Author: Lois Houston

I'm a sweet tea drinkin' southern gal who loves to cook, bake, crochet, and read. Check out my blog for posts about parenting, faith, books, crafts, planning, baking, cooking, and life in general.

Good enough

This was in my inbox the other day:

Dear Incredible Girl,

When you've done all that you can do, and you still feel like you have so much further to go, when you feel like all that you have to give still isn't nearly enough, when it seems that you will not be able to keep up everything that needs to be kept up for one minute longer —
stop and breathe.

Look. Really really look at what you are expecting of yourself.

You are an incredible girl. You are amazing and strong and brilliant. But friend, you are also a human being. You cannot do it all. You cannot always hold everything together perfectly, and you cannot be perfectly composed every single day. It's okay to have 'off' days. It's okay to feel weak and overwhelmed and have meltdowns once in awhile. It's okay. YOU are okay.

Everything is going to be okay. It is.

Let yourself have days to be a perfectly imperfect human being. Let yourself feel what you need to feel and process your life the way you need to process it. Let yourself BE.

Bad days will pass, overwhelm will dissolve, and the sun will come up again tomorrow morning, just like it does every day. There will be a brand new sparkling day waiting for your tomorrow, waiting for you to hold hands with all of the joy that it is offering.

You are just right. You are doing great. You are fabulous!

And you are very very very very loved.
xoxo

"A little bird told me" – your Daily Truth from The Brave Girls Club
www.bravegirlsclub.com

 

I just love this.

Absolutely love it.

Why is it that we hold ourselves to impossible standards?

Why do we feel like we must be perfect in everything we do?

And when we fall short (as we almost must do) we feel like we’re worthless and berate ourselves instead of celebrating our successes and accomplishments, no matter how large or small?

When did this become the norm?

And why?

And is this what we want to teach our children?

That good enough is never good enough?

I don’t.

I want my girls to push themselves to be all they can – to stretch beyond what they think they can do and find out what they really can do but I also want them to learn that, as long as they have tried their best, that is good enough.

That they don’t have to measure their success by external yardsticks – by what others think or what others expect – but by their own hearts and their own rulers. 

That giving it your best effort is good enough.

And learning to be okay with that.

And maybe, just maybe, while I’m teaching them, I’ll learn it myself.

Simply Delicious Grilled Pizza

I promised you I’d share with you my favorite pizza crust recipe.

This comes from Cook’s Country magazine – the September 2010 issue – which is chock-full of some of my favorite recipes. I love that magazine (and not just the Sept 2010 issue!)

This grilled pizza crust is so good. Slightly sweet, a little crispy, and oh, so, yummy with a light dusting of your favorite toppings. I think the part that makes it so good is the parmesan that is baked into the crust. Oh.my.goodness.

I make a batch and it is more than enough to make four small (personal) sized pizzas for the family.  Which the girls love because they each get to fix their pizza the way they prefer.

For the sauce, I usually use leftovers from my homemade sauce, but I have been known to either open a jarred marinara or even just open some canned crushed tomatoes and season those to use.  Depends on how lazy I am and how stocked (or not) our pantry is!

And I’m sure you can use this not on the grill but I’ve just always grilled it. I bet it would work just fine in your oven on a pizza stone or baking sheet.

Here’s the basic recipe:picture from Cooks Country.com

Grilled Pizza Dough

  • 1 cup water (heated to 110 degrees ~ hot)
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil (plus extra for brushing dough & grill)
  • 1 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 envelope (2 1/4 tsp) yeast
  • 2 3/4 cups flour (plus more for dusting rolling surface)
  • 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 tsp salt (I use kosher)

For the top:

  • 2 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella
  • ~ 3 cups marinara or homemade spaghetti sauce
  • toppings of your choice

To prepare dough:

  1. Whisk water, 1 tbsp oil, sugar & yeast in large measuring cup. Let sit 5 minutes.
  2. In food processor, pulse flour, parmesan, & salt until combined.
  3. While machine is running, slowly pour oil mixture down spout until dough pulls away from sides of bowl and forms a ball (this takes about a minute)
  4. If dough seems too sticky, you may need to add 1-2 Tbsp flour.
  5. Turn dough out on floured surface and knead 3-4 times.
  6. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces.
  7. Working with one piece at a time, press into a small circle and use a rolling pin to stretch dough to form a 9-inch circle. (mine always turn out oblong!)
  8. Transfer each finished circle to baking sheet lined with parchment paper *and dusted with flour* (you can stack them with floured parchment paper between)
  9. Meanwhile, heat your grill on high for about 15 minutes (while you are making the dough)
  10. Leave your primary burner on high and turn all other burners to low/medium-low. Scrape cooking grate and grease with an oiled paper towel.
  11. Brush tops of 2 of your dough circles with olive oil. Peel off of parchment and place OIL SIDE DOWN on the COOL SIDE of your grill.
  12. Now, don’t touch them for 3-5 minutes (until the tops are bubbly and undersides are browning)
  13. Brush the tops with olive oil, and using tongs, flip the circle.
  14. On this freshly-browned top, add your sauce, cheeses and toppings.
  15. Cook pizza for 3-5 minutes on cool side of grill and slide to hot side to crisp for 1-2 minutes if desired.
  16. Repeat with remaining dough rounds & serve.
  17. Finished pizzas can be kept warm in a preheated 200 degree oven if you want to serve them all at one time.

I promise, once you try this, you won’t want the pizza delivery man to bring you his overcharged, under-flavored pizza ever again!

Picture of the Day: Tough day at “the office”

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See the full gallery on Posterous

One of the perks of working from home – conference calls from the hammock!

 

Guts and Nuts

Welcome to the very first installment of this season’s Bachelorette recap.

As I mentioned on Monday, I’ll do these for as long as I can – or at least as long as I can stand watching the show. After 10 years of watching them on/off, I’m getting a little jaded so it is getting harder and harder to suspend reality and watch the weekly installments.

I mean, we all know by now that they are, if not scripted, full of “conveniently” planned situations which will, invariably, bring out the best and or worst in the “contestants” for the Bachelorette’s heart. 

And I am finding it harder and harder to believe the Bachelor/ette when they say that they “only want to find their one true love” and think that this is the “journey they were meant to take” to find that “one true love.”

Now, don’t get me wrong.

I’m not saying it won’t happen or couldn’t happen. I just have to sigh and wonder if their mommas didn’t teach them any better than to go lookin’ for love in all the wrong places. 

These boys (or girls, depending on the season) are most likely NOT there looking for their “one true love” and are more likely there to find their 15 minutes of fame and/or notoriety. (and usually at the expense of their own reputation and sometimes self-image)

The cynic in me says Ashley is only there for the fame, fortune and travel. (as are they) And the romantic in me is trying really hard to shout above the cynic to say the she really is there to find TRUE LOVE but then she (the romantic, that is) has to stop and admit that, with as many issues as Ashley has (namely her own insecurity) finding love in this way is highly unlikely.

But, I digress.

I promised myself I would not spend this post pointing out all of the things that I think are wrong with this show. I will focus on sharing with you the observations I made when I watched it… and I’ll try to be nice. I promise. 🙂

On to the opener:

*a side note: why do they always wet the flagstones? Don’t they realize that while they look prettier this way, they make the girls’ dresses WET and wet ballgowns are not fun to wear (or launder)

On to the Bachelors:

Ben F. First Bachelor of note is Ben F, the winemaker.  My first reaction is that he looks like a little boy. Then, I think, no, he looks like a dork dressed up.  But mostly he just looks like a little boy. The trick to bring the wine was a good one, though. Gotta give him points for that. (+2 points)

Look at that baby face! (or am I just getting OLD!?!)

 

Bentley Next is Bentley – I think he has been cast as the “bad boy” of the season.  My first thought with him is divorced=issues=trouble.  Second thought is boy, is he ARROGANT!  I vote him off the island already. Will be interesting to see how things go with Ashley.

Especially since she has already been "warned" about him by a former Bachelor contestant who knows Bentley's ex-wife. Now, it may just be me, but I'm thinking intelligence from the friend of an ex-wife may be questionable intelligence indeed.  But, I still think he is one to watch out for – and not in a good way.  Remember Wes from a few seasons ago? The country singer? This year Bentley is Wes.

Will he play to her insecurities and will she fall for it? I think he is a player. We will see.

Anthony

Anthony is the next one I take note of –

(if I don’t mention them, they were just
B-O-R-I-N-G and/or didn’t get much screen time)

Now, my initial response was “aw, he’s cute!” And I loved the New Jersey accent. And he’s Italian. Gotta love that.  But once he stepped out of the limo he was just full of bluff and swagger. I think it turned Ashley off. I know it did me. And the sad thing is, it was probably to hide how scared he really was. Poor baby. (no points for you)

Jon Jon is the next one to catch my eye. The whole Neanderthal move of tossing Ashley over his shoulder and walking away with her – REALLY?!?  I think she liked it, but I wouldn’t have been amused. minus 5 points.

Will be interesting to see how things play out with him in the end…

My next thought was about how all the guys are hugging her. I’m a hugger. I don’t mind hugging people.  But, seriously. I bet every single one of those guys was wearing cologne.  And I bet she was, too. So now, after hugging 25 guys she probably smells something awful… like 26 different scents. UGH. I’d be patting them on the shoulder and saying “See you inside!” No hugs for you!

Mickey Mickey’s kiss maneuver was cheesy. I thought “oh, my goodness. you didn’t just do that, did you?”

And yes, darlin’ he did.

UGH.

I’d send him home immediately. eeewwww.

and then he BRAGGED about it when he got inside.  You’re outta here, pup.

West West with the broken compass – come on? Really? You didn’t have anything more original than to bring a compass to give that is “broken” pointing West and telling her that when she is lost to use it to find her way back to you? I think some producer put you up to that and you fell for it. sigh.  minus 5 points.

There is a second Ben – Ben C. – and he lost points with me with his put-on French lines he delivered. Another producer-induced moment of stupidity, I think. minus 3 points.

I’m sorry this is so long guys… 25 bachelors – and not many superstars in here to choose from. I promise I’m almost done. Thanks for sticking with me.

I don’t know what was up with the one Bachelor who whipped out his camera to shoot some pictures – that, in and of itself, wasn’t so bad..

It was when he asked Ashley if she’d take a picture of him with Chris Harrison when they got inside that I had to shout at the TV “YOU DID NOT JUST ASK THAT DID YOU!?!?” 

Seriously? Is he here on a sightseeing trip or to be a BACHELOR?!?!  minus 15 points!

Moving on…

Constantine Constantine was the final Bachelor out of the limos. I have a soft spot for him as he is a local boy –

I actually saw him today when I was out for lunch at his restaurant. He was playing it all cool talking to a friend about the show.  Of course, I just about fell out of my booth trying to eavesdrop but I didn’t hear anything any good.

He’s cuter in person, by the way.

On to the party – We overhear someone saying that “it’s gonna take a lot of guts or nuts” to get through the night. I just about spit out my tea.  OMG.  That was funny. Especially when you really think about it.  You can take that “nuts” a lot of different ways.

I think that was the highlight of the show for me and just about sums up what I bet this season is going to be all about – Guts & Nuts. LOL

I wonder… do you think the boys will have all the drama that the girls have had in seasons past? Boys don’t typically do drama so if they do, I will put money on it being something producer-induced.  We will see if my prediction holds true.

I’ll save future posts to discuss the two Tims – the jerk and the drunk.  And I will leave you with one final observation.  Of the 16 boys we’re left with (and yes, they are BOYS not men) three look almost identical (Ben F/Constantine/Stephen) most all are brunette (can you call boys brunettes or do you just say they have brown hair?) and most of them appear to be rather self-absorbed.  This will be an interesting season, my friends.

I hope we can stand watching it together.

Until next week, peeps.

Just remember… Guts & Nuts, ladies. Guts & Nuts. 😉

Photo of the Day: Daily War Paint Application

Daily war paint application sent from my Project 365 app
http://bit.ly/5G0JwQ

May24

Sent from my iPhone

Project Life Tuesday

 

 

Thought I would share with you the Project Life pictures I’ve taken in the last week:

Sunday: My “other job”

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Monday: My feet may be frozen, but they’re cute.

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Tuesday: The Animal Jam game addict.

IMG_0027Wednesday: Ouch.

IMG_0030Thursday: My favorite snack is back in season!!

IMG_0031   Friday: My newest “toy”

IMG_0032 Saturday: Playing Wii

IMG_0037 How about you? Did you capture any everyday pictures last week?
I’m logging these daily on my other ‘photo only’ blog if you want to take a peek.

Menu Plan Monday

It’s here.

Finally.

I can hardly believe it.

The last week of school.

The girls are out as of Wednesday – and we can hardly wait!!

These last three days are really toss-out days anyway. They aren’t doing anything of value – playing games, reading books, watching movies… I don’t know why they don’t just let them out a few days early rather than waste time like this. Most moms look at me like I’m nuts when I say that, but I’m happy to have the girls at home with me – and happy to have our schedule slow down dramatically!

Menu planning this week is based around the 90-degree days we’re going to be having. Lots of grilling and quick and easy suppers. I’m thinking crock pot, grill, and salads.

What about you? Do you change your cooking habits when the weather warms up?

I certainly do.

No more heavy casseroles and soups – we’re all about light, fresh and local foods this time of year.MPM_Button

Here’s what I’ve got planned:

  • Cool chicken salad sandwiches for lunch. Have you tried my chicken salad recipe? It’s yummy.
  • Tonight: Taco Salads (with leftover taco meat from Friday's taco night)
  • Tuesday: Grilled chicken with roasted corn and veggies (cooked on the grill, too)
  • Wednesday: Stir Fry chicken & rice
  • Thursday: Fajitas or I’m thinking we might grill some pizza one night, too. I have a great dough recipe. Maybe I’ll share that later this week. 🙂

That’s probably it as I think we’re going to be taking it easy for the holiday weekend that’s coming up – maybe even taking a little road trip.

Check out orgjunkie.com for more delicious menu ideas for your family!

On another note, the Bachelorette premieres tonight.

A local boy is on the show – the son of the owner of one of our favorite restaurants. 

I will be watching, mostly because I can’t help myself, but also because I’m curious to see how he does – he has seemed like a nice boy as we’ve seen him in the restaurant through the years.

Constantine

If y’all are interested, I’ll share my thoughts (and witty sarcastic comments) after I watch the episodes each week.  I say that, but I will tell you, the last two seasons I haven’t finished. I just got too disgusted with the silliness and never watched past the second or third episode.

So, we’ll see.

Okay, enough random rambling.

Back to your locally scheduled programming. 🙂