Thanksgiving 2011

Jake and I are so blessed! We truly have so much to be thankful for - one of those things being family and friends!

About a week ago, we celebrated Thanksgiving with our friends at John and Michelle's house. Everyone pitched in and we had turkey and all the fixings! We are thankful for our friends in Pennsylvania who we have known for less than 6 months, but we really feel like they are family!

While we were there, Jake indulged in a donut...John, these pictures are for you!

Jake and I also made the 10-hour drive to Indiana to visit with his side of the family! We had "Thanks Christmas" because we celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas together (since we will be in Knoxville for Christmas). I only took a few pictures, but it was great to see everyone!!

Ashley and Cora opening gifts

 Catherine and 9-week old Mallory

Jake and I loved meeting our newest niece, Mallory! She's such a cute and sweet baby!

Life Updates: November (so far)

Lots has been going on and I haven't been good about uploading my pictures and updating the blog! Here's what we have been up to in November...

I'm over half-way done with my first semester of classes (this has been keeping me busy)! I have decided that since I work at a University and get tuition benefits, I might as well take advantage of it! I'm working towards a degree in Nutrition since it is something that I am very passionate about! I want to inspire people to healthy living by sharing the gift of nutrition with others.

Jake is also staying very busy during the week with his job. It seems like he travels to New York and New Jersey pretty frequently, and he is really enjoying this position. He's also helping lead a mens gym night at church on Tuesdays with a friend, Tyler.

Jake and I are both working with the middle school youth group on Wednesday nights. Jake helps lead the 6th grade boys and I'm with the 8th grade girls! We have had a lot of fun getting to know the kids and are looking forward to the Winter Retreat!

Our weekends have been packed this month!

The first Weekend of November - Jake was in Virginia and I was in Kentucky

Jake and Corey met up in Virginia because it was a good half-way location in between TN and PA. They spent all day Saturday and Sunday morning riding. Sounds like they had a blast!!

Thanks for the pictures, Corey!

I was in Louisville, KY celebrating Brandon and Lauren's marriage!! They had a gorgeous wedding and I was so happy to be there to celebrate with them! I was also very honored to be a bridesmaid! It was so good to see Lauren and Katie and their families since the three of us did everything together growing up! Love them!! My mom was also there, so I got to spend time with her (Dad was in South Africa on business).

I was pretty bummed I forgot my camera, but I did take 2 pictures on my phone!!

Second Weekend of November - Jake in Tennessee and I was Home

Jake went to Nashville to attend Luke and Jill's wedding. I wish I could have gone with him because it sounds like he had a great time visiting with college friends and fraternity brothers! I stayed home and got a lot done - cleaning, Christmas shopping, laundry, organizing, etc. I even made a trip down to Trader Joes near Philly! 

I think Jake has pictures on his phone...I'll post those later!

Third Weekend of November - John and Alma Visit Pennsylvania!

Jake's Dad and his wife, Alma came to visit from Florida! We had a really great time with them and got to show them where we live! Friday night we enjoyed a warm bowl of homemade chili with grilled cheese. After dinner, we went to see the movie Courageous - which I highly recommend seeing. It was so powerful. 

Saturday morning I made breakfast for everyone and then we headed out to explore the Lehigh Valley. It was a gorgeous Fall day, so it was perfect for walking. We ended up at the Lock Ridge Park, Allentown Farmers Market, downtown Bethlehem, and Christkindlmarkt. We finished the evening off with a delicious meal at the Limeport Inn - one of our favorite restaurants. 

 At Lock Ridge Furnace

Allentown Farmers Market

After lunch, we took a stroll around Lehigh...

Exploring Bethlehem...

I found this awesome hat with built in gloves at Christkindlmarkt...I didn't buy it because I don't think anyone would take me seriously with a pink bunny hat, but it's so smart...you would never have to worry about loosing your gloves!!

John and Alma left on Sunday morning before Jake and I went to church! We are looking forward to seeing them again soon!


Sunday evening we celebrated Thanksgiving with Fuse (more on that in the next post) and then Jake and I put up our Christmas tree!! Love this time of year!

Isn't Alice so cute? :-)

Recipe: Homemade Protein-packed Gooey Granola Bars

I'm going to be honest...I was pretty hesitant to try this recipe, but I am SO glad I did because these granola bars were super easy to make and they are delicious! This is a "clean" recipe - meaning it contains all natural ingredients (nothing artificial, no refined sugars, and no hydrogenated oils). 

This whole batch contains 288 grams of protein from plant-based nutritional sources, which is about 12 grams per serving. These bars make a great on-the-go breakfast or mid morning snack. 

What I love most about this recipe is that it contains 2 cups of Juice Plus Complete powder which is all-natural, 100% plant based, whole-food nutrition. I normally use this whole-food drink mix with almond milk or added to smoothies, but I'm starting to think outside of the box with other ways to use it because it is packed with so much nutritional value...Check out the Nutrition Facts right off of the label:

 

OK...back to the recipe:

In a large bowl, mix together dry Ingredients: 

2 cups Vanilla or Chocolate Juice Plus+ Complete powder

4 cups Nature’s Path Organic Hemp Plus Granola (from Trader Joe’s)
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup dried cranberries (optional)

Stir in wet ingredients:
2 cups organic maple syrup or agave (I used a mixture of both because I don't like a really strong maple flavor)
2 cups organic, creamy peanut butter or almond butter

I started out mixing this by hand, but it was super gooey and thick, so I quickly transferred the granola mixture to my kitchen aid!

Once it's all mixed, transfer it into a greased 9x13 and press it into the pan

Sprinkle sesame seeds or shredded coconut on top and press them into the surface.

Refrigerate!

Cut into bars when the mixture is solid. Keep the bars in the fridge between servings. 

Key To Healthy Aging

I love Dr. Sears' video on 9 steps to prime time health. When I saw this video a few years ago I had an "Ah-ha!" moment while I was watching this section on keeping your arteries clean. This video does such a great job of visually explaining how God created our bodies to heal themselves if we fuel it with the right food. Our bodies do SO much on the cellular and molecular level - it completely amazes me! 

This is a great reminder that with every bite we take, we are wither investing in our health our subsidizing our illness.

To avoid Disability, Disease, and Doctors in the future - focus on preventative health by eating more whole grains, fruits, and vegetables!

If you want to see the rest of the video (there are 8 more tips) - let me know!

Snowy Weekend in October

Jake and I got to spend the last weekend of October with a bunch of friends in the Poconos. I was expecting perfect, crisp Fall weather - but instead we got a snow storm! We had a great time, even though the weather was freezing! We got around 10 inches of snow on Saturday alone. This was our second trip to Sky Top (you can read about the first one here) and we spent lots of time staying warm by the fireplace and just hanging out!

Andy, Andrea, and Jeff!

Geoff, Beth, and Jake...haha!

Tyler and Margaret...our lovely hosts!

We had a delicious meal on Saturday evening...grilled lemon pepper chicken, sauteed asparagus, roasted butternut squash, and Fall inspired salad! 

Jeff and Brooke!

Jake made smores in the fireplace!

Tyler making omelets!

Jake playing in the snow! Yay!

The grass was so green under the snow!!

The house!

Getting ready to head home!

 Most of the trees haven't lost their leaves and the snow added a lot of extra weight which caused several trees to fall. So many trees in our area have fallen on power lines and some people are still without power! We did not loose power at Sky Top or at our house, but Lehigh University didn't get power back until Wednesday (which means I got 2 1/2 snow days this week!). I got a lot of stuff done around the house during my time off!