May's Personal Challenge....Celebrate Yourself!

One of the best gifts I have ever gotten my husband is his GPS. You see, the rare ability of possessing a keen sense of direction is something that he does not pride himself on and after years of mislead MapQuest directions and stopping to ask for guidance, the invention of the GPS was a lifesaver. Our road trip adventures have led to many arguments and frustrations; so conveniently, this handy little device has done a world of good for us.

We also realized just how thankful we were to have the GPS while out in California . All we needed to do was plug in an address or location and the little voice would tell us exactly where and when to turn. We honestly would have been completely and utterly lost without it.

Often, I wish I had a GPS to direct me through life. There are days where I just can’t comprehend where I am going or what I am supposed to be doing. I wish that there was a voice that guides me along, telling me what to do next and if I took a wrong turn, the voice would just say “recalculating” and provide a different way.

Unfortunately, the part of being human is the inevitability that we will get lost from time to time. We compare, we conform, and we crave things that we do not have. We want to be better than we are, we want more than what we have, and we are always looking for the next best thing. But as I continue to notice this cycle, I realize that it will never change. Unless I stop and appreciate myself and my God given abilities for what they are, I will never truly be satisfied with the person that I am.

So here is my Personal Challenge for May….

Finding Pleasure in Simplicity

For the month of May, I pledge to practice the beauty of satisfaction by uncovering my talents, appreciating my strengths, and accepting who I am without striving to be anything more. I will be completely content with what I have and where I am at.
What these means…

-No new goals for one month (no new PR’s or workout milestones)
- Not buying anything big that I do not need (just being content with the things that I currently have)
- Not comparing myself to others
- Taking 5 min every single day to thank God for the things that I have in my life (specifically!)
- Do something unexpected for someone else randomly and expect nothing in return
-Spend more time with my loved ones (individually take time with the people that I love the most and appreciate them)

I realize that we should all be striving to be better in our lives, but I think that too often, we get caught up in attempts to continually improve ourselves, that we often loose sight of our present abilities and blessings. I believe that taking a month to fully appreciate who I am and what I have will be a truly humbling experience and I recommend trying it as well!

To start off my challenge I will list 5 strengths about myself and then tag 5 more people do the same. Then, those 5 people can tag 5 more and so on. Truly, it is so important to take a moment to appreciate who you are and the abilities that you are given. So here are my five.

I am a hard worker
I am a good cook
I am extremely organized
I am a good writer
I am driven and motivated in just about anything I put my mind to

And I tag
1. Caitlin at http://www.healthytippingpoint.com/
2. Bobbi at http://nhershoes.blogspot.com/
3. Lesley at http://www.lesleylivinglife.com/
4. Lindsey at http://mrslc.blogspot.com/
5. Kelsey at http://bitesandbowls.com/

So girls, give it a try! Make a list of 5 of your strengths and see how good it feels to appreciate yourself for just a moment! :)

Okay, moving forward, the one good thing about starting a work week in the middle of the week is that you wake up one morning and realize its Thursday! That is exactly what I did today and then became enthralled by the fact that tomorrow is Friday!

I’ve been doing such a wonderful job at trying all of my fabulous Trader Joe products and tonight’s dinner used yet another one. I picked up the TJ eggplant cutlets after I saw them featured on KLM’s page the other week. I figured these would come in handy for a quick throw together dinner which is exactly what we had tonight since Toly was working late. I basically recreated Kelsey’s construction but with a few minor altercations.

First, I sauteed some garlic, asparagus, zucchini and mushrooms. Then I layered a cutlet, then the veggies, marinara sauce, topped with asparagus and feta. Baked at 400* for about 20 min.

Holy cow, once again Joe, you amaze me. These cutlets rock! I usually do not opt for the breaded method of food (I tend to enjoy more raw/grilled/natural. Greasy food does NOT mix well with my stomach) but these were light, not greasy at all, so flavorful and quite delicious. I am so happy I picked these up and can't wait to try some more recipes with them.

Oh and I roasted some broccoli in a drizzle of balsamic and honey. (The very best way to eat this veggie I assure you)

I also put together a beautiful and tasty salad comprised of baby romaine, purple cabbage, cucumber, avocado, blood orange segments, dried cranberries and a drizzle of poppy seed dressing.
All together now....

Lovely meal to end a lovely day. Hope you all take a moment to enjoy yourself and count your blessings. We all deserve to praise ourselves from time to time and be truly humbled by the gifts we have been granted.

Take care everyone and God bless!