11 in '11 - Days Eight and Nine

Hi friends! 
Sunday is J's birthday and I know I won't have time for blogging, so I decided to post tomorrow's a day early rather than late!


I need to be better about eating healthy snacks. Because I am a total snacker. 


One thing I've been eating the past week or so are honey pretzel rods. These are SO GOOD and I can have a great snack for only 100 calories. 


I'm also a big fan of veggies with dip. I portion out 1 T. of ranch dip (only 40 or so calories) and load up on veggies. YUMMY! 


Protein bars are also a go-to, although they are pretty expensive :(


And on to Day Nine --- Favorite thing to do on a cold winter day 


STAY IN PAJAMAS, WATCH TV AND EAT SOUP!


I think we pretty much do this all weekend, every weekend in the winter time. It really is the best. A few weekends ago I kept changing from one pair of pajama pants to another. If only they could figure out a work-appropriate style of pajama pants ... 


HAPPY WEEKEND, Y'ALL!

11 in '11 - Day Seven

There were no huge happenings in 2010. It was pretty much just life. 


So instead of picking just one favorite memory, I'm going to group together all of the home improvement projects we did after moving in Nov. 2009. After all, we both dedicated a full week of vacation to it, and pouring money into it is what kept us from having our toes in the water and a$$ in the sand this summer. 


We've come a long way since this:

The home was foreclosed. It wasn't in horrible shape, but just had been neglected for a couple of years. 


One of our first steps was to fix up the icky landscaping seen above. Seriously --- did they just drop the plants wherever? We scooped out lots of lava rock, removed blocks, transplanted and also mulched. This took place in the spring/late summer. 


We also pressure washed the house. It took two long days in the blistering sun!


As we have five acres, we put up a fence for our horsies and were able to move them in October! We considered building a shed, but ended up buying a pre-built one to store hay, the lawn mower, etc. in. 


We repainted the front door charcoal, and plan to do the shutters in the spring.


Of course, there are a lot of other, smaller things we did around the house. This coming year, we plan to spruce up the landscaping again, and we'll probably have to pull what's on the side of the house, as some appear to have died in the drought over the summer :( Inside, we want to get the plumbing hooked up in the basement and get an operational bathroom, build shelves in the storage room, and trim/place doors in the basement. We also want to continue saving to build a barn so our little horsies have a better shelter. 
I doubt all of this will be done in 2011. But, I think it's good to have a working list and savings goals :)

11 in '11 - Day Six

I can't wait to read everyone's organization tips today --- because while I may want to be organized, I am far from it! 


However, I am a big list maker. Whenever there is a party, we are packing, or I'm just trying to get something accomplished, I always make a list. Not only does it keep you in focus, I love being able to scratch items off the "to do" list.


I also buy a lot of plastic totes for storage. My frugal mom thinks boxes work and totes are a waste of money - but I think that totes are just a lot easier to stack, look neater, and hold up over time. 


Every year, my mom and I have a yard sale. So, throughout the year, if I see something that we haven't used/worn in awhile, I'll go ahead and place it in a tote/box. Once it's full, I go ahead and price it. This helps keep our drawers and closets semi-organized, and makes garage sale time a breeze!


I think the hardest thing for me to keep organized is the kitchen! How do all those ladies have perfect cabinets, pantries, etc.? If you have any tips for me, please share!!!

11 in '11 - Day Five

I'm back for day five! Places I want to go this year ...

Washington, DC!
I guess technically Alexandria, Va. One of my besties moved there is October (I miss you, Bella!) and I can't wait to go out and see her! I have only been to DC once, on a 4-H trip in high school, and J has never been. 
Fingers crossed, we'll drive out one weekend, maybe stop on the way, and spend the week in DC. Since we'll have a place to stay, that cuts out a huge expense, and we can see the sights while B is at work, and spend time with her in the evenings. Perfect!


My No. 2 place to go is the beach. Any beach. 
I'm not sure if this will happen, however. Although DC should be reasonable, I have a good friend getting married, we have some bills to pay off and our wedding to save for, so we'll just have to see how the cash flow is...

What I'm Loving

{1} I'm LOVING that I have a lunch date with this hottie today :) It just so happens we're going to be in the same town around lunch, so we decided to meet up :)

{2} I'm LOVING two of my new Christmas goodies. I know some girls don't like anything that requires them to work, but I am all about new gadgets that make my life easier. Two of my gifts that I love most and have already seen a lot of use are my Shark Steam Pocket mop (I've mopped three times in the last week) and my Oxo angled measuring cups. 

{3} I'm LOVING this new cookbook my mom gave me for Christmas! All those yellow Post Its are for recipes I'd like to try. 

{4} Like a lot of people, I decided I needed to tone up this year. So, I am LOVING that I convinced J to do it with me! We have finished day two of The Shred and are both feeling it! 

{5} I'm LOVING that I got to spend so much time with my little niece last week. They live 12 hours away, and Nat just grows up too fast!

{6} I'm LOVING that we got to have a nice NYE party at our home with family and some close friends. And that our Hanky Poo is so darn lovable :)

{7} I'm LOVING that J's birthday is on Sunday! We plan to have a small get-together on Saturday, then I'm taking him out on his birthday.


What are you loving this Wednesday?

11 in '11 - Day Four

{Day Four - Best leftover recipe}

I'm going to be honest here and admit that J and I both are pretty picky eaters. We're carnivores --- potatoes, corn, salad and green beans are the basic vegetables in our house. So when we do leftovers, we usually eat it the way it was made the first time. And thanks to the joys of menu planning, I can do a pretty good job of scheduling our meals and ensuring we don't throw away a lot of food.

However, there are some good leftover recipes we have. 

When there is ham, we make either a big 'ole pot of ham and beans, or this — minus the mushrooms! 

When I make chili, I usually use about six cans of beans, 2 pounds of beef and a half gallon of juice. So, we eat on it for a week and eat it in bowls with peanut butter sandwiches, make Frito pies, have chili dogs, and chili cheese nachos. Yum! 

Something else we do a lot during the summer is a "Fill the Grill"  night. It's amazing to have all of the meat for a week cooked at once! We usually just reheat, and often use leftover steak and chicken for tacos. 

Finally, I love to pick up roasts when on sale. They are cheap, lean, and super-easy to cook. I typically will thaw overnight and put the roast in the crock pot the next morning. I just pour a can/bottle of beer on top and let it cook on low all day. Then for supper, I boil potatoes and carrots --- a super easy and healthy meal! Leftovers are used to make stew, or I'll also shred the meat (beef or pork), pour some bbq sauce on top and have bbq sandwiches. 

And there you have it!

11 in '11 - Days One through Three

Apparently being a better blogger needs to be one of my resolutions :) Actually, I was just spending every minute with those I loved and thought about getting off the couch from spending time with J on Saturday to blog, but figure family is always first, right? So, on to the first three days of the blogging challenge. 

{Day One: Resolutions}

— I don't like to make big ones, because I feel that I'm setting myself up for failure. I do know that I want to focus on being a better me, and I am considering breaking resolutions down into monthly goals, like I see on a lot of blogs. Here's the short list of what I hope to do: lose some weight, spend more wisely/save more, try to be more positive and less judgmental, read more, turn off the TV and computer more often, run a 5K, be better at using this blog to document our lives - why I set it up in the first place!, keep trying new recipes, rid the "poison" from my life, and have a set date night at least once a month!

{Day Two: Favorite Holiday Memory}

— I'm going to be kind of generic here. ALL of our holidays are great and I can't choose just one memory. However, I always remember people's faces when they open the gifts I give. It is so priceless, especially when it comes as a total shock - or is something they mentioned but thought you had forgotten. For instance, this year, my siblings and I got my mom this (and the fabulous J also got one for me) but since she had other gifts from us, she didn't think she was getting it. When she realized what it was, her face was priceless!

{Day Three: Favorite Workout Tip}

— Clearly, I'm not one to be giving advice on this, as I fall off the train so often. But I guess it is to make a plan and stick to it — it should be mandatory, not flexible. My company actually pays for us to go to a gym, so I like to bring my workout clothes and change before I leave the office. If I'm already dressed, it's silly not to go, right? For me, it also helps to menu plan and have simple meals ready to cook that night (or already thrown in the Crock Pot!) so dinner is a lot easier. I typically try to work out four or five days a week, then heavy-duty clean for an hour or so each day on the weekend. Since I hope to lose at least 5 lbs this next month, we'll see how I do. And, I can't wait to read everyone else's tips, because I know I'll need them!