Low-Carb Craver #2... TORTILLAS!

Mmmm I love Mexican-style food! Fajitas, burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas. I love it all. The problem is that these foods are made with tortillas and tortillas are chuck full of carbohydrates. Luckily, there is a way to avoid this. The brand "OLE Mexican Foods" makes "Extreme Wellness" tortillas that are low-carb. On average, there are around 30 grams of carbs in one regular tortilla. These "Extreme Wellness" tortillas have only 5 net carbs per tortilla. Huge difference. You can find these tortillas at regular grocery stores. We buy ours at Walmart.

These "extreme wellness" tortillas taste really good as well. They also come in different flavors. We have tried whole wheat, tomato and basil, and spinach and herb. Our favorite, by far, is the regular old whole wheat but the others aren't bad. They have been a good substitute for our regular tortillas when we cook at home.

 

Chicken fajitas on spinich and herb tortillas.
Add a low carb side (steamed broccoli etc.) to make it a meal. 

Handprints on my heart

I have always been someone who loves close relationships. I love a long phone call with an old friend. I love the nights when my husband and I lay in bed until the early hours of the morning just talking. I love that some of my best memories are on family trips when I get to be with my parents and siblings 24/7.

The people that I have become close to in my life have taught me so much. Each stage of life has opened the door for different people to enter into my world. Each person has left their handprint on my heart. I am who I am today because of them. I think that now is always a good time to try to strengthen the relationships that mean the most to us. Call up that friend you haven't talked to in a while. Send a text message to a family member wishing them a good day. Take the time to open your heart to a new friendship.

A few pictures of some of the people I love

haha okay so the last one is a joke but I thought it was funny ;)



"Low-Carb Craver" #1

As I mentioned in my "making changes" post, Jaren and I are eating less carbs. It has been an adventure to make changes in our ways of cooking, eating meals, and snacking. I know that other people try to eat like this or would like to try eating a bit fewer carbs and so I thought that I would share some low-carb ideas. Once in a while I will write "low-carb craver" posts (gotta love that name :) that will include different tips and ideas on how to eat less carbs. I know that not everyone will be interested in these posts but a few people have expressed interest so I thought I would try it.


For this first post, I will share a hint having to do with pasta. We all know that pasta is VERY high in carbohydrates and so it is best to be avoided in large amounts. This can be hard, especially if you love meals like spaghetti and stroganoff like I do. Jaren and I have begun to use spaghetti SQUASH in the place of our pasta for some dishes. Sounds crazy I know, but it actually tastes good! For example, last night we had spaghetti sauce with meatballs over spaghetti squash.          
  

                    Here is a picture of the spaghetti squash (looks like angel hair pasta huh! ;)

               Spaghetti sauce and meatballs over spaghetti squash

Just some ideas for those interested. This way of eating has been a good experience for us! 

Everyone Desires Happiness

My best friend, Kelli Oswald, is serving an LDS mission in Ireland/Scotland right now. She has been out for about five months and I miss her so much. We talked to each other every day before she left. Now, with only "snail mail" to communicate, it has been an adjustment. I am so very proud of her though! She is sharing the true word of God!

In a recent letter she wrote:
"Me and sister Sorensen played a game this week as we were walking to one of our appointments.... we were counting how many people were smiling. It was a LONG Walk and in one hour we spotted Two people who were smiling..... and we think they were drunk. It truly has been eye opening to me to see just how miserable people really are. I love the people here, don't get me wrong. They are great. But they are generally sad. However, when we walk into that Alloa ward everyone is smiling! The gospel is so important. It is truth! Everyone wants what we have! Everyone desires happiness."

I believe this! When we keep the commandments of God, we can truly be happy. The hard times sure don't disappear, but we are strengthened by the Lord.

The night Kelli opened her mission call!  

Water Where You Stand

"There is nothing to do here!" I have heard this complaint sometimes from people living in my hometown of Rexburg, Idaho. I grew up in Rexburg and then decided to go to college there as well. I spent a semester in Ephraim, Utah at Snow College and another semester in Bakersfield California, but the rest was in Rexburg.

Now that Jaren and I live in the 6th largest city in the United States, there sure is a lot to do and see. While being here in Phoenix, we have been able to do things that are not available to do in Rexburg. There are constantly concerts, professional sports games and other big events throughout the city. And yet, we are still just as happy, no happier, than we were in the small town of Rexburg. Our funnest and most special times are still those simple moments: having a movie night on our 18" TV, going on a walk at sundown, making a sugary treat to share while we play a card game.

Coming from experience, I know how easy it is to notice the "greener grass" on the other side. It is easy to believe that life would be better if we were somewhere else or were doing other things. But I believe that the grass is green where you water it. Water where you stand!

This song by Darius Rucker puts what I am trying to say in a nutshell. It is one of my favorite songs because of its great message. Listen to it :) I think you will like it.

Making Changes

He was losing weight and on the road to becoming very sickly thin. His skin would stay dry and cracked no matter how much lotion was applied. Nights were interrupted by the urge to urinate up to eight times a night. Thirst was constant. At one point, he began to feel "tingly" all over his body. It was then that he went to the doctor. Jaren, my fiance at the time, needed answers about what was happening to his body.

His blood was tested and it was found that his blood sugar was dangerously high. A usual blood sugar level is between 80 and 100. Jaren's was over 700. Not good. The day of that doctors visit was the day he was put on insulin injections. That was a little over 2 years ago, and today Jaren injects insulin daily. He is diabetic.

Jaren takes very good care of his diabetes which I am very grateful for. Because of his choices, he will never have any of the health problems that diabetes can lead to. I'm so glad because I am planning on growing old with this amazing man :)

We have always eaten very healthy in our house throughout our marriage. My healthy cooking habits came from my parents example for sure! Growing up, white bread was no where to be seen. Our summer dinners at my parents house consist of everything from my dad's garden (I love those dinners!). This past month though, our eating habits have evolved into something a little different but still healthy. Because of some things that Jaren has learned at his exercise physiology internship, we are now eating really low-carb. This is very good for Jaren's diabetes. Jaren's and my metabolism have changed. It has been good for Jaren's diabetes because he needs to take less insulin.

I'll be honest, I'm a bit sick of the food choices that you have when eating low-carb and so we have been researching and talking to Jaren's brilliant supervisor for advice. I came home from work today to see a box of 76 caramel chocolate Atkins bars on our door step. We ordered them from eBay a couple days ago and got a crazy good deal. Atkins bars are a yummy snack/treat and they have almost no carbs in them. They are not very cheap and so that is why we jumped on the good eBay deal. We will be enjoying them :) There are also other low carb snacks and meals that we have come across that are really good as well. We are planning on continuing this way of eating throughout our lives so we better learn to love it ;) We aren't extreme or anything of course. Trust me, I couldn't go without having candy-corn, poptarts, or ice-cream sandwiches once in a while for the rest of my life :)

Jaren with our 76 Atkins bars haha

At Denny's :)

80 Hour Work Week

This week has been crazy! I put in close to a 80 hour work week. This is out of the norm but it happened this week because we had to get lifeguard certified for my job which takes many hours to do. Lifeguard certification was quite the learning experience for me and helped me grow A LOT! It's a long story, but it sure made me a stronger person. I'm going to hold onto my "professional lifeguard certification" like it took everything to get it :) With God, anything is possible ;)

Last Sunday, I had lifeguard training from 9 am until 6 pm which meant that I had to miss church. Then today (the next Sunday) I had my last day of lifeguard training from 8am-12 pm which meant that I missed church again. Jaren and I decided to find a different ward that started at a different time so that we could attend. Even though I was completely exhausted from lifeguard training, I'm so grateful that I went. I was so spiritually uplifted. Being "forced" to miss church last week helped me to remember to not take it for granted. Today while I sat in church, the Spirit of God reminded me that. Church on Sunday is my spiritual boost for the week and a time that I can worship God and my Savior. I truly love it.

That was my little reminder from the Spirit today :)