Battle Wounds

...well...sort of...

Last night I made Cheesy Butternut Squash and Chicken Bake per Dashing Dish's recipe.

I decided that I would cube the squash before cooking it (as it recipe indicates). I will never do that again. My arms are SO sore from cutting - and probably because I'm still really out of shape. In fact, I was on the phone with my mom as I was attempting my first go-round with the butternut squash and she said that I sounded like I was struggling. She was right...in fact I was breaking a sweat.

Boiling squash. Jason said it looked/smelled like pumpkin and wanted to know if we could roast the seeds.

But...the effort was worth it. The meal turned out pretty well. Jason gave it a thumbs up, but said that I should probably wait a little while before making it again. He doesn't do super well with new tastes, but he did go back for seconds!

I also realized later (when I couldn't figure out where the blood was coming from) that I had cut my thumb with my cheese grater. Whoops!

My baby battle wound.

So, if you're looking for a fall meal to make, a new arm work out, and a little danger, this recipe is for you!

Oh, and I have a new coffee obsession - but that shouldn't be too surprising!

Delicious doesn't begin to describe this coffee.

Welp, there you have it...

I've blogged to you...
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Case of the Mondays

 

 

I've got a case of the Mondays. I'm tired, I'm hungry, and I just want to go back to Saturday. 

 

 Jason and I had a wonderful weekend full of festivities. Friday night we saw Ben Rector play at Samford's Homecoming Bonfire. Since the weather was so wonderful, we drove around downtown with the windows down, and then we ended our night at Yogurt Lab. 

Saturday we attended Samford's Homecoming Tailgate. Then we headed home for a quick nap and then we attended my friend Cara's wedding. 

Homecoming was fun, and I was feeling pretty old there for a while. Everyone around me looked like they were still in high school. Jason even looked at some kids and whispered to me, "College kids keep getting younger and younger these days," which of course made me laugh. I think he could tell I was feeling more like a 20-something and less like a college kid. BUT, right before we left I went to my sister's dorm room really quick and when I was waiting outside her door a freshman girl and her parents walked up. She asked if I needed to be let in and I said I did. Her mom asked if I was having a good day so far, and I said I was. Then the girl asked me which floor I lived on! I started to feel really great about myself, then I realized that means I look like I'm an 18-year-old freshman. Oh well. I guess that means that when I'm 35, I'll look 29!

Fun times.

Next on the list was Cara's wedding. The weather couldn't have been better. Everything was overly beautiful (including the bride of course)! Cara and Brent could not have asked for anything more perfect, I'm sure. 

I couldn't get a picture without people's heads in the way. Ugh!

Along with being absolutely gorgeous, the wedding was awesomely unique. Brent works for Chick-fil-a, so of course there were endless chicken nuggets, which Jason thoroughly enjoyed. But, the real clucker came when Cara and Brent were announced for their first dance. I won't even tell you what happened, I'll just show you this picture:

Their first dance!

Their actual first dance.

Jason and I also really enjoyed the photo booth.

The funny thing was, we'd planned out exactly what we were going to do at the photo booth, but then we froze once we got up there - thus, the result.

Yesterday was a pretty normal Sunday. We went to early church and lunch. After that Jason went to work and I went to the grocery store twice. The only positive thing that came out of my double grocery store day was this:

I'm seriously looking forward to 3:00 snack time today!

Well then, I've blogged to you...

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Cheesy Delights

In an effort to make meals that fit into my daily calorie count and also don't scare Jason out of our apartment, I tried a new recipe last night.

Jason likes to keep mac n cheese stocked in the apartment in case he's ever left to fend for himself for a meal. Lately I've been buying the type that is whole grain, because honestly, who doesn't need a little more whole grain in their life? I was told last weekend that the whole grain version is bland. So I decided to change it up a bit and prove to my picky husband that whole grain can be extra cheesy too (aka not bland at all).

Three Cheese Mac n Cheese (makes two servings, double recipe for four servings):
331 Calories per serving
Ingredients

• 1 box Kraft Whole Grain Mac and Cheese
• 1/4 c. 2% cottage cheese
• 1/4 c. skim milk
• 1/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
• 3 tbsp. I Can't Believe It's Not Butter
• 2 slices whole grain bread

Directions

1. Make mac n cheese according the the box directions. 
2. While the regular mac n cheese is cooking, toast both pieces of bread. Once they're toasted crumble them in a skillet and stir in 1 tbsp. melted butter (or I Can't Believe It's Not Butter).
3. Once the mac n cheese is done, add the rest of the butter and add the 2% cottage cheese and stir until melted down. 
4. Add milk, stir, add both cheeses, and stir well.
5. Put your mac n cheese in a casserole dish and top with the bread crumbs. 
6. Place in the over and turn on the broiler. Broil for about 5 minutes, or until the top is crispy.

Yum!

It almost looks like hamburger helper.

This what a delightful meal. I never indulge in such things as mac n cheese, but for 331 calories, it was definitely worth it!

Yesterday after looking at the pictures from my endorsement of yogurt and Chai tea, I decided to spring for both at my self imposed daily snack time.

Obsessed? Maybe so.

Another thing I'm really obsessed with this week is just cooking new recipes. Before I left for work today I threw together a Salsa Chicken recipe in the crock pot for Jason and I to have tonight. The Morales' are having a Mexican meal tonight - too much irony for me to even get into.

I'll let you know how that one goes on Monday. But for now, happy Friday!

Enjoy your weekend!

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Food Sense

A few food items/recipes/ideas for you today!

Last night Jason and I both got home from work a little bit late. I had planned on making something in the crock pot, but it just didn't happen. So, I decided to change around my food plan for the week a little bit and whip up my mom's chicken pot pie.

Mommy's Chicken Pot Pie (4 large servings, more servings if you have another side dish):
635 calories per serving
Ingredients

• 1 lb. diced chicken
• 2 small cans 98% fat free cream of chicken soup
• 1/2 bag of mixed veggies (carrots, green beans, peas)
• 2 pie crusts (one package)
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

1.  Dice 1 lb. of chicken and cook it in a skillet. 
2. Once the chicken if finished, throw in the veggies and both cans of soup. Stir and let simmer on the stove.
3. Preheat oven to 450 degrees (unless otherwise specified on the pie crust package).
4. While the mixture is simmering, lay the first pie crust in your pie plate. 
5. Fill the pie crust with the mixture. 
6. Cover the mixture with the second pie crust and press the edges together.
7. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the top is a little bit brown.

Going into the oven.

Cutting the first piece.

While I was baking, my dad started a friendly game of "who has the best dinner" because he sent me a picture of some enchiladas that my mom made last night. Although they clearly won, it inspired me to go a step further and make something that says, "Happy Fall"!

Maybe he was just bragging, but I felt my competitive juices starting.

While the chicken pot pie was cooling, I threw together a recipe that I learned last year: Spice Cake Pumpkin Muffins. Right after I made a Pinterest account, I tried this recipe. I've been adding things and changing things ever since trying to perfect it.

Spice Cake Pumpkin Muffins (makes 24):
93 calories per muffin
Ingredients

• 1 can of pumpkin
• 1 box of spice cake
• Cinnamon to taste
• Powdered sugar to taste 

Directions

1. Preheat the oven according the the directions of the spice cake. 
2. Pour entire contents of pumpkin into a mixing bowl along with the box of spice cake. 
3. Mix together until blended evenly. I used my stand-mixer, but I've also used a handheld mixer as well as my hands in the past. 
4. Fill muffin tins 2/3 of the way full. Sprinkle cinnamon on each muffin.
5. Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes depending on how soft you want them in the middle. 
6. Once you're done baking, sprinkle powdered sugar on top of each muffin and let cool.

Mixing

I had to try one before I took the picture.

Delish.

I've really enjoyed getting to use so many of our wedding gifts to cook!

On a random note, I have a few new favorite snacks.

The first is Dannon Light & Fit Greek Yogurt. It's the same number of calories as the regular Light & Fit yogurt, but it has twice the protein and it's much thicker.

Perfect afternoon snack.

The second snack I'm lovin' right now is Chai tea. No, not a chai tea latte, but just a regular tea bag in a cup of hot water. I love that it gives me the satisfaction of a treat without the calories.

This just makes me feel more relaxed.

By the way...TOMORROW IS FRIDAY!

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On Making Plans

"Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future. Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.” 

 - Proverbs 19:20-21 -

There is so much pressure to know.

When we are in high school, we're constantly being faced with questions that beckon us to figure out what we're supposed to do with our lives. Where will you go to college? What will you major in? Where will you live? How often will you come home? What do you want to do with that degree? I remember being 17 or 18 years old and thinking to myself that if one more person asked me what I'm going to be doing for the rest of my life, I was just going to scream!

But we make our decision, we graduate, get a job, go to college, or do whatever is next for us. But it's just the beginning.

We are faced DAILY with decisions, with plans, with expectations to make decisions that affect our plans. We're just expected to know.

I'm learning very quickly that I don't know. I don't know the answers and I don't know my plans. Most of the time I can tell people what my plans are for the next month or so, at least as far as what I'll be doing. I'll go to work, I'll hang out with this person or that person, I'll go to church, Jason and I may go out of town - we have plans. But the older I get (not that I'm that old) and the more I move through life, I'm learning that I don't have a plan and that I just don't know. For someone like me who is a complete "planner" and scores with the highest of "J's" on Myer's Briggs, that honestly stresses me out.

I don't know what tomorrow holds.

I don't know what I'm making for dinner tonight.

I don't know where we'll live in 6 months.

I don't know how to be the best wife.

I don't know our plans for the holidays.

I don't know when I'll get to run errands.

I don't know when or where my  husband will be working a week, a month, a year from now.

I do know that I'm learning, though. 

The Lord is teaching me to let go of my plans. He's teaching me that it's okay to not know. He molding me into the woman/wife/daughter/sister/friend who has strength to not rely on my own knowledge or plans (as comforting as that may be), but to rely solely on Him.

One of the most well known verses of scripture is Jeremiah 29:11. For years I've been hardened into thinking that it's so cliche to rely upon this passage because it's so overused, and many times taken out of context. But the truth is that it's God's word, and there's nothing cliche or overused about God's word.

These words are truth though. Proverbs tells us that man has many plans for ourselves, but that the purpose that the Lord has given our lives is the only thing that will stand. We can plan all day long, but even so, are we being obedient? Rather than planning our lives and hoping that God aligns His plans with ours, why don't we just have faith that He will make His purpose known to us? He tells us that He's got a plan. He tells us that He's got a good plan. We have a future in Him and we have hope in Him. But so many times, why isn't that enough for us?

Today, I'm relinquishing my plans and my purposes for my life. I'm leaving them in the hands of God, because His ways are better than mine and His plans are greater than mine. My life, my marriage, my job, my husband's job, my stability, my family, my friendships, my tomorrows, my everything is His.

Won't you join me in letting go today?

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A Blog Makeover and Health & Fitness Update

Lots of changes going on 'round here. 

Notice the new color scheme, the new name, and the all new look to my blog.

I'm a person who likes consistency. I'm learning lately that Jessica Morales is kind of a popular name, at least as far as social media is concerned. I have not been able to secure an email address, Twitter handle, Facebook url, or even Blogspot name with Jessica Morales (or Jessica S. Morales, or any sort of similar variation).

But nonetheless, I'm back. And I'm rambling. Even though I've changed the name of the blog to Mrs. Blogbacktome, I probably should have gone a step further and called it, "Mrs. Blogbacktome: The Rambler". Too long. Too wordy. Oh well. Maybe married Jessica is less of a rambler. I guess we'll find out soon.

Jason's Twitter handle and blog page is called "blogbacktome", so I decided to use (not steal, use) his idea for a sort of spinoff because, well, my husband is clever.

Now, onto my health and fitness update:

So, Weight Watchers doesn't work for me. And I'm learning that unless I completely cut out all sorts of carbs (fruit and whole grains included), I cannot find my way back down into my former jeans. To be honest, that realization stinks. But, I am going back to the doctor next month, and I'm not going to leave until we're able to tackle some sort of solution. Until then, I'm tracking everything I eat using myfitnesspal.com. I still have the paperwork that my doctor gave me back in the Spring about how much of everything I should be eating each day, and I've put that into the online food tracker. If nothing else, I figure that I can show the doctor what I'm eating at what time of day and maybe we can go from there (to see more about the plan the doctor gave me to follow, read this old post).

Our cruise did absolutely nothing positive for my eating habits. I was ready to get back in the swing of things last week, and then I ended up living off of soup and popsicles because I received the lovely gift of a sinus infection. So this week I came out of the gate strong.

Jason had to work late last night, and I was meeting some girls for froyo after he got off work, so we ate separately. I love cooking for Jason, but he's quite picky so I was sure to take advantage of being able to cook whatever I wanted/needed last night. I defrosted some frozen tilapia fillets the night before, so I threw those onto a skillet with some of Emril's fish rub and Parmesan cheese. After sauteing those babies up, I threw them on a bed of romaine lettuce with feta cheese and balsamic vinegar. It hit the spot and didn't fill me up quite all the way. Honestly, it was perfect because I didn't feel guilty about my froyo run with the ladies later.

Right now I've got a pot roast in the crock pot with potatoes and carrots. I really do love cooking in the fall.

Looks like that about wraps up my makeover and update post.

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AANNNNDDDD....We're Back!

The wedding is over. We've returned from our honeymoon. Now we're just your normal, run-of-the-mill married couple.

Our honeymoon was wonderful and it was exactly what we needed after all of the planning and craziness that comes along with a wedding. We took a 7-day cruise to Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Mexico. We were at sea for the first two days, which was an added bonus. We spent hours just laying out by the pools, relaxing around the ship, and sampling new foods. We did an excursion each day we were in a new place. We loved exploring and experiencing these new places together.

Laying out by the pool

Montego Bay, Jamaica

7 Mile Beach in Grand Cayman

Cozumel, Mexico

This week has been quite an adjustment. I keep telling people that I got really used to being married on the cruise, but being married in "real life" is much different. I love it though!

I am so incredibly thankful for all of our friends and family who were apart of our wedding day. It was so good to see everyone. We were so blessed by the presence of people who came from near and far.


I'm going to keep my rambling to a minimum for today, but stay tuned for more on our wedding, honeymoon, and our little married life together.