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Loaded spaghetti squash casserole

Loaded spaghetti squash casserole – definitely a winner 🙂
Whole family LOVED, and tastes like you are totally cheating!
THM, Trim Healthy Mama, Diet, Healthy Lifestyle
 
Recipe in the Trim Healthy Mama cookbook:

<img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-175" src="http://lauriedelk try this.me/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/13891885_10208716555808844_7586789890719052498_n-225×300.jpg” alt=”13891885_10208716555808844_7586789890719052498_n” width=”225″ height=”300″ srcset=”http://lauriedelk.me/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/13891885_10208716555808844_7586789890719052498_n-225×300.jpg 225w, http://lauriedelk.me/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/13891885_10208716555808844_7586789890719052498_n-300×400.jpg 300w, http://lauriedelk.me/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/13891885_10208716555808844_7586789890719052498_n.jpg 720w” sizes=”(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px” />

Summer Kindness

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Sometimes, in the heat of summer, our kindness meter bottoms out. We are hot, easily irritated and short tempered. Is there a magical way to make those heat-fueled feelings go away? There is, and it is called kindness! No matter how bad of a day you have had, how irritated you are at the higher temps or how many times the kids have yelled at each other, a little dose of kindness, given or received, makes everything better! What can you do to spread summer happiness? Keep reading to find out!

Surprise! Who doesn’t love a good surprise? The surprise doesn’t have to be big, because any size surprise makes everything better! Bake some cookies and pass them out to the neighborhood kids or have your kids draw pictures for the neighbors. It doesn’t matter what it is, just as long as it is a surprise!

H2-Oh that’s a good idea! When the heat makes being outside uncomfortable, think of those who have to work out in it! Greet the mail carrier with an ice cold bottle of water. Take sports drinks to the workers fixing the power lines in front of your house. Offer a cold drink to the neighbor who is mowing their yard. It is amazing how much happiness is packed into one of those little cold bottles!

Make another batch! If you are going to be firing up the stove to cook dinner, why not throw in some extra ingredients and make two batches? Surprise your neighbor (or anyone!) with a nice hot meal that they did not have to prepare. Get together a group of friends in your neighborhood and arrange a dinner exchange… guaranteeing you get out of cooking at least once!

Hose them off! Drag out the hose, turn on the sprinkler and open it up to the neighborhood! Let all the kids (and adults!) come by for a cool-down the old fashioned way. Pass out Popsicles or frozen treats and let them have fun the simple way!

We are made up of so much kindness that it is only fair to share it! So the next time the summer elements start to take their toll, don’t succumb. Instead spread that summer kindness everywhere!

http://lauriedelk.sendcere.net/post/summer-kindness-2

FAST N EASY YUMMY CHICKEN/BROCCOLI PIZZA CASSEROLE

FAST N EASY YUMMY CHICKEN/BROCCOLI PIZZA CASSEROLE

1 bag organic chicken breast diced
1 block 1/3 fat cream cheese
1 block 8oz mozzarella cheese
1 jar low sugar healthy marinara (I use Newman’s Own)
1 bag organic frozen broccoli florets
several shakes garlic and Italian seasoning

Spray pan w coconut oil
heat oven to 350
layer chicken on bottom, then broccoli, then pour marinara over all, then dice both cheeses and spread all over it – then sprinkle seasonings on top
cook 40-45 min
Take out – stir and serve

if you are following THM, Trim Healthy Mama – this is an S

https://store.trimhealthymama.com/#_l_mc

It takes all kinds

It takes all kinds

Here’s a challenge for you: If you had to describe your mother (or any mother in your life) in one word, what would it be?

This challenge raises the question of how a woman with so many facets to her life can be described in one word.

Maybe the mom in your life works a forty (or fifty or sixty) hour week but still manages to be there for her family.

Maybe the mom in your life works at home and takes pride in creating a welcoming environment for family and friends.

Maybe the mom in your life just went back to school to follow a lifelong dream.

Maybe the mom in your life has a brand new baby and is experiencing the thrill of motherhood for the first time while learning to survive on very little sleep.

Maybe the mom in your life is gallantly fighting a disease like cancer.

Maybe the mom in your life is the one everyone turns to for comfort or advice.

Maybe the mom in your life is determined to make not only the lives of her family better but the lives of others better too.

Maybe the mom in your life bakes the best chocolate chip cookies ever!

Maybe the mom in your life is always ready for a new adventure.

Maybe the mom in your life wakes instantly at the first whimper from a child having a bad dream.

One thing is certain: Every mom in your life is a combination of characteristics, a special formula that makes her the wonderfully unique woman she is. It takes all kinds to make the world go round. This statement is never more true than when it comes to mothers. However, there is one word that can describe them all. It’s AMAZING!

http://lauriedelk.sendcere.net/post/it-takes-all-kinds

Adults need new friends too

Making new friends is an expected part of childhood. But is it only for children? If you have found yourself alone and seeking adult interaction, get out and find some new friends! Using these helpful suggestions, you can meet new people with ease!

Find a common ground. Do you remember your first day of school? You looked around the room seeking to find someone with whom you might have something in common in hopes of making a new friend. Not much has changed! Whether you are at work or a local event, look around and find something that you have in common with someone else, such as a particular brand of purse or a runner’s watch. Are they wearing a charm bracelet? Ask them about the meaning of the different charms. Find a common denominator between you and another person and build on it!

Volunteer. Find a group that is accepting volunteers and sign up to help! You will be helping out a great cause and meeting new people at the same time. Pick an area that you know about or have a passion for, so there will be an immediate interest for you and your potential new friends! Check local schools, libraries and churches for volunteer positions!

Join a club. Most areas have civic clubs, so call your local Chamber of Commerce and find out about adult clubs in your area. Once in a club, volunteer to help out as often as you can. Be an active member! Look for clubs that are personal, too, like a book club or a sewing club.

Look online.  Sometimes people with similar interests get together for meetings or chat sessions via the internet. This does not have to be local! Find a forum about something that interests you or gives you passion and chat with the members.

Most importantly, be yourself! Your potential new friends will get to know you, so be yourself! Do not try to be something you are not. If you do not like reading, don’t join a book club. If you dislike running, do not go to a track looking for new friends. Join activities that actually interest you.

Adults need interaction, too. Surround yourself with others who have similar interests, and you will be surrounding yourself with great friends!

Reflections of our younger married days

You know, I remember when we were a younger married couple, we worked hard, he worked 2 jobs many times the police dept and a moonlighting job either security at the mall or mowing lawns, with my first I was the accountant at Home Depot for almost 9 years, then when our 2nd came, I decided I wanted to not miss all the firsts and be there with my kids, and I never saw him because he was on evenings or nights and I was on days. So I worked from home running a daycare/preschool when my kids were little, later got into web and graphic design and then my greeting card company and my networking luncheons.

Anyway, NOW, that I am in my 40’s, AND he is no longer here… website here.today I am reflecting on those words I heard many others tell us when we were young and trying to work hard to *get the best* and to *rest* later when we were older – “CHERISH the times you have together, you don’t have to work so hard to have the best of the best, be happy with what you have, your family is the most important, stay close to them and love them, because one day – you might not have them to love, cherish and spend time with”

I AM GLAD I did choose to find things I could to work from home no matter how hard it was at the beginning, and how many hours I put in, I still got to do it from home and be here for him when he was here and be here for all my kids, raising them, and still help to support our family, so he did not have to be gone from us as much….just reflecting…