Thursday Thought

"If you don't like something change it; if you can't change it, change the way you think about it."  ~Mary Engelbreit

Spring Break

We're back from our Spring Break Vacation! Check here for some pictures from Nathan and here for a day to day from Thayne. (They've already done all the work for me so why double up on it??)
Have a super day!

Soup for a cold, snowy day...in April

Evenings can get crazy around our house! Coming up with a dinner idea is not my favorite thing to do, but a friend of mine recently gave me this soup recipe that is as easy as opening up a couple of cans. It is so super quick and yummy!

Chicken Tortilla Soup
1 can (26oz. family size) Chicken with Rice Soup
1 can (14-15 oz.) whole kernel corn, drained
29-32 oz. chicken or vegetable broth (box, can, or homemade!)
2 cans (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes
1 cup salsa, your favorite
2 cans (15 oz.) black beans, undrained
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
Combine all ingredients, except for the chicken, in a saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. Add chicken; heat through. Top with corn chips and cheese.

It's a pretty flexible recipe too, I threw in some leftover corn and rice from the fridge.
**Also if you have a Bosch you should check out this video from the Everyday Food Storage Blog about shredding chicken with your Bosch. I was SO excited! I cooked some chicken, shredded it all up in just a few seconds and packaged it for the freezer to use in this yummy soup later.

Thursday Thought

"Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful."  ~Buddha

Buddha is so very wise! Have a wonderful day everyone!

Thursday Thought

“Some battles are better won by example than by persuasion.” -Chris Guillebeau

This quote came from the author of a book I read recently: "The Art of Non-Conformity".  Doesn't really sound like me does it... I really enjoyed this book though! It's not the idea that I want to travel the world or try to live like Chris Guillebeau lives, but it's more the idea of just living life how I want to and not worrying so much about how life is "supposed" to be.  I was keeping stuff out of guilt..."what will the person who gave me _____ think if they come over and it's not displayed in my home." "Everyone has a _______ so we probably need one too."  My clothes, hair, house, car, etc. etc. etc. "should" be or look a certain way (like other peoples look, of course!)  Anyway, what I learned from the book is to STOP that kind of thinking. 

The quote is from his web-site today, it really made me think about people who just never seem to LISTEN.  Most all the time it is better just to go on living your life and being an example of good, happy things, rather than trying to persuade them to see why you choose to live with a good and happy attitude:)  So that is the thought for the day:

“Some battles are better won by example than by persuasion.”

Project:Simplify Paper Clutter

Week two of Simple Mom's Project Simplify . This week's hot spot is paper clutter... Can I say that when I read the announcement on Monday morning my brain had a meltdown.  Paper clutter is my downfall.  I tend to just stack and think I'll deal with it "later"... later usually comes, well, later when the coupons are all expired and we've missed the event that goes with the invitation that was in the stack, etc. etc.  I've also had a cold all this week, another excuse to skip the project and wait until next week's hotspot.  Nope, I'm STRONG, I told myself, I CAN DO IT!  So I started.  Here are my before pictures:

I had a large pile of recycling that I sent to work with Thayne to be shredded.

And After!  The big file cabinet upstairs also acts as a bedside table.

This smaller file box is in the kitchen and is supposed to hold school papers, store ads, coupons, bills to pay, and other short term items. The idea was to keep it all off the counter.  It's a good system, but I need to use it now! I think I still have some work to do in this area:)  Thanks Simple Mom for the motivation!

Thursday Thought

     "Happiness is an attitude.  We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong.  The amount of work is the same."     ~Francesca Reigler

     Well, if the amount of work is the same, then I CHOOSE Happy and Strong!  Love, Happiness and Strength to you all too!