March 2013

March was a particularly chilly yet busy month. Despite the cold weather, my mom, my friend Felecia, and I had a garage sale the second weekend of the month. I spent most of spring break preparing for it, and it went really well! These are the signs I made for it:

My birthday was the day before the garage sale. I spent the day preparing for the sale and cleaning the house. Not the most tempting way to spend a birthday, but honestly cleaning and organizing are two of my favorite things to do on a day off so I enjoyed it very much. Before my parents drove into town that night, James took me to dinner at the Opera House and then we got a strawberry cheesecake to-go from Huddle House. That was the icing on the cake, so to speak.

My parents stayed with us the entire weekend. We had a good time visiting together. My mom had been to our church before, but this was my dad's first time. Earlier that week, I planned out all our meals for the weekend and then made everything gluten-free for my mom. I made a "Pantry Raid" Chicken Enchilada Casserole for dinner Saturday and Slow Cooker Beef Curry for lunch after church on Sunday. Both were fairly simple to make, and the unique flavors were delicious. We didn't eat out a single time, and for our family, that is quite an accomplishment!

James's parents also came to visit us for dinner and a movie one Saturday night this month. We ate Domino's pizza, salad, and Hot Fudge Peanut Butter Pie, and we watched The Hunger Games. James and I both read the trilogy this spring, and this was our first time to see the movie after having read the books. We all enjoyed spending the evening together. I look forward to when our parents can come visit us again.

Hot Fudge Peanut Butter Pie

During one Saturday, my friends Amanda and Tara and I went shopping in Jackson. I love these girls so much and hope that we can turn our annual get-togethers into monthly events like we've been planning to do for the past few years. :) 

   
 Our four year old nephew Jax stayed with us the last weekend in March. We had such a fun time being his "parents" for a few days.

Turning the lights on and off with the remote

Watching Mickey on the big screen

Helping Uncle James pressure wash the house

Helping Uncle James pressure wash the house

The steps before/during pressure washing

 

The steps after pressure washing

After church on Easter Sunday, we drove Jax back to Paris where Tammy had prepared lunch and an egg hunt for the kids. There was a huge turnout for the event. There were kids everywhere. It was so much fun!

Easter deviled eggs that I made for lunch

Egg hunt

Our niece Evie and her eggs

 

Easter bath!

Happy Easter!

During the weekend, we taught Jax the real meaning of Easter. We would ask him, "Why do we celebrate Good Friday?" And he'd reply, "Because Jesus died on the cross!" Then we'd ask, "Why do we celebrate Easter?" He would then say, "Because He rose from the dead!" May we always remember the true meaning of Easter and celebrate Jesus's sacrifice and saving grace each and every day.

February 2013

I started February strong by running 7 miles while visiting my family in Millington, but my half training quickly took a nosedive a week later when I developed a sinus infection. Although I started to feel sick the next weekend, my friends Tara and Felecia and I ran in the Kiss It Goodbye 5k. Here are pics from before and after the race:

 

The sinus infection has lasted well over a month. James wanted me to take a week off from running so I could recover, but I just couldn't shake it even with taking a break. Over the past few weeks, I've only ran a handful of times. Because of that, my knee has started hurting when I run. It just takes time to get back to a point where it won't hurt when I run...time that I don't have before the Murray Half Marathon. With that being said, I made the decision to drop out of the race, and my friend Britt (Felecia's sister) is going to take my spot. I'm a little disappointed, but there will always be other races. I may just stick to shorter races for now anyway.

Only 50 days until we leave for our cruise!

Winter Runnerland 10k

The "Moms Run This Town" Winter Runnerland racers

Murray Half Marathon training group. We finished a 10k!

We kept a good pace together during the race.

Murray Half Marathon training group. Love these girls!

Winter Runnerland 10k medal

January 2013

Just wanted to take a moment to recap January 2013. I have done a fairly decent job at keeping up my New Year's Resolutions. I finished the Hunger Games trilogy yesterday, and I have a long list of books to read. I'd like to try to read one book per week. So far, so good.

I cooked more in the first two weeks of January than the past couple weeks, but keeping up with my half marathon training is taking more time than originally anticipated. For the entire month, I've ran 4 times a week. Two weeks ago, I also started going to a fitness class two nights a week to strengthen my core. The long runs on Saturdays have been fun this time around. I'm training with several of my friends from college and church. We plan to do a few smaller races in the next couple months to help us prepare for the half marathon. Having a group of friends to train with definitely motivates me more than just about anything.

I have already begun to see a difference in how I look and feel since training began. Hopefully, I can keep this up until May 4. That's when we leave for our cruise. I'd love to be more in shape then than I ever have been. I have exactly 100 days to get there!

Perspective

A friend posted this today. I really like this change of perspective and how it reminds me to be thankful for all things in this life.

"I am thankful for:  
The taxes I pay because that means I have a job.
The clothes that fit a little too snug because that means I have food to eat.
The shadow that follows me because that means I'm out in the sunshine.
The halls that need to be swept and laundry that needs washed because that means I have a home and loved ones to spend my time with.
The spot I finally find at the far end of the parking lot because it reminds me that I still have the ability to walk.
All the complaining I hear about our government because it means we have freedom of speech.
That lady at church that sings off key because it means I can hear.
The beeping of an alarm in the early morning because that means I'm able to wake up to live another day."

Chicken Pot Pie

My First Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

For the recipe, click here. I did make a few slight changes such as:
-using Heart Healthy Bisquick instead of flour
-using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth
-using dried minced onion instead of real onion
-adding broccoli, cauliflower, and poultry seasoning

2012 Recap & 2013 Resolutions

A recap of the resolutions I made in 2012:
1. Grow closer in my relationship with God. (Lifelong process)
2. Read and study Scripture more fervently. (Lifelong process)
3. Exercise more and eat healthier. (Lifelong process)
4. Graduate from the Master of Business Administration program in December. (Completed!)
5. Get into the Master of Science in Information Science program at UTK. (Completed! Although I'm almost certain I've decided not to continue with this program.)
6. Pass the Certified Administration Professional exam in May and get the 9% raise. (Completed! I didn't take the exam in May as originally planned, but I did take it in November and passed!)

2013 Resolutions/Goals: 
1. Grow closer in my relationship with God.
2. Read and study Scripture more fervently.
3. Exercise more and eat healthier.
4. Cook and read more. (Off to a good start: I cooked ham, green beans, purple hull peas, mashed potatoes, pumpernickel bread, and a double berry crisp dessert for dinner last night, and I am almost finished reading the first book in the Hunger Games trilogy.)
5. Train for and run in the Murray Half Marathon in April and complete it within 2 hours and 30 minutes or less.
6. Lose 10-15 pounds before our cruise in May. (I did great with my healthy eating for half of 2012. The past couple months are a different story. So goes that yo-yo effect I am bound and determined to conquer someday!)

Christmas with the Copeland's

Home Improvements

Since becoming homeowners in May 2011, James and I had not done anything different to the house until this fall. First, we had our laundry room and bathroom painted. Then we bought a new front door and had it painted. Finally, we bought a new mailbox from Pottery Barn to top it all off!

Bathroom Before:

Bathroom After:

Laundry Room Before:

Laundry Room After:

Front Door Before:

Front Door After: