Wow! What a Blogger!

Oh August, you will soon be a memory and this is my first blog post of the month. I should win some type of blogging prize. So, what's new this month? How about a list...

1. I have developed a pretty serious love of Klondike Bars. Double chocolate, please and thank you.


2. I have started training for a half marathon. I had my first 5 mile run this Saturday. I did awesome. I am getting so much stronger.


3. This is my third month of five day a week 5:00am workouts. I am pretty excited about it, but refuse to get overly proud of myself until it has been six months.


4. I no longer need the Biggest Loser Ranch.


5. I had a anniversary this month that I never thought I would see. I do not need a second anniversary. One is fine.


6. I cooked and froze 26 meals. I will not have to cook dinner after work for a very long time.


7. It has been HOT. So HOT that I can no longer stand it!

Wow! That is a thrilling list! I know, don't hate. It is really hard to be so enthralling. Most enthralling blogger. That is the prize I should win.

Publix: Where Checking Out Can Be Awkward

hile checking out this morning at Publix the bagging guy asked me how my kids were doing. I replied, "My kids?" Then he said, "Yes, how are they doing?" I am not sure why he decided to ask me that. It may have been because I was buying three gallons of milk or maybe it was the massive amount of food being scanned at a rapid pace. I'm not really sure. It was definitely not because I was wearing a wedding ring. I left my ring on the bathroom counter this morning so the "kids" that he thinks I have must be illegitimate. "Oh, I don't have any kids" I replied. "I'm sure that there are kids somewhere that are doing great, but they're not mine." The cashier looked at me awkwardly and I returned her awkward glance. "Oh," said the bagger casually, "Do you like football?" What??? Exactly.

I told my Mom the story on the way home. She said that he must not have known that was a sensitive subject. I agree.

So... it is Saturday! I love that. I hope you love it too.

Pot Roast = YUM

o... this hot weather has me longing for Fall. It may be 100+ degrees outside today but the air conditioner has it nice and cool (and expensive) inside and I decided to do a Fall preview and make Pot Roast. You really cannot go wrong with this recipe. This is the roast that my Mom makes and it always reminds me of home.


Ingredients:
1 pot roast (boneless chuck roast)
1 pkg Lipton Onion Soup mix (dry) (if roast is small, 1/2 of package)
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 can Cream of Celery Soup
1 can Beef Broth
Potatoes (I use the baby reds)
Carrots (I use baby carrots)

Directions:

Season the roast with salt and pepper and coat with flour.
Heat oil in a Dutch Oven pan
Brown roast on each side - remove pan from heat.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees
Mix mushroom and celery soup with beef broth and 1/2 a can of water (mix slowly so it isn't lumpy).
Sprinkle onion soup over roast and cover with soup mixture.
Raise roast to let some of the liquid underneath.

Bake in oven for 2 1/2 hours.

Peel potatoes and carrots and cut into pieces.
Remove roast from oven and put vegetables around outside of roast.
Spoon sauce over vegetables.

Return to oven and continue to cook until roast and veggies are tender.
(Approx. 45 min to an hour)

It is really pretty simple and it tastes delicious. Plus, your home will smell wonderful! I generally serve this roast with some type of bread. Tonight we are having whole wheat biscuits but a fresh sourdough loaf is amazing as well.

Happy Cooking!

A Wonderful Day

ustin and I took a quick trip to Atlanta to see the Braves play last Friday and we really had a great time. We had great seats (row 15 above the Braves dugout) and had lots of foul balls hit our way. The game was so much fun and every Friday night after a home game there are fireworks. They were awesome! It was really just a blast. Justin is such a big Braves fan that it is so much fun to experience a game with him. I always tell him that he enjoys watching the Braves better than the Dawgs during football season. There is no cussing, sulking, or throwing things during a Braves game. Just plain old enjoyment. The way it should be in my opinion. I was having so much fun that I didn't complain one time about being hot and it was so HOT!

We tried to book a hotel across from Turner Field but they were all full so we ended up staying at the Ritz Carlton Atlanta. We never get to take a trip together so we decided to just live it up for one night and it was so worth it. The service at the Ritz is AMAZING! "Mr. and Mrs. James, welcome to the Ritz Carlton. Did you have a nice trip? Let me get that for you. Would you like a bottle of water, lemonade, or raspberry ice tea while you check in?" All that just getting out of the car! The room was beautiful and when we returned from the game our bed was turned down with chocolates and a little note telling us what the weather would be like the next day and wishing us sweet dreams. Sigh...

Breakfast the next morning was wonderful. I had a chocolate milk and a waffle with fresh whipped cream that I will never forget. It was beautiful.

Even though we were only gone for a little over a day it felt like an entire weekend. It was lovely.

America the Beautiful

Happy 4th of July!

We are beyond blessed to live in a country that is free.
As we celebrate today, please remember that our freedom comes at a very high price. A price that so many of us cannot fathom making.

I am so proud to be an American. God bless America!

Photo credit: Todd Heft

Thank you, June! That was fun.

une was really great. It was exactly what I needed. Susan came all the way from Texas to visit and then I flew to Virginia to spend a long weekend with Amy and Kristi. All three women have a very special place in my heart. I am so blessed to know each of them and honored to call them friends. Amy and Kristi are friends from undergrad at Shenandoah University and Susan and I met in graduate school at SCAD.

Kristi, me, and Amy visiting the Shenandoah University campus.

Me and Susan at my wedding. Just had to point that out. Did not want you to think that I put my wedding dress on and ran around Savannah recently. Susan did take some pictures while here in town but all I have to say about those pictures is AWFUL! Not Susan, me. So gross. Pasty, pale, puffy and sitting awkwardly on a park bench in over 100 degree weather. Yuck. This one is much better.

Motivate Me! Wanna be a Runner?

have really been working on getting back into shape. I am so bad about being a yo-yo and I am over it. I started thinking about all the people I know (real people with real jobs and real lives)that are in great shape and I thought it would be pretty cool to to find out how they started and how they maintain their healthy lifestyle. My friend Valerie immediately came to mind and I wanted to pick her brain and share it with you. Who knows, maybe you need some motivation too?

I know so may people who say that the can't run and then they give you a laundry list of reasons why. I say you can. It may be hard at first, but you can. Meet Val...




My name is Valerie Albanese and I've known sweet Amanda since high school. We were both very active in drama back then and I used to deeply admire Amanda's beautiful singing voice. Those memories are some of my favorite from school. I got back in touch with Amanda this past year only to find out that we still share similar interests like cooking, faith, and fitness. That is just so neat after all these years!


When she asked me to write a guest blog post on her site, I was truly honored because of her reasoning behind it. She said that she wanted to reach out to people who are inspirational to her and that help keep her motivated. I took that to be a huge compliment that she asked me to write! While I’ve always been active and serious about fitness, running is by far what I love the most. I’ve run off and on for the past 10 years but I’ve been very serious about it for the past 3. When I started out, I could barely run 1 mile without cramping up or struggling to breathe. I had no idea just how structured running really should be and how individual it is for everyone. I also had no clue exactly how mental it was, either. I’d get highly discouraged easily and I quit; a lot.


Along the way, I’ve had friends that I’ve run with but I was never too good at that either, simply because I consistently told myself I couldn’t do it. I’d give in to doubts and insecurities and I’d just stop. Finally, I reached a place 6 years ago where I’d simply had it with all the crap I would feed myself. I had a friend at the time who is what’s called an ‘ultra marathoner’ meaning he does races past the normal 26.2 mile marathon distance. He’s done anything from a 30 mile race to a 100 mile race and he’s definitely who I consider a “pro” in loose terms. He helped me begin to understand the basics of running and how to “get out of my own head”. He taught me how to start out very slowly and get my muscles warmed up in addition to my breathing. I began to realize that I usually cramped up so easily within mile one because I’d start out way too fast. By starting out slowly, I was able to build up to a nice rhythm and, next thing you know, I’d run 5 miles with relative ease. It was a defining moment for me because something clicked inside and I realized I just needed to learn how to run…and how to believe in myself.


Since then, I’ve definitely fought the mental battle again at times, but I have fallen in love with running. I am addicted to the empowerment, the satisfaction, the drive – I am simply addicted to the personal challenge that running presents, each and every time I hit the road. I’ve run countless races of all distances over the past 3 years and I’ve completed 2 half marathons, both of which I was hugely proud of my finishing times. I no longer run just a couple of miles for exercise but instead I get out there and do 6 miles at the very least and I’m proud every single time. I’m proud because I no longer say ‘I can’t do it’. Instead, I exclaim that I CAN.


Thank you for the motivation, Val! What's that? Can't get enough of Valerie? Oh, I don't blame you. She is so darn cute! And she is just as sweet as she is cute. And she has a heart for the Lord. Plus, she cooks. Running AND eating. The perfect combination. Check out her blog. Thanks again, sweet friend!

Great Is Thy Faithfulness

ive years ago today, I met the very handsome Justin James. Little did I know that in a few short years I would become Mrs. Justin James.

Thank you, Father, for your faithfulness! I am beyond blessed with your gift of a godly husband and I am forever grateful.

Color Me Beautiful

"Cherry Blossoms: Hope" by Tiffani Taylor

I have been in love with Tiffani Taylor's work for years. I am thrilled that this watercolor is the start of my collection. Simply beautiful!

Sidebar Pictures: Thank you, Erika! We love our pictures! For information on the Cleland's adoption visit their blog: Ethiopian Cleland

Am I a Loser?

I actually got online last night to see how much it would cost for me to go the the Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge. Really??? Has it come to this??? GET IT TOGETHER AMANDA!

And that is where I am right now. I am not a loser and I really need to be.