Running??

I know that all of you wait anxiously by the computer, waiting for my next amazing, thought-provocing, inspirational post. I'm sorry to keep you waiting! We've been sooo busy with wonderful things. I have a post about our super-fun Memorial Day weekend in the works. But today I came across an article I had to share.

Check out this article about a huge study comparing running versus walking. I love to walk, but I love running much more and I'm excited that running wins overall! I mean, they are both very beneficial but according to the study, running is better for weight control, and it actually suppresses appetite! (I can tell I haven't run in awhile. I've had the serious munchies today!)

I love that I am lowering my risk of high blood pressure, bad cholesterol, heart disease, and diabetes as a runner. And guess what, walking helps with that, too! So get moving!

And speaking of running, I was supposed to be running my second half marathon, blowing my PR off the pavement this Saturday. But when it came to registering and we saw the price tag, we decided it wasn't worth it. And with all that we've been busy with, I'm glad God closed that door.

Priorities.

So this Saturday I think I'm going shopping with my mom and sis. Excellent trade-off :)

I still run and I still love it! Races are just going to wait for awhile.

Planting Potatoes

We have 104 potato plants in the ground! This is how we did it...

We got seed potatoes and I cut them in halves or quarters, so there was at least one bud on each piece. Then I let them sit on the counter on a cookie sheet (or somewhere dry and with airflow) for a couple days until they look like this...

Then we headed out back and dug trenches 4-6 inches deep.

Place the seeds about a foot apart with the buds facing up.

Then cover with just about 2 inches of soil, saving the rest of the soil for piling up around the plant as it grows. Don't let any potatoes see the sun!

We planted our first 40 seeds on April 4th, and finished up the row with 64 more seeds on April 14.  The first signs of plant popped through on April 30th!

I love how the plants burst through the soil. I've found new plants bursting through every day since the 30th!

The plants will wilt and yellow when they're ready to harvest. That'll be awhile. But I'm excited!

Here's a few shots of what else is going on around the garden...

Raspberry bushes graciously donated by my Aunt Pam:

Strawberry bushes are flowering!

Peas growing unevenly:

Spinach:

Lots and lots of onions! Framed by lovely dandelions:

What a blessing to get to work God's soil!

Honey Glazed Chicken Stirfry

We love stirfry.

In the first couple of years of our marriage I made a lot of stirfry. It's just too easy! Usually I would just use teriyaki sauce as seasoning. But then I found this Honey Glazed Chicken Stirfry recipe in a cookbook to add a little variety while still keeping it easy and yummy!

Ingredients:

12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken breasts
2 Tbs Honey
2 Tbs Vinegar
2 Tbs Orange Juice
4 tsp Soy Sauce
1 1/2 tsp Cornstarch
2 Tbs Cooking Oil
4 C cut-up veggies (i.e. broccoli, peppers, onion. I also added egg at the very end)
2 C cooked brown rice

Instruction:

1. Cut chicken into bite-sized strips/cubes and set aside.
2. For sauce, stir together honey, vinegar, orange juice, soy sauce, and cornstarch.
3. Pour oil into a large skillet and heat over med-high heat. Add veggies, cook and stir until crisp-tender. Remove the veggies.
4. Add chicken to skillet and cook until no longer pink.
5. Push the chicken to the sides and add sauce to the center of the skillet. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.
6. Return veggies to skillet and cook until heated through.
(7. To add eggs, push everything to the side and scramble the eggs in one side of the skillet until cooked through. Then mix in).

Add this super easy bread and you have an easy, yummy, and fairly balanced meal!

By the way, I've been doing pretty good with keeping a menu plan so I decided to share it under my "Food Journal" tab with as many links as possible. Browse if you're needing ideas!

Weight Loss Update

Monday, April 22, was my deadline for reaching my weight-loss goal: Within 5lbs of pre-baby weight.

Praise God Almighty, I was one pound away from the weight I was the day I found out I was pregnant with Marie!

That is a total of 34lbs in 6 months.

I'm very excited about that victory, but also a little frustrated at myself because I know I could have hit that weight and even lower if I hadn't been slacking so much in the last few weeks. It really is completely the grace of God that got me where I am. I have to daily... no, moment by moment, deny myself and be filled with the Holy Spirit.

I fail... a lot.

My next goal is to reach the weight I was on our wedding day by Kempton's first birthday (August 7). That is only 5-6 pounds away! I would truly appreciate prayer to have continuous victory over my struggle with the sin of overeating/emotional-eating/careless-eating.

Now for what you all really want... (unedited) pictures! I'll tell you, this is hard for me! I have desperately avoided the camera for almost 5 years. Please be kind.

The day before Kempton was born...

204 lbs

On Kempton's 2 month birthday and shortly before the weight loss began...

175 lbs

I started the weight loss count at 175 pounds because that is when it stopped coming off without effort. And that's how much I weighed when God really got ahold of my struggles.

Here is a middle-of-the-process pic...

159 lbs

Aaaand currently...

141-143 lbs

How did I do it? Well, I didn't. God did. But if you're wanting specifics, I counted calories, added lifting heavy weights to my workouts, and listened to the Holy Spirit. Check out this post for more.

I've also had lots of support from amazing family and friends. Thank you!!

Look for the final update in August!

Planting Onions

This year we used these...

Specifically -
Yellow Spanish
Redwing Red
Walla Walla

We planted over 200 onions! For the most part, we did 4 onions per square foot, about an inch deep.

The first set we planted on April 3rd and finished them up on April 13th.

We obviously love onions :)

I'll let ya know how they turn out in a few months!