Closing the book on this blog

Hi friends!  This blog is dated and the format will not allow me to update anything so I have created a new blog.  Please go here to check it out! 

Fig Pinwheels

As I mentioned yesterday...I love pinterest (because of Chez!). I now frequent that website more than facebook or my email. :) I. Am. A. FAN!! I have actually made several recipes that I find either from Everyday Paleo or online. Everyday Paleo has a 30 day meal plan that actually gives you grocery shopping lists. Its amazing!

Sundays tend to be my baking (happy place) day. Yesterday I made crock pot pork chops, fig pinwheels and Fruit N' Nut bars. All homemade. All Paleo.

I found the Pinwheels on Pinterest by Primal Palate. To find the recipe online, go here. I feel like I am more adventurous now than ever before and continue to find yummy recipes that Brian actually likes too. The Pinwheels actually turned out super yummy but not at all pretty. They taste like fig newtons with no sugar!

As you can see... they are not the most attractive cookies ever made... but they are moist, sweet and yummy. I have a sweet tooth so I needed to find recipes that could still 'fulfill my needs'. I let the dough stay in the freezer for one hour (the recipe recommended for 20 to 30 minutes) but it would not really harden. The dough rolled just fine with the fig spread but when I cut it they smashed done.

Try them. They're good. Yummy. And no sugar!

Looking into living Paleo

So... a little over a month ago I was in Austin with some of my favorite people ever. A couple of my friends that I hadn't seen in a long while looked absolutely amazing. Because I can be tacky and speak my mind I had to have thorough understandings of how they were making this happen successfully. I have struggled over the last 5(ish) years of weight yo-yo-ing. They both are living "Paleo" and were doing Crossfit. My interest was peaked after talking with them. I started going some online research to learn more about it (the Paleo... not so much the Crossfit). One of my coworkers in Phoenix was also doing Paleo along with his family and had lost a good amount of weight. He recommended that I check out Everyday Paleo and start from there.

I've lost 8 pounds within the first month. I think this is from cutting out the breads and cheese. I decided to restart the blog to try to hold myself more accountable to this. I also figured I could add the recipes that I try along the way since I have found some really yummy foods that I never thought I would like.

One of my bestest friends ever, Chez, introduced me to Pinterest while I was in Austin and I am a FAN! I have found a lot of great Paleo recipes on it and I am thankful to have a place to 'store' all of my online recipes I find. I found this recipe online and thought I would give them a try. They are not near this pretty but they taste deli!!

Morale of the story, I will do my best to update this blog more than every two years with recipes and what's going on with the Goode-Wicks of Tucson.

Peace.

A great week has come and gone

What a sweet time this past week has been. I was a little worried about keeping myself entertained since Brian was still in Europe with Sydne but it all worked itself out. At the beginning of the week, I stayed pretty busy trying to get school work out of the way, cleaning the house and packing for Las Vegas. On Wednesday is when all of the excitement began. My teammates, Mary Melich, Michelle Stribling and I boarded a plane for Vegas. The flight was very bumpy due to windy skies but we all arrived safely. All of the teams connected at the Apollo College Las Vegas campus to begin our conference. That evening I got a text msg from Chez letting me know that she was wanting to take advantage of the 72 hr sale that SW Airlines was putting on and plan a trip out to Tucson. Since I did not have email I just told her to book any weekend in January and that would work just fine. During this same chunk of time, Chez and Elizabeth connected with each other, Chez told Liz where she was going and Liz booked a ticket too!!!!

Thursday night was also our awards ceremony. Michelle won Team Play of the Year, Mary won Presenter with the most Success, I won Newcomer of the Year and we all won Campus of the Year!!!!!!! All of our hard work over the past year has definitely paid off!


After the conference ended on Friday I was picked up but my cousin Caren and 2nd cousin Bridget. We spent the rest of Friday bonding with family, walking around Caesars Palace, eating a delicious meal together and watching some old home movies from 16+ yrs ago. It was a sweet evening of just getting to catch up.

On Saturday morning we tagged along with Bridget to a Halloween 5K that she had planned to run. Bridget ran with her sisters, Christine and Jaime and Caren & I kept each other company.




After the 5K we went back to the house, had a yummy homemade breakfast, drank lots of coffee and then headed out to a shooting range in Boulder City. Jay brought along all of his guns and let Bridget and I have a go at all of them. It was so invigorating!! :)






Adam came and picked me up that afternoon, took me to meet his girlfriend (I approve), went to REI to buy Brian another pair of Reefs since his cratered a few weeks ago and then dropped me off at the airport.

Brian returned home last night. There was seem issues with the luggage carrier so we left Phoenix for home more than an hour after we should have. We safely made it home about 10:30 pm. I am so thankful he is home!!!

U2 Concert

Brian, Bill & Kim Dycus and I went to the U2 concert last week at the AZ Cardinals football stadium. It took about 4 hours to get there (it should have only taken 2 1/2) but the traffic was so bad. We got there in time to see the last Black Eyed Peas song performed. The concert was very good. I was surprised how many of the songs I recognized or could hum along to. Brian and I didn't end up getting home until after 3 in the morning and I had to be at work by 8 AM. That was not a fun day.

On Thursday, I left work early to take Brian to the Phoenix airport. He got on a plane that evening to head to England to see Sydne. He is now in Barcelona for two days and then will travel to Marrakesh, Morocco to spend a couple of days there.

I am enjoying the house to myself for a few days and then I head for Las Vegas for a work conference. Here are some pictures from the U2 concert...

Happy Anniversary

Brian and I celebrated one year of marriage on October 18th. It is hard to believe how quickly the past year has flown by. It does not feel like it has been a year since we last saw so many of our friends. We are so thankful for all the blessings we have had and look so forward to what the Lord has in store for us and our family.

We spent Sunday like we do most Sundays. We went to church, Brian had to go show some houses, we watched a movie (The Incredible Hulk...it was actually pretty good), and made a yummy dinner. Brian grilled fresh salmon, I baked some chicken and made some yummy veggies that Brian will eat.

All in all it was a great relaxing day. We enjoyed all the phone calls and getting to catch up with different family members. I missed all my sweet friends at ACU homecoming as well. I (not really we) wished I could have been there.


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One year down...

...and many many more to go!

As of Sunday afternoon Brian and I will have been married one year! What a ride it has been so far.

I began a new job that I love.
Brian went off on his own to be his own Real Estate agent and has been uber successful.
I learned how to snowboard in Canada.
We have paid off all of our credit card debt.
We found a church that we love and Brian is now on their Board of Directors.

We are so thankful for the past year of our life together and look forward to so many more. Thank you so much for all of your love, support and prayers through this journey!

Happy Anniversary!