7 Quick Takes!

7 QT about how we went to Nebraska and then came right back!

— 1 —

We planned on spending Memorial Day weekend in Lincoln, Nebraska attending the ordination of Nathan's college friend, Eric. Sounds fun, right?

View out our  window driving through great weather!

— 2 —

Once we got to Nebraska Friday night we were all worn out from traveling 8 hours with a toddler ("I have to go potty again, and again, and again"). We decided to unwind and hit up the downtown area at a local pizza place that had great reviews.

Abigail drinking her first ever "Shirley Temple" drink

— 3 —

The pizza joint was alight, but not really kid friendly. And all the people working there were college aged and in no hurry to feed us. 

Waiting for our food while on the table?Sure

— 4 —

Pizza finally comes and is tasty. But...it might have been a little too "sticky?" because it pulled my crown away from my tooth. Ouch. And weird to feel a super hard thing in your mouth when you are sure you are eating cheese pizza that should contain no hard things. I was able to salvage the crown and put it safely in Nathan's pocket as we quickly left the restaurant.

— 5 —

Back at the hotel, Im in lots of pain from tooth and no one really is sure what to do. We figure going to bed is the best option, at 7 PM. Surprise, we wake up to a crazy hotel alarm going off at Midnight. Turn alarm off and try to go back to sleep without waking toddler. 5:30 AM comes and Abigail is up and ready to "swim in the pool," which does not open until 9AM. So this was what we did instead.

— 6 —

Tooth still hurting, long day of ordinations ahead of us. We decided not to take any chances with tooth (since our insurance does not cover out of network) and cut our trip short by 2 days and head BACK home later that day.Family Fun weekend, not so fun.

— 7 —

Last but not least, did I mention we have spent close to $1200 out of pocket in dental work on my mouth over the last 2 months trying to correct things that went downhill during my pregnancies? So losing the crown was like a low blow, BUT they were able to fix the tooth first thing Tuesday morning. In the meantime, we headed to the ordination and then drove 8 hours back home Saturday By Sunday I was tired and confused but glad to be home? At least we got some pictures!


Father Eric giving us a blessing 

Thanks to Jen for hosting, check out more 7QT over at http://www.conversiondiary.com! 

Meatless Craze

Im in a meatless craze even though its not Lent. Since we bought our new van in January things have been really tight within our budget. Im constantly looking for ways to save at the one biggest, consistent, weekly expense-groceries. A friend suggested eating more meatless meals and so I thought I would give it a try. Here are some of my new favorites that are saving us money each week!


1. Black Bean Burgers
Recipe: skinnytaste.com

These are so good and have a consistency that actually tastes like beef. I have found that making a large batch up is the easiest way to make these. Then they store in the freezer and go right from there to the pan-no defrosting necessary!The Chipotle sauce is a must with these.

2. Quick and Easy Pizza Crust

Recipe:allrecipes.com

I had heard about using "better for bread" flour but was skeptical. This recipe calls for it and I can defiantly tell a difference. This is quick, easy, and much cheaper than buying the store crust. We usually have just cheese or veggie pizza. We have also made this once and it was yummy:

Four Cheese Pizza

Recipe:allrecipes.com

3. Lastly, and sadly I have no picture, but I'll call them:

Recipe:Black Bean and Avocado Wraps

Came from a friend!

Combine 1 can of black beans, 1 avocado, 1/2 lime (juice), cilantro (to taste) and some feta cheese (which you will have left over if you made the above pizza!) 

Mash the beans and avocado and combine the rest. I served these with tortillas and they were a hit! My other not new obsession, since I've been making them for a while are these:

Home Made Flour Tortillas

Recipe:Allrecipes.com

I make these at least once a week and they are prefect for just about any meal. We had the black bean/avocado mix on them and then had eggs with feta cheese on them the next morning. They also taste delicious with cinnamon and sugar on them! And once you make them I promise you will not go back to store bought. I did end up investing in one of these:

Found here. It saves me so much time!

So there's my meatless suggestions. Anyone else have other easy favorites?

My first ever 7 Quick Takes!

Joining Jen at Conversion Diary for my first ever 7QT! And as much as I promised this new blog of mine would not be about baby loss, this is just too good not to share!So here goes!

-1-

Return to Zero

-2-

I can't stop thinking about this movie, which airs this Saturday (May 17th) on lifetime (check your local listings for a time).

-3-

Ever since I saw the trailer it has not left my mind. My first reaction to the trailer was that someone had made a lifetime movie out of our lives, and that felt weird but good. The scene that really got me was her being wheeled into the hospital and the awkwardness of still being huge and pregnant but with a dead baby, I instantly remembered what that felt like.

-4-

The movie is an independent film and even though many groups saw it, no one would take it on because they said it was "too sad" and no one would watch it. Lifetime ended up taking it on and I'm so glad they did. This movie is breaking the silence of stillbirth.

-5-

And breaking the silence of the hell that families go through after the birth. This is one couples journey to keep it all together in their marriage after the loss of their son.(And random fact-26,000 babies die every year of stillbirth! That's a lot of families impacted by this!)

-6-

I'm watching it with my pregnancy loss support group. Ive gotten so close to these women over the past 3 years. We will have lots of Kleenex and comfort foods!

-7-

Please watch, please share, please help break the silence that surrounds pregnancy loss.

Official Site-Return to Zero

Thanks to Jen for hosting 7 Quick Takes! Visit her at conversiondiary.com

Return to Zero

Excited for this movie to come to lifetime this Saturday, May 17th. I'll be gathering with all my baby loss friends and lots of kleenex to watch the premier. I'd love it if you could watch it and spread the word. This movie is breaking the silence on pregnancy loss.

The story is based on the true story of the writer who lost his first child to stillbirth. I love his line "Im trying to be honest to the emotional truth of what the experience is like." Thank you! Enjoy the short clip about the making of the movie and visit their website for more information...oh and watch the movie Saturday!

Return to Zero

Answer ME this link up

Doing another link up with  Kendra from Catholic All Year

1. What's for dinner?

Trying these out for the first time, I'll let you know how they turn out! We are trying to do one meat-less night(with the hope of 2 eventually) and I'm trying out some new recipes!

2. What's the last thing you borrowed from someone?

Racks to hang clothes on for our garage sale-they came in handy too!

3. What is your favorite prayer?

The Hail, Holy Queen

Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, hail, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve: to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus, O merciful, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Amen.

We used this prayer to go on the back of our son's funeral card and I've been attached to it ever since. I love the part where it says "we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears." Its like a desperate plea to our Mother to send down some help! Love it!

4. What is the oldest thing in your house?

I come from a family where not much is handed down. My mother is good with "out with the old, in with the new," which means not many hand me downs. I think the oldest thing might be a ring from my grandmother....

5. What's the best concert you ever attended?

Jewel. I saw her in concert in Dubuque, IA in 2009. She was awesome. The whole concert felt intimate and like we were her only guests. She was very real and told lots of great stories behind her songs. I've wanted to go see her again ever since.

6. Do you have a nickname?

Ry-Bread? Not really, mostly people call me Ry but that typically is just close friends.

And that's all! Click back to http://www.catholicallyear.com to see the other link ups!