A Bucket for my Bucket List

Bucket lists. We all have them wether they are a detailed list with highlight marks and exclamation points or a more general idea floating around in our heads. This past weekend I was able to live out one of the items at the top of my list; attend a Duke Blue Devils basketball game at Cameron Indoor. I am going to attempt to describe the joy I experienced as I watched a dream of mine from freshman year of high school become a reality.

Maeg

It was a brisk Saturday morning and I was walking the Duke campus with my boo, Maegan, when we reached the epitome of gorgeous architecture and a dominant landmark, the chapel. I was content to walk through and admire the beautiful stain glass windows, insanely high ceilings, and touches reminiscent of Westminster Abbey or St. Paul's Cathedral in London. Needless to say, it was breath taking. We reached the front of the chapel and I noticed a custodian named Oscar at the front. I inclined him to take a quick picture so I could look back fondly on this memory. He gladly obliged and threw in a few jokes as well. After 25 minutes I realized we were still talking to this delightful man. Oscar has been working in this chapel for 17 years and is full of life, if you ever go to Duke make sure to stop in and talk with him for a minute. Church mice, mirrors, fires, movies, etc. were a few of the intriguing topics/events that he entertained us with and through him we were able to revisit the history of this magnificent building.

Oscar then asked the most wonderful question, "Would you ladies like to go to the top?" Umm, obviously our answer was a hasty yes. Pulling out his key ring he escorted us to the stairwell, which quickly changed to the elevator as Maeg let on how nervous she was about claustrophobic heights. (It was only 400 steps up a windowless, spiral staircase...no big deal.) The elevator was charming and had golden gates which whisked us to the bell tower where we were able to look down at the inner workings of this church. Coach K uses this elevator when he goes to the top and Kyle Singler has shot baskets off the area we stood. Of course Oscar was not through with our moment and opened a second door leading us to the very peak of the chapel where we had a 360 degree view. He pointed out parts of Duke's campus, Raliegh, Chapel Hill, and quite a few other views from our tower on high. I felt a little like a princess standing in my castle. We were even allowed to carve our names in the wall. I giggled for a good part of our time atop this spire. How special this was became cemented when we returned to reality(ground level) and witnessed several directors of the board who had to reserve a time to experience the adventure we'd just had spontaneously.

My heart fluttered as we began our walk toward Cameron Indoor. The morning had started perfectly and I couldn't imagine the day getting any better. But this was my fairy tale and so of course it did! Greg, Maeg's husband, joined us in line for the game. They were unbelievable troopers and arrived a little under 2 hours early because they love me! We were still pretty far back and I was concerned that our seats might not be the best, but still excited because I was about to watch Duke basketball. Luckily Greg knew that if you made a sign you might get moved and brought the guy in charge back to judge my sign. I exhaled as he gave us the go ahead and approved my sign. We were brought to the very front of the line and given wristbands. Front row behind the home goal is where we ended up. I couldn't believe that my first game at the arena of my favorite team in the whole world would land me front and center. I truly was a princess!

Days later, I am still taking in the sights and sounds of heaven on earth. Energy was palpable and the dancing and cheering began well before the game clock started. For the next three hours I screamed, shook my crazie hand at opponents, snapped picture after picture, and died of happiness. Coach Mike Krzyzewski was vibrant and larger than life as he reacted to plays, even falling to his knees in exasperation at one point. President George H.W. Bush honored us with his presence and chants of U-S-A filled the stands. Duke played with passion and crushed the wolves of NC State with ease. Many a delightful dunk was made and we roared with delight after each slam or barely audible swish of the perfect three. As the final buzzer rang, I floated back down from my cloud and returned to walking amongst the peasants and normal folk once more.

Mike Krzyzewski sums up the illustrious moment poignantly, "Fun is to experience things you would not have been able to experience in any other setting."

Triumphant

Flexibility is key when starting on a new challenge. Each week I select a quote to attempt to inspire my fifth graders to greatness and I call it "Monday Motivation." Today's quote is:
   
      "Perseverance, secret of all triumphs."
                                  -Victor Hugo

I love the simplicity and simultaneous depth of this quote. Often in our aspirations we set our sights high and when we falter it is a long drop from the greatness we'd hoped to achieve. However, flexibility allows for missteps when accompanied by perseverance. That drive to continue forward through rough patches is the only thing between you and your (realistic) triumphs. Obviously one can aspire for things beyond their control(I will never be the best player in the NBA no matter how much I dream).

My resolution journey continues forward and this time I am putting my happiness first and my resolutions second. They are after all under my command so they will gladly be flexible or I'll be rid of them. For example, originally I set out to cook a new meal every Tuesday. Too limiting. What happens if I have plans? Exactly. Instead of feeling like a failure I quickly realized that a more realistic triumph would be to cook something new and exciting once per week. This provides 21 meals I can choose from for my Piéce de Résistance each week.

Here is the delicious Bow Tie Sausage Pasta I created tonight:


















It was extremely hearty and delicious. A real quick meal to make, but completely fulfilling and can feed a large number of people for fairly cheap!

Other resolutions. Don't worry I didn't forget; I'm not going to do ONLY food posts. I have joined a gym and I went and worked out tonight for an hour. I also ran a couple miles Sunday evening. Half-marathon here I come.

Reading is also going really well, as was to be expected. I have started reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. If you have a chance to go see the film please do; the little girl who stars in the film is magical to watch and phenomenal as an actress. *Warning: Highly depressing film

Lastly, I tried out Sunday schools yesterday and my church and it went swimmingly. I met two other girls doing the same thing and we became fast friends. They are so incredibly nice and I am excited about getting to know them and all the other delightful people I met much better. I was very fortunate that my church has just begun an after college Sunday school so I am among my brethren and not the whatever number wheel to all the couples classes.

All in all, I have had a delightful first of the year and I am really excited to see what adventures this year has in store for me. I promise to persevere through them all so I can dance around in celebration of my triumphs. May you reach your triumphs and persevere through any hardships!

Mangez bien, riez souvent, aimez beaucoup

(Eat well, laugh often, love abundantly)

Broccoli, Chicken & Cheese Casserole

Please tell me why I have not been cooking myself delicious meals all the time? I have no idea why I have gone so long since I cooked something new for myself, but I can tell you that all that is going to change. Today was my first Tuesday to cook a yummy new recipe and boy did I start with a bang. I wish y'all were here to smell the incredible odor wafting through my kitchen and living room. You are missing out.


This recipe is super simple and would be a crowd pleaser for many. Basic ingredients make it a perfect dish to serve to any finicky kids and you are sneaking broccoli into the mix. The gooey cheese wraps itself around the chicken and broccoli to create a meal that warms your stomach. Golden brown bread crumbs add the perfect texture and flavor to tie the dish together.

The recipe I found put the entire dish over rice, but I think it is filling enough without the rice. I would pair it with a nice cut of meat as a side item to really stretch the servings or serve it up as the main dish. This recipe feed 4 adults easily.







Ingredients:
-3 cups cooked, shredded chicken (I used skinless)
-2 cups cooked, chopped broccoli
-2 cans Cream of Chicken soup
-1/2 cup sour cream
-2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (I chose mild, but sharp would add a nice kick of flavor or you could use a variety of cheeses)
-1 1/2 cup bread crumbs
-1/2 stick butter, melted
-pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. Add Cream of Chicken, sour cream, 1 1/2 cup cheese, chicken and broccoli in large mixing bowl. Stir and then place in baking dish.
2. Layer the remaining 1 cup of cheese over the top.    
3. Combine melted butter and bread crumbs. Layer this    
mixture over the cheese.
4. Bake at 375* for 30-35 minutes.

Mangez bien, riez souvent, aimez beaucoup

(Eat well, laugh often, love abundantly) 

Fresh Beginnings

I am filled with the hope that a new year brings.

This year I am taking steps to improve myself from the inside out and I am starting slow to increase the victories and keep my motivation strong. So many times I am tempted to improve every single area of my life and by February I am overwhelmed and discouraged. Instead of maintaining the insanity I have designed for myself I end up letting some things go and this makes me feel like failure. Before summer has a chance to arrive, I've usually beaten myself up about all the things I didn't do and am left depleted of all motivation. Not this year! This year I am going to set attainable goals that have flexibility.

Goal 1: I am training for my first half-marathon. I trained this Fall for the St. Jude Marathon in Memphis, but icy conditions caused the race to be cancelled and so I must continue this journey into Spring. I have found a wonderful training program which focuses on overall conditioning and includes cross training, weights, stretching, etc along with running. I am excited about this because last time I trained it was only running and I got burnt out. My knees are very excited that this program has some low impact training involved as well. I also have signed up for 2 races to keep my training fun. I am running the half on April 26th.

Goal 2: Relationships. Anyone that knows me knows how little I truly share about myself that is personal. I have a really hard time being vulnerable or opening up to people. I want great relationships and in order to attain that, I am going to have to put in the effort on my side. This goal is one that I am leaving wide open so that I keep with it. My goal is to simply make efforts to be honest with people about my feelings (yeah I have those sometimes lol), refrain from joking when a good conversation is occurring, and making new friendships. The last part of this goal leads into the next one.

Goal 3: Faith. I have a good faith and attend church regularly, but I miss the community that is so crucial to growth in faith. I make excuses of why I don't go to Sunday School, but they are all nothing more than an excuse. I am going to plug into my church in a meaningful way. This Sunday I am going to attend a couple different groups and see which group I fit into best and make a commitment to attend regularly. I firmly believe that surrounding myself with people growing in their faith will cause mine to grow.

Goal 4: Culture. I enjoy reading and cooking a lot, but I tend to let those fall by the wayside when I get busy. However, I have designed my half-marathon training schedule and have a couple days where I have time to set aside for those hobbies that make me happy. I am going to cook something new every Tuesday. It can be as simple as a new way to cook eggs or an entire meal. Since I am single, I often don't cook a whole meal b/c it's only me to eat it, but I deserve to eat well wether I have a family or not. Thursdays are going to be reserved for reading. I am starting off small and only challenging myself to an hour every Thursday.

These goals may seem like a lot, but in reality I am only building on things I already am doing. And the beauty of adding a little extra work in the forefront is that the rewards I reap will be exponential. Here's to goals/resolutions that build us up and make us feel good about ourselves. I am looking forward to a year of becoming an even better me instead of trying to change myself to fit someone else's mold.

"We have to dare to be ourselves, however frightening or strange that self may prove to be."
           -May Sarton