I have found it.

My new workout, that is. Pictured above are Lindsay Lancaster and Danielle Davis, owners of the new Pure Barre Technique that opened this month in Birmingham. Danielle is a friend of mine (she is married to one of Hays' best friends), so I really wanted to try out the classes and experience all of the greatness. I went yesterday, and it is the best workout that I have had in YEARS. You work to tone and lengthen (so that you don't build bulk) muscles in places that are hard to work on - your thighs, seat, abs, even the back of your arms. It was hard, and I am extremely sore today, but I know I will get better at it as time goes on. It was an hour workout, and you are concentrating so hard on doing the exercises that you really don't think about the world outside for the duration of the class. My instructor was really sweet, she knew that it was my first class and helped me with my form when I needed help, which I really liked. I am so glad that I have a workout that I like that will target the areas that I want to work on most! If you want to read about the technique and the studio, check it out here.
I think this might help me along with those resolutions that I made ;)

Recipes

Some of you have asked for recipes, so here they are! I have collected these from random places and use them over and over.

Apricot Chicken


Sour Cream Pork Chops
4-6 pork chops
8 oz sour cream
1 sliced onion
1 cup beef broth (I made mine with 2 cups boiling water and a boullion cube, but only used 1 cup of it)
1 can sliced mushrooms
1 t paprika
1 T prepared mustard
2 T parsley flakes
salt/pepper to taste

Brown outside of pork chops in skillet. Add all ingredients EXCEPT sour cream and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, covered. Add sour cream and simmer for 10 mins uncovered. Serve over rice.
         *Note - I changed this a little and browned the pork chops, then cooked everything in the crock pot for about 1 1/2  hours on high. Then I added the sour cream. The sauce was a little thin, so I added about a tablespoon of flour and cooked it for another 30 mins.

I got the Pineapple Cheese Casserole recipe here. ALERT: Not healthy, but oh so good!

Let me know if you want any more recipes!

Menu Monday

This is my first time to do Menu Monday... trying to follow through with the resolutions!

Sunday- Sour cream pork chops, white rice, pineapple cheese casserole
Monday - Chicken Florentine, corn
Tuesday - Leftovers from Sunday or Monday
Wednesday - Apricot Chicken, brown rice, RF crescent rolls
Thursday - Leftovers from Wednesday
Friday - Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, broccoli and cheese
Saturday - Possibly a dinner out, possibly leftovers!

I have several busy nights this week, so leftovers are necessary. I'll let you guys know how well I stick to this menu!

Show us your life Friday: New Years Resolutions/Goals

Show us your life Friday

I have never been big on New Years Resolutions. I feel like I make All year resolutions! However, I am making just A FEW this year. I have heard that goals are easier to achieve if they are specific. So here goes.
1. Lose 10 lbs by March 11th.
     -This one may be hard for me, especially since I hate to weigh myself and don't do it very often. However, I am going on a cruise for my good friend Corrie's bachelorette party, and I would really like to have 10lbs off by then AT LEAST. I am back into 1 pair of pre-pregnancy jeans, so if I don't lose 10 lbs, but I can fit into the rest of them, that would be good too.
2. I want to be a better wife to Hays. He is such a good husband, and I feel like when I come home from work I direct all of my attention towards Margaret Anne. However, she is asleep by 7:30, so I do have extra time to spend with Hays, and I want to take advantage of it.
3. This goes with #2, but I want to cook dinner more for our family! I need to pull out some old recipes and get the ingredients each week. I am going to follow along with some of you and plan out a menu over the weekend. I think this also will help with goal #1.

Those are my resolutions. I will keep you guys updated on my progress!

An ancient Japanese art...

KARAOKE!! For New Year's eve, we went over to spend some time with our very, very fun Trussville friends. Kimberly got a karaoke machine for Christmas, and it made its debut on New Year's eve. We let the babies all play for a while, bundled them up to watch a few fireworks, then put them to bed. And then it all began.

We were so good, it was SCARY.

Hays and I were getting into our duet. In case you were wondering, it was "Total Eclipse of the Heart."

Wade did a little dancin', while Hays did a little (a lot, who am I kidding) of singin'.

I mean, the Three Wolf Moon t shirt gave Hays some strange energy.

We had a fantastic time!

I can't wait to get together with these fun friends and do it again soon!

This was right after midnight. Happy New Year!

By request...

Several people have asked me to share how I made the hand ornaments from this post. Please don't think I am that creative, I got the instructions from my IRL friend Fran in her post here. The only thing that I did differently is paint mine white with an acrylic craft paint and then I used spray glaze like she did, but I think mine was a little different than hers. I did use a Sharpie to write and draw the holly, and I wrote her name on the back as well.

Happiness

Thank you to my friend Laura over at Groovin with the Grizas for bestowing me with the Happy 101 Blog award!
The rules are: list 10 things that make you happy, and then 10 blogs that make you happy!

My 10 things:
1. God's love, which is the only way I have found true happiness. Even though it is hard to understand His plan sometimes, I have to trust and know that He is good!
2. My wonderful husband.
3. My precious, precious little girl.
4. My family. They are always there when I need them, period.
5. My job (sometimes)! I work with some great kids and some great adults too!
6. Daisy, my rat terrier. She has been with me through all of my hardest life experiences and my best ones too, loyal to the core!
7. My home. It may be small, but it sure is cozy!
8. Fantastic friends. My girlfriends are the best friends a girl could hope for. They are all in different areas and from different areas of my life, but they mean so much to me, whether they are old or new friends, they are very special!
9. My neighbors! I have the best next door neighbors. They are so fun and nice! Yay for Leigh and Jason!
10. Take out. Whether it is Chinese, Mexican, or pizza, it is all yummy (albeit bad for you) and even better is knowing that I didn't have to cook!

Now, the 10 blogs that make me happy...
1. Groovin with the Grizas
2. Life of Skipper
3. The Beck family
4. Sugar and Spice
5. The Maddox family
6. The Edwards Edition
7. Kelly's Korner
8. The Congleton Family
9. I hate green beans (bachelor recaps, y'all! starts tonight too!)
10. Hold it Up to the Light

Thanks again Laura!