If you have a chance to find how to watch Oprah’s 10-25-10 show on the internet somewhere, it’s worth your while. It is an episode about the Coble Family that will touch your heart. Here is the link to their story if you don’t have time to watch the episode; if you watch online this particular segment is probably only a half hour.
http://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/Coble-Family-Miracle/1
YouTube (broken into 4 segments):
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=oprah+coble+family&aq=f
The miracle this family experienced will have you amazed.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Happy Anniversary House!
We've been in our house 1 year as of Saturday Oct 23rd! It has definitely became our home sweet home. Here is a tour.
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| Entering Front Door, must go up or down stairs |
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| Living Room |
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| Living Room |
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| Kitchen |
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| Dining Room |
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| Guest Bathroom (aka Erin's bathroom) - this is the next remodel project |
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| Master Bedroom |
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| Master Bedroom Bathroom (aka Aaron's Bathroom) |
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| Guest Bedroom |
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| Office |
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| Let's go downstairs |
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| Our basement is basically just a movie theater room |
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| Theater in action |
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| Fireplace that we've never used |
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| Laundry Room -- getting remodeled in the near future |
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| Let's go outside. Off dining room is our deck. |
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| Hot tub we have yet to use, plan to use starting next spring |
Friday, October 22, 2010
Great Products Worthy of Sharing!
Products I LOVE that fly under the radar …
Recently fell in love with Lean Pockets. Delicious, perfect for a quick easy lunch. I really like the Garlic White Chicken Pizza. Another one I’ve tried that is good is the Spinach Artichoke Chicken. SO YUMMY.
I love potatoes. I could eat potatoes for every meal. Simply Potatoes (in the cold section usually next to the eggs) are really good. I love the mash potatoes, red cut potatoes, and the hash browns, there are lots of varieties to choose from. These potatoes are REAL and the serving portions are just right.
Crunch Pak Apples. Yes these are expensive for what you are getting but I love them because they are sliced apples that do not turn brown or have been sprayed with a funky coating on them. I prefer sliced apples because I have a tendency to get my lip gloss all over my face when eating an apple whole. These crunch pak apples are great to take on the go. Check your produce aisle where packaged pre-cut fruit is. I found them at Target in the big bags, they have single serving bags but I like the bulk bag to create my own serving size.
Market Pantry Jamaican Jerk Marinade (Target Brand). Amazing. You will love this on grilled chicken or shrimp. It’s NOT spicy when used for grilling but is spicy when prepared otherwise.
Steam Fresh frozen bagged vegetables. Perfect side for dinner, pop in microwave and eat 5 minutes later. So easy. I love the sweet corn and the veggie mixes.
I have the worst dried out hands in the winter. But Aveeno Intense Relief Hand Cream works wonders. Not just any Aveeno product, only this particular one. Not greasy. Lasts through hand washing.
Fiber One Poptarts and Fiber One Granola Bars. Get your fill of fiber and eat something that taste good while doing so.
Benefiber Powder (don’t buy flavored). Add to your water, oatmeal, etc. Dissolves, doesn’t settle and has no taste. I eat A LOT of fiber. Good for your digestive system if you know what I mean…
Nut Thins (Almond or Pecan). These are gluten Free crackers in the Hy-Vee health market. I could eat the whole box if I’m not careful. Awesome as a side with your lean pocket.
Market Pantry Blue Corn Tortilla Chips with Flax Seed (Target Brand). Yum and they look fancy.
Nature’s Path Pumpkin Granola Flax Seed Cereal. I eat a little bit of this on top of my strawberry yogurt, it’s a perfect combination. Especially if you have a hard time eating yogurt by itself like I do.
Well I could go on but will do so maybe in a future post. For now this is a good list of my favorites that I cannot do without and highly recommend! Let me know what you think!
Recently fell in love with Lean Pockets. Delicious, perfect for a quick easy lunch. I really like the Garlic White Chicken Pizza. Another one I’ve tried that is good is the Spinach Artichoke Chicken. SO YUMMY.
I love potatoes. I could eat potatoes for every meal. Simply Potatoes (in the cold section usually next to the eggs) are really good. I love the mash potatoes, red cut potatoes, and the hash browns, there are lots of varieties to choose from. These potatoes are REAL and the serving portions are just right.
Crunch Pak Apples. Yes these are expensive for what you are getting but I love them because they are sliced apples that do not turn brown or have been sprayed with a funky coating on them. I prefer sliced apples because I have a tendency to get my lip gloss all over my face when eating an apple whole. These crunch pak apples are great to take on the go. Check your produce aisle where packaged pre-cut fruit is. I found them at Target in the big bags, they have single serving bags but I like the bulk bag to create my own serving size.
Market Pantry Jamaican Jerk Marinade (Target Brand). Amazing. You will love this on grilled chicken or shrimp. It’s NOT spicy when used for grilling but is spicy when prepared otherwise.
Steam Fresh frozen bagged vegetables. Perfect side for dinner, pop in microwave and eat 5 minutes later. So easy. I love the sweet corn and the veggie mixes.
I have the worst dried out hands in the winter. But Aveeno Intense Relief Hand Cream works wonders. Not just any Aveeno product, only this particular one. Not greasy. Lasts through hand washing.
Fiber One Poptarts and Fiber One Granola Bars. Get your fill of fiber and eat something that taste good while doing so.
Benefiber Powder (don’t buy flavored). Add to your water, oatmeal, etc. Dissolves, doesn’t settle and has no taste. I eat A LOT of fiber. Good for your digestive system if you know what I mean…
Nut Thins (Almond or Pecan). These are gluten Free crackers in the Hy-Vee health market. I could eat the whole box if I’m not careful. Awesome as a side with your lean pocket.
Market Pantry Blue Corn Tortilla Chips with Flax Seed (Target Brand). Yum and they look fancy.
Nature’s Path Pumpkin Granola Flax Seed Cereal. I eat a little bit of this on top of my strawberry yogurt, it’s a perfect combination. Especially if you have a hard time eating yogurt by itself like I do.
Well I could go on but will do so maybe in a future post. For now this is a good list of my favorites that I cannot do without and highly recommend! Let me know what you think!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
The Marriage Course
You may recall from a previous post that Aaron and I are taking a Marriage Course at our church for fun and good general advice. Next week is our last class; it has gone by pretty quickly. It has been similar to the format of our pre-marriage classes except I thought our pre-marriage classes had a better structure. Most of the current class is led by a video and I liked how our pre-marriage class was something different each week.
Overall it has been good to reemphasize topics that are key components of a good marriage. I don’t really feel like I learned anything much I didn’t already know and Aaron agreed but we do feel like it was good to just revisit some topics and hear testimonies from other couples on the video.
One good pointer from this class is to ask your spouse if there is something in particular you can pray for them this week. I guess it’s never crossed my mind to say hey honey what is something I can pray for you for the coming week? We just always say our prayers together in the evening before bed but we never really pray for each other that much. Makes sense to be inquisitive and to pray for our spouse’s needs and thought that was a good pointer we picked up from the class.
At times I feel like we goofed off a little much. At one of the classes Aaron pointed out that the guy on the video talks out of the side of his mouth and then I couldn’t help but notice and agree. So last night during our breakout session, I would talk to Aaron in a funny voice out of the side of my mouth. Then during the video when he would talk, I would move my mouth to the side and pretend to talk each time this guy would talk, it was humor to Aaron. Probably not the most mature thing to do… but we naturally are goofballs so we couldn’t help but do so.
All in all, if you have an opportunity to take a marriage building course or seminar, I highly recommend it; we found it to be fun and it initiated good conversation!
Overall it has been good to reemphasize topics that are key components of a good marriage. I don’t really feel like I learned anything much I didn’t already know and Aaron agreed but we do feel like it was good to just revisit some topics and hear testimonies from other couples on the video.
One good pointer from this class is to ask your spouse if there is something in particular you can pray for them this week. I guess it’s never crossed my mind to say hey honey what is something I can pray for you for the coming week? We just always say our prayers together in the evening before bed but we never really pray for each other that much. Makes sense to be inquisitive and to pray for our spouse’s needs and thought that was a good pointer we picked up from the class.
At times I feel like we goofed off a little much. At one of the classes Aaron pointed out that the guy on the video talks out of the side of his mouth and then I couldn’t help but notice and agree. So last night during our breakout session, I would talk to Aaron in a funny voice out of the side of my mouth. Then during the video when he would talk, I would move my mouth to the side and pretend to talk each time this guy would talk, it was humor to Aaron. Probably not the most mature thing to do… but we naturally are goofballs so we couldn’t help but do so.
All in all, if you have an opportunity to take a marriage building course or seminar, I highly recommend it; we found it to be fun and it initiated good conversation!
Friday, October 15, 2010
Chicken Tortilla Soup
This is an old standby recipe I have that I’ve had forever. So yummy! Awesome for football game parties.
2 boxes of Mexican rice (Rice-a-Roni)
1 can of mild Rotel
1 can of Kuner’s southwestern black beans with cumin & chili spices
1 bag of frozen corn
Chicken broth
Shredded Mexican cheese
3-4 lbs of cut chunked chicken
Cut chicken into small chunks and cook until no longer pink and juices run clear. In a saucepan, make the Mexican rice according to instructions except stop when it is still soupy but the rice looks al dente. In a separate large soup pan, combine the can of Rotel, can of black beans (beans drained and lightly rinsed), corn, cooked chicken, and the soupy rice. Stir together and bring to a simmer. Add chicken broth along the way to bring the soup to your desired consistency. Stir in a cheese by the handfuls until desired cheesiness is achieved. Top your bowls with extra cheese and crunched tortilla chips.
Keep extra chicken broth on hand for leftovers, the rice absorbs a lot of the broth. You may like it better this way though (meaning chunky and not soupy) if you want to serve in tortillas or as a chip dip. Enjoy!
Monday, October 11, 2010
My 29th Birthday!
This past weekend was my 29th birthday. I really wasn’t up for much celebrating since the past few weeks have been quite a whirlwind but I did end up having a good birthday weekend and keeping things low key was a good for a change. Anyone who knows me well knows that I must be feeling wiped out because I NEVER have a low key birthday.
Friday night I went to the Matthew West Concert with Aaron and my friends Becky, Lauren. Lauren drove down from Minneapolis and Becky came from Omaha so that was special of them to come for my birthday.
On Saturday Teresa, one of my best friends from college, came from Omaha with her two daughters Morgan and Tessa. We had a great play day, went to a pumpkin patch, got creative with some sidewalk chalk, had some pizza and birthday cake, watched a movie and had a slumber party. It was a fun girl’s day!
Sunday was my actual birthday. Aaron and I just chilled out, ran some errands and spent the day together. Aaron had suggested we have dinner at this quaint little Italian Restaurant which normally would be a great idea but I was wiped out and just wanted to order Applebee’s carside to go and eat on the couch in my jammies. So I passed up a nice dinner to sit and veg on the couch. I’m taking a ‘rain check’ on that dinner though…
Aaron spoiled me like he always does. Wednesday I received 4 dozen roses at work. He also gave me a beautiful sterling silver cross necklace. He also contributed towards another gift I have been wanting, a Body Bugg! I used my birthday money I received to purchase that, I’ll blog about my Body Bugg once I get the hang of how it all works.
All in all, it was a great weekend. I’m sure next year for my 30th we will do something a little more on the adventurous side but enjoyed a lower key birthday for a change.
Friday night I went to the Matthew West Concert with Aaron and my friends Becky, Lauren. Lauren drove down from Minneapolis and Becky came from Omaha so that was special of them to come for my birthday.
On Saturday Teresa, one of my best friends from college, came from Omaha with her two daughters Morgan and Tessa. We had a great play day, went to a pumpkin patch, got creative with some sidewalk chalk, had some pizza and birthday cake, watched a movie and had a slumber party. It was a fun girl’s day!
Sunday was my actual birthday. Aaron and I just chilled out, ran some errands and spent the day together. Aaron had suggested we have dinner at this quaint little Italian Restaurant which normally would be a great idea but I was wiped out and just wanted to order Applebee’s carside to go and eat on the couch in my jammies. So I passed up a nice dinner to sit and veg on the couch. I’m taking a ‘rain check’ on that dinner though…
Aaron spoiled me like he always does. Wednesday I received 4 dozen roses at work. He also gave me a beautiful sterling silver cross necklace. He also contributed towards another gift I have been wanting, a Body Bugg! I used my birthday money I received to purchase that, I’ll blog about my Body Bugg once I get the hang of how it all works.
All in all, it was a great weekend. I’m sure next year for my 30th we will do something a little more on the adventurous side but enjoyed a lower key birthday for a change.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Honoring our Beloved Friend Chris
On September 28, 2010, we lost one of our best friends to a horrible cancer called Clear Cell Sarcoma. I have many memories of Chris but here are a few that come to mind.
• Halloween 2008! Aaron, Chris and I dressed up in 70s get up. We laughed so hard that night, definitely one of the best nights us 3 shared!
• Chris stayed the weekend on quite a few occasions. I loved it when I would get up and find Chris and Aaron immersed in conversation. They could sit on the couch and talk for hours in the mornings with no television on, just in deep conversation.
• Chris never forgot Aaron’s birthday. Many people tend to forget Aaron’s Bday given it is on New Year’s Day, but not Chris. He would even drive up, have dinner with us to celebrate and drive 2 hours back home that night.
• One night the 3 of us were out and Chris got Aaron so drunk. I was so mad, they both got an earful from me. We’ve been able to laugh pretty hard about that night on numerous occasions.
• The night before Aaron and I got married Chris was SO excited to give us our wedding gift that he pulled us aside and had us open it the night before. He bought us a Garmin and wanted to let us know that he didn’t buy the one on our registry because he wanted to get the BEST one, he then went on to tell us about all the features it had. He was so excited to give us a gift.
• I emailed Chris on several occasions to run some wedding planning info by him. I had emailed him this detailed list and timeline I was planning on mailing out to everyone, I wanted his opinion if this list was a little overboard and too much. Chris very candidly told me that I’m the bride and it is my day and everyone would be understanding.
• I emailed Chris when I was bored at work. A lot of times the email conversations would eventually make a wise crack at Aaron, in which Aaron was brought into the email chains. Those emails were pure comedy to read.
• A year ago from this week all the guys were at Aaron's bachelor party. No one knew, not even Chris that he either had cancer at that time or it was forthcoming. He was healthy.
• I’ve never known anyone who owned as many solid black t-shirts as Chris did. That is all he ever wore.
• I got the privilege to sit and listen to all the memories Chris and Aaron had together in high school and as roommates in college.
• Aaron told Chris one day when walking to class that he would marry me someday. In the 4 years we dated, the only other person he told that to was his brother Eric.
• When we learned of Chris’s diagnosis I searched for an answer to make sense of why this would happen. I found the answer and shared it with Chris:
As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." John 9:1-3.
• When Chris was hospitalized out in Boston, Aaron called him nearly every day he was out there because Aaron believed his phone calls were making Chris better. I believed it did too.
• We had a scare in May that Chris was rushed to the hospital. We happened to be in Chicago and got to the hospital as quick as possible. He was in a lot of pain but still endured. He was such a fighter!
• We spent many weekends this summer visiting Chris in the hospital. One night in particular we got there late, around 6:30/7pm. We had such a great conversation that night. A very honest discussion about the cancer. He has always been so candid about his thoughts and feelings. Lots of laughter also, remembering great memories. Before we knew it, it was midnight, that night was so great!
• I thanked the Lord often that Chris grew stronger in his Faith and not resentful.
• When Chris passed away, Ashley emailed me and told me that Chris really admired our marriage. One thing he told her often was that when Chris and her got married, he wanted a marriage just like Aaron’s and mine. I already knew that, Chris never let an opportunity pass to tell someone how he felt about them.
• Chris sent Aaron a note earlier in the year, here is part of what Chris told Aaron:
"Please do me a favor and take time today to just be thankful for small things in your life. Go for a walk with your wife and just appreciate being able to walk, being pain free, and enjoying the fresh air and breathing deep. It's all very cliche but, from time to time, we all really do need to slow down and appreciate the very small things in life. They become so very precious."
Chris we never wanted this for you. We wanted you to fight this cancer and you did give it everything you had, never giving up. It would be only selfish of us to expect you to continue on with the pain you were enduring. The cancer may have won the battle against your body but it never won against your soul. I know without a doubt you are experiencing the joys of Heaven right now and are being reacquainted with your Mother in Heaven. Love you Chris!
God saw you getting tired and a cure was not to be. So, he put his arms around you & whispered "come with me". With tearful eyes, we watched you suffer. Although we love you dearly, we could not make you stay. A golden heart stopped beating, laying loving hands at rest....... God broke our hearts to prove, He only takes the BEST. – Unknown
Obituary:
http://hosting-tributes-24472.tributes.com/condolences/view_memories/89445966#1992920
Blog:
http://www.chrisrobertssarcoma.blogspot.com/
• Halloween 2008! Aaron, Chris and I dressed up in 70s get up. We laughed so hard that night, definitely one of the best nights us 3 shared!
• Chris stayed the weekend on quite a few occasions. I loved it when I would get up and find Chris and Aaron immersed in conversation. They could sit on the couch and talk for hours in the mornings with no television on, just in deep conversation.
• Chris never forgot Aaron’s birthday. Many people tend to forget Aaron’s Bday given it is on New Year’s Day, but not Chris. He would even drive up, have dinner with us to celebrate and drive 2 hours back home that night.
• One night the 3 of us were out and Chris got Aaron so drunk. I was so mad, they both got an earful from me. We’ve been able to laugh pretty hard about that night on numerous occasions.
• The night before Aaron and I got married Chris was SO excited to give us our wedding gift that he pulled us aside and had us open it the night before. He bought us a Garmin and wanted to let us know that he didn’t buy the one on our registry because he wanted to get the BEST one, he then went on to tell us about all the features it had. He was so excited to give us a gift.
• I emailed Chris on several occasions to run some wedding planning info by him. I had emailed him this detailed list and timeline I was planning on mailing out to everyone, I wanted his opinion if this list was a little overboard and too much. Chris very candidly told me that I’m the bride and it is my day and everyone would be understanding.
• I emailed Chris when I was bored at work. A lot of times the email conversations would eventually make a wise crack at Aaron, in which Aaron was brought into the email chains. Those emails were pure comedy to read.
• A year ago from this week all the guys were at Aaron's bachelor party. No one knew, not even Chris that he either had cancer at that time or it was forthcoming. He was healthy.
• I’ve never known anyone who owned as many solid black t-shirts as Chris did. That is all he ever wore.
• I got the privilege to sit and listen to all the memories Chris and Aaron had together in high school and as roommates in college.
• Aaron told Chris one day when walking to class that he would marry me someday. In the 4 years we dated, the only other person he told that to was his brother Eric.
• When we learned of Chris’s diagnosis I searched for an answer to make sense of why this would happen. I found the answer and shared it with Chris:
As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." John 9:1-3.
• When Chris was hospitalized out in Boston, Aaron called him nearly every day he was out there because Aaron believed his phone calls were making Chris better. I believed it did too.
• We had a scare in May that Chris was rushed to the hospital. We happened to be in Chicago and got to the hospital as quick as possible. He was in a lot of pain but still endured. He was such a fighter!
• We spent many weekends this summer visiting Chris in the hospital. One night in particular we got there late, around 6:30/7pm. We had such a great conversation that night. A very honest discussion about the cancer. He has always been so candid about his thoughts and feelings. Lots of laughter also, remembering great memories. Before we knew it, it was midnight, that night was so great!
• I thanked the Lord often that Chris grew stronger in his Faith and not resentful.
• When Chris passed away, Ashley emailed me and told me that Chris really admired our marriage. One thing he told her often was that when Chris and her got married, he wanted a marriage just like Aaron’s and mine. I already knew that, Chris never let an opportunity pass to tell someone how he felt about them.
• Chris sent Aaron a note earlier in the year, here is part of what Chris told Aaron:
"Please do me a favor and take time today to just be thankful for small things in your life. Go for a walk with your wife and just appreciate being able to walk, being pain free, and enjoying the fresh air and breathing deep. It's all very cliche but, from time to time, we all really do need to slow down and appreciate the very small things in life. They become so very precious."
Chris we never wanted this for you. We wanted you to fight this cancer and you did give it everything you had, never giving up. It would be only selfish of us to expect you to continue on with the pain you were enduring. The cancer may have won the battle against your body but it never won against your soul. I know without a doubt you are experiencing the joys of Heaven right now and are being reacquainted with your Mother in Heaven. Love you Chris!
God saw you getting tired and a cure was not to be. So, he put his arms around you & whispered "come with me". With tearful eyes, we watched you suffer. Although we love you dearly, we could not make you stay. A golden heart stopped beating, laying loving hands at rest....... God broke our hearts to prove, He only takes the BEST. – Unknown
Obituary:
http://hosting-tributes-24472.tributes.com/condolences/view_memories/89445966#1992920
Blog:
http://www.chrisrobertssarcoma.blogspot.com/
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