahhh what a feeling!

After my 7 (sometimes 10) minute stretches I feel:

• Energized
• Motivated
• Ready to tackle the day
• I've got my 'Bring it!' attitude
• like I can do anything
• I can't wait until tomorrow morning

Yep, I'd say I've had a successful week 1.  Have you tried this yet? If so,
please share.

PS, started knitting project #1 for 2011. Can't say what it is just yet
because it's for my mom and she just might be reading this. ;o) Stay tuned
though.