Who Am I?

This song has been running through my head all week...



Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name
Would care to feel my hurt
Who am I, that the Bright and Morning Star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
Vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours, I am Yours

Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin
Would look on me with love and watch me rise again
Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea
Would call out through the rain
And calm the storm in me

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
Vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours

Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
Vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours

I am Yours
Whom shall I fear
Whom shall I fear
'Cause I am Yours
I am Yours

Freeing the Fat Friday ~ When Emotions Rule!

I am finding that changing your habits can be very challenging and sometimes a very emotional process. I wish I could just decide to do something and then just Do IT!

But, losing weight is just as much an emotional break through as it is a physical one.

There are days that I am really proud of myself and then the next day I can get really discouraged. For a few days I can think, "Wow, I can really do this!" Then a few days later I will wonder why I even should bother. I know that some of this is just because I am a woman and frankly we just go through phases in a month. However, I have discovered a life change with your body usually also involves your heart, mind and soul.

God's Lesson for Me

God wants to change us from the inside out. You can not just change one part of you without changing your entire person. I can change what I look like on the outside and still be "fat" on the inside. When I use the term "fat" I mean not under the submission of my creator. I can allow my heart to become weighted down and full of worry. I can let my mind become undisciplined and lazy and allow my thoughts to go where God never intended for us to go. I can let my soul drift from the Lord and can become weak.

Matthew 22:37 (New Living Translation)
37 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’

If I focus on just changing the outside then vanity creeps in. Vanity is at the root of a lot of my emotional issues in regards to my body. When I love the Lord with my all my heart, all my soul and all my mind there is no place for self. I need to let God rule my emotions and realize that he wants to change the "whole" of me for His glory.

Please permit me to get on my soap box.....I have discovered that through this process of "letting go of this fat" and bringing my thoughts and will into submission I have become very aware of how other women see themselves. I have heard women talk about themselves in a negative way. I have heard women talk about wrinkles and getting old as a bad thing. I have heard women talk about others and how they have "gained weight' . I have heard women talking about losing weight for a spouse. I have seen women view their looks as one of most important things in life. Sadly, I have thought, said or acted out some of these things myself.

I implore you women to rise up and change how we view ourselves. We are creations of the most high. We are His works of art! Who are we to label others? Who are we to say what God has created as ugly? Let's not look for the accolades of others; but only desire how God sees us as true beauty. We need to be examples of inner beauty and not fall to the pitfalls of this world that says we are anything less. We have a duty as Christian women to model true beauty from the inside. This verse says it all....

1 Peter 3:3-4 (New Living Translation)

3 Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes.

4 You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God.

Meals for the Week!

This week was rough for meals. I just tried to keep it around 1,200 calories. I did not keep to a specific schedule and I did not count exactly my daily intake of calories, carbs and fat. My budget could not afford to keep to my meal plan....sad, I know. I hate that the healthy foods cost so much. It is one of the challenges of eating healthy. This week should be better.

Exercise

Woo Hoo! I have exercised 5 days this week using my "Walk Away the Pounds" video. I think I can maintain this momentum to continue working out. My hubby is being a great encourager. He has really helped me be motivated in a really positive way. I hope if you are reading this you can find someone who can encourage you as well maybe a spouse, relative or a good friend. Two are always better than one.

Ecclesiastes 4:9 (New International Version)
Two are better than one,

because they have a good return for their work:

How True!

Food's Favorite Friends!

Pickles.... and not just any pickles they have to be Claussen pickles! You can usually find them near the sandwich meat part of your supermarket. One half of pickle is 5 calories, 0 fat and 1 Carb. I love pickles and they can be a nice addition to your lunch to replace those yummy chips you don't eat anymore. Or they can be a nice salty snack. Watch out if you are on a low sodium diet though. Thankfully, I am not! Thank you pickles for being so yummy!

Funny side note...My 2 year old calls his grandpa "Pickle".

Life Change Challenge!

I need to go back to an old one...stop eating off my kids plates. It is a wretched habit!

Next Week!

Use my strict 1,200 calorie meal plan & exercise!

I think I am going to go eat a pickle now....

31 Virtues for Our Kids ~ A Heart for Missions

A Heart for Missions

This is my last installment for 31 Virtues for our Kids . Hopefully, you will pray for these virtues for your children and yourself!

It has been fun writing about all 31 virtues. It has been challenging for me to pray these for my kids. My prayer has also become that I would have these in my life as well; so that I would be an example to them and bring glory to God!

Psalm 96:3 (New International Version)
Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

(These top two pictures are from my husbands team that went to the Dominican Republic)

Our family loves missions. We love to give to missions, pray for missionaries and sometimes we even go on mission trips. We feel that missions is what God has asked us to do. We are obeying the "Great Commission" found in Matthew.

Matthew 28:19 (New Living Translation)
Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

We teach our kids to give to missions at our church. John and I give to missions. We sponsor a little girl in Jamaica, pray for her every night and send her letters. My hubby and I have gone on mission trips; in fact I went last year. You can read my blog about it here and my trip to Mexico here. We want to go on so many more trips. We also pray for our missionaries. These are some of the things we do to show our kids how to have a heart for missions.

But why do we need to have a heart for missions? I think the answer is pretty simple...It is God's heart. We should want the heart of G0d flowing through us. God wants all people to know about Him. But not only for others to know Him; but to meet their needs in a real way like providing food, clothing, shelter and healing their sicknesses.

Our God is compassionate. He loves us all. I want my kids to have that same compassion. We need to get our eyes off of ourselves and onto God. We must show compassion to all people all over the world. It is the least we can do for our God who has done so much.

*"Lord, please help my children to develop a desire to see your glory declared among the nations, your marvelous deeds among all peoples." (Picture of me in Jamaica)

These 31 virtues will surely help me and my children....

*by Bob Hostetler, it is excerpted from Pray! magazine issue #4, 31 Biblical Virtues to Pray for Your Kids

Wednesday's Walk ~ My 3rd Baby Story

I thought that I had this pregnancy thing down and surely I would be a pro in the delivery room. Words can not describe how wrong I was! My son's grand entrance into this world was beyond anything I could have been prepared for.

My OBGYN felt that this little guy was getting way too big for my belly and thought it best to get him out around his due date then to let him go on growing in my stomach. We got up early on a Friday morning and started the induction process. Nothing happened, after a whole day having serious contractions I was sent home. I have never felt so much frustration in my life and I had to start it all over again on Monday morning.

Monday morning, we began the process again; but this time they were going to get this baby out one way or another. We tried everything to get me to dilate....I mean everything....to no avail....ugh! After many hours, every time I would have a contraction my son's heart rate began to drop. A decision had to be made.....that decision was to get him out A.S.A.P! That meant a C-section. Actually, there was no thinking or pondering ... we made that decision very quickly. Our son was in trouble and he needed help. We found out later that he wasn't coming out the right way and the cord was wrapped around his neck. So the prepping process began!

This picture says so much without any words! LOL

We gave the go ahead... then there were a lot of people and things happened very fast. I was off to the surgery room and then more trouble began. My body would not take the anesthetics to numb my body. As they began the process of getting him out I was feeling things I should not...so then came the morphine to help. That was the weirdest experience of my life (I have never had any kind of drug that altered me like that). I was able to hang on to hear my sons faint cries in the distance and kissed him and then I remember some problems going on with the doctor sewing me up and then I was asleep.

I am so thankful my hubby grabbed this picture...it is all I really remember!

When I woke up, I was in my room. I had never felt so drained and just plain yucky in my life. I saw my daughters, my mom and sister and held my son before they left. As soon as they left the room started fading out and I passed out. To make a long story short I lost way too much blood in surgery and was in need of a blood transfusion. I have never felt so horrible in all my life. It took three days for me to begin to feel okay.

Look at how pale I was!

So with all that commotion I felt that I really missed the precious moments a mother has with their newborn child. My hubby got to have them instead; he really stepped up to the challenge and took complete charge over his care and mine. Oh and apparently, they watched Monday night football together. My hubby was my knight in shinning armor.

My heart grew 3 sizes bigger the day my son was born. From the moment I knew he was coming, I knew that God had a plan for him. I could already feel God working that out in him the moment I held him in my arms.

My son is more wonderful than words can say. He is all boy and I am loving it every minute. I was scared at first about having a boy...I was use to girls and everything was pink in our house, Polly Pockets reigned in our home. Slowly now the cars and trucks are taking over! Footballs, soccer balls and basketballs can be found rolling around under your feet in the living room. And the sound of extreme laughter from a very little guy fills our home. He is full of character and full of love. He is amazing and a pure joy to me and our family!

Here is the life verse we picked for our little guy...
Micah 6:8

He has showed you, O man, what is good.

And what does the LORD require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God.

We already know that God is working out a great plan for our little man!

I blogged about him one of the days I was in the hospital you can check it out here

it is the second one in this post...

Jenilee at The Goodwin Family is hosting Wednesday's Walk.

31 Virtues for Our Kids ~ Gratitude

Gratitude

Over the next few months we will be praying for 31 Virtues for our Kids maybe even for ourselves too!

Ephesians 5:20 (New Living Translation)
And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Colossians 2:7 (New Living Translation)
Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Here is a picture of my daughter at her "Thanksgiving Feast" at school a few years back!

Thanksgiving is coming up in a month. I love this holiday it is so yummy and fun! I enjoy my time with my family and of course all the food. I savor the sounds of football in the background. Conversations with family around the table are a delight. The day is full of warm fuzzies. My favorite part is when we give thanks to God for all that He has done.

However, I want me and my family to have a heart of gratitude every day. There is no one like our God and we are forever grateful for all He has done and given to us. Everyday we should shout His wonder and be deeply thankful for His goodness.

I love ardently love the Colossians passage. The word picture is amazing, it is an "If -Then" verse...

If=

1. Our roots grow down into Him

Grab a hold of Jesus!

2. Our lives be built on Him

Our foundation is Jesus and we need to build on Him all that we are and all that we do!

Then=

1. Our faith will grow strong!

If our faith is week go do the "If" part!

2. We will overflow with thankfulness

When we grab a hold of Jesus and build our lives around Him then our faith will grow strong. We will then have a deep understanding of our Great God and then how could we not then be so full of gratitude that it does not spill out all over the place??!!

Ooooooo that will preach!

*"Help my children to live lives that are always overflowing with thankfulness and always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ"



*by Bob Hostetler, it is excerpted from Pray! magazine issue #4, 31 Biblical Virtues to Pray for Your Kids

GEPC ~ Bible Study

Whoo Hoo! My friend (Jenilee at My Awake Journey) and I have decided to do another online Bible study. We have done one before (month of Proverbs) and it was a lot of fun and very challenging for me. I am so excited and I am already getting ready for it. So here are the detials if you would like to join in or just follow along.....

• We will be studying Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians and Colossians (GEPC)!



• We will be looking at one chapter per day for 20 days.



• Anyone is welcome to write their own thoughts, link up with us or just follow along.



• We will start Nov. 1st and go until Nov. 20th



• Grab the button and put it on your blog





<center> <a href="http://getjoy.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img border="0" alt="The Goodwin Family" src="http://i649.photobucket.com/albums/uu215/jenilee220/GEPCsm.jpg" /></a></center>


• Make sure you check out my friend Jenilee's thoughts on her blog as well!

I am so excited! It was so much fun doing a month of Proverbs with her and I am sure this is going to be great exploring GEPC! I can't wait to see what God is going to show us. So check us out during Nov. 1-20 and join in on the fun as we explore God's word and learn more about Him!

We will...

Also I want to give a shout out to my friend, Peter Flaherty, who took that beautiful picture in our button. He is a fantastic photographer and was so kind to give me permission to use it. Thanks Peter!

Galatians 1 ~ Only 1 Good News!
Galatians 2 ~ When Conflict Happens!
Galatians 3 ~ I Am A Star!
Galatians 4 ~ True-Born Heir
Galatians 5 ~ Run Well!
Galatians 6 ~ Boast In Christ
Ephesians 1 ~ Sealed!
Ephesians 2 ~ I Am Now A....
Ephesians 3 ~ Home!
Ephesians 4 ~ What Does The Christian Look Like????
Epesians 5 ~ Godly Marriage
Ephesians 6 ~ Putting on the Armor!
Philippians 1 ~ Heaven, My Home
Philippians 2 ~ Joy of Living for Christ
Philippians 3 ~ Where Is Your Treasure?
Philippians 4 ~ Joy!
Colossians 1 ~ Christ Is Our All!
Colossians 2 ~ The Picture of Christian Living!
Colossians 3 ~ Get Dressed!
Colossians 4 ~ Be Found Diligent!

The HOT items for Christmas! Well, at our house anyway!

The lists have been compiled and they have been turned in. Here are the 2010 Christmas lists of three very "good" kids. LOL I think they have been a little naughty here and there but hey it is Christmas HOhohohohohohohohoho!

Now warning for some reason a certain child's list got a little long (....okay maybe not a little....maybe more like A LOT long). I explained to her that she would not get ALL the things on her list, just a few things actually. She replied, "I like to give people options!" Have I told you she is seven! What seven year old gives you a lot of "Options"???? Mine apparently! Oh, and the big wishes are just that...wishes! They understand that those are not options but they are fun to wish about. : )

I will start with my baby boy, who really just wants anything to do with Disney's Cars & Toy Story. Here is what we think he might like......

( the highlighted ones will take you to the link of that item...too fun!)

2 year old boy list:

1. Anything to do with Toy Story

2. Anything to do with Cars

more specifically....

3. Cars suitcase
4. Doodle Pro (cars)
5. Aquadoodle travel

6. Thomas the Train stuff especially more engines

7. Books for Boys! I have a lot of girls books. LOL

BIG WISH

Car's Car

10 Year old daugther's list:

1. DS games

(#1 Art Acadamy, Imagine Artist, Bowser's inside story, I spy fun house, Wizard of Oz, Narnia Prince Caspian, Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader)

2. Pixos refills & starter kit with pen.

3. Tie dye kit

4. Ultimate crafters companion
5. Shrinky dinks

6. earings (unfortunately to mommy's dismay they have to be gold)

7. cute clothes

8. Circle bag, leg warmers, arm warmers & ballet socks from Little Missmatched

9. Legos horse stable, family home or beach house

10. Acoustic guitar
11. picks for said guitar

12. basket ball hoop

13. Duct Tape

14. Boxes
15. Glasses for American Girl the new two tone blue or chocolate brown

16 American girl Ivy's New Year dress

17. American girl starry doll carrier

18. Polka Dot DS case

19. American Girl Violin

20. clothes from Old Navy (dresses Girls ruffled tank dress, Sequined Sweater Dress, Purple turtleneck dress)

BIG WISH

trampoline

pool

fence ( because mom said there is no way we can have a pool or trampoline without one)

7 year old daughters rather long list:

1. Several DS Games

(Tinker Bell Fairy Rescue, Tinker bell and the lost treasure, Barbie Fashion Show, Riding academy 2, Tangled, and many more)

2. Tinker Bell DS case

3. Pet Fish

4. Barbie Convertible

5. Barbie vacation house

6. Project Runway kit

7. Craft Watch set

8. Window Crayons

9. Disney Fairies Giant floor pad

10. Color Explosion Disney Fairies

11. Shrinky dinks Enchanted kingdom party pack.

12. Barbie Jet

13. Barbie Camper

14. Barbie in a mermaid tale

15. Barbie clothes
16. Okay anything Barbie

17. Lego Pink Bricks

18. Lego Horse Stable

19. Clothes from Old Navy ( Dress, Bling Bracletts)
20. Stuff from Little MissMatched ( Slippers, Rainboots, Dress, Skirt, Sweater, tunic dress, Socks Winter hat, Mittens scarf)

21. tinkerbell umbrella

22. American Girl doll stuff (flute, ski gear, sporting riding outfit, safari sun dress for both, two in one ballerina set, jazz dance, tap dance set, hair style helper for dolls, doll tote, snowflake ball gown for both)

23. Kiddie Pool

BIG WISH
American Girl Bed....Julie's

American Girl Bike

Flute

Thinking about Christmas is way too much Fun!

Freeing the Fat Friday ~ When You Fail!

Last Sunday, my hubby and I hosted a dessert auction to raise money for missions. We raised over a $1,000 that day which is AWESOME! However, what is not so awesome is the amount of desserts we brought home. Booooo! My will power was just not strong enough to not eat something everyday this week....argh. Sugar cookies, 2 batches of Oreo cookie fudge, banana cream pie & Snicker doodles got the better of me. I failed this week.

Now, before you think I am crazy to buy all that ....I didn't! We bought a plate of cookies and a small thing of fudge. Somehow, the rest got sent home with us. Ugh! I did take a bunch of fudge to the church for the teens to eat it up...my hubby was not happy about that. LOL

I really felt that I failed big time this week and actually........I did. Now in the past I would usually give up at this point and say, "What does it matter???!!!" I really feel like I have made some progress and I don't want to give up just because I ate fudge and cookies (thank goodness I didn't like the pie...its the small things that make me happy...the small things)!

God's Lesson for Me

God doesn't want me to give up either. This is a life change, an act of surrender, dying to self, learning from mistakes, picking myself up when I fall it is all these things that are going to help me free this fat from my body. I want this temple to glorify Him!

When I fail, I need to run to God. I need His strength to help me. There are things in life that are just too hard to do on our own. We need the supernatural. I need the supernatural! So this week I gonna dust myself off and keep going with the help of someone who is much bigger, more stronger and more able than me.

Meals for the Week!
Didn't keep to a real tight meal plan....sad! I can really see the benefits of following a meal plan for me. I like to be told exactly what to do for this change in my life. I don't like to figure, count, add....you get the idea. Just give me a list of things I can eat and when I can eat it and I will be one happy to follow the rules girl. Left to my own devices....failure is lurking around every corner.

I am going to go back to the strict meal plan. The unfortunate thing though is that eating healthy is expensive, Yikes! I am not sure how I am going to work the food budget for this. Ugh! I am not going to lie...this life change definitely has its challenges.


Exercise
Started today...walked 2 miles using Leslie Sansone's video. I have a set I got a long time ago. I love the videos. They are a great workout. They work really well when it comes to my time since I have a toddler. I exercised during his nap. Whoo hoo! now if I can only get into a habit of doing them everyday. We shall see....we shall see....



Food's Favorite Friends!
My small frying stainless steel frying pan is my new favorite thing. My family is not on this same low calorie diet like me. It is nice to be able to cook my things in something little and easy to clean. I love my frying pan. I think I use it every day. Who wants to clean a bunch of dishes anyway??!!!

Life Change Challenge

NEVER GIVE UP!!!!

Reminds me of a song I am going to teach my kids in Kids Church....

The rain may be falling and lightning fills the sky

But the sun is rising God is on my side

The wind may blow around me and thunder may go boom

The clouds are disappearing Your light is shining through

Never give up ‘cause He's always there

Never give up anytime, anywhere

Never give up ‘cause He's always there

Remember God is always by your side.




Next Week!

Stay on low calorie diet and exercise!

31 Virtues for Our Kids ~ Prayerfulness

Prayerfulness

Over the next few months we will be praying for 31 Virtues for our Kids maybe even for ourselves too!

Ephesians 6:18 (New Living Translation)
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

My little guy is learning how to pray. It is way too cute to watch as he folds his hands, bows his head, yet peeks up and looks around with his big brown eyes. It is not uncommon for all the girls in the house to go "Awwwwwe" when we say, "Amen"! It is wonderful to watch my kids learn how to pray and begin to see their hearts become sensitive to the Holy Spirit. I love it when they remember to pray for others without me prompting them to before hand.

My hubby and I want to teach and show them how to have a relationship with our God! There is no better way to help them grow in their faith then to teach them how to talk to our Father and have a real conversation with Him.

If you want to see your kids grow in their Christian faith then teach them how to pray. Jesus is our example, He even taught us how to pray. If God thought it was necessary to teach us then surely it is important to teach it to our children.

Matthew 6:9-14 (New King James Version)
9 In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

The Lord's Prayer is such a great pattern for us to follow in our daily prayers. I love to follow these steps in my daily prayer.

1. Honor God for who He is
2. Pray for His will to be done
3. Prayer for our basic needs
4. Pray for forgiveness for us and help to forgive others
5. Prayer for help in avoiding sin in our lives
6. Protection from Satan
7. Honoring God for who He is

Prayer is what will draw my kids closer to God. It will help them to have a real relationship with Him. As they pray in the Spirit they will pray the perfect will of God into their lives and those that they bring to the Lord. As they pray for others they will become more kind and tender to those in need and it will help keep their eyes off of their own selfish desires. Prayer will teach them more than John and I could ever teach them in our lifetime. There is no better gift, no better bit of wisdom, no better advice or no better habit than a life of prayerfulness that we could give them. I want this virtue so desperately for them.

*"Grant, Lord, that my children's lives may be marked by prayerfulness, that they may learn to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and request."


*by Bob Hostetler, it is excerpted from Pray! magazine issue #4, 31 Biblical Virtues to Pray for Your Kids

Freeing the Fat Friday ~ The Inside Matters Most

I am finally getting back to the basics around here when it comes to food. This week seemed a bit more tough than weeks in the past and I am not sure why. I think part of it is that I am in a bit of a time of mourning. I know that is crazy; but I think that is where I am at. I am not young anymore and food doesn't go through me like it use to. I use to eat pretty carelessly and it did not matter that much. I am learning that I never really had a right relationship with food to begin with. For far to long I have tricked myself into thinking I could eat like I use to once I lost a few pounds. The truth is I can not ever eat like I did, I think that is why I am in mourning. LOL

Meals for the Week!
This week I went back to the 1200 calorie diet. Here are some of the highlights of the week!

Yummy salads, I am so thankful I love salads. This one was great even with the fat free ranch. My friend Jenilee has some yummy salad ideas, go check them out.

Lamb chop, potatoe with salsa and a veggie mix. Lamb is soooooo good but pricey!


Marinated chicken with veggie on noddles was good. The clue to goodness in this dish is marinating the chicken. I marinated it in a healthy Italian dressing. Then drizzled some dressing on the noodles and topped with the chicken & veggie mix.


Eggo whole wheat, lowfat waffles are pretty good topped with lowfat yogurt, (1 TB) sourcream & blueberries.




(This one is for you Jenilee) This lettuce wrap was surprisingly good. Marinated green beans and peach smoothie with your wrap makes for a good lunch.



Now hands down this might be my favorite dinner so far. Flounder on rice was good....well I could do without the cooked spinach. I think next time I will just have a spinach salad. I have decided cooked spinach is gross. Back to the good part, I cooked the fish in a fun yummy way. Here is the recipe....


Flounder Rollups

Things you will need:
Flounder Fillets
Salt and Pepper
Paprika
Olive Oil
Onion
Basil


1. Either fresh or frozen flounder fillets can be used. If frozen, thaw first. How much fish to fix is your choice.
2. Cut each fillet lengthwise creating about 1 inch wide strip. A little wider or a little narrower is fine. If you have small pieces, leave them flat.
3. Sprinkle each fillet with salt, pepper, and paprika.
4. Starting at the small end, roll the fillet, and then push a toothpick through the roll.
5. Spread olive oil on a shallow baking pan. Place the rolled flounder on the baking pan with the cut, flat side down. If you have pieces too small to roll, lay them flat on the pan.
6. Chop onion, about 1/3 cup for 2 pounds of flounder (more or less to taste). Sprinkle chopped onion and basil over the rolls and flat pieces. Drizzle all lightly with olive oil.
7. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit in the center of the oven about 30 minutes. The tops will be brown. Goes well with long grain brown rice. Add a green vegetable and you have a healthy, low fat meal.


I sauted some garlic and onion and mixed in the rice to add some more flavor....mmmmm soooo good!

Exercise

All I can say is ...GRRRRRRRRR ! I hate to do it and I have no motivation to. GRRRRRR I have lost some weight but I would be much further along if I would just do this. GRRRRRR We will see how I do next week. I make tooooooooo many excuses on this one. Am I the only one who hates exercise???????? It is all about the discipline of it, God knows I need His help on this one.


God's Lesson for Me
I jumped on the scale the other day and got excited...and then God got my attention. This is not about the pounds I shed, it is about glorifying my creator with my body. Being healthy and being a good example to my kids about body image is what I want. So God gave me another challenge...I am not going to weigh myself until Christmas. Crazy, I know! But being fully submitted to God in everything sometimes seems crazy. LOL




I really want this to be a life long change and for me it can't be about the numbers on the scale glaring back at me. Obviously being overweight is not healthy; but when I was 104 lbs I was not glorifying God either. My senior year in high school I starved myself to lose weight. When what I look like on the outside matters more than what God thinks of me on the inside.... neither is healthy.




God wants me to have a right relationship with food. To have self-control and discipline is something I have to learn in order to have this good relationship. Food is meant for my nutrition. Nourishing foods help me to feel good, stay strong and be healthy. Overeating or starving does me no good at all. With God's help I know that He will help me in this area of my life so that I can be fully submitted to Him in everything.


Food's Favorite Friends!

1. Salsa, Salsa, Salsa....Yeah! It is great on eggs. It is great on meat. It is great on salad. It is great on a potato. It has become my #1 friend! Thank you salsa...Thank You!


(I think I shall make up a song to this....LOL hahaha singing to my food ....now that is just plain crazy!)


2. Earthgrain's Flat bread....Yummy!


3. Splenda mixed with a little cinnamon sprinkled on toasted Earthgrain flat bread, so good!


4. Lime in my water sure taste better than just plain old water.


Life Change Challenge
Pray through my stubbornness on exercise!


Next Week!
Continue my 1200 calorie diet and hopefully some exercise. : )