Februa-recipe time!

For this post, I'm going to skip all the nonsensical negative nancy things I could write about. Instead, I bring you a recipe!

I found this recipe through Pinterest at www.dinnerordessert.com .

I volunteered to make breakfast for my Sunday School class, the young adults of greatness as I refer to them in my head, for this past Sunday. Then, I got home and thought to myself, "Self. What do you think you're doing? You don't know good breakfasty things." And so like any good volunteer would do, I took to the Facebook. And my Pastor told me to make a casserole. So that took me to Pinterest.

If I could just say, I adore Pinterest. And I've pinned several things. But never once have I actually made/created something from it. So I found this recipe for "Breakfast Casserole Muffins" and decided that's what I was doing. The beauty of this whole thing is it only calls for five ingredients and only takes about thirty minutes to make. So without further a-do, I present to you:

All-Breakfast "Muffins"

Yields: 2 Dozen

Ingredients
1 lb of sausage. --- I used regular but for those with braver taste-buds I'm sure hot would be awesome.
Velveeta Cheese --- I didn't use a lot of Velveeta. If you got the smaller block I'm sure you could use half.
Crescent Roll Dough --- Two Small/Regular Tubes in the frozen section
8 Eggs --- The original recipe called for 6 and I had doubled the original recipe, but only used 8 eggs total and it worked out perfectly.


1/4 Cup of Milk

** Pam/Cooking Spray - I imagine it would have been horribly messy without this lifesaver.

Preheat oven to 375.

Once you've sprayed the muffin pan you'll be using, take the crescent dough and bust the first of the two open. I found that each pre-cut triangle they're nice enough to provide can be the base for each muffin. Take your dough and press it into the bottom of each muffin... .... thing? It should be flat on the bottom, not curved or cupped or anything crazy.

Broooown your sausage. No, I'm serious. Once your sausage is browned and drained from all grease, (I didn't drain but I was careful to keep most of the grease out of the actual muffin) take a spoon (I used a table spoon) and spoon sausage into each of the already placed dough bases.




Now's the fun part. I cut slices of Velveeta and then tore those into smaller chunks, strategically placing those around the sausage. Easy enough, right? So so far we have dough, sausage and cheese.

Next - in a bowl, combine milk and eggs. Beat those together and then pour a little into each hole. (We're going with that term for now.) Don't fill it all the way to the top! They rise and it will get messy for you if you're not careful. I found that when pouring the egg/milk mixture it would find all the holes around the cheese chunks so be patient and don't over do it.


Put that tray of muffiny goodness in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes. Mine took 30 on the nose. If they look delicious and golden brown at 25 minutes, go on and take them out.

I'm sure the more seasoned chef out there won't have this problem, but mine rose and burnt ever so slightly and stuck so I had to get crafty and use a knife to cut some of them out. If they don't come out easily, don't lose faith! They're worth it!

When you're ready to eat them, pat yourself on the back and then sit down somewhere and enjoy. It goes great with coffee or orange juice, by the way. Make sense since it's all the good things about breakfast, right?

One month, a few extra lbs.

Day One

This is me. For those of you who know me personally, I don't need to tell you I'm Katy. Now, I know this may be egotistical, but I think I'm a very pretty girl. :]

That being said, there's something about this picture that needs to change and, you may have guessed it, it is my weight. Now a lot of people over the span of my years of being over-weight have told me I was beautiful the way I was. If you'll look in the first paragraph, you'll know even I think that's true.

But let's not kid ourselves, America. I am the face of the unhealthy. I am the very portrait of obesity and the health problems that come with it. All of that being said...

 

It's time for a real change. So.

For the next week I am eating better. No fried Chick Fil A, heart be still... No more sodas, had my last one this afternoon after stopping for a while last year. I invested in some of those maybe awful for you "lean" frozen dinners and instead of eating two at one sitting only plan on eating one. I will work out every day. I will eat more greens, more fruits and vegetables and less oatmeal cream pies and snack-packs. I will drink water, water with lemon, water with ice and hold the sweet tea.

For one week I am not cheating, I am not bending my own rules... I'm doing this thing.

So these pictures, this is day one. I'll take another one day 7, next Sunday. I can't promise there will be a physical difference and really that's not even what I'm looking for.

I want to feel better. Feel healthier. Feel accomplished.

In one week I will have an update and then, you know, probably get back to talking about Christmas and New Years and Mission Trip and all the fun stuff.

So bloggers, wish me luck!

Say Goodbye, Bloggers.

Catch Up Time

Before I start this blog you should know three things:

Thing One: God will put you where he wants you when he wants you there.
Thing Two: I love my house and where I'm living now.
Thing Three: Our timing has this insane ability of being convenient and exciting, but not always right.

Now let's back track a little. Hello, blogging world. I've been a little AWOL for a month now. I told myself I wouldn't let that happen, but it did. So now here I am, writing this blog. But not only am I writing this blog, I am waiting for the worlds best blueberry muffins to get done baking and getting ready for church. I'm not bragging, but if there was an award for mufti-tasking you'd think I'd be trying to get it, I'm just saying.

If I could, I'll start with thing two. I love my house. My family has graciously furnished it with unwanted items that my sister and I adore. The heat works in this cold weather. The electricity bill is never too high and the water bill is at a comfortable low. Rent is great. I think, though, that when I move into a different house (or the dream being one day build my own out here) I will invest in an oven/stove combo that a) is electric and has a timer built in two it and b) has a light inside the stove. In theory, this dream is not to big to be attained my friends.

And while I'm on the subject of the stove, let us discuss Thanksgiving. My parents came in town to spend the week with us. They brought their dog, Smokey, and took over my room. It's okay, though. I got to move in with my Nana and Virginia friend Ambah for the week. Now, there are many stories I could tell about Thanksgiving, but I'll start with this one: my house smelled like burn all week long. I would come back to get more clothes or shampoo or whatever I needed and open the door to this awful burning smell. But that didn't stop my mom, bless her. She cooked and cooked and cooked all week long. And the house smelled and smelled and smelled all week. So finally, my old man is investigating the stove because surely it can't smell that bad forever, right? Right. On the bottom of the oven, caked into a blackened mess beneath the burner, was what appeared to be a clump of old paper towels. So, my brave pap-pap cleaned it out for us. Needless to say, I can bake now and the house smells lovely instead of just awful.

In other news, I leave to go back to Texas in a week. One week! And what's crazy is this: while I love my family, my other family and all of my friends I'll get to spend time with; I already can't wait to come back here because of all the amazing things God is doing in this area.

I am blessed to have been put in a place where I can serve, where I can be used to reach people and where I can get to know people who push me to be closer with Him every day. Whether it's my new boss giving me words of encouragement or one of the kids from church giving me a huge hug just because I'm there, the level of encouragement I feel here makes it seem like all of this is right. Like this move wasn't just another risk in my plan, but it feels like it's where I need to be. Where He wants me to be.

In these past few months I have been given the chance to serve with The Bridge Ministry under the Jefferson Street Bridge in Nashville, and now I get the chance to go back again this week. He has also granted me the opportunity to serve with the children's ministry in my church and get to know 30+ kids. All of this aside, He has blessed me with a group of young adults in my church (14 of us, mind you) that I can grow with and learn from and talk to. I haven't gone hungry, I haven't been broke. If that doesn't say God is good, I don't know what does.

Now thing three.

I signed up on a free dating website a long long time ago. Now, once you're done going "whhhhhhhhy??" Let me explain myself: I have no idea why. I don't feel like I'm in a place right now where dating is the best idea, anyway. I still have, what, two years of school ahead of me before I can get a big people job and figure things out from there. While dating isn't an awful idea, I am just trying not to rush into anything silly at this point. And then I do this:

I say, "God. In time you're going to reveal my husband to me, or you're going to keep me single forever. Either way, I'll be happy with this life and I'll serve you no matter what. I'm giving this to you so I won't worry about it anymore. All in your time, Amen."

But then, I turn around and get my hopes up about every single guy that messages me. And I get really excited about some of them. "Good Christian guys who are excited about Jesus?! Sign me up!" And then I start talking to them and I find out some things about their beliefs, one example being that they love God but just "want to have fun" right now, and I'm not talking about playing Putt Putt, okay? So then I shake my head (after 45 minutes of bashing it on the keyboard, mind you) and go:

"Okay, God. You got me. I really am giving it up to you now."

And I'm so ready to do that. My Aunt Bren was leading the kids Bible Study the other day and she said "And then do you know what God had planned? Romance! I bet you never believe God planned for Romance!"

And she was right. I always felt like God had so many plans but romance was in my court, even if I said I believed other wise. So now, I'm taking a step back and focusing on me. Centering myself back around Him. His timing, not mine.

I'm so excited about this journey I've been living for the past few months, and more than pumped about what's to come. :D

Pumpkins and Pinterest

Halloween has come and gone. Surprisingly this year it wasn't a huge deal for me. It's one of my favorite days of the year, you know? I bought a doctors costume from WalMart (a flimsy piece of material that may as well have been stapled together) and helped out with trunk or treat at church.

By the way, I joined my first church again. It's a weird feeling "coming home" when I was so young when I left. But I feel like that church is where God wants me at this moment in time. He is doing amazing things with the people there and I'm so excited to be a part of it.

Anyway. This year my aunt had a Halloween bonfire/hayride at her house. Now, when I was younger we would do this. We would all get together and then we'd all get on this hayride only to have our wits scared out of us by our cousins and aunts and uncles. But we looked forward to it every time. So this year, being an older kid, it was a very different take on it. It was too much fun, egging the new wave of young kids on when we'd see a shadow in the woods. Too much fun.

Priceless

Highlight moments:

At trunk or treat, my cousin dressed up like a gorilla. And then he made a friend.

One of my cousins friends laid down in a shallow grave with a piece of rotten plywood on top of him and patiently awaited for us (being me and my sister who is afraid of zombies but was willing to go along with this one time thing) to flip it over. Then the zombie look alike launches himself from the grave and basically tackles my sister before going and chasing all of the little ones. Priceless.

.And lastly, for the second year in a row my sister and I carved the same pumpkin. And this time we were two states away from one another.

My sister's pumpkin.

My Pumpkin

So now I'm looking forward to Thanksgiving. Getting to see my parents and a close friend of mine. So excited.

And lastly, have you heard of Pinterest? Soon, and I hope very soon, I will be posting pictures of one or two projects I will have completed from Pinterest by that time. Yayyyy crafting!

Customer Service

If anyone has worked directly with customers, you'll relate.

Don't you just hate it when someone comes in and yells at you? They assume whatever happened that was wrong you did on purpose and therefore you're the scum of the earth for not doing it right? Obviously you couldn't manage to do it right anyway because, let's face it, you're just in customer service. If you had a brain you'd be a lawyer or doctor, not working with customers.

I have had my fair share of people throw drinks at me, throw bags of food at me, call and complain about me, cuss at me, spit at me, or refuse to leave a drive thru window because of the littlest things: I forgot to give them a straw; or I only gave them fifteen bbq sauces when they asked for sixteen, or I breathed funny or answered a question from a fellow co-worker and broke eye contact. You name it, I've been there.

That is part of the reason I try and be so careful when I handle people in customer service. If I have to call any service department for any reason, I check myself going into the phone call. Am I angry? Should I cool down first? Can I address the problem reasonably without making the person on the other end of the line feel like I'm the customer that ruined their day? Should I wait a few days, hours or minutes to collect my thoughts so it's quick and painless for everyone?

Even though I ensure the answer to the last three questions is a solid yes, there is still a point in the conversation that I can feel the biting sarcasm or general frustration yearn to kick in.

Example: This morning I was on the phone with a Customer Service Representative from AT&T. A small billing problem, and let's face it, billing problems are the worst. Kudos to anyone who works in billing; you're pretty brave. After being told that I misread terms and agreements that I read clearly, I felt it coming. My general frustration for the last week tried to get the better of me. I bit it back, I refrained from raising my voice (not that I have much of a voice to raise today,) and tried for patience.

The problem was resolved in 18 minutes and 43 seconds. I left both of the women I talked to with good reviews, claiming that I was indeed a satisfied customer.

Now, I like to connect dots. Maybe God put me at Chick Fil A four and a half years ago so that I could learn to be more patient. So that I could enter that adult world of bills and problem-solving with a little more understanding so I won't be that lady with the Christian bumper stickers who gets out of her car to yell at other people because they are being impatient. Either way, you have to appreciate all of life and it's little lessons.

In Review

So much has happened since the last post! Much I probably will fail to mention today, but oh well.

I have gone to Virginia and back. The trip was exciting and trust me when I say well needed. Those Virginians that I love so dearly know how to have a good time. Downtown Richmond flew by, but the restaurant and hotel were lovely. I'd like to go back someday, I think. Really explore it. Maybe next time? We also went to the Peanut Festival (a kind of county fair that was actually really cool) and to Busch Gardens. Now here's the kicker:

I love roller coasters. I adore them. For the past few years, though, I've been unable to ride them. This, as you could guess if you knew me and weren't being the sweetest people I've known, is because of my weight. And every time I go to an amusement park I feel that sting. So, I need to get on this. And not just so I can ride a rollercoaster, though that would be amazing! But, for my health. For my over-all well being. For my future. It may sound silly to some people, but though God accepts me and loves me for everything I am, this isn't the way he intended me to be. God gave me a body, to move and dance and serve and ride rollercoasters, and I have taken this body and limited myself with how much weight I have put on it. Truth be told, I believe (and I may be wrong) that I'm supposed to be a mom, and at my current weight having kids isn't healthy, believe it or not. So, having said all of this, I'm making a plan and putting it into action.

Update: Our church Volleyball team is 3 and 2 in the league. While winning three and only losing two is pretty good for our little team: It's just fun. I look forward to it every week.

In other news, one of my favorite bands put out a new album yesterday. I enjoy having good Christ-centered bands that are encouraging to listen to and stray away from the dry, mundane sound that a lot of Christian Artists stick with. Now, don't get me wrong. I still think the five members of FF5 are good, Christian guys. I love listening to them pray, I love reading interviews with them where you can see their passion for God. I'm just wishing I could see it in their music again. I'm sure I'll like some of the songs. It's just they've gotten so far away from the original premise of Family Force 5 ("We want to make music that is for God, but at the same time, we want to make music that people enjoy and that they're not turned off by.") While I will give the album kudos for having some pretty cool beats and catchy lyrics, the idea that having to try and find God in the lyrics between Dang Girl (which sounds like 3OH3! should have recorded) and Mamacita troubles me a little. After the EP was released the mentioned having more spiritual songs on the album and (given I've only previewed most of the songs) I'm not finding them.

I promised pictures in an earlier post, and you're going to get them. Next time, though. Methinks I need a good clean up before I post it for anyone to see.

In case you were wondering: I love living here. I love the cold, I love the rain, I love the country. I miss my Texas friends just like I miss Alaska and England, though. I keep saying this is an adventure and it is: a new chapter in my life I'm nowhere near used to yet. And it's exciting, don't you think?

Working 9-5...

Or 6-4. Or 11-8. Or 2-10:30. Regardless of the time:

What a way to make a living. 

I banked this last pay check, 78 hours to be precise. Out of that, a third of it is already gone and I just got paid yesterday. One of these joys of getting grown, right? Today I am paying for internet and car and insurance, waiting on water and electric, Sunday is Tithe and then October 1st starts rent. The song "Bills, Bills, Bills," has been running through my head all day.

As I've mentioned before I am so thankful to have this job. God provides. And not just financially. God provides peace, He provides understanding. He provides kind people to work with and understanding on their parts when it comes to me and my craziness. He knows my heart and provides accordingly. He is good, and great, and worthy to be praised.

In other, non-financial, news I am on my church's volleyball team. You heard me right (despite that record screech that went through your mind.) I am the substitute for the substitute for my sister but that was my choice. Firstly, I have never played volleyball before so it would have been silly for me to start games, right? Secondly, my work schedule is so up in the air from week to week that it was impossible to just promise to be at each and every game. All of that being said, we scrimmaged this past Monday and had a blast. I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

Athleticism, who knew?

Also, I have purchased a desk and a chair. The desk I am tackling tomorrow. Well, not tackling because that would hurt and leave me bruised I'm sure. But I have already pieced the chair together so the desk is up next. And it looks like I may be investing in a 15 dollar bookshelf from Wal-Mart because that seems like less of a headache than trying to get all the pieces to my old one to go back together now that most of the hardware is missing.

Spoiler Alert!

Once everything is finally pieced together I will be updating this blog with "before" and "after" pictures.

Who's excited?