Holy Smokeout Life's Busy!

Sorry I didn't post yesterday... I was so excited about how many people participated in the Top Ten Tuesdays and yesterday was going to be my chance to catch up with everything, then I forgot my computer cord at work. Yeah which means, my dead computer wasn't going to be putting anything online for me. So, I didn't get to blog. And I really wanted to spend some time writing on my day off from work. Oh well, no blog yesterday, but a new one today! I do hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive me!

Well, marriage classes that J and I are taking through church have been fantastic... We are learning a lot and growing, not only together but as individuals too. I'm slowly learning how to communicate with a man without going all emotional on him... and he's getting better at understanding my point despite all the water works that often come with it! (Please tell me other women have this problem, too!) But more importantly, I'm loving J more now than ever and it's growing by the minute (I know this sounds like a ridiculous cliche, but it's the truth).

One of the first pictures we ever took together... Who would have known it was the beginning of forever?

But, moving towards marriage, I have also started training twice a week with a personal trainer... She wants me to drop ten pounds (and I want me to lose it too!), so the next five months are going to be hard working, careful eating months. A single nice arms compliment will make it all worth it in looking at my wedding pictures!  So meals with be more protein packed and I'm going to be working on eating better carbohydrates (you didn't know there were good ones either? I'll post on that too I promise!). I will be sharing all the crazy new things I'm learning in hopes one other person will learn something new too!

And I'm working. Not the hardly working kind of work, but the working hard kind. I've been so busy during the day at work that I'm falling behind on my blogging... Then I get home and I want to relax, spend time with J or my family, and catch up on the little life things that seem to be escaping me. By the time that I realize I meant to blog, it's late and I am exhausted. So there's got to be a new routine set up so my heart doesn't break into little tiny pieces missing you all!

On a light, happy, super exciting note: I have hit and flown by the fifty follower mark... With all the new followers I am itching to do my very first giveaway... I'm not quite ready yet, but stay tuned because I'm just loving all the new people that I'm meeting and would love to be able to share with something I love with one of my lucky readers! (Or at least, I think you're lucky!) I'm thinking of painting something... Check out this and decide what you think... Would you be interested at all??

What's keeping you busy folks? 

It seems like we've all got a GIANT list of things going on right about now... 

Plus the warm weather adds to it! 

P.S. Are you taking part in the simply sweet ingredient challenge? There's still time!

Top Ten Tuesday: My Life Essentials

I know my list of things I couldn't live without is ridiculously longer than ten... But for the sake of Top Ten Tuesday I have to settle! Here goes nothing! Please enjoy!

1. A blanket. 

I sleep with my ears covered at night and without a blanket I wouldn't be able to cover my ears... Plus, I LOVE blankets and seriously have a half a dozen of them in my bed at a time. Yep, it drives J nuts and we aren't even sleeping in the same bed yet!

2. My NIV and Message Bible. 

Both translations are next to each other... It's amazing! If I read the NIV and don't get it (which happens more often than not, the Message is there to make it all clear... But I can still follow along easily at church when the pastor is reading from the NIV version!

3. Mascara. 

Yes, shallow. But of all beauty essentials, this is essential. Even J notices when I don't wear it. In fact, he always says, "Where's that black stuff that makes your eyes all big and pretty?"

4. A good run. 

I run for fun. But not just for fun. I run to clear my head and work out my heart. My best thinking happens along the roads my feet graze as I move through my neighborhood.

5. My family. 

Oh the joy this group of people brings me. If you haven't read enough already, you will soon realize they make my world go round... And for good reason!

6. A good read. 

I have been a bookworm from a very young age... In fact, it all started before I could read! I would go to bed with a pile of books just so I could go through all the pictures... To this day, I sleep with one or two books in my bed nightly. Guess you can't teach an old dog new tricks!

7. My iPhone. 

Not because I think iPhones make the world go round and are the best thing ever, but because I love my phone. I love having a phone that calls and texts and gets voicemails (and Twitter!). I truly love to be able to text my Mama Bird or J whenever I want and as frequently as I want (as much as they might get sick of me!) 

8. My computer. My new MacBook Pro. 

For my 22nd birthday-college graduation celebration, I got a new computer. But not just any new computer, I got my dream computer, a MacBook Pro! It really revolutionizes my blogging, photo editing, writing, cooking, working experience. I love being able to do all of the things that I love on the computer which can easily perform all that I need of it.

9. My blog. 

I write like a mad woman. But this sweet little spot is all mine and allows me to be held accountable for my words, for my thoughts, for my passion. I know people are expecting to see writing and I want to be dependable. Without you, my dear readers, this puppy wouldn't be working out the way it is. So essentially, number 9 is you.

10. Last, but definitely not least, my dear J. 

Literally I don't know what life would be like without him. He has been here through the darkest and brightest times in my long (okay, not so much) 22 years. He puts a smile on my face every morning and every night even when I'm sure it's impossible to get any ounce of joy out of me!

I Surrender

Yesterday J and I attended church like we regularly do on Sunday mornings, but something special happened in my heart. Something out of the ordinary.

During the opening prayer -take note, NOT after the message and just after two worship songs- God ripped my attention from myself and quickly placed my focus on Him. As the prayer began, the pastor encouraged us to surrender, to pause and to take a moment to admit our greatest barriers in order to better surrender to God. He then encouraged us to think about that which we need to surrender, to put it into a sentence "God I surrender..."

Wow, I had a lot on my mind that was weighing really heavy on my heart.

God, I surrender body consciousness. I surrender the way I question how you made me.

God, I surrender my doubtful heart, always second guessing your perfect ways.

God, I surrender all the fears and anxieties that wreak havoc in my heart.

God, I surrender my "perfect" plan that is full of many more holes than I can ever imagine.

God, I surrender the bitterness I bottle inside.

God, I surrender the pain I refuse to heal, I let keep emptying me of my joy.

God, I surrender my frustrations with my circumstances, it's about attitude not aptitude.

God, I surrender my timeline, my goals, my incessant mission.

God, I surrender my unwilling soul, my fighting spirit.

God, I surrender my excuses about why later, why not, why me.

God, I surrender my imperfections, and my obsession with them.

God, I surrender me. 

And with that surrender I take on a whole new perspective, a whole new life's mission, a whole new purpose... One that focuses on Him instead of me, on helping instead of receiving, on hope instead of darkness.

Baked Cajun Rubbed Salmon

J loves seafood. I am picky about it. But I've resolved to be better about making fish not only since its so good for you, but also because my dear J loves it so and I wish I could be not so finicky about it.

Last week when I went to the grocery store their fresh, never frozen salmon steaks looked so perfectly pink (and I love pink!). I bought three and brought them home to make them yummy and yummy they were!

Ingredients: 

• 1 salmon steak, fresh not frozen, per person or serving. (J eats two so I got three) 
• Drizzle of worcestershire sauce
• 1 large lemon

For the rub:

• 1/4 cup ancho chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano 
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons dried mustard
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons ground pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin 

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 
2. While the oven is heating, combine all of the spices in a bowl and whisk together. 
3. Rip pieces of foil that are twice the size of the filets. (One per filet) 
4. Place the salmon in the center of the foil (as seen in picture below).
5. Drizzle worcestershire sauce over the top of each filet. 
6. Rub top of salmon with spice blend. (There will be extra, it's GREAT on steak too!) 
7. Cut lemon in half and squeeze over the salmon. 
8. Close up the foil around the spiced filets and place on a baking sheet. 
9. Cook for 20 minutes. 
10. Remove from the oven. 
11. Unwrap and slice the lemon in half (or more parts for more filets!) and squeeze the juice over the fish.
12. Enjoy! 

J was going to make a sauce to put on it and I said to just try it before he made anything... He did, it was so moist and tender the sauce idea was scrapped and he ate as is! I even really liked it and I'm not a huge lover of fish! 

Top Ten Tuesdays

I have never really watched the David Letterman show, mainly because staying up that late is just impossible for me, but I love lists. I mean I love lists! I write a to do list every day, many versions of the same list with different things every day. I write lists for now, for later, for when, for then... I truly love the order that lists provide.

Not only do I seem to love lists, but I have found lots of blogging friends who love them as well... So I decided to start a little Tuesday Link Up for every week. (If it gets too overwhelming, I'll move it to every other week!) but on Sundays I will post what the theme of top ten list is going to be for the following week. Then on Tuesday I'll do a link up post that will include my list as well as links to all of yours!

Hope you're all as excited as me! I'm going to go ahead and give you the theme for this week since it's just a day early!

Our theme for the week: 

Your top ten life essentials

We all have different things that make life possible for us... But think of it like this, you are going to be dropped on a deserted island, what ten things would you bring? I know, ten seems like not so much with all the things you love; I'm having the same problem. 

My ABSOLUTELY Amazing Birthday Celebration!

My 22nd birthday was on Tuesday this past week, but I wasn't going to get to be with my family and J at the same time because of work and our marriage class, so we celebrated last weekend! 

Every year my mom makes a wonderful meal in celebration for birthdays and this year was no different than the past! 

Mama Bird with her homemade scalloped potatoes

J with the beet, Cara Cara orange, and goat cheese salad! 

Dad helping mom serve the plates with salad...
Sorry for the ridiculous face he's making. He absolutely refused to smile. 

The table all set... What a pretty pink floral tablecloth you say? Why yes! And artichokes! 

J and Mama Bird serving the scalloped potatoes! 

The barbeque ran out of gas... So Bubba improvised by grilling on the stovetop!

Bub and his dear little lady, Sam.

My "It's Your Day... CELEBRATE!" Birthday girl plate (and the new strawberry Mike's Hard Lemonade -so tasty!)

It wouldn't be a food photo without the aerial shot!

My being drama birthday girl in my excitement over my cake. 

Check out that glorious thing... It was so tasty! Hummingbird cake, so perfect in so many ways!

Yep, it was amazing... All thanks to the fabulous cook, Mama Bird, and my adorable family (plus the never disappointing J!) 

I'm Simply Sweet, but NOT Perfect.

Over the years my life has been far from simple and not so full of sweet... I have suffered from depression, I am an anxious little heart, I cry far too often... But, it's my life. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

In looking at my blog, someone could say that I seem to be too good to be true. I'm too nice, I do too much, the photos are staged, fake, ridiculous. But, they are mine, they are absolutely me. 

This is more like what I look like on a regular basis... No make-up, messy hair, and running clothes!

I'm not always sweet... In fact, I can be so bitter I'd easily out do baking chocolate! Although my house is organized to a tee... I can be a hot mess in my mind! As much as I read my Bible and hear from God... I lose my focus hundreds of times in a day (even on my best days). The pictures on my blog make me look pretty... But they are special occasions, I'm hardly ever put together perfectly like those! 

I don't ever want to misrepresent myself, I promise I'm not perfect, not by any means. In fact, I'm the furthest thing from it. But my God is one of grace and mercy, my J is a man of love and patience, my family is made of teamwork and honesty. Thank goodness for this! 

I love to write. I love to cook. I love to craft. I love it all... And I am blessed to be able to share with all of you, but don't ever think I'm perfect, my flaws are too great to count!