Christmas Blessings!

Over the river and through the woods to Grandmother's house we go...

Merry Christmas everyone!

The {Lazy} Peacock, M.A.

It is official.  I graduated on Friday, December 9th from the Wheaton College Graduate School.  I now have an M.A. in Intercultural Studies (missions).  To make it even more official... I gave my last presentation on December 12th, followed by turning in my final research paper on the 15th.  I was holding my breathe until my professor returned my paper, but I just got it back and it was an ace in the hole.  Breathe released.

Dr. Moreau on Friday night

Geesh, I love this man (and the black gown)

Add caption

Pomp & Circumstance

Drum roll please..................................................................................................................................

This Friday, I am graduating with my master's degree in Intercultural Studies. As of 7:00 PM this Friday, I am done--Done with research papers, done with finals, done with heavy reading.  I'm just plain done.  At least, for now.
 

Please join me in celebrating this momentous occasion by gathering up all of the pencils in your house and ceremoniously throwing them out your front door. Just kidding. Perhaps have a cupcake instead. That's what I plan on doing. Saturday afternoon, I'm gathering with family at one of my favorite restaurants. We are going to have lunch and cupcakes. I am hoping for either a tiramisu cupcake or maybe a chocolate peppermint one to pay homage to the season. Either way, I'll be taking a jog Saturday morning to account for my celebrating (and to blow off steam from my finals, which are actually the Monday after I graduate.)

Now, I would be remiss if I didn't give a few heartfelt shout-outs: 

I want to say a huge THANK YOU to my gorgeous Hubs. He selflessly gave up a lot of fun nights out with friends.  He ate copious amounts of cereal while I was in night classes. And, he fearlessly put up with all of my anxiety and frustration over the last four years. I love you so much and this is as much yours as it is mine. Thank you for helping me accomplish my dreams.

Thank you to my dear family. You read through a lot of my papers, listened to my rants, and gave me the encouragement I needed to keep going when things got overwhelming.  Thank you for always answering the phone when I needed you.  I hold you all in my heart.

Thank you to my friends. You walked alongside me- literally, listening to my crazy venting. You bounced around research ideas with me and then you calmed me down after I bombed my research presentation. You kept me on time for my classes. You made me laugh when I wanted to pull my hair out. You are all amazing.

Thank you to my incredible coworkers. I really could not have done this without your support. Thank you for letting me run out of the office for classes, for listening to my verbal processing, and for praying for me diligently. We truly work in an environment of iron sharpening iron and I thank God for you.

And thank you to my blog family. The {Lazy} Peacock has truly served as an outlet for me over the past couple of years--A way to escape the stress of school and write about anything and everything that makes me happy.  I look forward to being able to dedicate more time to sharing with you in the future. 

5K OK

I haven't mentioned this yet, but it is huge... Hubs and I ran a 5K on Thanksgiving Day!  I mean it literally--We ran the whole thing. To make it even more fun, it was a family event.  We ran the race with Hub's two older brothers, our sister-in-law and his oldest brother's girlfriend.  In addition to that, Hub's parents, my sister, her husband and their new, adorable little girl showed up to cheer us on.

It was only the second time in my entire life that I ever ran over 3 miles. I was initially worried I would end up walking a large portion of the race, but I worried for naught.  I had no trouble finishing the race running.  In fact, when it was over I actually felt like I could have kept going.  Is there an 8K in my future?  Let's not push it.

What's up next?  January 6th, 2012 will mark the one year anniversary of my new healthy lifestyle with Hubs.  To date, I've lost 93 pounds and my goal is to make it to 100 by the 6th.  I really think I can do it!  To help me stay focused (because the Lord knows it's getting harder and harder to drop the pounds), I signed up for a sprint triathlon on June 10th, 2012.  A sprint triathlon is a .5 mile swim, 14 mile bike, and a 5K run.  I think I am going nuts!

Let this be an encouragement to you... If there is anything you want to do (weight loss or whatever), but feel like it is too daunting or impossible--You can do it!  If I can lose 93 pounds in 11 months, you can do anything.  I'm serious.  Just take a look at my new, slim, super sweet gams.

Christmas Crushing

We recently planned our office Christmas party.  We are going to be celebrating a bit early this year because my boss is going to be having surgery mid-December.  I am excited to say that we are going out for Thai food this year!  I recently fell in love with Thai food and was able to introduce it to Hubs, who now loves it as well.  Have you ever tried Thai fried rice?  Awesome.  Not healthy. But incredible.

Anyway, instead of doing a white elephant, this year we are doing something new.  We each pulled a coworkers name out of a hat (pretty ordinary), but instead of searching out strange/unwanted gifts for that person--We have been commissioned to pick out something we have really loved over the last year (under $10) and gift that instead.  It will then be our responsibility to explain why we loved the object/s and why we think our chosen person will love it as well.  It’s different, right?

I’ve been thinking long and hard about what I’ve loved over the last year that my chosen person might also like.  In doing that, I thought it might be fun to share some of those things with you too.  This is completely random and unsolicited, but maybe in the process, I’ll decide what to get my mystery person. 

Here goes:

The first thing doesn't cost any money.  In fact, it is free for all and is located right here on the web-- It's Gina's SkinnyTaste blog! I owe this woman a huge debt of gratitude (93 pounds of gratitude to be exact).  Hubs and I create meals off of her blog almost every day.  Never have we eaten so well.  We particularly love her chicken enchiladas and her chicken rollatini with proscuitto and cheese.  Really, you can't go wrong with any of her recipes and she calculates all of the Weight Watcher point values for you.   

My second favorite thing this year has been Green Mountain's caramel vanilla cream coffee.  I am particularly fond of all their coffee flavors, but this is my favorite.  I even love it black and I'm pretty sure I've never admitted that before.  

My next favorite thing is inevitably linked to the coffee above--It's my Contigo coffee mug.  Hubs bought two of these travel mugs after using one at his brother's house.  We love them because they have an autoseal feature that prevents any and all spills.  In addition, I can fill my mug with coffee in the morning and still have warm coffee in the afternoon.  It's a Christmas coffee miracle!

Another one of my favorite things hails from Bath & Body Works.  It is their handibac moisturizing hand lotion.  I took two containers of the stuff to Greece with me and it served me very well.  So far, I've tried the fresh market apple, fresh lemon, the warm brown sugar and the sweet pea.  Not to give anything away, but I also just ordered the winter candy apple and pink sugarplum for stocking stuffers. 

Lastly, I would be remiss to not mention my new favorite ear warmer- my knit headband.  I actually got mine from a fellow grad student who makes them with her roommate.  I love that I can switch out the knit flowers on my headband because they are just buttoned on.  In addition, I love that my hair stays styled instead of getting flattened down.  Besides, it is just plain chic.

I hope this gets your gears going about what has been meaningful/helpful to you this year.

Have a blessed December night.

Giving Thanks

We’re heading into the holiday season fast and furious.  Seriously…

• Hubs and I are doing last minute training for our 5K Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day.  I actually ran 3 miles this past Wednesday, which was the farthest I’ve ever gone.  

• On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, we have family rolling into town to help celebrate my uncle’s 60^th birthday. In anticipation of our guest’s arrival, I am ferociously cleaning the house.  It will be nice to have every room filled with family.  I’m rolling out the nice towels, people.

• And who can forget that I am getting ever closer to my December 9^th graduation?  Certainly not the person writing this blog. 

• In addition to all this, Hubs and I are scrambling to finish some last minute house projects. I don’t think I’ve mentioned this yet, but we finally got around to painting our porch.  It is now a cheerful dark blue that really sets off the red of the front door.  I promise to post those photos as soon as I can take a picture of it in the daylight (by the time I get home from work, it’s already black outside).

In the midst of all this chaos, it would be easy to forget the concept behind Thanksgiving- simply giving thanks. As a reminder to slow down and recognize how God has blessed my life (and our family), I have implemented a new family tradition to celebrate Thanksgiving. It’s super simple. Hubs and I wrote down a bunch of the things that we are thankful for on construction paper squares and then, we strung them along on a ribbon for all to see. 

 So, what are we thankful for? 

My husband (he’s so handsome)

 Grace and Judson (Judson just celebrated his 5^th birthday on Wednesday--He got an awesome birthday ice cube)

 Green Mountain coffee

Pumpkin pie

Warm pajamas

Bubble baths (this is mine)

Jane Austen (this one too)

Our parents (for their love, commitment to God & one another, and for always answering the phone when we call)

My Nook Color (currently reading The Hunger Games—Holy cow people)

Our home (still in process, but looking better every day)

Our education (and my looming matriculation)

Our jobs

Friends

Laughter and lighthearted moments

 Hub’s dance moves (be still my heart)

Our garden

God’s goodness, mercy & grace

So many things!!!!!

Divided by Half

This is a big announcement, no wait... it's huge!  As of this morning I've lost a total of 90 pounds since January 6th, 2011.  

This year has been truly monumental for me.  Next month I will be celebrating the completion of my master's degree.  In addition, I've reduced my size by half. Seriously. What's more, I'm hoping to have reached my weight loss goal of 100 pounds by the end of December.  I am well on my way. 

Continuing with the concept behind my 80 pounds lost announcement, I want to share some amusing/shocking/crazy weight loss comparisons. Hold on to your hat.


Here are some things that weigh 90 pounds:

1 healthy Holstein calf 
1 female Labrador retriever weighs in at 90 pounds 
A Singer treadle sewing machine weighs approximately 90 lbs
4.5 average car tires
360 quarter pounder hamburgers
90 pounds of feathers (get it?)
69 regulation sized basketballs weigh approximately 90 pounds
and lastly... 45 free range, organically fed chickens

Full Disclosure

I just want to put this out there, even though I might be ridiculed for it...

I'm already listening to Christmas music!  Are you groaning? It's just that I love Christmas music and if I wait until the day after Thanksgiving to get my Let it Snow on, then that is only one month.  Now that I started listening the day after Halloween, I get two whole months.

In no way does this mean I don't respect Thanksgiving.  I love Thanksgiving.  My house is all decked out with pumpkins, gourds, indian corn, and cute little turkeys.  I even made a paper sign reading, "Give Thanks" and hung it in the doorway between the living room and the dining room.

I just want to listen to Away in a Manger okay?  In all fairness to others, I do leave my music pretty quiet.  I understand that not everyone shares my enthusiasm for holiday tunes in the beginning of November, or maybe not at all (and for those of you who fall in the latter group- Bah Humbug).

Spooktacular

Happy Halloween!  

Hubs and I had a great Halloween weekend.  We went to a Halloween party on Friday night.  I went dressed as Velma and Hubs dressed as Shaggy (think Scooby Doo).  Originally, we were going to be gnomes, but people at work tell me I look like Velma with my black glasses and haircut. Unfortunately, I couldn't find Velma's red skirt or orange knee high socks, but people still seem to figure it out.  I guess I do look like her.


On Saturday, Hubs and I had a Halloween date night.  We went out for Thai food, which wasn't ghoulish at all, but it's so delicious we didn't care.  We followed up our nosh with a trip to Meijer for Honeycrisp apples, a pumpkin carving kit (a total waste of money) and some new work shoes for Hubs (again not so Halloweenish, but a necessity). With our new loot in tow, we headed home and set to carving our pumpkins. I chose to do a ghost town and Hubs chose a duo of ghosts.  I just loved watching Hubs carve his pumpkin.  He has always been a looker, but with his new svelte form and determined face... I swoon even now (blush). 

Unfortunately, we don't have any Halloween plans for today- the actual Halloween.  I have class until 6:30pm and trick or treating ends at 7:30pm.  My guess is that most kids will already be done making the rounds by the time I get home. I haven't missed out completely though, I've already seen my fair share of ladybugs, bees, transformers, and fairies thanks to my coworker's children coming through the office. One little 3 year old was even dressed up as Dwight Shrute!  It was the best costume of the season as far as I'm concerned.

As far as Grace and Judson go, they missed out on the costumes this year. I'm sure they are bummed (yeah right).  I never got around to putting anything together for them.  If I had, Grace would have been a chef and Judson would have been a nerd.  It would have been great, I assure you.

Fall Deliciousness

Here's a delicious snack idea that screams fall:

Take a 1/2 cup of smooth peanut butter, 3/4 cup canned pumpkin, 1/8 cup of honey, and a 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and throw it all into a blender.  Mix the ingredients well until the dip takes on a whipped appearance.  Then, grab some pretzels (my favorite) or some cinnamon pita chips and chow down.  I know that it sounds like a bizarre combination, but this dip is really amazing!

One of my co-workers brought this dip in for our department break this past Wednesday and everyone gave it rave reviews (high praise because we have some real foodies in the office).  She also brought in a wonderful honey mustard dip that was served with pretzel rods.

A Welcome Back to the Land of the Living

So this is pretty much how I feel right now: purple with red polka dots all over...

Well, maybe not exactly like that... But I am not feeling well and you can take that to the bank.

After three miserable days last week, I went to the doctor.  Turns out, I was battling a seasonal flu virus and acute bronchitis. A double whammy. I was sent home with a prescription for antibiotics and strict orders to rest and drink lots of fluids. 

Now, it is Monday and the flu bit is well in hand, but the bronchitis is still taking its toll.  My asthma had all but disappeared due to my weight loss (85 pounds- thank you very much), but this bout of bronchitis has brought it back with a vengeance.  I can't breathe.  I feel like someone is literally squeezing my lungs.  I. Just. Need. Air. Wheeze. Wheeze. Wheeze.

On the positive side of things, I took this {sickness} opportunity to fill my cabinets with some scrumptious hot beverage items: Tazo Chai and Tazo Sweet Cinnamon Spice tea.  I also bought some diet hot chocolate, which sounds ironic and disgusting and tastes that way too. One day I was just lying in bed and I thought to myself- I'm sick, my throat hurts, my ears are plugged, I'm tired... and Hubs doesn't want to hear me whining anymore. I'm gonna take advantage of this situation and buy myself something nice. Hub's was just glad to have me quiet for a while... sipping my diet hot chocolate. 

So, if you're reading this and feeling under the weather-- I commiserate. Go out (or have someone else go out and you stay in bed) and buy yourself some colorful, warm wool socks or maybe a new snugly blanket. I give you permission. Wheeze, cough, sigh.


   

Sick

I'm sick.

On Friday night I started feeling that dreaded tickle in the back of my throat.

Saturday my throat was noticeably sore, so I started downing vitamin C and drinking copious amounts of green tea.

When Sunday dawned I had a seriously sore throat-- There was no denying it at this point.

Monday however, I pulled myself out of bed and tried to work... I failed miserably. I was home in bed by 11am--Flat. Out. Sick.

Tuesday has been a repeat of Monday. I slept. I slept. I took some medicine. Then I slept some more.

I hate being sick. Being sick turns me into a big, whiny baby (I totally admit it). Hubs has been great, but I know he is fervently praying for me to get better soon. I think that tonight I'm on the upswing.  Hallelujah!

Carrot Cake, I {Heart} You

This is by far one of the best cakes I've ever eaten, let alone, made with my own two hands.  I wish I could take credit for the recipe, but it's not mine.  I took this carrot cake recipe from my favorite foodie blog, Gina's Skinny Taste.  I'm telling you-- You need to make this cake!


I actually intended to enter it in the Fair this past September, but by the time I finished making everything else I couldn't bring myself to bake it.  Now, I'm really glad I waited because if I had entered this carrot cake in the Fair--Hubs and I wouldn't have been able to try it.  Wowsa... just typing about this cake makes me want another slice.  


From Gina:

Here's a super moist, low fat carrot cake recipe. This is made with a can of crushed pineapple which makes it very moist. I baked this in my new 8 inch round cake pan which I love because it's 3 inches deep but you can use a bundt cake pan or 2 smaller round pans for this instead (baking time will vary). I noticed other ww carrot cake recipes had much smaller serving sizes, but I think it's easiest to cut this into 16 equal slices however if you want to make this into cupcakes or 24 slices, it would be 4 points each.

Super Moist Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes

Servings: 16 • Serving Size: 1 slice • Old Points: 7 pts • Points+: 7 pts 
Calories: 301.1 • Fat: 8.1g • Protein: 4.4 g • Carb: 38.2 g • Fiber: 0.4 g

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup flaked sweetened coconut
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups grated carrots, peeled
• 20 oz. can crushed pineapple in juice, drained 
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts plus 1/4 cup for topping

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 8 oz 1/3 fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, coconut, baking soda, salt, and spices; stir well with a whisk.

In a medium bowl, combine oil, eggs, and vanilla; stir well. Add grated carrots and pineapple; mix well. Fold wet ingredients with the dry ingredients, batter will be stiff and dry but keep folding it and it will all come together. Fold in 1/4 cup chopped nuts.

Spoon batter into an 8" x 3" cake pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for about 40-50 minutes, depending on pan size or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and cake is pulling away from sides of pan. Cool cake completely on a wire rack.

To prepare frosting, beat together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth. Spread frosting over top of cake. Garnish with remaining chopped walnuts.

Porch Progress

This past week was rainy and cold, so imagine my surprise when the sun came out on Saturday.  It turned out to be a gorgeous day and for some reason, I was totally wired.  I mean it-- I did two loads of laundry, washed a bunch of dishes, vacuumed the house, cleaned out our work van, and then I tackled a long overdue porch project.

Way back when we first bought our house, the porch looked like this:

Here's my sister, but if you look past her you can see the worn porch boards.

The porch was a real eye sore.  The floor boards were worn and had the remnants of old brown paint splattered on them.  The steps were definitely showing their age, warped and ugly.  Perhaps the worst thing about the porch though, was that someone, sometime, painted the cement walls two different colors and neither of them even closely resembled a natural cement color.  Yuck.

From the day we moved in, fixing up the porch was on our long to-do list.  It just wasn't at the top--I'd say it fell somewhere more in the middle.  Well, I guess we've reached the middle of the list now because the porch has really been irking me this summer.  I kept telling Hubs I wanted to do something about it and he would nod and remind me of all the other projects that need to get done.

Even so, Hubs did agree to switch out the steps for me a couple weeks ago.  We were wandering around Menards and came across a good deal on lumber. Here we are making the switch-a-roo:

He's hot stuff!

{Total side note- Hubs did this manicure for me.  He's amazing, huh?}

After we got the stairs replaced, I decided to let Hubs off the hook for a few weeks before I started hassling him about painting again (I'm so nice).  But before I could say anything--He brought the floor grinder to the house and did all the prep on the floor!  What an amazing surprise.... and the reason why I was able to prime everything on Saturday.

What's up next?  Stay tuned for the final floor/stair color- it's bold, but beautiful!

The sanded porch boards

A Whole New Me

I almost can't believe this as I write it... As of today, I have lost a total of 81 pounds!  Holy. Cow.

Let's do some comparing: My weimaraner, Grace, weighs in at 79 pounds. An average 11 year old child weighs 79-80 pounds. 10 gallons of water weighs roughly 80 pounds.

Hmmm... what else weighs about 80 pounds-- 7 standard sewing machines, 3 female trumpeter swans, 2 bicycles, 27 bowling pins, and 20 watermelons.

Geesh.

To celebrate this momentous occasion, I've started taking yoga classes with some of my coworkers. I honestly never thought that would happen.  Then again, I never thought I would run a 3K either.

The yoga classes are offered Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, but my plan is to run/train (for the upcoming 5K Turkey Trot) on Tuesdays and Thursdays and to take yoga on Wednesdays.  Who am I?  A totally new (energized) person--That's who!

I have to admit though, I was really nervous during my first yoga class.  I have a strict policy of not putting my head below my feet because of my past history with headstands.  I keep having flashbacks to college- falling on my head and injuring my neck (have I shared that story? I'll have to check--It's a real winner).

Surprisingly, yoga wasn't that bad.  I actually really enjoyed it. I could do a lot more of the poses than I expected.  What's more- it was soothing and I came away feeling de-stressed.  And this may be besides the point, but I really love my new yoga outfit.

Hooray for 80 81 pounds lost and namaste.

Autumnal Inspiration

I heart autumn.