Revivification Needed

I don’t know what it was this year that had me not feeling in the mood to be thankful?  Could it be the gloomy but warm weather, or maybe it was the fact that I wasn’t near my parents?  It’s not like we didn’t have a lovely time with my hubby’s family, and it certainly wasn’t like I don’t have a trillion things to be thankful for?  But I just felt in a funk, like I cheated my kids and hubby from a great time with me.  I don’t know what I would have done differently?  Maybe I could have tried to be in a better mood and done a better job of compartmentalizing my ever long to-do list? 

I have a massive paper due on Tuesday that I keep trying to push out of my mind and focus on family fun time but can’t.  I know that this paper isn’t hard work, but time consuming.  My school assignments seem to be lining up nicely as I close in on the last 3.5 weeks of school, but still are tedious.

My house is a mess and even though I want to put the tree up later tonight, I know the job will include cleaning up the front room and kitchen first. 

I want to play “Sorry Spin” with my son who bought this game yesterday morning in the hustle and bustle of Black Friday but keep putting it off.

Most importantly I want to take time and rejoice in God’s love for my life.  I want to get into memorizing scripture better so I can stand firm in the Word, when life gets me down.  I want to get out of the small minded thinking about my life’s up’s and down’s and focus more on the bigger picture of where my life is headed and what God has in store for me.  Maybe I’m just getting burnt out, and I think I need a revival.

Mexican Lasagna



Yummy goodness



Today I made one of my hubby’s favorite dishes, Mexican Lasagna.  He said it tasted perfect.  I thought this was a recipe my sister gave me, but after talking to her I guess it wasn’t.  I don’t know where I got the recipe from but I’ll post it on here for anyone interested.

Mexican Lasagna

2 T of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

½ of a red onion diced up

2 #’s of hamburger

1-1/2 C of frozen corn

2-1/2 to 3 C of medium salsa

1 can of black beans

2 T of chili powder

2 t of cumin

2-4 C of your desired flavor of shredded cheese

1 package of 8” tortillas cut in halves.

Handful of scallions or spinach leaves



First layer of tortillas (there's a layer of meat mixture underneath)



First brown up your hamburger then drain grease and put meat back in pan with diced up onion, and spices with the EVOO for approximately 5-7 minutes between medium to high heat. After you’ve cooked that for the duration, go ahead and add the corn, salsa, and black beans until heated throughout.  Next go ahead and put a layer of the meat mixture on the bottom of your 9X13 pan then a layer of cheese and lastly a layer of tortillas.  Repeat another time and finish off with your last layer of cheese and sprinkle on top with scallions or spinach leaves for color.  Enjoy!



Beef, corn, black beans, salsa mixture





Next sprinkle the cheese




Last layer includes leaves of spinach for color




Cooked until the cheese is melted and browned





What Does Normal Feel Like Again?

I had the evening off from work yesterday and I was extremely thrilled!  First let me tell you that I had a dickens of a week with all of my time devoted to studying for Exam 3 in my “big 7 credit foundational class”.  The content was majority on diabetes and although I felt fairly confident I still wasn’t able to walk away from the exam with a test score any higher than 78%.  Hummmm….not that great of a test score seeing as though I spent lots of time studying.  I think I have a great handle on the whole picture of what I’m studying but still struggling with application.  I wonder if it would serve me best to cut back on my study time and focus on the main points during lecture times.  This seems to be the suckiest part of school for me, ironing out what’s going to work for me and how I’m going to retain what I learn.  Also trying to figure a good way to come up with possible test questions that I could ask myself and using that as a helpful guide when trying to keep in mind the important stuff.

I haven’t given my Nursing Made Incredibly Easy Pathophysiology and Med/Surg. books a fair chance yet. I think these would be a great resource tool; either way back to my Friday break-down.  After I got home from my time at school, I went grocery shopping, and then back home to clean and get a few loads of laundry done.  Later I spent time making homemade pizza for me and the hubby.  Both our kids had previous plans to sleep over at their friends’ houses, so we watched TV and movies.  Nothing brought me more pleasure than feeling normal for a while.  So easily I get caught up in studying/working/thinking nurse-like that I forget to make time to just be me. 

Does anyone else suffer from feeling off kilter when it comes to being totally consumed by something?  I want to be the best nurse possible, trying to take care of patients and making them feel better, but if I can’t understand and get a grasp why the body does the things it does then I’m worried I won't be very helpful.

I Love You, My Sister

Friends by Michael W. Smith

Packing up the dreams God planted
In the fertile soil of you
Can't believe the hopes He's granted
Means a chapter in your life is through
But we'll keep you close as always
It won't even seem you've gone
'Cause our hearts in big and small ways
Will keep the love that keeps us strong

And friends are friends forever
If the Lord's the Lord of them
And a friend will not say never
'Cause the welcome will not end
Though it's hard to let you go
In the Father's hands we know
That a lifetime's not too long to live as friends.

With the faith and love God's given
Springing from the hope we know
We will pray the joy you'll live in
Is the strength that now you show
But we'll keep you close as always
It won't even seem you've gone
'Cause our hearts in big and small ways
Will keep the love that keeps us strong

And friends are friends forever
If the Lord's the Lord of them
And a friend will not say never
'Cause the welcome will not end
Though it's hard to let you go
In the Father's hands we know
That a lifetime's not too long to live as friends.