Life is Like a Box of Chocolates

By: Katie Austin

What movie did you think of when you first read the blog title?  Of course, one of the greatest movies of all time, Forest Gump!  If you haven’t seen it, it truly is a must see that you will enjoy from start to finish.  It is a feel good movie with memorable quotes that are timeless.

My favorite quote from the movie is about a box of chocolates.  I think Forest Gump’s momma was on to something when she told him that, “Life was like a box of chocolates.  You never know what you’re gonna get.”  I remember as a kid growing up, taking my time picking from the chocolate assortment.  I would search the box over, analyzing each tasty treat, trying to pick out the one with caramel in the middle.  Those were my favorite!  Sometimes I would let my brother go first so that if he picked the one with coconut, I could make a mental note as to what the chocolate looked like and where on the board it was located 🙂 Some companies provided a cheat sheet under the lid, while others left it to chance.  I remember fondly doing a little dance after finding the one I was looking for, relishing in the outcome of my decision.

“Four steps to achievement: Plan purposefully. Prepare prayerfully. Proceed positively. Pursue persistently.” – William A. Ward

What a great quote!  No matter the decisions made or hurdles we have to overcome, plan for what you know, pray for what you don’t, move forward with a positive attitude and never give up on where you want to be in life.  We get to pick from the box of life and like some of the chocolates, some of the choices we make are better than others.  What’s important to remember is that there will always be choices.  Sometimes the choice is how we choose to accept (or not accept) a decision that was made for us.  Like baseball, sometimes life throws us a curveball, but if we are patient, sometimes the pitch is right in the sweet spot, down the middle of the plate.  We have a choice to accept the pitch thrown to us or to wait for another pitch.  We also have a choice to step into or out of the hitter’s box (life).  I say, choose to step up to the plate and know that with enough confidence, preparation and belief, you will eventually get on base.  Never give up and always know that with each forward step you take, you are closer to reaching where you want to be 🙂

What are some of your favorite quotes from the movie or in general?  Feel free to post them here so that we can lift each other up, motivating each other to keep moving forward knowing that tomorrow brings a new day 🙂

Why I Love Lightsabers and Not Barbie Shoes

By: Crissie Miller Kirby

Sometimes, you have to be thankful that God gives you what you need, and not always what it is that you think you want.

Being the youngest of two children and the only girl, I grew up in the 80’s surrounded by GI Joe’s, Star Wars figurines, wrestlers, baseballs and footballs.  While I had Barbies and was a Cabbage Patch Kid collector (last count was 10 or 11, I think), I always dreamed of being Princess Leia.  I had a brother who, while I idolized him, tried out on me every wrestling move the 80’s gave us, so of course, if I were Princess Leia I could kick butt and take names later.  I wasn’t really a “tom boy,” but I wasn’t really a “girlie” girl either.

As I got older, got married, and then started planning a family, I dreamed, though, of having my own little girl to dress and spoil.  I could think of nothing more than beautiful smocked dresses and hair bows galore.  When I got pregnant with my first child, I prayed to have a little girl.  Yes, I wanted to have a healthy child, but in my mind health and gender were two separate issues completely, so I prayed for a healthy child, but I really wanted “it” to be a girl.  That June ultrasound brought the news that I was most definitely NOT having a girl.  I’ll be honest, I cried for 4 days.  I caught all manner of flack for seemingly being ungrateful for carrying a healthy baby.  I was very grateful, but I was disappointed.  I’m also brutally honest, and so I let my feelings and thoughts show.  December 7, 2005 arrived and at 8:00 a.m. I fell in love with a beautiful blonde haired, blue eyed little boy named Samuel Pierce Kirby, II.

Fast forward about 2 years.

By this time, I’ve got a 2-year-old and am 4 months pregnant.  I am also roughly 9 months removed from a miscarriage.  I go in for my routine 16-week ultrasound and the baby will not cooperate, so we end the session knowing that “baby” is healthy, but refusing to share its gender with us.  My wonderful OB-GYN takes pity on me and agrees to bring me back in the following week for an “unofficial” ultrasound the week before Christmas so that I will, hopefully, know the gender before the holidays.  We spend one week sure that this baby is a girl because it was being stubborn like me.  When we get to the office for the ultrasound, I’ve had orange juice and Coke hoping to excite this little one into telling us whether it is a “he” or a “she.”  The answer is obvious the moment the transducer is placed on my stomach.  It was very clear, immediately, that I was, again, NOT having a little girl.  Again, I was devastated, but not quite as upset as before, I cried for only 2 days this time.  I worried that I would not be able to equally love another little boy like I loved Pierce, but at 8:07 on May 5, 2008; I was proven wrong when John Smith Kirby made his appearance and I, once again, fell in love with a beautiful blonde-haired, blue-eyed little man.

Fast forward almost 5 years, and I’m the single mom to these two precious and beautiful, blonde-haired, blue-eyed “lady killers.”  I’ve been able to buy some smocked clothing, but at 6 and 4, those outfits are slowly becoming just a memory.  My house is covered in Thomas the Train, Buzz, Woody and the whole gang.  My boys know the names of almost every character from Harry Potter and can even pronounce them correctly.  We’ve watched all six Star Wars movies, and we have enough light sabers around to single-handedly save the Republic.  At least the lightsabers are larger than Barbie shoes, so you can typically avoid them in the middle of the night.

Obviously, I have no experience with little girls, but I know that during the last 3 years when I was at my lowest point, these little men knew, instinctively, how to lift my spirits.  There is something to be said for the “Mama’s Boy” syndrome; in each little boy lies the honesty, utter love and loyalty every woman desires.  Nothing lifts my spirit or makes me smile brighter than hearing an unsolicited “Mommy, I like that dress on you” or “Mommy, you look pretty.”  I always had short hair until life kept me from getting it cut as frequently as I had before, now I may never have short hair again as my little fellows have told me that they like my hair long.  After my trim the other night, Pierce told me that he liked my haircut.  And speaking of hair, during my most trying moments, I didn’t have to worry about ponytails or pigtails or braids.  I also have the simple pleasure of just handing the boys the clothes they will wear and hearing little to no protests.  I even asked Pierce one morning if he wanted to help pick out his clothes; his lifesaving response was that he would rather I just pick them out for him.  All of this certainly has made my life much easier.

Today, if you were to ask me, I would tell you that I would not trade my two little men for a million little girls and their smocked dresses and hair bows and Barbie shoes.  I often wonder if I ever re-marry and desire more children, what I would do if I did actually have a little girl?  I would almost tell you that I would rather I have another little boy, because at the end of the day, I do really prefer lightsabers to Barbie shoes.

Refreshing Summer Drinks Courtesy of Pinterest

By: Staci Rutherford

My mission over the last two weeks has been to figure out ways to stay cool and comfortable now that summer has arrived.  With record high temperatures across the country, I am constantly craving frozen beverages to avoid melting in the heat.  Eating ice cream everyday would probably do the trick, but will also ruin my cute, girlish figure.  So, I decided to go to my trusted source, Pinterest, for more ideas.  I created a board dedicated to delicious drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, which will definitely keep you calm and cool during the heat wave.

Here are a few recipes that immediately caught my eye that I cannot wait to try!

Pink Lemonade Sherbert Party Punch (serves 12)

Ingredients:

• 1 can frozen pink lemonade from concentrate
• 2-1/2 cans water
• 1 carton Raspberry sherbet
• 2 liter Sprite
• 3 lemons

Directions:

1. In a pitcher, combine the pink lemonade concentrate and the cans of water.
2. Freeze for about 4 hours until slushy.
3. In the pitcher, add the lemons and a thick layer of raspberry sherbet.
4. Pour the Sprite over the top of sherbet and stir just a bit so it gets nice and frothy on top.
5. Serve immediately.

Source: Food Family Finds

Watermelon Margarita Frosty (serves 2)

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups frozen watermelon cubes
• 1/2+ cup water
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 large lemon, squeezed (lime juice also works very well! use 2 limes)
• 1 fresh banana
• Optional: 2 shots of tequila (or substitute with more water or fruit juice)
• Garnish: a few slices of watermelon – with rind on – frozen.

Directions: 

1. Blend ingredients.
2. Pour.
3. Garnish with frozen watermelon/rind slices.
4. Serve! Enjoy.

Source: Healthy. Happy. Life.

Champagne Cocktail with Mint & Lemon Sherbet (serves 1)

Ingredients:

• 2 tsp fresh mint leaves, muddled or finely chopped
• 2 large scoops lemon sorbet
• 1/3 cup vodka
• 3/4 cup champagne or sparkling wine

Directions:

1. In a tall glass, place a pinch of mint.
2. Add one scoop lemon sorbet, another pinch mint and the other scoop sorbet.
3. Pour in vodka, then top with champagne and the rest of the mint.
4. Garnish with a mint sprig.

Source: fresh365

Riesling Strawberry Slushy (serves 6)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups hulled strawberries
• 1 bottle (750ml) dry Riesling
• 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 2 tbsp sugar

Directions:

1. Reserve 1 cup of the Riesling – cover and place in the fridge to chill.
2. In a food processor, puree strawberries with the remaining wine, lime juice and sugar.
3. Pour the mixture into ice cube trays and freeze until solid.
4. When you’re ready to serve [or drink], puree the ice cubes with the remaining wine in your blender.

Source: With Style & Grace

Pork, Freedom and Another Year Older

By: Elizabeth Webber Akre

July 4^th is right around the corner.  This time of year, we all become focused on the holiday: plans to go to the beach, hosting a cookout, fireworks, barbeque, time off from work.  Wait, there’s something I’m forgetting.  I know I should know this…hmmm.  Oh yeah, my birthday.  The annual parade and celebration of my life is (supposed to be) on July 1^st. My friends remember, my parents remember, my sister and my husband remember. The problem is that I always forget my own birthday is coming up.  Once again, it just hit me that it’s in a few days.  But, as usual, I’ve been focusing on the other things.

Here in the South, barbeque is a given on holidays like the 4^th, Memorial Day, Labor Day and even New Year’s Day.  And barbeque in the South means four things:  pork, chicken, mustard and the all-important-fact that barbeque is a NOUN, not a VERB.  The most common, and most delicious, is good ol’ fashioned pig meat.  There are the connoisseurs who dig the pit and cook that baby for a day and a half.  It’s great barbeque, but I don’t have that kinda time.  Then, there are folks like my mom who will just go out and buy it from a BBQ joint.  Around here, the dumpier looking the BBQ joint, the better.  No flashy signs or logos.  In fact, if it’s a plain cinder block building with a chimney, that’s ideal.

And THEN, there are people like me and my sister.  We’re picky about our meat.  We don’t like meat with bones in it, we can’t tolerate fat on our meat and worse, in our mouths.  And, we’re pretty particular about the type.  So, we’re partial to making our barbeque in the crockpot.  Yeah, that’s right.  I mentioned that I don’t have time to pit cook, so the crockpot was invented for me, I think.  It’s ridiculously easy, tastes fantastic and people can’t believe you made it yourself.  Now, here’s how to do it. Hold onto your hat, this is complicated…

Place two pork tenderloins in your crockpot, add about ½ cup of water then a bottle of yellow sauce.  (You know you can buy Shealy’s in the grocery store, right?) Turn it on low and come back about 7 or 8 hours later.  Pull the tenderloins out and shred them with two forks.  Drain some of the cooking liquid and add more yellow sauce to the pot.  Place the meat back in the sauce, mix it up and warm on low for about 15 minutes.  And there you have it: lower fat Southern barbeque.

Of course, the most important part of the holiday is the celebration of the freedom we enjoy here in the U.S.  Probably all of us have had family or friends who have served America in our military.  It’s so important for us to remember what this holiday is really all about and to teach that to our kids.

Recently, I was able to take my 6-year-old to Washington, D.C.  I was so proud of how well she paid attention to the monuments and what I explained to her about them.  She was particularly interested in the mementos and circes left at the Vietnam wall by friends and loved ones.  She was intrigued with the Korean monument, as she is a big fan of the old M*A*S*H shows.  That may sound silly, but for a kid, it put a face on what the monument was commemorating.  And, when we arrived at Arlington to see the Tomb of the Unknown and the changing of the guard, she sat right up front, stayed quiet and took in every detail.  Afterward, she had lots of thoughtful questions and a new understanding of what our military does for this country.

So, as the 4^th of July approaches and I prepare to blow out 44 candles, I wish you all a happy day of celebrating your freedom with your families, friends and a big, saucy plate of barbeque.