I usually set a bunch of goals slash resolutions for my year, but I’ve decided to just make monthly goals instead of yearly resolutions. I think i’m more likely to remember what exactly I resolved to do that way! So to begin, here is an update on the goals I set for December.

1. Finish a book

I have a really bad habit of starting books and not finishing them. I get so excited about reading books that I esctatically flip through the first few chapters and then I get excited about another book and start the new one without finishing the other. In the process of breaking this rather bad habit of mine.. and I succeeded with this book! This book is pure awesomeness. I love Rick Holland and how his teaching, preaching and writing makes me love Jesus more. I would highly, highly recommend this book :)

2. Make Cinnamon Rolls
{Disclaimer: I cheated on this one..}
My original goal was to make it out of scratch, but the dough-making portion was so tedious and time-consuming, I opted for the easy way out. (Don’t judge me!) but I’m glad I did because I found a really quick and easy way to make “mini” Cinnamon Rolls in just 10 minutes! (YOU BETTER BELIEVE IT!) Here’s the recipe that’s not really a recipe. (Does that make sense?) Here we go..

Grab your ingredients:

I told you I cheated..

Roll out your crescent rolls on a lightly flour-ed surface. Pinch the seams together and roll it out with a rolling pin.. but not too much! (Don’t make the same mistake I did..)

Melt 1-2 tablespoons of butter in a bowl and brush it on one side of the rolled out dough. You can be generous if you use low-fat butter like I did (hehe..)

Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon! This isn’t really a “recipe” because you can use as much or as little sugar/cinnamon as you want! I would suggest putting more brown sugar than cinnamon though.. and mix it before spreading it (unlike I did..)

Roll it up as tightly as you can. Cut off the ends and hide them from your husband so they don’t try to sneak up and eat it (like mine does..) Then cut into equal pieces (usually about 6-8 depending on how big/small you want them to be.

Grease a mini-muffin pan (if you have one! a regular cupcake pan is okay too) and place each piece in its home. Brush butter on top– this is VERY important!

Pop it in a preheated 375 degree oven for 8-10 minutes until you see the top of the roll starting to golden. Let it cook for a bit before taking it out. Meanwhile, make your frosting!

Add a little splash of milk (like..1-2 tbs) and spoonfulls of powdered sugar (about 3/4 cup). Keep mixing until you get it into a thick gooey frosting consistency.

Spoon over. and take little bites and enjoy! Mine look funky because me & Eugene got too excited rolling the dough. Refrain from over-rolling! It’s an easy, cost-effective and quick comfort dessert when you’re on the run. We (Eugene & I) decided to start some traditions and this was our first: to eat Cinammon Rolls on Christmas morning!

We ate our cRolls while opening our Christmas present, which was also very exciting. Sadly, I wasn’t aware that we had absolutely no butter this morning, so I couldn’t brush my cRoll babies with butter before putting it in the over and this is the damage that was done. Sad, butterless baby cRolls… never again. Don’t forget to brush them.. it’s VERY IMPORTANT! Anyway– this means I fulfilled goal #10 & #17 from my 22 before 23 list. YAY!

For my last two goals, I cheated again (kind of, not really..)
3. Find an opportunity to meet and serve our neighbors
4. Make something pepperminty!

I decided to just make a pepperminty dessert for my neighbors! :) Packaged and all– nothing like bringing some more Christmas cheer even after Christmas is over! My fave.

I attempted to make peppermint white chocolate chip cookies at first, but I underestimated and I ended up only making enough to give 2 cookies per house. Sad.. because they looked really cute!

Sad…but I decided to make peppermint white chocolate dipped pretzel rods instead. (Can you tell that I really love peppermint and white chocolate? My favorite holiday drink @ Starbucks is peppermint white mocha, and I think this combo reminds me of the drink so I love it more..) Here’s the “How To”.. It’s actually REALLY easy.

Get your Pretzel sticks/rods.. I found these cute treat sacks @ Target so I had to break the pretzels in half so they’d fit in the baggie.

Get your White Chocolate to melt and your peppermint sticks.

Put your unwrapped peppermint sticks in a ziplock bag (preferably a Freezer kind since those are thicker). Crush away!

Take one block of white chocolate at a time… melt for 1 minute in the microwave. Add shortening if you must. You don’t need it though!

Use a spoon to coat 3/4 of the pretzel stick and another spoon to pour the peppermint pieces over it.

Lay on a baking sheet, preferably parchment paper– or foil if you don’t have any like me! and put it in the fridge for 10-15 minutes until the chocolate completely hardens.

I realized I didn’t have anything to seat the baggies with so I just cut up some thank you cards I never used and stapled it closed.

Then added a little more love and holiday cheer!

That’s all folks!
I’ll update sometime this week or early next week with my January goals. I’m working 5 out of 6 days of the week starting tomorrow.. so I’ll be gone til then. Have a victorious week everyone!

Give thanks - days off to spend with Eugene, time with the Lee girls (my sisters + mom), sweet Starbucks sessions before a night of work,  Jesus – through whom I’ve received every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places (Ephesians 1:3)

So here’s where we’ve been..

Thanksgiving came and went this  year and it was a bit crazy for me because I worked the night before Thanksgiving and the night after, so my sleep pattern was out of whack throughout the whole day. I attempted to make pumpkin pie (emphasis on the “attempted”) and it was a sweet day to remember the abounding evidence of God’s grace in our lives. It was actually the first time my family made Thanksgiving dinner at home, so it was a bit exciting!

We over estimated the amount of food though, which allowed each of us to take a week’s worth of leftovers. :) Yum!

Eugene’s been starting to hear back from Pharmacy schools he applied to this past summer, and he had his first interview last Saturday. He told me he wanted to eat healthy the week before his interview so he could look/feel better, so I tried to make as many different salads as I could. This was my favorite. Steak Waldorf Salad.

Just some greens with slices tomatoes, apples, cucumbers, green/red bell peppers, walnuts and feta cheese. Sprinkle some thinly sliced scallions on top with the dressing of your choice, and you have a sweet and tangy fiesta in your mouth! :)

I ended up having work the night before his interview, so I couldn’t drive up to Norcal with him. (So sad!) so I made a little travel pack for him before he left. Of course our week of healthy eating was sabotaged by my “travel pack”. Bulgogi/Avocado rolls, Banana nutella sandwich, freshly baked chocolate chip cookies to name a few of his nutritious snacks!

While he was away, I tried to decorate the house to surprise him with a warm and fuzzy, Christmas-decorated house upon his return! I had been gathering supplies a few weeks prior to this weekend, so right when he left I got to work.

These were the first additions. only $3 at Homegoods.

Tried to be as cost-effective as possible so I visited about 3-4 different shops to gather my supplies. The tree was an artificial fold-up plastic tree I bought for him last year at Rite Aid (yes, they sell trees there too!)

These scented candles, pine cones and cinnamon sticks really helps fill our living room with holiday cheer! Love it.

Something I’ve been learning to do these days is make different breakfast dishes in record-speed time. Because I usually get home from work around 8:00 in the morning and Eugene leaves for work around 9, it gives me a solid hour to make breakfast and pack lunch before Eugene is out the door. Having every meal of the week planned definitely helps me to anticipate what the plan is for the morning, but breakfast is usually on a whim. Something I’ve been doing lately (when I dont have too much time) is I make some “eggs in a basket”. Someone recently told me that’s what its called.

Eugene really likes it, and it’s super fast and easy to make so this has been my go-to breakfast these days. You just make a hole in the bread (usually with a small cup) and you toast it on a pan and fry an egg inside. Serve with some bacon and tomatoe slices and you have a fairly nutritious breakfast :)

It’s pretty awesome being a nurse because no matter how crazy my 12-hour night shifts are, I only have to work 3 nights a week. My days off usually consist of meal planning, cleaning the house, doing laundry, running errands and buying groceries. Lately, Eugene and I have been trying to learn how to budget our finances with the use of programs suggested to us by some of our friends. It’s been rather time-consuming but rewarding. More on that later.

I’ve also grown a greater appreciation for homemaker-friendly stores like HomeGoods. I can seriously spend hours here now, but thankfully all of my desired goodies won’t fit in my budget. :) but these are some additions to our home/kitchen that I purchased for less than $25. Woot!

Things are settling down!

I’ve also decided to make monthly goals for myself so that I can really accomplish my 22 before 23 list in a timely manner and also challenge myself to be intentional with my time, energy and to live more purposefully to serve God and His people more faithfully. Keep me accountable!

Making use of a chalkboard we used for our wedding. (The backside, I didn’t erase your artwork Skye!!) and “neighbors” in this case is literal. We want to meet our neighbors!
Hope you’e having a joyful week!! It’s 1:25 pm, which means its time to hit the sack for me. Night shift tonight. :) Let’s have a victorious week, everyone!

For you are great and do wondrous things;
you alone are God.
Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth;
unite my heart to fear your name.
I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,
and I will glorify your name forever.
For great is your steadfast love toward me..
                              — Psalm 86:10-13

Give thanks: days off, time to spend with Eugene, strength to rejoice every day, “The Darkness and the Glory” by Greg Harris, my new All-Clad cookware set – 20% off :)

My birthday was in the beginning of October, so this list is coming out a little bit late.. but you have to forgive! October was completely filled with doing things for the weddings that I was unable to put this list up until now…but better late than never! If you know me well, you know that I’m a huge fan of lists. I love all kinds of lists. Grocery lists, to-do lists, a list of pros/cons when making a decision, weekly goals lists, etc. I decided to put together a list of things I want to do before my next birthday! I’ve been brainstorming these for the past few months but finalized it today so I thought I’d put it up so you guys can keep me accountable. I’ll be posting as each goal of my list is reached! (Side note: Many of these have been inspired by my friends who have done these things and blogged about it.) Alrighty– here we go..

My 22 things to do before 23.

1. Make chili out of scratch on a rainy day (Inspired by my friend bChao, actually)
2. Take a cooking class with a friend.
3. Learn how to do latte art
4. Run a half marathon (or something of that nature)
5. Host a dumpling-making party
6. Cook something with my husband
7. Learn a recipe from Eugene’s grandma
8. Discover a good chinese eggplant dish that Eugene will like
9. Learn how to juice (with my juicer) and juice as much as possible!
10. Make cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning
11. Host a spring roll party for some of my girlfriends
12.   Make my own pizza
13. Make deep-fried ice cream
14. Give a gift to a stranger
15. Invite a co-worker over for dinner (either mine or Eugene’s)
16. Make a scrapbook
17. Start a tradition with Eugene
18. Start a recipe binder
19. Take a bike ride with my husband
20. Host a cookbook party
21. Do a cleanse (and actually follow through with it til the end!)
22. Drop off baked goods to someone not expecting it

Since this list is going up near the end of November, I jipped myself a month. Poop. Hopefully I’ll be able to accomplish all my goals by the next October. Cheers to a successful year! :)

Give thanks: time to recover, time to plan, the gift of encouragement, time with my mom & katherine, the hour I can spend with Eugene at night amidst our crazy work schedules, praying with Eugene

I don’t know how different life is for Eugene now that we’re married– but my life has gone through some change these last few weeks. I’m sure this is the case for anybody who gets married, but it really is something else sharing things that you used to own all to yourself (i.e. your time, money, laundry space, etc) with somebody else! An adjustment, but a joyful one!

Going back to work has also been quite the challenge. It was much easier being a clean, big-meal cookin’ wife when I wasn’t working.. I had my first 3 days of work last week, and it completely threw me out of whack. Because I work night shifts, it was 1) hard to see Eugene almost at all during the 3-shift period that I worked and 2) It was almost impossible for me to cook decent meals or clean the house during the hour or so I was awake at home. I finished my three-day working spree feeling like the absolute worst wife in the world. After a hundred “sorry”s to Eugene, I realized I just need to figure this act out and be more prepared!! I have a really whacky schedule this week and will be either working at night or on autopilot until next Monday, so my days off have been occupied with preparing for the storm..

So here is my new and improved: How to cook meals for your husband when you work 3-night shifts in a row plan.

1. Spend your days off researching various dishes you can prepare (quickly but deliciously). I tried to think of things I could keep in the fridge/freezer so Eugene could eat it on the nights I have work.

2. Make a schedule of your meals. (I tried to think of recipes that used similar ingredients = less groceries = save money!)

3. Then came the grocery shopping!

We’ll see how it goes this week.

Today was day 1. Fried rice was made in the morning and sent with husband to eat during lunch @ work. Dinner with Chicken Divan. My friend Travis You made us Chicken Divan about a year ago and we loved it. I asked him for the recipe this week because Eugene loves Chicken, and Broccoli and saucy things.. and this you can refrigerate and eat anytime……Perfect! If you’re in a hurry and you need to fix something up quick, this is the dish to make! My friend Helen calls it the fool-proof Chicken Divan!

Here we go! Grab your ingredients.

Cut up your chicken into the size of a fist (quicker to boil through)

Mix the Cream of Chicken (undiluted), mayo (I used light mayo), curry powder and lemon juice.

Boil your chicken in hot water. (I hear that if you use some olive oil, it keeps the chicken nice and moist.) Try to boil it until its pretty cooked inside. Drain the chicken, leave it for a few minutes to cool.

Shred the chicken into bite-size pieces.

Thaw your frozen broccoli by microwaving or steaming. Lay both your shredded chicken and broccoli pieces in a well-greased pan.

Mix it in with the sauce and spread it evenly in your pan. Sprinkle your bread crumbs and cheese over the top and place in your 350 degree preheated oven for 30 minutes. Then voila!

Serve with rice. Warm and saucey dinner at home = happy Eugene = happy wife. :)

1.5-2 lbs of chicken
1 lb of frozen broccoli

2 cans of cream of chicken
1 cup of mayo (or light mayo)
1 tsp of curry powder
2 tsp of lemon juice

1/2 cup of bread crumbs
1/2 cup of shredded or grated cheese

Give thanks: the joys of a clean wood floor, clorox wipes, cook books, days off to spend with Eugene, time to pray, the season of thanks-giving