j & j moore

Oatmeal Queen Smoothie Version: Day 1, 2, 3 & 4

Hopefully you read my February Goal in my last post. I will be making oatmeal smoothies for breakfast each day thru February. I did start a little early because of the groceries we just bought. So I'm catching you up in this post. These smoothies are made with oats that are blended into a flour consistency and then mixing in a liquid, yogurt, fruit and any additional flavorings. Then the smoothie is refrigerated over night to allow the oatmeal to soak in the flavors and thicken.

Day 1: Peachy Apply Smoothie
1/4 c ground oats
1 c milk
1/4 c peach yogurt
1 c chopped apple
1/8 c wheat germ (for added fiber and folic acid)
2 tsp sugar

* Not a fan:( The wheat germ was too strong. I did like that it was a little bit chunky because of the apple. Needed more sweet flavor for me.

Day 2: California Breeze Smoothie
1/4 c ground oats
1 c lemonade
1/4 c peach yogurt
1 c chopped apple
2 tbs shredded coconut
* YUM!!! This was very tasty and sweet. Like the tropical cousin of pina colada:)

Day 3: Pear it with Vanilla Smoothie
1/4 c ground oats
1 c flavored milk (so I don't like to drink my cereal milk just because the cereal flavoring takes over and it tastes sweet. So I thought I would save my milk from my bowl of Frosted Mini Wheat Crunch Cinnamon flavor (frugal idea:) and use it for a smoothie)
1 c chopped pear
1/4 c vanilla yogurt
* YUM!!! The flavored milk was a great choice, it reminded me of almond milk, but we don't buy that and wouldn't spend the money on it right now. This was a simple smoothie with great flavor! I'll be saving my cereal milk again!

Day 4: PB & Honey Smoothie
1/4 c ground oats
1 c milk
1/4 c vanilla yogurt
2 tbs peanut butter
1 tbs honey
* Eh, it's okay. It was definitely peanut butter flavor. I liked it for the first half and then the second half of the smoothie I didn't love because the flavor was rich. I would try it again with maybe a little bit less peanut butter maybe.

2013 Goals and Themes

Happy New Year! I like to make monthly goals rather than new year's resolutions because they seem more manageable. This year I also wanted to think of a theme that my goals could be related to along with the general flow of everyday life. So for 2013 the theme is

BE BETTER, BE FRUGAL

The "better" part is from the fact that I just want to make better choices to be a better woman of God, wife, family member, friend, employee, servant, etc. Make better choices related to exercising, healthy eating, meal planning, housekeeping, organization, etc. Make better choices for my spiritual walk, marriage, money management, time management, etc.

The "frugal" part fits in to the better, but I specifically wanted to find ways that we could be more frugal this year as part of a fun challenge to be creative, but also as a way to spend less and save as we prepare for a year of many changes and unknowns ahead.

JANUARY GOAL: BE BETTER: Follow a prayer calendar every day that focuses on seeking God's will and plan for my life. The verses that I prayed through have been incredible encouragements for me during a very stressful full-time job. The Lord really spoke to me through His Word and reminded me that he is sovereign, graceful, powerful, loving and he is with me no matter what trials I deal with.

FEBRUARY GOAL: BE BETTER: BE FRUGAL: I'm bringing back the Oatmeal Queen:) I am going to make an oatmeal smoothie for breakfast each day. I actually started this goal a bit early because we went grocery shopping and already had some of the needed items on hand that were perishable. So keep an eye out for the Oatmeal Queen posts to begin! This goal will satisfy both themes because it will make me be better at eating something for breakfast and not skipping the meal all together. Some smoothies will be healthy and some will be based on what we have around in the pantry/fridge (frugal). I might end up with some pretty interesting combinations:) So my sole purpose is not just to be healthy, but I look forward to finding some healthier options that I can come back to.

Also for the month of February I am going to pray for Josh each day following a prayer calendar for husbands. I originally thought of doing this because it is his birthday month, but then realized it is also the month of Valentine's. So what better month to spend more intentional time in prayer for him:)

Christmas & New Year's

Josh and I spent Christmas just the two of us in T-Ville since I had to work that whole week. The weekend after Christmas we were able to go down to Ohio and visit Josh's parents for a few days. It was a nice relaxing visit. We were thankful to be able to drive down since we hadn't made the trip for over a year.

Josh's blanket wrapping paper alternative for a heavy box:)

After a few days we all traveled up to Indianapolis and met up with Melissa's family for a couple of nights at a hotel and to celebrate the new year. The kids really enjoyed swimming in the pool and getting free popcorn. The guys experienced the indoor and outdoor side of the pool:)

We took a day and went to the Children's Museum. We all enjoyed seeing Bumblebee and "being" from Transformers:)

There was a train exhibit with a large train that made real life sounds and lighting effects that made it look like the wheels were moving. The kids enjoyed watching the model trains and crawl through the hiding spots in the exhibit. Charlie especially liked pushing the button for the model trains even though it didn't seem to do anything:)

The kids had a chance to dig for dinosaur bones

Lucy was enjoying the museum too and grabbing everyone's food of the lunch table...Eric will remember his full water bottle being dumped over by her quick little hands.