We woke up today with just the five of us here as my in-laws are in the mountains for the weekend. As much as we love being with them on a daily basis (we all get along beautifully), it is nice every once in a while to have just the five of us here at home alone - something I don't think I used to appreciate as much as I do now. Between sports, school, other activities and living with my in-laws, these moments are few and far between.
I woke up at 6:30 and met my friend, Debbie, for a 7:00 run and it was just perfect. Perfect not only because this is ideal running weather, in m opinion, but also because being with her for an hour provides me with such emotional balance. Most of the time when we run, it is dark outside and so we talk and share without even looking at each other - we're like two souls sharing everything with each other. We have been meeting at 5:15 or 5:30 a.m. for several years - and God bless her, the entire 9 months I was pregnant, she walked with me - and the year following of nursing and waking up 3 times a night, she put up with me canceling on her last minute so that I could get another hour of shut eye.... She is such a constant for me and I think the world of her. So, Debbie, if you're reading this - thank you for your amazing friendship!!
I got home from our run and Matt and the kids were awake. I made myself a cup of coffee with (drum roll, please).... PUMPKIN SPICE CREAMER!!! (iPhone picture)
I found it on Friday at the grocery. I must not have been the only one anticipating its arrival because there were only 2 left on the shelf, so don't you know, I grabbed both! Mmmm.... it's pumpkin deliciousness!!
The kids wanted Chick Fil A for breakfast, so Matthew and I enjoyed listening to music in the car and chatting in the drive-through line while we picked up chicken biscuits, chicken minis and a chicken breakfast wrap - oh, and hash browns, too. Here is Brooke enjoying her first hash brown in Daddy's lap.
And the boys wanted to use Mimi and Papa's TV trays to watch a show during breakfast (I broke all the good mommy rules this morning with an unhealthy breakfast AND breakfast in front of the TV...but they loved it!).
I wasn't in the mood for Chick Fil A this morning so I came home and made something different - turnip greens with a scrambled egg. It was DELICIOUS!! Before you go, "ew," let me describe it to you...
Yesterday I bought a bag of pre-cut turnip greens. I am a southern girl and boy, do I LOVE my southern greens. I love collards and turnips and mustard greens cooked all different ways. I especially love them when they have been cooking all day with some fat and are soft and rich in flavor. I don't cook that way at home, so yesterday I cooked the turnip greens in 2 cups of chicken broth and added 4 strips of turkey bacon. I let this cook for several hours on low heat and added some champagne vinegar at the end - and a little salt, and they were DELICIOUS!!! I'm hoping that one day, my kids will enjoy eating them as much as Matt and I do. Water soluble vitamins in these greens stay in the water, so I usually pour myself a cup of the turnip greens broth - may sound gross to you but it's actually pretty darn good! It tastes a lot like soup broth.
This morning I heated up a small bowl of turnip greens and added a scrambled egg to it - topped it off with super spicy Sirachi sauce (thank you, Kerri and Emily!!). It was rich in flavor and healthy!!! I had my greens and my protein so I felt healthy AND satisfied!
Hope you all have a great weekend!!
