A Thankful Heart

Thanksgiving is my favorite time of year. It's a time dedicated to family and eating... what could be better?? More than anything this is a great time to stop and look at all the blessings in my life. I feel like the Lord just continues to work in my life and has given me so much.

Things I am thankful for (some more serious than others):

• My husband- He is so patient with me and so incredibly loving. I couldn't ask for a better partner in life and I can't wait to see him as a dad one day!
• The marriage Bible study we just finished... so good!
• My family- I am so blessed to not only have a supportive family but a super fun family too! I love hanging out with my parents and I always have a blast with them. I'm so lucky to have parents that were incredible role models and I strive to be like both of them each day. 
• Working with Godly and encouraging woman
• My friends- Such uplifting and kind people! I am so grateful for the many laughs, great conversations,  and even the tears shared together this year. I'm beyond blessed!
• Comfy, fuzzy sock because they rock in the winter!
• White Christmas lights
• Friends who live in other states but who make an effort to stay in touch. It means so much to me!
• My crazy dogs who crack me up every day with their wild antics! 
• The caramel brûlée lattes from Starbucks... mmm!
• Catching up with friends like it hasn't been months since we've seen each other :)
• Sleeping in until 8:00 on Saturdays! Woohoo!
• Finally boots and sweater weather in San Diego
• A husband who doesn't mind my obsession with Christmas music, or shopping, or makeup, or buying stickers for my planner, or my need for NO clutter... lol He puts up with a lot!
• The sweet kiddos in my class who write me letters and draw me the cutest pictures
• New friendships
• Having our house filled with Christmas cheer already! I love having our tree up early!
• Living close to (some of) Mark's family. The Woosters take such good care of us!
• Gaining new cousins when I married Mark who are so sweet to me!
• Taking new (and scary) steps with my blog
• My friends and family who read every single post regardless of what it's about. I treasure you!
• New cookbooks and recipes to try so I don't get bored with cooking :) And my husband as my taste-tester
• New members joining our family :)
• Orange Theory Fitness and all the great coaches there
• Our military and all the men and woman who selflessly serve our great country
• The fact that I live in the U.S. and the freedoms that we have
• And most importantly... God. I am so grateful to be saved by His grace. 

I'm praying that you all have a blessed Thanksgiving and that you're surrounded by the ones you love! 

Cheesy Eggplant Parmesan

I finally made eggplant parmesan for the first time. I've been wanting to try it for so long... I guess since Laura's shower when Katy's mom made the most delicious eggplant parmesan ever. Maybe Katy made it? I don't know, but it was yummy!! I bought an eggplant on a whim on Saturday and hodge-podged two recipes together to make my own version. It was cheesy and delicious! I'll link both recipes here and here.

My version is below:

Ingredients: 
1 eggplant peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
olive oil
2 large eggs
3/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 jar of spaghetti sauce
1 cup parmesan
basil for garnish

optional: pasta

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush baking sheet with olive oil.

2. In a wide, shallow dish whisk together eggs and 2 tablespoons of water. In another bowl, combine Italian breadcrumbs, 3/4 cup of parmesan, 1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon of dried basil, and season with salt and pepper.

3. Dip eggplant slices in egg mixture, letting the excess run off. Then dredge in breadcrumb mixture and place on the baking sheet. Bake until golden brown on bottom 10-15 minutes and then turn over and bake for another 10-15 minutes. Remove from oven and raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees.

4. Spread spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish until covered. Arrange half of the eggplant slices on the dish and top with parmesan. Repeat steps and ending with cheese and basil on top.

5. Return to oven and bake until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted for 15 minutes. Let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

**While the eggplant is baking boil water for your pasta. I used the brown rice pasta from Trader Joe's. So delicious!

I hope you enjoy the dish as much as I do!

Letting Go of Control

This is going to be a different kind of post today but I really wanted to share a devotional that I recently did at work. I work at a private Christian school and we are so fortunate to be able to meet as a staff three times a week for a devotional time. On Thursdays, just the women meet and we all sign up for a day to lead. We are currently studying the book Jesus, the One and Only by Beth Moore and I was assigned to chapter 45. People usually do a summary of what they pulled out of that chapter and then they also share things that are on their hearts.

As I prepared for the devo I was filled with anxiety about what I wanted to share. The idea of standing before everyone and talking about my faith always makes me nervous. I don't know why I feel this way when I work with the most kind, tender-hearted, compassionate, and loving people. I guess when you really care about something it's hard to not feel nervous.

This whole chapter was about the Last Supper and what occurred on the days leading up to Jesus' crucifixion. I couldn't help but notice the theme of obedience by Jesus during the last supper and His entire time on Earth.  He knew he was going to die but yet he followed through with his Father's plan. How many times do I let the Lord lead me in times when I am scared? I usually have my own plan and try to solve things by myself. The Lord is constantly showing me that I am not in control and that His plan is ultimately better than mine. Control/ planning seems to be a theme for me right now. There are so many things in my life that are not in my control.

My friend Jenna sent me a video of a sermon from her home church and surprise, surprise it was all about control! I listened to the sermon and immediately started taking notes about all the insights the pastor was providing. He talked about how control stems from our fears, guilt, and shame. We carry hurts and pains of the past and fears of the future which can cripple us. I know I am for sure in the fear of the future camp. Instead of focusing all of our energy on fixing these areas we need to let go of the control and ask God to take it off our hands. We all have struggles which I like to refer to as our "stuff." The Lord already knows all about our "stuff" and wants to walk with us on this journey. The key word here is journey. We aren't going to pray one time and POOF! our situations are magically fixed. We need to  turn our worries over to the Lord daily. I am working on this but man oh man it's hard.

The light at the end of the tunnel is looking at the outcome. As a child of God we have to live with an eternal perspective, not a temporary one. The battle has been won and this is HUGE! It's so much easier to let go of our struggles when we know who we are giving it to. This gives us hope and hope is how we get through.

I probably didn't do a great job of conveying this message so if you want to listen to the full sermon you can find it here. I hope it blesses you in some way! :)

Gift Guide: for him & Weekend Update

I'm so sorry about not having a weekend recap but we literally did nothing this weekend. Mark was in bed all weekend with the flu and we had to cancel all of his birthday festivities. We were both so bummed, especially since I had bought him New Found Glory and Yellowcard tickets as a surprise. We were hoping he would be better by Sunday night but he still felt terrible. Poor guy! I'm praying he gets better by Wednesday so we can enjoy our time with Mark's mom, Lauren and brother, Chase. The flu stinks! The good news is we put up our tree and I decorated our apartment for Christmas! I know it's a little early but Mark leaves for 17 days starting December 1st and I wanted him to be able to enjoy the holiday decor a little bit. 

Anyways, Happy Monday everyone! I hope you enjoy this little gift guide for the men in your life!

Gift-buying for the men in our lives can be tough. I don't know about your hubby but mine always says he doesn't want anything. That makes it really hard when shopping for Christmas presents. I've become pretty good at keeping a running list of things he says he likes so I can buy them as gifts later on. :) My dad is pretty tough to buy for as well but I think this little gift round-up will help. I enlisted the help of my husband to figure out some gifts that all different kinds of guys would like to receive. I  hope this helps you this holiday season!

1- GoPros are always a nice gift, especially if you buy the newest GoPro 4 Hero. This is a pricey present but will be much appreciated and loved by anyone, especially the techy loving guys. My husband already has a GoPro and he assured me he would be very happy getting the newest one.

2- I love Mark's Jambox because it's so easy to use and we can take it anywhere. I have a portable speaker too but it's not as small or convenient as Mark's. They come in all different sizes and colors and would be an awesome gift for a woman as well.

3- I find that most guys don't love to shop. I rarely see Mark or my dad buy clothes for themselves so buying them a clothing item makes a great gift. I got Mark a jacket a few years ago and he really liked it. It's more of an outdoorsy jacket but it's perfect for his work and our lifestyle here in San Diego. There are so many options out there but I really love the dark green color of this Mountain Hardwear Jacket. I even have a jacket by this brand and I LOVE it.

4- This is Mark's pick for the outdoorsy guy. He loves his Kelty backpack and uses it daily to store his workout clothes/ shoes, lunch, nalgene bottles, etc. It's held up really well and still looks great. This is a great hiking backpack too!

5/ 6- If you are the among the lonely wives who are married to a man who loves golf I am sorry and I feel your pain lol. My husband is obsessed with golf! He insisted that I needed a golf category in this gift guide so I included one :) I found these personalized Titleist Pro V1 balls and Mark loved them. It adds a personal touch on an already awesome golf ball. Apparently all really nice drivers are around $500! What?? I know, crazy right? Mark told me this Titleist 915 D3 is an awesome club and your guy would be blown away if he got this! Hopefully Goldsmith or Golf Galaxy will be having some good black Friday sales so you can pick this little guy up!

7- I love gifting events or time together instead of just "things." Don't get me wrong, I love things but I love spending time with my loved ones more. Buying tickets for a football game or even a concert is a great gift and the bonus is you get to go with them! :)

8- I saw this NFL grilling set and immediately thought of my dad. He has Lions and Michigan everything but I think he would love this. He might already have it haha. They have grilling sets for pretty much every team.

9- I was walking around Sur La Table the other day just taking pictures of gift ideas and things to add to my wishlist. They have so many cool things in that store! One of the items that I would love and I know most men would too are these stainless steel grilling trays. They even have trays for different meat. I think this is also a great idea for shrimp or scallops too. I can't tell you how many times I've tried to grill scallops and they fall through the little cracks! So annoying!

10- Another fun gift idea for an experience is to gift a cooking class at Sur La Table. They have hands-on classes, demonstration classes, or private events you can book yourself. This would be so fun to do with a group or even with your hunny. Just a side note- it's a good idea to make sure they like to cook otherwise they might think you are trying to give them a hint lol. Mark and I took a cooking class together and had a blast!

Skincare Gift Guide

1. Peter Thomas Roth Kit- I love trying new masks and Peter Thomas Roth is known to have some great ones. This was sold out for awhile on Sephora's website but seems to be back now. Hopefully if you can't find it online you will be able to find it in stores! I also love this mini mask kit at Sephora and it's only $20!

2. Fresh- Skincare Affair kit: Fresh has some amazing products and this little kit is the perfect way to try some out. The soy cleanser from the line is super gentle but also really cleans your skin. I'm dying to try the Black Tea mask in this kit because I've heard it works wonders.

3. Fresh- Sugar Face Polish: Another Fresh product?? I know, I know but this brand is sooo good! Exfoliating is one of my favorite parts of my skincare routine. It always leaves my skin feeling baby smooth. This face polish is super luxurious and will be coveted by anyone who receives it!

4. Laura Mercier Creme Brûlée Honey Bath- I've heard so many good things about this product. It sounds ultra luxurious and the perfect gift for someone who loves to take baths. Plus, how cute is the packaging??

5. Laura Mercier Le Petite Souffle Collection- This little set of hydrating body cremes is so nice! I love that it comes with a wide variety of scents and all of them sound so decadent. Laura Mercier's products always smell heavenly! This is great for the colder months when our skin is feeling parched and in need of some moisture.

6. GlamGlow Gift Sexy Ultimate Anti-Aging Kit- I love GlamGlow products and this kit is such a good deal. To buy the full size of the YouthMud or the SuperMud it's $69 by themselves. In this kit you get a full size YouthMud Tingle Exfoliant, a small SuperMud, the YouthCleanse Daily cleanser, and a Dual-ended applicator brush for only $69. You don't need a brush to apply the products but if they are going to through it in the kit then I'll take it :)

7. Boscia Perfectly Poreless kit- This is definitely on my wishlist! The thermal black cleanser is awesome and I've heard so many great things about the luminizing mask. Boscia makes high-quality  products and this is a great option for anyone who has oily skin.