Spring is here!

Happy 1st day of Spring!

I am very excited at the arrival of the season. :) I can't believe how much I am looking forward to warm days full of sunshine. I have always considered myself a kind of dark and dreary loving person. My mother can vouch for me. When I was younger and lived at  home, I liked my shades drawn down, the room dark and cool. I liked cloudy, sometimes even rainy days, better than I liked sunshine days. Well, not anymore. I am craving sunshine and warmth! Maybe this is something that happens as you get older, and wiser. ;))

Easter wreath I made



A little center piece I made

I am LOVING seasonal decor :)

As you can tell from the above pictures, I have really gotten into the season. I am usually one to only decorate for fall and Christmas.

I cannot even express how happy the oncoming green grass makes me. It is seriously crazy! I check outside everyday to see if the grass is more green, and if the flowers have grown since the previous day. I am so excited for when I am able to plant more flowers and even some trees. :)

Black bean burger

Tonight we had some very good black bean burgers for supper. It was a new recipe. I just love trying new foods. If you are interested, click here for the recipe. I have always liked veggie burgers, but I must say this one is my favorite thus far!



The pictures below are from another new recipe I found. This recipe is for homemade Muesli, which I found out was just a fancy word for cereal. ;) I luv luv luv it! It seriously feels you up, and if paired with a fruit, provides a very healthy breakfast. Now, I am not a health nut or anything, but I feel like if I keep making small changes in my eating, eventually I will have a whole new healthy eating habit.

Wild ingredients. I was lucky to have found them at Kroger and WalMart.

Put all ingredients into a canister.



Mix well.

Add milk and enjoy a healthy way to start your day. :)

Click here for the cereal recipe.



I hope y'all are as ready for Spring as I am. :)

God Bless,
~Lacey

Spring Break

I had the BEST Spring break that a girl could ask for!

My Cinderella niece, Kari, and Prince Charming nephew, Malachi, got to come to KY and stay with us for 9 days. :) I just love them!!! We always have the best time playing, eating things we shouldn't, and shopping.

I love pictures (as you can tell) and I hope you enjoy them too.

The kids and I fount an old abandoned train track to play on while Chris talked business with a client.

 

 

If you have never stopped at a place called Sweet Water Cheese factory in Philadelphia, TN, then you are missing out of some seriously awesome fresh cheese and as the kids say, "The bestest ice cream cone ever!" 

 

We I decided that since we were coming through TN anyway, we might as well go a little further and take the kids to Pigeon Forge to ride the the go~carts. What fun!!! I couldn't find their coats so we bundled them up in their robes. Too cute, right?

We ate at Mellow Mushroom and Chris and the kids were NOT impressed! I liked it, but that's not surprising. I most generally like all things that are in the food category. ;)

Saturday we took the kids to the Creation Museum. We all LOVED it!!! It was so amazing to see the bible come to life.

The dinosaurs were a big hit with them.

Sunday we enjoyed the pretty weather at the park with our Church friends.

Monday was very rainy and nasty so spend most of the day indoors playing and doing crafts.

Tuesday we met Lashei, Latasha, and Jackson at the Kids Place in Lexington.

The kids and I went to the mall and actually ended up staying till it was closing time. :O

They certainly enjoyed helping me with supper Wednesday night. Fried chicken was a hit with them, and Chris.

Thursday night their Church buddy Trinity stayed all night with them. They had a blast being together again and playing. Trinity was pretending to be very sick and had to be prayed for by Doctor/Preacher, Kari.

Friday was spent at the "bonnet people place" (Amish) as Kari calls it. We love the general store and fount kites for the kids for only .75 each. That evening we went to the park and flew their kites. They turned out to be the best kites ever!

Saturday was a GORGEOUS day and we went to the park and played the morning away. We then came home and the kids played outside. They sure enjoyed the mud!

 

I had to bid farewell to my precious sweeties Saturday night after Church. :(  I hate goodbyes! The only thing that makes it better is all the precious memories I have stored away that I can reflect on whenever I need or want to. Life with these two kids is never boring, and I find myself smiling--sometimes with tears in my eyes-- at every thought of them. They are such a joy to have around. :)

 

 

I hope y'all enjoyed the post and pictures. I guess now I have no excuse for eating lots of pizza and ice cream. :/ It is back to the ol' diet for me.

 

I pray you all have a great week!

God Bless,

~Lacey 

A Praise On My Every Labored Breath!

I woke up this morning at 4am to the MercyMe song, "Move!" I absolutely love this song. The peppy music and catchy words woke me up feeling energized and alive!

I had told Chris last night that I wanted to get up and hit the gym early so maybe there wouldn't be too many people there. He was skeptical to say the least. ;) I don't have a very good record of getting up at 4am. Ever.

When we pulled in at the gym I was astonished to see 4 vehicles there! I mean really! What kind of crazy person goes to the gym at 4am?

I turned on Pandora and started my MaryMary station. They play some great music on there. Would you believe it, my favorite song started playing. Have any of you heard, "Something about the name Jesus," by Rance Allen? Well, I LOVE it! If you haven't heard it go look it up. It is awesome, and so uplifting. :)

With my favorite song playing in my ears I started exercising on the elliptical. I had never used an elliptical before joining, and actually found out that I really like it. The more I listened to Rance "getting down, " the faster I went, and the harder it got for me to sing along with him.

I could feel the blood pushing through my veins and even though I labored for every breath, I also felt as if every breath was deeper and stronger. The body is a such a marvelous thing. God is so creative! I started thinking about how blessed I am to have all my limbs, and the use of my muscles. I have a sound mind that lets me wake up and know what I am doing and where I am. After pondering this a while I decided it was a blessing for me to be able to exercise! I am going to try to think of exercising like this from now on. If it wasn't for God, I wouldn't be able to move, think, or talk. I want to do everything as if I was doing it for the Glory of God!

So with every labored breath I take, I'm gonna let it be a breath of praise to God! A praise for who he is, what he did, and what he allows me to do!

Have a blessed Tuesday and in all things, Give Thanks!
~Lacey

Fitness Club

I have never been a fan of gyms or fitness places. For one reason, I do not enjoy being around others when my flubber is flapping! I would rather flap alone.  ;)  Also, there is so many skinny and athletic people there that I tend to feel intimidated and therefore worse about myself. I'm very self conscience and insecure about my weight. I have never been a skinny person and have always battled with my weight. I guess once I got married it was easy to say forget it and just drown myself in all kinds of comfort food. Chris loves me no matter what, but loosing weight is not for his benefit. It is for mine. It is sad when I wake up at the age of 25 and I feel like an old woman with no energy or desire to get out of the house. It is NOT healthy for the body or the mind. So for the first time in my life, I joined a fitness club.

Throughout the past year I have gotten into these mindsets where I want to diet and exercise, but when I didn't see immediate results I got discouraged and quit. I have to remind myself that the ark wasn't built in a day. Noah probably felt foolish and even embarrassed at times. He was building a boat to save them from something they had never seen or heard of, but Noah never gave up. He kept on working.

So Saturday I walked into the fitness club feeling a little like Noah. I went to the back room so I could get as far away from other people as possible. I fount a secluded corner and tried out the stair stepper, bicycle, and the elliptical. People probably looked at me on the elliptical with my bright red face and sweat pouring and thought, "Man, she's fighting a loosing battle!" I have had this same thought about myself for too long! It's not a loosing battle, it is a journey. It may take me a while to get to where I'm going, but eventually, if I pace myself and stick with it, I will get there.

When I left the club I felt so much better. Of course, after just one day, I didn't look at myself in the mirror and see a flat tummy and firm skin, but I felt good about myself. I made a good choice and I
was proud. From now on I'm going to take it a day at a time and trust God to help me. 

In other news...I will be heading down south this Friday to pick up two adorable little kids. Kari and Malachi are going to stay with me for my Spring break week. I cannot wait!!!!! We are going to have a blast. Please pray that there is no sickness this time. 

I hope you all have a wonderful day in the Lord,
~Lacey