Three books down

One of my favorite things about summer is finally reading what I want. I accumulate quite the “to read” list during the school year. School has been out for…oh less than a week. Somehow I’ve managed to complete three books. This will slow down significantly when my master’s classes start up again on Monday. In fact, I already have homework and the class hasn’t started. boo!

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is a must read! It’s a book I read for complete enjoyment, and I was totally sucked in. I didn’t read with the hurry of completing it, which helped me sit back and truly enjoy the story. This book will be 
discussed in two weeks at a teacher book club, but you can check out Tracie’s review here. She also included a book summary. I agree with her amazement at the circus details. The writing is spectacular, and I’d love to see this magical atmosphere launched in a movie!

Now You See Her by James Patterson is a thriller. This isn’t my normal book choice, but I read Tell No One by Harlan Coben over spring break, and loved it! I don’t know that I’d like these books nearly as much if it was all I read, but the genre change is great! The plot for Now You See Her is a little forced, but it kept me entertained and was a definite page-turner. (Clearly, since I read it in one day!)

The third book I read was Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen. I hadn’t read anything by Dessen, but my students rave about her books. I follow her on twitter and finally gave in to trying her work. My motivation for reading this book was that I am working to incorporate a reading component into my Creative Writing class next year. I’d like to read more of these YA authors to have a better feel of what to recommend to reluctant readers. I already know this book by Dessen would have been a great pick for a few of my rebellious girls last semester. Overall, I liked the high school story of love, challenge, and friendship.

I hope everyone is finding some time to read this summer. I had a doctor’s appointment this week, and I picked up my Kindle before my keys when leaving the house. I knew I’d have time to kill. I’m glad I’m in the habit of reading, and hopefully grad school material doesn’t totally burn me out, so I can keep up this habit. If you have a book recommendation, please share!

What to Eat Wednesday: Beef Enchiladas

Over Thanksgiving, I got together with a couple of friends and we prepared a handful of meals that we could stock up our freezers with in order to help with meal planning. We spent the day preparing a number of meals together and having a good time all the while.

Having these meals available after an extra long evening at work or class saved my sanity a number of times. One of the recipes passed along was an enchilada bake. I had eaten enchilada casseroles numerous times, but this was better. Since it keeps reappearing on our dinner menu, I wanted to share.

•  1 lb. ground beef
• 1 pkg. taco seasoning
• 1 c. water
• 2 c. cooked rice
• 1 can refried beans (I use black beans instead)
• 2 c. shredded cheese
• 12 flour tortillas
• 1 jar (16 oz) salsa
• 1 can cream of chicken soup

In large skillet brown beef. Drain, stir in taco seasoning and water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer uncovered five minutes. Stir in cooked rice and black beans.

Begin filling tortillas with the beef, rice, and bean mixture. Top with cheese and roll up. Place seam down in two greased 9×13 pans.

Combine salsa and cream of chicken soup. (I never would have considered this combination, but it totally works!) Pour over center of enchiladas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees uncovered.

John’s favorite part of this meal is the taste. My favorite is that the recipe MAKES TWO! Yep! All that work and dirty dishes produces TWO meals. One for that night and one for the freezer.

Cover and freeze the other one. Thaw this one overnight when ready. Cover and bake 30 min. then uncover and bake another 5-10.

Free Card: Treat

Within the packaging of my dad’s birthday photo book from shutterfly, I received a promotional offer from Treat. This website is affiliated with shutterfly, and is ultimately a greeting card brand. (I love browsing cards at Hallmark and Target!) Creating an account is free, and right now the promotion offer is a one free card (shipping/postage not included). Summer is the season of graduations, weddings, engagements, birthdays…etc. In fact, this might be a great personal touch to Father’s Day, just a few weeks away.

I used my free offer to create my parents’ anniversary card. (They won’t think less of the card knowing it was free. My dad is financial advisor, he’ll be proud!) Otherwise, the cards are typical to hallmark prices, but you do have to pay the shipping. Conveniently, Treat will mail the card directly to the recipient. You can even create cards and choose a later mailing date, helping you plan ahead.

Creating the cards is beyond easy! There are templates for every occasion or you can create from scratch. The site allows you to choose photos already uploaded to your shutterfly account, or you can upload them from facebook or your computer.

I have had great success creating photos gifts from shutterfly, so if you haven’t checked that site out, it’s a must! Hopefully Treat will bring just as many personalized smiles to my card recipients. I’m sure my parents were shocked to open the mail and see their own wedding photos reprinted. (I’m glad the wedding hat fashion died with the 80′s!)

Happy 1st Year Anniversary!

Happy 1st year anniversary to my brother Tony and his wife Ashley!

Memorial Day weekend often means BBQs and boating trips, and these two have the best excuse ever to always have three days off from work to celebrate around their anniversary. Genius planning! Cheers to a million more years of married bliss! LOVE!

Back in the kitchen!

I barely had time to buy groceries the last few weeks, let alone cook. This weekend I’m finding my place in the kitchen and trying to help John remember that I know more than cereal, soup, and salad.

Two different batches of fresh salsa have been consumed. One with chips and the other for a mexican topping to a baked potato. It’s a great vegetarian option. This version of the homemade salsa included black beans and corn. It was beyond filling. I couldn’t finish my meal.

After noticing browning bananas yesterday, I whipped up a loaf of banana bread for breakfast while John was at basketball. Many banana bread or bar recipes call for sour cream. I didn’t have any on hand and refused to go the store. I found this recipe online which included ingredients I already owned, and it was healthier without the sour cream.

• 1 egg
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 1/2 cup flour
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 3 very ripe bananas

Bake for 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

The house smelled heavenly when he returned.

We also had plans with friends last night and were in charge of dessert. Venturing away from the traditional chocolate finales, I made my favorite pinterest recipe: buttermilk blueberry bread. We brought along vanilla ice cream, and this served as a great summer BBQ dessert.

Summer and Teachers

“What do you do for the summer?” is the question I receive the most from May-August. This question is phrased various ways, but “So, now you’re going to sit around for three months?” is enough to make my blood boil.

For the record, I am unbelievably grateful for this 52 workday break. It’s a perk of my vocation. With that being said, the burnout rate for teachers is high already. If this pause wasn’t a scheduled light at the end of a dark and winding tunnel, there would be a need for more mental wards. With only four years on my resume, I’m knowledgeable enough to know that summer is a requirement for sane and happy individuals teaching the youth of America. If you think I’m exaggerating, consider this your invitation to my classroom. You’ll love it, but you’ll want need a break.

So the next time you speak with a teacher this summer, I suggest using this phrase, “Are you able to relax any this summer? God knows you deserve it!”

Challenge from Runner’s World

One of the blogs I read almost daily is Carrots N Cake. She is all about fitness, food, and fun. What’s not to love?

Within a recent post, Tina linked to a Runner’s World challenge. The goal is to run one mile per day from Memorial Day until Independence Day. 38 consecutive days! If you’re looking for a goal to get you moving, this is a great one. If I remember correctly, it takes 21 consecutive days to make a new habit. Talk about an awesome health habit! My guess is that by the time you reach 38 days, you’ll be running farther than a mile at a time and maybe even loving it. If you absolutely hate running, making this a walking challenge would be a great option, too.

Check out the Runner’s World Challenge article!

Side note, I worked up the courage to attend a kettlebell class last night. Upon stepping on the mat, the instructor welcomed me but explained that it was a “recovery” workout. They would be doing yoga because of their tough workout the night before. Of course he suggested I stay, but also explained that if I was looking for a killer workout, I should come back. He didn’t want me to be disappointed. I appreciated his honesty, and spent my 30+ minutes on the stair climber engrossed with a new book (The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern) on my Kindle. I’m disappointed that I have to work up the courage to attend again because I’m pretty wimpy and don’t really know what they’ll expect me to do. Hopefully you’ll see a kettlebell recap in the future. That’s my challenge!